~Retrieval~

Lawliet sat by the dining table, sitting on the chair with his legs pulled close to his chest. He dropped a couple of sugar cubes in his cup of tea as he stirred the brew, appearing so casual as though he had never been dead.

Yoru, on the other hand, was just staring at Lawliet from his seat. He sat with his cup of tea grasped in both hands, blue eyes locked onto his brother as he watched the man's pale hands stirring his own tea. Yoru was still in shock to see his brother alive and well, but the silence was dragging on for too long. Lawliet wasn't the kind of person to start a conversation, so Yoru decided that he had to be the one to bring an end to the sound of nothing.

"...So... do you remember being anywhere? Y'know, after you died?" he asked. This earned a strange glance from Lawliet as the older male stopped stirring his tea.

"...No," he answered simply before finally taking a long sip from his cup. He noticed that Yoru seemed disappointed and scared about life after death, so continued to speak in order to put the boy's thoughts at ease. "But that doesn't mean that nothing was there. You brought me back from the dead, so my soul must have been somewhere."

Yoru glanced up at him. "Huh? Oh... I suppose you do have a point there," he responded. "Maybe you lost your memories of the afterlife when you came back to life!"

"That's a possibility," Lawliet accepted the theory. "But nobody knows for sure until they die and stay dead." His black eyes glanced at Yoru, his expression still empty. "So. Do you know anything about my resurrection?"

The question caught Yoru off guard. "Huh? Oh! About that, heh heh..." The boy scratched the back of his head nervously as he wore a nervous grin, unsure of how to explain what actually happened. Lawliet knew what a Death Note was - Kira's weapon. If he told him that he came into contact with a Death Note then he may react badly...

No, he had to tell him the truth. Lawliet hated liars, even though he had told a few lies himself.

"...You see... I came home from school the other day and found this weird eraser in my room," Yoru began. "It came with an instruction booklet..."

"May I see the eraser and the booklet?" Lawliet requested. Yoru's eyes widened. At first he wanted to say no, but he decided that it would be better to just say yes.

"Yeah, sure. Wait here and I'll bring them both down..." he said, standing up and heading up the stairs to his room. He fished around his drawer for the two items before claiming them both and heading back downstairs, placing them down in front of his sibling. Lawliet examined both objects as Yoru sat back down opposite him. He seemed blank and calm at first, but upon reading the booklet he slowly frowned and looked in Yoru's direction.

"Do you possess a Death Note?" he asked blatantly. His words were emotionless as always, but Yoru still flinched at the question.

"...No..." he answered quietly. "M-My friend said she found one in the girls' bathroom at our school... S-She suggested that I should use it to bring you back..."

There was a glint in Lawliet's eyes. "Does she still have the note?" he queried.

"...Well... yeah..." Yoru stuttered.

Lawliet frowned before taking another sip from his hot tea. "How many people have died of heart attacks recently?" he interrogated.

Yoru hesitated to respond, almost shocked that the other male had already come to the conclusion that there was a murderer on the loose. "...U-Um... w-well... O-On the news a lot of people were reported to have died of heart attacks..." he began. "A-A lot of them are students with bad reputations... b-but some are also criminals..."

"So there is another Kira on the loose," Lawliet concluded, almost speaking through clenched teeth. "Criminals and students... Students who don't follow the school rules... In other words... Kira is killing bullies."

"The first one was from our school..." Yoru added. "Hana Mutato... a girl who was nasty to a lot of people..."

Lawliet placed his hands on his knees as he stared at Yoru. "So the Death Note was found in the girls' bathroom at your school by a friend of yours," he recapped. "So Kira is obviously a student from your school who is female."

"Kage and I already came to that conclusion," Yoru told his brother.

"Kage is the friend who found the Death Note, correct?" Lawliet assumed.

"Yes," Yoru nodded. "We both examined the notebook and found the names of everyone who has been killed so far, starting with Hana. Currently Kage is keeping the notebook at her house until she finds someone to hand it in to, but the Japanese police have always agreed with Kira's methods since Light Yagami's killings."

"No. They're not fools," Lawliet disagreed. "Whoever this new Kira is - this female school student - she is not killing because she believes in justice. She is killing because she wants revenge."

"Revenge?" Yoru asked. "By killing people she doesn't even know?"

"She is killing school students with a bad reputation because she gets bullied," Lawliet theorized. "She started off by killing someone who was currently bullying her, and to keep herself hidden she started to kill other bullies in different schools by looking at school records via the internet. Because of her new power she then decided to kill anyone she saw as a bad person out of pure anger, including criminals."

"...That sounds about right..." Yoru gasped quietly, amazed at Lawliet's deductive skills. But he didn't know that Lawliet already had a suspect in mind.

