Best Laid Plans
Disclaimer: All recognizable characters are the property of Tsugumi Ohba, Takeshi Obata, and Viz Media. I don't own them; I just examine all their possibilities.
This story contains details and background stories I have given to individual characters. As a result, any character details that differ from canon is the result of my background stories and not a lack of knowledge about canon. Any comments correcting me or debating with me on this will be deleted without reply.
Chapter 5: The vague message is clear
November 9, 2004
Tokyo
10:16 a.m.
L picked up a small cream puff from the stack on the plate in front of him on the glass coffee table. He licked some of the powdered sugar off before nibbling into the pastry, feeling the eyes of the Taskforce members boring into him.
"The first victims were reported on November 5 with records indicating they died between 5 p.m. on November 4 and 3 p.m. on November 5," L said.
He paused to lick up some of the vanilla cream.
"This means the deaths have been reported over the past five days," L continued, gaze fixed on the pastry though he could see the other Taskforce members in his peripheral vision. All but Light were sitting down on the couches on both sides of him. Light leaned on the top of one couch while keeping half an eye on the computers. "In the past five days there have been a total of 54 deaths; 16 between November 4 and 5, 10 between the 5th and 6th, seven the next period, 12 on the fourth day, and, as we have just seen, nine were reported this morning.
"To break it down even further, 27 victims were reported in Japan, 14 in the United States, four in Italy, three in the United Kingdom, two in Canada, and one each in Brazil, France, Israel, and South Africa."
L took a large bite out of his pastry and licked some of the cream from the side of his lip. He could see the somber looks on each member's faces.
"As we have discovered over the past five days due to everyone's diligent research, all of the victims were either accused of or convicted of a crime. The crimes have ranged from the most heinous — murder, sexual assault, and the like — to the least severe —shoplifting, purse snatching, perjury, et cetera. All the victims' crimes had been reported in the media, whether television, print media, internet, or any combination. Some of these criminals had also been killed despite being identified in the media only by a pseudonym or common alias."
L chomped down the rest of his cream puff, delicately licking the tips of his fingers. Aside from the crunching and slurping of his own breakfast, the only other sound he could hear in the room was the whirr and blipping of computers and the uneasy breaths and shifting of his colleagues.
"Based on these patterns, I have come to the conclusion that, at the moment, the Fourth Kira is focused on killing criminals," L continued. "We will have to look for any other sudden death patterns as we found with Yotsuba. The Fourth Kira has been keeping a relatively steady and aggressive rate of killing; seven to 16 victims a day does make a rounded-up average of 11 killings per day though it has only been five days. It looks from these figures as if Kira gave relatively simple instructions to his new accomplice: 'Kill several criminals a day' sounds about right. 'Kill as many as you can in a steady pace to make it obvious, but don't overdo it; do this until I contact you and tell you the next phase of the plan has been completed.' That next phase we can assume is Kira's direct assault on the Taskforce."
Light tried not to smile and resisted the temptation to look at Rem's hulking form in the corner. There was a simple phrase for this moment; inevitability. L was moving closer to where he wanted him.
L picked up another cream puff from the plate and bit into it.
"However, I have decided it is best to take Matsuda and Mogi partially off quarantine," L said.
The two in question let out surprised gasps.
"I still believe they are vulnerable to manipulation, however if they are contacted by any suspicious party that would provide us with essential information on the next move," L said around a full bite before swallowing. "Watari will be by shortly with the same modified cell phones for the both of you."
"Oh that's great, Ryuzaki!" Matsuda said.
"That means you're going to be bait," Aizawa said, sparing no bite in his tone.
Matsuda's enthusiasm dimmed slightly, though he did not look entirely discouraged.
"But this will make us a greater part of the investigation," Matsuda said. "I actually like the whole danger aspect of this."
Soichiro sat back with his arms folded, staring forward with a less-than-pleased expression but saying nothing. He clearly hated the idea, though Matsuda and Mogi were already in harm's way. There was nothing he could really say about this and there was nothing L could say to explain the situation any better.
"I will also allow you on computers. However all your computer and phone activity will be carefully monitored," L said. "You will be allowed out of the building, but only after being fitted with a tiny camera and microphone to watch your actions. I will also recommend that no other member of the Taskforce be seen in public with either of you; the connection would be too obvious."
"That's fine by me," Matsuda said.
"Completely understood," Mogi said with a nod.
"There is still to be no contact with Misa, Aiber, or Wedy," L said before licking a dollop of cream out of his pastry. "Matsuda and Mogi have been in our sight and have been since the killings started, the same cannot be said for any of the others. However, Matsuda and Mogi's phones will be able to accept calls from any of them though they cannot call out to them. This is, of course, if they are controlled into contacting either of them."
