L

"Nox?" L echoed Jack's words, his brow creasing.

He'd heard the name before, actually—back when he took Jack to Akihabara in the shop with all the displays. At the time, he hadn't been certain what the word was. He thought he might have misheard her when she was speaking; but now that she spoke it again, he was certain that was what she said.

Jack nodded. She glanced warily toward the back window. She had done that a few times since they'd gotten in the car and even as she stared, she winced and held up her hands as if in defense.

"Will you just let me talk for a second?" she shouted.

L blinked, bewildered. She wasn't talking to him. Her eyes were on something else.

"Okay." Jack let out a long exhale, seeming to collect herself. "Those pills I take. Yeah, they help me sleep. But you were on the dime, they're also an anti-psychotic. I see and hear things other people don't. More specifically, I see and hear Nox."

Several things began to make sense at once. The way that Jack would stare at a fixed spot. The way she would talk to herself in her room. He'd never been able to make out anything she said, but it was still clear that she was speaking.

"I'm sorry I didn't tell you sooner," Jack said softly. "I didn't want you to think it would compromise the case. I'm still perfectly functional, and I'm fully aware of what Nox truly is." She shot an angry glare out the back window. "Sometimes, he gets a little overbearing. But it helps to talk to him. To tell him to shut up, in some cases. Sometimes, he even helps me with my work."

"You have schizophrenia." It was a statement more than a question. L eyed her carefully. The story made complete sense. It answered so many of L's questions about her. But on the other hand... there were still some things that were left a mystery to him. Like what she was truly hiding from him about this case—about how her father died.

"Yeah," Jack said. She was staring at her knees now. "High functioning, thank you very much. I know Nox can't... I know what he is."

L couldn't help but notice her unique choice of words. I know what he is... She didn't state that she knew he wasn't real. Perhaps she thought—in a sense—he was? Was this Nox a piece of her consciousness? Taking on form and speaking to her to help her work through her thoughts? It was a possibility.

"It hasn't effected your work so far," L said. "I wouldn't assume it would start now. I suppose... I'm just taken a bit off guard."

"Why, because you didn't see it coming?" Jack began to smirk. She glanced toward the window. "There, is that sufficient, jackass?"

L could only assume she was talking to Nox. She laughed after a moment and shook her head.

"He's not happy I told you about him," she said.

"Perhaps that indicates you're not happy you told me," L suggested.

Jack scoffed and waved him off. "Come on Ryu, just because I told you does not give you grounds to play shrink on me."

"I apologize," L replied sincerely. "When... when did it start? Or has it always been there?"

"Oh, after... well about ten, eleven months ago now," Jack said. She looked hesitant. "Ryu, have you seen the other cases I've worked?"

An odd and sudden question. L frowned. "I've read some of their summaries online."

"Ah. Well Nox started really helping me with the one with all those clowns." She laughed. "That one was just weird. Some people take Stephen King's stories way too seriously."

L examined her face. It was like she was trying to tell him something—to communicate with her eyes as she gazed into him. Their vivid green shade reminded L of leafs on a tree during the spring. They swam with intensity despite her light tone.

"What... what does he look like? If you don't mind my asking," L said.

Jack cringed a bit. "Ah. Um. Yeah, he's unique?" She glanced toward the back window and laughed a little. "Very... tall. Slim. Hair white as snow and he has an eye-patch. Long black coat. Sometimes he has wings... His smile can literally reach his ears. And all his teeth are like a shark's."

"He sounds like a very unpleasant thing to have stuck following you everywhere," L observed.

Jack laughed, hard. She grinned wickedly out the back window. "Ah, that was great. Keep up comments like that, Ryu, maybe you'll scare him off. In any case, I got used to him. He..." She slowly calmed from her laughing fit and now her smile was actually a touch warm. "He's not too bad, to be honest. Stubborn and annoying as hell at times, but... not bad."

L understood that Jack stated she was high functioning, that this Nox wasn't going to effect her work. He was telling the truth when he said it hadn't as of yet—not that he noticed anyway—but the way that she interacted with him was truly as if he existed. Was it healthy to keep talking with him? Shouldn't her medication stop him from showing up? Part of L wondered if he should say something about it.

But instead, all he ended up saying was, "Well, I'm glad he's... manageable at least."

