I had the idea for this after I watched the episode in which Light meets the fianceé of the FBI agent he killed -Ray something or other xD Anyway, when this woman gives Light a fake name, Ryuk starts laughing. Light figured out shortly after that she had given him an alias, not a real name. Ryuk was laughing because, with the shinigami eyes, he could see her real name and all that, so that's how he knew she was lying.

So then it got me thinking... Is Light more paranoid now when he's talking to people? And what if Ryuk started laughing while he was talking to someone? Wouldn't he get suspicious?

This is the product of those musings. Hope you at least find it somewhat entertaining X] Also, there are a couple girls in the last part. They're my OCs that I plan on using in a longer Death Note story ("Wreck of the Day"). Perhaps this story is just all of their little side adventures not mentioned in the main story...? Anyway, they're called K and S. They're two detectives that have helped L in the past (hence their similiar names), and are close friends of his. Well, as close as anyone can really get to L, at any rate.

If there is any moral to this story, it is this: When a shinigami laughs...always ask him why he's laughing before you do something drastic that you may regret.

So, originally, this was a oneshot. Then my friend (who is S) and I (K) started spitballing some other ideas and scenarios, and it turned into a series! ^.^ Also, the amazing LatteJazz's story "Dilly Dally Shilly Shally" (Being the myriad misadventures of Cloud & Co.) inspired me to do this story, which is along the same lines in format.

Anywhoo, enjoy the randomness ^.^

-I. When A Shinigami Laughs-

Light walked down the hallway of the school, passing a few small groups students as he went.

Some students glanced at Light as he went by, others (girls, mostly) stared at him, and others still didn't even notice his presence at all.

Inside, Light was grinning evilly and thinking about all the students that passed. Some day, he thought, they will all know my name! And they will all look upon me as the savior of this world!

These were the sorts of thoughts that had filled his mind so much since discovering the notebook called the Death Note when it was dropped into the human world by his shinigami, Ryuk. And since he had conceived of his master plan to rid the world of all criminals, yada, yada, yada, you know the story (I hope).

No one but Light could see Ryuk floating behind him, following him everywhere he went like a blue-skinned, big-eyed, fanged, winged shadow. No one could hear Ryuk's raspy, creepy voice -which had lost it's creepiness to Light. Because Ryuk would never shut up. Especially when Ryuk knew that Light couldn't respond to his comments and questions.

I swear, Light thought, blocking out yet another of Ryuk's rants, if it were possible to kill shinigami with the Death Note, I'd end his life in a second.

"So, how many names are you gonna write today?" Ryuk asked. "Got some in mind already? Some new ways that they should die?"

Light kept a calm expression on his face, willing himself to continue to act like there wasn't a shinigami floating next to him and asking him the same questions he asked him everyday.

"Excuse me."

Ryuk stopped talking, and turned with Light to see who had spoken.

A woman approached Light. She didn't look old, but she wasn't young either. She could've been in her thirties, maybe. She had short, black hair that hit just at her chin. Red glasses framed her dark brown eyes. In the heels she was wearing, she was able to look Light sqaure in the eyes. She was wearing a business suit of sorts.

A teacher, maybe? Light thought.

"Light Yagami, right?"

"That's me," Light said, still unsure of who this woman was.

"Ah, so glad I found you. I heard that you're one of the top students in the area -maybe even in all of Japan-, and I just had to meet you and introduce myself. I'm a professor here. I'm Ms. Mitsuko Nakamura." She held out her hand for Light to shake.

Immediately following the woman's introduction, Ryuk burst out laughing, nearly doubled over where he was floating in the air.

Light resisted the urge to turn and glare at the creature, or to yell at him to shut up, and merely smiled politely at Ms. Nakamura. "It's so nice to meet you," he said, shaking her hand.

Ryuk continued laughing.

Geez, doesn't he ever breathe? Light wondered. I guess gods of death don't really need to breathe, do they? It'd be sort of oxymoronic.

"I look forward to having you in my class at some point, young man," Ms. Nakamura said with a smile.

"And I look forward to having you as a teacher, ma'am," Light replied, still keeping his composure through all of Ryuk's laughing.

"Well, I won't keep you from getting home," Ms. Nakamura said. "I've got to get home myself. I'll see you around, Yagami."

"Goodbye, Ms. Nakamura."

Even as she was walking away, Ryuk didn't break his rhythm of laughter, which had now grown hysterical.

Light glanced around the hallway, and, seeing it was empty (except for Ms. Nakamura at the end of the hall), spun to face Ryuk.

"What is your problem?" he hissed.

Ryuk didn't reply, but just went on with his laughter.

Light glared at Ryuk, thinking. The last time Ryuk laughed like this... he mused. That ex-FBI agent... Fake name... She knew. She knew how Kira killed.

Light gasped a little. "Ryuk, does she know something?" He lowered his voice even more. "Does she know I'm Kira?"

More laughter was all the reply Light got.

Light sighed, exasperated. "I can't take any chances. I've come too far in this to lose to some teacher." He shoved his hand into his blazer pocket, searching for the page out of the Death Note he always took with him. "Well, I'll fix this..." He pulled a pen from his other pocket, and quickly wrote down the professor's name.

No need to get creative with this, he thought, folding the paper back up and putting it and the pen back in his pockets. She just needs to be out of the way.

