Chapter Text
It was more difficult than L expected to persuade the police to leave Light alone. Light had been rushed to a hospital to treat the gunshot wound to his hand to keep him away from the conversation.
“Are you kidding?” Aizawa demanded. Fury burned in his eyes. “You expect us to just abandon the case now?
“What is this?” Ide added. L bit back a sigh of impatience.
“I made a deal with Light,” he said. “In exchange for his freedom, he gave up his memories and ownership of the Death Note.”
“You told us that,” Aizawa said. “My question is why. Do you even know if he actually doesn’t have his memories anymore? What if he’s just faking it?”
“Light can fake many things,” L said, “but he can’t fake this. I can’t prove it, per se, but I know that he has no memories.”
“What if he gets them back?” Aizawa pressed.
“Then, by the terms of our deal, he would have to either give up his memories again or I would have to turn him in,” L said simply.
“Would you?” Ide challenged. L met his glare.
“Yes,” he said. It didn’t matter if it was a lie. It would be convincing enough.
“So what if he doesn’t have his memories?” Aizawa continued. “He’s still Kira.” L turned his gaze to Aizawa.
“Do you remember how Light behaved while we lived at headquarters?” he asked. Slowly, confused, Aizawa nodded. “And do you remember how he behaved before and after that span of time?” Aizawa nodded again. “Would you say that he behaved the same?”
“I- well, no-” Aizawa started, hesitantly. L cut him off.
“That is because, when Higuchi-san was Kira, Light had no memories of being Kira,” he explained. “The same is true now. There is no point in prosecuting him.”
“No point?” Aizawa repeated in disbelief. “He murdered people, Ryuzaki-san!”
“I agree with Ryuzaki-san,” Sayu said quietly. Heads turned to stare at her, and she met them calmly. “I still blame him for my father’s death, don’t get me wrong. I still don’t consider him my brother. But…” Sayu trailed off, then started again, with more confidence. “Arresting him wouldn’t make us any better than Kira himself. We all know that if he gets arrested, he’s going to be found guilty and sentenced to death, even if he doesn’t remember what he did. I’m sure, if Kira was someone else, he’d want that too.” Silence fell over the small group.
“Well said, Sayu-san,” L said. “There is nothing I can do to stop you if you still wish to arrest Light. However, do know that I will not cooperate with any prosecution brought against him.”
It was that ultimatum that made the Task Force relent.
Near was unnervingly quiet during the entire discussion. L had expected him to say something, but he didn’t. There was a resignation in his silence, like he was accepting that L’s love for Light would prevent any further action from being taken.
The harder discussion was what to do with the Death Notes. They were certainly too dangerous to keep around, but it might also be worth running tests on them in the event that more Death Notes found their way into human hands.
After nearly an hour of arguing, planning, and silent contemplation, it was decided that one of the Death Notes and all fragments would be burned, and the remaining one would be sent back to Wammy’s House with Near to be studied. L could tell that Matsuda most strongly opposed that plan, but he held his tongue.
“So,” Sayu asked, “is it over?” L watched as the car containing the SPK drove away.
“I hope so,” he said. “With Light’s memories erased, there’s no way to know for sure that we have found all the fragments. However, I also think he needs to come into contact with the notebook itself to regain his memories.”
“What about Misa?” Sayu asked. “She still has her memories. And, she confessed to being the second Kira.”
“We will see,” L said. “My guess is that she will keep her memories. However, as long as no more criminals die and the world is told that Kira is dead, I don’t see the need to prosecute her. That, however, is not my choice to make.” Sayu stared straight ahead.
“You said that I was a temporary member of the Task Force,” she said at last. “Does that still hold?”
“The Kira Task Force, and the SPK, will likely be dissolved within a week,” L said.
“I want to protect Misa,” Sayu clarified. “She’s still my friend, even if she was Kira.” L scuffed his foot against the ground.
“That’s not up to me,” he finally said. “I’ve done more than too much already protecting Light. I’m not going to stop you, but I also can’t help you.” Sayu hummed, a set determination in her eyes.
“I’ll do whatever it takes,” she declared. L stared at her for a moment, weighing his options.
