Touta Matsuda breathed a sigh of relief as he parked his car in the lot of the hotel that was currently serving as his workplace. He'd driven extra slowly so as to not spill the various coffeehouse drinks he had so meticulously arranged- two in the vehicle's cup holders, four in the cardboard carrying container on the seat beside him, and one in his hand. Never mind the irate blaring of car horns behind him all the way from the café to the hotel... he'd made it with all beverages intact and only a slightly burned hand, and that was a solid victory in his book.
Making use of a second carrying container, the young policeman shut the car door with his foot before turning to make his way into the hotel, a white paper bag of pastries tucked under one arm. When he reached the elevators, his elbow poked the button, and he sighed as he looked up at the descending numbers.
Sure, the hotel had coffee and baked goods available for room service, but the shop down the street was far superior in the opinion of his esteemed colleagues, and so he had been sent on an errand of trifling importance. Naturally, having overheard talk of a café, L had placed his own order, and now here Matsuda stood, his wrists already tiring.
The elevator doors opened with a ding!, and he stepped inside. He had to once again make use of his elbow to press the button for the correct floor, but in doing so, he managed to splash some mocha latté onto his shirt.
"Aww man!" he moaned, looking down at himself as the elevator began moving upwards. This shirt was new, and it was unlikely he'd get the chance to go home and change... and with it being only nine o'clock in the morning, he groaned with the realization that he was doomed to wear a coffee-stained shirt for nearly the entirety of the day.
There was another sharp little ding!, and the doors opened. Matsuda headed down the richly-carpeted hallway to the correct suite, and he used his foot to knock against the base of the door. He heard footsteps and then a pause. Then the door opened.
"Matsui." Chief Yagami addressed his subordinate using the alias L had given him. "Come in."
The Chief stepped aside, and Matsuda entered, holding up one of the trays. "Here, sir. The one on the left is yours. Er- my left, your right. Heh."
The other agents were quick to claim their own orders, and Matsuda juggled everything as best he could until there were just a few drinks left along with the white bag of pastries. He took it out from under his arm and straightened his shoulders as he saw L approaching.
"Here you are, Ryuzaki!" Matsuda presented brightly, ever eager to please. "Ah- one dozen assorted eclairs and... let's see, a... large triple chocolate mocha with extra whipped cream and extra sugar!"
"Thank you, Mr. Matsui," L replied with a tone of casual gratitude. One set of bony fingers lifted the drink from its tray as the other accepted the pastry bag. He observed that there were two remaining drinks in the tray... one was some sort of coffee drink, and the other was a strawberry milkshake.
Matsuda rubbed the back of his neck. "Ah... ha. I- I went ahead and brought something for Bean. I hope that's alright- um..."
"It's alright." L's voice was calmly plain. He tipped his head a bit as he turned away to return to his desk. "He's in there."
Matsuda glanced in the direction L had indicated, standing there for a few awkward seconds stuttering and debating whether or not parting words were needed. But it seemed L had clearly dismissed him, as he was now crawling backwards up into his computer chair with a cream-filled eclair held in his teeth. Matsuda swallowed and self-consciously swerved sideways to head into Bean's room.
The door was ajar, but all the same, he knocked.
"Come in!" came the small but upbeat reply.
"Hey." Matsuda's expression relaxed into a smile as he stepped into the room, the tray of drinks in one hand. The grin on his face was genuine now, no longer nervous or unsure of himself. Sometimes, he felt like the small boy was the only one he could be that way with.
"Hello." Bean tipped his head without looking up as he sat cross-legged on the floor with his back situated against a corner. Naturally, a hoodie string hung from his teeth. He was working on his schoolwork- a game with math problems on an iPad. His skinny, pale fingers tapped against the screen, popping bubbles with numbers that corresponded with the simple equations that appeared.
Even so, Matsuda raised his eyebrows when he saw what the boy was doing. Simple as the problems were, it was remarkable that they were being done by a five-year-old. He waited until the bright little boy finished the level, then he crouched down and held out the sugary pink drink. "I've noticed you like strawberries, so-"
"Ooh!" Bean's little blue eyes widened, a smile lighting up his face. He set the iPad aside, shimmying to sit on his knees as he reached for the milkshake.
Matsuda only smiled more at that.
Bean took a long sip, then smacked his lips. "It's good!" he decided, then he set it aside. Standing up, he took a few steps toward Matsuda, wrapping his arms around the young man's neck and surprising him completely so that he nearly lost his balance in his crouched position. "Domo arigato, Matsuda-san!"
Chuckling, Matsuda returned the childish hug. "Uh- Yokatta, Bean-chan. You're welcome!" His hand patted the boy's back.
Bean released his little arms and turned to sit right back down, taking the milkshake in both hands.
Matsuda stood upright again, swiping a hand back through his straight, black hair. His smile remained as he rejoined his comrades in the living room. Maybe a burned hand and a stained shirt weren't so bad...
Around midday, there was another knock on the hotel suite door, and it was once again the Chief who rose to answer it. The others stood as well, already having been expecting the newcomer.
