A/N: Hey guys, so sorry for the delay- work got super crazy and I couldn't get away but here is an extra long chapter and tomorrow, you guys get another one! L and Reader make an agreement of sorts in this- read on to find out!

Boredom. That's the only word for it. The files are very detailed and I've decided to go in chronological order. At least my usual cases had a good old juicy murder or suicide story. These are just facts and hypotheses with a bunch of jargon. To cover everything, I've decided to go chronologically which means the initial stuff is mind-numbing as hell. Once I get to only the current task force's investigation, it should get better.

Aha, the pictures of Kira's puppets, let's see what they've got. A pentagram in a circle? Was the poor dude hoping for protection? If yes, then what from? If he knew who, or what Kira was, then why didn't he say so? I take a screenshot to look at it later.

The next 3 photos are just a bunch of text- poetry, badly written. Why would Kira make his victims write poetry in their last seconds? There's definitely a hidden message in there.

drive/folders/1gbSV_lnV8X41nRkETMW_nT_C_Bnf2qBx?usp=drive_link (A/N: check out the 3 photos in this link)

A fearful ode to Kira, not likely. Hmm…first letter of every word? …Nope, doesn't set. Let's reverse. Nada. First letter of every line? Nuh-uh. Reverse again. Bingo!

Ldoyouknow

I pick up the next 2 photos and decipher them quickly.

L do you know shinigami only eat apples (A/N: The photos says reapers cause they're from manga but I'm following the show and it says shinigami there- so please bear with me)

Shinigami? What's this? Sounds like my thing.

A simple search on my personal laptop (with internet access, suck it L) paints one picture- Japanese Spirits of Death.

/japanese-god-of-death-shinigami/ (You can read this article upto Making the Shinigami Angry)

The lore says that Shinigami only take people who are already close to death, but not all of these criminals can be close to death at the same time suddenly. Did someone grow a pair and get a Shinigami on a leash? How? By giving them apples? That also doesn't explain the heart attacks. Shinigami make people commit suicide so what's with this new MO? And where do the names and faces fit in? If a Shinigami wanted to kill someone, they just got to possess the person. Kira is not a Shinigami then, but someone who is using a Shinigami in some way at least. This is dangerous. As a rule, reapers or gods or spirits of death are invisible to everyone save those who die- or those who bind them. No EMF or cameras will catch anything. Should I summon Death? He could have jurisdiction over Shinigami too since he's the literal anthropomorphic representation of death. If he finds out one of his own is fucking around or bound, he could deal with this on his own. But wouldn't he know already? And he hasn't done anything which means he's not interested or whatever's happening is not wrong- atleast not according to him. Calling him is risky as I have no backup and if he feels I'm wasting his time, he could very well arrange my death. Perhaps later, as a last option with a delicious pizza offering.

Anyway, I shouldn't rule out the possibility that this could just be to throw L for a loop. He has disregarded this as nonsense but still. Let's file this for later.

The envelope. Penber dying. If Light is Kira, he has a Shinigami chained up somewhere. The footage from the households is next. I first check the Yagami tapes, and it is just as L said. Light is too straight and narrow. It seems practiced, and intentional. He is not as relaxed as a teenager should be at home but seems to be putting on a play. Another thing, he's talking to himself while doing homework. Now whatever they show you on movies and TVs, nobody talks to themselves out loud about their day or what they're doing. I've watched more houses and even more people than you can count. Just doesn't happen, nope. The fact that Light is doing it means he wants somebody to listen. The messages would mean nothing to the police watching the cams, which means it's for someone else. Someone invisible to us. Shinigami again? Congrats Light, you're top suspect once again, though it's apparent by the handcuffs that he never made it off L's list. I watch all of his footage but there's nothing except this gut instinct that Light is not right.

