Considered for Mercy

Peggy coughs, shivering as she curled up more under the covers. It had been about two weeks, and she still wasn't doing well. Instead of getting better, like George had hoped, she seemingly got worse.

"Ge-george..." She coughs, feeling George pat her gently on the back.

"The doctor is coming today, I promise, their sending someone today." He mumbles, placing a wet cloth onto her forehead. George was working over time trying to make sure she didn't get too hot or too cold, and yet she was burning up. He slept on a chair beside the bed most nights, Peggy feeling horrible for taking his bed. "How do you feel?" He asked her this each day.

"Not good." She chuckles, coughing again.

"Don't do that." He says, a small smile on his face. "You need to rest, Margereta."

"How many times have I told you? Just call me Peggy." She mumbles, and George huffs.

"I'm sorry, Margereta, I physically can't do that." He laughs softly. "I know you as that, I can't call you by your middle name now. That would make me less of a dad." A knock comes to the door, and George looks over as a doctor walks inside. He was wearing a face mask, handing George one before clearing his throat.

"I'm Doctor Andy Knepp, I'm the family doctor for the King. I heard she was sick?" Peggy coughs and George nods, moving out of the way as the doctor takes out a stethoscope, placing the cold part onto Peggys chest. "Breathe in for me love?" Peggy only manages to breath in a little before breaking out into coughing.

"Ow, ow, ow." Peggy mumbles, coughing again. The doctors hums, pulling a light and a stick out of his bag.

"Say Ahh." 

"Ahh?" Knepp looks down her throat, nodding a bit.

"How have you been feeling so far? Whats your symptoms?"

"erm-"

"Vomiting, constant headaches, cold and heat flashes, and she has no appetite sometimes." George says, ticking it off on his fingers.

"It seems like you might have pneumonia, although I'm not quite sure. two in ten adults get it each year. Tell me, when was the last time you got a vaccine?"

"When I was, uh, twelve, I think? We stopped getting them after a while, Dad got too into his work and Mom forgot." The doctor huffs, standing up.

"Since you never got a vaccine, which your supposed to get when you turn eighteen, pneumonia will be hitting you harder than it would anyone else. I reccomend getting lots of sleep, and eating food and drinking water. The best I can say is taking herbs from the royal garden to heal you."

"Herbs?" George didn't looked convinced, and the doctor chuckles.

"I know it sound stupid, but mostly herbs help. I recommend, ah, astragalus, echinacea, ginger, goldenseal and licorice root, which you should be able to find in the Royal gardens. Have the chef in the kitchen grind them up very fine and put it in tea or soup, whatever she'll be drinking, and it should help with the headaches and vomiting."

"That would be nice to stop vomiting." Peggy mumbles, and Knepp nods.

"Right now Fredricks feeding you what most peasents of the eightenth century would have eaten each day. Potatoes, cheese, bread, eggs, jam sometimes, your drinking milk or water with your food; I know it sound healthy, but coming off a rich diet of processed foods and the, ah, other stuff Americans eat is very unhealthy. Processed foods contain more carbs than regular non processed foods. Since all the food you're being fed is home grown with no pestisides and miminal treatment to keep animals and the like away from it, It's much, much healthier than the things American's normally eat on a daily basis."

"I'm healthy though, and I've been eating the same thing's she has." George tries to argue, and Knepp nods again.

"You've been somewhere dry, and away from the elements unlike you friend here. I assume you've been eating healthier than your friends before this whole thing started, correct?"

"I didn't like eating unhealthy foods, I like to stay lean."

"Thats one thing this whole stay is going to get you. Skinny as a twig." Knepp starts putting his things away, writing down the herbs he'll need. "Use these herbs like I said, and she should start getting better. If not, then get someone- anyone, just not Fredrick- to contact me again. I should have the right medicine for you in my lab. For now, stay in bed, get some rest, alright?"

"Thanks man." Peggy smiles, and he nods, knocking on the door to be let out.

"Stay safe. I'll see if I can bargin your friends up here, which should be easy. They came into contact with you, which means they may be infected and will need to be quarantined for the time being, which means I'll be placing you and your friends on house arrest." Georges heart swelled with joy at that. He would be able to see Alexander again! Thomas as well, but he was more worried about Alex. He hoped the man was alright.

: :

"So, why are we being moved? Did you hear anything the guy said, Thomas?" Alex asks, following the guard across the empty court-yard. He glanced around a little bit, taking in the sights of the outside world. For a second, he breathed, smelling the fresh bread someone was cooking outside the palace walls and hearing children scream and laugh from a game they were playing. He wished he could be one of the children outside the walls.

"I think he said someone was sick? Will, do you know?" William was sitting on Sams back, leaning against the big dogs fur. The dog had blatently refused to stay inside the cages like the other dogs, and nearly took of a guards hand when they tried to muzzle it. So, Sam got to come along with them.

"My dads been ranting that one of your friends were sick. She caught something that was contageous, and because you guys are her friends, you might have it. Doctor Knepp put you all in quarantine for now." Peggy. The poor girl had caught something and was now bedridden, most likely.

"Jesus, this reminds me of Madison." Thomas laughs as the guards unlock the tower doors. "Always getting sick. The dude can never be just, healthy for once."

"Remember his voice after he got over his cold two years ago?" They both laugh. "Jesus, he was scary."

"Even I was confused on where the hell that deep ass voice he had came from, and I've been friends with him for forever!"

"Alright! Enough chit chat!" The guard infront of them frown, crossing his arms. "You two-three, I guess- have been confined to this tower for the next two weeks. Do you understand?"

"Yeah, sure." Alex crosses his arms, and the guard rolls his eyes.

"I don't give a fuck where you work. You will be still helping with the royal guardens. If we see you trying to escape from the royal gardens, we have been given order to shoot and kill on site. Do you understand?" Both Alex and Thomas nods, and the guard starts to leave. "Fuck off then." He opens the metal door and shuts it behind him, the door clicking to signify its locked. Alex looks over at Thomas, and huffs.

"We should try and find the others then, yeah?"

"Thats the plan."