Disclaimer: I neither own Get Backers or anything else in this story
(except Mei but she's not that important in this chapter so nobody cares).
Anyway, you two guys who own Get Backers, don't sue me, I'm poor! And
anyone who's Buddhist or a historian of ancient Asian beliefs, don't be
angry if I screw up any of the stuff in here. I know it's not the most
competent research job in the world, but I made an effort! Geh, anyway, I
sound pathetic now, but don't be angry if I mess up. ^.^
Quick note: I had originally planned for this fic to be four chapters, but the scenes I had planned got longer than I expected, so don't be surprised if this ends up to be about eight chapters instead. Mmmm... tea is good.
Warnings: Shounen-ai, general Ban and Ginji stupidity, some scenes of Juubei and Kazuki (because I love Juubei! He so cute!), lots of mythology, probably some OOC 'cuz it's a fic by yours truly.
Okay, I'm done ranting. On with the fic!
Chapter 2 A Strange Riddle
Ban stirred into a reasonable facsimile of wakefulness at around four in the morning. He wasn't sure why he was awake at this god-awful hour. Ginji was usually the finicky sleeper, not him.
When he tried to roll over, he realized why he had woken up.
Ginji must have been having the nightmares again. There was no other explanation for Ginji huddling himself against Ban in a fetal position, shivering like a wet kitten. Ban exhaled the breath he hadn't realized he had been holding, wrapped his arms around Ginji's shoulders, and buried his fingers in the mussed up hair, ruffling it in his usual gesture of affection. The warm dampness against his chest where Ginji's cheek was pressed told him that the nightmare had been one of the worse ones. While Ginji was a bundle of emotion, the blond was not often prone to tears so it was unsettling to see him in such a state. Ban lay there, trying to sooth the whimpering blond.
"Shh, shh, I'm here, Ginji. Go back to sleep."
"Ban-chan, it was horrible!" Ginji exploded with a sob.
Ban was surprised by the sudden outburst. Usually Ginji wouldn't talk about the nightmares until dawn.
"What happened?" Ban asked, shifting slightly as Ginji huddled closer.
"I. there was this man with three eyes, all in this funny armor like those statues at the temple and burning all fiery, and. I couldn't move." Ginji was trembling, ".like I was tied down, but I couldn't see any rope, and you were on the ground, and bleeding and there was blood everywhere and then you weren't even moving and. and." Ginji choked on a sob he had been trying to repress.
"Calm down, it was just a dream." Ban gave Ginji's shoulders a reassuring squeeze.
"But Ban-chan, you died!"
Ban sighed, shifting his weight, and drew himself level with Ginji. He could just make out the tear-stained face of his partner in the near-pitch blackness in the apartment, and smiled. Not a smirk, grimace or grin, but a genuine smile. Ginji had only seen Ban smile like that a few times before, almost always it was directed at him. He visibly relaxed when he saw the smile. It was soothing to see Ban being gentle and calm, after watching him brutally murdered in a nightmare.
Ban took Ginji's hand in his, and drew it up to his face, resting the palm on his cheek. Ginji was surprised at the gesture, but he loved these rare moments when Ban-chan's icy exterior would melt away to reveal a kind and gentle person underneath.
"Here, do I feel dead to you, Ginji?" Ban said softly and Ginji shook his head.
"You're face is warm," Ginji mused his voice still shaky but he had stopped crying. He spread his fingers out and traced the outline of Ban's brow, his eyes, nose and chin. Ban tilted his head, leaning into the touch.
"So's your hand." Ban stopped himself there before he did something foolish, and rolled over onto his side, turning his back to Ginji. ".Now stop being an idiot and go back to sleep. I ain't running off with no woman and I'm sure as Hell not going to die and leave you by yourself. Jeez, I don't know how you got to be so paranoid." Ban snapped his eyes shut as if to finalize the discussion.
Ginji squirmed as if to huddle back against Ban.
"Ban-chan?"
Ban responded with long and very loud snore. Ginji wasn't stupid enough to take it for a real one. Besides, Ban-chan didn't snore.
"Oh Ban-chan, you're absolutely horrible!"
Snore.
Ginji peered at Ban through the early morning gloom of their apartment.
"Ban-chan, I just wanted to know.... If we could stay like we were before?"
Ban opened his arms.
---------------
The cold, gray winter-morning light filtered through the ragged curtains of Ban and Ginji's apartment. It illuminated their few possessions and crept slowly towards the roll-out couch, finally shedding light on a large huddled mass of two young men holding eachother under a single blanket.
Ban's eyes cracked open slowly, wondering vaguely just what the intense warmth pressed against him was. When he heard Ginji murmur his name, and nestle closer, he remembered what had transpired the night before. But it seemed Ginji was alright now.
As Ban lay there with Ginji wrapped in his arms, reveling in the feel of the boy's body pressed against his own, there came a soft knocking at the door. Ban exhaled an annoyed sigh, wriggled out of the tangle of limbs, and amused himself a second by ruffling the mass of soft blond hair watching as Ginji's arms found a cushion to clutch to himself in a sleepy hug.
Whoever was at the door knocked again, a little harder.
"Coming already," Ban hissed, striding a little awkwardly towards the door, and cracking it open. It was Kazuki on the other side, dressed in a warm looking, over-sized cream-coloured sweater and a pair of faded jeans that fit his long legs like a second skin.
Kazuki gazed up at the half-naked Ban, rendered momentarily speechless with a shocked expression plastered on his exquisitely beautiful face. Kazuki couldn't help but to think that Ban looked more like an underwear model for Calvin Klein than a poverty-ridden ex-hooligan.
"B... Ban-san! Could you answer the door a little more... clothed?" Kazuki managed, a flush creeping into his cheeks.
Ban glowered, but opened the door to allow Kazuki to step inside. "If you don't like how I'm dressed at seven thirty in the morning, don't come calling at this ungodly hour. Now what's up, thread-spool?"
"Don't call me that, Ban-san," Kazuki growled, forcing himself to keep some level of politeness. Ban simply smirked, drawing a cigarette from the pack on the coffee table and lit up. He gestured towards a musty-looking armchair where Kazuki took a seat, glaring dubiously at Ban. The spiky haired brunet was rarely this hospitable, and Kazuki could only assume Ban was up to no good. But even so, he couldn't help but to think a pair of tight black designer underwear would look damn good on Ban instead of the plaid flannel boxers with a brown teddy-bear in the corner of one of the legs.
"Nice boxers by the way," Kazuki snorted.
"Ya like 'em?" Ban smirked, pretending to have not heard the snort. "They were a birthday gift from Ginji."
"Figures. Where is Ginji-san anyway? It's strange seeing you without him."
"Shh! Jesus Crow you're loud, thread-spool. He's had a rough night and he's sleeping now." Ban motioned towards the extendable couch, indicating that underneath the mound of pillows and blanket, Ginji was sleeping.
Kazuki mentally gaped. A rough night? He observed the clothes strewn haphazardly across the floor, and Ban's barely dressed state. It didn't take long for Kazuki to put two and two together.
"You didn't... Ban-san you didn't..."
The usually fox-sly Midou Ban was a bit slow in the morning and thus failed to understand the conclusion that Kazuki had formed. "Well, he had a nightmare, what would you expect me to do?" What the Hell is wrong with being a teddy-bear for your best friend after he's had a nightmare?
"Oh my..." Kazuki hid his now brilliantly red face in his hands.
"Anyway, get to the point thread-spool." Ban growled through gritted teeth as he attempted to stifle a yawn, failing miserably.
Kazuki glared. If looks could kill Ban would have been a cold stiff within a second. Needless to say, Kazuki spoke again in a cool even voice. "A girl with bright pink hair is down in the Honky Tonk asking after the Get Backers. I told her I'd go and get you. She's a nice little kid, short, dressed like she just got off a flying saucer. Said she talked to you last night about a mission in retrieving an earring that got stolen from her?" Kazuki looked perplexed.
