… And the Beast (Yonji Vinsmoke x Reader) Finale (?)
Synopsis: You thought your little crush on Prince Yonji was a well-kept secret. Yonji is mean enough to exploit your eagerness to please in the face of his unrelenting cruelty; the thought of actually developing a soft spot for you never even crossed his mind.
Word Count: 6.2k
Tags/Warnings: No Reader Pronouns, Extreme Angst, Slow Burn, Naive!Servant!Reader, Side/Plot Device Original Character, Name-Calling, Fire, Major Character Death, Yonji Fell Harder
Part I Part II Part III Part IV Part V Part VI Part VII Part VIII Part IX Part X (Finale?)
“Father,” Ichiji had said, his irises just barely visible over the tops of his glasses as he looked up with a frown, “It’s a rat.”
“I want to join!” A pitiful little thing cried. Soldiers from Germa pinned it down, and yet it continued to yell out. It was a horrible noise. Reiju quirked a slender brow, glancing up at her father. “The revolutionary army’s always looking for new recruits, aren’t you? I want to join! Please put me to work or something, anything! Just take me with you!”
The pressure that was applied to the back of the neck didn’t appear to slow the tumble of words that flooded out into the atmosphere. It was a pitiful plea, and one that hurt Ichiji’s ears even to have to endure.
The annoying whining seared itself into Ichiji’s superior memory, although Judge hadn’t thought much of it.
”This is not the revolutionary army,” he grunted. Judge turned, no longer enchanted by the scene of death, fire, and destruction of the pathetic island in front of him. Reiju and Ichiji followed, leaving the blood-stained civilian at the coast.
It didn’t make much sense as to why Judge was reminded of that moment now. His children were gathered at the base of his massive throne. The enormous dining table had since been vacated from the room to allow ample space for pacing and bickering.
Yonji, Judge’s current source of angst and vexation, debated furiously with his brothers. Judge had exhausted the resources in his lab with tweaks to his youngest son. From the data he saw, there shouldn’t have been an issue. All the numbers came back normal, and all of Yonji’s responses were on par with what was expected of him. And yet, it was undeniable that something continued to be off.
Yonji could have easily forgotten that he was in the presence of his father to begin with. His mannerisms grew aggressive as he made the most of his size to square up against Niji.
All of them were talking. Yes, even Judge’s daughter was involved in this one. Even Ichiji, whom Judge had never seen so frustrated before, was barking something. Yonji and Niji were about nose-to-nose. Reiju, having noncommittally found herself between them, had been spun into a web of annoyance. Her arms attempted to act like gates, in an effort to create some separation between her two brothers. Yonji was large enough that Reiju almost placed herself to his left, using the back of her shoulder to try to block his massive form.
It wasn’t just Yonji. All of them appeared to have forgotten Judge’s presence.
“Enough,” the Judge sighed, but the boom of his voice was enough for the room to fall silent. The Vinsmoke children separated, taking short steps away from each other to train their eyes on their father. “This is entirely too much commotion for… what was it?”
“The library attendant,” Ichiji spat.
“Yes, the library attendant,” Judge repeated with a slow nod. “Yes, this is far too much commotion over the library attendant!” He stroked his chin in contemplation. The entire ordeal sounded petty, and under normal circumstances, Judge wouldn’t have thought little of it, just as he did about most things. He was, after all, far above a children’s quarrel concerning toys, especially considering that guests were present in the kingdom.
And then Ichiji…
“Yonji’s defective,” Ichiji scowled.
Defective.
The very words narrowed Judge’s eyes. He looked upon his four children with scrutiny, pondering to himself in silence.
Another one of his masterpieces… defective. The very thought was insanity. The fact that his eldest, his favorite son spoke about it so blatantly nearly made Judge’s blood boil.
Judge performed a thorough examination of his youngest son personally, subjecting him to every blood test, DNA extraction exam, and cognitive testing in the Germa lab’s arsenal. Each panel yielded nothing.
