Death Note FF: Aya's Story, Part 2

Sunlight was streaming through thick, crimson curtains the next morning. I groaned and pulled the covers over my head. Wait. Covers? I sat up, surprised. I found myself in a large, queen sized bed, with soft, white bedsheets. I rubbed my eyes, confused, then the memories of last night came flooding back to me. I pulled back the sheets that crumbled around my waist to find I was still in the same clothes as I was in the night before.

And one more surprise: my injured arm was wrapped in gauze. I blinked my gray-blue eyes then examined the wrappings. They were tight, but comfortable.
I could hear arguing outside the closed door across from me. I lifted my head, listening. It sounded like Aizawa and Matsuda had returned. How long have I been asleep? I shifted to gaze at the black alarm clock, the bright red numbers read: 10:02 AM. I sighed and swung my legs over the side of the bed, and stood up, swaying at first. Once I regained my balance, I turned to head for the door, when I saw my reflection in the mirror above the wooden dresser. My hair was a mess. Blonde curls stuck out in awkward angles, and knotted in countless places.
I've always been a restless sleeper, I often woke up on the floor, or the covers completely thrown to the ground. I wasn't surprised that neither of those happened today, I was too exhausted. I couldn't find a brush, so I painfully ran my fingers through my hair. I least wanted to look decent when I met the Task Force, last time was a disaster. After a few minutes, my hair flowed neatly over my shoulders, my head throbbed through. I smoothed down my wrinkled, plain blue T-shirt. The children at Whammy's usually wear plain and simple clothing.

I fixed my jeans (Their supposed to be skinny jeans but I'm so thin...), realizing I didn't have any other clothes with me. In fact...I didn't bring anything at all...Just myself and what I know. My lack or planning and organization skills is probably why I come right behind Matt in becoming L's heir.

I sighed and twisted the gold, round doorknob and opened the door slowly. The arguing had stopped, all fell silent. I peeked outside and saw Ryuzaki, who never shifted positions from last night, Aizawa was hovering next the couch, I figured he was probably the one arguing with L. Matsude was lounging on a chair, a little ways from Ryuzaki's favorite couch. There was a new member...A tall, stocky man. He was watching me silently.

I tried my best to smile, which was a rare occasion for us kids at Whammy's; and stepped out of the doorway, shutting the door softly behind me.

No one seemed to move for hours, standing there with that stupid expression on their face like last time. It's like they don't remember me. Did they forget my face the moment they left the building last night?

Aizawa opened his mouth when Ryuzaki cut him off.

"No further discussion, Mister Aizawa. Please return to your work." It still surprised me how he could sense what was going on without turning around. Like he had eyes in the back of his head.

Aizawa was silent for a few more moments then gave a small nod and returned grimly to his desk, the sound of the chair's rustle as it pulled back across the carpet seemed extraordinary loud.

"Kiara, this is Mister Mogi," Ryzaki continued, motioning to the stocky man, still staring at me. I guessed he was the stoic type. "Mister Mogi, Kiara is a girl I called from the orphanage I grew up in, she will assist us in the case for now on."

Mogi didn't give much of a response, or reaction for that matter. He did look surprised as he nodded, but that was about it. Matsuda had returned to his work as well in front of a computer. Mogi did as well.

I waited tell they all resumed to investigating , before walking over to Ryuzaki.

Ryuzaki started stacking brown and white sugar cubes on the coffee table in front of him. "Before we get started, I assume that your hungry."

I blinked in surprise, then realized he was right. I haven't ate anything since yesterday morning.

"Take as much as you like." His murmur was hard to make out as he filled his mouth with caramel corn. I steadied the table in front of me. Nothing but sweets covered the cherry wood table top. I sighed, I guess I wasn't going to have much of an option here. I took mu place where I saw last night and nibbled on a piece of strawberry cake. Ryuzaki swallowed. "I have already informed Watari that you are here..." He paused to wash down the rest of his caramel corn with a sip of his coffee, "He didn't seem very happy about it."

I winced, but stayed silent.

Ryuzaki continued, "He didn't question you being here, but I had him inform Whammy's."

I felt some what relieved, now that everyone knew where I was, I didn't have to worry about being hunted down. But, when I do return, if I return, I bet I will be bombarded with questions about being on the Task Force with L. Just thinking about the excited faces, surrounding me at all angles, shouting out questions and demands all at once, making my head spin.

"Getting back to business..." Ryuzaki's voice snapped me out of my day dreaming. I looked at him and he started filing through papers on the coffee table I haven't noticed before. "I want to make sure you can be of use to us on the investigation," he murmured.

I half scowled. Wasn't being an orphan living at Whammy's? I guess not. I sighed, and waited silently for him to present my test.

A few moments later, he held up what looked like a suicide note. I frowned, this wasn't broadcast on the internet, nor on television. But of course, L wanted to test my abilities with something that wasn't open to the public. He gave me the note, "This was a note that was written by one of Kira's victims before he died."