Ban nodded. "That'd be Mei. Thank god, I thought Ginji and I would actually have to go and visit Maria to have a word with that midget witch. Could you run and tell her we'll be right with her? I gotta--"
Ban was interrupted by a sleepy murmur from where Ginji lay. "Ban-chan... come back to bed... Ban-chan..." followed by a soft snore.
Now it was Ban's turn to blush. "Ginji! Don't say things that way!"
Kazuki was on his feet in a second, the bells in his hair chiming softly at the sudden motion. His voice was unusually high, making him seem even more like a girl.
"I.... I gotta go! Um... stuff to do. M'kay? Nice talking to you this morning, Ban-san! See you later. Buh bye then!"
And Kazuki was out the door within two seconds, hurrying back to the Honky Tonk café.
---------------
When Kazuki stepped back into the café, Mei was seated across from Juubei talking animatedly with the needle-thrower. Her apparel seemed to consist namely of bubble-gum coloured clothing: Pink sneakers with two-inch rubber soles, a pair of bright pink jogging-trousers, a pink summer dress over a neon green slip, and a heavy salmon colored winter jacket. Her hair had been dyed to match her pants, although she had left two green tufts to tie up in pigtails with a pair of pink and green fuzzy dice and a pale pink wool sweater-band was wrapped around her forehead.
"So you know acupuncture? That's really cool! I bet Kazuki-san is happy to have a good doctor around all the time. The jobs he gets are probably pretty dangerous."
Juubei's lips cracked into a smile, turning his head to the sound of Kazuki's footsteps.
"You seem troubled Kazuki."
Mei giggled, and pointed up at Kazuki. "His face is bright red!"
"What happened?" Juubei asked calmly as Kazuki sank down into a chair.
"I don't even know where to begin..." The feminine brunet groaned.
Mei grinned, very similar to the way a child would when they knew something no one else did.
Kazuki simply groaned again.
"Were they sleeping together?" Juubei inquired, a brow raised, his hand seeking out Kazuki's shoulder.
"Yes," Kazuki replied.
Mei lost interest in where the conversation seemed to be heading, and stood to wander over to the counter where Natsumi was looking through a few fashion magazines.
"I'd think as much. Good for them." Juubei's smile remained, his fingers traveling across the plain of Kazuki's shoulder to toy with the long brown strands.
"How can you say that? This is Midou Ban we're talking about, a man I swear to God is the reincarnation of some dark wicked demon sprung from the deepest depths of Hell, a rude, crude, inconsiderate, perverted, conceited..." the beautiful man who rarely had a bad thing to say about anyone sought for the right word. "...Prick!" He finished with a flourish of his hand, nearly knocking Juubei in the head in his outburst of indignation. "Someone like him doesn't deserve a person like Amano Ginji."
"In the same way a filthy traitor like myself does not deserve the kindness and love of Kazuki Fuchoin."
Kazuki was stunned into silence, his mouth opening and closing but no words came out.
"Don't get me wrong. Midou Ban is a rude, conceited braggart, and I can stand him about as much as you can, but we are all men with heavy sins upon our shoulders. He is as deserving of Ginji's affection as I am of yours. Besides, for someone who gathers information for a living, I'm amazed that you've failed to observe how Ban reacts to Ginji."
Kazuki listened, intrigued how his blind lover could see so much.
"Ban, around everyone else, is closed in on himself. Something happened to him that made him deeply bitter towards the world. You can hear it in his voice, every sneer, and every scathing word, there is an anger. I know this because it is the same bitterness that I tasted during... that time. "
Kazuki didn't need Juubei to elaborate. They both know what he meant when he said 'that time'. The time Juubei had believed Kazuki to be a traitor, and had nothing but the desire to kill his childhood friend.
"His reaction to Ginji is different, though. It's in his voice again, where there is no bite to his words. There is... a softness. Ginji does something that changes Midou Ban, he erases that bitterness."
"So essentially what you're saying Ginji-san draws Ban-san out of some sort of self-perpetuated bitterness?" Kazuki inquired, his expression puzzled.
Juubei reached up to touch that face and nodded in affirmation. "Much as you draw me out of my own."
Kazuki was quiet for a long time, content to let Juubei trace his hand over his cheek.
"Even demons are capable of love, Kazuki."
"Alright, maybe I was a bit harsh. But if he hurts Ginji-san..."
"...I'm sure you won't be the only one after his blood."
---------------
Wan Paul was sweeping the floor while watching Natsumi and Mei flipping excitedly through the fashion magazines, discussing the latest styles and laughing over which ones they liked or didn't. It was good to see Natsumi was making friends so easily at the café.
Then there was a sudden silence between the two, as they were both watching Kazuki like hawks. Mei put her thumbs against her index fingers as if to create a photographic lens to capture Kazuki's image in.
"He would look so good in that outfit." Natsumi said wistfully, Mei nodding in fervent agreement.
"Let me see..." Paul chuckled peering over Natsumi's shoulder. "...You're right, he would look good in that outfit," Paul remarked, with a brow raised from behind his dark lenses.
Kazuki stood, looking mildly annoyed. "Alright, I don't like where this is going. What outfit would I look good in?"
Mei held up the magazine. On the page was a model dressed in an elegant black and white satin gown. It fell in front just above the woman's knees, and the trail in back expanded like a halo around her feet.
Kazuki had to admit the dress was quite appealing, even though all his life he lacked the desire to wear women's clothes.
"It's pretty but I don't dress in women's clothing."
"But Kazuki-san is so pretty!" Mei exclaimed. "You'd be a beautiful model. You're really slim, you don't have any breasts, you're face is gorgeous. It's a sin you're photo isn't on glossy paper."
"I'd have to agree," Juubei said softly from behind Kazuki, "Your beauty is exquisite."
"Juubei!"
"And your hair is so long and such a pretty dark brown! Agents would be falling over eachother to represent you!" Natsumi added with a wink.
"Natsumi, you're so cruel!"
"What? That's a compliment! I envy you!"
Juubei was in one of his rare (very, very rare to the point of non- existent), playful moods. "Well, it doesn't matter what sort of clothes he'd wear, it's all the same to me. They'd be off in a second, because Kazuki is most beautiful when he has nothing on."
"Juubei!!" Kazuki's cheeks were almost florescent red.
It was then that Ban (carrying the brown envelope from Bai Hu under one arm) and Ginji stepped into the café, to the explosion of laughter surrounding Juubei and Kazuki.
"Kazuki! Juubei!" Ginji exclaimed excitedly throwing his arms around the two. "Good morning! Why are you guys here so early?"
"Hevn-san has a job for us," Kazuki replied, patting Ginji's head. The boy beamed.
"Aa," Ban murmured disinterestedly, drawing a cigarette from his breast pocket and lighting up. It was his third one that morning.
"Ban-san, your gonna die of lung cancer if you smoke so much," Mei stated knowingly in mock imitation of what she thought the Surgeon General might sound like.
"Cram it, squirt." Ban growled dangerously, shooting Mei a glare. She simply grinned.
"Good morning Ban-san, Ginji-san!" Natsumi greeted in her usual chipper manner. "A coffee for each of you?"
"Yay! Thank you Natsumi-chan!" Ginji cheered, throwing himself onto a stool at the counter and spinning himself around. Ban took a seat by Ginji, setting the envelope on the countertop, and nodded gratefully to Natsumi.
"Thanks. I could really do with one right about now. Thread-spool came calling at an hour man was not meant to see."
Kazuki scowled, but said nothing, vouching instead to return with Juubei to their table to wait for Hevn.
