Summary: Because that's what all this was, really: a game. A game in which the winner would become the next heir of the Zoldyck family and the loser would die as nothing but a disgrace. A game... of hide-and-seek.

Disclaimer: I do not own Hunter X Hunter.

Tag—You're Dead

Killua was going to die tonight.

At first, he had a little bit of hope that survival was still within reach, but now he was sure that his life would end. He had started running about half an hour ago, sprinting out of the Zoldyck mansion as quickly as he could, into the forest that surrounded his home, where he could hopefully hide in the shadows of the trees until it was all over. It had been a good plan, but it wasn't nearly good enough.

His feet moved swiftly and silently as he zigzagged between trees and dashed through bushes, but he could feel him coming closer, sometimes even getting the tingling sensation on the nape of his neck as if he was right behind him, breathing down his back. And when the white-haired boy whipped around, arms raised high above his head to counter the blow that he was going to deliver, Killua realized that there was no one there, it had been his imagination, he was becoming crazy, because surely, he wouldn't dare hurt him, right?

After all, they were brothers of the same flesh and blood. Aniki couldn't possibly harm him, right? Big brother Illumi, with dark, always cold eyes that seemed to stare way past his body and into the depths of his soul, with a never-smiling face would never actually kill him... right?

Laughter echoed throughout the forest, hushed whispers coming from all directions. As if eight-year-old Killua wasn't scared enough, the rest of his family was watching the two of them fight to the death, highly amused and probably placing bets for all he knew; Milluki would never miss a chance to laugh at Killua, his mother would cry because her sons were finally growing up (whatever that means in the Zoldyck family), and his father would be anxiously anticipating the result of this "game."

Because that's what all this was, really: a game. A game in which the winner would become the next heir of the Zoldyck family and the loser would die as nothing but a disgrace. A game... of hide-and-seek.

It was a cruel game and Killua wanted no part of it. He didn't want to die. He was too young. He was too unprepared. He was too alive to die. Killua wanted to do something that was forbidden in the Zoldyck family: plea for his life. It was on the tip of his tongue, reading to roll out of his mouth at any moment, but he shut his lips and bit down hard to prevent any sounds from coming out. He couldn't show weakness—not now.

Taking a quick rest from all the running, he stopped behind a tree to catch his breath and shivered—but not because of the cold.

Knowing that you were about to die wasn't exactly the best feeling in the world.

-xXx-

Illumi Zoldyck advanced forward calmly in long strides, his head held high, dark, menacing aura seeping out of his body. His aura spread throughout the entire forest, keeping track of his opponent at all times, like a true hunter. Walking down the familiar road out of his house, he slowed down his pace slightly to give Killua some time to run away and let him think that he had a chance; after all, where was the fun in simply ending this contest right away?

He thought back to when he first started training his little brother to be resistant to heat and electricity and how the white-haired boy had screamed and begged and pleaded for the pain to stop as a streak of tears rolled down his cheek. He remembered how Killua had attempted to hide the next day when the cycle would begin all over again. And he remembered how scared his brother had been when Milluki chained him up and secured his arms and legs so that he couldn't escape, couldn't run away, couldn't do anything but wait for it all to be over.

Illumi remembered how much the situation now reminded him of the past.

He could almost laugh. His little brother really hadn't changed at all; everyone said that Killua was a quick-learner, a genius—one of the best assassins for generations—but just look at him now, running away, scared to death before the real game even started.

It was almost too easy. It was hardly a competition. And it was finally time to end this.

"Ready or not, Kil... here I come."

The oldest son crouched down low and focused his aura to his feet. Inhaling a deep breath, his eyes flickered to the left, catching a glimpse of a bush rustling and before a single leaf was able to fall to the ground, claws extended out of his hands and, knees bent, his feet dug deep into the ground.

With a wide, sadistic grin on his face, Illumi sprung forward.

-xXx-

Killua froze.

The aura that surrounded the forest had changed; now there was full killing intent and he could feel the sudden coldness that circled around him, the change in atmosphere, the darkness that seemed to ooze out from right behind him.

The boy's eyes darted around. He couldn't see anything.

His palms started sweating. His breath hitched to a stop as if all the oxygen in his lungs had been sucked out of him. His heart pounded loudly in his chest, ringing in his ears. Panic surged through his body as he tried to fight the fear that was beginning to build up inside him—but that was the problem, it wasn't just inside of him; it was all around him, it was everywhere.

Killua made the mistake of blinking. The next time he opened his eyelids again, it was already much too late; Illumi was in front of him in an instant, his sharp claws reaching out towards him, closer, closer. Killua couldn't move. His mind was telling him—yelling at him—to pick up his feet and sprint the hell out of there, but his knees only bucked, stationed in place.

The look on his older brother's face was terrifying. His smile was lopsided, crooked, his teeth shining brightly in the dark, amusement dancing in his eyes that had long since adjusted to the dark, as if he was actually enjoying all of this.

Illumi's claws were close now, coming straight for Killua's throat; and in less than a second, it would brush against his skin and slice through his flesh effortlessly, and the boy's head would roll off his body soundlessly, leaving him no time to scream and—

-xXx-

—blood gushed out.

Crimson red tainted the grass, flowing like a scarlet stream and spreading out in all directions until, soon, the entire forest would be covered in a thick layer of paint. The now dead body lay on the ground silently, the head a few metres away, completely detached. The corpse's long black hair was stained in red and a look of pure surprise was revealed on his face.

The game was over.

The victor stood up tall and smirked. The last sparks of electricity died out in Killua's hands and the white-haired boy looked down at his older brother and shook his head. "You really shouldn't have underestimated me, aniki. 'Never fight a stronger opponent,' remember? And it looks like I was stronger." The boy wiped some blood off his face before walking back into the Zoldyck mansion and grinned in triumph.

Tag—you're dead.

A/N: Inspired by the song Hide-and-Seek by SeeU. Search it up; it's really amazing.

Well, this is my first time writing something creepy, so I hope it turned out okay. It's not easy, I tell you. Not. Easy. Dx And just to clarify, Killua did kill Illumi at the end there.

Reviews are appreciated!

~Madin456.