Disclaimer: I do not own HxH. I also used dialogue from Episode 80 of the 2011 anime, none of which I own.

Chapter One: An Unrested Spirit

A job. That's all it was. That's all it was supposed to be. But how did a simple job turn into so much more? The thoughts were too excruciatingly painful to linger on for any period of time. Instead of torturing herself with her thoughts, Ponzu turned her attention back to the mission.

NGL was certainly not a place to lose concentration in. This was a land of danger. The wind gently toyed with the sand under her feet as she trudged on with her group. The sun bore down on all of them. They were all gathered here for the same goal, to inspect the source of the bug leg that came to their attention not too long ago. Of course Ponzu was traveling in the group that she and Pokkle had founded together, but she tried so hard not to think of that.

She tried so hard to think about anything besides the fact that she was hopelessly in love with her traveling partner. No big deal really. It's not like she lived every day with the agony of not knowing if he felt the same way about her. Shouldn't she be content with what she has already? A steady job where she could at least see him often. How much was it really to ask for some peace of mind and happiness?

She was broken out of her painful thoughts when the group of four stopped in a clearing on a cliff. A forest was at their backs and the looked over the landscape displayed ahead. They stayed silent and observed everything around them until a definite buzzing sound shattered the silence. It grew louder and soon a few bees approached Ponzu, all of them carrying messages. She crouched down on the ground to inspect the bees.

"It didn't work…" she said. "No one received the message." She looked up at Pokkle with fear reflected clearly in her blue eyes, "That means all the other Hunters I was in contact with have been taken out."

Pokkle looked down at the ground. "Oh…" he muttered, clearly disappointed. "We should leave." He said with clarity. Ponzu stood up immediately and took a fighting stance. Pokkle's vision panned the group as he said, "Those creatures are too much for us to handle." The white haired man was trembling in his shoes. His eyes were full of fear. Pokkle continued, "We need to leave NGL and tell the world what's happening…so that an extermination force can be formed."

The frightened white haired man did not care for his reasoning. He exclaimed, "Whatever… Let's just run for it!" Suddenly the other three in the group felt a strong presence that was heading their way. They all gasped out of fright and stared at the man. He clearly did not feel what they did. This cost him greatly. He spoke again, "Or we'll all be-" but he never got to finish his sentence.

No sooner than the words escaped his mouth a large Chimera Ant emerged from the ground behind him. For him, everything went black. The dog eat dog world had granted him his final words of exclamation before the ant grabbed him from behind, ultimately killing him.

Upon the sight of such a grotesque scene, Ponzu's stomach churned. She covered her mouth with her hands as her eyes widened considerably in fear. This could not be happening. Despite Pokkle's training, his face was not spared from sporting a disturbed and terrified look. His mouth was open with shock and his arms flew back into a prepared position. He needed to take action. He needed to save his group.

For the next few minutes, Ponzu could not recall any of what she had witnessed. She remained back with a shocked expression written on her face. Her brain seemed to stop working. The world was falling apart beneath her very feet, which were glued to the ground. Everything was a blur of colors and sounds. Nothing was quite process. Only one thought emerged from her overloaded head, Pokkle needs to be safe.

Suddenly, she heard a thud as his body fell to the ground. No words in any language of any world could describe the feeling of gut wrenching fear that gripped her in that very moment. He was her everything. If there were any Gods above, how could they let the only thing she cared about be taken down by these monsters?

She was out of view of the two Chimera Ants in front of her. Through all of that she had remained hidden in the nearby forest. She could not fight them. There was no way. If Pokkle could not defeat such heathens, she surely had no chance. But she was indeed determined to find a way to save him. There was still time.

In a heartbeat Ponzu bolted from the scene. With every pounding of her feet on the dirt below she was a step closer to saving Pokkle. With every step she was leaving behind her frightened, helpless self and replacing it with a new, determined version.

I can't save him myself, she thought as she ran. Her turquoise hair blew behind her. I'll call for help! She had ultimately reached this conclusion. She sprinted away even faster than before, willing to do anything possible to save him.

Agilely, she jumped down the hills as a grimace appeared on her previously frightened face. There was no room for fear any longer. There's still… There's still time! She thought as she dodged the trees and bushes in her path. Nothing could get in her way. Even if they take him, they won't eat him immediately…

She continued down the path until she saw a small village ahead. Here she could find a place to write notes for her bees to carry out to anyone that could help. Please… send anyone. She stood up as she let her bees fly off to find help. A worried expression crossed her delicate face, Please… Find a Hunter with a strong aura!

Ponzu was truly desperate. The clear, cloudless sky seemed to mock her from above. Such a beautiful day. She quickly surveyed the village and took off running. She needed to do something. And fast. An idea crossed her mind quickly, I must hurry back to the border! Other Hunters should be there-

The thought remained unfinished. Just as she saw the path open up ahead she was stricken hard by a blow. Everything turned to darkness. She fell back on the ground with a shocked expression on her face. Nothing seemed to make sense anymore. Faintly, she could hear an evil laugh and she felt a presence approach her. Everything that was important to her flashed before her eyes.

Images from her past flickered by. She and her siblings playing in the grasses near the village in which she was raised. The smile of her parents. The faces of her friends. Everything went by so quickly until only one thing remained. Pokkle. His face was permanently etched into the back of her eyelids as she lay on the ground. Pokkle… I won't fail you. I won't! I can promise you that I'll never leave your side. I'll never leave you again!

More shots were fired and soon her spirit departed from her body. Under the shade of a tree she had her last thoughts to herself. They were no one else's to see. The image of Pokkle's smiling face gave her the strength to leave her body. She could only hope that help would find him. Though that certainly did not mean she was about to leave for good.

Ponzu couldn't be sure that help would find its way to Pokkle. So on that day, her spirit departed from her body but she did not leave this world. Not yet. I promised you that I would never leave your side.