AN: I did originally plan on writing something like this about a year ago, but on both of my attempts everything I wrote got deleted by one my laptop dieing, and two my memory stick fucking up with a virus.
But by then I'd relooked at the story and realised I really didn't like the whiny character I'd turned Rose into, so if I wanted to keep on writing I'd have to rewrite the story which I didn't have time for, and was reluctant to do in the first place.
Not a very good excuse but that's the long and short of it really, anyway enjoy.
Chapter 8: A Spiritual Guide
When Light woke up, it was around 8:00 the next morning.
He glanced over to Rose's bed, and was surprised to see her there still.
He thought he could only see her, if she wanted him to.
'Do you subconsciously want me to notice you?' Wondered Light.
He smirked at the thought.
This would definitely be easy.
Getting out of bed quietly, he quickly left and got dressed without disturbing her.
He soon returned, and went over to his desk before sitting down.
He'd promised Rose that he wouldn't continue killing criminals, so for now he'd have to stick to that. At the most he could eliminate one or two criminals through accident or disease, but he couldn't do anything on a mass scale or not only would she find out, but the police would know that he could kill people with means other than a heart attack.
That could put him at a significant disadvantage down the line.
Light sighed. It would be better to not kill for a short time if he could get Rose, to be more of a permanent ally.
'Besides.' Thought Light. 'Wherever she realises it or not, she obviously has some kind of attraction to me.'
In the back of his mind, he knew she was on his mind too, but he didn't think anything of it.
She was a pawn, nothing more.
Light began fiddling with a pen on his desk.
Who knew? Maybe she'd actually tell him how she knew so much about him in the first place.
Light frowned.
He'd tried to ask about her family, or her death to find out any clues, but she'd been reluctant to answer; as a polite host, he'd had to back off.
Well he supposed that wasn't important for now.
Light planned to do research today.
Light went downstairs and made himself breakfast, before heading back upstairs with a plate of toast and fruit.
He glanced at Rose again.
He was trying to be a polite host so it'd be rude to leave, but he might not get many chances to do this in the future.
Light wrote her a note instead.
'Hey Rosa,
I'm sorry I didn't wake you up this morning, but I needed to leave early to get some studying done. I'll be back around 13:00 if you want to hang out.
I hope you enjoy the food, and I'd love to see you later
Your friend
Light.'
That should suffice. If Light couldn't get Rosa to side with him, then he'd need to know how to get rid of her.
Obviously Ryuk wasn't going to be any help, so Light would have to try and find out a way to terminate her himself, if need be.
Light glanced at Rosa.
Still, he hoped he could avoid that; he wasn't going to kill innocent people obviously, and her heart had been in the right place.
Light shook his head, he couldn't think things like that, if he wanted to stay alive. He grabbed his coat, and went out the door.
Rosa already had some kind of interest in him; this would just be a precaution anyway.
…
"Hey! Hey Rose I want to talk to somebody!"
Rosemary slowly blinked her eyes open. Who the hell was talking to her right now?
"Come on Light promised to buy me more apples but he's already left, and I can't wait for him to come back!"
Huh, Light's gone?
Rose lifted up her head, and looked around.
His bed was made and everything. But wait was that a note on his desk?
Dragging herself out of bed slowly, she approached his desk, and looked over the note.
So he had to do more studying huh?
'God knows why.' Thought Rose. 'He's already one of the smartest people alive.'
Not that she'd ever tell the egocentric bastard, to his face.
"Come on Rose-mary!" Whined Ryuk. "I've been trying to get you up for ages."
"Alright." Croaked Rosemary, as she scratched the back of her head.
"Just give me a moment to get dressed."
"Why?" Asked Ryuk. "It's not like anyone can see you."
"Yeah, but i'm not lazy enough to walk around in my pajamas." Replied Rose.
Rosemary got dressed in her usual outfit, minus her gloves and jacket. She was also sporting a new, dark green, t-shirt with, small silver stars on it.
It wasn't a big change, but Rosie didn't want to wear the same thing, day in and day out.
She then put her hair up in a messy bun, and grabbed the plate of food from off of Light's desk.
"Will you let me finish this at least?" Asked Rosey.
"Why? You don't even need to eat!" Complained Ryuk.
"So? You don't need to eat apples." Pointed out Rosemary.
"He, fine just be quick will you." Relented Ryuk with a smirk.
Maybe it was a little out of spite, but Rose took her time eating her breakfast.
