Disclaimer: I do not own Death Note. All characters belong to Tsugumi Ohba and Takeshi Obata.

Quick Notes: This will be a semi-AU. It follows the storyline loosely and diverges a lot.

The Four Chambers of a Heart

Prologue

“The child should be sent somewhere safe!”

“I never said he shouldn’t, I said that he should be taken to an orphanage!”

“I don’t think that qualifies as safe.”

Grown-ups, so many of them, all in a circle: men, women, they were all dressed in business attire too. Why were they here?

“He should be taken to Whammy’s. It’s where the gifted go, he could become the next L.”

What kinds of names were they using? None of this made any sense! Why couldn’t they just leave him alone?

“Whammy’s? Such a notion, we don’t even know his IQ level, we can’t just send him somewhere like that! He’s too young anyway, they like the kids to be a bit older.”

These people were still arguing. What was a Whammy anyway?

Bright sunlight, a door had opened. Wasn’t that the one that led to the garden?

(How would I know that?)

The group turned to face the newcomer.

“I’ll take him.” A proud figure stood before him. He smiled as he bent down on one leg.

“What? How can you just barge in and say that?”

“Well, another kid would be great; he looks like he’s a good one too. I wouldn’t mind as long as it’s alright with you?”

Silence.

‘Why have they stopped?’

A fly flew around his head.

“Very well, it’s good to put him somewhere. I think this would match everyone’s wants. The child is all yours. Just make sure you fill out the legal documents.”

The man gave a slight bow.

“Not to worry, I already have.”

The man smiled at him and led him outside. Looking back at the small house he felt something, a feeling that he was too young to understand. (Sorrow)

‘Where will I end up?’

Light’s eyes were dry. No, this didn’t explain the entirety of their dryness. More like they had been replaced with mini-deserts. That was a little closer. Alas, no relief would be coming to him today.

Computer. Statistics. Kira. This was all his mind could comprehend. It was also the reasoning behind the mini-deserts.

He had been researching the death rate of Kira’s victims for over five hours now. He wasn’t ready to stop yet though; he had a good reason to be looking all this up. What could this be? The man with a letter for a name: L. What he wouldn’t give for a nice cup of tea right now…

“Are you alright Light-kun? You look tired.” The man in question had finally spoken. His hunched body and narrow face were now turned towards him instead of the monitor. His skin looked even paler in the dim glow of the computers; the technology he worked with more often than he did humans reflected eerily in his orb-like eyes.

‘Can he look any more like a trick-or-treater? He should really go outside more. I doubt he would listen.’ Light idly scrolled down the page he was looking at. It occurred to him that L had just asked him a question.

“Oh, did you say something? I got a little caught up in what I was reading, sorry. Uh, what time is it?”

L raised a thin eyebrow. Other than that, his expression didn’t change at all.

“Never mind Light-kun, it wasn’t very important. We should get ready to retire for the night soon; it’s close to 1:00 A.M.”

“Not yet, I noticed something interesting. The amount of people dying has decreased. This is curious considering how set Kira seemed before on eliminating as many people as possible.” He covered his mouth briefly to stifle a yawn. It was getting late but he felt that they were so close to a breakthrough that it would be ridiculous to stop now.

L nodded. He then pointed a slender finger at a point on the computer screen, indicating some pictures of global leaders.

“Light-kun is correct. The deaths have decreased. What is more puzzling still is that the kind of people dying has also changed; before, only people going against Kira's will were being killed, mostly criminals of a horrific nature, the FBI agents being an exception of course. Now though, if you look closely, we can see that people involved with business and politics are also dying. Don’t you find this odd, Light-kun?”

Once again he could feel the antagonizing undertone to a seemingly normal question. When would this guy give up?

“It is strange,” he replied calmly, trying not to reveal his exasperation, “that Kira would shift patterns so easily. It could be that he figured those kinds of people wouldn’t benefit him in any way. Therefore they were taken care of.”

“That doesn’t sound like the Kira I am familiar with. I wonder if maybe this is a plot of some kind.” L spun a spoon between his fingers, gazing at the wall as though it would give him the answer.

“What do you mean? It sounds like Kira to me,” If Kira didn't take care of the people in his way, then what would he be doing?

(Manipulation, of course.)

Light shook his head lightly, where had that come from?

“These people are pawns that he could potentially manipulate later on. The only reason the FBI agents were done in is because there was no way of bending them to his will. He plans on becoming the justice system of the world. It would be easier to do this with the future help of strong political leaders. Killing them off doesn’t seem like it would suit him, does it?”

“I see what you mean. If you put that into the equation then it doesn’t make any sense.” He crossed his legs, absorbed in his own reasoning. “Try this though, what if it’s the second Kira, or perhaps a different Kira entirely? Then we have a much larger range of possibilities.”

He knew L had a good point and honestly agreed with him. But something in him felt shaken at how L had seemingly read his mind before.

L hummed slightly. Light had a good idea, now they only needed evidence to back it up.

“If that is true Light-kun, than we will have a much harder time. Before we jump to conclusions though, we need more than just a theory.”

Light nodded slightly while L returned to his inner monologue.

