Chapter Twenty-Five

Balance

"In a democracy, someone who fails to get elected to office can always console himself with the thought that there was something not quite fair about it." ― Thucydides

Seeing Sayu when they made their way back down the stairs and to the work room was almost surreal. Two parts of his life that he'd never thought would cross over were suddenly tossed into the same room She'd only just made it through the elevator doors when he came to stand on the final step. She paused just outside the metallic doors, straightening her cardigan and brushing a dark lock of hair behind her ear as though strapping her armor into place, before walking toward them with wide, confident steps.

Although Naomi had informed them of the situation – luckily they'd heard her approach, giving them time to pull their mouths and hands off of one another – it had been difficult to comprehend the idea that his sister had somehow tracked them to this building. It seemed as though she had been copy-pasted out of one department of his life and into this one.

"Sayu," Light started, somewhat sternly as she approached. "How exactly did you find this place?"

"Sorry?" Sayu sauntered passed him unapologetically, spinning around when she got to a chair, her flouncy skirt fluttering around her as she did so. "Were you guys trying to hide it?"

Beside him, L looked irritated and reluctantly amused. No doubt he was getting tired of people thwarting his plans, but he couldn't help but enjoy Sayu's attitude and was likely impressed. Light was feeling similar emotions on the subject, but he felt a trickle of anxiety join in the mix.

How did she get here? If a college student can find her way to this place, then what does that mean for security against Kira and his associates?

"I think it's obvious," Mello piped up as she eyed Sayu, frowning. "Mr. Indispensable here got himself followed by his little sister. Who does that?"

She's probably right – you've had a lot on your mind lately. If you had weren't paying attention when you left home -

"Maybe you should let my sister answer for herself," Light answered flatly, but didn't even glance at Mello as he did so. Instead, his eyebrows fell into a straight line as he peered at his sister, still in awe at her very existence, in this place, with him. It was almost fitting, considering she was probably older than most of his new team members.

That was still grating on him, but quietly so, in the back of his mind. There were more important matters to attend to; he would save his complaints for after he'd seen them do their work. Matt apparently had some sort of presentation, so he'd be able to evaluate him soon enough. The other two remained unknown variables.

"God, you look like dad when you make that face," Sayu said instead, then furrowed her brow to mimic him. Beside him, L's mouth twitched and Light wanted to swat at him for being amiable when she had clearly crossed the line by tracing them back here.

"Yagami-san," L started more seriously, perhaps having noticed Light's glance. Briefly, Light wondered when he'd decided to go with 'Yagami-san' in relation to his sister, but he didn't linger on it. "Kira breached our system not even a month ago; that is how he received the sensitive photos of suspects in confinement. Therefore, it is imperative that we know how you found the information regarding our location."

Sayu blew air out through her cheeks and then leaned back more fully in her chair.

"Okay. I followed you."

"I knew it," hissed Mello, casting Light an accusing look.

"No, I followed you, Ryuzaki," Sayu corrected, shooting a grin at the detective as she swayed in her seat slightly. "After my dad's funeral, you know, right after Ryuga confessed – you left with Light in that swanky car, and I followed him on my bike. I said I was going up to my room to cry, but I sneaked out right after."

"Wait, what?" Mello groused, crossing her arms over her chest and glowering at L as if she were disappointed. "So – it was all three of you?"

L paused, then scratched his head, "We had other things to worry about."

He didn't bother making excuses, and Light was sure he knew why. After the funeral and Kira's confession, they had both been furious with themselves and the idol for humiliating them in such a way. The ride back had been one even more intimate than that of the return from the East West Festival. They'd started kissing angrily behind the divide, so that Watari couldn't glance into the rearview and see them, clawing one another closer and getting out their mutual pent up rage because it was easier than screaming.

It had dissolved eventually into languid touches, brushing lips and fingers over every exposed scent gland until their muscles and psyches shivered with relief. It had been a wordless exchange, and they'd gotten to work immediately upon arrival to headquarters, but apparently that escapade had made it possible for Sayu to follow them.

