Like many others, I was heartbroken when I watched L die (I cried). I decided that he should live. But how to keep him alive without ruining the story? Hmm..

Disclaimer: I do not own Death Note. I wish I did, though.

As Far As Goodbyes Go

Heart attacks hurt. A lot.

That was the first thought Ryuzaki was aware of. The second was that he had lost. Or did he? He had proven – to himself, at least – that Light Yagami was Kira. Did that mean he had won after all? It was hard to think through all the pain.

But wait – If he was dead, why did he still hurt? The pain in his chest, if anything, was getting worse.

Ryuzaki concentrated. Everything was black. Well, he was dead, after all, what did he expect? Oh, wait – there, just barely... Yup. There. He could hear voices. Faint, but definitely there. What were they saying? Listen. Don't fade... Listen, damn it!

"Clear!"

Clear? What was clear? As far as he was concerned, nothing was clear. Being dead was more frustrating than being alive, it seemed.

"Again! Try again, damn it!"

Try what again? This was getting ridiculous. He needed some answers -

Pain.

More pain than he'd ever felt in his life. Ryuzaki opened his mouth to scream -

And sat bolt upright. Suddenly, the world was no longer black. Ryuzaki shivered and looked around. There were two paramedics, who had fallen back when Ryuzaki had sat up (one was still holding the paddles used to jump start his heart), and one other, who was gaping at the formerly dead man, his face wet with tears.

"Mr. Yagami? I'm not dead." This was said with wonder. His voice sounded raw and weak in his ears. He had no time to brace himself as Soichiro Yagami hurled himself across the tiny space separating them and enveloped the stunned man into a massive hug. He was openly sobbing.

Ryuzaki sighed and pushed the man back. "Watari?"

The police chief shook his head, not meeting Ryuzaki's eyes. "He didn't make it. I'm so sorry. Honestly, you are the only one known to survive one of Kira's attacks."

"Er, technically, that's not exactly true." Both men turned to the paramedic who had just spoken in confusion. "But.. I'm not dead?" This time, it was a question.

Soichiro shifted uncomfortably on the bench. "Well, yes, you are alive now. You were clinically dead for almost seven minutes. They -" he jabbed his finger at the two nervous paramedics - "almost refused to try to revive you." Soichiro smiled grimly. "I was forced to persuade them. "

"He pointed his gun at us!"

"Hn." Well, you have my thanks." Ryuzaki inclined his head toward the medics. "Well, since I'm not deceased, you all have my thanks. Mr. Yagami, I will need your cooperation, and most of all, your discretion."

"Of course, Ryuzaki. What are you planning?"

"Who is coming to pick you up from here?" The ambulance had arrived at the at the back of the hospital, where the dead bodies were brought in. The lot was mostly dark and empty. Ryuzaki looked over at the only other ambulance, the one that carried Watari. The pain returned in force, and settled in and around his heart. He stood up and walked over to the ambulance, reaching it just as the back doors were thrown open and a large shape stumbled out. Ryuzaki stared. Could it be?

"Ah, Mogi, there you are!" Soichiro called, and Mogi looked over. And stared in astonishment at the shirtless man staring back at him. His eyes opened wide in disbelief. "R- Ryuzaki? Bu- but how? The shinigami killed you!"

"And the paramedics brought me back.." Ryuzaki forced a tight smile. "It would seem the Death Note has yet to catch up to technology. Where is the shinigami, and where is Watari's body?"

Mogi gestured to the ambulance. "In there. The chief and I didn't want you two to be left alone. And the shinigami is dead. Well, I guess it's dead. All that's left of it is a pile of sand."

Ryuzaki allowed himself a moment of satisfaction at the thought of the creature who killed Watari dying. "Good. Now, if you don't mind, I would like a few moments alone to pay my respects."

"Of course, Ryuzaki. I'll call and have Matsuda bring you some clothes when he comes to pick us up." Soichiro opened his phone and started to dial. Ryuzaki grabbed it out of his hand.

"Ah, the other members are to remain ignorant of my triumphant return." Ryuzaki looked at the two men, his eyes bright and fierce. "Listen to me, both of you," Ryuzaki kept his voice low, but didn't try to hide the urgency in his voice. The two detectives leaned closer. "Rem killed us for a reason. It happened just after I told you about sending the Notebook to another country to test the 13 day rule. The shinigami was protecting someone,"

"Kira." breathed Mogi.

"Misa," corrected Soichiro. He had not failed to catch the way the shinigami acted whenever Misa's name came up.

"Yes, Misa Amane is the second Kira. Of that there can be no doubt. That also means the probability of Light Yagami being Kira is 99.7 percent. They cannot know that I am alive. Will you two keep my secret?" An uncomfortable silence followed, as the three men looked at one another. Mogi shuffled his feet. Soichiro wrestled with the fact that L still considered his son to be the most notorious mass murderer of all time – and was probably correct. Ryuzaki blinked, and waited.

After several minutes of foot shuffling, thought wrestling, and blinking, Soichiro looked Ryuzaki in the eye, and handed him his coat. "Your secret is safe with us. May we ask what your plans are?"

Shrugging into the coat (which hung loosely on his narrow frame), Ryuzaki frowned. "At the moment, I don't have one. I think I'll go home and plan my next move from there. This isn't over. I didn't enjoy being killed." He stuck his hand out to Mogi, who, after a moment's hesitation took it in his own. Ryuzaki then turned to Soichiro. "It was truly a pleasure to work with you all. Please use extreme care and caution if you decide to proceed investigating Kira."

Grabbing the younger man's hand, the chief of police pulled Ryuzaki in for a hug. "You take care of yourself, young man. If we can ever help you, feel free to call me." Pulling away, Soichiro turned his head, trying unsuccessfully to hide his tears. Ryuzaki nodded, not trusting his voice.

Just then a car pulled into the parking lot, and the men instinctively moved closer into the shadows. "Matsuda." Mogi stated. The three men nodded to each other, then the two policemen walked out to the car as Ryuzaki climbed into the ambulance. No one looked back, as they had already said their goodbyes.

Gently pulling back the sheet that covered the old man's face, Ryuzaki gazed at his first friend, the man that had raised and loved him like a father, the man who made looking after the world's greatest detective his only priority in life. He had put his wants and needs aside, and became whatever Ryuzaki had needed. He had never complained, and had only smiled. Now he was dead. Ryuzaki touched Watari's cold cheek.

"Quillish, old friend, I will always remember you as a father. I miss you already." Ryuzaki sat for a long while beside his friend, staring at nothing, letting his tears wash away his grief. Finally, he pulled hi phone out of his pocket, and dialed a number from memory. "I need a ride." He gave the location, then hung up. He looked down at Watari, and gently recovered his face with the sheet. "Goodbye, Quillish." He never looked back, and climbed into the limo when it arrived. "I'm going to the airport," was all he said to the driver, who nodded and took off. Picking up his phone again, he dialed another number. "Roger, I'm coming home. Yes, I'll explain when I get there." Ryuzaki leaned back in the seat and closed his eyes, absently chewing on his thumb. His eyes were dry. He would not cry over Watari again.

As far as good byes went, that one felt pretty good.

A/N: Just to clarify, policemen are very close, they are a brotherhood, and very slow to accept outsiders into that 'family', generally speaking. The fact that the police chief and Mogi chose to ride with Ryuzaki and Watari is supposed to show that they had earned a place in that family. This was written to be a one- shot. However, I have ideas. Do you think that I should continue this as a story? Please review and let me know. (hint hint nudge nudge).

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