Hi, minna! Sorry for the long wait. This chapter is dedicated to @TheActualFangirl. Enjoy! Stay awesome!

I took a moment to let her words sink in. Killua and I stood there inanimately phased as the girl named Shiki held her smile. I was the first to speak. "Fiancé?" I repeated with my head jerked back, hand on hip, raising an eyebrow to Killua.

Killua's face pasted red when he turned to me in a panic. "W-w-wait! Hold on!"

The girl moved closer to Killua, which made me clench my fists. "Kil, where have you been all this time?"

"That's right, Kil. Where have you been all this time?" I eyed suspiciously, my arms crossed and fingers tapping impatiently. I hardly doubted that Killua would ever cheat on me, let alone get married any time soon, but this girl just came out of nowhere spouting out nonsense. She seemed to know Killua, and seemed to be very close to be unashamed of the way she acted.

Killua sheepishly took two steps back with his hands raised in defense. "Yuki, Shiki and I aren't getting married. I swear."

"But we were betrothed ever since we were little kids," she pouted, wiggling her held hands over her chest side to side innocently.

"Yeah, and then it got called off when I left, you psycho," he snapped back at her. Killua's mood swung from nervous to annoyed.

"But you're back, which means the wedding's back on, right?" Despite the harsh name Killua just called her, she wasn't offended at all. In fact, she looked more affectionate of him, clinging onto his arm like a puppy with a glimmer of hope shone in her eyes, which darkened my own mood.

"Excuse me," I cut in. Shiki was snapped out of her fantasy when she turned to me with a scornful look.

"Kil, what's this servant still doing here?"

"Servant?" I was overly offended, that comment making my entire being feel small. I couldn't take it anymore. "Do I look like a maid to you?"

She unimpressively observed me from head to toe. "Who do you think you're talking to?"

"To the girl who's flirting with my boyfriend, that's what!"

Shiki gasped hysterically as she took a few steps back in shock. Her expression showed as if she just saw a dog get ran over by a car. "Killua, how could you cheat on me with one of your servant bimbos?"

"Bimbos?!" I was rolling up my sleeve at this point, preparing to get violent until Killua disconnected with her.

"SHUT UP! BOTH OF YOU!" His voice boomed throughout the hallway. Shiki and I were completely still, staring at Killua, who was breathing heavily with tinted cheeks. "Shiki, how many times do I have to tell you? You and I are not a couple." Killua sighed as he pinched the arch of his nose. He threw his gaze back at me. "Yuki, this is Shiki Mitsuki. The oldest daughter of a ninja assassin family." He then faced the other girl, stepping closer toward me. "Shiki, this is Yuki Sazuka. She's my girlfriend."

Shiki was completely baffled, her quivering mouth gaped opened. "I... I don't understand. When did you two meet? How did this happen? What form of assassination do you practice? Do you come from a family line of assassins as well?" She was firing so many questions at once, each previous one becoming harder to answer. I wasn't able to say a word up until Killua grasped my wrist.

"Excuse us. We need a moment of privacy." He dragged me away against my own will, leaving the poor, stunned girl behind. Could she possibly be his ex-girlfriend, or someone who had a crush on him but got turned down? She said that they were betrothed when they were kids, meaning Killua was once arranged into marriage. So Killua's family was that prestigious. So far, my chances of earning Killua's family approval of me were looking grim, as they might prefer someone else.

After turning three corners, we came to a stop. When Killua let go, his hand leaving a white mark on my skin, I finally spoke. "Would you mind telling me what that was about?" I demanded, for some reason in a whisper.

"I know, I know. Gomen. It's really complicated and embarrassing," Killua fretted with a hand over his face.

"Was what she said was true?"

Killua put his hand down to look me in the eyes. "The Zoldyck family and Mitsuki family have been very close, so they decided to arrange a marriage for the future heirs to unite the families. But of course, I disagreed and had other plans. That was one of the reasons I ran away. Not mention, Shiki is super annoying and clingy. No matter how many times I tell her, she still thinks she's in love with me."

"I see... So she's delusional."

"Exactly. It's best if you stay away from her and not get involved."

"But I am dating you. Isn't that a little involved?"

