Author's Note: At this time, L and Light aren't handcuffed together, but the Yotsuba arc is over. For the sake of the story, pretend that there is a much larger gap between Higuchi and L's deaths or something.
Hmm... chocolate cake or strawberry cake? It was decisions like this that truly challenged the world's greatest detective. Sure, he could make split-second decisions about cases which would cost people their lives, but choosing between sweets? You just couldn't rush him.
L eventually settled on chocolate, since he had strawberry earlier that morning, and closed the refrigerator door. He was about to turn away, ready to eat his poor excuse for lunch, but a flash of yellow caught his eye.
Stuck to the wall beside the refrigerator, obviously intended for L to see, was a sticky note. It read:
Roses are red,
Violets are blue,
Oh detective supreme,
I'm in love with you.
The first thing L noticed was the numerous inaccuracies within it. Violets were obviously violet colored, and roses were available in many shades, not just red. The next thing he noticed was that he, the most socially inept and reclusive person in a 100-mile radius, had just received what appeared to be a love note.
Fascinating, the detective thought. This would be a completely new experience for him. However, at this point in time, it would be unwise to inform others of this occurrence. There was an 92% chance that subsequent notes would later be delivered, and he did not want them intercepted. Though L was curious at this point about the identity of the poem's writer, it could wait until he tied up some of the loose ends on the Kira case.
With this thought in mind, he continued his normal investigation work for the rest of the day, his only change in behavior being a slightly elevated observational level in his immediate environment. Sure enough, later that evening, he got another poem placed on his pillow.
L as in lethal,
L as in love,
Each day I exist,
It's you I think of.
Unlike the previous one, it was written on a pink, heart-shaped card. But more importantly, unlike the previous one, which was placed in an area that each and every task force member had access to, this was in his room. The security cameras would reveal the identity of the culprit.
L stored the newest poem in the drawer on his nightstand, next to the previous one, then rushed up the stairs to the security room.
"Hello, L," its current resident, Watari, greeted. "Do you need me to get more cake?"
"Of course," L replied, "since we are now out of chocolate. We also need more mint chocolate chip ice cream. But the reason I'm here is to look at some security footage. Tell me, was anyone else in here today?"
"Hmm, I believe that Mogi and Soichiro were. No one else has entered," the older man recalled.
"Thank you Watari," L said, pushing open the door. He waited until the other left, then closed the door, perching on the computer chair and rewinding the footage for the hallway outside his room. His actual bedroom did not have cameras in it, since despite completely disregarding everyone else's, L valued his privacy.
The tape quickly rewound, showing minute changes in the positioning of shadows, and showing the numerous times when L himself had entered, but not revealing anyone else. That left L with two possibilities.
One, someone had edited the tape. Two, the person had not entered his room through the door. He decided to examine the second possibility first.
His room had two windows in it that were always locked, and one bathroom that was equally devoid of cameras. It was unlikely that someone was hiding in the bathroom, so windows would be the only possibility. He doubted any members of the task force would be able to use that method, given that he was several stories off of the ground, but he suspected Wedy would be able to. Was she the writer of the notes?
No. It wasn't her style. For one thing, she seemed to place a high value on appearances, so it was unlikely she would become enamored of one such as himself. For another thing, if she was interested in him, she wouldn't use such a shy and mysterious method. However, someone might have hired her to deliver the note for them. It was a possibility he could not discount.
The first possibility was still more likely though. That would make Watari, Mogi, and Soichiro suspects, along with anyone that would have enough influence to convince them to edit the tapes. Given the simplicity and innocence of the task, it could well be anyone.
L frowned. It was clear at this point that he did not have enough evidence to discover the identity of the note-writer. It was possible to do other forms of analysis, but paper was a poor substance to collect fingerprints off of, and he could not find any skin particles on the notes.
Handwriting analysis was the obvious choice at this point, but the poems were written with a slight sloppiness, suggesting that his admirer had used their non-dominant hand. Which meant that he couldn't use handwriting samples without making potentially suspicious requests of everyone.
