Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

L watched the playback of Light’s room intensely, desperately searching for any clues that could prove as evidence against Light as a suspect. Subconsciously, L chewed on his thumb, the light from the screens in front of him illuminating L’s face. They were also the only source of light in the room.

It was well into the AM now, though the sun had yet to rise, and the rest of the Task Force would be arriving in a few hours to assist him. L, as much as he hated to admit it, was stumped. None of it made any sense to him. If Light really was Kira, as L suspected, wouldn’t the cameras and wiretaps L had had placed all over the Yagami household capture Light doing something out of the ordinary?

But they hadn’t. Nothing strange or out of place had occurred at the Yagami residence. If anything L found it too perfect. Way too normal to be, well, normal. The only other conclusion L could make out of Light’s average behavior is that he had somehow found some of the cameras; at least was aware of them. Then again… would Light have also suspected there were also wiretaps hidden among his room? No, there was no way Light could know that. They had even made sure to place extra cameras as a precaution. In the case that Light found and removed some and to be sure there were no blind spots.

L jumped at the sound of footsteps approaching, quickly shifting his attention to the source he watched as Watari joined him, coffee in hand. With a small wave Watari walked over to him, handing L the coffee and giving a light smile.

“Any new developments?”

L turned back to the bright screens in front of him and lifted the mug to his lips to take a small sip. Sweet, almost too sweet. Yet it was perfect, just how he liked it. L shook his head and sighed before answering.

“It’s all too perfect, everything is in its place. Just as it should be.” He shook his head and took another sip of the warm beverage. “It’s all so normal, doesn’t make any sense.”

Watari tilted his head a bit to the left, frowning. “Is that not a good thing? Doesn’t it mean we can clear Light as a suspect, take some of the extra weight off Yagami.”

L took another sip before glancing back at him. “If it is not Light. We have nothing. We would be back at square one, and no one wants that.”

Again, Watari was confused. “You know I’m not one to question your expertise, but what makes you so sure it’s Light anyway? As far as I’ve seen, he hasn’t done much to qualify as a suspect.”
“I’m not sure. And that is what bothers me.” L lied smoothly, resting his head on his knees. “Something’s not right, I can feel it.”

--

Y/N tapped their fingers restlessly against their desk. Where was he? He usually made sure to call them between six and seven… It was well past eight now and still no call. Maybe he had just got caught up in something..? Still he probably would’ve given them some form of notice-

Just then a white screen popped up on their computer a single gothic style ‘W’ in the center. Y/N was quick to answer.

“Night?” The filtered voice called from the speaker. Y/N pressed the grey button, speaking into the microphone.

“Yes? I’m here.” Night was their alias, their code name when it came to the media. Their real name was F/N, L/N. But went by Alex Moore when investigating a case outside their hideout.

“Have you solved the Red Ribbon murder case?”

“I did. It was quite easy actually, simple in fact. An educated monkey could have solved it. But I’m not surprised the police couldn’t figure it out. Idiots, that’s what they are.” Night grumbled into the mic.

W chuckled lightly. “They are, aren't they?" Night hummed, the anxious tapping of their fingers had lessened significantly.

“...Anyway that is besides the point, I have a new assignment for you.” Another case so soon? W usually didn’t come to them with a new assignment so soon after they had finished one… maybe this one was urgent and required Night’s attention right away. Not that it mattered, Night would take on any task W assigned to them.

“What is it?”

“A serial killer on the loose here in Japan, I’ll give you the specifics when you arrive.”

Night shifted nervously in their seat, pulling their legs up to their chest and wrapping their arms around. Hugging themself.

“A-arrive…? Wha..what do you mean?” Night sat there, curled up into themself as they awaited for an answer.
“Im flying you out here of course!” Night’s heart dropped to their stomach. That's what they had been afraid of.

“You want… me… to go...out there..” It was less of a question and more of an affirmation. That wasn’t possible, W couldn't possibly want them...to leave their hideout.. Right?

“Yes! I’ll send over the info you need to get here, be sure to clear the data off your computer before you leave. Bye.” With that W hung up with a click. Leaving Night to panic on their own.

--

L stood up from where he was sitting in front of the wall of monitors to stretch his legs. Sitting in that crouched position was not anything new to him, if anything he had grown used to it over the years. It became a habit of L’s. But nevertheless it didn’t prevent the numbing of the lower half of his body when sitting like that for hours upon hours on end.

L popped a candy from his pocket into his mouth, cherry this time, doing a few laps around the room. No one paid him much attention while he did this. The few who did only rolled their eyes before going back to work. They had grown accustomed to his strange behavior for the most part.

“Soichiro?” L called, eyes scanning the room. Yagami looked up from the paper he was reading and hummed in acknowledgement. “Do you think your son is innocent?”

