Reborn

Chapter 18

I follow Gon outside, watching him throw his fishing pol over the wall. "Hey, Gon! Knock it off!" Leorio said, running towards us. Gon gets ready to climb, saying, "It's okay. You two can wait here. Coming (y/n)?" I bite my lower lip, already knowing my answer. "(Y/n), not you too." Kurapika said. Before the older boys could stop me, I grab Gon's hand.

As if I weight nothing to the angry boy, Gon pulls me up and makes sure that I was secure. Pulling his arms over me, he begins climbing a little. I also move my feet up so then I don't accidently push Gon down. "I can't let you guys do that!" Leorio yelled, trying to convince Gon to get down. "We'll be fine!"

"No, you won't!"

"Look, both of you need to calm down!" Kurapika said, trying to get them to stop yelling. It was even worse for me because of how close I was to Gon. "I'm perfectly calm! Now, come on, get down!" Leorio yells out again. "Gon, maybe we should-" Although, I stop speaking when Gon looks at me with determination.

"He's right. Don't be stupid." I sigh. This is what I get for following Gon. That was when I see Zebro walking towards us, saying, "Here, Gon, I'll give you the key. You can go through the door, alright?" I move my feet up once more, trying not to slip. Gon was also moving up, pushing me in a secure manner.

"Just wait a second, Pops! We can convince them to stop this."

"Oh, really? Because Gon strikes me as the stubborn type. And young (y/n) is only following the leader." Zebro says. I wanted to react so bad, not hearing those lines before. I wasn't able too though. Gon was moving upward, pushing me up with all his strength. "To make amends, I've decided to accompany you through the door."

Gon then stops, staring at Zebro with surprise. "What?" The old man then sighs, saying, "Mike knows me well enough to recognize me. And its possible he might not attack if he sees I'm with you. Though I'm 100% certain that he'll just kill us all." Gon then had a worried look on his face, jumping down from the fishing line.

His weight that was supporting me was gone and that made me fall to the ground, landing on my back. I groan as I hear Gon say he couldn't let Zebro do that. "You alright?" I see Kurapika lean over, staring down at my body. "I'm fine." I said. The blonde then lends me a hand. I grab onto his hand, feeling his soft skin.

'I didn't think his skin would be soft to the touch.' I thought. Kurapika pulls me up and dusts me off, wiping at my now slightly dirty hoodie. Zebro and Gon continued to talk as Kurapika and now Leorio dust off my hoodie the best they can. 'Mom and Dad material.' I thought, smirking a bit.

"If you die, well, then I'll die alongside you." Zebro said, staring at Gon. Gon then grabs the fishing pol line, taking it down from the wall. "I understand, sir. I guess I didn't stop to think about your situation. Sorry." Gon said, making Kurapika and Leorio smile. I just stood there with a blank face.

I look up at the night sky, now remembering my fear. Everything was happening so fast that I forgot completely. I bite my lip, grabbing onto Gon's sleeve. The boy stared at me, only to hear Zebro ask, "You like animals, don't you, Gon?"

"Huh? Yes."

"I thought you might. And did you grow up playing in the countryside?"

Gon seemed impressed and said, "Yes! How did you know all that?" Zebro only smiled, telling Gon that he was going to open the Testing Gate. "I want you to see Mike with your own eyes." Opening the gate once more, we all slip in. Leorio was asking if it was okay for us to come in so suddenly, worried that something will happen.

"Of course. You entered through the Testing Gate, so you'll be fine." Zebro said, reassuring the teen. Zebro then starts to yell for Mike, cupping his hands over his mouth. We finally heard a growl come from the right, making all of us look over. We waited for something, anything to come out.

I widen my eyes, finally seeing Mike in person. A big dog comes out of the shadows, staring at all of us. Hearing Gon gasp, I back away a bit. Mike was staring down at Gon, analyzing his face and scent. Even I was terrified. 'That's a big dog...' I thought, showing the fear on my face. Mike then lays down, still staring at us.

"So, Gon, do you understand? This is a hunting beast, and a highly trained one at that! It's like no animal you've encountered in the wild. No, not by a long shot. You believed you could communicate with him until you looked in his eyes, right?" I back away a little bit more, feeling myself shake.

I felt like Gon. Scared of the big dog who I thought never looked terrifying on screen. Zebro continues with his speech, saying that Mike was memorizing the appearances and scents of us. "So, Gon, do you think you could fight him?" Zebro asks.

Gon was sweating and quickly shook his head, saying, "I'd be too scared. I don't ever want to fight him!" Zebro then asks how long we'd be staying, making Gon tell him until we see Killua. Gon wasn't even focused on the huge dog anymore, suddenly getting determination to get Killua back.

I was still staring up at Mike. The dog only stared back. Although, it felt like something was wrong. He wasn't staring at the whole group anymore. Mike was only staring at me. 'What...?' I thought. Zebro then tells us to follow him. I was happily wanting too, only for Mike to stand up and walk in front of me.

The group gasps. I froze in my spot, staring at the dog. "Mike... Don't." Zebro said, trying to get Mike to listen. He wouldn't. "(Y/n)!" Kurapika and Leorio were showing a look of worry, wanting to come grab me. I knew they wouldn't though. Mike then comes closer, bowing his head. 'This isn't supposed to happen.' I thought, confused.

Dogs are weird sometimes, although they are quite different in this situation. 'Maybe If I...' I knew it was risky, I could die. But Mike was bowing his head. It was like he wanted to be pet. Dogs do that when they want pets, right? I then reach out, my hand still shaky and gently touch Mikes snout.

I slowly started to pet him, quietly saying, "Good dog." to give him an ego boost. Mike leaned in, now showing that he wanted more. I let out a shaky sigh, glad that I didn't die and get to live another day. Petting him more, I hear Zebro let out a sound of surprise. "That's new. Mikes never done that before."

Moving closer, I hug and pet his snout some more. "You're pretty scary Mike. Do this more often so I won't be afraid anymore." I said, hearing a low growl come from the terrifying hunting beast. "I'll take that as an 'okay'." We didn't have much time to waste though.

So, giving Mike one last pet, I finally walk back to the group who were still in shock about the whole thing. "I can't believe you actually pet him. He could have eaten you." Leorio said, pushing me forward and away from Mike. He was forcing me to walk with them, scared for my safety. 

"I don't know what happened, but whatever it was, I'm just glad he didn't eat me." I said, biting my lower lip...