Disclaimer- I don't own Death Note.

Chapter 26

You're Safe Now

Ryuzaki sat in a desk chair, facing a wall of computer screens. His disheveled hair stuck out oddly against the harsh glow of the monitors before him. Light was standing up, a few feet behind the detective, a manic grin on his flawless face. There were others in the room, but none of them seemed to notice Light's behavior. She noticed though, that his eyes weren't on the detective, but instead on the Shinigami that had been attached to the girl she had walked in on Light with.

The bony creature was disappearing through a wall as she grabbed the black notebook at her side.

"No," she whispered.

Light's head swung towards her and the grin faltered for a moment before it was replaced by a less threatening smile.

She shook her head at him and the smile only widened.

'I'm doing this for you,' she heard him say in her head as if she were recalling a previous conversation they had had.

"No," she said again. "Stop."

'I will make you the goddess of a new world. You will be my queen,' she heard Light's familiar voice say. A voice that used to soothe her, calm her and make her feel so warm. Now it only made her shiver.

She began to hyperventilate as she stared at him, her body shaking and silent tears falling from her eyes.

Ryuzaki was currently completely unaware of the interaction going on between the two of them, actually she was fairly certain no one but Light could even see her. Ryuzaki was speaking with Watari through the computer in front of him when Mr Yagami, Matsuda, the man she knew as Aihara and another man she hadn't seen before, all crowded around him and began to argue loudly.

"You can't do that Ryuzaki, this is insane," Mr Yagami insisted.

"Yeah, if the thirteen day rule is real then whoever does that would have to keep writing names!" Matsuda shouted.

"Why are you doing this," Aihara asked angrily.

"To test the limitations of the notebook obviously," Ryuzaki replied, completely at ease and not the least bit put off by the heated debate he had stirred up.

'What's going on ,' Noriko thought. 'Thirteen day rule? Writing names? Are they talking about the notebooks?'

There was a sudden loud crash that caused Noriko to jump and her head flew towards the wall the shinigami had disappeared through only moments before.

"Watari," she cried the same instant Ryuzaki did.

There was a plip from the computer before everything went black and a message appeared on the screen.

'ALL DATA DELETED'

Light smiled at her again before turning to lean over Ryuzaki. "Data deleted? What happened?" he asked sounding concerned.

Noriko was shaking so badly that her knees buckled beneath her and she fell to the cold tile floor. Her breathing was now forced gasps as she watched the scene before her helplessly.

"I had instructed Watari that if anything were to ever happen to him, he should erase all the data that he could. And set up the system to erase everything after a certain amount of time." Ryuzaki answered. His hands were grasping his knees tightly, his knuckles turning white from the tension.

"If something happened? You mean like death," the man Noriko didn't know asked. He was fairly tall with spiky dark hair and was dressed in a dark gray suit.

"Hey, where's the shinigami," Aihara asked as he looked around the room.

Noriko's hands clenched by her sides when she saw Ryuzaki's back stiffen and his hold on the spoon he had been holding in his fingers slacken.

"Please don't," Noriko whispered to Light who was watching Ryuzaki through the corners of his eyes. She was the only one to notice the triumphant glint in his eyes as the detective let out a small cry and fell from his chair and on to the floor, clutching his chest.

"Ryuzaki!!" Light shouted as he ran to the raven eyed detective's side.

"Get away," Noriko said weakly. "Get away from him."

Noriko struggled to push herself to her feet as Ryuzaki looked up at Light. The realization was bright in his eyes. He was right. He knew that now, but it was too late to do anything about it. She was almost to her feet when his dark eyes found her. She halted when the quickly dimming orbs locked on hers.

"I was right," he said to her.

She nodded as tears continued to stream down her face.

"Don't..Don't let him..." and with that his eyes closed and Noriko sobbed before sinking back to the floor, her head in her hands.

'You knew.' She heard Ryuzaki's voice saying in her head. She sobbed again as her body shook fiercely. 'Don't let him win.'

'I won't, but please don't die. Don't die. I can't...I can't do this on-'

"Noriko!"

She sucked in a deep breath and her eyes flew open as she shoved herself into a sitting position.