This caused the rest of the group to look up immediately. Yagami responded immediately with a yes. Predictable.

“Speaking not as Light’s father, but as the chief of the NPA.” L stared directly into his eyes, tilting his head. “Do you, Yagami Soichiro, believe that Light is innocent? That there is no possible way he could be Kira?”

“Where is this all coming from?” Aizawa grunted. “I thought you said you would drop it if the cameras gave proof of Light’s innocence?”

L blatantly ignored the detective and watched Yagami’s expressions shift from one emotion from another before Yagami dropped L’s gaze and closed his eyes.

“Yeah!” The rest of the group said in unison.

L held up a finger to silence them and waited for Yagami’s answer.

Yagami sighed and opened his eyes, staring at the wooden floor. “I… I guess there is a slight possibility that Light could..” He let out a grunt instead of finishing.

L nodded, “Nine percent.” Lie. L then retreated back to his seat. Crawling into a crouched position he leaned forward to study the photo for any clues that they could have possibly missed. Nothing. Zilch. Nada. L grumbled to himself.

Of course! He thought. Of course there isn’t anything there. What was I thinking? He stood again, pacing back and forth. He brought his forefinger to his mouth, thinking intensely. Maybe..?

No. That was stupid. It didn’t matter either way; none of the people in this room would let him get away with it.

“L?” Watari called for him as he entered the room. L didn't acknowledge him, continuing his relentless pacing. “Whatever you’re thinking L, no. And besides…” When L looked up Watari had a mischievous grin on his face.

“I already called someone to fly out here to assist.” L froze in place. Thinking hard he held up a finger, signaling for Watari to give him a minute. His pacing resumed as L tried his best to guess as to who Watari could have called. Matsuda, Aizawa, Mogi, and Yagami watched him, their conversation having now gained their full attention.

When L came to a conclusion, the only possible answer, his movements stilled once again. L lifted his head to glare at Watari.

“You didn’t.”

Watari smiled, albeit nervously. “I did.”

The men around them looked from L to Warari then back again.

“Well,” Matsuda was the first to speak up. “Who is it?”

L didn’t answer. Instead he stuffed his hands in his pockets and stormed off. He knew it was childish, but L didn’t care. It seemed he was not fast enough, because right before the door shut behind him he heard exactly what he didn’t want to.

“-Night.”

Chapter Text

Night had gathered their belongings in a hast. Throwing all valuables into a cloth sack. Among these items were a couple bags of Goldfish, spare clothes, their fake ID and passport, any important documents that had not been stored on the computer, and their notebook.

With that Night pressed the special red button located on the C.P.U, instantly erasing any and all memory that had been stored inside. They gathered the sack into their arms, grasping it tightly as they prepared to leave. Night held their breath, shaky fingers digging into the cloth.

Come on, They thought. W wouldn’t have wanted me to leave if he didn’t think I could handle it. With that final thought they pushed through the door, the cool midnight air blowing through their hair. Night released the breath they’d been holding, and took the last few steps out of the door.

Why were they overreacting like this? It’s not like Night had never left their base. They had, in fact, left many, many times before. This was just another assignment, so why was Night so nervous?

When their socked foot made contact with the cool, damp ground they leaped back with a hiss, shaking the dirt off their feet.

Come on! You got this.. That’s right just…a bit more.. and... there we go! Now that wasn’t so hard, was it? Night smiled slightly as they took a few steps onto the wet grass. They had managed to get themselves this far… So Japan should be a breeze, right? Right…

It would start raining again soon so Night had better hurry. Tightening their already vice like grip on their bag they charged off into the night to the location W had provided them with.

--

L glowered at the photograph in his hands. This wasn’t the first time L had seen this photo of “Night”. It was an old picture of Night that Watari had given him a while back. When they were six or seven years old at most. And it never failed to hit him right in the gut with a ball of anger mixed with a dash of jealousy.

But could you blame him? His whole life he had grown up in the orphanage with Watari going on and on and on about them. What made them so special? Sure, from what Watari had told him, they had the intellect and observation skills.. But that was just a mere requirement of the job!

If only L could see what Watari saw in them, see why he seemed to have so much faith in them. But L didn’t, and he wasn’t going to pretend he did either. L was going to be as blunt and forward with them as he was with everyone else. No more, no less.

With an exasperated sigh L put the photo down and stared back up at the screens in front of him. L knew this hatred was childish and unreasonable seeming as he’d never met them before, but he could deal with that later. He had to deal with them later. There was no avoiding it. Bringing his thumb and forefinger to his lip he launched deep into thought.

He popped another candy into his mouth, leaning forward. This was hardly the time for petty jealousy, he had work to do.

