I don't own HxH!

As far as Killua knew, Sora hid a lot of things.

Her 'brother' as she quoted knew the Hunter Association himself, her tonfa contained a hidden compartment that caused him to gawk and wonder if she had tweaked with them herself, the way she talked to herself that clearly tell there's another party involved, her strange fascination with fire and how she seemed to be fighting something within herself every time she sit by the bonfire.

Her real identity.

A wanted criminal, Hellfire.

What a small world he was living in.

The culprit of why he failed his last mission that caused him to be tortured for a failed mission and yet at the same time, drove him to start planning his escape out of that dreaded household.

Now that he thought about it, she had saved him.

Not once.

Sora had not looked at him with fear when he stumbled upon her after killing those two participants that bumped into him and instead, demanded where the bodies were and hid them away even though he knew it was a futile attempt.

She had grabbed his wrist, had forced him to look at her eyes and smiled.

"Friends hide each other's dead bodies, right?"

Not twice.

Killua looked at his bloodied hands and his blank stare switched to the fallen form of the girl before him.

But thrice.

"Sora?" He whispered, his hands trembling as he gingerly stretched it out toward her.

Why?

He gritted his teeth and retracted his hand back.

Why had she gotten angry for Gon's sake?

"Killua?"

Why had she gotten angry for his sake?

He tore out of the large door and fled the room.

Why.

Tears welled up in his eyes.

Why had she gotten angry for their sake when she couldn't even get angry for her own?

Killua ran across the corridor, letting his legs bring him to wherever, anywhere to get out of here.

When she had said she wanted to be his friend too, he couldn't describe the burden that was taken off his shoulder, the relief he felt that he, a killer, could be wanted by someone after all and that he could have friends.

Then, Illumi crushed that as soon as it came.

The moment he laid his eyes on her, utter fear filled him. He couldn't allow her to die. He wouldn't allow his friends to die. So, he chose the only option he had.

"I surrender. I lost."

The next thing he knew, warmth had engulfed him, something he had never felt before and he had wanted to wrap his arms around her petite back, burying his nose deep into her neck just to check if she was still alive and breathing, that Illumi had truly bluffed his way out.

But his bloodlust had been running and he was desperate to just...kill.

He had aimed for that warmth.

He had even felt the sick pleasure of sinking his claws into another body.

Tears leaked out of his eyes and slid down his cheek.

Stupid.

The image of Sora smiling came to his mind. Eyes sparkling with no trace of her usual dead fish eyes look, lips tugged into the softest he had ever seen on her face, the moonlight merely casting an enchanting glow to her pale skin and he swore he saw an angel sitting there, clearly stunned beyond degree.

He had sworn he would make the girl smile like that every time she's with him.

Stupid of him.

His legs brought him to the entrance of the hotel, the horrified gasps of people at seeing his bloody figure felt distant.

Illumi was right.

Killua turned in the direction of that one place he'd always known all of his life.

He had no right to have friends.

(

"Papa, where are you going?"

It was a cloudless sky, with blue canvas stretching as far as wide as the eyes could see.

Her papa was standing along with his friends, all thirty one of them together as they prepared for something.

A large hand was placed on top of her head and she looked up.

Her papa was staring down at her, smiling but his eyes had not.

She never saw them lit up.

He retracted his hand and swiveled around, his cloak billowing behind him as he walked to his group of friends and never looked back.

That was the last time she had ever seen him.

.

.

.

.

.

)

When Sora woke up, she felt like she had watched a particularly old, forgotten tape but she couldn't remember what exactly she had seen.

The girl blinked, eyes squinting as she tried to adjust to the piercing brightness of her surroundings. The ground beneath her was soft and something warmth had been draped all over her. She turned her head to the side and blinked again, focusing on the wooden door then to the wooden table with chair then closet.

She blinked and watched the hanging light above.

Ah, she must have passed out after Killua stabbed her.

Her eyes widened.

Killua.

She bolted up to sit, pain flaring from her left side that nearly caused her to lay back down.

"You're awake," a voice said from beside her and she whirled around to see Menchi sitting on one of the chairs, stirring a cup of coffee.

"Where's Killua?" Sora asked, lifting her blanket to leave the bed but the pain shot back up and she grimaced. She was dressed down only to her black tank top and heaved out a relief sigh that her arm warmer had not been taken off. Bandages were wrapped around her left shoulder all the way to her chest to secure the injury better.

