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Light Yagami was, in all respects, a fairly normal teen. Not average in any way, but pretty normal. He had loving parents, a little sister that he pretended to hate, and even though he was probably the best student in his entire state, he flew pretty much under the radar at school. Not too unknown, but not too popular either. Of course, with normalcy comes the unfortunate state of boredom . Light was plagued by it. And although he attended a pretty elite school that flouted its academic programs as the best in Washington state, Light never felt truly challenged by his classes or his peers.
It was thus pretty fortunate that Light’s father was the head of the Seattle FBI field office. Soichiro Yagami was a busy man and found himself bringing work home more often than not. Though his husband, Christopher, wasn’t the biggest fan, Soichiro didn’t mind it too much, as it allowed him to at least spend some time at home and his son loved to look over cases and offer his thoughts and observations. Seeing their son get truly excited about something every once in a while was probably what made Chris put up with it so much, even if the cases sometimes were grisly murders.
Regardless, Light had a mostly normal life. Despite occasionally helping his father with cases, Light’s routine hardly ever changed: wake up, go to school, go home, go to bed. However, there was one particular day, a day that would break the routine, the pattern of normalcy , and change everything forever.
“ BRINNGGG ” Light’s alarm clock jolted him awake, and the teen reached to turn it off as he rubbed his eyes and yawned. After a brief moment of hesitation, Light pulled off his covers and stood up to stretch. Sidestepping the sleeping dog sprawled at the end of his bed, he shuffled out of his room and across the hall to the already occupied bathroom.
“Light! Can you tie my ribbons please?” his sister, Sayu, asked, holding out a dark blue ribbon. Light took it and set the ribbon down on the bathroom counter, patting Sayu’s head as he passed.
“Let me brush my teeth first, kay?” he said, pulling his toothbrush out of the cup next to the sink.
“Okay...Hurry up though!” Sayu said with all the patience of a nine-year-old.
“I’m going, I’m going,” Light replied, grabbing the toothpaste. He brushed his teeth quickly, making funny expressions at his sister, who was watching him in the mirror. Finally, Light spat and wiped his mouth on a washcloth before gesturing to Sayu to turn around.
“Blue today, huh?” he said as he tied the ribbon in a bow around Sayu’s puff of curly hair.
“Yep! It matches the color of the sky at night because we’re learning about the solar system in class this week!” she answered.
“Wow, that sounds fun!” Light said, smiling at his sister’s excitement. “All done.”
“Thanks, Light!”
Light followed his sister out of the bathroom and returned back to his room to change. After putting on his school uniform and grabbing his bag, he headed down the stairs to the kitchen where his dad was packing Sayu’s lunch into her dinosaur lunchbox.
“Good morning Light,” his dad said, smiling as his son entered the kitchen. Christopher “Call me Chris” Yagami was tall, dark-skinned, and had a smattering of grey through his black, coily hair. He used to be a journalist and had met Soichiro when he’d been overseas doing a story about a series of killings in Japan. After the two had moved to America together and started a family, Chris had become a freelance writer and stay-at-home dad to their two kids.
“Do you want some breakfast before you head out? I’ve got some bread in the toaster right now,” he asked Light, who was tugging on his tennis shoes.
“No thanks Dad, I gotta head out,” Light replied. “I’ll take an apple on the way though if you could toss me one.”
Chris opened up the fridge and grabbed a red delicious apple from the bottom shelf, before tossing it to his son. Light caught it in one hand and Sayu cheered.
“Nice catch kid! That’s the last of the apples though, so remind me to get some more next time I go grocery shopping,” Chris said and waved after his son as he went out the door. “Have a nice day!”
“You too Dad! Bye Sayu!” Light called out over his shoulder, heading down the porch steps and grabbing his bike where it leaned against the garage. Hopping on to the rusty, old red bicycle, Light peddled down the driveway and onto the sidewalk, heading to school.