"I'm sorry, I'm afraid that's my fault," Mei apologized, handing the magazine back to Natsumi who stashed it back under the counter and went to go get Ban and Ginji's coffees. "We forgot to discuss how much you wanted for this job last night, and Maria told me your very stingy when it comes to money," she flashed a grin, turning to and fro on her stool.
"Watch who your calling stingy, midget." Ban hissed, exhaling a plume of smoke.
Mei chose to ignore the comment. "Anyway, how much do you want to take this job on?"
"Well, this is a pretty unusual case..." Ban said, stalling for time as he made the mental calculations, "...the artifact in question is obviously priceless..." the job was clearly worth more than the last one they did where they made a clean two-hundred thousand yen, "and the crooks are probably pretty powerful if they can risk robbing a witch. I'd say this is going to cost you--"
"How about if you retrieve the tears, you get one wish each?" Mei said casually.
Ban's jaw might have hit the floor, had he only a fraction less of self- control. Ginji's, of course, did.
Well, there went decorum.
"Well," Ban managed, clearly quite flustered, "when you put it like that..."
Mei smiled again. "So have we got ourselves a deal?"
Ban was grinning, happy thoughts of a wallet full of inexhaustible yen dancing in his head. "We have got ourselves a deal." He confirmed, holding out his hand.
Mei shook it.
Ginji was sitting in shocked silence, happy thoughts of a plate full of inexhaustible sushi dancing in his head.
---------------
Mei had left shortly before Natsumi returned with Ban and Ginji's coffee.
"Sorry for the wait," she chimed apologetically, "the coffee machine was giving me Hell on wheels." She set down extra sugar and cream packets on Ginji's saucer, knowing the boy took his coffee extra sweet. Ban's saucer contained only his cup for she had learned early on in her short-term career as a waitress at the Honky Tonk that the man liked his coffee black. "Now, do you guys want something to eat for breakfast seeing as you have money now?"
Ginji grinned. "Oh yeah, I keep forgetting, we can pay for our meals! Ban- chan, let's order a big meal, please oh please oh pretty please?" The boy whined in his puppyish manner, hugging Ban's arm.
"Jesus, alright, alright, just graduate from kindergarten already!" Ban ground out through gritted teeth, making no real effort to shake the blond off his arm. "I'll have some french toast. Ginji, what do you want?"
"Miso soup, and, and rice balls and..." Ginji turned to Ban, still hugging the man's arm. "Could we buy some Pocky too?"
With a weary sigh, Ban nodded, and Ginji cheered.
"Yeah! Ban-chan, you're the best! And Pocky too, Natsumi-chan!"
Natsumi laughed happily and reached under the counter where there was a store of junk-food merchandise. "What kind of Pocky do you want? Your usual strawberry, or something else?"
"No, no, I like the strawberry best! I'll have the strawberry!" Ginji was beyond ecstatic when she set the box down in front of him.
"What's that?" Natsumi inquired, indicating the brown envelope. "Or is it top secret?" She added, deepening her voice in a mock farce of an FBI investigator.
"Dunno yet," Ban replied nonchalantly, "haven't opened it."
Natsumi raised a brow and Ginji let out a long whine.
"Ban-chan's been torturing me with that envelope! He refuses to open it."
"I'm gonna open it now! Stop whining already!" Ban snapped, snatching up the envelope and ripping it open.
Ginji and Natsumi watched curiously as Ban emptied the contents of the envelope onto the countertop. Ban picked up thick packet of photocopies taken from some miscellaneous encyclopedia. "It's a bunch of information on Buddhist myths of the phoenix." He informed them, flipping through the packet. Suddenly three pieces of paper spilled out of the pages. "What the...?" Ban picked up the first piece of paper, red with gold trim, and folded in half addressed with 'To: the Get Backers'. Ban unfolded it and read aloud: "Get Backers, if you ever hope to return the phoenix tear to the witch's apprentice then it is imperative that you attain five sacred treasures and present them to the Emperor of Heaven. The information enclosed here will be of great use to you. I shall be in contact with you again when you gain the first two treasures. Sincerely, Bai Hu." Ban growled, crumpling the note in a clenched fist, and tossing it into a nearby trash can. "I'll bet one hundred yen this guy Bai Hu has the tear."
"Ban-chan, calm down... maybe he's trying to help us!"
"With nothing in it for him? I find that highly doubtful. Let's see what the rest of this crap is." Ban picked up another red piece of paper with the same elegant gold trim, unfolded it and read:
"One God in Two of Yin and Yang You must hold the gifts Feng Huang adores There are five in total
Fudo Myo-o of Yang Bears the gifts of men A sword and rope
Feng is the warrior, man, and sun Fiery and war-like Feng accepts only gifts of the Fudo Myo-o
Kuan-Yin Bosatsu, Goddess of mercy Bears the gifts of woman One-thousand arms of love and mercy With which to encase all humanity in A Lotus flower she rode from hell For she made hell paradise
Huang is the mother, woman, and moon Gentle and caring Huang accepts only the gifts of the Kuan-Yin Bosatsu
A fifth gift remains, accepted by both But can not be found in any temple Plain as day from far away But up close, the gift cannot be seen Feng-Huang in all its truth Yin and Yang's harmony A fifth gift is in order if you are to receive the treasure"
Ban shot a disgruntled look at the poem. "The Hell....?!"
Ginji plucked the note from his partner's hands and reread the strange verses. "It's a riddle, Ban-chan!"
"I can see what it is, idiot. Problem with riddles is that they never bother to make friggin' sense. I hope the sadistic bastard that invented them died in the most horrible way imaginable." He took a long gulp of coffee and picked up the third piece of paper. It was dry and crackling, yellowed with age. The edges had once boasted the same golden trim as the note and riddle, but time had faded it into a mere shadow of its previous splendor. The crease where it was folded had been there a long time and was nearly eaten through. One good pull would have the paper ripped neatly in half. A red blob of dried wax sealed with the mark of Si Xiang, held the paper in place where it was folded over itself. Ban was careful to break the seal without tearing the paper, and carefully unfolded it.
"It's a map of Japan," Ban said, setting the aged map down on the counter. "It's a map of Japan, only the writing is Chinese..."
Ginji and Natsumi peered at the map as well.
"What are the phoenixes on it?" Ginji asked, pointing to three seals marked with a red phoenix dotting the map.
"Dunno," Ban said, taking another gulp of his coffee and stared woefully at the map. Why did things always have to get complicated?
"Well, I could be wrong," Natsumi began, "But maybe the phoenixes mark where the treasures in the riddle are hidden? My history teacher mentioned a while ago the phoenix's image was used to mark hidden treasure."
"That seems like a good start," Ban replied, tracing his finger despondently over one of the images of the phoenix. To everyone's surprise, writing appeared next to the image.
"Hosenji Temple?" Ban looked perplexed, translating the Chinese writing.
"Ban-san, I didn't know you could speak Chinese!" Natsumi exclaimed, clearly impressed.
"I can't. Well, not fluently anyway. I can read it alright, and say a few basic things but that's it."
"Ban-chan is so smart," Ginji gushed hugging Ban's arm again, "He knows so many things!"
Ban sighed, not bothering to shake Ginji off his arm, but instead returned to perusing the map. "This other treasure is in Hase Kannon in Kamakura..." Ban's finger moved to the third phoenix, writing appearing next to it, "and this other one..." he paused in mid sentence and raised a brow, "...this one is on the move." He indicated the mysterious writing that translated to 'Traveling'. Upon closer inspection the image was moving slowly across the map.
Ban set the map aside and returned his attention to the riddle as Natsumi bustled off to go make their breakfast.
"Okay, let's start at the beginning; 'One god in two of Yin and Yang'..." Ban sat back, letting the words sink in. "One god in two..."
