AN: This is the first Greed chapter. I was thinking of making the third Gula chapter, but I changed my mind. : ) Anyway, Thank you everyone for reading. I hope you can share your views by leaving reviews or sending me a private message. I just need to know whether my writing style is effective.

Anyway, here's chapter 6.

Enjoy.

Disclaimer: I do not own Death Note. But perhaps it's not that bad to dream sometimes.

Chapter 6: Avaritia

Amane Misa cheerfully jumped when her cellphone rang. It's probably Light! She happily thought as she scanned her bag for the gadget. She just finished taping her soon-to-be-aired commercial of her endorsement of the famous Allure fragrance of Chanel. She was quite exhausted because of the taping and she was thinking of spending the night with Light. She frowned when she got hold of her cell phone and saw that it wasn't Light. It was the CEO of a clothing company and an avid fan of hers, who keeps on pestering her to endorse their new variety of clothes. She sighed when she remembered that Light wasn't exactly the sweet and romantic type of boyfriend who would keep calling his girl to check on her. Not that she complain. She actually adored Light for his stoic nature and she was so proud of herself when Light accepted her. Light was a very appealing person and she often feared that Light would dump her just like he did with his "has beens".

She squeezed her cell phone tightly when she thought about the possibility that Light could be in another woman's arms right now. No. My Light isn't like that. He knew Light wasn't the unfaithful type. Nor was he a faithful one. That was also one of the reasons why she loved him so much. Light was unique in many ways. He was very unpredictable. Light was perfect for her. Everything about Light is good. Because to her, only Light matters. Without Yagami Light in her life, then there would also be no Amane Misa in the world, no matter how good her life seems to be. That is why I just can't let go of him.

She pressed a speed dial button on her phone.

"Hello." Just hearing the voice lifted her mood up.

"Light!"

"Ah, Misa. What is it? I'm busy." She smiled. Her Light's really hard-working!"Misa is wondering whether she and her Light can go out to dinner tonight!" She wondered how she would fix her hair and what clothes to wear. I can't wait to—

"Misa. I can't go tonight. I'm busy." Her smile faded.

"EH? WHY?! Light promised Misa a dinner tonight!"

"Misa. I really don't have time tonight. I will make it up to you." She squealed.

"Yay! Light promised Misa another superb date!" She exclaimed in delight. Her eyebrows creased when she heard shuffling and a man's voice on Light's end.

"Okay, Misa. I'll call you when I have the time— Ryuuzaki! What the hell— Sorry, Misa. I have to go now."

"Okay, Light! Misa loves Light very much!" Then the line went dead. She happily placed her phone back inside her bag. She was in a good mood already. Thanks to her wonderful and charming boyfriend! She remembered the voice of a man she heard while talking to Light.

Who's Ryuuzaki? She tried to remember if Light has a friend named Ryuuzaki. The name was not familiar to her. She shrugged. Not that she cares. It was a man, after all. It was probably just an acquaintance. She happily sighed in relief. Light was not with another woman. She need not prepare herself for a catfight. She silently thanked the heavens for that.

--

"Oniichan!" Sayu? The voice was definitely her sister's.

"Light!" Now, it was his mom's. What is going on?

"Light, son!" His dad's. His head was aching. He knew they were already dead.

"Oniichan..." The voice was killing him. The sweet voice of her sister was pleading to him. Seemingly asking him why he was there when the rest of them were somewhere else.

"Light…" He tried desperately to block the voices but he couldn't. They were seeping into his soul making him remember what he saw that night. Making him remember his own helplessness. His weakness.

"Light!" He felt tears trickle down the side of his face. He thought he got over it already, but his heart seemed to be stuck on that particular night, when everything seemed to be taken away from him. And now, the memories were haunting him. Replaying the events. The devastation. The loss. And just like that night, all he could do was to helplessly let the frustration out, and cry.

"Light!" He clutched his head, desperately trying to ease the pain. Please just stop…

"Light!" He jolted upward. He was panting hard. He was sitting on a white bed. The covers were wildly strewn around him. A dream… He sensed a presence on his right side. He turned to look and found Ryuuzaki's face inches from his, and he gave a startled gasp.

"What the hell are you doing here?!"

"You were dreaming, Light-kun. Your poor state while you were sleeping, and having a nightmare, I presume, disturbed me while I was working." Ryuuzaki moved to the bed and sat beside him. "Are you alright, Light-kun?" He gave Ryuuzaki an irritated glare.

"Yes."

