AN: Thank you guys so much for all your reviews, and once again, I am back with another chapter :D This is my longest one yet, with a record of 12,401 words :3 I never really aim for a specific amount, and I usually just go with the flow, I suppose.
Anyways, the reason this is a little late is because I ended up moving house, and because of the stress I couldn't find time to put my thoughts and ideals into action to make this chapter worth reading (damn, I'd make a really shit Kira then).
Meanwhile, I've been spending my free time planning other fanfics, reading other fanfics, watching anime, reading books and stressing out a lot due to day to day life :D Despite the stress and panic attacks though, writing this fic is one of the only things that keeps me sane… ;
I'm planning on rewriting/editing a few earlier chapters to make up for my lack of enthusiasm on the beginning of the project and the total crapness that is the writing of Tkb4 XD
I actually took a particular risk with this chapter, the part where L is…no, I'm sure you'll know when you read it, and I don't want to spoil anything XD. Please, PLEASE tell me if that part is way to OOC or whatever…I really don't want to screw up again ^^
Okay, I'm in the process of planning ahead this time, so be prepared in the near future for a flood of chapters to come. (Maybe if I get them done in time o-o;)
Do I ramble on quite a lot? Tell me if I do that too XD Btw, I have finally worked out the ending to this. But it's going to take a while to tweak, so be sure to have your patience ready. I'm sure you're gonna like it, though ^^ I hope…:P
Disclaimer: Deathnote so totally is mine because I am Ohba and Obata meshed into one body, and I am fighting for dominance over the control of both L and Light's manhoods. Oh, and I can fly too because I have Ryuk with me :3 *sarcasm*
But seriously, I don't own it, and neither do I own the phrase "Good and evil are so close to be chained together in the soul". (That's from Dr Jekyl and Mr Hyde, btw), and I don't own Trading Yesterday either.
Oh, and a huge thanks to my friend Georgia with her help on this project. Much appreciated, GG~. :3
Well, enjoy ^^
(Psst, don't hate me for what I've done to Matsuda…XD)
Chapter Ten, Reassurance.
The sound of the storm echoed all around, causing the normally calm and steady atmosphere to be filled with rising tension.
But as such, a 'calm and steady' situation was never permitted when thoughts of resent and a vile outlook on not only each other, but on the ideals of justice as well, were thickening the air in ferocious waves.
To be fair in his stead, L had not forgiven Light for the confrontation that had taken place only a day before.
To be honest, it was more the fact that L had not forgiven himself for falling headfirst into the sudden onslaught the teen had conducted.
What was more sickening in its place was that L craved more. He craved the intensified looks the teen gave him in such moments of passion. He craved the young boy's touch like a moth to a flame.
He wanted more of this. And what made the detective more pissed than ever was that he never understood why.
Self-respect had been a delusion between the barriers of L's mind. He was not ashamed to be silently obsessed with Light. As long as such a momentous phase remained silent.
And as long as it remained just a phase.
L turned meekly to stare at the teen, who was seated in the bed next to him in all his splendour, fingers poised to flick over the page of the novel he had within his hands.
His dappled amber eyes, wrought with concentration, scanned the pages back and forth in a quick succession.
His head slightly tilted forward to provide a better positional guise for the onlooking of the hardback novel, Light's lips moved in a silent response, repeating the words inwardly to himself as he absorbed the world within the pages.
L blinked to clear his thoughts, but still the image of perfection remained, and as seemingly became brighter.
The detective's stomach curled at the brimming memory of Light's lips brushing against his, and he bit down slightly harder on his thumb to stop himself from launching hungrily at the younger man.
This didn't stop his head from twitching slightly to the side from the effort, and it also didn't stop the teen's gaze from rising upwards to meet L's eyes with his own.
Light's eyebrows narrowed in sullen confusion, and his voice ever so slightly became clear only to utter the detective's name in a whisper.
"Ryuzaki?"
L recoiled, but only slightly. "Yes, Light-Kun?"
"Stop staring at me. It's creepy."
This was enough to drive L from his dependent stupor, and proper reason drove its force into his skull.
The detective cleared his throat, pushing back his embarrassment along with the insistent tingling in his stomach, and replied, "Ah, I apologize. I suppose it is just..."
Light's features softened only slightly. "Yeah?" He pressed just as softly.
L blinked again and swallowed the nervous bile congesting in the back of his throat. "I need to take a walk. I believe some escape from this suffocating room would do me good."
And, just as expected, Light's annoyance showed in his features. With a frown, he snapped, "Well, go ahead and remove the cuffs, then."
"21 percent, Light-Kun."
Light sunk back into his pillows, biting back a snide retaliation. "Give me a break, Ryuzaki." He sighed, rubbing his forehead.
L tilted his head. "I'm sure that this will-"
"Can it, will you? I don't feel like walking around at 2am in the goddamn morning!"
"I suppose, but then why do you have the stability to keep your eyes open while reading a rather sexual scene in the novel you were indulged in?"
The teen widened his eyes and could feel the crimson pouring into his cheeks. "I wasn't reading a sexual scene!"
"Yes, you were."
"Prove it." And just as those words spilled from the teen he regretted his actions almost instantly.
L's lips turned upwards into a sly grin. "Well, you seem to have developed a cute habit of moving your lips while reading, pronouncing the words without actually speaking them out loud. Despite the fact you were keeping a completely straight face, the sentences, 'And then she moaned out his name in a voice thickened with lust almost made him'-What's the matter?"
Throughout the entire explanation, Light's face had suddenly gone pale, and his eyes widened to a strange degree, almost as if he had just seen a ghost.
"Light Kun?"
"Y...You just..."
This was new. The detective had never seen the teen this nervous. Not that he remembered, at least not regarding the time L had almost drowned at the beach.
Taking the opportunity, L leaned forward to close the proximity between them and replied, "Yes?"
Light's cheeks highlighted crimson as the detective's sweet smelling breath tickled his cheek and muttered, "You just called me...cute."
L immediately recreated the distance. "No I didn't."
Light slowly rose, gathering himself. "Yes you did. I heard you." He accused with a sly grin, the nervousness hard to miss in his eyes.
"Prove it!" L retorted, his voice rising to a comically higher note.
Light looked in disbelief at the man he was handcuffed to.
But for some weird reason, he now had the urge to get out of that room and walk around to clear his head a little. Standing up, and making the bed creak as he did so, he pulled on a woollen purple dressing gown and tightened it about the waist.
L looked at him, still in the morbid act of flight in the state of fight. "What are you doing?"
Light turned almost wearily to look at him, aware that his heart rate had risen again since the reasoning to calm it once after reading what L had promptly stated.
Clearing his throat and mind from his perverted musings of the novel, he said, "You wanted a walk, right? Let's go then."
L nodded weakly, and stood, disregarding a pair of slippers set up neatly beside the bed, and made his way toward the door.
In the same instance though, Light and L reached for the door handle at the same time, and because of such, their hands collided, brushing against one another in a symmetrical fashion.
L was the first to fly backwards, holding his appendage against his chest like the handle had been a thousand degrees hotter than it actually looked. Light rolled his eyes and quickly opened the door, pulling L along after him.
L only just managed to close the door behind them as the teen thundered down the hallway, his footsteps exciting the shadows in his wake. Light's stride was forced, not unlike the smile he put up in retaliation against the detective's stupid and childish antics.
What L saw within the world was apparent. It was as if his very being was created to just annoy the crap out of him.