"Maybe that's like two in one, only the other way round?" Ginji inquired.
"Like one god split in two? That makes some sense... so one god, split in two of Yin and Yang. Hmm..."
"What's Yin and Yang?" Ginji watched intently as the phoenix moved slowly across the map.
"That's basic Chinese mythology. Yin and Yang, when together symbolize the harmony of two opposites, joined as one. Here, I'll show you," Ban grabbed the packet of photocopies, flipped it over to it's blank side and rummaged in his pocket for a pen. When he found one, he sketched out a rough Yin- Yang on the paper. "The white part with the black dot symbolizes light, goodness, and purity. It's usually associated with the masculine. That's Yang. The black part with the white dot is Yin, which symbolizes darkness and corruption. It's usually associated with the feminine."
"So in Buddhism, women are dark and corrupt?" This seemed to bother Ginji who's encounters with women did not add up to the Yin and Yang assessment of the female persona. Sure, Hevn was usually a little underdressed and Himiko could be quite bitter and callous, but they were hardly dark and corrupt.
"In most religions, women tend to be depicted that way, which is why I don't belong to any particular one."
"So the Yin-Yang is a load of crap?" Ginji looked puzzled.
"In that whole pure man/evil woman thing, to put it bluntly, yeah it's a load of crap. A person's sex has nothing to do with how good or evil they are. But the basic belief of the union of two absolute opposites is not. It's a pretty universal concept: light and dark, good and evil. The Yin- Yang is symbolic of the harmony of the two, thus there is balance. It's human nature, the planet, the entire universe in a nutshell." Ban grinned, watching Ginji's reaction.
"It's like us!" Said the blond brightly.
Ban tilted his head to the side, curious to see where this would go. "How so?"
Ginji swiped Ban's pen and scribbled 'Get Backers' in rather passable English lettering. "The 'G', for Ginji," he said circling the 'G'. "And 'B', for Ban-chan." He circled the 'B'. "And the 's'," he circled the 's' and wrote a number 1 after it. "The 's' makes us one. Harmony. Two opposites as one." Ginji set the pen down by his scribbling, and beamed with pride at his partner. Ban was sitting in shocked silence.
Ban finally spoke just as the blonde's face began to fall in a look of discouragement. "Ya know, you aren't as dumb as you always act."
Ginji's head shot up. "You mean that, Ban-chan?"
"Yeah," said Ban ruffling Ginji's hair. "Yeah, I mean that."
Ginji swelled with unconcealed pride.
"Anyway, let's get back to this riddle. 'One God in Two of Yin and Yang, You must hold the gifts Feng Huang adores'." Ban's eyebrows furrowed. "Feng Huang?"
Ginji shrugged helplessly, looking equally perplexed. "Bai Hu said in his note that the information in the packet would help us. Maybe it's in there?"
Ban seized the photocopies, flipping through the pages. "Hn, he highlighted a shit load of information in here. Aha! Feng Huang! Feng Huang... Feng Huang... hmm..."
"What does it say?"
"Feng Huang is actually represented as two deities. A male and female phoenix. The male was Feng, the female Huang. Feng is the typical firebird, pertaining to the sun and symbolic of, of course, Yang. Huang is female, pertains to the moon, and is Yin. Together they are a symbol of marriage, everlasting love, and the yin-yang."
"Ah," Ginji replied absently, sipping his now sufficiently cooled coffee.
"The first paragraph of the riddle is pretty obvious now. Feng Huang, the two phoenixes are two Gods, but become one as Zhu Que. One God in Two of Yin and Yang. Hold the gifts Feng Huang adores. Okay so we gotta get these treasures, five of them in total. From what Bai Hu is saying, we gotta get these treasures in exchange for the tear."
"It looks like the rest of the riddle talks about the treasures. 'Fudo Myo- o of Yang, Bears the gifts of men, a sword and rope'. Well, that's easy. We find this Fudo Myo-o guy and he gives us a sword and rope. Easy."
"Yeah, easy. Problem is, Fudo Myo-o is one of the Godai Myo-o, one of the messengers of Dainichi Nyorai."
Ginji's was staring at Ban, mouth slightly slack and eyes glazed with a blank expression.
Ban sighed. "Fudo Myo-o is a Bhuddist deity. I'm not gonna bother trying to explain an entire religion to you. Anyway, this other part about Feng being warrior man and sun, the riddle talks about presenting gifts so I suppose we present Feng with the sword and rope. How we find them is beyond me."
"The map!" Ginji said brightly.
"Oh right, the phoenixes mark treasure, or whatever the Hell Natsumi said. The map must show where the treasure is hidden then."
"This line," Ginji pointed to the one that read 'Kuan-Yin Bosatsu, Goddess of Mercy, Bears the gifts of woman', "Who's Kuan-Yin Bosatsu?"
"Kuan-Yin... Kua... Ah, Goddess of mercy. She's Kannon Bosatsu, in Japanese."
Ginji gave Ban the same blank stare he had when Ban attempted to explain about Fudo Myo-o.
"My God, Ginji, we saw her statue at that old guy's temple less than a month ago. She's the Goddess of mercy! One of the most worshiped gods in China!" Ban massaged his aching forehead. "Anyway," He barked before Ginji could interrupt again, "It looks like she's give us the other two gifts. 'One thousand arms of love and mercy' whatever the Hell that is, it better fit in the car. And a lotus flower. Okay, Huang is mother, woman, moon, blah blah blah, we present Kuan-Yin's gifts to Huang. Right."
"That's four gifts," Ginji said thoughtfully, "But the fifth--"
"A fifth gift remains, accepted by both But can not be found in any temple Plain as day from far away But up close, the gift cannot be seen Feng-Huang in all its truth Yin and Yang's harmony A fifth gift is in order if you are to receive the treasure," Ban cut in, "Now that makes no sense at all."
"Hmmm..."
Natsumi reappeared from the kitchen, balancing a tray laden with Ban and Ginji's breakfast. She bustled towards the two, the tray wobbling dangerously, but she set it down on the counter with no major incident.
"A plate of french toast," she said, setting Ban's breakfast down in front of him, "and a bowl of miso soup and a plate of rice balls for Ginji." She flashed a bright smile as she set down Ginji's food and the blond cheered happily. "So have you guys solved the riddle yet?"
Ban shrugged despondently. "Sort of."
"Lemme see. Where are you stuck?" She leaned forward to see the riddle, craning her neck so that it wouldn't be upside-down.
"This part, the last verse." Ban pointed to the troubling lines.
Natsumi read them, her eyes darting to and fro and brow furrowed in concentration. Ban and Ginji sat in apprehensive silence, watching, waiting...
And to everyone's amazement she burst out laughing.
---------------
Ai-chan: Oooooh... this chapter got LONG! But whee! Ban and Ginji are always fun3. I'm obsessing over Hedwig and the Angry Inch at the moment (great play!) so if a Ban/Ginji songfic entitled "Origin of Love" pops up here, don't be surprised. I hope everyone is enjoying this fic, I'm having loads of fun writing it (I know my forte is definitely not writing but what the Hell, it's fun! -.^). Hikaru, if your looking for Get Backers manga, I'd suggest the GB Translations Project site: - gb.html for all your GB needs. Tokyo Pop has taken up GB so it should be released in English in the not too distant future. Hmm, one other thing... WHY IS MARIA NOT IN THE ANIME? * Cries * And what was up with her and Lucifer? * leer *. Oh well, hope you enjoyed this part.
Anyway, translations!
The Godai Myo-o and Fudo Myo-o: The Godai Myo-o (five great kings), are Dainichi Nyorai's messengers and are symbolic of Dainichi's wrath against evil and ignorance. Fudo is the personification of Dainichi and the center of the Godai Myo-o.
