This. Took. Forever. Just for you guys, I tried to make this chapter as chaotic as the characters would allow. I tried to make it into something believable, so let's hope I did a good job in that.
Anyway, it has been a while since I updated. Excuse: I did have this chapter planned out, but I had to rewrite it tons of times in order for it to sound right. -.- So because of my long absence, I gots some stuffs to say.
1: Happy Birthday! – To all of the birthdays that I've missed. And I've missed a lot.
2: It has been a full out YEAR since I first started this story, so I'd like to say thanks to all those that reviewed, favorited, alerted, and all that good stuff. You guys are awesomesauce, and a special thank you to those who have stuck with me since the very beginning! Your reviews these past few chapters have been very inspiring! :)
3. Sorry if this chapter doesn't meet your expectations, especially since you've been waiting a while. This chapter is the last part of the nerf wars, so we're gonna hit some plot progression in the next chapter.
4. Because I'm feeling generous today, I'd like to inform you of the general idea of the next chapter: It will deal with Ringo and give you a little more information on Masako's random sickness that happened in chapter 29 (yes, that is important to the story). I may also throw in some of Shai's defects as well. ;)
And…nope. That's all I have for you.
Shai: WAIT!
Me: What?
Shai: You can't just leave it at 4!
Me: Why not?
Shai: It has to be a solid number! 3 or 5, or maybe even 10. 4 just isn't a number where you should stop!
Me: Um…ok…How about I use number 5 for the disclaimer?
Shai: *sigh of relief* Saved…
Me: *rolls eyes*
5. I don't own Death Note, Sailor Moon, Monster Hunter, or anything else in this chapter that may refer to some famous thing that obviously wasn't created by me. Enjoy the chapter.
"Hold still!"
"NO!"
"Come on…I have to do your hair."
"NO!"
"Just…SIT!"
Misa shoved Masako on a soft, red chair and held the scissors at a dangerous position. "Don't move, or else your hair won't be the only thing that's going to be cut," the pop star said in such a voice that made Masako want to crawl under a rock and hyperventilate.
While all of this was going on, Matsuda and Near had their own conversation going on. It all started out like this…
"So…" Matsuda scratched the back of his head, wondering what to do with the unknown amount of time he had alone with the genius.
Near was naturally quiet. He never spoke unless it was necessary or polite to do so, which made him – in Matsuda's mind – a rather boring person to talk to. So it was assumed that Matsuda had to add something at the end of that 'So…' as to not look like just another random idiot trying to make conversation. "…um…Team Albidoofazing, huh?"
The boy genius had his fingers entangled with his hair and he was staring silently at the door. Upon hearing Matsuda's question, he turned his ghostly head to look at the police officer, who in turn gulped. His eyes were penetrating, but not glaring. If looks could kill, Near could kill without even trying. His eyes reminded Matsuda of ice cubes. Cold, gray ice cubes…except ice cubes were friendlier.
"W-Where do you think we're going after this?" Matsuda surprisingly held Near's stare.
Near thought for a moment, then resumed staring back at the door, "Knowing Masako, she would formulate the first portion of a bizarre plan to put a halt to Kaida's rapidly approaching chaos and lack the common sense to inform us while she tries to carry it out."
"What about the second portion?" Matsuda inquired with a tilt of his head.
"One of the many things Masako is capable of: being intelligent enough to realize that in a situation like this, plans tend to change very quickly. Kaida plans as she goes along."
"How do you know that?"
Near certainly wasn't going to tell him about the preschool wars. Although Kaida had an elaborate plan drawn out, it was only because Mello and Matt encouraged it. Her original plan was to simply chase them with paint ball guns in hopes that they'll drop to their knees and beg for mercy.
"Can't you tell from Kaida's personality? You can also judge by the way she's handling this situation. She has very few plans set in motion – if none at all."
"THESE HEELS ARE FOR PEOPLE WITH DUCK FEET!"
"Yeah, that's why I gave them to you! How do you walk with these huge fish fins?"
"Hey, now! Watch the knee! THE KNEE!"
More shouts could be heard from behind the door and multiple crashing sounds followed.
"Wear this!"
"No!"
"Why not?"
"CAUSE I'M NOT A SLUT!"
Near's gaze soon rested on the wall while Matsuda's fell upon a spot on the floor. The two stared at their initial spots for a long while, listening to the two girls argue on the other side of the door.
5 minutes later…
"Wait…hang on!"
"Stop pulling!"
"Wait a minute!"
"Let go!"
"Done!"
The crashing sounds faded into silence. Footsteps could be heard as Misa dragged Masako to the door. The doorknob finally turned, and Masako was pushed out into the open.
Near and Matsuda returned their gazes to the transformed girl in front of them. Matsuda's face instantly brightened up with a smile, but covered it quickly with his hand and turned his head to look at the wall beside him. Near merely blinked at Masako's outfit.
The brunette was currently wearing a Barbie-like fairy dress that fell to her knees and a large, pink ribbon wrapped around her waist and tied into a large bow in the back. The dress had a dropping neckline and short sleeves that didn't quite cover her shoulders. The bottom of the dress and the short sleeves were frilled on the ends and pink sandals enveloped her feet, showing her neatly trimmed toenails. Her hair looked better than it usually did, although it was slightly out of place (probably from all the hassle she was giving Misa). The front ends of her hair had been cut to just above the chin and a layer or two had been added to the rest of her hair. A few locks in the front was clipped back with a shiny, pink butterfly clip as the dramatically cut ends hung freely to the sides of her face.
"Well?" Misa asked with a raised eyebrow. Masako's eyes were narrowed and her mouth was twisted into an angry pout. "What do you think? Isn't she adorable?"
At this, Masako glared. "It's over the top and I don't like it," she was ignored as Matsuda spoke next.
"Misa-Misa…I never knew you had these kinds of clothes in your closet."
"Yeah, well my modeling company makes me wear the craziest things sometimes. It's not exactly my style. I wore this for a photo shoot during Halloween a few years ago, and I think it looks great on her, don't you?"
The glare increased in intensity. "I'm going to go change into something else," Masako spun on the heel of her sandal, but was kept from going any farther when Misa grabbed her shoulders and pulled her violently back.
