Introduction to Muggle Studies by Yagami Light

[5 September, 2004]

Light finished all Hogwarts related work on Saturday. Irma Prince now knew to expect an order of muggle fiction novels for the fourth year classes, Flitwick handled all Being related questions, and an exam for those who wanted to skip grades to take fourth or fifth year Muggle studies was prepared. His Ancient Runes studies were on the track and it looked like he would be able to make it to take OWLs at the end of September. 

Now, it was time to resolve Soichiro Yagami's situation. To hack into NPA database and website and blame one of his other contemporaries for it. Light even knew the perfect newbie hacker to blame for it. One who was both new and childish enough to pull a prank hack on the level Light now had to.

"That's an interesting look on your face. Back to writing names?" Ryuk asked Light. Light shook his head, waiting for the uplink to connect and remote servers to come online. It would have been safer if he had taken over a few and formed a network of his own. But time was tight and he only had just enough to buy an already established network. Light wanted to blame this on Sayu asking him to protect their father from the third Kira on such short notice. In truth, he should have done it long back when the second Kira came on stage.

Oh well, better late than never.

"Light-o?" Ryuk asked and Light turned his head to his Shinigami. "What's got you focused on the computer again? I thought you gave up being Kira." Light turned back to his laptop, a ping notifying him that his network was up and running. He opened the script he had written and without much ado, masked his internet presence. Then, he connected to a Russian server he knew his scapegoat liked to use, kicked out said scapegoat who was surprisingly online at this time and put up a decent fight, removed his access permissions, put a firewall as a distraction between himself and the original owner and set about doing his work.

The British hacker- Light checked his opponent's IP-address using a tracing program he ran in parallel to his work when the other stepped into a trap module, was good. But they were also inexperienced enough that pre-made scripts and programs could distract him. Light wouldn't have to work actively against them. Which saved him a lot of time and effort. He had about 15-20 minutes to finish up. 

"I'm hacking into the NPA database." Light informed Ryuk. He routed over to control his father's home desktop system, then used it to log into his NPA account and put in a backdated request to change the names of everyone on the Kira task force from kanji to their romanji names. Logging out, he then used a low level admin account to acknowledge the request and approve it. The database trigger would take care of automating the change in a few hours. Everyone on the Task Force would get a notification of their names being changed but they would all think L had done it. With any luck, they wouldn't bring it up to him. 

Now, to take care of the pictures. Light's eyes fell on the script which the server's original owner was fighting against. Eight minutes. More than enough time.

"As long as only I was Kira, Soichiro's job on the Task Force was relatively safe," Light continued, explaining as his fingers worked quickly across the keyboard. "And even if I did kill him, mother and Sayu would still have me. Now that the second, third and fourth Kiras are out there and I'm not in the picture, well, someone needs to make sure father dearest doesn't end up killing himself." Ever so slowly, the animation script Light had worked on yesterday downloaded itself on the NPA website servers. An image would get a make over, looking like cartoon versions of itself, before the script would duplicate, moving onto the next file with an image extension.

It wouldn't have been his first preference to deal with pictures, but not many hackers were childish enough to hack into government databases and add childish filters to their images, nor mess up their names from one foreign language to another. The hacker Light was emulating for this attack had not been active for long. He didn't have many choices. It was either this or sparkly, anime eyes.

As funny as it would be, even Light wouldn't subject his father's image on the NPA website to that. Another quick change added a banner to the top of the NPA website, declaring that all images had been modified due to precaution against Kira. It sounded official enough that the NPA would keep his change and deny all hacker involvement. 

"Hyuk hyuk hyuk," Ryuk laughed as the new images finished loading. "Light-o, that was funny. Let's do that again." Light's eyes fell on the time. Three minutes. He logged off the admin access, started another script on his hacked server to clean his tracks, fake three more trails and start a hard reset. One minute left. Light set about disconnecting systems from his virtual network in a randomized manner. Light's own was the seventh to go down. There would be five more after his.

"Done," Light leaned back in his chair with a sigh and cracked his knuckles. "Sayu should be relieved now." Light rebooted his system, and logged back in to his account on a completely different memory unit than the one he used for his illegal activities. Then, for Ryuk's amusement and to show off, Light logged on to the NPA website. He moved to the side and pointed to the screen. "What do you think, Ryuk? Death Note proof?"

Ryuk leaned in and peered into the display. There was Soichiro Yagami, looking stern faced and named as Chief of NPA. Looking like an old school anime character, with thick eyebrows, thick mustache and bottle glasses. Ryuk couldn't see his name, and the Death Note wouldn't work because the man's face was similar enough to be familiar but different enough that writing his name in the Death Note wouldn't take. "Clever," Ryuk admitted. "That would stop anyone with a Death Note." Light smirked.

"That's what I thought." Light nodded in smug satisfaction.

*****

[7 September, 2004]

"Matt," Roger Ruvie looked down at the red haired teen sitting in the chair across his desk. Said fourteen year old stared at him from behind yellow tinted goggles. "Do you know why you're here?"

