A/N: Hey, hey, hey mina-san! I'm back with the fourth chapter for C.O.T.T.! Wow, I can't believe I'm already posting the fourth chapter of this fic! It's going by fast! Oh yea, and I'm gonna be mentioning my reviewers at the end of this chapter. So, read on! Oh yea! And I finally got a myspace! If you wanna check it out here's the link to my page. http/ . Okay, now on with the story, lol.
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-Chapter Four: Home Again-
Kagome was sitting up in the hospital bed, poking at a tray of hospital food that was sitting in front of her. She was poking at something that was supposedly mashed potatoes when Sango walked into the hospital room. She made a face when she saw the food tray. "I don't see how people can eat that stuff," she commented, making another face.
Kagome grimaced and pushed the tray away. "That," She said and pointed at the tray. "is probably why half the people are in the hospital in the first place."
Sango laughed and sat her purse down in a nearby chair. At least she's got her sense of humor back.
Sango and Miroku had told Kagome the news that she might not be able to ride again and, as they had guessed, she had been heart broken. She hadn't shared her feelings with her friends though, she had just asked them to let her be alone for awhile, and Sango and Miroku had left, promising to come again when it was morning.
Sango could still tell that her friend was upset about the news, but she didn't bring it up. Kagome wasn't the kind of person who liked to share her feelings and she only talked about them when she was good and ready.
Sango walked over and sat in another chair, this one closer to her friends bedside. "So, what time are they gonna let you out of this joint?"
Kagome smiled a little. Sango had been referring to this place as 'the joint' ever since Kagome had been here, three days ago. "In about an hour. Did you bring my clothes?"
Sango pulled a bag off the floor and held it up for her friend to view. "Like I'd actually let you out in public in that," she said and pointed at the shapeless, blue hospital gown that Kagome was wearing. "It'd be the biggest fashion mistake of the year!" She exclaimed.
Although Sango didn't like getting dressed up a lot, most her wardrobe, like Kagome's, consisted of jeans, jean shorts, tee-shirts, and the occasional jean skirt, she was still a shopaholic. It was like she had a sixth sense about where the sales were in clothing stores.
She pulled Kagome's favorite tee-shirt out of the bag. It was solid black with big yellow cats eyes on the front. She laid the tee-shirt on the hospital bed and then pulled out a pair of Kagome's many jeans out of the bag.
Kagome frowned when she saw the jeans, however. "I'm never gonna get my jeans over this thing," She groaned and itched at the cast that encased her leg.
Sango grinned. "I've already thought of that," She said and pulled a pair of scissors out of the bag. "These'll do the trick," She said and snipped the scissors in the air with a grin.
Sango picked up Kagome's jeans and began to cut up the left leg of it, making a large slit big enough for the cast to fit through. "There, all finished," She said and threw the scissors she had just used on Kagome's jeans back into the bag.
Kagome took the slitted jeans and gently slipped them over the itchy cast and then she took off the hospital gown and out on her shirt, sighing out in relief to be out of the gown and back in her familiar clothes.
"Could you hand me those, Sango?" She asked and pointed to a pair of crutches in the far corner of the hospital room once she was fully dressed.
Sango stood and retrieved the crutches for her close friend. "Do you know how to use these things?" She asked as she walked back towards her friend.
Kagome shook her head. "No, but I'm getting out of this room using those things," She said determinedly and took the crutches, placing the tops underneath her arms and grabbing a hold of the two handles, she pushed herself of off the hospital bed, keeping her cast slightly lifted off of the floor.
"There, nothing to it," She said and took a step forward, tripping slightly, causing her to put her injured leg down, and also causing a sharp pain to shoot from her knee through out her entire leg.
"Kagome!" Sango cried and rushed to her friends side, letting Kagome support herself by leaning on her shoulder.
A slight sheen of sweat had broken out across Kagome's forehead and she was panting slightly from the effort and the pain. "I guess it ain't as easy as it seems to look in the movies," She tried to joke, her facial features beginning to relax as the pain slowly began to recede.
Sango eased Kagome back onto the hospital bed just as a nurse walked in. "Ms. Higurashi, you know the hospital policy!" She scolded, already guessing the situation that had just happened from te still pained expression on the young womans face.
Kagome scowled. "I am not riding in that thing just to get to the front of the hospital and into a car," She said and pointed to the wheel chair that the nurse had wheeled into the room with her.
The nurse, a young woman of about twenty-eight, was very pretty. She had long blond hair that was in a bun at the nape of her neck with friendly blue eyes. She put her hands on her hips. If she isn't complaining about the then she's being stubborn, she thought with a sigh. She had been a regular nurse to the young jockey since the day she was brought into the hospitaland they had become quiet good friends.
"Kagome, look, just do it to humor my supervisor, okay? He's doing an inspection today, and if the nurses don't pass then he's gonna put us on probation and possibly dock our pay," She said with another sigh.
Kagome also let out a sigh. "Alright, Gina. But don't think I'm gonna be happy about it," She grumbled and let the nurse help her from the bed and into the wheel chair.
"There, now, this isn't so bad now, is it?" Gina, the nurse, questioned with a smile as she wheeled Kagome out of the room and down the hall.
Kagome had her arms crossed over her chest, glaring down at her encased leg. "Its bad enough," she grumbled lowly. Gina just hid a smile and rolled her eyes.
As Kagome was wheeled out the front of the hospital doors, she saw Miroku standing there with th passenger door opened on his red four by four Ford truck.
