Yay! I know it's been a long time and I kind of dropped off the world of for a month or two during the summer... that's when my life gets busiest, dear readers. Anyway, I hope you're all still as interested in reading the next installment as I am to be posting it. And since apparently no one bothers to read profiles (I often don't either), I doubt anyone saw my message that I DO plan on continuing this story, even if I don't get around to updating it as often as I'd like. So, have no fear. You will get more Chess Match, dear readers.
Haha, I say this every chapter, don't I... NO YAOI IN HERE. In fact, you can find some very het people wandering around Light.
Since I try to keep Light and Lelouch's screen time even, and the last chapter featured solely Lelouch, yep, you guessed it, this gives us Light. I expect the next chapter will feature both of them again, because writing a full chapter from Light's perspective was... not as easy for me to do as it was for Lelouch. (Me? Biased?)
And... special thanks to those who reviewed: jcogginsa, Hyrulehalfbreed, Anime-StarWars-fan-zach, 2stupid, Bligy, SlvrSoleAlchmst1 (because I know who you are, even if you don't sign in for your review, lol), Firemasterofkaos, Candelabra, Testukon, Lady Nefrodiel, ???, thepinkmartini (for a review for EVERY chapter), Himizu, the spoiler, Peanuckle, mina, Southpaw (for letting me convince you to continue read and leave reviews even though a Light/Lelouch pairing is not your cup of tea), Miss-Tania, icarus923, chaos-winged-valkyrie (with a review for EVERY chapter), Reapaer, Ireina Kurotsuki, Darkly Dreaming Darling, potterinu, Tsuki the Ryuujin no Miko, Lord Edric, simple, charm, ryder77, The Blizzard Alchemist, Maru-chu, MeEksiNs, Star Jinin, demon89, tebrighteyes, zeppelin13, Helen N., IWOBYD, Ranger24, Syeira, GreenOnBlack, Dark-Hooded Eriol the Magician, KuroAngelique, Emo Naom, What-if-it-was, Obsessive Child, -obscenities, Twilight's Blade, ShdowBlade, Twilight Solstice, InkGirl77, Ryuzaki 007, Cross - The Damned Alchemist, and avatoa.
The Chess Match
7
----L/L----
Light sighed, leaning back in his chair and running both hands through his silky hair. The Death Note lay open in front of him, several new names joining the list. One in particular made him feel especially good about the day's work. Luciano Bradley. The so-called "Vampire of Britannia." Light smirked, twirling his pen around on his hand. Let L call him out on that one.
Light closed the slim black notebook and slipped it into the secret compartment in his desk.
"Can you go get apples now, Light?" the Death God whined from his anxious position over Light's bed. Light turned to face him, not bothering to hide his expression; Ryuk was not much of a Death God, once one had spent time with him.
"Please, Light? You said—"
"Alright, alright," Light conceded, reaching for his coat. While killing the Knight of Ten was important, he still had a pathetic excuse of a Death God to feed. "Let's go, then."
Light exited, locking the door behind him and headed out past the Academy gates. He always wore his uniform when wandering around the Settlement, knowing that if he didn't, he was likely to be stepped on or insulted by Britannians. It was... difficult at times not to twist their arms and throw them to the ground in retaliation, so he resorted to simply blending in as best he could. It was better than tempting him repeatedly to make the eye trade with Ryuk simply so he could get the domineering Caucasians out of Tokyo.
He glanced in the windows of the shops as he passed, trying not to make eye contact with anyone else on the street. An array of televisions caught his eye suddenly and he stopped. Zero and the Black Knights, it seemed.
Ever since L's announcement, Light had been curious to see how the flashy rebel would deal with it, and the masked man had met his expectations. Light had decided that the best response to L would be to continue on as he was. L hadn't been talking to him, so Light wouldn't talk back. If he tried killing more Britannian nobility than he already was, it would be almost as if he were asking L to chase Zero instead.
And where was the fun in that? Most of the world was already trying to track the man down. His chocolate eyes read over the streaming text at the bottom. A mudslide in Narita? Zero was clever enough to use the landscape to his advantage apparently.
"Li-ight, I'm going to start going into withdrawal." Ryuk twisted his head nearly upside down as if to prove his point.
