(HxH) Hunters and Hunted [LazyKitsune]

[Lorielle]

Name: Luella "Lue"
Age: 19
Gender: Female
Reasons for becoming a Hunter: To follow in the footsteps of someone she admires and to reach someone she hates.
Traits:
Street Smarts - Lue is used to the ebb and flow of the streets on the ground level. She can find her way through back alleys and seedy streets safer than most and can sniff out con artists and shady types with ease.
Homerun - Lue is fast on her feet, able to outpace other humans of equivalent physical aptitude.
Swing Batter Batter Swing - Lue is very good at hitting things with her bat. Very. Hard.
Flaws:
Cutie - For most people this would be a plus, but Lue doesn't have the knowhow or interest to leverage this to her advantage. She's less likely to be intimidating to people that find her attractive and her looks tend to bring a lot of unwanted attention her way.
Competitive - Lue may act like not a lot phases her, but once something becomes a competition she can't let it go. Her drive to prove herself won't let her.
Appearance:

Spoiler (click to show/hide):

Turn ons: Sub/dom play, hypnosis, beasts, gangbang, rape, drunk/drugged sex, blackmail/coercion, sexual favours, humiliation
Turn offs: Gore, vore, scat, pedo, insects and arachnids

The sun was beating down on you, your bat strapped to your back, your ballcap filling with more and more sweat as you stood out in the hot arid sun. A gal next to you was on her phone popping a piece of bubblegum seemingly waiting for the same thing as you. All around you though were more and more people all spread out into a huge blob supposedly waiting for the bus to the exam as well. How the hell was a single bus going to take everyone here to the exams? An invitation pointed you to this location out in the middle of nowhere. A gas station, a bar or saloon next to it and a bus stop. And this bus stop was supposed to be where someone or something was gonna whisk you away to the 269th hunter exams. The heat haze creates a strange silver like mirage that seems form a ring that you could see out into every direction giving the landscape a sort of eerie wobbliness. Even the people who were standing around in the crowd almost seemed fake if it wasnt for the fact they were all going on about how hot it was.

Another *Pop* breaks your light reverie. The girl slips her phone into her pocket. Another minute of silence passes when you hear her fumble around in her backpack for another thing of gum to toss into her mouth, throwing away the bits of metalized foil onto the ground.

"Its uhh.. takin a while huh." She finally says finally. "My phone died before it even got here... You wouldnt happen to have a charger would you?" Her speech is at best could be described as languid, she blows another bubble before you could even respond to her.

But what she said was right, the letter you received after your registration was confirmed said that bus should have been here hours ago. When you look around you do notice theres a pretty large number of cars at the Saloon, maybe other applicants waiting around in addition to the ones who were braving the sun with you.

Even without waiting for the bus though the sun was just getting to you and it wasnt going to get any better for at least a few more hours.. Still your mind wanders as you look up and down the length of the dusty road. You swear not even cars passed by in the last hour. Where does this road even go?

The wind blows a bit hard in this moment, kicking up sand into your face forcing you to squint for a second. The mirage out behind the bar seems to grow for a second and then it dissipates back into the thin ring of silver from earlier. A few of the figures seem to have a similar thought to the girl next to you, she fiddles with her backpack a bit, but some of the murmurs of the crowd make it sound like people are willing to take a break at the bar and just wait out the sun and hope they can catch the bus before it departs. Slowly one by one the blob of people begins to dissipate, not to mention your own urge to join them.

[Lazy Kitsune]

A stifling heat like this could make a girl miss even the crappiest of dive bars. At least they might have a half working fan and some cold drinks the betting type would have decent odds of trying one of without getting spiked. Out here, even the wind was too dry to be of much use, blowing more of that sweltering heat onto us and kicking up a hue of dust in the process. I tip my cap lower, hoping the shade will help keep the heat from my face at least. The crowd of people all gathered around at this one spot doesn't help with the heat much either. Too many bodies all pressed together like this. I've had experience standing around for hours under the beating sun, waiting for my chance to prove myself, but usually I was standing on my own. If there was a crowd nearby, they would be off in the stands, with shade and cold drinks. Just thinking about it makes my lips feel dry, so I reapply a bit of lipstick to help wet them properly.

