Disclaimer: I don't own Gundam Wing, it belongs to Bandai, Sotsu and associated parties. I just borrow the guys from time to time and return them a whole lot happier. I do own the plot and any other characters, especially the equines, that you will find in this fic. Please do not take them without permission. Written for pleasure not profit.
Pairing: 2x1x2, 3x4, 13x6, H+C
Warnings: Yaoi, lemon, sap, angst, vet themes, AU
Rating: NC 17
Betaed by Karina *snugs*
Summary: Set 2 years after Equus and Heero is doing so well in his own business that he's taken June on as a working pupil. The qualifying shows for the International teams are well underway and it looks like it will be a good year for Heero, his pupils and horses... until Mother Nature steps in.
AN: This fic, although a complete work of fiction is based partially on fact. I will add notes at the end of chapters where necessary to clarify events and provide links where needed.
Dedication: To Leslie and Karina. Leslie for giving me the original idea for Equinity and encouraging and supporting me through the writing of all the fics thus far in the arc. And Karina for not just taking over as my much needed beta, (poor woman needs a medal!), but for also poking and prodding Fred until he went on strike, refusing to work on anything at all until I let him start this. Needless to say, we managed to come to a compromise... Fred gets to write a chapter of this one week... the next week he has to write a chapter of 'Bound'... Did I ever tell you all I hate my muse? :-)
Fic 5 in the Equine Intervention Arc.
Commenced December 2013 – ShenLong
"Rival Riders"
Chapter 21
The course had been checked and the ground raked in front of and behind the jumps. With the ground crew and judge all happy with the course the second riders for each team were given five minutes to present themselves to the collecting ring.
Noin was still outside in the warm up area with Sam, giving the rider last minute advice and assistance with his warm up. Greg had stayed with them to give his charge a last minute check over before their turn at the course. The rest of the team and followers had headed back into the arena to take their seats and discuss their chances amongst themselves.
"Now that each team has had a rider go through the competition should heat up a bit," Heero commented.
"How so?" asked Wufei.
"Each country has had a rider experience the course and they now know the tough areas, the jumps to be wary of, where the pitfalls are and they have relayed that information back to their fellow team mates. You can bet that they will all have taken notice and there shouldn't be quite as many faults in this round. At least that's what logic would dictate." Heero gave a grin.
"Unfortunately it doesn't always work out that way," Duo snickered.
Seeing the slightly confused look on both Meiran and Wufei's faces, Heero clarified Duo's comment for them. "What Duo means by that is that although the riders now know where the problem areas on the course are, the horse doesn't and when you're dealing with a living, breathing creature things can still go wrong. Despite all the best efforts of a rider a horse can still come into a jump on the wrong stride, take a dislike to a jump or simply decide they don't want to play ball."
"Kind of like Shini and the hay bales. He still doesn't know why he can't stop and snack on them and tries to each time he jumps," Duo quipped.
"Thank you for that piece of enlightenment, Duo," Heero huffed.
"Welcome," Duo replied with a cheeky grin.
The second rider for the Italian team entered the arena and the event was underway once more, putting paid to any further conversation.
Heero, Treize and June all watched the Italian rider intently, trying to see if he would tackle the course slightly differently to his team mate. The pair were going well, managing to slow down quite a bit more than a lot of the previous riders had for the water.
Unfortunately he slowed down a little too much and his horse had a back hoof just touch the edge of the water and score four faults.
"Looks like it's going to be really tricky to find the happy medium for that one," June muttered.
"No one said it would be easy," Heero muttered back.
The Italian did manage to have his horse well balanced and full of impulsion for the related fences five and six and went on to complete the rest of the course without any further faults.
"Not a bad score," Treize stated.
"I'd say that water jump is going to cause a few problems," Zechs said. "It doesn't seem to matter whether you take it fast or slow, you still run the risk of gaining faults."
"Then we're just going to have to make sure we take it at the right speed," Treize replied with a smile.
The second rider for the Swedish team entered the arena and made their way to the judge to salute.
"What did their first rider score?" Duo asked, trying to take a look at the note book resting on Heero's knee.
"They scored eight faults," Heero replied.
"I wonder if they will improve on that with this rider?" Wufei mused. Despite not having all that much knowledge of the sport, he was slowly learning and the more he learned, the more he found himself enjoying the competition.
