Chapter 2: The Magician
Upright – Resourcefulness, power, inspired action
Reversed – Manipulation, poor planning, untapped talents
January 5th 2004
"Here we are, home sweet home" Emi sighed as she hopped off the private jet. She and her mother had just come back from attending her father's funeral in the states. They'd also attended Raye's funeral as well.
If there was anything worse than not seeing her sister, it had to be facing the ex-would be in-laws without her. Raye's parents, mister and missus Penber, were sweet and accepted hers and her mother's condolences gracefully and lovingly as if they'd already been family for years. They adored Naomi as if she were one of their own, and understood that her absence was due to the fact she wanted to find closure.
Still, to miss out on Raye's funeral. Nao-chan I hope you're okay!
Emi thought sadly as she trudged after her mother into the limousine that was waiting for them on the runway, carefully wiping the lenses of her new magenta rimmed glasses. Where her mother had chosen a tasteful yet expensive long dress and veil, Emi was dressed in black jeans, a black turtleneck and a long dark grey pea coat, with a magenta and black tartan scarf over her neck.
It had been a present from Naomi for her last birthday, and it was the only piece of colour her mother had permitted her to wear, in honour of her missing sister.
They had filed a police report but had yet to give an official statement in person. Her mother, using all the influence she had, had declared she wasn't going to give one until someone from the Special Task force (hopefully L himself) would speak with her and her youngest daughter in private.
For once, Emi found herself admiring her mother's loud, demanding nature if only because it so forcibly reminded her of Naomi's stubbornness. Haughty, outlandish (and often embarrassing) though she may have been, Nozomi Midoori, loved both her daughters as fiercely as a bear and would stop at nothing to see to it that they were safe from harm.
Which while admirable, was proving to be a bit of a problem for her youngest child. Ever since the limo had left their luxurious family home three days ago, Nozomi had been sticking to Emi's side like glue. Even worse, she had confiscated her daughter's laptop (by literally locking it in the family safe hidden in the mansion basement), only ever allowing her to bring her phone or the inflight entertainment system on the private jet.
Emi wondered if she would get away breaking into the family safe and sneaking her equipment out? She probably could; she would have to wait and see if everyone else was asleep before remotely turning off all the security cameras for five minutes.
However, a few minutes into formulating her new mini-heist plan, a voice cut through her thoughts.
"hai! Moshi-Moshi! Yes, this is Nozomi Midoori speaking. May I know who's calling? Hirokazu Ukita? From the Japanese Task Force? Well its about time someone got back to me!"
Holy crap she got through to the task force?!
Emi stared at her mother in astonishment. Who'd have thought it? Her mother's brash, loud ways had worked?
The hotel suite had been quiet as the five police officers shuffled through paperwork or clicked through computer files on their laptops.
Amidst them, the tall elderly gentleman in a suit had a telephone pressed against his ear, nodding and humming as he listened to the person at the other end.
"Hmm. Yes, could you please hold for a moment. Ryuzaki!" the old man called out to the room "It's Ukita at the NPA he says he's on the phone with someone from the helpline with information for us"
There was the shuffling of material as a young man slumped around to face him. He was tall, wearing a long white cotton shirt and baggy blue jeans with messy black hair that fell over his constantly deadpan black panda eyes that seemed to harden as they looked at the phone in the old man's hand.
"Right. Then give Ukita the number for line five and have him ask the informant call that line instead it'll be safer that way" the young man, Ryuzaki, then turned to face one of the police officers, a young man with an innocent face and wearing a suit. "Mister Matsuda it's okay for you to turn on your cell phone. Actually, please turn it on right away."
"Uh, sure" Matsuda quickly pulled out his cell phone from his pocket, which had started to ring loudly. But before he could answer it, Ryuzaki promptly pulled the phone out of his grip and held it to his ear delicately.
"Yes this sis Suzuki, head of Kira's Investigation Public Information Division" Ryuzaki answered, deepening his already deep voice. Behind him, Matsuda glowered mutinously at him, but nobody came to his defence to admonish Ryuzaki's rude phone hijacking.
All were far too interested in his conversation as his eyes widened ever so slightly in surprise.
"Raye Penber's fiancé? Naomi Misora? Hmm, I've heard that name before…" he mumbled the last bit to himself curiously as he turned to the old man beside him, who had just pulled up some information on a nearby laptop.
Ryuzaki stared at the screen, which contained various pictures and short snippets of information of different personnel files. At the top of this page, the name Naomi Misora all but screamed out at him, along with a picture of a beautiful, if slightly dangerous, woman with long black hair, pale alabaster skin and warm brown eyes.
Ah! So it's her!
Ryuzaki's eyes widened even more as he drank in the features of the woman's' face
She's from the Los Angeles BB Murder Case, that's right! She was working under me. I guess she must've come to Japan with her fiancé…
He listened carefully to the speaker on the other end. It was a woman, probably middle-aged, or close. She was speaking with great urgency.
Must be Naomi's mother. Why else would a woman her age be wanting so desperately to speak to the task force about such an incident?
Ryuzaki reasoned as he strained his ears. He could've sworn he'd heard someone grumble on the other end, someone who wasn't Naomi's mother. However, their voice was too quiet to make out.
He mentally shook himself out quickly just in time to hear Naomi's mother thank him (or instead the fictional Suzuki) for his time before hanging up on the line. As he listened to the dial tone beep off in his ear, Ryuzaki sighed and handed Matsuda's phone back into his hands.
"Well, apparently she's been missing since the day that her fiancé died." He droned as he walked past the rest of the task force.