"Why would you change out of something that makes you look so cute?"
"I'm not your Barbie doll, Misa!" the pink clad girl snapped.
At that instant, a crow cawed from outside the living room window. No one seemed to notice besides Near, whose only movement was his eyes gradually turning to the window.
"You're not my Barbie doll, Masako. I just love dressing you up in clothes that I think you look great in! This was really fun; we should do it again!"
"Yeah, I don't think so," Masako was halfway through the doorway when Misa pulled her back again.
"Wait! I know what you want, now!" Misa raced into the room and shut the door behind her.
"A new change of clothes? Yes, Misa! You're finally grasping what I've been telling you for the past ten minutes!" Masako's eyes shone brightly and a smile was plastered on her face.
The crow cawed again, the same monotone cry that penetrated the air before.
After another thirty seconds, the blonde opened the door and had one hand behind her back.
"…?"
Misa threw her arm forward to point the hidden object at Masako, at which she nearly face-planted.
"I DON'T WANT YOU'RE STUPID STAR WAND! I WANT SOME NEW CLOTHES!" she screamed with her arms flailing.
At Masako's outburst, the crow seemed to panic and beat its wings furiously while cawing multiple times in a row, sounding much louder than it did before.
Before anyone could take notice of the bird (besides Near, who already had the crow in sight), a loud crash from behind them caused everyone to turn around. Kaida had kicked the door open from another bedroom located across the living room and cocked a medium-sized, orange nerf gun.
"All right, listen up!" Kaida yelled with authority.
Masako's eye twitched. "How did she get into that room without using the elevator?" she whispered to no one in particular.
"The next few hours, you will be working for me. When I say bleed, you ask how much! When I say get me some Jack, I'd better see 20 shots in front of me! When I say bow before me, you'd better be on your hands and knees either begging for mercy or basking in the glow of my awesomeness! Anyone who – Masako, why are you wearing a…never mind. I don't care," Kaida narrowed her eyes and took an orange nerf out of her pocket, twirling it between the fingers of her left hand while her right hand was enclosed around the gun pointing at the four. "Anywho…anyone who objects will receive the Torture Penalty. Now...any objections?"
She had that look in her eye; a look that said everything so plainly and so bluntly, not even Misa dared to move: 'defy me, and I'll shoot you.'
No one dared to speak. There was absolute silence. The only person that actually held Kaida's stare was Near, who displayed no signs of fear. Kaida noticed this and raised an eyebrow.
"Hey you. Emo albino," Near didn't move nor change his blank facial expression as she went on. "You don't look scared. In fact, I think I see a challenge in your eyes. Do you dare defy me?"
The 15 year old boy merely continued to stare. No indication was given that he had heard her besides eye contact, and the remaining three people in the room seemed to shift nervously at the sudden increase of tension in the air.
"What, don't have the guts to speak?"
The silence continued. Then…
"Good. I'm glad we've come to an understanding. Now, where to start…?"
Idiot Misa felt the need to speak at this moment. "Where to start with what?"
Kaida smirked. "Hm…You'll do nicely, Amane."
"What? Do nicely with what?" the blonde exclaimed with annoyance and slight fear.
"Oh, you know…"
"We'll never follow you!" Masako spoke bravely as she took a step forward, pounding a fist to her heart. "We have our own team already!"
"Your own team? Hah! Whatcha gonna do? Use the power of love?" Kaida burst out laughing at her joke referring to Masako's costume, but mostly because of the look on Masako's face.
"Misa forced me into it, it's not my fault!"
Kaida clutched her stomach as she laughed harder. Masako's eye twitched numerous times before she finally settled with sighing. "Whatever…"
"Um, guys…" Matsuda started. No one was listening to him, as usual. The police officer's attention was directed behind them, his head slightly turned. He blinked, then silenced himself and quickly looked at Kaida, hoping she didn't see his eyes elsewhere.
Kaida began to calm down from her laughing fit and looked Masako in the eye. "Masako, you look ridiculous. If you're gonna work for me, go change into something that won't make me laugh till my stomach hurts. I got a job to do, ya know? And I can't have distractions…Wow, I wish I had a camera."
"Yeah, yeah…" Masako stuck her tongue out at Kaida and narrowed her eyes with indignation.
Kaida cleared her throat and straightened up. "Down to business…Amane!"
Misa straightened up instantly out of fear, her grip around the pink wand tightening.
"Get rid of the wand…"
She blinked rapidly and shoved the wand into Masako's hand, eying the nerf gun in Kaida's.
Noticing Misa's stare, she raised her gun and pointed it at her head. "Watch your step, girly. It might be your last."
She gulped.
"Now…do as I command!"
A strange forceful, puff-like sound rang through the air. Everyone flinched, and Kaida's eyes widened with surprise. After a few seconds of silence and suspense, she slowly raised a hand to the back of her head and grabbed something, pulling it off and bringing the item in front of her. In her hand was a green nerf bullet.
Her eyes dropped slowly, as if she was getting sleepy, and she slowly fell to her knees. "Who…" Kaida turned her head carefully to catch even the slightest glimpse at her attacker. Her head never completed the turn as her entire being met the floor, the nerf gun falling out of her hand. Her eyes dropped to a close, and she was sound asleep.
Everyone in the room stood shocked at the figure before them, who also had a nerf gun. He spun the barrel and stopped it with a gloved hand, staring at the group with ice blue eyes. "Let's go."
Shai positioned herself carefully before dropping Matt on the couch carelessly. She sat on the couch next to the unconscious figure, reaching up to lift her glasses and pinch the bridge of her nose.
L and Light sat across from the two in the conference room. A table with multiple sweets and fruit rested between them.
Shai, with a serious face, stared the two geniuses down. "All right…which one of you has the key to this thing?" she raised her hand in the air to emphasize the handcuff on her wrist.
L tilted his head like an owl. "Where might have you gotten that?"
"Matt. He threw it on my wrist before he passed out. I demand a key."
L let out a 'hm' noise as he reached into his pocket from his squatted position on the couch and took out a shiny, small key, throwing it in her direction.
She caught it with ease and inserted the metal into the keyhole, struggling. "It won't open…" her eyes narrowed as she took the key out of the keyhole and glared at L. "A key that actually works, genius."
