Work Text:
Light settled down with his laptop in Misa’s room. Misa wrote names for him, eyes fixed on the news broadcast. He had come over today planning to ask her to move in together… It was hard to get himself to ask. He didn’t really want to live with her.
But Light thought about his last few months, and how tired he’d been. He hadn’t slept through the night in a long time.
First, there was confinement. Who could sleep in a cell with their wrists and ankles bound? And once he had given up his memories, he had spent his nights worrying that someone had framed him. There was no rest to be had.
And then L handcuffed them together, for what felt like an eternity. After a week straight of Light waking up at 3am— about half an hour after L typically fell asleep, and apparently L was a light sleeper— to flip his too-warm pillow to the cool side, L had custom made Light a pillow with an icepack on the inside, which L had Watari change for Light every night. A special pillow that somehow kept cool without getting damp.
Light had slept through the night then, but he hadn’t felt nearly as comfortable or as cozy as he remembered being before confinement. He had thought maybe it was something about the blanket he had at home, but no change in blanket had helped. He had ultimately decided it was being attached to L and under constant surveillance that kept his sleep from returning to the cozy wonderfulness he remembered.
But now, Light remembered exactly what he was missing: Ryuk. Light had everything he’d ever wanted in his hand, aside from good sleep. And that was making it hard to enjoy his win.
Light was determined to get his godly pillow back.
He let his eyes drift to the corner of the room, where Ryuk sat, looking bored. Probably waiting for some sign from Light that they could resume how they once were.
For now, Light would wait. Light wasn’t sure if switching their notebooks, just so Ryuk was attached to Light instead of Misa, would get rid of Misa’s shinigami eyes. And then she wouldn’t be able to make the deal again, because Ryuk would be attached to Light… So Light would have to switch notebooks again, and then ask her to cut her life again… And then he still wouldn’t have Ryuk…
And if she cut her life again he wouldn’t have her very long. He would have to start looking for new eyes, immediately. Which meant he’d have to give Ryuk to some new person. And then the move-in solution might not even work.
He had to do this. It was the best way to have both his pillow and the shinigami eyes. “Misa,” Light said.
“Hmm?” she asked, focused on her task.
“How would you like to move in together?”
She stopped writing. “Light! I would love that!”
Light smiled. Good sleep was in his future. He locked eyes with Ryuk, who chuckled.
Light got the biggest apartment he could, and made sure to set up plenty of work computers in the front room, so he had an excuse to work late.
He got two beds for the bedroom, and had them pushed together.
Now, he was ready. Good sleep was finally in his grasp.
Misa was already in bed when he entered the room the first night. She wasn’t wearing much, and what she wore had lots of lace. Light spared her a glance, before climbing into the bed on the opposite side. “It’s winter, Misa, won’t you get cold?”
“Aren’t we going to-?” she began, trying to cross over the crack between the pushed-together-beds.
He put a hand up, keeping her on her side. “Sorry, Misa. I need my sleep, or I can’t function as L and Kira.”
She stared at him. Then tried again, “Can’t we at least… cuddle while we sleep?”
Light shook his head resolutely. “If I get too warm, I can’t sleep.” He looked around the room, finding Ryuk watching wrestling on Misa’s tv. “Ryuk?”
“Just a minute, Light-o. Match is almost over.”
“Alright, Misa, I guess we can cuddle until the match is over. But no kissing or anything like that. I really do need to get to sleep soon.”
“Why just until after the match?” she asked, as she eagerly crossed the divide between the beds.
He wrapped his arms around her, hoping this would be enough to appease her. She was small, and warm, and it wasn’t at all what he needed to sleep, but it wasn’t bad. He felt a hand straying from his back. “Only cuddling, or nothing.”
She pouted, but returned her hand to his back.
He placed his hand on her upper back as she buried her face in his nightshirt. “And this would work better if you wore full pajamas. That would be much more comfortable than skin and lace.”
“How is that better than skin and lace?” she repeated, brows furrowing as she looked up at him.
“My hand is sticking to you,” he said. He lifted the aforementioned hand, their skin making a wet sound as he broke the suction of his sweaty palm against her back. He wiped his palm off on the blanket, tentatively setting his hand on the back of her head. “To be honest, Misa, it’s a little gross.”
“Gross?”
“What about I buy you some clothes I like?” he suggested.
“You’re… buying me clothes for bed… but… full pajamas?”