Blinking and sighing, Light turned back to the road and wandered up the street to a convenience store. He bought an apple, ignoring the Death God's happy dance of glee, and held the fruit firmly until he had excited the store.
"Go ahead," Light said softly, tossing the apple up over his shoulder. No sense bothering to check if Ryuk had caught the red fruit, considering how fixated the beast was on it. A few crunches followed.
"Juicy?" Light asked as if to no one in particular, although his mind was already moving elsewhere. He was beginning to reach a dead end with his research into Britannia and names. There was really only so much he could learn without getting closer to the people themselves.
Was that why...? Light clenched a fist, suddenly angry. L would know the limits of the online world. He would know that Kira's information was not growing. But surely L didn't think that Kira would simply stop his judgments when he couldn't find any criminals on the internet. They were both far too tenacious for that. No, L hadn't abandoned their game. He was simply waiting for Kira to make the next step.
Light stopped walking, glancing around at the few people moving along the sidewalk around him. What were his options? The students at school would be the easiest, and were likely the only ones stupid enough to open up about names or names of people they knew. His classmates they may be, but having lived such a pampered life, they amounted to little more than children.
The next step was deciding who and how to get close to them. His mind immediately jumped to Lelouch, but he pushed the thought away. Lelouch was a little different, and Light didn't want to confuse work with pleasure. Killing Britannians and criminals was his job, nearly a sacred duty. Teasing Lelouch was simply a way of killing time.
So, who was next? Milly Ashford seemed like a likely candidate. She had been friendly enough to him and was well-liked throughout the school. Her family was rather well-known and moderately wealthy. Not only that, but as the president of the school, she wielded more power than any other student... even over Lelouch. Milly certainly had connections, and that was exactly what Light was looking for.
He began walking again, his feet finding their way back to the Academy. Milly seemed like a good option, but then again, Light had learned the best way to control women was to date them. He assumed that it probably worked on men as well, but Light had never been curious enough to try and he doubted most men would appreciate the effort. Which is why he had always preferred using women to his advantage. It was easier. But rumors were flying that the Ashford heiress was engaged to a noble of some sort. If Milly really was involved with someone else, especially a Britannian of higher standing than Light could ever hope to achieve, he'd only be seen as pathetic and hopeless in contrast. Some poor Eleven boy pining after someone he could never have if she rejected him in favor of someone her family approved of.
He closed his eyes for a moment, realizing that while having Milly's status on his side would do wonders, he needed to aim a bit lower and work his way up the social ladder. Who would have thought that picking out a girlfriend would be this thought-consuming? He'd never had to put much thought into it before.
He toggled through a mental checklist of single female students in his class. Nanim Aihuhnny. Bridgette McPherson. Cordelia Coronica. Felicia Timberline. Kallen Stadtfeld. Danielle—
Light backtracked, realizing he had nearly skipped over the perfect opportunity.
Kallen Stadtfeld. Beautiful, smart, wealthy, cultured, and best of all... hardly present due to poor health. If Light could convince Kallen to date him, he'd not only learn names from her, but be better respected by his fellow students without having to through as many motions. He'd be accepted as one of them through Kallen's status. Not only that, but Kallen was on the Student Council... which could eventually lead him to Milly if she weren't engaged and her greater power over the school.
And Lelouch.
Light smirked, entering the gates to Ashford's green lawns. This was going to be fun.
----L/L----
"Like... a date?"
Light nodded, reading the surprise, but luckily no revulsion in Kallen's blue eyes. She looked a little more wary than he would have liked, but he hoped she wasn't too—
"Uhmmm..." she continued softly, appearing to be deliberating still. She looked down, her straight reddish hair swinging a little. A deep breath followed and she looked up at him from her desk with a firm resolve he hadn't known the sickly girl possessed. Interesting, but why? He waited for her ultimatum. "Yes, it sounds like it could be fun."
The two girls on either side of Kallen tried not to gasp too loudly. He may be Light Yagami, good at athletics and academics, but he was still only an honorary Britannian. He hadn't thought Kallen Stadtfeld would turn him down, but the idea that she might had certainly crossed his mind. It had really depended on whether she was a racist, and Light was a little relieved to discover that she was not.
