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Kurapika felt his phone buzz. He turned his head away from the goobers tumbling loudly in the grass before him and pulled out the device.
"Hello," Kurapika mumbled into the phone.
"Guess who?" a snarky doctor replied from the other end. Kurapika would know that voice anywhere.
Kurapika sighed, tempted to call the man Riolio for old times' sake, before settling on, "Leorio."
"It's been a while," the spectacled man stated as he walked towards Kurapika and the kids. Gon looked up at Leorio, while Killua smirked at the grass of all things.
"Yeah," Kurapika agreed softly as Leorio bridged the gap from the bench where he had been sitting and the kids. With the medical student officially in proper earshot, Kurapika hung up the phone. Leorio did the same.
Leorio nodded a greeting, followed by a two-finger salute. Before Kurapika could stop them, Gon and Killua both jumped up with blurry treats, shoving them in Leorio's face as they asked, "Hungry?"
Leorio swatted at both kids, albeit unsuccessfully, before tumbling to the grass where the kids had been merely seconds prior.
Killu jumped on top of him. "We got you," the bratty assassin teased.
"Come on," Leorio whined, trying to wipe the food off of his face with just his fingers.
Kurapika laughed, feeling his body shake from the foreign feeling as he raised his hand to cover his smile - for Leorio's sake.
"You missed a spot," Killua added as he scrambled off of Leorio, laughing harder than Kurapika was.
"Hey, get back here!" Leorio demanded, sitting upright as Gon took off after Killua.
"Hey, come on," Gon suggested, pointing to the other end of Dayro Park, where Leorio could never catch them with the amount of sugar stuck to his face that practically blinded him. Kurapika felt his smile grow without his permission. He knelt next to Leorio, pulling his handkerchief from the folds of his traditional skirt.
"Here," Kurapika said, pressing the cloth into Leorio's fumbling hands, "Use this."
Leorio smiled. "Thanks, Kurapika," the frosting-covered man whispered as he removed his glasses to clean them off. Once done, he then held them out to Kurapika. "Do you mind holding these while I get the rest of this goop off of my face?"
"Your face looks no different than normal," Kurapika deadpanned, taking his friend's glasses as requested.
"Gee, thanks," Leorio mumbled sarcastically, wiping the rest of his face.
Kurapika sat in silence, his eyes drifting over to Gon and Killua as Killua jumped over Gon to slam a pie in the green-clad boy's face.
"So…" Leorio started, casually tossing Kurapika's now-filthy handkerchief onto the blue skirt, "I'm assuming you heard the Phantom Troupe members are dead? Well, some of them, at least?"
"I have," Kurapika answered quietly, picking up the handkerchief by the one corner unblemished by frosting and sticky syrup and setting it aside. Thankfully, none of it had transferred onto his clothing with Leorio's careless behavior. "Why do you ask?"
"Because I think you should let the quest go," Leorio murmured, "Let the hatred dissipate. Their leader is gone. Half of them are gone. The others are scrambling and scared."
"But one could argue that now is the perfect time to strike," Kurapika responded, "It may not be the most moral path, but it would be effective nonetheless."
"But is that what your people would want from you?" Leorio asked, "Would they really want you throwing your life away to hunt the Troupe?"
Kurapika paused, unable to think of a counter-argument. He'd avoided the answer to that question for the past five years. In the solace of his own mind, escaping the question was simple enough. But it was not so when it came from Leorio's mouth. It appeared the man had some wisdom after all. Kurapika was beginning to have his doubts.
"They wouldn't," Kurapika whispered, burying his face in his hands. "The Kurta clan lived peacefully. My actions against the Troupe have tainted that image, and my tribesmen must be rolling in their graves."
"Perhaps not," Leorio encouraged, draping his arm over Kurapika.
"I swear, Leorio, if you get my clothes dirty-"
"I'll fix it, I promise," Leorio murmured, "And besides, I don't think your tribesmen are rolling in their graves. You were, what, ten?"
"Twelve," Kurapika corrected as though two years made a world of a difference.
