Artemis' Hotel

"I still can't believe you killed the Opal that's already in prison."

"This could be very interesting, Holly. The past Opal might react in intriguing ways to this news."

"If by intriguing, you mean going even more insane than she already is."

Holly and Artemis were still bickering about what had happened in the meeting. Artemis was in his chair, Holly paced angrily in front of him, and both were trying to ignore the field mind-wipe going on behind them.

"Holly, you know we had to do it. Besides, now I have documentation that Light is Kira. It's too bad I can't show it to the police."

"Why not? We could beat Light now, before he has the chance to kill anyone else."

"First of all, we can't risk that people eventually find out that we edited the footage to remove all mention of fairies. Second, you may be forgetting the reason that we were called into this in the first place – the second Kira. We have to figure out who else has a Death Note, and who better to do it than Light? He already volunteered to go to Aoyama to check out the notebook situation. If all goes well, the second Kira will make contact, and you will be there to see it."

"Artemis, hold on, that won't work. We know the second Kira has the shinigami eyes. Ryuk saw my name and lifespan when I was shielded, so I can't spy for you."

"Well then, we'll just have to rely on less personal methods. Let's see what new bugs Foaly has cooked up for us."

Haven

Miles belowground, however, the centaur Foaly was not cooking up bugs, but rather munching on carrots. Frankly, he was bored. Without an impending disaster about to strike Haven, Foaly was resigned to creating only mildly astounding breakthroughs in technology. Maybe, he thought, I should check on our two most popular humans.

"Artemis," Foaly said through a mouthful of carrot, "I heard you requested a mind-wipe team. The meeting with Light went well, then?"

"Better than that," Artemis responded. "Light admitted to being Kira, I can see his shinigami, and we have one less Opal Koboi to deal with."

"Not bad," Foaly admitted. "Though judging by the un-collapsed state of the universe right now, I assume you left the more dangerous Opal standing?"

"I had no choice. And speaking of not having a choice, I need your opinion on something." Holly stopped pacing. Artemis hadn't mentioned this. There was a long and awkward silence while Artemis considered his words, broken by Foaly.

"All right, Artemis, I admit I was lying when I told you that suit didn't make you look fat," he quipped. "But in all seriousness, what do you need?"

"I can't take out Light alone. L and the task force are the only ones with both the authority and the competence necessary to bring him down. But now that I have crucial information, I must tread carefully about how I reveal it to them. For instance, how should I say I found out about the Death Note? I can't think of any plausible explanation besides…."

"I see where you're going, Artemis," Holly interjected. "And I don't like it. We can't just tell L about fairies. He's the type that would want to keep his memories."

"On the contrary," said Foaly, "I think Artemis has a point. L is obsessed with catching Kira. If he knew you had information that could help him do it, he'd readily agree to a mind-wipe."

"Oh, and there's another thing."

"The surveillance equipment?"

"How did you… ah. You tested it on me."

"Right you are, Fowl. Point to Foaly, and in case you're keeping score, that makes it about ten to one, my favor."

Task Force HQ

L swiveled around in his chair, hearing the door open behind him.

"Artemis," he said simply.

"What would you give up to catch Kira?" questioned Artemis.

"What would I give up?" L repeated with a bit of contempt. "I would give my life to catch Kira – and judging by recent events, I probably will."

"Excellent. However, I have something significantly less drastic in mind."

Some time passed, in which Artemis explained everything to L.

This is unbelievable, thought L. An underground colony of fairies? Death gods with notebooks that kill with the stroke of a pen? Vengeful pixies, technological centaurs…. And yet, I find myself believing every word. Why is it? Perhaps I trust Artemis too much. No, that is certainly not it. It's mere logic, that's all. Why would Artemis lie about this? Why would he have me think myself right and then shatter how I view the world? It must be true, all of it.

"Very well," said L after Artemis had finished. "I will submit to the mind-wipe and forget ever having known fairies existed, if only to bring Light to justice. If you will just introduce me to your fairy friends, then we can proceed with how to reasonably apprehend Light."

Yagami Residence

Light sat in his room, his head cradled in his arms, in deep concentration.

"Ryuk, why can't I remember what happened last night?" he questioned in dismay. "I know that I volunteered to go to Aoyama – meet the second Kira there – but after that, I don't know. Fowl slipped me some piece of paper. I can't remember what it said. Was it instructions? Did I meet with Fowl last night? …Ryuk, help me out here."

"I would, but seeing your mind challenged is so much fun," cackled the shinigami. Without hesitation, Light tossed an apple over to him. "Oh, you're no fun. Fine, you met with Artemis last night."

"What did we discuss?"

"Well, I think he knows you're Kira. What can I say, the boy's a genius. Like you."

"Damn. I could always just kill him, but I still don't know Butler's real name. If only I had the shinigami eyes…. Wait! I can meet the second Kira at Aoyama and get him to tell me that manservant's name. I only have to survive a few more days, and I'll be fine. It doesn't even matter if L knows what Artemis said, because L already thinks I'm Kira."

The window sprang open. Light and Ryuk both turned to see the intruder. The figure there was a diminutive female one, with a disproportionately large head and mechanical wings on her back. As she stepped into the room, the light illuminated the hatred and fury on her face.

"You must be Light Yagami," she snarled. "I heard you killed me last night."

"W-what?" stammered Light. This was disconcerting; he never stammered. But he could see why he had. This creature seemed to radiate menace.

"I am Opal Koboi, most powerful of all the fairy People," she announced. "And you will hand over that notebook to me."

"How do you know about the notebook?" Light demanded.

"Were you not listening?" Opal snapped. "I am the most powerful pixie in the world; I tracked down a certain human and a certain fairy, and I planted my own bugs in their hotel. You have some very alluring powers, and I need them."

"I don't know what you mean by pixies and fairies, but if you really are as powerful as you say, maybe we could work together. Here's what I need –"

"You're still not listening." Opal layered her voice with the mesmer. "You will give me your notebook, and then you will be still."

"What are you – no –" Light could feel his resolve weakening. He felt his hands move involuntarily, holding the notebook, reaching out….

"Good boy." Opal watched Light for a few moments, studying him as he sat, frozen and helpless, in clear panic. "Ryuk. My time on this earth has already been limited by this human. Give me the shinigami eyes."

"If you say so," said Ryuk uncaringly. The sensation in Opal's eyes doubled. Suddenly, she saw a name and a string of numbers hovering above Light's head. She smirked in triumph and plucked a pen from Light's unresisting fingers.

"Thank you, Light Yagami," she said, writing down his name. "But you are no longer necessary." She released him from the mesmer, then turned to exit the room. She didn't bother to look back at Light clutching his chest and collapsing as she flew back out the window, Ryuk on her heels.

Author's Note: Finally, I get around to writing again! Thanks for all the positive feedback, guys. Don't hesitate to tell me what you think of it! Odd Man out.