Burn

by xLion'sRoarx

When BB, a dangerous criminal, escapes from jail and sets his eyes on Light, the entire investigation is thrown into chaos. The Kira case flies off the metaphorical tracks, and as Light's world comes apart at the seams, his own emotions bar him at every turn, turning calculations into reckless actions and throwing into danger everything that he has fought to protect. LxLight

7. Dawn

Welcome to chapter seven! Quite honestly, I could have cut this entire chapter out and I don't think the story would have suffered for it—but it was just such a cute opportunity, and I thought I'd give readers a little break from the crazy before the events of chapter eight. Because trust me, once chapter eight hits, there won't be any lulls for quite a while. So I hope you enjoy this little break from the action.

Chapter 7: Dawn

I stood on the doorstep of my home, trying to ignore the four odd people perched on the steps behind me. I'd hoped that they'd at least try to look normal, but to no avail. L was still slouched over, Near had no shoes, Matt still wore his goggles, and Mello had on more leather than I'd ever seen in one place. I, on the other hand, was dressed nicely, in a dress shirt and slacks. The box tucked under one arm was Sayu's present—apparently some jacket from her favorite anime. I'd never heard of the show, though I assumed by the picture on the jacket that it must have been something terribly girly and dramatic. The entire time I'd been getting dressed and wrapping the present, L had been trying to convince me to call the whole thing off. It was too dangerous, he insisted. I'd be putting myself needlessly in danger—to which I told him that getting to see my sister was not needlessly putting myself in danger, and that I retained the right to see my own family. After my outburst L had dialed back his protests, though he was obviously very uncomfortable with the situation.

I rang the doorbell, brushing off L's murmured protest. A few moments later Sachiko answered the door, a wide grin on her face when she spotted me. But that smile was overshadowed by a hint of concern—she knew that I was working on the Kira case (even though Soichiro had never told her directly, my mom wasn't an idiot—she figured it out herself), and consequently never stopped worrying about me. The smile faltered slightly when she noticed the group of gangly teenagers and one slightly older man behind me. "Ah, Light!" she said, struggling to ignore the four detectives. "Please, come in. The party has already begun." She stepped back, and I led the group through the doorway, where they stood looking around as if I'd taken them to a haunted house.

"Light," Sachiko said in a low voice, drawing me aside a few feet by the arm. "Are these some of the guards your father told me about?"

I recalled vaguely that dad had said something about telling Sachiko that I was under protection due to the dangerous nature of the case we were working. It had nearly given her a heart attack, but it was the only way to get her to agree to having guards placed in her house. "Yeah," I said swiftly. "Look, I'm sorry about all this… I wanted to see Sayu, but this was the only way I could get the team to agree to it."

"Your bodyguards…they're a bit…" Young? Strange? Insane? "…Interesting."

"Yeah, they are." I leaned close, whispering in her ear, "They're young, but way more dangerous than any police officer. They were specially trained for this since they were children." Not a complete lie, I noted with satisfaction.

"Oh, I see!" She looked slightly reassured. "I can't say I'm pleased about this, Light. If you ask me, you should just come home and stay here! Take yourself off the case, and then maybe you'll be safe!"

I smiled painfully, giving her a nod though I knew what she suggested was impossible. I knew full well that I wouldn't be allowed to come home again after this. Not until Beyond was caught or I was dead. Although, obviously, if I were killed, then I would never be coming home. I shuddered at the thought of my poor mother being subjected to such a terrible thing as to know that her son had died at the hands of someone like Beyond.

I realized suddenly that my mother was still speaking. "…By all means, go on and talk to other kids! Have fun! Cake is at four, so make yourself comfortable!" She turned and went back to the kitchen to continue baking, not realizing that I hadn't heard a word she'd said after her comment about me coming home.

"So…" Matt said awkwardly, coming up behind me. His Gameboy was dangling at his side, the screen dark. "What do we do, exactly?"

I stared at them blankly. "Don't tell me you've never been to a party!"

They all shook their heads—even L.

"Perfect," I sighed. "In that case, just follow my lead." I led into the living room. Sachiko had done a good job—the entire place was draped with bright pink banners and balloons, and there were two large, fold out tables on the back wall, both of which were laden with piles upon piles of snack food. On the ground beside one table, a large pile of presents balanced unsteadily on carpeted ground. I deposited Sayu's present onto the pile, making sure that the tower wouldn't topple anytime soon. "Now," I said, turning to face my companions. "When you're at a party, you're supposed to—"

A pink blur slammed into my side, cutting me off. "Big brother!" A familiar girly voice shrieked with excitement. "I'm so glad you made it! I was beginning to think that nasty detective you're working with forbade you from coming!"

L cleared his throat. "That nasty detective' is right here. And I was less than willing to allow your brother to attend, but your father softened my stony heart."

I nudged him as Sayu looked him over angrily. "You!" she snapped. "You're the one that's been keeping Light away from me! I hate you! Why are you even here?"

"Because I have no choice but to keep an eye on your brother," he said, holding up the wrist with his end of the cuffs on it. "I don't expect you to understand."

Sayu turned her glower on the three successors. "And you three! Who are you?"

"Bodyguards," Mello said smoothly.

"Yeah," Matt chimed in. "Here to protect your brother."

The two turned to Near expectantly for the next part of the conversation. The young male didn't say anything. He was too busy staring slack-jawed at Sayu. His eyes were huge, lips slightly parted. "Um…" he choked. "I…"

Sayu's expression softened minutely as she looked at him. "Sorry," she said after a moment of watching him squirm. "I'm Sayu, by the way. Light's sister."