….
Useless!
Light had been at the library for hours, and he had virtually nothing to show for it.
There were so many conflicting reports on ghosts, that it was virtually impossible to tell, which ones held any truth.
Some claimed that ghosts seduced people, whilst others said that they possessed the living, to kill them.
But Light knew from the start that most of these weren't helpful to him, as almost all of them indicated that ghosts were nothing more than a lingering energy.
Light had only found a few sources that considered ghosts fully fledged beings, and he'd only found one book that referred to the idea of 'fulfilled purpose'.
Light held his head in his hands.
He looked over his watch. He'd told Rosa he'd be back in an hour, so he didn't have much time left to find something substantial.
The most common means of getting rid of a ghost had been chanting or asking a ghost to leave (The energy of the living being strong enough to purge the remains of the spirit) but Light doubted these methods would apply here.
No it appeared that accurate information on spirits, was as elusive as information on the Death Note itself.
Light turned to a new pile of books.
He wouldn't give up just yet.
….
"Mmm, you don't skimp out on apples Rose you know that." Said Ryuk in between bites.
"Well I haven't got much money anyway, so it's not like I'm gonna buy much else." Admitted Rosie, as they both walked through the neighbourhood.
"You know Ryuk, it's kind of nice to be able to talk to someone who can actually hear you." Said Rose. "It's great that I can still kind of talk to people in a way, but it's kind of lonely."
"hmm?" Said Ryuk. "Oh yeah you guys can't talk to the living, I always forget that."
"You're a Shinigami, shouldn't you be an expert on the supernatural?" Asked Rosemary curiously.
"Well yeah I guess, but Shinigami have never really studied you guys; I mean we can't get any life force from you, so yeah." He finished with another bite.
"So what do you know about me?" Asked Rosemary.
"Well." Began Ryuk.
"I know that you'll go crazy if you stop acting human, I know that you can't touch my notebook, and I know that if you fulfill your purpose then you get to go the afterlife."
Ryuk paused.
"I think that's it."
Rose's eyes widened.
"Really that's it?" She asked, incredulously.
"Yeah well like I said we never really took a closer look at you guys." He admitted.
They were both quiet for a moment, as they walked through the streets.
"Hey Rose do you want to go to the arcade?" Asked Ryuk after a moment.
'There's an arcade?' Thought Rose.
"Um sure I guess, but won't it look weird with two invisible people playing the game?" She asked.
"Nah, I mean if it was just me yeah, but you're not invisible, people just don't notice you til you want them to." explained Ryuk.
"Wait, so I can make other people, go unnoticed too?" Asked Rosie.
"Yep." Said Ryuk. "You didn't know that? I mean no one's screamed at your stuff floating in mid air, right?"
"Well yeah, but they're objects." Explained Rosemary.
"So? Anything you interact with, becomes just as invisible as you." Said Ryuk.
"So when I talked to Light, and all those people at the train station they were invisible?" Asked Rosemary in disbelief.
"Well, it's not like they just vanished." Said Ryuk "It's more like people just didn't want to pay attention to them."
"And when I finished talking to them?"
"They were seen normally again." Affirmed Ryuk.
"So do you want to go to the arcade?"
Rose paused.
"Alright then, but you know I can't read Japanese right?" She asked.
"He he, I'll tell you what it says if you tell me how you're supposed to play." Said Ryuk with a smirk.
"Deal." Said Rose, with a smile of her own.
…
Light sat back in his chair, and sighed.
If these books were any indication, then it was virtually impossible to get rid of a ghost that hadn't become a "Lifeless Husk" as Ryuk put it, and Light couldn't wait for Rosemary to crack.
Not if he wanted to continue purging criminals.
He'd found some sources that claimed negative emotions could weaken spiritual energy, so that was a little helpful, but Light couldn't outright be cruel to her, unless she decided to go to someone with her information of the Death Note.
At the very least, he'd managed to hide it the book though.
'Just one more.' Decided Light, as he picked up a book called 'Scandinavian Ghosts and Other Supernatural Myths'.
This was a fairly old book, but it looked promising as it seemed to focus on ghosts as people, rather than energy.
'Spirits are not given away by their looks, but by their behaviour. Many appear mute, and will suddenly disappear at will.'
'Well that sounds a lot closer to Rosa.' Thought Light.
However reading on he was surprised.
