AN: This chapter contains scenes, dialogue, and thought sequences taken directly from the Death Note manga. I doubt that anyone will notice unless you've read the scenes enough times to have the memorized. However, I also added in scenes, dialogue, and thought sequences that are of my own design, as well. And of course the description/narration is all my own.

There's also several scenes told both from Mello's point of view and from Near's, but hopefully they're different enough that you don't get bored.

Dialogue between slashes, /like this,/ indicates that Light is speaking through the L voice-scrambler.


L's successors


At one point it had finally occurred to Near, as he'd contemplated L's legacy one night after L's death as he'd sat awake in the dark with a computer screen burning open his eyes, that L hadn't yet lost.

Near was L's successor; Near was carrying on L's legacy.

So as long as Near was alive and investigating Kira—as long as Near solved the case and caught Kira—L hadn't yet lost.

L was still the best; it was up to Near to uphold that.

He was not going to let Kira win.


After the initial shock of the Shinigami Sidoh showing up (the notebook had flown by itself, and apparently Death Gods were real), Mello thought: I've won, Near.

Near and the rest of the SPK (what Mello had left of it) didn't know about the existence of Shinigami or that the killer notebook was a Shinigami's Death Note. And without a Shinigami to tell them, even if they'd worked together with the Japanese Task Force and had been given information about the rules written in the notebook, Near would never know—or guess—that two of the rules were fake. ("Where are you going, Mello?" "Out." "But that's breaking the rules." One of Near's flaws always had been that he thought of rules as being absolute.)

And if the Death Note had passed through Kira's hands, and if Kira had known those two rules were fake, he could have easily used them to his advantage.

If that's the case, then Kira is probably someone the original L detained for over 13 days. It's highly likely that L would have been able to catch Kira, after all, but if Kira used the fake 13 Day Rule to prove his innocence…

This would explain how L had been killed, too (a question that had long bothered him). Because if L didn't have a Shinigami to tell him that the 13 Day Rule was fake, then there was no way he could have known, and if there was no real evidence against Kira—if there had been, L would have won—then he would have been forced to let his suspect go.

And then he would have been killed, after Kira had waited a long enough period that L's death and his release wouldn't coincide too suspiciously, and because of the rule the rest of the Task Force would believe the suspect had to be innocent.

And if that's the case, then Kira is whoever L suspected and detained, which means that if I find that out…

Near, I'll definitely catch Kira before you!

And then, if Mello hadn't felt ecstatic enough about that, almost as soon as he sent Sidoh outside to guard their hideout (apparently even Shinigami could be bribed and intimidated), a special task force was sent in to kill them—most probably an attempt by the President of the United States to recover the notebook so he couldn't be forced to send out a nuclear strike and then die afterwards, especially judging by the fact that the President didn't pick up the phone afterwards, having most likely committed suicide—and, with Sidoh pulling off their helmets and making sure their faces were shown to the cameras so Snydar could read their names, the task force that might otherwise have caused him a great deal of trouble had been laughably easy to kill.

They had to change hideouts after that, but they'd been about to switch hideouts anyway, and it was a small price to pay for the rush of power it gave him (With the Death Note in my hands and that Shinigami keeping watch, there's no way I can be beaten—ha ha!).

The only potential problem was that there was no way the President could found their hideout himself, especially when the SPK hadn't—the President had been sending them the satellite images the SPK had been looking at, just as Mello had asked, and they'd been monitoring the wrong hideouts—it meant that the President had gotten assistance from someone else.

The Japanese Task Force and the new L? Not likely—they were all idiots.

It had probably been Kira; Kira had probably used the President to try to get the notebook back (maybe he was afraid they'd find out about the fake 13 Day Rule? a possibility). After all, who else could have threatened the President enough to override Mello's threats?

Which would mean that somehow Kira had found their hideout, and there was a possibility he'd do so again. How had he done it? The Death Note could control people's actions to a certain extent—Mello still needed to test what that extent was—so maybe he'd somehow used that to…?

Mello would just have to make sure he was prepared for another attempt to retrieve the notebook, if it came to that.

They still had the Shinigami Sidoh keeping watch, so there was no way they could be taken by surprise, but it wouldn't hurt to come up with a plan to make their escape easier so they wouldn't be caught while leaving the hideout, if in the next attempt a task force was set up around the perimeter to catch them when an attack forced them out.

Maybe if we set up explosives around the hideout, so that we can blow it up and then escape in the resulting chaos…


Light's plan had failed. It should have been perfect, but it had failed.

No; it had been perfect. Except that—

Damn it! There was no way I could have known that there'd be a Shinigami there! Damn it, Ryuk, you didn't tell me that you got the Death Note from another Shinigami—!

But that was okay; Light still had tricks up his sleeve.

I found a way to kill L, Mello—I can sure as hell find a way to kill someone as inferior to him as you.


Mello didn't have any choice but to press the detonator button and blow up the building.

Their hideout had been discovered again, as he'd suspected it would, and Kira was definitely involved, as he'd suspected he was, but he hadn't been ready for them yet.

That, and the Shinigami Sidoh had either fallen asleep or betrayed them.

It had been hilarious, though, that it had come down to him bartering for the notebook with Yagami again. And he'd thought it would be easy; Yagami was a straightlaced guy, easy to manipulate.

But he'd never suspected that Yagami would have joined Kira, and taken the Eye Deal.

(Mello had dealt with Yagami completely fairly, and he hadn't killed him or his daughter, so there was no reason for Yagami to resent him and want revenge, and Yagami had supposedly been trying to take down Kira for years, and had supposedly worked with L, whom Kira had killed—had L's death meant nothing to Yagami? did the fact that Kira was taking over the world mean nothing to him, either?—so why had Yagami taken Kira's side?)

And apparently, this time around, Yagami was prepared to die, and he didn't care enough about his men for the possibility of their deaths to sway him.

Mello honestly hadn't been planning on killing the guy, but Yagami should never have joined Kira—and he hadn't left Mello any choice. At least the guy was a wimp when it came to killing; if he'd written Mello's name down immediately, Mello would be dead.

Obviously, though, Yagami was an idiot. Which was why he was lying on the floor riddled with bullet holes.

Jose had been clever, playing dead like that. Except now Jose was dead, too, and the rest of the Japanese Task Force—the fucktards (thanks for all the creative but childish swear words, Matt)—were apparently going to shoot him if he didn't let them capture him; but they weren't shooting him yet.

He had no choice but to press the detonator button and blow up the building. He'd been really hoping it wouldn't have come to that, but…

My plan had been perfect… but now… Near will…

He'd had the explosives set up so that anyone in the monitor room would be safe; but the door was open. The Japanese Task Force was standing right in the doorway, so they'd get the worst of it, but Mello would probably get caught in the blast as well.

It was probably going to hurt like a bitch, but he'd have to be quick—he couldn't let the noise or the pain slow him.

He was pretty far back in the room and the desk by the monitors was not six feet from him; if he pressed the button and then bolted, he could probably get beneath the desk quick enough to avoid most of it. And if he bolted again as soon as the explosion finished, the Japanese Task Force would probably still be down, and he should be able to get away.

Damn it… I've got no choice… it's all or nothing.

He pressed the detonator button and bolted as explosions rang in his ears and heat seared his skin.


Light stared at the static-ridden monitors with wide eyes.

He… he couldn't have…! Did he really blow up the place?! He's unbelievable. What was he thinking?!

Mello was even more dangerous and unpredictable than Light had realized.

(He hadn't been so dumbstruck since the strange student who'd given the To-oh University Freshman address with him had told him "I'm L.")


When Near first heard about the Japanese Task Force storming the mafia hideout, he felt his insides freeze.

How did they find where the mafia was hiding? They shouldn't have had the resources to…

There was something incredibly odd about the entire thing. I've had my suspicions, but… well, once the new L starts picking up calls again, I'll be able to get my answers.

Is it strange that he's taking so long to reestablish contact?

No, his whole team was probably injured, if not killed, so I suppose it makes sense that he's not available yet.

Near stared at the monitor, the dilapidated building not much more than a pile of rubble after the explosion that had devastated it, and curled his hair around his fingers.

Mello, you better have survived that.


Near had been calling L up for a full week, asking questions about their attack on Mello's hideout, and they were often the same questions, as if he though Light would slip up and he'd get out a different answer if he just asked enough.

There's a possibility he's starting to suspect me… L.

And then there was the fact that they couldn't find Mello. Light had thought he'd be injured after the explosion, but there was no record of anybody who could be Mello at any licensed or unlicensed doctor in the world.

Not that it really mattered; even if Near thought the new L was Kira, he didn't know who the new L was—and there was no proof, anyway.

Mello, though, was operating under the information that Matsuda was L, and if Mello had figured out about the fake rules in the Death Note…

Well, without the Death Note, nobody would believe Mello, except maybe for…

They grew up together, so even if they were competing for the position of L, Near might believe Mello.

Light needed to find Mello before the SPK did.

Still, though, Light was almost there—he almost had his perfect world.

The President of the United States has announced the country's acceptance of Kira. Now all the other countries will start to… no. This is only the beginning. There's going to be some chaos for a while. It wasn't my intention, but my attempt to capture Mello actually pushed the United States into giving in to Kira… it's so close now… my new world!

Once the whole world accepts Kira and 80 percent—no, 70 percent—of the people support him… then Near, Mello, and even L won't be able to lead normal lives once they're exposed to the world as infidels. L's successors and the Japanese Task Force will be powerless to do anything against me, at that point.

The world is coming to my side—Kira will soon be justice!

(I told you I would win, L.)


There was so much information and variables of the Kira Case to keep track of, and they had a tendency to get mixed up in Near's head, so he liked to use physical objects to help him organize his thoughts of what was going on.

So at the moment was sitting in the middle of his Lego fortress that represented the case, a spaceship in his left hand which represented Kira's plan, and he was therefore moving up a ramp with increasing speed, and a robot in his right hand which represented the fake L's story about what happened with the attack on Mello's hideout, and was therefore floating in the air without anything to ground it.

"Near, I think it's about time you told us your thoughts on this case."It was a steady baritone with an edge like a desert wind, the periodic pauses of an orator, the resonance and latent power of a commander—a voice made for giving orders, and difficult ones: Rester.

"The new L is too foolish and Kira is too active," Near said, moving the spaceship faster up the ramp so that it launched off into the air; Kira is setting his plans into motion too quickly, and they're becoming obvious.

The fake L's idiocy was a fairly believable act in the beginning, but he's pushing it to absurd levels. "This L knew that every mafia member in the United States was going to die on November tenth because Kira contacted the Japanese Task Force and told them so… what a joke… He doesn't want to tell us why they believed the information Kira gave them, but everybody at the headquarters was convinced by it…"

The spaceship shook in its trajectory arc, as if it were hitting meteoroids due to being too careless and not properly mapping out its flight path. "Kira knew that the Japanese investigation team had the notebook, but from the death of certain gangsters, Kira figured out that the notebook had fallen into evil hands. And in order to get the notebook back, Kira offered to lend them a hand… and they succeeded in getting the notebook back."

He swooped the spaceship around in front of him, landing it on the ground, roughly so that its wheels rattled audibly. The execution of a rushed, thoughtless plan results in a messy fallout.

"It seems like a pretty consistent story to me."That was Lidner: a feminine voice, but smooth and low, an intonation like stroking down the fur of a cat's back.

"No, it's not." Near crashed the robot that represented the new L's story through the Lego wall that had come to represent the new L's defense against suspicion. "If Kira was able to directly contact the Japanese Task Force, then why is Kira allowing them to keep the notebook?"

Near stared through the gaping hole in the wall. "Kira teamed up to get the notebook back—that I can understand. But if Kira wanted to get the notebook back, Kira should have regained possession of it. Kira was able to directly contact the headquarters, so it would have been easy to threaten them. Furthermore, there are many rules to using the notebook. It's highly unlikely that Kira would let anybody else have the notebook, since it would provide them with information about the murder weapon."

A Lego piece that had been balance precariously on the broken part of the wall finally lost its balance and fell off the side, clattering on the floor.

"Maybe Kira didn't know the Task Force got the notebook when they took it from Higuchi," Near continued. "But if he knew of its existence before the gangsters got ahold of it, why didn't he say anything? And if Kira found out about it only after the gangsters took it, why is Kira allowing them to keep it now? If anybody other than Kira has the notebook and its existence becomes public, there will be people who will try to get it for themselves. The government and the police could keep the notebook a secret, fearing a panic by the public, but…"

Near reached for the grim reaper that represented Kira and the astronaut labeled 'Police' that represented the new L. "There are millions of rumors about Kira's methods, and nobody is going to believe in the notebook unless its powers are demonstrated to them. What Kira should fear the most is the possibility that they might go to that extreme."

"You're right." That was Commander Rester. "Why does the Japanese Task Force still have it…?"

"I've had my suspicions, but judging from the unbelievably convenient deal between Kira and the Japanese Task Force on this case… at the very least…" Near placed the grim reaper and the police astronaut side-by-side on top of the Lego wall. "Kira and the Japanese Task Force are connected."

"Connected…?" That was Lidner.

Near reached for the police astronaut to demonstrate his point. "No… if Kira is actually within the Task Force, then…" He pulled off the opaque helmet, revealing the grim reaper skull he'd stuck there earlier as a concrete representation of what he believed to going on: "The new L is Kira."

"Th-that can't be…" That was Commander Rester. "Are you serious, Near?"

"Yes. But about…" Near lay down on his stomach and narrowed his eyes at the back of the police reaper's skull, deciding: "seven percent serious." Since I don't have any proof yet.

"Seven percent?!" Commander Rester again. "So the possibility is very low…"

"But it does make sense." It's the only possibility that makes sense; it explains everything. Near reached out to move the skull around, examining the connection of the spine, the plastic squeaking in protest. "So the problem is… how to fill in the remaining 93 percent. All we did was keep a close eye on them, and Kira began to move around, and the new L began to give himself away. Luckily, Mello escaped, so the remaining 93 percent might not be as hard as it seems to fill in."

Mello, since you had the killer notebook you must have discovered something about it that made Kira nervous about being found out, and thus desperate to get rid of you. He obviously underestimated you, though; you'll do whatever you have to in order to win, which makes you dangerous.

But as extreme as your actions are, your resolve is admirable, and you seem to have a better grasp of how Kira's mind works than I do…

Near had paused too long, and Commander Rester took that audible breath he always took before he was about to say something, so Near continued: "I've had an uncomfortable feeling about the new L from the start." He popped the grim reaper skull off of the neck of the astronaut. "Didn't you think it was strange that he was so reluctant about cooperating with us in the investigation?" He put the original astronaut head back on, to try to demonstrate his point: "That's because he doesn't want us to investigate them."

"But they wouldn't just trust us from the start, so I can understand them not telling us everything…" That was Lidner.

"Near…" Commander Rester. "Isn't that too much of an assumption?"

"…" Near paused, trying to figure out a more polite way to say the equivalent of Aren't you an FBI agent? Shouldn't you know how investigations work? "Commander Rester, investigations…" he paused again, finally deciding to go with: "are based upon assumptions." He glanced back at the commander. "If you're wrong, you just have to say 'sorry.'"

That's how L did it. Though he never had to say 'sorry,' since he was never wrong. And we shouldn't have to, either, since I don't believe I'm wrong about this.

But if I am, 'sorry' will fix it.

("Nate, that was rude! You can't just say that kind of thing to people! Go say you're sorry this instant.")

("Where are you going, Mello?" "Out." "But that's breaking the rules." "Maybe. But it's easier to ask for forgiveness than it is to get permission. So don't you dare get in my way, Near.")

Commander Rester opened his mouth slightly, taking that breath like he wanted to protest again.

Near preemptively cut him off with: "Well then, please assume that this is correct and start investigating everything you can about the Japanese Task Force."

