Chapter XXII

"Do you know why clock towers were invented?"

"Hmm…" Chrollo sets his book down to his lap. "I would guess because clocks were a rare commodity back then, and that people had difficulties acquiring them?"

"Close." She winks and he laughs. "Well, you're not wrong." She stares up at the White Tower. "The man who invented the first clock had a small family, yet he spent most of his life tinkering with his inventions and thinking of ways how to improve them. Before long, his wife got sick and his children moved out of home. I supposed he realized that he had lost precious time selfishly, and thus designed a clock tower to remind everyone that every second is precious."

"Did you read that from a book?"

"I did, actually." She grins, turning to her side to face him. They are seated in one of the wooden benches in the town square, quiet as the townspeople pass by them . "The story reminded me of Akamu-san."

"So I've noticed," he says and drapes an arm over the back of the bench, crossing his leg over the other.

"Do you think we have enough time for everything, Danchou?"

He observes her face, bright with curiosity as she continues staring up, admiring the clock's mechanism. With a thoughtful hum, he shakes his head and takes his book again.

"Not enough time," he answers. "All we could do is cherish all the moments we have here on earth."

Afterwards, they leave the square and take a little moment to explore the outskirts of town. While Chrollo is on the lookout for possible Nen users with interesting abilities to steal, Valtiel's attention is suddenly on the antique shop at the very end of the quiet street. She leads Chrollo inside, whose face brightens at once at the sight of many vintage collections.

The shop smells of dust and old age. Rustic furniture line up against the walls, mirrors with gilt edges on the farthest corner, and paintings with various sceneries on the other side. An old woman emerges from behind a counter and wipes her oil-stained fingers and smiles at the young couple.

"Is there anything in particular you are looking for?"

"Not really." Chrollo returns her smile and lets his Kurta wander around to satiate her curiosity. He himself goes to the opposite direction and to the collection of vintage stationeries and fountain pens. A quick movement of his hand has three pens inside his pocket in a flash.

Valtiel brushes her fingertips across glass jars and brass silverwares. There is a vanity with polished mirror and as she approaches, she sees herself on the reflection. She looks at her eyes, bright but for the deep circles underneath after her Nen sessions. She does not linger on her appearance, finding nothing worthy of appraisal, and moves on towards the back. There, she notices a gigantic structure beneath a white fabric.

Pulling the cloth aside, she finds herself looking up at a towering clock. It is made of ebony, black and shining under the shop's lighting. The pendulum within the glass swings to and fro, accompanied by a low and rather ominous monotone clang. The hour-hand and minute-hand are of gold and brass, respectively. When the hands strike at three in the afternoon, the clock releases a deep sound that seems to shake the little shop from its walls.

At once, Chrollo is by her side. "What is it?"

"A clock," she answers, sarcastic. She reaches out for the pendulum. Her fingers twitch at the sensation, and for one confused moment, she gathers her aura in her eyes and uses Gyo.

"Can you see it?" he asks, nodding to the ominous thing.

"There seems some sort of aura around it." Her eyes observe the entire clock, surrounded by a thin green aura from top to base. She releases Gyo and looks up at him. "How could this be?"

"Whoever made this clock must have been a Nen genius." He steps forward and checks every inch of the clock. Under his attentions, the green aura reacts, swirling more threateningly around it. He smiles, pleased with the discovery. "Some ordinary people learn Nen without their knowing," he explains when he senses her confusion. "Unlike us, they do not have to undergo rigorous training to learn the four principles. Geniuses in their own right."

"Interesting," she murmurs.

The old woman walks up to them. "Is everything all right here?"

Chrollo's smile to her is earnest and kind. "Did you, by any chance, make this clock?"

She laughs and shakes her head. "Oh, no. My husband did. He died before he could even finish painting it. It took me a while to do it myself. But this thing is very old and very uncontrollable. I've been trying to sell it for years."

"Uncontrollable?" Valtiel echoes. "Meaning?"

"It chimes every hour, instead of only during midnight," the woman says. "It is all very nice to look at it, but once it chimes, the sound is so dreadful and frightening! I hate listening to it every hour of the day!"

