"Do you wish to talk to her?" Light glanced away from the glass and at the detective. Misa sat in the cell before him, her previous bondage re-applied, with the addition of heavy sedatives. Her head hung slightly, her hair unwashed and limp with sweat. She'd been tried and sentenced a week ago…found guilty of being the original Kira, with Higuchi serving as the second. It was simple arrangement, because the man couldn't defend himself from the grave.
And Light…Misa's only hope…stood not five feet away, silent until now. The detective pressed the question. "You may speak with her if you feel it would do some good."
"How long does she have?" L himself now turned his eyes to the glass, a sad and fond expression on his face. Light had given her just enough rope to hang herself with…without his support it was only a matter of time until she'd fallen. She'd lasted a week and a half before they'd polished their story and presented it to the team and the world. He felt…dirty. He felt cheap…almost as though Light had used him in much the same fashion. He knew the genius would try, too…before it was all said and done.
He crossed his arms and watched Misa try to lift her head, a hazy whimper signaling her failure. He was taking no risks…no, not this time. There were simply too many wildcards, and the sooner this entire sordid affair was cleaned up and taken care of, the better he'd feel.
"A week…perhaps twelve days at the most. The date has yet to be decided."
"And so ends Kira…" Light returned his stare to the cell as Watari entered from the door in the back. His eyes stared blankly at the empty space between the two detectives, but he knew that at least one of them was there. His baleful eyes and dignified scowl spelled out exactly what he thought of them as his gloved hands pushed the tray in. Light watched him take a rag and a bowl of hot water from beneath rack and set it atop. L let out a barely audible sigh as the old man began to wash the model's hair to the best of his ability.
"Does it, Light-kun?" The rag combed down the bangs, and Misa didn't have the strength to even respond to the touch. The latex gloves caught in the strands at first, but Watari wet his fingers and continued his task with silence and a quiet respect.
"Yes."
L glanced at him, shoving his hands into his pockets as he watched Watari go through his morbid task, trying to restore some portion of the girl's dignity. "Can you? Kill Kira I mean…"
"Yes."
"That means about the same coming from a heroine addict. Kira is not a person…Kira was an ideal. I know you, Light-kun…and Kira is far from dead." Watari moved to the other side, pulling her hair from beneath the blind-fold's strap to comb it out. L licked his lips before continuing, knowing that Watari was beyond furious with him. It hurt…that his companion of twenty years wouldn't speak to him at all now. "All you've done is put pieces into place that shouldn't have existed to begin with."
"Do you regret your offer?"
"Every waking moment. I am a man of my word however, so the point is null. We should discuss our terms…I'd rather have that taken care of before…" He gestured numbly at the glass and Light just nodded. They were quiet for a long moment, and Watari finished her hair and put the bowl below. He leaned in and spoke quietly into her ear, his words filtering through the microphones and into the observation room where the detectives stood.
"Amane Misa, it is time for your meal. I will remove the gag now. You are not to speak, you are not to scream. The food will only be offered once, if you refuse it, it will not be…"
The litany continued for a moment, rehearsed and repeated every meal. The gag came away, and she managed to lift her head on her own. The corners of her mouth were chapped and cracked, coated in dried blood, and if she lived long enough, there would be calluses from the thick fabric. The meal started with a drink of water, through a straw, and a foul-tasting ointment for the abrasions. It contained a topical anesthetic that cooled the pain, allowing her to open her mouth freely and chew her food.
L observed the proceeding without pause. "You will move, live, and work with me everyday for the remainder of your contract, without question. The handcuffs will no longer be necessary unless you give me reason."
"Agreed."
"You will train under me, and work for my organization. I decide all terms, tests, legalities, and the standards I set for you will not be easy." Light nodded, the prospect of the challenge sending a thrill through him. He watched Misa accept food from the gloved hands, much as he had during his own confinement. Watari did it with the skill and patience of someone who'd long been helping those incapable of the task.
Light crossed his arms. "Only my training may be recorded to satisfy any superiors you may have…there is no need for them to know of Kira."
" Agreed. The Kira case is officially closed but I will continue compiling my evidence against you in the event that you escape or break our contract."