He turned away, looking down at the skull in his hands, fiddling with the toy head. Please just trust me on this.

"Very well, Near," Commander Rester said after a few moments. "I'll see what I can find."

Near set the skull down, and didn't forget to politely say "Thank you."


After scrambling out of the devastated building, Mello had managed to—somehow—make his way a run-down inn in a shady town a couple miles away.

The mafia had chosen a base in that location for a reason; people in the area didn't ask questions and didn't snitch to the police, and they'd already established a connection with this particular inn.

That connection, plus a wad of (singed and smoke-scented) money and the threat of a gun (it was too damaged to fire, but the inn-keeper didn't need to know that) got him a room with a shower, a change of clothes, and rudimentary medical supplies.

He didn't need to check his symptoms on the internet to know the burns were bad, but he also knew that he couldn't risk seeing a doctor, lest he be found. So he had to treat his injuries himself.

A cool shower, mild soap, pain meds, antibiotic cream, and loose dressings would have to do. He spent the rest of the day drinking water and wrapped in a blanket, trying to prevent an onset of shock or hypothermia.

It turned out that third-degree burns didn't really hurt, due to nerve damage; it was the areas of second- and first-degree burns that hurt like a bitch. The blistering of the second-degree burns was especially painful.

Luckily the worst of the burns only stretched from his navel to just between his nose and left eye—his eye itself was fine, fortunately.

Still, though, it hurt—both physically and mentally. He'd thought—he'd been sure—that he could never hate anybody more than he hated Near, but now Kira—

Kira had ruined everything.

(All that effort he'd spent keeping his arms free of scars, and then the Japanese Task Force and Kira forced him to explode the building, and now he was going to have scars on his chest, his neck, his face, rendering all that effort utterly meaningless—)

(And not just the scars, either, but everything-everything he'd worked for. Five years—five years of working his way to the top of the mafia, of creating his empire, and it had been dissembled in minutes, blown away in seconds, and he was—)

He hated Kira, he hated him, and he was teetering on that dark edge of insanity, but he couldn't let himself fall.

(He needed help, but he had nowhere to go, nobody to rely on—)

No; he was still going to win this. He may not have the mafia anymore, but that wasn't going to stop him. He'd find a way. He always did.

It wasn't just about beating Near anymore—Kira needed to die for everything he'd done.

For killing L, for destroying what Mello had created, for pushing him farther towards the edge…

Kira needs to die.

And as Mello huddled there in the room, trying to keep himself warm—trying to keep himself calm—he told himself it was okay that the mafia was gone—he'd never needed anybody else, and he'd been planning on killing off the members once he'd won and they'd outlived their uses, anyway.

Yes, he was alone; but he'd always been alone, and he always would be.

He was going to be Number One, after all, and he'd never suffered any illusions that it wasn't a lonely place up at the top.

(Nor had he ever wished for anything different.)


Hearing the President announce that the United States would take no action against Kira made the rage surge in Near's gut, his heart pounding with the intensity of the feeling.

Ridiculous! Accepting Kira is out of the question. Kira cannot be justice.

He reached up to curl a lock of hair around his fingers, focusing on the sensation as he pushed the emotion back down so he could think.

I won't be like Mello and let my emotions dictate my actions.

"What's going to happen to us now…?" Lidner asked.

Twirl, twirl. "We're going to be dissolved." Obviously. Twirl, twirl. "Thanks to that chicken-hearted president… no. He's not a chicken. He's not even a maggot." Twirl, twirl. (Thank you for the creative but childish insults, Matt.)

But he couldn't think of any other way to express his feelings, and he was angry, and he couldn't think, and he needed to—he needed to calm down and think—he needed to—

He grabbed an unopened box from his toy selection, sat down the on the floor, and started building an elevated railroad for an electric model of a locomotive.


Mello had left the inn as soon as he was able to.

He'd spent a day there, recuperating—he'd had to make sure that his vitals would stay stable and there wouldn't be any severe immediate health complications due to the burns he'd received—but left as early as he could the next day.

He hadn't wanted to push his body too hard, but he also didn't want to be found, and while the Japanese Task Force would likely check the nearby hospitals and doctors first, if they didn't find him there they'd probably move to checking other establishments.

He'd borrowed (bought) a long coat with a fur-lined hood from the inn-keeper, in order to hide his face, but he wasn't comfortable in the other spare clothes he'd borrowed, so his first task was to acquire another pair of his black leathers (he'd had enough foresight to stash spare clothes, money, and weapons at a few different locations).

And after he'd done that, he contacted Hal Lidner (real name Halle Bullook).

He'd spared her, along with Stephen Gevanni (real name Stephen Loud), when he was killing most of the members of Near's SPK team in case he needed to get information from them in the future; he'd chosen the two of them because, after receiving the information on all the agents, he'd concluded that they would be the easiest to get information from.

If he wasn't injured, he could probably handle Gevanni—but since he was injured it was all the more reason to go to Lidner; she was a woman, so it would be easier to overpower her if it became necessary, and women also tended to be more sympathetic, so if she saw that he was injured it might actually work to his advantage to get her on his side (as opposed to Gevanni, who would probably see it as a weakness and try to use it as an opportunity to overpower him).

So Lidner it was.


Near sat in the center of the oblong railroad he'd built, watching the electric locomotive circle around him in an endless loop, letting his mind relax, parsing through information and deciding on his next move.

The train made a shaa sound as it chugged around him along the track.

"Near, are you serious about dissolving the SPK?" It was what Near had come to identify as Commander Rester's 'Are you joking?' tone of voice.

"Yes," Near stated. "This country's justice system has completely collapsed." I won't work for a government that accepts Kira. It's wrong.

Commander Rester took that inhale that indicated he was about protest something, so apparently he wasn't satisfied with that answer.

"And I'm not joking when I say that dissolving this organization may actually prove to be fruitful," Near elucidated. "Of course, I will continue to try and find out who L/Kira is with the information from five years ago, when the FBI tried to investigate the Japanese Task Force…" he was trying for reassuring, but was also obliged to tell the truth: "but it will difficult since we can't expect any help from Japan, or the American police."

Shaa, went the model train, chugging along the track. The even looping of the train around him was predictable and calming.

Shaa. It was an even, soothing sound.

"Including me, there are four of us left," Near continued. "The spy leaked the names and faces of the others. Well, it could have been just the faces. Either way, they were all killed by the notebook. That is irrefutable."

"That's nothing new…" Commander Rester was stating the obvious.

I was setting up the premise for my question: "I want all of you to put yourselves in Mello's position… the spy has given you the names and faces of the SPK members…"

Shaa, hummed the train, chugging around him.

Near asked: "Would you kill all of them? Would you kill all of them, knowing that there will be some members of the SPK who won't die?"

(He'd found that people tended to find his arguments more convincing if he lead them to make the same conclusions by themselves. Sometimes it took them a while, though. He wasn't quite sure why people tended to overlook the obvious logical lines of thought unless he pointed them out, but he'd grown used to it.)

He leaned closer to the model railroad as he waited, close enough to hear the even klak klak klak of the plastic wheels against the plastic track.

"No, one or two… I'd at least keep one of them alive," Commander Rester said finally.

Exactly. "That's what I think as well."

"So we're going to purposefully disband and wait for Mello to contact one of us?" Commander Rester made the connection.

"It's not a bad idea. The chances are pretty high… and it will be easy to get the Vice President to announce that the SPK is disbanding."

(He'd found that it was sometimes better to be self-effacing about his ideas; sometimes, if he acted too certain or confident, it seemed to upset people.)

Shaa, went the locomotive, tugging its two empty passenger cars around the track.

Near continued: "Mello is all alone right now. He probably has no one to rely on. But I can't believe that he's abandoned his desire to be Number One." Nothing's ever swayed him from his goal before; so this definitely won't, either. "Since he wants to get Kira before I do, he'll definitely want the information we have."

(He'd learned that it wasn't all that hard to figure out what Mello would do next in any given situation; Mello always took the shortest and most direct path to his goal, and his goal—to become Number One—never wavered, so his actions were usually pretty easy to predict.)

"But judging from the way Mello's been acting, won't it be dangerous to come in contact with him?"

Commander Rester pointed out.

Shaa, went the locomotive, chugging evenly around the track.

"Very dangerous," Near agreed, "so when the times comes I want you all to do as he says."

"Do as he says…?" Commander Rester didn't sound all that pleased about the idea.

Mello will do whatever's necessary to achieve his goal, regardless of the consequences; if you don't do what he says, he'll find a way to force you do it—no matter what it takes. He balks at nothing. "Give him all the information we have. Especially the fact that the new L might be Kira, and that I have Mello's photograph. The next move is up to him…"

Shaa, went the locomotive, chugging around the track.

I wish we could work together on this case, Mello. It's unfortunate that your pride, and/or your hatred of me, won't allow you to be willing to work with me.

Still, though, I have your photo; if you don't want to be killed—and you should be especially afraid of that after what happened—then you're going to have to come into contact with me.

I'm sorry for holding that over you, but you've left me with no other option to get into contact with you. Using bribes and threats isn't my style, but it seems to be yours, so it was the only thing I could think of that you would respond to…

For what it's worth, though, I really am glad that you survived. Not that you'd believe me if I told you that…

Shaa, went the locomotive, and Near's eyes followed it around the track.

He continued: "Those willing to take part in this plan are going to wear a wire and come to the headquarters every day from their former residences. Actually… I'd want you to put cameras in your rooms, too." It's unlikely that he'll actually try to get in contact with me personally, so if he makes contact with one of you then I need to see and hear the transactions so I can respond in a way that will satisfy what we both want.

"B-but even if we give all the information to Mello, won't he try to kill us so we won't tell you about him?" It wasn't like Commander Rester to stutter. Was he afraid of Mello?

Shaa, went the locomotive, humming along the track.

"That may very well happen," Near agreed. Mello can be quite ruthless. "But I have faith in your excellent skills." And Mello won't kill you unless its advantageous to him to do so—and if he wants the photo he left at Wammy's House then it wouldn't be advantageous for him to kill you.

But what Near said was: "If you're scared, you don't have to participate."

(He'd found that people's pride tended to win out over their fear, if you phrased the situation in such a way that they couldn't opt out of it without essentially admitting to being a coward.)

Shaa, went the locomotive, looping around him.

"But please don't leave the headquarters," he added. "I'm scared, so I'm not going to go outside." Please stay with me…

(He'd never had any such qualms about maintaining an image of pride; pride was illogical and led to irrational decisions based primarily on emotion. Essentially, it was a pointless sentiment. All that mattered was being right and staying alive. And he wouldn't be able to think clearly if he was afraid, so he had to stay where he felt safe, because he had to be able to think clearly if he was going to solve the case.)

Shaa, whooshed the locomotive, curving around a bend.

Near said: "What do you think? Especially you, Hal Lidner."

"Me?"

Lidner sounded liked she didn't get it, so Near explained: "Let me say this plainly: other than Rester and me, Mello should have known everybody's information. But Mello decided not to kill you. And if I were him, I would choose to get the information from you, a woman. Because if I had to meet you face-to-face, there is a better chance of escaping or overcoming you because of our physical differences… and the fact that it would be unlikely, even for the SPK, to invade a woman's privacy using wires and cameras." That's how Mello is likely to think.

"S-so you're certain that Mello will contact us?" Lidner sounded—what was that in her voice? Near couldn't tell, so he gave up. He usually got those kinds of things wrong, anyway.

So he simply answered the question the only way he knew how: "No… the chances are 60-40. And if the contact takes place… 70 percent for Lidner. 25 percent for Gevanni. And 5 percent for Commander Rester."

Shaa, went the locomotive, chugging along behind him.

"I don't mind doing it."That was Gevanni, his voice rich but shadowy and soft-edged, with a rising and falling cadence that always ended in a low tone—the voice of someone used to cloak-and-dagger operations, to speaking clearly without letting his voice carry.

"Okay, I'll do it too." Lidner's cat-fur voice. "But with the 'L is Kira' theory going around since Kira first appeared, will Mello believe this?" She sounded dubious.

"Why won't he?" Near reached out and lowered a railroad crossing gate attached to the track. "Anybody who knows that the true L is dead will believe it."

Klak, went the locomotive, hitting the gate and coming to a stop, wheels moving and motor humming even as it went nowhere, rattling in place.

Near reached out and picked up the train, turning it off. "And Commander Rester, we're now an informal organization. I don't mind if it is from the general public, but I want you to gather powerful people who are completely against Kira."

He set the train down and stood up, though he didn't look at them—he wouldn't be able to think if he met their eyes. "You can use as much money as you need from the funds I inherited from L."

"But if they're from the public, it's going to be hard for me to determine if they're trustworthy." Commander Rester's voice. "I'll need to investigate them."

"We won't need to trust each other," Near said, looking up through his bangs. The strands were illuminated from the artificial lights above him, appearing gray where they clustered together more thickly and bright white at the edges. "From now on, we're gong to have no choice but to become an underground organization that strives to get rid of Kira. We just need people who are willing to join such an organization, and follow the orders of a boss whose face and voice they don't know." Just like with L. "The more people we have, the better it will be."

We have to change tactics now that we don't have the backing of the U.S. government. And if Kira really is nervous about the information Mello knows and does what I think he's going to do, then…

Near watched his bangs shake slightly as he took a breath. "That is the kind of battle we're going to be fighting from now on," he said, and then offered quietly, because it was only fair to give them the option: "Now's the time to leave, if you want."

He was too scared to turn to look at them, lest he see indecision on their faces.

Please don't leave me alone; I'm not like Mello—I can't do this on my own…


Hal held a finger in front of her lips, and Mello paused with a chocolate bar held inches from his mouth and a gun held inches from her head.

Huh?

Hal stepped further into her apartment, saying, "Near, I want to take a shower, so I'm taking the wire off for a while."

Mello moved his gun away, pointing it at the ceiling, his eyes still watching her mistrustfully as she took the wire off her collar and turning it off. So that's what it is.

Hal headed for the bathroom, calling over her shoulder, "Care to join me?"

Mello lowered his gun to his side and followed her, leaning back against the bathroom wall and taking a bite of chocolate as she undressed unself-consciously in front of him and then stepped into the shower, drawing the curtain and turning on the water.

"Alright, spill," Mello ordered, snapping off another chunk of chocolate. What the hell's going on?

"Near came to the conclusion that you would try to contact me, but I don't think he knew that we had already met," Hal said amusedly.

Mello grunted. "It's so like Near to think that way…" He always comes to the rational conclusions while missing everything else. It's like he can't imagine anybody taking any action before he thinks of it himself, the arrogant bastard.

"And you no longer have the notebook, so all you can threaten me with is the gun, right?" Hal continued, still amused. "You can't control me, and if you use the gun to kill me, it's only going to make it easier to track you down." She paused, and when he didn't answer, she continued: "I'm going to have to place cameras in all my rooms after this. Excluding the bathroom…"

Mello bit off another hunk of chocolate, eying her silhouette through the shower curtain, watching to make sure she didn't try anything funny. He didn't like her tone.

"So what are you going to do?" she asked, her voice going sultry. "Live in the bathroom? It's okay with me. I don't mind having you around."

Mello bit off another chunk of chocolate, loudly, and didn't deign her with an answer.

He was getting sick and tired of her seduction attempts.

(Dealing with a woman trying to seduce him and use it to bring him in was admittedly easier than dealing with a guy trying to arrest him by force and bring him in that way, but it was still annoying as hell. She'd been doing it for the entire week.)

When it was clear he wasn't falling for the bait, Lidner switched to a normal voice and changed tactics: "Near also thinks that the new L is Kira."