“We’re seriously talking about executing the librarian over this? Do you even hear yourself?” Reiju rolled her eyes.
Ah, they were back to bickering.
“Yes, because when a person poses a threat to your kingdom, you have to exterminate the problem—”
“Oh, so it’s your kingdom—”
“Yes, just like it’s yours, Reiju.”
“You’re not king, yet.”
”Yet.”
“Listen to yourself!”
“If we’re taking a vote, I am all in favor of killing the librarian.”
”The fuck you say, asshole?”
“Let’s just not make the kill too quick, ya know?”
“Enough, enough,” Judge waved a hand, rising from his throne. It appeared he’d actually have to handle this situation after all. Judge continued to wave his hand as he descended just a few stairs. “Niji, Reiju, you are dismissed.”
With the final verdict from their father, Niji and Reiju departed.
***
The fleet in its entirety docked in the harbor of a friendly nation, one that made a hefty amount of berries from selling to the nation of Germa. It was a summer island, not unlike the one you and Yonji had gone shopping on.
“Put this on. We’re going out.”
Yonji had impatiently pushed a neat, white box into your arms, spinning you around and sending you away. And now, draped in his color, Yonji had you by the hand as he ran through the forest. It was instantly apparent that he had far more stamina than you did. The two of you ran through town and nearly halfway across the island.
“Yonji, please. Slow down! Where are you taking us?”
“Haven’t you ever heard of a surprise?” he called, hardly looking back toward you.
The green silk of your garments whipped in the breeze. The cool air generated by your pace flew up your sleeves and around the light material you wore. The clothes Yonji gifted you were made for summer weather and fit you like a glove.
“Walker says it’s going to storm later.” You glanced up at the blue sky above, but Yonji didn’t reply.
Yonji turned back as he continued uphill, never letting up for a moment. He grinned a white, beaming smile.
“We’re almost there! Don’t make me carry you the rest of the way,” he snickered.
By the time you reached the clifftop, you were completely winded. Your lungs heaved, and your cheeks tingled with such intensity that you couldn’t even let out a gasp at the beautiful scenery in front of you.
A sea of vast green seemed to reach for miles. Flowers littered the land, dotting the expanse with little pops of rainbow color, and the wild grass accented the rolling hills. A sparkling stream glided through the fields, hosting an array of aquatic plants and modest, trickling waterfalls. Trees grew densely on the expanse closest to you, almost as if the trees and the flowers declared their own kingdoms right next to each other. And from where you stood, you could see it all, and every green thing on the hill ran on toward the horizon.
Yonji hooked an arm around your waist, and you didn’t realize what he was doing until he had pulled you straight back for you to sit on his right thigh. Yonji settled on a felled tree trunk, which was overgrown with wildflowers. He snickered, in higher spirits than you had ever seen him before.
His teeth formed so tight a line, even his laugh could hardly slide through. With a flick of his wrist, Yonji plucked one of the flowers from the surrounding earth— hardly having to even reach down— before sliding it behind your right ear. He immediately intertwined his fingers in yours, dwarfing your hand.
“I spoke with my father,” Yonji hummed, nose upturned in triumph. He pressed the webbing of his fingers farther against yours to the point where it almost hurt. “And I’m pleased to report that I’m allowed to keep you. You’ll live with me in my castle from now on.”
You stared at him for a moment.
“What?” you breathed, almost like a laugh. You blinked once, then twice.
You scanned Yonji’s expression for any hint of context. A short beat passed, and you anticipated that Yonji would burst into laughter at any moment. You were fully prepared to chuckle along, but as you looked into Yonji’s sparkling irises, no sign of a joke presented itself. You unconsciously moved to recoil, but Yonji’s firm grip around your waist and hand didn’t allow you to shift an inch. In fact, he only pulled you closer, seeming oblivious to your attempt to escape.
“I told him everything: about how you’ve been helping me with missions. About your gift,” he continued, and at that point, your face had already begun to sink.
