004 // survival

[sucre-justice.livejournal.com]

[L is on the scene; he glances left than right before assuming his preferred crouching position, palms laid out upon his knees. He waits a moment before lifting a hand and chewing thoughtfully on his thumb.]

B, are you here? Mr. Fang King?

Comments

[sucre-justice.livejournal.com]

[L decides to forgo a reply, not wanting to verbalize any of his thoughts or lead B down a path that intruded too much upon his future. He sits, silent.]

[b-ittersweets.livejournal.com]

[B is silent for a little while, thinking about this. It is not so much the death that gets to him, but death by hands other than his own. He is almost...disappointed. Not angry, not depressed.]

[Eventually, he resumes the conversation about the notebook, deciding it best not to discuss his death with L.] Have you determined the owner of the second notebook?

[sucre-justice.livejournal.com]

Yes, but the notebook itself has... yet to be recovered.

[b-ittersweets.livejournal.com]

Is it being used by the original user of the first notebook?

[sucre-justice.livejournal.com]

The original user is not in possession of either notebook as things stand now, as I believe... I could be wrong... Right now, the situation is... not black and white.

[b-ittersweets.livejournal.com]

You know who the original user is?

[sucre-justice.livejournal.com]

Yes.

Kira.

Light Yagami.

[b-ittersweets.livejournal.com]

[B is surprised L is giving him the name. It makes him feel like he's not on the outside. Almost like an ally.]

"Kira"..."Killer"?

[sucre-justice.livejournal.com]

Yes. He was deemed "Kira" and is thought to be a God passing down judgment...

[b-ittersweets.livejournal.com]

Ah...yes, I imagine he's fond of that interpretation.

[B licks his lips, staring past L in thought. He is still holding the jam.] How long has L been investigating Light Yagami?

[sucre-justice.livejournal.com]

One year. Kira appeared in 2003.

[b-ittersweets.livejournal.com]

[He's still staring past him.] Does he know that you suspect him?

[sucre-justice.livejournal.com]

...He does. [L is wondering what he is staring at, but says nothing, for now.]

[b-ittersweets.livejournal.com]

L, the greatest detective in the world. [A pause.] And Light Yagami, the hopeful God of a new era. [He says nothing for a while.] He won't win. Light won't.

[sucre-justice.livejournal.com]

I have no intention of letting him win, no. Though, I do concede that Light Yagami has pushed me farther than any other suspect ever has.

[b-ittersweets.livejournal.com]

[B grimaces. Those words remind him of his failure - not that he doesn't think about it all the time. But they drive it home.] Farther...

[He looks at L again, finally, seeing the letters floating above his head. "L Lawliet". There are no numbers. B is starting to accept that he cannot see lifespans. Not anymore.]

Light won't win. [He says this like a fact. It is mostly to convince himself. He wants to be sure of it. He wants to eliminate the nagging in his mind, the feeling that he knows it's not true. Funny, how he once wanted so badly for L to lose, but now very much wants him to win.]

[sucre-justice.livejournal.com]

...

[L wishes he could take B's certainty as truth, as a definitive truth. However, with Shinigami in the equation - with known logic thrown out the door, nothing was definitive anymore.]

I am telling you this in the eventuality that our worlds should happen to swap or otherwise effect one another's, so you'll be properly prepared, though I imagine you can do no greater damage to yourself or others than Agito managed.

[None too pleased about that.]

[b-ittersweets.livejournal.com]

[B grins. He is rather glad for the lightening of the mood.] I can only imagine. [He is also amused by the irony in the statement. B, the serial killer, would not do as much damage as Agito.]

[And then he nods. He understands the reasoning. He is almost glad for it. It's almost as if, once again, he is L's Backup. And thinking this, the date floats through his head. November 5, 2004. Would he need to be L's backup? No. L would not disappear anymore, not now that death wasn't permanent. L would always be L.]

L will always be L. [He hardly notices or cares that he says this aloud.]

[sucre-justice.livejournal.com]

[L wonders what B is thinking, to let that slip from his lips, but doesn't question it. Instead, he says:] Watari did not much appreciate Agito.

[b-ittersweets.livejournal.com]

[B smiles. He's starting to learn that L is much, much less emotionally-focused than he is. He wonders how long he'll be able to resist before starting another conversation about their relationship.]

I am not surprised. Is Watari's behaviour with you different now because of it?

[sucre-justice.livejournal.com]

...I'm afraid the entire investigation team thought I had a mental breakdown...

[b-ittersweets.livejournal.com]

[B grins, and laughs his crazy laugh a little.] Poor L. Yes, and I imagine people think the same, here - when they meet me, and mistake me for you.

[sucre-justice.livejournal.com]

I'm not worried, here. Losing face in front of Kira, however... [L is displeased again. And then he says more quietly:] I wonder what transpired between them...

[b-ittersweets.livejournal.com]

[B ponders, with his finger to his lip. It really does seem like a game. All investigations are, he knows, and his own crimes had been a game to him. But this is different, in that B gets to see it for himself by taking a peek inside L's mind. The real L's mind - not the idol B always thought he knew.]

L. L. [God, he loves saying that letter. He says it multiple times, like a verbal tug on L's shirt.] L, you won't lose. Losing isn't an option for you, so you won't.

[sucre-justice.livejournal.com]

[L pauses, looking at B with perplexity in his eyes that doesn't show on his face. It feels like he's yet again missing something, a piece of a larger puzzle he couldn't fit together.]

I'd certainly hope not. I have no intentions of dying anytime soon... [he puts a finger to his lips and chews absently..]