CHAPTER 28 - RUMOR HAS IT THERE IS DARKNESS IN OUR SOULS

Not even an hour after confrontation with A, L was on a way back to his cabinet. The blonde haired man managed to deal with his contact and the leaders of the league impressively fast and L needed to leave within two hours. Which led him to the thought that they were probably expecting it.

Damn, I need to be careful. This could be all a trap. They might have manipulated me into meeting while having me believe I manipulated Alec to arrange one for me. I have to keep my eyes open.

L growled loudly while he was pacing the stairs to DADA tower. He was just so angry with himself. He was angry that he didn't recognize the handwriting and wasn't ready to face Alec. But he was even more angry that A was able to deceive him. He truly believed the man was dead. He died on a mission where he was just an adviser and L never forgave himself for taking A there with them. But he obviously didn't die. He was very alive and L was fighting his consciousness for 3 years for nothing. Alec just left him and Beyond alone.

L was so pissed about it. And disappointed. And sad. It only added more to his theory that people can not be trusted. He trusted B. He almost died for it. He trusted A. He lied to him. He trusted his birth family. They tortured him as a child. That only left him with one person in the world he could trust: Watari.

Alec's sudden reappearance woke dark parts of L's mind which he was desperately trying to keep locked. It made him doubt everything he believed in. Everything he stood for. In moments like this, when his trust got broken again, it was so hard to stay true to what he knew was right. Everytime this happened, L felt the darkness inside him growing.

It first appeared at the moment his mother died in front of his eyes. It grew when his father's family committed atrocities on him and he almost believed that attack was the only way of self-defense. If it wasn't for Watari who pulled him out of Lawliets' lair he would be dead or worse… a dark sorcerer himself.

Those events stripped L of the child's innocence. And although Watari never managed to cloak him into it again, he was able to remind him of the values he was raised with by his mother. Watari's life and the orphanage were built on the same values and beliefs. So with one of the greatest Wizards of the last century by his side, L was able to overcome the darkness inside him and became good. As good as his nature allowed.

But his dark wounds were opened a few times during the years. Like when A died and L had the guilt on his shoulders. Or when B corrupted and L couldn't help but feel it was his fault. In those moments L doubted he was really good. Because if he was, he would be able to prevent those events. Like a friend would.

L had to stop his pace and he leaned his head against the cold stone wall. His heart was clenching. A and B were his only two friends. And they both betrayed him. They betrayed the ideals they were raised with. He didn't know Alec's motives yet, but he couldn't imagine a situation that couldn't be solved.

L lightly punched his fist against the wall. Strong enough to drag himself back to reality, but not strong enough to hurt. He needed to gather himself and think of a mission. Alec was not his problem anymore. Beyond was not his problem anymore. None of them came to him with their problems even when he was the head of their pack. It was their decision. There was nothing L could do about it.

He started walking the stairs again and bit his lower lip so hard that he drew blood. He needed to recategorize things in his brain. He needed to understand that Alec was not his friend anymore. He was just part of the Kira case. And L will do enough for him when he will not tell on him to the ministry. He just needed to figure out what game A was playing. And how the Animagi league knew about the Kira case.

Sayu was out of her mind with concern. The great hall was full of rumors about her brother and Lawliet and about what happened in the entrance hall. At least 40 of her schoolmates had cuts from the broken hourglasses and some of them thought that it was Light's doing. Including Mello.

"I am telling you, it possible! Omegas can go mental if someone insults them!" He said carelessly and Sayu slapped the back of his head.

"Hey… that hurts!" The blond reacted.

"Shut up, Mello! You are being an ass!" Matt immediately barked at him and surprisingly, it worked. The blond only opened and closed his mouth, but did not say anything more. There was a moment of silence between them before Sayu saw Near entering the hall and coming to them. She immediately hurtled forward: "Did you see him? Is he alright?!"

