Sitting in one small room for hours and hours gets old, and it gets old fast.

There's tea and snacks, which I'm grateful for, and an assortment of entertainment- Kurapika instantly goes for the stack of books, and Leorio rests on a futon, still recovering from his fight with Bendot. Like the cute little boys they are, Gon and Killua run for the television.

And me? Well, I drive myself crazy.

"Bella." A little while into our staycation, Kurapika looks up from the book he's reading. I startle, and my hands leap away from the third braid I've done and redone in my hair to pass the time.

"What's up, Kurapika?" I say casually.

"I don't think you have evil intentions." Kurapika begins. "In my time I have seen many who only seek personal gain, and I do not think that you are one of them. However…"

I gulp. Nothing good ever comes after a 'however.'

"You seem to know quite a bit more than you let on." Kurapika finishes.

"Ah, about that… you know, I'm just, super good at guessing." I ramble. "So…"

I'm saved from saying anything else as Killua's skateboard goes flying, nearly whacking me on the side of the head. I just barely dodge it and the skateboard hits the wall behind Kurapika, then drops to the floor.

"Oops! Sorry, Bella, Kurapika!" Gon says, with a bashful smile. "I'm not too good at this yet."

He and Killua stand together, and Killua's holding on to Gon's fishing rod. With a flick of his wrists, Killua launches the fishing line, and it hooks around the skateboard and pulls it back towards them.

"Ooh, Gon, look! First try!" Killua says proudly. The two boys laugh it off, and the sight brings a smile to my own face. Goddamnit, they're just too cute.

"You should be careful of using your skateboard in such a small space." Leorio grumbles from the futon he's outstretched on. "It's dangerous."

I glance up at the clock on the wall. We're only about an hour in so far, and knowing myself, I'll be impatient for the remaining 49 hours.

"So, Leorio, how are you feeling?" I ask, guiltily looking at the way he holds onto his stomach.

"I've treated the major wounds, so it'll probably be fine." Leorio nods to the briefcase that sits just near his head. "This rest time will be helpful."

"I'm glad to hear that." I say in relief.

"Bella, do you want to play with us?" Gon asks me suddenly, balanced from on top of Killua's skateboard.

Killua scoffs. "Why, Gon? She's no fun."

"Hey, you-!" I turn away from Leorio and shake my fist. "Just because I'm not a kid anymore doesn't mean I'm not fun. I'll have you know that my younger cousins loved me-"

Killua blinks. "What, are you even older than me?"

Right. I keep forgetting that this Portabella form is way younger than I'm used to.

I grit my teeth. Still, it's been such a long time since I was able to let loose and have fun. Now that I've been stripped of my adult responsibilities and given this new body and life, surely I can indulge myself, just a bit…

And so, after hours of video games, sleep, and the occasional cup of tea, the timer on the wall is down to its final minutes.

Actually, I'm almost sad when I see the counter getting close to zero. The past two days have been full of wonderful sights, including but not limited to a shirtless Leorio, a pillow-fighting Gon and Killua, and a napping Kurapika. (Trust me, napping Kurapika is something you don't want to miss).

But the time in this room has also given me more insight into the group's dynamics, dynamics that I had grasped on-screen but never fully comprehended before. There's something so beautiful about their forming friendship… and I love it.

As much as I'm yapping on about canon, if I want to keep these four together for as long as I can, that's going to mean a serious canon diversion. Can I even handle that?

I'm going to have to. Seeing Kurapika check on Leorio's injuries, seeing Killua play-wrestle with Gon, every single second I stay with these four tightens my resolve.

I'm not going to let any of them get away.

The rest of Trick Tower is insane. Minecart rides, falling platforms, and running away from a giant rolling ball- we don't get to catch a break until we make it to the final room. It's filled with all sorts of sharp things, and the wall has two doors which sit next to each other, a stone statue of a woman on top.

