"We can't help everyone, but everyone can help someone."

~Ronald Reagan

Light was pleasantly surprised when no-one else came by to pester him for the rest of the day, but the lack of interaction also left something to be desired. Having been bickering with a voice inside his head for the last few hours, he felt starved for real human interaction

Besides, stewing in his insanity– his own vile, unproductive thoughts– was not good for his health. Despite Ayato's functionality as a brief distraction from his worries and his horror, he was still sure that his physical appearance was taking a hit from his lack of care at the moment.

He didn't want to bother. As far as he was concerned, he looked the part of a traumatized assault victim and that was good enough for him.

After the sun had stopped glaring through the curtains of his room, Light began to feel the tingling of his nerves, his brain screaming at him to do something, anything.

Yet, he waited. For something, anything, to break him out of his reverie.

Nothing happened, and Ayato remained deathly silent.

As it turned out, both his father and mother had stopped by the hospital to visit, but the staff had refused them for unspecified reasons. That, in it of itself, was extremely suspicious, but Light didn't exactly detest the lack of his parents' company.

He didn't have a cover story yet.

Accommodating for his new… habits was going to take meticulous planning which he had neither the time nor energy to do.

He had thought Ayato was asleep– writing off his complete silence as slumber, that is– so with his mind to himself at the moment, he mulled over his new state of life with an uncomfortable edge of vulnerability to himself. Having another living being in his mind was something unknown and new to him; though, Light supposed that this was a learning process for both of them.

He quietly tapped his fingers in thought.

It felt nearly taboo to have this much time to himself, but Light continued in a silent daze that stretched nearly until the day shift was out at the hospital. Ayato had still not spoken a single word throughout the entire day, and Light began to wonder what had happened to him.

Maybe it was all a figment of his imagination– the voice, that is.

He couldn't ignore the fact that human flesh smelled appetizing and that his scar was far too smooth and clean to have been a product of normal healing.

That would be denial.

He began to wonder about the doctor who had spoken to him not a day ago as well. The slimy, deceitful man was nowhere to be found, and Light couldn't exactly leave his quarters and mosey around for the fellow. No, he wanted answers while simultaneously being chained to a room that held absolutely nothing.

What a pity.

Needless to say, his curiosity sputtered out like a dying candle flame as the room slowly dimmed with the coming of the sunset.

It was nearing midnight, and he could only exhale deeply, staring into the analog clock bolted onto the wall, watching its three different hands tick towards the final minutes of the day. His eyes peered around, desperately, looking for something to focus on and something to think about. His brain lagged behind him, rolling forward at the pace of a snail. He blinked the fogginess out of his eyes and tapped his fingers methodically on the blanket, the sound completely muted by the fabric.

Finally, in a resigned huff, Light conceded to defeat and let himself lay back onto the hospital bed, stiffly laying against the too-thin pillow that cradled his head.

He slowly drifted from the conscious world as the buzzing of artificial lights thrummed in his ears, almost like the cicadas that chirruped in the dead of night at home.

"I think I'm dead."

Light blinked.

He was in the same field as before, surrounded by a plethora of white roses and a too-perfect sky. Ayato sat in his reserved patch of flowers; they smelled of rosemary now that Light had his wits about him to fully focus on his environment. It quickly registered in his mind that this wasn't a normal dream, only if because he had come to associate Ayato's voice with an uncomfortably genuine trickle of reality.

He blinked again before focusing on Ayato, fully paying attention this time.

"I don't remember how it happened exactly, but I'm here now," Ayato continued, trembling a bit with the final word. He rubbed at his eyes and grumbled a bit, "I'm already over it–" he wasn't, but Light didn't make a comment "–and I think we're only here, together, because that dumbass doctor used me– my body to fix you."

Light wasn't sure how Ayato had come to that conclusion (especially given the boy's rather unfocused attitude towards the details of his death), but it was the best lead he had so far. He could find physical proof of that later, but he decided to go along with it just to open up an avenue of thought.

Better something than nothing.