The detective's face remained blank. "You never specified which key you wanted."
"…Just give me the key…please," Shai forced out, hoping her politeness would give her a break.
L sighed and reached into his pocket, taking out a similar looking key with, if observed closely, more ridges that the previous key. He tossed it with a fling of his hand and Shai was caught off guard, but managed to catch it with her cuffed hand.
"Why did Matt have handcuffs?" Light questioned, throwing a curious glance at the hacker.
"I asked him to retrieve them shortly before this whole incident with Miss Amaya started."
Shai spoke up with frustration as she tried to get the cuffs open. "Why would you need another set of handcuffs if you guys are already attached?"
Light looked at the messy haired man expectantly, waiting for an answer.
"These handcuffs are starting to break…"
"What?" Light exclaimed as he exclaimed the cuffs. "Ryuzaki, I don't see anything wrong with them."
"You don't see it, Light? That tiny crack that can be mistaken for dirt…right there," L held the chain up so Light could see it and pointed at a general area, which was practically a fourth of the chain.
Light squinted and scanned the chain from various angles. "I still don't see anything."
"Maybe you're just not looking hard enough."
Light dropped the chain and leaned back in the sofa, crossing his arms. A knowledgeable glint appeared in his irises. "You don't have to lie to me, you know…You can just tell me that you don't want me finding a way to open the handcuffs when you're not looking…"
"That's not possible, Light."
"Hm?"
L turned on him with his usual wide-eyed stare, allowing a hint of creepiness to crawl through his eyes, adding to the full effect of the declaration. "I'm always looking," Light shifted uncomfortably.
"I got them off," Shai announced as she set the cuffs and keys on the table, pushing them in L's direction. It appeared as if she wasn't listening to a word they were saying, which was more for the better than anything else.
Matt groaned and shifted as he began to regain consciousness. "Hn…?"
Shai grabbed an empty plate from the table in front of her with both hands, raising it above her and smashing the plate over the gamer's head. He let out a short but loud yelp as the plate broke in several pieces before falling back unconscious. Shai calmly placed the two pieces of plate that were left in her hands on the table and leaned back on the couch, crossing her legs and arms while acknowledging L and Light across from her. The two were looking at her with head on shock – yes – even the Great L.
"Hey, we don't need that idiot waking up anytime soon," was Shai's only response.
From behind them, the elevator doors opened to reveal two (most likely) forgotten police officers.
"Soichiro? Mogi?" Shai blinked in surprise.
"How nice of you to join us. Would you like some tea?" L asked from his squatting position on the couch.
"Ryuzaki, I want to know what's going on," the chief said, straight to the point.
"Kaida's going on a rebellion streak," Shai answered.
L blinked owl-like and grabbed a plate of cake from the table.
"Ryuzaki," Soichiro said impatiently.
"Hm?"
"I want to know what's going on."
"Kaida seems to be going on a rebellion streak."
Shai blinked at the detective unbelievably. "Your powers of explanation are astounding."
"Why thank you, Miss Tamaki."
Shai narrowed her eyes in response.
Light quickly filled them in with what had happened so far.
Shai was only paying attention to half of what they were saying since she's told the story herself. Her eyes locked on the envelope L was carrying and was currently resting on the coffee table in front of her. She didn't take notice to it at first, as she was trying to think of what Kaida may be planning. She was forgetting more and more things lately, but she reminded herself to ask L later what was in the envelope. If it had anything to do with the case, he had better not hide it from her.
By the time the explanation was finished, Mogi and Soichiro had incredulous looks on their faces.
"Are you really going to stand for this?" Soichiro's question was directed at L, who in turn gave a half shrug.
"I don't have a problem with it."
"What?" This was enough to snap Shai out of her daze.
"You three have been under a lot of pressure upon entering the Task Force. Maybe you can use this as an opportunity to have some fun."
"Woah, now. L, allowing children to have 'fun' in his own Task Force building? That's farfetched and I don't believe it," Shai furrowed her eyebrows and glared.
Outside the window of the conference room, a crow cawed once and shifted from its position on the ledge.
"What's so unbelievable about it? If you are too stressed, you can't work properly, and this case requires you to be at your best."
"The Ryuzaki I know wouldn't do that."
"I am not Ryuzaki, I am L."
"Fine then. The L I know wouldn't do that."
"I am not L."
"But you just said-"
"You can't believe everything you hear."
"Stop trying to piss me off."
"If you didn't believe everything you hear, we wouldn't be having this conversation."
"Jeez, you're just as bad as Masako."
"I wouldn't go that far…"
Light sighed. "Guys, why don't we just call it a draw?"
"I don't think so," L stated quickly.
"No, we can't fight anymore," Shai objected with disappointment.
"Why not?"
"Light interrupted and threw me off my game."
"He didn't throw off mine."
There was silence. Shai grabbed the nearest pillow and chucked it at L, who couldn't block it because he was holding a plate of cake. The pillow hit him square in the face before falling to the floor. At this, L sighed and put his cake down on the table. He grabbed the same pillow and, with amazing speed, threw it right back at her. Shai had reflexes, but she wasn't fast enough and the force of the pillow sent her flying back against the couch.
"An eye for an eye," he declared with triumph.
The crow cawed again.
"No way! You hit me way harder than I hit you, and I have glasses on!"
"True, but I was having such a nice experience eating my cake, which you ruined."
"That doesn't even make sense."
"It does to me."
Shai jerked up and threw the pillow as hard as she could, but L was ready this time. He grabbed the chain to his handcuffs and yanked Light in front of him, who took the blow of the pillow instead. An "oof" sound could be heard as the pillow hit the side of Light's face.
"Gah! Sorry, Light…" Shai sweat dropped at Light's look of annoyance.
"Can we please act like adults here?" Soichiro questioned with annoyance. Mogi stood quietly in a corner, surveying the scene with shame.
The crow cawed once more before flying away from the railing. No one seemed to notice.
Big mistake.
The elevator doors opened as Kaida stomped in, throwing up her nerf gun. "Say your prayers, suckers!"
