Thanks for your comments, KellerWeller! Hope you like this part, too.
So, much as I wanted to do Ryuk's POV, I decided against it. This is supposed to be an L/Light story... but maybe I'll get some Ryuk insight later if I just can't stand it. He's such a fun character. At least we can hear Ryuk from Light's perspective.
Two: Light, Cameras, Inaction
From what I'd seen so far, Ryuzaki wasn't one to do his own dirty-work. The most I'd seen him exert himself was in our tennis match, and that seemed to be a one-time thing. Surprising, because he was really good. You don't get that good by not practicing.
Anyway, I didn't quite have time to get bored before dinner. Ryuk kept saying stuff now and then... I really should have instructed him to keep quiet most of the time. Sitting in silence with a shinigami staring at me might seem really creepy, but listening to him complain and talk about random nonsense was actually worse.
"So, how long do you think we'll be in here, anyway? Obviously, at least thirteen days, because you want to use that fake rule to your advantage. But when do you think the new guy will actually start killing people?"
I kept silent, staring straight ahead.
"Oh, come on. You're a smart kid. You can find a way to give me an estimate. Tap your foot the number of days, or something."
I refused to move.
"It's no big deal to you," he griped. "At least they'll feed you. I gotta stick around here with no apples... for how long?"
I wanted to point out that he really didn't have to stay in the cell with me—he could wander around and listen in on task force conversations if he wanted to; that might be interesting for me to hear about, and possibly useful, too. But I wasn't going to risk it. They couldn't see me "talking to myself." They couldn't see anything but someone patiently waiting for a result.
But one thing Ryuk said did interest me slightly. They would feed me. I wondered if they would unbind my hands for that. Probably not, I decided. Most likely Watari would wheel in a tray and feed me a sandwich or something. Maybe give me a glass with a straw in it so I didn't need help drinking. Yeah, the chances of having my hands free were pretty low.
What surprised me most was that L himself brought in my meal. Not on a rolling cart, but on a tray. The sight was so odd, I couldn't think of much to say.
"You're a waiter now?"
He just barely smirked. It wasn't all that funny.
Sure enough, I didn't get my hands free, but I'd been wrong about the sandwich. L was actually going to use chopsticks to feed me.
What am I? Your pet?
It didn't help that Ryuk was looming over L, quietly cackling to himself.
You're just making it worse...
"So, he admits he wants to keep a close eye on you," Ryuk said after I got a straight answer out of L. "Even at the cost of feeding you himself. That's pretty interesting."
Humiliating is what it is, I thought. How dare he do this... He knows damn well that I'm hating every second.
Even though I wasn't very hungry, I didn't want to be kept awake by thirst or hunger pains later on. If I got hungry in the middle of the night, there'd be no one to... well, of course Ryuzaki would be up all night at his desk, stuffing his face with cheesecake and whatever other sugary mess he desired... it probably wouldn't be any trouble for him to run a snack down to me, but I wanted him to visit as little as possible. So, I ate and drank all I could, though that made me begin to worry about another issue...
When I finished, he wiped my mouth with a napkin.
"Thank you," I said, keeping the venom out of my voice.
"Do you need to relieve yourself before I go?"
And there it was. Ryuk grasped the awkwardness of the situation immediately.
"Oh, crap, Light!" the shinigami exclaimed. "Literally!"
I really should have told Ryuk not to say things that might make me react suspiciously. I sighed. There was nothing I could do about it now. "You're not planning to uncuff me for that, either... right?"
"I'm afraid not. You're going to be in view of the cameras, or at the very least, my eyes. Having your hands free won't make much difference, will it?"
"I guess not."
"Hey, he had those cameras all over your house," Ryuk pointed out. "It didn't bother you then."
This is different, Ryuk. This is up close and... way too personal. "I knew what I was getting into," I said, almost more to Ryuk. "Let's just get it over-with."
"One set of eyes, or the cameras?" he asked.
He was offering me two laughable options for a pretense of privacy. If I chose the cameras, L would respectfully turn away while I used the toilet. If I chose one set of eyes, he would stand between me and the cameras—watching me. But even if I chose the cameras, he'd just go back to his desk and watch the footage to see if I did anything suspicious... as if a person could kill, even with supernatural power, while on the toilet. My god, L, how obsessive are you?
The idea of having him watch from such close proximity was disturbing, but overall I preferred it to his having the option to replay the footage. Also, no one else from the task force would witness this. In the end, just L seemed the better option over "anyone who happens to see the video footage for the rest of all time." Of course, Ryuk had made a good point, too: there was undoubtedly already video footage of me using the bathroom in L's collection, taken from my home. Along with footage of my parents and Sayu. That was the only part that really ticked me off.
"It's not like I have anything to hide... you had cameras in my house—I doubt you excluded the bathroom there. Still... if it's all the same to you, I'd prefer just one set of eyes."
He nodded. "Very well. I'll do my best to cause you as little discomfort as possible."
"Thank you," I said again. I think I did a good job of sounding sincere.
I was glad he suggested I face the back wall of the cell while he opened my fly—I sure as hell didn't want to be awkwardly watching him do it. Of course, Ryuk's comments didn't help.