L was obviously staying on the same track, perhaps he wasn't running for the edge as Light hoped but he was still around there if not closer; Matsuda and Mogi had been cut some slack, but Misa was still under full quarantine. Apparently Mogi and Matsuda would have some access to Misa; it was a possible opening though Light knew he had to assess all options before making any moves. This whole situation was still dynamic; he would have to wait until some of the dust settled.
"With all five of you potentially vulnerable to control, it should go without saying that if any member of the Taskforce dies you all would be under immediate scrutiny," L said. "Even if any member becomes seriously ill or injured, Matsuda and Mogi should go back under strict quarantine. I would also want Misa, Aiber, and Wedy put under close watch and investigated for any contact with suspicious parties or even any possession of a notebook."
Rem tried not to show her jaw drop and held in a gasp.
Light's face grew hot but he kept his neutral expression.
That bastard. Of course this would be his next move with this story he concocted; Kira is waiting in the wings to infiltrate the Taskforce and can do so with the five who showed their faces during the Yotsuba investigation. Of course if anything did happen to anyone, there were only five candidates to look to. L pulled this same thing the day Misa was arrested; "If I'm killed in the next few days I've told Yagami-san, the Taskforce members, and the other L's to assume that 'Light Yagami is Kira.'"
Light practically forgot about the threat when Misa showed up a minute later. Besides if he had L's name then and killed him that day, he could smooth over the rest with his dad. if Ryuzaki died in an accident, he would brew up some tears and dad would forget about the whole threat because he probably thought it was bogus anyway…that is if Ryuzaki actually made the threat to the Taskforce.
The Taskforce would be negotiable on this matter, Rem would not.
Rem knew killing L now would put Misa in immediate danger. Even if L himself wasn't around to carry out this order, the Taskforce probably would. Unless Light Yagami planned otherwise, they would find the Death Note and arrest Misa; Misa would probably be accused of the killing Rem did herself. If Rem wrote Ryuzaki's name down now, she would die and destroy Misa in the process.
Light Yagami probably wanted her to write the name down anyway, maybe he did have some sort of plan. No, she didn't know that and taking that chance was beyond foolish. He deserved no benefit of the doubt.
That didn't mean she would take her eyes off Ryuzaki; he was still a threat.
Did L know what Light planned? Light dismissed the idea before but now it was becoming clearer that may have been the case. Ryuzaki would never know the full plan, but he probably suspected something. Light thought that maybe he had asked a little too fervently about punishments for Kira. Maybe L saw too many coincidences happening at once; he never stopped suspecting Light and Misa and Light knew he was probably acting suspicious.
Or maybe he thought he was acting suspicious because it was his plan. That had to be it. Light scolded himself for the sudden lack of confidence, but he had to be aware of this possibility. For all he knew, maybe Ryuzaki really thought there was a Fourth Kira and Misa was only a potential pawn by a shadowy Kira; though the chances of that happening were nonexistent.
"Though if the unthinkable happens, I sincerely hope all factors will be taken into account before any rash decisions are made," Soichiro said.
By "all factors," it was clear Chief Yagami was likely concerned about any preexisting medical conditions. He would not want to see people arrested if he had any more problems with his heart or if anyone else were to fall ill. The investigation was infinitely stressful on all.
"I assure you, no one will go to prison just because someone fell ill," L said, biting into another cream puff and jumping up from his seat. "The five will probably be searched and their contacts checked for any suspicious parties. If someone were to die, they would probably be detained to control the situation, though under comfortable circumstances until the situation requires otherwise."
This could open up another outlet. What would happen if Ryuzaki's little trap was triggered on any other member of the Taskforce, even if the Death Note wasn't involved? It was worth testing. Call L's bluff, have the trap triggered, and see what Rem would do to him after seeing Misa strapped in again.
Light didn't like the idea of hurting anyone with his own hands, but sacrifices could be needed. Or he could find a way to harm himself; a fall down some stairs or even shallowly cutting his wrists would do the trick. Rem could have written his name down on principle, but under the circumstances that might not happen.
Ultimately Light had to communicate to Rem that Misa was in more danger with Ryuzaki alive than dead. She had to understand Ryuzaki was the one making the orders; if he was gone, his word died with him. No one else in the Taskforce liked this idea and if Ryuzaki died Light just needed to say the right things and the whole order was forgotten. Obviously he couldn't say this out loud now. Somehow Rem had to be convinced that killing L would ultimately protect Misa.
L walked towards the main control panel, seeing the Chief's scowl tighten and Aizawa turn his head slightly to roll his eyes. Matsuda and Mogi looked unphased and Light was as cool as could be, but the gears were turning.
