Chapter 3

The ocean breeze was a chilling reminder of our arrival at Dolle Harbour. The ship had finally reached its destination. Anchored, to the sea floor that lied hundreds of meters below us. The crew had started offloading and stacking up new cargo onto the ship. Breathing in the fresh air really made anyone feel better. The four of us still hadn't decided, on which course we should follow, when leaving the ship. "Hahhh I can't wait to see where this takes us", Gon says with excitement coursing through his body. He really was an open book most of the time.

"Gon!", a rough voice was heard calling out. Kurapika and Leorio were already further up in front, than myself and Gon and seem to not hear the call. Gon and I turn around, only to see the captain waiting for us next to a few crates. Both of us start to head towards the captain with a speedy but excited pace. The captain puts his hand forth towards Gon, "I'll give you both a little advice before you leave. You see that tall pine tree on the hill", he says and points his finger across to behind the left side of us. Turning around we both look to where he points and nod towards him in agreement. Listening to the captain but also feeling a foreign presence, I let my eyes survey our surrounding, only to notice an eavesdropping shadow behind the crate next to us. "Go towards there. There are people there, navigators, who will take you to the site of the first phase of the exam. I wish yall all the luck", he says.

The eavesdropper decides to leave from beside the crate to a place a bit further than us, in order to not get noticed, but still close enough to follow us. The captain offers his hand towards us to shake. Gon then smiles brightly whilst shaking the captain's hand. Turning around and heading towards Kurapika and Leorio, I'm interrupted "Missy", I turn around, "You have quite an interesting fellow with you, don't you think? Yet, you, yourself, are quite interesting as well. You noticed that shadow, too didn't you?", he says looking at me with interest. "I think I can expect great things from all of you in that group". Looking at him with a blank expression, I turn around and follow Gon towards the rest of the group. "I'm telling you what my source informed me off!", says Leorio whilst pointing at the bus that was about to leave, "He said we should take that bus and it will take us to the exam site".

Gon, Kurapika and Leorio were all standing in front of the city map outside of the port when I decided to join them. The feeling of the eavesdropper following us, still hadn't died down. It seems he was keen to be a follower, who thought he was too smart for his own good. Listening back to the conversation I hear Gon talking, "Nuh uh. The captain clearly said we should head towards the pine tree on top of that hill" he says whilst pointing towards the picture on the map and then pointing towards the hill further across from where we were standing. "Maybe you were mistaken Gon?", says Kurapika. "No. That's exactly what he said. It seems that there may be more to this than we thought", I say with a clear voice, "I think we should listen to the captain's advice, especially because he was an agent for the hunter's association. I don't think he has any hidden motives to try and send us in the wrong direction. If he was, then it would be for naught to even bring us here and only tell us where to go. Whilst leaving everyone else to find their own way". "hmm that seems true enough", Kurapika replies, "shall we head out then?"

Walking on the road towards the village was a bit dull. The village market, however, was an exciting bit of life, not because of the usual bustling, but because of Gon's facial expressions of finding something new around every corner he had turned. Especially when his attention focused on a shiny red jewel and his eyes went large with excitement. The lady talking him into buying it came out with one of the usual, 'it's the only one of its kind' sales. Dragging Gon away from the scam was Leorio, asking him if he was an idiot for falling for such things. Kurapika and I just looking at each other and laughing at the situation with no worries at all.

Walking onwards into alley, an old woman sits with a table and a cane. White hair tied back, face with wrinkles and a necklace with large beads sat around her neck, whilst she wore a purple long gown and was very short. A wooden backdrop lined with white flowers stood behind her, as well as six others. Each person had different colour hair and something to hold. Most of them had instruments, all except one who held a crow on his arm. Walking forward the old lady speaks, "I will ask you a question and you will have 5 seconds to answer with either of the options presented. If correct I will show you the right way", all of us look at each other in the eye showing hesitation on accepting the proposal.

"If you don't want to attempt the quiz, then you wont mind me doing so", a man walks through, to the old lady, looking at us with confidence. His presence finally made known to the rest of the group. It was the eavesdropper back at the port that had followed us. "Who the hell are you?", Leorio asks. "Eh. He's the guy that's been following us from the port", Gon replies with an expression that says he had known for all this while. Kurapika and Leorio look a bit shocked to discover that fact and look over to me with a questioning look in their eyes. Nodding my head discretely to show them that it was true. They look at each other then back at the man that had intruded on us.