Near only shook his head. It was the second time Sayu sent him to Ravenclaw tower to check if Light was there. Near was definitely not going there for the third time. It was pointless and he would never go even for the first time, if it weren't for the puppy dog eyes Matt gave him.

"I didn't see him. It was the same as before. The room is locked by a spell and it's completely silent." Near said and sat down next to Matt.

Sayu also sat down and let out a desperate sigh. She didn't know what to do. It was unlike Light to cause trouble and disappear. She was sure, if he had done something wrong, he would stand up and take responsibility for it. So it must have meant that he wasn't responsible. But that didn't explain why he disappeared.

"Maybe he's with L." Matt said, trying to soothe the girl somehow. "We could go to DADA tower and ask him."

"Been there, got kicked out by professor Wammy." Mello stated and sipped his pumpkin juice, trying to look like he was drinking some alcohol.

Matt raised an eyebrow: "And you were not planning on telling us?"

Mello shrugged: "I would tell you if I found Yagami. But he was not there and L was not there either. There was just a grumpy old man."

"Do you guys think…" Sayu started while she was looking somewhere in the middle of the table, but she looked up at them before she finished the thought: "... they are together?"

There was a moment of silence between them. All three boys were thinking, if Sayu meant "They are together now," or "they are dating."

It was Matt who came to himself first, his mind completely rejecting the second idea: "Well… we know L is giving him privates so… they could theoretically be somewhere practicing… now…"

Mello raised an eyebrow: "Do you have any idea how it sounds?"

Matt wanted to say something but was cut off by Near, who sensed a potentially dangerous topic and decided it was better to avoid it:

"Sayu, did your brother ever show any inclination towards Wandless magic?"

All eyes were on him at once and then shifted to Sayu. The girl was silent for a moment. She gave it a thought. She saw Light performing many kinds of magic in the past, but she didn't remember seeing any of it without her brother using a wand.

"No… he didn't, I never saw…" but she stopped in the middle of the sentence when a memory came to her.

When they were very small, they were playing in the garden behind their house and Light changed the bloom of a flower into a butterfly. He didn't have a wand then. But Sayu was not sure if it was a real memory. It might have been a dream or her imagination. She was too young back then.

"Yes?" Near asked when he saw her hesitating.

Sayu snapped back to reality and shook her head: "No… I never saw him doing magic without the wand."

Both Near and Mello were about to question her unconvincing statement but were cut off by a blonde tornado from 7th year who suddenly appeared by their table.

"Hello Sayu!" Misa greeted and sat down next to the girl: "Did you see Light this afternoon? After what happened at the entrance hall we split up and I can't find him anywhere."

Sayu shifted her whole attention to Misa and shook her head: "No… I didn't see him all day."

Misa frowned nervously: "I see… he must be in his dorm then…I hope he is alright. He looked so shaken by what happened."

Sayu looked at the blonde. She didn't have any scratches from the shattered glass.

"Misa… so… you were there? When it happened?" Sayu asked cautiously.

The blonde nodded and Mello immediately reacted: "Is it true what they say? Was it Yagami? The explosion?"

Misa looked at him in shock: "What?! Someone thinks Light broke the hourglasses?! That's ridiculous!"

"Technically it's not impossible." Near offered.

Misa rolled her eyes and eyed the white haired omega: "Noo… don't be stupid! Light is a good wizard! He would never do such a thing! Even Mikami said that the hourglasses probably couldn't hold the weight of gems!"

Sayu let out a sigh of relief and seemed to be persuaded by the information. But the trio shared suspicious looks. They knew better than believing something like that. But these two girls were obviously not the right ones to discuss it with.

"Sayu, we have to do something! We have to dissolve the rumors about Light and Lawliet!" Misa said, half whispering, so no other than the four people around heard her.

Sayu was shocked by her statement: "So that means… you are on Light's side?"

"Well of course!" Misa said and looked offended by that question.

"But I thought you two were not exactly… friends?"

Misa waved her hand in the air: "That changed during the tourney. We had a long talk and decided to become friends again! I even know some of Light's secrets now! And I know he would never sleep with Lawliet! It's ridiculous!"

