"Naw, let them have their fun!" drawled Jaeha from behind them. The Ryokuryu slung an arm over Hak and Kija as he joined the others, watching Yona and Ezra drunkenly interact from a distance. "They had quite a night. They deserve to let loose a little, don't they?"

"Jaeha!" Ezra called, slurring his name a bit.

"What is it, Ezra dear?" Jaeha asked.

"You're a pervert!" Ezra answered. Then she and Yona burst into a fit of giggles.

Jaeha's eyebrow twitched. "On the other hand, maybe they're too drunk, to be saying such untrue things."

"Nope, I think they're exactly right this time," Hak said flatly.

"Hak!" Yona yelled, almost falling off her barrel. Ezra burst out into giggles as she helped steady her friend. This time, they managed to stay upright.

"Hmm?" Hak asked.

"Why didn't you come to save us?" Yona asked, pouting. "I thought you would come for me!"

Hak's eyes widened in shock. "Would you look at that, Hak dear?" Jaeha drawled in his ear. "Precious little Yona wanted you to go save her."

"Gigan needed me somewhere else," Hak told her honestly. "Jaeha and Shinah were more than capable of saving you."

"I know," Yona mumbled. "But you weren't there."

"I would've been there if I could," Hak said. "You know that."

"Oh, fine!" Yona pouted.

"Yonaaaaa," Ezra groaned. "I can save you!"

Yona's expression immediately brightened. "I know that, silly!" she giggled. "You did save me!"

Ezra grinned. "You were so cool!" she exclaimed. She pantomimed holding a bow and arrow, squinting one eye clumsily. "You were all shooting arrows and stuff! But you weren't watching your own back, ya crazy archer."

Hak frowned. He hadn't heard of this. "What happened?" he asked.

Ezra waved her hand. "Oh, Yona was playing hero saving Yun, but she left her own back unprotected. A soldier came up behind her, and I tackled her to get her out of the way. But he got me, instead."

Hak's eyes widened. When Ezra had told him that she would protect Yona and Yun, he hadn't realized she'd meant it so literally. She'd seemed so hesitant to tell assure that she would keep them safe. "Thank you, Ezra," he told her gratefully.

Ezra shrugged. "No biggie."

"NO BIGGIE?!" yelled a very angry and very drunk Yun as he stumbled onto the scene. "That is a very big biggie, missy! Very big!"

Ezra frowned. "But you fixed me up, Yun! I'll be good as new in no time!"

"Hak!" Yun snapped, veering towards the tall former general. "You should've seen the wound on her back! It's sooo long! It runs from her shoulder all the way to her hip!"

"Isn't there some kind of thing where the doctor doesn't go around spilling the patient's secrets?" Ezra complained. "Hak doesn't need to know! All he needs is for Yona to be safe, and she is. I don't matter."

Hak frowned. "That's not true, Ezra. You do matter."

Beside him, Shinah grit his teeth.

"Thank you, sir Hak, for being oh so kind," Ezra drawled. "Now quit telling everyone about my injuries, Yun! I'm fine!"

"You're not--hic--fine!" Yun shouted, stumbling. Hak caught his arm before he could fall.

"I think you're the one who isn't fine, Yun," Hak said. "Maybe you should go take a nap."

"Maybe you should go take a nap!" Yun retorted. Hak raised an eyebrow, and Yun looked sheepish. "I should go. I've got a thing," he muttered to himself, stumbling off.

"Well, this has been fun!" Ezra announced, standing. "But I'm going to go somewhere else now!"

Hak frowned. "Where are you going?"

"Dunno!" Ezra said brightly, walking confidently off down a random street. Hak glanced at Shinah, who nodded before following after her.

"Yona--" Hak started, approaching her.

"I'm gonna go for a walk!" she announced. She glanced at Hak. "Oh, and I think Gigan wanted you for something." Then Yona strode off down another street, leaving Hak dumbfounded.

"Should you go after her?" Kija asked worriedly.

Hak shook his head. "I think she'll be fine. Let's go see what the captain wants."

Turns out, the captain was too drunk to remember what she wanted with Hak. He was pulled into a drinking contest instead.

~~~

Ezra walked down the small side street, swaying slightly on her feet. She heard the light footsteps behind her and somehow knew that Shinah had followed her.

"Don't worry, Shinah!" she called over her shoulder. "I'm not planning on going bare-handed into anymore fights today!"

The footsteps didn't relent, and she sighed, turning to face him. He stopped and stared at her expressionlessly.

"Hey! We're alone!" she bubbled, just realizing the fact. She ran to Shinah and reached up to put her hands on either side of his face. He immediately stepped back, startled, and she pouted. "I only wanted to take off your mask," she mumbled, turning away from him with sadness in her eyes.

A moment later something lightly tapped on her shoulder, and when she glanced up, she found herself staring right into Shinah's beautiful golden eyes. She grinned hugely. "Your eyes!" she exclaimed happily.

His amber eyes softened as he gave her a small smile.

Ezra grabbed the mask from Shinah's hand and put it over her own face, tying it behind her head. "Honestly, how do you see out of this thing?" she grumbled, putting her hands out to feel her surroundings. And since Shinah had been standing directly in front of her, the first thing she felt was his chest. Ezra blushed furiously and spun, quickly moving away. Before long, she crashed into a wall and was sent tumbling to the ground.

"Owww," she mumbled, lifting the mask off her face. She glanced up to find Shinah watching her with a mixture of concern and amusement swirling in his golden eyes. "Oh, fine, laugh at me!"

Shinah grinned, offering her a hand. He helped her to her feet and gently took the mask off her head.

"You're a good person, Shinah," Ezra sighed happily. "I wish everyone could see how kind you are."

Shinah stared at her, his eyes wide and startled. Ezra smiled at him. "And it's so lovely when I can actually read your expressions," she said, touching his cheek with her fingers. "I know you say I talk a lot, but I actually don't talk that much to many people. I think you're such a good listener that I find myself rambling about everything that happens in my mind." She frowned. "Come to think of it, my mind is a weird place. Don't you get annoyed of hearing me babble?"

Shinah smiled at her as he shook his head.

Ezra laughed, spinning on her heel and resuming her aimless walk down the street. "You're too good to me, Shinah," she said, glancing at him over her shoulder and sending him a wink.

She hummed to herself as she held her arms out at her sides, attempting to walk in a straight line. "So let's go back to our cocoon... on the blackened afternoon," she sang quietly. "I see your heart is bleeding, too... Let me bleed instead of you."

Shinah strolled after her, listening to her sing with a content smile on his face. Every once in a while she would glance back at him and offer one of her bright smiles, and a blush would spread across his cheeks.

Suddenly, she heard the sounds of a group talking up ahead. She spun, tilting a bit from the lingering effects of the alcohol, before striding to Shinah's side. He glanced at her, confused, as she grabbed his mask from him and placed it over his face.

"People are coming!" she told him quietly.

He glanced up sharply as he tied the mask behind his head, noticing for the first time the small group of pirates that had turned onto their street. How had he not noticed them before?

He gave Ezra a small nod of thanks.

She grinned in return. "Only I'm allowed to see your eyes," she hummed, before turning and resuming her walk.

***

Aw, Shinah is such a precious lil cupcake. I hope you guys enjoyed reading this adorable moment as much as I enjoyed writing it!

As always, thanks for reading! I appreciate you guys :D

--Veratia0011

P.S. The song on repeat in my mind while writing this is "Cocoon" by Milky Chance. If you have a chance, give it a listen!