Hunter x Hunter, Assassination Classroom crossover set a year after events of HxH and after the summer holidays in Assassination Classroom.

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

Beginning Time

"Brother."

"Hmm…?" Killua replied, still staring at the selection of sweets on the shelf. They were colourful like gems in their neat little wrappers, so different to the big chunky packets that he was used to back at home. He wondered if they had any Chocolate Robots – he missed those…

"Bother!" the voice was more insistent now and Killua tore his eyes away from the sweet treats and turned to his sister. He smiled.

"Yes, Alluka?" he asked. There was a lot of things he missed (Chocolate Robots were only one of them) but seeing Alluka's face, with a hint of annoyance at being ignored but at the same time full of bright, bubbly energy, reminded Killua of why he was here.

Here. Japan. A peaceful world where your biggest worry seemed to be whether you had a food stain on your shirt. Away from Illumi and his manipulations, Mother and her expectations, Hisoka and his weird obsessions; away from danger.

(And away from ...)

"I want to go to school." The phrase took Killua by surprise. He was fully focused now, studying his sister in search of a suitable answer. Whatever he was expecting, there was nothing on her face but blank curiosity. She was being serious.

"Oh, OK…" Over the past year, they had travelled the world together, seeing more in a month than they had in a life time and there was really no time to settle down, let alone do something as dedicating as going to school. Although, thinking about it, the wish made sense. Alluka was growing up now, and every day she wanted more – freedom, independence… normality.

Last month she had convinced Killua to settle down and find accommodation they could stay in for longer than a week (as was their normal routine).

More than once Killua had found her staring out of the window of their small apartment to other girls riding their bikes to school, a distant, longing expression on her face.

(She's twelve now, of course she wants more friends.)

Friends. Alluka wanted friends. Friends she wouldn't have to say goodbye to when the time came, that she could talk to face to face instead of over the phone.

"Brother?" Alluka voice was a little wary. Killua realised his smile had dropped. He gave a little grin for reassurance.

"Of course. I'll see what I can do." The smile of pure joy that Alluka gave as a reply was enough to melt Killua's heart.

"I love you brother," she said.

"I love you Alluka," was Killua's customary reply.

A month and dozens of frantic phone calls later, Alluka had been enrolled as a first year student to Kunugigaoka Junior High School, a prestigious private school a ten minute walk away from where they were living.

The incident with the moon was quite a shock to everyone. One moment it was there, normal and whole, and the next, three quarters of it was gone.

All of a sudden, the news was everywhere. On TV, on the net, on the Hunter site…

In the public media information was scarce and full of wild speculation. However the Hunter site was far more revealing. It seemed that the culprit had come forward and was threatening to destroy the world at the end of the year.

There was a bounty up. Some ridiculous number Killua hadn't bother to even look at.

Killua, quite frankly, was uninterested. Once upon a time, Killua might have been the sort of person daring enough to except a challenge like that (he did go after the Phantom Troupe with Gon, after all) but not now; he had had enough of saving the world. Looking after Alluka was a full time occupation and besides, if the world's best assassins were on it, there was no point in Killua charging in. Killua was happy with the peace that he had.

"What's wrong?" Alluka would say.

"Nothing," Killua would reply, because it wasn't worth worrying Alluka over it.

School started in April. When Killua woke up groggily to a beeping alarm showing seven O'clock in the morning, the first thing that assaulted him was the scent of grilled fish drifting in from the kitchen. He sat up. The alarm clock was still ringing, the high pitch tones painful to his ears. He turned it off with a slap.

Not bothering to dress, Killua entered the kitchen. The smell of cooking food was far stronger here and Killua found his stomach growling slightly from hunger – he hasn't eaten last night, too busy shopping for everything Alluka needed for school, last minute.

Alluka was in the kitchen wearing her brand new school uniform, complete with shiny black shoes. It was different to her usual attire that consisted of a shrine maiden's outfit, and Killua couldn't help but notice as Alluka kept pulling down her skirt almost subconsciously. Killua had asked if she wanted to wear trousers, but she insisted. Her hair was the same as always.

"Brother! Good morning," Alluka's cheery voice said as she spotted Killua. It was Alluka. Only Alluka called him 'brother'.

You could never be sure, especially in the mornings, now that Nanika and Alluka had the freedom to switch interchangeably whenever they wanted to. It seemed to work far better than the old arrangement; it gave Nanika the liberty to do what she wanted without putting anyone in danger. She hadn't used her powers for a full year – ever since she had healed Gon – and the two were undeniably happier.

Although Killua supposed that could just be due to the lack of manipulative family.

"What are you doing?" Killua asked. She wasn't usually up this early.

"Making breakfast," Alluka replied. Sure enough, laid on the table were two bowls full of rice, miso soup and cooked salmon. No sign of red pepper, thankfully. Killua could still remember when Alluka had snuck some into his sandwich a few months back.

"I could make an omelette too, if you want," she added. Killua shook his head.

"Nah, looks great," Killua said. Alluka beamed brightly before pulling out a chair and sitting down. Killua did the same.

They started their meal in silence. It was sunny outside, although a few wisps of clouds clung to the blue canvas, and there, hanging like a tear drop, was the unnatural curve of the crescent moon. A reminder of the past event.

It would be hot in the evening.

"Brother?" Alluka suddenly said.

"Yes?"

"Do you think… do you think school will be OK?"

Killua paused, unsure of how to respond. He had never been to school before. Hell, other than Gon he had practically no friends who were the same age.

