I don't have work for the next few days so I thought I'd be able to get out this chapter earlier on in the day! Hope you enjoy :)
- - -
It took the loud voice of a pissed Leorio for Y/N to find her friends. They had been down the hall from her. She narrowed her eyes in suspicion. "Are you guys planning something weird?" Y/N crossed her arms as she stood at the doorway.
"N-No! We were just-Uh-" Leorio stumbled his words.
"We saw that you were by yourself and we all wanted to give you some space."
Kurapika nudged Leorio in the side. In response, he laughed nervously. The group collectively sighed at his actions. Y/N narrowed her eyes, "Right. So, I'm going to just erase that from my mind. We should get to the main part of the ship though. Beans wanted me to come to get you all. It's about the next Phase."
The group made their way to the main part of the ship where a majority of the other candidates were patiently waiting for the announcement. Her friends, unfortunately, ran into Tonpa along the way, much to Y/N's distaste.
Leorio and Kurapika made sure the girl was kept outside of his reach. Gon and Killua were in the middle of a thumb war game when the Chairman and Beans popped into the room to debrief the remaining candidates.
"Let me introduce myself to the 45 candidates gathered here. I am the Chairman of the Selection Committee for this year's Hunter Exam, Isaac Netero."
"I'm his secretary, Beans."
"I was going to show myself at the last phase, but I heard about what was happening and had to," He paused and looked over each candidate quickly, "This indescribable tension in the air is not so bad. Since this is a rare occurrence, allow me to be a part of the action."
Killua and Y/N yawned. Gon glanced over his friends and those closest to him.
"The estimated time of arrival at the Third Phase is 8 AM tomorrow. Food has been prepared at the canteen for everyone. You can all take a rest, and you are free to do what you want until we get in touch."
That translates to getting dinner and then sleeping the rest of the time. Y/N watched Gon and Killua run off to explore the ship. Leorio commented, "They're so full of energy. I think I'm going to sleep."
"I think so too. But there's something that worries me. How many more phases do you think there are?" Kurapika let a heavy sigh.
"Now that you mention it, they never announced it," Leorio muttered.
Tonpa smirked, "Normally, there will be five to six phases."
The trio stopped at the doorway out of the room. Leorio pondered quickly, "That means there are three to four phases left."
Y/N let out a soft yawn, "Let's grab food first, then we can sleep. We can worry about everything else tomorrow." She wanted to stay away from him. His aura is terrifying. Tonpa grinned once he took notice of how exhausted the three rookies looked.
"Don't let your guard down though. The secretary just said we are on our way to the next destination. But the third phase could be happening on this airship itself. They might not notify us of the arrival at 8 AM tomorrow."
The beer-bellied man had a weird tone in his voice that irked the girl. She rolled her eyes. Her two friends were eating up what Tonpa was saying. "We'll take that into consideration, thanks." Y/N grabbed her friends by the arms and led them away from the Rookie Crusher.
They sat down in a hallway. Leorio fell asleep almost quickly, resting his head on top of Y/N's. Kurapika was deep in thought to notice the other male sleeping. The girl carefully looked over at her blond friend.
"Are you okay?" She began to worry.
"What Tonpa said...There's a 0% chance that the Third Phase will be on this ship-"
"So don't overthink it," She smiled, "Tonpa is trying to psych us out, he's the Rookie Crusher, remember? Besides, Leorio is too exhausted to put in his opinions too."
Y/N spoke softly, to not wake him up. Leorio snored loudly. The girl poked his side, he's so fucking loud. The older male woke up quickly and looked around. Kurapika smiled with amusement.
"Let's go to the canteen."
- - -
After eating a quick dinner, Y/N rushed to the bathrooms to take a shower and to get rid of her shirt. Leorio and Kurapika waited on the benches. Although they weren't too worried, the trio had come across 2 dead bodies while searching for a bathroom with a shower.
"How about we all shower, separately, and then we can get some sleep before tomorrow."
"That sounds fine to me. Let's go." Kurapika led the expedition to a shower.
Leorio and Y/N followed him. There were a few people who had passed them who didn't bother saying hello, or acknowledge the group of three. The girl recognized Pokkle who was wandering the floor by himself. I wonder how he and Ponzu end up together. He was clearly tuned in to himself.