Mello's eyes widened. "L…!" He grit his teeth. L is Touta Matsuda… but I thought he was completely useless, and the Japanese police are only using him as a mouthpiece. But if Near thinks the new L is Kira, then it's probably true…

Damn it… what's going on? The new L is Kira… I guess it's possible…?

Hal turned off the water and slid the shower curtain to the side, meeting his gaze and asking in a normal tone of voice: "So what are you going to do?"

He narrowed his eyes at her (the skin around his left eye was tight due to the burn and tugged uncomfortably). "Hal, whose side are you on?" he demanded. "Mine or Near's?"

Hal walked past him to take a towel from the rail next to the sink, starting to carefully dry her dripping hair, sighing. "I already told you a week ago, didn't I? I'm on nobody's side. You, Near, and I all want to capture Kira. We're all after the same goal."

Mello bristled, glaring at her. That's not how it works! You don't understand, Near and I—we've always been competing. It's more than about capturing Kira—it's about who captures Kira first. Don't you get it?! There is no 'nobody's side'! Either you're helping him, or you're helping me.

Hal looked at him out of the corner of her eyes, her voice going sultry again, the towel barely wrapped around her naked form. "So what are you going to do? Are you going to run away?" Her eyelids lowered seductively. "If you do, I'm going to tell Near that you were hiding in my bathroom, and I met you."

He glared at her. Don't you ever learn?

"Or do you want to meet me later somewhere else?" she asked, still watching him, her tone normalizing slightly when she realized that, no, her seduction attempts weren't working and she should really stop and try another strategy.

Clearly you're on Near's side. "Hal, go back to headquarters," he said flatly.

She looked at him in confusion, her tone normalizing the rest of the way. "What? I've got no reason to go back there right now."

Mello pointed his gun at her head. "Make one up. Go back."

To her credit, she was good at keeping her cool. "Okay, okay," she said. "Stop pointing that thing at me."

"I wouldn't have to if you just did what I said, but clearly you won't do anything without being threatened, so the gun is nonnegotiable," Mello bit out, lowering the gun just slightly so that it was aimed at her chest instead of her head. "Now get dressed. We're going to your headquarters."

You're clearly not on my side, Hal, so I have no choice but to use you as a hostage to get my photograph back.

Goddamn that fucking Near.


Near was manipulating a robot and a small toy gun as he considered what Mello's next action might be, when Commander Rester said "Near" in an urgent tone of voice, and Near turned his head to see Mello on the monitors showing the entrance to headquarters, a gun held to Lidner's head.

Near's eyes widened. Mello… I didn't think you'd come the way here…

"Wh-what's going on?" Commander Rester seemed to have slightly lost his composure. "You were right about him making contact, but…"

It's been over five years since I saw you last, Mello… that scar on your face—that must have been from the explosion you set off… "Please let him in."

"But—!" Gevanni started.

"Please," Near repeated, cutting him off. "If we don't, he won't hesitate to shoot Lidner. And besides, he took the trouble to come all the way here—it would be rude not to see him."

"R-right…" Commander Rester went to remotely open the door so Mello could enter.

I'm not prepared for this…

Near pulled a knee to his chest and braced himself for Mello's hatred.


When the door opened Mello walked into the SPK headquarters with his gun still pressed to the back of Hal's head.

Near was sitting on the ground, facing away from him and surrounded by building blocks and toy robots, dressed in rumpled white nightclothes, his platinum hair a mess.

"Welcome, Mello," Near said, not turning to look at him, his voice just as emotionless as Mello remembered, his words just as staccato. Any moment now he'd probably start twirling his fucking hair around his fingers.

Near—in all of five years you haven't changed a bit.

"Drop your gun!" Anthony Rester (real name unknown) ordered, and Mello's gaze moved from Near's figure to eye the man. Both he and Stephen were pointing their handguns at him, their stances braced for action. Which was only to be expected.

Mello pressed the muzzle of his own gun harder against Hal's head.

"That goes for everybody," spoke Near evenly, and Mello's eyes flicked back to his white-clad figure. Near still wouldn't look at him. "Put your guns down. It's meaningless for us to shed any blood here."

Mello narrowed his eyes at the back of Near's head. You really think that'll convince them? Not everyone is as emotionless as you are, Near; you still don't know anything about how the world really works.

"B-but, Mello killed the other SPK members," Stephen protested. (See, Near? Mello thought.) "And he kidnapped and killed the Japanese police director..." (Of course.)

"We have no proof of that, and I think Kira is the one who killed the director," Near said. (So you came to the same conclusion, Near? Then it's even more certain that it was Kira and not just a normal suicide.)

"But that's not important now," Near continued. "Don't make me say it again." (Heh, I bet you always have a hard time getting them to follow your orders, Near. Nothing about you but your intelligence warrants any respect—and when it comes to being a leader, you need more than just intellect.)

"Our goal is to capture Kira. There is zero gain for us in killing Mello right now." (Always the rational one, aren't you? People are nothing but stats and numbers to you, and all that matters is how you can use them—like you're playing a collectible card game.)

"He got the notebook once, and was able to get closer to Kira than any of us," Near added, and it actually made Mello pause. (Did you actually just acknowledge that I've done better than you, Near?) "That's something we should respect." (I guess you always did value results above all else.) "And pointing a gun at him is just plain rude." (Heh. How very like you, Near.)

The two male agents were still glaring at Mello, but after several moments Anthony said, "Very well," and they both slowly lowered their guns.

So you actually are able to convince them with logic, huh. "Well said, Near." Mello lowered his gun as well, keeping his gaze on Near's back. The least you could do is fucking look at me for once…!

But Near didn't turn to look at him.

Apparently, despite your words, you still consider me beneath your notice. Mello's jaw was clenched, and he had to loosen it to speak, biting out: "So everything's gone as you imagined?"

"Yes," Near said, and Stephen and Anthony looked between them in surprise (What, did you not expect us to be so familiar with each other? Didn't he tell you we grew up together?). "Though I didn't expect you to come all the way here…"

Like hell I believe that, Near—you left me no choice but to come here.

Near was still facing away from him. "And thanks to you, Mello," he added, self-satisfied, "I have been able to greatly narrow down my suspects for Kira."

So you fucking used me?!

Mello's veins boiled with rage, and it was all he could do to keep it contained. "Near." He pointed his gun at the back of Near's head, his finger tense over the trigger. "I'm not a tool for you to use to solve the puzzle." Don't you dare treat me as one of your pawns.

As soon as Mello had pulled a gun on Near, Stephen and Anthony had aimed their guns back at him, but Mello paid them no mind.

Near, I'm serious—fucking look at me!

"Commander Rester, don't make me repeat myself," Near said evenly, just as utterly unflustered as ever (just as he'd been after hearing of L's death). "Please lower your gun."

Anthony—'Commander Rester,' apparently—didn't listen, of course, keeping his gun as steady on Mello as Mello kept his on Near.

Near, why won't you fucking look at me?! Even after all this you still won't treat me as an equal?!

"Mello, if you want to shoot me, go ahead," Near said evenly, and Mello's finger twitched over the trigger.

Are you trying to callmy bluff?! You think I won't do it?! Goddamnit, Near, I'll show you—

Hal stepped in front of him, blocking Near with her body.

"Mello," she said grimly, "if you kill Near right now, then even if you succeed in capturing Kira, it will be meaningless. And if you shoot Near, we'll be left with no choice but to shoot you. What good is there in both of you dying? That will only make Kira happy."

He stared at her, eyes wide, and she held his gaze. His hand that was holding the gun shook.

"Heh…" Slowly Mello took a step back, lowering his gun. "She's right." Killing Near won't make me Number One—I have to beat him by capturing Kira first. That's the only way.

Kira is the one who needs to die.

He looked away from Hal, glancing back over at Near, who hadn't moved, still crouching there facing away from him. I guess it's too much to try to get you to actually look at me like an equal for once. I'll just have to prove to you that I'm better by catching Kira before you do.

Goddamn it. "Near"—you were right: I never wanted to shoot you—"I just came to get the photo you have of me."

"Yes," Near said, like he hadn't just almost been shot. He reached into the pocket of his nightshirt and pulled out the photo (He kept it on him? I guess that makes sense, if he didn't want to lose it.), holding it carefully between two fingers. "This is the only remaining photograph, and there are no copies of it."

Mello stepped forward, reaching down to take the photo, looking at the image of his younger (unscarred) face staring back at him (it left a bitter taste in his mouth).

"Also, the surveillance cameras here only monitor, they don't record," Near continued. "I've contacted all the members of Wommany's House and anyone else from your past who would know your face. It's not a hundred percent perfect, but I think it's safe to say that you won't be killed by the notebook."

You went to those lengths, huh? Mello turned the photo around, stopping short.

On the back, written in Near's oddly neat cursive, was the inscription: Dear Mello

So Near knew that he would be handing me this photograph sooner or later… Come to think of it, it must have also been Near's plan for Hal to give me the SPK's information on Kira… and it's Near, so I doubt he hid any information from me…

Damn it; no matter how I look at it, he's helped me out. And he probably saved my life by taking my photograph from the orphanage and taking care of anyone who knows my face. Which means that I owe him—so if I capture Kira first, it will be a hollow victory…

It won't mean anything if I don't win on even ground.

He lowered the photo to his side, raising his gaze back to Near's hunched figure. "Near, I have no intention of joining forces with you," he stated.

"I know," Near said.

"But it would upset me to receive this picture without giving anything in return," Mello continued, and saw Near's head lift slightly in response. (Don't be so surprised, Near—I'm not a cheater, and I don't take charity. You should know that.)

"The murder notebook," Mello said. Most people wouldn't believe this, but Near should be able to tell that I'm not lying: "It's a Shinigami's notebook, and people who touch it are able to see the Shinigami."

"Impossible…" said Anthony, while Stephen snorted: "Who's going to believe that? A Shinigami…?" but Mello ignored them, keeping his gaze on Near, who remained completely still. Well, Near?

"I believe him," Near said. "What advantage is there for Mello in coming up with such a stupid story about a Shinigami really existing? If he were telling me a lie, he would tell me a normal—more meaningful—lie. Therefore, the Shinigami exists."

I figured you'd think like that.

"The notebook I had belonged to a Shinigami named Sidoh, who dropped it in the human world," Mello continued. "He had to come down to get it back. But another Shinigami had it before."

"We know that because there were rules written in English inside the notebook for human use, right?" Near said. "It would be odd for a Shinigami to write rules down for humans to use when he wants to get it back…"

You're just as quick as ever, Near.

And now you know—so don't you go getting yourself killed by a Shinigami just because you can't see them. You need to be alive to witness my victory, after all.

Mello turned and started heading for the door, tucking his gun in the front of his pants. "And one more thing… there is a fake rule hidden amongst the rules written in the notebook." You should be able to figure out which one it is without me telling you, Near, so I won't insult your intelligence by doing so. "That's all the information I can give you."

That's everything I know—so now we're even.

He stopped walking. "Near," he said.

"Mello," Near answered.

Mello took a chocolate bar out of his pocket, unwrapping it and bring it up to his lips, smirking. "Which of us is going to get Kira first…?"

"The race is on." There was an acknowledgment in Near's tone, and it was almost as good as Near meeting his gaze.

"Our destination is the same," Mello said as he started walking again, heading for the door. He smirked and bit off a chunk of chocolate, the bar snapping between his teeth, milky sweetness melting over his tongue. "I'll be waiting for you when you get there."


The door to the SPK headquarters slid open audibly, Mello and Lidner's boots clacking against the floor as they entered, but Near remained facing away from them.

He didn't think he could face Mello's gaze.

"Welcome, Mello," he said, when the clacking of boots stopped.

"Drop your gun!" Commander Rester said loudly, hurting Near's ears. Rester and Gevanni's shoes scuffed against the floor as they changed their stances, the sounds of safeties being clicked off ringing in the air.

"That goes for everybody," Near said. "Put your guns down. It's meaningless for us to shed any blood here."

"B-but, Mello killed the other SPK members… and he kidnapped and killed the Japanese police director..." That was Gevanni.

That's a faulty conclusion. "We have no proof of that, and I think Kira is the one who killed the director," Near corrected, feeling obliged to point out the mistake even though it didn't really matter. "But that's not important now. Don't make me say it again. Our goal is to capture Kira. There is zero gain for us in killing Mello right now."

Think about it logically, please. Don't let your emotions get in the way. (If one person shoots, everyone will start shooting, and people will end up dying, and then Kira will win, and we'll all have failed.)

Also: "He got the notebook once, and was able to get closer to Kira than any of us. That's something we should respect." The deaths of the other SPK members were really L/Kira's fault, anyway.

Also: "And pointing a gun at him is just plain rude."

(He'd found that it was best to cite as many reasons and explanations for his decisions as possible, because he could never tell which, exactly, would hit home for anyone. Especially in emotional situations, when people were especially prone to irrationality.)

"Very well." Good, that was Commander Rester—if he lowered his gun, Gevanni would definitely follow suit.

"Well said, Near." Mello's voice: a voice that rolled over everything in its path like a tank. It was a bit deeper and rougher than Near remembered, but it still dredged up memories (they ached and stung and burned liked acid).

Near forcefully shoved them back to the back of his mind so they wouldn't clutter the place and get in the way; he needed to focus.

"So everything's gone as you imagined?" It was the tone of voice that Mello tended to use before he started yelling angrily.

"Yes," Near told the truth. "Though I didn't expect you to come all the way here…" I thought you hated me too much to try to negotiate with me, and that you'd use one of the SPK members to get you the photo…

Mello didn't say anything, which, in Near's experience with him, had never boded well.

Hoping to avoid an angry outburst that could possibly escalate into violence, Near added: "And thanks to you, Mello, I have been able to greatly narrow down my suspects for Kira."

But apparently that was the wrong thing to say, because there was the sound of Mello pulling his gun out, likely pointing it at him, and Mello's angry voice: "Near. I'm not a tool for you to use to solve the puzzle."

And then there was the sound of Commander Rester and Gevanni pulling out their guns as well, likely pointing them at Mello, and Near had apparently just caused exactly what he'd been trying to avoid.

He reached up to curl a lock of hair around his fingers, trying to remain calm. I meant it as a compliment… What did I do wrong? How do I fix this?

"Commander Rester, don't make me repeat myself," he said. "Please lower your gun." Don't aggravate him; making him feel threatened and desperate will only make the situation worse. You saw what happened when the Japanese Task Force cornered him.

He curled his hair around his fingers, trying to think, but—

All he could think of to say was: "Mello, if you want to shoot me, go ahead." I don't think you'll really shoot me, but… if you do, I don't think you'll aim for something vital—I don't think you want to kill me, only hurt me—and I suppose I probably did something to deserve it.

I need you to not be angry right now, Mello—I need you to be able to think clearly, without your emotions blinding you. But I don't know what to say to make you less angry… So if shooting me will help you feel better enough to calm down and think rationally, then I'm fine with it.

And if you're not planning to shoot me, then this should force you to put the gun away so that Commander Rester and Gevanni put their guns away and everyone can calm down.

Mello's gun was making strange clicking noises, and Near had just about resigned himself to the fact that he was going to be shot, and it was going to hurt, when there was the click of boots against the floor behind him and suddenly Lidern was saying: "Mello, if you kill Near right now, then even if you succeed in capturing Kira, it will be meaningless. And if you shoot Near, we'll be left with no choice but to shoot you. What good is there in both of you dying? That will only make Kira happy."

Near counted five controlled breaths before Mello said: "Heh… she's right," and assumedly lowered his gun, judging by Commander Rester's relieved exhale.

Near wasn't sure what to feel about the entire thing—he was grateful to Lidner for diffusing the situation, but he also felt like a failure for having caused it in the first place, and he wasn't sure which feeling should win out, so he tried to push it all away and not feel anything and just focus on what to do next, but he didn't understand what he'd done wrong so he didn't know what he should do now.

