When Jubilee stopped by L's and Light's side of the desk to deliver a plate of sweet pastries to them both, for the third afternoon in a row since Matsuda's rescue, L stopped her. She had been about to move on to share more of Watari's baked delights with the rest of the task force, when the detective's soft voice made her pause.
"Miss Amachi."
She turned. "Yes?"
L measured her with a long, emotionless gaze. She met his look calmly—and with what was probably a bit of a goofy smile. There was an unexplainable freedom to letting oneself be in love without expecting anything in return.
After a moment, he finally spoke. "You have been unusually..." He searched for the right word. "Charitable, lately." He let the statement sit for a second in an invitation for Jubilee to respond.
Beside them, Hellenos chuckled. It's no wonder the words 'charity' and 'love' are often interchangeable in the Word.
Jubilee's smile grew. "Yes," she said again, in agreement with both L and the angel.
The detective paused once more, casting a glance at the plate next to him—which was piled full of his favorite treats. Contrasting colors flurried around him, indicating his conflict between being pleased by the sweets and wary of Jubilee's sudden and unhidden attention towards him.
"Are you well?" he asked at last.
Light turned away from his monitor to face the detective. "You could just be grateful and say thank you," he said, raising an eyebrow. "Like this." He turned to Jubilee, the usual yellow glow around him brightening into gold as he addressed her. "Thank you, Julie, for thinking of me and bringing me a snack. It was really considerate of you." He turned back to L with a smirk. "See, not so hard to be civilized, is it?"
Jubilee burst out laughing at the subtle glower that L sent Light's way, which served to enhance the hues around the detective with a coppery bronze. "I've never been better," she said to the brooding L. "And you're welcome, Light," she said to the younger man with a grin. Turning back to L, she asked cheerfully, "Anything else, boss?"
L narrowed his eyes at her, clearly annoyed at her flippant attitude. "You are not letting... what we discussed, distract you from the case, are you?"
Light cut in again, saving Jubilee from having to answer. "Come on, Ryuzaki, give it a rest," he said good-naturedly. "Are you really going to complain that she's bringing you sweets?"
L's brows knit together. "Well...no," he conceded at last. He sounded almost sulky.
Jubilee felt her heart swell for the detective—inexplicably, for such was the nature of love that his dour mood towards her could not quell it, and even his pouting seemed endearing to her.
Ah, human love, chuckled Hellenos again. How much like the Father's it can be, when it is found.
Is that how it is? thought Jubilee. I guess I kind of get it now. She gave the detective another tender smile, which he returned with a blank stare.
"Then I better keep doing it, hadn't I?" she said to him. With that, she moved on with her platter of pastries, Hellenos gliding along beside her.
Behind her she heard Light chuckle as she walked away. A faint undertone of happy bells seemed to adorn the sound. Lately she had been noticing all kinds of new qualities in the people around her. Misa radiated a lovely childlikeness that sometimes had a hint of music to it as well, the way Light did. Practically every time Jubilee was in her company, her ears tingled with what sounded like a faint mixture of gentle chimes and laughing children. Even with the other task force members, Jubilee couldn't help but take note of the light in their eyes when they smiled, or the glow of excitement in their voices when they found a new lead in the case.
She was starting to see Light, in particular, as a younger brother of sorts. The boy had struck her as kind and reliable ever since they began working together, but now she had a new appreciation for him, both for his dedication to the case and for the way he always looked out for others. She thought of how quickly he had jumped to her defense just now in the conversation with L. Then she remembered something else, and a pang pierced her heart.
That boy is the first Kira, she reminded herself. Best not to become too fond of him.
Hellenos hmmed softly next to her but she didn't pay him much mind as she continued her rounds with the pastries. After a quick run upstairs to Misa's room—where she dropped off a small plate of low-carb brownies—she returned to her workstation, a smile tugging at her lips from seeing the swirls of colorful delight that had decorated her friend's features after being handed the treat.
Friend. That word had been popping up in her mind involuntarily and often of late. Yes, she had begun to see everyone at headquarters as her friends...had actually begun to love them as her friends. And that included Light and Misa just as much as it included L.
