Yes, I wrote almost five thousand words in 6 hours, I was full of adrenaline yesterday lmao. We have come to the end of the part that deals with Medea's mission. I cried a lot as I wrote the scenes before she used the drug, I really couldn't control myself, it was very exciting and I hope it can make you feel emotional as well.
Yes, I've begun to explore Dhea's Nen's nature and her past, there's a lot of tragedy, so prepare your tissues folks :')
Illumi's finally gonna realize that all that hatred is nothing but him feeling horny and it's not gonna be smth good :x
What I can tell you is: get ready for the next chapter, there'll be lots of sex. AND I DO MEA BY THAT. I finished it already BUT I still gotta translate it to English bc I always write it in Portuguese first, sorry folks ;-;
See you soon guys
—Cherry
"The price to pay for trying to steal from our family is high, Miss Lanfort. In other circumstances, you'd certainly be dead by now." Zeno announced. "Still, I see potential in you and that, in addition to your bond with Killua, is enough for you to have a chance of survival."
Next to her, the white-haired boy exhaled with relief, his chest moving up and down slowly. He boldly raised his chin and arched an eyebrow, ready to hear what punishment the woman should face and try to intervene. If there was one thing that she hadn't expected in her entire life was to be defended by a fourteen-year-old teen, she was the one who got herself out of her own problems. It was comforting, but she didn't know if she should feel happy to have people caring about her or worried that they were developing some real emotional bond. That never worked for Medea.
"Since you came here for the Scroll of Tchingsen, we won't let you leave empty-handed, but for this to work, you will need to pass a small test." He turned away from her and his grandson, heading towards the door. "Follow me. The real candidates will wait here until we are finished and will be watched by our butlers, who won't hesitate to attack if any problem arises."
The rest of the family followed him, trying as hard as possible not to reveal any emotion they were feeling about the patriarch's choice. Silva didn't look at her at all, but Medea saw when he flared his nostrils in anger. Killua's mother's visor moved in her direction analytically as she continued walking behind her husband. Medea didn't know exactly what to expect from the woman, but she didn't look as scary as her husband, so she assumed that it was something positive, right?
Behind her Kalluto followed suit, his big pink eyes lingering on his older brother's figure with admiration, before focusing on Alluka, staring at her coldly. Finally, he looked at the thief. He seemed curious, especially after seeing her be defended by Killua and realizing she was protecting his sister, however, he didn't hold on to her for long and looked forward again. The other brother, whose name was unknown, seemed to be about her age, and didn't appear to be interested in any of the three figures, muttering something about wasting time and video games while he accompanied the family.
Finally, Illumi came in her direction. His eyes looked at Killua attentively, as if absorbing his appearance, then moving to Alluka. He frowned as if he felt a foul odor, clearly unhappy with the girl's presence there and Medea felt her blood boil. How could anyone look at a relative like that? She stood between the man and Alluka, shielding her from his eyes. He just stared at her and the corner of her lips turned upwards in a minimal smile.
"Follow the rest of our family, Killua. Medea, you come by my side." The bitter way that Illumi enunciated her name made something inside her stir. Why did he hate her so much? She had done nothing to him, she'd only got defensive whenever they met. "I'll keep an eye on you. Any movement that I consider potentially violent and I'll cut off your head, are we clear?"
"If you do, I swear you'll never see me again." Killua answered. "That's a warning."
The cynical smile on his lips ceased and he frowned. Medea placed her hand to Killua's shoulder, shaking her head.
"It's okay, you can go ahead." She ensured the boy. "I got into this situation, the least I can do is not cause more trouble for Alluka or you."
Alluka hugged her from behind shaking her head vehemently, refusing to let her go. Medea turned around and stooped, staring at her in the eyes.
"Don't go with him, De, please." She pleaded, her blue eyes utterly fearful, making her gulp down. "He's bad, he'll hurt you."
"He won't." She answered in a whisper. "If he tries, I'll use my Nen, but you're gonna have to get out of here as fast as you can, okay? Promise me if I tell you, you'll pull Killua and run as fast as you can?" With a slightly worried expression, she nodded and Medea stroked her cheek. "Good girl."
"Can we proceed or are you going to keep talking to this thing for the rest of the night?" Inquired Illumi.
