Shuffle The Deck

Chapter 3 - Interaction

"My, how unusual. Seems this poor man's arms have turned into flower petals."

He uncrossed his arms presenting them to the crowd of people in front of him with a sadistic sneer.

"Now you see them, now you don't."

The audience began to gasp, and murmur to themselves. Gon stared blankly at him, obviously nervous. So were Kurapika and Leorio, who had taken a whole step back. Tonpa didn't dare move and stared disgustingly at the man, who still wore a sadist's grin.

Lilah couldn't move. An indescribable feeling of fear consumed her unwavering body. The walls around her felt like sheer ice, and her cerulean eyes were plastered open, undoubtedly paralyzed. Her dry mouth made it an agony to swallow. With a staggered lift of her face, she managed to get a full-face render.

His fuchsia hair was in a high updo, moving along with his contoured face. His skin was pale, a shade of pure white. He seemed to have the appearance of a sort of magician or jester, with two markings on his left and right cheek. A sneer eluded his complexion, his eyebrows so thin and almost inexpressive. His razor-sharp nails tapped the side of his face with a playfulness behind them.

"You should be more careful. And do apologize if you bump into someone."

With a steady walk, he waltzed away from his experiment. He headed towards a far back wall, his long legs carrying his upper half with him. Lilah's eyes followed this terrifying embodiment of a man, almost too curious for her own good. The fear was such a splendid rush.

"Just perfect. The psychopath is back again," came Tonpa's voice, yanking Lilah's gaze back into reality. Luckily, no one had seen her ogling the magician too intently.

"You know that guy?" Gon asked.

She tried not to pay attention to their conversation, beginning to distract herself with her nails, pretending to look for a chip.

"So does that mean he tried last year?" Kurapika questioned, and Tonpa nodded.

Her ears picked up.

"Number 44, Hisoka the Magician."

She felt a wave of panic racing in again. Beautiful. His name.

"Hey, Delilah. Delilah!"

She snapped back into reality, looking at Kurapika with an empty expression.

"Are you doing alright? I noticed you seemed a little unsettled a few moments prior."

"Migraine. I need to lie down."

"Woah, woah, you don't look too good," Leorio stepped toward her and rested the back of his palm on her forehead tenderly. "What happened?"

"I just feel unwell," she said, gently brushing his hand from her skin, which felt like frostbite to him. "At least let me get you some water."

With a nod, Leorio pulled a flask out of his briefcase and allowed her to replenish her thirst. With a content sigh, she handed it back. "I feel better, just dehydrated," she lied casually. Her throat still burned with dryness as her eyes wandered back to where his figure remained, unmoving.

In an attempt to get even a few inches closer to his presence, she barely noticed colliding gently into someone and apologized quickly. She lifted her head, seeing she had run into a man with purple skin and a blue mohawk. He had pins sticking all over his head, which gave him a more menacing tone. Her guard dropped, and a large smile appeared on her face. She returned to a state of calm, protectedness.

"Illumi," she whispered under her breath, and he stared complacently at her.

"I thought you'd be too uninterested to participate in something as dull as this."