Two days have passed since you had that conversation with Killua. But despite what you said, you never spoke about it again.

"How's Senka doing?" you eagerly asked, watching Ryu exit the room she was resting in. Was it just you, or were those dark circles around his eyes?

Ryu looked down, covering his face with his hair. "She's stable... but still unconscious."

"Oh, okay...."

Ryu gave you a small nod before turning to leave. However, you grabbed the sleeve of his hoodie, looking up at him with an oddly serious gaze.

He widened his eyes as he whirled around to look back at you. "What's up?" he asks, mentally taking note of your unusual behavior.

"Well..." you averted your gaze. "I just wanted to know... why did you spend so much time chasing after S...Sanguis? What did he do?"

"Oh, that." Ryu sighed, shaking his head slowly. "It's... a pretty long story, and–" He looks back at Senka's room worriedly.

"That's fine! I can listen for the whole day if I have to!" Your eyes shone with earnestness, but as soon as you met his gaze, you faltered. "Oh but you look like you haven't slept in a while..." you mumbled.

A soft chuckle escapes Ryu's lips. "I look that bad, huh?" he ruffles your hair a little as you let go of his sleeve. "Senka and I couldn't have found Sanguis without you, so I guess you deserve to know this much."

You look back at him, mouth slightly agape in shock. "Really?"

"Yeah, really," he says, giving you the smallest smile. "You know, maybe I should call Killua and Alluka as well."

Your heart stopped for a moment at the sound of Killua's name. "Oh..."

Ryu raised a brow. "What's wrong? You don't want them to know?"

"What? No, no!" You shook your head and waved your hands around in denial. "That sounds good, actually!" You exclaim, smiling at him sheepishly.

_ _ _

Your mouth was agape in shock by the time Ryu finished his story.

"Sanguis... he murdered my friend. He... Shiro was the first person to ever approach me when I woke up in that place. He was the one who brought me and Senka together." Ryu says. He rested his chin against his palm, looking out the window and watching the slow sunset.

You looked down as your brows furrowed. Ryu sounded oddly detached as if he was retelling someone else's story. Or was it his own way of keeping himself from breaking down in front of the three of you?

"Meteor City, huh?" Killua mumbles, putting a hand to his chin. "No wonder I couldn't find any information about you two."

Ryu seemed taken aback. "...You tried to dig up info on us?"

Alluka glares at Killua, placing her hands on her hips. "Onii-chan! Don't say that at a time like this!" She exclaims, pouting like a child.

"It's fine, Alluka. Don't worry about it." Ryu gives her a small smile. It seems that cheered him up a bit. "This is Killua we're talking about here. Of course, he'd do that," he says, patting Killua on the back.

You were still looking down at the floor with your fists clenched. "So Sanguis... he killed people?"

Ryu turned to you. "Yeah. Shiro wasn't the only one."

'That... that's impossible!' You suddenly remember your nightmare from weeks ago. The crimson red leaves, the looming tree with an ashen gray trunk, and your brother... covered in blood. It all came rushing back, just when you thought you'd forgotten.

"Well, Sanguis isn't the only one I should be worrying about anymore," Ryu says, looking back at the window with a determined gaze. "Hisoka, Illumi. They've also killed many others... and–" Ryu clenched his fists. "–They almost killed Senka."

"I see..." you mumbled, raising your head to meet everyone's gaze. Killua shot you a worried glance, but you avoided his gaze.

Ryu patted you on the head. "Now you know why we're so crazy about hunting him."

You nod.

Killua furrowed his brows at you, before turning to Ryu. "The sun's almost down. Shouldn't you check up on Senka right about now?"

Ryu widened his eyes. "Right. I should go check up on her." He sticks his hands inside his pockets, making his way towards the door.

"Oh! I wanna check on her, too!" Alluka exclaims, rushing to Ryu's side.

He merely nods at her as he lets out a wide yawn.

"See you later, Onii-chan, Onee-chan!" Alluka winked at the both of you, before opening the door and leaving the room with Ryu.

As soon as she shuts the door, a strangely uncomfortable silence fills the room. You avoided eye contact with Killua, but he kept giving you side glances.

Eventually, Killua let out a deep sigh, breaking through the silence. "Oi, (Y/N). What's up with you lately?"

You look up at him with wide eyes, before averting them just as quickly. "Nothing, nothing!" you exclaim, waving your hands around.

Killua slowly walked toward you, until he stood right in front of you. "You're a really bad liar, you know that?" he says, looking down at you with narrowed eyes.

You found yourself laughing awkwardly as you took a step back. Before you could get too far from him, though, Killua grabs your shoulders. His touch was oddly gentle despite the force of it. It's as if he was being careful of your injuries.

"Huh?" You were forced to look up at him. After seeing the look in his eyes, you gulped. "Wh-What is it?"

Killua took a deep breath. "Just... promise me you won't do anything stupid, okay?"

You averted your eyes again. "I-I'll try..."

Killua glares at you "Yeah, you better!" he exclaims, before pulling you in for a hug.

"K-Killua?!"

He wraps his arms around your waist and buries his head on your shoulder. Your eyes widened at his touch. Was he shaking in your arms?

"I just want you to stay safe..." he mumbles. "Drill that into your head, you idiot." He hugged you tighter.

You take in a shaky breath. It was that feeling again. That feeling of not knowing what to do... that feeling of hesitation. It was honestly starting to frustrate you. Why were you being forced to choose? Your brother is the only family you have left, but Killua is someone very special to you, and you didn't want to leave him.

You stayed silent as you let Killua hug you. However, you didn't hug him back.

_ _ _

"...I'm sorry, Killua," you mumbled to yourself.

It was midnight, and everyone was fast asleep. Well, everyone except you.

Keeping your footsteps as light and as quiet as possible, you snuck out of the inn. You were extremely careful to not wake anyone, especially Killua. As soon as your feet touched outside grounds, you shrouded yourself in Zetsu, before darting off into the night.

The city didn't have that many streetlights, you noticed. All the stores were closed and there was barely anyone outside. This made the full moon in the sky much brighter. It almost seemed like it was watching your every move.

You looked behind your shoulder to make sure no one was following you. After ensuring that, you walked faster towards the city's outskirts, leading you right into the forest's grounds.

You slowed down as you entered the forest's territory. Immediately after, you started sensing a familiar aura. It wasn't as hostile compared to the last time you were faced with it, but it still gave you a strange feeling. Even so, you went towards the aura, slowly switching to Ten in the process.

You reached the same clearing as last time, and it was left the same way you remember it. Tree branches were snapped, grass blades pulled out, and so on. Right in the middle of it stood a young man. He seemed to be staring off into the distance, looking right at the full moon.

"N... Nii-chan?" you softly called out.

Your brother shot you a side-glance, before turning to face you with a smile. "(Y/N)! I was beginning to think you'd never show up," he says, walking towards you and giving you a pat in the head.

You looked down at your feet. You've made your decision now, but it didn't bring you the peace of mind you had hoped...