Standard disclaimers go here. Important Author Notes at the end of the story. PLEASE READ!
Ginji paced the Honky Tonk, glancing worriedly at the door. It was almost time to leave and Neko-chan hadn't come back. Ban, Hevn and Paul were ranged around the café, all watching the blond fret over his new friend. Ban stubbed out his cigarette into a full ashtray and stood.
"C'mon, Ginji. Let's go."
"But, Ban-chan," Ginji whined, clenching his fists. "What about Neko-chan?"
"Face it, Ginji. She's not coming back."
"But she could be hurt! Or captured! Magneto might have her locked up somewhere and she can't get out and she needs us!"
"We have a job to do, Ginji," Ban snapped, grabbing his partner's collar and shaking him a little. "Felis will be fine, she's a regenerator, remember?"
"But…"
"We're going. Thanks for dinner, Master," Ban waved at Paul and dragged Ginji out of the café. Unlocking the Ladybug, he tossed his whimpering friend inside and slammed the door shut. Once he got behind the wheel and started the engine, he looked at Ginji.
"You sure about this? We could just blow this freak off."
"No," Ginji stared at his lap, completely serious. "He could come after me and hurt my friends. I need to stop him, make sure he understands I don't want to help him destroy humanity."
"Good, glad to hear it," A new voice chimed in from the back seat. Ban and Ginji gaped at each other, then slowly turned to look behind them. Felis peered out from under their blankets, blinking sleepily. The GetBackers wasted several minutes with their jaws on the center console.
"Wha…how…when…?" Ban stammered. Ginji went chibi and clambered over his seat into Felis' arms.
"Neko-chan, Neko-chan! Oh, I was so worried about you! Are you okay? Where were you? What happened? Why are you sleeping in the Ladybug?" He babbled. Felis pushed him off and sat up, running claws through her hair.
"I had a run in with Mystique and Magneto. Bastard wasn't even appreciative of what I did to save the damn doppleganger. I think I'm on the yakuza hit list now." Ban started swearing in German. Ginji bounced to normalcy and yanked the blankets off. Both men gasped at the torn and bloody clothes.
"You never do things by halves, do you?" Ban asked once he regained his composure. Felis shrugged.
"I figured the Ladybug would be a safe place to recover, so I picked the lock and went to sleep. I made sure to lock up again and I did drive off a few meter maids." Ban and Ginji gaped for the second time in five minutes.
"Hopefully they'll leave it alone now, thinking it's haunted or something." Ginji teared up and threw his arms around her shoulders, bawling.
"Oh, Neko-chan! You're so nice to us! You feed us and let us take hot showers and sleep in your hotel room and get our clothes cleaned and I don't want you to go!"
"I don't belong in Japan, Ginji-san," She reminded him. Ban shook his head.
"Buckle up, you two. We're gonna be late." He slammed the car into gear and peeled out, smirking as his backseat passengers were thrown around.
"But, Neko-chan, don't you like us?" Ginji asked, turning weepy puppy eyes on the shapeshifter. Felis looked away, staring out the window.
"It's not that simple, Tugger," She said, then yawned. "I'm going back to sleep. Wake me up when we get there." Snagging one of the blankets, she drew it over herself and curled up on her side. Ginji sighed and crawled back up to his seat, using a sudden sharp turn to leverage himself into the cushions.
"I don't like this, Ginji. It could be a trap," Ban said, glancing at him. Ginji nodded and propped his chin on a fist, staring out the window.
"I know it is, Ban-chan. That's why we have to go."
