"I am Sayu, I'm happy. Mum, Sayu, this Panda looking man is my husband L, yes Sayu, that's really his name. And these blond- and white-haired boys using me as a pillow are my two children Mello and Near," Light introduced, resting his head on each boy's head as he said their names, "and the one playing video games is Matt, my future son-in-law, but currently Mello's boyfriend."
Slowly, Matt's and Mello's faces turned red. His mum smiled, she probably thought they looked a little odd and dysfunctional, but that's what made their family work well, but before she could say anything the hospital room door swung open and in storm Souichiro Yagami.
He didn't say anything at first, his eyes glaring at his wife and daughter before turning to face Light and the others. Mello sat up as if he was trying to block Light from even looking at the man in front of him, which didn't work, Light couldn't avoid this confrontation even all Matt, Mello, Near and L made a wall between them.
"So, they saved you, I want you to know it's pathetic that we even had to waste any resources to track you down, anyway. Our focus is on Merikh and only him. If you'd even thought of…" Yagami started, but Mello interrupted, he wasn't letting anyone speak to his mum like this, especially not after he and L asked to adopt them.
"If I remember correctly, Mr Yagami, we removed you from task force headquarters because of YOUR behaviour. Both Merikh has been captured and is awaiting trial. Now as the Merikh Case is nearly over, we don't need your assistance any further, please leave," Mello said through grit teeth. All he wanted to do was smash this man's face in until it was unrecognisable. How dare he come here knowing full well he wasn't wanted!
Yagami surged forward, grabbing at Mello's shirt. Matt jumped up, dropping his PlayStation portable onto the hospital chair.
"Get off him," Matt practically growled, digging his fingers into Yagami's arm.
"You brats have no respect for us hard workers. We slave away day after day, going through leads, looking for suspects anything which will help solve this case, then you lot come swanning in and take credit for all our hard work," Yagami spat out, his grip on Mello tightened.
"You're full of bullshit, Yagami. I've seen the reports, and the progress made by the NPA without L's assistance at the beginning. You had nothing, no leads, no idea what was happening, it wasn't until after L joined the investigation before you even got your first hint at what was going on and then Kira comes along and suddenly you are getting actual progress in the case, he found Merikh, not you. You've done nothing to help this investigation, when Kira was taken, all you did was sit there whining that we weren't working on anything important and that we weren't going to catch Merikh. I don't even understand where in that small brain of yours that you decided you could even come here, you're not welcome here," Mello shouted.
"YOU!" Yagami said seething, his arm raised ready to strike down on Mello, but before he could move, a blur of white hit him in the chest, sending Yagami stumbling backwards.
"Get away from my family," Near said, standing in front of Yagami's crumpled form on the floor. The threat didn't dissuade him as Yagami rose from the floor.
"ENOUGH!" Mrs Yagami shouted, stepping in between her husband and the others, "HAVE YOU LOST YOUR MIND ACTING LIKE THIS IN A HOSPITAL! NO, I DON'T WANT TO HEAR YOUR EXCUSES, I HAVE HAD ENOUGH WITH YOU SOUICHIRO YAGAMI. I HAVE PUT UP WITH YOU ALL THESE YEARS GIVING YOU THE BENEFIT OF DOUBT BECAUSE OF YOUR STRESSFUL JOB, BUT THIS IS TOO FAR. I CAN NOT STAND ASIDE AND WATCH YOU ABUSE MY CHILD AND HIS FAMILY. I WANT YOU OUT OF HERE! I WANT YOU OUT OF MY HOME, WHEN I GET BACK FROM HERE, I WANT YOUR CRAP GONE AND IF IT ISN'T THEN I'M CHUCKING IT INTO THE TRASH. NOW GET OUT OF MY SIGHT."
Yagami stared at his wife in surprise, but she didn't let her deter her as she grabbed his arm and dragged him from the hospital room. Two nurses were standing outside, both unsure whether they should enter the room after the shouting they heard. Mrs Yagami smiled at them, "Could you show this man out and make sure he can't come back and visit this room until after my son has been discharged?"
The nurses nodded before escorting Mr Yagami off the ward. Closing the door behind her, Mrs Yagami turned to look at Light, "I'm sorry about that."
