I've been meaning to do this for a while, the AU of chapters 128, 130, 133 & 134 as this part was mentioned in 'The Secret's Out' I couldn't help but pick this time since in the actual manga Yona had her period instead she's realizing she HASN'T had it in a while XD Of course I skipped all the introductions and serious part with Princess Tao, the attack on her, and the conversation with Princess Kouren since little would change there and this will jump around a bit seeing as I mostly want to focus on the parts that are changed with this AU story, sorry if any confusion but I saw little point in just replaying exactly what happened in the manga. At first I wanted Chapter 134 to be its own one shot, but I feel it fits well here as this is the one shot Yona finds out she's pregnant, might as well throw in when Hak finds out the truth. I am trying my best to figure out the timeline, but seeing as in chapter 44 it is stated that two and a half months had passed since Soo-won ascended the throne which is early on in the story, I took a guess about how much time had passed from chapters 85 to 128, as when Yona conceived would have been in that AU of that chapter, in the one shot 'What Do You Think of Me?' Hope you all enjoy!
"Sorry for the wait. Please no need to hold back, eat as much as you all like!" Princess Tao giggled as her servants brought out the food for her guests, laying many dishes on the blanket on the floor.
Yona and her crew all had come to Xing by the princess' request and had listened to her wishes for the country, but seeing as they were there for a while Tao insisted she prepare a meal for them all. Zeno and Shin-ah were digging in like mad, Yoon was impressed how many things there were to choose from, Kija was bowing his head and thanking the princess for the meal, while Hak and Jae-ha just casually joined the others in eating.
Only Princess Yona herself was sitting there and not touching anything. '…. It all looks really good but… For some reason, my stomach hurts a little again today…' she groaned, wrapping her arms around her belly. About a week ago she had come to Yoon about stomach pains and they just kept continuing, she was worried since it would come and go like this. 'Now that I think about it, my body's been heavy since yesterday and I feel awfully light headed. Maybe I should just take a trip to the bathroom…' she tried to get up but got a terrible head rush, falling right back down… And that's when her face leaned in too much towards the food where she took in the smells and that made it worse, she felt vomit creeping up in the back of her throat. 'Why is my stomach so…?' she whimpered and closed her eyes.
"Princess? What's wrong?" Hak, who was sitting next to her had caught her before she ended up face first into the food. "Your face is looking a little pale, you know?"
'I'm going to throw up!' Yona shivered as she quickly pulled herself from Hak, not wanting to puke on her guardian she slapped her palm at his face to push away from him. "Don't come so close!" she shouted without thinking.
"Yona?" Jae-ha shot his head up, having noticed she had tried to get up and ended up right back down. 'Oh dear, I hope she's not too sleep deprived from when we met up last night during my watch….' He thought to himself, after all he was worried one of these days the lack of sleep would get to the princess with the times she'd sneak out of her tent to be with her lover in secret.
"Yona what's wrong?" Yoon asked, worried as well. "Are you alright? Is it your stomach again like last time?"
Hak just sat there for a moment, looking utterly confused at what the princess had just done. "… My apologies for coming so close…"
"Pukkyyuuu?" Ao tried offering her a nut.
Yona blinked when she realized what she just did, having moved her head away from the close scent of the food she was able to choke her vomit back and prevent herself from puking right in front of everyone. "N-no that's not…" she stammered, but whimpered again as she felt another wave of pain in her stomach. 'My stomach still hurts…. I need to get out of here before I-'
"… Something's wrong." Jae-ha noted as he was just about to get up when Princess Tao suddenly grabbed the blanket that held the food, lifting it up while spilling over some of the dishes.
"Ehhh?!" "Princess Tao!" "What the?!" everyone was shocked as they watched the petit princess run over with the blanket and toss it onto Yona.
"Miss Yona is feeling sleepy, so she's going to rest! Everyone, please continue eating!" Princess Tao said right away, leading the fellow princess off to the side.
