Light: I understand why L and B were here. You actually like them, so please enlighten me as to why I am being forced to participate in this.
TCLA: Does it irk you?
Light: …yes.
TCLA: Well there's your answer! Now say it before I have Misa rape you.
Light: TCLA-san,
TCLA: Sama to you buster.
Light:…sama…would like me to inform you that she does not own any of the characters of Death Note, though she wish she did own me so she could…castrate me, with my own over-dramatic pen…. I hate you.
TCLA: The feeling is mutual. I'd also like to wish a happy late birthday to Mello and Matsuda!
Chapter 21 Discoveries
"I should probably head home now, Ryuzaki," I yawned tiredly. "I have school tomorrow." His dark eyes met mine from across the dimly lit room.
"Of course. I look forward to seeing you again tomorrow," he answered.
"Night Ryuzaki," I called as I left the suite. He paused before speaking back.
"Good night, Rei."
I grinned to myself as I closed the door behind me. He was so cute. He had no idea how much self-control it took not to give him a goodnight kiss in front on my father. That would have been disastrous. I considered how good I had been as of late on the train ride home.
No unnecessary touching or contact, no references to past romantic incidents, basically nothing that could be construed as couple behavior. At least during work…after work was a different matter. Yes those few moments before Dad dragged me home, or Light, or occasionally Matsuda when apparently I was overworking myself. Insert eye roll here. Yeah overworking. Translation the second L looked at me for more than approximately twelve point five seconds without saying anything pertaining to the case.
Pft. Overprotective idiots. However, in interest of being good, and hoping Dad would let me out of his sight for more than a few seconds, I had left on my own tonight and was enjoying the silence of the train ride. Light had already gone home, so I wasn't going to be forced to endure the small talk he had shifted to during the duration of the case. He had to realize his lack of saying anything relevant was suspicious right?
Bad, Rei. No thinking of the case. Think of your boyfriend. Oh, right. Damnit. They kinda went hand in hand. Well, crap. What was I supposed to think about the last couple of feet to my house? What about the blonde girl standing outside it talking to my family? Wait…what?
"I'm really sorry for coming so late at night," the blonde apologized in a high voice. "See you later, Light." The girl turned to leave, while I continued standing in shock in the middle of the sidewalk.
"Light, you should walk her to the station," Mom scolded.
"I could do it," I suggested, effectively announcing my presence. A flicker of fear and anger appeared in Light's eyes before disappearing completely. Scary. Ok, now I'm definitely spending some time alone with this girl.
"Rei!" Sayu squealed enthusiastically. The blonde turned to me, frowned scrutinizing my appearance while I raised an eyebrow. The frown however melted off her face when weirdly enough she seemed to glance above my head. Um, what the hell?
"You must be Light's sister!" she shrieked happily. Seriously what the hell? "You two look so much alike!" I gave Light a, "Seriously dude, what the hell is going on?" look. Helpfully, he shrugged. Thanks a bunch, bro.
"Right…." I trailed off uncertainly. "So you're going to the station? I just came from there. I could walk you there if you'd like," I offered. Light barely shook his head, but the blonde was oblivious.
"Of course! Misa would love to walk with Rei!" Light's nostrils flared in a warning. Ok, what was I missing?
"Misa, is it? So Light already mentioned me?" I asked with a tilt of my head. Misa blinked in confusion. "I mean you already knew my name…" Her eyes widened in what looked like…horror? The hell?
"Yes! That's right! Light already told Misa Misa about Rei!" Oh God, please don't tell me she was one of those girls? I took a closer look at her outfit.
Sheesh! How hadn't I noticed it before! She looked like a little girl dressed up like a hooker! If she were anywhere else in the world, she would either be in handcuffs or with a couple twenties shoved down her shirt. Only in Japan, would this pass off as acceptable daily wear. Ok, Rei, don't be judgmental. It's not her fault she voluntarily wears that…oh who am I kidding? Yes it is.
I blinked when I saw her mouth moving. Wait what did she say? Oh crap, she's staring at me all expectantly. "…yes," I settled for, hoping I hadn't agreed to anything horrendous.
"Great!" she practically gushed. "Misa will call you when she's free!" Wait, did I just agree to a date? "Rei will look so cute when I'm done!" Thank God. It was some girl bonding thing…wait. Crap. I had no idea what this thing was going to entail. Focus Rei. Worry about that later. "Let's go!" She clamped onto my arm with a vice like grip and started tugging me towards the station. Light stared impassively as we walked away. Putting sarcasm aside, that actually was scary. Light's face I mean. Scary as hell…I need a new word to use. Hell just seems to be overused as of late.
It was then I noticed Misa had stopped talking. Right, time to pump for information. How did Light do this? Flattery and some innocent questions leading to the big ones right?
