Yoon recovered quickly and was soon back on his feet and back to his old self. Eventually we managed to bring the seeds back to the villages in the fire tribe and once we were sure everything was settled, we head off once more. After a while though, our supplies began to run low and we were out of money as well, so Yoon went into a wanderer's market to sell medicine.

It was a busy place and there were so many stalls that I just couldn't take it all in at once. Yona seemed to be in a same sort of trance because her mouth was agape and she stared around her openly. "There are a whole bunch of different stores!"

"I heard that the market opens for only a limited period of time. Wandering merchants and travellers are free to open up their own shops." Yoon explained as we walked through the thick bustle of the market and I quickly grabbed onto Zeno's robes to keep him restrained from flying off towards the food where no doubt he'd eat it all in one sitting.

"Zeno, the food isn't free. You too Ao, don't go disappearing and scoffing everything that looks remotely edible." I said, quickly grabbing Ao as she took a flying leap off of Yona's shoulder for the fruit store and I held the two of them close to make sure I didn't lose them.

"What are you going to sell Yoon?"

"Medicine of course. I picked a ton of herbs on the way here and Ryo found some rarer medicinal plants which she got." Yoon gave a shiver, remembering how I had had to climb up a practically vertical cliff in order to get to them whilst he shivered at the bottom in fear for my life. I only tossed him a grin. "Anyway, this is when it gets important. As you all know, we're broke." Yoon put it bluntly, facing us all as we all stood to attention though I was still holding onto Zeno's collar as he ran his feet into the ground, arms outstretched towards something of interest he'd spotted. "We've somehow been able to have meat because we hunt it, but we also want rice, salt, weapons and clothing right?"

"Right!"

"So we need money no matter what!" He said then pointed a finger to us with a commanding expression. "So you guys need to go and bring in customers in." We all gaped at his suggestion, confused as to why Yoon wasn't being overly cautious today.

"Wouldn't it be better if we didn't stand out?" Hak questioned but Yoon shook his head.

"Normally yes, but merchants from other countries and travelling entertainers come here so I think people won't even care about Shin-Ah and his weird mask." He reasoned with us and as I looked around, I realised he was right. There were people of all different shapes, sizes and appearances. All of them seeming blending together in a chaotic mess of cultures.

"But I've never tried to solicit customers before…" Kija worried so Yoon folded his arms and gave a deadpan response.

"If you don't drag any customers here you don't get to eat."

"We're going!" Immediately obedient as we chorused, we all head off into the market to find customers. I looked around me as Kija wondered at how Yoon had used starvation tactics on us to get us to obey. There were so many amazing smells in the air that I couldn't help but inhale them all in, from the sweetness of cakes to the spices from another kingdom. It all melted together so well I couldn't help but want to try everything.

Leaving the others to their work I walked over to a group of middle aged gentlemen playing mah-jong with a smile. "Hello!" I greeted them as politely as I could, tilting my head to the side. "Are you gentlemen too busy to visit a young lady's medicine stall? I would be so grateful if you would take a look at our products, we have plenty that are going at a very reasonable rate!"

"Well now, aren't you a fine young specimen?" One of the men questioned and instantly everyone else under the canopy looked up, especially the men as I continued to smile cutely. Being young and a little attractive did have its uses. "Now that you mention it, my back has been rather sore lately. Would you have anything to help with that?"

"Definitely young master, here, let me help you." I said, taking his arm and pulling him to his feet before standing close, a proud grin on his face as the other men began to protest and wave their hands.

"Hey I have an illness too! I always get dizzy and my knees are stiff!"

"I'll buy something just because you're there little lady!" I gladly led them all over to Yoon who already had a large sum of customers, however when he looked up and saw all of my guests he practically fainted. I had even outdone Hak with about triple the number.

"Yoon! These gentleman would like to purchase our medicine, isn't that great?" I said brightly as they all looked at me with love struck expressions, flowers and stars in their eyes.

