Chapter Nine

"I'm pretty sure Near is aware that I've found his location," Hitomi said softly. She heard L shuffle over beside her and he crouched down.

"Where is he at?"

"Currently, he's in a foster home between my home and your first hotel location. I've already sent the address to your phone." Hitomi typed a few more moments and then told him, "I have his phone number as well. Would you like to give him a call?"

L looked thoughtful for a moment, his head cocked to the side and his thumbnail between his teeth. Hitomi couldn't help, but stare. He was so different. Then he nodded and stood up. "It will be better to gain some sort of control on his angle of the case. What's the number?"

Hitomi recited the number, watching L punch the numbers into his phone. It should have been awkward, but he had such a grace with all his strange movements and behaviors.

Then he was turning away, leaving Hitomi alone as he consulted with this Near boy.

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Near glanced at his phone that was vibrating, momentarily forgetting about the chess game. There wasn't a number on the screen, but the name was clear; L. Near flipped the phone open instantly, pressing a button on the side of the phone to scramble his voice. "Who is really calling?" he asked, glancing at Sayu. She finally seemed to notice that he was distracted. A curious expression came to her face.

"N, why have you left the Orphanage? There wasn't an authorization that allowed you freedom to investigate any case."

It was obviously L. Near cursed mentally, but kept his composure. He stood up and gave Sayu the signal to wait a moment. He walked away a few feet, keeping an eye out for anybody trying to listen in, and finally said, "No one tried stopping me. I let Roger know I'd return as soon as this case was over. I've been keeping tabs and I thought you could use the help." He knew saying that would sting the Greatest Detective's ego, but he didn't mind. He felt ready to test these limits.

"You know as well as I do that I don't mind the investigation, despite not needing any help-" Near could even hear the slight annoyance in his voice, "What I don't like is the fact you're involving civilians in the matter as well."

"So, Hitomi has been talking with you. I thought maybe just Elle bringing a cipher to you might start the investigation, but it's Hitomi that's really caught your attention."

"Where did you find this cipher?" L demanded.

"That's my own collateral. Since when does L have time to have a child?" The silence at the other end of the phone was almost deafening. Near knew he shouldn't have said anything, but he couldn't help himself.

"Why do you want out of Wammy's House so badly?" L asked, his voice barely above a whisper.

"I want to help solve this case, start my own agency, and have a different title outside of L. Eventually, I want the L legacy, but that can all come in due time. For now, I want free range to work on this case, even involving Sayu Yagami. She wants this chance to prove herself and I'm willing to help her."

"If anything happens to her, I will have you arrested. I want weekly reports on anything you could have found. And more importantly, I want to know where you found this cipher."

"I won't share the location of my cipher, but I will report to you directly every week, on one condition."

"You're as sly and dangerous as M. What do you want?" He was obviously angry by this point, despite trying to keep a calm tone.

"I want direct information too, not just from Hitomi. I'm sure you understand the need for that." L was silent for quite some time. Near waited patiently. He glanced at Sayu and saw her concerned look. He just shrugged his shoulders, turning away again. He'd tell her soon enough.

Finally, L said, "Very well. We will speak every Saturday evening, including this week."

"That is fair enough. I will speak with you at nine PM then." Near hung up before L could say more. He was surprised how frustrated he felt. It really was stupid to involve Sayu in this matter. Stupid, stupid, stupid...

"Hey, is everything okay?" He could sense Sayu beside him, could almost feel her breath on his neck. She had her hand on his arm; the heat radiated straight from her touch.

He closed his eyes. "That was L. He knows I'm investigating, threatened me, but then agreed to let me help on a few conditions. So, our investigation is safe for now. Are you able to meet with me every Saturday?" Near tried to get control over his frustration while Sayu thought.

"I should be able to. But the fact that we'll be spending almost frequent time with each other on a Saturday is going to make my parents think we're dating," she said slowly, watching his reaction.

"Just let them think what they want. If I have to pretend to be your boyfriend, I don't care," he said calmly. Near could see the thoughtful look on her face, but there seemed to be more emotion than just that on her mind.

Reluctantly, Sayu nodded and said, "Yeah, I should be fine coming over then. We'd have to switch our study times to Saturday then."

"That's fine." The school bell rang before they could say more.

