A/N: Hi guys! How've you all been? There's finally a mini-break in my non-stop assessments, even though I have a German one in two weeks and a Maths and English mock next week (I'm choosing to ignore their existence), so I'm in a pretty good mood! XD

This is...a very long chapter, for me. I'm pretty proud of it, too! But do you remember in the first chapter, I had a list of things I had to tell you about, because I needed to explain some aspects of my fic? Yeah, well, there're more. :) Okay!

1) Light's personality is slightly different in this fic than in canon. Reasons for which you'll find out, a little bit in this chapter. No flames for OOC-ness, please!

I'll tell you the other one in the end A/N, because otherwise you'll have no clue what I'm on about. :)

Reviews! I got so many this time! Thank you to:

CaNdYxxFrEaK

LovegoodH

VampirePrinssess

CatatonicVanity

mxmsupporter

Silence I Keehl You

Mattasis

Rainbow Fruit Loop

SKYSPRITE

and PenguinxHero! You lot made my week! Again. XD

Disclaimer: I do not own Death Note or any of its characters. All credit to Tsugumi Ohba and Takeshi Obata. Seriously, doesn't anyone else get bored of writing these?!

Chapter 7: First Impressions

Matt was woken the next day at six by a somehow awake Mello. Honestly, sometimes he wondered if the guy was even human or not.

"Wozzit...?" Matt muttered sleepily, trying to fight the urge to close his eyes again.

"Time to get up! We have to work on the case today, remember?"

Matt did remember, unfortunately.

"Five more minutes," he murmured, rolling over and burying his head in the ridiculously comfortable pillow.

"No, get up now," Mello demanded, looking scary.

Matt ignored him.

Of course, he had to get up immediately when Mello decided to sit down heavily on his crotch. Getting dressed was an agonising experience, but he managed it, somehow, after kicking an ogling Mello out of the room.

The two walked down the corridors Mello had memorised the very first time they were shown to their floor by Halle, leading them to Near's workroom.

Not bothering to knock, Mello dramatically kicked the door open and said, "So, what's this case about then, Sheep?"

"Good morning to Mello too," Near said evenly. He looked at Matt. "Good morning, did Matt sleep well?"

"Yeah, thanks!" Matt beamed. He had no idea what Mello (and himself, at times) had been going on about; apart from being slightly odd (and sometimes irritating), Near was a pretty decent guy.

"Can we please skip all this courtesy shit? I want to know what's stumped you about this case!" Mello complained, charming as always.

Near held up a pale hand. "Mello will have to be patient. We must first wait for the others involved in the investigation to arrive."

Mello wrinkled his nose. "Others?"

Near nodded, obviously not willing to give out any more details.

Matt cleared his throat nervously. "Um...I haven't really worked on any detective mystery stuff before...what exactly am I supposed to do?" To be honest, he had no idea why Near recruited his help; they'd never met each other before in their lives.

"Matt will be required to gather information through technological means," Near explained, "I trust he can get through a high security firewall?"

Matt snorted. "Of course, what do you take me for?" Hacking was one of the few things he was proud of.

Near seemed to be about to reply when he was interrupted by a knock on the door. "Come in," he said instead.

A man in his mid-forties, Mello guessed, poked his head around the door. "Our guests from Japan have arrived, sir," he announced.

Near inclined his head in acknowledgement. "I see. Show them in, please, Rester."

"Yes sir." The man retracted his head, only for the door to open fully a few moments later. "L and Yagami Light, sir."

"My gratitude. Rester may take his leave now."

"Yes, sir."

Matt was too busy staring at the pair that had just entered to fully soak in the last part of the conversation. One of them seemed completely normal – brown hair and crisp clothes – while the other...did not.

He had the most appalling posture Matt had seen in his life, and bags under his eyes that were so dark they appeared to have been tattooed there. His hair was dishevelled, like the last time it had seen a brush was before birth, and his clothes weren't much better.

And yet, the normal-looking guy was walking slightly behind The Weirdo, as if he respected him. Which meant The Weirdo was in charge. Brilliant.

