drear | OPEN SEASON 2.

[most of the apartment is the same as Hisoka would have seen it before. the same quiet sense about it, the same order broken up by books in casually random places, by the subtle signs of someone actually living in the place. a notebook by the couch is simply a planner, events marked down and a few appointments, along with a list of everyone on the team's birthdays. the beginnings of a grocery list stuck on the fridge, one of his customary black coats thrown on the end of the couch (with empty pockets).

then, of course, is the room he hasn't seen. Chrollo's bedroom, which is not so much a contrast to the rest of the apartment as it is simply more alive. here, books live on two sets of shelves, mismatched but tucked away. here he has a desk, the space where a laptop would be vacant - of course he took it with him - but a notebook where some of his thoughts on design and color are, ideas for what's forthcoming, pens and pencils jammed into a cup along with a box cutter. here, on one of the walls, is a pair of photos from a place that is definitely not this city - sunrise and sunset.

the desk drawer, lucky for Hisoka, isn't locked. and inside are a few items of interest - a pair of very well worn leather gloves, a key with a plain tag reading "017", a slender wooden box that contains five dark glass vials of something unknown (six slots. one vial is missing), and several typewritten pages that look to be letters, if ones written entirely in Russian. whoever wrote them, what would be the signing off is the same.

of course, that's not the only place someone can hide their secrets, or items they stole from a dead man. there's still his closet and his dresser.]

[ appointments he memorizes, to be cross-referenced and checked for any other connection. he hasn't given up on finding out everything about chrollo's first (and seemingly last) murder. he could ask, of course, and might even receive an answer, but that isn't any fun. ♦

photos: he takes copies on his phone, and flips them up gingerly to check the backs for any writing. pictures are also carefully taken of the gloves, the key from all angles, the contents of the box, and the letters.

hisoka is careful enough to not try any of the vials. but he does eye them for a while. (to be stored at room temperature...)

he expects the closet to be mostly black and full of the same clothing. which is boring, but very chrollo. ]

[the only writing on the back of the photos is one date on each - a few weeks apart, late summer several years ago. and it's for the best he leaves the vials alone for now.

the closet does have a lot of black, but there are also a few pieces in actual color. blue and violet, dark shades, but color nonetheless for the rare occasions Chrollo isn't monochrome. all of it is designed to be more simple, easy to wear, well made but not something to excessively catch the eye. and then there's the section more towards the back, where the style is something that takes a bit of a turn. when does he wear these clothes? not when Hisoka's looking, apparently.

and then, at the bottom, tucked in one of the corners and only visible because what was placed on top to hide it wasn't put back well enough, is a safe inlaid into the floor. but it's locked, and even trying the dates on the photos doesn't yield the combination - that's a locked mystery, for now.

but dropped on the floor is something that isn't locked up - something that could have fallen when someone was in a hurry. and it's a small steel lighter - the same one that was on the man Hisoka killed that night.]

[ the dates are recorded as well. hisoka won't let the bits of information slip away from him; he gathers the pieces until he can stretch a link between them, join them in a web.

the leather stands out. gently, hisoka runs his fingertips over the grain of it, feeling the texture and quality. he runs his hand all along the length of the coat as he crouches down to examine the safe. he takes a picture of the type of lock, and then the lighter where it lies.

hisoka hadn't rifled through the body's pockets. chrollo had been with the body the entire time, and alone with it before hisoka was. the lack of a wallet and ID when he'd been taking out any other signs of identity caught his attention, though, and hisoka examines the lighter for a long moment before picking it up.

he's never smelt smoke of any kind on chrollo. after examining it, he puts the lighter back down on the ground. he doesn't need the wallet back, and knowing that chrollo wouldn't want to be caught with the evidence any more than he would, he lets it be.

it's just another bit of evidence for him that chrollo is more than a designer. the sleight of hand he's showed before has obviously been used for things other than just tricks.

how old had chrollo been when he moved here? hisoka leaves chrollo's apartment looking the same way it had when he dropped in and goes to search in other places. ]

