Disclaimer: I do not own Death Note, although it would be cool if I did.
(January 28, 2013)
A double-door made of glass was quickly shoved open to allow a bed and IV drip to pass into the critical condition ward of the Kanto Regional Hospital.
"We're in rout to the ER room now with the patient; have surgery prepped by the time we get there or he doesn't have a shot at making it!" One of the nurses rushing the bed down the hall yelled into her hospital-wide communicator.
"He's been shot five times. Five times. How could that happen this early in the afternoon?" The second nurse thought out loud.
"I don't know, you never hear about any gang shootouts or other small time stuff," The first nurse answered as the bed took a sharp turn around a corner.
"You think this kid is affiliated with a street gang? He looks like he's attending college judging from the way he's dressed."
"Look, all I know is, that the police are going to be here any moment and are going to keep this guy under surveillance twenty-four seven; he must have done something bi-"
All of a sudden, the patients arm lashed out and struck the speaking nurse, and he began to spasm about and scream incoherently.
"T-the patient has regained consciousness!" The second nurse shrieked as the patient tried and failed to pull himself upright.
"Restrain him!" The first nurse ordered as she and the second nurse shoved the screaming man back onto the bed and quickly connected two plastic rings to his wrists and the bedposts.
"GET AWAY FROM ME!" He screamed in a panicked voice as he continued to struggle "I HAVE TO ESCAPE! HE'S BLAMING IT ALL ON-"
A large hypodermic needle was plunged into his restrained arm. Within moments, the world around him seem to blur, and darkness began to flood his vision.
near…
need… help…
mikami… takada…
…misa…
(February 28, 2013)
It started off like any other evening in downtown Tokyo. Students who were too lazy to study were flooding the shops, restaurants, clubs, and arcades. Bicyclists competed with foot traffic for space along the sidewalk, and lines of cars and taxis fit bumper to bumper together formed a wall of metal and steel that separated one side of the sidewalk from another. No one realized that today was going to be the start of one of the biggest events of the twenty-first century.
WE INTERUPT THIS BROADCAST TO BRING YOU POTENITALLY WORLD CHANGING NEWS!
The moment the announcement played on mega screens across town, all activity suddenly stopped. Students rushed back outside of their usual hangouts, bikers lost track of where they were going and several minor collisions ensued, and commuters abandoned their cars where they stood and stepped out into the rapidly growing crowds in front of the nearest screens. The screens had since changed to the NHN logo, which remained there for another 20 seconds, before switching to a newsroom.
"Good evening," A man with dark hair and square glasses that looked to be in his early 30's said from behind a curved wood-topped desk. "I am Mr. Masu, of the National Hourly News, here to bring you this special report. After a month of wild rumors circulating around the arrival of a critically wounded patient being treated at the Kanto Regional Hospital, the national government has released a report claiming that there is evidence to suspect that 23 year old Light Yagami is the mastermind behind the Kira epidemic that has killed tens of thousands of prisoners around the world in the last five years. We now hand this story over to reporter Hana Amarini, who is currently situated outside of the hospital now to bring you more info on this story."
"Thank you, Mr. Masu," A woman in a dark coat standing beside the entrance to the emergency room said as she turned to face the camera. "For those of you who aren't in the loop, a month ago a young man by the name of Light Yagami was brought to the Kanto Regional Hospital and treated for five bullet wounds and a severe psychotic breakdown. Rumor has it that the men who brought him to the hospital were part of the taskforce that had been formed to hunt down Kira five years ago. In a report that was just published by the National Safety Administration, it appears that these rumors are true, along with the fact that Mr. Yagami is now an official suspect in the ongoing case. The report states that the Kira Taskforce, along with members of the now-private American investigation force known as the SPK, tracked Mr. Yagami to the abandoned warehouse informally known as Yellow Box. Once both teams had arrived, it is said that the suspect resisted arrest and had to be shot five times before he could be slowed down to the point where he could be apprehended. His trial is slated to begin by the beginning of next month. We'll bring you more info once it becomes known. I'm Hana Amarini with the National Hourly-"
Near turned the active television set off from his usual spot on the floor. He was currently assembling a regiment of blue colored toy soldiers, who all had their old WWI style rifles pointed at a surrounded red-colored commander.
"Well, after five years, it looks like it's finally over," Commander Rester said as he poured himself a cup of coffee.
"What do you mean?" The white-haired boy asked as he lined more blue soldiers around the lone red one.
"I mean, you were right. You knew that Light Yagami was Kira, you fooled him into revealing that he is Kira, and now he's gonna get the death penalty or life in prison."
"You're jumping to conclusions, Mister Rester," Near said as he placed the final blue soldier into the ring surrounding the red one.
"Near, are you suggesting that there's a possibility that Light will be found innocent even after everything that's happened?" Halle asked as Rester joined her over at the sitting area.
"I would say that right now, there is probably an 8.28% chance of that happening. Make no mistake, the Japanese government will probably just condemn Light to death just on the slightest evidence that killing him will restore things to the way that they once were. However, Kira has been around for five years now, and the world still fears his wrath even while he's powerless; so they may be inclined to let him off the hook just to save their own hides."
Near knocked three blue commanders standing around the ring over.
"There's also the fact that evidence tying him to the murders can be considered flimsy at best. He was never spotted at the scene of the crime by any witnesses- and even if we tried to pin Mikami's death on Light, his fingerprints won't be on Mikami's pen. Also while it's true that we now have both notebooks in our custody and we know how they work, I find it highly unlikely that someone who has never heard of them will consider it a lethal weapon without a proper demonstration- something I doubt we'll be able to do."