"But–" Light started cautiously.

"But how, right?" Ayato ran his right hand through his scalp and began to absentmindedly pick the lavender-colored flowers at his knees with his left. He shifted into a one-sided kneel and spoke as he jammed another flower from the ground, "How the fuck did my kakuhou end up in you?"

Almost having forgotten, Light quickly had to remind himself that Ayato was as lost as he was in the situation.

He's a child–

No use in avoiding beating around the bush, he summed.

"Well," Light started, rubbing his thumb on the hem of his sleeve, "Let's examine what happened step by step. What do you remember happening before dying?" It was blunt and maybe too much so for a child, but Light only cared for the facts at this point, sensitivity came last to solving a case.

"Not a lot." Ayato's thumb drifted to his face and he traced circles over his lips. "I don't even remember how it happened, I only remember… uh… hmm." Ayato paused, looking down rather abruptly. He clammed up for a moment and shifted inward with his arms and knees.

Light realized that he had hit a rather tender spot.

"Go on," Light encouraged him, even falsifying a sincere grin for Ayato. Much to Light's chagrin, Ayato tightened up even more with his arms bound tight around his chest.

"I don't need to talk about it, it's not important," Ayato blurted quickly, eyes darting away from Light's. He changed the topic with a tone of panic, "We just know that I died and that we're some sort of weird, fucked up combo that shouldn't really exist. Perfect."

Ayato's words ended with an overly sarcastic bite to them, raising Light's suspicions ever so slightly.

Light knew something was up about Ayato's death, but he would give the kid some space. It was a waiting game; eventually, he would gain his trust and understand what happened.

Patience. Be patient.

"I'm not human anymore, Ayato," Light breathed harshly through his nose and felt some bitterness rise in his throat, his body catching up with his mind to pull on another act. He pinched the bridge of his nose as he looked pointedly at Ayato, "I can't eat normal food, so I have to be a ghoul. That means that Kanou-Sensei purposefully gave me this kakuhou. He couldn't have accidentally transplanted an organ like that, Ayato. Think about it; he knew what he was doing."

Ayato peered at him slanted and rubbed his hands together slowly, reading Light akin to how one would read a book. Light knew that the boy hadn't a clue what Light was like or what he truly thought, but he kept his pointed look on Ayato and continued to feign his ignorance.

"So what do we do now?" Ayato barked explosively, suddenly raising his tune an octave higher. He seethed like a raging fire, "We're stuck together now and I can't do shit about it."

Ayato abruptly stood and clenched his fists together at his sides, "What do you want me to do about it, huh?! Want me to fucking reverse time? What am I supposed to do now that I'm glued to your side?"

Light looked cooly at Ayato as he vented out, spouting increasingly nonsensical and incoherent things as his screaming began to become rawer and rawer. Eventually, Ayato slowed down, eyes pouring, and plopped himself onto the ground. He stared at the ground despondently and the occasional sob choked itself out.

Fairly sure that Ayato's tantrum had subsided, Light slowly rose from his seat among the white flowers and approached Ayato, making cautiously calculated moves that wouldn't stoke his anger again. Finally approaching from the side, Light bent down a bit and rubbed Ayato on the shoulder silently.

"I don't expect you to have all the answers, Ayato," Light defused the situation, cementing another smile onto his face. He continued slowly– just short of trustworthiness, "I'm only asking so that I can understand what happened to us better. Trust me, I want to fix this as much as you do, but I can't do it without the right information." Light got up, and he peered into the now cloudless sky. "I just want you to try and make it easy for both of us; tell me how to be a ghoul, and I can figure this out with you."

"Why?" Ayato choked out, voice broken up by the deluge of tears and phlegm cluttering up his throat, "Why should I help you?"

Light faltered a bit and paused for just a moment, trying to find something reasonable for Ayato to latch onto.

The solution clicked quickly in his mind.

