Bullet with Butterfly Wings- 'And a Piece of the Game'
What could have been.
--
It wasn't exactly the warmest of welcomes, but not bad either, when you considered the circumstances of their first meeting. Detective Light took control easily, introducing L to all the team and their jobs.
"…And this is Matsuda," he finished, giving the rookie a friendly pat on the shoulder. "He takes care of the day-to-day stuff."
The suspect gave him a careful once-over. "Matsuda, hmm?"
"Y-yes?" the easily intimidated man gulped, taking a tiny step back.
"Matsuda-san is new to the force? This being his first major case…?" L asked him, almost idly, voice contrasting with the hawk-like intensity in his normally dull eyes.
"Um… yeah."
"Ah," the predatory stance evaporated, leaving behind something almost affable in its place. "A shame then, that this is probably the most interesting case you'll take up. Police-work is notoriously boring, when one isn't being shot at. Nevertheless, I'm sure you'll do an admirable job."
Leaning back in his now-customary slouch, the Frenchman stuck out a hand, his features totally unreadable.
Matsuda stared at him in bewilderment for a moment, caught between being offended or mollified. In the end, his good nature won out and a bright smile broke across his face.
"It'll be great to have you here, Ryuzaki," he said, shaking the offered hand, "Especially if it turns out you didn't kill anyone! Two geniuses are better than one, I always say."
L bit down on the nail of his free thumb. "Do you?"
"…No," the policeman admitted. "Not till now."
"Right," Raito broke in, giving his suspect a warning look, "We've got a bit more to cover and it's getting late. James?"
"Coming, sir." The older gentleman entered through an office door, carrying a silver case.
"I thought for a while about how we could make this investigation work best," the Englishman began, "Close supervision was of course necessary, and in the end, I happened to have these from a past case."
At the head of the glossy table, James popped open the case to reveal a pair of long-chained handcuffs resting in black velvet. Around the table, members of the investigation shifted with unease.
"There's six feet of chain between the ends, which will hopefully be enough for our purposes. After two weeks or so, I'll remove the cuffs and continue to monitor Ryuzaki in a slightly more casual way. For now, though, we'll be residing at the new headquarters… I've bought out the building so it sho— "
"RAITOOO! Misa-Misa is here to see her Raito-chan!"
The detective's eyes widened and he took an involuntary step backwards. "Oh no."
The blond blur burst through the hall door, hair whipping out behind her like a kite. Fast as a speeding bullet, Raito dove to the side just in time to escape her crushing embrace.
L, however, was now directly in the line of fire.
"…As pleasant as this is, Misa-san may soon cause me to asphyxiate."
The model let out a shriek and toppled over backwards, glaring up at the odd man who had replaced her love. "Who are you?"
"Ryuzaki, charmed to make your acquaintance. And if I may say so, I am quite a fan of your work." the suspect offered a hand up, straightening his posture momentarily to keep from being pulled over. "Your catalogue cover last month was physical poetry."
Like Matsuda moments before, Misa seemed unable to decide whether she was flattered or affronted. Finally, she accepted his hand and bounced to her feet, giggling.
"Your friend, Raito?"
"Not exactly," he replied, bemused (as his time spent with Misa often left him). "Ryuzaki here is actually my prime suspect in the Carving Murder cases. I've brought him into my team so that I can easily compare him with any evidence we find, and our investigation will, of course, benefit from his insight."
"…Why?" the girl asked, eyes flicking over the pale man's faded blue jeans and messy black hair.
"He's something of a genius himself. We haven't had a formal IQ test done, but it must be in the two-hundreds," the investigator explained.
Misa put a black painted nail to her lips, looking wide-eyed at her boyfriend. "That means he's almost as smart as you!"
"Actually," Raito admitted—though grudgingly—"He may in fact be more than me. We don't know."
"Oh, nobody's smarter than my Raito-kun!" she giggled, throwing her arms around him.
The detective was stumped for how to respond to that tastefully. He shot L a glance out the corner of his eye, wondering if the man could get any less readable.
"Misa, don't you have somewhere to be?" prodded Raito, slipping gracefully out of her grip. "A movie to shoot?"
It was astounding how well one's memory worked when under pressure. The teen had been desperately attempting to prevent a repeat of last week's fiasco and had been successful so far… but it only took one wrong move to send it tumbling down over his head. Luckily, she didn't seem offended at all.
"Oh my gosh, you're right. I mean, it's like an hour from now, but I promised I'd be there early—it's right down the street from here," she rambled, twisting the cross on her necklace back and forth, "Misa was on her way there when she found you! I could tell because I saw your limo, James always parks it kind of sideways, and…"
Huh. So that's how she did it.
"…And yeah, Misa has to go, yep. But she loves her Raito-kun, and she'll see him soon—right?"
"Right," agreed her reluctant boyfriend, straining out a smile.
"Alright!" the blond let go of her necklace and stood on her toes, placing a cute kiss on Raito's cheek. "I love you!"
The young investigator forced himself to maintain the smile, waving slightly as the model bounced into an elevator. With the closing of the shaft doors, all the tension drained out of him.
