Welcome to chapter two! I had some formatting issues when I was uploading this, so I'm sorry if there are a few errors. I'm sorry about how short the last chapter was, but this one is longer, and about average for the chapters I'll be posting in the future. (Oh, and by the way, I forgot to mention that this story won't earn its M rating until a little later on.) Make sure to drop me a review, and I hope you enjoy!

Chapter Two: Fire and Ice

The case was still at a standstill the next morning, with only a few new deaths and no clues as to who the new Kira may be. We knew that the victims of the new Kira were mainly businessmen, and that they were being killed once a week, but we knew nothing else. All the task force could do at the moment was investigate businesses for unusual patterns of behavior. We were hoping to find just one business that benefited from all the deaths, but so far nothing was working correctly for us. We worked for hours. And as usual, we took little to no breaks.

Unfortunately for me, this meant no rest for my weakened body—and around noon I was already feeling the effects of moving about. An irritating throbbing had started in my head, a strange heat behind my eyes accompanying it. When I could take it no longer, I pushed my chair back from the desk and brought my hands up to my face.

"Ryuzaki, I need a break," I declared firmly.

He glanced up at me, the other members of the task force pausing to listen. "Of course. You are still weak." He got to his feet. "I think that Light and myself will be taking a small trip to the nearest coffee shop. Please, continue working."

I nearly groaned at the declaration. I'd hoped to go back to bed and sleep for a while, not be drug outside! L must have sensed my train of thought, for he said, "Don't complain. The sunlight will do you good." I sighed, but pushed myself to my feet. Just like yesterday, a small pulse of pain shot through my head, but I pushed it aside in favor of following L on unsteady legs. The detective shot me an odd look. The next thing I knew his arm was looped around my chest in an effort to support me.

"Hey—" I started to protest, but a sharp glance from L stopped the words rising in my throat. The other members of the task force stared as L guided me to the elevator. Once inside, he pressed the button to take us to the exit. "You don't have to do that," I murmured grumpily, shrugging in an attempt to dislodge his arm.

He shrugged. "I don't want you to fall and hurt yourself. Consider it a precaution." We'd reached the exit. He walked beside me to the car that he'd no doubt had Watari pull up, and nearly pushed me inside. He climbed in just after me. "Watari, take us to the nearest coffee shop, if you will."

"At once." The car's engine purred to life, and we were off.

"You could've just let me sleep for a while," I said.

"Nonsense. That would have taken longer, and been much more boring. I would much rather take you somewhere to relax for a while."

A frown found its way to my lips. What was the meaning of this? Was this just another ploy to try to get me to say something defining me as Kira? It seemed like something he would do. And he'd already told me, back when we first met, that he was trying to get me to say something that only Kira would know. That was reason enough to suspect him of trying to deceive me. I snuck a look at him. L was in that odd crouch of his, eyes fixed on the back of Watari's seat. He looked so innocent… I shook my head in an attempt to clear it. He wasn't innocent; he was trying to lock me away for being Kira! But it was hard to believe that, watching him now. I looked away and tried to focus on the road instead of L, and the mounting pressure in my head. Damn… was I getting sick on top of everything else? I wasn't an idiot—I knew just as well as L did that getting sick could be dangerous after so long in a completely sterile room. But there was still a chance that I wasn't sick, right? I could wait a little bit longer before I said anything.

"We're here." L opened his door and got out, urging me to follow. I obeyed. I'd spaced out for longer than I'd thought; we'd already arrived. And of course, it was the same café I'd taken him to when we'd first met. Talk about mind games. "Watari will stay in the car," L said as he used the chain to tug me to him. "I will conceal the chain. It will seem… odd, if you will, if two males enter the establishment handcuffed together."

"Yeah, no doubt."

L pulled open the door and led me inside to our table that so well concealed our conversation. He ordered tea for both of us. For a long while we just sat there in silence. I stared into my cup of tea moodily. The two of us were completely useless when it came to making small talk—we had plenty of huge, nasty things to talk about, but nothing small and pleasant. If I wanted to talk about murder and deceit, then I knew that his ears were open to me. But if I wanted to have a light conversation, something to ease the ache in my head…

L mutely plunked sugar cube after sugar cube into his tea. Then, finally, he broke the awkward silence. "You are unwell, yes? Not only that, but I am certain that I told you to inform me the instant you felt unwell, and you did not."