"It is! Light is not that kind of person!" Sayu eagerly nodded and was happy that someone understood her feelings. Especially, when it was Misa. She always liked the girl. She was a bit crazy, if someone asked Sayu, but her energetic aura was similar to Sayu's own. The younger Yagami was unhappy when Misa sometimes spread rumors about Light. Now that the blonde was Light's friend, maybe they could become friends too.

"We should come up with something that will disprove the statement." Misa said and surprisingly, it was Mello who reacted first:

"For once, I agree."

All eyes were on him at once and Sayu frowned: "What? Since when do you care about my brother?"

Mello chuckled: "I don't. But I care about L. And if this rumor reaches the ministry, they might kick L out of the school. I don't wanna see it happen."

"I agree with Mello." Matt said and their eyes met. Mello's lips shifted in a cocky smile. It was not happening often lately, that they would agree on something. Mello instantly felt happiness and satisfaction. For him there was nothing better in the world, than having the redhead on his side.

"Don't you think it would be best to leave it be? If both of them are innocent, there is nothing to be concerned about." Near offered calmly as ever. He did not approve of Gryffindors' tendency to interfere with everything. And he was not very happy that Matt was about to participate. At least Matt was probably doing it for L's and Sayu's sake and not for Mello.

Misa rolled her eyes: "This is a school! An institution that practically lives from rumors! If we don't offer a stronger rumor everyone will feed themselves on this one!"

"I find that concept incredibly stupid." Near answered.

"It is a stupid concept." Mello started and everyone looked at him as he continued: "A stupid concept for sheeps who can not think for themselves. Someone said that Yagami opened his legs for L and everyone blindly believes it. If they don't have enough brains to understand what bullshit it is, they need us to think for them."

Sayu nodded: "I agree. People are following leaders. But this rumor about Lawliet and Light was anonymous. So if Mello or Misa say that there is nothing going on, they will believe it."

Mello shook his head: "No, that won't be enough. A student-teacher relationship is too much of a sensation."

"Yeah, a forbidden fruit." Matt added.

"We need stronger information." Mello said.

"Something that will refute the rumor." Matt added and their eyes met again. They both knew they were thinking exactly the same thing and they both smirked. There was a strange synchronization between them when it came to planning something. It was like they were able to read each other's minds.

"We will say L is taken." Mello whispered and his eyes never left Matt's shining ones.

Misa immediately gasped. She didn't like the idea a bit. Even if it was supposed to be just a fabricated rumor, it would make things difficult for her. She would have to stop running around their fan club stating obvious reasons why Lawliet will have to end up in her arms.

"No!" She said and pursed her lips to a thin line.

Mello looked at her and raised an eyebrow: "Why not? It's a good idea! Half of the school is pissed at Yagami because they think he got L! If there was someone in L's life it might redirect the hate away from Yagami."

Sayu nodded in agreement and watched Misa panic. The blonde girl couldn't come up with something clever fast enough, so she said: "No… that's a bad idea. If you say he has someone, it might as well be Light!"

Mello rolled his eyes: "I am not stupid, Misa! I will come up with some portrait and say that we met that person today at the orphanage. L should have been there and because no one saw him today, it will not be hard to believe it."

"Yeah, it will give L alibi and take attention away from Sayu's brother." Matt agreed.

Misa took a sharp breath. She didn't like this a bit. She wanted to help Light and also get the rumor away from Lawliet. But this was not what she had in mind. It just got completely out of her hands!

"I don't like this idea…"

"Do you have a better one?" Mello asked and tilted his head questioningly. But the blonde girl didn't say a thing. She simply couldn't come up with anything. She briefly thought about using the relationship of Light and Mikami, but that could easily backfire because she was not sure what their relationship really was. And no one really cared about Light anyway, they just wanted Lawliet's attention and were pissed that Light got so much of it.

It was Sayu who asked a valid question: "Guys… but what about Lawliet? What will he say about this?"