She turned to him, filled with hatred.
"Oh, go fuck yourself, you asshole." She growled, making the surrounding people stare at her in shock and Illumi squint his eyes. "You're acting like a bitter old lady and nobody's saying shit to you." She let go of the girl, who was still attached to her dress, and approached the man. "Alluka, you can go, I'll accompany this prick before he decides to throw a bitch fit."
Reluctantly, she went to her brother and followed through the metal doors. Medea didn't wait for the killer, trying to walk down the corridor of people as if she was the one in control of the situation, when it was obvious that she was not. She thought of Kurapika. If she already owed a lot of favors before that, now she couldn't even imagine everything she'd have to do to help him in the future. Unfortunately, knowing him, he'd probably reject any attempt of retribution. It was sweet, but at the same time annoying.
She felt Illumi's gaze burn on skin as they climbed the stairs towards the first floor and closed her eyes, concentrating not to tell him to fuck off and mind his fucking business. She could feel his heavy and thirsty aura impose itself on hers like a tsunami, wishing to devour everything it could touch. It was unbearable, she felt like she was being crushed against the floor. She tried to control herself. Inhale. Exhale. Inhale again. She turned to the man, who watched her without a shred of modesty, and raised an eyebrow.
"Why didn't you kill me when you could?" Her voice sounded tired. "If you had done it on that night, we wouldn't be going through this right now. "
That seemed to surprise him, because he was thoughtful for a few moments. Without saying anything, he untied the silver mask and passed his fingers through the black strands of hair that had fallen onto his face during the waltz, placing the object inside his pocket. They went up another flight of stairs in silence and she thought that maybe he was on autopilot again, he didn't seem to sketch any more expressions, it was worrying her. Suddenly he turned his head in her direction, his face still slightly marked in the region where the mask had been, and answered:
"Isn't it obvious? Because I didn't want to. It wasn't in my contract to have to murder anyone but Evanor Lasym."
She rolled her eyes.
"Maybe if you'd done that, we'd both be peaceful now, it was a bad decision on your part." She said.
"Actually, no." He commented with that bizarrely cheerful tone. "You have potential, you're just dumb and unprepared. In addition, it was quite interesting to research about your life..." He approached her and lowered his voice, whispering with mockery: "It's not every day that a Hunter with such a promising future turns out to have a past tied with a brothel in Proyca, right?"
Medea froze instantly. Slowly, she stared at the man, trying to be sure of what she had just heard. The smile on his lips left no doubt that he was not bluffing, Illumi really knew about her past. How did he find out? There was no information about that in the association system. Had he heard Evie comment on that?
With an impassive expression, she kept walking.
"You're already an asshole, are you also delirious now?"
"Oh, please, do you really think I wouldn't understand the meaning of that Kanzashi?" He kept talking unbothered.
She widened her eyes and felt the air drain from her lungs.
"You're the one who took it." She muttered as she recalled of the events during that night. "Of course it was you! I knew I'd left him at Kaniv! Oh Great Glorious, how could I not realize it sooner?"
"Because you were too busy trying to blackmail Lasym into letting you lead the mission." He answered apparently bored. "I thought prostitutes were more careful with their belongings." He teased.
Medea raised her chin with pride.
"I'm not a prostitute, I'm a Hunter." She said, emphasizing the word. "Besides, that wasn't my symbol at the brothel. It belonged to an... acquaintance."
" Oh, so your kleptomania comes from childhood? Interesting."
I'm not a kleptomaniac, I simply work with it, that's all." She replied with annoyance. "You kill people for money, and yet you're not a serial killer. We're not that different."
He completely ignored her, typing the password to open the metal door (did they have any doors that weren't like that?). As soon as they slid to the side, Medea realized that the place was a library. Countless dark wooden shelves were distributed around the site, several books occupying their shelves, probably organized on alphabetical order. Around them, ancient and delicate decorations were on display, all equally beautiful and intriguing, as well as paintings and other artifacts that she was sure could only be bought on the black market. In the center of the room was the Zoldyck family, but Killua and Alluka were slightly distant from them, staying still in a corner.
Illumi put his left hand between her shoulder blades, pushing her into the enclosure without a hint of delicacy. She slapped his arm and walked away, looking at him with disgust.