I cast my eyes over to the girl beside me as she speaks, her voice mingling with the moist mastication of the gum in her mouth in a way that garbled her speech ever so slightly that I personally found a little relaxing to listen to. I slip my lipstick away as I think for a moment. "Sure..." I murmur, my tone equally as lackadaisical as the girl's own. "Should have one on me... I'll let you use it for a stick of gum."

I fish out my charger and hold it in my hand out to her, waiting for the requested exchange before handing it off. By now people were starting to drift inside in significant numbers, choosing the cool shade to wait in instead of out here. Seems a bit risky if you ask me. There were a lot of people here for a bus, I don't know what to expect, but I'd rather not take the risk that when it arrived it would only have so much room on it. Best to stay right at the front. Still, can't blame them either, this heat was killer.

I let out a grunting sigh as I slip my hat off and start to take off my hoodie. I strip down my top half to my sports bra and then drape my hoodie over my shoulders, tying the arms together like a neckerchief so that the fabric stayed covering me from above and providing shade, but my body had room to breathe and cool down. I pop my cap back in place, returning to waiting around like nothing happened.

[Lorielle]

The girl fishes around in her backpack for a stick of gum to trade and finds one readily enough. The exchange happens in a blink as she drops the gum into your hand and swiftly grabs the charger with her now freed up hand. "Thanks, name's Bella" She extends her hand out this time, empty but still expectant of you to shake it, though it was in the middle of your undressing so for any onlookers it was a bit of a sight to see the almost dainty woman hold her hand out for a good few minutes until you had finished modifying your clothes to better get used to the heat.

The crowd though had thinned out to maybe a tenth of its original size by now, the few sticking around seemingly having the same idea as you about the quantity of people who could theoretically fit on a bus. Still with the sun beating down on you, you were feeling a bit desperate for something to drink, something chilled and frosty. Your eyes pan over to the gas station for a moment when Bella speaks back up. "You.. take the bus often?" She asks like she was on an awkward first date.

"B'cuz i do.. and i was just checking but whatever that bus route is." She points to the sign. "And Well.. we dont have any tickets for it. Did your invitation include one?"

[Lazy Kitsune]

Seeing her hand extended once I'm finished redressing, I hold out my own gloved palm return the shake. "Lue." I say, popping the gum into my mouth and starting to chew idly as we waited around. My eyes follow Bella's finger to the sign and back down to her as she speaks. "Huh, no I guess it didn't... You don't think they'd expect us to have tickets for this thing, do you? Where'd we get them from?" I ask, my tongue pushing the gum into the corner of my mouth for me to chew on while I talk.

I look around while waiting for Bella to respond, trying to see if there was anything I missed about the surrounding area. "I'm a bit worried about moving from this spot. You can normally pay for tickets on a bus, can't you? This route supposed to be different somehow?"

The heat was making my throat feel dry and the urge to go get a drink was getting more and more tempting, but unless I felt confident I could move away from here and not miss the bus, I'd rather try and wait it out at this point. Still, daydreams of lemonade started to tickle at the back of my mind as I thought through this ticket conundrum.

[Lorielle]

Bella:

Spoiler (click to show/hide):

"Hmm im checking my bus pass.. and it says it doesnt cover this route, we might be able to, but.. well im looking at the sign and its... similar to some of those more old timey signs where you had to go to a 'bus terminal' to get a ticket, back when they acted like big shuttle services." She puts her head on a swivel. Trying to look around seeing only the bar and gas station.

"What do you think? It seems kinda odd, telling us specifically to meet at what looks like a dead bus route and wait for a bus thats hours late. Maybe we can buy a ticket at the gas station or something else." Something at the back of your head tingles, the situation certainly was starting to seem sketchy, the people who initially went into the bar havent come back out either, you'd think if they just wanted drinks they'd zip back out, unless they drinks and cool air were just that good. But waiting it out did seem to be the safest choice, considering rumors youve heard about the strange sorts of tests that seemed to occur, but the exams havent even started yet.

[Lazy Kitsune]

I look up to the sign once again as Bella speaks, tilting my cap up to get a better look at it. "I see what you mean. You're pretty smart." I murmur. Like her, I start to look around once again for anything that might act as a bus terminal, even if it looked abandoned. Seems the only things on this stretch of road were the saloon and gas station. This crowd was probably the most action this place had seen in decades. Speaking off the crowd...

