Silence rang out and the tension in the room was so palpable, it was almost tangible. The television stayed on but everyone had ceased to care, all were looking at L who was in turn staring blankly at the screen in front of him. The fork and plate in his grip were trembling, the only outward sign that he was shaken up by Kira's words. In fact he was so scared, he nearly missed what his challenge was.

"I've planted an explosive device in a hospital here in the Kanto region," said Kira through the voice scrambler. "L, your challenge is to figure out which one it is within the hour and if you do, I'll spare it. Simply have someone appear at Sakura TV and announce the name. People of Japan, if you don't have faith in L's ability to solve my little challenge—and I personally don't blame you—you can do it for him. Bring the detective known as L to the Sakura TV station in an hour and if you do, I'll spare the hospital. Any outside interference from the police or government will result in an early detonation. You have one hour."

The K graphic disappeared and was replaced with a timer that was already down to fifty-seven minutes. The camera shifted so the timer was in the top right corner of the screen and panned over to the host, whose face was as white as a sheet and appeared to be sweating profusely. Suddenly there was pandemonium as the audience started to scream and people ran for the stage and the cameras, if not for the fear in their eyes, it would have looked incredibly staged. Light reached over and pressed the mute button on the nearby remote. With the absence of sound, L finally looked at her.

"We need to evacuate," said Matsuda, sounding slightly panicked. "You're not safe here, Ryuzaki, we need to move you someplace else."

Light shook her head. "We can't do that."

"Why not?" demanded Matsuda.

"If we suddenly left, that would be like announcing to the world that we have L," snapped Light and Matsuda backed down. "No, he's safe here but if you want to make yourself useful, you can barricade the doors and close the curtains if that would make you feel better."

L could tell she was kidding, even he knew how pointless it would be if a crowd of crazed people somehow discovered that he was staying here and attempted to get in; they would have him in minutes. This seemed to be lost on Matsuda, however, as he began pushing unoccupied armchairs and tables against the nearest doors.

"We need to figure out which hospital he plans to destroy," said Light, easily taking control of the situation. She turned first to Naomi. "Maki, get me a list of all hospitals in the region, it doesn't matter how small they are. When you're done, give it to me and I'll use Ryuzaki's network to find out who is in which hospital and narrow it down that way. There has to be an important guest in one of these hospitals, someone Kira obviously doesn't want to live, and we need to figure out who."

"Yes, ma'am," said Naomi as she rushed back to her computer, having vacated it during the Sakura TV special.

"Miss Asahi, I'll assist you in hacking the hospital patient lists," said Watari, his pipe now discarded and he reminded Light of a soldier, readying himself for battle once again. "If we divide the list, we should be able to work faster."

Light smiled. "Yes, thank you, Watari."

"What should I do?" asked Matsuda, slightly winded as he rushed to close all of the curtains. "I mean, I'm almost done with the barricade, so I could work on almost anything."

Light nodded and considered what Matsuda could possibly do right now. "Call the hospitals as Maki finds them, tell them to begin emergency evacuation preparations. Say you're L when you do, that way it'll look like we're taking this threat seriously instead of presumably doing nothing until the last minute."

Matsuda nodded and then cocked an eyebrow. "Wait, why am I saying I'm L? Surely I should say I'm with the police."

"That would be a terrible idea," said Light, refraining masterfully from rolling her eyes. "Didn't you hear what he said? Any outside interference from the police will result in him prematurely detonating the device."

"Oh, I forgot," muttered Matsuda sheepishly. "Sorry."

Light's stern expression softened just a little. "It's alright, Matsui, I'm sure you're focused on a lot right now."

Matsuda nodded before heading over to his computer beside Naomi, who was already rapidly typing on her keyboard. He soon joined her and began calling a hospital. Light looked at L who was still staring at her with that same blank expression from before, he seemed completely dead to the world and Light felt her gaze soften as she looked at him. He looked like a scared child in a way, a terrified little boy who needed someone to hold him and tell him the world would right itself and all would be well. Light, however, knew better than to say something so meaningless. L knew very well that the world would not right itself without a push in the right direction and she was not about to patronize him by implying otherwise.

"You know, you're rather good at this," said L quietly as he reached for a piece of chocolate from Light's box.

"Good at what?" asked Light curiously as she too reached for a piece of chocolate, hoping the slight amount of alcohol in it would ease her nerves.

"Being in command," replied L as he popped the piece in his mouth.

Light smirked. "Comes from years of experience."