"Don't. You needed that," Light said, smiling proudly at his mother, "Well, if my stay is gonna be this eventful, then I might actually enjoy being in hospital for once."
As promised, one week later, Light was wheeled out of the hospital with a list of medication he needs to take and with the strict promise of bed rest. So, naturally, the first thing Light does when L wheels him into the task force headquarters is log onto the computer and get up to date with what he's missed whilst confined to a hospital bed relying solely on his children for information. The media around the world had picked up on the sudden stop of Merikh kills, the NPA or L had released an official statement claiming the capture of Merikh and won't until after Teru and Higuchi have been sentenced and executed. Slowly, the world will notice the sudden stop in Merikh's kills and realise that his reign of terror is over even if, currently, they aren't aware of why Merikh has stopped.
"Has there been any progress in setting up Merikh's trial?" Light asked, he eyed the task force members who'd been staying away from his hospital room this last week, the only one brave enough to come to see him was Matsuda, but that was only accompanied by B.
"Not yet, we've been complying with all the evidence we've collected against Merikh; however, we've been struggling with how to link them to the crimes without the evidence of the death note. We assumed you wouldn't want anyone to know about its existence outside us," Aizawa said. Light looked at him and nodded his head, keeping how Merikh kills, and the existence of the Shinigami was important.
"I understand, I'd happily submit my statement under the guise of someone else. I can recall all I heard them say whilst held hostage. They weren't exactly subtle in keeping their identities hidden," Light said.
"There is something else," Matsuda spoke up, "Amane's Shinigami has been demanding to speak with one of you. It's demanding we release her or… well, it said that should we hurt Amane, then it knows all our names and will kill us all."
"We all assumed it's protective of her and I'm guessing" Light started, his eyes trailing over to the Merikh's Shinigami currently stood behind the detective, "it's the only Shinigami liked it."
"Hyuk, I'm not getting attached to any of you, if that's what you're wondering. I'm just here for entertainment," the Shinigami said, grinning. Light nodded, with Amane's Shinigami they need to tread carefully, they couldn't risk upsetting it, but at the same time, they couldn't just let Amane go.
"I will try to reason with it," Light said, then looked at his husband, "Take me to Amane's cell."
L looked at him for a moment, before letting out a sigh, climbing off his chair and wheeling Light to the lifts. Amane's cell was situated two floors below the ground, secure enough to monitor her without keeping Watari in a secondary location with her. The lift doors open up on a long corridor with only one door at the end, L input the passcode and the door slide open, revealing Misa Amane restrained and gagged on a metal chair, her Shinigami stood behind her.
"You wanted to see us Shinigami," Light said when L closed the door again.
"You will release Misa Amane," the Shinigami said. Light looked at the girl in question, a blindfold covered her eyes, but he could tell she was glaring at him.
"I will discuss a potential deal with you, however, I want some questions answered, depending on the answer will impact our deal. Am I clear?" Light spoke.
"If you think you can trick me, then you are mistaken. If I suspect you are putting Misa's life in danger, then I will kill everyone in this building," the Shinigami threatened, and Light laughed.
"You don't think I haven't made some precautions before coming down here. L and I have some outside associates who haven't visited this place. Should anything happen to us then they have orders to execute Misa Amane and Merikh and if you believe you can protect her, then you're sadly mistaken, they can destroy this building without setting a foot in this country," Light lied. The only associate they had was Roger, and that man was too much of a wimp to do anything that drastic.
The Shinigami stared at him, trying to figure out whether he was lying, "Ask your question."
"I only have one. How long was the death note in Amane's possessions before she sent those taps to Sakura TV?" Light asked.
"Only two weeks, but I don't see how that's relevant" the Shinigami answered. If Amane only had the death note for as little as two weeks, then it is highly likely the first person, she killed was on the tap to prove her identity to Sakura TV staff, we caught her as little as a week after when she revealed herself to B.
