Chapter 12: Wish
"Are you sure this is necessary, Ryuzaki?" Light asked unsurely. They were all sitting in a new hotel room, Light and L now handcuffed together. The chain was extremely long however, giving them both a chance to move around.
"This is as difficult for me as it is for you." L replied dully. Miya couldn't help smiling, wondering if he was thinking about her when he said this.
Misa voice interrupted Miya's thoughts. "So, is this what you meant by being together twenty-four hours a day with him? Looking at you I wouldn't have guessed. Are you on that side of the fence Ryuzaki?"
"I told you, I'm not doing this because I want to. Okay?" Miya almost laughed out loud. He was getting all annoyed. It was just too adorable.
"But Light belongs to me! I don't wanna share him with you! If you're with him 24/7 then how are we supposed to go on dates together?"
"Oh, you can still go on dates, but it will have to be the three of us," L replied easily.
Misa placed her hands on her hips. "No way! Are you telling me we have to kiss in front of you and stuff?"
"I'm not telling you to do anything, but yes I suppose I will be watching."
"Ryuzaki!" Miya scolded. He glanced at her for a second but then turned back to the blonde girl. Miya quickly recovered and continued to look uncaring.
"That's so gross! You really are a pervert, aren't you?"
L seemed to be at the end of his rope now, after talking to the young model. "Light, please make Misa stop talking now…"
Light finally took control of this situation. "Listen Misa, that's enough. The police have already established that it was you who sent those tapes. You're lucky to even be here right now. They have every right to keep you in prison."
Misa was upset as she faced him. "How can you even say that, Light? In case you forgot, I'm your girlfriend! Don't you trust your own soul mate?"
"What do you mean soul mate?" he asked, looking perplexed. "You're the one who said you fell in love with me at first sight Misa."
Tears now filled the girl's eyes. She sure was emotional, and Miya rolled her eyes at the display. "So why would you kiss me if you didn't have feelings for me? You'd take advantage of me?" She then began to pound on his chest with her fists, all the while calling him "stupid" repeatedly.
"About this love at first sight," L interjected. "It happened in Aoyama on May 22nd, didn't it?
"So what?" Misa asked, turning her attention towards him.
"Why did you choose that day to go to Aoyama? And do you remember what you wore?"
She placed her hands on her hips and glared at the detective. "It's like I told you, I just happened to go there. I don't know why, I don't remember how I felt and I don't even know what I was wearing. Anyway, why do I need a reason to hang out in Aoyama, huh?"
L wasn't letting this go. "And somehow, when you came back from Aoyama, you knew you were in love with some guy and that his name was Light."
" Yes!" Misa replied, getting up into his face. L didn't even flinch, like he did when Miya got close to him. That made her feel better since she had that sort of effect on him. Seeing Misa in clean clothes and her make-up and hair done made Miya feel self-conscious about her appearance. L could easily fall for Misa because of her beauty, but he didn't seem to see her as anything besides a suspect. On the other hand, he apparently got nervous around Miya, which meant he must care what she thinks of him.
"And yet you yourself have no idea how you came to know his name."
"Yeah, so what?" Misa was getting annoyed now.
"Tell me," L started. "What if Light was Kira? How would it make you feel?"
"Huh?" Misa backed off. This question came out of nowhere. "How would I feel if Light was Kira?"
"That's right."
Misa looked pleased now and linked arms with Light. "That'd be wonderful. I mean, I've always been grateful to Kira for punishing the man that murdered my parents, so if I found out that Light was actually Kira, that would be like a bonus for me! If anything, it would make me love him even more, even though it's like practically impossible for me to love him even more than I already do!" Miya stared at her in disbelief. Did she actually just admit that she would love Light even more if he was a murderer?
"Kira, though. You'd love him even more for that? Wouldn't you be afraid? What if he tried to kill you?"
Misa didn't seem the slightest bit worried. In fact, she just looked happier. "You're talking about Light being Kira? He wouldn't be scary at all! I'm a supporter of Kira so if I find out my Light was actually him, I'd think of how I could be helpful!"
