Note: I do not own HxH
After his mission, Illumi Zoldyck did not return to the mansion, as he normally would. Instead, he purposefully made his way through the small town at the base of Kukuroo Mountain and headed down the barely visible forest path toward the cottage. After three days of being away, Illumi wondered whether the strange woman would still be inhabiting his home. Although he was unsure of how he felt about this entire situation, he did not care enough to find out.
About a minute's walk from the cottage, the assassin felt her presence. So she's decided to stay, he thought. Something felt off to Illumi. Her aura. Black tendrils were faintly radiating from the small cottage. Illumi prepared himself for the worst.
Illumi opened the door to find Palm sitting down at the table. Her tangled black hair framed her entire body as the black tendrils curled around her. Her once wide fuchsia eyes were now tight around her black pupils. "Hello, Illumi." She said in her deep voice. Any other human would have found this welcome creepy. Illumi moved his eyes away from Palm and was shocked at how absolutely dirty the cottage was. The kitchen was a disaster, with leftover food laying out and none of the plates washed. There was a fine layer of soot over every surface, and pillows and blankets were astray throughout the room. Furniture was out of place, and even upside down.
Illumi's eyes narrowed and his small mouth formed a frown as he surveyed the damage. He made a mental list of what he witnessed.
Unwashed dishes (20)
Upturned furniture (5)
Layers of soot (fine)
Annoying and in-trouble guest (1)
Angry Illumi (1)
"What. Happened." Illumi demanded in a low voice, taking a step further into the cottage. Palm's aura expanded further and deepened in blackness. She looked into Illumi's eyes, able to hold his gaze. "It got messier the longer I stayed. And the worse the mess, the more I stressed about how I would clean it up. And I wondered when you would come back." She stated, her voice dripping with something Illumi found very familiar. Murderous intent. Illumi moved a few pins into his hand and walked farther inside.
"I haven't…" Palm began, gazing into the distance, "I haven't killed in so long" her voice trailed off. Suddenly, both dark haired killers turned the the doorway, where a young man stood. He had clearly followed Illumi here, perhaps after seeing him so often. The young man, realizing his mistake, turned pale and turned around to leave. But before he could take even a step, Palm had leaped out of her seat and slaughtered the man with one of her knives, stabbing him in the throat. The unfortunate youth gurgled before falling in a pool of his own blood, dead.