--

By the time Night had arrived at the given location, the rain had returned with full force. Leaving their hair and clothes a soaking mess. The judgmental stares of the people in the airport only made them more insecure as they walked.

Night tried their best to ignore the eyes that bore holes into their back as they made their way to the check-in desk, leaving wet footprints behind with each step. Why couldn't these people just mind their own goddamn business?

After check-in, the lady then told them to head over to the security gates at the departure hall, as their plane would be boarding very soon. Night sighed and nodded, their eyes never once leaving the ground in front of them as they walked.

Once they had finally made it through security, the guy checking their possessions had had many questions as to why they had so many bags of Goldfish, Night headed for their boarding gate. It wasn't far by any means and Night had plenty of time to get settled into their seat and prepare for take-off.

Night had-surprisingly- never flown before, they had never really traveled by anything other than foot, as they had never had a reason to. They sat crisscrossed in their seat, sack in their lap.

As other passengers filed in they each made sure to spare Night a confused look, to which Night would childishly respond by sticking out their lounge.

After a short while the plane was taking off. Night clutched the bag in their lap tightly, taking deep breaths and squeezing their eyes shut as the plane passed through some turbulence.

Once it was over they reluctantly peeled their eyes open, letting out a cut-off yelp when they caught sight of ground disappearing out the window. Night didn't dare look out the window again for the rest of the flight.

--

As soon as the plane landed and they were free to get up, Night leaped to their feet, holding their bag close as they rushed to get off the plane. Night then completed the necessary steps to getting out of the airport. When outside Night caught sight of the sleek black car W had informed them about. Without a second thought, Night slid into the backseat, pulling their legs up to their chest and not speaking a word to the driver.

The drive was surprisingly short-lived, though Night couldn't see much of anything through the near-black tinted windows. Must be a security precaution. Night concluded.

When the car cane to a stop Night was directed to wait for someone to come get them. A tall man with dark brown hair and an ever-present frown on their face opened the door for them, placing a blindfold over Night's eyes and telling them to follow.

Night tried their best to keep calm. Their hand itched to remove the blindfold, and they clenched their teeth. Taking a deep breath they followed the sound of the man's footsteps.

Fifty steps later they were in an elevator, and calculating the speed of the elevator and the subtle stops it would make, Night could estimate they were now on the fourth floor. The elevator dinged and they stepped out, walking another hundred steps they came to a door.

The man knocked a strange pattern on the door and it clicked unlocked. Night noted the distinct smell of an arrangement of sweets and the scent of freshly printed paper as the door sprung open.

Night stepped in cautiously and lifted their head up, listening to the vague sounds of shifting clothes and breathing. With that night could estimate there were at least five people in the room. And Night could practically feel their questioning stares, they shifted uncomfortably under the spotlight. Being the center of attention was never something they had quite enjoyed.

Night's escort delicately removed the blindfold, careful not to alarm Night. Night hissed at the sudden bright light, blinking in an attempt to adjust their eyes.

When Night could finally see properly they took in the room around them, making a quick note of any possible escape routes. There was a window… but with how high up they were, jumping out meant certain death. The only obvious option was the door they had just come through… Aha! The air vent on the Wall to their left would make a perfect escape from any danger.

"So you are Night?" Night's attention snapped over the far wall ahead of them where a young man sat crouched in a chair. His head tilted slightly as he observed them.

Night nodded. Clearing their throat Night added, "But, you all can call me Alex." There was no way in hell Night would just give up their real name like that. Years and years of training had prepared them for situations like these… well maybe not exactly like this.

-

L remembered the photo from earlier, comparing it to the person in front of him. Not much had changed from the looks of it, besides the fact they were well into their early twenties now, but other than that the only differences were that their natural H/C hair had been dyed to a darker-than average-black and they had in-what was supposed to be- purple contacts that mashed with their natural E/C eyes. Odd. Why go through so much trouble to alter your appearance? It didn't make sense for someone who barely ever saw the light of day.

...

I hated them already.

Chapter Text

Night stood there awkwardly, shifting their weight from one foot to the other. Were they supposed to sit down or..?

“Night, don’t be shy now, you can sit wherever you like! Just make yourself comfortable.” W smiled warmly, eyes crinkling he gestured outwardly. Night snapped to attention, stalking forward to face the large man.

“So, you’re him?” They eyed W skeptically, not exactly what they had imagined, but it could be worse. They took in everything about his appearance, the professional way he stood, his straight posture, and clothing- all weirdly perfect, not a wrinkle in sight.

“If by ‘him’ you mean the strange voice you’ve been listening to through a screen for seven years, yes, yes I am-” Night’s focus was dragged away from the old man when another voice spoke up, their curious stare now landing on another man. This one had short black hair and sat on the arm of a couch, paper in hand.