(And he hadn't seen Gon in ages)

Alluka was smart. Even though she had not received regular education for well over a year, she had been able to pass the entrance exam to a private school that valued grades above everything – certainly not easily but she had passed none the less. Unlike Killua, she was easy going and trusting. She made friends as naturally as breathing.

Killua gave a reassuring smile.

"It'll be great," he said, with sincerity.

After breakfast they left the apartment together. Killua walked with Alluka to the front gate of her new school, conscious of the other children milling around him, getting greater in number as they neared the school. A few stares were sent his way but Killua ignored them as best he could. Alluka had fallen unnaturally silent. Nervousness clung to her moves as she walked forward with a bag over her shoulder, as though she was excited but didn't quite know how the day would turn out. Reaching the large entrance, she stopped, then turned to Killua.

"Don't eat too much chocolate while I'm gone," she giggled, although the tension was still there.

"I'll be careful," Killua replied. Alluka looked at Killua one more time before, head high and eyes forward, she charged into her first day of school. Killua watched her until the crowd swallowed her form; from the back she looked like any other student, blending into the background effortlessly.

Suddenly Killua felt very much alone.

(She's just going to school, you idiot. It's not like she's leaving you forever.)

It was like when he had left Gon – months of lying awake in bed not knowing why he felt so down. Nights spent feeling like he was a single speck of dust in a massive ocean, drifting aimlessly away from the security of land. But there was Alluka. He had done it for Alluka. He didn't regret his decision.

Killua spent one more second staring at the empty space where Alluka had been.

Then, he turned and walked away.

Alluka paused to take a deep breath. She had learnt so much in the past day, her mind was fuzzy and unfocused. School was so difficult! It was like nothing she or Nanika had ever experienced before – both intense and exciting at once. And it was only the first day, so most of it was just explaining how everything worked. It was lucky Alluka had Nanika. If she was too bored or tiered to continue concentrating in a lesson, they could just switch places and let the other sleep. It worked well for the two, although how the other students managed to endure was beyond Alluka.

However, what surprised Alluka more than the lessons were the students themselves. It seemed that there were groups of students that already knew each other, either from the neighbourhood or had simply been in the same primary school.

A lot of the children were new too, like Alluka. They didn't know each other and yet by breaktime they had somehow migrated into roughly formed groups, like water droplets sitting on the sink running into each other, as everyone started making friends. Alluka had been approached by a group of girls and they asked she wanted to join them.

"Yes. I'm Alluka!" she had replied.

"I'm Aili, it's nice to meet you," the tallest girl had said, the one with black hair to just below her shoulder and a friendly smile. "Would you like to join us?"

And just like that she had new friends. Aili, Kanako, Hikari… They were in the same class (Class B) and they were nice, but sometimes they did and said things that Alluka didn't understand. They found Alluka equally confusing.

Alluka glanced at the clock on the wall of the classroom. 2:40… If she didn't return home soon, Killua would probably be worried – he worried far too much, really. Picking up her bag, she moved towards the door.

"See you tomorrow Alluka," Aili said. Alluka looked at her.

"Aili? Do you think we can meet up after school, maybe? Brother would love to have you round." Alluka thought it was a harmless suggestion but something in Aili's face darkened. Had she said something wrong?

"Sorry, I need to study. I guess you're new to Cram Schools so you aren't used to it yet, but you need to take studying very seriously here. My sister came here before me – she's told me how hard it is to keep up. You don't want to end up in Class E." Aili gave a hollow laugh. It didn't suit her at all, Alluka thought. Alluka nodded.

"Bye," Alluka said. Giving a tight smile, Aili bustled out.

Alluka walked out of school deep in thought. However, as she saw Killua waiting by the entrance with a skateboard tucked under his arm, his white hair and casual clothes distinctive amongst the other student, a grin came to her lips. Killua could always make her feel happy. She jumped into Killua's arms. He hugged her back.

"How was it?" he asked.

"Interesting," she said, truthfully. "Brother…"

"What is it?" Killua said. Alluka pulled away from the hug and looked at his face carefully, lips pursed.

"What's Class E?" she asked, remembering what Aili had said before. There was a pause in Killua's rhythm, a brief moment of hesitation that could easily have been missed if Alluka didn't know him as well as she did.

"Alluka… are you sure… I…" Stuttering on words was always an indication he was trying to lie. But Killua never could lie very well to Alluka, even though he did it so flawlessly to everybody else.

"Brother!" Alluka stared at him straight in the eye, refusing to let go of her glare – she hated it when he tried to lie like that, thinking that leaving her in the dark would somehow protect her. There was shock plastered on his face (he always seemed surprised when Alluka got angry) but it quickly disappeared. He sighed.

"The teacher told us, remember…" No, Alluka didn't remember.

You weren't listening, were you, Nanika said. Her voice was teasing.

"… It's where students go if their grades aren't good enough, or if they are disruptive in class," Killua explained. "Although you'll be fine, I'm sure."

What do you mean by fine? Alluka couldn't quite get the words out.

"All the older students laugh at Class E – and some of the new students – but really they're just scared of getting sent there. I wouldn't mind. Not really," Alluka said. Killua's face was funny, like he was impressed and amused at the same time.

"What?" Alluka asked, pushing her cheeks out in a comedic pout. Killua really laughed this time; a short joyful snort. He patted Alluka's head.

"You're cleverer than you look."

"What is that supposed to mean...?" Alluka started but it was interrupted as Killua hugged her again, tightly.

"You're brilliant," he whispered. Alluka smiled, a small blush forming on her cheeks.

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