Jack let out a long sigh of relief. "I'm glad that cat's out of the bag. It's hard enough pretending he's not there. Anyway, best if you don't tell anyone else about this, Ryu. Watari can know, of course, but the rest of the task force—and especially Light—should stay in the dark about it." She grimaced. "Mental health still isn't taken well. And I don't want to give Aizawa any more excuses to be a jackass to me."

"Of course, I will make sure this information stays confidential," L assured her. "Thank you for telling me."

Jack smiled widely. "I'm just glad you took it so well. Really, L, you're just beyond reality. I had a teacher once who complained about how the word 'awesome' had been watered down over the years. That it used to be a word reserved for something so fantastic, so wonderful, that it struck awe in us. Struck it so hard we could do nothing but be amazed. I really liked that teacher. I agree with him on that."

She reached out and poked L's nose gently with a devilish wink.

"And I think you, Ryu, are awesome," she said.

L didn't know how to respond to that. It made his center feel light, like he was sort of... floating. Was this happiness? Elation? No. It was close, but it was something else—something more. An older sibling in the family of happiness. One that had heat to it, heat and stammering heartbeats. It was happy, but it was also rather uncomfortable.

"Thank you," L finally managed to say. "It's nice to have someone think so fondly of me... I suppose I'm just not used to it."

"Well, maybe all our acting has prepared you for the true dating world," Jack suggested, her smile turning a touch feral. "I can be your wing girl. We'll go to a bar. Pick up some hot dames. Do the most cliche possible approach to it."

"Dating is not something I've ever had time for," L replied. "It would effect my ability to take on cases if I had to divide my attention between my work and another person."

"Yeah, that sounds like something you'd say," Jack sighed. "But just try to keep in mind, L, you help loads of people every day so they can live happy lives. That's astonishing and beautiful, really. But you deserve to have a happy life too. I know you love your work, but doesn't it get lonely with just you and Watari?"

L turned his head to look out the window. "Well, you'll be with us from here on, won't you?"

His words seemed to surprise her. Jack didn't respond for a long moment. L ended up facing her again, perking a brow. Her jaw was slack and her cheeks carried a small tint of pink.

"I mean... I suggested it," she said.

"I think it's a good idea," L told her. "Between the three of us, I don't think we'll find a case we can't solve."

"We just have to survive this case first," Jack murmured. Her eyes flickered with worry. "Do you think we're being too risky, exposing ourselves to Light like that? What if he is Kira?"

"He still needs our names," L reminded her. "Don't worry. We will find out soon enough whether or not he is Kira."

Jack still looked troubled. She stared at her knees, biting her lower lip. Her eyes darted back and forth, swathed in conflict.

"I just hope..." she said softly, "that if he is Kira... that all my hunches are right about him."

L wasn't quite certain what that was supposed to mean. Before he could think of a way to ask for clarification, Jack presented him with a beaming smile. It transformed her face. She was an attractive girl, L knew that, but the way she looked just then... he couldn't take his eyes from her.

"I know I already said it, Ryu, but thank you," she said. Her voice was sincere and thick with emotion. "Now. Let's find Kira. Whether he's Light or not, let's expose him and take him down together."

Together.

L swallowed. He itched to bite his nails, but he knew that Jack would smack him. As they continued to drive back toward their hotel, L could not help but ponder at the flutter in his center. The way he could not keep himself from glancing at Jack.

She'd just told him she saw and heard a monster no one else could. But that didn't deter L from her in the least. In fact, he found himself flooded with admiration. That she was able to cope with this illness and continue to work cases so spectacularly... it spoke volumes for her character.

L let out a slow exhale through his nose and closed his eyes, leaning his forehead against the cool glass of the car window.

What are you doing to me, Jacqueline Townsend?

Jack

Four days went by. We hadn't heard from Light personally, but we received reports that he was regularly visiting his father in the hospital. Kira's killings went on without a hitch, more criminals falling victim to his Death Note each day. I was getting frustrated with the lack of progress, but it couldn't be helped. Until Yagami was recovered, we wouldn't be able to get Light officially on the task force.

On the other hand, now that I had spun my story for L about schizophrenia, dealing with Nox was far easier. The Shinigami had been livid at first, but once he saw how well L and Watari fell for the lie, even he was on board with it. It was a win win for both of us. I didn't have to be as careful about talking to him, and if he had a question, most of the time I could answer it right away.