My back starts to feel tense and I shift my shoulders back and forth to try and alleviate it. Sure... most of the people who went into the saloon would probably hang about inside, looking out the windows for the bus to arrive. But not one hopped back out again after grabbing a drink or taking a piss? Bella was right, something here didn't feel right and it was starting to put me on edge.

"You sure about that ticket thing?" I ask her, blowing out a bubble with the gum and taking my turn to be the one to pop it this time as I waited for her response. I grip the handle of my bat and sling it over my shoulder, having it at the ready just in case, its weight helping to put me at ease. "If you are... could be no one else has figured that out yet. No tickets, no passengers, no passengers, no need for a bus. Just... lets stick together, somethings off right now and I'd rather not fuck things up before even getting to the exam."

I start to walk towards the gas station, stopping to make sure Bella was following me before heading over to have a look.

[Lorielle]

"Thanks, but its mostly thanks to my phone." She says with a giggle, shaking it and you can see it slowly recharging thanks to your aid. But upon a second examination if you take into account the idea of a "bus terminal" you realize that the gas station is a bit oversized, the building itself had an attached garage but no cars or mechanics working, but also the gas pumps were spaced out much wider than you'd need for normal cars not to mention how high up the shade stack was.

When you ask bella if she was sure about the bus stop sign. She nods. "im like 95% sure, just look here." She holds up her phone and you can see a photo she took of the sign and on a split screen was a black and white photo of a similar sign. Though there were some differences, in the font and numbers, but the pattern around the edge would surely make it pass a squint test. She nods along to what you're staying and follows you, holding her phone close to your chest as the two of you peel away from the small crowd still left at the bus stop, though a few of the people are curious about why the two of you decided to make your exit now.

When you check though she is behind you. "Hopefully im not wrong, im.. uhh rarely wrong about these things." She says a faint desperate chuckle, you can tell she'd feel awful if she was the reason neither of you got to attend the exam. But its not long before you get to the front door of the gas station the doors slide open automatically and a waft of refreshing cold air blasts you in the face as the two of you step inside. A burly sort of man is behind the counter reading the news paper but besides that the layout seemed pretty typical of a gas station convenience store, shelves of cheap snacks, walls of cold beverages. Nothing about it seems to scream that it was anything but a gas station store.

[Lazy Kitsune]

I nod as Bella shows me the comparison between the sign now and a photo from back in the day. Seeing the structure of the gas station just added to this idea more. Going by its dimensions, it looks like it was designed to shelter buses. There weren't any buses in sight right now, of course... that being the main problem we were all dealing with... but there could still used to have been buses here. Or, perhaps still, in that garage there.

The cold air hits me and I couldn't be more glad I took my hoodie off. The wave of freshness blowing over my exposed skin causing me to audibly moan with a sigh of relief as the mounting heat from outside is offset. If the saloon was anything like this, I could see why people wouldn't leave, but it was a bad time to get distracted. Inside it looked about how you would expect, but it was still worth asking... and I was still wary about the bizarreness of this whole situation. I trot over to the counter, nodding towards the man behind it. He seemed pretty unfussed about the topless woman wielding a spiked bat that just walked into his shop, but maybe there was a really engrossing article on that paper.

"Hey." I say, tapping on the counter in case I hadn't gotten his attention yet. "This where we get tickets for the bus?" I ask, blowing out another bubble of gum as I wait for his response.

[Lorielle]

The air was certainly a lovely lovely change to bitterly intense heat of the sun just outside. Bella is exploring the shelves for anything interesting to much on instead of joining you at the counter. The man seemed to be quite engrossed even as you approach, only briefly flicking his eyes up at you when you do something to draw his attention.

"Ticket to the bus huh?" He folds his paper and places it on the counter leaning forward a bit to rest his elbow on the glass counter top, just below were a plethora of scratch cards, all of dazzling different colors. "Now why would you want a bus ticket, aint nowhere to go around these parts. Nothing to see, nothing to do, not unless you've got something you need to be doin miss. " The back of your head starts to tingle again. The man was clearly hiding something as he takes a lean back into his little office chair and folding his arms with a bit of a harumph.

