"On three."

"Okay."

"One..."

Rein stood up on 'two' ("T-Ah, wait, Rein, no!"), throwing both Killua and Gon off balance. She could stand well enough and walk a few steps, but her energy wouldn't hold for her to function normally. According to Machi, to make a full recovery she would need to walk with help from others and practice doing so until she didn't need assistance anymore. For this, Kalluto and Zushi were too short, and everybody above Lucky's age was too tall. The only options left were Gon and Killua, who were conveniently slightly taller than her for optimal walking support.

"Ah, Rein?" Gon spoke up after Killua finished complaining to her about listening to instructions. "I'm sorry I couldn't get your phone out of the lake. I tried going back to look for it this morning, but I couldn't find it."

She shook her head. "Don't sweat it. I probably wouldn't have used it after all this anyway." It had already served its purpose. Though she knew Shalnark would be annoyed about this later, she could deal with that bridge when she came across it. "And... you didn't find anything at all?"

His eyes crinkled apologetically as he exhaled a breath. "I couldn't find your rock either."

Rein simply nodded. She had expected to feel something for its loss, her lucky rock she'd always fumbled with to calm her nerves. It had been with her for the majority of her remembered life, almost a comfort blanket or a teddy bear she'd once thought she would need forever. But she didn't have any urge to reach for it now, no reason she made an excuse to twirl it around expertly at her fingertips. She hadn't felt that particular need for a while, actually, not even during the past few days.

"You know what?" Rein raised her eyes, smile easy and loose. "I don't think I need it anymore."

"Really?"

"Really."

The two boys helped her out, and she was greeted by Lucky, Zushi and Kalluto behind him. "Let's go rehabilitate you," Lucky said. "Most of the grown ups left to go get supplies in the closest town, and they won't be back until dark. You can try to rebuild on your strength during then."

"Aren't you an adult?" Killua raised an eyebrow. "If you aren't, then your height is freaky."

"I said most of the grown ups." Lucky's head gazed off to the side. "I didn't go, but neither did Emo Loser. He locked himself in his room a little over an hour ago, and has been weirdly hostile since."

While some of them commented on the fact that it was by a miracle Lucky hadn't been killed using the blatantly rude nicknames he did, Rein broke free from their arms and walked by herself towards the Spider's room, trying to keep upright as she did so. She knocked. "Fei? If you want to come, we're going to-"

"Don't come in and don't bother me," he answered, a rough edge to his voice showing that he meant it. It must have been indicated in her breath that she was about to argue, because he raised his voice and ordered: "All you get out. I stay alone. Go."

Rein let out an exasperated sigh, and nodded to let Killua and Gon know they could move on now, who had come to her sides to act as crutches once more. She would have to make up to them for it later. "Love you too, Fei," she called as they all started to do just as he said, purposely phrasing her words in such a way to tick him off in his already annoyed mood.

(Something was off. Something was so terribly off about him, but she concluded she was only overthinking.) Rein, feeling lighter than ever, managed to blow her first teasing raspberry at the firmly closed door in what felt like years.

"See ya," Gon chimed after her.

Feeling a need to pitch in, Lucky took advantage of the locked door situation to say, "Later, Emo Loser," before dashing out.

"Goodbye, Feitan-san!" Zushi shouted from the entrance before easing the thick wooden doors of the lodge firmly shut.

Slowly, their chattering died away as they walked off into the distance, leaving the large lodge far behind. Once his sharp ears strained and could hear absolutely nothing—neither his students, their friends, or any other Spiders nearby—he shifted from his position on the couch which he'd hidden behind lest one of the kids had broken the door down. But all according to his hasty planning, he was left alone at the lodge, at least believed to be the only one there in the minds of the others.

"They gone. Get out," he growled.

Slowly, the figure emerged from the other end of the couch, flicking his chains tight so as not to let Feitan escape as he did so. His long blond locks did little to hide his burning eyes, a small light glowing brighter than the sun through the curtained windows, or how the lamp had been before it had been smashed against the wall during their struggle.

"Shall we resume?" Kurapika carried on. His words were polite, but his tone seethed with restrained hatred.

(And even with that restraint, with those purposely dimmed eyes he knew could burn brighter and better, Feitan had already lost.)

He raised his head, holding up his pride. "Jiéshù tā."

* * *

"Where are the other Spiders?"

"Away," Feitan answered through his teeth, "away from you."

The chain user tilted his head at this answer, but accepted it for now. "I see. And what are their weaknesses?" When Feitan hesitated, Kurapika punched. It wasn't anything special; it wasn't advanced to one hundred percent and it wasn't filled with the amount of malice it should have been. But without his aura, it hurt, simple pain he always thought he would be too strong to feel. "What are their weaknesses?"

