Moonlight and Shadow

by NightShadow6843

It's village law. No one enters, no one leaves. His duty is to kill those who break that law. It's all he has and all he knows. Everything changes, however, when a young Seiryuu saves a badly injured orphan girl.

3. Chapter 3

I do use some Japanese language in places where I think it sounds better. I have tried to include enough context to clue into it's meaning, if not a rough translation itself, within the story. Translations will also be included at the bottom. There will be killing, though not of anyone in the main group, and there are instances where *attempted* rape is mentioned/implied, though not in graphic detail. I'll still put additional warnings up for the latter in relevant chapters. Just because it doesn't trigger me doesn't mean it won't trigger someone else. If I need to make changes, let me know and I'll try to accommodate.

Disclaimer: I do not own Akatsuki no Yona, its plot, nor its characters. I've simply thrown my own original character into the mix because I'm a curious creature and chased a plot bunny down a rabbit hole. I'm stuck. Please send rum.

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A couple hours later, he'd finally found the perfect place to set up camp. It was better than he could have ever hoped for, honestly. It was a peaceful, secluded spot. A small valley filled with trees and boulders, all hidden behind a towering rock wall. The entrance itself was a tiny, well hidden passage that wound through the stone until eventually opening up again. On the far opposite end, water cascaded down from the northern cliffs while to the west the ground gradually sloped up to an open, grassy hilltop. He noticed a small opening at the base where the cliffs rose up from the hill, most likely a cave. Focusing his attention around the entrance, he saw no signs of flooding, which meant that even after heavy rains and the snow-melt in spring caused the river to swell well past its banks, the higher ground would stay nice and dry.

Glancing around at the stones and boulders he spotted scattered about, it wasn't hard to imagine how such a place had come to be. Hundreds of years ago, the small tunnel they'd passed through had most likely been the entrance to a large underground cavern. The river would have flowed across the ground above before crashing down on the opposite side of the rock wall behind them until, at some point, the ceiling had collapsed. Over the following decades, seasonal flooding had continuously scoured the valley below, washing and smoothing the land over and over as the torrents fought through the debris until, finally, forming a permanent channel through the land.

Now, the water that plunged down from its current location roared steadily, filling a small pond while the spray from the falls covered the small area in an almost ethereal mist. It eventually channeled into the small river that flowed through the valley, exiting through the tiny passage they'd come in through earlier on the south end.

Satisfied with his observations, he drug the travois up the hill until he reached the overhang that sheltered the top of the hill and the small opening in the rock from the elements. The ground was flat here, though pretty bare due to constant shade and relatively little moisture. He moved aside some debris with his foot, easing the straps from his shoulders so he could lower the frame down onto the soft ground. Resisting the urge to lay down himself, he made sure she was comfortable there in the shade before he removed the fasteners holding her and the rest of the cargo in place. He watched the girl for a moment, uncertain.

He didn't want to go far today, still not completely at ease in his new surroundings nor with leaving the unconcious girl alone, but they needed water and firewood so he quickly prepared to set out. The bags were stashed against the wall for now along with the extra weapons. He grabbed a carry bag and rope from the pile and slung them over one shoulder before securing the four water skins to his belt. Looking around their soon-to-be camp, he made his way to the river. He spotted a few plants he recognized along the way as being edible and gathered enough for the next couple days, marking the nearby trees to note the locations.

At the riverside, he found a dry spot on a grassy overhang and knelt to filled each pouch, one by one, before securing them to his belt. He kept his eyes sharp as he surveyed his surroundings. While there hadn't been any threats when they'd arrived, he worried a predator would follow the smell of her blood, not to mention the dead rabbits from the traps he'd checked this morning.

A splash nearby startled him momentarily, his body instantly on alert, but it was only a fish. He relaxed his stance and resumed his task, glad to see the river had an abundance of life within its banks. If they ended up needing to stay here for a while, it would be an invaluable source of food.

As he watched one fish swim by, he caught sight of himself reflected in the water. He hadn't realized until now that he hadn't put his mask on since he'd removed it that morning, bells ringing at his hip instead of in his ear. Having it off was… weird, but also... nice. He'd forgotten how much he enjoyed the feel of the wind in his hair and the warmth of the sun as it caressed his face.

