Hak's heart stilled.
They were falling.
When he came to, she was in his arms, and he had a split second to shift his position. He enveloped her completely. He felt branches snapping underneath him, but he could hardly feel them from the speed of their fall. He heard Yona's scream in his ears, but his heartbeat was louder. His heart banged against his ribcage as they slammed heavily into the ground. Mud splattered everywhere upon impact. His shoulder jarred so much it almost dislocated. His hips and thighs met the full impact of the fall, forcing the air out of his lungs.
The shock was greater than the pain. At least, for a moment. The image of a blood-red sky and a weeping, muddied face with red eyes, amethyst eyes, burning like the dawn. Streaming tears that were hitting his face but he couldn't feel it ...
Hak, if you die, I won't forgive you ...!
He took a gulp of air to take in the oxygen that was sucked out of his body. The rain was beating down on the side of his face.
"Hime," he managed to gasp. The pain spread across his body. His back was in pain, his legs and hips and arms, but pain was good. Pain meant he was alive. It wasn't sharp pain. Somehow, he channeled the inner Raijyuu everyone said he possessed. He made it out alive. Again. He curled over to his other side, grunting as he moved. He looked down at the mop of red hair. "Hime," he repeated. He wanted to shake her until she came to, but he held himself back.
She wasn't moving.
"Yona," he said hoarsely, "Tell me you're okay."
He had taken the fall, hadn't he? Lying in this position, he knew he had protected her fully. So why ...
"... I'm okay," came the soft response. The red-haired girl turned her face slowly to face him, her eyes wide. Her voice was small, and it almost sounded as if she were about to cry. It's not like he could tell, in this rain. "H-hak ... Hak, I'm so so—"
"Shh, it's okay, Hime. I'm okay. We're okay." He fingers went to smooth the hair on Yona's head. He stroked it softly, and Yona felt his cheek resting lightly on her head. Hak lay there with her, his arms only slowly, gradually, loosening its death grip around her.
They had fallen into the grassy undergrowth of the forest valley. Luckily, they trees had somehow cushioned their fall. Now, at the foot of the valley, Hak could barely see beyond twenty paces. The world was white and the ground frothed lightly from the torrential rain. Since he had turned on his side, all of his robes were now covered in the black, forest mud. Yona's clothes didn't look like they had fared any better.
Yona was still not moving. Hak imagined she was probably trying not to cry.
"You must be thinking, 'I did it to Hak again', huh?" Hak chuckled a little as Yona gasped lightly. He brushed his lips lightly over her head.
"Let me tell you this, I'll always jump in after you. I'll save you, no matter how many times it takes."
Yona's body started trembling slightly. Hak could tell she didn't want to cry in front of him, but he didn't want to leave her like this.
"You're much stronger from then, Hime," Hak told her, kindly. Yona inhaled shakily as Hak brushed his lips across the top of her hair again, indulgently. She won't notice that, he justified. As always, he pretended not to hear her slight sobbing, as she silently forgave herself.
He closed his eyes, not caring that the continuous pouring of the rain was starting to make his head dizzy. He wanted to hold her like this forever. He couldn't get enough of stroking that wild, beautiful hair. She wasn't complaining.
