The Varied Path (Akatsuki no Yona Fanfiction)

10K Special: Campfire Talks Continued [Part 6/7]

Words for this part: 4.9k

"Hak, Calista!! Yona isn't here!!" Soo-won cried out, spinning in every direction to look for her, but to no avail.

"What?!"

"Damn it!!"

Tae-jun yelled after them angrily as they sprinted away, but they didn't slow even after his enraged shouts reached their ears.

"How far could she have gone?!" Hak exclaimed, searching for the signature red hair in the sea of people.

"It's not like we can call out her name loudly either." Soo-won panted from beside him.

Hak's eyes darkened. "This is bad. With the princess being that small, she'll be swept away in this crowd."

Calista kept pace easily, and fell silent. A tattered piece of dark cloth was tied around her head as she raced through the town, which all of the sudden seemed much too lively. Her mind whirled and her silver eyes hardened into steel as she slipped into her aggressive headspace.

To come out on top, they needed to be quick and accurate. There was only one person who could help with that.

Soo-won met her gaze and she nodded in approval, saluting to him quickly to show that she was with him.

"Hak," He glossed over his friend's questioning gaze. "Come with me."

He led him through the back alleys, weaving his way through the maze of buildings without trouble and led Hak to ask how he knew where he was going.

"Won!!" A new voice cut off any chance for a reply. "It's been a while! How've you been?"

A large man with a friendly face greeted him as the trio burst out into a secret hub. Dozens of people had gathered, and the smell of tobacco and alcohol was heavy in the air. Calista kept a hand at her waist, ready for any surprise attacks, but there was nothing but friendly faces.

"Hey, kid. Come here."

Soo-won started forward eagerly, leaving a stunned Hak in the dust.

"Won...?" He muttered and his sister heard him.

"It's his alias." She told him calmly, nudging him to straighten up. "Look alert. Not all of them would be as friendly with us as they are with him."

Hak stiffened, eyeing his surroundings warily and she motioned for him to follow Soo-won.

"You knew about this place?" He whispered to her.

She sighed, muttering, "I know about a lot of things that I shouldn't."

"... Hey," Hak slided over to Soo-won, pointing to a big guy. "Just who are these drunkards?"

His friend beamed back at him. "They're a group of old men who talk to me whenever I come into town."

"They talk with you?" Hak was surprised. "Then, they're not a group of scoundrels?"

Calista snorted. "Not all of them, at least."

But Soo-won saw the way her eyes softened. These were men who had been through everything and found comfort in each other. Even though they still were a part of the underground, they were the seed of something better than corruption down there. They were the start of a revolution that was never realized.

She was simply skeptical of anyone who had good intentions, since all she knew was the ones who had ill.

"They're all good people." Soo-won said quietly. "I get to listen to a lot of interesting things that they say."