Author's Note: I had to rewrite this entire chapter after re-reading it for the ninth time. The original first section was terribly choppy at best, so I hope that this is much better than the last (although none of you will have the chance to see the difference...) Anyway, there's quite a bit of fluff in this one which isn't my suit usually. Enjoy!

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Chapter 7: Let Loose

The autumn wind is something fierce. It scatters the fallen leaves across the paths, so even those most traveled return to their natural state before man set down trails. Maybe this is why Tanya loves this season. There's nothing left to tie her to the life she had before, and she's found she can reinvent herself. After all, even I never knew her before that red envelope came into my possession. I couldn't have believed there was anyone like her. No one can seem to remember a Forget-Me-Not Valley without her as she's insisted so earnestly to become a part of it. She longed to be loved by everyone, yet she didn't have to do anything more than be herself. Like the brilliant red leaves of autumn, she refused to be ignored.

Perhaps that is what drew me to her, that willingness to be accepted. I, too, had sought that comfort in life, but I hadn't been bold enough to try. I had been too busy trying to impress a woman that never looked my way. All those years had been wasted, or so I had begun to think before Tanya came to live here. Now I can believe that nothing is waste. My feelings might not have been returned, but the love I had for Alexandra had brought me to Aaron. When I threw myself into that street brawl, I may have been crippled, but I found a friend.

And, yes, that friend did die, but because of his death, I now have his daughter by my side.

"Things progress and people move forward. If we fail, we've still learned something valuable. I'd rather have a hundred failures to learn from than a hundred successes to forget," she had told me over dinner that night. I had begun to pride myself in home-cooked meals which she practically inhaled. Ruby was right to tell me that there's nothing better than seeing people enjoy good food.

"Did you get that kind of advice from a book?" I asked, only just starting my supper while her plate was all but licked clean.

"Nah, I'm not much into that kind of thing. I always end up just reading the beginning until the middle, and then I jump to the ending."

"Doesn't that ruin the whole story?"

"Exactly why I don't like to read."

"That's too bad." Her response was a shrug as she started in on her strawberry cake. I rarely baked, but since she had mentioned in passing the day before that it was her favorite, I ended up gathering the ingredients during my morning trip into town. She marveled at the moist texture which she complimented ecstatically. In her excitement, some white frosting had landed on her nose, and before she could even laugh at her own childishness, I wiped it away with the tip of my finger and tasted it. Of course she blushed although she didn't say a word.

Moments like this were our secret. No one else in the valley could've imagined how we behaved when alone on the farm. Though neither one of us would admit it to each other, we had begun to flirt nearly non-stop while on the job. A playful shove from me here, a comment on my butt from her there. Should anyone have witnessed it, I can only imagine what they would've thought. Surely they'd like to believe it had been their imagination. There were times I wondered if I could really be acting this silly for a woman.

Regardless, I was more than happy to play the part of a fool if it meant becoming closer to her. Tanya was a rare bloom in a place where people lived such quiet lives, and though I felt I knew her best, I would have one wonderful surprise waiting to come the next day. One that I never could've anticipated.

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Forget-Me-Not isn't really known for its festivals. There are times when Gustafa brings the residents together for some folk music beside his yurt and under the sky, but outside of that very little seems to happen here. We all prefer it that way to be honest. Living here, you get to know your neighbors without having to be formal about it. However, we do have a tradition for the harvest since the valley hosts two local farms. The festival is a simple one, so only Vesta's crew and Ruby come down to the Blue Bar for the event... normallly. Even so, Tanya was anxious to go.

"When do we have to be there, Taka?" she asked for the hundredth time that afternoon.

"I told you earlier that we'll head over there around five," I reminded her as gently as I could manage. There were times her excitement grated me though they were luckily few...

"Oh, that's right. Sorry, man," she apologized looking a bit disappointed. I had joined her in the fields to help her collect strawberries because she'd planted so damn many that season. What was frightening was she'd told me she'd only be selling about half the crop. I tried to convince her to be reasonable and realize she couldn't possibly eat them all before they became rotten. She had laughed it off, proudly telling me that Daryll had been kind enough to give her a seed maker. She'd been planning on using it to cut costs. "No way in hell could anyone eat that many damn strawberries!" she had teased.

"Ah, shit..." I moaned, leaning back to crack my spine. "I'm not made for field work..."

"You gonna be all right?" she asked, pausing to give me a worried glance. After my knee brace was gone, she still concerned herself with my well-being. She was a regular doting wife when it came to my health those days. I guess she still felt guilty about the summer's incident, both the shove into the frigid water and her opinions on my self-appointed label as an old man. It didn't matter how much I assured her there were no hard feelings because she was convinced she'd wronged me. As to be expected, there wasn't much I could say to change her mind.

