A/N: I just couldn't resist posting this already. I mean, L is in a tux...I had to share that with the world! And just so you know, I'll most likely be posting the next one tomorrow night so keep an eye on that. Oh yeah, I appreciate the suggestions by the way but we're already on Chapter 27 as we speak so we're pretty far ahead already. And thanks for the reviews! We're so glad you guy like this! This is probably my favorite story we've writting so far! Anyway, enjoy and please review!

Chapter 7: Transformation

Miya walked into the hotel room of the week, for some reason exhausted despite the fact that most of their time the past seven days had been spent watching Light Yagami, Misa Amane, and Mr. Yagami do absolutely nothing. Miya still wasn't sure why on earth Light would ask to put himself in that situation, and it made her more suspicious of him than she had ever been. She was starting to side with L on the issue; it seemed premeditated.

As she entered, she was hoping to find something interesting, whether it be a new development in the case or just some exciting conversation. Unfortunately, she found neither. Instead, she was faced with the usual scene of worn out detectives sitting about with their faces buried in their hands and an unblinking L staring at the repetitive image on the screen.

"I'm here!" she said enthusiastically, attempting to get some excitement in the place. Matsuda waved a friendly wave in return, and that was about the only response she got. L continued to stare as if she hadn't walked in, and the other detectives were too wiped out to even say hello.

"Fun day," Miya grumbled walking up to L and resting on the arm of his chair with a long and drawn out sigh. She looked over to him, expecting him to look up. When he didn't, she tilted her head to the side and decided to entertain herself.

'…59...60...' she finished counting in her head. 'How can he not blink for a whole minute? And his eyes aren't even watering!' Miya couldn't take it anymore. She stood up and jumped in front of him, clapping her hands together as hard a she could just a few inches away from his face. L stared at her hand for a moment, his eyes never blinking, and then looked up at her with confusion.

"Miya, may I ask why you just did that?" Miya was shocked, and leaned her face toward his, looking into his eyes. L leaned back slightly. "What is the matter Miss Yamagata?"

"How could you possibly not have blinked?" she wondered in awe, leaning back away from him and crossing her arms with a confused expression. "Do you ever blink?"

"Of course I blink," L replied obviously.

"Do it," Miya commanded. L just stared at her. "Blink damn it!" L let out a sigh, and then blinked once.

"Satisfied?" he asked, shifting his gaze back to the television.

"Wow, you should really do that more often," Miya said, laughing slightly. "It really creeps me out when you don't blink."

"I'll keep that in mind," L replied. Miya sighed and looked toward the television. Misa was tied up as usual, Mr. Yagami was in a chair with his face buried in his hands, and Light was on the ground, his arms wrapped around his knees.

"They look pretty rough," Miya commented. "And no one's talking?"

"Not a word," L replied. "I'm not sure of Light's purpose for this voluntary confinement in the first place, and Misa appears to be clueless."

"Light is suspicious to me," Miya said. "Why put yourself through this?" L nodded slightly before leaning forward to the microphone.

"Light, you've only been here for one week," he pointed out. "But I'm sure it can't be easy. Are you feeling alright?" Miya tuned in to listen, and after a moment Light spoke.

"Yeah," he said. "I know I must look pretty bad in her but this useless pride, I suppose I'll have to get rid of it!" he yelled the last part, and Miya furrowed her eyebrows.

"What is he talking about?" she wondered as the other detectives gathered around. "Wait did you see that?"

"What?" L said quickly, turning toward her.

"His face just changed…like, he looked confident and now he looks…confused…" L turned back to the screen just at Light continued speaking.

"Ryuzaki, I realize that I was the one pushing for confinement, and that I asked you to put me in here, but I just realized something important. This whole thing's completely pointless!" A few detectives gasped as he continued. "Because I'm not Kira! You have to get me out of here!"

"See!" Miya pointed out. "He's acting just like Misa now. Like he doesn't know what's going on!"

"But he knows what's going on," Matsuda pointed out. "He just said that he put himself in there."

"But look at his face," Miya said. "Something just happened, I'm sure of it."