That might not be true. It's possible that even if we'd been on alert, she would have successfully followed us. Light balked at his own thoughts. Why am I defending this to myself? If we hadn't been so wrapped up in one another, it's very likely we would have noticed. We were reckless. Our own failings had just been presented in front of us, in front of the world, and yet we immediately let our guards down again?

"What about Watari?" Matt asked, frowning, though he didn't look all that put out by the idea of Sayu stalking them. "He's usually on point."

"That does seem strange," Naomi granted, looking over to where L and Light stood by the staircase.

"It's possible he allowed her to follow us," L muttered, dark eyes flickering to the corner of the room, where one of the cameras were, as though hoping Watari would see it and note his disapproval.

"That would explain why he was driving slowly and taking easy routes– he wasn't trying to lose me at all." Sayu added thoughtfully, then gave a broad, disarming smile that Light was actually rather impressed with. "I guess he agreed with me."

"Agreed with you on what?" Mello demanded, sitting up a little straighter. Light's mind had already jumped to the awful conclusion, was already spinning for reasons that it would be a horrible idea.

"That I should be on the team," answered Sayu easily.

Naomi looked around the room, cringing. "This team?"

"This one."

"This one, right here?" Matt humored, his goggles shifting upward as if he were raising his eyebrows. He pointed at the floor. "In this room?"

"The very same."

"Oh, boy," Naomi sighed, bringing her fingers through her hair as she set her sights on Light. She seemed unsure and sympathetic, not wanting to cross any boundaries, but no doubt she had qualms when it came to accepting people as young and inexperienced as Sayu onto the team.

Not to mention, the son of a Kira victim. I'm already on this case. I can think of a dozen reasons why this is a bad idea. Why couldn't you prefer school and shopping for shoes like you normally would? It'd be safer for you and easier for me.

"Sayu," Light said her name slowly, deliberately, and finally seating himself in the computer chair that was closest to his sister and not occupied. "I'm sorry, but that's not going to happen."

"Light," She retorted in the same tone. "I'm sorry, but it totally is. Isn't it, Ryuzaki?"

Light gave L a sharp look, but L was already droning out a dismissive statement. "Yagami-san, as much as I appreciate your initiative, we are currently fully staffed –"

"I want to help," Sayu interrupted, leaning forward in her chair. "I can help."

L looked up to the ceiling then moved to take a seat as well, sighing. "Yagami-san has a personal investment in the case."

"So does Light," she shot back. "Next."

"...You aren't qualified," L told her, but even Light could see he was grasping at straws. Even though she looks up to me, she's not going to listen to me, Light thought agitatedly. Come on, L, think of something to get her out of here.

"I graduate with a degree in psychology in two months," Sayu responded without delay, as though she'd accounted for this accusation. "Besides, Light's been helping with cases since he was fifteen years old, and that was on official police work, not this…big-league private detective thing you have going. You have a special team, and I want to be a part of it."

"If you're coming up on the end of your final year, surely you're too busy for frivolous pursuits."

"This isn't frivolous. He killed my dad." Sayu's voice a little harsher this time, cracking at L's excuses. "Light has his job, but he's still here working with you whenever he has the time. That's what I'll do. I'll come and assist you whenever I can."

L was faltering in his resolve and Sayu wasn't going easy on him. His gaze flickered to Light, as if asking 'What do you want me to do with this? She has a point'. Light looked to the others in the room, from Near who as toying with his action figure disinterestedly, to Mello and Matt who looked equal parts amused and suspicious, to Naomi, who looked just as won over as L did.

"Sayu, I'm going to catch Kira," Light insisted coolly, meeting her eyes. "There's no reason for you to do this. Think of mom, after all she's gone through –"

"You aren't going to guilt trip me out of this, Light," Sayu told him, leaning forward in much the same way he was and holding his gaze. "I'm doing this for mom, and dad's memory, but I'm also doing this for me. I've already made up my mind."

L's hands settled on his knees, thumbs pressing into his kneecaps. "Perhaps Yagami-san should–"

"No. You owe this to me, Ryuzaki. You're in charge, aren't you?" She paused, then glanced over to the woman beside her curiously. "Or is Naomi?"

