AN: No news really, I wrote this right after the last one.
But in case it's not abundantly obvious, this chapter takes place A week after the last chapter took place.
And unlike most of the characters who think in their native language i.e Japanese, L here will think in both interchangeably, i'm basing this off of the assumption that he's half japanese and english, and therefore it makes more sense in my head for him to go back and forth between them, when he's not with other company, it would also make sense for him to go to other languages but that would get a bit too complicated even for me.
Chapter 10: A Plot Revisited
It had been a week since Kira's last confirmed kill, and the Japanese headquarters were in turmoil.
"Why are we still wasting resources on this? There are more important cases we could be addressing." Yelled out one delegate.
"That's right Kira, or whoever this is hasn't made any moves in days." Yelled another. "For all we know he might not even be alive anymore."
"Are you saying we should just ignore a murder case with hundreds of possible victims?" Angrily accused a third delegate.
"If he's stopped killing then it'd be best to cut our losses at this point. We don't have nearly enough information to catch him." Pointed out a fourth.
The men went back and forth, with more and more arguing in favour of dropping the case altogether.
L bit his thumb in frustration, as he stared at the screen.
It had been more than a week now since the last 'Kira' murder, and it didn't appear that they were going to start any time soon.
But what had happened?
L had already built his own profile of the killer.
He was intelligent, and had a childish sense of justice. He had a lack of restraint when it came to executing the guilty, and was an extremely arrogant man.
In other words he wasn't too dissimilar to himself.
That was why this new behaviour was so disturbing to him.
Kira's actions up to this point had suggested, he wasn't afraid of punishment, or getting caught.
So why had he stopped so suddenly?
There was a small possibility he'd had a change of heart, but the sheer numbers alone went against that theory.
'If I believed I had the right to play judge, jury and executioner, why would I suddenly feel guilty? After All I'd be punishing the guilty.' Reasoned L, as he tried to understand Kira's mindset.
No much more likely, he was being threatened.
Which meant someone was in a position to compromise his work.
'Could that mean that some people are immune to his killing ability.' Pondered L.
He suspected already, that Kira needed both a name and a face to kill, but if Kira claimed no more victims he'd have no way of proving or disproving his theory.
L bit his thumb harder.
He hated to lose.
If Kira didn't continue killing though.
"He Might win." Murmured L in Japanese.
He glanced back at his Laptop.
All the letters that could replace him, were there at the push of a button.
Almost all.
A hadn't stood the pressure of his work, and B well…
'He made a good effort.' Decided L, as he reached for another panda cracker.
But it seemed someone else might take the credit, for the case too impossible for L.
It was ironically fitting he supposed, he'd only taken this case on after his former associate, had been killed by Kira.
And now Kira might also claim, the only thing B had wanted.
L paused, as he reached for another cracker.
This world tasted too bitter sometimes.
He dipped it in strawberry sauce first, before he bit off it's head..
The conference was still going on without him it seemed.
"Gentlemen." He spoke up after licking off, the sauce from his fingers.
"It is far too early for us to know for sure if Kira has stopped killing. The best course of action would be to focus your attention on your usual work for now."
"How can you say that?" Asked the third delegate. "Are you saying we should just wait for him to strike?"
"Not at all. But whilst we sit here arguing about what to do, other crimes will take place. It's unwise to expend all out efforts on a case which may already be coming to an close." Stated L.
The other delegates murmured in agreement, and the third reluctantly saw L's point.
"And What if Kira starts killing again?" Asked Mr Yagami, who had remained rather quiet throughout the conference.
"I already have plans for such an occasion." Said L, reaching for a lollipop this time. "If Kira does strike again, then we will be ready for him."
…
'I am so bored.' Thought Light.
He'd given up the Deathnote for about a week now, and his life had fallen back into a similar routine, as before.
So why was it so unfulfilling now?
His grades were even better now, that he'd resumed his rigorous study routine, and the more time he'd spent with Rosa the more he'd started to genuinely like her as a person.
