Disclaimer: I do not own Death Note, I'm only playing in the sandbox.
Author's Notes: This was written as a challenge at the DN-Challenge Death Note LJ Community for Week # 51- OC. Please review and let me know what you think. I apologize for any OOC-ness, this is my first time writing Near as a main character.
"Still Alive"
By C.K. Blake
This is a strange feeling, and not one that Near is entirely familiar with. It has been a week since Amane Misa's death, and he has had that entire week to deal with the note Misa left. A strange note that promised a legacy. He shudders to think of what Kira's legacy might be. He pulls the frilly, pink colored piece of stationary with the black trim from Amane's file, unfolds it, and reads again the note that Aizawa brought to him as the last nail on the coffin of the Kira case.
Dearest Raito—
They told Misa you were Kira. Why would they steal justice from this world? They do not understand that a part of Kira still exists. Misa cannot find that part though. Misa has tried since they took you from her. Misa cannot go on without her Raito, so now it is time she joins him. Do not worry though, for a part of Kira still lives in this world. Maybe you remember when Misa went on that extended tour after Kira's victory over L, that was when Kira's legacy was born, Raito. Misa hopes she did well.
Loving You Always and Forever,
Misa Misa
Near sighs as he refolds the letter. It only took an instant to realize what the letter aluded to, and only three days to come across the strange note in Amane's medical files around the end of July when she had been in England on a photoshoot.
The car pulls to a stop in front of the old rundown building on the outskirts of the darker, dirtier parts of London. He waits for Roger to come around and open the door for him. He steps out of the car, looking around, always one to observe every aspect of his surroundings unless he is surprised.
He hates that he's been forced to dress the part to achieve his goals. He wishes that Gevanni or Lidner could have come in his place, but this is something that he must personally take care of. Kira's legacy cannot be allowed to continue. It should have ended with Yagami Raito and his most noted accomplice through the years, Amane Misa, but still Kira managed to secure his legacy.
He's in a freshly pressed white suit, his eyes covered with sunglasses, a briefcase in his right hand as he approaches the building, his toys left behind in the car. He reaches up with his left hand to knock and as he waits for someone to answer he curls his finger in a lock of his white hair. As the door is pulled open he stops twirling his hair, removes the sunglasses and places them in his inner jacket pocket, and then tilts his head a little to the side, his dark eyes locking with the thin, somewhat familiar woman who answers the door.
"Yes?" she inquires in a worn and weary tone.
"I am hear about a charge that was brought to this orphanage on August the fourth of 2005. The charge was an infant, left by unknown. A girl child I believe," he says, his voice toneless.
The woman's eyes widen for a moment, and then they narrow. "What interest do you have in this particular child?"
"I wish to see this child before I impart that information," Near says, and then he looks toward the car as Roger Ruvies steps out of the driver's side.
Again the woman's eyes widen and she looks toward the pale boy before her. "You are Nate River. I remember when that man came and took you off of our hands. I never thought I would see you again. Such a strange child, as strange as the one you ask after."
"I no longer go by that name," Near replies, and then says, "Ms. Keavington, the child if you please."
"Very well," she says, and opens the door further to allow him entrance.
Near signals for Roger to stay with the car. He follows the woman to a door by the stairwell and into a small office. Since the woman remembers him, he makes no pretences as he sits down on the floor and pulls his right knee up against his chest, his left leg curling under, his left hand twirling in his hair as he looks at the woman.
"I see little has changed in spite of your attire. You always were such a strange and solitary child. Is that why you've come for Mika?"
"That is the child's name?"
"She only came with one name on a very strange note."
"Do you still have the note?" Near asks.
The woman nods and pulls a very thin file from a drawer in her desk. She passes it to Near. He opens it and spreads the contents out before him. He finds it odd that there is no picture within the file. There is a birthday listed for the child, July 31, 2005, and a single name, Mika, but there is little more than that aside from medical records.
Near picks up the note and immediately recognizes the writing as the loopy childish hand of Amane Misa, the English a little sloppy, and it is signed with Kanji. He raises his head to look at the worn looking woman sitting before him, rigid and astute like one would expect from a particularly strict British Nanny.
"Let me see the child," Near says, his voice barely audible.
The woman nods, mentions that it is naptime, but the child keeps such strange hours that she is probably awake. This strikes Near as a little odd, but he merely follows the woman up the stairwell. She directs him to the fourth door on the right, and he opens it. There are five small beds inside, and the first four contain sleeping children.
The fifth bed, the one furthest from the door, and shrouded the most in darkness contains a strange, lone figure. A small child is perched on the end of the bed, both knees pulled up to her little chest, her toes curled in the covers and blankets, her eyes wide, and nibbling her thumb. At the sound of the door, the child turns towards it, her wide eyes seemingly dull, but Near can detect the child's curiosity, and he is stunned.
