Hello, everyone! How are you guys? This chapter was pretty tough for me, and I must say it has a pretty slow start. But you guys gotta keep reading 'til the end because there's another surprise! Woohoo!

I have summer classes in two weeks. Boo! Anyway…

Disclaimer: I do not own Hunter X Hunter. I only own Natsumi and stuff about her.

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You Disrupt Me

Chapter 20: Hasty Send-Off

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Kurapika and Hisoka stood across from each other, their faces tensed and unsettled. Kurapika held a piece of notepad paper, a short message written on it in very legible handwriting. Kurapika handed it to Hisoka, who read it out loud.

"What happens when a princess sees a familiar face? Even the impossible is possible with a tap of power."

Hisoka quickly crumpled the letter in his hand and threw it to the floor like it was a bad report card. He shot Kurapika an accusing look.

"How can a heavily guarded man send a letter?" he asked, his voice revealing an ominous tone.

"He can't, and he didn't," Kurapika corrected, crossing his arms and closing his eyes in deep thought. "He didn't send it while he was in jail. One of my men personally delivered it to me this morning. According to him, while Alphonse was being transported to prison that night, he instructed him to give this to me today. Alphonse apparently looked so frightening that he couldn't do anything but obey."

"Ahh, so the madman had already devised a plan beforehand. Surprise, surprise, there's candy inside!"

Hisoka laughed at his own little joke, but Kurapika wasn't exactly the preferred audience. The latter picked up the crumpled letter from the floor and opened it up once more. He sighed.

"I was trying to prevent Natsumi from finding her father, but I hadn't planned anything for the other way around."

"Around, around, like a merry-go-round!"

Kurapika took a deep breath as he tried his best to ignore the overtly cheery man in front of him. He folded the piece of paper and put it in his pocket, at the same time taking out his cellphone. He pressed a few buttons, then put it away.

"Alphonse is still in prison. Leorio personally went to check on him. DNA tests and consequent dental records indicate that he's the real deal."

Hisoka was beginning to get bored and began twirling a card around his hand. He looked past Kurapika where a clown was selling balloons, distracted by the colors.

"If you say so," he said, making the card disappear in his palm.

Kurapika frowned. This guy was making his blood boil to extreme temperatures again. He clenched his fist, the rough movement causing his chained fingers to clank together noisily.

"Are you even listening to me?"

Hisoka blinked his way out of his reverie and finally focused his attention on the raging blond boy in front of him, appearing as though he had completely forgotten he was there.

"Never," he replied plainly.

Kurapika's top blew over, and he turned around, marching away.

"Fine," he said in between teeth. "I'll just keep her safe myself."

Hisoka grinned widely. "Alrighty then. You do it your way, and I'll do it my way."

---

As I lay these flowers

On the tomb in your heart

Tears dampen the earth

And new flowers are born

---

The entire classroom was loud and rowdy, and Natsumi didn't like it one bit. Their Gym teacher hadn't shown up for class yet. What were they supposed to do for two hours? Paper planes and spit balls reigned supreme. What was this? The third grade? The girls also squealed in delight at the thought of more time for gossip and senseless bickering.

And Natsumi was in the middle of it all. As the class representative, she was required to maintain discipline during free time. Like it was easy. Miyuki appeared and snapped a picture of her.

"Sorry again about the photos you had to see, Natsumi-chan," she said. She went flat on her back on the table as she stared at Natsumi upside down. "My boyfriend insisted on taking pictures."

Natsumi sighed and gave her a smile.

"Don't worry about it," she replied. She didn't really have the chance to see it anyway. Hisoka and Kurapika prevented her from even seeing the photos… and they were saying stuff about saving the purity of her eyes or something. At least she was able to return the memory card to Miyuki. "I'm also sorry that I wasn't able to print them out for you."

Miyuki sat up abruptly, shaking her head violently. "No, no! Those weren't the ones I wanted! Why would I want naked pictures of me and my boyfriend!?"

Natsumi's eye twitched. So that's what Hisoka and Kurapika meant. But then it immediately hit her. She pulled Miyuki under the table and looked around, as if to make sure that nobody was watching them.

"You mean you still have pictures of me?" she asked, whispering.

"Yeah!" Miyuki whispered back, even though she didn't know why she needed to in the first place. She found it exciting, and she giggled like a little girl.

"Where's the memory card?" Natsumi asked, urgency in her voice. "Did you bring it with you?"

Miyuki suddenly put on a sad expression as her eyes went watery with tears.

