She sat on the bed in her hotel room, thankful that L had been so kind as to purchase it for her even though she hardly used them.

Her hair was damp, considering that she had been on the roof for a good hour or so before Watari had come to get her, but Sybil didn't care. She was too focused on the notebook that she held in her hands and in the shinigami called Fang that hung upside down on the ceiling.

"It explains everything. The heart attacks, Kira not being in the area, the Second Kira. It also explains why Misa isn't remembering anything. She resigned ownership of her own notebook so she could protect Light. It also explains why she was screaming out for us to kill her not even a week ago. She wasn't talking to us, she was talking to the shinigami by her side." Fang nodded.

"Yep. That sums it up."

"Shinigami eyes, she had them. Does she still have them?"

"Nope. Once you give up ownership of the Death Note, not only do you lose your memories, but your powers as well. Why, thinking of making the deal?" Sybil shook her head.

"Not with my short lifespan. I don't know how long I've got and I need to live as long as I can because my death might be to save someone." Fang blinked and then became lost in thought.

Right. This girl was hell-bent on protecting other humans. Her death would most likely be to protect her little detective boyfriend from certain death.

His eyes flickered back to the space above her head.

But, so soon? It seems this Kira thing wouldn't last too much longer if that was why she was to die, but just in case-

"If you die before this whole thing is fixed up, the notebook goes to your little boyfriend, got it? In the meantime, I suggest you keep it secret. The more humans who know about the notebook, the worse it's gonna be for us shinigami." Sybil sighed and nodded.

"Yes. Of course. I suppose that means I shouldn't tell Ryuu, then, eh?"

"Exactly. Better keep it secret until he'll for certain believe that you're not mentally insane."

"Yes, that's right. It'll make it look as though the stress of this is getting to me much worse than before. I guess that means that I can't mention shinigami either. Even if one was mentioned earlier on in the investigation." Fang sighed at the young woman's obvious depression.

He really should've kept his mouth shut about her life clock. He hated seeing humans upset, they just looked so vulnerable.

"Hey, shouldn't you hide the notebook somewhere?" Sybil blinked and then nodded.

"Yeah, you're right. But, where? I can't hide it here and I can't hide it at home. Ryuu has the key to both places and there's just too many people." Fang frowned slightly as he mulled it over.

"Well, how about you hide it outside the residences? A play area for midgets or something?" Sybil shot him a glare.

"I can't hide it there. Children are curious and they might kill someone. No. Not a good idea." She glanced down at her bare feet and sighed.

"I'll just have to take the risk of hiding it nearby." Fang watched as she pushed herself off the bed and lifted up the mattress to slip the notebook under.

"I doubt anyone would look here, but just in case, can you guard it?"

"What do I look like?! A watch dog?!" He exclaimed, but he had to admit secretly that it was a pretty good idea.

No one would see him, other than her and if someone happened to find out the location of the notebook, he could warn the girl so that she could at least prepare herself for what was to come.

Sybil say back on top of the bed and inhaled tiredly.

"You shinigami brought this mess to us, so you have to help. The humans and the shinigami are at equal faults in my eyes, so we have to work together to fix the problem to save our worlds from ending." Fang grumbled, but submitted.

"Smart ass genius. Fine, you win. I'll stand guard in this room, but you better come by daily to keep me company!" Sybil gave Fang a small smile and nodded.

"I promise."

***

L walked almost silently through the hall towards Sybil's room. Almost silent because of his bare feet against the floor and his breathing, which was slightly panicked.

How was he going to deal with this? Never had he had a romantic relationship before and if Sybil was mad at him, which was very much expected, how was he supposed to make it up to her? It was nerve racking to him. Scary even, not that he'd actually admit that to anyone.

Even hours after the incident that they were debating upon, he was still nervous about this confrontation. But, that was due to the fact that he'd never stopped thinking about it. He'd even had a hard time concentrating on the investigation. Yet, that always occurred when Sybil was nowhere to be seen or heard.

He stopped in front of the door, frowning when he didn't hear a sound coming from inside.

She hadn't left. He had checked the hidden cameras to make certain of that. Besides, he had told Watari to let her know that she wasn't allowed to leave until the situation was cleared up completely. Again, nerve racking.

L pulled a key from his jeans' pocket and quickly slipped it inside the keyhole to unlock the door.

Another precaution made to make sure she didn't leave before this moment. He had Watari lock her in the room. Everything else was set up based on the small chance that she knew how to pick locks.

He opened the door slowly and glanced inside, letting out a nearly inaudible sigh of relief when he saw Sybil sitting on the bed.

Her hair hung in front of her face, hiding her expression. Her cap laid on the table, where it seemed to have been sitting for the entire time since she had come inside and gotten changed into her new attire. A turquoise tank top and a pair of white track pants.

