I. I Came

On the whole, Light Yagami thought that Earth was a truly rotten place.

When he watched the news, saw the death and destruction being wrought by people who could be using modern technology to improve the world instead, saw the madness and unsalvageable ignorance in their eyes, he found himself furiously gripping the remote. When he sat at the dining room table and listened to his younger sister gush pathetically over Hideki Ryuga, listened to his sweet mother as she enthusiastically congratulated her only son on his always-perfect academic achievements, and listened to his dutiful father as he recounted tales of distributing justice to the deserving, his thoughts were consumed with God they are so unbelievably stupid how long can you talk only so many hours in the day would you just shut your fucking

But he just pasted on his patented sweetheart smile, and he endured. He forever endured the endless, infernal ennui that his existence seemed to have been dragged into from his very birth.

During his primary education, Light had endeavored to stand out as little as possible. He wanted to fit in with everyone else. When the class had lessons, and Light's eyes were able to pick out the little things that the other children couldn't, Light remained silent. His teachers tried to encourage the brilliance they could see shining through his eyes, but he resisted being put on that pedestal for as long as he possibly could. However, once he reached junior high school, and puberty and hormones and all other variations of insanity, Light suddenly found himself struggling to maintain the thin veneer between himself and his utter detestation forthe human race. He found himself having to make a physical effort not to just unleash all of his malicious condescension on every imbecile that deserved it – and rarely were there people who did not truly deserve it.

Needless to say, by the age of thirteen, Light had realised that his thought processes existed on a different wavelength from everyone else's. It didn't concern him in the slightest. He had accepted the fact years ago. The important part was that Light had realised something more relevant:

People are sheep.

For the next two years, Light just did whatever the fuck he wanted.

He manipulated his teachers, peers and family, bending them to his will so as to get through middle school with the least amount of effort possible. It was almost excruciatingly easy. One sweet smile showcasing his perfectly straight white teeth, one soft touch of his meticulously manicured fingertips, or one subtle glance of his green-gray-gold eyes from beneath his dark blonde eyelashes, and his target would crumble to pieces in the palm of his hand.

Light was ecstatic when he finally reached high school. He was interested in testing his abilities in a larger, more advanced arena – in recording the group's reactions for further analysis. Just how far could he take things before someone noticed what he was doing and attempted to end it? (Light did adore his challenges.)

On his first day at Daikoku Private Academy, he approached the school green with the intention of befriending a few older students. Light had most likely already hit his last growth spurt, standing above average at approximately 5'11", and his pretty face was mature enough to get by. Just a bit of sweet-talking should have been enough for him to hook his talons into several different social circles.

He didn't account for his first day at Daikoku possibly being the first day that Light Yagami would be knocked on his ass.

As he entered the gates, he caught the eye of a pretty blonde standing in the shade of some overhanging trees with a few others. Her stature, posture, dress and the way that the ensemble seemed to hang on her every word suggested that she had some sort of power at the institution, and he smiled her in that way, the one that had gotten him free passage into his history teacher's pants in the 9th grade (purely for experimental reasons, of course).

He watched in satisfaction as her eyes softened, her painted lashes fluttering downward demurely over her blue eyes, enhanced by contacts. Light lengthened his stride as she began gesturing towards him with flustered hands, and her vapid friends all turned to watch as he made his way over.

However, as his foot crossed pavement, he was suddenly barreled into by an unseen figure and sent tumbling into the grass. His head bounced lightly against the sidewalk as he fell, and the stranger fell on top of him.

Light groaned quietly, feeling along the back of his skull for lumps or cuts as the noise involuntarily escaped him. He internally berated himself for being so single-minded. In the past, no one had ever approached Light, intentionally or by happenstance, unless he wished it so, and as such, he had been caught fairly off-guard. His thoughts were redirected when an uncomfortable feeling of shifting registered from his chest area.

He finally opened his eyes, only to find a boy sitting on top of his torso.

The older boy was gazing at him blankly, legs folded up and tucked under his chin, as he rested one of his hands on his bent right knee and sucked the thumb on his left hand between his lips simultaneously. "Hello," the boy said, his low, quiet voice distorted by the flesh in his mouth. "I apologise for knocking you over."

Light instantly felt rage bubble up in his chest. Determined as he was, though, Light grasped that ire around its metaphorically emaciated neck and buried it – deep. He had become so accustomed to lying and suppressing impractical emotions that the whole process took less than a fraction of a second. His outward mask remained perfectly uncompromised. He smiled the reassuring, indulgent smile that always garnered a blush from females and a relieved answering grin from males. "It's quite alright. Could you get off of me, though?"

Instead of reacting in one of the aforementioned manners that Light had anticipated, however, the infuriating boy simply gazed back at him vacantly. "Interesting," he mumbled, as if to himself. He gazed right into Light's eyes and spoke to him, but it didn't seem deliberate. "Just half a second ago, you looked as though you wanted to asphyxiate me with your eyes, but now…a friendly, harmless schoolboy. Very interesting."

Light's blood froze in his veins when he realised that this boy had caught and analysed his reaction flawlessly. He assiduously kept the veil yanked firmly down as he sat up straight, causing his assailant to collapse awkwardly into his lap.

Only then did the other boy move off of Light's body, and he did so with a certain careless air. Recovering his usual grace and poise, Light rose, meticulously brushing the dirt from his clothing and smoothing his hair back down. Now that he was in a less distressing position, Light could more properly scrutinise the peculiar, black-haired boy standing before him.

He had forgone the standard black loafers for a battered white pair of running shoes. The cedar-coloured slacks hung off of him, several sizes too large for his apparently thin frame. The collared, white shirt suffered much the same fate, one side tucked in as the other hung loosely, top two buttons undone and collar pulled slightly to the side to reveal a skeletal collarbone. His face was smooth and pale, eyes enormous and dark, with matching black rings lining the lower lids. Light struggled to conceal his surprise when he finally noticed the glimmer of sentience that set this boy apart from the billions of people that Light had found himself fighting to tolerate every day of his life.

"Light Yagami," he introduced himself. Just for the barest hint of a moment, he permitted the façade to recede, meeting the other youth's intelligent eyes meaningfully. "It's lovely to meet you," he finished, offering an affable hand.

"L," the ebony-haired enigma pronounced unblinkingly. "L Lawliet."