Fluffy was angry. He was making no attempts to hide his killer intent. He sat there brooding, glaring down at his dinner; an ice cream sundae. I was trying to ignore him over my french fries. But his tiny aura was unwittingly leaking and agitating mine while I was trying to stay calm. I wasn't exactly pleased either.
My blue haired, high heeled, jester man was being more illusive than he had any right to be. And the exam's deadline was drawing close. And a fluff ball of pure hatred was sitting across from me, sending bad vibes through his inexperienced aura. I noticed that the other customers avoided our corner. They probably instinctively felt the waves of danger he was putting off. I scowled.
I was trying to meditate in my Ten to keep calm, but each prod of his moodiness stirred my Ren. Urging me to punch him in the face. We need to find this clown soon... or we're going to end up killing each other.
Finally he looked up, glaring darkly. I glanced back at him in disinterest, one hand propping up my chin. He simply stared for a moment, and I felt him evaluating me. Searching my face for something to suspect.
"You really are here to distract me." He decided. I rolled my eyes and dropped my hand in exasperation. I stared back at him hard.
"Are you serious?"
He glared and pushed on. "There is no jester, is there?"
I clenched my jaw. The anger in my chest churned my aura, but I soothed it, smiling. "Well, not that we can find, is there?"
He didn't find that funny. He stood slowly. "I'm done playing. I don't have time for your game of hide and seek."
I rolled my eyes and picked at a fry. "Well, maybe if you seeked harder you would have found where he was hiding..."
His aura crackled. And I looked up, almost fearing that anger for an instant. He was glaring down at me.
But then it hit me. Like a twenty foot tall gong crashing in my head. I sat, stunned.
The the world faded.
Aura. His aura. Familiar and wicked. He was close; close enough for his toxic aura to strangle the breath from my lungs. Before I knew it, I was on my feet, backing away from the ledge. I had to run. I wasn't safe. But Killua was frozen, like a startled cat, looking over the edge of the balcony. Right. Killua. He was helping me find him... Recognizing Killua, I remembered my purpose and pulled myself together, swallowing my fear.
You can't run from him, you need to take the exam... Just harden your ten and lay low... it's going to be okay. I gulped and approached the ledge cautiously. Killua didn't respond, he was staring through the web of hanging lanterns at a shadowed alley. The pedestrians gave that particular back street a wide berth. Instinctively avoiding the darkness. And they were right to.
I gripped the ledge and swallowed hard. There were two figures in the alley. I was certain of the identity of one of them. The other was a mystery. But whomever it was, they must have excited him... and they were probably going to die. I clenched my teeth, feeling the wild churn of terror urging me to run. I was sweating.
"He... he's there." I said, sounding small. Killua turned to me with wide eyes, but I had to focus on the man. "Hisoka, the Magician."
I felt Killua actually tremble beside me, and I remembered that he didn't have Ten to protect him. I suddenly reached out, and steadied him. "Don't fall, not now." I hissed, shaking his shoulder, his head lolled like a rag doll. Seeing him so fearful gripped my heart and I gulped. I steeled my resolve, lending him some of my strength. I gripped his hand hard, enveloping him in red aura, shielding him from the negative energy. He looked at me then, snapping out of it, startled.
"Don't punk out on me, now. We've got an entire exam ahead of us." I said grinning, though I didn't feel as strong as I hoped I looked. He didn't look as assured as I wanted him to, but he nodded, regaining his determined glint. And that was enough.
"We're following him, right?" He said, turning to look at the alley. I looked back just as a figured stepped from the alley. It wasn't Hisoka, to my surprise. It was a man, and stranger than the fact that he wasn't killed was his appearance. Countless needles of varying size jutted out of his body; golden with round balls at their unstuck ends, they were pushed into his chest, his arms, and even his face. He was a walking pin-cushion, and walked like a robot. He was nauseating. Maybe Hisoka was asking him for fashion advice.. Only after his freaky companion had vanished into the crowd, did the man himself step into view. Instinctively, I tugged Killua down, trying to hide.
"Hey, he has red hair!" Killua hissed accusingly. I arched a brow at that.
"... it suits him." I admitted, nodding. Killua made a frustrated noise, letting go of my hand.
"I saw that guy earlier! We would have been tracking him by now! This is your fault!" He exclaimed, tugging at his hair. I pouted and crossed my arms.
"Hey, it's not my fault he underwent a make-over! Don't blame me!" I said defensively. He rounded on me, bearing his teeth.
"You didn't even know what he looked like and you wanted me to find him!?"
I rolled my eyes and stood. "Come on, we've got a pedophile to stalk."
He pouted and slumped, muttering. "... the irony."
We split up. I was in the crowd, and Killua was on the edge, watching our prey closer than I could. It was less conspicuous to have one person scouting than it was to have two people side by side.