Light sighed, receiving another jabbered look from the detective striding delicately behind him, his feet barely making any sound as they skirted across the carpet.
Light couldn't help but feel cornered every time the older man looked at him. It was almost as if he could see into everything the teen was; what with those endless obsidian pits one would call eyes. Even in his sleep he couldn't escape from each and every waking moment.
L's voice, thick with ridicule, shouted out brash comments to the teen, and accusations to accumulate the theory of apparent treason. But in all the lies, Light knew the truth. He wasn't Kira.
Of course, however, L wanted to continue believing in such a lie, even when all evidence at the moment pointed away from the truth. Or did it?
Everything was silent, save for the sound of their own synchronised breathing.
Light came to a stop at the end of the hallway, the chain dangling uselessly in between the two, symbolizing the need to remain sane even when connected at every length to a maniac.
'Good and evil are so close to be chained together in the soul.'
There was never a moment of peace. Everything was slowly building to overcome the teen. And it all centred around that damn detective.
L was everything he wanted to hate. But even then…
"Why do you do it?" He snarled, turning on his heel to face the detective.
L snapped back to reality, and he put a finger to his lip as he replied, "Do...what?"
Light stepped forward defensively, which caused the detective to step back in sync, poised and ready to strike. "Why do you agitate me, Ryuzaki? Is THAT what you find fun?"
L's posture tightened. What the hell was Light going on about? "Clarify." He stated.
Light gripped at his head and shook it insanely. "I don't know! I don't know, I don't know, I don't know! You just have this weird...'You're just...'!"
"Yes? What are you trying to say, Light Kun?"
Light let out a sigh and lowered his head. "I don't know. Forget it."
But just as he turned to make his way into the living room space they shared, the detective, out of a sudden impulse that could not be negotiated reasonably, lunged forward and took the teen's hand in his own.
It wasn't known how this had come about, but L came to the conclusion that out of the will to somehow comfort his troubled colleague, the need to take his hand in his had become strong. Why he would feel such a desire, however, like many things concerning Light, still eluded him.
At the sudden contact, Light jolted, and out of impulse gripped at the older man's hand with an added force of recognition.
As the younger of the two turned to face his predecessor, the moment was interrupted by a small whimpering sound coming from a nearby corner.
Light stiffened, and his grip became iron in acknowledgement of the sound. L's hand went even paler and he struggled to feel the blood rushing to his fingers. But being in as much pain as he was, his curiosity took the cake.
Leading Light to the corner, he was almost surprised to see a black and shadowy lump shivering there.
At first he narrowed it down to Misa, being that she would be the only one who dared to come onto this private floor. But as her failed ambition for courtesy was as rash and futile as her attempts of getting Light to fall in love with her, he had to give her the credit of trying.
He was about to up and leave until he heard the whimper sound distinctly male.
And then all sorts of crazed theories ran through his mind.
Let's just say that none of these said theories helped to hinder the suspicions of L believing Light to be homosexual. Especially if his makeshift girlfriend was in fact secretly male.
And then for a disturbed moment, L wondered how Misa could've made those breasts look so…real.
But every single thought and conduction on the theory of Misa A Man'e was thrown out the window when he heard Light utter, "Matsuda?"
Cringing at his stupidity, L leaned forward to inspect the cowering man. Even with no moonlight to guide them, L was sure that Light's deduction was perfect.
L reached out a hand to awkwardly tap the rookie on the head. "Matsuda? Are you al-WHA-?"
L nearly toppled over backwards, because what had just happened was as nearly unbelievable as Misa Amane actually being a man. Matsuda, in his current state, had done the only thing he could make sense out of.
He had lunged headfirst into an awkward, one-sided hug with L.
L could feel himself becoming nervous. Nobody just...hugged him out of the blue! Least of all Touta Matsuda!
But his outlook changed when he felt the man's body wrack with shudders and sobs against his stomach, and from closer inspection, the detective noticed that Matsuda seemed to be...crying.
Why such a thing was random, it wasn't rare for the rookie. But this...?
L looked at Light for support, but the teen was busy looking around for any evidence of what had caused this. Caught in the moment, and without a second thought, L nervously ran a hand through Matsuda's hair.
"...There there." He tried to comfort him, but his voice had all of a sudden gone dry. "What's wrong?" He tried to press instead.
His answer came sooner than expected as he noticed a blue fluorescent light from a mobile phone shine in Light's hands. But as he was about to question the teen's apparent look of dismay, the phone dropped to the floor out of his now shaking hands.
It semi bounced a little, until it landed on its side, and L had to tilt his head to view the screen on a proper angle.
His blood became cold as he read;
'I'm sorry...But your mother has died from a heart attack.'
:HeartBeats:
The next morning seemed to drag on aimlessly. Everything had a stale purchase, not to be brash about L's own long forgotten morning coffee. The detective was perched, as pale skinned as ever, on his computer chair, his pupils dilating as he stared at his blank computer screen. Light sat a few feet away, his head in his hands and his breathing irregular.
Matsuda had been excused from work for as long as time permitted his absence. Without the rookie's daily shine, the already dull office seemed more offset than usual. Nobody had traded words at all during the entire time they had arrived at work.
L had even put aside appointing everyone their usual assignments for the day, instead choosing to use this time to speculate on such a dilemma.
From what he remembered, the text message had specifically said that Matsuda's mother had died due to a heart attack. A further background check earlier on revealed that the woman was a convicted drug dealer, who had been spending the last few months on a pending trial.
Due to insufficient evidence, and lack of attention to such a matter, the final outcome had yet to be decided, instead being dragged around by a poorly constituted law. Seeing this, and due to the information given on her death, L had come to the conclusion that Kira had possibly gotten to her before the authorities had reached a final decision.
Even with Matsuda's limited intellect, the detective was sure that the rookie could connect the dots.
L wasn't worried about Matsuda's feelings in general concerning his beloved mother, but more on the fact of how this would affect the Kira case. Would the young officer just decide to up and leave due to such a thing? Or would his resent build to such a point that he would be more motivated to catch the killer?
That's when a sudden fear and realization of fact began to conjure in his mind. Was it just coincidence that this slow-killing Kira had happened to target Matsuda's own mother?
What if the rookie had leaked information in the outside world, and the murder of one of his co-worker's family members was a way to get closer to L?
It was a possibility, and one that he was sure he wasn't going to overlook so easily. But just as theories were theories, the detective couldn't seem to string up anything other than that one speculation.
Sighing in frustration, L went to share his thoughts with the sluggish teen, when Aizawa stormed into their space, holding a piece of paper above his head.
At this, everyone, excluding L, stood, anticipation rising within them. Aizawa let out a shaky breath as he leaned against a wall to steady himself. One look, and his eyes said it all.
Without a second to lose, L lunged forward towards the taller man, dragging an exasperated Light behind him. "Give that to me." L's voice was not threatening, but sterner than it usually was.
After a moment's hesitation, Aizawa nodded stiffly, and dropped the folded envelope into the detective's hands. Spinning to face Light, L ferociously tore the note open, and unfolded it without a moment's hesitation. As his eyes scanned the page and absorbed the words, what he had expected came to the surface.
A moment's silence...
"It says that you, Mr Aizawa, are invited to attend a funeral in mourning of Matsuda's recently deceased mother."
"Point out the obvious, will you Ryuzaki? I mean, come on, what else were you expecting?"
