Chapter Text
"Here's a fun question: have you ever seen a beautiful sunset before? Something that was so gorgeous, you thought to yourself 'I have to take a picture of this so I can capture this moment in time forever' - so you end up taking your picture and it comes out looking like this:
I mean it kinda looks cool but it's nowhere near representative of the beautiful memory you were trying to hold onto. And as you look at it, you slowly end up realizing:
Nothing can perfectly capture or recreate this moment I'm experiencing right now."- Gbay99
It’s strange being away from home. There isn’t an ocean view right outside his window or green, grassy plains or Aunt Mito’s homemade fish stew. It’s jarring to Gon, but also exciting. Unlike back home where he knew everything and everybody, life beyond the shores of Port Hunter is unpredictable and fresh, a place waiting to be explored.
And photographed.
Gon steadies his camera. The airport is busy, people herding from one queue to another like sheep following the orders of a shepherd. It’d be overwhelming to most people, he’s positive, but for Gon, it was yet another minor marvel in this vast world.
Trying to find the right position, he leans against the column behind him and centers his viewfinder, snapping at the opportune moment. He pulls away and smiles at the preview display looking back at him.
Perfect.
“Gon,” Leorio calls out to him, “come on! We’re gonna miss our flight.”
Gon grins sheepishly and puts the cover back on his camera’s lens before scurrying over to his big brother. “Coming!”
This trip was going to be great, he could feel it.
Gon and Leorio had met Kurapika back when he was in middle school - well, Gon was in middle school, Kurapika was in his senior year of high school. While from the outside, a friendship with that big of an age gap may have been strange, in Gon’s eyes, it made total sense. Truth be told, Kurapika was more like a mentor or tutor that he could also just talk about his day with, but he still cherished their relationship, nonetheless.
He was an important part of his life, after all.
While he was much closer to friends his own age like Zushi, Kurapika was the first person, outside of his family of course, who had given him support and advice in pursuing photography. To say that his life wouldn’t be the same without him was an understatement. He also was the only reason Gon was passing English, but that wasn’t what was important no matter how much Aunt Mito and Leorio would beg to differ.
No, in the small port town they called home, it was more than expected for him to follow in his dad’s footsteps and become a fisherman. It was just what you did. You grew up, went to the only school in town, helped out with your family, and learned the ins and outs of everything having to do with hauls, sails, the sea - and, well, became a fisherman.
Of course, it seemed that Gon’s family tended to be...
Different.
Take his aunt, for example.
A majority of the women in town ran bakeries, clothes shops, or were teachers. Aunt Mito though? She could sail with the best of them - haul in just as much, if not more, crabs and flounder than a man twice her size and prepare it with culinary excellence to boot. When most women were worried about marriage or finding a husband, his aunt rolled her eyes at the notion and gave Gon a giggle and wink, stating that having him and Leorio in the same house as she was more than enough for her whole lifetime.
His older brother, for his part, was also an anomaly in the cookie-cutter expectations of the little seaside mold.
When they had an outbreak of flu brought by a traveling ship, Leorio, all of fifteen, researched and looked up how to make a cure when their local doctor - a man who, bless his heart, only settled down here after working for fifty years of his life as a physician in a city far away from the humdrum shores of their town and hadn’t looked at a textbook since the 60s - hadn’t a clue. As all the sailors recovered thanks to Leorio’s homemade concoction of local herbs working their magic, it was clear to anyone with eyes that he had the touch, the calling, for something more than simple sea-life. It was a shocker to none when, after graduating two years faster than the rest of the boys his age, he still felt that hunger for knowledge and impressed a prestigious college with a detailed application essay along with the whole town sending in and writing their recommendations letters as the kicker. He excitedly packed his bags and, with much crying and many warm hugs, left for YorkNew University some 200 miles away, far from Port Hunter.
So, as if fate had felt pressured to continue what she had started, Gon one day heard it - the siren song of something other than the fish surrounding him. Of course, it wasn’t medicine or far-off beasts to hunt in his case.
His came in the form of an innocent photo from Mt. RestEver - a sight that altered his reality forever.
It had been a fun suggestion from Leorio to combat their distance, the both of them making blogs and following each other, that is. Leorio had discovered lots of popular and interesting social websites since his departure, websites that allowed people to stay connected or even make connections with people half the globe away. Considering it an easy way to show and share things he had saw and learned while he was away, and also a way for Gon to maybe meet more friends his age (their hometown was very lacking in that department), Leorio walked him through the process of setting up an account and giving him a rundown of what blogs could be.
“There’s every type of blog you can imagine: art, writing, cooking, mechanics, sports, shows. You name it, someone’s made a blog on it. And, since it can be whatever you want, you can also just have it be personal and a place to share the stuff that interests you, you know?” Leorio explained over the phone. “Maybe you’ll even find a new hobby or something, kiddo.”
“Hm, maybe. I’m just happy we’ll be able to talk more now!” Gon had admitted.
New friends and hobbies would be awesome but seeing pictures from Leorio of his notes or campus and hearing about his day had also been more than enough for him. They had always been best friends, not just family, so not being able to talk and see him every day had been some of the hardest and loneliest days of his life. So, when Leorio had come to him with this new way to keep in touch, he was overjoyed. He figured just being able to view Leorio's blog every day would be something nice to have, but overall a casual thing.
Imagine his surprise when he found out just how fun having a blog could be.
