#my very first misa figure. it makes me so happy

[thesecondkira]

Misa Amane Figure by ABYstyle. Available now for €34.99 ($37.33)

Website: abystyle.com

[truly-hopeless]

Hi! That's impressive list! Can I pick two? I couldn't decide only on one, lol. So... Love Notes and vampire!L the undying detective? ^^

Sure thing; you are the first person to send me a real ask (all other times it was a bot advertising an adult website) so I'm happy.

Love Notes is an AU where, instead of a Death Note, Light gets a notebook that allows him to make two (or more) people feel infatuation towards each other. And because Light is Light, who is a perfectionist and a closet hopeless romantic in this universe, he's not content to just put random people together for one date, uses the Love Note to send detailed instructions to one or more of the lovebirds in order to make sure the relationship lasts. This earns him the nickname Eros (after the Greek god of love) and there's a mix of people who are either happy he's around and hoping that he can help them in their love life or pissed that he's meddling instead of letting relationships succeed or fail on their own merits (with a few people just being bitter that Eros isn't helping them find a partner even though Light knows they're trash). And things only get more complicated when L announces that he plans to capture Eros and that he knows he's in Japan and Light notices that there is a marking on his wrist that Ryuk (who is an actual love god in this universe instead of a death god) tells him it is a soulmate marking that appears on human Love Note users and their intendeds when they "meet." I'm still in the prologue/first chapter (haven't updated this in a while since it's one of the ones in the Dropbox folder and I feel I can't be bothered to fully retrieve it), but I see parts of the plot playing out like the Eros/Psyche myth, specifically a falling out that happens between Light and L (after they've become close) when L finds proof Light is Eros while he's asleep, while not being a one-to-one retelling (there is no abduction/marriage plot from Light [keeping a partner in a lavish palace and visiting them at night with the lights out is more something L would be more likely to do than Light, let's be honest], there is no Aphrodite equivalent, and I don't see any of the Wammy House students [except maybe Beyond] trying to ruin L's chances at love like Psyche's sisters did to her).

The Undying Detective is a bit more complicated. I started it a little before the other Vampire!L AU because I knew that I wanted to write a fic where L was a vampire, but was still trying to figure out the how and the why and I ended up leaving it after sometime (haven't deleted it because there's always a chance I'll pick it up again, but I haven't added to it or changed it in about two years). I will share what I wrote and then also share what I wanted to happen but could not find the words to convey it:

"Please Ryuzaki," Light begged. "If you're right and the thirteen day rule is false, then Kira likely meant for you to figure it out to have you killed the moment you challenge it."

"How would Kira kill me, Light-kun? Kira does not have my name. Misa Amane has not been allowed back into headquarters since she left and the only ones allowed in here are members of the Task Force and you. Unless there's something you would like to tell me."

Light's heart broke. This again? After all this time? "The Shinigami Rem seems very protective of Misa and she has her own Death Note. The only reason I'm no longer handcuffed to you and Misa was allowed to leave was because that rule 'proved' our innocence. With Kira being active again and no other suspects, suspicion would fall back on us if the rule is proven false and you would likely execute us. Rem might kill you to try to prevent you from killing Misa. But of course," Light let out a bitter laugh, "you don't care about that as long you're able to 'prove' I'm Kira once and for all. Why do I even--?"

He suddenly slipped on a wet spot and fell to the concrete, his arm scraping painfully against the railing.

"You're bleeding."

"Oh, really? Thank you for pointing it out to me, I never would have known." Light hissed in pain as he touched his injury. There was a lot more blood than he was expecting and it almost made him sick.

"Sarcasm does not suit you." L held out his hand to Light and helped him up. "Come on, we've been out here long enough."

He helped Light dry off and he started treating the scraped area. His bony hands were surprisingly gentle as he disinfected the cut and wrapped a bandage around it.

"I just want to know the truth, Light." Light took note of the dropped honorific. "I no longer believe you're Kira, but I believe that you have been keeping secrets."

"Like what?"

"Such as how you know my real name."

Oh no. "What are you talking about? I don't--"

"Please don't lie to me. You said my name in your sleep the night before Higuchi was caught. You did not say 'L' or 'Ryuzaki.' You said 'Lawliet,' my last name. The only living people who know that name are me and Watari. How do you know it?"

Light sighed. He'd been dreading this moment, knowing that by telling L this he risked either getting committed or earning the detective's scorn and he didn't know which was worse. But if telling him the truth would prevent L from killing himself, it would be worth it.

After checking to make sure Rem was no where in earshot, he confessed, "For as long as I can remember, possibly the day I was born, I've been able to see a name and a number over people's heads. The names are the true names and the numbers are when they are going to die. I cannot see when I will die, but I can see when my family and friends will die and knowing that has made me feel so alone. I was unable to tell anyone about it because I knew I wouldn't be believed. The loneliness grew when Kira started killing, with people suddenly dying before their time and me becoming your prime suspect. There was a brief time where I thought that I found someone who understood what I was going through--"

"Misa Amane."

"Yes. She was like me, she could see the names and numbers as well and also lacked her own number. She approached me and told me she loved me and I believed her. But I soon learned that she loved Kira more and that she had only approached me in the first place because she thought I was him. And then you locked both of us up because you believed we were the first and second Kira and when I next saw her she was no longer like me and couldn't even remember why she started dating me, leaving me feeling alone once again.

"I at first resented you for this, for taking away my freedom and somehow making Misa and I no longer have anything in common, and the sixty days of solitary confinement and having my father pretend he was going to kill me certainly didn't help endear you to me. But the more time I spent with you as we looked Kira and the more I learned about you as you started to opening up to me, I became comfortable around you and I... I fell in love with you, L. But I couldn't bring myself to tell you the truth before now because I was afraid. Afraid that it would serve as a confession to you that I was Kira and afraid that you would hate me for being so unnatural. But none of that matters now. You can arrest me and execute me if that will satisfy you. Just please do not throw your life away."

L was silent for a long moment after he tied off the bandage. He just stared at Light with those large dark eyes.

Finally, he said, "I appreciate your honesty and concern, Light. But I still need to test the rule. It's the only way the Task Force will understand and the only way to get closer to catching Kira. If you're not Kira and Amane-san has become Kira again, then she has to know by now who the original Kira is. We can try to make a deal with the Shinigami in order to learn his identity, but I doubt she will trust me. Promise me that you will make sure the rule is tested when I die."

"Don't talk like that! Like it's already too late!"

"It is. We will be parting ways very soon, I can feel it. But you have nothing to fear. I know that you can finish this case in my absence and if the Task Force refuses to cooperate, you'll have help from some friends of mine, friends that Kira does not know about. Will you promise to catch Kira when I'm gone?"

"I will."

L smiled. Then he leaned forward and pressed his lips against Light's. After a moment of hesitation, Light returned the kiss, his fingers tangling in the detective's hair as tears fell down his face.

---------

"Everyone, the Shinigami--!" L then clutched his chest as if in pain, the spoon he was using to stir his tea slipping from his other hand as he started falling.

Light ran forward and caught L and looked down at him.

No, please no! Not like this!

L squeezed Light's hand, a sad smile on his face as he saw the younger man's tears.

"Sorry...it had to...end...like this." It seemed to hurt for him to speak. His eyes began to close. "You're...not Kira. I wish I..."

His heart stopped beating and Light saw the name "L Lawliet" disappear along with the remaining years he should have lived.

From here, I had in mind that the other Task Force members start dropping dead too until only Light is left. Misa enters, as does Kira (Teru Mikami, because he's my usual go-to for an alternate Kira), and they give Light a choice: join them or die. Light is horrified, but is also pissed off and heartbroken that he lost his father, several of his friends, and the love of his life, and calls both of them out, daring them to kill him. One of them strikes him, causing Light to stumble and hit his head hard enough to draw blood. Several of the drops land on L and, without anyone noticing, seeps into his skin.

The last thing Light sees before he passes out, believing that he will die, is L standing up and preventing Mikami from writing his name down by breaking his wrist. When he wakes up again, L tells him that the Kiras are in custody and awaiting trial. While Light is glad that L is back, he's still grieving the deaths of the other Task Force members and is concerned that he can no longer see L's name at all and that neither of them know why that is, or why L is hungry/thirsty all the time no matter how much he eats.

The rest of the story would be them figuring out that L is a vampire and trying to navigate everything from there. I might come back to this someday, but I have too much going on at this time.

[grimalkinmessor]

Actually actually actually—I think I will expand a bit on my BNHA/DN character parallels just a little bit because,,,,

I just realized that Doctor Garaki's orphan hospital is a lot like Wammy's House :')

BUT I will go in order because why not: Matsuda and Midoriya.

I think this one's kind of obvious but I'll expand on it nonetheless; Midoriya may be the main character to Matsuda's side character, but their personalities and roles are very similar. They're both unfailingly kind and they see the best in people, to the point that it's easy for them to empathize and see from the villain's point of view. They tend to adopt the same beliefs as those around them and/or above them until something happens to challenge those beliefs. They both have elder mentor figures that they want to be like (Soichiro and All Might) and they are constantly striving to be like their mentors. Midoriya and Matsuda also share a sense of worthlessness in the face of idle hands—meaning that if they don't feel like they're doing something useful, they will try to find some other way to help. Both Matsuda and Midoriya are always, always, trying to help.

Bakugou and Aizawa is a little less steady comparison wise, but they're both hot-headed and loyal people. They both think they know what's best but aren't afraid to (reluctantly) take orders from others if they know, logically, that those orders are going to further the goal. They both prefer to be hands-on, and they both have a role in sticking by the happy-yet-sad-too-trusting-kid to both insult them into submission and keep them from dying and/or protecting them. Bakugou-Midoriya and Aizawa-Matsuda are both very antagonistic/protective relationships, it's kinda funny.

Misa and Toga I feel like I don't have to explain. Sure, they have a lot more differences than the others but honestly I think that if Ohba hadn't been such a pussy when it came to giving his female characters actual character then they'd be extremely similar. Twins, even. Let 👏 Misa 👏 Be 👏 Feral 👏👏👏

Light and Yoichi is a comparison that was odd for me to make for several reasons, first and foremost of which being that Yoichi isn't the villain in his story. (Second of which being Yoichi is a soft boi but we'll come back to that). But I ended up on Yoichi for Light because 1. I had already chosen L's parallel character and 2. their roles in their stories are very similar if you look at the intent behind them. A man who stands behind others, surrounding himself with like-minded people as he urges them to fight for the cause of the greater good, to save the world, even if they die in the crossfire—knowing, even, that they're likely going to die in the crossfire. Now yes, Yoichi physically CAN'T fight on the front lines because he's DEAD, and his greater good is actually, you know, good, but again the intent there is the same. Their roles in relation to their respective antagonists are also very similar: another man in the shadows is hunting you down with a fervor known only to wild predator animals and you are doing everything possible to not only keep out of his clutches but also to stop him from impeding the safe growth of what you consider to be a good world. Idk Yoichi just seemed like the most logical conclusion.

Mello and Dabi is an easier comparison for a few reasons (though yes I did consider Dabi for a Ryuk parallel for a minute or two). The most obvious of which being their recklessness and viciousness. They both have burn scars because they're both idiots that blew themselves up out of spite like,,,how. Mello parallels Dabi in that he 1. leaves home, 2. has a younger 'brother' that he's competing with and cripplingly jealous of, 3. has so much ambition that he was willing to wait YEARS for his plans to come to fruition, 4. joined a group of dangerous criminals in order to further his goals, 5. committed enthusiastic arson. Plus, look at the way these two dress. You could cut a leather couch in half and get both of their wardrobes. Cunning goth little himbos, both of them.

Near is Todoroki's parallel for a lot of the same reasons as above. His role in relation to Mello is incredibly similar to Shoto's in relation to Dabi. A younger competitor that surpasses the elder unintentionally, only making the elder that much angrier, and has little to no desire to actually be the successor of the man the elder idolizes. They are literally just fuckin' sitting here. Also, less and also more important—both of them are socially stunted and autistic ✨ "If I smile they'll die??" vibes from both of them plzzz. Both of them are also incredibly feral but the fandoms refuse to focus on that part for some reason.

Matt and Spinner. Less points, but honestly Exasperated Side Character With A Larger Role In A Main Character's Life Than You Anticipated That Also Goes Hard For Video Games is all I needed, really. Also they're both designated driver.

L and All For One—the whole reason I decided to expand on this—have SO. MANY. PARALLELS. They do not look like it at all and it drives me nuts because All For One may be a villain and my brain initially wanted to give him to Light but. No. No, L has this man down pat and it's a little infuriating :') This also comes down to me comparing Watari to Doctor Garaki but first things first: All For One is, at his core, a corporate head. Both he and L have spent literal decades building up their empires, both monetary wise and reputation wise, and used them to do whatever they hell they wanted. L may solve cases and put criminals away, but guess what? So does All For One! When it benefits him. L solves cases because he's bored, and he paints over the face of it as Justice™ because it gets him more sympathisers and tools to use. He's constantly playing a giant game of chess and people are little more than pawns and cannon fodder. He has Watari running a successor program so L can live on after he's gone, just like AFO has with Doctor Garaki (I wanted to make Near parallel Shigaraki bc of the line between Shigaraki and Dabi as AFO's potential successors, but Todoroki called his name instead so wcyd). Both of them play both sides of the board as a grand sort of puppet master, and the only thing that differs is what side they lean toward. L leans more towards lawful morality, AFO leans more toward anarchic depravity—both of them are ultimately playing for themselves.

I have a few more character parallels, but I'll stop here for today. I'd love to hear your thoughts on this :3

[dangerouscommiesubversive]

hi commie! prompt #1: touma/rintaro, 20!

The scenario for this one hit me like a bolt of lightning, it was awesome. Anyway, this prompt includes Touma being written as someone very much like me, and the kiss is definitely contextually goofy but also kind of romantic.

gestural reference

Touma's theoretically been writing for nearly an hour now, but as Rintaro enters the room he just groans and slumps forward, head thunking onto the desk right next to his paper. "Hi, Rintaro. Could you do me a favor and cut the top of my head off? At this point I'm starting to think I might write better if my brain got some fresh air."

Rintaro blinks. "That's a rather unsettling suggestion, Touma, are you all right?"

"No," to the tabletop. "It's the thumbs, you see. I can't figure out the thumbs."

"I'm...I'm sorry, the thumbs?"

Touma lifts both hands above his head and wiggles his thumbs, as well as the rest of his fingers, in a performance that would make a cheerleader recoil in dismay. "Thumbs. Can't get the hang of them. Can't figure out what they're doing."

"I. I see. May I...is there any way I can help?"

"Brain. Fresh air. Please--oh, no, wait, there is something," and Touma sits bolt upright in his chair, wild-eyed, "this is going to sound really strange--"

"No stranger than what you've already--

"--but can I grab your face?"

"--asked me to excuse me?" Rintaro blinks more, shakes himself, tugs on one of his earlobes in the vague thought that maybe he misheard. "You want to...grab my face?"

"I, look, I know it's a really weird thing to ask, I can explain." Touma huffs out a breath, looking awkward and apologetic. "See, I'm stuck on a scene in this thing I'm writing."

A slow nod. "The fantasy novel?"

"No, this is a short story for a magazine. I can't figure out how to describe what his thumbs are doing. I tried grabbing my own face, but then I can't really see my hands, so it doesn't tell me what I need to know."

Understanding dawns, although it's still definitely underlain with surprise and confusion, and Rintaro nods again. "So you want to replicate the gesture properly using a second model and get a better view of what's happening."

"Yes. That. Can I, I mean, do you mind?" Touma stands up, moves as if to come around the side of his desk, hesitates, gestures awkwardly again. "I'll absolutely understand if you don't want me to, you know, put my hands all over your face."

"No, not at all, I'd--I'm happy to assist."

Finally Touma comes out from behind his desk, and. It's definitely very strange, especially at first. Rintaro's not used to people touching his face at all outside of a first aid context, and Touma doesn't have small hands, and also they're both blushing and trying to make the situation minimally awkward and somehow that makes it much more awkward. He keeps noticing small details that he's hesitant to mention, as well--that Touma has a hangnail on one pinky, for example, and that the shape of the calluses on his right palm indicate a habitual sword grip that Rintaro can only think of as "unusual."

"I, is there anything I can do to, ah..."

"I think. I think this is helping." Touma's face is very close to his. "The angle's off, but of course you're a lot taller than Misa, and I can't exactly. I can't ask you to be shorter, you know?"

"Misa?"

"In the story. She's sort of...I've been kind of thinking of her as Mei-sized. So he's, she's got a cut on her cheekbone from this fencing match, and he helps bandage it, and he's smoothing the bandage down..." Touma's thumb brushes along Rintaro's cheekbone, very gently. "And they talk, and the dialogue I have just fine, it's just gestures that are a problem. You know, describing them. I think I have it figured out now, though."

"And, ah. What happens after that?"

"Well, then he kisses her. I, uh. Did I mention it's a romantic scene?"

"You...hadn't, no."

"Yeah, it's, the story's for a girls' magazine, they're putting together an issue of short romance stories from popular authors and they invited me, which is pretty flattering. A lot of my readers are teenage girls."

He hasn't let go of Rintaro's face. In the back of his mind, Rintaro can't help expecting one of their friends to walk in, and he's not sure that he welcomes the idea of their being interrupted in the middle of. Whatever it is one might call what they're doing right now. "I do recall fans of yours I've met being mostly young ladies." A beat, in which he considers abstractly the comfortable warmth of Touma's palms against his skin, and then, "Did you need any more gestural reference?"

A similar pause. He wonders what Touma is thinking about, looking very slightly down at him, both hands still on his face, saying, "Yeah, actually, if you don't mind--"

Thirty seconds later the door clicks open and Mei says, "Hey, how's that story--ohhh. Ok. Writing process, I know how it is, I'll come back." There's a pause, and the faint sound of a cell phone camera shutter button, which neither of them really notices. "See you guys in five, ok?"

[alkalinefrog]

may I request your top 10 favorie lawlight fics ?? I’m really interested

AIGHT BUCKLE UP BUTTERCUP because I’ve got a lot of feelings about these! Also, people have been asking me for fics featuring:

Ryuk shenanigans

yagami sibling hijinks

whammy kids found family

----- from my bingo card I made a while back. Tbh, I put those on the list to try and manifest the energy into the universe hoping people would bring fics to ME about them lmao. I do have a couple that check the boxes though! 

Also thank you to everyone who’s been recommending me fics!! You’ve all hit the nail on the head and sing straight to my heart! I’m just slow to make my way through them between work. <3

GOING UNDER THE CUT (rip mobile users)

Aight here we go, in no particular order:

“Change OR the one where L and Light get married” by @translightyagami (I’m so sorry I keep tagging you in these alsfjkalsfdj)

The one I never shut up about and am adapting part of into a comic because it’s just that GOOD. :’’’D Light and L get married in front of Watari and Light’s family back at the Whammy orphanage in England. A melancholy yet painfully sweet tale as Light and L reminisce on their history together while getting ready for the ceremony, and their first night together afterwards. Single-handedly sold me on Kira being intrinsically part of Light to boot.

“the forest holds strange creatures” by @translightyagami (I’m sorryyyyyyy I just love your stuff)

An AU where Light’s a paranormal researcher and L’s a reclusive cryptid living in the forest next to a small town. The writing has a fairytale feel to it, and the romance is so gentle. Light’s bunking at Whammy’s small little house, and Near and Mello are there as little kids pestering Light. It’s ADORABLE. Beyond Birthday also shows up in one of the extra chapters as a creepy cashier at a thrift shop for double the fun!

"Sickness” by BlueberryValentine (more fics on their fanfiction.net account!)

The ultimate hurt/comfort + fluff + angst with a happy ending fic. The first fic I read to get back into lawlight a couple months back! Canon divergence starting during the Yotsuba arc. Light is diagnosed with terminal brain cancer while still under investigation. L has to take care of him, and somewhere along the way they fall in love. It carved out a chunk of my heart but luckily filled it back up with a sweet sort of aching.

“Seeking His Hand” by magic__mind

Historical regency AU! L is a rich nobleman courting Light, a humble farm boy, for his hand in marriage. One of the most romantic pieces of literature that I have ever come across. The prose is pure poetry, and their love so pure! This one also has a special place in my heart for its portrayal of Misa! She’s A)a spy who helps L on his cases, B)totally removed from her co-dependence for Light, C)the  bubbly badass she was always meant to be. 100/10 worth the read!

The “Resurrections” Series by Shadow_of_Quill

A modern Orpheus and Euridice story, wherein Light’s spirit leads L back from Hades while he’s still Kira. L is thereby present for the confrontation at the warehouse. Believing that any trace of Light is lost in the man, he executes him right then and there. However, this was a grave mistake, and Light’s soul won’t be as easily revived. (spoilers, they’re both fine in the end) ******* THIS ONE ALSO INCLUDES YAGAMI SIBLING HIJINKS. Sayu plays a HUGE role in bringing Light back!

“Is This The Way It Ends Now?” by Seastar98

The one that checks off ALL the above three boxes!! A “characters watch their own show” fic, wherein the gang receives a mysterious DVD in the middle of the Yotsuba arc. Horrified by what’s to come, Light and L work to make sure their future is brighter than the one they witness. They bring in all three heirs to watch with ‘em, everyone gets character development, and Sayu comes in like black panther in endgame yet again to bring Light back from the darkness! Ryuk pops up in the end and the epilogue and he’s great. The ultimate and most direct fix-it you’re ever gonna get.

“From the Same Star” by Nilahxapiel

This is my only pure “Ryuk Shenanigans” fic, and it’s really really sad :’’’D A short but sweet one-shot wherein Ryuk traverses multiple dimensions, dropping the Death Note at Light’s feet each time. Light and L were always fated to clash, and it’s just as heartbreaking every time. 

“Primitive Liars” by Nilahxapiel

This one’s super popular in the fandom for a reason! The only omegaverse fic that I’ve liked! The A/B/O dynamics and their affect on society are super well developed, and the writer manages to keep L and Light very in character while still developing their budding romance in a believable way. This is an AU where somebody else is Kira, and Light’s genuinely helping L and the task force hunt him down. ***** Naomi Misora lives, the heirs come in, and Sayu actually hops aboard the task force!!! DUDE. BRILLIANT. I also just love the exploration of gender and identity that the author weaves in. Lots of LGBTQ rep!

“and indeed there will be time” by lawlietismyfavorite

The ultimate soulmate AU. People grow to be 18, then stop aging until they meet their one. L is the greatest detective of not only this century, but of six centuries. And then there's Light. (taken straight from the description!) The prose is absolutely breathtaking; like walking through a dream. Can not recommend this fic enough! It’s got my head up in the clouds and looking towards the stars!

