Finally, I get to update this. I'm so sorry! I was so busy I couldn't get myself to sit down write anything. I'm trying to get back on track now! I hope I'm not too rusty :D Please excuse any mistakes you might find, I proof read it, but not as vigorously as I probably should have.

If anyone's still reading this, Enjoy!


Aggravation

24 hours earlier

Laeta was sitting on the balcony, cradling the book she tried to read in her lap, opened at a page she hadn't yet looked at. Her eyes fixated on the moon, her heavy eyelids just barely staying open. Somewhere in the distance, she heard the chirping of crickets, reminding her of her mother's house, where endless fields surrounded the little hut and forests garnished the horizon. The images were vivid before her eyes, and she was practically able to smell the freshly baked apple pie her mother loved to make whenever she'd gotten the chance.

The clock inside the hotel room was ticking in a soothing rhythm, almost lulling her to sleep numerous times. Her feet had long gotten dead.

Leorio had gone to the movies with the two boys, but Laeta had stayed behind, refusing to go out.

She was glad to get some time to herself, to organize her thoughts, and, more pressingly, her feelings. Because her feelings were all over the place; sometimes roaring up like a blazing fire, before dying down to a little flame, giving off little sparks of glowing ash that prickled and burned her skin.

Sometimes it was pleasant; exciting – and sometimes it wasn't, because there was something else mixed in there than love and happiness.

She slammed the book shut. The resounding bang scared the blackbird on the handrail next to her, and it took off with fluttering wings, disappearing in the dark night sky. The candlelight flickered. Laeta took a deep breath. She shivered and pulled the blanked tighter around her shoulders.

"So, what now?" It was a silly question, she knew. The evening wind was cold, and a few loose strands of hair tickled her neck. Laeta leaned against the handrail, her fingers gripping the iron like a lifeline. Leorio stood next to her and had his hands tucked into his pockets.

"What do you mean, 'what now'?"

"You said you were on semester break, how long will you stay?"

He scratched the back of his head. "I haven't thought about it."

Laeta hummed and took a deep breath. There was no university nearby, and if – when - he went back, there would be at least an hour long drive separating them. She mulled over the thought in her head, and found it didn't bother her as much as it probably should have. Since she'd moved out and left her mother a few years ago, she'd gotten independent to a fault. Even though her mother kept on pestering her to let her help with finances, she'd turned her down time and time again.

She still remembered the heartbroken expression on her mother's face when she'd first told her. It'd pulled at her heartstrings, but she'd known her mother would come around.

The truth was; she liked being alone just as much as she valued company.

She felt a hand on her neck, kneading her muscles. Shivers rushed down her spine.

"I'm not a cat, you know?" she chuckled. Feeling the pressure go away, she backtracked. "I didn't say you need to stop."

Leorio kept going, but the longer he carried on, the more erratic his movements got. "I'll definitely graduate."

Laeta lifted her eyebrows and gazed at him. His eyes were burning in the sunset like a pit of lava. "Of course! Leorio, really? I wouldn't want you to give up your studies even if you asked! What the hell? It's your future – and your dream." She boxed his shoulder, which he countered with a hiss. "You're an idiot."

"No need to hit me," he muttered, as he rubbed the throbbing area. "You can massage your own neck in the future."

Her cheeks reddened. "Fine, then how about this?"

Stepping behind him, Laeta raised her hands and placed them on his neck. He stiffened instantly, before he shot her a flirtatious look. "Ooh, I might forgive you if you do this well."

The look he wore on his face made Laeta want to run inside and cover Gon's and Killua's eyes. "You bet your ass I'll do this right! You're talking to a seamstress, my dear sir."

"Don't be too arrogant. As a doctor I'm very picky and judicial about how my neck muscles are treated."

"Your neck muscles will thank me because they are as stiff as they get." She said it in a sing-song voice, but she felt her heart constrict just a little. It felt as if she was massaging stone. Moving her fingers in a circular manner, she took a deep breath of air, catching a whiff of Leorio's spicy cologne. "You need to look after yourself, too."

Leorio straightened his back. "What do you mean?"

She stopped her ministrations and lowered her head, staring at the floor. "It's clear you care for your friends very much, but self-care should not be neglected, Leorio."

