Whoo-hoo! Trigun doesn't belong to me!!

Here's a better physical description of Trieste, mostly so I can get some fanart from Eria!! ^.^

Height: 5'5, about 5'7 with boots on (so slightly taller than usual).

Weight: 130 pounds.

Hair: Dark brown, should come a bit lower than her chin. Choppy, you know, it has the look of a five minute clip done by herself without a mirror. The front strands often pulled back with a band, or maybe even a full pony-tail at times. Dirty and kinda scraggly-she is in the dessert a lot, you know.

Eyes: Pale grey blue, icy.

Skin color: I imagine her with Hispanic/European roots, so she should have a deeper skin tone, Puerto Rican is probably a good basis to go from. This means any scars would be lighter (I'll get to them later).

Body type: Think Legato with breasts and just not as tall. Broad shoulders, longer legs and arms, muscular but not bulky. If you know people who do crew/track/swimming, that's more her body type. Tightly-coiled muscle that can pack a wallop. Her chest is fairly small, an A-cup if that (just so you have an idea). Long fingers, calloused, with chipped finger-nails (I doubt anyone would draw to such detail, but it gives a good visual for everyone).

Face: Her face isn't as long and angular as Vash's, more of a rounded oval. Strong cheekbones. Her nose has been broken at least once or twice, so it should be a bit off in the bridge. The nostrils should be small, rounded and not pointy. Big eyes-not anime big, but wide. Full lips, a tinge darker than the rest of her face. Regular ears, not pierced (no jewely or tattoos on this girl). She has all her teeth, though. When she smiles, a *real* smile that is, there is actual warmth and friendliness, but most of the time it's very cold, maybe cruel, or a smirk. Her eyebrows are the same color as her hair, not too bushy, just an overlay above her eyes.

Scars: There's a thin, long dash across her left jaw line, from the 'bend' of the bone to her chin almost. I have quite a number of scars-and proud of it!-and all mine are lighter than my skin color, so hers should be as well (assuming I'm a normal human being, biologically speaking). Her hands are calloused (riding a horse all day and such can be quite tough I imagine) and have a few short scars, as if she had punched through glass. I'm not completely sure what a scar from a bullet wound would be, but she has one in her right shoulder and the middle (roughly) of her stomach area. Non scars, but lingering marks from wounds/cuts/scrapes tend to be reddish, and they're dispersed all over her body.

Clothing: She dresses mostly in greys/reddish browns. Her pants are a darkish brown, tight at the waist (like elastic) and wide at the ankle. No belt. She also has a grey pair of the same type. She has a few shirts, wide and shapelss with a high collar, no zippers or buttons. A few are short sleeved, others are long, all are a reddish brown. The cloak is a dark brown, coming down to her feet with a deep hood that can completely cover her face. Think Strider's cloak when you first see him in Lord of the Rings, just covering more of his face. Heavy black boots, high shoe lace mostly hidden by the pants (the boots come about half-calf). Her riding gloves cover the palms and upper portion of her hands and the straps lace between her fingers, but the fingers themselves are unprotected. Her gun is held in an over the shoulder and chest holster, under-cover cop style, so that it's hidden by the cloak, which generally envelopes her body.

The gun: I have no idea at the moment, I need to do some research on weaponry.

About her injuries: despite all the crazy shit I've done in my life, I've never seriously injured myself, so I have no idea what Trieste's healing time would be. I think it goes by pretty quickly, but that's partially on purpose and partially cause, well, I have no idea how long her healing really would take.

Thanks again, Alucard. My graduation rocked, too. Woot!!

*~*

Trieste did not 'get out' for a long time. Over a period of time she lost many bandages, and the doctor did indeed bring the crutches, but Liana and her parents refused to let Trieste downstairs. When demanding the reason, the parents merely said she just couldn't, but Liana was much more straight-forward about it.

'Like I said before, you'll be in everyone's way! You can barely move around without falling, and everyone will stop what they're doing to pick you up. No, stay up here so you don't waste our time.' Trieste hadn't been talked to like that since she was little, and was coolly indignant, but begrudgingly stayed upstairs and tried to walk around her bedroom and took trips to the bathroom down the hall. There had been several times when she fell down, which worried Trieste because while moving around was good, falling down would only aggravate her injuries. And it was embarrassing if anyone was around to watch, though there usually wasn't. One time a young man had come by just in time for her loose grip and topple, and when he helped her up, there was cruel amusement in his eyes. She didn't like him at all, and only ventured out of her room to go to the bathroom; the fact that the room doors didn't have locks made her very uncomfortable. She was also extremely bored so Liana brought books for her to read, but Trieste was done with them in a matter of days. Thankfully, upon her request, they gave Trieste her regular clothes and, more importantly, her gun back. She was also given several maps to plan her next journey. She was not aware of Vash's presence, however. He never came by because he was too busy helping rebuild the buildings, and gaining Liana's friendship. He always asked how she was doing, but he and Liana were so busy, neither of them had much time to visit Trieste. It didn't help things that she was rather unfriendly towards potential visitors, either. The only time anyone could came in (except Liana's mother to bring food) was late at night when she was asleep. The doors were well oiled, nothing squeaked, and she was rarely woken up. These were the few times Vash managed to get himself into the room and watch her. He liked her asleep; she was peaceful, not angry or violent. He had once fallen asleep in a chair and was unknowingly lucky that she did not wake to find him there.

