A Complicated Meeting (Open to Ray)

Akari finished her food and tossed the sticks into a trash can. "Sure, I don't mind." She said. Akari picked up Tsuki and wondered what it would be like to bond with an animal as big as Garuda. It was pretty amazing. Akane was really cool. Akari smiled at that thought before her stomach tied itself in knots at the idea of walking with Akane... alone... together... She felt her face burn and tried to hide it with her hair. "Well, do you have any ideas where to walk? I have to admit that I've never been here before, so I don't really know where I'm going. But if you don't know either, I guess we could just walk around a park or something. But then we would have to find a park! Do they have parks here? Maybe they sell maps somewhere... We could ask someone for directions! Unless you don't want to. My older brother never asked for directions- he really hated it. I have no idea why. But he's..." Akari stopped herself. In her nervousness she had almost blurted out that her brother was dead. Murdered.
"Well, anyway, I think a walk would be nice. But we should probably find a place to stay for the night, too."

Akane laughed as Akari rambled, "You know," he said smiling "You're cute when you ramble." Akane quickly became conscious of what he had said, but had not way of taking it back. "And as for where we'll walk. I DID see a park when we came in. It's a nice place, from what I saw anyway, it has a lake, and it's filled with blooming Sakura blossoms. I hear it was planted by Fire Lord Kouzai I, he put it here in honor of his wife...or so I've heard." Akane looked at Akara, she seemed to be hiding her face, was she nervous? Or was she just thinking of something else? Akane wondered what it could be as she added something about a place to sleep. "Well..I'm sure there's someplace to stay in this town." he said "I don't know how vacant they all are. But we can find out after our walk, does that sound good?"

Akari nodded and mumbled to herself. She wanted to thank Akane for all his compliments, but it was too embarrassing to tell him. She followed him to the park in silence, trying to sort out her feelings. But when they got to the park her thoughts fled and she gaped in astonishment. It was a huge garden that was so beautiful it took Akari's breath away. She'd never had the time to learn about flowers or landscaping, but the way everything was arranged made Akari wish she knew how to make something like this. She bent down to study a small blue flower that had seven petals and a pale yellow center. Planted next to it was a tall flower up to her waist with one long white petal that wrapped around itself and ended in a leaf like shape. Akari turned to look at the rest of the garden but found herself staring at Akane. "It... It's wonderful!" She smiled, resisting the urge to take his hand. She wandered forward and crossed a small bridge that rested over a stream so thin she could have jumped over it. Akari looked up at the starry sky and stretched her hands over her head, feeling tired and wound up and confused and nervous but also... happy. Akari swung around to look at Akane again. "What do you think? This Fire Lord was pretty dedicated, huh?"

Akane smiled from beneath his hood, "He was..." he said pensively "They say that he built it to be equivalent to his wife's beauty. He would offen refer to her as the most beautiful girl in the world...and when he made this garden, he tried it make it the most beautiful garden in the world..." Akane turned towards Akari, looking deep into her eyes, "If I didn't know better," he said smiling "I'd say that this garden was representing you instead." Akane smiled again, he knew Akari would blush at his compliment. Akane still wondered what was making him feel like this, it was unnatural for him, but he ignored his objections. Though he still wondered, could this possibly be love? Akane looked at Akari, this time, an urge welled up in him. "Akari," he said nervously "Would you...well...would you mind if..." Akane couldn't finish his sentence, he felt his heart racing, his chest thumping from the beating, he was breathing heavy, in the end he couldn't control his impulses. Akane leaned forward, his hand gently on Akari's shoulders, pulling her in close, he tilted his hood back enough to reveal his nose down and gently kissed her. As he pulled away he spoke, "I'm sorry," he said quickly "I-I just. I had to....sorry...."

Akari felt cold. Her eyes were wide and glazed. She fell to the ground and barely managed to stay sitting. Finally she managed to get her breath back and she gulped in air. Once she felt relatively normal she looked up at Akane's worried face. She opened her mouth but didn't know what to say. "U-u-umm, could you h-help me up? I-I don't think m-my legs are w-working," she stammered lamely. That kiss had totally caught her by surprise, and she didn't know how to handle it. Should she slap Akane or be happy? She'd never kissed anyone before. She'd seen lots of people kiss. What did they do afterwards. She never stuck around to find out. She hadn't really cared before. Breathe. What just happened? Oh, a kiss. Wait... What?! Akari felt her mind go on overdrive and she said the first thing that popped into her head. "That was my first kiss." Akari mentally slapped herself. "I-I mean I don't really know what to.... uh..." Akari started blushing again and looked at her hands. "Thanks," she whispered. She was shocked and terrified, but the kiss had still been-a little bit- nice.

