Hi guys. This is my first piece of fanfiction I've ever submitted for this site. I hope you enjoy it. I guess I can be amateurish at times, but here goes nothing. Reviews and comments are loved.

Disclaimer: I do not own Death Note or any of their characters. Yes, even the amazing L. Bleh.

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Bedtime Stories

An LxMisa Oneshot

Misa tossed and turned while she tried to sleep. Looking at the clock, she yawned as she saw the time. 2 in the morning. She sat up on her bed, glancing around the dark room. Her eyes were heavy, and yet Misa couldn't drift off to sleep. Mischievously, a wide grin set on her small, pallid face.

Raito-kun wouldn't mind if Misa Misa slept beside him tonight, she thought. Misa is happy Raito and Ryuuzaki aren't chained together anymore.

Determinedly, Misa jumped out of bed in her oversized black t-shirt, boxer shorts, and striped socks. She crept as quietly as she could out of her room to not wake anyone else, much especially Ryuuzaki-kun. Did the man even sleep at night? Misa didn't care. All she cared about was to have her beloved Raito peacefully sleeping next to her.

Misa cracked the door open, but before she could even get a glimpse of Raito, a pale white hand clamped over her mouth, muffling her scream.

"I do not think Raito-kun would want to have his sleep disturbed. Misa-san knows how Raito-kun could be if he is disturbed," cautioned Ryuuzaki's monotonous voice, which was whispering lowly into her ear. As much as she would want to wish it weren't true, it was. Raito would always scold Misa if he didn't want her around. Misa wondered what more if he woke up from his calm slumber.

She grunted into his hand, while Ryuuzaki shut the door closed. He let her go as she fell silent. Misa glared at Ryuuzaki, who still wearing the same white shirt he wore every single day, with those dark, beady eyes that seemed like they saw what was right inside of her, proportioned above his strange, pallid face. He towered over her, making her feel small and vulnerable, as if he knew each and every one of her secrets.

"But Misa Misa can't sleep! Misa Misa wants Raito-kun to help her sleep!" she whispered back fiercely. Ryuuzaki, Misa screamed with disgust in her mind. Always ruining everything, the pervert.

Ryuuzaki shrugged. "I doubt Raito-kun would want to help you sleep. However, if you really need it," he paused there, blinking his wide, almost empty-like eyes.

"I can."

Biting his thumb, he waited for her answer, expression unreadable.

Misa stared at him. "Whatever," she growled in a low voice. "Misa will just go back to her room now and try to sleep. Ryuuzaki doesn't let Misa have any fun."

"Alright," replied Ryuuzaki apathetically. He slouched off like he always did, onward to the faint glow of the kitchen lights. Misa hadn't noticed they were on. She followed him to the kitchen, peering around the doorframe as he sat down with both his knees propped up on the chair. In front of him were his laptop, which he used to monitor Raito's actions, and a tiny teacup. He noticed her standing there, observing him, and tore his eyes away from the screen.

"Would Misa-san still want me to help her sleep?" he asked in a polite tone.

She thought about it. She still couldn't sleep. Maybe Ryuuzaki would actually help her this time. Maybe Ryuuzaki would actually do something fun. She already knew Raito wouldn't, and Ryuuzaki looked sincere. He always did, and always had a kind aura glowing around him, despite his many oddities. Misa nodded reluctantly, with nothing else better to do in the middle of the night.

"You pervert," she teased, giggling as she came forward.

Ryuuzaki smiled. "You could go back to your room now. I'll be with you in a little while."

"And what exactly is Ryuuzaki-kun playing at?" asked Misa suspiciously, but he just shrugged as a grin played along his lips. Misa stomped her foot and pouted, starting toward her room. She positioned herself upright on her bed and pushed the covers up to her waist. It wasn't long before the lanky, ghost-like detective returned. He blinked at Misa as he closed the door, slightly making her cringe at his disheveled appearance seen through the brightness of the bedside lamp. She noticed he looked scarier in little light. Misa also noticed that he held two mugs in his porcelain-like hands.

Ryuuzaki pulled a chair close to her bedside and sat on it the way he usually did, and handed her the warm mug. Misa enveloped her hands around his to prevent the mug from falling. She felt him tense at their sudden contact. She hadn't guessed Ryuuzaki's hands were so soft, so warm…

"What is this?" Misa questioned, uncomfortable from the silence. She glanced at the liquid. It was white, milk.

