Chapter 11: A Broken Dawn

"Mana Zone: Spirit Storm!" A beam of condensed Wind Magic soared through the open sky and made contact with a group of trees as they fell from the immense amount of power that had been generated.

Yuno was training far away from the Golden Dawn HQ. He was by himself which was different to how he had been training usually, he was with Mimosa a lot of the time. However, since the funeral Yuno had reverted back to his cold, closed self.

"Wind Creation Magic: Spiralling Tornado!" Yuno shot wind out from his arms and made little tornados that were swirling through the air. This new spell was perfect for training his accuracy as the tornados would keep moving around, forcing Yuno to concentrate even harder on hitting them.

After Yuno finished making the tornados, he was going to try hitting them "Wind Spirit Creation Magic: Spirit of Zephyr!" Yuno formed a spirit sword out of the condensed air around him and then proceeded to fly at breakneck speed up towards the targets. He swiped at the first target and then subsequently hit the rest in quick succession. After hitting his mark, he landed on the grass beneath him to try and catch his breath.

"Yuno! What's the big idea? I'm used to you ignoring me, but what about that plant girl? I hate to say it, but I feel bad for her!" Bell poked out from Yuno's grimoire; she was shouting at him and pinching his skin.

"I just want to train by myself. There's no point in being with others…" Yuno trailed off and clenched his fists together. He was angry and was taking it out in his training. However, some of his anger had been directed at the thought of training with his teammates, and he couldn't help it.

A few hours ago, after breakfast, Mimosa had walked up to Yuno to ask if he would like to train with her, but he refused straight away and flew off without saying another word.

"I guess, he needs time to himself…" Mimosa had thought to herself, before a single tear fell from her face. She had begun to think of Yuno in a different way than she usually had before, and also began to think less about Asta in a romantic way, although she didn't realise any of this.

The Wind Magic user had been by himself, and Bell, for a few hours now and it was nearing dinner time. The sky was a bright orange as the sun was setting. The birds were flying back to their nests as a cool breeze blew through the air.

The Wind Spirit poked out once more "Yuno! You're clearly getting tired by yourself you should've asked that royal to train with you, hmph" she crossed her arms and looked away. She was ignored once more.

Yuno thought to himself "if there's any way to protect the ones closest to me… It's to keep them out of the way of harm and to focus on training myself… I'm not letting anything like this happen again".

Yuno trained for a few more minutes before heading back to the Golden Dawn HQ.

It was dinner time, and everyone had gathered around to start eating their meals. Every table was full of members, except for one.

"Mimosa, it looks like Yuno isn't eating with us again" Klaus said worriedly as he corrected his glasses.

"He'll be fine Four-Eyes. He's been through a lot, let's give him space" the Vermillion spoke in a cheery tone. This sense of positivity was fake though as Mimosa was truly worried for her teammates well-being.

The atmosphere in the dining room was heavy. The rest of the teammates were also concerned for their younger knight and their gazes were fixated on the doors, hoping they would eventually open and Yuno would be standing there.

After a few minutes, everyone had finished eating their dinner and made their way outside and headed towards the bedrooms.

"Mimosa, what are you doing with that basket?" Klaus questioned the Vermillion as she was heading towards her room.

"Oh, it's just something Lady Mereleona sent me yesterday" she smiled and waved before walking on.

"Hm okay, well I guess I'll see you tomorrow Mimosa" he waved back to her and entered his room.

Mimosa reached her room but then walked on further ahead and stopped outside Yuno's room. She looked around diligently to make sure no one was watching her.

"Plant Creation Magic: Magic Flower Guidepost" Mimosa whispered her spell so no one would be able to hear it. "Okay, everyone is in their rooms and Yuno's not in his, good!" she smiled to herself and punched the air in happiness.

The royal then walked ahead and opened Yuno's door. The room was fairly simple with a single bed in the corner, and a desk on the opposite corner where Yuno would study and write letters. There was also a wardrobe next to his bed, and a large beige-coloured rug on the floor.

"Okay, I'll just leave this on his bed and head out. Hopefully he likes them" she smiled and walked outside his room. She then made her way back to her room to sleep for the night.

It was pitch-black now outside. The only light sources came from lamps that were lit around the Golden Dawn HQ. Yuno had come back from his solo training and headed for his room.

"I'm quite hungry" he thought to himself as he touched his stomach. "I guess I'll just have to sleep it off…"

He made his way to his bedroom door and proceeded to open it. He walked in and closed the door and started to change his clothes into sleeping attire. Yuno then walked to his bed and realised something was sitting on it.

"What's this?" he wondered to himself as he reached for the brown basket that was on the middle of his bed.