"This is your final decision point. Are you ready? Choose either O or X" Killua reads aloud from the placard near the doors. "That's it?"
We each reach for our bracelets, and the display registers all five of our unanimous O's.

"Please choose your path." announces a voice. "You have two choices. One is long and difficult to pass, but allows five people to go through. The other one is easier and shorter, but only allows three people to go through."

A few hitched breaths and nervous glances from the others.

"By the way, the difficult path will take you at least 40 hours, no matter how fast you go, while the easier and shorter path will only take you three minutes." the announcer goes on. "Press O for the difficult path, or press X for the easier and shorter path. If you press X, any two of you would have to be handcuffed to the wall. Only then will the door open. The two people that are handcuffed will stay here until the time is up."

"Five… or three." Kurapika says. "From these weapons around us, it seems they want us to fight it out."

I step over to one of the giant axes affixed to the wall and carefully try and dislodge it. But I've underestimated its weight, and the giant axe blade tips down and smashes to the floor, taking a chunk of the ground with it.

"Oops." I mutter, jumping away from the fallen axe. Okay, maybe not that one.

"Guys. I don't plan on staying behind." Leorio says, looking at us. "I will do whatever it takes to be one of the three who gets to go."

"But… I want all of us to finish together!" Gon says. "We've gone through the exam together, so we should finish it together, too! I'll press O."

"Gon…" Killua says. He looks down at his own hand, flexing his fingers. "Well, I'm not planning to be left behind, either."

As they're speaking I try out another weapon on the wall, this one a curved sword blade, and to my relief it's much lighter than the giant axe. I take a few tentative swings, and the sound of it swishing through the air is kinda satisfying.

"Bella, what are you doing?" Kurapika asks me. "Are you going to fight?"

"What?" I stop swinging the sword. "Um, no. I'm trying to pick a weapon to take with me."

"Take… with you?" the confusion on his face is almost funny.

"For the next phase. Since, I might need it, you know?"

Killua starts laughing. "Come on, if only three are going to make it to the next phase, you're not going to be one of them. Right, Gon? Gon?"

Gon is staring at where the axe had fallen on the floor, looking at the small chunk of stone it managed to remove. "Hey, look at this!"

"What is it, Gon?" Leorio inspects the axe too.

"Guys, let's all press O." Gon says, pulling the axe from the ground. "I have an idea!"

xXxXx

"Twentieth place, Number 404, Kurapika! Twenty-first place, Number 99, Killua! Twenty-second place, number 405, Gon! Twenty-third place, Number 403, Leorio! Twenty-fourth place, number 406, Portabella!"

The five of us, completely covered in dirt and debris from an hour straight of hacking away at the stone wall between the two doors, burst through the opening at the bottom of Trick Tower.

By the way, chipping away at a stone wall is not fun. I don't recommend it.

"My hands are all blistered, but at least we made it. It's all thanks to you, Gon!" Leorio ruffles Gon's hair in such a sweet dad-like move that my heart goes on a rollercoaster ride inside my chest.

"I can't believe you actually brought that." Killua snickers to me. He's probably talking about the big, curved sword that I've brought with me from that last room.

"Who knows, I might need it." I say. I'm a little scared of the weapon, because damn it's got a sharp blade, but who knows what I'll encounter on Zevil Island. After all, if I want to stay with these four, I need to pass the Hunter Exam along with them.

"Do you even know how to use a sword?" Killua asks.

Well, obviously not, but I'll figure it out… probably.

We end up waiting a while longer, so I use the time to practice stabbing things with my sword. But the results aren't looking too good- handling the big sharp weapon turns out to be a lot more difficult than it looks. Besides, am I even brave enough to use this on anyone? I had enough trouble ordering from drive-thru's in my past life, I can't imagine the pressure of confronting another in battle.

After some time, a door at the bottom of the tower opens, and the remainder of us spill out into the bright sunshine of the outside world. After being confined in the tower for the past 72 hours, the sudden brightness blurs my vision, and it takes a few seconds to adjust and focus on the short mohawk-ed man who stands in front of us.