Luckily, Mello did (Mello always did), because he said: "Near, I just came to get the photo you have of me."

"Yes." Near took the photo from the pocket of his shirt, and held it out. "This is the only remaining photograph, and there are no copies of it."

There was the clack of boots coming up behind him, and the photo was pulled from his grasp by black leather gloves.

"Also, the surveillance cameras here only monitor, they don't record," Near continued. "I've contacted all the members of Wommany's House and anyone else from your past who would know your face. It's not a hundred percent perfect,"—unfortunately—"but I think it's safe to say that you won't be killed by the notebook." I did everything I could, at least.

There was a long pause, and Near fiddled with one of his toy mecha robots simply for something to do, repeatedly bending one of the arms at the elbow and then straightening it again, listening to the plastic squeak slightly.

"Near, I have no intention of joining forces with you," Mello said finally.

"I know," Near said, bending and straightening the toy's arm. Why would you state what we both already know?

"But it would upset me to receive this picture without giving anything in return."

Near stilled. I didn't expect this.

"The murder notebook," Mello said. "It's a Shinigami's notebook, and people who touch it are able to see the Shinigami."

Shinigami…? Near's mind whirred.

"Impossible…" Commander Rester.

"Who's going to believe that? A Shinigami…?" Gevanni.

Near set the mecha robot down. "I believe him," he stated. And because he knew they wouldn't get it unless he explained why, he pointed out: "What advantage is there for Mello in coming up with such a stupid story about a Shinigami really existing? If he were telling me a lie, he would tell me a normal—more meaningful—lie. Therefore, the Shinigami exists."

Mello continued: "The notebook I had belonged to a Shinigami named Sidoh, who dropped it in the human world. He had to come down to get it back. But another Shinigami had it before."

The pieces were clicking into place. "We know that because there were rules written in English inside the notebook for human use, right?" Near lifted the mecha robot just enough to turn it sideways, setting it back down again. "It would be odd for a Shinigami to write rules down for humans to use when he wants to get it back…"

Mello's boots clacked on the floor, moving away. "And one more thing… there is a fake rule hidden amongst the rules written in the notebook."

Near's eyes widened. A fake rule…?! Why—?

"That's all the information I can give you." The sound of Mello's boots stopped. "Near."

"Mello," Near replied.

There was the familiar sound or rustling foil. "Which of us is going to get Kira first…?" It was the voice Mello used before a test or competition, when he was feeling confident about his success—it was one of Mello's pleased tones, and Near relaxed, feeling comfortable with the familiarity of it. He knew the correct way to respond to Mello's challenges.

He reached up to curl a lock of hair around his fingers, smiling slightly. "The race is on…" Mello, you always were the most comfortable when you were competing for something…

"Our destination is the same," Mello stated, his boots clacking against the floor again, moving away. There was the familiar sound of a chocolate bar snapping, and then Mello's chocolate-thickened voice: "I'll be waiting for you when you get there…"

Near hugged his leg to his chest, smiling against his knee. It's good to be working with you again, Mello.

And with both our efforts, we'll definitely catch Kira.

For L.


Light narrowed his eyes at the television, feeling uneasy about the Vice President's announcement.

The SPK is being disbanded…? But it's impossible that Near is giving up… he's too much like L…

And why would they announce the disbanding of an organization that nobody knew about? I don't like this. This is part of Near's plan. He's beginning to make his move…

(This is reminiscent of when L had the news announce that fake bulletin about the FBI sending in 1,500 detectives to Japan…)

Mello… Near… my top priority has to be to kill them. As long as they're alive, the New World I've been creating is threatened.

I have no way of locating Mello unless he tries to get into contact with us—which he probably will, actually, though I can't count on it.

But if I get the Vice President on Kira's side—he's announced his acceptance of Kira, but I might still have to threaten him—I should be able to find Near by getting information on the other SPK members, and contacting one of them…

And once Near and the SPK are gone, and with the mafia eliminated as well, Mello won't have anyone to turn to, and he won't be able to do anything against me. Eliminate Near, and I've essentially eliminated Mello as well. Even L couldn't do anything without the assistance of others.

So now the problem is simply how to get rid of Near…

Now that I've come this far, I'm going to have to use the public against him. I've got a lot more man-power than he does now. And if I use Sakura TV, it should work… Should I wait, though?

No, I definitely need to kill Near as soon as possible—and ideally before he comes into contact with Mello. Not that it'll matter whether or not he's come into contact with Mello, once he's dead.

But still—the sooner he's dealt with, the better.

As soon as I discover where he's hiding…


Near looked at the screen broadcasting Sakura TV's Kira's Kingdom show in disgust as the man Demegawa 'announced to the world the words of Kira.'

This is revolting.

Glaring at both nothing and everything in general, Near squeezed the trigger of a water-gun, spraying one of the mecha robots in the face. (It made him feel better only very slightly.)

Kira chose such a sleazebag as his spokesperson… and this all seems rather early and forced… if Kira is really doing all this, then it only proves that Kira is afraid of Mello and me… could it be the fake rule…?

He set both the robot and the water-gun down, reaching out instead to grab a stack of tarot cards, spreading them out face-down in a circle around him as he went over the rules of the Death Note in his head, memorized verbatim from what the new L had told him:

1. The human whose name is written in this note shall die.

2. This note will not take effect unless the writer has the person's face in their mind when writing his/her name. Therefore, people sharing the same name will not be affected.

3. If the cause of death is written within the next 40 seconds of writing the person's name, it will happen.

4. If the cause of death is not specified, the person will simply die of a heart attack.

5. After writing the cause of death, details of the death should be written in the next 6 minutes and 40 seconds.

6. If the user of the Death Note fails to consecutively write names within 13 days of each other, then the user will die.

7. If a person makes this notebook unusable by tearing it up or burning it, all the humans who have touched the Death Note will die.

Near surveyed his array of cards as he set the rest of the stack down, reaching up to curl a lock of hair around his fingers.

Judging from all the murders, it is unmistakable that the notebook is able to kill people by heart attacks, and by controlling them to a certain degree, which means that the first five rules have to be correct.

Tear it up or burn it… the notebook still exists, and there's no way of testing that.

And Mello would definitely have tested the fake rule in order to make sure, and he wouldn't have told me about it unless he had confirmed it … therefore…

Near reached out and flipped a card off the top of the stack of remaining tarot cards, revealing a Death card.

The fake rule is the one where you must write another name down within 13 days or die.

Near regarded the card, the design one of a skull in profile looking to the left with two scythes framing it and a starry sky backdrop behind it.

I may as well ask directly… Near reached over and picked up his headset. "Gevanni, please connect me to L."

"Right," Gevanni said from where he was sitting a computer a few feet away, his fingers tapping against the keys as he set up the connection.

Near fixed the headset over his ears and waited for the beep that would indicate that the connection had gone through. Now I just need a good story…

No, it doesn't even have to be a good story—it can be a shoddy one. It doesn't matter if L/Kira can tell it's a lie as long as I insist it's the truth, just as he's been doing with his ridiculous story about getting help from Kira to attack Mello's hideout. It just needs to have enough truth so he won't be able to deny it.

He curled a lock of hair around his fingers.

Beep.

"L, I've caught Mello," Near said, lowering his hand. You should know that he had both the ability to determine and test the fake rule, so you can't sidestep this. "But… he escaped." This should indicate that I don't have him with me, you can't question him, and he won't be arrested. "However, I was able to question him a little." Which should clearly indicate to you how I got the information.

L's scrambled voice came over the headset: /Near, Mello didn't escape, you let him get away… am I right? Or do you still have him with you?/

(It still made Near feel disgust to hear this impostor using the same voice as L, but he'd long filed the reaction away under the filter of Useless Emotional Reactions That Should Be Ignored For The Sake Of Rational Thought.)

"No, he really did escape," Near said, smiling slightly. Serves you right for your own shoddy story you keep insisting is the truth. Just to rub it in, he couldn't help adding: "I'm pretty impressed at how he escaped from under our noses."

That wasn't the point of the conversation, though, so he continued on to the real matter: "He did tell me a few things of interest, and I would like your opinion on them, L."

That's right: your opinion as a detective chasing after Kira, just as you claim to be—in order to keep up that facade, you're going to have to answer my questions honestly, especially if you're currently at headquarters and the rest of the Task Force are there.

"Mello claimed that a Shinigami possesses the notebook. Have you been able to confirm such an existence?"

You'll no doubt be wondering how much Mello told me. If I start with this question, and you think that this is all I told Mello, you should answer it honestly, since what you'd be most worried about is the 13 Day Rule. It shouldn't be of any consequence to you to admit the existence of Shinigami. Though it would be interesting if you tried to deny it…

/Yes, Shinigami truly do exist. But I kept it a secret because I thought you'd never believe me./

So you didn't try to deny it after all.

"I'd really like to have a talk with that Shinigami," Near remarked.

But I know they'd never allow me to question it. Oh well…

He continued: "And the thing that's bugging me the most…"

If my theory is correct then this should make you panic a bit, and you might make a move to off me so I don't figure out who you are—if that happens, then my theory will be mostly confirmed.

"…is that there's a fake rule hidden among the seven rules you told me about before."

There was a pause, and then: /A fake rule…?/

"Yes." Near curled a lock of hair around his fingers, waiting.

Don't worry—the Japanese Task Force wouldn't have tested the notebook, so they would have had no way of knowing a rule was fake, so it's fine for you to try to cast doubt on this—in fact, you have to, for the sake of both your role as Kira and your role as L.

/But this is Mello we're talking about. He might just be trying to confuse us./

"That's true."

Best not to deny it, since it technically is possible—I know Mello isn't lying because I know Mello, but that's not proof, so there'd be no way of convincing the Japanese Task Force.

But that's okay, because that's also not the point of this conversation, and it's better if this remains purely hypothetical, anyway, since you'll have no reason not to answer.

His hair was smooth around his fingers. "But L, I'd like to hear your opinion. If one of the rules is fake, which one do you think it is?"

There's only one answer you can give, if you want to keep up any semblance of intelligence. But it probably willhurt, and if you're as afraid as I think you are, you might try something… possibly…

There was a brief pause, and then: /By process of elimination, it is likely to be the one that says the writer will die unless they write another name in the notebook within thirteen days./

Indeed. "Yes, that's what I thought too." And that pause of yours was suspiciously brief. Not even pretending to think about it? He curled his hair around his fingers.

/Shinigami, is there a fake rule written in the notebook?/

Near stopped twirling his hair, eyes widening slightly. So you did try something… He smiled. You really are afraid now, aren't you?

You should know that claiming such a thing would never convince me. And there'd be no point in going to these lengths if you were alone, so there's probably people there with you…

/It seems that there is no fake rule. I can only assume that Mello was lying… and if we write a name down in the notebook, that person will die, so there's no way of testing it./

Near began twirling his hair again, still smiling. This is going even better than I expected.

"So… you have the Shinigami beside you?"

I've heard about the Shinigami from Mello, and you've already confirmed their existence, so you should know that if I know that a Shinigami was attached to the notebook that Mello had, then I should know that now that you have the notebook there should be a Shinigami with you, so it makes sense not to deny this. And you just spoke to the Shinigami so I could hear you do so, anyway.

/Yes./

And since the Shinigami would be attached to the notebook: "You said that the notebook is being held at the Japanese Task Force headquarters. That means that you, L, are also at the headquarters. Am I correct?"

He should have no reason not to deny it if it's true, especially if the other Task Force members are there, because it would be suspicious to them if he were avoiding answering honestly.

/That is correct./

Near began flipping over a few of the tarot cards circling him, revealing more Death cards. I just need to make sure: "Are people other than you listening to this conversation?"

/Yes, there are./

Near stopped flipping cards once seven Death cards were revealed, one for reach rule in the Death Note.

If the other Task Force members are there with you, that it's them you're trying to convince, am I right? Which would mean that the Task Force members know something that would make them suspicious of you if they were to believe the 13 Day Rule is fake…

The pieces were coming together. "I think I'm figuring it out…" I should definitely be able to find out who L/Kira is, now…

"The new L… and members of the Japanese Task Force…" Near could barely contain his glee. "Did you see the original L's face?"

Beep.

Gevanni turned in his chair. "L cut the connection…"

"Which is the same as admitting that they've seen L's face," Near said. He twirled his hair around his fingers, trying to keep his excitement under control.

L can't just not answer… he's probably informing the rest of the Task Force that I suspect one of them of being Kira… but if they all know that they saw the original L's face, there's no point in lying…

Near waited.

Beep.

/It's true that there are some members here who have seen the original L's face./

"Ah… so you've seen him." It was all Near could do to contain his delight. "Then let's assume… and as I said, this is only an assumption… that one of the people who have seen the original L's face is Kira." He reached out, picking up one of the Death cards.

Kira would have had to have seen L's face in order to kill him, after all—that shouldn't be that hard to figure out, even for the Japanese Task Force.

"Then why is Kira, who killed L, keeping you alive? Don't you think it would have been easier to kill all of you along with L?"

That's what Kira would have done, if Kira had been outside of the Task Force. So how have you been explaining this to the other members, L/Kira?

The skull was still in profile looking to the left, the scythes still framing it, the background still dark and star-studded.

/Near. Your assumption doesn't make any sense./

Oh? And how's that?

/The Task Force has been through many situations where we clearly could tell that Kira was not among us. That's why we've come this far together. The fact that we're all still alive is the greatest proof that one of us is not Kira./

An appeal to their emotions—I see. Yes, emotion does have a way of obscuring truth and rationality, doesn't it?

But then how do you assume Kira killed L?

/Our assumption is that Kira got hold of L's information by some means, and killed him./

Near turned the Death card over in his hands. "Now, is that really true?"

That makes no sense, you know. If Kira had been able to get ahold of L's information—which would have been basically impossible—he would definitely have gotten ahold of all of yours. So if that theory were true, you'd definitely be dead.

But if the Task Force has been buying that explanation for all these years, they probably wouldn't start doubting it now…

No, the way to raise their suspicion of you is to dismantle the alibi you created by using the fake 13 Day Rule to 'prove' your innocence.

"I believe that the '13 Day Rule' is a fake. If so, do you still think that my assumption doesn't stand?"

L, you were probably caught by the original L and then confined and put under 24/7 surveillance for over 13 days, and the rest of the Task Force members probably know this.

/The Shinigami claims that all the rules are true. Are you saying that the Shinigami is lying?/

"Yes."

That's the only defense you could come up with? Weak. An appeal to a 'higher authority' is a logical fallacy, you know. And the idea that a being that kills people by writing their names down is a 'higher authority' that is somehow exempt from lying is ridiculous.

"I believe Mello over a Shinigami. It's a Shinigami, for god's sake… how could I believe such a thing…?"

How could the rest of the Japanese Task Force believe such a thing?

"And if my assumption stands…" Near reached out and picked up another tarot card from the circle, revealing The Devil. "Then Kira is among you, and is making the Shinigami lie."

It's hard to imagine a human having power over a Shinigami, but Kira has had the notebook for several years—which means he's had the Shinigami attached to the notebook following him around for several years, so he's probably established some kind of relationship with it. So he's probably figured out how to make the Shinigami lie.

He was clever enough to kill L, after all.


Light looked down so that his bangs hid his eyes, and carefully did not clench his teeth.

L's heir, huh….? He's worse than L…


Kira-L wasn't saying anything, and Near waited, examining the Devil card.

The demonic red figure depicted was gaunt and hunched, with hoofed feet, clawed hands, a tail, wings that arced like scythes, glowing yellow eyes and a sick grin, standing in front of a black background with the outline of a yellow, five-pointed star.

The number of the Devil card was XV, while the number of the Death card was XIII. (Number XIV was the Temperance card, for whatever reason.)