[due to his own retreating from the spotlight to make his clothes shine, public information on Chrollo Lucilfer is limited. the basic facts about him in the present moment are the same, his work can be traced back to when he actually caught public eye- but before that point where he debuted, he doesn't really exist. no real talk of family, nothing about where he grew up. it could be a calculated aura of mystique - no one wants to admit they have humble beginnings - but though he has certain facts that check out, others under harsh scrutiny by someone highly perceptive do not. more and more it begins to look like there's a large section of his life that's obscured, removed from the picture as skillfully as he might casually divest one of his friends of their phone before tossing it back with a smile.

of course, most people don't care or look long enough to know such things. their attention is fleeting, to be amazed one moment and distracted in the next by something else. they don't fix on one thing, and that's why it's easy.

when Chrollo returns, he lets everyone know, and from his demeanor he neither knows nor suspects Hisoka's investigation. sure, he seems somewhat tired in the first few days, but he's no less precise or ready to get work done as he's been before, and the fact that he disappeared is allowed to fade away.

the appointments, he keeps to. those at least aren't suspicious, all work related, all things that simply relate to more boring aspects of business. not everything is dark and mysterious, especially not when they're finally entering a period of time where the entire team doesn't have to work as hard - the brief weeks of breathing room before the schedule would pick up again.

(comparing the dates on the photos to Chrollo's birthday and age, both pictures were taken when he was nineteen years old.)]

[ hisoka doesn't see chrollo directly after he returns. he has his own job, of course. and he's looking. oddities stand out to him, a shimmer on the natural facets of an uncut stone, and hisoka aches to make them shine.

nineteen isn't too late to start a new life. people have started later. but after a certain age, people usually become stuck in their ways, whether they realize it or not. and hisoka can see now that there are parts of chrollo that he's kept the same since his old days, running with a much harsher crew than he does now.

for his next job with chrollo, hisoka arrives on time. he may even be a few minutes early. it's all so he can catch chrollo gently by the elbow and draw him aside for a private word. ]

[the pictures are to remember, one brief period of time where he thought he might stay in the midst of everything else. nineteen and thinking he could change things, when the world was so big and it meant that everyone else was small, even those people who controlled everything.

of course, that didn't happen. things went back to reality soon after.

that was then. Chrollo needs to concentrate on now, shoving the memories of the meeting he'd had in the back of his head, instead thinking on how to set up these pictures. just a few, today, just a simple ad that was meant to run in a few places. Hisoka arriving on time meant he was early - because by now, Chrollo knows to build in a little extra time for him to actually show up - so there's time to be pulled aside.]

Something up?

[showing on time and wanting to talk to him? mysterious.]

Edited 2016-04-30 02:03 (UTC)

Are you free this Thursday? Around eight, or thereabouts. ♣

[ hisoka is fairly sure that chrollo is free then, unless his schedule has changed since the last time he read it. ]

I am. What's the occasion?

[was something happening he needed to be aware of...or is this Hisoka being Hisoka? one could never tell until they actually got confirmation.]

Dinner. ♦

[ hisoka smiles, but he doesn't elaborate. ]

[that's a bit unexpected, but...how bad could it be? even when Hisoka was involved.]

As long as you tell me where I should go, I'll be there.

I'll text you. ♥

[ easier than he'd thought, to get chrollo to come on a date with him. ♦

but now, time for "work". hisoka follows directions easily and pleasantly for the day, and is generally agreeable. ]

[it'll hit him later that he agreed to go on a date. he doesn't even have the excuse of being more distracted than usual at the time. and as much as it vaguely annoys him - look, he tries to keep working and personal relationships separate - one occasion doesn't mean anything other than a chance to get decent food and potentially uncomfortable conversation.

at least today's simple enough. everyone actually gets to finish up on time, meaning everyone gets off in better moods, and though Chrollo's going to leave with a lot of work he has to do - he has to draw up some ideas to present in a few weeks, and that's not going too well - even he seems in a genuinely decent space.

miracles happen, Hisoka, when you don't keep everyone waiting.]