I shuddered. "What did you expect? You locked me up without the ability to move for months! It makes sense that I'd be a little weak at first. And there's no reason to tell you how I feel until it becomes bad enough to require medical aid!"

He cocked his head. "That is unwise. Your condition could become dangerous."

Another frown. It was true, I wasn't feeling my best, but it was nothing to worry about. "Maybe, but I haven't been sick in forever. My immune system is iron-clad."

He blatantly ignored me. "I fear that you may begin to feel worse. I'd hate for you to be put out of work, especially after your extended imprisonment. That is why I chose to give you this break."

I laughed. "You're crazy if you think one trip to a café is going to cure whatever this is. And it is not an illness—it's just me readjusting to being able to move!"

He shrugged, taking a long sip of his tea. "Whatever you say. Are you aware that you are flushed?"

His words only served to deepen the warmth spreading across my cheeks, and this time it had nothing to do with illness. Instead of responding, I lifted my cup and drank from it.

"I am unaware as to how you manage to drink that," L said.

That drew a chuckle from me. "Not everyone is a sugar freak, Ryuzaki. Some people like tea unsweetened."

"Those people are insane." We shared a moment of amusement at that. Then L said, "Light, can I request something of you?"

"Shoot."

"Very well. Would you be as kind as to tell me where you grew up?"

What an odd question. "Um, sure. But you already know, don't you?"

"I wish to hear it from you. So please, tell me."

"Well, I grew up here." I waved an arm about, gesturing to the space around us. "This city, this neighborhood. We never really moved around—dad's work was always here."

"Fascinating." He leaned forward. "And your family is happy having always lived here?"

"Well, of course. Moving isn't really a good thing most of the time, you know. They're happy here."

"And you aren't?"

That was a tough question. Was I happy? Sure… anywhere my family was, I would be. And I would be glad about it. Having some friends here was a bonus— Wait, did I just call him my friend? I hate his guts for doing this to me! Why the hell would I—

"If you aren't sure, you don't have to answer."

"No, no!" I insisted. "I'm happy anywhere my family is! And anywhere my friends are."

"Yes," L agreed. "I am happy to have a friend here as well."

The warmth was back in my cheeks—I hoped he hadn't noticed. "Right."

There was a short, awkward silence then. Until L said, "And tell me, did you have many friends as a child?"

"Well, no. You've probably figured out that child geniuses aren't exactly considered friend material. Although I did catch quite a few stalkers after me for my looks."

"How irritating." His thumb was at his teeth, his tea forgotten.

"Tell me," I said, "Have you ever experienced something like that?" I didn't think so—L wasn't exactly the social type. But something about the way his forehead had crinkled when I'd mentioned the girls following me about, it seemed familiar. He looked almost exasperated.

"One person," he said. "I will not care to mention his name, but we shall say that we could have been great friends had he not chosen to go on a murdering spree in Los Angeles."

I blinked. Well… okay. "Seriously?"

"Yes." He looked away.

There was a long pause. Then I said, "What about you? Am I allowed to know anything about your childhood?"

L bit at his thumb thoughtfully. "You already know that I lived in England for five years. I have no living parents, and much of my childhood I do not remember. I assure you, it is not very interesting. And besides…" he removed his thumb long enough to take a drink of his sugary tea. "…Why should I tell these things to Kira?"

I sneered, "I am not Kira! I just wanted to know more about your childhood!"

L lowered his gaze, seemingly ashamed, but I knew better. He didn't care how he made me feel, how furious his accusations made me.

I attempted damage control. "How old are you?" There. A nice, safe question. There was no way that he would deduce that I was Kira from that.

"I am 24."

"Really? I thought—"

"Yes, most people think I am younger than I really am."

"And why did you become a detective? Where did you receive your training?" I knew that this was a lot to ask, but I was curious. I wanted to know more about the mystery that was L.

L cleared his throat suddenly. "I do not wish to divulge such information."

"Surely it won't be revealing too much—"

"I told you no, Light."

We fell into another awkward silence. I took another sip of tea, bitter over the fact that my attempt at light conversation had degraded into argument.

The detective fiddled with the spoon protruding from his half-empty drink. "We don't seem to have many pleasant things to speak of, do we?"

I shook my head curtly. "It's hard to talk to someone who won't talk about anything other than the Kira case."

"Ah, yes, well…" he trailed off. "I'm sorry about that."

I raised a brow. L was apologizing? Had hell just frozen over?