L frowned. "Yes, I'm technically the lead detective on –"

"Then that means you're responsible for my dad's death."

This was a shock to most in the room. Even Light was taken aback, though he understood the logic behind that conclusion. Light let his eyes flicker to L, before leaning back in his seat with a soft exhale. Mello, however, did not react with as much poise.

"Hey there, Yagami, you can cool it right fucking there –"

"Mello," Matt groaned. "Can't you calm down?"

"Near may be able to sit back and observe like a statue, but I sure as hell won't."

"I'm not assigning blame, I'm just stating the facts," Sayu informed her, rolling her eyes and pulling out her phone. This put L on edge, had his toes curling just slightly, and only his faith in the Yagami family as a whole kept him from snatching it away. He didn't like unauthorized phones in private groups; it would be much too easy to take a photo of him with it and send it off to anyone that might benefit from the information.

Sayu held out the phone and continued, showing the screen to each of them. Light hid a scowl at the display. It was the picture that had been released by Kira of his and Misa's incarceration. This one was just him, just his lank, shaggy hair and his slumped form in the restraints. Sayu continued.

"I was looking at the pictures that Kira broadcast from L's 'inhumane incarceration of innocents' and at first I didn't realize it but…it's you, in one of those pictures, Light. The timeline for your sudden inexplicable urge to travel makes sense too." She set her phone aside now that she was done. "Now that she's confessed, everyone figures the girl in the other photo is Misa. L got that one right, but he also had you locked up in there."

Light drew his lips tight for a moment, ignoring the aghast look Mello was exchanging with Matt.

"How could you know that?"

"Your hair," Sayu smiled humorlessly. "Dad mentioned you'd only just got it cut, when you came by that night. You said you were trying something new, but you've had the same hairstyle since grade six."

If Sayu's figured this out, then it's only a matter of time until someone in the NPA does. No, they're not looking into the Kira case anymore, they've refused, there's no reason for anyone there to be looking further into this, but if they wanted to, the information is out there.

Light closed his eyes briefly, then reopened them. "Sayu -"

"No, let me finish," She told him, crossing her legs in a smooth motion, seized with self-assurance at the reaction to her deduction. "Ryuzaki owes me. L owes me this, too, so make a call if you have to get approval from the big boss. He accused you of being Kira, locked you away in those conditions for a month, and then – what? Is that why Kira thought dad was corrupt?"

Then she looked at Light hopefully, and he realized she wasn't sure about this part of the analysis. She was silently begging him to tell her that their father had not truly been a dirty cop, like many assumed. If there was anything that they had both grown up believing, it was in their father's honor and integrity.

"…Something like that," Light admitted, for her sake and that of his father's memory. He could see a deep reprieve settle onto her features, as well as an even more solid resolve.

"Wait, okay, let's go back a moment," Matt cut them off. "You were a suspect?"

"This is getting better and better," drawled Mello, peering around the room. Her gaze finally settled on Light.

"He was cleared of all charges," Naomi defended. "Kira admitted to framing him himself."

"It's still weird to have someone working on a case who was once the suspected perpetrator of the crimes in question. I'd like to know why you suspected him." Mello turned to L expectantly.

"It's not that odd," Near argued, speaking up quietly from where he'd been looking on. Though he'd said next to nothing, Light couldn't help but note that his eyes were alert, his finger twisting nonstop in his hair. Gears were still turning beneath that mop of silvery hair. "Yagami-san is, as Ryuzaki said before, an asset. He does not become less of one simply because he is, or was, a suspect."

"Of course, the one time you decide to speak up, it's in order to contradict me."

"You're right on all counts," L spoke up once more, peering between all of them, before returning his gaze to the ceiling, looking put out. "Light-kun was indeed a suspect for a few months, and there was evidence planted that was connected to him that allowed me to justify his confinement. As you know, the murders stopped for two weeks, but then restarted, and after Kira hacked our system and broadcast it for the world. L had to release him."

"L made a mistake," Sayu said unabashedly.