"I have a family back home, Ayato," Light looked back at Ayato, making eye contact with him immediately. Seal the deal. "They're human, and I would lose them if I go out of control. I want them to be safe, and I want us to be safe. The last thing I want is to leave my family behind, Ayato." It was a half-lie, Light certainly did not want to die, but that consequently meant leaving his family behind.

Half-truths, maybe.

Light's answer seemed sufficient enough for Ayato, as he began to pull himself together quite quickly.

"Alright, then," Ayato sniffed, rubbing the back of his hand against his nose rather aggressively. "I'll teach you what I know, but you're gonna have to promise to keep this stuff away from your family. One whiff of this and the CCG is gonna be on your ass."

"Ah, yes… I'll agree with that." Light paused for a second. That would be difficult to pull off, especially since he was injured, but he knew it meant death for both of them if his secret got out. "Start from the beginning, including the 'CCG'."

"Ugh," Ayato grunted, crossing his arms. He declared pointedly, "All humans are dumb. Let's do the basic stuff."

He positioned himself into a cross-legged pose and laced his fingers together loosely. "The CCG is basically a group of government-hired shitheads that hunt down ghouls for the sake of hunting us down. They think that we're heartless, uncontrollable monsters that need to be killed, so they're always looking for new ways to fuck us up."

"Well, they wouldn't have reason to think that without proof, right?" Light theorized, taking a seat beside Ayato in a lotus position. "That must mean that there are some ghouls who are, in your words, 'heartless, uncontrollable monsters'."

"Hmm… well, yeah," Ayato quietly conceded beneath the fist he had placed on his lips. "Kind of, at least. Sometimes ghouls go out of their way to kill and eat people for fun, but that's not most ghouls. A good amount of ghouls only get like that when they haven't eaten in months."

"Ah, I'm generalizing, aren't I?" Light asked lightly. Ayato looked a bit puzzled, so Light was swift to simplify, "I mean, I was making a huge guess about ghouls back there."

"Yeah, you were," Ayato hissed rather snarkily. He dragged on regardless, "The CCG's deal is simple enough: stay away and you won't be killed. Any questions?" The final sentence was delivered with some bite.

Not the best impression to make.

"How do they kill?"

Light was now fully aware that ghouls were physiologically superior to humans, Ayato had mentioned it a few times before, but then how could humans manage to topple their supposed predator? There wasn't a clear answer to Light, and Ayato knew more than him about the topic, so Light was left to claw for snippets at best.

"Good question," Ayato shrugged. He pointed behind him, to his upper back, and spoke, "A while ago, I think maybe in the last fifty or something years, some fucker decided to pick up some dead ghoul's kakuhou and make it into a weapon using electricity 'n shit. Then they made a lot of 'em. Only ghouls can really hurt other ghouls, so they decided to use our own parts against us."

That was… chilling, Light supposed. It wasn't enough to have them die naturally; humans had to exterminate them just in case all ghouls decided to become aggressive and act on instinct. The preemptive thought behind their ideas made him grow rather concerned, if only for his safety.

"I think that matter is settled then," Light moved on, wanting to expand his general knowledge before delving into the specifics. He went to the topic of combat immediately, "If I ever have to encounter the CCG, then how can I defend myself? Or how do I fight other aggressive ghouls in general?"

"That's easy," Ayato brightened at the mention of fighting (and wasn't that an indication of the type of personality Light was stuck with). He flexed his fingers out from under his face. "Remember that 'thing' I showed you when we first met, from behind my back? That's a kagune, our only weapon. Mine–Ours is suited towards really fast attacks 'n movement and then we run out of steam pretty fast, so we're more of a surprise-attacker if you get what I mean."

Light understood rather clearly and nodded in response. While Light greatly disliked the idea of being mainly a surprise attacker, he knew that he was going to have to work with the cards he was dealt with. Besides the fact that he had short stamina, he could at least make a quick getaway in case of an emergency.

Difficult, but potentially useful.