"Was Kage bullied in the past?" the detective questioned.

"Huh?" Yoru responded. "Um... yeah, she was. Her and I both get bullied a lot."

"Did Hana Mutato bully you or her?" Lawliet asked.

"She bullied us both," Yoru answered. "Mainly Kage, though. She bullied Kage way back in elementary school, too."

"I see..." Lawliet murmured, taking the final sip from his cup of tea. "Does Kage ever demonstrate violent behaviour? Or perhaps does she even express violent thoughts?"

"Sometimes," Yoru replied, but then his eyes widened as he stared at Lawliet. "W-Wait, you think Kage is Kira, don't you?!" he realised. "Lawliet, Kage isn't...! She'd never...!" He was struggling for words, but the hesitation only seemed to further prove Lawliet's theory right. Yoru was struggling to call Kage an innocent person because even he knew that Kage had a dark personality. She got into both verbal and physical fights at school. She dressed in dark clothes and often expressed her anger and hatred towards certain individuals, so she was hardly a sweet girl.

"I'm not saying that she is Kira, but I do think that she is a likely suspect," Lawliet explained. "But that may be because she is the only person that I can suspect considering that I don't know anyone else from your school." He then had an idea, pausing for a brief moment before he decided to tell it to Yoru. "Tomorrow is a school day, correct?"

"Correct," Yoru confirmed.

"Then I want you to start making a list of everyone you think could be a possible suspect. I'll do my research from here, if that's okay with our aunt and uncle."

"Crap, I forgot about them!" Yoru gasped. "They'll freak out when they see you!"

"Explain the situation to them. It may be unbelievable, but a lot of circumstances have been unbelievable ever since the appearance of Death Notes seven years ago," Lawliet instructed calmly. "If I can stay here to do my research then I will be looking at the profile of each student currently attending your school. I'll make my own list of likely suspects, and when we compare our lists I want to see if we have any matches. Anyone who is on both lists will be added to a shorter list of fewer suspects."

"Right," Yoru nodded, smiling a little to himself. The idea seemed like a good one, albeit simple. And he was happy to feel like he could be useful to Lawliet. No, he was happy that he could be of use to L.

Lawliet frowned once again, however. "The task may be simple, Yoru, but now that the existence of Death Notes is known people may end up suspecting you if you start writing down names," he warned. "And judging by your personality, you yourself are a likely suspect to anyone else who may be investigating you."

Yoru just laughed. "Don't worry, Lawliet, I haven't seen any secret agents following me around just yet," he assured. "Besides, who could possibly be a rival to your intelligence?"

...

The phone was ringing, catching the attention of the albino detective. He reached for it and made sure to switch on his voice filter.

"This is N," he greeted.

"N. It's the Akacho speaking," came the voice on the other side of the phone, the voice altered by a lower-pitched voice filter. "We have thoroughly searched through both Yoru's and Kage's computers, ranging from their download history to their browser history."

"I see," Near responded. "Did you find anything interesting?"

"A number of things," the Akacho replied. "Kage has been using her incognito tab more often than Yoru but she has been clearing her history a lot, too. We managed to uncover some of her searches."

"And what were they?" Near questioned.

"She was researching Light Yagami and the original Kira killings which began seven years ago," the Akacho explained. "She has also been constantly checking online news articles and has subscribed for updates to be sent to her via email."

"Interesting," Near muttered as he twirled a strand of his hair with his fingers. "And why do you suppose she's been doing such things?"

"According to some sources she does not enjoy watching the news or reading any kind of news," the Akacho added. "She finds the news boring, and she subscribed to receive news updates last week just after the killings began. But her subscription to the news isn't and her research on Light Yagami aren't the only things suspicious about her. We also found that she, despite her average IQ, managed to hack into staff-only school reports from various school websites. A lot of these schools ended up losing one or more students to Kira after these reports were accessed by Kage. If you ask me, that's enough evidence to prove that Kage is Kira."

"There are a lot of fingers pointing in Kage's direction now..." Near told himself thoughtfully. "What about Yoru? Does anything suggest that he could be Kira or associated with Kira in some way?"

"The only thing that makes him suspicious is the fact that there is nothing about him anywhere," the Akacho answered. "But he has been researching all of the Kira killings, from the Original Kira to C-Kira and even the ones occurring as of now. Perhaps he is looking for inspiration while making sure nobody is suspecting him, checking all news articles to make sure that he is not a listed suspect."

"So you've only managed to uncover his search history," Near shortened. "Yet there is still no way of knowing where Yoru originally comes from."

"Unfortunately no," the Akacho replied in a disappointed tone.

