Well...I don't own DN....I own Demetra/Dem, Mika, Adelle, Kyle, Demetra's parents, Mika's parents (these characters will come a bit later...)

Yeah...I haven't put up a disclaimer in a while....so....yeah...heed, obey, and don't steal...

Oh, yeah, and there's a poll on my profile....not many have voted...and unless more poeple vote soon, I'm just gonna not care and do all of the choices and then some more because they all seem like fun. (If you read the poll question, you'd know what I mean...) And if you have any more ideas, I'll certianly do them, too.

Enjoy. It's...pretty interesting...this chapter and the next one...definitely interesting...please review...

~Magique~

"Dem! Dem!" I recognized Mika's voice. If she was here, she would be in danger, too. Footsteps accompanied the shrill calls. "Dem, Dem, are you OK? Dem?!" Someone leaned over me. I saw Mika's face. "Dem…?"

I furrowed my eyebrows in pain. Derision shot through my abdomen. I dropped the umbrella.

Her eyes flooded. "Kyle!?"

I was staring straight up to the rain clouds, and since my head was on the ground, I could barely hear Kyle walk over to us and bend over me. Even though he was talking to Mika, he glared down at me. "I warned you, honey."

"I know, I know, and I came as quick as I could!" She was reduced down to her knees, placing her hands on my arm. "Dem, I'm sorry, Dem-" Kyle interfered, yanking her up, pushing her aside. He glared at me. "See how whiney she is? She's a little young for me, but I'll take her." He plopped his heavy foot on my collar bone, a stinky, slick boot pressing the air out of me. "Should I take you?"

I knew he was bluffing, just trying to scare me, but it still got my heart thumping painfully in my throat. I gathered my strength and punched his groin. He yelled, spit flying out of his mouth and landing on my cheeks. I rolled over, his heavy body flowing with my motion, falling over and landing face-first in mud. He choked in pain. I didn't see how, I couldn't have even hit him that hard, I was weakened by the bullet.

However, Kyle recovered quickly and jumped to his feet. "I'll see you again, Dem." He spat at me and harshly grabbed Mika's waist.

"Dem! I'm sorry!" He continued to drag her away. "I didn't mean to! He followed me and I accidently told too much! I didn't do it on purpose! Dem! You're my best friend! Dem!" Her voice abated into just the rain pounding on my face.

On my stomach, I could feel the bullet further itself in my gut. I popped open my mouth to silently scream, baring my teeth. Ryuuzaki was right in front of me, my head facing his side. He turned his head, peering at me. His mouth moved, but only gusts of his breath came out. He dragged himself closer to me. "Demetra…"

I rolled off my front and onto my side, staring blankly back at him, unable to express the pain I felt. I heard a series of thumps coming toward me and my body tensed. Ryuuzaki whispered labouredly, "Kyle…!"

Suddenly, an object pushed me so hard that I spun in mid-air and landed on my other side, the little breath I had knocked out of me. I saw Kyle, and he kicked Ryuuzaki, his body tumbling similarly to the way mine did. "I see you, Dem!" Kyle howled.

Dang, he was crazy.

Gradually I got up, grasping my wound and clenching my jaw. I started to loosen my corset to get my knife to slip out.

"Oh, so you're willing?" He stepped away from Ryuuzaki, closer to me.

The knife fell into my hand. I outstretched the blade and clumsily swung at him.

He chuckled. "That's cute, watching a baby doll try to act tough. How adorable," He pinched my cheek, and I swiped the blade across his palm.

He yelped in shock. I was drastically bent forward, the pain lessening when positioned like so. I continued to splice randomly at him, just trying to get him to back off. I then realized he must have been drunk, for of the sudden, he tripped over his own feet and couldn't get back up. I cut his arms and belly, trying to create pain, but trying not to be sadistic. If I ran into a lot of people like Kyle, I would probably have turned into a psycho-sadist-axe-murderer.

His torso twisted and he swung his limbs to regain dominance, but ended up rolling into a tree and his head clunked against the trunk. He stirred no longer, and I fell to the ground in exhaustion.

I wiped the knife on my skirt and dug into my side, attempting to get the metal out of my body; I wanted to bring enough pain for L to be unconscious so I could get the bullet out of his side. How could I bring him to a hospital? I didn't know his insurance, I didn't know how to give him a fake name, I didn't know if he had any records. I would have to do it the old-fashioned way, before medical procedures really existed. I'd use magic.

He'd have to be unconscious….I didn't think I could bring myself to let him watch me dissect his side, even if I channeled his pain so that he would forget it happened…I didn't think I could bare the wretchedness I would feel during the operation.