"I'm dating you, not her. So if anything, she should be the one minding her own business." Hearing him say that brought great relief and comfort to me. For a moment, I thought someone might be getting in the way between us. "Ah man! Her whole family's probably paying their respects to my dad, which means they'll be here for the entire weekend."

"Well that doesn't sound good," I groaned. I was not looking forward to a second encounter with that weirdo. "Hey, you said that she's the oldest daughter. How many siblings does she have?" I wanted to keep in mind how many more friends of his family I might meet today. Hopefully, Shiki's sibling would not be like their sister.

"She has one older brother, and younger brother..." Killua paused in mid sentence, then looked down. "That's it."

"Okay. So shall we go see your father?"

"Yeah. This way." Killua took the lead down the unfamiliar hallways. I couldn't help but feel that Killua looked sad when he said how many siblings Shiki had. If she was the only daughter of her family, then why did Killua say oldest instead of only?

***

"This is it," Killua stated. We stood in front of a paper slide door with the design of a cherry blossom tree, its petals scattered with the birds in still motion. Light conversations could be heard from the other side. I was waiting for Killua to open the door, but he kept staring at it like an uninteresting television program. He must be very nervous to face his family after all these years.

I moved my hand toward his, and just as it was brushing against his skin, his fingers tied around mine. "Nervous?" I asked.

"Yeah." Killua's chest puffed up, then he released. He raised his fist up to knock, but hesitated, slowly backing down. "Do you mind... if I don't let them know that we're dating right away? I just don't think it's the right time yet."

I squeezed his hand. "I understand," I said, then let go.

"Thanks." He finally knocked on the wall with reluctance. "It's me," he said. There was silence at first, then we heard the fast steps of heels against the floorboard, the door swiftly sliding open.

"Kil!" a woman in a frilly, red velvet gown and feathered sun hat cried as she leapt forward, throwing her arms around Killua. I was startled, but Killua's expression did not change. However, he put his arms around the woman's waists.

"Hi, mom," he nonchalantly greeted.

The woman pulled away, gazing at her son. It was then I noticed that she was wearing some sort of cyber shades with only one dark frame with a single red dot of light beaming at the center. "Look at you! You've grown so much!" Her motherly cry was of great joy, but still hinted a bit of sorrow. Probably because of not being able to see her son for so long, and the circumstances for him to be brought here.

I followed as she lead him inside the room. She then acknowledged my presence. "Killua, who is this?" She asked.

"This is Yuki Sazuka," he said with hands shoved in his pockets. "She's here as my plus one."

"Oh, very well then..."

I lightly bowed my greetings to her as I passed the the door. When we entered the room, there were four other people. One of them was an old man with dull silver hair and a noodle mustache. My guess would be his grandfather. There was a boy with black hair and eyes, sitting on a chair. He was so overweighted that the poor fabric of his dress shirt was stretching from its buttons. Standing next to him was that girl I saw with the Phantom Troupe. It's her, I thought. I believed her name was Kalluto. She looked up and our eyes locked. She held an intense, silent stare, which meant she remembered me, but probably didn't want to mention it.

In the center of the room and attention was a man lying in a futon bed, the blanket completely covering his chest. He had long, sliver hair and blue eyes like Killua's. He must be Killua's dad. Judging by the coloration of his pale skin, he looked very sick.

When Killua approached him, the father weakly turned his head. "Otou-san," Killua said as he kneeled next to him. He was looking down, so I couldn't really tell what expression he was making, how he was feeling about this.

"Long time no see, Killua," his father said in a soft, deep voice. Everyone was too focused on them to speak. Tension was spiking in the air. I felt awkward, being a complete stranger in a room of family members like a sore thumb in the picture. Should I kneel down with him or stand at a corner? I didn't want to be too close with Killua's family yet, so staying near Killua seemed the best option. This was more of a son and father moment, so I just stood by behind Killua at a watchful distance.

"How is Alluka?" he asked.

"Alluka's just fine. She's happy." I knew that when he asked about Alluka, he wasn't concerned about her as a father. He just wanted to make sure that her powers were in check. However, seeing the way he was now, the person I pictured as the cool mafia leader of the family, I couldn't help but feel sorry for him.

