"Hey, Ryuuzaki, who's this?" asked a deep voice.
"A guest," replied a voice you recognised as the man from before.
Your eyes snapped open as you realised that you weren't still dreaming. 'What am I still doing here? I must have fallen asleep…oh…this blanket is soft…WAIT! Focus! What do I do now?'
You saw that you were lying on a leather couch, and at the head of the couch was 'Ryuuzaki.' The first thing that struck you was the way that he was sitting. 'Man, does he have some weird habits!'
The second thing that struck you was that there were five men standing around the couch staring down at you with puzzled expressions. Feeling embarrassed, you scrambled up to sit on your knees. "Uh…ohiyo," you greeted, bowing to each of the men in turn.
There was a black-haired man in a teal suit that introduced himself as Matsuda. You took an immediate liking to his uncomplicated ways and open smile, sensing that he was a good person. There was a man in a some-what beige suit also with black-hair, he was called Aizawa. He grinned at you, and you grinned back, feeling his devotion and kindness. Another man in a blue suit, smiled, as you looked his way. He introduced himself as Mogi, and you could sense that he was similar to Aizawa and smiled back. The next man, clothed in brown, with gray-streaked black hair called himself Yagami. His determination and dedication was immediately apparent to you…also his inner turmoil. The last man to introduce himself was also called Yagami, you realised that the older man standing beside him was his father. He was wearing a high-school uniform, and you marveled at the reason behind his attendance. Being no fool, you had deduced that this was the mysterious headquarters for the opposition of Kira. You glanced once again at Yagami Light, on first glance he seemed like an average teenage boy, however, on second glance, you realised that behind his fake smile, he was…something you couldn't name. You continued to stare at him, oblivious to the discomfort your stare was causing in the room. Matsuda cleared his throat loudly, and you turned to look. You stared in him blankly, waiting for him to say something. "So…what's your name, Miss?" Aizawa eventually asked to break the silence.
"Oh…it's Ahiru," you said, happily.
"So why are you here?" Mogi asked.
"She's making me a computer," Ryuuzaki said.
It was then you realised that both your pocketed black vest and your computer wristband had disappeared. You lurched to your feet, swiveling your head to locate your beloved items. "If you want to know, I put them next to my computer," Ryuuzaki said.
You practically sprinted over there to check that your precious items were unharmed. You sighed in relief, and turned to look accusingly at Ryuuzaki. "You took them off me while I was sleeping!" you said, pointing at him.
He nodded. You sweatdropped. "So…where's this L?" you asked, taking everyone off guard.
"What do you mean?" Matsuda asked, visibly sweating.
"Oh come on! Your headquarters just happens to be a massive empty building. You have more difficult computer firewalls than I've ever seen before. I was called here to copy a file regarding the identity of Kira, and if that's not enough, some present here are obviously members of the police force," you said, slightly amused by their gaping expressions.
"That's a nice theory, Miss Ahiru, but-" started Yagami.
"There's no buts about it, I've already decided. And I already know which one of you is L," you said.
You slowly turned to face the man called Ryuuzaki. "Nice to meet you, L."
Ryuuzaki/L merely glanced at you before going back to typing on his computer. "Hn. I guess I was right."
"How could you know?" Aizawa asked, still trying to follow your thinking process.
"Just a hunch. And besides…anyone that strange has to be a genius," you said, suppressing an urge to giggle at L's sour expression.
"I guess I can see your point," laughed Matsuda, rubbing the nape of his neck.
The five men all turned to look at Matsuda, and he stopped laughing and mumbled something under his breath before leaving the room. Chuckling, you turned and walked up behind where L was sitting typing on his computer. "So, about the deal we made this morning?" you asked.
He turned and looked at you, still typing. Your eyebrow twitched. 'If this guy wasn't a genius, he would definitely be a nutcase.'
"I get to live here until I finish my computer for you, then you'll pay me the amount we decided on? Half upfront?" you queried, delighted at the deal.
'YATTA! I don't have to pay rent for the next few months! And free food! How could I refuse!'
"Un."
"Let's shake on it."
You held out your hand, waiting for him to take it. He stared at it a second before tentatively reaching out his own hand and taking it in his. His grasp was cool and his fingers were calloused. He quickly shook your hand, and turned back to the computer. You took this as a sort of dismissal and backed away. "Go and buy your materials, Watari has money for you down in the foyer," L said, face still glued to his screen.
