"Well," Dean drones as he and Seth walk side by side through the rocky plains of the virus sector. "Bet you're relieved Heath's been found and saved, so ya don't have as much responsibility on your head for us all."
"Pfft, you're all adults, I hold no responsibility for whatever nonsense you get into." Seth forces his hands into his skin tight jeans' pockets and walks ahead of him.
"Yeah, keep tellin' yourself that," Ambrose mutters, remembering all of the times Seth had broken up arguments between he and Roman, before Seth left them the first time, then betrayed them in the worst possible way and bonded them for life as true brothers. He watches Seth's back as he walks on, his shoulders tense. He'd always been the one to overthink, fret over everything and anything until Dean and Roman had dragged him out for a beer, ignoring his complaints and fussing.
The new Seth might not admit it, but Dean knows it weighs on him. Can tell that it's more than just the pressures of being champion weighing on him. Wonders, not for the first time, if maybe... just maybe... somewhere deep inside, Seth regrets pushing away his family for money and fame. But that's neither here nor there, what's done is done, and now they're once more entangled together because of this whole Digidestined thing.
Dean shakes his head and pulls out his Digivice, peering at the screen once more. They're close to the flickering beacon for help on the screen, almost on top of it, and he immediately looks around, a cursory glance out of curious more than actual worry. Otamamon is also peering here and there, trying to spot the cause of the distress, but there's nothing-
Until, that is, Seth turns sharply around and looks like he's about to say something, just to cut himself off. "SHIT! Ambrose, move!"
He feels it before he sees it, turning slowly and staring at the wall of flames coming straight towards him. He's frozen in place when he feels a strange impact from behind him, a heavy weight falling across his waist. "Asshole, you never listen to me!" Seth yells at him, his hands digging into Dean's shoulders. "Open your damn eyes!"
He's regained his faculties surprisingly quickly considering how close he came to being charboiled, but Seth sounds this side of panicked and he wants to see what his former brother will do, so he lays still, keeps his eyes closed and waits.
"Dean, you son of a bitch," Seth grits out, reaching out and slapping his face. "Wake up!" Betamon digivolves into Seadramon behind him while Otamamon pats Dean's shoulder, trying to revive him.
Dean can only hold it in for a few moments before he cracks, lips parting into an obnoxious laugh. "Knew you still cared," he says, pushing Seth away and sitting up. Only when he gets a good look at the scorched earth where he'd been standing a few minutes earlier does he see just what Seth had spared him from. He swallows and stands, dusting his hands off. "Go get 'em, Otamamon!"
Seth clearly isn't going to let that happen, however, ordering Seadramon to Digivolve once more and this time, Megaseadramon lunges forward and searches out the cause of the flames. Seth can see it, vaguely, from where he's standing a few feet away from Dean, large and hulking, with a bizarrely muscular right arm looking uneven next to a more normal sized left arm. He has monstrous teeth and claws and all in all, Seth hates having to send his partner after him but nothing can be done for it.
Megaseadramon is also daunted by him, alternating between ice and lightning attacks to try to hold him down, keep him from blasting more flames out, but it barely makes the beast flinch. He whips his large arm out and slams it into Megaseadramon, sending him skidding across the hard ground towards Dean and Seth, who tense up as they watch. The sea beast finds his way back up and resumes attacking with more ice and lightning, until he whips his tail around Cyclomon's arm and squeezes tighter and tighter.
Seth's eyes widen and he's about to bark out a warning as Cyclomon prepares to breathe fire upon him, but Dean grabs him. "Shut up unless you want to kill him," he warns Seth, the two of them watching tensely as MegaSeadramon shifts, writhes around and... maneuvers Cyclomon's massive arm in front of him, shielding him from the flames as they eat at the thick muscles, tearing through them and shedding more and more data with each burst of heat. Cyclomon screams in agony as MegaSeadramon pulls away and dedigivolves, more than a little singed himself from the risky attempt.
Somehow, thankfully, it works and as Seth runs forward to scoop Betamon up, examine the burns spreading along his back towards his fin, Cyclomon deletes right in front of him, his data spreading over Seth before disappearing entirely. "Are you ok?!" he demands of Betamon, hugging him closer.
"Fine," his partner whispers weakly. "Just need some rest..."
"Right, yeah," Seth sighs, relaxing a little as he places his partner back in his digivice. Sagging back against the rocks, he tries to breathe normally... until he spots Dean's eyes on him. "What?!"
"Told you you care," he smirks, walking past him with a spring in his step.
"Shut up, Ambrose! And stop humming, dammit!"
