Written in response to a moment in Episode 24.
During the second part of the episode, Mogi-san reads out the "13 Day Rule" to all at the Investigation HQ and L is forced to acknowledge the apparent innocence of Light and Misa.
Disclaimer: I don't own Death Note or its characters, just this story.
A FATAL FLAW
By Just Akiko
Perfection.
Perfection was what made that innocent face so guilty.
All the loose ends had been tied with an almost fascinating tightness and L could almost have been excited by the chance to unravel that intricately designed knot… if he weren't so acutely aware that, as of that moment, his time and options were running out, fast.
Those 'How To Use' Rules had explained it all clearly; describing Aname's innocence and Raito's sickeningly clean hands. The odd pair had survived thirteen days of apparently borrowed time, and then some, meaning that of course they were guiltless, wrongly accused and therefore must be freed. Immediately.
And as much as the man was an idiot, it was clear by the tone of his voice that Matsuda would not be argued with on this factor; his enthusiasm almost disturbingly fierce. Plus, the eccentric detective was almost certain that despite his deep respect for authority, Yagami-san would not see his son restrained a day longer.
A pity, L thought; it was such a cleverly twisted knot.
And there might be something in that handsome face, perhaps a certain tension that wasn't there before. Or had those soft brown eyes, always so caring and considerate, suddenly sharpened to a threatening shade of red? Or was L simply seeing what he wanted to see, his own desperate arrogance mixing up the knots he so keenly studied?
No.
No, that wasn't it.
Not even his childish determination could produce such a cold, hard certainty within him. These instincts and whims, to which he succumbed, always seemed so unsubstantial, and yet L had learned long ago that they could also be the difference between success and failure. Between life and death.
Yagami Light was guilty, fact; such perfectly defined innocence had his intellectual fingerprints all over it. So what if their only possible witness was dead! So what if there was no solid evidence standing against Light any longer! Surely such a startlingly clean slate was, in fact, a beacon; shining brightly through the horror of the past months, signalling that this was their homicidal genius; sitting right beside them, fingers flying over a keyboard he probably didn't even see.
L watched him from the periphery of his vision with something akin to rage; a burning darkness that blended seamlessly with his coal black eyes. It writhed and roiled inside of him, desperate to escape his self-imposed stoicism, and for a second his pale fingers quivered slightly. He paused a moment, before carefully replacing the milk carton between them onto the desk, leaving the previous twelve to balance precariously in an incomplete tower before him. With a bite of his thumb he glared at his achievement and fought the urge to dash the entire thing to the ground. Part of him wondered if they would even fall at all? Perhaps Light had fastened these pieces of his world together tightly too. Perhaps even his hard hand would be unable to make the delicate construct fall down now.
And perhaps he would never bring Kira to justice.
And perhaps this ascent of efficient madness would reign for many years to come.
For the first time in over eight months, L suddenly pictured himself losing in this battle of wits and wills.
And his defeat would be simply perfect, he was sure.
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Ja x