A/N: Let it be known that I am aware of the fact that this is a pretty crappy chapter. I wrote this when I was about thirteen, so I ask that you bear with me. The story gets a lot better in later chapters.
If you have not already, I would very much recommend reading the description of this story so you have an idea of who the main characters are and who is paired with who. First time I got an issue voiced, I made the description clearer. Second time, in which I was told the description is not read, I'm now finding it necessary to say this in the A/N of chapter 1.
Also note that this is an OC story. idk if some people have experienced different things in that department, but in all the OC fics I've read, as well as this one, that means that the OCs are the main characters. Mello and Near are in this story, they are love interests, and at some points they are more present and important than others. But ultimately, this story follows the OCs and their stories that happen during and/or within the Kira case.
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If you could have just one wish, what would it be? I would probably wish for something simple. Something so simple, yet so hard to obtain. I'd wish for a normal, happy life. That's something I'd never really had. At points it was happy, but normal? That ended when I was ten. Let's start from the beginning.
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"Mommy, how much longer until we get there?" I ask the woman holding my hand.
"Any minute now," the woman answers.
It is raining outside, and the woman I am referring to as my mother is taking me somewhere. I can't tell what she looks like; her face isn't visible to me. It is a black nothingness. As if its existence had faded away long ago.
We come upon a small house and walk up the front steps to its door. My "mother" rings the door bell, and after about a minute, a light turns on; I hear footsteps approaching the door. The door opens a crack and an eye peers out. The door shoots wide open immediately after seeing my "mother."
"Emily!" the person who opened the door exclaims. "What are you doing here? It's two in the morning!"
Another woman; a woman whose face is covered by darkness, not visible to me.
She then glances down at me. "You brought the kid? What are you thinking? Where is—"
"—Take her, Annie," says the woman with me, whose name is apparently Emily. "Please."
Annie's eyes widen. "What? Are you crazy?"
"Annie," says Emily, in a voice way too calm considering the situation. "Do you trust me?"
Silence. After a short while, Annie speaks up.
"Yes," she replies, "I do." She doesn't sound very convincing.
"Then take her, raise her as if she were your own," says Emily, not having noticed—or perhaps cared about—the reluctance in Annie's answer.
Now it's my turn to start freaking out.
"Mommy," I say frantically, "where are you going? Don't leave me here. I want to stay with you and Daddy!"
"It will be fine," my "mother" assures me. "This is a nice lady. You're going to be with her now. Just do it for me, okay?" As she says this, she touches my hand ever so softly. I know she loves me.
I nod, and then I enter the house. I sit on the couch in the small living room and listen to the two women's conversation.
"Why?" It is Annie's voice. "What about her father? He and you—"
"—He's dead," Emily replies, cutting Annie off.
I'm not sure what that means. "Dead." I have never heard that word before, but I can tell it is nothing good, for I can hear the horror in Annie's voice.
"What?" is all she can manage to say.
"Just take her," Emily replies, somehow managing to stay amazingly calm. "Everything will make sense soon. I only ask one more favor of you. Don't tell her anything. Not about me, not about her father, not anything about her family or her past."
Silence again. After about a minute, Annie regains her voice, and she gives her answer.
"Okay."
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My eyes shot open, and I returned to reality. I looked out the window. Nothing but pure sunshine.
I'd had that dream again. That dream I got every once in a while. I sometimes felt like that dream was real. A flashback, maybe. I saw it through the little girl's eyes, but I still didn't know if it was really me.
Sometimes, I wonder if that's how I was adopted. I'd asked my mother once, but she said that I was talking nonsense.
My mom's name was Annabelle. Annabelle Riddle. It would make sense if the lady in the dream was her, but no one called her Annie, not even her closest friends. She said she hated that nickname because she had curly red hair and freckles, which would always lead to annoying jokes or people singing "Tomorrow."
I looked at the clock and saw that it was about time for me to get ready for school. I dragged myself out of bed and got dressed.