"N-Near," he stuttered.

"Hmm? Odd name," she pointed out. "I like it, though."

Near looked like he was about to pass out. I wondered if he'd ever spoken to a woman before. If his flushed face was any indication, he hadn't.

"Come meet my friends," Sayu offered him, and the first ranked successor immediately took the offered arm. He slowly allowed her to tug him over to a ring of Sayu's friends, eyes never leaving her face. As they vanished into a crowd of girls, Sayu called over her shoulder, "Sorry, Light! I'll talk to you in a minute, okay?"

I shook my head, more than amused that Sayu was more eager to talk to a complete stranger than the big brother she hadn't seen for months.

Mello snorted, leaning on Matt's shoulder. "What a love struck idiot," he said. I found the statement rather ironic, seeing as Matt was gazing at Mello with adoration that I'd only ever seen in movies—and Mello was gladly returning the gaze.

I glanced at L. "Well, shall we?" I held out my hand.

He took it hesitantly, saying, "Light, are you sure you want to stay? I mean, you saw your sister, can't we go? Beyond could strike at any moment, and one of your bodyguards was just lured away by your sister! We can't get more than a foot away from you!"

I briefly wondered if that was the reason that the handcuff chain had seemed much shorter when I woke up. I'd questioned L, but he'd denied everything. "There are about ten bodyguards in here," I responded. "There are cameras in every corner of the house, and everywhere within two miles of here. Watari is monitoring everything, and if he sees anything, he'll contact us. And besides, it's only a few hours. A few short hours, then I'll be shut back up in our room where you want me."

That didn't appear to make him feel any better. If we hadn't been in public (especially at my parents' house) I would have kissed him just to make him smile. But I couldn't, so I settled for holding his hand tighter. "Come on," I urged. "We can get closer to Near if that makes you feel better." He released my hand, instead going for my arm and wrapping it in an inescapable embrace. I waited for his shallow nod, then made my way into the room where Near was now standing awkwardly in a group of girls. The girls were cooing over him (apparently the teen was "adorable"), touching his hair and asking endless questions. I noted that Matt and Mello had followed us in, though they stuck to the back wall and spoke in hushed tones. At one point I saw Matt's jaw drop and his eyes flicker over to L and me. I wished I could read lips.

"He's proclaiming shock over the fact that we're romantically involved," L supplied.

"How did you—?"

"I can read lips like words on a page," the detective said tensely. "I suppose the cat is out of the bag at this point, it would be pointless to pretend in front of them any longer."

"They were going to figure it out anyways," I said. "They are geniuses."

Normally that would have sparked at least a small smile, but L was too on edge to even look at me. His eyes kept moving from person to person, place to place, and I realized just how afraid he was of losing me to Beyond.

"Hey," I said softly, running a hand through his hair. "It's going to be okay. Relax." He looked up at me, eyes wide. I could tell he was about to tell me about the dangers of leaving HQ again, but then—

"Okay."

I stared. "What?"

"Okay. I will attempt to calm down. It is clear to me that you will not be able to enjoy this party until I do. So by all means…" He gestured to the living room. "Converse with the guests."

I shot him a small smile. "Glad to hear you've come to your senses." I secured my grip on his arm and walked further in, calling out to Sayu as I went.

If this was going to quite possibly be the last time I saw my sister then I might as well make the most of it.

†††

Matt nearly choked on his drink, nearly spewing the fruity punch all over the carpet. "What?" he spluttered, still coughing. "L and him? The suspect? Are you sure?"

Mello leaned against the wall, fiddling with a chocolate bar wrapper. "Yup. I heard them talking the other night, and—"

"You mean you eavesdropped," Matt corrected.

"Whatever. I overheard them talking, and let's just say that there's no way they're not involved with each other."

"You didn't misunderstand?"

"No way," Mello snorted. "No misunderstanding the things they were saying."

"Are you sure they're not just acting because Beyond is watching them?"

"Why the hell would L want to convince Beyond to kidnap Light?"

"Keeping up appearances?" Matt offered weakly.

Mello raised a brow, jabbing a thumb in L's direction. "Look at that and tell me they're faking."

Matt looked over to the Kira suspect and the great detective. They were standing unusually close. As he watched, L latched onto Light's arm, pulling him impossibly close. Light murmured something to him, running a hand through his hair. "Damn…" he whispered. "You're not kidding! They're totally infatuated with each other! How the hell did that slip past us?"

Mello shrugged. "I guess we should tell Near, don't you think?"

"Yeah. Hey, Near!" Matt raised a hand, waving to the older male. He looked up, shyly excused himself from Sayu's group, and joined them.

"Having fun with your new girlfriend?" Mello mocked.

He blushed furiously. "She's not—"

"Yeah, yeah," Matt said. "Look at L and Light!"

Near looked over to the two males. L was still as close to Light as possible, clutching at his arm. "What about them?"

"Don't you think they seem… together? Like, romantically?"

"Of course. You didn't deduce that from what occurred last night?" He sighed, seeing their confused expressions. "L has clearly changed. He may have claimed that it was due to stress and fear, but L feels such thing with every case he encounters. So obviously something is different with this case, something new. What else could that something be if not L's attraction to Light?" He didn't wait for a response. "Even if you didn't notice that, there were still other signs. The two of them were very close last night, don't you think? Always watching each other, exchanging gentle words, maintaining contact with each other. It wasn't exactly a platonic display. I would have thought you two of all people would have figured it out."