"Right, I think we can skip most of the other shit since it isn't really important right now," Ayato waved it off as he spoke. "What you really need to know is that you need to eat a whole human every month or you'll tear up the first fucking person next to you; that means game over. If you really want to keep your family safe, make sure you're fed. There'll be a missing person's case within a week if you're not steady on it."

"So what do I do then?" Light was left at a loss; he wasn't supposed to reveal himself to people, he couldn't kill someone within his own volition, and he was a ticking time bomb to his family and himself. There was no positive side to this situation.

"You either kill or get killed, Light," Ayato shook his head disappointedly. "Unless you want to scavenge around for scraps of other ghouls' kills, and even then you're not gonna find much. Ghouls kill for themselves and themselves only. They won't stretch their neck out for a stranger."

Light considered his options. While he didn't want to hunt, he could at least try to minimize his casualties– it felt wrong to think that. If he was going to have to scavenge corpses, then let it be. Even grave robbing was a better option than having more blood on his hands.

"I'll scavenge if I have to Ayato, understand where I'm coming from," Light said softly. He blinked slowly and rested his hands on his knees, "I can't kill someone, it goes against everything I believe in. I don't care if I have to steal corpses, even that's better than hunting. If you're going to teach me how to use this kagune, then it'll be for defense and defense only."

"Why are you so set on being human!?" Ayato grew frustrated in a snap, and Light was taken aback at how emotional Ayato could become. He knew that Ayato was a child, yes, but tantrums were far out of his age range, no? "You're not one of them anymore, so don't try and act like one when it comes to survival. There's gonna be someday where you're gonna have to put down a human whether or not you want to, so lose the fucking pride."

Light's eyes hardened to steel and his hands clenched as he dug his nails into the knees of his pants.

"I'm not going to be a killer, Ayato," Light retorted with frustration. He didn't want to kill anyone, no. He got himself into this situation by looking for death, so he would avoid it completely in the future; lessons completely learned. Something flashed in the back of his mind, but it was already gone by the time he registered it. His determination steeled as he spoke, "I refuse to take a single life if I can help it."

"Are you really gonna be like that?" Ayato spat out. He was scrunched over and digging a hole in the ground with a single finger. When Light failed to give a response, Ayato griped again, "Fine, then I won't tell you anything else. If you're so set on following your rules, then I won't help you at all; it's not my life. I don't have a damn say in anything you do."

"That's," Light said slowly, calculating his words carefully, "petty."

"Who gives a fuck if it is, I'll let you suffer," Ayato shot back, pulling a flower from the ground are tossing it aside carelessly. "I won't tell you anything until you're begging for it."

Light remained silent for a paltry moment. He didn't know how to do anything on his own, but Ayato wasn't going to be reliable anymore.

He'd have to compromise, then. Use what he had from Ayato and fly solo.

Like always.

"Fine," Light got up from beside Ayato and turned away, walking slowly, "If you're not going to help, then I'll figure this out on my own."

Those dangerous words stirred in the air, but neither person spoke again for the rest of the night, stewing in their thoughts.

・・・・

The week and a half went by relatively fast, and Ayato hadn't said a word since their argument. While Light was sure he would come around eventually, but he felt irked that Ayato was monitoring his every move. He despised being scrutinized like this, not having an inkling of privacy to himself.

Despite that, things had gone surprisingly smooth. Kanou hadn't made another appearance since their first meeting, and Light suspected this was because he didn't want to answer any questions nor provoke any accusations of patient favoritism. All the nurses would give him half-hearted answers and refusals to his inquiries about the doctor, so he had gained absolutely nothing from staying there.

A waste.

Light had also noticed another key detail to his newfound ghoul-hood; his injury had completely healed within two days of the incident. Specifically, when Light woke up the morning after their argument, all the stiffness and pain he suffered from post-surgery had abruptly disappeared overnight. He was exceedingly relieved that there were at least some perks to being a ghoul.

Unfortunate that they came at such a steep cost, however.

The hospital had finally deemed him ready to leave, so he had been forced to get up and walk around for at least the last two days of his stay. His legs ached from slight atrophy, but it wasn't necessarily bad. Today marked the 12th day in the hospital, and they would discharge him by the end of it.

