"Late Bloomer"
Category: Death Note
Genre: Family / General
Rating: M (for language, some sexual themes, alcohol use, and ideological themes including homosexuality)
Characters: Misa A. and L
Summary: "Having a sister is like having a best friend you can't get rid of. You know whatever you do, they'll still be there." Drabbles concerning Misa Amane's estranged older sister.
So I had something similar up earlier before I fully developed the character...not doing that again. :P
"Death Note" © Tsugumi Ohba and Takeshi Obata, Viz Media, Shonen Jump, and Madhouse. I am affiliated with none of these, and am making no profits off of this fan-made story. Please support the official release.
The man calling himself John Wallace smiled warmly at me over the tips of his fingers (or something to that clichéd extent. Gag me). "Thanks for agreeing to meet with me today, Amane-san. This will help our company a good deal."
"Sure thing," I replied coolly, taking a sip of the clear amber liquid in the glass he'd given me (yum!). "But allow me to apologize on behalf of Kyoto for its dismal bars." I waved my hand around to indicate the grubby, noisy, smoke-filled bar we were currently sitting in. "We're so big on tea ceremonies here that we've forgotten how to have a decent nightlife."
Wallace laughed – it was a pleasant, natural sound. Decent acting. "Oh, don't worry about that. Sacrifices are necessary for the good of the company, and at least the beer's good. Speaking of which, would you like another drink before we get started?" He gestured to my empty glass.
"Um…" Hesitate, like you're actually thinking about it. "…yeah, sure, that'd be great," I said with a smile.
Wallace clicked his fingers, and the crusty old bartender came over with two new glasses. He set one down in front of each of us and slunk off, looking at Wallace hopefully over his shoulder. Just how much was this guy getting paid, anyway…?
Wallace took a small sip of his drink and invited me to do the same (mine was a bit more than a sip, though). "Now, Amane-san, as we discussed on the phone earlier, your sister's talent agency has approached us with a proposition to use her in new commercial for our upcoming cosmetics line."
"Whoop-de-doo," I muttered before I could stop myself, taking a drink.
Wallace went on as though he hadn't heard, but his charmer's smile seemed a little wider. "To be honest, we've already pretty much decided to use her in the commercial, but as a formality, I've been asked to perform a background check, which means I interview Misa-san's closest friends and family members to make sure that she is the type of person Yotsuba can sponsor."
Closest friends and family…if this wasn't such an important interview, I'd die laughing. "Sounds good to me," I said out loud in what I hoped was an unconcerned voice. I took a drink to steady myself.
"I'll be asking you some questions as well, just to be sure that Misa-san isn't associating with the wrong sorts, and I really do mean that in the nicest way possible. I know some of it will be a little embarrassing, but I want you to please answer as honestly as you can. You understand, of course?"
I couldn't hold back a chuckle. "Mr. Wallace, Misa's my sister. She can't really help it if I'm a delinquent or whatever – which I'm not, by the way." I drained my glass pointedly; right on cue, the bartender came up with another glass.
"That's true," Wallace replied with a smile, "but as a formality, I'll have to ask anyway." He opened the notebook in front of him to a fresh page and pulled out a pen – he was really making this look convincing. "Well, let's get started. Do you have any other siblings, besides Misa-san."
"Nope. It's just the two of us."
Wallace made a note. "And how much older are you than Misa-san?"
"Three years."
Scribble, scribble. "I see…and did you get along well with Misa-san growing up?"
I blinked; we hadn't gone over this question in practice…what the hell, man…"About the same as average, I guess," I said in a voice that attempted to be average.
Wallace raised an eyebrow. "Oh? That's not what I heard." He flipped to an earlier page in the notebook. "One of your old neighbors said that you and Misa-san didn't speak much or do anything together when you were kids. She got the feeling that you didn't like her very much."
My fist clenched on the glass. I couldn't screw this up…this was such an important step…but why the hell was he asking these questions? What did this have to do with infiltrating Yotsuba? No one told me I had to answer this crap…
Damn it, L…you put him up to this, didn't you? Yeah, that has to be it. He saw how I interacted with Misa, and was so nosy that he told Wallace to ask me these dumbass questions…there's probably a bug somewhere in this bar, or on Wallace himself. That ass…that complete ass, making me think about this…none of his business…
But I can't get worked up now. I have to answer that question, so the investigation would move forward. If I don't, Misa won't get into Yotsuba, and L won't find Kira…this was more important than my feelings for Misa. I sat back and forced myself to calm down. I'll answer the damn questions, and then I'll kick L's ass later. Top detective or no, he was going to get it.
