Chapter 2: Restitution

"Thought I saw blood turn to wine
A vision from the angel wars
Didn't think I'd find the Saviour in the dark"

― Dead Heaven

Over a week had passed since the deaths of L and Watari had occurred. It couldn't be said if the days went quickly or dragged on; it was a little of both. A lot needed to be done, and obligatory formalities were dealt with—namely L's funeral.

It had been small, of course, hardly to be called a funeral at that. Excluding the task force, no one was even aware that it took place. For their own safety, only they could know who rested underneath that grave.

The sunset had radiated with burning red and gold hues, smoldering the graveyard in colors too warm for the ordinarily dismal area. They had all stood around the carved stone marking L's final resting place, and solemnly paid their last respects, promising L they would avenge him and bring Kira to justice. Afterward, Light had remained a moment by himself, externally sullen. Internally, Kira had rejoiced.

Needless to say, they were all glad to get such matters over with. No one liked to be reminded of their own mortality, and they had witnessed that even the world's greatest detective was not excluded from this irreversible event. Death was only natural, but people would always try to fight against it, and seek to prolong its arrival. Or at least ignore it, if they could.

The investigation headquarters was as of yet unchanged, but a growing weariness hung over them in the overly expansive building.

The question remained, what was to be done next?

Light, with his aptitude for computers, had managed to restore the basic functionality of the systems, and had figured out how to construct the scrambled voice that L had used. With these problems solved, it looked as if they could go on with the idea of pretending that L was still running the investigation. It was the only choice they had if they wanted to capture Kira, because if the NPA found out L was dead—murdered, to be exact—then there was no possibility that the investigation would be allowed to continue, as small as it already was.

As for who would be taking over L's position, there was no question about it. The team agreed unanimously that only Light could take L's place.

Light pretended hesitation at their request, but when they weren't looking, a brief smile had passed over his face. Easy, as usual. No more bothersome setbacks with L gone.

A few suggestions here and there and he'd convinced them where instead to run the investigation; in an apartment that Light would rent by himself. He was old enough to move out now, he explained, and it would be easier there to take over L and Watari's roles if he was away from the distractions of the rest of his family.

It didn't take long to find a place; a modern two-story apartment large enough to hold all the necessary equipment for the investigation—and soon everything was moved in and organized. The equipment was set up on the second floor, where headquarters would now be, leaving the downstairs for living purposes: two bedrooms, a kitchen, a living room, and bathroom. All in all, it looked to be the perfect place to continue the pursuit of Kira—or, for Light, the perfect place to carry on with his responsibilities as Kira.

Currently, Light was standing near the window in the living room, with Misa by him. It had been storming on and off all day, but that didn't stop Misa from being in a good mood.

"Yay, Light! I'm so happy we can live together now!" she squealed in excitement. "Finally some real privacy."

Light was silent, looking at the unfamiliar scenery outside. He could tell the sun was setting only by the fact that while the storm hadn't grown any stronger, the sky was steadily getting darker.

"…But," she went on, staring up at him with a pout, "why can't we share the same room, Light?"

"Misa, it wouldn't be right for us to share the same room until after we're married." He watched as small water droplets formed and slid down the glass.

"Wha…?" Misa, at the mention of matrimony, stared in wonder at Light. "So we're going to get married?" Her shining eyes anticipated his answer.

"Yeah, when the time is right." He kept the answer purposely vague.

"Yay!" The ever-stylish idol squealed as she embraced Light tightly. It was mostly a one-sided embrace, but she was used to those with him. "Misa and Light will be married!" In the background, Ryuk chuckled. After a moment she straightened up and furrowed her eyes in determination. "Don't worry, I can wait to share a room with Light until then. Misa is patient." She grinned charmingly.

Light nodded vaguely in response, not taking his focus away from the window. He had other things on his mind.

