A little while later, Ezra turned down another street, humming softly to herself and to Shinah. She'd realized pretty quickly that he enjoyed listening to her.

The alcohol was wearing off, leaving her throat dry. She gulped, wishing they had some water.

Suddenly she saw Yona and Hak up ahead.

"Hey guys!" she called, strolling towards them. Hak shot her a sharp glance and she realized for the first time that Yona was on the ground, keeled over with her hands clasped to her chest. Sobs tore from her throat and tears streamed down her face to drip onto the cobblestone street.

Ezra's eyes widened as they shifted to Hak, who shook his head. He didn't know what had brought this on, either.

"Yona," Ezra said quietly, kneeling down on the floor next to her. Yona didn't appear to have heard her.

Hak's jaw was clenched as he gripped his glaive. "Just go. I'll take care of her."

Ezra's eyes were sad as she looked at him before she stood and walked off. Hak nodded to Shinah as the masked man went to follow her.

~~~

A few hours later, Ezra woke with a start, sitting upright. Based on the sun's position, it was nearly noon. Ezra sat for a bit as the memories of the previous night returned to her: fighting the mercenaries, being treated by Yun, getting drunk with Yona...

Wandering the streets with Shinah.

Suddenly she glanced to the side to find Shinah asleep up against a tree not too far away from her. She grinned as she yawned, rubbing at her eyes. The sleepless night spent fighting and then partying had exhausted her.

Ezra stood, rolling up her bedroll and securing it to her pack. She had a vague recollection of being so tired that she curled up on the ground and passed out. Shinah must have gotten out her bedroll for her.

She found Kija asleep with his head resting on his arms on a table not too far away. Yona strolled up to him, shaking the table.

"Kija, wake up! How long are you going to sleep?"

Kija's head snapped up, his eyes still closed. "Yes! I'll do my best!" he cried. His eyes opened fractionally as he looked at Yona.

Yona had a bright smile on her face. "Kija, you look funny!" she said.

Kija rubbed his face. "You seem well, Princess," he responded happily.

Ezra frowned, remembering the scene of Yona kneeling over on the street with sobs racking her small body just earlier that morning. 

"Of course! I'm great!" Yona responded brightly. She turned too quickly, and her foot snagged on a rock. She fell forward into a pair of strong arms.

"Whoa there," Hak said, steadying her.

"I'm great!" Yona responded automatically.

Ezra and Hak shared a concerned look. He shook his head, shrugging. He still didn't know what had happened.

"Yun!" Yona cried. "What are you making?"

Yun stirred the contents of a pot that stood over the fire. "Abalone porridge," he answered. "Drinking nothing but alcohol is bad for everyone's stomachs."

"It looks delicious! I'll serve it!" She immediately grabbed for the handles of the metal pot to heave it off the fire.

"Yo--!" Yun cried as Yona cried out in pain.

"Hot!" she gasped.

"Are you alright?" Ezra asked, strolling up to them.

"I'm fine!" Yona responded brightly. She turned to the pirates who had gathered not too far away. "Time to eat, everyone!" They turned towards her and cheered as she hustled around, grabbing bowls for everyone. Before long, Ezra was sat in a circle with Yona, Jaeha, and a few other pirates with a bowl of soup in her hands.

"The soup's delicious, Yun!" Yona called, still plastering that smile on her face.

"Yona, you're spilling!" one of the pirates exclaimed.

Ezra frowned when she noticed the splatters of food on Yona's already dirty kimono.

"Here, wipe it with--- huh?!"

Ezra's eyes grew wide when Yona began stripping off her outer layers. She was so shocked that she didn't know how to respond.

Suddenly a large blue robe draped itself over Yona's head. She peeked out from under it to find Hak staring at her in disapproval.

"If you're going to change, use one of Gigan's rooms," he told her.

"Hak..." she whispered. Suddenly, her entire face grew red and she ran off.

"That'll be a thousand rin for the show," Hak said, straight-faced, to the pirates who'd been gawping at her.

"What?" they exclaimed.

Jaeha sighed. "And things were just getting good."

Ezra frowned as she stood, setting her largely uneaten bowl of food down on the table next to where Yun was chopping some vegetables. "I'm going to go see if she's alright," she announced before striding off after the princess.

Ezra found Yona stopping by her things to gather some fresh clothes. She followed the princess onto the ship and into one of Gigan's spare rooms, where Yona immediately shed Hak's robe, her face still red with embarrassment. Ezra grabbed the robe before it could hit the floor and folded it neatly, making a mental note to give it back to Hak at some point.

"You going to tell me what's wrong?" Ezra asked curiously.

Yona turned to her with a bright smile. "What do you mean?" she asked, stripping off her dirty kimono. "I'm perfectly fine."

"I know you well enough by now to know that that, my friend, is the opposite of true," Ezra pointed out.

Yona sighed, donning her fresh kimono over her underclothes. "Don't ask me about it. Please." She grabbed her sash from her stash of clothes and tied it around her waist. Ezra stepped around her, helping her straighten out her clothes and making sure everything was tied properly.

They both noticed when something small and shiny clattered out of Yona's things and onto the ground.

"What--" Ezra began, but stopped when she noticed the look on her friend's face.

Yona's eyes were wide and distraught as she stared at the hair accessory that had fallen from her clothes. For a few minutes she did nothing but stare at it before she finally let out a breath, shakily bending to retrieve the item. She held it clasped in her hand and Ezra watched on, confused, yet understanding.

That hair clip had a history behind it, and a sad one at that. It was a story Ezra doubted she'd be hearing anytime soon.

"Are you ready to go?" she asked quietly after a few more moments of silence.

Yona closed her eyes before nodding, stashing the hairpin in her sash.