L gave a bitter look to his puffy haired colleague, and scanned over the letter once again to be sure of himself.
To be honest, he expected to the highest degree, a letter from Matsuda himself. But from reason and fact, the instance where he hadn't sent them a letter just proved that the rookie wasn't as stupid as L thought.
Well, despite that, it still would've been nice to receive a personal letter. After all, such a childish thing somehow made L, rather like most children would, feel loved and whole.
Clearing his throat, and turning back to the group of waiting workers, L raised both nonexistent eyebrows sternly. Light, with an equally overrated look, was almost surprised to hear, "We are all going to attend this funeral. Is that clear?"
Wait, what?
The same affect seemed to be postulating through the small crowd. Apparently they all had the same theory Light did. Since when did L care for a part in any personal matter of anyone's whatsoever?
Well, personal privacy between him and Light was a big factor, but besides that obvious conclusion, why else would he care?
Soichiro broke the silence by asking brashly, "When is it?"
"Tomorrow. At Tokyo's central graveyard."
Light's father gave a stiff nod, but besides that everyone remained silent.
As if it was what L expected, the detective gave a nod of his own, an implication to dismiss everyone present, and went to turn back to his computer, when Aizawa's cockatoo voice streaked through the air.
"I don't get you, Ryuzaki! One minute you're a complete and total emotionless ass, and then the next you all of a sudden give a damn about the rest of us! What the hell is up with that?"
Light smirked. He couldn't have said it better himself.
"You want to know why I suddenly care, Mr Aizawa?" L's voice was quiet. Aizawa hesitated, before nodding roughly. "You heard me."
L's head inclined until he was looking over his hunched shoulder, his inky gaze fixated on the older man.
"It's simply a matter of courtesy. He works for me, and so attending this event is enough to repay the favour."
And without another word, the detective skulked past him, dragging the teen along with him, and out the door, forgetting the fact that his laptop still sat, buzzing and its lid carelessly left open to reveal an unusually blank screen.
All the while, L could feel his colleagues' eyes on him, watching him like a pack of wild animals, ready to strike at any given time. And as such, L took the notion into account as he ascended the glass stairs leading upwards and to the hallway where their room was situated.
One wrong move, and suddenly the Taskforce were going to be against him as well.
"Hey, Ryuzaki?"
L had almost forgotten that Light had been following him, his own robust brown eyes reading L's face as if it were his own reflection. Being handcuffed to the teen on a daily basis had become so natural, that L almost feared the change of the day to come was going to be imminent.
But then again, such a thing was ridiculous, as one person's freedom was another's gain. Of course, it would have been stupid to consider the handcuff arrangement enjoyable and...wanted.
"Yes Light-Kun?" He muttered a little too low, giving a chance for the teen to press forward with a bluntly delivered device.
"I know why you want to attend the funeral."
At this, L became noticeably stiffer, and Light could feel the movement flood down the chain and collide with his wrist.
"You...feel sorry for him. You want to be nice, and be there for him, like a..."
"A?"
"Friend."
Despite years of constant practice of keeping his poker face unreadable and revealing body language to a minimum; the detective couldn't disguise the nervous cough that wracked his chest.
"I'm afraid that's entirely incorrect, Light-Kun."
"Oh please. Stop acting like a tight assed bastard and look at reality for once."
L grimaced. Reality was all he could focus on. After all, catching Kira was his reality.
But what about the newly found sensation he found within the eyes of the boy who may very well steal his life away in the end?
L shook his head and gritted his teeth. Oh how he loathed Light Yagami. How he loathed the natural ability he harboured on deducting the detective's every single thought, every single theory...
Sometimes it felt that even his own memories were at the hands of the suspected individual. But he couldn't lead himself to believe that, for if a fictional fact were to swallow him whole, the fear he resented would build, and then panic would rise.
And then what could he do?
Sighing in defeat, L waved a hand nonchalantly at the teen. "Well, whatever you say. What I really want at the moment right now is to focus on the more important subject at hand; catching Kira. And you should as well."
Light rolled his eyes in annoyance. "You're being stubborn. I know I'm right."
"Not stubborn, but perhaps I'm just getting tired of your questions."
"Well, look at the position I'm in, Ryuzaki. We're not so different there, are we?"
L ignored him and continued to ascend the stairs, a headache beginning to form in the corner of his brain. Light followed and shoved his hands into his trouser pockets, a scowl set on his face. "You know what I think? This was exactly like the time when we were sitting with Misa-"
"Don't bring up that ridiculous girl now. Please."
"In her apartment, and you were all depressed because the almighty L's deduction was wrong. You hate losing. You hate being bested."
L rolled his eyes. "I could say the same about you. The difference between us, however, is that I already have you in custody and I know for a fact that you are Kira, yet you never seem to yield. Why don't you go ahead and confess already? It would save the both of us a lot of trouble, you know."
Light jerked to a stop, causing L to nearly slip up on a step. He raised an eyebrow and faced the teen, an interested look pertaining to the younger's sudden defiance.
"I'm not Kira! How many times do I have to tell you that?"
L sighed, his headache becoming greater. "You don't. We wait and see how the evidence gathers, and then we will reach a decision. Now come, I feel like cake."
The gothic archetype of the cathedral was not only chilling, but breathtaking as well.
:HeartBeats:
In contrast to the grey skies above and the slight drizzle of rain dampening the earth around, the given scene looked like something out of a horror film.
Closing the door of the limo with a sharp click, Light turned to surveillance the area.
It was outstanding, how when standing in the middle of a spooky graveyard the skyscrapers of the surrounding city towered above them, encasing the area rather menacingly. The clouds above were reflecting off the bright and large windows of the taller buildings, reminding one just how society was progressing in the realm of reality.
No one was sure why the graveyard and cathedral had remained. Even though there had been warrants sent out by officials to knock the structures to the ground to make way for more buildings, it was like the public did not want to lose the centrepiece of the city.
As long as history remained, so did respect for the authorities who kept it intact.
But still, this building didn't have an inch of Japanese air about it. So, there wasn't really any point in respecting such a building's 'Japanese' history when its history was obviously obstructed elsewhere.
Light however was pulled from his musings as he was dragged solemnly along behind L, who had begun to make his way to the arched entrance of the building.
The teen couldn't bring himself to believe that even at a funeral, the older detective had refused to remove the handcuffs. It was rather obvious, but as L had quoted; "Death at a funeral, Light-Kun. What could be more convenient for Kira?", Light knew better than to argue.
Pouting and ignoring the complacent and confused looks onlookers all around gave, he sped up his pace to match L's and passed through the entrance of the church. A nearby advisor bowed in respect, before his polite gaze turned to one of slight disturbance at the sight of L and Light's hands cuffed together.
He bowed again, but this time shakily, as if rendering the mistake he had made earlier.
Light rolled his eyes and shrugged in nonchalant annoyance, before taking a pamphlet from the nearby table, L doing the same. Without a word to spare, they made their way down the aisles and towards the front, where the rest of the crew had already gathered.
Standing straight in the middle of a crowd of solemn and mourning people was Matsuda, perhaps with the saddest look that Light had ever seen on him. At first, the rookie's seemingly fazed over eyes scanned right past the two in a hopeless attempt at taking in everything around, until he realized what he had missed and his expression turned to one of surprise.
"Ryuzaki?" He cried, his voice echoing all around. It seemed the idle rookie had the same idea as the rest of the Taskforce.
