A Year of Jubilee [The Death Note Fanfic]

Chapter 38

Rem stood alone in a shadowy corner of the shinigami realm. In the distance, the sound of screaming sobs echoed from a deeper part of the realm. Rem ignored the noise, instead contemplating the recent events on earth. In the last couple days, criminals had begun dying again—Misa was back at work as the second Kira, using her Death Note according to Light's orders. Rem's clawed fingers balled into a fist at the thought the boy.

He was using Misa. He had been using all of them all along.

She thought back to the last conversation she had heard while on the earthly dimension, between Light and the other man, the pale one who they called detective.

"For the hundredth time, Ryuzaki, Misa has nothing to do with the deaths," said Light, sounding exasperated.

L arched an eyebrow at him from where he sat crouched in his chair. "The killings started up again almost immediately after she was released. Are we supposed to be believe that that is just coincidence?"

Matsuda piped up. "But Ryuzaki, you know what the rules of the notebook said! Misa can't be the first OR second Kira, or else she would have died during confinement!"

L slid a thumb between his lips and chewed on it. "Yes, so it would seem," he murmured around the digit. Then he swiveled around to face Rem, who was standing at the back of the room.

"I have a question, shinigami," he said.

Rem lifted her eyes to him in an impassive gaze.

"Could one kill by writing names onto paper torn from a Death Note?" asked the detective.

Rem gave him a long, silent look. Though her face betrayed no emotion, inside of her fear, anger and worry churned. How long was Light going to let this go on for? He had promised that Misa would be safe, but she was in more danger now than ever of being suspected. And, even worse, her lifespan had been halved yet again—the last Rem had seen the girl over surveillance, the space above her head had shown a quarter of the time left to live than when Rem had first met her.

"That I wouldn't know," she said at last. "I've never used the notebook that way."

It wasn't a complete lie, but it wasn't a complete truth either. To be more accurate, it was both a truth and a lie...she had indeed never used the notebook in such a way, but she knew perfectly well that both Light and Misa had.

A few feet next to the men, the girl—the marked one—narrowed her eyes at Rem. There was a shrewd and knowing look on her face. No doubt she could tell that Rem was hiding something.

Light was giving L a look. "What are you thinking?" he asked the detective.

L swiveled back to his computer, still chewing on his thumb. "About a hundred things, Light, most of which would be an inefficient use of time to relay. However, you should know that I am planning on testing the thirteen-day rule which was outlined in the notebook."

Light's brows furrowed. "And how are you going to do that?"

"Simple." L removed his thumb from his mouth. "I will have a criminal from death row write the name of another criminal from death row into the notebook. After thirteen days, during which time both of them will be under maximum security and surveillance as usual...we shall see whether or not he dies." He delicately picked a strawberry off the slice of cake sitting beside him and held it aloft between thumb and forefinger. "It is all already arranged," he finished, popping the fruit into his mouth.

Panic filled Rem then. At this rate, Misa would surely be caught and convicted! What was Light thinking, having the girl use the notebook so blatantly and without reserve? She cast angry eyes over at the sandy-haired boy, willing him to take note of her displeasure.