A/N: The mental illness aspect was a bit downplayed in favor of friendship, but it won't be gone for long. Aoki is actually a creation of one of my friends, whom I asked if I could use her in this fic, though I did put my own spin on her in favor of the plot. Don't worry, she's the best OC you'll ever have the pleasure of reading about.
Alice, I Am:
Kurapika pouted the whole way through the car ride and the house tour, giving only grumbled replies now and then when she was prompted to speak. She hated this place, she hated Mr. Chrollo, she hated her parents, she hated everything. It wasn't fair. Why did she have to leave everything behind? Couldn't Mr. Chrollo come to help her at her house? Stupid Mr. Chrollo.
"Kurapika," Chrollo said, as her parents were about to leave. They stood on the outside of the mansion now, surrounded by a snowy lawn, with their feet rooted to the cleared cobblestone pathway. "Aren't you going to say goodbye?"
She crossed her arms across her chest, ignoring the looks on her parents' faces. "No."
"Kurapika," he sighed, kneeling down and taking her hands in his. "I know it's hard to have your parents leave you, but it's hard for them as well. Neither of you wants to be separated."
Kurapika averts her eyes. "Then, why are they leaving?"
"Because they want you to get better," he proceeded, cautiously.
The girl winced and held on tighter to his hands. "I'm not crazy."
"No, you're not," he agreed, "you're special, and other people won't accept that, and your parents don't know how best to deal with your condition. I do. It might be hard at first, but soon, you'll start to feel better. Believe in me?"
She nodded, slowly, tearfully.
Mr. Chrollo gave her a small, reassuring smile. "Now, give your parents a goodbye hug."
She stood still for a second, clenching her hands into fists. She didn't want them to win after she'd come so far in her revenge. Penelope waddled up to her.
"You should just hug them. You'll regret it later."
"You think so?" she asked the goose, who nodded in a very un-goose-like fashion. "Okay, you're probably right."
She faced her parents and bounded towards them, nearly tackling them into the foot of snow behind them. "I'm still mad at you."
Something caught between a sob and a laugh left her mother's throat, and both her parents kneeled down to hug her. "We'll see you soon, butterfly."
Kurapika let a small smile flit over her face at the nickname. They hadn't used that since she was eight years old on account of her annoyance with it, but now it was a welcome reminder of a time before all this started.
They sat there hugging for what felt like hours, but when they finally had to leave, Kurapika felt it was too soon. Mr. Chrollo came up to her eventually, a few minutes after they vanished from view, and placed a hand on her shoulder.
"Well, butterfly," he said, his grin widening at her pout. "Ready to test all winter has to offer?"
She crossed her arms, set her chin to the air, and walked away. "I'm going to my room!"
"You sure you can find your way there?"
"Yes! I'm not an idiot!"
. . .
She was lost.
Well, in her defense, the whole place was far too large for an eleven-year-old girl. She looked to Penelope for guidance, and the goose just shrugged.
"You really shouldn't have run away."
"Shut up, you're just a goose!"
"There is no need for speciesism, sweetheart," Penelope chided, waddling ahead to another corridor of polished marble floors and floral print walls. "C'mon, we haven't tried this way yet."
Kurapika followed her, muttering an apology somewhere along the way. She didn't meet many patients along the way, and talked to none of the ones she did. They scared her a bit, since they were taller and older than her. She bumped into a young woman with long, frizzy black hair at one point. She wore a long-sleeved purple dress, and her eyes were small circles of violet in a sea of white and red. Her lips were shaded a reddish purple, and in her hand was a shaking steel knife with a black hilt.
"I don't want to share," she whispered, chanted really, as she looked down at the little girl. "I don't want to share, I don't want to share, I don't want to share."
After that, a pretty nurse with round spectacles and a black shirt and jeans under her lab coat came up to them and took the scary lady away. She didn't say anything to address Kurapika, and Kurapika herself was struck shy all of a sudden, only snapping out of her uncharacteristic timidness once the nurse disappeared around the corner.
Eventually, a nice woman named Pakunoda took her by the hand and led her back to her room. Kurapika liked her immediately. There was kindness in her eyes, and it was easy to see that the young, statuesque woman was a good person. She wore a more revealing outfit than the nurse had, but wore the same lab coat. The woman's tag said she was a doctor, and Kurapika quickly assured her that she was twenty hundred times better than Chrollo. Pakunoda laughed and agreed that she was.
"Then, why are you the one who has to work for him?" she asked.
"Because," Pakunoda replied, fetching her keys out of her pocket to unlock Kurapika's door, "I love working for him."
Kurapika's forehead contorted in confusion. Why would anyone want to work under someone if they didn't need to?
"You'll understand someday," Pakunoda reassured. Kurapika groaned at the response. Someday. Someday when they finally get the courage to tell her, that was.
"I hate adults."
It wouldn't be until much later that Kurapika finally took all the pieces and put together the puzzle. Until she understood the full extent of Pakunoda's loyalty.
. . .
"Are these all mine?" Kurapika asked, taking one of the many books off the shelves in her room. They were brand new, she noticed. Everything in the room had that polished sheen only new things sported. There was a wardrobe made from a warm-toned wood, and a white coffee table and chair. The walls were painted the color of chocolate chip cookies, and Kurapika suddenly felt hunger clench her stomach.