“K” by  Dlvvanzor

AU where Light’s a Whammy with the moniker ‘K.’ He and L grow up together along with kiddos covering the rest of the alphabet. A murder-mystery-thriller on top of the romance featuring Beyond Birthday as a main character! Light’s a pathological liar and L’s super into it. They’re the top students at Whammy’s and are tasked with solving a string of homicides happening RIGHT AT THE ORPHANAGE (guess who dunnit). It had me on the edge of my seat, and I binged the whole thing in two days.

i’mMMMM doing more than 10, this’ll just be my ultimate fic rec post 😂

“Change of Circumstances” by wordbombs

Another AU where Light’s a whammy! It’s just a one-shot though, but one of my all time faves!!! I’ve gone back and reread it so many times and drew some stuff for it a couple weeks back. Much more light-hearted than “K”, Light arrives at the orphanage at age four and meets an eleven year old L, and from there they grow up together and fall in love (the age difference is handled really well, L’s not physically present for a lot of Light’s childhood and they bond on a platonic level first). It’s one of the healthiest relationship dynamics that I’ve seen for these two, which is honestly such a breath of fresh air. Matt, Mello, and Near are there too in the background!

“Dial K for Kira” by @kiranatrix

“Light needs some easy money to finance his Kira plans, and notices there’s a big demand for Kira roleplay phone sex. So he figures, “Why not? Pretty sure I’ll be convincing.”He raises some fast cash and plans to shut the whole thing down and get back to writing names, until he gets a request from somebody who wants to “roleplay” as L....“

Taken straight from the description! It’s very VERY NSFW so be warned. I’m too shy to talk about it more alskfjdasldjf sorry BUT IT’S GREAT.

“Dance with Me” and “Birthday Note” by @dotti55fanfiction

These are both one-shots so I’m putting ‘em together! Absolutely adorable tooth-rotting fluff!! “Dance with Me” has Light and L going to a club, while “Birthday Note” features L trying to think of the best present for Light. The dictionary definition of “warm fuzzies.” (Dotti ilu, I still gotta find time to read your longer works)

“you’re a wasp nest” by  raisuki (inthegripofahurricane)

Blind!Light AU! Light and L are both college students who meet when Sayu dares L to break into her house. Yagami sibling hijinksssss! Their quippy dialogue is adorable and it’s just a fun time watching them flirt.

“softly now” by smallestbird (jenwryn)

THANK YOU TO THE ANON WHO SENT ME THIS REC. The softest lawlight one-shot to finish off this list! Light and L share an intimate moment while painting their new apartment. The absolute JOY this fic radiates in a short 700 words!! Read it before bed for the sweetest dreams!

These are just my favourites, but read anything by any of these authors and you will not be disappointed! I might make a separate post later for soulmate AUs because... There’s just too many. :’D

-Alka

[dragonsareourfuture]

Reunion — Parent!L/Parent!GN!Reader

We finally got some L into the mix! This is honestly less focused on you and L’s relationship and more so on the family dynamic between all the other characters and you guys, plus your daughter! Everything’s pretty chill, no mentions of the Kira case, no angst. Just...happy. (Also, just wanted to mention that there are some jabs at people who stream for a living in this but that’s just Roger being a dick your job is valid no matter what <3)

(DN) = Daughter’s Name :)

WHERE? WHERE IS MY NIECE?”

“Jesus, Misa! Be careful!”

As soon as these voices were heard, Roger was sure that all peace and quiet for the day would be cast out the window. Even so, he put on a cheerful smile and exited the kitchen to greet yours and L’s bittersweet friends who had just begun removing their shoes to place in the neat shoe rack in the foyer.

“Ah, Light Yagami and Misa Amane, glad you could make it,” Roger began.

“Yes, it’s nice to meet you. I apologize for the short notice, but L had mentioned that it was his daughter’s birthday and we just had to attend,” Light explained with a faux, closed-eyed grin as he lifted a bag decorated like a birthday present for further explanation.

Roger nodded curtly and took the present from Light, holding out a hand to direct the couple towards the kitchen where the festivities were to be held for that evening.

Misa perked up again when she laid eyes upon the infant being bounced on your knee, giggling absentmindedly.

“There she is!” The enthusiastic blond squealed, practically shoving her boyfriend of three years out of the way to kneel in front of the babbling child like she was a god.

You giggled at her antics and let her squish your baby’s cheeks between her fingers. “Hi, Misa. It’s been a while.”

“I know! It has, hasn’t it?” Misa cooed, words directed at you but using the high pitched voice one uses to speak to a child nonetheless.

Light ambled into the kitchen hesitantly, eyeing L, who was standing over you as you sat on a stool at the counter, his hand on your shoulder while the other one resided in his pocket. Light nodded politely, his features stiff and his shoulders tense as if waiting for L to provoke him at any second. L easily picked up on Light’s careful movements and squared his shoulders, correcting his posture a bit though his dull expression never changed. Luckily, the tension was snapped when the front door opened once again and two college-age kids stepped into the cool interior of the fairly large home.

L seemed to relax more now that more people he was comfortable with began filing into the space. The pair in question — a lazily dressed brunet adorned with a cigarette and orange-tinted goggles as well as a leather clad blond with scar tissue occupying the left side of his face and arm — came through the threshold and packed themselves into the already tight-fitting kitchen, bickering with each other all the while.

“Matt, just put it over there.”

“No, I wanna give it to her now!”

“Be patient, asshat!”

“Hey, no language like that in front of the baby!”

You snapped your fingers to get the boys’ attention and gestured for them to just hand you their present already. Matt happily stepped forward and handed you a crudely wrapped gift. Not to mention, they had used crumpled newspaper and a length of thread to tie the gift together. Matt shot you a sheepish smile and admitted, “We couldn’t afford wrapping paper...”

“Aw, guys, this is more than enough! Thank you.” You glanced down at your daughter and allowed her tiny yet strong fingers to curl around your own. “Can you say ‘thank you’, (DN)?”

The little girl bouncing on your knee gazed up, recited gibberish at the two boys and stuck out her slimy tongue, drool slipping from the corner of her mouth.

“You’re welcome, little one.” The brunet patted the girl’s head and (DN) grabbed at his wrist. He let her tug his hand down and stare at his fingers in awe, even if her hands were covered in baby saliva.

Mello let out a subtle chuckle and pulled out one of the stools lined up at the counter in order to sit next to you. He gestured to the elegantly wrapped present and smirked, “Matt picked it out.”

Matt was too busy to hear this admission as he was wiggling his fingers in front of (DN)’s face, causing uncontrollable giggles to burst from her toothless mouth.

You puzzled at the gift for a moment before consulting L, who merely shrugged. You figured he of all people would know what the pair was capable of considering he had lived with them for a good amount of time, but he came up empty. Before you got a chance to open the gift, however, Roger piped up with a question for Matt.

“So, Matt, how’s your job been?”

Matt paused and stared blankly at the man who used to house him, caught off guard by the question, opening and closing his mouth like a beached fish. “Uh...fine. It’s been—”

“He’s been doing great.” Mello chimed in, glaring daggers at the man.

“Oh, that’s good to hear. Tell me, what is it you do, again?” Roger continued. Mello shifted his glance to Matt, an expectant and impatient expression laced onto his narrow features as if they had rehearsed this very conversation back at their apartment and had to follow a script.

“I’m a gaming streamer.” Matt choked and Mello could barely help but throw his head into his hands. “It’s a real job.”

“Oh, I’m sure it is, son.” The older man seemed to find triumph in the outcome of this conversation and retreated to the living room before the victory was taken from him.

“Nice one, man.”

“I’m sorry, okay!?”

“Hey, Matt, there’s no shame in doing what you love.” You offered kindly.

“It would help if it payed the bills...” Mello mumbled, to which you sent a harsh kick to his shin.

The lot of you were unable to hear the door open and close thanks to Mello’s yelp of pain and Matt’s howls of laughter, and as quiet as Near was it wasn’t a surprise to have him suddenly appear out of nowhere.

“There you are, Near! How’ve you been?” You greeted cheerily, hoping to make up for the white haired boy’s lack of enthusiasm.

The pajama wearing boy merely hummed and crouched down in front of your child, being able to since Misa was long gone, huddling up next to Light and chatting animatedly with Gevanni, who had escorted Near to the party. The baby bopped Near’s fluffy head with the flat of her palm. He didn’t seem to mind, though.

As Roger carried in the cake it was difficult to refrain from laughing as L’s eyelids practically disappeared, leaving most of the whites of his eyes visible. The light from the birthday candles flickered in his irises. It appeared that he was in some sort of trance. When the cake was set down on the countertop you turned so that your daughter was facing the treat, placing a gentle yet firm hand on L’s shoulder as he twitched as if he would lunge for the cake.

“Should we start singing then-?”

“No!” Chirped your daughter as she slapped a hand down into the icing, leaving a tiny handprint that claimed her piece of the marble cake.

Laughter was heard around the room and Roger shrugged as he began cutting everyone pieces of cake.

Once everyone was finished and (DN) was sufficiently covered in crumbs and icing, you all shifted to the living room to start opening presents.

As your little girl pawed are the first gift, a collective gasp echoed through the room when the front door all but burst open. The metal knob most likely dented the wall as it slammed. Roger winced, nothing on his mind but the time he’d spend on repairs.

“I’M HERE!” Matsuda announced with a boisterous laugh, delighted to see that the party was still in full swing. However, his ear to ear grin didn’t last long as he noticed everyone’s surprised and confused faces staring back at him.

“Did you invite him?” L whispered in your direction.

“Um...no I don’t think so.” You replied, putting a smile on your face nonetheless. You stood, handing your daughter over to L as she waved the half opened gift in his face to which he smiled lightly. “Hey, Matsuda! You’re just in time for presents!” You hugged him tightly around his waist, attempting to make up for how terrible you felt for not inviting him yet also curious how he got here if neither you or L had mentioned the occasion to him.

“Oh, good! I was sure I missed everything! I felt terrible! Oh, here.” Matsuda passed you a colorful, neatly wrapped package adorned with a festive silver bow. Your stomach dropped even further with guilt as you realized how much time he put into the gift. “Light told me about (DN)’s second birthday and I couldn’t miss it!”

You couldn’t help your lips from stretching into a wide smile when you looked back up at the usually forgetful and clumsy man. “Come on, wouldn’t want you to miss out,” you said, taking him by the hand and leading him to sit with everyone else.

“Alright, now just open our present already!” Matt exclaimed, practically bouncing up and down on the couch cushion. You laughed, not remembering the last time you saw him this excited. You assisted your daughter in getting the rest of the “wrapping paper” off of the gift inside. It was a case, almost like a DVD case but smaller, and as you flipped it around you could read “Call of Duty” on the cover.

“Call of Duty!” Matt shouted, throwing his fists in the air.

“As I already told you, I did not pick that out,” Mello defended.

“But now me and (DN) can play it together! Right, (DN)?”

Your little girl clapped enthusiastically at Matt’s offer.

“Great. Thanks, Matt.” L took the game from the still cheering girl on your lap and put it to the side.

After the rest of the presents were opened and wrapping paper littered the floor, people began to say their goodbyes. All of Wammy’s boys opted to stay and help clean up, sharing a beer afterwards. Well, more like Mello and Matt shared a beer. L helped himself to the leftover cake that had been set aside to be packed up into Tupperware. Near sat on the floor next to the counter, playing with (daughters name) and unboxing all of the new toys she had received from earlier.

“Oh, shit. Matt, we should get going soon. It’s getting dark and I gotta be up by five.”

“Since when have you been so business oriented?” You questioned with a smirk, referring to Mello’s new job at the chocolate shop. It wasn’t much and he knew that, but it was pretty much the only thing he was qualified for after spending the entirety of his high school years in the mafia.

“Since I was almost fired the other day.”

At the mention of this unfortunate event, Matt had to stifle a laugh as he elaborated, “Turns out businesses don’t like it when you take most of the merchandise home with you.”

“I swear, Jeevas, get in the fucking car.”

“Language!” Matt reminded with a devilish smile.

You swore Matt could have dropped dead with the glare Mello was sending his way. The brunet relented and gave you a goodbye hug once you stood from your perch on the stool. He then bent down and swiped (DN) from the floor.

“Hey,” Near began to protest.

“Oh, shut it, you fucking sheep.”

Matt covered the little girl’s ears and looked at the blond like he should know better. Mello rolled his eyes as tiny hands batted at the feathers adorning the collar of his floor length coat. “Hello.” He said plainly.

“Aw, c’mon, Mello! Hold her!” Matt insisted, holding the child out to the reluctant blond.

“I don’t wanna get spit all over me, thanks.”

“Think fast!” Matt literally threw your child into Mello’s arms, leaving him no choice other than to catch her from mid air.

“Don’t do that!” You scolded, leaning against L (who had just arrived by your side) out of pure relief that Mello possessed decent reflexes. Crumbs fell into your hair from the corners of L’s mouth as he wiped them clean, appearing to not be phased by your child taking a little flight.

L then stepped forward when he noticed the blond struggling with how to hold the infant, thrown off by her ever-moving limbs and intense gaze. Your poor postured husband adjusted the girl in his younger counterpart’s grasp so that he balanced her on his hip, arm supporting her bottom. He looked more nervous rather than disgusted.

“There you go.” L lightly patted Mello’s back, as if silently telling him that he was doing well.

“Yeah...this is fine...”

Near stood from the floor and shifted his gaze over to you, eyes soft and pleading. “May I hold her?”

“Really? Off to steal my thunder, are you?”

“You looked uncomfortable.”

“I’m always uncomfortable. It’s part of being me!” Your baby was then shielded from Near by Mello’s protective, feathery shoulder which (DN) had begun to chew on.

“Mihael, why don’t you let Near have a turn?” The blond boy tensed at the sound of his real name but, once he seemed to remember it was only coming from you, he thrust (DN) into Near’s chest, waiting for him to wrap his arms securely around her.

Matt twirled the car keys around his index finger. “C’mon, like you said it’s getting dark.”

“Oh, yeah.” Mello gave you a quick one armed hug, doing the same for L and heading out the door without even acknowledging Roger who was clearing up the now empty cake tray. “See ya.”

Gevanni made you nearly jump out of your skin as he appeared out of thin air to consult Near, who still rocked the baby in his arms, on what time he should start up the limousine.

“Now that I think about it, we should let our friends rest. It was lovely to see you three.” The white haired boy politely parted ways with you, climbing into the limousine and waving through the tinted window. (DN) flopped her tiny hand around in an uncoordinated wave. It was barely noticeable, but Near allowed a smile to pull at the corners of his lips as Gevanni drove away and out of sight.

You sighed, curling your fingers around L’s hand. “That was fun, seeing all of them again.”

“Yes, it was. We should do that more often.”

“We should actually invite Matsuda next time instead of waiting for him to show up. I enjoy his company.”

“If you say so.”

You slapped L’s shoulder with the back of your hand.

“Meanie.”

[writingwhimsey]

My Pirate Lord and Our Life Ch. 21

Chapter 21

We sat at the breakfast table the next morning. "So, the test was positive, right?" Misa asked.

"Why is it you knew before I did?" I asked.

Misa grinned. "It is my job, you know. Speaking of, I have an opening. You're coming in at nine for an appointment."

"You some kind of doctor or something?" Motonari asked.

"Nurse/midwife." Misa answered with a smile. She then looked back at me. "So, come on in for an exam and we'll get you set up with prenatal vitamins and such. Also, we'll do an ultrasound to see if we can figure out how far along you are and hear the heartbeat."

I pursed my lips. I was excited about the idea of the ultrasound...not so much about an exam. "You're being awfully pushy."

Misa smiled. "Hey, you are my best friend and you're pregnant. I just wanna make sure you and the baby are healthy."

"Alright." I agreed.

Misa looked at Motonari. "And of course you're welcome to come, too, assuming Ava wants."

Motonari looked at me. "What do you say?"

I smiled at him. "Of course I want you there. Besides, the ultrasound will be an amazing experience to share."

"What...what is that?" He asked.

"We have a machine that uses sound waves to create a picture of the baby." Misa answered. "It can also pick up on the heartbeat."

"Sound waves? And you can see the baby?" He asked.

"It's not a perfect image." I said. "But yeah, we can see the shape of the baby and even as he or she moves."

"And when far enough along, we can even tell if the baby is a boy or girl." Misa added. "As the baby develops and even farther along we can do a 3D ultrasound and create an image where you can actually see the facial features and such."

Motonari sat in stunned silence for a moment, taking in the information dump he just received. Misa finished her breakfast and headed into the clinic, reminding me that I was to come in at nine.

"You okay?" I asked Motonari as he had been sitting quietly for a while now.

"Just tryin' to wrap my head around everything." He answered.

I reached over and took his hand in mine. "If you don't want to go..."

He squeezed my hand. "No way in hell am I missin' this." He said. "I ain't lettin' my wife go to somethin' like this alone. 'Sides once we go home, we won't have this kind of opportunity again. I wanna experience as much of your world as I can."

I felt tears of happiness stinging my eyes. "I love you."

Motonari smiled at me as he leaned forward to give me a gentle kiss. "I love you, too."

We were then finishing up our breakfast and cleaning up. Then we headed to get ready. I decided to put on a cute blue and yellow casual dress that came to right above my knee. Motonari looked at me, smiling. "You know...I could get used to your modern clothes."

I blushed. I looked at the outfit he had put on, a pair of nice tight dark wash jeans, a long sleeve button-down grey shirt, and a black vest. "I could say the same about how you look." I replied.

Motonari smiled as he placed his hands on my hips, pulling me closer. "Course you're beautiful no matter what yer wearin'...especially when yer wearin' nothin'."

My cheeks were on fire...and so was the rest of me. I stretched up to press my lips to his. I pulled back and our gazes were on each other. "We should probably stop and finish getting ready...this is how we got in this situation after all."

Motonari laughed and kissed me again. "Soon as we get back, though I'm throwing you down on this bed and ravishing ya."

I shivered. "I won't protest."

We took a few more moments of kissing before we finally untangled ourselves from each other and headed out. We were soon at the clinic Misa worked at and I was checking in at the reception desk. We were then taking seats in the waiting area.

Then Misa was coming out to get us. She took us back and I had to stand on a scale. I suddenly felt very self-conscious even though I knew Motonari didn't care anything about my weight...and there was no doubt of how attractive he found me hence us being here in the first place.

We went back to an exam room. Misa took a few more of my vitals, Motonari taking everything in silently. She had another nurse come in and draw my blood for some other tests. Once we were through all of that Misa was smiling at me. "Alright, time for the ultrasound." She was then handing me a thin white sheet. "Good thing you wore a dress."

I looked at her suspiciously. "Why?"

"Undress from the waist down." Misa answered.

"Why?" I asked, feeling uneasy about this. "Won't you be using the wand on my belly?"

Misa looked at me. "Ava, you're still likely really early. The belly one won't pick up a very good picture nor will it pick up the heartbeat. Gotta do the internal one." She was then pointing to the long thin wand for internal ultrasounds.

I looked at the thing.

"Don't worry it gets sterilized after every use and I'll put a condom on it." Misa assured me.

I sighed. "Fine." I was then sliding off my panties and pulling the sheet over my lap.

"Alright scoot you ass down to the end of the table." Misa instructed.

Motonari was beside me and took his glove off before taking my hand and gave it a squeeze. "What is going on exactly?" He asked.

Misa was grinning as she turned the ultrasound screen on and then prepped the wand and picked it up. "Ava and I are deepening our friendship."

"Don't say it like that." I replied.

Misa laughed. "Come on, at least it's me and not someone else."

"Alright, just get it over with." I said, getting into the position.

Misa was then taking the wand and sliding it in. Motonari's eyes widened as he saw that it was happening. "What the..."

I gave his hand a squeeze. "I'm okay."

"You do realize that's where the baby is going to come out?" Misa teased.

"I know that." Motonari replied grumpily. "Just...seems like a weird thing to have ta do to see the baby."

"Being a woman sucks no matter the time period." Misa replied. She then began to move the wand around and made some adjustments on the ultrasound. "Alright, so there is your baby."

Motonari and I looked at the grainy black and white image on the screen. There was a small shape, head, body, and little nubby looking limbs. It reminded me of a gummy bear.

"That's...our baby?" Motonari asked.

I looked at him, his eyes wide as he looked at the screen. His hand tightened in mine.

"Yup and it looks like you're about eight weeks along." Misa said. She then made some adjustments. "Alright, now let's listen to the heartbeat."

In just a few moments the sound of our baby's heartbeat was filling the room. Though I had seen the pregnancy test, I knew I was pregnant, it was still amazing to see the little life growing inside me and hear the little heartbeat. It was fast.

"Is...is it supposed to be that fast?" Motonari asked.

"Yeah, it's a really good heartbeat too. Everything looks normal." Misa answered.

Motonari seemed to let out a breath he'd been holding in at that. We listened to the heartbeat for a few more minutes and Misa printed off a couple of pictures of the ultrasound for us. Misa left telling us we could take as long as we needed.

I sat on the table and Motonari was beside me, looking at the ultrasound pictures. "What do you think?" I asked him.

Motonari put one arm behind my back and then placed the other on my belly, kissing my forehead. "I never...thought I would see...anything like this." He answered. "I always thought I had seen a lot, from travelin' all over the world...but you've shown me so much more...you've given me so much...never thought I would be about to become a father...or that I'd be lookin' forward to it."

I smiled up at him as I placed my hand over his hand that rested on my belly. "You know you helped with this. This baby...we made together."

Motonari grinned at me. "Oh, I know that and had a fun time doin' it."

I felt my cheeks redden slightly. "Yes."

Motonari gently kissed my lips. "I love you, Ava."

"I love you, too."

Chapter 22 : https://writingwhimsey.tumblr.com/post/668431540612661248/my-pirate-lord-and-our-life-ch-22

[magnus-the-maqnificent]

Lost Book of the White Countdown Event - Parenthood

Lost and Found

(Read on Ao3)

"Oh!" said the warlock when she caught sight of Magnus. "Is that your baby?"

The night sky stretched over the Shadow Market of New York like a large canvas, dotted with a sparse covering of stars like specks of white paint. Magnus was supposed to spend this night in the comfort of his home, looking after his son while his boyfriend hunted down demons in the darker corners of the city. Magnus had been making futile attempts to lull Max to sleep, but then he'd received a call from a warlock acquaintance of his, saying that she needed his assistance immediately and that a few mundanes had been turned into toads.

So Magnus had brought out his best strap-on baby carrier and put Max in it, and walked over to the Shadow Market while Max pointed to random objects like streetlights and cars and gurgled the whole time. Magnus had simply nodded along to his meaningless blabber, occasionally dropping a comment like 'that's right, blueberry' and 'you're so smart, blueberry'.

Now, he nodded at the warlock and said, "Yes, Misa, this is my child. Say hello, Max."

He took Max's hand and waved it at her, though he seemed disinterested in conversing with the warlock. He was intently staring at the pair of antennae that stuck out from the top of Misa's head. 