They talked about all sorts together. He was a pretty social guy, but there was always a sense of restraint he had to have with other people.
He wasn't sure why, but he felt a little more relaxed when he was with her. It was almost calm.
Though he hadn't told her he still had the Death Note.
"Er Light seriously, how do you stand this it's so boring." Moaned Ryuk.
Rosemary thought he had given up the Death Note, so for the moment, he couldn't allow Ryuk to be seen by her.
Unfortunately that meant, he hung around him during school hours.
"Okay everyone, remember to review the economic impact of the war, it hasn't popped up on the tests in a while so I have a hunch this year, will focus on it again." Warned Mr Hashimi, before he dismissed the class.
Light gathered his things before heading to the door.
"Hey Light we're hanging out later, want to come with us." Asked Komari, as he packed his stuff.
"Er maybe some other time, i'm not really feeling it you know?" Said Light rubbing the back of his head.
"Hey I feel you man, all this studying is starting to get to me." Chucked Yuusuke.
Light Laughed with him.
"Yeah maybe some time around graduation, hey?"
"Sounds cool, we haven't had the chance to hang lately." Said Komari.
"Yeah, but you know." Said Light, as he headed out the door.
"See you later Light." Said Yuusuke.
"You too." Said Light.
"Has anyone ever told you, you're like two people?" Asked Ryuk with a grin.
"I thought I told you to stop talking to me in public." Grumbled Light.
"Well I could always talk to Rose instead." Said Ryuk with a smirk.
"Have you decided if you're going to use that notebook yet by the way? I came here to see something interesting, not learn about the economics of war."
Light grit his teeth, he'd thought that giving up the notebook would help clear his mind.
But it seemed like his mind was in even further turmoil than before.
In the week he'd stopped killing, Crime had soured to unfathomable levels.
Without him judging them, criminals seemed to think they were untouchable.
'Idiots! don't they know that the police will catch them if they keep at it.' Thought Light, angrily.
"What's the rush?" Asked Light "I didn't realise you had anywhere important to be."
"He Heh Ku." Chuckled Ryuk "Oh I can hang around as long as I want, but if you're not going to use the Death Note why shouldn't I just give it to someone more interesting?"
"Because no-one else can use the Deathnote the way I do." Said Light confidently.
"Pretty confident for someone who can't risk killing right now." Said Ryuk as he stole an apple from Light's backpack.
Light frowned at him.
"She knows more than she lets on." Explained Light. "Rosa's seen all the mistakes that lead up to my death. She knows my moves before I make them."
"Why don't you just make new moves then?" Asked Ryuk as he took another bite.
"It's not that simple. If she was just some strange apparition that'd be one thing, but she has a physical presence." He turned to Ryuk. "One wrong move and she could turn against me."
"So what you're saying is if Rose-mary leaves the picture." Said Ryuk swallowing the core. "Things might start to get interesting."
"This isn't about your entertainment Ryuk." Light paused.
"But I suppose if Rosa wasn't around I might be able to take it up again." He admitted.
Ryuk grinned.
"What if I told you I knew a way to get rid of her?"
Light stared at Ryuk.
'Could I really turn against her after all this.' thought Light, in surprise.
When had he started caring so much?
"How would that work?" He asked cautiously. It couldn't hurt to know.
After All, who knew how truthful the Shinigami was really being.
"What concerned, about your little girlfriend?" Chuckled Ryuk.
Light rolled his eyes.
"Well since meeting our little ghost friend, i've been looking into them more." Revealed Ryuk.
Light rose an eyebrow, that was unusually helpful of him.
Ryuk looked back at him and cackled
"He He He Hyuk Hyuk ku, don't think I did this for your benefit." He grinned.
"If you grow a conscience I lose my entertainment."
'Of course.' Thought Light with narrowed eyes.
Ryuk wasn't concerned, with things like crime rate, or Light getting caught.
He just wanted a grand show.
"Have you found anything useful then?" Asked Light as they continued walking down the backstreets to his home.
