A/N: Thank you for deciding to click the link and read my story ;D

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(The story might seem slow at first, but please keep patient. It will make sense somehow.)

Hunter x Hunter (c) Yoshihiro Togashi

Original Word Count: 4,174 words

Start of an Adventure
(before the battle begins)

I've always been curious with the outside world.
Not that I've haven't seen it, but there's always a part of me thinking that...
...there's something missing.

It was supposed to be a very beautiful morning, not only for her but for everyone in the house. The sky above glimmered with a beautiful shade of blue like it did every single spring morning since she was born, the clouds making pirouettes, throwing shadows once in a while as they stood in the way of the sun. The birds outside were singing to the girl songs of good wishes, having faith in her every move.

But it was anything but peaceful inside.

"Akane? A-are you sure of this?" her mother asked, her eyes desperate, filled with weary tears. Her voice was trembling with fear and indecision, but it seemed that she was just too late to change her daughter's mind. Not that she had done anything wrong; she was a caring mother, and as a mother of a 16-year-old daughter, of course she wanted her to stay, and her daughter could say that, pretty easily even.

"Yes, mother," her daughter answered her. "And besides, it's just an exam… I'll be fine," she reasoned, with a whine in her voice, for the nth time that day. She wondered what was up with her mother; she'd been trained since birth so what was with the worry? And besides, she was getting tired of reasoning out her leave now—she had been doing that for months on end, after all—and it felt weird to her that until that long-awaited day, she was still reasoning out against her parents' wills.

Her father, unlike her mother, had long quitted on trying to changing her mind. He knew when that dear Akane said 'I mean it,' she really meant 'I mean it.' Like hell she was sure she was going to go. Making her father move to the back of the argument and drop it took quite a while, but not as long as how it took her mother—since her insistent parent was still there, still begging on her knees that her beloved daughter stay instead, as she stood by the doorway of their house.

May Dad be blessed, how he pulled Mom away from me.

"Be safe, okay?" her father said, not bothering to look up the newspaper he was reading. He was always like that. He looked like he didn't give a damn, but he did

"Call back and write, okay honey?" her mother told her as she stepped out the door of our white-washed house, unable to do anything anymore. The teenager just nodded her head and walked away.

Free at last.

Their little home was far from the mainland, and pretty much farther from the docks. And that very dock was where the ship to Dole will supposedly take in the aspiring hunters-to-be from this side of the planet—that very dock was where she needed to be. In case you haven't figured it out, she went out, against her mother and father's 'better judgment', to take the Hunter Exam. She knew the tricks and the privileges of the Hunter License, so she thought to herself, a simple exam won't hurt, right?

She kept on telling herself it's a simple exam even though she knew it was not as easy as that.

She closed her eyes and talked to herself—her way or calming herself down.

On that bright January morning, I, Akane Dukarra, set out from our quiet home by the outskirts of mainland Rome to go to Whale Island to catch the boat to the Hunter Exams. Sometimes you just dream too big… but that star of your dreams is just by your reach. I believed in that.

And as she walked away from the house with a smile on her face, she sighed slightly, murmuring under her breath, One day, brother.

She supposed that day couldn't get any worse for her.

She shook her head in deep annoyance. The noise in the train was to the highest decibel she could stand—it was annoyingly loud. Annoying, annoying, annoying! She made her way fast in the corridor of the train and slid the door of her cabin open. She sighed, good thing the cabins are a little bit more soundproof. She put her bag down by the corner as she sat on the comfy got a good seat, in first class, because apparently her mother forced her to take the cash for the journey. She looked out the window longingly, watching the view.

The clouds were dark and so was the sky. There was barely a hint of sunlight that went through the fine webs of whatever vapor they were made of, and it made Akane depressed.

And then, rain started to pour. She could actually hear the drops hitting the roof of the train - loud as horses running through an open field. It was very hard to tune out. It irritated her even more, since she didn't like rain. Rain had always been so gloomy for her.

Then suddenly, another guy entered the room, sliding the door almost noiselessly as he went. She raised her eyes in confusion until finally she realized her mistake. She did take a first class cabin, but a first class sharing room, where two people share one cabin…

Dang.

"Oh. Hi," she greeted him, the newcomer, softly with a slight smile. It is going to be along ride anyway, so maybe making a few friends would be a good thing to do, right? And we might even be headed the same direction.

Oddly enough, he didn't answer—at least, not verbally. He barely nodded in response, almost only to himself, and continued to stare at his skateboard, clenching his fist, and murmuring in thin air. She couldn't hear his voice though. It was too weak.

