Bit of a shorter chapter this time, sorry for that!
Disclaimer: I do not own Hunter x Hunter
See bottom of chapter for added notes
Chapter Ten
"So we just need to open it?" Gon asked.
"No," Leorio said, shaking his head. "No. No way."
The entrance to the Zoldyck estate loomed before them, intricate carvings gleaming wickedly in the moonlight. Ancient symbols were etched into the metal, one for each set of gates. Twin gargoyles were perched atop the utmost doors, mouths contorted into vicious grins. Yes, this had to be the place. Intimidating? Check. Dangerous? Check. Unnecessarily complex? Check. Plus, Pairo had already seen two people decimated by a murderous monster, so this one had to be legit.
Kurapika shifted uneasily beside him, sizing up the obstacle ahead. The blond had seemed more than a little unsettled ever since his conversation with Hisoka, which Pairo was still miffed about. If only he had went with him, then maybe he would understand the situation better. It pained him to see his companion so worried, the one person that he had pledged to protect, even though the other didn't need it.
"Yes way," Pairo responded, monotone. "Either these gates or immediate death by demonic dog."
They had been introduced to the monstrous watchdog a few minutes earlier, an encounter that had shaken them up quite a bit. Mikey, the large beast that had eagerly consumed the earlier would-be assassins, was perfectly docile during their brief visit. However, that didn't stop Pairo from anxiously noting the creature's sharp claws and gigantic maw. Even Gon, who seemed to be boundlessly positive, looked deterred and a great deal terrified.
Pairo hadn't expected the whole 'rescue Killua' mission to be easy, but he'd hoped that maybe, just maybe, the journey wouldn't have entailed violence or fighting in any way. While it looked like the opposite, Pairo was the one that hated fighting and avoided it all costs. Kurapika accepted that in extreme circumstances, brute force was needed, and had no qualms about settling things with a good old-fashioned fistfight.
Leorio looked to Zebro pleadingly. Shrugging, the older man just nodded gravely. "He's right."
"But this gate is impossibly heavy! How will we even have a chance of opening it?" Leorio asked, his panic mode having been switched on.
An evil grin stretched across Zebro features, and Pairo had a feeling that he didn't want to know the answer to Leorio's question. "Well, I'm so glad you asked, young man. Come with me." And with that, he began to walk away, leaving the four of them no choice but to scramble to catch up.
"Gah!" Leorio hissed, trying to raise his teacup to his lips. The mottled-green vessel refused to budge, no matter how hard Leorio pulled. Kurapika, Gon, and Pairo were having similar troubles, all surprised at the weight. After a few tries, they gave up, Leorio sagging into his chair. That was a bad idea, as his fifty kilogram vest pushed the seat backwards, causing the doctor to tumble to the ground.
"This is wack!" Leorio exclaimed, gripping the edge of the table to pull himself up shakily. "Why is everything so damn heavy?"
Kurapika looked up at Zebro. "This is part of our training, I suppose?" The other man nodded.
"The cups you are holding are twenty kilograms each, and the vests you are all wearing are fifty."
Leorio made a sound like an exploded garden hose. "What?"
"Wow! Really?" Gon gasped.
"I'll increase the weight as you all progress."
Well isn't that nice?
"Oh, and the utensils and furniture in this place weigh in at over twenty kilograms apiece. Not to mention the doors, which are five hundred kilograms respectively," Zebro informed them helpfully, lifting the teapot with ease. "More tea, anyone?" Everyone groaned in unison.
Later, when they were preparing for sleep, Leorio looked around furtively, undoing one of his vest's straps. No, Kurapika mouthed to him, desperately crossing his arms into an 'x'.Who knew what would happen if Zebro caught one of them breaking the rules? As if on a cue, Zebro burst in, scanning the room. Locking eyes with Leorio, he fixed the weighted vest, giving him a warning glance before turning back to wherever he had come from.
After that incident, the four of them split up into their separate rooms, Kurapika volunteering to share with Pairo. The impossibly heavy door pushed aside to reveal a small room with simple furnishing. Just a thin bed pressed against one wall, a small lamp, and a plain chair propped up at a corner.
Sighing, Pairo flopped down on the mattress prepared for them, frowning as the springs groaned beneath him. Kurapika sat down beside him, letting out a squeak of surprise when a pair of arms encircled his waist. Dragging the blond down beside him, Pairo let out a pleased hum as he buried his nose into Kurapika's hair.
"Get off," Kurapika halfheartedly protested, tugging at the arm bound around his hip.
Pairo pouted childishly. "No." His hold tightened possessively. "Tired." Plus, holding the other Kurta was addictive.
"What are you, three?"
"Yes," Pairo replied, voice rough with sleepiness. Something in Kurapika's heart jumped at the sound.