He only followed Leorio’s study blog at first, liking and reblogging any funny pictures he posted, useful tips on taking notes he picked up, or commenting for him to “hang in there! I believe in you!” when he was posting about a hard quiz. As the weeks went on though, he started noticing Leorio reblogged from a couple of the same people so he grew a little curious, wanting to see if maybe they were his brother's classmates, and clicked on their urls. From what he could tell, none of the blogs that had listed ages in their descriptions except a martial arts blog called ‘the-nen-dojo’ and one called ‘musicalchairsandfairs’ were run by anyone the same age as him, so either Leorio’s classmates tended to be younger than him (which would be kinda scary, considering Leorio had graduated early enough himself), or a lot of the people he followed he had only met here online. It piqued his interest and, in only a matter of hours, Gon had found himself scrolling through what Leorio had referred to as his ‘mutuals’ blogs.
Through this, he came across Zushi’s, probably his best friend now, blog, ‘blackbeltzushi’.
Zushi was the first ‘mutual’ he ever got beside his brother - his first steps towards finding blogs to be as fun as they are now. Only a year his junior, he and Gon had a lot in common - both of them having a hatred of math, fans of mixed martial arts, and enjoyed a lot of the same shows. It was nice, having someone to talk to around his age for once, and even his aunt noticed him smiling more than usual, a bounce in his step when he got home from school only to rush to Leorio’s hand-me-down computer.
Over time, Zushi and he had grown close, so it was natural that, for his first art project, Zushi confided in him for advice.
blackbeltzushi
hey gon could you help me choose between these 2 pics? i have to make the cut but i can’t decide which one is prettier. the theme is ‘freedom’ and im making a collage of pics i took with wing-san on our way to state competition. remember back when i visited restever?
[attached image]
[attached image]
what do you think?
And Gon - well, Gon had a lot of thoughts, honestly.
The pictures were gorgeous, breathtaking even. He didn’t know exactly why - maybe the lighting, a melty sunset with hues unfiltered by the common overcast skies here at home, or just the sheer scope of it all, the view higher than the clouds. They were awesome, literally awe-some, and Gon almost couldn’t choose between the two. Both of them honestly were the prettiest sights he had ever seen, so he had to let Zushi know.
gonfishin
zushi!!! those are !!!
!!!!
man so cool i love them aaaaa
go with the top one it has brighter color
how did you even take them
do you have more??? lol
pls send if so :DDD
He rushed downstairs that night, begging his aunt if he could have a camera for his birthday so he could take stills of the sights around their hometown. Giddy to see him so passionate at this new hobby, Aunt Mito caved instantly to her nephew’s big brown puppy dog eyes and started saving up, but gave him her old Polaroid camera (a personal favorite of his that he still uses now and again, regardless of having a digital now) in the meantime to help him get started.
And so, he did.
He ran around town taking snapshots of anything and everything (sure, the quality of the photos weren’t his best work, especially looking back at it now, but he was a beginner anyway so oh well). The local animals, trees, people - you name it, Gon had taken a photo of it in no more than a month’s time and, before he knew it, May was there and Mito presented him with a slick and sleek digital camera. The first thing he did was take a shot of all of his past polaroid photos, forming a collage just like Zushi had months before, and then uploading it to his first real post on the blog. Only a few minutes after he posted, he got a call from Leorio, and the reaction was ecstatic.
“Gon!” He remembered hearing the grin and pride in Leorio’s voice. “ Those photos are amazing! I know you said you had taken it up using Mito’s old dinosaur but I didn’t know you had skills! You’re gonna start sharing them with your best big bro now that you have a digital camera, riiiiight?”
He, of course, laughed at Leorio’s enthusiasm but felt a sense of pride at his words too.
While he loved his new hobby and thought his captures were pretty good, it was comforting to have someone else think so too, even if this was his big brother he was talking about - the man that once ate all of Gon’s raw chicken nuggets and got food poisoning the next day just because he hadn’t the heart to tell Gon it tasted bad. Still, he had a feeling if Leorio was just trying to be supportive, he would have been less excited and wouldn’t have felt the need to call him as fast as he did. So, the fact that he did meant his words were genuine.
If he had any doubts about Leorio’s words, they were put to rest the minute he saw that Leorio had reblogged the photo to his own blog, tagging it with the same phrases he used when sharing actual artwork: ‘#amazing stuff’ ‘#not study related’, and then, bringing a big smile to Gon’s face, the tag ‘ #my amazing little bros first masterpiece’. Unable to look away at the tags, it made him jump when a little notification popped up on the screen, alerting him that someone else had also reblogged the post.
Surprisingly.
While Gon had become more of a presence online than previously, he still only really interacted with Leorio and Zushi, the both of them liking and reblogging a few posts he himself had reblogged. As far as followers went, he only had a handful, so notes from people other than those two were rarities.
It freaked it him out a little to see someone else reblog from him, if he was honest.
He clicked on the notification and was greeted with the news he had gained a new follower along with a reblog from ‘scarletwriter’, a url Gon was familiar with due to Leorio’s blog. Kurapika, the man who ran it and his future friend/mentor, was much like Leorio himself, a diligent student who made the blog to share note-taking tips, but a few years his brother's junior and in the literary side of study instead of the sciences. Regardless of their different expertise, from what Gon could tell and how often he saw Kurapika’s content on Leorio’s dash, it still seemed Kurapika’s posts were helpful to Leorio and even Gon himself found a few of his ‘word of the day’ posts useful to tuck away for later to impress his teacher. Despite this, he had never interacted with the blog himself, so to see that Kurapika not only felt the need to reblog his photo but also follow him after was-
Exhilarating.
It was real now. His picture was out there for someone else to see.
Before, he could keep taking photos and save them for himself all he wanted but drop it on a dime if he lost interest. In that way, he was the only one invested in it and it was just a hobby, nothing more or less than that. But now. Now someone else-
‘#A Brilliant Collage’, ‘#Looking forward to more from you’, ‘#Photography’, ‘#Unrelated’, ‘#Not Mine’.
Now someone else was invested too. That day, the day Kurapika had said that, was the day it really started.