"Continue eating she says…?" Hak raised an eyebrow at the food on the ground, shaking his head.
"….. Yeah." Yoon sweatdropped.
"…." Jae-ha though was quiet, looking like he wanted to run over and ask Yona right away what was wrong. That wasn't like her to do that, and she did look almost sick right now. She'd been acting a bit strange most of the morning but he was trying to shrug it off, thinking maybe she was just exhausted from their travels and her foot injury was still bothering her. 'Poor Hak though, that must have complicated things with the way she smacked him just now…' he thought, noticing the Lightning Beast was muttering to himself about Yona possibly hating him.
'I smacked Hak without thinking, I wonder if he's mad at me?' Yona thought to herself, sighing as she realized her mistake.
"Miss Yona, are you ok?" Princess Tao asked the fellow princess once they were far enough from the group to not be overheard.
"Y-yes thank you, I didn't want to get sick all over when you prepared that nice meal for my comrades." Yona replied with a smile, then held a hand over her mouth, feeling the nausea come back. "I don't know why but just then I thought I was going to-"
"Is it that time of the month? Such times are hard for girls after all." Tao asked.
"…" Yona's eyes shot wide open and her body went stiff. '… That time of the…. Wait… WHEN WAS MY LAST PERIOD?!' her mind went into full on panic mode now, realizing the last time was when they arrived in Shisen, back when Jae-ha got drugged by the Nadai... "… Oh my god, it can't be…." She muttered out loud. "No, no, no, no we've been so careful it can't…" she started shaking now.
"Miss Yona, what is it?" Tao asked, stopping for a moment to let the redhead get control of herself. Tao then noticed that shocked expression on Yona's face. "It's been too long, is that it?"
Yona just nodded numbly, her mind trying to count the weeks and days since she had started her relationship with Jae-ha and trying to recall the last time she had a cycle… Yeah it all added up. The nausea, the way her breasts had become awfully tender during their love making, the dizziness, and how she hadn't been feeling right with her getting overly emotional lately… "…. I… I think I'm pregnant." She voiced her thoughts and felt like the world collapsed onto her.
"I have a healer here that we can ask for her opinion." Tao offered, taking her inside of her small mansion. "There aren't too many servants here because it's kind of like my secret home."
"Is it alright to have people from Kouka Kingdom here though…?" Yona asked, struggling to walk straight as she felt dizzy again. "Also I really hate to bother you… I seriously didn't realize it until just now… I've been feeling a bit sick lately but I just passed it off as exhaustion from my travels. I guess I let my guard down and didn't even consider the possibility that I was…"
"I'm sure I can trust you, and besides I'm glad to be a gracious host to offer this for you." Tao said with a smile. "Some of my people were held in Sei as slaves, you and your comrades freed them. I wanted to thank you all and being able to pay you back like this is just a small compensation."
"Thank you." Yona said with a smile as Tao lead her into a room before rushing off to find the healer. Once she was out of sight Yona buried her face into her hands and let out a whimper. '…. What am I going to tell Jae-ha?! He's been trying so hard not to get me pregnant and here I'm already… He'll never want to settle down with a child! I'd be taking away his freedom!' her mind was going all over the place. 'Plus this means I HAVE to tell the others about my relationship with him, and soon before they figure out that I'm carrying his child! How did I not notice I missed two cycles already?! … Well we've been through a lot lately and I've been more worried about everyone else so I kind of forgot about it…' she sighed and pulled out a wooden box from her belongings, opening it to look at the dragon hairpin Jae-ha had given her recently. She flushed as she ran her fingers through it, smiling as she recalled their conversation the night he gave it to her, his words echoing in her mind. 'I wanted to give you a hairpin that holds happy memories. Not like the one from him, which always makes you look sad, but one to keep that smile on your face always, Yona darling. I love you, princess of my heart…'
"Miss Yona?" Tao's voice snapped her out of her trance, she had returned with a slightly older looking woman who stood behind the princess. "This is my personal doctor Sara, she has a few questions for you to hopefully help answer your concern."
