At Robyn's sudden warning Sportacus slammed on the brakes hard. Before he knew what was happening someone ran out in the road and was hit by the car before it came to a stop. Leaping out of the car Sportacus ran round to the front as did Robyn and saw Kit lying on the ground. Much to their astonishment Kit sat up and let Skip go, he'd grabbed the terrier just before he'd gone under the wheels of the car.
Seeing the worried expressions on Robyn's and Sportacus' faces Kit smiled slightly, "don't worry. It's not the first time I've been run over."
Sportacus shook his head trying to shift some of his surprise.
Trying to lighten the situation in his own way Kit said, "I know you don't like me Sportacus but running me over isn't the right way to tell me you know. A simple 'I don't like you' would have sufficed."
"I do like you." Sportacus protested perplexed by Kit's accusation.
Kit rolled his eyes, "that makes me feel so much better. Now if you don't mind I could use some help getting up."
Both Robyn and Sportacus helped Kit to his feet. Despite being knocked over by the car Kit stood up perfectly well and seemed absolutely fine. Without a word he seated himself in the back seat of the car. Looking at each other with confusion Robyn and Sportacus followed Kit's example and got back in the car.
Kit noticed the violin cases on the back seat next to him and laughed, "Blimey Princess, are you going to rob a bank or something?"
Rolling her eyes Robyn turned round so she could look at Kit, "they're not machine guns, silly."
"Shame." Kit said with mock disappointment.
Within two minutes the three arrived at Trixie's house and Sportacus handed her the keys back while Kit and Robyn cleared all of their stuff out of it. While Kit was out of earshot Sportacus asked Trixie to call a doctor, he explained what had happened to Kit and she immediately did as she was asked. Coming back a minute later she whispered to Sportacus telling him that Doctor Cole was on his way. In an effort to keep Kit from running off somewhere she asked the three out loud if they wanted to come inside for some cocoa. Sportacus entered straight away and was followed by Kit and Robyn.
As Kit walked in the door he light heartedly said to Trixie, "I know what you're trying to do."
"How?" she replied a little confused.
"Because Sportacus is about as subtle as a sledgehammer sometimes." Looking at Sportacus he said, "Aren't you?"
Sportacus just shrugged playing the innocent. It was thing Robyn being able to see through him like a piece of glass and it was another Kit doing it. He felt uncomfortable at best when either of them did it, as if there was nothing he could hide.
Kit, Robyn and Trixie were halfway through their mugs of cocoa when someone knocked on the door. As he was the only one not drinking at the time Sportacus got up and answered the door. It was Doctor Cole who had knocked; Sportacus stepped aside to let the doctor in and closed the door when he had entered.
Everyone welcomed the doctor as he stepped into the kitchen and Trixie offered him a cup of cocoa.
"I'm afraid I must decline. I can't stay long because I have to be mindful of the snow that's coming off the mountains. The storm is on the move and I have to go all the way back to Greentown before it hits." Doctor Cole explained.
"Uh oh. Robyn doesn't like snow." Kit grimaced.
"How come?"
"It might have something to do with her nearly freezing to death in the snow. She's got a major snow phobia going on there."
Doctor Cole nodded, "Chionophobia. Not as rare as you might think. It's also not the strangest phobia I can mention. For instance there's Levophobia; a fear of things to the left side of the body or the opposite is Dextrophobia; a fear of things to the right side of the body. There's also a fear of gravity, the name of which escapes me for the moment but I'm wasting time. I believe, young Kit, that you've been hit by a car."
"Yep. Sportacus was driving."
"Oh dear. Whatever next?"
Kit smiled. "He wasn't going quickly. I'd say about five miles an hour when he hit me. I've been hit by a car doing forty miles an hour before now."
At Kit's statement everyone expressed surprise. This was another thing about Kit they'd not known before. It was a shocking thing to say the least. Kit explained that there were people out there that liked to use drifters as target practice and he got caught by one of them. If it hadn't have been for another driver on the same road who had seen what had happened Kit wouldn't have made it to the hospital. He also said that had been the closest he'd come to death since the first attack he'd suffered at the hands of the Shadows.
Once he'd shaken off his surprise and remembered that he had to get home quickly Doctor Cole examined Kit. He took Kit's pulse, temperature, blood pressure and after asking him to remove his shirt examined Kit's back and chest where it seemed he'd made impact with the car.
"I think that looks fine. No problems at all from what I can see. As a precaution I'll make you an appointment for a CT scan and x-ray so we can make sure everything is fine." Doctor Cole said once he'd finished.
Looking in his appointments book he told Kit to come to the clinic the next day as he had a double appointment free for both the x-ray and CT scan. Showing himself out Doctor Cole then made his way back home. He just about made it before the snow hit.
Robyn looked out of the window glumly when she noticed the first snow flakes begin to fall. She really didn't like snow, it scared her. Whenever she went out in it she was always cast back to the time she was lost on the mountains and she'd have a panic attack. Even now she could still hear the voices of the children calling her, asking her to play with them in their fatal game of death. No matter how much time had passed and despite the best efforts of her family and friends her phobia remained as strong as it had always been.
"Come on Princess, I'll race you home." Kit suggested. Time was running out before it really started snowing and when it did there was no shifting Robyn.
Robyn nodded and then ran off followed by Kit who shouted 'bye' for the both of them. Trixie and Sportacus smiled as they watched from the window. Luckily both Kit and Robyn made it back home before the snow fell faster. After helping Trixie clean up and gathering all the stuff left in the hall from the car Sportacus left too.
The snow was starting to fall really heavily now and it was settling on the ground. It would be another white Christmas and another battle to get Robyn over to the Mayor's house for Christmas dinner in a few days.
Usual procedure was to drag Robyn kicking and screaming to the house. Everyone used ear plugs when Robyn was on her way as she could scream with a great deal of volume. There was very little chance that anything would change this year.