Disclaimer: I envy Yu Watase, but would never ever, ever, ever, steal from her.
Author's Note: Heh, here comes the twist. Please be careful with the flames, I'm fragile!
It was Nuriko. Tasuki could hardly believe his eyes. Nuriko was here, riding a horse, singing, right down to the mole on his right cheek. Tasuki's jaw dropped, and without further delay, sprinted out to Nuriko, shouting his name wildly. Nuriko's eyes widened as Tasuki aproached, and before he could say anything, Tasuki had tackled him with a big bear hug. It was then Tasuki realized something different.
Breasts?...Nuriko never had.... Tasuki pulled back and scrutinized who he thought had been Nuriko. He stared in shock at the person.
"You-you're not-I....You're not Nuriko?" He sputtered dumbly. The person looked at him strangely,with a hint of a smile on their face.
"Um, no, I-I'm sorry? You must be mistaken." Tasuki stared at the person, then realizing it was a female he was looking at. And, the mole was not actually a mole, as he had originally thought, but a kanji, the kanji for Crystal Bell. He felt heat rise in his face, meaning he was a bright red from the forehead down. The girl giggled softly, watching as he fumbled for his lost dignity.
"I-Er-Um...My name is Tasuki, and I would be honored if you would join me for supper tonight. I've been told my cooking is quite good...." He bowed, feeling his blush fade as he pulled his old facade of the carefree bandit over him once more. It was a useful thing to have, really, because he was never hurt emotionally by anything, and the physical pain of something was trivial in the end. After all, it helped me get over the loss of Nuriko.... The girl spoke, carrying him out of his thoughts of Nuriko and the pain it had caused him.
"I have been invited to dinner by many men, some quite different than you. However, I have had none quite so handsome as you ask me. I would be delighted to join you." She smiled shyly and the slightest amount of pink tinged her cheeks. Before Tasuki could reach up to help her off her horse, she jumped lithely down, light as a feather. He stared at her in shock. How he could have ever mistaken her for Nuriko was beyond him. Even though Nuriko had been a cross-dresser, he had never been as beautiful as this girl was.
She tucked a few strands of hair that had come loose from the long braid and headband that held her hair out of her face behind one ear, and held her horse's reins in one hand. Tasuki tried not to stare, but every few seconds glanced at her, taking in everything from her clothing to the outline of her skin against the clothing. The girl seemed not to notice, but Tasuki felt that she took in everything around her, and knew what exactly was going on. She wore dark riding pants the color of the mountain pines, slender, calf-high boots of darkened leather, a pale yellow shirt with wide sleeves, which was embroidered in dark red birds around the edges of the sleeves. Over the shirt was a vest, the same color as her leggings, with a high collar that went almost to her chin, which was buttoned with strange metal clasps and belted loosely with a belt that had a silver bird the same as the embroidery on her shirt, so that it flared out around her thighs, giving Tasuki the sense that she was always in motion, even when standing perfectly still.
They slowly wandered over to the public stables, where a stableboy gently took the horse to be unsaddled and fed, chatting amiably. They talked about music for a while, and then, on their way back to the hut where Tasuki was staying, he asked her what her name was. Her face seemed to cloud over a moment with confusion before she answered, but Tasuki dismissed it as a trick of the light.
"My name is Akana." She said nothing more.
"That's a beautiful name....Akana, why did you come to this miserable place out in the middle of the desert? There are far finer places you could be staying..." He gestured outside the village for emphasis. Akana sighed, and looked at Tasuki for a minute.
"I was told by a very important person that I would find those I seek if I were to wait here in this village. I haven't yet, but I must keep hope." they were silent until they reached the hut. As they approached the small shelter, Miaka ran out of it, chasing Tama the cat, who had a cooked fish in his mouth. She panted after the cat, yelling at it.
"Come back here with my fish! That's mine you hear? Mine!" Tasuki stopped, wincing as he realized everyone was back from what they were doing. Akana stood there, watching Miaka chase Tama, a slightly wider smile on her face. Tasuki turned to her, an apologetic look on his face.
"Akana, I'm sorry, but would you mind meeting my friends and sharing dinner with them?"