"I lost it!" she yelled from under the table, making a few people glance their way. She began to cry loudly like candy had been stolen from her. "I really liked the pictures, too! You were so pretty in your dress, posing with those models!"

Natsumi's eyes narrowed. Dress? Models?

"Models?" she repeated aloud, patting Miyuki's head gently to calm her down. "Can you describe how they look?"

"I lost it!" Miyuki yelled again, ignoring her question. "I kept it in a safe place! But-but-but when I went home last night, my memory card and my copies were gone! I don't remember where I put them!!! The housekeeper must've stolen them!!!"

Natsumi took Miyuki in her arms… and then paused. She pulled the weeping girl away from her and held her shoulders tightly, making Miyuki face her as she sniffed in sadness. No wonder everyone was gone when she had woken up in the hospital. They probably used that time to steal everything.

"Miyuki!" Natsumi whispered. "Listen to me. What do you mean by your copies were stolen?"

It took Miyuki for a while to calm down. She sniffed some more and wiped her nose on Natsumi's blazer. Natsumi rolled her eyes and took it off, handing it over to her impossibly childish friend.

"I printed out two copies of each picture for you and me," she replied in between sniffles.

Natsumi felt like she hit the jackpot. "And where are my copies?"

"I put them in your locker the morning after I printed them out," she replied, her sniffing beginning to subside. "It was supposed to be a surprise, but you didn't come to school that day."

Natsumi gripped her shoulders tighter as she tried to calm herself down. She felt her blood rush to her head. "Miyuki, you're a genius!"

Miyuki grinned sheepishly, blowing her nose once more using Natsumi's blazer. Natsumi wanted to get out of there. She wanted to run and get those pictures in her locker. Surely Hisoka and Kurapika didn't think that Miyuki had printed out two copies. They were probably feeling downright confident, especially since they had the memory card.

The door suddenly opened and everyone in the room went silent. Natsumi froze in place. Did a teacher just walk in to check if she was doing her job or not? Because it was clear that she wasn't.

"Enough chit-chat and listen up!" a loud and booming voice surfaced.

That was the headmaster's voice. He was a short and stubby old man who was in the process of balding. He was a very unhappy and grouchy person, Natsumi thought. He was also one of the few school authorities who didn't give a squat about her achievements.

The silence dragged on.

"Where is your class representative, Hasegawa?! Is she not in school again?!"

Natsumi flinched. She hated being talked about, much less when she was present while the talking was going on.

"I'm over here, sir."

She crawled out from under the table, immediately putting on a blank expression.

But then she stopped… because right behind the short principal… was the man she least expected to see.

'Hisoka!' she yelled in her head, wanting to throw a random object at him. What was he doing here? He was wearing a white collared shirt and a tie, together with black pants and shoes. Didn't he look just like… a teacher? No way!

He glanced her way and grinned widely, as if knowing that she had realized what he was doing there. But his grin immediately faded away when she didn't visibly react to his presence like she usually did. Instead, she walked up to the headmaster and bowed a little, ignoring him completely.

"How may I help you, sir?" she asked the headmaster, forcing a polite tone to come out.

He intentionally ignored her and turned his attention to the class instead.

"As you may have noticed, your Gym teacher hasn't arrived for class yet. He's in the hospital because of pneumonia. Luckily, you've got Kiho-san here to take over. He's a fresh college graduate, so play nice!"

With that, the headmaster left the room, slamming the door behind him without so much as a goodbye. The entire class stood silently and limply, like insecure freshmen, quite bewildered by the quick introduction. After all, there was an insanely good-looking macho P.E. teacher in the doorway right now – every girl's dream and every boy's point of reference.

Natsumi turned to look at him and crossed her arms – the first movement in the entire room – and suddenly, everybody could breathe again. She arched a brow.

"KIHO-SAN?" she said out loud, saying it with a what-the-hell tone.

"Hello there, class representative," he cooed, a glint in his eye. What in the world was he doing here? Leorio was smart to have dosed her with morphine; she wasn't herself enough to ask important questions. Did they prefer it that way?

"Welcome to Kashmire Academy. If you have any questions, please feel free to ask."

She turned and went back to her desk, which was precisely in the middle of the classroom. Hisoka blinked at the cold act, but immediately smiled widely once he could see how much shorter Natsumi's skirt was once she sat down. The teacher's view of her was just impeccable.

"Okay, lasses and lads!" Hisoka clapped his hands, much like a real teacher. "Today, we're going to learn how to serve in tennis! Get dressed, and I'll meet everyone in the tennis courts!"

