Hunter x Hunter Oneshots

Slightly Out of Place

In which a lovely 64-year-old grandma comes to find herself in one of those asian cartoon shows that her grandson watches, and gives grandmotherly love to someone desperately in need of it.

Miss Nellie Carruthers looked down at her hands and marveled.

Though a few of her wrinkles had become pronounced, the majority of them had faded away into two-dimensional bliss, making her look overall at least five years younger. She caught sight of her reflection in a nearby puddle and stopped to observe, trying not to strain her back while doing so. She squinted her eyes and observed herself; her soft nose, plump cheeks, and—Miss Nellie smiled at this—her pale eyes now looked ever so blue and sharp. It was as if she'd regained a flame of her youth.

She drew back and set her hands behind her. Her back still did hurt, she had to confess. But the scene before her almost made her forget it all. The beautiful sheen on the water was stunning, and so was the painted sky. It was not the same as the real world, but she admitted it held its own sort of charm.

Miss Nellie was not one to panic. It wasn't good for her heart, but even before she'd begun to feel the effects of age she had always handled matters with serenity. She had been calm when her son had brought in a snake and begged to keep it as a pet, when she had been informed her daughter got into a fight at the tender age of seven, and when her grandson revealed that he had spent half the day watching television on his iPod or iPad (she wondered if there was a difference).

She'd seen this type of artwork on his screen whenever she stopped by. The world around her now was animated, yes, but it would not faze her. She was always collected and this would not change now. She had to accept her circumstances.

"Miss?" A soft voice came from where the alley opened into the street. A young man in a suit appeared before her, his blond hair dangling down helplessly as to cover his eyes. "May I help you?"

She smiled and stepped towards him into the light. "Thank you, young man. I was wondering what to do. I seem to be lost, in a peculiar sense."

He offered her his arm, and she took it politely. "Do you know where you want to go?"

Miss Nellie pondered this for a moment. "I have a place I wish to be," she finally settled on, "but it is by no means a place I can go. For now I suppose I will accept my place here and wait until I can return."

He seemed confused, but it didn't stumble his words. "Is it far from here?"

"I imagine it to be so, yes," she said amiably. "Very far."

The nice lad inquired a bit further, showing confusion when the answers he wanted didn't line up with the answers she gave. She didn't blame him for it. Instead, she admired the way he kept his cool during such a time. He'd asked if she had a place to stay, to which she truthfully answered no. Miss Nellie could tell immediately whether a person had bad intentions, and she suspected this man to be honorable. So when he asked if he could arrange a room for her at a hotel his acquaintances were staying in, she responded with a yes.

They chatted about the weather and birds that flew by every now and then as they walked. When they arrived at the door of the quaint hotel, Miss Nellie gave her own name. "And yours, young man?" she asked.

His words hung on his tongue before he turned them airborne. "Kurapika."

She ran the name through her head. "Thank you, Kurapika. You've been such a great help."

After he arranged for a room key, they entered an elevator and rose a few floors before coming to a stop on the fifth. Kurapika held open the metal doors and she strolled out, his lips in a thin-pressed line as she guided her to a certain door. His knuckles rapped sharply on the wood.