C H A P T E R F I V E
Rush
L watched in contentment as Misa sagged against her bindings, completely immobile and helpless, noting that there hasn't been a single murder (at least, one with Kira's trademarks). While torture isn't her favourite method of interrogation, she understands that it was a must.
It has to be done, one way or another. An inevitable favour in such a crucial timeframe.
With all factors being taken into account, Misa could be charged for attempted terrorism. That woman was too unpredictable to be let loose, a complete menace to society. There is no way L could predict her next move, as Misa is a carefree woman— a disaster waiting to happen. Which is the exact reason why she is so dangerous comparing to the first Kira.
Of course, she didn't get away with this without at least a minimal protest being spoken among the Task Force, but now understanding her point of view, the complains begin to dial down. It was hard however; having to watch a young, seemingly innocent model such as Misa Amane, being bound as a plausible criminal, thrown around like nothing but a rag doll.
The image doesn't suit her. Not even in the slightest.
Matsuda was the harshest, though not on L. She was shocked and amazed when the rookie cop grabbed the microphone from her and begins to scream, asking for admission. It was amazing, considering the fact that Matsuda is one of Misa Amane's most loyal fans; he also probably hasn't been exposed to supreme interrogation all that much, considering his expression when Misa's bound was revealed— so for him to put on the 'bad cops' mask while interrogating his favourite idol is pretty commendable.
"Mister... stalker?".
L could only hope that they could extract answers from Misa before she starts getting weird ideas.
"Misa Amane has been captured. She's being tortured now as we speak", claimed Rem, anger being the most prominent spiking in her tone, "She's doing this for your sake, Light Yagami. You have to save Misa, or else I'll kill you myself".
Light grumbles underneath his breathe. "Won't that make your dear Misa sad, then, if you kill me?", he asked, hoping to get the upper hand here as Misa's 'undying and loyal' for him is the only shield he has against the white Shinigami. It didn't work. Instead, Rem only narrowed her eyes, slits forming on her pupil, hissing, "It doesn't matter to me of what Misa feels if she's dead, Yagami".
Touché.
"Misa has given up her Death Note", Rem claimed, thrusting the note into Light's hand despite the fact that the very thought of Gelus's note being in the hand of someone else other than Misa is completely revolting for her to digest, but she digresses. "She passed out the moment she did, and will probably wake up without any memory regarding of it", sighing, Rem confessed, "Frankly, I don't know how she'll be once she forgets, but I doubt she'd react all the same. If those officers manage to connect the two dots together, Misa will be in much bigger trouble".
"I know that, Rem", said Light, as soon as Rem finished talking. He massaged his temple, frustrated. He has to do twice (maybe thrice) the initial work now thanks to a certain 'helper'; the last thing he needs now is for a certain Shinigami he hates to explain things he already know.
He turned towards Ryuk, "Once a human lost memory of the Death Note, is there any way for them to regain it?".
Ryuk chuckles as he munches on the red apple rather obnoxiously, cackling, "Sure! They just need a little tap of their note", he raised a finger, "Any other note will do, actually, but it only has temporary effects! They need their notes to keep the memory!".
Light hums, digesting the information. "Will it have any other side effect?".
"No", said Rem, "The human's memories of the timeframes when they come in possession of the Death Note will be kept in tact. They will not forget of all other things they learn during the time period. It's the knowledge of knowing Shinigami and Death Note existed that will be wiped out".
"And the eyes?".
"Anyone who made the eye deal will lose their eyes, too!", Ryuk laughs in sheer delight, stuffing the core into his mouth, "That's why it wasn't advised for humans to make the eye deal if they plan to give it up halfway! They just ended with even a shorter lifespan, for nothing!".
That was enough to tick Light over the edge. He at least now has the image (a rather vivid image) of how Misa will be once she's out of her confinement— just a mere lovesick fool. She was nowhere near useful even with the eyes, now she's proven as even more of a liability to him with her memories gone. It just adds up more stress on his part, and Light isn't sure if he could handle any more.
The thought of a woman (other than L) smothering him revolting...
He shudders at the anticipation. Just thinking of memory-less Misa being all over him is making his skin crawl. He was debating if he should let the girl die by writing her names down himself (his fate be damned) or just let her rot in her confinement. It was the gentle thought of having his (and L's) life down the line that provoked him not to.
With all the courage left in him muster, he spoke.
"I have a plan".
L was confused, maybe even baffled; Misa Amane has passed out cold not a second ago. It was expected, as the body tends to shut down momentarily while being put under so much stress. However, L was also expecting to pick up where they last left upon starting, only to have Misa, now fully conscious, claiming nonsense.
"Mister... stalker?", she spoke, voice rasping, "Come on now... stop playing...! This is scary...".
"Mister... stalker?", L murmured underneath her breathe, her expression shifted in utter confusion. The girl claims that she'd rather die than tell on Kira not a moment ago; now she's claiming that whoever that puts her here is a stalker? What is she even on about?