"We'll take it then," Valtiel declares.

"We will?" Chrollo reiterates, equal parts confused and amused.

"Won't we?" His Kurta stares up at him with her round golden eyes and it is hard for him not to indulge her a little more. He has in mind to rein her back a step or two, but reminded of his debt to her that night with Nicola, he does no more than a smile and a nod.

And then there they are, on their way home, with a gigantic clock carried by Chrollo as easily as a sack of rice. Whatever their neighbors should think about the clock, or his immense strength, it is inconsequential now. He only hopes that indulging her like this would produce favorable results in her Hatsu training.

The clock chimes again for the umpteenth time that day.

Chrollo now understands the shopkeeper's dilemma of having that clock with her. He grumbles under his breath as he exits the kitchenette and joins his Kurta in the living room. He finds her standing before the clock, looking up at it, watching the minutes tick by. He clears his throat then, and puts the glass of water on the small coffee table.

"What is that for?" Valtiel peers down at the glass.

"For your Water Divination." He levels her with an even stare, his eyebrow raising slightly. "I had thought Uvo already subjected you to a Water Divination beforehand? To find out your Hatsu category?"

"Yes, but he didn't use a glass of water." She shrugs and drops, cross-legged, next to the table.

"Then what did he use?"

"He used sticks and pebbles with water."

"And it worked?" He blinks, impressed by the feat.

"Sure did." She laughs at his expression, and then pokes the leaf on the water. "What does this one do?"

He sits cross-legged across from her and explains, "Water Divination is the easiest and most common method to identify someone's category. All you have to do is use Ren−" He places both hands on either side of the glass− "and release a strong aura."

Pure, white aura bursts out of him. It rattles the glass and the table, and prompts Valtiel to scramble away from his sheer talent. Even the trees and lake behind their house sway as if beset by a storm. As soon as he finishes, Chrollo gives her a small smile and removes his hands. He gestures to the glass.

Inside, there are no signs of the leaf. The water has turned black and brackish, with a hint of an unpleasant smell hanging in the air. Valtiel covers her nose and stays away, while Chrollo just laughs and takes the glass back to the kitchen.

"How did that happen?" she calls after him, the disgusting scent still lingering in the air.

"Every individual has different categories," he explains as he rolls his sleeves to his elbows and cleans the glass. "There are six categories, and each Nen user falls into one. As you have seen with my Water Divination, it does not fall with the other categories, making me a Specialist. Other Specialists would have different results than mine."

He finishes with his task and returns to the living room.

"Now−" He sets the glass before her. "You will use Ren and show me."

"Yes, Danchou." She heaves a deep breath and puts both hands beside the glass. She feels the weight of Chrollo's intense dark eyes on her face, and it distracts her. She frowns and focuses instead on the task at hand, enveloping the glass with yellow aura.

The water and leaf move together. Suddenly, the water dries up and the leaf contorts into a small, round object. Valtiel withdraws her hands, gasping and almost frigthened, and glances down at the glass.

The water is gone, and the leaf has turned into a seed. Somewhat nervous that she might have made a mistake, she looks up to the Danchou and observes his reaction.

He is smiling, tapping a finger against his chin.

She gulps. "What does that mean, Danchou?"

Tearing his eyes from the glass, he smiles at her. "You are a Specialist," he says with an unmasked appreciation in his voice. "That's wonderful news. Specialists are unpredictable, their abilities more so. It would suit you well to devise an ability that compliments your character." He pauses, noticing the bleakness of her face. "You are dissatisfied?"

She shrugs again. "Not entirely, no."

"But you already knew you were a Specialist when Uvogin tried you."

"Yes, but I hoped Water Divination could change that."

"There is no changing your Nen category," he says, and her expression remains the same dreary one. He purses his lips. He knows that look on her. "Did you want to be something else?"

Her cheeks flush in embarrassment. He almost expects her to lie, but she does not.

"I wanted to be an Enhancer," Valtiel murmurs, as if ashamed. She toys with the tips of her hair and avoids his intense staring at her. "Enhancers are strong, like Uvo-san and Phink-san, right? Or maybe I could be whatever Fei-san's category is, he is strong, too."