"Qù sǐ ba," Feitan spat at him, and in simpler terms, he stated, "Die."

Already, Feitan knew how this would end. Some part of himself had started to expect an end such as this, but it was so much more different when the trial loomed over his head and he was left helpless to do anything about it—when he should have been powerful but he wasn't.

Kurapika's eyes brought on a new, powerful glint, burning with meaning, of subconscious emotions instead of will. The chains suddenly tightened around his body, bruising him black where metal links pinched his milky skin together. "Tell me where they are, at least." His fist clenched, and Feitan knew that this was from his own reaction, not for show. "I'll allow you to live for a bit longer if you do."

Feitan kept his eyes on the fist and forced his lips to pull back into a snarl. His body throbbed from when the Kurta had assaulted him first. He'd gotten entangled in his In-coated chains when he'd let down his guard once he heard the other Spiders leave, and realized the younger ones were still in the lodge. He, he of all people understood it was over for him. But he knew his place as a Spider, as a part of something bigger.

The last thing he wanted to do was draw things out and get in the way if he was still alive when the others came back. He would tell them to attack regardless of if the chain user threatened to kill him or not, and they would not listen. He knew they wouldn't listen for their own stupid, pathetic reasons. It was up to him whether he would become a liability or not, and he was determined not to be one.

He forced himself to scoff as he raked his brain for a plausible connecting link. "My life, others' life. Why I care about that?"

Kurapika blazed, vision flashing. "You bastard," he seethed. "You have no regard for life at all?"

It was when he tried to straighten that it occurred to him how low he was, how bent and stooped over his figure appeared in comparison to his. "I am on top. Why should I care for dirt on bottom?"

Feitan was one of the stronger Spiders. He wasn't pure brawn like Uvogin and he wasn't dedicated to building it up, like Phinks. He had a small frame, and there was only so much muscle he could carry on his bones. Because of his physical disadvantage, he worked on improving his speed, endurance, and his aura. As a product of that, he flourished into a powerful user of Nen and was finally able to become what he'd always wanted to be; strong. He joined the Phantom Troupe with the promise of doing as he pleased, where he could break rules and have the ability to go unpunished for it.

Just as he'd stated, Fei was on top, as he'd striven to be in a city of trash and broken glass. But without his aura that he worked so hard to polish, without his Nen that he owed his entire being to, he was just... himself. He wasn't built on brawn.

So when Kurapika punched with his enhanced fist, Feitan snapped like a brittle twig.

He tried to hold it in, but a cough escaped him nevertheless, and with it came blood. His foot caught ground barely in time, allowing his reeling figure to stay standing. He didn't have any time to recover and feel for what damage had been done before the second punch came with a grinding twist. He heard his bones break inside of him before he registered the pain.

Try as he might, he couldn't help but fall hard onto one knee, every breath he took sticking bone into flesh. The chains shifted, suffocating him further.

"Perhaps a simpler question will do." There were dark red splatters on Kurapika's face as he turned ever so slightly so as not to look at the state his opponent was in. "Where are the children?"

His lungs failed to draw in air.

His tone was softer. "As your last wish, your comrades left. Perhaps you wanted to die alone, but I did want to fight one-on-one, so it was a... convenient circumstance. And? Do you... know where the children have gone? I'd like to have a talk with-"

"Don't t-tou..." Feitan struggled to force out universal words, then gave it up altogether, allowing his natural self to boom and speak. "Bùyào pèng tāmen," he muttered, and looked up, spitting out the sentence as if it were a curse. "Bùyào pèng tāmen."

Kurapika believed his tone, this conjured hostility shoved into his voice to make it seem like something it wasn't. His features showed it plain as day even in the darkened room, and as he took a step forward, his slippers crunched on the broken glass from the lamp they'd shattered.

Feitan barely heard the crackling of the chain shooting forward, and the blade searing through his chest was numbing and calm.

"One last chance," Kurapika said.

Throughout this whole ordeal, his eyes had burned as flickering embers and revived flames, but they'd never once made true contact with Feitan's own, as if afraid to look who he was killing in the eye; fully conscious and yet not quite willing to accept the reality. It wasn't the same feeling he'd experienced when fighting Uvogin, and he had an inkling of a reason lingering in himself as to why that was. He understood this loss of Feitan, this thief and murderer, would mean something to someone he knew.

Both parties involved were painfully aware of his hesitation and the cause behind it.

His throat was dry, and he somehow willed himself to swallow. "One last chance," he repeated. "Break the rule I set, and the blade poised around your heart will kill you. There are many questions I've asked you, but I will settle with one." He pulled on the chain, trying to relieve how his fist cramped with tension. "What are the other Spiders' weaknesses?"