To be on the safe side, I watch the Kitamura tapes carefully too. They're normal in the way normal people are- cleared immediately. The Sakura TV incident is next and on comes the tape L made me watch. After that, there are 2 tapes- yes and no. This must be for the police's decision to join or stand against Kira. There's truly nothing useful in them, what a waste.

The response of Second Kira to Light's tape was interesting. Verify each other's identity by showing each other their Shinigami? Kira doesn't have eyes? Hm…there is a Shinigami after all. I need to dig deeper but before that, I listen to all Second Kira tapes for any other clues. There's nothing in the tapes but the diary entry from last year has that word, Shinigami, again. At a match- it could be possible to blend in with so many people but could they be so stupid as to be so obvious? Hang on, the Second Kira sent a message on the 23rd saying they'd found Kira. This means the entries before it, probably the one of the 22nd, is the correct one.

Met with friend in Aoyama and exhanged notes.

What does this mean? What's the clue that only Light could understand that made him volunteer to go to Aoyama? It sure as hell isn't a coincidence. If Misa is the Second Kira, she must have set sights on Light at some point. The CCTV footage didn't show Misa anywhere so she was either invisible, in disguise, or was watching the cameras. This means she would've seen something about Light- something only meaningful to her or something invisible. Shinigami.

Maybe I'm getting tunnel vision but the possibility of this being right is too high. Shinigami has already been mentioned thrice, once by Kira and twice by the Second Kira in the tape and diary entry. L mentioned they'd been acting strange during the investigation, let's check out that footage. L wasn't joking around when he confined Misa. She's strapped to her chair like she's a deadly, vicious killer and not a dumb blonde. Is she a deadly, vicious killer? She's surprisingly tight-lipped too. Normally it's a challenge to shut her up. She's protecting someone, her beloved Light maybe? She suddenly starts crying on the screen to kill her. 5 minutes after this, she passes out. When she comes to, it's like she's the dumb blonde again. Something happened when she passed out. Was the spirit of a Shinigami possessing her? And it left her when it realized the girl was useless now- begging for death. If so, why didn't the Shinigami just kill her? It's not like there's any lost love.

Light's confinement is the same way except he isn't bound. He's still all serious and silent though, despairing that he's Kira. About 2 weeks later, he changes his tune saying he isn't Kira. Begs to be let out. Why is he contradicting his earlier statements? Shinigami spirit left him too when it figured that Light would be useless under 24*7 surveillance? Question is- were Light and Misa aware they were possessed? Are they like Jeffrey? The guy wanted the demon in him, did these guys want the Shinigamis? Figuring I wouldn't get anything more from the data, I put the laptop aside and start my own research on how the hell is Shinigami connected to Kira.

Stretching my back, I meet eyes with Ryuzaki. God knows how long he has been staring at me. The intensity of his gaze makes me believe he wants to actually read my mind. The genius he is, he probably reads me more than I know. Not wanting to hide, I lock my laptop and boldly walk over to him. The best plan of action is honesty here- partial honesty, cause there's no way in hell he wouldn't admit to the psych ward if I said I wanted to investigate the Japanese Gods of Death.

"Can I have a word in private, Ryuzaki? Just you and me", I whisper.

The staring continues for a moment until he uncuffs himself from Light, gets up to walk out of the room with a quick, "follow me".

He takes us 2 floors up to an exact replica of the command center down there, only smaller. "This is Watari's office, the only other room besides mine and the control center that isn't under surveillance. Based on the tone of your request, I assume you don't want the other team members to know of it."

At my nod, he sits in his usual position on a chair. "Speak."

"The following questions and requests might seem weird but consider them the most important. Now tell me, what is it about Light and Misa that makes you sure that they are- or were- doing the murders?"

"The clues-"

"Forget the clues for a damn minute. What does your gut tell you? Why do you feel that they're murderers?"

