Poor Yori…

Anyway, back to the main plot.

L Lawliet's P.O.V.

I couldn't stop myself. I'd tried so hard, but in the end, it was too much. She was too tempting. Eventually, I had to give in. Her doctor had given the go-ahead at least, just so long as I was careful.

Ellie's annoying friend only left after Kaneko ordered him to. I'd have to give him a strawberry later. Fortunately, though, they wouldn't be back for a while.

I was gentle, afraid that she might get hurt, but she seemed to be doing fine for the most part. She'd flinch now and again, but she wouldn't let me let go until she was fully satisfied. When things eventually cooled down, she nestled against my chest, letting me hold her. I needed to get up. We had work to do, but I couldn't bring myself to move. She looked so content.

Three hours and twenty-six minutes later, someone knocked on the door. Without moving, Ellie called out, "Come in."

"Are you decent, or should I come back later?" It was Kaneko, "I don't see a sock on the door."

That made Ellie laugh, "Shut it and get in here!"

He opened the door and peeked in, "But Ellie, if I shut the door, how am I supposed to get inside?"

She rolled her eyes, grinning. His sarcastic comments always made her laugh. She had told me once that she wanted our child to call him 'Uncle Yori,' which made no sense to me. He wasn't related to either of us.

"You're certainly in a good mood," He adjusted his glasses, "L must have done a good job."

She changed the subject, "Is there a reason you came in here, or are you just poking fun."

"I obviously wasn't the one poking fun; I'll leave that to your husband. But yes, actually, we need to change your bandages. We were supposed to earlier, but the both of you clearly had something else in mind," He looked at me pointedly.

We knew the drill. I helped her carefully remove her shirt so Kaneko could do his work.

"Well well well, looks like you're starting to show."

My eyes shot down to her belly. He was right. It was more swollen than before. I poked her bellybutton and she playfully swatted my hand away.

"Have you picked a name," Kaneko asked.

"You know," Ellie said, "I haven't really thought about it."

I had. I knew exactly what name to choose, the moment we found out we were having a son. It was a good name. Before I could speak, however, the door slammed open and Weston burst inside, striking some ridiculous pose. He was like Matsuda, but worse; always being stupid.

"Hello lovelies! I'm back." He looked at the doctor, "Did you know there's a pool on the second floor? This place is like a palace."

Kaneko's mood suddenly turned sour, "I've been in this building two months longer than you have. There's nothing you can tell me that I don't already know," he snapped at him. He wasn't even trying to pretend to tolerate Weston at this point.

"Oh?" Ellie's flamboyant friend teased, "So, does that mean you finally admit it to yourself?"

What did he mean by that? I shared a look with Ellie, she'd noticed it too.

"Admit what," she asked. They'd better not be keeping secrets.

Kaneko ignored the question, "You know," he said, pretending to look at Ellie, but still talking to Weston, "Even people who are good for nothing can bring a smile to my face. Especially when pushed down fifteen flights of stairs." He finished putting on her new bandages and stood up to give Weston a glare that could curdle milk, "Any volunteers?"

This chatter was pointless. "Nate River," I interrupted quietly, chewing on my thumb nail.

Everyone in the room stopped and stared at me. "What was that," Kaneko asked, confused.

"That will be our son's name. Nate River Lawliet."

The room became reverent. The only one who didn't know the significance of this name was Weston. But Ellie and Kaneko knew my background. They knew that Near and I were as close as two people like us could have been. He was a worthy successor.

I looked at Weston, "You are being disruptive. Please leave and don't come back until tomorrow. The three of us have work to do."

He looked hurt, but turned around to leave regardless. As soon as he was gone, Yori visibly relaxed.

"That was harsh," Ellie scolded, "I know neither of you like him, but he's my best friend. At least try to be a little bit nicer to him."

"We need to focus on catching Kira. He's no more than a nuisance," I picked up a gummy bear and tossed it into his mouth.

"For you maybe," her mood was steadily decreasing, "But for me he's keeping me from breaking down. You can't possibly understand how much I need him right now."

