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To Save Your Life: Note VII

Page 31: Every Danger we Meet

As you and L approached the door, the shinigami girl flew after the two of you. Her wings were made of amazing golden feathers with black at the tips and small red spots as if stained with blood, yet they still held vast majestic beauty. Though with a marked touch of gothic darkness and revealing mischief, no one could deny that shinigami was unusually beautiful in a race where what was considered beautiful from a human's point of view was very rare.

In the next room, there was a small hill covered in soft green grass, it was an unusual shade of mint green. On top of the hill there was a small silver table with a chess board on it. The chess pieces were already set up, there were no windows on the diamond covered marble walls and no door except the one you used to enter the room. The ceiling was not of glass this time, it was a bright blue covered in sapphires. L approached the chess board. This was the first challenge. He moved a white piece and a black peace moved in response by itself.

You gasped as a number appeared floating above L's head and wondered if shinigami saw something similar. But this number was rather small, a ten. "L there's a ten above your head, a seven by now."

L looked up and saw the floating number. He moved another piece and the number was reset to ten. "I see, so I only have ten seconds to move." He observed the game. It didn't really frighten him, if anything it calmed him. He remembered playing chess with Mello and Near in the orphanage.

You remained quiet and watched. L was a genius after all, so he should be fine. The shinigami girl stood quietly at the door uninterested by the game. The chess game progressed slowly and you noticed that several pieces belonging to the invisible opponent were dangerously close to L's king, but he didn't seem affected by it. You weren't really an expert at chess, but you knew that it would end if his king was captured.

xoxox xox xoxox

It was L's move and he smiled. "I'll win this now." You wondered how he was going to do it. He didn't have any pieces close to the black king, plus the white king was surrounded and would be captured in the next turn unless L won. He moved the white queen and reached the black queen. "Check mate."

Water started to fall covering the opposite wall. When the water stopped, a door was there. The crystalline water flooded the room and the shinigami girl was now flying above it. Everything except the hill with the chess board was underwater. Then the water started to go down, as if the ground was rapidly absorbing it and the path to the door was left open. "How did you...?" You looked at L in confusion. Was this a different type of chess?

"This is the queen's castle. Capturing the opponent's queen with my queen was the most likely goal." Of course, it was a trick to make L think this would be played like the classic version of chess, but L didn't fall for it. Still, you had a feeling that the challenges would only get harder.

When you and L reached the next room, after going through a tunnel of rubies, you found yourselves in an active volcano. There was a path of large amethysts, aligned floating on the lava. Fireballs flew from one side of the room to the other, to and from holes in the walls.

"Looks like we have to jump." L observed the fireballs as you did. There was a certain pattern to them and if you missed one jump you would be trapped.

"I thought Persy was protecting us," you reminded L. "Was she tricked by her father?"

"Possibly, but if he wanted us dead he would have already killed us. He found a way around Persy's threats, he won't kill us, but he will injure us until we back down," L concluded.

"You got that right!" A familiar voice was heard as Higure emerged from the lava unharmed.

"As expected from the genius detective," Hakumei appeared the same way.

"Don't worry, we're supposed to play by the rules, the king said so himself." Higure wasn't too reassuring given the situation.

"Right, we can only step in if it's to save your lives. But that won't happen right? You've come so far. Will this be like those moving pictures in the little boxes humans like to watch?" Hakumei asked.

"An action movie..." L pondered the situation. It wasn't that he needed to jump an excessive distance; the challenge was in the setting. The lava and fire were sure to scare most people and either make them give up before trying or cause them to make fatal mistakes.

"Something like that," Higure told L. "And you have two cutie pies to watch you." The cat-like shinigami winked at you and the shinigami girl.

The shinigami girl made a childish pouty face and shook her head. "I'm taken."

"I know, I know, by the little foolish one," Higure laughed. What was he talking about?

"Take that back!" The shinigami girl seemed to have a temper. "My love is the best ever, he's absolutely perfect in every way and I would gladly give my life for him!"

"I can see it." Hakumei curiously poked the empty space above the shinigami girl's head.

"Stop it!" she slapped his hand away.

"A life span? Is that what you can see?" You asked.

The shinigami twins both nodded simultaneously. "And her name too but writing it on a Death Note won't work because of the contract. Not that it would do much. Her lifespan is short, less than a year now," Higure explained.

"It doesn't matter, my beloved is creating a new world and I'm helping him. He'll always remember me and he'll always love me, that's all that counts. I'll give my life for his dream with no regrets," the shinigami girl insisted.

Creating a new world? The one she loved? This sounded familiar, you had read about something like this before. You had seen many files from the Kira case since you got involved. This fit perfectly. "You're a human, or you were a human. You made some kind of deal to become a shinigami at the cost of your life so you only have a year left, or you had a year when it began."

The shinigami girl glared at you. "I hate you and I want to kill you, but my love told me to follow the rules that the king decided. I want to kill you and Lawliet, Lawliet most of all because he got in our way. We would be happy if not for him and you. You had a part in it too, you and your shinigami friend. Making friends with the princess and using your connections against us. I hate you both and one day you'll die, if not by my hand then by my love's!"