Practically skipping, you bounced down to the foyer where you met an old man in a black business suit. He was holding a brown envelope, obviously your allowance. "Miss Ahiru?" he asked, in a deep but pleasant voice.
You nodded, grinning from ear to ear, and he handed you the envelope. "I am to accompany you on your journey-"
You groaned inwardly.
"-and we will be taking the limo parked outside."
You looked around him and saw a gorgeous black stretch limo outside the building. You mentally cheered, thinking about all the good things that were happening. You grabbed Watari by the wrist and dragged him outside to the limo, eager to be on your way.
Meanwhile, back on the 27th floor, there was a discussion about you. "So you just randomly decided to hire someone to break in?!" Aizawa asked, disbelieving.
L nodded. "But why her?" questioned Matsuda, after recently reentering the room.
"She's one of the best in Japan," L said.
"Why haven't we ever heard of her then?" Mogi asked.
L gave him an 'are-you-really-that-stupid' look. Yagami cleared his throat and said, "I think that what Ryuuzaki's trying to say is that she wouldn't be that good if we had heard of her."
Looking over L's shoulder, Light read your file. "Apparently, she's the third greatest detective in the world, and apparently she will go to any lengths necessary to find what ever she is hired for," Light said, "Even break-ins clearly."
"Heh, I guess that means she bested one of your personas then, Ryuuzaki-kun," Matsuda said, chuckling.
"But she can't be any more than 20 years old!" exclaimed Mogi.
L turned to look at him. "I…uh…point taken," Mogi spluttered.
"We shall have to keep an eye on her at any lengths," Yagami decided.
"I'm asking her to join the investigation," L said, emotionlessly.
"What? Why?" Matsuda asked.
"She bested one of my fake identities. She could discover something I have overlooked, and besides…keep your friends close, and your enemies closer, or competition in this case."
Unable to think of a reason to object, it was voted that she would join the investigation.
Oblivious to all of this, you had happily invaded all the electronics stores in the district, and were now sitting quite contently in the back of the limo, on the way back to the headquarters. You lithely hopped out of the limo, and walked inside the building, leaving Watari to drag in all your purchases. As he made his way into the foyer with all your bags, you realised that you had forgotten to help him and apologised profusely. "No problem, Miss Ahiru, Ryuuzaki asked me to assist you in any way possible," he panted, loading all of your bags into the elevator, and stepping in just as the doors shut. 'Hmm…any way possible, huh?'
"I just don't understand how such a small computer could need all these bags," he said, as the elevator ascended.
"You need the exact materials on hand to make a computer such as mine," you said, stepping out of the elevator on the 27th floor.
You entered L's room and completely ignoring the meeting that was taking place, you sat down at the table next to L and started work. You were fiddling around with your bags, your tongue sticking out when you heard someone cough loudly behind you. Dismissing it, you continued your construction. 'I'm no genius but I think someone needs a lozenge'
They coughed louder, and you looked over your shoulder. All six of the men were turned to face you, some with annoyed expressions. L being L was merely staring at you with his blank expression. "What's up everybody?" you asked, blinking.
"We have voted to allow you to join the investigation, Ahiru-chan," Matsuda burst out, "We'll be working together!"
In his mind, he had already imagined the two of you going out on a date. You stared at them all, slightly disbelieving. "Thanks, but no thanks," you dismissed, and turned back to your work.
"But Ryuuzaki is offering you permanent residence in the building if you agree, meals provided!" Mogi said, understanding that your cooperation could be greatly advantageous to the investigation.
You swiveled around in your chair, your legs crossed on the soft leather. "Permanent…residence?" you questioned, looking at L.
He slightly inclined his head, and you leapt up from the chair and threw your arms around him. "Arigatou Ryu-kun!" you squeaked, overcome with happiness, "I'll do it! Just tell me how I can help!"
"You might want to let him go, Ahiru-chan," laughed Matsuda.
"Oh…gomennasi Ryu-kun!" you said, pulling yourself off the startled detective. Unbeknownst to you, L turned and glared straight at Matsuda, who stopped laughing and looked down at the floor apologetically. Then, something occurred to him. "Ryu-kun?" he asked, somewhat dubiously.
"Uhuh," you said, smiling at him.
He stared at you, unable to comprehend how you were reasoning. He looked down at his hands and mumbled, "Ryu-kun…"