Title: Drawn to Danger [4/?]

Author: Rubious

Series: Trigun & Get Backers

Rating: R

Warnings: angst, violence, humor, gunplay, AU-OOC.

Disclaimer: Trigun © Nightow. Get Backers © Aoki and Ayamine. All original characters including but not limited to Blaine, Lamassi, etc, are © Rubious and are not to be used without permission. This story is a work of fanfiction and is for entertainment purposes only.

Spoilers: Contains minor spoilers for both series.

Archive: fanfiction.net under "Rubious", mediaminer.org under "Rubious2", and my home page.

Notes: While on assignment with Ban and Ginji of the Get Backers, Meryl and Milly are drawn into danger as they meet old friends as well as foes in May City.

//thoughts//

* * * *

After enjoying a hearty meal, Wolfwood and Milly walked through the busy marketplace and discovered Meryl sitting alone on a bench in front of a boutique. The tall brunette asked her if she was hungry since she hadn’t joined them for lunch.

 

“No, I had some coffee and a croissant with Deke at a café,” Meryl explained.

 

“Who’s Deke?” Milly inquired.

 

“Just a friend of the family,” her partner replied elusively.

 

“A friend, huh?” Wolfwood interjected, smirking at Meryl’s contemplative reaction to his comment. Glancing at his watch, he remarked, “Ladies, it was nice seeing you again, but I have an important appointment to go to. I’m sure I’ll be seeing you around town during the tournament.” He walked away, the Cross-Punisher slung over his shoulder.

 

“Don’t be a stranger,” Milly called out.

 

“Don’t worry. I won’t be,” the preacher replied as he waved goodbye.

 

Milly turned to her coworker and prodded Meryl for more information about the man she had shared coffee with. “Come on, you can tell me about him.  I’m your closest friend.” She was assuming the role her older sisters played when they needled her about the latest boy she liked when she was in junior high school.

Meryl relented to her friend’s insistent cajoling by admitting the man she had met was a friend of the Stryfe family. Deke Blaine had given her firearms lessons after her father insisted she learn how to defend herself upon learning of Meryl’s intentions to leave home after graduating high school. Though he was over twice her age, the infatuated girl had developed a crush on her instructor, but he made it painfully clear to his student that their relationship wouldn’t continue on to a romantic level.

 

“People tend to change over the years. He’s probably not the same guy you knew,” Milly remarked.

 

“That’s true. Deke is a great guy and it was nice to run into him again, but there was something odd about him. He was more concerned in learning about my job than he was in talking about himself.”

 

“Maybe he’s just a private person who doesn’t talk about myself,” Milly offered.

 

“Or he’s got some secrets,” Meryl speculated.

* * * * *

 

After inquiring with several people as to the whereabouts of the well-known gunsmith, Frank Marlon, Wolfwood located him near the shooting range. ”Are you Frank Marlon?” he asked the middle-aged man who was watching some entrants practice for the upcoming tournament. [1]

 

“Yes, I am. Can I help you?” Marlon replied, noting the large cloth-wrapped cross the preacher was carrying.

 

“I was hoping you could repair a gun for me,” Wolfwood explained, bending down to open a compartment in the Cross-Punisher and removing a small package. Opening the box to reveal a damaged silver-plated pistol, he showed the weapon to the gunsmith.

 

Taking a closer view of the gun, Marlon picked it up carefully, running his fingers slowly over the barrel. “That’s an AGL Arms .45 Long Colt. I fixed one for a guy several months ago,” he said thoughtfully.

 

“This gun belonged to Vash the Stampede,” Wolfwood added, waiting to see what Marlon’s reaction would be to the vanished gunman.

 

The mention of the Humanoid Typhoon caused the gunsmith to pause, a stunned expression on his face. He blinked as memories of his meeting with Vash flowed into his mind’s eye. In Warren City, Marlon spent time sharing booze with Vash as he related his story of how the once proud man had descended into drunkenness. When a group of bandits threatened the town, Marlon fooled the bandits into surrendering. If it hadn’t been for his restored self-confidence, he wouldn’t have been able to do the heroic deed. The chance meeting with Vash had indeed had a memorable effect on his life.

 

“Are you all right?” Wolfwood asked, seeing the spacey look in Marlon’s eyes.

 

“Sorry about that. I zoned out for a little bit.” Marlon took a deep breath and placed the weapon back in the box. “You say this is Vash’s gun, right? Well, I’ll be glad to do it. As a favor to Vash, I’ll do it for free.”

 

The black-haired preacher smiled graciously and said, “That’s very generous of you. I really appreciate it. I’ll let Vash now the next time I see him”

 

The gunsmith told Wolfwood he should have the pistol repaired by the end of the tournament. Thanking him again, the preacher departed and returned to the boardinghouse where he was staying.