"For our viewers just joining us," Ryuk said gleefully, "this actually isn't what it looks like!"
Shut up, Ryuk!
L nudged my arms up to the small of my back and I tucked my elbows in to keep out of his way as much as possible. Once he had my zipper undone, he asked if I was ready.
I've been ready—I said I wanted to get it over-with... what the hell are you waiting for? I didn't trust myself to say anything, so I just gave him a nod.
I have to give him credit for effectively blocking the view of anyone else who might have been watching from the vantage point of the cameras... not from Ryuk, of course. I had to keep my gaze firmly on the floor to avoid both the dark, solemn eyes of L and the glowing, laughing eyes of Ryuk. I knew he wasn't on anyone's side, but it sure felt like he wasn't rooting for me at the moment.
I got done as quickly as I could. When I leaned forward to get up, L took me by the shoulders and helped me stand. I was a little surprised at how effectively he helped me shift my weight. I wouldn't have expected him to have much experience in that area. I turned to the wall again, moving my hands and arms out of his way. He got my clothes back in place and fastened my pants.
When he mentioned leaving my belt off, I had no objection. If it meant this process wouldn't take as long the next time, I was all for it.
Ryuk was chuckling quietly again, muttering something about L "having dinner with" me and then leaving with my belt. I wanted to punch him in the face.
"I'll come help you brush your teeth at bedtime."
Help me brush my teeth? I was just beginning to realize how many things I couldn't do with my hands behind me. "Oh, god... Look, if I'm not eating again tonight, you might as well do that right away," I said, wanting to be left alone as soon as possible.
But L didn't want to leave me alone. He wanted to come see me up close every few hours, to see if I was cracking. To see if I was becoming Kira, or showing any evidence of already being Kira. I would just have to deal with it. I'd come this far; I had no choice but to remain stoic and keep him from seeing any of the things he was looking for. I could do this. I had to.
I have to admit, I did have it slightly better than Ryuk. I was dealing with deprivation of almost every comfort to which I was accustomed, but Ryuk was going through that plus apple-withdrawal, and he had no one talking to him. I had Ryuk talking to me, and though I often didn't like the subject matter, it still managed to break up the monotony for me.
"Hey, Light. Light! Oh, right, you can't answer. Well, guess what. There are forty-eight bars on your cell."
Good job, Ryuk. You can count.
"You know how short you are compared to me? I'm glad I don't have to sleep every day like humans do... I'd never be comfortable on that cot. Come to think of it, I wish I could sleep every day. That would help the time pass."
I'll never sleep if you don't shut up sometime. I sat on the edge of the cot and stared straight ahead of me, trying my best not to react outwardly to the things Ryuk was saying.
Finally, we heard the doors of the elevator down the hall opening. Ryuk left the cell for a moment and swooped back.
"It's L. I think he's gonna brush your teeth," he announced.
Great. This ought to be fun... Even my thoughts were sarcastic.
L brought a large bowl into the cell with him. In the bowl were a water bottle, a tube of toothpaste and a toothbrush. "Ready for bed?"
"As I'll ever be," I muttered.
I stood in the light so he could see better. It was really weird... kind of like being at a dentist's office, but having my teeth cleaned in a standing position felt more like I was receiving dental care at a refugee clinic or something. But again, I was surprised at L's competence. I was sure he must never have done this for anyone else before, but he was as thorough as I would have been myself, and paused often to let me spit and rinse my mouth.
I didn't want to encourage his obsessive managing of these little details by thanking him, but I did appreciate the care he was taking, so I decided to at least bid him a good night and hope that it might help to build the beginnings of sympathy in him. Maybe Stockholm syndrome would persuade him of my innocence if the facts weren't obvious enough to him. Well... the facts as I wanted him to understand them.
"Good night," he answered. "I hope you're able to sleep."
That's right... saying "sleep well" to me probably wouldn't have gone over well. "Yeah... me too," I said, looking down at my cot. I thought about asking him to help me lie down, but I knew I could get there by myself, and I didn't want to push it.
When L was gone, I put one knee on the cot and then awkwardly dumped myself onto my shoulder. After a little wriggling from there, I was lying on my stomach on the cot, and it wasn't all that uncomfortable.
"So... I guess you'll wanna go to sleep now," Ryuk said.
To confirm this suggestion, I closed my eyes.
"Fine. Oh... the lights are going down."
I couldn't help myself; I had to see what he was talking about. I opened my eyes and saw that sure enough, the lights outside the cell had dimmed.
"L's pretty considerate, huh?"
I closed my eyes again. I had no doubt that at least some of the cameras were equipped with infrared settings. He'd still be able to see me. I needed to keep cool and just go to sleep. As Ryuk had said, sleeping would help pass the time.
But hours passed before I managed to sleep. I moved my arms to reposition the restraints on my wrists, hoping my hands wouldn't go numb. I turned my head from one side to the other. I even tried getting onto my side for a while, but I knew I wouldn't sleep that way. I went back onto my stomach, and finally managed to doze off.
Rockabye Kira... I don't know where my mind is these days. xp Oh, well.