“Do you still want to be a lawyer?” he asked. Sayu nodded immediately. L bit his lip and looked back forward. Sayu was turning out to be a very valuable asset, though she may be even more useful in an attorney’s office. He’d prefer a prosecutor, but…
“I want to continue working with you,” L said. Sayu turned to look at him, mouth wide open. “Between both Light and Misa, you’ve proven that you can work information out of someone without them noticing. That’s a rare skill.”
“Misa did notice,” Sayu said. Glad to see she’s not as arrogant as her brother.
“You also have no training,” L pointed out. “Let’s talk more about this later.”
Six months later, Light awoke to an empty bed. He yawned and stretched, his gaze casually searching the room for L. He wasn’t there, but Light didn’t worry. L usually woke up before he did.
Light padded out of his bedroom, stifling another yawn. Sure enough, L was sitting on the couch, invested in something on his computer.
“Good morning,” Light said. He draped his arms around L from behind and kissed his cheek. L hummed in reply.
“We have a new case,” he said. “Well, technically Eraldo Coil does.” Light dislodged himself from L and walked to the kitchen. This was the third case he and L had received since the Kira case closed.
“What’s the breakdown?” he called over his shoulder. Keeping an ear intent on L, Light opened the pantry, now half-full of assorted sweets.
“There was a series of bank robberies in America,” L said. “Collectively, about 2.5 million US dollars were stolen.” Light whistled as he dug around the pantry.
“Are we sure it’s all the same person? Or group of people?” Light paused, then added, “Have you had anything to eat?”
“Yes, single person, and no,” L said. “All of the robberies were committed in the same fashion. One person would enter with a gun, demand around 100,000 dollars, deposit the money into a getaway car, and then shoot themselves.” Light pulled a brownie from the pantry for L, along with an apple that he still didn’t know why he bought so many of for himself, and returned to the couch.
“So that’s 25 banks?” Light said. “What took them so long to call you? And why call Coil?”
“That’s why I’m suspecting an inside job,” L said, adding a, “Thank you,” as he took the brownie Light brought for him. Light looked at the screen and frowned.
“I recognize some of these names,” he said. “I can’t remember why exactly, but a couple of these banks popped up when we were looking into Mello.” L hummed and took a bite of the brownie. “I can look into connections between these banks and the mafia,” Light continued as he booted up his own laptop.
“All the information I received is already copied over,” L said. “I want to look more into the person who hired Coil. All I know so far is that they’re a higher-up at the bank that was robbed most recently.”
“How much are they offering?” Light asked.
“One million.”
“For a total profit of 1.5 million?” Light suggested. L smiled at him and nodded.
“That’s what I’m thinking.”
Light’s heart was pounding as he stood at Misa’s door. She’d been briefly arrested, but when neither L nor Sayu would give a statement or cooperate with the investigation, she was released.
Light was sure that she was guilty, but he was also sure that Misa didn’t really deserve to be arrested for being Kira.
The door slid open. Light held his breath, but it was Sayu, not Misa, at the door.
“Light?” Sayu asked. “What are you doing here?” Light took a deep breath.
“I want to talk to Misa-san,” he said. Sayu stared at him for a moment, then slunk back inside the apartment. Light waited for an agonizingly long moment, before the door opened again.
Misa stood at the door. She was more melancholy than usual, the same gothic attire she normally wore helping that view of her. Light gulped.
“Misa-san…” Light cleared his throat, and tried again. “I’m sorry.” Misa remained silent, so Light pressed. “Look, I… you were right. I was horrible to you, and I’m the only one to blame for cheating on you. I am really sorry, Misa.”
“Light-san,” Misa said with a sigh, “it’s fine.”
“It’s really not,” Light said. “You were right. I should have told you that I wasn’t happy. Honestly, I have no idea why I didn’t. I don’t have any excuses. And, everything I said to you… I’m so sorry. You deserve better than that, Misa-san.” Misa didn’t respond for a moment, just leaned against the door frame.
“I think we both said and did a lot of things that we didn’t really mean,” she said at last. “You were also right. I don’t know if I would have listened if you’d said you were uncomfortable.”
“But I-” Light started, but Misa cut him off.
“It’s okay, Light-san,” she said. “I did a lot of stupid things. We both did.” She smiled then, gently. “I accept your apology, Light-san.” Light gave Misa a small, hesitant smile.
