Author's note: I'm not one to beg for reviews. I tend to think it's tacky and needy and, in general, annoying when authors badger their readers to review. That being said, I very much like reviews. I see them in my inbox and it makes me feel special and happy inside. So, no, I will not beg for reviews—but I heartily thank all of you who do.

"Are you going out again, Light?"

Light turned, bag slung over his shoulder, to face his mother. That's odd, she's frowning. "Yeah- that's okay, isn't it?"

Sachiko nodded slowly. "It is, yes. I was just wondering where you've been going so often. Normally, around exam time you lock yourself in your room and study for hours at a time." Why aren't you doing that now? was the implied question.

Light considered his options. "I am studying," Light said, nodding to the bag slung on his shoulder. It wasn't really a lie- the way he phrased it said that it was an ongoing action, not necessarily something he was about to do. His mother didn't need to know that all his bag contained was a school uniform, a wig, and a mask. "But I do get kind of claustrophobic shut up in my room all the time..." That one was a lie, but not a bad one. He still felt a bit guilty about it, though, when his mother looked at him like that.

"I know what it is!" Light didn't know where Sayu came from, just that she popped up at the oddest times. Light raised his eyebrows and tensed his shoulders at the expression on his sister's face- that was the expression she wore when she was about to say something that she thought would get Light flustered. Half the time she was right. "Light has a girlfriend!"

Light made a show of looking surprised, then embarrassed. He looked away, and while he couldn't force himself to blush, he did shift his weight from foot to foot as he said, "I'm not dating anyone, I'm just studying-" He made sure that his tone implied that he was not attempting to deny the idea that he was associating with someone else.

Sayu took the bait, and squealed. "I knew it! Oh, Light, you have to let us meet her!"

Light's mother smiled fondly, and he knew his mild deception had worked. He hated being dishonest with them, really, but he also hated breaking the law. This much lying was probably healthy, considering what else he was doing. He couldn't tell them he was Kira, after all.

"I'm sure I don't know what you're talking about... Now, if you don't mind, I'll be on my way."

"Have fun, big brother!"

"Sayu!"

*Sparkle Sparkle*

The Kira paintings had sprung from out-of-the way alleyways, and gradually worked their way closer to the places where they were more commonly seen by regular people passing on their way to work, not just yakuza and petty criminals. The closer the graffiti got to the more common areas of Tokyo, the more news coverage it received.

Misa Amane had seen the first news report on the graffiti and immediately fallen in love with the art and its message. She had seen the problems in society too, and that someone had spotted them and had the courage to stand up and call people on them was admirable.

But there was only so much a painting on a wall could do. If she wanted to support Kira, she had to do what he couldn't- and she was in the perfect position to do that. She was already a celebrity, so she would become the public face of Kira.

It wasn't easy, of course. Her manager had hated the idea, but when she had shown him the support Kira was already attracting, he had reluctantly agreed to let her become a leader of the forming Kira Kira movement. The movement had needed a good leader, really, and Misa had stepped in quite naturally.

But it wasn't the Kira supporters that had been the most difficult, and she had known that that would be the case. It was the people who were on the fence and the people who weren't her fans that needed to be convinced. For herself, it was necessary for Misa to transition to a slightly more mature, less naïve look. If she persisted in portraying a cute, innocent little girl, she wouldn't be taken seriously as the leader of a social movement. She kept close enough to her prior style to keep her old fans, but adopted longer hemlines and less flamboyant, girlish dresses. When appearing as a Kira Kira representative, she wore tasteful clothing that didn't distract from her message.

The message, too, had to be altered. While Kira was making social commentary, he was still doing it illegally. Misa herself didn't mind, but she was sure that some people would object to that- if not because they truly thought it was wrong, then because they knew that they were supposed to think that it was wrong. So Misa made sure that people knew that the movement was only inspired by Kira. They wouldn't condone graffiti or other law-breaking behavior, but encouraged people to stand up and work to solve the social problems that plagued society, to be responsible citizens in order to build a better world. After doing all of this, it had been easy to arrange her own television interview with a credible news station as a representative of the Kira Kira movement.

Misa smoothed her white dress as she faced the camera. Three, two one- show time.