'Whilst many Spirits are known to act maliciously, and harm people when approached, some have been known to do the opposite. So called 'Spiritual Guides' will appear like ordinary friendly people, and are believed to posses knowledge of a dark future to come.
These spirits are known as 'Guides' as they will try to guide their charge away from the dark future that may await them; some even going so far as to act violently, to draw their charge away from danger.
Because of this willingness to be violent, they are often confused for malicious spirits, however they are notably different in that they cannot be easily banished, and they are able to communicate with greater ease than their dark counterparts.'
Light's eyes widened.
Was he wrong about Rosa? I mean yeah she'd been annoying in her methods, not to mention amateurish but still…
Was she trying to protect him?
Light pondered this. Even Ryuk had told him "He could neither go to Heaven nor Hell".
He'd thought he was certain about using the Deathnote, but the more time he spent away from it, the more he was rethinking his options.
He could just give up the Death Note now, and it'd just be a strange case of odd murders; he'd lose his memories so they'd never be able to catch him.
Light clenched his fists.
But if he stopped now, so many criminals would get away with no charge.
Light remembered nights his dad had come home, after working on a case for hours, only to have to let a man walk away because of lack of evidence, or a filing mistake.
But was he willing to end up punishing himself, in the process?
'God damn you Rosemary!' Thought Light. 'You've got me so confused.'
Why was she here? This would be so much more straightforward, if there wasn't someone looking over his shoulder to make him feel guilty.
Light's stomach was actually starting to hurt, with all the guilt, and confusion she was causing.
His phone beeped.
It was 12:50.
He should head back to his house soon.
Light calmed his stomach, and put back the rest of the books, before heading home.
He felt like he had even less answers, about how to deal with Rosa.
….
"I think I can say for certain that we suck at arcade games." Said Rosemary.
"Heh speak for yourself, I got all these." Said Ryuk, holding up a bunch of yellow tickets.
"Wow, with that many you could get a keychain." Said Rose in false awe.
"You humans need a better system for prizes, how am I supposed to get 22,000 tickets?" Asked Ryuk.
"You're not." Admitted Rose. "That's kinda the point."
"I don't get it." Said Ryuk.
Rose shook her head, as they continued walking back to Light's house.
"Where are you even going to keep those?" She asked.
"Errr." Said Ryuk, in contemplation.
"Please?" He asked, holding them out to her.
Rosey rolled her eyes.
"Give them here." She said, opening up her backpack.
"Have I mentioned that you're my favorite person." Said Ryuk with a smirk.
"That's just because Light can't talk to you in public." Pointed out Rosie.
"Yeah but still." He said, as they approached Light's house.
"Do you think Light's back yet?" Asked Rosemary.
Ryuk shrugged.
"Beats me, Light's a popular guy maybe he's off with some girl."
"Oh yeah probably." Said Rose, with a slight frown.
"Why do you miss your boyfriend?" Asked Ryuk teasingly.
"No, I was just wondering when he was gonna be back. Besides like I said I barely know him, so he clearly can't be my boyfriend." Pointed out Rosemary.
"You say that, but you already seem to know a lot about him." Said Ryuk.
"Er no I really don't." Said Rose firmly. "Now will you drop it already."
"Sure okay." Said Ryuk. "I mean you just knew about the Death Note, and how Light could be scared away from it, and-."
"That was just logical guessing! If I really knew stuff about Light, I would have gotten him to give up the Notebook." Said Rose bitterly.
"I don't know, I think you're doing something." Admitted Ryuk.
"He's still got the notebook hasn't he?" asked Rosemary, sarcastically.
"Yeah but he's stopped killing." Pointed out Ryuk. "When I first talked to Light he acted pretty certain about killing criminals."
Rose scoffed.
"But at the same time,he also seemed shakey; like he wasn't as confident about killing people, as he was before."
Rose paused, was she changing Light somehow?
"So even if he hasn't gotten rid of the notebook, you're clearly influencing him somehow." Finished Ryuk.
Rosie dumped her bag next to Light's bed.
"I don't know maybe you're right." Said Rosey.
"I just hope you don't influence him too much." Admitted Ryuk.
Rosemary raised an eyebrow, and frowned.
"What? I get that you want to save lives and all, but that's not nearly as interesting to watch." Said Ryuk.
Rose sighed.
"Can't you just watch people get killed in movies or something?" Asked Rosie
"But they always look fake!" Complained Ryuk
"That's your complaint?!" Asked Rosemary, in disbelief.