The trio left a gap between them for the distracted Pokkle to walk through. Leorio stared at the short man as he passed. Y/N looked him over, as much as I appreciate him later on, he's kind of a prick during the Exam Arc.
"I don't like that guy. He gives off weird energy." Leorio commented.
"He's probably edge. We all are." Y/N watched him disappear.
They continued walking. At this point, Y/N was in the lead and leading her friends down random hallways. Her mind began to warder to her other two friends, Gon and Killua. Right about now, Killua should have-
She stopped short of the end of the hallway. She felt an intense aura of energy to her left. It sent chills up her spine, it's like a wave of hot anger and frustration. As sudden as it came, it disappeared. Y/N, Kurpaika, and Leorio peered into the hallway that gave off the view of the city lights below them. The girl stepped back into Kurapika's chest.
There were two men who were on the floor. Leorio and Kurapika rushed to their side. She stared at the two men on the ground, then looked down the opposite end of the hallway to catch a glimpse of white hair and a blue long-sleeve. He needs to experience real love.
Leorio let out a sigh, "They're both dead."
"I'll notify the Chairman." Y/N ran off towards the meeting hall, where the other examiners were at.
I wonder if their prospective candidates have changed at all. They had their eyes on Hanzo and Hisoka if I'm remembering correctly. Y/N soon reached the door. Do Not Disturb. She rolled her eyes and knocked on the door.
To her surprise (not really,) Satotz opened the door. She took a step back, he was at least a head taller than her. Y/N could smell the leftovers from where she stood. Focus! You're here for a reason!
"Evening! Um- Is the Chairman with you?" She looked up at the purple-suited man.
"...He is not. Do you need anything from him?"
"Well, yeah. Two of the candidates were killed in one of the hallways. I thought I felt someone kill them but...I didn't see anyone when we turned the corner to see the bodies." Satotz blinked.
"Wait right here." He closed the door on the girl. She sighed and began looking around the corridor she was in. In the distance, she could hear banging, some snoring, and plates clattering. The door soon reopened.
"Thank you for notifying us. We'll have someone take care of it."
Y/N paused. "Okay cool." She stepped back, and walked back in the direction she came from, and back to her friends. The girl could feel someone staring at her as she moved. Maybe it's Satotz, or maybe it's that person I felt watching me earlier in the Wetlands.
"Hey, they should be moving them in a little." Y/N reached her friends and the eyes on her went away.
- - -
Y/N and her two friends found a comfortable spot to sleep for the next 8 hours. She slept soundly on the floor, and between Leorio and Kurapika. They got as comfortable as they could. Y/N fell asleep almost immediately.
At around 5 in the morning, the girl woke up needing the bathroom. She quietly got up. She took a quick picture of Leorio and Kurapika cuddling next to each other. Y/N packed up her now clean shirt into her backpack.
Some of the other candidates were awake or had already left the room. Y/N noted Hisoka, Illumi/Gittaracktur, and the Amori siblings missing. She exited the room to be greeted by a beautiful sunrise.
Y/N walked quickly to a bathroom. She freshened herself up and left soon after. The curious girl wandered the hallways until she heard a loud bang come from one of the rooms. She opened the door to find Gon, who had slammed his head into the padded walls and fallen asleep, and the Chairman, with a bouncy ball in his hand.
"Good morning Chairman Netero. I was wondering where Gon was." She closed the door behind her.
"Good morning to you too, Y/N." The Chairman smiled softly.
Maybe I can get some practice in too. "Chairman, may I try the game you were playing with Gon and Killua?"
He smirked, "Of course. The goal of the game is to get the ball out of my hand."
The girl set her bag down next to Gon, who remained sound asleep. I need to remember he's super fast. Gon and Killua have anime speed, which made it easy to almost keep up with the chairman. Y/N ran towards him as a start. He easily stepped out of the way.
She turned around whilst running, scrapping her running shoes against the ground. The girl ran at him again, this time she dove down towards his feet. He jumped up to avoid her, but Y/N kicked her legs up in the air.
She hooked her legs against his and swung him away towards a wall. My legs are going to be bruised after this. The Chairman easily landed, on his right hand. His back was to her for a moment.