"I can't do that," L said into the microphone, answering Light. "I promised you that no matter what you said I wouldn't let you out until I was convinced that you are not Kira."

"Please L!" Light begged. "I wasn't thinking clearly. Do you really think a serial killer like Kira could commit those crimes without being aware of them? If I have no memory of his crimes, I'm not him!"

"That's not what he said before…" Miya said, furrowing her eyebrows as L spoke into the microphone.

"I've never been able to accept this idea that Kira has been acting without self awareness all this time, but that doesn't change the fact that all the evidence points to you being Kira. Since we imprisoned you, Kira hasn't committed a single murder." Light's voice sounded stressed when he answered, a sound that was reflected in his appearance.

"Listen! Just hear me out! I swear to you I'm not lying you have to believe me! I am not Kira! I must have been framed! That's the only explanation for this! You have to let me out we're wasting time!"

"We can't let you out yet," L replied simply, obviously lost in thought now.

"Damn," Light cursed. "Why is this happening?"

"Because you asked us to put you in there!" Miya half yelled at the screen, getting frustrated. Why was everyone playing the dumb card lately?

"What the hell is going on?" Aizawa wondered aloud. "This isn't like Light at all. He's contradicting himself. It doesn't make any sense to me."

"Well we can't release him now that the murders have stopped," Matsuda pointed out. "It doesn't matter what he says. I mean, even I know that much." Miya sighed as Aizawa spoke again.

"Anyway I don't care what anyone says. As far as I'm concerned, we have all the proof we need. Light Yagami is Kira and that's the end of it." He sounded firm, but Miya wasn't sure what to think. She was quite convinced that Light was Kira, but his reactions weren't making sense. No, something had happened just a moment ago. The question was what? And as Miya looked at L, she could tell that he wasn't sure what to make of the situation either.

After a long day at school and dinner at home with Noah, Miya headed down the street toward headquarters, garment bag in hand. In the other hand she held a newspaper, reading the articles as she walked. Miraculously she managed to reach her destination without running into anything, and she stepped through the door with an annoyed look on her face.

"So Kira's killing again, huh?" she said, dropping the newspaper on a table with a sigh. "Great how's that fit into the case? I mean we're not just going to let Light out, right?"

"No," Ryuzaki replied. "He's still in confinement and I plan to keep him there until things get clearer."

"Mr. Yagami knows the news though," Matsuda explained. "He seems more at ease, which is good."

"And Light?" Miya asked curiously.

"He doesn't know," Aizawa answered.

"Yeah and don't try to tell him," Matsuda warned. "Ryuzaki might slap you."

"Huh?" Miya asked, turning to L, who looked back at Matsuda.

"Yes I apologize for that," he said. "But I don't want to let him think he's off the hook. If he is Kira, I want him to admit it." Miya nodded.

"This sure is getting complicated." She noticed L eyeing the bag in her hand, so she lifted it off her arm and held it out to him. "It's your tux," she explained. "I figured you wouldn't have one and wouldn't leave this little chamber to go get one so I brought it for you!"

"What are you bringing him a tux for?" Aizawa asked, confused. Miya smiled.

"Ryuzaki has agreed to escort me to a dance being held by my father's company." Matsuda and Aizawa exchanged glances, and then burst out laughing. Miya placed the garment bag on the side of L's chair and crossed her arms.

"What's so funny?" she asked.

"Everything you just said," Aizawa replied, clearing his throat in an attempt to get his laughter back in check. Matsuda was still chuckling under his breath.

"Well it was either him or Matsuda!" Miya retorted. Realizing this could be taken badly, she turned to a no longer amused Matsuda with an innocent smile. "No offense." This just sent Aizawa into deeper laughter, and so L cleared his throat.

"Back to work please," he ordered them. Aizawa shook his head, obviously still amused, and followed a slightly hurt Matsuda to the pile of papers on the table in the back. Miya rolled her eyes at them and turned to L.

"You ready for tomorrow night?" she asked. L didn't respond, so she shook his shoulder. He jumped slightly and shook his head.