"That's an interesting dress there, Misa. Gothic Lolita right?" I asked hoping I sounded genuinely interested. She smiled at me.
"Yeah! Misa got to keep it from one of her shoots!" That was something to work with.
"Shoots? Like a model?" I asked shifting to the more personal side. "I should have known. You're so naturally beautiful and outgoing," I complimented. Ugh. Was that too much? I felt like I needed to brush my teeth after saying something so sickly sweet.
"Aw…thank you Rei! You're so sweet! Just like my Light!" Her Light? Now we were getting somewhere.
"I knew it. You and Light are an item. I thought you guys looked cute together." She pretended to flush modestly, though she was clearly pleased with the attention. "So, out of curiosity, how did you two meet?" She seemed to clam up a bit at this.
"Oh, around," she answered vaguely.
"School? A shoot? Shopping?" I prompted, careful not to give specific locations. She nodded noncommittally. "Which one?"
"Shopping," she decided with a nervous glance upwards. I followed her gaze, but saw nothing.
"Love at first sight, right?" I asked, backing off. Light clearly didn't want her talking. She sighed contently.
"Right…" she answered dreamily. "What about you?" she retaliated. I hesitated. She pounced. "You do have someone! What's his name? Is he cute? Is he any good at you know, kissing?" I flushed. Why was it anyone mentioned anything like that, I went bright red?
"Um, I can't tell you his name, otherwise Light would most likely kill him," Misa laughed nervously, "I think he's adorable, and yes, he is a good kisser." My blush got even worse at this.
"Awww…. What does he look like?" I tried to be as vague as possible.
"Tall, skinny, pale, with dark eyes and hair." There. Without L's telltale habits I could be referring to more than half the guys in Japan. She nodded closing her eyes. Most likely imagining some artistic pop idol. I held back a shudder. Sooooo not my type. If I had a type. Maybe L was my type classification. I probably should never mention that to Light. Ever.
"Darn, we're here. And Misa liked talking to Rei," Misa pouted. She brightened suddenly, digging around her purse. "Here, take Misa's number!" She pulled out a piece of paper with a number scrawled on it. I blinked. She kept…her number…on little pieces of paper…in her purse. Ok, ignore the hookerish implications of that. Overall, she was nice. Over exuberant, but nice. I should introduce her to Matsuda.
"Right," I said taking the paper. Was this…was this scented paper? Happy thoughts Rei…happy thoughts…
"Bye!" she called out happily.
"Bye," I answered weakly, watching as she skipped off.
Well, that was in my top ten, "What the hell just happened?" nights. I shook my head. Why was Light so intense? I mean really, Misa wasn't all that suspicious. I mean, sure she was a bit reluctant to talk about how she and Light met, but knowing Light, it might not have been all too flattering on her part. You have to remember, Light would barely notice a girl if she were bleeding in front of him with her hand missing. The only weird thing was how Light reacted when she said my name. He acted like she somehow knew it without him telling her about it…
Wait. My name. She knew my name. Light. She wouldn't tell me how she and Light met. Really, when had Light had time to meet any new girls? And my name. Somehow she had known my name. Light. Name. Misa. Meeting. Shit.
Misa…Misa was the second Kira? Shit, shit, shit. And I had given her information about L! Please someone just end my miserable existence now! Kira maybe?
It was then I realized I had been standing stock still for the last few minutes. Alright, what do I do know? Right, tell L. But before that….
I started sprinting, heading back towards home. I reached the house a few minutes later, wheezing heavily. Yet another reason I didn't play tennis. I had no wind. I threw the front door open, heading towards Sayu's room. I knocked heavily on the door. A concerned Sayu opened the door.
"Rei?" she asked in confusion. I went straight towards the pile of magazines on her bookshelf. I scrabbled frantically through the glossy covers, searching for the familiar blonde. I breathed out in relief. Bingo.
"You mind if I borrow this?" I asked.
"I, uh, yeah sure. But Re-"
"I'll bring it back later!" I promised, already thudding down the stairs. I was halfway out the door when someone grabbed my wrist. I whirled on my captor, already knowing who it would be.
"Where are you going, Rei?" Light asked silkily. I shivered at the threat behind that tone. I swallowed heavily.
"W-work. I forgot to tell Ryuzaki something," I stuttered out. Sensing weakness, he swooped in.
"I'll come with you. It is late after all. I wouldn't want anything happening to you," he offered. The way he said it made it sound like he would be the one doing me the damage if I refused. Terrifying. My brother was terrifying.
I was nearly choking on my fear. Who…who was this person? Wordlessly, I shook my head. He seemed to understand I was scared because his expression softened and his hold loosened though I wasn't completely free. He sighed running his free hand through his hair.
"I'm just…. I'm worried for you. I want what's best for you. I love you," he admitted softly. I body relaxed at this, but my mind was screaming at me: He's manipulating you! Move! Move! Light's eyes slid to the magazine in my hand and I jerked away. Finally, movement.