Watching him he shouldered a keen knowledge that this was the strangest person he had ever met; he was also the only person that truly matched his intelligence. Both of these aspects put together usually caused him a lot of trouble, the “you-are-a-mass-murderer-and-you-will-meet-my-justice” kind of trouble.

“Ryuuzaki? Maybe we should just continue tomorrow. After all, it’s late and neither one of us can be thinking straight.”

L snapped out of his thoughts concerning percentages and probabilities. Shaking his head slightly, he focused back on Light.

“Maybe that would be best Light-kun. We can’t have you too tired to continue.”

Light twitched. “I meant both of us Ryuuzaki. You can’t be thinking all that clearly either.”

L blatantly ignored that statement. Instead he continued murmuring to himself.

“If it is indeed a different Kira, then I will have to start researching more on the new people being targeted instead of monitoring criminals. I will also have to learn more about what kind of person this new Kira is, probably a businessman, hmm.”

'Of course, more important still is to find out who exactly is doing this. The other parts aren't nearly as important. Perhaps some field work will be needed.’

Light had taken enough. At this rate the detective would never stop and would continue far into the morning.

“Ryuuzaki, I hate to interrupt your analysis, but I really think that we should hold it off until tomorrow. I am getting rather tired.”

L stopped abruptly and glanced at his partner.

“You should have said so Light-kun; I was under the impression you weren’t tired at all. We will continue tomorrow.” He gazed longingly at the statistics that would help him capture one of the biggest maniacs in history.

“Hurry up and save your data. I won’t cry if it’s not there when we return.”

“Neither would Kira.” It wasn’t a real accusation this time. It was more of a gloomy voice that gave the impression he was the real victim here. Light didn’t dignify that with a reply.

‘Always choose the right battles as father would say.’ The irony in that wouldn’t be recognized until much later.

The next day was a hectic one. Not because of the workload, Light was used to that. What was difficult was that he and L couldn’t agree on anything. It was beginning to scare the rest of the workforce; a fight between the two of them was something that escalated to dangerous astonishingly fast.

“I can’t believe you. If the killings have decreased and the targets have changed he’s going to go after more important political leaders. If we know it’s Yotsuba for sure, we must apprehend them immediately!” Sōichirō nodded his agreement.

Yes, things were not going well. It had begun when they both agreed that the deaths were being used to profit Yotsuba, a company that had many rivals. This had just about proven Light’s theory on there being a third Kira. Immediately afterwards, Light had proposed they go after Yotsuba ASAP. Light’s motivation was for lives to be saved, even if drastic measures were required. This wasn’t so much an argument on who was right and who was wrong; they both agreed on what was happening. The argument was on how to solve it.

L, of course, disagreed with Light’s method. His thought on the matter was that since this was probably only one person killing in that group, they should acquire intelligence on the entire corporation.

“Though that does have merit, it isn’t the only thing that is important here, all the killings are benefiting Yotsuba. We both know this. Now the crucial part is not who is being targeted but who is doing the targeting!”

Light growled. Where was the conscience with this guy?

Matsuda eyed the two of them warily. Would he have to break up another fight? It wasn’t something he looked forward to. They both packed a good punch (or kick) and were the most stubborn people alive.

Light stormed out of the room. Naturally since they were attached (‘thanks to Ryuuzaki,’ he thought angrily), he couldn’t escape the person he didn’t want to talk to or see most. Stumbling, L tried to keep up with the angry teenager. They continued at a quick pace, up flights of stairs.

Finally, he stopped at the roof of the building. It was covered in enormous satellites and a helicopter held residence as well. At this point you could see the entire city. A light breeze swept by. The fresh air was spoiled by the stench of gasoline and smog. Light’s frustration simmered but was contained.

“I don’t see what the problem is Light. We have the same general idea on what Yotsuba is doing. We agree that it’s a different Kira. Why can’t you rationalize the entire picture?” L began, lacking tact as always in Light’s (and most people’s) opinion.

Inaudibly, Light gazed at the raging city below. The entire picture wasn’t hidden to him; it was L with the blindfold tied snugly about him.

“The entire picture, huh? Your entire picture consists of letting innocent people die while we try to figure out who’s doing it! We need to take care of the entire Yotsuba Company now before this gets out of hand!” He huffed. Why did Ryuuzaki have to be so difficult? Couldn’t he understand that lives were more important than his pride? That’s what it was: pride.

“Light-kun, you’re accusing me unfairly. I never said that we wouldn’t try to help those people. I never said that I was okay with letting people die while I try and figure out who is doing the killing. If you must know, I don’t like it myself, the way this must be done. Now you must understand that what you want to do is rash and wouldn’t help the situation. Yotsuba is a powerful company with many assets. They would be able to cover just about anything up if they really needed to. That’s why we need to know who it is specifically. I do have a plan of action, you know.”

He offered his quirkiest smile. He shone with determination, the determination that led him to becoming L in the first place.

Wanly, Light returned the gesture. He still wasn’t happy with where this is going but…

Light shrugged, “You don’t even know what I was thinking, although if this is your form of an apology then I guess I accept it.”