"Don't touch me!" She said, making him roll his eyes, and stood facing Zeno. "So what do I have to do to get the scroll?" Medea inquired objectively.
"You're too authoritative for someone whose life is on the line." Said the obese brother, drawing her gaze to him.
"Go suck a dick, dude, no one asked your opinion." Kalluto looked at her with slightly wide eyes and opened his fan, covering the lower part of his face. She suspected he was laughing like Killua, but she wasn't sure.
"Enough!" Silva hissed, looking at her from head to toe. "Either you shut your sassy mouth, or I'll cut off your tongue. You got that right, thief?"
Reluctantly, she nodded. From among the bookshelves came the mother, carrying a small black box and something that seemed to be an inkwell. Zeno deposited a paper and a feather pen on the mahogany table in front of him, pushing them towards Medea, who approached and sat on the chair. She looked up, trying to understand what he meant by that.
"In order for me to give you Tchingsen's scroll, you will have to sign that document."
She frowned. "That's all?"
"Obviously not, otherwise I would not have said that you have a chance to survive." He motioned for his daughter-in-law to come closer with his finger and she put the ink cartridge in the middle of the table, handing the velvet box to Illumi. Medea stared at the assassin, who seemed to know what it was about, a serene countenance on his face. "In the box that Illumi is holding there is a drug called Whispers of the Abyss, it was used during the Irheno period to punish blasphemers. Have you ever heard of it?"
Medea denied it.
"It's a narcotic made with some hallucinogenic substances, but it also has two dangerous components: Hell powder and raybark. In short, at the same time that it makes you high, it amplifies your aura to such high proportions that it can lead you to immediate combustion." He explained as she gulped down and went pale. "The chances of someone using it and surviving are less than 5%, but if the person somehow manages to stay alive they say that they are never the same after it."
"And you want me to use it." He nodded. "What if I refuse to use it?"
"Illumi will have my permission to rip your heart out." Zeno responded.
Killua, who until then had remained quiet and apparently shocked, approached the table. His face was red and his eyes were frantic, he was fuming with anger. He slammed his hand on the wooden surface and turned to his grandfather, clenching his teeth.
"That's ridiculous! It's practically suicide!"
"Just like her decision of trying to rob our family, Kil. " Added Illumi.
"But she didn't do it because she wanted to!" He hurried to say. 'Shit, Kurapika told him about the Order's mission!' she thought desperate. "She only did that because-"
"Killua! Please, no!" She stopped him and turned to Zeno, trying to avoid the topic. "What does the document say?"
"Medea, don't tell me you're really thinking about doing this." He spoke exasperated.
"Killua, I got into it, so I'm gonna try to accept the chance." Her voice didn't allow any discussions. "I'm waiting to know why you want me to sign this document, could you be so kind to clarify it?" She asked sarcastically.
Silva spoke instead of his father, his proud posture already beginning to irritate Medea.
"It's a guarantee that if you survive, you'll owe a service or favor to our family." He laughed mockingly. "You'll take the scroll, but leave with a life debt. If you don't fulfill the favor, you die as painfully as possible."
"An eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth." Zeno finished.
Medea looked at the paper and the inkwell, assessing whether it was worth trying to take that scroll in exchange for an almost certain death. She had spent so many years struggling to stay alive, even after all the obstacles placed in her path, and didn't know if she could simply surrender her soul – literally in that case – on account of a mission. She had so many things she still wanted to do, so many places she wanted to know, so many people who wanted to prove wrong... By the Great Heavens, she hadn't even found Kite yet to apologize! And Madame Thoshe? How could she leave without thanking her for her instructions all those years?
'You are nothing without the order!' The High Priestess' voice echoed in her mind, accusing her. 'Who were you before you were welcomed by the Ever-Living Golden Goddess? An orphan from a brothel. A killer. A monster.'
Yeah, she was a monster. Her Nen wasn't normal, everyone always told her that. It was hideous, they said. The only one who didn't turn her away because of her aura had been the High Priestess who had taught her to control her over the years that she had been serving the Order, at the behest of the Great Changeable. And how did she want to reciprocate that gesture? Refusing to fulfill her mission because she feared dying? Because, deep down, Medea knew she was nothing but a selfish woman.