I felt a gentle pop in the lower part of my torso, and saw the bullet fling out of me. There was a lot of tension and relief in my body at once. My muscles tightened everywhere except where the bullet was because the pressure was lessened, creating the muscles around the wound to relax.

I sat up with difficulty and cut the arch of my foot. I wanted the hole in my middle to close so I could work on Ryuuzaki. I cringed as I felt my skin healing itself, my leaking blood being sucked back in and my heart pounding harder.

I saw Ryuuzaki's chest barely moving, hardly rising and falling…the slow, shallow breathing of an unnatural sleep.

I dug in his side as quickly as I could, but ended up pushing the bullet further into him. I hissed in disappointment. My hand shook from fear; there was no way I could let this slip, I had to help L, even if he did suspect me, I had to help him, I had to get the bullet out, I had to let him live.

Slower, I forced my hands to be steady and continue my work. After a while of mind-blundering anxious tries, the edge of the blade caught the rounded metal and I tugged it out. I cleaned the blade on my skirt again and went back to injuring my foot with my weapon. I wanted his wound to be sanitized and closed up. I kept running the blade across my feet until I thought I couldn't bring myself to do it anymore. I turned to him, and saw him stirring. I guess he started to feel it. His wound closed and the blood seeped back into his body, leaving no trace…except for whatever pain he felt.

He barely opened his mouth, forming a low, sustained wail in displeasure. His head lulled back and forth, his eyes shut tight. He breathed heavily, with great effort, and as each sigh pushed itself out, he huskily wheezed like a dying dog.

I couldn't leave him there, and I didn't know how long it would take for him to return to his norm, so I tucked the pocket knife back down my bust and picked him up, intending to carry him back to headquarters.

He hissed through his teeth as he departed from the ground. I couldn't believe how light he was. I knew he was thin, it was obvious, anyone could look at him and call him skinny, but he was very tall, so I expected that he would weigh more, though I never expected to carry him…

His body was vulnerable and relaxed in my hold, his head resting in the hallow of my neck where it connected to my shoulder. His wet crop was warm against my skin, I could feel the closed lids of his eyes on my neck.

The streets were mostly deserted, but those who did pass me by looked curiously at me, than at L, then looked away, confused, but unconcerned. I felt strangely masculine carrying him. I held him bridal style, the easiest way to transport him as I moved, plus it was the easiest position for him to breathe, even if was extremely difficult. I couldn't have dragged him, I would have thrown out my back and made his breathing harder than it already was; I couldn't have thrown him over my shoulder, it would have made me look even more like a murderer than I already looked to anyone who saw me, and would have made it impossible for him to breathe sufficiently at all.

I chuckled inwardly, sarcastically. Wasn't it the men who usually pulled these kinds of things? Saving themselves, then helping the victim, carrying them to their refuge? Then again, since we had no refuge, I supposed it only fit that I rescued and carried him.

Crossing the street was slightly challenging. Even when signaled to stop, the cars kept buzzing by. What was going on? Sure, traffic was always terrifying, but it was never plainly unlawful. Not like this. I didn't see anyone beside me or on the opposite platform to cross the street, so I was virtually alone. I dashed across the crazed roads, barely missing cars, trucks, and bicyclists. I tried to keep L's state as stable and smooth as possible, but I could feel his body flopping in my arms.

I eventually ended up at the building, my legs shaky and wobbly from overdoses of adrenaline from my battle against the drunken psycho and the traffic. I forced myself to trudge in the doors and up the steps of the building and into the headquarters' main room. I bit my tongue until I detected the repelling taste of blood instead of the salt of tears in reaction to the forced grinding of my tongue, a conscious action. I didn't want anyone to see or hear me while I was in headquarters, no one to ask me questions.

I wasn't sure if I created enough pain, but I was going to find out. I pushed the doors open with my foot and timidly walked in. No one shifted or moved in reaction to my presence. Good. I placed L in his normal seat and positioned him in his normal posture. I guessed his body was subconsciously used to and balanced in that way, for his body didn't sway, he just stayed. However, I couldn't believe he was so naturally comfortable like that to not spring into any other position. I eavesdropped on his thoughts, to see if he was thinking at all, to see if he was gaining consciousness.

How did Demetra do this? Why did she do this? It all seemed to happen so blindingly fast and yet agonizingly slow. She operated on me! That can't be! My wound, I can no longer feel it! It feels just fine! It seemed to magically close! Can the Kira do that? Do I have to revert my thinking back to the days of European witches from eras ago?