"Actually Miya I was thinking that with all the new developments in the case it may not be wise for me to leave." Miya groaned.

"What new developments? Okay yeah so Light changed his attitude and Kira is killing again, but all you are going to do tomorrow night if you stay here is sit in front of this TV and stare at people who aren't going to say anything new anyways. Plus, you've got a team of detectives here on standby and Watari, who already informs you of any changes in the case! I think you can afford one night off."

"Regardless, I feel like I would be neglecting my duties and-"

"L Ryuzaki Ryuga you are going!" Miya interrupted firmly. "You promised me you would come and it's just wrong to go back on your promises. Now my parents are going to know I'm a liar and then I'll have to explain the situation and that will just make them worry." She tried to put just the right amount of distress in her voice to get to L, and it seemed to work.

"Why would you think I don't have a tux," he said, lifting the garment bag up between his fingers.

"Well you wear the same thing every day," Miya shrugged. "So I figure you either have twenty copies of that outfit or you wear the same one every day. No need to tell me though I'm okay with it remaining a mystery. But why does it matter what I thought? You don't have a suit do you?"

"No," L replied. "I just find that you may want to be careful assuming things."

"Well if I'm going to assume correctly then what's the harm?" Miya detected the slightest smile at her words, and so she figured it was safe to swoop in. "So I can assume that you're coming then?"

"Yes I suppose I did promise," he said blankly, defeated. Miya placed a hand on his shoulder.

"Thanks," she said with a smile. "You're a good friend."

"Wow, mommy," Noah said, stepping into his mother's bedroom to see Miya decked out in formal wear. He had the stuffed panda he had named Rocky in tow. "You look pretty!" Miya smiled warmly down at her son as she put on the last silver earring.

"Thanks baby," she said, looking in the mirror to double check her appearance. She hardly recognized the woman staring back at her, as it wasn't too often she got to dress up like this. Her light brown hair was pulled up into a complicated up-do her mother had fixed for her, a few strands of loosely curled hair falling gracefully around her face. A silky red dress clung to her slim figure, cascading to the floor and billowing out slightly at the bottom. The top was a halter, with a v shaped neckline that was cut slightly low, but not enough for Miya to feel uncomfortable. The halter straps tied around her neck into a bow that hung over the mostly open back of the dress. Miya nodded to herself, a final seal of approval before walking over to the bed and sitting down so she could slide on her shoes. She'd gone with flats, as she assumed heals would make her taller than the already hunched over L.

"Is Mister Panda coming hewe mommy?" Noah asked, looking up at Miya with big eyes.

"No, I'm going to meet him and then we're going to go to the dance where grandpa and grandma are. Mrs. Hidaki is going to watch you." This was the frantic neighbor who often called to update Miya on any news broadcasts. She was a nice woman however and always treated Noah with kindness.

"Oh…" Noah said, slightly disappointed. "Hey mommy?"

"Yes?" Miya asked him, sliding on her last shoe and standing up, ready to go.

"Is Mr. Panda yo new boyfriend?" he asked blankly. That caught Miya off guard, and she whipped around to face him.

"What?" she said. "No sweetie where did you get that idea?"

"Gama said you were bwinging yo new boyfriend to the party!" Noah giggled, clapping his hands as if he were delighted by the idea of this. Miya clapped her hand to her forehead and shook her head.

"Oh sweetie I just told her that cause…well see I had to. But Ryuzaki is just my friend, okay?"

"You lied to gama?" Noah said, looking like that was the most shocking thing he'd ever heard. "You bad mommy!" Miya couldn't help but feel guilty. She was being scolded by her four year old son after all.

"No see Noah just…okay just please don't tell grandma!"

"Okay…" Noah agreed reluctantly. "But you owe me a new toy!" He giggled, and Miya wondered where he learned this blackmail technique from.

"Alright you'd better go grab anything you want to bring over to Mrs. Hidaki's," Miya said, ushering him out of the room. Noah stopped at the door and turned around.

"Hey mommy?"

"Yes?" she replied, looking back at him.

"If you do want to have Mr. Panda as yo' boyfriend, it's okay with me!"