As I came down the stairs, I saw my mom getting ready for work. I reached the bottom of the staircase and stood there, staring at her.
A freckled, rosy-cheeked, curly-haired redhead and a pale Eurasian; people usually assumed I either had an Asian dad or on rarer occasions, that I was adopted. I could tell that Mom was bothered on the few occasions when someone was bold enough to ask these questions, but when the rude person was gone, I would always tell Mom that I didn't care. Adopted or related by blood, father or no father; it didn't matter to me. She was my mother. She was all I needed.
As for the woman in my dreams, I wasn't sure if she was my biological mother or not. I wasn't even sure if she was real or not. Granted, that didn't stop me from being curious about my past every now and again.
I shook my head, bringing myself back to reality. I headed for the kitchen, grabbed a granola bar, and got my jacket and backpack.
"Good morning to you, too, Piper," Mom said, rolling her eyes at the fact that I was, once again, about to leave without saying anything. "Leaving already?"
"Yeah," I replied. "I have to get to school early so Rachel and I can finish our project."
"Good luck," she said with a smile. She bent down and kissed my head.
I walked out of the kitchen and to the front door. I opened it up and stepped outside, looking at the beautiful winter landscape. Everything was covered in a fresh coat of pure, white snow. As I took another step forward, I stopped when I heard a loud thump and the crashing of dishes.
It came from inside. I went back into the kitchen, where I had heard it, and I stopped dead in my tracks at the sight.
My mother was sprawled on the floor, eyes wide open, totally unresponsive.
After unsuccessfully trying to wake her up, I called 911. Shortly after, an ambulance came.
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I was sitting in the waiting room of the ER, unsure of what to do. Suddenly, I heard the clacking of high heels on the floor.
I turned my head to see a Japanese woman with long, black hair and emerald eyes wearing a business suit. She stopped when she got to me and sat down in the chair beside me.
"Piper Riddle, right?" asked the woman.
I nodded. What did she want with me?
"My name is Jessica," she explained.
I looked at her a little strangely but nodded.
"Piper, I'm sorry to tell you this, but your mother didn't make."
"Didn't make it?" I said. "You mean she's dead?" I didn't wait for a response. "Mom can't be gone; she was just here this morning! I saw her and talked to her! She's not dead! Where is she? Take me to my mommy!" My vision was blurred with tears, and I was filled with anger towards Jessica, refusing to believe her words.
"Piper, I am so sorry," she said quietly, wanting to make sure I didn't disturb any patients with my screaming. "She had a seizure, and by the time the ambulance arrived, there was nothing left they could do. ...She's not coming back."
"Mommy is... What happens now?" I asked, now curled up into a ball.
"We're going to help you now, Piper," Jessica said, putting her hand on my knee. "Everything's all set. You're going to have a new home and new friends. It'll all be okay in time."
"A new home? I... I don't want to leave," I said, shaking at the thought of having to leave all of my friends behind in Hudson.
"Don't worry. The people there are wicked nice," she assured me. "You'll be living at a gorgeous place; it's called the Wammy's House."
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Jessica and I walked through the gate and were greeted by a girl who looked around the age of fifteen.
"Well, this is where I get off," said Jessica.
"What?" I said, trying to hide the disappointment in my voice. "But we just met; it's only been a few days."
She smiled warmly at me and said, "Don't worry, you'll be fine. You're a strong kid. You're moving here, I'll be moving to Japan. We'll be fine. The both of us." Then she turned around and walked off, out the large gates, and into the car we'd driven over in. She left me. Alone again.
People left me a lot as a child; not just my original parents who left me. I had a best friend, and we were with each other for years. We eventually got into a huge argument, and she stopped being friends with me, taking all our other friends with her.
After that, I stayed by myself for a time, until a boy started being nice to me. He would let me play with him and his friends, and I was happy again. Then he moved. After a while, his friends didn't play with me anymore. They were his friends, not mine.
I had friends back home, but after my mom died, I had to leave them. I was reluctant about coming to this place, and I was especially reluctant about becoming attached to it.
