Chapter Four

Lost Love

This was hard for me to write, sorry for the delay. This chapter will not go too much into the emotions Light is feeling, but will be an almost like an outsider's perspective. As the story progresses I will peel into his layers of emotion and what not so sit tight.

And no, I didn't skip a chapter. Just read.

*PRESENT*

"Kira strikes again! The police have once again been sent a package containing evidence and information for a case. This is remarkable! It marks the forty-eighth case which has been solved through extensive tips and evidence supplied by an unknown source named Kira. Kira has become a hero too many and an urban legend of Tokyo.. This is reporter Kiyomi Takada reporting from…"

Light switched off the television, leaving him alone in a silent room. Well, the room wasn't completely silent. The hum of computers filled the air, and the hustle and bustle noises of the city were ever present in the apartment.

He leaned back in his roll-away chair and twirled the pencil in his hands. "Forty-eighth… so it's been that long…" he mused out loud to himself. He stretched his legs out, also musing about how long they have grown. He ran a hand through his auburn hair.

Light then stifled a yawn and went back to his work on the computer, typing away at an impressive speed achieved through practice. He had learned this skill a few years ago when he first decided to become a hacker to better access information.

He figured out the basics about hacking on his own, but the process was slow and clumsy. Light never thought he'd be able to access anything more then a mid-level secure store website, but when attempting to hack a bank in hopes to get a hold of bank statements he met M. M was an experienced hacker who could hack almost anything. They formed a partnership, one in which M would teach Light how to hack, and Light in turn would help assist M in large hacking projects.

Light went by the codename K, for by that time Kira was a name he had associated with his works. Light would never have accepted M's guidance and ever assisted him if he assumed M was a criminal hacker. Since the beginning Light could tell M was just into hacking for the fun of it, and judging by their chat logs it was safe to assume that M was likely an American teenager. By the end of their hacking tryst M and Light had successfully hacked into the Central Intelligence of America database and changed the lunch menu for the staff from stroganoff pasta to chicken fingers and tater tots. Afterwards they parted ways, both satisfied from the partnership, with a promise to eliminate all traces and connections they had to each other as a precaution.

After about an hour Light stopped his typing and got ready for work. He was already wearing slacks and a nice button up shirt, all he need to grab was his wallet, a jacket, and his work apron, a leaf-green colored thing with a small, smiling book worm in the top right corner.

Light worked at a book store a few blocks away. He worked there during the afternoons and evenings, leaving at night. The walk to it was always a quick walk. Today in particular it was quite brisk. It was winter and the weather was always cold but never seemed to want to snow, instead sending chilling blasts of wind in its place.

When Light arrived he was greeted by the store owner. His coworker who he was replacing for his shift saw him enter and called out to him, too.

"Hey Akino! Stop being so prompt, you are making me look bad!"

"Can't help being so perfect," Light casually replied, giving his coworker a grin. Light didn't seem to mind at all that his coworker called him Akino. After all, that is his last name. He is Light Akino. Light Yagami died five years ago.

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*PAST*

After Light ran away from the bus ordeal he walked around aimlessly, not sure what to do with himself. At about two in the morning Light figured that if he was going to go back he should go now. But Light didn't want to go back.

Nothing waited for him at home. Shiori was dead and Mikami was leaving him. Hiro and Aya were having a new baby, so he wasn't needed by them anymore. School had no meaning to him. He had no interest in a future and no one in the present to cling to. He was alone.

He walked until he came to a river. He walked carefully down the grassy hill leading to it to the bank. Before him the dark, cold water rushed. Light shrugged off his coat and held it in his hands. He searched the pockets for his wallet, but instead found a phone.

It wasn't his but Shirori's. His phone was still in his bag that he had abandoned on the bus. Light reaches into his poacket again and this time once again failed to produce his wallet but instead pulled out Mikami's phone charm. A wave of bitter sadness washed over him. Carefully he took the charm out of the packaging and placed it on Shiori's phone.

He then placed the phone in his pants pocket. Once more he reached into his pocket and pulled out his wallet. He opened it and removed the money, placing it in his other pants pocket.

Then he leaned back and chucked the wallet as far as it would go. With a splash it landed in the river and was swept away with the current. Light looked at the spot where it had disappeared, then tossed his jacket in, too. The jacket floated for a few yards before becoming soak and sinking down beneath the surface.

With a straight face Light turned his back to the river and made his way up the hill.

Light lived like on the streets for the next month. He slept on subway stairs and park benches and in public bathrooms. He used his wallet money to dye his hair black to better blend in and avoid recognition. He also bought a new jacket to be able to better combat any changes in weather.

He found a job at a small pawn shop, working under the name Light Akino in honor of Shiori. It paid little and the work was tedious, but Light was able to earn enough money to buy a small apartment. And while there (and when his boss wasn't there) Light was able to make sure the customers got good deals on what they brought in and bought in exchange.

After work he went on walks. That was how he managed to solve his first crime. Light go off late one night and walked for while, ending up in a warehouse district. He saw two suspicious figures outside one of the warehouses. He would normally have passed on, paying them no attention, but their body language suggested something was up. Curious, Light got closer and secretly listened in on their conversation.

It turned out to be a drug exchange. Not an actual one, but the confirmation meeting of a major drug drop here at the warehouse. Light listen on and learned some of the details, then inspected the location and found several clues, like the boxes that would be exchanged for the boxes containing the drugs. Light was careful not to touch anything and left. He was going to go straight to the police but stopped when he realized he had no usable documentation and identity. They might discover who he really was and send him back.

Light was then at a crossroads. He knew he had to inform them, his sense of justice was too great to let drug dealers get away with this, but he couldn't go to the police directly. He decided to tip them off anonymously. Calling from any phone would let them know his location so he wrote them a letter explaining the details. The plan was to slip it in when he was pretending to be a lost tourist who stopped by a police station to ask for directions since the time to mail a letter would take to long.

