Disclaimer: I don't own Death Note or any of it's associated fictional characters or locations.
The Shinigami's Sister
Chapter Ten
In The Making of Mischief
Kyomi had pulled up her skirt and returned to her seat, blushing. She had been followed by a shower of comments such as "keep it on!" and "nice undies", the latter of which Akira had to agree on.
After all, who could have guessed that the respectable and aloof Kyomi Takada wore red and white candy-can striped underwear?
She sniggered a little more as she said, to Ryuk, "I don't think I'll ever be able to look at a candy cane again without laughing."
"I hear ya," agreed Ryuk.
The teacher had to ask for silence a few times and he eventually got it. He went on with the lesson. He turned back to the black board and wrote some notes up. Akira glanced at them. "Come on," she muttered discontentedly. "I know this. It's boring."
"Don't I know it," replied Ryuk, his voice bored. "Maybe we should shake things up again?"
"I'm liking this partnership." Akira watched for a few moments, thinking. "Okay, I have an idea."
*****
Matt's friendship was not a one-day thing. The next day he came for her, this time telling her he was taking her out. Apparently he decided that she needed sunglasses. She did not disagree with the assumption, as she had seen the need for them the previous day. They were stopped on the way out and told that, since Akira had only arrived the previous day, it would probably be best if she stayed in the compound. But Matt managed to talk his way through and, the next thing Akira knew, she was outside again.
The streets here were cleaner. She and Ryuk had always divided places into 'light' and 'dark', the clean, bright streets where he had, ironically enough, been killed, called 'light' and then dark, rubbish- filled slums called 'dark'. This new place seemed to be an odd mixture of both. There were the expensive-looking shops mixed with dodgier-looking ones. It intrigued Akira to no end.
"So, sunglasses," Matt began. "Hmm...We could probably get them anywhere. Do you mind if we go to the electronics store first? I was given a couple hundred to replace that console I'm giving to you and it's burning a hole through my pocket."
"Okay," agreed Akira. They walked to the nearest one, passing a sweets store on the way. Akira glanced in absent-mindedly, then did a double take. "Isn't that Mello?"
Matt backtracked and looked inside. Sure enough, it was Mello, buying a big bag of something. "Three guesses what he's buying," muttered Matt.
Akira hadn't really seen enough of him to clue into the habit Matt was talking about. "Uh...Sweets?"
"Hey, Mello," called out Matt as Mello finished paying for whatever he had bought. The blonde boy looked around and scowled. "Nice to see you too."
Mello walked up to them. "What are yo two doing here? Her especially," Mello glanced at Akira to show who 'her' referred to.
"What do you mean?" asked Akira, a little hurt.
"I mean...No offence or anything...It's just...Uh..." Mello stuttered a little and Akira realised that he hadn't meant any offence. His brash nature could make anything sound like an insult.
"Me and Ryuk needed to buy some stuff," explained Matt.
"They let you out?" Mello asked Akira, sounding just a little less harsh than normal.
"Why wouldn't they?" replied Akira, frowning a little.
"They encourage you to stay in Whammy's House for the first few weeks," Matt interceded, seeing Mello get the same deer-caught-in-the-headlights look he seemed to obtain whenever he seemed to accidentally insult Akira. "But she needed sunglasses and I need a game console so they let us out. By the way, would you show Ryuk what you have in your bag? Show her your dirty little secret."
Mello cuffed Matt around the head. "Don't be stupid. It's not a secret."
"I didn't hear you deny anything about it being dirty-" Matt's sentence was interrupted when he ducked from Mello's next blow.
Mello turned to Akira an opened his bag. "It's just chocolate."
Akira' eyebrows rose a little. "That's a lot of chocolate."
"Yeah, I guess so," replied Mello gruffly as Akira shaded her eyes from the sun.
"We should probably get that stuff now," Matt said, noticing the gesture. "Mello, want to come with?"
"Sure," Mello said nonchalantly, taking out a piece of chocolate and beginning to eat it. They began to walk to the video game store. Mello decided he would wait outside, as no food or drink was allowed in the store, until he'd finished the chocolate he was eating. Matt took Akira and showed her his favourite brand of video game console.
"The latter models are the best, but pretty much anything from this brand will be good," he told her, picking up the latest model. "Come look at some games." He led her to a stack of games.
"Whoa...There are a lot," she murmured, her eyes scanning the rack.
"I've played most of them. The adventure ones with a bunch of different endings and the puzzle ones are the best. Anything else gets boring easily." He described a few games to her. They sounded mildly interesting so Akira decided she'd try them out later. After a while Mello found them.
"And you call me addicted," he began, gesturing towards the video games Matt held.
Matt pointed at the bag of chocolate. "That's because you are addicted."