"I don't doubt that," said L around the chocolate. "If detective work loses its appeal to you, I would strongly suggest a career in the military. You would make a fine officer."

"My parents would hate me for that," laughed Light, surprised that she could laugh so easily in his presence. "But thanks for the recommendation, I'll keep that in mind."

L smiled tentatively at her, strangely proud that he had made her laugh and he hoped that he would get another chance. Light smiled at him and then seemed to remember their current situation and frowned.

"Ryuzaki, have you ever failed to save someone?" she asked quietly, so that only he could hear her words.

He did not miss a beat or decide to mince words. "Do you really want me to answer that?" he countered quietly, knowing full well that was a clear answer to her question.

Light gave him a half-hearted grin. "Thank you for being honest."

L found himself returning it. "Anytime, Light."

It felt as if they were taking too long. Each time Naomi found a hospital, Matsuda called it and she forwarded it to Light or Watari to research. L sat beside her, and she tried not to look at him as she hacked into hospital records but she found herself glancing at him and more often than not, his eyes were on the television. They had muted it just a few minutes before, when people started calling for L's head and cursing his very existence, even though he had not done anything to them personally. Light wondered if he was taking the insults personally.

"You shouldn't be worried about them," she said, despite herself. "They're just scared and when people are scared, they look for an outlet. Right now, that outlet is you."

L remained silent so Light concluded that he was not in fact scared of the people and was ready to focus on her work, when she heard him shift in his seat.

"I'm not worried for my own safety," he said softly, glancing at her with his dark eyes. "I'm worried at how easily they were swayed. One local threat and they're ready to kill me. They would rather sacrifice the future of the world for one measly hospital than give me the chance to continue hunting Kira." He looked down at his feet, shuffling against each other. "People are really annoying."

Light was not sure whether to be shocked or exasperated. L was really a strange man and he only proceeded to become stranger by the hour. "It all goes back to appearances," argued Light as she gained access to the list of names. "Individuals don't want to be seen as in favor for the death of a few hundred people, it would make them look cold and heartless. They want to be seen as compassionate and concerned for the well being of others. Honestly, you're right, people are annoying, but not for the reasons you think." She looked at the television, which was still showing the yelling people but their voices were muted. "Your friend seems to know how to bring out the ugliness in people."

L tensed. "He is not my friend. He never was."

"Then what was he to you?" asked Light, again her curiosity getting the better of her.

"An heir," replied L tersely. "None of this is pertinent to the current situation, so I will request that you not investigate this topic further."

Light now noticed the way he was shaking and how tightly he was gripping the fabric of his jeans. 'He's afraid of Beyond,' she realized as she stared at him. "So he was like Near and Mello," she said slowly, deliberately, tempting fate. "He was going to become the next you, should the need arise, and something happened. He decided that being you wasn't what he wanted. Beyond wanted something more, he wanted to be your superior. That's why he committed those murders in the States and—"

"That's enough!" snapped L, rounding to her with an ugly expression. "I told you to not go down this road and you deliberately disobeyed me."

"I didn't disobey you!" countered Light fiercely. "You requested for me to not investigate, and I didn't. I merely spoke about conclusions I have already made based on the information given. You didn't tell me not to do that. And at least I'm doing something to try and stop him, unlike you who is just sitting there watching people on TV yell about you. You make it sound like you care but I don't believe you do."

L opened his mouth and then closed it again. Light felt triumphant until she saw him look away.

"He is not someone to be treated so flippantly," said L darkly as he looked at the television once again. "You don't understand the danger we are all in and I pray you never do, Beyond will not hesitate to kill anyone. He has already proven that as Kira." He then looked at Light and she shirked away just slightly. "My days are numbered, Light, do you understand that? And once Maki's identity is revealed, she'll be next. We are working on borrowed time, and if Beyond has his way, all of us will be killed. You and Matsui, your father and Kanichi, Nakamura and Watari, Maki and I; all of us will be dead." There was something in his eyes then, something horrifying, as if he was imagining Light falling over dead right there and then. "Believe it or not, I really do care. I don't want to see my world fall into Kira's clutches; I would give my life for that cause. That is how far I am willing to go to end Kira."

Light felt smaller than she ever had before as L turned away again. His declaration that he would give his life to save the world was truly inspiring and demonstrated a level of dedication that she had not entirely expected from him. She glimpsed him again, his pale face as impassive as usual, but she saw something in his eyes, a fire that she overlooked. If he was determined to give his life to stop Kira, then she would do the same.

