CHAPTER 19 - THE TOURNEY, PART II

Misa and Light realized they stepped into another phase of the tourney, as soon as they entered a new corridor. It was different. No longer lingering in gloom and darkness. There were torches around the walls and fire was quietly crackling in the empty place.

"At least we don't need Lumos anymore." Light said and turned off his charm.

They were slowly heading forward, this time Misa leading them, while Light was guarding from behind. In the lightened corridor he didn't need to pay so much attention, so his mind slowly started to wander.

He felt torn apart.

On one hand he felt surprisingly lighter and safer, now that he and Misa had a little talk, but on the other hand, the weight of what she told him, was slowly falling on his shoulders. It felt like he unlocked a drawer full of feelings he kept locked for years. He suddenly felt a need for a genuine companionship of another person and he didn't like it a bit. Because it meant that all his current friendships were actually not as deep as he lied himself they were.

After a few minutes Misa noticed Light got silent and serious. Depressed even.

Maybe I shouldn't have been so hard on him… she thought and decided to distract him from whatever was now running through his mind:

"Light? What is Lawliet like? When you are alone?"

Light was immediately pulled back to reality and chuckled at that question. Not really knowing why.

"Pain in the ass…" he said, but there was no hate or anger in his voice. He sounded ironic as well as amused. For some reason, he was happy they were talking about that man again.

Misa looked over her shoulder and gave him a scolding look: "Don't be mean! You know he is trying to help you!"

Light rolled his shoulders and bit his lower lip not to laugh. He found funny how protective Misa was when it came to Lawliet. Like the man needed a protector.

"Hey! You asked a question, I just answered!" Light teased her.

Misa stopped walking and turned fully to face him: "He can not be that bad…"

Light scratched the back of his head. He knew Misa wanted an honest answer and because they were in some kind of Only-talking-the-truth labyrinth, there was no point not to give it to her:

"From time to time, he is quite alright. But it never lasts long. Everytime when I think he is quite tolerable, he says something completely inappropriate and destroys the image."

Misa nodded but seemed to be lost in thoughts. Light decided to leave it be and headed forward. Misa followed him but after a few steps said:

"I think he must be lonely…"

That made Light stop in his tracks:

"What?"

Misa started going around him in circles while she was explaining herself:

"Well... he is the only teacher in his 20's at Hogwarts and I didn't see him talking much with anyone but professor Wammy. I think it must be hard for him, because he is close to us by age, but he can't take us as friends. I think you can't expect him to act as other professors, he is simply too young for that."

Light raised an eyebrow. He was quite taken aback with Misa's thoughts. They run much deeper than he expected. And much deeper than his, which was... quite unsettling.

"I wasn't thinking about it that way… but you are right, in many things he says, he is... like a teenager." Light said, trying to ease the atmosphere by teasing Misa again.

But Misa didn't seem to notice that at all. She was still talking out her serious line of thoughts:

"Maybe he just doesn't know how to act around you... you are the closest person to him. Because in our classes he is very professional."

Light opened and closed his mouth before blurting out his answer:

"I wouldn't say he is professional at classes. He is acting like a brat everywhere he is…"

"You really are too hard on him. He is doing his best. You must admit he is a great teacher." Misa said with hands on her hips, looking ready to slap him.

Light rolled his eyes: "Yes, he is a great teacher but his attitude and appearance…"

"I find him very attractive." Misa cut him off with a sharp tone but her eyes went dreamy.

Light instinctively clenched his fists and gritted his teeth: "We all know that, Misa…"

The blond giggled: "Hihi… yes, I am not trying to hide it… unlike someone..." she said the end of the sentence with a very suggestive tone, while eyeing Light from head to toes.

"What?! What are you talking about?" Light asked quickly and felt his pulse raising up.

Misa smirked. She hoped she would have an opportunity to confront Light about this theory of hers.

"I've seen the way you looked at him when you were in the arena. You like him too, Light." Misa said with a sharp tone.