"I see..." When the man's gaze turned toward me, I froze. This would be the moment of his father judging me for the first time. Should I say hi? But it would be rude since they're having a conversation.

"Who is this?" he asked.

"This is Yuki. She's a friend." So far, since I've entered this house, I went from girlfriend to servant to guest to friend. Well, better than bimbo.

As he kept staring at me, I guessed that was my cue. "N-nice to meet you!" I bowed shakily. This was not a good impression at all. I must look really ridiculous and out of class to these people. I must be embarrassing Killua too.

When I lifted myself up, the man managed to curl and faint smile. "The pleasure is all mine."

I sighed in relief. I was too afraid to look around how everyone else was judging me. I could just feel their stares like daggers on my back.

"Would someone please tell me what's wrong with his health?" Killua suddenly blurted out as if in exhaustion. He must either be running out of ideas for a conversation, or was avoiding all of the personal questions.

"He had a heart attack last week," the grandfather said.

"The doctors said that his heart is failing," Killua's mother wept as she held a tissue to her nose.

"So? Why not rip out someone else's heart and have a transplant? I'm sure that wouldn't be a problem for you." Killua's cold words shocked me. I have never heard Killua make such a dark suggestion like that, too cruel to be a joke.

"The problem isn't a heart donor," his grandpa added. "It's already too late for any treatment. All these years of his work and experience, it's finally taking its toll. He's not going to make it."

Killua shot up, fists tight. "Then you should've taken better care of yourself!" With those final words he spat out, Killua dashed out of the room, leaving the door open.

"Killua!" his mother cried.

"Kil!" The fat boy yelled furiously. He was probably his older brother.

I got up and ran after him. I didn't even consider if it was rude of me to leave without being excused, or if I had any right in their eyes to go after him. Either way, I didn't want to be left in there all alone.

When I ran down the halls, I already lost sight of him. Darn Killua, always running faster than I could blink. I took a random left and followed my gut. Just as I passed a window, I took quick glance, as if by instinct. Somehow I knew he would be out there. I stopped and held the window sill to slow down my momentum. It was grey and rainy. Outside was a garden with a pond and bridge, and at one side Killua was standing in front a structure of rocks next to a barren sakura tree.

He went outside fast! I pursued on running, staying close to the wall next to the outside in hopes of finding a back door. After a right turn, I found one and opened the door. Standing under the corridor, I could feel the cool, moist air sprinkling in. I was wearing a short sleeved shirt and no umbrella was in sight. I was inappropriately dressed for the weather, but I couldn't leave Killua in the rain all by himself. Just standing next to it felt cold, and he might catch a fever.

I gathered up my courage and ran into the rain. Immediately I threw my arms around myself, feeling the chilled droplets poking my naked skin. It was pouring so hard that within seconds my hair was already drenched.

I ran down the yard until I reached the outskirts of the garden. Ivory was crawling all over the fence. I pushed forward the gate and kept running, following the muddy path. I passed a few flower patches and trimmed bushes here and there.

I finally spotted the pond with the bridge and Killua still holding his place. Just like before, he was facing down toward a group of rocks.

"Killua!" I frantically waved at him, hoping that he could hear me through this weather. To my surprise, I didn't have to call him again. His head raised up and turned toward my direction.

"Yuki, what are you doing here?" He asked surprised. When I got close enough, I stopped and panted.

"I was worried about you. Why did you leave so suddenly like that?"

His expression complimented the gloom of the weather. He turned away. "I couldn't stay there for another minute."

I pouted and threw my arms down at his stubbornness. "Well I'm not spending another minute out here in the cold rain." I began marching toward him. "Let's just get back inside, dry off and talk this ov-"

"Don't come any closer!" he barked.

I jumped back and nearly slipped. His voice was louder than the rain drumming against the bodies of water around us. Why was he alarmed by me? He sounded so angry that it hurt my chest.

"I'm sorry," he said more calm and gentle this time. "It's just that..." When he lifted his face to the heavens, his bangs falling back, I could see his eyes clearly. It was because it was raining that I didn't notice it before. He was crying.

