Nine Months Due

By: Kaytee Kudo

Category: Death Note

Genre: Romance, Humor

Rating: T

Summary: The Shinigami decide to take matters into their own hands and attempt to put the Kira case to a close by erasing the world's memories of Kira. But this is not without consequence…

Other Notes: Alternative ending bordering AU; LxLight, Mpreg in later chapters

Quick Recap from Previous Chapter: With boredom from being stuck for almost a month with L in his dark room finally getting the best of him, Raito finally got his wish and went outside. Unfortunately, the two people he first met were also the same two kids notorious for sneaking out at night, and took Raito to a gaybar. This, of course, made L very angry.

Disclaimer: I don't own Death Note…not even in my dreams…

CHAPTER 11

The Punishment

Light ended up seated in between the two troublemakers in the center back, like it was actually reserved for problem children, and he guessed that it really wasn't hard to conclude that he is one of the problem children here, or something. The thing is, Light is NOT a child anymore, and if anything, it was L who should be here anyway. He has more problems than all these children combined, as far as he is concerned. And while he is absolutely sure that he did not do anything wrong in the first place, he still had to accept than in this institution, L is boss, however unjust that may be, and there is just no way to get out of this mess. He just had to accept that he had to spend his mornings indefinitely with kids like these. Not to mention that these two were the epitome of deviant.

As soon as the car stopped at the gate of Whammy's House last night, L instantly grabbed Light's arm and dragged him back to their room, and threw him on the bed.

L looked like he was furious, pacing to and fro as he bit his thumb a little harshly than he usually did, but Light didn't care about that. He was also angry, and at point, he only cared about his anger, and not anyone else's. As such, he threw the detective a spiteful look.

"Raito-kun should know that I am very angry about what he did tonight." L started, trying to reserve his anger. "He has completely abused my trust in him, and has violated every rule I gave him the moment I allowed him a little freedom."

"I wasn't aware that we did have rules", Raito pointed out bitterly.

"I don't want to hear any excuses from you, Raito-kun", L snapped. "You are still a minor and therefore should be aware that you are not supposed to do things so recklessly."

Raito just glared at him.

"You have no idea how worried I was when I could not see you in the cameras anymore, and it was so much worse when Watari informed me of your current location. I think that Raito-kun is already aware that he is still underage and is therefore banned from drinking liquor, let alone be seen in any kind of club, and especially now that he is pregnant. And when I saw you, you where actually making the moves on someone."

"I didn't do any of that!"

"You could not deny physical evidence, Raito-kun." L said resolutely. "Souichiro-san would be so disappointed if he ever got word of this."

"Don't you get my father involved in this," Raito warned. "And you're not even listening to me. How can you even consider this as a 'talk'?"

"I've already seen everything with my eyes, Raito-kun. What more would you explain to me?"

"That you're an inconsiderate jerk, for one, and that you were the one who said that I can explain my side when we get home, but you're acting more like and idiot than a detective."

L sighed, and realized that he was indeed exaggerating things. But to his credit, this was actually his first time to panic like that, and he really didn't know that he could have such a reaction.

"I am sorry, Raito-kun. I didn't mean to vent my anger on you.", he said finally "I already investigated the matter. You met Mello and Matt, and they were the ones who took you to the gay club, but of course you were older than them, and the proper thing to do was to refuse them."

Raito pouted.

"They don't look as innocent as their age suggests them to be."

L smiled at Raito's childishness.

"But they are still children. They may act like an adult but they still have quirks to get over. That is why I still could not decide who I should pick to become my successor."

"You still have quirks." Raito pointed out.

"But I am L, and I am exempt from all of that screening."

"You still sound like an unfair jerk to me."

"And Raito-kun will still be taking his punishment for defying me."

Remembering last night, Raito was still angry at L. That man always considers himself to be right, but he truthfully is unfair.

"Yo, Raito-CHAN", the blonde boy finally said, purposely emphasizing the honorific and not directly looking at the teen, and instead just faced the teacher in front of him. "What'ya in for?"

"Violation of parole, driving without a license, underage drinking, voluntary participation in lewd and lascivious acts and attack of a police officer in duty."

