Battered and Bruised, Chpt. 7

Geze o geze, Sorry about the incredibly long delay. I did not mean for it to take this long. Truth is, I've been in and out of the hospital, shit hittin' the roof, loads of work, and just totally forgot I was even writing this, not that I woulda had the time anyways. Well,...anywho, I got a review alert in the email, and remembered, and found time to start the next chapter. I had to re-read my entire story to remember where I was going with this. Usagi's still not awake, huh? Wow,...sure is taking her awhile! (Sad thing, I had a brilliant idea planned with Yaten and Rei at that temple meeting thats comin up,...but I kinda forgot where I was going with that! =( Sorry! I'll think of something that I hope is just as good or better...eh,...)anyways,...sorry for taking forever! THANKS FOR THE REVIEWS!

Disclaimer: I still don't own Sailor Moon, nor will I ever. And although I don't have the legal ownership papers for this story,...IT IS MINE! So no stealing! Or else I'll hunt you down like a rabbid gremlin, and shoot you with my god-i'm-wasted-floating-pink-elephant gun!

Now that thats over with,...w/o further adu(sp? w/e), CHAPTER SEVEN! *applause* thank you thank you, I love you all! *bows* *ahem* Oh right! Sorry...

))**))**))**))**))**))**))**))**))**))**))**))**)) **))**))**))**))**))

"I DON'T CARE, DAMN IT! I'M TELLING YOU, I CAN WALK!" Makoto pushed the nurse aside, ripped out the tubes and needles, and leaped, ungracefully like a fat retarded cat with one leg, to the ground. She yelped in pain as she landed on her broken wrist, which jabbed into her broken ribs, and with the sudden movement, her fractured head began to throb in a terrible pain. 'Jesus Christmas!'

The nurse immediately ran to Makoto's side and helped her to her back, before she pressed the nurses aid button by Makoto's bed. Within the minute, two other nurses entered the room, and helped return the stubborn hero, back to her bed. They then spent another couple of minutes, re-attaching her to the tubes and gizmo's that Makoto, so intelligently, ripped off.

There was an argument about Makoto being strapped to the bed, that occurred before the two doctors left. The original nurse, argued that it wouldn't be necessary, which Makoto seconded, only to get a glare of, 'you talking right now won't help the situation,' from the defending nurse. The other nurses argued twice more, before giving up and leaving with a "if you need any help..."

When the two young nurses left, the original nurse turned to Makoto, who was shifting uncomfortably in the bed, in pain. "You need to listen, young lady. I don't care how strong you are, you NEED to rest right now. You're in really bad shape!" She then added an extra dosage of morphine into Makoto's arm, with a syringe. Makoto didn't even flinch.

"I can walk-"

"NO. You can't! You have two broken ribs! Your wrist is broken! You have a hairline fracture in your skull! You are in NO condition to be walking around right now."

Makoto's eyes glared in frustration, "But I can. And I need to. I need to see Usagi."

The nurse let out a sympathetic sigh. 'Teenagers, They will never let you win.' She walked right up to Makoto's bedside, and patted Makoto's hand. "Sweety, you'll be able to walk later, but right now, please, just rest! As for your friend, her own family isn't even allowed to see her right now."

Makoto's glare went from frustration to concern, "Her family? Why not?"

The nurse sat on a chair next to Mako's bed. 'Why don't they ever inform people around here?'

"Honey, your friend, is still in a coma."

Makoto sat up, only to be met with a sudden rush of pain, to which she slumped back down, and let out a wincing yelp. "Still in a coma? Its been 3 days."

"I know. She's in really bad shape." The nurse inched a little closer in her seat. "But if it weren't for you and your friends, there is no doubt that she would be dead."

Makoto winced. Maybe the nurse shouldn't have said that. Though her intentions were to lift Makoto's spirits by reassuring the fact that she saved her life, the mentioning of Usagi being dead, was a checkmate move.

The awkward silence was interrupted by a soft knocking at the door. The nurse stood up and answered it. In came two familiar faces. The nurse greeted them, and motioned for them to sit down, before she left the room, and shut the door for privacy.

Makoto, who was staring at the vacant seat that the nurse was previously occupying, turned to look at the door, as it gently slammed shut. She then saw the two figures standing by the door, and let out a grin from ear to ear, "Rei! Mina!"

