Title: Blood of the Snake

By: retroelectric

Warnings:Mature themes, Vampirism, Horror/Supernatural, Yaoi, Alternate Universe

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters from Get Backers. This is a Get Backers fan fiction, ideas purely fan-made speculations based off the relationship between the Get Backers duo and infused with several elements inspired – and not stolen off the Vampire Chronicles Universe by Anne Rice. It is also important to note that this does not contain ANY of her characters, thus this is strictly NOT a Vampire Chronicles/Get Backers crossover. In this way I do not breach any of Anne Rice's policies regarding fan fiction on her work.

Chapter 13

The minute gleam of sunlight peeking its way through the dark, pre-dawn clouds never failed to set Cadmus's ancient, immortal heart beating faster than usual, sending him into a state of hateful claustrophobia.

Even though the fair-haired vampire knew he was powerful enough to stand a few strong rays of the sun and not turn to ashes, he still felt the gloomy tug of fear coagulating deep in the pit of his immortal body. It was that deep-set fear of the unknown; of hurt, pain and death that set the feeling free and he loathed every single time it happened.

He was extremely thankful for Ban's steadfastness, and his easy compliance in using his powers to conceal them three to avoid fighting the group earlier on. If they had wasted even a minute of time with that, Cadmus would have punched and cracked the pavement with his powerful hands in desperation and dig himself his own resting place for the day beneath the concrete itself. He didn't have any intention of revealing such horrid weakness in front of his mortal companions, so he opted to run away from them. It was easier for all of them.

The concrete jungle which surrounded Cadmus loomed over him like a deadly spectre, and he used his immortal hands like a spade to dig deep into the thankfully soft ground. He felt his limbs grow weaker by the minute as the sun began its slow and monumental demonic rising, and the fear of getting burnt hastened his already weakened limbs to move faster.

The dirt got underneath his glass-like fingernails and some of it went into his open mouth as he struggled for breath. This should be deep enough, Cadmus hoped, making the upturned dirt cover him with one single thought. The forgivingly cool soil covered his body and hid him carefully away from the burning rays of the sun.

As he lay buried deep in the ground, his breathing grew still and he succumbed to the comforting death sleep, his iridescent violet eyes closing. His last thoughts were of Ban and Ginji.

"What's wrong, Ginji?"

Ginji was startled out of his reverie upon hearing Ban's voice. He gave a small, sheepish smile and shook his head, before lapsing back to staring aimlessly out of the window. He was contemplating Cadmus's rushed disappearance, and the odd request of a coffin for himself.

"Ginji, you know you can ask me anything," Ban pressed on, frowning at Ginji's unusual pensiveness, before turning to the familiar street near the Honky Tonk.

The electric-wielder turned his eyes away from the scenery beyond the car window to meet Ban's hypnotic blue.

"Ban-chan... Is Cadmus-san going to be okay?" Ginji whispered, his voice cracking.

Ban gave a rare sincere smile and rested his free hand on top of Ginji's. "You know he is, Ginji. He's a vampire, after all."

"Then where did he go, Ban-chan? Why can't he stay with us? I want him to be with us, always..."

Ban turned off the car engine and stretched the best he could given the small space of the car. He let out a long yawn, before answering in a bored tone of voice.

"I want him to be with us too, but... Geez, Ginji, don't you know anything? Like I said, Cadmus is a vampire; a creature of the night, and he will die if he gets exposure to sunlight. He's not a normal human being like the rest of us. Didn't you notice that there are no windows in his mansion back then? The hotel isn't safe for him yet. That's why he needs a coffin. He is one of the 'undead' after all."

Ginji was silent as he digested the information. A grimace must have sneaked its way into his face because Ban placed a tiny kiss on the corner of his mouth, still smiling sincerely. Ginji shook his head again.

"I don't know, Ban-chan... I just feel like something bad is going to happen to Cadmus-san."

"Worry about Cadmus later. I have my own feeling that Cadmus will be alright no matter what happens. Let's hand the drugs over to Hevn, then go do the things he's asked us to do." Ban said, opening the car doors and stepping out, Ginji following closely behind him.

The first thing Ginji saw as he stepped into the cafe was Paul, nursing a cup of coffee. The cafe was surprisingly empty, and even before Ban could open his mouth to ask about Hevn's whereabouts, Paul interrupted him.

"Natsumi-chan and Hevn are both resting upstairs. Natsumi doesn't have school today, and Hevn couldn't keep awake even if she wanted to." Paul said, peering at the silk-clad duo from behind his dark glasses. Ban and Ginji moved towards the staircase leading to the spare room upstairs, but Paul interrupted them. "Before you go, you must remember that you owe me an explanation. There is no one to listen in to us right now."

Ginji nodded. "He's right, Ban-chan, you shouldn't put it off anymore."

Ban sighed, finally admitting defeat. He went over to the bar and sat on a stool, requesting a cup of coffee before kneading the skin around his eyes. Ginji did the same and placed the case of drugs on the counter.

"Where do I start?" Ban muttered, lacing his long fingers around his warm mug, inhaling the aromatic scent of coffee deeply.

"Well, you can start with what happened the night after you were attacked," Paul pointed out. "You and Ginji disappeared without a trace. I had to lie about your whereabouts to the rest of them. And... I was also starting to think both of you had died or something."

"That bad, huh?" Ban gave a knowing smirk to Paul, sipping his coffee languorously. He shrugged, avoiding Paul's gaze. "Well, Cadmus apologized for attacking me and decided to make up for it by giving us a place to stay. That part is true. We accepted, of course. He brought us to Iriomote, where his hidden mansion was located. Lots of stuff happened, and when Ginji asked Cadmus about returning back to civilisation, he agreed. And here were are."