"Fei is a Transmuter," he says, with a little edge in his voice. "And wishing to be someone else would not do well with your Hatsu training. Instead, focus on being a Specialist and devise an ability you think would suit your interests best. It is still July. You have seven months left to complete your one-year course. More than enough time."

He takes the seed from the glass and flicks it to her face.

She catches it and sighs. "Fine, Danchou."

Chrollo stands and heads for the bedroom, no doubt immersing himself in reading once again. He stretches on his side of the bed, the blanket and pillows thrown about to suit his little cozy nest. With Valtiel rarely sleeping on her side since her Nen training began, the bed is his own and he would stretch across the mattress for as long as he wants.

He stretches now like an indulgent cat, when he notices Valtiel walking over to the porch. He peeks between the curtains, raising an eyebrow again when she plants the seed in a small pot. "What are you doing?"

"I thought it would be a waste," she says. "So I planted it. To make our home better."

"Right." He is unconvinced and rather lost. The house is no more than another temporary base. There is no need to be attached to something so trivial. Or perhaps she has thought of incorporating the seed into her Hatsu? He is interested to see how it would turn out, and leaves her alone to think about it.

"Ah, Danchou!" She runs after him.

"Yes, dear?"

"Is it possible for me to be as strong as Uvo-san, even if I am a Specialist?"

"I said it once, and I will say it again: brute strength is not the natural field of Specialists, though after some years of rigorous physical training, you could be as strong as any Enhancer."

He takes his book and lounges on the bed, leaving her contemplating with his explanation again. He studies her under his dark lashes, fighting the urge to smirk when she wrinkles her nose in disappointment.

Thus, her Hatsu training begins, though Valtiel struggles more on her own now than before. Chrollo has left her alone, opting not to influence her ideas for an ability, and she has not heard from Feitan or Akamu for weeks. Not one of the Spiders has messaged her since training began. The Danchou must have ordered them to keep quiet, so as not to distract her.

But she is distracted. She spends countless sleepless nights sprawled on the living room carpet, staring absentmindedly at the ceiling in hopes of devising an ability fit for a Specialist. After a while of staring, the great ebony clock would chime its dull and heavy monotone clang. In the silence of most nights, it catches her unawares and makes her flinch. When the clock calms down, so does she and her current distress of inventing an ability continues again.

On the twelfth night of her sleepless night, Chrollo emerges from the bedroom and finds her reading a book while using Ren. He nods appreciatively; at least she is occupying herself with Ren than distressing for hours on end. He steps behind her and rests his chin on her shoulder. "Any luck yet?"

She flinches at his sudden appearance. Damned Zetsu master. She nudges him with her elbow. "Patience."

"You've been telling yourself that for almost two weeks," he observes, teasing. "Are you so distracted that you cannot think of anything? That you don't have any ideas at all?"

"If you keep talking to me, then it would take me another month to figure something out."

"Shall I ask for Feitan's cooperation?"

"No thank you." She blanches at that and flings the book across the living room, to his face.

He catches the hardbound book with his forefinger and thumb, and directs a smug smile at her as he sinks on the couch.

She snorts at his arrogance, remembering that he is never this arrogant with the Troupe members. She faces the ebony clock and sighs. "Do I have to make it a Specialist ability? Why not Manipulation or Conjuration instead?"

"Focus on your own strength," he repeats. "And stop whining to me."

"Then go back to the room and leave me in peace."

"I can't sleep," he murmurs so softly.

Valtiel glances back at him to check if she is hearing things. A shadow falls over his handsome face and she could not place where this sudden melancholia comes from. She rolls back her shoulders and focuses on her Ren again, taxing it may be. She keeps staring at him through his reflection on the clock's glass and thinks of an idea that may lift his spirits.

"Read to me, Danchou."

He looks up to her with a little smile. "Which one?"

She taps her chin as she ponders. She did not think she could go this far. "You are reading something about revolutions with gypsies and magic, aren't you? I'm interested. Read a small part to me."

"As you wish." He strides towards his wide collection of stolen books and finds one easily. He hums as he flips through the pages, unable to contain the little devious smirk forming across his lips.

