Ahhhh sorry for the lack of updates! Here is the first half, please bear with me. I try to find time to write but it's very difficult. Thanks for all the support!

FIFTEEN YEARS AGO, METEOR CITY

The world was blurry. It shifted left and right and in circles, and no matter how hard Jun tried to focus, it wouldn't stay still. The ground beneath her was hard, and she could vaguely make out shades of red and brown. She lifted her hand, squinting to see it. It was covered in blood and dirt.

She mustered all her strength and tried to push off from the earth, but her arms only brought her an inch or two above the rubble before she fell back down again. Jun turned her eyes up once again to see a figure dressed in tattered clothes. She thought that his shirt and pants used to be a stark white, but they had been tarnished, just like hers, with blood and dirt.

He was sitting quietly, his jaw moving as though he was chewing gum. She could play dead all she wanted, but for some reason, she knew that no matter how long she laid there, he wouldn't leave. She lifted her hand and twisted it slightly, touching her back. Her fingers met with a hot sticky substance and when she brought her hand back to her face, she saw that it was blood. What happened again?

She turned her eyes back to the young boy sitting on a pile of rubble. He looked down at her with piercing amber eyes. "You should find somewhere to get that treated before it gets infected," he said, his voice as smooth as velvet. He blew a bubble with the gum in his mouth and it popped with a loud snap.

Jun opened her mouth, wondering if her voice would come. "You let me live," she said, her voice nearly a whisper. It was so soft and scratchy that she didn't think he heard her.

He shrugged, looking to the sky. "After seeing you kill all those people, I was in a good mood. And besides, I think you made the right choice."
Choice? Jun thought back, remembering that young boy standing before her.

She had completely destroyed the Huang household; there were no survivors. Tattered, bloody, and alone, she had been ready to race off to find her brother. Maybe there was still time. But this red headed boy had appeared at the gates of her home, and from two seconds of seeing him, she knew that he was strong. Probably the strongest person she had ever met and will ever meet in her life.

The sword in her hand was still sharp. Her muscles were still fine; they granted her the privilege to grasp the sword tightly. How many bodies had she walked over to get here? How many years of torture had she endured? And who was the one person that saved her?

Sekihara Jin'ai. And she couldn't live in this world for one second knowing that he was in danger. She hunched over, sword up.

"I ran," Jun said simply. "That was the right choice?"

The boy chuckled, blowing another bubble before answering. "Before I even gave you a choice, you were going to fight me to try to get past me. You and I both knew that would end in your death. But once given the choice to fight or run, you fought to live. I admire that. But it's not my personality to let people get off scott-free."

She looked at her bloodied hand again. The wound on her back had to at least be over a foot long. Even though blood was pouring out of her and the wound on her back should be making her head numb with pain, she didn't feel it. She just felt where the skin was cut: from her left shoulder blade all the way down to her hip. She supposed that was what he meant by scott-free. She'd have that scar for the rest of her life, reminding her of the decision she had made back then, and the boy who had spared her life.

Jun tried once more to pull herself up. And to her surprise, the strength in her arms had returned enough to bring her to a sitting position. The boy flashed a thin smile. "I'm impressed," he told her. "I thought they poisoned you."

"It doesn't last very long anymore," she said, gaining her voice back a little. "I've been poisoned lots of times before."

"How old are you?"

"Seven," she answered, not bothering to ask for his. She was guessing he was about twice her age, a few years older than her brother. The boy hopped off the rubble and dusted his pants off. He seemed to have done the motion just for show, as none of the blood on his pants came off.

"I should be going," he told her, turning his back on her. "Remember to get that cut wrapped up. I'd hate for you to die after I went through so much trouble to make sure you lived."

"Take me with you," Jun said immediately, and when the boy turned his head back, she was on her feet.

He smiled brightly. "Impossible."

"Why?"

"I have no need for weak children."

"That's too bad," she said immediately. It was almost as if her first request to go along with him had just been for show. He wondered if she had really meant it, or if she had known that he would reject her request. "I am weak."