"…Yes." Light got a quiet delight from watching the man admit it. Almost as if sensing this enthusiasm, L shot him a sharp look, which only pleased Light even more.

"So get him to make up for it."

"I will, but not by allowing you to contribute to the case. All of the members are highly skilled individuals –"

"Right, and I suppose you've all seen every interview that Ryuga's ever done."

There was a moment where L actually seemed to consider this, much to Light's disapproval. He cast an irritated glance in L's direction in return as Sayu went on. Are you really considering this?

"Of course you've seen every movie, TV show, miniseries, podcast, cameo - oh, and I'm sure at least one of you attended his concerts, of which there are no high-quality recordings available." Sayu leaned back in her chair at the lack of responses around her.

Even Matt, who'd had the most time to do research, had barely made a dent in the star's recorded portfolio. Light could feel his molars bearing down; surely this wasn't going to be the way it ended. Sayu on the Kira task force, risking her life alongside them. Aside from their father, Kira did not make a habit of killing innocent people even if they were in his way – but the prospect still did not bode well with him.

"I've only been to eleven of his concerts, of course," Sayu continued with an air of nonchalance. "But I also have several friends that were even bigger fans - people I've kept up with online and across the world who collectively have been to a good portion of all of his public performances."

Light could tell by the ensuing silence that everyone in the room was finding it difficult to argue with her. He was having a hard time coming up with any further reasoning as well – it was true. They could hack into his past, watch all of his movies and interviews and concerts, but it might end up being a monumental waste of time. Having Sayu on the team might actually give them insight into him that they might not get otherwise.

"I've spent the last ten years of my life following Kira's career. I've spent money on his merchandize, and now he's killed my dad. I want to catch him as much as any of you."

"Despite the unorthodoxy of this request," L started, and Light suppressed a groan. He was relenting; of course he was. Sayu hadn't really given them much of a choice. "…we cannot delay the debriefing any longer. Although I will suspend my decision regarding future meetings, Yagami-san has successfully bullied her way into this one."

Sayu beamed. "That's all I ever wanted."

"We've really put this off long enough," Matt sighed, turning back toward his computer and starting to pull up the files he needed for the debriefing.

"No kidding," Mello scoffed her agreement.

"Let's start with his confession," L gestured toward one of the screens, which pulled up a screen shot of Misa, Kyomi and Ryuga all standing together, Kira's hand stretched out at the screen. It had become an iconic image, and was featured in newspapers, magazines, posters, and every Pro-Kira website imaginable. "It appears that the studio heads and camera men are all claiming that they had no idea what was going to occur. They knew that Misa Amane was going to be the guest star, but they had no idea why Ryuga requested it. They assumed that Hideki was going to announce their relationship."

"Yeah, that's what I thought too when I saw her come out," Sayu interjected eagerly.

"Even his agent and PR manager are claiming they didn't know," Matt added, clearing the screen and pulling up a clip of her. "They both released official statements. This is his PR manager, Yo Kishida."

"Yeah, but she's totally lying."

"What makes Yagami-san think so?" L inquired interestedly. Light watched Sayu perk up at the attention, but before she could reply, Mello was putting her own comment forward.

"There weren't any prominent signs of lying on her features – but the clip I saw was pretty bad quality."

"I don't have to see that to know," Sayu pointed at her crimson trench coat and rouged lips. "She's done tons of press vids for Ryuga because he tries not to be in the media unless it's an official interview. It's kind of a running joke on the forums that she wears red whenever she's lying – we think it gives her confidence so she can lie better."

"Assuming that's correct," L muttered slowly, bringing his thumb to his lips, "it means she may be in league with Kira. It may behoove us to keep an eye on her as well. Perhaps she can lead us to other cohorts."

"Yeah, yeah," Mello waved a hand dismissively. "We can talk about leads later, but what do we actually know about Hideki?"

"Well, the answer is - not much," Matt's voice was frustrated as he pulled up a few pages on multiple monitors, giving them each a view of bank statements and bills.