From then on, Gon began capturing and uploading his works, and with it came recognition. Online and mostly anonymous recognition, of course, but recognition all the same. It fueled him to improve his skills and keep furthering his craft, experimenting with more interesting perspectives and lenses (the latter of which kept Aunt Mito’s gift list ever-expanding), to take the best shots he could.
It came to a head when he shared that he was looking into saving up for an ultra-wide lens and Kurapika, as well as a bunch of his followers, recommended starting up a Paypal so they could donate to help. It wasn't a bad idea, but Gon didn't have high expectations, figuring that he might get a few dollars here and there from maybe two or three followers who's names didn't rhyme with Sushi or Oreo. Not expecting the overwhelming support, he almost broke into tears when, in less than a week, he had received over fifty different donations with some ranging even into the twenty-dollar donation limit. He ordered the lens the next day and showed off the amazing quality it granted him with a detailed shot of the local lighthouse to share with everyone as a thank you.
With the increase in support also came an increase in his friend group. He had stayed friends with and became closer to both Zushi and Kurapika as time went on, leading to the trio, along with Leorio and a few of the other mutuals they had in common, forming a group chat on discord. It was more casual than anything but was used as a hub to promote each other’s work and help support creators follow their passions in life, whether because they didn’t receive that support in their offline lives or wanted online support to expand it.
He met Kurapika’s best friend and the first chair flutist in their university’s orchestra, Melody, as well as many other new mutuals like Zushi’s judo instructor, a nurse Leorio worked with who ran a beauty blog, and even a former professional model and photographer named Bisky who messaged and offered advice on lighting angles once she came across his blog. There were some people with whom he still didn’t interact much, their presence in the group spotty at best, but who used the discord to help share and promote theirs and others’ posts. He found himself smiling in particular whenever user ‘yoyomaster’ uploaded to the group, all of his watercolor and pastel works filled with wonder that made Gon almost stop breathing when he saw them. If you were to ask, Gon would even gladly admit he felt his heart swell with pride when yoyomaster followed Gon after the lighthouse picture was uploaded and reblogged it with the tag ‘#inspiration’ - that was how much he admired yoyo’s skills.
Yes, Gon had made lots of friends and followers from his works. Eventually, it had reached the point where he had gained over ten thousand followers and, it was at that point, looking at the milestone and uploading a new set of shots from the storm clouds that had rolled in that weekend, he had decided:
Photography is sooo much more than just a hobby.
From then on, Gon made it his mission to hurry up with school so he could get a job in YorkNew to live with Leorio. While it wasn’t as if he hated his hometown (heck, he loved living with Mito and his great-grandma), it was obvious that, like his family before him, it couldn’t give him what he wanted in life. If he wanted to make it as a professional photographer, his film was going to have to capture well beyond the shores of Port Hunter.
Not only that, he wanted to see more than just the familiar horizon from his bedroom window.
He happily accepted Leorio’s offer to spend the summer in his apartment, venturing out every day to explore the hustle and bustle of city life through the viewfinder of his trusty sidekick, a Nikon camera he affectionately nicknamed “Kon”. The YorkNew expedition only made the starvation for fresh sights worse though, and Gon found himself dreading the eventual return home. He had a taste of all the world had to offer in the form of new shots and angles. Going back to a limited pallet of waves and fishermen was torture.
He wanted to see Mt. RestEver with Zushi, visit the Standing Tower of Liza only a car ride away from Bisky’s house, or walk and capture a single snap of even just one of the many beautiful fields yoyo had brought to life with his brush. He wanted to photograph and memorialize all in his field of vision forever, no matter where his gaze took him.
And, to that effect, he almost screamed and woke up his sleeping aunt and great-grandmother when, at 2 in the morning, a message popped up in the admin channel of their discord group with great news.
ScarletWriter
I was wondering…
@StudyKnight @PicturexHunter
StudyKnight
?
ScarletWriter
Would you like to come to my graduation this year? It...might be strange considering we have yet to meet in person, but I would greatly enjoy having you two here for the occasion.
I would like to celebrate with my closest friends, which includes you.
Melody would also like to meet you, she says.
MusicalChairsandFairs
Yes i do :)
ScarletWriter
I also figured it’d be a great opportunity for you to capture some of our local attractions, gon. I know you showed interest whenever I described our neighborhood hanoks and palaces.
PicturexHunter
!!!!
I’M SO
MusicalChairsandFairs
Gon you are using capitals again lol
PicturexHunter
!!! i’d love to come!! Count me in!
StudyKnight
aww
i’m a closest friend?
ScarletWriter
I’ll kill you.
and thank you gon.
leorio, I’m assuming that’s a yes from you as well?
StudyKnight
def
like hell am i letting gon travel by himself
meeting you is also a plus ofc
keep us updated on the date and stuff so i can clear it with mito
crpa
the prof is staritn g
gottog o
ScarletWriter
Of course he is. [sigh]
PicturexHunter
Lol!
But thank you so much for inviting us Kurapika!!
I’m excited!!! :DD
ScarletWriter
I am as well :)
with that, I am logging off for the night.
hope you all sleep well.
While YorkNew was bigger, Meteor City was just as easy to get swept away in, Gon found out quite quickly.
“What do you mean, ‘it just happened?! Mito only had one rule, that I don’t lose you, and we just got here Gon!” Leorio fumed from the other end of the line, speaking over what Gon assumed was the crowd his brother was wading through. “Gon E. Freecs, I swear to God-”
“I’m not lost! I’m just...exploring,” he tried but flinched in disappointment at Leorio’s knowing hum.
“Yeah, okay, right. Look, just try and find a cafe. Most of the local places here have maps that show your location since it’s a tourist destination. Or, at least, stay on the phone with me until I can figure out where you are, okay? And, whatever you do, this stays between us. Mito would kill me if she found out I let you go off on your own, even though she knows how you can get.”