Misa began crying half way through her meal, the blindfold catching her tears before they fell. Her sobs came over the microphones and echoed eerily through the small room. Light considered this condition for a moment…
"Only things written, recorded and observed during the time of my training may be used as evidence…and only if properly documented."
"…Watari will also be responsible for your observation and some portion of your training…his recording will be counted as liable evidence if documented as well."
Light met his eyes in the glass reflection and they stared each other down, eyes silhouetted by the pitiful figure strapped to the upright table in the cell. Light agreed, because that didn't really change much…he'd just have to be careful around the old man as well.
"Fine."
"You will continue using the Deathnote in scheduled executions. They will strictly be criminals that I have been authorized to dispose of, either through assassination or left to me because big names don't want to claim involvement."
"Big names?" L's voice dropped a bit in his disgust, his black eyes narrowing.
"Yes. Like the United States…China…"
"You seem to do a lot more than detective work."
"One can only be so powerful without getting caught up in some of the politics. Those will be few and far between though, I assure you. Most often criminals that escaped one country to wreak havoc in another…because they are not legal citizens of the second country, the homeland must authorize their execution. You would not believe how quickly a country would balk at claiming a mass murderer from their own soil."
"…I suppose I'll learn."
"You've made quite a mess of things, with your Kira act. People don't know what to think…their opinion of justice has been warped because some one made it powerful again."
A weak voice filtered over the speakers. "Please…please…I just…"
"We'll fix it."
"We have to…or the world will go insane. These executions will be strictly monitored by myself, as well as recorded."
"…Agreed. Finally…no outside involvement. I don't want to become some secret weapon used by the United Nations."
"Then this isn't the job for you, Light-kun."
"Amane Misa, do not speak." Watari's quiet voice followed his, and L noticed his shoulders trembling.
"As far as the world is concerned, you do not exist, Light-kun. You will be working with me as L…no one but my superiors will know of my apprentice, and even they will not know that you were the original Kira, and that you are still using a DeathNote."
"Please…I just want to see Light…let me talk to Light…I have to…" Light turned his attention back to Misa, peering coldly through the glass.
"Why must I use the Death Note for the executions?"
"We are going to research them together. I am not one to let something that deadly go unaccounted for, and the more we know about them, the better."
"Light…Light please…I'm scared..."
"Amane Misa, you have forfeited your break by refusing to cooperate." Watari slammed the plate back onto the tray and turned to stare back at the mirrored panel, his eyes tired. He took up the gag and Misa just sobbed harder as he forced it between her teeth. L sighed again at his expression, internally wincing when he slammed the door a moment later. It wasn't fair.
Light watched her cry with a thoughtful expression before sighing himself. "I need to go pack I suppose."
"Do you truly not wish to speak with her, Light-kun?"
Light paused, glancing between the man and the glass. He watched her shake for a moment, her small frame trembling in the layers of wire enforced bindings. Slowly his shook his head, turning his level stare to L's and holding it.
"No. Think it cowardice if you wish, but I don't." L nodded, scratching his leg idly as he replied.
"In truth, while cowardice did jump to mind, that is not what I'd call it. It is quite unexpected from you, really."
"Oh? Is there a better term that I'm lacking?"
"No…not a better term…perhaps a more accurate definition."
"I just sentenced her to death, L. I don't want to talk to her, even after everything she did for me. What would you call it?"
"…In any other situation, with any other people…I'd think you were the most craven filth I'd come across in my life." L returned his eyes to the glass, his words quiet.
"But here…with you…and with her…I'd almost say it was mercy."
"Mercy?"
"Yes…let her die thinking you had her best intentions in mind. Why break the rest of her?"
"There was more to her than that L…she killed just as easily as I did."
"I know…but here, now…all she has left to cling to is you. Her idea of you and her devotion to that image is everything she's got at this point. Perhaps I'm just too much of a coward myself to outright agree with you but...let her die without knowing. It's degrading enough for me to know that she will die because of you, instead of real justice at my hands...but let her have her dignity. There is still some strength there, at least…in love."
