Chapter Text
L’s perspective
I watched through a monitor as Y/n stealthily moved throughout the Yagami household, a tiny camera attached to the hat she was wearing. So far, the placement of the cameras and wiretaps had gone off without a hitch. I heard her voice come through as she spoke into the earpiece.
“I’ve gone over the blueprints, and I think there should be 64 cameras in Light’s room if you really don’t want a blindspot.”
Considering this for a moment, I nodded to myself before answering, taking on the authoritative tone I tended to have while in work-mode.
“Yes, it is imperative there are no blindspots. Be sure to hide them all effectively.”
Y/n snorted at my tone, answering sarcastically. “Yes, sir. All cameras will be deployed, sir!”
I couldn’t help but smirk a little bit as she entered Light’s room. Through the monitor, I noticed a small piece of paper and pencil, seemingly placed to alert the teen if anyone had been inside his room. She seemed to notice, as well, her gaze slipping towards the objects.
“Oh, would you look at that. He is hiding something! This just got a whole lot more interesting!” she exclaimed.
Putting a thumb to my lips, I pondered. A tad suspect, but not really. Most teens greatly valued their privacy.
“Hmm. For a 17-year-old, I wouldn’t say this type of thing is particularly abnormal. Proceed with caution, regardless.”
I watched closely as she began ruffling through drawers and the bookshelf, before she gasped loudly. Looking closer to see what she’d found, I almost rolled my eyes upon seeing what caught her attention.
“ He is Kira! Look at this porn stash! The most vanilla shit I’ve ever seen!”
For some unknown reason, I felt heat rush to my cheeks at the comment. I absolutely did not want to hear about Y/n’s porn preferences. Nope. Why the ever loving hell wouldn’t my blush go away?
“...I really don’t need to hear about your preferences in such material,” I mumbled, clearing my throat awkwardly.
I could almost hear the smirk in her voice as she put on an obviously fake sweet persona.
“Sorry, I didn’t mean to make you uncomfortable. I just thought my expertise in this subject might help out!” Her voice became even more teasing. “After all, there’s a lot you can learn from someone’s secret porn stash!”
My eyes widened, and I was really damn grateful she couldn’t see just how uncomfortable this conversation was making me. Was this appropriate work conversation? What was even happening?
‘We’re just messing with each other, as per usual. There’s nothing to it.’
With that thought in mind, I smirked as I decided to get back at her.
“Oh? Wonder what I’d learn about you, then.”
She paused for a moment, and I knew I had to have made her just as uncomfortable. Good.
Making her rounds throughout the room, she continued hiding cameras as she spoke.
“Bold of you to assume I have any shame, Lawli-pop. Anything specific you want to know?”
‘Nothing at all. Nope. I don’t care.’
This was completely inappropriate work conversation. Against my will, my voice took on a lower tone.
“Didn’t take you for the type to kiss and tell.”
Y/n had the gall to sigh nonchalantly, seemingly without a care in the world. “Well, I can do much more than kiss and tell.”
A sudden spark of something filled my chest, and it frightened me. What was that? Jealousy? Possessiveness? No. Annoyance at the fact that we were in the middle of an important mission for the Kira case, and it had veered way off track. That had to be it. Reaching for some water instead of coffee for once, I downed it before answering.
“I suppose I’ll have to take your word for it…”
Before she could answer, I saw her feeling around a desk drawer.
“My, my, my, what’s this? I’m pretty sure there’s a secret compartment. Yeah… this little piece right here is a lock under the desk. Should I proceed?”
This effectively piqued my curiosity and snapped me back to the task at hand.
Reader’s perspective
You could tell that L was in full detective mode, his voice even and serious.
“That is interesting, indeed. Evidence, perhaps? You may proceed.”
Hm. A part of you was wary, but you nodded to yourself, going to pick the lock. You inserted the lockpick and froze, your eyes widening. Wha- it was making a strange hissing noise- a gasp escaped your chest. You jumped back just as the desk burst into flames, fire shooting up.
“ Motherfuc - aaah! ”
A scream tore through your throat, pain exploding from your hand. Holding it to your chest, you cried out, looking to see it badly burnt. You swayed, holding it, your nostrils flaring and hyperventilating. You shivered, feeling disoriented and unable to think. The fire had stretched high enough to catch on the drapes.
It seemed to spread so quickly, catching on papers and loose clothing. In almost no time, it was everywhere, surrounding you and sending dark plumes into the air. You choked, coughing while you cradled your hand, panic clouding your vision and thoughts. L. L, you needed L. You wanted L. Your knees buckled, your chest heaving.
“Oh my God, L, fuck, what do I do? Shit, it hurts !”
He didn’t answer right away and you whimpered, thinking maybe somehow the connection had been severed. Where was he?! Why wasn’t he answering?! But he did… his voice snapped into ‘L-mode’, commanding and grounding.
“Y/n, listen to me. You have to get out of there quickly. Is there any way you can break a window, get some fresh air? Or the bedroom door. Is it still cool?”
You hissed out a breath, shaking. The pain from your hand made it impossible to think, impossible to focus. Your head whirled to see the drapes black, the window impossible… so many impossible things. And the flames were already at the door. Your breathing wheezed, your body wracking with coughs, your vision swimming.
“I-I’ll have to charge the door,” You stumbled, the smoke making you light-headed, “L… if… I don’t make it out, c-can you take care of AJ for me? Please?”
You could’ve sworn he drew in a shuddered breath and you briefly wondered what he was thinking, if he was worried about the situation.