"Well I'm sure anyone in her situation would be depressed," Matsuda said, pity welling in his eyes "Was it uh…"
"Suicide?" another one of the task force, a man with an afro named Aizawa, said plainly.
"No." Ryuzaki murmured, narrowing his gaze on the floor as he shuffled across it "The Naomi Misora I knew was strong-willed, not to mention an excellent FBI agent. If anything, it's more likely she'd be trying to catch Kira. It appears she came to Japan with Penber; it's possible she might've found a clue…hmm…"
He hummed to himself, chewing on the nail of his thumb as he got lost in thought.
But if that's the case did Kira get to her first? …Either way, I'll need all the information I can from her family about her movements before and after Raye Penber's death, as well as the files on the families he was tailing…Which was it again? Ah yes, now I remember…
Ryuzaki's lip curled around his thumbnail. Things were about to get very interesting indeed.
January 6th 2004
Whoever thought running around in circles was a good way to exercise ought to be hung!
Emi huffed as she and Yuki both puffed at the end of their class on the school quadrangle. Behind them, they could already feel the class track stars gaining on them as they prepared to lap them both for the umpteenth time.
"Hey, guys! Look what we've got here, two sloths who can't run" a young boy with spiked up black hair cackled behind them along with his cronies. "Better watch out before you become roadkill!"
"Oh piss off Ganju and go bother somebody else for a change!" Yuki growled only to stop as Emi grabbed her hand and tugged her to the side of the quad before she could get another word out.
The last thing she wanted was to be sent to the principal's office for fighting with a school jock…again.
Besides she had enough to worry about what with her mother finally going to meet the Kira Task Force to give an official report on Naomi's disappearance.
"Why'd you do that?!" Yuki grumbled as Emi dragged her to sit on the sidelines. "I was just about to give that jerk a piece of my mind."
"Yeah, well you can do that some other time when I have the strength to keep you two apart" Emi gasped as she guzzled down several large gulps of water from her bottle. She had just about paused to take a breath when she saw a shadow suddenly cross over her own.
"Excuse you, you're in my way" a high-pitched feminine voice sneered.
Oh great…just what I need.
Emi rolled her eyes as she glanced to the side.
There standing next to her was a pretty girl with black hair drawn up into two high pigtails, flanked by two other slightly taller girls, all of them dressed in the school sports uniform. All of them were glaring down Emi and Yuki with great disgust as if they were slugs caught on the bottom of their shoes.
"Hello Mitsuki, fancy seeing you here" Emi drawled sardonically, as she shut her water bottle and resettled her glasses. "How can I not help you this fine day?"
"Don't start all that crap with me freak! Now move, I need to get to my bottle" Mitsuki snapped folding her arms haughtily.
"Hmmm…nah sorry, no can do. Not unless you say the magic word." Emi snorted as she took another swig from her water bottle, only to wince as it was slapped out of her grip.
"Get out of my way" Mitsuki growled as she shoved her way past Emi who rolled her eyes and quickly stood to the side to let Mitsuki's posse past. Both girls glared at her venomously, but Emi, already so used to their behaviour, merely raised her eyebrows.
Yuki, to her credit, didn't bother saying a word as the girls' passed, though she did spare them a nasty glower as they walked out of earshot.
"I still can't believe that idiot is allowed to come here after the crap she's pulled" Yuki growled. "Seriously. If I were her teacher, I would've kicked her out years ago."
"It's because her parents are rich" Emi shrugged turning back to her drink "don't worry, money will only get her so far. It's not like morons like her will ever amount to much else in life." she added quietly, eyes falling to the ground.
"Yeah. Though it's a pity Kira can't rid the earth of scum like her" Yuki muttered with a smirk. Though if she thought the joke would be appreciated she was dead wrong.
"Don't even joke about that!" Emi's eyes brown eyes flashed dangerously, and Yuki took a step back. "Yuki, this isn't a game show where you pull a name from a hat and make people do ridiculous crap that makes you laugh. Kira kills people."
"Yeah but they're criminals-" Yuki started, but Emi steamrolled over her angrily in a fierce whisper.
"So what?! They're still human beings. Human beings who had parents, families, homes, friends, just like you and me. What if, someone like your brothers ended up in jail, would they stop being your brothers?"
"What-no-I-I-of course not!" Yuki spluttered.
"Exactly they're still your brothers." Emi sighed heavily as she tried to will herself back to a state of calm before her burning eyes could stream over "Look I totally agree that maybe the world would be better off without morons like Mitsuki ruining people's lives. But I think what Kira is doing is…is…"
"Wrong?" Yuki mumbled, eyes softening sadly. "and you're right. I'm sorry Emi, I wasn't thinking-"
"It's okay; I know you were only kidding" Emi patted her friend's shoulder before clumsily setting her water bottle down to the ground. "And I'm sorry too. It's been a tough few weeks, and I just took it out on you."
"That's okay. I understand" Yuki smiled comfortingly "Anything I can do to help?"
"You could get me that pocky you still owe me from last term" Emi gave a weak smirk and was pleased when Yuki rolled her eyes with fond exasperation.
"You'd make one terrible loan shark; you know that?"
Both girls laughed, utterly unaware of the lone figure of Light Yagami standing nearby, glaring burning holes into Emi's back.
He always knew that there would be some backlash to his ascension as Kira.
L's meddling with the Lind L. Tailor incident had been proof enough that he'd face trouble. But L had been a person of power and was mainly targeting him to satisfy his ego and cement his place as the world's greatest detective.
