The Varied Path (Akatsuki no Yona Fanfiction)

Chapter 3: Reunion

"Calista! You scared me!" Yona whined.

The assassin offered an apologetic smile to her the young girl, and the princess huffed in response. "Did you see that?" She gestured to the air frustratingly. "It's like he doesn't even see me!"

Yona tugged at her curly, red hair. "I put on the most expensive fragrances this morning, and wore this imported, silk clothing for him. He didn't even notice." She mumbled, eyes downcast.

Calista patted her shoulder sympathetically. The princess looked down at her feet for a beat before snapping her eyes up to meet Calista's. "I can't be sad! Hak would get angry at me for being helpless." Yona said determinedly, putting her brave face on.

The assassin pumped her fist in the air, cheering the young girl on. Yona giggled at her antics, before spinning on her heel to chase after Soo-won, with Calista in tow.

Her red hair shimmered in the sun as the energetic princess tunneled after Soo-won. As they rounded the corner, Yona skidded to a halt to avoid crashing into her bodyguard who had just appeared in front of her. Not that he could fool Calista, she knew he was never too far away from the princess and this time was no exception. She had spotted him lingering in the shadows when Yona had run into Soo-won.

Calista stepped softly up behind Yona, having been a little ways behind the sprinting girl. Not that she needed the cushion of time that came with the extra distance, she could always hear Hak coming from miles away. His footfalls had always been distinctly heavy, striding with purpose. 

"Princess."

Yona gulped as Hak stared at her intently. Calista snickered, covering her mouth too late as the sound left, catching the attention of her little brother, who was not so little anymore. Hak grinned, lifting a hand.

"Yo."

The assassin chuckled, walking up to him, and ruffled his hair with her hand affectionately even though he was taller than her. Hak batted her away, scowling, and Yona beamed at her, finally glad to have someone else tease the mischievous general to put him in his place. His expression softened once he noticed Calista gazing at him and Yona fondly. Hak relaxed his posture, leaning up against the walls of the castle.

"It's been awhile since we've all been together, hasn't it?" He noted, looking up at the sky.

Calista nodded.

"All we need is Soo-won!" Yona cheered, throwing her hands up. The oblivious princess didn't notice the way Hak and Calista tensed, but they noticed that the other did. Calista sighed, the dear princess was so oblivious to her brother's feelings, but Hak was staring at his sister like she had grown three heads.

He thought he saw a flash of fear in her eyes.

What was she scared of?

Why did the mention of Soo-won's name cause that reaction?

Yona waved the two of them goodbye as she sped off on her quest to find her beloved cousin, leaving the siblings behind.

Silence encased the general and the assassin for a few beats and Hak groaned.

This was painful.

He hadn't seen her for three years and he couldn't think of a single thing to say.

"How's Elder Mundok?" She asked quietly, breaking the silence and shuffling her feet.

Hak grimaced, "He's been better." Calista looked up at him questioningly, and he clarified, "He hasn't seen you in a while, so he's worried."

Her black hair shook as she brushed it back with her hand, looking up at him guiltily. Hak held up his hand.

"Hey, he's not upset with you. The old man just misses you. I don't know your reason for leaving Fuuga, but I'm guessing it had something to do with protecting Tae-yeon, right?"

Calista nodded, but that didn't make her feel any better.

"So, what have you been doing?" Hak threw her a sideways glance. "None of us have had any contact with you since you left and then all of the sudden, you show up with Soo-won."

Her head snapped up in surprise and Hak's eyes darted around the clearing, body stiffening as he scanned for any signs of a threat that could have startled her. Calista quickly put a hand on his arm, shaking her head frantically, and he relaxed.

"Geez, don't scare me like that. I thought you heard something." The Thunder Beast sighed exasperatedly, "I swear you have bat ears with everything you hear."

A smile stretched across her face, remembering how he used to say that to her all the time when they were younger, but it didn't quite reach her eyes.

Master didn't tell him that he bought me. A pit dropped to the bottom of her stomach. Of course he didn't, with Hak not knowing, it leaves no room for any outside factors to disrupt his operations, even with how illegal his methods are.

She wasn't blind to the things he was doing. Overtime, the kid that she had known and loved had turned into something much more cold and calloused. He was calculating, and evaluated every aspect of a situation before making his move. 

If there was one thing that she learned about him after the mission with Yang Kum-ji, it was that he would sacrifice any life, destroy any relationships, if it meant achieving his goal.

Including her life.

She just couldn't figure out what he was after. 

There had to be a bigger picture than just taking down underground operations and removing bad people from power. 

"You didn't receive my letters?" Calista asked in feign disbelief, having a feeling that her master had stopped her letters from reaching their destination.

Hak shook his head, "What letters?"

She paused, tapping her chin, deep in thought. "I wrote to you, Elder Mun-dok, Tae-yeon and even Yona at one point." Calista's grey eyes grew cloudy with confusion. "But I never heard anything back from anyone, so I just assumed you all were angry with me for leaving..."

Hak suddenly gripped her by the shoulders, and she let out a squeak, bringing her hands up instinctively to protect her head. Hak's eyes widened as they landed on the discoloration encircling her wrists. His cobalt eyes bore into hers, searching. Calista closed her eyes and tried to calm herself down.

3....2....1

It's just Hak. I'm safe. I'm away from the other ones. He wouldn't hurt me. He wouldn't hurt me.

She opened her eyes, Hak's face contorted in pain as he let go of her quickly. Calista absentmindedly massaged her shoulders where his hands had been moments before.

"What happened?" He demanded quietly.

She rubbed the back of her neck sheepishly, Calista had forgotten that he knew her before she became what she was now. He caught on faster than she gave him credit for.

Stormy eyes studied their surroundings, uneasily. She looked up at him and he nodded, taking the hint.

Not here.

Servants were milling around, and there were other castle staff rushing to finish the preparations for the rest of the week. There were too many ears nearby.

"Do you remember our old spot?" Hak asked quietly.

Calista nodded and despite the difficult conversation that would inevitably come, she could feel her blood buzzing with anticipation. He could see her body practically vibrating in place and grinned at her barely contained excitement, the reality of her bruises fading into the background, but not disappearing completely.

"Two minutes."

And then, they were gone.