Likewise, Meiran was also learning and enjoying the sport, but she was also amused and happy to see her husband relaxing for a change. Wufei was a very hard worker and an honorable man. Whilst Meiran appreciated those traits in her husband, she was also aware that Wufei would work himself into the ground if she didn't keep an eye on him. Deciding to purchase a horse for showjumping with the intention of saving a little money by using the investment as a tax deduction had been one of their best ideas. Neither one of them could have known just how attached they would become to Nataku – Wufei even more so and the Chinese man had developed a very strong bond with the mare. For that Meiran was grateful. It meant that Wufei had an interest outside of their restaurant and subsequently it took him away from the continuous cycle of work and gave him a very relaxing outlet.
The Swedish rider began their course and although it was obvious that their first rider had passed on their knowledge of the water jump and the problems it was causing, it still ended up being a major disaster for the Swedes.
"Another eight faults," Duo commented, trying not to sound too pleased. The more faults the other teams racked up the better the chances for the Aussie team to make the top three.
"That was a bit of bad luck," Heero said as he wrote down the score.
"How so?" Meiran asked.
"He was trying to slow his horse down for that water, but like Peter's horse, the animal didn't want to and he'd left it a little late to actually get the horse to slow down, the faults are the result of that," Heero replied.
"It's the German's number two next," Treize stated and all eyes switched back to the arena again.
The German rider suffered some bad luck on his round. He managed to keep his horse steady for the water and did clear the following jumps five and six. However, when he came around to the triple, something in the crowd spooked his horse, the horse shying and becoming unbalanced. The horse didn't really stand much of a chance with the triple but gamely tackled it anyway. They had rails down on parts B and C giving them a score of eight faults.
"That seems so unfair," June said, feeling for the rider as he exited the arena.
"I agree with you, but unfortunately that's how it goes sometimes," Heero said with a soft smile.
The South African rider entered the arena and was unlucky to have two rails down and also picked up two time penalties.
"Ten faults for Marcus Whitby riding Foxhill for South Africa," the commentator announced. "Our next rider is Crystal Mansen riding Legal Star and representing England."
"What were the other two faults for?" Wufei asked. "I know they got four faults for each rail down, but that only adds up to eight faults and they said he had ten."
"That's correct, Wufei," Heero said as he finished adding the score to those on his list. "The other two penalties are what we call time penalties. You have a certain time allowed in which to complete the course, if you exceed that time allowed then you score one fault for every four seconds over the time allowed. In this case he was eight seconds over the time allowed which gave him another two faults to be added to the eight for the two rails he knocked down."
"Ah, thank you for that."
"You're welcome."
The English rider crossed the start and rode at the first jump, taking the course at a slow but steady pace. They did increase speed slightly for the water jump and cleared it with ease. The English team had obviously also taken note of the difficulties of the course between the water and following fences.
"She's going a little slow, don't you think, Heero?" Duo questioned.
"It's certainly not a fast round by any means," Heero replied.
"There's being cautious and being overly cautious," Treize muttered. "If she doesn't put a bit of speed on soon I'd say she will end up with time penalties too."
The rider must have realized she was going a little too slow as well and started to put on a bit of speed, pushing her horse into a much faster canter after she'd cleared the triple. The sudden increase in gait unsettled the horse a touch and they just managed to scramble over jump eleven; the hay bales. That seemed to fluster the horse and his rider a little more and they came into the final fence on the wrong stride. The horse was left with no option but to refuse and that's exactly what he did, stopping dead in his tracks and shooting his rider right up his neck.
"Ah, shit!" Duo mumbled and grimaced, fully expecting the rider to continue on over the horse's neck and head.
Luckily she didn't and managed to push herself back into the saddle, gathering up her reins and turning her horse around to bring him into the wall a second time. This time they reached it on the right stride and the horse launched into the air, clearing the wall and galloping through the finish. The damage had been done though.
"Six faults for Crystal Mansen and Legal Star for England," stated the commentator.
"Am I correct in assuming there were two time penalties for that rider too?" Wufei asked.
"Yes, you would be completely correct, Wufei. Four faults for the refusal and two time faults for exceeding the time allowed," Treize responded as Heero was busy writing things down.