This Emi girl, on the other hand, was just a mere student in his year at school. What right did she have to scoff at Kira's methods? She should've been grateful that Kira was protecting her and her peers from all the nasty horrible people in the world that could harm them.
She believes herself to have a higher moral compass, when in fact she is nothing more than an idiot.
Light thought bitterly as he gulped down another sip of water.
Ugh! Why was this idiot girl bothering him so much? He was Light Yagami, top of his class, one of Japan's youngest and brightest minds. She was a geek, an outsider. Barely anyone liked her save her friend and a couple of people on the school paper. Why the hell was he so bothered by what she said?
"They're still human beings. Human beings who had parents, families, homes, friends, just like you and me."
He bristled as he heard the last words filtering through his head.
Human beings? Ha! More than half the criminals he sentenced daily were some of the most inhumane people on the planet. Still, he supposed, she had a point, even if it was a small one.
Many of the men and women he sentenced had been born from a mother's womb as all humans were. They had all had once been innocent children at some point in their lives.
But that still doesn't' change the fact that they became criminals in the first place.
He sighed as he collected himself for a moment.
What was he doing? He was thinking about this all wrong and getting worked up over nothing.
This Emi girl and all the others who thought like her were not idiots opposing him. They were just naive innocents who didn't know better. If he wanted to be the god of a new world, he couldn't just sentence those whom he had judged evil or a threat; he'd have to educate those who followed him on what was truly right and what was wrong.
I have to find a way to get rid of that L. With him out of the picture; it'll be easier to sway the rest of the world to my way of thinking.
He was distracted from his thoughts as he glanced up from his musings, only to feel his stomach jolt as he realised Emi was frowning at him through the corner of his eye.
Quickly he offered her a polite smile before turning his back promptly, cursing himself for being so careless.
Emi meanwhile turned back to her thoughts, dwelling on what she had just seen. Light Yagami, always seemed so polite and perfect in every way, had been glaring at her like a vulture picking her apart piece by piece.
She shivered as she recalled the intensity he'd spared her when she'd been talking in the cafeteria before the holidays.
It was almost like he was studying her, assessing every part of her inside and out…and not in a good way.
Before Naomi disappeared, Emi would've laughed it off and joked that the perfect Light Yagami was a secret pervert with a thing for geeky girls.
That glower he'd given her couldn't have been one of physical attraction. If anything it looked more like disgust, with far more disdain than anyone at school had yet given her, and that was saying something as she was one of the least favorite people in her year.
She wondered if he'd heard her conversation and was upset by what she said about Kira. It was possible. But then if that was the case then was he a secret Kira supporter? Was that why he was so upset?
But no…his dad's the Deputy chief of police. And the Force are all for catching Kira…
It was odd, Emi thought, brow furrowed hard in concentration. This was the second time she'd found him eavesdropping in on her conversations with Yuki, and once again he had that curious glint in his eye.
Despite herself, she couldn't help but shudder as she remembered the file's she'd pulled from Raye's computer.
Raye was investigating the Kitamura and the Yagami households. Light and Yuri had been on the Space Land bus that had been hijacked. The hijacker, however, wasn't as successful as he died in a car accident before the bus arrived at Space Land. Exactly a week after that incident, Raye gets killed at a subway station by Kira, and according to the FBI, he was the first of the twelve agents to die from a heart attack. This cannot be a coincidence…
"Emi! Come on! Fumiyo Sensei's coming this way to get us. Oh crap, he looks pissed." Yuki gulped nervously as she pulled her best friend back into the quadrangle, not noticing the way Emi's face turned the colour of chalk.
But no…it couldn't be…there's no way in hell that's possible. But if it is possible, then I need to find out-
"Hey, Emi wait where are you going?!" Yuki called out, but already Emi had flown back into the building and out of sight.
She was so fast that she didn't even notice she'd run straight through something jet black, with sharp pointed teeth and a pair of raven black feathered wings.
"Hmph! Well, that's just rude" a deep voice sneered, only to snigger.
"Emilia Misora huh? Just like that woman Light killed a few days ago. Hmm, won't this be fun? He-he-he!" his chuckles turned to cackles, all of which were invisible to all but one person.
What the hell is he laughing about now?
Light Yagami, glared over his shoulder at the amused Shinigami floating and chuckling at a safe distance.
Sometimes Ryuk could be so weird.
"Ryuzaki, all the security cameras have been set in place in the Yagami and Kitamura households" Watari said as he entered the hotel room.
Before him, Ryuzaki was sitting alone surrounded by folders, computers and various room service trays laden with sweets.
"Good, we shall start observations later this afternoon" Ryuzaki mumbled as he chewed on a strawberry that he was dangling from his fingers.
In front of him, Watari was quick to spy out a laptop, on which Naomi Misora's full FBI personnel file was out for all to see. Ryuzaki was looking at a section marked "family".
Kaito Misora – Father (deceased)
Noriko Midoori – Mother
Emilia Misora-Midoori – sister
"I see you've been looking through the files on Naomi Misora then."
"Yes and so far it hasn't been fruitful" Ryuzaki murmured glumly as he switched windows to the family's file. "I have been looking over the entire Misora family's movements before Naomi's disappearance."
"And what have you discovered so far?"
"Nothing much we didn't already know. Naomi's father Kaito Misora was in the U.S.A. co-ordinating and collecting the information the twelve agents provided him via email before being killed with a heart attack the same day Raye Penber died. Naomi's mother Noriko was in Singapore earlier in the month then returned shortly after her daughter and soon-to-be son-in-law came to Japan. She met with Naomi during their first week for a quiet dinner and then later met with Raye a few days later. Otherwise, she had been busy planning the surprise bridal shower for her daughter which she was going to throw a couple of days before Naomi and Penber left. Then there's Emilia Misora…"
Ryuzaki clicked the taskbar at the bottom of the screen where a thumbnail for a loading file was slowly but surely filling up with green.
