An Amusing Interlude: Part 9 – Conversation: In which there is probably far too much of same.
By
Deborah (Kosagi) Brown

Hunter X Hunter is copyright Yoshihiro Togashi. Quoll and Kurapika aren't mine more's the pity.


KURAPIKA:

Quoll's doing it again. I sit in the passenger seat and listen to his cheerful warbling with a mix of mild irritation and confusion. "We built this city" he sings, driving down the road with one elbow on the window, finger tapping lightly in time to the music, "We built this city from rock & roll" It's not that he's a bad singer, just that his repertoire seems so limited.

When the music shifts to an advertisement for some new allergy medicine, I frown at him. "Why?" I have to ask, "Why do you like that stuff? It's moronic brainless"

"Brain candy," he agrees equably. "Utter nonsense. That's why I like it."

I have to admit that I don't understand. "That doesn't make sense. You're supposed to be."

"A mix of Machiavelli, Sun Tzu and a host of other manipulative and brilliant tacticians?" he suggests and, at my nod, continues, "True enough. But, Kurapika, I think all the time. Sometimes I can't stop from thinking. As Danchou, it's my job to think and plan. So why in the world would I want to listen to music that just requires more of the same?"

"Oh." I consider that a long moment. "I think I understand."

A strange look crosses Quoll's face and he adds, "That and it torques you off."

I don't know what comes over me. I certainly wouldn't have reacted if he'd said that on the trip into the mountains, but then I would have killed him with the terms of my Judgment on him. With that gone, however, smacking him upside the back of the head is not only possible, but seems an absolute necessity.

Quoll ducks the blow, somehow keeping control of the wheel despite the motion and as he starts laughing I find myself staring at my hand in utter shock. I don't do things like this. I'm the serious one, the one without a sense of humor at all. Slowly, I say, "You did that on purpose."

"Guilty," Quoll admits, still chuckling. "I was wondering if that oh-so-solemn pose of yours was going to last forever."

I swallow back a hard knot in my chest. On one hand I feel a sharp anger that he, of all people, would mock my pain, but on the other – I'm not the only one scarred by all of this. Does he act the fool to hide the truth, or is it something else? I know he hurts. It's a frightening thought, this sympathy for the devil. At last I admit, "I don't understand."

His expression goes quiet. "No one is a single piece, Kurapika. We all have different sides to ourselves. You take things more seriously than I do" He pauses and reconsiders that, "no, not more seriously more solemnly. I just find it easier to deal with the hard parts if I don't let it get to me. I had to learn that early."

I look away. I still don't understand, but it's not something I think I have to comprehend. Not when we're just traveling together towards a common goal. It's not like we're partners for any great length of time. The thought reminds me, "Just how are we going to get to Star City, anyway?"

"First we need to lay a false trail," Quoll tells me. "We" He pauses as a sound, a peculiar beeping noise, interrupts. I reach out for the glove compartment, from which the sound seems to be emanating, and find myself looking at a cell-phone.

"For me," Quoll says, pulling over and stopping the car. "Someone finally decided to check in."

QUOLL:

Kurapika gives me a startled look as I take the cell-phone from him. "Someone the Ryodan? You left them a message somewhere?"

"Mmmm," I agree, hitting the answer button. "Here," I say into the phone, letting my tone slip over into the one I use when I'm being boss. "Report?"

"Er DANCHO!?! Atana de?" It's Phinx, speaking in our home dialect.

"Hei," I answer in the same language. "Erzen bestag?" Kurapika is watching me somewhat suspiciously and I put my hand over the speaker. "I'll switch to English in a moment," I tell him.

"You probably have code words all over the place anyway," my not quite willing companion says sourly.

I would grin at Kurapika, but I have to pay attention to Phinx's recitation. "Kitsnay keky adessus tempris hondu."

"Nau tempus akuma asist polisu-ga," I answer. "I'm going to English now, Phinx. Make the report quick. I have places to go and people to be."

"We're proceeding with the plan, sir. Er Obviously you're able to contact us. Will you be" Phinx continues in Hoshnin.

"Not yet," I decide. "An important personal matter, related to my recent problem, requires my presence." I pause, "Oh, and no responses to what happened at the city. We have come to an understanding."

"You and the" Phinx coughs, realizing he'd better not say anything more on what is, essentially, an open line, "Very well. I'll make sure everyone knows. Er... Nobunaga isn't going to like this."

"Tell him to deal with it. Anything else?"

"Suspicions regarding our friends' location have been confirmed. We're investigating further. Also, now that #4 is open"

"I trust you to find an adequate replacement. Preferably someone not interested in a one on one battle with me, if you please. Oh and as for our former #4."

"Termination? He's sort of helping us."

"No. That would be highly risky. Use him. I need not say don't trust him. I will deal with him as need be when the time comes. Don't tell him we've been in contact. For now, syeona"

As Phinx answers the same I thumb the off switch and look at Kurapika. "There, that's handled for a while."

