Untitled, as of Yet

Please, if you have an idea for a title, let me know. I'm terrible with those.

DISCLAIMER:

Ok, fine. I know the Death Note characters are not mine. However. Kari and her friends are so I'd be happy to lend them to you, but don't steal them. And I'm going to marry L. Just so you all know. 

I sat there, avidly watching the news.

"Kira murdered another 23 today. He's certainly showing no signs of stopping, although L is still working on the case. However, it certainly must be hurting that the police aren't dedicating as many men to the Kira case as they once were..."

That was an understatement. It was common public knowledge that the Japanese police force was no longer even conducting an investigation into Kira because so many officers and federal agents had been killed. Even the United States had withdrawn support and the most killings had been of American criminals. Still, you couldn't really blame them. It was a good thing people were so talkative on the internet because what with trying to look good for the public and the government's mild censorship on anything to do with Kira, I wouldn't have known much otherwise.

It probably wasn't healthy that I was this interested in the Kira case, but I honestly couldn't help myself. My friends and I had been monitoring the case since Day One, and we had formed an almost Kira fan club. There were ten of us, and we were currently all so intensely bored with school that we really had nothing better to do than search for Kira's identity. Unlike the police, however, I was interested in who Kira was because I wanted to talk to him, understand him better. I had no moral objections to what he was doing; in fact I supported him. I was pretty sure that if I had the chance I'd do the same, but I wasn't quite sure I'd be able to stomach killing all those investigating me.

I cracked my knuckles lightly and thanked God once again for my friend Emiko. Then I kicked myself mentally. Use code names! Do you want Kira to kill everyone? Eina. She was a total computer whiz and she managed to hack into some foolish guy's files. We were lucky enough to get wind of the fact that the famous model Misa Misa was somehow involved in the Kira case. At first, I'd just dismissed the connection as a phony rumor, but something rang true and I got a hunch. I always followed my hunches so I did a little more investigating and turned up the name of her manager. Matsui. I checked him out and he had strangely little background. It wasn't until his supposed 'death' in the newspaper that Eina was able to trace him. He was actually a police officer named Matsuda and after that it was easy.

She hacked his laptop and all the files on it. We lucked out completely. It seemed he was part of a secret task force on the Kira case, working directly beneath L in fact. So, between his information, the internet, the limited news, and our own deductions, we had a neat file of compiled Kira information. That night was like any other and I had finally finished my homework so I was surfing the internet while watching some television. I was considering going to sleep when my phone beeped. It was a text from Eina.

"Check Matsuda's latest update."

Ok. I logged into the folder on my desktop and then opened the internet. By opening the bluetooth connection I was into Eina's files as well (she lived a floor below me so our Wifi's were close enough to overlap) and then I clicked on Matsuda's image. His case file uploaded and I checked for a new update. I jumped into a seated position and reread the latest statement. I'd surely struck gold.

Greedily, I saw a new update in the file marked Diary. It had taken not only Eina's skills, but also that of Ryn's. And usually Ryn only needs to assist in burgling and hacking building security. But the password system Matsuda set up for himself was apparently pretty sophisticated for someone of his intelligence. Even by Ryn's standards. So when she told Inari about the system, he immediately concluded that someone else must have set up the comprehensive password for Matsuda; seeing as how Inari's the shrink, we concluded his conclusion must be right.

So I typed in the password (which, oddly enough was strawberry), and opened the new Diary entry without a problem. I scrolled down to the bottom. Matsuda's diary entries were quite informative and we learned more about the Kira investigation from reading about this man's day to day experiences than we did from his work files which were conspicuously absent of any real information. I just had to be content with skipping all the dumb drama he insisted on including.

'We had to meet him in a hotel room. We went separately, in two groups, up to the room. When we entered, boy was I amazed! L was nothing like the man I had grown to expect. He was very young indeed, appearing no more than 21, and he had wild black hair flowing every which way. His eyes were very searching and freaked me out a little with the deep rings underneath; clearly the man doesn't sleep. And, oddly enough, he walked around barefoot and when he sits, he does so by tucking his knees up into his chest, crouched on the chair. And constantly, he eats. It was cake and then ice cream tonight.'

