Halo sighed to herself as she fumbled through each of the student's profiles for the third time that day. It had been a couple of weeks since her conversation with Near. The first of February was only a couple of weeks away. The students knew nothing of their trip to New York City.

She sighed again and set the files down. She looked at one of the framed pictures on her desk. It was a little girl no older than three or four. She was smiling bright at the camera. Her blond hair was pulled back into two pigtails. Her large green eyes filled with happiness as Halo held her.

Halo smiled and picked up the frame. Anyone who knew her knew that the girl was Mello's daughter. She resembled him much more than she did her mother. It often pained Halo to look at her daughter, but she loved her with all her heart. It was impossible not to love the sweet little girl. Most of the orphans at Whammy's loved the three year old.

A soft knock on the door brought the Whammy's Headmistress back to reality. She cleared her throat of any shakiness that may have been there and spoke, "Come in."

The door opened and Ryan stepped into the room. The girl from the picture frame bounced in after him.

"Mommy!" she cheered as she ran straight into her mother's arms. Halo smiled as she placed the girl I her lap.

"Hi, Sweetie. How was school?" She spoke in a soft, motherly voice.

"Made you picture, Mommy," she held up a small piece of paper with colorful doodles all over the paper.

"It's beautiful, Ellie. Mommy will hang it up."

Halo took the drawing from her daughter and pinned it to the corkboard on the wall behind her desk. Ellie grinned proudly up at her mother and the drawing. Halo sat back down and her daughter crawled back into her lap.

Halo began to stroke her daughter's golden locks absentmindedly. It was something she always did to Mello.

Halo sat on the couch of her apartment reading a book. She refused to go outside because of her pregnancy or rather, Mello refused to allow her to leave without him or someone else to guard her. It was October and the temperature was getting cooler. She hated the cold and spent most of her time inside reading. One hand held up her book and the other rested on her baby bump. Mello was still a part of the Mafia and occasionally made the time to come to visit her. He came by more often once he and Halo learned they were expecting.

Halo's front door opened slowly. It went unnoticed to her. Mello smirked from behind her as he walked over to the couch. He leaned over the back and placed a small kiss on her cheek, "Hey."

Halo jumped startled and turned to glare at her blond boyfriend, "Damn it, Mello. Don't scare me like that!"

The blond chuckled and jumped over the couch to sit next to his girlfriend. He laid back and put his head in her lap. Halo's hand left her belly and tangled into Mello's hair. She absentmindedly began to stoke his hair. He sighed contently and planted a small kiss to his girlfriend's belly.

"I may not be by for a few weeks," he looked up at her.

She closed her book and looked back down at him, "What does the damn mafia have you doing now?"

"Nothing. I'm the one calling the shots on this one. Kira just killed a guy we kidnapped. We were hoping to use his life to get the Notebook from the Japanese police."

"What does that have to do with you not coming by?" She looked down at him worried.

He sighed, "Our next target is the teenage daughter of Soichiro Yagami. We're making a deal with him to bring us the Death Note."

Halo frowned, "Don't do that. Think about what he'll be going through as a father. His baby girl will be in the hands of criminals that'll kill her if he doesn't give you that stupid book. Makes me sick just thinking about it. You will be a father in a few months. What would you do if your daughter was kidnapped?"

His brow furrowed irritated as he sat up, "Forget it. I don't want to argue with you. I'll see you in a few weeks."

He stood and headed for the door. Halo sighed and carefully stood up.

"I'm just worried, Mel," she said softly as she placed her hands on her belly.

"Worried about what?" He turned to glare. "Worried that because I'm in the Mafia, I won't be a good father. Is that it?"

Before Halo could respond, the door slammed shut as he walked out.

"Mommy?" Ellie poked her mother's face worried. During her flashback tears had begun to run down the red head's face.

Halo blinked herself back to reality and looked at her daughter. "Yes, Ellie?" Her voice sounded weaker than usual.

"Why you crying?" the three year old reached up and wiped her mother's tears away.

Halo looked down at the child in her lap. She tucked a strand of hair out of Ellie's face. "I was just thinking about your daddy."

She kissed the top of her daughter's head and turned to Ryan. "Take Ellie back home and send Ava, Paisley, and Lucas in here."

Ellie looked up at her mother, "Me wanna stay!" She protested.