"Hello Max," Misa said, giving him a cheerful smile. Her antennae waved about, probing the air, and Max giggled at the sight of them. Misa looked at Magnus. "I'm sorry for bringing you out here at this time."

"It’s alright. How about you show me the problem?" Magnus asked. He wanted to finish this as quickly as possible.

"Of course, come in."

To summarize the problem, a bunch of teenage mundanes somehow found the Shadow Market, and requested Misa to make a potion that would enhance their beauty. Clearly they hadn't known much about magic or its use, and just wanted to attract more attention to themselves at school, and thought that magic was their best solution.

"But something went wrong with the potion. One of the boys was poking around the tent and knocked an entire bottle of newt's eyes into the potion. Before I could mitigate the damage, however, the potion went awry and vaporized, and they all turned into toads. Luckily I came out fine, and called you as soon as possible," Misa explained.

Magnus extracted some more details from her, such as the nature of the potion she had been preparing and the precise amount of newt's eyes spilled into it. While they talked, Max squirmed around in the baby carrier, occasionally mumbling something unintelligible. Around them, on the ground, the toads were merrily hopping around.

"I don't think we can do anything," Magnus said after a while of conversing. "You'll just have to wait for them to turn back. That will hopefully teach them not to meddle with magic."

Misa sighed. "Very well, then. I'll-"

She broke off with a gasp. The baby carrier felt much lighter all of a sudden, and Magnus jumped when something swooped past his face.

"Did he just turn into a bat?" Misa asked, wondering.

"He does that sometimes," Magnus said nonchalantly, though there was a twinge of panic in his heart. "It's nothing to worry about."

They watched as Max, now a bat, flew around the roof of the tent for a few moments. Then, swift as a bird, he changed course and flew right through the open flap of the tent.

"Max, no!" Magnus yelled, running out of the tent. But Max was much faster. Magnus looked in every direction, but he couldn't see Max anywhere.

Magnus's breathing became labored and his heart picked up speed as he realised with a sinking feeling that he lost Max in a bustling, large, crowded market. How was he supposed to find him?

Luckily, Misa agreed to help him search and they split up, agreeing on a rendezvous spot and to call the other if they found Max. Magnus hustled through the crowds, asking around if anyone had seen a blue warlock baby or a lone bat flying around.

Max!

Panic was starting to set in, making Magnus's hands shake as he held up his phone, showing Max's photo to passersby and asking if they had seen him anywhere. No one knew where he was.

Max, where are you?!

"I think I saw a bat near Willow the werewolf's stall earlier," said one at last. Magnus thanked him profusely before running off to the stall, praying that his son was safe.

Max, come back to bapa, please!

The demon could hardly believe his eyes.

It was a child, a warlock child, sitting on the grimy floor of an alleyway and playing with a few stray pixies. He was giggling as the pixies swarmed around him, playfully tugging at his hair while blue magic spilled from his hands like water. He was so young, and so full of life.

A smile spread across the demon's mouth as it shuffled on the wall, a sharp razor-like tongue flicking out and lashing at the air. It could already feel the taste of the boy in its mouth.

The boy looked up and caught sight of it, his giggles fading as he met the demon's eyes. He looked at it with a sort of wonder, as if he had never seen a demon before. The pixies gasped and flitted away as fast as they could. At least they knew to be scared.

The demon waited a few moments, staring at the boy. His hands sparked with magic, but clearly he was too young to know how to properly use it.

Good.

Bending back its hind legs, it poised, and then lunged at the boy.

"Max!" Magnus yelled, looking around for a trace of his baby. He was close to the stall where Max had been sighted, but the owner hadn't seen him, and neither had any of the neighboring stall owners.

He was beginning to get some looks, but Magnus could care less.

"Max!" Magnus yelled again, his throat feeling hoarse and tight and his heart beating frantically in his chest. Max had to be somewhere close by. He couldn't lose his baby just like that. He had to find him.

Magnus was about to yell once more when he heard a loud scream emanating from somewhere behind two stalls. The voice was unmistakable. 

"Max!" Magnus pushed through the tiny gap between the smalls, which opened out into a wider alley between two brick buildings. He froze when he found Max at last.

There was something clutching onto him, something lumpy and black. The figure rose, and Magnus had just begun muttering a spell to fire at it when it turned to look at him.

"Magnus," said Alec, holding a crying Max in his arms, in the light of his own magic Magnus could see a fresh stain of ichor on Alec’s gear. "What happened?! I was patrolling nearby, and some pixies dragged me here just in time. If I had been a moment late-"

Alec didn't need to finish his statement. If I had been a moment late, the demon would've gotten him. And it would all be my fault.

Magnus shook off his half-muttered spell, and stared at Alec for a long time. The only sound was of Max crying.

In retrospect, the image of Alec, fresh from a demon hunt and holding a baby in his arms was very sexy, but in that moment all Magnus could feel was immense relief. He slumped back against the alley wall, but Alec was there first, supporting him with one hand behind his back.

Then the shame hit him. He had almost gotten his son killed. If only he had been more careful-

"Magnus," Alec said in a low voice. By now, Max's cries had been reduced to sniffles, and he was wiping his tears against Alec’s gear. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah," Magnus said, his voice shaking a little. He reached up a hand to brush his hair out of his hand, and was surprised when his wobbly fingers met a layer of sweat on his forehead. He had been thoroughly shook by the whole experience, and hadn't even realized it. "I'm fine."

Alec was silent a moment, then said, "Come on, let's go home."

Alec was silent the whole time Magnus recounted the events of that night, sitting beside him on the couch with Max held in his arms.

"I'm a terrible father," Magnus muttered after he was done, hanging his head. "I couldn't even handle him for a night."

"Don't say that," Alec said softly. "You did nothing wrong - Max ran away on his own. What matters is that we found him in time."

"But if we hadn't found him-" Magnus couldn't even think of the possibility.

"But we did," Alec reiterated. "We did, and he's safe now, and that's all that matters. And you're an amazing father, Magnus. Don't ever say that you aren't. We're still learning, and we make mistakes, but that doesn't mean we're being terrible parents."

"How can you be so sure?" Magnus asked, though a part of him had calmed down at Alec's words.

Alec smiled. "I know you, Magnus. I know you're never terrible at anything - well, except maybe for the charing."

"I told you never to bring that up!" Magnus protested, but Alec ignored him.

"Also, Max loves you. Don't you, Max?"

Max looked up at Alec. He was playing with a slinky, though it now resembled a jingly mass of wire, and stared incomprehensibly at Alec. Magnus smiled and took Max from him, holding him up at eye level.

"Don't you ever run away like that again, okay?" Magnus warned in a light tone. Max only blinked at him in reply.

"You silly baby." Magnus said, and kissed Max on the cheek. Max stared at him with wide eyes after he pulled away, and then leaned in, brushing his mouth against Magnus’s cheek in an imitation of a kiss.

"Did he just-" Alec broke off, and he and Magnus stared at Max in surprise, though he was oblivious to their attention.

Alec's eyes softened, and he pressed an experimental kiss against Max's cheek. Like with Magnus, Max leaned towards Alec and bumped his mouth against Alec's cheek.

"Oh, my baby," Alec said, taking Max in his arms and kissing him all over his face. "My sweet baby."

Max giggled at the onslaught of affection, and Magnus's heart cracked open in that moment, spilling happiness and love into his veins. He moved in, wrapping his arms around both of them and kissed them on their heads.

"I love you," he said, holding them close, his love and his son. "I love you both so, so much."

"I love you too," Alec whispered, turning his head up and placing a kiss against Magnus’s jaw. Magnus smiled, and held on to this moment, promising to himself to be the best possible father to his blueberry. 

[bellatrixobsessed1]

From Chin To Yon Rah (Part 10)

“That one!” Atsu shouts. “I want that one!”

“It’s not for sale, Atsu. You’re going to have to win it.” Hajime says.

“But...but I’m no good at tossing games.”

Hajime ruffles his hair, “you’re great at it.”

He shakes his head. “Nu-uh, last year Caihong said that I’d do it better if I turned around and threw it backwards.”

“New year, new skills! Give it a try.” He gives Atsu a pat on the shoulders and a few coins.

“You aren’t going to teach him how to do it?” Azula asks.

“You just throw a bag full of beans into a hole, he just has to practice.”

She watches the boy chuck the bag with all of his might, overshooting the hole by several feet. His next throw is weak to compensate and the bag doesn’t fall too far from where he stands. His third shot is too far to the right and so his fourth throw is significantly left. He stops his foot and carelessly throws the last bag. The straw-stuffed badger-mole still hangs on the hook.

“Dad! You do it!” Before Hajime can answer he changes direction. Azula is none to pleased with this change. He stares at her with that gap toothed grin. “Rikka can do it!”

“I don’t want to play a silly game.” Azula folds her arms over her chest.

Hajime laughs, “you’re at a festival. Festivals are all about silly and rigged games.”

“Just because you can’t win, doesn’t mean that they are rigged.” She holds a pointer up as if to accent her point.

He nudges her, “if it’s not rigged, go win.”

Atsu tugs on her sleeve. “Please Rikka, please! I’ll...I’ll…” He lightly knocks his head with his fist, “Caihong and I’ll make you a pie!”

“A pie? What flavor?”

“Uhhh. Chocolate?”

“You’re going to get the chocolate from the garden, aren’t you?”

“A flower pot actually…” He mumbles.

“I don’t eat dirt.”

“I do! It’s not that bad if you get it from the flower pots especially if you find those teeny rolly bugs that get all...rolly when you poke at them like this!” He jabs her in the side with his tiny, pudgy finger.

“I’ll pass.” She grumbles as she watches Hajime fail to land any of the bags into the hole.

“Please win it for me, please, please, please, please phu-leeese…”

“These games are for children. I am not a child.”

“What? Are there better uses for your talents?” Hajime quirks a brow.

“Yes! Yes, exactly. I am glad that you understand…” she glances at him and realizes that he, in fact, does not understand at all. She very nearly pouts.

“Com’on Rikka!” Atsu whines. “Com’on, com’on, com’on!” He pleads until the words blend into one steady stream.

“No.”

“Look at his face, Rikka.” She has. It is gap-toothed, bug-eyed, and pudgy. The same as every child she ever set her eyes upon. “How can you say no to that face?”

“Cooooommmme ooooon, Riiikaaaa.”

“Not a chance.” She folds her arms tighter.

“You’re his only hope, Rikka. He gets his hand-eye coordination from his dad.”

“Yes,” she agrees, “you’re both awful at this.”

“Well why don’t you grace all of us with your fantastic bean toss skills, master.”

Azula gives a haughty sniff. “Fine. But only so the both of you know that it isn’t so hard.”

.oOo.

He hasn’t put it down since she’d won it for him. Day to day the badger-mole has a different name. At first it was ‘Duster’ and then it was ‘Mud Muncher’ and after that it was, ‘Caihong the Second’. She isn’t sure which name has been bestowed upon the toy today but she has a sinking feeling that it has something to do with her name and is doubly glad that she is using a false one.

The boy comes prancing up to her. “I’m going to show Misa and Min, Dáxiyi!”

“Dáxiyi?”

Atsu nods, “your mongoose-lizard.”

“You named my mongoose-lizard?”

“You said that you didn’t!”

Azula rolls her eyes, “and who are Misa and Min?”

“Neighbor’s kids.” Hajime says as the boy rushes outside. “How are things going at Ojihara’s?”

“Well enough.” Azula replies. Nevermind that Caihong’s father has been tirelessly pestering her for details of her past to the point she is considering calling off their dinner date. “Seukhyung asks too many questions.”

“You do realize that going out to dinner is all about questions and getting to know someone, right?”

Azula frowns, her stomach tying itself in knots. “Why would he want to do that?” She wonders if she is being pursued. Surely she has been in this village long enough to have attracted attention. Golden eyes stand starkly out amid shades of green.

“Because he likes you. And his daughter does too. And his old man…”

“In other words, I should tell him that dinner is cancelled and that he will not be interrogating me over lukewarm miso soup and mochi.”

Hajime laughs. “In other words, give him a chance. Just let him do all of the talking if you don’t want to.” He tilts his head. “You do realize what this dinner is, right?”

“Why do you think that I wouldn’t?”

“You did imply, the other day, that you have trouble understanding people.”

“I understand people perfectly. I just don’t know how to connect with them. I know that he…”

“Loves you?”

She nods. “I think.”

“Well then, take him to dinner and see how it goes.”

“I will.”

He nods, “I figured that you would.”

“You sound disappointed.”

“No!” He says too quickly. “I told you that I wanted to help you socialize more. I just didn’t expect you to... catch on so quickly.”

But she truly hasn’t. “And?”

“And what?”

“There’s something you aren’t saying. What else didn’t you expect?”

He rubs his hands over his face.

“Why would you think that there’s something else?”

“Because I understand people perfectly.”

.oOo.

Seukhyung takes her hand and leads her into the eatery, a fine place really. Small but fine, with walls of bamboo sticks and a burbling fountain at the very center. All about the place are hanging ivys and pots that spill colorful leaves and petals. “Here.” He helps her into her seat. “I’ll have the waiter light these,” he gestures to the candles.

Azula quirks a brow.

He laughs, “right, I’m used to dating Earth Kingdom women.”

“Clearly.” Azula cups the lotus shaped candle in her palms and lights it up. She waits for the flame to warm into a shade of orange before putting it back in place.

“So uh…” he clears his throat. “So, what was life like back in the Fire Nation? Is everyone as competitive and passionate as you are?”

She shakes her head. “In the Fire Nation you either have the spark or you don’t. You’re either bold or useless.”

“Sounds harsh.”

She shrugs.

“No wonder you left.” He rubs the back of his head. “I wouldn’t want to deal with that sort of pressure. It’s like, no wonder Fire Nation soldiers are so ruthless and cruel.”

Azula swallows. The waiter finally makes his appearance. “Miso soup add some spice to it.”

“And I’ll have the roast duck and pau buns.” He pauses and turns to her, “you said spicy right? Have you ever tried spicy pickled kelp?”

She shakes her head.

“A real delicacy!” Seukhyun exclaims. “I’ll split one with you, if you’d like.”

“That sounds just fine.” If she doesn’t like it he can eat the whole thing, she supposes.

“Anyways, what was I saying?”

“That firebenders are monsters?”

“N-no! That’s not what I meant. Just the military types and the rich folk.”

Azula gazes into the candle’s flickering flame. “Right…”

“But you’re not like that. I can tell.” He smiles. “I was able to see it when you gave Caihong that turnip.”

She rolls her eyes. She isn’t quite sure if her laugh is resentful or genuinely humored. “You’re still on about that? It was one, little, scrap of a turnip.”

“It’s the small deeds that show a person’s true nature. That’s what my old man told me. That little turnip had Caihong smiling for days, you know. It was the best turnip she ever ate.”

This time she is certain that her little laugh is genuine. “Well of course. It was touched by my hand, afterall.”

He chuckles, “you’re something else.”

“A good something?”

He cups his hand over hers, “I wouldn’t have asked you for a date if I thought that you were a bad something. I’m so glad that my old man took Caihong off of my hands tonight.”

“Why’s that?”

He laughs, “it’s a little less romantic to have her yanking on my sleeve all night, don’t you think?”

She shrugs, Hajime seems to manage just fine.

“I haven’t had a date since I lost Cai’s mother.”

“What happened to her?” She asks.

“Same thing that happened to a lot of wives here. Bunch of Earth Kingdom soldiers came up here and when we refused to let them turn Wu Jing into a military camp...people died, Rikka, a lot of people.” He pauses. “Fire Nation soldiers aren’t the only brutal ones. I haven’t met any soldier who was pleasant for conversation.”

Her stomach sinks. She can’t help but wonder how far she would have gone, had her pre-destined path not been so rudely blocked. She doesn’t have to wonder for long at all, not knowing full and well that she had told her father to charr the entirety of the Earth Kingdom. Knowing that she took pride in her suggestion. She pictures Wu Jing under a wave of fire streaming from her father’s hand. Ojihara, Seukhyung, Caihong, Atsu, Hajime, all of them burning to ash. “Yes, you’re probably right about that.”

She takes the first taste of the spicy pickled kelp. It isn’t spicy at all.

“Well, what do you think?”

“It’s fine.”

Azula was almost certain that she would never know the feeling... She hates it. She resents it. It leaves her stomach queasy, but that night she learns what it is to feel shame, regret.

.oOo.

Her voice is strangely soothing. A bizarre patchwork of Fire Nation and Earth Kingdom and he almost ravenously enjoys how pleasantly it plays through his ears. She isn’t talking about anything in particular. Mostly it is small talk with a sprinkle every now and again about how she is surprised to be receiving such a generally positive welcome home.

“You’re their princess.” He says. “Of course they’re happy to have you back.”

“But did I really do them any favors while I was here?”

He nods. “I think that you did, or you did at the time.” He tries to get his thoughts together. “And I think that they agree. The problem isn’t that you didn’t do any favors it’s that those things aren’t considered good deeds anymore. Times change, what seemed like a helping the Fire Nation at the time isn’t so helpful after all.”

She fixes him with the dullest stare he has seen in a while.

“But I think that they know that you meant well, right? You’re not the only Fire National who has been doing some reflection. This whole nation is…”

“Doing some horrifying introspection.” Azula mutters. “Some things can’t be fixed, Sokka. Maybe some cultures are worse than others...”

“Where is this coming from?”

“Thinking too much. I suppose.”

“Firebenders aren’t evil.” He smiles. “You aren’t.”

She quirks a skeptical brow.

“Do evil people carry around stuffed badger-moles?”

Azula’s face flushes as she snatches it back. “Apparently, yes.”

.oOo.

Azula buries her nose in the badger-mole’s fabric. It smells faintly of turnip of dirt and of home. It smells of affection and care. If she inhales deeply enough she swears that she is whisked to that place for some time. Whisked back to a home where the scent of freshly baked bread was a morning starter and vegetable stew closed the night.

She holds her hand to her belly. She feels cold to her core. Things could have been fine. They could have been fulfilling, whole. Instead she finds the hollowness of a spoiled harvest, lush and flourishing on the surface but rotting beneath.

She gives a small jerk when she feels hands on her soldiers. “Hey. Are you still with me.”

Azula nods, “mostly.”

“You were…”

“Thinking.” She replies. “Just thinking.”

He nods and she isn’t sure that he believes her.

“I’m not crazy.”

“I didn’t say that you were.” He promises. “But ‘not crazy’ doesn’t rule ‘not okay’ out.”

She swallows.

“I think that you can use…” He wiggles his brows and pulls out a mahjong set, “a distraction!”

“Sokka…”

“Come on, it’ll be fun. A game night! Me, you, Zuko, Mai, and TyLee.” He beams. “I happen to be a mahjong master.”

“Is that right?”

“It sure is!”

“I’ll pass.”

“Oh come on, you’ll have fun.”

“It’s a silly game, Sokka.”

“I get it, you have to save your brainpower for something more important.”

Her throat runs dry. “What did you say?”

Sokka tenses, only briefly, but long enough. “I was just saying that you just don’t want to play because I am a mahjong master and you don’t want to lose in front of ever.”

Azula sniffs. “Invite the entire palace staff, I’ll win.”

.oOo.

She was smiling. It had reached her eyes at multiple points during their game--mostly when she was near victory--but he can’t say that she is unbothered. Raava’s tendrils he wishes that she would just tell him what is wrong. What happened to her, who she lost, and how.

And Raava’s light he doesn’t know why or when he started to care so much. He has a suspicion that, knowingly or not, it had been the moment she stumbled back into the palace with a story and a collection of scars.

He supposes that it is a compulsion to understand to know just what could have sparked such a stark change. No, he realizes, it isn’t so stark at all. Everything that made Azula, Azula is still there. He thinks that it is more of an addition; a newfound capacity for empathy and care.

He sighs to himself, his impulse decisions usually lead him to distress and disarray. But when he hears that small laugh, he isn’t quite so sure that, that will be the case this time. He is almost entirely sure when the game is packed away and she mutters, “I suppose that your ideas aren’t so awful after all. Tonight reminded me of...special moments. It almost felt the same.”

He isn’t so sure if that is melancholic or pleasent. “Special moments?”

She nods.

“You ever going to talk about those?”

She strokes the head of the badger-mole as she considers. “I went to a festival once.”

Her voice is so soft. Soothing. The very prospect of finally hearing a story where he can savor every syllable, every annunciation, is enticing. So much so that he finds it startling. He hadn’t expected to be so intensely and suddenly enthralled by the princess. But he supposes that he does have a history of falling intensely and abruptly. Quite frankly, it scares him. Truly, he only meant to reach out a comforting hand, to pursue a friendship and nothing more.

Changed or not, she is still Azula. Azula with all of her history and baggage. Azula with a steeper mountain of secrets.

“Are you listening, because I’m not going to repeat myself?”

“You went to a festival once, with a boy and his father…”

She nods.

But maybe it won’t be so hard to uncover those secrets. Maybe he only had to ask her to share the pleasant memories. It seems to almost comfort her to talk about this boy and his father. The name Hajime comes back to him and he wonders if this story is about that man.

“Can we do this again?” He asks when she is finished.

She furrows her brows. “A story a night! You tell me about a special moment and I’ll tell you about one.”

She considers. “Alright, a story a night. But you don’t get to ask any questions.”

[moro-nokimi]

chapter 5: December 31, 2010

Summary: Shit gets real. Near continues to have refuge in his audacity and Naomi continues to be snarky.

NOTES: Two more chapters! Whew boy. We've got a live one up in here. Oh Near, we're really in it now. This bitch is almost 10k, so I BETTER get a review, ask, or reply talking ab how good this is. (This is a joke; no pressure.) TW: Death of a loved one, suicide mention, allusion to gun violence and sex.

ffn.online

“Light Yagami is a registered grad student at To-Oh University, but nobody has seen him on campus since he graduated. And the Japanese police have given all the employees false job titles to hide the fact they are members of the police force. He received letters of appreciation from the police in 2000 and 2002 for advice that led to resolved cases. I think it’s safe to say that these facts and the influence of his father point to him currently being with the police.

“When I asked former students what they remembered about him, several of them had interesting comments. He had the highest score in the entrance exam, but someone going by Hideki Ryuuga--the same name as the top idol back then---tied scores with Yagami. They gave the freshman address together, and were often seen with each other. But no photograph of this Hideki Ryuuga can be found.”

So was this L? Feels like suicide to me… then again, they don’t seem to instill Wammy’s alumni with a particular sense of self preservation, Naomi thought.

“I also received information that around June of 2004, Hideki Ryuuga, Light Yagami, and Misa Amane were seen together on university campus. After that, everyone seems to have lost track of this Ryuuga. Light Yagami and Misa Amane also went missing for several months at that time,” Rester finished.