"You were crying in your sleep, Light-kun." Light unconsciously brought his hand up and wiped the dampness the tears left on the side of his face. He combed his hand through his brown locks and swiped the sticking strands on his forehead.

"I'm fine. It was just… a dream." He saw Ryuuzaki nod. He turned to fully look at the man. "Well? I'm okay. You can go back to your room now."

Silence.

Light scowled. Really, this man seems to irritate him always!

"Well?" He waited for Ryuuzaki to move but the man seemed determined to do the opposite. Light gave a loud sigh. "What time is it?"

"It's 5 in the morning. We should be heading towards the investigation room. The others would be here in an hour." Light nodded.

"Let me fix myself first." Ryuuzaki nodded and stood up. He walked towards the door. Light just watched him. Ryuuzaki turned to look at him. Light wondered what the man wanted to say to him. He raised his brow in question and Ryuuzaki opened his mouth to speak but closed it again. He watched as Ryuuzaki turned to open the door and walked out of the room.

He sighed when the man was finally out of his sight. He was definitely not happy when he woke up from that bad dream only to find a queer panda staring at him. He was a man of pride. It was infuriating to know that someone actually witnessed that moment of weakness. But though he didn't want to admit it, he was actually relieved to see Ryuuzaki. It probably reminded him that in many ways, he was not alone. Because the whole point of that dream was to remind him of his loss. Of his solitude. And seeing Ryuuzaki with him in a moment like that somehow made him think that he could probably get through with it completely.

He squeezed his eyes shut. He was really starting to be sentimental. And why the hell would he want the man's presence? There must be something wrong with him. He let out an irritated sigh.

He got out of bed and fixed the beddings. It has been ten days since he started living with Ryuuzaki for the sake of the investigation. He wondered again why he was the only one not allowed to go home. He asked Ryuuzaki about it but the man just told him that it was for his safety, since Kira might know that he was still alive and come back for him. He rolled his eyes at the answer and told himself that the man must have his motives.

By the time he was finished cleaning and dressing himself, it was already 5:45. He grabbed his cellphone from the desk near his bed. He was checking his inbox when the infuriating voice of the panda in the intercom startled him.

"Light-kun. Please come to the investigation room immediately."

He wondered whether the man has found something relevant to the case. A voice at the back of his mind suddenly gave him doubts. He shrugged and headed towards the door.

--

L looked at the computer clock. It was almost five in the morning. He debated with himself whether he should go to Light's room and wake him up. He knew the brunette would scowl at him for doing that so he decided to wait for a few minutes to allow Light to wake up on his own. He was reading the police report on the new series of murders in Kanto when he saw, in the corner of his eye, the screen of the security camera in Light's room. Light was frantically tossing in his bed. Light was sweating profusely and L could perfectly see the glistening tears at the side of the youth's face. The young man was crying in his sleep, mumbling words that L couldn't decipher. Worried, L immediately set down his laptop on the desk near his bed, and bolted out of the room.

He arrived in front of Light's room and thanked the heavens that Light did not bother closing his door. He hurriedly went beside the brunette's bed. The young man was crying in his sleep. L was sure that the brunette was having a nightmare. About his family perhaps? It was only a guess but L was sure that only a nightmare about his family could make Light weaken like this. As much as Light didn't want to admit, he had deep bonds with his family, and L was sure it was a big devastation to Light when his family died. L shook Light's shoulder to wake him up.

"Light!"

L got more worried when he saw Light's face crumpled more in pain. His voice was not getting to Light. He called out to him several times more and finally Light jolted upwards, sweating, panting and clutching his head. He just watched silently as Light's breathing slowed. L mentally sighed in relief when he sensed that the man was calming down. He moved his face closer to the young man's and he felt Light stiffen when he sensed his presence.

"What the hell are you doing here?!" L stared at him, amused. He reminded himself of how interesting the man across him is. It wasn't often that a man could quickly regain his composure just like that.

"You were dreaming, Light-kun. Your poor state while sleeping and having a nightmare, I presume, disturbed me while I was working." He moved to sat beside the young man, who answered his actions with a scowl. "Are you alright, Light-kun?" Light just gave him a glare. L knew Light wasn't that happy to see him after going through a nightmare. He reminded himself how very proud Light was.

"Yes." He just stared at Light and said nothing.

"You were crying in your sleep, Light-kun." He frowned when Light wiped the tears on his face. He was not used to seeing Light like this. He just watched when Light combed his fingers through his hair, trying to calm himself down.

"I'm fine. It was just… a dream." Yeah, right. He resisted the urge to roll his eyes at Light. He decided to just nod idly. Light turned to fully stare at him before raising a brow.