"Well, I should know." Said Ryuk confidently.
"Know what?" Asked a muffled voice, behind the door.
"Light?" Asked Rosemary, as Light walked in.
"What a realistic death looks like." Said Ryuk, with a grin.
Light rolled his eyes before looking round.
Rose tapped his leg, to get his attention.
He turned to her, surprised with a look of...
Was that panic?
It flashed by his eyes so fast Rose couldn't be sure, but was he wary of her now, or was she just imagining him acting tenser than before?
"Er Rosa I didn't see you there." Said Light casually.
"I just finished studying for the day, if you want to grab a coffee." He offered politely.
Was it her, or did it look like he really, didn't want to talk to her right now?
She wrote down in her notebook.
'Are you alright Light? You seem nervous.'
Light seemed to instantly relax, as though he was forcing himself to act normal.
"Ha ha yeah! I guess i'm just worried about my the next exams coming up." He said sheepishly.
Rose stared at him. Light was obviously lying, he didn't get nervous about exams.
Maybe Ryuk was right and she was changing his mind about the Death Note; in that case Rose should keep at it right?
Rosey wrote a reply.
'If you're sure that you're fine then I'd love to have a coffee with you.'
Light smiled.
"Great, do you want to go now?" He asked.
Rose nodded.
"Well i'll leave you two lovebirds alone hyuk hyuk." Chuckled Ryuk.
"We're not lovebirds Ryuk!" Said Light, and Rosemary simultaneously.
Ryuk went from chuckling, to full blown laughter as he flew away.
"Anyway." Said Light slowly. "Shall we go?"
Rose nodded, and followed him out the door.
Unlike when she walked with Ryuk, she couldn't really have a walking conversation with anyone else. Light had to stick to yes or no questions, unless he wanted to wait for her to write out her answers, so their walk was mostly silent.
Rose's eyes widened however, when they reached their destination. It was the café Light, and L would later confront each other in, She hadn't thought they're be going here.
Light noticed her reaction.
"Is something wrong Rosa?" He asked with false concern.
Rose blinked back to reality, and shook her head with a smile.
Light stared at her a moment, before simply saying "okay" and opening the door.
'Could she have been here before?' Thought Light. 'But it's such an obscure café.'
''Spiritual Guides' are believed to posses knowledge of a dark future to come.' He remembered.
Could this be a place that she had prior knowledge of?
Light and Rosemary, got a small table near the back of the café.
"What would you like?" Asked Light politely. "I'll pay, my treat."
Rose looked over the menu.
Thankfully words, like expresso were universa. Butt she absolutely hated Coffee, so she just pointed to the hot chocolate.
Light nodded with a polite smile.
Between her bright choice in clothing, and her juvenile choice in drinks, Light was beginning to realise just how childish Rosemary really was.
"I think i'll get an black coffee," Said Light.
Rose smiled.
Even his taste in drinks was dull and boring. How did she ever have a crush on this guy, when she was 15?
Light ordered for both of them, and they both just smiled at each other, whilst they waited.
But the people around them were anything, but quiet.
"Criminals are dropping like crazy."
"It's scary, but also kind of cool."
"Who knows what'll happen next?"
Light smiled more genuinely, as he overheard a group of girls in the booth next to them, whilst Rosemary just looked puzzled, unable to understand what they were saying.
"They're talking about the recent murders." Explained Light.
Rose's eyes widened.
"It's still a big mystery so, everyone's wondering how it's happening."
Rose frowned at him, as Light waved their drinks over.
Clearly she wasn't changing him that much afterall.
"But who knows maybe they'll end soon." Said Light nonchalantly, as he sipped his coffee.
'Are you trying to guilt trip me?' Thought Rosie angrily. 'I'm not the power hungry teenager, acting like dictator, with a club shoved up his arse!'
Light then frowned slightly.
"By the way Rosa, have you been here before." Asked Light.
Rose momentarily forgot her anger, and shook her head, confused.
"Oh? It's just you looked like you recognised this place." Said Light accusingly.
Oh shit he'd noticed. Ryuk was right she was a really bad actor, But wait! This might be just what Rosemary needed.
Threats hadn't worked, and clearly her friendship was only producing subpar results. Maybe if she revealed to Light that she knew about what would happen, if he kept using the Death Note, then he'd realise that it would only end in his demise.
Rose wrote in her notebook
'I'm not sure you'll believe me. It's a little far fetched.'