Now, I can admit my Zetsu is lacking. Severely. My Ren earned an A+ from my teacher, but hiding wasn't my forte... as a former thief, you'd think that was a bad thing. But no, I'd relied on my terrifying presence to startle my targets into losing their coins, before sprinting into the darkness. But for someone who is aspiring to be a hunter? Being inefficient with ones Zetsu was probably a terrible thing.
It took all of my concentration to hold my aura inside myself. It was like cheating in a breath holding contest; trying to take in shallow, quiet breaths, and pretending you weren't. But with your whole body.
I was trembling with the effort, barely sparing enough attention to keep track of the tall bobbing bonfire of hair ahead of me. After just five minutes, I was feeling sick.
Killua's presence had vanished, just as it had when he tailed me. But this time I watched it happen. His eyes darkened and his moves became more fluid and silent than ever, and he melted. Swallowed by the churn of shoppers. It was impressive to see. I wished I could be like him, and become one with nothingness. But the best I could do was become average. Normally, when in Zetsu, your life aura disappears entirely. But mine refused to become that of a lifeless object, and instead opted for being a common person's natural life force. After all of my effort, it was deeply unsatisfying.
We followed him until he entered a restaurant, I nodded to Killua who caught my eye. He gave me a stern nod and immediately followed Hisoka in. His aura was less likely to be noticed. Plus, Hisoka knew nothing about him; if I was caught... well, I'd rather not imagine what would happen. I gulped and continued walking past the restaurant. Pulling out my phone, I texted Killua to message me whenever Hisoka left.
Not a minute later, he texted back. "He went into a private room."
I gripped my phone and gulped. "Do you now which?"
I looked around while I waited for a response. What if he'd caught on to us, and ran out the back door? Geeze... we had to stealthily make sure he was in that room... what if there was a trap waiting for us back there? I clenched my fists. Would I risk it?
… to save them?
My phone vibrated. "Yes. And I know the password to get in."
I steeled my resolve. "I'm coming in. And we're following him."
When I got to the door, Killua rose from the waiting seat beside the door. Hands in his pockets, and a stern look on his face he nodded. The restaurant was a cozy establishment with only a hand full of tables and a bar lines by stools. The Azian spices and the aroma of savory meat filling the air were mouthwatering.
"Hey, old guy." Killua drawled, drawing the attention of the man behind the counter. He paused in his stir frying to glower at Killua who was unfazed. "Two steak-combos that open your eyes to the light, grilled over a low flame until cooked, or whatever."
I rolled my eyes. Why do you need to be so rude?
The chef gave him a sullen glare before relenting. Jerking his head towards the interior of the restaurant and returned to his stirring. "Let yourself in, brat."
"Kaaay." He said, waving lazily and marching forward. I shook my head and followed.
"Which room was it?" I whispered as we approached the darkened interior. My stomach was knotting up. Like trying to hold onto an arm full of feathers, my aura was slipping through the cracks in my concentration, drawing a stern glance from Killua. I gave him an apologetic look, feeling queasy.
He paused in the hall, nodding towards one on the right. "That one." He whispered.
I hesitated. We should run.
"... the exam might be behind this door..." I whispered. Still, neither of us made a move to open the door. "It's getting down to the final hours before the exam..."
"Or, a trap is behind that door..." Killua murmured, quiet as a ghost. I gulped.
"I guess there's only one way to find out."
I didn't say that. And that wasn't Killua's voice. It came from behind us. I felt animosity. Run or turn?
I never got to decide. A hand was laid on my shoulder. Unfamiliar aura slammed into my spine. I felt crushed. It knocked the wind out of me, shattering my thoughts. It was like drowning under 200 feet of water. Shit, my Zetsu.
Ten bubbled into existence barely able to stand up against the sheer weight of the opposing aura, and the pressure eased enough to stand. Killua beside me was pitching forward, but I was frozen with fear. Fighting the terror, I managed to grab his hand, sparing enough aura to keep him on his feet.
The door opened with a creek, and the hand on my shoulder shoved me forward, sending Killua and I tumbling into the room. I tried to catch Killua but I was too unstable; he fell to his knees pulling me down with him.
… it was a bigger trap than I feared...
Killua was recovering, wide eyed and breathing hard. Damn it. I turned to glare fiercely at our attacker and my stomach churned. A familiar, freaky face looked down at us. The needle man towered over us in the door way, making chattering noises and twitching grotesquely. I hovered over Killua protectively. He's in bad shape after that Nen attack... I need to buy time. Then we can run...
But then my stomach fell. And my hope died. The door closed behind the man, revealing the impressive figure that haunted my worst nightmares. My eyes watered.
"Please no."
