End Games

Chapter 6: Kira's Army

-In an obscure coffee shop in the outskirts of town-
An attractive woman with short black hair sat patiently waiting alone at a table for two. The waiter walked by several times to ask if she needed anything but she insisted on waiting for her companion before she ordered.
"Alright, miss, if you insist. But if you asked me, your boyfriend must be a serious fool to keep a beautiful lady like yourself waiting around!" Said the waiter before leaving her. The young woman gave the waiter a polite smile. When she was sure the waiter had left, she sighed and looked slightly sad. 'My boyfriend...right." She thought longingly.
At that moment, as if on cue, the object of her affections walked into the coffee shop. He spotted her and made his way towards her.
"Sorry for making you wait, Kiyomi" Said Light.
"It's no problem at all. I understand you're very busy" Responded Kiyomi.
The waiter came back to take their orders of tea and coffee. "Alright, a tea for the beautiful lady, and a cup of coffee for the lucky guy who's with her" He said smiling at Light, who was not amused. Light had noticed that he had been hovering around him and Kiyomi ever since he'd sat down with her and he did not like it one bit.
"What's with that guy anyway?" He asked, clearly annoyed by the possibility of an eavesdropper.
"Oh him? I think he has a point, don't you?" Asked Kiyomi boldly. She was no fool. She admired Kira and by association, Light. However Kiyomi knew what she was worth, and though she was very attracted to Light, she wanted to ensure that he understood that she would not be in a one-sided relationship. She knew that he was casually dating Misa Amane because she was the Second Kira, yet she did not mind that as much because she knew that she was above Misa in intellect, Light's affections, and dare she think it, beauty. She was confident, at least on the exterior, that when the moment came for Light to choose between Misa and her, he would choose her.
"So how's the investigation going?" She asked after Light did not answer her previous question.
"The investigation was one of the reasons I asked to meet with you today. L's figured out that there is a third Kira. I need you to get in contact with Mikami and send him a very important message for me." He said, keeping his voice down so as to not be overheard by the pesky waiter.
"Of course, you know I will. But, do you think he's going to suspect Mikami? He's been very meticulous about covering his tracks" She asked, imitating Light by keeping her voice down. That was one thing that Light enjoyed about Kiyomi, she had great intuition for what he wanted from her. He did not have to micromanage her. When he had sent her a text asking to meet, she knew exactly what she needed to do without further instructions. She found a small, out-of-the-way coffee shop, miles from the heart of town where there would be little surveillance. He also did not have to tell her to keep her voice down or to look casual because she already knew.
Light always had his pick of beautiful women, but by far, he had to admit that Kiyomi was his most prized acquisition. Most of the women he'd dated were vain, annoying, boring, gossipy, or just plain stupid. But Kiyomi Takada was actually decent, more than that, she was the closest to an equal he'd ever found in a woman and that turned him on to no end.
The waiter arrived with their order and unceremoniously left them to attend other customers. Once Light was sure the waiter was out of earshot, he continued the conversation.
"I know because it's L. With him I can never be too careful. He's working on finding Mikami right as we speak, and he's even getting Misa to work with him to achieve this." At this last part Kiyomi could not help but let out a chuckle.
"He's asked Misa to help him? Is he that desperate?" She said trying to control her laughter.
"Yeah, I thought the same, but knowing L, I'm sure he has an ulterior motive. We'd best be prepared" Light took out a large yellow envelope from his jacket and passed it to Kiyomi, who took it in her hands and swiftly put it in her purse without needing explanation.
"I'd like you to mail this envelope to Mikami. He'll know what to do from there." Said Light.
"May I ask what's in here?" Said Kiyomi.
"I've written instructions to Mikami telling him to temporarily pass the notebook to someone else and only keep some pages for himself" Explained Light. Kiyomi was shocked that Light wanted to involve someone else in their plans.
"Who are you planning to have Mikami send the notebook to?" She asked, not knowing if he would even tell her. Light looked around to make sure no one would suspect anything malicious was going on.
"His name is Kyosuke Higuchi" Said Light with a malicious smirk on his face.
The rest of their meeting went quickly. Light paid the bill and afterwards, they both went to a small out-of-town hotel, where they spent the night....
...Several weeks later....
"L, do you know? Gods of Death Love Apples?" Asked Misa. At the mention of his name, L turned to her expectantly from his seat next to her. Everyone else in the KIT looked puzzled by her question. She had evidently been examining a copy of the letters that Kira had left L at some of his murder scenes.
"What if Kira thinks of himself as a God of Death? If Gods of Death love apples then...Kira loves apples!" She finished saying triumphantly looking at L as though she had just solved the entire case. L had an annoyed look on his face.
"Misa, you've been making silly deductions for the past hour, please get serious about this. We can't just look for someone with a dietary affinity for apples. That would most likely be a waste of time" He said dryly.
