ghostgirl

A3

"Alright, we're here!" The captain announced to the four of them.

Reniku capped her bottle, swallowed down a gulp of water in her mouth and grabbed her bag, following the rest out of the ship while thanking the captain for his service.

The captain stayed onboard, waving to the four friends, and sailed off on another journey. Reniku wondered what would happen to those still onboard who did not pass the captain's test.

She took in a deep breath and whirled around to face the open-air harbour she was currently in, which was hugging the foot of a large hill with an upslope city. Its greenery relieved Reniku's eyes after about half a day of seeing only wood and water. The air was fresh, different from the smell of vomit and salt on the ship. The wooden planks she was standing on were solid as concrete and it took Reniku a while to re-adjust to the stable ground fixed to the earth, previously having to balance herself as the ship she was on voyaged on violent waves.

Clumps of clouds could be seen all over the sky, along with groups of seagulls and other birds circling the harbour. Water splashed against the vertical stone wall erecting from the sea bed. Wind blew Reniku's hair into her face and she reached to the back of her head to tie it up. Her head's pain had lessened a lot since hitting it on the deck. The gleaming sun above made the sea glitter once more, and below the sea level the water was clear as glass with a tint of blue on reflective silver fishes, rocks, corals and sand.

Their footsteps were taps against the wooden planks of the platform. Below them, underneath the platform, pillars reached into the water.

Reniku shifted the drawstring bag on her back. Her heart pounded faster. "Gon, are you nervous?"

"Nope! I'm really excited!" He replied. "It's just a Hunter Exam, after all."

Well...just a Hunter Exam.

And so, their adventure began.

-

Remembering the captain's advice for them to head straight for the cedar tree at the top of the hill, Reniku and the others headed towards the upslope city.

The city seemed densely packed yet spacious for people to walk through, colorful buildings lining the pathways, making it lively and vibrant.

All kinds of people were there. Some were wearing casual clothes, some looked ready for battle like Reniku and Kurapika, others wore formal clothing like Leorio's, and some had strange but colourful clothes on like Gon's.

Every step of the way made Reniku want to both speed up running and run away to throw up. The amount of excitement, nervousness and anxiety she was experiencing was higher than ever in her life. Anticipation etched at her curious mind, yet Reniku forced herself to control those almost foreign feelings. It would drain her energy levels before the exams had even started. She shook her head, silently telling herself not to worry too much about it and find a distraction.

"...and that's how Aunt Mito allowed me to take the exam!"

"This Aunt Mito...why doesn't she trust you?" Leorio asked.

Kurapika intervened with Leorio's question, "Well, if you were Gon's legal guardian and just heard one day that he was going to take the Hunter Exam, wouldn't you have done the same?"

"In my defense, Gon's got the personality. He's really talented for a twelve-year-old. But if I were to be Reniku's legal guardian, I'd..."

Reniku pouted inside. "I don't know what to say to that. I'm offended."

Everyone laughed and Leorio apologised, saying that Gon just stood out. (Reniku let him off the hook this time because she just became friends with Leorio.)