"W-What...What happened," she said through her ragged breaths as she looked around the room anxiously. Her eyes finally landed on Reiji who was looking at her with worry.

"You were screaming," Reiji informed her calmly. He was sitting on the edge of her bed, one hand resting on hers that was still gripping a fistful of sheets. He was in a pair of loose blue pajama pants and a plain gray shirt.

"But..But...I.."

"Just relax. You're safe, you're not in any danger," he told her.

She blinked at him a few times and shook her head. "I know," she whispered as she drew her knees into her chest and laid her forehead down.

"Are you alright," he asked in concern.

Noriko swallowed before speaking, her breathing was still uneven and she was trying to get it under control. "I'm alright. Sorry I woke you."

"Don't worry about that. I'm more concerned for you," he replied.

"I'll be fine. Unfortunately, nightmares are relatively frequent occurrences for me," Noriko said as she lifted her head to smile half heartedly.

"Would you like to talk about it?"

Noriko shook her head. "No, thank you. I'd rather not. It was too...real, I don't want to think about it right now."

"You should really try to get some more rest, we have to be up in an hour, it's just after five am."

"I'll try. Sorry I woke you."

"Again, don't worry about that. If you need anything, don't hesitate to tell me," Reiji said as he stood from her bed and walked out of the room.

With a sigh, she laid back down in the bed and stared up at the ceiling. Sleep wasn't going to visit her again so after a few minutes of nothing but think of the strange and very real dream she untangled herself from the bedsheets and walked into the bathroom.

Wrapping the towel around herself as she stepped out of the steamy shower, Noriko poked her head out the door and took a quick look around the bedroom just to be sure no one was there. When she was satisfied, she walked over to the dresser and pulled out some of her new and rather lacy under things. Lisa's doing of course. After putting on the red and black lace bra and underwear set Noriko noticed that there was a stereo on the dresser. She had failed to notice it before, partly because it was one of the thin, sleek types that resembled a piece of art more than a stereo system and partly because she just hadn't been paying enough attention.

Leaning over to study the silver mechanism for a moment, she finally figured out how to work it and flipped through the channels that were displayed on the LCD screen. It seemed that the stereo was a satellite radio system and Noriko had many listening options. She finally chose a station that was playing the soundtracks to anything that was Final Fantasy related.

Humming to the tune of the music, she made her way to the closet and took out a pair of smoky gray slacks with a wide waist and a light gray button up. Once dressed she also grabbed a matching vest from the closet and put it on over the button up, it had a single button that cinched her waist in so that she looked curvier than usual. Not that she was complaining, she actually really liked the outfit, she just wasn't used to having to dress in anything other than comfy jeans.

Checking the time she saw it was only 6:15. If she remembered correctly Reiji wouldn't actually be up and ready to go until closer to 7:30.

"Hmmm," she mused as she looked into the bathroom at the bag that still held the make up Lisa had also insisted she buy. It wasn't much since Noriko blatantly refused to wear it at all at first. In the end Lisa had insisted that she at least get some face powder, blush, a few lipsticks, mascara, some eye liner and of course eye shadow, in several different shades. Noriko had to give in after Lisa brought up the fact that she was no longer just an average college student, she was now the assistant to a very powerful man, and she needed to look the part.

Shrugging, she decided that a little make up couldn't hurt. Using the brushes that the woman at the department store had told her how to use she carefully applied some face powder and blush. She dusted her eyes with a light coating of a dark gray eyeshadow and applied a quick coat of mascara. Looking in the mirror after she was satisfied with the fact that she still looked like her and not someone else, she combed through her hair and decided to pull it into an elegant ponytail with her bangs left out around her face.

"It's weird how well I clean up," she mumbled to herself as she left the bathroom and walked over to the closet. She looked down at the several pairs of heels and groaned. With a sigh she grabbed the same black peep toe ones she had worn the day before.

Not bothering to slip them on yet, she walked barefoot out of the room with them in hand and headed towards Reiji's kitchen. She stopped and looked around the kitchen, not entirely sure what she wanted or even where to start looking if she did. Not to mention she felt a little odd being in someone else's home and just helping herself to their stuff.