Light felt like she slapped him. He literally made a step back and his heart started wildly racing in his chest. He felt exposed. Which was ridiculous because...

"Whaaaat?! I don't like him! He looks like a frog and his behaviour is repulsive!" He spat at her.

Luckily, Misa didn't seem to notice his hesitation and started packing around Light again.

"Maaayybeee he is not exactly the typical beauty, but you must admit there is something about him."

"Like what?!" Light asked, his eyes following the girl who was circling around him like a hungry wolf.

"Well… he is a powerful alpha. You can sense it in the way he speaks..." Misa started and observed Light's reactions.

Light knew exactly what Misa was talking about. But Misa had no idea what she was talking about. Yes, Lawliet was a powerful alpha. One could sense in the way he spoke but it was nothing, next to the power of that man's scent. He was practically irresistible and no matter how ugly Light found him in most of the occasions, he was drawn to him as a magnet.

Misa continued and Light was able to imagine the man right before his eyes: "... And when he looks at you with those big black eyes you feel like he is looking right into your soul…"

"Grey…" Light cut her off without thinking.

"What?" Misa asked with wide eyes.

"His eyes are not black, they are very dark grey. It's not visible from afar but you'll notice there are many shades of grey if you'll get close enough." He said, like it was a normal conversational topic and then, heard Misa take in a sharp breath.

Their eyes met.

Light suddenly realized, through the look in her eyes, that he actually said it out loud.

"How close, did you get to him, Light?" Misa asked with and made a step closer.

Light took a step back and started defending himself: "I didn't mean it like that! He was just sitting opposite to me behind the desk in the classroom, so I noticed! Nothing happened, I swear!"

Misa suddenly hurtled forward, pinned Light against the wall and took both his hand into hers: "Light, listen to me, this is an important moment! I like you, I really do and I do want to be your friend, but I have to know, what are your feelings for professor Lawliet!"

His eyes widened and he felt crazy uncomfortable, with his back pressed against the cold wall and in front of him one crazy girl with crush clouded eyes.

"Whaaaaat?! Misa, don't be ridiculous, there are no feelings!" He started defending himself and tried to look everywhere, but at the girl.

Misa pressed even closer to him and put a hand on his heart. Light breathed in sharply. Now she could feel how his heart wanted to run away. He wished he could just melt to the wall and disappear.

"Light! You don't get it, do you?! I want to marry him! I want to be his mate! But if you are standing against me, I'll never stand a chance!"

Light felt like she just kicked his guts.

Marry him? Becoming his mate? Has she gone totally crazy?!

"Misa, what are you talk…" But he didn't get a chance to finish the sentence as she cut him off again:

"Light, you are closest to him from the whole school! He is already fond of you, he is giving you privates a few times a week! Sooner or later he will start to think of you as a friend and from that point, you could get anywhere!"

Light didn't like it a bit. He didn't like the situation, he didn't like that Misa wanted to marry Lawliet and he didn't like that she was literally pushing him to open parts of his mind that were strictly forbidden.

I need to keep my cool now. I can't think about this. Shit! I can't!

Light shook his head, still not meeting her eyes: "Misa, he is a teacher I am not thinking about him that w…"

Misa took his chin with her fingers and forced him to look at her: "Light! Be honest with me now! What are your feelings for L Lawliet?!"

Why? Why are these questions bothering me so much? Light asked himself and felt his whole being shaking.

"Misa, there are no fee…"

"Think of what you are telling me before you let it out of your mouth!" She said sharply and watched Light's eyes shattered.

Then, there was silence.

Light needed to get from this situation. He needed to escape Misa. But whether he wanted or not, the question was burning in his mind. It was like he was opening another drawer of thoughts and feelings.

What are my feelings for him?

Light gave it a second and actually allowed himself to think about it.

It was a difficult one.

He knew what his inner omega would say. But his inner omega was only acting on a strong pull he felt because he could smell the man's scent.

But Light himself?

