Shorts: Yona of the Dawn/ Akatsuki no Yona

Shin-ah's Dilemma

Dale's Best Burger!

A $4 Combo!

Order yours inside.

The advertisement was being displayed behind a window, its bold white letters contrasted by a dark background. A faint halo circled around the burger, bringing attention to the thick juicy beef patties sandwiched between bacon, lettuce, cheese that dripped in all angles, and two perfectly brown buns. It didn't take long for the image to seduce its first victim.

In the center of the burger was the reflection of a man in a horned mask. His head tilted to the side as he took in the image. Allured by the smell, a small squirrel burrowed his way out of the man's mane of a wig and climbed up to his shoulders, sniffing the air. The sudden chiming of two bells caused them to jump. They had not noticed when the woman had passed them to open the door. Curious, Shin-ah peeked around the poster, careful to keep out of sight. The woman was smiling as she talked to the man behind the table. He was wearing a red shirt that had a small burger logo on his chest. She pointed at a picture of Dale's Burger that was behind the man. The man nodded in understanding as he tapped on the screen Infront of him. She reached into her pocket and pulled out her wallet. After handing him a five-dollar bill, the man handed her a bag he had prepared.

Shin-ah quickly scooted behind the poster as the woman turned around. He stood eerily still as the woman opened the door again and walked in the opposite direction. As she walked away, Shin-ah looked at the bag in her hands. Ao snuff in her direction. Their stomach grumbled.

Shin-ah paced in front of the store and stroked the tip of his white mask. After a couple of rounds, he suddenly stopped. Ao curiously glanced over to him. Struggling to keep in his excitement, Shin-ah half speed walked half skipped to a nearby phone booth. He put in two quarters and dialed in a phone number he had committed to memory. It rang to times before the other side picked up.

"Hello?" It was the familiar voice of Princess Yona.

Realizing that he had not planned this far, Shin-ah awkwardly waited.

"Hello?" she repeated.

Shin-ah hung up.

Ones again, Shin-ah was pacing in front of the store and was stroking the tip of his mask. He paused his pacing to look up at the towering image of the burger, which looked more enticing by the second. The seasoned beef patties cooked at a crisp while still keeping its juicy essence. The beautifully bronzed bacon, the large red tomatoes-

Ah! Frustrated, Shin-ah ruffled the white fur on his head.

Shin-ah stood in front of the door. Eventually, he let out a large puff of air before slamming the door opened.

The cashier let out a startled yelp and looked up at the man that was holding the door open. He saw that the man's face was obscured by a mask, his eyes were nothing but black pits. His already imposing figure was magnified with his wide white mane. Those horns... to his horror, the cashier notices that his horns, no his whole mask was made out of bones. The cashier felt his whole-body tremble in fear as the man marched towards him. His eyes widened as he saw the masked man reach into his robe.

"Wait!"

The cashier held up his hands, causing Shin-ah to stop mid motion.

"There is no need for that," he swallowed before continuing in a rushed voice, "I don't want anyone getting hurt. Just tell me what you want, and I'll give it to you."

Shin-ah was surprised but touched by this generosity. He smiled behind the mask and pointed at the menu like he had seen the woman do before. The cashier nervously glanced back and felt his stomach drop. Right below the menu was a small steel safe that he had forgotten to put in the back room. It was the cashiers first day at work and it looked like he was already going to lose the job.

Shin-ah was sitting in an alley, his back against the wall. He hugged his knees as the wind maneuvered the cash to dance around him. His stomach growled.