"It sounded exactly like a festival." Valeria licked her lips as she stood behind a familiar figure clad in blue "It was a distasteful choice of music, wasn't it?"
Kurapika turned slowly and met eyes with the Lavine girl. The girl wandered away from the boys after they called Kurapika to insist on helping him, but he turned their offer down. Valeria had ended the call with a single message: "Hey, Kurta. I'll gladly throw you into a dumpster of boogers when I see you next time." She then told Gon and Killua she was going to find the blonde and talk to him in person. As she threw members of the mafia into the concrete floor one by one, she managed to hear about the location of the Phantom Troupe's leader's corpse. She did, indeed, run into Kurapika.
"...Valeria. I thought I told you not to get involved."
"I've learned more than Killua and Gon did about Nen. I'm not gonna get bulldozed by a bunch of creepy crawlies." She picked her nose before placing her hands on his shoulders and applying pressure ever so slightly. "We agreed to see each other at Yorknew not to run away like we've shit ourselves with diarrhea."
"This isn't the time for this. I have to check all of the spiders' bodies and the auction. I need to confirm the truth of their deaths and...and-"
"Calm your butt down. Just go, I'll follow."
"What-"
"Now isn't the time right? Where is the auction?" Valeria wrapped her arm around Kurapika while pulling out a lollipop from her pocket. Kurapika was about to protest but he closed his eyes, thinking about his priorities before he began to run back to the auction. "This way."
As the pair reached the very broken entrance of the auction hall, Kurapika commented: "You're still the same."
"Uh...what about my improvemenets my dude?"
"I meant the good parts of you. Just like Gon, Killua, and Leorio, you're a good companion."
"Thanks, I need some ego booster. I'm not being sarcastic, even if I sound like it." Valeria carefully made her way around the broken glass and the gatekeepers. Kurapika burst through the door of the auction, glancing around the room. He was speechless at how smooth the auction was going until he saw the scarlet eyes being pulled on stage, ready for auction. Valeria glanced at him, watching his eyes turn red before he calmed himself down and called his boss.
"Let me know if your boss is fine with you just bidding away. In case he is calling you for other errands or whatever, I'll just bid for you until you're done with your call." Valeria began to stretch. Kurapika gave her an odd look before calling his boss. "Yes, my prediction was incorrect. The auction is being continued. Yes, yes. I assume there's no limit to bidding?" Kurapika paused before nodding at Valeria and resuming his call with his boss.
The girl coughed her throat and shouted: "240 million!"
"I understand."
"Five hundred fucking million!" Valeria proceeded to holler while Kurapika ended his call. He has gotten used to the girls' abundant usage of crude language.
"1 billion." A voice appeared behind them and the pair turned around. Valeria began to sweat profusely as she stammered: "O-one billion? Isn't that a lot? Did I bid too high?"
Kurapika narrowed his eyes. "No. It's not you, we had a disagreement earlier."
"Want me to beat the shit out of him so he can shut his mouth? Eternally?"
"We'll receive a public execution right here if you do that."
"..."
Valeria watched the two bid back and forth until finally, the boy won with 2.9 billion, although she wasn't sure if she should call that a victory. Kurapika went onto the stage to collect his prize and as she was far enough, the girl turned her head around and flipped her middle fingers at the fat pig. The bald man clicked his tongue in annoyance and his veins popped but he cleared his throat and mouthed the words: "2.9 billion dollars gone."
Valeria turned away, and cracked her knuckles. She'll make sure to skin every part of his bald head later. Kurapika somberly returned with the boy in his hands and he quietly murmured to Valeria: "I'm going to the washroom first. I'll walk you back part way and then I'm going back."
The girl didn't say a word and scratched her head as she went to the lobby to wait instead. Maybe she shouldn't have come? Seemed like it was bad timing. The girl watched the shards of glass on the floor as she tried to understand the boy's feelings. It was perplexing. Kurapika seemed so disappointed and empty when she saw him looking at the Troupe's corpses and he seemed to be in pain as he collected his clan's eyes. Why though? Isn't it good to witness the end of someone you hate without being the one to dirty your hands? And is loving your clan truly affection or is it obligatory. She saw footsteps stop just before her and she looked up to see Kurapika with melancholic and empty eyes. "Are you ready to go?" He asked.
