Zepheena ran through the woods, breathing heavily.

"Damn it... another false lead," she grit her teeth.

She had tried for years to find the Phantom Troupe, but she hadn't gotten any solid information.

As the fifteen year old girl ran through the dense woods, she saw a woman. She came to a halting complete stop.

The woman standing before her had a smile cross her red lips. Her long black hair faded into white ends. Her emerald eyes shined in the sunlight that was barely peeking through the trees. She was taller than Zephi by a few inches and obviously in her mid twenties.

"Hello?" Zepheena spoke cautiously as she gripped onto her wooden swords, a weapon commonly used by the Kurta.

The woman studied the young girl carefully. "Hello. Can I help you? Are you lost?"

Zepheena felt safe for some strange reason. The unease she felt at first faded easily so Zephi relaxed her grip on her weapons.

"I'm not lost. I was going through the forest towards Zaban City," Zepheena answered as she looked towards the direction she was heading.

"Oh, that's where I'm going, too. A friend of mine told me that's where the Hunter Exam was taking place," the woman spoke as she started walking, motioning for Zephi to follow her.

Zephi quickly fell into line with the lady and hummed. "The Hunter Exam?"

"Yes. Have you ever heard of being a hunter? You can travel to many places. Have free lodging in most places. You can attain all sorts of information that would otherwise be hidden from the public. There is a lot you can do with a hunter's license," she explained to the young girl. "The Hunter Exam is just a test to get a hunter's license."

"Would I be able to take this exam?" Zepheena asked, curious about the information part and the free lodging since she had no home.

She had actually heard about being a hunter from Ging, but she hadn't really been interested at the time. She just wanted to learn combat so she could fight.

"Well, I guess so. There's no age limit that I know of, but are you sure you're up for it? You can die in the exam and you're so young." The woman looked at her with concern written on her face.

Zepheena clenched her fists and nodded with a huff. "I'm ready. I'm strong enough. I promise."

The woman hummed as a slight smirk crossed her lips as she looked down at Zephi. "My name is Aoifa. What's yours?"

Zephi paused, her thoughts leaving the Troupe. She took a breath to calm herself down before looking at Aoifa. "Zepheena."

"Well, Zepheena, I'll take you to the site of the Hunter Exam and you can decide whether or not you would like to take the exam," Aoifa spoke as she gave a smile.

"How do you even know if you have the right location?" Zepheena asked curiously as they continued walking.

Aoifa laughed lightly. "My friend is actually a hunter already and he got the information from the hunter website that is only accessible if you have a hunter's license. I trust the information he gave me. My friend group is... something like a family. I trust them all with my life."

"Well, let's go. I'll make my decision on the way there, but I think I'm already up for it," Zepheena replied with a hum.

The two girls continued towards Zaban City, towards the site of the Hunter Exam.

Zepheena followed Aoifa into Zaban City and she looked around with a hum.

It was a very beautiful city, she had to admit.

"Alright, now I'm going to call my friend for the password. He said that there's almost always a code to get into the exam sight," Aoifa said to which Zephi nodded quickly.

Aofia pulled out a phone and dialed a number.

"Hey, it's me," Aoifa spoke after a moment, standing against a lamp post. "I made it to the exam site. I just need that passcode you said you would get."

Zepheena hummed and looked around, seeing a few stores that looked cool. Not that she had any money to go to any of them though.

"Alright, got it. Thank you," Aoifa continued her conversation before her eyes went wide. "What? He's coming too? Ugh. Doesn't surprise me since he failed last year. Oh well. Thanks for the heads up. I'll talk to you later. Bye."

"Who's coming?" Zephi asked curiously after Aoifa hung up the phone.

Aoifa huffed and pushed a tuft of hair behind her ear. "A very annoying friend. He's newer to my group of friends, but he can be very difficult to get along with."

"I see. Well, we should get going," Zepheena replied, wanting to get to the exam site quickly.

She was actually feeling pretty excited about it which wasn't something she had felt in a long time. The last time she was truly excited about something was when Ging agreed to teach her how to fight.

"We have a bit of time. We are considerably early," Aoifa said as she looked at the young girl whose resolve was firm, but a look of joy was gleaming in her bright eyes.

"Early is on time though, right? That's what my parents used to tell me," Zephi said, a small smile pulling at her lips as she thought about her parents.

"You never did tell me what happened to your parents. May I ask what happened?" Aoifa spoke as they walked through the city.

"Yes..." Zepheena felt her chest tighten as she looked at the ground. "It was the phantom troupe. They killed my family. I watched it happen."

Aoifa's eyes widened a bit as she studied the young girl. "The troupe? What happened?"

"I really dont want to talk about it..."

"I understand. I'm very sorry that happened to you," Aoifa said empathetically. "Here, we've arrived. Let's go inside."

Zephi nodded as she sniffed, wiping her tears with the back of her hand.

They walked into a small rundown restaurant and Zephi looked amazed. She hadn't eaten in a restaurant in all the years she had been alive. Even when she was with Ging, they scavenged for food or he would get something small from a random shop.

