Chapter 81
Raven sat in her bed reading on the tablet that they had given her. She was studying some of their schematics and trying to figure out how she could adapt some of the things from the barracks and the ship to help out Gryfonkru. She knew that it would take some time for some of the Grounders to fully be okay with working with the tek, but she hoped that in showing them how it would help their lives be easier, that they would get on board with it all. Hell, even Indra took to a rifle. If she could do that, she could give them hot water and possibly refrigeration for their food.
"Good morning, Raven," Sam said as she entered the room.
"Morning, Doc."
"How do you feel?"
"Still a little high from the drugs, but my leg doesn't hurt, so..."
Sam laughed. "That's good. Wanna try standing? Or, do you want me to try something else first?"
"I don't know, Doc. You're the expert here, not me, as much as that pains me to say. If you think that I can stand without a brace, I'm all about that," Raven told her.
"Well, we'll see. You might always have a brace, but I am going to try to make it as small as possible," Sam started. "But, then again, you've already proven me wrong. So, how about we continue to do that and I'll try to keep the brace away."
"Right, Doc. So, let's do this. Standing. I've done that for a lot of years. I can do it again," Raven told herself as she sat up a little more fully in the bed. "I can do this. I can do this. I will do this."
"Yes, you will," Sam assured her.
Sam dropped the rails on the side of the bed and helped Raven spin a little on the bed. She didn't want her pushing too hard because she knew that the drugs she was on would mask her pain. While that was good for recovery and not having cranky patients, it could cause further and unknown injury to Raven's leg. And, that was the one thing that they were trying to prevent.
Sam stayed close to the bed. She didn't want Raven trying to do this on her own. Well at least not for another few days, and definitely not until she weaned her down off the medicine. She knew that Raven was fighter. That much was evident as soon as she met her. And, she knew that Raven could take the pain, too. Now, she wanted the woman to walk.
"Well, depending on how this goes, I'll have you on crutches by the end of the week."
"Really?" Raven said dejected.
"Listen. I know that you want to just get up and go, but that isn't going to happen. We are going to have to be careful. I don't want you slipping and screwing something else up. So, you'll be on crutches, but they will only be there to help you support your weight. I don't want you to rely on them. I'd get Meeka to make you a walker, but I honestly don't think that you'd use it. So, you're getting crutches."
"You talked to Abby?" Raven questioned.
"No. I just read her notes. I can tell that she cares for you a lot, almost like a daughter. She seemed very upset that she couldn't do more for you with what she had. But, honestly, she did damned good with what she had. Which if I can be honest was all shit. She did an amazing job. I'm just adding to it."
"But?"
"She also notated that you were ornery and a notoriously difficult patient," Sam answered.
"I am," Raven stated, truthfully, but with a large smirk.
Sam just shook her head. She reached over and helped Raven get her leg off the bed and dangling over the side. Once that was done, she helped her move her body into position.
"Now, I want you to use me to get yourself up. Okay, on three. One. Two. Three," Sam told her as she saw Raven strain.
Raven grunted as she shifted her weight. But, before she realized what was happening, she was standing. It was gingerly on the one leg, but Raven was standing. She looked up at Sam and gave her a shit-eating grin.
"I'm standing."
"That you are, Little Bird."
"Should I try to put my foot flat?" Raven asked her.
"Slowly and without too much weight."
Raven slid her foot forward on her toes until she felt her heel touch the floor. She pushed down a little bit on her foot, shifting her weight on to it barely. She felt a tinge in her thigh, but that was it. She pushed down some more and then realized that she was spreading her weight more and more between both legs. Not only that, she could feel it all. She looked up at Sam and smiled.
"What?" the doctor asked her.
"I can feel it all the way down," Raven answered with a big grin.
"Good. Now, sit back down," Sam told her. Raven gave her a look, but sat back on the edge of her bed. "Comfy?"
"I guess."
"Good, no stand back up," Sam commanded.
Raven cocked an eyebrow at her and continued to sit.
"Look. I know that you think you can just get up and go, now, but you can't. You are going to have to work back up to it. Your muscles are in good condition. The brace helped you maintain some muscle tone, Raven, but they aren't used to working like their supposed to without the help anymore. So, you're going to be slow and weak for a little bit. You need to build everything back up, so that means repetitive actions and training. So, get out of the bed, Little Bird, and stand up."
Raven nodded. She understood what Sam was telling her. She moved again until she was standing. This time it was easier and she got her foot in place faster.
"Sit."
She did.
"Stand."
She did.
They did this for about three more reps before Sam told her to lay back down. Raven complied. She couldn't believe how tired she was and just from standing. She reached for her cup of water and drank greedily.