I looked up at the girl who had come to get me; she was tall, with dark brown hair and a warm smile on her face. Not being in the best of moods, I didn't smile back. After a moment of awkward silence, she spoke.
"I'm May," she said. "I'm going to be one of your new roommates.
"We should go inside now. It's cold out here."
I nodded, and we walked into the building. We passed several rooms and kids of all ages, doing all different things. We passed by one boy who caught my attention. He had snow white hair and was crouched down, making a card house. He seemed to be the only one who was alone.
"Hello, Near," said May in a cheery voice.
"Hello," he replied in one with no emotion, not even bothering to look up at her.
As we walked away, I heard one girl who had heard the brief exchange say to her friend, "I don't know why she even bothers."
We got to our room and walked inside, where two other girls were. One girl who looked around May's age was in bed, leaning against the head-frame and listening to music as she flipped through a magazine. The second girl, this one appearing to be around my age, was lying on her stomach on the floor. Seemingly unbothered by its hard, wooden surface, the girl happily kicked her legs back and forth and bobbed her head sided-to-side in rhythm as she filled in a coloring book.
"Girls, I'm back," May said.
The younger girl looked up, her glasses slipping off her head and sliding down her nose. "Hi, May!" she said with a smile as she put down her crayon. She pushed herself up and lifted her legs underneath her, adjusting herself so that she was now sitting on her bottom. Apparently only just noticing me, she looked me up and down as she adjusted her crooked glasses, smiling all the while. "You brought the new girl back with you, I see."
"Aye," May replied.
"I'm Allison," said the redhead. "You're going to like it here! May is really nice to everybody."
"As well as a bit of a pushover," the girl listening to music added half-seriously.
"That's Joy," Allison said, pointing at the girl who had just spoken. In a loud whisper, she added, "Don't bother trying to talk to her; she's a jerk."
"I heard that," said Joy, looking up from her magazine to shoot Allison a dirty look.
"I know," Allison replied with a grin.
Seeing Allison stare at me expectantly, I decided to introduce myself. "Hello. My name is—"
"—Whoa!" May said, cutting me off. "You haven't chosen a name yet."
"She's a yank?" Joy said, slightly surprised after hearing me talk.
"Not relevant, Joy," May said, pinching the bridge of her nose in frustration.
"Chosen a name?" I said, ignoring Joy's comment.
Joy switched off her music, and she and Allison stared at me skeptically.
"You don't have one yet?" Allison said. "Everyone at Wammy's gets a new name."
"Why?" I asked.
"Think of it as starting over," May explained.
I stared at her for a moment. Starting over... That sounded nice. "Well, how do I pick a name?" I asked.
"You just pick one," Joy said, setting down her magazine and staring at me like I was an idiot.
"It can be anything," May said, giving Joy a warning look. "Some people pick their name for a reason. For instance, I was born in May. I know a girl who likes flowers, so she picked 'Rose' as her name."
"I just liked the name 'Allison,' so I picked it," Allison explained.
"There are other ways, too," May said. "Some people do it based on their personality."
"Like Peace!" said Allison. "She's really nice, and she never gets into fights."
"And some even do the opposite of their personalities," May added.
Hearing this, Joy laughed dryly and sat up. "I can think of a few," she said. "Mello, the most easily annoyed person on the face of the earth, and Near, a huge loner."
"And Joy!" Allison said. "She's a grouch!"
"Git," said Joy.
"See?"
The two girls began to argue, Joy getting out of bed and Allison approaching so that they could properly yell in each other's faces as May tried to get them to calm down. When May finally managed to stop the arguing, I was already on the verge of snapping.
"Patience," I said to myself. I did that a lot since I had no patience whatsoever.
"'Patience'?" May echoed. "I like it."
"It's nice!" Allison added.
"I'm easy," said Joy, getting back in bed to return to her magazine.
"Patience," I said. "Okay. I'm Patience."
That was how I picked my new name. Patience. The first step into my new life. The first step into my new problems.