KURAPIKA:

"I don't suppose a translation is possible?" I ask, a trifle plaintively. Quoll's native language is a peculiar mix of words that almost make sense but don't. Even when he was speaking a language I understood I'd little idea what they were talking about. I can't blame him for being so secretive, but it is annoying, none the less.

Quoll shrugs, tossing the cell phone in his hand consideringly, then putting it away in the glove compartment. "If it rings again, do not answer it," he tells me. "As for a translation what we were discussing was what they're up to right now, which has nothing to do with our little side-trip. At least I hope it doesn't."

I look at him, at the thoughtful expression on Quoll's face and know perfectly well I have no right to ask, "And just what are they up to?"

"Investigating those missing Star City citizens," he says after a moment. "You remember I mentioned them earlier. It's a convoluted situation and one that it's better you don't know too much about at the moment – just in case someone questions you."

"Should I presume by Number 4 you mean Hisoka?" At his rolled eyes, I can't help but snort. I can't really blame Quoll for not wanting Hisoka to know that I've released his nen. Not when Hisoka's main purpose in life is to find and fight the strongest nen users in the world. I'm not really one to judge, but I would suspect that Quoll would be quite a challenge, with all his stolen nen.

Quoll starts the car again. "He is a problem," he murmurs. "One I'd prefer to avoid until we've finished our business together. I don't believe in fighting battles on more than one front if it can be avoided."

I nod in agreement, then a thought occurs to me. "Quoll?" He glances my way and I ask, "Why in the hell did you trust him? I mean, you're supposed to be a tactician. He's good at lies, but even I would have known better."

A thoughtful expression crosses Quoll's face. "True enough. The trouble was, he was one of us, or at least I believed he was. You can't spend your time second-guessing your hands and feet. Not when they're supposed to be part of you. For what little it's worth, he's ensured he's going to get what he wants from me." The smile on his face holds little humor as he continues, "but on my terms and in my own time. He was not a traitor in the literal sense, having never really been one of us, but simply by pretending to be one of us, he betrayed everything we stand for." The grim tone in his voice doesn't bode well for Hisoka.

It hits me then, what Quoll's weakest point really is. "You can't do anything against your family," I blurt out and see his expression shift, just for the briefest moment into a look of raw pain that vanishes so quickly that I'm not sure it really happened. Oddly enough, though, I understand. I've hit on the real reason he sought out my people. Not just to learn to control his Eyes, because he does a pretty decent job of that, but because he needs and wants a family. "I I'm sorry I took them away from you" I tell him softly, realizing that I'd dealt him a blow much deeper than I'd ever intended. Or maybe I knew it instinctively I couldn't have hurt him much worse. "I wouldn't have been, then, but now."

Quoll is silent for a very long moment. Then, at last, he says, "You didn't kill them. Cold comfort, perhaps, but I'd expected to lose half of them if I didn't work out a way around the prophecy." Another silence follows, then, before I can say anything more, he shifts into his more cheerful mode. "Anyway, enough with the gloomy angst. Think you're up to a work-out?"

QUOLL:

I dodge sideways, rolling and tumbling out of reach of Kurapika's chains, even as he uses his dowsing ability to redirect them after me. I use in to conceal myself from them and sense his confusion. "Gyou," I call out to him, even as I twist out of the way.

Kurapika blinks at me momentarily, then realizes what I'm telling him to do. A moment later he's focusing his gyou more tightly and the dowsing responds immediately. If I wasn't blocking the blow with my ten and ren combined I'd be out like a light. "Well done. Time to stop though. We'll need to lay a trail for the next few hours."

"Then shift off in another direction?"

"No," I answer, smiling. "It's risky, but I'm going to keep on this path for a while longer afterwards. But no nen use once we've established the pattern."

Kurapika looks at me with a puzzled expression that slowly works itself out. "You're hoping they'll assume you're laying a false trail, then sticking on it even though it would be stupid to do so?"

I nod. "I don't dare do this often. Depending on the enemy's intelligence is almost as bad as depending on their stupidity. We'll consider this a test of the opposition."

Kurapika climbs into the passenger seat and digs into his pack for a water bottle. "I suppose," he says, "it's better than waiting around for them to make the first move." He cocks his head at me and adds, "I don't suppose there's any way I could convince you to talk these ideas over with me, instead of just deciding?"

As I take my place at the driver's wheel, I nod, realizing that – yet again – I've managed to treat him like a subordinate. I know it bothers him, but it's hard not to be Danchou when my life's on the line. I say as much, adding, "But I'll try to remember that you're not one of my Ryodan."

"Good," Kurapika tells me, then glances sideways as me as I set the car in motion. "And before you even bother offering, the answer is still 'No. I am not interested.'"