"Misa... You're Amane Misa!" You had figured it out. It seemed that L knew from the moment he saw her. It all fit, she was Misa, you saw the resemblance now. Then there was something about a contract that turned her into a shinigami, but she only had a year left to live. "You can't extend your life."

"Only those who are born shinigami, or half shinigami, can extend their life," Hakumei confirmed.

Misa decided to ignore the twins. "I don't care what happens; I would die for him without a second thought." Some would call it love, but when that love wasn't returned, maybe it was foolishness. Misa was being used by Light, couldn't she see that?

"(name) If we get the timing right we can cross." L brought your attention back to the difficult path that awaited. He took your hand and held it tightly; Traizo would throw a fit if he saw. Alas, it seemed that you were once again holding hands with L in the mist of danger. Was it a running gag that the world had against you? "We can't always stop after each jump. Just jump when I say and we'll be fine, I have the pattern figured out. Ready?"

The pool of boiling lava didn't look inviting at all. You could feel the heat as if you were already burning and that was just from standing close to it. "No, but let's go."

L waited a moment for the timing to be right, they the journey to the other side of the room began. The amethysts were a little slippery and very hot; it was a miracle they didn't melt, probably preserved by magic. After jumping from one to the other and having many close calls, you and L made it to the other side.

Those were the longest five minutes of your life, and just when you thought it was over, the room began to shake and the lava started to rise. L opened the doors to the next room quickly and everyone rushed in. Instead of the usual hall or tunnel connecting each room, this time there was an icy wall and another door high above.

"You need to climb," Higure said while Hakumei looked amused.

"This is cheating!" You yelled. There was no way you or L could climb that wall of solid ice. The lava set the door on fire and started to pour into the room.

One of the large amethysts was still floating in it. "(Name)!" You and L jumped on it. You held on to him for dear life as the lava continued to rise and melt the icy wall faster and faster. At same time as the lava went up, the wall of ice sunk as it melted. "We need to go to the next room before the lava reaches it. We have to jump to the door." There was no time to think so you did as L said.

The two of you tackled the door open and ran down the slippery, icy tunnel as fast as you could. You came to another tower made of gold and rushed up the stairs. At the top there was an emerald switch. L pressed it and the lava stopped. You could still feel the heat; the lava had only stopped a few feet away from reaching the top of the tower, where you were. The two of you crossed another bridge similar to the first golden tower and entered the next room, a grave yard.

Your breaths were uneven and your heart was pounding, your entire life flashed before your eyes. Hades was serious about trying to scare you and L away, and judging by the looks of the new room, which was so large the walls and ceiling could not be seen in the distance, things were not getting any better.

Page 32: Finding Out What No One Knew

Persy's deal included keeping the two of you alive, not safe, she was tricked. You could be injured but if you were alive then technically, Hades would have kept his end of the deal, no matter how traumatized or injured you ended up.

L held you tightly in his arms. "We're going to make it."

You believed him; he made you feel so safe. As long as you were with L, you would be alright. You would make it out of this alive and healthy. The two of you would face whatever traps Hades had prepared and win. The queen, Persy, everyone; they wouldn't be disappointed.

"Told you we were missing the action!" Higure's sudden voice made you hug L tighter, if that was even possible.

"You were right, humans are like that after all." You wondered what Hakumei was talking about.

Misa shook her head. "I would rather be with my Light than here." Somehow it sounded like she knew what the shinigami twins were talking about.

"What do you mean humans are like that?" You would soon wish you haven't asked.

"If you leave them alone, they start making out," Higure sounded amused, Misa pouted and Hakumei laughed.

"It's not like that!" You let go of L. Why did everyone always had to ruin your fluffy moments together with L? Since when did you start thinking about him this much? You weren't sure. For a moment you thought it started after the well of light, but then you realized that you thought about L before that. Maybe it was his confession on the boat after Forel attacked, or even before that. You weren't sure anymore, but you realized that you liked L, a lot, you were falling for him, or maybe you already had.

L liked you back, you knew it, but getting him to admit it wouldn't be easy, plus bringing it up now would only further convince him that it wouldn't work out. He was in the middle of a very important case and he didn't want distractions. Fine then, you would just be there for him and let things progress naturally.

After the case was over, if he hasn't made his move by then, you would find a way to come up with the courage to be the one to take the first step and tell L how you feel in a more direct way than the hits that were often thrown. It was something you both knew, no doubt L must know, but he still had doubts about how long it could last, plus knowing and admitting were two different things.

However, you were sure it would work out; you didn't know how, but somehow it would. First things first though, you had to get to the next door, find the queen and solve the case, then you would figure out how to work things out with your crush on L, find a way to make it work so Traizo wouldn't kill L, and take care of any other issue that came up along the way, plus the possibility of Light's return. You would be very busy, to say the least.

