A Withering Black Rose
{A Near "Nate River" One Shot}
The sky was filled with dark gray clouds, turning it white. I walked out of L.A. University when my last class of the day ended. I decided to walk to a nearby and also my favorite café called Café de Delicieux Gateau. I sat myself at a table by the window. The waitress came by and I gave her my order, then she left. I rummaged through my panda backpack in search of my ipod, until I grabbed it and took it out. I placed the headphones in my ears and scrolled down to the song "Screamin' by Tokio Hotel. I took out my Criminal Justice and Forensic Science notes and started to study them, but a couple of guys outside the window caught my attention a little. I watched as they walked into the café together and sat at the same table as me but across from me. I stared at them oddly.
"May I help you?" I asked both of them curiously.
One had short blonde hair, dark brown eyes and wore black leather. He had a burnt scar going down on the left side of his face. He took out a chocolate bar from his leather pants pocket and took a bite out of it as he stared at me. The other one had short red hair, but wore large goggles, so I couldn't see the color of his eyes. He also wore black leather gloves and a striped shirt. He carried a Nintendo Ds with him. I noticed his game was on pause. He also kept staring at me. I was beginning to get a tad bit crept out.
"Are you Kuroi Bara?" Scar face asked me.
"Yeah…?" I replied to him, staring at him suspiciously.
"I'm Mello and this is my partner Matt." He pointed to himself and his friend.
"Partner?" I asked him.
He just simply nodded.
"So, that means you two are gay for one another?"
The one named Matt spat out his cigarette and Mello choked on the piece of chocolate he just put in his mouth. I slightly chuckled.
"NO!" Mello yelled at me in my face.
His reaction made my chuckle turn into full laughter.
"I'm only teasing ya." I told him.
I saw that Matt sighed in relief.
"You guys work together on some case right?"
Mello nodded as he took another bite of his chocolate bar.
"We work for the Task Force." Matt said to me.
"So, what do you want with me?" I asked him curiously.
"Our boss L would like you to join us. We are short on people and we need as many people as we can get to help us catch a serial killer by the name of Beyond Birthday." Matt told me again.
"Beyond Birthday?" I yelled at them.
Mello covered my mouth trying to shut me up.
"Shush!" He whispered in my ear.
"Yes, Beyond Birthday. Will you join the Task Force and help us out?" Matt whispered in my ear.
Since Mello's hand never left my mouth, I nodded my head up and down. Matt grabbed both of my hands and pulled me out of the café. I quickly grabbed my notes and my back pack before we left the café.
"Wait! What about my sweets?" I asked them giving them my sad puppy face.
Mello sighed in irritation while Matt looked at him while rubbing the back of his head nervously. Mello threw me in the back of a black car, slammed the door shut and got in the driver's seat. Matt came back with the sweets I ordered. My head perked up as he handed them to me after he got in the passenger's seat.
"Arigatou!" I thanked him with my cute childish smile.
I noticed both of them had faint blushes on their cheeks. Mello shook it off, started his car and drove off. When we arrived, they led me into a secluded building and inside an elevator. Mello pressed the basement button and the elevator went down. When the doors opened, I walked into room filled three guys. One guy was sitting at his computer, but in an odd position. His feet were on the chair, knees up against his chest, right hand on his right knee and his left thumb on his bottom lip. He had raven black hair, black eyes and snow white skin. He wore a white shirt and blue jeans, but he didn't wear any socks or shoes. I giggled as he swung around on his chair towards me. Under his eyes were black spots. He looked like my panda bear back pack.
"You must Kuroi Bara." He told me.
I bowed my head.
"Hajime mashite. Watashi wa Bara Kuroi desu."
"The pleasure's all mine. You can call me L. Thank you for joining us in our capture of BB."
"No problem."
Another guy walked up to me, with a sincere smile. He had short brown hair, dark brown eyes and fair skin. He wore a white shirt, red tie and brown slacks with black shoes. He held out his hand. I smiled cutely at him after I took his hand and shook it.
"My name is Light Yagami."
"Nice to meet you Light. You can call me Kuroi."
The last guy caught my attention. He had curly white hair, white eyes and also had snowy white skin. He wore a white shirt and white pants. He was busy building a beautiful monument of L.A. out of blocks.
"So…artistic…" I mumbled quietly.
I walked over to him and introduced myself.
"I'm Kuroi."
I saw that I startled him a bit. He looked up at me. I noticed he no emotion in his eyes, the same as L's.
"I'm Near…" He simply told me before going back to playing with his blocks.
