A//N

UnratedCrimsonBlood, forbalathegreen, Liscute00, glostarz, Rai Vinn, Racharae, vampgirl09, Shadow Dancer666 all left kind reviews!!! thank you! ANYWAY I do suggest reading Twisted Midnight to anyone who isn't/hasn't. While not necessary, I'm more comfortable in L's head and it might be easier to understand. Thanks to Nitrous for the correction in Twisted Midnight, it has been fixed.


Chapter Eleven:

The room was awkwardly silent as we stepped back in, silent enough to hear a pin drop and it was because of us. "Yagami-san," Ryuuzaki said and I placed one hand on his arm. Why? For comfort. There was comfort in the human touch for both people involved, and humans tended to seek out touch whether they realized it or not. But apparently he didn't want to be comforted and he pushed me away, "Stop!" I stuffed my hands into my pockets as they curled into fists due to anxiety. His attitude was not helping the situation at all. Finally, L resumed his speech after what felt a long time but was only a few seconds. "Yagami-san, I don't recall the conversation." I resisted the urge to roll my eyes, I doubted that sentence would go over well and I almost winced when he said, "Please don't ask me why." Yeah, right, my father wasn't chief for no reason. In fact, I could see a vein twitching near my father's eye at Ryuuzaki's audacity. "The phone call was recorded, I'm going to listen to it and therefore be able to tell you what it was that-"

He didn't get to finish his sentence. My father stood up and interrupted him, not something that happened very often, and I could tell he wasn't happy with what the lanky detective was saying. "I'll go with you," and his face was resolved. I bit my tongue to keep from interrupting, beginning to sweat at my temples and the back of my neck. "I think I should hear this tape." No, no, no…please, no I thought, knowing my plea was in vain. "In fact, it might help if everyone-"

The next voice that spoke was mine, I couldn't help it. The thought of everyone in the room hearing what was on the tape caused the slight sweat to begin to pour, metaphorically speaking. "Dad!" Alright, I had their attention now, and had no idea what I would say to persuade them otherwise. I knew that I wouldn't be able to get him to agree not to listen, but he might agree that the others didn't need to hear it – least of all when I had to hear it at the same time. I had the best grades in Japan, a perfect vocabulary – an extensive lexicon, but I was at a loss for words. "I mean, well, not everyone has to hear it if…" if what? "Ryuuzaki-kun doesn't want them to." Formality would hopefully serve me well as I sought for a better way to get him to listen to me, appeal to him as a son would to a father. "I suppose…I mean, if he doesn't want-" I knew the attempt was lame even before he interrupted, but by adding in a desperate note to my voice I hoped he would have mercy.

Instead, he seemed to have gone straight to suspicious. "Is there something you're not telling me?" I took a step away from him and couldn't quite meet his eyes. My father had certain prejudices, it was how he was raised and the things his parents had believed. He was his parent's son in that he held certain beliefs to be truth, and one truth was that to be gay brought the family dishonor. I didn't know how to answer him, because the correct answer was yes. I was just working up the nerve to explain that Ryuuzaki liked his privacy in these matters when the great mouse-like detective himself spoke once more, and I felt less useful than Toby the dog.

"Perhaps," both my father and I looked at him, I hopeful and my father just this side of exasperated. "Yagami-san…you could listen to the tape with me and then determine if you…want the others to hear it." I blinked in surprise, having fully expected him to be able to persuade my father to not listen to the tape, and I glared resentfully at the lollipop and looked away, my mind flashing back to him sucking on something else the night before. This was going to be a long day. But my father didn't disagree, and I had a feeling he wouldn't have trusted Ryuuzaki's information if he could not listen himself. The control room was filled with whirring and buzzing computers and monitors displaying almost every inch of the tower that we ignored as Ryuuzaki (and I be default) retrieved the tape before continuing to a floor thatr wasn't being used. It was one of the lounges designed for someone to stay in, much like the apartment in the tower Matsuda was staying in, and we sat around the table as Ryuuzaki turned on the lights.

I didn't move, unwilling to be the one to put the tape in and press play. My father also seemed hesitant, but that was probably because he thought of the tape as Ryuuzaki's property and as his business to put it in the recorder. When the man currently sitting in the fetal position did put the tape in, it was his voice through the static of the tape. Hello, Watari. So far so good, I just knew it would get worse.

Ryuuzaki, I heard, and also noticed the tense timbre of his voice and guilt ate at me for being the cause of Ryuuzaki's distraction. Then again, it wasn't like he'd said stop. It seems that

Uhh…nnng, W-Watari c-can we talk l-later? I could feel sweat dripping down my back now and placed my hands on my legs, staring down at the table and avoiding looking at anyone or at the tape player revealing something I'd rather have stayed secret for a while longer.

I really must insist it be now, Ryuuzaki. Of course, it had been urgent, and once again I was feeling quite guilty. Are you alright? Is there something wrong? If circumstances had been lighter I would have laughed, I'd been doing everything I could to make sure that nothing was wrong.

At the sound of Ryuuzaki's voice I could feel myself getting aroused at both the audio and the memory of what had been happening, Uhhmmm n-no I'm fiiiiiine. I looked over at my father and his face was red enough to boil eggs on. It didn't help that Ryuuzaki's breathing only got heavier on the recording, and it was obvious even through the static that the usually stoic man was out of breath.

Very well. Ryuuzaki, it would appear that Tailor was in a group that consisted of several people. All people who had lost loved ones because you had put them in jail, all people who's loved ones had wound up on Death Row. Well, that was important and I risked a glance at the man always to my left. He was sitting in a ball, arms around his legs and the only reason I knew he was shaking slightly was because the chain shook noiselessly, but I felt it.