The rest of the task force had left for the day. They were all taking a break after getting everything moved into the new headquarters, though they took these little as possible. For them, Kira was still very much a threat to the world, and every day was crucial. They had to tell themselves that there would be a day when he could be stopped once and for all, that it was only a matter of when it would happen and not if. Because if they never caught Kira… Well, they would never start thinking like that. As long as they were all here they would continue to pursue him. They couldn't afford to give up hope.

Not yet, anyway, thought Light.

But it wasn't any concern to him whether they chose to continue or not. He could lead them in circles until their feet wore down to bone, and they wouldn't be any closer to catching him. And if they did manage to find some reason for suspicion, as L had, he could get rid of them, too. His father, even, if it came to that, would be worth eliminating. Light had decided long ago that in order to reach his goal he would need to be able to sacrifice anything and anyone that tried to stop him. It was the only way, if he was going to make the world a better place. Thankfully, he doubted he would ever have to resort to anything like killing his own family.

If things continued as planned, then eventually, maybe years from now, he would be able to reveal himself to his father without any fear of being condemned by him. Who knows, maybe he would even be proud of Light once he finally understood him. It was always a possibility, and the same went for the other investigation members. Even now, Light thought, Matsuda showed signs of agreeing with Kira on certain things.

Ideally it was only a matter of time before they would resign themselves to Kira's way of justice. Until then, Light would have to keep his identity hidden, which wouldn't be difficult. He had been given the option to eliminate the waste of humankind, to become a protector of civilization against itself, with virtually no way for his actions to be traced back to him. No one knew who he was, or even what he was, but everyone knew that he existed. And already, many worshiped him for his actions.

Light never regretted picking up that strange black notebook that had fallen from the sky on that day. Out of everyone existing on the planet, it had been he who had found the death note. It was he who would shape the world with it. The circumstances leading up to this point were such that if there were really were other gods besides the shinigami, they were on his side. And if it was all just due to luck, well, it didn't matter. He was grateful either way.

He had been given a means to correct the world, and he wouldn't let anyone stop him.

Light awoke with the feeling that something wasn't quite right. He shifted over to his other side, moving the tangle of covers away in order to see the time.

2:00 a.m. He sighed, rubbing tiredly at his eyes. But as he brought his hand back from his face, something pale caught the corner of his vision, and when he turned to look at it he froze.

There, sitting on a chair several feet away from him, was L.

As Light's eyes focused on the sight before him, he saw that L was staring back at him, his eyes unmistakably dark and knowing. Faint city light streamed through the window blinds, illuminating the room in dim hues, and L's form seemed to faintly glow in it.

No, Light laughed to himself, this wasn't real. This had to be a dream, or a persistent remnant of one. He closed his eyes, and tried to shut out the images of the former detective—his unkempt hair, strange sitting posture, his toes clenching and unclenching as an interesting, or perhaps dangerous, thought occupied his mind.

His dark, sleep-deprived eyes. Staring. Knowing.

A horrible unease began to creep over Light that it wasn't just a dream. Despite how irrational it was to think that L could be here in his room, Light could finally bear it no longer and opened his eyes to prove once and for all that he had just been imagining things, and the ominous dread he felt was unfounded.

2:04 a.m. L was still watching him.

Light's eyes widened in alarm. L was still there, there was no denying it. Was he really dreaming, then? It felt nothing at all like one, but it was the only way he could explain it.

Hesitantly, Light sat up, and then—with even more hesitance—he spoke to the phantom visitor.

"L…?" It was barely a whisper, but it cut clearly through the silence of the room. There was no reply, but he thought he saw L's eyes flicker. Or was he just imagining that, too? "L," he began again, contrary to the sanity in him, "…why are you here?"

To Light's astonishment, L responded.

"You know the reason why, Light Yagami." An unnatural grin spread across his face, his gaze meeting Light's, and Light felt like he knew L's next words even before he said them.

I'm here to haunt you.

A/N: Next chapter will be up soon.

I don't really like writing Misa... I'll leave her out as much as I can.