Death Note: The Next Kira (Part One)

Pre-Chapter Twenty-Five: What Really Happened to L a.k.a Ryuzaki

NOVEMBER 5, 2000 

AROUND THE EVENING 

TOKYO, JAPAN 

                                                                             L (RYUZAKI) 

I stood out there in the rain as I heard a loud bell from a church ringing. Even though it was raining heavily, I stood out there and continued to listen to the bell. It sure is loud today, isn't it? I hope that this bell isn't an omen of some sort and that I will die soon. I thought to myself. As the rain continued to pour down and the bell continued to ring, I noticed that there was someone watching me. I turned and saw Light looking straight at me. He tried to say something to me, but I couldn't hear him. I placed my hand around my ear and tried to make sure that I could be able to hear him. He called out something at me, but I still couldn't be able to hear him. I did the exact same thing I did earlier because I couldn't exactly hear what he called out to me. 

I watched as Light made his way out into the rain so that he could come up to me. "What are you doing, Ryuzaki?" he asked. I then looked away from him and looked in the direction from where I heard the bell ringing. "Oh, I'm not doing anything in particular," I answered. "It's just that...I hear a bell. It is rather loud today." I looked at Light to see that he had a confused look on his face. "What bell?" he asked. "I don't hear anything." "It's been ringing all day," I informed Light. "I wonder if it's a church, maybe a wedding, or perhaps a funeral." Light stayed silent for a few moments. "What are you talking about, Ryuzaki?" he asked. "Come on, cut it out! Let's get back inside!" I looked straight at him before I lowered my head. "I'm sorry, Light," I told him. "Nothing I say makes any sense anyway. If I were you I wouldn't believe a word I'd say." "Heh," Light chuckled. "You know you might be right there. Most of the things you say sound like complete nonsense." I chuckled. "I would say that's a fair assessment," I told Light. "But, I could say the same about you." "Huh?" Light asked. "What's that supposed to mean?" 

I turned and looked at Light. "Tell me, Light," I said. "Has there ever been a moment where you've ever told the truth?" Light stayed silent for a few seconds as I looked him in the eyes. "Where is this coming from, Ryuzaki?" he asked. "I do admit that I stretch the truth here and there, but if I had to say that I've met one person who has never told a lie, then it wouldn't be easy." He paused for a moment. "Human beings aren't perfect," Light continued. "Everybody lies from time to time. Even so, I always try to never tell a lie that could hurt others." I smiled right after he told me that. "I had a feeling that you'd say something like that." After Light told me that, we made our way inside and dried ourselves off. "Well, that was a certainly unpleasant outing," I told Light. "It's your own fault," he replied as he dried off his face. "I mean, what did you expect?" I stayed silent for a brief moment. "You know," I told Light. "Maybe you're right. Sorry." I headed to Light and took the wet towel off of my head. 

I then picked up Light's right foot and waited for his response. He seemed a bit surprised once I picked up his foot. "What are you doing?" he asked in a paranoid tone. I looked up at him and answered calmly. "I thought I'd help you out. You were busy wiping yourself off anyway." "Look, it's fine," Light told me. "You don't have to do that." "It's the least I can do to atone for my sins," I told Light. "I'm actually very good at this." He sighed before he gave me an answer. "Oh, alright." I then placed my towel under Light's foot and massaged it with my hands. He grunted once I did that. "Hey!" he said defensively. "You'll get used to it," I assured him. Once I said that, Light relaxed a little bit. "Here," he said grabbing the towel that he used to dry his hair and drying my face off. "You're still soaked." I then sat there with a glum look as I continued to dry off Light's right foot. "I'm sorry," I told him as I continued to dry off his foot. We sat there in complete silence until I had the urge to tell Light something.