“Yes. I bet you’d look adorable in a Kigurumi, Misa. I can get you different animal onesies.”
He could see the conflict on Misa’s face as she said, “You… would like that? Better than this?”
“I would love that, Misa. Will you wear a cute animal onesie for me?”
“I- I’ll think about it…”
Light felt claws on his head, and smiled. “For now, though, I need my side of the bed.” He pulled his arms from her. When she didn’t move, he said, “You need to go to your side, Misa. I have to get up early, remember?”
She pouted, but moved across the dividing line. “I- I guess…”
Light looked up at Ryuk. Met his red-on-yellow eyes. Nodded.
Ryuk immediately got into the bed, and Light was pleased to find that even after months apart, they easily fell into Light’s favorite sleeping position— Light lying on his side across Ryuk’s left wing, with an arm slung over Ryuk’s waist as he curled up to the god’s big body; the left wing curled over his body and holding him snug to Ryuk. He nuzzled his face into the shoulder feathers, sighing pleasantly as the feathers wrapped around him caressed his face.
“Light,” Misa said, voice taking on a shrill tone. “Are you— are you cuddling with Ryuk?”
Light burrowed his face further into the feathers, letting out another pleased sigh as claws began to drag through his hair. “I’m the god of the new world, Misa. This is how I sleep. In the arms of a god.”
Ryuk chuckled. The soft wing blanketing Light pulled him even closer.
“Mm, this is nice,” he said. “Misa, Ryuk has two wings, and is pretty big, so, we could put him in the middle-“
“No! I don’t want to cuddle Ryuk, I want to cuddle you.”
“Be reasonable, you already cuddled with me,” Light said, voice soft as he pressed into the stroking claws on his head.
“For barely a few minutes!”
“I told you, I can’t sleep if I get too warm,” said Light. “And I definitely can’t sleep with you talking this loud. Do you want me to slip up at work and be caught?”
“No, but-“
“Thank you for your understanding, Misa,” Light said, returning his face to where it should be— in Ryuk’s shoulder feathers. “I’ll talk to you in the morning, if you’re awake when I get up.”
__
Light awoke feeling exceptionally well rested and cozy. He looked up into familiar fire-colored eyes, and smiled. Realized he had Ryuk back, finally. He searched for a moment until he found one of Ryuk’s hands, dragging it to his hair.
Ryuk laughed at him, but stroked his hair.
“Much better,” Light said, letting his eyes fall shut again. “Missed this.”
“Missed your ‘real god’ cuddles?” Ryuk asked, sounding entertained.
“Mm hmm.” It wouldn’t hurt to sleep a little late today… he could be late to the office this once.
__
“Light, are you getting up? I have to leave for a shoot soon.”
Misa’s voice. Light reluctantly lifted his head from soft feathers, glancing at the clock. 10am. Well, he was his own boss now. “Misa, can you call the taskforce and tell them I’m sick?”
“I’m not telling them you’re sick because you’re cuddling Ryuk,” she said.
“I’d hope not. Then they would surely suspect me,” said Light. Ryuk laughed. Light hid his smirk in Ryuk’s shoulder feathers.
__
Light set his cup of coffee on the table, and found Ryuk reclined across the living room sofa, playing video games.
“Really staying home sick today?” Ryuk asked.
“I think the months of confused amnesia, constant surveillance, and poor sleep have earned me a single day of playing sick at home,” said Light. He grabbed a game controller off the coffee table. “Make space for me.”
Ryuk straightened up. Light sat next to him. Stared at him pointedly. Cleared his throat.
“I know, Light, I haven’t forgotten. I’m setting up multiplayer.”
Light scooted closer, leaning against Ryuk’s side as he waited.
“Hyuk hyuk. Impatient god, aren’t you?” Ryuk set the remote down, wrapping a long arm around Light and guiding him to lean forward. Light let Ryuk move him, excited when he saw Ryuk’s wings extend from his back. The arm released him, and the wing coiled tight around Light, holding him against Ryuk’s side and hip.
Light let his head fall on Ryuk. But he was too tall, so Light couldn’t quite get his cheek pressed against the shoulder feathers. “Can you slouch down a bit?”
Ryuk didn’t respond, taking Light’s distraction as a chance to throw a banana at Light’s car. But then he slouched down lower, eyes glimmering as Light’s little car was sent spinning on-screen.
Light didn’t care. He was finally able to lean his head onto Ryuk’s shoulder, while the strong soft wing folded around him with the perfect snugness and softness.
