Cerridwen squinted up at the sky, watching the Hunter Association airship fly away into the distance. She tried to stop her body from trembling as she looked down at the smooth tan stone beneath her boots, anticipating the horrors held within. The applicants had seventy-two hours to make it to the bottom of the tower; one applicant had already attempted to scale down the side, only to be taken away by some horrific flying beast. Letting out a shattered sigh, she set upon the task of trying to find a way into the tower.
"Cerridwen," came Hisoka's damnably suave voice from a few feet to her left.
She turned to see him crouched on the stone, inspecting a few segments of it closely.
"Come take a look," he urged, beckoning her over.
"Did you find a way in?" she inquired under her breath, making her way to him and kneeling down.
"Mm-hm, I think so," he replied with a smirk. "I believe these three tiles here empty into a room below if stood upon."
Cerridwen cocked her head. "They want us to do this in teams?"
Hisoka shrugged. "It appears so."
"Then we need at least one more person," she observed, glancing up and scanning the other applicants.
"What about Gon or your beanpole?" Hisoka suggested, directing his gaze toward Gon and his three friends on the other side of the roof. "Or even either of the other two? They all have promising qualities."
Cerridwen let out a loud, suspicious laugh. "Haha, no way. I promised Mito I'd keep Gon away from you, and even though I've already failed at that, I'd like to at least try to redeem myself. As for the others, well, I'd just rather not subject them to you."
He chuckled. "Very well, but don't say I didn't give you any options."
She cocked her head, blinking in confusion. "Wait...what do you mean?"
Hisoka smirked, turning to look at someone far behind Cerridwen and motioning them over. Slowly, Cerridwen turned to see a tall, peculiar looking man making his way toward them...with sickly-complected skin and gold darts protruding from his face.
"Please tell me you're joking," she hissed, whipping back around to face Hisoka. "You know how uncomfortable Illumi makes me."
"Gittarackur," Hisoka corrected. "Don't give him away, darling."
Cerridwen scowled. "Gittarackur, then."
"As much as you'd hate to admit it," Hisoka began, "he truly is our only option. Everyone else is either too weak to aid us at all, or too eager to kill one or both of us."
Cerridwen groaned; she hated it when Hisoka was right, especially when it came to the person in question. There was just something about him that set her on edge, but she had never figured out exactly what it was. Huffing, she nodded in concession as Gittarackur reached them, crouching down alongside her.
"Cerridwen," he greeted; she could still recognize Illumi's voice, distorted though it was by his disguised form. "It's been a while."
"Gittarackur," she replied, a wry smirk masking the scowl that was threatening to appear. "Indeed it has. You're looking...well."
He let out a sound that she could only assume was laughter. Hisoka chuckled, explaining to him what he had just told Cerridwen. He agreed to team up with them, and the three stepped onto the stones and fell to the secluded room below. Slowly, the three rose to their feet, observing their surroundings.
"Well this is...ominous," Cerridwen commented, looking around. They found themselves in a room comprised entirely of cold grey stones, with no sign of any entrance or exit. Against one wall stood a table with what appeared to be five wristbands and a note resting atop it. Intrigued, she cautiously approached it.
"Well?" Hisoka queried, eyeing the table with interest from afar. "What does it say?"
Gittarackur strode up alongside Cerridwen, gently reaching for the letter in her hand. She relinquished it without hesitation, not wanting any sort of physical contact with him.
"We need to wait for two more people to join us," he declared after scanning the message. "The bands have two different buttons on them, so that every member of the group may vote on decisions."
"Hmmm?" Hisoka said, bringing a hand up to his chin thoughtfully. "An exercise in majority rule?"
"Looks like," Cerridwen confirmed with a nod. "Pity none of the three of us play well with others."
"It could take a while for two more applicants to happen on this room," Gittarackur muttered. His gaze darting between Cerridwen and Hisoka, he asked, "Would either of you object to me getting a little more comfortable until the next person arrives?"
"Of course not," Hisoka answered with a smirk. Turning to Cerridwen, he added, "Belladonna?"
"Oh, that's a new one," Gittarackur observed. "I like it. Much nicer than that other one."
Cerridwen exhaled through her nose. "I guess flattery will get you everywhere," she chuckled, turning her head to face him. "Go ahead, Illumi; I already know it's you."
"I expected as much," Gittarackur responded, walking to the opposite wall. Reaching up, he began to remove the gold pins from his face; as he did so, a different form was revealed. His sickly complexion faded to a flawless ivory, his blue mohawk unfurled into a full head of flowing ebony hair, and his eyes changed in size and color to a cold onyx. Blinking a few times, he slowly lowered himself into a sitting position.
Cerridwen felt a shiver run down her spine; if he wasn't so creepy, he might have been attractive.
"Fascinating," Hisoka commented with a smirk, sitting down against the opposite wall. Cerridwen strode over and sat down alongside him.
"Long time, no see," Cerridwen mused at Illumi, doing her level best to seem cordial.
Illumi merely tilted his head, staring at her blankly.
"Nevermind," she huffed, leaning back against the wall and closing her eyes. "Let me know when two other people show up, would you?"
After a moment, Hisoka turned to Illumi and explained, "Forgive her; she's nervous about this Phase."
"Nervous?" Illumi repeated, confusion strangely evident in his normally emotionless voice. "Cerridwen? Why?"