Shai's eyes widened as she leapt off the couch, grabbing a comfy pillow from the couch for protection. L merely blinked in an owl-like fashion, not making any attempt to move.
"Come on, scatter!" Kaida fired the nerf gun in many different directions, managing to hit Mogi and Soichiro, yet again. As a green nerf fired L's way, he leapt with cheetah-like speed, doing a back flip over the back of the couch. The sleeping contraption managed to miss Light's nose by a hair. Shai raced to the safety of the elevator as Kaida floated around the room and fired shots like a maniac. "AHAHAHAHAHAHA!"
The laugh sent a chill down Shai's spine as she pushed the elevator button frantically. L tripped Kaida, who landed on the couch, and managed to get in the elevator with Light just before it closed.
Kaida narrowed her eyes at the closed doors and smirked when she saw Matt's unconscious figure on the couch. "Things just got way more interesting…"
"Matsuda…it's time," Masako said gravely as she pointed to the coffee container.
"You can't be serious…Matsuda is your secret weapon?" Mello asked in disbelief.
"Don't be stupid. Matsuda and the strong coffee combined is my secret weapon."
"We're gonna die at this rate."
"Don't start with me, Mello."
Matsuda sighed as he made his coffee of destruction. "I can't believe Near bailed on us…" Masako had brought this up first, but Matsuda wasn't going to tell her that the albino had slid into Misa's bedroom when no one was looking. Near just might be their savior if things didn't go the way they planned.
Mello snarled. "Little sheep probably got scared and hid in a closet or something."
"Hey, now. Let's not bash anyone," Masako warned as she searched around the kitchen.
"What're you looking for, Masako?" Misa asked in an innocent tone.
"Five, six. Gotta eat some Trix," Masako sang quietly to herself as she searched the cabinets.
"Huh?" Misa blinked and furrowed her eyebrows.
Masako stopped what she was doing and turned to the model. "You've never heard of Trix cereal?"
"No, can't say I have."
A moment of silence passed. Then, "Stupid…" she murmured under her breath. Who hasn't heard of Trix cereal?
"This better not be a waste of time," Mello rolled the barrel of his nerf gun, which caught Masako's attention.
"Hey, Mello…you said you found that gun in Kaida's room…"
"Yeah? What about it?"
"Why were you in Kaida's room to begin with?"
"Always go to the source of the trouble."
Masako let out an "ah" before she resumed her searching.
He had already told them that he didn't find anymore nerf guns up on Kaida's floor, so Kaida's riddle was the closest thing they had to, hopefully, make it out of this mess alive.
"Finding Trix can either harm us or help us…but that's a chance I'm willing to take," Masako was talking to herself more than anyone.
Ten minutes had passed and nothing had been accomplished. L had no Trix cereal in his kitchen cabinets and Matsuda's coffee was getting cold. Masako knew that he couldn't drink it just yet. It wasn't time…
"What about the rest of the riddle?" Masako brought up. "Seven, eight. Games are good for bait…No doubt that's aimed towards Matt or Shai, right?"
"And since neither of them are with us at the moment, we can't do anything to help them," Mello countered.
"Then what about nine, ten. Better fear the pen?"
Mello shrugged. "Maybe she'll use pens against us."
Masako shivered at the thought. Episode 37? No way.
A crow could be heard cawing in the distance.
At the sound, Masako's head snapped up.
"Hm? Masako what's up?" Misa asked from her seat on top of the counter.
"The crow…Anyone ever notice that last time, a crow cawed at least three times before Kaida came?"
There was a silence.
"That's strange…I don't remember a crow cawing when we were up on Misa's floor," Matsuda received a glare from Masako.
"Well, you weren't paying attention! For a police officer, I expected better from you."
He ducked his head in embarrassment. "R-Right, sorry…"
The crow cawed again.
"Get ready!" The kitchen was rather empty for, well, a kitchen. There wasn't a lot of silverware or cooking utensils, so no one could arm himself with anything.
"Wait, Masako. Don't forget your wand!" Misa grabbed the pink star stick from where Masako had thrown it on the table and forced it into her hand.
"Idiot! I don't want the damn wand!"
"Oi, losers! Pay attention to the door, it's her only way in!" Mello barked at the two, halting their squabbling.
After another thirty seconds, the crow cawed louder, then silence. It dragged on for about a minute.
"Masako, are you sure-"
She already knew what Matsuda was going to ask. "Of course I'm sure! Kaida should be bursting through that door any second."
"Are you sure you weren't just hearing things?" Mello asked from his position.
"I'm sure! I'm not that stupid!" Masako threw in his direction.
"I beg to differ."
"What're you trying to say?" Masako glared at the chocoholic and he shrugged.
"What do you think I'm trying to say?"
"Don't play stupid!"
"I don't have to – you do that well enough by yourself!"
"Hey!"
Everything went downhill from there. Mello and Masako broke out into their insult wars while Matsuda stood off to the side and watched the scene with nervous eyes. Misa tried to break it up at first, but then later joined the fighting once she was insulted as well. The police officer sweat dropped at the fight and gripped his coffee cup tighter, debating on what was the best course of action.
Option 1: He could join in the fighting, too, but that may result in a bruised ego and even body.
Option 2: Drink the coffee and go nuts. It was getting cold, anyway.
Option 3: Inform the others that Kaida had snuck into the kitchen amidst their arguing and was no aiming the gun in their direction.
…Wait.
A puff-like sound rung through the air as Team Albidoofazing's only sharpshooter was hit in the back of the head with green nerf. Mello's insult stopped in mid-sentence and his eyes drooped to a close, followed by his body crashing to the floor. The gun he was holding fell out of his hand and clattered against the cold, hard surface.
Masako blinked in surprise at the instant motion, but managed to bounce back from the shock and shot the unconscious Mello a glare. "Well, good riddance!"
"Uh, Masako…" Matsuda figured he might as well say something since she wasn't paying attention to the impending death she was probably about to receive.
"Neh…" Masako's eyes traveled to Kaida's. After a brief moment of questioning identities through their minds, the room erupted into chaos. Misa had tripped over Mello on the floor while Masako shouted for Matsuda to down the coffee. The fifteen year old grabbed the only apple from the basket on the counter and chucked it at Kaida, who dodged it abruptly and turned the gun on her.