The graveyard was as creepy as it could possibly be. Ghostly sounds were heard, it was foggy, dark, with sudden horrific screams coming out of nowhere. Though L kept a good poker face, you knew he wasn't feeling exactly comfortable with the atmosphere.

You had lost count of how many times you hugged L when a random zombie would pop up. He held on to you tightly until you both realized that it was time to run and find rocks and twigs to throw at the undead creature so it would stop chasing you. Hugging L was fine and wonderful, but not under these circumstances. Okay, so it was still good, but it could be so much better.

It was a welcome change when you finally got out of the graveyard. Misa, being originally human, also looked frightened and had shrieked louder than the undead several times. While she muttered something about her precious Light, you realized that maybe you weren't so much better off after all. Zombie tigers with bat wings trying to make you their scratching post would haunt your dreams.

During your journey in the queen's castle you ended up facing all kinds of dangers, a rope bridge over a crocodile infested river being among them. It was clear the shinigami twins were instructed to let the ferocious creatures chew you up a bit before saving your lives and that's not something you were willing to go through.

You gripped L's hand so tightly while crossing that bridge, he made a face as if you were about to break it, it was a miracle you didn't. What did break on one side was the bridge, leaving you and L holding on for your lives. You managed to climb up the ropes only to be chased by a bear, which was somehow on fire but it didn't seem to be bothered by the flames.

You had never run so fast in your entire life. You never know how fast you can run until you're running from something that's trying to eat you. Other than a few minor scratches and bumps from getting thrown around like a rag doll when the trees in the indoor forest came to life after escaping the bear, you were more or less okay, just very exhausted.

"We're almost there," L was out of breath, you had never seen L out of breath, never until now. Sure he had been saying that for the past two hours to comfort you, but you tried to make yourself believe him.

It seemed that the world was finally being merciful and you reached the last door after going all around the castle. The door was opened and you came to a room that looked like a hotel lobby, in which the others from the group were waiting.

"What took you so long?" Persy observed you and L, and before you could begin to say all you've been through, she started to scold L. "Look at you Lawliet! You're not going to win (Name)'s heart like that! You're dirty and sweaty and muddy!"

"Who cares about Lawliet, why is (Name) like that too?" Traizo stopped and tried to sound supportive. "You still look pretty."

"Getting here wasn't easy!" You couldn't even express it all in words.

"Can we get this over with? I want to see my Light!" Misa whined.

"Quiet, false shinigami, you're an enemy of L, so I've decided you're my enemy too!" Persy stuck out her tongue, mocking the girl whom she found to be so annoying.

"My Light will take over the world one day!" Was all that Misa could say in her defense.

Persy merely rolled her human looking eye in response. "You have no idea what's going to happen."

While Traizo fussed over you and tried to get you cleaned up with a peach colored silk curtain he ripped off a window, you glanced at L. He was a mess, but somehow still handsome. His hair had mud and leaves in it, as did yours, he looked tired, more so than usual and his jeans were a ragged mess from when he carried you piggy back across a field of thorns. He wouldn't let you cross otherwise. "Let's go see the queen..." You were tired and so was L. You want to end this and make sure he recovered.

"Yes! Time to see mom!" Persy cheered. "Misa-Misa can go home to her stupid Light now."

"Light is not stupid, and I'm not going, I have to watch and tell him about it. Don't you dare insult my Light!" Misa didn't care who this shinigami was, even if she was the princess, insulting Light was going too far.

"Out!" The castle shook and echoed as Persy yelled her order.

Misa remembered that Light warned her not to mess with the royal family, not to get on their bad side. Grumbling about how much she was annoyed at Persy, Misa left.

Persy then smiled sheepishly. "Pretend that didn't happen, okay? I'm not too much into the overly bossy image, but that girl annoys me so much. She'll be gone in less than a year anyway. That contract was meant for Light, but he had Misa sacrifice herself instead and she agreed to it! That's so wrong; she needs to grow some guts. Anyway, now let's move on to more important things"

xoxox xox xoxox

Hades was waiting in the queen's throne room, though it didn't really look much like a throne room. It was a strange place with many machines that seemed to have come out of a science fiction movie. The machines were also decorated with precious gems, as was everything else in the palace. In the center of the room, there was a large crystal and inside it there was a beautiful woman frozen in time, the queen. Her eyes were closed as if she were sleeping, her hair a rare shade of blond that looked golden. Her expression was troubled and... fangs? She had fangs?

"A vampire?" You asked.

"I don't know but I'm glad to finally see her," Persy slowly approached. "Daddy let's wake her up!"

"Not so fast," of course Hades hasn't completely given up yet. "It's true that she is a vampire, daughter of Dracula. In the past people thought the undead existed, they treated vampire stories as facts. Do you think it was because science wasn't as developed back then as it is now?"

"You're saying that back then, it was a fact? I thought so, with the existence of shinigami confirmed, I knew that other legends had to be more than just legends. Then vampires and other beings that are considered to be mythological in the present, actually existed in the past." L had suspected this and if his conclusion was correct, they would start to emerge again.