"Tch," Mello spat bitterly. "Even in crimes you're still a wuss"

"So? I didn't even commit half of those crimes, L just assumed that I did. For all I know, you're the ones who sold me like sheep."

"We were supposed to bail you out, but L was faster. And even if we did get back earlier here, L still managed to pursue us, and we got pretty much the same sentence as you did, not to mention he confiscated all the stuff we acquired from the outside world, including our motorcycles (which we paid for with our own money), and cut us all of our connections to videogames, cigarettes and chocolates."

"Which you totally deserve…"

"Shut up!", Mello snapped. "Whatever it is, it's still your fault. We've been doing this for years and this is the first time we get caught. It's all thanks to you."

"Yeah, and I'm not the victim here just because of that?"

"You voluntary agreed to coming with us, you should have just sucked it up like a man and took responsibility instead of squealing us out."

"Hey, I didn't squeal anything to L. He was just so sure that I was with you given the place I got caught in. He probably knows a lot about you two, considering that he even described each of your personalities in detail."

"Really?", Mello asked, partially hiding his interest. "What did he say about me?"

Raito gave him a calculating look.

"He said that you're a chocolate-loving brat, and you would have been a good candidate if you haven't started going out with 'the bad crowd'" Raito said cockily. "But I really think that you would have ended up like that either way."

"Why you…"

"Will the two of you stop shouting at each other?" Matt, who was enduring the argument, finally had it, and he shouted it louder than usual, which made all the kids in the room look at him. Fortunately, the teacher left for a while to get his materials.

Raito was surprised at the sudden annoyance, and Mello merely looked at him mockingly, like he didn't know a basic fact.

"Matt is currently under cold turkey", Mello said in an almost whisper. "He may act calm, but that's only because he's too hooked on video games and cigarettes to even care about what everyone does."

Raito nodded in understanding, and turned to look at Matt again. Sure enough, the boy he first saw as the calm, cool, mature peacemaker looked more like a boy who just killed an entire village, and was about to repeat the same crime in just a minute. He looked scary, that Mello could be considered a saint, and when he glared at him, Raito quickly turned away for fear of losing his own life.

"As you can see, he's a mess now, and it's bound to get worse if we annoy him. It's all your fault anyway."

"I didn't say anything to L." Raito rebutted. "He just happened to study every video in the entire building, and concluded that the entire system had been hacked. The only person that had enough ability and guts to pull that stunt, according to him, happened to be Matt, and L saw the two of us talking before we mysteriously disappeared."

"Whatever", Mello dismissed, not even caring what the teen just said. "The bottom line is, if we hadn't met you, we wouldn't be enduring this month-long ban in the first place, and unless you find a way to alleviate our suffering, you would expect that the Matt you see here would only get worse."

The teacher returned then, looking like he ran a few miles to get there, and he may have been chased by a couple of dogs by the way he gasped for air.

"I'm so sorry to make you wait children. For today, we'll be painting each other's pictures!" he said enthusiastically.

A lively 'yay' of approval was heard throughout the room, and Raito could only look in wonder.

"He must really be paid extravagantly to act like that", Mello commented, looking amused at the simple ways the teacher makes to get the students happy.

"I'm sure of that", Raito agreed, for the first time, on Mello's comment. "Anyway, I bet you enjoyed that one back when you were still in this grade." Raito followed up with mockery.

Mello looked annoyed.

"I didn't attend any of these classes", he informed. "For your information, when I first got here, I was already on the high level, specialized classes."

Raito just grinned, which continued to annoy Mello.

"Matt mentioned that this actually is an institute for the highly gifted, but disguises itself as an orphanage. Kids like these complete the disguise that this is an orphanage."

"So there are also normal kids here?" Raito confirmed.

"Yeah. The normal kids are orphans found around these parts, and they attend normal classes such as this." Mello explained. "The exceptional children are either orphaned or voluntary given by their parents, and they compete to become the successor of L."

"Uhuh…"

"I ran away from home and tried joining the mafia, and Matt here actually used to work in the mafia, his dad was one of the leaders of it. L found us when he arrested the whole family, and took us to this place." Mello continued. "Growing up as a child in that environment, you couldn't blame Matt here for being hooked on cigarettes, but the video games part he learned here. He says it keeps him from being bored in this peaceful place. He used to join his father in fights, you know? And now the only violence he can witness is from playing video games. It's sad, really."