He didn't like many things about him. He didn't like his bratty behaviour, he didn't like his frog posture, he didn't like when the man was laughing at him. But he did like the sound of his laugh. And the small wrinkles that were appearing around his eyes when he was laughing. And he liked how supportive he could be. And he loved the way he was doing magic. There was something elegant about it, which was a complete contrast to a man himself. Lawliet was a mystery to him. And deep inside, he wished he had a lifetime to unreveal every single piece of that man's soul.

Misa was watching how Light's eyes went dreamy, then sad and then dreamy again. A small smile appeared on his lips. She knew that look. She knew what that meant.

"Oh my God! ...You love him…" Misa suddenly let out and covered her mouth with both her hands.

Light opened his mouth to say something, but no words came out.

Then, they both heard sounds of hooves fastly approaching.

L was looking at the scroll with a map of the dungeons and watched as dots with names of students were moving. Many of them were already out of the game, now having a party at the great hall. Most of the students dropped out of the game somewhere during the first part.

Follow your instincts part, as L called it for himself.

Which was exactly the part Light and Misa were going through now.

While the first task, with the water cave was more of a sorting thing, kicking out the students who were not able to corporate at all, the second part was focused on basic instincts of survival. L had hoped it might help Light to stop thinking and act more on his primal voices. Althghout, not even fifteen minutes ago, L was quite sure Light would not even get there. He and Misa Amane got stuck in the water cave and it looked like they ended.

But that didn't happen.

L had no idea what they said to each other there, but it worked out well enough to persuade Moaning Myrtle to let them go.

He smirked to himself.

I wonder if Light figured this out.

Talking a ghost of Moaning Myrtle into cooperation was surprisingly easy. He played on her ego, called her a queen of school water pipes and the only one of ghosts who was young enough to understand teenage emotions. Then... she was up for the game. From the moment pairs stepped into the labyrinth she was following them and if they were not able to cooperate, she was bound to test them.

Only two pairs of 7th year were stopped at this very first task. Most of them didn't even know some test like that happened. Because if they were talking, Myrtle simply let them go. But with Light and Misa she took a lot of time. L did a mental note to question her about this later. He just hoped she managed not to reveal herself.

L run his eyes over the map again and check on the other pairs.

Mello was already out. Unsurprisingly. He was not the best at cooperation and the female alpha girl he was sorted with, probably didn't take it well. At one point, they separated and that was the end for both.

L felt a bit bad for Mello, because the boy would surely win if he was paired with Matt. The two of them were in unbelievable sync when it came to magic. But unfortunately, L added the rule of male and female in a pair, for his own selfish reasons.

No… it's not just that… they also need to learn how to cooperate with other people. L reasoned with himself.

Matt was also out of the game. He was in a pair with Sayu Yagami and none of them was quick enough to get through the instinct part. Sure, Matt was a good wizard. And he was unleashing more and more power in himself with every passing day. But he was not an instinctive person. At least, not yet. L smirked to himself knowing that a change in ginger boy was about to come.

The only one of the trio, who was still in a game, was Near.

The boy was getting stronger with his magic and his cold logic was helping him to get out from most situations. He was also paired with a very sportive and strong female beta which helped a lot. From the 5th year, they were closest to the end. At this point, L was sure they were going to win. But the tourney for 5th year was different and not as difficult as the one of 7th year.

L's eyes went back to the dot on a map glowing with Light's name.

Come on Light, you can do this.

Following hour in the labyrinth was pure hell. Because everything went too fast. They were almost constantly in a move, using magic while someone or something was attacking them. And for some reason, they were not able to get rid of anybody for a longer time. It was like those creatures just multiplied with each attack. Light and Misa destroyed them, only to run to the same danger again later, but twice as dangerous than before.

Light didn't have much time to think things through. He was currently fighting off a group of conjured mountain trolls. Misa managed to slow them down by some conjuring up some plants which tied up around their feet, but that was definitely not gonna hold them for long. They continued running, to get lead before those monsters would get free. This was the 3rd time they were fighting the group and those damn monsters were learning. It was harder to "kill" them everytime.

