L’s POV:

L sighed and drummed his fingers impatiently on the desk in front of him. It had already been a few days since Keiko had broken up with Light, and since he had arrested Misa Amane under suspicion of being the Second Kira. He knew that he had to try and remain patient for the time being, but nothing of interest had happened since then, and he was growing rather bored with the current situation.

He hit the speaker button on his computer, unable to wait any longer for news, “Watari-san, has Misa Amane said anything yet?”

A moment later, he got a voice message back from Watari, “no, not yet. In fact, she still hasn’t spoken a single word.”

Hmmm…I see, so she refuses to speak, eh?

He thought for a moment, then brought his thumb up to the side of his mouth, “please, Watari-san, get me a visual of her.”

“Are you sure?” Watari asked.

“Yes, I’m sure...and please do it quickly,” L replied. He narrowed his eyes a little, “...also keep in mind, you’re free to do whatever has to be done in order to make her speak.”

“I understand, Ryuzaki-san. Just a moment, please.”

With that, L glanced around the room. Aside from him, there was Mr. Yagami, Aizawa, Matsuda, and Keiko present in the hotel room. Mr. Yagami and Aizawa were situated on one couch, and Matsuda and and Keiko were situated on the other.

He could hear Mr. Yagami grumbling from his couch, but L ignored him. No matter what, it was important that they got Misa Amane to open up. They somehow needed to get a confession out of her.

All of the sudden, Keiko looked over in L’s direction. He could feel her eyes on him, so he met her gaze, and offered her a slight smirk, remembering how she had gone up to him after the meeting he called a few days ago. That night, Keiko had patiently waited on the couch for everyone else to leave the room before making her way towards the great detective.

L watched, an amused expression on his face, as Keiko got up from her spot on the couch and approached him. He could see the determination that was written all over her features. She sat down on the chair right next to his and opened her mouth to speak.

“Ryuzaki-san...I just wanted to let you know that I’m still mad at you...and I’m still angry at Light-kun, for that matter, but that’s another topic entirely…” Keiko had started, running a hand through her hair. Her light brown eyes were glued to his, and he could tell how much she had been crying earlier that day. It still slightly showed, as her eyes were still a little puffy, but much he could see that of the redness had gone down.

“Hmm…yes, I figured that you would be upset with me...after all, that’s only a natural human response to what I did...anyway, was that all you wanted to say to me?” L questioned, an amused look on his face. He knew full well that she wasn’t finished speaking yet, but he wanted to see just what her reaction would be if he were to frustrate her some more. She was already mad at him, and he was certain it wouldn’t make too much of a difference.

While Keiko was extremely intelligent, she also heavily relied on her emotions when making certain judgements and decisions. This probably her biggest weakness, one that she had to work on if she truly wanted to make it as a private detective. Therefore, it was interesting for him to see just what her emotional limitations were. To test her abilities. To help her reach new levels.

He learned a lot more about her in the past few days, and a part of him wanted to continue learning more. A part of him wanted to completely figure her out, because to him, Keiko Kagami was a rather intriguing person.

She was also a valuable asset to the Kira investigation, because of her personal relationship with Light Yagami. Even though the two of them had broken up, he was certain that at some point Light would try to win her back. When that time came, he wondered what Keiko’s response would be.

He liked her attitude from earlier, he liked how she had disregarded Light. The detective wanted her to keep that attitude up, but he also knew that she cared about Light, and as long as she cared, he would always be a weak spot. Therefore, it would be hard for her to refuse him, but he hoped she would be wiser the second time around. He needed her to stay alert and focus on the case, and a small part of him honestly didn’t want her to get hurt again.

Keiko’s eyes flashed at L’s response, and there was a slight hidden fierceness in her tone as she continued on, “no, Ryuzaki-san, I’m not finished, thank you very much. Ugh, anyway...despite the fact that I’m still upset, and probably will be for quite sometime, I still cannot ignore the fact that there’s a very high probability that Misa Amane is the Second Kira. The evidence is just stacked too high against her…”

Keiko trailed off, giving the detective a chance to reply to what she had said so far. He gave her an unreadable expression.

“And so…?” he prompted her, he could tell that she was getting more and more irritated with him, he could see it in her eyes, and with the fact that she balled up both of her fists.