When he finds the right page, he approaches her and backs her against the solid surface of the clock, trapping her in between. He could see the quick flush of her cheeks at the sudden close proximity.

Sensually, Chrollo lifts her chin with his free hand and slides his warm lips across her cheek. He stops a mere inch above her ear and whispers in a low voice:

"I will be the first man to kiss you, to bed you... whether you come willingly or not. You will be mine and mine alone, do you understand?"**

She shudders at his voice; her eyes half-lidden as he pulls back to study her face.

And he continues with his normal voice:

"Sido could hardly hear the words above the whirling sound in her head−"**

"What?" Valtiel snaps from the enchantment and blinks at him.

"…What?" he echoes, mischievously innocent.

"Oh."

"Oh what, my love?" he prompts, smirking.

"Nothing." She pushes him off her and turns her back on him, facing the clock, so she could take deep, calming breaths from his insidious teasing. She hates it when he is playful, for it goes on two ways: he is rather mischievous or cruel. Tonight, it is a combination of both and for a young woman who has never known any man besides him, such a tease is downright harsh.

Chrollo walks away, pleased to elicit such a reaction from his little treasure. It is definitely amusing to watch her emotions go from curiosity to happiness and then to nervousness. He stands at the threshold of their bedroom and looks over his shoulder. Under the orange light of the lamp, her blush is evident and he comes away with another triumphant laugh.

Chrollo: 1

Valtiel: 0

It is only a month after when she has her first breakthrough with her ability.

As such, she never tells Chrollo anything. She leaves him in the dark of the nature of her ability, just as he often does when he leaves the house without as much as a permission. Not that she minds; Chrollo can leave and do whatever he wants, meet whoever he fancies. She only wishes that she does not wake up in an empty bed, suddenly confused and worried that something wrong might have happened.

In the rare times that he is out of home, she would take her time to practice. Sometimes indoors. Oftentimes outdoors, where she could enjoy seeing the mother goose and her little babies paddling in the lake, or where she could bask under the warm sunlight and see the little seed grow into a short, green stalk.

The neighbors would often invite her to a friendly breakfast with them, prompt a little gossip about the young couple with whom they have little to no interactions. The Eleisons, they tell her, are young and beautiful, but equally silent and mysterious. Valtiel is never sure whether it is safe to converse with them this way; but whenever they offer her a hot chocolate drink, her suspicions become unfounded.

One of the neighbors' sons−a young man of twenty years old−a photography student, asks for a photo of her with the lake and trees behind her as a background.

She hesitates then, worrying that Danchou might take offense of her doing something behind his back. However, like any other mornings, he is not home and she is alone to do anything. She smiles at the photographer, whose name she learns is Kieran.

"Photo?" She smiles at him. "What for?"

"For a magazine spread," Kieran answers, readying his camera. "For a school project, really."

"Oh. You are in school?" Elated at the thought of him studying, she stands from his family's dining table and proceeds walking outside. Kieran falls in step beside her, tall and lean as Omokage. "And you are studying to become a photographer?"

"I do." Kieran grins and sets the tripod on the grass. "After school, I want to try the Hunter Exam. I heard it has many benefits, like first-class public facilities and extensive travelling to many parts of the countries that are otherwise banned from the general public. I want to take photos of people in their homes."

"That sounds wonderful. Where do you want me to stand?"

"Just there, beside the lake. The sunlight looks good there." He adjusts the camera and peers behind the lens, focusing on her. "There, Miss Eleison. You look pretty right there. Now, stand still please."

Valtiel obeys, a little embarrassed since no one has taken any pictures of her before. She is conscious of her appearance, not at all finding her bright yellow sundress and messy chignon pleasing for a student's project. Yet she stands still and smiles as Kieran asks−only to help him have good grades. She could tell that he is a good kid, enthusiastic and passionate, and smiles all the more as he teaches her several poses and angles that suits his tastes.

Just then, someone steps out of the porch and freezes mid-step. Chrollo blinks when he finds her posing sweetly for a young man, who is eager as he takes several shots. He frowns and approaches.

"Good morning, sweetheart." He snakes an arm around her waist and kisses her temple.

