Perception

A/N: Okay, I'll admit it. I really have no inspiration for The Snow Queen, so I guess it's on a hiatus. I'm also on an oneshot writing spree, seeing as how it's easy to write, and I can test how much I can cram into one chapter without making it have too much information and unnecessary things occurring. Good practice, I guess. This one came to me while I was thinking of how Naomi Misora would react to BB's death. I'm one of those people who firmly believe BB isn't dead, but for the sake of this fic, let's just assume he is. Also, seeing as how I'm a BBxNaomi fan, there'll be subtle hints of it, but it's so small that you wouldn't really notice it unless you were looking for it.

A/N 2: Also, this can be slightly considered AU, as I've changed Raye Penbar's date of death. And I stole a quote from Another Note.

Disclaimer: I do not own Death Note/Another Note.

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To say Naomi Misora was appalled was a complete lie.

Disbelieving was a better word.

Seriously.

She was almost certain that he wasn't dead. He probably just faked it. What better way to get a one-way ticket out of jail? It was definitely more plausible. Besides, she knew BB. After spending about 9 days with him, she knew better. She knew better than to believe the things written in the e-mail L sent her. But still… she eyed the e-mail, reading its contents again.

Naomi Misora,

This is L.

I am sure you still remember the man named Beyond Birthday, also known as Rue Ryuzaki, for if you do not remember, this e-mail is pointless.

Beyond Birthday is dead.

He suffered a Heart attack yesterday night, at 11:20pm. Although we still are not certain, there is a 90% chance of it being caused by Kira. We have also checked his body to make sure that the dead man was indeed Beyond Birthday and not a replica. It is also confirmed that he is clinically dead and not faking his death. If you would like, you can find his grave at this nearby graveyard. The address is attached to this e-mail.

L.

P.S. Please destroy this computer/laptop as soon as you have printed out or written down the address.

Let's just say Naomi Misora (Soon to be Naomi Penbar) was not amused. First of all, she would have to destroy her laptop. Again. Secondly, she could not bring herself to write the address down. She really could not believe that Beyond was dead. She also really wanted to believe that L was lying, or playing a prank on her. But this was L. He did not lie. Well, mostly. And most of all, he didn't do pranks. It wasn't very L-like. And nobody would dare to use L as an alias. Not when the consequences were… well, let's just say you don't want to know.

In a nutshell, Naomi Misora was pissed.

…

Which is exactly why she's heading towards the graveyard.

Right.

But back to the topic on hand. Even though she's about said it a billion times, she knew Beyond Birthday. She was the one who visited him in jail, although it normally ended up with either maniacal laughter (From BB's side, of course.) or an awkward silence. She was the one who saved him from being burnt to death, although she knew he didn't want to be saved. Up till now, she never really knew the full reason why Beyond created the case. All she heard from L was that he had been a candidate for L's position when he died, and that the pressure had "driven him off track".

As you know, humans have flaws. One of the most fatal was curiosity. Naomi Misora was curious. Cue the visits to Beyond Birthday in jail.

The guard let her into the –closely guarded- cell.

Huddled in a corner was, in all his –not really- glory, Beyond Birthday. His burn wounds had mostly faded, though there were still a few left. He looked like how he did before burning himself. Well, almost. She always knew that, since she found out Beyond did not actually look how he did when they met, but was only imitating L, he wore contacts. It was rare to find someone that had Greyish Black eyes, and it was more likely that someone would buy contacts to attain that particular shade of colour. What actually surprised her was that he had green eyes. Well, now that she thought about it, it was actually quite… fitting. Green was the colour of Jealousy and Envy. Green was the colour of the sick. Beyond was jealous and envious of L. Beyond was also sick. In the head. Well, that's what most people who've met him would say.

He stared at her with those Green eyes… before attempting to attack her. Note the word "attempting". Did she mention that he was laughing maniacally (With a tinge of bitterness) all the way? Too bad he was handcuffed to the wall. And held back by security guards. It was times like this when she pitied him. Well, more than usual.

When he finally calmed down, she sat down on the floor next to him. Normally, Naomi Misora wouldn't sit on the floor of a dirty jail cell, but this was an exception. If she would want to get anything out of Beyond Birthday, whether information or just a simple hello, you couldn't sit on a chair while he sat on the floor, handcuffed to the wall. It just didn't work like that.

"What do you want, Misora?" he snarled. Obviously he still hasn't forgiven her for saving his life.

"Still holding old grudges, I see. I just wanted to see how you've been all this years." She replied. She mentally slapped herself. That turned out a little more mocking than it should've been. She only had about 2 hours, she didn't want to spend them with a (more than usually) hostile murderer.

"Yeah right. The only reason you would come here is to get information out of me, am I right, Misora Massacre?" he asked.

"Fine, fine. You got me. I just wanted to hear your side of the story." She sulked, somewhat pouting.

"I knew it, you're—What? My side of… what?" asked Beyond Birthday, warily eyeing Misora, as if trying to see if she was lying.

