A/N: Sorry for this mini-delay. I meant to post sooner than this. But I've got it up now so it's all good! Things are heating up, not only with the Kira investigation but also with L and Miya's relationship! Yay! Oh, and before I forget, I have a poll up on the profile page about a potential side story. I'm already gonna start outlining but I want to know your guys' opinions.

Anyway, enjoy and please review! And don't forget to take the poll!

Chapter 11: Natural

Miya grimaced as she stared at the television screen. Misa, Light, and Mr. Yagami looked worse every day and now Miya wasn't really sure how much more of this they could take.

"Ryuzaki," Miya started. She was sitting next to him in her favorite spot. "It's been fifty days. This is getting ridiculous."

He didn't respond to her. Instead, he turned on the microphone and began speaking into it. "Mr. Yagami, are you alright? There's no reason for you to keep doing this to yourself."

Mr. Yagami probably looked the worse out of the group, not that Miya blamed him. He sat in the chair that was in his room. He hung his head down and didn't look at the camera.

"It's been over a month since Kira started killing criminals again. And as far as I'm concerned, that's all the proof I'll need to be sure that my son isn't Kira. So then, all that's left is for you to be sure. One way or another, when I get out of here, it will be with my son."

"Wow, the chief can be pretty stubborn," Matsuda interjected.

"I think the chief's being very courageous," Miya added. "It's good to see he loves his son enough to be going through this. He's a good father."

L gave Miya a side glance, wondering if she was thinking about Noah's father when she said this. He pushed the button to talk through the microphone again. "Light, how are you feeling right now?"

Light was lying on the ground, staring at the floor. When L addressed him, however, he looked up into the camera. He groaned before answering. "I'm okay. Ryuzaki, I know that in the time I've been in prison, no new criminals have died, however, that suggests to me that Kira must be someone who's intimately familiar with my situation. And if that's-"

L immediately cut him off. "No Light. The reason criminals have stopped dying is because you are Kira."

Light looked shocked. He started yelling into the camera again. "No! I'm not Kira! How many times do I have to say it?"

Aizawa was looking very disgruntled during this conversation. "This is just cruel. I don't care if he is a suspect. Light still has a right to know that criminals are still being killed." Miya agreed with him but didn't say anything to L. He was the boss. It was really his call, not anyone else's.

Ryuzaki ignored him, however. "Amane," he said into the microphone.

Misa was slumped over in her chair, looking completely defeated. "Yes?"

"Are you okay? You seem tired."

Misa's shaky voice responded, "Is that supposed to be funny? How are you expecting me to look after I've been tied up and questioned for this many days?"

"Hm. That's true."

"Please, just let me go," Misa pleaded. "I want to see Light. Please. Light…let me…" she trailed off quietly.

"I'm not sure how much more of this the three of them can take," Matsuda said.

"Me either," Miya agreed.

"Ryuzaki," Aizawa started. "You have no reason to keep Light locked up anymore! Do the right thing and let him go, then we can get the chief out too. Criminals are still being killed even though Misa and Light haven't had access to any of that information. We know that much already, so what are you waiting for?"

L sucked the remainder of the ice cream he had on his finger. It seemed that after eating all these sweets, he still couldn't figure out everything. "Not true. All we really know at this point is that Amane harbors an unnaturally strong devotion for Light Yagami."

"You could say that again…" Miya mumbled. It was sweet that Misa loved Light and everything, but she was just a little annoying with that love of hers.

"Ryuzaki, I'm sorry, but with all due respect, from where I'm standing, it's starting to look like you're only doing this because you don't want to admit you were wrong about Light."

'Ouch…' Miya thought.

"Yes, I figured you'd say that."

Aizawa wasn't satisfied with this response. He was getting angrier by the second. "Okay fine! But we do know that Kira killed Lind L. Tailor and those FBI agents, right? As Light said, if Kira could kill while under surveillance and without access to information, there would have been no need. If they didn't pose a threat to him, then why would he bother killing them? Kira doesn't kill without good reason, I've heard you say so yourself on more than one occasion."

"Oh I see," Matsuda chimed in. "If he was able to kill under these circumstances, then he wouldn't have been concerned about the FBI agents in the first place."

"It's already been fifty days. There's no point to this anymore. Ryuzaki, it's time to start looking for the real Kira."