The man was average in height with a large round nose that protruded from his face. His eyes and body showed confidence, which he should off clearly threw away in the nearest trash bin, if I had anything to say about it. Looking towards the old woman, he asks for the question, in which the old lady replies, "If you had the choice to pick between your lover and your mother, which would you choose? A-your mother or B- your lover. You have 5 seconds to answer". All of us hearing the question, freeze all type of movement. Shock coursing through our body for the unexpected situation, given to the man to answer. The man, looking haughtily at her and replies almost immediately, "A- my mother", he says with a satisfied smile on his face. The old lady looks at him and says, "You may pass", the crow screeches a noise and a space behind her opens and all of us look at her dumbfounded. The man looks at us and says, "All you need to do, is say what the old woman wants to hear". The idiot part was clearly implied at the end and the look he gave clearly indicated his intentions of what would happen if we made it through after him on the same path.

Traps. He would set them up just to get rid of us unfairly. The irritant. "Hey! How could you let him just pass like that! That didn't even deserve an answer!", Leorio screamed at the old lady with anger coating his voice. "Now for yall's question. Both your son and daughter are drowning, which do you save? A- your son or B- your daughter? You have 5 seconds to answer", the old lady says staring at all of us. Leorio still screaming at the old lady, "That question isn't even worthy to answer", he looks at her with out rage. 'Worthy to answer, worthy to …answer?', eyes showing a little surprise, Kurapika and I look at each other, "Leorio!", Kurapika starts but is stopped by the old lady, "One more word from your mouth and you will all fail", she says as she starts a countdown.

Looking over to Gon and seeing him deep in thought, sitting on the floor with his chin on his head. 'He doesn't look like he's going to answer soon. So, we should be fine', I think to myself. Looking towards Leorio, he seems to be picking up a wooden plank that had been lying against the wall of the alley. The old lady seemed to reach 5 and Leorio had just begun running to attack her, when Kurapika jumps in front and screams, "Stop! Leorio! Don't attack her", Leorio stops in a hurry looking at Kurapika in surprise. "Why should I?!". "Because", I start, "the answer is silence". It was quite clever actually, that there was no right answer in such a situation. I mean of course, there wasn't, if a person could pick between 2 people that they loved, did they ever really love them?

Leorio looking a bit shocked, finally releases the wooden plank he had been holding hostage, to attack the old lady with. The old lady looked towards us with satisfaction in her old eyes. "I apologise mam. It was my mistake to attack you", Leorio says with an apologetic posture and facial expression. "Don't worry. This old woman has dealt with these kinds of people many times before, young lad. You have all answered correctly. I will show you the right path", the old lady says. "Wait. Then, when you let the other guy pass, when he gave you the answer…", Leorio brings up. "She just said he may pass. She never mentioned that the path he took was the right one", Kurapika mentions, "The right path to take, is actually this path". The doors to the left of us open and bright light is seen at the exit of the path. "That is correct", says the old lady whilst looking at Kurapika, "The path that young lad ad taken would lead him to nowhere near the hunter's exam". All three of us look at each other with satisfied eyes.

"Ahhhah. I just can't figure it out!", Gon says loudly in frustration, at the situation. "What are you talking about Gon? The situation has been solved", says Kurapika with amusement. "Nuh uh. I was just wondering… if it ever really did happen to me in the future, what would I do in that kind of situation?", Gon says whilst looking up at us with a serious expression. The amusement and relief that had coated our bodies suddenly vanished from every one's aura. The atmosphere between all of us becoming morose at just the thought of the situation ever occurring in the future. All of us stare at each other with the tension hanging in the air. Noticing the old lady from the corner of my eye, a grim expression greeted me. Her whole-body sagging and eyes were grim with the reality of what could come to greet us in the future. 'That's what this test was about', I think to myself, 'to show us the reality of what a hunter would have to deal with. To show us that not everything in the future is going to be rainbows and sunshine with unicorns and overflowing love. There's going to be danger to ourselves… and to the people we care about. Something that we've… already experienced.'

Looking towards the three that stood with me and noticing their hunched forms and deep-thinking expressions on their faces. I think to the time when we just met and how carefree we had been with each other, not worried about the future. 'I don't want them to get hurt. I want to protect them, no matter what', sigh, 'I'm already too attached to them, aren't I?', I think whilst closing my eyes tightly and opening to see all of them looking at me with worried expressions. Smiling lightly and shaking my head as if to say, 'I'm fine', I speak out loud towards them, "We should get going. We don't know how far the examination site is or where exactly, it is". All of us agreeing and saying good bye to the old lady and heading towards the pine tree on top of the hill.

Never expecting what we were going to see on that hill.