I took it, the note was laminated, to protect it from fingerprints. I read it, it seemed...odd in a way I couldn't really explain. I glanced out of the corner of my eyes and saw Ryuzaki watching me, emotionless. I pulled my gaze away, and back to the note. I blinked in surprise, I caught something. I turned the note sideways. I could read Japanese, but I was a little rusty so I didn't notice it at first. I started reading across the top. "L, do you know, gods of death love apples..?" I read the secret message hidden within the words. I understood it now, well, I didn't understand what the message meant. "Kira is proving he can control his victims before they die." I concluded.

Ryuzaki nodded. "I agree," he started shuffling through his papers, slipping out another note. "There was another found on the scene, too." He handed the slip of paper to me as well.

I took it and scanned it, I frowned. It didn't quite correspond to the original note. When I read across the top, the message there didn't make any sense. Not that the original was any different, it was just, well, not quite on the same topic I guess.

I found it odd that Ryuzaki presented this other note after the first, why not just give them both to me at the same time? Knowing L, he probably was tricking me. He knew I could figure out the message on the first note, was he trying to confuse me with a fake one? I thought he was. I looked up at him. "The note's a fake."

Ryuzaki starred at me with those large, unblinking eyes of his, as if waiting for me to explain. I sighed. "The first note you gave me," I take it out and examine it, "is clearly a suicide note, it looks to be well thought out and completes. But the second one..." I take out the second and hold the two together in the air so it made one long note, "It doesn't quite match... It seems overly extended, like extra information." I then put both notes on the coffee table between L and myself, turning them on their side. "The first note contains a message from Kira, reading: 'L, do you know, gods of death love apples?' When you turn the second on its side and read the message again, but with this note, it just makes it a run on sentence. Not to mention you gave me the second note after I figured out the hidden message, which also confirms my suspicions." I looked at Ryuzaki. "Therefore, the note's a fake."

Ryuzaki was silent, his expression was a little more readable now, looking almost calculating.

"Wow, not bad for a kid!" Matsuda's voice made me jump, I was suddenly aware of all the other members of the Task Force were watching me. For exactly how long, I do not know. I looked over at Matsuda and found him smiling at me. "How old are you?"

"Twelve." I replied.

I could see Aizawa's eyes flash with anger for a split second. Before either of them could respond, Ryuzaki cut in. "Good," he nodded in approval. "Your smarter than last time."

I frowned. And what did he mean by that? Surely this is my first time ever meeting L...Right? But somehow I knew that wasn't true...

"I think you have what it takes to be a member of the Task Force." The sound of Ryuzaki's voice snapped me out of my thoughts. "You can help start investigating...But first I want you to review all our old evidence since Kira started committing the murderers."

So that was that. Over the next couple of weeks, I spent most of my time reviewing old evidence, including the false Kira tapes sent to Sakura TV. They call him the Second Kira now. Of course, Ryuzaki couldn't help but quiz me on each piece of evidence. It got very annoying very quickly.

As I sat on my desk one day, watching one of the Second Kira tapes, my mind started trailing off. What did Ryuzaki mean, "Your smarter than last time" ? I couldn't remember meeting L once in my life...But something about seemed very familiar. Like a rusted memory that I can no longer decipher. Also, I remember what I said to him the first night I bumped into him. "You haven't changed much." I was half asleep at the time...So I figured I was just talking nonsense. But how he responded: "Neither have you." Really bugged me. Was he just playing along? No..L's not like that.

I closed my eyes and let myself travel backward to my earliest memories of Whammy's. I was really small then...In between 3 and 5 years old. I remember being in a room, I usually sulked in a corner and watched the others play with the toys that filled the small room. It was kind of like a classroom, except for preschoolers. Toys littered the pale carpet, glue and crayon stains on the walls. It took me a few years to open up, but I never made any real friends. I guess I wasn't good at it.

I tried to travel back even farther...To the very first day I entered the orphanage. In my mind I saw Watari, holding my tiny hand in his large, old one. He was leading me down a hall when I saw a black haired boy leaning against the wall. I studied him curiously, he had a large, plain, long sleeved shirt that was at least two sizes too big for him. And baggy, washed out jeans that enclosed his feet, except his pale toes. He looked up, fork midway to his mouth with a chunk of cake on the tips. He blinked in surprise. He looked about ten-years-old, so he was at least double my age. I can't recall the exact words Watari said to him, but the next thing I know he's leading me the rest of the way down the hall to a bedroom that has been mine up until a few weeks ago. As I passed him to walk into my room, the smell of sweets and cake bathed my nose. I never forgot that scent. I looked about the room, and when I turned back to the boy, he had gone. He left behind the piece of cake in the door way, the fork neatly lay parallel on the white plate. The cake was untouched...except for the chunk at the tip that never entered his mouth. I saw that the missing piece was still connected to the fork. I picked up the plate and stepped into the hallway but the strange boy had vanished. I remember I wanted to thank him...He was the only one that showed me some kindness beside Watari.

My eyes flew open. I did meet L once...A long time ago. He was, what I considered, my first and only friend.