"So, we'll do that for the next few days, two to four times a day. Then, when add time limits to you standing. Once you can stand for a minute or two on your own with no real wobble, I'll get you down to the clinic and we'll start on you walking. So, do me a favor and don't push it until then, yeah?" Sam told her.
"What about when I need to pee?"
"You get someone to assist you to the bathroom. If you think that you walk, try, but don't push it. If your leg becomes an issue, use the chair. And, don't worry, I'll have a nurse on call just for you at all times. We don't have a lot of people on the ward, thankfully," Sam explained.
"She cute?"
"Raven!" Palla admonished her from the doorway.
"What?"
"Behave," Palla commanded.
"I am. I swear. It was a legit question."
"It was a legit question, Palla. Well, sort of, but it doesn't matter. To be honest with you, Raven. Clarke won't let any one touch you that she didn't approve of, so your nurses are myself and Meeka. She'll be over later. She's still looking over your new scans. She wants to put you in a brace while we get you back to strength."
"But, I don't want it," Raven whined.
"I know, Little Bird, but if Sam says you wear it, you wear it."
"Sha, Paylah," Raven answered.
"Besides, Little Bird, the brace isn't there to support your leg. It is there to keep it in the right position, so your leg learns to move properly and in the correct manner again. It will only be there for a little while. Once you are up and moving around on your own, we'll be able to remove it. But, then again, that depends on you, how hard you work for it, and if you listen. The more you listen and the more you work with me, the faster I can get you out of it," Sam reminded her.
"I know."
"Good. I'm going to talk to Clarke. I'll find out when Echo and Octavia come back. I know that Clarke wanted them on your team to help you get well," Sam stated.
"Echo will have final say in things until Clarke comes back," Palla added.
"She told me as much. For now, we'll stand. I'll be back in a few hours and we'll go again," Sam told her. "For now, rest. Drink some more water and talk with Palla about whatever you like. I'll be back after my rounds."
"I'll care for her, Sam."
"Then, I know she's in good hands," Sam replied as she patted Palla on the shoulder on her way out the door. "Don't let her stand without help. And, don't let her convince you that she needs to do more reps standing. I'll do that with her myself. You can work on her upper body, but leave her legs for me."
"Got it, Sam," Palla replied as she nodded.
As soon as Sam was out of the room, Raven sat up straighter in the bed. She looked at Palla's eyes. Palla sat down in a chair not far from the bed, but she kept her eyes on Raven She started to swing herself out of the bed, but Palla was up and out of the chair before Raven could blink. She was pushing Raven back into the bed faster than Raven could stop her.
"You are not getting up without help, so lay your hard-headed ass back down or I'll tell Echo that you were bad," Palla threatened. "Don't test me, Raven. I might seem easier than Echo, but you don't know that well."
"Sha, Palla," Raven answered as she pushed herself back into a sitting position in the bed.
"Good."
"Joken, Klark," Raven muttered under her breath.
"And, I'm letting her know about your language," Palla told her, with a cocked eyebrow almost daring Raven to say more.
"They both already know that I have a mouth on me. That's why they love me. I'm the resident smartass."
"Great," Palla replied in a exasperated moan. "They left me a child to heal and train. Echo can't get back soon enough."
Raven laughed and then met Palla's eyes again. She realized that the leader was playing with her. Palla knew about Raven's wit. She'd already been on the receiving end of it several times, but Raven could tell that she wasn't as prepared as she thought she was going to be with Raven and her antics. Mostly because there was no buffer there now, it was just going to be Raven and Palla for the next few days.
"You do know that they are going to test some of those who wish to be jusgona before they come back, right?"
"I do."
"That test is like four to five days long, depending on the number of applicants," Raven stated.
"I know."
"Are you going to watch it?" Raven asked her.
"Watch it?"
"The trials?"
"I didn't think it would be allowed because of who the jusgona are," Palla answered.
"Echo told me that she's set something up so I could see what I was up against," Raven replied.
"Isn't that cheating?"
"Not really, I was already going to have a handicap. Besides, I already know that I'll have to fight Echo, Raven, and Aeolus, Echo's brother. There's an archery contest and run. Horsemanship, well, I guess it would be more like cabelloship here. Survival training, hunting, tracking, and whatever else they feel like doing and testing."
"They aren't going to go easy on you," Palla told her.
"I know. They are going to go harder on me and possibly Bellamy if he's gotten his head out of his ass. But, I am not sure that Octavia will even let him try. Clarke might, but it isn't up to her. Plus, he would have to have someone step up and second his choice for application. I doubt that Indra would do it unless she thought that he'd repented and was ready. She's a hard teacher, but she's the best, too."
"How do you know that?" Palla asked.
"She trained Octavia."