I had meant for this chapter to be longer, but c'est la vie. Alright, so, yes, this has been a long time coming. Actually, most of this chapter has been written for... three weeks or so. However, I've got another little ficlet that I'm working on as well, which I want to start posting when I have more of it posted. I'm actually very excited about it.

I've also discovered the miracle of pre-planning a chapter with this new thing called an OUTLINE. So, hopefully, you'll see the benefits of that in the next chapter...

And, in case you're wondering, Strawberry Cheesecake (I really wish you'd log in so that I can reply to your reviews - I like chatting with everyone one-on-one), I have absolutely no intention of giving Beyond Succeeding up. Real-life has made it difficult for me to write lately, and I have a hard time writing period, so things have been slow.

More comments after. Read and Review, SVP.

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Major clues had become sparse. Beyond Birthday's trail had cooled considerably, but L had concluded, after little drabbles of information had dripped into their laps, that their missing Wammy's child had run to the very tip of British Columbia. Based on the percentage that this conclusion was correct (L had said it was somewhere around 60% possible, though Mello could barely see how, with so little information, he was able to be so sure) they had moved northward quite a ways.

A little too far north for Mello's liking. The boy wasn't opposed to cooler temperatures, but negative 20 degrees Celsius was ridiculous. Snow, snow, snow, everywhere you looked and not a proper town to be found anywhere. However cold it was, and no matter how much Mello made his discomfort known, the temperature never rose. Ever. In any case, the detective and his student arrived in a small town in the northern regions of BC ten days after Beyond Birthday's escape.

At this point, Mello was working on tidbits of this case, rather than solving individual cases. These tidbits included sifting through news reports, scanning new information about criminal activity, as well as examining local news reports. This often involved going to the local grocery and picking up newspapers which he did every day. Doing this, he got to know the grocery store clerk pretty well, actually. She was a nice girl, fresh out of high school, and always gave Mello a smile on his way into the store. "In for the news again? You're a curious little guy. Shouldn't you be in school?"

At this, Mello would just grin deviously. "Probably," he'd answer as he walked towards the magazine and newspaper section. However on his third trip to the store, a flyer caught his eye. He saw it wondering why he hadn't seen it before and mentally kicked himself for it. "Hey," he called to the cashier, pointing to the flyer. "What's that about?"

The girl tossed a look to the flyer with a resigned look. "Oh, the kid went missing a few days ago. Nate River, right? Freaky little kid."

Mello stared at the poster, which showed a small boy, dressed in white to match his hair, crouched on the floor amidst an innumerable number of toys. "Really? Why was he weird?"

The cashier shrugged as she began to sweep around the front entrance of the small store. "Well, aside from holing up in his room, the kid was just smart enough to get out of school. I heard he started high school classes at six."

"So he was a genius, and it was well known that he was," Mello muttered, thinking aloud. "Are there any suspects?"

"Not really, but the lady who takes care of Nate was going on and on about this guy she saw in town before."

Mello "hmm-ed" to himself, processing. A genius boy, taken just days ago by a man who leaves no evidence even that he had anything to do with the child. "Would you mind if I took that flyer?"

"Sure thing, we have a few more here, actually," the girl replied, grabbing one from beside her cashbox and handing it to Mello. "Anything else I can do for you, sir?" she asked warmly, a hint of teasing in her voice.

To which Mello rolled his eyes and shook his head. "No, I'm good. Thanks, though," he replied shortly and he practically ran out the door. Finally, a stake in the case! Mello had finally uncovered something important! Flyer and new lead in hand, Mello practically sprinted back to HQ, bursting open the door. "L! L! I've got a new lead!" he practically yelled in excitement, his arm shaking where it rested on the doorknob.

The man turned from his computer screen, thumb at his lips, eyes wide in subtle surprise, and Nate's photo on his screen.

Mello stared at the screen, shock giving away to embarrassment and anger, his stare turning into practically a glare. "Never mind," he almost spat, to which L's head cocked sideways slightly. Mello took a deep breath and asked the pressing question, "How long have you been aware of Nate River's disappearance?"

"Oh, him," L said perkily, almost happily as he picked up the saucer of hot chocolate on his desk. "Watari has been aware of him for a few years now, his parents died." At this L sighed, "But he was kidnapped a few days ago."

"Yes, I know," Mello replied dryly, almost glaring at L, his excitement completely drained away at the thought that had been creeping up on him; L had been aware of Nate River's kidnapping for two days already, which was the exact reason why they had moved to this town in the first place making Mello's discovery old news. Mello shook his head, kicked off his boots, and slumped into the kitchen with very little energy.