"The file should come through in a minute or so, but I think it will be most insightful as Emilia Misora was the last person to see her sister before she went missing."
"I see. I take it you will be questioning young Miss Misora soon then?" Watari's moustache bristled a little. It was no secret that he and his charge had admired Naomi Misora. She was an exceptional FBI agent and a great ally in times of need. It was no doubt that her disappearance (or death as it was more likely) had come as a significant blow to the world's greatest detective, especially when he had the pressure of catching Kira weighing heavily over his hunched shoulders.
"Indeed." Ryuzaki turned back to the screen. "Right after I finish downloading this last file the director of the FBI sent."
Even as he said this, there was a beep, and the loading bar vanished, only to be replaced by a folder.
"perfect. Now let's see…" Ryuzaki's voice fell away as he opened the first file and a profile appeared on the screen, along with a photograph.
It was a passport photo of a young teenage girl, with shoulder length brown hair, pale skin and very familiar brown eyes. Why were they familiar? Because they were the same as the ones, he had seen in Naomi Misora's profile.
But that wasn't what had Ryuzaki stumped.
"Ryuzaki? …L?" Watari leaned over his charge worriedly "is something wrong?"
But Ryuzaki did not answer. His mind was a whir as he drank in every single feature of the girl before him.
It was her. The young woman who he'd seen outside their previous hotel on New Year's Eve. He almost didn't recognise her without the glasses, but he was sure it was the same person.
He had been at the front entrance of the hotel, waiting for Watari to bring the limousine around to pick him up, when he'd first noticed her. In person, she had looked much younger than the eighteen years stated on her official profile, so much so that he had wondered if she had adult supervision.
In many ways her visage reminded him of a little mouse he'd once seen in his childhood, scurrying around in a tizzy trying to find its hole before the cat saw it. He felt his chest restrict uncomfortably as he remembered the distress on her face as she'd been knocked over.
But why would she have been so distressed that day…unless…
He looked over his notes again in his head and felt his stomach lurch. Naomi Misora had only disappeared two days before the thirty first of December. From the information, he could see in this profile (which included several family photographs) two girls were especially close.
He chewed the nail on his thumb thoughtfully as he started scrolling down the page, his brow furrowed in concentration.
The girl was gifted in computing and technology if the notes kept by her father and the FBI were anything to go by. In her earlier years, seemed she had gotten into trouble a couple of times for hacking into her father's computer and accessing specific forbidden databases, though she didn't look to have done anything to the files she'd seen or taken.
As she'd gotten older, however, it appeared that her father had grown to appreciate her skills and had used them to significant effect. She had helped him encrypt and secure many of his files as well as help him fake identity documents for various undercover FBI agents, not to mention run background checks on suspicious characters hidden on the dark web.
Ryuzaki felt the corners of his lips twitch upwards in intrigue as he looked over her name, under which was another name
So she has more than one identity, has she? Let's see. Hm, she uses the name Emiko Midoori while at public functions with her mother, and Emiko Minami while at school. Both these aliases are probably used for security reasons after all her father was a prominent FBI figure with a few enemies. Also, her mother is a leading public figure, so that too would put a big target on her head in everyday life…that being said her mother has been careful to keep her out of the spotlight so far…
He mused mentally as he scrolled through her contact details. One of her various email addresses caught his eye, if only for its strange obtuseness.
M3dea? At MedeaArcana-dot-com… now that's a strange domain name.
Ryuzaki quickly typed the domain into the search bar of his internet browser and was surprised at the pages that came up.
It appeared as if MedeaArchana was a psychic consulting website, one which ordinary people would email and get consultations on their fortunes to the fortune teller (who had dubbed herself Medea), which came to them in the form of pictures of Tarot cards. Had he not been so invested in his investigation, Ryuzaki might have scoffed at some of the testimonials and reviews he saw as he skimmed the webpage.
It was incredible just how many people believed in superstition, even enough to let it dictate their entire lives and cloud the truth. He highly doubted the true ability even existed. From his experience solving crimes and exposing criminals, many of the supposed psychics were nothing more than exceptional people readers with a knack for sleight-of-hand and mastery of manipulation.
Much like Kira and his taunts with the Shinigami, but Ryuzaki shook his head as he put that thought aside. He would think about Kira in a bit, right now he was interested in finding out more about the youngest Misora.
From what he had seen of the contact information page, Emilia was Medea and probably made use of her computer skills to gather information on her clients before presenting them with her thoughts based on the data.
Who'd have thought such a small mousy looking thing would have such powers of insight?
Ryuzaki's eyebrows rose a little as he skimmed through a couple of glowing testimonials. From all the accuracy of her 'predictions', the girl was a very observant person…much like her older sister.
She must've been searching for Naomi the day I saw her. She had exhausted all her other options and couldn't find anything when her sister had gone dark, that's why she was so upset.
Ryuzaki leaned back to crouch in his seat, eyes softening ever so slightly as his thoughts dwelled back to the troubled girl on the street. Contrary to what people thought, the detective did feel emotions, despite his many attempts to work through his cases like a machine. Despite his best efforts, it was hard not to feel sorry for the younger Misora girl after everything she'd been through.