The two of us finally finished the task at hand, and-to her joy- we made our way to the Blue Bar, ingredients in hand. Tanya ran ahead of me, chatting like a child, and I could only laugh and remind her to watch where she was going. I swear she looked the part of a kid on the first day of school, all bright-eyed and bushy-tailed.

Since the late afternoon's weather was so pleasant, Celia suggested moving the festivities outside under the tree which shaded the bar. The girls spread a checkered blanket out on the grass, and while Griffin, Ruby, and Vesta made short work of the cooking, the girls sat down to talk as Marlin and I leaned against the trunk watching the two enjoy themselves.

Men are strange when they find someone to love. Suddenly, all the words fall between comrades as soon as the women they fancy bring them along together. Each man's mind is occupied by thoughts of their special someone, and there's nothing they'd rather discuss. That being the case, they certainly aren't going to say anything on the subject to another man. That's just how it sorts out.

Luckily we weren't waiting in an awkward silence long. Ruby brought out the food while Griffin followed suit with the drinks. Just as they were sitting down, Gustafa, Nami, and Cody wandered on over to greet us which meant Tanya was eager for them to join. Pretty soon the group of seven became ten, and we were all busy talking and having a good time. I'd never been on a picnic before, but I'm sure we had done it right. There's nothing quite like having this sort of neighborly atmosphere. In the city, people rarely know the man down the street, let alone someone a couple miles in the distance. It wasn't much, but it was something to take pride in.

As the sun set, the autumn chill crept over us, yet no one seemed to mind given the good time we were enjoying. Celia wrapped herself up in the blanket while snuggling in next to Marlin, making the poor man blush and stutter the rest of the evening. Vesta leaned over to Ruby explaining that she'd caught the couple at this sort of behavior when they thought she wasn't looking. Of course he denied it stubbornly, but Celia merely giggled without saying a word in their defense or otherwise. I wondered if anyone had caught Tanya and I with our antics. Then again, not everyone is as nosy as Vesta...

"Come on, Takakura, be a gentleman!" the big woman instructed me with a wide grin. "Your woman looks cold over there!"

"My what?!" I protested, ripped of my security once again. What could she had possibly seen across the river?

"You heard her," Marlin replied with a smirk, no doubt taking pleasure in Vesta's change in attention. I'd have to poke some fun at him another time...

"Ah, leave him alone," Tanya mentioned casually, drinking her second Stone Oil. I had kept my resolve to limit her drinking after the spring incident. "I don't need his coat when this'll keep me warm."

"Damn right," Nami agreed, raising her own glass. No one else was sure what the drink count had been for her. However, Gustafa had been keeping tabs on her, and now he decided to caution her though I reckoned his advise came a bit late.

"Should you stop, Nami? You're a little... off," he commented gently, not making any sudden movements. Cody nodded in solemn agreement.

"Naw," she assured them, brushing aside their concern. "I know my limit."

"If you say so..." Obviously the gnome wasn't convinced though he let the issue drop. I guess you learn not to argue with a woman like her after being at her side for so long. Too bad his efforts weren't adding up to much, not that he appeared to mind. It's hard to read a man who hides behind beatnik shades even in the dark of night. He reached around to grab his loyal guitar. Strumming a few bars, he began to smile broadly as he fell into song. I may not really understand the fellow, but his melodies are pleasant. We all sat in content silence, letting the music do the talking.

Celia started to drift off to the soothing lullaby of his voice while Marlin tried in vain to look away from his blushing girl. I questioned myself whether or not I should ask Tanya to dance when I happened to glance her way. She had an expression I'd seen before, usually when she plans on making mischief. Just shy of catching her, I watched as she went to Gustafa's side. Her eyes followed his fingers as he played, and once he noticed, the music abruptly stopped.

"May I have a go at it?" she asked him kindly, the spark of her will lighting up in her face.

He gave her a smile and nodded, handing her the instrument. She played around with the strings until she appeared comfortable, and then to my surprise, she began to break into her own rhythm. It was a faster pace than his, but though the tune was lively, she handled it with ease. Her voice rang out with everything she dared to let loose. Alexandra would've never sang that way, and I suppose that's exactly why it suited Tanya so well. I assumed she had created the piece herself, for the lyrics were all too familiar. The song was of a woman falling for an older man, and try as she might to get his attention, there was something holding him back. The young woman knew what she wanted, yet she found she couldn't find the words to tell him. It was a truth we both knew very well indeed.