Kuan-Yin Bosatsu: Kannon Bosatsu, the Goddess of Mercy. One of the most popular deities in Buddhism, she is said to encase humanity in one thousand arms of mercy, symbolic of being able to hear every prayer of every person.
Quick note: I had originally planned for this fic to be four chapters, but the scenes I had planned got longer than I expected, so don't be surprised if this ends up to be about eight chapters instead. Mmmm... tea is good.
Warnings: Shounen-ai, general Ban and Ginji stupidity, some scenes of Juubei and Kazuki (because I love Juubei! He so cute!), lots of mythology, probably some OOC 'cuz it's a fic by yours truly.
Okay, I'm done ranting. On with the fic!
Chapter 2 A Strange Riddle
Ban stirred into a reasonable facsimile of wakefulness at around four in the morning. He wasn't sure why he was awake at this god-awful hour. Ginji was usually the finicky sleeper, not him.
When he tried to roll over, he realized why he had woken up.
Ginji must have been having the nightmares again. There was no other explanation for Ginji huddling himself against Ban in a fetal position, shivering like a wet kitten. Ban exhaled the breath he hadn't realized he had been holding, wrapped his arms around Ginji's shoulders, and buried his fingers in the mussed up hair, ruffling it in his usual gesture of affection. The warm dampness against his chest where Ginji's cheek was pressed told him that the nightmare had been one of the worse ones. While Ginji was a bundle of emotion, the blond was not often prone to tears so it was unsettling to see him in such a state. Ban lay there, trying to sooth the whimpering blond.
"Shh, shh, I'm here, Ginji. Go back to sleep."
"Ban-chan, it was horrible!" Ginji exploded with a sob.
Ban was surprised by the sudden outburst. Usually Ginji wouldn't talk about the nightmares until dawn.
"What happened?" Ban asked, shifting slightly as Ginji huddled closer.
"I. there was this man with three eyes, all in this funny armor like those statues at the temple and burning all fiery, and. I couldn't move." Ginji was trembling, ".like I was tied down, but I couldn't see any rope, and you were on the ground, and bleeding and there was blood everywhere and then you weren't even moving and. and." Ginji choked on a sob he had been trying to repress.
"Calm down, it was just a dream." Ban gave Ginji's shoulders a reassuring squeeze.
"But Ban-chan, you died!"
Ban sighed, shifting his weight, and drew himself level with Ginji. He could just make out the tear-stained face of his partner in the near-pitch blackness in the apartment, and smiled. Not a smirk, grimace or grin, but a genuine smile. Ginji had only seen Ban smile like that a few times before, almost always it was directed at him. He visibly relaxed when he saw the smile. It was soothing to see Ban being gentle and calm, after watching him brutally murdered in a nightmare.
Ban took Ginji's hand in his, and drew it up to his face, resting the palm on his cheek. Ginji was surprised at the gesture, but he loved these rare moments when Ban-chan's icy exterior would melt away to reveal a kind and gentle person underneath.
"Here, do I feel dead to you, Ginji?" Ban said softly and Ginji shook his head.
"You're face is warm," Ginji mused his voice still shaky but he had stopped crying. He spread his fingers out and traced the outline of Ban's brow, his eyes, nose and chin. Ban tilted his head, leaning into the touch.
"So's your hand." Ban stopped himself there before he did something foolish, and rolled over onto his side, turning his back to Ginji. ".Now stop being an idiot and go back to sleep. I ain't running off with no woman and I'm sure as Hell not going to die and leave you by yourself. Jeez, I don't know how you got to be so paranoid." Ban snapped his eyes shut as if to finalize the discussion.
Ginji squirmed as if to huddle back against Ban.
"Ban-chan?"
Ban responded with long and very loud snore. Ginji wasn't stupid enough to take it for a real one. Besides, Ban-chan didn't snore.
"Oh Ban-chan, you're absolutely horrible!"
Snore.
Ginji peered at Ban through the early morning gloom of their apartment.
"Ban-chan, I just wanted to know.... If we could stay like we were before?"
Ban opened his arms.
---------------
The cold, gray winter-morning light filtered through the ragged curtains of Ban and Ginji's apartment. It illuminated their few possessions and crept slowly towards the roll-out couch, finally shedding light on a large huddled mass of two young men holding eachother under a single blanket.
Ban's eyes cracked open slowly, wondering vaguely just what the intense warmth pressed against him was. When he heard Ginji murmur his name, and nestle closer, he remembered what had transpired the night before. But it seemed Ginji was alright now.
As Ban lay there with Ginji wrapped in his arms, reveling in the feel of the boy's body pressed against his own, there came a soft knocking at the door. Ban exhaled an annoyed sigh, wriggled out of the tangle of limbs, and amused himself a second by ruffling the mass of soft blond hair watching as Ginji's arms found a cushion to clutch to himself in a sleepy hug.
Whoever was at the door knocked again, a little harder.
"Coming already," Ban hissed, striding a little awkwardly towards the door, and cracking it open. It was Kazuki on the other side, dressed in a warm looking, over-sized cream-coloured sweater and a pair of faded jeans that fit his long legs like a second skin.
Kazuki gazed up at the half-naked Ban, rendered momentarily speechless with a shocked expression plastered on his exquisitely beautiful face. Kazuki couldn't help but to think that Ban looked more like an underwear model for Calvin Klein than a poverty-ridden ex-hooligan.
"B... Ban-san! Could you answer the door a little more... clothed?" Kazuki managed, a flush creeping into his cheeks.
Ban glowered, but opened the door to allow Kazuki to step inside. "If you don't like how I'm dressed at seven thirty in the morning, don't come calling at this ungodly hour. Now what's up, thread-spool?"
"Don't call me that, Ban-san," Kazuki growled, forcing himself to keep some level of politeness. Ban simply smirked, drawing a cigarette from the pack on the coffee table and lit up. He gestured towards a musty-looking armchair where Kazuki took a seat, glaring dubiously at Ban. The spiky haired brunet was rarely this hospitable, and Kazuki could only assume Ban was up to no good. But even so, he couldn't help but to think a pair of tight black designer underwear would look damn good on Ban instead of the plaid flannel boxers with a brown teddy-bear in the corner of one of the legs.
"Nice boxers by the way," Kazuki snorted.
"Ya like 'em?" Ban smirked, pretending to have not heard the snort. "They were a birthday gift from Ginji."
"Figures. Where is Ginji-san anyway? It's strange seeing you without him."
"Shh! Jesus Crow you're loud, thread-spool. He's had a rough night and he's sleeping now." Ban motioned towards the extendable couch, indicating that underneath the mound of pillows and blanket, Ginji was sleeping.
Kazuki mentally gaped. A rough night? He observed the clothes strewn haphazardly across the floor, and Ban's barely dressed state. It didn't take long for Kazuki to put two and two together.
"You didn't... Ban-san you didn't..."
The usually fox-sly Midou Ban was a bit slow in the morning and thus failed to understand the conclusion that Kazuki had formed. "Well, he had a nightmare, what would you expect me to do?" What the Hell is wrong with being a teddy-bear for your best friend after he's had a nightmare?
"Oh my..." Kazuki hid his now brilliantly red face in his hands.
"Anyway, get to the point thread-spool." Ban growled through gritted teeth as he attempted to stifle a yawn, failing miserably.
Kazuki glared. If looks could kill Ban would have been a cold stiff within a second. Needless to say, Kazuki spoke again in a cool even voice. "A girl with bright pink hair is down in the Honky Tonk asking after the Get Backers. I told her I'd go and get you. She's a nice little kid, short, dressed like she just got off a flying saucer. Said she talked to you last night about a mission in retrieving an earring that got stolen from her?" Kazuki looked perplexed.