Light chuckled.
"Rose i've spent the past few weeks dealing with a ghost, and a Shinigami. What's more far fetched than that?"
'A ghost from another dimension who owns a box set of your life, and used to have a crush on you when she was a teenager.' Thought Rosemary.
'Well it's a pretty long explanation. Do you mind giving me some time to think, about how to explain it?' Asked Rosie, who was honestly unsure how she explained this properly.
Should she even mention, that his life was a comic book?
Light smiled genuinely again.
"That's fine I'm just glad you're willing to share something like this to me." He said, meaning it fully.
'Finally, maybe I can get some answers.' Thought Light.
"In the meantime would you like to just talk, and you know forget about the whole notebook thing for awhile?" He asked.
Rosey nodded.
Honestly that sounded good right about now.
Last night they'd kept the conversation shallow by asking favourite colours, and favourite styles of food, but now that Rose had decided that she was going to tell Light the truth (At least partially) it seemed like the floodgates had opened.
Light asked about Rosemary's artwork, and found out that she'd wanted to be a children's book illustrator. Light felt greater sympathy for Rose, knowing that she was very talented, but that she'd never had the chance to do what she wanted to do.
Rose asked Light about his family and the police.
Light told her about the cases he'd worked on, and Rosie began to understand more where his passion for killing criminals came from, even if she didn't agree with it. He told her about the times when his father's work had been for nothing, and how he wanted to follow in his footsteps.
As they got more comfortable, Light cautiously asked her about her death, and Rose admitted that she'd died almost instantly after she'd been run over.
'I know we said we wouldn't talk about the Death Note; but would you have executed the man who killed me' wrote down Rosemary.
"Rosa! We're in a public place!" Said Light in a slight panic.
'You're interacting with me. They won't be able to see you or me unless you or I reveal ourselves.' Explained Rosie.
"Are you sure about that?" Asked Light.
'The waiter couldn't find our table until you called him over; there aren't many people here so he should have seen us.' Wrote down Rosemary.
"Well." Light paused, looking around slightly.
Would you have wanted me to?" Asked Light, who was looking calmer now.
'That's not important. I'm asking if you'd kill a man who did a terrible crime, for the first time in his life?' Asked Rose.
"Well of course not." Said Light straight away "I mean obviously I want to get rid of criminals, but I'm not going to kill a man who hasn't done anything wrong before."
'But what if you've done that already?' Asked Rosey.
"What are you talking about." Asked Light. "I've been killing the World's worst criminals."
'But you've also been killing lesser criminals, with disease and accidents.' Wrote Rose.
Light's eyes widened; She knew.
"I didn't kill people who had car accidents though! I killed murderers and thieves." He argued.
'You killed people with mental disorders who attacked random strangers, and people so poor they were forced to resort to theft.' Stated Rosie.
"Now that's a lie." said Light angrily. "I killed repeat offenders."
'All of them were repeat offenders?' Asked Rosey.
Light faltered.
'Light, just because the news reports a murder doesn't mean they give out all the details.' Wrote Rosemary
"So? I can do more thorough research in future!" Said Light.
'Light, there are always people who are falsely accused, and people who make mistakes, that's why we have a justice system.' Wrote Rosemary.
Light pushed her notebook, and pen off the desk in anger.
"What do you know about Justice?! I'm the one that's been on cases, I'm the one who has family putting their lives in danger whilst terrible people are safe from conviction!"
Rose was silent for a moment, before picking up her notebook.
'Light did you know my mum was a police officer?' Wrote down Rosie.
Light was silent.
'She retired last year. She badly injured herself on a patrol, and she wanted to spend more time with us anyway' she elaborated.
Rose paused.
' I'll be honest I don't have the passion for Justice you do, but I do know this. You're human and you're going to make mistakes, in fact you already have. I'm not trying to be your enemy Light, I'm trying to help you out.'
They were both silent for a moment.
"How could I be so careless?" Murmured Light.
Rose brushed his face.
'I'm crying.' Thought Light in disbelief, since when did he cry?
"Rosa." Began Light.
"I'm sorry, I-just I you're right. Honestly you make what I'm doing so much more confusing." He admitted.
Rosie cocked her head to the side.
"I thought I was doing good I had no idea i was…." Light trailed off.
Rosey placed her hand on top of his and smiled.
'I'm your friend right, it's my job to help you out.' Wrote Rosemary.
Light smiled back.
"Thank you".