"Good morning, Near, Mello," The Weirdo greeted them, nodding at each in turn. Near nodded back, but Mello just stared in disbelief.

"...L?" the blond finally managed to choke out, eyes still wide as a bushbaby's.

"It is nice to see you again, Mello," The Weirdo smiled, scarring Matt deeply. "You have grown."

That caught Matt's attention. How long had Mello known this freak?

Mello surprised Matt even further by breaking out into a huge grin. "You haven't, but it's nice to see you too!" The blond looked happier than Matt had ever seen him.

Matt pretended that didn't hurt.

Face returning to its customary scowl, Mello shifted his gaze to L's company. "Who's this?" he asked, forgoing manners, as per usual.

The youth opened his mouth to reply, but L beat him to it. "This is Yagami Light, my ward. I was assigned to psychoanalyse him due to a crime he was accused of committing. Though he was proven innocent, I deemed him not fully mentally stable, and have been charged with the responsibility of him since."

Yagami Light scowled at him. "You didn't have to give out that much information," he grumbled, put out.

L shrugged. "You or I were going to have to tell them eventually, Light-kun."

Light sighed, muttering something in what Matt recognised as Japanese (it sounded basically the same as what Mello had yammered over the phone to Near). Now he remembered, the Rester guy had said they were from Japan. L didn't have an accent in the slightest, but Light had a very gentle lilt to his voice, a slight softening of consonants suggesting that he wasn't a native English speaker. Matt found it quite pleasant.

"I may as well do the introductions," L said, looking distinctly bored at the prospect. "Light-kun, these are Near and Mello, whom I tutored until they turned thirteen, and this is..." he trailed off, looking at Matt. "...someone I do not know," he finished frankly.

"I'm Matt," Matt told them, "Mello's...friend?" he suggested hesitantly, looking at the blond. Mello just shrugged.

"I see," L said, "It is nice to meet you, Matt-kun."

Matt's brow wrinkled at the odd sound attached to the end of his name. Before he could open his mouth to mention it, though, Mello chipped in.

"It's an honorific, Matt," the blond explained.

Matt nodded, though he didn't really get it. "What's the translation?" he asked.

There was a silence, in which Matt could practically see the hi-tech cogs working in Near, Mello and L's heads. "I do not believe there is one in the English language," Near said finally.

Matt shrugged. "Fine, never mind. I was just curious."

"Do you not speak Japanese?" Light inquired. Matt shook his head. "I see," Light said, nodding slightly. Matt had the horrible feeling he was being labelled as a lesser mentally-developed being.

"So why did you bring this guy into the investigation anyway, L?" Mello asked, seeming slightly irritated by Light's presence.

L's expression didn't change in the slightest. "I do not believe it advisable to leave Light-kun to his own devices," he explained, "and besides that, he is highly intelligent, almost up to my own standard."

Mello raised his eyebrows, while Light rolled his eyes and declared, "I'm not a child," while trying to conceal his pride at being called clever.

Matt decided now was the time to ask questions. "So why did Near invite you to help with the investigation?" he asked, addressing L.

The strange man didn't answer, as Near did so for him. "L used to be a world-renowned detective, but retired from that particular job a few years ago. He is now a psychologist, who is hired to either analyse the mental health of criminals or provide them with a therapy prescription." Matt tried and failed to envisage L as one of those calming therapists he'd seen on TV a few times. Oblivious to his inner struggle, Near continued. "The case we are to be dealing with is proving to be highly difficult for me when I work alone, but the consequences will be enormous if it is not solved quickly. Therefore, I have enlisted the aid of anyone and everyone willing to help."

Matt nodded slowly, not quite getting it, but it was enough to go on.

Light eyed Matt curiously. "And what do you do? Are you also a detective?"

Mello snorted, quite rudely, Matt thought. But he had to admit, the idea of him being a detective was quite funny. "Nah, I'm a hacker."

This seemed to out an end to any further introductory discussions, and Mello got right back down to business. "So, what is this oh-so-secret case, then?" he demanded, his curiously evidently killing him.