I could tell L was a little bewildered by it at first, especially since I regularly spoke with Nox in the hotel room now. The detective would get confused at times, assuming I was talking to him. After a while, he picked up on the tone I used when talking to Nox. It was usually one dripping with venom and annoyance.

"Does he ever talk about me?" L asked me a couple of days after I had told him about Nox.

Nox laughed. "Tell him I think he should star in a vampire teen movie."

"I'm not telling him that," I snapped at Nox before looking at L. "Yes, he does. He likes to tease."

L raised a brow.

I sighed and leaned back in the sofa. "He makes fun of how pale and skinny you are."

For a moment, I thought L looked a touch insulted, but the look was so fleeting that I couldn't be certain.

"Do you find it amusing?" he queried, eyes fixated on mine and unwavering.

I chuckled. "L, I've already told you that you're handsome. Besides, what does my opinion of your looks matter? You don't seem the type to worry about those kind of things."

L had looked away from me at that point. "I'm not," he muttered.

The truth was, I did have to take my meds for more than just sleep. I was schizoaffective, which in a sense was like a little sibling to schizophrenia. I would on occasion hear and see things other people didn't, but it was very fleeting—a half sentence of a conversation that didn't make any sense, a shadow crossing the street. However, for me—even without the meds—it was always easy to tell what was real and what wasn't, though the hallucinations did get annoying.

Now, L and I were sitting in the living room and a few other members of the task force were with us. It was slightly annoying because I couldn't talk freely to Nox, but he was behaving well today for whatever reason. He leaned on the wall toward the back of the room, watching us with a bored expression.

"As for Naomi Misua..." Ukita murmured, looking over a sheaf of papers he held in his hands. "The only lead we have is a statement from the hotel staff that they saw her leaving on the evening of December 27th. Isn't it about time we start an official search? We can't get very far with just a few people asking vague questions about her."

"If we go public stating that her disappearance is related to the Kira case, there is a chance he might kill her if she's still alive," L said.

I rubbed my temples. I wanted to believe that Naomi was still alive. But I knew how the Death Note worked. Kira could have people die however he liked, so long as it was in the realm of being physically possible. He could have forced Naomi to go somewhere incredibly secluded and kill herself. Somewhere where no one would find her.

"If we do open an official investigation, we should keep quiet about the Kira angle," L went on. "And only release sketches of her face. No photos."

"This is almost impossible," Ukita sighed. "If we don't mention Kira's involvement, no one will be interested. If we do, they'll be interested all right, but they will be too scared to actually help."

"We have to work with what we can," I said. "Besides, Uki, don't you like a little challenge?" I grinned.

The others were already used to my nickname for Ukita, but his still seemed to get embarrassed when I used it in front of them.

"I mean, maybe if I'm trying to complete a puzzle, but this is life and death we're talking about, Nina."

"Well, one way or another, we have to find her," I insisted.

"She's been missing four whole months now," Aizawa said. He had his head propped in a hand and his eyes were lidded. "She can't possibly be alive."

"Dead women tell no tales..." Matsuda murmured. "In which case, there isn't really a point in searching for her."

A small tremble arrested my shoulders. "Of course there's a point. She deserves to have a proper funeral. Her family deserves to know what happened to her." My voice grew sharp- broken glass gliding across flesh.

Matsuda flinched. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to come off like that. I just meant that... I mean, what can we gain from her if she's dead?"

"Even if she's dead, someone might have talked to her and heard something," L said. "And there's also the fact that her body has never been found. It could provide additional leads if it's recovered."

"But if someone heard something, don't you think they'd come forward by now?" Ukita asked, his brow furrowed.

"Ryuzaki!"

I turned my head to see Watari approaching us from the hallway at a swift pace. His face was grim, eyes down turned with anxiety.

"What is it, Watari?" L asked. He looked just as surprised as I was at the sudden outburst from the old man.

"It's Sakura TV," Watari said, snatching up the television remote on the coffee table. "You have to see this."

With a swift press of some buttons, Watari powered on the TV and brought it to the proper channel. I had been in Japan long enough to know that Sakura TV was a news station with mostly bogus stories. Not a lot of people trusted it, and it was rarely viewed. I hadn't actually sat and watched it before.