"Yes, do you know why they stopped appearing?" Hades then asked. It somehow bothered him that a mere human had so much figured out, but he wanted to know how much L knew.

"That is simple logic," L replied. "You were sending the energy of the Shinigami World here, focusing it and directing it, to keep queen Persephone, Nymda, alive. If not, then that energy of the Shinigami World would have escaped into Earth and cause certain mutations."

"Then you do understand, and you know that it will happen again if things go back to being the way they were?" Hades stated more than asked.

Page 33: No Matter What they Say

You were shocked to learn the truth about the legends of the past, but L expected it and spoke with confidence. "That was how it originally was, if that's how nature is truly balanced, then let it be. If that is the ultimate truth, it can't be stopped. You're holding the queen here against her will. You give her pleasant dreams and keep her young and alive, but she stopped wanting that long ago. Her soul wants rest; even as a vampire she has lived far longer than she could have, even feeding on the blood of humans. You know that and that is why you didn't try your hardest to stop me. Deep down you want to let her decide, you truly care for her, but goodbyes are painful."

"Enough of this," Hades was tired of it all, he knew how it would end, he knew it was what his wife and daughter wanted. "One final duel Lawliet."

"Hold it!" Persy stepped forward, while the twins and everyone watched. "I've decided that after everything L has done, I'll be his shinigami in shining armor! Well, I'll get the armor later, maybe, it's a line I read in a story. Ehem, anyway, what I mean to say is I'll protect Lawliet with my life so no unfair fights, daddy. You're a shinigami and L is just a puny human who looks like he never sleeps and hardly has enough meat in his bones, let alone any muscle, even if he eats like a pig!"

Higure and Hakumei muffled their laughter and L decided to say something before Persy continued 'defending' him. "I thought we were on the same side..."

"We are!" Persy paused and realized what she said. "Did I just say L doesn't get enough sleep? Um... well... he's just really hard working that's it! Guys like that are hard to find. He's also in great shape, very athletic and strong, I'm sure. He's as sweet as his sweet tooth, what a great guy! Yes, well, anyway, L needs to take a break so I shall protect him, yeah."

You couldn't help it but to laugh when Persy discredited L, then complimented him. Of course you wouldn't stop liking him regardless of what she said. It was just funny because she was hoping that you and L would end up together and felt she had to amend her words to that purpose.

Humans always try to explain everything, all that surrounds them and their own selves. If something doesn't make sense, it must be made to make sense somehow, it must be interpreted in another way. If, even then, it still doesn't make sense, then there's only one explanation, it was a lie. Vampires, shinigami, all of those things, they are nothing but mythology in humanity's eyes.

Back then, there was not enough technology, back then, people were naive and gullible. Back then, science had not advanced enough to question things as much as they should be questioned before concluding that they are true. In the present, things are different; science has found no evidence of anything reassembling the vampires of legends, zombies, the undead or ghosts.

Evidence was not fount because it never existed, humanity concluded. But what if the real reason why none of that was found by science, was because by the time science advanced, all those things were already gone? What if all of that returned? What would happen then? "Chaos, no doubt, unless we prevent it," L mussed.

"Chaos?" You asked.

"Vampires, undead beings, ghosts, things humanity cannot explain. The reasons people fear death may vary, but the most common reason is fear from the unknown. People tend to fear what they cannot understand, because it means they don't know how to control it. For the world to become accustomed to the way things used to be, it will take time, but this will happen slowly and we will adapt." L explained.

Undead beings? If shinigami existed and so did vampires, then there must also be so much more. You imagined how the world would be with vampires in a modern era. It would certainly be interesting, it might take a lot of getting used to and people would probably panic, but humans are adaptable, so in the end, it would work out somehow.

"Higure, Hakumei, your duty is complete; return to the Shinigami World." The twins didn't look happy to be sent away at the most interesting moment, but they had no choice but to listen to Hades' orders. Then the Shinigami king himself left. "I will speak to my queen alone, you may see her first."

"Poor daddy, he's heartbroken, I can tell." Persy observed her mother's sleeping form. She placed a hand on the crystal. "Mom, it's me, Persephone the second, I came to see you. Can you hear me?"

A magical mist filled the room and the lights were dimmed while everyone, including Mello, Near and Watari who had been silent, watched closely. The spirit of queen Persephone, a vampire from the human world called Nymda, appeared. "My child, I am happy to see you one last time. I wish I could stay with you, but my soul is fading, if you free me from this crystal, I will not be able to recognize you. It's been so long, a vampire can only take so much. Mortals need to rest, even the undead, which last so long, eventually die. My dear daughter, I love you always and I hold no grudge against your father. Now I must ask something of you, free me. Let me rest in peace." The spirit faded away leaving a feeling of foreboding behind.

