The boys go to speak to Eifion, instead, bumping into Luca as he's leaving the man's office.

The walk is quiet, neither boy wanting to say anything yet. Given the circumstance to why they were headed to Deacon's office, even though he was probably, extremely busy right now… they had a quick question they needed an answer to.

That man would be unbiased on the matter, given that he trained under Daniel's father, there was a high chance he was aware of the possibility to break certain rules and conditions ingrained in one's being…

That… was only if he was willing to talk to them.

He was going to be busy, considering a man who was considered, a world programmer, is going to be stopping by the ground, everything had to be ready by then… to protect them from an entity that wants to harm them… to hurt Daniel.

Killua won't allow that…

But more importantly, Eifion is trying to stop it with Vastorie's help. If Daniel's father is involved, it must mean a small part of him must still care for his son.

As they reached the Deacon's office, Luca walked out of the room, carrying empty plastic containers. He held a smile on his face, closing the door behind him without a single care in the world. Just as he was about to turn to leave, he spotted the two boys headed his way, "Evening… What can I do for you?"

"Actually…" Killua flicked out a hand, "We came to speak to Eifion."

Luca frowned, "He's actually… quite busy…"

Daniel raised an eyebrow, before pointing at the two containers, "Apparently not busy enough to have lunch with you…"

Crossing his arms, the man's expression dropped, "Well… If I didn't get him to eat something, he'll work through every break. If I'm being honest… Vastorie isn't helping the situation. The two of them have been in a few heated battles, mainly discussing how to deal with the situation. The man is adamant…" He stopped himself, "I'd rather leave that topic untouched. Anyways, I'm sure I could help you. What can I do for you?"

"Well…" Killua held out a finger, "He has trained under Vastorie, so he may have overheard some information about our predicament. So, we were hoping to speak to him, specifically on the matter…"

Luca thought about the situation for a moment, "I'll tell you what… If I can't help you, the next time I bring lunch for him, I'll invite you over. So, while he has a break, you can talk to him. Sound like a fair deal?"

Killua looked at his partner, accessing the situation. Luca could help him. If the two were close enough for Luca to be the only one to constant stop Eifion, just so he could have a break… he might have heard other things over the complaints, "Alright, we have two separate issues. Can we take it to the underground training facilities?"

"Sure, I'll lead the way."

"~"

Killua explained their predicament, explaining away his troubling thoughts along with his partner. Once they had discussed everything, Luca smiled apologetically, "You're right… Eifion was the best to ask for this information."

Killua let out a frustrated groan.

The man dismissed the boy's growing frustrations, "I'm not the one who's great at gathering intel like that… but Eifion may know. Vastorie is a very secretive man with his trade, there's a select few in this school he trusts to keep important information… But, it's not a complete loss. I can help you with the other issue."

"Great!" Daniel chimed with a smile; at least they got some good news. They won't be going back empty-handed. He showed the man his form of Zetsu, the man staying quiet as he took in the image before him.

It wasn't that the boy was bad… it was that there was a conflict within the boy's form, that was stopping him from completing the circle. There was a pulse escaping him, running between himself and Killua, but the moment it hits Killua, he goes into hiding.

He didn't know how to explain it if he was being honest. Eifion would have a better way with words, to describe the situation "I can't say it's good… nor could I say it's bad."

Daniel's features fell. His partner felt that would be the case, but there was a glimmer of hope, he may be doing something right… the question is, what was that something? "How can I improve? Or what am I doing right…?"

The man looked to Killua, surprised that he was being asked "You could ask your partner… wouldn't that be better?"

Killua awkwardly sighed at the comment, that was he's probably right there… he couldn't tell. Something about their connection allows him to always feel his partner's presence "I can't, I bypass his Zetsu, as in… I'm always able to sense him… it's actually why we wanted to speak to Eifion."

"I assume it has to do with your connection… well, the linger wave of aura connecting between you."

"Yes…" The boys agree in unison.

"In that case, can I see Killua's for a comparison?"