Halo looked at the child and calmly explained that she had business to do. She told Ellie that she would be home to tuck her into bed tonight. Ellie pouted, but she reluctantly agreed. She left with her uncle.

Ten minutes later a knock sounded on Halo's office door. Halo sat taller in her seat and ran her fingers through her hair to remove the tangles.

"Come in," she spoke with authority in her voice.

The door opened and the three brightest students entered the room.

Lucas was the only male of the three. Ranked number one at Whammy's. He was one of the tallest boys in the orphanage. Halo recalled his file stating that he was six feet, seven inches. Almost a foot and a half taller than the headmistress. His skin was tan and his hair was black. His blue eyes were hidden behind a pair of thick, rectangular glasses. The hood to his grey hoodie was pulled up over his head like always.

He yawned and looked at the headmistress. "What's going on Miss Halo? I was taking a nap."

Halo had to fight an eye roll. Another distinct characteristic of this boy was laziness. He rarely turned in his homework. It was a wonder why he was number one. The kid might have been lazy, but he was one of the most respectful students

"Shut up, Lucas. There is probably a kick-ass reason as to why Halo called us in! Like maybe L is coming to meet us! That would be totally sweet! Right Paisley?" One of the girls fist pumped as she loudly chewed on a gum.

Halo sighed. Ava was the loudmouth of the three. Her skin was a light brown and her dark brown hair was pulled back into its signature pony tail. She was the average height for a girl her age at the orphanage. Her brown eyes looked around Halo's office. Halo saw Ava's eyes land on the drawing Ellie brought in. No doubt Ava noticed it as something new since she'd been in the office yesterday. Ava knew Halo's office like the back of her hand and could detect something different in situations in a matter of seconds. The girl's observation skills were excellent, so excellent the skill earned her the number three ranking. She was also the trouble-maker of Whammy's House. She made the trip to Halo's office at least four times a week for various pranks or fights.

The other girl blushed at being called out by Ava. Paisley was shy and timid. She was the smallest in her class. The tiny girl was two inches shy of being five feet tall. Her pink, knee-length hair was pulled back into two long pigtails with a black headband on the top of her head. Her bangs covered most of her blue eyes. She rarely went out into the sun and because of that her skin was very pale. Paisley had an extraordinary memory and lie detecting skills. The girl's only downfall were her communication skills. Lucas was her only friend.

Ava made another loud comment and slammed her hands on Halo's desk.

"So, Halo, why are we here? Is it because of L? Is it?" Ava inched over the desk with each sentence. Paisley jumped at Ava's voice and latched her fingers around the sleeve of Lucas's oversized hoodie. He smiled down at his friend and gave her hand a small, reassuring pat.

Halo nodded calmly, "Yes. Now please get off my desk and lower your voice."

Ava took a step back from the desk to let Halo speak.

"I called you three here because of L. He would like to meet you three in person."

The three student's eyes widened. Ava was the first to ask the question haunting them all. Her surprise did not cause her voice to quiet down. It only caused her to get louder.

"Why?!"

Paisley flinch and moved closer to Lucas. Halo sighed and rubbed her temples.

"Inside voice, Ava," she groaned. "I don't know why L wants to meet with-"she was interrupted by her cell-phone ringing. She looked down at the number. It was an unknown caller which meant it was Near or Roger. She held a finger to her lips to make sure the students stayed quiet.

"Hello?"

"Halo, it is L. We have a problem"

"Problem? What kind of problem?"

"I am going to need you, Ryan, and your students to arrive in New York City earlier than planned."

"What? Why?" The woman's eyes narrowed down at a picture on her desk. It was of her and her brother Matt. Their eyes were

"Criminals are dying at alarming rate. I'm afraid Kira has returned."

"Returned? But I thought that you-"

"I have reason to believe that another Notebook has been dropped by a Shinigami. I have scheduled a plan for you to fly on a private aircraft tomorrow night. I want those students to help me catch this new Kira."

"Understood, I will let them know. Thank you, L"

Halo hung up her cell phone and looked at her students. Each one held curiosity in their eyes. Ava kept her mouth shut as she waited for Halo to speak. Paisley stuck her head out from behind Lucas and Lucas pulled his hood down.

"There has been a change of plans. We fly out tomorrow night. I want you packed by tomorrow morning. L wants you to help him on a new case. ."

"W-what case?" Paisley spoke quietly.

"L wants the help of you three to help him stop and catch a criminal. Kira has returned."