As he walked through the door, he caught sight of Watari in his apron (a sight Mello still wasn't used to and didn't think he'd ever be used to) who was currently fixing dinner. The blond crawled into a chair by the counter and lethargically watched Watari make Mello's favorite soup, the aroma only slightly comforting Mello who sighed and played with the salt and pepper shakers.

Watari didn't need to ask Mello what had gone on. L was the only person who could deflate Mello so, and therefore asking what had gone on would do no good. "Well, there's water boiled if you want hot chocolate, Mello," the man stated, reiterating Mello's firm belief that chocolate did, in fact, make everything better.

At this Mello buried his face in his arms, abandoning the shakers, groaning. "Aah, I really thought I could have added something this time!" he lamented. His blond hair obscured the elder man's view of Mello's face, but it was obvious that the boy was frustrated. Watari, however, did not comment.

After all, nothing he could say would change the fact that Mello had a painfully long way to go.

After a quiet moment, Mello lifted his head from the counter and looked at the poster he'd crumpled in his hand, staring at the picture of the boy again. The cashier had been right; something about the boy was creepy Mello out slightly, be it the immense amount of white on the small boy, or his eyes, dark and unmerciful. Almost dead, the eyes stared at the camera lens with the smallest bit of life.

Yes, Mello decided that it was Nate River's eyes that creeped him out the most.

Mello then glanced at the information printed below, reading aloud. "Nate Rivers, aged 11, kidnapped January 20th. He is 4'8" tall and is extremely sensitive to sunlight. If you know anything, please call... Kind of a shrimp," Mello stated blandly. "How long have you known about him, Watari?"

"Before his parent's death was reported," the man in the apron replied. "That was about eight years ago, but he was taken into a distant relation's home before we could finish our investigation into him."

Mello nodded as best he could in his current position on the chair. Unfortunate? Maybe, Mello mused. Hopping off said chair with every intention of preparing hot chocolate, a thought hit his brain. "Watari, L believes that B kidnapped Nate Rivers right?"

"Yes, that's correct," the man agreed as he chopped carrots.

"And that's why we came here, right? Because B will be somewhere nearby?"

"Yes."

Mello went silent, thoughts glossing over his eyes, rushed over to fix hot chocolate, and scuttled out to the main room, leaving a chuckling Watari alone in the kitchen.

"Hey, L, you moved us up here because of Nate River, right?" Mello asked, gliding into the main room.

L turned his chair around, a lollipop stick sticking out of his mouth. "Yes," he answered matter-of-factly.

"Well, then, you've probably sent out search parties in all the towns nearby?"

"Of course."

"And we'll probably have no success with that?"

"Probably."

Mello fell silent for a moment, deep in thought. "You plan on investigating each town yourself?"

"I do," L answered, amusement colouring his voice. "And you'll be coming too, of course."

"Why didn't we start out doing that in the first place?" Mello asked, taking a seat closer to L, sipping hot chocolate. "It may have saved us some time."

"Well, while the search teams will not find B or any trace of him, more than likely they'll find one or two details they will deem insignificant that will help us establish a rough idea of where to start instead of meandering about aimlessly."

"Insignificant details?" Mello asked, his eyebrows dented in puzzlement.

"Yes," L answered simply while he spun his chair around to the screen. There was Nate's photo again, Mello noticed, as well as his background summery, school record, family history, and kidnapping details. Pulled up on the adjacent monitor was a complete summery of B of Wammy's House, with similar data but also a criminal check as well as various video clips of his imprisonment. "I do hope we can find him soon," L muttered, bringing his own saucer of hot chocolate (now almost empty) to his thin lips.

Mello was tempted to ask which individual he was referring to, but thought better of it. Mello nodded slightly and stared at the two individuals on the monitors. They resembled each other, though their appearances were different in every way. One was pale to the point that people might be in danger of thinking him a sheet of canvas. The other, so scarred and dark, he resembled a picture Mello once saw of a vampire. One flawless, the other crumbling, they contradicted each other. The blond creeped up to the monitors, staring at the records of the two subjects, vaguely aware that L was watching him. "Why do they feel so...similar?" he wondered aloud.

"They are similar," L replied. "Similar IQ, similar family background, both orphaned at a young age, and both alienated from normal society. They're similar in personality and preferences, and from what I can tell, they both excel in the same fields of study: math, science, and psychology."

The young blond blinked at the screens before muttering an intelligent, "Oh."

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Thanks so much for reading. To answer some reviews:

Midnight: You think? I hope so, because it's the whole premise of this story. :|

Strawberry Shortcake: Haha, I was amused to see your second review. No need to worry. I may sometimes have a bit of trouble updating regularly, but this isn't one of my stories that I'll start writing and then give up on. I'm still very much chewing on this one, so to speak. :)

Again, thanks for reading so far! Let me know what you guys think, and in-depth input is always appreciated. :)