Feitan felt no anger.

It was strange, really, how the heat that had fueled him from as long back as he could remember suddenly cooled now. The chain user had chosen his question carefully. It was evident he'd wanted to ask where the children were, as it had been his question before last. But that would be of no use to him in the future. If he inquired of information pertaining to the members of the Phantom Troupe, at least he would have the sure chance of reuniting with them sooner or later.

But of course, Feitan could not answer this last question, and he growled a simple "Die" to make him aware of it.

(The chain user had managed to stay rational. Feitan had not.)

As the chain moved, bit by bit and ticking away in a quick and steady march from the ends of Kurapika's fingertips to his chest, Feitan had an epiphany of why Rein always said what stupid things she did.

That phrase.

It meant that when she or any of his other students insisted on showing off skills they'd acquired, he would watch even if he grumbled as he did so. It meant that when one of them messed up, he would harshly complain about it, but correct their errors so it wouldn't trouble him again. Maybe it implied he had some sort of bond, and his actions wouldn't be able to deny it completely.

For others, like Phinks, he would team up to fight, and they would know each other's movements down to every breath to keep the worst from happening. That sometimes, though Feitan was on top of the world and the king of the castle, he might consider letting his partner stand up there with him to look at the view. It meant he didn't mind being a part of a group, not the entirety of it or its center.

It meant that even if this was akin to admitting defeat to a man he despised, even if he was an insult to the Phantom Troupe, even if he was scared—he wasn't scared, at least he thought so, but he had a strange feeling, a peculiar one that knotted his nerves and kept poison boiling at his throat... but he was fine, he would be—he would cover for them.

He would die, not for the Phantom Troupe, but his own. It meant he'd gone irrational and stupid and soft, and he hated that, but they were his troupe now, which meant he would take responsibility and protect them.

He let out a rare chuckle when the blade pierced his heart, and warm, tangy, iron blood dribbled newly down his chin.

So this, he thought as his lips went pale and his body crashed against the ground, this was what it entailed, this pathetic "love you too" nonsense.

What a pain.

He'd rather not go through it again.

* * *

They found Feitan's door unlocked. It was puzzling, really, but after shouting from the entrance a few times, they determined it was safe to go in farther and entered.

"Feitan," Rein called, hobbling by on her own without help from anyone else. Her recovery for her walking, at least, had progressed far faster than anyone had expected. In a joke, she added, "Come out, we have cake—" Her eyes caught on the lower half on his body sticking out from behind the furniture, and in the eternity she experienced, he did not move.

"F...Fei...?" Her voice died in her chest, only coming out a whisper.

She pushed herself forward. Realizing what was happening, the others crowded around her to look at his body. Rein tapped his shoulder and called out his name, called out multiple times and tapped harder and harder until she was shaking his shoulders. Giving up on getting a response, she lifted him up to try and feel for a pulse. His arm rolled off of him and fell limp to the ground, twisted and bent in a way that could not have been natural.

Zushi reached out to lift up his sleeve slowly, immediately dropping it when inflammation and bruises came into view, alerting them of a broken arm.

"You..." Gon was speaking. "You don't think it was because of..."

"It probably is," interjected Killua, his eyes on the body. "It probably is."

A resigned whimper seeped through her lips as she tried to keep it all in, but the details flooded her and threatened to push all of her emotions out; Splatters of thick red lining the cracks in the wood, the shards of glass by the wall, the offset furniture and his cold body at the center of it all. Stars, she wished she were dead or asleep, that she had no way to know whether this was true, to be blind and oblivious and be blessed with the knowledge of nothing at all.

But it was there.

Stars, it was all there.

A footstep echoed through the room, and they all whipped their heads back towards it.

"I know he was a central figure in your life as of late." Kurapika was not mourning the loss of a Spider, not apologizing for killing a Phantom Troupe member. He was admitting to the murder of someone she valued, but not of Feitan Portor. "And I'm sorry for that. I know it's just a mere excuse, but I did allow him the choice of staying alive until you all came back. He refused."

Her gaze locked on Kurapika, on the chain user and the links of steel dangling from rings on his fingers. She rose, and Feitan's body, which had been resting as a limp weight in her hands, fell with a deep thud to the floor. "You," Rein growled, and shifted her feet as she struggled to approach him. Her vision blurred and the world swayed nauseatingly beneath her, but her eyes fixed straight ahead. "You did this."

Unable to deny it, he inclined his head ever so slightly. "I am sorry for your loss."

