Chapter 1

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hey
i have nothing to say for myself here. will anyone even read this now?
enjoy lmao
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"Hey, you! Get back here!"
The shouts and yells of the brutes she had stolen her dinner from just moments before echoed behind Ayaka as she made her escape. Chest heaving, she forced herself to move further, putting more and more distance between her and the bandits.
She could feel her heart trying to run as fast as she was as she raced between the trees, leaping over roots and rocks and trampling the brush in her wake. The only thing on her mind was finding an open clearing, but how would she even make it there? The deep, deep gash in her shoulder, bleeding profusely, would make her escape even more painful. She would be shocked if she even managed to get there without bleeding out.
How could she have let this happen? Foolish mistake, her father would have told her. She shoved his voice out of her mind and coughed hard, pressing her hand down tighter on her wound as best as she could, climbing clumsily over a boulder. Every step, every movement of her body was agony for her torn shoulder, and the awkward angle her arm was at to try and stop the bleeding wasn't making the other one feel very nice either. Cursing herself again, she focused on the sudden gap in the trees. She dove through, seeing packed dirt, crushed weeds, and...

Ayaka, lost in thought, had smashed into something very soft, making her topple over on impact, landing hard on her back in a plume of dirt. She cried out as she landed on her injury, a bone-rattling shudder passing through her. This wasn't good...oh, gods. She was done for. Dazed from loss of blood and her head hitting the ground, she lifted her head just as a shadow was cast over her. The figure's features were invisible, their back to the sun.
"What in the-" she used her hand to block the sun from her eyes, squinting feebly, though it didn't do much. Her vision was too hazy. A shout not far from them made Ayaka choke, and try to scramble to her feet, rolling over and skittering off down the path. Ayaka's honey-colored eyes were wide with fear as she wobbled down the path, turning slightly to look momentarily at the figure. "Sorry," she mumbled through clenched teeth, breaking into a staggering run.

"Hey! Wait!" Ayaka didn't turn at the sound of someone shouting. But there was no point in running—she barely made it a few steps away before she collapsed in a heap, blood pooling around her. Her scarlet stained cloak fluttered aside, revealing the depth of her injury, stretched across her shoulder blade. Her mind raced with panicked thoughts until she lost consciousness, the last thing she heard was more shouts and footsteps.
Had she been caught?

~

Ayaka's ears rang. That was the only thing she could hear as her eyes opened. She immediately regretted it- Her head was pounding. She was alarmed to see, as she finally regained her vision, purplish-black wings with blood crusted along the feathers spread out on either side of her. She made a face at the heavy, sticky feeling of half-dried blood coating the innermost feathers, shifting painfully. They ached from being flat out for so long, and she tried to shift them, wincing at how her back ached sharply at the movement. How....how did they reappear? Unless... She lifted a heavy arm to her collarbone, a shot of adrenaline flowing through her as she realized her amulet was nowhere to be found. No! Where had it gone? She tried turning her head, but an ache in her neck stopped her.

"Yoon, how is she?" she heard a woman's voice inquire. Ayaka lifted her head ever so slightly, ignoring the screaming ache, to squint at the entrance of the tent, where she could see a few vaguely person-shaped shadows outside.

"I told you, Yona, I don't know for sure yet. I've only just gotten to treat her wound. She nearly bled out!" this voice sounded rather irritated.

"She looks exhausted. Who knows how long those men had been chasing her." remarked a deeper male voice.

"Zeno wonders how she got into that situation in the first place,"

Valkyrie (a Yona of the Dawn/ Akatsuki no Yona fanfic) **EDITING IN PROGRESS**Where stories live. Discover now