"Congratulations on your escape from Trick Tower," he says. "Now, you only need to take the Fourth and Final Phases. The Fourth Phase will be held in Zevil Island over there."

Mohawk gestures behind him, where across an expanse of open water I can just about make out the lumpy island he's referring to. I look back down at my sword, then up to the island again. Here we go.

"For the next phase, we will need you to draw lots." Mohawk explains, and a comrade rolls out a small wheeled cart with a box on the top. "It's to decide who will hunt and who will be hunted. There are 24 number cards in this box. In other words, these numbers represent all the current candidates."

One by one, candidates begin moving towards the box, dipping in a hand to retrieve a card, starting with the gorgeous clown man himself. Because we escaped last, we have to wait through every other candidate's turn. I'm the very last one, and nervously retrieve the only remaining card in the otherwise empty box.

"Alright, please peel the stickers off your number cards."

In one fluid motion, I peel the thin white sheet that rests on top of the card, and peek at the number underneath.

My heart drops to the bottom of my stomach.

Out of all the numbers, all twenty-four of them, I just had to choose this one?

Shit.

xXxXx

"Thank you for riding with us. Good job on your Third Phase. I'm Khara, your guide for your trip to Zevil Island." Our perky female announcer is doing her best to keep the attention of us on the small boat that's currently speeding towards my doom. "Approximately two hours from now, you will reach Zevil Island."

I feel a little bad for her, because her words seem to be falling on deaf ears. The mood on this little ship is absolutely terrible. Each candidate sits isolated, badges long gone into some pocket or another, and not one says a word in response to Khara's helpful announcements.

For me, I'm also sitting alone on the deck, one hand clutching the card I've drawn, the other holding the handle of the sword stolen from Trick Tower. I had my choice between sitting with the others, but I couldn't- I couldn't look at them, not after drawing the card that I did. I'm feeling sick to my stomach, and it has nothing to do with seasickness.

As I sit there, I'm very seriously considering just dropping out of the Hunter Exam.

That's not the right mindset for a self-insert, but no matter how I try and correct it, my brain leaps back to the number on the card and the cycle of dread begins all over again. Why, why, why?

Eventually, sitting in place gets too difficult for me, so I take a small wander around the ship, pointedly ignoring the likes of Gon, Killua, Leorio, and Kurapika. But the walk ends up too stressful when I pass by Hisoka and Illumi, and my blood pressure levels increase dangerously. So, back to my little corner on deck it is.

"Are you going to use your dumb sword?" Hearing Killua startles me and I immediately tighten my grip on the weapon.

"Oh- hi- Killua-" He's literally come out of nowhere, and seeing his radiantly beautiful (and adorable) exterior almost scares me.

He crouches next to me, skateboard tucked under an arm. "Who'd you get?"

"Not telling." Sweat gathers on my palm, and the card digs into the creases of my hand.

"Well, whatever." Killua stands up again, and then sticks his tongue out at me. "See, I knew you were boring."

I feel strangely insulted as I watch the adorable boy stroll away.

Some time later, the boat docks at the base of the island, and our guide Khara extends a walkway from the deck to the island.

"We have finally reached Zevil Island!" she says perkily, "Now, starting with the candidate who took the least time to pass the Third Phase, please get off the boat in order."

As we gather into haphazard lines, I'm forced next to the four I have been trying to avoid. Leorio catches my eye and gives me an encouraging smile, and I try my best to return it, but my stomach does somersaults yet again.

"You can only get off the boat two minutes after the candidate before you got off." Khara explains, holding up a stopwatch.

"That means we'll be waiting forever." Killua says.

"You will stay on Zevil Island for the entire week. During this time, you have to collect six points worth of number badges each and return to this place. We'll now start with the first candidate!"

Hisoka's the first one up again, strolling off the boat like he's talking a walk in the park. Even from behind, he looks sooo good…

"So, getting off the boat early is an advantage." Kurapika muses. "However, for us…" He trails off, and the rest of us fall into silence.

