Work Text:
Music filled the ballroom as hundreds of couples danced across the marble tiles. Light stood off to the side, fiddling with the sleeves of his suit. He made sure to choose a plain black suit, hoping not to stand out too much. Though Sayu quickly dashed that plan of his when she chose an extravagant golden mask decorated with crystals. If he hadn't agreed to go along with his father to assist the NYPD in a case then he would have never gotten into such a mess. Why did they need to have a masquerade ball for police officers anyway?
"Light, you haven't danced with anyone!" Sayu rushed up to Light, her dark blue ball gown swirling around her feet. Her own mask was silver and blue, with matching silver and blue feathers stemming from one end. "Come on, you could meet a pretty American girl!"
"No," Light said. "This is a waste of time." He scolded himself for being so harsh when Sayu's smile turned to a pout.
"I'll find someone to dance with you," Sayu offered.
That gave Light an idea. He smiled, though it almost became a smirk. "If you really want to," He said, trying to hide his amusement. "But let me give you one condition."
Despite the probable challenge, Sayu's eyes sparkled. "A condition?"
"If they can answer a few riddles then I'll dance with them," Light said, holding back a laugh. "How about three riddles?"
"Okay, tell them to me!"
Sayu listened with an intent look as Light repeated the puzzles to her. He had to repeat the third one to her several times before she remembered it. Then she raced off, searching the crowd. Light leaned back against the wall, watching as Sayu danced with pretty woman after pretty woman, asking them the riddles after pointing to her brother. It seemed apparent that they all failed to get it.
"What is Sayu up to?" Soichiro came to stand by Light's side.
"She's looking for someone to dance with me," Light said. He struggled to contain his laughter as another woman failed and Sayu raced off to the next person. Though, his face burned in embarrassment as she expanded out to begin asking men as well.
"I wish her luck," Soichiro said with a laugh as he went off with Sachiko to dance again.
After a while, Sayu appeared to stop looking. She settled on dancing with a man with black hair. Like Light, he opted for a simple suit, though he wore an extravagant silver mask that covered most of his face. Light watched as they danced through one song and then his heart dropped as Sayu's face lit up and she grabbed the man by the wrist to drag him over to Light.
"Oh no," Light said quietly.
"Light!" Sayu's eyes glittered. "He solved all of your riddles!"
The man looked amused by the antics as he said, "You must be a good dancer if you guard your time with riddles."
"Did you remember them correctly?" Light asked with narrowed eyes. His sister nodded.
"Ask me again if you don't believe her," The man said. Even beneath the mask, Light could see a small smirk.
"Fine." The first riddle was easy. Light expected almost everyone to get it. It was meant to lull them into a false sense of security so they would get the rest wrong. "Many have heard me, but no one has seen me and I will not speak back until spoken to."
"An echo."
"You have a lighter and two ropes, both which burn for an hour each. They burn at different rates along their lengths. How do you measure when forty-five minutes have gone by?"
"You light both ends of the first rope and one end of the second rope. Once the first rope is reduced to ash you light the end of the second rope. Forty-five minutes have passed once it burns out."
Light glared at the man. "There are five bags of gold with pieces that are all identical. One of the five bags is filled with fake gold. The real and fake gold as well as all five bags are all identical in every way, except the pieces of fake gold weigh one point one grams, and the real gold pieces weigh only one gram. You can only use a scale once to determine which bag has the fake gold."
The man smiled and smoothly answered, "Weigh one piece from the first bag, two from the second and so on. If the reading ends in point one it's the first bag. If the scale ends in point two, it's the second bag and so forth."
Most people wouldn't have been able to answer so quickly. Sayu grinned. "So will you dance with him then?"
"You just gave him the answers."
"I did not!"
"Ask me another question," The man said. "I can answer it."
With a wicked grin, Light nodded and quickly said, "Three gods A, B, and C are called, in no particular order, True, False, and Random. True always speaks truly, False always speaks falsely, but whether Random speaks truly or falsely is a completely random matter. Your task is to determine the identities of A, B, and C by asking three yes-no questions; each question must be put to exactly one god. The gods understand English, but will answer all questions in their own language, in which the words for yes and no are da and ja, in some order. You do not know which word means which."
