Alrighty, so this is my first fic on this site, though not my first one written. I really do hope that you guys enjoy reading this as much as I enjoy writing it.
Author: Sethrine
Title: Too Close For Comfort
Chapter Title: Unwelcome Meeting
Chapter Summary: Luna, a part time waitress, is balancing studies and working at the same time. While working, she spots a certain trio and ends up meeting them, despite her and her Guardian's unease of the three.
Disclaimer: I own nothing of the Death Note kind! If I did, L wouldn't be dead, and Light would suffer!
"Luna, clean-up!"
"Ok, got it, Atara," a young woman shouted back as her name was called out, dropping her pencil on her notebook and closing her science book quickly. Light dirty blonde hair with natural chocolate brown streaks swayed back and forth in the messy half-bun it was pinned into as the young woman, only the age of 18, picked up an empty bin to place soiled dishes in.
Like most anyone her age, Luna looked to be a normal teen who worked as a waitress in a small, but rather successful, cafe and studied hard for her college classes whenever she had the chance. Like most anyone her age, Luna had a family that loved her dearly, though she lacked a mother and looked nothing like her Japanese cousin. Like most anyone her age, Luna was a happy, gentle, carefree soul that sought out to do the best she could in her lifetime.
There was something rather...special about the young blonde, however, that only selected people knew, something that made the blonde almost invincible to harm.
When she was born, Luna was blessed with a Guardian, a spiritual being that protected her from the dangers of the outside world. It was the job of the Guardian to watch over her during her lifetime, seeing as how Luna would be on her way to some sort of greatness; it was the only explanation for the blonde to even have a Guardian in the first place.
"You know, Luna, you are very sufficient at multi-tasking your work and your studies."
Luna glanced at her right shoulder as she began clearing one of the tables, smiling the slightest at seeing her Guardian sitting elegantly there. The Guardian's name was Dark Skies(1), and she was in the form of a dark fairy, a strange counterpart to Luna's light demeanor. Her hair was long and of the darkest black, as was the long, flowing, strapless dress she wore, a sheen of silver covering over the silk-like material. Her eyes were as dark and magnificent as the deepest and bluest ocean, and her alabaster skin seemed to glow just the slightest in the light. Her wings were down turned a bit when not in use and had swirls of transparent greys and blues and silvers mixed in. All in all, she was an extraordinary being to see, and she could only be seen by Luna.
Luna gave a small nod, acknowledging the fairy in the simplest of ways so as not to get caught talking to herself. She had already been seen several times talking seemingly to thin air, and it embarrassed the blonde greatly.
She quickly finished clearing her assigned tables and went straight to the back, placing the bin beside the sink where three people were set about the task of cleaning, rinsing, and drying the dishes, before moving out towards the front where her studies were. It would be another fifteen minutes or so before she would have to clear another table, so she had enough time to answer a few more questions before she would be set back to work.
"Do not forget, Luna, you still have things to pick up after work."
"Oh, that's right! Almost forgot," the blonde exclaimed silently, taking out a clean sheet of paper and a pen, tapping the end to her lips several times and looking up at the ceiling in thought.
"Well, I need to get some milk and orange juice, a new wire whisk for Papa, since he broke his last one this morning.... Oh! Strawberries and milk and white chocolate chips. Can't forget those!"
"Talking to yourself again, Deril?"
Luna turned abruptly at the mention of her last name as red dusted her pale cheeks, her eyes widening considerably. Standing behind her was her boss, Atara, smiling down at her with shimmering emerald green eyes.
"Oh, A-Atara! I was just...jotting some things down I needed to get from the store, and I guess I was just talking out loud to myself, but I didn't mean...."
"Don't sweat it, kid, it happens to the best of us. No need to get all defensive about it."
With a smile, Atara turned to move toward the back, pausing mid-stride to look over her shoulder. "Kimimi left a minute ago to pick up her son from the airport, so I gave her the rest of the day off. Be a dear and clear her tables, 'kay?"
"Okay, I'm on it!"
Luna slid the piece of paper with her grocery list scribbled down on it in her notebook and grabbed another empty bin from the back and a cleaning rag. She quickly cleared and cleaned three tables and was now heading back behind the counter to go to the washing area when her Guardian jumped from her position from Luna's shoulder and began fluttering beside her human's head.
"This is not good," Skies whispered, her gaze directed at two men now entering the cafe.
