Chapter 1: Expecting the Unexpected
After school, Jenn headed towards her house, but stopped because she sensed something. She shrugged and walked passed the music store and stopped at the stop lights. She suddenly felt a cold chill crawl up her spine. She looked up at the stop light and noticed a weird looking human with a blind fold over his eyes. Jenn's eyes grew wide and she stepped back, screaming at the top of her lungs. Everyone stopped and stared at her, thinking she was crazy.
"You know, you're the only one that can see me" it said calmly. She looked around and saw everyone doing their usual thing. She looked back at it as it got down. She gulped and reached out a hand towards it. She lightly poked him in the chest and noticed she wasn't imagining things.
"What are you and what are you doing here?" she asked as calmly as possible.
"I am James the Shinigami and I am here to find Ryuk" he said plainly. Jenn titled her head to the side.
"Shi-ni-ga-mi? Ry-uk?" she repeated. He nodded slightly. She blinked, and then shook her head, heading towards her house again. She turned to see him walking just behind her. "Why are you following me?" she asked.
"You smell like Ryuk" he said matter-of-factly. She shrugged and continued on her way 'til she got to her house. When she got there she made sure no one was home and snuck up to Light's room. She listened to the door to make sure he wasn't in there and heard no sound. The Shinigami peeked his head through the door. "There's no one in here" he pointed out. She quietly opened the door and stepped in. Jenn closed it behind her and began rummaging through Light's stuff to find the note book she had seen. She pulled open the drawer, looking around it and found a small hole. She thought for a moment.
Flashback
Light walked into the hardware store and looked for a piece of wood to hide his death note in. After his purchase he headed to his house and began constructing his little contraption. Ryuk hovered over him and watched.
"The biggest problem other human had was finding a place to hide it, but you Light, are the first person to put so much thought into it" he chuckled. Light looked up at him and smirked.
End Flashback
She reached into Light's pen holder and pulled out one of his pens. She unscrewed the pen and pulled out the ink cartridge. She put it through the hole and pushed up the fake board. Jenn giggled and pulled out the book.
"Death Note?" she read, looking over to the Shinigami. He stood with his back to her, holding a magazine from Light's bookshelf. He held it side-ways and some pages unfolded from the book, revealing a large picture a young woman in a revealing swim-suit.
"Humans have weird tastes…" he muttered, tossing the book onto the bed and then turned to look at Jenn "Sorry, what did you say?"
"Is this what you were looking for?" she asked. He walked over and reached for it, only to have her jerk the book away. "I can't let you have this, I'll be in big trouble!!" she exclaimed. He paused and looked down at her.
"And I can't simply take it from you; I merely wanted to see if it was the right book" he explained "Shinigami can't take a Death Note from the human world until the human owning the book dies or gives up ownership of the book."
"I see… I guess you can look at it-" he placed a hand over her mouth and looked towards the door.
"Someone just entered the house" he muttered "I also smell Ryuk so I would assume it's the owner of this book" he added. Jenn jumped and replaced the note in its hiding spot and dived under the bed. The door swung open and Light walked in, taking a seat at his desk. He pulled his drawer open, taking out the Death Note.
"Looks like I have the house to myself" he muttered. Ryuk, following Light, looked over at James and chuckled quietly. Light looked over at him "What's so funny?" he asked. Ryuk shook his head.
"Oh, nothing, I just thought of something interesting" he lied. Light looked at him and then shifted his gaze to his bed.
"Ryuk…" he asked calmly "Do you, by chance, have an interest in human literature?" Ryuk looked at the bed and chuckled.
"Nope, wasn't me" he assured him. Light got up from his chair and picked up the book, folding the page back in and replacing it on his shelf.
"Someone was in my room…" he felt a light tap on his neck and turned to see James standing at the foot of his bed holding out a Death Note. His eyes shot open and he backed up. "What the… Who are you?!" he exclaimed.
"I'm James the Shinigami" he replied "I'm here for that book" he explained. Light blinked and straightened himself out.