"What do you mean?" Sayu asked, her brow furrowing. Even Near's head tilted up with interest at that. Light figured that if the successor that was useful for his hacking skills couldn't find anything, there wasn't much hope for the rest of them.

"I mean that I was able to hack into his bank records, his medical history, all of his social media accounts – but the earliest I've found any trace of him is back in 2000."

"No trace," Mello repeated. "How is that possible?"

"A lot of ways. Whammy is one way, but plenty of people drop off the grid, especially as a kid. The fact is, before ten years ago, Ryuga Hideki didn't exist." Matt shrugged. "I'd be surprised if that was his real name. There are dozens of sites with his official backstory, but I can't find any parents, siblings, friends from before he became famous – no one knows where he came from. It says he was raised by a single mother after his father died in an accident, there isn't any person who can corroborate that."

"So we have nothing on him other than what we can gather ourselves though watching videos," Mello exhaled, then shook her head. "Alright, whatever, we'll deal with it. What about Misa Amane and Kiyomi Takada?"

"They were easy – not a whole lot to go on. Amane witnessed the death of her parents during a robbery at eighteen. She's pretty transparent. I was able to hack into her phone and find a picture of a few of her letters to Kira, but they're all just…sweet stuff," Matt rubbed the back of his neck as though embarrassed, and shrugged. "I couldn't find any code or anything. It just seems like Kira's in love with Amane. Or good at faking it."

"He is an actor," Sayu commented, then looked away darkly.

It's not easy for her. Ryuga was someone that she admired for some time. Light watched her from the corner of his eye, then dragged his attention away. Damn it. This is exactly why her being here is a bad idea. L is already enough of a distraction; if I'm worried about my sister all the time too, it'll be that much more difficult to focus.

"Do we have any idea what the weapon is?" Near's voice drifted up from the floor, and Light found that the young man's eyes were on him. They were a lighter shade of grey than L's, but just as intense.

"We don't know how he kills," Light replied, realizing he'd been quiet for some time as well. "Or how it's related to the way he controls his victims prior to their deaths, which appears to be a form of mind control. He also seems to be able to take away Misa's memories of her participation in his cause – how someone can do something like that is beyond our understanding for the moment. But our top priority is to find out."

"Until then, there's nothing for us to do but speculate, unfortunately," Naomi lamented, frowning. She'd been among the task force during Misa's confinement, and Light had watched a good portion of the recordings from it in order to catch up. It had truly seemed that Misa was innocent, and the false execution had seemed to secure that assertion.

If Misa is really in league with Kira, she must not have the same power that he does, or else surely she would have killed my father before he could kill me. Or maybe we're just underestimating her? She's an Omega though, usually their tolerance for stress is low – could she really be that conniving?

"We can speculate all we want later," Mello then dictated. "We need to line up our national support - we're based in pretty much the worst country."

"Yeah, I've been working on that. I think I've got a fair view of our prospects." Matt nodded, and then with a few taps of the keys, he brought up a map of the world and rows of graphs and statistics. "So let's look at the world."

Naomi shifted in her seat, then gestured to one of the screens and began.

"We already knew the biggest support Kira has is coming from China, Japan, and the US. North America has large factions who support him. Kira's stunt with the police officers went over especially well with people in US and Mexico."

He'd only killed a small portion of the corrupt officers; as a result, in the last week there had been next to zero reports of shootings by police or abuse of authority. Light had expected as much, and while part of him thought it was exactly what the world needed, his guilt and grief mottled together to coat his tongue with bitterness.

Matt zoomed in on Europe. "There are pockets of the UK that are extremely against him – but there are others that are just as loudly for him. We're lucky that he's not as popular an idol in Europe. The largest supporter there is Belarus, but Finland's support is rising too."

"I did a lot of research on South America," Naomi explained, and Matt adjusted the screen back over and down to the continent in question. "They're mostly against Kira, but while Brazil spoke out against Kira after the East West Festival, now that there are faces that represent the Kira Kira movement, they seem like they're changing their tune. We can probably dissuade them. France is the opposite –" The Europe screen appeared on a separate monitor entirely. "Now that Ryuga has come out, they went from being half and half to being slightly more against."

