The Black Dragon (A Yona of the Dawn fanfiction)

Chapter One

  "This is the tenth year since the death of my father, the former king Ju-nam," King Il announced loudly to the crowd in front of the great Hiryuu Castle in Kuuto, the capital of Kouka Kingdom.

  I stood a little ways behind him and off to the side, with a tall, dark-haired man beside me holding a spear-like weapon called a glaive.

  "Our Kingdom of Kouka is a small country surrounded by powerful nations to the north and south, involving us in many wars." The king continued his speech, but I zoned out a bit when I got distracted by a falcon flying overhead.

  Quietly, I nudged the man beside me so as not to interrupt the king.

  "Hey, General Hak, isn't that Gulfan up there?"

  "Hmm..." The General of the Wind Tribe, Hak gave a noncommittal noise and glanced at the sky, but the falcon was now nowhere to be seen. "Where's the Princess?" he asked.

  I sighed in exasperation. "Apparently she's still getting ready," I replied.

  "I see... because he's coming today." Hak nodded in understanding, and I knew who he was talking about: King Il's nephew and one of Hak's only real friends. "She's such a child," he grumbled.

  "My daughter, Yona, will soon be sixteen years old."

  I tuned back to the speech that the king was giving.

  "I pray that under the divine protection of Hiryuu, the king of old, the peace in this country will last for all eternity!" King Il finished his speech to the cheers of the citizens of Kouka who'd been able to come to celebrate the tenth anniversary of the coronation of Il.

  I prayed desperately that the cheers would come true and our king would live a long life.

  After the cheers had finished and the crowd had dispersed, Hak and I followed King Il to the room where the Princess was getting ready.

  We hung back as he walked in.

  "Father!" Princess Yona exclaimed when she saw him. "What about the ceremony?"

  "As you can see, it's over," he replied kindly, smiling at his 15 year old daughter.

  Yona jerked in surprise and looked guilty."Oh, no. I'm sorry. I..."

  The king laughed heartily. "Well, no matter. It was merely a formality. You don't need to appear before the people.

  Yona gazed at her father worriedly. "Um, Father, isn't there something odd about my hair?" she asked.

  Oh, no. Here we go again.

  Princess Yona has beautiful crimson red hair with lushious waves that a lot of people in town fawn over constantly, but for some strange reason, Yona is always complaining about its color and how "unruly" it is.

  "Oh?" Il asked, looking surprised by the question. "Of course not! Your beauty surpasses that of any jewel-"

  She interrupted him. "Yes, my face does. I believe I was born with quite a cute face."

  That's true. The princess is one of the cutest girls I know.

  "But why is my hair so red and unruly?!"

  See, complaining about her hair again.

  "Grr! It won't behave at all!" she complained, waving her arms about.

  "That isn't true. Right, Hak, Mari?" the king asked, turning towards the two of us for confirmation.

  When she heard him address us, Yona froze.