"...No problem. Your research has still provided us with a lot of new information," Near reacted after a pause. "I'll remain in contact with you for a while longer since I have already come to my own conclusion on who Kira is, but I'll be needing your assistance to help me expose them."

"Understood," the Akacho responded before hanging up.

Near put the phone down and glanced back at Matsuda, turning around in his seat. "We have new information," he confirmed.

"I heard everything," Matsuda replied. "So does this mean that Kage is Kira?"

"Not quite," Near told him. "It is still possible that both of them are Kira. Yoru possibly helped Kage hack into those school websites since his intelligence is a lot higher than hers. But we cannot tell if they are working together or if it is only one of them until we see how they both react in certain situations."

"Yoru Sky attended Wammy's House but was sent to live with his aunt and uncle when he was four," Drake stated as he walked into the room with his laptop in his hands, a slight smug and proud expression on his face. "According to Watari, AKA Quillsh Wammy, Yoru was removed because of a personal request made by L. Watari never revealed any information of L's request to anyone, not even to the other children of Wammy's House."

Near and Matsuda both glanced over at Drake as he spoke. Matsuda seemed surprised that Drake had found this out, but Near didn't. He just continued to twirl his white hair between his fingers, a tiny smile on his face.

"I told you that your job was only to keep an eye on the cameras," he said almost sarcastically.

"I did all this research in my spare time," Drake smiled proudly, placing his laptop down on the coffee table. "I hacked into Yoru's computer with ease, but there was nothing to suggest anything about his past. So I resorted to hacking into the almost-impossible-to-hack network found in one building in the entire world: Wammy's House Orphanage. All of the children there have one copy of their personal records and one photograph. Nothing more. But there are no records of any child's real name in the network, just the nicknames they are given. Aim, Bidet, Drake, Late, Kit, Near, Mello, Matt... and then there was Yoru. Yoru is his cover name, but from what rumours I heard his nickname is nothing like his real name when you hear it, but the meaning of it is. So he is being kept under as much cover as possible. Unfortunately the reason for his security is not so obvious, but I'm sure we'll find out one way or another."

"Hmph," Near responded, actually looked quite pleased with Drake's information. "You should be in trouble for deliberately disobeying my instructions, especially since you confessed to hacking into the Wammy's House private network, but because of the information you provided me with I'll let you off." The albino detective purposely avoided mentioning that it was his intention to have Drake take matters into his own hands, knowing that Drake enjoyed feeling rebellious. It had always been part of his nature, and in the future he knew that he had to break many rules if he wanted to dig out everyone's secrets, even if it meant hacking into the network belonging to the government, regardless of the country. Drake wasn't allowed to have boundaries with his talent because his talent was essentially illegal to begin with.

"Wow, Drake really knows what he's doing..." Matsuda gasped in awe as Drake strolled proudly out of the room with his laptop.

"He's from Wammy's House as well, of course he surpasses your level of intelligence," Near insulted as he played with his hair. "Every child there is unique and talented. Any quirk they have is never frowned upon and they are encouraged to use their habits to their advantage. But what really makes all Wammy's House children different to other detectives is the fact that they have no boundaries. They can break any law if it suits their purpose. Most children from Wammy's House leave to become great detectives using their unique talents, but others leave and use their talents in the wrong way."

A couple of names came to Near's mind as he thought about children who grew up to become relatively bad people, and although he didn't show it he was actually quite sad to have seen some people turn out the way they did. But most people were good and used their talents for the best.

Hopefully Drake would do the same, though his lack of sanity seemed to leave his future clouded. As for Yoru, he was a whole different story. Sooner or later Yoru's true past would be uncovered by any means necessary.

...

Short flame-red hair. Cold brown eyes hidden behind a blue mask. Light tanned skin. Sleeveless indigo top zipped up completely. Black leather pants. Heavy black boots. Katana strapped to back.

This was the new Tonbo.

Every other blue-wearing mafioso stood almost obediently as the short and young Italian-American walked past them, holding a black notebook.

"As of my father's death it was naturally my place to take over as leader of the Blue Dragonflies." the young adult began. "But some of you seemed to disagree with the idea of me taking over. Such a shame, Thomas Abbiati."

Thomas, the man the person was speaking of, looked inclined to react, but before he could speak he suddenly gasped for air and clutched his chest. The other members crowded around him at first in shock, but then stepped back as he collapsed onto his front and died of a heart attack. Everyone looked towards the Tonbo, eyes wide in fear.

Behind their mask, the Tonbo smirked. "He wasn't useful to us, anyway," they shrugged as they turned to face the small crowd. "But I don't intend to kill all of you for the abuse you put me through in the past. The way you'd use me for your own amusement. I just want to continue what my father started; the quest to bring down the Red Butterflies and let the Blue Dragonflies be the number one mafia group in the entire world."