"Wait, why would you want Ryuk's note book?" he asked, shifting his gaze to Ryuk.
"Because it's not his book, it belongs to a friend of mine who goes by the name of Sidoh. Ryuk found it after Sidoh lost it and told the Shinigami king it was his…" he began.
Flashback
Shinigami Realm
"… And that's what it looks like" Sidoh explained to the Shinigami King. I stood about twenty-five feet away as Sidoh explained what his missing Death Note looked like. There was a long pause.
"The note you just described" the king replied coldly "has already been claimed by Ryuk."
"But it's my note!" Sidoh exclaimed. The king gave him a cold glare and Sidoh backed away, lowering his head.
"Then go see him about it!" the king snarled. Sidoh nodded nervously and flew past me. The crackling of his wrinkled white wings sent a shiver down my spine. I shook it off and turned to follow him on foot.
Sidoh, although very foolish, was a very stubborn Shinigami. I had caught up to him as he headed for the gate to the human world.
"Sidoh" I called out as I approached him. He turned to me, his arms held up to his chest wrapped under his wings.
"What is it James?" he sighed "Did you find my Death Note?"
"No, but I'd like to help you find yours." I waited and was ready to explain, but he turned away.
"Okay, well, Ryuk has it, so if you find him, you should find my note" he assured me. I nodded and watched him walk through the portal to the human realm. I followed him in and felt another shiver go down my spine as I left crossed between worlds.
I stepped out onto the top of a large building. I looked down over the city and saw Sidoh fly off not too far away. I looked in the opposite direction and let myself sink into the building. I slowly drifted down to the ground floor and then walked out the front door. I walked down the side of the road as humans passed through me. I paused and looked around until I found the TV screen on one of the nearby buildings. The brown-haired woman on the screen was saying something about the weather and I discarded it as unimportant. I backed up and pressed my back against a wall and slid down into a sleeping position. I lifted my blind fold slightly and watched the people passing by.
One person caught my eye. Her life span told me she had only a few more hours to live. I got up and followed her briskly. She had long brown hair that went down past her thighs. I walked a little faster until I was walking beside her. I looked down at her as she talked into a small pink device, her green eyes looking unaware of everything around her.
"Of course I'm still coming to the party, I wouldn't miss it for the world!" she cheered happily. I looked over her head and saw that she only had about thirty minutes left to live. I looked back behind her and took note of all the people I could see. I continued walking with her and noticed that one human wearing a large trench coat.
After twenty-five minutes the girl had walked into an ally, still talking away on her phone. I stopped and turned, seeing that the man in the trench coat was the only other person in the ally.
"Oops, I took the wrong ally" she giggled. I turned and saw her stop in front of a silvery-colored fence that went from wall-to-wall. She turned around, putting away her phone as the man in the coat stopped about twenty feet from her. She paused and looked over at him. "Hey, what're you looking at?" she demanded, but the fear in her voice was far from hidden. I looked back at the man and saw him slowly start walking towards her. I took out my Death Note and read over the rules carefully.
If a Shinigami writes the name of a human in this book to extend the life of another human, that Shinigami will die.
Perfect. I closed the book and stepped directly in front of the girl, facing the approaching man. I tore a piece of paper out of note and crunched it into a ball. When the man was about three feet away from me, I flicked the paper at his cheek and he stopped in his tracks. He stepped back in panic and looked up at me.
"WH-what the heck is that!?" he cried. I stepped forward and looked down at him.
"I am a Shinigami" I assured him "And I don't think you should be here." He nodded nervously and turned away, running back into the street. I turned and saw that girl's life span had extended to a few more years and smiled slightly.
"What was his problem?" she muttered and shook her head, head back to the sidewalk. I continued to follow her until she came to a house and decided she would fine.
After a few hours of exploring, I had found my way back to the wall I had originally sat against. I looked around and spotted a large street sign. I walked over to it and positioned my knees so they would hold me upside down on the sign.