"Sometimes," he muttered, "I feel like I'm dating a three-year-old."
L shot him a look that said the comment had not gone unheard. Instead of commenting, though, he asked, "However did Raito-kun find himself dating a nominee for the 'Most Beautiful People' award? I'm sure it must be an interesting story."
"Yeah!" Matsuda piped up, "I've been wondering about that too. It's not every day a guy goes out with a supermodel."
Resisting the urge to rub his temples, Raito sighed. "I'd really rather not tell this story…"
"Raito-san," Aizawa said, speaking for the first time since his introduction, "I'd like to hear it too. It's been a bit distracting, actually. I'd like to have a bit of confirmation, if you don't mind."
Well, if Aizawa was getting involved now, then it had to be a substantial issue.
There was a conference room just behind the empty receptionist desks, and the detective supposed they would need to sit down for this story. Sighing once again, he directed them in and took a seat at the head of the table.
"I met Misa-san about a year ago, during the Celebrity Murder case. I was hired by the Hideki family for a price that, at the time, seemed too good to turn down. Narrowing down the suspects had been extremely difficult, as everyone seemed to have a motive…"
--0--
Raito stepped into the room quietly, his entrance drowned by clamoring voices and tipsy shouts. The bright lights stung his eyes, still adjusting from the dark. Shoulders set in a confident disposition; he reminded himself that if one looked like they belonged, no one would ask any questions.
He sauntered over to the refreshment table, reaching for one of the delicate finger sandwiches spread over its surface. A covert glance located his two potential targets conversing near the drinks—he recognized them from an interview one of his informants had printed up for him that morning.
Lines playing over in his head, the detective cornered the male speaker as the two separated, smiling his most charming smile.
"Are the drinks any good?" he asked idly, peering over the man's shoulder.
"Nah," the celebrity answered, shaking his died blond hair. He looked longingly at the quality-bereft table.
"What a shame. Lucky for me, I've got a bottle in the car. I suppose I'll go grab some of that." Detective Light turned on his heel and ambled off at a relaxed pace, counting down in his head.
3, 2… 1
"Hold on a second," the blond called after him, "Think you have enough for two? I'll take just about anything after this piss in a cup."
With a slight cringe at the language, the brunette turned and smiled brightly. "Sure. It's a big bottle."
And so they wove their way through the crowds and to the door, the star giving an almost non-stop critique on the best sorts of saké, where to find them, how to drink them and most importantly: who to drink them with.
"…And you can't have that stuff with just your friends. It's got to be real important, I'm-getting-lucky-tonight sort of special. Some 'f your friends might try to convince you to share, but do not listen, man. It's crucial stuff. Hey, is that your car?"
Raito snapped out of his internal checklist, following the man's gesture. "Yes. How'd you know?"
"I've never seen it before, and I pay a lot of attention to cars. Come t' think of it, I've never really seen you before, either."
The celebrity gave him a second look-over, evaluating his companion's stylish glasses and unusual green eyes.
The disguised man shrugged nonchalantly. "I'm not an actor, I'm a manager. Nobody notices us until they need something. My name's Kira, by the way."
The fluorescent lights above their heads buzzed loudly, casting a dim purple sheen over the garage. Restoring his cheery smile, Raito gestured to the canary yellow car—a thing he'd barely had the stomach to rent, even for an undercover case.
"I can't imagine what the Hideki manager must be going through," He said, popping open the car door, "He must have an army of reporters at his door… you have to wonder who's paying him now."
"Same person who was always paying him," the blond answered easily, a crafty look coming into his eye. "And it ain't Ryuga, I'll tell you that."
"Oh?" Detective Light made a show of rummaging through his glove box. "Now you have me curious."
Blondie leaned on the car's trunk, tapping the metal with an errant finger. "Well, this is just 'tween you and me, right? 'Cause some investigator's been sniffing around lately and I don't want anyone pissed off at me."
"Of course," the Detective lied.
He pulled the bottle out and uncorked it, offering the star a first sip.
"Okay. So it turns out that the agent was really working for his mom. Hideki thought he was paying the manager, but, well, he was paying too, but she was paying more. From Hideki's account. Misa told me that they were having an affair-" he stopped to gulp down the saké, "-and Hideki's dad never found out."
"Was Hideki close to his father?" asked the detective, looking convincingly sympathetic.
"I guess. Maybe. I've never heard anything about him, you know. Me 'n Hideki didn't get along too well. He always had this swelled head about acting in movies, never did like us television actors. Had bad taste in saké, too. Noticed it when we went to his big Christmas party last year."
The green-tinted bottle made a strange sloshing noise as the minor celebrity passed the bottle back, eyeing it hungrily all the while.
"You, on the other hand," he continued, "Have excellent taste. You wouldn't happen to have any wine on you, would you? I've always been a traditional sort of guy, but lately I've taken a liking to some foreign stuff."
"No," Raito answered simply.