“He used the name of a popular idol to get close to Light Yagami, whom he suspected of being Kira. It was a dangerous plan that assumed he wouldn’t be killed so long as Kira didn’t find out his real name. But then the Second Kira appeared, with the ability to learn people’s names just by looking at their faces. Then, they joined hands. Everything fits. Light Yagami is Kira, and Misa Amane being the Second Kira, and Hideki Ryuuga being L,” Near said.

“It corroborates the report we received that Mogi and Aizawa went straight to Amane’s place after leaving here,” Gevanni said.

“So the fact that Amane is Light’s fiancee is…,” Lidner added, avoiding Naomi’s eyes.

“No coincidence,” Naomi finished. “She was a loose cannon, just going back to when she first appeared. No doubt, he wants to keep her close to avoid any mishaps.”

Late at night and when everyone was distracted or asleep, Naomi finally had her chance.

“You’re still holding a grudge over what Mello did?” Lidner asked.

“I think it was a damn stupid thing to do, yes. No matter if Near said for you to go along with his wishes, he still walked in and you held me back from tackling him and ending the standoff,” Naomi seethed. She rarely found herself angry, but when she did, it was enough to make others recoil.

“He never would’ve forgiven you for the blow to his pride, and it would’ve just escalated things.”

“His pride is the least of my concerns, Lidner. He pointed a goddamn gun at Near and you wanted me to be worried about his pride? He. Almost. Killed. Near.”

“I never told you to be worried about anything.”

“Don't you fucking twist my words like that. You putting his pride over Near’s life says a lot.”

Lidner's brows had knit and her eyes had narrowed. “You’re complaining to me about double allegiances? At least they’re working together now, right?”

“The last thing I want is to be working with a criminal again.”

Lidner had chewed the inside of her mouth for a second before lowering her voice and adding, “Think of it like this. Your fiance is like Near: he asks too many questions before pulling the trigger. But in this case, Mello shoots first and asks questions later. Near needs that push to act.”

Naomi’s vocal volume spiked for a second, and this drew Rester and Gevanni’s attention:

“Raye exhausted all options to make sure his gun was the last resort!”

“That doesn’t sound like very good methodology to me," Lidner said sharply.

That was the last button Lidner pushed before Naomi snapped back, volume rising, “Don’t you fucking compare them! Raye was a good man, Mello is--”

“Is there a problem?” Rester asked. Gevanni was placid, eyes sliding between them, gears turning in his head.

“No,” said Lidner coolly, eyes boring into Naomi. Naomi was red with anger.

“I’m going out. If I’m not back for a couple hours, don’t worry.” She knew her hands were shaking.

She bunched her turtleneck to her mouth and screamed as soon as she was out of earshot. She cried later on her bike and almost ran a red light.

Naomi had the urge to scream now, just thinking back on it. She stepped outside and dug the photograph out of them on the beach. That had been a fun day. Suruga had taken the picture. He was also understandably irritated when Naomi told him about the incident.

“So she just uses something she told you in confidence like that? Sheesh,” Suruga said. “That’s just shitty.”

“I screamed. Not in the room, just as I was leaving.” Naomi shuddered. “I’m not proud of it.”

“You have every right to be irritated, Naomi. Again, talking about something she told you in confidence for the sake of a comparison was just low. Especially in earshot of your other coworkers and your boss.”

“I almost woke up my boss. I don’t think he would’ve been too happy, ha… Do you think about what would’ve happened if he lived, Suruga?”

He hadn’t responded. There was an implicit yes, but she supposed he feared crying more than being transparent with his friend.

“Men don’t like crying,” Audrey had explained. “Toxic masculinity says that men have to be these pinnacles of strength. The only emotion they show is anger, and so on. Hell, Raye was expressive, but he never liked crying, especially in front of me or you.”

Naomi figured there was some truth to that. But she also figured avoiding crying was unhealthy period. No way around it.

Though, she was one to talk.

She resisted the urge to cry and stepped back inside.

“Near, this NHN announcer Kiyomi Takada was a classmate of Light Yagami’s in college. She was an excellent student, and was on close terms with him, it seems,” Rester added.

“How do mean ‘close’?” Near asked.

“I can’t assume anything, but they looked to be more than friends. I don’t believe this is a coincidence.”

“But Light’s relationship with Amane started when he was in college, too,” Gevanni pointed out.

“I don’t believe anyone’s introduced you to the concept of male infidelity,” Naomi said dryly. "Clearly there's no accounting for taste."

“Commander Rester, can you get close to Takada?”

“I’ll give it a try, but… She’s more heavily protected by Kira worshippers than Demegawa ever was. I’d attribute it to her being a woman. To the worshippers, if Kira is their God, Takada is their goddess.”

Prophet, Naomi corrected.

“You said she was an excellent student, but that was only her grades. She’s downright stupid outside of class.”

This woman hosts debates and is knowledgeable about our political landscape, and she’s stupid because she worships Kira? Naomi thought. Audrey would’ve called this misogyny. I call it underestimation.

“It may be possible for me to get close to her among all the worshippers. But Mr Aizawa and Mogi have seen my face before. They may tell L about our movements.”

“You don’t have to worry about that. There’s no reason for them to get in the way of our investigation. I’m sure they won’t tell L you are a member of the SPK. And if that information is passed to L and you die, it means L is Kira. I find it hard to believe Kira would do such a thing before finding out about Mello and I, unless Kira is in a very tight situation.

“Gevanni, Lidner, Maki, would you like to go to Japan as well? It’s almost certain the one writing the names is in Japan. I think it’s a safe call based on the people killed, and from the fact an announcer from NHN was chosen as the spokesperson.”

Naomi wasn’t too impressed with Kiyomi Takada. It’s definitely not easy to keep up with Kira and what’s going on, but it was her blind loyalty and outright reverence to a murderer that chafed. She tried time and time again to put her personal ties to the Kira case aside, but it just wasn’t possible.

“Depending upon what their sin was, Kira will not tolerate people with a criminal record…,” Kiyomi Takada said. “Starting today, I will be introducing you to messages and requests from viewers as well as expressing my own opinion on some matters. Many of the countries and companies claim to support Kira now…”

Naomi shook her head and tuned the rest of it out.

“... But that is a mere empty promise, and we do not know how they are supporting Kira or should be supporting Kira. I feel that in order to create a peaceful world as fast as we can, Kira should give orders to the army and police of each country on how they should act. I would like Kira to give a reply to this and…”

Near turned on his PA. “Rester, find out who Takada saw last night. Whatever it takes.”

Rester nodded. “Well, Kiyomi Takada is being protected unbelievably well, and even getting near her is tough. I never expected it to be this difficult. A reporter who tried to investigate the meeting last night was caught by the guards and accused of breaking and entering, then got killed by Kira on the 9 o’clock news. Her phone is completely untraceable and bug proof. She’s better guarded than the president.”

“Speaking from experience?” Naomi asked. The thought of things becoming that authoritarian worried her, despite her wisecrack.

“Very funny, Maki. All her guards are people who’ve participated in TV programs pertaining to Kira many times, and whose backgrounds can be easily traced. It’s incredibly hard to get in.”

“Gevanni and Lidner should be getting back to Japan shortly. Please get near her any way you can,” Near said.

“Near, Takada went into the Perin Hotel. Until she comes out, no one is allowed to enter or leave unless requested by Takada,” Rester said.

“Then you’re going to have to try to become one of Takada’s trusted bodyguards at the very least,” Near said.

“I’ll do my best.”

December 12 “We’re trying to get on Takada’s personal bodyguard team, but the hurdles are getting higher. We need more time,” Rester said.

“Very well. I had a feeling it would be like that,” Near replied. “Maki, would you mind making flight arrangements?”

“Yeah, just a second.”

While she cleared her cookies and went searching for airplane tickets, Near called the Japanese task force.

“This is Near. I’d like to talk to L.”

“This is L speaking.”

“It’s been a while. Thank you for keeping the connection open.”

“What do you want?”

That’s no way to greet someone, Naomi thought.

“I am in Japan to capture Kira. Right now, actually,” Near said. He snipped away at paper. “Seeing as how the best way to investigate Kira is to start with Kiyomi Takada and all.”

L paused. “I’m in Japan already, doing just that. If you’d like to cooperate, I’m willing to do so as well. But since you’re suspicious of me, I guess that’s not possible.”

Near’s brow furrowed. It quickly turned into a scowl. “Did you just say ‘I’?”

“Yes. I’ve personally gotten into contact with Takada and am making headway in the investigation.”

In more ways than one, I think, Naomi thought.

“We’ve gotten as far as having our investigator, Mogi, be able to enter NHN.”

So he knows we’re trying to get into NHN ourselves. Or is hypothesizing as so. With these geniuses, any hypothesis automatically means they know something.

“We’ll find a way to get into NHN as well, but there’s one more thing. You said you’ve personally contacted Takada and are investigating her, right? Then please tell Takada however you can that members of the SPK have escaped from the Kira worshippers in New York have entered Japan to capture Kira. Judging from the current world situation and her position, that’s the type of news she’ll have to report.

“You can even say that there are five members of the group including Near, the leader. There are four other members that Mr Mogi and Mr Aizawa met. This isn’t a lie, so it’ll be a true report. If either of the aforementioned men see them near NHN, please feel free to tell L. We don’t want to get in the way of your investigation. But please don’t show their faces as members of the SPK on TV or via other media outlets. This report is to lure out Kira.

“Including me, there’s only five of us. There’s no way Kira is going to find out, and I’m sure that Kira will make a move to try and kill us. That is where I intend to counterstrike and defeat Kira.”

Oh, great, so we’re being used as bait. I’d rather I was the killing shot, Naomi thought, and slammed her laptop lid closed.

“There are five members altogether in Japan. Is that it for the message, Near?”

“Yes. I’d gathered people who could work under me, but now that the situation has changed, numbers aren’t important. I’m in Japan. Since you are as well, we may come face to face.”

“True.”

“And that will be something worth looking forward to.”

“Indeed.”

“We’ll bring Kira to an end once and for all.”

“Of course.”

Well, he’s taciturn all of a sudden. And here I thought he’d never shut up, seeing as how all the other meetings have been.

“The only way to restore the world now is to get rid of Kira and the existing notebooks. If we succeed in both of those objectives, we win. If we die, Kira wins. This battle was not about an arrest or something measured by the laws of this world. It’s always been a one-one battle to prove who’s on top.”

Near turned the PA off.

“You’re playing a zero-sum game, Near,” Naomi said.

“You don’t have to tell me that. The original L was doing the same thing. Commander Rester, where are Gevanni and Lidner now?”

“Right now, they’re in a booked room near NHN.”

“Please connect me to them.”

“Pay close attention to what I’m about to say. I have decided to meet L---rather, Kira---in person in the near future and settle this case once and for all.”

“In person?” Gevanni repeated, the poor guy surprised into echolalia.

“Do you mean you’re going to see him face to face and capture him?” Lidner asked.

“Yes. The world is practically in Kira’s hands now. But, in Kira’s nearly completed world, only the SPK members, Mello, the Japanese task force, and I remain in Kira’s way. I remain the biggest problem as well, since he can’t easily get my name or face.

“It seems Mello’s name has already been discovered, and he’s also wanted for the murder of the Japanese police director and deputy director.

“As we all know, he lets his emotions control him. Kira may think it will be easy to kill him using his followers. If Kira succeeds in killing me, he will very likely kill the rest of you, and the Japanese task force.

“Since I, his biggest headache, who hasn’t made a move until now am now making said move, Kira will not miss this opportunity to kill me. And the fact that he’s said he’s willing to meet me means he’s accepted my challenge. The die is cast. Whether we like it or not, we must make our move.

“Let’s examine this situation. L is Light Yagami and Light Yagami is Kira. We know for sure that L would answer yes if we asked if he was Light Yagami, seeing as how he told us he’d personally gotten into contact with Takada, as well as Maki’s account of meeting him five years ago. But he will obviously deny the fact that he’s Kira. There’ve been many incidents to make us suspect he’s Kira, but no solid proof.”

Naomi was rather bitter that things could’ve gone very differently if she’d not regarded Light’s “selling” of the Japanese task force as a bit too maudlin to be genuine. Mostly at herself. She’d learned her lesson then: hard evidence only, no circumstantial evidence will be taken as fact whatsoever.

“There’s almost no doubt that he’s Kira. I’m 99.9999 percent sure. The lack of proof is the only reason it’s not a hundred percent.

“Kira… let’s call him L-Kira. Around him are several people who know of the existence of the notebook, such as Aizawa, Mogi, and the others. However, L-KIra is not using the notebook himself. That’s because there are others around him keeping an eye on him and the notebook. Obviously, there’s another who has the notebook and is using it. That’s X-Kira. Based on the fact that L-KIra has used Misa Amane in the past, as well as with relation to the attack on Mello’s hideout, I think that L-Kira does not have the Shinigami eyes. But judging from the killings of recent criminals, X-Kira definitely has the eyes. Of course, both Kiras are connected in some way. But since L-Kira is being watched, it would be almost impossible for him to get in direct contact with X-Kira.

“So, they use Takada. Note how Kira’s messages are spread through NHN, and L-Kira and Takada can meet in person without arousing suspicion. At the moment, both Kiras are able to send messages to and through Takada. Though she may be only Kira’s puppet, we can’t deny she’s highly important to us in discovering X-Kira.

“I likely don’t have to explain this, but this is a recap of the situation. I see two ways to defeat Kira. The first is…” Naomi cringed as Near pulled the trigger on the toy gun and knocked over the legos. “We kill L- and X-Kira and confiscate the notebooks. If the killings stop, it means we are correct.”

“Right. That would prove L---Light Yagami---was Kira,” Rester said.

Near returned the cork to the barrel of the revolver. “We are almost positive that L is Kira, so I’m confident we can solve this case. But we won’t be using this method, no matter what.”

“Why not?”

“Even if the killings stop, it doesn’t really prove that Light Yagami is Kira. Since no one is using the notebook at the task force headquarters, there’s always a chance that the killings stopped because of X-Kira’s death. And the killings may continue if there are Y- and Z-Kiras.

“Most important of all, we kill those two and the killings stop, then to say see, we were right… such an ex post facto justification will not be tolerated. That’s not the way we do things.”

“We?”

“Of course, we being me and L. He wouldn’t be happy if we did that.”

Naomi was still ruminating on the possibility of X-Kira’s identity. She figured it would have to be an acquaintance of Takada’s but not Yagami’s, so it would leave a pool of up to a hundred people who were regulars on her debate show.

In another life, while her and Rester were discussing this during the C-Kira case and Rester would say this and shrug and say “like it would offend L’s spirit or something”, Naomi would shrug, too, and say, “Well, that means he centers his identity on being L’s true successor.” And Lidner would take a seat on the counter and say, “That could be used as an advantage some day, by someone unsavory.”

“It would be an insult to L, who entrusted those who came after him with this case.”

And then Rester would mention that line. Naomi had sat back in her chair and folded her arms. “You’d better hope someone wouldn’t decide to create another impossible to solve case,” Naomi would say. If she closed her eyes, she could see B’s burning silhouette.

“Hence, even if we are going to kill L- and X-Kira, first we must rub their faces in the evidence and make them taste the misery of their defeat. It’s out of the question to kill them before that. So we get solid proof.”

“And how will we do that?”

“Have him use the notebook and arrest him on the spot.”

Naomi’s throat went dry.

“Then the person whose name was written will die. Do you have any plans for that?’

“Not at the moment, no. But we no longer have other ways to get proof. But I’ll think of something. When we first meet Kira, the first person he’ll write down is me, so.” Lowering his voice, Near held the miniature notebook replica. “Now what will I do…”

Holding the L-Kira labelled lego, he added, “But just as I said now, killing Kira and confiscating the notebook with hopes that the killings will stop is a plan Kira will assume we have. We may be able to use that to our advantage. But for the time being, our job is to find out who is executing the criminals as Kira. And in order to do that, we must investigate NHN and Kiyomi Takada, even though Kira knows we will be doing it.”

December 14 “The Japanese police announced at three PM today that five members of the SPK who escaped from New York have entered Japan. The police are initiating a full search for these people and are calling out for public support,” Kiyomi Takada said.

To say Naomi was unsurprised was an understatement. Takada had expressed such authoritarian views before, so this was no surprise. But the police being willing to hunt them down and be the footsoldiers for a regime like this was the cherry on top of a shit sundae.

The latest ass-kissing program (Today’s Lady Takada) began.

“Today, Lady Takada chose four female bodyguards from 20 finalists who went through rigorous testing. These four glorious women are Tatsumi Ooyama, champion of the women’s 60KG weight class in the 22nd world karate championship. Former CIA agent, Hal Lidner…

“These four all passed the tests and…”

“It’s just as you said, Near,” Rester said. “Sooner or later, Takada needed female bodyguards, which she didn’t have until now. Being with the CIA formerly made it easier for Halle to be chosen, but it’ll make it easier for Kira to notice her as well.”

“Yes… I am grateful to Lidner for putting the investigation before her safety. By the way, Commander Rester, have you been able to come up with an answer for this?”

“If I was Kira, who would I have chosen for the spokesperson after Demegawa?”

“Yes.”

“I’m sorry, but I can’t watch and listen to several screens at the same time. I can’t do it in only five days. I need more time.”

“Gevanni said the same. I was merely going to use your opinions as a reference. Don’t think too hard about it. An answer off the top of your head will suffice. Maki?”

“An easier solution would be to look at each segment of each news channel separately. You’ll lose out on sleep, but maybe you’ll have more input that way,” Naomi said.

“That’s not what I’m asking.”

“I know. If I were Kira, I’d go for someone I know and has a platform. As for X-Kira…”

“So long as it’s not someone extreme like Demegawa, they all look the same as a possibility for Kira’s spokesperson,” Rester said.

“I can’t decide either, but I wouldn’t have chosen Takada. No matter of her and Yagami’s acquaintance, she’s still a rookie announcer,” Gevanni said.

“Agreed. It seems she’s popular, having gotten second place in a magazine poll. There are, of course, more male announcers with more experience and dignified demeanors. So why was Takada chosen? It could just be that Takada is the type of woman Kira fancies, but I think it was because…”

Naomi couldn't hold back a snort.

“Takada was a Kira worshipper and Kira knew about it. The reason Demegawa was chosen is because he zealously used Sakura TV to support Kira even before the world began leaning towards him. It would’ve been easy for Kira to threaten someone into being the spokesperson, but it would be to his advantage if the spokesperson supported Kira.

“Well, in Takada’s case, I’m sure she was chosen because she’s a Kira worshipper. Here’s a comment by Takada from last night’s news.”

He turned on a clip of Takada.

“I feel that it is necessary for schools to educate children about Kira, and that Kira’s teachings are the proper way to live.”

“Ever since she started making comments to Kira, Takada’s been nothing but a stupid Kira worshipper.”

“That’s not stupidity, that’s authoritarianism and incredibly worrying,” Naomi said. "She very much has her own agenda." … So could we be looking at her becoming Kira point blank, or does she want to be his follower and nothing more?

“True. But it’s also true that Takada’s words are affecting the public, which is filled with stupid people. To Kira, this is great.”

"It's quite easy to assume that because someone supports something authoritarian that they lack the ability to rub two brain cells together. It's much scarier to think about Kira supporters being our lawyers, our realtors, etcetera," Naomi said. Near shrugged.

“Then if we believe Light Yagami is Kira, does that mean he chose Takada because he was on intimate terms with her in college and knew her feelings towards Kira?” Rester asked. That’s generous, Naomi thought.

“No, Takada only started making pro-Kira remarks after the meeting at the hotel. L/Light Yagami claims that he’s in contact with Kira for the investigation. And I’m sure that we’ll be able to confirm that with Mr Aizawa and the others.

“Therefore, if L-Kira/Light Yagami chose Takada, he would’ve been able to get Takada to make pro-Kira remarks from the moment she became the spokesperson. But in reality, Takada only started making pro-Kira comments the day after the meeting. She also spoke directly to Kira in the comment, so I can only assume that L-Kira made her say this comment, since he hasn’t gotten into contact with X-Kira at that point. Same with Takada before the meeting. That’s likely because Mr Aizawa and the others had their eyes on him and had doubts. That means Takada was chosen as the spokesperson through X-Kira’s personal judgement.”

“But isn’t it possible L-Kira ordered X-Kira to kill Demegawa and choose Takada as the next spokesperson before Aizawa and the others began to watch over him?” Rester asked.

“I won’t say that it’s impossible, but after Demegawa died, it was a week before Takada was chosen as the next spokesperson. Even if L-Kira had ordered X-Kira to use Takada after Demegawa died, it would be meaningless and odd to order X-Kira to wait a week.” He leaned down to inspect a black lego. “So it fits better to assume that X-Kira, unable to get in contact with L-Kira, killed Demegawa and then took a week to decide who to choose as the next spokesperson.”

“Then that proves Maki right, that X-Kira has some kind of connection with Takada,” Rester said.

“Yes. I understand that it’s dangerous to investigate Takada right now, but could you please look into it with Gevanni again?”

Both agreed.

“I’m going to start off by tracing all of the programs that Takada has appeared on, Starting with the most recent ones and looking at the regulars. Maki, would you mind taking record of these people?”

“Of course.”

On a hunch, she dug up a previous survey of one Teru Mikami. Near practically swam through all the DVDs to find Kira’s Kingdom, coming to a stop in front of all the monitors in front of Mikami speaking about Kira’s ideals.

“The reason I became a prosecutor is because of the frustration and helplessness I felt over all the physical and emotional abuse I witnessed as a child. All the young people going into the world should have their own goals and use their abilities to contribute to society.”

The click of a remote, and next she heard:

“I would very much like to hear Kira’s voice again, and I intend to follow your ideals. I believe that following your orders and teachings is the quickest way to achieve world peace. Kira, please let me hear your voice. If there are no orders or words from Kira, I believe that I am going to have to judge by myself what Kira’s thoughts may be, and put them into action.”

Naomi looked up from the survey.

“Near, I think you want to take a look at this.”

Right on his survey on the question of his opinion on Kira, the answer was listed as “God.”

Near peered over her shoulder, and turned on his PA to Rester.

“You no longer need to look into Takada’s friends and associates. Please come back to HQ, as Maki and I have just found a suspect. I’ll ask you to start investigating again if my assumption is wrong.”

“You’ve already found a suspect?”

“We’re good at looking," Naomi said.

December 21 “According to Lidner, Mogi is acting as Amane’s manager, which means he will often be away from L’s headquarters,” Rester said.

“That’s right,” Near replied.

“We can get Lidner to ask Mogi if they have their eyes on L when he is meeting Takada. That way, L won’t find out what we’re investigating.”

“But Mogi probably won’t tell us. And it’s highly likely that both Kiras are contacting each other through Takada. They know that we know it, so there’s no reason for us to go sneaking.”

Obviously, being clandestine isn’t our strong suit, Naomi thought, and passed Near the PA to L.

“L, if Mr Aizawa is there with you right now, is it okay for me to talk to him in person through this?”

“It’s Aizawa. What’s the problem?”

