Ezra woke early the next morning, drawn out of sleep by a small buzzing sound in her ear. She looked to her left and smiled to herself when she noticed Ao curled up in her dark hair, sleeping peacefully. Ezra carefully scooped up the slumbering creature and placed her in Shinah's lap. Neither the dragon nor the squirrel stirred.

Ezra stood and stretched before going for a stroll through the woods. She found a small stream and leaned down, using the cold water to wash her face. 

Footsteps sounded from behind her, a soft brush against the earth. It seemed a certain princess was trying to sneak up on her. Again. 

"What's up, Yona?" Ezra asked without turning.

The footsteps halted. "How did you know it was me?" 

Ezra turned to find Yona standing at the edge of the trees, the morning sunlight filtering through the canopy of leaves to illuminate her fiery hair. "I can hear the differences in your footsteps. You all sound distinct to me," Ezra told her with a smile. Then she registered the strange look on her friend's face. "Is something wrong?" 

Yona's brows furrowed. "Not exactly."

"What happened?" 

Yona looked at Ezra then, her violet eyes awash with confusion and some other emotion that Ezra couldn't place. "Hak..."

What did that idiot do now? "What about him?" Ezra pressed.

Yona took a deep breath. "Hak kissed my forehead last night. When I told him that he should do things that he likes to do."

A storm of profanities lit up in Ezra's head, turning her every thought into a hodgepodge of very colorful language. How the hell did the Thunder Beast expect to keep his feelings a secret from the princess, when he was pulling stunts like that?

"He must've been teasing you," Ezra said. "You know he thinks it's hilarious when you're flustered."

Yona blushed. "You're right. And, of course, I let his stupid joke get to me." The princess let out a small sigh. "I'm so gullible."

Ezra laughed, linking arms with her friend. "More like charmingly innocent. It's not a bad thing, Yona."

"Whatever," Yona responded, but she was smiling all the same. 

~~~

When they returned to the camp, they found everyone bustling about as if preparing to leave. 

Ezra tilted her head. "Are we going somewhere?" 

"Yun's decided on a destination," Jaeha told her. "But he wouldn't tell us until you two had returned."

They turned to look at the pretty boy, who sat on the floor muttering over his medicine bag. 

"Inventory," Jaeha and Ezra said together grimly.

Ezra sighed. "We'll let him finish taking stock of his supplies before asking him where we're going next." If they interrupted him now, one or both of them were likely to lose a hand. This, they knew from experience. 

She left Jaeha and Yona to their own chores and strode over to Hak. The former general was busy scattering the remnants of last night's fire. 

"Yona and I had a lovely chat this morning," Ezra said to Hak's back.

Hak's muscles stiffened slightly, but he said nothing in response.

"I'm getting real tired of making excuses for you, Thunder Beast," she told him. "Get a handle on your feelings, or I'll tell the princess myself."

Hak stilled for a moment before he turned to glare at her over his shoulder. Her offered her a stiff nod before returning wordlessly to his task.

Ezra rolled her eyes as she left him to it.

~~~

"I know where I want to go next," Yun announced a few minutes later. Immediately, all activity around their camp ceased and everyone turned to him with open curiosity. "I want to go to the Kai Empire."

Their eyes widened. The Kai Empire was a land in the north. Kouka had tenuous relations with the neighboring country; wars and strife plagued their entwined history.

"Kai?" Ezra repeated dumbly.

"Are you serious, Yun?" Yona asked. "That's enemy territory!"

"This isn't like you," Kija said. "You're normally very cautious. Why do you want to go to Kai?" 

"I am cautious," Yun insisted. "But there is something in the Kai Empire that I need to learn more about."

Ezra tilted her head. "What is worth this risk?" 

"Kai is north of the Fire Tribe, so its climate is colder. I want to know how the citizens there are surviving. There must be some kind of crop that grows there, that can be grown even here in the land of Fire."

Ezra's lips parted in shock. "I didn't even think of that."

"Wouldn't going to Kai be dangerous for the princess?" Kija pressed.

