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[Retsu was tired.

No. That wasn't true. Retsu was utterly, bone-wearily exhausted.

It has been a week since Aizen fell. One of the worst weeks Retsu ever remembered in her long, long life. Yamamoto-soutaichou had fallen, along with three other captains, and several others were still in critical condition. She was one of the only people still capable of leading, yet she was also desperately needed in the healing ward.

She wasn't sure anymore how many days it had been since she slept. Shinigami were capable of going much longer without sleep than ordinary souls or mortals, but she was still reaching her limit. She glanced around and leaned against a doorpost for a moment, closing her eyes before she went into Jyuushiko's room.

It had taken all Retsu's considerable skill to save Jyuushiko. The blond arrancar had put a hole right through her chest, and there had been complications...Retsu still wasn't sure how fully her friend would recover. And Kyouraku Shunsui was still in critical condition in the room across the hall.

She took a deep breath and opened her eyes, passing through the kido barrier and going to Jyuushiko's bedside to see how she was doing.]

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[Jyuushiko wasn't sure how long she had floated in the not-place - part of herself recognized it as familiar, from the thankfully rare bad attacks. It was easier not to think about it, though, to slip away into simple unconsciousness, to half-surface every now and again.

This time, though, she could feel the gentle pulse of a familiar reiatsu, and a wordless nudging from Sougyo no Kotowari. They were as drained as she was by the battle in the Karakura Town construct, by the fight simply to hold on to life. But their message was clear - it was time to wake up.

Her eyelids felt heavy, but after a few tries she managed to open them, trying to ignore the feeling of crusted-on grit.]

[Her eyes widened slightly when she saw Jyuushiko open her eyes, and then she smiled softly, despite her weariness.]

Hello again, Jyuushiko-san.

[She found a warm towel and gently wiped Jyuushiko's face.]

[Ah. Retsu. That explained the familiar pulse of power - and why she was still alive. She closed her eyes again to let Retsu wipe the grit of sleep off, and found them easier to open again, this time.

She tried to speak, and starting coughing instead, each spasm sending a wave of pain through her chest despite the haze of what she knew to be painkillers.]

Careful! [She spoke sharply and summoned her healing power to soothe Jyuushiko's breathing as much as she could. It wasn't easy; her power was responding sluggishly at the moment.]

Your injuries were quite severe. You'll need to be careful.

[With the help of Retsu's power, the coughs subsided quickly enough, though she was still rather sore from it. Retsu's words brought back the memory of feeling that push against her back, cracking /through/ her ribs, and she shuddered a little, involuntarily.

She did not try to speak for now, simply nodded instead at Retsu's words. Now that she was focusing more, she could see the subtle hints that her friend was tired - and she did not wish to make any more work for Retsu.

She shifted her arm slightly, not /quite/ holding it out - and gods, it had been a long time since simply moving took that much energy. Not since Kaien's- no. She would not think about that, right now. The gesture was small, but it was clearly an offer of a hand to hold.

[She looked at Jyuushiko's hand for a moment, and then back at the door, slipping over to push it shut before sinking into the chair next to her friend's bed and taking her hand.]

Aizen is dead. The war is over.

Nonetheless, it has been a...difficult time for everyone.

[Jyuushiko gave her friend's hand a squeeze, as firm as she could manage. She nodded at the news, in acknowledgment, and as a wordless of way of asking her to continue. The news that Aizen was dead was a great relief, but that did not mean things were back to normal.]

[Retsu felt it would be unwise, however, to give Jyuushiko the more dire news that had accompanied their victory, so released Jyuushiko's hand for a moment to go and get some water from the sink.]

If you feel you can, you should drink some of this.

[She guided it to Jyuushiko's mouth carefully.]

[Another nod, and with the cup at her lips, Jyuushiko took a few cautious sips. Her throat felt raw - no doubt from all the coughing - but the cool water helped.

When she was done, she felt like she might be able to speak, now.]

Thank you.

[Her voice was harsh even to her own ears, and breathier than usual]

You're welcome. I'll get you some ice chips, those should help your throat.

[She pulled herself to her feet and left to get some ice chips from a dispenser, returning with a calm smile that hid her weariness.]

I can prop you up a bit, if you'd like.

