Birthright [[Akatsuki no Yona - Jae-Ha]]

Chapter 5

A/N: Haha, so I was rereading the manga, and technically Yoon's already supposed to know about the dragon curse. We'll just say this is a slight AU where he didn't overhear that conversation. ^_~

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Don't die, please don't die...

Jae-Ha willed Seoyun to stay alive. He couldn't tell if she was breathing or not, and gods, she was so pale. If he understood what was going on, she had been trying to protect the new Ryokuryuu and the very idea that the new baby's mother actually wanted him stunned Jae-Ha.

In his other arm, her baby was crying, his eyes closed tight and fists waving in his infant-sized fury. Now that he was face to face with his successor, Jae-Ha didn't know how to feel. Affectionate? Despairing? Annoyed? Resigned? He just knew he didn't want anything to happen to the screaming child he was holding.

"So cute!" Zeno said, appearing next to Jae-Ha, his bright blue eyes on the baby. He scooped up the infant and held him close before looking over at the young woman with sad eyes. "She's had a hard journey..."

It definitely looked like that. With his other arm now free, Jae-Ha was able to pick her up, holding her in case the villagers got any bright ideas about attacking them. Zeno could take off with the baby while Jae-Ha jumped with Seoyun. He looked her over, frowning. So many bruises and small cuts. Her right hand was wrapped up in a dirty, blood-soaked bandage, and she gave off fever heat as he settled her against his chest, cradling her close. What had happened to her? Who could let this happen to someone who had just given birth a few days ago, let alone any young woman.

Hak and Kija rushed past them, blocking the villagers.

"Don't move unless you want me to crush you," Kija said, his dragon claws enlarged and raised in front of him, a stern warning.

"You don't have to be dramatic, White Snake," Hak said. He was giving that death stare of his to the gathered Green Dragon Village citizens. "They're already about to piss their pants."

"That's dramatic too, mister," Zeno said. In his arms, the baby was quieting down, the sobs subsiding into quieter sniffles. Zeno lightly rocked him and cooed down at his little round face. Jae-Ha noticed that the baby's thick fuzzy hair was almost the same shade of green as his own. How odd.

"Jae-Ha!" Yoon raced up to his left side. His eyes first latched onto the baby Zeno was holding. "Is that..."

"Yep, it's Baby Ryoku," Zeno said, cradling the whining infant closer.

"R-right," Yoon said before turning to Jae-Ha, "Oh, who's that? She's looks bad, what happened?" Instantly going into medic mode, he stepped closer to Jae-Ha and put his hand on Seoyun's forehead. "She's burning up."

"She's the baby's mother," Jae-Ha said, "I'm not sure, but I think she's been running since she had the baby."

"What?! Women are supposed to rest after that, it's painful and exhausting! How did she have the energy..." Yoon went wide-eyed and looked around, "You have to put her down, I need to start treating her. Why would she do that?"

Exactly. Why would she do that? Everyone in their village knew that a mother who gave birth to a green dragon wasn't expected to raise it or even interact with it. They could hand it over and go on with their lives, acting as if they child wasn't theirs in any way. But if she had run away and taken the child with her...he had to talk to her. She had to live.

Carefully, he lowered her to the forest floor, balling his cloak up for her to use as a pillow. Trusting Kija and Hak to keep the villagers at bay, he knelt by her as Yoon started examine her. He didn't know how to feel about the men from his village either, except he didn't want them dead. He guessed. Did he?