"That wouldn't really, be fair…" Daniel began to argue, "his shits all over mine."

The man snickered, "That really doesn't matter… it's so I can compare. I may be able to see what you're doing wrong. If what you told me is true, then the opposite would be true. You say… Killua's shit all over yours, means you are looking up to his, to improve your own. But if you can also bypass his Zetsu, by sensing his that-"

"I can't… we instantly lose that connection briefly."

The man rubbed his chin, "In that case, show me."

Killua eclipsed his presence, hiding it perfectly.

The man's eyes zeroed in on the boy's connection, noticing a thin gap between them. But what was even more important, was the thickness of their connection had thinned out. Their connection was a two-way street, not a one-way as he originally assumed.

The problem wasn't that Daniel was unable to hide his presence… he lacked in the department of reining his aura in. So, it's not that he's unable… it's that he can't. He has spent so much time refining Ren and Ten, that the limited time he had probably been spending on practising Zetsu, has made him unable to hide it effectively… he had royally screwed himself over.

He needed a more experience Nen master to help him here… not him, "Okay, you're not going to like the sounds of this. One, I can't help you." Daniel let out a frustrated sigh, "Two, Eifion won't be able to help you either." The two groaned in frustration, "three… I can tell you where you're going wrong, just not how to help you."

"That's some good news…" Killua grew frustrated at the situation, "What's he doing wrong?"

"Here's the thing… He's applying the rules correctly, but he's not thinking about himself… how his body functions. He has too much aura reserved. So, when he tries to hide it, it's like a lightbulb dimming in a dark room."

"So… I'm a globe that is unable to be turned off?"

"Pretty much. I'd say a starting point is learning to refine your aura further… not make it dense per se, but rather disperse it. It may be taxing on you, but it'll be harder to find you, if, your presence can be felt all around you."

Killua clicked his fingers, a lightbulb flicking on in his head, "hide in plain sight."

"Exactly!" Luca smiled, his arms crossing, "Sorry I can't be of more help…"

Daniel still smiled at the situation. It may be a temporary one, but at least he'll be able to move forward, "It was helpful to us. Will you be able to get us a moment of Eifion's time?"

"I'll be seeing him for dinner tonight…" He paused, "Not that kind of dinner." He waved his hands dismissively. Both boys raised their eyebrow, confused at the statement. Plus, who cares if they're dating. It's their life… not other's concern. When he received no reaction other than the silent confusion, the man pressed on, "Eifion tends to work through breaks. I get him to take a break… even if it's thirty minutes at a time."

The two nodded, now understanding the predicament.

"I'll see if I can squeeze you in tomorrow… at worst, by the end of the week. Although, he may be grumpy throughout the conversation. He's… putting himself under stress. To put it bluntly, he and your father do not see eye-to-eye."

"My father doesn't see eye-to-eye with a lot of people… if I were, to be honest."

"Eifion would argue he's misunderstood…" Luca countered, "not that it makes it any better. I believe he's trying to get your father to see from his perspective, even though he mostly agrees with your father's way at handling most things… he objects to one thing…"

"Which is…?" Daniel rested a hand on his hip.

"To ghosting his family…"

Daniel looked away, hiding his small smile, "Is that so…" A lot of people were on his side. Vastorie going far beyond ghosting his family is against everyone else's opinion. They want him to remain a family man because it's more beneficial than trying to protect them from the sidelines.

He has an army behind his back, couldn't he place some elaborate traps to fuck over Victor, before he could do any harm to any one of them… or was he waiting for the right moment to attack? He can't predict his father's moves… he isn't that experience in that field.

But if he could… could he redirect his enemy into a better position, for himself…?

He doesn't know…

Only time could tell…

"I don't care if he ghosts us…" That is a bald-faced lie if he ever told one, but he still needs to get his point across. It's not that he doesn't care, it mainly, that he wants to know why this was the best option, "I just want to hear it from him, why he feels like it'll lead to the best outcome…"

Luca gave a nod of understanding, "It's the least he could do for you… if I were, to be honest. Other than that, is there anything else I can help you with?"

