Shuffle The Deck

Chapter 15 - A Goal for the Future

"This is completely pointless! Why argue about whether somebody should have passed?"

Gon spoke out, directing everyone's attention to him. He began talking in a confident tone, keeping Lilah and the others intrigued with his words. After he was finished, Beans took over once again, telling everyone about their new Hunter Licenses. This was Lilah's cue to zone out, and only catch the last few words of his monologue.

"From here on out, it's your show. Believe in yourselves, and keep working to make your dreams come true," he finished, with a big smile on his green face.

The Chairman stood up from his seat and put his hands behind his back. He smiled warmly at all the applicants and opened his mouth to speak.

"Well, we can now certify all seven applicants present as licensed Hunters."

Lilah raised her head with a small smile.

She was now officially a Hunter.

"And with that, the ceremony has concluded. You may all take your leave," the Chairman declared, gesturing to the door. Everyone almost immediately stood up and began making their way to the door. However, Illumi and Gon stayed behind, leaving Lilah to exit as one of the first.

Her back was against a pillar, eyes trailed down to the floor. She waited for Gon and the others to finish talking to Illumi, which would prove to take longer than expected because Hisoka appeared right after he was done.

With a heavy eye roll, she trudged over to the three. They made eye contact with her, Gon being the only one happy to see her. He looked at Kurapika and Leorio, who stared at her with irritated expressions.

She let out a heavy sigh and motioned them to come over in her direction. They did as they were directed, and stood in front of her. She inhaled deeply and hung her head low.

"I'm sorry for not being honest with you guys. I should have told you about everything from the very start, and not kept secrets from you."

Leorio sighed heavily, and a smile cracked on his lips. "Don't worry, we don't hold grudges like Kurapika here," he teased and elbowed him gently in the shoulder. He just sighed and smiled with his eyes closed.

"To start, Killua and I grew up together, same with Illumi. I did tell Gon, but I never mentioned it to you two. I've been close with Illumi for more than twenty years, despite what he claims. He's a sly bastard, that one. Killua and Illumi are the closest things to brothers I've ever had. When I signed up for the Hunter Exam, I only did it to see Illumi again and catch up with him, for no other reason. But then..."

She chuckled lightly, and tucked a strand of hair behind her ear, looking in Hisoka's direction. Her eyes landed on his back, and a red tint crept onto her face.

"I met Hisoka there too, at first being completely terrified of him. His aura made me so uneasy, and that's why I separated away from you guys at the beginning of the First Phase. I grew closer to him during the Exam, and I knew he made you guys uncomfortable, so I tried my best to stay away. But, I don't know what to do now, since I-"

"Whoa, whoa, whoa. What are you sayin'?" Leorio asked, frazzled.

"I mean...I just..." she bit her lip, and nervously grabbed her wrist.

"I want to fight him. Even if I'm nowhere near as powerful as he is, I still want to go up against him."

"Are you kidding? That's suicide!"

"I have to agree with Leorio on that one," Kurapika interjected, folding his arms.

Lilah sighed and hung her head. "I know it's an idiotic move, but I want to find an area where I can fight him without losing my life. Maybe one day. But for now, it'll be a goal for the future."