I gave him a slight smile.
"He's…so…cute…" I thought to myself.
"That's a nice monument of L.A. you're building. You're very artistic." I told him.
"Thank you…" He replied kind of sheepishly.
I noticed a puzzle game box next to him. It had 1,000 pieces.
"Ooo! I love playing with puzzle games! May I borrow it?" I asked him politely.
He nodded as he handed the box to me. I smiled and took it from his hands.
"Arigatou!"
I ran into a spare room and set the box the bed as I jumped into it. I dumped all the pieces onto the blanket and began to solve it. A knock on my door was later heard. I was on my 500th piece. I answered "Enter" without taking my eyes off the puzzle. The door opened and was shut shortly after. Someone sat on my bed. I looked up to see Matt.
"What's up?" I asked him.
"I'm here to catch you up with what's going on."
I sat up and crossed my legs against each other and listened closely to him.
"Well, first off, the serial killer we are after is named Beyond Birthday. You have heard of him right?"
"Of course! He's like all over the news. He's been kidnapping teenage girls and killing them in brutal merciless ways."
"Yes, exactly. We are trying to find his location. The only clues we have are the letters he leaves behind after his murder. It tells us kind of who the next victim is. Well, where to find her. So far all of the girls were taken to some secluded place deep in the forest. We believe the victims were locked up in some dungeon. This is because their bodies are always found deep inside the forest. On each victim, they have deep cuts on their wrists and ankles they seemed like that were made by chains. On their mouths were red marks, where duct tape was. All of the bodies are found in the same forest."
"Did you find any evidence of some type of hideout?" I asked him.
Matt shook his head.
"Not at all. Beyond is really good at covering up his murders and his hideouts."
I pondered for a moment.
'Maybe the hideout is underground?" I asked him again.
"It's just a guess, but if all the bodies are found in the same forest, the hideout has got to be somewhere near there right? Since you couldn't find it above ground, maybe he's hiding underground."
Matt stared at me.
"What?" I asked sort of weird out.
"I think you just figured it out Kuroi!" He yelled at me.
Then he suddenly embraced me tightly.
"Really? It's only a guess. I'm not sure if my deduction is even right…" I told him.
"But, it's a lead!" He said as he parted from me.
"I have to tell L."
He got up and headed towards the door, until he stopped in his tracks.
"Oh ya! L wishes for you pick one of us to sleep with you tonight."
"What?"
I felt my cheeks heat up.
"No! Not like that! He means for protection."
"From what?"
"Beyond Birthday... L Feels as though Beyond knows about you and targeting you as his next victim. So, he wanted one of us to stay with you for the night just in case he pays us a visit."
"Oh…!" I sighed in relief.
"I choose…Near!" I gave Matt a smile.
"I'll go get him for you then."
Matt closed my door behind him as he left. I finished the puzzle Near-kun gave me, soon after. I smiled widely as I placed my headphones back in my ear scrolled down to a new song called "Break Away" by Tokio Hotel. I started to sing along with Bill as I memorized the lyrics. I jumped off my bed and started to dance around while holding my ipod in my right hand. I started to do an "air guitar" as I still sung along with Bill. I didn't hear anyone come in until the song ended. I turned around to see Near staring at me with slight interest in his pale colored eyes. My cheeks flushed red again.
"Um, how long were you standing there?" I asked him kind of shyly.
"Since, you started dancing." He quietly replied.
"Shit…!" I said to myself.
"You must think I'm some kind of dork, don't you Near-kun?" I asked him.
"No, I thought you actually cute…"
Those words made my face darken.
"A…arigatou…" I replied back sheepishly.
He gave me a small smile, before he jumped on my bed. He noticed the puzzle I finished.
"Good job. You finished it."
I jumped on the bed and sat next to him.
"Yep! It was really easy. It didn't take me long at all. All of my life, I loved solving puzzles, until my whole life became a puzzle itself. I have yet to solve it."
"How is your life a puzzle?" He asked me curiously.
"Well, I was raised as an orphan. After my mother birthed me, she threw me away in some orphanage that was close by. My foster mother told me that my mother thought of me as an evil demon. It's because when she was my age, she was kidnapped and raped. The man who raped her was my father. She said I was the splitting image of him. I have long raven black hair. My father had short spiky raven black hair. My father has two crimson red eyes. I have one…" I took off my glasses and my black eye bandage.
I noticed Near made a shocked expression on his face.
"I inherited my left eye from my father. For odd reasons only my left eye is red. I don't know who my father is. Since my mother died of a terrible disease, my father is the only family I have left. I want to find him and meet him or at least see him."