"I just wanted to know why you did it. I understand the… err… pressure of living up to L, so I want to hear your side of the story. And leave nothing out; I'll know when you're lying. I've been taking classes on Body Language." She stated, staring at Beyond as if to dare him to defy her.

"Why? What's in it for you? And how would I know that you came here of your own accord? How would I know L didn't send you?" he asked, staring right back as if to say "So what? Why should I listen to you?"

"Just to satisfy my own curiosity, B. Besides, I'm a retired FBI, I have no more links to L." Answered Misora. She might as well tell the truth. She had nothing to lose.

"…"

It took a few more visits to finally get him to talk. It was a little (very) surprising at first, but she sort of understood. Well, at least she thinks she understood. Though it was still a little creepy after knowing that the guy you've been visiting in jail could see when you will die. And if he ever saw L… he would own a valuable piece of information that could bring L down.

…

Okay, this was getting weird. She doesn't know if it's a trick of the light, or if her mind is playing tricks on her, but she knows that something wasn't right. Call it gut instincts or women's intuition, but something was just wrong. She saw Beyond everywhere. In everyone. She saw it in that little girl eating a caramel apple. She saw it in said little girl's father, when he bought her the caramel apple. She saw it in herself. She saw him when she washed her hands in the bathroom sink, staring down at her with those green eyes in the mirror. Dammit, she was going insane. Oh, where was the graveyard?! She just wanted to get this…visiting… over and done with. She wanted to go back home, to take a nice, warm shower. Maybe practice Capoeira. God knows she needed the practice. She hasn't practiced in months!

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The graveyard was suspiciously empty. But then again, these were criminals. Not much people would visit. Especially not at this time of day. Even so, the graveyard looked terrible. It looked like no one had bothered to clean up. There were graffiti on some (most) of the graveyards, wild patches of grass growing everywhere. She hoped Beyond's grave didn't have graffiti on it. That would look awful.

Actually, she didn't want Beyond to die. Even if she did, she wouldn't want him to die of a heart attack. It was… beneath him. He killed (brutally murdered) 3 people, and all he got was a heart attack?! She would've expected suicide, or the electric chair or something, but the best Kira could goddamn come up with was a heart attack?! Bullshit. She couldn't imagine Beyond suffering a heart attack. She couldn't imagine Beyond succumbing to a heart attack. He was too strong for that. Strength. She knew she thought he was strong after she heard the explanation L gave her. Then, when she heard Beyond's side of the story, she thought he was very strong. She could never imitate that. Sure, she was strong in her own way. Well, she was once strong in her own way. Now she was nothing but a servant.

He was strong when she met him. He was strong, even when his plans failed. He was strong in jail. He was strong, even in his death. She wasn't strong. She wasn't Misora Massacre, the FBI agent. She wasn't Naomi Misora, the one who arrested Beyond Birthday. She wasn't Naomi Misora, the Capoeira master. She was Naomi Misora (Penbar), the housewife (fiancée). Sometimes, she wonders what her life would've turned out like if she'd never agreed to marry Raye Penbar. If he'd only been a friend, and nothing more. Would she still be a FBI agent? Or would she still end up a housewife to some other FBI agent? If only…

But now is not the time to regret and ponder. She is only here to visit, nothing else. She leaves an already open jar of jam in front of the graveyard. Then, she walks away.

(It's times like this when Naomi Misora ponders on the relationship Beyond and her shared. They weren't together, for she had Raye and Beyond probably didn't know how to love. They weren't friends, for they were wary of each other to begin with, and neither could be trusted. Yet, they weren't acquaintances, for they knew each other too well. They didn't hate each other, either, for they could tolerate each other. Admiration maybe, for she admired him for being strong while he admired her for managing to solve the case. Yes, admiration it was.)

A few hours later, 13 crows (or were they Ravens?) flew over and ate the jam Naomi Misora left behind.

Ravens, the omen of Death.

Crows, said to represent ancient wisdom, and magic.

How befitting for a man who could see death.

----

The next day, Naomi Misora got another e-mail.

First Beyond Birthday.

Now Raye Penbar.

Naomi Misora wanted revenge.

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A/N: Yeah. At first, I had 2 separate ending, and couldn't decide which one to use. So, I put them together. The appearance of the Crows/Ravens was the first ending, while the e-mail was the second one. Also, can you believe this oneshot took me a week to write? At first, it was going pretty fast, then, 3 other oneshot ideas popped into my head. And not to mention that Fanfiction. Net was distracting me. So if the ending is a bit crappy, blame the fact that I had 3 other ideas in my head.

A/N 2: Also, I didn't make Naomi Misora think B is 'strong'. It actually states it in Another Note. Do you think I portrayed L well? (It rhymes!) I don't know if the e-mail is supposed to be shorter or written in a different format. Please tell me if you see any faults! (And help me think of a better title. Perception is a crap title)