sympathy

They stood gazing out over a field of bones. It stretched as far as they could see into the mists, bones polished white with time and seeming to glow faintly in the halflight.

Lawliet's hands were tucked in his pockets. 'What was your childhood like, Kira?'

Tendrils of mist curled over the dissembled skeletons. 'Boring,' said Light, after a while. He didn't look at him. 'You?'

A bone somewhere in the pile slipped, and there was a muted clattering as it caused a small boneslide, shifting a portion of the field.

'Painful,' said Lawliet, after a while.

Light's eyes traced over the new patterns. 'When did you start solving cases?'

'When my parents died.' There was another soft clattering of bones, and Lawliet's eyes flicked towards the sound. 'But I didn't become L until later.'

'Who were you before you were L?' asked Light, tone as weightless as the mists.

'Nobody.' The skeletons reflected on the surfaces of Lawliet's eyes. 'Who were you before you were Kira?'

Light's gaze flicked over the skulls and their empty grins. 'The person everyone else thought they wanted to be.'

'No wonder you became Kira,' said Lawliet, watching the ash settling gently over the fleshless corpses, slowly burying them. 'I pity you.'

'And why is that?' asked Light, tone like ash slipping over smooth ivory.

'I could have become like you, you know,' said Lawliet, and there was the dampened rumble of bones tumbling over each other in he distance, somewhere obscured to them by the mists. 'If my intellect hadn't been given another outlet.'

Light's gaze landed on a skull that did not look human. 'You're saying?'

'Kira should be able to deduce what I'm saying.' said Lawliet, finally turning his head to look at him.

Light was still staring out over the unburied mass grave. 'Maybe I'm bored and have nothing better to do than try to get you to just say it.'

'Very well, then,' said Lawliet. 'If you insist.' His dark gaze shifted upwards, watching the falling ash, before flicking back to Light's face. 'You didn't actually care about changing the world, did you, Kira.' The words were ordered into a question but Lawliet's tone did not lift inquiringly at the end, staying low; even. 'You just needed something challenging to apply yourself to.'

Light nudged a femur with his foot, and the bones around it clattered as they rearranged themselves. 'I don't see what difference it makes.'

'It's why you lost,' said Lawliet. 'If you'd actually wanted to change the world, you would have done things differently.'

Light glanced at him, eyes gray in the gloom. 'So you're saying that I'm better off dead.'

Lawliet's held his gaze, dark eyes as depthless and unblinking as the skulls'. 'You never did enjoy being alive.'

'Did you?' asked Light.

Lawliet looked away. 'I enjoyed solving mysteries.' His hands remained in his pockets. 'And eating sweets.'

'Do you wish you were still alive, then?' asked Light, watching him with relaxed eyes.

Lawliet glanced at him, then back at the skeletons, and a hand slipped from its pocket to rest its thumb at his lip. 'Yes.'

Light shifted his gaze away, eyes landing on the inhuman skull. 'You must hate me, then.'

Wild dark hair hid Lawliet's face. 'It was well-played. I admire that.'

'Then you must hate yourself,' said Light, bones crunching beneath his feet as he walked over to the skull, crouching down next to it.

'I suppose I do,' said Lawliet, watching Light through his bangs. 'But I'm sure Kira can relate.'

'No,' said Light, picking up the skull and turning it over in his hands, brushing his fingers over the branching antlers, the sharp teeth. 'I don't think I can.'

Lawliet bit slightly at his thumb. 'That was surprisingly honest of you.'

Light shrugged, setting the skull back down. 'You're the one who started it, L.'

'Kira didn't have to play along,' said Lawliet.

Light stood, hands slipping into his pockets. 'It's no fun, otherwise.'

Lawliet stared at him. 'Kira wouldn't know fun if it walked up to him and punched him in the face.'

Light's body was in profile, dark against the bones glowly dimly around him, halflight reflected on the swirling mists. 'Being Kira was fun.'

'My point stands,' said Lawliet.

Light's mouth quirked. 'As if you can talk, L.'

Lawliet looked at him sideways. 'I never claimed that I found solving mysteries fun. Only that I found them diverting and satisfying.'

'Semantics,' said Light.

'Excuses,' said Lawliet.

Light let out a quasi-breath, turning to meet his gaze. 'You're not going to let me win this one, are you?'

'No, I'm not,' said Lawliet.

'Fine,' said Light, and turned away, starting to walk in the other direction. 'You win.'

'Kira is truly a petulant child,' remarked Lawliet, watching him go.

Light kept walking. 'You can stay there if you want, L.'

Lips curving upwards, Lawliet followed.