He stayed silent.

"I don't mean to be rude, but you look like hell."

"Wow," he hissed theatrically, "very rude."

"I'm serious, Leorio."

Scratching his neck, he let his shoulders sag and sighed. "You know," he began, "I have a lot to worry about." He placed his elbows onto the handrail and stared at the road below. "Two of my friends are reckless idiots and one of them worries so much that I have to worry about him, too." A fond smile formed on his lips. "I love them all to bits, but the messes they get themselves into, I swear – it drives me crazy." He looked at her. "It was an eventful week. I'm a bit tired; that's all. I'm sure you understand."

She did.

"On top of all of that," he added, sounding more chipper, "my new girlfriend almost got kidnapped."

She blushed, and boxed him again. "What's there to grin about?"

"My heroic self coming to the rescue, of course!"

"You dimwit," she laughed, "That's Gon's and Killua's merit."

"Leorio!" hearing the voice from the doorway, Laeta and Leorio turned their heads. Killua crossed his arms and gazed at them with a petulant pout. "Are you ready for the movie theatre? Gon is getting jittery."

Laeta bit back a snort. She knew from a reliable source (Leorio was very reliable) that Killua had been the one dying to see the movie. But she also knew he tended to vehemently deny such accusations, which was why she refrained from commenting on it. She did, however, exchange a knowing look with Gon, who sat on his bed inside the hotel room.

He stuck out his tongue. She winked.

"Sheesh. There's no helping it," Leorio groaned, but there was a smile tugging at his lips. "Get ready, I'll be there in a minute."

Laeta smiled, watching Leorio as he followed Killua back into the room, throwing his jacket over his shoulders.

A faint knock on the door yanked Laeta out of her thoughts. She startled, and the book fell out of her lap onto the stone floor. Calming herself down, she sighed and toyed with the idea of ignoring it, but the well-educated girl inside won her over – it always did.

Laeta stood, her bones cracking unpleasantly, and she stretched her back, the blanket falling off of her shoulders. Immediately, goosebumps littered her skin. The wool blanket had done a good job of concealing how cold it had gotten, but discarding it now felt like stripping down to her undergarments in a snow blizzard.

Shivering, Laeta trotted over to the door, gripping the door handle – and hesitated yet again. She pricked her ears and listened. There was nothing but the roaring of the air conditioner. She took her hand away and pressed it against her chest. Her heart throbbed against it.

Looking down at herself, Laeta frowned. Seeing the beige nightgown covering her body, she was reminded of the time. As she gazed at the clock hanging on the wall, she saw it displaying 23:10 pm.

Who the heck even knocks at a time like this?

Slowly, she took a few cautious steps back. Her heart was in her throat.

Turning around, she saw the paperknife laying on the dresser, glowing in the dim candlelight like igneous metal. With one decisive move, the makeshift weapon landed in her hands, and she gripped it as if her life depended on it (which it probably did). She felt ridiculous, but the dreadful feeling safely nestled in every corner of her body wouldn't leave her.

When the knocks resounded again, Laeta flinched and tiptoed back onto the balcony. She laid her hands onto the handrail and looked down at the road below.

Jumping is out of the question.

Laeta shook her head and bit her lips.

What am I even thinking? Surely I'm overreacting.

When there was a loud crash, she shrieked and internally barked at herself; she definitely was not overreacting, because the wooden door was currently laying on the ground in a shambles.

Since jumping was still very much out of the question, she panicked, her hands shaking like aspen leaves. In the entrance stood two figures; one man with broad shoulders and one scrawny woman. Laeta's eyes widened as she clearly recognized the man from the attack at the restaurant. Cold sweat gathered at the nape of her neck, and she swallowed.

The woman looked her up and down with narrowed eyes. "See? She will do, we don't necessarily need that boy. I'm tired of waiting, and so is the boss. It doesn't really matter anyway."

The words caught Laeta off guard, her intense stare wavering for a moment as she blinked in surprise. That boy? Were they still after him? Gon's image flashed before her eyes, solidifying her resolve to keep calm.

"He's not here," she blurted out, not registering what they'd really just said.