Matt raised a hand to the back of his head sheepishly. "I don't know, I guess I just always kind of considered L to be asexual. It never even crossed my mind that he would actually fall for someone!"

"Especially not the main suspect in his case," Mello murmured.

Near cocked his head. "I too was surprised when I figured it out. However, if L wishes to have sexual relations with Light Yagami, I will not be the one to get in his way."

"Sexual relations?" Matt squawked. "Who said anything about—?"

Near rolled his eyes. "Don't act innocent. We both know you've done things with Mello that would make any porn star roll in his grave."

Mello grinned. "Guilty."

Another eye roll. "I would like to return to my conversation with Sayu now. I find her quite enjoyable to be around." He turned and walked back to Sayu irritably.

Matt shook his head. "I can't believe that this is happening. Has the world gone insane?"

The blonde pressed two fingers to the bridge of his nose. "It seems that way, yeah." His eyes raked over the scene. "Do you have any idea how bad things are going to get if Beyond gets his hands on Light?"

Mello glared at the ground darkly. "Yeah, I know. Don't forget that I'm intimately familiar with his methods of torture."

Matt dipped his head, murmuring, "I haven't forgotten. But you, like all the students at Wammy's House, were raised to know how to deal with such conditions without breaking. I can't imagine what it would do to Light—someone who's never had to endure such pain."

"It'd do more than just break him." Mello's fists clenched and unclenched at his sides. "It'll kill him. And if L's in love with the guy, then it'll tear him up too. He already acts depressed constantly, so I don't want to think about what he'll be like once his precious suspect is taken away from him."

Matt shook his head worriedly. "Honestly, we can pretend to protect him all L wants. But we all know that it's only a matter of time before Beyond strikes. And when he does, I don't trust in our ability to stop him."

"I don't know about that," Mello muttered. "I know that L can stop him. But I don't know if he can stop him before Light is killed."

†††

Less than ten minutes later, Sayu slipped away from her friends and cornered me. "Big brother, I haven't seen you in ages! Talk to me, don't just stand in a corner with that weird guy!"

L muttered, "I'm right here, you know."

I shushed him softly, responding to Sayu, "That weird guy happens to be my friend, Sayu. Don't be cruel. And you were the one who ran off with Near."

She sniffed pettily, ignoring my comment on Near. "Come on, Light! I know this is the guy that's keeping you and dad from coming home. Mom thinks I'm asleep when dad calls, but I'm not. I hear what they say to each other about some nasty ol' detective that keeps Light chained to him like some sort of pervert!"

Funny… she sounded like Misa.

"And you should pay more attention to Misa!" Sayu went on. "We talk, you know! I know that you haven't called her in over two weeks—the last time you spoke was in that horrible hospital room!"

"You talk to Misa?" I asked, surprised. Truthfully, I hadn't thought much of the blonde model in the past two weeks. I hadn't even gotten a call from her. "Never mind, don't answer that. I haven't gotten any calls from her, so I didn't think she was worried."

"Ah, about that…" L broke in sheepishly. I turned to look at him; one hand was running through his hair, the other clenched in a fist.

"Ryuzaki," I said, barely catching myself before I called him by his detective name. "What did you do?"

"I… may or may not have been deleting Miss Amane's messages from your phone for the past two weeks."

"Ryuzaki!" I yelped. "How often has she been calling me?"

"Oh…"

"Ryu…" I warned.

"Approximately nine times…"

I sighed in relief. Only nine times in the past two weeks… that wasn't too bad, right?

"…A day."

"Nine times a day? Ryuzaki, why didn't you tell me?"

"You…seemed stressed, what with everything that was going on, and…" He fidgeted uncomfortably.

He—he was jealous. Of Misa. "You're jealous!" I blurted before I could stop myself. Oh dear, I thought as Sayu's eyes suddenly grew to the size of moons. That may have been a bad idea. "I mean…" I tried to save myself, but words failed me.

"Oh my god!" Sayu squealed. She opened and closed her mouth repeatedly, seemingly searching for words, but all she managed to squeak out was an embarrassingly loud, excited noise.

"Sayu, don't take that the wrong way," I attempted. "It's not what it sounds like."

"Oh my god, the handcuffs!" she gasped. "Light, I never took you for the type to—"

"No, no!" I cut in. "That's not why we have these! Sayu, please, calm down!"

She didn't seem to hear me. She was already standing on her toes to get on eye level with L, examining him with excited eyes. "You're Ryuzaki? You look a little older than Light—how old are you? Where are you from? Why are you handcuffed together? What kinds of cases do you solve?"

L took a step back, clearly overwhelmed by the flow of questions. "Ah…"'

"Sayu!" I tugged her away from L. "Come on, don't be like that! I told you, what I said was completely incorrect—he's not jealous."

"Actually, I might be a little jealous…" L murmured.

"Not helping!" I hissed.

In the other room, the doorbell rang loudly. I heard the door opening, followed by a few muffled words—and then came the sound of squeals and excited words. I frowned, glancing over in the direction of the sounds. What was going on?

Sayu seemed to notice the commotion as well. "Oh!" she said excitedly. "That must be—" Suddenly her expression fell, and her hand shot up to cover her mouth. "Oh. Oh, I've done a bad thing."

"Sayu…" I warned, a nervous chill running up my spine. "What did you do?"