"As more and more mysterious graffiti appears, the unknown artist or artists are gaining lots of support. I have with me now Misa Amane, upcoming model and head of the Kira Kira movement. Welcome, Miss Amane."

"It's a pleasure to be here," Misa flashed a practiced, reserved smile.

"Misa Amane, why 'Kira Kira' as the name of your movement?"

Misa laughed in what she knew was a flattering manner. "It's a bit silly, really. You see, the artist doesn't sign his work, so we had to come up with something to call him... or her, I guess," she added thoughtfully. "On the first news broadcast, Ms. Sato asked- in jest, I think- if the artist was trying to make a sparkling new world though graffiti. We took that word- 'kira kira'- and shortened it to 'Kira' for our artist, while we call our movement 'Kira Kira'."

"You say that you thought Sato was saying that 'Kira' is trying to make the world a better place in jest. You really believe that he's attempting to do that through graffiti?" Misa had to respect the woman's acting skills- she sounded neutral, but Misa could read from her facial cues that she agreed with her.

"Yes, I do," Misa nodded, "and I think it's fairly obvious if you pay attention to the words next to his paintings, and not just the paintings themselves."

"'Would you do it, if you knew you were being watched?'" She quoted, and Amane nodded again.

"It's clear that this is a call for people to behave better, and do the right hing... reminding them of their consciences."

"But Kira himself is breaking the law," said the reporter, playing devil's advocate. "That seems a bit hypocritical of him."

"Yes, that's true," Misa allowed, "but what other way could he get our attention? It's a victimless crime, and it's working."

"Working?"

"You didn't know?" Amane smiled innocently, giving no outward signal that she was about to drop a bomb. "In the areas where Kira has painted, petty crime has gone down."

The reporter clearly didn't know, and the expression that flashed briefly on her face told Misa that they'd be having words after the cameras were off. Misa didn't mind. The pay-off was worth it. "It has?" She asked, at a loss and with nothing better to say.

"It has," Amane confirmed. "People behave better when they feel like they're being judged for their actions; there have been fewer shoplifters, pickpockets, and even fewer muggings." Misa paused, then added with a mocking smile, "Who wants to hang around in an alley when there are eyes following your every move?"

"And this is, according to you, what Kira was hoping to accomplish?"

"Yes."

"But no one has had any contact with Kira, so you can't be sure."

Misa didn't let on that this fact bothered her terribly. She had had plenty of people claim to be Kira, but none of them could prove it. The real one had yet to step forward, but maybe he would see this broadcast and know that he was being represented... maybe he'd contact her. "Kira hasn't contacted us, but we are sure that this was his goal."

"And what about your group, Kira Kira? What do you hope to accomplish?"

"Everything that Kira can't without revealing himself," Misa said fervently. "We want people to be more aware, and to regulate their own problem behavior, but that's not enough," Amane paused, for drama, and to make people listen, then charged on, "In order to make this a beautiful world, we also need to fix other problems, like homelessness, and people dropping out of school."

"That sounds admirable," Kouya conceded, then paused as she touched the speaker in her ear. "The police have just issued another statement that they do not condone graffiti."

Of course they did. Amane smiled. "That's good of them. I also don't condone graffiti- but I won't condemn Kira, either. That Kira felt the need to do something illegal in order to call our attention to our society's problems just shows us how bad it's really gotten."

"Thank you for that, Misa Amane. I'm afraid that's all the time we have for..."

*Sparkle Sparkle*

Sugar cube after sugar cube plopped into the tea, but L paid no attention to the over-saturation of his beverage as he re-wound and re-watched the video of the news report. He beckoned Watari over to him impatiently, and the man walked over with an indulgent smile in place.

"Yes, L? What is it?"

"Why," L paused as he shoved a sugar cube directly into his mouth. Watari, to his credit, neither blinked nor winced. "Have I not heard about this?"

Watari turned to the screen, analyzing the frozen image before inhaling in a way that told L he'd recognized the art frozen there and saying, "Ah, yes. Kira."

"So you knew."