It looked like he would have to wait for yet another note to arrive.
After a short sleep (still in the same position at his computer chair, of course) to rejuvenate his mind, L decided that in the absence of a new love note, the next logical step would be to examine the content of the poems for potential clues. He took them out of his jeans pocket, and laid them on his desk.
Roses are red, violets are blue.
This line was the traditional start of many poems, so it revealed nothing.
Oh detective supreme, I'm in love with you.
Again not too revealing, though the first section may have been intended with slight sarcasm. If that was the case, then it meant that the writer looked mockingly at his status of world's greatest detective. But it was only speculation, and the line could be completely serious. He turned to the second letter.
L as in lethal, L as in love.
In addition to reaffirming the identity of the recipient, the line focused on the words 'lethal' and 'love'. Lethal love? Perhaps it was simply a reference to his powerful position, which decided many lives.
Each day I exist, it's you I think of.
This could possibly another classically romantic line, but it could also mean that his admirer was in a situation that made them have L in their thoughts for at least a large portion of the day.
Overall, his brief investigation had yielded no absolute clues, but it did leave L with a number of possible hints. He considered them on the way to the kitchen, where the detective poured himself some coffee (read: coffee flavored sugar), then walked back to his computer.
In his brief absence, a third note had appeared stuck to the screen. This one was twice as long, and was written over the image of some type of flower.
You might call me a killer,
And you've locked me away,
But I still can't help,
that I feel this way.
Do you know who I am now?
You should with such skill.
Sweet 'Ryuzaki',
Toward me what is your will?
A small part of him was embarrassed for not being able to figure it out sooner, but the feeling was quickly stifled by his greater need to run straight to where Light was working and confront him. Which he did.
"Hey, Ryuzaki, all the names in the notebook match..." he was cut off by L's shouting.
"So it was you who wrote the notes!"
"What?" Light asked in fear.
"These," L stated, presenting the three love letters. "You wrote them, didn't you?"
The younger man picked them up, quickly read through them, then sighed in relief.
"No. I've never seen these before," Light said.
"Really? You expect me to believe that there's another accused killer who I've locked up and is close enough to know me as both L and Ryuzaki? That's..." L broke off, eyes widening in sudden realization.
"...I knew I should have had Misora get higher security."
"What are you talking about?" Light questioned. Unfortunately that was the only thing he had time to ask before the office door slammed open.
"Did you miss my puzzles, L-ie?" the intruder asked. "I'm frankly surprised you didn't lock this place down when you heard I escaped. But I guess that's what happens when you kill the only guards that know you and erase all the prison records."
"Wait, what?" Light interrupted. "Is this your evil twin or something?"
"No," L explained darkly, "It's B. He's a serial killer."
"Please," B told them, "call me Beyond Birthday." He looked at Light, or more specifically directly above Light's head, looking slightly surprised. Then he chuckled.
"Hehehe, looks like you've got some interesting stuff going on here."
"What was the purpose of these love letters? I assume it was another trick to mess with my mind?" L inquired.
"No actually," the serial killer responded, "I was completely serious. But love is a stupid emotion compared to the feeling of victory. And what a sweet victory it is."
He punctuated this point by taking a random jar of jam out of his pocket, then licking the lid.
"Bwahahaha, I can't believe you couldn't figure it out even when I practically handed you the answer on a plate. To think that I believed I needed suicide to beat you. Haha! You and Mr. No-lifespan here can continue doing whatever it is you do here, I'm going to buy more jam."
With that, Beyond reopened the office door and left.
"Mr. No-lifespan?" L asked.
"L-ie?" Light returned.
"Touche. You want some cake?"
My policy: end stories with either yaoi or cake. I was planning on the former, but I just couldn't fit it in. While those of you who've read all of my fics realize that this is a shameless rip off of the second half of TNT Doesn't Cause Mushroom Clouds, I actually like this one much better. And hey, I can't sue myself, right?