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On the list of Illumi Zoldyck’s priorities concerning little brothers, the order went as such: Killua, Alluka, Kalluto, and then Milluki. Which was to say, mainly, that in the grand scheme of things, Kalluto didn’t even make the list in a worthwhile position. The youngest used to be even lower, before he actually showed some potential, but really, the only thing Illumi had ever worried about with him was whether or not he’d slow down any operations they took on together. He hadn’t, and Illumi had considered him one of the more tolerable partners for any job once the boy’s Nen came in, even if the way he presented himself was a bit queer.
In his memory, Kalluto was obedient, quiet, and unobtrusive. He had less potential than Killua, but he was a fine addition to the family– certainly better than Milluki or heaven forbid Alluka. Their relationship was a bit formal, but he could still feel pride in the way that Kalluto took after him with that quiet temperance. Illumi would give anything to pair that sort of personality with Killua’s raw potential. Kalluto had seemed to understand his place, too, if the focus in his pink eyes as he had declared, “I will bring him back,” was any indication.
The Kalluto he saw now, though, didn’t hold that same focus. He was still quiet and patient, listening to orders from his superiors, but he had looked briefly surprised when he’d seen Illumi, like he hadn’t been pleased to see his family. It wasn’t just that, either. There was something different about him, something shifted slightly to the left in a change so subtle Illumi couldn’t immediately identify it.
He made no move to sit close to Illumi when the elder sibling took a seat, instead finding his own place beside numbers three and seven- the seamstress and the giant. Machi and Franklin, if the assassin remembered correctly. His eyes were low, brows furrowed just barely into something somber as Chrollo spoke.
For the briefest second, their eyes met, before Kalluto looked away.
Something was decidedly different.
“That’s all well and good, but who’s this?” Number one, the swordsman, butted in, pointing directly at Illumi. There was a bit of hostility to his tone, no doubt a grief response to the aforementioned death of two of the spider’s legs. That was fine. A weakness to exploit, if anything.
“Illumi?” Chrollo’s tone was prompting, and he could see more than one set of eyes flick to Kalluto, then back at him. Then they knew his name, presumably.
“Yo.” He held up two fingers loosely. Belatedly, he realized it was a habit picked up by Hisoka. Of course it was, that man was looming over his life lately. Not that he could complain much, when it was a mutually beneficial arrangement. “I’m Illumi. My younger brothers are Killua and Kalluto. I’ve joined the spiders on Hisoka’s request.”
Number eight, the small girl with the short black hair and glasses, blinked. “Kalluto o, taso sina tonsi anu seme? ”
It was a foreign tongue, but his brother’s name was etched within the sentiment. What it meant, he had no clue, and he was quite sure the youngest Zoldyck didn’t know either. But instead, Kalluto hummed and nodded once, still impassive, and, to his utter bewilderment, replied back in the same language, “Tonsi, taso ni li pona ala tawa kulupu Zoldyck. O toki ala e ni. ”
Now, that was new. It had been slightly over a year since Kalluto had joined the troupe to find Killua, and that was hardly enough time to speak a language with such ease. Why hadn’t he reported this back to Father, at least? It seemed like a major step. Not that he knew which language it was, but he had an idea, based on the sound patterns. It seemed like the language of Meteor City.
“Lon ala lon? Mije ni li meli lukin ,” number three, Machi, replied back.
In a moment, Kalluto’s fan was out and below his eyes, shielding the mouth behind those wide eyes focused on Machi. “O toki ala e ni a! ”
He cleared his throat, and Kalluto pulled the fan tight again, placing it on the table. “Apologies, Brother. They were just speaking about the pedigree of our family. They say we look alike.”
“Toki pona pi lon ala ,” number two, the pale, dark-haired one muttered.
“Hm.” This was suspicious. Why would Kalluto have been shocked if Machi had said something about their family pride? It seemed strange, but he couldn’t confirm nor deny without knowing exactly what they were saying. “I see. Well, I can assure you, there’s hardly anyone better trained for the job of taking down Hisoka. He hired me himself. It’s a mutual agreement. For our engagement, he’s agreed to a chase in which I still get my reward when he dies.”