It takes only a moment to recover, and knowing that this child is special, he turns to Ms. Keavington, the woman in charge of the orphanage and says, "I wish to make arrangements for this child. I want to immediately have her in my care. I am prepared with all of the paperwork, and I also wish to leave this particular facility with a generous donation."
The woman fixes him with a predatory look, a look that Near remembers all too well.
----------
Sitting in his private quarters at Wammy's House he looks up at the calender. It's been several months, but today marks a very special day. He's worked since February to secure the child into his custody with the help of Roger Ruvies, who still insists that Near is mad to take on such a responsibility. After all this is a child, not a pet. Not only that, this is a child of one of the Kiras. Still this child is more than that as well.
Near has not seen her since that fateful day in the orphanage in London, the orphanage where he himself had stayed for a little over six months before coming to Wammy's House.
He looks down at the blank puzzle before him, placing another piece into it, his other hand twirling in a lock of his white hair as he looks up at the clock. It is almost three o'clock. She is on her way. Any moment now.
He continues with his puzzle, his finger continuously curling in his hair. At the sound of the knock on his door he looks up at the clock, surprised that twenty minutes have passed. He let's out a sigh and then says, "You may enter."
The door is pushed open by Roger, and a few moments later the door is closed. Near straightens and turns around in his strange crouch. His eyes widen as he realizes that Roger is leaving this responsibility solely to him.
The girl is small for her age and thin. She is slouched, her eyes directed at the floor. Slowly Near gets to his feet and crosses the room. He then kneels down in his usual crouch before the child and slowly the child looks up at him, so small and seemingly timid for her six years, and her voice is barely audible as she whispers, "There is a fourty-six percent chance that you will still reject me after all of your troubles."
Near's eyes widen at the child's words and then he reaches out, grabs the first toy within reach, a robot and holds it out to her. She looks at the toy he's offering, and then she lifts her gaze to meet his. He tilts his head to her and says, "It is your birthday today, yes? Take this, I have more."
She reaches out hesitantly and snatches the toy quickly, almost with a fear that he will take it away from her before she can get it.
"I am Mika," she says.
He nods. "There is more to your name than just that. You are Mika Lawliet, but names are dangerous to share with the world. Son instead I think we'll call you Mimi. Now Mimi, if I tell you a secret will you keep it?"
She gives him a long stare, her eyes just as penetrating as her father's as she gives a nod. "My name is Nate River, but you cannot use that name or tell anyone else about it. You may call me Near."
"Near," she says, and the sound of her soft voice whispering his name does something strange to Near's insides, he feels oddly warm.
"Mr. Watari said you knew my Mummy and Daddy. So I did have parents?" she asks.
Near's hand rises to his hair to twirl it as he nods in the affirmative. "We all have parents, but like mine, yours are dead. I knew your father as well as anyone could I suppose. I knew less about your mother. I could tell you about your father. He was well known here at Wammy's."
"So do I live at Wammy's now? It's a lot nicer than the other place."
Near lets out a sigh. "No. This is just a temporary arrangement. You will live with me now, Mimi. I am your guardian, and one day you will live up to your father's legacy. You will become the world's greatest detective. You will become L."
"This is a dream, but I never sleep," the child says, a hint of awe in her tone.
Near gets to his feet, reaches for the child's small hand, and watches as she clutches the robot in her other arm. He wonders if he once looked like that when Quillish Wammy came to retrieve him from that other place.
He leads her across the room to a rolling cart with covered dishes on it, and picks up the lid on one of the plates. Her eyes widen at the smell. He holds out a fork to her, watches as she takes it peculiarly between thumb and index finger and begins to devour the small piece of strawberry cheesecake on the plate.
She looks up at him, then reaches for the tea. Her face pinches at the taste of it, and Near with a small smile adds a few sugar cubes to the cup. She takes an experimental sip and then finishes the cup, and looks toward him for directions in what's to come next.
He takes her hand and leads her to his place on the floor where he'd been working on the puzzle. He watches as she reaches for a puzzle piece and examines what he's put together so far. It takes her a few moments but then she's fit the piece into its place.
Looking at this little girl, so clearly L Lawliet's daughter with her wide black eyes, messy black hair, and small, fragile looking frame, he knows that Kira is dead. He absently wonders how it happened, how second Kira gave birth to L's child, but that doesn't matter. There is a part of L that is still alive in this world, and that growing warmth in Near tells him that he's made the right choice in taking this responsibility.
He continues to watch as the child picks up pieces of the puzzle and fits them in. She is truly L's greatest and final contribution to the world. Perhaps L wasn't a loser after all.
End.
Author's Note: Note Mika's birthday, and consider her conception 31 October 2004. Happy Birthday L!