The boys cheered but the girls booed in complaint. Either way, everyone left their seats and went to their respective changing rooms, leaving Natsumi and Hisoka alone in the classroom.

Natsumi stood up from her chair and crossed her arms. Hisoka flitted by her side, a blissful smile etched on his face.

"A fresh college graduate? Kiho-san?" she scoffed, echoing the words of the headmaster. "What are you doing here, Hisoka-san?"

"I am here to engage in forbidden love! The fox and the hound! The prince and the peasant! The celebrity and the paparazzi!"

Natsumi took a few steps back, a good ten feet away from the madman. This wasn't happening.

"I really don't want to see you right now!" she yelled aloud, losing her temper quite a bit.

Hisoka jumped on the teacher's desk then back to the floor, and then hid behind it. He peeked from the side, and then disappeared again.

"Is that better, princess?"

Natsumi gritted her teeth and hastily undid the first three buttons of her shirt. Pulling the right collar downwards, she growled loudly.

"WHAT IS THIS?!" she yelled again. "WHAT WERE YOU DOING WHILE I WAS DRUGGED?!"

Hisoka peeked again from the side. He blinked for a while as he stared at the area below her collarbone. There, close to her neck, was a pinkish-reddish bruise.

"Oh!" he said happily. "That's me."

Natsumi roared, her face getting red as she fell to the floor. She repeatedly hit her head on one of the chairs, mentally asking why fate just had to choose her over others.

After a few moments of silence, Natsumi sighed.

"Where is Itsuki-kun?" she asked, forcing herself to ignore everything else. It wouldn't be so bad if she just focused, right?

"No, princess. The question is, where isn't Itsuki-kun, honey spoon?"

Natsumi's eye twitched. This was hopeless.

"Miyuki was also complaining about another memory card that went missing, as well as a set of printed pictures. What's that all about?" she asked, hiding the fact that she still had another set.

"What isn't that all about, Mrs. Trout?"

Natsumi glared at him.

"Do you like my name?" he asked. He sounded like a kid seeking his parents' approval through a flawless report card.

Kiho. That was his name. And if people called him formally, it would be Kiho-san, in which case it would be an anagram of his name, give or take the letter "N," which was… the first letter of her name.

Was she just being self-righteous or was it just really well thought of? Too bad that everyone, aside from the headmaster, would be calling him "sensei." But she decided against bursting his bubble.

"Sure…" she replied, looking away.

Hisoka applauded, appearing extremely happy with her response.

"You see," he held a finger in the air like he was a conductor. "It's an anagram of-"

"I know," she cut him off, sparing him the long explanation.

"Oh… but the letter "N" is also-"

"I know," she cut him off a second time. She sighed, setting a hand on her forehead. "It's a bit creepy, but whatever. Good job."

Hisoka twirled around like a prima ballerina, his hands up in the air in a semi-circle. He giggled like an ill person, diagnosed of too much happiness in life.

"Princess, please pat my head and tickle my tummy! And I will say uncle!"

That was it. Without saying anything else, Natsumi stomped out of the room, leaving Hisoka to go crazy by himself.

---

Alluring and tempting

Appealing and enticing

When you are near me

I am just uncontrollable

---

Natsumi hated Gym for many reasons, and the extremely short shorts that they were required to wear was just one of them. She strode callously towards the tennis courts, with Miyuki skipping next to her in great confidence with her long legs.

"Natsumi-chan!" Miyuki whispered, tugging on Natsumi's shirt.

"What?" Natsumi whispered back.

"Kiho-sensei really looks like the model in the pictures…"

So she was right. It was going to be more difficult now to hide the pictures with Hisoka roaming around the school like that. It was in her locker, and she hadn't opened it yet at all today. Maybe, during lunch…

"Let's keep the pictures a secret between us, okay?" she replied. "Even Kiho-sensei shouldn't know about them."

Miyuki sighed, crossing her eyes and furrowing her eyebrows like a kid devising a master plan. "Okay. I just can't remember when I took those pictures, though. Why were we in that party, anyway?"

A few girls suddenly cheered loudly and ran towards the tennis courts. Miyuki and Natsumi looked up to see what they were so ecstatic about. There, in full tennis gear, was Hisoka, leaning on the fence like some jock waiting for a confession from a cheerleader.

The girls crowded over him, asking him to flex his biceps or lift his shirt to show his abs as they screamed about how much he looked like a professional tennis star.

"I'll find out soon enough," Natsumi replied a little too late.