"Is that all?" Paul questioned suspiciously, lifting an eyebrow. "How come you, of all people, are so willing to take up residence with a vampire? And what stuff happened?"

A tense moment passed between then both before Ban broke it by grinning viciously. "Curiosity killed the cat, you know." Paul raised his eyebrow even higher if possible, prompting Ban to elaborate. "Well, if you really want to know... Cadmus, Ginji and I hooked up. We're together - as in a threesome. Lovers, if you want to put it that way."

"I shouldn't have asked," Paul managed to choke out, after staring at Ban and Ginji for the longest time, as though they had sprouted extra heads. "Is it wise, Ban? That Cadmus is a vampire, after all! You might not know what you are getting yourselves into."

"I might know things that even Cadmus never knew of his kind." Ban replied airily, emphasizing his point with a pointed stare and sending Paul into confusion at the Jagan Master's implication. What was Ban talking about? Paul was momentarily startled as Ban set his empty mug down and stood up from his seat. "We can take care of ourselves, Paul. Don't worry about us. C'mon Ginji, we have lots to do." Ban remarked, setting off for the stairs. Ginji dutifully followed behind, shooting Paul an apologetic smile, the silver case in hand.

Ban turned the knob of the unlocked door quietly as soon he reached it. Hevn and Natsumi lay side by side on the queen-sized bed, the blond woman's unusually relaxed face half-covered by the thin blanket. Ban smiled fondly at the sleeping negotiator and lightly shook her awake.

"Hevn... wake up."

Hevn opened one bleary golden-coloured eye, and through her slightly blurred vision saw Ban and Ginji standing over her. She sat up, rubbing her eyes in a childish manner which made Ban smile. She brushed the hair away from her eyes, blinking up at them. Ginji grinned triumphantly and raised the silver case for Hevn to see.

"What?" Hevn yawned.

"Here are the drugs. We'll come and collect the fees later tonight." Ban said softly so as not to wake Natsumi. When Hevn raised her eyebrows at his odd statement - Ban and Ginji always requested their money to be given right after they'd completed a mission! - Ban spoke again, gesturing for Hevn to not say anything.

"Hevn, listen. We have other things to do now. I want you to send the drugs off to the client as quickly as possible, then I want you to contact Kazuki and Monkey Trainer and ask them to meet us here around nine or so. It has something to do with Mugenjou and that Samurai Boy. Tell them it's something important."

Hevn nodded, taking the proffered case from Ginji. Ban and Ginji walked to the door. Ginji's hand had touched the doorknob and he was about to exit when Hevn's voice stopped him. "Where are you guys going now?"

"To buy a coffin!"

Hevn's mouth fell open and she stared wildly at the duo. "...Who died?"

"No one. Bye Hevn." Ban said forcefully, glaring at Ginji and pushed them both out of the door.

"Damn it, Ginji! You aren't supposed to go around saying things like that!" Ban hissed once they were well clear of Hevn.

"But she-" A warning glare.

"See you again, Paul." Ban loudly interrupted Ginji's excuse, waving slightly at the cafe owner as they exited.

"Ban-chan, she asked! Why can't I tell the truth? She's our friend, you know!" Ginji whined as he entered the familiar space of the car once again.

"How do you think she'd react if she knew what Cadmus really was?" Ban sighed, feeling considerably weary all of a sudden as he drove back to the hotel.

Ginji racked his brains for a moment. "Eh... that... I don't really know. How would she react, Ban-chan?"

"She'd be scared to death of him, Ginji. She'd think he would be out to suck her blood and kill her. Vampires like him... Many people think of them as portents of death, and nothing else. We must pretend for the moment that Cadmus is human, or else people would be out to kill him if they knew of his true nature." Ban replied quietly.

"Why, Ban-chan? Vampires like Cadmus have feelings too, why would people want to kill them...?" Ginji questioned, feeling confused.

"The same reason why those Europeans killed witches in the Middle Ages... fear."

Ginji immediately understood Ban's meaning, and he conveniently remembered that Ban's ancestors were those witches themselves. He looked at his partner's stoic expression, and nodded grimly, understanding.

"I understand, Ban-chan. I won't tell anyone what Cadmus really is."

"Aa."

The rest of the journey was spent in their usual companionable silence. Not long after, they arrived at the hotel. Ban turned off the engines, and smiled helpfully at his blond partner. "If you're hungry, Ginji, call for room service."

Ginji nodded as they stepped out of the car. He looked on curiously as Ban closed his eyes and murmured something under his breath, making the car disappear mysteriously out of sight. He realised that this was the same thing Ban had done in front of Mugenjou a few hours ago. Then something ticked at the back of his brain.

"Ban-chan..."

"Shut up, Ginji."

"Ban-chan! Let me speak! How come you never did this before? You could have hidden the car away from the police and saved us paying money for the fines! We could have used it for food instead!" Ginji complained as they walked the short distance to the entrance of the expensive hotel.

"I said shut up, Ginji."

"You're so mean!" He pouted as Ban ignored him. The dark-haired male slipped a hand into his tweed coat pocket, retrieving several large bills and handing it to the shocked bellboy indifferently.

Ginji fumed silently as he entered the elevator with Ban. The door closed and began its slow ascent. He was so engrossed in his thoughts that he felt momentarily startled as a pair of soft lips grazed his own, and stared at Ban's face questioningly.

"I'm sorry, Ginji."

He was so startled by the short contact and his softly-spoken words, that he didn't realise that Ban had pulled the key from his own coat and opened the suite door for them. He locked the door behind him absentmindedly and only stared after Ban as the dark-haired male kicked off his shoes, removed his coat, then his silk shirt and his dark pants, lazily leaving them on the floor.

Ban collapsed heavily onto the bed and covered his half-clothed body with the covers.

Now where was I? Ban thought, as he closed his eyes and found peace.