 

* * * * *

 

In a secluded house on the edge of the desert, Brilliant Dynamites Neon leaned over the map spread out on the wooden table, pointing out to the members of the Bad Lads the plan for robbing their next target, a firearms warehouse in May City. While most of the town would be busy watching the Quick Draw Tournament, they would break into the building and steal the weaponry inside and sell the goods to the highest bidder.

 

The gang leader answered the incoming call from their client. “Neon here,” he said in a low voice as he gestured the Bad Lads to allow him some privacy. “We’re going to hit the joint tomorrow afternoon and everything is going according to plan.”

 

The client wanted to be assured that the heist will go smoothly and that the Bad Lads wouldn’t be foiled and embarrassed by a Vash the Stampede wannabe.

 

Neon’s voice grew irritated at the reminder of the failed robbery. “Something like that won’t happen. Besides Vash disappeared after he blew a hole in the moon.” His eyes narrowed as he ended the conversation. “I’ll contact you when the job is done so we can complete the deal,” he said tersely and hung up the phone.

 

Neon signaled to the Bad Lads to rejoin him at the table to go over their plans once again.

 

 

Chuckling, Deke Blaine mused it was easy to get under people’s skin if they are reminded of their shortcomings and past failures. He had confidence in Neon and his men because they had successfully pulled off similar assignments in the past and they had been compensated handsomely for their work. The stolen merchandise had then been sold on the black market at a huge markup to gangs, who proceeded to wreak havoc in numerous areas.

 

By playing on people’s fears to protect themselves during the gangs’ crime spree, Blaine amassed huge profits from selling firearms to homeowners at exorbitant prices created by the spike in demand. His eyes lit up like the double suns at seeing the growing totals of double-dollars that flowed into his coffers.

 

He had the utmost confidence in the brilliance of his scheme. The authorities couldn’t connect him to the thefts and the insurance company hadn’t discovered the scam he was running, having already paid on several of the submitted claims. The arrival of insurance investigators might be a complicating factor, but one of them was an old acquaintance, and he was certain that he could easily persuade to see things his way by pulling at her heartstrings.

 

* * * *

 

Stretching his arms above his head, Ginji awakened from his nap, glanced over at his slumbering partner and smiled, but his growling stomach reminded him that he hadn’t eaten since before leaving for May City that morning. Nudging Ban gently, he said, “Let’s get some lunch.”

 

The brunette blinked the sleep out of his eyes and agreed readily. He pulled out his wallet and noted how much in funds they had at their disposal. Lamassi had given the Get Backers a small advance on their retainer to use for expenses. //If we run short, we could find the girls and they can put any purchases on their company credit card.//

 

“Ginji, what are you hungry for?” Ban asked as he waited for his friend to get ready.

 

“Pizza, Ban-chan. With lots of pepperoni,” Ginji said excitedly as the pair exited the suite in search of lunch.

 

Before eating, the two young men browsed the marketplace for mementoes of their trip to give their friends back in Shinjuku. Perusing through some jewelry, Ginji held up an amethyst necklace for Ban’s opinion. “Wouldn’t this be perfect for Hevn?”

 

Ban eyed the necklace closely and remarked in a calculating tone, “Yes, it would. Maybe she’ll take this and lower her commission rate on our next assignment.”

 

“We’ll take it and this too,” Ginji told the merchant, indicating a silver barrette they had picked out for Natsumi.

 

“What about Paul?” Ban wondered as they continued shopping for souvenirs. At the next vendor, a matching set of ceramic beer steins caught his attention. Ginji agreed with his selection and the pair headed off to a nearby restaurant for lunch, their shopping completed.

 

Inside the noisy restaurant where the lunch special was an all-you-could-eat buffet, the Get Backers found a table and the hungry Ginji made a beeline for the buffet. The blond youth had already put some fruit salad on his plate. While reaching for a bagel, he met resistance as another hand also grabbed for the bagel. “Hey, that’s mine,” he said.

 

“No, it’s not. It’s mine. I saw it first,” whined a teen wearing a golden diadem as he tugged on the sesame seed bagel.

 

At the table where the boy’s companions were sitting, the lanky redhead was laughing and flirting with the waitresses each time they passed by his seat with their hands full with lunch orders.

 

The brunette had finished fending away a pesky child, who insisted the man was actually a famous stunt car driver who was passing through town incognito. He shook his head in disbelief at the notion. “That kid’s definitely from a different world with that farfetched idea,” he mused. The white dragon perched on his shoulder made contented noises as its master fed it nibbles of the appetizer.

 

Meanwhile, the boy’s guardian sneered when he heard the burgeoning dispute at the buffet. “Not again,” he growled. Intending to make an example out of the disorderly youth by shooting the contested bagel from his hand, the blond slowly pulled his Smith & Wesson from a roomy sleeve in his robe.