"Let's make a deal Shinigami. We cannot release Amane without first being brought to justice for her crimes, she hasn't taken as many lives as Merikh, but still, those who died because of her cannot be overlooked. She will be charged, just not for murder, she'll escape the death penalty and spend a minimum of five years in prison for her crimes. Currently, the story for Amane's sudden disappearance is drug possession and distribution, she will be charged for that instead. Obviously, we won't be returning her death note to her, but we can't risk knowledge of how Merikh kills getting into the public's hands. We will protect Amane in prison; you have my word and for that, you will take her memories of being Merikh. What do you say, Shinigami? Do we have a deal?" Light said it's the only way to protect their own lives and still bring Amane to justice, she shouldn't be allowed to walk after those she's killed. Misa screamed through the gag in protest, shaking her head violently.
"Misa will be safe?" the Shinigami asked.
"No one will touch a hair on her head," Light replied. The Shinigami looked at Misa, her clawed hand cupped the girl's face.
"Then we have a deal."
The next month when slowly, but sure enough, by the end, both Teru and Higuchi were charged with mass murder and sentenced to death. Their execution happened the following day, no one wanted to keep them alive any longer in case they escaped, and their reign of terror continued, no one on the trial knew of the death note and surprisingly no one wanted to know. All seemingly scared of the power Teru and Higuchi had, those on at court feared if they knew of the power, it would tempt them to seek it out and use it for themselves. With Merikh's death, the NPA made an official announcement that Merikh had been caught and punished for his crimes, there had been a worldwide relief, people living in fear of Merikh were finally able to come forward to express their views, no longer scared of being punished by Merikh. There were still some who still believed in what Merikh was doing, they continue to spread what they believed to be Merikh's message to those who'll listen. Crime rates had gone up to the surprise of no one, but the police would continue to work tirelessly to keep the people of their country safe.
Amane's trial went ahead and, as Light promised her Shinigami, she only got five years and protection whilst in prison. Merikh's Shinigami, Ryuk, has gotten comfortable with the task force, following either Matsuda or B around whilst Amane's Shinigami, Rem returned to the Shinigami Realm with the promise of deterring any other Shinigami's interest in dropping their notebooks into the human world. Both death notes were placed in a watertight bomb-proof safe, and they have hidden it with only L and Watari knowing the location, the fewer people who knew where the death notes were hidden, the safer they'd be.
Light wheeled himself around headquarters, with the Merikh case officially over its time to return home. Most of their belongings have been packed away, all that was left was dismantling the major computer system on the ground floor. Aizawa quickly returned to his wife and child, Mogi, to his unknown girlfriend. Light assumed Matsuda was hanging out with Beyond, but when he wheeled out of the lift, Beyond sat slumped on the sofa.
"Where's Matsuda?" Light asked, wheeling himself over to his best friend. He's seen how close the pair have gotten over the month and he suspected the pair had developed genuine feelings for each other even though they hadn't properly acted on them yet.
"He's gone," Beyond said sulking, "It's probably for the best, we're going home anyway, won't see him again after today,"
"R-right and did he say that or you?" Beyond's silence was answer enough, "B you know there is something called a long-distance relationship or I dunno maybe just maybe you don't have to return to England right now and could stay in Tokyo with Matsuda to see whether it could work?"
"He deserves better, I'm a serial killer, and he's… he's perfect," Beyond sighed.
"Beyond Birthday, look at me," Light said grabbing his best friend's arm and pulling him up into a sitting position, "Stop living in the past, you've made mistakes, yes, and I know better than anyone you regret your actions."
"It doesn't matter if I regret it, I still killed people, they might've been close to dying, but I still ended their lives," Beyond snapped.
"I wasn't talking about LA. I was talking about A," Light said, and Light might've slapped him again for the look Beyond had on his face at the mention of his dead boyfriend, "Listen, you've never gotten over his death, I know you think it's your fault because he committed suicide because of your eyes, but that shouldn't stop you from living your life. Beyond, Matsuda knows about your eyes, he knows about your past and in this last month he hasn't turned away from you. If he can accept who you are, then it's worth a shot, isn't it? I know how much you loved A and the pain of losing him will never truly go away, but maybe it's time to open your heart up again and see what a relationship with Matsuda can bring you. I've seen the way you look at him and I've seen the way he looks at you. Beyond, don't give him up, don't lose him because you're too scared to take the next step."