Near flicked a switch, sending all ten of the huge monitors around the room humming into life. Matt tried not to drool.

"I have named this case the Jouka Case," Near started, causing everyone except Matt to frown in worry and confusion.

"Do you mean in English or Japanese?" L asked.

"Both," Near declared.

Matt decided he was lost. "What?"

Mello huffed in exasperation. "Do you know what the word 'joker' in English means, Matt?" he asked patronisingly.

Matt only glowered at him. "Yes. Like a court jester, right?"

"Right. 'Jouka' in Japanese could either be their pronunciation of 'joker', or, if you use the kanji, 'purification'."

Matt blinked.

"Do you get it?"

"...Yes?"

"Okay, great. Why would it be both, Near?" Mello addressed the boy.

In answer, Near clicked a button on a keyboard. On a screen directly in front of them, a picture of a small note appeared.

"This case involves the abduction of children from the ages of fourteen to seventeen. Each time a child is kidnapped, a note identical to this one is found the following morning in the family's letterbox." Near zoomed in on the picture so they could read the typed text.

"We have taken your child through sleight of hand for cleansing," was the simple sentence. Underneath the single line was an obviously photocopied picture of a crudely-drawn jester's hat.

There was a short silence, which was promptly broken by Light. "That's disgusting," he proclaimed.

"Light-kun, I have told you before to remain emotionally detached from cases. Calm yourself," L ordered quietly, though the obvious authority in the command was not undermined by the lack of volume.

Light looked at the floor and bit his lip.

Near's voice brought them back to the case at hand. "As you can see, this is a very worrying message. I am not entirely sure what is meant by 'cleansing', but I am ninety-seven percent certain that it is something unpleasant."

"I agree," said L. "And, of course, there is an obvious connection between the picture and the reference to sleight of hand."

Near nodded. "Yes, I have already deduced these things myself. However, I do not know the intentions of such actions, or the culprits."

"When did this start happening?" Mello asked, still apparently scanning the note for more clues.

"Approximately two months ago, with at least one child being taken per week," Near informed him.

Light drew in a sharp breath. "They're working fast."

"Indeed," Near agreed. "Which is all the more reason to put a stop to this as soon as possible."

"Have you checked the notes for fingerprints?" Matt asked, deciding to contribute.

Near nodded affirmation. "None of them had any traces of DNA or another element that could be used for identification. They were obviously handled with extreme care and precaution."

"Which means whoever's doing this knows their stuff," Mello deduced. "What do you suppose we do now, L?" he asked the dark-haired man, his look of admiration twisting Matt's insides in a highly confusing way.

L thought for a moment. "I would suggest we split into groups and perform different sections of the investigation separately, with fairly frequent meetings to discuss any clues. We will need a group to trawl through the information of the children's backgrounds, where they grew up, where they were last seen, etcetera, and search the internet for any clues of their whereabouts at the moment. Another group should dissect the notes in further detail to uncover any information, and a final group would need to investigate any organisations or individuals that could possibly be involved in this case," he listed.

"I'll do the computer work," Matt volunteered before anyone else could snag it. There was no way he was going to sit staring at a piece of paper for hours on end.

"Very well," L conceded. "Would you mind if Light-kun works with you?"

"Not at all," Matt said, grinning at the brunet, who gave him a small smile back.

"In that case, Mello, would you be able to work with me in analysing the letters, and Near, could you ask your employees to aid you in research of possible culprits, please?"

Both boys nodded, setting off to do what was needed immediately.

Jeez, Matt thought, he hasn't been here ten minutes and L's already taking charge of this case. He must have been a damn good detective.

"Ready to work?" Light's voice snapped Matt out of his musings.

The redhead nodded, marching over to a random computer. "May as well work here," he articulated, shrugging.

Light only dragged a chair up to the next monitor and switched it on.

Matt followed suit, resigning himself to a day of utter boredom.

After two short breaks and a longer lunch, punctuated by research, Matt's eyes were in danger of handing in their notice out of fatigue. He glanced over at his work-buddy to see how he was getting on, and saw Light practically snoring in front of the screen.