“Roger!” Gon saluted, ignoring that Leorio couldn’t see him do it. He scanned a few of the nearby restaurants and saw a coffee shop with the words ‘The Mansion’ written on the sign. A weird name for a cafe in his eyes, but who was he to judge?
Inside, with a warm-looking atmosphere, were chalkboards displaying the menu, in English as well, and a few customers here and there reading books and smiling at their server, each one dressed as what he guessed was supposed to resemble a butler. Thankful that he had at least found a place in his native language (he was regretting passing up Leorio and Kurapika’s offer to teach him certain phrases in Okrean, now), Gon felt his breath release with a relieved sigh. “Found a place.”
Leorio grunted, “thank god. So, you all good?”
“Yeah! Thanks again. And I’ll text you every hour or so like I said I would, promise.”
“Kay, kiddo, be safe. Love you.”
Gon smiled. “Love you too. Bye!”
With his bearings gathered, Gon entered the cafe.
He picked out one of the mouthwatering muffins on display and ordered a tea to pair it with before skimming the map painted on the left side of the shop. The scale of the map was gigantic and detailed, taking up almost every inch of the wall, which was exactly the sort of help Gon needed. According to this, he was right outside of the Scarlet district, an area named after the redwood trees native to the parks from what Kurapika had told him (which was also what Kurapika used as inspiration for his url, apparently). Nearby was another district, one that piqued his interest.
‘Artist Alley’, huh?
He wondered why it was called that and asked the woman who had taken his order, Canary, just as much. She smiled at him warmly, probably used to tourists like him coming in for information since he imagined it to be one of the few places that had their menu in a multitude of languages.
“It’s more a local name, to be completely honest. The reason we started calling it that is due to the fact that the area used to be a small gallery of street art showcases in the beginning, but it’s grown a lot in, oh, the last 5 years or so.” Canary’s eyes lit up a little, giving Gon the feeling her speech’s depths had less to do with rehearsal and more to do with sheer pride in the area’s talent and culture. “Locals and tourists alike can sign up and rent a building or alleyway to display their work. Like anything, the more you pay the better your spot, so the more famous and talented the person, the easier to find their shop usually, but even the out-of-the-way locations have some great exhibits.”
She handed him his tea, the temperature still extremely hot but concealed safely in with what looked to be a handmade cozy around it. He blew on it a little and tried a sip, feeling his tongue tingle with the sweetness. Just as tasty as the drink was pretty, it seemed; he made the right choice in coming here.
“Painters, graffiti artists, pottery artisans - they’re the most common vendors, but you also get the occasional performers too, like the Phantom Troupe who are kind of like a circus. Although, that group is a little...unique for my taste,” she tacked on at the end, as if having to choose her words carefully. “They do have their fans though.”
Hearing that the place was practically an artist wonderland, Gon felt a thrill run up his veins. He clutched onto his camera in hopes to quell his racing heart. “Do they have photo exhibits?”
Canary hummed a bit, considering her answer. “Photos? Hm. I’m not too sure. On the bright side, most of the vendors there know a wide variety of languages, so you can always ask around and see if there are any around today. A lot of the exhibits change daily so-” she was interrupted by a new customer walking in, “ah, my apologies, I-”
Gon shook his head, “don’t worry! Thanks for all your help, I’ll go check it out for myself.”
She smiled and gave him a little bow. “I hope you enjoy it. If I may, I recommend the pink-colored shop on 99th. A friend of mine sells his paintings there and his sister has crocheted plushies and other crafts there if that’s more to your liking. If you’ll excuse me then.”
Taking a mental note to keep an eye out for a pink shop, Gon licked his lips and eyed the muffin before him. With a little adjustment to the position of the plate and fixing the cozy on the tea, the scene was arranged perfectly for a great shot of the meal. He snapped a few different angles and saved the best two, as always, to upload. Giddy to try out the new memory card adapter Leorio had got him as a gift for the trip, he transferred the photos to his phone quickly while taking a swift bite of the muffin now that the look of it had been immortalized.
In a couple of taps, he posted it to his blog and grinned at the almost immediate like and reblog from Kurapika, a little message popping up from discord soon after.
ScarletWriter
Glad to see you are already enjoying the city :) Sorry that I couldn’t meet you two at the airport, I only now got out of class.
By the way, I recognized that tea cozy.
Are you at the mansion cafe, by any chance?
PicturexHunter
:o
yeah! i guess you’ve been here before?
and its ok!!! we knew you had class so you dont have to apologize!!
ScarletWriter
I have; I’m a fan of their lattes.
One of my students recommended it to me when I first started tutoring them and I’ve been fond of it ever since. I believe the owner of the shop is a family friend, considering he has done a few murals inside, like the city map they have there.
PicturexHunter
:oooo NO WAY THAT’S SO COOL.
ScarletWriter
Quite.
Speaking of, his family is holding an art exhibit tomorrow and I was wondering if you and your brother would like to attend. Leorio mentioned the two of you don’t have much exposure to such events back home and I thought it’d be a nice change. The rest of the family’s works are not to my liking, but as their hired tutor I must admit I’d feel bad declining the offer. Though, I’m sure if you and Leorio come I’d have a much more enjoyable time.
PicturexHunter
kurapika :(((( you don’t sound all that excited
ScarletWriter
?
...I just reread it.
It sounds like I’m hoping to drag you into my misery. I promise it will be more fun than I made it seem -_-
PicturexHunter
lol
ok then! I’ll let leorio know!!!
ScarletWriter
Okay :)
Well then, I’ll see you two later. Dinner at Melody’s studio at 7.
You have the address, correct?
PicturexHunter
yep! I can’ wait to meet you guys!!