“After a few matches, let’s watch tv,” said Light.
“You just want my hands free,” Ryuk said, laughing.
Light smirked. “I’m the god of the new world, Ryuk. I need my daily quota of godly head scratches to sustain maximal godliness.”
Light returned from a day of working at the taskforce building, and immediately settled in front of one of the monitors in his living room. Misa wasn’t home yet, so, Ryuk wasn’t home yet. Disappointing, but he had some leads to follow up on.
He worked for an hour, when he finally heard the front door open.
“Light! I’m home!”
“Hey, Misa,” he greeted, looking up from his screen to flash her a smile. He let his gaze linger, until Ryuk floated in after her. “Hey, Ryuk. I’m going to be working in the living room for a bit. But feel free to be around me while I’m working.”
“I’ll do the nightly writing for you!” Misa said.
“Thank you, Misa,” said Light. “You really help keep my kingdom running.”
She beamed. “And maybe tonight, we can go to bed early, and-“
“Cuddle before we sleep? Sure, I can spare 15 minutes before bed for that,” he said.
“Not just cuddle, but also-“
“-watch a movie?” Light suggested.
She stared for a moment. Then her eyes lit up. “Yes! ‘Watch a movie’.” She giggled and ran off to the bedroom, looking excited.
Well. She would be in for a surprise later. He was sure Ryuk would help make that experience entertaining instead of annoying.
He smiled when Ryuk settled onto the sofa beside him. He set his laptop on the coffee table and looked at Ryuk, waiting. Ryuk adjusted so his legs were folded under him, and then proceeded to pull Light into his lap.
It took Light a second to settle how he liked, but once he did, he was immensely comfortable, with the big god’s chest against his back, Ryuk’s cool leather and solid body a familiar, relaxing presence. “Laptop,” Light said.
“What are you working on late?” Ryuk asked. He used a long arm to snatch the laptop up from the table, handing it to Light. “Aren’t you just chasing your own tail these days?”
“I’m L now,” said Light, opening the computer and pulling up some files. “That means I get constant requests to take on cases. This one’s really interesting.”
“I would think your work as Kira means there aren’t any cases.”
“The opposite is actually true,” said Light. “As Kira, I can only target those who are already caught. So, criminals are incentivized to go to great lengths to not get caught. There are even more cases for L to take on now than there were before.”
“Are you saying your work as Kira has caused more organized crime?”
“It might have,” said Light, “but with L’s resources, I can get that under control with time, too.”
“Wouldn’t it be suspicious if Kira immediately took care of everyone L caught?”
“I have to wait for their names to be released to the public if I want to personally take care of them,” said Light. “But, a lot of the cases I take on aren’t really Kira’s area. For example, this one is just someone who keeps impersonating police to steal cake at children’s birthday parties. In fact, the families say they didn’t really even mind the intrusion until they noticed the cake was missing. I think it’s better to let the legal system handle this person— or, people, if it’s organized.”
“Organized crime that impersonates police to steal cake?” Ryuk asked. “Hyuk hyuk. That is an interesting case. Tell me more.”
“So, the reports of the person’s height vary widely, which suggests multiple people are involved, and perhaps they steal the whole cake because they share it amongst themselves afterwards. I’m currently in the process of establishing a motivation, but some possibilities are…”
__
“Liiightttt, I have the perfect movie picked out!” Misa exclaimed. “Do you want to know what it… is…”
Light looked up from his laptop, at the fallen expression on Misa’s face. Took in the barely-there outfit she wore. “What’s wrong?”
“Why are you sitting in Ryuk’s lap?”
Light pressed further back into Ryuk’s chest, letting himself sink deeper into the god’s folded legs. Ryuk’s arms tightened around him. “Because it’s comfortable.”
“But- but… Light, look at him.”
“Have you tried it?” Light asked.
“I- no. No, I haven’t tried… sitting in Ryuk’s lap, Light,” she said.
“Well, then you’re missing out,” he said. He let his head fall back against Ryuk’s chest, looking up through the fringe of his bangs at the god. “Ready for a movie?”
“We’re watching with Ryuk?” Misa asked.
Ryuk met Light’s eyes, and Light had known Ryuk long enough to recognize the brightness in his gaze as entertainment. Ryuk brushed Light’s bangs out of his face, not looking away from him as he asked Misa, “What movie did you pick out for us?”
