Still Doll

A Good Find

"Y'know, it's a bit anti-climatic that we didn't run into any trouble along that long journey," Linos-san said before taking a large sip from his tea. "I'm intrigued about how those chains on your hand work. I'm sure that's not just some kind of punk accessory of yours."

It was around 9 PM when Kurapika and his client finally arrived at their destination. While it was a peaceful and uneventful journey, with his client not being an ass and the site seeing being somewhat relaxing, it was slightly exhausting. However, Linos-san seemed to be still full of energy and even invited him over drinks before going to bed.

Kurapika initially planned to check in on a hotel right after completing his duty of escorting Linos-san home, but the man and his son insisted that he should stay the night in their modest and cozy home.

It was weird since he had only spent a day with the man, but Kurapika had noticed that something had surreptitiously changed in Linos-san as they embarked that 13-hour long travel. The timid man who specifically requested for a silent guard was now engaging him into small talk talk. Perhaps he actually enjoyed the trip despite not being able to write as he had planned.

Kurapika smiled at the childish curiosity of his client. "I think it's fortunate for us to have had that peaceful journey. Thank you for showing me around, even just a little, sir. Your hometown is a captivating place."

Linos-san pouted in dissatisfaction at his attempt to divert their topic. He became quiet like a sullen child and petulantly sipped on his tea.

"Alright," Kurapika guessed it wouldn't hurt to quench the man's curiosity if just a little bit. He summoned his Dowsing Chain to do a small demonstration and let it hover in the air. At that, Linos-san immediately became attentive, eyeing the hovering chains with awestricken look on his face.

Kurapika explained. "I kind of can manipulate the chains with my willpower. I can make them do things that no ordinary chains can, like move and detect stuffs," he let the Dowsing Chain dangle before retracting it. It dissipated into thin air.

"Oh!" Linos-san applauded in pure awe. "That's some cool magic trick you got there! Does the chain possess the magic, or was it actually coming from you? And why chains? Is there some sort of symbolism behind your choice of weapon?"

Kurapika was about to politely refuse the personal questions when Linos-san's son beat him to it and interjected to prevent his father from prying further. "Dad, no magician reveals the secret behind his tricks. It's getting late; why don't you retire to bed now?"

"Right, right," the man pouted again. "Geez, forty-two years ago, I was the one telling him off to go to bed. Alright, good night to you," Linos-san finished the remains of his tea cup then reached for his cane. He made his way to the stairs with a small, mischievous smile playing on his lips.

"Good night, sir," Kurapika greeted back and emptied his cup as well before excusing himself. He went to the guest room on the ground floor to review the whereabouts of the Kuruta eyes before catching some sleep.

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"Are you sure you don't want to have some breakfast before you go?" Linos-san's son asked as he walked Kurapika to the door.

"Thank you for the offer, but I really need to get going," Kurapika declined with an apologetic smile. "I'd like to bid goodbye to Linos-san, but I guess he's still asleep."

"More like he hasn't slept a wink," the young man said in a complaining tone. "I don't know what has gotten into him, but he's suddenly all fired up writing lyrics all night. The last time I saw his garbage can full of crumpled papers was when Mother was still alive. He hates to be interrupted when working, but I think you'll see him by the front window on the left side of the house."