The next day, they passed through a Fire Tribe village. Ezra glanced around her, hit hard by nostalgia and homesickness. She quickly shoved it away, knowing that even if she wanted to go home, there was nothing left for her to go home to.

Rina's violet eyes were wide as she stared around her. Ezra wondered if the other girl had ever seen the ravages of the Fire Tribe like this before.

"What... happened here?" she whispered.

"The king and his generals abandoned this land," Ezra said, her eyes hard.

Yun nodded. "The land doesn't produce a single crop for the people to eat, and all the able-bodied young men have been taken to the capital to become soldiers."

Kija's eyes were wide in disbelief and despair as he stared at the poverty around him.

"Diseases run rampant, and those who can't move are forced to stay and die here," Yun said, sadness in his face.

Rina closed her eyes, distraught. "How awful," she whispered.

"The village I grew up in was like this, too," Yun sighed. "The Fire Tribe has a lot of land, but most of it is infertile. The chief, General Gang Su-Jin, chooses to spend all of the money on the army."

The group stopped by a man who was leaning over on the ground, face pressed to the dirt, hacking violently.

Rina stepped forward. "Are you alright?" she asked.

Yun held an arm out to stop her forward advancement. "Don't. You'll only get yourself sick. Let me."

Ezra walked forward with Yun, silently approaching the man. They kneeled together at his side, Yun pulling supplies from his pack.

"I don't know how much this'll help, but I can give you some medicine and some water," he told the man, setting out a water bottle. Ezra helped the man sit up and went to grab the water bottle. She frowned when she grasped empty air.

Rina was kneeling next to her, holding the water bottle to the man's dry, cracked lips. "Here," she said, tipping the bottle so that some liquid trickled down his throat.

Ezra and Yun smiled softly at the girl's quiet, gentle bravery.

Rina took the bottle away from the man as he coughed. He glanced up, his bloodshot green eyes fixing on Yun. "Are you from Saika?" the man wheezed.

"No. We're simple travelers," Yun responded.

"Ah," he coughed. "Have you been to Kuuto? I hear a new king has been crowned."

Ezra noticed that Rina's eyes tightened considerably.

"I wonder what he's like..." the man sighed.

Hak strode forward, anger in his eyes. He was stopped in his tracks when Rina glanced back at him, serenity in her violet eyes. Ezra frowned, not understanding the exchange.

"The late King Il was a terrible king," the man wheezed. "Spineless. He crumbled under the pressure of the other nations, giving them whatever they wanted in return for his so-called peace. Whose king was he? Whose peace was he so worried about preserving? He couldn't even save us weak commonfolk!" He doubled over in coughs, his breath rattling in his disease-ridden lungs. Ezra nodded in understanding as the man held a hand up to the sun, as if by trying hard enough, he could reach the sky. "I hope the new king is a good man. I hope he changes this kingdom in a way that coward never could."

"I understand how you feel," Ezra said quietly. "I, too, hope this kingdom changes for the better. Maybe the new king will have the courage to help his people."

She didn't realize how her words had affected Rina. She only caught the glare Hak sent her way.

Ezra frowned as Hak's gaze slid to Rina, and Ezra was startled to see tears forming in the redhead's violet eyes.

"Thank you, miss," the sick man sighed, gratitude in his eyes as he looked at Rina.

"It's okay," Rina said, voice cracking. "Please, take care."

She stood and strode off, the rest of the group following after her. She quickly swiped at her eyes, trying desperately to erase any evidence of her tears.

Suddenly she turned back to the rest, a fake smile plastered on her face. "I have to go to the bathroom real quick," she said in a falsely cheerful voice. "Please, don't follow me." She dashed off before anyone could say a word.

Shinah glanced at the adorable squirrel perched on his shoulder, and the creature leaped off, scurrying after Rina.

Ezra's eyes were narrowed in concentration, her mind whirling through a thousand possibilities.

Hak sighed. "She's just sensitive. Don't mind her."

Ezra's gaze snapped to Hak sharply. Suddenly she hit her forehead with her palm, leaning her head back. "She's the princess, and I'm an idiot." How had she not seen it sooner? That flaming red hair and the naivete that comes with being raised in a palace...

She'd heard the princess had died. Fallen off a cliff after being kidnapped by a former general. She had no idea that Princess Yona was alive and well, traveling around Kouka with a strange band of misfits.

"I'm sorry," Ezra sighed. She'd spoken so horribly about her father right in front of her.

Yun's face showed his understanding. "It's true that I, too, hold no love for the late king. But he was her only family, and he was brutally ripped away from her when the current king, Su-won, staged a coup."

Ezra's amethyst eyes softened. "She must've gone through hell."

"That, she did," Hak said.

Kija's expression was sad. "It's possible that nobody grieves for King Il. He will go down in history as a foolish king. After all that, who cares about a single princess?"

Hak clenched his teeth. "You're right about that. But King Il was no fool." His eyes flashed with emotion. "He dreamed of a world devoid of war and weapons, where nobody ever gets hurt. I'll admit that this world is impossible, but he was not a fool for believing it to be ideal." He glanced down at his hands. "He hid his own wounds; he was no coward. I would never serve a fool. I will regret my weakness, my inability to protect him at Hiryuu Castle, for the rest of my life."

Ezra glanced sharply at the dark-haired man. "Hak... were you..."

Hak nodded. "General of the Wind Tribe."

Ezra looked impressed. "Well, that explains a lot, actually."

Finally, Yona emerged from between two buildings, her eyes slightly puffy. The squirrel perched on her shoulder, holding on to one of her earrings. Ezra held a hand out to her.

"Princess, I just wanted to say that I'm sorry," Ezra said, regret in her eyes.

Yona smiled and clasped her hand. "You've nothing to apologize for."

Ezra's expression was soft and open. "May I call you Yona, Princess?"

Yona's eyes lit up with a small amount of happiness. "Of course, Ezra."

"Let's move on," Yun said, turning. "We've got a lot of ground to cover."

And so they walked on, leaving the small shamble of a village behind them. Ezra's mind was whirling through a million ideas.

She was traveling with the Princess of Kouka Kingdom and the former Wind Tribe General. They were joined by a young boy named Yun, and two strange men. One who was called Seiryu, the Blue Dragon, and a silver-haired man named Kija with a white claw for a hand.

Ezra's eyes went wide.

Hakuryu.

She snapped her gaze up to Yona, who was walking alongside her. "You're gathering the four dragons of the legend!" she blurted.

Yona's violet eyes went wide. "H-how did you figure that out?"

Ezra pointed at Shinah and then Kija. "Seiryu! Hakuryu!" she exclaimed, by way of explanation. She turned back to Yona. "And you're traveling in search of the others, aren't you?"

Behind them, Hak let out a loud laugh. "I knew you were smarter than you looked," he teased.

Yona smiled softly. "You are indeed very clever. Yes, I am searching for the four dragons, and I am asking them to lend me their strength."

Ezra smiled widely. "Then this adventure may be even more fun than I had hoped."

"Hey, White Snake," Hak called. "Your cover's blown. Although I don't really think you ever had a cover in the first place."

"I said, don't call me White Snake!" Kija snarled back.

Ezra laughed. "White Snake, huh? I like it!"

"You, too?" Kija groaned.

The group chuckled as they continued walking, their feet and backs aching from the countless miles they covered.