"Misa and I," I began slowly, trying to pick my words carefully, "are just like any other sisters out there. We have our ups and downs. I can tell that Misa really loves me. She calls me every day, and even when I don't pick up the phone, she leaves these long-ass messages and always ends it by saying she loves me." I felt my eyes get hot…damn it, why am I wasting tears on her? "She's a good girl. She'll be perfect for your campaign."
There was a long pause. Wallace looked at me for a while, and then sighed quietly. "That's very encouraging, Amane-san, but I'm afraid it doesn't answer my question. I want to know what you –"
"It doesn't matter what I think of Misa," I said simply. There's no other way to do this than just coming out and saying it. I learned that lesson a long time ago. "This isn't an interrogation about me; it's a background check on Misa. I've told you what you need to know already, so there isn't any reason to go on."
There was another pause. We both stared at each other. Was that…going too far? We haven't gotten to the main part yet…
Wallace finally laughed. "You're right, we've gotten off topic a bit. Sorry about that. We ought to move on…oh, your glass is empty. Do you want another drink?"
I raised an eyebrow. "Mr. Wallace, are you trying to get me drunk?"
Wallace smirked at me. "I don't know. Is it working?"
I laughed and accepted the drink the bartender set before me. To be honest, even though this was my fourth glass, I didn't feel buzzed at all. This much alcohol would have seriously messed up other girls in my weight category, but I'd always had a high tolerance. Come to think of it, that's probably why L told me about his plan instead of actually trying to get me drunk; easier and less expensive.
Still, the plan would go a little smoother if it looked like this guy had gotten me drunk to get the info he was looking for. Those Yotsuba bigwigs probably did their own little background check; if they knew my personality, they'd have a hard time believing I gave information like that voluntarily. I just hoped Misa wasn't the only actress in the family.
Feeling my cheeks flush (good sign!), I drained my glass and grinned. "Ah~, that's good stuff! Nice and tasty! Hey, barman! I'll have another one of these!"
Wallace laughed as another glass was sullenly laid in front of me. "I'm glad you like it! But are you all right to keep going? You look a little –"
"I'm fine, I'm fine!" I interrupted, waving my hand about in a carefree, careless way. "Let's keep it going! I want to keep tellin' you how awesome my sis is!"
Wallace nodded and turned back to his notebook. "All right, we'll continue. You and Misa-san lived here in Kyoto during your childhood, correct?"
"Mm-hmm…but when I was eighteen, I left for America. Got into college there. Had a part-time job as a receptionist at the police station. Good times, man…oh, yeah, an' Misa moved to Tokyo last spring, but ya prob'ly know that already."
Wallace nodded. "I do. However…" He leaned forward and looked seriously at me over the tips of his fingers. "…I don't know why she moved."
I didn't answer for a moment, so he pressed on. "There are some nasty rumors on the Internet, of course, but the company would like to hear the truth. No one else I've interviewed seems to know, and if Misa-san contacts you as much as you've said, then it would be reasonable to assume that she told you the reason why she moved to Tokyo, yes?"
Pause here, still look drunk, but not drunk enough…"I don't think that's fer me t' say," I mumbled, draining the glass.
"Amane-san, I asked you at the beginning to answer as honestly as you could –"
"An' I did. I told ya hones'ly, I shouldn't tell ya." I clumsily finished my glass, letting a little beer spill onto my shirt. So far, so good.
Wallace opened his mouth to say something, thought better of it, and smiled. "You know, Amane-san, I haven't touched this drink. Would you like to have it?"
"Aha!" I shouted, pointing sloppily at him. "You are tryin' to get me drunk! You probably want to get me all buzzed and stuff so that you can take me home with you!" People in the bar were starting to stare at us – maybe I was being a little loud…but does that mean I'm a good actress? I'd ask Misa for advice, but the idea of talking to her was making me feel sick, and that had nothing to do with the drinks.
Something flashed in Wallace's eyes – this is it! – as he put up his hands imploringly. "What? No, no, Amane-san, that's not –"
"But it's not gonna work, ya hear?" I crowed, bracing myself for the blow. "I wouldn't go back with ya no matter how drunk I was, an' ya wanna know why?"
"Er…why –?"
I drew myself up to my full height. "Because I," I said clearly, putting as much pride as possible into my voice, "am a lesbian!"
Wallace stared at me; I don't know how many times we'd practiced that part, and it still freaked him out every time I said it. Prude. "Er…that's great, Amane-san!"