Miya furrowed her eyebrows. Didn't Misa realize that saying this pretty much secured her position as the second Kira? She didn't seem very smart. Suddenly Miya wasn't feeling as threatened by the model's beauty.
"That's very generous of you but I'm sure Kira doesn't need your help. Well Misa, based on what you just told me we can make no mistake that you are definitely the second Kira. But you made it so painfully obvious that I don't really wanna believe it."
"Whatever," Misa said, not the least bit interested. "It's not believable because I'm not the second Kira, okay?"
L continued. "Anyway, for the time being, you'll remain under surveillance. When you do go out, if needed, you will be able to contact us using this room's extension. For the most part, your life will return to normal but from now on, for all private and work related affairs, Mr. Matsuda will be accompanying you as your new manager, Matsui. Your agency's been paid to keep quiet and the police don't know. Don't blow his cover."
Matsuda waved over to Misa looking excited about his new assignment, at least until Misa started complaining. "This old guy is my manager? Oh, you can't be serious!"
Matsuda looked crest-fallen. "C'mon! What's wrong with me Misa Misa? Is it the tie 'cause I can get rid of it!" Miya kind of felt bad for him. Misa was being a bit harsh. Matsuda wasn't exactly a grandpa.
Aizawa stood up quickly and slammed his hands on the table, surprising everyone in the room. It looked like he had had enough. "Ah! Would you cut it out with all the dating, kissing and Misa Misa talk already?! This is the Kira investigation! Stop messing around!"
"Sorry about that Aizawa." Matsuda apologized.
"No it's alright," Aizawa replied through his teeth. "I just figured out what the problem is. Misa Amane, it's time for you to go to your room."
"Why?"
Aizawa stood up and began pushing Misa towards the door. She was struggling against him, not wanting to leave. "Out you go!"
Misa looked past him and said, "Hey Light! Let's go on a date even if it's the three of us!" After she said this, Aizawa was able to push her out and slammed the door before she could squeeze herself in again.
"Thank you Aizawa!" Miya said appreciatively, though she kind of wished she could have done that herself. "I wasn't sure how much more of "I love Light" I could take…"
"So Light," L asked, turning towards the brown-haired teen, "are you serious about her?"
Light practically scoffed. "No way. Like I told you earlier, it's completely one-sided."
"Then could you at least pretend to be serious with her for the sake of this investigation? There are two things I know about Amane for sure, one, that she's involved in this, and two, that she's in love with you." He said the last part with a chuckle, and Miya didn't exactly like how he said that.
Light had a blank look on his face. "You want me to become intimate with her to gather information about the second Kira?"
"Yes, I think you could do it without arousing her suspicions and Amane would definitely be a valuable source of information for us, not to mention this is the main reason I agreed to release the two of you."
"Ryuzaki, as much as I want to help you, and as important as the Kira case is to me, I can't manipulate a woman's feelings like that. Please try to understand, to me exploiting another person's feelings for personal gain is unforgivable and I won't allow myself to stoop that low."
Miya wanted to give Light a standing ovation for saying something like that. "That was very nicely put, Light!" she said enthusiastically. "It's nice to see some men don't approve of using women! Maybe you could learn a thing or two from him Ryuzaki. It could help you in the future if you ever want a girlfriend."
L didn't say anything to her but he could tell she was annoyed with him. He really needed to watch what he said around her. His mind wandered away from her, however, and wandered back over to thoughts about Misa. Could she have been controlled by Kira?
"What's wrong Ryuzaki?" Light asked, noticing L's silence.
"Nothing," L replied. "I suppose you're right, after all. However, considering Misa will have a lot of contact with the public, it would be helpful if you make sure she doesn't leak information."
Light looked around the hotel room. "By the way, do you think we can come up with some sort of alternative to this system of moving from hotel to hotel every few days?"