“When L meets with Takada, are you recording their conversations through wires and cameras?”

“No, we’re only using wires.”

“I see… Thank you.”

She set the PA aside and rolled her neck.

“If it’s only a wire, we can assume that L- and X-Kira are getting into contact with another through Takada. This only makes things more dangerous for Lidner. All of Takada’s bodyguards have their cell phone records checked. We can’t directly contact Lidner, so is that all right?” Rester asked.

“Lidner is well aware of the danger, but the important thing is that she is still trying to find out who X-Kira is through Takada and we have no clue as to the identity of X-Kira, so L’s attention will lie with them," Near said.

“Gevanni?” Rester asked.

“It’s about Mikami. Tailing him is strangely easy. It’s not like he’s making a move to go into hiding or anything. He’s been living at the same place for the past four years and leads an ordinary life. He’s very active with his job as well. I understand he’s a Kira worshipper from the fact he was on Kira’s Kingdom, but I find it hard to believe he could be X-Kira.”

“It’s not like Kira’s going to be waving his arms around saying ‘I kill people for justice’,” Naomi said.

“Thanks, Maki. I appreciate your input.”

“No problem.”

“The chances of Mikami being X-Kira are high, even ignoring his personal endeavors. Please be careful. Don’t try to enter his house or anything else yet. Just keep your eye on him.”

“Of course. You should try this, Maki, it’s very fun.”

Too familiar. “Stalking isn’t my idea of fun. I’d be worried if I didn’t know you were joking.”

“Please,” Rester said.

“Mikami just pulled the notebook out. There’s something---ugh, weird about it. He took a picture of the guy who was harassing a girl before writing in the notebook. He’s getting off the train, I’ll follow---” Gevanni said.

A high pitched scream followed.

“The guy who was doing the harassing just collapsed, about a half minute after his name was written… but that leaves me curious as to what the purpose to taking the picture was. And he said delete while writing it.”

“O-kay. X-Kira is definitely Mikami,” Rester said.

“Yes, but that also makes the possibility known of there being a Y-Kira,” Near said.

“So what do we do? Aren’t we going to capture Mikami?”

“Commander Rester. Please don’t make me repeat myself. Even though we know for sure that Mikami is X-Kira, we’re not going to use that method. If we do that, we’re never going to be able to get to L. If we capture Mikami, we may even face the situation that the killings stop and Mikami will appear to everyone to be Kira.

“All will be meaningless unless we prove the Light Yagami is Kira, the root of all this, and stop him.”

“Right…”

“In any event, we must get near Mikami, but there is one thing we must be extra careful about. And that is the Shinigami.”

Naomi raised an eyebrow. She’d never particularly believed in them, even as her dad told her that they take children who don’t go to sleep by 10pm’s souls. (Because what is the point of parenting if you can’t scare them a little.)

“The Japanese task force once told us that in order to get the notebook back from Mello, Kira gave the Japanese HQ a different notebook from that of Mello’s via a Shinigami. That means a Shinigami followed Kira’s orders and brought the notebook to them. And that means the Shinigami possessing Mikami will follow Mikami’s orders. So if we are going to tail Mikami from now on, there’s a chance that Mikami’s Shinigami will alert him.”

Rester said, “But the Shinigami can only be seen by those who’ve touched the notebook. Being careful of something you can’t see isn’t easy.”

“Even so, I would like you to do it. But this time, you may keep some distance from him and film his movements. It would be best if you can get an image of him talking to the Shinigami.”

“All right. I’ll see what I can do.”

December 25 If they only have wires, they’d just have to not say something out loud if they wanted to avoid being caught by the task force, Naomi thought.

Her attention was drawn by a notification that Lidner was on the monitor.

“I’m sorry, I’ve hardly had time to be alone. It was four days ago. Takada, Amane, and me met up. The conversation was really only about which of them was ‘his’---really meaning Light Yagami’s girlfriend,” Lidner said.

Naomi rolled her eyes. “So it was a covert catfight?”

“What does it mean?” Rester asked. Lidner’s expression just about screamed Are you shitting me?

“That Light Yagami’s a two timer?” Naomi said, as Near replied, “This just proves that Light Yagami is a ladykiller. Takada and Amane are infatuated with him. Though I’d be inclined to agree with Maki’s summary.”

“Seriously, Near?” Rester asked. “You too, Maki.”

“And they went after each other instead of going after Light for being a two timer.” Naomi shook her head and rolled her eyes.

“But being seriously infatuated can be a problem. They won’t betray him, and he can control them as he wants. However, what I’m more worried about is that there’s been nothing new in Gevanni’s reports,” Near said.

“But he reported today that Mikami pulled out the notebook and killed someone. Or had him killed, if we’re going with the Y-Kira hypothesis.”

“Not the notebook, but the Shinigami. If a Shinigami is possessing him, it would be normal to say a word or two to each other in three days. If they’ve decided not to talk to each other in public, then it doesn’t make sense that he pulled the notebook twice this week in front of everyone to kill someone. And then it’s strange that…”

“What is?”

“The Shinigami at L’s headquarters can be seen by the other members. That means that apart from Light Yagami, they’re also keeping a close watch on the notebook and the Shinigami. Obviously, L-Kira is not able to give orders or talk to Shinigami that easily. But judging from the fact that Kira probably got his notebook from L-Kira, then only L-Kira and Mikami should be able to see the Shinigami on that notebook.

“And if that’s so, why didn’t they get into contact with each other by using that Shinigami? It’s a lot safer than making contact through Takada, and if only the two of them can see the Shinigami, there should have been a way for them to get into contact.”

Naomi stretched her legs, careful to avoid the legos, and swivelled until she was laying on her front. “That also means the task force has touched the notebook.”

Rester’s knees popped as he got onto Near’s level. “Now that you mention it… But the only thing I can think of is that there are Shinigami that will work for you and those that won’t.”

“Yes. Or the members of the task force can see Mikami’s Shinigami too. Mello said that he’d seen a Shinigami. While he had his own, L’s investigation team must have had their own Shinigami as well. Mr Aizawa and Mogi have claimed to have seen a Shinigami that was different from the one that their headquarters. That could be possible.”

The monitors beeped.

“Gevanni?” Rester asked.

“Mikami’s talking to himself!”

“Huh?”

“Yeah, I’m wondering if he’s talking to the Shinigami. I’m too far away from him to hear what he’s saving, but I’ve been able to film his mouth as it moves. The footage is here.” Gevanni sent the footage to the monitor where everyone could see it. “It’s at the rooftop of the prosecutor’s office where Mikami works, during a break. Oh---he’s saying something right here.”

“Slow it down.” Rester leaned towards the monitors and read Mikami’s lips word-for-word perfect. “I guess he’s asking if it’s his Shinigami?”

“I see you aren’t a commander for nothing,” Near said.

“He seems to have reacted to the piece of paper to the bottom right of him.”

“He’s giving a small sigh.”

“He’s talking a little more from here. Give me a second, I’m going to zoom up to his mouth and slow down the footage.”

“That Shinigami… ever since he handed me the notebook, he hasn’t appeared…,” Rester said.

“Huh,” Naomi said. She pushed herself off the floor and into a squatting position.

“So there’s no Shinigami possessing Mikami at the moment.”

“But that makes me wonder if there’s a time limit as to when the Shinigami can appear to Mikami,” Naomi said.

“True…”

Near threw one of the Grim Reaper legos over his shoulder without comment.

“It makes things easier for our investigation if Mikami isn’t being possessed by a Shinigami. We may even be able to find proof from him that Light Yagami is Kira.”

“Yes…”

“Gevanni here. I’m at Mikami’s apartment. I’ve counted two surveillance cameras at the door to his room from my position. I’m assuming that the security inside is even tighter so even if I’m able to get inside, it’s going to be hard for me to remain unnoticed.”

“The tenants gotta be loaded if there’s security cameras everywhere,” Naomi said.

“Mikami makes 200 grand a year easily, not counting bonuses. Anyways, when he’s outside, Mikami just leaves the notebook inside his bag, so it’s not seriously guarded. But it would be undoubtedly strange if he did keep his guard up in public.”

“Commander Rester, I would like you and Gevanni to research Mikami’s behaviour patterns as much as possible, and look for any opportunity that might let us touch the notebook.”

“I thought you weren’t going to confiscate the notebook from him,” Rester said.

“Yes. I won’t use Mikami and the notebook as proof. The chances are that Mikami doesn’t have a Shinigami of his own, but we can’t be sure until we touch the notebook and monitor Mikami for several days. Of course, there’s a possibility that Mikami does have a Shinigami possessing him, and that the Shinigami will tell Mikami that we touched the notebook and have him kill us. But even so, from all the observation so far, it’s likely that Mikami’s Shinigami isn’t very cooperative with him.”

“So who’s going to touch the notebook? Me or Gevanni?”

“Well, since you’re his superior… Gevanni, I guess.”

Naomi cringed.

“I appreciate the support, Maki.”

“Yeah, no problem.”

“If there is no Shinigami possessing Mikami, then there’s a plan I’d like to see put into action. But if there isn’t, I’m going to have to make some changes.”

“Very well. I’ll keep my eye on Mikami.”

“Mr Aizawa. It’s been a while,” Near said.

“I believe what you said earlier. L and Takada have been seeing each other almost every night,” Aizawa said.

“I know.”

“What about this? The two are talking to each other via notepads. I left a mark on the notepads at the hotel, and…”

“Of course. As I said before, I know what’s going on. Kira is using the notepad to give orders to X-Kira through Takada. X-Kira being the person who’s doing the killings. Anyways, it’s commendable that you found this out on your own. But it does little for us unless you’ve found any actual notes.”

“I haven’t found them yet…”

“Then it means nothing. Those notes can be ripped up and flushed down the toilet or merely handed over to Takada to dispose of, since no one can search her bodily. In other words, there are a million ways to dispose of them.”

“You said that if we could get one note, it’ll be proof! I can talk to other members of the task force and have one of them hide inside the room once it’s booked. The wire detectors don’t react to people and I can pretend to have checked the place where the investigator is hiding. That way it’ll be possible to get one of the notes before they’re thrown away.”

“Mr Aizawa…,” Near said, “please stay out of the way.”

“What do you mean?”

Near underlined just why Aizawa intervening was such a bad idea.

“Unless they were to institute cameras in certain spots,” Naomi pointed out.

“But they run the risk of detection either way,” Near pointed out. “Obviously, all of your identities have been revealed to whoever is doing Kira’s killings. They know who you are. Kira probably has it set up so he can kill you all with the snap of a finger. The only reason you’re all still alive is because of me. There’s no other reason now that everything has fallen into Kira’s hands.

“Though, if you are able to get that notepad and are killed, I could use that as proof that L is Kira. But I already know that, so it’s useless to me. It’s not the way to go. If you do this, it’ll only allow Kira to move about freely, and it’s nothing but a headache for me. Even if Kira’s identity is proven to the world, most people are still going to take Kira’s side. And even if that happens, even I will no longer be a threat to Kira. Do you follow?

“Mr Aizawa, it’s not longer a matter of merely finding evidence that L is Kira. The only way to stop Kira is for me to completely defeat him and rub it into his face.” He held up his own lego figure. “Mr Aizawa, I’m sorry to say, but Kira doesn’t even consider the task force a threat. You’re not worth dealing with to him. He sees you as a bunch of flies buzzing around him.” Near took his Kira figurine and knocked down the task force’s lego models. “However, he’ll never be able to ignore me. That’s because, to Kira, I’m his current opponent in the battle for pride between him and L. The only way to stop Kira is for me to defeat him.

“Mr Aizawa, you and the task force are no longer a part of this battle. Please stay out of our way. This is the reality of things. However, if you still wish to capture Kira and continue to cooperate with me. Just keep an eye on him like you’ve been doing. That’s the best thing you can do for me and this investigation.”

“Just keep an eye on him…”

“That’s right. Anything more will just be a nuisance to me. The plan is almost set, and I do not want you to do anything that may disrupt it. Kira is also in the midst of coming up with a plan to defeat me. As such, any moves on your part will be a waste of time.”

“Are you saying that we’re of no significance now?”

“No. There is a significance in keeping an eye on L, and that is a part of my plan. And that is how I want you to cooperate with me in order to bring down Kira.” He lined up the figurines made of the task force. “Kira kills people without a second thought as if they were bugs, but it’s very likely that he will keep you all alive until time comes to fight face to face with me. I want you to see this through to the end, to Kira’s defeat.”

Silence.

“Mr Aizawa…?”

“Okay.”

She did feel for the guy. If someone said that she couldn't do anything of use, she'd be unhappy too.

December 31 Happy birthday, Raye, Naomi thought. Kira will go down and I’ll be thinking of you the whole time.

She held her phone away from her ear as Misa Amane screamed in the backseat of Lidner’s car. “She’s temperamental isn’t she?”

“Yup,” Rester said.

“I guess Kiyomi’s angry at me again, but this’ll teach her a lesson. She’s lost face now as the host of the show!” Amane said.

“Is the lesson going to be not letting her perform on NHN again?” Naomi asked, rolling her eyes.

“What is it, L?” Near asked.

“Mogi and Misa Amane have gone missing.”

“Yes. I’ve taken the liberty of bringing them into my custody.”

The task force began cussing Near out.

“What for?” L asked.

Near smirked. “Just to be on the safe side.”

Silence. Naomi was beginning to wish they’d put away their dicks and rulers.

“Near, kidnapping and confining people is criminal! Please stop, this instant!”

You sound like you’re chastising a child instead of trying to order Near to let your employee and one of your girlfriends go, Naomi thought.

“Well, Mr Mogi and Amane have agreed to cooperate with me. They won’t be staying with me, but you can talk to them if you want to. Should I connect you to them?”

“I must find out if they are safe, and if what you’re saying is true, then connect me to them.”

“Sure.” He patched L through to the mic in Mogi and Misa’s room.

“Mogi, Misa, it’s L. I heard you’ve been imprisoned by Near, but is it true that you agreed to it?”

“Yes,” Mogi said.

“Mochi said that it would be better for us to stay put until the whole Kira ordeal is over. If not, we might all be killed, so I’m fine with that. I just want to live happily with my boyfriend once Kira’s caught.”

Naomi’s chest panged. I wanted that too, she thought.

“Very well. If you two are fine with that. There are no problems, but please remember you can leave any time you want to. I’ll be switching back to speak with Near now. Near, I’ve talked with them, and I’m okay with everything.”

She ducked her head as she wiped her eyes. I don’t think Near’s too inclined to be asking for permission or your forgiveness.

“L, if I pose as you and announce to the world about the existence of the notebook and of my speculations on who Kira really is, a lot of people will probably believe me. If I do that, there are definitely going to be people who’ll try to kill Kira, but Kira isn’t going to just stand there and be killed. He’ll make use of his worshippers to try and stop that. I don’t want such meaningless bloodshed to occur. So I’ll bring this to an end by defeating Kira myself.”

L’s tone rankled. The condescension and babying she’d put up with for a long time, whether it was at a boss or coworker’s hands, and L was just another shitheel boss who thought he knew better than someone else of arguably more expertise.

“Near, your speculations are wrong. You mustn’t announce to the world what is a mere assumption on your part.”

“You’re right. I’m going to end this by pinning solid proof right in front of Kira’s face. But if my assumptions are wrong, then… Well, even if my assumptions are correct, but if I lose to Kira, then the world will no doubt be his. When that happens, Kira will kill me and all of those who are aware of the notebook’s existence. Only then is it a complete victory for Kira.”

“Near, the world is close to being Kira’s perfect world already, so we must capture him as soon as possible. That is the only point on which I agree with you today.”

“ … Anyway, it’s incredibly likely that Misa Amane was the second Kira who had the Shinigami eyes. Therefore, I’ve decided to keep her contact in case Kira wants to use her again. I intend to keep her here until the Kira incident comes to an end. Rather, until I give her permission to leave. L, I’m sure you’re well aware of the present situation even if I don’t say any more.”

The task force debated this current situation.

“Apart from the fact that he leaves his office at slightly different times depending on his workload, Mikami’s habits are completely fixed. He’s also a bit of a neat freak,” Gevanni relayed.

“And every Thursday and Sunday, he attends the gym from nine to 10:30 pm?” Near asked.

“Yes. I’ve become a member myself to do research on that. Ever since he joined four years ago, he’s been going to the gym on those days at that time. Near Year’s day 2006 was a Sunday, and he went to the gym on that day as well. The only reason I can think of for him to have picked a hotel gym that’s open all year is because he wants to go on those specific days at that time.”

“Then I suppose it’s safe to say that he’ll be going there on the 31st.”

Naomi clenched her teeth. She’d almost forgotten in the midst of all this.

“Well. Yes. I don’t see a reason why he wouldn’t. I don’t believe he’s devout Shinto or goes to the temples.”

Near paused. “Gevanni, is it possible for you to touch the notebook at the gym on the 31st?”

“I’ll probably be able to. The lock on his bag won’t be an issue, but the location may be… No matter, either way.”

“Have you checked on the security system at the hotel?”

“Yes. There’s surveillance cameras inside the hotel, but none in the locker room for obvious reasons.”

“Right. If Mikami is at the gym on New Year’s, touch the notebook. Takada will be hosting the show, but I’ll distract L just in case.”

“What are the chances that a Shinigami is possessing him?”

“I don’t believe there’s one near him, but I’m asking you to touch the notebook to check that. If there is one, then that’s that. I’m going to have to think of another plan. Even if you want to touch the notebook and don’t see the Shinigami, I want you to keep your eye on him for a while to be sure that there is no Shinigami possessing him.”

“But if there is, I’ll probably die, right?”

“Yes. If you’re scared, I can have Rester do it.”

“It’s all right. I’ll do it.”

“Please be extra careful not to be noticed by Mikami either.”

“Of course.”

“Mikami and Gevanni would have left the hotel around eleven, and then he tails Mikami back to his house. It should be about time for Gevanni to call us,” Rester said. He took off his suit jacket and placed it over the back of a chair.

“Ooh, I can’t do anything until they catch Kira… Why am I here anyway?” Misa Amane whined.

“I’m surprised you didn’t say 2300 hours. You’re supposed to be a commander,” Naomi said.

“Very funny, Maki.”

“I try.”

Near’s thoughts were somewhere else: “Misa Amane, the person suspected of being the second Kira by the first L…”

Rester said, “But she didn’t say anything even when she was confined for more than 50 days. I don’t think you can get any information from her. Anyway, we’re talking about a notebook that can kill people. It probably has powers beyond comprehension. Of course, trying to find that out is our job, but…”

“I know. I wasn’t expecting to get any new information from Amane. This is only so Gevanni will feel a little easier about touching the notebook and in case Kira needs her eyes.”

A notification went up that Gevanni was onscreen. “It’s Gevanni. How’d it go?”

“I’ve successfully touched the notebook. But I haven’t confirmed the presence of the Shinigami yet.” He checked his watch. “I touched the notebook at 9:09. Mikami returned home at 12:07 and I tailed him back to his house.”

“And during those three hours, you didn’t see the Shinigami, is that right?’

“Yes.”

“Please continue to keep an eye on him.”

“Okay.”

“Commander Rester, please connect me to Mr Mogi. Mr Mogi, do you remember the rules of death when Higuchi was doing those death meetings at Yotsuba?’

“The rules of death? That sounds scary…,” Misa Amane said. Naomi rolled her eyes. Of course, she’d been in the job for roughly a decade, she’s desensitized. Though if Misa Amane is the second Kira, she ought to be too.

“I disagree with you when it comes to your assessment of Kiyomi Takada’s assessment, but if you called Amane stupid, I wouldn’t disagree.”

“Mm.”

Mogi looked up. “I do. It’s been quite a while now, but…”

“In return for information on Mello, I was told by the new L about the rules written inside the notebook and about the rules of death. If a person is to die of an illness, unless it takes longer for that illness to progress, the notebook is able to control people for up to 23 days before their deaths. Is that right?” Near poked at his Mogi figurine.

“Yes. It’s not that we tested it out ourselves, but the killings at Yotsuba proved that.”

“Thank you very much.” Near shut off the PA and added, “Then let us consider the possibility that there is a Shinigami possessing Mikami’s notebook, and it has already told Mikami that Gevanni has touched the notebook. Hence, Gevanni is actually being controlled by the notebook to say that Mikami doesn’t have a Shinigami with him. So we’re going to face L if Gevanni is still alive 24 days from now.”

Naomi’s eyebrows shot up. That was a gamble that she considered the former and current L to make, not…

“However, Maki, I’m going to move the plan ahead under the assumption that he will still be alive.”

[cross-poison]

CLARITAS. The Mandalorian/OC (PART 8)

WORDS: 3.4k || WARNINGS: spirituality/talk of (made up) religion

a/n: FINALLY finished this part. I hope the fact that it’s almost double my usual chapter length makes up for how overdue it is. 

As the Mandalorian stepped across the central aisle of the marketplace, he locked away in his mind the appearance of the nobleman Elliotte had pointed out to him. Lord Miryus. He’d not only been responsible for spraining Elliotte’s wrist, but also, apparently, a number of ongoing problems here on Listronus. Mando temporarily filed that information away for later, and he instead turned his attention to the fisherman behind the merchant’s stall as he approached.

The fisherman caught his eye and immediately poked at some of his fresh-caught fish, chattering excitedly about the quality and size of each one. 

Elliotte came to a halt beside the Mandalorian at the stall and occupied herself with admiring the variety of fish, giving him the amount of space and time he needed to lock in a trade with his merchant of choice. He held the spool of string in-hand, turning it over in his gloved palm. The merchant stole a look at it before shifting his gaze back up to the intimidating visor of the Mandalorian’s helmet. “A trade?” he said, “Are you looking for a trade?”

“Yes. We are,” Mando replied, turning his helmet in Elliotte’s direction. She simply offered him a reassuring smile. He could do this… it’s not like he’d never negotiated before. “This is… a very fine, sturdy material here. Perfect for stringing fishing poles.”

“Right. May I see it for myself?” asked the merchant, humming thoughtfully as Mando passed him the spool. He held it up, unrolling a little segment of it and pinching it between his fingers. “It is a bit stretchy---quite perfect, if you ask me. I wouldn’t mind making a trade for it. Has anything here caught your eye…? Or your lady’s?”

“She isn’t my--”

“How about five of these little zemmoks?” Elliotte chimed in, extending a finger to gesture to a long and thin fish, rather average in color, but distinguished by a needle-like protrusion from its lower jaw. 

The fisherman chuckled. “You drive a hard bargain, dear. Four and it’s a deal.”

“Alright then. Four.”

The merchant tucked the spool away into his pocket and turned to package up the small fish. He passed them across the row of fish to her and she tucked the wrap against her arm, thanked him, and nodded to Mando.

Once again, the two returned to the open marketplace. “Very well done! He didn’t doubt you’re a local for a second! I mean… perhaps other than appearance-wise. In that regard, you do sort of stand out,” Ell began, “I apologize for butting in there at the end… I just know we’ll need zemmoks for our next barter.”

