Another chapter?! XD
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"Ooof," you mumbled as you nudged the door open with your foot and dropped your load of books.
"That's the last one, right?"
You nodded mutely, sliding into a chair and fanning yourself.
Kurapika looked around the room with his hand on his hips. "I'm amazed that we were able to carry them all."
"I really need to thank that old couple sometime."
"Maybe bake them something?"
"HAAAAH?!" you screeched, shooting upright in the chair. "Kurapika. You know I can't cook. You've seen my toast." A pause. "You said that on purpose. You definitely said that on purpose."
Kurapika shrugged and grinned cheekily, refusing to answer, instead turning to the piles of books that had been relocated into his apartment. "We're going to need bookshelves."
"It's fine I don't mi—"
"Perhaps I want places to sit, unlike you."
You turned away with a pout and began ruffling absentmindedly through a pile of the texts. A few had collected dust from being stacked, untouched, in your apartment for too long. However, a hoarder at heart, you kept as many of the volumes as you could.
Tales from Earthsea…
The Iliad…
You read the titles in your mind one by one, recalling the strings of emotions that were weakly attached to each one.
And this….?
Your breath hitched in your throat.
Crime and Punishment…?
The dusky morning as you sneeze from the chilliness. The little package next to your pillow. You picking it up and unwrapping the awkwardly wrapped cloth. You grinning a little as you glimpse your brother sneaking a glance at you, and turning to hide his face in his book again when he caught you peeking. You chuckled lightly. Give it to your brother to somehow procure a tome this large.
Biting your lip, you shoved the volume with unusual indelicacy underneath the pile, hoping that your emotions could stay buried alongside them.
/\/\/\/\/\
"Are you not heading back?" you asked as you saw Kurapika fail to rise from his office seat.
Kurapika smiled tiredly, the bags under his eyes even more prominently obvious than they were before.
"No, not yet. I have a few more things I need to finish," he responded, barely glancing away from his monitor set up. With a sharp exhale, he ran his hands through his bangs, combing them back and allowing them to fall again, messily. Noticing your lack of movement, he smiled faintly.
"It's fine, [name], you can head back first."
"Oh, alright then, see you…" you paused a little. "Later?"
He nodded and turned back to his work.
Bag in hand, you slinked out of the shared office space while putting in considerable effort to close the door silently. You turned to find Melody's beaming face greeting you, her hands clasped in excitement.
"I'm really happy for you, [name], really!"
"And I'm not really sure it's like that…."
She shook her head vigorously.
"Of course, it's not like that. Kurapika's never the best at expressing his emotions. But, I would say that he more or less is willing to pursue further interactions with you. That is quite a feat, no?"
Scraping at the thick carpet slightly with your shoe, you averted your gaze towards your feet.
"I guess. But the more I get to know him, the more I think I shouldn't be thinking about such possibilities. He's…" you pause a little to find the right words. "Stretched rather thin right now, I think."
"That definitely seems likely," Melody mused as she began to head towards the front exit. "But, there's no rush, right?"
You nodded and followed. "None at all."
/\/\/\/\/\/\
Waving goodbye to Melody at the crossroads, you continued onto your apartment, only to come to a sudden realization. You stopped in your tracks.
My…apartment? That's not…right? When had Kurapika's apartment become mine? I mean, I'm still trying to find out how to restore my apartment…and I'm only staying temporarily out of Kurapika's courtesy. On the couch.
But for some reason, you felt that your shared space had become rather homely over the past few weeks. Was it the books?
Satisfied, you continued with your commute only to be interrupted by a finger tapping your shoulder. You looked up from the hand to face its owner.
"Um, excuse me, could I ask for some directions?" You were met with wide purple eyes and an airy voice. The young girl blinked, her hands fiddling with the gold chains on her wrists. With a small motion, she pushed her large glasses up her nose.
"Uh, sure," you replied, giving a quick nod. "Where are you headed?"
"Shizuku, don't ask. We don't have time. We can just find it on our own," another feminine voice called from behind her. From your peripheral, you spotted a flash of pink.
So that night at the ball…
"I-if its ok, then I should really get going," you muttered as you turned to hurry down the road, keeping your gaze averted from the additional figures that had caught up with the spectacled individual.
"Wait," a voice barked, freezing you in your steps. "You know who we are, right?"
You shook your head hurriedly. "O-of course not! My apologies if I…"
"[name], that's you, isn't it?" the thickly accented voice demanded. You recognized it, slightly muffled by the attire that the individual was undoubtedly wearing.