Ryuzaki went to put his finger in his ice cream cup again to get more traces of the desert. He hesitated though. "I understand." He then clicked on the microphone to talk to the chief. "Mr. Yagami."

"Yes, what is it?" He glanced at the camera from the corner of his eye, but didn't look at it directly.

"Would you be willing to come to headquarters? I'd like to discuss my thoughts with you but it must be done in person. However, above all else I need to talk to you as Light's father."

Mr. Yagami sighed. "Alright. I'll come."

"So what did you two talk about?" Miya asked Ryuzaki when he came back to the hotel room. She was lounging on the sofa, completely comfortable and didn't feel like moving. When Ryuzaki attempted to sit on the same sofa she was on, she had to move her legs or he would have sat on them. Miya wasn't even sure Ryuzaki knew he was going to sit on them. He looked extremely distracted.

"I can't tell you," Ryuzaki replied. He placed his thumb to his lip. "You'll find out soon enough anyway."

"For what it's worth," Miya started. She sat all the way up now and looked at him. "I think you're doing the right thing, even if I do feel bad for them. Aizawa and Matsuda know Mr. Yagami well, so seeing him like this is hard for them. I'm sure Aizawa didn't mean it when he said you just didn't want to be wrong with your assumptions."

"Unfortunately, Miya," Ryuzaki started, "I'm starting to doubt myself as well. I've never been in a situation like this before and I'm not exactly sure what to do."

Miya was surprised. Did he really just admit that to her? She shook her head. "Don't think like that. You're the world's greatest detective. You'll figure it out. You always do."

Ryuzaki finally faced her. "Thank you Miya. You always seem to know what to say."

Miya smiled at him and Ryuzaki found himself half-smiling. There was silence for a few moments as the two continued to look at each other. Miya was contemplating if she should try the kiss again. This seemed like the best moment so she leaned forward into him. He started to lean back, surprised by her actions, when she placed her hand on the side of his neck to stop him. Her lips hovered above his for a couple seconds as she whispered, "Do you know what's coming next?"

Ryuzaki didn't respond as she completely filled the gap in between them. He was unresponsive at first and Miya was afraid she was going to have a repeat of that one night when she kissed him for the first time. Before she could pull away, she felt L's hand land on her waist and he began to kiss her back.

It wasn't long before they pulled away. L gave Miya an unblinking stare and Miya could have sworn she saw an extremely small tint of red on his cheeks, but she chose not to comment on it. Instead, she asked, "Now that wasn't so bad, was it? You're a natural."

Ryuzaki cleared his throat before speaking. "Actually Miya, I find myself enjoying kissing."

Miya laughed. "You are so cute, L." She leaned into him again and this time, Ryuzaki didn't hesitate. Their second kiss lasted longer than their first one and eventually the couple pulled away for some air. "What's the percentage of you falling for me now?"

Ryuzaki kept a straight face. "I'd say about 99.9% now."

Miya pouted. "Still not a hundred percent? I need to work on my seduction skills…"

"Your…seduction skills are fine…" L mumbled almost inaudibly, but Miya still heard him. "Miya, I can't afford to get distracted on this case. This is definitely the most difficult one I've ever tried to solve and I'm not sure I'll be able to with you always around."

Miya's faced looked serious now. "Wait, are you kicking me off the case? I promise I won't be a distraction!"

"I'm not kicking you off Miya," L said simply. "You're the best person I have on this case. Maybe if you could try being less distracting…"

Miya raised an eyebrow. "What do you expect me to do exactly?"

"I'm not sure how to put this in words…"

"Maybe you shouldn't. You've already insulted me." She turned away from him and crossed her arms in front of her chest.

L stared blankly at her, wondering why she was mad at him. Did he do something wrong again? "I didn't mean to upset you."

"Well you kinda did."

It was L's turn to pout. "Does that mean more kissing is out of the question?"

Miya glared at the detective. "Do you want me or not, because now you're just confusing me. You don't want me around and yet you want to kiss. Can you make up your mind already?"

"Forgive me," L started. "What I meant to say was that I enjoy having you around and I would like to become intimate with you, however, no one can know about it. I'm afraid if Kira somehow got a hold of this information, you could be used against me. I wouldn't want to put you through that."

Miya nodded. "I understand. I didn't even think about that."She stared into his gray eyes. "So we're kinda like dating in secret then? That's so romantic."