"This is ridiculous," Matt said, standing up suddenly, "Let's take a break, we can't work like this."

Light rose quickly and followed the redhead eagerly out of the investigation room to get coffee. Their route led them past Mello and L's workspace, where the two genii were discussing possible hypotheses on which bits of the note could mean what. Matt personally had no clue how they'd managed to go eight hours without exhausting the topic.

When the two reached the kitchen, Matt made a beeline for the coffee machine. It seemed he was going to be living off caffeine until the investigation was over.

While waiting for the machine to finish making his consciousness, Matt decided to try and chat with Light.

"Have you been to England before?" he asked amiably, finding two mugs and a little carton of milk.

Light shook his head. "No, this is my first time. It's not...it's not really as I expected," he admitted.

Matt laughed. "Yeah, despite the common stereotype, we don't actually have cream teas that often. Although, granted, this isn't really a part of Britain that's normally shown in the movies."

"Is London similar to how it's portrayed?" Light asked, honestly curious.

Matt thought. "Uh...well, the posh end is pretty much what you're thinking, probably. But more grimy. They don't show the rough end of London much in films, though, or the proximity of high and low class. I don't go to the city a lot, but seriously, one second you're on the high street, and the next you've turned down the corner into sleaze-town. It's a bit overwhelming," Matt recalled from his few-and-far-between trips to the capital.

Light nodded. "It is the same with large cities in Japan, such as Tokyo. It makes sense, now I think about it."

"So, where do you come from in Japan?" Matt asked, though he knew he wouldn't have a clue what the brunet was talking about when he answered.

"I lived with my family in the Kanto Region before L took custody of me," Light told him, affirming Matt's prediction about his lacking knowledge of Japanese geography.

"What's all that about, anyway? Why's L your guardian now?" Matt knew he was probably extremely close to crossing a line, but he was too curious to care.

Light hesitated. "Well...as L said, I was accused of a crime and sent to him for psychoanalysis. When I was proven innocent, L declared I wasn't mentally stable enough to be set loose on the public, and so he's taken charge of me until I turn eighteen."

Matt was confused. "You seem perfectly sane to me."

"Thank you," Light smiled wryly, "but L said it wasn't so much to do with my current sanity, but the chance that I'll 'snap' soon."

Matt tried not to be scared.

"Don't worry, if that was in danger of happening in the near future, L wouldn't have unlocked the –" Light broke off suddenly.

Matt narrowed his eyes. "Unlocked the what?"

Light ducked his head. "Initially, L mistrusted me so much that he deemed it necessary to watch me constantly."

"...And?" Matt prompted, sensing more to come.

"He chained us together for a few months," Light said evenly, not brusque, but frank.

Matt blinked. "That has got to be a breach of human rights," he said finally.

Light shrugged. "L never really cared about those things. It wasn't so bad after a while. Just irritating at times."

Matt stared at the teenager, incredulous. "How old even are you? The way you're talking is like a forty-year-old!"

Light laughed. "Should I take offence? I'm seventeen, though I always have been labelled mature for my age, even more so after the incident."

"Incident?"

"The crime I was accused of committing."

Matt hesitated, not wanted to overstep the boundaries too much. "You don't have to tell me all this if you don't want to," he assured the brunet.

Light made a humming noise in the back of his throat. "I know. But I'll have to tell you sometime, like L said earlier, so I may as well do it now. And telling you so much already has made me feel...lighter, in a sense. It's nice."

Matt shook his head slowly. "Fine, then. Go ahead, I'll try not to judge you."

Light shot him a grateful look. "I was accused of murdering my girlfriend."

There was a silence.

"But you didn't," Matt spoke up.

"No."

"...So who did?"

Light was silent, his brow furrowing slightly.

"Never mind," Matt said, "I can see it's a hard topic of discussion for you."

"Indeed."

Matt decided it was time for the awkward conversation to come to a close. Pouring coffee into the two mugs, he handed the milk and sugar to Light and told him to add as much as he wanted. The youth did so, forgoing the sugar completely, and after Matt spooned enough into his own mug for the both of them, the two went back to the investigation room, each equally certain that they had made a tentative new friend.