She closed her eyes a moment, taking a deep breath in an attempt to calm herself before she replied once more, “and so...that being said, I’m still going to do my best to investigate with you and the rest of the Task Force...you see, despite the fact that I’m mad at you, and despite the fact that well...my heart’s just been stomped on...more than once, for that matter...I’m determined to help solve this case, no matter what, and make my father in heaven proud.”

L watched as Keiko then bit her lip, waiting intently for him to reply. He gave a slight chuckle, raising an eyebrow. It was no shock to him that she had said this, in fact, he had been expecting it. The detective was a little proud of her in a way, but he waved that emotion aside.

He knew that, no matter what, Keiko would be dedicated to the investigation. After all, he knew how much Keiko had looked up to her father, and how she wanted to follow in his footsteps. It was why he figured she would be at his grave after she had broken up with Light Yagami.

Keiko just had to have her heart broken by him in order to realize that not everyone was as trustworthy as they seemed. He only hoped that, from now on, Keiko would be wiser with who she let in and trusted. He hoped that she would be less carefree and naive. If she didn’t, it would be hard for her to make it as an investigator.

“I see,” L responded, giving her a sly half smile, “well, in that case, it’s good to still have you on board, Kagami-san.”

What an interesting development indeed...

L was interrupted from his thoughts when Misa showed up on the multiple television screens in the hotel room. As L had instructed a few days ago, Misa Amane’s eyes had been covered up. Beyond that, the rest of her body had been tied up to ensure that she couldn’t make a sudden attempt to escape. He could hear her heavy breathing, but aside from that, she didn’t make any other noises.

Hmm...so she really won’t talk, huh? That’s rather unfortunate, I need her speaking in order to figure out for sure who Kira is and how Kira kills his victims...

“Ryuzaki-san, are you sure that we have to go this far just to get information out of her?” Matsuda questioned, looking up at the screens near the front of the hotel room, “this just seems pretty...inhumane.”

L gave a sigh. He had been expecting Matsuda to make a comment like that, “while it’s inhumane, it is rather necessary. After all, if she’s the Second Kira and she escapes, then the rest of us are all in danger. We can’t have her escaping...and because she’s tied up this way, she should crack under the pressure soon enough. In fact, I highly doubt she will last too much longer…”

As if on cue, Misa Amane finally softly spoke up, earning collective gasps from the rest of the Task Force, “I-I can’t take it anymore...kill me...please...just kill me already!”

A smug expression soon found its way onto L’s face, finally, you talk...after three days, hmm? I knew that you had to crack under the pressure sooner or later...well, now, this should be interesting. Hopefully soon I can get you to answer my questions...

“I don’t know, Ryuzaki-san,” Aizawa murmured, “maybe this was just too much for a young girl to take...and anyway, what if we were wrong, and she really isn’t the Second Kira?”

“He’s right,” Matsuda added, “if she wants to die, then we must have pushed Misa too far past her limits…”

The detective ignored them both, and pressed the speakerphone button on his laptop, determined on furthering the Kira investigation no matter what, “Misa Amane...are you able to hear me?”

Upon hearing his voice, Misa attempted to nod as best she could, “yes, I hear you...now please, just kill me now!”

L continued on, “hmm..does this mean that you are admitting to being the Second Kira? Is this the reason that you wish to die?”

Out of the corner of his eye, L watched as Keiko scooted towards the edge of the couch, resting her head in her hand. She was intently watching Misa Amane’s every move.

“No!” was Misa’s immediate response, “I promise you, I don’t know anything about the Second Kira! ...oh I really can’t take this anymore, I’d rather just be dead...so please kill me!”

Hmm...could she really still be talking to me? Even though there’s no one else she could be talking to, it still seems rather unusual...she must know that I cannot kill her, no matter what. I need her alive in order to interrogate her.

“...if you wanted to, you could kill me right now, couldn’t you?! So do it already! Kill me!” she insisted.

Misa’s POV:

Misa was certain about one thing; if she stayed like this for much longer, she was simply just going to go insane...no, she had already started going insane.

She knew she had made a promise to Light that she wouldn’t say anything about him or the two death notes, but she really couldn’t handle being imprisoned. Therefore, she saw dying as the only solution to her current situation. If Rem killed her then she could be put out of her misery without spilling anything to L about what she knew.

“Kill me!” she repeated once more to Rem.

The shinigami gave a soft sigh. “...Misa...do you really mean it?” she asked the blonde girl, her were full of sadness as observed Misa’s current predicament.