He smiled at her with his eyes. "Good, then I'll see you after school. Unless you're busy with Student Council business?"
Kallen shook her head, her straight hair swinging. "There's nothing planned for today."
Light continued to smile. "Perfect. I'll see you later, Kallen."
He left her desk, and didn't look back. Hearing the girlish whispers and coos of her friends in his wake was enough.
Light returned to his own seat and tried not to look as his Death God floated in and out of the wall in a pathetic effort to startle him. Light sighed. The bell rang moments later and the door opened. Lelouch entered the classroom for the first time all day, slipping in just before the teacher did. Their eyes met from across the room for a brief instant, but the other boy seemed too preoccupied with something else to make anything more of it. Light disregarded the lack of enthusiasm, doubting Lelouch had meant it as a snub. The Britannian boy was worrying about something else, unless the way he chewed his lip when he thought no one was looking was simply habit. The class began to quiet down when Suzaku entered the room. It was unusual for someone usually so preoccupied with following rules and the tardiness earned the green-eyed student a glare from the teacher. Racist, Light thought savagely.
Class started and Light thumbed through his book, pretending to pay attention to the lecture. What would Lelouch be worried about? His mind wandered back to the woman he had met in Lelouch's room. It'd been several weeks since he'd met her and he still hadn't figured out who she was. With a grim satisfaction, he hoped Lelouch was currently worried that she would be discovered, and decided that his next move would be to make sure that she was. He'd been focusing so much on the Death Note lately and his work as Kira, that he was surely in for some playtime.
And tormenting the Britannian brat was just the kind of thing that sounded relaxing. Maybe after his date with Kallen, he'd just happen to run into Shirley. She would be bound to spread word of Lelouch's indecencies to the school.
Then again, with the recent death of Shirley's father, he wasn't sure if he felt right about telling the girl her crush was sleeping around. She may be Britannian, but she wasn't a bad person. He sighed inwardly. Rivalz always seemed a little too enthusiastic for Light's tastes, with a voice that got on his nerves, but if he wanted something spread around the school about Lelouch, there was really no one better for the job.
The teacher's monotonous drone and Light's thoughts were suddenly cut through by a loud masculine voice on the intercom. The superintendent's tone was sharp and commanding. "There has been a crime on campus, which the police are now investigating. Students are to remain in their classrooms until further notice."
The intercom clipped out and the class immediately grew louder to fill its void.
"What do you think happened?" Someone to his right asked. Light gave him a puzzled look and shook his head.
"I've no idea." It was the truth, anyway.
"Look! Oh my god, it's a body!" Nanim suddenly screamed, pointing wildly out the window. As one, the class jumped up and ran to the broad windows. Everyone was suddenly shouting, and at least two girls fainted, Nanim being one of them.
Light shoved his way through to get a better view. Someone had died? His eyes caught sight of a body bag being zipped up, blood pooling around where the victim's head had lain. Who was it? Had someone simply fallen on the concrete outside the chapel? Light's head spun. No, the superintendent had called it a crime and the police were involved, sweeping the area around the chapel building. Murder? At Ashford?
Light found his head turning to peer at his classmates. It couldn't be....
His eyes found Lelouch first, but those violet eyes were watching the scene below with only a passing interest. So not even death concerned his aloof exterior? Only Zero seemed to, considering his reactions the night L had challenged the masked man.
A shudder passed through the student next to Lelouch, his darker skin and large—too large—green eyes filled with terror.
Suzaku?
Light watched him carefully, remembering quite vividly that Suzaku had been accused of Prince Clovis's murder. He was also a member of the military, trained for combat, so in theory, he should be used to seeing death. But it appeared as if this casualty bothered him much more than it did even some of the civilian students. Suzaku had also entered the classroom later than normal. It didn't take a genius of Light's caliber to deduce that Suzaku had been involved in the murder.
Light's eyes narrowed. Suzaku Kururugi's fate now depended on who had just been killed and whether Kira agreed with him.
----L/L----
"Soooo," Kallen began, digging a plastic spoon into the black cherry ice cream, "At least Mr. Ashford finally let us leave, right?"