Near grabbed my hand and pulled me into his chest shyly.
"If you want to cry, let my shoulder be the one you choose to cry on. I will always be there to comfort you, when you need it…."
I blushed more when I cuddled deeper into his chest. I inhaled and exhaled his scent. I felt Near curl the end of my hair with his finger.
"I too was also an orphan. I was raised in an orphanage called The Whammy House. L, Matt and Mello were also orphans there."
"So, you guys grew up together and became detectives…"
"Yes. I finally met my family there. Maybe we can become your family too?"
I nodded my head against his chest.
Soon after, I felt myself slowly drift off into slumber. Near's arms were embraced around my back, as my head leaned against his chest.
I woke up later that night due to a creaking sound coming from my window. Near was sleeping peacefully like a kawaii child on his back. His right arm lye on his chest as his other arm stretched out. His mouth was slightly open. I smiled as I walked over to my window. I curiously opened it to be grabbed and turned around. A white cloth was then placed against my nose and mouth. After I inhaled the scent of chloroform, I quickly faded into deep unconsciousness. The last thing I saw was a pair of glowing crimson eyes.
I woke up later. As my eyes opened, my vision was blurry and I couldn't move my legs or arms. I gasp as my vision cleared up. My wrists were chained up together on the wall behind me and only my right ankle was chained up to the wall behind me. I struggled a bit to break free, but I couldn't. I tried to scream, but my cries were muffled by duct tape on my mouth. I then realized my left eye wasn't covered up by the bandage I put back on before falling asleep. My kidnapper must've taken it off. I glanced around at my surroundings. I was in some room with white walls covered with blood, no windows and one lamp that gave off very dim lighting, but hung at the top of ceiling. The floor I sat on was very cold and damp. There was only one door which was in front of me. The only escape route I have. I figured out who my kidnapper was. It was Beyond Birthday. I shivered slightly as I thought of his name. My body stiffened as my only escape route opened. He closed the door and stood in the shadows. The only thing I could see was his silhouette and his glowing pair of crimson eyes. His silhouette looked exactly like L. When he stepped into the light, he was L. He had the same exact spiky black hair, snow white skin, except his eyes were red and he wore a black shirt with blue jeans, but he didn't wear any shoes just like L.
"What do you want with me Beyond?" I yelled angrily at him.
I wasn't going to show him any fear, even though my body was filled with it. I'm not giving him the pleasure of my fear. He stared down at me.
"You remind me of her….you even have the same eye as me…" He whispered.
"Who are you talking about?"
"Your mother…" He whispered again.
"What? Did you know my mother?" I asked him.
He walked over to me and knelt down beside me. He placed his lips against my left ear.
"Yes. I was the one who kidnapped and raped her a long time ago."
His thin lips curved into a crooked smile as he saw my eyes widened.
"Then…that would make you my…." I hesitated.
He simply nodded his head
"Your father…" He finished my sentence.
"But why? Why did you rape my mother?"
"She had peaked my interest…"
"Did you love her?"
"Yes…"
"But she didn't love you back..." I finished his sentence.
"Why didn't you come looking for me before she died?"
"I didn't know she had a child until after she died. Once I found out, I began my search for you…"
"That's why you kidnapped teenage girls because you knew I was teenager now, but doesn't explain why you killed them."
"I only killed them out of personal interest…"
"What are you going to do now that you have found me?"
"I can't do anything. It seems as though you have found a new family."
"Wait, you heard me and Near's conversation?"
"Yes, I saw the whole scene."
I looked down at the ground as I felt my cheeks flush again. I was really embarrassed.
"That's why I'm going to let you live with L and them…"
"Why do you and L look exactly alike?"
"L and I are twin brothers. I was the one born with the shinigami eyes."
"Shinigami eyes?"
"Yes, that's why your left eye is red. You have the shinigami eye."
"What is it? What does it do?"
"You can see a person's name and life span with it."
I stared at him.
"Your name is Rue Ryuzaki, but your life span is infinite. Does that mean you're immortal?"
"You can say that…"
Beyond walked up towards me again carrying a sharp knife. I stared at him with fear in my eyes.
"My brother's friends are on their way here. They figured out where you're hidden. I can't be here when they do find you."
"Wait! When will I see you again? I just found what I've been looking for my whole life! I'm not going to lose you again!'
"I'll be close by, watching over you. Like your dark guardian angel, but of death."