"Whatever it is, I didn't do it," Matt said with a frown. He pulled up his goggles and set them against his forehead, revealing eyebags that could hold their own against L's. "I have been very busy this week, like you wouldn't believe. Some arsehole hacked into my-"

"Matt," Roger sighed. "No need to make excuses. L traced the hack back to you." Now, Matt was even more confused. He hadn't hacked anything and anyone since the fifth. That one random guy had taken over his favorite server, kicked him off and then proceeded to do God knows what with that access. Matt had to discard his entire virtual network, and several others because of it. Then, he had spent the rest of the week setting up new access points. Matt honestly didn't have time to do anything L could have traced back to him. He hadn't even had time to sleep.

But now, he was curious. And like any other curious fourteen year old, kept his mouth shut to know more about what L 'thought' he did. It was that guy from the fifth. Matt just knew he was. 

"You aren't going to say anything?" Roger asked. Matt shook his head. "Listen then." The older man sighed. "L isn't angry. Neither of us are. But, don't do it again. Not with the same signature all over it as the FBI hack from last year. Patterns like that could get you caught and pranks mean no one would ever take you seriously. 'Helpful, but not creative' was the final evaluation. Do you get it?"

Matt nodded. Then he said, just to make it all clear and not steal credit. "For the record, I didn't do it." But he would find out who did. That bastard. He not only took over Matt's server and network, but also imitated his patterns. Matt would dig him out from the internet's dark corners and then- Well, he didn't know what he would do next. But finding the guy would be a good first step. "It's not my fault so don't give me the credit," Matt reiterated to Roger.

Roger just sighed.

"Fine. Just go then. Good job on not doing what you didn't do."

Matt got the feeling Roger didn't believe him. Oh well, he tried. Any more misunderstanding was all Roger's fault now.

*****

[11 September, 2004]

Light skipped dinner that evening and handed Oddment a letter. "Remember, hand it over only when she is alone in her room," he told the house elf. He got a nod in return as the elf popped away. Light opened one of his books to read and waited. He didn't know how long it would take, but he was lucky Oddment had even agreed to do this for him. Oddment was a Hogwarts elf. His first priority was Hogwarts and her needs, not Light. But the elf was kind and house elves in general liked being busy.

Oddment popped in soon with a reply. Much too soon. Light took the letter from tiny fingers and gave the elf a smile. "Thank you, Oddment. Can you wait a while for me to read this and send a reply. I'm worried for my sister." The house elf nodded, giving him a teary smile and a thumbs up.

"Sirs did nots worry," Oddment said. "Oddments bes happy to helps. Siblings be sos touching. Oddment knew sirs was kind." Light just patted the smaller being on his head like he would a particularly obedient pet. Oddment lit up just like one too. The elf loved praise and physical demonstrations of it. Light was all too willing to oblige if it meant the loyalty of such powerful beings.

Sayu's letter was- concerning. Light's fingers tightened around the paper, fingers digging tears into the thin sheet. Someone had broken into their home, while Soichiro was away. Got right into Sayu's room. Hikari had run them off. The person in question had red eyes. The co-worker who had tried to stay in Light's room overnight a few days prior that also had red eyes. She didn't even remember the name of that man except he had habits similar to Light's bastard.

Sayu was scared. And Light wasn't there. It was somehow L's fault, he just knew it.

Light didn't have anyone there to do his work for him. He didn't want to contact Mikami because leaving the unstable man alone was necessary for his plan. And contacting anyone he knew as 'Light Yagami' while he was 'legally dead' would be a risk. He had no way to control the situation. He was helpless to do anything other than comfort Sayu. For the first time, Light wished this whole farce hadn't been necessary. He could have been there for Sayu. Instead-

All he could do was make sure something like this didn't happen again.

Light took in a deep breath, letting the anger go and squashed down the urge to use the Death Note to control a criminal and make things better for Sayu. If things stayed as they were, Light would have to take up meditation for all this impulse control. 

"Right. What can I do?" Light sighed and closed his eyes, going through his options. "Oddment," he turned to look at the diminutive elf. "Can you take a letter back?" Light asked as he quickly wrote a few lines on a bank parchment. "And be there tomorrow as well? Same time?" Oddment nodded. Light added the date and time to the letter. Then he handed it over to the house elf. "Thank you, Oddment. I couldn't have done this without you."

Oddment gave a wide smile, an excited nod with his ears flopping to the side and popped away.

Light got back to planning. He had a few purchases to make. The sooner he made them, the better.

The next day, he sent Sayu a box of Sneakoscopes and a list of instructions. Subtly placing these artifacts around their house would be much more helpful than a burglar alarm. Not to mention, they would help Sayu identify whether someone was trustworthy or not. Not exactly 'taking care' of the problem. Just a temporary solution. But one that made Light feel better than doing nothing would have.

