Category: Friendship Fluff
Characters: Yona, Lily
Requested By: snow3bunny (Ao3)
Lily strode purposefully down the streets of the city, perhaps more purposefully than she usually did; after all, she had just recruited a handful of very useful and powerful-looking men to her cause against the vicious drug poisoning her people, so needless to say her mood had elevated quite considerably. The rain had ceased, as well, allowing a small amount of sunlight to peek through the lingering clouds and create kaleidoscopic patterns of light in the puddles of rainwater splashing beneath her slippered feet. The troop's apparent leader, the blonde-haired, quiet man named Won who was not too much older than her, seemed a bit unassuming on the outside but Lily could nevertheless feel considerable intelligence and a faintly intense energy radiating from within him. Surey, with their help, I'll be able to get to the bottom of this and find out who's supplying all these drugs! The thought put a slight spring in her step, causing her long black hair to swish slightly about her waist as she walked. Her eyes sparkled with hope and determination as she proceeded down the cobblestone walkways with the men walking silently behind her in their cloaks. Just wait, Yona! I'm gonna do it!
Lily's radiating, sun-like energy was suddenly snuffed out as she heard the unmistakable sound of conflict drifting out of an alleyway further ahead. One glance over her shoulder revealed that the noises had not escaped the attention of the men; General Joo-Doh already had a hand on the hilt of his sword, and Won was staring levelly at the entrance of the alleyway. Lily swallowed slightly as she debated whether or not to approach the alleyway to discover the source of the commotion; undoubtedly, the vile drug Nadai was at the root of the conflict. She shuddered slightly as she recalled the iron stench of Tetra and Yona's blood, splattered across the hallway of the inn as Hiyou the drug smuggler and his thugs attempted to stop their lives short. Then, Lily had not been able to do anything but quake in fear and cry. She balled up her fists and gritted her teeth as the memory of powerlessness and hopelessness flashed at the forefront of her mind. No! I said that I would stop this conflict myself, instead of relying on Yona and the others! I am the princess of the Water Tribe! This is my responsibility! Without bothering to consult her escorts, she took off in a run towards the entrance of the alleyway, garnering gasps of alarm from them.
The water splashed around her feet as she slipped in a puddle at the entrance of the alley, and she had to whirl her arms about and lean heavily to the side in order to keep from making a disgraceful fall.
"Stop right there!" she shouted without even taking a second to see exactly what was going on. She tried to keep the firm, unperturbed expression on her face as four men brandishing swords glared back at her. In the gaps between their ugly mugs and their clothing, Lily caught a glimpse of bright red hair peeking out from underneath a cloak, partnered by a ponytail of muted green. It's Yona, and what must be one of her companions! These must be assassins that Hiyou sent! she realized with a slight gasp, and she then realized that she had landed herself in a rather precarious situation herself. Without warning, one of the men lunged at her; his sword flashed angrily in the stream of sunlight, and with a terrified screech Lily threw herself backwards as the sword greedily tried to bite at her throat. Instead of falling all the way back and landing on the hard, unforgiving concrete, she landed with a soft poompf against someone's body.
"That was a close one, Lady Lily," Won mused over her shoulder as she fell into his robes, blushing; meanwhile, Joo-Doh's sword had risen to meet her attacker's, and they collided with a resounding clash. In a matter of seconds, the three skilled fighters had made short work of the assassins, and they were now lying in varying states of consciousness groaning against the cobblestone. Lily pushed herself away from Won, and, after nervously ensuring that none of the men were in well enough state to grab her ankles as she walked by, hurriedly picked her way through the tangle of limbs and bodies to scamper over the tall, puzzled man bearing her friend on his back.
"Yona! Are you all right?" she cried as she approached. She was too preoccupied with securing Yona to notice the complicated look that passed over Won's face, but he had wiped his face into a blank slate in the mere seconds it took for her to take in Yona's pale face and ragged breathing and then look at him with much distress. "Won! This is my friend. Please, we have to help her!"
"It's okay, Lily," Yona huffed wearily, and Lily looked back to find her smiling weakly. "Jae-ha is going to take me to an inn. I'm just tired, that's all." Her warm gaze slid from Lily to Won, standing a distance behind her, and Lily noticed a haze pass over her red eyes. She immediately took this as a sign that Yona was slipping further into fever, and she shook her head adamantly.