[Lazy Kitsune]

"Yeah, that's usually how it works..." I say, not sure how much I wanted to be telling this guy. He seemed just as off as everything else that was going on around here. Surely he has to know why there's a huge crowd of people gathered outside his gas station. It would be too strange an occurrence for him to just carry on reading his newspaper if he didn't know. So either he knows about the Hunter Exam or he knows about the invitations everyone found. Either way, he would know about the bus and why someone would want a ticket. So why was he asking? Just to make small talk... did he think he could get something out of me?

I narrow my eyes at him for a moment before speaking. There didn't seem to be harm in telling him something he already knew. "We're here for the Hunter Exam. Just about everyone here is. Like you said, doesn't seem to be much to see or do around here... Look, is this the right place for the tickets or not?" I turn, glancing over my shoulder towards Bella. "Hey, is there something specific you'd need to do at those old bus terminals to get a ticket?"

[Lorielle]

The man's eyes seem to narrow right back at you as if to challenge your expression with his own or maybe provide a mirror, still your response does seem to elicit a response from the man. He's about to speak up when you look over your shoulder at Bella whose picked out a large two liter bottle of soda from one of the wall fridges. "I.. i think you're doing it about right, typically you had to.. umm i guess pick a route and a time to depart and just tell the clerk. Kinda like any airport." She says as you hear a door slamming. Though her response doesnt really help much considering you didnt know the name of the city, only the "route" number that was on the sign outside.

"So you're a rookie ay? You dont seem like much of a hunter to me though, what you think that wicked looking bat of yours makes you tough enough to be one?" The way he looked at you seared into that his words were a challenge to you. "And your friend back there, what she some lackey? Didnt think hunters had tagalongs neither."

[Lazy Kitsune]

I look over the invite I found again to see if there is anything information on there for asking about the bus route, muttering through the words written on it as the man behind the counter starts going off about Bella and me. "Hey, have you got any more gum, the flavour's starting to go on this one." I call over to Bella, pulling the wad of gum from my mouth and sticking it on the counter. "Oh, they've got chocolate bars over here, you want anything?"

Seeing the man's intense stare at me, I turn my attention back to him. "Huh, what? Oh, right, the bat. Nah, I'm not a man, I don't need an affectation to help me feel like I've got a big dick. The bat's just a bat." I set it down to my side, handle leaning against my leg, and fold my arms across my chest, sliding right under my sports bra. "Good thing they have an exam to work out who is and isn't cut out to be a hunter then, isn't it? This is where we get the tickets then, right? How much?"

[Lorielle]

You earn yourself a wry smile from the man as he looks you up and down seemingly for the first time actually taking in your form, though she thankfully doesnt seem to want to eye fuck you like you felt a few of the other applicants standing about the bus stop were doing. "Hah! A bat's just a bat. You're damn right. You want a ticket well, i think you've earned it, though if you friend wants to get through she's gotta need to pay for her snacks as well."

You do hear Bella fumbling around for more snacks when she pops up by your side, dumping the sodas and bags of different snakcs down onto the counter. "Oh is this where we actually get on?" She says with a bit of glee, though the smile that was on the man's face is quickly wiped away by the smorgas board of treats Bella has picked out for herself and the fact he's gotta bust out the scanner to start actually doing his job.

Once thats done and Bella puts her credit card away the shop owner pushes a button next to his register, the counter creates and opening for the two women to walk through as a trap door opens up behind the man. "Just follow the stairs, you'll find the bus, but dont come crying back to me if you have any regrets. Good luck you two," He says with a wave before the trap door closes and some lights come on to illuminate the stair case downward.

It goes on for quite a while, just long enough for you to wonder if you'd been led into some horrible horror move trap, but just as your fears begin to climb up you hear the rumble of engines. Exiting the last step you see before you some sort of underground bus line, with rows upon rows of busses all idling waiting to set off but not only that there were other applicants all here and already boarding as well!

"Well at least they werent lying about the bus." Bella lets out a nervous chuckle as she looks at you, holding both of her bags of goodies. "Cant imagine where they go though. You have any clue, my GPS said its pretty barren for miles around."