"Good morning," she returns, flustered that even as Chrollo acts intimately, Kieran keeps taking photos of them. She squirms against his firm hold, but he is unperturbed. She looks up at him, her little nose to his chin. Another flash and Kieran nods to the shot.

"Quite busy, hm?" he murmurs in her ear, side-eyeing the photographer. "What is this all about?"

"Just for a school project." She is loathe to nestle in his embrace when Kieran steals another shot of them. She could feel Chrollo's big hand sliding down her back to her hip. "He asked for me, not you."

"He's not complaining, is he?" Smiling at the camera, he pulls her to lean against his chest. He feels her forced smile against the fabric of his white shirt.

Kieran nods again and reviews the photos he has taken. "Good, very good! Thank you, Miss Eleison! Oh, and you as well, Mister Eleison! I'll have this developed and send copies to your house."

Chrollo smiles at the young man. "Of course," he says and pulls his 'wife' back inside their house.

He pushes her into the living room, none too gently, and shuts the porch door and draws the curtains with a low growl sticking in his throat. He turns back to her and glares. "What was that all about?"

"For a school project," she counters, glaring at his rough handling. That is the first time he does so. She wonders what might have changed in him. "Kieran is a nice kid. No harm done."

"I leave you alone in hopes that you will finish with your Hatsu training, yet I return to find you flirting with a neighbor," he growls, prompting her to swallow an upcoming snide comment. His dark eyes are boring through her. He towers over her with his glower in place, much reminding her of Feitan's normal look. "Show me your Hatsu," he demands in a quiet tone. "Unfinished or not, show me."

"But Danchou−"

"Shall I kill, what's-his-name, Kieran?"

Before she could answer, Chrollo turns on his heels and reaches out for the porch door again, murder evident in his eyes.

As his hand closes in around the knob, he feels a sudden wave of aura from behind, from his own Kurta. Eyes widening, he feels his movements slow considerably, his fingertips inching towards the knob with exaggerated slow movements. It lasts for only a quarter of a second, before the aura vanishes. His movements then return to normal, his hand finally reaching for the knob.

Confused, he rounds back to Valtiel and she collapses on the couch, panting and spent. "What did you do?"

She is still panting, her blonde locks plastered on the sides of her face. "You asked me… to show… Hatsu."

Her head starts to swim nauseously from the effects, though not strong enough to hurt. She feels dizzy, as if spinning around for a few seconds. The couch dips from Chrollo's added weight as he sits beside her, cupping her face in his hands.

She glares and hisses at him. "Don't you touch Kieran or his family."

His lips spread into a cunning smile. "Of course," he drawls, the threat lingering in his tone. He tucks her hair behind her ear and leans for a rewarding kiss on her cheek. Valtiel hisses again and claws at his white shirt. He chuckles and draws back. "But what did you do? Was that your Hatsu?"

"It's still unrefined," she says, standing from the couch, yellow skirts flapping across pale thighs. "And I need more practice; I can't practice with you around. It's…" She breaks off, uncertain.

"It is what, dearest?"

"I think it might be dangerous to practice with people around," she finishes, remembering the unpleasant nausea she felt after the ability activated. If she feels such pain, then it would only take a while before her victims would share the same pain. She lifts golden eyes to his face. "Maybe it's better if you keep leaving the house for now, Danchou."

He weighs her statement for a while, and then leans forward with his elbow on his knees.

"Absolutely not," he says. "It already proves unwise that I leave you for the morning to find you entertaining other men. What more if I leave the house longer than just a morning? And you are among the Spiders, don't forget. Our enemies lurk everywhere. Leaving you alone for more than an entire day might be dangerous."

She nips her lower lip. She understands his reasoning, but her Hatsu training has to continue without anyone getting hurt. "But what about my training?" she asks. "I need to practice on someone."

"Could it not be me?"

"It might be dangerous, I am not sure of the effects yet."

"You're kind to me." He gleams at her. "Any particular person you want to practice with? Should I offer Kieran an allowance if he agrees? Or we could stay close to home and ask for Feitan or Nobunaga?"

"No and no." She frowns at him. "Take me seriously, Danchou."

