I do not own Death Note

Chapter 37 Matsuda

I stretched contentedly in front of my desk, a self-satisfied smirk on my face. The cat ate the canary expression both Light and I had when feeling smug. We actually had a lead. It acted as a huge motivating factor. I hadn't thrown so much effort into something in who knows how long. And then Dad had found an even greater lead; the Yotsuba Kira killings all centered around the weekends. It was mildly exhilarating to say the least.

L had taken this as a cue to introduce his infiltration team; Wedy and Aiber. A thief and a conman. There had been a small mummer of dissent at the prospect of working with criminals, but L had pulled it off with an attitude of working with specialists rather than lawbreakers. The pair seemed likeable enough. Wedy was femme fatale in every essence; from her sunglasses and expensive clothing that screamed espionage, to the cigarettes her red mouth was always puckered around. Aiber was…well charming. But was else was to be expected from a conman? It was part of the job description.

My gaze drifted over to L and Light. L was happily eating cake, while Light stared pensively at him; his thoughts clearly elsewhere.

"What's wrong?" L asked, hesitating mid-bite. Light seemed to wake up a bit then. "You've been staring at me for the last two minutes. Wait, let me guess. You must be annoyed because I'm the only one eating cake at the moment. Am I right?" Light blinked at him wondering over L's logic.

"Uh, no. That's not it," Light answered.

"Here," L offered, holding out the cake he had been eating.

Light raised a hand, declining. "Really, don't worry about it."

"Ryuzaki."

The screen behind L flashed to life, a Gothic W announcing Watari's identity.

"Yes what is it?" L asked mildly.

"Detective Eraldo Coil has just received a private request to investigate and reveal the identity of L."

I smirked again. L was being asked to investigate himself. Smart really on his part to establish other detective personas beside L, but that was a given with L. L could reveal enough information on himself to seem viable and maintain his reputation of both L and Coil without revealing anything critical.

"Isn't Eraldo Coil supposed to be the world's second greatest detective? After L himself? Who on Earth would send such a request?" Dad asked.

"The man who sought out Coil was Masahiko Kida, head of the planning department of the Yotsuba Group's headquarters in Tokyo."

"So it is Yotsuba," Dad muttered.

"We know that Yotsuba must be linked to Kira," Light started. "If they're trying to figure out L's identity, it's probably because they want to kill him and need that information to do it."

"This isn't good," Dad sighed, "we're already shorthanded enough as it is, and now we have to worry about Coil."

"It's quite alright," L said through a bit of cake before swallowing thickly. "Would you like to tell them Rei?"

"L is Eraldo Coil," I said with a grin. There was a collective gasp, as per normal whenever something unexpected about L was revealed (so anything really), and L gave a nod of confirmation.

"It's quite simple really," L began through another bite of cake. "The three greatest detectives in the world, L, Coil, and Deneauve, they're all actually me. It's been my experience that people trying to find me usually fall for this." L plucked a strawberry off his plate. "I'll give you this strawberry if you keep it a secret, okay?" L handed the fruit off to a wide-eyed Mogi who nodded solemnly and pocketed it.

"I'm impressed as always Ryuzaki," Light said with admiration.

"Alright," Aiber interrupted. "I just have to get close to him right? Leave it to me." Aiber smirked boyishly, a strange expression on the thirty-something year old.

"And you want me to make sure we're able to break security and override the surveillance cameras of Yotsuba's head office. Is that all?" Wedy asked from behind a cloud of smoke. Luckily the ventilation in here was superb and I wasn't forced to inhale the cancerous vapor.

"Yes," L agreed. "At this point, it's safe to assume Kira and the Yotsuba Group are connected in some way. We're going to investigate Yotsuba to determine who holds Kira's power and if there is more than one person who possesses this ability. We need a clear understanding quickly. We cannot let anyone from Yotsuba discover we're investigating them. Please realize if they do notice it means we're unable to catch Kira. Please be sure not to act impulsively out of panic or haste and don't take matters into your own hands," L ordered. The team nodded gravely, an undercurrent of excitement running through the room.

"Ryuzaki!"

"Yes, what is it?" L asked distantly.

"I have just received an emergency signal from Matsuda's belt."

"Matsuda?" I asked with a bit of worry. "He's supposed to be with Misa isn't he?" I looked at L. "Where is he?"

