I decided to break this one up into a couple of chapters rather than just be a big one shot for the wedding/honeymoon or split it into Crimson Emerald Rays Chapters. So everything that happened during the wedding and their stay at Xing will be in this one. Also this way I can add onto it as I think of situations they can get into during their stay in Xing XD So this one shot picks up from where 'The One I Love is You' leaves off, which finished at Chapter 153 of the manga. Keep in mind the manga hadn't even reached the end of the Xing Arc when I referenced and came up with the idea of Yona's marriage taking place in Xing, so I am derailing from the canon manga here.
"Welcome to Kyuu Castle, Princess Yona!" Princess Tao greeted the Happy Hungry Bunch at her castle in Xing. Even though they arrived rather late, she was eager to show them around the place immediately.
"Our father give his thanks to you." Princess Kouren said as she approached the group. "We've explained to him all you have done and helped us avoid war in the process. So he agreed to all of Tao's requests for your stay here and arrangements..."
"Thank you." Yona said with a smile… Then blinked when she processed what the princess had said. "Arrangements?"
"For your wedding of course!" Tao exclaimed with a wide smile, taking the redhead's hand. "Come now, we need to get your dress ready! There are a few things left to prepare, but I have most of it set for your secret marriage to take place tomorrow, right here!"
"P-Princess Tao!" Yona cried, blushing bright red as she waved her free hand frantically. "He JUST asked me this morning!"
"Guess your days as a free man are gone faster than you thought, Droopy Eyes." Hak commented.
Jae-ha just chuckled. "Well a wedding calls for a celebration and that will be perfect for us to unwind with."
"We cannot allow you to remain a soon to be mother and unwed!" Tao immediately spoke up, pursing her lips at the redheaded princess. "In Xing it is bad luck for an expected mother to not marry her lover within two weeks of finding out she is with child! You're nearly past that due to how long he was held in prison and their recovery!"
"Tao is extremely devoted to those traditions, so I warn you changing her mind is impossible." Kouren commented before excusing herself, wanting to get away before her sister dragged her into it.
"Princess Tao, the servants are ready in the other room." Vold stepped in and bowed. "It is good to see you again Princess Yona."
"Have fun Yona dear!" Jae-ha chuckled as he waved, watching his fiancée being drug off by the Princess of Xing.
"Watch out Jae-ha, they might start trying on outfits on you next." Yoon warned.
The Green Dragon sweatdropped at that. "…. Hak, how about we go for a stroll around town? I could use a drink how about you?"
The Thunder Beast looked like he considered turning down the offer, as watching the Ryokuryuu go through this could be hilarious… But there was something on his mind that he wanted to do. "… Sure, let's go Droopy Eyes." He then turned to Kija and Shin-ah. "Watch the princess and come find us if something happens, ok?"
"The princess will be fine with us on guard!" Kija said with determination as Shin-ah merely nodded.
"Zeno will find Ryokuryuu and mister if needed!" Zeno offered.
Jae-ha was surprised that the Lightning Beast agreed to come with him so easily, but he wasn't going to press it as they took a stroll through the streets of Xing proper. After having a drink, they took to walking around the vendors when he finally decided to share what was on his mind. "Yona dear seemed awfully nervous with Tao dragging her away didn't she? I'm surprised you didn't want to stay and see how that played out."
"Right now when I'm near the princess her eyes dart all over the place." Hak replied, looking over the different shops as if he were searching for something particular. "She'll probably be soothed without us hanging around there."
Jae-ha tilted his head, unsure what it was the Thunder Beast was looking for. "She really is cute when she's that nervous, isn't she?" he chuckled, figuring Hak wouldn't respond like normal when he'd joke about such things.
But that's when Hak's serious reply surprised him. "Well, that is true, I suppose…"
"Now that's a surprise, well then there's something I just have to ask." Jae-ha placed a hand on his hip. "Since you're ok with talking about it in the open at long last, how does it feel now that you've put those feelings that you've held secret for all these years out in the open?"
Hak narrowed his eyes at that, not looking at the Green Dragon. "… Honestly… I never planned to tell her."
Jae-ha raised an eyebrow at that. "… Not even back at the castle?"