From hearing the family background, Raito began to doubt his first impressions on Matt as a peaceful, well-rounded, if not rebellious kid. His addiction to smoking and gaming might be the only reason for his nice personality.

"Then, how about you?" Raito inquired.

"I come from a highly religious family, but it's really not enough to keep us alive. My dad left us to look for another woman, and my mom got insane because of that. She tried to kill me just because I look like him, and I ran away to vent my anger on the streets. But in order to live around those parts, you really need to join one of the mafia families."

Raito wasn't so surprised about Mello's story.

"And, let me guess, you see L as a hero because he saved you from having a miserable life?"

"Hmph", the boy just said, and Raito knew he was right.

"Why the chocolates then?"

"It gives me pure sugar rush"

"There are all kinds of sweets that gives sugar rush just as effectively."

"I tend to stick to only one" the boy simply said.

"Oh"

"Are you paying attention there in the back?" the teacher called, and went to their direction.

"Here you go", he handed each of them a set of paint and a canvass. "Please paint a picture of each other, and you…"

"I'm not doing that kind of shit", Matt fought, and the teacher actually whimpered at the glare he was getting.

"W-well then", he turned his attention to Raito and Mello. "Raito-kun. How about you paint both Mello and Matt while Mello will paint Raito? That sounds good, right?"

The two of them just stared.

"All right, you may now begin." He clapped his hands and immediately left the room.

"I think that teacher is spending way too much time outside"

"And I think that that teacher is kind of stupid for trying to even approach Matt", Mello added. "What? This is an orphanage after all, it's usual for adults to pay as little attention to kids. What these brats are having is a luxury to most."

"But still, I think it's weird."

"It's only because you're used to having teachers praise you and everything. I bet you're one of those perfect kids in perfect families who never even had conflict with anything, and don't deny it." Mello said. "But then, how did you end up here?"

"I became too perfect" was Raito's simple answer as he began preparing the canvass. "Now don't move"

"You're actually going to do what that guy said? I'm telling you, you're a wuss." Mello began his painting too, and finished in less than a second. "There, this is what you call a work of art."

Raito looked at the canvass, and frowned at the totally inaccurate portrayal of himself. It was a simple kid's drawing of a face, with a hurried circle as the head, dots and lines for the face, and an awful mess of hair. He even added a stick figure for the body.

"I think it turned out nicely. But you look more of a wuss in real life."

Raito just frowned again, and continued painting, and it was really harder than he imagined. Mello just wouldn't stay still and Matt just sends him death glares every once in a while, which honestly creeps him out. When he finished, he was really pleased with himself. It looked true to life, far different from what Mello did earlier.

But when he handed it to the teacher, he was disappointed at the man's reaction.

"Good, Raito-kun", he said as he piled his work to the other more mediocre paintings the kids managed to pull off. This was probably the first time he missed his classes in Japan.

Mello just looked at him smugly.

"Wuss"

"Shut up"

This was also the first time Raito felt that he just wasted all his time and efforts on something so useless.

After a while, the teacher told them to go play outside, and Mello instantly pulled him outside.

"We're playing soccer, and we need another guy." Raito took it as Mello's version of inviting someone.

"How about Matt?" he asked, and Mello just looked at him like he was an idiot.

"Do we really need Matt to play?", he pointed to the boy, who looked more like hell as ever, and Raito was convinced that this was reason enough.

"I don't know how to play soccer."

"You don't have to. Just run around with us and you'll be fine"

Raito still didn't feel like playing soccer, but from the iron grip the boy has, he knew he really had no choice. The grip almost felt like L's only more aggressive, and less gentle.

Whammy's House was really big, and the playing field was something to boast about. It looked more like a place where championships were held, rather than a makeshift field for children to play on.

"Yo, Mello", said a kid who already has his soccer gear on. "Heard you were held back to preschool."

"Fuck off", Mello said threateningly, and if the boy had some smart comeback after that, he probably hated his life that much, because seriously, Mello looked like he was ready to kill at just one lame insult.

He tossed a pair of shoes and attire to Raito, and started to get dressed as well.

"This is Raito", he introduced to the team. "He'll be replacing Matt for a while, because you see, Matt's not feeling very well."