Light and Misa ran and when they turned around one corner, the corridor ended after 40 meters.

"Shit! A dead end!" Light let out with wide eyes, panting hard. He was already exhausted and on the edge of his strength. He was doing most of the offensive spells while Misa was conjuring their defences. But Misa had no idea that offensive magic was Light's Achilles heel. They just started working like that an hour ago, and it went on from that point, pushing Light to the end of his abilities.

Light was leaning his hands on his knees, his back bent, trying to catch a breath.

Misa came closer and patted his back: "It's alright, it's okay, Light. We can destroy them. Let's go." She said and headed back in the direction they came from.

Light shook his head and didn't move: "No, wait… we need to think this through. The longer we are running around, the more of them are there against us. They must be multiplying after every attack."

Misa stopped and went back to Light, helping him to stand straight again.

"But it has to stop somewhere… maybe we need to kill some amount of them and then…"

"No… this is Lawliet's tourney." he said, like it would explain everything. He headed to the death end, trying to find some hidden door on the wall, like before.

"Maybe we missed an exit. Maybe we are running in circles." Misa was thinking out loud.

"No… we aren't. I am sure. It's something else." Light said and cursed under his breath when he didn't find anything. They were trapped again. In just a minute they were going to be attacked by a group of mountain trolls, who were learning from their previous mistakes.

Great, that is just great. Light thought and leaned his back against the cold wall.

"Then we are not using the right kind of magic. They might react to a different spe…"

Misa didn't have time to finish the sentence as those trolls appeared in the corridor opposite them. But this time, there were not only trolls. Behind them, were all the creatures they fought in the last hour. And in a large number.

"Ooops." Misa let out and took out her wand, ready to strike.

Light stood frozen as wheels in his head started spinning.

...We are not using… the right kind... of magic...?! He repeated Misa's words in his mind and then he remembered what Lawliet was telling him over and over again:

You need to conjure those up as an omega would do it.

You have to do it differently.

You need to accept your omega part.

If you will learn to accept it, you can let go.

Light was watching the mountain trolls getting closer like in slow motion. Their ugly faces were contorted as they were yelling. Their fat bellies were jumping up and down and wooden mauls were in the air above their heads, ready to strike Misa and Light down.

Light took a deep breath and decided to give it a shot. He didn't have anything to lose now. He will be true to himself:

My inner omega is a family type. It wants a cozy home, full of children and a strong alpha, who would take care of us all.

He felt like all the adrenaline was leaving his body at that instant. The trolls were getting closer and closer… only 10 meters, 9…, there were flashes of light as Misa was sending her spells against them.

The alpha must be compassionate, but full of passion. Reasonable, but funny. And I will do everything in the world to be the same for him.

"Light! Do something!" Misa yelled at him, as she noticed Light was not helping her. But he didn't react.

We will be synchronized and we will love each other to the end of the world and back. The alpha will be my soulmate. My one.

Light didn't even realize that his inner omega and his own personality merged into one. Letting out not only what the omega wanted, but also what Light wished in the deepest corners of his heart and soul.

Then, Light heard a distant voice in his mind. But that voice was not his. Not even his inner omega's. The voice was saying:

Come on Light, you can do this.

Light snapped out of his trance in the moment when one of the trolls was already stretching out his hand to strike Misa with his maul.

What happened next was so quick that Misa didn't even know how it happened. One second, she was attacking a troll, second later she was ready to shield herself and then, Light was standing right in front of her. His wand was shining with a light so strong, that she could see even with her eyes closed.

The power of the spell surprised Light himself. He used Lumos Solem. One of the easiest and most basic spells to blind the enemy. But the light coming out of his wand was so bright and warm that the trolls turned to dust in that very second. The light ran through the dungeon corridor, destroyed every single magical creature and left only ashes.

Misa and Light were both standing, frozen in a place.

Misa opened and closed her mouth before looking at Light. He was standing right in front of her, like a human shield, looking in front of himself at his wand. He was as shocked as she was.