"It seems we have been bested by the fiercest of the bunch." Jae-Ha lamented with a sigh. "I should have known there was a persuasive beauty underneath all that tough skin."

"Miss, my shoulders ache, would you rub them for me?"

"Hey no fair, I was here first!" They argued so I gave a laugh and patted the air with my hands in a calming motion.

"Please don't fight, I'd be upset if anything were to happen to you, please take good care of yourselves." I pleaded with them sweetly, giving them an innocent blink and they all cooed at me like I was some adorable puppy. Instantly I had them like butter in my hands. They all crowded around shouting requests however once their attention was away from me, I reached out and grabbed Jae-Ha's sleeve and tugged him hurriedly towards a space. "Hurry Jae-Ha, I need you."

"Well it's about time you came to your senses sweet Ryo." Jae-Ha said, grasping my arm and spun me around into his chest where he anchored me again him as I stared upwards.

"Eh? Not like that you scoundrel! Start playing a song and I'll dance to earn more money. The other entertainers seem to be getting a lot of coins by themselves so we should do the same." I said, giving him a quick and angry shove to put some distance between us, blushing furiously. "You're such a pervert, of course you'd immediately think of something like that."

"It appears my dreams must wait a little longer before becoming a reality." Jae-Ha sighed dramatically as he pulled out a flute and began to play a tune. Eyes began to draw towards us so I pulled out my fans and began to dance, snapping them open and twirled around so that my dusky orange robe flew out in a vibrant swirl of fabric, making several people ooh and coins began to be tossed our way which Shin-Ah caught as he sat at Jae-Ha's side, holding a bowl which slowly began to fill up.

My movements rippled and accented to the music, using my incredible flexibility to my advantage to make leaps and stretches that should be impossible for an ordinary human, causing quite a crowd to gather as I fought the warrior dance of the fan. It was easy to put my training into dance as I had watched Yona plenty of times and I had always seemed to possess a good ear for music. In fact several times when entertaining important guests, King Il had asked that I be the evening entertainment where I would dance with bells and extravagant gowns to stun our guests with every movement.

I slashed my fans downward in an arc, tossing one up into the air so that it spiralled, snapping itself shut whilst I continued to twirl, the other held down at my waist and with a hand behind my back I caught the other fan then flicked it open as the crowd cheered, shielding part of my face as I winked to no one in particular and several men in the audience almost keeled over backwards.

Soon enough Shin-Ah was overflowing with the coins as people yelled for more and when the second dance finished, I was already breathing heavily but struck up another dance, this one slow and controlled though just as hard as the others because of the long stretches, flicks and kicks I had to sustain and hold. It was a dance I'd learned from the water tribe a long time ago, inspired by the movement of water and its ever flowing current.

It was fun to dance for such a large crowd, however after five dances, I bowed gratefully to my audience to signal that it was now over. I turned around to find Shin-Ah speckled with coins and a large amount of them pooled into his lap as he remained sitting perfectly still, his expression never changing and I laughed despite being out of breath, sliding both fans away before helping to collect all the coins as the crowds moved on.

"Yoon look!" I called out proudly as I dropped the large bag of coins onto his lap. "We made lots of money, can I go look at the stores now?" I asked pleadingly, clenching my hands into fists under my chin with a doe eyed expression. I love markets, they're so much fun! Plus there are several things I want to buy and a hundred things I would like to buy but won't ever get.

"Wha-?! You got all this just by dancing?!" He yelped and I nodded my head proudly.

"Yup. Can I go now? I will get fed later, right?"

"Uh sure…here. Take some money with you and be back before sundown." Yoon instructed giving me a smaller pouch of coins and I grinned at him.

"Thanks Yoon, see you later!" I waved before heading off into the fray though Zeno came running after me along with Kija.

"Wait for me miss! Zeno wants to come too!"

"I think I shall also join you, I would like to see more of this market."

