Hades followed me, and I was happy to have a friend. A real friend, who would never leave my side or betray me. I had never had such a friend. I was too quiet; too reserved. Now I had someone who respected me and laughed at my jokes and knew my likes and dislikes.

It was a special thing.

"You know, Harlow," he said to me one day as I walked home from school, "it's only a matter of time before you get caught, killing off students in your class like that."

"And who is going to suspect me?" I asked in a singsong voice. "I'm quiet and I don't have any friends. I'm respectful and withdrawn. They're dying of heart attacks, not of a bullet or anything. No one will suspect me."

"If you say so."

"You shouldn't worry too much."

"I'm just warning you. If this gets out, Kira will want to see you- no, Kira will want to kill you."

"But how will Kira even find me?"

"He may have the eyes."

"It's doubtful that we'll just meet on the streets."

"But possible."

"Just not probable."

Hades let out a sigh and stifled his anger. "You should really be more cautious. If you don't want to trade for the Shinigami Eyes, then you're only endangering yourself. You won't see Kira, and you won't live."

"You know," I said, ignoring him, "a few years ago, Kira and the second Kira spoke to each other over Sakura TV."

"What?"

"They sent audio cassettes back and forth."

"So what? You want to get in touch with them, too?"

I let out a laugh that scared me a little. "Yeah."

We walked home, and I went straight to the basement. My father had tons of cassettes because he did not quite understand the CD era. I grabbed an old rag that was laying on the dryer and used it as a glove while I took a packet- two cassettes- and went to my room. In my room was an old tape player that I hadn't used in ages. I attached a microphone into it and began to speak to the Kira.

"Hello, Kira?" I pressed pause and rewound it. I ran to the bathroom and grabbed a new roll of toilet paper. I tore the paper off the roll and placed the roll to my lips. It echoed and distorted my voice a little. I began again.

"Kira? Are you listening? I am..." I didn't know what to call myself. I looked up at Hades and blurted out, "A- Athena." I cleared my throat and said, "I have a D- I have your power, as well. I've just gotten it. I do not want to be found. I do not share in your idea of a utopia. I would just like to be left alone with my power, and- and live long into my old age. I will not cooperate with you. I do not want to meet you. I could not care less about you. This is to tell you that I am here, and that I do not want you near me."

I pressed the stop button and the eject button. I grabbed the tape with the rag and put it on the floor. Then I grabbed the second tape and put it in the slot.

"Dear Sakura TV. If you do not play that message when your ratings are at its peak on the night you receive this, I will kill each and every one of you. Sincerely, Ath- Kira."

I pressed the stop and eject buttons.

"I thought you didn't want to be Kira?" Hades empty voice said from behind me.

"They'll listen to Kira, not to Athena. I had to say it. Hopefully they'll be too scared to notice I flubbed the word."

"Hmm. You're not as stupid as you look."

Later before dinner, I put the tapes into an envelope and sent them to Sakura TV with the address I had gotten on the internet.

That night at seven, I heard my message played.

"My, my, my," my mother said, shaking her head. "What is the world coming to?"

I suppose Light had seen the message that day, but was so amazed he had nothing to say until the next day.

"Athena," said the reply, "I will find and kill you for intruding onto my territory. You do not belong here. I found the second Kira and we have worked together. You, who are completely unwilling, will be terminated. Remember to kill someone every thirteen days, Athena. I don't want you to die before I kill you."

"Every thirteen days?" I asked Hades, who was resting on my bed.

"Huh? Oh, I donno. I've never heard that."

"Maybe I should continue, just in case. It sounds like I have to."

I continued to kill. Person after person died. At first, it was criminals who were on death row. Then it became criminals who weren't, then every day people that I just didn't like, mostly from my own school, but only those who were doing drugs or in a gang. Once, I killed my neighbor and watched him die from suffocation. I never apologized to his family, but I did leave flowers on their doorstep to compensate.

I knew that rebelling would lead Kira to me. I was leaving him a small trail of bread to me, because in all honesty, I wanted the rush. The rush of being able to fight against a powerful criminal and see who was better. It was a game, that's all. I was playing with my life, but I was only a teenager, and the possibility of growing old or dying never even came to mind. I felt like I would stay the same age forever and ever. Because of that, I wanted to have fun.

I told Hades I didn't want Kira to come to me because I didn't want him to worry. In secret, I wanted him to find me more than I wanted oxygen in my body.

I looked him in the eyes, and I could tell immediately that he knew what I wanted.

One day, a young man walked into my classroom. He was dressed very well, with a gray suit and thin red tie. His light brown hair was messy, but in a handsome way. "I am with the Task Force," he said to us. "I am Ryuzaki, and I will be talking to each of you separately out in the hallway."

The class trembled with murmurs and whispers.

"Alright, please be quiet. This is important. I will be starting with Hideki Harlow."

I narrowed my eyes and walked out with him.

"So, he said as he closed the door, "are you related to Hideki Ryuuga?"

"He's a distant cousin on my father's side. We never talk to him, though."

"Oh, that's pretty cool." We walked down the hallway when he looked around. "Alright, let's end the song and dance. Where is your Death Note?"

For a moment I was afraid. Then I said, "it's a pleasure to meet you, Kira."