Like a Sunflower
Idol: Hyorin (Sistar/Soloist)
Prompt: Sister Hyolyn!AU where Hyolyn is the goddess of summer and the reader is the goddess of spring, and they meet when the god of winter attempts to kill spring's crops and the beginnings of new life to extend his influence, weakening her and causing Hyolyn to take her in when she stumbles across the temple threshold for help.
Writer: Admin Kiwi
A/N: A goddess of summer indeed. Also, I’m going to be spelling her name as Hyorin (mostly for tagging reasons) just so everyone knows. I’ve been wanting to write this scenario for ages but I wanted to get it write since it’s such a complex request. I got a lot of inspiration from Li Ziqi’s channel on YouTube (go watch her videos they’re like therapy I swear) so you’ll probably see that influence in the story. Anyways, I hope you all enjoy!
♡ Tip Jar♡
For as long as Hyorin could remember, things had always been mostly the same. She’d lived on the ever-sunny mountain in the temple she called home for ages now, surrounded by fresh fruits and always ripe gardens and tall sunflowers. Days were spent alone, mostly, except for a few worshipers who came far and few between these days. Occasionally, she would be visited by fairies and animal spirits, who would tell her about what was happening with the world and would give her a reason to cook a feast from her garden in celebration. But usually, except for a few animals, she was alone. And she was used to that.
So when, on one of her regular morning visits to the main temple, she saw you, stumbling across the floor only to fall into a heap on the ground, she was shocked. For a moment, she just stared, wondering if you were a lost traveler. But something told her that you were like her, and as she crept closer to you, she noticed the crown of flowers atop your head, and it all made sense.
You were the goddess of spring. But what was the goddess of spring doing in her summer temple?
“Um, hello?” She knelt down beside you and touched your shoulder, shaking you gently. “Are you alright?”
You let out a little groan, and turned to face her. It was then that she noticed that the color was drained from your face, and your brow was furrowed, sweat forming on your forehead. Even more alarming was the faint glow in your chest where your divine power should have been thriving. Instead of beaming brightly, it struggled to even emit light, fluttering in your chest. And she knew that did not bode well for you.
“Who did this to you?” She whispered softly, touching her hand to your forehead. Sure enough, you were burning up, and she doubted being in her warm temple would help you. Gathering you in her arms, she made her decision and turned to look over her shoulder. “Luna, Star! Come!” At her voice, two of her animal companions appeared: a cat, black as the night, and her horse, glowing white. “Star, I need you to help me carry this goddess back to my home. She needs my help. Luna, look around and see if there’s anyone near here. I need to figure out what happened to her.” The cat nodded it’s head and disappeared into the forest outside, while the horse approached her and bent down to help her get on with you in her arms.
In a flash, she was in her home at the back of the temple, a place where mortals could not go and could not see. Immediately, your glow brightened, and Hyorin let out a small sigh of relief. At least now you might survive.
After laying you down on one of her couches, she went to work creating a bed for you, pulling bamboo and wood from the outside of her home to make it. After the bed was done, with flowers hung above the head and a soft bedding underneath, she laid you down and placed a woven blanket blanket on top of you. Then, she pressed a cool, damp cloth atop your forehead, and, knowing she could do nothing else until you awoke, waited.
As she waited, carving a piece of wood and humming lightly to herself, Luna came back in the window and stretched out in front of her, laying in the warm sun.
“<Nothing is outside, lady. I looked high and low. Not even mortals are about.>”
“Thank you, Luna. I appreciate it.”
“<Of course, lady. Is there anything else you need?>”
“There is nothing. Go and rejoin Solis in the fields.”
The cat nodded and jumped up, hopping up onto the window and pausing to lick it’s paws before disappearing once again. But before Hyorin could go back to her carving, you made a noise in the bed, and she stood to her feet, peering over at you.
“Where am I?” Your eyes were open, but hooded, still slightly feverish as you glanced around the room. After putting away her carving, Hyorin stepped closer.
“You’re in my home. You stumbled into my temple looking rather sick, so brought you here.” A single touch of her hand showed her that you were still warm, but at least now that you were awake, she could have you drink something. “Hold still. I have something that might make you feel better.”
“You aren’t working with him, are you?”
Blinking, she turned back to you, a vial in her hand. “Him? Him who?”
“The god of winter.” You shivered slightly, and she moved back to your side to check your pulse.
“The god of winter. Why would I work with the god of winter?” As she opened the vial, she narrowed her eyes. “Did he do this to you?”
“He did. He wants to expand his influence or something, and he ended up icing my crops. I didn’t see it coming and couldn’t defend myself. All I could do was run. And I ended up running for the goddess of summer. She’s the only one who I thought could help me.”
“Well, that’s me. You found her.” Carefully, she helped you sit up. “I’ll help you. But you have to get back to health first, okay? Don’t worry, you’ll be safe here.”
You took the vial from her hands and gave her a weak smile. “Thank you. I don’t know how I can repay you.” You took a drink from the vial and then handed it back to her, and she laid you back down.
“Just get better first. Then we’ll talk about repayment.”
You were asleep again in seconds, and as Hyorin looked back at you, she felt her stomach twist. The god of winter had done this? Worried, she placed the vial away and rolled up her sleeves. She had to get ready for potential war.
-
When you woke up again, she was cooking dinner. She actually didn’t notice that you’d woken up until you slipped into the room behind her and curiously walked over to the stove.
“What are you cooking?”
She didn’t jump, because she was a goddess, and goddesses didn’t jump. But she did startle a bit before looking over at you. “A stew. It’ll help give you some more strength. How are you feeling?”
