People. She glanced around at the various people around her, all uttering words that meant nothing to her. Even the tour guide's words meant nothing. Her task at hand was the only thing that mattered to her. If she failed to complete her task, she had no right to return home. What kind of prodigy would fail to collect a treasure from a Zoldyck family member? Just a lock of their hair would be enough, she thought.

Still, how was she supposed to complete such an impossible task without calling a vendetta on her family? No, if they didn't want me to complete the job, they wouldn't have sent me off to do it. She thought to herself, trying to diverge herself from her cowardly habits. This was not the time to be a coward. She had to be brave, be strong, and be resilient. She couldn't give in to her own cowardice no matter the cost.

As the tour bus halted to a stop, Minuet stood up and exited, disregarding the tour guide's instructions. She glanced at the large gate before her, then to the small wooden door on the right of the gate. It would be easiest to go through the wooden door if she could get a key to go in, but it was likely it was a trap.

"Five children." She muttered to herself, approaching the gate. Which one of those five children would she be lucky enough to run into?

She placed a palm on the cold alloy before glancing over at the guard in his booth. He was an elderly man with a round face and white whiskers for hair. His eyes stared at her expectantly, waiting for her to make a move. She did so much as bat an eyelash at him before turning back to the gate.

"Miss! We'll be leaving now, please get back on the bus!" The tour guide called to her from the bus, but she didn't really care.

"I'll be staying." She said, just loud enough for the guide to hear her.

"Are you crazy?!" The Guide tried to argue with Minuet, her hands on her wide hips as she gave the green-haired girl a scolding glare. "Miss, please get back on the bus." She watched as Minuet walked over to the guard, "H-Hey?!"

Minuet didn't even acknowledge the guide this time. She looked up at the guard through the open window to the booth. "Excuse me, Sir? How do I get into this estate?" She asked, smiling politely at him. Zebro chuckled before tilting his hat.

"Through that wooden door there, but I can't give you the key." He replied.

She blinked, looking over at the wooden door once more. Why would he just tell me how to get in, and that he has the key to do it? There must be something he isn't telling me. "I assumed so. Will you fight me for it?" Minuet asked, tapping her fingers against the wood of the booth.

"Fight? Oh, heaven's no, I neither have to fight you, nor can I." Zebro chuckled, rubbing the back of his neck. What a child, he thought. She was an intelligent one, calling him out on his bluff. Yes, he's definitely hiding something.

"I thought so." Minuet sighed. "Ah, would it help if my Papa knew Mister Silva?" She asked, tilting her head. When Zebro shook his head, she sighed. "I see. I'll find another way in, then. Thank you."

The green-haired girl made her way down the hill, seemingly. The tour bus was already gone, which pleased her greatly. It wasn't any fun having tag-a-longs during a job unless she absolutely needed them or they were useful. How she wished to have Boot with her right now. He was, however, on a mission of his own to collect the skull of a one-horned being.

Positioning herself, Minuet looked over at the gate before descending at a great speed that left everything a mere blur of colour around her. She was moving at such a speed that without enough skill she could end up screwing up and literally splatting against the alloy, creating a deliciously bloody meat-mess for poor Zebro to clean up.

With intricate skill, Minuet managed to run up the gate. She looked below as she was propelled upward by mere momentum of her sprint. She could've just jumped, but truth be told, Minuet didn't really enjoy having her feet off of the ground. "Hm..." She glanced around at her surroundings, but when the rapidly ruffling trees and bushes caught her eye, she worried.

What is that thing?

Her first instinct was to spin, trying to get as far from the gate as possible so she could pivot and run back up it and jump out. Surely she could do that before that thing caught her.

It barreled towards her at a high speed, its blood lust evident before it got down and ready to pounce. Just as its feet left the air, the first thing to fill its ears was the high-pitched scream of its prey and then-

"Mike! Down!" the voice of its Master. Obeying, Mike dropped, leaving the girl to plummet to her doom.