"Yeah actually." Said Ryuk with a smirk.
"You might be able to trick her."
…
'I am so bored.' Thought Rose.
Light had given up the Death Note for about a week now, and his life had fallen back into a similar routine as before.
So why did she feel so unfulfilled now?
Light's grades were even better now that he'd resumed his rigorous study routine, and the more time she'd spent with him the more she'd started to genuinely like him as a person.
So why did all her food seem unnecessary? Why didn't the idea of moving on seem so bad to her anymore?
Why did she feel so empty?
'Maybe it's time for me to move on.' Considered Rosemary.
When she'd died, it'd been sudden, unexpected, and she'd panicked at the mere thought of death.
But now?
She's saved countless lives by spending just a little bit of time with Light.
He'd given up the Death Note, and would most likely never find another one again.
She'd done her job.
'But how would I move on?' Wondered Rosey as she lay back on her makeshift bed.
…
"So you think if I get her to believe she's 'fulfilled her purpose' I can get her to move on without me giving up the Death Note." Confirmed Light.
"Something like that yeah." Said Ryuk, as he floated by his side.
"I've asked around and if you can get her to feel like she's done her thing. That should be enough to get her to leave".
"And you're sure that'll work?" Asked Light with a frown. If this didn't work, he'd be in a much worse position than before.
"Of course not, Shinigami don't care enough about ghosts to know that kind of stuff." Said Ryuk with a grin.
'If I could hit you I would.' Thought Light bitterly.
"But what have you got to lose? Not like you're actually killing her or anything." Ryuk smirked.
Light sighed.
"I suppose it's worth trying, and putting her spirit to rest would be the kinder thing to do after all." rationalised Light.
"Whatever helps you sleep at night Hyuk Hyuk." Chuckled Ryuk, as they approached Light's house.
"Ryuk." Warned Light.
"Yeah Yeah." Said Ryuk, unfurling his wings. "You can't let her see me or she'll catch on to you, bla, bla, bla."
'Be serious.' Thought Light.
"Just let me know tomorrow if Rose-Mary's around or not. I might just kill you and find someone else you know." Warned Ryuk, as he took off.
Light shook his head as he turned to enter his house.
…
"Think of me, think of me fondly when we've said goodbye." Murmured Rose.
All her memories seemed warm to her for some reason.
Almost glowing like they were trying to cocoon her, and keep her safe.
Nothing seemed substantial lately, but her dreams seemed so, so-
"Light." She decided, was the best word.
They were like a bright warm light, drawing her to sleep.
She vaguely heard the front door open.
'Someone must be home.' Thought Rose, as she tried to sit up slightly.
She felt so sleepy today.
Outside his bedroom door, Light paused for a moment.
Did he leave his heating on?
He could feel the warmth oozing through his door.
Opening the door, Light was surprised.
"Rosemary?" Exclaimed Light.
He could see her.
She groggily turned to Light and smiled.
Light put his hand against her forehead.
She was boiling.
"Are you alright? Your forehead is burning up?" Asked Light, in concern. Could ghosts even get sick?
She lazily reached for her notebook.
'I don't know why but for some reason, I just feel so sleepy today.'
"Well here." Said Light tucking her underneath her bed's covers. "Maybe you should rest".
Rosey nodded slightly, without protest.
God she wanted to sleep.
"There must be some explanation for this happening so suddenly." Pondered Light.
Rose lightly scrawled on her notebook.
'It's not that sudden I've been feeling kind of drained all week.'
"What? Why didn't you say anything?" Asked Light.
'I don't know. I guess I've been thinking about stuff.' She paused.
'Light do you think maybe, i've helped anyone?'
"Well I know i'd have a more boring life if it weren't for my only ghost friend." Assured Light, who kept a tight grip, on his overly warm friend.
He wouldn't admit it, but he was worried about her.
Rosemary chuckled.
'Right he's forgotten about the Death Note. So he can't really answer that,' Thought Rose.
She smiled.
