Robin fanned herself lightly, sighing with exhaustion from the afternoon heat. "Light, where are we meeting your friends at again?" she asked impatiently. With all the time she'd spent cooped up inside, Robin was unaccustomed to the summer heat, and the weather seemed to effect her more than it did the two men accompanying her.
"Right here. Don't worry, they'll be here soon" Light supplied, giving her another one of the many odd looks he'd granted her on the way over in Matsuda's car. "Those sunglasses make you look like you're blind" he commented with a smirk.
Tugging at the waist of her white sundress, that was clinging to her skin with a sheen of sweat, Robin frowned. "He insisted that I wear them. They keep about a third of my face hidden-hopefully that's enough-without being too suspicious. I figured I could play it off like they're in fashion in the US, since I'm obviously foreign" she said, adjusting the large black sunglasses as she spoke.
"Ryuzaki really cares about you, huh?" Matsuda commented with a wide smile.
Robin turned her head abruptly to look at him. "It's nothing like what you're insinuating. We've just known each other for a long time. I'm only his comrade, after all-"
Much to her appreciation, Robin was interrupted by a loud friendly call. "Hey, Yagami! Long time no see!" a teenager, part of large group, greeted as the teens approached the three.
"You're always studying and whatnot, it feels like we never get to see you anymore! You got real serious at university-" the talkative man stopped, staring at both Robin and Matsuda before a grin broke out on his face. "Oh, I see! You've got yourself a girlfriend now! That's why we never see you!"
Robin tried not to sneer or laugh at the notion, "It's nothing like that. I'm a foreign exchange student at the university, Light just helps me out a lot" Of course her lie was believable enough, what with Light constantly playing his good Samaritan act. "I'm Robin Sterling, it's nice to meet you"
The man's eyes seemed to brighten at the news. "Oh! In that case, welcome to Japan. I'm Satou, Jun. that's… uh, last name and then first in Japan" Jun said, shaking her hand.
Robin cocked her head to the side, smiling slightly with amusement as she noticed through Jun's body language that he was obviously hoping for a romantic pursuit of her. "You can let go of my hand now, Jun" she commented upon noting the several seconds of prolonged contact outside of the necessary norm to create friendship. Jun broke the bond with an embarrassed blush, that soon went unnoticed as a girl from the group spoke up.
"Did you say your name was Robin Sterling?" A girl from the group asked, her eyebrows knotted as if she was trying to concentrate on something. "Why does that sound so familiar?" the girl wondered aloud.
The sharp increase of Robin's focus went unnoticed thanks to her dark sunglasses, but her gaze fell harshly on the girl all the same. "I don't know why it would, I've only been in Japan a few months" Robin said with a laugh, trying to brush off the attention.
"No, Aki's right, I feel like I've heard that in… maybe a book somewhere?" A bespeckled man in the group said with an equal expression of thought on his features as the girl, Aki, displayed.
Shit, are these students psych majors? They could have read one of my books or studies… and if they reveal my expertise to Light-! I might never get anything from his expressions again! Robin thought, gritting her teeth. "Oh, how rude of me!" She suddenly said, as if really forgetting something. "Light, we forgot to introduce Taro!" Robin said, indicating Matsuda. Her brief glance at Light told her that he would much rather continue with the other's discussion, but she pressed on none-the-less. "Everyone, this is Taro. He's a student auditor in one of our classes-so you can tell how smart he is. And, he's looking for a girlfriend, ladies~!" Robin said, patting Matsuda on the shoulder playfully. "Anyone want to volunteer?" she said jokingly, easing up the group with a collective laugh.
"Hey, come on, Robin!" Matsuda exclaimed with an embarrassed blush.
The lighthearted teasing seemed to break up what little tension there was, and Light introduced the rest of the group to Robin and Matsuda. There were only two couples, Nana and Dai as well as Hiro and Natsumi, leaving the rest of the party; Aki, Manami, Kenta, and Jun labeled as single-although it was obvious that Kenta (the man with glasses) was interested only in Aki. Soon after the introductions finished, the group collectively decided to wander down the street until they spotted something interesting to occupy their time.
