Gon sat over me when I came to.

"Killua!" Gon leapt on top of me and squeezes. "you're awake."

"Obviously." I pushed him off and pulled myself up, "ouch, why does my body ache."

"I think you used up too much nen." Gon rolled his shoulders "I'm a little achy too."

"what happened to Hisoka?"

"I don't remember too much but I think I felt Iku's nen and then when I woke up, Hisoka was gone, I think Iku did something."

"What was she doing here?" I got up and brushed the dirt off my shorts. "I knew she was just as much of a creep as Hisoka."

"We were heading in the same direction, Killua." Gon reminded me. She probably felt our nens getting low and just wanted to check on us.

"or she hid her nen from us so we wouldn't know she was still following us." I shot back "you're always so trusting, Gon, I already told you, we have to be careful who we talk to. I haven't figured out how to convince my parents to let you go yet. I have to find the person that payed for it and then I can kill them."

"Iku is safe." Gon got that look in his eyes. "He's not gonna hurt us, he'd have done it already if he was going to."

"sometimes people aren't so simple, Gon, sometimes people hurt because they can." I grabbed his arm and pulled him behind me "now come on, we need to get to the next town."

"Are you ever going to trust anyone but me, Killua?" Gon sounded sad about it. I did think about it, I really did. Could I? could I ever trust anyone else? Trusting Gon came so easy, I didn't have to think about it.

"Honestly… probably not, Gon." Gon was the only one I was always honest with "I don't need anyone else."

"Are you sure I'm enough?" Gon's tone stopped me, of course he was, how could he not be?

"You're more than enough, now come on."

"If you're sure." Gon is the one that didn't sound sure.

"Of course I am." I dragged him behind me. Even if I wasn't enough for him, he was enough for me, I didn't need anyone else.

Gon wasn't as talkative as usual, he focused on his nen, even making it over halfway to the town yesterday using our nen made it four times as exhausting, we should have been able to make it there in no time, it shouldn't have effected us at all.

"I'm tired again." Gon yawned.

"we need to rest our nen." I let my nen drop, I felt weirdly exposed without it.

"but Iku says–"

"Iku says not to over due it or it could kills us, she's not here to replenish our nen so we have to keep an eye on it." I reminded him "do you have any idea how bad that could have been. We were completely defenseless, Gon! Hisoka could have killed us right there and we couldn't have done a thing about it."

"If it makes you feel better, we couldn't stop him anyway." Gon smiles and I snaps.

"No that doesn't make me feel better!" I screamed at him. "that's worse, how the hell am I supposed to be able to keep you safe if even at our best we'd both easily be killed by your stalker, my brother or some person we can't even tell her age." My chest was so tight it hurt, I felt like my own nen was crushing my ribs.

Gon just stared at me while I stood there clutching my chest.

"it's not your job to keep me safe, Killua." Gon was the calm one now?

"You're my best friend," Gon reached for me but I pushed him away I can't do this.

"your job is to be my friend, it's not your fault if I get hurt."

"Yes it is!" I grabbed him and shook him, I wanted to hit him for being so stupid. "My family is the one that took you, I wasn't the one that did the job because I was too busy trying to run away from my problems. I could have stopped it, had I been there, had I been the one that was supposed to kidnap you–"

"we wasn't friends then, you probably would have done your job." He yelled back at me. "you saved me, Killua, why do you keep trying to make yourself the bad guy when you're not!"

"If I had just–"

"You aren't the bad guy, stupid!" He shoved me down and pinned me against the ground "and I'm not getting off you until you admit it. you're not bad." He had that look in his eyes, he wasn't going to give in on this, but why, why should he care, why can't he just let me keep him safe.

"Gon–"

Iku's nen made use both stop, look up and she was right there with Hisoka.

"interesting." Hisoka looks down at us, his long finger tapping at his lip.

"you guys okay?" Iku asked her eyes flickering between us.

"I think we're interrupting." Hisoka looks at her.

"I think you can disappear again." She snaps, obviously irritated. I shoved Gon off.

"Why didn't you warn us about nen training." I demanded.