It worked because a few days later there was a police crime seen set around the warehouse near Light's work, the day after the night of the drug deal. Reading the paper Light learned the police decided to stake the place out after receiving his tip, discovered it to be true and leapt into action.

Light felt more fulfilled then he had in a long time. When Shiori was still alive Light had considered following in his fathers foot steps and becoming a detective. But that door was closed now to him, but there may be a way he could keep this going.

Light got the idea to follow what he had started, that is investigating and solving cases on his own and sending his conclusion and evidence to the authorities to properly handle the matter. Light wanted to be justice.

With that new conviction Light started working harder at his job and picked up a second job, knowing he had to make money if his new dream was to be fully realized. First he needed equipment, and then he needed training.

While he worked to save up money he solved what cases he could. He read reports in newspaper about unsolved crimes and worked the field, looking for clues where he could. His goal was to leave no trace and let no one know who he was, real or fake identity.

Light went by a new name, Light Akino. He didn't want to give up his first name for it was his last tie back to his old life and his father, but his last name would make him too easy to find. He changed it to Akino, in honor of Shiori. Light knew this wasn't a great disguise of a name, for if anyone felt like doing the research they could tie his last name and first name to his old self, but no one would bother if he played his hand correctly.

Light decided to signature all his work with the name Kira, a variation on the Kanji for his name which meant moon, or 'hira'.

Walking on the streets at night, whether it was to look for clues or hoping to overhear something else important, Light became aware of the many small petty crimes around him, like muggings, flashers, and pit-pockets. He tried to stop what he could, but it often ended with him being beaten up.

Angry Light took to sitting in shady bars hoping to eavesdrop on unsuspecting characters. That was how he met Yasuo. Yasuo was a run away, like Light, who had lived on the streets for a while now and knew how things worked. He had noticed Light's attempt to appear unassuming, quickly deduced he was a run away, too, and decided to help him.

The boys struck up a friendship as Yasuo taught Light the ways of the streets. Somehow their friendship became a bit more and Light had found himself in a relationship. After going for a walk and sometimes looking for clues while out, they would go back to Light's small apartment and spend the night in each other's company. Yasuo eventually officially moved in with Light.

They grew close, but one day Yasuo's family came in contact with him. They wanted him back; sorry that they had driven him away and now wanted to make amends. Yasuo went back to them with the support of Light, but sadly it left Light alone once again, for Yasuo's family lived quite far up north. Yasuo asked for Light to come with him but was turned down. Light could leave his work. He had to do it.

Being alone again left Light really lonely, but he re-submerged himself in his work, both official and unofficial. He eventually saved up enough money to buy an extensive computer system along with high tech cameras and other tools needed for ground work. While trying to figure out how to utilize his computer he met M, who taught him everything he needed to know.

He was able to expand on his fake identity, creating a document history and trail for Light Akino and a non-existent family, linking them back to a real family line several generations back to increase the believability. Fake passport and identity card were included.

Now aided with the power of hacking, Light was now able to discreetly access the police system, finding new cases to try and solve and all the base work and information found so far included. Light was able to tackle bigger cases, like kidnappings and murders.

He even found out the status of the search for him, Light Yagami. He was officially declared dead. They had found his wallet and jacket washed up down the river and assumed he had jumped in and committed suicide after seeing his friend die. Light felt relieved and empty at the same time.

He stopped dying his hair black and let it return to its natural light brown. His lack of caring for himself left him skinny, but he had built up muscle from his walks, fights, and solo tennis games (him versus the nearest wall).

Kira had gotten popular. Kira to most was both real and not real at the same time. Some claimed Kira was the name of a secret crime solving vigilante group, other that he was a single person of incredible talent. Some even though he was some sort of demigod. What ever their belief the people of Tokyo embraced Kira, making him an urban myth and never really trying to solve who sent in the information and how they got it.

Kira watches over us to protect the innocent from evil, and brings the evil to justice for their actions

That was a statement that both elated and terrified Light. He made a difference and helped, but he was no god. He was a mere mortal that could try as hard as he might to repay for the sins of the past…

xXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXx

*PRESENT*

Light got off work at eight. By then the sun had gone down, but the city was still full of light, never ceasing to be active. It was gloomier then usual. Angry storm clouds were in the sky and with a flash of lightening and a crack of thunder it began to pour.

The rain was freezing, soaking through Light's jacket as easily as if it were made of paper. Light cursed at himself for not bringing a rain jacket or an umbrella. Though an umbrella wouldn't help combat the rain blown at him by the wind.

It was truly disgusting weather. On any other day Light would have gone home and spent the night nice and warm in front of his computer, hacking into files at his leisure, but not tonight. Tomorrow was a day he'd rather forget, but despite his carefree appearance today he spent every free moment remembering.

Tomorrow was the anniversary of his parent's deaths.

As he did every year he would spend all night stalking the streets looking for something he wouldn't find. What it was he didn't know. He would then take the day off of work and spend it how ever struck his fancy, then spend the night of repeating the previous night's actions.

He never bothered to analyze how he spent the anniversary, like he never really analyzed anything else he did emotionally, that is when he did anything for an emotion driven reason, which was rare.

The weather wouldn't stop him tonight so he pulled up his hood and set off.

Okay! There you go! I may comeback to this chapter some day and edit it, but if I do I will make it well known. Chances are if I do it will not be a major change, but everything little thing counts. This is not much of a cliffhanger/climatic ending but it is suitable.

Next chapter will be up soon! And it's a good one, I promise! Why? I don't know, any guesses? Hint hint wink wink