"Hm." Shin-Ah nodded his head in agreement as he appeared next to me, almost giving me a heart attack but I quickly recovered, exhaling as the three dragons all looked at me imploringly.

"Alright fine, but if any one of you cause a catastrophe then I'll cook you in Yoon's stew pot and boil you alive." I threatened, giving them a stern look where they all nodded their heads, silently promising to behave so I led the way through the market, stopping first at a food store as Zeno had already ran straight for it, eyes wide with hunger as his stomach growled.

"Food!" He cheered then inhaled the smells that wafted towards him. "It smells so sweet, Zeno wants to eat it all at once!" The stall tender smiled down at him as he picked up several helpings of what looked like sweet dumplings on sticks.

"A good choice young man, how are you going to pay for that? Trade or coin? I accept a variety of items for trade from jewels to valuables." She told him as he was about to place an entire dumpling in his mouth however he froze, blinking at her blankly. Instantly her expression clouded and she snatched everything back with a furious roar as I hurried over, dragging Kija and Shin-Ah with me. "If you can't pay then clear off! I don't give out charity helpings and I certainly don't serve to street urchins like you!"

"Excuse me, but what was that you said about my little brother?" I questioned, stepping forwards calmly and laying my arm on top of Zeno's head, leaning against him casually as I arched an eyebrow towards the woman who stiffened with a flash of guilt as I pointedly tossed my purse of coins up and down in my other hand. "My, hardly good business is it? Insulting your customers before they even have the chance to purchase from you. Perhaps we should go look for treats elsewhere?"

"No, no! Forgive me, I humbly apologise." The lady said quickly, bowing low. "Here, please take whatever you like, I'll give you a special deal on it all!" She attempted so I agreed, telling the others to take what they wanted whilst I bartered. We ended up getting everything for a third of the price and we walked away happy, munching on our snacks.

"Are you certain it's safe to eat?" Kija questioned, looking at his dumplings rather suspiciously, giving them a sniff. "It couldn't be laced with poison that will make you ill, could it?"

"Kija, you'd better eat up quickly. The sweetness is drawing in bugs." I warned him and he gave a yell before quickly swallowing all four dumplings on the stick, filling his mouth until his cheeks were stuffed like Ao's when she had filled her mouth too much. Smiling with a grin I ate my second dumpling as Zeno and Shin-Ah finished off their sixth helping, beaming happily at the sweet flavours and Ao also swallowed an entire dumpling whole.

We went from store to store looking at the wares, Kija curiously inspecting some fine jewellery whilst Zeno played around with it, laughing as he wore several rings, bracelets, necklaces and even a headdress whilst the store manager yelled at him for messing with his merchandise. Shin-Ah was looking over the various assortment of jewellery whilst I waited next to them, looking over to another store that sold books, scrolls and reading materials. I should get some new books for Shin-Ah, he's already finished reading the only book I have three times over.

"Hey guys, I'm just going to…" I began however I stopped when Shin-Ah held out a necklace to me close to my neck, looking at it curiously as I looked down at the item he was inspecting. It was a rope of beads all painted red black and yellow with a large wooden carving of a tiger's face mid snarl. "Looks cool, doesn't it?" I beamed up at him as he continued to look at the necklace, tilting his head to the side.

"Let me teach you a lesson in gift giving, Shin-Ah." Jae-Ha suggested as he suddenly appeared behind me. "If you want to give a gift to a pretty girl then you have to choose the right one. When it comes to necklaces and jewellery, you want something more feminine." He explained to Shin-Ah before holding up a sparkling rocks that formed a weird looking necklace. It was far too chunky and bold for my taste so I quickly batted it away.

"Don't listen to him Shin-Ah, Jae-Ha doesn't have a clue when it comes to women. He only thinks he knows everything." I said, quickly turning my head away from Jae-Ha to hide my blush. With him standing so close behind me I felt a strange tingling shoot up my spine as if it wanted to jolt right out of my body. "Anyway, you four behave. I'll be over there if you need anything. Don't go taking anything now alright? If you really want to buy something then so long as it's sensible then I'll get it for you, you only have to ask." I warned them. Sometimes I really did feel like a mother taking care of her four wild children.