She crossed her arms and said "I AM serious! I'm just thinking out loud, that's all! And based on that letter sent by Kira, I think apples are something worth looking into because I'm sure Kira must have purchased apples in the past few months!" She said, exasperated.
"Fine, suit yourself." Said L nonchalantly as he unwrapped a mint and popped it into his mouth.
Misa stuck her tongue out at him.
"Watari! Are you there?" Said Misa loudly at no one in particular. Once again everyone in the investigation room turned to her. L looked at her slightly amused.
"You can't call Watari, he only reports to m-" but before L could finish speaking, the giant "W" materialized on the screen and Watari's jovial voice could be heard through the speakers.
"Greetings Miss Amane, what can I do for you?"
L sighed and simply shrunk back into his work, annoyed.
"Watari, could you please be a dear and make me a list of all recorded apple purchases in all stores around here?" She asked sweetly. L was about to protest again but before he got a word out she added "-And if we have any ice cream, could you please bring some?" 'That should appease him' She thought, smugly.
"Certainly" Said Watari before the giant "W" disappeared from the screen.
"You're going to go through all apple purchases in the area? You do realize you're going to waste an inordinate amount of time and valuable resources chasing a false lead, right?" Said L.
The model threw her hands up in the air dramatically.
"I've had it! How am I supposed to work with you when you're criticizing me all the time?!" She snapped.
"And how am I supposed to work with you when you're wrong all the time?" He quipped back. "Not to mention that you're occupying Watari with futile searches."
Misa looked furious now. "Futile?! And what does that mean, like useless?!"
"Precisely."
"What?! You're the one who asks him for stupid stuff all the time... like pastries!"
"Those are integral to my analytical performance. They fuel me with energy to tackle difficult problems, stamina so that I can work long hours on this case, and they keep me happy and patient so that I can put up with incompetence such as yours... "
Matsuda chuckled as he soaked in the quarrel. He had long stopped doing work to watch the two argue.
"Man, ever since Misa Misa and Ryuzaki started working together, they've done nothing but argue. At this rate the two will end up getting married before this case is solved! Light have better be careful..." He said laughing.
Chief Yagami threw him a stern look, causing the young cop to stop laughing. "That's nonsense Matsuda. You should focus less on gossiping and more on finding leads. People's lives are at stake so stop getting distracted."
Matsuda's face turned a shade of pink as he put his head down like a chastised puppy.
The back-and-forths between the detective and his dramatic assistant piped down as soon as Watari arrived with the ice cream. Not surprisingly, Misa refused to eat any, claiming with crossed arms that she wasn't going to ruin her figure for the sake of this case. L smiled. 'More for me...' he mused, piling ice cream onto a cup. Asking Watari to bring them ice cream was the best thing Misa had done that day... that and she also kind of entertained him sometimes. Yes she was annoying about 60% of the time they worked together, but throughout their interactions since she joined the task force, he'd come to learn that Misa could be genuinely sweet, or even smart, though that was rare. It appeared to him that she was more inclined to act outlandishly when in the presence of others, but in private, she was much more likely to show her true abilities.
Misa watched with silent scrutiny as L happily lapped at the ice cream with his tongue. She looked on as he licked around the scoops, noting that he was quite adept with said tongue. She quickly shook the thought away with a slight tint to her cheeks. Oblivious, L picked up his cup of sugar-coffee and drank it as if it were completely natural to consume coffee and ice cream together. Misa grimaced. 'His diet really is disgusting. It's amazing that he's so thin even though he eats like THAT. He's a genius and he's got a metabolism that's faster than his brain... I'm so jealous...' She thought.
"You really are a freak..." She said without malice. L ignored her.
On the outside, it seemed like L and Misa's relationship had not improved at all from the moment they met. However, in private, when it was just the two of them, L and Misa were quite nice to each other. At times, they've even enjoyed eachother's company. L simply provoked her for two reasons: he didn't want to tip off Light in regards to his growing fondness for Misa and, it was so easy to get a rise out of her, it was tempting not to do it.
Then, seemingly out of nowhere, Light, who had been silent the entire afternoon, spoke up.
"Hey Ryuzaki, I think I may have found something. Take a look at this" He turned his laptop toward the detective. "I've noticed a new pattern of heart-attack killings. Alongside criminals, there are now dozens of reports of corporate leaders and notable employees who have died in a similar manner. Not only that, but the deaths have all occurred in all the major competitors of Yotsuba Corporation."
L frowned and considered this information carefully. He agreed with Light in that it was something worth looking into so he did a little research of his own. "Good analysis Light. I believe you have found something very interesting." He said after he was done evaluating the new developments. 'Could this be yet another Kira? I think I'm starting to see where this is going... and I don't like it at all...' Thought the shrewd detective.