He went on, "That special school I was raised in… the orphanage… it taught me to focus only on the task at hand. As a result, I often find myself incapable of talking about anything other than my current case. Normally it isn't a problem because of Watari, but… well, when I'm around normal people, it becomes problematic." He lowered his gaze, and I thought that he might have been smiling sadly. "If I am to be honest with myself, then I think that I'd like to be able to speak of little things like you do, rather than the big picture."

"Oh, well…" I attempted to respond. "I can… teach you? If you like. We have some time left here, and I could… you know… make small talk."

He looked up at me, surprised. "You'd do that?"

"It's not that big a deal," I muttered, embarrassed. "It's just talking."

The detective put down his cup, and I felt that I had his full attention for the first time in weeks. "Very well, then. Go on."

I barely concealed a smile at his eager expression. Then, slowly, I began to speak. I spoke of anything from politics to childhood memories, and for what felt like hours we just sat there in that little café, secluded and alone, and spoke of the world. I answered all of my own questions and went in depth on all of my topics, and any question that L wouldn't answer was quickly dropped for another. It wasn't until the sun was low in the sky, the yellowish-pink color of sunset staining the tabletop, until L finally decided that it was time for us to leave.

"We should be leaving now, Light," he announced. "We have stayed for far too long, and I believe that the task force will be wondering if we have been murdered by Kira."

I stared at him blankly, about to start up on all the logical fallacies hiding within that one statement, when I saw a smile play across his lips. "You… you're joking?"

He shot me a real smile in response, and I laughed.

"Well, Ryuzaki, it looks like you did manage to learn something today."

L removed his wallet from his pocket and left the correct amount of money on the table. "Was this pleasant for you?" he asked softly, counting out coins.

"Yeah," I said, realizing that although the ache in my head had never really gone away, my talk with L had more than distracted me from it. Even now, the pain was somewhat alleviated. "This helped a little. Thank you."

"You will tell me if it becomes any worse," he said. "No matter how little the change." He turned to walk away, then paused, turning his head to look at me. "And you're welcome." He smiled, something that I'd gotten to see a lot of today. Then he really did begin to walk away, not waiting for me to follow him, and headed for the car.

†††

Beyond Birthday lounged back in his chair, eyes locked on the ceiling of the apartment he was renting. Things weren't going too well for Beyond at the moment. He'd escaped prison just a few weeks ago, and in that time he'd been relentlessly tracking down L, the great detective who always, always seemed to be one step ahead of him. But not this time, he vowed. This time would be different. He sat, a grin on his face.

"L," he said aloud. "This was the biggest mistake of your life, taking on the Kira case. It led me right to you." He sat up, looking across the room to where his laptop sat, still open. The screen had long since gone dark. But if he cared to illuminate it, he would see the profiles of everyone L had been working with on the Kira case. Everyone he would kill, one by one. Shuichi Aizawa, Kanzo Mogi, Touta Matsuda, Soichiro Yagami, and the Kira suspect— Light Yagami. What a pitiful bunch, just waiting to be picked off. Oh yes, he thought, he would use this opportunity to destroy L, just as he had intended since his days as a student in Wammy's house. All he had to do was get L somewhere on his own, without cameras or bodyguards… And the first step to that would be to eliminate the task force. Beyond glared at the darkened screen of the computer. Light Yagami… that was the only member of the task force that posed a problem. According to security footage he'd managed to acquire, as well as conversations between task force members he'd listened in on, L had chained the Kira suspect to him. That would make things difficult, especially if Light Yagami was actually Kira. Although, he reasoned, if the Yagami boy was Kira, then Beyond would be very interested in figuring out how he killed. Perhaps he would wait to kill Light until he interrogated him. He laughed, throwing his head back. If he was lucky, L would develop a liking for Light, and Beyond could crush L's spirit by torturing the Kira suspect before his very eyes. Beyond brushed two fingers across the touch-pad on the computer to awaken it. His teeth glinted as he watched the Yagami boy hungrily. Yes… he was very interested in the Kira-suspect. Soon, he swore, he would strike. All he needed was a little advantage.

Unbeknownst to Beyond, a dark figure watched from the shadows. His odd, almost clown-like face peered out at the L look-alike. So you want to kill the task force and murder L? Well then, I could make your job easier. The creature—Ryuk—held up a black notebook with white lettering sprawled across the front in a haphazard way. Ooh, Light would be furious! He cackled. That is, if he ever regained his memories. Ryuk wasn't so sure that even the genius could pull himself out of this one. A demented smile etched into his inhuman features, Ryuk leaned forward, holding the Death Note out… and dropped it. He watched as the thing fell, practically in slow motion, and hit the ground in front of Beyond with a dull thud. The murderer jumped. His eyes flew to lock onto the notebook. Frowning, he got up and walked to it.

