Author's Note: Okay, so I'm getting Chapter 1 out on the earliest day xD Expect Chapter two to take me a little bit longer. Chapters probably won't be out on a regular schedule. Just depends on how long it takes me to finish them. Anyway, thank you to Nispedana for reviewing & liking the facebook page. It means alot to me. Oh, and again, I have only seen the 1999 anime. I am in the process of watching the OVA but that probably won't affect this story much. So, like I said, the timeline is probably off. Just reminding you because I've had people complain about timelines before (on a fanfic of mine from another site) ~Red

Red

Chapter 1

Four Months Earlier

"Come out. I know you're following me."

The young girl stopped in her tracks, half bent forward into her next step so that her hair fell over her face. She tensed, but kept her green eyes trained on the figure in front of her. Perhaps she hadn't been as conspicuous as she would have liked. With a huff, she straightened her back and crossed her arms.

"Hm. Guess you didn't gain the title of 'Hunter' for nothing," she said.

The boy in front of her turned around, piercing her with his blue eyes. "Why are you following me?"

In reply, she took in a deep breath and sent her eyes to his. "You saved my life."

He almost had to sigh in exasperation at her reply. "Think nothing of it. I was just doing my job."

With a smile, she shook her head. "No. Your job was to protect my father."

"He wouldn't have been very happy if I'd let you die," he replied.

She only shrugged and took a step forward. "A life for a life," she said. "You saved mine. I owe it to you."

"Go home," he said, beginning to walk again.

She chose to stop responding at that point and returned to following silently behind him. Never in her life had she imagined leaving home for any other reason aside from taking the Hunter Exam, which she still was ineligible to do. She knew the boy in front of her was aggravated, most likely due to the fact that he could still sense her following him. There was no way he could hear her or see her through his peripheral vision. Silence was something she was very skilled at, and she knew just how far behind someone she would have to be to keep up with them while still being unseeable.

Ever since a young age, her father had been very adamant about her doing what her heart told her to do. That was part of the reason why she had spent so many years training to become a Hunter. With two Hunters in her family telling stories of their adventures, it was hard not to wish for a life like that. However, now her heart was being pulled in a different direction.

This one person, who had been hired by her father for protection, had saved her life. When she was mere seconds away from having the breath ripped out of her, he had set her free. Something in her told her that she couldn't leave it alone. She couldn't just let him walk away with only a 'thank you'. Once her father had released the Hunter from his contract, she had made a split second decision that following him, devoting her life to keeping him safe, was the only real option she had. Her life had been all about becoming a Hunter, but in light of recent events, she knew she wasn't ready for it. It made sense for her to give this boy her life, as it was him who took the initiative to save it. Yes, she believed that was the only solution. Protect him as he did her until she was strong enough to pass the Hunter Exam.

Kurapika wandered through the streets of the fairly isolated town, running through the map of directions he had been given in his head. He was well aware of the girl trailing behind him but decided she would lose interest soon enough. His top priority right now was to meet up with his informant. Upon being released from his previous mission, he had gotten word from someone with information of the Phantom Troupe, thus why he was scouring the city for his destination.

When he saw the worn down green sign of the South Rain Cafe he straightened his stance and peered inside. It wasn't very occupied, only having a booth or two taken up along side a few tables. He scanned the faces that he could see before stopping on the one in the booth in the far right corner of the cafe. With one last look behind him, Kurapika entered the cafe.

He kept his eyes on the table, ignoring the greeting given to him by the waitress behind the counter. The man in the booth had to be in his late twenties or early thirties and didn't look like the kind of person you just walked up to normally. Of course, the situation at hand wasn't exactly normal and neither was Kurapika, so that didn't concern him. When he locked eyes with the informant, the guy gave a small nod, indicating for Kurapika to sit down.

"Tell me what you know about the Phantom Troupe."

Kurapika exited the cafe a good fifteen minutes later than his informant. This was for two reasons. Mainly because he didn't want to be seen leaving at the same time. He didn't want to be mistaken as anything but a one time acquaintance. The second reason was so that he could grab something to eat before moving on. He may have been on a mission, but even his stomach needed filling from time to time to keep up energy.

Just before he decided to head out a ringing from his pocket distracted him. He quickly pulled out the phone and hit the answer button.