"Where is he?" L questioned almost boredly, with a hint of exasperation.

"It seems it is coming from the head office of the Yotsuba Group."

"Disregard everything I just said," L said wearily. "We'll have to rethink our strategy. Matsuda you idiot." He muttered this more to himself than the task force.

"Shit," I growled. Dad shot me a look which I promptly ignored. I ran my fingers through my hair and began pacing.

"Rei, please do not pace. Once you start, you're hard pressed to stop," L observed.

"Call him," I suggested turning back toward him. "Something to let him know we're on our way. If you can't think of something unsuspicious to say, let me." I held my hand out.

"You have so little faith in me," L commented dryly. He tugged the phone from his pocket and began to dial, shooting me a look all the while. I rolled my eyes at him and started pacing again when in the time it took Matsuda to answer.

"Hello?"

Relief ran through me and I stopped moving, if only to hear the faint voice coming from the phone.

"Yo, Matsui," L improvised in a voice that suggested he hadn't completed high school, let alone held the title of world's greatest detective, unofficial as it was. "Yeah it's me, Asahi. It's been a while buddy." I twitched at the blank stare L had fixed upon me and again at the use of my family's task force name. There was a slight delay as Matsuda recovered.

"Yeah! Asahi! It's been a long time!"

There was a slight edge of hysteria in his voice.

"It doesn't sound like you're out right now, don't tell me you're home already," L probed.

"Yeah…"

"So, you by yourself?"

"Yeah. I'm by myself. What's up?"

Matsuda's answer was wooden, completely negating the lie. Misa wasn't there, but Matsuda definitely wasn't without company.

"He's not with Amane right now. Matsuda must be on his own right now," L stage whispered to the others who weren't clustered around the phone. L switched back to Matsuda. "So you wanna go out drinking tonight?"

"Huh? Right now? Oh sorry. I'll have to pass tonight."

"Aw what's the matter? Don't tell me your wallet is 'in trouble' again."

"Yeah! That's right! Big troubles with money. Heh, you know me so well."

Matsuda latched onto the code with relief and laughed nervously for his 'friends' present.

"Matsuda's saying he's in trouble," L told us. "Well that's too bad," L drawled. "I guess I'll drag you out some other night. See ya buddy!" The phone went dead with an audible click.

"Misa's cell phone is on voice mail," Light informed. He had been trying to get a hold of the blonde during the conversation. "I left her a message and told her to get back to me as soon as she can."

"What's the plan?" I asked, worry spiking again.

"Well," L began, "we have to consider if Matsuda dies our suspicions about the Yotsuba group would be confirmed." There were nods of agreement from that.

"He is not going to die Ryuzaki!"I hissed in horror at his callousness. He ignored me.

"Let's just watch the situation for the time being," L decided.

I was ready to scream at him. He had just pushed a detective away and now he was going to let another die as well?

"This is bullshit Ryuzaki," I said through gritted teeth. Light's phone rang, interrupting the words I was going to send loose at L.

"Misa?" Light answered relief in his voice. "Misa, you're not with Matsuda right now are you?" Light listened for a moment and pulled the phone away from his ear. "Misa's just received a call from Matsuda."

"Tell her to hold the phone so we can listen as well," L instructed. I sent a glare towards L as Light relayed the request. I hated it when he got like this.

"Misa Misa!"

The words were scratchy and the sound faint, but we could hear at least.

"When you're done filming come over to the Yotsuba Group's main office? It's still tentative, but there's a chance you may be able to appear in Yotsuba's commercials! We're working it out right now!"

"What? Are you for real? You're amazing Matsu! So that's where you ran off to! Don't worry, we're wrapping up soon!"

That's right, Misa was filming a movie right now with the real Hideki Ryuuga.

"Great! It's just a short trip by taxi!"

The call ended, rather rudely I thought in the small portion of my mind that wasn't pissed at L, worrying about Matsu, or trying to think of a way out of this.

"Listen to me Light," L said quietly. "There is a chance we may be able to save Matsuda, but we won't be able to do it without Misa's help. She'll listen to everything you say."

Light nodded, and L went through the plan. Light nodded again and spoke to Misa in hushed tones.

"I'm in," I said catching L off guard.

"You most certainly are not. I'm not allowing you to go gallivanting with these men," L countered.