She took the pen and dived it into the inkwell carefully, watching the Nanjing wetting the tip slowly before starting to sign her own name over the dotted line. She didn't read what was written, it wasn't like that paper was going to screw up her life than her own luck already had. Medea heard Alluka holding her breath, but she didn't care. It was done. The white-haired woman looked at the paper for the last time and that's when the odor invaded her nostrils. That was the smell of honey, the only one left was the citrus smell. She was close to completing her mission, either to bring the object to her leader, or to be embraced by the eternal sleep. "It's signed, give me the drug."
Illumi laughed disdainfully.
"Do you think you're going to ingest it?" He approached her and opened the small velvet box, revealing a needle with a barrel full of an amber liquid. "It's an injectable drug. They used to cut the blasphemers and pour it on their wounds, but as the centuries passed, people discovered that it's much more effective like this." His voice was so enthusiastic that it made her feel sick.
She turned to Killua and Alluka, who looked at the scene statically, and smiled. "If I don't survive, I want you to know that the little time we spent together was very important to me." She felt tears begin to sprout in her eyes and her throat burn. "I want you to keep my house, it's not much, but I'd like you to take care of it for me, can you do that?"
Alluka nodded, thick tears rolling down her angelic face as she clung to Killua.
"Tell Leorio that he's gonna become a great professional. Give my collection of shells to Gon, okay?" The teardrops began to drip down her face and she thanked for at least dying with her makeup on. "Call my boss and let her know that I will always be grateful for the opportunities she gave me." She gently took off the white gloves, putting them on the table.
Illumi approached her, looking more serious than before, and poked the syringe, a sharp clink of glass spreading across the place. She took a deep breath and watched him extend his long pale fingers towards her, waiting for her arm. Before handing her life to her grim reaper, Medea turned to the siblings one last time, her voice completely hoarse.
"Tell Kurapika that my document's inside the hotel safe... Oh, and let him know that he looks hot with his hair up." She tried to laugh, but ended up sobbing and more tears rolled. "There's a person I hurt, please tell him I'm sorry and I hope he has a good life. His name is Kite, if you can deliver that message, I'd be very grateful."
She extended her left arm and looked deep into Illumi's eyes, who remained neutral.
"Get it over with." He nodded and held the limb carefully, looking for the right spot before injecting the liquid. As soon as he found the right vein and was already inserting the needle, Medea heard Killua calling her.
Suddenly everything went black. There was nothing but silence and the smell of citrus fruits in his nostrils.
Was she dead?
She opened her eyes, confused and fearful, and noticed that she was in a dark place, but she could hear the noise of water splashing around. She looked down, but saw nothing beside her bare legs. Was she naked? Wasn't she dressed until a few seconds ago? Staggering, she tried to rise from the ground and heard more drops of water. This time the floor was wet. How nice! Medea liked water!
She kicked the puddle, or was it a pool?, and droplets of water came flew through the air, creating a false rain around her. Laughing, she jumped on the surface and enjoyed the sound the little waves she produced made when the spread around. How fun! She felt so powerful! Yes, she was so strong! There was no one like Medea, they couldn't even compare to how powerful she was! She laughed once she saw some beams of light reflected over the water and bowed to see her reflection.
She saw nothing but two big yellow eyes and frowned. Yellow was not cool, it was the color of the sweater she was wearing when she argued with Kite, no, no, no, she did not like yellow. It was an ugly color. She turned around to have fun with the other puddle when she felt something pull her long white hair and screamed.
She was sinking! But she could swim, how was she sinking? She could swim. She could swim. She could… sing? Nah, she didn't know how to do anything! She wanted to throw up, why did she feel so heavy? Why didn't she reach the bottom? She was choking! Even worse, it was all dark again!
Everything but the Dark, no, not the dark! She was afraid of the Dark, didn't her Master know?
"Enoull! Help, Enoull! Lord Araeso is punishing me again!"
"Enoull, where is my auntie?"
Enoull. Enoull. Enoull ... Enoull? Enoull! Why did she hand her over for her freedom? Everything meant so little to prostitutes. But Medea was a whore too, wasn't she? No, no, no, Medea was a Hunter! But did it make any difference to the people who knew where she came from?