"W-what should I do?" Beyond whispered.
"I think you should go to his apartment and tell him how you feel," Light said, smiling. Beyond took in a deep breath before slowly letting it out, a look of determination settled on his face for a moment before it crumpled again.
"I don't know where he lives," Beyond said resigned.
"Well, it's a good thing we still have some working computers and an expert at hacking into the NPA on hand, don't we," Light grinned.
He's so stupid thinking they'd have a relationship at the end of this. It doesn't matter about all the hardships they've been through during this case, Beyond is still going home at the end of it all. Why! Why did he think that maybe, just maybe, they'd have a chance, was it the moment they had in the gym, where Matsuda asked Beyond to believe in him, was it the kiss they shared? What was he thinking! Beyond's closest friend and probably the only person who could understand him had been taken by Merikh so, of course, he's going to get attached to the first person who showed him compassion and remembers that L wasn't the only person who'd lost someone close to him, Beyond had too. Then Kira's rescued and Beyond still talks and hangs out with him and somewhere, somewhere deep inside of him, he decides he doesn't what to lose what they have and when Matsuda finally gets the courage to talk to Beyond about his feelings and to confirm that this weird relationship; they have going on isn't one side. Beyond telling him, he's leaving, returning home with L and Kira and that's it'd probably be the last time they saw each other.
What was he thinking! They'd never have the chance, Matsuda knew this, the moment the investigation was over Beyond was leaving and he is, he's probably already in L's private jet flying home and Matsuda's left picking up the pieces of his broken heart. All he wants to do is crawl into bed and ignore the world, but some incessant person keeps hammering on his door. He's not sure who it is, probably his landlord demanding rent a week before it's due, it wouldn't be the first time, but when he opened the door, he didn't find his landlord, but Beyond standing there.
"W-what…" Matsuda stuttered, "How do you know where I live?"
"Kira hacked into the NPA, can I come in?" Beyond asking, Matsuda nodded his head, moving aside to let him in before closing the door behind him, "Listen, I have something to say, but I'd appreciate it if I had a chance to say everything before hearing your response."
"Okay, what's wrong?" Matsuda agreed.
"Nothing really. Let me tell you a story once upon a time: two twin boys grew up at the hands of not so nice parents, they were neglected and beaten because of their intelligence. The parents didn't like their children correcting them in front of influential people in their lives, this lasted for four years until they were whisked away to an orphanage where people understood their intelligence and helped nurture them. I didn't have a great start in life and when we reached the orphanage, L and I already had this strain between us. L started solving cases, and I drifted into the background. I'm only telling you this not for pity, but to understand who I am and what made me this person. After a year of being practically forgotten, a new resident came to the orphanage called A, and he was the first person who understood me, who preferred me over my brother, and he became my best friend and later boyfriend. A, he committed suicide when I was sixteen, he knew about my eyes and couldn't cope. That ultimately sent me off the deep end and I ran to LA and did what I did. Kira tried to support me, but at that time he and L started dating and I felt like I was losing all the people I cared for to L again and I needed some way of getting back at him. What I'm trying to say is, that I struggle with opening up to people and expressing how I truly feel. Kira helped me understand that A's death still had a hold over me and I needed to let him go so that I can move on to something new," Beyond explained. Matsuda's breath caught in his throat as he asked.
"And what is that?". Beyond smiled, taking Matsuda's hands in his own.
"You Touta. I've never felt what I feel for you before. I truly care about you, and I would like to peruse a relationship with you. I can't promise that I'll be the best boyfriend, I can't say I'll understand if I've done something that's hurt you, but I know I want to be with you," Beyond smiled bringing Matsuda's hands up to his face and pressing a kiss on his knuckles, "I suppose the only to ask is if you feel the same way?"
Matsuda stared at Beyond. Pulling his hands out of B's grip before throwing his arms around Beyond's neck, burying his head in his neck.
"I do, I feel the same way," Matsuda cried as he clung to the man in front of him. Beyond wrapped his own arms around Matsuda's waist.
"I'll stay," Beyond whispered, "For as long as we need to make sure no small distance will affect us, I'll stay with you."
