Chapter Text
“My shift was from 6:00 pm until closing time, which was around 10:30 pm that night. We don’t get a lot of customers after 7:00 pm during the week, so only a handful of people came by. I don’t remember much about them, I was pretty tired that night, but I’ll tell you what I can.”
L listened to the recording Matsuda had sent him for the tenth time as he waited for the task force to assemble in the briefing room. He only needed to hear it the one time to gather any useful information but the detective found himself enthralled with the barista’s words. There hadn’t been any other Kira victims to preoccupy his time so he had no qualms about obsessing over the audio file.
“When I started my shift there were already a few people sitting down. I think there was an older man in a suit by the front window and a group of college students in one of the booths. They didn’t stay very long, though. My first customer that night was a middle-aged woman. She looked like she’d just gotten off work and she ordered a coffee to go. I’m pretty sure she was a regular.”
He was confident that the older man and woman weren’t Kira and the group of college students was hardly suspicious. L was more concerned with twiddling his toes during this part of the recording. It hardly mattered.
“Then there were a couple of girls. I remember thinking they were going to go to the vampire club because they were wearing a lot of black. Their type is pretty common around here. You know, the fanatics .”
She was referring to humans that sought out attention from his kind; people that wanted to be turned, mated, or indulged in some (usually erotic) way. The raven had never paid them any mind but hearing the barista’s blatant revulsion toward them, struck a nerve he didn’t know he had.
Kira would like her.
“Then there was another group of college or high school students that stayed for a long time. There were like two girls and three guys... or was it all guys? I’m not sure.”
“That’s fine. Did anyone else come in after that?” Chief Yagami’s voice cut in.
“Oh, yeah,” she replied with a bit more enthusiasm, “There was another guy that came alone. He was wearing all black so he was probably another one of those people which is too bad because he was really good looking. He kind of reminded me of Ryuga Hideki but this guy had black hair instead. I bet Ryuga would look good with black hai-”
Soichiro cleared his throat and the girl snapped out of her fantasy.
“Right. Sorry about that. Um, he ordered a drink and sat down for a while. No one else came in after him so I didn’t have much to do. I really wish I would have given him my number but he seemed busy...”
“Busy how?”
“He was on his laptop. Anyway, he left before the students did and I ended up kicking them out for being too loud. Don’t tell my boss.”
L pressed the stop button, knowing that there was nothing worthwhile after that. He was absolutely certain that the man that the barista had gushed over, was Kira. He was the only one that was described to have a laptop and his attire suggested that he was going to go to Fangtasy immediately after. He wished she would have been able to describe more details about him but it couldn’t be helped. Even if they had her talk to a sketch artist, she’d just confuse Kira’s features with Ryuga’s since she’d already latched onto their visual similarities.
At least L knew for sure that Kira was male. The barista’s statement also supported L’s theory that the vampire hunter was somewhat attractive.
He forced himself not to dwell on his main Kira suspect because he knew he was biased about it. Watari had said as much after they’d listened to the recording the first time around. His sire’s lack of enthusiasm had gotten under L’s skin and he had decided to put an actual effort into investigating the military and other police officers.
He would give that job to the task force and remain focused on his own lead, however. The detective was more than aware of his team’s hesitance to pursue Light Yagami. Most of them knew him personally and L didn't want any unnecessary obstacles getting in the way of hi-
The raven’s thoughts were placed on hold as his eyes lasered onto the screen displaying the briefing room, which was now filling up with members of the task force. Watari collected the secure computer from his briefcase and placed it in the head of the room. Once his alias flickered onto the screen, L directed the assembled officers to research military members, men specifically, and anyone with past experience in law enforcement.
For a good hour, no one asked any questions and followed his orders until Soichiro took heavy steps up to the laptop. His shoulders were slumped and dark circles sat under his eyes.
“What is it, Yagami-san?”
“Do you still believe Kira is part of the NPA?” He asked in a low voice.
“I haven't completely cleared any of our known suspects but we can't turn a blind eye to the other potential candidates.”
“So my son could still be Kira?”
“There's a large number of people that could be Kira,” L retorted.
The chief didn't seem satisfied by his response as his expression darkened considerably. “He got his sense of justice from me. He always wanted to catch the bad guys and make the world a better place,” Soichiro explained with a far off look. “There were times when I thought he’d do anything to make his dreams a reality.”
L listened in silence, letting the man’s words sink in. He appeared to know that what he was saying would make his son seem even more suspicious and that it did.
“If Light is Kira... I don't know what I'd do.”
