"Princess!" Hak's voice was strangled.

"What are you guys doing here?" Ezra asked.

"Kija said he felt the Ryokuryu's presence around here," Yun said flatly.

"This isn't what it looks like!" Hak said, waving his hands wildly. "He forced me to!" He gestured behind him.

Yun raised an eyebrow, unimpressed. "Who?"

Ezra and Hak looked back to find the green-haired man's chair empty. "He's gone!" they exclaimed in unison.

Hak leaped out of the window, landing lightly on the street a floor below them. "Where'd he go?" he snapped as Ezra leaped out after him.

"What are you doing here in the middle of the day?" Yun asked, annoyed.

"Like I said, he forced me! When I find him..." Hak growled.

Ezra cut him off. "You said Kija sensed the Ryokuryu nearby?"

"Yeah. I wasn't expecting to find you two here, though." He frowned at Ezra. "Especially you."

Ezra blushed crimson. "We didn't come here of our own free will, you know!"

Hak cautiously approached Yona. "Princess, don't get the wrong idea. I--"

"Hak..." she said slowly. Hak stopped, eyes wide. "The next time you want to come to a place like this, just let me know. I didn't realize."

Hak's eye twitched. "It's not that..." he growled darkly.

Yona glanced at Ezra. "Same goes for you, Ezra!"

Ezra clenched her fists. "Like Hak said, it's not like that!"

Hak turned to Ezra. "Did you see where that guy went?" he asked.

Ezra shook her head. "No idea. One moment he was there, then we turned around, and the next moment he was gone."

"Well, whatever," Yun muttered. "Let's go find Kija."

~~~

"Whaaat?!" Kija shouted, disbelief and shock mingling on his face. "You two lied to the princess and went to some place like that?"

"I'm so disappointed," Yun scolded.

Hak's eyebrow twitched in annoyance. "Would you guys just listen to me?"

"Kija, Yun, you shouldn't say things like that," Yona chided them. "Even Hak and Ezra want to have fun sometimes."

"NOT LIKE THAT!" Hak and Ezra screamed at the same time.

Suddenly Hak's eyes went wide. He grabbed Yona and Yun, shoving them into a narrow alley. Ezra did the same with Kija. They huddled together in the shadows, breathing quietly.

"What--" Yun asked, but Hak shushed him with a look.

Together they watched two officials stroll by their hiding place.

"Officials," Ezra sighed.

"Once we've finished our business here, we should go," Hak said quickly.

"We do stand out," Yun agreed, nodding. They filed out of the alley.

"Is the Ryokuryu still in the city, White Snake?" Ezra asked.

A vein popped out in Kija's head, but he answered all the same. "I can't feel his presence anymore."

"Excuse me..."

Hak's and Ezra's eyes widened in recognition as a woman stared at them.

"Hey, you're that girl from yesterday," Hak said, strolling up to her.

She bowed her head. "Yes! Thank you for helping me."

Ezra frowned at her. "Hanging out where officials are is dangerous."

The woman sighed. "I've no choice. This is where I work."

Hak's eyes widened. "But--"

All of a sudden, Hak and Ezra felt the eyes of the others boring holes into their backs.

"Let's talk somewhere else, yeah?" Ezra suggested.

~~~

"You punched, kicked, and threw shuriken at some officials?" Yun snapped, exasperated.

"I did the punching." Hak raised his hand.

"And I threw the shuriken and did the kicking. Well, me and that stranger, anyways," Ezra added helpfully.

"Must've been one brave passerby," Yun muttered. "Anyways, you drew that much attention to yourselves?"

"Hey, we were careful!" Ezra put in.

"Hmph," Yun huffed. He glanced at the woman. "The city's officials will assault you even in broad daylight?"

She nodded, her eyes frightened. "Yes. They trash stores and carry off any women that catch their eye... We have no choice but to avoid angering them."

"Why?" Yun asked.

"It's Yan Kumji, isn't it?" Hak asked, eyes hard.

"Kumji?" Yun was confused.

"We heard he's the lord of the Awa region," Ezra said.

Hak nodded. "The people of this region are afraid of him."

"Yes," the woman whispered. "All the officials work for Kumji. In order to conduct business, we're forced to pay Kumji unreasonably high taxes. Rumors are spreading throughout the city, but we're powerless to do anything."

"No wonder everyone seems so depressed," Yona murmured.

Hak stared at her, eyes wide.

"Really?" Kija asked. "I thought it was a lively city."

"It appears so, but everyone's smiles seemed fake," Yona told him quietly.

"What about the pirates?" Yun asked.

"Pirates?" Ezra and Hak said at the same time.

"There was a pirate ship anchored nearby," he said. "It must make this area even less secure."

"No, not at all," the woman shook her head. "They have never harmed the citizens. They only attack Kumji's boats."

"Interesting," Yun murmured to himself.

~~~

Later that night, they all returned to where Shinah was waiting for them patiently back at camp. As they were getting ready to sleep, Hak and Ezra were suddenly attacked with shivers.

"What the hell?" Ezra said through chattering teeth.

"I have a bad feeling all of a sudden," Hak muttered. 

Ezra sneezed. "Someone is talking about us."

"And it's not good news." Hak looked out over the ocean. He and Ezra hugged their arms around themselves to try and subdue the shivers, but they lasted throughout the entire night.

***

Hi guys!

If you're still reading, thank you so much! You have no idea how much it means to me. 

Anyways, it is now summer for me, and the hell that is finals week is finally over. I'll have a lot more free time, so I promise to post regularly!

Again, thank you! I appreciate you so much.

--Veratia0011