Disclaimer: I don't own Akatsuki no Yona!
Chapter 11
Lien stood up and squinted into the distance, but the raiders were too far away for her to see. However, she trusted Shin-Ah.
"We have to tell the others," she said, taking his hand and heading for her parents' house. He hurried along beside her, the snow and ice crunching under both of their boots.
Worried created a storm within her. She couldn't remember a time when the winter camp had been attacked before. It was well-hidden and tucked away into a remote place in the mountains, almost impossible to find unless you knew it was there. It was probably simply bad luck that they had been discovered, but that bad luck could ruin them.
If there were raiders on the way, the clan would need to decide whether to stay and fight or flee down the pass. With night falling, leaving the winter camp would be extremely dangerous. The darkness would make it difficult to see the narrow mountain paths, and the cold would be unbearable for most of the clan.
But staying also had its glaring issues. They weren't warriors. Some of them, like Kyung, knew self-defense so they could defend the clan against thieves and bandits, but most of them weren't fighters, they were artists. Her gift might be useful, but she wasn't sure if she could keep back a large force of men.
Together, she and Shin-Ah shoved the heavy door open. "Mama Ro!" Lien shouted, cutting through the noise of the home, "Raiders are coming!" She didn't want to create panic, but, well, people needed to know so they could begin to prepare.
Everyone went silent and turned to look at her, frozen in the middle of their activities.
"What're you talking about, girl?" Mama Ro asked, her hands on her hips. "The outlooks haven't said nothing, and no one's rung the bell."
"They're far away," Lien said, rushing toward her aunt and leading Shin-Ah with her. He knew the situation better than she did. Her mother and father appeared, standing up from the others, as did Kyung. "Shin-Ah saw them."
"They'll be here in a few hours," Shin-Ah said.
"That gives us plenty of time to prepare." Hak walked toward them, his clothed glaive laying over his shoulder. Jae-Ha and Kija were right behind him, with Yona, Zeno, and Yoon hovering near the entrance to the hallway.
Mama Ro turned toward him. "And what, you're going to protect all of us?"
"Some of us can help," Kyung said, "We're not defenseless."
"We might as well be," Mama Ro said and gestured toward the clan members gathered around. "Dancers, singers, actors, you're not a fearsome lot."
"But they are," Lien said, looking meaningfully at the dragon warriors and Hak. She hadn't seen them in action, but she had a feeling they were formidable in battle.
"We're not asking them to defend us," Mama Ro said, crossing her arms, "Then we'd have to feed them more and let them stay longer to repay them."
"We're not defending you," Jae-Ha said with a smirk, "We're defending the area that we're staying in. You just happen to be around."
"I wanna fight!" Han-jae leapt on Lien and dragged at her arm, "I can get 'em with my sword!"
"Your sword is wooden and so's your head," Kyung said. He reached over and plucked Han-jae off of Lien and held him a couple feet off the floor while he kicked and punched at invisible enemies.
"No one's going to be fighting anyone," Mama Ro said. She crossed her arms over her chest and glared at all of them. "We'll take the back path and escape to the forest. We'll stay there until they pass."
"That plan will keep us safe, but they'll steal everything," Lien said, stepping forward, "Our costumes, our instruments, our wagons. How will we continue if we have nothing to perform with?"
"We can buy new things."
"It's freezing," Kyung said, "People might die in this cold."
Lien looked up at Shin-Ah, and he glanced back down at her before looking at Mama Ro.
"Allow the dragons to help you. Please," he said, and then he bowed.
Mama Ro stared at him and then raised an eyebrow. "It talks."
"Yes," Lien said, "And please, let them help us." She wasn't too proud to ask for help, not when it could save her clan. She gestured to Hak and the others and then toward herself, resting her hand on her chest. "If we work together, I think we can fight them off."
"And we're going to help whether you like it or not," Yona's voice called out over the crowd. The redhead stepped through the room and came to a stop at Hak's side, her arms crossed just like Mama Ro's. She seemed to stare down the older woman, who looked at her with surprise. "You've all helped us out and saved our lives, and we're not going to sit back and let your homes be attacked." She glanced over at Lien and gave her a small smile. "Though we'd like it if you'd accept our help instead of us forcing it on you, all right?"
Mama Ro sighed and looked over at Lien's parents. Her father silently nodded while her mother clasped her hands together and held them under her chin. Finally, she gave a little nod as well.
"I don't like this," Mama Ro said, looking at Yona, "You all shouldn't feel like you owe us anything."
"We just want to help," Yona said, "It's what we do."
Helping people sounded like a very nice thing to be known for. Lien watched Mama Ro, hoping she would give in to everyone around her. She could be terribly stubborn sometimes.
Finally, the clan leader sighed. "Fine. We accept your help," she said, sounding as if it took everything she had to accept it.
"And we'll help you fight," Lien said. Although she only knew how to play fight and do mock sword battles, her power would come in handy. Being able to set things on fire was advantageous, wasn't it?
"We have a couple actual fighters," Kyung said, giving Lien a reprimanding look that she chose to ignore. If he could decide to fight alongside them, then so could she.
Hak grinned and pulled a ribbon on his glaive. The covering fell off, revealing the sharp, glinting edge. "Then let's come up with a plan, Speedy Dance Clan."
"It's Swift Song!" someone yelled.
"Yeah, that."