Chapter Text
Killua had been training for this day his entire life. The Freecss’ were a well-known line of royalty with only one child to inherit the throne, and that single child was his target. He didn’t understand why his parents wanted them dead, it wasn’t like the politics of some random kingdom would have any impact on them, but there was no way he was going to actually ask why. His parents had seemed pretty set on training him for this, and he didn’t really get a say in the matter.
So there he sat, in a tree, in the courtyard of a castle, waiting for the perfect moment to climb up to the room of the heir to the Freecss throne. He adjusted his mask and hood (he didn’t really need them, he just thought wearing them made him look cool) and took a glance at the sky. Almost midnight, now was his chance. He had spent the past few days watching the guards, and there was one, in particular, that would always fall asleep before their shift was over, and so Killua had set up his plan A with this particular guard in mind. He watched and waited for the smallest hint, the slightest slump that showed the guard to be asleep.
One more second…
One more…
There.
Killua jumped from the tree, and with silent footsteps, he made his way past the sleeping guard. The sides of the castle were made of stone with just enough space between them that he could use them to climb. He began to scale the side of the wall- he had a few minutes to reach the top before the guards switched, which wouldn’t be hard for him. It was a cold night, and a gust of wind nearly blew off his hood but he held it tightly onto his head and kept climbing. This wall led right to the heir’s room, and Killua almost laughed at how easy it was to get in. To leave someone as incompetent as a guard who falls asleep outside of the room of someone as important as the singular heir, it was just foolish.
He reached the top of the wall, the balcony of the room. Through the window, Killua could see that the candles had been blown out- it was all going according to plan. He pulled himself up and put his leg over the side of the balcony.
“Hey.”
Killua almost fell off the ledge. He frantically looked around for the source, preparing to either fight or flight depending on the situation. Sitting on the floor was a kid, about his age, wearing a nightshirt. Killua was taken by surprise for the second time, and the only sounds that managed to come out of his mouth were “Uhhhhhh.”
“Are you an assassin?”
What the fuck. Did this kid just ask him if he was an assassin? He was, sure, but that isn’t just a question you ask someone out of nowhere. Once again Killua was unable to respond with words, “I… uh.”
“Well I’m Gon,” He held out his hand for Killua to shake. Killua, unsure how to react in this situation, carefully took his hand. Gon squeezed his hand and beamed. “You know, I’ve never actually met an assassin before. They normally get stopped by the guards before they can get this far, so meeting you is pretty cool. That is if you’re actually an assassin.”
What was he supposed to do in this situation? This was not part of any of his plans, and he wasn’t the best at improvising when it came to talking to people, he had a tendency to be rude, but he did the best he could at the moment. “H-how-” He took a moment to relax his brain, and made sure he spoke in the calmest voice he could so as to seem cool and uncaring. “How old are you?”
“I’m twelve.”
They were the same age. Killua did not expect the heir, if that's who Gon was, to be his age. He had expected them to be older, old enough to take over a kingdom at least. The knife hidden in his clothing’s blade was cold, and he could feel it against his leg. Cold like death, reminding him of the job he had to do. For the first time, the idea of killing someone didn’t feel normal, it made his stomach churn and he couldn’t place why. He cursed himself for being weak.
While the assassin was lost in thought, Gon had begun to step closer and Killua instinctively scooted away. Now that he was near, the boy’s face was visible- Big brown eyes that seemed to be latching on to everything in sight, and black hair that stuck up, like it defied gravity. He was a strange looking kid, but honestly, all kids were strange looking, and Killua felt a naive feeling of trust towards him.
“If you aren’t an assassin, then why are you covering your face?”
“All criminals cover their faces, idiot. I could just be a robber or something.”
“So you are a criminal?”
“Well. I guess, but uh. Hm,” it surprised Killua how easy it was to talk with this kid, he always despised talking to others, not to say he didn’t hate this- he just hated it a little less.
“So, what’s your name?”
He was wrong about everything, this conversation was the absolute worst. How did he respond to that? Did he make up a fake name, if so what would he say? Did he say his real name, and risk himself being discovered? Well, he wouldn’t have to worry about that if he killed Gon. And he was going to kill him, right? Yeah. He would think of it as insurance, as long as Gon knew his name he would have to kill him.
“I’m Killua,” He wanted to be the first to ask a question this time. “Are you the prince?”
Gon nodded enthusiastically. “Yep! And you should probably get down here soon, the guards switch around this time.”
Killua was still a little confused, but he was warming up to the kid. He got off the ledge and sat on the ground, across from where Gon was sitting down again.
“Sooo… Are you an assassin?”
Well, there was no point in trying to hide it now, as long as he killed Gon before morning he didn’t need to lie about anything, really. “Yeah, I’m an assassin.”
“Ooooh, that's so cool!”
“Aren’t you a little bit scared?”
Gon tilted his head like a confused puppy before answering. “Why would I be scared?”
“Cause I kill people? Aren’t you a little worried I might have come here to kill you?”
“Well, yeah but. I figured that if you wanted to kill me, I would already be dead. So, you know, I’m not too worried.”
“But what if I was trying to kill you?”
Gon put his head against the wall and thought for a couple seconds. “Well, I guess I wouldn’t be too worried. I can fight, you know. But I don’t get to talk to other kids that often, and I’m enjoying hanging out with you, so I’m assuming you’re enjoying it as well.”
Killua didn’t know how to respond. If he was being honest, talking to Gon was the most fun he’s had in a while. But he had to do his job. He stood up, and his hand moved to where he had hidden the knife, but he stopped. He didn’t want to kill Gon, he really didn’t want to- and he wasn’t used to that. He hadn’t thought twice about ending the lives of all the others, but it was so stupid, that after meeting someone and talking to them for such a short amount of time, that he would actually feel guilty about having to kill him. Killua hated that feeling. That feeling of guilt that hadn’t touched him in so long, clenching his stomach with a fist of judgement, and causing his head to spin.
A gust of wind knocked him out of his thoughts, taking his hood with it. He turned around to face Gon, who was staring up at his white hair. Killua pulled down his mask so he could speak without the cloth obstructing his voice. “I’ll see you tomorrow, Gon.”
Gon beamed and laughed, “I’ll be waiting then.”
Killua turned and pulled his hood up, once again obscuring his face with the mask. He had an escape route planned from the start, and now he took it, leaving the prince alive in his wake.