I've had this idea for weeks. After rereading the Death Note manga and being (once again) frustrated at the fact that Mello and Matt die in the end, I turned to fanfiction hoping someone would have written a story where they beat Kira without them dying.

I found many amazing stories, but none quite like that. So here's my take on it.

Gevanni had been careless. He was not certain of when Kira got his face, maybe he'd always know it but hadn't cared to use it until then. What mattered was that he found himself marching towards the SPK headquarters against his will, a newly bought cell phone with camera in hand.

He wondered when his name was written, he hadn't felt anything different until today, when he woke up at 2 am and made a beeline towards the telephone and dialed a number he didn't recognize. In his sleepiness he didn't really try to stop himself until he realized who had picked up the phone: Kira himself. Not that trying would have done him much good, it seemed that the only thing he had control of were his thoughts and he rather wished he didn't.

Watching himself spill every secret the murderer asked for was pure torture, the only thing he could be glad for was that he didn't know as much as Rester did. He knew enough though, he knew where their headquarters were, he knew of Near's plan to create a fake Notebook, how much Near depended on his team to operate, who he trusted the most, whether he had any more allies.

When he hung up the phone he was almost hoping for a heart attack, at least it would end quickly and he wouldn't cause any more harm. Unfortunately that was too much to ask of Kira, instead he was directed to a department store, where he quickly picked up a cell phone that had a camera in it. His face betrayed none of the despair he felt as he paid for the device.

His body was truly not his anymore.

Halle was contently watching Near sleep while waiting for Rester to bring his breakfast. The boy had fallen asleep on the floor again and no one had been around last night to pick him up and take him to his bedroom. They figured he'd wake up if they tried to move him at this point so bringing breakfast was probably a better choice.

Near was a genius, but he was young, and he looked and acted even younger. She felt somewhat maternal towards him, often worrying about whether he was eating and sleeping properly, so she often came in early to check on him. Early for Near's standards anyway, he didn't start working until 10 am, which might still be a bit early considering he kept himself awake into the wee hours of the night to think.

A quick glance at the surveillance cameras revealed that Gevanni was coming in. That was odd since he'd usually be tailing Mikami by now, but she didn't make much of it. Rester was coming back with Near's breakfast so she could start waking him up.

They were crouching in front of the half-asleep boy with their backs to the door when it opened. They looked back quickly to greet Gevanni, only to have their pictures taken.

"He's being controlled!" Rester yelled as he covered Near's face with the coat of his suit, hoping Gevanni hadn't got managed to capture it.

Halle picked up her gun and shot as quickly as her nerves would allow her. Shooting a former ally was not something she did often and it always felt awful. She dashed towards the cell phone just in time to see the 'Message sent' screen.

"It's too late..." She said, unable to say anything else.

"Run to your room. Keep your face covered. Lock everything. Don't believe anything any of us tells you." Rester instructed Near, even though he knew the boy was smart enough to do that on his own.

Near looked at them with a face that might have been sorrowful before doing as he was told. Halle was a little glad to have been able to see that face, not because she wanted him to be sad, but because it meant that Near cared for them, at least a little.

"I'm sorry." Gevanni whimpered from the floor, he seemed to have some sort of control now.

"It's not your fault, we all knew something like this could happen." Rester replied, kneeling close to the dying man.

"I couldn't get Near's picture." He said with what seemed to be an attempt at a smile.

Halle picked up her cell phone and started typing as quickly as she could, not knowing how long she had to live, or worse: how long she had before she lost control.

"What are you doing?" Rester asked suspiciously.

"Asking for help, we don't know how long the notebook can control us for. For all we know Near could starve before we die."

"May I ask whose?" Rester seemed even more suspicious now.

"Mello's"

It was a bad idea, there was a big chance Mello would just laugh at his rival and ignore the situation altogether. But it was the only thing they could go with so Rester didn't say anything.

Halle sent the message, hoping against hope that Mello would help Near. She felt her chest tighten, Kira had opted to kill her. As she died she watched Rester collect Gevanni's cellphone without sparing a glance at her, she felt guiltily thankful that it was him and not her. Her only regret was not having destroyed the device when they had the chance.

"Near?"

He heard no reply.

"It's me, Rester."

"No, you were Rester."

That was a good way to put it, his actions were not his anymore. His hand reached for the panel that opened the door. He didn't know the password nor were his voice and retina authorized. He exhaled with relief.

Leaning against the door he felt himself sliding down. Kira was probably going to keep him here until he or Near died from starvation.

...

Hours passed. He tried to move a few times, his body wouldn't obey.

"Near?" He tried, hoping it was really himself talking.

"Are you Rester?" The boy said after a while.

"I'm not sure"

"Then there's a 64% chance that you are." Rester smiled a bit at that.

"You might want to start packing. Halle sent for help."

"Mello?" The question came several seconds later, he was a bit surprised Near had been able to guess, even though he shouldn't be.

"Yes. Do you think he'll come?"

"No, the chance is only 12%."

"Would you trust him?"

"If Mello does come he's not going to want to finish me off himself, Mello would rather watch me lose to Kira."

"I see." With that he heard Near moving around the room, gathering his things most likely, even if he didn't believe Mello would come to help him it was probably better to be ready in case he did. From what Rester had seen the blonde was not a patient person.

Leaving Near in his care would feel almost as bad sitting here waiting for him to die. Almost.

A/N: Please review, this is my first story so feel free to tell me to drop off the face of the earth if you think it sucks, I'd be very thankful if you told me why it sucked though. Thanks for reading.

Mello and Matt will be on the next chapter.