Kira had killed her father and brother in law, and her older sister was missing and could've potentially been killed by the same serial murderer. And now that her mother had put in an official report there was an even greater chance that she would be killed if Kira ever found out about her existence.
For the first time in his life, Ryuzaki found himself hoping that his informant could give him no information, if only to lessen the danger they would undoubtedly place themselves in. The fewer people that could be killed by Kira before they caught him the better.
And yet he could still feel in his gut that familiar tugging nagging feeling was urging him to find out what she knew. Such an observant person surely must have noticed something suspicious during such an ordeal, no matter how tragic.
He looked down at the phone left before him on the coffee table.
Now, to establish contact with Emilia Misora.
Wow, you'd think this school would keep better tabs on their students?
Emi scoffed as she looked around the library. It was mostly empty as it was still class time, but a few students were milling about, most likely rebellious juniors skipping out on class. The librarian didn't even seem to care as Emi slipped to her usual small table at the back, which was behind a couple of bookcases.
It wasn't unusual for her to skip P.E. to study in here instead. If she had her way, she'd never put on that damn sports uniform ever again. But such was life, and besides, it was only a couple of months more of High School then…well, who knew?
At least I can research without being disturbed.
She sighed in relief as she pulled out her laptop from her bag and plugged in her red FMA hard disk. She was quick to find the files she had copied from Raye's laptop, surreptitiously positioning them on her screen so she could quickly cover them with a word document that had all her school notes at a moment's notice.
Now let's see. According to the briefing sent in the files sent by Otou-san, Raye was in charge of investigating both the Kitamura and Yagami households. This included following various members of each of the families, mainly those who were above the age of thirteen at the very least. So far so good.
She scrolled down the first few pages of Raye's early reports, shifting her glasses up her nose slightly as she examined the details.
It looks like that out of all the household members investigated in the Kitamura family, Raye spent the most time tailing the Director and his eldest daughter. Same goes for the Yagami household except for this time it was mister perfect hair Light and his father. Both sets of spouses and younger siblings were only followed for less than a day each if only because they didn't yield any results. Then again they too could be acting. Now let's see there's got to be more… huh? Why won't it let me scroll?
"Wait that can't be it" Emi scowled as she reached the end of the document. Quickly she scrolled up to quickly check the date of the report.
19th December 2003? That's the day before the bus-jacking. Damn!
She slapped her hand to her forehead, glaring through the gaps between her fingers at the screen.
Just her luck that she'd be missing the most important reports. It seemed as if everything she did recently, she just came up short. Her sister, the Kira files. Even her studies had taken a hit!
Then again, at least having very little was better than having nothing at all to work with. She returned her attention to the screen again.
Maybe there's something I'm missing…something I can find in this report that might point me in the direction I need to go. Wait a moment! What's that?
Emi quickly paused in her skim to highlight a bar of text with her trackpad.
Hmm…that's odd. Raye didn't nearly spend as much time investigating the Kitamura's as he did the Yagami's. And the one he spent the most time studying on L's orders was…Light Yagami?!
Emi felt her blood all but freeze in her veins as she rechecked the report.
From the eighteenth till the twenty-first of December, Raye had tailed Light Yagami, bringing the total number of days to three, whereas most of the other members of both the Kitamura and Yagami families usually were tailed for only a day or a day and a half at most.
But this doesn't make any sense. Nothing in this report states that Yagami-san did anything out of the ordinary. He comes here to school early; then he goes to prep school in the evenings, then he goes home, occasionally picking up groceries and snacks from the supermarket along the way. Sounds just like any typical teenager, if a very boring one.
She rolled her eyes to herself only to stiffen as another thought ran across her head.
But no…something's still not right. Why tail mister perfect hair for three whole days straight if he doesn't show anything out of the ordinary? Unless-hmm… Damn, I can't see it! I can't see it! What would Naomi do if she were here? What would she say? Think Emi, think!
She did her best to ignore the clenching in her chest as the smiling face of her older sister wafted over her brain.
Come on! Focus Emi! Focus! Ugh! This screen is too bright!
She quickly snapped her laptop shut and shoved it back into her bag, quickly snatching out her tarot cards instead. She shut her eyes and scowled as she shuffled them deftly in her hands.
The sounds of paper shifting and clacking against the wood of the desk was soothing to her ears as she spun, shifted, swiped and slid cards between her fingers and one another.
Up, down, around and around, over and underhand. She did the overhand shuffle, the riffle shuffle, the Hindu shuffle, the weave, all expertly practised by deft fingers. What she didn't know was that Light Yagami was watching her from behind a bookshelf.
Unbelievable, I didn't even know a thing about this girl since yesterday. Now I can't seem to shake her off! Everywhere I go she always seems to be there right before I am. Is she following me? Is she suspicious of me? What's going on?
He scowled to himself as he watched her through the gap between books. Lunch had just started, P.E. having finished a good half hour ago. He had already dressed back into his standard school uniform and had been busy returning some study resources to the library when he spotted Emi at her table.
He heard her first before he saw her. It wasn't hard to notice the somewhat grating sound of the constant swish and clacking of cards on a table.
Tarot cards? Great, she must be into that crummy fortune telling nonsense.
But no, he paused looking down at the textbook in his hands. Who was he to talk? He was using a Shinigami's notebook to kill criminals. If that was possible, then who knew what other forces could exist out there in the greater world.
The thought was both terrifying and incredible.
"Ryuk" he whispered, his voice but a breath as it escaped his barely moving lips.
Behind him, the hulking dark form of Ryuk grinned widely.
"Yes?"