"Then what do you need?" He sighs, leaning back to the couch with his eyes closed. "You know I can get you anything or anyone you like−if you would tell me."

My memories. Give me eighteen years of my life back.

She looks out of the window. In mid-August, the small town is warm, with a crowd of townspeople wandering around the streets. It is the perfect season to test her ability, but she would not dare experiment on live humans, not when her ability is still unpredictable and coarse. She needs more time to focus.

Chrollo steps behind her and nuzzles his nose into her hair. "What do you need, Val?"

She turns around and faces him. "I need something alive," she whispers, her breath against his neck where his collar opens slightly. "Something with a… heart…"

"A heart?" He looks down on her, quite incredulous, as if a heart holds no meaning to the leader of the Phantom Troupe. For all his tact and elegance, he reveals himself to be bewildered at her request.

"I thought you said you can get me anything I like," she muses.

"I did, and I will." He recollects himself and gazes out the window, as if in deep thought. "A heart… is it…?"

The next morning, Valtiel wakes up amongst the plethora of pillows and blankets on their bed. As customary for her, she reaches over Chrollo's side and feels the space cold and empty. No surprise in that. She just wishes she knows where he keeps disappearing to, so she could ask for a souvenir or two. Perhaps a new book, since they have both exhausted Han Feizi's collection of ten essays and there is nothing else but epic fairytales and social revolutions in their bookshelf. Perhaps a novel about romance would do, so she could enjoy his face when he reads it.

She rolls across the bed, hogging the entire blanket. When thunder rumbles, she knows at once that it has been raining. The pillows are cold and she buries herself under them, basking in the chill after weeks of continuous sunny weather. She likes the rain, but she loves it even better when she dances under them, back in Meteor City with…

She opens her eyes and gazes at the ceiling. She remembers herself dancing under the rain as a child, but with whom, she does not remember. She sees faces, but none of them is familiar to her. There's a blond boy with determined eyes. A delicate boy with brown hair and warm smile.

The first one could only be Shalnark, but the second one… She is lost in her own memories again.

After a while of reminiscing, if half of her memories are dark and blurry is still called reminiscing, she rises from the bed and does not bother fixing it. Chrollo would return later in the day and keep the bed for most of the time anyway, so why bother? She makes herself a cup of chocolate drink and curls up on the chaise lounge next to the window, tracing the raindrops falling on the glass.

The ebony clock chimes at seven o'clock. A few moments later, it is the devil himself who enters through the front door, a bit disheveled from the downpour. He checks upon the threshold, surprised to see her up and about so early in the morning.

"Where have you been?" she asks her usual question.

"Out," he says tersely, before joining her on the chaise and presses a kiss on her hair. He snatches the cup from her hands and drinks, one eye on her to see her scowl. He finishes the drink with a lick on his lips and sets something down at her feet. "I brought you something, darling. Perhaps you would find me a very good husband now."

She rolls her eyes at his pretense and peers at the fabric carrier he placed by her feet. She blinks, utterly lost now, and hesitates to touch the carrier−until it lets out a soft "meow".

Her breath hitches in her throat. Chrollo chuckles and starts fumbling the carrier. He pulls out something small and black from the cage and sets it on Valtiel's lap.

The black kitten sniffs cautiously at her nightdress, at the mug set on the window ledge, and even at Chrollo's outstretched fingers. It walks around in circles, as if discerning what to do in a new place, until it finally looks up at Valtiel with its round maroon eyes and meows again.

"You said you needed something alive," Chrollo says, shrugging. "I stole him from a shelter. I thought it'd be more efficient to take something from a shelter, rather than a shop. He's a black Emphyrean panther. He is only a week old, but he will grow as large as a pony."

He stops his monologue, realizing that maybe his Kurta is not hearing him. Her attention is very much focused on the kitten, as small as a toy car, stroking his downy fur. He chuckles and cups her cheek in one big hand.

"Are you happy, Val?"

She nods, smiling when the kitten paws at her open palm. Its claws are thin and sharp.