"Um…thanks sweetie," Miya said with a slight chuckle as he ran out of the room.

"Wow Miya…" Matsuda blushed when she walked into headquarters. "You look really pretty."

"Thanks," she said with a smile. It then occurred to her that L wasn't in his chair, though she wasn't sure why she was expecting him to be. "Where's Ryuzaki?"

"In there," Aizawa said, pointing toward the door that led to a small bedroom. Miya nodded and headed over, about to just open it before she realized he might not be dressed. So instead she knocked.

"Matsuda I told you to stay by the TV!" L's voice said from the other side. He sounded frustrated, and Miya hoped he wasn't in there cursing about that damn detective girl that was making him come to a stupid party.

"Um…it's Miya," she replied uncertainly. "Are you ready?"

"Oh, Miss Yamagata," L said. "Please, come in." Miya turned the doorknob and stepped in to see Ryuzaki facing the wall.

"You okay?" she asked, as he seemed to be struggling with something. He turned around, and Miya caught her breath. His appearance was definitely unexpected. He looked…good. Really good. Attractive, even. The weirdest part was that there was nothing different about him except what he was wearing.

"I can't seem to get this cuff thing…" he mumbled though his teeth. He was biting his sleeve, apparently trying to hook the cuff, and with his other hand he was pulling at a half undone tie that sat on a mostly unbuttoned shirt. "Could you help me?" he sighed, dropping his arms back down to his side. Miya noticed the slightest bit of muscle on his stomach that she hadn't been aware of before and she found herself standing there like an idiot.

"Miss Yamagata?" L said after a moment. "You alright?"

"Uh…yeah," Miya said quickly, snapping out of it. "Here let me help you with your sleeve. Hopefully you didn't drool on it." She figured joking was the best way to cover up her momentary surprise.

"I…don't think I drooled," L said unsurely as he held out his sleeve for her. It was then that he was able to fully take in her appearance.

"There you go," she said, letting go of his sleeve. He was staring at her and she looked around.

"What?" she asked, suddenly feeling self conscious.

"You look quite nice," he complimented. "Beautiful, I suppose would be a better term." He mumbled the last part as he admired her cuff fastening skills, but that didn't stop Miya from hearing it. She blushed, which was always more embarrassing, and waved her hand.

"Oh, thanks," she said quickly. "Um, we'd better get going."

"I…can't really tie a tie either…" L said, looking down at the sloppy knot that was definitely not right. Miya laughed and stepped up to help him.

"Wow, the great L actually can't do something perfectly?" she chuckled. L shrugged.

"I suppose I'm, how did you put it recently, out of my element here." Miya laughed and reached for his tie, realizing there was quite a bit of his pale skin visible.

"Here you have to button…" Miya said, reaching down to his stomach without thinking to help him. She stopped herself, however, before the first button was done. "…um yeah I'll let you do that." L looked at her for a moment and then looked down to button his shirt. Miya then grabbed a hold of his tie and fixed it quickly.

"There you go Mr. Panda," she said with a grin, patting his shoulder. "You clean up pretty good."

"You like to make fun of me don't you Miss Yamagata?"

"Sure do," Miya laughed, holding her arm out to him. He clearly had no idea why she was doing that, so she slid her arm under his and led him to the door.

"I feel like this is going to be embarrassing," L said as Miya pulled him into the main area of the suite. Sure enough, they were greeted with chuckles and a rousing "woo-hoo" whistles from one of the detectives whom L reminded himself to fire later.

"Keep an eye on the screen, and make sure to inform me of any changes," L reminded the team for the fiftieth time.

"Yeah yeah, they got it. Come on," Miya said, dragging him out the door with a force he wasn't aware she had in her. The detectives got in a few last minute chuckles before he disappeared out the door.

"You think he can handle himself?" Matsuda asked Aizawa.

"Against Miya?" Aizawa said. "Not a chance." Matsuda chuckled when a sudden voice made him jump.

"Matsuda, Aizawa," Watari's voice commanded through the microphone. "You'd better get back to work!"

"Yes sir!" they both said, quickly resuming their posts.