Kalluto’s eyes went wide again, like an animal caught in a trap. “You’re engaged ?”
And that was the difference, wasn’t it? Before, Kalluto would have never been this expressive. He would have barely shown a modicum of surprise, before remaining entirely impassive. Never in a thousand years would he have done something such as interrupting. Mother had surely taught him better than that.
“La ona tu li unpa anu seme?” Nobunaga said, still, infuriatingly, in the language that Illumi couldn’t understand.
“Nobunaga o!” Shizuku said, in a tone that indicated some sort of reprimand.
“Seme a? ‘Unpa’ li ken kepeken ala e sijelo, jan lili li ken jo ala e pilin jaki tan nimi ni–” Nobunaga shot back defensively.
“Len ona li nasa sama mije musi moli ni,” Machi commented, in an observational tone. “Ken la ona tu li unpa.”
The mummy spoke up. “Taso ona tu li jan olin la, jan Illumi li wile ala wile moli e jan Hisoka? Kalluto o, sina pilin e seme? Jan Hisoka li… pona ala pona tawa jan sama suli sina?”
“N, ‘pona,’ a a, sina wile toki e nimi ante–” the swordsman started up again.
All of this was said in extremely rapid speech that Illumi could not begin to comprehend. The Leader of the Phantom Troupe looked on with a neutral expression, despite the glances the other Spiders kept sending his way.
Kalluto’s fan was in front of his face again, a growing redness on his cheeks. “O toki ala e ni ali! Ni li jan sama suli mi a! Mi wile ala sona e ijo– ijo sijelo ona.” His blush intensified and his fan twitched up to cover more of his face, his posture suffering as he shrunk in on himself.
“Alright, everyone, calm down. The new leg can’t understand Meteor Creole yet.” Chrollo put up a single hand, shutting down the conversation.
Meteor Creole. He’d have to get a translation guide. Another chore, he supposed. Really, he’d rather have Hisoka’s head and be done with it all. Then again, maybe it was prudent now to take Kalluto with him, since he clearly wasn’t getting anything done now.
“That’s the point,” Feitan muttered.
Obnoxious, but he could respect the straightforwardness. Not like their little brother, who was hiding the way Killua had before he decided to leave home. He’d seen these signs before. It didn’t bode well for the Zoldyck name.
“Illumi, do you have any information on Hisoka’s whereabouts?” Chrollo looked towards him, voice solid and serious. Finally, back to business.
“That was part of the deal. It’s a chase, I don’t know his location,” Illumi shared.
“Then we have nothing to discuss. The only thing that matters is finding an adequate centerpiece for our celebration. One made-to-order. Once you’ve found it, we’ll meet again, and dine together at that table.” Chrollo stood, large jacket flowing out.
He turned slightly, dark eyes shining with a malice that Illumi knew was beyond his own. “Now, bring me Hisoka’s head.”
It was immediate, the energy brought into the group. There was a look on everyone’s faces, one of grim determination, all lightheartedness gone. When he looked in Kalluto’s direction, it was there as well, that solid mass of grim determination mixed with something oddly akin to grief. Ah. So that was what was strange. Kalluto was following his brother’s bad example, getting attached too easily. What a childish folly.
///
“Illumi?” Chrollo prompted his newest Troupe member.
“Yo.” Illumi held up his hand in a very Hisoka-like gesture. “I’m Illumi. My younger brothers are Killua and Kalluto. I’ve joined the spiders on Hisoka’s request.”
Of course, there were several unideal aspects about letting Illumi join. One was his domineering relationship with Kalluto. The other was his association with Hisoka.
“But Kalluto, aren’t you nonbinary?” Shizuku asked the youngest Spider in Meteor Creole, a wrinkle to her brow. Without looking, Chrollo gauged Illumi’s reaction. He didn’t seem to understand the language.
“I am, but my family wouldn’t approve. Please don’t say anything,” Kalluto responded fluently. Their proficiency in Meteor Creole had improved quickly. Chrollo was proud.
“Really? But this guy looks so feminine,” Machi commented, taking advantage of Illumi’s lack of understanding.
“Don’t say that!” Kalluto covered their face with their fan, a habit when they’re embarrassed.