"A pleasure to meet you." The woman with long brown hair bowed. "I was held at one of the forts in Sei, the monsters of Kouka saved my life, I'm eternally grateful to them. The one was like an angel when he appeared, with his white hair and that enormous hand…"
"Oooohh! That was Kija wasn't it?" Yona lit up at that. "He's pretty cool, isn't he?"
"Yes that was him, I knew it when I saw him." Tao smiled. "A court lady told me similar."
"Anyway Princess Tao said you were feeling nauseous?" Sara asked, pressing her hand against Yona's forehead. "You're a bit pale but you don't seem to have a fever."
"My stomach's been hurting a lot the past week or so… It usually passes by afternoon but just now when I got close to all that food I felt like I was going to throw up." Yona whimpered as she explained.
"Anything else out of the ordinary?" the healer asked. "When was your last menstrual period?"
"Well… My breasts have been bothering me in my bindings and I've been getting dizzy spells." Yona sighed as she listed off what she thought could help. "I've also been getting tired more lately, and it's been about 10 or 11 weeks since my last cycle…"
"Oh my, no wonder you went into shock when I asked…" Tao gasped. "You must have been quite sidetracked to have not noticed missing two periods."
"You could say I have been…" Yona sighed and looked to the side. Between looking into the Nadai, helping Lily out, their trip to Kai when the dragons got sick, Shin-ah getting possessed by a previous Seiryuu, getting captured and taken to the forts in Sei… Her cycle was the last thing on her mind during all that, if it even crossed her mind she would have shrugged it off to all the stress making her miss one, not realizing how long it has been. "But ummm… We've been trying to be careful and yet this happened, so… I guess that means I… I got pregnant from the first time…?" her mind was going back to that first night in Sensui, where Jae-ha confessed his love for her and they got lost in the moment after changing her bandage for her back wound. That was the only time that he…. Released inside her, because they were so absorbed in passion and embracing their love they didn't think of the consequences. Hell Yona herself didn't even remember most of the other times they made love, it was usually Jae-ha that had to remind her and hold himself back.
"It's not uncommon, and can happen I'm afraid. But listening to all the signs I can fairly say I'm quite sure you're pregnant." Sara said with a smile. "I take it you're not married to the father."
Yona quickly shook her head. "… My comrades don't even know we're seeing each other…" she blushed and looked away. "We've been keeping it a secret."
"Oh? Which one is your lover then Miss Yona?" Princess Tao just had to ask the all-important question. "Was it the man you smacked just before…?"
Yona shook her head. "No Hak's just my bodyguard and my friend. Jae-ha is the one I love…" she blushed just thinking about her Ryokuryuu and the fact that the princess called him her lover. "He's the Green Dragon of the Four Dragon Warriors, the one that can fly into the sky."
"Oh my! So you're in a relationship with one of the monsters from Kouka?" Sara gasped.
"Please don't tell the others about this, Princess Tao." Yona said with a worried face. "Jae-ha and I haven't told them yet and we've been trying to find the right time for it… Besides now…. I have to tell him that I'm pregnant…" she shivered at the thought. "And he's been trying not to but the first time we…"
Sara smiled and pat her shoulder. "Sometimes things just happen in the heat of the moment, and most do assume that it won't happen the first time which usually it won't, but can. I'm sure he'll understand when you tell him."
"I'm not so sure about that…. His freedom is everything to him and me having a child would mean that I'm taking that away…" Yona whimpered as she raised her knees to rest her head against, curling herself into a ball. "Oh no, what do I do…?"
"Miss Yona…" Tao frowned and pat her back. "I'm sure he loves you enough to handle it, just try talking to him. You can't keep this a secret forever."