*****

[14 September, 2004]

"The discovery of electricity has led to the development of muggle society in a way similar to discovery of new magic guides wizards and witches. Yes or no," Light said as looked over his seventh year class. "Separate into two groups. You have five minutes to prepare before the debate. Please make your points with examples."

With that done, the class separated into two halves and Light was left to his own thoughts. Truthfully, the seventh years could have had this debate over with in minutes. It wasn't even part of their curriculum. But Light had thoughts he wanted to think about, Sayu to worry about and a problem to resolve. The students could mind themselves for once. 

Light went through the book, Ways of Magical Communication, in an effort to find something that would work for both Possessed Humans and muggles. There was the Patronous Charm, unavailable to both Sayu and himself, a floo call, and-

Light sighed and closed his eyes. Two days, and he still didn't have a clue. He needed to find a way to stay in touch with Sayu that didn't involve magical owl post. He needed-

"Professor?" One of his students asked. "Are you alright?" Light opened his eyes and offered a smile that didn't reach his eyes.

"Perfectly fine," he replied and started on one of his usual apologies. "I'm sorry you had to see me like that-"

"Ah, no, that's fine," the student, a fellow in yellow whose name Light couldn't be bothered to remember because he was boring as fuck, said. This poor guy. He wanted to help, yet Light couldn't even remember his name. Well, he would perhaps give him some extra credit during their next assignment. "Is there any way I- that we can help?" The surrounding students nodded their agreement and even a few from the other group across the room looked over.

"I was looking up methods of intercontinental communication," Light said because he might as well ask. "Patronus isn't viable. And international floo calls are expensive," not to mention, Sayu couldn't make them. But his students didn't need to know that. "The distance is too far for normal owls and I have a bit for an emergency going on," Light trailed off. 

"Janus Galloglass's enchanted mirrors," a boy from the other group called over. "They do two-way mirrors, professor. Expensive, but good work." The others nodded in agreement. Light blinked because what-?

Enchanted mirrors were a thing.

"How do they work?" Light asked, curious. And so, the class devolved from a discussion of development of civilization with magic verses electricity to that of enchanted mirrors and how similar to mobile phones they were.

Light isn't even sure why he is surprised at this point. Wizard's didn't have mobile phones but they sure did have mirrors with a video call function. Did that mean the enchanted mirror from Snow White was also a reality? There was a mirror somewhere in this world that gave you three truthful answers? Vulcan's mirror of past present and future? Or Alice's Reverse World mirror?

It was a very enlightening discussion, all in all. His problem with Sayu was resolved in minutes and Light felt relieved. A tenseness he hadn't noticed lifted from his frame. Light made sure to show his gratitude as the bell rang and he gave his class a real, bright smile. Something he hadn't given anyone else at Hogwarts before that moment.

"Thank you," Light said, his lips curled up just so, eyes bright and warm. A smile that even L had found himself stunned at and had started the 'memorial webpage' that BB had found himself stumped at online. 

'Oh', the class thought in unison.

*****

[16 September, 2004]

"Professor Yagami!" Fred Weasley called out just as class started. Light tilted his head in response. "If a wizard gets robbed by a Muggle, has he been mugged?"

"Yes," Light said slowly. He held back his exasperation at all these bad puns. Somehow, news had spread that Light wasn't in a good mood and his students had taken it upon themselves to cheer him up. This time, it was puns. Light had enough of them throughout his life and had stopped finding them funny a long, long time ago. "I doubt being mugged is any different between wizards and muggles," he said and faked being confused.

"Ah, so no puns," Fred grumbled and passed a Knuckle to his twin. George then rose up to the occasion before Light could call the class to order.

"Knock knock."

Light stared. Knock knock jokes. Wizards had knock knock jokes. What the hell. The one thing common across borders and magic was knock knock jokes.

George looked at him expectantly. And, Light realized with growing horror, so did the rest of the class. He had to play along them now. What even was his life? Knock knock jokes.

"Who's there?" Light asked in a deadpan voice.

"You know," George literally sang. 

"You know who?" Light asked and George smirked.

"Exactly! You-know-who! Avada Kedavara!" The class shuddered in unison, turning to give a smirking George Weasley horrified looks. Light didn't know what the punch-line was. You know who was supposed to be whom? And an Unforgivable? Light's life belonged to Ryuk so they probably wouldn't work on him, but as a wizard, shouting that spell's name out loud was dangerous.

"Five points from Gryffindor for ill humor," Light said dryly. "Now if you're done? Let's start the class."

"Tough customer," George muttered and passed the Knuckle back to his twin.

"Just one more, Professor Yagami," Fred begged and Light tilted his head in thought. They wouldn't let go of this till they got some response. Light decided to play along and get this over with.

"Alright," he said slowly and agreed. "But this is the last for this class." Fred lit up and coughed to clear his throat.

