"What's real, everybody who doesn't feel safe
What's real, everybody who knows they're out of place
What's real, anybody with nowhere to run,
Who hides in the shadows waiting for the sun."
-Linkin Park, Dedicated

Wammy's House was the sort of place you expected to be full of a mature, sophisticated children above bullying and all that nonsense, however it was pretty close to be the complete opposite. Near knew that fact better than most. He was the smartest, the one closest to succeeding L and all the other geniuses hated him for that. They never hurt Near because of that fact as well, they didn't want L to look down on them for that. Near was rejected, shunned away from everything, nobody tried to befriend the little albino, and it was a lonely existence.

That day, Near woke up his new roommate (he refused to use the word "friend") at seven that morning. She rolled over and woke herself up eventually, her blue eyes cloudy and tired. Near waited patiently in his indifferent manner as she dressed herself in the room as Near stood outside the door in the hallway. She came out not too long later clothed in a black shirt and normal jeans. Wearing shoes wasn't really enforced in Wammy's so she wore her one sock, not bothering to wear the other one. Near could sense the nervousness creeping off of her but he really wasn't sure how to reassure someone so he remained silent. She walked beside him, preferring not to be alone, and Near held back telling her that there wasn't a big difference between being with him or being alone. He was used to being alone; he'd been alone his entire life, so it wasn't any new matter to him. Butterfly may have had a loving family and friends before tragedy had brought her here. There was also a chance that she'd be swooped up by the other children and turn against him and call him a "stupid sheep" along with everything else. Near couldn't control his genes, so he always found the statement unfair, but he never did stand up for himself, he often wished he could, however.

The mess hall was serving breakfast as usual and after receiving his meal, Near sat at the table he usually sat at, alone. Butterfly sat down next to him after getting her own serving of oatmeal, all organic, and that was when the heads really turned her way. Near saw each face dark or pale pool over in shock. There was rejection radiating from each eye, they automatically ruled Butterfly out of anything good at Wammy's, now that she's been seen with Near. They would assume she was smart, they would assume she was Near's friend, they would label her as an enemy, and Near felt bad because he couldn't bring himself to warn her.

She stared down at her food, obviously not hungry, and oblivious to the judging stares being sent her way. Near ate, feeling guiltily that he couldn't apologize for the pain that was coming; it was unfortunate that she ended up being his roommate. Near's mind wandered as he let his emotions go, and went back to where it was safe, his mind.

Alone, that was the only thing that Near knew was true, nobody cared about him. His mother was ashamed of having this quiet child as her son, ashamed that he never spoke, never thanked anyone, and never even told his family they loved him. Near's father thought they had a mute child until Near's third birthday when he spoke his first sentence: "Mother, I'm finished with this puzzle. Do you think I could have a new one?" After that he fell silent once again. Near's older siblings made fun of him for his white hair and pale skin, his parents then, too, began to avoid the child. The fact that he was a genius made it worse somehow. Near quickly began to fade into the background, a puzzle or two kept him away from his family's judging eyes, and Near learned to keep quiet about everything…

After both had eaten their meal and the bell rang signaling the first class of the day was going to begin soon, which Near was going to led Butterfly to, like the good person he tried to be (He refused the think "friend" once again). The classes at Wammy's tried to attack every child's capable mind and push it to its limit. The classes were enough to make a high school student throw a brick through a window or two. And Near didn't even try to succeed, he just did.

Butterfly stood in front of the class shifting her weight from one foot to the other.

"This is Butterfly, this is her first day here and I expect she'll be quite some competition for you, children," the teacher had said with a glint in his eyes. As Butterfly walked to her seat, no one sat beside her luckily, a foot shot out from under one of the tables the minute the teacher turned his broad back. Butterfly fell forward, her arms tried to catch her but she landed heavily on her face. Tears begin to well up in the corners of her eyes but she refused tears, not here. Most of the kids giggled quietly at her, shooting her dominating smirks, showing her exactly what she was to them. They were making it very clear that she didn't belong. She got up, trying to hide the hurt and pain on her face and to look a lot stronger and confident than she really did.

She found her seat and sat down, Near sat up front which was four rows a head of her. She fiddled with her fingers and her blue orbs studied the teacher as he began to explain something that was new to her. Near had told her the classes here were ranked by intelligence and age weighed in a bit, which meant she was in one of the most advanced classes a six year-old could hope to be in. She half paid attention as her mind began to wander like it usually did, but she found herself absorbing the information as well. She thought about those cold October nights on her birthday when she would sneak out into her backyard. The backyard wasn't necessarily safe since they lived in what her momma called "The ghetto" but Butterfly like how it felt to be outside at night, the sun was just too hot. She remembered being perched safely on her picnic table, legs crossed, waiting to see those red eyes glow in the shadows. She began to expect the mysterious man that always appeared each and every year. She found comfort in those warm words that her momma and daddy couldn't offer. She began to crave that warm feeling when he promised she'd make it out alive, she wished he would take her away from that life, he did say he was indeed her daddy… Going off with that stranger seemed better than hearing momma and daddy, Joey, every night.