I could feel my left eye beginning to twitch much like my father's had earlier as there was a stifled moan from Ryuuzaki's recorded voice as the real Ryuuzaki's face flushed and I turned away, needing to look anywhere but at him. Watari I…repeat that, please? With more patience than I would have had, he began to repeat it but got cut off again. On second thought, but I knew why that sentence never got completed and I could tell my father was suspicious by the way he was glaring at me. If looks could kill, I'd be in Hell. I focused my own gaze on the tape player, wishing it would just spontaneously combust. No!

Ryuuzaki, do you want this report or not? Finally Watari sounded human, angry, annoyed and I couldn't blame him. It was almost over, if I could just sit through the rest of the tape it would be fine, but Ryuuzaki's voice cur through once again.

No…not you, Watari…mmm, I, er…L-Light! My father's eyes were narrowed and his lips were thinner then I ever recalled seeing them in the past and my own hands clenched the fabric of my dress pants as I didn't dare look away from the way my father finally realized just what had been going on; that his suspicions had been correct. My heart was hammering in my chest like it wanted out, and I sort of agreed with it – if Kira wanted to kill me in that moment I'd have let him. This was really, really bad. Not only were Ryuuzaki and I both male, something my father would never forgive, but I was his prime suspect in the Kira investigation and Soichiro Yagami hated when an officer blurred the lines between acceptable and wrong. This was unacceptable. I'll call you, nrrrg, later…

I looked up when the tape clicked off, but the whole device was on the floor and my father was lunging for…Ryuuzaki? I had a brief moment of wondering why he wasn't attacking me and then he spoke. "What the Hell was that?!?" and suddenly I understood. Apparently, he thought this was all Ryuuzaki's fault. Perhaps it had been some sort of interrogation method to gain my trust so I would confess to being Kira. Or perhaps having me in that was had been Ryuuzaki's intention all along and that was the sole reason for the handcuffs, therefore making him my only available option if I wanted to be with someone. His thoughts were as predictable as clockwork, and they made me sick to my stomach. How dare he lay his prejudiced hands on my Ryuuzaki? I didn't stop to think of what it meant that I had referred to him as mine, if only in my head, as my fist flew out and connected with Soichiro's jaw. "You!" he growled, looking at me. "Why you little…you're dead! I will not let you make a mockery of me!"

We stood, just glaring at each other, and I mentally prepared for a fight. I was also switching how I thought about him as he went from 'Dad' to 'Soichiro' in my head. I really must have been in love with the spoiled brat if I were willing to go this far for him. But I'd think about that later as I heard his voice, "Yagami-san!" I kept my eyes trained, not wanting to be the first to attack, and when he did nothing I could feel my muscles shaking from holding one position for too long. Suddenly, my line of sight was blocked as Ryuuzaki stepped between us and spoke once more, "I'm fairly certain that we were up here trying to find out what happened to Watari. This" he gestured towards us and I relaxed a bit as I realized he was standing to his full height, "Is unproductive to our cause."

I didn't sit until Soichiro and Ryuuzaki were both sitting and when I finally did it was with a wary eye. I didn't trust him not to attack Ryuuzaki again. No, that wasn't it. I didn't thin khe would but at the same time I wouldn't have put it past him. I briefly wondered what he would say if he'd known I was the one who'd started it, but I didn't have much time to finish the thought as Soichiro finally spoke, "I have to show this to them, the others…if we're all supposed to be working as a team then we all should be on equal ground. We all need to know what each other knows to be effective." It was exactly what I didn't want to hear, and exactly what he hadn't wanted to say, and I wanted nothing more than to ask him not to. But it wouldn't work; it wouldn't matter, because he'd do what he had to as Chief of police. I knew this better than anyone.

"I see. Very well, please do what you think is necessary, Yagami-san. Watari is very special to me and I need him to survive. I will do my utmost to share any information that may be relevant to finding him," I risked a glance in Ryuuzaki's direction, noticing the slightest change in facial expression. We would get Watari back, we had to.

"I'm going to call the others into a meeting. I don't want either of you in the room, understood?" The dreaded words had finally arrived.

I swallowed visibly and said, under my breath, "Understood," even though it was the last thing I wanted to say. There was a feeling of vulnerability in having that tape as some sort of evidence. But I couldn't, wouldn't, sit and dwell on it. I needed a distraction and after my father left I led Ryuuzaki towards the room we shared and we lay on the bed. Waiting was definitely the worst part, I decided, especially since I didn't know how the others would treat us after they listened to that tape. But it was out of my hands and there was nothing I could do at this point. I took solace in the closeness and warmth of Ryuuzaki, touching him – part of me still wasn't sure I was allowed to. When my cell phone rang I answered on the second ring, holding my breath. "Light, will you and Ryuuzaki please come down?"

Without saying good-bye Ryuuzaki and I exchanged a look before I said, "They…they're requesting us to go down." He nodded in understanding and got off the bed, and immediately I wanted nothing more then to be petulant and drag him back. I wanted to stay cuddled up to him and not face them. But I followed, because we couldn't afford to do that. I clung to his hand like a child. When we were finally in front of the door I somberly let go before going into the room. They were all sitting around the tape-player which, naturally, made me nervous. I felt a trickle of sweat once more on the back of my neck as Ryuuzaki took a seat in his usual fashion and I decided silence had gone on long enough. When I spoke my voice didn't crack, for which I was rather proud, "Right, so…you called?"


A/N

I might go back and edit this later...... Just letting you know.