Rei immediately rushed to Mako's side, giving her a cautious hug. Mina, however, stood frozen at the doorstep. Rei sat down in the chair by Makoto's bedside. Makoto then turned her attention to Minako. "Mina?"

Minako didn't move. A tear fell down her cheek. Makoto noticed her fist form into a tight ball. "Minako? What's wrong?"

"You lost." A barely coherent voice answered from Minako's lips. Anger was evident. "You LOST! WHEN DO YOU LOSE?! YOU ALMOST FUCKIN DIED!"

"I..."

"YOU KICK NEGAVERSE ASS, AND COME SOME HORNY DILL HOLE, YOU GET YOUR ASS RAPE-..." Minako stopped mid sentence (or word, rather), as she mentioned the dreaded "r" word. She slunk back to the wall, and slid to the floor, with a tilted head, and teary eyes.

She looked something like someone who had just been shot and died a mere instant ago.

There was a solid minute of silence. The three of them, had no words to react with. All eyes were on Mina, who was staring out the window, that was positioned behind Makoto. After this eternal minute, the first movement to ensue, was that of Rei, carefully darting her head from Minako to Makoto, trying to decide on who to speak to first.

Being the natural leader type, Rei had gotten it in her head that she should be the first to speak. Though who to speak to first, was a bit of a decision to make. Minako was on the verge of insanity, and Rei honestly didn't have a clue on how to deal with her at the moment. And Makoto was shocked, and obviously enraged with herself for losing. You don't tell Makoto that she lost a fight. You just don't tell her that. 'Mina, you baka.'

After a few rapid blinks, to take in the situation, Rei cleared her throat and began, "Mina,...you know you didn't mean that." Makoto closed her eyes and turned her head away from the two of them. 'Its times like this when I wish I had a script...' Minako didn't even move. "Mina?" No movement. "Minako?" A drop of drool, dangled from her lip. "Mianko?!" Not so much as a blink. "MINAKO!" The blonde's comatose. 'Fine. Be that way, next time I'm coming without you!'

Rei turned to Makoto, who was blankly staring at the blue jay that was perched on the branch outside her window. 'She's got a decent view for a hospital room'. Rei placed her hand gently on Makoto's. Makoto didn't so much as blink. In no louder than a whisper, Rei started, "You have to ignore her, this whole thing is really hard. Mina's just about lost it."

Makoto blinked, but did not tear herself away from that blue jay. Rei, uncertain as to what she should address next, wavered between the fact that Mina talked about her losing a fight, or asking about what happened. She chose the pride damaging loss. "Makoto, Mina was just rambling when she said that. She's just really worried about you." Rei took in a deep breath. "I don't consider it a loss." Rei immediately wanted to take that statement back, it sounded too much like pity, and she knew Makoto hated that. "You really did a number on him," as Rei attempted to fix her previously braindead statement, "Bastard looked dead when we got there. I couldn't have done better my-"

Rei was cut off when Makoto turned to her and placed her finger on Rei's lips. "Thats not important." She drew her attention back to the blue jay. Rei was slightly stunned. "I hear she hasn't woken up yet." It took Rei a second to realize that she meant Usagi.

"Uh,..yeah. Shes not doing so well. But you know that odango, dumb as a brick, but as strong as one when it counts." Believe it or not, Rei was in no mood to insult her best friend. But she felt that a regular insult could lighten the mood. Though the expression on Makoto's face, proved that she had failed. "She'll pull through," she added.

"She was in so much pain." Makoto said quietly, referring to the few nights before.

"Mako-..."

"So much pain." A tear escaped Makoto's eyes.

"You don't have to talk about it now, its ove-"

"No! You didnt see it. You didn't see her. You didn't see what he was doing to-" Makoto inhaled a sharp breath, to regain composure. She was remarkable better at that than anyone else in the group. She then repeated in a lower, and slower tone, "You didn't see, what he was doing to her."

Rei looked to the floor. Neither of them noticed, but Minako was digging her nails into her arm, and blood was slowly dripping from the wound.

"Her look." Makoto continued. "The look in her eyes. I've never seen that kind of look before." The blue jay jumped to the branch below, and Makoto's eyes followed its movement. "I tried to stop it before..." Makoto took in another steadying breath, she lowered the tone again, "But it was too late."

Rei flinched. Again, unnoticed to the other two, Minako dug deeper into her arm.