"Don't move so much, you'll reopen your wounds," the examiner scolded her and forced her to stay down, which she complied begrudgingly, didn't want to anger the quick tempered woman.

"The first thing you asked was not 'where am I' or 'how long was I out' but another person," she huffed, crossing her arms. "To answer your question, he returned home."

She froze, feeling the wave crashing down on her.

Home? Going back to his wretched family?

Her mind spun and she felt her throat closing up. Blood roared in her ears and she gripped the white sheets tightly, desperate to fight down the tears blurring her eyes. She didn't want to break down just like this. She had succeeded in pushing all those floods down for years, so why now?

He had left just like that. She meant nothing to him. Her words couldn't convince him to stay. They didn't matter to him. She was worthless which was why he casted her aside.

Will everyone leave her at the end?

[I'm never gone, kid.]

Where was he the past two years then? Where was he when the night had been cruel as she shivered with the absence of warmth? Where was he when the floor had been too cold for a person to lay down but she persisted because she had nowhere else to go?

Despite that, she couldn't deny the fact that his voice had always been her tether.

"Sora, are you okay?" Menchi asked, worriedly and she nodded, taking a deep breath to calm herself down before speaking.

"Yes. I see that he went home," she muttered as dismissively as possible before looking toward the open window then back at the woman, pushing the white haired boy away from her thoughts. "How long have I been out, Menchi-san?"

"Around three days," she answered, dragging her chair toward her bedside. "You lost so much blood so it's no wonder."

"Anyway," Menchi smiled and gave her a small card, the size of a credit card with the Hunter Association logo on it. "Congratulations for passing the Hunter Exam, you're a Hunter now."

The girl took the given item, flipping it back and forth before clutching it toward her chest.

She has achieved her goal now.

Now, what? The question rang inside her mind.

[Aren't you interested in demanding answers from Shax?]

Right, there were so many things she wanted to ask him.

Why did he leave? What had he been doing behind her back? Why was Aym so hostile with him? Why were there gaps in her memories? What other things was he hiding from her?

She clutched the Hunter License tighter.

"Your friends are waiting in the lobby but I strongly advise you to rest more." Menchi stood up from her seat and put back her chair. "Your wound has healed faster than normal but there's still a risk of ripping your stitches."

She patted her head and her eyes softened. "I've tried all ways to contact Shax to tell him about your condition but nothing could reach him. I'm sorry."

Sora blinked and tilted her head. Not even the Association could find him. "It's fine, my brother has always been hard to track down. Not even I could if he wished to disappear from the world," she joked.

It's decided then. She'd hunt him even if she had to walk through hell.

"Well, since you're awake, I'd have to get back soon," Menchi said, swiftly turning around. "Good luck on the rest of your journey, Sora. Your friends said they were going to visit Killua soon."

She felt her shoulder ache and smiled.

Of course, they had planned to do that. Gon was most probably the main instigator and the other two males couldn't just let the enthusiastic male do it alone. And hell, she'd join them gladly and dragged Killua out.

Even though he saw you as worthless?

Sora tried to shake the thoughts away, clenching her fist. She had no time to dwell on her insecurity.

"Thank you for telling me that. I'm sorry for the trouble," she replied with a new determination, watching the woman waving her hand coyly as if to answer it was not a problem.

The girl felt her hair brushed against her neck.

"Excuse me, Menchi-san, before you leave, can I borrow a pair of scissors?"

"Sora, I was worried!" Gon yelled as soon as he saw her approaching the trio.

Her heart throbbed.

A trio, not a quartet now.

"How's your shoulder?" Kurapika asked, eyeing the bandages that peeked out from underneath the black clothing. She had tried wearing her shirt back but the flaring pain had stopped her and she definitely didn't want to rip open her stitches. So the girl settled on throwing away her shredded shirt and merely donned her equally wrecked jacket.

She really should buy new clothes soon.

"The nurse said I shouldn't move too much but I'm feeling fine already," Sora answered before turning to Gon, worriedly. "How about your arm?"

He beamed and she smiled in return. "I'm fine, Satotz-san said that the bone had been broken cleanly so it will grow stronger once healed!"

She blinked. Oh wow, okay.

"That's great, I guess? Hanzo knew what he did, huh," She mused and ruffled his head. "Well, as long as you're okay. Now, Leorio, could you please stop gawking like the first time I reveal my gender?"

The older man coughed and rubbed the back of his neck. "Sorry, I was just thinking that you look nice with short hair."