L hadn't meant to make it sound nearly as accusatory as it sounded, but Watari smiled. "I did, yes. As for why you hadn't heard of it, it simply didn't come up." He raised his hand to forestall any interruptions L might have made, though L had long since learned to hear him out. "You usually only take cases that you not only find interesting, but which already have several victims. L- and Coil and Daneuve, for that matter- are generally above investigating a graffiti artist in Tokyo."

L's thumb found its way to his mouth. "That's true," he allowed, "but this Kira may be worth investigating for his own merit, not for his inability to restrain himself from scribbling on walls."

"Oh?" Watari said, raising his eyebrows, and curse him- he knew exactly what L was really saying.

"I'm curious about this person. I want to find them, and satisfy my curiosity."

L frowned up at Watari and took a sip of his syrupy concoction in rebellion. "We are going to Japan."

Watari smiled slyly, and bowed in what only L would be able to recognize as his way of teasing. "Of course, L."

*Sparkle Sparkle*

"Light," Sayu sang chirpily, pushing her brother's door open without knocking. Light sighed as he spun in his chair to face his sister, recognizing the tone she used when she wanted something.

"What is it?"

Sayu smiled innocently, not arguing the implied, What do you want? "I want to go to a Kira Kira rally," Sayu began sweetly, tugging on the hem of her shirt in a way she probably thought made her look cute. Light recognized the gesture for what it was, gentle manipulation, but because he was proud that his sister could even come up with such a thing, he never called her on it. "...but Mom doesn't want me to go alone, and my friends think I'm being stupid by going."

Light decided not to take the opporunity to tease her, mostly because it would be too easy. Instead he raised his eyebrows. "You're not going to be doing graffiti, are you?" His tone was partly amused, partly suspicious, and he applauded his own acting skills.

"No, of course not!" Sayu exclaimed, face full of righteous indignation. "That's not what the rallies are about at all!"

"All right, all right, I believe you," Light said, placating. "When is it?"

"Tomorrow morning," she said quickly, excitedly. "Will you go? Pleeeeease?"

Light sighed, pretending to be put-upon. "I guess... you owe me one for this, though, Sayu."

"Oh, Light, thank you!" Sayu danced from foot to foot for a moment in excitement, then bounced out of the room, exclaiming, "I get to see Misa Amane!"

Light stared at the doorway his sister had just gone through. Amane herself would be at the rally? And, Light supposed, so would Kira. It would be a shame, really, if they were so close together and Light didn't even let Amane know. In fact...

He glanced at the clock. Good. He had plenty of time to create a message for Misa Amane.

The next morning, Light's sister bounced down the stairs with a sequined shirt and glitter smeared on her face.

Light raised his eyebrows in disbelief. "What are you wearing?"

Sayu gave him a disdainful look, but her face glittered so much that it wasn't very effective at all. "The goal of Kira Kira is to make a shining new world," she said, in the tone of someone pointing out the obvious. "This is practically the uniform."

Light almost let his horror show on his face, but with strength he didn't know he had, he managed to repress it. Instead he gave Sayu a mocking smile and a shake of the head. "If you say so, Sayu."

I hope she's exaggerating. Please let her be exaggerating.

As it turned out, she wasn't exaggerating. Light had, of course, expected the crowd to be largely female. With a leader like Misa Amane, it wasn't unexpected- but the sheer amount of glittering girls at the rally was overwhelming. There were probably two or three girls for every guy there, and though some of the guys had joined in the absurdity and donned something with sequins, the ones who had not were looking decidedly out of place.

This turned out to be his only criticism of the rally, however. While the fans were exuberant, Misa Amane herself was different from what her modeling career would portray her to be. Light had initially brushed Amane off as a typical air-headed model, just another pretty face in a line of other pretty faces and empty heads. Now, Light recognized the previous, bubbly Misa Misa as one of the woman's many masks. She wasn't as good as Light, of course- some things still slipped through. But she was intelligent, and Light didn't think that the Kira Kira movement could have had a better leader if he had selected one himself.

Well. Aside from the sparkles.

The rally was very well thought out. Amane drew attention away from both herself and Kira, instead focusing on the movement. In essence, Amane wound up the crowd, then directed them to various booths where the supporters could sign up to become involved in homeless shelters, after school programs, and various other social projects. To satisfy her fans, she herself ran one of the sign-up booths, which was clever of her, in Light's opinion. Anyone wanting to meet Amane, or simply get her autograph, would also have to sign up to volunteer unless they wanted to look completely stupid.

