The Lost and Found

Chapter 6

A/N: Sumi's sign language speech will be signified by italics and single quotes. Such as: 'Hi, welcome to a Yona of the Dawn fanfiction!'

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"Apple."

"River."

"Tree!"

"Medicine."

"Hungry."

"Hold on, slow down," Hak protested, "I can't keep up."

It was the next morning, and the group was heading in the direction of the Wind Tribe territory. Hak had decided to use the hiking time to teach Sumi some new words, which meant the others were peppering him with suggestions. Sumi walked alongside Hak, trying to keep up with the lesson but getting a little confused by the onslaught of words. At least she now knew a few words, enough to ask for certain things.

"Zeno knows the sign for 'hungry,'" the blond said proudly before demonstrating the way the sign went.

Sumi repeated the sign twice and then looked pointedly at Yoon before repeating it for a third time, more insistent this time. He raised an eyebrow and pulled a small piece of dried venison out of the pouch on his belt.

'Thank you,' Sumi signed and started nibbling on the piece of meat.

"You're welcome," he said.

"How long will it take to get to Fuuga from here?" Kija asked. He was walking behind Hak and Sumi and Yona, still a tad disappointed that the fox girl wasn't paying much attention to him. She seemed to be far more attached to Hak.

"About six days on foot," Yoon said.

"Maybe longer," Hak said, glancing over at Yona and Sumi. Having the kid in the group might slow them down somewhat, but he wasn't sure. It wasn't like she was a normal child.

"They'll be happy to see you," Yona said confidently, smiling at Hak.

He shrugged. "They're always happy." Not true, but the Wind Tribe was the most laidback and cheerful of the Five Tribes.

"Tae-Yeon will be excited," Yona said, "How do you think he'll feel about Sumi?"

"Oh, if she won't stay out of fox form, he'll probably think she's a new pet," Hak said, smirking, "He'll probably put a bow around her neck and name her Fluffy."

Yona made a face. "Stop that, he will not. Be serious, Hak."

"I don't know, really," Hak said. He looked ahead and focused on not being embarrassed about how little he knew about his younger adopted brother. Tae-Yeon had been so little when he had left Fuuga for Kuuto, and then when he had returned, he had only stayed a few days before leaving again. He couldn't actually say what Tae-Yeon would think because he didn't know him that well. However... "But Tae-Woo will probably be okay with her. He's good with kids."

"Like you?" Yona asked, grinning.

What? No. "I'm not good with kids—"

"Liar," Jae-Ha said. The green-haired dragon was walking nearby, his hands in his pockets. "Sumi sweetheart already adores you."

"She only pretends to like me so she can get a free ride," Hak said, glancing down at the fox girl.

She flicked her golden gaze up at him and then smiled mischievously. The air around her blurred with color, and suddenly she was leaping up and hanging onto his robe, tiny claws digging into the fabric. He grabbed her before she could fall back to the ground and settled her on his shoulder.

"Here's a new sign, Sumi," Hak said before twitching his fingers through the air in an abrupt way. "It means annoying."

The little fox girl simply flopped across his shoulder and made a tiny, amused huffing sound. Hey, so she could make noise as a fox? Maybe she was just silent as a human. Then again, she wasn't completely silent, was she? She had laughed last night, after all.

"See?" Jae-Ha said, "She likes you quite a lot."

"The servants' children at the palace liked him too," Yona said, "And so did the guards' kids." She glanced up at him. "The Wind Tribe children all wanted you to play with them, and Tae-Yeon loves you. You're amazing with kids."

Hak's jaw twitched, and he lifted his face to the sky for a moment to collect himself before grinning down at her. "What are you trying to say, princess? That I should have children with someone?"

"One day," Yona said, tapping her fingers against her jaw, "You'd be a good dad."

"Yona dear, I think you're killing Hak slowly," Jae-Ha cautioned, "It's cruel since you're the one he'd like to have babies—"

Hak gave him a dangerous smile. "I'll kill you first, Droopy-Eyes, if you don't shut your mouth."

"Don't fight right now," Yoon said. He was looking down at the map. "There's a river up ahead and a bridge, so there might be people around. So keep it down. Shin-Ah, do you see anything?"

"Not yet," the blue-clad man said. He was toward the front of the group, watching the road ahead. Zeno darted forward and jumped on his back, looping his arms around Shin-Ah's neck.

"Then forward, toward adventure and the great unknown of life!" Zeno exclaimed.

Shin-Ah walked forward at the same place, apparently not bothered by the blond limpet that was now attached to him.

"So weird..." Hak said, shaking his head. Sumi batted at a stray strand of his black hair and then settled down for a nap. "And you're lazy, too, fox."

The group walked along the path for a couple more hours, heading toward the river and the bridge that Yoon had promised. They were almost there when Shin-Ah held up a hand, stopping them.

"People are there," he said, and Kija went over to stand beside him.

"How many?"

"Twenty-three," Shin-Ah answered, "They have weapons."

"That's a lot of people with weapons for a little bridge," Jae-Ha said, crossing his arms over his chest.

"Yoon, is there any way around this?" Hak asked as he pushed Yona and Yoon back behind a tree. He saw Zeno trying to peek around Kija and Shin-Ah, and he grabbed the yellow dragon to haul him back behind the tree as well.

"Not really," Yoon said after looking at the map for a moment. "I mean, all right, there's another bridge on the river, but it's at least another two days walk away."

"Shin-Ah, how many weapons do they have?" Jae-Ha asked.

"Not enough," was Shin-Ah reply.

Hak grinned. "All right, well, that answers that." He plucked Sumi off his shoulder and handed her to Yona before looking the princess directly in the eye. "Stay here while we go handle this."

"I can help, too," Yona protested.

"I know, but someone needs to keep an eye on Sumi," Hak replied. He looked at Kija, Shin-Ah and Jae-Ha. "Shin-Ah, stay behind with the others. Jae-Ha, Kija, you're with me."

"It's nice when you take command like this, Hak," Jae-Ha teased.

"I'm ready to defend the princess," Kija said, spreading his claws wide and enlarging them.

"Then let's go."