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Several hours had passed, most of which I'd spent staring at the wall, thinking. The Wammy's House. Why was I there? As an American, I should have been put into the foster care system, but instead, I was here. Not to mention that orphanages are a rarity in England, and even then, they were unlike the traditional structure of The Wammy's House. Allison told me it was an orphanage for gifted children, and I was definitely not gifted.
"Patience," said Allison. Silence. "Paaaaaatiiiiieeeeence," she said a little louder. Still nothing. "Patience!" Oh, right. I was Patience.
"What is it?" I asked.
"It's time to eat," she said. "I want to introduce you to some of the people here."
We went into the dining hall, where Allison dragged me by the hand and forced me to meet many people.
I met Rose and Peace, whom I had already heard about, and many others as well.
There was Linda, a skilled artist. There was Melody, who enjoyed playing the violin and had memorized one hundred twenty pieces after hearing them once; apparently, she could do that with just about anything, songs or not. There was Brandon, some smart kid. There was Elizabeth, who had named herself after Elizabeth Garrett Anderson, whom she admired. And after that, I stopped paying attention.
"And that," said Allison, pointing to the boy who I had seen earlier, the one with snow white hair, "is Near. He doesn't really talk to people a lot. Linda sometimes tries to get him to play with people, but he says he's fine being alone."
I smiled a bit; a sad smile. He reminded me of myself, somewhat. I'd often been by myself, with no desire to be with others. I had enjoyed being alone, and I had fun that way. Though truthfully, part of the reason I did it was so I couldn't become attached to people, because if I did, I would only end up getting hurt.
Suddenly, there was a crash. I freaked out at first, worried that someone might be dying, but I quickly realized I was overreacting. I guess my mother's death had made me paranoid, among plenty of other things.
The theory was quickly proven wrong when arguing was heard immediately after. I turned my head to see Joy arguing with some kid, blaming him for knocking over her food. He, on the other hand, was blaming her. His friend, who was standing nearby, couldn't have cared less.
"That's Matt," said Allison, pointing to the boy who was too preoccupied with his handheld video game to care about his friend's situation, "and that's Mello," she said, pointing to the blond boy who was yelling at my roommate. "He and Joy row quite often. You get used to it after a while."
I couldn't help but laugh slightly when she told me that. I noticed various reactions from the children watching. Some continued with their conversations, ignoring the shouting coming from nearby. Others looked annoyed; I could even hear one kid say, "Here we go again." Then there were other children who were watching closely while they ate.
"What's up with them?" I asked Allison, pointing to the children staring at Mello and Joy, looking amused while eating their dinner.
"Oh, that?" Allison said. "Yeah, we all have different reactions to when those two start arguing. They enjoy it. It's kind of fun to watch, actually."
I laughed at this, then walked over to the kid playing his video game—Matt—and I watched him. By then, the argument had died down, and the children had all gone back to their conversations. I stared at Matt's screen; he was on a boss level or something.
Wait, I remember this game. I've played it before, I thought. "You have to use your power canon."
"What?" he said, unsure if I was talking to him or not.
"Your power canon," I repeated. "It's the only way to beat him. If you don't, then you die no matter what else you try."
"Alright then," he said, blowing me off. At that moment, he died. "You're kidding me!"
"I told you so."
"You," he said in a warning tone.
At that point, his friend, Mello, walked over. "Matt, are you coming?" he said. Then he noticed me. "Who's this?"
"My name's Patience," I replied, somewhat used to the new name by then.
"I'm Mello, and that's Matt," Mello said, gesturing to his friend. "Come on, Matt. You can do that at the table."
Mello began to walk away, and Matt then looked at me. "You've played this before?" he asked.
"And won," I said with a smirk. "Why? You want to learn from the master?"
Matt frowned, but he nodded nonetheless. I walked with him towards his table, Allison smiling as she tailed us.
That was the day I met Matt and Mello. These two boys were some of the people I would come to grow fond of at Wammy's. I guess I hadn't remembered to stay by myself, since it always ended up the same. I always ended up alone in the end.