Yup, another story. I can't help it... when a plot bunny hops into my head, I HAVE TO WRITE! ((sweat drops)) Yeah. Many thanks goes to Kitsune55, who not only implanted said plot bunny, but who is gonna be my beta reader for this fic. Thanks so much, hon! Hope you guys enjoyed the first chapter of many more to come!

Disclaimer: I do not own Death Note, damn it, but I sure as hell own those damn lyrics. ((hugs lyrics)) Mine.

Italics: Flashback

Title: Life Imitating Art

Chapter One: Dreaming Big and Living Large

"Father!"

Yagami Soichirou smiled brightly as his son ran to him. Dropping his bag by the door, he grasped onto his son's small five-year-old body "How has my little boy been today?"

"Great, otou-san!" Little Yagami Raito grinned as his father placed him on the ground, his mother smiling beside him whilst holding his little sister within her dainty arms. "Hello, koibito."

Soichirou turned towards, his wife and kissed lightly on the lips.

"Ew... daddy has cooties!"

Both adults laughed at the small boy, his father ruffling up his hair as a disgusted look overcame his face.

"That's my baby boy!" Soichirou chuckled as the boy became indignant, glaring at his father menacingly... or as menacingly as a cute five-year-old boy could look.

"I'm not a baby. Sayu's a baby! I'm a big boy..."

"Of course you are, Rai-chan." Yagami Sachiko cooed gently as she handed her barely month old baby to Soichirou and knelt beside the child, kissing him lightly on his cheek, "You are definitely mommy's big boy."

"Yeah! And when I get even bigger..." Raito's caramel eyes began to shimmer, stars basking around the chibi-boy's face, "I'll be famous! So famous, that you and dad will talk all about me, all the time! Even... even... even more famous than L, the greatest detective in the world!!"

Soichirou grinned, patting the small boy on the head. "So Raito wants to be a great detective then?"

Raito snorted, causing his father to blink in surprise. "Detective? Yeah, right. No... When I say famous, I mean FAMOUS! Like, stadiums filled with fans and groupies constantly chasing me and lots and lots of money and power..."

"Err... Rai-chan?"

"I can see it all now." Raito dreamily clasped his hands together, his large doe eyes glimmering in excitement. "I'll be the best singer in the whole wide world! And nobody'll bring me down!"

Soichirou sweat dropped in exasperation.

"Not this again..."

"No! You'll see, dad! I'll be so big; everybody will know and praise my name!" Raito stomped his foot on the rugged floor, pouty lips plumping up even further. "I'll be like a God to this world... and every body else will be like my peons!"

Sachiko smiled patronizingly to the young boy as he bounced in excitement.

She had always had a soft spot for her eldest son, and she doubted that would deteriorate with age.

"Sure you will, honey. But until then, it's time for your nap."

"But MOOOOOOM! I have to train my voice! My voice coach says that if I keep practicing according to my schedule, I'll be able to-"

"Raito. Upstairs, now. Sleepy time awaits."

The young boy sighed as he moodily climbed the stairs, stopping at the top to stare down at the family below him.

"I'll show you. I'll show you all. I'll get to the top someday... and nobody'll bring me down."

Soichirou sighed as Raito then ran into his room, running a hand through his dark hair. "That boy's head is always in the clouds. It's starting to worry me, to tell you the truth."

"Soichirou, he's just five. I'm sure it's just a phase."

The older man wearily smiled down at the love of his life, gently kissing her on the forehead as he shut his light brown eyes. "I sure hope so..."

"SOMEWHEREEEEEEEE, OVER THE RAINBOWWWWW..."

Super Chibi-Raito Jazz hands!

"AND ONE, AND TWO, AND THREE, AND FOUR!"

Stomp.

Stomp.

Stomp.

Stomp.

The family sweat dropped consecutively... including the baby.

'God knows what I'll do if the boy is actually serious about this.'

Ebony eyes circled with black sags carefully reviewed the video tapes on display, the many monitors around them brightly illuminating the sloppy work area around him. A hand groped another piece of strawberry pocky, anxiously stuffing it into the already full mouth as small specks of chewed up food clung to his lips.