The boy chuckled again, running a hand through his red hair. "What will you do, then?"

"Get stronger," she answered, unfaltering.

The boy's amber eyes shimmered. Yes. That was the answer he was looking for. He had done a good thing, sparing her today. Who had known that coming to Meteor City was going to yield such long term results? How many people had he killed since he had been here? He had come here looking for something, and he had found her. He moved one foot in front of the other, deciding to leave it at that; she could do with a few years of solitude. It wasn't like she would ever forget him. He had made sure of it.

"Will I see you again?" she asked as he left.

He paused for a moment. "Of course. If you get strong enough, I'll find you," he promised. He turned back and smiled. "Until then, princess."

"Lancaster. That's the name of her boss."

"I see," Hisoka said over the phone. He was in the elevator, rocketing up to Jun's room. "What kind of agency?"

There was static as Illumi sighed. "Information brokers."

That surprised Hisoka. If anything, he'd have thought that she'd be working to find and take revenge on someone, so he figured that she'd be working with a group of other assassins, much like how the Ryodan worked with other thieves. Although, somehow, when it came to Jun, 'revenge' didn't seem to sit nicely. She wasn't the type to hold grudges. "What kind of information is she looking for?" he asked.

"I don't know," Illumi said. "You should ask her."

"Could you find out for me?" Hisoka asked sweetly. "Pretty please?"

Illumi sighed again. "Fine."

"Thank you, as always," Hisoka said, but the line went dead before he even finished his sentence. Just in time, too. The doors opened on the 235th floor. He didn't know why he'd thought about fifteen years ago today, of all days. Sekihara Jun – a fifteen year project. He'd waited for a long, long time.

But he supposed it was worth it. She had grown beautifully.

He pushed open her door and was half expecting to see her sleeping, or at least hustling to try to get ready in time. Jun had never been one to be ready on time for anything, ever. He had dressed down for today; he'd rather not draw attention to themselves. He'd left his hair undone and not bothered with the makeup. Hisoka had dressed in slightly loose indigo tank top with a single silver armband around each bicep, a pair of khaki colored pants that cut off a little below the knee, with some brown suede boat shoes he'd purchased the previous day. While the clothes were comfortable, Hisoka actually felt a little strange; it wasn't every day that he'd opted out of his usual garb.

"I thought I heard you," Jun said, coming out from the kitchen. Hisoka was expecting her to be dressed in high waisted shorts, a bandeau, and maybe a new haori, if she'd woken up early enough to even purchase one.

But much to his surprise, she was in a dress. A cute, flowery white summer dress, with a light turquoise 3/4th sleeve cardigan over her shoulders – to cover her back. He expected her raven hair, now shortened, to be simple and astray – like how she normally kept her hair without a clip – but it was done nicely, slightly curled, and she'd even put on the slightest bit of makeup. Hisoka didn't even know Jun knew how to put on makeup or use a hair curler. He didn't even know she owned one.

When he didn't say anything, Jun looked down at herself, the corners of her lips beginning to turn down. She crossed her arms over her chest as though trying to cover her outfit. "Is this not okay?" she asked quietly. "I mean, I thought it was a date, so—"

He didn't even realize that he hadn't spoken. "You look lovely," he told her, reaching behind his back and as though by magic, conjured her up a dozen white roses. Jun's face lit up again at the sight of flowers and she smiled brightly, taking them from him. She lifted them to her face to smell them.

"They're absolutely beautiful, thank you!" she said, hurrying back into the kitchen to pull out a vase for her new flowers. She finished up and met him back in the living room, smiling. He stood up and Jun fixed her hair, turning her eyes to the ground girlishly. It was a strange sight for Hisoka to see. Jun being girly.

"Are you alright, Jun-chan?" he asked, raising an eyebrow slightly.

She smiled slightly. "Yeah. It's just, um, you look really nice."