Raito observed the measly team of nine kids, half of them looked like, similarly to Raito, were forced to come here to make up the team, all of which listen to Mello's every word.

"Okay guys, listen up. The game plan is simple. Keep the ball rolling to our playing field and don't let anyone of them score. If you're in doubt, pass it to me. If anyone messes this up will guarantee themselves to get ass-kicked by the end of the game."

The boys nodded in unison. Raito watched amused at the scene.

"Are you ready yet?" Mello asked, and Raito just stood up, in complete soccer gear in response. "Good, now let's go."

The game in itself was as what Raito expected: an amateur game of kids who don't have the proper skills in soccer yet. Only, as the teen would have thought, Mello played like a professional, if not for the curse words he often uttered. By halftime, the game was as good as theirs. True to his word, Raito didn't even have to do anything to win.

"Run along, bitches!" Mello shouted tauntingly to the other team, who looked like they wouldn't make a comeback anytime soon, from the physical state they're in. Eventually, one of them messed up a kick, sending the ball flying out of bounds. One of the team members volunteered to get the ball back, but stopped dead in his tracks when the ball found its way back without him having to do anything.

Matt walked into the playing field holding the ball in this hand, in a worst state than ever, eyes looking murderous.

"Who the hell told you shitheads that you can play without me?"

The boy squeaked. And Matt kicked. The ball flew wildly in the field, and Raito really wished that he paid attention that time.

Raito opened his eyes only to see Mello's face looking back at him, and he felt his head already throbbing.

"What happened?", he said faintly.

"A soccer ball hit you squarely in the face, and you fainted. Then L ran quickly to the field and carried you to the infirmary. He must have seen everything. We won, anyway", he added, as if it was a piece of news Raito wanted to hear.

"Where is he?"

"He went back to his room" Mello said. "Seriously, what is it with you and L? My first impression was that you're a high profile criminal that L is tasked to look after, before the courts decide what to do with you, but I'm starting to think that I'm wrong."

"What made you conclude that?"

Mello shrugged.

"Just a guess, I mean, I can tell a lot by just looking at you. I've spent years studying how to profile people that I'm this good"

Raito unbelievably arrogant boy, and decided to let it pass.

"You could say that that's a near description of what we are." He said as he slumped back in his bed.

"He told everyone that the game is over after that, and I think this is the first time I've seen him run that fast. He only left when Watari called him", Mello added. "Anyway, I hope you're alright. Matt says sorry by the way."

The blonde boy left after that, leaving Raito alone, and that was the only time Raito realized that white walls really creep him out.

Massaging his head occasionally, he got out of the room and walked slowly on the hallway to his room. Only that, being new to the place, he really didn't know where he was. After wandering aimlessly for a few minutes, he just gave up walking and sat down on a corner. That was where L found him, almost asleep.

The detective sat next to him, and didn't say anything for a while.

"You'll get a cold if you sleep here, Raito-kun", he finally said.

Raito said nothing, and L became more worried at how blank Raito's face was.

"Let's go back to our room, Raito-kun", he said, determined.

The boy did not move an inch.

"Raito-kun, it is nearly afternoon, you need to rest", he persuaded.

Still no response.

L sighed.

"If Raito-kun does not go ahead and walk, I will be forced to carry him. Either way, Raito-kun will end up in our room, it only depends on how embarrassing it's going to be."

Raito pouted at that, face undoubtedly red, but nevertheless stood up and started walking. L followed soon after.

"Raito-kun is going the wrong way", L pointed out, which earned him a glare. L just smiled and took his hand, leading the way to the room.

The walk to the room was a very silent one, because L was keeping things to himself and Raito was just too embarrassed to say anything.

When L closed the door, Raito was still as quiet as ever, just staring back at the detective.

"Raito-kun…" L started, walking near the boy.

The boy said nothing, and just sat at the edge of the bed, looking at the floor. L also sat down and inspected the boy for any damages the day might have caused.

"Raito-kun has been defying me lately", he said as gently massaged the boy's head. "He is purposely getting himself in trouble. I am worried about his self-destructive tendency."