“How many more of these are there?” Mando said, perhaps growing a bit agitated at the grueling process. As far as he could tell, they’d made no progress toward anything more valuable. A toxic fruit to beads, to a spool of string, to a handful of too-small fish… this hardly felt like a successful endeavor.

“This is the last one, I promise,” she assured, picking up on his annoyance, “I know these don’t look like much, but pitch them to the right merchant…” Ell shifted her gaze to a stall toward the front portion of the marketplace, and Mando followed her gaze. A plump and older merchant woman was receiving a handful of silver coins from a customer before passing him a basket of brightly-colored berries. That was their next target?

“That there is Misa. She’s an old friend of mine… has a real taste for zemmoks, you see. She has some old family recipe that requires a bunch of them, so she’ll snatch them up whenever anyone offers. In return, she offers useme nuts by the dozen… they’re these fist-sized nuts that grow in her personal orchard on the other side of town... crisp and incredibly tasty, especially when they’re salted the way Misa prepares them! Pretty great deal if you ask me,” Elliotte explained as she weaved through the crowd and in the direction of their target merchant.

Mando followed her, offering nothing but a grunt in response. He’d be rather happy to be finished in this marketplace. The heat of the day was unpleasant in the stuffy crowd, and although he was used to drawing curious gazes toward the sleek shine of his beskar, the continuous feeling of eyes watching his every move was beginning to grow taxing. 

“Misa!” Elliotte’s voice drew him once again from his thoughts as the two of them came to a halt in front of the merchant’s stall. Unlike most of the other vendors in the marketplace, it seemed Misa specialized in more than one thing---berries, nuts, fruits, and even a few various animal products from creatures he’d never even heard of. 

“Good afternoon, Elliotte!” said the friendly-looking merchant, “What can I interest you in today?”

“The usual,” Ell replied, passing over the wrap of fish she’d obtained from the previous merchant. 

“You know me so well. A dozen per zemmok---that’ll give you forty-eight. Agreeable?”

“Yes ma’am.” 

Misa grinned, turning away from her to set the fish down and began packing useme nuts away in a large basket. “So, are you going to introduce me to your friend?”

Mando managed to catch her eye for a moment before she offered a faint smile and turned her gaze back to the vendor. “This is Mando. I’m showing him around the market this morning… and the proper bargaining techniques.”

“That’s a handy skill to have,” Misa said, sitting back to blow a strand of hair out of her face. She reached over her table of goods in order to extend her hand, and Mando did the same, firmly shaking her hand. “Welcome to Listronus, Mando.”

“Thank you,” he answered.

“Well, here you are, Ms. Cantossan! Forty-eight useme nuts,” Misa added, lifting the basket off of the table and passing it to her. 

“Thanks again, Misa. See you later,” Elliotte said, looping her arm under the basket’s handle and carrying it off. Finally, they were able to leave the intense environment of the marketplace. As they drew further away from the noise, Mando was able to visibly relax, at least just a hair. “Okay, now I’m intrigued. What’s the purpose of so many of… those?”

“These are a great local food source here on Listronus. I figured you could take as many of these as you’d like back for you and your kid… and if it isn’t too much to ask, I’d like to ask if I could have the remaining ones instead of a monetary payment for this first day of guiding!”

“You can have them all,” answered Mando, tilting his helmet in her direction, “I have enough to get by on my ship. And the kid’s a carnivore anyway.”

Elliotte blinked, positively bewildered by such a thing. “We’re talking about the same kid, right? Th-the little green one? He’s a carnivore?”

There was a muffled almost-chuckle from beneath the helmet. “Yes. It took me by surprise too when I saw him eat a frog whole the night I found him.” There was a certain underlying fondness in his heavily-modulated voice that Elliotte didn’t miss whenever he spoke about the child. Spending so much time around politicians and noblemen, Ell was able to differentiate between fake smiles and genuine ones, and although the Mandalorian’s face could give her no true indication she could almost hear the smile through his voice. This child was important to him.

“I didn’t mean to assume. We can trade these useme nuts for some larger fish, if--”

“No, please… I can tell they have more value to you. I have enough food on my ship to get through several more weeks. Besides… I’d rather not go back into that marketplace again for a while.”

“Crowds aren’t your thing, huh?”

“Not really.”

Ell hummed thoughtfully, switching the basket of useme nuts to her other arm. “Well… I know a few places we can visit that are much less crowded. You up for a history lesson?”

“I don’t see why not?”

“It’s a good thing we bought these after all. We’re gonna need some for the trip.”

It turns out, “trip” was a bit of an overstatement. To the east of the city, the landscape gave way to hills and valleys. Most of the flat area had been developed into farmland while the hills were relatively untouched and wild. As Cietovus 8 climbed higher into the sky, the two cut through rows of knee-high crops, watching each step to make sure no plants were crushed in the process. Mando spent much of the walk admiring the change of scenery and enjoying the time away from the bustling city streets, but even he grew curious as to what exactly the destination was supposed to be. 

Ell, on the other hand, seemed to have the path memorized… which, he supposed, made sense in the grand scheme of things. She had lived here for all her life, after all. At first glance, the Mandalorian believed she was simply another haughty aristocrat. She certainly dressed like one and knew their mannerisms well, but upon getting to speak with her beyond more than a few passing words, he came to realize that she was kind, but without being naive and considerate without being a pushover. It was almost endearing in a way, the gentle balance she maintained. 

Mando must have been gradually slowing his pace, because once he’d finally drawn out of his thoughts, they were no longer walking side-by-side. Ell was a few steps ahead of him, still chattering on about the details and history of the landscape and pointing out specific structures in the nearby fields. By now, he’d come to realize that they were nearing the edge of the crop fields and approaching the base of a large hill. The incline was gradual, but scattered with trees and various rock formations that would make for some simple obstacles. Overall, it appeared to be a relatively easy climb.

“Where are we?”

“This is Listrona Hill. As the name implies, it has… incredible significance to the people of this planet. It’s also why the capital city is located so nearby,” Elliotte answered, already drawing closer to a narrow trail winding up the hillside, “But it’s not the hill itself that’s so important. It’s what’s at the top.”

Mando followed her, watching every step up the incline. “What is at the top?”

“You’ll see soon enough,” Ell said, “Back in the early days of this planet, Listronians were known for their unique spirituality. We believed every creature and object had a spirit and essence that it offered to the universe in a way only it could. Our deity was Artres, goddess of flowers and abundance. According to ancient myths, this hillside was her home… to this day, we still hold many funerals and weddings at the peak, and many of the older generations still believe it honors Artres. I’m not very religious myself, but the sentiment is nice.”

Mando listened to her explanation quietly as they navigated the tricky hillside, and Elliotte continued to recite old myths and stories about the creation of the planet, the supposed death of the goddess, and her rebirth in the form of a meadow of flowers, but her organized storytelling quickly dropped off in favor of enthusiasm as they neared the peak. She increased her pace until she was jogging the final stretch and turned around to wave him on and beckon him to hurry up.

Eventually Mando was standing beside her at the summit of the hill, looking out over a vast meadow of flowers that varied in color from blues and purples to reds and yellows and whites. The thick trees didn’t seem to grow into the meadow; Instead, they outlined the hilltop from the edges. The only thing around to interrupt the expanse of flowers was a small lake filled with crystalline water so pure one could see to the very bottom. In front of the lake was what appeared to be a small shrine.

The shrine itself was made of old, deep brown wood that had obviously been replaced and refurbished multiple times over the years. Semi-fresh flowers, wilted beneath the heat of the sun, had been weaved into the lattice pattern. Perhaps the features that stood out most was the pair of large antlers against the back of the shrine and the two sets of silver claws that dangled from them. While the antlers looked natural, the “claws” were clearly manmade--composed of the same carved silver that wrapped Elliotte’s forearm. 

Ell seemed to pick up on his curiosity quickly. “The antlers are from the Warhara. They’re a large canid species native to Listronus. Their antlers are strong and sturdy, and are worn by our Kings so that they may embody the same traits.”

“And these?” Mando said, cupping his hand beneath the silver claws.

“These are similarly modeled after the Warhara. To represent the spirit of a warrior. Before modern times, they were worn by footsoldiers and guardsmen, but obviously this sort of weaponry is outdated. These days, they’re worn exclusively for ritual combat… Look.” Elliotte carefully took the silver pieces off of the antlers and turned them over so that her companion was able to see the thin loop made on the underside of each claw. She slid her fingers into each loop and flexed them to show off the new extension of her hand. “They’re pretty cool, right? Personally, I think we should bring them back as part of our everyday wardrobe,” she took the claws back off and draped them back over the Warhara’s antlers before turning to him. 

“Princes of Listronus can lawfully challenge the Kings for the throne, but the only weapons they are allowed are those. It’s a dangerous event. Those claws are excellent for speed, but they definitely don’t provide the same kind of protection as your um… ‘beskar’, it is called, right?” She asked, stepping away from the small shrine and crossing the meadow to the edge of the small lake. There, she knelt in the grass beside the basket of useme nuts and patted the space beside her to encourage him to join her. He did so, and not soon afterward, Elliotte reached up and began to pluck the day-old flower buds from her hair. She unraveled them one at a time and set them aside in a neat pile beside her as she stole a glance in the Mandalorian’s direction. 

“Anyway, I’ve chattered on about history lessons long enough. I’m curious to learn more about you, if you would be willing to share. You mentioned earlier that you were a bounty hunter at one point… surely you have some interesting stories to tell?”

“Plenty,” Mando responded, the chuckle that followed catching on the modulator of his helmet, “... I don’t suppose you’ve heard of a ‘Mudhorn’ before, have you?”

Ell hummed thoughtfully, then offered a small shrug. “I’ve read briefly about them in books and on datapads through the years, but they’ve never been something I’ve heavily studied… why?”

The Mandalorian leaned back in the grass, placing his hands behind him as his helmet tipped skyward. “It wasn’t too long ago, actually… I was on assignment when a group of Jawas in their sandcrawler stole all the valuable parts they could scavenge from my ship. In order to get them to agree to return the pieces, they had me bring an egg of a Mudhorn as a trade. These things are… huge and incredibly territorial, and it wasn’t too happy to see me near its egg. I was outmatched immediately; It nearly shredded my armor and my weapons couldn’t even touch it --- in all honesty, I really thought I was done for. But then the kid, he--” he reached out to mimic the gesture the child seemed to make with his hands, but hesitated before finishing his sentence. 

Perhaps it wasn’t wise to share this information publicly. But Elliotte was enthralled by the story, fingers paused over the stem of a flower in her curled strand of hair and eyes wide with wonder and fascination, and the Mandalorian couldn’t find it in him to withhold the rest of the story from her. “All of a sudden, it stopped. The Mudhorn, mid-charge. I thought I must have died, because I sure didn’t believe what I was seeing. The whole creature was just… floating in front of me in the air. When I looked over at the kid, he had his hand out like this--” he mimicked the motion, “Keeping it suspended. I’ve never seen anything like it. With him keeping it occupied, I was able to finish it off but if he hadn’t… there’s no doubt I wouldn’t be sitting here now.”

To his surprise, when he’d finished his retelling, Ell snickered softly and set the last flower aside. “That’s an interesting story, Mando.”

“You don’t believe me?”

“Sure I do. The universe is so vast and unique, there’s no way we can possibly understand all of its inner workings. Just because something isn’t common doesn’t mean it’s impossible,” now that she’d finished removing the petals and buds from her hair, she turned away and began to pluck new ones from the colorful meadow nearby. “Priestesses in Listronian history have exhibited similar abilities. It was thought to be a given gift by Artres herself, you know. Not that I believe too heavily in old religion, but perhaps your child has just inherited something similar. It sounds quite extraordinary.”

The Mandalorian cast her a glance from the side of his visor. Not only had Elliotte responded unexpectedly well to such a story, but she believed it wholeheartedly. He was hesitant to call it naivety, as she really was knowledgeable about her planet and people, but trust was a difficult thing to come by in his line of work. “You’re unpredictably nonchalant about this.”

To that, Ell laughed softly. “In my experience, closed mindedness is dangerous. It lures one into a false sense of security, content in the idea they have all the answers, whereas open mindedness allows room to learn and grow… to fluctuate and move, like flowers in an afternoon breeze.”

This sentiment only served to further cast a ripple in the Mandalorian’s original judgement of Elliotte Cantossan. Despite himself being the one wrapped head to toe in protective metal, the one meant to be a mystery, he found himself more at a loss with her -- the harpist whose only armor was the band of silver on her forearm and the woman who willingly sought him for nothing but his company? 

She had trusted him enough to allow him into her house and enough to agree to visit his, and even enough to bring him to the holiest space on her homeworld… and yet, as he’d come to realize, he still knew hardly anything about her. She knew hardly anything about him. And yet he felt drawn to her -- comfortable around her -- as if parts of him could seep through the gaps in his armor without worry in her presence. 

By the way Ell’s smile brightened just a little when she saw the t-shape of his visor faced in her direction, he could almost believe she felt the same. As he watched her begin to tie fresh flowers into her hair, he could no longer keep himself from asking the question: “The flowers… they’re incorporated everywhere on this planet. What is the significance? Why do you put them into your hair like that?”

“Spiritually speaking, flowers are symbolic to Artres--”

“No, why do you do it?”

Ell seemed taken aback by his question, normally steady fingers faltering and causing the strand of hair to unwrap from the stem of a pink flower. She quietly cleared her throat and began the process again. “We call it artresmour. “Godlike love”. To put them on yourself is to express vitality and youth and self love -- to put it on anyone else is to express devotion and trust… it’s like saying… ‘you are important to me in a way words cannot describe.’ It’s not necessarily romantic; It’s romantic and platonic and familial. Some villages even use it as a greeting to strangers and newcomers. It unites us. Godlike love,” she paused briefly before continuing, “To me, it’s a way to deepen bonds; My best friend and I take turns every time we meet… it’s the way we acknowledge each other’s struggles and our fights to overcome them, and our way of assuring each other we aren’t going it alone.”

There was a brief pause between the two of them before the Mandalorian chose to break the silence. “How do you feel about… doing it blindfolded?”

TAGS: Message me/send me an ask to be added.

Ao3: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23677540/chapters/60781519

[mikami]

Death Note Audio Drama 10

Disc 10: Karma Police - a summary / partial translation

Prior translations / an explanation as to what the fuck this is.

After I majorly burned myself out on doing these, I am BACK with the rest of this drama in tow. 10 down, 2 to go.

In this: nonsensical but wild shinigami lore, confirmation of ghosts, an actually sad dialogue of grief over Soichiro, and transparently agenda-based bad writing decisions that make me lose my mind with how bad they are.

_____________________

We start with a dramatic audio sequence from Kira’s Kingdom. Topics are the rise of pseudonyms in social media and unjustified Kira killings based on rumors online. There is also... a studio guest!

DEMEGAWA: Here in the studio, I can welcome Teru Mikami. Prosecutor in new Kira cases from all over the world.  I, Hitoshi Demegawa, take your calls, read your mails, listen to your stories. Whole lifestyles are overhauled, behaviours defined anew. How we approach other people is often only dominated by fear. And... love. The love of Lord Kira. This is Kira’s world. We’re just living in it.

(Note by me: what the fuck does this mean??? Literally what the fuck does any of that mean?? How is a case a Kira case?? He’s pro-Kira not anti-Kira?? Hello?? On that note, DEMEGAWA IS ALSO PRO-KIRA??? WHY IS HE SAYING ANY OF THIS???? The fact that the audio drama writers had zero commitment to even trying to make Kira-following believable in story irritates me a lot. They do so much obvious moralizing at the cost of the story. Like yeah, Kira is bad, but a sane listener doesn’t need you to literally punch them in the face with it............................)

______________________

TITLE MUSIC

______________________

Mello meets Ms Sugai, the mafia lawyer from last disc. They’re at the beach, waiting for the drone to arrive. Ms Sugai is very demanding, definitely views herself as the boss here. She takes Rod Ross’ role in this drama.

The drone gets there, Sugai nitpicks Mello’s methods, Mello stays calm, and the drone is retrieved and brought to Sugai’s place.

_____________________

L and Shidoh arrive in Tokyo. Shidoh remarks how it was very different last time he got there (after the war). Shidoh suspects the war is the cause of shinigami having gotten so lazy, since a lot of them didn’t have to kill for ages after this. (Nevermind that this is complete bullshit because shinigami don’t have anything to do with ‘normal’ deaths and thus would not actually have had to work any at a war unless they were directly painstakingly orchestrating it, lmao.)

L wonders if youkai in Japanese folklore. are just half-remembered sightings of Shinigami. Shidoh isn’t sure.

Shidoh also explains that L’s body is going to change. Everyone starts out with the body they died in and then changes. Shidoh speculates it is related to the manner of death or maybe the personality of the person. 

L: Are you trying to say all Shinigami started out as humans?

SHIDOH: Not necessarily. But even a human will change over the course of centuries. I don’t know, L. Maybe your teeth are going to get longer and longer. Or! Horns may come from your skull. Or you’ll just keep growing taller. Death is only the beginning.

The two of them arrive at the Task Force Headquarter. Shidoh goes in, L leaves.

_______________________________

Soichiro is trying to get into the headquarters despite having already had his retirement party. But officially he’s still employed - yet he can’t get in because he’s suspended after stealing the Death Note to free Sayu.

_______________________________

Shidoh approaches Ryuk about his notebook. He demands it back, but Ryuk doesn’t know where it is. 

_______________________________

Matsuda and Light are sorting through Watari’s huge amount of physical files that he kept in a storage room. None of that seemed relevant to them 5 years ago. It’s mostly data about his charity work, including his orphanage for gifted children, Wammy’s House. There is a file on N, but there is no picture, only a drawing. Likewise with M. M has a juvenile criminal record in his file. They deduce M is the one who stole the Death Note.

______________________________

Sugai comes to talk to the mafia guy the police arrested. Since she’s his lawyer. She tells him that he has to sit his time in jail for a few months until she gets him out. She also dictates what to state as his testimony.

______________________________

Shidoh then approaches the dude. The dude is appropriately shocked. Shidoh wants him to say where the Death Note is. 

______________________________

Light sees this freak-out on the camera feeds and assumes a shinigami is in the cell. Light figures out that Ryuk handed over a stolen Death Note. He’s highly amused. 

The mafia guy tells Shidoh where the headquarters are (on the other end of Tokyo) and the investigators who are listening in now also know.

______________________________

Sugai is incredulous that the weapon they got is just a book. She’s immediately wants to test the book. She and Mello discuss the rules and capabilities of it.

______________________________

Light decides not to tell Near about these developments. The Task Force wants to get the notebook back themselves. They scheme how to storm the building, there is a bunch of technical talk about methods here.

______________________________

Sugai and Mello still discuss the rules. Shidoh appears and immediately tells them the 13 day rule is fake. 

______________________________

Misa and Light are at a public swimming pool. Light chose the location so nobody can wear a bug and also to drown out noise with the whirlpool. Misa is excited about the outing. Light tells Misa to get rid of the notebook. She’s supposed to kill the mafia first, then give the book up. 

______________________________

Soichiro is tending to the roses. Sachiko is giving gardening advice, Soichiro doesn’t know shit about gardening. Sachiko is super happy Soichiro is home and wants to make out, wohoo. But Soichiro gets a call from Kira, rip.

Kira is Misa giving him the plan to storm Mello’s HQ, just like in canon.

______________________________

Mello starts wondering why someone would write the fake rules. And he figures that Kira wanted the police to read the fake rules, to give him an alibi.

_____________________________

The Task Force gets Kira’s Death Note. Soichiro has objections against the plan, morally. Everyone else is just like ‘eh’. 

______________________________

Shidoh asks for his book back, Mello and Sugai don’t want to return it. 

______________________________

The raid on the HQ is happening! Light is also in with them, he even has a gun. 

MATSUDA: Is your weapon ready to fire?

LIGHT: Yes, Matsuda. It is. I’m a real detective.

MATSUDA: For less than a week. How many shoot-outs have you been at?

LIGHT: One, this one included.

MATSUDA: Right. You may officially be my boss, but I still have 7 years on you. This is not a game.

LIGHT: You don’t have to tell me that.

People start dying and the raid is starting.

______________________________

Sugai and Mello notice the attack. Shidoh suggests the eye deal so they can defend themselves.

Sugai also suggests Mello pretend to take her hostage, since officially she is not a criminal and can thus count as a civilian hostage. Mello agrees. They try to take the back door to escape.

Shidoh is surprised nobody wants the deal.

Outdoors, Soichiro yells at them to give up. Mello recognizes his voice and knows his name. Sugai suggests he kill him. They realize neither of them has the book on them.

______________________________

Soichiro meanwhile finds the left-behind Death Note, hurray. Mello and Sugai do their hostage plan to get him to give up the notebook. Sugai screams really melodramatically.

Light also enters the scene but a surviving mafia goon has a target on him. Soichiro meanwhile forgot his weapon on some table, rip.

The situation is dire, Ryuk tempts Soichiro into the eye deal in a lengthy sequence of pointing out just how dire the situation is. Specifically the motivator here is that Light’s life is in danger. Soichiro takes the deal for Light.

_______________________________

The stand-off continues. More and more people from each side arrive at the scene and its more complicated. Soichiro reveals that he has Mello’s name (he pronounces it Michael) and threatens people with it.

Ryuk helps (?) by turning off the light for a moment, which causes people to shoot wildly. Soichiro runs to the roof, injured. Mello and Sugai chase him.

______________________________

Sugai decides to escape without the notebook and fucks off. https://twitter.com/MiyataVld/status/1153658045374746624

______________________________

Ryuk comes to Soichiro and says he ‘has’ to write his name. I don’t know how the fuck shinigami lore works in this. Light comes up to the roof and wants Soichiro to give him the notebook. Shidoh steps in, Soichiro gives HIM the notebook, Light is really pissed about it. 

SOICHIRO: We made it, son. We’re finally rid of it.... nobody can misuse it anymore.... And I still have the eyes.

LIGHT: Father...

SOICHIRO: I can see you now son... your name... your death date... do you know what that means?

LIGHT: You can’t go father! The ambulance is on the day. Stay strong. Look into my eyes. Look at me.

SOICHIRO: As I can see... it means... you’re not Kira....

LIGHT: Yes, father, I’m not Kira. But you have to hold on and tell it to the others as well. You can’t die, stay strong! Tell them what you’re seeing! Tell them... Father?! [sobbing noises]

______________________________

Soichiro’s funeral. A Christian sermon again, because who cares these guys are Japanese, I guess.

MATSUDA: Chin up, Light. He’d be proud of you.

LIGHT: Thanks, Matsuda.

AIZAWA: My condolences.

LIGHT: Thank you. Come on, mom. Let’s go home.

SACHIKO: You couldn’t change it either, huh...?