"Warm milk to help you drift off," stated Ryuuzaki.

"This doesn't have any extra sugar, does it?" she eyed him.

"No," Ryuuzaki grinned. "That's only in my mug."

Misa sipped the warm milk. It wasn't very sweet indeed, with the right amount of creaminess. It just might help her sleep.

"So," she began. "Ryuuzaki came all the way here to give Misa Misa some milk?"

He ignored her. "How much do you like fairy tales?"

Misa bounced up and down, excited, but careful not to spill anything. "Misa loves fairy tales! Ryuuzaki will tell Misa Misa a bedtime story? Oh, please do!"

"Right," he slurred, taking a sip from his own mug. "Heard of the story of Cinderella?"

"Of course!" exclaimed Misa. "Everyone has."

"Well, my version's different," explained Ryuuzaki, as he started the story. Misa went deeper in the covers and laid her head on the feathery pillow. She listened to Ryuuzaki attentively, capturing every detail and picturing them in her mind. In her mind, Misa was Cinderella, and the handsome Raito-kun was her Prince Charming, saving her from the horrid treatment of her stepmother. Ryuuzaki continued narrating the story, in his monotonic yet dramatic voice. He paused in the part where Cinderella and Prince Charming were supposed to live happily ever after.

Misa bobbed her head out of the blankets. "Ryuuzaki? Is it not over yet?"

"But," said Ryuuzaki, lifting a bone-colored finger near her face. "They did not live happily ever after."

"What?!" Misa squealed. "They're supposed to do that! It's part of the rules!"

"There are no rules in creative storytelling," Ryuuzaki told her flatly.

"Anyway, back in the kingdom, Cinderella…was nothing but a toy to Prince Charming. I guess Prince Charming didn't even bother to get to know Cinderella at all, judging by how he picked the girl, just because her foot fit in the glass slipper. If it weren't for that, the prince wouldn't even have found her. I doubt he wanted to, nonetheless, merely a pathetic excuse marrying quicker, and marrying a useful woman who knew what to do, and not some spoiled, worthless princess.

"All Cinderella wanted was for her prince to love her. Because he'd taken her away from her terrible family, she was willing to do anything for him."

Misa bit her lip in annoyance. "This story doesn't sound very nice. This was supposed to have a happy ending!"

Ryuuzaki's dark eyes trailed above the ceiling, following the shadows produced by him and Misa. He ignored her comments again. "Prince Charming had an acquaintance, or I daresay, a friend. His friend was a knight, perhaps also some sort of an adviser to him…"

"Well, this knight was a witness to all of the prince's doings to Cinderella. He thought it wasn't fair. He thought Cinderella deserved more than that. It even came to the point that he grew fond of Cinderella, despite her blindness caused by Prince Charming. He listened to her. He understood her."

Shutting her eyes, Misa pretended to be asleep, growing more uncomfortable. He continued talking. What was Ryuuzaki trying to tell her?

"That is when the story almost comes to a close…and the story ends with you, Misa," said Ryuuzaki. Misa flickered her eyes open at the sound of her name.

"Me?" she repeated.

Ryuuzaki nodded. "What if the knight suddenly expressed his true feelings to Cinderella, making an effort to open her eyes?"

"Cinderella would have to stick to her prince, of course, she owes him everything. And it's always supposed to be the princess and the prince, not the princess and the knight. It doesn't sound correct," Misa argued. "Cinderella just needs more patience, that's all."

Ryuuzaki was silent. His expression now was quite thoughtful. Then his eyes moved to meet hers. He gazed at her, which almost startled her. No one has ever looked at Misa like that before, she thought. Not even Raito-kun.

It was a look full of love and honesty. Like Ryuuzaki wanted to be everything she wanted him to be.

"What if," he started, his voice still mechanical, but low and silent. He bit a finger. "What if I told you right here, and right now, that I loved you?"

Misa tore away from his careful stare and looked at the opposite direction. For a moment there, she thought the disheveled detective, actually looked handsome when he looked at her. She didn't know what to say, so she remained silent. Sudden emotions that were never there bloomed inside of her, yelling, screaming to say the same to Ryuuzaki.

He waited. She didn't comply.

"That's okay," he said, his tone unfathomable, pulling the covers to Misa's chin and tucking her safely in her bed. Misa was still quiet. Ryuuzaki headed for the door.

