Death Note: the Yuri

Two

L paused as the black haired woman looked out the airplane, studying the island of Japan as they descended. She had studied the 'Kira' case exhaustively, and she was certain that the mystery killer was in this nation.

Wendy smiled as the older woman brought her a plate of sweet cakes. "I'm impressed you narrowed things down so much in a week," she noted.

"It wasn't hard," the woman waved it off as L continued, "I just correlated announcements and news articles on death row inmates with the time of their killings. Anyone could have done it."

Wendy watched her charge as the woman munched on a snack cake, casually spilling crumbs on her over-sized pullover and black jeans. "Yes," she conceded, "but you are the one who did." She offered a glass of milk from the tray as she asked, "Have you determined your next step?"

L chugged the milk then wiped off her mouth with a napkin. "I think the killer may be a student," L admitted, "consider the timing of the killings. The period almost exactly matches the times a high schooler might be home."

Wendy's eyes widened, "Can we prove that?"

"I can think of several methods," L mumbled as she ate another cake, "but we'll need to see what resources are available when we land."

Not long after the plane arrived on a private airfield and L disembarked, followed by Wendy. As they left the plane and walked towards the buildings a figure hurried up to Wendy, speaking to her a moment as L waited impatiently.

"Well?" L asked, her black hair falling messily into her eyes.

"There seems to be a complication," Wendy admitted, "an American agency..."

"The FBI are investigating," L said casually, "because the majority of killings have been in American prisons." She shrugged as she added, "It's not unexpected."

Wendy blinked at her, "You KNEW?"

"The pride of the American's would allow for nothing else," L replied wisely. They walked to the waiting car as she asked, "Has a headquarters been prepared?"

"Of course," Wendy opened the door for her.

"And more importantly," L flashed a sweet smile as she asked, "will there be cake there?"

Wendy laughed, "Of course."

Meanwhile, in another part of the city Light Yagami puzzled over a graver problem in the safety of her room. The brown haired woman had been keeping abreast of the 'Kira' investigation, both via the internet and her covert access to her father's computer.

Sometimes Light felt a pang of guilt over using her father's access as a police detective, but she squelched that feeling firmly. She was using the Death Note to bring about a better world, and some compromises were going to be needed along the way. She told herself that regularly, and someday she might actually believe it.

"Hey, Light?" Rukia asked as she lounged on the bed, "Can you toss me an apple?"

Light picked it up and tossed it over to the short, black haired girl, once again marveling that she was some kind of death spirit. She looked like someone cosplaying as a samurai, but Light knew the girl was a 'shinigami,' one who's job was to bring about mortal deaths with her book, the death note. Somehow she had lost the book, and it had fallen into Light's hands.

'Though I have my doubts that Rukia actually lost it,' Light mused once again. The shinigami seemed to be getting far too much enjoyment out of this situation for it to have been a accident.

Rukia crunched into the apple, chewing with a almost sensual satisfaction. "If there's anything worth visiting the mortal plane, it's this," she mused.

"That and getting the life that shinigami need to live on," Light noted dryly.

"True," Rukia grinned.

Light snorted as she turned back to considering the current situation. She had begun her work in making the world better, using the death note to strike down the murderers in prison, then moving on to those serving life sentences for crimes she considered equal. The news media had latched on to her actions as had the internet, and soon a veritable cult had risen up online around the figure everyone called 'Kira.' Personally Light found it rather amusing how people tried to personify something they didn't understand, but that was humans for you.

Sadly, the police and governments were less understanding than the regular populace. Around the world police forces were moving to investigate the killings, and while they had no evidence there were facts they could use. Light occasionally regretted her first usages of the note without planning, wiping out slews of criminals just after she got home. Most people hadn't noticed and it hadn't come up in police reports, but eventually a police officer would notice.

'Unless they're all fools,' Light mused.

"So what are you going to do about the FBI guys?" Rukia asked curiously, having finished the apple and laying on her side on the bed.

"I don't know," Light admitted, frowning.