She put a hand on his shoulder: "Light?"

He didn't react, he was just looking at the wand with his eyes wide.

Misa frowned and stepped in front of him: "Light, are you alright?"

Light slowly nodded and a smile started forming on his face. Before he knew it, he was smiling from ear to ear and tears started falling from his eyes. Then he chuckled and started laughing hysterically. He was laughing so hard that the sound filled the whole corridor.

"Light? Light? What is going on?" Misa asked, confused and scared.

But he was still laughing as a fool. He was laughing so much that he even needed to support himself against the wall. Misa caught one of his arms, to make sure he will not fall to the ground.

"Light… talk to me, tell me what's happening!" Misa started yelling at him and she was afraid that Light went too far with his magic and lost his mind. That spell was incredibly strong, especially, for a simple 3rd years spell.

Light wasn't able to say anything. His mind was for once, completely empty. And he felt… incredibly happy.

Complete.

He didn't even need to think to know what happened. He felt it.

He got in sync.

For a moment he got in sync and the power of that moment made him conjure probably the most powerful substance of Lumos Solem anyone ever conjured before.

In the end, Light really fell to the ground, still laughing, while tears were falling from his eyes. Misa quickly crouched in front of him and took his hand. She was acting on instinct when she took his wrist and started rubbing their scent glands against each other. She needed to calm him down.

Light's laugh immediately died on his lips. Through their joined scent glands he felt the mild scent of fresh flowers and warm spring breeze. But it was not unpleasant. It was calming and felt familiar. It reminded him of his mothers scent. Misa was obviously trying to soothe him.

Light's scent felt strange. Misa felt a bit of cinnamon, maybe hot apples. And a fireplace, but too warm for her standards. It actually burned at her wrist a little. But she realized, through the scent, that Light was actually not upset. He was happy.

Eyes of them both went from their hands up at the same time, and their sights met.

"Do you realize, it is forbidden to use our scents on each other." Light asked, but he didn't try to take his hand away.

The fact was, that touching each other's scent glands was the only way for people using suppressants to smell each other. Magic was able to take away the scent in the air, but not the direct touch. Hand scent glands were not so sensitive as those on the neck, but still, it was an intimate act forbidden for students.

Misa let out a long sigh and took her hand away herself: "Don't you ever…. dare to scare me like this again!"

"Sorry…" Light said, gave her an apologetic smile and rubbed his wrist because it started itching a little: "But don't touch my scent glands again, please."

Misa threw her hands in the air: "I meant it well! You looked distraught, I wanted to help!"

Light nodded: "I know… I am not mad at you. But… don't do it again."

There was a moment of silence. They just discovered one another from a side, not many other people could and Light was not exactly sure how to act in that situation. But Misa wasn't thinking for a long time. It was not something she would see as a problem.

"Your scent is interesting… a bit like autumn!" She said with interest.

Light scratched the back of his head, feeling even more insecure: "Yeah… well… better not tell anybody. This interaction is forbidden for a reason."

"Aww… you exaggerate. It's just a wrist gland. It's not like I am forcing my scent on you or trying to bite you. This is used in medicine too, you know." Misa said and waved her hand in front of her face.

Light nodded: "I know but… please, don't tell anybody."

Misa tilted her head on the side and smirked: "Mmm… but only if you tell me what just happened? It seems like you fried them with… Lumos solem?!"

Light chuckled: "Actually I have to thank you for that."

"What?!" Misa let out and frowned in confusion.

Light shrugged: "When you said that we need to use different magic, I remembered something Lawliet told me in our classes. About using magic differently. And it obviously worked out."

Misa was even more confused than before. She had no idea what Light was talking about and she needed answers. But Light only waved his hand when she asked for more details.

"That's… a long story… for another time but… thank you, Misa! I wouldn't realize it without you! You really are a genius!"

With that Light stood up and headed to the wall where a door appeared at the moment he destroyed the monsters.

Misa was only looking at his back, opening and closing her mouth.