They reached the tennis courts, and most of the boys of the class had already started playing against each other. Natsumi watched them play, glancing at the overtly popular Hisoka every now and then.

"Kiho-sensei! Do you have a girlfriend?!" one of the girls asked.

The aggressive question attracted Natsuim's attention. Hisoka chuckled liked he was shy to answer, making her blood boil. He tapped his chin in thought, his smile getting sparklier by the second. He glanced at her and flashed her a beamy grin.

"Unfortunately, I don't," he replied and then sighed dramatically, like a hopeless romantic wandering in dreamland. "But I do like someone."

All the girls shrieked a thousandth time.

"Who is it?! Who is it?!"

Hisoka stretched his arms out both ways, as if to embrace everyone. "All of you!"

The girls screeched in glee once more. Natsumi rolled her eyes and took a tennis racket from one of the boxes, grabbing a ball from another. She made it bounce on the ground, just like tennis players did before they served, but it accidentally hit her foot, making it roll away. She cursed under her breath. She'd probably fail Gym class this year. She ran after it…

And then she bumped into someone. The sudden surprising impact made her fall down on her butt. A shadow loomed over her, an ominous atmosphere taking over the sunshine. She raised her head to see who it was.

"K-Kurapika-san?!"

He immediately put his hand over her mouth as he helped her to her feet. He looked around cautiously, and then let her go.

"My name is Kei," he said after clearing his throat. "I'm a new student here. It's very nice to meet you."

Natsumi blinked and looked at his clothes. It was Kashmire's uniform. Was he playing a game with Hisoka? Did they go crazy, or was torturing her just such a fun activity?

He walked past her and went over to where Hisoka was. All the girls went silent once more, their eyes following the handsome newcomer. It was as if godly beings were falling from the sky like snowflakes in winter. Natsumi followed closely behind him, pretending to be a curious bystander.

"Sensei," Kurapika said, his voice cold and calculating. He handed him a piece of paper.

"Ahh," Hisoka said as he took it. The two looked at each other, adamant recognition in their eyes. "Welcome to Kashmire Academy, Kei-kun. Since I am new myself, perhaps we can learn from each other."

Kurapika's face didn't change. He nodded his head lightly. "Of course."

He turned around to talk to Natsumi, but before he could say anything, Miyuki ran to her and pulled her away from the crowd, whispering something inaudible. Natsumi suddenly looked happy at what she said and whispered something back. Miyuki pointed at somewhere off into the distance, and then took Natsumi's wrist as the two ran back to the main school building.

As if on cue, the rest of the girls began running the same direction.

"The car is up front!" one of them yelled. "It must be the Prince!"

All the boys were left in the courts, their faces revealing strong annoyance.

"Stupid Zaoldyeck family," one of the remaining students said as he served a ball across the net. "Always stealing our women."

Kurapika frowned, following the rowdy group of girls.

"Class dismissed," Hisoka said, following suit. "And please haul as many as your girlfriends back to the classroom."

---

Into your arms, let me jump

Twirl me around and around

Like a looping, circular dream

This is my endless happiness

---

Natsumi hastened her steps. Despite the head start that she and Miyuki had, the rest of the crazy girls had already caught up to them. Why was she such a slow runner? Miyuki still held on to her like a cat to its toy rat. She couldn't help but smile at how genuine a person Miyuki was. Did she really deserve such a friend?

"Come on, Natsumi-chan! Just past the lockers and we're there!"

Natsumi froze in place, causing Miyuki to nearly fall down because of her tight grip. Some girls bumped into her as the rest ran past them. Miyuki panted as she glanced at the petrified girl.

"What's wrong, Natsumi-chan?" she asked. Everyone was already ahead. "If you don't hurry, you won't see Prince Illumi!"

Natsumi began walking slowly as she tried to catch her breath.

"I have to get to my locker," she said, wiping the sweat off of her forehead. "I have to see those pictures."

Miyuki tilted her head in confusion, but walked with her anyway.

"Are you sure? I thought you liked him?"

Natsumi slapped her face with her hands in embarrassment, her cheeks getting red once again.

"N-no, I don't! I just think that he has such a good family! They gave me a scholarship, you know?"

Miyuki shrugged. "You're a smart girl. And besides, if you end up with him, Milluki-san just might finally give up on you."

Natsumi sighed, suddenly feeling exhausted.

"I haven't seen Milluki-san in a while, so I think he already has given up."

They stopped in front of Natsumi's locker. There was a slot on top, just like all lockers, where students could drop books or letters to classmates. Hisoka and Kurapika weren't in school yet when Miyuki dropped it off, right? So they couldn't have seen it.