"if Shinigami's exist and can kill people, is it possible there are people out there who can see the future" Light's voice was quiet, but Ryuk could almost taste the boy's mounting curiosity and excitement.
Which was just as well, Ryuk always did like bursting the boy's bubble every so often, if only for his amusement.
"Dunno!" Ryuk's sneer widened toothily as he shrugged "I've seen many humans who've claimed to be able to see into the future from the Shinigami world, but I don't think I've ever met someone who has the gift. The only closest thing I can think of is when a human makes a trade for the Shinigami eyes, for then they can see the lifespan and when that person is fated to die. Also technically using the Death Note allows you to see history, but only because you are deciding how people will die."
"But it could be possible, couldn't it? Seers, foresight? The ability to see things outside of the norm?"
"Maybe, maybe not. Honestly, I'm not too sure? Why are you thinking of getting your fortune told?" Ryuk chuckled as he poked his head through the bookcase to watch Emi continue to shuffle her cards as if in a trance.
"Something like that" Light smirked, not even the slightest bit upset by the lack of information. He hadn't expected much anyway. Besides also if such an ability were to exist, it probably would not have manifested itself in that brat of a classmate of his.
Still what harm was there in playing with a few silly tarot cards to pass the time?
"Excuse me?" He smiled charmingly as he stepped around the bookshelf, and it took all he had not to laugh derisively as Emi squeaked and almost toppled out of her chair. As she did so, many of the tarot cards all but flew out of her hand and landed all about her on the floor.
"Shh! Keep quiet over there would you?!" a passing by student hissed on their way to the librarian.
"I'm so sorry; I didn't mean to startle you." Light rushed forward to help Emi who was sprawled on the floor trying to pick up all her dropped tarot cards.
"It's okay. I should've been paying more attention" Emi shook her head out only for her face to pale as she looked up at him. "Thank you Yagami-San."
"Uh…you're welcome I guess" Light pretended to be surprised though inwardly he preened himself off with pride at the recognition as he feigned a modest shrug. "You already seem to know my name, though forgive me; I'm not sure if I know yours?"
"It's Emiko, Minami Emiko. My friend Saito Yuki is in your class that's how I know about you" Emi smiled, her fake name rolling smoothly off her tongue with practised ease as she reached out to shake his outstretched hand before settling herself back at the library table, Tarot cards all collected.
"Ah yes I know Saito-san. She and I are always competing for the top grades in the class" Light chuckled, this time letting a little bit of smugness seep through his smooth exterior much to Emi's personal disgust.
Yeah, yeah lord it over us mere mortals Mister Peacock. It's not like you might be a serial murderer in disguise or anything.
And that's when it hit her. It almost hit her so hard that she could've puked right then and there.
If she was right about her little observations, then the boy she was talking with could potentially…be Kira?!
Oh my god! Oh my god! Okay, relax Emi relax and take it easy. Nothing's confirmed yet. It's just preliminary investigations. He could still very well be just a regular smug bastard and not a homicidal maniac. Remember what Dad used to say, innocent until proven guilty, and right now I don't have any proof... or at least no solid evidence.
"So how can I help you Yagami-san? It was you that called out to me just then, right?"
"Yes, and please call me Light." Light flashed another one of his most charming smiles and was satisfied to see the girl before himself blush ever so slightly. She might not like his personality, but she was at the very least physically attracted to him, and that was something he could work with. "Actually, I was just wondering if you were okay? You seemed a bit distressed back there while you were shuffling your cards."
"Oh, right the cards" Emi shook her head and giggled nervously "Yeah, it's just a little something I do to help calm down. It's been very stressful lately y'know what with the exams only five days away."
And what with half my family dying and or missing and a whole inbox full of requests for Tarot readings due tomorrow morning on top of having to submit my last homework assignment for High School. Yeah, life's just peachy.
She added glumly in her head. God when had her life become so complicated?
"I know what you mean. It seems like everyone in our year is starting to feel the heat." Light sighed, a genuine one this time. It had been a hard slog, prepping for his entrance exams on top of his duties as Kira as well as evading all of L's attempts to hunt him down. Some nights he went to sleep so exhausted he didn't even want to leave the cosy warmth of his bed.
In the corner of his eye, he could see Ryuk's smirk widen ever so slightly, his red and black eyes glinting eerily as they always did when he was amused. But what could the Shinigami be so amused about at this moment?
But Light didn't have time to observe any more of his strange roommates' behaviour as he turned his attention back to Emi.
"I couldn't help but notice those cards, they're Tarot, aren't they?
"Yes, and it's a new deck. I was going to wait to open it after the exams were over, but I couldn't help myself" Emi smiled anxiously, only to smirk "Perhaps you'd like to have a quick reading and see how you'll go with your studies?"
"I'm pretty sure I'll be fine with the exams, but I suppose one small glimpse into my future couldn't hurt. Why not? it could be fun." Light smiled oh-so-pleasantly as they both took a seat opposite one another at the table.
Oh great, looks like we've got a bit of an audience
Both Light and Emi mentally rolled their eyes as they both noticed a few other students, glancing not so inconspicuously at their table.
Emi couldn't blame them. There was the ever-perfect Light, rising star and one of Japan's brightest young minds sitting with the weird computer geek, tarot loving geek Emi. Who wouldn't stare in fascination at the spectacle?
"Okay, we don't have too long till lunch ends so I'll keep it simple." She clipped professionally as she quickly reshuffled the deck "Three cards from the Major Arcana. One for the past, present and future. Now Light are there any specific questions you would like to ask? Anything at all?"
"Not really no. Merely what might be in store for my future I suppose" Light smirked with a shrug.
