Northwest Washington, D.C. FBI Headquarters.
Miles Fitzerald's phone rang, and he quickly recognized the number on the screen.
Answering promptly, he identified himself as "Fitzerald speaking."
The voice on the other end was familiar, yet altered.
"This is Watari," came the reply.
Fitzerald was prepared for the call, but felt a sense of anticipation nonetheless. He knew that Watari acted as L's spokesperson and only contacted him on rare occasions, indicating that L had given instructions.
Maintaining a steady tone, Fitzerald asked, "How may I assist you, Watari?"
"L has requested that the FBI conduct an investigation and surveillance on individuals who are deemed potential Kira targets listed in the file that we have just sent to you," Watari stated. "Kindly refer to the email for further details."
While still on the phone with Watari, Fitzerald noticed a new email notification featuring the Wammy's House Organization coat of arms. He opened the email and saw the attached file, which was encrypted. Fitzerald quickly entered the password provided by Watari and saw the list of targets, along with their locations in Tokyo, Kanagawa, Saitama, and Chiba.
The email contained instructions to deploy a total of 12 agents, with the majority assigned to Tokyo. Due to the sensitive nature of the mission and the need for efficiency, priority was given to current FBI agents in Japan. Additional agents may be dispatched from outside Japan if required.
Fitzerald was instructed that the mission was classified and authorized by L, and he should maintain confidentiality with his agents, who should only be aware that it is an FBI assignment.
"Your objective is to surveil the targets and have your agents report to you. You will be the sole point of contact with me," Watari instructed.
"Understood. I will assign our most capable agents to this task. We will conduct a thorough investigation and provide updates on any findings."
Watari expressed appreciation for Fitzerald's cooperation and added, "We have confidence in your agents' abilities to assist us in this matter."
And with that, the phone call came to an end.
The familiar knock on the door of L's room signaled the arrival of his regular guest.
"Come in," he said, turning to greet the person he expected to see.
It was only Watari who walked through the door, and the absence of Meredith did not go unnoticed by L. As Watari greeted and approached, L watched him place the tray of dessert on the floor before asking the question that had been on his mind since the moment he noticed that Meredith was nowhere to be seen.
"Watari, where is Meredith?" he asked.
Although England was still cold, the arrival of spring was imminent. L and Meredith had been playing various games together for some time now, from Shogi to chess to Go. While she excelled in Shogi and L in chess, they enjoyed playing Go together.
On days when they did not feel like playing, L would work on his computer while allowing Meredith to stay in his room, reading books. They often discussed a variety of topics, ranging from science, philosophy, and literature to complex mathematical puzzles and riddles that piqued L's interest.
L had been diligently studying Japanese and was now able to hold normal conversations with Watari and Meredith in the language. They communicated with each other mostly in Japanese, and she even taught him how to write in the language. Soon, he was able to read, speak, and write fluently. He found it to be quite useful, especially when they would meet for meals with the other children at Wammy's, as speaking in Japanese allowed them to have private conversations without fear of being overheard.
"Meredith is practicing for her upcoming music competition in her room," replied Watari, placing a dessert bowl in front of L. He noticed that the usually detached boy had somehow grown accustomed to having Meredith present during dessert time, and he was quite gratified.
L stared at the unfamiliar dish, a reddish-brown liquid with a smooth and creamy white object floating on top. The steam emanating from the bowl was hot, and the sweet, nutty aroma was overwhelming, but impossible to describe.
"What's this?" asked L in Japanese.
"It's zenzai, and I also brought you a cup of matcha," replied Watari, placing the cup beside the dish. The liquid in the mug was a vibrant green, with a smooth, velvety texture, and tiny bubbles on the surface. L could see the delicate whisk marks on the surface of the drink, giving it a frothy appearance. The aroma was fresh and grassy with a hint of sweetness, inviting him to take a sip.
"I thought you might be interested," Watari said with a warm smile. He had noticed L's puzzlement when he overheard him and Meredith reminiscing about a Japanese winter dessert on that day. After observing L starting to learn Japanese, he thought it would be a good idea to prepare zenzai for today's dessert, "Why don't you call Meredith from her room and join us? It would be a pleasure if she could have zenzai with us."
L pondered for a moment and eventually got up on his knees.
"I'll go get her."
L had never been to Meredith's room before, despite it being just a short distance away, in the opposite direction from his own. As he walked towards her room, he instinctively checked the hallway for any potential obstacles or threats. It wasn't that he was afraid of encountering anyone, but he knew he needed to be prepared to defend himself in case anyone tried to harm him - just like on his first day here.
Upon entering Meredith's room, he noticed that the door was slightly ajar and he could hear faint music coming from inside. As he gently pushed the door open, his attention was immediately drawn to the large window dominating the far wall, which let in a flood of natural light, illuminating the room and casting a warm glow on everything within it. A pristine white desk is positioned in front of the window, maximizing the use of natural light and providing a stunning view of the outside world. To the left of the entrance are a closet and a neatly made bed with a grey cotton cover and stacked pillows against the headboard. The right side of the room boasts a tall bookshelf, filled with various sheet music, books, and a violin case, and a cabinet at the bottom. A hand-drawn sheet music, featuring notes in the shape of black cats and koi fish, is framed and hung on the wall opposite the bookshelf.
And in the corner opposite the door is an impressive presence of a grand piano. Sitting at the piano, lost in her music for hours, is Meredith, practicing for her upcoming piano competition with unwavering dedication.
