--I've seen up to Get Backers 42... If I did something stupid, don't kill
me. While I'm on the 'killing Tora' subject, I don't own anything except
for my character, and I don't even get to completely own her. You'll see...-
-
The morning was crisp and cold, and even after the fog of dawn lifted, a slight chill remained in the air.
"Come on! Don't you want something back? Anything!" Ginji yelled plaintively at a passerby. He'd been standing a lonely vigil on the corner since morning, handing out flyers. It was cold, but not enough so to bother him. He hopped around, throwing their colorful leaflets to whoever passed and having to retrieve quite a few from a nearby trash can.
"Hey, these cost money to make, you know," he sulked, tapping the pile to more or less line them all up again.
"Ah..." there was an unsure, questioning sound behind him, and he turned to see who was speaking.
His first impression was that she looked oddly similar to Ban-her slightly lighter brown hair spiking out in all directions to frame her face, and wide, almost too vivid violet eyes. There were a pair of bluish-black glasses clipped onto her shirt, over a bosom that was showing enough to look very nice without standing out... Much...
Whoa. Ban didn't have -those-.
"So you... Get stuff back?" the girl said, looking at a flyer that looked like it'd been snatched off the ground. Ginji snapped his attention up to her face and assumed an innocent expression.
"Yes, ma'am! Anything you need, we can get it!" Ginji said, his voice bubbling with pride.
"Can you... Find people?" she said.
"Well, wouldn't a P.I. be better for that?" Ginji questioned, noting mentally that he wasn't handing out any more flyers, and worried that he'd get yelled at later for slacking if he didn't find Ban and himself a job.
"I've... I've tried a P.I... I've tried everything... And still..." she said, tears glistening at the corners of her eyes.
"Oh... Don't cry! My partner and I can do it, I'd guarantee you!" Ginji said, grabbing her hands in his own and smiling brightly.
The girl balked, then jerked back from the blond boy's grasp.
"I.. Yes, thank you," she said, turning her head away, her hair falling over her face.
Ginji shuffled his feet nervously for a moment. He hadn't expected her to freak over just that-it wasn't as if he'd grabbed something personal...
"I'm sorry," the girl said, brushing her brown locks out of her eyes. "That was rude.... I'm sorry."
She seemed genuinely apologetic, but there was still no explanation as to why she'd shied from the touch so violently.
"No, don't be sorry, it was my fault," Ginji said, smiling again, "I understand." He said it, even though he had absolutely no idea.
"Ah... I haven't introduced myself, have I? My name is Talia..." She said, bowing slightly. The foreign name rolled off her tongue with ease, making it sound as if it belonged.
"Amano Ginji," he said, returning the custom. She smiled slightly at him, still looking uncomfortable from earlier, and he smiled back, beaming.
"Let's go on to the café we normally hold our client meetings at," he said. "My partner should be there later. Why don't you tell me about who you're looking for, in the mean time?"
Talia nodded, and Ginji started walking toward the street where the Honky Tonk was located.
"Well... It's my brother that I'm looking for... He keeps disappearing..." she said to him quietly. "Years ago, we were quite close, but then he just..."
"I see..." Ginji said after a few seconds of silence, watching her out of the corner of his eye. When they turned on the street they were heading towards, he dropped a bit behind, letting her walk in front and admiring the way her charcoal gray trench coat was just snug enough to give suggestions of her body as she walked, then reassigning his attention to her story.
"So.. What was his name?" Ginji said, wanting something to distract him.
Talia stopped, clutching her hands together before her chest, eyes sparkling.
"Ban... Midou Ban."
Ginji stood there, staring, tare-fied.
"You're... You're Banchan's sister?" he said, somewhat squeakily.
Talia flushed, looking nervous suddenly. "Y...Yeah. Why?"
"Ban never told me he had a sister! He's my partner!" Ginji said, jumping about happily.
"Really!?" Talia, almost screaming with delight, started running towards the restaurant.
"Taliasan! Wait for me!" Ginji yelped, tearing off after her.
Suddenly, Talia felt strange-some odd, fluctuating sense of dejavu. Feeling as if she were remembering and seeing at the same time... When, in reality, it was mostly remembering.
Running down a street, she heard her name. A scream, a bang, and...
...Then...
Ginji caught up just in time to catch Talia before she went toppling into the gutter. She was about to fall forward, but he grabbed her around the waist and pulled her more or less upright. She was limp, motionless.
"T...Taliasan." Ginji shook her slightly, muttering. "Oi... What happened to you..."