"Oh… nothing really," she said, eyes angled downwards. "It's just… I didn't know about your thing with Ryuzaki, so…"

"First, there is no thing with Ryuzaki!" If I let her think that and she says something to mom, I'm finished! "And second, what did you—?"

"Light! Light, I've missed you so much!"

Oh. Oh no.

A blonde blur crashed into me at terminal velocity, knocking me back into the wall. "Light!" that voice wailed. "Why didn't you return any of my messages? I thought you cared about me, you… you meanie!"

"Misa…" I gasped, struggling to regain the breath she'd knocked out of me. "It's… it's good to see you again!"

"You never responded to my messages! Ever since that pervert locked me out of that building you're always in, I never see you anymore! How hard would it be to visit, huh?"

I patted her awkwardly on the back, well aware of L's accusing stare. "I'm sorry, Misa, but I've been a bit busy, and—"

"And you should call me back!" she interrupted. "What kind of a boyfriend are you, pulling something like this? You didn't even call me when you were in the hospital!"

"Well, that was because—"

"And then when I go to visit you in the hospital, I get kicked out without so much as a kind word! Explain yourself, Light!"

I stared down at the furious model, at a loss for words. This girl… I didn't even know why I'd begun dating her in the first place, or why I'd allowed the relationship to continue. What had I seen in her? Surely there was something. I wasn't the kind of person to date someone on looks alone, and Misa had shown no sign of possessing anything above an average intellect. I had the nagging feeling that I'd needed her for something, but I had no idea what that something possibly could have been. "I'm sorry I haven't called," I said finally. "Like I said, I've been busy with the case, and for some reason, I never got any of your messages. My phone must have some kind of problem." Yeah, I thought. And that "problem" just happens to be standing right next to me.

"Aww, Light!" Her grip on me tightened, and I felt that if she were any stronger, one of my ribs might have cracked. "So you didn't abandon me? It was just your nasty phone?"

"Yeah, Misa. It was the phone."

"Oh, thank goodness!" And just like that, her mood swung from furious to happy, as if she'd been looking to blame my negligence on the first thing that came up.

L cleared his throat meaningfully. I shot him a warning look, begging him silently not to do anything drastic. And then he opened his mouth, and my heart sank. "Actually, it had nothing to do with Light's phone," he announced.

No, L, don't start anything!

Misa shot him a fierce glare, her arms constricting further around my chest. "What are you talking about, you nasty old man?"

"Old man?" L echoed. I bit back a laugh at the expression of horror on his face. "I am twenty-four!"

"That's way older than Light!" Misa insisted, sticking out her tongue childishly.

L's jaw opened and closed comically for a moment before he regained his composure. "You're older than him as well!"

Misa's face was turning slightly red. "Ryu," I warned. "Come on, stop this."

He looked utterly betrayed, and once again I fought back laughter. Did he really think I favored Misa over him?

"Yeah, Ryuzaki!" Misa hissed. "Why can't you just leave?"

"Unlike you, Light actually wants me here!" L snapped.

Misa gasped, looking overly offended. "What are you suggesting?" she demanded.

"I'm suggesting that even if I hadn't been deleting your messages before Light saw them, he still wouldn't have wanted to speak to you!"

Oh no. Misa's entire body tensed up, and I felt her hands curl into fists, gathering the fabric of my shirt in handfuls. She may have been small, but when she got angry I knew how much trouble she could be. I half expected her to haul off and slap L across the face. But instead, all she did was glare ruefully. "I'm Light's girlfriend!" she announced smugly. "So there!"

I'd never seen L so angry. His cheeks were lightly flushed, his hands were clenched at his sides, I could practically hear his teeth grinding together. "Well…" he began, digging his nails into his jeans. "I'm Light's boyfriend!"

I froze, eyes wide. "B-boyfriend?" I echoed, sure that I must have resembled a deer in the headlights.

L immediately looked downwards in embarrassment. "Well, yes, I assumed…"

There was a great swell of warmth building in my chest, a surge that was growing too large for me to contain. "Ryuzaki…" I murmured, praying that the grin on my face didn't look as foolish as it felt. The detective looked almost frightened as he met my gaze, as if he expected me to yell at him or something equally ridiculous.

Misa's eyes narrowed into slits. "You," she spat, "are no such thing!"

I believe L could have let it go if she'd stopped right there. If Misa had just dropped the subject, backed away, then the damage may have been reparable. But Misa didn't know when she had gone too far—and her next actions crossed the line by several miles.

"All you are is a desperate old man!" Misa went on. "Completely useless! You're only chasing after Light because there's no one better around!" She pulled away from me just far enough to jab one finger at L accusingly. "Why can't you just leave him alone? He doesn't love you, he loves me!" She turned back to me, both hands winding into the fabric covering my shoulders. Too late, I realized what she was about to do. She pulled me down with surprising strength, and in an ill thought out, foolish moment, she pressed her lips to mine.

Our lips had barely made contact before I heard L let out a furious hiss. There was a sudden rush of air around me, a dull thud, then the sound of flesh hitting flesh. I blinked, and by the time my vision refocused on what was in front of me, L already had Misa pinned back against the wall. Some of Misa's hair had escaped her carefully styled pigtails—she looked almost like she'd received a minor electric shock. And most noticeably, her lipstick was speared ever so slightly.

"Let go of me!" Misa shrieked, pushing back against L, who had one arm firmly across her shoulders. The detective was hunched over, hair hanging in front of his face. "What are you doing?"