Light nodded, picking up his part. "I thought we'd never get out of there. And I was rather looking forward to our date." He smiled across the small booth to her, the red seat not quite matching, but not clashing either with her hair.
Kallen looked away, her cheeks turning a faint pink. "Er, well, um, so was I."
Light didn't bother hiding his grin. Kallen, for her part, began to eat her ice cream a little more vigorously in her embarrassment.
"So, what do you think of this place? I know it's a bit on the edges of the Settlement, but I think it has the best ice cream in Tokyo," Light said, taking a bite of his own green tea flavored treat.
"It's... good," she answered, a little too warily, Light thought. There was a slight pause before she glanced back up at him, the spoon in her mouth. Strangely, her eyes held the same determination that he'd seen when she'd agreed to go out with him. "Not everyone's afraid of the ghetto, you know."
Light blinked. Well, this was surprising. He spoke carefully, after a moment's pause. "I never meant to imply you were, but certainly some people should be more cautious than others."
Kallen raised an eyebrow in warning, and Light got the feeling he was talking to a different person than the girl he saw occasionally in school. Who would have thought that Kallen Stadtfeld had a feisty streak?
"Please explain what you did mean then, Light."
"Simply that the crime rate in the ghetto is much higher and I doubt pretty Britannian girls would fair as well as a Japanese man," Light replied, emphasizing her prettiness and his maleness. Kallen, however, didn't look convinced.
"You said Japanese." Her tone was almost accusatory.
Light felt a swell of national pride and anger, but held his tongue. He had never hit a girl and he certainly wouldn't start now, especially not when it would damage his reputation and goals for life at Ashford. He aimed for calm in his voice as he spoke. "One can't be ethnically Eleven. Maybe now it's a nationality, but Japanese is still an ethnicity, Kallen."
Kallen blinked twice in quick succession, a bit of surprise on her face. "I-I'm sorry. I didn't mean that as an insult, Light...." She looked down, and with almost measured grace, slowly took another spoonful of ice cream.
She looked up again and Light could swear she was again the demure and sickly girl. Realization slowly dawned in Light. She was an actress of sorts. And he'd be willing to bet his favorite pen it was the shy girl who was false. The real Kallen... was the unyielding redhead he'd just glimpsed.
"None taken," he replied easily. She offered a tentative smile, which he returned full fold. They returned to their ice cream and a few moments of silence.
"Light?" she asked, still looking down. Light watched her as she twirled the spoon around in the melting pink dairy product. She was biting her lip in thought, her eyebrows scrunched together.
"What is it?" He asked gently, not quite coaxing.
"I just... didn't expect you to call yourself Japanese, that's all," she said lamely, and Light had the impression she had nearly said something else.
He debated for a moment whether calling her on it would force her out or simply make her resent him. He tried not to sigh. He couldn't risk her resentment.
"Oh," he said to fill in the space with some kind of response. "That's understandable."
Kallen scrutinized him and Light wondered the reason. Her blue eyes held open interest and something that Light felt compelled to label as honest. Her ice cream was forgotten, her spoon held carelessly in her hand.
"Light..." she began, her eyes still holding her wide open. Light didn't respond, only maintaining eye contact. Did she expect him to kiss her? It didn't seem likely considering their conversation, and yet... all other clues about her posture and expression were indicative.... She leaned closer, her voice almost a pained and secretive whisper. "I... I'm Japanese, too."
Her eyes searched his for confirmation, and Light searched her face for his. There, perhaps in the angle of her face, the softness around her eyes... if he changed her coloring, it was much more believable. The girl was full of surprises and he could look at her previous comments in a different light. Had she been testing him as well?
He sighed and leaned back. "You really are, aren't you."
Kallen smiled quickly and went back to her ice cream. The tense atmosphere had disappeared and as Kallen waved her spoon at him about to make some point, Light realized that the demure schoolgirl had vanished as well.
"I bet you went here before the war, huh," she said, glancing around at the ice cream parlor's decor. She seemed much more relaxed and at ease with him.
Light nodded, allowing his own posture to reflect her comfort. "Yeah. My sister just loved this place, but it's not exactly safe for her to come here on her own anymore and I don't have much time outside of school to take her."