His parents would pick him up at the entrance and this whole ordeal would be dealt with. He had other priorities to focus on now, though. The first issue was to get food by the next morning so that he wouldn't get unstable; however, he knew he would have to sacrifice sleep that night to scout.

Yet, there was some sort of excitement that bubbled inside of him; he'd never had such immunity before in his life. Before, he knew he was mortal; a stab wound or a gunshot could easily end the police career that he had dreamt of. Now he had the insurance of relatively quick healing and a defense mechanism specifically designed to maim humans. While he had no idea how to use the latter, he was set on discovering everything this night.

The notion intrigued him more, and he was even more excited at the notion of doing something without having to wear his proverbial mask on. Yes, he knew he might have to make a makeshift mask to cover his face in case he was caught out, but he didn't have to act anymore. It was as though a weight were lifted off his chest, and he could finally breathe again.

For the first time, he had pure, unadulterated freedom.

There he stood, ready to embrace a completely new world; it was different, so un-human, but it was endearing at the same time. There was independence where he had never seen it before, and it was something so different and fresh.

Societal conventions be damned, Light was now deviant; he had another life that wasn't attached to his human one.

"Yagami Light?" A nurse peered in around the door frame, hands curled tentatively around the wood.

"Yes?" he asked from his bed, now fully facing the woman who had intruded.

"Your father is here to dismiss you."

This was it; his new life would start right here, right now.

Reunions were, at best, bittersweet. Upon meeting his father, Light was engulfed in a tight hug and was delivered a few paltry words. His father could be obsessive, almost too obsessive at times. It didn't matter what his father could have done; it was in the past and Light simply accepted that.

Soichiro Yagami, however, did not.

The man had beaten himself up over it, as he had looked incredibly disheveled when Light was picked up. Light's words couldn't soothe the man's demons. Each reassurance was met by a sigh and plain discomfort, leaving Light at a loss at what to do.

They ended up sitting in silence for the rest of the car ride.

When they pulled into the driveway, his father finally spoke.

"Light," his father spoke whilst drumming his fingers against the wheel. He had the same tone that he used to deal with police matters, something Light has heard extensively over the years. The no-nonsense attitude of his father was familiar to Light– it was something he had himself.

He knew this was going to be serious.

"You know we're going to do an investigation on this, right? It's okay if you're not up for being involved, but–" his father darted his eyes towards him quickly before focusing back on the wheel, "Can you give us a lead? Anything works."

Light turned his head away to face the window, sneaking a glance at the house: it was pitch black.

He considered his options. On one hand, he could easily give the police clues as to what happened, but the killer could never be caught since he was a ghoul; there was also the risk that he could get caught if he stays too close to the police.

Perhaps his police career was on hold. For now.

On another hand, Light could completely drop his involvement in the case and leave without too much suspicion. Though, he could attribute it to the injury of the frontal lobe; a concussion worked as a perfect excuse.

"I don't," Light caught himself before he could say 'think'. That was too ambiguous, it left too much room for interpretation. He restarted, "I can't give you anything; the doctor told me I had a concussion. I don't remember much about what happened and anything I do remember may not be accurate."

A decent lie, but not much was needed to completely throw his father off course.

Soichiro Yagami trusts his son. Light wouldn't hesitate to use that trust.

"Very well," his father's fingers tightened around the wheel while his glasses reflected the street lights, obscuring his eyes. He sighs, "If only I could have prevented this whole… ordeal. I'm sorry, Light."

Light hesitated before responding.

"It's not your fault."

"I know, but I'm sorry."

Not another word was spoken.

Like the darkness indicated, the house was devoid of life, and Light's father cleared it up rather quickly. His mother was already asleep, and Sayu had been at a sleepover.

While it was a little insulting to know that Sayu was still living her life despite his condition, Light pushed down his sense of egotism and tried to understand that she had her own things going on. Regardless of his feelings, her not being here worked in his favor.