"Oh? Maybe you would like some company sweet Ryo? After all being alone in a place like this can be quite-"

"Alone." I accented as my hand withdrew from Jae-Ha's face where I'd whacked him without even looking back over my shoulder. I left him with a bleeding nose to go look over the books, selecting them carefully as a means to further teach Shin-Ah how to read and right. The book stall owner seemed glad that I took quite an interest and even showed me some more books that he recommended for teaching novices. They were books of facts and also one or two of fiction and I wanted to buy them all however I settled for three in the end, not wanting to overwhelm Shin-Ah.

I also found him a board and chalk which he could practice writing on without having to draw in the dirt and he could use it as many times as he wanted. "Okay! I think I'm almost done." I said, looking around me thoughtfully. Whilst I'm here I may as well try and find a weapons stall. I wonder if they'll do spears. Other than my fans, the spear was my second main weapon of choice. Hak and I became quite notorious for our long range weapon skills. In a demonstrative tournament we had once participated in, the two of us had cleared all our opponents with the spear and glaive against all other weapons.

That aside, I should probably look for a better dagger. My other one had been commandeered by Yoon for skinning and gutting any prey we managed to hunt so I could use with another one, a proper dagger this time, also the princess might benefit from a sword more to her size. We shall have to see. I found a stall however their work wasn't the greatest quality so I didn't linger long. Carrying my new purchases under one arm, I paused a moment to admire some fine vases before moving on, however when I turned around, I came face to face with four suspicious looking characters.

And no, they weren't the four dragons. These guys I didn't recognise and they wore greedy looking smirks on their faces which instantly made my expression harden. "Please step aside. You are in my way." I requested with a strong authoritative tone but they only gave low laughs in answer.

"You're all on your own little girl, you shouldn't be in a place like this. There are all kinds of nasty sorts about. Pickpockets and the like." One of them said to me before reaching out, stretching his large hand to try and grip onto my robes. "Why don't you come with us? We'll make sure nothing happens to you-ARGH!" My hand bent his wrist further, making him drop to his knees before me as I locked the joint and threatened to break it. His companions all started backwards, staring in shock at the fast movement they had blinked and missed.

"I told you to step aside." I said, bending the wrist a little further until tears were streaming down his face. "It is rude to not obey a lady when she asks so politely."

"Let me go dammit!"

"Hey, you ignorant little…" Any insult he could have come up with was swiftly silenced with a jab of my foot to the man's stomach, doubling him over and he choked on his words as I then flung the wrist I was holding aside and the man was flung onto his back, my stance shifting into a defensive as I tucked the wrapped books and chalkboard under my arm protectively.

"You'll pay for that! No one messes with us you mongrel pup!" A fist flew for my face and several gasps sounded as my eyes shifted to the attacking movement, pausing a second before I shifted my weight backwards and the fist flew across my face harmlessly, allowing me to take grip and fling him over my head so that he landed on the back of the guy I'd doubled over, flooring them both.

"Bitch!" The last man standing tried to tackle me down however I turned with an elegant spin, lifting my leg and kicked him with a sweep, knocking his jaw and several teeth went flying from his mouth as he crashed into a table, sending sake flying everywhere.

"Bastard." I answered back calmly and began to walk away as the other three got back up, seething like wild bulls and with a yell, they charged at my back however I remained perfectly calm. With a slightly irritated sigh I slowly turned around, watching them come barrelling towards me so I gripped onto my books tightly and waited until the last moment before striking.

With one hand I punched directly forwards, causing the man to bounce off my strike and fly with a summersault onto his back as I kicked out with my left leg, leaning a foot imprint on the further left hand man so that his head collided with his comrade and as I swept the foot down I twisted, rising back up with my other to slice it directly downwards and caught them both with the same attack, felling them back to the ground with bleeding noses, lips and a few teeth missing as they spat them out. "Tsk. Amateurs." I muttered with a casual flip of my hair to remove it from my face, flexing my fingers as I turned around once again.