"Yay Light! You're brilliant" squealed Misa from behind L. The other KIT members seemed uplifted by the new lead as well. The rest of the day went by quickly as they devised a plan to infiltrate the Yotsuba group. The plan would consist of Matsuda posing as a talent agent looking to get a contract for his client as a spokesperson for the Yotsuba Corporation. Then, if the Yotsuba Group members agreed to hire the spokesperson, the KIT would have access to Yotsuba's facility. From there, they would weed out Kira. It was an extremely dangerous mission. Matsuda, as well as the person acting as his client could very well end up dead if things went wrong.
"Well, we know what Matsuda's going to be doing. Now we just need to find someone to play the role of the spokesperson" Said L thoughtfully while stacking sugar cubes into his coffee cup.
There was an uncomfortably long silence in the room. Without this piece, the plan could not be carried out.
Misa finally broke the silence, turned to L and said, "I'll do it. I understand that this is dangerous, but I promised to do everything I could to help and I meant it" She said seriously.
"I agree." Said Light. "You're pretty much the only one amongst us who can do it anyway. So it's settled that Misa's our spokesperson." He said quickly. He was right, of course, but Misa was still hurt by how business-like Light was being about her risking her life. She knew he wasn't the heroic type when it came to her, but this was a bold display of indifference on his part.
"Out of the question" Said L unexpectedly. Misa looked at him, surprised.
"Well, who else did you have in mind? She's the only one who could do it and that's obvious. It makes sense." Argued Light. 'Not to mention that if Misa gets killed, that's one less liability I have to worry about...' He thought. "...And yes, it's dangerous, but we're all putting ourselves in danger every day to do this. It comes with the territory-" Light was cut off by L before he could finish his speech.
"I was actually thinking of contracting Weddy to do it. Unlike Misa, her real identity is unknown to the public so even if Kira were to try to kill her, he would not be able to do it. At least not unless this is the Kira that can kill with just a face" Said L, lightly biting his thumb. "Based on his victims though, I believe that this is not the case."
'In fact, I am 99% certain that this is an entirely different Kira altogether' He thought.
"But Weddy's not a famous supermodel! They'll never hire a nobody to be their spokesperson. Misa is the clear choice for this assignment!" Retorted Light.
Before L could counter, Misa stepped in.
"It's alright Ryuzaki. Light has a point. He has very good reasons why he wants me to go..." She said quietly.
L noted the way she was looking down at the floor dejectedly, most likely hurt by Light's carelessness. L had to admit that Light was correct, but for personal interests, he preferred to send Weddy. He didn't want to put Misa on the front line. She was the perfect choice, yes, but he would rather keep her out of this and work with Weddy than send her to take such a risk. They could fabricate ads, plant false articles about Weddy and claim that she's a foreign star trying to cross into the Japanese market. That would not be too bad. Misa on the other hand was a public figure. It would be a cakewalk for Kira to kill her and the thought of that happening made L feel conflicted... maybe even sad.
L turned to Misa, looked her straight in the eyes.
"Misa, this is very serious. If you're going to do this assignment, you need you to be 100% committed. Otherwise, we can make it work with Weddy"
Misa looked at into his dark eyes, transfixed for a moment. 'I think I'm seeing things...' She thought for a second as she was pinned by his large doe eyes and all their scrutiny. She could almost swear that he was silently asking her to back down from this.
"No. I want to do this." She said meeting his gaze with her own resolute one. And just like that, his eyes left hers.
"Very well. We'll set the plan in motion tomorrow." Said L walking away from the group with his hands in his pockets. With that, everyone else began to depart.
Misa stayed put hoping to catch a moment alone with Light. However, he simply packed up his things, walked to her, kissed her lightly on the lips and told her that he'd see her tomorrow. Then he was gone. She stayed standing in that same spot until everyone left.
L came back in holding a box of chocolates. He set them down by his desk and then walked over to Misa. He got up very close to her face like he sometimes did, probably without thinking that he was invading her personal space.
"You seem...off. Are you having second thoughts about the mission?" He asked. She simply shook her head without saying a word. "Do you have reservations about it?" He asked next. This time she nodded her head, indicating that she did. "Well?" He asked softly.
"Thank you Ryuzaki for worrying about me before. I'm not having second thoughts but I'm not entirely confident in that I won't mess up either...this is just like acting, I know that, but... I'm still really afraid." She finally admitted, looking down. "I could use a hug right now", she said embarrassed. If only Light were more affectionate with her, she wouldn't have to feel so alone and neglected.
L looked at her thoughtfully as if considering how to go about doing what she asked. A second later he simply stepped forward with outstretched arm, waiting for her to make the final move. And she did. With surprising resolve, she ran into his embrace. L did not expect her to run into him with such enthusiasm. She wrapped her arms tightly around his torso and put her face against his chest. The two hadn't been this physically close since the day at the park and before that, the incident at Misa's apartment.