His loud outburst caused the entire crowd to turn their eyes on him, their faces filled with interest.
L grimaced, and scratched the back of his head sheepishly. Well, even when times permitted, it still unnerved the detective to be the direct centre of basic social attention.
A hushed whisper could be heard as Matsuda stepped forward to shake his hand, then proceeded to shake Light's. L could feel eyes all around and it sent a shudder through his body.
To make matters worse, the chain between them clinked against a table's surface, drawing even more attention than before.
L blinked, and was about to act on the impulse of escape, when Light came to the rescue. "Thanks for inviting us, Matsuda. I'm really sorry about your loss."
L and Matsuda both stared in disbelief at the teen, before the rookie gave a wry smirk and shook his head. "Nah, don't worry about it. She was getting old anyway."
Light let out a small chuckle, and meanwhile L noticed the crowd had once again begun to chatter amongst themselves, albeit one or two beady pairs of eyes staring curiously at the newcomers.
"It's nice to see you acting calm." Light continued, ignoring the fact of the matter Matsuda saying such a thing.
"Well, I don't think there's anything else I can do. Mom wouldn't want me crying, you know. She was always like that...Always saying that if I didn't smile at least once a day, even if it was forced, she'd somehow know and come and beat my-"
"It's nice to know she cared." The teen interrupted, rubbing the bridge of his nose between two fingers.
Meanwhile, L scanned the crowd, looking for any familiar faces under the right of entertaining himself. He spotted one or two familiar faces from the NPA anniversary dinner, but other than that...-
L's eyes became wider than normal, and his heart of rationality dropped about a metre towards the ground. Searching around frantically, he dropped and rolled behind a just as frantic crowd as they stared at the strange man who seemed to have an impulse similar to a chameleon. Thinking he could camouflage behind the dark clothing of the crowd, L peered curiously from behind the back of a woman who was giving him a panicked look.
For who had just stepped in his field of vision, her bosom as blooming as ever, was none other than the cow of a woman Prudence Takimura.
Once again tightly packed in a, this time an ugly green, dress that she somehow thought could hold in all the rolls of extra fat, and her face smeared in enough makeup he thought her eyeballs would crack, the woman was standing only a few feet away by the buffet table, none too convincingly trying to snatch a few extra shrimp cocktails in her leather purse.
The very nature and status of this woman was enough to make the detective retch in disgust, and from the effort he scooted backwards, still seated on his rear.
However, his attempt was short-lived as he managed to trip up a member of the group he was hiding behind. The person fell with a gurgled cry, and on instinct he reached out and caught the figure within his grasp.
Shaking his head and brushing his fringe out of his eyes, he was almost surprised to find that Sayu Yagami was curled up in his arms, shaking in the silky black dress she was clad in.
She snapped open her dappled almond eyes and with a gasp recoiled onto the floor at the sight of L. For some reason, her pupils were more dilated than usual, and her usual rosy complexion was unnaturally pale.
...Did L really look that terrifying?
"Are you alright?" He tried to reassure the young girl, but on impulse she lashed out and caught him square on the nose. With a yelp he clutched at his aching appendage and managed to fall back down on his backside.
Whimpering a little, he went to stand, until he saw Light reach a hand out to help him up. Hesitating a little, and nearly missing the fake concern within the teen's eyes, he swallowed his pride and grabbed the hand.
But suddenly, L found himself victim to Light's hands all over, brushing his black suit down with the surprisingly natural ability of skirting. L cringed a little in embarrassment as a hand brushed past a more private area of his body, but soon enough he was free of the sweeping motion of the younger male.
Light turned to his sister, an eyebrow raised. "Sayu. What are you doing here?" He said in a stern voice. Sayu looked as if words had failed her, and before he could press forward, Sachiko suddenly appeared by her daughter's side, placing a reassuring hand on her shoulder.
"Oh, Light! I didn't expect to see you here. I thought you were still away on that Mathematics camp."
Light, this time, almost cringed himself. The only flaw with the plan of staying with L, despite the handcuffs, was the stupid lies Soichiro had managed to come up with to convince his family where exactly Light was going to be. So far, the idea of a mathematics camp wasn't going too smoothly.
Light shrugged, keeping a calm composure. "Dad said that he was going to attend the funeral, and since I had some free time on my hands, I figured 'Hey, why not come?' So, here we are."
Sachiko gave a confused tilt of her head. "But Soichiro never...-" However, her attention was deprived as she finally realized L had been standing there the entire time, a finger in his mouth as he examined the woman with large black eyes.
And then she noticed that he was still handcuffed to her son.
Flushing a little, she waved her hand politely. "Oh! I'm sorry, Ryuzaki, was it? Excuse my interruption. It was very rude of me." L shook his head. "No, it was my fault. I apologize in advance. I shouldn't have acted so carelessly."
Light's mother gave her trademark warm smile, and dismissing the act of asking about the handcuffs, she replied, "If I may, how is it going with my son? I hope he's not too much of a bother. I mean, it's not that surprising really. We always had suspicions ever since he was a child, yet-"
"If I may, Mrs Yagami, what on earth are you going on about?"
Light gritted his teeth and turned away, feeling a blush spread on his cheeks. Of course Sayu had to convince Sachiko as well. Not that there was any convincing to do, to be exact.
But that little brat...
"Oh, I'm sorry. Am I mistaken in not knowing that Light is your-"
"Colleague?"
"Boyfriend." Oh look, no apprehension there. Typical. L furrowed his brow and grimaced, almost letting out a growl of annoyance.
"Mrs Yagami, I assure you that there is nothing of the sort happening between your son and I. It's all a simple misunderstanding." Nothing happening? Where had his reasoning to see the truth gone?
Sachiko appeared almost relieved. "Oh well, I thought as much. I apologize for that as well..."
That was then a sudden realization became clear to Light.
"Mom, what do you mean...you always had suspicions...?"
His mother gave an innocent look, while L grinned in turn. How amusing. A mother's intuition was always best, as they usually said.
"U-Uhm, now Light, darling...It's not a real big deal. We've always understood you to be a little..."
"A little, what? I'm not gay, mom!"
"I was going to say eccentric! But I clearly see that I've made a mistake..."
The teen's outlook became softer, and he sighed in defeat. "Mom, I'm sorry, but you can't go around making assumptions without anything to back it up with." At this, he almost turned to glare at L, who was standing nearby in the same fashion he was before.
"Anyway, what are you doing here?" He continued.
Sachiko petted her still distraught daughter on the head softly. "Well, Touta has been a family friend for a while, and when your father informed us that Sen had died, well, we couldn't just sit back and relax, could we? So here we are."
At that, Sayu uttered something under her breath, and her brother gave a piqued look of interest. "Something up?" He asked.
Sachiko shook her head. "She's been like this the entire morning. I think it's because she isn't all that fond of funerals. But really, who is?"
Light shrugged, and turned back to L, who was bobbing like a meerkat and looking towards a rather large member of the crowd who happened to be standing near the buffet table.
"What are you doing, Ryuzaki?" He grimaced and crossed his arms over his chest.
"She's here. Don't you realize?"
"Who...?"
"Prudence Takimura."
Oh.
The teen turned, and sure enough there she was standing not too far away, scanning the crowd with her unnerving falcon eyed gaze. Light cursed under his breath and looked around wildly for a hiding place. Spotting a nearby door, he made his way toward it. It seemed as if the detective had the same idea, and they closed it behind them in a hurry.