After silence stretches for a while, L says in a quiet voice, "His eyes. They had an evil glint to them. His expression. Always perfect. Always what I would expect. It looked manufactured, not real. His intelligence. He could do those murders and get away with it. From the first time I laid my eyes on him, a part of me has always been sure that he is Kira. As for Misa, my interactions with her aren't frequent. She was apprehended as soon as her DNA was found on those packages. Apart from her mind turning quickly that one time, there's nothing weird I've noticed about her. There is one thing I neglected to mention about her though. Misa's parents were killed by a burglar in her presence. The suspect walked free due to insufficient evidence. Kira killed them. She adores Kira for that. She also adores Light. Which means she could be the second Kira if Kira was Light."

"Misa isn't the chief concern here- but we will have to be careful with her. I'm going to say something, Ryuzaki, and you're not going to like it. The worst thing you could've done is make Light a part of the task force and then keep Misa around. If Misa is the second Kira who can kill by just knowing the face, you'll be instantly dead when her power gets back to her. And you're only safe from Light as long as he doesn't know your name."

"You're sure that he is Kira then?"

I'm quick to deny it because I do not know for sure. Another thing I've learned in my world is half of the time, the unexpected guy is the killer. For all I know, it could be Matsui.

"Then why didn't you say "if"? You said that I'm only safe from Light as long as he doesn't know my name. You didn't say "if he is Kira"."

"Slip of tongue," I'm quick to lie. Truth is, with L's conviction, I have strong doubts about Light as well.

"Nevermind that Ryuzaki. Now focus. In a day or two, I'll show up with some "order from headquarters" that will get civilians off the investigation. The control isn't in your hands anymore; some unknown FBI department is taking over the reins."

"That way you can get rid of Light and Misa without making it seem that we are still suspicious of them," L ponders.

"Bingo. You're number 1 on Kira's hitlist, Watari is probably number 2 based on how close you two are. If those 2 are Kiras, we have to make it seem as if you're not a threat anymore."

Truth is, I'm not sure this is what Sam and Dean would've done. But they're not here and the decision falls to me, so I'm going to roll with this.

"Reasonable. But I do not want Light off the investigation. He is intelligent and on the chance that he is not Kira, his help will be crucial. And if he is Kira, I want to keep an eye on Misa and him."

I let loose a disbelieving laugh. "Listen sugar cube, you do not know how much danger you're in. I've almost identified Kira's source of power and it is not something you can control. Not a criminal you can lock up or keep an eye on. This is beyond your reach. Not an insult or a doubt on your abilities, just the truth. I want to keep you guys safe. You and Watari will die in this investigation if we don't cut off Light and Misa right now. They know about your every move and can counter it. If the Chief is leaking the information, even unknowingly, I'll come up with a way to replace him too. The entire task force, if necessary."

"What are you so afraid Kira will find out?"

"The investigation details, dumbass. What else?"

L's stare grows even more piercing if possible, his head cocked to the side. Adorable. "No, that's not it. You've been on edge the whole time you've been here. You appear sad too; sadder than a normal human. Something is bothering you. The whole time you've been convincing me, you've had a desperate energy about you. You also keep fidgeting. For anyone else, I would say they weren't just cut out for this, but you are. Your hands, your stance is of a fighter. You will push away your discomfort by squaring your shoulders and tilting your chin up. You are brave, and experienced too. Then what is it about this investigation that has you on edge?"

The guy learns more than he lets on. For the first time, I realise that L is not just a cute little weirdo. L is the number 1 detective in the world and I need to stay on guard around him or he could very easily figure out what a vault of secrets I am. At the moment though, I want to answer his questions honestly. It's been so long since somebody has taken the time to really see me. Neglect is getting to me. I'm also in need of some desperate human comfort. What would being hugged by L feel like…L would be such a great cuddle partner…who is still looking at me expectantly.