Kurapika sighed, relaxing in the other's grip. When drowsy, his companion would only get more affectionate if Kurpaika tried to move, which was adorable, but very inconvenient when it came to facing his friends with a lovey-dovey Pairo still latched onto his waist.
Which had happened more than once.
Although he knew that the other would probably kill him the next morning, Pairo couldn't bring himself to care. Not when he was so warm and comfortable with the one he cared for most in his arms.
And so, the two of them drifted off into a sweet, dreamless slumber.
Pairo wiped the sweat beading at his brow, glaring up at the testing gates with heavy contempt.
"How about we all push at once?" Kurapika suggested. "On the count of three?"
The rest of their group said nothing in response, but lined themselves up against the doors with a collective groan. Even Gon looked tired, favoring his right arm considerably. He had joined them in their efforts to open the gates shortly after his broken arm had healed, but it seemed that the four of them combined were still not strong enough to pass through.
"One...two...three!"
They all surged forward, exerted as much force as they could. Slowly, slowly the gates cracked open, a small sliver widening to a bigger gap. "Keep. Going!" Gon gasped out. Pairo scowled, furrowing his brow, and threw out every ounce of strength he had.
The four of them stumbled into the estate, blinking up at their new surroundings. Kurapika and Leorio stood panting, hands still poised on the doors. Gon and Pairo had been swept onto their hands and knees, both of them grinning from ear to ear.
"Woah," Gon exclaimed, eyes scanning the area.
Large, graceful trees stretched up towards the heavens, and dense vegetation grew thickly along the forest floor. Pale, sickly-looking flowers bloomed side-by-side with dangerously hued ones, and unseen animals scuttled around underfoot. A dirt road carved a meandering path through it all, disappearing into the subtle mist hanging around the air.
"Is now a bad time to say that this place gives me the creeps?" Leorio asked tentatively, flinching as the gates closed behind them with a final slam.
"Well, it's too late to turn back now," Pairo said, running a hand down a moss-covered tree trunk. "So I guess we better get started on our trek."
"Let's hope we don't die on our way there," Leorio remarked darkly. The doctor kept a hand hovering over his pocketknife just in case.
On that happy note, Kurapika set off with his friends on yet another headlong-trip into danger.
Amazing.
Kurapika barely restrained himself from screaming in frustration as Gon was struck once again.
"Stop it!" the butler whispered, almost to herself, looking increasingly more panicked as Gon stood up once more. "Stay away!" Her grip on her staff wavered. Gon had been violently smashed in the face for the past few hours, not willing to give up even if it meant dealing with the consequences. With every metallic smack, the butler's resolve weakened, chipping away piece by piece.
Not heeding to the girl's pleas, the boy continued on, blow after blow, without complaint. The blond had begged Gon to let him take his place, but the younger had refused adamantly. So Kurapika waited in pained silence, heart clenching at every beating as if it was his own.
No, Gon had said, I must do this myself. Killua is my best friend, and I will do anything to get him back.
Canary looked close to tears, lip trembling as she swung her weapon. "Leave!"
Spiraling backwards from the hit, Gon's expression remained determined.
"Cut it out!" the girl yelled. "Don't you see how futile this is?" She turned to the rest of the group. "Why aren't you stopping him?"
Kurapika, Pairo, and Leorio's expressions stayed unmoved, eyes fighting to remain neutral. This was Gon's fight, and they had no right to interfere.
"Aren't you his friends?" Canary exclaimed, more desperately.
The only reason we're letting him do this is because we are friends.
"What's the problem?" Gon gasped out, getting to his feet. "I'm just here to see my friend. I'm just here to see Killua!"
At his words, something shifted in the butler's eyes, and Kurapika knew that Gon had won.
"Gotoh, has Gon gotten here yet?" All heads swiveled to the back of the room.
The four of them had been tricked into a high-stakes guessing game, one that had gotten all but Gon disqualified from. They couldn't have just refused to play, either. Canary's life, along with all chances of meeting Killua were on the line. So their party had just gritted their teeth and agreed to the head-butler's terms.
The rules themselves sounded so simple. It was a guessing game. Gotoh, the butler, would throw the coin around in between his hands, using fancy tricks and skills to trip them up. Then, one of them had to pick which hand they thought the coin was in. If they guessed correctly, they moved on to the next level. If not, they were eliminated. Once everyone of their group had chosen incorrectly, the 'game' would end and they would be forced to leave the Zoldyck Estate.
Leorio had gotten eliminated first, Pairo and Kurapika following in close succession. All chances rested Gon, who had been hard-pressed to finish up the final round. Which thankfully he was fortunate in doing so.