"I know… I can't keep it a secret from the others either much longer…" Yona groaned. "They're all going to react so poorly…"
"Sara, please don't mention this to anyone." Princess Tao turned to her healer who nodded, excusing herself to leave the two princesses alone for now. "There, there Miss Yona, it will be ok."
"Thank you, Princess Tao, for being so young you're so reliable." Yona said with a smile.
Tao giggled at that. "I may look like this, but I'm actually 19 years old."
"Ehhh?!" Yona's eyes widened. "You're older than me?! I'm sorry!"
"Don't be sorry." Princess Tao chuckled. "It's better to look younger!"
'She's so cute.' Yona couldn't help but smile at the princess.
"By the way Yona, what is that?" Tao asked, pointing to the box with the hairpin that was still in the redhead's hands.
"Oh this?" Yona flushed as she realized she was still holding it open. "… It's something Jae-ha gave me, I keep it in the case so the others don't see it."
"It's beautiful, such a wonderful hairpin." Tao said with a smile, looking it over. "He must love you very much."
Yona's cheeks burned as she nodded. "He does… Just as much as I love him…"
The two princesses continued their talk for a while. When Princess Tao expressed her concern for her country, Yona began to wonder if there was a way she could discuss this with to Soo-won… Yona eventually fell asleep for a few hours and awoke in the middle of the night. When she went wandering she got attacked, being mistaken for Princess Tao. After the mansion was set ablaze during the attack, everyone took shelter in a nearby cave. The following morning, Yona found herself watching Hak and Algira in the middle of a spar.
"Oh? Hak hasn't had a sparring match in a while." Jae-ha commented from behind her, placing a hand on her hair and stroking softly.
Yona flushed as she looked at the Green Dragon. "J-Jae-ha…" she then looked to the side. 'I've got to tell him… But how?' with everyone together in the cave last night there was no way to get him alone to talk… And she really badly needed to tell him that she was pregnant, but at the same time she was worried about his reaction…
Jae-ha raised an eyebrow at her expression. "… Yona dear, are you alright? Princess Tao said you weren't feeling well yesterday so I know you went to rest and sadly that got interrupted…"
"I-I'm fine Jae-ha, really!" Yona waved her hands frantically, moving a bit away from him. 'I can't look at him right now… I'm too scared I'm going to just blurt out that I'm pregnant which I can't do that right now in front of everyone!'
'…. Ok there is definitely something wrong with her, she's trembling and avoiding eye contact…' Jae-ha noted, tilting his head to the side. "Yona dear, have I done something to offend you by chance?" he asked a bit low since the other's attention was on Hak at the moment.
"H-huh?" Yona turned to him with a blush on her face. "N-no not at all Jae-ha I…" she then quickly looked away.
"Then look at me." Jae-ha said with a voice that was nearly pleading, reaching a hand out to turn her towards him. "Tell me what's wrong."
"I-I…. I-I'm…." Yona flushed even worse, but then he had to let her go because Vold approached them.
"Yes Vold, what is it?" Jae-ha smiled at him, though was a bit worried about that serious face he had…
"Well… If it is alright, I would also like to spar." Vold replied.
'Seriously…? Can't you see I'm in the middle of something?' Jae-ha mentally groaned. He didn't have time for this nor did he really want to, he was far too concerned with Yona right now and whatever it was that was bothering her. "Well you see…."
And that's when Kija stepped in. "That sounds good! I'll go after Jae-ha!"
'Kija you are NOT helping!' Jae-ha grumbled, then pat the Hakuryuu on the back. "No, I'll pass. Kija, you should go."
But the White Dragon shook his head at that. "What are you saying? You were the one challenged to a duel. You should go first."
Jae-ha sighed and shook his head. "No, I don't like hot-blooded things like sparring… WAH!" he quickly avoided Vold's blade who got started right away.
"Let's have a good match!"
"WAIT VOLD!" Jae-ha quickly leapt to the side, dodging his attack. 'How did I get into this mess?!'