Light. The first Kira. And, if L's deductions were correct, that would make Misa the second Kira.
Sudden uncertainty hit her, along with a tinge of dread. She didn't want her friends to go to prison, even if they were murderers. Was that wrong of her?
That is called compassion, child, said Hellenos. It's something that comes with having the Father's love in you.
She bit her lip. Hellenos, she thought worriedly. What will happen to Light and Misa once we prove that they are Kira?
Hellenos' expression became more somber. There is compassion and mercy, he said. But there is also truth and justice. He looked down at Jubilee. Humans often do not know how to balance one side with the other...but both sides are of the Father.
"This is disgusting," Soichiro muttered from a few feet away. A live stream of the men from Yotsuba was playing across the large plasma screen overhead. Their voices were a quiet but audible murmur as they sat across from each other at a round table and debated over which business officials to have Kira kill next. There were seven of them now since, as they had revealed in their discussion earlier, Kira had recently offed one of them—Hatori was his name—due to wavering loyalty.
"How can they talk about murder so casually?" the former chief of police continued. He turned to L then. "I think the evidence for their guilt is clear. It's more than enough to get a warrant for their arrest. We should go in and apprehend them, before any more innocent people die."
"That would be premature," replied L, not looking up from his dessert. "If we were to arrest them now, before their named targets died, then we would not have hard proof. Furthermore, since we have not yet apprehended Kira, we would lose whatever leads we have gained on him so far, and have to start this case all over again from square one."
Soichiro's eyes narrowed. "So you're saying that you are willing to let innocents die, just to ensure that you catch Kira?"
L didn't miss a beat. "Yes."
This time it was Light who objected. "No! We can't just sit by and let them kill more people. I won't allow it!"
This time L did look up. So did Jubilee, taking note of the unwavering line that had formed over the Light's head. An uncomfortable knot formed in the pit of her stomach. The boy was so earnest, so genuine. How could someone like him, who clearly valued human life, have been the first Kira?
And yet she knew without a doubt that he had been.
"I've got an idea," Light continued. "L, I need to borrow your name and a phone that can't be traced."
L appraised him silently for a moment, then nodded at a landline beside him. "Use this one."
Light stepped towards the phone, grabbing a list of phone numbers off the stack of documents that contained Yotsuba intel. He surveyed the list quickly. "Let's see," he murmured to himself. "The one who is least likely to be Kira, and still hold some influence over the rest of the board, is..." He looked back up at the Yotsuba men onscreen. "Namikawa," he said at last, at the same time that Matsuda excitedly yelled, "Ooi!" Soichiro gave Matsuda a reproving look. Light ignored them, picking up the phone to dial a number.
Onscreen, one of the men's cell phone rang. He fished the mobile out of his pocket and answered.
"Hello?" His voice was just barely audible from the screen.
"This is L," said Light into the phone. "I have cameras and wiretaps planted in that room, and I am recording footage of the entire meeting. Your opening topic was the death of Hatori, and now you are debating who to kill next."
On the screen, Namikawa's eyes widened slightly.
"If you aren't Kira," Light continued, "Or someone directly connected to Kira, then let's make a deal. Delay the deaths of the individuals you've discussed. If you do this, and cooperate with us from now on, then you and everyone in that room who is not Kira will not be charged for your crimes, under the assumption that you were threatened by Kira into being subordinates."
"I see," said the Namikawa onscreen, his face now expressionless.
"If you reveal this conversation," Light went on, "It will cause a panic and be of no benefit to you. Everyone will be apprehended. But my goal is to go one on one with Kira. If I win, you will be acquitted. If Kira wins, you get to carry on with your life. It's no loss to you either way. But it will be a loss to you if all of you were caught now." He paused for a moment to let the proposition sink in, before finishing, "That is all."
Namikawa nodded and said, loud enough for his colleagues to hear, "Very good. On Monday then." He hung up.
"Who was that, Namikawa?" asked one of the other men onscreen.