Light stared out the window, watching the clouds pass by the window as his English teacher droned on in the background. Light didn’t fancy himself as much of a daydreamer, but there was something soothing about watching the wind carry the white shapes overhead. It was then that something caught his eye. A small object was falling from seemingly nowhere, and Light watched as it fell to the ground, landing in a clump of bushes in the courtyard.
“Light!” his teacher snapped, breaking him out of his thoughts.
“Yes Mrs. Dowell?” he answered, looking away from the window.
“Can you answer question fourteen for us please?”
Light glanced down at the open textbook in front of him. “Of course. One of the elements that Shakespeare uses to tie Hamlet to the events and attitudes of his time period is his use of biblical allusions. This helps illustrate the widespread devotion and following of the English people to the Church and to God.”
“Very good. Now, if you all will turn to the next page in your book…” The teacher turned away and continued talking, but Light pretty much zoned out almost immediately. He looked back out the window at the courtyard below, staring at the clump of bushes where the mysterious object had fallen moments before.
I wonder…
The bell finally rang, setting the students of Daikoku Private Academy free for the day. Light grabbed his messenger bag from its place beside his desk and strode out of the room. He walked quickly, trying to avoid having to socialize with anyone but that hope was dashed as someone fell into step beside him.
“Hey, Light! What’re you doing after school today?” Kiyomi Takada asked, smiling brightly.
“Just the normal routine: go home, test prep, study, sleep,” Light answered without looking at her. If I act uninterested, she’ll go away , he thought to himself.
“That’s so boring! You should come with us to Marie’s and get ice cream. It’ll be a ton of fun!” she suggested.
Light played with the strap of his bag and shrugged. “Sorry Kiyomi, but I can’t. You know how my parents are about my grades.” He felt a pang of guilt for using his dads as an excuse to get out of hanging with Takada and her friends, but his curiosity about the black object and desire to be alone won out.
“Aw,” Takada pouted. “Maybe next time then?”
“Yeah sure,” Light replied. They reached the end of the hallway and a group of teenagers waved at Takada.
“Well, I’ll see ya later Light!” she said, walking over to join her friends.
“Bye,” he muttered, already heading down the stairs.
After reaching the bottom of the stairs, Light headed out the glass double doors into the courtyard, scanning the ground for any sign of the fallen black object.
“This is stupid, someone probably already picked it up,” he mumbled to himself as he walked along the sidewalk. However, as he was contemplating just leaving and going home, a flash of white caught his eye. There, caught in a bush, was a black notebook, the pages fluttering in the breeze.
“Huh, that must be what I saw earlier. But why would someone throw a notebook off a roof?” Light wondered aloud, picking the notebook out of the bush and brushing off the cover. “Death Note,” he read, fingers running over the raised white letters on the front of the book.
Light flipped open to the first page, where a list of what appeared to be rules was written.
1. The human whose name is written in this notebook shall die. Light raised an eyebrow. That’s pretty morbid, he thought to himself and continued reading.
- The human whose name is written in this note shall die.
- This note will not take effect unless the writer has the person's face in their mind when writing his/her name. Therefore, people sharing the same name will not be affected.
- If the cause of death is written within the next 40 seconds of writing the person's name, it will happen.
- If the cause of death is not specified, the person will simply die of a heart attack.
- After writing the cause of death, details of the death should be written in the next 6 minutes and 40 seconds.
What kind of sick person would come up with this stuff? Light thought, closing the notebook with a snap. It’s definitely a stupid joke, and I should just throw it away.
Yet some impulse led Light to stuff the notebook in his bag, instead of tossing it in a bin as he intended. “Maybe I could show it to Dad, it might make him laugh,” the teen mused, and started walking towards the bike racks. Deciding to take the slower route, Light unlocked his bike and began walking home, pushing it along at his side.
As he traversed the streets of Seattle, Light passed by a small storefront with rows of TVs displayed in the window. They were all playing the same news channel, and Light glanced at the screens, quickly checking the headlines to see if there was anything important.