Persy was crying quietly, happy that she finally saw her mother, but sad that she couldn't stay. L did feel like this was a real conclusion, one case would end and another would begin. No, not a simple case; an entire era, an entire history would start from that day forward. L's mission was far from over; he knew it never truly ended.

xoxox xox xoxox

After Persy waited a few moments longer she told her father of her mother's decision. Hades kept his word, you, L, Mello, Near, Watari and Traizo were made to wait outside, while the shinigami father and daughter were in the queen's room. After some time, Persy returned. The queen was no longer in her crystal and Hades was gone as well. "Mom is resting in peace... Daddy went back home. He's sad but also angry at Lawliet, even if he knew this was the right thing to do. He also left this." Persy handed L a dark red envelope. "It's magically sealed so I couldn't open it, not that I was trying to be nosy or anything."

L received the sealed envelope, a letter from the king; maybe that would explain things. He opened it and inside there was black paper with a message written in golden ink. "It's empty?" Mello asked, looking at the paper.

"It appears only I see the message." L looked over the letter as everyone gave him curious looks.

"What does it say?" Mello asked.

"Patience Mello, let L finish reading," Near's tone was calm as usual.

"Shut up, this is important!" Mello argued.

"I didn't say it wasn't," Near replied.

"To the one who freed my queen from her dreams," L read. "Be warned that the forbidden spell that kept her in this world will not be kind to those who break it. Be warned that anyone who kills a direct descendant of the vampire king of ancient times, Dracula, will receive a curse. Us shinigami will not be affected by it; the curse will fall upon one of the humans involved, the leader of the group. This is an inevitable consequence, but it does not signify your death, live with the curse or find a cure for it. Do not forget that Light still wants to kill you and while my daughter forbids your death by Death Note, accidents may occur." L finished reading.

xoxox xox xoxox

The car stopped in front of your house and Traizo happily jumped out passing though the door. He then opened it for you. "Let's go (Name)!" He was glad that you didn't have to spend any more time with L, or at least that's what it looked like.

You remained inside the car, arms crossed, expression royally pissed. Earlier you had an argument with L. You thought that you were being taken back home to visit your family, not to leave the team. L had insisted that it was for your own protection. You had insisted that you could take care of yourself and you were sure you could help. Though he admitted that you could, he still wanted you to be safe. L was as clear as mud explaining his reasons, safety and the chance to live a normal life were just excuses. He was hiding something, you knew about the feelings he was trying not to develop for you, but was having them anyway and he knew of your feelings as well, yet he was hiding something.

The argument became louder when Mello joined in, with what Near described as an emotional outburst. It was rather obvious he knew what was going on between the two of you and had his suspicions about L's secret, possibly related to the curse that fell upon him. The argument ended when Traizo stepped in and punched L, tossing him across the room for upsetting you. After you rushed to see if L was alright, everything faded into silence and the entire group headed towards the jet. The trip by air was long since over and you had been taken from the airport to your house where everyone would see you off.

Mello grumbled about L being stupid to let the girl he liked slip away and Near tried to tell him to keep quiet and not further upset L. Traizo was happy and Persy was calm. With a confident pace the princess exited the car. "(Name) still owns my death Note, which is still under custody in Japan, this time I choose to follow the owner instead of the note. Come (Name) you haven't shown me around your house and there are a few things I want to talk to you about. A little girl talk will benefit us both."

You caught the hint right away and got off the car. L followed and quietly started to help unload your luggage from the trunk, it was new luggage of course, since the old one ended up in the bottom of the ocean. The left side of his face was still red, turning purple from the shinigami's punch. "You know I'll come back, right?"

L nodded at your statement, he couldn't stop you forever. "I know, but not too soon, not until I know what I'm dealing with."

Page 34: Nothing We Can't Stand

You tried to make L understand you could be of help. "Is that the problem? You want me to stay away until you figure out how to get rid of your curse? I can help you." You glanced at the shinigami, Persy was keeping Traizo busy lecturing him about why he shouldn't hit L, even if he looked 'totally cool and hot' doing it. It wouldn't be long before your parents noticed the car, it was late evening and they should both be home by now.

"I don't want to hurt you." L voiced quietly.

"You won't. Whatever the curse is, I'll help you cure it." You watched him looking for an answer or a clue.

"Give me a few days to prepare," he requested.

"L, you know what it is don't you? The curse, you already know what it is and are trying to find out how to break it." You should have known, the genius detective was always a step ahead.

L nodded slowly. "Please take a week off and if you feel like returning to work with me then, I will gladly welcome you, but keep in mind that you might have to leave home for a long time, longer than this time."

"I understand." You knew he wanted to make sure you had no regrets about your decision, but there was also something else. He was worried about something, as if having an internal conflict trying to decide, but you were determined to find out. You would prove that even after a week your mind was made up, but then, it might not take that long for L to come to terms with himself.

xoxox xox xoxox

Even if your family missed you and you missed them, you had already decided to return to work with L. It had only been a day and you missed him already. You had seen your family again and visited your friends, all the while followed by Traizo and Persy, visible only to you.

Higure and Hakumei came by and after touching their Death Notes, they too were visible to you in the human world. Persy was needed in the Shinigami World, but of course she refused to go. The changes concerning the Earth were happening very slowly so you wouldn't have to worry about an army of blood thirsty vampires suddenly attacking, at least not for now.