"No, no! It's far too dangerous with these assassins after you, Yona! These men are strong! They can protect you, too!" Jae-ha, who had been staring curiously at the four men for the entire exchange, glanced down at the exhausted princess with a consoling expression.
"I think she's right. I would like to go check on Yoon and the others, anyway; they're taking longer than I thought they would. You can stay with them while I circle back to go see if they've gotten themselves into trouble, too." A pink haze appeared across Yona's cheeks as she considered the notion, and knowing her stubbornness, Lily was afraid that she would once more refuse. Yona suffered a terrible wound. She is in bad condition, whether she wants to admit it or not. The best thing for her would be to stay at an inn, where lots of people can protect her, not just Jae-ha!
"Fine," she mumbled finally, her eyes flickering to Won once more before she buried her face into Jae-ha's neck. The green-haired main straightened up with a serene smile.
"Very good, very good. Well then, Lady Lily, lead the way- as long as it's all rigfht with your friends, of course," he purred with a nod of his head. Lily whirled about, looking at Won hopefully; he was in intent whispered conversation with Joo-Doh, but as she turned on them, it abruptly cut short and the general looked off, seemingly on the losing end of the debate.
"Of course she can stay with us. I wouldn't want any harm to come to a friend of yours, Lily." The dark-haired princess breathed a sigh of relief and scuttled over the unconscious assassins to rejoin Won and his capable troop. As he walked alongside her, she noticed that he was staring intently at the red-haired princess, who was distinctly averting his gaze. I wonder what's with that? Does he think Yona's pretty? She thought with slight amusement.
Won secured them a pair of adjoining rooms, and as he said, Jae-ha left to check on the rest of their friends while Yona rested with Lily and her guards. Yona was lying on her stomach with her kimono open while Lily attempted her best to apply medicine that Yoon had packed with the princess to the gaping gash in her back; the adjoining door was open to allow her guards an easy route into the room should assassins storm in after Yona, but they were all looking away to protect Yona's modesty. As she stared down at it, the long laceration that stretched in a downward arc between her shoulderblades, crusted with blood and oozing fluid, the image of the sword flashing through the red-haired girl's skin flashed in her mind and made bile rise to her throat. Her fingertips trembled as they gently swept over the healing wound, and it made her less gentle; she heard Yona hiss and felt her flinch as she accidently pressed too hard.
"I'm sorry!" she squeaked on reflex. As Yona murmured some casual, comforting remark, Lily exhaled slightly and swept the last of the ointment across the wound. She closed the vial of medicine and instead of indicating to Yona that she could slip back into her kimono, she pressed her hand against the small of the girl's back, right underneath the gaping wound. "I'm sorry, Yona… If I had not been so weak, you wouldn't have gotten injured like this." Her bottom lip wobbled as the tears flooded into her eyes. Both Yona and Tetora… Got hurt for my sake… I know my strength lies elsewhere, but I still wish I could fight so that others didn't have to take the strikes meant for me, she lamented.
"Lily. It's all right." Lily looked up to see that Yona had turned her head to smile sweetly at her. "I got hurt because I was weak." Lily sniffed, and Yona narrowed her eyes slightly. "… But it isn't safe with these assassins after me. You should go back home, where Tetora and Ayura can keep you safe."
"Nuh-uh!" she refused immediately with a dramatic shake of her head. "As princess of the Water Tribe, it's my responsibility to deal with the Nadai, too! I want to fight alongside you, Yona!" she insisted and leaned forward. Yona's eyes widened slightly, and then she giggled. Lily, totally serious, puffed out her cheeks and flushed. "I'm serious! It's not funny!"
"No, I know. You're serious face is kinda funny."
"Is it?!" she gasped, and her sleeves flopped in her face as she covered it with her hands. This made Yona laugh more, and after realizing that it had been a joke, she lowered her hands and glowered at her with cheeks as red as her hair. Yona sat up with a contented sigh, and Lily protected her body from prying eyes as she slipped back into her kimono. She then looked at Lily happily.
"I'm glad to have you by my side, Lily." The remark made Lily's chest swell with joy, and she was so overcome with emotion that all she could do was nod slightly with a big smile on her face; if she tried to say anything, she would choke up and cry. There then came a light knock at the threshold of the sliding door, and Lily turned slightly to see Won entering with a small pail of water and a rag.
"I thought that this might help with Yo- the lady's fever," he said, and though he was wearing that same calm, collected look with a hint of a smile, Lily caught the tension in his voice as he corrected himself. His eyes flickered to Yona, who was watching him guardedly, her chin tilted up slightly. "May I?"
