Near was dreaming of a world made of Tarot cards when he was rudely poked in the shoulder. He lifted his fluffy white head, turning around. "Whu?"
"Wake up!" Mello hissed in his ear, tugging on the child's uninjured arm. "Hurry!"
Near grumbled incoherently and shoved his face back in the pillow. Mello huffed. "Ugh, come on! Matt, help me!"
"Just let the kid sleep, Mels," Matt sighed, feeling very uncomfortable about the whole affair. "He was just shot, after all."
"This can't wait!" Mello declared, with the air of a commander giving an inspiring speech to his army. "I just checked L's room, and he's asleep, but I don't know how long the chloroform lasts!"
"You drugged him?" Near demanded, incredulous.
"Only a little," Mello defended himself. "About an hour ago."
"Why do you even want to go see Kira?" Matt asked. "Isn't he like, super deadly, or something?"
"Of course, he is!" Mello said, as if astounded by his friend's idiocy. "That's why I want to see him!"
"You're insane," Near decided, trying to roll over.
Mello grabbed him and Near yelped. "Oops, sorry. But, still, aren't you the least bit curious?"
"No," Near grumbled, but allowed himself to be yanked out of the rom.
"How do you plan to get past the guards?" Matt hissed as the trio crept down to the second floor (Near's room was on the third, and the older boys were on the second – they had gone upstairs to wake him first).
"That lady, Lidner, she's on duty right now," Mello whispered enthusiastically. "She's super easy to distract; she thinks kids can do no wrong. I told her I got a papercut once, and she wouldn't leave me alone – she kept following me around, offering band-aids, antiseptics, and hot chocolate. Matt, you go up to her, tell her that you've got a splinter – "
"I don't think that'll be necessary," Near said suddenly, pointing at the room. The other boys looked up and did a double take.
The door to Kira's room was wide open, and the security camera's lights were dead. There were no guards in the hallway, and the room was dark as night.
"What happened?" Matt whispered, furrowing his brow.
"Kira got out!" Mello gasped. "Kira got out! Oh, my god, we need to tell L!"
As if his words had been some sort of summon, a figure suddenly stepped out of the room, running a hand through his thick dark hair. He yawned, covered his mouth with a pale, slender-fingered hand. He stretched, falling into a hunched position and blinking black eyes ringed with dark circles.
"L!" Mello said. "But I thought. . ."
"Maybe you messed up," Near commented drily. "Used your perfume instead of chloroform, and he fell asleep because it smelled so bad." Mello smacked him.
The slap drew the attention of L, who turned around, one eyebrow raised. "Near?" he asked, spotting the bright white hair. "And Matt and Mello too, I'm guessing."
"Drat," Mello grumbled. "I knew we shouldn't have brought the albino."
Matt sighed, emerging from their hiding place, followed by Near and the reluctant Mello. "Hi, L," Matt said sheepishly.
"Matt," L sighed. "I should've known it'd be you three."
"Sorry," Mello sighed. "We just wanted to see Kira."
L stiffened. "What? How – " he snapped his jaw shut and blinked quickly. "Well, you can't." he said shortly. "He's a dangerous criminal, not an animal in a zoo."
"Sorry," Matt said, tugging on Mello's arm. "Come on, Mels. You heard the man."
The trio left the hall, heading for their own various rooms. L watched them go, the ghost of a sneer gracing his face.
xxx
L woke up with a groan, blinking his eyes blearily. He lifted his head, shaking his head, dazed. Last he remembered, he had been at his desk, determined to find a new case. . .
And now he was. . . on the ground?
He looked around, squinting in the dim light. Dark. . . his eyes roamed unseeingly over the pitch-black room. Did I close my curtains?
He made to stand up but fell back on his stomach. A ripple of panic fluttered through his chest, and he, with an effort, rolled over onto his back. He raised his head, using all of his ab muscles to look at his legs. He squinted. What the hell? He tried to move his legs, to stand up, to kick the ground, anything, but found them frozen solid. He pushed himself up with his arm and tugged on a pant leg. Paralyzed?
He heard a cackle from behind him, and the lights flickered on. L blinked in the sudden light, looking around. Light's room. . . how? His eyes widened. Oh, my god. . .
His lookalike crouched at his feet, leer evident on his face. "Wakey wakey, Sleeping Beauty," he shrieked with laughter.
L gulped. "B."