Maybe she had helped him.
'Yeah I guess your life would have been more boring without me.' She wrote back, before slowly closing her eyes.
Maybe she'd earned some sleep.
"Rosa! Rosa! Are you okay? You're fading!" Yelled Light, seeing his friend turn translucent.
'Is he saying something?' Wondered Rosey. 'I'll ask him later, this bed is too comfy.'
Everything felt warm, right now.
…
Mr Yagami was packing up his desk, for the day.
The conference meeting had run longer than any of them had expected, what with officers now unsure if they should continue the case or not.
'We can only hope the killings don't continue.' Thought Mr Yagami, grimly.
"Hey chief! Here's my report, I meant to hand it in to you earlier, but you know with that conference." Said Matsuda sheepishly.
Mr Yagami chuckled.
"It's fine I wouldn't have had time to look it over anyway." He said putting it in his desk.
"I guess. That sure went on for a while, huh?" Exclaimed Matsuda, looking out the window.
"Aw man is it raining? It was fine just a minute ago, and I've got to walk home too." He complained.
"Maybe you should get a car like a real man." Commented Aizawa as he dangled his keys.
"Oh come one Aizawa you know my apartment doesn't have good parking." Whined Matsuda, as Aizawa started laughing.
Mr Yagami shook his head.
At least some things weren't so worrying.
…
Light stared at the empty space in front of him for several moments.
She was gone.
It didn't seem real.
The makeshift bed still had a faint outline of her figure.
But she wasn't here.
The warmth that'd seemed to radiate from her very being left quickly, and now his room seemed cold, and almost lonely.
He could still feel the impression of her hand, joined with his.
'It worked.' Realised Light.
''She moved on, but the Death Note's still here.'
He started chuckling.
"HA ha aha HA ha she's really gone HA he." He exclaimed laughing.
One of his biggest obstacles was finally gone.
So why did it feel like he'd been punched in the stomach?
Light lay his back against the wall, still chuckling.
'I finally get rid of that annoying bitch and I actually kind of miss her.' Thought Light, as he bitterly grinned.
He kept grinning, as he looked outside.
It was almost like the rain was trying to wash her away.
Like his reign as god was starting anew.
…
"The most likely person behind the smuggling operation is Lewis Sanders." Replied L in fluent french, as he was slowly building a tower of macarons.
"There is an 92% that he as at the head of the operation, and is most likely using his own warehouses." He finished.
L tossed the phone into a nearby box, filled with cellphones.
With Kira being quiet lately L had no choice but to wait for him to take action; so he had been using his time to solve a few cases he'd been handed in the meantime.
"I really hate having to wait like this." Decided L.
He wasn't overly fond of being patient.
His tower of macarons was now up to his knees, and three quarters complete, when L heard a beep.
He turned to his laptop.
Kira had finally struck again.
He placed another Macaron on his tower, and moved to his keyboard and scanned through the names.
These confirmed his suspicions.
Since Kira had decreased his killings, crime had increased in areas that were hit the hardest, and news programs around the world had increased their broadcasts of such events.
But among these latest victims, were some of the more infamous names from the last few days in Japan.
Kira was definitely living in, or around Japan.
'He's angry that they dared to defy him in his absence.' Thought L, as he looked over the names.
This also supported his theory that Kira had been restrained in someway.
'He isn't hesitating to kill now, but there's nothing notably different about these murders that would suggest he was planning for a larger attack.' Decided L as he continued to build up the layers of his tower.
'Which means someone, or something has most likely been preventing him for the past few days.'
He bit on his thumb in thought.
"There's a 64% chance that someone, has stopped you temporarily, so how do I do the same?" He wondered out loud.
He eyed his near complete tower.
'I suppose i'll just have to get more information.' Thought L.
"Watari." Said L, turning on a microphone.
"Yes?" Asked Watari.
"Prepare the prison transfer, we may not have much time to execute our plan." Said L, placing the last Macaron on top.
"Understood." Said Watari.