Leaning against the wall with a sigh, he was suddenly interrupted by a small and waning cry from L. Turning in disbelief that perhaps Prudence had cornered them somehow, the reason for L's outburst became apparent and he almost let out a hoarse scream himself.
For lying in front of them, dressed reservedly for the occasion, was the pale face of an old woman's corpse. At this, they panicked, and in the flood of fear they found themselves clutching at each other rather comically. They stepped forward in sync, still embracing one another, and leaned over to examine the body.
The woman's features were peaceful, almost like she was in a deep slumber that she would never awaken from. For some strange reason, L extended a spidery finger and prodded the corpse's face delicately, yet with a shudder he retreated and wiped the invisible 'germs' on the teen's shoulder. Light groaned loudly. "Ryuzaki, that's so gross!"
L blinked and swallowed back a bark of adherence. "Well, I wanted-"
"Wha-?"
"To see if she was truly dead."
Light gave L a look of major disbelief, and then suddenly the realization that they were attending a funeral became even clearer than before, and Light swore loudly again. They had accidentally stumbled upon the room where the body of Matsuda's mother was being held.
After all, could there be a better explanation?
Obviously not, for as soon as they had regained their senses, the door behind them opened, and on impulse they clutched even tighter into one another.
In stepped the advisor who had been standing at the entrance of the church, and upon seeing the two handcuffed men in a very strange embrace in the body's holding room, it seemed to be too much for him.
His eyes rolled in the back of his head and he buckled to the floor, becoming unconscious from the effort of keeping his sanity in check. L stared. Why were people suddenly scared of him today?
"Is he going to be alright?" He muttered.
"I don't think so-" Light began, but upon realizing the awkward position they were in, he shoved the detective across the room and gave a disgusted snarl.
L, in turn, took the chance to right himself, and after a few moments they stumbled back out of the room as if nothing had ever occurred.
A moan was heard from the collapsed man, and with a look free from guilt, L shut the door with a soft click. He whistled between his teeth and casually shoved his hands in his pockets, leading Light away from the mess they had suddenly found themselves in.
:HeartBeats:
Amazingly enough, over a period of the next forty five minutes, the two men had managed to duck and weave out of sight of the orbiting woman.
It was during that time that the chapel was beginning to house more people than Light thought possible.
How many people were in debt to this woman anyway?
But as soon as the thought crossed his mind, the said crowd began to file through and make their way towards the aisles lining the church interior.
In a flash, Light found himself being pulled roughly in to sit amongst the front row next to L. Seated next to him was Matsuda, eyes filled with a grief that only a mourning son would know.
But, surprisingly, still no tears fell, yet the teen noticed how despite the rookie's rigid position, the Matsuda they knew was somewhere far away in a place inside his mind that no one on the outside could disturb.
The advisor that had passed out suddenly stepped onto the podium, a still dazed look about his features as he stood directly in front of the open lidded coffin that had been placed there for display.
"We are gathered here today to honour the memory of a beloved friend, mother and work colleague. Sen Matsuda has recently come to pass under the..."
And on the man's voice droned, perfectly trained to put up an act in defiance to commemorate the dead.
Light found himself immediately bothered. It was...sick, how one could sit so calmly and listen to a boring old prat preach on about God knows what while the corpse of someone you once knew and loved rotted away in a tightly fitted case one could hardly call for comfort.
He almost snorted. As if comfort mattered in the situation at hand.
That was when something even stranger came to mind.
What did the dead really think? Did they have the privilege to think at all in the afterlife?
Or were all religious beliefs proved false and the only thing one left truly behind was the rotting flesh of their former selves?
It was frightening; to think that there could be no afterlife. It was also frightening to think that there could be.
For whatever one did in this life, was enough to thrust consequences on them if they were passing on into the next. The ordinal claim of an otherworldly heaven and hell existing was doubtful in itself. Was it really as simple as if one was good they would pass on into heaven, and if one sinned they'd be damned to hell?
That was where Kira's divine judgement came in.
For the ultimate price of sin was death, and as such it would be a world of hell on earth. That left him to ponder. Was Kira actually a god? Or a power hungry madman who only wanted to make himself known above all as almighty?
He blinked and had to grip his teeth to stop himself from making a sound of anger. There was no God. If there were, death wouldn't exist.
If there were, Kira wouldn't exist.
If there were, the world would be perfect already.
At this, Light's eyes diverted to the body of the woman lain in the coffin. Did Kira know what it was like to die? Did he even see his victims be murdered at his hand?
What did he think of the mercy that they held within their dying eyes as they were swallowed up by this so called justice? Did he consider the fear that the world was beginning to acknowledge?
Did Kira have fear himself?
...
Did he fear death?
At this, Light found he couldn't breathe. He began to take hasty, weak gasps of air, and he wiped away at the nervous sweat that was beginning to brim on his forehead.
It came as a sudden rush to him, this new fear. There was something so familiar about that thought...About the will of a murderer...But no matter what he tried to do, he couldn't recollect any sort of memory about this sort of emotion penetrating before.
He wasn't sure what to think. It was all so confusing...But so familiar...
That was when he heard a soothing voice whisper in his ear. "Light Kun?"
Without a second thought, he felt his hand, moving of its own accord, to shakily embrace L's own. The detective stiffened, from what he could feel, but nonetheless sped a calm outtake. Light's grip tightened as he tried to find the will to right himself, but the fear was becoming clearer.
He couldn't find the promise to meet the detective's eyes, because he felt that if he did he might break down then and there. It was an alien thing, this weakness against reason that had pitifully made its way into his heart.
He knew something was missing. Something bigger than a memory. Something...he felt that he had to do.
"Light."
His heart began to pulse even harder as he felt L's fingers curl around his. He let loose another shaky breath to calm himself, before turning towards L and nodding ever so slightly as an indication that the detective could let go.
But this didn't seem to be, as the older man suddenly gave a seemingly reassuring squeeze, but from closer inspection the teen found that L's eyes were trained strictly to look ahead without the indication of actual emotion being present.
He felt amazed, but more of the fact that he immediately felt relaxed at the detective's sudden touch.
Out of concern for the two at that moment was Matsuda, who had been the only one in the chapel to notice the twos' very homosexually implied appeal to one another.
The rookie's eyebrow rose. There was always a suspicion, but could it be possible that Ryuzaki and Light...?
However, his outtake changed as he saw L peer over Light's shoulder and give him a cold look. He gave a small cry of distress, before curling back up into his solemn and self-created ball of depression.
For a while they sat, simply acknowledging one another's touch as a simple matter.
But in that, strange theories had begun to weave into a web of connections inside their minds. Processing what this entire network meant between them was challenging in itself. So far, it almost as challenging as the story behind the Kira investigation.
Was there anything between them?
Of course. A rivalry unmatched by any other. L was one of the greatest authority figures this world had ever known, and Light Yagami was the biggest suspect in the Kira case. Determined to the core to figure one another out, whether it be through any means possible.
An emotional attachment? Such a thing was fake in this battle, this war for a cup that was already half empty.
Why find the need to destroy all that was broken in the first place? Why find it so fulfilling to empty out that cup that already had nothing inside? Because all that mattered was winning. All that mattered was beating one another at this trivial game.
Yet, in the end, all they would find was death waiting for them at the end of the road.