"I'm not going to 'gallivant' with anyone. I'll just be Matsu's assistant. Things will go a lot smoother with him if I'm there. Besides, if Yotsuba ever want Misa back, I can accompany her. It's not unusual for female celebrities to have a girl with them at all time. It'll work especially well with Misa's innocent act."

"No," L said stubbornly. I leaned forward, my palms on his desk.

"Look," I muttered. "I care about these people. Matsuda and my family especially. I wasn't able to help Aizawa at all. You sent him away. I'm not risking another task force member. Not when I can help. So help me L, if you don't let me do this, I'm gonna do something drastic that may or may not involve me setting off Yotsuba's fire alarm. Do you understand me?"

That was how I found myself nineteen floors above the city with pepper spray and a tazer along with Misa, Matsuda, and eight men, one of which being Kira. L drove a hard bargain, but at least I was here and honestly, I appreciated the pepper spray. The tazer was a little overboard, but considering the situation…

I aimed my gaze at the ground. I was aiming for a brainy but shy look. The oversized glasses, clipboard, pencil skirt and harsh bun helping my cause dramatically. I fidgeted, and bit my lip, shooting glances at the men.

It was clear that from their gaping expressions at the blonde before them they hadn't expected Matsuda to make good on his promise. Matsuda was rubbing the back of his head nervously, though far more relaxed then he first had been at first. He could tell a plan was in motion.

"I'm Misa Misa! Misa's only rule is that I don't do nudes, but swimsuits and lingerie are totally okay! It's really nice to meet you!"

Their faces were priceless and they broke out into muttering, looking back at us suspiciously. I willed a blush to my face, hoping I looked like I was about to faint.

"By the way, Matsu," Misa continued. "Since Yotsuba's such a big catch, I got permission to do a special reception." Misa kept slipping from first person to third, unsure if intelligence or cuteness would score her more points here. Matsuda looked clueless and Misa flashed him an okay sign.

Here we go…

"GOOD EVENING! IT'S VERY NICE TO MEET YOU!" was what the scantily clad army of models said in unison to the bewildered business men. Business men, who by this point, were probably wondered exactly who had slipped them something in their tea and exactly what it was.

I tried to keep my eyes off their cleavage which was vapidly shown off by a heart cut out of the material. The men however had no qualms about the alteration made to perfectly good clothes. I shuddered and hopped it was assumed to be a tremor from nerves.

"Tonight I'll be entertaining you as our special guests, along with some girls from the agency!" Misa informed deciding to stick with first person for the time being.

"Hey….is this just me, or has this gotten weird?"

I resisted the urge to applaud the brave men who had voiced the sentiment, but had to settle for a little smile that faded quickly. Right. Saving Matsu. We're saving Matsu!

With that thought in mind, I flitted between the various men, serving saki when necessary, glad I was virtually invisible. They had decided to enjoy the ride so to speak, and were enjoying the company of the young girls. It was only when I had gone around twice that I made a move.

There was a man standing off by himself near the balcony. His hair was tied back and his suit seemed, not the most expensive, but of higher quality, most likely a result of his confident air. He seemed promising enough. I was less likely to get quality information from him, as he was still on his first drink, but I was also less likely to wind up groped.

"S-saki?" I asked hesitantly, holding out the bottle. He seemed surprised I had spoken, but gave a nod and held out his glass. I filled it, careful to shake my hand.

"Nervous?" he asked. Thank god. His voice was perfectly polite. Not seductive or of a man blatantly hitting on a girl, and rudely at that. Just normal conversation.

"A-a bit," I answered. "We're trying to fix a bad first impression. Matsui-san was an interruption wasn't he?" I frowned. "I hope he wasn't a bother."

"Not particularly," he answered. "Just a meeting. We finished up while we were waiting."

I blinked pretending a realization had just come upon me. "Oh sorry. I'm Ren," I said thinking of a name quickly. "Ren Asahi." There. Now if he somehow knew about Matsuda's friend 'Asahi' I could claim he was a relation, and had gotten me the job in the first place.

"Reiji Namikawa," he responded easily. He glanced back towards the balcony. I wilted.

"Sorry. I understand I'm not very interesting."

"It's not that, I simply find this whole affair a waste of time."

"Niceties often are," I said with a wry smile. That caught him off guard.