“For- for me and Light. Not you and Light! I should be sitting in Light’s lap,” Misa said.
“Misa,” said Light, “You don’t have to watch a movie with us if you don’t want to. Though, I do have to request you stay in tonight.”
“Why?”
“If you leave, Ryuk goes with you.” Light kept Ryuk’s gaze as he spoke, noting the way the red pupil and yellow iris almost looked orange where they overlapped. To think he could rule the world from Ryuk’s lap, getting godly headpets and cuddles. For the rest of his life.
Life was good.
Voice determined, Misa suddenly said, “Misa Misa can be the big spoon, too, Light.”
“You don’t have to force yourself, Misa. I have the perfect big spoon already. I can keep holding you for 15 minutes before bed. I don’t mind.”
“You can sit in Misa Misa’s lap!”
Yes, the red and yellow of Ryuk’s eyes did become notably brighter with his amusement. And they were practically glowing now, as Misa continued with her offers.
“I guess we can try that sometime,” he said, “but I’m probably too heavy for you.” Light let his fingers drift to Ryuk’s hair. A lot coarser than his feathers or leather, but the sensation was fun against his skin.
“Light!”
“Mm?” he asked, twisting some of the dark strands around his fingers.
“I’m putting in the movie.”
“Thanks.” He sunk his fingers deeper into the god’s hair, entranced as his hand disappeared into the gravity-defying strands. He dropped his eyes to Ryuk’s face, tightening his fingers around a spiky bunch of hair, and giving a light tug. Earned himself a laugh. Light smiled. “Should be room for you next to us.”
__
“I’m not wearing it.”
“But you said you wanted me to buy you clothes I liked,” said Light, settling onto his side of the bed. His eyes drifted to Ryuk, who was finishing up a match on some online multiplayer game.
Misa picked up the cat onesie laid out across her side of the bed, grimacing. “I meant lingerie, Light.”
“Misa… Do you really want me to buy you clothes I like, or do you want me to buy you clothes you like?” he asked. “Because I can do that. But that’s not what you requested.”
She threw the onesie at him. “If you like it so much, you wear it.”
Light considered the one-size-fits-all onesie. A tabby cat kigurumi. Ryuk had actually picked it out while Light worked, and joked that Light should wear it if Misa didn’t. He had laughed, and not taken it seriously.
But.
It might make cuddling with Misa better if Light was this covered up. He got up, unbuttoning the onesie.
“Wait, are you really-“
“You asked me to,” he said, flashing her an award-winning smile. “Let me do this for you, Misa.”
“I didn’t really…” She trailed off.
“And you can be big spoon tonight, too, like you offered,” he said. “Once you see how soft I am in your arms in this, you’ll understand why I bought it for you.”
Light pulled the red-and-white outfit on over his pajama pants and long sleeve pajama shirt, slipping his hands into the paws at the end of the kigurumi sleeves. He reached behind himself, but couldn’t quite grasp the hood with his paw-covered hands. “Misa, can you help me with this?”
She stepped closer, brows still furrowed as she reached behind him to pull the hood up over his head. Then, she reached above his head, and he felt her adjusting the ears. She dropped her hands, taking a step back and looking him over.
“How do I look?” he asked, the top of the hood obscuring the upper half of his field of vision.
She blushed. “It’s actually pretty cu-“
“Really cute, Light-o,” Ryuk cut in, his match forgotten behind him, attention on Light. “I’ll pick some other cat ones for you to try out, too.”
“Wait, did- did Ryuk pick it out for you, or did you pick it out for me?” Misa asked.
“Misa, if you want to cuddle with me, we should do it now, or we won’t have time.”
She, again, looked conflicted. But she got into the bed.
Light settled down. Turned away from her. “Alright, Misa, I’m ready for you to hold me.” He couldn’t entirely keep his amusement out of his voice. Was she really going to go with it?
Her small arms wrapped around him, and he felt her face press up against the back of his hood. Yes, she was going with it. Surprisingly, it was much better than usual. He found he could relax.
Almost. He felt a tugging, near the bottom of the outfit. “No stroking my tail.”
“If I wear it, you can stroke my tail,” she said.
“Thanks, Misa,” he said. “I might do that. The tails on these are really soft. I’ll have Ryuk buy us a few extra outfits so we can both wear them to bed.”
“If I pick you outfits, will you wear them?” she asked.