At that, Kurapika and Gon scrutinized her carefully. Her fingers twitched to shove her hood back to her face.

"You cut your hair!" the black haired boy exclaimed, excitedly running a hand to her now neck length hair. "It suits you!"

"But you left a part longer than the other?" Kurapika raised an eyebrow at her longer left bangs framing her face.

Sora instinctively grabbed it and twirled it around. "I purposely left it on my original hair length. I figured I should trim the rest of it though."

Killua's stab had not only caused bloodshed but caused a large chunk of her hair to be sliced too. What remained was those long locks and she had cut the right part to even her hair out. But cutting your own hair especially with your non-dominant hand and the lack of mirrors, the results had been well...passable at the very least.

Killua's slice had trimmed her hair way neater like what the fuck.

Kurapika smiled as if he had read her train of thoughts. "Yes, I agreed with Gon. It gives you a fresh look."

She huffed and brought the strands up to cover her flaming cheeks. "Thank you. I'm glad you find my butchered attempt to appear decent, nice enough."

[Someone is shy~

Goddamn, you only came out to taunt me now.

Didn't want to make you look crazy by causing you to randomly look annoyed ]

Sora schooled her face back after that, watching the boys exchange glances at her muscle twitch. "Anyway enough about me, I heard we're going to get Killua back?"

Gon nodded. "Yeah, Illumi told us to go to their home at Kukuroo Mountain if we want to take Killua back."

"Illumi?"

"Killua's brother."

Hearing those words brought a new wave of anger inside her and she fumed.

Ah, so it's that bastard's real name.

But wait, Kukuroo Mountain?

"Have you looked up where that place was?" Sora asked, crossing her arms and frowned. Because as far as she knew, that place belonged to the Zoldyck family.

Her mind stopped midway.

That was why Killua had frozen when she mentioned that name during her short mental breakdown in Zevil Island. He was a Zoldyck himself.

God, she felt even more terrible now.

"We have, it's in the Republic of Padokea but we haven't booked a flight yet because we didn't know when you will wake up," Kurapika answered for Gon who looked close to vibrating in excitement.

Sora blinked. They were waiting for her.

They hadn't left her alone.

She smiled, feeling it came out easier these days. "Well, what are we waiting for? Let's go buy some tickets. No one else is going to save him."

The now quartet returned back to the hotel where they had searched for Killua's home and immediately booked the latest flight on the very same day. Seeing the computer, a sudden thought crossed her mind.

The girl needed to check something.

"Kurapika, can I borrow the computer for a sec?"

The blond haired teen nodded and she took his seat, typing 'Hellfire' quickly on the search bar. She was pretty sure her information would be locked behind the Hunter's Website—she didn't have money to check that obviously— but she was curious if some results would appear if she searched normally.

「0 results」

Shocking. There wasn't even an international police organization hunting her down. Were two years really enough to wipe any trace of her?

"Hellfire? Isn't that the arsonist who went on a spree two years ago?" Kurapika asked, peeking over her shoulder.

So Kurapika had gotten a whiff of her too. But well, for someone who was hunting down the top criminal gang of the world, he was bound to come across a few other criminals.

"Hellfire?" Gon asked curiously, tilting his head. "Who's that?"

"Me," Sora simply replied, swivelling around in her chair to stare at the absolute gobsmacked look on Leorio's and Kurapika's faces.

"The arsonist who burned down over fifty mansions in a span of a year then disappeared and sent the media into an uproar? That's you?" Leorio gawked.

"Yep, hi there." She waved cheekily. "Killua's not the only killer in the group."

She knew she was being way too casual introducing herself; this was not how she had planned to tell them. She wasn't even sure if they could take the information well.

"Oh yeah, Sora said to me that she was a wanted criminal."

"Wait, you knew about this, Gon?"

The girl tuned out the chaos she had created and swiveled back to type a new set of words.

'Shax Vasilye'

「0 results」

Of course, what did she expect? This was the man who managed to hide from the Hunter Association itself.

"Who are you searching for, Sora?" Gon asked. She distinctly heard Leorio dying in the background while Kurapika sweated. "Ah, your brother? Are you looking for him too?"

"Yeah, I want some answers for him," she replied and stood up from her seat. "But seeing how there's nothing about him, it would be hard."

She didn't even know where to start.

"Don't worry, Ging is like that too! We can search for them together!" Gon exclaimed and the positivity just radiated off him. She fought the urge to smosh his cheeks so she settled on nodding and smiled.

"You're right."