"My loss, my loss," she echoed after him. In a quick blink, her eyes raged scarlet, and large dollops of tears streaked sideways on her cheeks as she leapt forward with all the energy she had left. "You did this!" Rein screamed. "You did-!"

"Red, no!" Lucky caught her arm and tried to hold her back, but in blind anger she pushed him to the ground, trying to get through to the Chain User. "Rein, stop!" The others came at her, attempting to have her stand down, and she heard the splintering of her own ribs as she struggled against them, where the fractures had started to heal but not quite. She didn't know why they were trying to stop her, why they were doing such a thing. She clenched her teeth together and hit them out of the way as best she could, scrambling towards Kurapika with the intent to kill evident in her eyes. Her bandages came loose and fell to the ground, leaving her old burns bare, and they caught on sharp zippers and buttons as she fought back against her own, cutting into her tender pink scars.

"Rein, Rein!" They tried to talk to her, rationalize with the girl as they bit their own tongues to keep from crying. In this situation, in her still fragile condition, Rein would only hurt herself, and against Kurapika, who they'd all heard of at some point the story of having beaten the strongest Spider, there was no way they could win. "Rein, you'll die, stop!" They tried to get her to calm down as much as they hated those bitter words leaving their own lips, but she was having none of it.

At her livid look and the pure hostility she showed towards him, Kurapika took a step back. "Aira?" He glanced off to the side at Gon and Killua, who were standing tense but taking neither side, yet ready to interfere should either party get too far.

"Why," she said through shut teeth, and her eyes shone bright just as she was sick of them doing. "Why did you kill him?" She yelled, infuriated, devastated, unsure. Her voice cracked, and horribly so as some of her own blood dripped to the ground from reopening wounds, and a bit was at the corner of her lips. "Oi, Kurapika!"

Her heart lurched, and she froze.

Rein slowly lowered her eyes to see a chain once again visible in her chest, and writhing with the one already planted there.

"Don't attack me." Kurapika stated his rule plainly, knowing this was the only way he could stop her now. "Please, you're bleeding again. You're irrational right now, so if we're to settle matters it must be-"

"Irrational?" She wanted to cry and curse and laugh and punch his guts out, but as soon as she took a step, the others stood in her way with newfound determination since the possibility she would die was startlingly eminent. "And why? Why am I like this? You know it's your fault, it's your fault, it's your fault, it's all your fault this all happened!" Her voice was hoarse. "It's all..."

Feitan's body lay silent and pale on the ground behind her as her head whirled, and she fell mute.

"Lucky, was it?" Kurapika saw him visibly seize up when his name was called, and he bowed. "I apologize for the selfish actions of my former employer. He attempted to get your jewels and Nen by force for the materialistic goal of money. I..." His eyes, a red no more, looked at Rein in her mournful state before biting his lower lip and turning his head to the side. It was inevitable, but it must have hurt for her, even if she'd only been manipulated by them. He continued. "Rest assured, I won't try my hand at such methods. I will find a way to extract your Nen peacefully for the restoration of the Kurta Clan."

"Restoration?" Lucky repeated quietly, unable to connect together what exactly this meant before it was too late. "Wait, no, the repercussions of that will be-!" But Kurapika had already left.

They were left behind, students with the corpse of their trainer. But he'd been more than that.

Anything but this.

She despised her own Scarlet Eyes, how they connected her to the chain user and tingled when they shone an unearthly color. Her throat hurt and her chest ached a different pang than from straining her old injuries; all around her and inside of her she felt a silent, throbbing pain that wouldn't go away as tears plopped into her clothes, staining them darker than her own blood.

But she forced herself to stand it, made the tears come forth and willed her eyes to burn in the sockets of her skull in hopes that a time loop would start. She didn't care if it hurt, if she would be left alone once more to face these matters on her own. It scared her half to death, but she wished with all her chained heart that it would happen, that she would just be able to get a single chance to save Feitan.

And yet, no matter how she tried, her Specialist Nen was gone, and time did not turn back its unfeeling hands.

"Come on, come on!" Rein hit her fist against something, she wasn't sure whether it was one of their chests as they held her, or if it was the hard wall, but as nothing happened, she sank to the ground. She sobbed and screamed, and an arm fell around her shoulders, but she couldn't tell who it was. She only knew that they were shaking as well.

Not again, please.

Chinese (once again I don't speak any, so correct me if I'm super wrong):

Jiéshù tā: Get it over with/ End it

Qù sǐ ba: Die (literally 'go to die', so the closest English rendition that would make sense is "go to hell". Asked a Chinese friend about this.)

Bùyào pèng tāmen: Don't touch them

...so.

Out of character (originally) but I've developed them so hopefully that kinda makes it less so.

In apology for this chapter, the next one is already up