Crap. (sweatdrop) I know as I was corresponding with one of you lovely reviewers, I said I only had to do 5 pages, but now it's grown to 7! I'll save any other reviews for the next chapter. 7 is a nice number, don't you think?

Also, I'm so glad I finally got some creative criticism! Somehow, it gets boring reading the three-word "This is great," reviews. Thank you again!

I don't own this, and aren't you so glad I don't?

---(cough) yes---

"Naeko! Naeko darling, time to get up!" Mayako's voice pierced through the dark silence of Naeko's dreams.

"I'm up, I'm up!" Naeko grumbled back. She could hear Mayako chuckling behind her bedroom door. That chuckling just made Naeko's internal groan even longer and louder.

"Well, when you're dressed, come downstairs and have breakfast!" Naeko made a noise of agreement and covered her eyes with her arm, amazed that the sun had come up so early in the morning.

"Curse these stupid curtains…curse early mornings…curse the stupid, bright sun…" Naeko sighed and stopped her complaining, if only for a moment. Swinging her legs off of the bed, Naeko unraveled the blankets from around her legs and heard something thunk as it hit the floor. Leaning over, Naeko saw the death note lying on the floor, looking like the completely innocent notebook she knew it wasn't. Picking up the notebook, she flipped through all the full pages, trying to imagine what had possessed Light to do so much bad.

Oh, that's right. He said something about creating an innocent world, devoid of criminals and the likes. Can he really do it, though? Could he really kill all the bad people in the world? I think I'm doubting it right now, even if the thought seems nice.

Naeko put the notebook under her pillow with a small sigh of thought. Standing up, she headed over to the closet and grabbed her spare uniform, her first one still slightly damp from her adventures in the kitchen last night. Changing in the bathroom, she brushed her hair and washed her face, waiting to brush her teeth until after she ate.

Running down the stairs, Naeko joined her uncle at the kitchen table. Mayako was still cooking her eggs, but when they were done she slid them onto a plate and placed the plate in front of Naeko.

"So, Naeko," Yuki began, his deep voice drawling out as though he was pondering his words carefully, "I heard from Mayako that you have already made friends. Is that true?"

Naeko looked up from her plate. "Oh, um, yes. It's just the neighbor boy, Light, though. He offered to walk me home, even though he didn't know we lived right next to him. I honestly thought we wouldn't be able to become friends, because we got into a big debate in the middle of class yesterday, and I thought he might be mad at me for standing up to him. I guess he didn't care much, though, because we made up and were actually able to have a pleasant talk."

"I see," Yuki said, going back to his newspaper.

"Darling, I don't see how you and Light could not be friends. You used to hang out so much while you were still living here, especially with Hisa—"

Naeko stood up immediately, shocking both her aunt and uncle. "Please…don't say her name so easily in front of me…" Naeko left the rest of her breakfast, silently walking out of the kitchen to go back upstairs. She didn't hear her aunt's pleas for her to come back and finish her breakfast. Not only had they said Hisa's name, they had also proven what Naeko had thought so hard about last night.

There was no way she would admit it. Naeko had not met Light before, and she had most definitely not been his childhood friend. Hisa had been her only good friend, and once she had died, there was no point in going out to play anymore. There was no reason to do anything special, or to go out of your way just to get a scoop of nice, cool ice cream.

As Naeko brushed her teeth, she gazed into the mirror. Everyone that had ever met her sister told her that they looked amazingly alike. Naeko thought it wasn't so. Her sister, who had had beautiful honey-colored long hair, with the deepest green eyes, had always been the most beautiful girl on the street. Naeko was such a plain Jane, with dull brown hair and ordinarily-colored green eyes. Even so, Naeko had only once wished she looked like her sister. Her sister's beauty was not to be questioned, and Naeko had always admired without jealousy. Even now, as she analyzed herself, Naeko was purely glad to look like herself, and not some beauty goddess like her deceased sister.

Brushing her hair up into a messy ponytail, Naeko smiled at her reflection in the mirror, a sad and miniscule smile, meant only for herself. Hisa would have never even thought of having her hair up in such a messy hairdo.