"Two Hungarian Horntails walk into a bar," he started. Light hoped it wasn't going to be a 'horny' joke from the name itself. That would be inappropriate between himself and a class full of underage sixteen year olds. He would have to send the Weasleys to McGonagall for that. Light liked them too much for that to be anything but a last resort. "The first one says, "It sure is hot in here". The second one snaps back, "Shut your mouth!"" The twins snickered and several students laughed. Light blinked as he put together the joke.

Hungarian Horntails. A name for a fire-breathing species. He thought back to his impromptu Magical Creatures crash course. Dragons? Huh, that was a good joke.

"Must be some giant bar," Light mused. "Sure they could serve Hungarian Horntails there?" The snickers and chuckles burst into loud laughter.

"Giant bar. Serving Hungarian Horntails. By Gryffindor," George rasped. Light finally cracked a smile at the infectious laughter going around the room.

"Yes!" Angelina Johnson raised a fist in triumph. "Got a laugh." Fred and George high fived each other in unison. Then, they got a disturbing glint in their eyes, as if they were going to try a second time. That would derail the class again, so Light gave a loud cough.

"One more. That was all I agreed to," he said mildly. "Anything more and you're all welcome to drop this class." Silence never spread faster among a group of teenage wizards.

If Light had known giving one comment would start this whole drama, he would have developed a persona as sour as Severus Snape. It was a little too late to regret right now. Popularity was such a heavy burden.

*****

[18 September, 2004]

Light waited for Sayu to call him at their arranged time. Oddment had again volunteered to be the one to send Sayu her half of the mirror pair. House elves, Light reflected, were truly a human's best friend and most competent helpers. Loyal, happy to help, a bit weird but all rounders in their skill set. Light would most certainly get one after his term at Hogwarts was over. He couldn't imagine a life without one anymore.

"Calling littlest Yagami?" Ryuk asked, floating over his shoulder. Light nodded. "Time to play caring big brother, eh." Light glared at Ryuk. While yes, at one point during his early ownership of the Death Note, Light did play the role of a big brother, it was all too real to him again right now. Getting away from the Kira case and an impending execution via conviction by the world's greatest detective was good for his health and mental state.

The mirror in his hand vibrated and Light abandoned the glaring match between Ryuk and himself to focus on the mirror instead.

"Sayu," Light said and her image appeared in the reflection. After months of not seeing her, Light noticed that Sayu looked older somehow. More mature. His little sister was growing up, so far away from him and his influence. Who knew what habits she had acquired in their time away. Did she continue to do her maths homework? Did anyone help her? Were there any problems at school? So many things he wanted to ask her, despite knowing the answers from the letters they had exchanged for months now.

"Onii-san!" Sayu exclaimed. "Wow, these mirrors are so cool. Like portable Skype's. Also much more convenient than Hikari, the Knight-owl." Light looked up and prayed to the heavens for help. Three months away had not improved Sayu's punning ability. "Those spinning top things were cool too. Almost like magic, eh? Like the mirrors? And the cute, goblin like creatures with anime eyes and floppy ears." Sayu's eyes narrowed. "Is there anything you'd like to tell me, Light?"

Light gave an innocent blink. "Magic is real," he spoke slowly. "I thought you knew this, Sayu. I'm sure you still have your sailor moon costume somewhere in your closet." The image in the mirror distorted due to rapid movement as Sayu flopped down on the bed. 

"Stupid Light! Night Light, why are you acting like a light blub despite being a tube light?" She grumbled. And they were back on the puns again. Sayu really was annoyed at him. "That's not what I'm talking about. Sailor moon is a stupid story. It's not real. This is. Come on, give me something here!" Light shook his head and settled himself on an armchair in front of his fireplace to talk to his sister comfortably.

"The less you know, the better. That way, you can truly say you don't know anything if anyone asks you," Light explained. Sayu grudgingly nodded. "Even talking to you like this is a risk, Sayu. Not while the Kira case is on-going."

"That stupid case," Sayu complained. "Why did you have to go and kill criminals so openly like that? Couldn't you just- you know, spread them out a bit. Or kill using something other than a heart attack. Any why criminals? There's politicians still out there. They make the laws that let the guilty ones go. You made such a mess and then dad just had to take on the case."

"Sayu," Light's eyes narrowed. "Is Soichiro still pulling overtime? Even after the break-in?" Sayu just stared at him silently for a while, thinking about something.

"Oh man," she sighed. "Calling dad by his first name? You're really pissed, Kira-nii-san? Maybe you should have thought twice before becoming a mass murderer?" She shook her head. "Nah, dad's back home now. He's stopped pulling overtime and doesn't stay overnight at the new Task Force headquarters either. I've heard it's a cool building though. That reminds me, hey, what's the status on protecting dad from you Kiras?"

New Task Force HQ? A new building? L must have bought or built a new building for security purposes and so they could stop moving from hotel to hotel. Someone really needed to teach him resource management. A whole new building for a case that he knew wasn't going to go anywhere. Honestly, this man.

"I took care of it," Light reassured her. "It takes a name and a face to kill. So I just removed Soichiro and the Task Force's names and faces from any public access. Satisfied?"

