If Death Note Were an Honest Love Story About Terrible People

Ch. 6 L's Confession

Overcome with exhaustion, L collapsed upon returning to the suite at Headquarters the others had prepared for he and Light. He crawled his way onto the boxy, steel colored couch and managed to pull a thin throw over his head before passing out in his own drool.

Nobody dared disturb him, and Light did not come back. The day moved seamlessly into evening and the evening turned into day again and when L finally woke, he thought it fitting to end it where it all began; in a storm outside on the ledge. This time, he was sprawled out on the floor, his mouth slightly agape. He wondered if, like a domesticated turkey, he could let himself drown in the downpour. It didn't work.

"Well, looks like I'm going down with this ship after all," L said plainly as he stared into the dark sky.

"Why is that?"

"Ryuk," there should've been surprise in his voice, but he hadn't the energy to muster any, "I didn't realize you were here. Forgive me if I do not rise."

Ryuk sauntered heavily over to the frail figure sprawled upon the metal decking, rain having thoroughly soaked him through and leaned over him. A laugh escaped him, but it was a sad kind of laugh, if Ryuk were capable of such a thing. "I forgive you."

A weak smile made its way to the corner of L's lip but could not compete with the heaviness upon him. "Kill me, Ryuk."

"What?"

"Write my name in your book."

"No. Stop being an idiot."

L sighed heavily, "It was worth a try. Maybe the lightning will strike me if I lie here long enough. That was my original plan, anyway."

"Alright, I usually don't like to interfere with human affairs but up you go!" With a sweeping motion, Ryuk pulled the drowned rat named L from the floor and carried him inside under his arm as though he were weightless. L did not resist. He didn't have the strength to. He hadn't eaten in days. His weight was at an all-time low. Ryuk placed his limp carcass on the couch inside and placed a slice of strawberry cake in front of him. The smell was nauseating, and L turned his head from it and buried his face in the pillows. Maybe he could smother himself.

"You're awfully dramatic, you know that?"

A muffled "Thank you," sarcastically made its way through the couch cushions.

"You're a real dick, L."

L lifted himself off his face to peer at Ryuk, but as usual his face gave no expression. Sitting up but still slumped, L lazily gazed over at Ryuk, surrendering to the conversation the Shinigami was seemingly determined to have with him. "I love him but it's killing me, watching him turn into this other person." He hesitated, "I know he will lie to me. He will murder. He will plot my demise. And it's my own fault," his words trailed off.

"Yeah, I guess the will of humans can only resist the possession of a God of Death for so long before giving in completely," Ryuk mused, looking blankly ahead, "I mean, when a human gets a hold of a Death Note, they really aren't designed to have that kind of power....it makes them crazy. The Death Note power takes over." Ryuk got excited, "I like to think of it like one of those parasites from the human world I learned about recently. Very fascinating. It penetrates the brain and controls the victim, causing it to behave violently. For humans, the Death Note is like a parasite that eats away at you and gains a little more control with every name you write. Anyway, if they give up possession of the Death Note they go back to normal- we know that much already. But what's so interesting about it is that the longer they have it and the more possessed they become the harder it is to convince them to relinquish the power." Ryuk paused, "it's no secret that I've dropped a lot of Death Notes here on Earth for my own entertainment, but Light has written the most names I've ever seen in a Death Note by a human."