"L?"

"Yes, Watari?"

"I have those files you requested."

"Thank you. You may set them over here. I will look through them in a moment's time."

"Of course, L."

Watari began humming unconsciously as he set down the files and began unloading the multiple sweets he also carried with him around the insomniac. L's eye twitched as the melody caught him off-guard, something that didn't happen too often. Words began making their way out of Watari's mouth, L blinking at the sudden change of atmosphere.

"You used to reflect... on those few memories... It's too bad... they're all of me."

"Err..."

L wasn't stunned into speechlessness very often, but at the sound of the older man actually singing, he thought he could make a special exception this time.

"One day I'll ponder... And look farther..."

"Watari?!"

"Eh?" The bushy browed gentleman blinked at the smaller man, his face contorted out of its usually blank visage and twisted into one of unadulterated horror. "L? Is something the matter?"

"You were singing." The 25-year-old man stated relevantly, his dark eyes narrowing in suspicion. "Did you not notice your own voice reverberating through the empty room?"

"Ah, I see. I apologize. It must be that new song that has been playing continuously on the radio these past couple of weeks. It's quite addicting, actually." An obscured eyebrow quirked up in interest as Watari finished setting up the plates and platters around the genius, nodding as he fully stood back up and began to waltz his way out of the room. "Watari, wait."

The older man stopped in his steps, glancing over his shoulder as L curiously placed a thumb to his lips and gently gnawed on it in concentration. "What is the name of this band that has infiltrated your mental processes?"

Watari laughed a bit at L's never ending curiosity and smiled at the man who was really just a boy at heart. "I believe the name of people playing the song is called "Moonlight". Strange name, do you not think?"

L tilted his head to the side, his eyes sliding up to the ceiling in deep thought as he absently nodded. "Yes... but these children these days always pick peculiar names to accredit themselves with."

"Will you be needing anything else, L?" The younger of the two shook his head, adjusting himself so that he was facing the monitors once again. Once the dark eyed man was sure his man-servant slash trusty side kick was gone from the room, he flicked his hand over to his lap top, opening up a webpage and quickly typing a name within the search bar.

Moonlight

He was almost shocked at how many web pages opened up under the band's name.

"Hmm..."

Without thinking about it, and completely ignoring the many screens around him at this point, L began searching through the pages one by one, until a lyrics page caught his eye.

'Those were the same lines Watari was singing.'

L quickly clicked on the link and quickly scanned the lyrics before downloading the song. 'The name of the song is called "After Awhile." I wonder what the appeal is…'

A smooth acoustic guitar quietly strummed against the silence of the room, echoing off the bare walls in a smooth tumble. A gentle tenor voice entered a couple bars after, catching L off guard with the sensuality of its tone.

"After awhile, I start to remember just what it was I saw in you. It's like a dream... the end; a blur. If only I could forget the beginning as well..."

A heavy blush filled L's cheeks as an unusual pool of warmth filled his lower regions. He gulped, obsidian eyes blinking hesitantly as the guitar was then accompanied by a set of drums and bass, voice swelling alongside the music.

"You used to reflect on those few memories; it's too bad they're all of me. I used to hate thinking of yesterday - It's now I've learned these days will soon fade away."

A haziness slowly filtered L's mind as his hands gripped onto the handles of the seat, his crouched legs squelching together as the 25-year-old man squirmed lightly within the chair.

'What is this...? I'm feeling?'

"One day, I'll ponder and look farther than I ever did when I was with you. Until then, I'll have to stick with now. But after awhile, now starts to look-"

"L?" Watari suddenly called out, catching the detective completely off-guard.

"Ack!" The ebony-eyed man tipped over in surprise as he tumbled onto the floor, body twisting as he unceremoniously hit the ground.

"L!"

"Ah... I'm alright, Watari." L blinked as he dazedly picked himself up and shrugged off the hands attempting to brush him off. "It was just a small fall. I did not break any ligaments or bones."

"Under the strain of you're burden, I'll purge myself until I'm blue in the face. After awhile, I know I'll soon forget..."