"Just some guys from the office," said Namikawa, calmly pocketing his phone. "They messed up a few records that will need to be fixed on Monday. Sorry for interrupting. Let's get back on topic." He leaned forward on the table and steepled his fingers. "Let's give our sources one month to try and find L. After that, we'll continue the killings. But for now, getting L out of the picture should be our top priority if we want to keep doing this without being caught."
Around the table, men murmured and then slowly nodded their heads in agreement.
"Impressive," said L quietly from his seat. His eyes were glued to the screen. "You managed to not only stall the killings, but now we have a mole in the Yotsuba group as well." He turned slowly to Light. "If anything were to ever happen to me, you'd be good enough to succeed me in the title of L."
His statement made everyone in the room start, especially Light.
L continued, "Would you be willing to do that...take over my position, if I were to die?"
Jubilee noted a wavering line over L's head that seemed to flicker unsteadily. His words about Light were true—but his motives for stating them were not. And I should think so, she thought, her brow furrowed. He knows Light's the first Kira! What is he doing?
It was Light who, after a moment, answered her question. "You're testing me, aren't you, Ryuzaki?" he said, turning away. It was a rhetorical question. "Ryuzaki still believes I'm Kira," he murmured, his back on the rest of the task force as he addressed them. "If I answer yes, then he'll have reason to believe that this was my plan all along—to get rid of him and take his place, so that there would be no more obstacles in my way. If I answer no, then he'll assume that I lost my memory of being Kira, but plan on having Kira's power return to me eventually once I am safe from suspicion. Either way...as Kira, if I also gained the title of L, then I would be able to kill as many people as I wanted to, without hindrance, and with the entire police force unknowingly backing me. I would be unstoppable."
There was a beat, and then he turned around to face everyone. "In other words, Ryuzaki believes that I wasn't being controlled at all. He thinks that I was Kira from the start...and that I had a plan to pass on Kira's power, while arranging for it to come back to me once I've been cleared."
There was a long moment of silence. Then, L replied, "Again...very impressive. You figured out exactly what I've been thinking all this time."
Light turned away again. "I'm not interested in your title," he said stoically. The yellow around him had started to darken.
"That proves nothing," said L. "After all, you've just revealed your plan."
Light whirled back around, suddenly taking the pale man by the shoulders.
"Do you really believe that I'm Kira, Ryuzaki?" he demanded. "Do I look like that kind of person to you?"
No, thought Jubilee, her heart aching. No he doesn't.
L returned Light's blazing expression with an impassive gaze. "Yes," he answered quietly. "I have always thought so."
Before Jubilee could even blink, Light's fist was in L's face and L had already retaliated with a foot to Light's jaw.
"Hey!" cried Matsuda, shoving the two apart just as Soichiro and Jubilee jumped forward. "Break it up!" Soichiro took a hold of Light by the shoulders, and Jubilee pulled L's swivel chair back as Matsuda stood between the two, a hand held up to each of them. "You two need to stop fighting!" he scolded. "We're supposed to be working together here!"
"That's right," agreed Soichiro. "And Ryuzaki, I don't appreciate your insinuations about my son."
L wasn't listening. Jubilee could see the bright light of a new thought appear over his head.
"Working together?" murmured the detective, then repeated the phrase softly to himself. "Working together..."
"Ryuzaki?" said Jubilee worriedly, reaching a hand tentatively towards his jaw where Light had landed a blow. Perhaps one too many punches to the head had knocked a few IQ points off of the genius. "Are you alri—"
L suddenly stood up, startling her. "Working together," he said again, to no one in particular. "That is the key. Light, please accompany me to Misa Amane's room. We have something important to discuss with her, and she's more likely to listen with you around. Also, we are handcuffed, so you have no choice because I am going." With that he began striding swiftly towards the stairs, dragging a protesting Light behind him. Then suddenly he stopped. "And you, Miss Amachi," he added behind his shoulder. "She is rather fond of you as well. You may accompany us." He started walking again.
Jubilee, along with the rest of the task force, gaped after him for a moment. Then she was hurrying after them, with Hellenos gliding after her.