"Masako…"
"Kinda busy, Matsuda!"
"I don't feel so good…"
She wasn't sure what to think of that statement, so she shrugged it off and spotted Mello's discarded nerf gun on the floor across the room. She had been leaping around like a cheetah, dodging Kaida's nerf attacks. Now, she may be wrong, but it seemed like Kaida was only shooting at her since everyone else (besides Mello) was still standing.
Masako summoned up all of the strength in her legs and lunged for the nerf gun, but to her dismay, Kaida had gotten to it first and kicked it away. Masako was now on the floor in front of the blonde, her right eye twitching profusely.
"Aw…I wanted to have a little more fun with you, but I guess that didn't happen."
Masako glared up at Kaida.
"Hey, now. What's that look for? I've said it before and I'll say it again. I. Always. WIN!" She threw up her nerf gun to point at Masako, but not before the latter threw up her pink wand she had somehow (and for some unknown reason why) managed to hang on to. Desperate, Masako shouted the first thing that came to mind.
"MOON PRISM POWER!"
"…"
"…"
"Seriously?"
"You'd think at a time like this, that would actually do something…"
"Uhu…"
Out of nowhere, Misa appeared behind Kaida, holding a nerf gun to her head. "Freeze!"
Masako blinked. "Misa, put the gun down before you hurt yourself."
"Hey, I didn't see you grabbing the nerf gun. So I thought it would be the smart thing to do before Kaida-chan got to it!"
"Misa, just give the gun to Matsuda…"
Misa sighed "Okay…"
The model wandered over to Matsuda, whose head was down and had his eyes shielded by his hair. He was in a slouchy position and he didn't look too good from where Masako was sitting. Misa held out the gun with a pout. "Here," she huffed. Matsuda had yet to move, and Misa was growing agitated with each passing second. "Well, are you going to take it or not?"
Matsuda finally raised his head. His eyes looked rather tired and a little bloodshot, which was kind of weird because they weren't like that before. He grabbed the gun robotically and his eyes suddenly widened.
"Heh…heheheh…"
Misa took a few steps back, a little freaked out by Matsuda's reaction. He raised the gun and pointed it at Kaida.
"Y-Y-You…"
"Yes?" Kaida asked in a bored fashion. When he didn't reply, Kaida rolled her eyes. "Oh, please. You wouldn't shoot me. Would you?" She asked the last statement in a deep, demon-like voice. Usually, this voice would send Matsuda behind the nearest couch, but it didn't seem to have much of an effect on him this time.
"G-G-G-Go away!" he fired the gun several times and his arm had trouble keeping steady. Masako threw herself under the table for shelter. Maybe having him drink coffee wasn't such a good idea after all.
Matsuda jittered around the kitchen, firing at everyone he saw. It was amazing how he didn't run out of bullets yet…
As she crawled under the table to get a better look at who Matsuda actually managed to hit on his rampage, her hand met something squishy on the floor. "Uh…?" She looked down and saw that it was a green nerf. Fear gripped her when she realized she was getting sleepy. "Damn it…After everything I've done to avoid these things…and I go out like this…" Masako's arms felt weak as the rest of her body sank to the floor. "Fail…" Her eyes drew to a close, and all was black.
This wasn't supposed to happen. She wasn't supposed to be caught in Kaida's little game. Of course, it wasn't her game to begin with, so it was only natural that she lost. How she got caught? She couldn't remember.
Shai's eyes flew open when she heard an insane laughter nearby. She squinted at the newfound light. Once her eyes adjusted, she could see that she had handcuffs on. To her relief, she was only handcuffed to herself and not somebody else. That was a terrible experience she was not willing to go through again.
The laugh wasn't followed by an appearance or more insane laughter, so Shai took this as an opportunity to get familiar with her surroundings.
Taking in the rest of the room, she could see that she was in the computer room. Her ankles were bound by handcuffs as well, but she ignored this pestering thought. Masako was leaning against the wall unconscious, wearing the most ridiculous outfit she had ever seen, Mello was handcuffed to one of the computer desks, Light and L were still handcuffed together, but their free hands were handcuffed to the other computer desks, Matsuda and Misa weren't handcuffed at all, but were unconscious, and Mogi and Soichiro were bound back-to-back by their own handcuffs. Shai's head was starting to spin from seeing so many handcuffs. Well, they were working with policemen, after all.
To her left, Masako began to shift.
"Hey…hey Masako."
She let out a groan and opened her eyes. "Wha…?"
"Get up, you lazy oaf. We were captured."
"Hn…" Masako squeezed her eyes shut before opening them, sniffing the air for some odd reason. "We're in the computer room…it smells like cake...I want cake…"
"Will you please put your sugary needs aside? We gotta find a way to get out of here."
"I'm not liking how she handcuffed me…" Masako muttered. Her ankles were bound by one pair of handcuffs and the chain hanging from her wrists wound around her ankle chain once.
"Yeah…she handcuffed me like that, too," Shai threw in with annoyance.
"Where's Kaida? You'd think she would at least hang around to see who wakes up…"
"Nah, she likes to make an entrance. It won't be long, now."
"Ah, true that. But I don't feel like sitting around and letting her come to me…I might as well be waiting for the grim reaper."
"Did somebody say…grim reaper?" was the voice that met their ears next. Dramatic theme music could be heard from some unknown source as Kaida's voice filled the room once more. "One, two. Kaida's coming for you~ Three, four. Gonna sing some more~"
"I don't like this," Masako squirmed, the chains rattling noisily.
"Five, six. Gotta eat some Trix~ Seven, eight. Games are good for bait~ Nine, ten better fear the pen~!" the song was followed by more insane laughter that caused shivers to ripple down the spines of those that were conscious.
"Shai?"
"Yeah?"
"I think we're gonna die."
"I don't doubt that."
"Don't agree with me! You're supposed to say something like… 'It's ok, we'll be just fine,' and come up with a super smart plan, put it in action, defeat the bad guys and save the day!"
"Uh, no."
"Why not?"
"Because that is a very cheesy and predictable storyline."
"So you wanna die instead?"
"Might as well go out in a blaze of glory…"
"Shai!"