Akane turned away embaressed, "I.....I uh....." started Akane, he was totally lost for words, he needed to say something though, and so he blurted out the first thing he could pull up. "Y-you're welcome..." he said trailing off. he suddenly felt his stomach drop, and doubt mixed with fear filled him. Akane felt sick, like he was going to vomit. He put his hand to his hooded forehead and sighed, tilting his head back he spoke, staring at the stars. As he opened his mouth he couldn't find any words. Akane tried opening and closing is mouth several times, but only managed to succeed in gasping deeply and quaveringly each time. Akane bowed his head and swallowed his stomach, taking a deep breath he looked at Akari and spoke, "I'm so sorry," he said quickly "I-I didnt mean to, I just...I couldn't help myself. I feel like I did something very wrong just now...yet oddly enough, I didn't hate it. I actually kind of enjoyed it...like, a lot...I'm sorry again. I can understand if you hate me now." Akane, who had said that all in one breath, gasped for air. What the hell was he saying? He was rambling like and idiot and making himself look worse no doubt. Akane sighed again and quickly met eyes with Akari, only to pull away, ashamed of himself and what he done. Akane sighed one final time, "Sorry..." he added, bowing his hooded head in embarressment.

Akari looked at the grass below her. She was really, really embarrassed but she didn't want Akane to feel bad about it. After all, if he hadn't done it, she might have been the one who got carried away. "It's fine," Akari smiled weakly. "I didn't mind, really, it was just... surprising. Umm, you shouldn't feel bad... I guess, you know, kissing is really normal, right? But, uh, we should probably leave. We should find a place to stay the night. We have a mission to finish, so let's just try to put this behind us, ok?" Akari swallowed and breathed in deeply, calming herself. Just let it go. She needed to move on now. She smiled at Akane, pretending that everything was fine and he hadn't hurt her. She forced herself up and made her legs start walking. She didn't look back to see if Akane was following her.

Akane turned around, cold and seriousness filled him. Akari told him it was alright, but he felt like an idiot. He knew he wasn't thinking straight, and he knew he needed some time to think about things. Akane pulled yet another pouch of gold from his robe and handed it to Akari. "Here," he said "That should be enough for one room. I wont be needing one. There's something I need to do anyway. I'll be back by morning. I just need to do some thinking right now, that's all." In a matter of a few days, he had met a girl who had made him feel things he hadn't felt in years, saved her life, saved her cat's life, given her half a fortune, completed a mission with her, revealed Garuda-among other secrets-to her, almost let slip of his true identity to her and kissed her. If he didn't get a grip on reality he might just-dare he say it-fall in love with her.

Though something in Akane told him he already had-Akane also assumed that Akari had fallen in love with him as well.-and he used every ounce of strength he had to suppress and deny it. Akane took a few steps back from Akari and put two fingers in his mouth, and whistled. With a gently swoop and a gust of wind, Garuda flew down and landed next to Akane, his eyes eyeing Tsuki hungrily. Akane waved his hand to the bird, presumably to tell him "Cut it out", and jumped on his back. Standing on the back of the giant bird, he looked down at Akari, and had the urge to speak his mind. He wanted to say what he was thinking, he wanted to tell her: 'If you knew who I really was, you wouldn't even talk to me. Don't bother falling in love with me, I'd probably just betray and kill you.'

Akane knew that what he had said probably wouldn't make any sense-no surprise to that though due to his mind being a confused mess at the moment-and therefore kept his mouth closed. Akane turned around and faced forward on the large birds back, he bent down slightly bracing himself for take off. In an instant he was in the air, and Akari was just a small dot on the ground. Once he was a reasonable distance from Akari and the town, Akane spoke, "I refuse to fall in love with her!" he protested "Even if she is good looking, and has nice eyes, and hair, and a soft voice that seems to hypnotize me every time I hear it and-wait! What the hell am I saying?! I need to get a grip!" Akane threw off his hood and grabbed his temples rubbing them. Garuda looked back at Akane slightly, making sure to keep an eye on where he was flying

"Perhaps," said the large bird "You see much of Solara in her? Do not kid yourself by denying it. For I see much of Solara in her too. Yet, at the same time, she is unique in her own way. If that is the case, why do you deny your feelings for her?" Akane sat on the birds back cross-legged, "Because Solara was the only girl I ever loved," he said "Since childhood, we were paired together, and we were to be married. And then Sasune took that all away! How can I betray her love by loving another?" Garuda sighed and banked left, "Then perhaps," he said looking down at the ground below "You should take things slower. And get used to loving another. Think of Solara-" Akane cut him off as he stood, "I am!" he shouted, tears filling his eyes as he clasped his hand around the green jewel that hung around his neck, "I am thinking of Solara! She's all I ever thought about since her death! Every day!" Garuda shrieked and yelled back, "If you really thought about her so much and love her as you say you do, then you would not let her be in so much pain as she is now!"