Local Middle School Held Hostage By Active Shooter , scrolled across the screen. Though he couldn’t hear the news anchor, Light stopped in front of the window to keep watching. Someone off-set held out a paper, which the news anchor grabbed and started reading from. A grainy mug-shot with a name underneath it appeared on the screen, and Light watched as the headline changed. “Active shooter has been identified, Manuel Devlin, 49,” he read aloud. Light brought his hand up to fiddle with his bag strap and as he did, a jolt of recognition shot through him. The notebook!
Light leaned his bike against a street lamp before reaching into his bag and pulling out the Death Note, rummaging around for a pen with his other hand. He flipped past the page full of rules and opened to a blank sheet of ruled paper. Here goes nothing , he thought and quickly scribbled down “Manuel Devlin” at the top of the page.
“And now we wait,” Light muttered, pushing the sleeve of his jacket back to look at his watch.
40…...
4….
3…
2..
1.
Light looked back up at the TV through the window. The channel was still showing the news anchor talking about the situation, and the headline hadn’t changed. Live footage from the school showed in the corner, and nothing had happened.
“Figures,” Light huffed, and shrugging his shoulders, put the notebook back into his bag. He leaned over to pick up his bike and hop onto the seat. Light glanced back at the window one last time, and his eyes widened as a new headline ran across the bottom of the screens: BREAKING: SHOOTER FOUND DEAD INSIDE SCHOOL. Light got off his bike, carelessly dropping it to the ground, before running inside the store.
Inside, the cashier was facing away from the door, eyes glued to the TV mounted on the back wall. Light stopped, listening intently to the reporting from the news anchors on the live feed.
“-hostages fled the building and the armed police units moved inside. We have a source confirming that the police are not responsible for the death of the shooter. I repeat, the police are not responsible for the death of the shooter. Hostages on the scene are claiming that he suffered from what appeared to be a heart attack. Back to-”
The roaring in his ears blocked out all other sounds, and Light’s eyes widened as the realization of what had happened struck him.
“Oh my god,” he whispered breathlessly. “It worked .”
Light returned home that night much later than usual. Instead of greeting his father or hugging his sister, the teen went straight up to his room, locking the door behind him. Light dropped his bag to the floor and sat on the bed, putting his head in his hands.
“What have I done ,” he muttered, eyes wide in shock and fear. “Oh god, oh god. I killed someone . Oh my god, what am I going to do?” Light stood and began pacing around his room, running his hands through his hair restlessly. As he passed by the desk across from his bed, Light tripped on the bag he’d dropped to the floor and its contents spilled out. He froze. The Death Note lay there, its black cover stark against the white carpet of his room.
“Oh god. I-I need to get rid of it. I should toss it,” Light picked up the notebook and moved towards the door. Before he could grab the handle however, something stopped him. Light looked down at the black book in his hands, and he hesitated.
Maybe, maybe I should keep it. You never know if something will happen, you know? I’d never really use it, not really. Only in emergencies. Light tightened his grip on the notebook. And besides, what if I got rid of it and someone else found it? They might do bad things with it. If anything, I’m keeping it and the world safe by having the book. Slowly, Light turned away from the door, making his way back to sitting on the edge of his bed.
“ LIGHT! ” Chris called up the stairs. “ DINNER! ”
“COMING DAD!” Light shouted back. He took a deep breath and stood up, the Death Note still in his hand. Quickly, Light shoved the notebook under his bed and headed downstairs.
Throughout dinner, Light could barely eat. After managing to shove down a few bites of his dad’s homemade lasagna, he set his fork down and pushed back from the table.
“I’m not really hungry, Dad. Can I go back up to my room?”
“Not hungry? You always love my lasagna!” Chris said, his voice laced with concern. “What’s up kiddo? You’ve been acting off all evening, and you skipped your prep class.”
Light looked down at his lap, staying silent.
Chris sighed and reached out to rub his son’s shoulder. “Did something happen at school today? Are there some kids bothering you? I know you don’t like me to interfere with stuff like this, but it’s my job as a parent to-”
“It’s nothing, Dad. I’m fine, I promise,” Light interrupted.