"You were the one who sent me back to pre-school!" Raito pointed out, getting away from the detective, who looked a little rejected. "And on top of that, you grouped me with those two brats who are suffering from withdrawal symptoms."

"I didn't think that Raito-kun would still stick with the same people who put him in trouble the first time."

"You should have considered that then", Raito concluded. "They are the only people there who are bearable to talk to."

L looked at the teen's irritated face and suddenly kissed him passionately, and the sudden act gave no time for Raito to react, as his body went limp, and by the time they broke the kiss, he was breathless. It took a full minute for Raito to recover, and when he did, the first thing he did was to punch the jerk who suddenly kissed him.

"Why did Raito-kun hit me?" L asked, more wide-eyed than usual, cupping his throbbing cheek.

"Why did you kiss me?" Raito asked back, controlling his anger, his patience rapidly falling apart.

"Raito-kun looked like he wanted to be kissed" was L's simple answer. "And this new rebellious side to him is turning me on. I must say, Raito-kun, if you continue playing hard to get, it will only make me want you even more"

The teen went red instantly, and hit L with a pillow as a reflex.

"Stop saying weird things", he said with clear embarrassment. "Jerk"

L gave one of his rare smiles, and leaned his head on Raito's shoulder. His hand reached out for the boy's hand and squeezed it gently.

"I'm sorry, Raito" L whispered to Raito's ear in a low voice. "But I'm nearing my limit now."

Raito gasped at L's voice, and turned into a deeper shade of red, not saying anything. L proceeded to kiss him gently, and the boy just froze there, not really doing anything to encourage the man, but also not doing anything to stop him either. But then, L did not go farther than kissing, choosing instead to kiss every part of the boy's body slowly, with Raito flinching and gasping every so often. It was really a new experience for the teen, and yet it felt more intimate and gentle, that he could not tell the detective to stop. After a while, he got used to the kisses and relaxed at L's touch.

...

"I realized", L said after the two of them were lying in bed after cuddling together for a long time, relaxed and sharing each other's warmth. "That even if Raito does a lot of things that make me angry, and question my authority, I still could not bring to punish him righteously. And even if I try to, it just makes an opposite effect since I am more worried about his safety than my pride getting hurt to prove a point."

L kissed the boy again, and embraced him possessively, as if the teen would be snatched away if he were not careful enough.

"You also have to understand that your sense of justice is sometimes crooked, and your means of punishment are merciless" Raito opposed as he tried to get away from the man's arms.

"I suppose Raito thinks that his sense of justice is righteous."

"Of course", Raito huffed, like a kid

L smiled at being able to see a childish Raito, and tightened his grip more.

"I honestly don't know what to do with Raito-kun"

L fell asleep in a proper bed for the first time that night.

"And now class, I would like you to introduce Mr. Light Yagami, who came straight from Japan to become my assistant. Please make Yagami-san at home while he is around", the professor introduced. "Would you like to say something, Mr. Yagami?"

The teen flashed his best smile, and introduced himself in the same flourish.

"Well then, why don't you do your first assignment, Mr. Yagami, and check the attendance?" the professor gave him the list of students clipped to a board, and Raito nodded. He announced the names flawlessly, like he was a native speaker of English.

But that all stopped when he reached the letter "M".

It was unbelievable, anyway, that he had to double check. But he was not mistaken. L really pulled the same stunt twice.

"You guys!" Raito spoke, trying to hide his annoyance.

"Seems like we'll be stuck again with each other", Mello said in the same tone Raito used. "Let's work hard together, Raito-sensei"

And Raito could not believe that he would easily be agitated by those simple sentences.

The teen could really feel that he would really be stuck here, and not in a good way, either.

End of Chapter

A/N: I seriously also don't know how to punish Raito, if I was in L's shoes, I hope everyone would forgive me. The detective just loves the man so much that he couldn't resist...but, I hope I can give better justice on the next chapter. I hope you guys enjoyed the chapter, anyway. Please review to show your appreciation!

On the other hand, since I'm given a rare opportunity of having a long free time, I'm planning to spend quality time with my fanfics. I'll probably finish my next chapter on my other fic, Right Hand Man, so be sure to check that out too. I also hope to start on the next chapter of this fic, if I still have time. Suggestions are welcome! (and also, corrections on typos would be appreciated). Bye for now.