That was even weirder. While Jun often complimented him on his looks, she had never done it so shyly. She was a warrior, and Hisoka often forgot that she was a woman. It was really weird. But Hisoka didn't let it show on his face. "Thank you, Jun-chan," he said and she smiled, seeming glad that he accepted his compliment. "Are you ready to go?" he asked, and Jun nodded, grinning, the shy, girlishness disappearing again.

She scooped up her bag and headed out of the room with him, into the elevator. "What are we doing today?" she asked, her eyes sparkling.
"I have three things planned for today," he told her, holding up the appropriate amount of fingers to emphasize. "One now, and our lunch and dinner. You may choose everything in between."

She grinned, clapping her hands. "I'm so excited. Thank you so much for taking me out, Hisoka," she said, and he could feel the sincerity in her voice melting his bones. As he had planned this as nothing more than a reward, it almost made him feel a little guilty. Almost.

"Of course, princess," he said, and she smiled again, following him out of the elevator.

"So, you know, if I saved up a bunch of those points," she started, looking up at him. "You know, from impressing you and stuff. How many of those would equal a date?"

A thin smile curved on his lips. "One hundred," Hisoka said and Jun puffed out her cheeks.

"That's so much!" she complained jokingly as they headed out into the sunlight. "I have to bust my butt to even get one point!"

"That goes to show how impressed I was with your fight," Hisoka told her. "That's the highest percentage I've seen you use in a while."

"Well, he broke my hair clip," she said as a matter of fact. Something seemed to click and she clapped her hands together. "I can get another one, right? Maybe a headband or something since my hair was cut." She tugged lightly at her curls and Hisoka chuckled.

"Anything you want, princess."

"Do we have time before our first thing?" she asked, her eyes sparkling.

Hisoka racked his brain, but for some reason, couldn't say no to that face. Strange. "Of course," he said, leading her down the street. "I picked up your other hair clip from here." He gestured to a shop about two blocks away from the tower; Jun recognized it as one of the more high-end jewelry and accessory shops and clapped her hands together happily.

She entered the shop, her eyes sparkling as brightly as the diamonds as she walked around, looking at different accessories. Jun was so happy to be here with Hisoka during the day; just seeing him when the sun was still out was something she hadn't done in the five years they'd known each other. Hisoka walked in the opposite direction of her, scanning for something that would fit her tastes. He may not have much knowledge about her past, but he definitely knew what she liked.

"Jun-chan," he called after some time, and she scurried over. Hisoka plucked a simple hair piece from the rack. It was a small white clip she could use to pin her bangs back, adorned with three diamonds. He could have sworn that Jun's eyes still sparkled brighter than those diamonds.

He easily put the clip in her hair, pinning her bangs out of her face. She smiled brightly. "What do you think?"

"I think I'll buy it for my princess," he told her, patting her on the head before calling over one of the sales people. Jun turned to a mirror and admired the pin, touching it lightly with her fingers as though it'd shatter at her touch. When Hisoka was done paying for the trinket, she turned to him.

"Thank you," she told him earnestly. "It's my second gift ever!"

"Of course," he replied, and they headed out of the store, Jun practically skipping. If Hisoka had any idea that Jun was going to be this cute today, he would have prepared himself. He hadn't known what he had been expecting, but it certainly hadn't been this.

"Where are we going?" she asked, smiling up at him with big blue eyes.

"It's a surprise."

"I don't like surprises," Jun said, puffing out her cheeks.

Hisoka smiled thinly. "There's no lying to me, Jun-chan," he told her, and she just laughed, walking beside him. He realized that they didn't always need to say much; they'd probably talked more in the past few weeks than in the last year combined, but it wasn't an awkward silence. It was oddly comfortable. Hisoka knew that Jun wandered about the town fairly often; it was all she could do without becoming bored with the four walls of her home. But today, she looked like she was walking outside for the first time.

They walked a few blocks in silence until Jun noticed something, clapping her hands together. "Really?" she asked brightly.

Hisoka smiled. "I thought you would be pleased," he answered and she grinned.

"I haven't been the zoo in so long!"

"I figured as much."

