Facade (A Hunter X Hunter Fanfiction)

Chapter 12: To Look Cool

◇ ═ Start of Chapter 12 ═ ◇

Taisiya's POV

We were a few more hours into phase one. The road had turned into stairs and the pace had been picked up. At some point, I saw Leorio speeding pass me which was amusing. Hisoka also hasn't said anything for the past hour despite my constant chattering due to boredom which wasn't a surprise.

"Hey Hisoka, what if there was someone who could reverse time and they reversed the time of the universe without anyone knowing?"

"..."

"We wouldn't know if the world had been reversed at some point since our memories wouldn't have even existed yet."

"..."

"What do you think had happened if someone did that? It shouldn't be something as stupid as public embarrassment, right?"

"..."

"I mean if it was really embarrassing I guess I'd get it. There was this one time at school during an award ceremony, I accidentally tripped when receiving the award and ended up tripping the entire line of teachers as well as equipment before creating a small fire on the stage."

"..." Hisoka turned to me with a blank look on his face.

Snickering, I decided to stop talking for a while to look upfront and noticed Leorio had taken off his shirt as well as Kurapika with his tabard. Staring at Kurapika, I noticed he had a really toned body. It wasn't something noticeable from the anime but in real life, he somehow looked really attractive.

'Did he always have muscles?' I wondered to myself as I looked at the somewhat drenched clothes outlining his figure.

Realizing what I had thought, I felt my face turn hot as blood pumped into my head. Shaking my head, I heard a small hum from beside me. Turning, I saw Hisoka look at me with an amused look in his face. Pouting at him, I snapped my head back front, finally stopping my chattering.

Eventually, we reached the top of the stairs into a wide field that was covered in fog. Being one of the few that reached the top early, there weren't a lot of people. I spotted Gon and Killua sitting in front of the gate, talking to each other happily as we waited for the rest of the group to catch up.

Suddenly, Gon's eyes trailed to my direction and we locked eyes. Smiling, Gon waved his hands towards me. Surprised, I frantically waved back at the boy. Killua also noticed me but only showed a bored expression.

 A wheezing Leorio appeared who looked ready to drop dead. Noticing Kurapika who was behind him, I was reminded of my previous thought and instantly turned around to avoid looking at him.

"Is this our destination?" I heard Kurapika ask the two boys. 

"No, it isn't."

"I see," Kurapika answered with a small voice. "The fog is fading."

Hearing this, I instantly looked through the mist. Trees upon trees laid in front of us. The fog passed through the branches, creating a mysterious look towards the forest. You could hear birds squawking and loud rumbling from inside.

"The Numere Wetlands, also known as Swindlers Swamp," Satotz started commenting. " We must cross these wetlands to reach Phase Two of the exams."

"This place is home to many bizarre animals, many of them being cunning, insatiable creatures, who deceive humans and prey upon them. Be very careful," Satotz explained before turning around to face us.

"If you let them fool you... you're dead." 

The vibe went down increasingly cold. You could hear the heavy breathing of exhausted people, trying to digest this new information.