“Well, then what’s going on?”
“I’m just tired today, I guess. The SATs are coming up, and I’ve been under a lot of stress lately,” Light lied, not looking at his dad in the eye.
“Oh Light, I wish you’d just say so,” his dad replied, his voice turned softer and worried. “I know you work hard, and your father and I are so proud of you, but we don’t want you to burn yourself out, okay? Your health is more important to us than your test scores.”
Inwardly, Light felt a stab of regret for lying. He knew how much his dads cared about him, but at the same time, the truth was too unbelievable, too dangerous for them to know about.
“I know Dad. I’ll go to bed early tonight, okay?”
“Alright. I just want you to take care of yourself,” Chris replied, patting Light on the back before turning back to his plate full of pasta. “I’m going to run by the store after dinner to pick up some stuff for dessert. Your father’s going to be home late, so I figured I’d make something we can all eat together tonight. Do you want to come with, Light?”
“No thanks, Dad. I still have some reading to do for class tomorrow.”
“You sure?” Light nodded. “Alrighty then. Don’t work too hard kiddo.”
Light pushed his chair back and got up from the table, ruffling his sister's hair as he walked past.
“HEY!” Sayu yelled.
“Sayu, inside voices,” their dad calmly reminded her.
Light headed back to his room, locking the door behind him and immediately reaching for the Death Note. He flipped it open, staring absent-mindedly at the name at the top of the page. “Manuel Devlin,” written in shaky letters.
The sound of his phone going off jolted Light back to reality and he snapped the notebook shut, tucking it back underneath his bed. Pressing his thumb to the screen, Light opened up his notifications, which showed that he’d been tagged in a photo. It was a group selfie of Takada and some of his classmates at Marie’s , the ice cream shop that she’d invited him to earlier.
“ nothing like ice cream at marie’s to really brighten up your day! wish @yagami_light was there tho :(“
Light rolled his eyes and closed the app. He’d known about Takada’s crush on him for a while now, but had been hoping that she’d get over it and leave him alone. Unfortunately, it looks like that won’t be happening anytime soon , he thought to himself.
Light’s phone pinged again, and he slid open a text from his dad.
“ Heading to the store, text me anything you need”
He typed out an “ ok ” and sent it. Thinking for a second, he sent a second text, “ apples. ” Light shut off his phone and flopped back to lay down on the bed. Suddenly exhausted, he buried his head in his pillow and drifted off to sleep.
“Light? Light?”
The teen in question rubbed his eyes and sat up, looking towards the door.
“What is it Sayu?” he called out.
His sister opened the door and Light could see tears dripping down her face.
“Sayu, what’s wrong? What happened?” Light stood up and knelt in front of his sister, pulling her in for a tight embrace.
“D-daddy isn’t back yet, a-and he said he’d be, be back three hours ago!” she hiccuped into his shoulder. “Otou-san isn’t here either, and I’m s-scared.”
“Hey, hey, everything’s all right,” Light said soothingly. “Otou-san is just late from work, that’s all! And I’m sure Dad is just fine, he probably got stuck in traffic. Why don’t we give him a call, huh?” Sayu nodded, sniffling.
Light smiled reassuringly at his little sister, grabbing his phone from the bed. As he held the device up to his ear and listened to the dial tone, Light tried to tamp down his own fears. Logically, there’d be no traffic around ten at night in their area of town and Light couldn’t stop himself from jumping to conclusions. What if he was mugged? Or maybe something happened to Dad and they had to go to the police station or the hospital?
The robotic voice of his dad’s answering machine snapped Light out of his thoughts, and he frowned. Why isn’t he answering his phone?
“I’m gonna try and call Otou-san, ok?” Light dialed his father’s personal cell, hoping that he’d pick up. Sayu’s lip started quivering, and Light put his arm around her, trying to keep his worry out of his face.
Finally, the line clicked.
“Light? Where are you?” Soichiro’s gruff, accented English was punctuated with worry.
