tampered | log; ongoing

log; ongoing

When; November 25th, early morning
Rating; PG
Characters; Rangiku and Greed at first, (Nemu, Hanatarou, and Jan later, if they want)
Summary; Ran wakes up in a cave.
Log;

A shaky, still unfocused motion sent her hand reaching up to push mositure off of her face. The interior of the cave was slightly damp, condensation or something else beading up on the mostly flat rock she was laid out on. The motion caused a low groan to fall from her throat.

Pain was the constant since she'd started to wake up. Pain, and the oppresive dark she'd been in for what felt like days. Sitting up was a task, but she managed it slowly, back carefully coming to rest against the rough wall of the cave she'd ended up in. Her sluggish brain started a mental checklist... but everything hurt, so she abandoned that idea and instead cracked her eyes open to peer around.

This time, instead of the deep dark she'd known, a trickle of light caught her eye. Tempted by the sight, she heaved herself to her feet with a heavy groan. Her legs were shaky and weak, but she ended up pressed against the cave wall, sliding her hands along the way as she tried to head to the light she saw.

Halfway there, her legs decided that they didn't want to help her out, so she slid down the wall and ended up in an inelegant heap, partially illuminted by a tiny shaft of light coming from somewhere higher up in the cave.

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A tall shape soon appeared in front of her.

"Ran? Ran! RAN!" it yelled, moving in on her.

"Ran, it's me, Greed!"

He placed his left hand to her carotid artery to check her pulse, then felt her forehead.

"Wakey-wakey!"

She snorted softly and moved to bat away his hand. "...too fucking loud, Greed." Her words might've been grumbled, but inside, she was beyond relieved that she'd been found. The various marks on her body were throbbing, and her head hurt beyond the other aches, but she still found it in her to lean closer and try to pull herself to her feet by grabbing at him.

Her legs had other ideas.

"Damn it..."

Her reiatsu was still low, and the lack left her weak.

He gingerly checked her body, then picked her up, trying to keep the panic from his voice.

"Tell me who I can get. What do you need, Ran? I don't have any medical supplies with me. Who can I take ya' to?"

She curled against him for a moment in quiet gratitude, then took a shallow breath and prayed her for her ribs to stop aching. "Ah... one of the other shinigami. Nemu... she's been looking for me, I think... And she can get Hanatarou there."

"Okay, right."

He took off through the cave, his eyes easily adjusted to the darkness. He hopped a few stalagmites and continued running, drawing on his stone to raise his body temperature.

"Just keep talkin' to me, Ran. Tell me what you remember."

The heat was beyond welcome. She'd gone past being cold and had moved into numbness long before Greed had found her. His words didn't make her happy, though. She wanted to close her eyes again and fall back into sleep but it didn't seem like she'd get her wish.

"Don't wanna... still tired."

"Shit. Listen, your heart better not stop beatin' while I'm goin' through all this trouble."

He was fast approaching the exit, as he could see a pinpoint of light just ahead of them.

"Look Ran, just...I'm sorry."

The exit was growing more clear by the second, but it seemed like things were almost moving around them.

She was almost asleep again when she heard his apology. Lifting her head took a little effort, but she peered up at him, even though she couldn't see his face. "Ain't planning on dying on you... promise. Why're you apologizing?"

A flicker of sound caught her scant attention, making her grip tighten on him. Her memory was spotty at the moment, but she DID remember flashes of the occupant of the cave, and the memories were tempered by a few bite marks on some extremities.

"Like I said before. I should have tried to restrain you from headin' off. I had a bad feelin' from the start. Those ninja's are full of dirty tricks."

He sensed a fast motion to his side and turned Rangiku away from it, a massive black something shearing his backside open with long claws. Luckily, it didn't sever his spine. He stumbled for a second and kept running, fighting the urge to turn around and kill the damned thing.

"Looks like you weren't alone in here!"

"You know me... once I get my mind set," she started, but ended up gasping at the sudden movement. Fresh fire seared from her wounds, but she gritted her teeth as he kept his pace.

"... one time... woke up with that... thing... chewing on me." Her voice was soft and faltering with each movement of her rescuer.

He transformed his flesh and kept running, letting the blows glance off of his flesh.

"Guess I'll have to make that thing into a nice throw rug later, then," he laughed, his fanged face chuckling.

They soon reached the end, the light causing the beast to retreat. The emerged in the thick of the forest.

After being in the dark for so long, the light was blinding to her. With a sound of protest, she scrunched her eyes closed and buried her face in Greed's chest. Immediately, a large gray shadow moved to run along side Greed, not in as tight as form as it usually was. Ran murmured something against Greed's chest, hand loosening just enough to call the spirit to her.

The ash settled in her grasp, compacting itself down to fit in her shaky hand.