LIGHT: Mom! 

SACHIKO: I had him for two days! I waited 35 years and you only left him to me for two. days.

SAYU: Mom... Don’t say that! Not here!

SACHIKO: He was retired. Why was he even there?

LIGHT: He saved my life.

SAYU: And mine, too.

SACHIKO: Hah.

SAYU: He was a hero.

SACHIKO: I didn’t want a hero. I wanted my husband.

SAYU: Calm down, mom...

SACHIKO: Don’t you dare tell me to calm down. I lost him to the police. I lost my whole life to the police! And now they’ve got you, too.

LIGHT: He was proud of me.

SACHIKO: Of course he was. You’re just like him. It’s as if he was still standing in front of me, ready to doom another woman who will spend her life waiting for him to come home! 

MISA: Sachiko, please...

SACHIKO: Run while you still can, Misa. It’s not worth it! [sobbing] Why did you let him go?! Why didn’t you talk him into staying home?!

__________________________

RYUK: Humans are so funny.

L: You’re a monster.

RYUK: What the hell?? How did you get here?

L: Surprised to see me?

RYUK: Uhh, yeah? You’re... uh... You’re dead.

L: People keep telling me that lately.

RYUK: What’s going on here? Are you.... Wait. Are you buried here? Is this just a common haunting? 

L: Nope.

RYUK: In that case you’re just an echo, you see? It’ll fade soon.

L: Do I sound like an echo?

RYUK: No. You can’t just come back from the dead. That’s impossible.

L: Are you sure?

RYUK: There are rules. 

L: And do you also know the one that says you’re not allowed to steal someone else’s death note? That’s one of those rules, isn’t it?

RYUK: Aaah, that’s how Shidoh found me. 

L: We helped each other out.

RYUK: But he’s back home now. He left you here.

L: Yeah, there’s still a few things I need to do.

RYUK: You know that there is only a single way for you to still be here? There is only one way for this to end.

L: Yes.

RYUK: Wow, L. You really have to carry a major rage inside of you. 

L: I think I merely have a reason.

RYUK: Then just wait, buddy.

L: What?

RYUK: Light has got his teeth in your successor. You know, that miniature version of you.

L: Near. What can Light do to him?

RYUK: He’s close. Light is gonna turn his lights off.

L: But he doesn’t know his real name. He can’t kill him.

RYUK: He doesn’t need that. He just needs to cut him off from reinforcements. Cheers to the chief inspector!

____________________________

A press person tries to do damage control on Trump’s terrible politics. Many Trump jokes here. I am so tired of this drama reminding me Trump exists.

Trump then announces that the US won’t oppose Kira anymore.

___________________________

We’re still at the cemetery. Light is chilling there, as Ryuk urges him to go out. Light asks Ryuk what happens after death and wonders if Soichiro might know the truth now, wherever he is. Ryuk doesn’t answer conclusively. He accuses Light of being scared of his karma and scared of his father’s disapproval.

Light kept a few pages of Shidoh’s notebook. He killed Sugai with it. Light still wonders if his father is watching.

Ryuk says that ‘almost’ nobody ever came back from the dead.

__________________________

Mikami is on a debate program, opposing Paula Virilio. They’re discussing the US’s recent decision. This discussion is BIZARRE and I don’t understand why a single writing decision in it was made. Like, it just makes me so mad. I am solely translating it so everyone else can be mad with me.

TAKADA: Shocking statements from the US president today. But are they really so susprising? That’s what I want to ask general prosecutor Teru Mikami. Mr. Mikami?

MIKAMI: Good evening. No, it really isn’t surprising. I think this recent deed by the US mirrors are global, fast-growing movement that isn’t afraid to call Kira’s actions good.

TAKADA: It probably isn’t true that there aren’t any wars or crimes anymore.

MIKAMI: No. Kira’s actions are rather localized. He pays almost no attention to the third world. And not all crimes happen intentionally or are able to be put to trial without reasonable evidence.

TAKADA: And for you that’s alright?

MIKAMI: I think Kira is listening. I think he is watching us at this very moment. I think he reacts to movements and campaigns in the public. If his punishments reflect the worries of, say, the Japanese middle class, then that’s also a... how should I put this... function of his loudest supporters.

TAKADA: You’re saying that if we were more interested in, for example, Simbabwe, then Kira would do the same?

MIKAMI: That’s my firm belief. 

TAKADA: Also in our studio, is the law consultant Paula Virilio, who has lead both Interpol and the SPK in the past. To you the question... where is the 180° turn of the US president taking the criminal justice system?

VIRILIO: I don’t know if this step was really thought through. Only a short while ago, he signed a paper assigning more money to the according task forces. This step now... it is putting the whole task force into a tight spot. There are definitely going to be conflicts with Interpol. The step back from American engagement will likely have consequences.

TAKADA: Do you mean financially?`

VIRILIO: Interpol still views Kira as the world’s most wanted terrorist. And those who work with Interpol usually do this in the shape of a substantial financial contribution. So yes, I think this step will freeze both the US engagement with Interpol and this form of international cooperation at large, for an indefinite amount of time. With a whole row of unpredictable consequences, by the way. Cooperations across borders, agreements to hand people over, tax agreements... At baseline, he just turned the US into a paradise for organized crime.

MIKAMI: Come on, Paula, that’s ridiculous! 

_________________________

The scene cuts, to the SPK who was watching. They’re understandably displeased. And they argue that Kira must be blackmailing the president to do this. The SPK things they had something on Kira that made Kira fear them.

This makes them think back to the kidnapping stunt in Japan. 

Mello then calls the SPK.

MELLO: My condolences for the end of your job contract. Looks like sticking to the rules was a waste of time.

He then tells Near that he used to have the notebook for a little bit. Near is shocked the task force didn’t tell him any of that. Mello tells Near that he’ll have to work hard to catch up with him now.

Thus he gives Near a tip, telling him a rule is fake.

___________________________

We’re back on Kira’s Kingdom. They talk about Sugai, who’s suicide included a confession (thanks Light), about the family feud at Soichiro’s funeral, and then about protestants circling the SPK building.

___________________________

Near calls Light. He confronts Light on not informing him on the raid. He’s pissed and says they failed because they didn’t use his resources for backup.

He also asks Light what he thinks of fake rules and immediately admits Mello told him this.......................

Near elaborates on the idea that the fake rules were made to create an alibi. Light ‘deduces’ the correct fake rules.

Near suggests testing the book and its rules, the task force refuses this. Near then addresses the task force members and calls suspicion to Light being Kira. 

After the call ends, the anti-SPK protesters arrive at the building and try to storm it. Near and the SPK make a run for it.

_____________________________

Light says that Near is just desperate to present just about anything before his special task force gets dissolved. The task force discuss Near’s theory anyway.

Matsuda says that Near is just trying to split them apart. The other task force members aren’t as anti-Near.

[angelique-of-the-volturi-guard]

I made myself cry writing this so now I gotta share.

This is “Tribute”. The wedding reception was in full swing. She and Light had had their first dance, him spinning her effortlessly on the dance floor. It was the Cinderella-at-the-ball moment she’d dreamed of her entire life. Surrounded by their friends, his family, she’d felt so very at home. Wrapped in his arms, her favorite place to be, she’d felt so in love, so safe, so cared for.When their first dance ended, she let go of him, and allowed him free from her grasp. The music changed to a slow waltz, and he took his mother’s hand for their dance together. A slow song gave Misa a chance to appreciate the beauty of the ballroom they were in now. It also gave her a moment to reflect on the magnitude of all she’d lost. She wished her parents were here to see this. Her mother and father would be so happy to see her this happy. She’d made sure to have two empty seats in the front row at the ceremony for them, so that they could symbolically be there to share in this joyous moment in her life. She’d saved two seats at the reception for them, too. So they wouldn’t miss out on the festivities. Light, mercifully, had completely understood why she wanted to do so, and supported her in that. A sliver of her consciousness, however small, wondered if it was because it was proof of what Violent crime could cause, and showed that Kira was avenging those victims, but she didn’t want to think about that. Not today. As he spun with his mother on the dance floor, Light caught a glance at his wife. She looked so overjoyed, and he was glad for that, but he also caught the longing glances she gave the two chairs they’d put by the head of the table. He could see that she was hurting for her parents. That she wished they were there. She would always hurt like that because of the man who killed them. But he was happy to honor them today. Because in a way, it honored him. Because it had been he who brought their killer to justice. He looked at his mother, who had hardly stopped crying through the whole ceremony, and looked so happy and proud of him. He couldn’t imagine being without both of his parents. He was happy that he still had his mom and Sayu, though he wished his dad were here to see this moment. Misa was probably feeling the same way about her dad. And Light was right. She missed him terribly, and that was why she had prepared a special tribute to him in lieu of a father-daughter dance. When Light and Sachiko had finished their dance, Misa got up on the stage where the DJ was set up. A microphone stand was set up, as was a projector at the back of the room. She was going to sing for him. “Thank you everyone.” She said, and a hush fell over the crowd. “Most of you that know me know that my parents were killed several years ago. I wanted to pay tribute to them today in many ways. They had seats saved at the ceremony, and here at the reception hall. And right now, I wanted to talk about my Dad.” She said, and smiled. “He was so funny and kind. He had such an incredible laugh that I couldn’t help laughing myself when he did, even if I didn’t know what was funny. He used to take me to pick flowers, and he liked putting one behind my ear. So I wanted to sing a song for him today, because if he was here right now, this would be our dance.” She waited until the projector had been cued up, before she had the music start. She used the microphone stand to anchor herself against her emotions, and began to sing. “Yes I'm gonna stay with him tonight I'll see you in the mornin' No of course, he won't drink and drive Can you say bye to mom for me? Oh you'll like him, he's really kind And he's funny like you sometimes And I found someone I really like Maybe for the first time A series of home movies began to play on the projector behind her, depicting moments with her and her father.  No I don't need a jacket It's not that cold tonight And you worry, I get it But he's waiting outside Her father, smiling and bouncing her in his arms as a baby. Her father, tickling her as a toddler, and her squealing.

I swear on my heart That he's a good man I know you'll stay up late Just waiting for me You held me so tight Now someone else can But you were the first man that really loved me Her father, offering her flowers for valentines day, and dancing with a four year old version of herself on his shoes.  Now you're driving to the airport Not just me you pick up anymore I've got eight days off coming up And I can only come home for four Her father, grinning at the camera, as she talked to him, and wrapped him in a hug. Yeah I just met his family They're just like you and mom He makes me really happy I think he might be the one, oh Her and her father on camera, playing cards and laughing. I swear on my heart That he's a good man I promise he loves me He'd never hurt me You held me so tight Now someone else can But you were the first man that really loved me Now you're on the driveway Faking a smile You wish you could tell him he doesn't deserve me So I had to stop the car and turn around To tell you you were the first man that really loved me The two of them, in matching mickey ears at Disneyland Tokyo the year before he passed, sharing a tight hug. And before they open up the doors I say I've never seen you cry before You say "You've never looked so beautiful You know you'll always be my little girl” A pause in the video, blank for a second, and then, as she sang the next verse, the most beautiful part of the video. You're looking at me, we’re walking down the aisle With tears in your eyes, maybe he deserves me You don't even know how much it means to me now That you were the first man that really loved me Herself at age seven, dressed in a white gown, playing wedding. Her father, holding her hand to walk her down the aisle. Oh, that really loved me, oh You really love me…” The last note hung in the air, washing over the crowd like surf. A tear went down her cheek as she finished, and as she looked out into the sea of faces, there was not one dry eye in all of them. She wiped the tear from her own eye, thankful she had worn waterproof mascara today so it didn’t run down her face. Then, the uproar of applause. She smiled, despite her tears. “Thank you.” Light offered his bride a hand, and helped her down from the stage. He wrapped his arms around her, and gave her a kiss. “I think he heard you.” Light said to her. She nodded, and glanced up at the chairs reserved for her parents, sun glowing on them. For just a second, two figures seemed to fill them, smiling. Misa grinned when she saw it. Her parents had come after all.

[pepucz]

Death Note personal thoughts

I saw a post about thoughts on “everyone goes to Mu” part of the manga by one of my favourite tumblr users - 13eyond13 and I originally replied to it, but I figured my thoughts were more about my personal feelings than adding something relevant to the original post, so I decided to post it totally separately here just for my own satisfaction. (also my English can suck hard, so if anyone decides to read this all, I’m sorry for any mistakes)

_______

I must admit I was rooting for Light and was truly a KIRA supporter at the beginning (till the moment he killed Lind L. Tailor), I also took the information from Ryuk about Mu as a fact for everyone just like Light did, but that's probably because I'm an atheist and I have lots of nihilistic thoughts, so Ryuk saying the “Mu” part would only prove my own views and beliefs - the nihilistic aspect of the whole story is also one of the reasons why Death Note remained one of my most favourite mangas of all my time and why I’m so happy to have my love for it fully restored and be actively back in the fandom...

So yeah I agreed with the original intention of Light with the Death Note, he was pretty careful with what kind of criminals he killed, he "wouldn't kill those who killed accidentally or without malice like car accident deaths for example" (chapter 47), but I didn't agree with his God complex, that was probably the first thing that didn't click right with me even though it does make a sense as Light wanted to set new rules for humanity by his own standarts, I just don’t like the idea of “God” or whatever, but the real endgame for me was the moment he killed Tailor, he didn't know if he was criminal, he killed him just because he challenged him. That was the point where I stopped rooting for him. I also saw killing Raye Penber and the rest of the FBI agents as even more unnecessary steps and also a pretty obvious way to cast suspicion against himself. But we wouldn't have a story if it wouldn’t happen 🙃 And I still loved his character even after this tbh :)

I must admit I don't value a human’s life as something more valuable than an animal's life (of course I do value my dearest's lives super lot, I would die for them anytime or rather I do continue living for them, but those lost humans' lives of people, whom I hadn't known personally, haven't heard their story or whom I simply didn’t like just don't spur any real pity for them in me, earth is overpopulated anyway, what truly upsets me in the worldwide spectrum is losing some extinct animal species - I even cry when I see the planet lost some animal species just because of the human greediness) and I'm sick of ppl making so much fuss over the loss of a human life than over animal's one especially if they don't know those humans personally. Death is part of the human life, sometimes it’s unfair how some lives end, but the World won’t stop spinning because of it and it’s not like humans are endangered species... it’s pretty much the other way around. I mentioned this bit of my feelings about general mankind because I was pretty irritated when the task force or someone in DN universe was upset with ppl dying even if they were/might be a piece of shit, just because it’s “human life!! Human!!”. Like - I loved Soichiro Yagami as a father figure and I really loved his love for Light, but I was totally done with him ruining L’s plans in Yotsuba’s arc XD Same for innocent Light in this arc, but at least he didn’t try to do anything that would ruin L’s plans just to stop the criminal’s deaths (Misa managed it in the end and everyone was satisfied thanks to that for the time being) XD

Back to the topic of using Death Note - I would plan to use it as Light did in the beginning, but target mainly animal abusers, it would also be super hard for me to find names and faces and 100% proof that they are the guilty ones. Also I would never think of myself as a God, that's totally stupid IMHO. I would be just a mass murderer like Light by human's standards. 'Murderer' is still a word invented by humans alone, so it wouldn't faze me as much as it fazed Light being called like that... Also maybe I would never use Death Note to the extent as Light did, because now even criminals have GDPR protection and their names and photos are often kept secret (which I find to be super unfair). Light would never commit a murder without a Death Note, and I’m the same (even though I can’t guarantee what I would do if I saw someone torturing animals/my loved ones in front of me.... I still think I would go berserk probably). Anyway even with knowing there is nothing after Death for sure, I would still try to make the world a better place by what I believe is right, I don’t care that it would seem evil to some ppl, I also don't give a shit there is no meaning for human's lives in the vast of the universe, I wouldn't care that this plan of making the World a better place would also mean nothing compared the whole Universe and its timeline... I would still try to do it, because it would satisfy me for the time of me being alive...

All humans have a choice to not hurt others, those who decide to do it especially when it concerns truly innocent human's lives or animal's ones (I truly hate humans, who abuse animals just for fashion, cosmetics, household products, money or for some sick sense of fun) just don't deserve their life in my mindset and I don't care how wrong it is in human society's view. I get especially angry when some criminal runs away from Borstal (because he is not put in prison as he is mentally ill and commited crime because of it) or from prison, of even worse when a criminal is released by the court for good behaviour or some shit and then that individual ends innocent life again.... in such cases I just get furious at the impotence of our laws because it means this individual can harm someone close to me too just as simply because “as a human” he still has all the human rights even after he violated someone else’s rights, that’s just super unfair. I also don't believe in real peace, human race is not capable of it imho. That's why we have to have laws... and here I’m getting back to Death Note - our laws serve the same purpose as Kira's law did in my opinion, only Kira was more successful because it was pretty definitive and striked even those who otherwise wouldn't give a shit about our weak laws. There are people who want to live peacefully and don't need any law for that, then there are some who live in peace just because of the fear of our laws' consequences and then we have those who don't give a shit about laws because it won't cost them their lives... + a small group who don't give a shit even it would cost them their life... (we don't have a death sentence in Czech Republic anymore as it was deemed too "inhuman", I must add that I must agree that there are crimes where it's almost impossible to convict the criminal as 100% guilty and it's better to just put them in the prison - as I already mentioned I would have a really hard time using the Death Note because I would be too afraid I might kill someone innocent). So Kira's idea about peace was no different than the current worlwide idea of peace with our laws.

Now to get somewhere else for a bit - I fell in love with L and Near and I was quite happy with the ending of Death Note and how Light was served and killed by Ryuk. I felt a bit of pity for his death, but it didn't traumatize me like L's (or Mello's) death tbh. I woudn’t really change a thing about L’s and Light’s deaths anyway...

When I look at the overal picture of Death Note, Light still managed to save more innocent lives than Near and L imho. During his time the crime dropped by 70% worldwide. 70% is truly a large number considering the worldwide measure. A lot of innocent humans didn't die because of rapists and murderers thanks to Light. But as DN is pretty nihilistic the world returned back to the old standards after Light's defeat and the crime percentage grew back as it was before Kira's reign. So defeating Kira served right only to people who's life’s purpose is fighting criminals - they need them to exist otherwise their job would be meaningless - and Kira almost took it from them. L's life purpose was solving crimes, but what would there be to solve if criminals were ceasing to exist? I see it as the main reason why he got involved in the Kira case at first even if he himself wouldn’t admit it. Kira was threatening his life's purpose. But of course that's just my impression. I still fell in love with L the most even if our views differed.

_________

Dunno if this whole rant makes sense or not but that’s just how I feel....

Death Note doesn't exist unfortunately and even if it would and I would get my hands on it, if it would be haunted by Ryuk, I would be definitely served by him pretty soon anyway, because he would probably get bored with me very soon 😂 I'm not a genius and I would be afraid of harming innocent beigns, so I would be extremely careful with using the Death Note.

Might try to bargain with apples but knowing Ryuk it wouldn't be enough to keep him from writing my name down sooner than my time is up 😂 I wouldn't even blame him 🙃 I'm simple and boring average woman, who is totally done with human race and most of the humans.

BTW I really love this little bit from the pilot chapter of Death Note:

"But that would probably mean you'd have to kill the majority of mankind." 👍

(might delete this whole post later because of my social anxiety or if I get too roasted for my opinions, because I'm a coward 😄 I do stand firmly behind my beliefs especially IRL but I also prefer to be invisible on public sites 😄)

[13eyond13]

The Rest of the “What If?“ Questions:

I’ve had a huge influx of “what if” alternate scenario type asks the last 2 days, and I’m not sure if they’re all from the same person or several people. I really do appreciate the interest in getting my take on this stuff! But to avoid spamming the dashboard more with all these answers I’m just going to put the rest of them into one ask here:

FEM!LIGHT’S STANCE ON WOMEN:

I think she would both resent being a woman and also still look down on other women, but still be extremely confident and sure of herself on the inside. She’d probably have some internalized misogyny and still view men as superior and wish to compete with them more than with women, but she’d also resent men for being valued more highly within the patriarchal culture she was raised within, so it would be a bit of a complicated mix. She’d probably still grow up idolizing Soichiro instead of her mother, because even though Sachiko is no doubt also smart and talented she is submissive and seemingly content with carrying out her supportive, servile domestic role as a mother and a housewife. Light would probably dream of far more ambitious things for her own future with the idealistic and egotistical personality she has and all the accolades she’s gotten in her academic and athletic and social pursuits. I also think she’d be a lesbian, but that it would only really awaken in her once she met L, who would also be female in this AU, and the first woman she found genuinely fascinating and truly “worthy” of respect.

HOW L WOULD CONVICT A MEMORYLESS LIGHT:

I’m not really sure. I guess L would have to get irrefutable physical evidence that proved Light had been Kira originally. Even if Light denied it the entire time he obviously could still be condemned as Kira if the evidence against him was strong enough. I think proving some of the rules fake would’ve brought L a lot closer to proving Light was guilty, but I’m a bit too lazy right now to try to think this AU scenario out the whole way through from beginning to end. It takes a lot of mental energy and revisiting of the source material to do so entirely accurately, so I definitely very much admire Ohba for keeping the canon plot so free of holes. There are always so many technical little things and different characters’ points of view to keep in mind!

IF THE DEATH NOTE WAS A “LIFE NOTE” INSTEAD:

Lol, I mean I guess a Life Note would probably revive people who had already died, or something like that? That could also cause a lot of worldwide havoc, though I’m not sure it would technically be a crime to bring people back from the dead! I wonder how Light would use something like that to achieve his New World… revive all the innocent victims who had been unjustly murdered by evil criminals or something? Lol I don’t really know, my brainpower is pretty zapped for thinking these things out right now…

However, this does remind me a bit of the “Death Eraser” that was included in the original Death Note pilot chapter! Ohba initially toyed with the idea of having an eraser that went along with the notebook which would bring the Death Note victims back to life. You can find that pilot chapter online with a little Googling if you’re curious about it. I’m so glad they decided to scrap that silly idea for the actual official series, haha.

HOW INNOCENT!LIGHT WOULD REACT TO MISA TELLING HIM HE IS KIRA:

@whiteroes1977 I think he would be both horrified and also know that it made sense, since he was already thinking that Kira’s ideals and methods lined up pretty closely with his own. He also thought that he would probably try to catch himself if he’d lost his Kira memories. It would definitely be a big internal struggle between Light’s desire to see himself as a good/innocent person who operates within the Law and his ego/ideals/belief that he was the only person who could truly bring about the new world he envisioned from the start. I’d love to see him have to make a big moral choice about becoming Kira again like that when he was still amnesia!Light, since he really didn’t know he was going to regain his Kira memories when he touched the Death Note in the helicopter at all.