"Good night, Misa-san," he whispered, taking one last glance. "Sweet dreams."

He shut off the lamp and closed the door behind him. Digging his hands into his pocket, he shrugged his affections away, like he usually did, though Ryuuzaki could still feel the faint rush of blood that came all the way up to redden his cheeks.

As soon as he was out of her room, Misa opened her crystal blue eyes and glared into the darkness. This would have made things easier if Light had loved her. Why didn't he, anyway? Why did it have to be so one-sided? Why?

Raito never tried to help Misa in anything if she'd asked. Raito never showed her any form of affection the way she'd wanted him to. She wasn't even sure if he'd wanted to. When Raito looked at her, his eyes were empty, as if she were nothing to him. He wasn't like her ideal Prince Charming after all.

Then there was Ryuuzaki; Ryuuzaki, the genius investigator L, who knew so much about Misa, even if she knew almost nothing about him; Ryuuzaki, the seemingly-perverted invader of her privacy whom she used to loathe so much; Ryuuzaki, the wide-eyed young man who watched over her with care; Ryuuzaki, the lone soul who'd given her so much love and so much kindness like no one ever had before; Ryuuzaki, the boy who had just confessed his feelings to her tonight.

That was when Misa had realized—it had been Ryuuzaki all along. Ryuuzaki was the one whom she loved, not Light, but Ryuuzaki.

The blonde, beautiful, petite model tossed and turned while she tried to sleep. She stood up and made her way out of her room, knowing exactly what could help her.

She crossed the hallways and strode to Ryuuzaki's bedroom door. She knocked on it twice before opening it. Sitting on his bed, Ryuuzaki, pale-faced and raccoon-eyed as always, glanced up from his laptop. The room was dark even from the laptop's glow, but Misa didn't care. Her knight still looked handsome to her.

"Is there something wrong, Misa-san?" he asked politely. His face was unreadable. Misa just wanted to know everything about him; to discover him; to explore what was inside of him; to see what made the strange, but endearing man tick. She wanted to love him.

Misa smiled. "Misa thinks she knows what could help her sleep now."

"Mmm, really?" said Ryuuzaki, passive, but chivalrous and still interested. "And what is that?"

She hesitated for a moment, and then slowly walked toward a bewildered Ryuuzaki. She carefully took his face in her hands and moved hers closer to press her lips on his. His posture straightened once she did so.

"Misa-san—," he started to say, but she had already kissed him. His eyes closed and he stood up, pulling her closer to him, hands moving up to caress her hair and cheeks. Misa wrapped her arms around his neck as she pressed her lips down on his harder. She was surprised that Ryuuzaki seemed to know what he was doing. He kissed her back, still craving, wanting, but polite and gentlemanly at the same time. Misa thought he tasted sweet, similar to strawberries, and that his lips were soft and tender. The kiss lasted for a few minutes, and it was sweet, everything that the both of them had wanted it to be. Finally, Misa pulled away. She rested her hands and head on his chest, while he kissed her golden blond hair.

She looked up at him and found him looking back at her, except, with more understanding than before. Ryuuzaki cracked a smile.

"You seem surprised," he observed, chuckling. She smiled as well.

"I-I…just didn't know…well, how did you…," she paused, surprised at her own nervousness and stuttering.

Ryuuzaki ran his hand down her hair, and put a finger to her lips. "It's not like I didn't do this before, you know."

"Misa doesn't like thinking of her Ryuuzaki kissing other girls," she laughed as she hugged him tighter. They held each other like that for a moment, until Misa let go of him and laid down on his bed, yawning. Ryuuzaki followed her and lay on the opposite side. She took his hand and squeezed it as she wriggled near him. She had no idea Ryuuzaki felt so…warm.

She asked him, "Does Ryuuzaki-kun love Misa?"

He nodded sincerely, and then asked her, "Does Misa-san love me?"

She nodded in the same sincere manner and rested her forehead on Ryuuzaki's. "Misa can sleep now. Misa knows the end of this story."

Ryuuzaki gazed upon her as she closed her eyes, slowly drifting off into oblivion. She seemed so peaceful, so beautiful…

"Not the end," he whispered in her ear, "but the beginning."

"Yes," agreed Misa. "The beginning."

Soon, the both of them drifted off into a blissful, deep sleep.

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Fin