"Come in, Light," Soichiro greeted, stepping aside for his son to enter.
"Hey, Dad." The teenager stepped inside, his worldly demeanor and quiet confidence maturing him beyond his years. He casually took in the room as the door was closed behind him. Then he bowed slightly to L and the other agents, the latter of whom returned the courtesy.
L walked over to him, extending a gaunt hand as he did. "It's good to see you again, Light. Thank you for coming."
Light took the handshake amiably. "Not at all! After all, I want to catch Kira as much as you do, Ryuga."
L's hand retreated. "I'll have to ask that you call me Ryuzaki here," he requested dryly. He didn't like handshakes. The gesture was in accordance with social civility, and so he complied... but he didn't like it.
"Ryuzaki," Light repeated with an agreeable nod. "Alright."
L proceeded to work with Light on the tapes from the Second Kira, though he didn't call the impersonator such. He wanted to see what Light would make of the audio recordings.
Interestingly enough, Light came to the same conclusion... that these tapes must have been sent by a copycat. The Task Force was amazed at Light's deduction and how closely it mirrored L's. The detective, however, was not so easily dazzled.
It was decided that they would reply to the tapes with a recording of their own. If they could trick the Second Kira into believing he was receiving instructions from the Original, then they could potentially lure him into a trap. L requested that Light play the part of Kira, stating that he believed he was the only one who could pull it off.
As Light sat down at a desk to script the message, he sighed with a lowered brow. Damn him... he seethed inwardly. He must've been planning this from the beginning. It's the only reason I'm here...
Ryuk chortled, and Light's eyes slid over to the wiry shinigami.
"You're really enjoying this, aren't you?" he muttered lowly, his tone almost accusing. L and the Task Force were all sat conversing on the other side of the large suite, and so Light kept his voice faint. If anything, the others would simply assume he was murmuring to himself as he worked on writing the message from Kira.
"It's sure entertaining," Ryuk replied, his gravelly voice brightened by glee. "I only wish there were some apples..."
"Tch." Light scoffed, the side of his face propped against the backs of his fingers as his elbow rested on the desk. He tapped the pen on the paper, thinking for a moment. Then he reluctantly began to write. Simply acknowledging this fraudulent wannabe felt beneath him...
"You weren't expecting this, Light," Ryuk teased. "Another shinigami, another Death Note... another Kira."
"Everything about these tapes is so mediocre," Light gritted in response. "It's making me sick to my stomach. It's a complete disgrace to everything Kira stands for!" He kept his voice hushed, but no less livid than if he were shouting.
"Who are you talking to?" a small voice asked.
Light's hand parted from his face. What the hell?
Two little hands took hold of the edge of the desk, and over the edge popped a pair of curious blue eyes beneath a mop of messy, black hair.
Light's own eyed widened. L's kid... It had to be.
"Who are you talking to?" The question came again, rising and falling with childish inflection.
"Uh... no one." Light glanced behind his shoulder to where L and the others were completely oblivious to the little exchange occurring on the other side of the room. "I was talking to myself."
"What are you writing?" Bean went up onto his tippy toes as he strained his neck to see.
Light shifted his arm a bit, discreetly hiding the bit of his speech that gave the fake Kira permission to kill L. "Actually, it's something very important," he answered, his tone mirroring his statement. "For your father, actually, so... I think I should probably get back to work." He added a friendly smile, cool and casual.
"You work for Papa now?" The boy wasn't about to be dismissed so easily.
Light chuckled, but it annoyed him when Ryuk did too. "Uh... More with than for."
"I know your name." Bean sounded like he was quite pleased with himself about that.
Amber brown eyes met the small blue pair again, this time with a questioning expression.
"It's Light." Bean continued simply, as if in a boast. Dropping back down onto flat feet, he stuffed his hands into his hoodie pockets and walked around the desk to stand beside the chair. "I saw you on the TVs. And, you went to lunch with Papa." He peered up at the Japanese teen.
"Well... aren't you observant?" Light flashed another easy smile. "So, what has your Papa told you about me?" he asked with a tone of amusement.
"He thinks you're Kira," Bean informed bluntly. He tipped his head. "Are you?"
All at once, the inner workings of Light's mind pressed pause on the world, separating himself from this boy who stood before him as if they were now red and blue- two contrasting colors representing two opposing sides.
What the hell? How much does this kid know? How much did he hear? He's smart... I suppose that's not surprising. I'll have to watch myself. No more talking to Ryuk then. That's for sure.
And then he chuckled easily, having not missed a beat in real time. "No, of course not. That's why I'm here to help. I want to catch Kira. Just like your Papa does." One arm was draped casually over the back of the chair now, and he interlocked his fingers.
Bean's eyes didn't leave Light's, and vice versa. Long, little fingers lifted a hoodie string to pearly white baby teeth, and the two just looked at each other for a moment.
And then L's son gave a short sigh and a shrug. "Well... Papa's usually right," he said simply. Then he turned and trotted away, leaving Light's eyes to blink in surprise...
...and then they narrowed into a deep and contending red.