Mello shrugged: "I doubt he will mind. He doesn't care about these things. And we are practically doing him a favor."

Near was listening to their discussion in disbelief. None of them really knew anything about the situation and they decided to take things to their hands. It was not probable that L would really have an affair with his student but it was also not impossible. L was a well situated alpha and Light Yagami was a highly desired omega. If L wasn't a teacher, they might be a good match. And if they were really somehow together a rumor about L having someone would surely do them harm. In any case, Near was pretty sure this lie will do more harm than good.

"So how are we doing this? We will say that he was with someone at the orphanage and that they seemed very close?" Matt asked and turned to Mello.

"We need details, otherwise no one will believe it."

Matt gave it a thought but he quickly realized there was a hole in their perfect plan: "Guys, does anyone know what L's type is?"

Misa suddenly felt an opportunity. If Lawliet was going to be taken, he might as well be taken by her. At least, the person from their rumor might look like her and it would give her friends a reason to be jealous. If she added the right attitude they might be suspicious Lawliet was with her!

"Blonde, blue eyes, not tall, good looking." Misa said.

Everyone eyed her skeptically and Mello almost choked on his juice: "Why do I feel like you just described yourself, Misa?"

The blonde rolled her eyes: "No… silly… but Light told me that Lawliet told him, he likes blondes! So I am creating a type here!"

Mello chuckled: "Alright… so L was at the orphanage with … blond, blue eyed, not tall and good looking… MAN!"

Misa inhaled sharply and watched Mello's eyes sparkling with amusement. That devil saw right through her intentions. So what could she say? Not to reveal herself completely?

"Fine…" she gritted through her teeth: "... spread the rumor. Whatever helps Light."

If someone asked Light how he got back to his room after an argument with Lawliet, he wouldn't be able to answer. The moment he landed under the staircase of DADA tower his mind went blank and his body moved on autopilot. He later wouldn't remember that he stood up from the floor and ran back to his dorm with tears in his eyes. There he threw a few books against the wall, destroyed the furniture with his wand and he screamed from the top of his lungs. He would only know that he ended up curled in a blanket in the corner, desperately sobbing.

His whole being was focused on the pain he felt. The pain caused by the fact that his alpha didn't care about him. Lawliet didn't care about him. First he humiliated him and then he didn't want to talk to him at all. Like Light wasn't even worth an explanation. It pained him as much as his inner omega and both of them were trying to recover from the intense scent Lawliet let out before he kicked Light out the room. That small event was enough to make Light suffer. But unfortunately, it was just the tip of an iceberg.

Light sat in the corner of his room for long hours. Curled in a blanket, his eyes puffed and red from tears. He was just staring in front of himself but looking nowhere. He was pitying himself. Again he was painfully aware none of this would happen, if he wasn't an omega. No one would say he slept with his professor. No one would call him names. He would never have to prove himself to anyone. He would never fight his second gender. He would never need to discover there was darkness inside him. Because there would be none.

Light couldn't help but think that being an omega was his curse. Maybe someone used dark magic on him when he was a child and condemned him to life in misery. Life where he could not live to his full potential. Life where he will never be fully himself again. Life where he would unwillingly hurt others.

He didn't fully understand what happened in the hall. He just felt so angry. So pissed about the injustice that was happening to him. He just wanted everyone to shut up and then... everything exploded. Light didn't do it on purpose and if it wasn't for the fact that Lawliet pointed out he was able to do magic subconsciously, he wouldn't even know it was him. But now he knew. He had no idea how he did that. And it scared him to the core.

If this is the power my inner omega holds, I don't wanna discover it. I don't wanna live with it… Light thought and he was terrified. Terrified that what happened in his vision might come true. That he would turn the wrong way and become a dark sorcerer. That he would be the one to take lives instead of protecting them.

AN: Sorry there was not L's reaction to what happened yet. I needed to split the chapter because it was too long. But that means the next chapter is also ready and will be out soon!

Love, J.