[Lazy Kitsune]

"...Wait... Really?" I'm a little surprised by how quickly his tune changes. It seems this all was some kind of test after all. "Huh..." I take a step back as this settles in while Bella comes over with her mountain of snacks. While the man scans through her food, I take off my cap for a moment so I can slip my hoodie back on, no longer needing to worry about waiting around in the intense heat outside. With Bella's shopping done, I stand and watch as the counter opens up, creating a path to a trap door to lead us below the gas station. I whistle at the little display. "Okay, I did not see that coming." I murmur, scooping back up my bat as I walk over to the entrance of the stairway.

"You know, you're a cool dude after all. Not sure what I said that made you like me, but have a good one." I say, waving off to the man behind the counter as Bella and I walk down the stairs into whatever was below.

Of course, the possibility that this was some kind of trick weighs on my mind the entire time, but that seemed like an awfully fancy set up to be some kind of kidnapping operation - especially one operating all the way out here. But all of that is set aside as we come out to an underground bus line where other applicants already seemed to be boarding. Not that I saw anyone else disappear into the gas station... might've been a few before I started paying attention to it, but could there be other places nearby these people came from? That would make sense, as crowded as that bus stop was, there weren't nearly enough people there to account for an entire Hunter Exam's worth of applicants.

"They go wherever they plan to take us next." I say, looking around at all the buses. "Well, I guess this lets us know we should expect things to get pretty weird from here on out." I look to her bags. While I can strap my bat to my back now that I have my hoodie back on, Bella's hands were both occupied with these bags. I offer a hand out to her. "Want me to hold one of those for you?" I ask as we make our way towards one of the buses.

[Lorielle]

The shop owner only offers another smile, though much friendlier, "You see all sorta types, but it doesnt take much to know when people have their heart in the right place." He nods his head at you as you pass by and gives Bella a small wave as the two of you walk past and venture forth into the unknown.

Of course when you're down here the place is still pretty packed with applicants loading onto buses. "Oh sure thanks." She says handing you one of the bags, incidentally the one loaded down with the soda as you're initially caught off guard by the weight of it.

"Well obviously, but im just like wondering... where though." She says still a bit apprehensive. Regardless the two of you make your way to one of the buses. A luxurious thing with leather seats, a bathroom stall at the back and really good air conditioning. Piling you can see a few other applicants, 3 men and another woman are in here as well, everything hand their own seats, but Bella grabs one of the chairs and pats the area next to her signaling that she'd like you to sit with her. Though as you walk by driver's section you notice... well there isnt one, or at least one you couldnt see. Black panels that went from floor to ceiling hid whoever was driving the vehicle, maybe to prevent colluding? You cant be too sure. Thats when you hear a horn and the doors close behind you.

[Lazy Kitsune]

"Hrgk" My arm drops as I take the weight of the back and I heft my shoulder to lift it steady, adjusting to the unexpected weight. "No problem." Stepping into one of the buses, its pleasantly cool. At least they didn't want to roast us every step of the way to the exam. There only seemed to be four other applicants sharing this bus with us, but given how many other buses there were, there would likely still be plenty more people making their way to the exam from here. Especially given how packed this underground bus route looked when they showed up.

As usual, things were quite a bit off, with black panelling keeping us from even seeing the driver, let alone communicate. All we could do was sit and hope they were taking us to the right place. Setting myself beside Bella, I set the bag between my legs and rest the bat to my side. I'm surprised to hear the horn go and the doors shut. "Going already? I thought they'd wait for a few more people to get on." I murmur, taking a moment to look around.

This was really nice. I suppose they did want the candidates to make it to the exam in the first place, after all. Makes sense they would have a chance to cool off and go to the bathroom before the main event. Though whose to say if there weren't more hurdles to go through yet before getting there. Still, for now I might as well let my legs rest as I relax into my seat, arms spreading across the back of the seat as I lean into it, leaving one all but draped behind Bella.

"So what kind of snacks did you get?" I ask, nodding my head towards the bags.

[Lorielle]

The other applicants shoot you a bit of a wary look but they settle into their seats all the same. The feeling of relief seems to wash over the previously tense atmosphere once the bus actually starts to get moving. To your surprise the seats and a recliner built into it so that made your relaxation that much easier.