You and me both Mister Peacock.
Emi snorted under her breath as she finished shuffling and held the deck between her hands for a moment, shutting her eyes and giving an exaggerated sigh for effect. After a couple of deep soothing breaths, she opened her eyes, cut the deck and put the bottom half on top before quickly checking the new card on the bottom, being sure to keep it away from Light's curious gaze.
Okay, The Tower in an upright position. Hmm…looks like you've got a bit of a rocky road ahead of you huh Mister Peacock. Why am I not surprised?
"Hmm," she hummed, smirking as she saw the glimmer of faint annoyance in Light's brown eyes.
"Alright, Light, let us see your fate."
She placed the deck onto the table and quickly drew three cards from the top of it, spreading them out in a horizontal line in front of him.
"Alright, here's the first card, your past." She turned the card over, and it took all she had to hold back a snort of laughter as none other than a rather gruesome skeletal figure with a scythe stared up at the ceiling, the word Death written underneath in the scroll set into the decorative border.
Light meanwhile was scowling as right behind him, Ryuk started chortling with mirth at the irony. It didn't help that the skeletal creature in the black robe looked eerily like the Shinigami himself.
"No need to be so offended Light." Emi smirked with amusement at Light's surprise "The Death card doesn't always stand for death, at least not always. Usually, it's a sign that there has been a significant transition in your life that has started you on the path to change. Which makes sense because the action of dying is merely a transition of between being alive and being dead."
"I guess" Light conceded relaxing a little "I mean this last year of school has been a bit taxing. I've had to make a lot of changes recently that might affect my chances to get into university."
"Fair enough, which of course brings us to the present." Emi smiled politely as she flipped the next card over to reveal a tremendous kingly figure seated on a throne adorned with four grotesque goats skulls, a crown holding an orb and an Egyptian Ankh. Unlike Death, which had been facing Light the right way up, this card was facing Emi.
"The Reversed Emperor. Interesting…very interesting."
"Indeed?" Light quirked an eyebrow genuinely intrigued now.
"yes. The emperor on his own is a figure of power, authority, structure, and sometimes masculine energy, namely the paternal kind."
"Makes sense. My father is the Deputy Chief of Police" Light said quietly, looking at the card intently "But what did you mean by the Reversed Emperor?"
"Well as you've probably guessed different cards in tarot have different meaning" Emi explained, straightening out her glasses on her nose "however they also can have different interpretations depending on whether they're presented right side up or upside down. The Reversed Emperor, is almost the opposite of the normal emperor. It might signify an abuse of power, or the lack of power you have, or the fact that you might need to address issues with the most powerful figure in your life, usually your father. I'm not boring you am I? I know Tarot readings can be a bit complex."
"No-no, not at all. I find it rather fascinating. It looks like it would be an interesting new exercise in interpretation, observation analytical thinking."
Complex? Did she not remember who she was talking to? And lecturing me about the "Abuse of power", Tch! If only she knew just how responsible I have been with the Death Note, she wouldn't be so quick to judge. It's not like she could ever do what I do as Kira!
Light shook his head to clear it of the sneer threatening to creep over his face as she opened her mouth to answer.
"Funny you should say that because Tarot cards have been around since the late Fourteenth Century. They were originally used as playing cards in a game called Triumph, which was also called Tarot in France. They then became associated with the occult in western Europe in the late seventeen-hundreds. However, there are some who argue that the Tarot originated from Ancient Egypt, but no one's been able to prove it just yet." Emi straightened up, mentally dusting herself off proudly as she saw Light blink at her like a deer caught in the headlights.
That's right jerk; you're not the only one who's got brains around here!
"Well I'm impressed, you do seem to know your stuff" Light nodded, genuinely impressed.
"My grandmother taught me to read the cards when I was little. It was she who also taught me how to shuffle." Emi shrugged reaching out to touch the last card. "Now would you like to know your future?"
"I would like that very much" Light leaned back in his chair, observing her hand as she flipped the last card over.
On it was a grim looking woman in blue, her eyes blindfolded. In one hand she carried a sword, in the other a set of scales. The light had no problem recognising the figure.
"Justice"
"Yes. Rather fitting for the son of a detective I'm sure. Perhaps there's a career in Law enforcement for you in your father's footsteps?" Emi smiled, but Light could not help but notice that it did not quite meet her eyes as she met his gaze. Her brown irises were cold behind the lenses of her glasses.
Those eyes, where have I seen them before? They look familiar…
He thought to himself, though outwardly he forced a chuckle.
"Yeah, that's pretty much the plan."
The lunch bell rang, and suddenly Emi jumped.
"Oh crap, I forgot I gotta get changed outta this gear" she moaned in frustration as she quickly snatched all three cards from the desk and began shoving them back into their case.
"Sorry Light, I guess this is it for this session."
"That's okay. I also have to head to class, or I'll be late" Light checked his watch. Sure enough, it was time to head back to class. "Thank you for the reading, it was…an interesting experience, and a good break from studying."
"Glad you had fun Light." Emi nodded distractedly as she shoved the last of her things into her backpack before quickly rushing off, but not before calling out "Nice chatting with you, and good luck with your exams. BYE!"
"Bye" Light muttered, his face falling as he watched her back disappear out the door.
What the hell was that all about?
"Well, that was interesting and no mistake. Who knew getting your fortune told could be so entertaining?" Ryuk sniggered as he watched his human shoulder his messenger bag and strutted out of the library.
Interesting is one way of looking at it.
Light frowned to himself as he quickly walked to his next class.