“I’m at home with Sayu. Have you heard from Dad? He went out to the store and hasn’t come home yet,” Light replied, feeling relief at the sound of his father’s voice.
“Light, I need you and Sayu to come down to the station. I’m sending Matsuda down to pick you up, ok? He’ll be there soon.”
“Otou-san, what’s going on? Where’s Dad?” Light asked, a lump rising in his throat.
“Just, come down. I’ll explain everything here,” Soichiro replied, his voice rough. “I’ll see you soon, ok?”
“Al-alright. See you.” The call ended with a beep, and Light switched his phone off.
“Where’s Daddy?” Sayu asked.
Light squeezed Sayu tight in a hug and stood up. “Otou-san says we need to go down to the station to talk to him. That means you need to get dressed, okay?”
Sayu nodded quickly, and Light followed her to her room, waiting outside as she changed.
While Sayu was getting ready, the doorbell rang and Light went down the stairs into the entryway to answer it.
“Hey Light,” Matsuda greeted him, but the usually cheerful and upbeat young detective was oddly subdued. “Your dad sent me down to pick you and Sayu up.”
Light nodded and moved aside so Matsuda could step inside the house. “Sayu’s getting dressed. As soon as she’s ready we can go.”
As if on cue, Sayu came down the stairs. She was wearing one of their dad’s college t-shirts that had shrunk in the laundry and jeans with little flowers and hearts around the cuffs.
“Ready?” she nodded, and the two siblings followed Matsuda to the police car outside. After settling Sayu in the back, Light hopped in the passenger seat and buckled up, gazing out the window as they pulled out of the driveway. He leaned his head against the cool glass, watching his breath fog up the glass.
“We’ll be there in just a couple of minutes guys,” Matsuda said, his words awkwardly cutting through the silence. Neither Light nor Sayu answered, and the rest of the car ride was completely silent. It seemed that even Sayu had picked up that something not quite right was going on, and Matsuda’s unusual somberness was setting off alarm bells in Light’s head.
When the three arrived at the police station, Soichiro was standing outside the doors waiting for them. Sayu immediately perked up and ran out of the car as soon as they came to a stop.
“Otou-san!” she cried as she was pulled into a hug. Light got out of the car much slower and as he approached his father and sister, he noticed the dried tear tracks on his father’s face and the red rimming his eyes.
Soichiro set Sayu down and pulled his son into a tight hug as well, which Light eagerly leaned into.
After being released, Light looked his dad in the eyes and asked him straight up, “Otou-san, what’s happening?”
Light’s father breathed a deep sigh, and his eyes welled up. “Your dad, was um. Out getting groceries. And uh,” Soichiro cleared his throat. “There was an attempted robbery in the store.”
Light froze.
“Chris tried to stop them, but when the nearest patrol turned up, they uh, they thought he was one of them. And-” a sob caught in his throat, and Matsuda stepped closer, resting a hand on the chief’s shoulder.
“Your dad was shot at the scene. And he...he didn’t make it.”
The world stopped.
Light drew in a shuddering breath, trying to hold in the sobs threatening to shake his ribcage apart. No, he can’t be gone. Not Light’s Dad . He took a few steps forward, trying to see inside the windows of the precinct as if this was all a colossal mistake, and inside the doors, his dad was waiting for them to come and get him. But the waiting area was empty. It was just them. Three-fourths of a family that would never be whole again.
Light felt strong arms wrap around him, and his shoulders shook in the embrace of his father. Sayu tugged on the edge of his coat, and Light broke away so he could lift her up into his arms, and Soichiro hugged them both to him. Holding together a family that had been so irreparably torn apart.
It was days later when Light remembered. Remembered the little black book tucked neatly under the corner of his bed. For the first time since his life shattered, a gleam, a spark of something entered Light’s eyes as he stared at the Death Note. He could almost feel the blank pages beckoning to him, offering him the vengeance, no, the justice that his father deserved.
A crooked grin spread across Light’s face, and he reached for a pen.