He stared at his image as it rippled with the current, taking in how his face had changed since the last time he'd done this. Gold reptilian eyes watched back, slitted pupils widened and narrowed as they took in every detail. Long pale fingers brushed against his short blue hair and ghosted next to his eyes, wide with curiosity. They stroked the red marks underneath, down smooth cheeks, tracing over a pert nose and across thin lips, before ending at a small, round chin.. Overall, his face was still slightly rounded, only having reached his thirteenth year, though his face was a bit longer than before and less childish.

At least, that's what he liked to think.

His shoulders were wider, much like other boys his age in the village. And though his body was thinner, it was more toned now after years of working in the mountains and living off the land. It was bittersweet, knowing that he was probably stronger than any of the village boys, including many of the older ones.

He cupped some water in his palms and took a few drinks of the cool water before grabbing a second handful to splash is face, washing away the sweat and grime. He'd been away long enough. Pulling his gloves out of a hip pouch to protect his hands, he used the section of rope he'd brought to help form a bundle as he grabbed dead sticks and branches from the ground. Breaking them occasionally to fit better, he slowly made his way back to camp.

Under the overhang once more, he placed the bundle up against the wall, pulling the rope free before checking on the girl. She was still pale, her skin cool to the touch, despite the blanket covering her and the summer heat. Worry bit at his chest and he hoped she didn't end up sick, since all of his herbs were back in his den. The satchel he found only contained the basics and he wasn't familiar enough with this area to know where they grew, if they grew here at all. He rolled her over onto her good side, just enough to make sure she hadn't bled through her bandages on her back. Seeing only a little spotting, he decided he'd leave that one for now and unwrapped the lower half to replace the sodden bandage covering her stitches with a clean one before rewrapping it once more.

Seeing he still had a few hours before dusk, he covered her again, slinging the rope and the sack with the rabbits over his shoulder before heading up the river to where it met the lake. There, he quickly set about gutting and skinning each rabbit, having bled them already before he'd added them to the sack. One by one he rinsed the skins and meat thoroughly in the water, careful to waste as little as possible. Even the intestines were carefully washed and set aside to be used for lashings. He then quartered each carcass before dividing the bits and pieces and wrapping them inside the four hides, fur side out. What little unused remainders were left he then tossed into the pond for the fish. The bunny bundles were placed back into the freshly rinsed sack before he pulled out his earlier harvest from the carry bag and washed those as well. Bags secured and arms free once more, he uncoiled the rope and proceeded to gather another cord of firewood on his way back.

Unloading this second pile of wood by the first, he stashed the rope and water away before turning his attention towards preparing a fire pit. Some of the stones laying around were used to surround the shallow indentation he made in the ground, leaving a single trench leading out from the center to provide airflow. Starting with small sticks and bits of bark, he gradually added bigger, thicker pieces on top, just like he'd been taught. Some dead grass from the edge of the camp was made into a loose ball that he sat on the ground in front of him. A couple strikes with the flint, a carefully controlled puff of air, and the little spark took. He gently picked up the tinder, cradling it carefully as he eased it into the gap under the pile left by the trench. He blew a little more at the small flame, watching it tentatively lick at the nearby twigs. Soon, he had the fire going, the stew pot setting to the side while he added diced pieces of tubers, vegetables, and a couple of the chunks of rabbit. Placing the pot in the center to cook, he grabbed the meat sack once more and entered the tunnel for the first time.

His eyes quickly adjusted to the dim light and, a few steps in, he paused to look around. Pushing his vision a little, he scanned ahead for anything that might be dangerous while checking the structure of the surrounding rock and getting an idea of the layout. From what he could see, everything looked solid. The tunnel was long but narrow, gently sloping upwards before it opened up at a decently sized chamber. He carefully made his way deeper into the mountain, the air around him growing cool as he went just like he'd hoped it would. The floor leveled out for the most part when he arrived in the first room and he looked the chamber over. It seemed dry and clean and empty, with no signs of animal life.

At least, none worth worrying about.

So far, it was perfect.

The room had two other tunnels besides the one he stood in. Across the room, on the southwest side, a small passage led to a slightly lower secondary room. Walking in, he noticed the air here was even cooler than the first room- a natural cellar. He quickly stashed the sack in a shallow nook in the wall for now along with the remaining contents from the carry bag still hanging from his shoulders. The chilling temperatures would help preserve the food he'd gathered and prevent the meat and hides from spoiling for a several days at least, until he could do something with them.

