A week later of forced bedrest, Yun told us that I'm allowed to at least walk now. I was more than happy to leave the tent. Kija was more then happy to see how happy I am. And both Yona and Yun were more than happy to get our marriage on the road. Hak seemed to have stuck a bit closer to me than usual, and I decided to talk to Ik-su about the whole 'mom' thing.

Now that I think about it, we look slightly similar. Plus, we act alike in a few areas... Highly doubt it. It's more reasonably to think that he thinks of me as a mother figure.

"Eyre, you've been walking for the past two hours. I really think you should take a break." Kija says as he leans into my vision. I snap out of my trance and come to my senses.

"O-oh. No, I'm fine. I've been in that tent for a while, so it's good for me to get out." He purses his lips and searches my face for any sign of pain. Once sighing in defeat, he grasps ahold of my hand and we continue walking. My heartbeat quickens, once the thought of me getting married settles in. I look to the side, trying to ignore my slightly red face.

"Ah. Eyre, do you have a fever?" Hak asks teasingly and threateningly stab him with my sword.

"Fight me." I retort and he holds his hands up in mock surrender. I smirk in victory and Kija chuckles next to me.

"We have a few hours left of walking until we reach Awa, you monsters. Yona gave Lili an invitation to the wedding and Jea-ha and I are going to grab Ik-su and inform the Hakuryuu village of the marriage as soon as we reach Awa. I'm sure Gi-gang and the pirates will be more than willing to help out with the ceremony, housing, and everything else." Yun reports and my smile broadens.

"Here, I read everything." Yun says and hands me back my phone.

"And you remember it all?!"

"Yup. I don't read much books, but remembering what I read is easy." I hum in awe.

"So you have photographic memory?" He ponders the thought before shrugging.

"I suppose."

"What's photographic memory?" Yona asks and I suddenly begin explaining the way college professors do.

"It's really called eidetic memory. It's the ability to recall visual information in great detail after only brief exposure." Yona pauses for a minute before tilting her head to the side.

"Eh?"

I sigh, "You remember something really well after seeing it for a few seconds and sometimes you remember it for a long time." I explain in easier words and she finally nods her head.

I swear, I have no idea whether my IQ increased or decreased during my stay here...

"We just have a couple hours left, but it's going to be dark soon so we should just camp the night." Yun says as the sky slowly blossoms the colors of red, orange, yellow, and pink. Everyone nods in agreement. Yona goes off to find some firewood and Hak soon follows after. Shin-ah, Zeno, and Yun begin to pitch the tent. Kija and Jea-ha are told to make sure I don't wander off..

"You guys. I'm 20, I can think for myself, I don't need babysitters." I deadpan as the two stare at me.

"Sorry Eyre.."

"I don't want you to hurt yourself again, Eyre dear." I click my tongue in annoyance before turning my back from the two.

"Alright, we got the tent set up. As soon as Yona and Hak come back with the fire wood, I'll get dinner ready. Kija, help Eyre over here." I had snapped by then. I mean, I was forced to rest in bed for a week, I can't go without a few minutes before they ask me if I want to rest, and now Yun wants Kija to help me walk a couple of feet.

It's nice that they care, but this is too much caring.

"Alright, that's enough. I'll take away your phone privileges for a month if I don't get to stand or walk by myself, and if you guys don't stop asking me if I'm about to pass out!" I yell at them all.

Immediately, Yun and Jea-ha's face goes slack, Zeno's smile drops, Shin-ah trips over his feet, and I hear the clattering of wood not far away.

"E-Eyre, no need to get so angry." Kija tries to calm me down and sets a hand on my shoulder. I let out a sigh and count my breathing before opening my eyes.

"Eyre! You don't mean it do you?!" Yona cries as she bursts through the trees. Hak stumbles after her with a panicked expression.

"Eyre, we still haven't finished watching the 47th episode of Spongebob. I know you're angry, but don't take my privileges away." Hak begs franticly and then turns to Yun, glaring. Yun takes the message immediately and nods his head ferociously.