There was a reporter sitting on a chair, a screen beside him with the headline. It's what caught my attention first.

A MESSAGE FROM KIRA WITH FOUR TERRIFYING VIDEOS.

The reporter was mid-sentence when we tuned in.

"In other words, we are being held hostage by Kira, and have no choice but to air these videos," he was saying. "At the same time, we feel doing so is our professional duty. I would like to emphasize once again that these videos are not being broadcast as a hoax or for purposes of sensationalism."

"Held hostage by Kira?" Aizawa exclaimed.

"What's going on here?" Matsuda cried.

"Shh," I hushed them as I leaned forward, eyes narrowing. This was odd. A very direct and sudden approach. That hasn't been how Kira was doing things before. And not to mention- if this hostage thing was to be believed, he was putting innocent lives at risk. From what I'd observed of Kira's actions, he seemed to think himself a hero. A vigilante that protected the innocent and punished the guilty.

"Four days ago, an envelope containing four video tapes arrived at this station, addressed to one of our directors," the reporter said. There were beads of sweat on his brow. He looked incredibly uncomfortable. "It was, beyond a shadow of a doubt, sent by Kira." He then gestured to some small tapes on the table beside him. "The first tape announced the time and date of the death for Seiichi and Seiji Machiba, who were arrested the other day. Exactly as predicted, these men died at 7 PM of heart attacks."

I furrowed my brow, trying to understand. What was Kira's angle here? What sort of message was he trying to send? He had proved before that he didn't need to use the media to get L's attention. He used bizarre deaths and notes from his victims to do that. So... was he trying to speak to the public? Why?

"Who but Kira is capable of carrying out something like this?" the reporter asked. "From this fact, we have concluded that the sender of these tapes was none other than Kira. The envelope we received contained instructions from Kira telling us to air this, the second video, at exactly 5:59 PM today." He picked up one of the tapes and presented to to the camera. "We have not viewed this video ourselves, but Kira's instructions state that it predicts another death... and contains a message from Kira to people all over the world."

The reporter then gently handed the tape to a woman who came on screen. She took it and left the frame.

"This has to be one of their fake stories, right?" Ukita rasped.

"No way," Matsuda said. "Not even Sakura would go this far..."

"If it is him, I suppose we have to give it to him," Nox said as he approached from his leaning spot on the wall. He stared at the TV with a wicked glint in his one visible eyes. His smile was wide and vicious. "He's got guts. And style to boot."

I don't think I would have responded to that if I could. I was too focused on the TV. If this was Kira... what could his message possibly be? I knew what I would do if I was Kira and had the chance to speak to the public. I would recruit. I would want to bend people to my side. Convince them what I was doing was right. And if people listened to that... it could be absolutely disastrous.

"It is now 5:59 PM," the reporter said. "You will now see Kira's video."

The screen suddenly flickered. What appeared next was the name KIRA written in stylized lettering- almost the same font that L used for his broadcast. Though it was rather easy to tell that it was hand drawn on a sheet of paper. The video quality was garbage, to put it lightly. Whatever camera did this wasn't anything of merit, a home video camera like the kind an aunt or uncle brought to family gatherings.

"I am Kira."

The voice that came from the TV was garbled and deep. It was digitally distorted, but not in the way L's was when he spoke over computer. With his, it was easy to tell he used impressive tech to get his disguised voice. It sounded mysterious and somewhat delightful. Not the voice of some malfunctioning Darth Vader.

"If this video is aired at exactly 5:59 PM, on April 18th, then it is now 5:59 PM and 38, 39, 40 seconds..." the garbled voice said. "Please change channels to Taiyo TV. The news anchor, Mr. Kazuhiko Hibima, will die at approximately 6 PM."

"No way," Aizawa breathed.

"Change the channel!" L ordered.

Watari obliged, flicking the channel to the one the voice directed us to. Sure enough, laying limp on the table, was a male news anchor. His co-hosts looked horrified and were shaking him in a vein attempt to wake him.

"Change it back to Sakura!" L shouted, his eyes wide.

Watari obeyed.

"Watari, bring another TV in here," L added.

"It's done," Watari assured, leaving the room swiftly.

It took a moment before the garbled voice began to speak again. Most likely, it was waiting for viewers to switch back to this channel.