All that awaited him was a broken heart. :HeartBeats:
After a long progression, and a lot of sobbing from the participants, the crowd began to shuffle from the chapel, filing out into the graveyard so they could make their way towards the burial site.
To put it simply, L was...no. There was no way to put into words how the detective was feeling at that moment.
After all, before this entire charade with the handcuffs had begun, L's emotions tended to be distant and eroding. So, as it was expected, he didn't even know himself how he felt. All he was aware of was that he felt weak at the knees, and he somehow craved the warmth from the hand he had taken before.
His stomach felt tight, and he found it hard to focus on everything around, but nonetheless from years of practice he managed to retain a calm compromise.
Dread, perhaps? No, such a thing was too chaotic...
Nerves? But what did he...Oh. Of course.
Light walked calmly beside him, programmed to remain still under the gift of perfection even after such a thing. What was he feeling at that very moment? Did he feel...similar, to what the detective was feeling right now?
Fear...? No, that couldn't be right...Fear was cold, much colder...
No form of communication was exchanged as they followed through a string of people and towards the far edge of the wide cemetery.
The rain that had fallen during the ceremony had relaxed to a quaint drizzle, and the audience gathered was lightly being dowsed in the haze. L shook his head, spraying ever so slightly the tiniest amount of droplets into the air, and a shudder wracked his body as he felt a small chill creep down his spine.
The shadows on the ground dispersed, revealing the reflection of the waking sun through the parting clouds above. Light blinked, and covered his eyes as a ray shone directly into his face, revealing the act of retaining a fake positive attitude through the will of defiance that stood in his way.
Pretty soon the audience had gathered around the burial mound, a negative vibration of sorrow emanating from each and every individual. The sound of wheels against dirt reached his ears, and Light turned briskly to see a shiny black car pulling up beside them.
Such a thing was ponderous, until he realized what it was for when the advisor stepped out and made his way to the back of the vehicle. When the back door opened, Light spotted the coffin neatly placed in the centre of the floor.
A few more people from the gathered crowd stepped forward to help the advisor as he hauled the luggage from the back with a groan. Even if it didn't look it, a human body plus the added weight of the coffin it was placed in was more than a single man could bear, obviously.
The coffin was hoisted above the shoulders of six men, including Matsuda who stood by the back, and the line began a steady march towards the grave where she was to be placed.
Such a scene nearly required the anticipation of added music, but being that this ceremony had all to do with reality, all that could be heard was the grim sound of the wind whistling through the trees above.
Silence seemed to be an ally in all of this, when suddenly a low but slow whisper could be heard. This whisper was broken into that of a sad melody as the solemn voice became louder and clearer.
Light went pale as the words transformed into lyrics, and those chosen lyrics became clear to him as the person sang;
'Yesterday I died, tomorrow's bleeding.
Fall into your sunlight.
The future's opened wide, beyond believing. To know why, hope dies.'
A chill went down the teen's spine as the carefully constructed song only added to the despair of the moment. The open will of singing had attracted attention, and one by one, people turned their hollow eyes to stare at the source.
'Losing what was found, in a world so hollow, suspended in a compromise.
The silence of the sound was soon to follow.
Somehow, Sundown.
And finding answers, is forgetting all of the questions we call upon.
Passing the graves of the unknown.'
There was only thing thing the teen could make from this. Beautiful.
But who...?
'This reason clouds my eyes, the splendour fading.
Illusions of the sunlight. And the reflection of a lie, will keep me waiting.
Love gone, for so long.
And this day's ending, as the proof of time killing all the faith I know.
Knowing that faith is all I hold.'
And then Light knew. He turned his gaze to find himself staring into those familiar spine-tingling eyes, and picking up midway, he found himself singing along to the song of his own accord, his voice contrasting in harmony with the conjurer's.
'And I've lost who I am, and I can't understand, why my heart is so broken, rejecting your love. Without, love gone wrong, lifeless words carry on.
But I know, all I know, is that the end's beginning.
Who I am, from the start, take me home to my heart. Let me go and I will run. I will not be silenced. All this time, spent in vain, wasted years, wasted gain.
All is lost, hope remains and this war's not over.
There's a light, there's the sun, taking all the shattered ones to the place we belong and His love will conquer.'
The song eventually faded from between L's lips, and the detective looked up at Light with a burdened grimace. Everything was silent once more, but through it all not one person had missed a single note.
The entire crowd was staring, some with wonder, others with disgust, but most with a silent confusion riddling their features. Looking around nervously, L cleared his throat with a cough. It was almost as if they expected him to give an explanation for that sudden play of events.
For some reason, he found he couldn't. The simple fact was, was that L felt at that very moment that something needed to be said. Instead, as unusual as it was not only for him but in itself as a whole, his words had come out as a song.
It wasn't even the type of song he listened to on a daily basis, let alone for enjoyment.
Having a photographic memory, the world's greatest detective picked up everything around him, even the right down to the smallest detail. That's what being so meticulous was all about. With those small and unimportant things picked up with the rest of the world, he tended to shove whatever into the back of his mind, dismissing it enough to make him seemingly forget.
But forget he couldn't, as every single piece of information could be used as evidence, no matter how small or how unnecessary. This song, Shattered he thought it was called, he remembered coming across it randomly one day while scanning a well-known video website.
It had been a few years back in a case where a computer hacker was illegally stealing money from different users through the produce of video making and deciphering. As complex as it was, the hacker had been doing so for several months before any trace of money being stolen had actually been acknowledged by those in power.
It seemed as if the perpetrator had all the equipment necessary to make his way through firewalls and all sorts of other technical security measures.
But in it all, he had the perfect cover. By hacking a simple user's account where this person posted nothing more than musical tributes and animations, the hacker had easily disabled his identity and framed it on the user behind the account.
Where had this song come in, then? Well, for a period of 74 hours, L himself had to watch every single musical tribute of this person's through and through, again and again, to see if he could pick up any trace of an IP address behind the making of a video.
One of the only videos that were made by the hacker was an uncanny and seemingly depressive forty second tribute about a specific romantic guise between two characters of an anime.
What made this uncanny was not the fact that the song Shattered had been used for such a thing, but more the fact that the characters involved were both distinctively male.
At the time, this didn't bother L whatsoever, since there was a many number of crazed fangirls on the internet who posted such things like that regularly. But at the thought now...Well, it was blatantly obvious.
The detective peered at the teen with squinted eyes, before twitching ever so slightly. Light blinked in stupidity. What the hell was L getting at? Suddenly, out of nowhere, a croaky voice erupted through the air;
"Dont worry! Be happy! Dooooont worry! Beeeee happy!"
The entire crowd inclined towards where Matsuda now stood, his mother's coffin still heaved over one shoulder and a stupid but weary and nervous grin plastered on his face.
"U-Uhm...C'mon now! Everyone! Sing! Mom doesn't want you to cry at her funeral now, does she...?"
The crowd still stared, however their complexions twisting to a more dumbfounded state. Without any sort of warning, Light all of a sudden burst out laughing.
It wasn't meant to be a mocking gesture, no. It was simply hilarious at how ridiculous this all seemed. He gave a snort and keeled over, clutching his cramped stomach to try and stop the hysterics.
There was a stunned silence, until a hoarse chuckling could be heard from Aizawa, who had put a hand over his mouth to stifle the noise. A few giggles from the crowd came next, and a few more chuckles, and before everyone knew it, the area was filled with the sound of laughter.