This went on for three agonizing weeks, driving Trieste mad with boredom and growing fear. Surely Legato knew what had happened by now, and he would furious that his men were killed by regular townspeople. She was a hero, and Legato could easily find her through her fame. This was everything she hadn't wanted to happen, and she couldn't find anyone to be angry with except Legato, and her own fury increased with each passing day. This, and her determination, was what made her finally come downstairs two days after the ending of the third week, moving with much more grace than what was expected of her. When she had allowed herself a rest and sat down on a kitchen chair, the mother plopped some fruit in front of her with a knife and cutting board.

'If you're gonna be down here,' she said, 'you're gonna help out with the food you eat.' Irritated, Trieste dutifully began to chop the fruit as she watched the door and all the people walking outside. As she cut the fruit, she looked up and out the door to see Vash walking by outside, Liana at his side. Her eyes followed him, his laughing face burning itself into her brain. *He was here!* Her heart stopped in mid-beat as she practically dropped the knife in her hands. That seemingly kind man who was barely worth noticing had been here the entire time. She hadn't dreamed him talking to her that night, Vash had really been there. And he knew about Legato...

'Um, ma'am, how long has the blond-haired fellow been in town? I don't remember seeing him before.' The woman, busy cooking another part of the dinner for the night, didn't even look up from her pot as she answered.

'Oh, him? That's Vash. Showed up about a week after you did, heard your story, saw our wrecked town-and Liana-and offered to help fix things until you got better. Nice guy, real kind. He was quite concerned about ya.'

'Oh, really?' Trieste asked, keeping the suspicion out of her voice.

'Sure. Likes to visit you at night, though he doesn't want you to know. Hmm, guess I wasn't supposed to tell you that, but it don't matter. We're just glad he's around, Vash works real hard. And after work, he and Liana are thick as thieves.' The mother cackled, then began to chop vegetables. 'People ask me if I'm worried cause she spends so much time with him, but Liana can hold her own. She's a tough girl, I'm very proud of her.'

Trieste had barely heard her, though. ::Visits me at night? Knows about Legato? Hasn't announced himself to me? No...yes, it must be true. He was *taunting* me that night! He was mocking me because I was helpless and knew I'd never be able to defend against Legato. No! Against himself! Vash is here to kill me for Legato!:: A million thoughts ran through her mind, all his bullshit about never taking a human life, but she forced herself to stay physically calm. Slowly getting up, she washed her knife off and pretended to put it in its drawer, but stealthily slipped the knife into her pocket. She figured it was always good to have a surprise for her enemy, especially now.

The two didn't see each other until the end of that week. Trieste had spent more and more time downstairs and outside, speeding up her recovery as much as possible. One day she was resting in the sitting room, thinking about her situation when Vash and Liana walked in. Liana was happily telling Vash about parts of her childhood, but stopped in mid-sentence when they found Trieste sitting in the chair.

'Oh! Hello, young lady. How are you feeling?' Trieste stared at Vash in the eye, not answering the question for a moment.

'I'm well. Should only be a week and half until I'm ready to ride,' she replied, although this was untrue; she felt ready to ride that very day.

'Oh, well, you should stay the full two weeks then, just to be safe. But I'm being very rude. Ma'am, this is Vash, a traveler like yourself. Vash, this is the young lady who saved me and our town.' Vash bowed low.

'An honor to meet you finally, Miss...?' Trieste didn't answer, but continued to stare unblinkingly at him. Liana stepped in.

'Ah, she still hasn't told us her name. She is quite distrustful of us, even after all this time.'

'Don't take it personally,' Trieste muttered. Vash stood up, a blank expression on his face. Then he turned to look at Liana, smiling.

'Liana, would you be so kind as to get me a glass of water? I'm rather thirsty.' Liana nodded, gave Trieste a quick, annoyed look, then flounced out of the room. Vash leaned against the door frame, openly grinning at Trieste now. 'Well, now, this is quite the situation we have here. Shall we go on pretending we don't know each other? I must say, that shall become more and more difficult, especially when I leave with you.'