L raised his head, and I saw a red mark forming on his cheek. Misa had slapped him. "Leave."

"What?" Misa wailed. "What you mean leave? Sayu invited me, I have a right to be here!" She turned her head to me, eyes wide and pleading. "Come on, Light, get him off me! You want me here, right?"

"W-well… um, I…" I stuttered.

Misa's eyes widened. Her mouth hung open embarrassingly. "You—you don't want…?"

"I mean…" I trailed off. I didn't hate Misa, not even close—but I certainly didn't love her.

She seemed to take my silence as affirmation. She pushed L off harshly and whirled back around to face me. In two large steps she was back in front of me, and for a moment I thought she would dare to kiss me again. L certainly seemed to be thinking the same thing, for he was already moving to intercept her—but before he could, Misa was already raising her hand, moving to slap me in the same way she had L. Immediately I raised my hand to catch her blow. But clearly it hadn't been necessary, for it was but a moment later that L's spindly fingers wrapped around Misa's wrist, holding her back with ease.

"You would strike the one you claim to love so dearly?" L questioned venomously. "You would stay in his presence even after he asked so clearly for you to leave?"

Misa wrenched her wrist away from L. "Whatever. You can't make me leave."

"Stay away from Light," L responded coldly. "Or I will remove you from the premises."

Misa sniffed indignantly, turning on heel. Without responding, she marched off in the direction of the ring of Sayu's friends, all of who were staring over at us with wide, concerned eyes.

For a long moment after that, a heavy silence fell between L and me. Then, assured that the prying guests had lost interest, I murmured, "I'm not sure if I should thank you or hit you."

"I'd prefer to be thanked," L responded lightly, raising a hand to the red mark on his cheek. "I've been hit enough for one day, don't you think?"

"Let me see," I urged. I gently pulled his hand away from his face, tilting his chin up slightly so I could get a good look at the mark. Misa had really done a number on him, I realized. The mark spread from just under his eye all the way down to his jaw, and it looked painful. I chuckled, "Be glad she didn't use her nails."

He shot Misa a scathing glare. She had her back to us now, and was chatting with Sayu's friends. "I despise her," L growled. "She shouldn't have touched you."

"Just let it go," I advised him. "It's not a big deal."

L shook his head irritably, wrenching his eyes away from Misa and returning his gaze to me. For a moment he merely stared at me—then a smile tugged at the corner of his mouth, and reached a hand up to my face, running his thumb over my bottom lip. "There was some lipstick," he explained when I shot him a confused glance.

"O-oh," I stuttered, warmth spreading across my cheeks.

Someone cleared their throat behind us. "Um… Light?" Sayu broke in. She was still watching the two of us, her eyes brimming with guilt. "I'm… I'm sorry."

"Don't apologize for inviting your friend," I protested, drawing away from L. "You couldn't have known what she would do."

She shifted nervously. "I'd better go talk to her," she decided. "I'll talk to you again before you leave, Light." She headed off in Misa's direction.

I turned back to L. His eyes had locked back in Misa's direction. "Come on, let's get away from this for a while, okay?" I offered, seeing how tense he was.

He finally tore his eyes away from the model, turning back to me. "Get away?"

"Let's go up to my room," I translated. "It's just as safe there as in here, and it's a lot quieter. What do you say?"

For a heartbeat, something like excitement flickered through his gaze. Then he composed himself, responding, "I'd like that."

†††

My room was just how I'd left it. It looked the same exact way it had been before the Kira case began, before I met L. Before Beyond targeted me. Before… everything. My books were all neatly in rows on my bookshelves, my computer was perfectly straight on my desk, my bed was untouched. If I opened my closet, I knew that several of my outfits would still be there—though most of them had migrated to the task force headquarters.

"It hasn't changed," I remarked, more to myself than L. "It's been the same since I was in grade school—with a few minor changes, of course." I stepped further into the room as if in a daze. I had spent countless months at task force headquarters, able to return home only for short periods of time. It seemed almost unreal to return now and find everything so untouched, as if I had never been away at all. The only things that seemed to have changed were mom and Sayu. I walked over to my desk and ran a finger over the top of my computer monitor. It came away caked in dust—apparently my mother hadn't wanted to clean in here since I'd left. As my eyes raked down my desk, I noticed that my mother had even left one of my drawers open. There was a key sticking from the lock… what had I been thinking? Why would I just leave the key there? I shrugged it off and moved on, heading over to my bed. On the wall adjacent to my bed there was a large window, one that I loved to keep open when I studied. But now it was closed, the blinds drawn depressingly. Right below it was a door that led out onto a small balcony. Thoughtlessly, I moved to the window and threw it open. Beams of light flooded into the room, illuminating the tiny dust particles drifting about. A soft rustle behind me caught my attention. When I turned around, L had pulled one of the books off my shelf and was flipping through the pages.

"You have quite a collection," he said. "I've red hundreds of mystery novels, but several of these are new to me. Where did you manage to obtain them all?"

"Online," I answered. "I got a few of them from America."

He looked up, a surprised expression on his face. "Do you read English?"

"I read enough to understand the books I have."

"How typical of you…" L put down the book he was holding, directing his gaze to the bottom shelf. "Ah, forgive me, Light. But is that a series dedicated entirely to cats on your bottom shelf?"