Yona giggled at that, she was just barely saved from blurting it out to him in front of everyone. She sighed though, still weighing on her mind how she was going to tell her beloved the news as she wrapped her arms around her waist. But the day wasn't making it any easier, after she returned with Hak when she went strolling in town they found out Princess Kouren had arrived and right after the Four Dragon Warriors were taken as prisoners. Yona's heart sank when Hak brought up that Jae-ha realized them retaliating from the attack would escalate into war, he only did that out of his love and respect for her after all… So much for being the irresponsible pervert he claimed to be. Once Yona made her arrangement with Princess Kouren to go and meet with Soo-won, everything was set for Yona to head out on her journey that could easily be her death sentence, but she had to try to save them… But there was something she badly needed to do first…
"Let me speak to them." Yona pleaded. "Just once, and I will be on my way… I need to talk to the Four Dragons immediately." 'I have to tell Jae-ha, especially if… Something happens to me… I just want to tell him at the very least one more time that I love him and set things straight…' she knew that her avoidance of him was going to cause a bit of confusion but she couldn't find a time ALONE with him to tell him the truth, that she was pregnant with his child…
"No." Princess Kouren replied with a scowl. "Your companions will remain hostages and you cannot see them, I cannot risk you trying to aid them in an escape." She then walked off.
"PLEASE!" Yona cried, tears filling her eyes. "I have to see them!"
Hak came up behind her, placing his hands on her shoulders. "… They'll be alright princess. But if you press her much more she might do something to Droopy Eyes and the others…" the Thunder Beast himself looked like he was holding back a murderous rage from their friends being hurt and held prisoner.
Tao nodded, crying herself now, taking Yona's hands into hers. "Princess Yona, I promise to protect the Four Dragons and Mister Yoon!" she declared. "I won't let anything happen to them, I swear!" knowing that Yona's love was trapped there and injured, Princess Tao knew how difficult this must be right now for the Princess of Kouka. She then hugged Vold and Algira, telling them to go with her and whispering something in their ears too soft for Yona and Hak to hear.
From there they started their journey, Yona insisting on pushing herself even though her pregnancy was still bothering her the whole way… Until her fear over losing Jae-ha and the others just got to be too much, she had a panic attack and started hyperventilating. Eventually she just fainted into Hak's arms who picked her up and suggested they make camp for the night.
"So what Princess Tao told us was true…" Vold spoke as they finished setting up the tent. "To think that she's taking on such a dangerous task in her condition…"
"… What?" Hak blinked a few times after he placed Yona in the tent to rest and came back out to hear what Vold said. "I mean yeah she's been sick to her stomach a lot lately and all…"
"Oh you don't have to hide it from us, Hak-nyan." Algira shrugged. "Princess Tao told us she's with child."
Hak felt his blood run cold and his eyes widened. "…. She's…. What?" he went into complete shock, his brain unable to process that. "What do you mean she's…?"
"Oh… Did she not tell you yet?" Vold seemed to catch onto the Thunder Beast's shock. "Princess Tao told us when she asked us to accompany you that she's pregnant and to be sure to help protect her… I suppose Princess Yona must have recently found out and was unable to tell you…"
"…. But…. Who… How… When….?" Hak's words were coming out in a jumbled mess. 'When the HELL did this happen?! My god did those assholes that kidnapped her in Sei force themselves on her and Lily when… Is that why she's been so sick recently? She's still traumatized from being raped by…. I think I'm going to be sick… And I'm going to murder whoever did this to her!' he was seeping with rage and shock at this point.
"Hak-nyan? Are you ok?" Algira blinked a few times, confused by the Thunder Beast's rage and tremendous bloodthirsty aura.
"… Who did this to her…?" Hak growled out loud, still lost in his train of thought.
Vold's eyes widened. "Wait… You mean, you're not her lover? I thought for sure the way you two…"
"I don't know but I'm going to get to the bottom of this." Hak snarled, going back into the tent.