"It is great! It's so great! I'm glad ya think so, Mister, 'cause my parents sure didn't! I told them about me, ya know, and they flipped out! Tou-san disowned me, can ya believe that? He actually disowned me!" My voice cracked on that last part. My eyes were getting hot again…but no, I'd already cried once during the practices, I wasn't going to waste any more tears on those assholes…
Wallace looked completely and convincingly lost. "Er…I'm sorry to hear that…"
I slammed my fist down on the table. The whole bar was watching now. "Damn right you are, Mister! And you know why you're sorry?" I leaned in close, and the tears started falling; I didn't know if I was acting or not anymore. "Cause if Misa had come out, they wouldn't have cared at all! They would have supported her, not like with me!"
"I…I don't think that's true at all…"
"It is true!" I was crying for real now; I couldn't stop myself. "They let her do the most ridiculous stuff – dye her hair, get colored contacts, go Goth, become a fucking model – and they loved everything she did! They worshipped the ground she walked on! But no matter what I did, they never paid any attention, till they kicked me out!" I tried to make my smile as bitter and crazy and Ryuuzaki-Rue-like as possible. "You know what, though? They thought Misa was the perfect little angel, but she really wasn't!" I threw in an insane little cackle for good measure. Not bad, not bad.
Wallace looked up in interest; here was the good stuff. "Is that right? How so?" he asked in a casual voice, his pen hovering expectantly over the notebook.
I grinned triumphantly and tried to find that happy medium between drunk and dramatic. "Misa, my sister…," I stage-whispered, making sure that none of the other patrons could hear, "is a Kira-worshipper!"
Wallace's eyes widened, and the pen slipped from his hands – subtle, but effective. "R-Really? Are you sure?"
I snorted loudly. "'Course I'm sure! That's what she told me! That's why she left, you know?"
"Left where?" Wallace asked, scrambling for his pen.
"Left here, silly," I giggled. Tone it down a bit now, girl…let the drinks take their toll…"Y'know, Tou-san and Kaa-san were killed by someone…an' it serves 'em right…" I hiccupped and let my head start to nod. "…but the trial wen' on a while, an' then the guy was found inn'cent…an' then Kira wen' and too' care o' him…"
"And that's when Misa-san started worshipping Kira?" Wallace asked with a tone of mounting excitement, scribbling furiously on the paper.
"Mm-hmm…she wanted to go meet 'im and thank 'him for offin' that guy, so she left for Tokyo, 'cause that's where that L dude said 'e was, right? That's why she left." I started chuckling quietly, suddenly and genuinely feeling very bitter. "Just 'magine…Misa worshippin' a mass murderer just 'cause he killed that one guy…not the angel they thought she was, huh? There's somethin' she did wrong after all…heh, heh…"
Still chuckling, I put my head down on the table like I was falling asleep. That was hardly, an Oscar-worthy performance, but at least it got the job done. Now Misa would be able to get into Yotsuba without those bigwigs suspecting their marketing advisor was on our side. That ought to keep even L satisfied.
I let out a quiet sigh as Wallace called a taxi. Hope you're happy that I humiliated myself doing your job, Misa. Don't expect any more favors.
"It's L. Aiber just returned to headquarters. I'm told the operation went smoothly."
"Humph, 'you were told'…like you weren't listening in on some secret microphone."
"…"
"…well, weren't you?"
"…yes, I was."
"There, see? I knew it. I know how you work, L."
"Oh. I should probably change my methods, then…"
"Heh, like that'll ever happen. And speaking of your methods, why the hell to you have Aiber ask me questions about Misa?"
"That was the point of the exercise, Amane-san. On the surface, this was to be seen as a background check on Misa-san. Asking about her was necessary."
"No, really? I mean, why did he ask me about how I feel about her, and stuff? None of that came up in the practices."
"It seemed like a good idea at the time. Similar questions are not uncommon in such interviews."
"How would you know? Have you ever been part of a background check or job interview, Super Sleuth?"
"…"
"Exactly. And for the record, those questions had nothing to do with getting into Yotsuba or capturing Kira."
"It is my policy to thoroughly investigate my colleagues to be sure that they were trustworthy."
"And you couldn't have done this two years ago when I was directly working for you?"
"Misa-san is definitely a nuisance, but she isn't nearly this aggressive."
"…L, why do you call her 'Misa-san' and me 'Amane-san'?"
"I beg your pardon?"
"Never mind. So, I did everything I was supposed to, right?"
"Yes, you did perfectly. We have exactly the information we need. Everyone at headquarters wishes me to pass along their thanks."
"I try."
"…Amane-san."
"What?"
"That really was a convincing performance. I doubt even your sister could have done so well."
"I already knew that, L."
"Did you?"
"Yeah. Misa…would have been acting. Everything I said back there was the straight truth."
~Owari~
I'll expand on the relationships with L and B in later drabbles. Requests are welcome!