After a few moments of trying to wake her, Ginji picked her up, draping her dark gray-clad figure over his arms, and carried Talia into the Honky Tonk.
The morning was crisp and cold, and even after the fog of dawn lifted, a slight chill remained in the air.
"Come on! Don't you want something back? Anything!" Ginji yelled plaintively at a passerby. He'd been standing a lonely vigil on the corner since morning, handing out flyers. It was cold, but not enough so to bother him. He hopped around, throwing their colorful leaflets to whoever passed and having to retrieve quite a few from a nearby trash can.
"Hey, these cost money to make, you know," he sulked, tapping the pile to more or less line them all up again.
"Ah..." there was an unsure, questioning sound behind him, and he turned to see who was speaking.
His first impression was that she looked oddly similar to Ban-her slightly lighter brown hair spiking out in all directions to frame her face, and wide, almost too vivid violet eyes. There were a pair of bluish-black glasses clipped onto her shirt, over a bosom that was showing enough to look very nice without standing out... Much...
Whoa. Ban didn't have -those-.
"So you... Get stuff back?" the girl said, looking at a flyer that looked like it'd been snatched off the ground. Ginji snapped his attention up to her face and assumed an innocent expression.
"Yes, ma'am! Anything you need, we can get it!" Ginji said, his voice bubbling with pride.
"Can you... Find people?" she said.
"Well, wouldn't a P.I. be better for that?" Ginji questioned, noting mentally that he wasn't handing out any more flyers, and worried that he'd get yelled at later for slacking if he didn't find Ban and himself a job.
"I've... I've tried a P.I... I've tried everything... And still..." she said, tears glistening at the corners of her eyes.
"Oh... Don't cry! My partner and I can do it, I'd guarantee you!" Ginji said, grabbing her hands in his own and smiling brightly.
The girl balked, then jerked back from the blond boy's grasp.
"I.. Yes, thank you," she said, turning her head away, her hair falling over her face.
Ginji shuffled his feet nervously for a moment. He hadn't expected her to freak over just that-it wasn't as if he'd grabbed something personal...
"I'm sorry," the girl said, brushing her brown locks out of her eyes. "That was rude.... I'm sorry."
She seemed genuinely apologetic, but there was still no explanation as to why she'd shied from the touch so violently.
"No, don't be sorry, it was my fault," Ginji said, smiling again, "I understand." He said it, even though he had absolutely no idea.
"Ah... I haven't introduced myself, have I? My name is Talia..." She said, bowing slightly. The foreign name rolled off her tongue with ease, making it sound as if it belonged.
"Amano Ginji," he said, returning the custom. She smiled slightly at him, still looking uncomfortable from earlier, and he smiled back, beaming.
"Let's go on to the café we normally hold our client meetings at," he said. "My partner should be there later. Why don't you tell me about who you're looking for, in the mean time?"
Talia nodded, and Ginji started walking toward the street where the Honky Tonk was located.
"Well... It's my brother that I'm looking for... He keeps disappearing..." she said to him quietly. "Years ago, we were quite close, but then he just..."
"I see..." Ginji said after a few seconds of silence, watching her out of the corner of his eye. When they turned on the street they were heading towards, he dropped a bit behind, letting her walk in front and admiring the way her charcoal gray trench coat was just snug enough to give suggestions of her body as she walked, then reassigning his attention to her story.
"So.. What was his name?" Ginji said, wanting something to distract him.
Talia stopped, clutching her hands together before her chest, eyes sparkling.
"Ban... Midou Ban."
Ginji stood there, staring, tare-fied.
"You're... You're Banchan's sister?" he said, somewhat squeakily.
Talia flushed, looking nervous suddenly. "Y...Yeah. Why?"
"Ban never told me he had a sister! He's my partner!" Ginji said, jumping about happily.
"Really!?" Talia, almost screaming with delight, started running towards the restaurant.
"Taliasan! Wait for me!" Ginji yelped, tearing off after her.
Suddenly, Talia felt strange-some odd, fluctuating sense of dejavu. Feeling as if she were remembering and seeing at the same time... When, in reality, it was mostly remembering.
Running down a street, she heard her name. A scream, a bang, and...
...Then...
Ginji caught up just in time to catch Talia before she went toppling into the gutter. She was about to fall forward, but he grabbed her around the waist and pulled her more or less upright. She was limp, motionless.
"T...Taliasan." Ginji shook her slightly, muttering. "Oi... What happened to you..."
After a few moments of trying to wake her, Ginji picked her up, draping her dark gray-clad figure over his arms, and carried Talia into the Honky Tonk.