[Jyuu gave another nod of affirmation at the offer - without the oxygen mask on, breathing was definitely more of a chore, now, and she didn't want to waste air on words that could be just as easily conveyed with gestures instead.]

[She very, very carefully propped some pillows behind Jyuushiko's back, wary of jostling her abdomen too much.]

The arrancar that attacked you severely damaged your right side. It was necessary to remove part of the lung and lower ribs.

[She gently brought some ice chips to Jyuushiko's mouth.]

You will recover, though I am unsure how badly it will affect your lung capacity. However, it's going to be a slow process this time. You'll be staying with us for a couple of months, I'm afraid.

[She spoke clinically, her smile compassionate, but without any signs of pity--she knew her friend wouldn't appreciate it.]

[The motion still hurt a little, but she did her best not to let the wince show. The ice chips helped, though, and while the news was not particularly good, she simply sighed and nodded. She wasn't of a mind to cause Retsu trouble.

Once she finished with the ice chips, she gave her friend a small, wry smile, and spoke again, voice a little less rough this time.]

You look tired.

It has been a long week. My services have been needed a great deal.

[She closed her eyes for a moment and she looked...simply exhausted, in spirit and body.]

[Jyuushiko reached over to touch her friend's hand gently - a small reassurance, but it was all she could offer right now.]

I'm sorry.

It is all right. [This was the last spot on her rounds, and she wasn't due for another for at least an hour. She put her head down by Jyuushiko's hand for a moment.]

[Jyuushiko reached out, and stroked her friend's hair gently. She knew Retsu would be saying that everything was 'all right' until she fell over.

Within the blanket of the kidou barrier, she could feel no other powers but her own and Retsu's.]

Who else...?

The others in Fourth are Momo-san, Rangiku-san, Hitsugaya-san, Madarame-san...

[She hesitated a moment, worried about Jyuushiko's reaction to the news.]

Rukia-san and Kyouraku-san.

[A crease of frown began to deepen on her forehead as Retsu's list. She didn't like the thought of /any/ of the others injured, really. They had gotten lucky with her - stupid mistake, not paying attention - but to get Hitsugaya as well...

The frown deepened considerably at the last two names. If they were in Fourth, they were /alive/ at least, but it couldn't still the knot of fear forming in her stomach. Of all the people for Aizen and his minions to hurt - not /those two/, damnit.]

How are they?

[She knew which they Jyuushiko was referring to, easily enough--and she didn't want to tell her the answer. But she didn't believe in lying to her patients, either. She sat up, looking kindly at Jyuushiko.]

Rukia-san will recover, though she'll be laid up for at least another week, I think.

[She put her hand over her friend's.]

Kyouraku-san is still in critical condition at the moment. He received extensive burns that became infected.

[Her hands tightened into fists under Retsu's, shaking slightly. It was taking all her control to keep her breathing more or less steady, to not start coughing again. The news about Rukia was reassuring, but Shunsui...damn those bastards. It was a good thing Aizen was dead already - she'd kill him herself, for that.]

Can I see him?

[A stupid question, on her part - even if Retsu would let her, she probably couldn't get out of bed right now, much less stand. A somewhat more distant part of her brain observed that at the very least, she had an IV drip in her arm. She wasn't quite cognizant enough yet to know if there was anything else she was hooked up to.]

[She reached out with her reiatsu slightly, monitoring Jyuushiko's condition carefully. If she got too agitated, Retsu might have to put her under again.]

Not right now. You're in no condition to move, and no one can see him while he's still this sick. With his immune system already overstretched, we can't run the risk of any other illnesses or infections.

[Jyuushiko sighed slightly, shoulders slumping, and nodded. A part of her had expected that answer, but it didn't quite undo the knot of worry forming in her gut, or the shakiness she felt. Still, she had to trust that Retsu would do her best - just as she always did.]

I'm sorry.

[She busied herself checking on Jyuushiko's vitals and the like while her friend composed herself.]

You should get some rest. Your body needs plenty of sleep so you can heal.

[A small shake of her head]

No - thank you. You do your best.

[A few seconds to catch her breath - talking seemed like so much effort, right now - and then she added-]

I will, but...stay awhile?

[Having just woken up, she wasn't entirely keen on slipping back off into oblivion just yet.]