A/N: This was supposed to take place after Death Note: The Last Name. Only after I wrote most of this did I realize that Watari died in the movie, but I liked this scene anyway. So, let's just pretend that Watari lived. And for those of you who are reading this but never watched the movie, L wrote his own name down in the Death Note (giving himself as much time to live as possible) so that Light/Rem could not kill him immediately.
Enjoy.
End of Days
He gazed out the window across the green dewy lawns of Wammy's House. The sun had just risen, and clear, bright light illuminated the beautiful countryside. A spider's web sparkled in the space between two bare, October branches. He placed his hand flat upon the cold window, and watched as fog crept slowly outward across the glass.
The sound of bells echoed across the world. He placed his other hand on the glass, letting the cold seep into him, watching the heat leave his body and spread out into the window. At least there would be no blood.
L shook his head, and took his hands from the window. He moved the clammy appendages to his face, and shivered slightly. The future was entirely unknown, and for him, it no longer existed.
Empty. L felt empty. And afraid.
There was a curt knock on the door, and two seconds later, Watari entered with a tray of tea. He nodded to L, and set the silver tray down on the table. L glanced out the window again, watching as the birds began to flit across the grass, and the fog in the distance began to clear.
"It is a beautiful morning, isn't it," Watari said conversationally. L heard the slight clinking as the old man set the teacups on the table, and moved the tray to the center of the table. L sighed, and his head and shoulders drooped lower than usual.
There was silence in the room. L knew he was making Watari worry. To Watari, he was still the young, strange child that had come from nowhere. He needed constant looking-after.
The door suddenly creaked open again, and for a split second, L thought he was being surprised by Light. But Light was dead, and it was Near. He relaxed.
The boy had gone through a growth spurt when L had been in Japan, and L was still unused to Near being taller than the doorknob. Near peeked inside, his eyes wide as he took in the scene. There was nothing unusual in the room, L knew, unless one could feel the heaviness in the air.
"Near," Watari said in a tone that was neither gentle nor grave, but somewhere in between. Near's eyes flicked to and stayed on Watari, and then strayed to L.
Before Watari could continue, Near spoke. "What is happening now?" He was growing into a certain razor-like quality in his voice, and it made his question sound more like a demand. L supposed it had something to do with the boy's constant rivalry with Mello. A slight smile formed on his face, but then fell as Watari spoke and the bells echoed across the world again. He stared out at the crystalline spider's web, and thought of how the light touched every part of the world.
"L and I are having a cup of tea. If you would like, I can serve you some later." He heard the scuff of Watari's shoes on the carpet as the man moved to where Near was hiding in the doorway.
L suddenly turned around. "No." The light streamed past him, and his eyes were unadjusted to the dimness of the room, so that he was staring into only the shadows of Near and Watari. Watari gazed over at L with the most painful expression he had ever seen on the man. Near snuck inside entirely, and waited.
Near deserved to know. L wanted him to know. At least something. He was losing all his reason, when it was coming this close, and he knew he had decided earlier to keep it all a secret. Watari did not have the heart, or rather he had too much heart, and did not try make a move to stop him.
Near looked simply curious.
Not for the first time, L wondered if they might be related. There was no way of knowing, and in truth it did not matter, but the resemblance was striking. Perhaps they were even brothers.
The sound of the bells rolled across the room, but L had the sinking feeling that he was the only one who heard them this time.
"Near," L began, looking directly at the young boy, "this is my last cup of tea."
Near looked appropriately puzzled, then cracked a small grin, his eyes fixing on the ground. "Does this mean that you finally understand that you need to have a healthier diet?" He fiddled with a lock of his white hair, and looked across at L.
L shook his head slowly, carefully watching the Near's reaction. The boy was picking up on the tension in the room, and his eyes flicked over to Watari. No, Near was not as good as Light at hiding his thoughts. Near looked at the floor and his finger pulled tighter on his hair.
L turned back to the window. What did it matter now? He was done serving as Near's role model. He was finished with the execution of carefully-laid plans and clever deductions. He did not need to hide anything, nor did he need to care if others could not hide anything.
It was not as if L was going to a place where he could watch over them.
"Near," L said softly, placing his right hand again on the cool window. "Kira has one last victim."