Y/N felt a cool sensation run through her. Everything felt lighter, it felt easier. Without a second thought, she ran to his right. He slowly turned around. Am I running faster than he could react? She dropped down but kept moving towards him.
In slow motion, she hooked her legs against his waist and used her core strength to lift her body up against his back. He reached with his right hand to pull her away but didn't grab her left side. She tensed up, "You just grabbed my ass!" The older man let go quickly.
Y/N realized he was distracted and probably flustered. She quickly grabbed the ball and jumped off the man. That was too easy, and such a dirty tactic on my end. He sighed. The girl tossed the ball back.
"You're going easy on me, Chairman." She was breathing hard. Y/N couldn't get rid of this new heightened sensation she had flowing through her. Chairman Netero stared at her with an odd expression on his face.
"Do your eyes always change color?"
"My eyes? They're (e/c) aren't they?" Y/N asked.
"Right now they're the color of an amethyst crystal. They're an incredibly beautiful gem."
My eyes are purple? Y/N stepped away from the Chairman. It makes sense...But not much. She felt her body return to its original state, I felt it with Tonpa when we first met. I felt it when I fought Hisoka. "Do...Do you know if anyone else can change their eye color to this one?"
"Unfortunately, I do not. You could probably look into some research once the exam is over."
What's going on with me? Is this going to be a cliche character trait where I have super abilities? "Chairman Netero, thank you for letting me join you in this game," She looked over at the clock. We've been fighting for almost 2 hours?
- - -
Y/N had been sleeping close to Gon until 8, when Killua, Kurapika, and Leorio came into the room. Killua thought it would be funny to scare Gon awake. But when he jumped up to surprise him from the ceiling, the girl sleeping next to him woke up, quickly stood up, and grabbed him just before he could reach the sleeping boy.
Kurapika and Leorio jumped back. Y/N placed the white-haired boy upright at Gon's feet. She glared at the boy. "Don't be a hoe." She crossed her arms over her chest. Killua did a double-take.
"Who are you calling a hoe, baka." Killua glared.
"It's a compliment coming from me," She let out a chuckle, "But seriously, let him sleep for a little longer."
"Whatever, old lady," Killua muttered and began walking to the doors to the hallway.
Who the fuck does this little boy think he is!? Y/N launched herself at the young boy but was immediately caught by Leorio and Kurpaika. They held her back from landing herself on the Killua. He turned around and stuck his tongue out in a playful manner.
"Fuck you, bitch." Y/N was dropped to the ground. She got up and dusted herself off.
The boy sleeping on the ground finally woke up due to the commotion. "Morning Gon. The Chairman wanted to let you know that we'd be arriving at 9, instead of 8." She gave him a cup of orange juice from the canteen.
"Are we at the next site yet?" He yawned.
"Almost. We should get going soon though."
"Thank you for being patient everyone. The airship is about to arrive at our destination." Beans' voice spoke over the intercom.
Everyone packed up their things and made their way to the entrance of the ship where everyone else was waiting. There's the tense energy from yesterday. She leaned against a wall by the entrance. And after what the Chairman told me earlier about my eyes...As soon as this exam is over, I need to figure this all out.
- - -
"There's nothing here." Leorio looked around but only saw the tan ground.
"Everyone," Beans cleared his throat, "This is the starting point for the Third Phase. This is the top of Trick Tower. You'll pass if you're able to reach the bottom alive. The time limit is 72 hours. The Third Phase begins now."
"Is this real?" Leorio muttered to Kurapika and Y/N.
Killua shrugged his shoulders, Gon was just confused. Y/N and her friends decided to try looking over the edge of the tower. She could feel slight differences in the ground. Some parts were heavy and thick to step on, whilst others were thin and weak. She trailed behind her friends. I don't want to look over the edge at those ugly monster things.
Y/N looked around. There are already fewer people on top. She began to worry. What if I get separated? I'm screwed. The girl took another step, this time she fell through the floor, and onto a hard surface.
She landed on her back, "Oh fuck." Her voice echoed.
She stood up. There was a white table with a single bracelet and a whiteboard with writing.
From now until the end, you will take the path of the lone wolf.
"This is fan-fucking-tastic." Y/N snapped the bracelet on.
