Anything But Worthless [Akakstuki no Yona Fanfic]

8. Fuuga, the Land of the Free

¤ Third Person ¤

By the time she awakened, the sun rested in the center of the clear sky. The heavenly glow passed by the thin and wispy clouds, the heat pressing against her as her skin begged for the warmth of someone's touch. Placing her palms on the dirt floor, she struggled to push herself back to her feet, her body aching from the uncomfortable position she had been resting in. "Hime-sama, you sure slept like a log."

Without responding to the statement, Ji-Na glanced over at him, eyes wandering his figure for a moment after noticing the slight strain in his voice. At first, it didn't seem as if anything were out of the ordinary yet the longer her eyes lingered on him, she noticed the bandage wrapped around his left leg. "Hak? What happened to your leg?"

His eyes narrowed at her stare, "How perceptive of you. But you don't need to worry, we just need to reach Fuuga." Finally finding the energy to stand, she gave a nod in understanding and pushed herself to her feet. The young princess glanced around her, as if she were evaluating the different trees. Staring deep into the forest before she took a step forward, startling the male. "Where are you going, hime-sama?"

She stopped and turned to face him with a blank face, "You said we were going to Fuuga, right? Isn't it this way?" Speaking as she raised her finger to point in the direction she was heading, watching as his entire body stiffened in shock. Though it was only momentarily because at the next second, he was standing and looming over her tiny figure.

"How did you know that...?" She had no response. She stared up at him, her eyes trailing his figure before she shook her head.

A crunch of leaves made them pull away from each other. "Is Ji-Na awake yet?" Yona asked, entering the clearing with her hair soaked and skin clear. The moment her purple eyes landed on the dirty clothes of her sister, she hurried to grab her hand, "You should clean yourself up." she urged, tugging her gently towards where she came. But the girl didn't twitch.

Ji-Na pulled her hand away and took off through the forest. "Hime-sama?!" Eyes trained forward, her hair brushing against her face as she dodged the tree trunks, her feet stumbling over themselves as she ran, she silently listened to the footsteps following behind her.

A resounding thump caused her to stop but when she glanced back and watched at Hak helped her sister up, she turned back to look ahead.

Gently pressing her hand against the trunk, she softly murmured a word that she never refer to ever since the passing. Closing her eyes as her fingers curled around the trunk, digging her skin into the wood as she felt an unfamiliar surge of pain rupture in her stomach. But instead of showing it, she inhaled deeply and opened her eyes once more, her feet moving forward along with her thoughts.

The longer they walked, the more evident it was that there was one lagging behind. Yona limped forward after her sister who kept her eyes glued ahead. Heaving for breath, she reached out for someone's help. Her violet eyes widened at the hand in front of her, her sister facing her with a hand out. Smiling gently with skin clear of the sweat dripping down her own, Yona flinched away. How could she smile? Even after their father's recent passing, how could her little sister... how dare her little sister smile so happily?!

But her words wouldn't form such a thing. Instead, she pressed on, passing by Ji-Na without accepting the helping hand. With her back to her sister, Yona didn't see the smile slip from her face. Yona didn't see the pain reflected in her hazel eyes. Yona didn't see Hak reach out to comfort her only to be given another seemingly cheerful smile. Yona could only see when Ji-Na move ahead of her once more, leading her down a path she had never walked down. 'It's cold...'

Ji-Na silently trailed ahead with thoughts that swirled through her mind. 'How warm... The sun hasn't shined like this for so long...'

Walking in silence, before they knew it, they were greeted by extended stairs. But still, no one made a comment. After climbing up the flight of stone stairs, she gazed back out at the forest, her long hair whipping her face. "Ah... how beautiful..." She mumbled, letting out a sigh of longing. But she turned to face the people rushing out to greet their general, the eager and peaceful faces of the people erupting a slight giggle. Her eyes trailed to a male that seemed like Hak but with a calming aura instead of an intimidating one.