You tried to crack a smile.
“I don’t know what you’re talking about, Yonji,” you said, a sheepish smile continuing to hold on your mouth as you glanced away. “I didn’t think that anything I ever offered you was helpful in any other way than entertainment. I mean, isn’t that why no one ever visits the library anyway?” You chuckled nervously.
“Oh, no. You’ve given me more valuable information than you know.” Yonji pressed his forehead up to yours, closing his eyes as his hand grasped yours tighter. Perhaps his closed lids were how he missed your widened gaze. “All your favorites will be in my castle from now on. I remember all of them, you know, from when I had you show me. And then we can go through the rest together to decide what’s going to give me strength. And when we’re not there, we can go to places like this whenever we want!”
Yonji pulled back, finally letting go on your hand as he gestured to the expanse of grass and trees that littered the scenery around you. You unconsciously clenched your hand before stretching it. With the force he gripped you, you were surprised his fingerprints weren’t permanently indented on your skin.
“It doesn’t have to be continuous blue ever again! We can go to places this green whenever we want. Did you know there were places this green?” He beamed at you, coiling his arm tighter around you. You couldn’t help but smile warily at his excitement.
“Yonji, you’re really not making sense.” Your free hand pressed up against his forehead. Your smile faltered. “You haven’t been making sense lately.”
Yonji snatched up the wrist that you held up, his excitement completely overpowering his actions.
“You were the reason I was able to complete my mission in Speleothem. You gave me that strategy in my room, remember? And— and the sparrows that allowed us to bypass the encryption and you knew the password to the safe—! You just… know exactly what I need. I don’t know how, but you always know the exact key to our missions. Well, we don’t know now, but I’m sure that Dad can—”
“Yonji— Please slow down—”
“You can be my strength! Or… the brains to my brawn to make me the best soldier Germa has ever seen!” Yonji gripped both sides of your face. You’re sure that with a bit of effort, he could wrap his wide grip around the whole circumference of your head. “You can be the key to making me even better. You’ve got a science that Germa hasn’t even discovered somewhere in here, and we can explore it together!”
Yonji’s hands slid to cup the sides of your face. He cocked his head almost curiously as he tried to examine your face.
“Don’t you want to stay with me? Be with me? Be the key to my strength?” He stared you directly in the eye, offering no escape to his all too earnest gaze. Yonji’s eyes held a delicate light, and in the reflection of the summer sun, you considered for just a moment that he held streaks of blue in his honey colored eyes that you had never seen before.
But you weren’t answering fast enough.
You weren’t matching his smile. You weren’t enthusiastically exclaiming your consent like he anticipated. You weren’t thanking him for his generosity and mercy.
You were looking. Staring. Quiet,
Tension left his forehead, causing his brows to droop. His gaze darted across your face.
“You do… don’t you?” he trailed, his expression sinking by the second. And by the time he reached your eyes again, you still hadn’t said anything. You stared into Yonji’s gaze, words dried up on your tongue. “Please,” he said in little more than a whisper.
The one word. The one plea broke the resolve that you didn’t even know you were holding out. Tears spilled en masse from your eyes like open flood gates. They pooled quickly at Yonji’s palms, filling the crease where his hands met your cheeks.
“Hey, hey,” he cooed, laughing lightly. He leaned closer to try to meet your eye. His hands forced up on your cheeks, urging you to look at him. “What are you cryin’ for?” Yonji let out another boyish laugh as you pressed your cheek into his left hand. “I know humans can cry when they’re, like, really happy and stuff, but don’t you think this is a tad bit dramatic?”
“I’m sorry,” you whimpered, trying to wipe away the waterfall of tears that didn’t seem to stop falling. Yonji was already ahead of you, swiping across your cheeks to clear away the wetness. “I’m sorry.”