The hallway suddenly seemed so silent. Natsumi could feel her heartbeat quicken as she set her hand on the handle, which screened her thumb for a print. There was a light beep and then a click. It was unlocked. She took a deep breath, and then pulled it open.

"That's not right!" Miyuki shouted, her voice echoing throughout the hallway. "I put it in there the other day! I swear!"

Natsumi panicked. So they did know! She went through her papers and books, but there was no sign of the pictures. How did they even open her locker? She rarely touched anything, so she didn't leave a lot of fingerprints behind. Was it from a test paper? Or a paper cup? Or the doorknobs in school?

"Looking for this?"

Natsumi stiffened upon hearing the voice. She knew who it was. It wasn't Hisoka or Kurapika. It wasn't Illumi or any other teacher either. She turned around.

"Milluki-san…" she murmured.

He was even bigger than before. His hair was as messy as ever, and his shirt was half tucked and half un-tucked, like it usually was. He had a bag of chips in one hand and a yellow envelope in the other. The logo of the photo printing station that Miyuki frequented was on the flap. Natsumi shivered. Having Milluki around always gave her the chills.

"Surprised not to see your prince?" he asked, almost bitterly. "I knew you'd step out of class if you thought he was here, so I purposely used the family car to get here."

Natsumi bowed a little. "I thought I'd say hi. I owe your family a lot."

Miyuki stepped in front of Natsumi, a fierce expression clouding her face.

"I don't care if your family owns this school!" she yelled. "Those pictures aren't yours, so give them back!"

Natsumi held on to Miyuki's arm to keep her from doing anything drastic, but the kendo trained girl was tough. She lunged forward to grab the pictures, but Milluki was faster than he looked. With one swing of his arm, he hit her shoulder, sweeping her to the lockers, crushing her against the hard metallic surface.

"Miyuki!" Natsumi shouted, falling to her knees to catch the now-unconscious girl. "Miyuki! Wake up!"

She glanced up at the big man, tears stinging her eyes and fear creeping up her neck.

"You didn't have to do that! Miyuki meant no harm!"

Milluki banged his fist on the lockers, making Natsumi jump at the deafening noise. Her hands began shaking again, her heart banging against her ribcage.

"Miyuki, Miyuki," he said in between teeth. "Every time I hear you say that, I always think you're calling me. I'm glad she's half-dead. Now, get up. We're leaving."

He tore the bag of chips open and tilted his head back, emptying everything into his mouth and making a huge mess on his shirt and the floor. Natsumi didn't know what to do. Should she shout for help? But this guy was a Zaoldyeck! Who would people believe?

Besides, Milluki was never violent before! He would usually just say a bunch of senseless things. He never hit anything or anyone! And here was Miyuki in her arms, a concussion bleeding heavily from the side of her head.

"Milluki-san, I'll go with you anywhere!" Natsumi shouted. "Just let me take Miyuki to the hospital!"

He growled, apparently getting angrier than before. He stuffed the yellow envelope in his pocket and roughly grabbed her arm. With his free hand, he took a small black device from his other pocket and pressed it on one of the lockers. It beeped.

"I said we're leaving," he said, pulling her along. He was extremely strong, and not just because of his size.

"HISOKA!!!" Natsumi yelled.

They reached the entrance, but nobody was in sight. There was a sound of a helicopter that came from above, and a rope ladder rolled down in front of them. Milluki grabbed it and carried Natsumi over him.

"Climb or she dies," he said, revealing a small red button mounted on a black device strapped to his wrist. So that tiny little thing he put on the lockers was a bomb.

Natsumi shakily climbed. She was weak, didn't he know that? What if she-

"If you fall, I'll catch you," he said as if reading her mind.

Tears fell as she continued to climb.

"PRINCESS!!!"

She stopped. That was Hisoka.

"HISOKA!!!"

But the building exploded. Milluki had pressed the button. How could such a small thing blow up the entire main building? The gas from the explosion caused the ladder to sway violently, and she lost her footing. Before she even fell a foot down, Milluki caught her and held on to her tightly, like he had been waiting to do so for a long time.

"You are mine now. Alphonse agreed."

---

End of chapter! Whoa. Did you see that coming? I sure didn't. Seriously. Lol.

Oh, thank you for the e-mails I've received! I've been trying to reply to people more often now, even in the reviews section as well. To those who don't have accounts, I'm really sorry that I can't reply! Please send me an e-mail instead :D

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