/Near,/ Kira-L finally continued, /I understand your theory, but we can't write somebody's name down just to find out whether the rule is a fake or not. We have talked about testing the notebook, but we've always concluded that we must respect human life, and therefore testing the notebook is something we must never do./

It's easy to say that you should value human life, isn't it? How ironic, that you've been using the excuse of valuing human life to allow you to keep murdering people…

Let's tempt him, then—the results should be interesting. And it should allow me to find out something else I've been wondering, as well.

"Then how about this?" Near set the Devil card down, reaching up to curl his hair around his fingers. "I'll write Mello's name in the book. Of course, that is only if you know Mello's real name…"

You cornered Mello, but you haven't been able to kill him yet… by your account, the only person to have seen Mello's face was Soichiro Yagami, who died soon after the attack… before the attack, though, you received another notebook from Kira, which means you received the ability to kill people by writing down a name, and if you also received the ability to know someone's name just by seeing their face…

Mello was especially desperate to get his photo back, but his photo didn't have his name on it, so it would have been useless to anyone unless they had that ability. And if he either knew that the Japanese Task Force was in possession of that ability or knew that you'd already learned his name—say Soichiro Yagami had the ability, since he's the one who saw Mello's face—then that would explain why he was anxious enough about his photo to come all the way to the SPK headquarters to get it back…

So: do you know his name? If you don't, you should turn down this offer pretty quickly, since it would be impossible without his real name. But if you do know it, then…

"Obviously, Mello will get the death sentence if he is caught," Near continued. "So I'll take responsibility for writing his name down since I let Mello escape after getting my hands on him."

You're still listening, and haven't said that you don't know Mello's real name yet, so it's likely that you do know it…

And while I'd never actually kill Mello, you don't know that. All you know is that Mello and I are competing—and since you and Mello seem to share a mindset of doing whatever it takes to become Number One and killing anyone who gets in your way, you'll probably be convinced that I would indeed kill him if given the chance, since you'll probably take it for granted that I'm the same. So this bluff should work.

And you no doubt really want for Mello to die, so this should be an offer tempting enough for you to consider…

"If I specify where he dies, then you will be able to confirm Mello's death. After that, you can perform DNA tests and such upon the things you have gathered from the remains of the explosion."

You no doubt have gathered such evidence, since you want so badly to find him and kill him… and you wouldn't consider the offer unless you'd be able to make sure that it was really Mello.

Now, I also need to explain why I would be willing to risk this…

Near curled his hair around his fingers. "If Mello dies… and I die 13 days after writing his name down… Kira wins. And I have no problem with that."

This should suggest to you that I'm confident about my theory, which should increase your anxiety, as well as further suggest that I would really be willing to kill Mello in order to prove it.

You're probably wondering if there's a way to get me to use the Death Note to kill Mello, and then kill me 13 days later to make it look like the rule is true, and if you think you can take out both of us at once then you'll definitely consider it.

To tempt the rest of the Task Force, though…

"'If the person using the note fails to consecutively write names of people to be killed within 13 days of each other, then the user will die.' Testing this rule may turn out to be a plus for our Kira investigation, and it could never be a minus. I will do the test myself."

Even if they say they value human life, they might want revenge against Mello, blaming him for Chief Yagami's death. And if that's they case, and they believe I'd be willing to go to such lengths to try to solve the case—the fact that I'm L's successor, and they worked with L and probably became somewhat familiar with his methods, should help convince them of that—then they might consider the offer.

And if I want Kira-L to consider it, then I need to make him think that the rest of the Task Force would consider it as well, otherwise he'd have to reject the idea outright to keep up his facade…

And if all of them are tempted enough by the offer, and they do know Mello's name, they probably won't deny it…

Near twirled his hair around his fingers and waited.


Light narrowed his eyes, fingers touching lightly to his headset as he considered the offer.

Near uses the notebook to kill Mello. I'll see Near's face, and then kill Near 13 days later. Perfect…

No, this is a trap. How do I know if Near really writes the name down himself? And even if Near does write it, I can't believe that he'd show his face to us. He might even write a different name down at the last minute.

Out of the corner of his eye, he glanced at the other Task Force members gathered behind them and talking amongst themselves.

But Misa and I were the ones who were confined. If I just reject this offer on my own, then it'll give a bad impression to the others.

Only the people here know about the confinement. What if I kill them first, and then make it seem that I died too…?

No, they may find out later that I was a member of this team, and that plan is the same as running away… I can do this—these guys trust me more than they trust Near.


/…Near, please wait a minute. We need to talk about your suggestion./

Beep.

Near stopped twirling his hair. So you do know Mello's name, then.

That makes it even more likely that you're Kira—I can't imagine Kira, if he were outside of the Task Force, would allow people who were trying to catch him the power to know a person's name just by seeing their face.

And if my theory is correct and you were confined for over 13 days and used that to prove your innocence to the Japanese Task Force, now that I've cast doubt on the validity of that, the other members will probably start doubting you…

And if they do, I should be able to get more information out of them…

Goals completed, he occupied himself by turning over the rest of the tarot cards that he'd set in a circle around him face-up—revealing them all to be Death cards—and waited for Kira-L to discuss it with the Task Force and then reply back with the inevitable answer.

(Even if they were tempted by his offer, ultimately the rest of the Task Force would come to the moral decision, and Kira-L would come to the conclusion that Near's offer was a trick and wouldn't bother to try to push the matter. Especially since it would make him look more suspicious—as L, he had no special reason to want Mello die. He only wanted that because he was Kira.)

Beep.

/Near, we can't test the notebook, whatever the reason. We promise you that we'll take full responsibility for protecting it./

"Very well, as expected," Near said, and ended the call.

Beep.

Near took off the headset and smiled.

I've almost got you, Kira.


Near hung up the call, and Light carefully did not clench his teeth.

Expecting us to say that…? So he said it even though he knew that we were going to reject it…? Then Near's objective was to get the others to have doubts about me…?

But this makes it clear. Near suspects me.

Damn it…! He's just as manipulative and methodical as L… And now he's had contact with that loose cannon, Mello… damn it…!

(It's just like you to have successors that are so excessive, L…)


Mello was checked in (under a false name) at a shitty (low-profile) hotel (conveniently located) across the street from the SPK headquarters, thinking about what he'd learned from Near and planning his next move.

He sat slouched in an old leather arm chair, turning a wrapped chocolate bar over in his gloved hands (force of habit—he'd long tried to avoid leaving fingerprints on anything, simply for the sake of leaving no trace of his existence).

The leather chair squeaked whenever he moved and the walls were exposed brick that the chill had a way of clinging to, but Mello hardly noticed.

L is Kira…? But L is Touta Matsuda, and he's useless… but this is Near, so he's probably right… damn it…! I need more information.

I have Matsuda's phone number, but it would be bad to call someone who's probably L… I also have the cellphone number of that other guy, Mogi, though. If I call him, then… but in order to question him and actually get answers I'd need to meet him in-person… but they already know my name, so if he sees my face… I could keep my face covered, I guess, but… if it's just me, it'll be hard to threaten him…

No, it's too dangerous. I'm not going to die over one of Near's theories, damn it!

He knew that Near had used him—was still using him. And it hurt, but…

Maybe it would've hurt more if he hadn't also used Near—if he wasn't planning on continuing to use Near. Theirs was a mutually parasitic symbiotic relationship—they were both using each other.

I know where Near's headquarters are. I'll just call Mogi and get him to go to the SPK headquarters, and have Near question him.

He'd been told by Yagami that Touta Matsuda was the current L, and if Near's theory about the new L being Kira was correct, then he shouldn't send someone who could be L over to see Near's face. He couldn't let Near be killed, after all; he couldn't be Number One just because Near died—he had to become Number One by subverting Near to Second Place.

And to do that he needed information about the Japanese Task Force and the current L; but it would definitely be too dangerous to try to get that information himself.

Near should be able to do it, though. He still had members of the SPK to help him, and he was good at getting information, and if his theory about the present L being Kira was true then he probably knew the right questions to ask.

And he'd want Mello's help trying to catch Kira, too—he'd be counting on Mello to take action, since he never took action himself, always remaining behind the scenes—so he'd definitely do everything he could to get enough information out of Mogi to convince Mello that the current L was Kira.

And if the current L really was Kira, and Mello had enough information on the Japanese Task Force, then he could catch Kira himself—before Near did. But in order to do that he needed to help Near out, too.

It was a mutually parasitic symbiotic relationship, but in the end Mello would come out on top.

He tore open the gold foil of the chocolate bar, peeling it back and taking a vicious bite, a large chunk breaking off from the rest and snapping between his teeth, the taste sweet, milky, and reassuringly familiar.

There are absolutely no disadvantages to this plan for me. I'll get answers without having to show my face. And it'll make Near do the dangerous task, for once… It won't even matter if the Mogi guy is wired, with Near questioning him—knowing Near and the way he likes to provoke people, he might want L and the other Task Force members to overhear the conversation, anyway…

He took another bite of chocolate, slower and calmer this time, letting the chocolate melt in his mouth.

If L is Kira, then either the rest of the Japanese Task Force know and are working with him, or they don't know and L has been fooling them for all these years… I find it hard to imagine that that Yagami guy would have teamed up with someone he knew was Kira, or that Kira would have willingly let them hand over the notebook, so it's probably the latter… the Japanese Task Force is pretty stupid…

He licked the chocolate thoughtfully.

But if they don't know that L is Kira, then it would be just like Near to try to make them suspicious and then get at least one of them on his side…

Lick, lick, lick.

This plan should work. Bite. I just need to make sure the guy won't have a camera on him—I can't let L see Near's face. It won't do me any good if Near dies.

If I call Mogi and then make sure that he has no chance to get prepared in any way or come up with any kind of plan with the rest of the Task Force and L, though…

I have the guy's cellphone number memorized, and there's no reason not to do it—no, there's every reason to do it. If I want to catch Kira, I have no choice.

Mello finished off the chocolate bar and grabbed his phone, dialing the number and holding the phone to his ear as he listened to it ring.

"Are you Mogi?" he asked when the call picked up. He didn't bother to disguise his voice, since he wanted Mogi to recognize that it was really him.

"Yes…" the man said.

"Are you alone?" Mello asked. He's probably at the Task Force Headquarters right now…

"No…"

Is this conversation being overheard? "...Then there's somebody right near you?" It doesn't really matter if they tap Mogi's phone or put a wire on him, since it's going to be Near doing the questioning and not me, but I don't want them to be able to plan anything—and I don't want him to know that it's not actually going to be me.

"No…"

"Then this conversation is not being overheard?" That's fine, then. Mello took out another chocolate bar, peeling back the foil. "In that case, I want you to just keep answering so that the others around you will not realize who you're talking to."

"Okay."

Let's cut to the chase, then. Mello grinned and took a bite of the chocolate. "Mogi," he said around the chocolate snapping between his teeth, "why don't you come to New York to see me?"

There was a surprised intake of breath, but no answer.

You want to capture me, so you won't want to miss this chance.

"I won't tell you anything else, not unless you come to the place I specify," Mello continued. "No cameras or wires. And make sure you bring extra cellphone batteries. I want you to tell me right now if you're coming or not. I can't let you hang up to think about it since you could come up with a plan with the people around you. Stay on the line with me at all times. The only time you can turn your cellphone off is when you get on the airplane. I'll call you again once you land."

I'm going to use your cellphone to hear you conversation with Near, but you'd never guess that Near and I would cooperate with each other. Since I said no cameras or wires, you'll think that I mean to show you my face, and you'll think the extra cellphone batteries are just because I don't want to potentially lose contact with you during the trip, and that I'll be getting another communication device ready which I'll hand to you later.

Ha ha—loser.

"Okay, where do I need to go?" the man said after a pause.

"Good," Mello said, and stood from the chair, walking over to stand with his back to the wall looking over his shoulder out the window to read the street sign without his figure being visible from the sidewalk. "I want you to come to the exit of the Nick St. Station in New York as fast as you can."

"Okay."

Mello grinned and took another bite of chocolate.

It was a long wait for the guy to get from L.A. to New York, and a lot of listening to nothing over the phone, but Mello could be patient if the reward for that patience would be worthwhile.

Mogi only spoke when necessary—such as to buy the plane tickets—and never once tried to pry more information out of Mello.

This guy might be hard to get information out of… it'll be Near doing the questioning, though, so it shouldn't be a problem.

Almost six hours later, the man finally said: "I've arrived at Nick St. Station exit."

Mello looked through his binoculars to make sure the man was telling the truth.

Sure enough, the Japanese man was standing at the top of the stairs leading up from the subway station.

"Enter the building right across from you," Mello told him, and then lowered the phone from his ear, pulling out his other phone and dialing Hal Lidner.

The phone rang twice, and then Hal picked up.

"Hal, it's me," Mello said. "Get me Near."

There were vague sounds of movement, Hal's voice saying distantly, "Near… it's Mello," the sounds of the phone being passed to someone else, and then that slight humming noise Near tended to make in lieu of an actual greeting.

Mello's lips almost quirked. "Near, a man named Mogi from the Japanese Task Force is going to show up at your place very soon," he said. "He's a well-built man, about 6'2''."

Unlike most people, Near's breathing was practically silent over the phone.

"Now it's my turn to use you," Mello said, leaning back against the wall as he looked obliquely out the window. "I want you to let him in and ask him everything you need. But keep his cellphone on so that I can listen to your conversation through it. If L is really Kira, then pull information out of him that will convince me. I know you're good at that stuff. If you can do that, then I'll get Kira myself."

Near was silent, but Mello knew that he was just thinking—Near had always been quiet (the only exceptions being when he was prying information out of people, or being a smart-ass and condescendingly explaining things to people he'd deemed were idiots), and Mello was used to it (somehow, even after five years, he was still used to it).

Near was silent, and Mello waited.

"I'm going to call up L to make sure he isn't the man you sent over," Near finally informed him. "If I ascertain that they're different individuals, then I will let him in and do as you suggest."

Then Near hung up.

How like Near, Mello thought, and tucked the phone away in his pocket, putting the one connected to Mogi back to his ear. No man who looks and acts as much like a hired thug as this Mogi guy is going to be Kira. I bet you Kira's one of those arrogant, charming types that always keep themselves perfectly groomed and love to hear themselves talk.

And if what you say is true, Near, and the present L really is Kira, there's no way he'd come down here himself. And even if he did, he would have tried to pry information out of me over the phone.

But do whatever floats your boat, Near.

Mello waited, watching the street out the window idly.

"I'm at the door," Mogi said over the phone.

"It'll open in just a minute," Mello told him, leaning back against the brick wall. "Be patient. It's taken you over six hours to get here—a few more minutes won't kill you."

The man didn't reply.

You should really hurry up, Near. If what you say is true, and L is Kira, then Kira probably knows that Mogi came to see me, and he might kill the guy the way he killed the deputy director of the NPA.

Though I guess that would be the proof you need, huh?

It would be just like you to think that way.


Near was calculating the landing trajectory for a model airplane on the model airport runway he'd set up when Lidner's phone went off.

Beep beep. The sound was loud and jarring, like an alarm.

Near landed the model airplane in a rushed manner that would have killed all the passengers.

"Near…" Lidner said, her heels clicking on the floor behind him. "It's Mello."

Near held up his hand for the phone. So Mello's made his move… what is he up to…?

The smooth, cold surface of the phone was placed against his hand, and he wrapped his fingers around it, taking the phone and tucking it against his left ear.

What is it, Mello?

"Near," came Mello's voice, "a man named Mogi from the Japanese Task Force is going to show up at your place very soon. He's a well-built man, about 6'2''."

Near's eyes widened slightly.

"Now it's my turn to use you," Mello said. "I want you to let him in and ask him everything you need. But keep his cellphone on so that I can listen to your conversation through it. If L is really Kira, then pull information out of him that will convince me. I know you're good at that stuff. If you can do that, then I'll get Kira myself."