For the time being, Light continued to keep a low profile. He was probably worried about L's alliance with the Shinigami World princess or maybe he was plotting.

xoxox xox xoxox

"Princess! Princess!" The sudden alarmed voice woke you up early in the morning, it was still dark.

Persy floated in mid air next to your bed while Traizo flew directly over it. He probably spent the entire time looking at you while you slept. "Quiet you woke up (Name)!" He glared at the twins.

Higure quickly delivered the news; there was no time to waste. "It's an emergency! Forel, the traitor, he assembled an army of shinigami and is attacking. He plans to take the throne!"

That's all it took to make you become fully awake. You still remembered Forel, a knight of the Shinigami World, Persy's arranged fiancé whom she refused to marry. A shinigami made of metal bones covered in needles. That time when the jet was crashing he tried to kidnap you, but had to carry you by holding your parachute because if he touched you directly, those needle feathers that covered his entire body would sink into your skin and deliver a deadly poison. He was a shinigami in everyway, so deathly he couldn't even be touched.

"He wanted to rule the Shinigami World, I knew that all along, but I never thought that he would go as far as this." Persy was needed in the Shinigami World. She couldn't abandon her people and her father, even if she wanted to stay on Earth. "How is the situation?"

"It's bad," Hakumei solemnly spoke. "The traitors are numerous; Forel promised them a lot of things would chance, to give them a reason to live. Most shinigami died out of boredom, because they were too lazy to write a name in their Death Notes."

Higure's expression carried the same hopelessness as his brother. "Those who remained loyal to our king are few and vastly outnumbered. It's not just the numbers, but the skills as well, we're at a disadvantage in every way."

Persy closed her human-looking eye. Her expression changed, she looked serious, honestly worried; she understood the situation. She opened her eye, the right side of her face an expressionless skull while the left revealed determination. "(Name), your parents still think you're only visiting right?"

"Yes," you confirmed.

"Good, then there will be a misunderstanding and your plane will leave earlier, in the morning to be exact. I'll make sure it's arranged. I will take half my Death Note and leave half locked up in Japan. That way when you go to the Shinigami World you can take it there, it will be safely hidden and with a piece of my Death Note in both worlds, I'll be able to travel freely if I need to. Higure, Hakumei, who is in command of our army? Daddy?" Persy's last word didn't seem to fit with her overall serious tone.

"No, he's working on his own. We don't have much of an army anyway." Higure revealed.

Hakumei nodded hopelessly. "There's my brother and I, then there's a shinigami called Shidou, a little kid who calls himself Chibi and doesn't even have a usable Death Note and that's it."

It sounded almost as if Higure had already given up. "Chibi and Shidou aren't much help, one's a child and the other's a wimp. Shidou's really worried about this entire thing; you'd think he's scared of dying. A shinigami scared of dying? That's just weird."

"Okay, so we have only a few people. Daddy went off on his own, Chibi could work as a spy, a shinigami is a shinigami and a child would be less suspicious. Shidou will just have to be brave. I guess that makes you two, Traizo and me, the main attack force." Persy paused and looked at Traizo. "You're on my side, right?"

"If (Name) is on your side then I am too," Traizo assured.

"It's settled then. We'll have L plan our strategy. Hakumei and Higure, return to the Shinigami World. I will go to Japan, get half my Death Note and inform L about this. Traizo, stay with (Name) and transport her to the Shinigami World in the morning. Any questions?" Persy sounded more like a military commander than a princess.

Higure, Hakumei and even Traizo saluted. Persy nodded, taking it as meaning they all understood and flew off. The cat like twins flew off as well. You knew you wouldn't be able to get any more sleep, so you checked over a few things you wanted to pack and tried to become mentally prepared for a shinigami war.

xoxox xox xoxox

By the time you arrived, after saying goodbye to your family who wasn't happy that you had to leave so soon, L was discussing some things with Higure, Hakumei, Persy, Shidou and Hades, who had surprisingly returned. "Keep in mind that I cannot and will not cure you Lawliet." Hades reminded him. "However, I order you to serve as a strategist in this war." It was a little late for the king to say such things, since L had already accepted. Forel and his followers would surely increase the number of deaths in the human world and he had to be stopped. It was best for humans when shinigami were lazy.

"I'm certain I can find my own cure. For now I'm doing alright." L glanced at you with an unreadable look. Mello, Near and Watari had come as well. L looked back to the group of shinigami in front of him, after acknowledging the new arrivals. "Let me look at the map you mentioned earlier and I'll come up with a way to use the land to our advantage. Traizo, Persy, please join us." You found it odd that L didn't look directly at you while speaking. This was very suspicious.

"I have to go, stupid war getting in the way of my time with (Name)," Traizo grumbled and followed after the others.

"Do your best," you called after him and that seemed to be enough to get him motivated. L, Watari and the shinigami disappeared into another room of the newly built base in the Shinigami World. It was in the same location where the palace used to be, but even if the construction was new, it didn't look it. At least it appeared more stable, made of white stones that fit into each other like a puzzle and had no paint.

