Turnabout

L stood frozen, his legs feeling as though they were lead and his feet as though they were pasted to the very floor he stood on, the world stopped before him.

All at once he could feel his life flash before his eyes. Very few times did he experience this and the feeling made him almost nasueas. It was a sudden wave of vertigo that ended just as fast as it had begun.

He licked his bottom lip, his spine suddenly arched in a sort of rigid posture as he stared on at the television before him. His eyes glazed over, only being able to repeat that same phrase in his mind, over and over again.

How could they have taken his photograph? His indentity?

This was the question that plagued his mind, not even so much the time of day so that he may estimate the amount of time that he had exactly before his life was over as he knew it. No, not even that. Just the simple question of,

How?

How could they of possibly gotten ahold of his identity? His photograph? Without him even noticing? Could it in all actuality not be him? Just a random pedestrian walking down some random street with oversized sunglasses, a trench coat and a popped coller? Possibly.

Could he really take the chance though? No.

These thoughts entered and ended in his mind just as fast as his life had flashed and he came to one simple conclusion.

There was exactly a fifty-point-three percent chance that it was not him.

He sighed slowly and then withdrew his left hand to stick the tip of his thumb into his mouth and chew thoughtfully. He nodded slightly, deciding his thoughts were clear and unbias, then he withdrew his thumb and turned around to face the others.

"What are you going to do?" Soichiro asked nervously, a flash of red taking over his face in the nerve-wracking moments that surrounded them all.

L identity meant just as much to all of them as it did to him. If L's identity was blown...they could all imagine to what extremes L would take. He did not enjoy publicity at all, solving his puzzles in security with little exposure to sunlight.

"Don't worry about any of this...I will fix it..." L replied slowly, as though he were still contemplating the reporters words.

"Ryuzaki," Light began.

'Trying to become personal again...' L thought as he studied the others man features as he spoke.

"..tell us your plan. You must trust us to an extent or you wouldn't have agreed to us working with you again. We all want to be able to help, every step of the way."

L studied him for another moment. Was he being honest? As far as he could see...yes...he was. It was a small, genuine, warm smile that then took over his face and that's what made L cock his head just a fraction to the right.

"Alright.." L began, "There is really not much to it. You see, the news crew knows that I watch the news or at least that my handler does. What they are doing is almost like a secret code to me stating, we are going to show the entire world your picture unless you do something about it. By doing something about it would most likely be me bribing them.

But they have already promised their audiences a picture, so I would have to give them something better to change their minds. Something perhaps like an interview."

"But.." Matsuda began, "Wouldn't that...like...defeat the purpose?"

"Yes, if I were to physcially go there. The most I could offer would be the simple laptop interview. My voice over the laptop in which Watari would bring." L replied with a simple nod.

"Oooh!" Matsuda replied, a large smile planted on his face. "Yes! That's perfect, I mean, who wouldn't take up on the offer to interview you!" Matsuda yelled in exitment at the idea of solving a problem so quickly, no hassles involved.

L looked away for a moment before turning to Watari, "Is that alright, Watari?"

Watari blinked a time or two before nodding with a warm smile, "Of course, L."

"Alright...I'll call the news station..." L replied slowly,moving away from the group to get a phone towards the desk.

Watari gave him a curious look as the other man picked up the phone in his odd fashion, index finger and thumb pinching the top.

"You've never seen L pick up a phone before?" Matsuda asked a bit suprised, he thought tat Watari knew practically everything about him. Or at least that he had seen L in action, otherwise why would he have stayed along?

"Oh..oh of course I have..yes..I'm just a bit concerned.." Watari replied, his voice trailing to a sort of whisper.

"Hm? What's the matter, Watari?" Misa questioned, sitting forward in her seat a little, head resting in the palm of her hand.

Watari turned his attention away from the young adult to the group occupying the couches and chairs within the HQ.

"Well..you see..I believe that telling that part of him made him give away a piece of himself to you..I think at that moment he is in a sort of..fragile state..do you know what I mean?"

It was silent around the room for a moment. Fragile? L? How could it be even thought? How could the thought even cross someone mind? Especially the man who had worked alongside him for so long! Surely he should of been able to see that L was no weakling! He could take quite the beating!

So perhaps he looked a bit frail, but he was strong and durable, quite the opposite of what he showed to be.

"I apologise..I suppose it's only a sort of instinct I have about him..I've been there for him since he was very young so I thought perhaps it was a sort of fathers insticts but I suppose I'm just going mad.."

"No..I know what you mean." Soichiro replied quickly at the risk of interupting. He cast his gaze a little lower and then brought it up with a half-smile.

"I've had that same feeling for my own son. When he's had to do personal speeches in front of large crowds...I felt as though I could sense my sons sadness. It looked as if Light felt he had lost some of his..pride and I was miserable thinking that my son felt as though he had just gave up himself."

"Yes, exactly..Thank You Mr. Yagami. I see we have this in common. I feel the same for L...Why, I remember when he was only eight years old and-" Watari cleared his throat and gave a light blush..

He smiled and closed his eyes, reliving fond memories for a moment,

"Ooh! Tell us!" Matsuda whispered in excitment,

"Yeah! Tell us Watari!" Misa chimed in hands folded stiffly up at her chest,

"Quiet you two..If the man doesn't want to continue..then that is his business." Soichiro Yagami replied, not being able to deny that he even would of liked to of heard even one story of when L was a child. In such a naive stage, was L like any other eight year old? Did he hide behind the mask of a genius? Or was he already brillant? His genius showing through at even such a tender age.

"Thank You Mr. Yagami.." Watari whispered inaudibly as he looked up again, tears brimmind his eyes as he looked at the great detective hanging up the phone and coming back over slowly.

The bedhead gave a slightly curious look between them, internally frustrated by the fact he did not know what was going on but he decided to continue on with the previous tasks and goals.

"They agreed, as I thought...I will be doing a laptop interview in an hour.."

"Right, then I should be going.." Watari murmured hastily as he grabbed the laptop soley used for communication.

He grabbed the black trenchcoat, hat, sunglasses and scarf which he thought he wouldn't have to use for quite some time.

Then he left without another word being uttered.

L looked at the time on the clock and nodded slowly when he noticed it most likely wouldn't be for another five minutes before he was contacted by the station.

He adjusted the voice changer once more before closing his eyes briefly. However, a loud 'BING' rang through the main room, shaking some of the people still within the room.

They turned their gaze towards the famous detective to watch as he quickly switched on his microphone with a large ruby red switch.

"Hello? This is a test from Sakura News Station here."

A female voice that seemed to have a tone saying, 'I'm so much better than this but i'll do it because it's job requirements.'

L let the distaste for the tone linger on his tongue as he responded, "Hello." His short curt common cut her a bit short and she took a rather lengthy pause before continuing.

"...the next time we bing you, it'll be time for the interview which will be in about two minutes..."

L cocked his head slightly at the screen before responding, "Yes, alright."

Her tone seemed to of changed in slight increments from the last time she ha spoken. Her tone came off softer, and less rushed.

True to her word, it was no more than two minutes when another loud 'BING' sounded throughout the room, suprising them all again.