L x Reader oneshots 1 // series 3 • Death Note

The ones that get forgotten

There are many victims when a violent crime is committed, those who died, those who got hurt, those who lived to tell the tale but were left mentally scarred. And the ones people tended to forget, the families and friends of the victims. The ones who are seen in tears on the news once or twice before vanishing from public view. And while most wanted the privacy so they could process, many also wanted to remain known. They wanted the world to never forget what happened on that tragic day, for there to be proper justice and those who died to be respected and honoured. They were the ones who made charities and scholarships in their loved one's names, advocated against violence and for better security, care and background checks. But even then, with all the work they put in, they fade from the public mind as soon as the next easily preventable tragedy hits the news.

You feared you'd become one of those people.

You'd never felt a loss like this before, your own mother. Collapsed dead while doing the weekly grocery shopping, all because she made a stupid move as a teenager that gave her a criminal record. One singular charge her entire life. She was dead, because almost 20 years ago she shoplifted a CD as a dumb teenager and got caught. Kira didn't care about the nuances of crime, he just saw all criminals as scum. Never mind if they'd been rehabilitated, false accusations, mistrials, mental health reasons, socioeconomic reasons. And in your mother's case, a dumb move as a teenager. While there was a big anti Kira sentiment, the pro Kira crowd was just as big. It honestly shocked you to see just how many people lacked the ability to understand nuance and empathy for their fellow human. Sure, some criminals were so bad and so dangerous they needed severe punishment. But Kira wasn't JUST targeting them, he was targeting minor criminals, those who hadn't stood trial yet, innocents...

Naturally, as the situation got worse, the families and friends of Kira victims had started to come together and speak out. Support groups and communities had formed to try and help each other through the grief and pain of the loss. Many parents who lost their kids, siblings who lost each other, best friends mourning a friend now missing from the group. People from the families of genuine serious criminals to those who had only committed a petty crime for some money to buy their next meal. Families who had a history of mental health issues, whose loved one happened to catch a charge in a heat of the moment mental health crisis. And while you'd found a lot of help and support in these groups, there was still this sense of rage at Kira for what he did to you, for what he took from you...

And one night in a particularly vulnerable moment of anger at Kira and grief for your mother, you'd written it all down in an attempt to get it all out and process it. And for some reason, you mailed it. To L.

Maybe it was a desperate cry for help, or the thought he'd probably never see it anyway since hit sent it via the tip line, pretty much the only way for the public to even get close to L. Like you'd sent it into the void as a form of therapy. You didn't really think he'd actually see it, or if he somehow did, that he'd be able to help you beyond what he was doing to catch Kira already. But by some wild twist of fate, an envelope showed up in your mailbox a few weeks later. It had your name and address, typed and stamped. But no return address or indication who it was from. Simply slipped into the mail box amongst the newspaper and electric bill.

You tore it open, finding a folder paper inside and sat down at the table to read it. The first line alone made your mind short circuit as you realised exactly what this letter was.

(Y/n),

I have a feeling you didn't expect me to actually read your letter, that you'd sent it as a therapeutic way to express your grief. But I do check every single letter that comes in through the tip address, because you can never know what evidence may be hiding in a seemingly mundane observation someone made and decided to send in just in case.

I've had people reach out, asking me to look into their family and friends cases many times. Unfortunately I'm not able to peruse every one, given the sheer number of them. But you're the first person to approach me as a the family of a victim in a case that's already active. Someone who already knows who the killer is and has begun the grieving process. Truly, your letter, weather you actually intended it to reach me or not, has given me a new perspective on the case. You bought up things I'd not yet considered, the placement of the victims loved ones in the case. Just how many of them there are, likely double, perhaps triple, the amount of those killed. Assuming the majority of Kira's victims have both parents, that's at least two extra people per victim that have been affected by Kira's actions. While I and everyone involved in the case have known the rising number of dead down to the exact unit, I'd not considered just how many more victims there were. Ones that haven't been killed, but irreversibly devastated by the killing.

Do not give up, or slow down your activism. Keep talking about how this has affected you and the others in your position. People need to remember that the dead aren't the only victims in this case. That the number of people Kira has damaged is much, much higher than the offical kill count says. This entire situation is a senseless tragedy, but I believe people like you can take the trauma and devastation and turn it into something powerful. Remind people to use their critical thinking skills, understand nuance and extend empathy to their fellow human. You can bring up the true reasons crimes are committed, how they can be prevented, how they effect those around the criminal.

You've given me a new angle to approach this case with (y/n), I feel there's a stronger chance of finding our culprit because of you. Don't stop fighting, you can take this tragedy and turn it into something so much more than it was. But do remember to take care of your own mental state, and don't push yourself to the point of collapse in the process.

Thank you, and if you ever come across potential evidence, don't be afraid to write in again.

-L

You simply had to sit there and stare at that single letter at the end there for a moment. The only thing on the letter not typed, rather stamped. The same kind of stamp used in Japanese signature stamps, but rather than a pattern or image, it was just that calligraphy L that was all over the news.

He actually saw it, read it. Your grief and anger fuelled ramblings... L saw them. And he took them into account. If you weren't already on his side, you sure as hell were now. Because unlike Kira, who has no sense of nuance and real understanding of crime and its causes, L did. Kira didn't think about the innocent families of the victims. L did.

And if the world's greatest detective thought you could keep fighting, and not let your name as a the child of a victim, and a victim yourself, be forgotten? You were going to fight tooth and fucking nail until Kira was exposed, in handcuffs and his face was on the news rather than his latest victims.