"Hey, they'll make awesome stories to tell in the afterlife."
Masako started to panic. "I don't want to die! Not by the hands of Kaida! Not by the hands of anybody! If I'm gonna die, it's gonna be caused by me, not some lunatic who thinks chocolate-covered candies are the answers to the universe!"
"Come on, Masako. Everyone knows that's true."
"No! It's 42!"
"So you think."
"So I know!"
"So you think you know."
"Ok, we need to come up with a new argument 'cause this is the argument Kaida and I have on a daily basis."
"All right, then. What if I cut to the chase and say that I'm right?"
Masako's eye twitched as she leaned forward, giving Shai such an insane look that it wasn't that hard to picture her foaming at the mouth. "I have an idea…Why don't we cut our hands off? Yeah…then we'll be free of these handcuffs!"
Shai's eyes narrowed in a 'really, Masako?' expression. "You're losing it."
"It's not that hard, really. Just need to find a sharp object, that's all…" her voice was calm, but creepy. Emotion was drained from her voice box, it seemed.
Shai tilted her head to the side. "You're kind of creeping me out…What the hell is going through your head right now?"
Masako's behavior seemed to return to normal, but her eyes were hazy as she gave a smart ass reply. "A lot more than what's going through yours, I'll bet."
"Are you feeling ok?"
"Yeah, why?"
"You went in – never mind…" Shai said with a sigh.
"Will you two shut your damn mouths? I have a headache…" Mello's head lifted at an odd angle to glare at the two girls across the room.
"Oh, so sleeping beauty's finally awake!" Masako sneered as Mello turned to glare daggers at her.
"Watch it, princess."
"You wanna go?"
"Bring it, bitch!"
"No…" Shai intervened. "I don't think anyone can 'bring it' at this point. We're bound by chains, remember?"
"Stay out of this, Shai. Mello and I are gonna settle this. Right here, right now!"
"Gotta get me first!"
"You guys are so loud…" Shai complained as she leaned against the leg of the desk uncomfortably. "Anyway, Kaida laughed like a maniac and sang her made-up song from out of nowhere. Anyone got any ideas as to where she might be?" she sweat dropped when she realized that the two completely ignored her, as they were bickering.
"At least I have a brain!"
"Too bad you don't use it!"
"At least I don't dress in drag!"
"I don't dress in drag!"
"Says the guy that has feminine hair and wears tight clothing!"
"There's nothing wrong with the way I dress!"
"Oh really? If I saw you for the first time with your back turned, my first guess would be that you were a girl!" which was the truth, in fact. While watching the series, she had thought Mello was a girl until his mouth opened and a voice came out that…well…wasn't a girl's. Needless to say she hung her head in shame for a few days afterward.
"Just goes to show you that you shouldn't judge people!"
"Judging~!"
"Can you please shut up?" Kaida asked with a sharp annoyance. She burst through the kitchen door and glared. "Are you happy, now? You ruined my entrance! I was supposed to come in all epic and then you had to go and be annoying as hell! I'm so irritated right now!"
Masako opened her mouth to speak, but Kaida cut her off. "No, don't talk to me. I'm mad at you."
"Kaida, if I may ask, what exactly are you planning?" Shai questioned casually as if it wasn't a big deal.
"Why would I tell you that?"
Shai pulled a cute face and smiled brightly. "'Cause you loooooove me~!"
Kaida's mouth twitched slightly. Shortly after, she cracked a smile and put her hands together. "Aw~! So cute! Of course I'll tell you what I'm planning!"
"What about me, Kaida?" Masako asked in a small, fearful voice.
Kaida's eyes hardened on Masako and the brunette shrank under her gaze. "Not. Talking. To you."
Mello huffed. "I'm hungry…Got any chocolate?"
"Zip it, blondie!" Kaida pulled a small nerf gun from the huge pockets of her black sweatshirt and fired an orange nerf, which missed Mello by only a few centimeters.
Mello was about to offer a rebuttal, but he didn't want to find out the hard way what the orange nerfs actually did.
Masako frowned and stared at the elevator doors to her left. If only there was a knight in shining armor to come to her rescue…She huffed. No. If anyone would be doing the saving, it would be her. Especially since she was wearing a fairy princess outfit. That would completely kill the heroic mood.
The elevator doors opened and Masako's eyes widened at the figure that stood inside the elevator. The person you would least expect to show up at a time like this…
"Near!" Masako exclaimed with a bright smile on her face. "My knight in white armor! He's come to rescue me!" Masako gushed, her previous thoughts clearly forgotten.
"Hey, sheep," Mello greeted rudely.
Masako scowled at him and instantly became indignant. "Mello, don't be a snob. He's probably here to save your sorry ass."
"I never asked for anyone to save me; I can do it by myself."
"Yes, what amazing progress you're making."
Shai sighed again. "Guys, you're killing the mood…"
"Well, well, well. If it isn't little Near. What can I do for you?" Kaida asked menacingly with a knowing smirk. She eyed the nerf gun in his hand especially. Where he had gotten that, she didn't know. Perhaps maybe he just found it lying around. Or maybe it was one of his own? She wouldn't be surprised.
"I suppose that if Ryuzaki is going to play along with your games, then I might as well try my hand at the fight as well."
"Mr. Tough Guy, aren't you? I'd put that gun down if I were you. Wouldn't want anyone getting hurt, now would you?"
Near prepared himself and raised his nerf gun. "I think I can hit my mark from here."
"That's a pretty bold statement coming from such a little boy," Kaida's eyes narrowed. "Think you can take me on?"
Light shifted from the other side of the room. His eyes opened faintly, catching a glimpse of the scene unfolding before him.
"Yes, as a matter of fact, I do," with that, Near pulled the trigger. Time seemed to slow as a green nerf flew from his gun…
And hit Light, square in the forehead. The genius blinked at the sudden hit, and went unconscious for a second time.
Masako blinked unbelievably and Mello cracked up. Shai merely shook her head at the albino's obvious failure and started sulking due to the 'we're going to be here forever' thought.
"You missed by five feet," Masako stated in an empty voice. Her voice then gradually grew louder. "You missed…by five. Freaking. FEET! How does one accomplish something like that! What kind of knight in white armor are you, anyway?" Masako shouted from her spot on the floor, a vein clearly seen popping from her head.