Not long after that, they quickly got a cab to get to the airport and were met with a hellish traffic. The car hadn't been moving for the past thirty minutes and Kurapika had anxiously told them that they could get late on their flight if this continued on.

So, they returned to the simpler times.

They raced to the airport.

Which as Gon said, yes, it was the Hunter Exam all over again.

She didn't pass it just to run for another eighty kilometers.

But damn, she would do it over and over again for Killua.

Fortunately, they managed to board the blimp on time and found their seat quickly before Kurapika and Leorio went off somewhere to get them some food.

Sora stared at Gon who stared out of the window, his eyes losing their usual shine.

She knew what he was thinking because her mind was buzzing with the same thing.

They had to get Killua back no matter what.

Even if he refused, she'd drag him out kicking and screaming because Gon was missing his friend. Her? She wasn't sure she'd have impacted considering nothing has changed with her words.

Her thoughts clouded for a moment.

It should have been Gon that was there. That way, he'd have snapped Killua out of it and Illumi wouldn't have affected him.

"Why the long face?" Kurapika smiled, handing her a cup of soda which she accepted while mumbling a soft 'thank you' before she carefully carded in her fingers.

Wcdonald, huh. She used to eat that when she was in dire need of food but her money had been depleted to almost none.

The blond teen took a seat beside her and silence fell between the two as Sora sipped her drink, once again lost in thought.

"Can I ask you something?"

The girl blinked and whipped her head toward the male, his grey eyes looking at her seriously for once.

"Hold up, I need to ask you something first," she interjected, holding up a hand. "Are you seriously okay with me being a wanted criminal? I might drop the bomb just like that but I'm wondering if you don't mind that."

Because out of Leorio and Kurapika, the girl knew that the latter was more sensitive to this kind of topic and might not be as accepting as the former nor Gon. But then again, he was accompanying Gon to get Killua back so maybe…?

Kurapika looked as if he was caught off guard before he chuckled, covering his mouth lightly and Sora blinked. Was that a funny question?

"I deliberately sit next to you and you're wondering if I'm not okay with your identity?" The blond haired replied, eyes softening and Sora for once marvelled at his beauty. No wonder she had thought he was a girl back in the tunnel entrance.

The girl sipped her drink louder. "Well, I mean considering that you're hunting a certain band of thieves and with how much spite you have for them. I'm just wondering if that extends to others like me."

She watched as Kurapika stiffened, definitely knowing who she was implying at the moment and she placed a hand on his clenched fist. "Sorry, I shouldn't have said that."

He shook his head, giving her a shaky smile. "No, it's okay. And to answer your question, no. Me being a Blacklist Hunter was solely to hunt them down, not you."

"I'm not worried about being hunted by you," Sora said sheepishly, scratching her cheek.

"I'm worried about my friend...disliking me," she murmured the last part quieter, twirling her bangs, suddenly feeling a bit self-conscious.

"For a kid as brash as you, you sure worry about what people think about you, huh?" Leorio grumbled, jumping into their conversation and shocking the girl because she hadn't been aware he had been listening.

"No, I worry about what my friends think, not people," she sputtered out in defense, shielding herself from the soon-to-be doctor's attempt to ruffle her head, skillfully maneuvering in and out of his hand. She gave up at the end anyway and let the man do just that.

"Friends are friends and that's what it is, your background means nothing," Leorio huffed, crossing his arms as Sora fixed her unruly hair. If someone told her that she's pouting, she's not. "Besides, you have stopped doing that for the past two years so why does it matter now?"

The girl wilfully chose to keep quiet about the incident during the Third Phase and stared at her straw.

They should never know it then.

"Well, if you put it that way…"

"Cheer up, cheer up! You and Gon have been depressed with Killua gone," Leorio slapped her back and she winced in pain. "We're getting him back in two days and our little group will be whole again!"

She wondered if that's the cause of her being mellow all of the sudden. The girl usually never thought about this kind of thing. Was it because she wanted them to be as comfortable as possible with her?

Sora slapped her right cheek. She needed to get herself together, now's not the time.

"Yeah, you're right. Sorry," she said before turning to Kurapika who blinked. "So, you were asking?"

"Ah, yes." He cleared his throat. "I was wondering how much do you know about Phantom Troupe? Since well, you're from the same kind of work?"

She half-expected that question.