"I find it odd then you work within the modeling industry."

"I could say the same for someone in your line of work. I'm supposing your position must have taken a lot of pointless niceties." He smiled at that.

"Exactly why I no longer wish to endure them."

I jumped when Matsuda kicked open a door. He looked tipsy. L must have given him the instructions then. "Excuse me," I said in false horror. "I need to take care of him." Namikawa waved me off with understanding.

"Matsui-san…?" I said tentatively.

"WOW! I am soooo drunk," Matsuda slurred. "H-hi everyone. Everyone havin' a good time?" he stumbled towards the balcony, Namikawa moving out of the way in disgust. "Now everyone, the moment you've all been waiting for! The Taro Matsui show!"

"YEAH! You can do it! Go Matsu!" Misa cheered. There was laughter. I sent Namikawa a scared look.

Matsuda pulled himself onto the edge of the balcony, his arms outstretched as he continued to feign drunkenness.

"MATSUI-SAN!" I screamed, real fear creeping in adding a shrill tone. The laughter died down as a few men tried to coax him down. "Matsui-san! Come down!"

"I'm fine," Matsuda waved off. "I do this all time." Matsuda dropped down into a handstand and tears began to come from my eyes.

Oh God. Oh God. Oh God. He could die. He could really die!

And then he plummeted over the edge.

A wordless cry escaped me and threw myself towards the edge, staring down at the street below. I felt someone beside me, and the tears turned to relief when I saw only one body on the street below. Aiber had been in place before the fall.

The tears turned to relief, though I forced myself to continue sobbing.

"Look everyone, I think you all should just leave this to us. Don't worry, we'll handle it. Just don't forget to consider me for your campaign!" Misa called after the fleeing business men.

I watched them leave impatiently. Matsuda was only a floor below us. I needed to get down there. I waited for five minutes before throwing the door open.

The elevator was too slow. I thundered down the stairs and ripped open the door to the room below us, throwing my arms around the rookie sitting on the bed.

"REI!"

"You're such an idiot!" I said thickly, crying again.

"Yeah, I'm sorry."

"If you ever, I repeat ever, do that to me again, I'm going to kill you myself you hear me! With Ryuzaki's forks and spoons if I have to! You got it?" I yelled, releasing him and hitting his head.

"OW! I GOT IT! I GOT IT!"

"It's been about a week since I first snuck into the place," Matsuda said proudly in response to Wedy's call about the lack in security. I glared at him and he shrank under the stare.

The same meeting room that Matsuda had fallen headfirst into was on the screen, courtesy of the blonde bombshell.

"We've almost got them!" Light said enthusiastically.

"One of these people is Kira," L observed hungrily.

"But if there' supposed to be eight, why are there seven?"

~Author's Note~

Ew. Action. I don't really like action scenes. I don't do them justice.

It's OC cliché to talk with Namikawa, but really, that's the smart thing to do. He looks the least creepy and he didn't have his hands all over girls.

I got fanart! That's right all you terrible people who've made me zilch! The lovely DNfangirl (an anonymous reviewer too!) made a cute little L and Rei scene and Rei's got the bday rose. The link is on my profile!

I'm sick too. Not terribly so, but enough to wreck my singing voice the week we reaudition for Honors Choir. Which I don't understand. I made it once, why do I need to do it again?

Thanks for reviewing!

Grrr: Of course it's strawberry! ….I hate Light. I beat him at bowling though! I'll look black veil brides up! I'm a major music geek so I'll see how it goes!

DNfangirl: You're my new favorite person. Everyone else can just die. Yeah.

World without L is just a word: It can be good or bad. Can't really tell with me. I actually just posted a BXL… I was threatened…

Gwen: We'll just have to see how things go. I really have no idea what's happening here. I have a general idea, but from this point I'm open to a lot.

AlbinoButterfly: No. No pregnancy. That is a cop out. Even if L does die (which I'm not saying he does or does not) I have a way for babies to happen.

Pc: WTH? NO! I didn't know that! WHY?

Jayne Foyer: I love you too. This is going to sound really awkward, but if I were a boy, or if you were a boy, we'd probably be married by now. I think… I'm still not completely sure how I swing lol. Definitely not purely lesbian because I like guys. And now I'm singing if I were a boy…while I should be answering Romeo and Juliet questions…