Both Manami and Aki almost immediately fell into step beside Matsuda and began talking about the challenge of 'auditing a class'-obviously, Matsuda claimed it was a criminal justice course to save himself. It was something Robin found only mildly annoying, since he was supposed to be keeping his eyes peeled instead of chatting up 18-year-olds; but she shrugged it off since it was highly likely Matsuda would discover nothing of importance either way.
Light stayed positioned in between the two couples, giving the appearance of actively socially participating although his eyes never left his surroundings when he contributed to the conversation. Robin had successfully wedged herself almost directly behind him, as to keep both him and any suspicious passerby easily within her view. It satisfactorily served her purposes of searching the crowd until Jun appeared beside her with enough small talk fodder to distract her from the mission at hand.
"So, how do you like Japan so far? Is it anything like you'd thought it would be?" Jun asked, smiling at her.
As much as his attraction amused her, Robin found the mild diversion from her work annoying. "It's much hotter than I thought. Being an island, I should have expected the humidity. Although the weather is a lot more favorable in Tokyo" Robin said offhandedly, her eyes skimming the crowd with ease despite the social obligation her brain was forming with Jun.
"Oh, you didn't live near the ocean at home, huh? Oh wait, let me guess… You're from… Hmm…" he comically drew his hypothesis out. "Blue eyes, blonde hair, pretty tall, great figure… Sweden?"
Robin considered the possibility he was attempting flattery, but it was a weak attempt since-in her opinion-her American accent was much more pronounced than the remaining soft tones of her British one. Or perhaps it simply sounded garbled to the untrained ear. After all, she was a British person with an American accent speaking Japanese-something that would probably throw even translators off. "Ah, quite far off actually. I lived in LA, in the US, before I came here" she answered.
Jun faked a comical depression from his off-base answer. "It can't be helped. You don't seem like an American. They're represented as pretty obnoxious in movies and TV-even in the shows that come from there. You're too sweet to seem American" he said.
A teenage blonde girl, dressed in a laid-back pair of jeans and a t-shirt, was staring at Light. "I see" Robin muttered in answer, her eyes intensely locked on the girl before she realized the blonde was only staring at Light's looks; made obvious as she turned to her friends and giggled loudly after talking rapidly in a hushed tone.
Evidently, Robin had sounded disinterested, which Jun immediately picked up on-and caused him to re-double his efforts. "So, you must be in a lot of Light's classes to know him so well. Are you studying to become a police officer, too?" he asked, grasping for something to catch her attention.
"…Uh… No. I'm going more towards the field of a criminal lab technician" Robin thought hurriedly, making no mention of psychology since she was fully aware that Light could be eavesdropping.
"Oh! Like those crime scene shows?" Jun asked. "I love that one about the detective and the lab guy, where they go around like Sherlock Holmes and Watson solving crimes"
"It's actually not as exciting as it looks on TV" Robin commented, "Lab techs barely make contact with policemen, or suspects. They basically just go out into the field and analyze the scene"
"Hm" Jun said in response, letting a silence draw over them.
Robin reveled in the prospect that he'd given up on her, at the same time racking her brain for ways to cease his advances without being rude. "Uh, so what kind of music do you like?" Jun asked suddenly, making her loose track of another possible suspect in the crowd.
Frustrated, Robin allowed her voice to address him as unemotionally as possible. "Classical mostly. Occasionally jazz if I'm feeling a little crazy" she stated, thinking of the most boring music.
Jun brightened, "I'm in a jazz-ska band! You should hear us play sometime!" he said excitedly.
"Oh… that… definitely sounds enjoyable…" Robin stated in surprise, shifting her attention to Light's expression. Judging by his apprehensive expression, even he hadn't noticed a Kira2 candidate yet.
"So, besides that, what do you like to do for fun?" Jun asked.
Since musicians were typically involved in more creative right-brained activity, Robin rapidly thought of the most opposite thing imaginable. "Rock climbing. But not rock walls, actual mountains. That's why I lived in LA, real close to hiking trails and stuff. I train a lot, too. For triathlons. Although, that's more serious. Marathons are typically my 'fun time'" she stated.