"Go on then!" Ryuk snapped impatiently. "Pick it up!"

Beyond couldn't hear him yet, however. He knelt beside the notebook. "Death Note?" he read. "What the hell?" He reached out and picked it up.

"Well, it's about time!"

Beyond nearly screamed despite his calm nature, leaping clean out of his skin in attempt to get away from the voice.

"Calm down, kid." Ryuk floated into view, waiting for the initial shock to fade.

Beyond saw him, and immediately an unbelievable terror grasped him. Who the hell was this guy? Why didn't he look human? And how did he get in? Without thinking, Beyond drew his handgun and fired it several times into the creature's chest.

Ryuk sighed, looking down at the bullet holes in his chest. This is going to take a while.

†††

I stood. I didn't know where I was standing, exactly, but wherever it was, it was up high in the air. I walked forward and looked down. Ah… so I was standing on a building, was I? And a rather large one, at that. Where the hell was I? I held up my hands in front of my face.

"Kira!"

I turned, despite knowing that it wasn't my name. "L?" I gasped, taking in his state. "L!"

The great detective was on his knees behind me, blood dripping from his long, black hair. His face was littered with bruises and cuts, and one eye was puffed up as if he'd been struck. Even his clothing was in tatters, slashed to pieces.

"Kira, why did you do this?"

"What?" I gasped, falling to my knees beside him. "I didn't do anything!"

"I saw you!" The repose was petulant, as if it were coming from a child. "I saw you do it!"

"L, no, that wasn't me! Whoever did this to you, it wasn't me!" He didn't seem to hear or understand me. Instead, he coughed, and blood flew from his lips to stain my collar. "Please…" I whispered. Before I had time to talk myself out of it, I reached out and pulled my into a fierce hug. Ignoring the stains that his blood was leaving on my shirt, I pulled L's head down to rest in the crook of my neck. "It's okay," I whispered against his hair. "I'm here, I'm not going to let Kira hurt you anymore."

He was probably going to protest, but then, out of nowhere, the task force was there. What…?

"Kira, get away from Ryuzaki!" Soichiro yelled, his gun trained on me.

"What? Dad, no, I'm not Kira!" He didn't listen, much like L.

"I will shoot you if you don't get away!"

"But—" I clutched L closer.

Soichiro snarled. "Open fire! Kill Kira!"

And the rest of the task force members obeyed with blank stares, their guns rising and going off again, and again, and again… I barely felt the bullets pierce my flesh. All that I could hear was the stunned gasp as a bullet found L. Blood spurted from his body as the metallic object breached his flesh.

"L!" I cried, and to my horror, blood was rising in my throat. L looked right at me, his eyes a mess of pain and hatred.

"I hate…" he tried to say, choking. "I hate y—!" Then he fell back, his body cradled in my arms. His eyes were still open, but his chest had stilled.

A strange fury overtook me. How dare the task force murder him! How dare they shoot at me, an innocent person! I tried to move to tell them off, but my limbs wouldn't obey me… why did I feel so cold? I didn't have time to think about it before I was collapsing onto L's body, a warm substance dripping down my neck and chest.

In the hazing world, the last thing I made out clearly was L's bloodied face before I sunk into the all-encompassing darkness.

†††

"—ght! Light!"

I gasped, jolting as my stubborn eyes finally obeyed my command to open. What I saw didn't make sense. L was leaning over me, his face a mere few inches from my own, his hands on my chest. He gave me a light shake. "Light," he repeated. "Are you coherent?"

I nodded weakly. "Ryuzaki… what are you doing?"

"You appeared to be having a nightmare, and refused to respond. If you didn't awaken within the next 43 seconds exactly I was going to call a doctor." He raised one hand and brushed it over my cheek. "You're warm, Light. Do you have a fever?"

His eyes were the only thing I could see as I replied, "No, I feel fine." I feel awful. "And… thanks."

He finally sat back, removing his hands from my chest. "Don't think anything of it." He crouched, eyes still locked firmly on me. It was only then that I noticed his laptop pushed away haphazardly on the bed, a bowl of hard candy spilled over the covers. "Light… please try to refrain from doing that again. I was concerned."