Noin entered the area and took her seat just behind Heero. "How are the scores looking so far?" she asked.
Heero handed over the note pad. "No more clear rounds as yet," he whispered.
"How is Sam?" Treize asked.
"Nervous but calm," Noin replied. "Thanks, Heero." She handed the note pad back.
"Our next rider is Sam Goringe riding Morning Mist and representing Australia."
The crowd all cheered as Sam rode into the arena, a determined look on his face. Greg came galloping up the stairs and flopped into a seat next to Noin.
Sam rode his mare to where the judge was and saluted. Silence fell over the arena and the bell went. The gray cantered towards the start flags, Sam running his eye over the course one last time before they broke through the start beam and were off on their course.
Misty cleared the first two jumps easily, Sam sitting quietly on her back and using his seat and legs to keep the mare balanced and forward going. They made the turn through the triple to come into jump three dead center. With a whisk of her tail, Misty cleared the gate with inches to spare.
"Now comes the real test," Treize muttered under his breath.
Heero's eyes tracked the mare all the way, watching intently to see what Sam would do and how Misty would react.
Sam had listened to the advice from earlier and kept a firm contact with the gray's mouth as they turned and headed for the water jump. Morning Mist could see the glint of water ahead and naturally tried to increase her gait, but the firm hold on the reins prevented her from pushing forward.
"Easy, girl, this one needs to be taken a little slower than usual," Sam said softly to his horse. Misty cocked back an ear to listen but continued to try and pull. Sam managed to keep the mare slower than usual until the last four strides. Deeming he was close enough to risk letting the mare have her head, Sam gave with his hands and pushed through his seat. The mare lengthened out her stride, bounded forward and flew over the water.
"Nicely ridden," Heero commented.
"That strategy we talked about appears to be working," Noin said from behind the team members.
"Seems to be," Treize said with a nod.
Having cleared the water, Sam sat down hard and took up a firm contact, slowing the eager mare and bringing her hocks back underneath her body. The impulsion built again and within five strides Misty was launching into the air again over the barrel jump. They landed safely and motored on towards the ditch and rail. Again Misty drove her hocks underneath her body and pushed from the ground, soaring into the air and clearing jump six.
"Now for the double," Sam mumbled and dropped his weight, turning the mare to the right and bringing her in for the double.
Misty sailed over both elements of the double without any problems at all and made a slight, right hand turn to come into jump eight; the off set rails. Those were also cleared and the mare was cantering on towards jump nine.
"So far, so good," June said.
"They are doing really well," Treize commented.
Duo nudged Heero in the ribs and nodded in Greg's direction. Heero looked across where his husband had indicated to see Greg sitting ramrod straight in his seat, knuckles white from the clenching of his fists while his eyes never left the pair in the ring. "Not easy being a groom," Duo whispered to his lover.
"I know that. I've had to put up with your complaints about bleeding nails and hair balls often enough," Heero snickered.
Duo gave him a disbelieving look. "I'll pretend I didn't hear that," he huffed.
Heero shrugged.
Muscles bunched under the gray hide as Misty launched herself into the air and over jump nine, landing cleanly and once more cantering away. Doing his best to keep the mare together and her concentration on him, Sam made a sweeping turn to the left, passed between jumps three and eight and lined the mare up for the triple. He kept a steady contact with her mouth, seat and legs applied firmly to drive those hocks underneath and build the impulsion the mare would need to clear the three elements of the triple.
They approached part A, the gray pushing off from the ground and sailing over the first element. Landing safely Sam applied his seat and leg again, the mare responding and soaring over part B. It was a big oxer and took quite a bit out of the mare to make the spread of the fence. Landing clear again, Sam did all he could to give the mare the best chance of clearing part C. Gamely Misty shoved from the ground again, forelegs tucking up against her body as he reached for both the height and the width of the large oxer. Her belly scraped against the top pole and the mare twisted her hind quarters to avoid dragging her hind legs over the rail. They landed, the pole rolled back and forth in the cups before settling and remaining up. Misty pecked a touch on landing, the twist of her back having put a bit of a strain on her loins and hind leg muscles.