"Very. Dad's safe now and mom doesn't need to worry. Even if she doesn't know it." Sayu nodded. "What's with this grudge against dad? Is it because of the Kira case? Because that whole case is your fault. You could simply have not gone on a murder spree." Sayu said pointedly. Light gave a sheepish grin, entirely unapologetic. "Or is it because dad wasn't here during the break-in? Because let me tell you, that was my fault. I wanted him to throw out our red-eyed guest, but then he dug himself in even deeper and mom threw him out too." Light leaned his chin on his knuckles and smiled at Sayu. He needed to be as non-threatening, as nonchalant as possible to get information from Sayu. 

He needed to know exactly what he had to hold a grudge against L for. 

"Sounds interesting. Tell me about it?" And so Sayu did. She talked on and on about Soichiro's co-worker, how Sayu started up an argument and how bad she felt. Then, she spoke about the break-in and how protective Soichiro was after the whole incident. Light grudgingly dropped his grudge. Like Sayu had said, the Kira case was Light's fault and the absence during the break-in was Sayu's fault.

Soichiro Yagami was thus innocent and relegated back to 'dad'. Publicly, and during talks with Sayu, at least. Light still privately held him in contempt. His father was a workaholic and paid more attention to his work than his home. That was true. So despite all the 'good intentions' Soichiro held, Light wasn't willing to forgive him

L wasn't in the clear as well. Him and his red eyed lackey were both on Light's list. That whole break-in traumatized his little sister. Someone was going to pay for it. Multiple someones. As soon as Light had more maneuverability. 

"I suppose I can drop it then," Light lied and spoke slowly when Sayu finished. "At least Hikari is accepted at home now. Do you need a certificate for her? I hadn't sent one because I thought she would be low key but if she's being kept as a pet, then you need one. Hikari is an endangered species of owl," Light trailed off.

"I didn't know that." Sayu blinked in surprise. "Yeah, you better get me a certificate before animal rights activists knock on our doors. I'll just say you arranged one before your death after you saw how much Hikari liked us." Sayu sighed. "Maybe I should make a list of all these things you have supposedly done 'before your death'?"

"You're fourteen. No one expects you to remember all that. Just act confused and traumatized," Light suggested instead. Sayu nodded sagely.

"I'm young and traumatized. My Onii-san's dead. Lots of leeway. Best excuse to skip school too. I just got overwhelmed, you know," Sayu said. Light gave her a glare and Sayu laughed. "How's your new job?"

"It goes," Light drawled. "It's good some days, bad others and boring all the time. I miss home." Sayu tilted her head and then gave a mischievous smile.

"Any office romance?" Sayu asked. "You had a girlfriend here, didn't you?" Light had never had a girlfriend before. It took a while before he made the connection between Sayu's words and the excuse he used to give when he went to work with the Task Force. "Who was it? Takada Kiyomi? Miss To-Oh came to your funeral, you know? She's classy. Exactly your type."

"Kiyomi is classy," Light admitted. "Intelligent and ambitious too." Light could acknowledge a fellow perfectionist when he saw one. But she still didn't do it for Light. Nothing like the embers even arguing with L had lit up, even back when they had wanted each other dead. "No office romance. I am-" Light paused, not sure how to put it. Then, he closed his eyes and just went for it. "I'm stuck on someone else."

"Not Kiyomi?" Sayu's eyes widened dramatically. "Who else can compare? Who's this incomparable beauty who took your heart so much that Yagami Light is pining?" Light sighed in exasperation at Sayu's act. She was so melodramatic. Light knew she came by it honestly, but was still a bit too much sometimes.

"Not a beauty. And not a girl," he said and just waited- yes, there it was. Sayu's squeal. He just knew his sister would blow it out of proportion.

"Who is it?" Sayu breathed in awe. "Who's got my great Light-nii-sama's attention?" Light covered his eyes with his palm because 'onii-sama'? Just what period drama had Sayu got hooked onto now? Or was it an anime? With Sayu, one never knew.

"Hideki Ryuga," he spoke slowly. Sayu's mouth opened in shock. "Yes, that one. You know. My bastard."

"Classmate, intelligent, can hold a conversation, plays tennis?" Sayu reiterated from their conversation months ago now. And frowned as she remembered what Light's bastard looked like. Her perfect brother, with Ryuga? He wasn't bad looking, with pale skin and dark eyes. But compared to Light? "Is that your type?" A bummer. Light and Misa would have made some very pretty babies. Also, poetic, if the first and second Kira got together. But her brother wanted Hideki Ryuga, so Sayu would support Hideki Ryuga.

"I find his intelligence and competence sexy," Light admitted. "And he's really good at tennis, Sayu." Light sighed in mock admiration. "He's got this mean serve swing and I just couldn't take my eyes off his form."

"He's weird," Sayu deadpanned. Then put forward the reason she was complaining about him. "That guy who works with dad and broke into our home has to be his friend. They were eerily similar." Light nodded.