For the final time, the other man I had thrown into a table came running straight at me, this time holding a knife and several people screamed as I whirled around, preparing to draw a fan to deflect the weapon however a green shadow dropped from the sky and with a powerful kick sent the knife wielder skidding across the ground all the way back into another table which instantly started a brawl as the angry drinkers pounced on the one who had interrupted their quiet time.

"Attacking a lady so aggressively is not a beautiful thing to do. It is hideous!" Jae-Ha snapped with fury before he turned around and gripped onto my shoulders, his pale purple eyes blazing with concern as I tensed instinctively at his touch, my back arching as I stared up at him whilst he gave me a little shake. "Ryo, are you alright?" It took me a moment to process the question, still staring at him before I quickly shook myself out of my daze.

"I'm fine, I had everything under control." I glared at him with a pout, irritated that he'd ruined my fun. "And it was just getting interesting as well! You always have to swoop in and try to save the day, don't you scoundrel?" I questioned him impertinently before looking away, a rosy blush touching my cheeks as I refused to look him in the eye whilst my heart began to pound in my chest. "But thank you. I suppose."

"It is my duty to rescue beautiful maidens such as yourself, sweet Ryo." He answered, giving me a gallant smile with his hands still touching my shoulders so I shrank back form him, hiding my face as my hair slipped forwards to cover my eyes and most of my face so he couldn't see me blushing. "Ryo? What's wrong? Don't you feel well?"

"I'm fine!" I retorted quickly with a slight squeak in my voice.

"Then why won't you look at me?" Thankfully I was saved from having to answer that question at the arrival of Yoon and the others who came running towards us, Yona in the lead.

"Ryo! What happened? Did these men attack you?" Instantly Kija lifted his hand, threatening to claw them to pieces however Hak wisely hit him in the head to keep his claw hidden. The last thing we needed was more attention around here though I don't think anyone would have notice. I may have accidentally stared a huge market fight. Things were flying all over the place. Plates, chairs, rotten fruit, people, you name it.

"You went completely overboard! The last thing we wanted was to draw too much attention to ourselves!" Yoon yelled as I gave a guilty smile.

"Hi Yoon, how did the medicine sell? Are we rich yet?" I questioned however when a pair of wrestling men almost knocked into us Jae-Ha grabbed me around the middle and moved us both quickly out of the way, making my face and neck flush slightly as his tight grip seemed to light a small fire in my stomach before I quickly brushed him off. "You worry about yourself, scoundrel, I can take care of myself!" I flung at him before hurrying forwards, grabbing the princess's arm and ushering her out of the fray.

We had to quickly leave the market before things got a little too rough, heading back to our rooms for the night in an inn we'd paid for and once we were safely inside we all gave a collective sigh of relief. That was a close one. "Well, at least we sold all our merchandise." Yoon said as he lifted up the money we'd earned. "And with Ryo and Jae-Ha's extra coins, we should be set for a while now." We all punched the air in celebration, Zeno kicking up his feet.

"Yay! That means food!" Smiling affectionately as he began to race around the place I turned to Shin-Ah and shifted the books out from my arm and held them out to him along with the blackboard and chalk.

"Here Shin-Ah, these are for you." I said as he looked at them expressionlessly. "They're new books and this blackboard is so you can practice your writing with the chalk." I explained to him and he slowly reached out to take them. "If you have any questions then don't hesitate to ask, I'll still be here to help if you need me but I'm pretty sure you'll be okay by yourself from now on. You learn so fast." Clasping my hands behind my back I turned around and began to hum a tune quietly, swaying from side to side dreamily as I followed the princess upstairs into our room, Shin-Ah still looking at the books slightly dumbstruck.