"No. I'm leaving." My voice was quiet, but firm. He frowned; surprised he hadn't got his way.
"Alright," he relented, not pushing me any farther. His eyes were narrowed in cold calculation. I stepped outside into the cold night air, to make the journey to the station for the umpteenth time.
~L's POV~
I blinked at the sound of someone pounding heavily on the door to the suite. Frowning, I stood. The investigation team had already left for the night and no items of importance had been left behind. I drifted towards the door, the pounding increasing. As I got closer I could hear the sound of someone breathing erratically.
"Damn it Ryuzaki! Open the door!"
Rei? I opened the door only to see Rei fall to the ground at my feet. It was strangely reminiscent of when Aizawa and Matsuda had been caught spying on us.
"Were you leaning on the door?" I asked, the humor obvious in my voice. Rei struggled to get to her feet, her face flushed, though it did not appear from embarrassment this time.
"Not important!" she gasped out, clutching at her side. So it was physical exertation. She had something gripped in her hand, a magazine of some sort. She turned to shut the door, slamming a bit harder than necessary, but she didn't notice in her agitated state. Her expression was serious and she held the magazine in front of me.
The cover contained a photograph of a blonde posing for the camera. I almost frowned in distaste, but kept my expression blank. This was important for some reason… My gaze flickered from the magazine to Rei, my confusion growing evident.
"I found the second Kira," she whispered. My eyes grew large and I focused on the magazine again. I tugged it from her hands, she was unresistant.
"Explain," I commanded. She began pacing the floor, wringing her hands. Rei always seemed to be moving when put under pressure.
"I was walking home from the station, and I saw my family talking to her," she gestured to the magazine in my hand. I nodded. "And Light was refusing to walk her to the station, so I offered. And we were walking and talking. She claims she's Light's girlfriend…" she shook her head, "but she's not really his type. So I asked how they met and she wouldn't tell me." I raised an eyebrow.
"That doesn't warrant an accusation of murder," I contradicted. She threw her hands down and increased her pacing.
"I know! And normally I wouldn't come to forward with this to you without solid evidence but…" she stopped her frantic motions, biting her lip.
"But," I prompted.
"She knew my name," she admitted. It was my turn to freeze. "She says Light told her, but Light looked livid when she just blurted out my name. And then Light didn't want me coming back tonight…" She stared at me in concern when I said nothing. "Ryuzaki? Ryuzaki?"
In a swift motion I pulled her towards me and crashed her lips on mine. She made a small, "Mmph!" of surprise but responded after a moment, her fingers tightening in the fabric of my shirt. When she began to sag slightly in what I suspected was lightheadedness, I pulled back though I kept my forehead pressed to hers.
"Have I mentioned how wonderful you are as of late?" I asked with a quiet chuckle.
"Not that I can recall…?" she answered dizzily, her voice lilting up at the end. I nuzzled into her neck, suppressing a smile.
"Ahem," Watari's familiar voice called out. Reluctantly I pulled back from Rei, though I kept my grip on her.
"Ah, Watari. Superb timing." I picked up the magazine that slipped out of my fingers while I had…been otherwise engaged with Rei, and handed it to him. "I would like you begin researching," I squinted at the cover, "Misa Amane under the assumption she is the second Kira. Please take the necessary precautions when dealing with her."
"Of course Ryuzaki," Watari answered, suppressing mirth. I glanced down at Rei to see what was so amusing, to find her limply lying against my chest, apparently trying not to hyperventilate. "But perhaps you should give Rei a bit of warning next time."
"I'll keep that in mind," I answered sheepishly. Watari walked off, muttering something about hormones. But in retrospect, I was past the age where hormones compelled me to behave in such a way. I shrugged the comment off.
I finally released Rei, but remained close by as she was swaying unsteadily. She held her head, speaking to herself in a low tone.
"I didn't quite catch that," I said. She looked at me, still slightly unfocused.
"I said, 'A warning would be appreciated.' You have to remember I was still winded." She finally seemed to come back to her senses a bit.
"I apologize." She smirked.
"I didn't say not to do it again, just that I would like to know in advance when you're going to kiss me like that. That would have made the rest of today a lot more bearable if I knew I had that waiting for me." I smirked back at her.
"Well then would object if I did it again?" She considered this.
"No, but it's not my fault if I collapse." I chucked.
"Fair enough," I answered slowly closing the distance between us to press our lips together. True to her claim, a few seconds into the kiss, her legs gave out beneath her.
"Damn it!" she muttered from the floor. "How cliché is that?" I considered that.
"I suppose you should feel happy I did not manage to catch you then and pull you into my arms?" She shuddered.
"Yes. If that had happened, I would…" she trailed off shaking her head unable to think of a threat to convey her displeasure.