Kallen nodded, understanding his dilemma. "At least it's still here, right? I used to live out near Ikebukuro, but it's all ashes now."
Light blinked. "So you lived here before the war? You are a little bit Britannian, though, aren't you?"
Kallen looked out the window at the pedestrians. Her voice was distant. "My father is, but truth be told, I'd rather be living in the ghetto than at his house."
It seemed a little much for Kallen to be telling him this. Of course, he was Japanese and so was she, but she sounded like a downright terrorist. She must be a big fan of Zero, he thought wryly.
"Surely, it's not that bad, Kallen," he answered, wondering what exactly her father must have done to incur such bitterness. "At least you have a house, right?"
The look she turned on him was pure fire. Her blue eyes blazed. "And there's a lot of our people out there who don't."
Little terrorist, indeed.
"I know, Kallen. Trust me, I know people who..." he trailed off, wondering where their conversation was leading. It didn't exactly matter because she was already caught. If Light himself hadn't been aware that Kallen Stadtfeld was part Japanese, he doubted any of their classmates did. His plan was working better than even he had envisioned. Kallen already wanted him—as a friend or lover, he didn't know or care—because they had a shared heritage. She would be willing to do nearly anything for him with the right pressures and manipulation because of it and she would still serve her purpose as a stepping stone within Ashford's elite students.
"We all know people like that, Light." Her voice was hard with shared hatred.
With an opening like that, Light knew she would be in the palm of his hand in no time.
"Sometimes I feel terrible for being accepted in Britannian society," he whispered, making sure they weren't overheard. The parlor was nearly vacant, but the intimacy of a moment like this always won girls over. "If there was something I could do to help the others who weren't as fortunate as us, I'd do it."
Light looked at his hands, feigning helplessness at his situation. He certainly was working to aid the less fortunate every day, not that Kallen would ever have to know he was Kira. He idly wondered what she would think if she did know. Who would a girl like her support more? Kira? Or Zero?
Light glanced back up to her and met her appraising blue eyes, her forehead wrinkled as she seemed to weigh something in her mind. Her eyes were actually somewhat pretty, he decided.
"There... may be something you can do, Light," she offered hesitantly.
Light had been expecting a simple, 'me too,' from the fake-Britannian girl, and he didn't bother hiding his surprise. What did she have in mind? Sneaking rice to the needy in the ghetto?
"What?" he asked simply, there being nothing else to say.
"I... um, well, I can't actually say, but...." She looked torn and bit her lip anxiously. "I... let's go on another date, okay? In a few days. I'll... tell you then."
Light nodded uncertainly. "We'll just talk about this later... this probably isn't the best place for it anyway." He looked around comically as if he expected someone was eavesdropping.
Kallen rolled her eyes at his antics, and punched him playfully in the shoulder. "Knock it off." She squished her ice cream around in its bowl and sighed. "But you're probably right."
Light gave her an imperious look. "Of course I am, Kallen-chan."
She blushed at his use of the Japanese honorific and Light smiled; Kallen Stadtfeld was hooked, even though she hissed quietly at him. "You shouldn't use Japanese here, Light."
Light laughed, not bothering to be quiet about it, and ate some more ice cream. "You're probably right," he answered.
Kallen put her spoon down and matched his former arrogant look and tone to the best of her abilities. "Of course I am, Light-kun."
----L/L----
The day was coming to a close, and Light felt like he had been particularly successful. He smiled to himself; of course, there was no such thing as being too successful and the day certainly wasn't over yet.
He still had one more thing to attend to.
"You're smiling, Light... what are you planning?" Ryuk asked curiously.
Raising a hand, he knocked on the door to the Student Council Room. If Lelouch, Milly, or Shirley were present, he'd ask about Kallen and pretend he was buying her a gift. That would certainly win him points with Milly Ashford. But knowing the President's protective streak of Lelouch, he figured asking about the picture with her at hand would put him in her bad graces. He wondered briefly at himself for hoping Rivalz would be there alone, but shut the thought from his mind as the door opened.
"Ah!" a small girl said in fear before running away. He had only managed to catch a glimpse of braids and glasses. Light stared in bewilderment as the door slowly swung open. She was...?