The timer on the television ticked down steadily as the four of them worked. Naomi found every hospital in the region, even little clinics that called themselves hospitals. Matsuda called each and every hospital to instruct them to begin evacuations while Light and Watari hacked into the systems and found the lists of patients and compared them to the national registry. It was tough work that seemed to eat up their very limited hour, but they were more than up to the challenge. With twenty minutes to spare, there was a breakthrough.

"The Prime Minister's wife and newborn son!" exclaimed Light happily, glad to finally have a lead. All eyes were on her as she turned to L. "The Prime Minister's wife just had a baby, her first actually, and they're being cared for in a regional hospital about three miles from Sakura TV."

L's face twisted into a pained smile. While he was glad they knew the likely target of Beyond's attack, there was something off. It seemed too simple. Too easy. The intended target was the Prime Minister's family? That did make sense from a bystander's point of view, after all killing them would likely break the Prime Minister's resolve and allow Kira to grow unabated, or it could backfire spectacularly and introduce a further crackdown on Kira related activities. Holding them hostage seemed to serve a better purpose and that was exactly what Beyond was doing. Why did if feel incomplete?

"We should get to Sakura TV!" said Matsuda, practically leaping from his desk. "I'll go—"

"No," said L suddenly, surprising even himself. "I mean, no Mr. Matsui. We're too far away from the station; by the time you get there it would already be too late. We need to send someone else, someone closer."

"Nakamura's close," said Matsuda carefully. "Kanichi is too but he's with the Chief, so I don't want to bug him. I'll call Nakamura and have him deliver the message to Kira. Light, can you send an email to him with the information included?"

Light nodded and began to do just that while Matsuda quickly called Ukita and relayed their instructions to him. Moments later, Matsuda hung up his phone, chuckling to himself.

"Apparently the Chief had considered going over to Sakura TV and arresting everyone there," he said when he saw everyone looking at him. "Kanichi had to hold him down while a nurse delivered a sedative."

"I bet Sayu got a kick out of that," muttered Light with the faintest smile.

"Are the Yagamis still with him?" asked L, very aware of Light's eyes on now him.

Matsuda nodded. "From what Nakamura said, they plan on staying until about seven when visiting hours are finished."

Simultaneously, L and Light look at the countdown on the television and then up at the clock above it. It read seventeen minutes to seven.

"I really wish we could go down and arrest him," sighed Light, frustration lacing every word. "He has to be there, otherwise he wouldn't have wanted someone from our team to go to the station in the first place."

L simply shrugged. He did not wish to upset Light further by saying he believed this was a trap, and he certainly did not want to tell her she was wrong when he had no idea if he was even right. To his great surprise he felt something warm cover his hand, glancing down he saw Light's resting on top of his and he felt her trembling just a little. He turned over his hand and held hers as tight as he dared.

When the clock read five to seven, Ukita appeared on camera. Everyone in the room huddled around the television and watched triumphantly as Ukita announced the intended target. The countdown stopped and the audience applauded, the relieved host congratulated Ukita on his hard work and shook his hand. It seemed as if the crisis had been abated when suddenly, Ukita let go of the host's hand and clutched his chest, before falling to his knees with a soft thud. Seconds later, the feed was interrupted by the K graphic.

"Well, well, Lawliet it would seem you were unsuccessful," said Kira, his voice still scrambled.

L tensed.

"I had a feeling you would fail," said Kira maliciously, even with his real voice being indiscernible. "The hospital you just named is not my target. You were right in suspecting it. I had considered it, but then I found one much better. One that I believe will serve my purposes well."

His card disappeared and was replaced by the timer, only this time it was going faster, each minute fleeing like it was a second instead. Their eyes were glued to the numbers, watching, as they grew closer to the end. Collectively they braced themselves for the inevitable, for their failure, and they knew there was nothing they could do now.

When the timer reached zero, there was the sound of an explosion nearby and the ground shook like an earthquake. The mirrors and clocks on the walls shook and fell down, the furniture bounced and some tables and chairs fell over, the windows rattled before shattering into large shards that cut the curtains. Lights flickered and it felt as if the whole world was coming to an end. Despite this chaos, Light was on her feet almost immediately and rushed for the nearest window. Stepping over glass, she stood in front of the destroyed window and her eyes immediately found the smoke and fire coming from a direction that filled her with dread. Her knees buckled and she fell to the ground, the curtains she was clutching were her only source of support as she openly wept.

The hospital that had been destroyed was the one where her father was recovering.