When the man laughed, Light felt his face redden. "How easy," The man said.
"Easy?" Light asked with a sly smile. "That's supposedly the hardest logic puzzle in existence."
Without missing a beat, the man in the silver mask perfectly explained the long, intricate solution. Sayu's eyes widened in surprise as a huge smile spread across her face. With a resigned sigh, Light held out his hand. The man took it lightly, guiding him to the middle of the ballroom. His hand was warm and Light felt a little light headed at the touch. "I have to admit that was impressive," Light muttered as they danced. "Who are you?"
"Ah, you don't remember me Light?"
Frowning, Light narrowed his eyes at the man. "No?"
"We worked together on the Prophets case."
Light was sure he remembered every person who worked on the case with him. Then he realized with an odd sense of satisfaction there was one person whom he never met in person. "L?" He asked, lowering his voice.
"Correct."
"But I thought you never showed your face," Light said and then realized how idiotic he sounded. He wondered if L could see his blush under his mask.
"I was impressed with your work on the case," L said. "Though you didn't seem keen to socialize tonight." While they had started the dance with Light leading, L had taken control as he pulled Light around the marble floor. "I'm glad your sister approached me."
"I guess I am too," Light said. "She's been trying for almost an hour."
"I could tell. She looked frustrated."
The music picked up and Light felt dizzy, unsure if it was from the surreal situation or how much they were spinning as they danced. L's hand was firm in his as he guided them, stepping perfectly in time with the music.
"I was glad I received the opportunity to work alongside you."
"Yes, perhaps we can work together again." They stepped together, moving perfectly in sync with each other. "I've never met someone whose intelligence even compares to mine."
"Are you calling me your equal?" Light asked.
"Too soon to say."
The music slowed and Light became acutely aware of L's hand at the base of his back. He wished he could read L's expression and then wondered if the world-famous detective wished the same thing. As the music shifted to a more romantic, slower waltz, many of the couples left. Light nervously glanced around. "Should we?"
With a small grin, L pulled him closer, curling his arm around his waist. "You're intriguing," L said softly as the pair of them danced slowly to the music. "You seem young to already be an accomplished member of the NPA." His voice was right at Light's ear and his breath tickled his neck as he spoke. Light was sure that Sayu must have been watching them like an eagle. He could almost hear her mockery that was to come.
"You seem young to be a world-famous detective," Light retorted.
"Some people say that you reach your full potential long before you ever reach thirty."
"I could agree with that. If you don't succeed when you're young, will you ever suceed at all?" Every part of him burned. As they finished the slow waltz it felt as though L's entire body was pressed against him. "It's getting hot in here." L pulled back slightly, presumably staring at Light from behind his mask.
"Ah yes, I suppose it is. Come with me." Light nearly protested as L grabbed his hand and dragged him away, pulling him around to one of the balconies. The cold air was a relief. It stung Light's face briefly as they walked outside. Sitting in the moonlight was a chess set. "Let's play a game."
"Sure," Light agreed.
Though one game turned into two and two games turned into three and so forth. The music had quieted down inside as they played over and over. Light found himself enjoying L's company immensely. Their conversation was smooth and they matched each other perfectly. Between moves, Light found himself reaching out and delicately brushing L's fingers with his own. It was almost as if they had stolen away a part of the universe and claimed it as their own. When the doors opened, Light jumped in surprise.
"There you are!" Sayu said. "We're leaving, the gala is over."
"It is?"
"You've been out here for almost three hours!"
"Ah, it was an enjoyable three hours at least." L stood, turning his back to Sayu as he faced Light. "I suppose this is goodbye for now."
Light stood quickly. "My parents are probably wondering where I am." L's thumb was at his mouth. He smoothed it across his lips. Light stared, feeling his heart pound again. With a grin, L stepped forward. He pushed up his mask, revealing a mischievous gaze. Before Light could speak, L also pushed his mask out of the way. L kissed him. It was a short kiss, barely lasting a few seconds before L pulled his mask back on and walked right past Sayu.
"Another time Light Yagami."
Light stared after the detective with a mixture of annoyance and longing. Sayu stuttered beside him, "Did he just kiss you?!"
"What an arrogant person," Light said, licking his lips. They tasted like sugar.