It was quite a nice feeling, they both decided.

"Have you made any new discoveries, Matt-kun and Light-kun?" L asked from his crouch on a chair, playing with a small sweet.

They both shook their heads. "Nothing of interest, really," Light said.

L nodded vaguely. "Mello and I have made some possible theories as to some alternate meanings of the note, but nothing is above ten percent in probability yet."

"I have only pinpointed a few large groups that could have been involved with the case, purely because they have been involved in illegal activity before," Near piped up.

L shifted his gaze to him. "Well, we may as well take a look."

Near handed a pile of papers over to the former detective.

"Let's see," L mused, "Vedox, Makarta, Glo, Hoax Group, Palm and Four-Field. Yes, I have heard these names before. Mello, you were involved in one of them yourself, were you not?" L asked the blond, who shifted in his chair uncomfortably.

"Yeah, but I got kicked out," he informed the black-haired man.

"I was aware of that. During your stay with Palm, did you see anything that could have connected them to this case?"

Mello scowled. "If I had, I'd have told you. I didn't see anything relating to children or kidnapping at all; they were mainly involved in illegal arms dealing, and opium smuggling."

"As I thought," L agreed. "Well, we have been working for a long time now, and I understand Matt-kun and Light-kun could do with some rest." The redhead nodded fervently. "We will continue this investigation tomorrow; you may go."

After he and Mello had made it up to their shared floor, Matt collapsed on the sofa, completely wiped out.

"Gah! That was ridiculous! I thought I'd be used to staring at a computer for hours on end, but that was practically slave-driving. I'm surprised I'm not dead."

"You're gonna have to get used to it," was Mello's sympathetic reply.

Matt glared at him, but decided against retorting. "Got to know that Light kid a bit more. He's younger than he looks, you know?"

Mello didn't look interested. "Mm hm. Kid seems a bit odd to me."

Matt looked at him incredulously. "You work with L all day and you say Light's odd?!"

Mello shrugged. "I'm used to L."

"How long have you known him, anyway?" Matt inquired.

"Long enough."

"Which is...?"

"Jeez, pushy much. About fifteen years now."

Matt blinked. "That's a long time," he said quietly.

Mello glanced over at him. "Oh, come on, you're not jealous, are you?" Matt tried to deny the accusation, but was cut off. "I've known Near for that long too, and I hardly like him, right?"

"But you like L," Matt said, trying not to sound sulky.

Mello smirked. "Yeah, I do. But it's not like I hate you, Matt. You're different, always have been. If I didn't like you, I wouldn't have allowed Near to stick us on the same floor. Hell, I wouldn't even have agreed to live with you!"

Matt pondered. "I guess that makes sense. I wasn't jealous, though."

"Right, sure. Anyway, what about the Light guy? You two bezzies forever now?"

Matt snorted. "Hardly. But we get along."

"Careful, Matty, I might start getting envious." Mello smirked at him, leaning down to peck him on the cheek. "Good thing you're all mine, right?"

The blond didn't fail to notice and snicker at the sudden blush on Matt's cheeks as Mello left the room to go to sleep.

A/N: The plot thickens! Finally! So, what did you think of L and Light's introduction? I tried to keep them as IC as possible, but in Light's case it was pretty difficult.

Now for the second thingy I'm supposed to tell you! Okay.

2) I was stuck coming up for all the names of the criminal groups, so...let's see...I went to some company name generator (XD) and from there I got Vedox, but it took me about ten minutes because the rest of the names were crud. I made up Makarta, Glo, Hoax Group and Palm and then I was stuck again, so I typed Yotsuba into Google Translate, and apparently it means Four Field. So there you have it. :) Though I tried it again recently, just to make sure, and found out it had changed to Four Leaf. Irritation. -_- So I stuck with Four Field, 'cause it's snappier. Well, as snappy as it could possibly be. XD

See you next time, and please review! Tii-chan17 will love you forever. X3