"But if he's not her lover then who is?" Vold turned to Algira, who shrugged his shoulders.
Hak looked at the sleeping princess with a frown, here he was supposed to protect her and now he felt like he truly failed… "King Il… I'm so sorry… I failed to protect your daughter after all." he muttered, sitting down next to Yona and moving a bit of hair from her face.
"Jae-ha…" Yona mumbled, causing the Lightning Beast to raise an eyebrow at that.
'She must be worried about Droopy Eyes and White Snake hearing how badly they got hurt…' Hak thought to himself.
"Nnnnn…. H-Hak?" Yona fluttered her eyes open. "W-what happened? Where…"
"You fainted." Hak replied, ruffling her hair a bit. "You need to take a rest. Those guys are alright."
"We don't know that for sure, I wasn't allowed to see them…" Yona whimpered.
"I'm the Darkness Dragon, remember?" Hak replied with a slight smile. "Those guys are as lively as ever, I can tell."
Yona narrowed her eyes at that, but chuckled at the name he used during the time they were the Happy Hungry Bunch. "Darkness Dragon? Even though they're called the Four Dragons?"
"We became the Five Dragons last week." Hak responded with a smirk as he watched her giggle.
"Sorry I worried you, I still haven't been feeling right…" Yona sighed as she sat up. "It's nothing though, just that same stomach pains and the stress probably-" she was cut off when Hak suddenly hugged her. "… H-Hak…?"
"Princess…." Hak's voice was practically painful as he tried to ask this calmly. "… Who did this to you?"
"Huh…?" Yona stiffened in his arms. "W-what are you…?"
"Princess Tao told those guys out there that you're pregnant, is that true?" Hak pulled back to look right into her eyes. "… Tell me the truth, please…. Was it when you were captured and sent to be a slave in Sei…?"
Yona's eyes widened and her heart sank, she started shaking again as she realized there was no way out of this one… She was going to have to finally face Hak's reaction and it wasn't going to be good… "… I didn't want you to find out this way…" she whimpered, looking away. "… No, that wasn't when it happened but it is true that I'm pregnant…. I only just found out the other day…"
Hak lowered his head and let out a slight hiss that she confirmed it, he placed his hands on her shoulders as he tried to pull himself together. "… If it wasn't then, when? Who forced you into-"
"Nobody forced me Hak!" Yona replied rather snappish, her cheeks reddened a bit. "Seriously why did your first thought have to be that I was forced?!"
Hak looked at her bewildered. "… What…? What the hell are you saying that-"
"Hak, I'm a little over two months pregnant." Yona revealed, looking away again. "I just didn't realize it at first until Princess Tao had her doctor help me confirm it… I've been… Keeping it from you but I… I've fallen in love with someone… And you're not going to like who it is…" she shut her eyes and whimpered. "But he loves me too and he's the father of my baby…."
"…" Hak's brain seemed to have broken trying to process everything that happened two months ago, there was so much he couldn't seem to narrow down when it could have happened before Yona spoke again.
"… Jae-ha's the father." she kept her eyes closed and braced for the impact of the Thunder Beast's shouting.
"WWWWWHHHHHHHAAAAAATTTT?!" Hak shouted at the top of his lungs, he was immediately reaching for his glaive. "I'M GOING TO GO BACK TO THAT PRISON TO MURDER THAT BASTARD MYSELF!"
"HAK!" Yona grabbed his arm, pulling him back down. "I knew you were going to react this way so that's why I hadn't told you!" she whimpered.
"I knew it… I knew I couldn't trust that god damn perverted bastard!" Hak was snarling as he balled his hands into fists. "I just KNEW something happened when you two went ahead to Sensui! You both were acting strange when we arrived and I just knew that bastard couldn't have just changed your bandage without trying something…. That's why he always avoided answering me that jerk I outta…."
