A.N: Hi guys! XD I'm sooooo sorry for not updating for a while, but I got busy last few weeks of summer and then stupid AP has me textbook reading a good portion of my nights... It stucks... and it's not even a subject I'm good at, either -_-(). That just makes things much more painful... But anyways, I'm sure you guys don't really want to hear about my complaining, so here's another chapie! ;) Hope you enjoy!

"Oi, Shizuka! Hurry up!" Killua called back to me. We were walking out to the more local shopping district at the far side of the pier by the ocean. I was so dead tired I probably could've slept on my feet. Killua was mean and practically forced me to stay up all night cleaning up the mess I had made in the kitchen! Meanie! Baka-Killua! Making a girl lose her precious beauty sleep.

Hence, me practically inhabiting the literal meaning of "the walking dead". Killua went right ahead of me on the pier and had only just looked back to see me lagging by at least a thousand miles. He just rolled his eyes at me, turning and walking back towards me with his hands behind his head and a bored expression on his face.

I raised my drooping head just a bit so I could see him but my line of sight was blocked by a the back of a white shirt. Suddenly, I'm lifted up under my legs, just behind my knees, and even though I couldn't yelp, my shoulders still flinched and my arms instinctively latched onto whatever was in front of me. I cling to something warm, pressing my face against it. A teasing laugh reverberated through the warm body, and I open my eyes to realize that the thing- or person- I was clinging to, was none other than yours truly, Killua… and he was having a blast.

He was laughing lightly, undoubtedly making fun of my easy-to-scare personality. Indignant and flushing a rose-red, I lightly bonk the top of his head, eyes widening a bit when I realized just how soft his hair really was. He started walking and just like a child addicted to the softness of a kitten, I couldn't help but stroke his snow-white hair. Surprisingly enough, he didn't seem to mind as he ignored the slightly akward stares we were reciving from the people around us. As much as I wanted to protest and make it clear that I could walk on my own, the gentle swaying of his movements worked its magic on me and my eyes started to feel heavy. More than once I had to kick myself to keep awake, but by the eighth try, I had pretty much given in. Killua was just too good at rocking his steps to make poor sleepy people really sleepy.

I lay my cheek against his strong yet still childish and small back, and I wrapped my arms securely (yet not so tightly as to choke him) around his neck. He supported my legs by holding them at his sides with his arms. Basically, it was a piggy-back ride. Finally relenting to the sleep that I had been deprived of, my eyes close one last time before I fell into a much welcomed slumber.

When I awoke, I was on the ground propped up against some old large crates that would be used in shipping by way of ships. I blinked sleepily, rubbing my eyes. I looked around, hazily thinking of a certain white-haired infuriating boy. He was nowhere to be seen. Immediately alarmed, my eyes snap open and my ability of becoming 100% functional the second I open my eyes kicked right back in from my not-so-glory days out in the dangerous streets.

I jump to my feet glancing left and right for my friend. I seemed to be in some old abandoned port area with large warehouses everywhere. Old crates like the one I had been resting against were dusty and those made out of wood were starting to look a little rotten. I was right beside a small street that would have worked as a cargo lane to pack and unpack goods from incoming ships. The sun seemed to have gone down far enough that there was only a faint hint of blue left in the sky before it was handed over completely to the darkness, and the lamp posts lining the streets had just flickered to life.

Now panicking after seeing absolutely no sign of my dear person, I started quickly searching. I walked up and down the lane, around the warehouses, between the stacks of crates, heck, I even went out to the docks to see if Killua would be hiding away from the lights. No success.

Fear was now gripping my heart like a clawed hand of despair, and I couldn't help the flicker of the thought that he may have just left me while I was sleeping. It wouldn't exactly be the first time that someone's picked me up only for me to wake up and find myself abandoned once again.

'No!' I shook my head violently, 'Killua's different! He wouldn't do that to me!' My questioning face turned into one of fierce determination. I was going to find my missing friend, no matter what.

Eyes becoming much more focused and observant, I sweep them slowly across the port. I noticed every turn, twist, cross-section, and shady areas, yet still found no sign of where Killua may have gone off to.

Then the smell of copper and iron, (and something sickeningly familiar) hit my overly-sensitive nose. Whipping my head in that direction, my eagle eyes narrowed down on a little side-street that had been hidden due to being blocked from the lamp posts' light.

All my senses screamed at me to turn and flee because I knew that smell all too well, yet this time, I wasn't just by myself. I now had someone else I cared about and to protect. So ignoring my own survival instincts, I bolted with surprising speed towards that alley. Once I got to the opening of it, I slowed to a cautious creeping speed and peeked around the corner keeping the rest of my body hidden. Only the slight glint of the source of the smell alerted me to its presence. Not feeling any other beings around, I careful moved from my hiding spot from around the bend. I moved quickly and quietly. I got to the glint, and sure enough, there was a fair sized puddle of crimson already turned a dull maroon from the dying cells.

One whiff and I knew who it belonged to. Killua. Part of me was actually ecstatic that he really hadn't just left my on his own choice, but part of me was now also fearful of what on earth had happened to him and where he was now. Now, he was obviously badly wounded if he was leaving behind such a large pool of blood. Also, he must've been caught off guard, because if our first encounter was anything to judge by, he clearly was not this messy and careless with such obvious clues if he could help it, and I could just tell that he could take care of major wounds on his own if he got the chance to bandage himself up soon after.

Shaking my head a little to clear my thoughts and re-prioritize my objectives, I stood up once more and stuck my nose in the air like a dog. I moved my head slowly from side to side as I sniffed to try to figure out if I could follow the scent of his blood to where he was. Unfournately, I never got the chance, for something grabbed me from behind and put a gloved hand to my mouth. My gasp of surprise caused me to inhale the substance that was on the hand. 'Crap!' I thought, and the world blacked out.