"I packed up everything already. You can head to class if you'd like, I'll pick all of this up."

"No, I will help you." They both walked over to their tree and Near slipped his computer bag over his shoulder. He asked Sayu, "When will you be meeting with Hitomi?"

"She said she was coming over tonight. We'll probably talk about it after dinner," Sayu answered. Near glanced at Sayu again. She didn't really seem into this right now.

"What's wrong, Sayu?" he asked, stopping. Sayu looked at Near and shrugged.

"There's nothing. Do you want me to call you tonight after I talk with Hitomi or do you just want me to tell you Friday?"

"If you have a lot of information to share at once give me a call. Otherwise, we can just talk tomorrow evening," Near told her.

"Okay." They both started towards the school. Near looked at Sayu; she still seemed out of it, like she wasn't really there. But he could tell she wouldn't talk about what was bothering her, no matter what it was.

"Do you want a ride over to my place right after school?" Near asked her as they made their way into the Biology classroom.

"I think that's most convenient. Unless you think I should come over later."

"No, right after school gives us more time to work on the case."

The bell rang before they could say more. Near continued studying Sayu throughout the day, confused by her emotions. She just didn't seem like herself suddenly.

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Sayu walked outside, talking with Ai and Rika. Near had left part way through the day for some kind of family emergency. She noticed Hitomi parked at the pickup area and told her friends, "We'll definitely have to hang out this weekend! I'll see you guys later." Then she was off, running towards her sister's car happily. She couldn't believe she was going to learn things about the Kira Case tonight! It was so exciting. And L was even allowing this to happen.

She could tell something was on Hitomi's mind as soon as she opened the passenger door. "Hey, is everything okay?" she asked her sister, buckling the seat belt.

"Oh, yeah, everything's fine. I do want to yell at you, but I'm doubting that's going to help a whole lot," she said,smiling slightly. "You're just like Light and I."

"Yeah, except that you two weren't involved in such a dangerous case," Sayu murmured, glancing out the window.

"That's what I don't like. And Ryuzaki won't stop you or Near," she said, looking frustrated. "Do you have any idea how dangerous Kira is?"

"Yes! Everyone knows. I'm not an idiot, I'm being smart about all of this. Besides, I'm not directly joining a task force or anything. Just a small group of people."

"Who does this group involve?" Hitomi asked, curious.

"Are you going to tell L what I tell you?"

"Call him Ryuzaki. And no, I won't."

Sayu nodded and told her softly, "Right now, it's just me and Near, but he has the FBI on his side as well."

"Why is the FBI supporting him?"

"He had a connection that helped hook him up." Sayu honestly had no idea how Near convinced the FBI to help him, but she said something that sounded good at least.

Hitomi fell silent, deep in thought. While sitting in the silence, Sayu realized something; she had no idea who Near was exactly. She just followed him along blindly because she was desperate to help prove herself to everyone that she could do something. And that wasn't very smart. She pulled out her phone and quickly sent a text, We need to talk to Near.

N: ?

S: I just realized a few things, talking to Hitomi about you. We can talk about it in person later. What was the emergency?

Sayu didn't think it was a super smart idea to just start texting him about this. She wanted to get some actual answers once she started talking to Near about himself.

Hitomi was quiet all the way home, until she parked the car across the street. Then she asked, "Do you remember our old childhood code?"

"Of course."

Hitomi smiled. "I forgot, you have that lucky photographic memory. I wish I had inherited that from Ooka-san too."

"Why do you ask?" Sayu questioned, curious.

Hitomi reached in the backseat for her purse. She pulled out a large envelope and handed it to Sayu. "I worked on this all afternoon. It's all the information I could get down in two hours, along with a Flash drive with some videos. Ryuzaki was courteous enough to share the videos. He wants all of this given to Near by tomorrow. He does not want this getting into the wrong hands. He does not know I copied down information for you though. Make sure to share that with Near."

Sayu stared at her sister, a wide smile on her face. "Oh, you're the greatest sister!" Sayu hugged Hitomi as well as she could in the car.