A man after my own heart it sounds like. I think I'd rather like to meet L and perhaps date him, under different circumstances of course. My loyalty to Kira far outweighs any desire for romance, (which has never been a top priority for me anyway), and this L will hardly change anything.

I skimmed down through the Diary. That was one of the oldest entries that he had written, but my friends and I had analyzed those words weeks previously.

Ok. Here we go

'Boy that was a close call! I can't believe I had to fake my own death back there! But boy am I grateful to Ryuzaki! I think he's really mad at me now though...'

Yeah, I'd be too.

'But now we know for a fact that the new Kira is in fact a member of Yotsuba's elite conference group.'

Ah, this was finally getting good. Yotsuba huh?

'So Ryuzaki is having some woman install cameras in Yotsuba's conference room so we can further monitor the suspicious men. I was initially wondering if perhaps the confirmation of Yotsuba as Kira would eliminate Ryuzaki's need to be handcuffed to Light Yagami, but so far nothing seems to have changed between the two. Light seems to have just accepted it and is just bent on discovering and capturing Kira so that we can move on, but they did have that fight I had to break up...'

Fighting in the ranks while handcuffed? Kinky.

'So I guess Ryuzaki has involved Misa Misa in the investigating and Light is none too happy about it. He doesn't usually seem to care about her much, one way or another, but at least he seems concerned about her safety here, which is more than I can say about Ryuzaki. But I do wonder what he's planning with having her be the spokesperson for Yotsuba. Perhaps have her investigate them further through her working closely with them? Or leak information that she knows L?"

I was stunned. I even stopped staring at the screen for a second to glance at the clock. 6:15. Still early in the evening. I was going to need to call a meeting tonight. There was no disputing that. But now I had to finish reading the damn thing. I struggled to focus my attention on it.

'Anyway, I guess everything will become clear in time. I do worry myself about Misa Misa, but I trust Ryuzaki so it'll be ok.'

That was the end of his most recent entry. I set my fast dialing fingers on each of my three cell phones, texting everyone in the group to meet at the usual spot by 7:30. I rolled off my bed, folded my laptop, after saving his most recent entry into my own Kira file, grabbed my key and my little backpack from under my bed. I had my main supplies in there and I locked my door and grabbed some snacks on the way out.

"I'll be back later Mom!"

"Ok Sweetie. Come home in time to take a shower please!"

I was lucky my mom was so trusting of me. Because I kept my grades up and excelled in my dance classes she let me roam around the neighborhood with my friends until all hours of the night. Some of them had to occasionally sneak out to meet up with us, but at least I had all the freedom I wanted. As long as I got my homework done, that is. I walked a couple of blocks down to the abandoned house where I'd meet everyone. Funnily enough, about ten years back, Ryn, (my oldest friend), and I spread a rumor around the school that this house was haunted because we didn't want anyone else stealing our private hang out spot. As we made more friends and expanded into our group we introduced them into the flat and we ended up bugging it and setting up extensive security measures throughout.

So I gave my thumbprint and password and even got my eye scanned, every time I tried to enter the building. I didn't mind the extra eye measure; we had added that after the Kira case became our priority, it helped me feel even safer.

On the way down tonight though, I took a detour around to see the moon. I know of a little tree on a hill, just outside the housing complex I live in that is very peaceful and I wanted to look at the stars briefly before getting down to business. I checked my cell. It was only 6:30, I had an hour. I made for the tree at top speed, only to turn around and dash behind another tree. I felt a surge of anger. Who dared to invade my private spot. Then I looked more closely.

A greasy man, a couple decades older than me perhaps, standing alone under my tree. He was apparently star gazing. And holding something. I crept closer and then ran to hide behind a closer tree. An apple. Interesting choice for an evening snack, but then again, he looked like a college student and goodness knows they have strange taste anyway. But then he did something curious. I rubbed my eyes and peered through the darkness. He couldn't be, but...