End Flashback
"…And now I'm here for the note book" he explained. Light glared at Ryuk and then looked back up at James.
"Okay, I understand why you're in the human realm and why you want get the note book from me, but why did you come to my house?" he scolded. James paused before answering and pointed at his blindfold.
"You see this?" he asked calmly.
"Ya, your eyes are covered…" he replied calmly.
"Well, with my eyesight weakened, my other senses are enhanced, so I was able to smell Ryuk's scent and followed him here like a dog from this world" he explained. Light looked at him and crossed his arms over his chest.
"Then why weren't you able to follow me to where I was when you arrived, the book on my bed was moved before I got home, meaning you were here before me" he questioned. James paused again and cleared his throat.
"This looked like a human home, so I knew you'd eventually return here, instead of running around the city trying to find you" he pointed at the magazine "though, I was slightly set off course from that book. What's its purpose?" he asked. Light looked at the book and smirked.
"Well, it depends on the user" he explained, shrugging "for me it's just a cover up" he assured him. James looked back at the book.
"So, it's a human disguise?" he asked curiously "What's it supposed to keep anyone from knowing?" he added.
"It prevents people from thinking I'm hiding anything else in my room" he pointed at his desk "the diary in that drawer is another trap to protect me and the death note" he explained. James snickered a little.
"Not much of a trap" he pointed out.
"What'd ya mean?" he asked, looking over at him.
"Well if a…" he stopped and looked back at the dresser.
"If a what?" Light demanded "Who was in my room?!"
"No one was in your room…" he muttered. Light glared at him and then turned on his and looked at Ryuk.
"Ryuk, see if anyone's in my room, if you find them, I'll get you another apple" he assured him. Ryuk, now lying on the bed chuckled.
"Well, just give my apple and I'll tell you were she's hiding" he grinned "she's not hiding very well" he added. Light looked around then dropped to his knees and peeked under his bed as Jenn rolled out from under the bed and ran to the door.
"Jenn!!" he roared and jumped to his feet, running after her. Jenn pulled open the door, only to have Light reach over her and slam it shut. He pulled her from the door and pinned her to the wall, holding her by the shoulders. "What were you doing in my room?!" he demanded.
"I was umm… Looking for umm…" she began "… I love you?" she begged. He scolded at her turned at the sound of James clearing his throat. He turned and saw him holding out his Death Note.
"I would let her go if I was you" he pointed out "her life span wouldn't be extended if I kill you, since the only way you'd kill her is with a death note" he pointed out. Light released his grip on Jenn and turned his back to her.
"Well… Since you know my secret, I can't let you leave Jenn… You have too big a mouth" he grumbled. James replaced his book inside his vest-like poncho. Jenn sighed and sat on the bed.
"That's my foot" Ryuk pointed out. Jenn jumped and looked back at him, then reseated herself on the bed.
"You must be Ryuk…" she said softly.
"That's right" he chuckled "the one who got your brother to find the Death Note" he added.
"So, what does this Death Note do anyways?" she asked. Light paused and looked at her.
"You don't know what it does?!" he asked.
"No, I don't know what it does" she murmured "if I did I wouldn't be asking." Light sighed of relief.
"Well in that case" he opened the door "I don't need to keep you here, since you have nothing to actually tell people" he smiled "and I thought you were going to be a problem." Jenn leaned over to James.
"Hey James" she whispered "what's the Death Note do?" she asked. He looked back down at her and paused for a moment.
"It allows anyone who touches it to see the Shinigami who owns it" he explained "it can do a lot of things though" he added.
"What happens if you write a name in it?" she questioned. James looked over at Light.
"Why don't you look in your brother's note and see whose names are in it; you might notice something about all of them" he suggested. Jenn looked over at him and put her hands out to him.
"Let me see the book please" she insisted. He shook his head.