"Whatever. But, you do remember, we have a class today."
Matt's face went very blank very quickly.
"You forgot, didn't you?"
"...Maybe."
"Matt."
"Okay, fine, I forgot. But it's in the afternoon, right?"
"Yeah."
Matt cheered up again. "And, so, we have plenty of time. Come on, let's go pay for this."
They did so and walked out of the store. They explored the shops around them for a little while. Akira had bought a black pair of sunglasses when she saw a sight which filled her with awe and wonder.
She was looking at the most awesome pair of goggles in the entire world.
"Whoa," she murmured.
"What?" asked Matt, looking around. He spotted the goggles. "Whoa. Those are so freaking cool." Akira picked them up. The lenses were made of a gold colour which was almost the same shade as her eyes and the framework a red which Akira, who didn't even particularly like red, immediately loved. She picked them up and put them on, looking in the mirror. She looked a little odd in them but loved them all the same.
"You want to buy them?" asked Matt eagerly. "'Cause, if you don't, I will."
She looked at him. "I've already got some sunglasses," she said regretfully as she took them off and handed them to him. "You can have them." Akira wasn't particularly generous. But she liked Matt. She had only ever really liked a few people, her brother and Watari, and decided that she wanted to cultivate this friendship. So she gave him the goggles.
Matt took them, looked at Akira's saddened face and handed them back. "Nah. You want them more than I do."
Akira took them back hesitatingly. "Are you sure? I mean, I do already have some sunglasses."
"It's okay. You have them. I'll just borrow them sometimes," Matt grinned.
"You two done?" Mello asked, his voice full of boredom.
"Yeah, I guess," Matt nodded. They paid for the goggles and left. Akira immediately put them on, grinning like a child. Matt grinned a little in reply and said, "either of you want breakfast?"
"I'm okay," Mello said shortly.
"Ryuk?"
"I am kind of hungry."
"I know a place that does breakfast. Let's go there."
They bought breakfast, even Mello, and ate before beginning the journey back to Whammy's House. On the way there they passed a fruit stall.
Akira's gaze happened to fall on a big, juicy, red apple. Her mouth immediately started to water and she was suddenly hungry again. "Matt, do you have any money left over?" she inquired.
"The last of it went towards breakfast," he told her apologetically.
"Okay," conceded Akira. She switched sides so she was on that of the fruit stall. The three of them passed the fruit stall. A little way away from it Mello and Matt heard a big, satisfied-sounding crunch.
They looked at Akira, gaping, as she happily munched on a large red apple which she had not possessed before they passed he fruit stall.
"Ryuk?" asked Matt, a curious tone in his voice. "Did you just steal that?"
Akira looked around with a mouth full of apple comically. It was only then that she realised that her actions may not have been interpreted in the same way they would have been by Ryuk. With Ryuk they had to steal. She had no idea what the other two may think about her stealing the apple and she suddenly felt an acute horror at the thought that she may have just sacrificed Matt and Mello's friendship for an apple. She guiltily swallowed.
"How did you do that?" asked Matt in slightly awed tones. Akira felt a relief which was equal to the horror. "I didn't even see you!"
"It's not that hard," Akira told him a little bashfully, unused to speaking of her thievery like they were. "I'm used to it."
"Can you do it again?"
"You probably shouldn't be encouraging her to steal like that," Mello reprimanded, but in a tone which stated that he didn't particularly care whether he did or did not encourage her. In fact, he was looking at her in an interested manner which made her feel even more bashful.
"Uh...yeah, probably," Akira nodded as she bit into the apple. "Anything in particular?"
Matt's face showed a few signs of anxiety for the first time. "Probably not something expensive. I don't want you to get caught."
Akira nodded. "Just let me finish this." A few minutes later she threw away the apple core. She looked around the place, but it was a falsity. She knew exactly what she wanted to take. She kept her eye on a particular store and edged around Matt and Mello. She brushed Mello's arm as she rose her right hand and pointed to a store. "You see that chemist's store?"
"Yeah," said Matt. Mello nodded. Akira was silent. They looked around to her. A mischievous smile was lighting her face. Her left hand was behind her back.
And as Akira took her hand from behind her back Mello realised that his bag of chocolates was suddenly a lot lighter. As Matt burst into laughter Mello looked in his bag, then looked up at the fistful of chocolate in Akira's hand, looking back into the bag, and then back to her.
"B-but..." He stuttered. "I didn't even feel that."
Akira nodded as she gave back the chocolate. "I know. I wouldn't take so much normally because you could easily feel how much had gone."
"You should do it again," chortled Matt. "I don't think I've ever seen that expression on Mello's face before."
