Part 4
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Chapter 10

///

Killua tosses the rubber red ball up into the air, then catches it with one hand. The ball is a lot like his life—being thrown up into the air, being toyed with, as if its existence is optional. And his own father's hand is the one bouncing it around.

How long will Killua have to stay in this basement? It has only been a day, but he misses his friends. Boredom has seeped into the corners of his mind and triggered all sorts of thoughts. A sudden wave of sympathy for Alluka hits his unassuming chest, and Killua lets the ball drop.

This is torture, he realizes.

///

Machi's hunch is fluctuating more than a pregnant woman's mood.

Each minute, her certainty over Illumi's upcoming insanity drops, then rises again. What is happening in that estate of his? It must be something.

Every action done by anyone near Illumi influences the path that he is going to take. Which one will he settle on? She ponders this, takes a sip of her coffee, looks out over the town. People bustle about, unaware of her issues, just as she is unaware of theirs.

"Something on your mind, sweetheart?"

The voice belongs to Hisoka. Machi closes her eyes and sighs. "Hisoka. How thoughtful of you to drop by."

He has changed his getup. His shirt is purple now, his pants are longer, and his heels are higher. His hair, and his conniving eyes, remain the same, but this is not shocking. With silent movements, Hisoka sits down next to Machi, then invasively steals the coffee cup out of her hand so he can have a sip.

"You disgust me," she murmurs.

"That is the goal, darling." He pauses. "So. Any updates on your little hunch regarding my friend, the assassin?"

"I'm not sure. It changes every day." She looks at him, tired in the eyes. "Do you know what's going on over there?"

"Why, yes. I do, in fact," Hisoka says, his voice silky, as usual. "Ill is getting all worked up because his father wants (Y/N) out of Ill's life. Apparently, he sent them a request to have Killua killed."

Machi's eyes widen. Despite the mocking tone he takes on when talking about (Y/N), his words are gravely serious—or, so they would be if spoken to Illumi himself. Why does Machi even care about this?

She disregards that imposing question and focuses on her train of thought. The only apparent solution has nothing to do with her, nor with Hisoka. (Y/N) must find a way to stay with Illumi and overlook the challenge that Silva is presenting or else Illumi will snap. There is nothing at this point that Machi or Hisoka can do to help.

"Tell (Y/N) that they need to stay. After you do that, stay out of their life."

Hisoka feels a twinge of something ugly deep inside of his chest, like a rope tightening, or a flame igniting. The second part of Machi's request... was something he could not do. The thought of doing it angered him.

"What for?" he asks.

"For your friend, the assassin's, sanity."

///

Breakfast has been laid out on a long, rectangular table, adorning three seats on either long side and one on each end. Two white china plates sit waiting on either end, and in front of one of them is Silva Zoldyck, his muscular shoulders poised. You assume the seat opposite of him is for you.

Across the expanse of table sits various dishes, but they are all short, so that you can still see Silva from across the table. You take a seat, slowly, then brush your hands over your thighs. You are shaking slightly. It's really nerve-wracking, seeing Silva's domineering figure across from you, his eyes gleaming.

But you know what you must do.

You take a long, slow breath.

Silva remains silent, then he crosses his arms over his chest. It's evident that he's not going to touch a bite of your food. It's also evident that he's waiting for something.

It was him. It had to be him. It has to be him, or else this may all be for nothing.

"Mr. Zoldyck. I recieved a request a few days ago to kill your son, Killua."

Silva's face betrays no emotion.

You pick up your fork, drag it across the table cloth. You watch the fabric fold against the three metal daggers. "I was offered a great amount of money to do so. With an amount like that, I could move away from this entire life, build myself a new mansion and live in lavish for the rest of my days."

Silva, still, does nothing.

"But I did not comply, and for one reason alone. Because I did not want to betray the Zoldyck name." You finally look up from your fork, returning Silva's emotionless glare.

It was all a test. Silva was the one who sent the request; he had to be.

This was your plan from the beginning, to bring this up and then reveal why you did not comply. Nobody you can think of would want Killua dead, especially not for that great of a sum.

"I treasure Illumi's family—your family—more than I treasure life itself. If that same person were to threaten me if I did not comply with their request, I still wouldn't do it. The Zoldyck name means much to me; I'm sure you can understand that much."

"Are you trying to prove something to me?" Silva asks blandly.

"I'm getting there, I'm getting there." Your stomach clenches with nervousness again, but you continue. This was the only way. "I made such a decision before I figured it out... before I knew that it was you all along. You sent the request. You were testing me."

To this, Silva had no response.

"So, I'd like to remind you that I would never do anything against your family. It is a dear shame that you think I would. I'd like you to consider the honest information that I have given you, analyze it for yourself, and then..." You trail off, not able to find a proper ending to that sentence. So, to wrap it all off, you bow deeply over your plate, not only out of good manners, but as a sign of respect. You hold it, then lift your torso to find Silva... smiling.

"The test was not only to see if you would attempt to do it," Silva said, "but if you would figure out that I was the one who constructed this. I believe you noticed, but I had Killua locked up, just in case you did decide to take action against him."

Then, Silva's smile vanishes, and he stands up suddenly. "Though I am glad you reached the desired result, this is one test among many. At this point, I am still your enemy, but I wish you luck. For Illumi's sake."

With that, Silva exits the room, leaving you alone with an empty plate and a huge spread of food.

Nobody knew that you were going to say all of this to Silva. Not Illumi, not Hisoka, hell, you didn't even know. But it worked.

You hissed a silent, "Yessss!" of victory and did a little dance in your chair. Now was a time to celebrate your success, for you'd surely held off Silva's wrath for at least a day, but there was still much to face ahead. You dreaded that.

Eventually, you stood up, snagged a fried ring of calamari off of the table, and headed off to find Illumi. Little did you know, he'd been standing outside of the door all along. When you exited the dining room, you saw him, standing face-to-face with his father.