"No," he turned to her "you aren't allowed to touch the death note or ever tell anyone about it, understand? Now go to your room and forget any of this ever happened" he demanded. Jenn held her head down and trotted off into her room. James watched as Light looked over at him. "Are you going with her?" he asked.
"In time" he replied "first I have a few questions for you Light Yagami" he explained.
"Depends on what those questions are" he replied, closing the door, locking it.
"First, I would like to know what you plan to do with that note book" he started. Jenn, outside the room, pressed her ear against the door and listened.
"Isn't it obvious?" he snickered "I'm going to rid this world of evil, removing everyone who I decide isn't worthy and leaving only the good people" he explained. James looked over at Ryuk.
"So he intends on killing everyone he doesn't like?" he smirked. Ryuk chuckled and nodded.
"That's about the gist of it" he snickered. James looked back at Light.
"Alright, what are your standards for 'good' people?" he questioned. Light paused for a moment.
"Anyone who acts kindly and does their best to make this world a better place…" his smile vanished "And doesn't defy their new god." James glared at him coldly.
"You think you can become a god of this world?" he asked. Light's smirk came back and he shook his head.
"I don't think I can, I know I will!" he exclaimed, laughing quietly under his breath. James shook his head and looked past Light at the door. He paused and nodded.
"Alright, but how is it, that you think the note works?" he asked, looking over at Ryuk "I doubt this one told you all the rules in any detail" he added. Light looked at him, and then walked over to his desk, taking his seat, opening up the note.
"Well, from I've learned, when you write someone's name in the death note, they'll die if you have their face in mind" he began "though I've also found that by writing the when and how they die, I can control their actions before they die" he added. He looked over at James.
"Have you tested all this?" James asked. Light shook his head.
"I've only actually wrote names in the book, only once have I written the actual cause of death so far" he sighed "is there any rules Ryuk left out?" he asked, looking back at him. James paused and smiled slightly.
"Well, for one, the death has to be realistic, you can't, for example, it's impossible for you to make someone in the Sahara Desert drown in the Arctic Ocean within the next five minutes" he explained. He took a breath "There is also a rule that prohibits Shinigami from writing the names of people in the death note with the intentions of extending another humans life span, not that Ryuk would ever do such a thing for you" he snickered. Ryuk chuckled and Light looked down at the book.
"Well, that first rule is significant…" he muttered.
"Also" James went on "If you misspell someone's name more then four times, they'll become immune to the death note and the note won't work on people who are using a fake name" he continued "further more, if someone's name is written in two different note books, whichever book wrote their name first will take effect, but if the name is written in both notes within 0.06 seconds, the notes will cancel one another out and the person will live" he stopped and waited for Light to respond. When Light said nothing he added "In other words, if I want to prevent you from killing someone, all I have to do is write their name in my note when you write it in yours." James slowly walked over to the door.
"Wait," Light said softly. James looked over at him. "If everything you just told me is true, does that mean there are more notes already in the human world?" he asked.
"Possibly, I know that both Ryuk and I have one and I can guarantee that their will be two more arriving soon" he said coldly.
"What do ya mean?" Light asked. James took a deep breath.
"I have lots of friends in the Shinigami realm, Sidoh wasn't the only one who I paid attention to. Another Shinigami, Jealous, has been watching a girl in the human world, but her life span is short. From how he's been acting, I'm sure he'll try to extend her life span and will die, leaving his death note to Rem, another Shinigami, who has been at his side since he started watching the girl" he explained.
"How do you know Rem will come with the notes?" he demanded.
"Unlike Ryuk, Rem is an honorable Shinigami and would probably think the girl should have the note, as it was what saved her life" he explained.
"Who's the girl?!" Light exclaimed, getting up from his seat "I need to know who she is so I can find her and convince her to give me her note or to refuse taking it!" James smirked to himself.
"That, my friend, I would tell you, just as soon as Ryuk would tell you your remaining life span" he chuckled, walking through the door. Ryuk laughed as Light fell back into his seat.
"Damn it!!"