Near gasped, and L heard him walk further into the room. There was a soft thud as the boy sat down on the floor, and Watari's heavy sigh. The door creaked closed.
"You told us the case was finished, L," Near stated between the sounds of a bag being emptied of wooden cubes. He sounded upset at being lied to, but maybe he was only preoccupied with trying to deduce why L had returned without stopping Kira. Perhaps Near believed that he would be allowed to help L find Kira, although undoubtedly he knew that there would be a lot of catching up to do. Near had no inkling of the existence of the Death Notes, nor of the particular circumstances involving Light.
L turned his thoughts away from Near, and focused on the world outside the window. A butterfly had flown straight into the spider's web, and was struggling. L watched it, silhouetted with the branches against the light blue sky. He did not see a spider.
"The case is finished, Near," L replied in his simple monotone. He took his hand off the glass and waited for a few, long moments. There was still no sign of the spider. "Kira is dead."
"And the last victim?" Near asked.
"L…" Watari cut in, his voice sounding ancient.
L turned around suddenly. "Yes, Watari?" He held his cold right hand with his left at chest level. He felt anxious.
Watari smiled calmly and gestured broadly with his arm towards the table. "Do not let your tea get cold," he suggested warmly.
"Oh, yes." L shuffled to the table, ignoring the look from Near, and climbed up into the chair. He placed his hands on his knees, and looked down at his place setting. There was an entire cup filled past the brim with sugar cubes. There was a small silver spoon sitting just inside the golden edge of the saucer. For some reason, L wanted to just stare at it. After a gentle cough from Watari, L reached his chilled right hand to the teacup, held it into the slight steam, and then plopped a cube of sugar into the tea.
"It is you." Near was confident. It was the same tone they all used when they had solved the case. L did not turn to look behind him. Watari sat down on the other side of the table, placed two cubes of sugar into his tea, and stirred.
"Near," L began with a slight hesitation. "I think…it is time to go." The next sugar cube went into the tea with an echoing plop.
Near did not say another word. L continued putting more sugar into his tea, until he was able to start building a vertical white tower, his movements punctuated by wooden clatters as Near's castle crumbled and was put back into its small black bag.
He heard Near's quiet footsteps patter to the door as he contemplated the last cup of tea. The door creaked open, and then a small, diminished voice called out.
"Goodbye… L."
The door closed, and L felt a tightening in his chest, though he knew it had nothing to do with the Death Note. He lifted his eyes to Watari. The man across the table nodded with eyes beginning to sparkle with tears.
L tried to smile, and dipped his finger into the sugary cup of tea. Most of the sugar cube tower had dissolved, leaving a grainy mound like an island surrounded by dark and still water.
The drink, if it could still be called that, was as good as always. Watari took a careful sip. L stirred the mixture, watching as the sugar island dissolved into the sea of tea.
"I'm glad that it's such a sunny morning," Watari said, gazing out the window.
"Yes," L said, beginning to feel numb. The birds had started singing, and many of them were passing back and forth, over the sparkling green lawns, catching small insects. Life was not only continuing—it was in full force here.
He picked up his cup and took a small sip, enjoying the sweet taste.
Suddenly his eyes filled with tears as they had not done for over a decade, and he could only think that this was what it must feel like to be the grass, shining with dew.
"Watari," he said, his throat feeling blocked. "Thank you." The first tear fell into the tea, and L knew that now his drink would be salty. He stared at it in a sort of shock, feeling his lower lip tremble.
Watari set down his teacup, and began dabbing his napkin to his eyes. L had never seen the man cry.
The bells rang out with a finality that he had not yet heard in them. L dropped the spoon, as the sound of the bells and the rhythm of his heart suddenly matched. His eyes opened wide, but Watari, the teacup, the window, the world slid out of focus….
L felt himself hit the carpet, and for a strange moment, he thought he felt Light catching him.
"L!" Watari's voice was distant.
L lay on his back, looking up through the shaft of morning light from the window. Images of church windows and crying children, pictures from his past, flickered through his mind as the bells continued ringing. The bright light seemed to dim, and the beating in his chest slowed…and stopped.
L closed his eyes, and drifted away to sleep.
Here's a box of tissues. Please review! This is my first fanfiction attempt at sadness, so tell me how I did, and please tell me if there's anything I can work on/should change. Thanks.