Ill-Fated (Phantom Troupe x Reader) [Soulmate AU]

10.

You were back in the large room where you had initially been brought upon your arrival; now, you noticed a few more people were lounging around than before. A large stitched man who reminded you a lot of Frankenstein's monster and a scrawny man wrapped head-to-toe in bandages were new additions to the group. Your best guess was that all the spiders were slowly gathering together for something: maybe for you, or maybe something bigger was coming. Your gut told you it was a little bit of both. 

You were sat between Uvogin and Phinks and opposite Shlanark, the three of whom were setting up to play cards. After bringing you here, Machi immediately took up her post far away from you, leaning against the wall coolly. Her eyes never left your form, and every time you made eye contact with her, she continued staring you down, almost like she was challenging you to look away first. It was as if she was analyzing your every movement, making you fidget uncomfortably in your seat. 

"You wanna play?" Shalnark asked as he shuffled the deck. You didn't even realize he was asking you at first, as you were busy staring down at the cracked floor under your feet. That was until you got a slight bump from Phinks.

"Huh?" You looked up in confusion.

"We're playing Fool, wanna play?" Repeated Shalnark, demonstrably waving around the mixed deck of cards. 

"Oh. No... I don't know how to play, so I'd probably slow you down." You replied.

Phinks burst out laughing, smirking as he looked toward you.

"You must have been fun at parties." He said, mockery dripping from his voice. 

You could only shrug in response. Even from your limited interaction with Phinks, you could already tell this man never outgrew the phase of pulling his crush's pigtails because he doesn't know how else to get her attention. You couldn't bring yourself to care about his rudeness, though. The same thoughts still tortured your mind as the night before. Your future seemed like an impossibly dark hole, exhausting you physically and mentally.

Shalnark, who, for some reason, decided not to push you further, offered for the stitched man, called Bonolenov, to play with them instead. Bonolenov agreed to be their fourth and joined your little circle. Shalnark began to pass out the cards as Uvogin took a swig of something beside you. 

It felt like all the noise around you suddenly became drowned out. Maybe it was the exhaustion, but it felt like an out-of-body experience. Everything seemed to be happening in slow motion, but you could see clearly for the first time since you were taken. You looked around at the people you were in the room with, and all you saw was the rubble, the greed, and the excess. You couldn't live here, and you wouldn't die here either.  You were going to escape or die trying to. How could you, though?

You are probably at every major disadvantage you could be at: you don't know where you are, you don't know the extent of their strength, and worst of all, physical combat has never been your strong suit. However, there were two advantages you did have. One: a good number of associates on the outside who would love to do you a favor if only you could contact them. Two: your life. Chrollo hinted at it, but you already guessed it: they can't kill you. Not without being at risk themselves. They could hurt you or maim you even, but you have to be kept alive at all costs. This meant a simple bottom line could inform all your future decisions: they won't go so far as to take your life. 

You needed a game plan. First, gain at least a modicum of their trust so that you aren't watched every second of every day. Then, you could work toward contacting one of your past associates, Viktor. He was probably one of your oldest acquaintances and owed you a lot of favors. His nen ability, which allowed him to create portals within a certain radius of his own location, would be incredibly helpful as well. After that, you would bide your time for the right moment when everyone would be preoccupied with something. Then you could get out of there. 

There was a possibility that Viktor would refuse, not wanting to mess with the Phantom Troupe. You weren't even sure when or how you would contact him, but you couldn't dwell on that right now. For the first time, you saw a glimpse of light in the dark, unforeseeable hole of your future.

"Dammit!" Phinks, ever the sore loser, slammed his cards onto the table again, having lost the third round. Shalnark gathered the cards and began mixing them again, ignoring the playful ribbing Phinks received from Uvogin.

Shalnark was preoccupied with studying the girl in front of him. His eyes fell onto your wrists, which just yesterday were bright red with rope burn; now, there was only perfectly healthy, clear skin. It was as if you were never tied up in the first place. Shalnark had seen plenty of people get tied up before, and usually, it took at least a few days to recover, but you had healed much quicker than any person he'd ever met. It intrigued him.

Shalnark raised his eyes to catch a glimpse of your face. He could practically see the gears turning in your head as you stared at the floor with an unreadable expression. He was curious about you, and he couldn't understand why. Last night he went through all your stuff, taking special note of your Hunter's license. Using it, he could find your profile in the registry, which told him your full name, date of birth, eye color, hair color, and weight, but it still wasn't enough. No amount of digging he did could satiate his curiosity, and it annoyed Shalnark to no end.

Finally, setting down the cards, he broke the girl out of her deep thinking.

"So you're a hunter?" He asked. 

Uvogin and Phinks both quietened to hear your answer to the loaded question Shal posed. You stayed quiet, only nodding.

"You know of Nen then?" Shalnark continued. You still stayed quiet, nodding again. 

Shalnark felt a twinge of irritation but didn't let it show. Instead, he smiled like normal.

"Your wrists healed very quickly." 

He said it like a fact, but you knew it was an accusation. It caught you by surprise, and for the first time, you raised your head to meet his eyes. You felt the weight of a few stares drilling holes into you as the air stilled around you. Witnessing your sudden response, Shalnark's eyes glinted with victory. He had forced you to react: your muscles tensing and your eyes narrowing at him. 

"I heal quickly." You said, never breaking eye contact. 

"I wonder how that works." Shalnark countered.

"Good genetics." You replied. 

With your renewed sense of confidence, you didn't break eye contact with him. The silence between the two of you was stifling, only broken by Uvogin's voice.

"What the hell are you two talking about?" The large guy sounded confused, and you and Shalnark looked at him incredulously.  

'Uvogin is the most enhancer-like enhancer I have ever met: selfish, straightforward, and dumb to a fault.' You thought. 

You were interrupted by Phinks's cell phone ringing, which he immediately fished out of his pocket. Checking the caller ID, his eyes glinted with recognition, and he immediately picked up.

"Feitan! Where the hell have you been?"