Gina wheeled the chair over to the truck and Miroku helped Kagome out of the room and into the passenger seat of his truck, Sango hovering worriedly close by, holding her friends crutches.
Once Kagome was in Miroku's truck, Gina patted her hand and gave her an encouraging smile. "You'll be just fine, Kagome, no worries." And with that, the nurse turned and went back into the hospital through the doors.
Sango stored Kagome's crutches in the back of the truck and quickly walked around to the other side, sliding across the drivers seat and sitting next to Kagome.
"Okay, we all set?" Miroku questioned and got into the drivers seat, turning his truck on as he did so and then shutting his door and hooking his seat belt.
Sango nodded her head. "Just get me out of this place," Kagome muttered, still glaring down at her encased leg.
Miroku slowly pulled out of the hospitals parking lot. "Gomen," He apologized, seeing Kagome wince and clutch her broken leg as he drove over a speed bump, jostling it.
"Couldn't be helped," she said through clenched teeth.
Miroku's stables were about a mile away from the hospital, so they didn't have a long ride to go.
Sango was filling Kagome in on all the stuff that had been going on while she had been in the hospital. "I've been exercise riding the horses while you were in the hospital," in an under tone, so that Miroku wouldn't hear, she said, "and you were right, Miroku does have some really nice Thoroughbreds to ride." She admitted.
Kagome gave a half hearted smile, then let her eyes wander to the country side rushing past her window. She didn't want to admit it, not even to herself, but she was extremely worried about not being able to ride again. I might never be able to ride again. The words seemed to resound in her head over and over, causing her to fight back a wave of tears that threatened to spill from her brown eyes.
Soon, the rolling countryside gave way to acres of white fenced pastures with sleek Thoroughbreds grazing in the afternoon sunshine.
After about another five minutes of driving, Miroku turned into a gravel driveway with a sing about it in bold black letters reading, Sengoku Jidai Stables, and she truly smiled, for the first time since her accident. I'm home, she thought happily.
Miroku pulled his truck to a stop in front of his large two story brick house, making a cloud of dust rise around the truck. Off to the right were his stables. One held his stallions, the others held his broodmares, foals, and yearlings, and the last held his stock of racing Thoroughbreds in training.
Miroku opened his door and Sango scooted out and then rushed to Kagome's door, opening it and handing the young woman her crutches.
Kagome took the crutches, carefully getting out of the truck and trying not to jostle her leg to badly, making sure her injured leg didn't touch the ground.
"Welcome home, Kagome," The trainer said and began walking towards his house, carrying Kagome's bag.
Instead of following him, the injured woman and began making her way towards the training barn.
"Where are you going?" Sango asked, sounding slightly alarmed as she rushed to catch up with her dear friend, which wasn't at all hard, considering that her friend still hadn't gotten the hang of her crutches as of yet.
"I'm going to the barn, where does it look like I'm going, the moon?" She huffed out, negotiating herself around a medium sized rock that she normally would have just kicked out of the way. Baka crutches, she thought bitterly.
Sango frowned and laid a gentle hand on her friends shoulder, stopping her from continuing. "Oh no you're not!" She said, playing the protective older sister. "You just got out of the hospital, you don't need to see the horses right away,"
Miroku had followed after the two young women. "I must agree with Sango, Kagome. Come into the house and rest for a bit, then you can come back out and visit with the Thoroughbreds later," he tried to persuade the stubborn young woman.
The young jockey turned a deadly glare on the two. "I'm not a little child! I am perfectly capable of making decisions for myself!" And with that, she turned and began making her way towards the training barn once again, her back ridged and her jaw set determinedly, daring her two friends to try and stop her again.
Neither did, but they both did follow her, Sango looking worried, and Miroku with an understanding expression on his face. "Doesn't she know that we're just worried about her?" Sango questioned as she watched the younger woman carefully, making sure she wouldn't stumble.
"I believe she does know that, but she doesn't want us to coddle her," He replied, also keeping a close eyes on Kagome.
Kagome finally made it to the coolness of the barn and she breathed deeply, letting the aromas of the Thoroughbreds, leather and hay surround her. Oh, how I've missed this smell, She thought with a contented sigh and then began making her way down the wide barn aisle once again.
She exactly which stall she was heading to, it was the one at the very end of the barn aisle, the one on the right side. She pushed herself to go as fast as her crutches, and her injured leg, would allow.
"Jewel?" She called out when she reached her destination, anxious to see the white Thoroughbred filly.
At hearing her human friends voice, the big white Thoroughbred mare thrust her finely shaped head over the stall portion and gave a whinny of pure delight at seeing the young woman.
Kagome hurriedly leaned her crutches against the aisle wall, balancing on her one good leg, and wrapping her arms around the Thoroughbreds strong, muscled neck, and Jewel bobbed her head once, as if returning the hug to the young, injured woman.
At seeing her beloved horse once again, all of her fears came back to her in a rush, almost over whelming her. I'll never be able to race again. I'll never be able to ride a horse. I can never ride Jewel again.
Tears pushed through Kagome's closed eyes, trekking down her cheeks and falling off of her chin straw strewn floor.
"I'm ready to go in, now," Kagome whispered, her voice weak, and tired sounding and full of defeat.
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There ya have it. Please don't hate me for it! In the next chapter, there'll be a little excitement, so review lots so I can post it and you can find out. See that little button in the left had corner? Its your friend! Lol, thanks for reading this far! Ja ne, Rogue Hanyou