𝐒𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐜𝐡 𝐅𝐨𝐫 𝐘𝐨𝐮 || Akatsuki no Yona

Euphoria

art / ärt

The conscious use of the imagination in the production of objects intended to be contemplated or appreciated as beautiful, as in the arrangement of forms, sounds, or words

•••

My eyes open, and all of a sudden, I'm not in the void or on the bandit's shoulder.

I look up at the bandit who was once holding me. The man shakes in fear, staring at one single spot.

Shin-ah.

His mask was on the ground.

Does that mean...

They removed his mask.

My eyes flicker over to Yona who doesn't move at all. She just stares in confusion.

"Human eyes can't look like that, right?!" A bandit yells. The bandit who was holding me trembles in fear before suddenly freezing.

"How did I stop shaking?" he asks. "No... I can't move! My hands, my legs, my fingers... what's happening?! What are you? Stop! Stay away!" He yells at Shin-ah, who's obviously doing nothing. The man screams in pain. "My arm! My arm!"

"Calm down! Your arm's fine!" Yona places a hand on the bandit's shoulder. The crimson-haired girl looks at the blue dragon. "Shin-ah? Shin-ah! What's the matter? Shin-ah?"

"Ugh! Stop! Stay back, you... monster!" The bandit with a scar on his face begs. Shin-ah takes one step towards the man, who immediately crawls away. All of a sudden, the man screams in agony. "My leg! My leg! Stop please! You can have those girls back! Please forgive me! Please!"

Yona realizes something is definitely off and stands in front of the bandit. "Shin-ah! Stop!"

"Yona!" I try to stand up but collapse back into the floor.

Is this happening because of the dragon blood? It's only been a few minutes though... it shouldn't have fused with my blood yet.

"That's enough. They said they're not taking me away, right? Not to mention you're injured. Control your powers." Yona smiles.

Shin-ah shoves the princess away in response.

He doesn't recognize her? No, that's not it.

He's enjoying this. Just like I enjoyed killed Yang Keum-Ji...

He's trying to kill people with his power!

Yona must've realized this around the same time I had. "Shin-ah! Stop it! Don't do this!" She yells. "You won't be able to turn back! I thought you hated using your power!" Shin-ah shoves her away again.

"Hey, you!" The bandit with a scar in his face looks at Yona. "Aren't you affected? If you look into his eyes, he'll devour you!"

"'Devour?'" I mumble.

Yona runs towards the Shin-ah and forces him to look at her.

"Shin-ah. Look right into my eyes. I need you to look directly at me. If you want to devour me, if that's really what you want, then go right ahead if it'll satisfy you. But no matter what, I'll never avoid your eyes!" A few tears fall down her cheeks. "Shin-ah. I'm right here with you. No matter what your true nature is, no matter who you hurt... when I took you from that hole in the ground, I was choosing to live with you. To keep on living. What I wish with my whole heart, is for you to live freely. I'll never reject your powers. They're part of you, they're proof you're alive."

I stare at Yona in awe. I used to think she was a naive princess who knew nothing about the land beyond the walls. I thought she couldn't understand anyone below her in status. She probably didn't even know such people existed.