Impressive, Mello. This way, you won't be in danger… But with this method, I'll have to…

"Near, the man is here. He only has a cellphone, and no cameras or bugs." That was Gevanni.

Near glanced over at the monitor, to see that there was indeed a well-built Japanese man there with a phone pressed to his ear.

I have no reason to doubt that this man is truly from the Japanese Task Force… but if this man happens to be L and Kira… well, it's hard to believe that Mello would directly contact L, and that L—Kira—would personally take action. Mello wouldn't try to kill me… but it's not impossible that it's L.

It's easy to check, though.

"I'm going to call up L to make sure he isn't the man you sent over," Near told Mello. "If I ascertain that they're different individuals, then I will let him in and do as you suggest."

He ended the call and held the phone up for Lidner to take back.

"Gevanni, please connect me to L," Near said. The cellphone was removed from his hand, the smooth surface sliding against the tips of his fingers, and then he reached out to grab his headset, placing it over his ears and flipping down the mic on the left side.

Beep.

Near kept his eyes on the monitor.

/Yes, Near?/ came L's voice-scrambled voice.

Mogi didn't move his lips.

"Sorry, I called the wrong number," Near said, and terminated the connection.

Beep.

Near tilted his head as he scrutinized Mogi. So he's not L… Then I must hurry… "Let that man in, please."

"Okay." That was Lidner, her heels already clacking on the floor.

It's unlikely that this Mogi, since he's a member of the Japanese Task Force but isn't L, has acted entirely on his own here. If he followed Mello's request, then it's probably because he wanted to the chance to capture Mello, which means he would have needed backup from the rest of the Task Force and the go-ahead from L. So it's possible that L at least knows that Mello contacted him, and had other members of the Task Force tail him in order to find and capture Mello…

Actually, it's entirely possible that L has tapped Mogi's phone in order to hear his conversations. He'd definitely want to know what was said between them. Which means that he'll know when he hears me speak to Mogi that it's me and not Mello.

However, since it's the SPK and we're not criminals, he won't be able to have the other Task Force members arrest us. But it would mean that he knows our location… and since he's Kira, he might try something…

There was the sound of the door sliding open, and then the clacking of Lidner's heels along with the slower, heavier steps of the man Mogi. The sound of the man's soles was very similar to that of Commander Rester's, so he must have been wearing dress shoes—which would make sense, given that the monitors had shown him wearing a business suit—and he seemed to be about the same height and build as Commander Rester, as well.

(Not that Near thought they'd have to resort to physical force, but he still noted it.)

The man's footsteps stopped several feet behind him.

"Hello, pleased to meet you," he said, not turning around. "I'm Near."

Should I try not to let him see my face? But there's no cameras on him, and given that the Task Force denied my offer to write Mello's name in the notebook it's impossible that this man would willfully try to kill me that way… and since he knows about the murder notebook, it's unlikely that Kira-L could trick him into writing the name down… of course, that's only a concern if this man has the ability to know a person's name just by seeing their face…

But even if he does, it shouldn't matter—it's Kira that wants to kill me, not the Japanese Task Force, and if the present L asked for my name it would be akin to admitting guilt. And besides, we don't have to let Mogi go back to the Task Force, necessarily…

"Please sit down," Near said, reaching out and nudging the model plane a little farther along the runway. "There's a lot of things I want to ask you about."

And if L really is tapping your phone, and is listening to this, especially if the other members of the Task Force are listening as well, then I could definitely use this to my advantage…

But if Kira now knows my location, then I have to hurry… I need to do whatever it takes to get this Mogi on our side…

I don't have time… even if L is Kira, he'll be able to kill Mogi, but he still shouldn't be able to kill me. If Mogi dies right now, that would mean that Kira is a member of the Japanese Task Force…

Near turned to look over at Mogi, showing his face. "Mogi, isn't it?"


It was only about another minute of waiting before Mello heard the man get let in, and then Near's emotionless voice coming distantly over the phone.

"Hello, pleased to meet you. I'm Near."

Mogi didn't reply to the greeting.

Looks like Near's getting his just deserts—he never replied to greetings, either.

There was a beat of silence, and then Near's voice was audible again, this time a bit louder over the speaker—"Please sit down. There's a lot of things I want to ask you about."—so either Mogi had moved closer, or he'd moved the phone away from his ear. Or both.

Actually, if the present L is Kira and knows that Mogi is here, then why isn't he killing him yet?

Then again, he's probably tapped Mogi's cellphone, so he can probably overhear everything, so he's probably waiting to see what Near will say and what Mogi will reveal.

That's okay—Near's no doubt taken that into consideration, just like every other potential possibility.

But then again, the present L may not actually be Kira…

"Mogi, isn't it?" Near asked.

The man didn't answer.

"All Mello wants is to capture Kira, just like we do," Near said. "I'm sure you understand that."

Yeah, I guess the guy probably wouldn't trust Near if he thought we were working together…

Mogi still didn't say anything.

But if he was prepared to see me, why's he hesitating now that it turns out to be Near instead? I guess he might be annoyed at getting tricked, but still—surely this has to be better than whatever he was expecting.

"Won't you cooperate with us?" Near wheedled.

Trying to be cute, huh?

Then, when that didn't work, Near said: "And put your life at stake."

Yeah, since he's technically been doing that already—so he really shouldn't have any reason not to say anything.

But Mogi still remained silent.

So Near switched tactics again: "You've met the former L, the real L, right? Is there anybody in the current team who L suspected even in the slightest of being Kira?"

Damn it, Near can see his face, but I can't… he could give something away with his expression… though if he does, Near should call him out on it, so I should still get the information…

"Even a yes or no would suffice," Near said, after a few moments of silence.

He must not have given anything away, then…

The man stayed quiet.

Damn.

"Mello, there is a chance that this investigator is already being controlled by Kira so that he won't say anything," Near said.

Wait, what? So you're giving up, Near…?

Oh wait—ha. I get it. Of course, you're still trying to pry the information out of him.

You really are good at this stuff, Near.

"Right, Near," he said, grinning. "If he doesn't say anything, I think we can assume that Kira is in the Japanese Task Force." He bit off a chunk of chocolate from the bar in his hand, still smirking. "There's no reason for him not to want to cooperate to get Kira. Even if it's not by the notebook, he's still being controlled."

Now Mogi has to say something, if he doesn't want us to become even more suspicious—his silence is essentially an admittance that he's being controlled not to say anything, and that he knows something that could implicate the present L as Kira.

Except, Mogi still didn't say anything.

Looks like we have to press even harder.

Mello took another smirking bite of chocolate. "I actually had a bunch of guys test the notebook a number of ways," he admitted, "but nobody who wrote the names down died after 13 days."

You've no doubt already figured out the 13 Day Rule is the fake one, Near. And yes, I really did test it.

If what you say about the present L being Kira is true, Near, then this should definitely put pressure on them.

As expected, Near latched onto the information and ran with it: "The writer will not die even if that person does not write anything down for more than 13 days. Is there anything that strikes you as odd about this, Mogi?"

Mogi remained silent.

"Even the slightest thing will do," Near said.

Mogi still didn't say anything.

Damn. Maybe he really is being controlled…

"All we want to do is get Kira, so there's no reason for us to lie to you," Near said. "I'm sure it is uneasy for you to have one of your members suspected of being Kira. Then it should be much easier if we talk about it and settle this problem once and for all."

You're good, Near.

If he really does know something that could implicate the present L as Kira, then he should definitely be uncomfortable about it, so he should say something to that…

But Mogi remained as silent as ever.

Damn. What a thug.

Maybe a little bit of good cop, bad cop is in order.

Mello snapped another piece of chocolate between his teeth. "We could try torturing the information out of him," he suggested.

"No," Near said, picking up on the tactic immediately. "We will never resort to such methods. We're not like Kira—we won't use pain and fear to force anyone to cooperate with us."

"Sometimes you need to fight fire with fire," Mello pressed, licking the chocolate bar. They wouldn't believe me if I just gave up on forcing the information out of him, anyway.

"No," Near said again. "We will never lower ourselves to Kira's level. Justice and reason will definitely prevail." A pause, and then: "Won't you help us bring Kira to justice, Mogi?"

The man, rather predictably at that point, still didn't say anything.

"Maybe he actually agrees with Kira, and that's why he won't help us," Mello suggested, peeling back more of the chocolate wrapper so he could snap off another piece without getting the taste of tinfoil in his mouth.

"I don't believe that Mr. Mogi is that kind of person," Near said, and Mello almost wanted to laugh. Near, you manipulative bastard. "You don't believe that Kira is justice, right, Mogi-san?"

It really is a lot funnier when he's using these tactics on someone else.

"Mogi-san, do you believe Kira is justice?" Near asked directly. "You don't have to speak—a nod or a shake of your head will suffice."

At this point I'm doubting if this man will respond to anything…

"Mogi-san, I am going to ask again," Near said. "And if you don't shake your head, I am going to have to assume that you are a Kira sympathizer. Do you believe Kira is justice, Mogi-san?"

There was a beat of silence, and then Near said: "So you don't sympathize with Kira, then."

Mogi must have shaken his head.

"If you don't sympathize with Kira, then you must want to catch him, right?" Near continued. "Please nod, or I will be forced to assume that you don't want to catch Kira."

Silence, and then: "So you do want to catch Kira."

He must have nodded.

You really are good at this, Near.

"We also want to catch Kira, Mogi-san," Near said. "You, me, and Mello—we all want to the same thing. So why won't you help us, Mogi-san? If you tell us what's bothering you, then we can talk it out and figuring out something that works for all of us."

Damn, if this Mogi guy doesn't react to any of this, then he really is either a complete simpleton or he's being controlled.

"Won't you even give us a chance, Mogi-san?" Near said. "What about this situation is bothering you? Is it that you doubt our motives? If you tell us why, I am sure we can prove to you that we're acting in all honesty."

There was no answer.

"Or is it that you have a solid reason to believe that the present L is not Kira? Because if that's the case, it would benefit us to hear it, would it not? If you have a solid reason why the present L cannot possibly be Kira, then you could help clear up what would then have been a misunderstanding on our parts, and we can turn our attention elsewhere."

No answer.

I wouldn't believe this guy was capable of talking, at this point, if I hadn't talked to him and heard his voice myself.

"Do you have no reasons at all, then?" Near pressed.

Predictably, Mogi didn't answer.

"I think he's afraid, Near," Mello said, licking the last of the chocolate from his teeth. If he's as much of a thug as he seems, insinuating that he's a coward might be effective… and if the present L really is tapping his phone, and Mogi knows that L is listening in…

"Afraid?" Near prompted. "Afraid of what—of being killed? I thought he's been prepared for that since starting to work on the Kira Case."

"He's either afraid because he does have a suspicion that the current L could be Kira, and there's a possibility that the present L is tapping his phone and is thus overhearing this conversation, and will kill him if he leaks any information…" Mello crumpled the empty chocolate wrapper in his hand. "Or else he's afraid of the possibility that the current L is Kira, because he likes the current L and he doesn't want to believe that he's Kira, and it would also mean that he's been duped for years."

"I see," Near said. "Mogi-san, if you're concerned about L overhearing our conversation, we can hang up on Mello. Would you like us to do that?"

Damn it, Near…! You…!

No, it's okay—Mogi probably still won't answer, and even if he does, I can just call Hal again and then listen through her cellphone, so it's okay.

There was silence, and then Near continued: "Or, if you're afraid of admitting the possibility that you've been duped for years, don't you think the best way to save face would be to figure that out as soon as possible?"

Mogi still didn't answer, and Mello was starting to get annoyed.

He switched the cellphone to his other ear, and said, "You know, Near, I had Mogi go your place so you could get information from him that would convince me of your theory that the current L is Kira, but I think Mogi's silence is speaking louder than words. I didn't really think your theory could be correct, but now I'm practically convinced."

The current L probably is listening through Mogi's cellphone, so if we can aggravate him enough that he'll kill Mogi, it should be proof…

"Yes, I agree that Mogi's silence is rather condemning," Near agreed.

...But if Mogi's already being controlled, then his name would have already been written in the notebook with his date of death fixed, which could be in anytime within the next 23 days…

Near will probably keep him there for that long, though, so I guess we'll see. And if Mogi doesn't die within that time, and won't cooperate with us at all during that time, either, then it's even more clear that the new L has the Japanese Task Force wrapped around his finger and they're all hiding something.

Damn, though—I didn't think this would take that long. I don't think Mogi bought enough extra cellphone batteries to last 23 days.


Mogi had sat down in the desk chair that was offered to him, but he hadn't even nodded to affirm that he was indeed Mogi, and Near looked at him, considering.

The man's face was stony.

Do you not trust me because you now think I'm working with Mello? But that's a senseless sentiment. "All Mello wants is to capture Kira, just like we do," he pointed out. "I'm sure you understand that."

Mogi said nothing, but his eyes were on Near, giving him that look that seemed to say 'you're a freak of nature' (the same look his parents had given him, the same look the President of the United States had given him, the same look the SPK agents had given him originally, before he'd earned their trust and respect…).

Maybe he'll trust me if I seem nicer, or at least more harmless than Mello? Near tried widening his eyes and asking: "Won't you cooperate with us?"

(He was seventeen, but he'd been told he still looked and acted like a child—something which often made people doubt his abilities, but also sometimes made them more willing to believe he didn't have anything up his sleeve. And he'd noted a while ago that sometimes widening his eyes and asking nicely could get him what he wanted.)

Apparently that was the wrong approach for Mogi, though, because Mogi was looking at him like he'd just grown horns and a tail (like the President of the United States had looked at him when he'd said that the current L was a fake created by the Japanese Police and the real L was dead, when the President had looked over at the director of the FBI and asked, "Director Mason… who is he?" but had almost asked: "Director Mason… what is he?").

Near could only conclude that Mogi was afraid for some reason, but—

Is Mogi afraid of being killed by Kira? But he's been on the Japanese Task Force all this time… "And put your life at stake," Near added. You've been doing that already, so working with us shouldn't be any different.

Mogi, aside from staring at him like he was some kind of aberration, remained unresponsive.

That's no good… maybe if I try asking directly then I can get a reaction from him… "You've met the former L, the real L, right?" Near asked, watching him intently. "Is there anybody in the current team who L suspected even in the slightest of being Kira?"

Mogi moved his eyes away from Near to stare straight ahead, his expression becoming even more stony and unreadable.

I can assume that reaction to be an admittance that I've struck a nerve, and therefore a grain of truth, but it's no good if he doesn't say it aloud so that Mello—and potentially L—can hear… "Even a yes or no would suffice."

Mogi said nothing.

Near stared at him. Well, his lack of answer is still an answer, at least. I'm even more certain that the present L is Kira, now.

But it would still be nice to get information out of him…

If I can use his unwillingness to speak against him, then maybe… I'd need Mello's help to pull it off, but Mello should realize what I'm trying to do…

"Mello," Near said, "there is a chance that this investigator is already being controlled by Kira so that he won't say anything,"

Your turn, Mello.

There was a pause, and then Mello said over Mogi's cellphone: "Right, Near. If he doesn't say anything, I think we can assume that Kira is in the Japanese Task Force. There's no reason for him not to want to cooperate to get Kira. Even if it's not by the notebook, he's still being controlled."

Impressive, Mello. You took it even farther than I was expecting.

And it was a little hard to tell over the phone, but it sounded like the smug voice Mello used when he'd figured out how to get complete control of a situation.

So even though Mogi didn't answer, Near didn't say anything, either.

It sounds like I can let you have control of the interrogation for a bit, Mello.

"I actually had a bunch of guys test the notebook a number of ways," Mello said, still sounding smug, "but nobody who wrote the names down died after 13 days."