Downing the last of his tea and muffin, Gon sent a text to Leorio telling where he was going next and of Kurapika’s invitation to the gallery tomorrow before leaving his tip to Canary with a happy face and ‘thank you!’ scribbled on the napkin and heading out.
Now, to see that Artist Alley.
Overwhelming was one word you could use to describe the sight. Every which way you looked was a new color, a new person. A new discovery. The avalanche of sensory bombarded Gon’s senses, so much so he almost felt ready to overheat under all the options and paths he could take at his disposal. On the other hand, Gon was probably the most hyped he had been in his entire life - besides the first time he picked up a camera, of course.
Artist Alley was heaven.
Every brick laid in the streets all the way up to the tip-top of the highest story of the tallest building was covered in color, so many, in fact, that Gon could swear that many didn’t even exist. People of every shape, size, culture, and appearance haggled and babbled on about their wares and works (the homemade candied potato stand to his right, in particular, was calling his name). He skipped along the stone streets with Kon, flitting in and out of the crowds to snap pictures here and there of anything that caught his eye (with permission, of course).
He eyed the memory on his display cautiously. He was going to run out of room at this rate.
Heart heavy, Gon begrudgingly admitted that he should probably slow down a bit and decided to save up most of his remaining picture slots for Canary's recommended 99th street. Gon's eyes would have to be his mental viewfinder for a while, it seemed. Giving in to his previous urges, he also purchased one of the tempting candied potatoes before catching sight of and taking in the show of a group of performers he found out to be the Phantom Troupe. It was abundantly clear after only a couple of minutes that Canary hadn't exaggerated when talking about the Troupe's routine - the pink-haired clown, in particular, he found downright creepy.
Perhaps it was this that led Gon to the stellar decision of moving onto 99th street sooner than he initially planned. Regardless, in a matter of minutes, Gon found himself stepping onto the cobbled roads of 99th.
Despite the allure of the busier parts of the district, 99th street was on the more mellow side - this didn't mean it lacked in personality, though. If anything, he liked it even more than the other streets, if that was possible.
Here the artwork was the main focus, less so the artists and the spectacle of it all, and the best part was that this area seemed to be occupied by plenty of people his age, sometimes even younger. From a couple performing a love song duet, one strumming the guitar and his boyfriend singing along softly but passionately, to the girl who offered him a free sample of her newest homemade treats with a down-to-earth smile and blue ribbons in her hair, it was obvious that this side of Artist Alley was the authentic side of the district and Gon was looking forward to unearthing every treasure.
He politely asked the girl if he could take a few photos of her cute animal-shaped rice balls, to which she agreed, before documenting and absorbing all the rest the street had to offer on the way to the ‘pink house’. After only a little trouble, he found it tucked away in a corner of the street as if hiding from the world. A girl around his age with long black hair tied up in a pink bow sat outside - in front of her, a wide assortment of little handmade dolls and bracelets, each with colorful price tags. Aside from all of the knick-knacks was what Gon figured to be the girl’s name tag folded up as a paper plaque, the name “Alluka” on it in cursive.
Behind her was a huge sign with text and an arrow painted on it pointing to the pink house's entrance.
“Hi! Ask me about my big brother’s paintings! "
"Tickets to see the exhibit? Available!!!"
"Looking to buy? Available!!! "
"Can’t afford it? Negotiations: available!!!""Everything Available!!!”
Gon could barely keep the smile off of his lips.
Noticing his presence, the girl looked up from her current activity, a pink scarf half-finished in her hands, and beamed at him, tucking her bangs behind her ear. “Hi, there! If you see anything you like, just let me know. We also have a lot of combo deals like the bracelets, those are 3 for $15.” Then, with an even bigger smile and rosy cheeks, she bounced up and down when she caught Gon eyeing the sign. “Interested in Pink Gallery?”
“Pink gallery?” Gon asked, cocking his head a bit.
“My brother’s gallery. We just call it that because of the building,” she explained, bubbly. “A walk-through is only 5 dollars! Oh,” she frowned a little at Gon’s camera, “We don’t allow photos, though.”
The thought not even crossing his mind, Gon waved his hands sheepishly. "Don’t worry! I’d never do that - we artists have to stick together! I know I’d hate it if someone used my photos without permission." He paused after considering his options. "Um...”
Hm. He couldn’t just leave Kon out here. While he doubted this girl was the stealing type, you never knew what kind of person someone was, especially a stranger and in a place you’ve never been to before. But he really wanted to see the exhibit, if only to fulfill his curiosity of what was inside. After all, Canary had suggested this place in particular, so if it was even more standout than the rest of the street he just had to take a peek inside.
"I know!" She smiled, offering a pinkie. "Here! Pinkie promise."
At the gesture, reminding him of a certain aunt almost 500 miles away, a laugh bubbled up in Gon's chest. He wrapped his pinkie around hers and shook them together. “Promise! I’ll even let you check my camera before I leave.”
She giggled. “Deal!”
5 bucks lighter in his pocket, Gon strolled into the house, marveling at the gorgeous paintings inside.
Wow...inside was. Just, wow.
Jaw-dropping was the first thing that came to mind - impressive was the second (how was it possible to paint a field in that many different ways?). Where did he even start? Every painting was a portal to a new world, each more captivating than the last somehow. The light tone of purple lilies dyed the canvas in front of him while, behind him, the same field but slightly different, probably in summer now, sported saturated and almost painfully bright greens that made Gon have to readjust his gaze to the powerful draw of it all.
It was true: artwork in person made all the difference, Gon could say that with conviction now. Even if Alluka allowed him to take photos in here, there was no way he'd ever be able to do these works of art justice, it was beyond his capabilities.