I can't help but give him a startled look. Am I that obvious, or is he beginning to know how I think? I wonder. I had been going to tease him about joining up. I push the question off, allowing it to mull in my mind for later. Instead I simply smile, "Too bad. By our rules, you'd have every right to a position." At his widened eyes I add, "You defeated Ubo in combat."

With a wince, Kurapika shakes his head. "That was different. I certainly didn't do it so I could join up."

"I know," I answer and add, more seriously, "Kurapika, Nobunaga was Ubo's best friend – since before I started the Ryodan – and he is not going to be happy with leaving the situation alone. If there's anyone likely to go against me over this, it's him. Never turn your back on him."

He stares straight ahead. "Wing-sama said something once about cycles of vengeance," he says finally. "I didn't listen at the time. I'll watch out." He pauses and adds a bit wryly, "Of course, it'd help if I knew what he looked like."

"I'll see what I can do about that."

KURAPIKA:

The next few hours are spent shifting directions, choosing back roads and, at least once, doubling back on ourselves. At regular intervals we stop and – as Quoll puts it – work out our aggressions on each other. It's strange to find myself fighting him without wanting to kill him, equally strange to find myself learning. Not that I think I've learned everything there is to know about nen but I'm beginning to realize how much I don't know.

Quoll is a good teacher, too. Patient and precise in his explanations, giving neither too little information nor too much. When I comment on that, however, he shrugs, saying, "You're a good listener, and you had a good teacher start you off. It took me several months to get the others started."

"You taught them?"

"I got them started, then found adequate teachers when they knew more than I could teach." Quoll looks thoughtful as he gazed down the road. "I'm the only one in the group with my form of nen, so I couldn't really teach them more than the basics."

Somehow I know better than to ask which form of nen Quoll uses. It's similar to mine, I'm certain of that much. Instead I ask, "Where did you learn it?"

Quoll shrugs. "That's another of those complicated questions about my past," he tells me. "Best to wait until we get to our destination. Though some of what I learned was from the family of that white-haired friend of yours. He is a Zoldick, isn't he?"

My eyes widen as I stare at him. "How did you"

"He has Illumi's eyes and the old man's hair." A small smile crosses Quoll's face. "Not to mention the family self-control. The other one with black hair would have tried to escape. The Zoldick boy had the sense to wait until you could give him a chance." As I hesitate over the answer, he shakes his head. "You don't have to confirm it, Kurapika. It doesn't matter aside from being a matter of interest."

Nodding, I turn to another subject, "It's getting late. What are we going to do about resting?"

"None tonight, I'm afraid. It's time to stop all use of powers and drive as far as we possibly can. Which means I'll have to stay up tonight... Unless you've a suggestion regarding my plans, that is?" The last seems like a hurried afterthought, and I appreciate that he's actually trying to treat this like a partnership.

"Not really," I answer. "But, you know, I can drive. And I've been napping."

Quoll considers that for a moment, then nods, slowing the car down at the side of the road. "All right," he agrees. "Just stay on this road. Wake me if you think there's anything wrong. The further we can go straight from here, the better." He gets out and climbs in back. "You're sure?"

"Of course. Besides, he who drives gets to choose what to listen to," I reach out and play with the switches until I find a classic music station as an amused look crosses his face. "Sleep tight, Quoll."

To Be Continued


Author's Notes:

I lost a good friend to pneumonia this last month, so my ability to write has been a bit limited The muse is slowly waking back up, though, so hopefully chapters and stories promised will be heading out more quickly in the very near future.

This chapter's a bit more of a conversation piece than anything else. Next time I hope to have some action going on.

Hareta & Aelys: Thanks muchly for the compliments.

Silver: I've been enjoying writing K&K's interplay hopefully as much as you are reading it.

BLuNT: For some reason your URLs never come through. Can you email the pics to me? Oh, and check out ;, if you've got the bandwidth to handle a 4 meg animated .GIF. If not, I'll be shifting the pics involved to static in the near future. Oh, yes, and Star City is likely to be a revelation for Kurapika.

Shinomori: I agree, I think, that it would be a bit disjointed if I went with a sequel, even if this is forcing me to think harder, sooner than I'd planned. *sigh*. Yes, the shrunk items are in stasis. I *think* I mentioned it in an earlier episode, but my brain isn't a good place to be for memories and they run off when they get a chance.

Yukitsu: Oh good! Someone noticed that the dreams were the same. I have a reason for it. Heck, I usually have a reason for anything I do when I'm writing.

Ryo: Hey! Nice to see you! (I promise, more Detective Conan is in the works Heiji's being obstinate and Ysabet's recent murder method forced me to think of a new one grumble). I'm glad if Quoll's getting good press because of this story. (Points over at Lynlyn's "Wild Hearts" and suggests it as another good Quoll story.) Yes, strap on Yaoi is my least favorite. Artistically as well as by reading. I've got another idea for the pair of them that will make certain this isn't a Yaoi story though, but I'm not sure if it'll work out yet.