The melody completely absorbed him, entranced by the music like never before. Time seemed to slow down as he stood there, his attention wholly fixated on Meredith's playing. The shadows cast by her figure moved in sync with her movements, with her glossy hair catching the beams of light and giving her an ethereal glow, as if she was sparkling.
It was a dazzling scene to watch.
The music flowed from her fingers like water from a spring, each note clear and pure. It was sonorous and melodious, stirring something deep within him that he couldn't quite explain.
As she finished the piece, Meredith looked up and saw L standing in her doorway. "L, what are you doing here?" she asked, a bit startled. She hadn't expected L to come to her room.
"Umm, Watari prepared some zenzai. Come over and have it with us," he replied, signaling her to follow him.
"Sure," she said, "I'll finish practicing this last part and then come to your room. You can have your dessert first."
L hesitated, and instead of leaving, he walked over to the piano bench. Meredith widened her eyes, surprised but quickly scooted over to make room for him to sit beside her.
As L watched her continue to play, he realized how little he knew about her interests. Despite chatting frequently about science, math, philosophy, and their deductive reasoning skills, he had never truly understood what she enjoyed. It seemed as if she was putting his interests first in every encounter, intentionally placing her own likes and preferences behind his. He continued to watch her play, noticing how fully immersed she was in the music. It was as if her mind and soul had flown to another world, or perhaps another universe. He found it fascinating to witness her in such a state.
The zenzai was sweet and warm, exactly what L enjoyed.
After that day, L developed an interest in Meredith's hobbies and started attending her music performances whenever he had the time. In return, Meredith observed L attending some tennis training sessions. Although L had a slim build and dark circles under his eyes, suggesting he could use some rest, she watched him swing the bat vigorously and with skill. Despite knowing that L had knocked down older boys who tried to haze him on his first day at Wammy's, it was still hard to imagine him having such power and strength.
It appeared that the tennis coach had also underestimated L's potential, likely blinded by his deceptive appearance. In fact, L had defeated the coach in a match, leaving Watari to find another coach for him.
With just a few training sessions under his belt, he surprised the participants and the referees by becoming the dark horse of the England Junior Cup, ultimately winning the championship. Despite having witnessed his training, Meredith and Watari were still amazed by his remarkable progress and skill.
"I knew how to play tennis before coming to Wammy's," he expressed, but he didn't disclose any further details, and Meredith didn't press the matter.
Their friendship grew stronger as they learned more about each other's interests and hobbies, dreams and aspirations, and in doing so, they found a sense of camaraderie and mutual understanding. Watari found comfort in seeing that L and Meredith had formed a friendship and found companionship in each other. However, he couldn't shake the feeling of concern for their isolation from their peers. Despite this worry, he didn't want to interfere with their relationship. Instead, he allowed their friendship to develop naturally, without any external pressure. For Watari, the small progress they had made was a source of contentment, and he hoped that in time, they would both find their place among the other children at Wammy.
She couldn't help but giggle at his assertion that sitting in any other position than crouched would reduce his reasoning ability by 40%. Sometimes she would ask him to sit normally, and he would comply briefly, but soon return to his preferred crouched position, and they would laugh together.
His several quirks were contrary to what she was taught and most were considered inappropriate or rude in public. But she found it interesting, despite not having the same quirks as L. In private, she would play along with his sugar cube or staple food item rituals and occasionally, for fun, imitate him holding items using only a thumb and a finger. She was aware of L's sensitive pride, but in her company, he seemed more open to listening to and accepting her differing opinions.
Scarlatti's Sonata in A major, K. 208 was Meredith's favorite piano piece. L learned that she consider this piece had the power to soothe her when she was plagued by the sounds in her head. When he asked her about these sounds, she refused to elaborate, dismissing them as mostly nonsensical and incomprehensible.
He had always had a strong fondness for sweets, and they were a key part of how he coped with the bitterness of his past memories. However, L began to notice that when he was with her, he was more open to trying savory foods. It was as if being in her company made him comfortable enough to let go of his addiction to sweets to some extent.
L noticed that she held a rather humble attitude towards everything, as evidenced by her love for the sea and her view of her own abilities. She loves the vastness of the ocean, the sound of the waves crashing against the shore, the sight of the foaming waves, and the impenetrable blue that seems to devour all pain and sadness in the world, or perhaps tolerate people's flaws and mistakes.
"Before the ocean's vast expanse, humanity stands diminutive," she muses.
Little did he know that her muse was tied to something much deeper, something beyond his comprehension.
Author's note:
When it came to naming the FBI Commander, I decided to rewatch the 2006 live-action movie and pay close attention to the scene where Light Yagami instructs Raye Iwamatsu (Raye Penber in the manga) to write down the name of the FBI Commander. In that scene, the name written was Miles Fitzerald, so I decided to use that name in the beginning, still trying to have some parts in the chapter related to the Kira case.
The Death Note author mentioned that L could speak 6 languages, but didn't provide any details in the manga or anime.
In my fanfic, I wanted to offer an explanation for this claim, so I interpreted it in a way that made sense to me.
To make it more realistic, I adapted the novel and movie version of L, who speaks 4 languages: Italian, French, English, and Japanese.
It makes sense for L to learn Japanese because of his connection with Meredith.
Later on, when Meredith enrolled in law school, she learned German and also picked up Chinese from her classmates. This may have aided L with translations when working with her. However, since L's voice is always altered, it's difficult to tell who was actually speaking, which may have led people to assume that L could speak 6 languages. Nevertheless, the exact details of who was conveying the message are not crucial to the story. (Surprise!)