My eyes darted to where he was pointing. Oh, it was that shelf. Sayu's shelf. A few years ago, my little sister had entirely run out of space in her room to store all her books and manga. So, like the good older brother that I was, I'd let her use my bottom shelf for whatever she chose. And she'd chosen the Warriors series, the series L was currently criticizing. "They're Sayu's," I smiled. "I let her take over that shelf."

"I see…" he murmured, clearly amused.

I moved to my bed, seating myself on the ground so my back was leaning against the bedframe. I watched L run his fingers over the spines of my books, occasionally stopping to examine one. He looked the most relaxed I'd seen him in days, standing there in my room. I could hardly take my eyes off him, knowing that this may be the last time for a while he was this relaxed. As I watched, I leaned back even further, and my hand brushed something beneath my bed. Frowning, I grasped onto the object I'd felt and pulled it out from its hiding place.

"L," I called to him. "Come sit beside me and look at this."

The detective placed the book he was holding back on the shelf and came to crouch beside me, knees pulled to his chest, as per usual. I pulled up the object I'd removed from beneath my bed—a shoebox—and placed it on my lap, taking the lid off.

L blinked at the contents in confusion. "What is that?"

"It's a memory box. You collect things that remind you of the most important things to you, and you put them in a shoebox. Then you hide the shoebox so no one can find it." I pulled out a stack of pictures bound together via rubber band. "Everything in here is from when I was young." I unbound the pictures and handed them to L, and he began to flip through them as I reached for one of the objects in the box.

"You had friends?" L inquired, halting on a picture. I looked over to see that he was holding a photograph of my friends from grade school. We were standing in a wooded area, and there were several other members of our class standing behind us in the distance.

"Of course I had friends," I responded. "That was from a field trip—those two guys are Onodera and Takano, and we were pretty close."

"What happened to them?"

"Oh… I think they got into manga editing. I don't see them anymore."

L gave a slow nod, then continued flipping through the photographs. There were a dozen photos in the little bundle, and each one brought back waves of memories. I saw a picture of myself, my arms wrapped around a bundle of cloth that held the newly born Sayu. I saw a picture of my eighth grade graduation, and of myself standing on the podium to give a graduation speech. There were photos of other childhood friends, of past events and favorite places. It had been so long since I thought about the time I attended my cousin's birthday party, or the time I got to go to a school competition in Hokkaido with a few classmates.

"Look at this," I urged, nudging L's shoulder. The detective put the photos back in the box and accepted what I was trying to hand him.

"Letters?" he asked curiously. "And postcards?"

"Yeah," I said. "Mom and dad used to travel a lot and leave me here, before they had Sayu. They used to send me letters and postcards from wherever they went." L flipped through the letters slowly, eyes skimming each one.

"They love you," he murmured, and for a moment I thought I saw a hint of wistfulness in his eyes.

"No more and no less than your family loves you."

He looked up at me in surprise. "I believe I told you that I have no family."

"Yes, you do," I corrected with a smile. "You have your successors and Watari. They may not be a conventional family, but they're yours." I passed him another item—this time, an envelope full of ticket stubs from concerts, events, and movies I'd attended. I watched in amusement as L curiously removed one after another, making small comments whenever he found something interesting. When he pushed aside the envelope, I handed him the laminated paper bracelet I'd received when I had to go to the hospital to get stitches.

"It was the silliest thing," I told him when he asked what had happened. "Sayu left her rollerblades at the top of the stairs on morning, and I slipped when I stepped on them. I fell completely down the stairs and hit the back of my head on the railing. I scared mom half to death, and Sayu wouldn't stop crying when she saw all the blood… it was a mess."

L laughed, and I handed him the next thing, then the next. L took each object I offered, internalizing them as if they would tell him everything about me. Whenever he finished with one thing I handed him another, keeping my eyes carefully locked on his face. It was heartening to watch how he studied each trivial thing with such a fascinated expression, drinking in every new fact the learned about me. It went on like that for upwards of thirty minutes, the silence cracked only by L's occasional inquires and the rustling of paper. It wasn't long before I'd laid out almost every item in the box, spreading the past eighteen years of my life out on the ground around us. Only when there was one item left in the box did L pause.

I removed the last item with a frown. I didn't remember it. It was a folded up piece of paper the size of my palm, worn and ragged around the edges. With gentle fingers I unfolded the thing.

"What is it?" L murmured.

I didn't respond at first. I was too busy staring at what I'd just unfolded. I silently handed the paper to L, unable to find the words to describe it.

"My dream…" L read. He paused for a long moment, and I knew he was looking at the crudely drawn picture of my family and me, standing in front of what I thought was supposed to be our house. He took a moment to look up at me. "This is from when you would have been in kindergarten," he realized. His eyes went back to the paper. "My dream," he said again, "is to protect the world from evil, just like my father." He peered at me through a curtain of hair. "You had deep thoughts for a kindergartener."

I shrugged. "I just know how this world works. Everyone out there wants to believe in an ideal society. But in reality there's all this pain, all this misfortune going on all over the world, and no one cares as long as it's not happening to them. That's why we need people like my dad—like you. You're the only things keeping those criminals, those monsters from running free and slaughtering everyone beneath them." I reached over and took the paper from L, folding it back up and placing it in the bottom of the box. "I think I can understand Kira somewhat, in that regard. All those evil people… all those people who use others as stepping stones…those who killed without reason. He… he thinks that they should all disappear, right? I understand that."

"Light." L turned completely to face me. "Do you agree with Kira?"