She must've sang like that for what seemed like hours. Her audience all stared, mouths agape in wonder. The only ones not caught in our amazement were Gustafa and herself while Nami appeared to be drawn more to the man beside her. She had been studying him for some time as he remained oblivious to her pointed stares. Without a word, she tugged on his striped sleeve, and when he turned to face her, she kissed him on the spot. Though he was clearly bewildered, he whispered under his breath as she drifted away, "Nami, I think you've had enough."

I heard Tanya stifle one of her signature cackles while she continued to play, and the magical night wore on until the music stopped at last late into the early morning.

--

"You didn't tell me you could sing like that," I scolded gently; we were walking along the path which led to the waterfall after the festivities were over that night. My mind was still reeling from the event. Never could I have imagined seeing her being so spectacular. She had always been the forward one, but she kept such a powerful secret from me. No way could Alexandra have been so brilliant as to pick up a guitar and play her own music. Perhaps it was her daughter's way of showing her up. Look, Ma, I can do it, too! In fact, I might just be better than you! was what I heard in her voice that night.

"Heh, I was afraid you'd compare me to my mother. I don't mind being like Dad, but I don't want anything to do with Mum."

"That's okay,"I assured her with guilt nagging at me. Hadn't I sworn to myself I wouldn't compare her to either one of her parents? "She wouldn't have been that bold, so I really can't say much on it. I don't have an ear for it anyway."

"Gustafa and Griffin do," she observed. "I think Gustafa knew I could sing something fierce. I would sing for him from time to time, but his tunes are more folk songs than what I'm into." In the full moonlight, I could see her smile shyly. She had been keeping the secret pretty tight, I guess, and she knew I wouldn't have talked to the man on my own. He was a bit... peculiar. Still, I felt happy for the guy. Nami might've been a bit tipsy, but it was still a kiss. The man deserved at least one for all his efforts to win her only to be met by two ice blue eyes.

"I was wondering who was buying those records from Van," I recalled rather suddenly. She certainly had a collection. Over twenty albums if I remembered correctly from what the salesman told me the other day. I had asked why he'd been supplying his shop with them so earnestly when the only two people in the valley to own a turntable were Marlin and Tanya. Her record player had been her only belonging other than clothes to come with her to Forget-Me-Not, and she apparently kept it well stocked.

"Yeah..." she blushed, "I sing with those all the time when no one's around."

"It's weird I never heard you..." I said while trying to search my memory for any fragments I might have caught without notice. "With a talent like that, there's no way I would've missed it."

"Because I waited for you to leave home," she explained.

"Why on earth would you do something like that?" I grumbled. "I would've loved to hear you sing."

"I had to wait until Gustafa taught me to play my own music."

"Oh, so you had to keep it between you until then?"

She only nodded in agreement. For Tanya, she was being rather sheepish right then; it was as if something serious was weighing on her mind. When I saw her shiver, though, I decided to take Vesta's advice, and I calmly placed my coat over her shoulders. In the shadow of the trees, I couldn't tell if she was embarrassed. I did hear her pull it tighter around herself as she sighed contently. I imagined she looked quite adorable in the oversized jacket with just her head peeking out.

"Hopefully they were sober enough of a crowd to recall it in the morning," I chuckled. It really would be a shame for them all to forget something so wonderful. Here I had been thinking she was just one hell of a farmer, and now I'd found she was an amazing singer, a trait she kept locked up inside her for something special.

She bashfully smiled, "Even if they do forget, that'd be okay."

"What would make you say something like that?" I asked out of sheer bewilderment. I figured she'd want people to remember her performing. She was so quiet and modest about the whole show which wasn't in her nature. Normally she'd be more proud than a rooster after what she accomplished. It just wasn't like her at all.

Right then, the moon ducked behind a single cloud, and I felt a gentle, gloved hand moving my head to face hers. I couldn't see her any better, but I knew she was looking up at me like no one else ever had. Her body moved into mine so calmly that I found I couldn't breathe. I heard her stifle a chuckle and felt the queer sensation of her lips. They weren't soft or silky after being weathered and chapped by the elements, and there was a remarkable taste of strong liquor. Even so, I had no doubts it was the best thing to happen to this man. She held that kiss for long enough until the moon began to creep into view again. Only then did she drift away from me, her violet eyes glimmering with something outside of anything I had known before.

"Because I know," she whispered in my ear, "you'll never forget tonight."

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Author's Final Note: So Takakura's first kiss comes at the end of a really confusing and dysfunctional chapter. XD Oh well... Just for reference's sake Tanya's personality was roughly based off of the legendary Janis Joplin who was a hell of a singer during the late 60's into the early 70's.