The girl, of course, had no idea that he was Kira, and as far as he could tell she was not involved whatsoever in his or the police's activities, and yet he could not help but feel unsettled as he remembered what he saw behind those glasses.
Those brown eyes. I swear I've seen them before. But where?!
" I'm home!" Emi sighed as she stepped through the front door of her luxurious apartment.
It was two storeys high and decorated with chic black, and modern white furniture with small splashes of block colours and wooden embellishments spread out here and there to relieve the eye. It was tasteful, if slightly over the top.
Then again, Emi's mother Noriko, was a bit like that herself.
"Whew! What a day" she sighed as she removed her shoes and slipped into her house slippers before all but stumbling tiredly into the main hall.
She was grateful she didn't have to go to cram school today. She didn't think she had the strength to make another trip into the city.
"Welcome back dear." Her mother poked her head out of the kitchen, a mug of coffee held in her hand and a sad, worn but gentle smile spread over her face as she caught sight of her youngest daughter.
She looked tired. Then again neither herself nor her daughter had gotten much sleep since New Years. It was odd to see her mother home so early and already in her pyjamas.
"Hey, mom. I didn't think you'd be home yet." Emi mumbled as she hugged her mother, who squeezed her tight before leading her into the open plan kitchen area.
"I went early to the police commissioners office" Nozomi sighed as she set her daughter down at the kitchen island. "Then they kept me waiting for a good hour or two before seeing me. If you can believe"
"Oh I can believe" Emi snorted and despite herself, her mother chuckled softly, though when she composed herself her eyes were gleaming nervously.
"Anyways, I've finally managed to make direct contact with the Kira Investigation Division. I've given one of their officers my full account of the days I spent with Naomi and Raye before their…" her eyes suddenly grew misty, and she coughed. "…well before everything happened."
"And?" Emi frowned. She had never seen her mother looking so timid and meek ever before. Not even when they had to deal with Naomi's disappearance and Raye's funeral, it was very disconcerting.
"And…" Nozomi gulped tucking a raven lock of hair behind her ear. "And now they would like to speak to you."
"Huh? what?" Emi blinked, and her mother sighed.
"The computer's all set up in the spare room upstairs. The Task Force is going to call in twenty minutes, so I suggest you wash up and eat something before you speak with them."
"O-okay" Emi nodded wasting no time in grabbing a box of snacks from one of the kitchen cupboards, much to her mother's disapproval.
But for once Nozomi did not lecture her nor make any other commentary than to roll her eyes fondly as she said:
"I will be down here watching the news. If you need anything-"
"I'll let you know" Emi finished with a soft smirk as she leaned up to kiss her mother on the cheek. "Don't worry mom; it'll be fine."
"And make sure you wash your face and clean your glasses" her mother called as her daughter strode out of the kitchen.
"that girl" Nozomi shook her head her loving smile falling as sadness consumed her beautiful face. "She's a chip off your block Kaito."
Meanwhile upstairs, Emi could feel her palms sweating.
This was it. She was finally going to tell the task force everything she knew and once she spoke there was no going back. After today she'd forever be branded by a massive target on her back because once Kira found out (and she had a horrible feeling he would eventually) hers and her mother's days were both numbered.
After ploughing through her snack, she quickly changed into a pair of jeans and a dark purple hooded sweater. Then she took out a small cloth and made sure to wipe her glasses down promptly. The last thing she wanted was to be half blind when she sent the task force all her findings.
Alright, here we go!
She sucked in a deep breath as she stepped into the spare bedroom upstairs. It was large, though still smaller than Emi's or her mother's bedrooms with a comfy queen-sized bed that was currently bare of any sheets, and fancy sleek modern furniture. Through a door on the far end was a small but luxurious en-suite shower and toilet that was also bare and clean.
Emi was quick to close it quickly before turning to the room desk where a computer, one of many that littered this apartment, was set up, open and ready.
She gulped as she heard the loud beeping and saw the call button appear on her screen.
Okay Emi, this is it, time to face the music.
She reached over to the mouse and moved it to click on the accept call button, only to gasp as a window filled the screen.
It was stark white, with a black letter L emblazoned across it in the Cloister Black font.
She had seen it once before, but that was on Television, openly challenging a mass murderer to an all-out war of wits. She'd heard about it from her sister and her father back when they were alive.
She felt her stomach almost flip in her gut as a scrambled voice spoke from the speakers of her computer.
"Good afternoon Emilia Misora. It's nice to speak you in person finally."
"I-it's nice to finally meet you too…L"
So, there we have it, Chapter 2 is up, and Emi is speaking to L (but not seeing his face yet).
For those of you wondering, no, Emi does not have psychic abilities or any abilities outside of normal human. I was tempted to make her psychic and not be aware of it till later but decided against it. I've seen too many OC's with special powers, and I didn't think it would work for her. She's very intuitive and observant (though nowhere near as genius as L or Light). She uses the information she finds on computers and then draws conclusions based on the facts. The Tarot is a personal hobby and a way for her to express what she sees (as well as get a little bit of money on the side). Also, she started off this story at a very opportune position to start investigating, though how long she can remain at an advantage? that i think is the true question ;)
The meanings of the tarot cards I'm getting from online from various sources, so some of it is a bit of guesswork when it comes to finding common links between them. i.e. Tower usually means conflict, Death=change and sometimes, Emporer =issues power or issues with a father figure, Justice = justice/lack of justice etc. etc.
Anyways that's enough rambling from me; I hope you enjoyed this chapter and pleased fave and review your thoughts.
Cheers,
FuzzyBeta