Ban nodded. "That'd be Mei. Thank god, I thought Ginji and I would actually have to go and visit Maria to have a word with that midget witch. Could you run and tell her we'll be right with her? I gotta--"
Ban was interrupted by a sleepy murmur from where Ginji lay. "Ban-chan... come back to bed... Ban-chan..." followed by a soft snore.
Now it was Ban's turn to blush. "Ginji! Don't say things that way!"
Kazuki was on his feet in a second, the bells in his hair chiming softly at the sudden motion. His voice was unusually high, making him seem even more like a girl.
"I.... I gotta go! Um... stuff to do. M'kay? Nice talking to you this morning, Ban-san! See you later. Buh bye then!"
And Kazuki was out the door within two seconds, hurrying back to the Honky Tonk café.
---------------
When Kazuki stepped back into the café, Mei was seated across from Juubei talking animatedly with the needle-thrower. Her apparel seemed to consist namely of bubble-gum coloured clothing: Pink sneakers with two-inch rubber soles, a pair of bright pink jogging-trousers, a pink summer dress over a neon green slip, and a heavy salmon colored winter jacket. Her hair had been dyed to match her pants, although she had left two green tufts to tie up in pigtails with a pair of pink and green fuzzy dice and a pale pink wool sweater-band was wrapped around her forehead.
"So you know acupuncture? That's really cool! I bet Kazuki-san is happy to have a good doctor around all the time. The jobs he gets are probably pretty dangerous."
Juubei's lips cracked into a smile, turning his head to the sound of Kazuki's footsteps.
"You seem troubled Kazuki."
Mei giggled, and pointed up at Kazuki. "His face is bright red!"
"What happened?" Juubei asked calmly as Kazuki sank down into a chair.
"I don't even know where to begin..." The feminine brunet groaned.
Mei grinned, very similar to the way a child would when they knew something no one else did.
Kazuki simply groaned again.
"Were they sleeping together?" Juubei inquired, a brow raised, his hand seeking out Kazuki's shoulder.
"Yes," Kazuki replied.
Mei lost interest in where the conversation seemed to be heading, and stood to wander over to the counter where Natsumi was looking through a few fashion magazines.
"I'd think as much. Good for them." Juubei's smile remained, his fingers traveling across the plain of Kazuki's shoulder to toy with the long brown strands.
"How can you say that? This is Midou Ban we're talking about, a man I swear to God is the reincarnation of some dark wicked demon sprung from the deepest depths of Hell, a rude, crude, inconsiderate, perverted, conceited..." the beautiful man who rarely had a bad thing to say about anyone sought for the right word. "...Prick!" He finished with a flourish of his hand, nearly knocking Juubei in the head in his outburst of indignation. "Someone like him doesn't deserve a person like Amano Ginji."
"In the same way a filthy traitor like myself does not deserve the kindness and love of Kazuki Fuchoin."
Kazuki was stunned into silence, his mouth opening and closing but no words came out.
"Don't get me wrong. Midou Ban is a rude, conceited braggart, and I can stand him about as much as you can, but we are all men with heavy sins upon our shoulders. He is as deserving of Ginji's affection as I am of yours. Besides, for someone who gathers information for a living, I'm amazed that you've failed to observe how Ban reacts to Ginji."
Kazuki listened, intrigued how his blind lover could see so much.
"Ban, around everyone else, is closed in on himself. Something happened to him that made him deeply bitter towards the world. You can hear it in his voice, every sneer, and every scathing word, there is an anger. I know this because it is the same bitterness that I tasted during... that time. "
Kazuki didn't need Juubei to elaborate. They both know what he meant when he said 'that time'. The time Juubei had believed Kazuki to be a traitor, and had nothing but the desire to kill his childhood friend.
"His reaction to Ginji is different, though. It's in his voice again, where there is no bite to his words. There is... a softness. Ginji does something that changes Midou Ban, he erases that bitterness."
"So essentially what you're saying Ginji-san draws Ban-san out of some sort of self-perpetuated bitterness?" Kazuki inquired, his expression puzzled.
Juubei reached up to touch that face and nodded in affirmation. "Much as you draw me out of my own."
Kazuki was quiet for a long time, content to let Juubei trace his hand over his cheek.
"Even demons are capable of love, Kazuki."
"Alright, maybe I was a bit harsh. But if he hurts Ginji-san..."
"...I'm sure you won't be the only one after his blood."
---------------
Wan Paul was sweeping the floor while watching Natsumi and Mei flipping excitedly through the fashion magazines, discussing the latest styles and laughing over which ones they liked or didn't. It was good to see Natsumi was making friends so easily at the café.
Then there was a sudden silence between the two, as they were both watching Kazuki like hawks. Mei put her thumbs against her index fingers as if to create a photographic lens to capture Kazuki's image in.
"He would look so good in that outfit." Natsumi said wistfully, Mei nodding in fervent agreement.
"Let me see..." Paul chuckled peering over Natsumi's shoulder. "...You're right, he would look good in that outfit," Paul remarked, with a brow raised from behind his dark lenses.
Kazuki stood, looking mildly annoyed. "Alright, I don't like where this is going. What outfit would I look good in?"
Mei held up the magazine. On the page was a model dressed in an elegant black and white satin gown. It fell in front just above the woman's knees, and the trail in back expanded like a halo around her feet.
Kazuki had to admit the dress was quite appealing, even though all his life he lacked the desire to wear women's clothes.
"It's pretty but I don't dress in women's clothing."
"But Kazuki-san is so pretty!" Mei exclaimed. "You'd be a beautiful model. You're really slim, you don't have any breasts, you're face is gorgeous. It's a sin you're photo isn't on glossy paper."
"I'd have to agree," Juubei said softly from behind Kazuki, "Your beauty is exquisite."
"Juubei!"
"And your hair is so long and such a pretty dark brown! Agents would be falling over eachother to represent you!" Natsumi added with a wink.
"Natsumi, you're so cruel!"
"What? That's a compliment! I envy you!"
Juubei was in one of his rare (very, very rare to the point of non- existent), playful moods. "Well, it doesn't matter what sort of clothes he'd wear, it's all the same to me. They'd be off in a second, because Kazuki is most beautiful when he has nothing on."
"Juubei!!" Kazuki's cheeks were almost florescent red.
It was then that Ban (carrying the brown envelope from Bai Hu under one arm) and Ginji stepped into the café, to the explosion of laughter surrounding Juubei and Kazuki.
"Kazuki! Juubei!" Ginji exclaimed excitedly throwing his arms around the two. "Good morning! Why are you guys here so early?"
"Hevn-san has a job for us," Kazuki replied, patting Ginji's head. The boy beamed.
"Aa," Ban murmured disinterestedly, drawing a cigarette from his breast pocket and lighting up. It was his third one that morning.
"Ban-san, your gonna die of lung cancer if you smoke so much," Mei stated knowingly in mock imitation of what she thought the Surgeon General might sound like.
"Cram it, squirt." Ban growled dangerously, shooting Mei a glare. She simply grinned.
"Good morning Ban-san, Ginji-san!" Natsumi greeted in her usual chipper manner. "A coffee for each of you?"
"Yay! Thank you Natsumi-chan!" Ginji cheered, throwing himself onto a stool at the counter and spinning himself around. Ban took a seat by Ginji, setting the envelope on the countertop, and nodded gratefully to Natsumi.
"Thanks. I could really do with one right about now. Thread-spool came calling at an hour man was not meant to see."
Kazuki scowled, but said nothing, vouching instead to return with Juubei to their table to wait for Hevn.
"I'm sorry, I'm afraid that's my fault," Mei apologized, handing the magazine back to Natsumi who stashed it back under the counter and went to go get Ban and Ginji's coffees. "We forgot to discuss how much you wanted for this job last night, and Maria told me your very stingy when it comes to money," she flashed a grin, turning to and fro on her stool.