“You don’t have to be sorry, dummy,” he sighed, rolling his eyes playfully. “But it’s not like you haven’t already been mine, so I don’t know what’s got you all emotional about things now—”
“You’re still marrying Ursula, aren’t you?” Something about the way you asked the question made Yonji’s breath hitch. It was almost as if the words were spoken in isolation from your tears, devoid of emotion. He snapped back to reality. Even watery and puffy, your gaze pinned him down in a second. “Tonight. You’re marrying her tonight. That’s what I heard before we came here.”
Yonji physically recoiled, hands coming away from your face to hover in the limbo now created between you. He shifted, causing you to slide off his lap and onto the fallen tree below you. The slightest hint of genuine shock and confusion ghosted over his face.
“Yeah,” he said. Breathless. “I’ve handed in my raid suit until it’s official. I have to prove myself to Germa at the wedding. Dad said he’d give you to me… as a wedding present…”
There was a flash of something across your face. Yonji was well-acquainted with all sorts of things: cutting-edge genetic technology, war, and the look of fear. But whatever crossed your face was so unknown to him that a heavy shot reverberated through his entire body. It was a familiar sensation.
The silent tears from before instantly transformed into full sobs. Yonji grabbed you, frantic eyes darting across your face as he shook you by the shoulders.
“Hey! Why are you doin’ that?” he asked, his voice cracking as he continued to shake you. “I told you to stop! Why aren’t you stopping?”
“Prince Yonji, I don’t think I can do this,” you whimpered. You could hardly get the words out. Your face had since been stained with tears, their trails sliding off kilter as you shook your head.
“What is with you and all this ‘prince’ shit?” Yonji’s mouth cracked a jagged smile, his grip becoming tighter. He let out a few breathy chuckles. “I can’t keep correcting you. I can’t keep telling you to call me by my first name, you know. It makes me look bad.”
“I didn’t belong in Germa,” you cried, voice and heart shattering like glass thrown onto stone. “I never belonged in Germa.”
“Why do you say that?” Yonji’s eyes darted across your face frantically. “Of course you belong in Germa! You’re a dedicated servant. You’re the perfect height to knock things off your head!”
“You probably don’t remember when you did a raid in Libro,” you hiccuped, and Yonji’s brows scrunched up at the sudden change in subject. “Forces from Quill had invaded a few years before and overthrew the government… They occupied the island as a warzone for all that time.”
You brought Yonji’s hands back to your face, closing your eyes as you nestled into one of his palms. You leaned into his touch, your hand supporting the back of his as you did. His thumb continued to swipe away your never-ending stream of tears.
“You probably don’t even remember me. Probably don’t remember saving me,” you laughed between hiccups, “But you did, and I… I wanted to be with— be with you. I didn’t c-c-care how.” The admission only made you sob harder. You never said it out loud before. You hadn’t dared to. “I said I wanted to come with you, and you said fat chance!”
You laughed, and Yonji laughed along with you. Tentative.
“I don’t… remember you,” he said, his smile faltering.
The cruelty you brought upon yourself should have been funny. The fact that you were crying in front of him should have been hilarious. Annoying, but hilarious. It was the goal, the reason he selected you out of all servants to torment all this time. You had never shown any indication that you were affected by his cruelty in the slightest. You were a challenge to break—a durable toy to be gnawed on.
“I think that was the right call.” You pulled away from his touch.
And like that, you were in his hands, and then you weren’t.
Yonji tried to reach for you, but you were already rising from where you stood. You turned to face him, a short distance now lying between the two of you. You clutched your bicep with one hand, playing nervously with the fabric.
“What?” Yonji’s eyes were wide as he tried to calculate the ways in which you possibly couldn’t be saying what you were.
You scrunched your face, trying not to let any more tears fall. Your lips formed a tight, disciplined line. Yes, you tried your best to still the quivering of your lip. You wished nothing more than for the tears to stop falling.
And when you asked, “Do you love me?”, you wished that your voice wasn’t shaking.
You wished that it was how you’d always imagined it in romance books.