"I know. Don't worry. I'll figure it out and take it from his hide," Light reassured her. "Your trauma will be avenged. Give me some time." Sayu nodded sagely.

"As long as you're aware. Revenge is a dish best served cold. I can wait till you get together," she agreed easily. "Just don't kill him, Kira-nii-san. I mean, it shouldn't have to be said given you have a huge crush on this guy. But still, I never know with you. So," Sayu concluded. "Don't kill your crush." Light thought it was a sad day indeed when even his sister knew he could and would kill his crush if the worst case scenario ever came around. "Hey, how come dad's co-worker knows your Ryuga?"

"Ryuga is dad's boss," Light said easily. There wasn't any point in keeping L's identity secret from Sayu. If L was going to make moves to get information from Sayu, then it would be better for her to be well prepared. "You know, the lead detective in the Kira case. L."

Sayu froze. Her mouth dropped open and she stared at Light.

"What?" She whispered. "What the fuck? How did this even happen? Are you insane, Kira-nii-san? L?"

"Well." Light nodded. "Yes? On both counts, actually. I'm working on it. On both. But yes."

"That's not the point," she screeched from the other side of the mirror as she resolutely decided to ignore the 'insane' part. Light said he was 'working on it', so there was hope there yet. She focused on the more important part and continued her tirade. Light held the mirror as far away from himself as possible. Sayu's voice was loud and Light valued his ear drums.

"That's the guy who told you to kill him on national TV. The one who said he would find you and execute you! There's Romeo and Juliet and there's this shit! What the hell, Onii-san? What was it, love at first kill? You catch me, I will kill you and in between, we date? The fuck?! How come you even became classmates?" Sayu paused as she realized just how they had even met. "He suspected you," Sayu said slowly. "That's why you were classmates. And why you played tennis. This is fucked up. Light, are you sure? This guy? I don't want you to trust the wrong man and die, nii-san. Romance isn't worth your life."

"I didn't go after him," Light corrected her. "He hit on me first. I just- didn't discourage him. Not that I knew what he was doing. But I was still subconsciously alright with it. So," Light shrugged. "That's what happened."

"You didn't know he was flirting with you," Sayu deadpanned. "You. Who turns down more confessions in a week than there are days. Whose number of stalkers are in the double digits and online fancub in the triple digits. Didn't know he wanted to date you. I. Don't. Believe. It."

"I thought he wanted to kill me too," Light argued for his innocence. "And he's good enough to do that without springing a honey trap on me. Or me on him, for your information. That was our game. He caught me as Kira and had me executed or I found his name and killed him. Just what part of that sounds like, 'I'm single and ready to mingle' to you? On either of our sides?" He sighed. "It came as a surprise to me when I realized it. Very recently, in fact. That he seriously wanted to date me and I-" Light paused. "I- I wanted to too. I just didn't catch onto it sooner." Light pushed the mirror to the side and held his head in his hands. "Sayu, what do I do?"

"You're legally dead," Sayu pointed out. "There's not much you can do."

"I'm pretty sure my fake death didn't fool him for a minute," Light replied. "His instincts are fantastic. He found out I was Kira among millions of suspects in a month. A month, Sayu." Light sighed in sincere admiration, now that he was able to appreciate L's scheme in its entirety. "His mind is so sharp, I could cut myself on it. I wouldn't even mind being caught and killed, as long as it's him who pulls the trigger."

"You have weird kinks," Sayu said flatly, thoroughly weirded out by the look on her brother's face and the shine of admiration in his eyes. Light looked utterly besotted and Sayu just realized how bad he had it. Sayu was stuck with this Hideki Ryuga bastard, wasn't she? "I don't care, but just don't die. I will kill your Ryuga if he kills you, capiche? I have that stupid paper you gave me and have seen this guy's face. You don't want your sister to become a murderer, do you?"

"No dying," Light smiled wryly. "Got it. Besides, I doubt he would be able to convict me as Kira anymore. I have plans in place for it. He should have a fake first Kira in his hands soon. So I should be declared innocent 'posthumously'. Not that he ever had any proof to hold against me. He didn't." Light said smugly. If L had had even a shred of proof, had created even the tiniest sliver of legitimate doubt in the Task Force's mind, then Light would have been summarily executed. L had enough reputation and power behind his name to have assassinated Light at first doubt. He hadn't, because Light had made sure L would have been invested enough in their game to not play it any other way.

It was the most exhilarating game Light had ever played, with his literal life on the line. L was both his best and worst opponent. Light didn't want anyone else. He didn't think anyone else could ever compare to the sheer brilliance of that man.

"You and your weird games. Seriously, Light. Couldn't you be a bit more vanilla? Like those fake porn books you hide in your room." Sayu rolled her eyes and Light flushed. There were some things you just didn't want your sister to know. "Okay. So fake death isn't an issue. Then, what's stopping you?"

"Nothing." Light shook his head. Then slowly, he spoke his thoughts out loud. "I was thinking flowers. After the Kira case is over. That should work, right?" Sayu shook her head, horrified at the idea.