"So you were the same age Gon and Killua were when we first met them," Leorio noted.
"I was," Kurapika agreed.
"Which means you were far too young to be left without any sort of guidance," Leorio added as he pulled away, smirking and pointing his finger at Kurapika. "Your tribesmen are not rolling in their graves because you were an adolescent who didn't know any better."
"And yet, even in adolescence, I still possessed a greater intellect than you do now," Kurapika murmured.
"If I didn't know your teasing was your way of you saying that you feel safe with us, I would tell you that such a statement was entirely uncalled for," Leorio returned.
"I love how you think you have me all figured out, Leorio," Kurapika sighed. "However, I refuse to give up my mission entirely."
Leorio's face fell into a frown.
"It's not like that," Kurapika insisted, "I refuse to give up on my mission of collecting and returning my brethren's eyes. That is nonnegotiable, Leorio. Do not even try to stop me."
"Focusing on that restoration is actually really healthy to cope with the anger," Leorio said.
Kurapika watched as Killua tackled Gon into the grass, sending small green blades high into the air as their laughter echoed through the park.
"Leorio," Kurapika whispered, "When I finish my mission… will you make good on the threat you made when we first met?"
"What threat?" Leorio squealed, his eyes blown wide with panic. Kurapika could tell Leorio knew exactly which threat Kurapika meant, and that the doctor-in-training was desperately hoping to be wrong.
So, Leorio needed things spelled out as though he were a child. That could be arranged. "You told me 'it was time to finish the filthy Kurta bloodline once and for all', back on the ship. I need you to be accountable for that."
"That's because I didn't know you!" Leorio yelled, "I saw a brat who wouldn't call me by name! But now, I see a friend. A dear friend I don't want to live without! Why would you request something so awful of me, Kurapika?"
"Because I'm worried that I'll settle down with a woman who makes me happy, and I'll pass down my traits to our kids, and this vicious bloody cycle will start all over again. Or at the very least, people with motives like that of the Troupe will use my family and friends to push me over the edge."
Leorio sighed. "You're forgetting a few things. First, Gon and Killua are a lot more resilient than they look. They got captured by the Troupe and escaped on their own. Two, who besides the Phantom Troupe would even have the power to do such a thing against you? You're already well-prepared for them, anyways! Three, like hell are Gon, Killua, and I going to sit around twiddling our ****ing thumbs while some jerk tries to elicit a reaction from you! I seriously don't think you have anything to worry about."
"I suppose you have a point," Kurapika murmured.
"You suppose?" Leorio repeated, "You do realize the saying, 'Even a blind squirrel can find a nut every now and again' exists for a reason, right?"
"Of course I do," Kurapika answered, "It exists because it is the perfect analagy for describing you. But you were right about one thing; I shouldn't have asked you to make good on your threat from the ship. I just got so worried that the cycle would repeat itself and-"
"Stop," Leorio whispered, draping his arm around Kurapika once more, "We got past that hurdle already. And if you really want a family but truly worry about genetics, you can always foster or adopt."
Kurapika leaned into the touch. "Leorio… would you say that Gon and Killua are essentially a foster-child trial run for me?"
"Absolutely," Leorio answered without hesitation. He lowered his voice to a whisper to add, "I'll be with you every step of the way."
Kurapika laughed. "Thank you… for everything, Leorio. Because of you, I have forgiven the Troupe for their past mistakes; that is what the massacre of my people was. However, forgiving them does not mean they have the right to control me or my emotions. I am placing guarded walls around my heart, walls as strong as my chain jail is. They will never be allowed past again, I swear. And you will no longer be burdened by the fallout of my emotions."
"You're not a burden, buddy," Leorio promised, squeezing Kurapika, "Not even close."
"Leorio… this is a bit… too tight. We should… also check… on the kids."
"Yeah, they're probably causing trouble, aren't they?" Leorio asked, loosening his grip and then giving Kurapika one more tight squeeze. The spectacled man then let go, and stood, offering his hand to Kurapika. The blond took it with a smile, stepping forward into a new life of family, friends, and healing.