I shot him an exasperated look. He'd agreed to stop accusing me, and here he was, doing it again. "L—"

"I'm not asking because I'm accusing you of being Kira," he cut me off. "If I am to be honest, I too understand why Kira does what he does. But one does not have to agree with an idea to entertain it, you see." His hand covered mine in what was supposed to be a reassuring gesture. "I merely want to know… do you agree with him?"

I stared the man in the eyes. Then, slowly, I shook my head. "No. I do not." I couldn't be sure, but I thought I saw a flicker of relief deep within L's obsidian eyes. "I understand how Kira justifies it to himself. Or at least, how the original justified it. But his logic is flawed—you can't call yourself a hero because you murder a murderer. All you've done is replace one criminal with another; nothing has really changed."

"Kira would argue that much has changed. Crime rates are down significantly, after all."

"No. They aren't. All that's happed is criminals have begun hiding their crimes. People are still being killed; crimes are still being committed. Criminals still run rampant. Look at it this way—when you take antibiotics for an illness, it works, right? It may take a few days, but the infection, or illness, or whatever you're fighting goes away. But illnesses aren't static, they're fluid. They move, they grow, they find ways around those antibiotics and come back even stronger than before. And the more you use that same antibiotic, the less it works. That antibiotic misses things, slips up. That's what's begun happening. Criminals have inoculated themselves against Kira, so to speak, by moving crime even deeper into the shadows. And once Kira finds a way to get to those hidden criminals, they'll move again, and again. It'll be an endless chase between Kira, the antibiotic, and criminals, the infection." I turned my hand beneath L's, threading our fingers together. "So no, I don't agree with Kira. Perhaps, if his method were actually effective, then I would think differently. But for now, when there are not only flaws in his logic, but in his methods, I cannot agree."

There was a small, goofy smile on L's face as my words registered in his mind. "I hoped you would say that." His other hand, the one not tangled with mine, came up and pressed to the back of my head, drawing me in until our foreheads pressed together lightly. "How did I survive so long without you?"

"I don't know," I chuckled. "How did you?"

His breath ghosted across my face as he laughed. Then he paused, and just for a moment we were still. There was a strange tension in the air, not unlike the tension I'd felt the night L had first kissed me. L ran his tongue over his pale lips nervously, and I felt his fingers curl more tightly around mine. "Light, can I…?"

I nodded slowly, not resisting in the slightest as he leaned in and kissed me. For just a moment I could tell he was trying to keep the kiss chaste—his lips were sealed, motions gentle. But just as quickly I felt that gentleness melt away, and all of the control he'd retained the previous night was gone. His hands closed on my shoulders firmly, and in a moment that seemed both too fast and too slow, he pulled me up and sent me sprawling back onto the bed with one firm push. For a short moment he stayed where he was, eyes flickering over me. But that moment was gone as soon as it had begun, and a moment later L was suddenly on top of me, lips covering mine in a kiss that had lost all chastity. His tongue dated out teasingly, brushing against mine just lightly enough to be maddening, and as his lips covered mine, I felt his fingers close around my wrists, locking both arms above my head with no chance of escape. L gave my wrists a harsh squeeze, and I got the message—don't move.

L's lips didn't break contact with mine even once as he released my wrists, sliding his hands down my arms, pressing his palms against my sides. And even when he finally broke away, he merely moved down to my neck, fastening his lips there and drawing deeply.

"L!" I protested, "Stop, you'll leave a mark!" But even as I said it, I tilted my head to one side invitingly. My arms were still stretched above my head, obeying L's silent command to stay there. I found it slightly troubling that my body seemed to be taking its orders from L rather than me, but L's roaming hands and warm lips soon vanquished any such concerns. I heard myself let out a soft, pleading noise against my will. And in response I felt a chuckle rise in L's chest, the sound breathless, and above all else, content. His cool fingers dipped beneath the collar of my shirt for just a heartbeat, and I was sure he could feel the blood rushing beneath my skin. But just a moment later those fingers had left my skin in favor of undoing the first button of my shirt, then the next, and the next, until L was practically ripping them open in his attempt to rid me of the article of clothing. It wasn't until he was in the process of tugging my shirt out from under me that he paused.

"Is this okay?" he asked, and I thought with some amusement that he should have asked me that before he started trying to rip my shirt off. Still, I nodded deliriously. No sooner had L seen the response than he'd finished yanking my shirt completely off in one, smooth motion, tossing it off the bed. I had no time to think, no time to realize how bad this situation could get, before L's hands were on my bare skin. With no cloth barrier separating skin from skin, L's motions seemed to grow in intensity. His tongue had long since stopped its infernal teasing, moving instead to tangle with mine in earnest.

L pulled away suddenly with a gasp, his chest heaving. "Light…"

"Hmm?"

"I think… " His fingers were still dancing across my bare skin, pressing into my sides maddeningly. I arched up into the touch subconsciously, sending a flicker of a smile across L's face. He dipped his head close, his lips brushing lightly against mine. His breath rolled across my face lightly, and I felt the tension in the room suddenly increase tenfold. There was a sudden but gentle tug on my belt, and my eyes flickered down to see the fingers of one hand curled around the buckle. L dipped his head even further, and his next words were barely audible, whispered into my ear in a soft, breathless tone. "Light, I think I might lo—"

There was a loud knock at the door.

L immediately drew away, moving so quickly I felt the air swish around us.

"Hey, L! Light!" a familiar voice called through the door. "What the hell do you think you're doing in there?"