You darted your eyes about wildly, desperately trying to find some way to escape the present situation,
"I-I'm not sure what you are talking about. I think you've gotten the wrong person…"
"I don't think so, [name]," the short, black-clad figure huffed.
Stumbling, you stepped to run.
I must get out of here…I don't—
A sharp jolt of pain behind your head and your vision faded to black.
How…ironic.
/\/\/\/\/\
"—id you do that?!" a bold voice demanded. A woman?
"She knew who we were, right? And you guys obviously knew who she was as well," a huskier, deeper voice answered.
A small groan slipped from your lips.
How long…where?
You cracked your eyes open a sliver as you attempted to stay still, observing a familiar woman with a mop of pink hair confronting some taller man dressed in some strange foreign garb.
Egyptian, maybe?
An attempt to shift some weight off your shoulder made you realize your hands were bound behind you, tied firmly but not painfully.
"I wasn't going to let some weak girl compromise our mission, the man rumbled.
"I think she's awake." The sound of earrings jangled behind you as a large hand patted you on the back, urging you to sit up. With no point in acting any longer, you shoved yourself to a seated position with your elbows, blinking forcefully several times to clear them of grime.
"Good morning, [name]," Feitan hissed.
"Long time no see…Feitan," you mumbled.
He clicked his tongue with his usual annoyance. "Glad to see that the little princess has still retained some manners." You bit your lip in irritation at the label.
"Come on now, Feitan, no need to be so nasty so soon," a familiar figure piped up, hand reaching into their loosely tied robe to scratch at their chest. "Why don't we let her talk first, eh?"
Taking the chance, you scanned your eyes about the room.
The cathedral?
"I think before then, you should tell us who she is anyways," a young male voice rang throughout the dingy space. You looked up to spot the speaker: a cheerful looking individual whose round face and mischievous expression contrasted with his muscular physique. He placed a hand on his hips.
Four figures you recognized: Machi standing, her back to the wall, arms crossed, eyes closed, Nobunaga sitting crossed legged, casually holding his prized sword, Franklin seated calmly, and Feitan standing before you, foot tapping with impatience.
But the other six, observing you with various degrees of wariness, you did not know at all.*
How much…have they changed?
"She's the younger sister of the boss," Franklin answered smoothly.
Rustles of confusion sounded around the room.
"You're saying. The boss. Has. A sister." The robed man, whom you have now observed to have no eyebrows, repeated incredulously.
"She's the reason we got together in the first place, Phinx," Machi continued, motionless in her corner.
"This is that 'princess' that I heard you guys talking about when I first joined?" The bespectacled girl you recognized from earlier—Shizuku, if you recalled correctly- blinked again, owlish eyes peering at you curiously.
"Don't call me a princess!" you snapped in response, clenching your teeth in frustration.
That one word, had been used so often in the past, in so many ways.
"Ooh, she's got a temper," The babyfaced male cooed, tossing his phone up and down with one hand. "Feitan, what do you say we do with her?"
"We kill her, Shalnark" came his instant, simple reply.
"Whoa whoa whoa, hold up. Kid still hasn't gotten a chance to speak for herself yet." Nobunaga sat up slightly from his slouched position. "Shouldn't be so keen on killing the boss's younger sis yet, dontcha think?"
Feitan's eyes narrowed, his lips most likely curled up in a snarl. "She's a nuisance."
"Give her a chance, common!"
An expectant silence settled over the large architecture.
"Well? Are you going to speak?" Feitan spat.
"It's nice to see you all again?" you responded meekly.
"Why do you interact with the chain bastard?"
"He's my cowork-"
"Why were you together at that masquerade?"
"It was an assignment-"
"Why are you two living together?"
You stuttered. "I-he-…"
"Kill her."
"Wait, Feitan," Shalnark piped. "She has connections with the Chain User right? Why don't we use her to lure him out?"
"We can figure out what to do with her later then," Nobunaga added, visibly relieved at the possibility of an alternative.
"I disagree," Feitan opposed. "I don't like her. I never did." He tugged at the end of his umbrella. The blade hidden beneath the plain-looking wooden handle glinted.
"Feitan, when the troupe fights," Machi prompted.
"…We settle it by flipping a coin," he finished, irritated as he reached into his pocket. "Fine. I take heads."
Tossing the small trinket into the air, he caught it and slapped it onto the back of his hand.
"Tails. She lives." The disappointment was obvious in his voice.