"Well? I'm okay. You can go back to your room now." He decided not to speak. He wanted to stay beside the young man. Let the brunette yell at him but he wouldn't budge until Light was completely calmed. L held back an amused chuckle when he saw Light scowl at him. He found the scowl quite amusing and cute. He was slightly relieved to see Light slowly regaining himself again.

"Well?" L decided to just remain in his spot and not utter a word. He heard Light sigh and he restrained himself from giving Light a triumphant smile. "What time is it?"

L almost chuckled at the sudden change in topic. "It's 5 in the morning. We should be heading towards the investigation room. The others would be here in an hour." Light nodded. A feeling of relief washed over him. Light was okay now. He wasn't sure but somehow, he knew.

"Let me fix myself first." He nodded. He stood up and walked towards the door. He wanted to know what the nightmare was all about so that he could say something to the man but he knew Light would just answer him with an irritated scowl. He mentally laughed at the thought. Somehow, Light's obvious annoyance and irritation towards him at times, seemed to draw him more to the gorgeous brunette.

He turned to glance at Light. Light just stared at him, questioning. He opened his mouth to speak. But he decided not to. What was he about to say? Was he going to blurt out comforting words to the man? Was he going to force the man to spill everything out to him? He silently reprimanded himself from being out of his character again. He was not a nosy person, and he couldn't care less about what others' issues are, but he was slightly perplexed at Light's moment of weakness. He wondered how deep his attraction to the young man was. It was slightly puzzling to know that he was slowly changing himself because of the uncaring and sexy, if he might add, young man. He wondered if Light would appreciate his sympathy. Probably not. Light was like him in many ways. They were too much alike. It would irritate him to no end, too, if another person would want to know something that he clearly didn't want to spill.

He turned to face the door. It was probably best to leave Light now and pretend he didn't see him in that horrible state. He opened the door and walked out of the room.

--

L studied the police reports of all the murders that were reported to be done by Kira. He noted the victims' background, the murder patterns that could lead him to what Kira's motive really was. He knew Kira only killed detectives. It could be a grudge towards police or detectives that made the killer do this. But what baffled him the most was the fact that Kira included the detective's families. He wondered of grudge was enough to make him commit such acts.

He turned to his laptop and searched for the latest news. The new series of murders in the Kanto region topped the news. Aside from that, there were articles about groups pleading to Kira to stop the killings. He rolled his eyes in irritation. Some people just don't get it. As if it would work. Kira was like an unstoppable force. There was no chance that the psycho would actually think through his actions and just stop the murders and apologize to the public.

He scanned the online news website and an article caught his eye. The article was about an interview with a criminal prosecutor named Mikami Teru. L scanned the article and raised an eyebrow when he found out that Mikami was doing his own investigation, too, about the murders. Why would a criminal prosecutor be so interested in a serial murder case? Was he playing detective? L brought his thumb to his teeth and chewed on it. It was perfectly alright for the man to investigate but what caught his attention is that the man specifically mentioned the Yagami family in the interview. The man was specifically investigating the case of Light's family and he slightly frowned in confusion. Was there a reason to be that interested in the Yagami massacre? The man was asked about it in the interview but the man justified that it was best to start investigating the NPA chief's death, since the first victim was the chief and his family. L thought it best to investigate the man as well. He wasn't sure of the man's motives but he knew that something was up with the man. He would tell Watari later to do the gathering of information for him. For now, he would like to ask Light about his opinion on the man. Speaking of Light…

He turned to look at the screen showing Light's room. He saw Light fully refreshed and dressed already. He stared for a while then checked the computer clock on his laptop. It read 5:45. It was time for Light to join his company. He was already anxious to see the man again. He laughed at himself. Sometimes, he thanked the heavens for the privilege of being the top detective in the world. Making Light live with him was probably the best selfish decision he had ever made. Not that he regret it. It was a perfect decision to make Light stay with him all day. With me. L chuckled at the thought. He was a greedy person, he had to admit. He had never liked sharing his possessions to others. Light was not his possession, he knew, but it was not the issue. Whether Light was his or not, it would really bother him to no end if Light was to slip out from his grasp. He cringed at the thought. Was he really that attracted to the man? He knew if he continued, Light would probably become his one weakness.

L sighed as he watched Light grab his cell phone from the desk. He remembered Light's conversation with his girlfriend the previous day. He could remember the perky voice of the Amane Misa. It was loud enough for him to hear. And he was actually seated two meters away from Light that time. He had also heard Light promise a date with the girl. Oh, yeah! The date! He forgot about that!