Wow. I never knew how much power I really have...

"Thank you. I was secretly hoping you would agree because we're watching another Disney movie tonight." I smile and everyone cheers. Kija wraps his arms around my waist from behind.

"You never told me both you and Hak would watch Spongebob.." He pouts and I peck his cheek.

"There's a ton of shows I secretly watch with everyone individually. And don't complain, I watch Doctor Who with you." I smile and he grins back before we make our way to the fire that Yun had made. Yona had shot down two birds during the time she was collecting fire wood, so Jea-ha gutted it and Yun cooked it. Zeno as usual ate more than the rest of us and we soon break out into a song (Uma Therman by Fall out Boy). We all fell asleep soundly that night but as soon as Hak and I knew everyone else really was asleep, I quietly crawled out of Kija's arms and stepped over to Hak (teasingly ruffling his hair) as we watch three more episodes of Spongebob.

~*~

"Home sweet home!" I cry out and throw my arms up into the air. Yona giggles before grabbing my hand and pulling me along.

"Come on Eyre! We have to tell Captain Gi-gang the great news!" She smiles widely and I mimic her smile, just as glad to see some old comrades.

"It's Gi-gang now, pip-squeak. I ain't a captain no more." A familiar voice says above us. We look up to see Gi-gang leaning out the second story window, smoking her pipe as usual.

"And what news do ya have?" She inquires, pushing Jea-ha out of the window as soon as he jumped up to greet her.

"Eyre's getting married!" Yona shouts up and the whole town goes silent. Not even a second later, the ground rumbles and all of the ex-pirates are up in our faces.

"SHE'S WHAT?!?!" They scream and a few comically cry. I laugh dryly, sweat dropping, before Kija's fingers inlace with mine.

"We're getting married." He says with a soft smile, gazing at me, and they seem to calm down slightly. A few pass off money to the others.

"Alright, I somehow convinced Gi-gang to help get everything together. I gave her a list, here's a copy, and Jea-ha and I are going to go deliver the news." Yun says, giving me a thumbs up, then climbs onto Jea-ha's back and the two of them are gone. I look down at the paper in my hand to see that the wedding will take place in two months.

-Gi-gang owns that whole building, and she says we can all stay there until the wedding takes place (Eyre, you're going to stay there and heal for the first month. I'll let you go out and walk around but not for long)

-Dress shopping (If you want, I can make it for you) 2 weeks before the wedding. The Maid of Honor and the bridesmaid get to wear similar dresses

-Cake tasting a month before the wedding in Awa's famous cake shop (Jea-ha says that they take custom orders so the two of you can design it however you'd like)

-I'm going to make a banquet menu, just look it over when I'm done and say if it's alright

-Zeno will order the flowers in advance and arrange them how he'd like the morning of the wedding

-Since Yona is your Maid of Honor, she's going to help out with you and the decorations

-Gi-gang has to pull everything together (she's willing to pay for everything) and she's already recommended a nice place to hold the ceremony

-Lili, Tetora, and Ayura are your bridesmaids too, so they're going to help you and Yona out as much as they can

"...Wow." I breath out as I read the small side notes. Weddings are a whole lot more work than I realize. By the time I had finished the list, I was in the room Gi-gang let Kija and I share in her two story house. Hak, Yona, and Yun got the room next to ours and Shin-ah, Zeno, and Jea-ha has the room across from us. Lili, Tetora, and Ayura get the room down the hall, but they won't be here until the next month. Kija peeks over my shoulder and his eyes skim over the page before his jaw drops. I close it for him with a smug smile and he lightly blushes.

"Wh-what would a Maid of Honor be..?" He quietly asks and I nearly gasp.

"That's right! We're doing a mix of worlds for the wedding! Now that I think about it, I don't know much about what your world does for weddings... Is there some sort of ritual!? Oh my god, and I have to meet your parents or something, right?! And-and I don't even know what Yona might do for the decorations! Should we-" Kija cuts me off with a peck on the lips, effectively shutting me up.