Bella for her part leans back into your arm as she pulls open one of the bags. Well I’ve got some dark chocolate bars, some hazelnut chocolate, some more gum. But also some cinnamon gum, heard those are good for energy.” She rambles for a good amount of time as she pulls out a seemingly endless supply of snacks and drinks before stuffing them back into the bag for later like some sort of oversized chipmunk or squirrel.

Music plays over speakers, a kind of elevator quality sorta thing, a repetitive droning thing. You can’t help but yawn. Especially not when you’re as.. relaxed as you are. A nap sounded like a good plan. You glance at Bella as your eye lids get exceptionally heavy, she seemed her normal bubbly self with a pair of earbuds in her ears.

[Lazy Kitsune]

I let out a sigh as the chair leans back a little and as Bella leans back into my arm I find it subconsciously moves so instead of draping across the chair it now softly wraps around her shoulders. Between listening to Bella list through her snacks and hearing the music starting to play in the background, I felt myself feeling more and more comfortable. It was like my mind was being wrapped in a warm blanket, a fuzzy one that made thinking slow... and my eyelids start to flutter...

I don't fight the feeling, instead moving in close against Bella to get comfortable as I feel the tension leave my shoulders. I smile idly as I watch her talk, though my mind is struggling to focus on her words. The tone of them made it through at least. Seems she still had decent enough energy. I just wanted to have a bit of a nap now that I made it on the bus. Still, this was a nice change of pace and I wanted to spend a bit of time getting to know Bella better. She did help me get this far after all, and now we seemed to be partnering up for the exam, or at least for getting to the exam.

I tap on her shoulder and gesture to her ears. "What're you listening to?" I ask, before pointing my finger to my own ears. "Mind if I have a listen too?"

[Lorielle]

"Hmm? Oh Sure." She gives gives you one of the ear buds and you slip it on just as another wave of tiredness hits you. You even see Bella yawn, though maybe you caused that with your own yawn. Still the music she's listening too is a tad surprising. Its jazzy with low and heavy saxophones but also electronic, synths that keep the pace alive while the saxophone keeps you grounded. Though maybe it was because you were only listening to half the song that it felt like something was missing.

The music seems to drown out most of what is playing over the bus' own radio though and you slowly feel a bit of your alertness come back. You turn to each of the other 5 applicants and you can see that they had all also started to pass out, maybe everyone else was just as tired?

"Hahhh..." Bella yawns again, this time a bit more loudly. "Umm Lue mind waking me up when we get there? Im.. mmm feelin pretty sleepy." She can see that she's assumed that sorta stance you'd expect out of a child nodding off in class, somewhat hunched over her head bobbing forward ever so slightly and just as she passes some invisible threshold she picks her head back up again.

[Lazy Kitsune]

Slipping in the earbud, the music offers something for my mind to focus on other than the more mellow sounds coming over the bus's radio. I feel just a little more aware of my surroundings, though the overall sense of relaxation was still overwhelming me and the urge to have a little nap was growing stronger and stronger. The others on the bus seemed to also feel the same. It did seem as good a time as any to rest. We should all want to be refreshed and energised for everything to come.

Then Bella brings up an interesting point. Would we miss our stop if we fell asleep while on the bus? It seemed possible given how adhering to following the usual patterns of using this bus route was a part of even getting this far, but it also seemed odd. We don't even know where we're going, how would we know what our stop would even look like? Surely they'll let us know when we reached our destination... although with how over the top the dividers between the passengers and the driver was, maybe they wouldn't. The bus coming to a stop might be enough to jolt anyone still dozing awake, and if all the other buses are going to the same destination then everyone departing should also act as a second wakeup call for any sleepers. But something about this gave me that same feeling when waiting back at the bus stop... that something wasn't right here. My mind was moving a bit too sluggish with how relaxed it was to pull on that thread all the way, but it made me want to be at least a little careful with taking a nap.

"Alright, but I was hoping to catch a few winks too." I murmur, finding myself resting my head against her shoulder before I blink awake again and lift my head back up. Cuddle up side by side with Bella just added to the comfortable sensation, making it harder to keep focused, but it was far too comfortable a sensation to even try and fight against. My head would occasionally drift closer towards Bella, bobbing in a similar fashion to her own as sleep pulled at my eyelids. "Maybe... maybe we should... take turns... just in case... One of us can keep an eye out... and the other can...Hahhh... the other can catch some sleep. Sound good?"