"HAK STOP IT!" Yona shouted, grabbing his hands and glaring at him. "Listen to me, will you?! Jae-ha was nothing but a gentleman the whole time with me and it did start out as him just cleaning up my wound! I'm the one that kept pressing him how he felt about me and finally I got him to break down and admit he loved me!" she flushed a bit just thinking about her first night with her Ryokuryuu lover. "Look I know you have a horrible impression of him but he's good to me, and he cares a lot about me! I feel I can come to him for just about anything, he doesn't judge me and admires my desire to grow stronger! He gives me strength and I was even able to hold myself around Soo-won because of his love! I mean seriously Hak was I even remotely as shaken up when we ran into Soo-won in Sensui compared to when I ran into him at Awa?!"
Hak froze for a moment at her passionate response, seeing the fire in her eyes as she was determined to make him see reason. "….. You didn't break down that time… In fact instead you stopped me from…" he looked to the side just thinking about it, that was true she was holding together quite strong that day, and it really hadn't been that long since the time she broke down crying after having run into their former friend. "… But seriously…. Jae-ha?" he asked in a strained voice, feeling his chest tighten. "Of all Four Dragons you fell for that filthy flirt?" he grit his teeth at how lucky that smug bastard was. Here Hak had loved Yona for years but she never noticed, as always her eyes were constantly on another. First Soo-won, now Jae-ha. "… You have terrible taste in men, princess. He's a god damn pervert and will never stay faithful to you, he'll run off at the slightest hint of you tying him down and…"
"That's my problem Hak and I know how he is!" Yona blushed some more as she huffed. "Jae-ha and I have already discussed this, besides have you really seen him run off to the Red Light lately?" she brought up.
"… Well he did sneak off that time we were with Lily in Sen-" Hak's eyes widened when it dawned on him. "Wait…. He wasn't by chance…"
"With me? That's EXACTLY where he was." Yona looked to the side as her blush grew, she nodded once. "… We've been seeing each other in the middle of the night, most of the time during his night watches to keep it a secret."
"So THAT'S why you've been lacking sleep lately!" Hak growled at that one. "And then he goes and gets you pregnant of all things?!"
"That was an accident Hak!" Yona protested. "Jae-ha was actually trying to be careful with me but… Things just happened ok?! He doesn't even know yet I'm pregnant! That's what I wanted to tell him when Princess Kouren refused to let me see him!" her eyes were brimming with tears. "What if I never see him again after this? What if something happens to me even? I'll never have told him just one more time how much I love him!" she sobbed, tears streaming down her cheeks now. "Him and Kija are hurt now because of me! They've been on this journey because they came with me along with Shin-ah, Zeno and Yoon, and now they're all paying for it! And they only didn't fight back to avoid a war because they know what that would mean to me. Otherwise if Jae-ha was as selfish and terrible as you think he wouldn't have cared what his actions meant, he would have just run away!"
Hak was a bit stunned by her reaction but he didn't have a decent reply to that, even he himself had to commend Jae-ha and Kija for holding back… With his rage and temper he'd never think about the consequences of his actions like that, he'd just react to being attacked or his friends being hurt… He couldn't find it in himself to continue to argue with her, seeing her in tears so much he pulled her into another hug. "… Those guys wouldn't want to see you beat yourself up over this, especially Droopy Eyes…" he sighed. "… When we get them out of there you need to tell him though, and we need to tell the rest of them about this…"
"I know… I'm sorry I kept it from you for so long…" Yona sobbed into his shoulder. "But I was so happy with him I didn't want to ruin it by starting such an argument between us… I knew you'd take it terribly…"
"Trust me I still want to rip his head off…." Hak growled, slowly rubbing her back. "But…. As long as he doesn't hurt you I guess I can…. Deal with it…" of course his anger was fading due to Yona's tears. His heart felt like it was breaking though in the process, just cementing as he always knew that the princess would never see him as anything more than a friend. "… Are you sure HE loves you and it's not just that stupid dragon's blood?"