A demand for truth. A plea.
Romantic.
Chaste.
Yonji’s lips morphed into a hesitant smile, a breathy laugh escaping his chest.
“The fuck?” he laughed. He twisted and contorted his face, as if the motion would make the situation in front of him any clearer. Yonji’s hand shot roughly through his hair, his fingers raking through his strands. A few more chuckles puffed from him. “What kind of question is that?”
His laughs pierced straight through your chest, dizzying your body with embarrassment and shame.
“Please…. Just tell me yes or no—” you pleaded, the request sounding almost as pitiful as the original question.
“I don’t experience love,” Yonji interrupted, announcing his words like a grand secret of the universe. He held his arms out wide before pointing toward his chest. He continued to smile widely, accenting his words with haughty gestures. “Machines don’t experience love; I’m not like you, I’m not human. I don’t cry like some goddam child. I don’t fall over myself and act like a jackass because of some delusional bullshit—”
“Of course you’re human, Yonji!” you blurted.
Was there a stronger word than sobbing? Your face was puffy and ugly, ruined by the sheer amount of water that spilled from your eyes. You were beginning to feel lightheaded from the sheer tasks that was sobbing.
“I hate it when you say you’re not! Why do you all think you’re not human? I’ve seen it! I’ve seen it, Yonji! You’re the happiest when you’re normal— You’re happiest when you’re human—!”
“This is how you repay me for the freedom I’ve given you? Everything was perfect, and now it’s all gone to your head and made you greedy. A greedy little bitch just like the rest of ‘em!” Yonji began to walk toward you, and instinctively, you backed up.
“You’re human, Yonji! You love the library! You love reading and— and—” Yonji continued to approach, his jaw and fists clenched. A severe expression washed over his face, causing your heart to beat out of your chest. “Shit— you know exactly what kind of books I like even before I do! What about that time you protected me from Ichiji?”
Your back hit the trunk of a nearby tree. You thought about the time Yonji rescued you on your home island. You remembered the guard he beat into the ground, grinding his brains into liquid with his fists alone.
You remembered Ichiji’s threat. Leave, or he’d kill you both. Could Ichiji really kill his brother? Could he do it just like that?
“You know, maybe I am greedy,” you laughed, the sharp bark of the tree digging into your back, “Because it used to be enough just to be near you. But I’m greedy, I want more than that!”
And maybe there was more truth in those words than either of you knew.
Yonji was upon you.
You thought this might happen one day. If it wasn’t Yonji, you wouldn’t have been overly surprised if one of the other Vinsmoke brothers decided to finally get rid of you for good. Ichiji had gotten close for sure.
And perhaps that was the reason why…
“Genes don’t make up everything about a person, and they certainly don’t make you more or less than human!”
Yonji cocked his fist, and he didnt quite know what he expected in that moment. Because, like every other time he had taken his rage out on you, threatened you, and debased you, you looked at him with wide eyes. Wide eyes that didn’t hold an ounce of fear in them.
“You know how to love… I just want to know…” you cried softly as you closed your eyes.
Yonji’s fist struck the tree trunk behind your head, sending it crashing and skidding far into the background.
It didn’t escape him how your closed eyes only twitched instinctively at the sound of the impact or how your body quivered with stress. But you remained, standing in such close proximity, eyes closed.
The world enveloped the noise and the collateral. Silence overtook the two of you, suffocating Yonji’s burning rage until only smoke remained.
His arm lowered, and his head with it. Yonji’s mouth wasn’t too far from your ear.
“You already know what the answer is,” he hissed, fatigue dripping from his words. His chest heaved. He glanced out of the side of his eye to find that you were already staring at him with lidded eyes. Yonji shifted his head, his nose almost touching yours.
“I want to hear you say it. I just need to hear you say that you don’t love me,” you whispered, the words spoken almost against his lips. Your eyes scrunched, almost as if you were going to cry again. Your hand found his, your fingers ghosting around each other’s as if your touch would electrify you both. Yonji could already see the tears coming back to prick at your eyes. “Please,” your voice nearly stopped his heart. It was barely above a whisper. “Let me go.”