L closed his laptop and took a strawberry Macaron from the middle layer of his tower.
L smiled as his tower held it's shape.
"The effort makes it taste sweeter." He decided.
…
Light woke up to the sound of his alarm going off.
He normally beat it by about five minutes, but this morning he felt a little fatigued.
He'd stayed up longer than he should have trying to make up for lost time.
Light yawned.
'I can't exactly say I regret it though.' Thought Light.
He got dressed and grabbed his blazer before stopping.
He stared at the empty place, where Rose's bed should have been.
'It's kind of strange not having you here.' Admitted Light.
He grabbed his bag and headed downstairs.
Once he'd grabbed his breakfast, and headed outside he was almost immediately onset by Ryuk.
"Finally! I was wondering when you were going to get here." Complained Ryuk.
Light chuckled.
"Sorry to keep you waiting Ryuk." said Light as he tossed him an apple. "Have some breakfast."
Ryuk quickly grabbed it.
"You're in a good mood." Said Ryuk, taking a huge bite. "Did something happen with Rose-Mary?"
They both continued walking for a moment as two school girls passed him by.
"She's gone." said Light quietly.
Ryuk's eyes widened.
"What so it actually worked?" He exclaimed in surprise.
"You didn't expect it to?" Asked Light.
"Shinigami aren't exactly the most reliable source of information." Admitted Ryuk.
"If it doesn't benefit us to help you, We might just mess with you for fun."
"Why does that not surprise me?" Asked Light sarcastically.
"So she's really gone? Kind of a shame really, she was fun to hang around." Said Ryuk.
"Weren't you the one who suggested it?" Pointed out Light.
"True but she was making things boring." Said Ryuk "It's not really as interesting if nobody dies."
Light smirked.
"I suppose you're right Ryuk."
They soon arrived at Light's school.
"Did you guys hear? Kira's started killing again!"
"No way! I thought everyone was saying he'd stopped."
"Maybe he was taking a break, I mean have you seen how many he's killed?"
All of Light's classmates were talking about Kira.
"You sure seem popular." Commented Ryuk.
Light just smiled.
'They know Justice has returned.' Thought Light.
…
"L how can you be certain this will work? Kira didn't kill for days, how do we know he won't just let you go?" Asked one detective.
"If my theory is correct then Kira is a very arrogant individual who hates to be challenged." Replied L.
"Regardless of why he stopped killing I doubt he'd let someone as infamous as me walk away when I pose such a big threat."
"But innocent people could die." Pointed out another.
"Innocent people will die if we don't catch Kira." Said L definitively.
"Besides at this point we have nothing else to lose."
…
Light walked home and started writing down more names.
"Making up for lost time?" Asked Ryuk.
"I don't have much time to write if I want to maintain an innocent facade." Replied Light as he copied down another.
Light turned on the news and focussed on his writing, with Ryuk making the occasional comment.
"We'd like to apologize for the interruption. As of now we're bringing you a live worldwide broadcast from Interpol, ICPO." Said the announcer.
"Hm? What's this?" Asked Ryuk.
"Interpol?" Asked Light.
"We now take you live to the ICPO." Confirmed the announcer.
The screen switched to a conference room.
"I head up an International Police Task Force which includes all member nations. I am Lind L. Tailor, otherwise known as L." Said Lind L. Tailor.
"What? Who is this guy?" Asked Light in disbelief.
"Criminals around the world are being murdered by a serial killer. I consider this crime to be the most atrocious act of murder in history."Continued Lind.
"I will not rest until the person or persons responsible are brought to justice. Kira, I will hunt you down. I will find you."
"He seems certain he'll catch you." Said Ryuk.
"Hm. That fool. He'll never find me." Scoffed Light.
He picked up his notebook.
"He'll have to get this first. And as long as the police don't find it, there won't be any evidence to convict me. Which means catching me will be absolutely impossible."
He sat back down in his chair.
"I anticipated that the police would get involved and that something like this might happen."