The girl frowned, tapping her finger on the empty cup's side. "Not much actually, I stayed clear from them because they're notorious even in the criminal world. Not many veteran Hunters chased after them either. Though what I do know is…"

Sora squinted at the ceiling, recalling a very hazy mental image. Orange sky, rotten smell, stacks of trash and unused things everywhere, a group of people sitting and standing. She couldn't see any of their faces, black scribbles had been drawn on top of them but she could swear the one standing far apart from others turned to look at her spot.

"They're from the same hometown as me."

"And that is?" Kurapika pressed further.

"A place full of junk."

The image blurred before vanishing from her head.

She was hit with a sudden realization.

That wasn't her home.

Her home had been colorful. Vibrant green grass filled her lawn with a patch of poppies growing on one side that she had personally tended. Jutting out not far from there was a majestic oak tree that casted shade on a two story building with cream colored paint and a brown wooden door, with periwinkle decorating the window's sill.

Her home had been beautiful.

Her home looked nothing like that.

But why was she struck with a deep sense of familiarity?

Kurapika seemed to notice her inner distress because he merely nodded. "Thank you for the clue, Sora."

The girl snapped her head up. "But that wasn't even beneficial for you. I gave you nothing."

"I don't expect you to know a lot so it's fine. That was useful for me." The blond smiled and patted her head. "You should rest. You must have been exhausted from all the running and injury."

Sora hesitated before she reluctantly nodded, placing her empty cup away and tugging her hood so it shielded her from the glaring white lights, her mind in a heap of confusion.

Sleep is definitely what she needs right now.

"Sorry beforehand if I lean into your shoulder," she muttered before she let the darkness take her.

Kurapika stared at the sleeping girl for a second then turned his gaze to meet Leorio's questioning and Gon's worried ones.

"Gon, has Sora told you anything about herself?" He found himself asking.

"Hm…" The black haired boy rubbed his chin, brows pulled together. "She did say her parents died because of a fire incident and she parted ways with her older brother two years ago, the one Menchi-san mentioned in the Second Phase."

"Shax Vasilye?" Kurapika said out loud, suddenly feeling the additional weight on his left shoulder, knowing completely who it belonged to.

That name didn't ring any bells.

"Yeah. Sora said that Menchi-san met him in a big event," Gon continued, placing his chin deeper into his fingers, "I think it's called the Gourmet Association?"

He blinked when he heard that.

"That's like one of the most prestigious events in the world," Leorio answered for him, gawking. "Only high class and famous people can be personally invited. Just how influential was her brother?"

Gon didn't seem to share the same awe as the two older male, simply blinking his innocent eyes. "Her brother was the chef there, she said."

"The chef? That's even more impressive," Kurapika said, fairly amazed, "No wonder Sora knew how to cook well."

Though, it's a wonder how ragged looking she was. Even if her older brother left, he must have sent money at least to sustain herself. On the contrary, all of her things had looked worn-out with how faded her shoes looked. When she came out the Third Phase looking all bloody and clothes ripped all over, she still wore the same one until the end of the Exam. Her hair while straight had been unruly as if she never bothered to tidy them up. Cutting them actually made her look tidier and fresher.

Her appearance wasn't one of having a rich sibling behind her back.

Has she been abandoned? Was the usage of parting ways a nicer term to explain that?

Kurapika frowned at his assumption.

That's what most likely happened.

He felt the girl shift, mumbling something too soft for his ears to catch and her head lolling away but he caught it before she could hit her head on the window's railing. The blond sweated and her head dropped back to his shoulder after a while. He let out a relieved sigh at that and stared out the window.

A place full of junk.

That was a clue way too wide for his liking but it had been better than nothing. Along with the cryptic messages Hisoka had whispered to his ears, the Phantom Troupe felt much closer than before.

He clenched his fist, feeling his eyes burn.

If he wanted to understand why such monsters could just massacre an entire clan for their pursuit of worldly art collection, then he should know the very place they originated from.

Wehey, new povs~ Opening with Killua and closing with Kurapika. This chapter is also shorter than the others because I previously thought to combine it with the beginning part of the Zoldyck arc but I figured it'll be too long so yeah I split it at the end. So yeah more character's bonding time. In the future, there'll be more other character POV so stay tuned for that.

And yeah, more of Sora's background and I'm pretty sure a lot of you guys caught on to where Sora's hometown is because I'm not subtle at all like that when I'm shoving it up your face.

And yeah, I also have the habit of being subtle at other parts so yeah if you can figure that out, I will applaud you really.

As always, I would love to hear more about your opinions!

Bye!