"Did you get anymore sleep?"

Noriko squeaked and wheeled around to face a chuckling Reiji. He was now dressed in a well pressed suit that was either a very dark gray or a very light black, he wore a beige shirt underneath the blazer and a black tie. "Sorry," he apologized.

"It's alright. I'm just a little on edge still. In answer to your question though, no I didn't get any more sleep." She answered quickly.

"I'm sorry to hear that. If you're ready we can get going."

Noriko nodded. "I'm ready."

By the end of day, ten hours later, Noriko felt as if she had been trampled by a herd of elephants. Her feet were killing her, her back ached and she was pretty sure that if she had to smile one more time her cheeks may break off.

She sat down in the chair across from Reiji's desk with a small groan followed by a relieved sigh when she slipped her feet out of the heels that had been constricting her feet all day.

"Am I that difficult to work for," Reiji asked in a teasing tone.

"You're an absolute slave driver," Noriko groaned dramatically with a laugh. "I think this might take a little while to get used to. There's a lot to remember."

"You'll be fine. I already asked Lisa if she could get you a few things, you should have them tomorrow."

"Like what?" Noriko asked as she pulled her feet on to the chair and absently rubbed at her aching heels.

"You'll see tomorrow now won't you."

Noriko crinkled her nose. "I don't like surprises."

Reiji laughed at her comment. "I think you'll like these."

"We'll see," she replied stubbornly. "Anyways, I haven't had much time to think about anything today, but if at all possible I'd like to go and see a few people over the weekend. I really should let everyone know I'm alive."

"Not a problem. We have that dinner on Saturday, but nothing planned before that if you'd like to go then or Sunday."

"Saturday would work. What's this dinner for again?" Noriko asked. In the course of the day she had become extremely comfortable around Reiji. She had always been comfortable around him, but she thought that working with him might get awkward for some reason. It didn't though, conversation always flowed easily and if she didn't understand something he wouldn't get impatient with her, but instead explain it to her.

"It's a benefit held by the Museum of Modern Art, all the proceeds will help in building a children's hospital," he answered.

"Oh. That's a very good cause," Noriko replied.

"It is. I'm almost finished up, we'll be leaving soon."

"No rush," Noriko said just as her stomach decided to rumble loudly. She blushed and bit her bottom lip when Reiji glanced up at her and chuckled.

It was now Saturday morning and in the past three days Noriko had been run ragged as she learned everything that her new job entailed, as of yesterday night she had pretty much everything down. To say that her job was full time was a bit of an understatement. She was always on call, literally. She was the proud owner of a cell phone that almost everyone in the company had the number to and didn't hesitate to call if Reiji couldn't be reached. The phone also had many features that Noriko had yet to fully understand, but knew that it wouldn't be long before she did. She also owned a black leather bound planner and notebook that she was never seen without and she even had business cards.

She stretched and yawned widely before opening her eyes and grumbling at the light that she could see behind the thick shades of the window. With a groan, she pushed herself out of the bed and stumbled to the bathroom. After a long, hot shower she dressed in a nice pair of dark wash jeans and a red top with short sleeves and a high collar that tied like a scarf over her right shoulder. After some grumbling, she pulled out the only pair of shoes that Lisa had allowed her to get that weren't heels. A pair of simple black flats.

She brushed her hair and put it in a rather messy ponytail, but she didn't care. She didn't have to look decent today, until later at least and she intended to be comfortable until then. When she was done, she wandered her way to the kitchen, she was now beyond caring about being a burden or some pathetic moocher. With the amount of running around she did on a daily basis she was always hungry or thirsty and had quickly gotten over her shyness at being in someone else's home, helping herself to their things.

As she neared the kitchen she saw that Reiji was up and reading the paper with a cup of coffee in his hand at the dining table.

"Good morning," she said as she poured herself a cup of coffee and grabbed an apple after putting a cinnamon raisin bagel in the toaster.

"Good morning. Did you sleep well?" He asked as he looked up from his paper.

Noriko winced slightly, the nightmares had yet to stop and she still woke up screaming on occasion. "I did, thanks. You?"

