Patrick watched the whole thing happen in slow motion and while he moved as fast as he could from wolf to man, he wasn’t in time to catch her. He checked for a pulse, and after finding that, lifted her gently and put her on the bed. He’d figure out how to explain the muddy sheets later. Once he’d closed the door and drawn the curtains, he went to the bathroom and grabbed a towel and washcloth. The wolf had blood running from her nose. It didn’t look broken, but he wasn’t sure. There is a lot of bone there and he wasn’t sure how it translated when she shifted. He put the washcloth under her nose and started trying to dry off her fur.
“Ginny, Can you hear me? Ginny, Can you shift back? Come on girl,” he said close to her ear. He shook her gently and then went back to drying her off. He didn’t feel any broken bones under the fur, but her coat was so thick it was difficult to tell. “Ginny, wake up. Ginny, come back to me,” he said again. When she didn’t respond, he checked her skull and found a bit of swelling next to her eye. “Oh Ginny, you are going to have one hell of a concussion,” he said to himself.
Looking around, Patrick decided that he’d get cleaned up. He was still spattered with mud and blood. He grabbed some clothes and headed to the bathroom for a quick shower. He had barely turned off the water when he heard Ginny moan. He grabbed a towel and headed for the bedroom. Ginny had shifted back and was sitting up in bed holding her head between her hands.
“My head hurts,” she whimpered.
“You knocked yourself out,” Patrick said. He took her head in his hands and did a quick assessment. “How does your nose feel?” he asked.
“Like I used it to stop a train,” said Ginny.
“Well, it isn’t too swollen. Not sure if you broke it, but it isn’t crooked. You have a hell of a bump on your head too,” Patrick added as he just barely touched the swollen skin.
“Ah… oh, don’t,” Ginny winced. “Would you help me into the shower? I want to get all of this off of me.” There were mud and blood spatters everywhere.
“Of course. I just got out of the shower. Let’s just take it easy,” he said as they stood up and headed towards the bathroom. They didn’t get two steps before Ginny crumpled. Patrick picked her up and saw that her right foot was swelling at the ankle.
“I didn’t even feel the ankle,” Ginny said.
“I’m not surprised. Between the nose and the head I’d be amazed if you felt a train hit you,” Patrick said.
“Gee, thanks,” said Ginny.
“Hon, you got hurt. Some of them are going to fade in comparison to others. Let’s get you cleaned up and then I’m going to see Sam,” he said.
“Oh, no, don’t bother her,” Ginny tried to protest.
“Ginny, you’re hurt. I can’t fix this with a kiss and a bit of water. So just shut up and deal with the fact that you aren’t in charge at the moment,” Patrick said as they stepped into the shower. He held her up as she rinsed off. It only took a minute and then he had her back out and sitting on the edge of the tube.
“I can dry myself,” Ginny said.
“No. I will do this. I don’t want you bending over and making your head pound,” said Patrick in a voice filled with sub-vocals. She was hurt and there was no way she was going to make matters worse by being proud.
“Okay,” said Ginny.
When she was fairly dry, Patrick carried her to a chair and grabbed a teeshirt and panties for her. He helped her dress and then stripped the top blanket off the bed. He tossed it on the floor and then put Ginny in bed. Then he got dressed.
“Stay put, or you will not like the consequences,” he said as he left the room.
“Okay,” said Ginny. He was still using sub-vocals and the rumble made her wince. She tried to get comfortable on the bed.
*
Patrick headed downstairs to Sam’s room. He knew it was nearly 5am, but Ginny needed aspirin and ice for her head and ankle. He knocked on the door and waited. He knocked again and finally heard someone moving on the other side of the door.
“You better have a damn good reason to wake me up twenty minutes before my alarm is gonna to go off,” said a rather grumpy and sleepy Sam through a partially opened door.
“Sam, I’m sorry to wake you up, but Ginny had an accident. She slipped on the balcony and hurt herself. She has a bump on her head and sprained her ankle. I would have waited…” was as far as he got.
“Just shut up a second. Let me get dressed. Do you need a doctor or a vet?” Sam asked.
Sam’s question brought Patrick to an abrupt halt. He blinked and then his brain kicked back in.
“A… a doctor would be just fine. Thanks Sam,” he said.
“There are extra blankets in the hall closet. Grab a few and toss the dirty stuff down the chute next to the laundry bin. I’ll take care of that stuff later. Meanwhile, get back to Ginny. I’ll be up in a few minutes,” she said.
Patrick nodded and headed back upstairs at a run. He grabbed two blankets and was back in the room in under a minute.
“Sam’s calling a doctor and I brought up some blankets,” said Patrick
“Okay,” said Ginny. “I’m sorta cold.”
Patrick wrapped Ginny up in the blankets and waited for Sam to arrive.
*
Sam called Doc Rogers. Then she headed up to their room with a hot water bottle, ice in a bag and some water. She knew Doc would have a fit if she gave Ginny anything else before he’d looked her over. The door was open when she got to the room, but she still stopped and knocked on the door frame.
“It’s me, Sam. Can I come in?” she asked.
“Sure Sam. I have Ginny in here on the bed,” called Patrick.