Then again, Hisa would've never thought she wouldn't see another day if she just walked off the sidewalk to gather a few escaped papers. Hisa had not lived up to her name. Hisa had not been long-lasting. She had become a fleeting memory in Naeko's shocked brain.

Gathering the death note up from under her pillow, Naeko stared at the notebook for a long while before she placed it in her backpack and clasped it close. Walking downstairs for the second time that morning, Naeko barely registered the words her aunt said to her before she opened the door and left.

Naeko walked down the street slowly, placing one foot in front of the other. Her mind wasn't registering where she was going, just that she was moving, and that the air outside was crisp and chilly, blowing her hair and clothes around in the strong breeze. Naeko soon got into a rhythm that for every step she took, her bag swung in her right hand. Step, swing, step, swing. It was a lulling rhythm, and she couldn't figure out why it suddenly stopped.

Raising her head as though she was in a trance, Naeko looked up and found that she had walked all the way to the park. Blinking a few times, she entered the park through the gate and sat down on a swing, placing her bag on the ground next to her.

Naeko sat on the swing, pondering random thoughts until she realized why her feet had brought her here. This was where she had died. Her sister, Hisa, had stepped off the road to get a few fly-away papers, and then…

Naeko rested her head in her hands, biting her lip in an attempt to stop the overflowing tears. Why was she acting like such a crybaby?

"Naeko?" she heard a soft voice ask. Ashamed to be caught with tears in her eyes, Naeko shrugged her shoulders over and curled up into a smaller ball.

"Go away," she said quietly, hoping her sobs wouldn't show in her voice. The crunch of gravel and the squeak of the hinges on the gate alerted her to the person's presence coming closer. Right now, that was the last thing she wanted.

"You're going to be late to school again," the voice said. Naeko wiped away her tears and looked up momentarily, surprised to see the kind face of her cab driver, Kenji.

"K-Kenji? What are you doing here? And how did you know I was late yesterday?" Naeko stood up from the swings after grabbing her bag and went to stand by Kenji. Somehow, his presence was warming.

"I'm in the classroom next to yours, and yesterday during break, rumors had already started circulating about how you were late on your first day of class, and how Mr. Yakatome let you and Light have a discussion in the middle of his class."

"Eh? The rumors have already spread? Darn, that's depressing." Naeko laughed a little, causing Kenji to laugh with her. Suddenly, Kenji stopped laughing and looked down on Naeko.

"Speaking of depressing, why were you crying?" Naeko stopped laughing also, instead deciding to cast her gaze upon the ground in front of her, watching her feet as she walked in sync with Kenji. "You don't have to tell me if you don't want to, but I was just wondering…"

"I remembered a lot of stuff from when my sister was still alive. She died on the street in front of the park, and I was remembering…"

Naeko blinked, her eyes wide. Kenji had stopped and then hugged her from behind, bringing his head down so that he could whisper in her ear. "I'm sorry. Please, don't say any more. Cheer up. You don't look very becoming when you cry."

Naeko twitched. That was what she had said. Not in the exact words, but somewhat close. Enough to trigger the memory to come back and haunt her for a few daunting moments. Naeko shifted in Kenji's grasp, trying to decide whether to push him away or embrace him back. She wanted his comfort and his warmth, but every time she got close to someone, something came and broke everything she had worked on into little pieces.

She didn't want that. Not ever again. It had happened too many times, and her barely mended heart couldn't take it another time, not even if she had had the willpower and strength to fight against it.

"Kenji…we're going to be late to class," Naeko finally pointed out, trying not to let her disappointment show in her voice. Kenji took a step back after releasing Naeko, and shook his head, rubbing it with his palm.

"Sorry about that," the boy said sheepishly. Naeko just shook her head and continued walking, stopping only to look behind her after realizing the boy wasn't following, in a silence question of, "Are you coming?" Kenji smiled, looking deep in thought, and caught up to the girl, walking closely beside her.

"Say, Naeko, I usually have to run rounds on the cabs after school, but when I find a free day, would you like to go out shopping with me? I have to pick up a few things, and I hope you can get your mind off things."