"Great."

"Good," she said as the bagel popped out of the toaster and she grabbed it, hissing at the heat as she tossed it on a plate and began to put cream cheese on it, muttering under her breath as she repeatedly burned her fingers.

"You really need to learn that things are hot after you cook them."

"Yeah well I'm hungry, and I'm impatient," she replied as she walked around the counter to sit at the table with him.

"When is Lisa supposed to be here? Reiji asked.

"I told her to be here at noon, so I'll probably get a phone call in about ten minutes saying she's on her way and that we're going shopping. The girl doesn't seem to realize that I'm still broke," Noriko replied as she glanced at the clock. It was only a little after nine in the morning.

"If you-"

A loud ring from her phone that she had stuck in her back pocket cut Reiji off and Noriko sighed. "Speak of the devil. Hello Lisa...Yes...Yes...No...I don't have-Hey!" She protested as her phone was gently plucked from her hands by Reiji.

"Hello Lisa," he greeted. "Yes, she is...She would love to...I'll give her an advance on her paycheck that way she can't have any arguments with the arrangement."

Noriko glared at Reiji, who was smiling warmly at her as he listened to Lisa say something in an excited squeal.

"See you then," he said as he hung up her phone and set it on the table.

"You, are a traitor," Noriko said accusingly.

"How is that?"

"Have you been shopping with Lisa?"

"No."

"My point exactly. If I had an excuse not to go then there was a chance, albeit a small one, that I could have gotten out of shopping. Instead, you tell her you'll give me an advance on my pay just so I can go with her. Am I that annoying?" Noriko asked.

"Not at all. I just thought you would like to spend some time with a friend. Besides, you've had a long week, you need a break."

"Shopping with Lisa is not a break, it's torture," Noriko groaned dramatically.

"Well I hope you're prepared for it then because she'll be here in ten minutes," Reiji replied.

"But she lives like an hour from here," Noriko half shouted.

"She left early."

"You're enjoying this," Noriko accused as she stared at the handsome man across from her.

"Not at all," he answered, a smirk tugging at the corners of his lips.

"Yeah right. Now where's my money," she grumbled as she bit into her bagel and sulked.

Reiji stood from the table, chuckling as he walked away and Noriko grumbled under her breath. When he returned and set a credit card in front of her as well as a small book to keep track of the transactions it was used for, she raised her head to look at him curiously.

"I don't get it," she said as she picked up the red and gold card and saw that her name was on it.

"It's your own account. You'll need somewhere to put your pay so I had Lisa set this up for you. I made the first deposit just the other day. I think your salary should be quite satisfactory," he said as he nodded to the little transaction book.

Raising a brow at him she reached for the book and opened it to the first page. She was in the process of taking a sip of coffee when her eyes found the numbers on the top line that were written in elegant script. She choked as she swallowed and started coughing, her eyes watered as she raised a hand to her chest as she kept choking on the coffee.

"This is a joke, right?" she asked when she finally managed to stop coughing and choking.

"That's only for this week. Is there a problem?"

"I didn't even work the whole week. I started Tuesday. That's too much," Noriko said in a rush as she shook the transaction book at him.

"It's not actually. You're my assistant, I determine your salary and I say that is how much you make. You don't make much more than Lisa." He added as an afterthought.

Noriko nearly spit her coffee all over the table. "I make more than Lisa!" She asked after she swallowed the coffee.

"A few dollars." He replied with an amused smile.

"If that's just for a week you mean to tell me I make... four thousand five hundred dollars a month?" Noriko asked in sheer disbelief.

"You do."

"Holy crap," she muttered. "That's...cool."

"Still worried about going shopping?"

"Not really," she answered.

"Good, enjoy yourself. Lisa knows that you need to be back here and ready to go by five, she'll help you prepare."

"I know, oh there she is," Noriko said as a car horn beeped from outside. "I'll see you later."

"You're forgetting something," Reiji called after her.

"Huh," she asked as she turned around to look at him. He was holding out the credit card and the transaction book. "Oh, thanks." She said as she grabbed them and ran.