Hisoka paid for their entry fee and they headed into the zoo. It was filled with many exotic animals, and he knew that Jun would be fascinated by this sort of thing. He reached into his pocket and handed her a little rectangular box.

"What's this?" she asked, but she was already opening it, so Hisoka didn't bother to answer. Inside was a small blue camera. She turned it on to see that it was already fully charged and looked up at Hisoka with yet another smile. "My third gift!"

"Take lots of pictures," he encouraged as they walked through the exhibits. There were lots of different animals there; many different breeds of zebras and horses, rhinoceroses, hippos, and giraffes, colorful arrangements of birds, and Jun took pictures of them all. Hisoka had been right to have purchased some extra memory cards, keeping them tucked away in his pocket for when he would inevitably need to give them to her.

Jun stopped at the large cat exhibit, admiring the lions and tigers. She lifted her camera and eagerly clicked away, taking pictures of the regal animals. Hisoka actually thought that those giant cats reminded him of Jun: majestic and beautiful on the outside, but a true hunter within.
Jun glanced around, and Hisoka did so as well, wondering what had suddenly stolen her attention away from the animals. But he didn't see anything in particular, and when he looked back to Jun, she was flipping through her new camera and taking more pictures. He looked around again, realizing that she had probably noticed the other couples at the zoo.

Other men and women were laughing together, and holding hands, and talking, and while Hisoka had agreed to take her out on a date, perhaps she had realized that the two of them were much, much different than the other couples around them. The entire point of today was to make Jun feel rewarded, to imitate the feel of a date so that perhaps she would continue to want to impress him. So she would be motivated to become stronger, and so Hisoka could finally kill her.

"Jun-chan," Hisoka called, holding out his hand as Jun turned to face him.

She looked at his hand and smiled brightly, plopping the camera into it. She pointed to the lions. "Can you take a picture of me and the lions?" she asked sweetly.

Okay. Not what Hisoka was going for here. But nevertheless, he obliged and snapped a photo of Jun making the V for Victory sign, a lion in the background. He handed her back the camera and she tucked it away, leaning on the rocks to admire the animals below without another word.
"Jun-chan," Hisoka said again, holding out his hand. Jun turned and blinked a few times. Then, something seemed to click, and she smiled and gave Hisoka a light low five before turning back to the animals.

Silent and astounded, Hisoka blinked. Good God, this woman was so naïve sometimes. He sighed. "Jun-chan," he said for the third time, and Jun looked to him again, puzzled. She looked at his hand and then back to him.

"What is it?" she asked, tilting her head in confusion.

"I'm trying to hold your hand, princess," he explained. There. That should do it. Jun was acting so girl all morning that she was bound to just smile and take his hand.

But she did not take his hand. She stared at it intently, furrowing her brows, and then looked back up to Hisoka. "Why?" she asked.
Oh, God. Hisoka wondered why he hadn't just given up the second time. While Jun was uncharacteristically girly today, he had completely forgotten that Jun had no idea what normal relationships were like. She had never been on a date before, never had a boyfriend, never done anything that normal couples do. Of course she wouldn't understand.

"Forget it," Hisoka said, waving her off, but Jun caught his hand, smiling.

"It's what people do on dates, right?" she asked, linking their fingers together. "Sorry, I didn't realize it. Thank you for being so nice to me."
"Sure," Hisoka said, already exhausted that that took much more work than he had thought. They walked around the rest of the zoo, Hisoka mostly listening to Jun gush about all the animals. It's like she'd never seen the outside world before.

Granted that perhaps Hisoka didn't know where she had gone before they met five years ago, perhaps that wasn't totally untrue. Maybe she'd never seen a lion or anything like that before. As far as Hisoka knew, she had been living in the tower for five years now. Where she'd been before that was none of his concern.

"Jun-chan," he said, and she looked up at him, her eyes still sparkling. It was almost blinding.

"Yes?"

"How long did it take you to become a floor master?"

Jun hummed for a moment, and Hisoka thought that she wasn't going to answer. After all, they had that unspoken agreement; they never asked about the past. "Maybe two years," she said with a shrug as though that wasn't astounding at all. "I became a floor master when you came to get me, remember?"