“Thank you, Misa-san,” he said. “For what it’s worth, if any future boyfriends try to treat you like I did, I’ll make sure they regret it.” Misa laughed at that, a bright laugh that made Light smile.
“You’d have to fight Sayu to do that,” Misa said, grinning. “She has told me in no uncertain terms that she’d be willing to stretch the law for me.” Light grinned back.
“Why fight her? I can just cover her tracks,” he said. Misa laughed again.
L crouched in front of the gravestone, silent. The grave below him was empty, but a stone still marked its location.
Mihael Keehl. December 13th, 1992 – January 26th, 2013. Mail Jeevas. February 1st, 1990 – January 26th, 2013. We can never repay the debt owed to them.
An arm wrapped around L’s waist and pulled him to Light’s side. He leaned against the comforting warmth, glad for its presence.
“You taught him well,” Light muttered. “And, in the end, he did what he had to so we could catch Kira.” L buried his face into Light’s shoulder.
“I know,” he whispered. “But it still hurts.” Light’s grip on L tightened, protective.
“I know.”
“Not an inside job,” L grumbled. “Just a weird case.” Light hummed and ran his fingers through L’s hair. The knotted scar on the back of his hand vaguely ached, but Light couldn’t care less. He kissed the tip of L’s nose, crooked from when it hadn’t healed properly. He and L both had been amassing scars as time passed, but Light loved seeing them. The scars were a chronicle of their time together, each one a distinct memory.
“You sound disappointed,” Light said.
“Inside jobs are more fun,” L responded. “And, I’m upset that you figured it out before I did.” He leaned into Light’s petting and smiled. “But at least I have you all to myself now.” Light laughed and leaned down to kiss L.
“I guess you do,” Light agreed. He leaned in close and rested his forehead against L’s. “And I have you all to myself.” L hummed his agreement and pulled Light into a short and sweet kiss.
“I love you, Yagami Light,” L whispered against Light’s lips. Light smiled and kissed him with more force.
“And I love you, L Lawliet,” he said. Light traced shapes and patterns on L’s shoulder, then paused. “What if I wanted to make that L Yagami?” L thought for a moment, then huffed out a laugh.
“What makes you think I’d be taking your last name?” he asked. Light laughed and pulled away from L.
“What makes you think I’d be taking yours?” he retorted. “Light Lawliet is a stupid ass name, and you know it.” L let a wicked grin cross his face.
“I’m sure I could persuade you otherwise,” he said, before pulling Light close again and peppering his face with kisses. Light shrieked his laughter and squirmed in L’s lap. His hands flew to grab the sides of L’s face, before Light kissed his lips.
“That the best you got?” Light purred. “Because I’m not-” Light was cut off as L pulled him back into another kiss.
“Is that a challenge, Light Lawliet?” L breathed. Light smiled softly down at him.
“Of course, L Yagami,” he said. L smiled back and leaned back, bringing Light down with him so that Light’s head rested on his shoulder. Light sighed contentedly and spread his palm over L’s chest, right over his heart. L copied the motion, feeling for the constant thump, thump of Light’s heart.
“Your father would kill me, if he were still alive,” L said quietly after a few moments. Light chuckled softly, but L felt his hand tighten around his shirt.
“He’ll still hunt you down in the afterlife,” Light whispered. “You’d better watch out. You’re lucky my mother only knows you as Ryuga Hideki, the weird boy from To-Oh who doesn’t even know how to tie his own shoes.”
“Those better be her words, not yours,” L threatened with no ill intent. “And it’s a good thing that I don’t plan on dying any time soon, then,” L said. He ran a hand through Light’s hair and scratched against Light’s scalp the way he knew Light liked.
“You’d better not,” Light retorted, along with a soft smack against L’s shoulder. “Or else I might be the one hunting you down.”
“There won’t be any need for that,” L promised. “I’m going to be here for a while, whether you like it or not.”
“Well, luckily for you, I do like it,” Light said. He kissed L again, long and hard, like he didn’t fully believe what L had said.
It was moments like these when L knew he’d made the right choice. The fact that Near wouldn’t talk to him, the irreparable damage to his reputation, Aizawa’s hostility, none of it mattered. Not like it used to. Not when Light was in his lap, kissing him like there wouldn’t be another tomorrow.