"You would?" I asked. She focused on me, an intense expression on her face.
"Make you drink coffee." I raised an eyebrow. "Without sugar," she clarified. My brow furrowed at the imagined taste.
"If that is the best threat you can come up with, I am afraid you have no future as an interrogator." She grinned up at me.
"But, effective. You should see your expression. Besides I'm tired."
"Then perhaps you should go home," I suggested, instantly regretting it. Evenings were much less tedious when she was here.
"Do you want me to go?" she questioned with a tilt of her head.
"Not particularly, no." She staggered to her feet and collapsed onto the couch.
"Then I'll stay." I crept up next her, pulling my knees up in my normal crouch. She leaned her head onto my shoulder. I stiffened, surprised by the contact then relaxed.
"You're comfortable," she murmured.
"I find I must disagree with that statement. I am not at all comfortable." She shrugged hardly bothered. "If you find me comfortable, then perhaps you should retire to a real bed. Your exhaustion may be making you delusional." She laughed weakly.
"No…. It's better if I jus stay up until I pass out. Less likely to have nightmares that way…" she trailed off blearily.
"What exactly do you fear that results in nightmares," I probed. Childhood trauma was one thing, but something else was clearly triggering the sudden increase in the night terrors.
"I'm just scared," she breathed out. "Scared that…that people close to me are going to die because of mistakes that I made." I was able to read between the lines that I was one of these people. "And I'm scared of not knowing Light. Of not being able to see any trace of him left. Even if he is Kira," she struggled to get her point across, "I could still forgive him. But, what if he stops being Light? What if…if Kira just consumes him?" I tentatively wrapped an arm around her.
"I don't know how to console you in this situation, and I do not wish to lie to you in the event something of that nature would occur," I paused, "but I would like to ask you not to blame yourself for Light's choices."
"Speaking of Light's choices…" she began. "Why did you believe me so quickly after I suspected Misa as the second Kira? I hardly had substantial evidence."
"It was a sign of trust I suppose," I answered honestly. "I know you are not prone to fits of suspicion and that your hunches are usually accurate."
"Thank you for trusting me then," she said softly, a yawn emerging at the end of the sentence.
"Trust goes both ways. It felt unreasonable to ask for yours without giving anything in return. But now, I believe you should sleep, lest your father see your exhaustion as proof of less honorable activities."
"I'm fine here." I chuckled.
"I was not asking," I reiterated. She said nothing. "I will carry you if forced to."
"Fine by me," she grumbled into my shoulder.
Very well, she had given me permission. I removed myself from under her and examined her for a moment, unsure how to approach the situation. It seemed best if I carried her…bridal style. And Rei was worrying about clichés, when it was I who was about to make the biggest faux pas. Smirking slightly at the implication, I carefully hooked an arm behind her knees, using the other to cradle her head.
"You were serious," she muttered, sensing the sudden motion.
"Am I anything but serious?" I asked. I meant it to be rhetorical, but in her sleep deprived state, she didn't notice.
"Sometimes you're stubborn, or annoying. And sometimes you're nice. Like now." She sounded like a child, but the honesty was refreshing. Not that Rei lied to me, but she often skittered around the edges of things she felt uncomfortable towards.
"I'm nice?" I asked, curious to see how honestly she would answer.
"Uh-huh. Really nice. And sweet. Like cake." I chuckled. Her level of awareness had deteriorated to complete nonsense.
"I like cake," I answered.
"Me too." It came out as a tired sigh. I pried the door to the bedroom open and gently deposited her onto the bed. She curled up into a small ball, much like a kitten, and let out another small sigh. "G'night Ryuzaki." Even completely exhausted she still remembered my alias.
"Good night, Rei." I slipped out of the room.
Rei was much less…volatile, without interference from the others. She was almost languid in how relaxed she was when we were alone, but the others, or more specifically, Light and her father set her on edge. This was…interesting. I would have to conduct some experiments in order to further solidify this conclusion.
But in the mean time…it would not be harmful to make sure she slept through the night peacefully. At that I retreated back into the bedroom, prepared to watch her until she awoke.
~Author's Note~
I'M SO EXCITED! Winter break is in two days and two very good friends of mine, actually on this site, Jayne Foyer and princesscay, will be visiting me. J.F. is coming from England while p.c. is coming from Northern California. We shall squeal and be nerds.
So, because break is coming up, I'll be trying to crank out a good couple chapters while I actually have time to write. So look forward to that!
Thanks for reviewing!
methodtothemadness: I'm glad you liked it, though this chapter mostly consists of her running around like a headless chicken, being kissed repeatedly, and then passing out. Not too much character development, but it was fun to write.
random fan: There ya go! A fresh chapter with a good chunk of L POV with the required plot and fluff! You better read it while it's fresh ;)
LOVEsickCRACKhead: Glad you liked it! Here's an update!