Kaneko looked at the ground, frowning. I didn't react. Instead I turned on my microphone, "Yagami, please come into the medical room."

Soichiro's voice sounded on Ellie's new speaker system, "What is it?"

"I have a very important task for you."

"On my way." Mr. Yagami appeared at our door in less than five minutes. "What do you need me to do?"

I picked up Ellie's – impressively accurate – sketch of the shinigami King and held it up for him to look at, "You're going to talk to this thing."

Kaneko tore it from my grip to look at it. "Seriously? You want him to confront this nightmare head on? He'll be killed."

"Not if I wear a mask," Yagami said.

Ellie spoke up, "But he never leaves Kira's side. Light is certain to recognize his own father's voice, then Soichiro's a goner."

"Then we give him a mask with a voice changer," I suggested, "for all Light knows, his father is dead. He'll assume since you can see and hear the shinigami king that you were the one who took the notebook with the drone. And that's only if he noticed us stealing it at all. If he had seen us when we took it in the first place, he would have had several shinigami chase the drone to find out where it was headed. We were not followed. There are two possibilities as to why that is: Either the shinigami king is unable to leave Kira's side, or he didn't care that we took the notebook. In either case, we can assume Kira didn't know about the event until it was too late for him to do anything about it."

"I don't see any reason why he wouldn't be free to move about if he wanted to," Kaneko theorized, "Light isn't a human anymore, so the same rules don't apply. I'm thinking the shinigami king simply didn't care that his death note was stolen. That's why he didn't follow Ellie's drone."

"If that's true," Yagami said, "then he must be the one who makes the notebooks."

"That's correct," I confirmed, "and that is why Mr. Yagami is going to confront him."

"What's he supposed to do?" Ellie asked, "It's not like we can force him to stop making death notes."

"No," Soichiro said, "but I can ask him why he's assisting Kira. It may help us find a way to stop him."

I warned, "Remember to be careful not to mention anything that might suggest any of us have come to this world. Don't even talk about Teru Mikami. If it has anything to do with us, assume it's not safe to say. You are there to gain information, not give it. I will be communicating with you the whole time. When we have gotten everything out of him that we can, you will go to a hotel on the other side of the city until we're certain you're no longer being followed or watched."

"L," Ellie said out of nowhere.

"Yes?"

"I love you."

Kaneko tensed slightly; It was almost too subtle to notice.

I raised my eyebrow at her odd timing, but shyly muttered back, "I love you too."

I cleared my throat before continuing, looking at Soichiro, "You will circle the city and approach the building from a different angle, just in case. We don't want to leave any kind of trail that may lead back here." I ate another gummy bear.

"I understand. I won't leave any sign that would lead to the tower."

"Mr. Yagami," Doctor Kaneko said, "don't forget that your son will be there. More than likely he'll try talking to you too."

"Yes," I said, "but you must pretend you can't see or hear him. Can you do that?"

"That monster is not my son," He growled. "I'll do whatever I have to do."

"Good," I said, "In that case, I'll give you a call when we've made all the necessary preparations."

He left without another word.

Ellie started humming, gently rubbing her hand over her stomach with a small smile on her face. She looked up, "Yori, can my baby hear me?"

He nodded, watching her intently.

She began to sing. This was the first time I'd gotten to hear it since her kidnapping. The song was soft and gentle. She was giving our son a lullaby.

Kaneko seemed entranced. I couldn't blame him; I was too. The whole world seemed to reflect whatever she sang. In this case, it was peace and quiet.

When her song ended, Kaneko whispered in awe, "That was incredible Ellie… I didn't know you could sing like that."

"Was that a compliment I just heard?" She jested, "I was expecting some joke about a sour note or something." Ellie offered him an amused smile.

He frowned, "am I really that bad?"

"Yes," I said, peeling a banana. It wasn't a lie.

"Sorry," He said, uncharacteristically softly. "Excuse me," He adjusted his glasses and walked out the door without another word.

Ellie didn't seem to notice is odd behavior. She looked at me, "So, Nate River Lawliet, huh?"

I nodded, not having much else to say on the subject.

She smiled, "I like it."