"I'm glad you understand," Ryuzaki said. "I never knew I could have the ability to be romantic…" he said aloud, mostly to himself though.

Matsuda, Aizawa, and Ryuzaki were surrounding the television, three days later when Miya walked in. "What's going on?" she asked them.

Matsuda turned to her. "Ryuzaki came up with a plan to see if Light is really Kira and Misa Misa is the second Kira."

Miya was surprised. "Really? Is that what you and Mr. Yagami were talking about, Ryuzaki?"

He didn't respond. He was staring intently at the television screen, along with Matsuda and Aizawa. She figured now wasn't the time to talk and focused on the screen herself. Mr. Yagami was driving a car while Light and Misa sat in the back, their hands tied.

"I was starting to think I'd never get out of there, but it feels good to finally be cleared," Light said looking completely relieved.

Mr. Yagami looked solemn. "No. I'm afraid you two are being taken to your execution." Misa and Light looked shocked, and Miya was stunned as well. Was this the only plan L could come up with? "I wanted to be the one to escort you to your execution site. It was secretly built in an underground facility not far from here. L is convinced that you are Kira and that Misa Amane is the second Kira. He is convinced that the only way we can prevent the murders is to execute the two of you."

"I don't understand!" Light yelled. "The killings have already stopped!"

"No, they never stopped."

Light was confused now. "They never…? That's not what he told me. So he was lying?"

"L was trying to get a confession out of you, Light. He wouldn't have said anything, but at this point that's not the problem. It's political now, you see. L's suggestion that the killings would stop if you two were eliminated was unanimously accepted by top officials in the UN and the Japanese government. They want Kira to disappear. No trial. No publicity."

"But that's completely insane! Please dad, I'm not Kira!"

"He's right!" Misa agreed. There were tears forming in her eyes now. "What kind of a father are you anyway? This is your own son you're talking about!"

"L made this decision. Not me. And his word is absolute. Over the years, he's tackled the world's difficult cases, solving all of them. He's never been wrong."

Light's face went from being upset and scared to just angry. "You trust L. More than you trust me, your own son?"

Mr. Yagami kept staring ahead as he drove. "L went so far as to stake his life on this theory. If the killings don't stop, then he too will be executed."

Miya's eyes widened. "You said that?!" she asked him.

"L said that?" Light asked, equally surprised as Miya. "What could he be thinking? I know that given the material evidence, this might seem like the only logical solution but he's making a mistake! How could L come to this conclusion? Something's not right here! It's just not like L at all! The L I know would rely on hard evidence. He has to have the truth! Is he really trying to end it like this?"

Mr. Yagami didn't answer Light's question. Instead he said, "Alright, we're almost there."

Immediately, Mr. Yagami turned the wheel so the car swerved, going in a completely different direction. He drove just under a bridge and looked around to make sure there was no one around.

"Where are we right now?" Light asked. "Why did you bring us out to the middle of nowhere? What is this?"

Misa was starting to look relieved. "Wait a sec. I bet he brought us out here to let us go."

"This will do," Mr. Yagami said. "Looks like there's nobody around to see us out here. I figured it would be better for us if I brought you here instead of the execution site. Listen to me, I'm going to kill you here and then I'm going to kill myself."

'This is getting insane,' Miya thought.

"What?!" Light shouted. "What are you talking about dad? You can't! That's crazy!"

Misa started crying again. "How can you say that? You'd kill your only son for L? You wanna die so bad, why don't you kill yourself? If you do this, you're no different than Kira!"

Mr. Yagami looked angry. "I am nothing like Kira. I am bound by my responsibilities as a parent and as chief of the NPA."

Light was getting hysterical now. "Dad, c'mon! She's right! Think about it! If we die here, the truth will never be revealed! Please dad, you hafta let us escape!"

"It's too late. Either way, you'll be executed. At least with this, I'll be the one to do it." He then pulled a gun out of his jacket and Miya found herself biting her nails in anticipation. Was he really going to kill his own son? Her heart was practically hammering against her chest and she wasn't sure if she would be able to watch anymore.

"Please stop dad! I'm not Kira! If I die here Kira wins! Can't you see?" He now aimed the gun right at Light's forehead.

