My, you've all been awfully patient. There's B, holding a Death Note, looking down at Wammy's House...

... And I've left posting for about a week. If that isn't cruelty, I don't know what is.

So. Wait no longer. In only a few paragraphs, B's victim will be revealed. The secret will be out and... most importantly... the story will officially begin.

A head's up for everyone: crying and general upset is imminent. This is, after all, one of B's plans...

DISCLAIMER: Hey, I found this series called Death Note. It's not mine though - is it yours, maybe?

--

Page Eight: 24th January, 2004 (Continued)

B held the pen, poised above the notebook.

Wammy's House lay below him.

It was interesting for him to watch them: all the children milling around, playing and learning and – in some rare cases – even laughing; all the staff working hard, filling in forms and helping out in whatever way they could.

In some ways, he felt proud. He felt proud to have been a part of such a monumental scheme, to have played his role in preserving the legacy of L. In one small way, he thought, he had helped with something truly great.

On another hand, he had been used. As soon as he had arrived at Wammy's House, he had been forgotten. He wasn't Beyond Birthday any more – he was an heir to a name. In a short space of time, his very existence and purpose for being was destroyed…

Because of L, and because of Wammy's House, he had been destined to be nothing but a wannabe. He had skills and talents that very few other people had ever naturally possessed, and an intellect so great that he could have been anything...

… But instead, he was forever overshadowed.

It was always L Lawliet, never Beyond Birthday.

B didn't matter.

… That is, until now. Now, he could show the world who was the best… and L wouldn't get in the way.

He wrote down a name.

The wheels were in motion. There was no turning back now. Sooner or later, Beyond Birthday would catch Kira, and beat L.

He counted the seconds roll by in anticipation.

After forty seconds of waiting, Roger Ruvie fell to the floor.

A heart attack.

It had begun.

--

"Now, Mello. What have I told you about being rough with the other children?"

Mello rolled his eyes. "I know. 'Some of the other children are very delicate, you should treat everyone with the respect the deserve, try to keep a level head about things, don't fight, blah blah blah…' You don't need to tell me again, Alice. Just send me to Roger's office so he can give me the 'this your final warning' speech' again, and we can get this all over with."

Alice, one of the members of staff at Wammy's House, frowned. Most of the children in the orphanage provided her with some sort of problem… but out of all of them, Mello was possibly the worst. True, he didn't have quite as many… particular habits as some of the other children, but he had a tendency to always find himself in the middle of things. It was as though he was a magnet for trouble…

… Which wasn't surprising, considering the way he treated everyone else. He had a way of being extremely arrogant and violent towards people, whilst at the same time appeared to be impossibly bored with everything around him. He was absolutely insufferable.

There was no reasoning with him, despite the fact that he was an extremely intelligent and measured young man.

"Fine," she sighed. "Let's go and tell Roger about this."

Begrudgingly, Mello followed her through the corridors of the building, to Roger's office. She knocked politely, and opened the door.

And screamed.

--

The door flew open.

Watari entered.

The Task Force fell silent.

"L!" the old man said, an unmistakable quaver of fear in his voice.

"… What is it, Watari?"

"It's… Roger."

"Roger?"

"Kira found Roger. This morning – a heart attack, even though he was completely fine yesterday… I was… I'd only spoken to him yesterday, and…"

The scene was unreal.

It was difficult to tell, but… on Watari's cheeks…

Tears?

L had never seen Watari cry.

And… Kira had found Roger? Kira had found Wammy's House?

For the first time, logic failed L.

What could he do?

He hated himself for it, but… he didn't know what to do.

Watari needed a hug. Logic could wait for the moment.

--

Chaos. Panic. Disorder.

That was what the plan required.

Beyond needed a distraction, and – more than that – he needed a weakness to exploit.

L's weakness was Wammy's House. Strike there, and the stability crumbled.

Roger wasn't important in himself… but as a figure, as the manager of the orphanage in Watari's absence… he was crucial.

Roger dies of a heart attack, Watari gets a phone call. Any report of a heart attack in this social climate – especially if the victim was working with L – would instantly be assumed the work of Kira.

If Kira had indeed found Wammy's House, they would need to set up precautions. L's life would truly be in danger, because if Kira knew to attack the orphanage, it would only be logical to assume that Kira knew about L's connections with it…

And, at the same time, Roger's death would leave the orphanage – if only momentarily – without direct management. It would take time for Watari to sort things out, especially considering the fact that he was currently stationed in Japan, which would mean that he would either have to sort it out remotely or – in an extreme case – head back to England…

L was vulnerable. L's successors were vulnerable.

Beyond only wished that Kira would have been left vulnerable too; it sickened him to think that he was in some way helping his own murderer…

… But that would change in due time. He had bigger things to focus on at the moment. Mass murderers could wait. He withdrew his thumb from his mouth with a dull pop, and closed the notebook. He had killed enough people for now.

Now was the time for… socialising.

"Toto?" he smiled.

From one of the other holes, the pale Shinigami groaned. "Are you still here, Beyond?"

"Oh, yes. I'm not about to abandon my two dearest friends now, am I?" he called. "Gelus is still there, I assume?"

The small greenish lump sitting next to Rem made a barely audible response. "He said 'yes'. I doubt you're surprised, seeing as he's been sitting in the same place for several years, but… yes, he's here."

"That's good to hear," said B, scuttling over to them on all fours. "I wouldn't want our little trio to turn into a double-act without warning. How is my favourite little pile of decaying body parts?" he patted Gelus on the head.

"Muh," said Gelus.

"Good, good," B nodded, and crouched down beside him.

He had killed Roger Ruvie, turned Wammy's House upside down, ripped L's security to shreds, and…

… The fun hadn't even started yet.

All he needed now was to drop his Death Note…

… Or…

He glanced over at Gelus.

… Or any Death Note…

Gelus stared at the girl in the hole with a vacant, faraway expression.

… Any Death Note at all…

A rather crooked smile spread across Beyond's face.

--

Author's Note: All you Mello, Near and Matt fans can breathe a sigh of relief now.

Or at least you can for the moment… henh-henh-henh…

I'm still a bit worried that this chapter sounds a bit rushed, but on the whole I'm quite happy with it. I'm going to have to be, because there really isn't any turning back from this point.

To be honest, I'm shocked to think how long it's taken me to write this: really, considering the fact that I'm enjoying this so much…

Speaking of enjoying stories, and about lazy posting, I feel the need to plug FFYP-det-Lawliet's B fic, 'Sequel'. If you haven't read it, I recommend that you start, and if you ARE reading it, I suggest you send the author a playful kick up the backside to get her writing the next chapter quicker.

Because she won't listen to me…

After you've read that, though, don't forget to come back here!! XD