Less chance of getting caught.

Soichiro offered Light food before going for a rest, but Light reassured him that he wasn't hungry. Light remembered what a plain egg did to him, so he was not ready to try food that legitimately tasted good.

His father told him that has going to head out again for the police station, and the man left as quickly as he arrived.

His father never stayed home often.

Light went straight to his room and noted that it was getting late. His father wouldn't be home until a few hours, and Light would have ample time to prepare for his outing.

First thing was first, he had to fashion a mask.

His secret identity was paramount to his survival. Nobody wanted to catch Light Yagami eating a dead man; it was much better to guarantee his safety.

He looked through his room, haphazardly tossing things onto his bed in lieu of finding a better place to put them. He sighed in frustration when he realized that he had nothing better than simple school supplies.

If he only had paper and pens to work with, then he was going to have to be creative. He wasn't going to draw anything, that would waste time, but he needed to determine the best way to make eye-holes. Or if two eye-holes were even needed.

Whilst pacing around the room in thought, he finally saw his reflection in the TV screen on his desktop. His eyes widened considerably as he finally registered the one, unmistakably black and red orb in the reflection. His right hand drifted up to the right side of his face where the remarkably noticeable pupil glowed a red hue in the black sea that surrounded it.

Would it draw more attention to have both eyes with one eye glowing?

His other eye was just normal, and he inherently knew that he was better off working with a single eye-hole.

Less suspicion, it doesn't confirm I'm a half-ghoul.

Staring at his reflection, he pondered as to how it became this way. He hadn't been aggravated at the hospital, so none of the staff knew that he had a "kakugan."

Perhaps it was his frustration now that caused this to happen.

This thought instilled a deep fear in Light; although he always managed to keep his emotions suppressed and appearance polite, he could always seethe on the inside.

This was like having a mood ring on your eyeball.

One wrong step and people will know.

He continued staring into the screen as he tried to calm himself down, he thought practically and started mentally planning out the mask and his outfit to leave in. Nothing that could be attached to him; he was safe.

If anyone else had to deal with this, they wouldn't cope as well as you.

With that thought, the strange kakugan disappeared with a blink. He blinked again, and it didn't re-appear.

Well, that was sorted. He moved on quickly; there was still much to do.

With only paper and various school equipment at his aide, Light decided to use simple writing paper and cut it into the shape of his face. He then, without much effort, hole-punched the sides of the mask to attach a rubber band he had split. He tied the ends into the sides of the mask and hole-punched the mask again to create a wider eye-hole.

The product looked rather scrappy, but it did the job just fine. He could see out of the eye-hole and his face was fully obscured, so the mask was functional enough.

He then started looking around his drawers for something inconspicuous that he didn't need to wear as a student or, well, himself. He eventually stumbled upon a plain, fairly unnoticeable white sweatshirt and some black jeans. These were throwaway clothes for now; he would need to buy something more reasonable and unrestricted.

He folded them and hid the three items under his bed for when he would change at midnight. After a whole hour of prep, he felt sated. He'd stay up late tonight, so he shrugged his clothing off and settled in for the night.

He'd sleep for a few hours and then he would leave at midnight.

Light blinked at the light of his analog clock, ominously glowing a deep red. It was midnight, and his father had already come home; he heard the somewhat soft click of the door and heavy steps up the stairs. Of course, his father checked on him silently and quickly left.

That left him alone; both of his parents were asleep.

He could afford to leave now, but he would have to be soundless.

He got up slowly, taking great care as to not make the floor creak loudly. Luckily enough, it didn't groan under his weight. It was fairly quiet outside, so it would have been especially harmful if he had made such a noise.

He crouched down and grabbed the clothing he had folded before; slipping the sweatshirt on over his pajama shirt and changed into the darker jeans. He pulled the mask on and strapped the rubber bands around his head, wincing a bit when it squeezed tight against his head. There was nothing he could really do about it, so he grit his teeth and continued onward.