L was one of the last to lose his resolve, snickering at the mean fact that everyone was laughing at a funeral. He gave a grin when he focused his gaze on Light, who's laughter seemed to light the area all around.
Was it strange to say that he enjoyed the sound of the younger's laughter?
Yes, it was. But it wasn't entirely unreasonable, right?
Clearing his throat, he skimmed the loud ocean of people, almost giving a loud hoot at the sight of Prudence, who had fallen to the ground under someone else's own fit and was desperately trying to get back on her feet in the same fashion a turtle would do if tipped back over on its shell.
He spotted the advisor, who was one of the only ones not laughing. He instead stood by, an annoyed twitch set into his features.
About to turn back around and bring Light to his senses, the detective immediately stopped when he locked eyes with a pair of dappled almond ones.
Darker than her brother's, but clearly unmistakable.
Sayu stood, smack bang in the middle of the crowd, the same depressed look she had about her that morning still present.
This puzzled L. Out of everyone here, he expected the young girl to perhaps be laughing the loudest.
But then why did she look so sad?
She opened her lips as if to say something, and keenly L leant forward as if to absorb whatever information she was going to throw at him. But he missed the catch as the advisor's voice boomed out over the crowd through a microphone he seemed to have conjured from nowhere.
"That is enough! This is a funeral, people! Not a 60's hippie convention! Get a hold of yourselves!"
It took a moment or two, but eventually the clutter died down. Through it all, however, L never for a moment took his eyes from Sayu, who had turned her back to him to stare up at the funeral director.
L was sure she knew he was watching her. After all, the benevolence of obvious detection ran through the Yagamis. Or so he thought. :HeartBeats:
"This isn't cake. Honestly, it tastes like dirt folded over twice in horse manure."
"Obviously. The tag says it was made by Prudence, idiot."
The detective gagged and comically clutched at his throat, trying to regurgitate out the poison he had just ingested. This received a sly snicker from Light, and L peered up at the teen with distaste.
"I dare you to try it."
Light's eyes widened and he shook his head. "Ah, no. I'd rather keep my life, thanks."
L wiped his lips and sat up, making eye contact with the teen. "Well, there's a thought."
The teen was confused. "What?"
"Imagine if Prudence was Kira."
Light chuckled. "Yeah, she either sits on the criminals or poisons them with her fat-filled cakes. The best kind of justice." He added sarcastically.
The detective tilted his head to the side. "How do you think Kira kills, Light-Kun?" He asked with a finger to his lips.
Light thought for a moment. "Well, isn't it obvious? He needs a name and a face, and we know he's able to control his victims before they die. But with the second Kira, all he needed to do was see a person's face and that was that. Why do you ask?"
The older man reached past the death cake and towards a bowl of sweets set near the edge of the table.
"I have a theory that I would like to share with you. In fact, I'm sure you've come to nearly the same conclusion as I."
Light sipped the cup of white wine he held in one hand. "Yeah?"
L popped a lemon drop into his mouth, sucking it delicately. "Well, it's not how Kira kills, but what exactly with."
Now, this was interesting. Light rested the cup down on the table, giving his full attention to the detective. "Go on." He said, not bothering to conceal the eagerness in his voice.
L smiled, a little flattered for the favouritism. "Well, if you add up all the obvious facts, the only thing left to work out is what Kira uses to kill. If he in fact uses some sort of supernatural force, say, a psychic connection, then when he passes the power onto another person it would be impossible to finish this case. However," The detective popped another sweet into his mouth. "Some things don't add up."
Light raised an eyebrow. "Like what?"
"Well, if the power is a psychic phenomenon, then the need to see both a name and a face is rather strange. I'm going to go ahead and use Misa as an example, since she is suspected of being the second Kira.
"Do you remember the time when we were at To-Oh University, and I came face to face with Misa? Well, considering since, at the time, she was the second Kira and you were the first-"
"Ryuzaki." Light warned.
"Stay with me here." He reassured. "Don't you think that I would have died right away? Knowing you as Kira, you would've wanted me dead."
Light rolled his eyes. "Ryuzaki, you're overlooking something. You're L, and if you mysteriously died in front of me, your biggest suspect, then this case would've already been solved. It doesn't prove the fact of how or what Kira kills with, so we're left at a disadvantage there."
L immediately looked disheartened. "My oh my, it seems as if my deduction is being outwitted by you once again."
The teen patted the older man on the shoulder. "Don't worry. I get where you were coming from. You thought it might've been a material object, and from obvious evidence it might've been something like a book or a secret weapon...?"
L blinked. "Imagine that. A book that can kill. No wonder children prefer video games nowadays."
Light took another sip of the strong tasting wine. "Hey, there's something I don't get about you."
The detective's attention was diverted from the bowl of sweets that were now balancing on his knees. "Excuse me?"
Light pressed forward, pulling his chair forward so he was sitting closer to L. At this, the detective became still, his eyes widening and his feet poised and ready to attack.
Light pushed his feet down, and stared at him. "Where'd you learn to sing like that...?"
The older man did not move, but nonetheless continued to stare at the younger with an owl like gaze. "...23 percent, Light-Kun."
Light gritted his teeth and clenched his eyes shut in annoyance, holding back his temper. He took another sip of wine and found himself becoming calm already.
"No, I mean, have you always been able to sing like that? And why that song?"
There was silence, except for the faint noise of chatter in the background. L blinked, before replying, "It's nothing, really. I just lower my voice and add a musical pitch. Might I ask why you ended up singing along with me? How do you even know that song?"
"What, Trading Yesterday? My mom's a huge fan. I know it's not really a Japanese band, but mom's always liked foreign music, so yeah. You know how mothers usually play music out loud when they're cleaning or something?"
L became silent, and Light became a little confused.
"What...is your mother like, Ryuzaki?"
L slowly rose to meet the teen's gaze, his black eyes penetrating. "I don't remember." He stated bluntly.
"Oh...I'm sorry."
L wiped his nose on his sleeve. "Don't be, it's not your fault, really. Is that wine?" He pointed to the clear cup in Light's hands.
The teen understood how awkward a subject that was, and went with the sudden change of flow L had presented and nodded. "Want some?" He asked.
The older man scrunched up his face in scrutiny. "I've never had alcohol before."
"Wait, really?"
The detective gave him a look of disbelief, and Light raised an eyebrow. "Right. Well, go ahead and try some."
"I don't really..."
"It'll be fine, I promise."
"Oh, alright." And as suddenly as that was said, L had snatched the drink from Light's hands and downed it in one mouthful.
It was the teen's turn to stare in disbelief, his jaw hung open slightly in surprise. "Wow." He commented as the detective slammed it back down onto the table with a sigh.
Wait for it...
L began to twitch violently, and shook his head in response to the first alcoholic vibe as it pulsed through his body. The sudden rush made him lurch forward in an effort to shake himself of the tight feeling in his throat, and Light had to stand up out of his chair in time to catch him.
He levered him back up, and brushed the his fringe away to get a better look at his face. "You okay?" He asked, unaware that for about the fiftieth time that day people had begun to stare.
"Wow indeed, Light-Kun..." L muttered, clutching at his head. He let out a small hiccup, before sticking his tongue out comically. "That tastes foul."
"Fouler than Prudence's cake?"
"Oh please."
After a few moments of keeping the detective on a straight angle, he rested him against the chair and sat back down in his own with a laugh.