"Yes," she whispers, ardent. She brings the kitten to her face and nuzzles against the soft fur of its belly. The kitten mewls and scratches faintly at her forehead. "I love him," she tells Chrollo, turning golden eyes to him. "I love him so much, Danchou."

"I am glad to hear that." He scoots closer to her, to have a closer inspection at her eyes. In the sea of golden flecks, the scarlet shimmers intermittently, like blinking cinders.

Behind them, the rain continues pattering, but nothing distracts his Kurta from cuddling with her latest gift.

He drapes an arm over her shoulder and asks, "What shall you name him?"

Lifting the little panther to her face, she smiles. "Pairo."

"What's that?" Chrollo stiffens, his jaw set and tight.

"What is what?" She gives him a confused look, while he fights the urge to glower. "It's just something from the top of my head," she says in her defense. "He is so small and dark and grumpy, like Fei-san." She laughs at the idea of naming a cute little kitten after a sadistic, murderous thief. "But I think Pairo suits him better."

"Why? What does the name Pairo mean to you?" His eyes intensify, though she does not notice.

"It means 'starlight' in another language," she answers without much care.

"And what language is that?"

"Hm?" Valtiel glances at him and smiles innocently. "Why, Kurta, of course."

**The Red Necklace by Sally Gardner (Tom Hiddleston read an audiobook for this. It's so wholesome.)

Author's Notes: Thank you for everyone's patience! It only feels like yesterday when I've last updated the story, Time flies when you're busy at work, haha.

Danchou may have gotten a but more possessive in this chapter, but that only made Val a bit more independent when he started leaving her in the mornings. Whether this is a progress between these two chaotic, clueless dorks... I have no idea. We'll see how things would play out from this point on: Possessive Danchou and a progressively stronger Val with her Nen potential.

Speaking of Nen, what do you guys think of her Nen category and possible ability? Not too OP, I hope. That's my greatest fear at the moment−making Val seem like an over-powered character already. Most Specialists in the series are considered extremely skilled and OP. Chrollo, Kurapika, Pitou, Meruem, Prince Tserried, and even Omokage himself. What about her ability, too? I've read so many theories, but only one came as close to guessing! And it's actually a reader from my AO3 account!

The only other precious thing in this chapter is the little kitten. I feel all warm and fuzzy inside imagining Danchou with a little kitten!

*xenocanaan - Thank you! You're fantastic!

*RoseGirl99 - I believe that anything Chrollo and romantic relationship will equate to an unhealthy relationship. I mean, this bastard can think of many creative ways to manipulate his partner! He's better off as only Danchou, not someone's boyfriend, tbh. And he is a first class liar, it's hard to believe in him once he's already lied once to you... which, I think, Valtiel has learned over the months they spent together. Despite the possible feelings, she still doesn't trust him 100%.

As for Val's mother, I may have an idea about who she is. The story could touch base with that topic eventually... maybe when Valtiel and Kurapika are finally together, both raging Specialists with their eyes blazing red, ready to tear down Meteor City. Ahh, how satusfying would that be? HAHA. And thank you very much for your ramblings! Keep them coming!

*HuangShaotian0005 - Shal should take away the memes from Uvogin's reach. Yep, I knew, deep down, that Chrollo would be such a special kind of flirt. I'd die of jealousy if I were Val, but our girl managed to stand up and walk away. So proud.

*Dontcha - Lmao. Fei getting more love than Chrollo because Chrollo is such a fake lover! At least is Fei is angry, you will know he is angry. No lies, no fake smiles, no nothing. And kissing? Who knows? mMaybe Chrollo will step up in his game in a few chapters... *wink wonk*

*Amy - Yay! FeiVal and PhinVal moments are my second and third favorite things to write in this story! Maybe when Hisoka finally shows up, HisoVal would be a thing, too? Haha! If ever her eyes suddenly go red and she asks Chrollo, I bet Chrollo will just start sweating randomly.

*Mia Mena - I like to think that Chrollo held onto his word and let Akamu's family go. He was harsh, but I hope he let the monk alive. Fei must have felt disgusted when she hugged him though. Lmao. No more touching privileges if Danchou gets too much of a bastard! -_-

That's all for now, folks! Thank you all so much for the love and support!