“So cool...” he breathed, transfixed on a new piece, this one a still-life of a window sill. The cold shower of rain outside its glass panes was so unspeakably attractive and moody that Gon could swear he was back home, curled up under his bed's covers as the drops splattered against his own window. He continued on, each piece as fantastic as the next.
Although he adored the works, a thought - an intruding, painstakingly loud thought - pricked at his brain and settled in his stomach wrong. The paintings felt familiar, somehow. He just couldn’t put his finger on it.
Well, until he got to a painting so familiar he had to do a double-take.
Yep. That was definitely Leorio’s car. There was no way around it nor any way to mistake it. The specific shade of royal blue, the custom exhaust pipe a friend got him a deal on for graduation, the license plate number. Even the little dent in the passenger side door that no one but he and Leorio knew the creation of. In every which way 'til Sunday the painting was of Leorio's car, which shouldn't be possible. There was no way someone could paint Leorio's car without seeing it first, right?
And then, with that last thought, it clicked.
He rushed back to the front of the exhibit, taking in each piece, and felt his heart settle with a comfortable acceptance as he reached the last canvas.
Ah.
A tall lighthouse graced the surface - the tip reaching upward and fading with color as it climbed but picturesque in its stature. Untamed and fierce waves crashed against the base of the structure but unmoved it, the only proof that the water had any effect at all was captured in the subtle brushstrokes found in the light brown colored bricks at the bottom. He knew those bricks well, had felt them beneath his hands, felt those waves as well. He knew every color in this painting. Intimately.
After all, he was the one who saw it before it was even created.
“Oh.”
Gon startled at the voice, thrusting his attention away from Hunter Lighthouse.
Leaning against the wall, hands in his jean pockets, a boy, slightly taller than himself and with some of the fluffiest white hair he had ever seen, made a little hum. “Hey,” he started again, “enjoying the view?”
Struggling to find any words better than ‘yes, I am definitely enjoying this view, you’re even prettier than the paintings’, Gon’s brain short-circuited. Waiting for a response, the boy raised an eyebrow and smirked a bit, like the whole scenario was hilarious to him.
'Say something, anything', his brain commanded.
“Yes!” Gon internally flinched at his volume, especially when the boy’s eyes widened and his form jumped back. “Ah, sorry. I just-” he relaxed a bit, realizing how stupid he was acting and willing his brain to create a better response, “I kinda got focused on the painting. They make you feel like you’re there, you know? The artist is really talented.”
Even if he had pulled this excuse out of nowhere, just to make conversation with some cute stranger in an art exhibit, it was true.
Ever since he had first seen yoyomaster’s works he had been hooked, although he had never dreamed a day would come when he could see them in person. He wondered if it would be out of line to ask Alluka to meet her brother, considering he was supposed to be the artist behind the gallery.
That’d be too weird, right?
He didn’t know know yoyomaster, so to just show up out of the blue and go ‘hey, I’m that guy you follow and reblog from now and again, by the way, I’m in love with your work and can we be friends?’ would be borderline stalker-ish.
Oh well, at least he was able to see the art in person, that'd have to be good enough.
“Thanks,” the boy said, smirk widening. “Glad you like ‘em. You interested in keeping a piece? The lighthouse is one of my favorites so that one’s off the table, but I’m sure we could settle on a decent price for any of the others.” With a wink, he finished the sales pitch. “Well?”
Gon would've probably blushed at the wink had it not been for the current chaos swimming around his head. ’Thanks’ ? That meant the person in front of him was the artist, so that meant-
“Yoyo master?!”
Ah, he just screamed again, didn’t he?
A flash of confusion took over the white-haired boy’s face before instantly switching to one of understanding with a hint of interest. “Huh. I don’t think I’ve ever had someone know me by my online works before. Especially a local.”
“I’m not a local, um, I’m just visiting a friend,” Gon explained. “You are yoyo master though, right?”
“Yeah, that’s me.”
The boy’s lips changed from his smirk into a light smile at the change in topic, seemingly happy to hear Gon was a fan of his online nom de plume. “And you’re...?”
“Gon!” he smiled, then, realizing that answer probably didn’t help much, he shared his online handle too, “I run a photoblog. I used to go by gon fishing, but now-”
Yoyomaster cut him off. “PicturexHunter!”
He smiled widely, eyes shimmering with recognition. He gave his fingers a quick snap as well before pointing over to Hunter Lighthouse. “No wonder you were staring at it. I hope you don’t mind. I mean, I know I said I was going to use it for inspiration and everything but it’s more like a recreation-”
“No way, your take is way different! I mean, I know it’s the same, because of all the little details, but you capture it completely - well. Just - I like your version a lot too,” Gon tried to explain, finding his vocabulary to express all his current emotions lacking. “It has a unique mood to it!”
A cute blush rose to yoyomaster’s cheeks. “You’re the type that has no filter when they talk, aren’t you?”
Gon grinned wildly. “A little bit.”
“So a lot a bit. Got it,” he huffed, his tone betraying his words with laughter.
Taking said filter off completely, Gon instantly popped the question he had been dying to know. “Your sister outside said that pictures were a no-go but I’d love to take a few shots of the walls themselves, like, the way they are arranged and stuff, for the blog. I totally get if you don’t want me to, of course-”
“Nah, it’s fine.” Yoyomaster shook his head, sticking his hands back in his pockets, totally at ease.
“If you want to take some decent close-ups, that’s fine too. We made up that rule for people looking to make money off the exhibit, but I know you. It’s just for your blog. It’s obvious you don’t have a single un-honest bone in your body just by looking at you, so if you were planning on sneaking the pics or selling them, you’d be a dead giveaway.”
