Scattered

Part 9

Though it appeared that Norman quickly regained his composure, those close to him would be able to tell that he was shaken to the core. However- through irregular breathing patterns and panicked, flittering thoughts- L had replied.

And so Norman does his best to resolve the matter with the hard-drive. Surely it shouldn't be too difficult, not with his siblings supporting him. Besides, it hardly took any time at all to figure out the format used to encode the text, it's not like L would send a different encryption every time, right?

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"SCREW YOU!" The outburst was followed by a quick apology to the librarian who oh-so-kindly allowed them to 'loiter' at the public building.

"Geez Norman, what's got your feathers so ruffled?" While Emma was too busy laughing at Norman's expense, Ray had the gaul to make such an inquiry, already clear of the kid's frustrations.

"This mother trucker, excuse my french, has the nerve to make my life harder by using a different god-damn code for every word. Every. Single. Word. I mean, who does that? I know you wouldn't do that to me, that'd be plain cruel. And now here I am, wasting away in order to not only decrypt the file, but also doing my best to outsmart this bastard! But oh noooooo, let's just let Norman do all the work as I get to read new fairy tales and history books or make paper cranes with scrap paper." At this point, Ray wasn't sure if he could hold in his laughter either.

Sure it wasn't the nicest to find entertainment through someone else's struggles, but it wasn't his fault that Norman was taking everything so personally.

"I think L is just trying to be careful. I don't think it's everyday that some random kids show up with an encoded document. For all he knows we could be Kira himself, though that would be pretty stupid not gonna lie." Emma is hardly able to keep her sentences comprehendable through her childish fit, though the act in itself is enough to bring smiles to everyone's faces.

"Yeah, whatever. Still, if you want to be kept in the loop of it all then you better sit with me because within the hour, all of this will be gone.

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REM, I can't say that I've heard of you before. Just who are you exactly?

You wound me so, L, It hurts that you've done so little to look into my character.

Dodging the question then? Fine. What is your purpose in reaching out to me?

If we could get past things you already know that'd be fantastic. After all, there was plenty of evidence that I wish to catch Kira yes? Or was what I sent you not enough?

About that, it seems that you have reason to believe that someone in relation to the police may be a bit suspect. However I'd like something a bit more concrete if you wish me to aid you in your investigations.

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After many grueling translations, the triforce was able to have a civilized conversation. Well, maybe civilized isn't the best word to describe the encounter. Perhaps something more along the lines of childish, or passively competitive, would be accurate. 

"Is this guy serious? How are we supposed to find more on a lousy library computer? I mean, yeah, we're pretty awesome, but we're not gods!" Ray complained, slumping down to let his head fall into his hands. 

Honestly, this was getting pretty annoying. The scheduled plan was shifted and now they had to rethink things over. If it wasn't for the nice old lady that dropped by with snacks and sandwiches, their financial problem would've ended up way worse than it already was. And don't even start on how badly a simple shower was needed. Yikes. 

The whole 'adventure' was leaving all three of them worse for wear, and there one big break wasn't going how they'd expected. 

"Even I can admit, this stinks... But it's not like we have any alternatives, right?" Emma wasn't feeling her best, far from it. Each day left her losing hope, and her normally bubbly attitude seemed to become forced.

"Maybe not, but we do have a friend who might happen to have something for us." Ah, yes, sweet young Sayu. Norman felt pretty bad wrapping her into this, but she did agree, maybe even eager to do her part. 

With that, the friends embarked on their journey. Now relatively aware of their surroundings, it wasn't nearly as difficult finding the school building as it was previously. 

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The talk with Sayu was, well, disappointing. Sure there were key points that only added to their surety, but nothing concrete. 

"Sorry Tsuki, I talked a lot with him, and I made a lot of excuses to pass by his door but... I don't know, something seems off. He talks to himself a lot, but I never hear a reply. Maybe he's on the phone?" This whole secret spy thing was really getting to Sayu, and she wasn't too good at hiding it either. Since the last visit, her eyes have grown considerably darker, and she seems paranoid most of the time.  

"I'm sorry we asked you to do this, you can stop if you want to, it really must be hard for you." Emma knows the feeling. Having to look at Norman as if he were the enemy when they were younger. Or not being sure if she could trust Ray with him reporting to Mom all the time. 

"No! I won't! If I did that, then.... then I wouldn't be any better than Kira!" The trio's hearts ached at the desperation in her voice, the mixed feelings of reaching out to her clouding their brains. "And- well- I saw something weird last night. It, and don't call me crazy, was nearly bed time when I went to get a glass of water and there was an apple. It was just, floating there. I went down the stairs more to make sure I wasn't seeing things, but it just fell back down and off the table, a fresh bite on the side."

Granted, it did sound a little crazy, and with the little amount of sleep Sayu has gotten, it wouldn't be shocking if she had a mini hallucination. That is, if she hadn't taken pictures of the aftermath. Low and behold, just as she said, a lone apple lay on the ground, an odd spiked teeth bite all the way down to the seed. 

"That's definitely worth looking into. Thank you. Really Kiyu, Sayu, you doing this means more to us than you could ever imagine." 

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What a load of BS. All this research off one thing only told them what they knew. A shinigami was following Light. Big deal. But how on earth are they supposed to find evidence on someone, or something, that can't even be seen by regular people? This was just their luck. Although...

Surveillance is useless, recordings and images don't show up on worldly devices. I can only assume Kira gains his power from an apple loving shinigami. Neither can it be seen by normal people. Believe what you will, goodbye for now.