Noriko took a deep breath as Lisa pulled up to the hotel she had snuck out of nearly five days before. She had told Lisa that her friend was staying here with his father until they could find a suitable house, she was glad she didn't question her further.

"You'll wait here?" Noriko asked nervously as she eyed the front of the large building.

"Yup, you sure you want to go alone?" Lisa asked, sensing her discomfort with the situation.

"Yeah, I'm sure. I'll be back out as soon as possible." Noriko said as she opened the door of Lisa's black Toyota Prius and stepped out of the vehicle.

'Ok, just breathe, don't panic, just get this over with.' She told herself as she walked through the lobby and into the elevators.

When she walked out of the elevator a few moments later on the fifteenth floor she took a deep breath and walked down the hall. She paused outside the room she had stayed in with Ryuzaki and hesitated. She pulled out the white key card that she had tucked into her back pocket earlier that morning, it was the only thing she had taken with her when she had left. After taking a deep breath to steady her nerves she stuck the key in the lock, when the light on the door flashed green she turned the knob and opened the door.

She kept her head held high as she walked into the room and six pairs of eyes fell on her. Four looked surprised, one set looked relieved and bored all at the same time, while the oddest just looked amused. Noriko smiled at Ryuzaki whose lips tweaked up slightly in response.

"Hello everyone," she said as she walked towards the living room where Ryuzaki, Light, Mr Yagami, Matsuda and Aihara were all sitting. She glanced at the shinigami behind Light and a disgusted look crossed her features, which neither Light nor Ryuzaki missed.

"Noriko, you're okay," Light said happily as he stood from the couch and hurried towards her.

"I'm fine, but you won't be if you touch me," she replied with a sweet smile. She could have sworn Ryuzaki snickered, but when she looked over at him his face was partially hidden by the coffee cup he was sipping from.

Light looked surprised and blinked at her sadly. "Noriko, please let me explain," he pleaded.

"Honestly Light there's nothing to explain. I know what I saw, and there's no way you can explain that away," Noriko answered as she looked him in the eyes.

"Please Noriko. Let's just talk in your room-"

"My room is no longer in this hotel. I just came by to let everyone know I was okay and to pick up a few things. I know I told Ryuzaki I would help with the investigation and all, but I don't think he really needs my help any longer. After all, his goal was to piss you off using your fiance, you no longer have one so-"

"Let's talk about this Noriko," Light pleaded as everyone but Ryuzaki tried to look busy with something else.

"No. Now if you'll excuse me, I have someone waiting for me," she said as she turned and made her way to the room that she had claimed.

There was a small suitcase in the closet that she grabbed and began to put some of her things into. While she was grabbing a few things from the dresser, the door opened and closed, but she ignored it. She turned around to place her items in the suitcase only to come face to face with Light. She stared at him blankly for a moment before walking around him. As she passed him, he turned to grab her arm, jerking her to a stop.

"Let go of me," she stated.

"No."

She heard a chuckle and turned to see that the shinigami was laughing at the situation.

"You like apples don't you?"

"Why ya got any," the shinigami asked.

"As a matter of fact," Noriko said as she jerked her arm from Light's grasp and reached into the bag on the bed, "I do."

She pulled out a shiny red apple and held it up with the tips of her fingers. The shinigami started to drool and flew towards her, she resisted the urge to back up and instead held the apple out to him.

"Thanks, you're a lot nicer than Light. He's always so mean to me," he said as he chomped through half the apple.

"Yes, he seems to be an entirely different person since you showed up," Noriko said as she turned her eyes back to Light.

"Let me explain Noriko," Light said to her.

"No need. You're Kira, you lied and I want nothing to do with you."

"Can't you see that what I'm doing is helping-"

"Helping," she snapped as she turned around to face him. "You're killing people and so is that girl. You two are perfect for each other."

"It's not what you think Noriko. She came to find me, I don't want anything to do with her."

"It didn't look that way."

"Noriko, please listen to me. I'm doing this for you. I'm doing this to make-"

SLAP

"How dare you," Noriko said breathlessly as she pulled her hand away from Light's face, as if just coming in contact with his skin had burnt her. Her eyes had widened and she looked like a cornered animal as Light looked at her in disbelief. "Get out," she ordered as she backed away from him.