IF SACHIKO PICKED UP THE DEATH NOTE:

Hahaha hmmm… I like to think that Sachiko is where Light gets most of his brains and also his more mysterious and sneaky side! There isn’t much to go by in canon about Sachiko’s character other than her role as a supportive and hardworking mom and housewife, but it would be very interesting if she decided to do something with a Death Note that would go totally against what everyone expects from her somehow. Maybe she’d also have a strong vigilante streak based on the frustrations she felt about Soichiro’s career; or maybe she would do something totally for herself with it and way outside of the box, and end up carrying on with this secret life that was both a guilty thrill and an escape from her humdrum duties in the home. It’s a bit hard to say without fleshing out her character a lot more than Ohba did in canon though, and I’m not really feeling up to doing that right now, sorry.

WHAT IF RYUK HAD KILLED EVERYONE ELSE IN THE WAREHOUSE INSTEAD?:

I think that Light would have been very happy if Ryuk did that, and he’d have continued right on with his plans to become the God of the New World. The SPK and task force was pretty much the only thing standing in the way of him achieving this goal at this point, so he’d just see it as serving them right for defying him like that. I don’t know the exact specifics of how he would achieve actual godhood, like if he would choose to make himself a public figure as Kira or just continue to work behind the scenes forevermore? I’ve always wanted to read a really detailed and realistic AU about Light actually winning and the crazy ways the world would change, but I haven’t managed to think it out myself to any satisfying degree yet. I definitely don’t imagine it would be the idealized world he imagined though, as even if crime was completely eliminated it would be a totalitarian dictatorship under which everyone was living in constant fear and feeling very oppressed.

HOW LIGHT WOULD REACT TO MALE!MISA:

Male!Misa could be pretty interesting too, with both canon Light and fem!Light. I imagine it would still be very off-putting to Light for a guy to show up at their house and come onto them that strongly, no matter how you headcanon Light’s gender or sexuality. I guess Light wouldn’t automatically look down on male!Misa for his gender, so that might be a small advantage that male!Misa would have over female Misa. But it could also potentially work against male!Misa since Light would probably expect more from guys and find that kind of behaviour from a man extra unsettling. What i find the most interesting to think about with male!Misa is how the fandom’s reaction to the character might differ, honestly. I think male!Misa would both have way more stans and also way harsher criticism piled upon him, maybe? I think he’d be shipped a ton with the male characters as well. Certain flaws and behaviours would be treated with way more lenience and forgiveness, and then other ones would be pointed out much more harshly, as well. It’s always pretty interesting to contemplate this stuff, but unfortunately I’m a bit too tired to add a whole lot of detailed insight on the topic at this point.

[thatonekawaiigirl13]

Who Said Death Was Easy? [Death Note] Chapter Fifty-One

Chapter Fifty-One: Confession

Light’s POV:

“Light-kun!” Misa squealed, causing Light to inwardly groan. He stepped into her hotel room, barely getting through the door before she pulled him into a rather bone-crushing embrace. “I missed you!”

“It’s only been a few days since we last saw each other. You visited me at headquarters, remember?” he muttered quietly. “Don’t be so dramatic.” 

She’s annoying as always…one upside to finding a new Kira is that I won’t have a reason to see Misa anymore. Not that she has to know that. 

“I know!” Misa replied, pouting a little. “It’s been so long…why are you here? Are we finally going to get to go on a proper date?!”

“Not quite,” Light replied, earning a slight frown from Misa. “Misa-chan, please understand, I’m strictly only here for business. There’s something pressing that we have to discuss. It’s important, so I’d like it if you’d be serious.”

“That’s no fun,” Misa pouted, leading him into the living room. She sat on the couch, patting the cushion next to her. “But what is it? I thought you’d be happy that I started killing criminals again! Isn’t that what you wanted me to do?”

Light sat down next to her, “it’s not quite that per say…I did want Kira to continue punishing criminals, but...it’s complicated. Where’s your death note?”

At this, Misa jumped up, “wait a moment, I’ll get it!”

He watched as she left for her bedroom. Light was wondering how best to break the news to her. However, he didn’t have very long to think. Moments later, she was barreling back into the room, death note in hand. Ryuk was trailing closely behind her. 

“Hey, Light!” Ryuk grinned, “got anything for me?”

“Of course. How could I forget?” Light murmured, reaching into his pocket for the fruit. The apple was gone from his hand in seconds. 

“Anyway,” Misa interjected, “what’s going on, Light-kun? You look so serious…is anything the matter?”

“There’s been a change in plans, I’m afraid…” Light looked between Misa and Ryuk, who was still gobbling down the apple. He turned his attention back to Misa, taking a moment to turn his charm on. 

I know she won’t be happy to hear this, but it’s what Rem wants…if I want Rem to get rid of L for me, I need Misa to agree to this… I have an idea...I think I know just how I should go about this…

“Misa-chan,” Light started. “Please keep calm and listen to me. I know that you want to help me by acting as Kira, and I really appreciate all that you’ve done for me…but I think it’s best if we find a new Kira…”

“A new Kira?!” Misa squeaked out. “Don’t tell me you don’t think I’m suitable for the job anymore! I thought I was doing pretty well…Light-kun, don’t tell me you’re replacing me because you don’t like me anymore! I’ll do anything you want me to!”

I knew she’d react like this…now it’s time for me to convince her…I have a feeling she’ll end up agreeing by the time I’m finished. 

“It’s not that at all, Misa-chan. Don’t think so much. It’s not what you think. And anyway, you’ve been doing a great job acting as Kira,” Light commented. “However, it doesn’t feel fair to me to ask you to dedicate your life to this.”

Misa was quick to reply. “Oh, don’t worry about me Light-kun! I don’t mind at all!”

“You might not mind, but I do. Trust me,” Light leaned over, tucking a loose strand of hair away from Misa’s face. He spoke softly, catching her eye as he did so, “you’re beautiful, you know that. I’ve always thought so, too. I don’t want you acting as Kira because I’d rather you be doing something else with your time. Let someone else do the dirty work. Hashimoto wants to cast you in his new movie again, right?”

“Where are you going with this, Light-kun…?” 

“What I’m saying is...why don’t you tell him you’ll do it? Why don’t you go back into being an actress? Don’t waste your talents, Misa-chan.”

“But…” Misa protested. It was clear that she was going to need a bit more convincing. 

Fortunately, I know what to do… 

Light pressed a finger against her lips, which was instant in silencing her. “I know this seems so sudden, Misa-chan…but I’ve thought a lot about this. I know you want to help me, and I’m grateful for everything that you’ve done up to this point. Right now helping me means that you’ll let go of the death note and go back to your normal life.”

Misa grabbed Light’s hand, guiding it away from her face. While she was still rather shocked, it appeared she was calming down some. “Are you sure about this? You truly want me to go back to my career and give this up?”

Light gave a nod, “absolutely. I’ve already found someone to replace you as Kira. He’s the best person for the job. Once he takes over, you’ll be free to do whatever you please. You won’t have to worry about anything.”

“You’re really...serious...about this…” Misa murmured. She let out a breath, staring up into Light’s eyes. She was silent for a moment, as if deep in thought. “Alright, Light-kun. I trust you...if you’re certain, and this is really what you want me to do, I’ll do it. You know I’d do anything for you…I just want to know if this is really what you want first. I know I’d make a great Kira...”

A smirk found Light’s face, I knew it would work on her…it didn’t take very much convincing at all.  

“Like I said a moment ago, I’m sure about this,” Light confirmed. “I’ve already thought everything through. It’s not that I don’t like you acting as Kira, it’s just...it wouldn’t be fair to ask you to give up your passions in the process. Besides, it’s safer this way. If someone on the Task Force were to test the fake rules, we’d be easy targets. That being said, it’s better if neither of us are Kira, because if something were to trace back to us, it probably wouldn’t end very well. That would mean all that extra work we did before would be meaningless.”

“That makes sense, Light-kun,” Misa leaned back on the couch, looking deep in thought. She was quiet for a few moments, absorbing what he said. “You really did think this through. Who is this new Kira that you’ve decided on then? I want to see this guy for myself.”

Heh, I knew you’d ask. I came prepared, as always...

He took out a stack of papers out of his briefcase, handing them to her. “His name is Teru Mikami. I created a list of possible people that could take over as Kira in case something were to happen months ago, and he was always my number one. He’s quiet, methodological, and doesn’t ask unnecessary questions. He exercises good control over his emotions, so I wouldn’t have to worry about any slip up. Like you, he’d be willing to do anything I ask of him without hesitation. Most importantly, he’s loyal to Kira.”

“Oh, wow. He’s a criminal prosecutor?! He’s perfect,” Misa grinned, holding up his file. “He really is the perfect Kira…”

“Yes, he’s the ideal candidate,” Light replied. “Misa-chan, listen to me very carefully. Here’s the plan. I want you to get in contact with Mikami-san, but make sure that there is no record of your interaction. There cannot be anything that links Teru Mikami to either of us. Once you get in contact with him, tell him that Kira has chosen him to become his right hand man. You can kill off a criminal to prove your identity...then the time is right, I will get in contact with the two of you, and the exchange of the death note will be made.”

Misa gave Light a nod. “I understand! When do you want me to contact him?”

“The sooner, the better,” Light raised an eyebrow, “I can count on you, right?”

“Of course you can!” Misa grinned, “don’t worry, I got this!”

Good, good, looks like everything will work out smoothly after all…this little bump in the road will have been worth it.  

/meanwhile/

Keiko’s POV:

Keiko kept watch of Light’s empty chair. For the first time in a while, he had left headquarters.  While there wasn’t much going at the moment, her thoughts were more than enough to keep her occupied. There was a lot for her to consider, especially about Light Yagami and how to go about the rest of her plan.

Light’s been gone an awful while...he said he was stepping out to get some fresh air, but somehow I have a feeling he’s meeting up with Misa. He has to be, there’s no other plausible explanation. And, if I’m correct, then that means they’re probably trying to figure out who the next Kira will be in their place. I can’t sit still and wait for them. I suppose now is a good time to put the next phase of the plan into action...that means...it’s finally time…with the two of them electing a new Kira, the investigation starts from scratch. At least, on the surface, it will. There’s a way to make progress with my plan and with the investigation, but I’ll need some help...his help.

“Ryuzaki-san,” Keiko stood up, walking over toward the detective. She had to admit, she was a little nervous, but it was time to tell him. “May I speak with you in private?”

She watched as L turned around in his chair to face her. From what Keiko could tell, it appeared that he had been expecting her. “Yes. If my deductions are correct, this is about what we talked about last time, right?”

Keiko gave a slight nod, looking him in the eyes. “Yes. I think it’s time…”

“Time,” the detective echoed. “You mean…”

He trailed off. Although he never quite finished his sentence, Keiko knew the two of them were on the same page based on the look in his eyes. 

She gave him a soft smile. “Yes.”

I suspect you’ve already tried to figure out what my plan is…and maybe you have, but it’s finally time for me to tell you what’s been on my mind this whole time…with Rem now on my side, I feel confident enough. You should be safe for the time being...which means no more keeping secrets, and no more lying...at least not to you.   

“I see,” was his immediate response. He was quiet for a moment, and Keiko wondered what he was thinking. Fortunately, she didn’t have to wait too long. The detective’s voice was much softer as he added, “Kagami-san, you’re sure about this, right?”

“Yes.” Keiko nodded once more, “I’m sure.”

“As long as you’re sure,” L replied. He met her eyes, a thoughtful look on his face. “I told you before, I trust you. You’ve made it this far, after all.”

At those words, Keiko’s heart soared. She knew, coming from the great detective, those words meant the world. “I…” she trailed off, suddenly feeling a little shy at his unexpected compliment. The look in his eyes wasn’t quite helping her either. “I-I just…” She couldn’t speak, not when he was smirking at her like that. 

“You just...” he repeated. It was clear to Keiko he was enjoying seeing her flustered. “What is it, Kagami-san?”

Keiko looked away, trying to ignore his gaze. “I just…wanted to update you on what’s been going on…like I said, I think it’s time…and I’ll be needing your help with some of it...or rather, you and your connections…”

“Is that so?” L raised an eyebrow, chuckling slightly. “It sounds like you’ve thought everything through. In that case, let’s go…”

/short timeskip/

“...I was thinking, once we finalize all the preparations, we can go after them. With everyone’s cooperation, I’m sure we can get the evidence we need to capture Kira once and for all. Of course, no one else can know what we’re up to. Rem knows I have a plan for Light, but even she doesn’t know the specifics. Anyway, I’m not worried about her. As long as Light doesn’t suspect anything, we’ll be good.” Keiko finished. Despite her anxiety, she was glad she let everything out. She cast a look at the detective. As she expected, his face didn’t betray any emotion. Instead, she waited with bated breath for his response.   

What does he think? Is it what he expected? Wait…what if it’s not and he doesn’t think it will work? What if he’s silent because he’s regretting his decision to trust me? No, no, you can’t think like that! You’ve come this far…he said it himself. You managed to earn his trust, so have a little faith in yourself. Even if he isn’t entirely sold on the plan, you can find a way to convince him. You can make things work! 

“Look, I know it won’t be easy, Ryuzaki-san,” she added after a moment, breaking the silence between them. “I’m aware of that. But I’m prepared to do whatever it takes. That’s why I took Light back in the first place. I’m certain that, if he thinks I’m on his side, he won’t suspect anything…at least not from me. And anyway, as long as we work together, I’m sure we can pull this off. It’s the only chance we have…please.”

“Kagami-san,” L said after a long moment. His gaze met hers, and Keiko was starting to feel anxious all over again. “Based off what you told me, I’m sure I don’t need to tell you how risky this plan is. I’m afraid, no matter how well thought out your plan is, it’s still a dangerous idea, especially if you get caught.”

“I know. To be completely honest, I’m terrified.” Keiko swallowed. “But you’re already in a dangerous position right now. I couldn’t just sit back and do nothing.”

She watched as the detective took a step toward her. A flash of emotion crossed his features. “You really did all of this for me?”

A sheepish look found its way onto Keiko’s face. She gave a slight cough, her cheeks already tinged with pink. “And for the investigation, of course,” she added.

“Hmm…” He raised an eyebrow at her but said nothing. 

Keiko wasn’t sure how to take his sudden silence. Her mind was buzzing with worry, what’s he thinking…? Is he going to let me continue on with this…is he going to help me with setting the rest of my plan into action? He will, right? Or at least, I really hope so…unless...what if he thinks my plan isn’t good enough or something? Is that why he isn’t saying anything? Is he by any chance disappointed?

“Ryuzaki-san,” She started, but the look on the detective’s face cut her off. His expression was only momentary, but she wondered if he was concerned. Keiko wasn’t quite sure. Before she could stop herself, she started to speak once more. “What is it? I don’t know what you’re thinking and it’s driving me crazy.”

Actually, crazy is an understatement… 

“It’s nothing. Don’t worry about it,” the detective let out a breath. “All you need to know is that I trust you, Kagami-san…and it should go without saying that you have my support.” 

“Thank you, Ryuzaki-san. That really means a lot,” Keiko found herself saying. She gave him a soft smile, feeling a little better at his words. 

But he’s still holding back…what is it? 

However, despite his answer, Keiko found she still wasn’t satisfied. The two of them both knew that there was more he was keeping to himself. While she knew it would be a shot in the dark, she also knew that she had to attempt to pry the information out of him. 

“Ryuzaki-san, is something the matter? Is it something with my plan? Are you worried it won’t work out?” Keiko questioned. At his silence, she swallowed. “Please, just talk to me.” 

The detective buried his hands in his pockets. His eyes flickered towards Keiko, studying her intently. “It’s not your plan that I’m worried about, Kagami-san.”

At this, Keiko let out a sigh of relief. However, her relief was only short lived as she realized he still had yet to fully answer her questions. “Then what is it?”

“Like I said, I’m not worried about the plan…I’m worried about you.”

“A-about me?” Keiko stuttered out, taken aback a moment. For the second time that day, she was speechless. This answer was not what she expected. “You’re the one that’s in danger, L…it’s you that I’m worried about.” She said simply, meeting his eyes. His gaze was soft, causing her heart to skip a beat.

He was worried about me again? I know the circumstances are grim, but hearing him say that…and knowing that he was concerned about me…makes me happy. That means he really does care about me.  

“That may be true but I was serious when I said I didn’t want anything to happen to you,” L started, breaking her away from her thoughts. He took a step toward her, his expression serious. “I know you’ve thought a lot about what to do, that much is clear, but think about the position you’re in right now. At this point, Light Yagami will do anything to ensure that Kira wins. And you’re letting him use you as his pawn. Not only that, but you made a deal with a shinigami. You’re in a dangerous position yourself.”

“I-I’ll be alright,” Keiko replied. “I’m sure of it. Don’t worry about me.”

“That’s much easier said than done, Keiko-chan,” the detective said, causing Keiko to lose her breath.

When he says things like that, he makes it impossible for me not to fall for him!

For a moment the two stared at each other without saying a word. The detective was so close, if Keiko were to reach forward, she’d be able to touch him. To hug him, maybe even kiss him. The thought was enough to make her shiver. It took a lot of effort, but she refrained. For both of their sakes.

I know it’s silly to think about at this point, but I wish things were different. Technically, I have a boyfriend, even if he is Kira…and L’s told me that, due to the nature of his job and status, having feelings for me would be too risky…but still. I can’t help how I feel about him. While I can’t act on those feelings, I can still help him. Right now, I suppose the only thing I can do for him is to help him capture Kira once and for all. 

“Just tell me you’ll be careful,” L spoke, breaking the sudden silence between them. If he could feel the tension between them, he didn’t show it. 

But, then again, he’s always been better at hiding things…it’s always hard to know what he’s feeling. 

A faint smile played on Keiko’s face as she nodded. “I will…besides, we can do this. I know we can outsmart him.” 

After all, what other option do we have?

At this, L’s lips curved upwards, “I hope you’re right, Kagami-san.”

/timeskip/

L’s POV: 

“You’re finally here,” the detective commented, not looking up from his computer screen. “You were gone an awful while.”

Too long, in fact. It’s suspicious...

“Ah, sorry, Ryuzaki-san,” Light started. He sat down in a seat across from the detective. “I lost track of time. There was a lot to think about.”

‘A lot to think about’, eh? He narrowed his eyes, I’m sure there was a lot to think about, Kira… I know exactly what you were really doing… 

“Everyone else already went to bed, huh?” Light added after a moment of silence passed between the two. “It sure is quiet in here at night.”

“It is,” L agreed. 

Now that Light’s back, it’s time for a quick little test…this is all I can do right now for Keiko…I have to make sure that she’ll be okay for the time being, I have to make sure that Light still thinks she’s in love with him. At this thought, he felt a pang of some sort in his chest, but he brushed this aside, as much as I don’t like seeing the two of them together, their being together is a good way to ensure Keiko’s safety.

The detective turned around to face Light, an eyebrow raised. “Kagami-san was wondering when you’d get back. I’d say she missed you.”

“Is that so?” Light commented. The detective watched as the corner’s of Light’s mouth curved upwards as he chuckled. “Well, I missed her too. It’s too bad I couldn’t see her tonight, but I suppose I’ll get to see her tomorrow.”

The detective studied Light carefully, looking for any sort of sign of suspicion on his part, hmm…from what I can tell, he definitely doesn't suspect anything at the moment, meaning Keiko should be alright for now. I thought as much, based on his previous behavior. Also...I’m quite curious…were you really missing her, Light Yagami? Or are you lying to me once more? One way or another, I’m going to find out. 

L let a few moments of silence pass between them before opening up the conversation once more. “Did you happen to meet up with Misa Amane by any chance?” L questioned.

At this, Light frowned. The detective could hear a hint of defensiveness in his voice as he replied. “No. I told her that I had no feelings for her, why would I see her? That makes no sense, Ryuzaki-san.”

Denial. Of course. I knew he was going to react this way, but…

“You can lie to Kagami-san, but not to me,” L raised an eyebrow. “Why else would you take so long? You went to see her. It’s that simple.” 

Well, what now, Light Yagami? Will you continue to lie to me? You should know that it’s pointless, it was pointless from the beginning. 

“Fine,” Light replied, crossing his arms. “I went to see her. But it’s not what you’re thinking. I just don’t want Keiko to get the wrong idea. I don’t want her making assumptions and getting hurt again.”

“Oh, I assure you, I’m not thinking anything. In fact, your relationship with Kagami-san is none of my business…” L started, “but quite frankly, I’m curious. You say you don’t want her to get hurt again and yet, if she were to find out what you were really up to, she would be. Tell me…are you truly in love with her?”

“You’re right, my relationship with Kagami-san is none of your business,” Light retorted. His voice was lighter as he added, “you can think or not think what you want.”

How interesting…it appears I struck a nerve. 

“You sound quite offended, Light-kun. You don’t have to answer if you don’t want to, but…I think you might’ve just indirectly answered me anyway.” 

Based off of how defensive he’s getting, there’s only one answer that makes sense… 

“I am in love with her,” Light replied after a moment. There was a slight bitterness in his voice as he added, “I’m in love with Keiko Kagami, not that it’s any of your business.” Afterwards Light paused, almost as though he was a little shocked at his own admittance. L supposed he was, after all, it would be better if Kira were just as emotionless as he was, that way he could kill without complication.

I had a feeling that was the case…and even though I know it’s good Light is in love with her…it hurts. To think, that monster’s in love with her…and she has to pretend to be in love with him as well. Logically, I know it’s the only way for Keiko to carry out her plan…but emotionally…I’ve tried never to let my feelings affect me like this but whenever I see or think about the two of them together…well…perhaps Watari was right…perhaps I am jealous…     

Light continued on, “anyway, that’s how I feel. I wouldn’t want to hurt her. I’m sorry for being so abrupt, Ryuzaki-san.”

The detective gave a nod. “It’s quite alright. I’m not offended. After all, I was the one prying into your personal business.”

“Thank you for understanding.” Light headed toward the hallway, “now, if you’ll excuse me, I’ll be going to bed.”

“Of course. Rest well, Light-kun.”  

After Light left the room, all L could think about was his previous conversation with Watari from the other night. It replayed in his mind, plaguing his thoughts. He knew he should have been focusing all of his energy on the investigation, but he found it was becoming increasingly harder to keep Keiko off of his mind. 

L closed his eyes and Watari’s words echoed through his head once more, “have you ever considered the possibility that you might be in love with her?”

At this, the detective’s eyes sprung open. 

Of course…this time, I was the fool…  

The answer had been right in front of him the whole time. He had simply refused to accept it, or rather, he could not bring himself to accept it. 

Until now, at least…especially after having such a strong reaction to Light’s confession…there’s no way I can deny it any longer.  

His thoughts traced back once more to Keiko; her warm smile, her fierce determination, her fearlessness, even in the face of danger. He had to admit, he was hooked on her. His lips curved upwards absentmindedly, and the realization hit him with full force. The detective’s eyes widened, his heart skipping a beat.

I tried to avoid it all this time, but Watari was right…I love her. I’m in love with Keiko Kagami…