Luna turned, wondering what her Guardian was worrying over when she followed Skies' line of sight. Almost instantly, the bin of soiled dishes slipped from her hands, ceramic plates and other utensils falling out of the bin to crash and break against the tiled floor.
The first man had dark onyx hair that looked messy and astray as if he had not bothered to brush it that morning. His owlish eyes looked just as dark, and there were smoky circles under his eyes that indicated a lack of sleep, probably over an expanse of a week, if the darkness of them was any indication. He was dressed in a long sleeved white shirt and a pair of baggy jeans, both of which looked too big on him, and a pair of white tennis shoes adorned his feet. What topped it all off was his horrible posture, pale skin, and the otherwise unsociable look about him that practically screamed "I hate people!".
What was strange about this was the other man that stood next to him. He seemed like the polar opposite of the unkempt man, having perfect posture and a social air about him. Unlike the first, his brown and auburn colored hair was neat, as was his overall apparel which consisted of black slacks, a maroon sweater-like shirt, and black dress shoes. He looked well rested, seeing as how he didn't have dark circles under his brown, nearly red-tinted eyes, and his skin was flawlessly tanned, though it was more than obvious it was natural. For some reason, Luna found this young man to be familiar, but she couldn't recall where she had seen him from.
Though both seemed to be odd characters when seen together, that wasn't what caused such a startling reaction from the blonde young woman. What had really caught her attention was the creature looming behind them.
It was about a foot or so taller than the men it practically floated over with leathery black wings. It's clothing was all black and clung to his bony and deathly pale body like a second layer of skin, numerous stitches and chains scattered about the dark material. It's eyes were red on yellow, an odd, creepy combination that had Luna's own eyes nearly as big as saucers, and its teeth looked so sharp that she was sure they could probably cut through anything like knife through butter.
Luna knew what this creature was; Skies had mentioned something about them a long time ago in stories that the fairy Guardian used to tell her. This creature was a Shinigami, a God of Death.
"Luna, what happened? Are you okay?"
Luna closed her eyes momentarily before opening them again and looking over at another of the employees that had come to help her clean up the broken pieces of dishes she had just now realized she dropped.
Her face was beet red as she looked down at the mess and dropped to her knees, beginning to clean up. "Y-yeah, I'm just fine! I...I guess the bin just slipped through my fingers is all. It surprised me there for a second."
With a little help, the mess was cleaned within a matter of minutes, and when Luna had the nerves to look back up, she noticed that both men had seated themselves at one of the tables that she had previously cleaned off...and that the Shinigami was looking right at her. She snapped her eyes back to her bin as she stood and hastily made her way to the back to discard the broken dishes, a shudder running down her spine at the chilling sound of the Death God's chuckle directed at her.
"Skies, what is that thing doing here? Why is it following those men around? Are they...Are they gonna die anytime soon?"
Luna's questions came out in a rush of air, her words whispered and slightly shaking, and it took a moment for Dark Skies to calm her human down a bit before she began answering any of the young woman's questions.
"The presence of a Shinigami beside a human does not necessarily mean that human is going to die..."
"But they are, aren't they? That's just horrible!"
"Luna, calm down! There are things that you do not understand that are happening this moment in time, things that no other human could rightfully understand. One of those two humans -by the looks of it, the younger one- is the possessor of a Death Note, and that Shinigami is attached to him."
"A Death Note? What's that?"
Luna looked up momentarily to see the Shinigami looking at her still, its gaze making her nervous. It's attention was suddenly taken away from her and was once more on the two men who were now deep in conversation, something that they must have said having caught its interest.
"A Death Note is a very dangerous notebook that is used by a Shinigami. It is used to kill whoever's name is written within it. It seems though that it is attached to that human, which means that he possesses it at the moment."
"But why does he have it instead of the Shinigami?"
"I do not know, nor do I care. All I know is that this man is dangerous, Luna. I advise that you be careful when giving your name out from now on. There is no possibility of you dying while I am here, though I want to keep certain risks out of the way."
Luna gave a quick, sharp nod in understanding, trying her best to ignore the two men that were now being served several different items, most of which seemed to be numerous types of cakes. Instead, she tried to focus on her Science homework which, upon opening up her book, she realized she had not even attempted last time.
After looking up several answers successfully without having glanced over at the trio, she was called out for clean-up once more on tables seven and three. Luna shut her book and once again picked up her bin and rag and moved to clear table seven, seeing as how it was the closest one to her.