Yona choked another sob, pulling back to look at him sternly. "Do you really think the dragon's blood makes Jae-ha want me THAT way? You sure don't hear from Zeno tales of the dragons sleeping with King Hiryuu." She protested. "… Besides, that's exactly what held Jae-ha back for a while, he just assumed the way he felt was forced on him because of the dragon's blood… Until he realized it was his own and didn't even care if the blood influenced it, he just wanted to be with me."
"… Alright you've got me there, Zeno surely doesn't look at you that way…" Hak conceded, after all he had his suspicion that Kija also had a crush on her but not the Yellow Dragon… He sighed and shook his head, petting her hair. "… So I guess this means you've finally moved on from Soo-won then, even though you still have that hairpin from him…"
Yona smiled at that, shaking her head. "That wasn't why I kept the hairpin Hak I…. Nevermind." She looked to the side. "What I felt for Soo-won is nothing like what I feel for Jae-ha, I know I used to gush all the time and made a big deal about it back then but I really didn't know any better…" She then turned back to look at the Thunder Beast seriously. "Hak I know you want to protect me but this is my choice and who I want to be with, please I just ask that you respect that."
Hak let out an exhausted groan as he rubbed his head. "… Fine, if it's an order I guess I have no choice… But know that the second he hurts you or betrays your trust I'm going to kill him. And when we get those guys back, if you don't tell him that you're pregnant right away and make sure he takes responsibility I will." He growled slightly menacingly, already imagining how he'd threaten the Green Dragon.
Yona shivered at that, she was still worried about Jae-ha's response to finding out she was pregnant, but she sighed and nodded. "Alright Hak, I'll tell him as soon as I can… I promise."
Hak sighed, stroking her hair a bit more. "… I meant what I said before princess, as long as you're happy… That's all I want. If that shameless pervert is what makes you happy then…. Fine." He lowered his eyes, realizing after seeing that determined look on her face and her tears that she was serious about the Ryokuryuu. After all, he saw how she was back when she was in love with Soo-won, when she was stubborn about getting him to notice her and return her feelings. This time she was different, and he didn't pretend he hadn't noticed her attention on the Green Dragon lately that was making him suspicious, he just didn't think the pervert had made a move completely on her just yet… So much for his senses being sharp, she found a way around them to keep it a secret this long… Guess it just showed how well she knew him. He still wished she had fallen for someone more dependable, but he knew Jae-ha was protective of her, after all he was able to count on the Green Dragon to save her back in Sei… Not to mention the Ryokuryuu acted differently around Yona sometimes, especially during that whole incident with the Nadai. Yona herself had been acting differently around him as well, and Hak was hitting himself for not figuring it out sooner. He just sighed as his thoughts continued to wander, petting Yona on the head. "Get some sleep princess, we'll get an early start in the morning."
Yona smiled as she reached out a hand to stroke his cheek. "… Hak, you too. Don't worry so much about the Four Dragons not being here. I'm not that dependable, but I'm right here by your side. Time for sleepy sleep." She giggled.
Hak's eyes widened at her words and he had a moment of weakness, he hugged her tightly against his chest, muttering too low for her to hear. "Princess… I love you."
"Hak…?" Yona struggled a bit in his hug until he pulled back and lay her down on the blankets. "What did you just say…?" she couldn't make out what he said at all, as she blinked in confusion.
"It was nothing." Hak replied, laying on his side while facing away from her. He knew she'd never return his feelings especially now, and was kicking himself for blurting it out like that… "Please go to sleep."
Yona sighed, seeing that he didn't want her to press it she reached her hand over to grab her pouch from her belongings to pull out the dragon hairpin from Jae-ha. She whimpered as she cradled the hair ornament to her chest, where her heart was aching for her Ryokuryuu, worried about how he was back in Xing… And praying that she could free him soon.