He did remember. Five years ago, he'd heard news of a woman called the Red Queen. She was the youngest warrior to grace the Heavens Arena at that time, and her unmatched record of 9 K.O.s, 9 deaths was something Hisoka found more than interesting.

Of course, he hadn't forgotten about the little girl he'd left behind that day in Meteor City, and was actually a little surprised to see that the Red Queen, was in fact that same girl. He hadn't asked her name back then, as he figured it didn't matter, and he had been right. He wondered why a woman like her had even bothered to gain a silly title.

"I was bored," Jun said, as though reading his mind, snapping him out of his thoughts. "Why do you ask?"

"Just wondering," he told her vaguely, waving his other hand. "You are stronger than this town, after all."

Jun seemed surprised at the compliment, but just smiled weakly, turning her eyes forward. "If you say so," she said quietly, successfully dropping the subject. Hisoka wasn't one to pry, so he kept up the silence as they continued through the reptile house.

Hisoka noticed that Jun seemed more entranced with the reptiles, rather than giddy like how she had been over the lions. "They're like little dragons," he heard her say to herself as they passed by some of the exhibits. Zoos weren't really Hisoka's thing, but today wasn't for him; it was for Jun. So he just bore with it until they left the reptile house.

He spotted an ice cream cart a little while away, near the exit, while Jun took a look at some of the elephants. "Would you like some ice cream, princess?" he asked.

"Oh, sure," she said with a bright smile.

"What would you like?"

"What's your favorite?" Jun asked sweetly.

Hisoka just smiled, patting her on the head. She didn't seem quite done looking at the elephants yet. It didn't matter; they had a whole day. "I'll be right back," he told her, heading off towards the cart.

"Isn't that Jun-nee?" Gon asked.

They were taking a little break and decided to breeze through the zoo before heading back to Wing's for more training. Gon was pointing to a young woman in a cardigan and dress. Killua glanced over, making a face.

"I don't think so," Killua said, shaking his head.

"No, I think it is her," Gon insisted, so Killua took another look. He furrowed his brows and squinted his eyes to make sure he wasn't imagining that the violent woman he'd seen split some guy's chest open yesterday was in a sundress.

Killua half wondered why she didn't dress that way all the time; she was cute. The oversized haori was creepy sometimes; in a dress and her hair done nicely, she actually looked like a girl. "She's dressed weird."

Gon shrugged. "Maybe she's on a date or something?"

Killua scoffed, stifling a laugh. "A date?" he asked, incredulous. "Gon, that woman is insane. The only way she'd be out on a date is if the guy she's out with is a freaking lunatic."

And as if the timing weren't perfect, that was when Hisoka appeared at Jun's side, handing her a pink popsicle. She took it with a bright smile, bowing her head in thanks.

"Ehhhhhhhhhhhhhh?" Gon and Killua gasped at the same time.

They leapt behind a bench to avoid being spotted as people turned to stare at their outburst. "She's going out with Hisoka?" Gon asked, keeping his voice low.

Killia didn't even know how to answer. He remembered Jun telling them that she was friends with Hisoka, but this obviously wasn't something that friends did. His chest was tight. Maybe it was because he thought that Jun really was a normal woman and had been proven wrong. Or maybe it was something else.

They peered over the bench to see Hisoka and Jun leaving together, hand in hand. Killua made gagging noises while Gon hopped up over the bench. He watched them leave, and grinned at Killua. "That's pretty weird," he said, shrugging. "I guess if Jun-nee could date anyone, then it would be Hisoka. They're both a little weird."

"Wait, that's it?" Killua asked, incredulous. "You're just totally cool with Jun skipping off with that creep? We have to follow them and make sure that Hisoka isn't pulling any funny stuff! Jun doesn't know any better! You've seen how she acts!"

"Jun-nee is strong enough to handle herself," Gon assured him. He frowned a little, seeming to have a dark memory of Hisoka, and shuddered. "Okay, maybe you're right. But just for a little while, okay?"