"Kaasan!" Chibi ran to hug you.

You hugged the little shinigami and smiled back at him. "How have you been Chibi?"

"I'm okay, a little bored without L-tousan and you, but Uncle Higu and uncle Haku play with me sometimes." It was a good thing Traizo didn't hear Chibi.

You still kept a smile but you glanced at Mello and Near, as if looking for an answer. "It was Mello's idea," Near informed you.

"I wouldn't deny the credit," Mello proudly declared. "When you and L ran off to the well and Traizo ran off to find you, we told Chibi that the two of you would adopt him. He was really happy. Then you two unlocked the well and you know what happened next."

"Don't you want to adopt me?" Chibi's big innocent blue and silver eyes were watery. With a rabbit ear, a cat ear and his face holding features of both, he was just too cute, like a baby bunny or kitten you just need to hug. He moved his chain like tail from side to side, the blue jewel at the end shining.

"Of course I'll adopt you." Chibi was very happy to hear that.

You spent some time with Mello, Near and Chibi, the little shinigami mentioned L-tousan saying he should stay and help out at the base, Chibi wasn't sure what was going on, but he wanted to help, of course L wouldn't let a child go to battle, even if he was a shinigami. As you thought the humans would serve as the strategists while the shinigami carried the power.

"Ryuk and Rem are neutral," Mello informed you. He shared his theories about it, deducing things from the information he had obtained in his short time there before you arrived. Near shared his theories as well, mostly agree with Mello but sometimes disagreeing. From what you could gather, Ryuk appeared to be the only one who was truly neutral. Rem was on Misa's side and Misa was on Light's side.

Page 35: Even if the World Sinks

Mello's theory was that Light was on Forel's side and Near's theory was that Light was hoping to gain Hade's trust by helping against Forel and trying to take L's place.

"Maybe he doesn't know what to do; I mean we're with Hades so Light knows taking L's place won't be easy. Misa must have told him everything she saw. Forel doesn't seem too human friendly. Not to judge by appearances, but he doesn't strike me as the kind of shinigami to value humans unless they're hostages or a way to extend his lifespan. He might not accept advice from a human even if Hades does." You shared your theory as well.

Mello and Near paused then nodded in agreement. "Light must be hoping both sides destroy each other." Mello came up with a new theory.

"To aim for the Shinigami World? It is possible, Light is persistent and overconfident, though he sometimes appears to be careful. He must be waiting to strike when both sides are weak. The human world may not be enough for him anymore." Near voiced.

"But we won't let that happen, we'll stop him. L and all of us will come up with something." You were certainly not about to give up, even if you were worried about L and whatever he was hiding. You knew Mello and Near must know and you knew you wouldn't get it out of them. You knew they weren't just helping you keep an eye on Chibi and building little lego houses for entertainment. They were keeping you busy and helping L hide. But you could play their game and you knew a quick way to win.

xoxox xox xoxox

Hide and seek, from the second you suggested it, Mello and Near grimaced, you were on to them. They tried to make you the seeker, so they could watch you from their hiding places and make their presence so obvious you just had to find them, such as jumping out pretending they were trying to switch hiding places.

But you knew that was coming. Chibi would be the seeker and you would insist that hiding in different places would be more convenient. Of course they would still follow you, but as you thought, their attempts only made them get caught, giving you a chance to sneak away.

xoxox xox xoxox

Once you were out of the established hide and seek area, leaving Mello and Near to take care of a very energetic little shinigami, who was now your unofficial adoptive son, you were home free to find L and find him you did. He was in the place that became dubbed the map room, due to the vast amount of old maps it housed in an underground library.

"The Shinigami World had many tunnels; shinigami can't go through walls here in the same way as they can on Earth. The maps are outdated though. Everyone is working to make a new map reflecting the effects of the palace's collapse and the effects of time; this world has changed a lot. They can work fast, but it might be a while until they return. What took you so long?" L sat on a chair with his back to you but you somehow knew his sitting position must have been his usual unusual one.

You couldn't help it but to smile, just like that time in the well room, L knew you were coming. "Mello and Near didn't make it easy, but why keep me away? I want to help; I know I can help somehow. Just tell me what I need to do."

L knew you weren't only talking about the shinigami war, but about helping him. "I don't know how strong the medicine Watari prepared is. If it starts to fail, do not come near me."

You walked around the desk containing a map and a slice of half eaten cheese cake. "My guess is vampire," you declared.

L smiled showing his long fangs. "Correct. The medication prevents me from requiring blood, at least for now."

"But why not just tell me? I don't understand. You suspected this from the beginning, didn't you?"

He nodded. "I didn't want to endanger you if I lost control."

"That's not going to happen to someone as smart as strong willed as you. Besides, you have a medicine, you said it yourself. You'll be fine L and I want to help. You if you don't want to hurt me then don't push me away."

xoxox xox xoxox

"This is bad!" Mello yelled as he Near followed Chibi around after being found. The little shinigami kept searching for you within the agreed area to play hide and seek and you were not there. Chibi seemed too focused on finding you to pay any attention to the conversation going on between his two uncles.