"Watch who your calling stingy, midget." Ban hissed, exhaling a plume of smoke.
Mei chose to ignore the comment. "Anyway, how much do you want to take this job on?"
"Well, this is a pretty unusual case..." Ban said, stalling for time as he made the mental calculations, "...the artifact in question is obviously priceless..." the job was clearly worth more than the last one they did where they made a clean two-hundred thousand yen, "and the crooks are probably pretty powerful if they can risk robbing a witch. I'd say this is going to cost you--"
"How about if you retrieve the tears, you get one wish each?" Mei said casually.
Ban's jaw might have hit the floor, had he only a fraction less of self- control. Ginji's, of course, did.
Well, there went decorum.
"Well," Ban managed, clearly quite flustered, "when you put it like that..."
Mei smiled again. "So have we got ourselves a deal?"
Ban was grinning, happy thoughts of a wallet full of inexhaustible yen dancing in his head. "We have got ourselves a deal." He confirmed, holding out his hand.
Mei shook it.
Ginji was sitting in shocked silence, happy thoughts of a plate full of inexhaustible sushi dancing in his head.
---------------
Mei had left shortly before Natsumi returned with Ban and Ginji's coffee.
"Sorry for the wait," she chimed apologetically, "the coffee machine was giving me Hell on wheels." She set down extra sugar and cream packets on Ginji's saucer, knowing the boy took his coffee extra sweet. Ban's saucer contained only his cup for she had learned early on in her short-term career as a waitress at the Honky Tonk that the man liked his coffee black. "Now, do you guys want something to eat for breakfast seeing as you have money now?"
Ginji grinned. "Oh yeah, I keep forgetting, we can pay for our meals! Ban- chan, let's order a big meal, please oh please oh pretty please?" The boy whined in his puppyish manner, hugging Ban's arm.
"Jesus, alright, alright, just graduate from kindergarten already!" Ban ground out through gritted teeth, making no real effort to shake the blond off his arm. "I'll have some french toast. Ginji, what do you want?"
"Miso soup, and, and rice balls and..." Ginji turned to Ban, still hugging the man's arm. "Could we buy some Pocky too?"
With a weary sigh, Ban nodded, and Ginji cheered.
"Yeah! Ban-chan, you're the best! And Pocky too, Natsumi-chan!"
Natsumi laughed happily and reached under the counter where there was a store of junk-food merchandise. "What kind of Pocky do you want? Your usual strawberry, or something else?"
"No, no, I like the strawberry best! I'll have the strawberry!" Ginji was beyond ecstatic when she set the box down in front of him.
"What's that?" Natsumi inquired, indicating the brown envelope. "Or is it top secret?" She added, deepening her voice in a mock farce of an FBI investigator.
"Dunno yet," Ban replied nonchalantly, "haven't opened it."
Natsumi raised a brow and Ginji let out a long whine.
"Ban-chan's been torturing me with that envelope! He refuses to open it."
"I'm gonna open it now! Stop whining already!" Ban snapped, snatching up the envelope and ripping it open.
Ginji and Natsumi watched curiously as Ban emptied the contents of the envelope onto the countertop. Ban picked up thick packet of photocopies taken from some miscellaneous encyclopedia. "It's a bunch of information on Buddhist myths of the phoenix." He informed them, flipping through the packet. Suddenly three pieces of paper spilled out of the pages. "What the...?" Ban picked up the first piece of paper, red with gold trim, and folded in half addressed with 'To: the Get Backers'. Ban unfolded it and read aloud: "Get Backers, if you ever hope to return the phoenix tear to the witch's apprentice then it is imperative that you attain five sacred treasures and present them to the Emperor of Heaven. The information enclosed here will be of great use to you. I shall be in contact with you again when you gain the first two treasures. Sincerely, Bai Hu." Ban growled, crumpling the note in a clenched fist, and tossing it into a nearby trash can. "I'll bet one hundred yen this guy Bai Hu has the tear."
"Ban-chan, calm down... maybe he's trying to help us!"
"With nothing in it for him? I find that highly doubtful. Let's see what the rest of this crap is." Ban picked up another red piece of paper with the same elegant gold trim, unfolded it and read:
"One God in Two of Yin and Yang You must hold the gifts Feng Huang adores There are five in total
Fudo Myo-o of Yang Bears the gifts of men A sword and rope
Feng is the warrior, man, and sun Fiery and war-like Feng accepts only gifts of the Fudo Myo-o
Kuan-Yin Bosatsu, Goddess of mercy Bears the gifts of woman One-thousand arms of love and mercy With which to encase all humanity in A Lotus flower she rode from hell For she made hell paradise
Huang is the mother, woman, and moon Gentle and caring Huang accepts only the gifts of the Kuan-Yin Bosatsu
A fifth gift remains, accepted by both But can not be found in any temple Plain as day from far away But up close, the gift cannot be seen Feng-Huang in all its truth Yin and Yang's harmony A fifth gift is in order if you are to receive the treasure"
Ban shot a disgruntled look at the poem. "The Hell....?!"
Ginji plucked the note from his partner's hands and reread the strange verses. "It's a riddle, Ban-chan!"
"I can see what it is, idiot. Problem with riddles is that they never bother to make friggin' sense. I hope the sadistic bastard that invented them died in the most horrible way imaginable." He took a long gulp of coffee and picked up the third piece of paper. It was dry and crackling, yellowed with age. The edges had once boasted the same golden trim as the note and riddle, but time had faded it into a mere shadow of its previous splendor. The crease where it was folded had been there a long time and was nearly eaten through. One good pull would have the paper ripped neatly in half. A red blob of dried wax sealed with the mark of Si Xiang, held the paper in place where it was folded over itself. Ban was careful to break the seal without tearing the paper, and carefully unfolded it.
"It's a map of Japan," Ban said, setting the aged map down on the counter. "It's a map of Japan, only the writing is Chinese..."
Ginji and Natsumi peered at the map as well.
"What are the phoenixes on it?" Ginji asked, pointing to three seals marked with a red phoenix dotting the map.
"Dunno," Ban said, taking another gulp of his coffee and stared woefully at the map. Why did things always have to get complicated?
"Well, I could be wrong," Natsumi began, "But maybe the phoenixes mark where the treasures in the riddle are hidden? My history teacher mentioned a while ago the phoenix's image was used to mark hidden treasure."
"That seems like a good start," Ban replied, tracing his finger despondently over one of the images of the phoenix. To everyone's surprise, writing appeared next to the image.
"Hosenji Temple?" Ban looked perplexed, translating the Chinese writing.
"Ban-san, I didn't know you could speak Chinese!" Natsumi exclaimed, clearly impressed.
"I can't. Well, not fluently anyway. I can read it alright, and say a few basic things but that's it."
"Ban-chan is so smart," Ginji gushed hugging Ban's arm again, "He knows so many things!"
Ban sighed, not bothering to shake Ginji off his arm, but instead returned to perusing the map. "This other treasure is in Hase Kannon in Kamakura..." Ban's finger moved to the third phoenix, writing appearing next to it, "and this other one..." he paused in mid sentence and raised a brow, "...this one is on the move." He indicated the mysterious writing that translated to 'Traveling'. Upon closer inspection the image was moving slowly across the map.
Ban set the map aside and returned his attention to the riddle as Natsumi bustled off to go make their breakfast.
"Okay, let's start at the beginning; 'One god in two of Yin and Yang'..." Ban sat back, letting the words sink in. "One god in two..."
"Maybe that's like two in one, only the other way round?" Ginji inquired.
"Like one god split in two? That makes some sense... so one god, split in two of Yin and Yang. Hmm..."