Once the mare was on solid ground again, Sam shortened his reins and used his seat to ride the gray together, building the impulsion once more and making a right turn to come into jump eleven; the hay bales. After the difficulty of the triple, the hay bales were a much easier jump, something Sam was grateful for. The mare plodded on, unknowingly straining those sore muscles further. At this point in time she didn't feel any discomfort and pricked her ears when she spotted the next jump.
In the stands the rest of the group watched with baited breath as the pair bore down on the second last jump.
"That's it, two more and you're home," Greg muttered.
"Easy does it, keep her focused," Heero said softly.
Duo watched as the pair reached their take off point and the mare drew her hind legs right underneath her body to push off the ground.
Those muscles were put under further strain and began to protest. Misty rose into the air but couldn't quite get enough height to clear the jump. The rail over the hay bales crashed to the ground a second after the mare had landed.
A communal groan went up from the crowd.
Sam put the fallen pole behind him and did his best to collect his horse up for the final jump; the wall. All the remaining team members and crew in the stands had their fingers crossed and waited silently, willing the pair on.
Misty eyed up the wall and picked her take off point, the muscles in her back and hind legs ached but she didn't hesitate. Bringing those hind quarters under herself she again pushed off the ground. The strain was a little too much on the already stretched and strained muscles and they gave even more as they pulled tight in an effort to push the horse upwards. Something had to give and as the pair left the ground so the gaskin muscle in Misty's near hind tore.
The mare made a desperate leap to try and clear the wall but given the torn state of her hind leg, she didn't have enough upward lift and her forelegs pushed through the top two layers of bricks, scattering them everywhere. Reaching out with her front legs as they came back to earth, Misty's hooves bit deep into the dirt, the hind hooves following within a second. The finish flags were four strides away and Sam rode for them.
Watching the mare attempt the wall and seeing her scatter the bricks had Duo's mind on alert. He zeroed in on the mare's legs as she landed and narrowed his eyes. The four strides she took to get through the finish told Duo that the gray had hurt herself; but just how and what the damage was, he didn't know.
Heero also picked up on the slight irregularity to the mare's canter and turned to his partner. Noting the look of concentration on Duo's face, Heero knew his partner had also picked up on something.
Passing through the finish, Sam sat down in his saddle and eased back on the reins. As Misty slowed he could feel the mare wincing as she moved. His heart went into his mouth and he quickly looked for the exit. If he were to dismount in the ring it would be classified as a fall and he would be eliminated. He spied the exit a few strides away and aimed for it, bringing his horse back to a walk as quickly as he could. Immediately they passed through the gate he kicked his feet free of the stirrups and jumped off the mare's back.
"Eight faults for Sam Goringe of Australia riding Morning Mist," the commentator announced, but none of the team were listening.
"Something's wrong with his horse," Duo said and stood up, shuffling his way along and heading for the outside.
Heero stood and joined his partner, Greg, Noin, Treize and Zechs were right behind him.
Heero had passed the note pad to June and she in turn passed it to Meiran. "I'll be right back," she said and took off after the others.
Meiran looked at Wufei who returned her gaze. "I think it would be best if we stayed here and continue to record the scores. If there is something wrong with the horse they have more than enough people there to tend to her. Any more and they will just get in the way. Besides, from what I remember Heero and Duo too telling me, horses tend to get a bit on the edgy side if there are too many people around them when they are injured or sick."
"I think that is sound advice, Wufei," Meiran agreed. "I am sure they will all be back soon and let us know what the problem is."
#
Sam led his horse away from the entry point to the arena and off to the side where it was a little quieter. As he led the mare so he did his best to try and see what was wrong. Misty appeared to be limping slightly and wincing every now and then when she put her left hind leg to the ground. Before Sam could do anything further in regard to checking the leg, Duo appeared beside him. "Doctor Maxwell, thank goodness. Something's wrong with Misty," he said in a torn voice.
"I know, I could see it when you landed over that wall. Let me take a look," Duo replied.
The rest of the team and Greg arrived then, questions running rife through the air only to be squashed by Noin who had to bellow to be heard over the top of them all.
"Everyone, be quiet and move back. Let Doctor Maxwell check the horse. Greg, give Sam a hand."
Everyone moved back a bit to give Duo room to work. Sam held the mare still so Duo could examine her thoroughly, Greg loosened the girth and ran the stirrups up, tossing a light rug over the mare to keep her warm. Zechs moved a little closer to Duo to offer his assistance.