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Ban swore softly to himself, not wanting to disturb his passengers. Ok, so he wouldn't mind waking the furry up, but Ginji had gone quiet, which was a Bad Sign. Ban was not interested in another go-around with Raitei or jumping between opponents to snap Ginji out of his rage. They had an agreement! Ban glanced in his rearview mirror, glaring at the sleeping cat-woman. Her hair moved, no doubt triggered by an ear twitching, and her whiskers shimmered in the fading light. Something about Felis rubbed Ban the wrong way. It wasn't her healing ability, lord knows there were plenty of fast healers, himself one of them, though not to her level. It wasn't even the warped facial features and furry appendages. Ban turned his attention back to the road, trying to find a safe place to park his precious Ladybug. They were a mile from the Limitless Fortress and he wasn't about to let his lovely car get any closer. They could walk. He chose a park, not far from where Akabane and Felis had met, though the Get Backers didn't know this. Ban stopped under a tree, well away from any street lights, and turned off the engine.
"Hey, Ginji. You ok?" He asked after a few minutes. Ginji sighed and turned to him, smiling cheerfully.
"I'm fine, Ban. We're together, that's all that matters, right?"
"Partners to the end. Guess we should wake up our third wheel." Ban reached back and shook Felis' shoulder. He got scratched.
"The third wheel is already awake, thank you," She said, yawning and stretching. Ban glared at the welts and realized what was bothering him. Felis was wild. Shido may mimic various animals, but at his core he was still human. Felis had no such core. Her human form was the mimic, the disguise to put other humans at ease. No wonder she got along so well with Jackal! Ginji helped Felis out of the car. Ban shook his hand and climbed out, grumbling to himself. Now he had a soft hearted idiot and a feral animal to keep an eye on! How did he get himself into these messes?
"Come on, it's this way," Ginji said, taking the lead. Ban fell into step on Ginji's right, making his position plain. He glanced at Felis with a knowing smirk, only to find her on HIS right, tying her hair back with a scrap of fabric.
"What do you think you're doing?" He muttered under his breath. Felis swiveled her freed ears, whiskers twitching madly.
"You're the one I don't know about, Ban-san. Until I see how you fight, I stay with you."
"But Ginji's the one we're supposed to be protecting!"
"Ginji's not at risk here. You are. You're human, therefore you're the liability that will be eliminated if at all possible. What better way to capture Ginji then cutting his most precious tie?" Ban gulped. They arrived at one of the entrances and Ginji shoved a panel open. He looked over at his companions.
"Hey, what's wrong, Ban-chan? You look like you've seen a ghost or something."
"Nah, I'm fine. Just worried about Ladybug, you know?"
"Oh, don't worry, Ban-chan! I put a static shield on her before we left!"
"Hey, smart move, Ginji. Now that that's taken care of, let's go." Ban gave Felis a warning look and followed his best friend into the Fortress. Felis smirked, right on his heels. Several feet in, the door slammed shut.
"God, every time. That still gives me the creeps," Ban complained, lighting up. Ginji shrugged, heading right. Ban fell back a pace to walk beside Felis.
"You really think Magneto would kill me?" He whispered.
"In a heartbeat. Without you, what does Ginji have here?"
"He has friends. Lots of friends."
"Does Raitei?" Ban took a long drag and blew out the smoke in a hiss.
"No."
"So, if you were killed, how would Ginji react?"
"He'd…turn into Raitei." Ban's cursed blue eyes grew wide and he stared at the cat-woman. She nodded.
"Drive Ginji hard enough and Magneto gets what he wants. He'll be the voice of reason, of purpose. He'd talk Raitei into joining his quest."
"But it wouldn't matter," Ban said smugly, waving his half-burnt cigarette in a circle. "If I was killed in front of him, Raitei wouldn't stop until all his enemies were destroyed."
"Magneto's power shares sources with Ginji's. I don't know if it's possible for him to be killed by electricity. It might make him stronger."
"And when were you planning on telling us this?" Ban yelled, making Ginji squawk in surprise and turn around.
"Tell us what? What are you two whispering about back there?" He demanded. Felis shrugged.
"You're surprised? I thought you were smarter then this, Ban-san. Where does magnetism come from?"
"Charged particles."
"And what's the most efficient way to charge particles?"
"Electricity." Ban stared at Ginji, who was starting to panic a little.