L moved towards the intercom. "Light-kun. Please come to the investigation room immediately."

He brought his thumb to his lips once more and thought deeply. He knew it was not like him to take anything from others. But he wasn't going to let Amane win. He was not going to let Amane Misa keep Light, his Light, to herself. He was going to put up a fight. He knew Amane was very possessive towards Light, but he was not a compassionate giver, too. Light was not his. But he wasn't going to let the man stay at Amane Misa's lair, either. Let greed take over him. No matter how sick it may sound, he let his sickening rapacious self take over.

--

When Light arrived at the investigation room, he found L sitting with his usual strange position, biting his thumb. The man was in deep thought, it was obvious. He felt a tinge of admiration for the man. The L was not just a name, after all. L seemed to sense his presence. He walked towards L and sat at the chair nearest to the man.

"So? What have you found out?" L gave him a quizzical look.

"Ah, yes. I have sent an article to your email. Please check it. I want to hear your thoughts about it." He nodded. He was quite flattered that L, the L, wanted to hear his thoughts about the matter, before opening the topic to the rest of the investigation team. Not that he haven't expected it, of course. He knew he was above the rest of them, and L wasn't taking any effort in hiding the favoritism.

He turned to open the notebook that was assigned to him. He waited for it to boot up. He glanced towards L, who was still staring at him.

"Any other concerns?" He casually asked, then turned his head to the notebook computer to type the asked password. When he heard no reply, he fully turned his attention to the detective. "Well?"

"What time would you be out today?" He blinked in confusion.

"What?"

"I said, what time would you be out with Amane Misa today?" He stared at L, fully comprehending the words. He almost forgot about the date.

"Lunch time." L gave him a dark look. He wondered whether the man thought he was neglecting his work. "Don't worry, Ryuuzaki. I would catch up with the work. I'll be back before it gets completely dark."

"I'm not worried about your work here. I know you can catch up." He gave L a puzzled look. If not, then what the hell was it?

"Then what is it?"

"Well, I just thought what kind of restaurant Amane Misa is up to."

"Huh?" He mentally smacked himself for forgetting how weird the man really is. "You need not be concerned about it, Ryuuzaki." L pouted.

"What do you mean, Light-kun? I thought I told you about my addiction to sweets. If the restaurant doesn't even have one variety of cake, then that would really be a bad omen." Light blinked and then his eyes widened in realization.

"Wait, wait, wait." It was L's turn to blink at him in confusion. "You are planning to come with me?" L gave him an isn't-it-obvious stare. He frowned. "Who told you I was going to let you?"

"I wasn't actually asking for permission, Light-kun." He scowled.

"But it is my date, if you don't actually get it." He scowled further when L just gave him a sheepish smile in return. After a few moments, he rolled his eyes and sighed. "You're really coming no matter what, aren't you?" L chuckled.

"I'm glad you get the point."

"Why the hell do you want to go?"

"I want to see what kind of girl attracts you." Light grunted.

"Yeah, right. You just wanted to meet her and mock her afterwards." L laughed.

"Light-kun's mind is really exceptional." Light rolled his eyes.

"It would not take a great mind to understand your motives." L just chuckled. "I honestly don't know why I put up with you. I should have declined your offer to work with you back then. You always give me headaches."

"Ah, that's mean, Light-kun. My attraction to you is quite genuine. Mind you, I don't give up." Light rolled his eyes.

"I know that. You have emphasized it quite well. Even if I tell you to back away a million times, you won't budge, I know it. Even if a million Amane Misa gets in your way, you still won't back away. I have to salute you for your fighting spirit." L laughed and Light raised an eyebrow. "But I'm telling you L, Misa doesn't share." He gave L a smirk before turning his attention fully to his notebook computer and opening a browser window.

"Neither do I, Light-kun." Light turned to look back at him.

"You sound like you own me."

"Then does Amane own you?" Light scowled at him.

"Nobody owns me." L smiled.

"Then that makes it more interesting, doesn't it?" Light snorted.

"Whatever." L smiled, victoriously. "I'm serious, L. Cut this bullshit. Misa has her fangs." L's smile widened.

"Oh, you need not worry. Let her hoggish nature clash with my covetous one." Light sighed. Conversing with the man was really exhausting him. He wondered how much headaches would come later. He would have to brace himself for the catastrophe. He opened the email L sent him. For now, he has to concentrate on his work.

AN: Reviews please. Next would be the inevitable meeting of Misa and L…