Naeko thought for a moment. If she told her aunt it was a date and told her uncle it was a study group at a bookstore downtown, the plan might just work. Plus, Christmas was going to be sneaking up, and even if she didn't have a lover (1) it would be fun to buy presents for her friends and family. "Sure, that sounds alright with me. Just tell me what day, and I'll be there!"

Kenji smiled again before waving his hand and starting off in a different direction. "Well, right now I have club activities I have to attend to before school starts, so I'll see you later!"

"Bye Kenji!" Naeko said as she waved the boy off. Once he had gone down the path curving around the school and was out of sight, Naeko started walking again, heading to her first block class. She made it into her seat just before the bell rang, saving her from answering any stupid questions from her classmates.

"Hello again, class," Mr. Yakatome said, greeting his class with a grin-like smile. Truth be told, his first block class was probably his favorite, because they were usually well-behaved and tried their best to answer his tough questions. The class greeted him back, and then he started their lesson by asking, "Can anyone guess what we are going to talk about today? There is no need for text books, by the way, so you may put them away." The shuffling of text books being closed and placed on the edges of desks was the only noise that resonated in the room.

Bored, Naeko raised her hand and Mr. Yakatome nodded in her direction. "More fables?" she guessed. It didn't make sense to only have one day to go over what should take them a week to complete, and even then the class period had been taken up with her and Light's quarrel.

"Nope," Mr. Yakatome replied, a mischievous glint in his eyes. "Today, we are going to talk about Kira. I figured that someone is probably documenting every day's news, so at this rate, Kira could become a legend or fable, just like that wolf."

"Um," a student asked, raising their hand, "I'm sorry, but isn't a fable fictional? Doesn't that mean Kira wouldn't be a fable, because they really were alive and did all these things?"

"Well, yes," Yakatome replied, "but that's why I also used "legend" as an example. Kira is an example of a legend, and the tale will probably be told years after this all ends and Kira dies."

Naeko glanced over to Light to see how he was taking all of this. To her surprise there was a small, sadistic grin on his face, but otherwise he was very stoic. It was hard to tell from across the room, however. Turning back to Yakatome, she was very surprised to hear the next words that came out of her teacher's mouth.

"And so, we are going to have a debate. Anyone is free to comment, but I'd actually love to hear the comments of Ms. Menshi and Mr. Yagami." A few dozen faces turned to stare at the mentioned students, and Naeko glared at anyone who looked at her with a smile on their face. That got them to turn around in their seats.

"So…who would like to start off the debate?" Mr. Yakatome looked around with a smile, and somehow Naeko had a bad feeling in the pit of her stomach. "Ms. Naeko, perhaps? You seemed to have a lot to say yesterday; maybe you are as knowledgeable on this topic as you are on fables?"

Heh, if only you knew. "Yes. I'd be so glad to start it off. Too bad I don't have anything to comment on." Naeko tried to make it sound like she wanted no part in the discussion, but then she had another idea. "Well…"

"Yes, go on," Yakatome encouraged. He had actually been giddy when he woke up that morning, so giddy because he could view another debate concerning his two smartest students.

"Well, I was just going to say that what Kira is doing is hardly debatable. To some people what he is doing is right, and to others it is wrong. I'm somewhere…in-between, but I don't hold anything against Kira, and I certainly don't agree with what he is doing. Killing is killing, and I agree that we should find him and lock him up, but if he isn't killing innocent people but instead killing people that would have rotted in prison anyway, then I suppose the whole idea doesn't sound as bad."

"Ms. Menshi, you keep saying "he". How are you so sure it is a male?"

Naeko stared at Yakatome fully. "Gut instinct," she replied. "Besides, I think most girls would think things over a bit more before they decided to go on a killing spree. Although, Kira wouldn't be able to think things over properly if they had a condition - such as a mental function or something that would cause them to hallucinate and do crazy things."

Naeko didn't even need to look over across the room. She could feel the murderous aura all the way from her own seat. How lucky was she that she had the death note? She would have probably keeled over by now if Light had had it. Well, she was insulting him indirectly, and she knew he had a lot of pride. Naeko was beginning to think she had overdone her speech a little, and she was definitely going to pay for it later.