The screen behind her turned on revealing Lippo, the warden of Trick Tower and the Third Phase examiner. She felt uncomfortable under his gaze. He gives off some weird fucking vibes, even through the screen.
"Your goal is to make it to the bottom of the Tower before time runs out. Try not to die, and you'll be fine."
"Um, thanks for the bode of confidence." She narrowed her eyes at the screen.
Lippo turned the screen off, probably to welcome someone else to the game. Y/N found the door easily. She pulled the pen out of her bag as a precaution. I don't have anyone helping me now. She pushed the door open. I'm all alone.
The hallway was empty, but unlike the path that her friends took, the one that Y/N was taking only had one way to go. She looked at the watch. 71:32:29. I can do this. The girl began her walk to the next door down the hall.
If I'm alone, then maybe I can practice controlling my eyes. I won't have Gon, Killua, Kurapika, or Leorio to worry about. She kept her breathing controlled. Plus Tonpa is with them. They'll be alright. As she approached the door a cold breeze crept through the bottom of it.
It was a heavy, wooden door, like one of those doors inside of a castle. The air slowly began to feel dense and heavy. Maybe it's just my nerves...Or maybe it's someone trying to intimidate me? She placed her hand on the wooden door.
Y/N closed her eyes and attempted to slow her breathing. There were vibrations on the floor that alerted her to at least three people in the room. She leaned in closer to the door. They stopped moving, but Y/N could still feel a constant beat. Are their hearts beating?
One was beating a lot faster than the other one. Probably someone young, or someone very old. They must have some sort of disadvantage than the one who's calmer. The one who had a steady heartbeat must be strong, or have a strong mental capacity. She paused, but where did the third one go?
She opened the door.
Two figures stood with their backs to the girl. Y/N shut the door behind her. The vibrations increased from the figure on the left. They hadn't moved. Are they trying to intimidate me? She took a quiet deep breath.
"Hi," Both figures twitched, "Um, my name's Y/N."
"It's a pleasure to meet you, Y/N." The man with the fast-paced heart spoke with a deep but smooth voice. She felt herself lean towards him.
The room itself was of medium size. There was a table that had one chair in front of Y/N and two more chairs on the side of the prisoners. On the table was a slightly dirty tablecloth with a makeshift candelabra. She took notice of the table. This is...really weird.
The two prisoners turned around and took off their hoods. Y/N stared at both of them. Oh no. My deductions were off by a lot. The one who held the fast-beating heart was a little older. The other one who had a calm heart was a younger male. But it makes sense. Cocky and calm. Old and paranoid. They look exactly like Eren and Levi from Attack on Titan.
"My name is Eren. The old man's Levi."
"Pleasure to meet you both. So what do I have to do to get to the next room?"
She fiddled with the pen in her pocket. The men looked at each other with an unreadable expression. Levi was the one to break the silence first, "We want to go on a date with you."
Excuse me? "The goal of the date is to choose one of us. One of us has the key to unlock the next door behind us. Choose the wrong person and we'll kill you." What the fuck? This actually makes zero sense.
Y/N closed her eyes to quickly think about what Eren just said. Levi scoffed and slapped the back of Eren's head. "What this idiot meant to say, is we want to go on a date with you. You have to choose which one of us you'd like a second date with. We both have keys that unlock a door in this room, the door behind you, and the door behind us.
Your goal is to end the date as quickly as you can and with the right key. Failure to get the right key will result in you staying here for the remainder of the Hunter Exam."
"So it's just a date, right? No poison in anything I can consume? No traps of any kind?"
Eren and Levi agreed, "It's just a date."
The three of them took their seats at the table. Levi lit the candles on the candelabra. She kept her backpack on. "So...What do you want to know?" I have time, and Eren and Levi seemed to have relaxed. Still, she thought to herself, there's something missing. Where is the third person that I sensed in here?
"When's your birthday?" Eren asked.
"It's in a few weeks actually, it's the last week in January. What about you both?" (sorry if your b-day isn't in January, but it fits in with the timeline of this story)
"That's another thing we forgot to mention. We're the ones asking the questions. When the date is over, in 4 minutes, you'll have to choose who has the key." Levi crossed his arms.
"Sounds good to me." Y/N leaned back in her chair and planted her feet to the ground.
