Author's Note: Obviously Rue Ryuzaki is Beyond Birthday's real name. Light and Beyond were once friends.. Before Beyond was sent off to live at Wammy's House. Then everything changed. They went off their seperate ways, remembering eachother but forgetting eachother at the same time. They both became who the other was trying to kill, and their friendship met a bitter end.

. . .

The story starts with two best friends, both young and innocent at only five years old. Rue Ryuzaki and Light Yagami. "We'll be friends forever!" They vowed. If only they knew how much things would change, and just how their 'forever' would come to an end.

"I'll see you later, Light! Have fun, okay?" Chimed a mother to her five year old son, Light. The brunette was tall for his age, a cute face, and a friendly, outgoing personality. He looked up at his mother with a pout on his face, folding his arms across his chest. "I'll be fine, Mommy." He stuck his tongue out before running off onto the playground of his daycare. His amber optics gazed around in search of something to do, maybe even someone to play with. "Hm.."

Rue Ryuzaki's mother knew how her son was around other children, though she still gave in and allowed him to go to the playground whenever he wanted. Other children were often afraid of him and his eyes, but he enjoyed that, and sometimes terrorized them on purpose, laughing when they cried. But she loved her son enough for two parents since she was a single mother, and took Rue to the playground herself that day. "Rue, be good today, okay?" She reminded him when he ran ahead, her voice slightly unconfident from how she knew things probably would not work out that way. Her son nodded with a bright smile, waving back to her before continuing to run, though she always told him not to.

Light looked around the area with innocent curiosity. He was just like any other normal child, except a lot more intelligent, and well, easily bored. He would try to fit in with some kids if given the opportunity, since both he and his mother wanted him to play and make some new friends. Little did he know he would make his first best friend today.

The first child he spotted was a running boy with a red backpack, messy raven hair and bright crimson red eyes. He was different in Light's eyes. Pretty cute, too. And seemed fun to play with. Without any hesitation, a smile grew across Light's lips as he hold his arms out like an airplane. He ran towards the boy until they stood side by side. "Hi! I'm Light." He introduced himself with a friendly wave.

Rue blinked a few times, almost stumbling back a bit as he looked up at Light. His innocent eyes widened a bit. This kid actually wanted to associate with him first? ... This wasn't a usual thing, not to mention, Rue actually found him kind of cute. He glanced above the other's head, tilting his own slightly. "Light Yagami." he smiled, giving a small wave in return. "I'm Rue! It's nice to meet you." He leaned in a bit with a grin. "Can we be friends?"

Light stopped running and put his arms back to his sides. He raised both eyebrows, blinking widely. How did Rue know his last name? That was weird.. He was weird. But a good kind of weird. Someone who interested the young brunette. "I was going to ask you that. Can I call you Rue-chan?" He asked with a blissfully innocent smile. His first friend! This was exciting. He hoped the other five year was just as happy as we was.

Rue blinked and nodded with a smile, adjusting his backpack on only one shoulder instead of both, and leaning back away from Light's face. "Sure! What can I call you? You should have a nickname too."

"Rue-chan.." Light had the urge to pull the other in for a hug, but wasn't so sure. Guys weren't supposed to hug, right? Eh, that just sounded silly. Light giggled, "Just call me Light. Unless you can think of something better." He poked his tongue out teasingly.

"Light. It's a really cool name.. Like a light switch." Rue teased right back with a giggle, sticking his tongue out in return. "C'mon, let's go over there!" He pointed to a bench across the playground, wanting to get his snack out of his backpack. "I have my snack in here, a jar of strawberry jam." He grinned eagerly, patting the backpack on his right shoulder. "Let's go!" The raven grabbed his new friend's hand, yanking him in the direction with a cheerful grin.

"Light switches are weird." Light huffed, attention soon shifting to the spot where Rue was pointing. He had a jar of strawberry jam for a snack? That was a little odd, but Light couldn't and wouldn't argue with who could possibly become his new best friend. It wouldn't hurt him to try something new. "Jam? For a snack? Do you spread anything on it?" He giggled again, happily following the raven over to the bench.

Rue smiled and shook his head, letting go of Light's hand reluctantly to sit on the bench and unzip his backpack. "Nuh uh, I like eating straight out of the jar with my fingers. Tastes better that way." He giggled and popped open the lid, dipping his small fingers inside the jar and scooping up some of the strawberry substance. "Mm, want some?"

Light looked at the hand that had been dropped and played with his fingers. "That's weird." He stated bluntly, watching Rue dig into the jar. He'd never seen someone do something like that before. It was strange. And Light may be a child, but he was still somewhat of a clean freak. "Do you have a spoon?"

"Mhm! My Mommy wants me to eat with a spoon, so she packs me one, but I never use it." He shrugged his shoulders and handed one over to Light with a smile.

Light took the spoon and gently gripped it. "It's all messy if you use your hands." He shivered, staring at Rue's sticky hands covered in jam. "It tastes better that way." Rue snickered and licked the red substance off his fingers, wiping them off on his black shirt before holding out the jar for his friend.