He was concerned? About me? The thought was appalling. "Sorry. If I could control my dreams, I would never do it again."

"Would you care to explain?" he offered. "I will listen."

I bit at the inside of my mouth thoughtfully. Should I explain? Would that make me seem even more guilty? "I was on a roof," I blurted out before I could stop myself. "A big one on a skyscraper, I think. Someone called 'Kira' and I turned to find you bleeding and bruised on the ground. You called me a murderer and told me I'd done this to you, even though I hadn't. No matter what I said, you tried to get away—until the task force burst in and told me to get away from you. I refused, and they shot at us… They hit us both, and I collapsed, but you died, and—" I broke off then, realizing that my breath had grown shorter and shorter as I'd spoken.

"Light, if you continue like this you will hyperventilate. Please, try to calm down. As you can see, we are both still here, and your identity as Kira has not been exposed."

I was too rattled to comment on his not-so-subtle accusation. So instead I reached out and pulled him in for a hug that was much too similar to the dream for my liking. He went completely tense beneath my arms—then relaxed, hesitantly raising his arms to clasp around my back in what was supposed to be a comforting gesture. "It is early," he said against my shoulder. "You should rest, if you can."

I nodded, releasing him. "Yeah, you're right." Exhaustion was setting back in, and I was beginning to realize the extent of what I'd just told Ryuzaki—and the fact that I'd just hugged him. Knowing him, there was some hidden meaning behind my dream. And also knowing him, it would just end up meaning that I was Kira. I lay back against my pillows with a huff, knowing that if I went back to sleep now, I would only be cast back into a nightmare. But there was no fighting my fatigue, and I was feeling warm, so I let L push me back gently. "What," I said, realizing he wasn't intending on laying back down. "You're not going to stop watching me?"

He didn't answer for a moment. "You worried me. I will continue to watch until I am certain there won't be a repeat of this episode."

Basically the rest of the night. I found it oddly hard to be irritated about that. Shaking my head blearily against the pillow, I allowed my eyes to close and consciousness to drift away. Another nightmare awaited, surly. But with L's owl eyes watching me throughout the rest of the night, I found it much easier to bear.

†††

The next morning I awoke feeling as if someone had taken sandpaper to my throat. I groaned, sitting up, and immediately feeling as though someone had thrown me into a furnace. I'm not allowed to be sick! Rubbing my eyes, I briefly glanced to where L should have been working, and paused. The detective was passed out, asleep beside me! Frowning at this rare occurrence, I took a moment to observe him. His obsidian eyes were lidded, though the dark circles remained. His hair was matted, as per usual, and sticking up at odd angles. What was worse, his shirt had bunched up during the night so that it rested dangerously high on his chest. He shifted in his sleep. Some of his dark hair fell onto his face, prompting him to crinkle up his nose in an oddly sweet way. I nearly laughed, reaching out and brushing the hair away—

Wait, what the hell was I doing? I drew my hand back as if I'd been burned. I wasn't supposed to think anything of this guy! He'd cuffed me to him, imprisoned me, and—

And you like him.

What? I do not!

Liar.

I growled at my brain, shutting down the thought process just in time for L's eyes to flutter open blearily. "Ah, Light," he groaned, sitting up. His shirt fell back over his stomach. "I apologize. How long have you been up?"

"Minutes," I responded, hoping he wouldn't notice the raspy quality of my voice. "Don't worry about it."

His eyes narrowed in that concerned way of his that I'd grown so accustomed to over the past few days. "You sound ill."

"Just a sore throat, nothing serious. Can we get going? We have things to work on."

L shook his head. "I think I would like to play a game this morning."

I frowned. "A game? Like tennis again?"

"Hmm, no… I was thinking more like chess. Are you up to it?"

"Depends. Is this just your way of getting me to rest since you think I'm sick?"

"Yes."

"Then I agree."

L smiled, truly smiled—then reached into his pocket. He unlocked the cuffs with the key, then attached his end of the chain to the headboard. "What happened to me escaping this way?" I asked, amused.

"Your weakened state will bind you better than any chain," L responded. He made it to the bookshelf and pulled the board game off the shelf, bringing it back to me. He tugged open the lid and set up the board on the bed. Then he crouched, feet beneath him, and pointed to me. "You will move first."

I sighed. "That's very Kira-like, Ryuzaki. Are you sure you're not trying to imply something?"