This move was a risk he had carefully debated before deciding to move forward. It would be strategically safer to continue forward quietly and pretend he didn't see the looming trap; taking this high ground right now could tip Light off that something was going on. However, it was best to play his hand. This wasn't just a shielding, this was also a way to grab Light's attention so he could lead it in any direction he wanted. This front of his plan was all about distraction; if Light thought something was going on he would look for the most immediate indicators, all of which L would provide.
L was aware the move would only go so far with the Shinigami. On one end, he was communicating to the Shinigami that protecting its master would still get that master harmed. However nothing was stopping the Shinigami from killing him to just get him out of the way, call his bluff, or shut him up. If anyone did die and Misa was detained, the Shinigami could still write down the names of everyone who went near her. Still, he had to try something.
"Still, it has only been five days," L said, hopping onto his seat at the computer and coming to a crouch. "We need to continue analyzing the pattern of deaths, at least until such a time as we can find the profile of who Kira chose and I believe we're getting closer."
L logged into his system and accessed a worldwide map where the killings had occurred so far. His attention subtly focused on the two killings in Canada.
One was a 21-year-old man in Edmonton who was in a drug treatment facility after shooting and killing a convenience store clerk during an armed robbery three years ago. The other a 46-year-old woman from Leduc serving a 25-year sentence at Edmonton Institution for Women for stabbing another woman to death at a party.
Two deaths in Canada, both criminals who had been convicted of their crimes before Kira. Since the Sakura TV incident with the Second Kira, the country's broadcasting regulatory commission banned showing the photos of criminals and several papers refused to print them. Regardless, one criminal from Edmonton was dead and the other was specifically from Leduc. A male and female; both accused of violent homicide.
Someone was trying to send a message.
L entered a series of specific keystrokes. It looked like he was just accessing information, though a heavily encoded message was sent to Watari with the press of a few keys:
"24 hours."
November 10, 2004
Tokyo
2:04 p.m.
Misa moved her keys to her left hand, her right hand sliding the two shopping bags to her arm so she could grab the door handle and close it.
"Oh you have no idea how hard it's been to find decent go-go boots," she said, seeing Ryuk float through the wall into the apartment. "I've looked everywhere for the kind they had in the 60s but all of it was just vinyl nightmares. I owe Suki a gift basket next time I'm in her store, she is a total lifesaver."
"Well that would be nice," Ryuk said.
"I mean I thought vintage was the big thing, but I guess designers…"
The sight of a white envelope on the floor broke her train of thought. She stood for a second and looked at it.
It was a wide envelope right by the doorframe, it looked like someone slid it under the door. The words "To Misa" were written in black ink with a heart under it.
Misa dropped the two shoe store bags and two grocery bags she had in her hands to the floor and nearly stumbled over her feet to reach for the envelope. She felt a hard surface immediately after picking it up, a further feel revealed a round edge; a DVD.
"Another message from Light!" she practically squealed.
The tip of a black fingernail found the corner of the opening and tore the envelope open, revealing another white recordable DVD.
"Have you figured out yet why he's sending you these?" Ryuk asked, leaning over Misa's shoulder and getting a closer look.
"I still don't know for sure, but I think he's sending me clues about something important," Misa said. "Or he knows it's going to be a long time before he can make his next move so he's giving me a little puzzle in the meantime."
Misa swiftly walked to the TV and turned it on.
"At first I thought he wanted me to kill that reporter in the first video, like maybe she had made some statement against Kira," Misa continued. "But I found out online that she works behind the scenes now at a big TV station, probably because she's gotten old and ugly. I did find out Canada's broadcasting ministry banned airing criminal's images, so I thought Light wanted to punish Canada like start killing newscasters with a message saying 'Start showing criminal's faces again.'"
"Well did you?" Ryuk asked.
"No, I think Light just wants to have criminals die for now, show the world and L that Kira is actually back," Misa said. "If Light had big plans I'm sure he'll find a way to tell me."
"But you haven't heard from Light since you got the last disc," Ryuk said. "Didn't you say L sent you a message about him being under protection?"
"That's probably why he sent the first one the way he did," Misa said, finding the Video input button. "Light's a genius and getting those girls to give me that disc was brilliant. I killed two people in that city to tell Light I got the message. Now he just needs to send me an envelope and he knows I'll know it was from him."
"That was a very smart move on his part," Ryuk said.
"Oh one more thing," Misa said.
She skittered a few steps to the couch and picked up a Chococat notepad and a pen topped with a plastic skull beside it.
"I should probably take some notes if that thing is going to melt again," she said.
Misa dropped the pad and pen on the floor. She then picked up the envelope and pressed the Eject button on the DVD tray. She hit the Video key on the remote and put the disc in the tray, pressing it closed.