Hitomi laughed. "I'm glad I could make you so happy. Dad and Light are going to be here for dinner tonight too. Isn't that exciting?" Sayu froze, eyes wide. Suddenly, seeing Light made her nervous. She knew about the strange notebook in his desk, she just didn't know what it really meant. Maybe she should ask him about it? But then how is she going to begin explaining how "she stumbled" upon the this notebook. She could just imagine how well it would go to explain that her friend Near was sneaking through his room looking for evidence linking him to Kira. That was definitely what she wanted to do. "Uh, Sayu?"

Sayu snapped to attention and smiled at Hitomi. "Sorry about that, I just spaced for a moment. Wanna head inside?"

"Sure..." Sayu hopped out of the car and waited for Hitomi before they crossed the street.

"I'm just going to go put this upstairs, then I'll meet you guys downstairs. Keep Elle distracted please!" Sayu hurried past Hitomi up the stairs before Elle even saw her and bee-lined for her bedroom. She popped open a small compartment and slipped the whole envelope inside. Then she hurried back downstairs before anyone got suspicious.

As soon as she reached the bottom step, Soichiro stepped into the house. Sayu squealed and ran up to her father. "Oh, I'm so glad you're home!" she said happily, hugging him close.

He chuckled, ruffling Sayu's hair. "I'm glad to see you too, Sayu. Are you behaving in school?"

"Of course! And my grades are almost perfect!" she said happily. Suddenly, she remembered the letter her teacher had wanted to give to her parents and added, "I got a note from my math teacher for you too! I'll be right back." She scurried off, just as Light walked into the house. She could hear him talking to Sachiko downstairs.

Her phone beeped suddenly, just as she opened her backpack. She pulled out her phone fast and glanced at the message; it was from Elle. She frowned and opened the text. 'Hey, Father came to get me since your family was going to be home. He said he wanted dinner together. See you later tonight!'

Sayu sighed sadly. She was hoping to have someone on her side tonight. Oh well, guess she was on her own. She grabbed her letter and hurried on back downstairs. Everyone was in the kitchen right now, sitting around the table. "Oh, how was your school day, Sayu?" Sachiko asked, smiling at her daughter.

"It was pretty much the usual. I have no homework tonight though, I managed to finish it all in class," she said happily, handing the letter to Soichiro.

Soichiro looked over the letter, a curious expression on his face. "Your math teacher wants me to come in and talk about your class."

"He said it wasn't anything bad," Sayu said, shrugging.

"So, Sayu, Mother told me you have a boyfriend," Light started, a grin on his face.

Sayu froze, looking at Sachiko with wide eyes. "You said you wouldn't say he was my boyfriend, cause he's not!" Sayu said.

Sachiko smiled. "I told him you had a new guy friend. Light and your father both think he's your boyfriend," she told Sayu.

"I vouch with her," Hitomi added, smiling at Sayu.

The next several minutes were extremely embarrassing for Sayu, between Light's and Hitomi's teasing, Soichiro's interrogating, and Light's laughing. Eventually, the topic changed to Elle for a brief set of time, and then Sachiko was getting dinner ready. Sayu got up and started helping her. She strained to hear what the three Yagami members started talking about at the kitchen table. Eventually, she could tell that they switched over to the Kira Case.

"So, are you going straight over to Near's house tomorrow, after school?" Sachiko asked Sayu as they started chopping up some vegetables.

"Mmmhhmm, that sounds like the plan. I shouldn't be there too late. Should they drop me off or would you rather pick me up?"

"I'll come pick you up. Do you remember all the rules, going over to boys houses?"

Sayu flushed. "Of course! I don't go into their rooms, no inappropriate behavior and be a complete lady in front of the parents. Oh, and don't be left alone in the house."

Sachiko nodded. "Good. I believe next week your father wants to actually meet Near."

"Mooom," Sayu groaned, flushing again. "He's NOT my boyfriend. There's no reason for Father to meet him."

"Your father has every right to meet whatever friends he wants. It's just dinner. Besides, you should be happy he's still interested in your social life, even with as much work as he has."

"I know," Sayu frowned, looking away from her mother. She hated the fact Sachiko would bring up things like her Father's work to make Sayu feel bad for saying something. She didn't mean to say anything rude, she just preferred not having a whole lot of... oh, domestic problems! That was the perfect phrase. Mentally, she reminded herself to thank Near for the phrase.