Even though it was small, Zephi was awestruck at the delicious smells and how homey it felt.

She always made her own food. After learning how to cook when she was younger, she was quite good at it.

"Welcome! Take a seat," the chef said as he cooked a delicious looking steak.

"Is the back room available?" Aoifa said with a kind smile.

"What are you having?" The chef looked at her skeptically.

"The steak combo, please. The one that'll make us see the light. Make it two, if you would please," Aoifa replied politely.

"A combo for two, eh? How do you want 'em cooked?" The cook asked and Zephi could only assume that this was the passcode Aoifa had gotten from her friend.

"Grilled slowly over a low flame till done please," Aoifa continued and the chef smiled.

"Got it. See yourselves to the back room," he said and Aoifa led Zepheena to said back room.

As soon as the door closed, the room began to move.

"What is this?" Zepheena shrieked as she held onto the table in the center of the room.

"This room is an elevator. The exam is under this building it appears," Aoifa explained with a light laugh. "There is no reason to be afraid."

"Right..." Zepheena nodded, rubbing the back of her neck in embarrasment.

The two of them rode down in silence and Zepheena relaxed before tensing up as soon as the elevator stopped.

The doors slid open and Aoifa smiled at Zephi. "Go on."

Zephi stood from the chair she had sat herself in and walked out of the elevator room and into the underground area where there were a couple people already waiting.

A little green man walked up and she gave a small smile.

"Hello! Please take your number badge!" The green man said and Zepheena took the badge from him before he handed the next one to Aoifa.

Zepheena looked at her badge and hummed.

Number twelve.

"Be sure to where this badge on your chest at all times please. And be careful not to lose it, okay?" The green guy told them and they both nodded.

"Alright, now let's get settled. We're gonna be waiting for a while," Aoifa replied and Zepheena nodded, jumping up onto a pipe.

"I can wait! Thank you for bringing me here, Aoifa. I really appreciate it," Zepheena thanked with a bright smile.

"Do you have a phone number so I can keep in contact with you?" Aoifa asked and Zepheena shook her head.

"No. I don't have a phone. Never had enough to pay for one," Zepheena answered truthfully and Aoifa hummed as she nodded.

"When we are finished witht his, I'll give you my number and as soon as you get yourself a phone, you can call me. I'll stick by you though and help you as much as I can. I like you, Zephi. You are very interesting," Aoifa replied with a smile. "Another word of advice, don't trust too many people here. A lot of people will try to get rid of the rookies every year to increase their odds of passing. Just be cautious."

"Thanks for the tip. So, do you know when your friend is gonna get here?" Zephi asked as Aoifa sat beside her on the pipe.

Aoifa groaned lightly as she lied back against the wall. "I have no idea, but hope he isn't gonna screw around like he usually does. Fat chance that'll be though."

"Is he at least nice?" Zepheena questioned, thinking that her so called 'friend' couldn't be that bad.

More applicants entered gradually as they spoke.

"Not really. He is a pain. You'll see what I mean soon enough. Just let yourself relax for a bit. It'll be a while before the exam starts. I'll make sure no one touches you," Aoifa said as Zepheena yawned a bit.

"Are you sure?" Zephi asked with worry, not wanting to let her guard down.

"Don't worry about it. It might take a few days anyway. The deadline to show up is year's end so we have two days left to wait," Aoifa informed and Zephi nodded, leaning against the woman she had befriended.

"Thank you, Aoifa," Zephi murmured before she dozed off.

Aoifa was holding Zepheena's sleeping form close when she saw a familiar clown walk in.

She internally growned as she held Zephi closer out of pure instinct. She locked eyes with him and he gave a smirk as made his way over after receiving his badge.

"Hisoka," Aoifa acknowledged with a grimace.

"Ah, Aoifa. Such a pleasure. I wasn't aware that you were taking the Hunter Exam," Hisoka replied as he checked his nails.

"I could say the same about you. Shal didn't tell me you were taking the exam until we arrived in Zaban yesterday," Aoifa replied and Hisoka hummed.

"I assume you mean you and your little friend." He licked his bottom lip as he studied the young girl.

Aoifa tightened her hold subtly as she gave a glare. "Yes. I met her on the way here. Is that a problem?"

"How will the boss feel about you bringing in a little girl?" The clown questoned with a sadistic gleam in his amber eyes.

"Well, I'm sure Chrollo wouldn't mind, but I'm afraid I won't be able to take her with me." Aoifa looked down at Zephi. "She has a grudge against us."

"Ahh, I see. So she doesn't know that you are part of the Troupe," Hisoka assumed, keeping his voice low.

Aoifa sighed and shook her head. "No. It's quite a shame. If she were to learn nen, she would be very powerful. I can already tell she has a lot of potential."

Hisoka smirked and put a hand on his hip. "I doubt she would react kindly knowing that you are dating the leader of the Phantom Troupe."