[Press Play]

"I didn't want anyone to see," he finished, dropping his head back down. I dared myself to take another step. He didn't say anything, which gave me all the permission I needed to cross territory.

When I became an inch away, I slid my arms around his waist as I gently embraced him from the back. "It's okay," I whispered. "You don't have to be ashamed of your tears."

His shoulders were shaking, either because he was shivering from the cold, or was still holding back his own rain. "Who does he think he is," Killua growled. "For twelve years, he always told me 'don't ever show signs of weakness', 'stay strong'. Stay strong?  How could he say that when he's..." He stopped talking when his voice began quivering.

At that moment I was beginning to understand him now. He always saw his father as this strong, macho figure, and seeing him in the state he was now was a reality he didn't want to face.

Killua. You wanted to preserve your father's memory and honor by staying strong, and to do that you didn't want to cry in front of him and your entire family. That's why you came out here in the rain.

I hugged him tighter. "You really do care, don't you?" Killua rested his hand over mine. We held that position for a while, the rain not reseeding any day now.

When I let go, I looked over at the pile of rocks he was so interested in the entire time and noticed a metal plate at the base. "What's that?" I asked, walking towards it with my own genuine interest. I bent down to get a closer read.

Aria Mitsuki. 1998-2002. Beloved daughter and sister.

"Mitsuki? That sounds like..."

"Yeah... She was the youngest daughter of the Mistuki family. Shiki's younger sister."

I was stunned. Suddenly the rain didn't bother me anymore. So that was why he called Shiki the oldest daughter; she used to have a sister, and judging by the plate, they didn't name a rock after her. This was her grave. When I looked at Killua, he had a distant sadness in his eyes. I could tell that he must have felt more fond toward her than Shiki. From reading the inscriptions on the stone, she died when she was four years old. That was so young.

"What happened to her?"

Killua sucked in a load of air. He held my hand, and I intertwined them together. "The Mitsuki and Zoldyck families kept close ties. That much you already know. So it only made sense that the children would get along. We spent our time together training, but mostly play around. The one I always played with the most was Aria. She had short black hair and green eyes. She was the weakest and clumsiest of her siblings, considering that she was the youngest, but she was really nice. I didn't know it at the time, but looking back at it now, she was probably the closest thing I had to as a friend, if we've spent more time together." The way how Killua described her sounded like he also had close feelings toward her. The dilemma of a young boy's first crush.

"So what happened?"

Killua closed his eyes and sighed. "When we were done training for the day, we went to play hide and seek. I was the one hiding. After an hour passed, I got worried. I went looking for her, and when I did..." Killua turned his head toward the pond. "She was face down in the water."

I gasped. "How did that happen?"

"Everyone said that she must've fallen in and hit her head, that her clumsiness got the best of her. Because she fell forward unconscious, that was how she drowned." The bridge was entirely floor, no banisters. It was possible that a kid could have been reckless and fallen in.

"I'm sorry," I said, my thumb rubbing his skin.

"It wasn't your fault. It was an accident."

I shook my head. "Not that. I never should've convinced you to come here. I thought bringing you here would help you finally settle things with your family, but instead I brought you even more pain."

"That's not true," Killua pulled me to face him. "My family and I never really got along to begin with." He unzipped his jacket and placed it over my head. "Come on. Let's get you out of this rain." I nodded silently, still feeling guilty. Even though he may have still acted this way with his family, it wouldn't change the fact that I reminded him of something tragic in his childhood. This place was full of painful memories for Killua. No wonder he never wanted to come back. All this time he kept running away from the darkness of his past, and I brought him home.

When we got inside, Killua led me to one of the guest rooms. It was a simple boxed room with a king sized bed, a chair next to the window, and a wooden wardrobe. My luggage was already on the bed. A butler must have carried it here.

"The bathroom is three doors down the hall to the right on the other side. Call me if you need anything, all right?"

"Okay," I nodded.

When he walked away, I closed the door and locked it to make sure no one would barge in in the middle of me stripping. At the other side of the room was a snowy bath robe hanging from a hanger. I didn't know where I should leave my wet clothes. It was a good thing I brought a plastic bag with me. I stripped myself from my drenched outfit, stuffed them all in the plastic bag, and covered myself with the soft, dry bath garment.