Coughing, she sat down again, this time her hair was wet. She didn't like sleeping with wet hair. She wanted to take a nap. She was in a beautiful cave, it had a lot of blue lights. Blue was beautiful! It was the color of Grandma Hyo's scarf, so it could only be a nice color! It brought luck, Grandma said! She got on her feet and saw a figure sitting in the middle of the cave. She was naked and covered in red drawings throughout her body, heavy chains kept her pinned to the ground by her wrists, ankles and neck.
Oh noes! She was naked and trapped? She needed help then! Did one of the men who paid Araeso do that to her? She could see many bruises on her body, some bled! She was in pain! Medea knew that!
She approached and heard a hiss. Did people hiss? Oh, yeah, sometimes. Or did they not? People growled, she knew that!
"Do you have an owie?" The girl asked. She around five years old, the blush on her cheeks and large violet eyes made it clear that she was still an innocent child.
The chained woman laughed, a sharp and cold noise, but that didn't push the child away. "A bit. I've been locked up here a long time, I can't get out even if I want to."
The girl frowned thoughtfully. She had an idea! Why didn't she help that lady? Auntie Dawna always said that if she wasn't part of the solution, then she was part of the problem! She was helping, right? Would Auntie come to take her home if she helped the lady?
She didn't want to live with Lord Araeso and the other girls. They hurt her legs if she didn't dance right. She didn't like to dance. "Can I help you, auntie?"
The woman raised her head. Long golden hair fell over her wounded shoulders, and yellow eyes carefully studied her. Her eyes had slits, so cool! She looked like a snake. Medea liked snakes, they did sssshhhhh, they were funny! But peacocks were prettier, they had colorful feathers! She liked colorful feathers. Enoull wore colorful feathers.
"You gonna free me, little girl?" she asked, a smile on her lips.
"You got an owie!" She responded. Wasn't it obvious? She had no clothes and had many boo boos, bad men had done that to her. First with Enoull, then with this lady. Would they do with her, too? No, no, no! Grandma Hyo said she was going to help her escape, they wouldn't do boo boos on her! Grandma didn't lie!
She pulled the chains hard, but her four-year-old self was too weak. How would she help that auntie? She felt a heat spread throughout her body and took her plump fingers to the rings that held her to the ground. Oh! They were breaking! She touched the remaining strings until finally releasing the yellow-haired girl. She liked her. Should she like yellow then? No, Kite had been sad when she wore yellow, she couldn't like the color!
The woman got up, stretching herself after being trapped for so long. She was pretty! Medea wanted to be beautiful like that one day! She turned to the child and laughed.
"Ah, yes, the fruit of pain. The unwanted child."
Medea cried. The woman was saying bad things to her. Why? She cried. She shouted. She clung to her leg. That lady couldn't hate her! Everybody else already did that. Why didn't she want to befriend Medea? Did Medea even have friends? She cried again.
She felt the woman snatch her away and drown her in the waters of the pool again.
It was dark. Medea was afraid of the dark.
She opened her eyes. The clarity blinded her and her body ached, it was as if she'd taken a beating. She looked at the ivory ceiling and frowned. Where was she? Medea couldn't remember anything after Killua entered the training room. She sat on the soft mattress with difficulty, her arms hurt a lot and she felt her mouth dry; had she been captured or something? She didn't know for sure. Her head was hammering and her vision was blurred.
"Medea, I see you're awake." Greeted a male voice. Rubbing her eyes, she turned in the direction of the voice and came across a tall man with long dark hair and large black eyes. He handed her a glass of water, carefully depositing it in his hands. "Here, drink it, you sweated a lot, you need to rehydrate yourself."
She drank the liquid quickly, sipping it as if her life depended on it – and maybe it did. When she finished the glass, still thirsty, she looked at the man trying to remember who he was.
"Your Name Is Illumi, right?"
"Yes, can you remember why you're here?"
Medea stopped to think.
"My memories are all blurry, I'm not sure of what happened." He raised her left arm, obtaining a groan of pain. Looking at the purplish wound on her tanned skin, Medea regained her memories one by one, like a waterfall of information. "How long did I stay like that?"
"Four hours."
"What happened to me?" She cleared her throat, trying to make her voice less hoarse.