~~~

Sometime later, Ezra was interrupted in her meal once more by Yun and Kija grabbing at her arm. "Come on!" Yun hissed, towing her along. Ezra was surprised to find Shinah with them and shot him a questioning glance, to which he responded with a shrug.

"Where are we going?" Ezra asked.

"Quiet!" Kija snapped.

Suddenly Ezra could make out the forms of Yona and Hak sitting on a grassy hill overlooking the ocean.

Spying on them, are we? Ezra thought deviously, a smirk spreading across her face. She immediately gave up all pretense of resistance and crept with the rest of the group behind a large rock to listen in on their conversation.

"Hak, I'm leaving," Yona announced suddenly. Ezra's eyes widened. Yona hadn't mentioned anything like this earlier. She peeked over the boulder to find Yona's hand outstretched, grasping at Hak's robe. "Come with me."

Hak turned his face towards her with a smirk. "You got it."

All of a sudden, Yun let out a soft curse as he lost his footing. He slipped and fell, and Kija fell on top of him. Ezra jumped to her feet to help them just as Hak and Yona whirled, and the raven-haired girl immediately realized her mistake. She'd been caught along with Yun and Kija. Shinah stood as well, just to be included.

Yona's expression was unreadable. "What are you doing?" she asked curiously.

Yun immediately ignored the question. "Why didn't you tell us?" he demanded.

"Huh?" she asked.

"Don't 'huh?' me!" Yun snapped. "You can't just talk about leaving without the rest of us here!"

Yona's eyes were wide in surprise.

"That's right, Princess!" Kija jumped in. He grabbed Shinah, who looked all too surprised at the turn of events. "If you command, us four dragons will follow you to the ends of the earth!"

"There's only two of you," Hak pointed out.

"Shut up!" Kija growled.

Yona's eyes shifted to Ezra. Ezra clenched her jaw. "Where you go, I go," she said firmly.

Yona closed her eyes with a content smile on her face as Hak's and Kija's bickering continued. "Guys..." she said, effectively halting their argument. "Tomorrow, I'm leaving Awa. Will you all come with me?"

"I shall accompany you," Kija said immediately, his dragon claw over his heart.

Shinah nodded.

"Yes," Ezra said.

"What a pain," Yun sighed.

"WHAT?!" Yona exclaimed. Then they all broke out into giggles before heading back to the others.

"Your face is pretty beat up," Yona pointed out as they walked.

Ezra touched her cheek, feeling the swelling that came from being punched in the face one too many times. "Maybe going up against a dozen mercenaries armed with only a knife wasn't the brightest idea I've ever had."

Yona chuckled. "I'll say. But we couldn't have set off that firework if it weren't for you."

"Oh, whatever," Ezra said, shrugging. "You would've found a way. But what about you? How are you feeling today?"

"Ankle's still sore, but other than that, I'm perfectly fine," Yona said, giving her a small smile. "But you're still wrapped up like a mummy."

At the mention of the word, 'mummy', Ezra couldn't suppress a giggle, remembering Shinah's amusement when he'd said the same. "I am, aren't I?" Ezra said absently, a smile on her face.

Yona peered closer, scrutinizing her friend's expression. "What are you thinking about?" she asked suspiciously.

"Me? Oh, nothing!" Ezra answered, far too quickly.

"Uh huh," Yona drawled.

"Really, it's nothing," Ezra said unconvincingly. Her gaze flickered involuntarily to Shinah before darting away. It was a quick gesture, but Yona noticed it all the same.

"Alright," Yona said, dropping the subject. For now.