"…That was unintentional…" Near admitted in a low voice.
Kaida beamed happily. "My turn!" Her gun raised and shot a green nerf, which met its mark as the boy genius was hit on the forehead. He fell to the floor, unconscious.
"My last hope…is unconscious. My life sucks," Masako stated wearily.
Mello spoke up, trying to contain his laughter. "You…heheh…you were relying on that to save you? Oh wow! I'm gonna die! I'm gonna die laughing, all thanks to sheep!"
Shai sighed for a third time. Things were not going as planned. Not that they had anything planned to begin with. She couldn't even remember how she got here, let alone a plan.
"So, Kaida," said person lifted her head and turned her attention towards Shai.
"Yeah?"
"Since you have us here already, all locked up and everything…can you at least give us some answers?"
Kaida scrunched up her mouth as it slid to the right side of her face and her eyes looked up to her head, deep in thought. "Hm…Depends on what you want answered," she seemed to be thinking harder, but nodded firmly at her answer, deciding to leave it at that.
"Okay…about your riddles…"
"Riddles?"
"That one, two song you were singing."
"Oh, that one!"
"Yeah. What did you mean by all that? Was it a warning, some advice?"
Upon hearing this, Kaida burst into hysterics.
Shai blinked. "What's so funny?"
After settling down, Kaida removed her hands from her stomach from laughing so hard and gave Shai one of her famous smirks. "You actually took that seriously? Those weren't riddles! That was just something I made up on the spot."
Shai's face fell into an unbelievable expression. "What?"
The chocoholic nodded. "It's true, it's true. There was no meaning to them whatsoever."
Masako's jaw dropped. "Aw, come on!"
Mello furrowed his eyebrows with indignation. His laughing fit managed to fade out and any traces of humor were gone from his face. "You've gotta be fucking kidding me!"
"Hey, you guys assumed they were important from the start. I never said that the song meant anything."
"You little…" Masako was trying to find the right words, but failed to come up with the one she was looking for. No - she found the word, but she didn't want to use it because it would increase Kaida's ego ten-fold, and it was already the size of Asia. Masako didn't want to admit it to herself just yet. She wanted to wait for this whole thing to be over before she made a judgment.
"Here's another question," Shai said abruptly, as if she just remembered something and was afraid that she'll forget it again. "What do the orange nerfs do?"
"Hm?"
"You said 'Green Tea will sing you a lullaby and oranges will be deadly.' We assumed those were linked to the nerfs since the green ones made someone pass out on contact. What do the orange ones do?"
Kaida smiled evilly. "The orange nerfs, huh?"
Shai's fists tightened. She was growing impatient, but she wasn't going to yell at Kaida to get a move on – otherwise, she wouldn't say anything and she'll never know. Shai didn't think she could deal with not knowing. That would be the first step to insanity for her, if she wasn't there already.
"The orange ones, they're actually kind of special…they-"
"Kaida!" Matt shoved the kitchen door open, his DS in hand.
"What? I'm busy."
"Yeah, well I searched high and low."
"And?"
"Couldn't find them."
"Damn it…"
"Find what?" Masako piped up.
"None of your damn business!" Kaida snapped, still irked because she ruined her specially planned entrance.
"Though, I did manage to find one, but it was on the floor," Matt held up a slightly bruised apple. Kaida remembered that apple. Masako had thrown it at her when she was firing the nerf gun at everyone. Kaida's gaze turned darker than it had been all day and she turned on Masako.
"You."
"Apples?" Shai whispered under her breath.
Masako flinched and looked to the floor, avoiding the glare that might actually end her life.
"Why did you need apples, anyway?" Matt asked.
"Cause I like to stay healthy. Got a problem with that?"
"No, not really."
"Then shut your trap."
"Hm…Light-kun~"
Everyone turned their heads at the new voice. It was Misa. She was back-to-back with Matsuda, sleeping peacefully. It wasn't long before she uttered Light's name in a dreamy fashion once more and twisted her body around, wrapping her arms around Matsuda. She squeezed with an immense amount of strength and Matsuda's eyes instantly popped open, the crushing sensation erasing any tiredness that may have occurred afterwards. He tried taking in air, but Misa was squeezing way too hard. "Light-kun~!"
"C-Can't…breeeaaaathe," the police officer chocked out as his hands flapped at his sides. Since Misa was sleeping, she paid no heed to the warning and instead squeezed him tighter, if that was possible. "Slo-owly…dying…over…h-heeeere…" he turned his head slightly to the people watching. Kaida and Mello had their 'we now have our jokes set for the next three weeks' looks on their faces and everyone else was looking at Misa pathetically.
"Kinda feel bad for Matsuda…" Masako said to herself more than anyone.
"Eh…not really…" Shai disagreed.
"Should we help him at least? I think he's going to pass out from lack of oxygen…" Masako stated with worry.
Kaida waved her off and shrugged. "I got it," she reached into her pocket and pulled out a lollipop. She held it to her forehead and whispered inaudible things to it, as if she was saying goodbye, before chucking it at Misa's head.
"…I'm not eating that," Shai declared, looking sorrowfully at the lollipop on the floor (even though it was still in its wrapper).
Kaida sighed with regret. "That's why I was saying goodbye…poor thing is infected, now…" she sniffed at her loss as Misa's eyes fluttered open.
"Light…" Misa turned her head to look up at the back of Matsuda's head "…kun?"
Matsuda turned his head painfully. "Misa, can you let go of me now, please?"
Misa's eyes widened at the sight and her grip instantly released. Furious, she swung her hand down on the police officer's head several times. "You're not my Light-kun! How dare you touch me like that! You'll be hearing from my lawyer! I want Light! Where is he?"
"Ow…Misa, that hurts! Stop it! Ow!" another long string of protests followed from Matsuda as Misa beat on his head harder than before.
Masako pulled a pout. "Why isn't Matt locked up, too?"
Kaida smiled. "He's on my side, silly!"
"What?" Mello barked.
Masako hung her head and sniffed. "I feel abandoned…"
"Matt, if you think I'm letting you play Monster Hunter when we get out of this, you're terribly mistaken!" Shai threatened through gritted teeth.