I walked in the halls barefooted, taking quiet steps. Hopefully I wouldn't bump into anymore unexpected guests, at least not until I was cleaned up and wearing underwear. I followed the directions that Killua lent me and faced the door of what should occupy the bathroom.

The door knob was unlocked, which meant no one was using it. When I opened the door, the first thing I saw was a yellow, furry beast. It was tall, standing on two legs like a human, with a hunched back, long ears and a lion's tail. It stood in front a sink, holding a butler's uniform in its clawed hands.

It must've heard me open the door because it turned its head toward me, with it's twitching dog nose and whiskers, staring at me surprised with its narrowed eyes. Looking into its eyes has turned me into stone. I stood there frozen with the door halfway opened. There was a monster in the bathroom and I didn't know how I should react. Wait, maybe this was another one of Killua's pets. If so, then what was it doing with that suit in the bathroom?

"Uh...yo!" It spoke in English.

I moved my hand to the other side of the door, turned the lock on, then slowly closed it shut. My feet took flight down the hallway as I fled for my life. "Ahhh! Monster!" I screamed in horror. That was definitely not Killua's pet if it could talk. It was a Chimera Ant possibly, and if it was holding human's clothes, then it was probably eating dinner, and I interrupted its meal. "Someone help me!"

I ran in the foreign hallways that seemed to be taking me in circles. I ran so crazily that I didn't notice something hooked around my ankle, causing me to tumble and collide into the floor. My arms were sprawled as I slid across the solid, smooth wood.

"Owee..." I groaned, pushing myself up from my hands and burnt knees. I looked over my shoulder to see Canary standing by the corner with her rod sticking out downward. "Canary, thank goodness I ran into," I sighed in relief. I got back up, smoothing out my robe. "There's a monster thing in the house! Is that normal? Does Killua have like a Chimera Ant relative or something, or am I just going crazy?"

Canary remained calm as she spun her rod to fix it beneath her underarm and approached me. "Miss Yuki, I need you to keep your voice down."

"How can I?" I was freaking out, barely being able to keep still. I was baffled at how calm Canary could be. The only reason that she could not be shocked by what I said was that she already knew about the creature. Oh no. What if this was one of the Zoldyck's methods of killing people? They would feed their targets to Chimera Ants so that there wouldn't be a trace left.

"Is there a problem?" I spun around to see the butler from earlier, Gotoh, coming our way while adjusting his spectacles.

"Yes, there's a problem. And I demand an explanation."

Gotoh removed his glasses, and then the strangest thing happened. His ears grew longer, and his facial features began morphing. Hair sprouted from the skin of his transforming face and enlarging hands, growing to the size of baseball gloves.

"Oh my gosh, he's a werewolf!" I was about to take another sprint when Canary's staff got in my way.

"No, Miss," she assured awkwardly.

"Hello!" said a high thin voice from behind. With another look, Gotoh was replaced by the creature I locked in the bathroom, only wearing a spiffy butler suit.

"Ah! It's that thing again!"

"Well that's rude," the monster commented with upset crossed arms. "Hasn't anyone ever told you not to judge a book by its cover?" The beast snickered.

I have already seen so many strange things in this world lately, yet I could never stop being surprised. I was feeling rather faint until Canary placed a comforting hand on my shoulder.

"I think it's best if you sit down for this one."

The two took me into the closest room, and I obliged as I let them settle me on a chair. The room was like a library. It wasn't big, but had half of the walls covered with shelves of books, the other two nailed by framed portraits.

"Okay, I think I'm starting to feel better," I let out, fingers still curling around the arm chair as I kept my eye on the nicely dressed animal.

"This is Munchi. He's a Kiriko," Canary gestured toward the supposed species as the being casually waved at me. "Kirikos are mystical beasts with shape-shifting abilities, meaning they can take on any living form."

"Whoa. Okay, cool," I nodded as I listened.

"I can assure you, I don't eat people." Munchi winked.

"Awe, thank God!" I exasperated as I relaxed my shoulders and sunk back in my chair. Now that I think about it, this Kiriko seemed really nice based on his casual speech and gestures, and I who jumped too quick on assumptions stereotyped him. "I'm sorry I thought you were a monster."

