Chapter 20

Light scrubbed himself for the fifth time in the shower, breathing in the steam and enjoying the hot water and different soaps. They had gotten home an hour ago, and Light had immediately hopped into the shower to clean himself up, while L worked to find a way to deal with Misa and take Kira down with her, giving Light time to rest and keep away from the stress.

He wanted to help, but seeing as he had fallen asleep on the plane, he was alright with resting for a bit.

It was another fifteen minutes before he finished cleaning himself, and put on a plush bathrobe, much softer than the rough fabrics he had been wearing for weeks, and he entered the bedroom he and L shared, where Ryuk was playing with Lily. It was unclear whether the cat could see the Shinigami or not, but the two were still playing.

Ryuk laughed, "Feeling better, Light-o?"

"A bit. I'm still going to get dressed and go help L—no point in L fixing the mess I made." He smiled a little, "L. He really told me his name." He quickly went to the closet to get dressed, changing into some blue sweatpants and a grey shirt, bandaging his hand and walking downstairs to see everyone else.

"Ryuzaki," he called, to maintain L's secret with the others, "Your turn."

Everyone took a moment to stare at him, and Light flushed a bit, struggling to walk down the stairs with his leg, but he was still grinning. It was nice to be back, even if he found that he still didn't mind the idea of being back on the island.

L looked around to the others, "I'll be back shortly." He headed upstairs, and suddenly, even more attention was on Light. Matsuda grinned,

"So, Light, Ryuzaki told us his side of the story about what happened, but what about you?"

Light told their story, leaving out the parts with Ryuk and the fact he was actually Kira. Telling the story without those two details made things a lot less complicated—a simple tale of two friends surviving and falling for each other. It just served to make him feel guilty about his lies.

L came down about five minutes later, wearing his trademark white shirt and jeans. It was almost jarring to see him wearing that again, and it just went to show that they were really home.

"Right," L leaning against the table in the main room, "So as I was saying, you guys were in charge of the Death Note, not Light and I. I believe Misa took it."

"But Misa's been downstairs," Matsuda pointed out, "How could she have been killing?"

"Has she been allowed to leave headquarters?"

Silence as realization dawned on everyone. L continued,

"Now, I have a theory about how to handle Shinigami—and looking back at the footage with Higuchi, I have reason to believe that Rem deeply cares about Misa. If we play our cards right, we can arrest her without any risks."

"And how would we do that?" Soichiro asked, and L smiled,

"Has anyone told Misa that Light and I are alive and well?" Shaking of heads all around, confirming nobody had said anything on the matter. "Right, then, that will make things much easier. Watari, get me in contact with one of the prisons, housing a few dozen Death Row Inmates." Light suddenly burst out laughing,

"Do you ever stop with the Death Row Inmates?!" L rolled his eyes,

"What? They're good resources, especially when I need human sacrifices."

"I'm sorry, human sacrifices?" Mogi asked, and L just shrugged,

"You'll see."

OoOoO

"That was..." Light gaped at Misa on the other side of the screen, "Way easier than I thought it would be."

L's plan had been to let Misa go, and then have a bunch of Death Row Inmates attack her in her home. Rem killed them, and as planned, died in the process, and the next day, Misa was arrested under suspicion of being Kira.

This part had gone off without a hitch, just as planned. However, what had not been expected was for Misa to confess to being the Second Kira—saying there was no point in hiding it anymore since she had been caught twice, the original Kira was dead, and her beloved Light was lost at sea.

"It's over," L confirmed, and Light giggled, seeing Lily was sitting on L's shoulder. According to the vet, she wasn't going to get much bigger, since her breed was much smaller than the average cat. She was also very fluffy after being properly cleaned. "Oh, and speaking of which, you have therapy at 4pm tomorrow. Afterward... I was wondering if you wanted to stay over. Dinner and a movie, or," L looked away, flushing, "Something like that."

"It's a date," Light gave L a peck on the cheek, noticing his Dad come in, "Oh, hey, Dad."

Soichiro smiled at Light, and a different expression at L, which basically said, "break his heart, and I break you."

"I just came to check on the investigation. So, Amane confessed."

"Yes." L confirmed, "There will be no trial, as her celebrity status will be worked to her advantage. I am already working with Watari to perhaps have it, so the world believes Misa Amane was lost at sea in a plane crash, while, in actuality, she shall be executed next week."

"I still can't believe Misa-Misa would..." Matsuda trailed off, and Light shrugged,

"Perhaps she's naïve, or trying to avenge her parents in her own way—or maybe she was just horny for me and trying to use that to gain my approval, but since we had only known each other for a day before she got arrested last time, she couldn't jump that on me."

"I suppose that makes sense..." Matsuda muttered, and Light slumped in his seat, thinking about the fact Misa's kills were a drop in the bucket compared to his own total of thousands. Yes, she was a bad person, killing just to get in his pants, and he was making her motives sound much nobler than they actually were. However, he was practically getting away scot-free, and what if he did lose himself again?

He shook himself, trying to remember that he had been given a second chance, and L was there for him, to help him. He was going to learn from his mistakes, gather more knowledge about the world. Maybe one day, he could get past the remorse, and find a way to improve the world in another way.

OoOoO

Light clung to L after a nice dinner, and the two of them braving the movie adaptation of Stardust together. Two plates were on the nightstand which had once had cake, and Light was now laying in bed next to L, with his partner's arms around him. Ryuk had devoured a bowl full of apples and was on the hunt for more, and Lily was asleep on the pillow next to them.

"It's strange," Light muttered, "Being back in the city, on a bed and not the blanket pile, with an actual heater."

"You'll get used to it, given a little time." L assured him, running a hand through Light's hair. Light hummed a little to show his approval, and his gaze fell on the night sky outside.

"I'm going to miss the stars." They both sat up, and L turned off all the lights in the room, walking towards the window with him.

"There's somewhere I want to take you, Camellia, if you're still interested in traveling the world. It's where Watari took me when he found me—about an hour outside of Winchester. It's easy to see the stars there."

Light looked out the window still, thinking about what his therapist had said. "I want to go, but I don't think I can get on a plane... not for a while, anyway."

"That's okay. Once you're ready. We have plenty of time." He turned to a small speaker, turning it on, soft piano music playing, and L held out his hand, "Do you want to dance with me?"

Light turned towards L's extended hand, remembering the first time they had danced under the stars. Now things were different—they were really home. Despite himself, he felt tears in his eyes, feeling he didn't deserve this, but nevertheless, he took L's hand, being pulled close into a slow dance, and he found himself crying through the movements.

He noticed L brush away one of his tears, not asking what was wrong because he already knew, just holding him close and asking a different question, "Is there anything I can do to help?"

"Just give me time... and love me." Light replied softly, "That's all I ask of you."

"Of course, Camellia."

The two continue to gently dance to the music for hours, and Ryuk watched with a grin, more than satisfied with this as the end of one adventure.

It wasn't a happy ending to their story with everything right in the world—Light doubted it ever would be—everything still felt like a mess even if he knew it should be okay now. But they still had time left in their lives, time for both of them to heal and have new adventures.

And that was the best thing he could ask for.