Akane looked at the bird confused, "What do you mean?" he asked. Garuda banked left again and spoke authoritatively, "You believe that she is watching over you. I know you do." he said "But if you truly believe that, then she would see how in love you are with Akari, she would see how happy this girl has made you in the past few days. She would be overjoyed to know that you haven't forgotten her, but yet, you still have moved on and are not in grievance for the rest of your days. She would be happy to know that you are happy." There was a long pause of silence, Akane sat down again and thought, he sighed and lay back, rolling onto his side he ran his finger through some of Garuda's wings. "I guess..." he said with little enthusiasm. Garuda spoke once more, "If you do not wish to go all out on this girl," he said "Then take your love for her in increments. Go slower with her. You may, in time, find a gradual acceptance of your feelings for her if you do. But that is just a friends opinion. The advice is mine to give yes, but it is up to you to take it. And I now, no longer have more to say on the matter." There was another silence as Akane sighed again, they continued to fly through the skies for hours, Akane thinking of Akari and Solara, and of Garuda's words.

(I know that's alot, sorry about that, you can kinda just...well...hmm...I didn't give you much to work with. I guess you could do the same, but with Akari's view point...it's just an idea though. Your choice.)

Akari stood for a few minutes after Akane took off. She didn't try to think about what had happened, but events crowded into her head anyway. Finally she blinked, sighed, and walked away. The garden seemed sad now, in the dark. Akari saw Tsuki ahead of her, lying on the bridge. "Tsuki," Akari whispered, her throat tight. Already she had been feeling confused, and now for the first time she had to accept that she might actually be in love with someone. And he had run away. It was all happening too fast. She had too many things to sort out. She couldn't tie herself down. She shouldn't forget the mission. But Akari found that she was forgetting her mission too easily and too often.
Tsuki bounded toward her and wound around Akari's ankles. Akari felt a hot prickling behind her eyes and was surprised that she was on the verge of tears. She didn't feel sad. She wasn't happy. What was wrong with her? She liked Akane, she knew that, but she didn't know how to deal with it. "I wish I could ask you for advice Tsuki... but sadly, you are just a cat. You can't talk to me... Not in a way I could understand at least." Akari smiled sadly and picked Tsuki up, feeling the purrs rack through her cat's body. "We should find a place to stay. He was kind enough to give me so much money... I guess he can't know that I've never even been near a fancy place... I've been poor all my life, and that's not going to change no matter how much money is thrown at me. I just can't switch my lifestyle now."
So Akari wandered through the streets getting her head together and looking for an inn to stay at. She turned down a dark street and saw three men standing together outside a tavern. Akari had a feeling she should turn back, but she wasn't scared of a few drunkards, or fighters even. She dropped Tsuki and stretched, showing the men that she wasn't frightened. One of the men broke off and moved toward her, the others following close behind. Just to be safe Akari put her hands on her sword handles. The man stopped in front of her and pulled off his hood.
"Oh, ahh, uh, gosh... Hello, Arsotash."

After hours of flying through the chilling wind Akane sat up and sighed, "Garuda," he said "Take us down please. To where Akari is. I shouldn't have just left her." Garuda gave a small laugh as he started to swoop low over the city, ready to descend. "So you've decided to take my advice?" he asked. Akane didn't answer and stayed silent, Garuda sighed and landed in a large alleyway between and inn and a brothel. "Last I checked she was here," he said "Go down the alley way and turn left, you'll see here." Akane nodded and pulled his hood back on, as he jumped off the bird he waved over his shoulder, "Garuda," he said "Thanks." Garuda nodded and smiled as he flapped his wings, flying off he replied, "You're welcome," he said "And good luck with the girl, Akane. Don't be afraid to let her into your heart. And heed my advice." Akane smiled and thought to himself, 'I probably owe him a heard of cattle for that little heart to heart.' Akane walked out towards the opening of the alley and stopped, he could see Akari and hear her voice. But she also saw another figure that made him feel uneasy. It was that suspicious mentor of Akari's. 'Is this is?' he wondered, 'Have I been discovered? If so I'll need to fight my way out of here...that'll mean killing Arsotash...and Akari too. Dammit! Why does everyone in this nation want to force me in the corner?' Akane calmed himself and put his hand to his sword, 'Keep calm Akane. You can't loose your cool,' he thought to himself 'Let's hope this isn't as bad as you think it is...but just in case.." Akane decided it would be best to wait out this meeting, and hear what he could.