30 K fic - Family Ties (AU)
Title: Family Ties
Author/Artist: lksugui
Pairing: Ban/Ginji
Fandom: Get Backers
Theme: #12: in a good mood and #29: the sound of waves
Wordcount: 1004
Rating: PG-13 for male x male kissing
Warnings: AU story, cross dressing
Disclaimer: Get Backers belong to Yuya Aoki and Randou Ayamine.
It was the beginning of spring, still too cold, humid and windy to be outdoors for long. Their only company was the seagulls and, on occasion, a passing fisherman darting concerned eyes to the unwelcoming sea, probably anxious to sail and put some food on the table. The sand was dark and wet, making crunching noises under Ban’s shoes and Himiko’s zoris (1).
“I said I want nothing from you,” her voice was bitter and venomous and for a moment he saw not her real face, but that of their grandmother, “we’re nothing to each other anymore.”
“I bought it with Yamato’s money,” Ban pushed up his glasses, eyes narrowing against the salty wind, “so it’s actually his present, not mine.”
“Do not say his name with that filthy mouth of yours!” Himiko spat angrily, her hands balling into fists under the long kimono sleeves.
“It was his last wish, you know,” Ban picked a cigarette from his pocket while speaking, “he wanted you to have a decent marriage, with the proper clothes…”
It happened in a split second: one moment Himiko was walking slightly behind Ban, the next, she had a tanto (2) pointed at his throat.
“How dare you talk about his last wish…” She was shaking with barely contained fury.
The cigarette hanging on the corner of his mouth didn’t move. Blue eyes stared coldly at the weapon, then at its owner.
“Never show a blade if you don’t intend to use it,” he said, his voice low and dangerous.
They stood there, unmoving, indifferent to the cold wind and to the water that came closer to their feet with each dying wave. A thin line of blood trickled from the point where Himiko’s tanto connected with Ban’s throat. He raised an eyebrow.
“Well?”
Slowly, with visible effort, she lowered the tanto and sheathed it. Then, she turned her back on him.
“I’m returning that uchikake (3). If it’s not possible to return, I’ll burn it.”
Ban lit his cigarette.
“If you’re not marrying Akabane, that’s fine by me. Personally I have no idea why you even considered that creep’s proposal… But if you are, wear that uchikake. I don’t give a damn about family tradition, but Yamato did, and we should respect his will.”
Slap.
The cigarette flew from his mouth. His cheek stung. Was it just his impression or had her punches become stronger over the last months?
“You have some nerve,” Himiko all but growled, “acting like a concerned brother when you’re nothing but a traitor! I don’t need your approval for my wedding! Aniki wanted me to marry Akabane and that is reason enough for me!”
“I know,” Ban shrugged and started to make his way back to where he had left the rikshaw waiting, “If you’re so keen to do what Yamato wanted, then wear the darn uchikake in your wedding.”
A fistful of wet sand hit him in the back.
“Bastard!” she screamed furiously and threw another fistful of sand. “How can you say those things? How can you talk about him like you cared? You killed him! You killed our brother! Murderer! Murderer! Murderer!”
Ban kept walking, ignoring the sand thrown at him. As the distance between them grew, Himiko’s cries faded, carried off by the wind till all that was left was the roaring sound of the waves. When he was almost reaching the stairway that led to the street, he stopped.
“Come out, Ginji. I know you’re there.”
From behind a bunch of bushes a thoroughly embarrassed Ginji stood up.
“I-I’m sorry Ban-chan, I didn’t mean to pry… I know you wanted me to stay put bu-but I was so worried…”
Ban sighed and shook his head.
“You’re hopeless… What about the darn theater? Didn’t you have a performance right now?”
“I asked Teshimine-san to change the schedule so I could come see you before the act.”
“Heh, I guess it wasn’t easy to convince the old fart, was it?”
“Eh? How do you know that?”
“You’re dressed like the Bamboo Princess.(4)”
Ginji was wearing a rich red furisode (5) flowered in green and gold and high zoris, a completely improper outfit to be wandering in the port area. He had probably left the theater in the last minute, not bothering to change his onnagata (6) attire for man’s clothes, which meant Teshimine had taken his sweet time to let Ginji go .