The blue jay flew away.

A disappointed look overcame Makoto's emotion, and then she continued, "She'll never wake up."

Rei looked up. "What are you talking about?!" Anger escaping her voice.

Makoto continued, still staring at where the blue jay once stood, "I wouldn't. I would fight to never wake up. Not after that. Never."

Rei began to cry. Minako stood up and left the room. Rei got up to chase after her, but changed her mind and sat down instead. 'She needs to be alone right now.' She turned to friend and held her hand. "It'll be okay. We're the Sailor Senshi, Usagi is our princess, our leader, we will get through this. We always get through these things. As long as we're together, and we are. We'll be okay. We'll be okay." Rei said this more for her own benefit than Makoto's, but Makoto needed to hear that. The two of them spent the next few hours in a comforting silence. Both appreciative of the others company.

))**))**))**))**))**))**))**))**))**))**))**))**)) **))**))**))**))

Minako roamed the vacant halls of the Himorshi Hospital. Dazed, and unable to register anything. She couldn't register who she was, what she was doing, what was happening, she couldn't even register, the pain in her arm, or the blood that trickled down it and fell into a trail behind her. She couldn't think, she couldn't feel, she just didn't feel like she could keep on going.

Without paying attention, she tripped on a wire, that led to a vacuum cleaner that was operating in the other room. She sat there on the ground, in mournful pain. Upon the disconnection of the vacuum cleaner, an ill-tempered janitor came out into the hallway to see what the hell was going on. His temper soothed as he saw that a sixteen year old blonde was shaking in tears on the floor, with a trail of blood leading to her arm.

Gently he kneeled to where she sat, and rest a calm hand softly on her shoulder. "You alright, miss?"

Minako looked at the janitor. He looked like he was around 18, and just out of high school {AN: Im american and I don't have a CLUE how the japanese education system is setup, so for my own stress reducing purposes, standard american system applies...(4 yrs high school,...graduation after 12th year,...college)...awww...much better...}. He had a muscular build with chestnut brown eyes, and an identical hair color to match. His hair was short, and ruggedly groomed, but in a way that seemed like it was intentional, and all around, in a way that worked. To put it in everyday terms, the dude was hot. Minako, however, with teary eyes, and being in a mentally bordering state, was for once, unable to notice this. She returned his question with a blank stare.

"Alright, lets get you up." He offered his steady hand, but when he realized that she wasn't registering it, he gently grabbed her hand and lifted her onto his broad shoulders. Then he lead her to one of the vacant hospital beds in the room he had just been cleaning. After getting her into the bed, he pressed the red call button, and requested help from a nurse.

While waiting, he tried to make conversation.

"Hey there, what's a girl like you crying for?" Minako was spasming in between breaths. "Hey, its okay. My names Joe. Joe McDerm." Joe brushed a few stray strands of hair from Minako's face, and ran his strong fingers down her cheek. Minako adjusted her eyes to his. Joe, realizing that he had made contact, smiled a sweet smile and greeted her with a "Hey."

Minako started.

"My names Joe. You gonna tell me yours or what? You kinda owe me, you disrupted my vacuuming, you know."

Minako didn't quite get the whole vacuum cleaning deal, she was pretty much out of it, bordering sanity and all, but she did hear him ask for a name, and to which she answered with a soft, "Mina."

"Mina." He repeated softly. "Very cute," he said with a wink as he stood from the bed. He then walked to her bedside, and leaned on the rail with one arm, "Now hows about ya tell me what's wrong?" God, if only Mina was coherent enough to see this hottie in action.

Minako turned away.

"Alright, I can take a hint. Not everythings open for sharing. Well how bout you let me in on what happened to your arm?" He now had both his elbows on the railing, resting his chin in his hands, with his face inches away from Minakos. Minako couldn't even take the hint.

She looked at her arm and for the first time noticed the self-inflicted gash in her arm. "I..." She was interrupted by an entering nurse.

))**))**))**))**))**))**))**))**))

AN: Well, well,...Sorry to end it there, but I gotsta study for a math test! Oye,...=(. I had 2 options, wait until I could get more time to make this chapter longer, or end it here, and give you guys this until I can write a new one. I thought I'd be nice. Anyways, Usagi should be waking up pretty soon. It's already been 8 chapters! Gee wizers! Well, catch ya guys next chapter! I'm outa here! ~SR