“Yes, please kill me!” Misa pleaded, and Rem could hear the desperation in her voice.

“Again...do you really mean that, Misa?” Rem carefully questioned. To be honest, Rem herself wasn’t quite sure what to do, but the last thing she wanted was for Misa to die. However, at the same time, she couldn’t bear to see the girl suffering so much like this.

“Yes, I do…oh I can’t take it anymore! Kill me!”

“You know, Misa...if I do this, then Light Yagami dies too...after all, this is all his fault,” Rem said bitterly as she thought about the original Kira.

“No!” Misa’s voice rang out, clear as day, “no! You can’t! Please just kill me!”

Oh Misa Amane, Rem thought sadly, you poor girl, why do you want to die for him so badly?

Keiko’s POV:

Keiko watched with great intensity as Misa pleaded for her death, determined to fit the pieces of the puzzle together.

What the...what’s going on exactly?! This sudden behavior doesn’t quite make sense, it seems off somehow...but why exactly…? Even if she were the Second Kira, wouldn’t the better option be to cooperate with us? Would she seriously rather give her life rather than answer our questions? Is she trying to protect Kira’s identity?

A chill went through Keiko’s body as she remembered that Light Yagami was now the prime Kira suspect. She had no doubt that if her ex-boyfriend were actually Kira that Misa would do anything to protect his secret, no matter what. However, the thought of Light being Kira scared Keiko to no end, especially because she still had lingering feelings for him. Feelings that she tried hard at the moment to forget.

“Fine!” Misa spoke suddenly, “if you won’t kill me-”

L waved a hand in the air, “stop her! Watari-san, don’t let her bite her tongue!”

With lightning speed Watari wrapped a gag around Misa’s mouth, muffling her. This earned a couple sighs, from Aizawa and Mr. Yagami.

“Hmm…is it possible that this behavior could be attributed to Kira controlling her actions before death?” L murmured.

Can Kira seriously control a person’s actions before death, or is that just speculation at this point? Keiko wondered. She thought back to her first attempt at a date with her ex-boyfriend, the bus jacking, and shuddered. Because, if so that means...Light Yagami could really be Kira.

Light’s POV:

For the time being, Light was trying to place all thoughts of Keiko out of his head. He had to focus on the current situation with Misa Amane, that was the top priority at the moment. Even though the situation looked like it wasn’t going well for Kira, Light was certain that Misa wouldn’t reveal anything to L. After all, she seemed way too infatuated with him to even consider doing something like that.

L needs a confession in order to convict Misa...well, he isn’t going to get one...

Light gave a smirk, he felt comfortable knowing that he was safe.

“Ooh, someone’s feeling rather confident,” Ryuk remarked.

Light was about to respond to him when he noticed Rem suddenly appearing in his bedroom. He had a pretty good inkling as to why she was there. He also knew exactly what had to be done.

“Ah, hey, Rem,” Light started, “what’s the matter?”

Rem stared intently at him, not even attempting to hide her disgust, “Light Yagami...Misa refused my offer to help her escape, no doubt because she knew that it would cause you trouble, because then the police would have proof of her powers...when her suffering became more than she could bear, she started begging me to kill her...all of this because she wants you to love her. I couldn’t possibly kill her...no matter how hard I tried to end her suffering, I just couldn’t bring myself to do it...therefore there was only one more option left to save her from her suffering…”

Rem trailed off, but Light was able to fill in the blank rather quickly. “So, you had her forfeit ownership of her death note…”

The shinigami nodded at him, “yes, that’s right...since she forfeited ownership of the death note, all of her memories related to it disappeared...everything, including all of the murders she committed with it, and the fact that you are Kira. Therefore, your secret is now safe.”

“Also,” Rem added, “she is no longer able to see Ryuk or myself, as she is no longer the owner of a death note...all she will be able to remember is that she has strong feelings for you, Light Yagami.”

“You did the right thing, Rem,” Light replied, looking up at the shinigami, “if her memories of the death note are gone, then chances are they will have to release her eventually.”

“Light Yagami, I proposed this to Misa knowing that it would benefit you...but I did so on one condition…” she pointed a white, bony finger directly at Light’s forehead, “...and that is...if you don’t save Misa Amane, I will kill you…”

“I understand, Rem, and I have a pretty good idea of what L will do next. That being said,” he stared straight into Rem’s eyes as he spoke, “don’t worry...I have a plan.”