L closed the door behind him, listening to the soft click of it shutting tightly before he returned his attention to the young woman on the bed.

She was paler than she had been that morning. That was most likely due to the cold rain she had pounding against her skin. Strange how she hadn't bothered to wrap herself up in a blanket at least.

L brought himself up onto the space beside her and nervously reached out to bring her close to his side, praying that she wouldn't pull away. Thankfully, Sybil didn't, so he slid his arm protectively and securely around her midsection to hold her in place before laying his chin on top of her head.

"I apologize for upsetting you. Had I known that my words would set you off, I would have kept silent." Sybil raised her head slightly, just enough to move her hair out of her face to look him in the eye.

L immediately saw that she wore a small smile, not the angry look he had expected.

"I'm not mad at you. I was never mad at you. My actions are not your fault. That discussion merely reminded me of all my trials and hardships and how short life really is. That's all. It was never about you. It never will be." Before he could reply, L felt Sybil grip the collar of his shirt and her soft lips up against his with such force he wasn't expecting.

In fact, he almost fell over, just regaining his balance at the last moment. But, despite his surprise, L resided in returning her affections almost as quickly as they had come, noticing how she tightened her grip on his shirt collar.

Insecurity.

He gripped her waist a little tighter and her hands became loose, causing him to smirk.

That was better. Now she didn't feel so insecure with herself. She felt safe and that was extremely important to him. More important than stopping Kira, even.

Sybil pulled away to catch her breath and she snuggled up close to L before she began to shiver.

"I- I'm sorry. I should have conveyed my emotions earlier. I- I just didn't realize what I was feeling until I left the room. I didn't want to make you worry, nor did I mean to. Forgive me." L didn't need to think even a moment as he placed his lips next to her ear.

"There is nothing to forgive." A ghost of a smile passed her lips and she closed her eyes.

"Thank you. I'll be better from now on, I promise." L smirked.

"I doubt that's possible. You're already the best you can be in my eyes." Sybil's grip on his shirt loosened more so than before, to a point where they held onto him limply.

"That's nice to hear, Ryuu."

"Good." He held her for a few more minutes, not speaking a word.

But, the silence was soon interrupted with a sneeze from the young woman and he glanced down to her worriedly.

"Sybil?" She laughed weakly at his concern.

"Don't freak out on me, I've never been sick a day in my life."

"You were standing out in the rain for over an hour." L murmured, continuing to stare at her.

Something was wrong. He could just sense it. Sybil seemed completely normal, all apart from her eyes. They said that she knew something that she shouldn't and she felt upset about it.

Sybil closed her eyes and took a deep breath.

She knew that he knew she was hiding something. Her energy was most likely waving negativity and her nervousness was also probably easily noticed. But, she knew that he'd never confront her about it unless he thought what she was hiding was criminal and valuable to solving this case.

The young woman opened her eyes and looked towards Fang, who hung upside down on the ceiling, smirking at her.

He knew that she wouldn't say a word unless it was completely necessary. Necessary being someone's life, other than hers, at risk. In fact, if that girl felt that anyone was in danger, she might even use the Death Note to protect, despite what she'd be losing.

L gently raised a hand and then brushed Sybil's hair gently from her face, causing her to pull her eyes from the shinigami to look at him. Her eyes were wide and a little confused, but they soon glittered before she pressed her head into his chest and let out a content sigh.

She had to keep telling herself to enjoy this life while she could. Who knew how much longer she had left? Who knew how many more hours or days or weeks she'd have with the one who saved her from herself? Only that shinigami and he wasn't going to say a word, but Sybil knew that it was for the best. If she knew when she was going to die, she'd just wait around until that day came, not bothering to do something with the small amount of time she had left.

"I- I love you, Ryuu and everything that you've done for me, I'll never forget." L stared down at her, blinking before smiling slightly.

It was nice to hear those words from her. It was nice to know that she cared as much as he did.

"I love you as well, Sybil. And I don't believe I ever followed through with telling you my birthday." Sybil chuckled lightly and smiled.

"No, you didn't." He brushed some more of her red strands from her face, keeping his light smile.

"October thirty first." Immediately, her smile widened.

"Nice. Back home, that's Halloween. Door-to-door candy for free. That suits you very well indeed."

"I thought that it would please you."

"You know better. It doesn't take much to make me happy." She suddenly stopped smiling as her mind turned back to the investigation.

"Did anything happen with Light and Misa when I was out in the rain, freezing my ass off?" L frowned slightly before letting out a small sigh.

"The killings are still at a stop, as you know. Nothing else has occurred."

"I see. This is getting more difficult as it goes." Fang snickered.