She looked at the boy curiously. He was probably twelve or thirteen. He had a weird colour for his hair—silver-ish gray. Having fancy, out-of-the-norm colors as hair colour—like her, actually—was definitely not a usual trait of the people around there in her hometown. She couldn't say he was ugly or different, because she would be referring to herself too—she had weird, sunflower blonde hair, whilst all the people other people in her living area, including her parents, had dark hair.

She stared at the boy now, more criticising than how she had done earlier. He wore this purple-like t-shirt of the sort which sleeves have been ripped off (obviously, there were still a few tattered threads). He had a dark blue, almost violet long-sleeved shirt underneath it. For the bottom part, dark blue shorts went halfway his leg, then the bottom he wore white elevator boots. Beside him lay a green skateboard with a yellow design. But she couldn't see his face that clearly just yet...

Then, he stared back at her. His face seemed to be determined—that angry, determined kind—but his obsidian eyes, almost dark-blue, seemed to be staring deep into her soul. Her eyes widened with fear. She flinched. She felt so bare with him; it was like he could flesh her out within seconds.

(And he could.)

Then, his face melted into a childishly brotherly smile, his dark eyes lightening into a dark shade of purple. "G-gomen, did I scare you?" he asked, stuttering, obviously awkward with apologizing.

"No, no, I'm fine," she answered. "I guess she was just surprised."

He passed her a cheeky grin. "Maybe."

"What's your name?" she asked him.

"Why would I tell you?" He answered back. He had a point—he had only known her, if only by sight, for like, a few minutes, so why would he answer her question?

"I don't know, she thought maybe you just wanted to have a new friend or talk… it's pretty weird to talk when it's me calling you 'brat,' right?" she said with a grin.

"And why would you call me a 'brat'?" He asked, his voice sounding angry, defensive. Insulted, but not too much. "You don't know me."

She flinched. His tone seemed to be… scaring her. Like there was an underlying threat… she couldn't tell though. She sighed. "Well, if you're not going to tell her your name, I'll just give you mine then. I'm Akane," she said with a smile. She was trying to persuade him to talk, too. "Where are you going? You seem to be pretty young to go on journeys by your own."

She heard a silent scraping of the cushion behind him. Was he… scratching the cushion? Like a cat, perhaps? But for what?

"I'm not too young," he hissed. She decided it's not good to talk to him about his age… or maybe he just hated being underestimated. Weird kid.

"But where are you going?" she asked again.

"You first," he said.

"…if you tell me your name," she said. But she knew him better than that; he knew that people like him wouldn't fall for things as simple and not thought-through like that.

She was right, as he shook his head. "No."

She pouted. "Why?"

"Because," he said. As the train chugged for another minute, they sat in silence. She was about to ignore him when he bended down and shoved his hand inside his pocket. He pulled a bar out. "Do you want chocolate?"

The brat's trying to bribe me! She shouted in her head, but soon she shook it off. Or maybe he just wants to be friendly. But following her first thought—and as much as she wanted to have chocolate—she didn't give in. Well, she can ask him after he gives her his name. "I want your name."

"You sound like someone who's going to stalk me for the rest of her life."

She rolled her eyes. "Believe me, I won't. Why would I?"

He sighed, and tossed to her the chocolate. She caught it in her hands and gasped—Holy, it was one of the most expensive chocolate brands in the world! Any kid in the block would have killed to get one of those. "I'm Killua," he said, chewing on the bar that he had. He had given up on trying to hide his true identity for the meantime, because it seemed like she was some insistent, persistent idiot. (But about the chocolates, how many bars did he have, anyway?) "I'm going for the Hunter Exam."

Still dumbfounded at the gold-priced bar, she nodded a little absentmindedly. "I'm going, too."

"Girls go to the Hunter Exam? Pathetic! Why bother?" he said, and that's when she snapped back to reality and glared at him. He just grinned back. "Just kidding. I got bored at home..." he said, his voice trailing off.

Man, I never knew people took the Hunter Exam for something that unimportant, she thought. But then again, it's none of your business. She nodded to him, trying to take it in.

"Stupid reason, huh? I was just tired of that freaking hellhole," he barely said, muttering. "What's your reason, Akane?"

To train. To become strong. To know the truth. The words bubbled under her lips. To find... "There are some things I need to find, Killua," she answered instead.

"Treasure Hunter, ne?" he asked, popping another cube from the bar in his mouth.

"Not necessarily treasures..." she whispered. She didn't really want to talk about it, so she looked out the window watching the rain soak everything wet. Trying to ignore his stares that asked her everything.