"No! You idiot!" She pressed a finger to the mirror's surface accusingly. "Who knows how long it will take? Weeks, maybe months? Your Ryuga might have moved on by then. Or worse, someone else might catch him. Like Misa! She's helping the Task Force, she's gorgeous, a great actor and also a Kira. What if your Ryuga just had a criminal kink? Or a Kira kink?" Light stared, because those were some valid points. He himself had suspected Misa just last month. 

What if L really did fall for Misa? Misa was still moving about free, her career on an unprecedented high. She was good looking enough that lust might play a part in their initial attraction. And Misa was an excellent actor, Sayu said so, so she might just be challenging enough for L too. Misa was right there, next to L, while Light was a continent away and too far to be more than an idle thought by now. For all Light knew, Misa wasn't the only attractive woman by L's side. There might be others, new people L would have had to add to the Task Force in Light's absence. Other good looking and intelligent men and women.

L might have been serious about him back in May, but he could have moved on by now. It was already September. Nearly four months. Out of sight could be out of mind.

"What do I do?" Light asked softly, sight unseeing. "Should I- eliminate the competition?" Light could do that. He had the absolute murder weapon in his hands- The Death Note. No one would know it was him if Light was just a bit creative about it. He would still need to know who L was dating at present, but Light could do it. L was a detective so surely, the criminals he would end up going after could, potentially, end up killing his paramours.

Yes. Light had a plan. Light had a weapon. Now, all he needed was some information and action.

"-! Are you listening, onii-san? What's this about 'eliminate'? Don't go all terminator on me. There's better ways to handle this than murder, Kira-nii-san. Like flowers! And cake!" Sayu's voice brought him out of his reverie. Light blinked back slowly at Sayu. "You just said you were thinking about flowers. Send them now. Don't wait till the Kira case is over."

"What?" Light asked. "Flowers? Now?" The Death Note's chilly fingers scratched at his mind. Surely, killing all competition would be faster. A sure fire way to get L's heart. What if the flowers didn't work? 

"You are still fresh in his mind." Sayu advised. "Strike while the iron is hot. Send flowers now. Don't wait till the case is over. Do it while his own work is reminding him of you every day. When he's forced to think about you all day, every day, every minute and every second. Flowers! Be romantic, be aggressive, be thoughtful! Guys or gals, everyone likes flowers! This way, you can first get to know what he thinks about you by how he treats your flowers."

That- that could work. Light pushed back the Death Note's influence and focused on Sayu's plan. Because that could work. Light could send flowers to try the waters. Whether L still remembered him or not. If yes, then Light could confess. If not, then he could just pass it off as a joke pulled by one of the Task Force members and not sent by someone legally 'dead'. 

"Flowers," Light repeated, more confident now than before. He thought back to how his classmates had confessed to him before. Usually, they met face-to-face and there were words involved. But when that was not possible- "Roses? Chocolates? I was thinking chocolate roses actually."

"That would be a bit too much. You're going from 'I want to kill you' to 'I want to date you'," Sayu said dryly. She was fifteen, Light was eighteen and still she was the one telling her brother how to ask someone out. Sayu wondered whether other younger sisters around the globe faced the same problem as her. "Start small. Like respect, trust, admiration. Like that drama from last year."

"Respect. Trust. Admiration." Light hummed in thought and thought back to how L was so affected simply by Light saying he was his first friend. "Yes. L would like that more than confessions. He's so emotional like that. Very adorable. I can do that."

"I don't see anything adorable about that weirdo, but whatever." Sayu shrugged. It was her brother's romance, not hers. "Don't think so much. Send flowers. Be brave. Be romantic. Just do it! Think about it. Whose confessions do you prefer the most? The ones who only fucking stare at you from afar but never say anything? Those creeps? Or the ones who come straight out and tell you what they think. There's no shame in love and romance. You can't help what you feel. So, don't hide it."

Technically, L fell into the creepy, staring stalker types. But L never hid what he felt from Light. He was very frank about it. It was Light who missed all the implications of L's words. Kami's sake, if Light had been faster on the uptake, they could have been dating by the time Light had to fake his death, months ago. Months wasted.

"I-" Light stared at Sayu and gave a small, soft smile. "Thanks, Sayu." He had already lost months. Light didn't intended to fall behind now. Oddment would be happy to send flowers to L for him. He might even put on some preservation charms so they didn't wilt any time soon. Admiration. Carnations? Red carnations? Pink for 'I miss you', red for 'I admire you' and iris for 'respect'.

"Don't mention it, Light," Sayu gave him a thumbs up. "And quit smiling like that. How is your sister to ever find someone who can compare to her onii-san if you keep raising the bar like that? I swear I've become face blind by now. Did you get a new mask or something? Send me the new one. Air pollution in Tokyo is mad, you know. And-" Sayu squinted. "What's up with your eyes? Colored lenses?"