Her answer was so true, seeing as she was obviously conflicted in what to do with her discovery of the Death Note. So, she hadn't lied yet and he doubted that she ever would. Judging by what he'd seen, this girl was not one to lie. She'd find ways to tell the truth the entire time without giving a thing away.

L continued to stare at her face, his eyes narrowing slightly.

"If you know something, Sybil, tell me." Sybil looked down to her hands, which were once again, gripping his shirt tightly.

"Ryuuzaki, whatever I'm hiding shouldn't compromise the investigation and if there's a time when I feel that you need to know, I need to know that you trust me enough to tell you."

"You're not denying that you know something that has to do with this investigation. Why would you hide something as important as this?"

"Just trust me. You out of everyone should know that I don't want to put anyone at risk, especially not because of me. What I know is for me alone to know until further notice." Sybil squirmed free from his grip and stood up to stare at her reflection in a mirror.

"I just need you to trust me. I'm not going to let anyone get hurt because of what I know. And, if I feel that anyone is at risk because of this, I'm going to do what I know is right." She caught him staring at her through the mirror and watched as he brought his thumb up to his lips.

"I never said that I didn't trust you. I know that you are not Kira. However, what I don't trust is how you seem to know more than I do and you refuse to tell me."

"I don't like it anymore than you do. I don't like having to keep secrets. It makes me feel dirty and wrong and it disgusts me." Sybil rubbed her arms and lowered her head to show her weakness on the matter and L sighed quietly.

She really didn't want to hide what she knew, but since she insisted on it, he knew that he'd never get it from her without hurting her either emotionally or physically. Of course, he wanted to shake it from her, but he knew better. Sybil would do anything in her power to protect people she knew were in danger, whether she knew them or not. If she was keeping this secret, however, he figured that it must also mean that her life was in jeopardy.

Soon, he was by her side with his hand planted firmly on her shoulder.

"I trust you, Sybil. However, if your life is in danger because of this secret, just tell me."

"No. My life isn't in danger. I would tell you if it was. I trust you as well."

"I see. Then, this conversation is as good as done. You are not one to give in easily, so there is little point in me interrogating you on the matter any further." The female detective raised her head slightly, only to bring it down again as well as rub her arms subconsciously both to keep her warm and to help keep herself secure.

L frowned at this.

She was avoiding making eye contact with him. It was obvious that she felt extremely guilty about her decision of keeping this secret and he couldn't have that, even if he wanted her to feel somewhat guilty. L despised seeing her even the slightest uncomfortable with herself, whether she deserved it or not.

"Sybil, you should rest."

"I- you're right. I should, but I can't. I've got a wedding to plan and I don't want to go home to that crowded place until I've got everything set up, at least." He smirked slightly.

Again, more concerned with others than with herself. That would get her killed if she kept it up, but he also had to admit that it was one of the reasons he was so attracted to her.

"Then don't go home. Stay here." Her head jerked up and she looked to him briefly before looking back to her feet, pulling herself into a tighter position.

"I- I can't do that either. I can't even look you in the eye because of my decision to keep a secret. If I stay here, I'll just feel worse." Again, he frowned.

She felt that bad? Sybil was indeed more sensitive than one would first think. And it also posed a problem for himself. If Sybil was upset with herself for her decisions, there was little he could do to make her feel better.

He narrowed his eyes slightly.

"How can I make you feel better?" She lifted her head again and smiled weakly.

"Thank you for caring, but there's little you can do."

"That may be so, but there is still something I can do. Tell me what it is, Sybil." Her eyes closed and she shivered slightly.

"It- it would be nice if you would hold me. That is, if you want to. I know that you can't possibly be happy with me right now, but it will still make me feel better to know that you still care." Her eyes opened when she felt one of his arms slip around her waist and the other grab hold of her arm.

"I may not be happy with your decision to keep a secret as important as you make it seem, but that does not change my feelings for you." Sybil then gasped as he lifted her up with such ease, to just plop her down on the bed.

"Which is exactly why I dealt with the preparations that you started earlier. This Sunday, your brother and his fiancée will have a private wedding at my expense." She smiled as she nestled her head deep in his chest.

"Thank you. That's one less thing I need to worry about it."

"Good. Now, rest. You don't seem to be getting much sleep nowadays." The redhead gave a quiet laugh.

"Look who's talking. I'm only trying to keep up with you and that's very difficult to do. It's a wonder that we're considered equals. You're much more devoted to this than I seem to be." Before L could argue, she had lapsed into a deep sleep.

He sighed and then sat on the edge of the bed to watch as she, hopefully, had pleasant dreams.

Meanwhile, Fang huffed and crossed his arms as he watched the scene before him.

"Pervert."