Gon laughed sheepishly, unable to deny yoyomaster’s comment, and excitedly worked his way back to the first painting, trying to capture the scene with perfect lighting. The preview image shining back up to him from Kon still did nothing to compare to the raw emotion and range of skill yoyomaster had on display here in person, but it was better than nothing, for sure. He went to lift the viewfinder back up when, just like before, he was pulled out of his head again, but this time by a more feminine voice.
And an unhappy feminine one, at that.
“You promised!” Alluka stomped her foot on the floor, angry tears forming in her eyes. “We pinkie promised! I can’t believe-”
“Whoa, sis, calm down. Hey, it’s fine, okay? I gave him the go-ahead, no pinkie promises broken. He runs a photoblog I follow.”
Yoyomaster ran over to his little sister, giving her a quick squeeze of a hug. “Nuh-uh, quit that. If you cry, I start to cry. You’re gonna make me look like a loser in front of a fan.”
She sniffed, all previous airs of hostility fading with the evaporating tears. “A photoblog?”
“Yeah, you know the guy who posts all those photos I reblog for ideas? He’s him,” Yoyomaster explained.
“Ah! Lighthouse guy!"
Gon nodded, a little proud to hear that her brother had mentioned him at least a few times (enough to give him a nickname even). “Hi! It’s nice to officially meet you, Alluka."
“Me too,” then, changing the subject with vigor and purpose, she added, “Brother, before I forget: Illumi-nii came by looking for you. Don’t worry, I took away the sign in time, but-”
“But he’s still expecting me to be at home. Dammit! I’m gonna have to try and beat him back-,” the boy clicked his tongue, turning to Gon with an apologetic grin. “Sorry, Gon. I have to take off. Tag me in the photos when you post ‘em though, ‘kay?”
“Oh, right! Okay, will do! Bye!” he called out, the boy dashing out of the hallway like a flash of lightning. Alluka, picking up right where she had left off, turned back to him excitedly gushing how much she loved his photos and bringing up her plans of making her own blog soon as well.
Gon happily continued the conversation and left the girl with his blog url and Instagram when she asked for it, promising to follow her right away when she did. He finished taking a few last angles of the exhibit, asking Alluka for her input on which ones he should end up posting, and left her with a big wave goodbye for good measure, shouting out how great it was getting to meet them one last time.
Pleased with his afternoon of gaining two new friends (and one of them was yoyomaster of all people, how lucky could he get?!), Gon made his way back to their hotel room leisurely, capturing a few striking scenic buildings and one of Kurapika’s infamous redwood trees that caught the light just right along his return. He excitedly showed off said photos and his other finds of the day to his big brother as soon as he walked in the door.
It was only as he recounted his adventure in Artist Alley to Leorio, rocking back and forth at Leorio’s laptop all the while, sifting through the images stored in Kon before uploading and tagging yoyomaster, that Gon instantly shriveled up with disappointment, groaning and banging his head on the keyboard.
Leorio raised an eyebrow at his sudden change in mood. “...you okay?”
No. He was stupid, that’s what he was. Stupid.
Gon turned to Leorio with a frustrated lip and dull eyes. “I forgot to ask him his name.”
Thankfully, it didn't take much more than meeting Kurapika and Melody in person to get his mind off of his failure from earlier in the day. No, Gon's curiosity about yoyomaster plopped right out of his brain the second he and Leorio located the address Kurpika had given. The building was on the smaller side of things, but homey nonetheless. Very Melody-like, if Gon said so himself. Or, at least, very like the Melody that was inside Gon's head.
"You made it. Oh, I'm so glad," a woman shorter than Gon opened the door with a soothing smile. It appeared Gon's head was pretty good at guessing - there wasn't a single doubt in his mind that the person before them was Melody in all her glory.
She was just as he pictured her. Melody stood relaxed and slightly awkwardly, but in a way Gon couldn't help but find endearing. While his imagination had been slightly off about her hair color, the length and the marks she had on her scalp were practically ripped straight out of his version and brought to life here in the real world. She really was just as a unique and interesting person in real life as online. How awesome.
"Melody!" Gon went to hug her instantly but stopped. "We can hug, right?"
Melody chuckled. "Of course, Gon."
"Yay!" Gon wasted no time and wrapped his arms around her, enjoying the warmth.
Leorio, never content with being the odd man out, joined in and smothered the two of them himself, lifting them both off the ground slightly with an overexaggerated grunting noise. Gon couldn't help but laugh harder. This hug right here had been worth every hour and dollar saved up for the trip.
"Not to intrude, but I'd like a hug as well," a voice chimed in from beyond the doorway.
Gon could barely contain himself, breaking away from Melody and Leorio to jump into the waiting arms of his friend and mentor. He registered a small 'oof' at the force of the hug but didn't dare move away unless asked. "Kurapika! It's so cool to finally meet you!" He loosened his grip slightly if only to be able to look up and take in the man's face before him.
While Gon's mental image of Melody had been so accurate it was almost scary, Kurapika was nothing like Gon's version of him. Not to say that this Kurapika didn't fit - the opposite, actually, this fit him even better than Gon's - but he was. Well.
Kurapika was really pretty, there was no other way to put it.
From the way Kurapika talked, Gon had thought he'd look more strict, or kind of stoic, dressed in some stiff collard shirt and slicked-back hair. Regardless of the age on Kurapika's blog description, Gon also pictured him more like an older man or, at the very least, older than the person in front of him looked. Where Gon had, unintentionally, designed Kurapika as a wise sensei who did calligraphy for poems and sipped tea, the real Kurapika looked almost princely but with an air of casual-ness and natural grace. If he didn't know any better, he'd think this Kurapika was the fantasy one, the fairy tale prince and scholar plucked out of one of Mito's storybooks and given form on Earth. But now that Gon had this version, he knew right away this was the superior one.
Yes. This was Kurapika.
"It's wonderful to meet you too, Gon," Kurapika smiled down at him. "How has the trip been, so far?"