"I'm making the world a better place, all for you Noriko. I want you to be the goddess of a new world. You deserve-"

"Shut up," she shouted as she covered her ears with her hands. "I don't want to hear that. Don't put this on me, don't make this my fault. Don't-" she stopped talking as Light walked towards her again, his arms out as if to embrace her. She started to shake her head frantically. "No, don't you touch me. Murderer," she hissed as she backed into the wall.

Light stopped abruptly in his tracks and looked at her in shock. "Murderer? Me? I'm getting rid of the scum that infests this world. I'm making this world a safer and more peaceful place. I'm doing what's right, Noriko. I'm not a murderer, I'm a God."

"Listen to yourself," Noriko cried. "Can't you hear how you sound?! What happened to you? What happened to the man I loved? This isn't you Light. Please stop."

"I won't stop until I make sure you feel safe, until I know, without a doubt, that nothing will ever happen to you. You belong to me Noriko, I will protect you," Light said.

Noriko shook her head and swallowed the lump in her throat as tears began to pour from her eyes. "Please leave," she whispered as her chin dropped into her chest and she put all her weight on the wall behind her to keep standing.

"Noriko," Light said softly as he stepped forward and cupped her cheek with his hand.

She couldn't move or breathe as his skin touched hers. She didn't struggle as he tilted her head up and kissed her on the forehead before pulling her into his body and hugging her tightly.

"Let me go," she whispered weakly.

"I will never let you go Noriko. You are mine. I will create a new world for you and you will sit by my side as its queen. You will see that what I am doing is just."

"No."

"I love you and nothing will ever touch you," Light said vehemently as he squeezed her tighter.

"No."

"I will protect you and love you forever in the new world I am creating, once L is dead."

"No," she screamed as she pushed him away from her forcefully.

"Noriko, calm down. Everything will be fine."

"No Light, everything will not be fine," she yelled hysterically. "You're out of your mind. How could you do this to me? To your family? How?!"

"Shhh," Light tried to soothe her as he once again tried to embrace her.

She screamed and shoved him away, running to the other side of the room.

"Don't touch Ryuzaki," she said.

Light's face twisted angrily, she could see the jealousy in his eyes, the hate. It took her breath away for a second before he stepped towards her and grabbed her arms.

"He's the enemy Noriko. Our enemy-"

"No, he's yours. Not mine, he is my friend. He was right and I knew it. I knew it. You're going to have that other shinigami kill him. I saw it. I won't let you, I will protect him. I will do as I'm supposed to and save him." Her words were quick and panicked as she spoke, she saw the truth in his eyes then. He was confused as to how she knew all she did.

"What do you mean protect him like you're supposed to?"

"I am not like you, I'm not a killer. I'm here to protect him. My father, he told me, he's been protecting me from you. I was just too blind, but now...Now, I can see it in your eyes. You did plan on having that other one kill him, didn't you?" Noriko's voice was full of the horror she felt.

Light's teeth clenched together and his eyes darkened. "For us Noriko. I'm doing this so we can be together fo-"

"Get out," she yelled at him, her hands covering her ears again. "Out!" She screeched.

"I'm not going anywhere Noriko. You will be mine, you are mine."

"No, I am not yours. I do not belong to you, and I never will. I will do what I have to to stop you, to get the notebook you own. I will-"

"How do you know about the Death Note?"

"I have secrets of my own. I am the opposite of you, I'm meant to protect."

"Protect? What do you think you can do?" Light asked a smirk on his face as he watched her. "Protect him? That's impossible, the Death Note kills anyone whose name is written in it."

"No, actually it doesn't. Write my name and see what I mean." Noriko challenged

Light looked appalled by the idea, but intrigued all the same.

"I told you she was an interesting human," the shinigami cackled.

"Shut up Ryuk," snapped Light.

"See what I have to put up with," Ryuk said to Noriko.

"What do you mean?" Light asked.

"The notebook will not kill me. I can't be killed by the tools of the shinigami. Just ask your friend there, I'm sure he knows."