“Tired and a little weak,” you admitted, touching your flower crown. The flowers were drooped slightly, and for some reason, Hyorin hated seeing that. “But better. At least I can walk now.”
“That’s good, at least. This should be about done. Would you like to sit down at the table?”
You nodded your head and went to the table, and a weird feeling built up in Hyorin’s chest. It had been a while since she’d eaten dinner with anyone, and it felt... nice, to have company for once. Smiling a bit to herself, she made sure the stew was ready before pouring out two bowls and walking over to sit across from you.
“Here. I hope it’s to your tastes.”
“I’m sure it’ll taste great.” You gave her a smile. “My name it (Y/N), by the way. Thank you again.”
As the goddess of summer, she was used to heat. But it had been a long time since she felt the warmth of another goddess, and she basked in it, smiling back at you. “I’m Hyorin. And you’re welcome.”
-
Over time, you gained back your strength. Hyorin found that, even though her flowers were in their summer stages, they still helped you. She put them in everything, and whenever you were near them, or ate or drank them, they would boost your strength. Your walks in the garden made you stronger, and gradually, you began to regain the color in your cheeks, and your eyes began to look less tired.
She also found that, whenever you were around, she turned to you like a sunflower turns to the sun. You were all she ever thought about. She now felt full of life and purpose, focusing her efforts on making sure you were feeling healthy and happy. But when she thought about you leaving, possibly to never see her again, she didn’t like the thought.
It was weird, to care so much about someone other than her pets. But as she watched you walk in the garden, she felt something twist in her chest. Feelings built up that she didn’t want to name, but she couldn’t keep her eyes off of you. You were her sun, and she was beginning to soften under your warmth, bending and changing at your every whim.
And the weirdest thing was that she didn’t want it to stop.
-
Of course, eventually the day came. You couldn’t stay with her forever. You were the goddess of spring, summer could only sustain you for so long. And the world was suffering without your season to bring a start to summer. The longer you were away, the more both of you would weaken. But that didn’t mean that Hyorin was happy to have to let you go.
“We’ll fight the god of winter together,” she promised, “I’ll go with you.”
“You don’t have to.”
“No, I do. I told you I’d help you, and I always live up to my word.”
You gave her a sweet smile that melted her heart even further, and reached out to take her hand. “In that case, I’ll let you help me.”
Your temple wasn’t far from Hyorin’s, and Star was fast, making the trip short. The entire ride, you clung to her shoulders, and made her wish that the trip would never end. But it did, and as she climbed down, she surveyed the area. It was cold, much colder than the land of spring should ever be, and even with the heat she always held within her body, she felt a shiver flow through her.
“He’s frozen the whole place,” you said softly, bending down to brush snow off a bed of dead flowers. There was pain on your face, and Hyorin understood. Whenever anything in the temple died, she felt it inside, and she knew it was the same for you.
“Don’t worry. We’ll fix it. Should we head inside?”
The inside of the temple wasn’t much better. The entire inside was frozen, with ice hanging from the ceiling and glittering on the ground. It would have been pretty, had it not contrasted with the flowers and sun carved into the very temples walls. You shivered at the sight, and Hyorin put her arm around you, channeling her warmth to warm you too. As the two of you headed towards the back of the temple, where your home was, there was a cold breeze from behind.
Hyorin turned on her heel, throwing up her hand just in time to melt the slab of ice thrown at the back of her head. There, at the door of the temple, stood the god of winter himself, seething at the sight of the two of you.
“I thought you were dead, Spring,” he said, voice rattling in his throat. Grimacing, you glared back at him, making a fist.
“You tried to kill me. But I made it, and I brought backup.”
“A little summer isn’t going to hurt me.”
“Then how about the full fury of summer?” Hyorin held up her hand and felt the warm wind surround her. She hadn’t done this in decades, but when the familiar feeling of power and unbearable heat wrapped her up, she smiled. “Have you forgotten that I’ve beat you before?”
Ice began to melt around her, and when she glanced to her side, you had disappeared, only to re-appear behind the god of winter. He was too preoccupied with her, raising his hands to strike, that he didn’t even notice you. “Ha! I’ve gotten more powerful, you can’t beat me again!”
“Oh really?” She slowly brought her hand down to aim the hot wind at him, just as you raised your hand to strike as well.
“This is for my flowers!”
He turned at the sound of your voice, but it was too late. Pollen from your fist burned into his shoulders, and vines from your fingertips held him in place as she smiled and readied her wind. “Go back home, Winter. Tell the reindeer I said hello.”
“No!”
The wind blasted from her hand, knocking her back a step as she tried to control it. You stepped out of the way just in time to avoid being blown away, letting go of the vines and watching as the wind sent him flying. Both of you watched until he had disappeared into the sky, and then she brought her hand down. Her brow was slightly sweaty, and she was breathing hard, not used to having to use that much power anymore. But then your arms were around her shoulders, and that didn’t matter.
“Thank you! I really can’t thank you enough, Hyorin. I owe you my life.” You pulled away, only to press a kiss to her cheek that made her face heat up. Around the two of you, the ice melted away and the vibrant life and colors of spring seeped back in again, flowers springing up from the ground and vines slipping up the walls. The sun broke through the clouds to once again shine down, and green grass replaced the white snow. It was spring again. And it was beautiful.
She watched as you pulled away and twirled around in your temple, divine light shining bright in your chest. Then, you reached out your hand, eyes sparkling as you looked at her. “Would you like to see my home? And maybe stay for a little while?”
Beaming, she took your hand and intertwined her fingers with yours, feeling warmth rush through her body. Maybe she wasn’t going to lose her sun after all.
“I was hoping you’d ask, because I’d love to.”