"It was self–explanatory and even if I had you would have thought I was just making excuses." She answered me honestly, that was honestly right?

"I–"

"Iku, you were in the woods right, you found us." Gon ran straight up to her, he trusted her, so soon? How? How did he do that?

"I did."

"Your teacher is so brave." Hisoka mocked Iku

Even Gon didn't miss the mocking tone to Hisoka's voice.

"She fought me just to make sure I wouldn't bother you boys while you were resting." Hisoka ran his fingers up the back of Iku's head and through her hair she tensed up, her hands curling into fists.

"knock that off." I snap at him. "no one wants your hands on them."

Hisoka leaned down so we were face to face "are you going to fight me next little boy." He hooked his nail under my chin and then he stumbled back.

"keep your hands off him." Iku's eyes were filled with anger, her nen thickened by the second, nowhere near what I felt before but it was enough that I was intimidated.

"woah." Gon looks to me "did you see that?"

"no…" she really is strong, strong as she needs to be… stronger than me and Gon, stronger than Hisoka… maybe she can be stronger than Illumi too.

"I'm not gonna bother you guys but please let me use my ability on you." She offered her hands to us Hisoka looks like he actually enjoyed being hit in the face by Iku.

"Please." Gon grabs her hand without hesitation.

"whatever." I took her hand and her warmth spread through me." I'll replenish your nen fast but it's going to make you sleepy. Take a nap under a tree or get a room, just be safe." She started to hum and the warmth intensified.

"it's a rather pleasant feeling isn't it?" Hisoka was bent at the waist talking to Gon.

"sure is." He smiled as if he didn't' understand why everyone else disliked him.

"you've felt it?" Gon at least asked that much.

"After we fought she was worn out from that mirror ability, took on a lot of damage, the poor dear and since she couldn't get the energy from anywhere else and I had plenty to spare, not that she needed much." He scratched the top of her head and I could feel her nen tense up.

"no touching while I'm working." She pressed her nen out and pushed him away.

"none of you are any fun." Hisoka crossed his arms and pouted at us. Iku finished up replenishing our nen and Gon hugged her.

"Thank you, Iku." Gon holds onto her and Iku for about five seconds looks like she had been sucker punched right in the gut, she got the glassy look again and hesitantly wrapped her arms around Gon.

"No problem, kid." Her arms shook as she held him. When I looked at Gon he was looking at me like he was waiting for me to say something.

"Iku…" I shifted from foot to foot, I know what Gon wanted me to do "thanks for healing us, we'll be more careful."

Gon looks hurt and Iku looks broken when she let him go. Sorry, Iku but theres not enough room for three of us.

"I'm sure we'll run into each other again." Gon looks Iku in the eye and while her eyes were still a bit glassy she looked normal for the most part.

"I'm sure we will." Iku patted his head and then mine "please be careful."

"Yeah yeah, I heard you the first time." I didn't push her away, she must still be using her ability because there was still warmth coming from her fingertips.

"lets go." Iku moved so much faster than I thought she could, so fast I couldn't see her movements when she didn't want me to. She had her hand hooked onto Hisoka's and dragged him away from us.

"I'll see you around boys." Hisoka waved at us, Iku yanked him forward mumbling something like "not if I have a say about it."

I could already feel Gon's eyes shift over to me as soon as Iku was out of sight.

"Why didn't you say he could come with us, we need her to train our nen faster, we have to get stronger now, Killua." His eyes were so intense I didn't want to look at them.

"Gon, the world… it's not a good place, Iku seems like she's good and maybe she is but we can't risk that."

"Well maybe I'm willing to." Gon countered, I expected as much from him. I looks him in the eye and all I could see was losing him. IKu betraying us, Hisoka taking him away from me, Illumi using him against me.

"Yeah? We'll I'm not." I tucked my hands back into my pockets but compared to Iku's warmth I still feel cold.

"alright then." Gon sighed "how about a nap and some food." His smile wasn't quite as bright but he was willing to put up with it… me.

Thanks so much for reading.

what do you think so far? how is the plot progressing in your opinion.

I'd love to hear from anyone who is enjoying this story

As always see you tomorrow

XOXO