Light's eyes cornered over to the shinigami who just shrugged. "What? You never asked?"

"Would you have told me?" Light asked angrily.

"Well, no," Ryuk replied as he hovered in the air over the bed, his hands behind his head as if resting.

"Of course not," Light snapped. "Does this have something to do with what Rem said? That her life span and name is invisible?"

Noriko gasped and looked down at the necklace that was hidden under the shirt she wore.

'It will protect your name from prying eyes.' Isn't that what her father had told her as a child? 'When you're dead you don't need magical protection.' He had said that as well the night in the park. She knew what she needed to do then, she would protect Ryuzaki.

"Get out," Noriko ordered suddenly, her voice stronger than it had been before.

Light looked over at her, the tone in her voice catching his attention.

"Get out," she said again, more forcefully.

"I'm not going any-"

"Get out," she screamed. "Get out. Get out. Get out!!"

The door flew open a moment later to show Mr Yagami and a bored looking Ryuzaki.

"Is everything alright?" Mr Yagami asked as he looked from the red faced Noriko to the stunned Light.

"I want him out of here," Noriko said to him.

"Noriko," Light began to plead, his eyes showing sadness and hurt. But she knew better, this was all just an act to him. A game.

"Get out," she said again.

"Light-kun I think it may be for the best," Ryuzaki said as he stepped into the room and walked up to Light. He positioned himself in a way so that if Light tried to advance toward Noriko he would be able to stop him. He might not have understood it, but he could see the fear in her eyes as she looked at Light and then to him.

Light looked from Ryuzaki to Noriko who was breathing raggedly and looked as if she was about to break into pieces.

"Fine," he said submissively before turning towards the door.

Mr Yagami put a hand on his shoulder and the two walked to the living room.

"Are you alright," Ryuzaki asked as he turned to face her. His hands where shoved into his pockets and his back was slouched.

"Not really," Noriko answered as she sat down on the bed and out her head in her hands.

"I'm sorry about you and Light-kun, it must-"

"Don't be," she said cutting him off and earning herself an annoyed glance from the dark haired man. "I'm not."

Ryuzaki's brow twitched up slightly. "I suppose after seeing him with another woman that is understandable."

"Tch. Yeah of course," Noriko replied.

Ryuzaki continued to study her for a moment before speaking again. "Where are you going to go?"

"I'm staying at a friend's. I'd rather not say where. I'm sorry, I know you wanted to use me in this investigation, but I don't think I'll be of any use to you anymore. I won't say anything of course, but I can't be around him anymore. I hope you understand that."

"I understand. If you're in need of anything, please let me or Watari know. You should probably say good bye to him as well. He's in the next room," Ryuzaki said as he nodded to the wall behind her.

Noriko nodded as she stood up and finished throwing things haphazardly into the suitcase on the bed before zipping it up and pulling on to the floor.

"Can I ask a favor of you," Noriko asked Ryuzaki who was still watching her as if waiting for something.

"Hmm, yes of course."

She reached behind her neck and unclasped her necklace before pulling it out of her shirt and holding it out towards Ryuzaki. He raised a questioning eyebrow at her as he looked at the black cross dangling in his face.

"It's a necklace," he said.

Noriko sighed and rolled her eyes. "You really are a genius aren't ya? I want you to wear it."

"Why?"

"As a favor. Think of it as something to remember me by."

"I don't see how that is necessary, I don't forget-"

He was interrupted when Noriko's phone began to ring loudly. Ryuzaki's lips twitched irritably as she snatched the phone from her bag and flipped it open.

"Noriko Mo- Yes I'm fine, calm down. I'll be right there," she said before hanging up and looking back to Ryuzaki.

"Just wear the damn necklace," she said as she held it out to him again. "Please?"

"You seem awfully insistent, is there a reason?"

"I'm superstitious and this necklace is good luck, I want you to have it. I think you need it more than I do," she said as her eyes flicked to the door.

"I don't beli-"

"Oh shut up," Noriko snapped as she walked up to the detective and put the necklace around his neck. She felt him stiffen as her hands brushed against the skin of his neck, but he made no move to pull away from her. "There, that's not so bad is it?" she said as she stepped away from him.