"Good! I've already got tons of great pictures - oh! Here-" he pulled out Kon, "- I took some shots of those redwoods you told me about. Their leaves are just as picture-worthy as you made them out to be!" Gon eagerly handed over the camera for Kurapika to flip through, ready to dive into some of the stories about their plane trip over. Before he did, though, he took stock of the situation and paused.
While he had been gushing left and right about redwoods and pleasantries, his brother was surprisingly silent. Leorio had moments of introspection and quietness, sure, but it wasn't like him at all to not even try and nuzzle his way into a conversation with a funny quip or two. He looked back at Leorio, giving him a chance to say hi and pick up where Gon had left off, maybe sharing the story about the nervous flight attendant from the flight, and instead found Leorio practically frozen in place with a strange look on his face.
He looked like he was about to throw up, actually.
"Leorio?"
Whatever expression he was wearing before disappeared as Leorio snapped his eyes to Gon. "Yeah?"
"Don't you want to give Kurapika a hug too?"
And just like that, the expression was back. "Uh, nah. I'm good."
Gon, confused and worried, turned back to look at Kurapika. He hoped Leorio's reply didn't come off as insulting as it had to him. Even more curiously, Kurapika was now staring back at his brother, an expression not unlike the other. Okay then.
"A handshake instead then?" Kurapika asked, handing back Kon and making his way to Leorio.
Leorio cleared his throat. "Sure, that'll work."
Gon watched as the two joined hands and shook, their union lasting a tad longer than most other shakes he was familiar with. Then, they released and Leorio nervously pushed his glasses back up the bridge of his nose before smiling. Kurapika, meanwhile, tucked a strand of hair out of his face and returned Leorio's smile with one of his own, an unmistakable blush to his cheeks.
Gon felt his lips twitch. Well. It looked like he was going to have a lot to update Aunt Mito about over Skype tonight.
--
Dinner had been the best part of the trip yet, some of the best Okrean takeout he had tasted in his life - perfect photo fodder too. After the dishes were cleaned and stories were shared for a couple of hours, Melody picked up her flute and headed into the recording booth when Gon and Leorio begged for a quick performance. As it had turned out, Melody was planning on recording a fragment of her newest track tonight anyway, so sharing it among friends wasn't too much of a change, to which Gon was overjoyed to hear. As she whistled across the instrument, letting the succulent songs lull in and out of the room, Gon sneaked a few clicks at the sight.
There, in her element, Melody was the goddess of music, daring any camera or painter to capture her grace, and Gon, for one, had taken up the challenge. Even now, back in their cozy hotel room and far away from the tunes of her flute, Gon could hear its notes as he scrolled through the snapshots. He saved some of his favorites, not to publish to the blog but for his own keepsake of this trip, and continued onto the other treasure of the night.
He flicked through his plate of noodles and side dishes, chuckled at one candid camera of Leorio choking on an eggroll, and settled happily when he came across his favorite treasure of the night.
Leorio and Kurapika sat side by side, as if they belonged nowhere else in the world but there. The blonde prince has a small smile on his face, attention focused on something or someone slightly beyond Gon's camera and more to his left, most likely Melody. Leorio's eyes, on the other hand, have no other mission in life but to take in his companion beside him, a certain twinkle in their pupils that speaks for itself. Gon knew how true the saying 'a picture is worth a thousand words' rang, but this particular photo left little room for interpretation. He hastily marked it to his favorites before backing it up to the laptop, double-checking that there would be no chance for its deletion, even if an accident occurred.
No matter what happened, his best photo yet would be safe.
Gon continued to scroll through his collection, moving a couple to the cloud here and there, but most just deleting to free up his memory. It was helpful in the long run, but sometimes he regretted taking so many pictures, just with slightly different angles or settings. It made it super hard to choose in the first place, not to mention it was time-consuming. All in all, it was one of the only downsides to photography, in his opinion.
Sensing his dread in the current activity, a notification sent down by the hands of fate (or the god of procrastination) popped up on his phone. He glanced at the time.
Well, it was only 11 and Kurapika had a habit of staying up late, no matter how often Melody and Leorio nagged him not to, but it’d still be a little strange considering he had just seen him so it probably wasn’t him. It definitely wasn’t Zushi either, what with the time difference, so he curiously pulled up the chat.
Oh, so this was what it felt like to have a heart attack.
Yoyomaster
hey gon heading to bed but wanted to know if ur plans r booked while ur in town
alluka wants to hang out again soon lmao
i told her ur prbly busy but still thought i should check.
i also know a lot of cool places around here so theres that like im talking grade a photo potential
lmk if u wanna meet up :p
the pics came out awesome btw like not as good as the real deal ofc but still
solid 9/10
He willed his heart to stop hammering away, but couldn’t stop the burn in his cheeks or the curl of his lips.
Photoxhunter
ofc i want to meet up :D
my brother and i have tickets to one of our friend’s concerts and then we have an art exhibit with a different friend right after, and their graduation is the next day, but after that i’m all free!
my brother might want to tag along tho. he’s one of those beware of stranger danger big bros lol
we are staying until the end of the week, so let me know when is good for you!
night!
As if it burned him, Gon quickly flipped the phone screen back down onto the couch and jumped away, grabbing a neighboring pillow to scream in. Man, today really was one of his luckiest, huh? Even after his screw-up, he had another chance to find out yoyomaster’s actual name fall out of the sky and into his lap.
He screamed again.
“You’re gonna suffocate,” Leorio warned, a tired look on his face and wet hair from his shower. With a yawn, he gave the pillow a pat. “Don’t die and go to bed, kay?”
He waited for the bedroom door to close, leaving him alone in the half kitchen half living room again. Then, to himself, gave a muffled “mfkay.”