He looked at his watch, waiting for the few seconds that needed to pass before-

A cry of pain shattered the stillness of the hallway, and a grin spread across Light's lips. He saw in his mind's eye the professor collapsing, clutching her chest as the heart attack claimed her life.

"There," he said to himself. "All according to plan. My identity is still hidden." He looked at Ryuk when he didn't reply.

To Light's surprise...Ryuk was still laughing.

Light blinked at him. "Okay, enough of this crap. Ryuk, why are you laughing so much?"

Ryuk suddenly stopped and looked around, as if just realizing that he and Light were in the hallway alone. "Huh? Hey, wait... Did you just kill that woman?"

"Yes..." Light replied in a "duh" way.

"Why?"

Light rolled his eyes. "Because you were just...floating there and laughing like a maniac! I had to do something! I got suspicious!"

"Oh..." Ryuk said, trailing his eyes up and down the hall and clacking his claw-like nails together.

"What is it?" Light asked, still annoyed. He didn't like using the Death Note on random people. He was out to kill the bad guys. But he couldn't risk anyone getting in his way until his mission was accomplished. The fact that Ryuk had basically left him with no choice but to kill that woman made him even more annoyed.

"Uh, well, uh..." Ryuk stuttered. "You see, uh... I was laughing because..."

"Yes?" Light asked, just wanting Ryuk to get to the point.

"Because...she smelled like apples."

Light stared at Ryuk for several long moments in silence.

A long string of profanities started running through his head. Only one made it out of his mouth.

"Damn it!" he hissed, slapping his hand over his eyes. "You've got to be kidding me..."

Ryuk shrugged. "Look, I told you. I'm a shinigami. And we shinigami lovveee our apples."

"So you crack up every time you smell them?" Light snapped.

"Well, they are like crack to us, if you think about it. And I can't help it! They're just so full of love and joy...and joyness..."

Light shook his head, feeling a massive headache coming on.

Of all the shinigami's in the death world, he thought, I get stuck with the one who's a total moron.

;;;;;

-Meanwhile, at the Kira Task Force Headquarters (a.k.a. L's Current Hotel)-

One of the task force members walked into the room, holding a report in his hands.

"Ryuzaki," he said.

L, K, and S looked up from the papers and books in front of them. Or, in L's case, from his cup of tea.

"There's been another heart attack victim in the area."

L sighed and set his cup down. "Kira strikes again..."

"But..."

The three sleuths looked up expectantly.

"This one is...strange. Seems almost...unrelated, you might say."

"Why do you say that?" S asked.

"Well, the victim wasn't a criminal. She was a college professor."

"Hmm..." L mused.

"Information on the victim?" K asked.

"She had no record, no complaints, not even so much as a parking ticket. It's odd..."

"Hmm," L hummed again. "I find it quite odd that Kira would target someone who, to society, is a virtual nobody."

"Then again, Kira isn't exactly a normal murderer, is he?" K asked.

"You've got a point," S said.

"There's something mentioned in the report that I thought was...interesting, though," the man said.

"What's that?" L asked.

"It mentions that she was wearing...some sort of apple-based perfume."

"What?" K asked in disbelief. "Let me see that."

The man handed her the report, and she looked it over, flipping pages. "That is weird," she said.

"Why would they mention something as inconsequential as that?" S wondered aloud.

"Hmm," L hummed a third time.

All eyes in the room were on him, everyone wondering if this information about the woman's perfume was some sort of key that would take them to a lead.

"Well...isn't that interesting," L said. "Perhaps Kira just doesn't like apples... Or this could've been a real heart attack. Non-Kira-related. Let's move on."

The whole room heaved a sigh, disappointed.

"Killing someone over apples?" S said. "How weird..."

"Or perhaps paranoid," K said. "Kira will kill anyone that gets in his way. Maybe the smell of apples brings back bad memories from his childhood or something, so he hates them. And focusing on his hate of apples is distracting him from his twisted goal or whatever." K smirked. "Shall I wear my apple perfume and see if he kills me next?"

"Don't even think about it," L said, picking up his tea cup from the coffee table in front of them.

K smiled at L. "Aw, you don't want me dead, L?"

"Of course not," he said.

Hope flickered in K's blue-green eyes.

"We need you on this case."

Now she rolled her blue-green eyes, and sighed heavily.

"And it's Ryuzaki," L corrected.

"What sort of name is that anyway?" S asked.

"Yeah," K agreed. "Why don't you change it to something cool, like...like Kyo or...or Tamaki?"

"Because those are pathetic names that I will never utter, let alone name myself," L said, taking a sip of his tea.

"Whatever, L," K said.

He gave her a look over the rim of his cup.

"Whaddaya gonna do to stop me?" she asked, grinning.

L rolled his eyes. There are pros and cons to having these two around, he thought. Pros, we're closer to finding Kira. Cons, we're not closer to finding Kira.

It's all a system of balances. I'm sure we'll find Kira...eventually.

I happen to have apple body spray, so that was also an inspiration for this. I just hope Light wouldn't kill me because I wore it! O.o

So Light did something drastic that he shouldn't have. *Tsk, tsk* Perhaps he'll know better next time. Then again, this is Light we're talking about. So maybe he wouldn't. XD

So there it is! Let me know what you think! More to come soon!

(And K and S will be appearing in a longer story, as well as in further chapters of this. I know their parts were short in this one, but I hope you liked them anyway! ^.^)

(P.S.: Did you notice the names of my favorite characters from other animes? ^.^ Seemed like something L would say in response to those names hahaha)