“Criminals and vampires aren't one in the same,” L pointed out, “If he has no prejudice against them what would his motive be?” His question was meant as reassurance but he’d be lying if he said he wasn't hoping Soichiro could provide him with an answer.
Soichiro did not answer his question though. He just grunted his acknowledgment and turned back to his original duty. The other officers had their hands full enough to not question their boss’s strange behavior, not that they could have heard a word of it anyway. Still, L didn't miss the questioning glance Aizawa directed toward the chief.
The detective ignored the hint of drama in favor of checking the other camera feeds of NPA headquarters. It all looked pretty cut and dry from what he could tell. Most of the officers had their eyes glued to a computer screen with the exception of two people standing in the break room. One was a well-dressed woman with long black hair and the other a generic man with glasses. If he remembered correctly, they worked closely with a certain Kira suspect of his.
Feeling curious, L unmuted the recording of the breakroom to see what the two were discussing.
The sound of coffee brewing was the first thing to transmit from the speakers as the man waited patiently beside the counter. He seemed displeased by something judging by the man’s frown. The woman was leaning against the same counter with an unreadable expression.
“I don't understand that guy,” the man expressed suddenly, “First, he begs us to go along with his intuition and next thing we know, he’s calling the whole thing off? I gave up my weekend for nothing!”
The woman snorted at his complaint. “He’s the genius. I'm sure he had a good reason for all of this.”
“Yeah?” He asked unimpressed and spun around to face his coworker, “But what was the point of our investigation in the first place?”
“What do you mean?”
“Why were we so worried about an illegal vampire if they had just saved a girl’s life? Doesn't that seem kinda cold?”
L pressed his thumb to his lips as he started to feel entranced by their conversation.
“Justice is justice, Yamamoto.”
“You sound just like him.”
The woman released an irritated sigh and folded her arms across her chest. “And what’s so wrong with that? Light’s your friend and our superior. Why are you doubting him all of a sudden? I thought you’d be happy about the tailing given the circumstances.”
“Misa Misa wasn't the target,” Yamamoto countered, “Her friend was. We never found them so why drop the case? It doesn't make any sense, Sanami! Don't tell me I'm the only one that sees that!”
Sanami stared at him for a while but her stoic expression didn't cave. It was only until the sound of the brewing stopped that she uncrossed her arms and spoke again.
L had to crane his neck to hear her whispered response.
“We’ll continue this later.”
L’s focus shifted from her retreating form to one of the offices feeds. There, he studied his fixation with probing eyes. The man’s perfect hair, perfect face, perfect suit, perfect everything was a hard exterior to crack but the detective knew he was on his way. Whether Light was Kira or not, the man was certainly up to something and L was determined to learn what.
Slowly, the raven turned back to his laptop and announced, “There’s been a change of plans.”
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Light felt like a failure. In all of his life, he'd never once dropped an unfinished project, especially when said project was a police case. He was the star of the NPA, the ace that never slipped up and yet he’d made a huge mistake.
He'd been found out.
“I know who you are” rang in his head mockingly, reminding him of the previous afternoon.
He had to force himself not to punch his desk. After all, he was being watched by L.
Light took a deep breath as he continued typing a follow-up report on the Misa investigation. Every press of the keyboard stung his ego as he came up with a viable reason as to why his team was no longer hunting Rem.
His fists clenched from just thinking the name. He hated vampires with a searing passion but never as much as he despised Rem.
That bitch had the nerve to threaten me!
He scrunched his eyes shut as his memories started to suffocate his livid mind. Light recalled the ghastly pale woman blocking his retreat from the club. Her crimson eyes captured him in a calculated gaze that had sent chills down his spine.
Her hair was white with purple tips, shoulder length, and nearly hiding the golden hoop rings dangling from her earlobes. She wore a form-fitting suit jacket and pencil skirt that were as white as her complexion. The woman towered over Light by several inches and that paired with her haunting aura caused his heart to race violently.
“You’re Kira,” she declared with a grating undertone. Despite her knowledge, the woman didn't appear enraged. She hardly had an expression at all but Light could see the monster in her eyes, a clear reflection of her very nature.
“What are you talking about?” There was no inflection of fear in his voice. Somehow he'd managed to sound calm and indifferent when his mind was screaming at him to run.
Her eyes narrowed by a fraction as she took a daunting step forward. “You were here with Ryuk the night of the murder.”
The brunet didn't respond.
“I was watching you. I saw you lure that man out back.” Her eyes lowered to his wrist and her lips pulled into a tight line. “I saw the blood on your watch when you returned.”
“You're wrong. I'm not Kira. I'm a police officer.”
“I know that as well.”