He shook his head. "I do not wish to discuss Kira today. For now, let there be L and Light, not Ryuzaki and Kira."

I raised a brow, surprised. "If that is what you wish, then that is how it shall be." I reached out and moved a pawn forward. "So, L, are you ready to lose?"

He looked me in the eyes. "I don't plan to."

†††

Beyond held a pen in his hand, the inky tip hovering inches from the paper of the black notebook. Write a name, the Shinigami had said… write name and the person would die. He snuck a glance at his computer. He could kill the task force this way; he knew their names. He could even kill L with this notebook. Yes, L Lawliet would die should he brush the pen against paper in exactly the right way. But where was the fun in that? Beyond laughed in a way he supposed could be considered maniacal. No, before he killed L—if he killed L—he would have to defeat him in a way that once and for all proved his superiority. That meant that he couldn't just kill them all with the Death Note. He wanted to outsmart them all.

Ah, but he was skipping over a vital piece of information.

Now that he knew the rules of the Death Note and had had a long conversation with Ryuk, he knew that Light Yagami was Kira. Or rather, he used to be Kira, but had long since forgotten due to giving up possession of the notebook. Apparently Kira had buried the notebook beneath a tree in some far-off place before giving up possession. That was the same notebook that Ryuk had dug up out of boredom and given to Beyond. As long as that notebook was in Beyond's hands, Light was completely devoid of his memories of being Kira. What was left behind was a soft, innocent teenager.

Beyond's teeth tugged on the tip of his thumb. Now that Light was no longer Kira, his life meant nothing to him. But… Beyond glanced at the monitor, hand still holding the pen inches from the paper of the Death Note. His eyes fell upon the profile of the Yagami boy. The picture of him was perfect, with not one hair out of place on his head, and his beautiful amber eyes gazing into the camera soulfully. Beyond was fascinated. To think that this boy had murdered thousands of criminals… it was stunning. Breathtaking. He just had to know what Kira was really like…

Beyond dropped the pen, leaning back in his chair. His mind was made up. He would restore Kira's memories, if not just to meet the original murderer who had outsmarted L for so long. He longed so very much to be close to Kira.

"Ryuk," he said, turning his head halfway to regard the Shinigami. "You said that the other Shinigami gave another notebook to someone other than the original Kira, right?"

"Yep. You got it." The crunch of an apple being chewed filled the room.

"Can you tell me who has the notebook currently?"

"Nope, I have no idea who Rem gave it to. And even if I did, I wouldn't tell you."

"Hmm… that's a problem." Beyond reached for the jar of jam on the desk mindlessly. He dipped a few fingers into the sticky substance and brought them to his lips. "I need to get my hands on that other notebook."

"Huh? Why?"

Beyond shot an angry glance back at Ryuk. "I want Kira to regain his memories, but I don't want to give him my Death Note. So I need the other notebook. The notebook that the other shinigami gave to some random human."

Ryuk raised a brow, bits of apple flying from his jaws as he chomped away. "Interesting. How are you going to find the notebook?"

"I don't know just yet." Beyond dipped his finger back into the jam. Mmm… strawberry. "At some point I'm going to want to find a way to get security cameras of my own in there…" Beyond leaned in towards the monitor, placing a finger gently on the screen as he gazed at Kira. "What a beautiful boy," he mused. "Don't worry… soon I'll rescue you from captivity."

†††

We never did make it to work that day. After the chess match (which had been a close win for L) we'd end up in the kitchen for an early lunch, talking about whatever came to mind except for the Kira case. Afterwards I'd suggested going to work, but L had swiftly offered to introduce me to a new book instead. This book ended up being To Earth and Back, a book about so many topics that it couldn't be accurately described. The main character, Briar, traveled the world seeking out solutions to her deepest conflicts—but at every turn she encountered dozens of side characters with their own problems. It was philosophical, intriguing, tragic, comedic… it was about everything, and nothing at all. It was truly a fascinating piece, as L had told me shortly before handing me the novel. A work of literary art.

"I particularly like this line," L said at one point, leaning over my shoulder to brush his fingers over the page. His hair brushed my cheek as he spoke. "Yet each man kills the thing he loves, by each let this be heard, some do it with a bitter look, some with a flattering word, the coward does it with a kiss, the brave man with a sword." He smiled gently through the curtain of hair separating us. Straightening, he said, "Rather mystic, isn't it? And symbolic." We'd locked eyes then, sharing an odd sort of glance. He'd cleared his throat and leaned away abruptly, shoulders hunched.