"Actually…" Killua raised a finger, "Yes. We know about Vastorie making a move, Eifion told us."

"Right…"

"We want to be able to stick close to Eifion, while also being out of danger… at least, not close to being detected by him."

"That's going to be impossible, the circle around the school allows him to-" The man stopped, coming to a realisation, that what the men were planning, will leave Eifion in a weakened state. He can't use his Nen ability, while the field is down… that means, Victor will be allowed to attack, "Eifion can't send anyone away while the field is down… I'll stay close to him. Damn it… I'm an idiot for not thinking about that."

"That's the thing… we think you should stay close by to him. But the thing is we want to stay close by too. If Victor were to show up, we want to be able to draw his attention. He's after us… so if we give ourselves away, he'd come straight to us… we can draw him away from the school."

"Out of the question!" Luca objected, "I'm not disagreeing with your plan entirely. If the man is after you, he'll go straight after you… whereas, he may use another student's life to draw you out. I agree with that aspect… What I disagree with, is using your lives to protect others. Let us protect you… We aren't as weak as you think."

"That's the thing… we aren't using our lives just to protect the students… if Eifion is alive, we still have a chance to remove Victor from the school. You could pull the man away from danger if it becomes too serious. We're also aware, that Victor will not kill Vastorie… he needs him for something. We don't know what that thing is… but at least with Eifion still alive, we can win…"

Luca fell silent. He can't deny that would be the most beneficial route… but Eifion will still be against this. He cares about every student, putting his life on the line, to protect them. He wouldn't want anyone to be using themselves as bait to protect him… even if it means he'll get a second longer to reformulate a plan to protect everyone…

"Eifion will be against this…"

"But you won't… and that's what matters…"

The man searched the boy's eyes, wondering why they were so resolute with putting their lives on the line to protect Eifion. But the same should be said about him… he'd do the same for that man, even if he can't be with him the very next day. Eifion fumbled with his jacket, pulling his name tag off "Keep this on you… it allows you to bypass the Nen restriction. I don't care who uses it, but if I fail, I want a second line of defence."

Killua reached out to grab it, but the man clasped his fingers around it, stopping the boy from grabbing it "ONLY, use it as a last resort… understood?"

Killua gave a nod, the man opening his grasp once more. He allowed the boy to take his name tag, the Teacher's Permission. Anyone who has access to these name tags can use Nen on school grounds. While Eifion will be upset at him for giving his tag away, especially, after hearing why he did so.

He'll learn to understand why he trusts the boys only in this situation, they're involved whether they like it or not.

If they're going to take the initiative, he wants them to be safe… because it's what Eifion would want as well, "Don't worry, I have a spare. Provided, you don't use it willy-nilly, you won't be caught."

"Thank you…" Killua smiled at his partner, "We have a fallback plan."

Daniel gave a smile in return.

Luca leaned back with a smile, hands on his hips, "Good… now I'll see if you can get an appointment with Eifion while he's on break."

"~"

Eifion readjusted his glasses, pushing them back slightly as he listened to the boys' talk, with Luca stepping in only to explain information he knew. They were engrossed deep into the topic, talking about their dilemma as the deacon took smalls sips of his drink. Every time he'd try to reach for a document, Luca promptly slapped his hand.

He'd pout, the boys would chuckle, but Luca always gave him this knowing glance. He knew he had a bad habit of getting lost in his work, but he can focus on two things at the same time.

He understood that the boy's needed his help, but between Vastorie and what was going to happen soon, a second spent listening, was another second, he was unable to do his paperwork.

Sighing in frustration, he pushed his glasses up as he rubbed his eyes, easing the tension of his tiredness kicking in "I can understand your problem, just not how to fix it. There's no doubt in my mind that Vastorie could help you… but getting him to do so is impossible at this point. He won't listen to even me…"

"We know…" Killua tapped the table, "That's why we're asking you…"

"Oh…"

"Oh…?" Luca mocked, "this, is why I smacked your hand. I knew you were only half listening."