"Yeh. Ready than I ever will be." Valeria walked out of the building with the boy. She followed behind the boy quietly and racked her brain through possible comfort words that hopefully won't end up with her having herself mutilated before patting his back awkwardly. "I think your clan is happier to be with a human as humans than as merchandise. Maybe. And now, you can focus on your main goal of reuniting your clan's eyes instead of also worrying about the Spiders. Isn't that good?"
Kurapika flashed a smile before returning to his state of mourning. "I suppose you're right, if you think about it that way." He fell silent again and Valeria kicked herself at that response, failing to actually cheer the boy up and perhaps creating a more awkward mood. As they crossed a bridge the bald man appeared in his way.
He spat on the floor and asked Kurapika: "You think you can just walk away from all of this?"
Kurapika didn't respond and Valeria bit her nails nervously to see Kurapika's reaction. Kurapika proceeded to walk even with Zenji drawing his gun and threatening him.
"Move." Kurapika demanded.
"Don't be stu-" Within a millisecond, he was frightened by the angry red eyes Kurapika had and he was grabbed roughly by the face by Valeria. As she lifted the man of his feet with ease, while slowly tightening her grip and slowly trying to crush his skull she brought his face close and threatened him. In a low voice, she hissed: "Can you not try to make the mood fucking worse you bald pig. I'll crush your skull right here right now and skin your bald head, feed it to pigs and dig out your heart to feed it to monsters before I-" She inhaled and calmed down before throwing him into a nightlight. "I'll kill you if Kurapika gets into an even worse mood." Valeria rotated her shoulders before hunching over and rubbing her hands together.
"K-kurapika? This is where we are gonna separate but call us if you need us and just know that we are always...we are...we.. here. Yeh." Valeria tripped over her words because she couldn't muster the confidence to say such cringe worthy speech of friendship. Kurapika's eyes seemed to dim down and he nodded before leaving. "Thanks, Valeria. I mean it. Tell Gon and thee rest I said hi." As Valeria waved her hands and watched him disappear into the night she ran back to her hotel, up the stairs, and to the room where her friends were gathered. She grabbed Killua by the neck and shook him furiously.
"Why didn't you stop me you emo assassin? I thought I was gonna die from suffocation!" Valeria sweated and Killua pushed away, grossed out and unamused. "You're literally killing me you stupid gorilla. And for your information we did try to stop you, you were the one who insisted Kurapika to be stuffed into a dumpster of boogers and you ran off before we could do anything. But also who'd you try to fight? The dons or the troupe? Why'd you pick a fight after being kidnapped dumb, stupid, retard."
"What? No, it was Kurapika. We walked back together part way and the whole time I kept thinking that if I spoke a word, he'd behead me right away. It was so awkward." Valeria shuddered. Gon laughed. "Kurapika? No way, he's the nicest and most mature person in our group."
"Not when his clan is involved."
"Okay tell us later after something is done with these useless idiots." Killua pointed at Leorio and Zepile.
"How about another glass of wine?" Leorio laughed.
"You guys were drinking while we were kidnapped?" Killua hissed angrily.
"Oh! You're back? Come and drink with us!" Leorio waved his cup around.
"...We're underage. And aren't you underage too?"
"What's your point? In my country, if you turn 16 you can drink!"
"Killua...I got this." Valeria stared at Leorio, her dead fish eyes blank and...well...dead. She walked over and lightly brought her hand to the side of his cheek and sent him flying into the wall. She took over his spot and sat down, smiling dryly. "Let's talk."
As the group all sat down and Leorio cautiously sat next to Valeria who stared at her can of juice with a soulless and tired expression. It was a long fucking day. As the group talked about what happened, they slowly eased into the conversation of the auction.
"Tomorrow, we'll be hitting the auction. You guys will be coming too right?" Leorio grinned.
"Mmmm...I have to find Kurapika and learn Nen from him."
"Kurapika? You got through to him?"
"Ughh I don't recommend y'alls. It was what I was talking about earlier. He just went to the auction and retrieved the scarlet eyes. He was in a trashy mood. I can teach you what I know if you want. Although I don't think he has an excuse not to hang out at a reunion." Valeria offered and the boys stared at her, not understanding why they have to learn from her.
"Huh? Did I not tell you? I'm a manipulator."
"Wat."
"There's so much for you to learn." Valeria sighed and shook her head, somehow irritating everyone in the room. "Wait. I forgot something important. It's not only the Scarlet Eyes. The spiders are dead."
"...What? What do you mean? We know how difficult they were, how can they…"
"I don't know. But we saw their dead corpses." Valeria drank her canned juice before adding: "It was nasty."