"Yes," Yun admitted. "That's why I'm hesitating; we already stand out enough as it is. Maybe Yona and Hak can wait at Ik-soo's place. Jaeha and Ezra could come with me, and maybe either Shinah or Kija..."

"Wait," Yona interrupted. Yun glanced at her. "You're doing this for the sake of Kouka, right?"

His mouth turned down as he nodded.

"Then I'm going with you," she announced, her eyes hardening in determination. 

Yun's face softened. "I thought you'd say that. Alright, beasts. Off we go!"

To the Kai Empire.

Excitement and nervousness bubbled up in Ezra's chest at the prospect of going to the enemy empire. It was a risk, certainly, but Ezra found herself thrilled at the challenge.

It was a new day. A new adventure. And a new opportunity to make herself a better person.

Ezra's gaze slid to Shinah before quickly flitting away. It was a short-lived glance, but the dragon noticed it all the same. 

~~~

"Well, that doesn't look sketchy at all," Ezra remarked dryly, her unimpressed gaze wandering over the suspension bridge. She spotted more than one area where the ropes holding the bridge in place were fraying to dangerously thin strands, and many of the wooden planks were rotting. They'd need to watch their steps carefully if they wanted to see the other side. 

Watching her footing came as naturally as breathing to Ezra. Unfortunately, the same could not be said for Yona.

"Oof!" the princess yelped, slipping on a stray rock. She fell backwards, where Hak instinctively reached out to catch her.

"You're falling over yourself before even attempting the bridge?" Hak said crossly. 

Yona flushed as red as her hair. Maybe she wasn't as unaffected by Hak as she tried to appear. "I'm fine!" she chirped, hopping out of his arms. 

"I'll test the bridge!" Kija announced, striding confidently forward. 

Ezra noticed Jaeha's muscles tense as if to spring the second before a plank gave out beneath Kija's feet. Kija let out an ear-shattering shriek as Jaeha blurred in a burst of speed to catch him. 

"I was going to say," Jaeha muttered, one arm wrapped firmly around Kija's midsection, "that if it was Yona, Ezra, or even Yun, I'd save them in a heartbeat. The rest of you will have to fend for yourselves."

"Kija!" Yona shouted. "Are you okay?" 

Jaeha dragged Kija out of the bridge and set him on his feet. "I'm fine!" Kija called back shakily. 

"I had a feeling something like this would happen," Yun said, holding up an intact wooden plank. "I'll pass this up front, so use it to fill in the gaps."

Ezra raised an eyebrow, impressed. "That's good thinking, Yun." 

"I know," the pretty boy huffed.

"Isn't there a different path we can go on?" Kija asked, still shaken by his ordeal. 

"The only other way is the western border, which consists solely of flatlands. We'd stand out too much there; border patrols would pick us out in an instant." Yun fell silent for a second as the group picked their way carefully across the decrepit bridge. "Actually, I didn't see any border patrol guards around here when I was scouting ahead with Jaeha earlier."

"Really?" Yona asked. "That's unsettling." A passing breeze unbalanced her, and Hak immediately grabbed her shoulder. The princess flushed red for the second time in less than ten minutes. 

"I thought that this route would have less guards, and that's why I chose it," Yun murmured. "But I didn't think there would be no guards. I don't like it."

Ezra frowned as she took another calculated step. She didn't like it either. Things that seemed too good to be true, generally were. 

The group made it safely across the bridge and took a few minutes to collect themselves before continuing on their journey.

"I know that the Kai Empire is a power known for its vast territory and extensive military, but beyond that... I don't know anything specific," Yona said sometime later. They were walking through a dense area of trees, heading towards the sound of water.

"I didn't even know that much," Ezra admitted. 

"There's a lot we won't know until we get there," Yun said. "But for now, I'll tell you what I know."

Ezra paid close attention to the history lesson, filing all the information away inside her head.

Long ago, the Kai lands had been a large and fearsome empire. However, for unknown reasons, the northern and southern halves  separated, and the north has been plagued by attacks from nomads ever since the split. Their armies are large but scattered, and this has created the opportunity for the empire's large noble families to seize power. The southern lands are fairly peaceful compared to the burdened north and are mostly ruled by rich families who gained influence since the royal family lost power. 

"Interesting," Ezra murmured to herself. Beside her, Shinah nodded his agreement.

"So it's similar to King Il and the tribes in Kouka," Zeno piped up, much to Jaeha and Kija's consternation. They immediately busied themselves with covering the Ouryuu's mouth before he could say anything else.

Ezra glanced at Yona to see the princess staring at the ground, her violet eyes contemplative. 

"We're now heading to the Sen Province," Yun told them. "It's far from both the nomad attacks and the country's centers of power, so we might not find any danger. If we can stay quiet."

"That's a big 'if'," Ezra pointed out. "Quiet has never been our specialty."

Yun shot her a glare. "I'm aware."

"Just sayin'," Ezra said with a shrug.

Yun rolled his eyes. "Come on, beasts. Let's find somewhere to camp for the night."