"You could've told me…"

"What were the first five smacks to you, a warning…?"

"Let me get this straight… You have two major concerns. First, you have the issue about Daniel's form of Zetsu. The second, is you're worried that your Nen connection has bounded you in a, until death, do we part manner, however, you want to find a way to unravel it, so neither of you can be hurt by the other's presence?"

"Sort of…"

Eifion tapped his arm impatiently, "Let's start with the easier one first, Zetsu. Going by the information you stated, alongside Luca's thoughts and perception on the matter, it's safe to say his idea is great for a temporary fix… but in a long-term situation, is disastrous…?"

"You'd be correct…" Killua smiled.

"Well, I'd say Vastorie is helpful here because he's a man who's talented with concealing his mass aura. However, we know that's not possible… Hmm…" The man paused, "In that case might I make a more poignant suggestion… other than practice Zetsu… If I were you, I'd look towards more concealing, than hiding… in this case In. It may take some serious practice, but at least you could learn to hide your aura while focusing less on concealing the barrel of fireworks going off with your aura."

Daniel thought it over, he was already practising In by writing in the journal, he just needed to do it on a bigger scale, "I have been practising In…"

"Wonderful!" The man clapped his hands together.

"Just not… on that kind of scale. It's better to have a starting point than nothing at all." Holding up a second finger, the man frowned, "Now here comes issue number two. The dilemma with the connection. May I ask you a question? What is your end goal… with the connection at least?"

"We want to be bounded to each other, in a manner that exudes trust, while maintaining our autonomous presence. What's his, remains his… and what's mine, remains mine…"

Eifion leaned formation, "It won't work. As in it's not possible…" The man pointed to Killua first, "Reaching a middle ground will be possible, but what your end goal is, will never be reached. Your problem is exuding trust. That's where you're going wrong, trust will imply that even if Daniel had a way to abuse it, he'll never break that trust. You're creating a wall for him before he has a chance to overcome, the desire of needing to break that trust. Second, of all… autonomous can be reached while maintaining your trust in one another. In theory, the chances of Daniel utilising your abilities, or you using his, is impossible. He is a Manipulator… you are a Transmuter. You'd break the memory bank trying to master each other's ability. Also, unless Daniel was trained to run electricity through his body, him trying to circulate so many volts within his body, would destroy his nervous system."

Killua looked at Daniel, before looking at Eifion once more, "So, unless I'm willing to put Daniel through what I went through, the sort of trust we're hoping to reach will never be possible."

"Yes… What your master has told you, it's the right way to create the foundation, but if you want complete trust in each other… You have to be prepared to…" the man scratched his head, mulling over his thoughts for the best example, "feed each other your favourite food without taking some for yourself."

Killua fell back into his chair, "That difficult… huh?"

"Yes…" The man reaffirmed, "I can understand this isn't information you'd want to hear, but if you want to go through all the cracks with a fine-tooth comb, someone like Vastorie could help you iron out all the creases. But like I said, he's not approachable…"

"Would you know anyone that could be that kind of trainer…?"

"That I can hire as a private teacher…? No…" The man mulled over his thoughts, "If you were travelling, I could maybe lean you towards a direction or two, but once again, there's nobody I know… who's more extensive than Vastorie."

"Back to square one…" Daniel sighed, disappointed in the news. His father had the answers, but he was unwilling to depart with them.

"I'm sorry I can't be any more help with this matter…"

"It's okay…" Killua rubbed his partner's back, "We're sorry for wasting your time…"

Eifion closed his eyes, resting his head in his hand. He thought deeply about the situation, not wanting to leave the conversation on a sour note. It was a hard topic to discuss, only because he wasn't knowledgeable about everything. He's talking mainly from his own experience, what he knows could work… not will work… Vastorie will know… He must know… but neither of the boys can reach him now.