When she finished and began moving toward table three, an alarming realization came to her. Table three was just behind the table where the two men and the Shinigami had seated themselves, another one of the workers now handing them their bill in a mahogany colored booklet. She groaned to herself, looking at Skies for some sort of advice. As if having sensed her human's unease, Skies turned to Luna with the smallest of smiles.
"Do not make eye contact with them; just ignore their presence, and they will not even notice that you are near them."
"Alright," she whispered as she focused her eyes on the table and refused to even glance at the three beings, even when the Shinigami now had his full attention set on her. She set the dishes in the bin carefully and swiped down the table with ease, though on the inside, she was a nervous wreck.
It was then that she made the mistake of pausing and looking to her left, her eyes growing wide as the auburn haired man passed her, his honey brown eyes narrowed and staring her down in an almost challenging way. For some strange, unknown reason to the blonde, the man's stare was even more unnerving than the Shinigami's own.
"Luna, no!" Skies shouted suddenly as Luna made a sharp turn in the opposite direction, wanting to escape the calculating glare that was unsettling her to no end. As she turned, she slipped on something wet against the tile floor and instantly lost her balance, closing her eyes and bracing herself for the impact of the hard floor against her back. Instead, two steady arms caught her around the waist before she could hit the floor, causing her eyes to fly open and look into the dark ones of the unkempt man that was with the other.
"Are you alright?"
Luna heard the question being asked, though she was in no state to answer. She was rather fixated with his eyes that were steadily locked on hers, strong and unwavering. Amazement was the only characteristic most noticeable on her face, for she was amazed at what she could see and couldn't see within those onyx depths. It also felt as if he were looking into her very soul, seeking out her flaws and perfections without even trying.
"Answer him, Luna," Skies advised, seeing that her human looked dazed. She placed a cold hand against the young woman's temple, and that simple action seemed to pull her out of her trance.
"I'm...I'm fine, thank you."
The man seemed to take her answer willingly and proceeded to help Luna to her feet, squatting back down on the floor and placing his thumb to his bottom lip in thought. It was an action that Luna found strange, yet oddly suitable for the man.
"Hmm, it seems you dropped this," he said in a monotonous voice, though it wasn't at all unpleasant. Almost cautiously with his thumb and forefinger, the man picked up the damp rag that Luna had used to wipe down the tables and held it in the air to study momentarily.
"This must be what caused you to slip, Miss, uh...Deril, is it?"
Luna looked down at the name tag adorning her name that was pinned to her shirt and gave a sheepish sort of smile while taking the burgundy colored rag from his fingers. This had to be one of the most embarrassing things that had ever happened to her.
"Yeah, it probably was! Everyone says I'm the biggest klutz around here. Just living up to my name!" She then gave a nervous laugh while rubbing the back of her neck, nearly uneasy with the exchange.
The man blinked slowly as he stood, taking in her confession as if trying to store it to memory. "You should be more careful. You wouldn't want to hurt yourself."
Luna kept her gaze on the strange man as he walked up beside the man he had entered the cafe with, tilting his head ever so slightly to the side. "Something wrong, Light?"
At the sound of his name, the younger man looked at the other, giving a seemingly cheerful smile that, to anyone but the other male, Luna, and Skies, looked genuine.
"No, I was just...lost in thought. Let's go."
With a nod of his head, the other man began walking toward the exit, the younger giving Luna one last glance before he followed with the Shinigami close behind him.
Magnificent ocean blue eyes remained on the trio before they disappeared around the corner, a scowl forming on the Guardian's beautiful face.
"Good, they are both gone. I did not like either of them; they seemed too ambiguous to me, and I...Luna?"
Skies looked over at her human to see a shocked, almost horrified expression written across her pretty face, one that very nearly unnerved the fairy.
"Luna, what is wrong?"
"Th-that man," she stammered, still horror-stricken despite having seen them disappear behind the corner, "I know him! The college...he's in the top five at my college. His name is...Light Yagami!"
(1) Dark Skies is an actual fairy figurine from a collector's thingy that I have. I kinda stole the name and design, but I no own the credit of the thought.
Well, what did you guys think? Was it any good? Please feel free to tell me what you think! Thoughts, suggestions....all forms of review are greatly appreciated, whether they be good or bad.
Thank you for reading!
NEXT CHAPTER: The Keeper of the Death Note