After that had been dinner, with me eating soup and L going for some sticky sweet pastry that was slathered in caramel and chocolate. By then it was around ten in the evening, and L insisted that I lay down. So there we lay, beside each other, comfortable with each other for the first time since I'd been released. The book was lying on my lap, a slip of paper marking my place around the two hundred page mark.

"So," L said, turning on his side to regard me. "Has this day made you feel more at ease?"

"Definitely," I said with a warm smile. "I didn't know you could be such a relaxing person to be around, L."

His lips quirked upwards at the use of his name. "And I had no idea you were so good at chess, Light. I would say this day has benefitted us both."

And it had. Though I could still feel the haziness in my brain caused by what was apparently illness, I felt the best I had in weeks. No, months. L had been startlingly fun to be around, despite his awkward persona. In fact, this entire day had shrouded me in a cloud of uncharacteristic happiness. And so when L curled up, I had no problems with the fact that he was partly on my half of the bed. And if his head was leaning on my shoulder, I didn't say anything about it. The insomniac needed his sleep whenever he could get it, after all.

†††

I awoke the next morning earlier than L, once again. And the first thing I felt was the churning in my stomach. Immediately I knew what was going to happen—my stomach was going to empty itself with a vengeance. I lurched upwards and leaned over the side of the bed, managing to control myself until I positioned my head over the trashcan before promptly expelling everything I'd eaten in the past twenty-four hours. I stayed that way, half-slumped over the side of the bed, until my nausea faded enough for me to straighten. I was horrified. I hadn't been sick to the point of throwing up in years. I couldn't believe that I'd managed to get so sick now of al times. All my years of taking such good care of my body, eating right and abstaining from most junk food, it had come down to this.

I felt slightly betrayed.

"Light?"

Damn. I threw myself back against the pillows before L's eyes focused on me, hoping he wouldn't notice that I'd been up. "You're awake?"

"Only just now…" He sat up. "Unfortunately today will be a work day. Are you feeling up to it?"

No. I feel like shit. "Of course."

"Then let's get up." We both rose, and a wave of nausea hit me again. I managed to force myself not to throw up, however, and dressed as per usual. I thanked my lucky stars that L had neglected to notice the trashcan slightly out of place, or the fact that at the first possible moment I tied off the top of the bag just in case Watari happened to notice when he came in to empty the trash, as he did daily.

I felt slightly proud of my deception, even though my stomach still felt awful. And it was beginning to become difficult to ignore the terrible heated pressure building between my eyes…

†††

We came into the workroom to find the task force in a panic. Papers were flying everywhere, computers were running strange programs that I'd never seen, and the members of the task force were either typing furiously, talking loudly, or in Matsuda's case, running towards us at full speed.

"Ryuzaki!" he cried, skittering to a halt. "Kira's gone on a rampage! Killings are up more than they've ever been before!"

"What?" I gasped, surprised, nausea forgotten for the moment. "And it was just completely random?"

"Nothing is ever random," L said darkly. "This happened for a reason. Tell me, Matsuda, have the regular killings of the businessmen continued?"

He looked surprised, as if he hadn't thought to check. Aizawa answered for him, saying, "Yeah, there have been no changes. Criminals are still dying as well."

"Then it seems simple," L said. "Light, what do you think?"

I shook my head hazily. Damn… was my headache getting worse? My vision blurred for a heartbeat. "It's obvious." And it was. What was Kira thinking, pulling this? "We've speculated that Kira can move from one person to another, and also the fact that there may be more than one Kira moving from person to person. What appears to have happened here is just that—Kira's power has moved to another person, while most likely killing businessmen to cover his tracks." Damn it, I was beginning to slur, however slight it was.

L nodded thoughtfully. He hadn't noticed my brief lapse in speech. "That is correct. Although it seems rather reckless… something like this has never happened before. He's always been so careful."

I shrugged hazily. "Perhaps Kira has chosen the wrong person this time around."

"Maybe," L agreed. He suddenly looked me dead in the eyes. "Light, how are you feeling?"

"I'm fine, Ruyzaki. Worry about the case, not me."

He frowned deeply. "Matsuda, have you noticed anything else?"

The ditzy detective shook his head. "No, that's it. Just a slew of murders overnight!"