"Niiiiina," came Rivalz's unmistakable voice as the door opened and the blue-haired boy's body came into view. "Oh, it's just Light. No need for running."
"Unless you're an evildoer," Ryuk supplied, looking to see if Light would crack a smile. He didn't, his gaze sweeping the room for any other occupants. There weren't any.
The affable young man bounded up to where Light stood, and put an arm around his shoulders. He looked sideways at the taller teenager and narrowed his eyes confidentially. "I heard you went on a date with Kallen. ...Man-to-man, how was it?"
Light fought the urge to grit his teeth and throw Rivalz through a wall for the bodily contact he was inflicting. "We had ice cream."
"Ooooohh? And?" Rivalz's enthusiasm was surprisingly grating.
"And we talked."
"And? Did you... ummmm, how do I say... you know, get some?"
"Rivalz!" Nina's high-pitched squeak was filled with shock and horror.
"Calm down, calm down," he replied, waving a hand at the girl who Light now saw to be standing in a corner of the room. To Light's extreme pleasure, Rivalz finally let him go and wandered over to sit up on a table, making himself comfortable as he faced the Honorary Britannian. "So, what can I do you for, Light?"
More than you'll ever have, Light thought viciously, wondering if Rivalz himself understood how that sentence could be taken, especially by someone who's first language was not English. Light smiled, not a hint of his inner thoughts poking through his exterior. He walked over to the younger boy.
"I was wondering if you knew who this was," he asked, pulling out his cell phone. Light sat on the table next to Rivalz as he toggled to the picture of C.C. and held it up.
Rivalz made an appreciative sound. "Wow, that is one hot babe, Light. Where'd you meet her?"
Light smiled. "In Lelouch's room."
Rivalz blinked in surprise and then nearly exploded into a green firework of envy. "Whaaaaaat? Did you say Lelouch?"
Light nodded, grinning. "I was just as surprised as you were. I wanted to ask Lelouch something, but this girl was there instead. I think," Light said dramatically, "she lives with him."
"Whaaaaaaaaaaaaat?! With our Lelouch?! I had no idea he was already so experienced! How did he get so far ahead?! This isn't fair!!" Rivalz was lost in his own private world of jealousy and imagination of Lelouch's X-rated endeavors with the green-haired beauty.
Light decided to let him be, remembering there was still someone else in the room. Nina, as apparently, she was called. He looked behind him to the small, awkward-looking girl. It would be best to create a favorable impression with her, too, he thought. He hadn't seen her before, but he figured she was in the Student Council.
He smiled at her warmly. "Hi, my name's Light Yagami. Are you a friend of Kallen's?"
The girl nodded jerkily, her hands still clenched firmly to the bottom of the jacket of her uniform. She was staring at him with wide eyes, made to look even larger by her glasses.
What was she so afraid of? Light wondered. He wasn't going to bite. He tried to continue smiling, feeling the tediousness of his task settling in. She couldn't see the Death God, could she?
"That's Nina. She's afraid 'cuz you're an Eleven," Rivalz said offhandedly, still holding Light's cell phone in front of his nose.
Light tried not to grimace. This school was full of racists. "I'd like to get her a present. Any suggestions?"
Nina shook her head. Rivalz groaned in envy. Ryuk laughed uproariously.
Light remembered suddenly why playing with Lelouch was a lot more fun when he did it face to face. He swiped his phone back from Rivalz and made his way to the still ajar door. "Get your own photo if you want to ogle it, Rivalz. I'll see you tomorrow."
He closed the door behind him, glad to be rid of them both.
"Lelouch sure isn't going to be happy when he finds out about that," the hulking god said, holding his stomach while he cackled in anticipation and floated along next to Light.
"He'd better not be."
----L/L----
Some thoughts to ponder now that you've reached the end: Just WHO was murdered at Ashford??? Say Nanim Aihuhnny aloud 5 times fast. And if you know who Cordelia Coronica is, you get mad props and should be friends with Rayne Rebeau too.
Oh, and since Light's on a killing spree, which character would you like to see dead via heart attack next? I'm not saying I'm going to use any of your suggestions, but... I'm kind of curious.
As always, thanks for reading! See you next chapter!