"Yes!" L said excitedly. Miya looked at him in confusion. It wasn't often that he showed such enthusiasm. "In fact, I had that very same thought some time ago and so…I arranged for a facility to be built. Construction started right after my first meeting with Mr. Yagami and the others. It should be finished in a few days." He moved to sit in front of his laptop, pulling Light with him. "Where is it?" He mumbled, looking for the file. Miya and the others gathered around him to see what he wanted to show them. "Here it is. Twenty-three floors above ground and two below. Although it's impossible to see from the outside, there are two helicopters hidden on the roof."
"That's amazing." Light commented.
"Yeah it is!" Miya agreed.
"Ideally, I want all of us to spend as much time there as possible. If the investigation team grows, we can accommodate up to sixty people. Misa shouldn't have any complaints, since she'll have her own floor."
"This is truly impressive," Light said. "To go to such lengths…"
Matsuda interrupted. "Hold on a second. Where did you find the finances to build this thing?"
Miya was starting to think the same thing. This building was extraordinary and it definitely did not look cheap.
"As you can see," L said. "It is my intention to solve this case, no matter what it takes. That's how it is."
Aizawa wasn't pleased with this explanation. "I'm sorry, but how is that an answer?"
"No he's right," Light interjected. "The mass killings are bad enough already but personally, I will never forgive Kira for putting my dad and I through this. I wanna solve this no matter what it takes."
L looked at Light quickly. "If you're serious about that, you should try to get close to Misa and find out about the second Kira."
"I can't. That goes against my principles." Light replied simply.
"Right. You said that." L pouted in disappointment. "What a shame."
Aizawa snorted in laughter, causing Mr. Yagami and Miya to look at him curiously. "Uh, nothing. I'm just feeling really motivated right now, chief." He then looked at everyone in the room, one by one. "Ryuzaki, Chief Yagami, Light, Miya, let's get out of here and bring Kira to justice!"
"Excuse me," Matsuda said. He was pointing to himself. "I couldn't help but notice you missed my name."
This caused Miya to laugh before she suddenly remembered something important. She slapped her forehead at her own bad memory. "How could I forget? I'm so bad!" She then turned to the detectives in the room that were looking at her strangely now. "Tomorrow's Noah's birthday and he wants all of you guys at the party! Please say you'll come. It'll mean the world to him."
"Tomorrow is Noah's birthday?" Ryuzaki asked. He was looking at Miya now. "Why didn't you tell me sooner?" Light gave Ryuzaki a curious glance, wondering why he seemed so interested.
"All this Kira stuff got in the way and it just slipped my mind," Miya replied. "So are you guys coming? It's gonna be at my parents' house."
"Aw, I didn't get a chance to buy the little guy something," Matsuda said, actually looking disappointed about it.
"No, it's fine if you don't get him anything. Just having you guys there will make him happy. So are you coming?"
"Of course!" Matsuda replied.
"I'd love to Miya, but I never get to see my own family as it is. This seems like the best time to be with them before we catch Kira for good," Aizawa said.
Miya nodded. "I understand. Don't worry about it." She turned to Light and L. "What about you guys?"
"I wouldn't miss it," L replied. "Which means Light is coming too." Light looked annoyed by the situation but didn't say anything.
"Great!" Miya said excitedly. "Noah is going to be so happy! You guys are the best!"
Miya didn't know what she was thinking, having the party at her place, when she saw all the little children from the day care running around. They seemed to be having a good time though, Noah included, and that was the most important thing. So Miya ignored the oncoming headache and tried to focus on creating a great party.
She opened the back door to let the kids play a game of tag outside in the back yard when she heard the doorbell ring. "I'll be right back!" she told them, jogging to the door. When she opened it, she saw the familiar detectives that had quickly become her friends.
"You guys are here!" she said elatedly. She paused and frowned however when she saw that Ryuzaki and Matsuda were holding nicely wrapped boxes in their hands. "What are those?"
"They're presents for Noah," Matsuda replied obviously.