The man had held up the apple to some invisible thing and the apple then floated off of his hand. It flew upwards a bit and then crunched a couple of times and disappeared like... something had eaten it, core and all. I pinched myself twice to make sure I wasn't dreaming. I love studying mythology and oddly, the idea of shinigami entered my head. It wasn't a well known fact, but I had seen on a couple of obscure websites that Gods of death love apples. Where had I heard that phrase before? I was completely muddled and just crouched there, watching this strange boy. He spoke finally.

"Well, I spose I have to go and finish my work now. Geez, Rem. I hope this doesn't have to become a habit."

He had a pleasant enough voice, but he seemed very creepy somehow. His business suit seemed perfectly put in place and he turned and started walking towards me. I quickly stood up and put on a bland expression, like a girl out for an evening walk. Sukiyo and Tomoyo had taught me well and they'd be proud to see my performance out here, at this crucial moment. I thanked God for the second time that night for my friends and also for the fact that I never panic, even at times like this. I stepped out from behind the tree in a meandering walk and looked at the man briefly. He jumped a little, and then relaxed, once my outline became clear. He and I walked past each other and neither of us said a word.

I suddenly felt the strangest sensation. Like I'd walked through a sudden mist and I felt another presence besides that of the creepy man's. I was scared, I broke out into a cold sweat and I felt my legs shaking. I managed to collapse at the foot of my tree and took some comfort from the strong and sturdy trunk. I turned and almost suffered a heart attack. There! Standing next to the man who was still walking away, a giant monster hovered behind him.

The monster turned around and looked at me and I stared straight back and shivered a couple of times. The monster looked at me quizzically. I raised my hand and gestured in its direction. It stopped and floated back towards me. I backed up against the tree and pressed myself against it. The monster watched me intently for a little longer until the man stopped and turned around, apparently looking for it. It turned and resumed following the man.

I didn't dare move until they were out of sight. I began racking my brain. I had studied every type of mythological creature in existence and there was no doubt in my mind that a shinigami was what I just saw. But what I couldn't figure was why. I didn't know what made some people able to see them and some not, but I definitely couldn't before I felt myself walk through the mist that must have been the presence of the shinigami, itself.

Somehow as I walked through it, I must have randomly gained the ability to see it, but as to why and how that happened, I had no idea. But, at the moment, I was more concerned as to why there was a shinigami on earth in the first place and what it was doing following a human around. I resolved to research shinigami more thoroughly tonight. I had only read about them in passing and that was a long time ago. I was sure that through my fantasy websites, I could discover a lot about them. For the moment though, I waited for my heart to stop racing and tried in vain to enjoy being under my tree.

I looked up at the stars and wondered about life in general. Were things happening the way they should be? The way I wanted them to be? Not that I suffered from any delusions about my own grandeur the way I often suspected Kira did. But I had always believed that I was in control of my own destiny. That I am my own god, my own fate. So I asked myself. Was my life going according to my plan? Did I want to be chasing down this phantom known as Kira? Being with these friends? Seeing this unrealistic goal? Seeing a fantasy shinigami turned reality?

Yes. I had always wanted my life to be interesting. Uncommon. Different. To stop the boredom. For there to be something more than my own mundane existence. That's why I had latched so willingly onto Kira and all his ideals. I wanted so badly to be a part of something greater than myself and religion had never found its place in me. So Kira was my god. My savior. I would do anything to aid Kira in his goals to restructure the human race. He will eradicate all the horrible people that I don't want in my world and I want the new world so badly I can barely stand it. Once he's gotten rid of all the bad people I'll be safe. No one will ever hurt me again...

No. None of those thoughts. I took a deep breath. And then another. And another. Ok. Time to organize my thoughts. It would do me no good to meet up with my clan if I was like this. Yes, I worshiped Kira. I knew this already. I was their leader. I had to protect them, to guide them. Which meant I had to get a handle first on myself and my own emotions. Yotsuba was Kira. A new Kira and a despicable Kira that I did not like in the slightest. So something had to be done about this unworthy Kira.