“-with Watari and hiring such childish investigators?” It was obvious to Night that the man had meant for it not to be heard by more than the other man who sat next to him - who wore glasses and whose hair was greying - because of the way his eyes widened in surprise when he looked back to see Night staring him down.
Night cautiously took a few steps forward, head tilting slightly to the right. “I am not a child, in fact, I am twenty-three and have been working this job for seven-almost eight actually, years.”

“Oh, uh,” The man chuckled, rubbing the back of his neck, “right, of course, sorry about that.”

Night frowned. Sorry? “Sorry? Why are you sorry? That is my age.”

“Oh-yes. Yes, it is. I was thinking I came off as rude, doubting your abilities and all.”

Realization dawned upon Night then, “Oh no, you didn’t, I would know,’ Night grinned, tapping with a forefinger on their temple, then frowned again when no one got their joke. “I am very humorous, anyway- It is me who should be apologizing, I am no good with other people.” Other people that aren’t their enemy that is. The Bad are always easy to read.

“Right. You and L should get along very well then.” Night searched the room for the ‘L’ in questions, gaze landing on the man who had spoken to them first when they arrived.

Night observed L’s hunched over posture, his baggy clothing and smiled lightly, “I suppose we will.” No we won’t. The voice in their head supplies. He hates you already. See the way his fingers twitch when you talk? The way his eyes are ever-so-slightly squinted in a glare, even his body is facing away from you. He hates you. Who wouldn’t? Look at you, so pathetic- Stop.

Night turned back towards W. “What exactly am I here for?”

“Oh right, L, get them settled will you?” By the light sigh this L person let out Night was right to assume their relationship wouldn’t exactly be, well, happy. “I have… other things to take care of, so I will be getting out of you all’s hair now.”

“You were-” But W had already left the room. “Never in my hair..” They whispered to themselves before once again facing L.

“So-”

“Sit.”

-

L was right to think he would hate them, just look at them! Sure they were skilled with computers and even poked a few holes in the operation so they could patch them up- but still! That was L’s job, dammit!

And they had this annoying habit of sticking the tip of their tongue out while concentrating on the screens, hell they were doing it right now!

“So who’s the current suspect?” They asked, eyes not leaving the screen.

L held up a finger in the direction of the detectives occupying the sofas, “Currently, we have none.”

L heard the exhausted sigh of Aizawa but paid him no mind, or course he would test them! He needed to know if they were smart enough to come up with the same conclusion as he did, maybe then the other’s would believe him if two of the worlds best knew it was Light.

“Oh.” Night frowned, “Any parameters to go by?”

“Nop-”

Night turned to look at him directly, raising a brow. “You sure? From the false interview you did, like you said, he is obviously in the area. And crimes like this are usually in the range of the youth - maybe senior in highschool to freshman in college. And with the way he - again, obviously male with his carelessness - finds his victims, by name and maybe face? I am assuming so I may be wrong - he is most likely connected with the po…” Night seemed to have noticed the attention of the people in the room was now on them. “...the police force…”

“How the-”

“Even L didn’t-”

“Holy-”

“What?” Night tilted their head slightly, brows furrowed as they searched among the crew. “Were none of you aware? It's pretty obvious, even L should have noticed. I mean he is the top detecti-” Night paused their speech to glare directly at him. “Liar.”

-

Bad, bad, bad, bad, bad. Bad. The Bad lie. He is Bad. Only The Bad lie. All of them Bad. No trust, don't trust. They lie, you can't trust them, The Bad. He lied to you so he must be Bad.

-

“I didn’t lie-”

“Liar.”

-

Bad. The Bad. He is Bad. They are all Bad.

Tell them nothing.

-

“I didn’t lie, just” He sighed, “I needed to test you, needed to know you were capable, needed to know you would be of good use.”

-

he just wants to use you. use him before he uses you

Tell them nothing, find all their weaknesses. Use it against them if you have to. They are Bad. Hide, hide, hide. Find their secrets, if they have secrets they can be changed. Lie.

-

Night seemed to take that as a challenge as their frown had deepened into something angrier, something like a petty child. Huh, guess Aizawa wasn’t wrong, the two are very similar.

“Is my ranking not good enough for you? I'm already in the top ten, hell, the top five. Only bested by two others and then you-” A small smile formed as they mouthed a small ‘oh’ and met his gaze once more. “Liar.”

-
Found it. Need more-
-

Shit. L thought. They hadn't even been here for more than a few hours and had already figured him out. Maybe he wasn’t as good- no, of course he was. He’s L, the mystery, the great, the best. Still it would be best to play nice even if it were only to keep Night on their side.

-
Leverage.

Use it.