"You collapsed." He explained, releasing her arm and walking towards the wooden desk that was in that room, where he reclined. "You started laughing, crying, screaming, all at once, I've never seen anyone have such a bizarre side effect with this drug before." He passed his hand through his black locks, placing them behind his ear. "You somehow created a kind of Nen bubble around your body and hallucinated for an hour, I had to wait for you to retract your aura so I could move you here."
"And where am I?"
"In my room, it's the closest to the library, so it was the quickest option to relocate you." Illumi explained. "You've had severe seizures, I'm surprised you're still alive."
Medea laughed bitterly. "Same here…" Suddenly ahe remembered the purpose of the mission and stared at the man. "Does that mean I made it? Can I take the Scroll with me?"
Illumi stared at her before responding. His black eyes seemed to twinkle with a strange emotion, she didn't know if it was something good or not. Probably not, considering the gratuitous hatred she'd been getting since they met. Finally, he looked away and picked up a green tube adorned with silver details from behind him, pointing it at the young woman.
"A deal is deal."
Medea nodded and took the object carefully, admired with its delicacy and beauty. Was she dreaming? Did she actually survive the deadly drug the Zoldyck gave her? Praise the Great Moon! She had smiled at her that night. The woman looked at the assassin again and smiled. "Thanks, oh, and I'm sorry for insulting you. I get nervous under pressure." She spoke and scratched her nape in embarrassment, but he kept staring at her as if she were a circus freak, ignoring the apology altogether. Uncomfortable, she decided to change the subject. "Can I go now?" She asked. "I need to deliver this to my contractor as soon as possible."
He shrugged. "If you can get up, you're free to leave. My brother is waiting for you on the first floor."
Nodding, Medea guided her legs to the floor with caution so as not to lose firmness. She couldn't feel her shoes, but she had probably lost them while enduring the side effects of Whispers from the precipice, so it was ok. Fortunately, her legs didn't yield and she walked slowly towards the door, not looking back or saying goodbye to the man. She couldn't wait to get out of that place. Kurapika was right, she hoped she'd never have to go back there again.
The path to the first floor was confusing and she got lost a few times, but in the end, she found the large staircase that she had climbed when she broke into the mansion. As she descended the stairs, Medea followed through the lobby until she saw two figures sitting at the feet of the large entrance door. Smiling, she sneaked up and tapped Killua's head lightly with the Scroll's tube, causing him to grunt turn around immediately with Alluka. Their eyes widened as they saw the woman standing there, smiling and holding her target, and hugged her immediately.
During the path to the Kukuroo Mountain's gates, Alluka didn't let go of her at all, clinging to her arm like a baby kangaroo with its mother. Killua, on the other hand, kept scolding her for a while, talking about irresponsibility, keeping secrets and her suicidal behavior.
"You acted just like Gon, you two are extremely dumb! Gosh! Someday you'll both end up dead, I swear!"
Medea just laughed and said nothing, too focused on the hallucinations she began to remember. They were bizarre and didn't make any sense, but she assumed it was like this with everyone who used heavy drugs. Her thoughts were interrupted when she saw the Testing Gates open, and she placed her hands over her eyes, uncomfortable with the first rays of the dawn breaking the blueish-purple sky. Across the road, leaning over the hood of a silver car, stood Kurapika. He was apparently stressed, since he massaged the bridge of his nose with intensity while keeping his eyes closed.
She felt the hairs on the back of her neck bristle, but ignored the feeling. Kurapika was there, everything was going to be fine! Medea screamed at the top of her lungs, drawing the blond's attention to herself. His eyes opened and his feature immediately lit up, leaving his original position and standing with a completely different posture as he stared at her. She didn't even care if there was a road ahead of her, she simply ran as fast as she could considering she had a huge dress on and threw herself into his open arms, laughing like a child.
"I'M FUCKING ALIVE! I survived!" She hugged him tightly and placed her head on the curve of his neck, inhaling his musky perfume as she felt tears roll down her face. "I'm alive, Kura, I'm alive!"
Trembling, he pressed her against herself and nodded. Medea believed that he preferred not to say anything for fear of crying, but she said nothing, only hugged him tightly as she whispered that she was fine. She was so focused on her emotions that she didn't even notice Illumi watching the scene unfold across the road.
What does the future have in store for Medea? Could good news come soon? What does the hallucination she had mean? To find out these and other questions, stay tuned for the next chapters~