Oh, frig! He was conscious! No! How was he conscious all this time? By the way I was operating, he would have been howling in misery! He couldn't have kept quiet if conscious!

I didn't no how much longer I could go unspotted by everyone! I reached into the corset and swiped it against my calf, slowly, dramatizing the sharpness of the sensation. I eavesdropped on his thoughts again. I wanted him to have no thoughts, to be asleep.

I heard his thoughts, but they were almost nonsensical, like I was listening to him dreaming. It was like listening to old people ramble, to little kids explain their made-up visions of what they perceived as their realities, to people trying to escape insane asylums. He thought many things, but the thoughts went by so quick it was like listening to a Valley girl talk when telling a friend on a cell phone the wonders of a shopping spree. His thoughts weren't completing themselves, just jumping from one to the other. He dreamt of the team, Kira, Light, Misa, and me. I thought it strange, but he mostly dreamt of me. I could tell, for even when he wasn't necessarily 'talking' in his dreams like thoughts, he thought of images and pictures, so I was watching him see my face, viewing myself through my mind's eye from someone else's mind's eye…but this could have been the first time that my image ruled over his mind. He was still thinking when I forced him away from consciousness, so his thoughts probably shifted from reality to his dreams. His breathing became calm instead of labored, so I figured he was better.

However, I wanted him to forget all about it.

I glided the knife up and down quickly and deeply across my leg, hearing the rip of both my skin and the fish net stockings. I continued to listen to his thoughts, but his dreams still revolved around me and my saving him! What was wrong? How could this not be enough pain? I was wincing and tearing and cringing without control, how could he not just forget a half an hour's worth of memories?

"Hey, when did Ryuuzaki get here?"

I snapped my head up and saw Matsuda ogling at L.

"Don't you mean," Soichiro replied, "When did he leave? And why is he soaking wet?"

I heard a chair shift and saw that Light turned to view—pretending to be interested and surprised—the commotion. "Actually, he left to investigate the conversation between Misa and Demetra," He crossed one of his legs over the other. "So, actually, he was gone for a while, but that doesn't explain his condition."

Sochiro looked back at his son. "But it was raining. I heard on the news that it would be cloudy all day, but in the late morning it would rain. That's not unexplainable."

Light rolled his eyes at his father. "But why is he sleeping?" He glared at me. He could see me. I stopped breathing, I was too stressed to make a nasty face back.

"Not so haughty, Light!" His father reddened in the face, but quickly calmed. "But we also don't know how long he's been in here." He turned back to L. "He actually could have been here for quite a bit…and since I've never known him to sleep…"

Matsuda tilted his head, his eyes never leaving L and a space eerily close to where I was squatting. "I saw him sleeping once! And he was positioned just like that!" He pointed his index finger at Ryuuzaki. "And he was only asleep for…an hour or so." He squinted his eyes. "Guys, I know this sounds strange, but tilt you head this way, to your right, like this." He paused. "Don't you see something?"

Uh-Oh.

I hastily stood but my knees buckled, slowing me from the position switch.

"Matsuda," The Light's father growled. "Stop—"

"But chief—"

"I'm not your chief!"

I bolted to the door, tripping and swaying from nerves and pain.

Matsuda's head followed me. "Look at the door! Something's there! An outline of something!"

Light was sitting back, enjoying the show.

I walked out of the room, wondering if Mika was in our living area already, or if she was forbade form returning.

Soichiro gasped. "What is that?" I pushed open the door and ran down the hall. "What was that thing?" Soichiro repeated.

"A ghost?" Matsuda answered, dazed.

"A ghost?" The ex-chief echoed. "No… it was probably nothing. You thought you saw something and I forced my brain to imagine something…"

"But we saw the same thing!"

The voices withered as I traveled farther away. And then I stopped. Why was I returning to my living area of the building? Mika wouldn't be there. I knew she wouldn't. Kyle would never bring her here.

Unless she escaped.

But that wouldn't happen. She seemed to be scared to death of him…of what he could do…

I gathered the little strength and will power I had and ran out the building, to the park, to cut myself in privacy to learn of Mika's whereabouts.

Ooohh.......heh heh.....I love these semi-cliffies......because I already know what's gonna happen.....you're gonna love it! (I suppose...)

Please review!!!!!!!!!!!!! (gotta love those extra exclamation points...!!!!!!!!!!!!)

Wow. That's weird. Did anyone else notice how hyper I am? I shold totally have an interactive story with you guys, just to see what would happen. You dig? Leave it in the review. :--)