SLUGGISH

Sponge didn't remember even closing her eyes, but the moment she opened them, she found herself coughing and breathing oddly. It took her a while to realize she was still in the room, wondering if someone—or Vvh—had moved her somewhere else. She was lying on her side, facing the stone wall.

After staring at it for a moment, she sat up, gasping harshly before coughing again. Turning to check the other side of the bed, she saw that Vvh wasn't there. This didn't surprise Sponge; Vvh tended to leave the cave early and return before the sun dipped low.

Sponge coughed again, letting out a small, confused sound. Her nose felt blocked, and her throat was scratchy, as if something were lodged in it. She swallowed thickly; her throat felt dry, like sand grating on her tongue. With a small groan, she lamented the second time being sick—in a cold climate, no less.

It felt like all the gods were against her, or perhaps trying to shove the reality in her face. But that hadn't stopped her in North Korea, and it wouldn't stop her now. Sure, she had a blocked nose and a sore throat, but she wasn't a shivering mess.

She didn't remember leaving the cave, but when she blinked again, she was watching Vvh train with her sword. The snow danced around her in a swirl as she moved—it was like watching someone dance gracefully. Vvh was lithe and fast; Sponge could barely see her hands move.

Vvh could really kill you before you even realized you were dead.

Sponge involuntarily let out a cough, and Vvh stopped so abruptly that Sponge almost got whiplash. Turning toward her, Vvh raised an eyebrow. "S-Sorry, um—continue," Sponge stammered, blushing as she rubbed the back of her neck. Vvh simply sheathed her sword at her waist.

"It looks cool," Sponge murmured, her voice almost drowned out by the loud gusts of wind.

"It's late," Vvh replied, and Sponge felt her cheeks flush.

"You overslept," Vvh added as Sponge let out a sigh.

"I—I guess I'm just a bit tired," Sponge mumbled, glancing at Vvh, who simply stared back at her.

"There's no need to be embarrassed; it's your rest day after all," Vvh said, prompting a small chuckle from Sponge.

"Yeah, I guess you're right," Sponge replied.

—

March 5 of XXXX, The Land of Mongolia

It's my day off today…. I have nothing to do, I feel a little under the weather but it's nothing I can't handle!

Still… I have nothing to do, I decided to take a rest from mining as well—

—

"Sponge," a familiar voice called, and Sponge raised her head, letting out a small gasp. Confusion swept over her for a moment; she didn't even know where she was until she felt a hand on her shoulder, stabilizing her. Looking up, she saw Vvh crouched beside her, her head tilted down.

"Wha—huh?" Sponge murmured, glancing at her hands to find her journal still open. She had barely written anything, her mind racing back to the moment she had fallen asleep. Now, as she surveyed her surroundings, she realized she was leaning against the stone wall.

Vvh shook her gently. Sponge blinked again, meeting her gaze. "I fell asleep," she murmured, unsure how it had happened—she had been writing, feeling sleepy but not so exhausted that she would just pass out. She was accustomed to going days without sleep; this shouldn't have been any different. 

What—what happened?

Sponge blinked, closing her journal and tucking it back into her hoodie before looking up at Vvh. "We have a bed, don't we? Why are you sleeping on the floor?" Vvh asked. Sponge shook her head as she stood, and Vvh followed, watching her every move like a hawk.

"I was—sorry… I think I was just so tired, you know?" Sponge murmured, placing a hand on her head. "Have I not told you not to overexert yourself?" Vvh replied, and Sponge nodded. "Sorry… I just—I'm just tired," she mumbled, shaking her head lightly before walking over to the bag of ores and fishing out the pouch she had from yesterday.

It took her a while to retrieve it; her hands fumbled as if everything was water slipping through her fingers. Just then, she noticed another hand reaching into the bag, pulling out the pouch and handing it to her.

Sponge turned towards Vvh, swallowing the dryness in her throat. "You're sick," Vvh stated, causing Sponge to wilt.

"M-Maybe… but I have to show you this! I found this yesterday when I was mining for ores," she said quickly, opening the pouch and moving towards the bed. She dumped all the ores onto the bed, her brows furrowing as she checked them and saw no cracks.

She felt Vvh hover beside her, making her gulp nervously. Did she just imagine the black cracks? What was going on?

"You were saying?" Vvh asked, causing Sponge to yelp at how close her face was, peering over her shoulder.

"I-I think I just mistook it for something, sorry…" Sponge mumbled, though she checked the ores again, ensuring she hadn't imagined anything. Every ore looked fine—no black cracks or anything.

"When—uh, we have a lot of pouches full of ores, right?" Sponge asked, looking inside the pouch where she usually marked the date she collected them.

"That's March 3rd," Vvh replied first, as Sponge's brows furrowed. "What about the 4th?" She turned towards Vvh, who rummaged through the bag, pulling out another pouch and handing it to Sponge.

"This is only March 2. Where's… wait, I must have made a mistake," Sponge mumbled to herself, turning towards her bag and dumping everything onto the floor.

A book tumbled out, along with her quills, two apples, and a bunch of crumpled paper. There were no other pouches aside from the two. Sponge blinked, coughed slightly, and scratched her head in confusion.

"I swear I was mining yesterday! I even had a lot; it was almost full, which is a first for me," Sponge said, standing unsteadily on her feet. She ignored how she almost stumbled before turning to Vvh.

Vvh tilted her head, and Sponge let out a groan, her face heating up in embarrassment. "Forget what I just said! I'll check the mines tomorrow to see if it fell off my waist or something. I'm pretty sure I had it there… man," she snapped her fingers in frustration.

Vvh watched her silently, a strange feeling twisting in her gut as she observed Sponge scratching her head and grumbling about how stupid her pouch was for breaking. Sponge began to clean up the mess, a small pout forming on her lips.