"Shut up," Mello muttered sullenly, folding his arms.
"You mean like this?" Akira said as she brushed past Mello and held up a single chocolate.
"Hey!" exclaimed Mello.
Matt laughed and Akira smiled as she gave it back to Mello. "Don't worry. I wouldn't eat it. I don't really like the stuff."
Mello looked at her aghast for a moment. "You serious?"
"Yeah. I like apples better."
"Freak," Mello commented, still feeling a little snarly. He realised what he had said a second later and looked at Akira quickly, but she was laughing.
"A freak who can steal your chocolate," she grinned.
Matt interrupted them to point out, "hey, there's Whammy's. Want to run the last part?"
"No," Mello said.
"Yes," Akira said.
"Come on, Ryuk," urged Matt before he and Akira began running the rest of the way.
Akira beat him there.
*****
Akira got bored easily. So, one day, when she was bored she had obtained a few recordings of the principle's voice and cut and pasted them so it said certain things. She had always meant to do something with them but had never been able to. So she told Ryuk where to find the disk and sent him after it, telling him what to do with it.
Ryuk flew to Akira's place faster than normal and found the disc amongst Akira's other discs. He slipped it into a portable disc-player, like Akira had told him to. Ryuk then flew back to the school, keeping low to the ground this time and moving through trees where possible so no-one saw a disc floating along by itself. When he arrived at the school, only a quarter of an hour after he left, he slipped into the empty principle's office (Akira had told him the man was in a meeting somewhere) and plugged the disc-player into the PA system.
Akira smirked as the PA came on.
The tone was jerky and it could have been made better. It was clear that a bunch of words had randomly been slung together and it was clearly not the principle speaking, but, in a way, that made it all the funnier.
"Can...I...have...everyone...attention...please?" asked the voice. A few students were frowning at the jumbled words. "I...Would...Like...To...Announce...A...Holiday." It paused, like Akira had made it. She stood up.
The teacher, who was looking extremely confused and a little frazzled, snapped, "you! Sit down!"
Akira blinked innocently. "But, sir, the principle said it was a holiday."
"Yeah!" agreed some other students, standing up.
"I...want you all to sit down," the teacher told them uncertainly, not seeming to know what to do.
"But the principle said so," pointed out Akira. And that was all that was needed to get the ball rolling. With no regard to what the teacher said, students began filing out, laughing. The teacher tried to stop them at first but it was too much for one man to do.
And that got a bigger ball rolling.
Seeing one classroom leave, other classes began to do the same. Soon most of the school had left, but they were all milling around the school grounds, not for any other reason than for the fact that the announcement was not yet finished.
"Attention," the principle's voice stated over the PA. Everyone halted and immediately silenced. "Teachers...Are...Going...Bald!"
What made everyone burst out laughing was not necessarily the sentence but the fact that, when Akira had made the CD, the principle had not said the necessary words, so she had been forced to record herself shouting out random words in a gruff tone. She had not attempted to hide the fact in the slightest.
"And..." began the principle's voice. Everyone quieted down. "Science...Teacher...are...ALL MAD SCIENTISTS WHO ARE GOING TO KILL US ALL!"
Obviously that sentence was Akira's.
"Amen to that!" a few people cheered. But that was not all Akira's handiwork.
"Tomorrow...Is..." continued the voice. "Clothing...free...day."
Akira was happy to say she hadn't had to interfere with that the slightest.
"Mythology...teacher...wearing...red underpants!"
Akira did not know if this was true of her foster father and she didn't want to find out.
Ryuk heard a commotion outside the principle's office.
"Uh oh," he muttered, stopping his quiet hyuking, which was in admiration of Akira's handiwork. Ryuk quickly unplugged the disc player and flew out the window. He flew back to Akira's house fast as he could and then flew back, this journey only taking five or so minutes. When he got back the teachers were trying to get the students to go back into class without a lot of luck.
Akira was smoking in a tree, occasionally bursting out into laughter. Ryuk landed beside her. "Oh, hi Ryuk. Good job. You did everything perfectly."
"I hid the disc in your attic. That okay?"
"Yeah. Nobody goes there so it's a good place to hide it."
They sat in silence for a while, looking down upon the rest of the students in the same manner as two Greek gods looking down from Olympus on the mortals.
"What now?" asked Ryuk after a littler while.
Akira put out the stub of her cigarette, smirking. "I do have something in mind, but I'm not sure who to do it to..."
"How about Candy Cane?"
Akira didn't need to ask who he meant by that. "Yes, I think Candy Cane will work perfectly."
*****
Akira's classes were set. She had a lot of basic classes. When she showed them to Matt after his and Mello's afternoon class, he sort of stared for a moment.