The Tonbo yanked off their mask, reveling their face which had blue striped printed vertically over their eyes and a scar on their left cheek. A smirk was still on the Tonbo's face as they held the black notebook high in the air.

"With this notebook, we can become unstoppable," they grinned. "All we need to do is know the names and faces of our rivals. I'll capture Saya and have her write down the names of her own organization before I write down her name, too. Once the Red Butterflies are out of the way, we will be unbeatable! The world will know and fear the Blue Dragonflies! Every single person will cower at the name - including Kira himself!"

Standing behind the Tonbo was a salamander-like monster who remained unseen to the other group members.

A Shinigami who had dropped of their own spare notebook.

This Shinigami was known as Midora.

...

The next day was school for Kage and Yoru. Lawliet and Yoru had both discussed recent events with their aunt and uncle, which did indeed take a while for the middle-aged couple to understand. Lawliet had decided to walk with for a few minutes, engaging in conversation with his younger sibling.

"Remember, take down the names of people you think are likely to be Kira, but only write their names down when you are certain that nobody is looking at you suspiciously," Lawliet reminded.

"Don't worry, I know what to do," Yoru smiled as he walked.

"And promise that you won't let your emotions get the better of your choices," Lawliet added.

Yoru stopped walking for a moment as he thought about that, but then smiled and continued to walk happily. "Look, I won't, okay?" he assured.

"Promise," Lawliet commanded. Yoru just let out a sigh.

"I promise..." he mumbled.

"Good," Lawliet responded. "I'll be researching every student in that school myself and I'll make sure to have valid reasons for my accusations. I suggest you also prepare your arguments, too."

"Okay, okay, I will," Yoru chuckled. He then spotted Kage waiting just by the gate which led to her farm. The gothic girl waved at Yoru from where she was. "Oh! I gotta run, Kage looks like she's been waiting for me for a while!" the teen boy exclaimed. "I'll see you after school, Lawliet!"

"You should call me Ryuzaki from now on," Lawliet instructed.

"Oh! Right! Then I'll see you after school, Ryuzaki!" Yoru corrected himself before he ran towards Kage. Lawliet watched as he ran, but his eyes were quick to focus on Kage.

"Yeah. We've been friends for years."

Kage was the girl he had spoken to last night when he was heading for Yoru's house. She looked so unfitting in daylight with her dark hair yet pale skin; in fact, she almost looked like a vampire. Obviously she wasn't fully Japanese judging by her natural appearance, and honestly she looked better shrouded in darkness like how she was last night.

But Lawliet noticed Kage glance back at him briefly after she started walking with Yoru, her expression similar to that of a worried frown of some sort. She was hiding something. He knew it.

And just the sight of her...

Ding. Dong. Ding. Dong. Ding. Dong.

He could hear the bells. They were getting louder.

And Lawliet could even remember last night that Kage was talking to herself after he had walked away.

No... she was talking to a Shinigami. She must have been.

The ringing was louder.

In fact Lawliet even recalled Kage looking back at him last night. He saw her shocked stare from the corner of his eye.

His eyes widened.

He remembered what Kage was saying to herself after he had started walking to Yoru's house. She was asking someone if something was the matter, and if it was the Shinigami then they obviously knew something about L.

Ryuk, perhaps?

No, Ryuk would never seem bothered enough to have a human ask if something was on his mind. It must have been a Shinigami with something against him.

Or something - someone - else.

The deeper Lawliet dug into his thoughts and theories, the louder the ringing became. Why? Was he getting it wrong or was he getting it right? Why were the bells ringing so loud?

Was it because Yoru was in danger?

Was it because Kage was the one putting Yoru in danger?

Was it because Kage was the danger?

He had to stop thinking about it.

But the bells didn't stop.

They would only stop if he solved this case.

The young detective turned and started heading back towards Yoru's home, even with the loud sound of bells ringing in his ears. Wedding bells, funeral bells, school bells...

School bells.

"The Shinigami will get me! Can't you see it?! It's coming to get me!"

"Bidet, calm down! There's nothing there!"

"It's there! It's there! Why can't you see it when it's standing right there?!"

"Shinigamis aren't real, Bidet..."

"Shut up! They are real, one is right there!"

"Bidet, stop screaming..."

"NO! I won't stop screaming until it goes away!"

"You're scaring Yoru..."

"I don't care! He should be scared! There's a monster here!"

"There is no monster!"

"MAKE IT GO AWAY!"

"Bidet..."

"MAKE IT LEAVE ME ALONE!"

~End of Chapter~