The strawberry popsicle wasn't Hisoka's favorite– much preferred a regular strawberry ice cream cone – but it was fun watching Jun eat it. Her naivete was so wonderful sometimes. Though, he could have sworn that she seem to be taking advantage of this situation; he caught her glancing at him, almost making sure that he watched her eat it.

"Where did you want to go? We have a little while until our lunch," Hisoka told her, resisting the urge to throw her in an alley and take her for himself. That would make her unhappy and this day was simply about him pleasing Jun. He would wait a little longer.

Jun licked her popsicle, humming to herself while she thought. He expected something like the amusement park, or the aquarium, or shopping, but instead, she said, "Gon and Killua are following us."

Hisoka chuckled. He, too, had sensed the two boys following them for several blocks now. It was so painfully obvious, it was cute. They were obviously worried about Jun and curious about what he was doing with her. He hadn't been expecting Jun to mention it, as she knew that Gon was Hisoka's favorite new prey. Hisoka thought that she wouldn't want him to become distracted with Gon on their date. "And what shall we do about it?"

Jun seemed to think for a while and then turned to Hisoka and grinned broadly. "Wanna mess with them?"

Hisoka turned his eyes forward, a thin smile forming on his lips. "I've never been more attracted to you, Jun-chan."

Jun giggled, finishing off her popsicle in one gulp. Hisoka lied. He definitely could be more attracted to her. She tossed the stick in the trash and giggled as though she knew this. She nodded her head forward. "Let's go!"

"Where are they going?" Gon asked as Jun hooked her arm through Hisoka's and led him across the street. Killua half expected Hisoka to deal her a sharp slap for being so close to him, but much to Killua's surprise, Hisoka seemed okay with it. He actually seemed to be having fun. Killua swallowed a lump in his throat. Were Jun and Hisoka actually dating?

"Woah, woah," Killua blurted out as Jun and Hisoka ducked into a rather...adult store. Killua felt heat creeping up on his cheeks and looked to Gon, pointing at the shop. "Gon!"

Gon shuddered and seemed a little uncomfortable, making a face. "Um, well, I mean, they're adults?"

Gon and Killua certainly couldn't go into the shop - they were underage - but they weren't about ready to leave Jun and Hisoka alone just yet. So they waited outside for what seemed like an eternity, only to see Hisoka and Jun emerge with a handful of huge bags. Killua made gagging noises and Gon turned away, feeling a little awkward.

The boys followed them again, trying to keep their distance without losing them. Killua was surprised. From his experience, Jun seemed like the chatty type, and she was definitely talking away with Hisoka. Without his hair slicked and his clown garb, Killua thought that Hisoka actually looked really...classy. Like the type of man who would be able to spoil Jun and make her happy.

But, of course, Killua knew that Hisoka was insane, and so was Jun. But maybe that's why they seemed to get along. He seemed to intently listen to everything she said and responded when she seemed like she wanted him to; it was picture perfect. Like they'd been together for years.

But that couldn't be true, right? Hisoka didn't care much for anyone but himself. Even this "date" they were on couldn't be without some sort of ulterior motive. Killua knew this, he felt that it was true, all the way down to his bones, which was why he felt uncomfortable. He knew that Hisoka could make Jun happy. But Killua also knew that making Jun happy wasn't at the top of Hisoka's priorities. He was definitely using her. But Jun was too naive to see it.

Gon and Killua followed Hisoka and Jun as they ducked into a series of adult shops and lingerie stores, coming out with lots of bags afterwards. They didn't seem to be doing anything strange besides the usual amount of...strangeness, so after the fourth shop, Gon stopped in his tracks, crossing his arms over his chest. He chuckled. "I think they're fine, Killua," he told his friend with a bright smile. "They seem to be having, uh, innocent fun! I think Jun-nee really likes Hisoka. I've never seen her smile this much!"

Killua knew it was true. Jun seemed genuinely happy. More happy than he'd ever seen her. "Fine," he said, not really wanting to see anymore. "Let's go to Wing's."