That was all that he was going to get out of this man, he was certain. If they'd been in a formal setting, he could have easily wrung out more… but it was imperative that he not blow his cover. Any records of his investigative doings would become more and more of a threat to his safety as he rose up the detective ranks.
And he intended to reach the top.
So instead, he left the bottle with his now tipsy acquaintance and slipped back into the party. After getting no useful information whatsoever from any of his other victims (one who actually hit on him, to his disbelief) he retired to the sullen corners of the room.
A sudden thump sounded on the wall beside him.
"Ryo told me you were asking about the Hideki kid," the newcomer said, "And I thought I should tell you that ain't such a good idea. See, this whole murder thing's tricky business, and if you aren't careful, you'll get mixed up just like Neji did. That'd be a shame."
"Who are you?" Raito asked, straining to see past the man's long bangs.
"Me?" the stranger repeated, "I'm nobody. You, on the other hand, I think you're somebody. Or at least, you know somebody."
"I'm a manager, I know lots of people."
"Not someone in the biz." The dark man smirked, "I know Big Brother is watching, and I think you're his eyes."
"You caught me." Raito rolled his eyes. "And I'm the new years bunny too."
The stranger whirled on the sitting detective and bent level with him. "I know you work for Light. I'm not stupid, and you aren't as smart as you think you are. This is a warning: back off, pretty boy."
And with that, he disappeared into the crowd.
--
"Were you followed?" demanded the butler, without pre-amble.
"No, James, not that I know of. But with a car this visible, people in Russia could see me."
Raito dropped tiredly into a plush chair, patterned with dancing monkeys. Why hotels insisted on buying 'cute' furniture was beyond him, but it was comfortable at least.
"So what did you learn?" James asked, politely this time, withdrawing into a master/servant dynamic.
"Bloody nothing," the detective replied in English, "Or close to it. I verified that Hideki's mother was paying his manager, and there's a rumor of an affair between them… but nothing that would begin to stand in court. The only upside is that I received a threat in person, meaning that I must be on the right track."
"Any suspicions?"
"The manager, of course. And the mother too. My problem with that is that they actually hired me—and I'm a well-known detective. If they simply wanted to decrease suspicion, why didn't they choose a private eye who'd keep his nose out of their business?"
The brunette sighed heavily. Lately, social functions had become less interesting and a lot more tiring. He had no idea why.
There was a knock at the door. James and Raito glanced at each other in silent exchange.
Were you expecting someone?
No. Were you?
No.
Hand on the pepper spray in his pocket—simple, but effective—James turned to the door and pulled it inward.
In tumbled a petite blond girl, who lost her balance as the door was pulled away and ended up sprawled on the floor. She looked up at Raito with wide eyes, and he noted that she was actually a woman, not a girl.
"Kira?" She asked, with something in her eyes glowing alien bright.
He had been using that identity lately... at the party too. "Yes?"
"Oh my gosh!" she gushed, bouncing to her feet, "Ryo told me you were looking for me but I wasn't sure you were trustworthy so I watched you for a while—like the whole party—and I just saw your face down with that creepy stalker guy and you were so cool, but I knew he was right because it made sense, you know Ryo told me what you were asking about, and I just knew I had to come help you—I mean it's been my dream to help Detective Light ever since last year when he stopped that terrorist group and here was the perfect opportunity—"
The blond stopped for a few seconds to gulp down some air.
"—Because I just knew you were a good guy, I can tell just by looking at you, so I followed you here—that's a nice car by the way—and I waited outside your door for a while and now I'm here!"
The detective stared at her. In that entire monologue, he hadn't heard a single period.
"…Who are you?"
The girl smiled delightedly. "Misa-Misa at your service! I know everything there is to know about the biz, and everybody in it. Misa will be happy to help Detective Light and his team in any way possible."
Raito shared a look with his manservant. Sometimes, good things really do fall from the sky—or through your door. Occasionally both at the same time.
"Alright Misa," he stood and offered a hand, "You can call me Kira. It's true that we're on an assignment for Light, so anything you can tell us will be a great help."
"Yay!" She clapped, then took his hand and pumped it enthusiastically. "Misa will work day and night for you and Light! Oh, but one condition."
The investigator raised an eyebrow. What could a famous actress-slash-model want from him? "What would that be?"
"You," she pointed at him, "Have to be my," she pointed at herself, "Boyfriend!"
Raito had a sinking feeling he might not be able to get out of this one.
--0--
By the time that the famous detective ended his story, the sun was rising outside their conference room's window.
"And I just kept going out with her," he shrugged. "People tell us we make a beautiful couple."
"When did Misa-san find out that Light-kun was actually Detective Light himself?" wondered L aloud, with an expression Raito was beginning to recognize as a smirk.
"Fourth date," he answered smoothly, "She shrieked so loudly that we had to make two tables sign muffler agreements."
Now that Raito thought of it, how had she roped him into all those dates? It wasn't that he was particularly interested in her at all, though he admitted, at this point he would consider Misa a friend… he hadn't then.
Hadn't liked her, certainly hadn't loved her…
Why not?
Why not?