Then she started setting the table. She tried listening in to any of their conversations, but they had conveniently changed topic as soon as she came over. She sighed in frustration, but decided not to try pushing anything. She didn't want to worry her dad at all. Or make Light suspicious. Suddenly, she stopped at the entrance of the kitchen and poked her head out around the corner. Light seemed normal, talking with his family members like there wasn't a care in the world. Maybe, he really was just secretive about his private life...

"Sayu, what are you doing?"

She jumped at the sound of her mother's voice and hurried back into the kitchen. "Sorry, I just got a little distracted with my phone," she said, giggling nervously. "Do you want me to bring out the food?"

"Yes, here take the cashew chicken. I'll grab the rice and vegetables." Sayu took the pot from her mother and walking back to the table.

"Oh, the food's ready! I'll go help," Hitomi said, jumping up from her seat and hurrying off. Sayu sat the bowl of food and settled back down in her seat.

She hesitated a second, and then asked, "Light, can I ask you something?"

"Of course, Sayu," he smiled. "What is it?"

"I just got this new cipher from one of my friends at school and I'm having a difficult time cracking it. Could you help me get a key for the piece?"

A curious expression came to Light's face, but he nodded. "Of course. We could do that right after dinner? Is it from this boyfriend too?"

"Uh, yeah, Near gave me the piece. He said he was having trouble cracking it himself," Sayu said. Then she winced, when she realized who she mentioned.

"Near? What kind of name is that?" Light asked, his brow furrowing.

"Uh..." Thankfully, Sachiko and Hitomi saved Sayu from having to say anything else. She turned her attention straight to their conversation and jumped right in at the earliest opportunity. She glanced at her brother part way through the dinner. She might have said to much...

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"Father!" Elle hugged onto L as soon as she stepped into his hotel room. This time the hunched detective didn't hesitate to hug her back. He was shocked by how much he missed her. It was ridiculous that he should be this emotional being separated from his child for just a few days. But he found he couldn't shake the feeling of happiness of seeing his daughter. He decided it was best he felt this way just for her.

"How has the last few days been?" he asked, letting go of the young girl in front of him.

She beamed. "It's been amazing. Sachiko has been teaching me how to cook and I've been helping Sayu with her homework and I've got that cipher I've been studying. Oh, here's the copy I made."

She handed L two sheets of paper. One sheet was completely filled back to back, but the other one was only half full. Everything was just jumbled together, nothing made any complete words that made sense. There was spaces obviously, but he had no idea what anything could mean. "Sayu gave this to you? Did she tell you where she got it?" he asked her, settling down on the couch.

Elle shook her head and said, "I didn't really even ask. I figured Near had just made it for her."

"No, I talked with him. He doesn't have anything to do with the cipher, other than the fact he found it." L frowned and started looking at the cipher. Already, his mind was trying to take apart the words. "Did Sayu share anything that she might have cracked?"

"No, we haven't had much time to talk alone," she frowned. "I can ask her tomorrow night when I see her."

"That's fine. I'll work on it too. Hopefully we can crack this soon."

"Wanna do it tonight? We always work better together Father!" L smiled. He really had missed Elle.

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"Sayu, where did you get this?!" Light asked, slightly surprised.

Sayu swallowed and told him, "I said from Near. He's really smart."

"I can tell. This thing is very complicated." Light frowned, suddenly looking suspicious. "This looks familiar..."

"Uh..." Crap, crap, crap this was a bad idea! I shouldn't have shared it. "Oh! I forgot, I have some homework still. I gotta go." She snatched the piece of paper up and hurried out of the room. She froze just outside in the hallway. She could hear something. Was that... cackling? Where was it coming from? She strained her ears, but suddenly the sound was gone. Reluctantly, Sayu started up the stairs. "I have to be imagining things," she muttered, closing her bedroom door and flopping on the bed. She stared at the sheet in her hands. What did this say? Was Light really... could he be a murderer? It was just so suspicious to have such a complicated cipher in his dresser that was hidden so carefully.

Eventually, she got up and went to her secret hiding area. She pulled out the manilla folder and placed the cipher in its place. Then she broke the seal and started scanning the pages.

~A/N~

Hopefully you all enjoyed the chapter. I'm not sure if I actually like it, but the next chapter should be more entertaining. Thanks for reading! R&R

XmX