"Your Highness, it's time."
Huh? Yona is trying to finish a very good dream. It's about her wedding night. She and Hak are stark naked in bed. His erection hovering right above her. Just one more second... she's dying to know what that full penetration feels like. He's about to do it on purpose - no reservations. Exactly what he's threatened to, joked about, for so long... put your money where your mouth is, Thunderbeast. Ohhh-
"Your Highness!" now a lady-in-waiting is pulling on her arm.
Yona reluctantly abandons her dream turned fantasy and opens her eyes to the bright light of a new day. Three ladies-in-waiting stand next to her bed. They're expectant, nervous.
"Our apologies to wake you, Your Highness. The elder sent us to prepare you right away."
"Prepare me?" Yona's eyes go wide. People are not to know about... what's happening today.
"For your farewell dinner tonight. We've been instructed to bring you to the baths and do a cleansing ceremony. I expect you'll be praying at the shrine for a safe journey ahead."
Yona sighs relief. That works, "Ah, yes. Thank you."
Yona quickly dresses with their help and exits her room to see Hak sitting outside the door. Seriously, Hak?! She told him NO. He should sleep in his own bed. Even if he wouldn't let her sleep there with him (something about respecting the elders while they're there, only one more night... blah blah, for being a mischievous boy, he sure gives credence to a lot of rules). But no, he can never say away. She remembers back to that evening on the cliff... You're everywhere, Hak. Everywhere you are. Damn, she loves him. Though she's scowling at him now.
He smiles apology at her fiery expression - was she expecting anything different?
"You, too, Lord Hak."
"Hm?" Hak glances at the lady-in-waiting who addressed him.
"The farewell dinner is for you, as well. Your entire party will need to come to the baths."
He rises, looking to Yona as if to verify she, and this, are still real, "Right, the farewell dinner."
Yona blushes. This feels kinda weird in the context of he sitting outside her door as her bodyguard.
It is no longer weird. A million miles from weird.
Yona stares through the cracks of the barrier that divides the ladies' and mens' onsen. On the other side - Hak's defined abs. The hair on his legs. Sculpted calves. Impossibly strong arms. And that damn sexy hair that falls around his handsome face. She slides down into the hot water to calm herself down. The ladies-in-waiting could walk in and see her. Wouldn't that be difficult to explain!
She's the princess.
But this princess hasn't been thinking straight for a long time now. The worst of it started when Hak told her that her happiness made him happiest of all. Then after, her heart has been stopped by a million things - him calling her "Yona," smelling her hair, pretending to be Ao, confessing to be in love with her...
What happened? That mean boy who gave her a hard time about suitors and trying anything dangerous, who told her she was wasting expensive makeup and that she danced like a chicken... has become the person who knows her best in the entire world. Her truest friend. And from the depths of her soul, she wants him to embrace her as his lover... that boy! She smiles at life, surprising in the most wondrous of ways.
Then she remembers. She was supposed to share today's happiness with her father. She'd often imagined it. He'd of course be drunk and crying with happiness. Proud. It strikes her - he would be happy she chose Hak. Overjoyed, even. She'd never thought about this before, but all the time that Soo-Won was a "no," Hak really might have been a "yes" in the king's eyes. Hak was a general and tribe chief. Kouka's strongest warrior. Her father trusted very few people, but one of them was Hak... he left her alone with him all the time. And even elevated him to a position to know all about the kingdom's operations. From the day the king asked Hak to be her bodyguard, had he already been trying to pair her with a good man who'd be loyal, honest and protect her for all her life?
Yona touches her cheek - cathartic tears running down. The realization of the gift her father gave... she closes her eyes and smiles in profound gratitude. I was so blind, father. He was right there. Thank you.
Ao hops onto her shoulder and she opens her eyes to see the ladies-in-waiting approaching in the distance with flowers, herbs, and towels. It's time to prepare her body.
Hak relaxes in the water, trying not to think about the princess on the other side, her soft, pale skin kissed by the sunlight. Calm down. It's just tonight is a reality he never even thought dreaming of would be reasonable. The anticipation is almost unbearable.
Tonight there'll be no need to suppress the impulses he's fought most of his life. He begins to harden as he remembers the feeling of having penetrated her.
CALM DOWN. Male attendants are about to come assist with the cleansing ceremony. He does not need this to be awkward.
But man, what a relief to be marrying the princess today. All the joy, surprise, disbelief, aside, he was not gonna make it. Dead man walking. Less than 24 hours past their confessions, he'd already been inside her on two separate occasions. Three if you count when she took him in her mouth. Calm down! He's really hoped to be the kind of man who would respect and honor his lover, his wife. And if it's the princess... who is he kidding, in his heart he's only ever had room for the princess. It has always been her. Even when she was six years old. There's only ever been Yona.
Yona... he wonders if tonight she'll let him call her name.
Calm. Down.
Jae-ha was already headed to the hot springs when he found out about the "farewell dinner" he was supposed to be getting prettied up for. Two birds, then. He'd do the thing he's supposed to do while also fighting this damn hangover in a relaxing hot spring.
But as soon as Jae-Ha enters, he sees the Thunderbeast. In especially fine Wind Tribe robes. And girls all around him finalizing the fit.
"This robe is such high quality, it could even be worn in a marriage ceremony!"