"You already said that." Light pouted and hesitantly took the jar, pulling a face as he scooped up a spoonful of the jam and studied it, before raising the spoon to his lips and actually tasting it. "Mn. It's really sweet.." He commented, handing the jar back over. "Yeah." Rue grinned and took the jar back, continuing to eat. He looked back up at Light and blinked a few times, smiling innocently. "Y'know, I just realized something.."

Light tried to wipe the jam off on his hands by rubbing them on his jeans, but that only made things worse, making both his hands and his pants sticky. "Egh. Ah, what?" He asked and raised an eyebrow back up at Rue. "..You're kinda cute." Rue grinned genuinely, an amused expression on his face.

Light couldn't believe he was hearing this. He knew he was cute, but to hear another guy say that? That was just weird! Wasn't it? He didn't think boys were supposed to say that kind of stuff to eachother.. It was just how he was raised. "What?!"

Rue laughed at his reaction. He didn't find it weird at all that they were both males, just another example on his different him and Light were raised. He smiled back at him obliviously with a nod. "I think you're kinda cute, Light."

Light blinked, his cheeks flushing a light pink color for some reason. This was just.. So weird. And his heart was racing in his chest. But why? He was just a kid.. He didn't know what this kind of feeling was. "I'm.. Really cute." He repeated, playing with a strand of his own brown hair nervously.

Rue smirked and reached his hand up to ruffle Light's hair, just finding enjoyment in teasing and messing up Light's seemingly perfect hair. "You've never had a crush on anyone before, huh?" "You can't have a crush on me!" Light exclaimed stubbornly, crossing his arms. "Oh? Why can't I?" Rue jumped up to stand in front of Light. "Because.. It's weird for boys to like other boys." Light explained shortly with a slight pout, averting his amber eyes off to the side. He liked Rue, but he wasn't so sure about a crush.

"I don't think it is.." Rue blinked innocently, shrugging his shoulders. "We're all human." "My Mom and Dad said its not right, but.." Light twiddled his thumbs, "I think I like you too."

"I think I like you too."

This was how their friendship started.

Light and Rue formed a beautiful friendship that day, not-so-secretly crushing on eachother, they eventually grew to be inseperable best friends. Though their friendship only lasted for two short years, they barely spent any days apart during that time. Their displays of love and affection continued, though they grew rarer and rarer with each passing month, homosexual feelings for eachother becoming more and more secretive rather than obvious. Obvious to eachother, of course, but not Light's family. No. The older they got, the more they knew the Yagami family could never find out.

The hand holding wasn't as often anymore between the now seven year olds, and kissing and hugging while in private wasn't at least once a day anymore either. Light sometimes flinched when Rue went in for a hug or a kiss. It seemed as if Rue couldn't remember the last time Light didn't look around for his mother when he tried to kiss or hug him. Like.. Light was ashamed of what they felt and were doing. Like he knew feelings like this would be considered wrong. Like they could no longer kiss in Light's room without that awkward tension in Rue's mind that Light was always the one to create..

"Light.. We're still best friends, right?" Rue asked in the middle of the night at their very last sleepover.

"No." Light shook his head, before that goofy grin spread on his face that Rue loved. "We're best friends forever. Until the day we die!" "Yeah!" Rue agreed before practically tackling Light in a hug. The two laughed, but no one came in to tell them it was way past their bedtime. Rue's mother was just overjoyed her son finally had a best friend.

. . .

Rue was a few days away from his eighth birthday when his mother, Kazumi Ryuzaki, was struck by a train right in front of his wide and teary eyes. His shaky hands balled into fists, vision blurry from his own tears, he wanted so badly to run into the tracks. Or to at least scream in hopes someone would hear him.. But he couldn't. Not only did it feel as if his feet were glued to the ground still wet from the drizzling rain, but his violently shaky body was somehow frozen. He gritted his teeth, summoning up courage he didn't know he even had.

After that, it was mostly just a blur to Rue.

He didn't even get to say goodbye to his best friend, Light Yagami, before whisked away to some orphanage Wammy's House. Sure, Watari seemed like a nice old man.. But he didn't care about him half as much as Light. He loved and missed his Mother. He loved and missed his best friend.

Light knew Rue left for an orphanage.. But he didn't know the other wasn't given an opportunity to say goodbye. In his mind, he thought otherwise.. He assumed Rue left without so much as an explanation. This made Light mad. This made Light cry. But it also gave Light a reason to go out and make new friends. During his time with Rue, he was never really open to talking with other children. Neither was Rue. But now.. Now he would get over his best friend. But in his heart, he knew they would cross paths again someday.

Studies and academics were never a priority to Rue, but would now become the most important thing in his life, they said. They claimed he was an extraordinary bright child, and that he would grow up one day to be the world's greatest detective. And to have such a grand purpose promised to him.. Made the seven year old slightly happy. One day, he promised himself, he would see Light again. And Light would still love him, wouldn't he? They'd be best friends until the day they died, wouldn't they?

And then, Rue met A.