[ hisoka hadn't mentioned other company, either, so when the time comes it might surprise chrollo that it's just the two of them.

or maybe it won't be a surprise, depending on how late chrollo realizes that it's a date.

hisoka calls chrollo ahead of time and comes by his apartment in a low-riding, sleek maroon car. he opens the door for him and smiles, waiting. ]

[he realizes with enough time to know that he needs to dress with slightly more care than he does for work, put it that way. the shift's subtle - he's still cloaked in dark, but his pants are slacks instead of jeans, and rarity of rarities, under his black coat, his shirt's a deep blue.

how gentlemanly of you, Hisoka, enough that Chrollo smiles a little in thanks before he gets in. it's a nice car, he thinks, which is almost expected when it comes to Hisoka, but not enough to dull admiration.]

So, do I get to know where we're headed, or is it going to be a surprise?

Edited 2016-05-10 21:48 (UTC)

I wouldn't want to spoil your enjoyment. ♣

[ but hisoka will allow a little, at least, because the surprise isn't the location. it's the conversation. ]

Their food is excellent.

[and Chrollo continues on blissfully ignorant...]

If it isn't, I'm holding you personally responsible for it.

[you can't get his hopes up like that and then dash them...there are some mundane things he takes seriously, food being one of them.]

I promise.

[ hisoka looks away from the road to look directly at chrollo for just a moment while they're at a stoplight. his teeth show, briefly.

after a quiet drive they pull up in front of a restaurant named shisa. hisoka passes the car keys over to a valet, who comes around to let chrollo out of his side.

at the front of the restaurant, hisoka says they have a table—for two. ]

[for two. so there really isn't going to be a surprise addition to their party that will reveal this dinner was the beginnings of some other adventure. it might actually be a date on its own. which is...maybe he's overthinking this? always was a bad habit.

he'll follow Hisoka's lead, waiting until they're seated to shrug out of his coat and then meet his eyes again.]

Is there anything in particular you'd recommend?

[not so much to inform his own choices as it is to file away another piece of information about Hisoka, his potential likes and dislikes.]

[ there's a menu for the place, as understated as the rest of the decor: black print on cream paper, accompanied by the day's specials. ]

For you? ♦ [ hisoka himself will simply have the special, like he always does. ]

They have excellent oysters.

[he makes a noncommittal hm at that, and will pick out a different special than Hisoka - but with a side of oysters, to prove he was listening. oh well. even if he can't glean much from the order, he can from Hisoka's behavior - so he comes here often enough to know what he wants. is it where he takes all his dates, or is it simply a place he likes? questions on questions.

for his part, because this is new to him, Chrollo's quick to glance around, masking it in subtle movements - a stretch, an adjustment, or simply admiring the decor. it has two purposes, honest curiosity and the idle habit of mapping out exits. one can never be too careful, really.]

[ hisoka knows what it is to scan an area, so he notices. he's not worried about it, since he's been in the building before and has it mapped out well.

but it's good to see that chrollo hasn't forgotten what it is to be on guard.

while they wait for their food, the server brings them wine and pours them each a glass. hisoka raises his slightly for a toast. ]

To an evening off. ♦

[never. some habits were too deeply engraved to ever shed, and others were necessary still.

with the wine, the smile on his face as he returns the toast isn't wholly in his eyes - but then again, it rarely is, and he doesn't take his eyes off Hisoka's face while he takes a sip.]

And a much earned one at that.

[at least, he's assuming Hisoka's been busy. two jobs can get a little stressful, but he refuses to pry or push too far. not until the moment is right, no matter how curiosity eats at him.]

[ he's been working hard. definitely. ♥ just not in either of those two jobs for the past week or two. ]

How was your trip? I missed seeing you around the office.

[ which presupposes hisoka ever comes around when he doesn't have to. (and he does—just not when anyone would see him.) ]

My trip?

[for a brief second he considers saying the truth in so bored a tone it would seem fake to nearly anyone, a joke, but there was the chance Hisoka would see through and take it seriously.]

Well enough. Some things came up out of nowhere and needed to be handled. Sometimes it isn't enough to talk to someone on the phone.

[he says it like it was a tedious affair, smothering down any emotional reaction from himself and the truth that had taken place. the reason for poison and the immediacy of it all, the tense conversations that had so nearly ended with a man dead. business concluded with an agreement and his own liberty to leave without any threats.]

I came back quick enough, didn't I?

IT'S OK

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my excuse to dump chrollo's fashion sense on you

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