/timeskip/

“I hereby relinquish ownership of this death note,” Light announced, staring straight into Rem’s eyes as he handed her the notebook.

Rem accepted the notebook, matching Light’s glare with an intense look of her own, “take care of Misa, or else...remember, you gave your word.”

With that, the white shinigami flapped her wings, and left the forest, leaving Light alone with Ryuk. Light watched as she flew away, and a sly smirk crept across his face.

Well, well. It’s just as I thought...as long as I still have Ryuk’s notebook, even though I gave up Rem’s, all awareness I have of Rem still remains...Rem, the only reason I have to go through all of this trouble is because you brought another death note to the human world...things would have worked out smoothly if I didn’t have Misa hanging around me. That damned kiss ruined all of my plans…

“Are you really sure about this, Light?” Ryuk’s question broke Light away from his thoughts.

“Yeah,” Light replied, glancing over at the dark shinigami that was floating to the left of him.

“Well, in that case, alright...but I have to say...I never thought the death note I gave you would end up buried and abandoned...it’s quite sad, don’t you think?” the shinigami gave a sigh as he looked over at the site in the forest where his extra death note had been buried.

“Listen, Ryuk, for the time being I’m just hiding it, but...it stays mine....until the next time you hear me say the following words...‘get rid of it’. When I say that, regardless of the context, assume that I want to relinquish ownership of the death note,” Light replied.

The shinigami laughed a little but nodded, “hyuk, alright then, Light. I got it…”

Keiko’s POV:

Aside from the occasional muffling sound, Misa had quieted down after the gag had been placed around her mouth. It was clear Misa had stopped struggling entirely.

Then, all of the sudden, Keiko almost swore that she saw a strand of Misa’s hair move all on its own, despite there being no wind where she was being held captive. It happened quickly, so quickly that Keiko almost just chalked it up to her seeing things. However, when she heard the quietest of gasps escape the great detective’s mouth, she knew she hadn’t just been imagining it.

Wanting to sit closer to the screens, Keiko decided to move from her spot on the couch into the empty chair that was sitting right next to L. He raised an eyebrow upon her arrival, but didn’t say anything.

“Don’t misunderstand me, Ryuzaki-san...I’m still mad at you...I just want to keep a closer eye on her,” Keiko explained, being careful not to look over at the detective. “I mean, you saw that too, right?”

“Hmm,” out of the corner of her eye, Keiko noticed that the corners of L’s mouth had turned every so slightly. She had no doubt that he must have noticed how hard she was working to not look at him. He then gave her a brief nod, “yes, yes I did see it...how unusual indeed.”

It then appeared that Misa’s body had gone limp, it was as though she had either fallen asleep or collapsed from exhaustion. Given her current condition, Keiko figured that it was probably the latter.

“For the time being, please ungag her,” L instructed Watari, “perhaps we can get her to talk when she wakes up.”

/timeskip/

“Ahh...Mr. Stalker...hello, mister?” came Misa’s frantic voice. Keiko’s eyes suddenly snapped open, and her vision soon focused on the blonde haired girl on the screens. It appeared she had finally woken up, “d-do you think we could stop this game?”

Right next to Keiko, L who had been about to bite into a mini chocolate cupcake, stopped dead in his tracks. She could also hear the collective grumbling of the other members of the Task Force behind her.

“Huh, a stalker? ...where’d she get that from all of the sudden?” Matsuda questioned.

Right beside him, Aizawa murmured, “what’s up with this new attitude?”

“Mr. Stalker,” Misa continued on, “please, this is illegal...you have to stop!”

For the next five minutes, after a short bathroom break, Misa carried on with this new idea that she was being held hostage from an obsessive stalker fan. It appeared that she had entirely forgotten the real reason why she was being held captive, and the interrogation that had gone on before she was gagged earlier.

“So...what’s this? She regains consciousness and develops a new attitude?” Keiko muttered incredulously, “does she think she can just play dumb like this? I have to admit, it’s starting to get on my nerves…”

“Okay, how about this...you can at least take off my blindfold, don’t you think? It would be nice to see what you look like.”

Is she really playing dumb, though? Or is she serious...with how she’s sounding, it’s almost hard to tell...