"Amane, I'm going to die here with my son. But I have no reason to kill you. Do you understand what I'm saying? It's only a matter of time before the police locate this car. Then they'll transport you to the original site and execute you there." He prepared his gun and Miya knew what was coming next. "Light, my son, from one murderer to another. I'll see you in hell."

"No dad!"

Tears were streaming down Misa's face. "No stop it!"

Miya shut her eyes as soon as she heard the gun go off. What the hell was Ryuzaki thinking coming up with a plan like this?! This was horrible! She wasn't sure when she should open her eyes again, but when she heard Light's voice, her eyes snapped open.

"You used a blank?" he asked breathlessly.

Mr. Yagami groaned as he slumped against the seat of the car. "Thank goodness."

Light was probably more confused. "Thank goodness? What's going on? I don't understand."

"Please, forgive me you two. I know that was hard on you but it was the only way I could get you out of prison. You must understand. I only agreed to do this because I believe in your innocence Light. Were you watching Ryuzaki? I did exactly as you said. As you can see, I'm still alive."

So this is what Ryuzaki's plan was all along? Miya couldn't help but think it was cruel…

L clicked on the microphone and began speaking to the passengers in the car.

"Yes, it was a convincing performance. If Amane were the second Kira, who only needs to see a person's face to kill them, there is no doubt she would have killed you before you had the chance to fire your weapon. Also, if Light was in fact Kira, the Kira I know wouldn't hesitate to kill even his own father to save himself. With Light in particular, I cannot rule out the possibility that he may have seen through our act at some point. However as we agreed, I will end their confinement immediately. And as we discussed, Amane will remain under surveillance till Kira is apprehended, although she insists the tapes we found were just occult videos, the physical evidence we have plus her confessions suggest otherwise."

Misa was angry now. "Hey! No fair! You still suspect me?"

Mr. Yagami turned around to look at her. "If I were you, I wouldn't complain. You get to go back to your normal life. If you're innocent, the surveillance shouldn't be a threat to you. Think of it as complimentary police protection."

"Oh, I get it," Misa replied. "Since I'm not the second Kira, it'll be like having my own personal bodyguards."

L began to talk to them again. "As for your part in this agreement Light, you and I will be together 24/7. And that's how we'll remain until we've brought Kira to justice."

"Fine by me. We'll catch Kira together." Light was looking determined now.

"Yes, I look forward to working with you."

"Although it was effective, it was also very cruel," Miya commented to L. Aizawa and Matsuda had left to meet up with Mr. Yagami, Light and Misa before they met up with Ryuzaki to discuss the surveillance plan. Miya and L were alone now. "Just thought you should know."

"Those were necessary actions, Miya," L responded. He sat across from her on the couch.

"Yeah but, if I were put under those situations, I would've probably had a heart attack," she commented. "And not from Kira either. I almost had a heart attack watching that scene! You could have warned me!"

Ryuzaki shrugged. "I didn't see the importance in informing you at the time." Miya opened her mouth to retaliate but he didn't give her a chance. "I will tell you what I have planned now, since it will involve you." This caught Miya's interest. "I will be handcuffed to Light at all times to keep him in my sight. I will be able to see what he does every second."

Miya raised an eyebrow at him. "…you're going to be handcuffed to Light…all the time?"

"Yes," he replied. "This means, we won't be able to be together much until Kira is caught. I'm sorry for that."

Miya groaned. "We just got together, too. You like Light that much, Ryuzaki? Should I be jealous?"

"I'm not doing this for enjoyment."

"Sure…" Miya mumbled. "This is awful. Wait…" Miya furrowed her eyebrows now. "You're going to be handcuffed to Light? What if he really is Kira? Do you have a death wish or something?"

"Not necessarily, but I want to catch Kira once and for all. If this is the only way, so be it."

Miya sighed. There was no talking him out of this one. "I was getting used to your sweet kisses too…did you know I can practically taste the cake from your mouth?"

"I'm not sure how to take that comment."

"It's a good thing. It makes kissing even more enjoyable," she smiled.

"That's good to hear."

"Alright," she said getting up and sitting next to L. "One last kiss before we have to be apart for who knows how long." She leaned into him and placed her lips over his. He accepted them easily and Miya was glad he was getting used to this.

In the next few minutes, L would be handcuffed to Light and Miya wasn't exactly sure when she would have the chance to even kiss L again. Kira needed to be captured even faster now.