One of L's favorite things about his room was the balcony. He'd long since hidden the entrance (it was the first thing he'd built) so it afforded him a good deal of privacy. And once he'd added a decent roof and some cushions on every inch of it, it became the perfect spot to hide, and think, and to dream. His favorite place in the house.

It was where he went after Dimentio had stormed out of the game room. After he'd posed the question that burned in his head to his siblings.

He hadn't expected Dimentio to act that way. He knew parents were a… sensitive topic for everyone, but for Dimentio to outright storm out of the room? Needless to say, it was a little… much.

All L had wanted to know was if they felt the same way he did. If they wondered…

Well, it hardly mattered now. They'd all said their piece, though it wasn't quite what he'd meant. And now he knew never to bring it up again.

He exhaled and looked up at the stars, thankful it wasn't raining. He had a father now, he'd meant that, and Nastasia, who was kind of like a mom, or an aunt. Not to mention his three… colorful siblings. So why did he feel so… incomplete? As if he was missing someone?

"L?"

His head snapped to the door, a one-sided glass panel, to see who'd called him. Mimi. She'd entered and was cautiously glancing around for him.

"L? If you've got some kind of hiding place… Well... I just wanna talk for a bit." She paused. "Are you even in here?"

He stuck his head out the door. "Yes."

Mimi started and jumped back, hand grabbing at her chest. "Sweet rubees, you scared the bejeebers out of me!"

"Yeah. I have that effect on people." L chuckled.

Mimi rolled her eyes. "Uh-huh. Anyways, I wanted to talk to you about what happened in the game room."

"Listen," L started. "I didn't mean to start a fight, I was only curious if- well I only wanted to know- and now I do! So, case closed, I won't bring it up again, I promise."

Mimi frowned. "No, that's not what I meant. All I wanted to ask was… why did you want to know?"

L stared for a long moment, briefly considering lying to her. It'd be easy and far simpler. Brush it off as mere curiosity and move on. Move on with that burning question stuck in his head forever.

He slowly sunk onto his bed, patting the space next to him to invite Mimi to sit too. She did, tilting her head curiously at his solemnness.

He took a deep breath. "My memory comes and goes. I have flashes where I can't remember anything beyond a couple seconds ago. Then there's times where I can't remember anything after the Count adopted me. Most of the time I can't remember anything before.

"One thing never changes though. No matter what kind of flash I'm having I always see a flash of a red hat, blue eyes beneath. And I have to wonder who they belong to. Not my father, I don't think so anyway. The eyes are too young and the hat too small. My brother, I think.

"I wonder what he's like, is all. If he likes robots and machinery like I do, or if he's torturing himself as a poet. I wonder… how things might have been different. If maybe… he's looking for me."

Mimi patted his hand sympathetically. "Believe it or not I understand. I kinda lied when we were talking earlier. I remember a lot more than I told you guys." She laughed weakly. "Still isn't that much though. I remember my sisters dancing, and I remember them spending every last penny they had on getting me a vaccine. But mostly I remember the dirt under my fingernails as- well… you get the idea."

She trailed off and L gently squeezed her hand. "I'm sorry."

She sniffed. "Doesn't matter anymore. The dead are dead. Mostly though, when I think of them, I think of how happy they'd be for me now. I was the youngest, and they always wanted the best for me. Now I have it. And I have a brother for every sister I lost."

A quiet silence gripped the room for a long moment. L was speechless. There she went again, taking everyone by surprise and throwing their expectations out the window. He hadn't expected her to be that… broken. Twisted inside and hurting so much until the only way to find comfort was to slowly try and undo the knots. On her own.

He grabbed her suddenly, pulling her into a tight hug. "We're a matched set, you and me. I don't have enough memories and you have too many. But I promise you, Mimi. As long I live, I'm never going to leave you. Not for my brother, not for anyone else. And you can't leave me either, okay?"

He felt a small wet spot spread on his shoulder as she gripped him back.

"Deal." She choked out.

They stayed like that for thirty minutes before their muscles started to cramp. After that L took her out to his balcony and they stargazed the rest of the night, talking about all they remembered and all they wished they could. Until they fell asleep on top of each other, arm in arm and more emotionally at peace than either one had been in a long time.

I was gonna go back into light-hearted stuff after that last chapter, but it felt kinda unfinished to me. So here's a part two. I know it's not as good as the last one, but I felt like I needed to flesh Mimi's backstory a little. O'Chucks will probably get something like this later, but it's hard to come clean when you were the only one being honest. :T

On that note; More light-hearted stuff next update, I promise. And, like last time, if you have ideas for nicknames the kids would call Count Bleck, don't hesitate to tell me. ;)

Ciao~