A/N: This was done for LxLight club's (in deviantART) Alternative ending contest. My last fic for it was unfortunately too long, so... this is my second try. Now the length is good but I must say that I'm not that pleased with the outcome.

And I'm not that familiar with schizophrenia so... It might have errors. Bare with me, I'm just a fic-writer T.T

Disclaimer: I do not own Death note, nor it's characters.

BLACKOUT

"What is going on? Ryuuzaki!" Raito yelled angrily from the cell he had been put in.

"Please calm down, Raito-kun. Take a deep breath and close your eyes if it helps", L's voice came from the speakers in a soothing tone, making Raito feel slightly better. If he'd be in here under the suspicion of being Kira, L surely would've been colder about the matter.

"Do you want me to come down there to explain the current situation and our analysis to you?" L's voice spoke again. Raito nodded hesitantly, rubbing his hands together to create some warmth, Ryuk snickering in the corner.

"You sure you didn't get caught, Raito? This doesn't seem like an ideal situation for Kira", the Shinigami mocked him but Raito refused to answer because he had notice a camera on the corner of the cell. He wasn't sure if it was recording because he couldn't see any light from it, but maybe it was one of the models that didn't have one. L might've been just trying to lull him into the thought that he wasn't being monitored for every single twitch he made and sound that escaped his lips.

Or maybe that wasn't the recording camera, but just a distraction and there were hidden cameras in other directions. L suspected Raito from being Kira, and it wouldn't be unlike him to try to fling Raito into making some foolish action to reveal himself.

The door opened and Raito watched as L walked in the room, staying in the other side of the bars that separated them. He had brought a chair with him and sat on it a few metres from the cell, as if to avoid any form of attack Raito would direct at him.

It made Raito's hair stand at the edge and paranoia rush in his veins again.

L was clearly suspecting something. Before he had let Raito close to him and now not. Not to mention that waking up in a cell after just having a cup of coffee with L in the hotel wasn't really helping him to calm down.

The man had probably drugged him. How come he hadn't suspected him at all… He should be more alerted.

He closed his eyes.

"The situation isn't that bad, Raito-kun. This is just a… precaution as I can't know your reaction to it beforehand", L stated from his seat. "You are physically well built and your intelligent mind might take what is to come as a serious blow and cause you to act rashly without thinking properly. It isn't that uncommon."

"My reaction to what, Ryuuzaki?" Raito asked. "I wake up in a cell… Then you tell me that the situation isn't that bad. Then why am I in here? Is that camera recording? Is this an interrogation?"

Raito's discomfort had laced the words escaping from his lips in an almost panicked manner, but L raised his hand to stop him from speaking. Ryuk was staring at the situation, entertained once again.

Where had he slipped to get in a mess like this?

"As I said, the cell is just a precaution. The camera isn't recording anything on tapes, but your father and his investigation team are watching its concept for the time being because I denied their access in here. Don't consider this as an interrogation… just as a friend trying to help."

"…I don't understand…" Raito muttered. L smiled sadly at him.

"I think we should take this slowly. Telling you straightaway would be too rash and your reaction might be very unwanted. Try to adapt to things as I keep asking you questions and tell about how we've come to the situation we are in now", L said, seeming more collected and professional again.

"This is going to be interesting…" Ryuk snickered. "If only I'd have the joy of eating apples while watching."

Raito ignored the Shinigami and kept staring at L, motioning him to go ahead.

"Lately you have become very unsocial compared to what you were just several years back. From what I've heard, not a night passed without you going out with friends, ignoring the times you were grounded and unable to do so. You were such an emotional, social butterfly that you were easily the most liked person in your class. Your parents started to worry when suddenly your habits changed: you came home alone saying you were tired and wanted to study, spending day after day alone in your bedroom. In the beginning you used to watch television with your sister, but the occasions grew shorter until you finally dropped them off completely and went on being on your room all alone."

"School has started to get harder. I need good grades, and to get them I need to study", Raito said. "It isn't that unusual. And I'm still very social-"

L shook his head. "You aren't, Raito-kun. Usually when spending time with friends at school or family you simply listen or daydream. Of course you do talk at times, a lot too, but most of time you've seemed rather distracted."

"I don't know what my social life has to do with this situation", Raito admitted honestly. "I'm-"

"Raito-kun has suffered not only of social isolation he has caused on himself, but apparently also paranoia", L stated, cutting his sentence.

Now that had to be a test.

"You got all tense. You can't deny your paranoia", L said.

"Being paranoid isn't that uncommon. You are paranoid too, and so are billions of other people in this world. It has nothing to do with… What are we talking about again?"