"You're right, L. I'm not afraid of Kira finding anything out, except your and Watari's real names. I am on edge because this is dangerous. And I have no one. My team- we were 5 people. Now it's just me. This is the first time I've taken on something so big without them. I'm scared that I won't be enough, that I'll mess up. That's why I was being pushy earlier because I want to make sure you're safe in case things go south. The lead I'm working on- if Kira finds out…it wouldn't be pretty. If there's even a chance that Light and Misa are the Kiras, we need them off the investigation. I'm alone, and the danger this entails…I'm worried I won't be enough to handle it."

L's eyes have predictably stayed on my face the whole time I've talked. Now that I've made the confession, sweat is breaking out on my back. The air feels hotter, draining me of my energy. I want to take my words back. The longer L stares, the bigger the urge to crawl into a hole and die. Stupid word vomit. I wanted to earn his respect and view me as an equal, now he'll just see a scared, incompetent girl who doesn't feel up for a challenge.

"It doesn't seem like you will mess things up. Your level of concern shows you will take the utmost care with this investigation. I am…glad of this."

I feel warm again but this warmth is very much welcome. To prevent word vomit again, I stay silent and just give L a grateful smile, seeing which he continues.

"I will agree to your plan of taking Light and Misa off the investigation- but they will remain under surveillance. You can say that all the previous suspects must remain under surveillance as a precautionary measure- orders from headquarters."

"Okay, we can make that work."

"That's not all. This lead you're investigating- I want to investigate it with you."

Yeah, right.

"No way in hell, L. It isn't your thing."

"Then you don't investigate it either. You said so yourself, you feel alone. You're used to working with your team. We can work together on your lead. And don't forget your promise from yesterday. You di agree you wouldn't make any moves for the first few days without consulting me. Besides, I am the world's number 1 detective. Who better than me to investigate with you?"

The logic is sound- and that's one of the problems. How will L react to knowing that monsters are in fact real, that they defy his logic? That Shinigami are probably real too? Even if it isn't a Shinigami, it's 100% something supernatural. How would he be justice then?

"L, you don't understand. My way of working is very different. Things are looking bad, and the world is actually worse than you think. The lead I have- if it's actually right- we will have a big problem on our hands. And you may be the best detective in the world but you are not equipped to handle this."

"If you refuse, I will Light and Misa with us. Your choice."

Damn him. I can't exactly take the guy to a bar of hunters and make inquiries about spirits of death. I can't take him hunting, period. At least not until I know what I'm dealing with.

"How about a compromise? We take Light and Misa off the case, and I do a little research on my lead. If it's the real deal, I'll tell you immediately and we can work together on it. If it's bullshit, no point in risking your life over it. Fair?"

Eyes narrowed, he thinks it over. Too bad if he doesn't agree cause there's no chance I'm budging on this one. With my luck, the minute we step out of the building, we'll be attacked by vampires or something that'll result in the demise of the world's greatest detective. It isn't like I haven't already gotten a world famous individual killed. Not that he was a human. Just a shape-shifting, all-eating monster that God himself locked away after realizing he fucked up.

"Acceptable. But I will put a tracking device on you to keep me notified of your location at all times. If it is truly as dangerous as you say, you must be monitored", L finally decides.

"Fine by me. But you can't come in- no matter what- unless I explicitly ask you to. Clear?"

"Alright. Will you follow your lead after Light and Misa leave?"

"No, I'll start right away. Staying discreet for 2 days isn't a problem."

"I'll have Watari give you a tracking device as soon as he returns from his errand. Don't leave until then, and certainly not without informing me."

"Who says I'm leaving now? Phase 1: Research on my laptop. I'm getting the laptops and holing up in my room. Do NOT let Misa come in. Can't-"

"-let her know what you're working on. Fine. I'll send Watari there. Let's go back now."

As L and I head back to the command center, my chest feels lighter than before. Even though he doesn't know everything, he's still on my side. I have a plan. Research on the web, research in the local library, meeting the local hunters, confirming the monster, how to kill it and then killing it.

Easy-peasy, right?

A/N: If you liked this chapter, please follow, favourite and leave comments or else how will I know to continue? :)

XOXO