He shifted his weight from one foot to the other, growing more uncomfortable by the second. She knew who he was. He wasn't sure how but she knew.
“I’ve been following you ever since that night. I wanted to learn your motives and see the man behind the alias,” she continued with a wicked cruelty, “I did my own research, Light Yagami. You can't lie to me.”
A bead of a sweat trailed down his forehead as his eyes widened in realization. Kira had been caught. Either she'd kill him herself or report to the vampire council. He had his police-issued gun but without wooden bullets, it was practically useless. He wasn't going to be able to outrun, outfight, or outsmart her now.
Hopelessness loomed over him as he was met with the first loss of his life. His family and his coworkers would learn who he really was. They'd see behind his perfectly sculpted mask and feel what? Disappointment, betrayal, anger...
His legacy was going to fall apart and his actions would have been for nothing. He hadn't been able to cleanse the earth of vampires. He hadn't been able to make a difference. He hadn't been able to change the world.
He wanted to laugh at the joke his life had been. He wanted to throw his head back and let loose his real emotions. He wanted to explain his dream of a better world with this woman--with everyone.
He wanted to cry.
He didn't have a chance to do anything though, for the woman beat him to the mark.
“Stop tailing Misa.”
He didn't know how to respond to that but he was beginning to understand who he was dealing with.
“I saved her life and I'm going to continue protecting her,” Rem’s voice thundered, “Leave us alone or I will end you.”
She pointed a bony finger to his face and his legs almost gave out.
“Do you understand?”
The brunet swallowed down his pride as he met her steady gaze with a weak defiance. “I understand.”
Sanami and Yamamoto weren't happy when he told them they were dropping the case. They knew it was uncharacteristic of him to give up and they'd probably jumped to their own conclusions as to why he did what he did. His excuse had been that the station wanted them to stay out of the business of vampires for as long as the council and Kira were in the immediate picture. There were holes in his explanation but he had to tell them something and it wasn't like he could come clean about Rem.
Yeah, I’m dropping the case because Rem sniffed me out and gave me a death threat. Why? Oh, because I'm Kira. He snorted at the scene that would have caused. He would have been in handcuffs instantaneously and interrogated by L no doubt. His brows furrowed at the thought.
His fingers went back to typing as he pulled his mind out of the gutter. He needed to be productive. He needed to deal with Rem.
Now that she'd spoke out to him, it wouldn't make sense for to continue stalking him. So he was probably safe from her prying eyes as long as he stayed true to his word about Misa. He closed her case already so there was no reason for him to interact with the idol any longer.
She was never the problem anyway. It had always been Rem, illegal vampire or not. Light was frustrated enough with Ryuk knowing his secret. He couldn't allow another vampire that same privilege.
Even if she kept to herself about it, she was a clear threat. At any moment, should it benefit her in some way, Rem could out him and it'd be over. Kira would be over.
I won't let that happen.
It was improbable that he'd be able to kill Rem now that she knew who he was. She'd be able to smell him a mile away, he was sure. Negotiations were out of the question since he could trust her as much she did him. His only option was to find a weakness of hers and use it to his advantage.
Lucky for him, he already knew what that weakness was.
Misa Amane, I guess you can be useful after all. He smiled to himself as he tossed around the possibilities of how he could use her. She was protected, which would make it hard for him to get close to her, but if he could...
Hold on. Did Rem even know about the interrogation? She didn't say anything about it... She was more concerned about me being Kira than a co-
“I see,” he said under his breath. A sense of understanding washed over him as he discovered the key to Rem’s concern.
She doesn't want Misa to come in contact with Kira. That much was clear but it didn't explain why she didn't just kill him.
Why can't Misa know who I am? Why would it matter? She’s not a vampire.
His smile faltered as he realized he reached yet another obstacle.
What are you up to, Rem?
A sudden knocking on his door attracted his attention as he shifted his gaze from his computer. “Come in,” he called.
A moment later the door opened, revealing the police chief. He looked stressed and worn out. The Kira investigation must have been getting to him.
He thought back to when he was younger and how little time his dad spent at home. His work came before family every time, much to his wife and daughter’s dismay.
Now, I'm the reason he's not with them.
“Light,” he acknowledged his son dryly. It wasn't an unusual greeting for them.
“Is there something you need?” He asked with the apathetic politeness he’d upheld around acquaintances. As it was, he treated his father as if he was a stranger. He practically was.
Soichiro stepped further into the office, his expression torn in a way Light couldn't decipher. He almost appeared to be... discouraged.
The man cleared his throat and the look was replaced with the exhausted professionalism he was used to.
“You’ve been assigned to the Kira investigation.”