When the screen moved to Russia, Light recalled what L had told him about Mello. She was apparently what L had childishly deemed 'master of disguise'; she was a spy, and had been assigned to infiltrate the Russian government to figure out the source of an information leak.

"Russia in general claims that Kira and everything he stands for is an abomination, but the people are actually becoming sympathetic to his cause, though most of them won't admit it." Mello nodded in approval of this statement, and Matt shot her a grin. "The internet has a lot of polls when it comes to public support of Kira, which are geared toward the common citizen. It seems like Russia is more on the fence. That would be a dangerous power to have against us."

"You know it," Mello nodded, propping up her head on a fist. "If they ever become aggressively pro-Kira, it'll get messy for us."

"South Africa in particular seems to be torn as well," Naomi started, pulling from the information that Light had researched in depth over the past few days. He'd been busy helping his mother with her affairs and the banalities of returning to work, but he'd still managed. "Light knows a little more about it than I do though."

Graciously, Light took over, though he didn't bother with the screens. Even so, Matt zoomed in on the continent of Africa. "South Africa abolished capital punishment over a decade ago, so their instinct is to be against him, but they also can't deny the fact that over the last seven years, war and crime in the less developed countries has been on a huge decline. Over the last seven years, Kira killed so many notable warlords that most are scared to take up the mantel again. He killed well-known advocates of female genital mutilation, basically making the act culturally frowned upon before it was officially made illegal. They're among those countries that are remaining neutral in an attempt to protect their reputation."

"Other countries within Africa are being pretty withholding about their opinion on him, and it's difficult to find statistics on the tribes without technology," Matt moved along. "Now Germany on the other hand – completely against it. Harks a little too much toward genocide for their tastes."

"Germany will be a good nation to go to for support," L mused, tilting his head as though he'd only just thought of it, though Light was well aware this was not the case.

"I know people in the government there," Mello said, perhaps a little too eagerly. Light looked her over, frowning. She certainly likes L's attention and jumps at it whenever there's so much as a comment. Is that just because she looks up to L, or because she's an Omega? Either way, it's a bit much.

"Canada is also overwhelmingly Anti-Kira from what I can tell," Naomi stated, brushing her hair back behind her ear. "The movies he's made for Hollywood have made him a big name there too, but it seems like they're against capital punishment enough that it doesn't matter. From what I've gathered, about sixty-seven percent of the common people are against him. Australia is showing similar numbers."

"I have worked with the CSIS," Near offered dispassionately, which seemed to irk Mello, who bristled slightly in her seat. "That may be of use."

Are they competing right now? Light thought snidely. What's the purpose of that – L isn't going to die any time soon, you idiots. You might as well get used to your roles here.

"What about India?" Sayu asked, and it was a good question. Light had been wondering along the same lines, as it was a large and powerful country, almost on par with China. If they were on Kira's side, it was about as devastating as Russia would be. "They still have the death penalty in place there, don't they?"

"Yes, and India is also split, but a little more in our favor," Matt tapped his fingers on his boot, which was resting on the opposite knee. "There are parts of the country that are extremely supportive; Kira has killed many corrupt officials throughout the Middle East and Asia in general – terrorism, hate crimes, bombings, and rapes there have fizzled out quite a bit. In fact, a lot of the deaths there have resulted in pretty profound steps in the Omega Rights movement. That's upset a lot of people, but made just as many grateful –even so, most people there say they don't support Kira's methods. The government fears him, so they aren't speaking out."

"That said," Naomi remarked. "I think they'll cave to Hideki if he becomes even more of a threat to them. For now they're kind of all just…quietly disagreeing."

"So at the moment, we need to focus on getting Germany, Australia and Canada's expressed support, and stop India and Russia from tilting more toward Kira in the coming months." Mello surmised, then added thoughtfully. "I'd like to know more about what you said about Omega-Rights."

Light twitched, but kept his voice level as he asked, "How is that relevant?"