When the creature aimed another blow, Greed kicked out and vaulted off of it's claw. He was kicking off of the trees, taking the high ground. He glanced down at her sword.

"Well, ain't that a neat little trick?"

He made another jumps as the branch that was underneath him was suddenly destroyed by a claw strike.

Haineko was still in her hand, and quiet in her head, which worried her. Even though she couldn't think well, she knew enough to be concerned about it.

"Not something she can normally do... but I don't think I can call her back to her hilt right now..."

She could feel the effort he was putting out, trying to keep them away from the monstrosity that was still after them. Normally, she'd demand to be let down and help, but there was no way she could face something like what was following them. Instead, she held on as tight as she could and closed her eyes.

He gained a bit more height and turned to her.

"Ran, do you trust me?"

The question took her a little off-guard. Without a word, she nodded and sighed.

"Then brace yourself!"

He gathered his strength and hurled her straight up into the air. As she flew up, he immediately turned to catch the opened jaws of the creature.

"You oughtta' keep your MOUTH SHUT!"

With a quick flex of his armored muscles, he tore the lower jaw of the monstrosity off. He followed up by punching through the roof of it's mouth and into it's lower brain. It made a terrible screeching sound and crashed into a tree in it's death spasms. Greed lept from the body and caught Ran just as she started to descend again.

"Gotcha'. Thanks for the patience," he said, rebounding off of trees until they were back on the ground.

"Now let's get you to Nemu."

Shinigami might be used to speed, but outright flight wasn't something they were altogether familiar with. The altitude change made her already odd feeling stomach tighten, but she wasn't too afraid. If he missed catching her, she might not be able to find enough reiatsu to shunpyo the few steps needed to miss the ground, but she knew Haineko wouldn't let her fall hard enough to do any more damage.

Back in his grasp, her eyes sank closed again as she murmured, "you're all bloody, Greed... " The adrenalin from the flight had seeped out of her, and she was starting to get fuzzy again.

"Yeah, don't worry about it."

The rest of their trip was undisturbed, as most of the forest has seen their little spectacle. Within ten minutes they were at the outskirts of the city. As soon as they reached the fountain, he laid her down.

"Ran," he said, "Do you need some water before we see her? Which building?"

Nemu had been heading out of her building to do another round of searching for her friend. She had been patrolling the forest for days, hoping to catch sight of the other woman, a mere glance of black and white robes, a flash of her bright hair... but she found nothing. Each day her countenance drew a little more terse, a little more worried.

She never had liked admitting to strong feelings. Mayuri-sama would not approve, for one. But she was horribly worried. ... Concerned. Afraid. Rangiku... she wasn't used to such things as dissection and experimentation. At the very least, Nemu herself was. And she didn't wish it on anyone. So it was unexpected, shocking even, to pass through the center of town on her way to another patrol and catch sight of a familiar shape.

"Ra- Rangiku... ?" She murmured, softly first, then repeating louder, her steps changing from a slow walk to a stumbling run towards the pair.

"Nemu! Good. Can you take care of her?"

He motioned to Rangiku where she lay.

"I-" Nemu looked the man over. Recognized him from speaking with him once before, when she had first entered the city. He used rather confusing synonyms for the word "attractive". But no matter. If he had found Rangiku he had earned her gratitude.

"Rangiku..." She murmured softly, soothingly, now kneeling next to her. "I can perform a few reiatsu stabilizers until we can get you to Hanatarou...?" It was a question, seeking permission. Her face was concerned, and she thought she felt a rather strange feeling behind her eyes, but ignored it for the time being.

A familiar voice pulled her from the doze she'd slipped into on the way out of the forest. Blue eyes blinked open slowly, finally locking on Nemu.

Not wanting to be seen as she was by another shinigami, she sat up gingerly, offering Nemu a small smile that didn't quite make it to her eyes.

"Look what Greed dragged in."

She nodded, giving Nemu permission.

Nemu's hands began to glow softly, the gentle pulse of her reiatsu. Moving slowly, gently, not wanting to hurt any wounds that may lie beneath the fabric, she lay her palms flat on the other woman, one on her right shoulder and the other just abouve the left breast. Still moving deliberately, she began transferring reiatsu of her own into the other vice-captain, stabilizing her weak and flickering life force.

"I'm so..." Nemu began, whispering. "... happy." The words were somewhat choked by the fact that some sort of liquid was running down her cheeks, originating at her tear ducts. Somewhat shocked, Nemu blinked a few times, sniffling. "... happy..." She repeated.

... Tears.

"Well, if you guys don't need anything I'm gonna' go spread the good word and find out what's been happenin' while I was out."

He placed a hand on Nemu's shoulder, trying what little he knew about comforting people.

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