"She feels she doesn't have much to offer in the offensive abilities department," Hisoka continued, shrugging. "I gave her a few pointers on the airship, so she may be able to produce some sort of Nen attack if need be."
Cerridwen cracked open one eye to stare daggers at Hisoka; she didn't want Illumi knowing that much about her insecurities.
"Just wake me when they get here," she growled, shutting her eyes once more.
Roughly an hour later, Hisoka roused Cerridwen. Upon waking, she saw that Illumi had changed back into his Gittarackur suit, and that they had been joined by Number 103, Bourbon, and Number 384, Geretta. While glad that they could finally progress, she wasn't exactly thrilled at the sight of their companions; honestly, Hisoka was the only one of the four that she trusted, and she knew that wasn't saying much.
"Relax, Belladonna, hmmm?" Hisoka coaxed, fastening one of the five armbands around Cerridwen's wrist as she gazed leerily at their companions. "It's only for one Phase. And if Bourbon or Geretta give you any trouble, I'm sure either Gittarackur or myself would be more than happy to...dispel the issue."
"Hisoka, no," she hissed, glaring at him. Her expression softening, she added, "It's just...I'm uneasy enough as it is. I don't need the added stress of working with people I distrust."
Hisoka smirked, wrapping his arms around her waist. "Don't you worry, darling; I'm sure everything will go...interestingly."
"That's not exactly reassuring," Cerridwen groaned, worming her way out of his embrace. Gesturing toward the others, she said, "Come on, we'd better go see what the first poll is."
Hisoka nodded firmly, walking alongside her as they joined their group.
"'Personalized paths have been created for each of you upon your arrival in this room'," Bourbon read from a sheet of paper resting upon the stand at the head of the room. "'It is up to you if you are to embark on them, or remain a group.'"
"Anything to be away from The Beast and the Harlot," Geretta muttered, already raising his arm to press the button on his wristband.
"The feeling is mutual," Cerridwen scoffed, lifting her finger to indicate her vote as well. However, once her finger hovered over the corresponding button, she wavered. True, she wanted to be as far away from Gittarackur, Geretta, and Bourbon as possible, but the fact remained that she was terrified of what Trick Tower held in store for her; she would feel infinitely safer if she had Hisoka by her side until the end of the Phase. After a moment's deliberation, she entered her choice.
With a ding, a screen on the wall displayed the vote's results: four in favor of splitting up, one against.
"Okay, who's the one that wanted some quality bonding time?" Geretta asked, letting out an earnest laugh. "I've got to know."
"Probably 406," Bourbon replied, shooting a sideways glance and a wry smile at Cerridwen. "She seems reluctant to leave Hisoka's side for even an instant this Phase."
Cerridwen crossed her arms, flabbergasted. "Honestly I'm just as confused as you," she confessed, her gaze darting between Bourbon and Geretta. "It wasn't me. I swear it."
Bourbon and Geretta chuckled doubtfully, while Gittarackur and Hisoka simply smirked. Cerridwen huffed, trying to contain her frustration.
Suddenly, the slate-colored bricks on the wall to the group's left slid to the side, revealing a large brass door. Above it was an LED light sign bearing the number 384. Wordlessly, Geretta approached the door and walked through, closing it behind him. Shortly after, the sign read 103, and Bourbon walked through. Next, 301; Gittarackur ambled through, leaving only Hisoka and Cerridwen.
"Why did you vote to split up, Belladonna?" Hisoka queried, arching an eyebrow at her.
Cerridwen let out a small laugh. "Well, at least you believe me when I say I'm not the odd vote out. I just really didn't want to be around the others, to be frank."
Hisoka nodded in comprehension, turning to look at the door once more.
A minute or so later, the sign above the door lit up once more, bearing the number 44. Hisoka turned to face Cerridwen, placing his hands gently on her hips.
"I suppose that's my cue," he said, his eyes flickering up to meet Cerridwen's. "I'll see you at the base of the tower, darling."
For a brief moment, fear flashed behind Cerridwen's emerald eyes. It was only for an instant, but it lasted long enough for Hisoka to notice.
"Relax, Little Monster," he cooed, bringing a hand up to tilt her chin upward. "Just remember what I told you on the airship. I'm sure you'll be fine."
She blushed, standing on her tiptoes to kiss him tenderly. He chuckled, nipping at her lip before they broke apart.
"Good luck, Bobo," Cerridwen mused with a smirk as they let go of each other, taking a few steps backward.
"Same to you," Hisoka replied with a devilish smile, heading for the door. Cerridwen watched silently as Hisoka opened the door and stepped through, beginning to close the door behind him. At the last second though, he paused and peered around the door at her.
"By the way," he began, "the one who voted to stay together? It was me."
Cerridwen gasped, her jaw dropping. Before she could ask him why in the hell he voted that way, he flashed her another damnable smile and vanished behind the door.
Only Cerridwen was left in the room now, staring at the large, imposing door, left to wonder about Hisoka's motives. Was he planning on killing Geretta and Bourbon? Given their friendship, did he want to compete alongside Gittarackur? Or did he simply want to stay with her in order to keep her mind at ease? She wanted to believe she was the reason; but, knowing Hisoka, she was fairly convinced he wanted to attack their opponents.
The lights on the sign glared the number 406 intimidatingly, and she felt her heart leap into her throat.
"Well, here goes," Cerridwen mumbled, striding forward and firmly grasping the cold handle of the door. Letting out a shattered breath, she pulled the door open and stepped inside.