I'd like to preface by saying that this would have been up earlier but I was playing Pokemon Crystal online, can you blame me?

Anyways, here is Chapter Four. For whatever reason, I assumed that the SPK HQ was settled in New York but then after the raid and the whole warehouse thing, I don't know where the hell they went and in one story, I had them based in New York but then in the original draft for this story, they were in LA for whatever reason. I don't know. For story purposes, they're still staying in the New York City area. I can't remember if it was ever stated in canon where they were based, if anyone knows and wants to tell me that'd be cool.

Disclaimer: I don't own Death Note

Halle helped him pack.

Mello's pajamas had lost their scent so Halle had gone out and bought nearly identical sets for him. Near had folded Mello's clothes and placed them safely in a small box he kept in his dresser. Due to Near not having much travel experience, the Kira case notwithstanding, and the current cold temperatures in Virginia, Halle had also taken the liberty of purchasing some thermal sets and a thick coat for him. Even if he didn't go outside much, there would be transitional periods and he didn't fancy being cold.

Whatever room left in his main suitcase was filled with miscellaneous packs of dice, cards, spinning tops, and the like. Halle had managed to get his robots, figurines, and puppets to fit in a single carry-on bag before shoving hygiene produces into a plastic case and wedging it between his clothes.

Earlier that morning, Halle got him to eat half of a granola bar and small cup of milk, but it was approaching noon and she didn't know if she had it in her to force the young man to eat something again. Usually she left that bit to Gevanni, the soft spoken man was usually able to coerce Near into eating a small sandwich, but he was helping Rester pack everything else.

"Halle," Near's voice came as a surprise, he'd yet to speak since accepting the case from Rester the night previous.

"Yes?"

"I've been running scenarios through my head all morning and none of them end how I want them to, but I've been told that I have a tendency to overlook certain angles," he paused a moment, pushing himself up until he was more or less sitting, "Do you think there was a way to win, without their deaths?"

Near hadn't said their names out loud. It was always 'their' death, 'their' funeral, I've been thinking about 'them'.

"I don't think so, taking out Takada was a turning point in the case, we were in no position to do so. Removing Takada from the equation threw everything out of balance, especially because of the way it was carried out. I suppose the only way they would have survived was if we took them into a sort of protective custody but Kira would not have-"

"Right, thank you, Halle."

The cut off was cold, much sharper of a tone than Near usually used. Perhaps he didn't like anyone else talking about 'them'.

Halle took his things downstairs and left Near to shuffle himself out. If he wanted someone to help him, he'd ask, otherwise he'd attempt to prove himself. Near refused to at least consult with a physical therapist and opted instead to suffer in silence and grit his teeth through the pain until he fell down. Rester was usually the only who ended up carrying him, as it happened, a piggy back was the least demeaning. Once, Gevanni had to push him in a wheelchair.

Near had not been happy about that.

They split into two teams, and sat apart from each other. Near and Rester took the first flight while Gevanni and Halle would take a second flight a few hours after.

Near was seated beside a young girl who appeared to be flying unaccompanied, though he wasn't terribly annoyed by her, she had the window seat and she was completely preoccupied with looking out it, even though they were still grounded. Rester was worse off, sandwiched between two older men who reeked of cigarette smoke and sweat.

When the plane finally began to move, the girl gave a frightened squeak and clutched at the arm rests. She had a small pack at her feet, bright pink with Hello Kitty's face emblazoned on the front pocket. The stewardess came by to make sure the girl was alright and Near tipped his head back.

He'd reviewed more of the case details on the drive because Halle had shoved the papers in his face and threatened to take away hi carry-on unless he did as she said.

Despite the physical differences, the coroner's report for each victim was nearly identical. Each had an alarming amount of Oxycodone in their system, they weren't malnourished or dehydrated. They suffered more or less the same injuries, broken fingers and varying numbers of disconnected joints. There was a lack of open wounds, aside from the occasional scratch. But there were plenty of bruises, they seemed to increase with each body.

With a sigh, Near rubbed at his eyes.

Melissa, according the tag on her backpack, was quietly playing with a couple of Barbie dolls, sipping a cup of apple juice that the stewardess had brought by.

"Mister," she whispered, poking his shoulder with the hand of her doll.

Near made a noise to tell her he'd heard her, but he made no effort to move.