"Kira, I've got a pretty good idea what your motivation might be and I can guess what you hope to achieve. However, what you're doing right now is evil." Stated Lind.
Light stared in disbelief.
"You think...I'm evil?...I am justice! I protect the innocent and those who fear evil! I'm the one who will become the god of a new world that everyone desires! All those who oppose that god, they are the ones who are truly evil!"
Light grabs the Deathnote.
"I guess you're just too stupid, L. Too bad. This could've been a lot more interesting if you'd only been a bit smarter."
Light writes down Lind's name and waits for him to die.
"Urgh!" Grunts Lind as he falls down dead.
"What's wrong? You've got nothing else to say?" Asks Light triumphantly.
'What was Rosa thinking? Me die? How would they ever catch me?' He thought.
But suddenly the screen changed, and an electronic voice responded.
"Ah. I had to test this, just in case, but I-I never thought it would actually happen. Kira...it seems you can kill people without having to be there in person."
Light stared at the screen in shock.
"I wouldn't have believed it if I hadn't just witnessed it. Listen to me, Kira. If you did, indeed, kill Lind L. Tailor, the man who you just saw die on television, I should tell you that he was an inmate whose execution was scheduled for today. That was not me."
"What?" Exclaimed Light.
"The police arrested him in absolute secrecy, so you wouldn't have heard of him on TV or through the internet. It appears not even you have access to information about these types of criminals." Continued L.
Ryuk burst out laughing.
"He got you there."
Light grit his teeth and stared at back at the screen.
"But I assure you, L is real. I do exist. Now...try to kill me!" Challenged L.
"You...you bastard." Muttered Light in anger.
He'd fallen for it.
"What's wrong?! Go ahead! Come on, right now! Kill me!"
'Stop taunting me you bastard.' Demanded Light angrily.
L paused after a moment.
"Well Kira, it seems you can't kill me after all."
Ryuk started chuckling again.
"So there are some people you can't kill. You've given me a useful hint." Admitted L.
He continued.
"A dealer to a saver. I'll tell you something that I think you'll find interesting. Although this was announced as a worldwide broadcast, the truth is, we are only broadcasting in the Kanto region of Japan. I had planned to broadcast this message around the world until we found you, but it looks like that won't be necessary."
"I know now where you are."
Light stared in disbelief.
"He he Heh, this L guy is pretty good." Remarked Ryuk grinning.
"The police treated your first killing as an unrelated incident, but in actuality, the first of your victims was a suspect in Sinjuku." Explained L.
"Of all the criminals that recently died of heart attacks, this one's crime was, by far, the least serious. Furthermore, his crime was only ever reported inside Japan."
Light couldn't believe this was happening.
"I used that information to deduce this much. You are in Japan and your first victim was little more than an experiment, which means you haven't been killing for very long."
L paused.
"We decided to broadcast in Kanto first because of its large population, and, luckily, we found you." said L.
"To be completely honest with you, I never expected it would go this well. But it won't be too long now before I'll be able to sentence you to death." Admitted L.
Ryuk was still laughing in the corner as Light tried to control his rage.
Meanwhile offscreen, L was twirling a chupa-chup.
"Naturally, I am very interested to know how you're able to commit these murders without being present...but I don't mind waiting a little bit longer. You can answer all of my questions when I catch you...Let's meet again soon, Kira."
The broadcast cut out, leaving the world speechless.
"Really? He's gonna sentence me to death? Sounds interesting. I accept your challenge, L." Said Light with a smirk.
"L" said Light.
"Kira" said L.
"I will hunt you down wherever you're hiding and I will eliminate you!" they both yelled.
"I am..." said Light.
"I am..." said L.
"Justice" they both finished.
"Heh, How interesting" said Ryuk with a grin.
…
'This place is nice and warm.' Thought Rose as she rolled over slightly.
"Rosemary." Murmured a sweet childlike voice. Or was it an old man? Or was it a woman?
"Hmm?" Murmured Rosie.
"Wake up." Urged the voices.
"They need you."