He slid the hood over his head and meticulously tucked his hair underneath the mask and the hood. He knew that there could be absolutely nothing tying his human identity to his ghoul one; even a DNA sample was enough to topple his ruse– should he buy a hairnet?

Later, think about it when you're not starving.

When he looked in the glass of his TV again, he saw a dimly lit figure with rather un-noticeable features. Only a single, brown-hued eye shown through the paper mask. It was perfect for its purpose.

He moved towards the sliding door to the balcony quickly. He had only a few hours to make his move if his father were to wake up at his normal time. He would need to find something decent to work with, a whole corpse would be the best possible outcome. A suicide victim would work perfectly, he theorized.

The only crime he'd be committing is the desecration of a corpse and cannibalism, if a human turned ghoul could even commit the second.

Far better than murder.

He finally had a semblance of his plan as he slipped out the crack of the balcony door. He left only a sliver open to return later on, and he faced the two-story jump in front of him. Ayato had said that ghouls were more resilient than humans, so a jump like this should be a piece of cake.

He bent his knees as he grabbed the railing to hoist himself to the other side of it. He turned to face the drop again, this time on the other side of the fence. After some hesitation and a healthy dose of fear, he leaped off the balcony with a stifled gasp.

Suddenly, he was free-falling. Panic immediately seized him, but he couldn't let it overtake him. Rather than flailing about, he steadied himself in the air and pointed his feet towards the ground. His eyes clenched tight as the air hit them, and he was suddenly on the ground again.

His feet were planted on the floor, his entire lower body crouched downwards. He had made little noise due to the muted pavement, but the shock of the landing left his muscles feeling a little stiff. Despite that, he had made it in one piece.

Part of him cried in despair with the discovery of more proof that he was no longer human, but he shoved those thoughts aside.

No time to be emotional.

He dashed into the nearest alleyway, letting the street signs guide him until he reached a spot his father had complained about quite a bit; it was an intersection where people often committed suicide. Bodies were so common there that reports came in often bi-monthly.

His father's work-talk proved to be fruitful now and again. Light lamented the idea that he would have to give up his detective career with how good he was at it.

Focus.

It was a rather secluded area, which heightened Light's hopes. He dashed out the alleyways into the main street, jay-crossing rather haphazardly. He reached the other side stealthily and immediately noted the smell of blood– the iron-like smell was incredibly distinct– and he looked around in hopes of spotting a body.

Unfortunately, there was none to be found.

He sighed rather heavily.

"Ah, disappointed, are we?" a voice said clamorously from behind him. Light felt his right eye twitch, and he looked behind him abruptly. "This is a popular spot for ghouls, I've noticed. Easy bait."

"B–be careful," Ayato suddenly chimed in.

Light was startled; this must have been serious for the boy to intervene whilst under a grudge. But you're not ready–

The figure approached slowly, barely illuminated by the street light near the alley entrance. The man's white hair contrasted vividly with the darkened brick walls of the alley, and the man's suit suggested something sinister.

"Shit, investigator!" Ayato exclaimed loudly in his head, and Light took a few steps back in caution. "This guy's CCG, run the fuck away!"

Light did not need to be told twice. He bolted the other way and barely picked up the man's words.

"Hmm, it's almost a shame you don't want to fight," the man taunted, voice still startlingly close. Light glanced behind him and saw that the man was in hot pursuit, a metal briefcase in tow. "I'd love to test my new toy out! "

"Light, you need to use our kagune," Ayato blurted speedily. He stammered, "Or at least get up; this guy can't follow you if you can get on top of the building! Just jump and use the window ledges to throw yourself further."

Light had no clue as to how to use his kagune, so he had no choice but to take Ayato's second piece of advice. He slowed down slightly, wincing a bit, and bent his knees to get some strength going. He took a running start and jumped towards the side of the alleyway, his hands scrambling for something to hook onto. His fingers barely latched onto the edge of one of the apartment building's window ledges, and Light hoped he hadn't brought more unwanted attention to himself.