'We shall not have to go on pretending because we *don't* know each other. You deceitful ass! I told you to stay away from me before I left! I do not want your company, and I regret ever laying eyes on you.' Vash's smile melted off his face and he walked towards her. She jumped up rather swiftly and pointed her gun at his chest.

'Listen, I just want to help you-'

'Bullshit! No one knows I'm searching for Legato except me, him, and his men. It's obvious where you should be classified. It's only the barest sense of decency for these people that I don't kill you right now, but that will only go so far. So I warn you now, stay away from me. I can stay awake for days, so don't try to come into my room ever again.'

The entire time Trieste talked, Vash went from concern to surprise, to down right shock. He shook his head, taking another step. 'Wait a minute, let me explain, I'm not-'

'Don't come any closer,' she commanded, cocking her gun. 'I'll say this for the last time. Don't fuck with me, or they'll find you in a ditch, Liana by your side.' She sneered. 'It'll be another double-funeral.'

Vash gaped, appalled and enraged. 'You have no shred of decency, do you?' he asked in a furious whisper. 'How dare you threaten Liana and mock these people, after all they did for you! How can you be so cruel as to *threaten* the very people who worked so hard to help you?' Trieste just smiled cynically, put her gun away and sat down. A moment later Liana came in with a tray of three glasses, a pitcher, and a plate of tiny, pre-wrapped sandwiches for all three. She looked at Vash's troubled countenance and frowned.

'What's wrong?' Vash snapped his head and stared at Liana for a few seconds, searching her face.

'Nothing, we were just talking what happened to you and the town. It makes me furious when I really think about it, that's all.' He smiled again, patting her shoulder. 'Don't worry about it. Let's eat, shall we?' Liana shrugged and pulled a small wooden table over to Trieste and Vash, while Vash picked up two chairs and sat them down. Trieste took her water and food without word, and sat where she was, calmly observing Vash. It was screamingly obvious that he was enamored with the young lady, and she was returning his interest.

::How sweet,:: she thought sarcastically. ::I wonder if Legato would condone such actions? I imagine that's why Vash is going to kill me after I leave the town, he wouldn't want to offend her.:: Watching him more and more, she felt increasingly sad and let down. ::You seemed so trustworthy...everything in me told me you were above the rest of humanity. You seemed stupidly sincere about not killing. How did you confuse me so? You are very much unlike Legato's men...but that's why he sent you, isn't it? Someone to throw me off and make me stumble. Well, you won't trip me up again.:: After finishing a second sandwich, she excused herself and attended to her horse.

*~*

Vash spent the rest of the day thinking about the woman's threats. She meant them, there was no mistake. Whatever good he had thought about her was utterly destroyed, but he forgave her because she was confused. She though he was working for Legato. 'I shall make you sit down and listen to me! Tonight! I will convince you that I am only here to help...but I'll be damned if you ever hurt Liana.' He watched Liana more than usual, and felt such affection for her, he could hardly contain himself. She was so different from everyone, and was one of the few people to want to listen to him. She was too important to be threatened.

*~*

In the middle of the night, Trieste began to move out of the room. She took a small bag back down to her horse, whom she saddled quickly. She had regained almost full use of her arms and legs, and could easily ride out now. She needed only to go back to her room to take the maps and put on her cloak. She moved silently, not disturbing anyone or anything. Her room was lit with only a candle, but that was all she needed as she rolled the maps up and put on her cloak. A voice behind her suddenly made her stop.

'Running away in the night again? You're becoming quite predictable.' The voice was friendly, but everything about Vash was false to Trieste now. She turned around slowly.

'I would beg to differ, but I haven't got the time,' she replied, subtly reaching for her gun. He shook his head.

'Don't reach for it, I have my own.' He twirled a large silver gun on his finger. 'We need to talk-' But he never got any further. The second he stopped twirling the gun and held it in his hand, she dropped the knife from inside her sleeve into her hand and swiftly threw it at his hand. It imbedded itself deeply, making him scream in pain and drop his gun. Not wasting another moment, Trieste pulled out her gun and shot him squarely in the chest, a seemingly perfect shot. As she shot, he had raised his arm almost invisably fast, but wasn't prepared for her to follow by bashing his upper nose with her gun as she ran by. He groaned painfully, fell back and slammed his body and head into the dresser. He slid down to the ground without another sound, the knife still in his hand, which was bleeding profusely. Trieste ran out of the room, down the stairs, outside, onto her horse, and rode as fast as Miss could go, out of town and into the night. She didn't bother to look behind. She never could look behind.

*~*