Light, of course, was dragged along by Sayu to meet Amane, and he allowed this with minimal complaint, because it was part of his plan in the first place. He and Sayu ended up standing in line for almost an hour before they finally got to meet her. Sayu cheerily signed up to work, then handed Amane a notebook in an equally cheery manner.

"Would you mind?" She asked breathlessly, and Amane gracefully smiled, laughed, and nodded.

"What's your name?" Amane asked charmingly.

"Sayu, Sayu Yagami," Sayu gushed, smiling broadly. "I'm such a huge fan."

Misa smiled modestly. "Thank you. I'm really glad you showed up to support Kira Kira," she added. Light took this to mean, I do hope you're here for the cause, and not just to get my autograph.

Sayu didn't seem to pick up on the double meaning, but responded in an appropriate manner anyway. "Kira is amazing, too!" Sayu said, taking the notebook back and cradling it to her chest. "I'm going to save the page next to yours- maybe, if Kira ever goes public, he'll write his signature next to yours!"

Amane's smile dimmed a watt. "I hope very much that Kira approves of the action we've taken."

"Well," Light said casually, "I somehow doubt that Kira would be keen on the whole glitter thing- it might scare some people off- but you've done a remarkable job in organizing this movement, Miss Amane."

Amane considered Light, then nodded slowly. "You have a point," she allowed, but asked, eyes narrowing slightly, "and who are you?"

Referring to the fact that I haven't written my name on any of the sign-up sheets. Sorry, Amane, but that's not what I'm here for. "Just Sayu's brother- I'm here strictly in a guardian capacity," Light feigned embarrassment. "...or, mostly, anyway. A friend of mine wanted me to give you this." He fished a plain envelope out of his pocket and handed it to Amane, who took it with practiced grace that Light thought probably concealed a bit of tenseness at receiving such a mysterious object.

"Your friend didn't want to come?" She asked, peering into the envelope and drawing out the single sheet of thick paper inside, looking relieved.

"Oh, he didn't think he could show his face here," Light said easily, watching Amane carefully as she opened the paper.

Misa froze as she stared down at the letter, eyes immediately drawn to the gorgeous red rose painted near the bottom, so real that she could almost pick it up. She didn't breathe, but managed to control any other reaction as she read the message above the rose in beautiful calligraphy.

"Misa Amane: I thank you for organizing the Kira Kira movement. You have correctly deduced my goals and motivations, and your dedication to bettering this world is admirable. Please continue your good work knowing that you have my full support."

After a moment, she managed to collect herself and looked up casually. "What's your friend's name? There's no return address."

"Oh, I think he's too frightened to reveal any of that... he told me not to say," Sayu Yagami's brother said, equally as casual. I don't trust you with that information, Misa intrepreted.

Misa frowned thoughtfully. It wasn't obvious, it was just something in the way he was talking, as if this were some big joke to-

Oh.

Misa looked more closely at the boy in front of her- he couldn't have been more than a few years younger than her, really, and he was quite attractive. His clothes were neatly pressed, his grooming impeccable, his eyes intelligent. No wonder he didn't want anyone to find out that he was Kira.

"Well, then," Misa said, leaning across the table flirtatiously and performing for the sake of his sister, who obviously had no idea about her brother's second life, "what's your name? Maybe I could trouble you to pass messages for us? I think I'd like to meet with him- he really is very sweet."

The boy's lips quirked into a small smile, and it wasn't the one most boys got when she flattered them. His was a smile of approval. Apparently, Misa had exceeded his expectations. She felt a bubbly warmth in her gut at the sight of it. God, he really was attractive. "I don't mind. My name is Light Yagami."

Misa nodded, the name fit. A wicked idea formed in her head, and she smiled as she slid the painting over to him, face-down. "Why don't you write your name and information down, so I can contact you?"

From the amused look on his face, Misa figured that he knew that she was just getting him to sign his work. She couldn't bring herself to care. This was Kira, after all.

It was over all too quickly for Misa's liking, and she was left alone to cherish the only piece of art Kira would ever sign.