Pakunoda chuckled as her stomach growled. "I'll go get you some food. Wait here, alright?"
Kurapika nodded, earnestly. Food. Food was good.
Pakunoda let the door close behind her, and Kurapika sat down on her bed, which was gigantic and foamy and had many colorful covers to keep out the cold. There were half a million pillows lined at the head of the bed, painted red and orange.
The door opened again, and this time a girl of about the same age as Kurapika barged in. Her long, blue hair was held up in a pink scrunchie atop her head, then spilled down her back in wavy curls. She wore expensive clothes, also all in pink, and wore pink nail polish and pink shoes. A little charm hung from a chain around her neck. She was pretty, Kurapika thought, but the elitist look in her eye caught her off guard.
"Neon!" another voice warned. A girl took hold of Neon's arms, and Kurapika caught sight of quite possibly the greenest eyes she'd ever seen. They reminded her a bit of a cat's, wide and alert. The color reserved for the more vibrant things in nature, like grass and trees and other botanical creations. Not human eyes.
"Oh c'mon, Aoki," said the pink girl. "I'm just gonna ask her. It's not like I'm gonna do anything bad."
"But it's creepy!"
"It is not!" huffed Neon. "Watch." She turned to Kurapika and raised a pair of scissors in her hands. "Would you mind if I cut a bit of your hair?"
It took Kurapika a while to understand, but when she did all she could do was reply, "my hair?"
Neon bobbed her head up and down, excitedly, coming closer to her to touch a lock of her hair. "Yes! It's such a gorgeous shade of golden blonde. So few people actually have this exact deviation from standard blonde hair, and it's in such good shape as well, just the right texture. I couldn't hope for a more perfect specimen for my collection!"
"Collection?" Kurapika repeated, a bit warier than she was before.
"Like I said," Aoki sighed, gesturing to Neon, "creepy."
"It is not!"
"It is a bit creepy," Kurapika admitted, exchanging a look with Penelope. "I think you're scaring Penelope."
Neon squinted at where Kurapika's attention seemed concentrated. "Whatcha talking about? There's nothing the–ow!"
"Don't be rude," Aoki said, drawing her hand back. Neon massaged the back of her head, and Aoki decided it was a good time for introductions. "I'm Aoki, and the creepy one is Neon."
"I'm not creepy!" she protested. "Chrollo says I just have eccentric tastes!"
"Chrollo always says things in the nicest way possible. That's just the way he is."
Neon groaned. "I know, it's so annoying."
"It is!" Kurapika blurted out. "And how he acts like he knows everything, too!"
The three girls shook their heads, despondently. They were all sitting on the bed now, ready to call Chrollo out on all his shortcomings. Aoki added, "he's so bossy. He acts like he owns the place."
"Which he does, but that's beside the point," Kurapika nodded, affirmatively, crossing her arms.
Aoki smiled, placing a hand on her shoulder. "I think you and I will get along well." She glared at Neon. "Don't know about her, though."
Neon looked appalled. "How dare you? Why would we not get along?"
"Because you're trying to steal a piece of her body!" Aoki reminded, patience wearing thin.
"I am not!" the girl insisted. "I asked very nicely, just the way Chrollo told me to."
Aoki scoffed, "please, as soon as she falls asleep you'll come back in here and cut a piece of her hair without her permission."
Kurapika instinctively reached to touch a lock of her shoulder-length hair. She didn't want scissors anywhere near them.
The door opened once more, this time revealing both Chrollo and Pakunoda, as well as a young boy in a red sweater and black pants. He had straight brown hair that covered his head like a helmet, and soulful brown eyes which were currently bouncing from one side to the other in what could only be a nervous gesture.
"Well, once you three are done analyzing all my character flaws," Chrollo said, leaning against the door frame. "I'd have you all know that the ice rink is officially ready for your arrival."
Aoki and Neon jumped off the bed like they'd been pushed forward by some strange force. Then, they gave her expectant looks. This, coupled with the fact that Penelope was jabbing at her ankles so she would finally move, made her jump off as well.
The three of them walked out the door and were soon joined by Paku and Chrollo. As they strolled down the corridor together, Kurapika suddenly remembered something rather important.
"Hey, where's my food?"
"It's at the ice rink," Paku replied, smiling at the pout on Kurapika's face. "Be patient. It'll be worth it, I promise."
"Fine," Kurapika sighed, hunching over to show her disapproval. Then, she caught sight of the new boy, still hiding behind Chrollo, and quickly joined him. "Hi!"
The boy's cheeks were suddenly stained with patches of red, and Kurapika found it quite cute. "He-hello!"
"I'm Kurapika," she said, sticking out her hand. He took it, though he missed a few times before he managed to do so.
The boy squinted at their joined hands, but then he let go, his lips spreading into a wide grin. "I'm Pairo!"
"Are you a patient here, too?" she asked.
He shook his head. "My cousin works here. I spend a lot of time indoors, so they thought I should join you for the first day on the ice."
Aoki appeared beside Kurapika. "His cousin's named Shalnark. You'll meet him soon enough. He's the one who does all the safety checks on the ice rink."
"I like him. He never calls me creepy," Neon added.
"Probably thinks it, though."
"Play nice, kids," Chrollo warned. "We wouldn't want Kurapika's first day ruined by your fighting."
"Yeah, yeah," the two girls responded.
. End of Chapter .