~~~

"Amazing!" Yona exclaimed an hour later, her eyes wide and bright with excitement as she stared at the tent before her. "It's so big, Yun! Why did you make this?" 

The tent that Yun had constructed was large enough to fit all the members of their large group. Ezra lifted a flap to inspect it, and Yun swatted her away with a hiss. "The mountains are always cold and rainy. We have a lot of people, so I finally got my hands on some canvas large enough to fit the rest of you."

"Yay!" Zeno shouted in glee, sprawling out on the floor of the large tent. "Zeno has always wanted a tent big enough to fit everyone!"

"Good work, Yun," Yona told him. "Now let's rest." She headed for the smaller tent, expecting Yun to follow.

"Actually, I'm going to sleep with the others in this tent," Yun told her. "You sleep with the Thunder Beast in that one, Yona."

"Huh?" 

"There are bears in these mountains. It's just for protection."

What's that gleam in Yun's eyes? Ezra wondered. Was he trying to play matchmaker? 

The thought left Ezra mystified. 

"I-in that case, Kija can protect me!" Yona protested.

"Me?!" Kija squeaked, turning red all the way to the tips of his ears.

"Let's allow poor Kija to sleep peacefully," Yun said flatly.

"I'll do it!" Jaeha volunteered easily. 

Ezra rolled her eyes. "Don't let this pervert anywhere near Yona." Jaeha shot her a wounded look which she pointedly ignored.

"Zeno can! Zeno can!" Zeno jumped up and down in excitement.

"You have no powers, Ouryuu!" Yun snapped crossly.

"Oh, Ezra can!" Yona exclaimed, relief filtering through her as she hit upon a solution that made sense. "She can protect me if anything happens!"

"Something wrong if it's me?" Hak asked flatly.

"N-no..." Yona cast a pleading look in Ezra's direction. Ezra simply lifted up her arms in surrender, shrugging with an amused smirk on her lips. Yona understood the message; she would get no help from her raven-haired friend. "Traitor," Yona whispered so quietly that Ezra barely heard it.

Ezra trilled a laugh as she walked away, leaving the two of them to work out their own issues. She found a spot in the large tent and laid out her bedroll, snuggling down beneath her cloak. It didn't surprise her when Shinah laid down next to her, spreading his fur over his large body.

Just because it didn't surprise her doesn't mean it didn't make her heart beat faster. 

Ezra rolled over, putting her back to the Seiryu, her face flushing slightly. Things had been so much easier when she hadn't acknowledged her feelings for Shinah. Now, all she wanted was to snuggle closer to his chest and run as far away as possible, all at the same time. 

A commotion coming from the direction of Hak and Yona's tent momentarily distracted her, but she immediately realized that it was just more of the same squabble between Hak, Jaeha, and Yona. It was nothing they couldn't work out on their own. 

Ezra smiled to herself as she imagined Yona's flustered face. It was becoming clearer and clearer that Yona felt something for the former Wind Tribe general, but the princess was doing a good job at deluding herself into believing that she didn't. Ezra was sure the situation would keep her entertained for weeks. 

With that last thought, Ezra fell asleep with a large smile on her face.