Near almost smiled.

I figured you'd tested it, Mello—the mafia was the perfect opportunity to do so. And to admit it now that you're sure I've already figured out which rule is the fake one…

Especially after I called up the Japanese Task Force about it and offered to test the rule for them, this is sure to put pressure on Mogi…

"The writer will not die even if that person does not write anything down for more than 13 days," Near repeated, looking over at the Japanese man. "Is there anything that strikes you as odd about this, Mogi?"

Mogi remained silent, but the fluorescent lights reflected starkly off the sheen of sweat on his face.

"Even the slightest thing will do," Near pressed. You're obviously uncomfortable about this revelation… why won't you tell us? Do you not trust us? "All we want to do is get Kira, so there's no reason for us to lie to you. I'm sure it is uneasy for you to have one of your members suspected of being Kira. Then it should be much easier if we talk about it and settle this problem once and for all."

If he believes that the new L is Kira, then he should want to tell us… so he must not…. But if he doesn't want to believe that the new L is Kira, then he should want to defend him, so this should…

Mogi's only reaction was to clench his eyes shut.

Unless he actually is being controlled? If it's the case, then we probably won't be able to get any information of him…. But that would be tantamount to the new L admitting that he's Kira…

So if Mogi isn't being controlled by the notebook, then why won't he say anything? I can't figure him out…

Damn it, this is more Mello's area than mine…

"…We could try torturing the information out of him," Mello suggested.

"No," Near said immediately, firmly. "We will never resort to such methods." Near gave the model airplane a push, watching it roll away from him and then tumble off the edge of the railway in an event that, full-sized, would definitely have killed all the passengers. "We're not like Kira—we won't use pain and fear to force anyone to cooperate with us."

It's unlikely, even if we did try to torture the information out of Mogi, that he would talk—and if we did torture him, it would completely eradicate any chance we might have of getting anyone else from the Task Force to work with us. We have to show that we're trustworthy—we have to prove that we're the good guys here.

"Sometimes you need to fight fire with fire," Mello insisted, and now Near could detect a note of smugness in his voice.

Why are you even suggesting that, Mello? You know we can't—

Oh.

I see. You're playing the devil's advocate so we can strengthen our position… and if they don't trust you, then this might make them trust me enough to still work with us, which would benefit us both.

That's clever, Mello.

"No," Near said again. He reached out to pick up the model airplane, setting about fixing the wing that had snapped off. "We will never lower ourselves to Kira's level. Justice and reason will definitely prevail."

That should be convincing, I think.

Near set the fixed plane back on the runway, turning to look at Mogi again. "Won't you help us bring Kira to justice, Mogi?"

Mogi remained stony and silent, perfectly still without a single tell.

Near looked down, reaching up to twirl his hair around his fingers. This man won't listen to reason… has Kira really blinded him so much?

Near tugged on his hair. This is disgusting.

"Maybe he actually agrees with Kira, and that's why he won't help us," Mello said.

Near moved his head slightly, just enough to watch Mogi through his bangs

The man sat there resolutely with his eyes clenched shut, his jaw clenched, taking slow breaths in and out through his nose, beads of sweat glistening a bright white under the fluorescent lights.

Near let go of the lock of hair he'd been tugging on. "I don't believe that Mr. Mogi is that kind of person," he said, keeping his gaze on the Mogi. Any kind of tell at all… "You don't believe that Kira is justice, right, Mogi-san?"

Mogi still didn't look like he was going to say anything anytime soon.

Maybe if I ask him directly…

"Mogi-san, do you believe Kira is justice? You don't have to speak—a nod or a shake of your head will suffice."

The man remained almost perfectly still—though Near thought he might have seen the man's hands tense slightly. But he still wasn't answering.

At this point it looks like I don't have a choice but to force him to answer.

"Mogi-san, I am going to ask again," Near stated. "And if you don't shake your head, I am going to have to assume that you are a Kira sympathizer." He kept his eyes on Mogi, reaching up to twirl his hair, the fibers soft and smooth, tickling at his scalp and the pads of his fingers. "Do you believe Kira is justice, Mogi-san?"

He watched the man intently, and slowly, after several moments, Mogi shook his head slightly. It was barely a movement, but it was enough.

"So you don't sympathize with Kira, then," Near said, letting go of his hair and lowering his hand. "If you don't sympathize with Kira, then you must want to catch him, right? Please nod, or I will be forced to assume that you don't want to catch Kira."

After several moments Mogi nodded very slightly, his eyes still clenched shut and his jaw still tight.

"So you do want to catch Kira," Near said. "We also want to catch Kira, Mogi-san. You, me, and Mello—we all want to the same thing. So why won't you help us, Mogi-san?"

I really dislike having to repeat myself like this. He's not being reasonable…

"If you tell us what's bothering you, then we can talk it out and figuring out something that works for all of us."

Mogi kept his eyes and mouth clenched shut, and Near felt irritation start to overtake him, and reached up to start curling his hair around his fingers again, willing the emotion back down.

Irritation serves no purpose, and will only embitter the situation, he told himself. I need to address this calmly and reasonably.

"Won't you even give us a chance, Mogi-san? What about this situation is bothering you?" He waited a beat, and then guessed: "Is it that you doubt our motives? If you tell us why, I am sure we can prove to you that we're acting in all honesty."

We have far more motivation to solve this case than you do, you know… you should know that just from the fact that we're L's successors…

Mogi still didn't seem like he was going to answer, though.

The speed at which Near was twirling his hair increased. How can you possibly think it's okay to hide someone who could possibly be Kira? How do you justify that to yourself?

But if it's emotions, then maybe…

He tried offering diplomatically: "Or is it that you have a solid reason to believe that the present L is not Kira? Because if that's the case it would benefit us to hear it, would it not? If you have a solid reason why the present L cannot possibly be Kira, then you could help clear up what would then have been a misunderstanding on our parts, we can turn our attention elsewhere."

That's reasonable, right?

Mogi still refused to answer, though, so Near prodded: "Do you have no reasons at all, then?"

Mogi remained silent, eyes still clenched shut and lips firmly pressed together, and Near curled his fingers around his hair and tugged.

Why won't this work? What am I doing wrong? Mello expects me to get the information out of him, but I can't… it's not working…

"I think he's afraid, Near," Mello said, and Near stopped tugging.

"Afraid?" he asked, not certain he understood. "Afraid of what—of being killed? I thought he's been prepared for that since starting to work on the Kira Case."

"He's either afraid because he does have a suspicion that the current L could be Kira, and there's a possibility that the present L is tapping his phone and is thus overhearing this conversation, and will kill him if he leaks any information…" Mello still sounded smug and in-control.

How do you do it, Mello…?

"Or else he's afraid of the possibility that the current L is Kira, because he likes the current L and he doesn't want to believe that he's Kira, and it would also mean that he's been duped for years," Mello said.

Mello, are you offering those suggestions as issues for me to resolve to get him to talk, or are you trying to make him feel ashamed of being afraid? If I don't know which one you're aiming for, I can't… but if I hesitate now, then…

"I see," Near said, even though he didn't.

I have to respond in a way that should work for either… it's still unlikely he'll react, but it's worth a try…

He twirled his hair slowly around his fingers. "Mogi-san, if you're concerned about L overhearing our conversation, we can hang up on Mello." He watched Mogi's face. "Would you like us to do that?"

The only movement from Mogi was the drops of glistening sweat sliding down his face—not even his grip around the phone Mello was listening through moved, remaining in a careful but light hold.

He's been trained well… if he has any tells, I can't see them… I'm not sure if continuing to question him will actually be fruitful, at this point, but I might as well…

Mello's given me this chance… I have to…

"Or, if you're afraid of admitting the possibility that you've been duped for years, don't you think the best way to save face would be to figure that out as soon as possible?"

But for some reason people never seem to want to admit that they're wrong, even if admitting that you're wrong is the only way to become right… the more you deny being wrong, the more wrong you are… why do people insist on being wrong?

Near watched Mogi and echoed the man's silence.

Maybe if we stop talking for a while, and let him think it over…?

"You know, Near," came Mello's voice through Mogi's phone, "I had Mogi go your place so you could get information from him that would convince me of your theory that the current L is Kira, but I think Mogi's silence is speaking louder than words. I didn't really think your theory could be correct, but now I'm practically convinced."

"Yes, I agree that Mogi's silence is rather condemning," Near agreed.

Do you actually believe my theory now, Mello, or are you just saying that to try to get Mogi to say something?

We can keep trying to get Mogi to talk, but it doesn't seem like we'll get any information out of him… but if I've managed to convince Mello that the present L is Kira, then at least I've still accomplished something.

And, assuming that L does know that Mogi is here and has indeed been listening to this conversation, things might get interesting…


Light listened to Near and Mello interrogate Mogi and didn't even bother to keep himself from clenching his teeth.

(The only person with him was Matsuda, who trusted him completely, and it was a perfectly understandable reaction to him to be angry when he was listening to one of his agents being interrogated by people who were convinced he was Kira.)

Mogi, this is a trap. Near is connected to Mello, so he shouldn't be trusted. This is a trap to frame the Task Force. That's what you need to think.

Luckily Mogi wasn't talking, and it was highly unlikely that he would—but Near and Mello sure were being persistent.

They're as tenacious as L…

Damn it. Even if Mogi can keep his mouth shut, Aizawa and Ide are listening to this conversation, and it's going to affect them… Do I have no choice but to kill them…? But if I kill them now, then L is Kira.

But if Near and Mello don't find out that L is Light Yagami…

No, I can't kill Near yet anyway. Just three more days and…


It had been dark out for hours, but Near and Mello were still awake.

Near sat on the ground with a deck of playing cards, shuffling them, laying them out organized by suit and number, then gathering them up and shuffling them again, then laying them out organized by suit and number again. And again. And again.

Mogi's cellphone was on the ground beside him, still on. The batteries had already been replaced twice. Between the first time they were replaced and the second time they were replaced, Mello and Near had barely spoken.

"Near," came Mello's voice through the phone, after a long while.

Near gathered up the cards and started shuffling them again. "Yes, Mello?"

"Is Mogi still awake?"

Near glanced over at the Japanese man. He was slumped in the desk chair they'd provided him, his eyes closed in a relaxed manner.

"No," Near said, the cards making a soft snapping sound between his hands.

"And the others?"

"Lidner and Gevanni are resting. Commander Rester is currently keeping watch."

In the hotel room, Mello was sitting with his back against the brick wall, his legs slightly pulled up and arms resting over his knees, phone held lightly in one hand, turned on to speakerphone.

He stared distantly at the far wall of the dark room, listening to the flip of cards through the phone and the sounds of cars and the city on the other side of the windowpane above and to the right of him.

"Seven hours of interrogation, and the guy still wouldn't talk," he said.

"Yes," Near agreed, his voice as emotionless as ever. "I am sorry I wasn't able to do what you asked."

"No," Mello said, letting his head fall back against the wall. "The present L is Kira. Mogi's refusal to speak made that clear enough."

"But we don't have any further information," Near said. "And we haven't found a way of getting proof."

"I'll get you proof," Mello said, staring up at the dark ceiling. There was a dubious stain up there, but it was hard to make out at night. "I'm going to bring you Kira's head, Near. I told you: I'll get him myself."

Near was silent for several moments. He sorted through the deck of cards in his hand, found the ace of spades, and placed it down, saying finally: "It would be better if you could bring him in with his body still attached."

Mello snorted slightly. "You haven't changed, Near."

"You have."

Mello closed his eyes. "I'm going to keep the Death Note, you know," he said.

Near's eyes were wide-open. "You don't know my real name, Mello," he replied, a lock of his hair curled tightly around his fingers.

"No," Mello agreed easily, "I don't."

They both fell silent, after that; Mello did not think about whether or not he'd write Near's name down in the Death Note, if he had the opportunity to do so, and Near did not ask.

Their silence stretched on.


It was their third day of interrogating Mogi when the ruckus started outside, and Mello glanced out the window to see a mob congregating around the SPK building and waving Kira banners, two helicopters circling overhead.

"Pull up Sakura TV," he heard Near say.

Kira's doing… this cinches it. The present L is definitely Kira. The timing is too perfect. He might as well just come out and say "I'm Kira." So why would he…?

"Near, if we stay here, we're going to be dragged out," came Hal's voice distantly through the cellphone in Mello's hand.

"We've got no choice but to bring in our men and…" That was the Anthony guy's voice.

If they're dragged in front of the cameras, they'll be killed by Kira… does Kira/L think that if he can kill Near and the rest of the SPK members that he'll be safe or something?

Kira/L really is an idiot. Near would never be killed in that way. He undoubtedly already has a plan to get out of that situation.

And besides, even if Near was somehow killed, that wouldn't make you safe, Kira—there'd still be me.

There was a beep from the SPK monitors, just barely audible over the phone.

/What's the problem, Near?/ came the current L's scrambled voice. /I knew that Mello sent our investigator Mogi to your place, and we asked him to remain silent while we listened to what you had to say, in order to figure out if you were worthy of our trust and cooperation. But if this continues on, Mogi will be…/

Mello grit his teeth. That's complete bullshit, Kira. 'Figure out if you were worthy of our trust and cooperation' my ass. Anyone in your position who wasn't Kira would have trusted and cooperated with us.

/Is this a plan by Mello to get rid of the SPK?/ Kira taunted, and it took all of Mello's self-control not to snap the cellphone in half. I would never do something like this…! /Or was the SPK so poorly organized that even the public was able to find out where your hideout was?/

Fuck you, Kira. Fuck you.

Mello clenched his teeth, glaring out the window at the crowd of driveling idiots surrounding the SPK building, several of which had lit a large fire in front of the doors. The hatred surged in his chest, black and oily, like a single spark would set it alight and consume him.

/Near, you must escape./

"Look who's talking, Kira," Near said, echoing Mello's thoughts exactly.

/Wh-what…?/ Kira stammered. /Are you still going on about that?! If you don't do something, Mogi's going to be killed too! You must escape…/

Kira can't possibly think such a crap act would convince us. It must all be an act for the Japanese Task Force—in which case, they're really all idiots.

Damn it! I should've killed everyone on the Japanese Task Force when I had the chance…!

"All this happened right after Mr. Mogi showed up," Near was pointing out to Kira, sounding ridiculously calm despite the fact that the building he was in was currently under siege by a hoard of stupid fucking Kira worshipers. "There are only a handful of people who could have known that he was coming here. There are other organizations in other countries that are also trying to capture Kira, so I find it hard to believe that this is a mere coincidence. You are Kira."

Obviously, yeah.

"You did it with the hopes of killing all the SPK members and Mogi," Near continued. "And once we all die, you're going to kill everybody else on the Japanese Task Force. That's your plan."

Way to call him out on it, Near. If the other members of the Japanese Task Force aren't convinced that L is Kira after all this then, god, they're utterly fucking hopeless… Kira must have them eating out of the palm of his hand.

/Wh-what, stop joking, Near, you're making a mistake and assuming it's correct!/

Mello had never wanted to shoot someone so much in his entire life.

I am going to kill you, Kira. You're going to die by my hands.

It wasn't even about being Number One any more—Kira needed to die. It was as simple as that.

"Everyone on the Japanese Task Force, Kira is among you, at the very least," Near was saying. "Please think about that."

The mob outside the SPK building was getting even rowdier, the helicopters swooping lower and broadcasting instructions that Mello couldn't make out through the brick wall and closed window of the hotel room.

He could make out Anthony's voice over the phone, though, as the man said: "Near, we've got to do something fast…"

So of course, Near decided to take that moment to start waxing poetic about mob psychology.

"Such foolish people." Near's voice was as unemotional as ever. "I am not surprised that some people support Kira. But those people hope that Kira will bring justice to an evil world… the people who are storming this building are a completely different type… a far more hopeless kind."