"Hey... I have a lot of fans, but this is the first time a fan has gone this far...", she claims, "I know! If... if you let me go, I'll hold your hands. I'll even kiss you on the cheek, or let you kiss me on the cheek, whichever you preferred... please just let me go!".
Grumbling, Matsuda stormed over, snatching the microphone, "No more games, Misa Amane! Tell us all you know about Kira!".
"No!", she screamed, "I-I don't know anything about Kira!".
'She was hinting that it was a him before...'
"Please, just let me go! This is scary!", she begged, thrashing around her restrains, "Or at least, let me go to the bathroom! I need to pee! I'll even let you watch! That's what you want, isn't it? You sick pervert!".
'Eugh. No. Keep that to yourself, Misa Amane. I'm not into urophilia...', L thought, rather offended over the fact that Misa thought of her as someone who's into those unhygienic kinks, before pressing into the mic. "I think a break is needed, hmm?".
"Wait, no— hang on—!!".
L shuts down the intercom.
Letting out a sigh in relief, she stacked the documents of the past victims; they are yet to come across another unfortunate soul during Misa's imprisonment, which has been a total of 0%. With all these factors combined, the likeliness of Misa Amane being the second Kira has risen up to 78.2%, and it has only been progressively increasing since the last hour.
'Kira's are such pain', she huffed. She was about to take a sip of her tea when Aizawa bursts in, panting.
"R-Ryuzaki!".
L grumbles. "What is it, Aizawa-san?".
"Light... Light-kun just came in...", he huffs out, "He's been confessing to be the first Kira, and has been asking us to imprison him alongside Misa!".
L splutters on her drink.
Say what now?
"I'm telling you, Ryuzaki...", Light pleads, "I... I might be Kira".
Light felt like his breathe hitched when L stares at him accusingly, narrowing those eyes. L, on the other hand, is in utter disbelief; Light is undoubtedly Kira in her book, with almost 43.7% on his likeliness— but what she couldn't grasp her mind around is why on Earth he would give himself in rather willingly, and not too long when Misa was first confined, too.
'No...', she thought, as the two Yagami men are having a quarrelling, 'There's someone else here. A third party. He's doing this out of obligation'. She glances momentarily at the back room, thinking, 'Light doesn't care about Misa. Someone else does, and that person, or thing, is apparently holds a certain card over Light that made him do all these. With all those body language, he's not doing this because he wants to, but because he has to'.
"Who knows? Maybe I could be killing people while I'm asleep?", claims Light, mentally scoffing over how utterly ridiculous that sounds. L seems to already catch on— "What if I had this... some sort of consciousness inside of me that has been doing these killings outside of my knowledge, while I was unconscious?".
"L-Light...", Soichirou wheezed out, hoping that this is some sort of sick prank. It's not.
"No, that would be proven false", L claimed, "I'm sorry that you have to find out this way, Light-kun. But over a 2 weeks period, we had your whole house taped and monitored thoroughly by your father and myself. We can assure you that there has not been a single ominous movement coming from you during your sleep", she licked her spoon, "You barely move an inch during sleep, how could you be committing murder?".
"I-I don't know...", Light sighed, "But, I just feel like— somehow, someway, I'm responsible for these killings! Please, Ryuzaki...".
L almost let out a long, insufferable sigh.
"Take him away".
Light was kept in more mobile confinement (at least, comparing to the one Misa has going on)— he wasn't allowed to move his hands, as the both of them were cuffed behind his back, though he wasn't physically bound to anything that doesn't allows him to walk around the room. He was put in a more... comfortable(?) black shirt and pants (neither has pockets) while Misa is still in her white straightjacket.
The contrast is almost... undeniable.
"I can't believe this...", Aizawa huffed out, "First Misa, now Light?".
"I don't even know how to trust anymore", complaint Ide.
'Fools. In this world, you don't give your trust to anyone', L promptly thought, 'That's how we survive, and one of my primal instinct that keeps me alive until this very day'.
Of course, none of the things she thought actually goes said. It might only escalate the situation, and frankly, she's too mentally drained to deal with those hooligans. Instead, she quietly and watch the monitors, examining their every moves; Light has been quiet still, so as Misa, but that might be from the torture that was inflicted upon her. Light has been quiet and barely responsive— purely out of free will.
It was a stalemate between them. Both sides are equal stubborn.
However, if that bastard isn't going to talk anytime soon despite already having his way, L might as well come up with a new torture regimen for him as well. She's not going to sit idly with this two criminals fucking with her. She has too much responsibilities and they're pretty much wasting their time.
"Ryu... Ryuzaki?", Light croaked, "Are you there?".
Press, "Yes. I'm here".
"Oh, good...", he sighed. "I want to talk to you. It's starting to get a bit lonely over here".
Press, "Unless it's regarding of the case, then don't bother starting a futile conversation with me".
"But we are conversing right now, are we not?", claimed Light with a sly remark, effectively pissing L off. She was considering torturing Light herself, but having a conflict between herself and her co-workers is the last thing she needs as of now. With that in mind, she closed her eyes, trying to muster up patience, before speaking.
"Pardon my language, Light-kun, but kindly fuck off".