Yonji pressed his forehead against yours, closing his eyes.
“I don’t experience love. I will never love you or anything else,” he said. Low. Resigned. Emotionless. Another halfhearted chuckle escaped him. “But why should that matter, huh?” He smiled. “You really thought I loved you? All this time while you’ve been embarrassing yourself and fawning over me, did you really think that you could, what? Have your selfish emotions and throw a fit… Trick a prince into loving you?”
He spoke quieter than either of you expected.
”No,” you breathed, “I never thought anything of it because… I think I knew that I didn’t belong in Germa. I thought there might— I thought I saw, I don’t know, something that I knew didn’t make sense.”
You slowly pulled away.
“Goodbye, Master Yonji.”
He felt you leave before he opened his eyes.
***
It felt like the world generated around him anew, like gravity doubled in weight and settled directly on Yonji’s chest.
You were gone, and he let you.
He let you, and it ate at him that he let you.
He wanted to rage. He wanted to destroy the landscape around him. He wanted to laugh at the memory of you and strut off to find a new toy to play with. He wanted to yawn, shrugging your interaction off like the minute moment it was.
But for as much as Yonji wanted to act, the only thing his body was capable of was standing exactly where you left him. His joints felt stiff, like a bundle of hinges in need of oil. His stomach ached like a sea king had bodied him. And for all the thoughts that could have circulated his brain, Yonji was left with none.
A heavy shot pierced through his very being as gravity pulled him down to the ground. Yonji braced both hands on the ground, clutching fistfuls of grass and weeds.
For a moment, the thought that you had lured him out to ambush him darted across his mind. It was the quickest explanation for what must’ve been a gaping gunshot in his chest. But not only did he bring you up the hill, but he had felt this very sensation before.
Yonji’s chest heaved in and out at an accelerated rate, his lungs desperate for air that he couldn’t seem to keep hold of. The lack of oxygen further muddled his mind, making the world around him spin.
Raindrops hit the ground between his braced hands, and Yonji’s spinning head made little of the spotless blue sky above him.
***
You had never bolted up the excessive flight of stairs up to your tower faster. Despite the familiar scenery, everything felt far too foreign after your latest interaction with Yonji. It was as if the walls bent down over you, peering at you with cold, stone faces to dub you no longer welcome within the library tower.
Compared to the all-too-sunny outside, the annex seemed pitch-black. An abundance of light radiated from the window adjacent to your cot, but the sheer amount of tall bookshelves that littered the rest of the room blocked the sunlight from stretching any farther than the corner.
You lit a match, fumbling with it for a moment before the flame took hold of the wick of a handheld candle. You scrambled around the dusty corners, fishing out a traveling pack from between a bundle of textbooks. The material was faded and old, but would serve to be sturdy enough to hold the few belongings you had amassed during your time in Germa.
You didn’t even realize that the ship was beginning to move.
***
By the time Yonji arrived at the docks, storm clouds were already beginning to roll in the distance. Despite the clear blue sky above him, he could practically smell the thunderstorm that was brewing in the distance. It was like you were trying to tell him earlier… and he had brushed you off.
Yonji hurried throughout the chunk of dock where his fleet was, counting his ships like ducklings as his eyes frantically searched for the tall peak of your library. His hand shot out, stopping a passing soldier roughly, almost knocking the man off his feet.
“Where the hell did they dock the archive?” Yonji gruffed.
“I’m not sure, Master Yonji—”
“Yonji, my dear, that ship is long gone.”
The soldier scurried off as Yonji turned to find Ursula and her posse of soldiers and attendants blocking the way. Her hair and makeup were done up even more intricately than usual.
Yonji instinctively grinned at the sight of her, but as his brows rose, the muscles in his face fought and twitched as confusion set in. His face contorted between a puppy-like excitement, the scrunch of his brow, and a burst of adrenaline that Yonji had never felt before.