The vibrations from both of them were consistent with what she had felt before, except for the missing person. If I can't sense them, maybe they're on the ceiling. When I first came into the room, there wasn't anyone on the walls or the ground. I would have sensed them. She sat up in her chair, the ceiling.
"What's your idea of a perfect first date?" Asked Levi.
"Evening walk in the park. Very relaxing." She smiled at the two men.
Y/N felt a shift in the air. The flame of the candle flickered. Eren sat up straight on his chair. Levi looked over at Eren. "Who would you want to choose? You have 1 minute to decide."
She looked down at the table with narrowed eyes. They only asked me 2 questions. This could be a trick. It could also be a weird parallel to the old woman's two choice quiz before the exam. But that third person. What if it's the third person. What if I'm wrong? Y/N looked up at both of them.
Their hearts are both steady now. They are much more confident I'll choose one of them. "I choose the third person." Y/N looked up at the ceiling.
There was someone there who held onto the ceiling by a rope around their neck. Y/N felt her heart drop. The idea of a date was a trick. She looked back down at the table cloth. That material...It matches their uniform. She stood up and put her backpack on slowly.
I don't think Lippo could have predicted this. Levi threw something sharp at a piece of rope that had been tied to the wall light on the opposite side of the room. The rope was cut, and the body fell with a loud thud onto the table.
Y/N opened her mouth to speak. She stared between the limp body and the two Attack on Titan lookalikes. She took a small step forward. The body lay still on the table. It was slightly thin and had blond hair long enough to cover their neck.
The girl found her voice, "I think that the three of you wanted to perform a similar task for whoever walked through that door. But then the third person, whoever they are, decided against it. I think that Levi, you held them down while Eren tied the noose. You had to come up with a new plan, thus the makeshift cloth, chairs, and candelabra."
They both agreed. "You're pretty sharp, for a rookie." Eren lunged at the girl.
She pulled out her pen. Eren grabbed her shoulders and proceeded to punch her face. The girl dodged his fist. Y/N clicked the pen and a loud pop came from her hands. The man on her fell to the ground next to her. A pool of blood grew around the gaping hole in his stomach.
My pen turned into a gun this time...Y/N's breath was shaky. Levi rushed to her side. He carefully lowered the weapon in her grasp so she wouldn't fire it by accident. The girl had blood coating her hands and on the lower part of her white tank top.
"Thank you." Levi hugged the girl who stared at the man she just killed.
He's my first. She looked into his piercing eyes that stared back at her (e/c) ones. Y/N reverted the weapon back into a pen and placed it into her bag. Levi slipped something into stained hands. I killed a man.
"Here's the key," Levi let go of the girl, "Do you want to know his crime?"
She looked up at the unusually calm man. "He plotted the murder of thousands of people, but he was only able to kill about 65. They told me that if Eren died at the hands of one of the Hunter Exam candidates, then I would be released from here."
"And what are you in for?" Y/N looked up at the man with amethyst eyes.
"I helped him plot the murders, but never executed them, "He winked at the girl on the ground, "I don't like getting blood on my hands."
He dragged one of the chairs to the corner of the room and sat down. "I hope that you enjoy the rest of your life, Levi." She stood up and walked to the door, "Maybe I'll see you around." The key unlocked the door, and the girl never turned back.
As the door closed behind her, Levi looked down at Eren. "Oi, brat. Get the hell up. Armin, are you okay?"
"Y-Yes Corporal!" The blond looked at the door the female left through, "W-Was that really her?" Armin quickly got up from the table after chewing on the antidote for the muscle relaxant he had in the back of his mouth.
"That girl?" Levi stared at the door she left through, "Yes, but no."
"It's her though. She looks exactly like Y/N." Eren sat up slowly, his gunshot wound sealing itself shut with a mist coming from the wound.
"She doesn't have those abilities yet. She's the hollow version of the Y/N we knew."
Levi recalled when she looked up at the ceiling at Armin. "This version of Y/N hasn't gotten a taste of true death, true loss, yet. There's going to come a time she'll unlock her memories. For now, we go back to the walls."
But that's the funny thing about fate. That thing that tells you to go back one more time. That little push from a higher power. Y/N removed her ear from the door. Armin. Eren. Levi.
What the hell just happened?