He opened the basket and a look of surprise formed on his face. There were some sandwiches, made with ham and butter, just the way he liked them. Next to them was some chicken pieces, along with steamed potatoes sitting on the side. There was also a glass of water that was covered on the top to avoid spillage.

"What… who would do this?" Yuno trailed off in thought. "Bell, do you know?" he asked his Wind Spirit.

"No, I don't know. But if it were me, I would give you better food than this, hmph" she said with a cocky tone, to which Yuno ignored.

Yuno sat down at his desk with the basket and began to unpack it to start eating. A letter then fell out from the basket and Yuno proceeded to open it up.

"It's got the Vermillion seal on it, so it was Mimosa…" he thought about her for a second, the way he had started to feel about her, but quickly brushed it aside and started reading the letter.

"Dear Yuno, I hope you enjoy the food I made you! This is my first time making food like this so I hope I did well 😊. I remember you telling me how you liked your sandwiches, outside a food vendor when we were sent to patrol the Royal Capital, so I thought I'd make some for you. The chicken, I hate to admit, is from the Golden Dawn chefs, I sneakily stole some and put it here for you…"

Yuno smiled reading this letter. All of his worries and what he had been feeling had disappeared for the time being and all he could feel was happiness. The letter continued.

"… I tried to steam the potatoes just like how you had them in Hage Village, but I'm not too sure how they turned out! But anyway, I hope you're okay, you have been a bit distant with me and the others, but we understand. You have been through a lot so we can wait. I just miss training with you! If you're worried about us, don't be. We're the Golden Dawn after all, the best squad in the Clover Kingdom. Don't insult us by underestimating us Yuno! Yours sincerely, Mimosa Vermillion".

The last part of the letter had really hit Yuno. He realised that he had been underestimating his teammates and should be working with them instead. Yuno started smiling. "I should have had more faith in them".

"She really did this all for me? Wow". The Wind Magic user said to himself, as he started to tear up.

"I do have some great people around me…" he wiped his tears and started eating the food.

After he finished his generously given meal, he wiped his face, brushed his teeth and headed for bed. Yuno fell asleep almost instantly, the meal had helped a lot.

Elsewhere in the Golden Dawn HQ, Mimosa was getting ready for bed herself. She was in her white dressing gown and had finished brushing her hair, ready for bed. She lay down and fell asleep almost instantly, before being woken up by a sharp pinch.

"Ow-ow!" Mimosa shouted before she woke up. She put her hand on her cheek to feel where she felt the tingling pain. Her skin was red. The royal then sat up and looked around and saw a very familiar sight floating in front of her.

"B-Bell? What on earth are you doing here? And why did you pinch me so much?" Mimosa questioned as she rubbed her cheek to get rid of the pain.

"Hmph" the Wind Spirit crossed her arms. "I suppose I have to say thank you for what you did for Yuno, earlier".

Mimosa realised that Yuno must have seen the food basket she left for him and immediately blushed. She was happy that her teammate ate the food she gave him, but it didn't help in her feeling a bit embarrassed at the fact.

The Wind Spirit then explained to Mimosa that Yuno finished his food in under 10 minutes with how much he liked it. She also went on to say how appreciative Yuno was and promised to be more open with his teammates.

"Oi, royal. I would have made him better food if I knew how to, but I guess I'm glad you're here for him" Bell scoffed, but it was her way to say thank you to Mimosa for having care for Yuno.

Mimosa then giggled "sure, Bell. I can teach you one day if you would like!" she then gently grabbed Bell's wings and shook them as if she was shaking someone's hand.

"G-get off my wings you brat! Sto-stop teasing me Mimosa!" Bell screamed, getting annoyed with the Vermillion.

"Haha, I'm just happy you told me about Yuno! He would've never told me himself so I'm glad, and relieved" she smiled as she eased her grip on Bell, allowing her to float again.

Bell then started to pinch Mimosa's cheeks again to return the favour. The two went at it for a few more seconds before calming down and then started to laugh together.

"Well, I'll be on my way now, royal". She started to fly towards the window to leave before turning back to Mimosa. "Seriously, thank you. I'm sure he'll be a bit different now" she smiled before leaving the room.

Mimosa paused for a few seconds and started smiling. "I'm so happy he liked them! I hope he's a bit better now" she put her hand to her heart. The royal then tucked herself back into bed and started to sleep. A smile stretched across her face.

NOTES:

I felt like I needed to show how Yuno was after Sister Lily's death. This story is focused more on Asta, but I want Yuno to be an important part of it, so that's why I gave him development. Same with Mimosa too.

I don't think I'll focus a lot on how Yuno's felt, regarding Sister Lily's death, anymore than this, if I do though, I haven't planned it yet.

This was a nice, cute chapter though – a break from the usual sadness that I've been dishing out lol.

Hope you like it!