“What do you mean?” His body moved to take a step toward her, but he came to an abrupt stop mid-step. Yonji’s wide grin twitched, jumping from a beaming smile to a furious scowl and back.
“Yonji, honey, I set that ship to drift off hours ago,” Ursula hummed, rocking on her heels. She focused her attention on her manicured nails, completely missing the array of expressions that contorted Yonji’s face.
Yonji’s face finally settled on an expression. His eyes narrowed, a neutral scowl settling on his lips.
“What do you mean you set it to drift?”
Ursula strutted forward, oblivious to Yonji’s more than apparent dismay. She stood at the edge of the dock, looking down into the water.
“My mother used to say if you didn’t like something, give it to the sea,” she said, looking down into the ripples made against the supports of the dock. She turned toward Yonji, beaming a Cheshire grin. “The sharks will be more than happy to take care of it for you.”
Even with his superior eyes, Yonji could barely see the archival ship in the distance. It was a speck on the horizon, surrounded by black storm clouds. Sparks of lightning cracked in the vastness. But it was the very top of the tower that truly held Yonji’s attention—an unmistakable wisp of bright orange.
Yonji’s hand shot to where he typically kept his raid suit, only to find the pocket empty. He did a double-take, not used to not having his suit on hand, before he remembered surrendering it.
Ursula grabbed Yonji by the arm, yanking him backward. He hardly budged. Ursula strained to position herself to take up his attention, stepping on his foot with her heel as she did so.
“Don’t give me that look,” Ursula frowned, “That beastly rat attacked me in that ship, and I was more than happy to throw the pest out with the trap. In fact, I insisted that it be the case if this marriage was going to move forward. I knew I had a fixer-upper, sure. I didn’t mind that part, but we absolutely had to do something about this abnormal affliction you were beginning to develop. Your relationship with that pest was unnatural.”
Ursula clicked her quaint kitten heels together. They were white today with delicate, rose accents.
“Either the wallpaper goes, or I do,” she announced triumphantly, nudging Yonji in the ribs as she wrapped her arms around his bicep. “See? I’m getting into that reading stuff already.”
Quietly and unceremoniously, Yonji removed his cape.
“Aw, is that for me? It’s a bit breezy over here. We should go inside and prepare—”
Then, Yonji stepped back and removed his shirt and his shoes.
“We both knew this was never gonna work out. You’re not really my type,” he yawned, stretching lightly. Yonji gave Ursula a sharp swat on the ass, launching her into the sea. Her high-pitched scream seemed to grow softer the farther she went. She skipped on the water like a stone before falling into the sea altogether with a plop.
Yonji wasted no time diving into the water, but not after Ursula.
***
It felt like a dream as the ship felt as though it were falling. The churning mass of waves taller than buildings below played roughly with the lone snail, rocking it side to side. The books in the annex had already fallen from their shelves. Despite fixtures in place for vertical maneuvers, you neither had the time nor the help in fastening everything before your ship drifted into the oncoming storm.
The snail itself had retreated entirely back into its shell, leaving what you had deduced was just you, alone in the highest tower of the library. Your bag of belongings had been lost somewhere in the room. The candle you used to light your way fell into a nest of dust and old paper, igniting the tower in a blaze.
You found yourself where you always seemed to be: in your usual corner, braced just under the window. The flames suffocated you from one side, and the open window above you threatened you with the existential view of the endless void of the ocean far below.
The sea played with the snail shell like a child with a new toy, swinging you back and forth. The animal itself would be fine, but the structure built on the back of its shell would easily succumb to the sea.
The motion of the tower felt humbling, terrifying. Celestial. Almost as if the universe itself heard your declaration that you were no longer dedicating yourself to Germa and decided that you had no other uses. Being by Yonji’s side was what gave you purpose, after all… at least you thought it did.