"Have you been depressed lately? Had any problem with focusing on what you were doing, felt less emotional as usually? I heard you haven't cried in over a year so anyone would know about it", L went on again, ignoring his question.

It was starting to anger Raito.

"That guy is making fun of you, Raito. What are you going to do?" Ryuk laughed and kept walking back and worth, getting on Raito's nerves.

"I've had passing times of being less energetic and happy than normally, but nothing that could classify as depression. If I want to focus on what I'm doing, I can do it. If I don't really try, I tend to daydream, which is normal. And maybe I just haven't had a reason to cry? Ever popped in your mind?" Raito hissed at L. L didn't seem offended and nodded.

"I understand-"

"I don't. What are you getting at? My health is in check", Raito said but L shook his head.

"I'm afraid it isn't, Raito-kun. Your mental health is in corruption."

Ryuk had fallen silent for some odd reason and Raito stared at L in confusion. "What… I'm just fine…"

L sighed. "You aren't. I'm sorry. Raito-kun… Who do you think I am?"

Raito stared. "You are L. Ryuuzaki. Ryuuga. Whatever aliases you prefer to use. World's best detective, now working with the Kira case."

"What is the Kira case?" L asked, his bangs hiding his eyes, but Raito could tell that the man wasn't in a cheerful mood.

"…You know what the Kira case is! You work on it! You know more of it than I do!"

"That isn't correct, Raito", Ryuk snickered. Raito felt like yelling at him to shut up for once but couldn't because of L's presence. "You are Kira. You know who L is. You know more about the case."

"Raito-kun… This 'Kira-case' doesn't exist", L said quietly. "My name is L Lawliet. Yes, I'm a detective, but I'm in here to investigate the serial murder in the Kanto region with seven victims so far, each brutally murdered and afterwards hung to public places."

Raito stared for a while before laughing hesitantly. "You think you're funny?"

"Raito-kun… you are very intelligent. You have a creative mind and due to your illness, it's gotten out of leash, creating the disaster controlling your mind. Do you hallucinate?" L asked, still quietly, rubbing his fingers together. Raito stared at him angrily.

If this bastard thought that he'd fall for something like that, he was crazy!

"I'm not crazy, L! I'm not a maniac that should be stuck in a mental hospital, my mind is working just fine and this new test of yours is one of the cruelest ones you've yet come up with!" Raito screamed furiously at L, losing his calm.

L just stared at him quietly, almost sadly. "You need some medication, Raito-kun. From what I've yet come to discover, you most likely suffer from some kind of schizophrenia. Considering your age it could be disorganized schizophrenia, also known as hebephrenia. It doesn't necessarily include hallucinations, but some of your school friends have witnessed you talking to yourself when you've thought that no one was watching. I'm curious… do you hallucinate?"

"I do not hallucinate, L", Raito hissed back. "And I certainly don't have schizophrenia. I'd be mental!"

"But you are, Raito-kun. You've created this… Kira-case by yourself. From what I've talked with you, it involves a supernatural killer and the world's greatest detective, who happens to be me in your mind, I'm flattered, thank you, going after him and you being caught up in the middle. You keep showing up in my doorsteps, claiming I asked you to come over, which I didn't. I didn't even know you before you started these… visits of yours."

"L, you aren't funny!" Raito shook his head violently, Ryuk staring at L.

"He's calling me a hallucination… Should I be offended?"

L looked up at him sadly. "Luckily, schizophrenia is often treatable. I'm afraid we'll just have to wait if it works for you. But first you need to acknowledge its existence."

Raito shook his head, his eyes opened wide in fear slowly starting to spread in his brains. "No. I'm not sick. I'm not crazy. I can't be. I'm just a normal human being-"

"Calm yourself, Raito-kun. It's alright. It isn't your fault", L said quietly, looking at him with his black- no, for once they shined in the colour of grey. Raito found himself staring.

L looked too innocent to be fooling him.

But he had to. There was no other explanation. There couldn't be.

L rose from the chair and walked opened the door to the cell before stepping in. Raito realised that he was sitting on the ground, wondering when he had ended up doing that. He looked up at the older man who kneeled down and embraced him gently.

"It isn't that bad. At least we became friends", L said and rocked him a little. Raito didn't respond to it.

"…At least I got you…"

He looked in L's calming eyes.

"I got you", he said and squeezed L harder, ignoring the Shinigami laughing manically in the background.

Don't ask about the title, I just felt like putting it o.o I don't know.
...It's odd. Yes. Very odd. But that WOULD explain all the Shinigami stuff and so on.

...I hope you enjoyed it at least a little!