He saw through her, and her actions, so instead he shrugged. "Seems like the reason's too personal. No need to talk," he said and went back to his silence.

Right.

She knew he felt nothing but awkward around her. She could practically feel his aura screaming, GET ME OUTTA THIS PLACE! I'M GROWING GOOSEBUMPS!

Something seemed to have been bothering his mind, whether it was that 'freaking hellhole' he was talking about or something else, she didn't know. Or maybe the fact that he was with a girl. She didn't know. And she didn't bother to ask.

He seemed to be, a very childish kid, but she knew there was something more than what was on the outside. He seemed to know something or had some power, but he was concealing it very well.

She was busy mulling over her thoughts as well. She thought only adults—okay, maybe teens as well—joined the Hunter Exam. Kids should stay kids—she meant, they only have their childhood once, right? They should enjoy their childhood, and then join the Hunter Exam. That kid she was with was barely a teenager.

Well, the age requirement is 12, anyway. There's nothing stopping them.

She was thinking to herself again. Trying to calm herself down. If the age requirement is 12, there would be some kids in the exam. I doubt the kids would stay long enough to be a qualified Hunter, but I've been told and been rubbed in the face never to trust things by their appearances (a great example of how she learned that lesson would be when she picked the wrong fruit and ate a poison berry instead of the sweet berry, since they look exactly the same).

The next few months should be some kind of fun… hey, maybe I can hang around with this Killua kid during the exam, she thought.

In the end, they might as well become very good friends.

They actually kept perfect, pin-drop silence the entire trip to the dock. They also kept silent when they transferred to a speed ferry. And still, silence urged on when they reached Whale Island dock, where the ship that was going to carry them to the exam site was. They found comfort in the silence and that was good for Akane.

Why she decided to stay with him during the entire trip was out of her comprehension—they weren't forced to, either. When he leaded the way, she followed along. When she did, on the other hand, he just followed, still without a word. Why he stayed with her was also out of her bounds.

She had the feeling that Killua became very irritated of the awkward silence he and her—his very silent and cautious-to-strangers 'traveling companion'. If he had voiced that out, she would agree with him—the tension of the silence was getting thick.

Just at that very moment when the thought struck her mind, he just said, a groan in his tone, "Talk to me."

"Huh?" she asked. She might've heard it wrong, she thought, so asking again wouldn't hurt.

"Talk about anything… the tension's annoying," he said. His voice was low and she couldn't tell what kind of emotions lingered there—sadness, fear, or just plain boredom.

She stayed with the thought latter. "You bored, huh?"

"No, it's just weird. The silence is getting kinda awkward," Killua answered.

"Uhmm... okay," she said, but not really fully understanding. "Maybe we can talk about your family?" she asked.

Killua's eyes turned into a funny expression. "My family? You've gotta be kidding me. No thanks, I'll pass up on this, but if you really want to talk about it, think you can start off with this one," he said.

She was confused. He wanted to talk and he ignored the topic? Dude! "Okay… but I don't really know about mine. I know I'm not their real daughter and.. yeah. I just wanted to be free," she said shyly. He was looking out the window, and she was watching him. "Is there something wrong?

"No, I was just reflecting of her own family matters," Killua said.

She looked out the mountain. If she was right, that would be Kukuru they were spotting, far away behind. She was right—she had been staring at that mountain since childhood anyway. Her father told her once that there were creepy assassins—with the last name Zaoldyeck—that lived there. She also heard that no one—and by no one she meant no one—wanted to mess around with them. She looked at Killua. He seemed to be staring far away into the mountain, like he was somehow connected to it. Like how he had family problems.

She didn't even bother to think what kind of family problems. The only thing she was sure of was that it was really heavy.

Too heavy for the little boy's heart.

The train honked one final heartbreaking time as she hopped out of it. This is it, she thought. I've finally set my distance, there's no turning back now. She was right in thinking that the docks would be full of people. There were surely a lot of aspiring hunters-to-be, she was sure of that. She watched Killua come down the train with his own stuff. She smiled at him. "The boat's leaving at one o'clock. Care for eating lunch?" she grinned. "I'm treating you."

As if consulting his stomach for the matter, he rubbed it and grinned. "Okay."

He took her on his skateboard and they had a ride, and told him where to go (she studied the map earlier at home—it was one of those things she did to convince her parents). She finally found this little restaurant, quiet and low-costing. He agreed anyway—he didn't seem to be the picky type at that moment—so they sat at the table.