"Are you old? Your hair is white, I've only seen old people with white hair. You don't look old though. But you've got to be because you've got white hair."

Opening his eyes, Near assessed the girl before him. Melissa had glasses, suspended on a decorative chain. Her hair was a shocking red, pulled back into pigtails. Her front teeth were crooked and a light smattering of freckles stretched across her cheeks and nose. She was dressed in a sweater that was several sizes too big and worn hand me down jeans. She was small but there was something glimmering in her eyes.

Near recognized it as intelligence.

"I'm not old," he said shortly, "I don't know why my hair is white."

"Hmm, that's strange, do either of your parents have white hair?" Mello asked, setting her dolls on the pull out tray.

"No."

"That's strange," she repeated, "I have my mama's hair, my dad is blond. That's why I'm flying actually, to visit my dad."

"How old are you?" Near asked.

"Nine."

They touched down somewhere in Pennsylvania, half of the plane emptied only to be filled a moment later by new passengers. Melissa spoke up again.

"Why are you going to Virginia?" she looked at him expectantly, fiddling with the hem of her sweater.

"Business."

"Don't business men wear suits? You're dressed in pajamas," she giggled.

"That- that's a good point," a light grin tugged at his lips and Near found that confusing.

When the plane was up in the air again, Mellissa offered him one of her dolls. Near declined the offer but dug around in his carry-on for Optimus Prime. Melissa was seemed thrilled at the prospect of robots and begged Near to let her use one. She put away her Barbie dolls and chose a Decepticon from Near's collection.

He played with Melissa for the majority of the flight, a little awkward as he was now playing with someone else. Melissa seemed to sense that he was distracted and pulled out a little riddle book from her bag. She was fascinated by his ability to solve them so quickly and demanded she give it a try.

"What has an eye, but cannot see?" Near read the first riddle on the page and Melissa scrunched up her nose as she thought.

"Oh! It's a needle!"

"Good, how about a harder one now. There are two sisters: one gives birth to the other and she, in turn, gives birth to the first. Who are the two sisters?"

Near expected her to be stumped for a while, the riddle certainly wasn't all that easy, especially not for a nine year old. But Melissa only grinned.

"That's easy, it's day and night."

As the plane landed, Melissa held out her hand for him to shake.

"It was nice to meet you, not old man," her smile was wide, showing off her dimples.

"You as well, Melissa," he didn't really want to shake her hand so he took a gentle hold on her index finger and thought that good enough.

When he stepped off the plane, he ended their short lived friendship.

Near rejoined Rester at the terminal and he didn't see Melissa.

They drove to the hotel and Rester began setting up their equipment while Near looked around for a spot on the floor where he could work. He sat down slightly off center of the room and began laying out his files. Rester printed off the updated data that the police had emailed him.

There was a few hours before Halle and Gevanni would arrive.

Near spent the next hours memorizing details of the case and formulating loose theories, profiling the killer, that bit was the hardest. His victim pool covered nearly all the bases and he had to focus instead on the state of the bodies, their state in death. Each victim was well kept, aside from the obvious damage, and the fact that they were absolutely overflowing with painkillers. What purpose did breaking their fingers serve? To keep them from attacking him or her? That could easily be solved by tying them up or using duct tape, there was no rope burns or tape residue. Of course, their disjointed bodies would keep them immobile, but why go to such an extreme?

Leaning away from his little set up, Near took a moment to breathe. The case should be textbook, the killings happened in a cycle, a body wouldn't turn up until another went missing. They were disposed of in a way that showed some degree of remorse. Each of the bodies were found in a rather public place, a park, a subway station, the post office, meaning the killer wanted them found quickly. They were half way taken care of, nourished and hydrated. And with the amount of Oxycodone in their system, they were spared the pain of being disjointed.

It was all kinds of curious.

"Experimentation," Near whispered.

He looked around, surprised to see that it was dark outside. Rester sat on the couch, two pairs of shoes sat near the door, so Halle and Gevanni were back.

Rester looked at him in confusion.

"What?"

"The killer, they're experimenting with each body, like B was."

I actually used to fly unaccompanied for long time and they always gave me the window seat and they tried to sit us next to other minors or younger people. I met a lot of pretty cool people that way, Melissa is based on one of them but her physical description was made for story purposes.