"I just bought you your beer… and our daughter some new socks…"

"Our daughter? And why'd you buy the fucking brat socks? The kid only wears one! And I'm not gonna let you waste my money on that kid! You're the one that got knocked up! "

A ball of paper that hit the back of Butterfly's head brought her back to the real world. She un-crumbled it and read over the words that were scratched on it crudely. Better watch your back, kid. They're always out for blood. She didn't know who threw the paper at her head, but she kept the note in her hands, wishing she could just disappear; she didn't belong anywhere.

After the classes for the day ended, Butterfly decided she would go to the library and do her homework, Near was in their room, playing with his blocks. She had turned the corner to see a small group of girls look at her and snicker under their breaths. They looked to be about eleven, which was older than Butterfly by five years. They were pretty, Butterfly decided, or at least they tried to look that way, with faces powdered with make-up and eye-lashes covered in black goop. Butter also decided that these girls didn't like her.

"Hey, new kid," Chirped one of the younger ones. Butterfly looked up at the girl as she took a step towards her.

"Can I help you..?" Butterfly asked a bit fearfully, but she stood tall, well as tall as the six-year-old could.

"I don't like you," The girl said bluntly. "I don't like you at all, and do you know what happens to people I don't like?"

Butterfly shook her head, unable to form words.

"People that I don't like don't make it here. Nobody likes you, short stuff, and nobody ever will, got that?"

Butterfly didn't give an answer; she just stood there, frozen.

"I said 'got that?'" The girl repeated a bit more fiercely as she took another step toward the black-haired child who took a step back in response.

Butterfly nodded with a little jerk of her head as she looked into this girl's heartless brown eyes.

"Good," the girl snapped. "My name's Striker, little butterfly, and don't forget it if you know what's best for you. You be careful what you do or I can make life here a living hell for you." Striker backed away and walked away with her little group of followers, laughing at the fear they sent into the little girl's heart. They made a promise, and they were intended to keep it, at all costs.

Butterfly hurried away, no tears were coming, lucky for her, and she ducked into the library. She found a nice corner in the fiction section where she could curl up, unnoticed and work on the large amount of homework that had been thrown at her. There was no catching up in Wammy's, it was make it or break it. They didn't slow down for anyone, you just had to know what you were doing if you wanted to make it. Butterfly had only been her for twenty-four hours and she already discovered that much.

None of these kids belonged anywhere; they were aggressive and competitive, and a bit insecure. She found out from Near that they was a list of all the student's IQ scores on a database that anyone could see. Near was at the top and everyone wanted to beat him. Near also said that Butterfly was ranked second which was probably the main reason why the kids didn't seem to like her much, they couldn't beat Near but maybe they were hoping they could beat her. Butterfly knew she didn't have a chance of finding friendship here, she'd never had any friends before and maybe she was hoping she could find some here, maybe she wanted a chance to be loved, and maybe she wanted people to look out for her, maybe for once in her life she wanted to have someone care. Near… was Near her friend? She didn't know, but she knew Near wasn't going to stand up for her, it didn't seem like his character… Butterfly would be on her own if she wanted to make it out of here alive, she'd have to learn how to stand up for herself, but she'd been taking pain all her life… maybe she didn't want to fight…

Later that night as she walked to her room and had another piece of paper thrown at her head she began to wonder.

Is becoming the new L worth all the pain?

Mihael Keehl had the perfect family and the perfect life, in any sense a seven-year-old knew. His mother was a beautiful super model with long blonde hair and bright green eyes, his father was a crime boss in the U.S. who was raised in Croatia before returning to his home country. Mihael had a baby sister on the way and the best friend he could ever ask for. Sure there were times when things would get tense and his father would look worried and stressed due to his line of work, but he always made sure his son got all the love a son should get. His best friend, Mail Jeevas, was almost always over and the two boys had countless hours of fun playing together, and they both tried to believe that no harm could ever come to the Keehl family. Mihael knew God would keep them safe, God would keep his father safe when he had to go to meetings that would have his mother pacing and waiting up all night, and that God would keep his mother safe every time she went to the hospital because little Morgan would make her really sick. Mihael even knew that god would be keeping Mail safe every time his parents would hit him or lock him in his room for countless hours without food.

Mihael was a smart kid, but his faith was just as strong as his intelligence, or maybe he just didn't want to believe that anything bad would take this life away from him.

Maybe he didn't have as much faith as he thought.

A/N: Okay this chapter kinda sucked xD But yaaaay! It's Mello! Sorry if I made him seem really religious, it wasn't supposed to come out that way :/ Oh well. Thanks to my lovely reviewers~ I love you guys :3