Where Do I Begin. ( HxH - Reader Insert )

.:6:.

Maybe this was a bad idea.

Yeah, this was definitely a bad idea.

When you decided to become a Hunter, you were thinking of big brawly men with egos the size of Mars, not creepy old ladies tucked in abandoned alleys. You didn't like this one bit and Leorio was very much the same in his evaluation of events. This seemed like a really bad idea and you were so going to kick the Captain in the shin for sending you this way if you ever saw him again.

The people standing before you, dressed in white robes and masks with coloured feathers for hair were silent, observing, and downright creepy. In their hands they held a variety of instruments, spaced apart from each other on a wooden platform almost akin to a judges panel that had rolled out from an alley off to the side. Sitting in the centre of the platform, arms resting atop the table and her eyes in a seemingly perpetual state of closed, was an unsuspecting old woman. Leorio was quick to react to their sudden appearance, jumping behind you with a yelp, gripping your upper arms, and tucking himself behind you for protection.

"Wow Leorio," was all you managed to sigh.

"Exciting..." the old woman mused from behind her table, "exciting..."

"Exciting?" Leorio gulped thickly as he repeated her, gripping your upper arms tighter the more on edge you all became.

There was something incredibly eerie about all of this. From the crows perched on the buildings over head, to the cult like individuals standing guard behind the lady, and to the old lady herself. You weren't sure what they were here for, weren't sure what they wanted with you, and weren't sure what they will willing to do to get it.

"Maybe we should go..." you whispered warily to the others but they showed no signs of listening.

"TIME FOR THE EXCITING TWO CHOICE QUIZ!" her eyes snapped open with a sudden cry and the people behind her began enthusiastically sounding their instruments in an awful cacophony of mismatched notes.

Too stunned to say anything in response, all you could do was blink at her. You hazard a hesitant glance at your comrades, they were equally as stunned. At first it seemed like the load of you were about to get bundled up and shipped off to the richest buyer, now you were part of some twisted cult game show?

"You kids are heading for that lone Cedar tree on the hill, correct?" she questioned, "to reach that tree, you must pass through this town. I will pose a single question"

"H-hold on!" Leorio spluttered, stepping out from behind you and stamping a foot on the dusty path below, "what's going on here?!"

"You have five seconds to answer," she droned, ignoring Leorio's outburst, "answer incorrectly and you'll be disqualified, you'll have to give up on taking this year's Hunter exam"

The reaction to her statement was surprisingly calm, the others didn't seem fazed, not on the outside at least. There wasn't a loud outcry of shock nor a hurried rambling of protest, the only hint of a reaction was the tensing line of their shoulders and the minute narrowing of their eyes. They had places to go home to, they had another shot, but you didn't. You had no home, no family, not even any money to secure your next meal. This was all you had, and if you screwed this up, you didn't know what would become of you.

"I see..." Kurapika sighed quietly, pulling a rueful smile, "then this is part of the Hunter exam"

You should've realised it sooner in all fairness. When it comes to the Hunter exam nothing was an accident. Chance encounters weren't coincidence. Every situation you were put since you boarded that ship were by design, that was what you had to believe it you were going to keep a level head from here on out.