"I told you guys not to worry about it!"
"Miya," Matsuda said. "We weren't going to come to Noah's birthday party without getting him a present."
"Mr. Panda!" Noah said excitedly. He ran up to Ryuzaki and held his arms out to him, wanting to be picked up.
"Noah…" Miya said.
Instead of saying anything, Ryuzaki complied with Noah's wants and lifted him off the ground.
"I so happy you here!" Noah said. There was a big smile on his face as he stared at his favorite detective.
"How old are you turning today, Noah?" Ryuzaki asked him.
Noah held out four little fingers to him. "Four!"
"Wow buddy," Matsuda said. "You're getting older every day. Soon, you'll be old enough to be a detective."
"That would be cool!" Noah announced. He then struggled out of L's arms and joined his friends without another word.
"He sure seems to like you," Light pointed out.
L didn't have a chance to respond, not that he wanted to anyway, as Miya's parents were approaching the group of adults.
"Ah! Ryuga, it's nice to see you…again…" Miya's mom started to say until she noticed the long handcuffs binding Light and L together. She eyed them curiously.
Miya shook her head in annoyance. How could she have forgotten about the handcuffed thing when inviting them over? She tried to avoid that conversation as she introduced the guys. "Mom, this is Touta Matsuda and Light Yagami. They work with me too."
"I see…Miya, can I speak with you for a moment?" she asked her. So much for avoiding that…
"Okay," Miya replied reluctantly. She turned towards the guys. "Make yourselves at home. There are snacks in the kitchen."
When Miya and her mom were out of earshot and away from everyone, Mrs. Yamaguchi faced her daughter. "Why is your boyfriend handcuffed to that handsome young man?"
Miya groaned. "It's kinda hard to explain but it's for work. They have to be like that. I promise you it's nothing provocative. Besides, Ryuga's dating me. He's in no way interested in Light." Miya never thought she would have to defend her boyfriend's sexuality, but then again she never thought she would have to explain why her boyfriend was handcuffed to another man.
"Well, that's a little more reassuring…Miya, sweetie, are you sure you want someone that…eccentric?"
"Yeah, I really like him. And he likes Noah a lot, which is also important."
Miya's mother was starting to doubt her daughter's sanity, but decided to let it slide. Miya was an adult and so she could make her own decisions. Though, Mrs. Yamaguchi was definitely having a hard time hiding her disapproval for the dark haired man.
After Miya left her mom, she made her way towards the older men to see that Light and Matsuda were sitting on the couch discussing something while Ryuzaki was at the table looking for something to eat. The chain was long enough to allow this distance, and Miya was thankful for that. When L had first told her of this plan, she had pictured ordinary handcuffs with a three inch chain. Luckily this wasn't the case, and Miya found they could almost carry on ordinary conversations without Light hearing.
She walked over to Ryuzaki and looked at him curiously. "Finding anything you like?"
"There aren't enough sweet things here," L said with disappointment.
"Well, when you have a whole group of small kids, limiting the sugar intake is a very good idea. They're hyper enough as it is. Besides, we're gonna have cake and ice cream soon."
"I didn't mean to upset you last night," L said quietly after a few moments of silence. Miya was sure it was because he didn't want people to hear them speaking so intimately.
Miya followed his lead and talked silently as well. "I just didn't like the fact that you didn't seem to care for Misa's feelings. You had no problem asking Light to use her for the sake of the investigation and it got me thinking. Would you use me just for the investigation? Could you easily manipulate my feelings for your own gain? I have a hard time trusting men after what went on with Noah's father, and the last thing I want is to not be able to trust you."
L looked around him sneakily, making sure no one was eavesdropping. "I'm going to be honest with you. If you were suspected of being Kira, I would use your emotions for my benefit because I'm a detective and I can't let personal feelings get in the way. But because you're not, I would never do anything to intentionally hurt you. I find myself liking you more each day and upsetting you is something I don't want to do. Though I find that I manage to do that regularly regardless…"
L seemed annoyed with his habit of saying things that managed to upset her and Miya had to smile at his comment. "It's a good thing I like you too much to stay mad at you."