"You know, Ms. Naeko, you are sounding very sexist right now," Light said through clenched teeth. Naeko was probably the only one who noticed the struggle the boy was having with himself. She could just imagine his thoughts then. 'Should I jump over the desks and kill her now, or wait and make her death slow and painful using the death note?'

Naeko frowned and shrugged. "I'm just stating the truth," she replied. "Which - seeing as how we have no evidence whatsoever on Kira's gender - is pretty substantial."

"You said it yourself. They have no evidence on Kira's gender. It could be a male OR female, and I'm sure if they created a way to kill so that not even the government could find out and track the method, I'd say they aren't so crazy after all." Light's voice had a hard edge to it. Naeko's frown deepened. This debate was not like yesterday's. She had had the upper hand then, because she had a firm set of beliefs and she could rely on those beliefs to guide her down the right path in life. But now that she was debating on Kira - against Kira – she couldn't seem to think up anything witty or snappy to throw at her opponent.

"Are you going to reply, Ms. Menshi?" Yakatome asked after a minute of silence in which the entire class was silent and Naeko was thinking quickly. The class waited for a response, wondering if Naeko could come up with a single line that would ensure her victory.

Unfortunately, Naeko could come up with nothing. Sighing, she said, "No," and let her head rest on her desk with a small thud. "As far as I'm concerned, this debate is over. I can't get into anything if I don't know too much about it, or if I have no interest in it." Or if I know too much and can't say anything! That really ticks me off! Jeez, I guess I lost this debate. Light sure looks mad though. I hope he won't hold anything against me. Actually, he would have won anyway, even if I tried my best. Light is Kira, and he is fighting for a cause. It's like the Hessian soldiers in the American Revolution. They were hired on to fight, but because they wanted to go back to their home country they had no will to fight. No wonder the colonists won. They had a cause. They had a purpose. They wanted something. What do I want? Do I even have a cause? Am I here for some particular reason?

In the end, it was Naeko: 1, Light: 1.

After that, the classroom felt oddly quiet. Even when someone was talking, there was an eerie sort of presence in the room. When the bell rang, Naeko jumped in her seat at the loud noise and then quickly gathered her books to take back to her locker. Her next class was in the Chemistry lab anyway, so she also had to get her Chemistry hardback and her notes that she had put in a folder she had had on hand, instead of her regular folder.

"Naeko, we need to talk." Naeko froze in her footsteps.

"What do you want, Light? I have to get to Chemistry!" Naeko trembled a little; the idea of coming face-to-face with an angry Light scared her quite a bit.

"The Chem lab is just down the hall, so we have time to talk. Although, it is still too busy out in the halls, so I have to ask you to find me during your lunch break. Understand?"

"Yes," Naeko squeaked. Fortunately, Light didn't sound too mad, but he had a cold tint in his voice. If there was any time he actually sounded like the cold-blooded killer he was, it was then. Naeko hurried on to her locker and then to her classroom, ignoring the stares she got from many of the other students who had hung around to watch the conversation between her and Light.

---skipping to lunch XD---

As Naeko shut her locker, she sighed and wondered where to look for Light first. Chemistry and Math had been quite boring, so she had had time to ponder where the boy might hide to get some privacy. She had a few good ideas, but then again the boy was quite queer and liked to do things out of the ordinary. It would be so like him to hide in the broad daylight, where anyone could see him.

"Hey, are you Naeko Menshi?" a younger girl asked, approaching Naeko carefully. Naeko nodded and the girl handed her a note, folded twice. "This is from upper-classman Light Yagami. He asked me to give it to you."

"Um, thank you." The girl bowed to Naeko and then jogged off down the hall, probably to meet a few of her friends or to eat lunch. Naeko looked down at the note and then – deciding it wouldn't bite her – unfolded it to reveal Light's nice, neat print.

Naeko:

I'll be waiting on the roof. We have a few things to discuss.

"Aw, jeez. And today they were serving a really good lunch in the cafeteria too!" Naeko sighed and gave in to her fate, tearing up the note and dropping it in a trash can on the way to the stairs that would take her to the roof.