“Let’s go home, baka.” Ban waved to the rikshaw conductor and the man immediately brought the vehicle closer to the stairway. Then he reached a hand to help his partner climb the stairs. Stupid reckless eel, running around cross dressed like that… must have tripped and fallen a dozen times, seeing how the lower part of the kimono was dirty and torn.
“You’re not mad?” Ginji warily stared at the inviting hand. He was expecting at least a good whack in the head for disobeying.
“Nope. I’m in a good mood today,” and, as if to prove what he’d just said, Ban pulled his partner closer and kissed him lightly on the lips.
Ginji blinked, totally confused by Ban’s unexpected behavior.
“In a good mood? You? Bu-but… Himiko-chan… she pointed a tanto at you… she said horrible things… she called you a murderer…”
There was well-concealed - yet, to Ginji, clearly visible - pain, but also a glimpse of hope in those beautiful cursed eyes. Ban nodded.
“Yeah. She called me murderer,” a knowing smile crept on thin lips, “but she said I killed our brother.”
BGBGBGBGBGBGBGBGBGBGBGBGBGBGBGBGBGBGBGBGBGBGBGBGBGBGBGBGBGBGBGBGBGBGBGBGBGBGBGBGBGBG
Words in Japanese:
(1) Zori: a kind of sandal, usually made of wood.
(2) Uchikake: a wedding kimono, extremely expensive.
(3) Tanto: a small knife. Samurais used it when they couldn’t, for any reason, use the katana sword. Women used it for self defense.
(4) Bamboo Princess: character from an old Japanese fairy tale.
(5) Furisode: a kimono with extra large sleeves, worn by young single women. It’s the same type as the one that Kazuki was wearing when he first met Juubei.
(6) Onnagata: an actor who plays female roles in Kabuki Theater.
If you want to know more details about this AU, check this page: Get Backers AU: Places & Characters
Thanks to so many great hints from my betas I think I managed to make this story readable... There are problems in this text that I couldn't solve despite all their help, shame on me... And the last part was totally re-written and non-betaed because, really, I felt like I HAD to post this now or I'd be rewriting this for the rest of the year ^^;
Anyways, thank you so much for reading this! ^o^
Author/Artist: lksugui
Pairing: Ban/Ginji
Fandom: Get Backers
Theme: #12: in a good mood and #29: the sound of waves
Wordcount: 1004
Rating: PG-13 for male x male kissing
Warnings: AU story, cross dressing
Disclaimer: Get Backers belong to Yuya Aoki and Randou Ayamine.
It was the beginning of spring, still too cold, humid and windy to be outdoors for long. Their only company was the seagulls and, on occasion, a passing fisherman darting concerned eyes to the unwelcoming sea, probably anxious to sail and put some food on the table. The sand was dark and wet, making crunching noises under Ban’s shoes and Himiko’s zoris (1).
“I said I want nothing from you,” her voice was bitter and venomous and for a moment he saw not her real face, but that of their grandmother, “we’re nothing to each other anymore.”
“I bought it with Yamato’s money,” Ban pushed up his glasses, eyes narrowing against the salty wind, “so it’s actually his present, not mine.”
“Do not say his name with that filthy mouth of yours!” Himiko spat angrily, her hands balling into fists under the long kimono sleeves.
“It was his last wish, you know,” Ban picked a cigarette from his pocket while speaking, “he wanted you to have a decent marriage, with the proper clothes…”
It happened in a split second: one moment Himiko was walking slightly behind Ban, the next, she had a tanto (2) pointed at his throat.
“How dare you talk about his last wish…” She was shaking with barely contained fury.
The cigarette hanging on the corner of his mouth didn’t move. Blue eyes stared coldly at the weapon, then at its owner.
“Never show a blade if you don’t intend to use it,” he said, his voice low and dangerous.
They stood there, unmoving, indifferent to the cold wind and to the water that came closer to their feet with each dying wave. A thin line of blood trickled from the point where Himiko’s tanto connected with Ban’s throat. He raised an eyebrow.
“Well?”
Slowly, with visible effort, she lowered the tanto and sheathed it. Then, she turned her back on him.
“I’m returning that uchikake (3). If it’s not possible to return, I’ll burn it.”
Ban lit his cigarette.
