I Write Sins, Not Tragedies
ChipsAhoypup
Warning: Boy love. Don't like, don't read.
A/N Wow, I barely have any time to write anymore. D: School is taking up lots of my life, because homework is overloading. But I'm trying to squeeze in some writing here and there… Be patient, please. D:
Disclaimer: I don't own Death Note. Credit for plot bunnies of the story go to Nikkacatmeki.
The day after the party, the belated birthday boy sat by himself, as usual. The white-haired kid, who had been at the orphanage long before the raven-haired one arrived, was staring at him intently. The raven squirmed under the albino's gaze.
The snowy child abruptly sat up, abandoning his jigsaw puzzle. He headed straight for the obsidian child. "Hello," Albino said.
"…Hi." The raven glanced away, looking as if he'd rather not talk.
"I'm Near," The albino said, holding out a hand, which the raven shyly took.
"I'm L," The raven answered.
"Would you like to play with me?" Near offered, his ebony eyes sparkling with innocence.
"Okay." L felt a small smile pulling at the corner of his lips. So his wish had come true. "Just… hang on a second. I have to do something." Before Near could object, L scrambled off to his room.
He knelt by his bed, folding his hands together, and closed his eyes. "I'm sorry I doubted you. I do believe in you, God," He whispered. "Thank you." After his small prayer, he opened his eyes, beaming for the first time in years.
He remained in his room until his smile wore off, then padded back towards Near, covering himself in his dull shell once more.
oOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOo
That night, L was having a strange dream. He hadn't had a dream in a long time, so that made it even stranger.
L was trudging through a dense forest. The sound of foreign birds echoed from around him. He was equipped with a small dagger, which would be useful if he encountered any dangerous species.
A rustling in a bush nearby alarmed L, and he halted, turning to stare. The shrub was moving alongside him, as if it had gained feet and was following him.
The bush paused, realizing L had stopped. The raven-haired adventurer cautiously made his way towards the unsuspecting shrub, and, without warning, shoved it. The impact sent it toppling over, and the foliage gave way to reveal a sprawled-out Light.
"Why were you following me?" L asked accusingly.
"I wanted to help. I heard you were going to capture the tiger that's been killing all the coyotes," Light said, sitting up, looking enthusiastic. He paused, before adding, "If that's okay with you."
L hesitated, then decided that there would be no harm letting Light come along. With a wary sigh, he muttered, "Okay." Light looked delighted; he hastily scrambled to his feet.
With that, the two continued on their way.
After a bit of walking, they came across an ebony coyote. It lay on its side, limp, several chunks of fur and flesh torn from its body. Blood was dribbling down from its wounds, and its eyes were wide open, staring at nothing.
Next to it laid a smaller coyote, a brown one, which was whimpering, nuzzling against its larger companion. Before L and Light could move, a large white paw stomped on the brown coyote pup, killing it instantly.
L and Light's eyes widened, and they glanced up to see the white paw was connected to a giant, albino tiger. Its gray eyes glimmered, and it looked enraged. L held up his dagger, and Light backed up a few paces, weaponless.
The tiger's glare was aimed straight for the helpless brunette. Quick as lightning, the giant feline pounced at Light, ready to tackle him to the ground, as L could only look on in fear, his knife angled at the tiger as he got ready to charge forward and attempt to save his companion—
"L, wake up!" A voice hissed, snapping L out of his dream. L glanced around, panicked, still not fully awoken from his dream.
But then he was able to bear his surroundings. He pushed the alarm down, pulling his usual calmness back to the surface. He distinguished the face that peered at him fearfully in the darkness. It was Light.
"What's wrong?" L murmured drowsily, stroking his eyelids with his fists.
"I…" Light glanced behind him warily, inspecting Near's sleeping figure, before facing the raven hair again. "I had the nightmare again…"
L observed Light's face, and realized that tears were glimmering at the brunette's caramel-colored eyes.
"Let's go downstairs," L suggested quietly, climbing out of his bed. He gripped Light's hand and led him through the darkness, down the stairs, and back to the dining room. L crouched on the same chair he'd been on yesterday, and Light faltered, before retreating to his "bed," aka the chair he'd sat at yesterday.
"Was it the same exact nightmare?" L asked the moment Light sat down.
"Y-yes…" Light said, although his eyes traveled around, looking at anything but L.
"You're lying," L said flatly. Light's eyes snapped back towards L, looking awed and scared.
"…Well, it was basically the same thing… although there was something different about it." Light looked reluctant to continue.
"What was it?" L prodded.
Light took a deep breath, then whimpered, "After my dad killed my mom… I was suddenly here. A-and…" Another deep breath. "someone… I couldn't see who… put us in a cage. Me and you. And… a familiar voice… although I can't determine who's voice it was… said, 'It's not my fault. It's yours. Light Yagami. You are the killer.'" Light finished and put his forehead against the table, moaning sorrowfully.
"You're not a killer. You didn't kill anyone," L growled.
"But my mom is dead. What if it's my fault? It probably is my fault. I was why they got a divorce, I just know it… and my dad was angry about the divorce! That's why he killed my mom! That's why she's dead! It's all my fault!" Light burst out. He was panting now, eyes wide and slightly crazed.
"It's not your fault. It's your dad's fau—"
"No!" Light snapped, interrupting L. "It's not my dad's fault! It's my fault! Blaming my dad would be like slamming a revolving door. It's hopeless. I can go around all day, pointing my finger at my dad, shoving the revolving door… It won't do anything. It'll just be a waste of time, a waste of breath. What's the use in that?!"
"The same can be said for blaming yourself," L said rather coldly. "Pointing your finger at yourself is no different than pointing it at someone else. It's still pushing the blame on someone, and it's still reminding you of the past. Which is where you're stuck right now, Light. And, like you said, it's exactly the same as slamming a revolving door. It's wasting time. Thinking about the past won't help you leap forward into the future. You have to put the past behind you, forget about all that's happened, and open the new door of opportunities."
Light turned his gaze towards the floor. The dining room became hauntingly silent for a moment, before Light quietly asked, "How do I find the right doorknob? What if I open the wrong one?"
"I'll help you find the right doorknob," L answered just as quietly. "We'll find it together, and open it together."
Their eyes met, and they stared at each other for a moment, a new bond, a new friendship, forming, just in that one shared look... They were opening up to each other, able to tell each other things that they would tell no one else, opening up like friends do.
Opening up like the door they hoped to find.
A/N This chapter was half angsty and half cheesy. Sorry about that.
But there are going to be a lot of angsty/cheesy chapters. It's just part of getting the plot out. So, please bear with me.
On that note, I'd like to add this random fact: There was a blizzard today! ^^ I had a snow day, so I was able to type this up. Although I still haven't finished my homework… I'm so lazy.
And school's canceled tomorrow too! (It's a REALLY bad blizzard.) So I'll probably update really quickly.
Anyways, I hope you enjoyed this chapter! Stay tuned for the next one!