It was never supposed to last. Ichiji made that much clear. Yonji himself made as much clear.
You gripped the bottom shelf of a nearby bookshelf, closing your eyes as you tried to fight the nausea. Sea and fire closed in on you. Smoke quickly filled the annex, the open window too small an opening to keep it from building up.
Just when you decided to live.
So much for that…
You heard a heavy thud from somewhere in the annex, likely from shelves giving out under the weight of their books as they weakened with the fire. Things seemed to shift as the fire roared, the movement of the ship sending blazing objects sliding and flying through the smoke.
Another heavy thud and what almost sounded like your name.
The unclean air was making you dizzy, suffocating you from the inside. The sound of crashing sent a shockwave throughout your system, jolting you up as the bookshelf in front of you crumpled into the embers.
You thought you were seeing things.
Yonji.
Disheveled.
Frenzied.
He called your name, his hand reaching out toward you.
It was a cruel illusion of your mind as you died… bringing him here.
“Yonji,” you muttered, barely conscious.
“What are you doing, dumbass? Why are you just lying there? Get up!” He was hazy… so hazy.
“Yonji,” you groaned. “No… It can’t…”
He shot through the flames, soaking wet with soot covering his body.
“You got no survival instinct or something? Was your big plan to leave throwing yourself onto a sinking ship?!” Yonji scooped you up by the armpits— yep, he was the real thing, alright— dragging you to your knees. He kneeled in front of you.
“I thought I told you to let me go!” you cried. Dizzy. Delusional.
The adjacent bookshelf, now adorned with flames, came crashing down over you. You let out a shrill scream as Yonji caught it with one hand, not taking his eyes off you for a moment.
“Well, yeah. But you forgot one thing, and god dammit, I forgot it too!” Yonji admitted, continuing to stare at you as he forced the bookshelf the opposite way. A cocky smirk creeped onto his lips. He grabbed your shoulder, pulling you close to him as he jabbed a finger to your chest. “You forgot that I’m an asshole and I don’t listen to anyone! You hear me?!”
It might’ve been the smoke, but Yonji’s sky-blue eyes began to water. His smile stretched wider than you had ever seen it. And it was something about it. It was something about the joy on his face.
He had laughed before. Smiled— smirked before. But this?
But joy?
“Let’s get out of here.”
He pulled you up to your feet, and you immediately began coughing.
“We can’t— I can’t go that way,” you sputtered. Yonji glanced hurriedly at the blaze that engulfed nearly the entirety of the room. You wondered, in a split second of amusement amongst the terrifying experience at hand, if Yonji might have forgotten you weren’t fireproof.
Yonji immediately dove into the debris, trying to clear a path through.
But the waves had other plans. The ship rocked, and with the mess around you, you stumbled back toward the open window. Your widened eyes met Yonji’s for the briefest moment.
The glass had shattered a while ago from the heat, leaving nothing to catch you as you fell out through the window.
He didn’t hesitate in leaping after you, kicking off the windowsill as he dove straight down. You could feel your momentum building against your back, fear sending shockwaves as your body twisted in the air. And yet, you extended your arms out toward Yonji.
He shifted his mass as he fell, teeth clenched and an expression of panicked desperation on his face as he reached out toward you, shouting your name.
Your fingers nearly slipped, nearly missing each other. But Yonji didn’t let you slip from his grasp twice, his large hands clamping onto yours like you were the last salvation on earth. He pulled you close to him.
Time stopped for one singular moment. The universe stopped to give you just the right amount of time to touch your lips to Yonji’s and for him to kiss you with the a force greater than the waves below you.
You separated. A singular moment stretched out into millions.
Yonji wrapped his arms around you, tucking your head below his chin as he braced you both for impact.
On that day, Yonji Vinsmoke, the fourth prince and another son of Germa, was declared lost at sea.
Part I Part II Part III Part IV Part V Part VI Part VII Part VIII Part IX Part X (Finale)(????)
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