"Nah, with what I just got paid, I can buy Monster Hunter ten times over."
"Who else is on your side, then?" Masako asked with irritation, dreading the answer. She had a feeling that everyone that wasn't in the room at this point was on Kaida's side. Though, Watari did seem to disappear…which left Aizawa and of course, the preschoolers. So where does Aizawa stand in all of this? Or did he just go home?
"Oh…you know," Kaida winked and turned around on the spot.
Masako's eye twitched at her response and she jangled her chains. "I wanna get out of here! This isn't fun!"
Shai just couldn't stop sighing today. "Can I go to my floor now, please? I'm bored…"
Kaida beamed at her. "Sure thing!"
"Huh?" Masako blinked as Kaida pulled out a key from her pocket and unlocked Shai's handcuffs, ankles and wrists now free. She stood and stretched, breathing in as if it was her first time taking in fresh air.
"Home free!" Shai smiled as she walked towards the elevator.
"Hey, wait a minute! What about me?" Mello yelled loudly while giving Kaida a desperate look.
"She didn't tick me off as much as you guys did. In fact, she was practically an angel! Not to mention she said please."
Masako's eye twitched and threw her back against the wall. "Not cool…"
"Ah, Aizawa. Nice to see you're alive and well," L said from his crouch, referring to his survival of Kaida's take-over. He was sitting in a rolling chair with a plate of cake in his hand, glancing up at the police officer that just entered the room.
Aizawa rubbed the back of his head with his hand before bringing it to his side, his other hand gripping his new cup of coffee. It wasn't the brand he originally had since he had to make the coffee at headquarters, so he was a natural grump at this point. "Yeah…"
"Are there going to be any consequences to all of this?" Light asked from his chair next to L. If it was up to him, he would've went home and slept like a rock rather than be handcuffed to the three greatest detectives in the world.
Kaida, Aizawa, Light, and L were the only ones in the room, and Kaida was just standing around, wandering what punishment was going to be given to her.
L shoved some cake into his mouth and replied with a full mouth. "No. I view this as an opportunity to see Kaida's abilities to their normal extent."
Kaida lifted her head at her name. "My abilities?"
"During the preschool incident, Mello and Matt were the ones that came up with the plan. It was your job to carry it out, correct?"
She nodded in confirmation.
"Preschool incident?" Aizawa asked. L ignored him since he was out of the loop.
"Thanks to this little display, I was able to see how you would deal with a situation that was in your full control."
Kaida rocked back and forth on her heels with her hands behind her back. "So…how'd I do?"
L sighed. "As reckless as you were, you managed to get the entire Task Force in the same room unconscious, including Light and I. That's quite impressive, but you didn't seem to have a set plan for it and just decided from the beginning to wing it."
"So what you're saying is…?"
"What I'm saying is that in all, your contribution to this case has its pros and cons. While you are unorganized, Shai is the exact opposite. Masako switches from side to side quite often. You three balance out, and I'm sure that if you work together, you can accomplish many difficult tasks."
Kaida brightened up. "That's right. Nothing's ever been given to me to prove myself. My little revenge plan was the test, then?"
L nodded. "Yes, it was."
"So did I pass?"
L shoved cake into his mouth once more. "Depends."
"Depends?"
"Yes. Depends."
"What do you mean by that?"
"Whatever you think it means."
Kaida's eyes narrowed at the detective, who blinked in turn.
Light sensed the tension in the air and cut in. "Hey Kaida, you told us about the riddles a few minutes ago, but you never told us what the orange nerfs did."
Kaida smirked. "So you picked up on the 'oranges are deadly,' too, huh?"
Light nodded and Kaida shifted her feet. "That's right – you were unconscious when I was about to tell everyone. The orange nerfs…they don't do anything."
Light narrowed his eyes and leaned back in his computer chair. "What do you mean they don't do anything?"
"Again, you naturally assumed that I had made the connection of the Green Tea with the green nerfs, which was one of the things that I took the time to plan out. The 'oranges will be deadly' was only meant to mess with your heads," Kaida bounced twice in place and beamed. "The best revenge there is: fearing nothing but fear itself."
L gave a small smile at her last statement and put his empty plate on the desk next to his computer. "Interesting…"
Masako bit her lip and slid away from the automatic doors, hoping she wouldn't set them off. Bounding towards the elevator and pushing the button that would lead to her floor, she leaned against the wall with disbelief. The orange nerfs didn't do anything? All of that extra dodging…
She huffed and made her way into the living room. Shai was seated on the couch with a bored expression on her face, but turned around and leapt up fully onto the couch when she saw Masako come through the elevator.
"Well?"
"Well what?"
"What do you mean, 'well what?' Did you hear what the orange nerfs did or not?"
When everything was said and done, Kaida decided that in the end, she wouldn't tell them what the orange nerfs actually did. One of the many irritating moments of this event.
Masako shrugged and grabbed her cup of ice from the coffee table before plopping down on an armchair. "Nope – didn't hear anything about it," she lied. Technically, this would be her revenge from when Shai was let off the hook early while Masako herself had to stay handcuffed for three more hours until Kaida finally decided to let them go.
"What?" Shai shouted, obviously distraught. She suddenly appeared in the corner farthest from Masako, drawing lines into the carpet and walls while being her emo little self. "I'll never know. I'll never know. I'll never know," she kept chanting as dramatic tears rolled down her face.
Masako inwardly sighed at her friend's reaction. If she hadn't known herself, she would be in the corner being emo with Shai.
So in conclusion, it had been a hectic day. Aizawa was, no doubt, going to get hell from his wife when he got home since he was only supposed to be at headquarters for half an hour (or so Masako overheard), Misa clung to Light until L pestered her into going up to her floor so he can talk with Kaida, and everyone else either went up to their own floors or had gone home to resume their boring day or get some much needed sleep.
Masako bit her bottom lip with agitation. She wasn't going to say it. She wasn't going to say that word. The one word that described the entire situation, Kaida's small, yet stable plans, and the outcome. She couldn't say it. She wouldn't say it. But of course, the word ended up slipping out of her mouth, anyway.
"Brilliant."