 

At a nearby table, Ban had sat down and had begun perusing the menu when he noticed a man getting ready to cock the hammer of a revolver. Following the gun’s muzzle, the Get Backer’s eyes filled with alarm to see that Ginji was in the line of fire, so Ban swiftly intervened by clamping the Snake Bite, his grip that exerts 200 kilograms of pressure, on the would-be shooter’s shoulder, who turned around and snarled.

 

Sensing that his guardian was in trouble, the hungry lad at the buffet stopped tugging on the bagel, yielding it to Ginji. Shouting the monk’s name, the lad rushed to his group’s table to protect his mentor. Ginji turned to see his partner confronting the man and the youngster going over to help. He screamed, “Ban-chan,” as he made eye contact with the Jagan-user as he went over to even up the situation.

 

Flapping its wings in warning, the dragon exclaimed “Kyu!” as its master stood up to intercede in the argument between the four men. “Gentlemen, can’t we all get along? What are you fighting over anyway?” The brunette spoke in a calming manner.

 

Eyes blazing with anger, Ban growled, “I wasn’t gonna let this asswipe shoot my friend here,” his hand gesturing in Ginji’s direction.

 

The monk spat in disgust, “Baka! I was aiming for the bagel the two morons were arguing over.”

 

Watching the scene, the flirtatious redhead guffawed, “Fighting over a bagel? I can see battling over a beautiful babe, but a bagel? That’s hilarious!” He leaned back in his chair, laughing uproariously, but tilted back too far, and ended up on the floor. He was still giggling as he got up.

 

The others saw the idiocy over brawling over a bagel. “See, saru, the waitress brought more food. You don’t have to whine about being hungry,” the guardian snorted, indicating the steaming plate of nachos and spicy chicken wings that had just been placed on the table by the server, who was fending off the redhead’s advances as she went to check on another table of customers.

 

The brunette suggested the Get Backers join them for lunch, which they gladly accepted, and the six spent several hours swapping stories over numerous plates of food and mugs of beer.

 

Patting his stomach, the sated redhead remarked, “Hey, where can I find some hot babes in this town?”

 

The driver felt embarrassed by his scandalous cohort and quickly changed the subject, “Ban and Ginji, it was wonderful meeting you.”

 

After the two men shook hands, Ban reached into his wallet when the waitress brought their tab, but the monk waved off Ban’s offer. “Don’t worry about it. I’ll put it on our debit card,” stated the blond as he paid the bill. [2]

 

The Get Backers departed the restaurant and explored May City in the waning hours of daylight. They returned to the hotel to see what plans the insurance girls had for the evening.

 

* * * * *

 

That evening, after enjoying a delicious meal at the Senate, a cozy eatery that had been recommended to them by the hotel staff, Meryl, Milly, and the Get Backers paused in front of the Angst Theater. “A movie would be a great way to finish the day,” Milly suggested, hoping that Meryl would finally agree to her request.

 

The petite investigator sighed. With the bus trip, the hassles of finding lodging, and the busy happenings on their first day in May City had made her very weary. //Besides I don’t think I’d be able to concentrate on any film with so much going on in my mind to enjoy it properly. Seeing Wolfwood and Blaine in the same day has thrown me for a loop.//

 

Turning to her coworker, Meryl said wearily, “It’s been a very long day. Why don’t the three of you see a movie without me?”

 

Her partner reacted with a note of concern, “Are you okay?”

 

“A hot, soaking bath is what I need,” Meryl replied.

 

“Would you want us to walk back to the hotel with you?” Ginji asked chivalrously.

 

“Thanks, but I can manage,” the black-haired woman responded reassuringly. “If I run into any trouble, I got some backup right here,” patting her purse, which contained several of her derringers.

 

“Are you sure?” Ban said.

 

“Yes. Now please go enjoy the movie.”

 

“We’ll see you later, Meryl,” called Milly as she watched her associate leave.

 

A short time later, Meryl entered the hotel suite she shared with Milly, kicked off her boots, and sprawled on the bed. She soon mustered enough effort to go into the bathroom to run water for her bath.

 

The tumult of emotions she felt upon seeing Wolfwood and Blaine rekindled thoughts of Vash the Stampede. A long, luxurious soak would relax her and maybe clear her mind so she could focus on the task at hand.

Closing the bathroom door, Meryl disrobed, eased into the steaming tub, and relaxed in the bubble-filled water. The stressed woman felt a pleasant reverie as the tension floated away like an unfettered kite on a windy day.

* * * *

To be continued…

Author’s Notes

[1] Frank Marlon’s appearance was inspired by dialogue in episode 19, “Goodbye for Now”, in which Wolfwood gives Vash his gun that was lost in Augusta.

[2] The Sanzo-ikkou resumed their westward journey after lunch.