Watari grinned over at the laptop, L's face an inexplicable shade of burgundy red as the song continued to play. "I see you enjoy the song as well?"

L coughed slightly.

"Shall I purchase their latest album?"

L's eyes widened.

"There is more than one album?"

Watari sighed.

"I'll get to work on gathering their whole catalog for you, L."

"Thank you, Watari. That will be greatly appreciated."

Watari stifled another smile as L returned to his laptop, the song still playing in the background of the room as he finally got back to work.

"Of course, L."

"You used to smile inspite of the pain... It's now you've realized those hidden tears were all you had to really gain."

Raito swung his arms forward, the object between his grasp thrown up in the air in a series of twirls as Raito swayed his body to the left, narrowing his eyes in extreme concentration.

'I can do this, I can do this, I can do this, I can-'

"Oh shit!"

'I CAN'T DO THIS! I CAN'T DO THIS! OH FUCK, I CAN'T DO THIS!'

CRASH!

"Ow…" Fourteen-year-old Yagami Raito winced as he picked himself up from off the dirty garage floor and grabbed his guitar, which lay a couple feet away from where he had landed so wonderfully on his ass.

"I told you it takes time to master the great 'throw-your-guitar-in-the-air' move. Dude, you need to listen up more."

"Grr…" Raito snarled as he positioned his fingers on the strings once more, his mouth at the microphone once again. "I know that, jackass. But how else am I going to get better if not by actually practicing?"

"…"

"I thought so. Now, once more and from the top." Raito smirked as the rest of his band mates grudgingly got ready, still staring at him from the corner of their eyes.

Cinnamon brown eyes narrowed in concentration as the first strains of music infiltrated his mind and caused a music-induced haze to cloud his senses.

'I know I can do better than this, but at least it's a start.' The russet haired teen thought to himself, as he agilely began to strum the first couple of cords, the words tumbling from his lips oh so smoothly a couple bars into the song. 'I'll get to the top, and when I get there…'

"Running in a haze of high expectations; maybe it would be better if I gave up on these aspirations…"

'Everyone will know my name.'

"Yet who would then deliver me from this necessary evil? Necessary for the simple fact that I have not purged myself in the name of 'good.'"

'Everyone will know I'm a star.'

"Good work, boys! Light, great job as always!" Yagami Raito, otherwise known simply as 'Light', smiled as nodded at the numerous people around him congratulating him and patting him on the back.

Raito internally rolled his eyes.

'Stupid people... as if I do this for them.'

The young 17-year-old singer strode by his many ass-kissers and groupies, not even giving them a second glance as he mockingly grinned towards all of them as they swooned collectively. Really, they only people he wished to see were his endless fans, and even they had their limits.

"So, awesome concert as always?"

"Of course! Did you see those chicks in the front row eyeing me, dude? I sense an orgy in the making!"

"Oh fuck yeah!"

"I love this fucking job…"

"Yeah, but you know if they had a chance to get down Light's pants, they'd forget about all of us in an instant."

"Lucky bastard."

Raito ignored the comments made by his Neanderthal group members, most of whom he didn't even know the names of, as he made it to his room and locked the door. Breathing in a sigh of relief, Raito wearily stripped himself of all of his clothing and changed into a temporary new set of loose jeans and a long sleeve black shirt that clung to his chest quite snuggly. He definitely needed a shower as soon as he made it to his hotel room.

'God, day in and day out, the same old fucking thing! You'd think I'd be satisfied now that I've finally managed to get what I've always wanted. Fans who adore me, my lyrics crossing the masses and masses of people all over the world, actually managing to make some sort of difference with my songs... yet why do I still feel so damn empty?'

The young man sat down and slumped against the chair in his private room, the silence of the space around him being shattered by the rumble of commotion going on in the backdrop of fans still waiting for him to show his face once more. Raito closed his eyes, slowly fading into an uncomfortably light sleep against his better wishes.

'Maybe if I give this all some more time... things will finally change... I'll finally change.'

If only Raito knew just how right that statement was...

He'd probably take it back in an instant.