L picked up a strawberry from the fruit tray before saying, "I'm glad that's settled. Are we having cake now?"
Miya chuckled. "Whatever you say."
Soon, the cake was brought out and everyone sang 'Happy Birthday' to Noah. He stared hungrily at the desert in front of him, almost as hungrily as L, and made his wish before everyone dug in. After the cake was devoured, it was present time and Noah was ecstatic.
He received various gifts, like clothes and action figures from his friends. It was all very exciting for him and when he saw he had two presents left from Matsuda and Ryuzaki, he grew even more thrilled because they were detectives and would surely know what he liked and really wanted.
"I hope you like it, Noah," Matsuda said. "You left quite an impression last time I saw you. Once I saw it, I had to get it for you." Noah ripped off the wrapping paper to find it was a stuffed panda. It was bigger than both Panda and Rocky and much softer, and instead of being black and white, it was white and a dark blue. "I figure you could use another one in your collection."
"Aw, Matsu, that's so sweet," Miya told him. "Noah, what do you say?"
"Thank you!" he said, grasping onto it tightly. He then turned to the last present he had left. He knew it was from Ryuzaki and he was beside himself with excitement. When he opened it, he knew he was right in expecting something good from him. It was a mini detective set, including a detective's hat and magnifying glass.
"Thank you Mr. Panda!" Noah practically yelled. He ran up to Ryuzaki and gave him a tight hug. L wasn't sure how to respond, so he didn't. "Now I can be a detective too!"
Then he ran off to play detective with all the other little kids.
"Thanks you guys," Miya said to Matsuda and Ryuzaki. "That was really sweet of you."
"Sorry I didn't get a chance to buy anything," Light replied sheepishly. Miya knew he totally could have bought something when L and Matsuda did, but she decided to brush that off her shoulder.
"No, that's fine Light, you came to the party…even though you didn't really have a choice. Noah's really happy now and I have you guys to thank for it."
"It was no problem Miya," Matsuda said. "Noah's a great kid and I had a blast."
"We should probably get going," Ryuzaki said. "I'm sorry to leave to soon, but we really need to find Kira."
"I understand. Do you want me to go with you?"
"No, you can stay with Noah," Ryuzaki replied. "Finish celebrating his birthday. We'll see you tomorrow."
"Alright," Miya said. She then turned around and called out to her son. "Noah, come say bye to your guests!"
Noah skipped over to them, looking completely cheerful and hyped up on birthday cake and ice cream. "Thank you for coming and for the presies!"
"No problem, buddy," Matsuda said. "Happy Birthday!"
The trio made to leave until a small voice made them stop.
"Mr. Panda, can I tell you something?" Noah asked. Ryuzaki turned to Matsuda and Light, indicating for them to go on ahead. They both headed away as far as Light's chaining would allow and waited for L, who crouched down to Noah's height and looked at him expectantly. "Thanks for the detective set!"
"It was no problem, Noah."
"Wanna know what I wished for?"
L was almost certain that the tradition said if you told your birthday wish, it wouldn't come true, but he was curious to know why Noah wanted to tell him so badly so he let the boy continue.
"I wished you were my daddy," he said quietly. L was completely stunned for once in his life as Noah continued.
"I've neva' had a daddy before and mommy likes you," Noah continued. "That's what I really wanted for my birfday."
"I see," L said finally. "Well, I guess…we'll just have to see if that wish comes true, won't we?" That was the best Ryuzaki could come up with and he was glad Noah accepted it so easily.
"Okay! Bye Mr. Panda!"
On the way back to the hotel where Light and L were staying, L couldn't stop thinking about Noah and his wish. He really wanted him to be his father? This was another situation he had never been in before, though with Miya it seemed like these new situations were coming from around every corner. Would he be able to come up with an answer to this one?