"Are you saying that I might…feed this Magneto person?" Ginji asked nervously.
"You might, or you might not. I don't know. I've never seen you in action, so I don't know how your ability works. We'll just have to wait and see."
"You…" Ban started. Felis held up a hand.
"I swear, the next person that calls me bitch gets their throat cut and I'm not patching them up afterwards!"
"Fine. Bastard."
"BAN-CHAN!" Ginji gasped. Felis burst out laughing.
"Save that epitaph for someone who actually deserves it, Ban-san. We're getting closer. I can smell them. How much further, Ginji-san?"
"Not much. You two want to tell me what's going on? You're starting to treat her like Himiko, Ban-chan. Does that mean you're beginning to like her?" Ginji asked. A swift fist to the head was his only answer. Ginji whimpered and begged Felis to make it better, which she did by ruffling his hair. Ban snorted at his companions' antics and shoved his hands into his pants pockets. He wasn't afraid to die, it was what would happen to Ginji that scared him. A magnetic maniac and the Lightening Emperor going toe to toe? The Limitless Fortress wouldn't survive the clash! The trio went up a flight of steps and emerged in the open air. Sunset painted the junkyard blood red and standing about ten yards away were three figures, ranging in size from normal to huge. Ban and Ginji held up their hands against the light, Felis squinted. The figures moved, resolving themselves from black shadows to real people. Ban recognized the lighter-happy punk, still playing with his toy. The second figure topped seven feet, easily, and was also covered in fur. He had a lion-ish face and was snarling. The man in the middle was old, gray hair rustling in the slight breeze. Despite the hair, he stood tall and proud.
"Gentlemen, may I present Pyro, Magneto and Sabretooth, the Three Musketeers of the Brotherhood," Felis said, gesturing to each. Switching to English, she waved to Ban and Ginji.
"Magneto, I give you the Get Backers. Amano Ginji and Midou Ban."
"A pleasure to meet you," Magneto said in Japanese, bowing appropriately. Ban snorted.
"Save it, old man. We speak English," He said in English. Magneto nodded.
"Most convenient. Thank you for stooping to speak in my tongue. Now, Ginji, would you please join me over here? I am very eager to talk to you."
"What you have to say can be said right here," Ginji tossed back, hands balled at his sides.
"Oh, I'm afraid not. You see, Sabretooth here has a nasty grudge against your lovely companion and from the looks of things, she wishes to settle the score as well." Ban and Ginji looked at Felis. Her claws were out, tail bottle brushy and her fangs showing. Sabretooth growled in agreement and the two sidled away from the main group. Ginji gasped when Magneto gently took his arm. Ban lunged, only to be blocked by a sudden jet of flame.
"It's going to get quite messy around here very soon, Amano Ginji. Let us retire to someplace more private where we might talk in peace."
"Let me go! Ban!" Ginji cried, lunging away from Magneto.
"Ginji!" Ban yelled, ducking under the fire. He ran smack into a wall that had not been there before. Ban stumbled back, eyes wide in horror as metal plates rose up from the ground and formed a barrier around his best friend. He could hear Ginji inside, pounding on the wall. Growling, Ban backed up and took a running leap, trying to reach the top of the wall. He made it and pulled himself up to look down into the enclosure. Ginji was running around the prison, Magneto was looking right at HIM! Within seconds he was blocked as the mutant built a ceiling, with gaps between the plates to let in light and air, but nothing big enough to squeeze through. Ban swore furiously and punched one of the plates. A burst of heat sent him scrabbling away, trying to dodge the oncoming fireball.
"Looks like it's up to you, Ginji. Hold on until I can get there."
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A/N: Hah, fooled you! I was going to ask and see what fight people wanted to see first, but I realized that might be considered "choose your own adventure", which is completely against guidelines and I've already broken those once this story, so I won't do it again. Please review! I need the encouragement! Please? You don't wnat me to do the manga eyes. I'm very good at it.