"Ohh, one day Lord Hak will make such a fine husband."
"What a lucky woman his wife will be!"
"Lord Hak, must you leave so soon?"
"Perhaps you've seen someone here you like?"
The dragon's blood is boiling, "He's taken."
All the girls turn toward Jae-Ha at once. Hak turns in surprise, then desperately motions for Jae-Ha to stop talking. This appalls Jae-Ha, "You can stop fawning all over him because the girl he's with-," Hak approaches to shut him up, but now really upset, Jae-Ha continues, "Well then, perhaps you should keep at him, it appears he's not interested in being faithful. How ugly. Well, she has other arms to run into-" SMACK! Jae-Ha turns his head back toward Hak who just punched him, blood spilling from Jae-Ha's lower lip.
"Let's take this outside."
Once at a private distance, Jae-Ha looks expectantly at Hak, knowing full well his mouth could quickly get him another fist. Though he might actually like that...
"So this is how you're a lover to her? You won't tell a soul? Even women who'd like to take her place?!"
"How I am is I don't want your blood on my robes as I marry the only woman I'm interested in."
Jae-Ha's eyes go wide, a hand to his chest, though Hak wouldn't notice subtle pain like that.
"You're... that's so... how did this?"
"She might have wanted to tell you herself, but you were making such a fuss in there."
"You could have just cleared it up with those eager ladies. To someone who didn't know, it looked like you were pretending Yona Dear doesn't exist."
Hak runs a hand through his hair in frustration, "I'm not happy about it either!"
'What the hell do you mean you're not happy about it?!"
"You know how I feel about her. To marry the princess is more than I could ask for in this life."
"Than any man could, really. You lucky bastard. So what's the problem?"
"No one can know about it. Except you guys and Mundok."
Jae-Ha stares in shock, "What?"
"Soo-Won would come after her."
It suddenly all registers. And Jae-Ha feels like an ass.
"All the secrecy was to protect her. I should have known," his soft sentimentality switches into a sly smile, "Now that I think about it, it's kind of sexy. Secret lovers."
"Don't get any ideas," Hak warns.
"Now that's a good idea..." and he jokingly means it as he considers adding another secret layer to Yona's relationships.
Hak raises an arm, Jae-Ha points at Hak's robes, "Keep it clean."
Yona walks into the room the dragons have been sharing to find them being groomed by Wind girls. She laughs at the sight - all of them getting their hair cut, even Yun. Zeno sees her and beams, "Little Miss!"
"Wow, I didn't expect all this!"
"Neither did we," Kija admits, batting a girl with scissors away from his perfectly self-kept mane.
"It must be quite the dinner we're having," Yun states, clearly unsure about all this.
"Excuse me, ladies, may we please have a moment alone?" Yona sweetly requests.
Within moments, the Wind girls are gone and it's just Yona, her dragons (minus Jae-Ha), and Yun. The boys watch Yona as it looks like she's preparing to say something. But her face is bright red. With great effort, she finally just starts-
"Hak and I... we... we were talking and... well, it turns out... our relationship..."
Yun's eyes go wide. Zeno smiles. Kija and Shin-Ah still wait for the rest of the sentence.
"...we have always been close, we've always been special to each other, but yesterday... well really, before that... we're in love."
Kija gasps. Shin-Ah leans forward.
"And being in love... there are certain complications with traveling together. Mundok had some merited concerns. So did we. But we didn't want to be apart... so this would have happened, it's just now happening much more quickly than we imagined..."
"Spit it out, Yona," none of this has been news to Yun so far, but he also just wants to put her out of her misery.
Yona takes a deep breath, "The farewell dinner is cover for Hak and I's secret wedding ceremony. We'd like you all to be there."
Yun surprises Yona with an instant hug, "It's about time!"
"We're happy for you and the Mister, Little Miss!" Zeno beams, not at all surprised either. He's been watching and waiting for this.
Kija is still in shock, "I hate to be prudent at a time like this, but are you sure about marriage and to a beast? No one should be forced into marriage. And in secret? Did he... do anything to you?" Suddenly Kija is realizing what that beast is going to do to her and starts hyperventilating.
"Breathe, Kija," Yun sighs.
"I'm touched," Shin-Ah is smiling, "To be included in something this special."
"Because to us, you are most special," Kija has regained his breath.
Yona smiles that he's already coming around, but then realizes, "I'm sad Jae-Ha isn't here. ...I haven't even seen him since yesterday morning."
"Don't worry about that Mister," Zeno encourages, "He's around. He'll be there."
"You know," Yun begins, "If Hak is your husband, Yona, then you're gonna have to take care of him from now on because I've had enough hassle feeding that beast."
Yona's eyes fill with love just thinking about him, "He's really a pain, isn't he?"
"You don't have to tell me."
Yona's eyes light up - she turns to see Jae-Ha in the doorway. She bounds and leaps into his arms. He smiles at her immediate and plentiful enthusiasm for him. Oh what she does to him, too.
Yona pulls away and looks up to see his bloody lip, " Oh no..." her eyes go wide, realizing what Jae-Ha just said, "What did he...?"
"It's nothing, Dear. What's more important is that I've come to get you. I've been given the task of bringing you to your very important engagement. Your last flight as a free woman..."
As Yona realizes Hak told him, although also punched him, and that she really is just about to get married...