"Uh, only a lot," Mello scowled, then rolled her eyes at him. Sayu raised her eyebrows and met Light's eye with a stifled smile, seemingly pleased by the disrespect. "It's common knowledge that Alphas and Beta Men commit between eighty and eighty-eight percent of all crime depending on the country – so do we have a graph when it comes to the support he has across the second genders?"

"It's true," Matt said after a moment, keying in a few words quickly. "Kira doesn't kill people in prison who are doing their time or that are not currently a known threat to society – it's not just criminals, or else Caucasian Alphas and Beta Males would be those most likely to support him according to pre-Kira statistics."

"Yes – he murders those who perpetuate corruption," Light agreed, remembering the judge that had been killed right before his eyes. He'd been swayed by political and financial reasons, like many other officials. "Not just the violent offenders themselves."

"Which makes him a hit with those who are oppressed in most countries– namely, Omegas, Female Betas, people of color, especially Omegas of color." Mello considered, tapping at his lips and then suddenly shifting to dig into a bag, looking for something.

"So by those standards," L murmured, catching Light's attention when he looked toward him. "The average Kira supporter is an Asian Omega between the ages of fifteen and thirty."

L's eyes flickered down to Light's lap, and Light was about to get irritated with his indiscretion – then he abruptly understood what that look was for. Light had been kneading the skin of his right wrist with his left thumb in the way that L often did. Light forced the warmth that crept up his neck far down, managing to compose himself and slide his hands to their respective chair arms calmly.

How long was I doing that for? Did anyone else notice? I knew letting L touch me in the hall during work was a bad idea. My instincts were jumpstarted – don't look so pleased, L, this just means it's not happening again.

"The point is that there are Kira supporters coming up from all sides," Matt threw up his hands and then leaned back in his seat, twisting back around to face all of them emphatically. "We only have a few avenues of possible support, but the world isn't overly fond of L either. It's not enough to catch Kira now, because he's representing an overhaul of the status quo. We can't just arrest him, or confine him until he confesses to the location of the murder weapon – "

"If there even is such a thing," Mello grumbled as she peeled away foil from a chocolate bar that she'd just fished from her bag. Are all of them obsessed with sweets?

"Right!" Matt heaved a deep breath and shook his head. "This isn't straight up detective work anymore."

"No, it isn't," L confirmed, bringing his attention back to the group as a whole. "Kira's trying to make this a revolution; he came out as Kira the way he did not because he thinks he's above the law, but because he believes that according to the new laws of the world – what he's done all these years isn't wrong."

"But is it?"

All eyes were on Sayu, some more accusing than others. Light was startled, but a bit appreciative by what the question said about her insight. He still wasn't overly fond of the idea of her inserting herself into the case, but he supposed it couldn't be all bad; she'd already proven herself more than once.

"I mean, is what he's trying to do that wrong?" Sayu restated when no one volunteered an answer.

Mello's mouth contorted into a sneer. "Is this really a question?"

"I'm not saying I support him – obviously! I wasn't even for Kira before he killed my father." She told Mello defensively, then pulled back, brushing her hair back over her shoulder and calming herself. "I'm just saying that he's actually done a lot of good for the world. Justice is subjective. We're fighting against the perception people have of him, but also of justice in general."

If we defeat him, he is evil. If he defeats us, then we will go down in history as the evil renegades that the hero managed to stamp out. Something about this idea turned Light's stomach.

"There have been rallies in his honor over the past week," Sayu elucidated. "Protests too, but there just aren't that many people that are that outspoken."

"It's hard to openly admit that you think these people have a right to live," Naomi spoke up in Sayu's favor slowly, raking her teeth over her bottom lip and sitting up. "Most of the people that he kills are those that have done things that are near impossible to prove, violent offenders who were recently released and those whose financial status keeps them from being convicted."

"No offence, Ryuzaki," Sayu started, meeting the detective's eyes head on. "…but was L actually doing anything to make the world better?"

L met her gaze stoically, but he didn't have time to respond before Mello piped up once more.

"This is what we're up against. People don't like the way the world is and they're being offered change by this guy with a pretty face and mother fucking superpowers."