And then Killua had just strolled in, oh-so casually. The paler boy's face had been badly bruised, much like Gon's, and striped with cuts. Kurapika was afraid of what the answer would be if he asked who had done such a thing to him. But, it didn't matter, as long as Killua was safe and alive.
"Killua!" Gon yelled, having recovered from the initial shock the quickest.
Killua's eyes brightened. "Gon!" He looked around the room. "And...Kurapika and Pairo?"
Pairo smiled. "What? Are we just the after thoughts?" Nonetheless, the Kurtas ran forward to hug the younger boy, Pairo ruffling his hair as Kurapika delivered delivered a motherly peck on the boy's forehead.
"Hey! And it's Liorio!" Killua exclaimed, smirking.
"It's Leorio!" the older man corrected, pretended to be cross. The act faded quickly, however, and he too strode over to embrace Killua.
Killua turned to Gon. "Woah, what happened to your face?" The spiky-haired boy frowned.
"Hey, yours isn't any better!"
Gotoh, meanwhile, smiled at the display. It seemed that the young master had finally found his real family, one that he had pieced together himself. However, the head butler couldn't help but count the days that such a happy thing would last. It was the Zoldyck family way that carved each master's paths for them; it simply was not their choice.
Although Killua's new family had everything that his old one didn't, it would never last. Gotoh had seen this before, and he was sure of it.
"Yorknew City, huh?" Killua pondered, toying with the zipper on his backpack.
The five of them were talking in an airship terminal, waiting for their flights. Gon and Killua were headed on a trip to Heaven's Arena, where they would try to find Hisoka, and Leorio was leaving to pursue his studies as a doctor, something that came cheaply to him with his new Hunter's license. Kurapika and Pairo hadn't decided where they were going quite yet, so they were hitching a ride on an airship headed to Lukso province to pay their respects. After that, they would most likely start looking for a job that would bring them closer to the auction.
"Yeah," Pairo replied. "The Scarlet Eyes will be auctioned off there."
Kurapika nodded. "At least, that's what Hisoka told me."
"Hisoka?" Leorio, Gon and Killua chorused.
"He cornered me after orientation to hand over information," the blonde stated, voice calm. "That was part of the reason why he forfeited my match."
"So that's why," Leorio mused.
"Yes. He told me to come to Yorknew City on September first, because that was when the underground auction would happen. Whether this is a trap or not is still in question," Kurapika confessed. "However, it is a risk Pairo and I are willing to take."
"Don't forget the Spiders," Pairo cautioned.
Leorio paled. "The Phantom Troupe?"
"Flight 236, to Lenice, boarding in ten minutes."
"Oh, crap!" Leorio checked his ticket. "That's my flight!" Giving them all awkward pats on the back, he announced, "I'll wait for you guys at Yorknew City!" He turned to Kurapika. "You better call me to fill me in, you hear? See ya!"
After Leorio's airship retreated into the distance, Killua motioned Kurapika to go on in his explanation.
"Hisoka hinted that the Gen'ei Ryodan would be there at that time." Kurapika shrugged. "It makes sense, as the annual auction is a black market for unusual items and rare treasures from around the world. What's better to steal from than the world's largest gathering of riches and wealth across the nations?"
"Aren't you worried about them?" Gon asked. He couldn't forget the blond's smoldering anger during his fight with Majitani.
"Or still angry?" Killua chipped in.
Pairo pulled his companion closer. "Not particularly. Yes, we are both still angry, but it's not to a point that we are not able to think rationally in their presence." Hopefully.
"As long as they don't get into our way, we won't confront them or purposely seek them out," Kurapika continued, looking unburdened by the fact that the culprits for his clan's massacre would be residing in the same city as them in a few months.
"The less dangerous encounters, the better," Pairo added.
"So, I guess the next place we'll be meeting at is Yorknew City?" Gon observed.
"Mm-hm, exactly."
"Flight 491, to Heaven's Arena, boarding in five minutes," a cool voice informed from one of the nearby speakers.
"Oh, that's us!" Gon exclaimed. Grabbing his friend's arm, he tugged him toward the boarding gates. "Bye, Kurapika! Bye Pairo!"
"Until next time," Killua called out from over his shoulder.
"Yes, until then!" Kurapika said, waving goodbye.
Next, Yorknew City!
To be Continued...
Added Notes
1) Finally on to the Yorknew City arc!
2) This chapter was pretty hard to write, but I hope you guys liked it!
3) Next chapter I will reveal Pairo's nen abilities, but if you have any suggestions, please tell me
4) I didn't change too much during this chapter, becuase there wasn't much to change anyway
5) This is an AU story! Lots of things will be different in the next few chapters
6) The focus of this story is to show Kurapika having a healthier life, please remember that!
As always, thanks for reading and please review!