L wasn't very adept at these things. He would offer her chocolates, but he knew she probably wouldn't eat them. While coming up with a solution, he pushed her back gently. She gave him a puzzled look and he in return he looked at her with such intensity, it made her feel shivers down her spine. It was at moments like these that Misa wished she were a mind reader so she could know what L was thinking. Their faces were but an inch away. Part of her was sending warning signals, telling her that she was too close, but an even greater part of her was curious and excited for what could happen with Ryuzaki.
"Misa, I gave some thought to this, and I believe I owe you something from weeks ago" He said, referring to the apartment incident.
"...Yeah?" Said Misa sounding breathy.
With that L brought his lips down to hers gently, barely touching them. Now it was her turn to freeze there, shocked upon feeling his sweet breath and lips on hers. He gauged her reaction and upon seeing that he met no resistance, he kissed her again, tentatively grazing her slightly open mouth with his. This time, Misa was more prepared and kissed him back slowly, feeling his rhythm as their lips moved over each other sensually. A small moan escaped her, and caused the detective to stop and search her face for any sign of disapproval. As soon as she felt him moving away, Misa grabbed the back of his head and brought his mouth back down to hers without hesitation.
L was taken aback once more by her sudden assault. She pressed her body against his eagerly, going on tiptoe to keep their mouths interlocked. He squirmed involuntarily as he felt her against him...so much of her soft feminine form, pressed into his body, it was both strange and intoxicating. Uncertain of how to proceed, L shyly placed his hands at her hips, while Misa confidently laced her arms around his neck and her fingers in his hair. L could feel Misa's soft breasts pressed against his chest and it excited him to the point that he could almost forget himself, who he was, and what role he played in the Kira case. For a moment he could almost forget that she was most likely the second Kira and not just a woman that felt incredibly good in his arms. With newfound confidence, he grasped Misa's hips more firmly against his, which elicited another small moan of approval from the actress. Their breathing became rugged and audible as the pace of their impromptu kisses hastened. Misa had started out in control but as L became more and more frenzied with desire, he too began to kiss her back with a fervor that matched hers.
His inhibitions continued to slip away from him as his hands started to wander over her lower back and along the curve of her waist. Feeling hot and light-headed, Misa stepped forward into him with force, causing L to step back until he hit the hard surface of the desk. Realizing that she'd trapped him against the desk, L stopped kissing her as he looked at his current predicament. Misa caught the change in his demeanor and quickly moved in on him again.
'Not yet Ryuzaki, we're not done here' She thought as she kissed him again, only this time, L kept his eyes open and wouldn't cooperate. He pulled back from her and kept his lips shut and unwilling.
It was too late. He'd already bailed out of the lustful high they were both just in. She realized what was happening and stopped herself to look him in the eyes. L took her shoulders and slowly pushed Misa back an arm's length so as to give himself space to move away from her and the table. He avoided looking her in the eyes, opting to look down at the floor instead, his long dark bangs hiding his expression.
He cleared his throat and said "Misa-san, I'm sorry. I transgressed too far" He said. His heart was still racing, just like that night at her apartment when he froze at her kiss.
"No. It's ok, I went too far too" She said, dazed, but still picking up on his sudden formality in his tone.
L resumed his usual slouch and put his hands in his pocket, his eyes never leaving the floor.
She moved to see his face and noticed that he had a slight blush. Without saying a word, he turned on his heel and walked toward his chair where he sat on in his usual style.
"I apologize but I need to prepare some final details for tomorrow. Please don't take this the wrong way, but while I find your company very...agreeable, I would like to be alone right now." He said still not looking at her.
She stood there, still digesting what had just happened.
"Oh... Ok. Right! Eh, no offense taken. I swear!" She said agitated. Nervous, she took off immediately, still shaken by the recent event. Before she reached the top of the stairs that led to the second floor exit from the main room, she heard the detective's soft, controlled voice from behind her.
"Oh Misa, before you go off to do other things, I should tell you that you should be afraid of Kira. If I were in your position I might not be too comfortable doing an assignment like this either."
A frown marred her pretty features as she stood quietly, listening.
"...However," L continued, "believe me when I say that I will do everything I can, and use every resource at my disposal to keep you safe in this mission. You have my word." He said from his chair.
She turned around and flashed a genuine smile even though he wasn't looking. "I believe it. I really do. After all, you're the best detective in the world. Actually, no, the top three best detectives in the world! I know I'm in good hands, and I promise I won't let you or the team down!" She said cheerfully as she walked away, feeling much better about the situation at hand.
Once she was gone, L let himself smile and savor the sweet memory.