Light only grins, as if becoming more excited at her anticipation, "No. I don't think I will".
She frowns. "I don't remember you being this of a douchebag when we first met?", L asked, a bit taken off guard by the sudden change of personality, "What happened to the previous Light-kun?".
Light let out a hearty chuckle, "Don't be absurd, Ryuzaki. I've always been like this", he paused, "Although... I do put on a facade while on public view. I just feel like I could be myself when I'm around you", another pause, "In fact, I do want to play around with you more".
L froze.
Bad choice of words. Too many clichés. L genuinely doesn't know how to respond to that.
"Consider taking a rest and give us a proper confession next time you decided to open your foul mouth, Light-kun", a pause, "Good night".
Light grins.
"Goodnight, my beloved".
Light is torn between wanting to thank Misa for screwing up his perfect plan by having herself captured, or be mad that she was the reason he was put in this uncomfortable situation. He was angry, sure— she has put them both in a situation where if they slipped even more, another bits of sand of time has fallen through their fingers. If they managed even one more careless mistake, it means a death penalty for them.
However, on the other hand, Misa is the reason Light was able to step closer physically to his beloved, L.
He doesn't want her out of sight. He never wanted her to leave him. That's how bad he wanted the detective— needed her to be with him at all times.
However, Light was also pissed. Fuming with anger, in fact. Because who does that woman thinks she is? How dare she throw him into jail? Not only that, she request an unnecessary amount of restrains, chaining him as if he's some sort of animal waiting to be dissect.
That woman is in need of discipline. Thankfully, Light is a great teacher.
His attention was brought back to Misa, the very reason why he's serving his 'sentence'. Now that she's memory-less (and probably useless) the girl is now reduced down to nothing but a mere model who's worth is relied solely on her appearance and fame. She's also appealing to only a certain age group, so it only means so much if she came out as a fellow Kira-supporter.
Light was also convinced that woman is almost delusional— too delusional to handle the cold truth of reality, and was keen in enforcing her madness of a make-believe onto him. It made him writhe in utter discomfort whenever he thinks of that, and couldn't help but to feel more angrier than before.
It was pure heartache and frustration. Light had disliked this feeling long ago.
'Now is not the time for remorse', he mentally scolded himself. Head in the game, he is yet to maintain the perfect composure in order to win the game. The both of them had appeared innocent, thus their resolve and wits has begins to grumble. Light wouldn't even be remotely surprised if they already begun questioning on their decision in imprisoning them— all there if left to do is to plant a few seeds of distrust here and there among the Task Force, and let the miracle happen that's separate his dear L with them.
He just need to... tweak a bit.
"Look at them...", Ide sighed in sorrow, starring at the two imprisoned (plausible) criminals. Misa is already hard to get by, even if she does have a strong and concrete evidence against her— now he has to swallow the guilt of imprisoning Light Yagami of all people, with lack of evidence on top of it all. "Is there really no other way in interrogating them, Ryuzaki?".
L shook her head, "Unfortunately, this is the most suitable method. The CIA has proven the method od supreme interrogations not too long ago. Please keep in mind that there hasn't been a single deaths since these two's imprisonment".
"We know that but...", Aizawa gulped, before looking over the monitor which shows the stream on Soichirou Yagami's cell, who hasn't been all that talkative either and slumped against his chair, "The chief doesn't look all that great either. He just recovered from a heart attack, hasn't he?".
"He consented", claimed L. "He begged me to imprison him. I tried to resonate, he refused to listen", she sighed, "I really can't help those who refused to believe".
"I still can't believe it...", Matsuda whined, "that both Light and Misa... who ought to thought they're capable of something so... heinous?".
L silently grumbles, well aware of the upper hand Light had over her; he is the son of the most respectable police officer in Japan, after all. Not only that, he also happens to be what is depicted to be the perfect son, by means of looks, grades, attitude, etc. Light has depicted himself as the someone who is beyond worthy of everything he desires— it's only the matter of time before her team lose their own resolves and give in to his illusion.
Because honestly— who ought to believe such a perfect man, the most desired of all, is capable of killing? Only a madman such as her would believe that shenanigans.
However, on the other hand, it's no stranger for L to come and accept the term that even the most picture perfect of a person could succumb to their darkest desire. She has seen it happened more times than she could ever count; society weren't able to convict people who looked presentable for their crimes, purely because they, quote on quote, couldn't believe it. It was also the only reason why people like Ted Bundy and John Wayne Gacy were able to get away for their despicable acts. Else, people were able to put an end to their agenda.
She smile, finding solace in that; Light couldn't fool her. He could do all that he can to make others feel guilty for taking him for Kira, but he wouldn't fool L. Light could paint the most amazing facade that will leave even the top-tier artist mesmerised, and L wouldn't even budge. He could paint even the most confusing equation and riddles, and only she could decipher them.
All she needs is a bit of time left, and she would re-gain the upper hand back again...
"Ryuzaki! I just realised that I shouldn't be here!".
"Ryuzaki! The killings are back again!".
What the heck is going on...?