It was lunch, for all she could remember, but she only got the simple crab soup and Killua got nothing but a chocolate cake. "For lunch?" she asked him. That boy was odd. Cake? For lunch? What the hell.

"Yeah," he said with a grin. "It won't kill me," he said, trying to persuade her to dropping it already.

All she could do was smile back at him and just think about how weird he was in silence. She ordered her own meal, and they waited for their food in silence… but Killua had quite the time of his life entertaining her by making some hilarious funny faces so there were times they had one hell of an outburst of laughter.

While they waited, Akane took notice of a waiter that served this guy…or girl… a few tables away. The person was wearing some kind of blue tabard, and then white long sleeves, but in her amazement he/she had beautiful, bountiful, blond hair just like Akane's. The waiter handed him/her a plate when he/she noticed something mobilize or move on his/her table.

This gender thing is getting confusing in my head… Akane thought to herself as she watched the scene come to life and get more interesting.

"Sir, don't move, it's poisonous!" The waiter shrieked, scared and terrified almost out of his wits. Akane had to squint her eyes to see what was happening tables away. Killua's eyes were also glued to that black thing. Whatever that thing is, she thought since she couldn't see yet.

Suddenly, agitated and angry, furiously quick, he—yes she finally decided it was a he because he didn't have any curves (if you know what she meant)—took his fork and aimed at the thing - a spider. She couldn't see his expressions because his back was the one that faced her, but she was pretty sure that he must've looked agitated.

For some odd reason.

Murmurs spread across the tiny restaurant. Killua and she ate in silence after that—again, the same, silence-while-Killua-is-making-funny-faces kind of silence—when their orders arrived. The guy they saw continued eating. He was about to be finished - and so was the murmurs - when something elegantly happened again.

Or maybe elegantly is the wrong word.

"THIEF, THIEF!" the shop owner shrieked as he ran after the said fellow. Eyes stared at the ruckus it caused, mostly from outside and some from inside the restaurant.

Then, an old man with sunglasses faced the shop and it's goods, then back to the running owner. He squished the fish into his briefcase then saluted to the young boy by his side. Then he ran away.

The boy was probably surprised or shocked. Akane was. Then she realized the blond was gone...

Oh well, maybe that was just another person to see, huh? She thought as Killua and she started walking to the boat, too.

They arrived fifteen minutes before the boat was set to leave. That was, 12:45. They headed up to the boat, and found a place they could be comfortable in.

Killua wanted to keep a 'low profile' thing, so he hid himself in a tiny corner and engaged himself with his own personal matters in his mind. He told her they would be able to fit in the little hiding spot—and they would, actually—and since hiding –from-view was better for him, he said she could come to him anytime.

She thought that was very boring, so she said, "No thanks... maybe later!" She was out there to enjoy, after all, and she wasn't just going to be stuck in a little cave hole with a 12-year-old. Not yet. And then she went out to the side of the boat to look at the vast blue sea and the vast blue sky waiting ahead of them.

She waited silently for the boat to move. When finally it took away its anchor, she got to breathe.

So this is how freedom feels like, she thought as she felt the breeze ruffle her hair, caress her cheeks. She suddenly knew how to feel alive.

Suddenly the people turned their heads to something...someone. She heard it. She looked back to the shore then found two people there, waving their arms up like crazy. She heard shouts, maybe 'Captain wait for us!'

She couldn't hear him correctly, but later as she strained her ears, his voice became SUPER loud. She had to cover them to protect them, since she could feel her eardrums vibrating with the loud noise.

"CAPTAAAAAAAINNNN! WAAAAAAAIIIIIIITTTTTTTTT FOOOOOOOOOOOOOOORRRRRRRRRR USSSSSSSSSSSSS!" The boy shouted, and she had to cover her ears. How can he make such a loud noise? Gorillas would BOW to that kind of loud thing.

"Tough luck, kid, try again next year," the captain laughed as he passed through and puffing her with the tobacco smoke. She waved it off and shook her hair.

She didn't mind the boy for minutes, but sooner she saw them—tiny little blurry blobs since her sight did not allow her to do any better—high up the cliff, the boy pointing madly at the ship and back to the rock he was grasping. The other man shook his head angrily and stepped backward.

Suddenly, the boy yanked the guy with his wrist and he jumped, grasping the fishing pole. They jumped, and landed on the boat silently. Well, the boy, but not the man.

Someone's handy with a fishing pole, she thought.

Then, she realized, that the blond boy was also there, watching the scenery quietly with deep blue eyes.

He was always there.