Crossing back through the first chamber, he then entered the second tunnel farther North along the western wall. Still ensuring that the earth around him was stable, he continued on, following the passage as it wound upwards, deeper and deeper into the mountain. Up ahead was a third room and as he neared, the surrounding air became increasingly warm and humid. A gentle breeze pushing from behind indicated there was another exit somewhere in this cave system, the rising warm air pulling in cool, fresh air from below. And the source of that warm, humid air was now right in front of him. He made a small gasp of amazement as he slowly entered the room.

In front of him was a large, underground hot springs. By the shore, the water steamed while along the far wall a stream made its way down a series of small ledges on the left mixing slightly with the springs before cascading down once more and disappearing back underground on the right. But that wasn't what had his attention right now.

The cave itself seemed to sparkle. Crystals formed in the humid air while strange glowing plants grew sporadically from the moss covered floor, swaying slightly in the faint breeze. The light they cast reflected gently throughout the room as crystals of various sizes and hues altered the light. The kaleidoscope of colors were cast around the room, mostly greens and blues and purples, where they splashed sporadically across the rocks and walls. He felt he could stay there for hours, to see what other surprises this place had, but he had so much more to do still. Reluctantly, he turned away and made his way back outside, grabbing the satchel that held the ointment and fresh bandages before moving over next to the girl to change her bandages.

The smaller injuries were all looking much better, and the swelling in her ankle had gone down as well, to his relief. His attention then turned to her back and side. He laid a clean blanket down nearby before carefully maneuvering her to lay against his chest like he had earlier that day.

Was that really today? It felt like it'd been so much longer...

He removed the oversized shirt and unwound the wraps, using water from one of the flasks he'd set by the fire to warm to loosen the bandages as much as he could wherever they stuck to her skin. Scabs pulled off in a few places, but overall it looked like both areas were doing better. Nothing looked infected and the bleeding from her side had just about stopped. Her skin would still be raw and tender for at least another week, but she seemed to be healing well.

Gently wiping the area once more, he applied another coat of ointment before placing fresh bandages and wrapping them in place. He quickly wet a cloth, gently wiping at the wound on her head before proceeding to wipe the rest of her body clean. There was a large bump still from where her head had smacked against the tree, but the gash had scabbed over and it appeared to be healing nicely as well, though with head injuries it was sometimes hard to tell. He just hoped it wasn't worse than it looked.

Deciding he'd done all he could for her injuries, he pulled the shirt back on her and eased her down onto the newly laid out blanket. The soiled linens were gathered together and tossed to the side in a pile with the old bandages to wash later, before he turned his attention to the food, trying to push down his concern that, through all of it, she still hadn't stirred once.

The pot bubbled, mixing with the little bit of leftover stew from this afternoon. He grabbed some dishes and utensils out of one of the bags, using a ladle to give it a quick stir before pouring some into a bowl to cool. A quick poke at the rabbit with a knife found clear juice inside, indicating it was finished cooking as well. Using the end of a large stick, he maneuvered the tip under the rotating handle, raising it up and lifting the pot out of the coals. He set it nearby to cool as well, fishing out a chunk of rabbit for himself.

Once he'd finished the piece off, he grabbed a spoon and the cooled broth, carrying them both over and settling by the girl's side. Placing them on the ground for now, he carefully moved her until she was sitting with her back against him again. One arm held her up right while the other carefully dribbled some of the juice onto her tongue, rubbing her throat encouragingly to get her to swallow. He repeated the process until he felt she'd gotten a decent amount. As much as he would have liked to give her more, much more, he knew from experience that as underfed as she appeared to be, too much at once could cause her stomach to rebel. For now, he would just have to feed her small amounts, gradually increasing her portion with each meal. He wiped her face and chin clean of any stray food, then laid her back down and refilled the bowl for himself. Soon, he'd finished his own portion and had taken the dishes and dirty linens to the hot springs to wash them before heading back to camp to put them away.

Closing the flap on the bag, he grabbed one of the longest sections of rope to use as a clothes line. He secured it tightly between two trees just North of camp and quickly hung the linens over it to dry before returning and stashing the now covered and cooled pot in the cellar. He yawned heavily, pulling out the extra blankets and placing one more on the girl before taking his own and settling down a few steps away. He laid one blanket out on the grassy part of the hilltop and covered himself with the other. Laying on his back, he listened silently to the world around him and watched the sky change as the sun set. The first stars had just appeared as he drifted off into an exhausted sleep.

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