Misa then plopped to a cross-legged sit on the floor, snatching up the pad and pen with one hand and grabbing the remote with the other. She pressed Play and watched the screen intently.
The screen was white at first and then rolled with some static that turned into the image of a news truck going down a highway with various blue graphics going over it. A familiar-sounding orchestral medley followed.
"This is the News at 6 on CSHM," a male voice said, the appropriate Japanese script at the bottom as before.
Misa shook her fists in glee with a low squeal.
An image came on the screen of police lights against darkened houses.
"Late breaking developments on a brutal double homicide in a Leduc," a female voice said. "Police have identified the victims and are still looking for answers."
Misa let out a gasp. A few other news previews passed, but the full message was sinking in. It was the same murders; maybe Light wanted her to focus on this crime in particular. She wondered what he had in mind.
The camera panned to a news desk and a skinny blonde with pink lipstick in a blue suit with those disgusting shoulder pads. She had a flower scarf on too that looked really ugly. The date in the corner of the screen further reminded her of why: June 18, 1986.
"Good evening, thank you for watching the News at 6 I'm Andrea Brodie," the newscaster said.
Surprisingly that was her real name, but she only had a few years left.
"'A grisly scene' is how authorities are describing the backyard of a Leduc neighborhood after a man and a woman were found beaten to death this morning," Andrea said, a graphic appearing beside her with images of a chalk outline and a police car with the words "Murder" beside it. Misa wanted to hurl something at the screen. "Mark Forrest is on the scene tonight with the details."
The screen split to show the chick in the newsroom and a young man in a suit standing beside a police car.
"Good evening, Andrea," the reporter, Marcus Pelczak, said. The camera focused entirely on him. "Police remain on the scene in this mobile home park on Black Gold Drive where two people were found dead, the victims of what police have described as a savage beating."
The screen changed to a series of shabby-looking trailers surrounded by police tape and gawking crowds pushed back by police.
"A 911 call was placed around 8:30 this morning reporting two bodies found on a lawn at Oak Ridge Mobile Home Park," Mark said in a voiceover. "Leduc RCMP responded to the scene to find two people lying dead of apparent blunt force trauma. Police have identified the victims as 32-year-old…"
The name was said, though the kanji on the bottom only said "female victim." The name sounded like "Share-ill A-miss," Misa scrawled phonetic spelling on her pad, she would probably put an equivalent English name to it later.
"…and 35-year-old…"
The kanji said "male victim." Misa wrote "A-Mill Lo-lee-ay."
A grainy photo appeared on screen with the words "Courtesy Photo" written on the side with their corresponding kanji underneath.
The photo showed a man and a woman; the man was behind the woman with his arms around her waist. His chin was buried in the crook of her neck and they gave gleeful smiles to the camera.
Both of them looked like thugs. The guy had this long black braid over his shoulder and a scraggly goatee. He was really thin, he didn't look like he showered in a while either. The girl was chunky and had on a pink tank top that looked way too small on her. Her hair was a teased, bleached nightmare with thick blue eyeliner to match.
"Police said the bodies were found in the back of 'Lo-lee-ay's' house," the voice said, the camera returning to the taped-off scene. The kanji still read "male victim." "Autopsy results are expected to be released tomorrow morning, Police say the investigation is very-much ongoing and there are no immediate suspects or motives at this time."
The camera panned to the other shabby-looking trailers in the neighborhood.
"The murder has shocked residents of this close-knit neighborhood," the voice said. "Few residents wished to speak on camera, but neighbors described the two as a loving couple. 'Lo-lee-ay' was recalled as a devoted father who worked hard for his three young children after his wife was killed in an accident last year."
A scruffy-looking guy in a red tank top appeared on screen.
"They both were terrific," the guy said, the name read Mike Colby but there was no name above his head. "He was like the greatest dad, she was like a mom to those kids. They talked about getting married, two of the sweetest people you could ever meet. Now," he fought back tears, "now there's three little kids don't have a dad because of this…this is insane. It's just not fair."
Misa realized felt the notepad bouncing off her knees. Her hands were shaking.
The camera returned to the same reporter by the cop car.
"Police made no specific comment on who is caring for the children right now," Mark said. "They said arrangements are being made and the three school-age children are in a safe place. We will have more on this story as it develops. Live from Leduc, Mark Forrest for CSHM News."
Black and white lines rolled over the screen again and the image faded to black. A whining noise emitted from the DVD player, but Misa didn't get up immediately. Here eyes were still on the TV; she stared at the black though tears now blurred her vision.
She managed to stand and walked to the DVD player, pressing the eject button and taking the disc out. Misa took one look at the melted spot in the disc before throwing it across the room.
Her knees gave out and she slowly lowered into a pile on the floor, burying her head in her hands and sobbing.