"L doesn't have as little self control as you." Near followed with some difficulty.

Mello glared. "But he's the one with the crush and you heard Watari. Any form of attraction will only serve to awaken his vampire instincts. If he's alone with her, then of course there will be attraction! Worse yet, he's been keeping his feelings bottled up and I don't think he can do it anymore. I can see it now, L admits his feeling, (Name) tells him she feels the same way, then he bites her neck and drinks every drop of blood she has. Tortured by the guilt of taking his love's life, he's unable to go on and it leads to a terrible fate in which he too dies!"

"This isn't a soap opera," Near rolled his eyes. "Besides, L is a lot better at controlling his hormones than you are." The comment earned the white haired boy a smack on the back of the head courtesy of the blond.

"In case you haven't noticed, I'm happy for them, yeah she's cute, but I'm not trying to steal her from L. I've been the one helping Persy play matchmaker all along," Mello grumbled.

"I never accused you of that; it was only a mere comparison." Near rubbed his head.

"Either way we need to help them." With that said, Mello ran off followed slowly by Near.

"Where are you going? Is it tag now?" Chibi decided to tag Near. "You're it uncle Near!" The little shinigami then flew off seemingly forgetting all about the game of hide and seek. Hurray for short attention spans.

Near sighed, for obvious reasons he was never good at tag, and he never liked the game anyway. It seemed that the task of babysitting was left to him, though. "Chibi wait, let's go play with my toys instead!"

xoxox xox xoxox

The doors suddenly flew open and you and L both looked to see who it was. There stood Mello, almost out of breath from running. He walked over to where the two of you were sitting talking about the Shinigami World and its mysteries. He observed your neck and L's mouth. "You didn't bite her?" Of all the things to ask.

"Why would I do that?" L was curious to hear Mello's theory.

"Because..." Mello realized that maybe it was best if he didn't say anything beyond that. "Never mind, I'll leave you two alone now."

xoxox xox xoxox

Things were like that for the next few days while everyone got organized. Shinigami could not be killed unless they took a life with their Death Note to save another life. Although, they could be injured with a combination of Earth weapons enhanced with shinigami magic. However, the war could go on forever that way, or if their Death Notes were destroyed, it would go on at least until their lifespan ran out, which was longer than a human lifetime.

The only one who could create more Death Notes was Hades, and the key to that was his scythe, the symbol of the ruler of the shinigami. The magic from that scythe turned out to be quite useful in the war. Tunnels were sealed, and ways to advance were blocked. If Forel wanted to attack, he had to do it directly. Spells were being considered as a way to imprison Forel and his army, but nothing had been decided yet.

Days passed and you traveled back and forth between the Shinigami World and Japan, a lot had been accomplished in terms of improving defense, but not much progress had been made in the actual battle.

xoxox xox xoxox

"We're doing alright so far. The explosives worked and trapped the enemy troops under an avalanche of rocks. We managed to capture a few and put them in shinigami jail, but to keep Forel from trying this again, a stronger imprisonment spell will be needed." Persy gave L the full report.

The humans had been moved back to Japan, since it was not safe for them in the Shinigami World at that point. Forel didn't bother trying to kill them and he told his army not to. He wanted to prove that there was no way a human could defeat him, no matter how much of a genius they said that human was, he was still a mere mortal.

"The next strategy should be plan S." L had countless diagrams and maps displayed on the screen. The maps had been updated and digitalized displaying a three-dimensional model of the Shinigami World.

"Got it!" Persy saluted. "Any news on Light?"

"Not right now. He won't make a move yet. Thanks to Misa, he knows what's going on in the Shinigami World. He's worried about getting killed if he makes a move now." At least that was one less worry for L, but it seemed that everything was getting in the way of capturing Light. But he would be brought to justice eventually and with the changes the Earth would slowly undergo, proving his guilt would be so much easier.

"Okay, then, I'll deliver the message." With Persy gone, that only left the humans at the base in Japan and one shinigami; L, Mello, Near, Watari, you and Chibi. Persy, Traizo, Higure, Hakumei, Shidou, Hades and most other shinigami were in the Shinigami World. Ryuk and Rem, as well as Misa, remained out of the battle, though Misa occasionally visited the Shinigami World to deliver the latest news to Light.

L yawned, even if there was a war going on in another world, the afternoon in Japan was peaceful and quiet, not too hot and not too cold. Mello was quietly looking over the Shinigami World virtual model, while Near preferred the plastic version. He said he got ideas by playing with it. Watari kept everything in order, assisting the geniuses however he was needed. Chibi was sent out to fly around the Earth and make sure Light or Forel didn't make a move in the human world undetected. He was instructed to report back right away if he found anything. He had already flown all over the world and all was quiet.

End of Note VII

Disclaimer, I don't own Death Note or Dracula. Special thanks to Clojahken and Nattie.