He looked down with his dark eyes and stared at the dark metal that stood out against the white of his shirt. Noriko sighed and stepped forward, she tucked the necklace into the shirt and patted it on his chest.

"Better," she asked.

"I suppose. It's cold."

"You're weird. You know that?"

"I've been told," he replied.

"I'm sorry, but I need to get going. My friend is getting worried about me," she said as she grabbed the suitcase and started to walk to the door. She hesitated when she got there and turned back to Ryuzaki. "Don't take it off, ok? Until this is all over."

Ryuzaki eyed her curiously for a moment, but upon seeing the look in her eyes, the desperation, he nodded.

"Thank you. Now be a gentleman and walk me to the door."

"You mean to say, don't let Light-kun near you correct?"

"Correct. Now get moving mister number one sugar eating detective," she ordered playfully as she motioned to the door.

When they walked into the living room she glanced over to see Light sitting on the couch with his father, his head was in his hands as if he were crying. She looked away quickly and picked up her pace to the door.

"Noriko, wait," he called.

Ryuzaki stood between him and her as Light approached.

"Move Ryuzaki."

"I'm afraid I can't do that Light-kun. Nori-san doesn't wish to speak with you at the moment," Ryuzaki replied casually.

"Nori-san, huh," she mumbled as she reached the door and pulled it open.

"Noriko," Light begged.

She glanced back at him and she could see the anger in his eyes mixed with the hatred of the man standing between them. She shook her head and left, closing the door behind her.

Remembering what Ryuzaki had said about Watari being in the next room, she tugged her suitcase to the door just down the hall and knocked softly. The door opened a moment later to a smiling Watari.

"Hello dear. It's a pleasure to know you're well," he said happily.

Noriko smiled at the kind old mind. "I just wanted to say goodbye. I've decided to stay with a friend of mine, I just can't be a part of this anymore."

"I understand dear. I wish you the best of luck, and if you ever need anything you let me know," he said as he handed her a small plain card. There was a number on the card in black.

"Thank you Watari. For everything. It was really nice to meet you, and Ryuzaki too. I'm going to miss you both."

"And we'll miss you, but you need to focus on yourself and moving on with your life. You're young enjoy it."

Noriko nodded. "I will."

"Watari," she heard Ryuzaki's voice come over the computer in the room.

"He must be out of cake," she said.

"As a matter of fact, I am," she heard a mumbled response from the room.

Watari sighed. "I suppose I should go. Be safe Noriko."

"You too," she said before turning away as the door began to close. She winced when she remembered the dream she had been having. She never saw it happening, but she was fairly certain that Watari died. Fresh tears appeared in her eyes as she walked to the elevator and she choked them back as best she could.

Walking out of the hotel a minute later and tossing her bag in the trunk of Lisa's car, Noriko tried to recover herself so that Lisa wouldn't worry.

"You had me worried. I thought that maybe they weren't going to let you go or something. I would have gone in there and busted down some doors, but I didn't know...Are you ok?" Lisa asked as Noriko got into the car and stared straight ahead of her.

"Fine," she replied.

"That's not very convincing," Lisa said.

"He was there. It didn't go over very well is all."

"I'm so sorry Noriko."

She shook her head. "It's for the best. I knew I would have to face him eventually. At least it's over now."

"I know what you need," Lisa said suddenly as they were pulling away from the hotel.

"You do," Noriko asked uncertainly.

"Yup. You wanted to change your hair right? A new start, for a new you?"

"Well, yeah, but I have to be back at Reiji's soon don't I?"

"Nope. It's only one. I have four hours to make you into a whole new person and help you forget that jerk."

Noriko groaned inwardly. "I think I'd rather just eat a tube of cookie dough and have a martini like the girls on t.v do after a break up."

"No cookie dough. The martini I can do though," Lisa said cheerily.

"But I'm still underage," Noriko replied.

"A few martini's isn't going to matter. Besides, it's not like you're driving and you're an independent woman."

"I have a very bad feeling about this," Noriko mumbled as Lisa sped towards some unknown destination.

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