Near knocked blue soldiers out of formation at random, till only a thin line remained around the red commander.
"On top of that, now that people know who Kira is, there's bound to be protests and rallies organized by the brainwashed masses in support of him- hell even riots are possible, if what happened at our LA HQ is anything to go by. If things get too out of hand, I wouldn't put it past the government to release him."
Near took out some reds soldiers and began to haphazardly line them up in clumps around the tight line of blue soldiers.
"Lastly, Light might still have a loyal subordinate or two out there ready to assist him at a moment's notice. Worst of all, they might have death note sheets. If that's the case, then things could go bad quickly; especially if one of them has the Shinigami Eyes."
A red tank suddenly rode out of its packaging and demolished the entire remaining line of blue soldiers. Near then placed the red commander on top of the allied tank and pushed it back into the safety of its cardboard base.
"So, even after all of the progress we've made in bringing this guy in, you still think that he might get away with it all?" Halle asked, her voice conveying a slight sense of dread.
"Only by a pretty slim margin. Like I said earlier, even with everything he has going for him, he only has about an 8.28 percent chance of being acquitted. Still, the fact that he has any chance at all means that we need to remain in the area to ensure that Light receives no 'extra-legal' help."
Near stood the three blue commanders back up, and placed them in a triangle. He then took out another red commander from the box set it at the very center of the triangle.
"Rest assured, we're probably on the home stretch for this case. Either Kira is found guilty and dies, or he proves that the world's legal system is now powerless to stop him, and he goes free. It all comes down to this."
Misa sullenly reached a hand into a bag of lime and vinegar potato chips and brought a handful up to her face. Only about half of them made it to the intended destination, the rest just dropped off to the side of the couch or joined the pile of debris that was now sticking to the outfit that she had been wearing for the past six days now. To say that Misa's life had gone downhill since she heard of Light's hospitalization would be an understatement. The apartment she normally worked so hard to keep spotless was now littered with snack bags, empty cups, and more than a few liquor bottles. In the sink, two week old dishes were left to rot and attract flies. After showing up for work drunk one time too many, the modeling agency had terminated her contract, so now she rarely left the house- let alone bothered to move from the spot on the couch she had elected to sleep on. Above all, the fact that she had stopped caring about her appearance was a sure sign that things were not going well. Week old makeup caked parts of her face, she hadn't bathed in days, and she had even started putting on weight recently from all of the comfort food she ate. Not that she could notice something like that in her current state.
The Lolita girl sighed despondently and tried to roll over, only to knock her bags of chips onto the floor and further coating the wood paneling in crumbs. Misa however, didn't seem to notice, and merely began to gaze listlessly around the room. Eventually, her eyes managed to focus on the atomic clock sitting on the coffee table.
"February… 28," Misa murmured as she read off the digital listing of the date displayed towards the bottom of the clock. It had to have been close to a whole month now since she had learned that Light had wound up in the hospital. She had been prepared to sit by his side for as long as it took him to get better and wanted to bring him homemade breakfast, lunch, and dinner every day, but those stupid policemen wouldn't let her see him at all! They wouldn't even give Light any of the 81 "Get Well Soon" cards she had tried to deliver to his room in the past weeks.
The longer she was separated from her one true love, the harder she took it. Slowly over the past month, she had spiritually decayed into the almost catatonic form that was currently sulking on top of the filthy couch cushions.
Misa jerked her right arm onto the coffee table, swinging it around haphazardly until it collided with the object she was looking for.
"TV…" Misa muttered as her fingers mashed buttons randomly until she found the power button.
There was a slight click that was followed by a flash of light as the rather nice widescreen TV switched on, causing the former model to recoil slightly from the sudden brightness.
"Good evening, this is the National Hourly News' 8 o'clock report," A man in dark glasses said from behind a curved desk. "For those of you who did not catch the initial broadcast, our top story tonight continues to revolve around the To-Oh university graduate Light Yagami-"
"LIGHT?" Misa screamed as she immediately bolted upright and sprinted as close as possible to the television.
"-Was recently admitted to the Kanto Regional Hospital where he was treated for several bullet wou-"
"WHAT? Who would dare shoot my Light?" Misa looked about ready to shove her fist through the screen. "Tell me that fucker's name so that I can make him pay!"
"-and was rumored to have been dropped off at the hospital by member of the taskforce that had been put together to hunt Kira down five years ago. An official statement released by the National Safety Administration today has confirmed this rumor, as well as announcing that Mr. Yagami is now the official suspect in the Kira case-"
Misa's heart skipped a few beats as she fell backwards into the coffee table, knocking it over.
"-his trail is slated to begin by the beginning of the next month. We'll bring you more information on the upcoming case as soon as it becomes available-"
The man on the TV continued to talk, but no sound seemed to reach the girl, who was now huddled on the ground in an almost fetal position.
"Th-t-they know! They know that Light is Kira now! They're going to put him on trial and-"
Misa rolled herself over and began banging her fists on the floor in a tantrum.
"NO! Nonononoononono!" Misa started to cry; hot tears breaking away streaks of her old makeup. After a few minutes, she had tired herself out, and now lay motionless on the floor.
…Misa…
The Lolita girl heard the voice of the person she cared about most in her head. She closed her eyes, and pictured the two of them together. ..
But… if Light was found guilty in court, then they would never see each other ever again…
Misa balled her fists and stood herself up, she then dusted off her black gothic outfit and brushed her hair out of her face.
"Light needs me. He needs me now more than he ever has before. I have to help him win this trial."