“I will not take care of AJ for you, because you are going to survive and take care of him yourself. I am getting you help.”
He was sending help. Good. Watari, the task force, the chief… you nodded, trying to get through the fog in your brain. Your eyes went to the door, hyping yourself up.
“Okay, I’ll try to get as far away from the fire as possible…”
Holding your breath, you ran for the door, cursing that you had to pull it open. As a result, the fire burnt your ankles, making pain flare up your legs.
“AAH.”
You shrieked, the skin blistered. Stumbling down the stairs, you threw yourself onto the front porch, tears rolling down your cheeks, your nerves stinging and bubbling. Your voice wavered, your throat tight on you.
“Okay, okay, I’m-I’m outside, I’m… ow, it… I burned my ankles… how far out is Watari?”
Unbeknownst to you, L was shaking, his eyes wide. He was gripping his hair, thinking about how it was all his fault, how he was the one who told you to investigate… and how all you wanted was for him to take care of your cat. The guilt tore at him, his face pale as he messaged Watari to hurry up.
Your brow furrowed, hearing just the slightest change in his tone.
“He is just a couple of minutes away. Hang in there, Y/n. I’m… I’m sorry.”
He feels guilty . You winced. That wasn’t what you wanted! You sighed, stretching out on the porch, your skin still screaming.
“It’s okay, don’t feel guilty, I’ll be fine, I’ve had way worse injuries than these” You chuckled weakly. It wasn’t a lie, there were scars from much worse experiences riddling your body, “... I always come out of it okay…” You shivered, not wanting to think about it.
“...When you get out of this, you should tell me all about it.”
You blinked in shock, the sadness in his voice audible. Wow, you weren’t sure if you’d ever heard his voice cracked with emotion like that. Why? Why did he sound so emotional? He didn’t know anything about your past… or… maybe that was why...
You stiffened. Sharing your past… heh… the thought of sharing your past with anyone, least of all him… your heart twisted, prickles of fear stabbing at you. But you cleared your throat. Too depressing. You wanted to- you wanted to hear him laugh. If that’s even possible , you thought with a wry chuckle.
“Uh, sure, yeah, no problem,” you dismissed, hoping he’d catch onto your discomfort, “I guess I was wrong about Light though. His porn isn’t vanilla, it’s… fiery!”
He groaned, but you could hear the tiny smile in the sound. A part of you knew he was playing along for your benefit.
“Ah, yes. He certainly got a bang for his buck.”
The both of you cringed, the joke comically flat. Your lips twitched. He’s trying . Your fingers tingled with warmth.
“He sure did! Those chicks are really smoking!”
Before the puns could continue, Light rounded the corner. He froze, seeing a) his house on fire and b) you, a random girl just chilling on the front porch.
If you weren’t in pain, you’d be proud!
He ran up to you, looking alarmed and looking over your injuries. Your lips pursed, not buying his ‘concerned’ act for a second.
“Oh my- You’re injured! And my house is on fire…! Are- Are you okay? Why are you…” he stared at you, stunned.
Okay, so maybe the stun was a tad warranted. Eh, still seems like a load of bullshit. Oh, can he see my face ? No… no, there was soot covering your features. You shrugged apologetically, allowing a shit-eating grin to spread up your lips.
“I, uh… I like your porn stash. Well, I mean, it’s ash now, but um…”
Yeah, sounded cooler in your head. Light stared at you, his brow furrowed. Fire engines roared in the distance. If they were on their way, Watari wasn’t far!
“Oh! There’s my ride! Wish I could stay and talk, but I really don’t want to.”
The crew showed up, trying to get you into Watari’s limo before firemen and police could arrive. Leaning against them, you yelped in pain, having to practically be carried.
Light watched them take you away, his face twisted in confusion. Soichiro helped them load you into the vehicle, barking orders to the task force. Light rushed forward, grabbing his hand.
“Dad… what is going on here?”
The chief looked at Light incredulously, his face red with anger.
“What’s going on here?? What’s going on here ? I’ll tell you what’s going on here! You rigged a bomb in our house! What. The. Hell, Light?”
Light opened and closed his mouth, scratching the back of his head nervously. You could swear you saw the beginnings of a cocky smirk hidden beneath his concerned expression.
“My diary was in that drawer! I just didn’t want anyone to read it. I was trying to protect my privacy.”
Your diary? Fuck your diary ! You tensed, ready to snap his head off for such an idiotic excuse. But Watari gently touched your shoulder, shaking his head. You understood… later… we’d deal with Light later…
You inspected your bandages in interest, humming to yourself.
L stood in the doorway, watching you dejectedly. You bit your lip. Damn, he looked guilty… you waved your wrapped hand, pointing to your mummified ankles.
“Hey! See? Almost good as new. Watari said I should be up and around in no time!”
His gaze flickered and he shrank. You deflated. Oh… he probably felt even worse now that you were trying to comfort him. He slowly sat down next to you, maneuvering himself carefully. Something seemed especially off about him… his voice was lower than usual and regretful.
“You’re the one who’s hurt here. You don’t have to try and make me feel better, though I appreciate the sentiment. Once again, you have my sincere apologies. I… will be here for you to help with anything you may need over the next few days.”
It sounded sincere. You stared at him in shock, gaping. He meant it. He was willing to actually stick by your side and help… your heart did a little skip, your limbs warm. Huh, did the light always catch his hair like that? Something about his skin had changed too… you always joked about it being pasty, but it looks clear and a bit like porcelain.
You shifted, a grateful smile lighting up your face.
“... Thank you, L… I’d- I’d like that very much…”