"Mr. Hibima regularly referred to Kira as 'evil' in his news reports," it said. "This was his punishment."

Okay whoa. I shook my head, completely bewildered. This was not how Kira did things. Even if people spoke against him, the only one he ever killed or attempted to kill were people who attempted to physically stop him. But to just murder a reporter like that? I suppose in a sense, pitting the people against Kira is a way of stopping him. Or making what he does more difficult. But still...

"But one demonstration does not serve as absolute proof," the voice went on. "I will present you with another. My next target is a commentator that has also condemned me repeatedly. He is scheduled to be live on the air this time."

"Ryuzaki..." Matsuda said uncertainly. He now had the remote.

"Turn to channel 24," L ordered.

The channel switched, and once again, there was a man just slumping over onto the table he was seated at. The people next to him screamed.

"They said Kira was going to be sending a message to people all over the world," L said. His eyes were wide like twin moons. His voice was low and filled with dread. "We have to make them stop this broadcast or something terrible is going to happen."

"I'll get the number for Sakura TV!" Matsuda shouted. He shoved the remote in my hands and sprinted for the phone.

"Back to Sakura TV, please, Nina," L said.

I hit the buttons for the previous channel just in time for us to hear the voice speak again.

"I trust now that you believe I am in fact Kira," it said.

"Damn it, all the numbers I try are busy!" Matsuda exclaimed.

"My friend who works there has his cell turned off," Aizawa added, face twisted in irritation.

"Screw it," Ukita barked. "If we can't reach them over phone then I'll just go down there and stop them myself!"

"Uki, hold on—you can't go alone!" I exclaimed.

"Wait, Ukita!" Aizawa called, but Ukita was already out the door.

Damn it. Stubborn moron. I began to get up but L gripped my arm.

"You can't go out there," he said. "Ukita knows what he's doing."

Before I could respond, the TV caught my attention once again.

"Please listen to me," the voice on the TV said. "I do not wish to kill innocent people. I hate evil and love justice. I do not see the police as my enemies, but rather my allies against the evil of the world. My aim is to rid the world of evil and create a just society. If all of you would join me in this mission, it would easily be accomplished."

It was just as I thought. Kira was trying to bend the people to support him. But still... still something was off. Still something didn't feel right about any of it. For Kira to just kill people who spoke out against him like some tyrant king... it wasn't his style.

"If you do not try to capture me, no innocent people will die," the voice continued. "And even if you do not agree with me, if you refrain from publicizing your views on the media or in public, you will be spared. And then simply wait. Soon enough, the world will be changed for the better. I'm sure you'll all agree."

I clenched my jaw. Ukita going off on his own... it might take more than just him to stop this broadcast. Those people were scared for their lives. They wouldn't let anyone, not even the police, do something that might cause Kira to kill them.

"It's all wrong," I said to L. "He doesn't kill innocent people unless it's completely necessary. Why this show? There's still plenty of people who back him up."

"We can ask why later," L said. "Right now, we just have to stop him."

He was biting his thumbnail, but I didn't bother telling him to stop this time.

"I can do it," the voice assured. "I can change the world and make it a place inhabited by only good, kindhearted people. Just imagine it. A place protected my the police and myself. A place with no room for evil."

Suddenly, the audio skipped oddly, and the screen paused. The reporter was suddenly back on camera.

"We pause this to bring you a live broadcast from outside Sakura TV's station," he said. Again, the screen flicked. It then showed the large glass front doors of the news station.

There was a body slumped by them.

"This just in!" the reporter said. "Someone came running toward the doors just moments ago, attempting to get in. However before he could succeed, he collapsed!"

My heart gave a heavy hiccup. That short hair... the tan suit...

"Ukita!" Aizawa cried. "Kira got him?!"

But how? It was so sudden. Did Kira actually have all the names and faces of those on the task force and had just been holding onto them? Waiting for when they might interfere? But they'd been so careful. I didn't think even Light knew which officers were on the task force.

Something began to boil within me. It was hot and feral, releasing jagged bolts of electricity all throughout my body. It congested my bones with rage.

There were two most likely ways as to how Ukita died. Light was indeed Kira, and had been holding onto the list of names of officers in case of emergencies like this—or... or whoever just did that had the Shinigami Eyes. It could still be Light, but part of me could not help but focus on how wild and straight forward this play by Kira was. It wasn't like his usual methods.