Duo ran his skilled fingers over the mare's hind legs, picked up her feet and checked those too. "Could you remove the saddle please?" he asked Greg who did as requested. With the mare's back now exposed to him, Duo ran his hands along the spine, fingers dug in here and there, eyes watching intently for whatever reaction the mare gave to his prodding and poking.
"What do you think?" Zechs asked, appearing at Duo's side.
"Without an ultra sound to be certain, I'm suspecting strained gaskin, possible ligament and tendon strain too in the hind leg. Going on how she tends to dip in her back when I apply pressure over the loin area it wouldn't surprise me if she's pulled a couple of muscles in her back too."
"Not good," Zechs replied.
"No, it isn't. It will put paid to any further competition for her for some time."
"Treatment?"
"Without an ultra sound to confirm the diagnosis the best we can do is offer pain relief and anti inflammatories," replied Duo.
"I agree. Do you mind if I take a look too?"
"Be my guest. I'd like to have a second opinion before I let Sam know," Duo said quietly and stepped back for Zechs to examine the mare.
"Doctor Maxwell?" Sam asked, a tremble in his voice. When the vet turned to look at him, Sam spoke again. "What's wrong with her?"
"One moment, Sam, I'd like to confer with my colleague." Duo turned to Zechs who had finished his examination. "What do you think, Zechs?"
Zechs stroked his chin, eyes still on the mare as he spoke in a low voice. "I agree with your diagnosis. It looks like she's pulled the muscles in her back and also her near hind. Just how much damage would certainly need an ultra sound to confirm."
"Thanks, Zechs. I'll let Sam and Noin know." Duo stepped closer to Sam and looked across to where Noin was waiting patiently with the rest of their team and motioned for the coach to join them. By this time Peter and Chrissy had returned from the stables and settling Espresso. Seeing the group all around Misty and Sam they knew immediately that something was wrong.
"All of you wait here for a moment," Noin said and approached the two vets and horse. "Doctor Maxwell?"
"Sam, Noin, I won't beat around the bush here, I can't make a confirmed diagnosis without an ultra sound scan of the back and near hind, but it appears to both Doctor Merquise and myself that the mare has pulled muscles in her back and also her near hind. There could be tendon and ligament strain too or even torn muscles, but without an ultra sound I can't say for sure."
"I see," Noin replied, her brow furrowed in thought.
"Oh, Misty," Sam said with a crack in his voice as he stroked the mare's nose.
"Is there anything that can be done in the interim?" Noin asked.
"Yes, there is. I'd like Sam's permission to treat the mare with pain killers and anti inflammatories. I would suggest that he get her home as soon as possible and have his own vet look at her. I can write up a letter to his vet explaining my suspicions and treatment at this stage. His own vet will be able to do an ultra sound and confirm the extent of the muscle damage and then apply the more appropriate treatment from there," Duo stated and looked to Sam. "I'm afraid she won't be taking any further part in the competition, Sam."
That's okay, Doctor Maxwell, I appreciate all you have done for her so far. There will be other competitions in the future, right now getting her comfortable and out of pain is the important thing," Sam said and continued to pat the mare.
"The good news is, she should make a good recovery if those muscles are only strained, although she will probably be out of action for around six months."
"No problem, she can have a long spell, it will do her good to have time off. Would you mind treating her for now and I'll make arrangements to take her straight to my own vet from here?"
"Of course. We'll take her back to the stables, I have my kit in the car and I'll fetch the items I need to treat her with."
"Thank you." Sam turned to Noin. "I'm so sorry, Miss Noin."
"There is no need to apologize, Sam. Unfortunately accidents do happen, luckily in this case, your horse should make a full recovery and you should be proud of her for performing as well as she did given the circumstances. Now, take her back to the stables where Doctor Maxwell can treat her." Noin turned to Duo. "Thank you for looking after her, Doctor Maxwell. I will need you to fill out a report for the stewards afterwards as they will need to be notified of the mare's withdrawal."
"No problem," Duo replied.
"I'll let the rest of the team know what has happened while you three head back to the stables and sort the horse out. I'll speak with you further a little later, Sam." Noin turned back to where the rest of the group were still waiting.
"Come on, Sam, let's get this mare comfortable."
tbc...