“Depends on the outfit,” he said, “but sure, I don’t mind wearing something like this. It would normally be too warm for me to sleep in, but, Ryuk’s cool enough to counter the excess heat. I’ll just have him phase through it if I can’t feel his coolness.” Being held by her in this outfit wasn’t that bad. As long as she kept her hands off his tail.
“Alright, Misa,” said Ryuk, “Hand neko-Light over to me.”
Misa’s arms tightened around Light. “No, it hasn’t been fifteen minutes yet. Go play another match.”
Light felt his hood shift a bit, as Ryuk said, “The fur coming out of these is pretty soft. Looking forward to you wearing these around the apartment.”
Misa’s fingers dug into Light’s arms. “Light is Misa Misa’s.”
“My life belongs to Ryuk, since I’m the first one who picked up the note he dropped.” Smirking, Light added, “That makes me Ryuk’s. Right, Ryuk?”
“That’s right.” Ryuk laid out across the air next to the bed, reaching under Light’s hood to scratch at his scalp. “Light and I have an unbreakable bond.”
Light lay across the sofa with his head in Ryuk’s lap, watching as Ryuk attempted to play Mario Kart against computers one handed. Ryuk’s other hand was phased through the hood of Light’s black-and-gray cat onesie, stroking his scalp.
“Light-o, this isn’t fun for me.”
Light felt the hand in his hair begin to move away, and placed a hand over it. “I can take the cat onesie off. I only put it on because you asked me to.” And to subtly persuade Misa to wear one, instead of her usual lacy things. He was pretty sure he was close to convincing her. But if he said that too loud, she might hear, and get indignant, and then all his hard work would be wasted.
“I obviously don’t want you to take off the adorable cat onesie that I personally picked out for you, Light. Playing video games one-handed isn’t fun. Let’s put on a show or something.”
“I had a long day today,” said Light. “I don’t want you to stop.”
He saw Ryuk set the remote down. The claw in his hair pulled free from Light’s hand.
“Ryuk-“ Light broke off with a startled yelp as he was scooped up, strong hands effortlessly pulling him into the shinigami’s lap.
“Be good and wait for me to finish this match.”
Light felt his face warm at that comment. “I’m not your pet, Ryuk.” But he settled back against Ryuk, and waited.
Though he hadn’t known it at the time, he knew now this was what he had been missing, during the months without his memory. Ryuk’s attention. Ryuk’s playful teasing. He watched as Ryuk won his first match since Light had come home.
Ryuk set the game controller down. Light felt his blush deepen as Ryuk scooped him into his arms, getting up.
“What are you doing?” Light asked.
Ryuk approached the tv, holding Light a little lower so he was within reach of the channel controls. “Go ahead, Kira, God of the New World. Grace us with tv without losing out on a second of cuddles.”
Light rolled his eyes, fighting to keep a scowl instead of the smile threatening to take over his face. He reached out, and changed it so a wrestling channel was displayed, instead of the game.
Ryuk settled back down on the couch, and Light let out a pleased sound as a hand moved to his hair. “Can I have a wing around me, too?”
“Sure, Not-My-Pet.”
“Shut up, Ryuk.” Light let his eyes fall shut as soft wings wrapped around him.
“Light. You said we could watch something together tonight.” Misa’s voice.
Light opened his eyes, looking up at Misa. She was wearing an orange fox onesie. He needed to encourage this. This was a great change from the usual lace. “Did you want a spot on the sofa? I can stroke your ears for you, if you want.” The fur on these was pretty soft. Light wouldn’t mind stroking the fake costume fox ears.
“I don’t want my fake ears stroked,” she said. After a beat, “I do want a spot on the sofa.”
Ryuk adjusted them so they weren’t haphazardly laid out across the entire sofa, Misa settling down in the now free cushion. Ryuk redoubled his efforts along Light’s scalp, Light enjoying the way it somehow made his entire body feel weightless.
“I want to scratch your head, too,” said Misa.
“Go ahead,” said Light.
She freed her hand from the paw at the end of her costume sleeve. Then, her manicured nails found a free spot on the side of his head.
And that was nice, too. More scratching was always better. “Keep doing that,” he encouraged.
After a bit, she tried to lean against him, mostly leaning against Ryuk’s wing, but what he did feel of her was the soft cotton of the costume. Not bad next to Ryuk’s cool leather.
Light closed his eyes and enjoyed their attention. Their worship. He could see himself living like this for a long, long time.