After the funeral, the pair and most of the accompanying crowd had somehow wound up at Matsuda's parent's house for an 'afterparty'.
Despite the thick gloom in the air and the sound of low and depressing jazz music filtering into their ears, Light found it all to be quite casual.
He strained his neck around to scan the crowd, until he locked sharp gazes with Aizawa, who stood uncomfortably in a nearby corner.
Taking it as an invitation to come over, the afro-haired officer went to take a step, when a familiar voice reverberated through the air.
"Light, darling! Where have you been this entire time?"
Before he had the chance to react, his vision was obscured in the place of a flash of ghastly green, and he was suddenly swooped into a very tight and suffocating embrace.
L couldn't keep back a snicker as Prudence gave way and fell forward into the chair with Light mercilessly acting as a cushioning device for the overweight woman.
"M-M...Mer...Mercy!" The detective heard the teen gasp as he was swallowed up beneath the great beast.
As quickly as it had come however, what with the chair surprisingly only giving out a creak at the combined weight of the two, Prudence managed to stand back up on her stubby legs before planting a lipstick smeared peck on Light's pale cheek.
Lying awkwardly against the chair's surface, and with his legs half twisted over the floor, his eyes were wide with fright and L was sure he could see him shake ever so slightly.
Prudence, with a frown of negligence, bunch up a bear clawed fist against his shirt and pulled him to his feet, the chain clinking against the leg of the damaged chair.
With an eyebrow raised, she followed the length of the chain with her pitbull eyes and came to rest on the detective's hunched over form.
With a grunt, she let go of Light, (he nearly sagged to the floor like dead weight) and eyed L with scrutiny.
"Well well." Was all she said, pursuing her lips in a tight and fabled line, giving the dirtiest look she could muster.
L's face was as emotionless as ever. "Oh look, it's the Wicked Witch of the West. How very nice to see you again." He spoke calmly, not giving way under the fat woman's intimidation.
Prudence stood straight, all for the more leverage so her breasts wouldn't drop to the ground as easily as so. "You disgusting pig. I thought Light had enough dignity to ditch you where you stand. I'd honestly do such a thing if I was in his shoes." She sneered.
L remained still. "But it looks like your red ones are still missing. Are you too stupid to go looking or can't you see over the makeshift planet one would call your body? Oh that's right, I went there."
Light stared in amazement, slowly getting over his shock. L was suddenly-
"And if you didn't know, Light Kun has far more dignity than you ever will. Now, please go and find a treadmill, as your obesity is blocking my view of the other people."
Nothing more needed to be said, because as L went to stand, Prudence raised a hand, and after a whir of air, a loud smacking noise echoed all around.
But it didn't seem to be what one would perceive, as L only felt cold. Because a shadow had fallen across him in time when he had clenched his eyes shut, ready for the impact.
But when his vision became clear, the horrifying sight of Light standing in front of him, his head jerked to one side and his expression full of discreet pain, appeared before him.
With a foul scowl, Prudence wiped the hand down the side of her dress and trumped away, her fat muscles jiggling in response to the limp she had.
Light stood and flexed his jaw, rubbing his red and stinging cheek with the palm of his hand.
L had remained stiff, shock slowly enveloping his features. "Light...-" He begun.
"I'm fine." The teen grunted, not letting his angry gaze rise to meet the detective's.
The older man reached out with trembling fingers. "But-"
"I said I'm fine!" Light snarled, spinning on his heel and facing L with a glare.
However, without a moment's hesitation, and ignoring the teen's angry outburst, L's hand found itself to rest on the teen's own, covering the blotchiness that had begun to form on the cheek.
At first, Light tried to shake him away, but L grabbed at his other wrist and held it in place, never taking his eyes from the teen's face.
"Why would you do that?" He asked in a low tone, ignoring the fact that annoyingly people's eyes were on them again.
At first, the teen didn't answer, but when L gave him a reassuring shake, he muttered, "She's just a bitch...and-"
"Yes?"
"You didn't deserve it."
L stepped back, his hand falling to his side.
What did that mean? Was it a remnant from the real truth of it all?
He didn't deserve it. Of course not, but who would?
Was that why Light jumped in front of him? Was it that maybe Light was Kira, was guilty, but couldn't confess directly?
...No. The Kira he knew would try and remain as secretive as he could. He would keep his actual identity hidden, no matter what.
Then...
The teen wiped the edge of his lip and straightened his jacket, blinking a couple of times to clear his head of his slowly rising anger.
"Stupid cow actually packs a punch." He grimaced and without turning to L, said, "Why don't we go and pay respects in the next room, Ryuzaki? I'm sure it'd make Matsuda happy."
Without the inquiring task of asking if the teen wanted a packet of cold peas to place against his cheek, he followed without any questions asked. Light strode past Aizawa, who still stood stunned, and L glided behind, giving the man an unidentifiable look before disappearing out of the room entirely.
Stepping past Mogi, who was silently making for the door to leave, Light found himself in a wide room, most of the space taken up by a double sided bed set square in the middle.
On a mantle set above the floor, a single candle burned, and behind the source of light the shadows flickered around the portrait of Matsuda's mother.
Bearing a warm smile and a rosy complexion, one found it hard to think that at that very moment she was buried six feet beneath the ground, as cold as night and dead as bone.
Light picked up an incense stick from a pile on the bedside table, and put the end through the flame of the candle. It let off the subtle scent of lilies, and dragging the small wisp of smoke through the air, he set it down calmly on an incense rack to burn beside many others.
He bowed his head in respect and stood back to allow L to do the same.
As the detective was burning the end of his own stick, and staring at the flame intently, a rustling noise caused them to turn and they found Matsuda had made his way into the room noisily.
The rookie looked as if he had been crying, his cheeks tearstained and his eyes blotchy, and he rose his head with the added recognition of misery.
At once his eyes widened at the sight of L and Light, and he asked with a sigh, "What're you guys...?"
But after a moment he trailed off, and he fell to his knees onto the bed on the ground, his head hung limp and a sob wracking his body.
Immediately Light bent down and rubbed his workmate's shoulder reassuringly, and L placed the stick on the rack directly next to Lights.
"It's not fair...She was never a bad person..." He whispered, clenching his hands into fists.
"I know." Light replied, still rubbing his shoulder.
Matsuda turned slowly to stare at Light, then at L, who stood a few feet away rather awkwardly.
He sniffed, and wiped away the beginning of another flood of tears.
"So, what are you going to do now?" L asked bluntly, unamused at the sudden explosion of waterworks from his underling, despite that they were in fact attending the memorial for his deceased mother.
Matsuda looked up with watery eyes and a gurgled expression. There was a minute of remote silence, until the rookie cleared his throat and stood to his feet, wiping at his face with an already sodden sleeve.
He took one step towards L, who in turn became completely rigid, and placed a hand on his shoulder.
What the hell was Matsuda...?
"Ryuzaki." He begun with a look of determination that left L even more perplexed.
"Even after this...I want to continue catching Kira. I won't let something like this stop me. I promise."
L let out a small sigh of relief. For a moment, it seemed as if Matsuda was going to confess his undying love for the older man or something...
The notion of it, though...Very disturbing.
Light smiled. "Welcome back Matsuda." He said. "Welcome back."
So, do you guys like? A VERY VERY HUGE CHAPTER, I KNOW! 0-0
R&R? AND NO FLAMES PLZ. Constructive Criticism would be nice as well ^^