Disclaimer: I don't own Yona of the Dawn!

A/N: I'm glad people are sticking around for this fic! ^_^ I'll try to update faster, at least two times a week. This is sort of following along the manga, but it'll deviate from the plot from time to time.

Chapter 26

Beige material fluttered above Shin-Ah as he woke up, the cloth caught in a gentle breeze. The top of the tent that Yona, Yoon, and Lien shared was the same color…this was the tent. Memories flooded back to him as he remembered the course of the afternoon, how Yona had almost been captured by bandits, how he had used his power.

Emotions raced through him, vying for dominance. He felt guilty for not being able to protect Yona better, shame for using his powers and losing control, gratitude that Yona accepted him even though his eyes were monstrous. A touch of lingering excitement, leftover from the way using his powers had made him feel invincible, as if he truly was a dragon. And worry, worry for Yona, for the villagers, but mostly for Yona.

Worry won.

"Yona?" he asked, trying to turn his head to look for her. But the double-edged sword, the paralysis, was still affecting him. That was the curse of Shin-Ah's power, one that he had only felt the full effect of once before, fourteen years ago.

Experimentally, he tried to wiggle his fingers or move his toes. At least he could talk and move his eyes. Was it ironic, that he could still use his eyes?

"Shin-Ah?" Yoon sounded tired, and when the boy appeared, hovering over him, he could see the worry on his face. "Oh, thank god, you're awake."

"Yona? Is she all right?" Shin-Ah asked, wishing he could sit up. He tried to force himself, to press his palms against the floor and sit up, but he couldn't move. A flash of panic spread over him, and he took a deep breath to fight it off. This was temporary, he reminded himself, it wouldn't last. This helplessness would only last for a little while, maybe a day or two, and then it would wear off. Right? Of course.

"She's fine, she's right outside," Yoon said, "You're the one we're all worried about. What were you thinking, you blue…furball…" A tear slipped down Yoon's cheek before he angrily wiped it away, a frown on his face. "You're supposed to be the least dumb one out of the beasts, Shin-Ah."

Shin-Ah stared, taken aback by Yoon's tears. Had he done something wrong? Was Yoon so mad at him he was crying with anger? Or…was Yoon upset because he had gotten hurt? Yoon often yelled at Yona and cried when she did something that got her hurt. Was that what was happening here? It seemed like it. Having friends after spending most of his life alone was confusing sometimes, but it did make Shin-Ah feel warm that Yoon cared about him.

"Yoon. Don't cry," Shin-Ah said.

"I'm not crying," Yoon snapped, "My eyes are reacting to the senjuso in the poultice."

That hadn't happened back in Awa, and Yoon had used the senjuso plant on dozens of people to heal their wounds. Shin-Ah knew that Yoon was telling a lie, but he let him keep his lie. It wasn't hurting anyone, and he didn't want to embarrass Yoon.

Although Shin-Ah couldn't move, he could still feel things, which meant he could feel Ao's bushy tail brushing against his cheek and her little warm body curled up against his neck. He wanted to reach up and scratch her head, thankful for her comforting presence, but his arm wouldn't cooperate.

"You got stabbed, you know that, right?" Yoon asked. He was checking the wrapping around Shin-Ah's stomach, his expression tense. "You're going to have to rest."

"The town…" He was supposed to help protect the villagers. He couldn't spend days on end in this tent, doing nothing.

"Thunder Beast and the rest of the beasts are keeping an eye on things," Yoon said.

Beasts…the other dragons. Kija, Zeno, Jae-Ha… And Lien? Their kirin. Did Yoon count her among the beasts? She had gone with Jae-Ha that morning to help the green dragon at another village in the Fire tribe's territory. Had she gotten back all right? He had meant to keep an eye on the sky so he would know when she was back. "Lien?"

"She and Jae-Ha came back a few hours ago," Yoon said, "She's fine, by the way. You worry too much."

Shin-Ah felt another bit of tension leave him, and he relaxed against the pallet he was resting on. If Yoon said that Yona and Lien were all right, he would believe him. Still, he would like to see both of them for himself.

Yoon put a hand on Shin-Ah's forehead. "No fever, that's good. You're going to drink some herbal tea later though. I'm not having you get ill."

"Okay…"

"Is he awake?!" The tent flap flew backward as Zeno tossed it open. His blue eyes widened as he spotted Shin-Ah and he made as if he was going to leap on him. "Seiryuu! Are you ready to play yet?"

"Hey, stop being so rambunctious, he's still injured," Yoon said, shifting so he could block Zeno. Zeno tried to dodge around him and Yoon moved again, raising his arms, keeping the bouncy blond away.

"Maybe we wait to play with Shin-Ah, eh?" Jae-Ha's voice said. He reached into the tent and caught Zeno by the back of the yellow dragon's loose robes. "At least 'til he's not half-dead?"

"He's not half-dead, Jae-Ha," Kija scolded. He squeezed past Zeno, followed by Yona. Kija's eyes were shimmery, and Shin-Ah recognized it as tears. "Right, Yoon?"

"Well, he's not going to die, if that's what you're asking," Yoon said, shaking his head, "Not as long as he listens to me and doesn't push himself."

"He won't," Kija said firmly.

Yona darted into the tent, moving past Kija and kneeling next to Shin-Ah. She had the same teary look that Kija had, and Shin-Ah wanted to shake his head at her. He didn't want her to cry. She grabbed his hand and gave his fingers a gentle squeeze. "Thank you."

He didn't know what to say, so he just looked at her, marveling at how easily she accepted him. Had there even been fear in her eyes when she faced him down earlier? How had she known that he wouldn't hurt her?

"He'll be better soon with the senjuso," Yoon said, "Besides, you dragons seem to heal fast."

Zeno glanced at Yoon and grinned. "Do we?"

"It's because we have to be well so we can protect Yona," Kija said, his voice full of purpose, "So we heal faster."

"Though Hak seems to heal about the same speed," Yoon said thoughtfully, "Maybe it's a beast thing."

"Hey, don't lump me in with the supernatural, thanks," Hak said. The dark-haired man appeared at the open tent flap beside Jae-Ha. He nodded to Shin-Ah, and Shin-Ah could see the gratitude in his dark eyes. Of course Shin-Ah would protect Yona. He would rather die than let something happen to her, and he felt guilty that he hadn't saved her faster. In truth, she had saved him… He wanted to squeeze her fingers back, to show her how much he was thankful for her, but his fingers still wouldn't cooperate.

"He'll probably be out of commission for a day or two, and he won't be able to fight for a while," Yoon said, giving Shin-Ah a stern look, "But I think the paralysis will start wearing off sooner than that."

"Then we can play," Zeno said, a mischievous look in his eyes.

"You're obsessed with playing," Jae-Ha said, ruffling Zeno's hair affectionately.

"You should be more serious about our purpose," Kija said, which earned him an exasperated look from Jae-Ha and a laugh from Zeno.

Shin-Ah looked at Yona and then past her at the tent opening. He wondered where Lien was. Yoon had said she was all right, but she wasn't here…the others didn't seem to be worried.

"Kirin is with the villagers," Zeno said, as if he could tell where Shin-Ah was looking even though he was wearing his mask. "She was here, but they needed her. Very much."

The sad tone in Zeno's voice told Shin-Ah this was probably about the child who had been killed. Lien knew songs of lament, songs of passing from the Fire Tribe, so maybe she was helping with the funeral preparation…

"She'll be back soon," Zeno said, patting Shin-Ah's arm. "Zeno will tell her you're awake."