Perhaps L will be able to apprehend the bad Kira and the old Kira and second Kira would come back and resume their duties. Resume their status as the Kiras creating a new world order. But the matter at hand was the shinigami incident. I decided finally to not share that particular piece of information with my clan. I couldn't see how it related to anything, it might not have even happened. I had never questioned my eyesight or my sanity, but this event seriously made me wonder.

But my interaction with the shinigami, real or not, was absolutely irrelevant to my life at the moment, so I ignored it for the time being. I looked at my watch again. 7:25. Crap. I sprinted back inside the complex and over to the house. I was only a little late, but I'm rather notorious for that. By the time I got there, my emotions were under control and I was ready to become Kari, the leader of my clan to aid Kira.

I walked in casually. My breathing was still a bit rapid, but I inhaled deeply through my nose and enjoyed the looks of anticipation on everyone, (exempting Eina), faces. I paused for a moment to enjoy this a little longer, but my moment was ruined by Jin.

"Ok so you had to interrupt my TV show for what? For you to stand there all high and mighty like 'rawr i am kari god of you all. bow down and submit to my will.'"

"Thanks Jin, for that lovely introduction. Do you want me to tell you why I called you or to prance around a little longer posing as some almighty?"

"Get on with it!"

"Always the impatient one Eina."

"Alright! Hey!"

The mumbling dwindled to a dull roar.

"So, Matsuda updated his Diary."

Silence

"And besides Yotsuba being confirmed as Kira, L has decided to use the model, Misa Misa as his spy in Yotsuba, as well as having set up security cameras in the meeting room of the conspirators."

I paused and then remembered something else I'd read in a previous entry.

"And also, I believe Light Yagami had the brilliant idea to call one of the members, pretending to be L, and has set the guy up as a mole inside of Yotsuba."

Further silence. Each person was sitting, standing, or making the expression that indicated deep thought. Now that I'd presented why I'd called them here, it would be up to them to help decide a course of action. What would we do with this information? Ryn spoke first, as usual.

"I'm thinking bugging Yostuba would be a wise idea."

"But if we bug it and L's bugging it, our bugs might conflict and alert him to our presence."

Ever the cautious one, as well as being the only one present, besides Ryn, who actually understood the whole bugging business, Eina and Ryn often argued over the technological course of action in our plans. They began to quietly discuss perhaps using L's bugs for our own bugs and the rest of us split into our usual discussion groups. I would rotate among the groups as they offered and proposed ideas.

Sukiyo thought maybe sneaking someone in to search the office might be plausible and Mi just wanted to test the stuff. While everyone was left to their musings I thought more, not only on the shinigami I saw, but also where L might be stationed. Tomoyo had already suggested having Sukiyo pose as either a college student or an FBI agent in an attempt to find L and his hide away. While Matsuda's files were certainly informative; without them we would have been lost entirely, L's would, of course, be so much more comprehensive and we could also learn about L himself.

I walked over and sat in front of a laptop. Even though I'd calmed down mostly, I was still a bit anxious. Inari came over and knelt next to me.

"Hey, you ok?"

One thing I loved, and hated, about Inari was how well he knew me. He could always instantly tell whenever I was feeling out of sorts. It was a talent he had in general, hence his being dubbed The Shrink, but right now, I needed him to be thinking about the case, not me. I smiled boldly.

"It's fine Inari. I'm just remembering a nightmare from last night. But I shouldn't be distracted and neither should you."

He looked worried, but smiled anyway and returned to Sukiyo's side. At times, I was definitely jealous that she was with him. We were very similar in personality, and at one point I was very close to asking him out. After watching them for a year, I'm very convinced it would have worked fine between us and it's too bad it didn't.

I looked back at the laptop. My finger itched to search shinigami, but I knew that'd have to wait until later tonight. I wanted to be productive, but I was completely unsure of where the investigation was going right now. So, on a whim, I searched 'Detective, L'