Climbing the steps, Naeko swung open the door and stepped outside, immediately starting to shiver. Closing the door behind her, she stepped further out onto the roof to see if Light was already outside, waiting for her. Sure enough, the boy was leaning against the railing on one side of the roof. Walking over, Naeko stood beside him and waited patiently as he looked out over the city.

The two stood outside for an awfully long time, until Naeko realized her fingers were starting to get numb and red from the cold midday air. "Um, so, about the debate…I'm really sorry. I said a lot of unnecessary things, and I'm sure I hurt you in some way, shape, or form."

"It's fine," Light said, not turning to look at the other death note owner. "But, although I'm glad to know that, it is not what I wanted to talk about. You agree, no matter how you look at it from afar, this looks like a love confession, correct?"

"A what?" Naeko asked, blinking. "You aren't confessing to me, are you?"

Light turned and smiled a charming smile at Naeko. "No, I'm not. But, if anyone else was watching us while we were talking up here, all alone, it would look like it, wouldn't it?"

"Yes, I suppose so," Naeko drawled, not entirely sure if she liked where this conversation as going.

"Good. Now that we have established a scenario, we need to act it out. You see, I think we are being watched closely by the government. L is trying to find Kira, and he suspects me. Ryuk is watching our backs for us, but I just wanted to warn you. I think it's best if we stick close so that we can guard the death note."

"Guard it?' Naeko asked. "I have it in my backpack right now, so it's safe in my locker. No one knows my combination, either, so it's perfectly fine."

"Naeko, when I grab your hands, try to blush." Naeko blinked again, not understanding Light's words. Then again, the boy was complex, and it was hard to understand him anyway. A minute later Light's hands reached out and wrapped around Naeko's small, cold ones. He turned to face her so that they were eye-to-eye. Naeko's cheeks immediately flared up, and not because the temperature had dropped another few degrees in the time they had spent outside. "Good. My back is to them, so they can only see your face. If your face is red, they will probably think you are embarrassed."

"Light, I don't have to pretend," Naeko murmured, ducking her head down. Light laughed, and it was a soft laugh at first, but Naeko knew that he wasn't pretending either. As long as he had his back to those spies, everything that came out of Light's mouth was pure truth.

"You know, Naeko, your hands are really cold," Light said, squeezing her hands softly to emphasize his point. "Maybe we should go inside again." Naeko nodded, and Light put his arm around Naeko's shoulders to guide her back inside. Before they opened the door to the stairs, however, Light gave one last glance over his shoulder.

Getting the creepy feeling of eyes watching him, Light frowned and followed Naeko down the stairs and back to the hallway. They had missed their lunch period, so there wasn't much point in going to the cafeteria. Light pretended to ignore Naeko as he made his way to his locker, but now the two had a bond that wasn't easily broken. And by requesting to stick together, he was just thickening that bond.

Soon, it would be nearly impossible to write her name in the death note. He had to write down her name before he was completely free and able to go back to his "work" of ridding the world of criminals. As Light opened his locker and got out his books, he resolved to find a way to get the death note back from Naeko. That would be the easy part. Steeling himself against the emotions that always ran through him whenever he was with her would be another thing. Yes, it would be another thing altogether….

---whoosh!---

Yay! I know at the beginning of the chapter I said I'd get 7 pages in, but when I recounted, here were more like 11 reviews, so I guess my alert thingy isn't working! I'm not getting all of the reviews in my email! Anyway, I think I got 9 pages in (I have to check! XD) so I hope you are happy! This story is getting really interesting! I can't wait to write the next chapter, even though I really need to work on my Christmas story!

About the Christmas story…I think I might delete the story I have up now and save it for next Christmas. This year the only thing I have time for is a one-shot, so let's do a poll on what anime/manga the Christmas one-shot will be for! Please take a look at my profile and I have a list of anime/manga that I'm going to write for anyway, so please send me a message (after you review on this story, of course!) and tell me what you want!

(1) Christmas in Japan is usually spent with lovers, but if you don't have one you usually spend it with your friends or family. I read that somewhere, but now I can't remember where! XD