"Uh...Ryuk," he had asked. "Have you...It's okay if you haven't, but I just...Have you ever been to school before?"
Akira hesitated before shaking her head.
"Ah. Well..." He seemed to be trying to find the words.
"Sucks to be you," Mello muttered, not really paying attention. He was doing some complex homework
Matt looked at him and exclaimed, "Mello!"
Mello only then realised what he had said. He turned around and said, to Akira, "S-sorry, it's...I mean..."
Akira promptly stole the chocolate he was eating.
"Wh-hey!" exclaimed the blonde-haired boy.
"You've got to admit, Mello, you deserved that," pointed out Matt between chuckles.
Akira grinned as she waved the chocolate above his head. He was lying down on his back, propped up with one elbow. She stood on his bedstead and put a foot on his shoulder, pushing it down, effectively pinning it in place.
"Ow!"
"Come on, Mello," she taunted, waving the chocolate. "Let's see if your arms are long enough to get the chocolate."
While Matt laughed at him Mello tried,in vain, to heave himself up. Matt pointed out that Akira seemed to be stronger than him.
"That's right," smiled Akira. "I am. Admit that I'm stronger than you and I'll let you go."
"But that's so stupid!"
"Your point being?"
"Fine, you're stronger than me." She jumped off him. "What about the chocolate?"
Akira held it out to Matt. "You want it?"
He took it and ate it. "Thanks."
Mello gaped at them for a moment before saying, "you guys suck," and going back to his homework. Akira was much more comfortable with stealing Mello's chocolate and annoying him. It got too awkward between them if she didn't. And, truth tell, Mello felt the same.
Mello paused. "Hey, Matt, don't you have homework too?"
"..."
"...You know you're going to fail if you keep not doing it."
He sighed. "Fine." He began to get out his books with a melancholic air. "Hey, Ryuk?"
"Yeah?"
"Don't worry about not having gone to school or anything. You're here so you're obviously smart. You'll pick it up quickly and catch up fast."
She smiled. "Thanks, Matt."
"Speaking of picking stuff up, do you want to go see if Near's finished with your console yet?"
"Sure," she said as she stepped towards the door.
"You remember the way?"
"Yeah."
"Cool, thanks."
"I'll be back soon," Akira told them. She found her way through the winding corridors. She made a few wrong turns at first but eventually found her way. She knocked on the door she presumed to be the right one. "Hello? Is this Near's room?"
"Yes," came the childish monotone.
"This is Ryuk. Matt sent me to see if the console is fixed," she said through the door, feeling an edge of nervousness. Something about the boy was a little inhuman and robotic. It made her feel just a little scared. "Can I come in?"
"Yes," the voice said again.
She opened the door cautiously, remembering the card castle from the previous day. But there was nothing like that inside. Instead she saw an intricately made Lego town. "Whoa. Impressive."
Near ignored this. "I am fixing it now," he told her and she saw this to be true.
"So you'll be done soon?" she inquired a little timidly.
"Correct."
"In that case I'll just wait here," she told him as she looked for a clear patch of floor and sat down, as the bed and chairs were taken by extensions of the Lego town. Near didn't say anything. Nothing was there to betray if he was annoyed by her presence or pleased by it. She said and watched him for a while and gradually her fear of him melted like snow in the face of sunlight. There was a childish quality about him but it was only surface-deep. Whenever he moved, whenever he created or fixed things with that mechanical precision that she saw him use there and then, it was clear that he was most certainly more than just a child. When he moved the illusion of childishness was gone. This was what had scared her, but, after a while of observing him, she found it less frightening and more intriguing.
After a short while Near said, "may I ask what you are looking at?"
"You," she murmured. Watching Near almost put her into a kind of spell, an enraptured state which made her able to say all of her thoughts. Near had paused and was clearly waiting for her to continue. "It's just...You're kind of interesting. To watch, I mean. You're kind of conflicting. You're childish but also...I don't know. It's like your a fluffy teddy on the outside and a knife on the inside."
He stayed where he was, frozen, for a few more moments, before continuing what he had been doing. He didn't say anything about her comparison but Akira couldn't hep but get the feeling that she had said something right. Near finished with the console and held it out to her.
"Thank you," she smiled. She got up and hesitated at the door. "I'll see you around, okay?"
"Yes," he replied in a monotone without even a shred of emotion. Nevertheless, she left the room feeling more comfortable about Near.
And so an era began.
Author's Note:
I originally meant for all the flashbacks to be in one chapter...But that would be one long chapter. I also meant to put more pranks in here...Any pranks you want Akira to pull on anyone, just send a PM or review.
A reminder: reviews are always welcome.
Another: beware of grandma's evil cats.
Peace and Love,
-XOX, Pangie