"Wow, I've never met someone that driven before! It sounds really exciting. I could never do stuff like that. I'm more of a lazy, curl up with a good book kinda person" Jun said with a smile. "You know what they say though, opposites attract" he said with a teasing nudge.
Robin gritted her teeth in frustration, If I have to continue keeping up with this conversation, there's no way I'll be able to accurately scan the crowd-and watch Light, too! It's too many things to keep track of! "Is anyone else getting hungry?" she asked, thankful as Matsuda jumped into the conversation.
"You bet! All this walking is exhausting!" he chimed in, the girls sticking eagerly to his side.
"I know! There's a really great café around here, I used to go to it all the time when Momoko lived here" Aki spoke up, "what was it called again? …Blue… something about music… Blue…"
"Blue note?" Light asked, Robin's ears immediately perking up at the familiar word.
Notebook? Robin thought, Blue… Note?
"Yeah, that's it!" Aki exclaimed. "how did you know?"
Robin let out a grin, If anything, Light's just confirmed my suspicion about the word 'notebook'. it has to be the codeword that both of the Kira's know…
"It's up there, on the sign" Light said, dashing Robin's hypothesis almost immediately.
Damn it… or it could just be a coincidence… she thought with a frown.
The group crowded inside the small café, barely managing to fit everyone into a large booth in the corner. "Hey, you guys scoot over, I'm nearly falling off!" Manami exclaimed, allowing Jun the excuse to squish almost intimately close to Robin.
"So, Robin, I'm curious, why did you decide to move to Japan to study?" Kenta spoke up, flanking Robin's other side, as everyone else at the table lapsed either into their own conversations, or the silent studying of the menu.
"The university is pretty prestigious here" Robin stated, pretending to glance at her menu while surveying the customers of the café. It was the usual fare of civilians, each of them engrossed in each other except for a short-haired brunette schoolgirl; who was covertly shooting Light looks whenever he stopped scanning his surroundings in order to look at a friend and carry on a conversation.
Definitely suspicious, Robin thought as she noted that the cameras L controlled outside would do nothing to catch the girl's behavior. hmm, no surveillance cameras we could confiscate inside this tiny café either…
"Well certainly there are prestigious universities in America, too?" Kenta pressed, startling her from her thoughts.
Robin barely acknowledged his words, keeping her head tilted towards her menu so as not to alert the brunette that she was being watched. "I suppose. But the travel aspect appealed to me as well" she stated.
"Your parents don't mind you living so far from home?" Kenta asked. "Surely it must make you homesick as well?"
Something in his tone was too light, Kenta was forcing himself to be casual, and it made warning bells go off for Robin. She wanted to survey his face, but the brunette was more important. "My parents? They don't…" The schoolgirl was already beginning to leave, muttering to herself as she gathered her things, and Robin quickly let her sentence trail off.
"Hey, Kenta, lay off, you don't have to interrogate-" Jun began, but Robin cut him off.
"Actually, I should call my parents. I'm supposed to check in everyday, excuse me" Robin said; Jun, Matsuda, and his fan club scooting out of her way in order to let her out of the booth. The brunette suspect was unassumingly paying her tab as Robin walked past her.
Robin retrieved the cell phone from her pocket as she walked outside, standing just out of view from the café windows as she pretended to text and subtly snapped pictures of the brunette girl making her way out of the café. After noting the exact time, so as to review camera footage with L later and get more snapshots of the brunette girl, Robin turned towards the café doors.
Only to find Kenta blocking her path, leaning against the wall casually and smoking a cigarette. "Your parents don't seem very talkative" he commented smugly. "But I understand, seeing as they aren't alive"
Robin slowly placed her cell phone back into her purse, her fingers grazing the gun concealed inside that L had given her. "I think you're confused, Kenta" she said, feeling herself tense as he spoke.