Minuet was too startled to correct herself, curling up into a ball as she fell into the trees. The branches tugged at her skin and clothing and hair, and she managed to bear with it until she landed on the ground, a jolt going through her body as she yelped due to shock-absorbency failure from her wrists from the way she landed. "Hnaah!"

"Oh?" Silver hair; that was the first thing Minuet took note of when glancing at the Young Master. "A girl? Did you jump over the gate?" No one was skilled or crazy enough to jump over the gate, and to think a young girl was both. Needless to say, Killua was intrigued by her strange behaviour and her display of skill, at least up until the landing.

Minuet blinked, her cheeks flushing before she covered her face. Oh, how embarrassed she was! Still, now was not the time to be embarrassed, so she forced herself to regain composure before glaring at the boy standing before her.

Killua looked over her, a smirk on his face. "Are you really going to glare at the person who just saved that miserable life of yours?" Killua cooed, his eyes scanning over her. He took in her appearance, not minding how obvious it was that he was doing so. His eyes wandered over her; he was trying to make her feel uncomfortable. He took note of the shade of green her hair was, how deep of a ruby her eyes were, to the point that they looked more garnet than ruby, how pale her skin was, the way she held herself, and every curve of her body, and to be honest, she was quite well-endowed for her size. How old was she? Fifteen maybe? A short fifteen year old that just matched his height was possible, right? Definitely. All in all, he wouldn't mind being her captor.

Minuet's glare softened and she stared up at the silver-haired boy before her. She looked down at her torn clothing and bit her lip before looking back up at Killua. Her dress was torn in a few places, and it was barely staying on as she sat there in the dirt. Slowly, she felt her cheeks flushing as she stood up, Killua's eyes never leaving her as she did so.

She bowed politely, "My apologies. I'd like to thank you for saving my life." Minuet looked up at the boy who smirked before standing straight once more.

"You're kinda cool." Killua smirked, shoving his hands into his pockets. "I'm Killua."

"I'm Minuet." She replied, examining the boy. His hair was a lovely silver, and it was a little messy, but still styled. His eyes had a slant similar to her own, and their sapphire colour was rather eye-catching compared to how white his skin was. His clothes were a little casual for someone who was rich, but she couldn't complain seeing as she despised wearing fancy clothing as well.

"I'm running away from home." Killua said nonchalantly, glancing over the girl, "Wanna come?" Do you want to be friends? He didn't smile. To be honest, he knew not to expect her to say yes. He knew better than to ask her outright if she wanted to be friends, too. She was an intruder after all. Was she there to kill him and his family, as well? If it hadn't been for him, she'd be dead, unless she somehow managed to kill Mike -which seemed rather impossible given her introduction to him.

Minuet blinked. Running away from home? Why would he do that? She stared at him, her senses heightened as she listened for anyone nearby and tried to sense their presences. The only one nearby was Mike, and maybe two or three small birds, which were easy to hear as they tweeted in the branches overhead.

She glanced over him once more. He was the only target in sight, and she'd be a fool to let this opportunity slip through her fingers. With a nod of her head, she began walking back to the gate. "I'll join you." she murmured, looking back at the boy. His eyes widened and he blinked. He really wasn't expecting a positive response like that.

"Cool." He smirked, joining the girl. Still, he wondered what she'd be doing by his house. She was most definitely an intruder, but why was she there? It had to be to kill him, right? Or was there something else? A thief? No, if she did that, she would've approached at night, same if she was to kill him. Maybe she's just an idiot.

Minuet watched as the boy pressed his palms against the alloy before expending his strength. Her eyes widened. Now she felt absolutely stupid! No wonder that old man was staring at her from the booth. He was seeing if she was smart enough to figure out how to open the gate. "How much does that gate weigh?"

"Two tons for the first doors, then it doubles for each door after, and if you didn't notice, there are seven of them. The number of gates that open depends on how much strength you use." He explained, glancing back at the girl. "Think you can open it?"

She nodded, looking up at the gates. Seven gates, meaning the weight of one door of gate seven would be 128 tons, meaning you'd have to be able to push 256 tons to open all seven gates. If the weight doubles, she'd only be able to open up to gate two, each door weighing four tons, the total mass being eight tons.