"Nah, it's okay," the creature waved off. "So, are you like Killua's mate?"

The situation has suddenly turned. By his choice of diction, I became shy and insecure. "Um... Well... I don't think 'mate' would be the term," I poked my pointing fingers together nervously, my cheeks glowing pink.

Munchi laughed. "Those kids surprise me every time!"

"Those kids? Oh, you mean Killua and Gon."

He nodded. "I used to work with my family as navigators to the examination site for the Hunter Exam. That's where I met Gon and his friends. We helped them out once we deemed them worthy of taking the exam and became friends. I miss that lad. How is he?"

"Oh, he's doing great. We go to the same school, along with Killua."

"Huh? They become Hunters just so that he can study?"

"Uh, no. It's not like that."

Canary took one step forward. "Now that we're all acquainted, it would be nice if you keep this a secret. Especially from Killua-sama."

I tilted my head. "How come?" I didn't even had enough to to consider if Killua knew that this old friend of his was working within his butler staff.

Canary sent a serious stare at me. "The real Ghoto died a long time ago." I was at shock. It didn't occur to me that Ghoto would be a real person after the kiriko revealed himself. I thought the identity was just an act; part of the cover up. "Master Killua does no know this."

"Why keep this from him?" I asked curiously. I felt like I was crossing some heavy boarders to a new territory, one which I was too afraid of the unknown. "What does it matter if he knew he was dead or not?"

The butler and the kiriko went dead silent for a moment. Canary continued. "Gotoh knew Killua-sama ever since he was born. He has practically been there all his childhood. With Killua-sama gone, we just did not find it necessary to inform him."

Her words didn't make sense, for her eyes could not lie. "You're worried about him, aren't you?" Right at that moment, I caught her. She finally let her guard down, revealing an expression of surprise. "Gotoh must be someone close to Killua, at least close enough to trust, and him the same way. And it wasn't just Gotoh. You care about Killua too. You're afraid of him being hurt by the bad news, so you kept the truth from him. I'm right, aren't I?"

Canary faced down ashamed.

"You say that the servants in this house don't hold any emotional attachment toward their masters, but you do. Why do you hide it?"

Canary looked up, standing more firmly, huffing some air. "I'm afraid you don't understand. The Zoldycks practice assassination, therefore they make enemies of themselves, so it would be needless to make any friends when their lives are at stake. What makes you think that a lowly servant could possibly be their friend?"

"Social status is no more important than how much you care about someone," I quickly snapped back. I was getting so rallied up that my heart was beating faster by the second. "You've been close to Killua for so long, watching over him and nonstop worrying about him, and I can tell you want him to be happy. You're practically a part of his family."

Canary opened her mouth, but couldn't find the words to tough that out. No matter what her mind was telling her, she couldn't fight the feelings from her heart. She appeared lost and confused on how she should feel, so I decided to keep talking.

"Why is it so bad to make friends? No one ever comes inside the walls. Doesn't it get a little lonely?"

Canary curved a little smile. "I believe you said you've already met Gon-kun, is that correct?" Canary asked me.

"Yeah, we're friends."

"Gon-kun was the very first friend Killua-sama has ever made, and that was when he left the mansion. I think... him running away was the best thing that has ever happened to him. As a servant of the Zoldycks, I am bound to remain in this manor. So, on my own behalf, please watch over Killua-sama." She held her staff behind her back as she lightly bowed to me.

It was the very first exchange of kindness I have received from anyone since I arrived here. The best part was the last words she said. I returned the bow. "Don't worry, I will." When I raised my head up, Canary gleamed at me the brightest smile I've ever seen her show. It was refreshing.

"Oh, you can use the bathroom now if you still need to use it," Munchi suggested.

I scratched the back of my head as I laughed nervously. "No, it's okay. I think I'll use a different bathroom if you don't mind..." The kirikos are friendly, that  much I knew. But I was a little self-conscious about what kind of things he did in that bathroom. Wether he had class or not, and animal was still an animal. I would rather do my own proper hygiene in a different bathroom.

"Of course," Canary said. "Right this way."