Nobody cares, Near! Get out of there already, damn it! If you're killed by Kira because I sent Mogi over to your headquarters then I won't be able to rub your face in your defeat when I catch Kira—I won't have won fairly!

I can't be Number One just because you died, Near!

But Near, of course, continued on: "They either end up as killers, acting completely opposite from Kira's true values because they worship so blindly. Or they are the 'if you can't beat them, join them' type, who followed the worshipers here. Or they are idiots who just want to rampage and enjoy themselves. And quite a few of them are actually against Kira…"

Anthony clearly echoed Mello's thoughts, though he phrased it in a gentler manner: "Near… this isn't the time to analyze the people down there."

"On the contrary," Near said.

Oh, here we go, Mello thought bitterly. He's still playing the supercilious know-it-all, just like he did at Wammy's House.

So of course, Near continued: "Originally, Kira supporters were observers who didn't want to be hurt themselves… the ones rampaging down there are egocentric people who just want to enjoy themselves, right?"

The Anthony guy stammered out: "Y-yes, but…"

"Then we'll use that to our advantage by using L's fortune and all the anti-Kira people we hired," Near said.

...So that's your plan for getting out, huh? I knew you must have one, but this one sure sounds stupid.

Anthony also sounded dubious: "B-but that plan is just a stopgap measure…"

"Let's do it," Near said emotionlessly. "We should be prepared. It's going to be fun."

The fuck are you up to, Near?

A few minutes later, money started falling from one of the SPK building's higher windows, countless number of green U.S. dollar bills fluttering towards the ground, causing an immediate chaos as the members of the mob scrambled over each other to gather up as much as they could.

Throwing money out the window, huh? That's sure a creative way of using L's inheritance… Somehow I don't think anybody but you would've thought of such a childish strategy… It's tantamount to that "Oh, look over there!" trick.

The mob was in an uproar, scrambling over each other for the money, turning against each other and completely forgetting about trying to get into the SPK building.

It's a stupid strategy—but the pathetic part is that it really appears to be working.

(And most people probably wouldn't have been able to think of a way to get out of this situation at all…)

"Mello, we're going to escape now," came Near's voice, "so I'm going to turn of Mr. Mogi's cellphone."

There was a beep as the call was ended, and then Mello was left in the relative silence of the hotel room, watching the money flutter down out outside the window.

He glanced away from the hoard of idiotic Kira worshipers, looking down at the phone he still held in his hand.

Well, Near's getting out of here in this mess, he thought, and tucked his phone away in his pocket. This is my best chance, too.


It was their third day of interrogating Mogi when the helicopters arrived, bringing an angry mob with them, and Near eyed the scene, thought Kira, and said "Pull up Sakura TV."

Gevanni's fingers tapped quickly across the computer keys, and then the monitors all along the wall were filled with the footage of the mob surrounding the SPK building and Demegawa in his helicopter with a microphone in his hand.

"I, Demegawa, have finally discovered the hideout of the evil syndicate that plots to capture our god, Kira!" Kira's spokesperson from Japan's Sakura TV was declaring from within his helicopter. "I have surrounded them along with our comrades! I have just received information that the remaining members of the SPK, who have secretly been active, are hiding in this building!"

The mob was roaring, brandishing their iron crowbars, their flaming alcohol bottles, their throwing stones, waving their black Kira banners and wearing their black Kira armbands like they were Nazi insignia.

"Behold the power of the people!" Demegawa cried. "The power of justice!"

The mob was roaring.

"Come out!"

"Break the door down!"

"Near," that was Lidner, "if we stay here, we're going to be dragged out."

"We've got no choice but to bring in our men and…" Commander Rester.

Near's narrowed eyes were fixed to the screens, his hand carefully curled over one of his mecha robots.

Kira… the timing of this proves that Kira really is in the Japanese Task Force… but if we all die, then there'll be nobody to talk about it… so that's what Kira's aim is…

Beep.

The news footage was replaced with images of a black Cloister Black L on a white background.

L…! Near reached over and took his headset, placing it over his ears and flipping down the mic, pressing the button to accept the call.

/What's the problem, Near?/ L said immediately. /I knew that Mello sent our investigator Mogi to your place, and we asked him to remain silent while we listened to what you had to say, in order to figure out if you were worthy of our trust and cooperation. But if this continues on, Mogi will be… Is this a plan by Mello to get rid of the SPK? Or was the SPK so poorly organized that even the public was able to find out where your hideout was?/

Near's hand clenched, the mecha robot's head shattering between his fingers. Damn it, he's lying through his teeth…

Gevanni pulled up the news footage again so that L's symbol wasn't monopolizing the screen.

"My comrades, fellow supporters of Kira!" Demegawa was announcing. "Don't rush into the building all at once! The rebels might try to escape by mingling with the crowd! As Kira's spokesperson, I order you to slowly but surely hunt them down, so that we can get them on camera and offer them up to Kira!"

/Near, you must escape,/ came L's scrambled voice.

Near looked down at the broken robot in his hands. Time for a direct confrontational approach, it seems.

"Look who's talking, Kira," he said.

/Wh-what…? Are you still going on about that? If you don't do something, Mogi's going to be killed too! You must escape…/

You know I'm right, Kira, and you know I know you're acting. Which means that the real battle here—who we're trying to convince—is the Japanese Task Force.

(And Mello—but Mello can figure this all out for himself. He doesn't need me to spell it out for him.)

"All this happened right after Mr. Mogi showed up," Near pointed out. "There are only a handful of people who could have known that he was coming here. There are other organizations in other countries that are also trying to capture Kira, so I find it hard to believe that this is a mere coincidence. You are Kira."

Whoever can't figure that out is worse than preschooler.

And Kira must know how obvious he's being, which means: "You did it with the hopes of killing all the SPK members and Mogi. And once we all die, you're going to kill everybody else on the Japanese Task Force. That's your plan."

You wouldn't risk keeping them alive after letting your cover slip so much. And you wouldn't have any need for keeping them alive at that point, anyway.

The only question is why you're even waiting to kill them until after you kill me… you could kill them first and then operate more freely, so why aren't you?

Unless everyone on the Japanese Task Force is knowingly working for Kira…? It would explain why Mogi won't speak… But if that's the case, why keep up the Task Force charade in the first place? It wouldn't make any sense…

Kira has to be duping the rest of the Task Force…

/Wh-what, stop joking, Near, you're making a mistake and assuming it's correct!/

No, you're taking an absolute truth and insisting it's false. You might as well be trying to convince me that gravity doesn't work.

"Everyone on the Japanese Task Force, Kira is among you, at the very least," Near said. Someone has to be suspicious after this. "Please think about that."

Near pressed the button to end the call.

Beep.

Kira trying to drag us out and kill us like this may actually prove to be the what it takes to get a member of the Japanese Task Force to cooperate with us.

On Sakura TV, Demegawa was ordering: "The first group—break through the door and enter! The second group will wait to enter until 20 people from the first group are in!"

The mob and the fire they'd started outside of the SPK doors were both roaring.

Rather than following Demegawa's orders, the members of the mob were turning on each other.

"Yo, we're the first group."

"What?! We're going in first!"

"Near," that was Commander Rester, "we've got to do something fast…"

Near paused from lining up his mecha robots, glancing up at the footage on the monitors, feeling a swell of disgust. "Such foolish people."

Oh well. We can use that to our advantage. That stopgap measure we prepared will definitely work.

If he suggested they do it without giving any explanation, though, he'd probably meet some resistance, so he elaborated on his analysis: "I am not surprised that some people support Kira. But those people hope that Kira will bring justice to an evil world… the people who are storming this building are a completely different type… a far more hopeless kind."

And it looks like we have no reason to rush…

Instead of using their baseball bats and iron crowbars to break down the SPK doors, the members of the mob were hitting each other with them, pushing and shoving, kicking each other to the ground.

"They either end up as killers," Near said as he watched the footage, "acting completely opposite from Kira's true values because they worship so blindly. Or they are the 'if you can't beat them, join them' type, who followed the worshipers here."

He watched as more and more members of the mob jointed the brawl, even those who weren't anywhere near the SPK doors.

"Or they are idiots who just want to rampage and enjoy themselves," Near added. He spotted someone taking advantage of the chaos to pickpocket. "And quite a few of them are actually against Kira…"

Anyone involved in any kind of criminal or illegal activity would be against Kira, and there are definitely people in that crowd who are criminals…

"Near…" that was Commander Rester. "This isn't the time to analyze the people down there."

"On the contrary," Near said. You wouldn't follow my instructions if I didn't explain my reasoning first, and we'd end up wasting even more time arguing. "Originally, Kira supporters were observers who didn't want to be hurt themselves… the ones rampaging down there are egocentric people who just want to enjoy themselves, right?"

"Y-yes, but…" Commander Rester.

"Then we'll use that to our advantage by using L's fortune and all the anti-Kira people we hired," Near said. None of you thought much of that plan when I first suggested we prepare it, but now you should see that it should work…

"B-but that plan is just a stopgap measure…" Commander Rester.

Good—if that's his only protest, then it's fine. I don't have to deal with any more sentiments like "Do you really think throwing money out the window is going to work?" or "Are you sure it's okay to use L's money like that?" as if money is more important than our lives, or as if they could actually think of something better—I just have to act confident.

"Let's do it," Near said. "We should be prepared."

And then, because it had always seemed to be effective whenever Mello had said it (convincing Matt or one of the other Wammy's kids to go along with his plans), Near added: "It's going to be fun."

Speaking of Mello…

Once the money started falling and Near had ascertained from the footage that the plan was indeed working, and the members of the mob were suitably distracted, Near said: "Mello, we're going to escape now, so I'm going to turn of Mr. Mogi's cellphone."

There was a beep as Gevanni obligingly turned the device off.

It was good working with you, Mello…

Near stood up, beginning to gather his mecha robots into his arms.

I hope we'll get the chance to do so again.


Light stared with widened eyes at the footage of dollar bills fluttering down into the mob of Kira supporters and didn't even have to keep himself from clenching his teeth, his lips parted and jaw dropped slightly in incredulity.

Damn it! Near's using money to divert the people's attention… and he's going to try and escape in the chaos1 But as long as Demegawa keeps doing his job…

"P-pilot, fly over to that floor where all the money's coming from!" Demegawa shouted, pointing frantically at the flurry of money.

Demegawa! What are you doing? You have to lead the mob! I can't afford to let them get away!

"Wow, I'm going too…" Matsuda said beside him. "Oh, but I'm in L.A., and that's in New York. Shoot…"

Light ignored him.

'Humans are great…' Ryuk cackled. 'But then again, I can understand because you can buy apples with that money….'

Light ignored him, too.

There're too many people… Light thought frantically. He forced himself to calm down. No, if I can locate Mogi around the entrance using Aizawa and Ide's camera, then I can have them follow him, and…

His eyes widened further as the riot squad showed up, their faces hidden by masks, and Light felt a jolt of alarm as he realized Near's plan.

I-I never expected this from them… they're going to be disguised as members of the riot squad… his fists clenched, his panic mounting. It will be tantamount to confessing that I'm Kira if I order Aizawa and Ide to capture every policeman they see… Misa doesn't have the brains to give orders to have the mob stop the police. And even if she did, Demegawa is too distracted by the money…

"Aizawa, Ide," he said, "I suspect that Mogi and the others will be dressed up as policemen to escape from the building. I'll lose Mogi's whereabouts if they do." That's the most I can say for the timebeing… "I want you to keep an eye on the policemen, especially those who seem to be moving away from the building, and follow them…"

"L, that's impossible," ide replied over the intercom. "There are 50… no, closer to 100 policemen. It'll be impossible for only two of us to keep an eye on all of them…"

Aizawa, rather uncharacteristically, didn't say anything.

"B-but at least Mogi won't be killed by Kira now," Ide added. "We should at least be satisfied with that…"

"Yes…" Light said, and carefully did not clench his teeth. "As long as Mogi's safe…"

Damn…!

"It looks like there's about 10 million dollars…" Matsuda said, still watching the money falling from the skyscraper in wonderment.

Light ignored him.

'How many apples will that buy?' Ryuk asked.

Light ignored him, too.

Members of the riot squad were moving away from the building, but it was impossible to tell if any of them were Near and the other SPK members, as all of their faces were hidden. And it was actually highly likely that at least some of them were real riot squad members, as they seemed to be escorting some of the Kira supporters they'd managed to subdue and arrest.

Light clenched his fists, and finally gave up on not clenching his teeth.

Damn it, Near, what the hell kind of strategy was that?! That wasn't at all what L would have done…!


Near began gathering his mecha robots up into his arms.

"Commander Rester," he said as he picked up the toys one by one, "get everyone in their riot squad gear, and tell them that they will receive rewards far greater than those they see right now… it will be better to have some of them completely blinded by the reward… please tell them that."

"Okay," Commander Rester said.

Near straightened, hugging the three mecha robots to his chest and looking up through his hair, observing the footage of the chaos outside the building.

In order to get out through the mob without raising suspicion, we'll have to…

"Commander Rester.," he said, "Wammy's House provided the Japanese Task Force with a sketch of me. Assuming that L is Kira, you are the only member of the SPK whose face is unknown to them. Therefore, in order to make it look as natural as possible and take Mr. Mogi with us, I must ask you to dress up as one of the Kira supporters. We will then have Mogi dressed up in riot squad gear with you handcuffed to his wrist to make it look like we're squad members leaving the scene in order to escort a rioter into custody."

"O-okay…" Commander Rester said, and obligingly removed his black tie from his neck, taking a dispenser of liquid white-out from the desk and writing 'Kira' several times along the tie before tying it around his left arm.

Gevanni and Lidner started dressing up in riot squad gear. Mogi donned the riot squad gear without complaint or any form of physical resistance, his face as stoic as ever.

Near started trying to put on the riot squad gear, as well. But while the black under-suit wasn't difficult, he found himself at a loss with all the protection plates until Commander Rester came over to help him. (There were Upper Body Protection plates, Shoulder Protection plates, Forearm Protection plates, Thigh Protection Plates, Groin Protection plates, Knee Guard Protection plates, Shin Guard Protection plates—items that Near didn't know how to navigate, having spent most of his life wearing pajamas and other loose, comfortable clothing that neither obstructed his movement nor irritated his skin.)

Mogi didn't resist when Commander Rester handcuffed their wrists together.

This gear is uncomfortable, Near thought, but what he said was: "Let's go. We'll have no problems walking straight out through the front entrance now. We can sneak Mr. Mogi's cellphone into someone's pocket outside."

Then he placed the riot control helmet over his head and flipped down the tinted visor and stood up from where he'd been crouched on the ground.

This one's your loss, Kira.


It was indeed unfortunate that his plan to take out Near and the SPK had failed, but within thirty minutes after the mob dispersed Light was calm again.

The way that Near got out of that… he mused; actually, it's probably exactly what L would have done. His plan to fake Matsuda's death was equally childish, and also equally effective. And dressing up as riot squad members and escaping while the mob was in chaos was probably the only way Near could have gotten out of that situation, anyway.

And on top of that, he already assumes I'm Kira…

Light exhaled and leaned back in his desk-chair. I have to admit it: Near's a formidable foe. It looks like I'll have to start taking him seriously.

It's almost like going up against L again…

The corner of his lips curved upwards.

All the better for me that you're so similar to him, Near—I already know how L would go about things, so your movements from now on are going to be easy for me predict.

Matsuda was asleep and wouldn't see anything, so Light let himself smirk victoriously.

It's going to take effort, certainly, and I'll have to be careful, but I'm definitely going to win this battle of wits, Near.

He didn't think at all about Mello.


TBC.


AN: If you have any questions, please first refer to the author notes (Chapter 6) to see if your confusion/concern/matter of curiosity is addressed there.