"I don't believe you." Killua scoffed, stepping away from the gate and back into his estate. "You open them then." He gestured for her to take the lead and she did.

Minuet pressed her palms against the doors and expended all of her strength to push them open. Just as she predicted, she reached gate two and looked back at Killua who whistled at her success.

"You're pretty strong." He chuckled, trotting into the doorway, "But I'm stronger." He pulled his sleeve up and flexed his arm, showing off his muscle before trotting out. Minuet nodded her head and gave the boy a slight smile. How arrogant. That arrogance is charming, though, I suppose.

"Leaving, Young Master?" Zebro asked, tilting his hat in salute to the young boy.

"Yeah, I'm running away." Killua waved, hopping onto his skateboard. "See you in the next life, Zebro!" He laughed, riding his skateboard off and down the hill, Minuet following right behind him.

Minuet peered into the bag that Killua handed her as she sat on the curb. "Clothes." He said, shoving his hands into his pockets, averting his gaze. He felt a little bad that she'd even walked all the way to the town wearing what she was. People were staring at her, and though she didn't seem to mind as much as he did, he didn't want to walk around with a girl who was half-naked.

"Thank you." She replied, standing up. "I appreciate your kindness." She bowed her head and looked around. "DO you know anything of the Xetz family?" She asked, walking alongside Killua as he lead them to a hotel.

"Nope." He shrugged, "I don't talk to many people outside of my family and I don't read up on anyone I don't work with." Killua turned to her, raising an eyebrow. "Why?"

Minuet shook her head. "I was curious." She reached into her bra and pulled out her cellphone. Killua's eye twitched. What a strange place to keep things, he thought. She dialed her home number and waited for the phone to pick up.

"Hello. Zenyk speaking."

"How's everything at home?" Minuet asked, Killua's interest piquing as he glanced over at her. "Yes, I see. That's great!" Minuet giggled, Killua raising an eyebrow. She seemed rather hollow until that phone call, he thought. "No. But I'm traveling with one. It is? What? But what about -? Alright!", Killua took note of the smile on the girl's face. Good news?, he wondered, walking alongside her. When she giggled, while hanging up the phone, his suspicions were confirmed.

"Hello. Zenyk speaking." He began, his voice calm as he kept up his formal facade. When he heard that sweet voice, he relaxed a little. "I've taken care of the client, so you don't need to continue working that dangerous job with the Zoldycks anymore." He smiled gently, hearing Minuet's happiness. "Are you still at their estate? Interesting. You know the Hunter Exam is soon, right? Why don't you take a little break and go have some fun. Yes. No 'buts'. Use it as a means to test your training and even make some friends."

Zenyk sighed, hanging up his phone. He glanced over at the limp bodies littering the floor. The scent of blood was sickening as he began walking through the mansion. The mansion he'd spent seven years of his life in... The mansion he'd leave and never return to.

"Good news?" Killua asked, turning into the hotel.

"Very." Minuet smiled, hugging onto Killua's arm, happily. When he pulled away, his face red, she turned to him, blinking in astonishment.

"Ew! Don't do that!" He complained, crossing his arms. Killua didn't hate physical affection, he just really hated the idea of being affectionate with someone in public. It was embarrassing!

Minuet tilted her head, her heart sunk as soon as she heard him utter the word, 'ew'. "E-Ew?" She stepped away from him, feeling severely offended. "A-Am I gross? I don't smell bad, do I?"

Killua blinked, his face turning red as the girl before him became... a girl. Before, she was so quiet and hollow that he couldn't care less if she was a girl or not and he was walking with her, but now she was acting like a stereotypical one. It seemed as though she was a completely different person than she was before that phone call. "No." He shook his head, astonished by her frantic behaviour. "Let's just get the lodging situation over with." He rubbed his neck before turning into the hotel.

Hey! I'd like to know what you think of Minuet so far and the general introduction to the story. Please tell me in the comments or through PM! Constructive and harsh criticism welcome! R&R, thank you!

-Kiru