"Hello?" he said into the phone.

"Kurapika!" said the voice from the other line.

Kurapika was shocked for only a brief moment before giving a light smile. "Gon. It's been a while."

"Yeah," Gon replied, "Killua and I ran into Leorio and we wanted to see if you were nearby. We haven't gotten together as a group in a long time."

Kurapika's smile faded and he sighed before responding. "I'm sorry, Gon, but I'm on a mission right now and I don't have time to meet up with you guys."

If he had been able to see Gon, he was positive the boy's face would have fallen, but his voice gave no indication of such. "Oh really? That's too bad." Gon was quiet for a minute, but voices could be heard beyond him. "Right. So, Kurapika, just give us a call when you have some free time."

"Alright, Gon, I will," Kurapika said, his voice tight.

Gon began to speak his reply but was interrupted when someone else reached for the phone. "Kurapika!" Leorio called through the speaker. "I know you're all hell bent on avenging your clan and all, but even you need to take some time off every once in awhile. I mean damn, we haven't seen you in nearly a year."

Kurapika sighed. "My main objective is to find the Phantom Troupe, even if that means cutting down on the time I spend with you guys," he said. "Besides, we're all Hunters now. We're not children."

A low growl was heard from the other side, and the response that followed was in a hushed voice. "You forget that two of your friends are children, Kurapika."

Silence was the only response Kurapika could give. Sometimes it was easy for him to forget that Gon and Killua were only barely past their preteen years. With everything that their group had been through together, it was hard to imagine the two as children. After all, Killua was a trained assassin, and Gon had seen more than his fair share of troubling sights. It had been easier for Kurapika to abandon his childhood along with the murder of his clan, but perhaps those two still had a chance at something.

"You're right," Kurapika said, "I'll make some time when I finish with this mission."

"Fine," Leorio grunted, "but don't be upset if I'm already gone by then."

For a moment, the tension around Kurapika disappeared and he let out a quiet chuckle. The conversation didn't last much longer as the phone was passed around the group for them to each say goodbye. Kurapika hung up his phone and placed it back in his pocket, shaking his head at the pair of eyes to the right that were watching him. She sure was one stubborn girl.

Kurapika had every intention of heading to the location a member of the Phantom Troupe had been spotted at, but not long after he left the cafe a storm came about. So, he put away his ambitions for the time being and rented a hotel room for the night. The day had been far from calm for him, what with the tension of the information he was given and the constant awareness of the girl trailing him.

The room he settled in was a fair sized room for one person. In the far left corner was a wooden table with two chairs, a bed pressed against the middle of the right wall, a reclining chair against the wall leading to the door, and a bathroom across from the bed. Kurapika was now sitting in the recliner with a book in hand, feeling for once that he was completely alone. After all, there was no way that girl could have gotten into his room. Not without his knowing that is. Though, his mind kept forcing his eyes to shift to the slightly open window every couple of minutes, making him constantly lose his place in his book. He was fairly certain that he had read the same paragraph at least eight times by that point.

After finally finishing and comprehending the paragraph, he began to relax as he read the next few pages in peace. That peace didn't last long, however, because right before the end of that section he heard a sneeze. Now, if it had come from the hall outside of his room he wouldn't have been concerned. If it had come from inside his room, he would have been fairly agitated. Though, it turned out that the sneeze was directed outside of his room, in the direction of the window.

If someone had been out and about (which was doubtful in the current weather situation) he wouldn't have been able to hear it over the storm. Even though it was quiet, it had still reached his ears, which caused him to believe that whoever had done it was level with his room. That was odd because he was on the third floor.

Standing up, he sat his book down where he had previously been sitting and made his way to the window. He pulled back the curtains and pushed the window up the rest of the way, cringing slightly as the rain was carried inside due to the wind. He had to take a step back from the window to get a good view of what was outside. There was a large, fully leaved tree about three feet from his window, though the leaves were fighting to stay on in the wind. Just barely visible among the whirling of the wind and leaves was a small form huddled up on a thick branch.

"What are you doing?" Kurapika asked to the all-too-familiar girl.

"K-keeping l-lookout," she replied, followed by another sneeze.

Kurapika sighed. It had to have been at least in the lower forties by this point, and that girl was sitting in a tree, with not so much as a raincoat on to protect her from the harsh weather.