“Matsuda-san,” L called, extending his hand in his general direction, “please, call Mogi-san for me…”

“Just a moment, then…” Matsuda rifled through his pockets for his cell phone. He took it out and dialled Mogi’s number before handing it over to L, “here you are.”

“Mogi-san…” L started, “when you apprehended Misa Amane...you made it clear that she was a suspect, correct? She knows that she is under suspicion of being the Second Kira?”

“What if I give you an autograph or shake your hand...or perhaps...you’d like a kiss on the cheek?! I can do that! Please, unhand me, I promise I won’t run away!” Misa insisted while L was on the phone.

“Mhmm, I understand, thank you.” With that, L hung up the phone, handing it back over to Matsuda with a sigh, “we were making so much progress with her...and now this…why is she suddenly talking about a stalker?”

Keiko watched as he carefully hit the speakerphone button on his laptop, “Misa Amane.”

“Huh, what’s that, Mr. Stalker? Are you finally planning on releasing me?”

“Before you passed out, you barely spoke...and you even asked me to kill you...but now you’re claiming ignorance? Why?” L questioned, his eyes narrowing.

“Hmm, I don’t understand,” Misa responded. “I mean...you’re the one who knocked me out and then brought me here, remember? ...wait...I get it...this is some Misa Amane interrogation fantasy of yours...am I correct, Mr. Stalker?”

“Amane-san...do you know why I’m detaining you here?” L questioned further, “you must have some idea…”

“What do you mean? It’s obviously because I’m a celebrity,” Misa replied, “but you’re honestly the first stalker whose gone this far...and it’s really starting to scare me…”

“What the…” Keiko muttered quietly, her own eyes started narrowing, “what’s the meaning of this?”

All of the sudden, Matsuda stepped forward, stealing the microphone away from L, “hey, Amane-san! No one’s buying this, so cut the crap already!”

“M-Matsuda-san,” Keiko reached out, lightly pulling on the end of this shirt, “please try and remain calm...you’re only going to scare the girl…if she’s too terrified, she won’t cooperate with us.”

Matsuda glanced in Keiko’s direction, and as their eyes met he gave a gentle sigh, “s-sorry…I guess I wasn’t thinking properly.”

As if on cue, Misa continued on once more. “Oh this is scary…” Misa cried out, her voice rose a few octaves. “I can’t take this anymore! Oh, please let me go!”

“I told you so,” Keiko muttered.

“Let me go!” Misa demanded once more, “please! Oh yeah...I have to go to the bathroom again! I have to go to the bathroom, okay?!”

“It’s only been about ten minutes since you last went to the bathroom...I’m afraid you’ll just have to hold it,” L replied, his voice was monotone.

“B-but you have to let me go!” Misa cried out, “it’s the only time you let me move...plus you’ll be able to watch...isn’t that what you want?! You pervert!”

L’s eyes slightly widened at Misa’s accusation. “I’m...a...pervert?” he quietly questioned.

Even though the situation was anything but funny, Keiko couldn’t help but to let out a small chuckle, earning her a momentary death glare from the detective.

“Amane-san...please calm down and think rationally...let’s go back to the conversation we had before you lost consciousness…” L said, taking the microphone back from Matsuda and moving it back into its original position. However, before he had another chance to question Misa Amane, his cell phone went off.

“Actually, you know what? I will be with you again in just a moment...” he said and turned off the microphone, taking his cell phone out of his jean pocket.

“It’s Light,” L announced to everyone in the room. At the mention of her ex-boyfriend, Keiko’s heart gave a little lurch and she could feel her stomach slowly churning. She hadn’t seen Light since the day she had broken up with him, the day that Misa Amane was taken under suspicion of being the Second Kira. She supposed that his call meant that she would be seeing him again soon. While she knew that she would have to put her personal feelings aside for the purpose of the investigation, she wasn’t sure how prepared she actually was to do that. Saying it was one thing but doing it was another thing entirely.

L picked up the phone, “hello, Light-kun...mhmm, I agree...yes, yes we will be expecting you, then...alright...see you soon.”

As soon as L hung up the phone, he immediately glanced in Keiko’s direction, as if trying to read her reaction. Keiko tried to make her face as unreadable as possible, though she knew L probably already suspected how nervous she was feeling.

After a few seconds, he turned away, facing the rest of the Task Force as he announced, “Light Yagami will be arriving here shortly.”