"We know." The woman shook her head, looking disgruntled. "We waited and waited to catch him alone, but to no avail."

Laeta felt her grip on the paperknife strengthen, the sweat gathering at her hands making them slippery. "How di-," her voice broke. "H-How did you find us?"

"Silly girl, we followed you."

They followed us? When? Don't tell me-

Then, she knew. That night she'd been chased by one of them – they hadn't caught her, and at that time, she'd thought it was strange. Because surely they could have if they'd wanted to. Her heart stopped as she realized she'd been used.

"Alas! As I've said, you will do as well. With no Nen or special abilities," a nasty grin stretched across her slender face, "you're an easy target."

Laeta's breath hitched. There was no way in hell she'd be able to defend herself against those people. Their presence alone made her skin burn like fire and the hairs on her neck stand on end. She knew she was an easy target, and the helplessness that came with that realization did not help.

"Enough talk," the woman said. "Let's do this."

As if it'd been a command, the silent man beside her took a few steps forward, locking eyes with Laeta. She was nailed to the ground.

As desperation overcame her, she struck with the paperknife, flailing wildly at the approaching man, shaking and shrieking. "Don't come near me!" The man didn't seem to hear her words, and as he came to a halt in front of her, she aimed at his outstretched hand. Laeta felt resistance and relished in the fact that she'd struck the man, but reality caught up with her when not a single drop of blood tainted his flesh.

"Forget it," he grumbled, moving his fingers experimentally. "You're done for."

Laeta dropped the paperknife in shock. It landed with a faint thump on the carpeted floor.

The last thing she saw was him raising his fist, bringing it down to her neck.


"Oh my god," Killua lamented, "That guy was such an idiot."

Leorio laughed and ruffled the boy's hair. "Calm down, it was just a movie."

Killua swatted his hand away. "Yeah, but it was stupid! It was so obvious his brother would turn out to be the bad guy! Lame."

"You think so?" Gon piped in, "I thought the father could have also been the culprit, as well. In fact; he probably was all along."

Killua looked at his friend with a raised eyebrow. Then, he narrowed his blue eyes. "Gon, the case has been solved at the end, it was the brother. Did you fall asleep or something?"

"Why are you so sure they caught the right one? Maybe they were wrong?"

"Gon, that's just how crime movies work! If they caught the wrong one the movie would have alluded to it!"

"Why are you so sure of that?"

"Gaah!" Killua tore his hair. "Discussing movies with you is the worst mistake I've ever made."

Leorio was still grinning from ear to ear. The evening out had just been what he'd needed to get his mind off of things. He let his thoughts wander, back to earlier this evening, and as he thought of Laeta, he wished she'd come along with them.

After fifteen minutes of walking in the dark, they reached the hotel. Only now did Leorio feel how tired he was. His legs were as heavy as stone, and his eyelids didn't fare any better.

As the trio entered the entrance hall, the boys still chattering, Killua suddenly got quiet. He narrowed his eyes. "Something's wrong."

Gon just nodded, looking around, while Leorio stopped dead in his tracks, confused. "What?"

"Concentrate," Gon helped, "there are traces of aura floating around."

Leorio closed his eyes for a moment and scanned the room. There was something cold and sharp in the air, like hair-thin threads of steel. "You're right. But what…?" He let his eyes sweep across the room and caught sight of the receptionist. Leorio's eyes widened. His body was sprawled over the counter, a mixture of saliva and blood dripping out of his mouth onto the wooden surface. He ran over to the man, immediately feeling for a pulse. When he registered a faint thump-thump he let out a relieved sigh. "He's okay, just unconscious. I'll look him over."

"I don't think now's the time for that," Killua said, and the tone of his voice did not sit well with Leorio. The boy pointed in front of him. "Because the aura leads up the stairs."

Leorio needed a moment to process his words, but as soon as he did, he sprinted up the stairs, Killua and Gon behind him. His heart raced.

No, no, no!

The sight greeting him in front of their room made his blood run cold. Remains of the door laid on the floor, the French window leading to the balcony wide open, and a paperknife laying on the ground.

And Laeta – Laeta was gone.


Guest: I know right? Those guys are so presumptuous! Thanks for the review, I appreciate it!