To pass the time, I stare at my shoplifted sword and try and come up with a plan of attack for this phase. I should have realized earlier that things wouldn't go according to canon forever. I mean, my existence here in the first place was the first big tip off for that.

Zevil Island is about to be hell.

Because the number on my card is 403.

As in, Leorio Paladiknight.

xXxXx

"Just us left."

As Gon's bright green outline disappears into the depths of the island, only Leorio and I are left here on the boat. In front of us, Khara has an eye on her stopwatch, the phony smile somehow still glued to her face.

"Oh, yeah." I reply. I can't even stay dramatic and emo anymore because Leorio is too goddamn hot for that, and I end up smiling at him, even though my mind is consumed with the number on my card. When Leorio grins back, I feel like I'm going to faint because of the way it brightens up his entire face.

Stop simping, Bella. Focus.

"It's been two minutes. The twenty-third candidate may start!" Khara says, beeping her stopwatch.

"See ya!" Leorio says, half waving to me, and then he's crossed the walkway and is out of sight.

Khara resets her stopwatch. It's super awkward, actually, since we're the only two here, so I just try and look everywhere except at her. After what seems like forever, she gives me the go-ahead, and my trembling legs push off of the boat.

And then, just like that, I'm here on Zevil Island.

Yikes. Now what?

Apparently playing Minecraft does not translate well into real life, because after only a few minutes into the forest, I'm completely done with this nature thing. How did all those OC's do this kind of stuff so flawlessly in the fics? Honestly, if I see a cockroach, I think I'll probably pee myself.

I had loosely planned to try and find Leorio pretty early on, but as soon as I've gotten lost into the trees, it quickly becomes clear that that's not going to happen. Seeing all of this green around me is already driving me nuts.

After maybe an hour? 2 hours? Of aimless wandering, I'm realizing that this isn't a very efficient strategy. I have no damn clue what I'm going to do.

I need to stop and think, so I scan my surroundings for a nice rest place, but all I see are trees trees trees. I also need to start thinking ahead, since I'll be on this stupid island for the week. Food, water, maybe even the occasional shit, I need to be prepared for anything.

By the time the sun is at its highest point in the sky, I'm dying of thirst. Through pure chance, I stumble into a clearing in the trees, where a small water stream snakes around. Like a rabid monkey, I scramble to the stream and shove my head in it, drinking until the ache at the back of my throat disappears.

Yup, I'm a mess.

But this seems like a good spot to rest, so I collapse onto the soft grass, trying not to imagine all of the small tiny little bugs that could potentially be crawling over me.

First, I need a game plan. I think back to what I can remember from the anime. Gon's target is Hisoka… Leorio has Ponzu… Kurapika has Tonpa… Killua has one of those brothers… Tonpa has Leorio…

But Tonpa isn't here. There's just me. If I'm filling the role of Tonpa, does that mean Kurapika's drawn my number?

If Kurapika's drawn me, and I've drawn Leorio, there's no way for me to pass the phase. I'd have to somehow acquire three other plates, which won't be possible anyway considering we only have 24 participants.

Maybe I'm overthinking things too much. Since I'm a self-insert, there's gotta be some super easy way for me to pass this...

Right?

Notes:

Writing out the group's 50 hours in that one room reminds me a bit of, well, quarantine.

Let's see. Before I could even attempt writing Zevil Island, I had to sit down and chart out everyone's targets and so on, since I do want this to be somewhat plausible. That took a while, but I've pretty much figured everything out now.

Now I get to write Bella with a fun sword. Not that she'll be able to use it very well. But that's the fun part, isn't it?

This was originally all going to be one chapter (so, all of Zevil Island at once) but that was just a monster of a chapter so I've split it up.

Anyway, reviews are always welcome. Thanks for anyone who's bothering to read my little passion project. I'm having so much fun revisiting the series through the eyes of Bella :)