Illumi cleared his throat, and Kalluto pulled the fan tight again, placing it on the table. “Apologies, Brother. They were just speaking about the pedigree of our family. They say we look alike,” they explained.
Feitan snickered. “Silver tongue.”
“Hm.” Illumi seemed suspicious. “I see. Well, I can assure you, there’s hardly anyone better trained for the job of taking down Hisoka. He hired me himself. It’s a mutual agreement. For our engagement, he’s agreed to a chase in which I still get my reward when he dies.”
“You’re engaged?” Kalluto looked shocked.
“So, are they hooking up or what?” Nobunaga asked rudely, still in Meteor Creole. He could hardly be more crass– while the word he used, ‘unpa,’ had other definitions other than sex… it usually meant sex. The meaning was clear– especially considering who had said it.
Chrollo kept his face impassive.
“Hey, Nobunaga!” Shizuku reprimanded. She glanced at Chrollo, perhaps wondering whether he would intervene.
“What? ‘Hooking up’ doesn’t have to mean physically doing it, the kid could not put a dirty meaning to it–”
Nobunaga wasn’t exactly wrong, Chrollo supposed, even as he kept himself from reacting visibly. ‘Unpa’ could have to do with marriage as well.
“His clothes are weird like that dead magician. Maybe they are fucking,” Machi theorized, interrupting.
Bonolenov spoke up. “But if they are involved, does Illumi really want to kill Hisoka? Kalluto, what do you think? Is your big brother… Does he like Hisoka?”
“Ah, ‘like,’ ha ha, I think you meant to say something different–” Nobunaga started up again.
Kalluto lifted their fan again. “Don’t say all these things! This is my big brother, I don’t want to know his– his– intimate matters!” they stuttered.
They had strayed too far off topic. “Alright, everyone, calm down. The new leg can’t understand Meteor Creole yet.” Chrollo put up a single hand, shutting down the conversation.
“That’s the point,” Feitan muttered.
And Feitan wasn’t entirely wrong. Because at least Illumi didn’t have to hear all that in a language he understood.
///
Before Kalluto could walk away, Illumi grabbed his youngest brother’s shoulder, tilting his head. He didn’t miss the small twitch of the boy’s eyebrows, nor the way his face seemed to turn to stone. “Illumi. Do you need to speak to me?”
“You picked up Meteor Creole very quickly. You must have put a lot of time into it.”
Kalluto almost hesitated. “Yes. It is the native language of the Troupe and of Meteor City and was therefore advantageous to learn.”
Ah. So that was his angle. Illumi hummed, idly watching as most of the Troupe dispersed among the bustling cafeteria, though a few remained, not-so-subtly watching the conversation between the two brothers. “I will also learn it, then. It will give context for the conversation today. What was that word they used? Unpa ?” It was said multiple times, and with quite a bit of emphasis, so he assumed it must be important.
“It means- ah- marriage. Union between two people.” They were flushed a soft pink, seemingly embarrassed by the thought. It was almost touching that he was so worried about Illumi’s image.
“Marriage… Well, I wouldn’t say that. It’s all legal, you know.” Not like he would say anything else if it was. That was his business on its own and nothing more. Though, now that he thought of it, he supposed they were technically married. Hm.
Kalluto let out a soft sigh of something like relief. How very unlike them to show an emotion like that.
“If I’m not mistaken, I’d almost say you were embarrassed earlier.”
Kalluto’s cheeks, which had just started to return to a normal color, turned red again. “I– um… They were speaking about unnecessary things, that is all. Things not related to the mission.”
“Things that were cause for such an outward reaction?”
“They questioned whether your ties with Hisoka would impede your ability to take him out.”
“We are Zoldyck assassins. We do not have ‘ties.’”
Kalluto’s eyes did something odd for a second, turning almost sad. But soon their expression returned to blankness.
“However, I see the need to share information. I will tell you all the details of mine and Hisoka’s ‘unpa.’”
Now, Kalluto must really have been losing their touch, because their face turned perhaps the most bright red Illumi had ever seen on their skin. He closed his eyes for a moment, took a deep breath, and responded, faintly, “I’d rather you refrain, thank you.”