"The Hakuryuu village does have a traditional ritual, but I do not think you'd find it pleasing. And everything on the list is similar to our weddings." He explains and I quirk an eyebrow.

"Tell me the ritual." He immediately shakes his head 'no' and I pout.

"Why not?'' I question and he purses his lips.

".. The ritual is a blood ritual. I prick my finger and you drink the drop, so that you have part of the Hakuryuu in you." I ponder the thought for a moment before shrugging.

"Sure, I'll do it. It's nice to try new things." His eyes widen and he squeezes my hand gently.

"Are you sure? We can do the ritual after the ceremony if you're absolutely sure." I nod my head with a smile before hiding my hands behind my back, mindlessly twisting the ring on my finger.

"Anyways, when will I meet your parents?" I ask with a closed eye smile.

"My parents are dead." He states blandly with a nostalgic look on his face. I hesitate for a moment, choosing my words carefully.

"...I'm sorry I asked. You don't have to-"

"No, you should know why." He says and I fold my legs indian style, cautiously nodding for him to go on.

"As soon as the next Hakuryuu is born, the previous Hakuryuu's powers slowly drain into the new one. As soon as the power is gone, they die. That is what happened to my father. When I was first born, he gave me these scars out of rage for not being able to serve his master." He shrugs off his cloak then his robe, turning his back to me. I gasp and hold my hand to my lips. On his back are four giant claw marks that stretch from his right shoulder to his left waist.

"My mother died of an incurable illness a few years before he died."

"This... this happens with every new dragon, right..?" I ask, fearing my answer.

"..Yes." My eyes dilate as tears leak out and my face goes slack. My whole body feels numb and I sharply inhale. As he slips his robe back on I quietly stand before walking out of the room, accidentally slamming the screen door shut.

"Eyre?!" Kija calls faintly and I dash out of the building, trying to block the tears but to no avail.

Everything's a blur.

The people that watch me run past them, the throbbing pain on my scar, the amount of sadness that just wants to eat me whole.

I run a couple more blocks before sliding behind an alley, pressing my back against the wall before silently sobbing, trying to suppress the cries with the palm of my hand.

If I have children with Kija, he'd die and I would have to raise a child on my own. I've always wanted to start a family though... But I love Kija too much. And it all won't matter when the next Hakuryuu is born who knows when...

What do I do...?

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The one-shot book is out, for those of you that don't know! Just check out my profile(follow me while you're at it, if you want;) ) and it'll be there. I've already written up 2! Request as many as you'd like!

And if the one-shot book is out, then that means I've hit 10K reads!!! Thank you all so much for the amazing amount of support you give me! I never would've thought Is This Real? would get so many readers! Much less people that are enjoy my writing! Again, THANK YOU!!!

And it is my deepest regret to say, but all stories must come to an end. So the next chapter is the last chapter of Is This Real? excluding the epilogue. It has been a wonderful couple of months writing this, and I hope you'll miss it as much as I will.

- Eyre watches The Bachelor with Jea-ha (those two always sass each other out and have arguments on who the girl would choose), Diners, Drive-ins, and Dives with Yun, My Little Pony with Zeno (yeah, they're bronies, back the hell off), Doctor Who and Supernatural with Kija(Kija likes to tell Eyre that he'll protect her against every monster but Eyre always catches the small jumps Kija does when something scary happens. Kija couldn't handle the episode, Bug, in Supernatural), random anime shows with Yona(they always try to keep in their squeals when a hawtie comes in { ;) }), and both Shin-ah and Eyre peacefully watches Disney Channel together.

- Eyre tried out Jea-ha's throwing knives once. It didn't end well. She almost hit Yun and that wasn't the bad part. Yun was holding everyone's dinner at the time and all you could hear within a 5 mile radius of the group was screams, yells for Yun make sure dinner doesn't die, and Yun yelling at everyone that he might as well drop dinner anyways if that's all they're going to care about.

- Eyre invented a game and called it the 'quote off'. You have to quote a line from any Disney movie but it has to have meaning. It was a tie. Eyre was the only one who lost. Even Ao won.