"My eyes?" Light blinked. "What's changed?" Light hadn't noticed any changes to his physical appearance. He had expected it, sure. But not so soon. Or that obvious. He had never noticed any changes in the mirror in the mornings. So whatever it was, it was a very small change.

"They aren't brown," Sayu said slowly. She tilted her head in thought and brought the mirror up close. Only one open eye was visible on the surface as Sayu stared at him. "I mean, not your brown brown. But, amber-like. Slightly reddish." Amber was a rare eye-color. So, Light mused, it should be an addition instead of a subtraction to his appeal. He could work with this, as long as the color didn't seem alien on his face.

"That's interesting," Light said slowly. And then asked the only thing that mattered. "Does it look good? Or just plain weird?" Sayu made a disgusted face but nodded.

"Yeah. Looks good. Disgustingly so. Such pretty eyes. Gimme an eyeball, Light," she admitted grudgingly. "Not that you needed any more hotness points. Honestly, onii-san. Are you sure we share the same parents and you aren't secretly adopted or something? Mom and dad didn't look that good in their teen photos either."

"Actually, you are adopted," Light broke the news to her slowly. "I look like grandma. You've never met her, have you?" Sayu just waved it away, but Light made sure to keep his face still. 

"As if. She died long before even you were born. I know that. Stop joking. You are adopted, aren't you? I love you anyways, blood or not." Sayu laughed. Light did not. Sayu slowly stopped laughing. "Are-aren't you? Or am I?" 

"None of us are. Hundred percent brothers and sisters," Light informed her solemnly. It took a while for Sayu to register what Light actually said and not his tone. She threw her mirror on the bed and her voice came from the other side.

"You bastard! I hate you, Kira!"

Light laughed. "Love you too, Sayu."

*****

[23 September, 2004]

Light waited three days before he asked Oddment to go to the Task Force Headquarters and see if there was any sign of change, of any reply to his flowers from L. Oddment popped away, came back with a disappointed look on his face and shook his head.

"Theres bes no reply," Oddment said. "I bes seeing. L's bes working. Flowers bes theres on table. No one sees except other Poss-ess-ed Human like you." Light blinked because, what-?

"He didn't notice?" Light asked again, just to be sure. "No one other than- other than Misa Amane?" Oddment shook his head again. Light sighed in disappointment. That failed. So, what should he try next? Flowers were his first and only idea.

"Does he simply not like flowers?" Light wondered. "Or is L allergic? Should I- send cake instead?" But then the paranoid bastard would think someone had snuck food into the Headquarters and that it could be poisoned. Greeting cards? That would be too pathetic. No, flowers had to be it.

Be romantic, be aggressive, be thoughtful!

Or so Sayu had suggested. Light had tried being romantic and thoughtful. Perhaps he needed to try harder and be aggressive in his flower giving? How does one even aggressively give flowers? This wasn't tennis, where he could do a perfect aggressive assault with a swing of his racket and a change in energy levels. Persistence, Light concluded, was the key here.

"Do you think you could take more flowers tomorrow?" Light asked Oddment, hope bright in his eyes. "And maybe every third day of the week?" Oddment nodded.

"Oddment will help sirs in wooing a mate!" The elf burst into tears. Light stared because, had the house elf become invested in his dating life? Or was this something specific to Oddment? Or a culture thing for house elves?

"I appreciate your help," Light told the being instead. The house elf gave him a teary smile and popped back to his work. 

"I liked him before he went all wet blanket on us," Ryuk told him, hanging upside from the ceiling like an overgrown bat and munching on his third apple of the day. "You ruined the elf, Light-o. He's all soft now."

"Hush, Ryuk," Light scolded the Shinigami. "I'm thinking." The Shinigami gave him a disgusted look.

"I know that look on your face. It's about flowers and that detective of yours," Ryuk said. "Are you a mass murderer or a lovesick loon? Don't be so boring, Light-o. I might be forced to kill you." Light glared at the Shinigami.

"Two words." Light raised one finger. "Triwizard." Then the other finger. "Tournament." He curled his fingers in a fist. "If I die, are you sure you can find another human to suit your needs on such short notice so you wouldn't miss the tournament?" Ryuk glowered at him, his fingers going to the Death Note at his belt. Light just stared back flatly at the Shinigami, daring him to do it. "Can you take that chance? Thirty three percent lethality rate. What if you kill me and then miss it?"

"You drive a hard bargain, Light," Ryuk grumbled and his hand fell back down. "I wasn't going to do it anyways. Not unless you get caught or go to prison. You're too interesting for me to kill like that. I'd get bored without you around. So," Ryuk leveled a yellow eyed stare at his human. "I'll be keeping you as long as I can."

"Fine, fine," Light waved it away. By this time, he knew Ryuk wouldn't do it. The Shinigami was attached as much as Light was. They had an understanding, a system for bargains and bribery. Light didn't want to train another Shinigami to his standards and Ryuk didn't want to bother finding another interesting human who may or may not even exist.

They were stuck with each other, till Death did them apart.