"Lily can do it, thank you," was Yona's curt reply. The corner of Won's mouth twitched, but he obediently set the pail of water beside Lily and promptly whirled on his feet; rather than leaving the room completely, he perched himself in the doorframe, leaned up against it with his arms crossed and his eyes closed as if he were sleeping. Lily did not know what to think of his odd behavior, so busied herself with dipping the rag in the water and wringing it out. Yona's eyes were glued to Won as she laid back, gingerly, and allowed Lily to place the cool rag across her forehead.
"Does he have to stay right there?" the redhead whispered to her as she leaned over. A quizzical look passed over Lily's face, and she glanced out of the corners of her eyes at Won; he seemed to be lost in his own thoughts, not listening to the exchange of the two girls.
"I think he's just worried that assassins may attack, Yona. I mean, if anyone says that a red-haired girl is staying here, they'll go searching room to room," she explained quietly, for Yona's benefit. She smiled down at her. "I trust him! He protected me from assassins that were looking for you. You'll be safe until Jae-ha comes back." Yona looked uncomfortable for a moment, then exhaled deeply before nodding in understanding. Lily grinned as she sat up, tucking her legs primly underneath her and placing her hands in her lap as she sat at Yona's side tending to her. "So… Tell me about Jae-ha and the others. I want to know what kind of people you're traveling with."
So, Yona told Lily about her friends. She talked about Yoon, who was their doctor and loved to read, especially about medicine; about Kija, who was sweet and shy and was very gentlemanly; about Shin-ah, who was even more shy and barely ever spoke, but was a fierce fighter and had a pet chipmunk named Ao; about Jae-ha, who was kind of a scoundrel and playfully flirtatious but always made sure to treat Yona with respect and dignity; and about Zeno, who was a happy-go-lucky, childish young man who never failed to lift Yona's spirits. Yona talked a lot about Hak, whom she had been with the longest and was a renowned warrior, whom had taught Yona to fight and whom she trusted with her life. Hearing the way she spoke and the way her expression changed when she brought him up, Lily joked, "Is he your boyfriend, Yona?"
"No!" The blatant, almost angry refusal did little to quell Lily's suspicions. Her face blazing, her gaze surprisingly slid once more to Won, whom was just stiffly sitting in the doorway. "Hak is just my childhood friend… He protected me when I needed it most. He would never leave me or betray me." From across the room, Lily heard Won inhale sharply, and when she looked at him his fingers were curled tightly into the fabric of his robes. She narrowed her eyes slightly. Something is definitely going on between them. Before she had the chance to ask, Won abruptly stood up and glanced in their direction. Lily could have sworn that his expression was sad.
"It's getting late, Lady Lily, Lady… Yona." The way he caught on her name and the flash of emotion in his eyes was not lost on the princess. "You should get some rest," he added with a respectful dip of his head before disappearing into the men's side of the suite. Lily looked back at Yona, a question dancing on her tongue, but the girl had turned on her side with her back toward the door and Lily knew that asking about the nature of their relationship was not the appropriate thing to do. Lily sat there for a moment, then pushed the pail of water aside and pulled her blankets so that they were right beside Yona's, and then slipped into bed beside her.
"Yona?" At the prompting, the princess turned back onto her back to look at her with a tired expression. She probably expected her to inquire, but Lily just smiled sweetly and leaned her head against hers. "I'll protect you, too, like Hak. Even if I have to use my body as a shield or give up my life… I'll be your ally." That wasn't just for her benefit; Lily meant every word of it. Lily now knew what it meant to be devoted to someone, both body and soul; like Tetora and Ayura were to her. Yona was just that special to her, and believed that she could change the whole world if she put her mind to it. Yona smiled happily and pressed her forehead against Lily's.
"Thank you… But don't be too eager. I'll miss our little talks, you know? I don't have any other girls to talk to," she mused. Lily started to giggle, and Yona followed soon after, and soon they were just a pair of giggling fools in a dark room. After they finally calmed down and talked a little more, the drowsiness began to set in; as Lily was drifting off, her hand enclosed in her friend's and her eyes drooping, a small smile was on her lips.
I'll be your strength… Just like you're mine, Yona. Even when your destiny carries you far away from me, I'll never cease to fight for your cause… Because you're my very first true friend.