"That's going to be the hardest part," Matt agreed, suddenly smiling triumphantly. "The media is largely on Kira's side, but what I propose is that we give the people a valid alternative."

Light regarded Matt with interest, "You want people to choose sides."

"People love choosing sides," Mello gave Light a wicked grin, and then looked him up and down without warning, as though intrigued without apparent cause. For a moment, Light was overly aware of himself, of where he was sitting and how, and if he'd looked at L too long the last time he'd peeked in his direction –

It's not as if hiding my second gender is all that important when it comes to these three, I suppose. But I'd rather not let them think they have anything in common with me, or that I'm only here because of L. It won't take long for them to put two and two together if they find out my second gender, and Mello's already proved she likes the drama. Light fixed his eyes on the computer screen as Matt went on, ignoring the blond.

"The most obvious choice would have been to make it L versus Kira, but considering Ryuga has basically run a smear campaign – if we can really call this bullshit a campaign - that's not really an option."

"L did come out and call him evil in the beginning; perhaps that's why he's so set on proving L is," Naomi prompted, though she didn't seem all that convinced of the premise herself.

"Maybe so. We'll have to ask him when we beat his ass." Matt shrugged, then finally pulled up a site, which Light read as . "So, while we're trying to track down Hideki's accomplices and secure political support of the nations that are against Kira's brand of society, this site is going to be planted in the minds of the masses."

Matt leaned back in his seat as everyone took in the homepage of the site. A crescent moon made up the side of a woman's face, and her hair and the shape of her was made in the swirls of what looked like the Milky Way Galaxy. It was clever, smooth, and radiant; it was more elegant than most of Kira's tacky websites, Light decided.

"Did Linda draw that?" Near inquired from below once again.

"Yeah, you can tell? She was able to pull it through pretty quickly for me." Matt laughed good-naturedly before going on with his explanation. "Astrea, Goddess of Justice – also like, a star-maiden. I thought it was fitting, since all the Kira Kira sites have a shitload of stars everywhere."

At least there's another option. Hideki is offering them significant change – if our stance is it just to stand for keeping things the same, we'll get no support whatsoever. Light let his eyes drift over to L, who gnawed at his thumb with his teeth, quietly displeased with the whole ordeal. There was a reason he'd become a detective rather than a politician. It felt as though Kira had hijacked their entire purpose.

"A galactic battle of good and evil," Near murmured, fiddling around with his astronaut toy. It earned a few chuckles from Matt, a scoff from Mello, a smile from Naomi, and a giggle from Sayu. It was childish simplification of what was happening, and Light could tell none of them took it seriously.

But Mello is right. People love choosing sides and cutting ideas down to the roots. We'll see how Astrea works on top of all the other avenues we're taking advantage of. The worst thing it could do is flop.

"It seems as though we've prepared ourselves," Light said, speaking mostly to move the conversation along so that the real work could begin. "Are there any other items on the agenda to discuss?"

"It seems as though we are all caught up on our affairs, though there is still plenty of information to attain and secure in our favor," L pried his thumb away from his mouth and pushed off from the desk, rolling over to his station slowly. Each of the people in the room watched him as he rolled to a stop in front of his computer, stilling with an awkward finality. "Let's get to work."

A/N: Okay, so this chapter isn't nearly as late as the last one! Hooray! It was a pretty info heavy chapter, and I'm pretty sure the next one won't be. It'll probably be more characters interaction, now that I've given you a basic idea of what is happening with the Kira case as it stands.

I did a lot of research into different countries and had to figure out how I thought they might feel about Kira - I'm sorry if anyone disagrees, is offended, or feels left out if their country wasn't explicitly mentioned. I tried to generalize a bit, but also give each of them their own personality, while also being objective.

There were so many people talking in this chapter. Ughhhh. Seven people should never be talking all together in the same room when it comes to fiction. Way too difficult. Had to happen though.

As usual, I'd love to know what you thought! Let me know if anything surprised you, or impressed you, what your favorite line was, what you thought of Sayu and everyone's interaction with her, or Light's thoughts on everything that was happening. You guys rock, per always.

-Nilah