[ Ben has not yet heard any cajoling from his device, despite having already found a bullwhip in his bedroom one day, totally unexplained. He figures, perhaps understandably, that it is Klaus's, and he's just not yet ready for the 'please don't leave your weird sex stuff in my room you're my brother and I'm begging you' conversation.

So he isn't expecting any item in return. He's not on the lookout for something that is his, when he spots Genji just outside the mess hall, holding something. A book? Ben, who has not seen this guy in the library, glances at what the book might be, curious. When he recognizes the cover, his stomach drops. It's a little like having a bucket of ice water thrown on him out of nowhere. ]

Where did you get that?

[ He's not sick, okay? He's not!

Ben Hargreeves can be seen well after Shepard's PSA going about his usual business, just a little slower and a little more stiffly than usual. He might be pausing now and then to cough, big hacking awful loud things. And maybe now and then he just has to stop and sit and shiver some. That flushed look is totally normal, though. Nothing to see here.

Sick days just weren't a part of the plan at the Hargreeves household, back when Ben was a kid and still had a body that could get sick. He wouldn't even know where to start when it comes to taking care of himself. If someone feels like chiding him to bed, now would be the moment... ]