If an uncomfortable heat hadn't been building behind my eyes just then, I would have laughed. Just, I thought. When did a sudden onslaught of deaths become a 'just' to us? I pulled L along with me shakily to our desk, and seated myself at the computer. "Well," I said, "Let's get to work. Surely there's something we can work with here." I took to the keyboard, raising a hand to wipe away the sheen of sweat I was sure was building on my forehead. I could sense L's gaze on my back. He hadn't sat down yet.

"Light," he said after a moment. "Are you quite sure you are feeling well?"

"Yes!" I snapped, a little harshly. "Why the sudden obsession?"

He blinked, looking slightly surprised. "You merely looked pale. I was concerned." With that, he sat down and was lost to the computer.

My eyes remained locked on him even after he turned away. I found his concern endearing… or at least, I would have if I had the ability to focus through the searing heat that just seemed to be getting hotter.

I snapped myself out of it, focusing my eyes on the computer with a few blinks. I hoped that I wasn't about to pass out. At least the task force seemed to be settling down after the chaos we'd walked in on, thankfully. I busied myself with sorting through the various names of the murdered criminals. I frowned. Something was odd here, even to my addled brain. Just to be sure of my hunch, I quickly checked the times of the victims' deaths. A few clicks and prods, and the whole list was arranged into the right order—time of death, rather than the order in which they had been broadcast. And yes… the order was different. I frowned. If the new Kira was killing criminals as they were broadcast, then they should be in the same order both in accordance with time of death and time of broadcast. But they weren't. Now, why was that? I scanned the names, a deep frown setting in. The criminals had been arranged so that five had died within forty seconds of each other. Brenda Adams, Brian Dillon, Bobby Burns… "B," I whispered in a voice so low that not even L could hear. They all start with B. Is this really such a juvenile code? I wiped my hand across my forehead. Sweat was beginning to gather. When had it gotten so hot? The next group of people had names beginning with E. Then Y. Then O, N, and lastly, D. D.

"Beyond."

"What?" L looked up at me, and to my surprise, his eyes were clouded with something akin to fear. "What did you just say?"

"Beyond," I repeated myself blearily. The slur was affecting my voice again, though L looked too frightened to notice. "Look at the times of death—they're arranged to spell out a word: Beyond."

"Beyond?" Soichiro echoed, catching on. "What on earth are we supposed to do with that? Ruyzaki?"

"Probably a coincidence, right?" Matsuda asked dimly.

"Ryuzaki?" I stared directly into the detective's eyes… and found nothing. His expression had gone completely blank, as if the gears in his head had stopped turning. "Are you okay? What's wrong?"

"No…" he whispered. "Not Beyond… it has to be wrong!"

"Ryuzaki!" Soichiro reached out, clasping a hand to his shoulder. "What is Beyond?"

"Not what," he snarled, anger seeping into his expression. "Who. Beyond Birthday, leaving a blatant flag for us to locate him by." He finally looked up, hair falling from furious eyes. "Beyond Birthday, or B, was supposed to be my successor. However, he went somewhat insane, escaping our childhood home and going on a murder spree in LA. He was caught, of course, but it would seem that he's escaped prison. He's a monster, and he will stop at nothing to destroy me. That is why he has done this—because he knows I am working this case, and wants to let me know that he is coming for me."

The room was oddly silent for a long moment, in which all I could hear was the blood rushing in my ears, making me hyper-aware of the ever-increasing ache in my head. Then Mogi said, "So basically he's your creepy, murderous stalker?"

"I wish he was merely that," L growled. "He looks like me, dresses like me, talks like me. He is so much more than a mere 'stalker' as you put it. His intellect is second only to my own, and his cruel nature gives him an obvious advantage. And now… he has somehow gained the powers of Kira! Therefore, we must find him and take him down!"

My head throbbed suddenly, forcing a groan from my unwilling lips. "Ahh…"

Immediately L's gaze was upon me. "Light?"

I shook my head. " 'm fine… don' worry." I clutched at the desk. Oh god, was I going to throw up again? My stomach lurched.

"You are not fine," L said sharply. I thought I saw him turn to the task force. But then again, the world was slightly blurry so I couldn't say for certain. "We will discuss this once I've seen Light up to our room," he said shortly. "Light, can you stand?"

"Of course I can stand…" I muttered, relieved to find that my voice was obeying me again. I pushed myself up. Took one step. And then the world tilted on its axis, and I thought I imagined familiar arms closing around my body just before darkness claimed my mind.

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