Sighing deeply, the man sat up straight, speaking hypothetically on the matter "If I engage the man on a hypothetical level, I may be able to pry the information from him. But, if he's even slightly aware of your connection, he might not depart with anything… However, on the off chance, he's willing to help me, help you… I'll relay that information back to you. Is that okay with you?"

"It's better than nothing…" Killua admitted. If he were being honest with the situation, it may be their best option right now. The man is a Nen cultivator, he should be able to help them… the question was… was he's willing to?

Daniel pressed on, broaching a topic he knows Killua won't like. But, if he plays his cards right, he may be able to gauge Eifion's willingness to accept their secret deal, "With the risk of Victor maybe showing up… where should we be?"

Killua and Luca looked at the boy with unreadable expressions, but the problem was their internal strife gave away Daniel's hidden agender.

"Whatever you're thinking… the answer is No. Vastorie has already given me trouble on this. Originally, I wanted you close by… but after a heated debate, you are to stay in your room. I've already cancelled all your classes for the day."

The boys looked shocked at his response, "But-"

"No buts… this is the end of the discussion. You are to stay well away from me, just in case, he does show up. Let the teachers and I handle it… even if I fall, I've set the alarms to go off. If you hear them… you are to run. Get as far away from this school and escape to another continent. Vastorie is working on getting you a one-way trip to another continent… from there, you'll be on your own."

Daniel clenched his fist, "WHY THE FUCK ARE WE HEARING THIS FROM YOU?!" His words made the man freeze. But he was far from done, he was so frustrated… angry with the situation, "Why is he like this… why can't he just tell me this stuff."

"He's doing this to-"

"FUCK HIS OPINION! I want…" Tears fell from Daniel's eyes, "I want a father able to talk to me personally, not relay second-hand information to me through someone else's mouth… He's not protecting me… he's avoiding me… avoiding us…"

Eifion tried to reach out, but Killua shook his head, letting the man know that his partner needed the space right now. Everything had been piled onto him, and now he's collapsing under its pressure.

Daniel did miss his family… but more importantly, it's because of this hidden danger, that his family was ruined. The ones he deeply cared about the most, had their hearts shattered by Vastorie…

Killua reached over, giving his partner's hand a gentle squeeze.

Through tear stuck eyes, Daniel was able to smile at his boyfriend. Killua once more turned to Eifion, "As much as it pains us… will listen to you. We'll avoid yourself and Victor…" He gave the men a nod, tugging Daniel along. Turning back to the men, he offered another smile "We'll see ourselves out."

Eifion felt something was off when the two left. But considering Daniel's feelings on the situation were genuine, he shouldn't pursue the argument any further. He merely turned to his best friend… his partner, "We can't let them pursue the situation. Their safety comes first… all the student's safety comes first. Understood…"

The man gave a nod, "Understood… even though I'm against the idea, I understand why the two of you want it."

Eifion opened his mouth to say something, but he felt himself closing it seconds later. There was no point bringing up any other problems, not while he was this drained… He had time to recover, he just hoped nothing could go wrong with their plans.

"~"

Killua looked his partner over, worried about his boyfriend. That outburst was real, not just to deflect the conversation, "Be honest… are you okay?"

Daniel shook his head, "I'm not… I just want Victor to vanish in thin air. For things to go back the way they were."

Pressing his fist into his hips, Killua pouted, "Why…? You know he's going to crack sexual jokes with you." He had hoped to lighten the mood, but all he got was broken eyes staring at him. The boy shook his head at the reaction, "I understand that this is hard… but at least we pried that information from him. We're not going to run to a different continent. We'll stay and help. I can draw Victor's attention, making him believe I'm running to you."

Daniel smiled; holding his boyfriend close, he hugged him tightly, refusing to let go. Killua was not only trying to cheer him up, but more importantly… he was willing to betray Eifion's trust, for him.

While Daniel felt like he should obey his father's wishes… something felt off about the situation.

He doesn't feel like running away will be the best option, given how dangerous Victor is…

Only time could tell what the right thing to do is…

So, he'll only do what he feels is right. That… was staying to protect the man who had protected them for months.