"I didn't know who you were at first, it's hard to recognize you with those sunglasses on, but Aki reminded me. That girl, always coming through for me" Kenta continued. "Robin Steele. Aki and I did a research paper on your last case; the Wara Ninyo murders? Fascinating stuff, I doubt someone without your expertise would have survived. You're not as well known to the common man as L or Coil is, but you're still famous to someone like me. I'm majoring in criminal psychology, just like you did for your degree. Well, one of your degrees."
She ignored the chill that ran down her spine at the mention of the LABB case, as well as the unsettling feeling Kenta was beginning to give her. "You have me mistaken for someone else" Robin stated.
"Don't worry, I won't tell anyone else" Kenta assured eagerly. "But you can't fool me. You're not here to study, not with how many degrees you have. For someone like you to be here, it has to be a case. It's Kira, isn't it? You're tied with L-the Wara Ninyo case made that obvious-L was working on that, the files wouldn't have been under so much protection for any other reason" he continued excitedly.
Robin looked away from Kenta and towards the bell chime from the café's front door, alarmed to see that it was Jun evidently coming to look for them. Before Jun could look down the street their way, she gripped Kenta's arm and yanked him into the nearest alleyway before shoving him against the wall to stop his cry of surprise. "Fuck!" Robin cursed quietly as the cigarette Jun had been smoking tumbled from his lips and struck her on the arm before falling to the dirty alley pavement. "Look, I don't know what you want from me, but-"
Kenta cut her off quickly, his momentary fear from her violent actions gone. "I want to work the case with you! If you don't let me, I'll tell everyone who you are and blow your cover" he winced as Robin shoved him harder against the wall. "Hey, I don't want to, but you wouldn't let me any other way. You've got to let me help you. It would be a dream come true!"
Robin scowled at him. "This isn't a case for an inexperienced student. It's not even my place to put anyone on the team, it's his-"
"Eh, do you mean L-" Robin cut Kenta off quickly by slamming a hand over his mouth.
"Shut it!" she exclaimed. "You idiot, do you know how many criminals-or rivals of him-would be after me if they heard I had even a faint connection to him? You even said it so casually in the street, too!" Robin said, taking a worried look into the alley opening as a few pedestrians walked by obliviously. "This place isn't secure in the slightest. Not to mention that you knew I was under-fucking-cover, you numbskull. We can't talk here, weather I want you to work on the case or not. Do you understand?"
Kenta nodded his head slowly in her grasp.
"Good" Robin said. "Now, it's likely that the team saw me pull you in here so I have no doubt that-"
"Robin?" Matsuda said from the entrance of the alley; it was only until he walked closer to them that she could tell his gun was out and at the ready. "Is everything alright?"
"Stow your weapon, he isn't a physical threat" Robin stated, noticing Kenta pale as he saw Matsuda's gun.
Factoring in that her language meant that Kenta had figured something about them out, Matsuda continued. "Ryuzaki was worried. He wanted me to check on you, and he definitely wants to know what's going on" he said, still gripping his gun.
Robin glanced from the gun to Kenta. "He knows much more than he should. Ryuzaki will want to take him into custody" she stated.
Matsuda's eyebrows shot up in surprise. "But on what charges? We can't just-"
"We have to. He knows about me. My connection to Ryuzaki" Robin stated. "We'll be taking him in under witness protection, and we need Aki too, since they did research together. The only question is how Ryuzaki will want to proceed without making it obvious. It's no doubt that their classmates mustn't know we're taking them"
Matsuda nodded, although not seeming to understand that Robin meant that Light shouldn't be informed of the abducting; only she didn't want to say so in front of Kenta and give him a reason to suspect Light, in case he was released. As it was, Kenta already knew enough information that could get him killed.
"Go back inside. Stay calm. If the others ask, you saw me and Kenta walking off and flirting or something. They'll leave us alone" Robin said as she repositioned herself, keeping her lower arm pressed tightly against Kenta's windpipe in order to keep him quiet while freeing her other hand to grab her cell phone. "I'll call Ryuzaki"
I know, I know; haven't updated this story in forever, ended this chapter in a weird place-had hardly any L action in it… But, what do you know, it's an update none-the-less. Thanks for the continued support for this story, even though I've been suspiciously absent for quite awhile. -Luv, Cart