Regardless, an innocent man just lost his life. Another innocent man. I remembered him smoking his cigarette outside the Yagami house the day we put up the cameras and wire taps.

"You're putting your life on the line to stop Kira, just like us. I'm sure there's a ton of other stuff a young lady like yourself could be doing with her life. But this is what you chose. Gotta admit, I'm impressed."

Warmth infested my eyes. I blinked rapidly, trying to refuse the tears that were rising.

"Just try to find something less insane to do after this. Maybe try to convince Ryuzaki to do the same. You're both so young. You should be living your lives."

But what about you, Uki?

I wanted to scream. I wanted to pick up the TV and throw it out the window. Ukita had every right to live his life too. All of the task force did. But this... he'd been torn away by a psychopath who was playing god.

Before I could put much thought into what I was doing, I was bolting from the room. My satchel was next to the door and I snagged it.

"Jack!" L's voice called after me, but I was already flinging the door open and sprinting down the hall. I couldn't help but notice that in his state of panic, he didn't use my alias.

Footsteps were pelting after me, but I was too swift. My regular work out routine was something only L and Watari knew about. This was made clear by Aizawa saying, "How the hell...?" behind me as I left him and the others in the dust.

I reached the elevators just in time for one of them to open. That was luck, I would admit. I was going to take the stairs otherwise. I slid inside just as a confused elderly couple exited. I smashed the close door button over and over and managed to get it to shut just when Aizawa's livid face appeared.

The elevator took me down to the lobby, and as it descended, I gripped my shirt and tore the bottom part off, leaving my mid-drift showing. I took the strip of fabric and tied it around the lower half of my face.

"What exactly are you doing?" Nox asked me as he drifted into the elevator with me.

"I'm going to find Kira," I snarled. "He has to be near that place if he saw Uki at the doors. I know that if he does have the Eyes that he can't see my name anyway, but I don't want him to know my trap card yet. If I keep my face covered, he will just chalk it up to not being able to see all of my face."

"This is stupid, you know that, right?" Nox pressed. "Your detective buddy is going to be pissed."

"He'll live," I replied dryly. "Which is the entire point."

The elevator doors opened, and once again I was off. My runners squeaked against the lobby floor and several people yelped as I darted by. I was out the doors and sprinting toward the street. Cab- I needed a cab. Luckily enough, our hotel was in a very populated spot in Tokyo. There were some cabs lined up near the drop off lane by the doors. With deft movements, I ripped open the back door of one and slid inside.

"Sakura TV station!" I said to the driver, my voice filled with urgency. "There's an extra two thousand yen if you get us there as fast as possible!"

The driver, an elderly Japanese man, was clearly startled at both my appearance and my demands.

"Are you aware of what—" he began.

"Of course I am!" I shouted. "Please- you don't have to get close- just the nearest corner- you'll be safe." I shoved some cash from my wallet at him. Ten thousand yen. "Here—come on go!"

The man stared at the money for a moment with wide eyes before throwing the car into drive and taking off from the curb. I turned my head around to see Aizawa and Matsuda just running out from the hotel, both clearly out of breath. They were too late.

My cell phone started ringing. I looked at it and wasn't surprised to see L's number displayed. I debated for a moment in answering, but in the end I flipped it open.

"Jack," L's voice was strained and thick with what I knew had to be anger. I'd never heard him so frustrated before. Once again, he wasn't calling me Nina. "Come back right now."

"Can't do that," I said in English as I gripped the handle on the ceiling of the car near the window. The cab driver certainly was taking my request to step on it seriously, and I didn't want him to understand my conversation, betting on the fact he could only speak Japanese. "You and I both know that he has to be near there."

"So, what, you're going to go in and arrest him?" L demanded. "Under what authority? Jack, you are not a police officer. This is far too dangerous, you're going to get yourself killed, just like Ukita."

"I'm going to avenge him," I said with a growl.

"Jack, you're making me angry."

"I'm not the one you should be directing your anger at," I said, my voice tight like water meeting ice. With a flick of my wrist, I snapped the phone shut.

"Ma'am, are you sure about this?" the cab driver asked warily.

"Yes," I insisted. "Please, just hurry."