"Especially back at the castle." Hak replied, shaking his head. "This is the princess we're talking about. She's not someone you can just irresponsibly throw one-sided feelings at. You should know, considering you said you were holding back until she returned your feelings." He looked at Jae-ha in the eyes who nodded with that reasoning. "After a certain period, I stopped thinking things like 'I want her to see me' or 'I want us to be in love with each other' and stuff like that."
'He must have figured he wasn't even in the same class or rightful position to even court her…' The Ryokuryuu seriously felt sorry for Hak there. 'He killed off his feelings too much and moved closer to enlightenment. This child… I commend you for being able to hold out for that long, I didn't have the strength…' he chuckled inwardly to himself.
The Thunder Beast just shrugged and continued. "But when I did explode back there, I found it strangely refreshing. That's when I realized that maybe deep down, I've always wanted to tell her. In any case, the princess has you and the rest of the dragons now, so her heart seems stable. So even if I say something, she probably wouldn't be bothered."
Jae-ha sweatdropped at that. 'No, I think her life is quite disrupted right now… She really had no idea you saw her that way and she's questioning everything until now.'
"Besides she's marrying you and expecting a child, I don't want to get in the way of her finally finding happiness." Hak continued. "Also, back then I never said anything because she was hopelessly in love with Soo-won, always trying to get his attention. And honestly, I wanted them to be happy, they seemed good for each other and I just wanted to stay by their side… But then after that day…." His eyes went dark just thinking about that betrayal. "… That hairpin he gave her was the only thing she reacted to the first couple of days. I thought she was still in love with him and that was why she kept the hairpin but… I realized she had moved on from that day when… She let go of the hairpin."
Jae-ha blinked rapidly at that, he hadn't heard this. "Wait what? I mean… She told me why she kept it but…"
"I guess that figures she told you but… She used it at the information broker as payment to help save you guys." Hak explained. "At first I wanted to ask her if that was ok to let it go and not get it back…"
"… Didn't you say you wanted to smash that hairpin?" Jae-ha brought up. "… Did you want to get it back?"
Hak shook his head. "… I think it's best she let it go. Because it means the wounds from that day are finally healing and she's moving on…" he sighed, looking up to the sky. "It's a feeling I don't understand myself. To the princess, that hairpin was a memory…. I'm the only one that can't just let it go…"
Jae-ha took a moment studying his features and sighed. '…. Hak probably decided back in the castle to serve Soo-won just like he did with Yona… That he'd be by their side always, that's all the more reason he buried his feelings for her. Hak is still lost in the darkness of the day of betrayal…' he sighed and looked up to the stars. '… Yona dear, you might be the only one capable of saving him…'
"But I think I have an idea why she was able to move on…" Hak's voice brought the Ryokuryuu out of his train of thought. "The morning after she told me about you two, I saw a new hairpin with her… Meaning you gave her the strength to finally move on and turn it into just a memory… It's why I kept trying to press you what happened in Sensui, because I noticed a change in her around then. She had been slowly changing over the course of this journey but… Something about her then seemed brighter and stronger than before, like she found a new will to herself. Ever since she met you she'd been slowly recovering herself and insisted on trying harder." He sighed, shaking his head. "Part of me wanted her to slow down, and just let me protect her but… Part of me liked how she changed in Awa, I saw a Princess Yona I'd never seen before… And I wanted to see more of that side of her." He smiled just thinking about how he was trembling when she stood up to him.
Jae-ha took a moment before he responded. "I gave her that hairpin as a token to forge new memories… So was this the reason you accepted her choice? Because from what Yona dear told me your initial reaction to our relationship was not very favorable." He chuckled.
"Oh I still wanted to break your spine for getting her pregnant and putting her at such a risk." Hak replied, cracking his knuckles just to enforce that statement. He then dropped his smile and turned serious again. "… But I couldn't argue with the fact that your influence on her shows, and she seems more motivated than ever. You changed too, considering how you were so much on freedom and crap and yet look at you now, about to marry the very person you said you wanted nothing to do with most of your life."