He stabbed his knife through my stomach. Tears fill my body as a wave of excruciating agony swept through it, but that wasn't the reason I was crying. It was because this is the last time I would see my father. Before I black out, I whispered to Beyond "Goodbye Otou-san! I love you and will miss you Rue-san."
I woke up a couple of days later in my bed at the headquarters. I slowly sat up, wincing in pain. I held my stomach to feel that it was wrapped with bandages. I blushed as I realized I wasn't wearing a shirt. I hid my chest back under the covers. I saw that Near was sleeping next to my bed in a chair. I smiled as I figured out he must've stayed by side this whole time. His face scrunched up as his eyes slowly fluttered open. He quickly embraced me tightly when he noticed I was awake. I was caught off guard, so I fell backwards back into my bed. I laughed a bit as I wrapped my arms around his back.
"I'm so glad you're ok Kuro-chan! I was afraid that I've lost you when I saw you lying in a pool of your own blood."
"Aww, you should know me better. I'm a very stubborn girl. I'm not going to let death get me that easily. Death will have to put up a huge fight in order to take me away."
I gave him a quick wink. I wiped away his tears with my thumb and smiled at him.
"I realized something while you lied in that bed for two days." He said while he sat up.
"What is it?" I asked curiously.
"I stared at you worriedly from day to night, wondering if you'll ever wake up. I was terrified that you wouldn't. My heart shattered into pieces when I woke up to find you missing. The only reason for that is because I have fallen in love with you."
My eyes widened and jaw dropped.
"Did Near just confess to me?" I thought.
"You do?" I asked him.
"Yes, I didn't realize it before because I don't recognize the feeling. I have never fallen in love before. You are the first girl I have ever loved and my last."
I stared into his eyes and they revealed to me seriousness but also love. I believed his words. I felt tears fill my eyes and I embraced him in a loving hug. I cried joyfully into his chest. Near then wrapped his arms around me.
"I love you too Near-kun. I love you so much!" I cried.
"That's great to hear..."
He grabbed my chin and lifted my head up gently. He stared deeply into my eyes and lightly pressed his lips onto mine. I closed my eyes and I embraced his neck, pulling him closer to my chest, making the kiss deeper and passionate. An "Ahem" interrupted our heartfelt kiss. We parted and looked up to see Matt and Mello. My cheeks heated up AGAIN!
"We came here to see how Kuro-chan was doing." Mello said.
"But it looks like she is doing fine." Matt finished his sentence.
Both of them gave us their smirks.
"Near made her feel better!" Matt laughed.
I grabbed a pillow and threw it at them, but Mello caught it.
"Shut up!"
My face turned red.
"I wonder how far they'd go if we didn't interrupt them?" Matt asked Mello.
"Who knows? It seemed like they were very passionate. They might've gone all the way." Mello told Matt.
I threw another pillow at them.
"Would not!"
Both Mello and Matt laughed out loudly. I crossed my arms against my chest and pouted my lips. Near gave me cute smile.
"No, but seriously we are really glad you're alright. We were worried about you when we saw you at Beyond's hideout." Matt told me.
"Thanks you guys." I smiled warmly at them.
They walked over to me and gave me a tight and warm hug.
"We think of you as our younger sister." Mello told me.
"I'm glad because I think of all of you guys as my new family."
Before they left, they gave me and Near a quick smile, but L then walked inside. He gave Near a "Let me talk to Kuroi alone" look. Near nodded. He gave me one last kiss on the lips before we walked out. L sat beside me on my bed. I gave him an odd look.
"We have a lot to talk about."
"I know that you're Beyond's daughter."
I slightly jumped up, startled.
"How'd you know?"
"I noticed when you first came here. You resembled so much like him. Plus your crimson left eye.
"Wait when did you see that?"
"You tried to cover it with an eye patch. I can see that I was right."
I feel him staring into my left eye. Beyond never gave me back my eye patch.
"I suppose you also know that Beyond and I are twin brothers."
I nodded.
"So, that would make you my uncle…" I told him.
He nodded also.
"But we must keep our family relationship a secret."
"I understand uncle L-san." I slightly laughed.
He gave me a faint smile before patting my head.
"Your wounds weren't serious, but it did leave a scar across your stomach. Beyond missed a vital organ on purpose."
"Thank you L-san." I gave him a quick but tight hug.
After that, he slowly walked out of my room. I gazed up at the ceiling. I finally found my father. I searched for him my whole life, but he just came to me on his own. He was searching for me too. For a bonus, I found someone to share my love with, forever. My life's jigsaw puzzle was now solved and complete.