"If you're so insistent on keeping up with me, why didn't you get a room?" he asked.

"Oh, that," she started, curling her hands around her shoulders. " . . . I have no money."

He stood silent for a moment, completely stunned. "You left home and didn't think to bring any money with you?"

She shrugged and sneezed before giving her reply. "I left completely last minute. I had to in order to catch up with you."

He sighed again, too tired to fight with her anymore. "Look, I'll leave the window open. Come in and dry off if you want."

With that, he walked away from the window, leaving the girl completely alone. As he walked into the bathroom to retrieve a towel for her, he heard a soft 'thump' against the carpet floor and the sound of the window locking. He walked back out and found the girl standing in front of the now closed window with her arms still wrapped around herself. Quickly, he tossed her the towel, which she caught with ease.

"You're gonna freeze, Sydney," he said, crossing his arms as he watched her rub the towel over her arms. "There's a robe in the bathroom. Take a shower and change into that until your clothes dry."

Sydney nodded obediently and scurried into the bathroom. Her dress was soaked and clung too tightly for her to slip off easily. Her usually tight cycling shorts felt like they would tear her skin if she tried to shed them, but she did so anyway. Overall, she was sore, red, and cold and wanting nothing more than to take the suggested shower.

The robe was plain white and fluffy, and it tickled her neck. It went longer than her dress, nearly covering her knees, and the warmth was well appreciated. After a few minutes under the hairdryer Sydney's auburn hair was tucked into a neat braid and buried under the robe. Much to her discomfort, her face was now completely visible to the body on the other side of the door, but allowing the damp hair to shiver across her face was even more uncomfortable.

Sydney opened the door and looked around sheepishly. The room was calm aside from the pounding of the rain against the window, which gave her a chill in remembering just how harsh the water could be. In the same position he had been earlier, Kurapika sat in the reclining chair reading his book. Sydney was sure to keep quiet as she closed the bathroom door, but as she began to make her way to the table on the other side of the room, Kurapika's eyes lifted from the book to focus on her.

She stopped in her tracks and intertwined her hands behind her back. Kurapika didn't speak, but motioned with his head towards the bed, which had been completely untouched since his arrival in the room. Without a word, Sydney walked over and unfurled the comforter enough to make room for her to fit in.

It was obvious he didn't intend to share the bed with her. The suggestion was that she could take the bed for now. She assumed that meant he was allowing her to stay for the remainder of the night, as it didn't seem the rain would be letting up soon.

So, she positioned herself under the covers, pulling them up to her chin. She didn't get a word from her current companion, not like she intended to in the first place. It was very well known to her that he didn't want her around. But that wasn't any of her concern. Her purpose was to protect him, whether he wanted the protection or not.

Due to this fact, she didn't try to make conversation with him either. Instead, she nuzzled against the blanket and closed her eyes. She was of no use to him in her current state. Plus, the rain interfered with her senses so much that it would be hard for her to sense something unless it was insanely strong. Tonight was safe. That she was sure of.

By morning the storm had calmed. A light drizzle was still falling over the city, but the worst had passed. Sydney knew this as soon as she awoke and stretched her arms. She was still clad in the bathrobe from the night before, so she arose to fetch her hopefully dry clothing. However, the distinct absence of a certain blond haired Hunter grabbed her attention first.

She surveyed each section of the room, but her protectee was nowhere to be found. Even when she checked the bathroom it was empty aside from her clothes. Before her thoughts could get the best of her, she changed into her clothes, which were mostly dry. Afterwards, she realized any signs that Kurapika had been in the room were missing.

As she unbraided her hair, letting the tangles of auburn scrawl around her face, she broke out into a grin. "I should have seen that coming," she said, bringing a hand up to her chin.

"It's time for the Hunter to become the hunted."

Author's Note: I liked writing this chapter. I genuinely liked writing this chapter. Then again, I love writing, so that might not be saying much xD Thank you to all the people who liked the facebook page, I've met more Hunter X Hunter fans in two days than I have in a month from knowing that show! There's chapter one for you! You've met Sydney and I bet she sounds like a stalker. I realized that after I wrote it and realized it just adds onto her character. She's probably one of my favorite characters I've ever created. Well, I hope you guys liked it, review and tell me what you think! ~Red