“If you’re not marrying Akabane, that’s fine by me. Personally I have no idea why you even considered that creep’s proposal… But if you are, wear that uchikake. I don’t give a damn about family tradition, but Yamato did, and we should respect his will.”
Slap.
The cigarette flew from his mouth. His cheek stung. Was it just his impression or had her punches become stronger over the last months?
“You have some nerve,” Himiko all but growled, “acting like a concerned brother when you’re nothing but a traitor! I don’t need your approval for my wedding! Aniki wanted me to marry Akabane and that is reason enough for me!”
“I know,” Ban shrugged and started to make his way back to where he had left the rikshaw waiting, “If you’re so keen to do what Yamato wanted, then wear the darn uchikake in your wedding.”
A fistful of wet sand hit him in the back.
“Bastard!” she screamed furiously and threw another fistful of sand. “How can you say those things? How can you talk about him like you cared? You killed him! You killed our brother! Murderer! Murderer! Murderer!”
Ban kept walking, ignoring the sand thrown at him. As the distance between them grew, Himiko’s cries faded, carried off by the wind till all that was left was the roaring sound of the waves. When he was almost reaching the stairway that led to the street, he stopped.
“Come out, Ginji. I know you’re there.”
From behind a bunch of bushes a thoroughly embarrassed Ginji stood up.
“I-I’m sorry Ban-chan, I didn’t mean to pry… I know you wanted me to stay put bu-but I was so worried…”
Ban sighed and shook his head.
“You’re hopeless… What about the darn theater? Didn’t you have a performance right now?”
“I asked Teshimine-san to change the schedule so I could come see you before the act.”
“Heh, I guess it wasn’t easy to convince the old fart, was it?”
“Eh? How do you know that?”
“You’re dressed like the Bamboo Princess.(4)”
Ginji was wearing a rich red furisode (5) flowered in green and gold and high zoris, a completely improper outfit to be wandering in the port area. He had probably left the theater in the last minute, not bothering to change his onnagata (6) attire for man’s clothes, which meant Teshimine had taken his sweet time to let Ginji go .
“Let’s go home, baka.” Ban waved to the rikshaw conductor and the man immediately brought the vehicle closer to the stairway. Then he reached a hand to help his partner climb the stairs. Stupid reckless eel, running around cross dressed like that… must have tripped and fallen a dozen times, seeing how the lower part of the kimono was dirty and torn.
“You’re not mad?” Ginji warily stared at the inviting hand. He was expecting at least a good whack in the head for disobeying.
“Nope. I’m in a good mood today,” and, as if to prove what he’d just said, Ban pulled his partner closer and kissed him lightly on the lips.
Ginji blinked, totally confused by Ban’s unexpected behavior.
“In a good mood? You? Bu-but… Himiko-chan… she pointed a tanto at you… she said horrible things… she called you a murderer…”
There was well-concealed - yet, to Ginji, clearly visible - pain, but also a glimpse of hope in those beautiful cursed eyes. Ban nodded.
“Yeah. She called me murderer,” a knowing smile crept on thin lips, “but she said I killed our brother.”
BGBGBGBGBGBGBGBGBGBGBGBGBGBGBGBGBGBGBGBGBGBGBGBGBGBGBGBGBGBGBGBGBGBGBGBGBGBGBGBGBGBG
Words in Japanese:
(1) Zori: a kind of sandal, usually made of wood.
(2) Uchikake: a wedding kimono, extremely expensive.
(3) Tanto: a small knife. Samurais used it when they couldn’t, for any reason, use the katana sword. Women used it for self defense.
(4) Bamboo Princess: character from an old Japanese fairy tale.
(5) Furisode: a kimono with extra large sleeves, worn by young single women. It’s the same type as the one that Kazuki was wearing when he first met Juubei.
(6) Onnagata: an actor who plays female roles in Kabuki Theater.
If you want to know more details about this AU, check this page: Get Backers AU: Places & Characters
Thanks to so many great hints from my betas I think I managed to make this story readable... There are problems in this text that I couldn't solve despite all their help, shame on me... And the last part was totally re-written and non-betaed because, really, I felt like I HAD to post this now or I'd be rewriting this for the rest of the year ^^;
Anyways, thank you so much for reading this! ^o^