"What's Yin and Yang?" Ginji watched intently as the phoenix moved slowly across the map.
"That's basic Chinese mythology. Yin and Yang, when together symbolize the harmony of two opposites, joined as one. Here, I'll show you," Ban grabbed the packet of photocopies, flipped it over to it's blank side and rummaged in his pocket for a pen. When he found one, he sketched out a rough Yin- Yang on the paper. "The white part with the black dot symbolizes light, goodness, and purity. It's usually associated with the masculine. That's Yang. The black part with the white dot is Yin, which symbolizes darkness and corruption. It's usually associated with the feminine."
"So in Buddhism, women are dark and corrupt?" This seemed to bother Ginji who's encounters with women did not add up to the Yin and Yang assessment of the female persona. Sure, Hevn was usually a little underdressed and Himiko could be quite bitter and callous, but they were hardly dark and corrupt.
"In most religions, women tend to be depicted that way, which is why I don't belong to any particular one."
"So the Yin-Yang is a load of crap?" Ginji looked puzzled.
"In that whole pure man/evil woman thing, to put it bluntly, yeah it's a load of crap. A person's sex has nothing to do with how good or evil they are. But the basic belief of the union of two absolute opposites is not. It's a pretty universal concept: light and dark, good and evil. The Yin- Yang is symbolic of the harmony of the two, thus there is balance. It's human nature, the planet, the entire universe in a nutshell." Ban grinned, watching Ginji's reaction.
"It's like us!" Said the blond brightly.
Ban tilted his head to the side, curious to see where this would go. "How so?"
Ginji swiped Ban's pen and scribbled 'Get Backers' in rather passable English lettering. "The 'G', for Ginji," he said circling the 'G'. "And 'B', for Ban-chan." He circled the 'B'. "And the 's'," he circled the 's' and wrote a number 1 after it. "The 's' makes us one. Harmony. Two opposites as one." Ginji set the pen down by his scribbling, and beamed with pride at his partner. Ban was sitting in shocked silence.
Ban finally spoke just as the blonde's face began to fall in a look of discouragement. "Ya know, you aren't as dumb as you always act."
Ginji's head shot up. "You mean that, Ban-chan?"
"Yeah," said Ban ruffling Ginji's hair. "Yeah, I mean that."
Ginji swelled with unconcealed pride.
"Anyway, let's get back to this riddle. 'One God in Two of Yin and Yang, You must hold the gifts Feng Huang adores'." Ban's eyebrows furrowed. "Feng Huang?"
Ginji shrugged helplessly, looking equally perplexed. "Bai Hu said in his note that the information in the packet would help us. Maybe it's in there?"
Ban seized the photocopies, flipping through the pages. "Hn, he highlighted a shit load of information in here. Aha! Feng Huang! Feng Huang... Feng Huang... hmm..."
"What does it say?"
"Feng Huang is actually represented as two deities. A male and female phoenix. The male was Feng, the female Huang. Feng is the typical firebird, pertaining to the sun and symbolic of, of course, Yang. Huang is female, pertains to the moon, and is Yin. Together they are a symbol of marriage, everlasting love, and the yin-yang."
"Ah," Ginji replied absently, sipping his now sufficiently cooled coffee.
"The first paragraph of the riddle is pretty obvious now. Feng Huang, the two phoenixes are two Gods, but become one as Zhu Que. One God in Two of Yin and Yang. Hold the gifts Feng Huang adores. Okay so we gotta get these treasures, five of them in total. From what Bai Hu is saying, we gotta get these treasures in exchange for the tear."
"It looks like the rest of the riddle talks about the treasures. 'Fudo Myo- o of Yang, Bears the gifts of men, a sword and rope'. Well, that's easy. We find this Fudo Myo-o guy and he gives us a sword and rope. Easy."
"Yeah, easy. Problem is, Fudo Myo-o is one of the Godai Myo-o, one of the messengers of Dainichi Nyorai."
Ginji's was staring at Ban, mouth slightly slack and eyes glazed with a blank expression.
Ban sighed. "Fudo Myo-o is a Bhuddist deity. I'm not gonna bother trying to explain an entire religion to you. Anyway, this other part about Feng being warrior man and sun, the riddle talks about presenting gifts so I suppose we present Feng with the sword and rope. How we find them is beyond me."
"The map!" Ginji said brightly.
"Oh right, the phoenixes mark treasure, or whatever the Hell Natsumi said. The map must show where the treasure is hidden then."
"This line," Ginji pointed to the one that read 'Kuan-Yin Bosatsu, Goddess of Mercy, Bears the gifts of woman', "Who's Kuan-Yin Bosatsu?"
"Kuan-Yin... Kua... Ah, Goddess of mercy. She's Kannon Bosatsu, in Japanese."
Ginji gave Ban the same blank stare he had when Ban attempted to explain about Fudo Myo-o.
"My God, Ginji, we saw her statue at that old guy's temple less than a month ago. She's the Goddess of mercy! One of the most worshiped gods in China!" Ban massaged his aching forehead. "Anyway," He barked before Ginji could interrupt again, "It looks like she's give us the other two gifts. 'One thousand arms of love and mercy' whatever the Hell that is, it better fit in the car. And a lotus flower. Okay, Huang is mother, woman, moon, blah blah blah, we present Kuan-Yin's gifts to Huang. Right."
"That's four gifts," Ginji said thoughtfully, "But the fifth--"
"A fifth gift remains, accepted by both But can not be found in any temple Plain as day from far away But up close, the gift cannot be seen Feng-Huang in all its truth Yin and Yang's harmony A fifth gift is in order if you are to receive the treasure," Ban cut in, "Now that makes no sense at all."
"Hmmm..."
Natsumi reappeared from the kitchen, balancing a tray laden with Ban and Ginji's breakfast. She bustled towards the two, the tray wobbling dangerously, but she set it down on the counter with no major incident.
"A plate of french toast," she said, setting Ban's breakfast down in front of him, "and a bowl of miso soup and a plate of rice balls for Ginji." She flashed a bright smile as she set down Ginji's food and the blond cheered happily. "So have you guys solved the riddle yet?"
Ban shrugged despondently. "Sort of."
"Lemme see. Where are you stuck?" She leaned forward to see the riddle, craning her neck so that it wouldn't be upside-down.
"This part, the last verse." Ban pointed to the troubling lines.
Natsumi read them, her eyes darting to and fro and brow furrowed in concentration. Ban and Ginji sat in apprehensive silence, watching, waiting...
And to everyone's amazement she burst out laughing.
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Ai-chan: Oooooh... this chapter got LONG! But whee! Ban and Ginji are always fun3. I'm obsessing over Hedwig and the Angry Inch at the moment (great play!) so if a Ban/Ginji songfic entitled "Origin of Love" pops up here, don't be surprised. I hope everyone is enjoying this fic, I'm having loads of fun writing it (I know my forte is definitely not writing but what the Hell, it's fun! -.^). Hikaru, if your looking for Get Backers manga, I'd suggest the GB Translations Project site: - gb.html for all your GB needs. Tokyo Pop has taken up GB so it should be released in English in the not too distant future. Hmm, one other thing... WHY IS MARIA NOT IN THE ANIME? * Cries * And what was up with her and Lucifer? * leer *. Oh well, hope you enjoyed this part.
Anyway, translations!
The Godai Myo-o and Fudo Myo-o: The Godai Myo-o (five great kings), are Dainichi Nyorai's messengers and are symbolic of Dainichi's wrath against evil and ignorance. Fudo is the personification of Dainichi and the center of the Godai Myo-o.
Kuan-Yin Bosatsu: Kannon Bosatsu, the Goddess of Mercy. One of the most popular deities in Buddhism, she is said to encase humanity in one thousand arms of mercy, symbolic of being able to hear every prayer of every person.