(no subject)

[always_enduphere]

It isn't quiet in the aftermath.

Dean's blood is pounding in his ears, almost a perfect doubletime to the frantic barks coming from the bathroom. Wind whips through the broken windows, scattering the remnants of what would have been dinner, and Dean lies in the heap he'd fallen in, blood beginning to tack where his hand still rests against the sigil.

He needs help.

He needs to help Cas.

Dean rolls onto his back with a ragged breath, broken ribs too sharp against his insides, and manages to extract his phone from his pocket.

His fingers won't cooperate, but after three tries, he gets close enough.

nd hlp my apt pls hurry

Text sent, Dean exhales, concentrating on the pain to keep from sliding into unconsciousness.

Comments

[unburden]

With so few shinigami in the city, it's easy to tell when something happens to one of their number. Dean's spiritual energy is like a flutter in the distance, rising and falling like the inconstant lick of a flame, but he's been training hard. The rises and falls in energy aren't reasons to panic.

His text, on the other hand, has Rukia immediately tearing out of her apartment, stripped down to her real body. She darts through the buildings as though navigating a forest, finding easy footholds against the rough surface of brick, or on top of the steel fire escapes that line the sides of buildings.

She's able to step through the wall of his apartment, and that's when she finds Dean on the ground, bright crimson blooming all across his face.

Wordlessly, she slides to her knees next to him, pushing up her sleeves as her hands start to glow, searching for the worst of the injuries.

"Dean? Dean. Talk to me," she murmurs, eyes narrowed. "What happened?"

[always_enduphere]

Dean grunts, agony sliding red across his vision at even the pressure of her body kneeling next to his. He tries to open his mouth, but something there is broken, and he finds himself speaking against his own clenched teeth.

"Cas," he grits out, and the one good eye he trains on her holds a wealth of emotion - desperation, relief, trust - chasing away the terror that she wouldn't, or couldn't come. "Neutralized, for now."

[unburden]

Rukia narrows her eyes, forgoing some of the focus on the area around them to hone in instead on Dean's injuries. While she hasn't been as thoroughly trained in healing as most of the shinigami in the Fourth Division, Rukia's used the spells often enough to be a serviceable healer in moments of need. The breaks in Dean's body are easy to find, and Rukia works first on stemming the bleeding. There are a couple of bones significantly out of place.

Setting them back will be painful, and she searches Dean's expression. Doubtless that he would put timeliness over his own comfort.

"Castiel. The angel that you keep company with," murmurs Rukia, turning her gaze back to Dean's chest, forcing the broken ribs back into place with careful, precise movements of her spiritual energy. "I remember Urahara-san mentioning that he was preparing the shop for Castiel's arrival. Did you manage to send him there?"

[always_enduphere]

Every rib feels worse before it feels better, but Dean breathes easier for each one snapped back into place, fingers flexing around the hilt of his sword.

"Yeah," he answers around a groan, too aware of his own blood spread in sigils alongside him. "Nothing else could contain him. He's a good man, Rukia." Another rib slides home, and Dean fights down a scream. "It's not his fault."

[unburden]

"I don't need reminding that sometimes, good people can be forced to do terrible things," Rukia tells him quickly, her own jaw tensing for how much it reminds her of Ichigo.

Ichigo, who had found it hard at times to counter the darkness within, the Hollow that constantly fought for purchase in his mind.

"Just stay still," Rukia says, closing her eyes as she checks for any potential punctures in Dean's lungs. Fortunately, nothing vital has been hit — otherwise, she'd be knocking him unconscious at once.

Unfortunately, Dean's probably well aware of his state as well, and Rukia can only count down the seconds until he's inevitably going to try and get to his feet.