The CCG investigator came to a halt below him, and Light continued to dangle over the two stories he had jumped up. His other arm started to get a handle on the ledge, and he was sure he could make it to the roof in one piece if he had a few more seconds.

A gun cocked below him, and he broke into a sweat. Another glance showed him that the man's briefcase was gone, replaced with a strangely colored pistol aimed straight at him. That weapon…

"Desperate now?" the investigator steadied the pistol in his hands and smiled manically. His expression resembled that of a rabid animal: carnal and savage, taking pleasure in tearing him apart, "I love it when they run."

There was a loud, resounding click and signature boom, and Light flinched immediately. He was ready for the pain to explode in his back and for his body to crash into the ground, but surprisingly nothing happened.

He mustered the courage to open his eyes and looked down again, now balanced on the window ledge. His hand grasped for the roof which was inches within his reach.

"A blank!?" the investigator nearly screamed. The man shook the pistol violently and his frenzied eyes darted between Light and the pistol. He reloaded it again, and Light took that as a sign that he should leave immediately.

He hoisted himself above the roof with relative ease as the sounds of clicking and gunfire rung out from the alley. They eventually stopped when Light went out of the man's sight, but the cursing remained. He stumbled backward, barely able to catch his breath.

He got up slowly, but he pushed himself forward to jump to the next roof. The jumps were erratic and he stumbled a bit upon the landings, but it got much easier as he continued hopping farther and farther away from the alley he had found himself in.

"I think," Ayato broke into his latest landing, tone pensive, "I think we're safe."

"Are you sure?" Light asked Ayato earnestly; the kid had better awareness than Light, so he could afford to be reliant on him. That's one thing he's good for–

"Yeah," Ayato said weakly. The kid sighed and his voice went low, "I'm sorry, I'm fucking stupid. I'm an asshole. I shouldn't have ignored you like that, I should have known you would be a dumbass without me."

"Ayato…" Light spoke gently. While Light did assign partial blame to Ayato, it was his fault that he decided to come to that spot. It was a recipe for disaster since it had been infamous for suicide; a CCG officer would be hounding those types of areas. Light reluctantly took full responsibility for this, and he knew that he couldn't go to these types of spots in the future. If he was going to scavenge then he was going to have to get creative.

Lesson learned.

"I can't let you do this," Ayato finally burst out. "We're gonna die if you go on like this. I'll lead you to a place where we can get help."

Help sounded good… great.

Light nodded in response and listened for directions.

The building they had stumbled upon was a café; Light was fairly sure he had followed Ayato's instructions to the dot, so this must have been the place.

"Use the back door, the owner'll be upset if you don't," Ayato startled him, but Light nodded curtly in response.

He walked to the side of the storefront of what seemed to be a high-end café, which struck him as rather odd for a ghoul haven, and entered the side-alley to the left of the building. He crossed behind the building and found a solid metal door that read "EMPLOYEES ONLY".

"Go ahead, knock," Ayato ordered. "Yoshimura should be up at this time, the man never sleeps."

Light did as he was told and knocked on the door rather softly. He waited a few moments for someone to show up, and he then banged on the door louder.

"Oh, don't forget to take off your mask too," Ayato informed him. "It's, like, kinda rude."

At this point, Light couldn't care less about politeness, but he understood that he shouldn't be rude to someone who could help him. He slid his hood off and snapped the mask off his face, stuffing it rather abruptly into his sweatshirt pocket.

The door suddenly creaked open, startling Light so much as to make him take a step backward, and a voice protruded from the door.

"Ayato, you've final–" the door fully opened, and Light was met with the face of an older man with greying hair and an apron. The man's eyes stretched for a fraction of a second before returning into a carefully neutral expression.

The door opened wider.

"Ah, where are my manners," the older man gestured towards the building while bowing deeply.

"Welcome to Anteiku."

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Questions

Is Light too arrogant in his plan-making?

Can Yoshimura see through Light's proverbial mask?

Should Ayato be afraid of death? Is he even truly dead?