I immediately scrambled to pull my shirt back on, fumbling with the buttons and adjusting the collar so the red mark spreading across my neck would be less visible. I pushed myself off the bed, stooping to gather the various items scattered around us and placing them somewhat carefully back in their box. L, meanwhile, leaned back against the nearest wall and struggled to get his breathing under control. He was terribly flushed, and it was painfully obvious just how much his control had slipped.

The voice sounded again. "Oh, for god's sake—I'm coming in! Please be fully clothed!" The door swung open to reveal Mello, standing with one hand partially covering his eyes.

"Uncover your eyes!" L spat irritably. "Nothing happened." The look he shot me was almost wistful.

Mello's eyes raked up and down our forms. "Yeah," he snorted, "tell that to Light's shirt. You do know it's off by one button, right?"

I felt my cheeks warm as I looked down at myself. He was right—in my haste I'd put it on completely wrong. While I fixed the buttons, Mello went on, "And you, L—you're blushing. I thought we were here so Light could see Sayu, not so you two could make out on his bed!" He jabbed a finger in my direction.

"Did you come in here just to interrupt us?" L growled, "Or did you have something else in mind?"

Mello rolled his eyes. "Sayu's about to open her presents, and then they're serving cake. Everyone's waiting for Sayu's precious big brother to get his ass downstairs!"

Oh, right… I'd been so swept up in what was happening with L that the whole party had just slipped out of my mind. "Sorry, sorry!" I turned to L. "Come on, let's go."

L hesitated for a moment, that wistful look overtaking his features. Then he nodded with a sigh. "Very well. We will continue this elsewhere."

†††

The rest of the party went exceptionally, with everyone seeming to have enjoyed themselves. When Sayu opened the jacket I'd given her, she practically shrieked with joy—and the rest of her gifts had certainly made her smile. After that, cake was served (which L, of course, ate an abnormal amount of). When it had finally come time to leave, L had almost dragged me out the door, barely giving me time to hug Sayu goodbye and apologize for not being around much anymore. I could tell that despite having a relatively good time, L was eager to get back to moderate safety. As he pulled me out the door, I promised Sayu, against my better judgment, that I'd come back and spend lots of time with her after the case was closed. The girl threw herself at me in a fierce hug, and I thought that she might have been about to cry as she bid me farewell. After Sayu's heartfelt goodbye, even L had a small smile on his face.

The five of us strolled down the driveway to the waiting limo. We all piled into the back, and as the door closed and locked behind us, I finally realized that nothing was going to happen. Beyond was not going to attack.

The instant we reached HQ and locked the doors behind us, L practically melted into a puddle of relief. The party had really done a number on him, and he seemed thrilled to be back where he thought Beyond couldn't get me.

"That was fun," Near commented as he flopped down on the couch. He removed another blank finger puppet from his pocket and began to work on it. I noted with amusement that the hair he was designing resembled Sayu's. A smile rose to my lips as I remembered my sister entering her phone number into his cell before we left. The blush that had spread across the young detective's face had been nothing short of hilarious. But while Near fawned over his success at getting Sayu's phone number, Matt and Mello hadn't taken their eyes off of L and me since we'd gotten in the car. I shuddered, remembering the look of shock I'd received from the two successors, and knowing that they now knew about my relationship with L. And Mello seemed especially irritated after walking in on us in my room.

"Yes, it was quite enjoyable," L agreed. Though I knew that he thought it had been enjoyable for other reasons entirely. "I am both relieved and confused that Beyond made no attempt on Light's safety while we were at the party. I am most curious as to why he hasn't done anything… it's not like him to wait."

Near looked up from the mini-Sayu. "If I were to guess, I'd say that Beyond loves drama. He may just be waiting until suspense is at its greatest. The anticipation will be just as bad as the abduction at this rate."

L growled. "The bastard. We'll begin work on tracking him down tonight."

"Great," I said. "Where do we start?"

"Oh no, you don't start anywhere," L said firmly. "The two of us are going to shower and go to bed early—it's been a long day, and I promised you a full seven hours of sleep every night. We'll be starting early tomorrow, and I don't want you to wear yourself out."

"I want to help you!" I protested indignantly. "I'm just as capable of the successors!"

"I know you are, but I'm not letting you loose sleep."

"Of course," I grumbled. "I end up hospitalized one time, and now I can't do anything."

L shot me a meaningful look. "I'm sending you to bed," he reiterated. "And for security's sake, I will be accompanying you."

"I heard you the first time," I huffed.

He narrowed his eyes, leaning in and lowering his voice. "Do I need to spell it out for you?" One arm darted out and snaked around my waist, and I was rendered momentarily speechless at his blatant display of affection. He'd certainly succeeded in horrifying the successors—Mello's features were twisted in disgust, Near was pointedly not looking at us, and Matt was determinedly staring at the screen of his Gameboy. "Well?" L urged, fingers digging into my side. "Do you understand?"

"Oh." I understood. "Oh."

L offered me his arm. "We should retire. It is late."

"Ah… yeah," I agreed. "Yeah, we should."

I looped my arm through L's, and he tugged me away with a smile.

This one was a blast to write. And I do mean write, not just edit. Originally this chapter was only three pages, so I had my work cut out for me reworking it! I have no idea what I was thinking when I originally wrote it. Anyways, I hope you enjoyed, and leave me a review if you did. I'll be back on Thursday with another chapter! And in the next chapter, as I've been saying for a while, the M rating goes into effect. So be ready for that!