"You could say I just saw the error in my ways." Jae-ha joked, then waved a hand before Hak looked like he was ready to punch him. "… I told you once I'm not myself when I'm around her but… I think actually it's the opposite, she brings out the real me, the side I don't like others to see. She makes that unbeautiful part amazingly gorgeous. While I was never fond of being chained down ever again, with Yona I actually look forward to putting on the chains, because she has them around my heart." He smiled as he drummed his fingers over his cheek just thinking about his fiancée. "She really has surprised me the whole time with how things played out, I really never could have dreamed of being so lucky to find her, and to have her return my love. While I've had my share of pleasurable company and I'll always appreciate beauty…. It's with her that, for the first time ever, I feel I can actually say I've found a home, as I've reached the point when I realized I just wanted to be by her side. Anywhere else feels cold and empty, whereas Yona is a bright fire that keeps me warm. At first I really was convinced it was the dragon's blood making me feel this way but…" he sighed and shrugged his arms. "… I reached a point I didn't care anymore if it was… And I felt a weight lifted off my shoulders, similar to how you felt today, when I just accepted that I love her, even if it was going to be one sided. To be honest I was going to keep it to myself until that day it just came out… Since I clearly could see how you felt for her and that it wouldn't be fair for me to swoop in and just take her."
"Yet that's exactly what you did." Hak decided to joke back this time.
Jae-ha held up his hands defensively. "And I apologize for that, but can you tell me you'd be able to resist her professing her love for you and begging to keep it a secret because she knew a certain person would react poorly and she did think highly of said person's opinions."
"…. Yeah I know why you kept it a secret…" Hak grumbled slightly. "… I would have done it too to keep her smiling… That's why I didn't break your bones when I found out besides the fact I had some time to think it over… Also… She was so passionate the way she explained it I… Just couldn't stay angry after a while."
"As if either of us can stay mad at her." Jae-ha chuckled, smiling as he pat the Thunder Beast's shoulder. "I promise I'll take care of her Hak, and anytime you feel I'm failing at that feel free to punch me." He winked.
Hak smacked his fist into his palm. "Oh well if I have your permission then I'll be sure to give you constant reminders..." He teased.
"Now that's much better than you having that gloomy face Hak." Jae-ha chuckled. "So are you going to tell me what you're looking for here? You seem like a man on a mission."
Hak blinked at that, he didn't realize it was that obvious he was looking for something. "Oh, that was actually why I was fine with accompanying you out here… See I was looking for… Oh!" he then found what he was looking for, a ring vendor where he looked over the selection. "… Just something that gramps would yell my ear off for, if I forgot the tradition, all that talk about Tao obsessing over it reminded me…"
Jae-ha raised an eyebrow at that. "And just what tradition are you speaking of, Hak?"
"Something back in the Wind Tribe, in Fuuga it's tradition for the father or guardian of the bride to give the groom a ring to present to his wife on the day of the ceremony." Hak explained, choosing a ring and paying for it. He then grabbed the Green Dragon's hand and placed the small golden ring with a crimson stone and green trim around it. "All the married women in the Wind Tribe wear rings to show they are spoken for but also as a blessing for the marriage. Gramps would rip out his beard in rage if he heard that I forgot about this, since with her father gone, I am pretty much the princess' guardian…"
Jae-ha smiled at that, staring at the small ring for a moment and realizing what that meant, this was Hak's small way of really proving he had come around to accepting their relationship. "Thanks Hak, I'm sure she'll love it. You're going to make big brother tear up you know!" The Green Dragon pulled the Thunder Beast into a hug, to which he protested.
"Hey come on Droopy Eyes!" Hak snapped, pushing out of the hug.
"I'm sure Yona dear will love this." Jae-ha said with a smile. "And knowing it came from you will mean the world to her. She's been worried all this time you would never accept our relationship."
"Hey like I said it's just something that was drilled into my head and would nag at me if I didn't do it." Hak tried to downplay it of course. "Besides maybe it'll help remind you not to be such a pervert with having a wife soon. Though the princess did mention something about those last couple of times I thought you went to the Red Light you actually were sneaking around with her…"
Jae-ha chuckled at that, placing the ring in his overcoat's pocket. "Such places are lonely without her, because nobody can compare… You should understand that right Hak? That's why you never would come with me, I just failed to realize that until it happened to me."
"So it took a drug to make you realize the princess is special? And here you claim to be an expert on women." Hak rolled his eyes.
"More like it took that for my eyes to open that I felt more for Yona dear than what the dragon's blood influences." The Green Dragon countered, then wrapped an arm around the Thunder Beast. "So, how about we go have another drink to celebrate? After all we can have our own little private bachelor party!" he joked.
Hak just shrugged. "… I suppose I could take another drink, just we better not overdo it or Princess Tao will kill us for being late to the ceremony."