Visiting the station to see her father Light had overheard the meeting between the police squad chasing Kira and a representative of the FBI. The man had explained that the FBI was in Japan investigating the Kira case, and that a unknown number of operatives were currently being deployed in the country. The Japanese police were, to put it frankly, upset by the news but they also knew there wasn't much they could do about it.

"Why not kill 'em?" Rukia asked casually, thumping her foot against the bed.

A muscle jumped in Light;s jaw as she clenched it, "I see myself as a champion of justice, Rukia."

"So?" Rukia shrugged, "The ends justify the means."

Light scowled as she looked down at the death note. Smoothly she slid open the drawer and opened up the secret hiding place, sliding the book away. "I'm going out," she told Rukia, getting up and walking out of the room.

The evening was comfortable as Light took a walk, considering what she had read off her father's computer plus overhearing the gossip at the station. There were eleven FBI agents deployed to Japan, investigating rumors and hints that Kira was here. They were a threat, though not a major one as they lacked a familiarity with Japanese culture and habits. They might find something from a outsider's perspective, though...

As Light walked she kept some of her attention devoted to her surroundings, and soon became aware she was being followed. The dark haired man shadowed her well, but he let himself be seen once or twice because of the low traffic this late in the day. Light swiftly assessed him, noting he was a foreigner from glimpses of his face and relative size.

Turning down a side street Light leaned against the wall in a shadowy corner, watching him go by her. With a smile she slipped behind him, "Are you following me, mister?"

"Ack!" the taller man whipped around, his hand reflexedly going for his jacket then stopping himself. He was nearly a foot taller than light, looking down at her as he stammered, "No, I..."

"So that's why you've been behind me since I left my house?" Light demande, putting her hands on her hips in a classic indignant pose.

"Ah...," he started.

"Are you stalking me?" Light poked him in the chest, "Are you some kind of pervert?"

"No, I...," he took a halting step towards her.

"If you get any closer I'll scream that you're a rapist," Light growled, trying to project a mix of bluster and fear in her voice.

"I'm a cop!" he quickly said, reaching into his coat to show his identification.

'Bingo,' Light had to strain to hide a triumphant smile. According to his ID he was Raye Penber, a FBI agent just as Light had expected. She knew the cops around the local station, there was no way they'd send a police officer she couldn't recognize.

"So why are you following me, Mr. FBI?" Light demanded.

Raye looked deeply uncomfortable with talking to her as he said, "I'm sorry, Miss Yagami, but I can't say."

'They suspect someone in the family is Kira,' Light mused, 'or at least connected to him.' She looked up at him innocently as she asked, "Is my family in danger, somehow?"

"We're keeping a eye on things," Raye said, "just as a precautionary measure."

'Lying bastard,' Light thought but kept any such thoughts out of her face. "Thank you," she smiled up at him, "could you walk me home? I don't think I want to be alone."

"Of course, miss," Raye nodded.

As they walked Light chattered away at him, deliberately downplaying her intelligence and projecting 'helpless little me' vibes. By the time they got home she felt reasonably sure he thought she was harmless, if reasonably wary of her personal safety. With a satisfied feeling she headed upstairs, nodding a greeting to Rukia as she entered.

"That was a long walk," Rukia noted dryly. She nodded to where Raye lingered outside, then the man walked off. "Made a new friend?" she asked.

"No, I did not," Light said, feeling reasonably confident that Raye now thought she was utterly incapable of being Kira. Even better he might be a useful conduit into the FBI investigation if she handled him right.

Rukia sat up, studying her thoughtfully, "Decided what to do about those agents?"

"Wait and see," Light answered honestly. "for now, I don't think they're a threat. Later on, well... we'll just have to see."

To be continued...

Notes: One thing that always bugged me in the original Death Note was Light's decision to murder the FBI agents. It seemed to me rather out of character for a supposed 'champion of justice' to DO that, though I suppose it signaled Light's descent into crazy evil status. As I'm trying to avoid Light going all evil, I prefer to have her outsmart her enemies rather than kill them...