Outsmarted

PROLOGUE

2 years earlier...

"He trapped him, he trapped him!" Misa boasted through her phone in an excited tone, walking to an audition while wearing her black lenses and hat, hoping it would hide her well enough from bystanders, from the other side of the line, her sister Megumi hummed distractedly as her little sister went over and over celebrating something she had yet to know what it was. "It was broadcasted on TV news, look!"

"Misa, you know I'm busy with work right now..." She admonished. "Tell me over the phone what are you talking about."

"The murder of our parents, he trapped him!" She chanted once more, ignoring people's look of wonder at hearing the word 'murder'so loud and cheerful, she ignored the looks of people and sat in an empty place of the subway. "They say it was collateral damage or something? I mean he trapped a mass murdered with some mafia connections, who rattled out everyone he ever worked with and among those men it was our parent's murderer, he got sentenced at last."

"Wait-Misa, what are you talking about? Mafia bosses? Mass Murdered? You have to explain better than that, who trapped our parent's robber?" Misa ignored the annoyed tone of her sister, typical of when she was blabbering half explanations.

"L!" She told with an obvious hint of adoration, a dingging tone signaled she arrived at her destiny, she got up and skipped away to the hall, going to the streets where the auditions were being held.

"The renowned detective? Misa... Are you sure about that?"

She knew why her sister would feel skeptical about this, after all, it wasn't any common detective, it was THE DETECTIVE. After she saw in the news the apprehension of her parent's murdered among all those other connections and pawns she investigated all she could about him. She was greatly disappointed to see there was not a name, a number, even a face to recognize him or seek him. She had the hope to be able to thank him somehow, and no matter how much she searched the most she found was broadcasts of a giant L letter, and a robotical distorted voice talking to police forces, only 3 videos... and a lot of speculation of who was behind the letter.

After seeing how many people he had helped with such complicated cases she couldn't help but feel admiration for the mysterious man, she could tell it was a man because of the male terseness behind the robotic like-sound. It was difficult for a teen like her not to let her mind wander when she had free time, a part of her imagined a tall man with a sherlock-like aura, probably well dressed, drinking scotch at nights while musing cases or maybe even smoking elegantly. The thought always made her let out an enamored look, if only she could meet him somehow...

"-isa?" She blinked, confused, and suddenly realized her sister was talking to her, and she paid attention at last.

"I-I'm sorry, what?"

"I said I searched the News and confirmed it, but asked how you found out... have you been obsessing over that again?" She knew Megumi was intensely against her obssesing over the injustice once done to her parent's murder, but this once she sounded also a bit relieved for some reason. "Well I guess at least we have to thank L for trapping him, as collateral damage among all those other criminals... it's finally over."

"It's finally over..." She echoed with a peaceful tone and a look of hopefulness. Nights would no longer be filled with nightmares.

"Misa... why are we buying all these things?"

Misa ignored the eerie voice near her shoulder as she went through the store seeing the prices of recording items and their characteristics. She had already gone through the effort of getting envelopes, special pens, masking tapes and her own voice modulator to morph alike the one L used. The thought made her giddy, she and L playing out the same kind of tricks in order to communicate. It was funny, even romantic to an extent, she let out a giggle.

"Isn't it obvious Rem? I need to communicate with L, and it is better if I approach him in a way he can understand." She didn't care much about being heard, she was the only one in the aisle anyways and Rem wouldn't appear in the cameras.

"I don't like that man... if he learns you have the same powers Kira does he will try to blame you for the murderings the other person with the Death Note is doing." She told in her usual cold tone, way more calculative than her own. However Misa didn't care, she had yet to even kill someone to be convicted, but even then she needed it to happen or find some other way to call his attention.

2 years had passed ever since she found L, the greatest detective of the world, had helped to the apprehension of her parents murdered. And while life had been calmer for her ever since, she was left with a feeling of intense longing to meet the detective. However the task had proven absolutely impossible. A little at the end of the last year she had resolved it was impossible, and it would never happen, that L was as unattainable to her as she was to common people after her modeling and acting career had skyrocketed.

She had resolved to live admiring him, as one admires a celebrity, however a bit after the Kira case had started and L had suddenly confronted Kira the hope she had almost entirely crushed down in her gut resurfaced with great strength. L is here? In Japan? Well maybe he isn't, but he surely will be if he just said Kira is in Japan, right? Her brain started to turn the gears and do amazing maquinations about what was the best course of action regarding the detective. If she wanted to meet him this might be the only plausible time she would have a slimmest chance. However, how could she find someone who didn't have a name, a face, an address or anything else?

"And then you appeared with a Death Note." She told with a gleeful expression to the Shinigami, they had long moved from the store where she got the recording supplies, and were in an open area where no one would really notice if she told her story.

"Don't you see it Rem? It must be destiny, just a few days after Kira had started working you approached with my very own Death Note and when we noticed about it's existence thanks to the internet I thought it was an amazing coincidence someone else owned one Death Note, but it really didn't interest me until I saw that broadcast between Kiran and L... this is my chance, this is my chance to finally meet him... please don't prevent me to follow my dreams." She pleaded giving the most convincing puppy stare she could while hugging the notebook to her chest, she always carried it with her in her bag after all. Rem looked down at her with the same coldness her golden eye usually showed but she could also see a hint of defeat on them, finally she sighed.

"Ok Misa... I'll help you meet L, but if I sense he will try to send you to execution, I'll write his name in my Death Note." She warned, knowing she actually wouldn't (she wouldn't bear to have Misa hating her), but hoping Misa would believe it. She let out a quiet giggle at the warning, something told Rem she didn't believe it.

"It won't be necessary, I myself have the eyes and if it comes to worst I know I will give him something worth keeping me alive." She was sure Rem's help could be applied to something else she had been fantasizing about before... but she wouldn't say it right now, she had to play her cards well. "In order to call L's attention, the best way to do it is if I make him think I'm Kira." She repeated the plan over, knowing Rem would disagree but not caring much. "But I wouldn't like to kill a criminal the way Kira does..."

"You mean you will kill innocents?" Rem asked not following her line of thoughts, if she could help it she would avoid Misa killing someone else altogether but some things couldn't be helped.

"No silly! If I had to kill someone I'd very much prefer it was a criminal, but L doesn't like how Kira kills them, eluding the judicial system and all that... I think Kira saves a lot of time, but I don't want to anger L..." it would be a pity he would have a horrible first view of her, it was bad enough she would have to go as Kira to begin with, but if she could make it the LEAST bad possible within her possibilities then she would. She let out a little sigh knowing this would take more effort than she wished to normally put. "I guess I'll be forced to do something I really don't want to do... for love."

"Such as?"

"Researching a criminal that will legally die on the few upcoming days and execute it myself on that day, I'll make the first contact through a public broadcast so L traps me."