“Hardly, if anyone deserves an apology right now it would be me. I was, after all, the person being accused.”

Together they returned downstairs. Light, however, was still troubled by what happened. He knew that if this were to come up again, he would be just as against it as he was now. He didn’t really buy what L had told him. If Yotsuba had so many assets, pinning one person down would be no easy task. If they could somehow find better evidence proving it was Yotsuba. There were other things on his mind though. He had been dreaming often lately. They were varied but they seemed to carry a message of some sort. He knew it wasn’t important yet shrugging the matter off hadn’t worked. If anything, the dreams became more persistent.

In these dreams people often surrounded him; people dressed in suits. They were always arguing in a quiet sort of house with antique paintings hung on the walls. He could never remember what it was they were talking about. The only thing that stuck out was that he ended up leaving the house; blinding sunlight surrounded him as he fell in step with an older man.

He shook his head. This really wasn’t important. It was just a silly dream that kept pestering him for no reason. It would pass.

As they descended down the long flight of stairs a foreboding paranoia crept up on Light.

(Those dreams aren’t the only things hidden from you. There’s something much larger, much more devastating lying under the surface.)

He shivered. He wasn’t so sleep deprived as to be having hallucinations, was he?

“Hey, Chief,” Matsuda whispered, “Do you think they fought again? I hope not, at this rate they’ll kill each other.”

Sōichirō grunted in agreement. He was busy looking over some papers and deciding on the best way of telling Sachiko that he wouldn’t be home another week. He was concerned about Light though; he hadn’t been looking sound lately.

Light rolled his eyes. If they thought he couldn’t hear them than that was pathetic.

“How is it going for you Light-kun?” L asked plopping a piece of vanilla cake into his mouth. As if he didn’t already know. They had both returned to the infamous computer where logic ruled supreme.

“Nothing so far, just the things we’ve already noticed.”

“I thought as much, we should end early today. I think everyone has reached their limit for now.” What was this?

Matsuda perked up from where he had been resting his head on the table.

“Really? A break? That means I can have some free time! Finally!” He smiled contentedly, gazing dreamily into space.

“This is unexpected Ryuuzaki, are you sure it’s alright to do that?” Sōichirō furrowed his eyebrows together.

“What? Of course it’s okay Chief!” Matsuda glared.

“It should be fine father, you need a break anyway.”

“Well, as long as you’re alright by yourself Light. If you need me you know you can just call.”

“Naturally, tell mother and Sayu I say hi.” Sōichirō nodded curtly.

“Now that it’s agreed we will set a limit on how long it will last. I say a week at the most. You can all come back whenever you need to. I would like it if you stayed home for at least,” L glanced at the ceiling deciding when would be best, “twenty-four hours before returning though. Please remember not to give any unnecessary information.” He lifted his fork only to find (to his disappointment) that he had finished his cake. He began fumbling for his tea and sugar cubes.

Sōichirō sighed softly. At least now he wouldn’t have to explain to Sachiko.

At 6:38 P.M. Sōichirō finally left. Matsuda had left four hours earlier, with everyone else leaving at a range of time in between. Now he was alone with L. He was still deciding if this was going to be more of a nuisance or if it could be advantageous at all. At least they could work/argue however long they wanted without someone telling them to stop.

“So why give everyone a week long break? It doesn’t seem like you.”

“I have some arrangements to make with some questionable people. It’s also to give them some time with their families so that if the time should come, they will know what they should do.” And with that cryptic answer, he would say no more.

At around nine o’clock Light felt the beginning of exhaustion. By nine-thirty he had fallen dead to the world.

The loud thump that came from something solid hitting another solid object caused L to jump. Quickly assessing what had happened he relaxed. Light had fallen asleep at the computer consul; the racket had been his head hitting the keyboard. Turning back, he began typing.

“Good night, Light-kun.”

Wintry air surrounded him. Snowflakes billowed. The emptiness of loss consumed him.

‘Why did it have to be this way?’

(What did I do?)

Snowflakes became those of pallid rose petals while the air turned colder still.

“Those who use the Death Note can go to neither Heaven nor Hell.” A gruff cackle was swept away back to its keeper.

(This isn’t the same as last time.)

Terror swelled.

‘What’s missing? What have I lost?’

“WHAT’S MISSING?” He shrieked. A loud crash followed, echoing in the spacious room.

“Light-kun! What on earth?”

To his left lay L, sprawled over the floor. He looked more than unhappy. Apparently when Light had fallen off he had dragged L with him.

“I - I can’t remember.” He brought his hand to rest on his head.

“Was it a nightmare? You have to remember they aren’t real, they are just a part of your mind turning real issues into a symbolic representation to help you figure out the problem.”

L’s soft tone of voice faded in Light’s ears. These weren’t regular dreams. There was something that was being kept from him, something that he had forgotten somehow, something despicable. There was the first dream, the one with the people. He had no idea what that was; it didn’t feel vile like the second one but, he knew he wouldn’t like the history to that one either. What was happening to him?

“Light-kun? You really should listen. I think that maybe we should go get some tea, it will help calm your nerves.”

In his own awkward way, L was trying to make him feel better. He could tell by the faint expression of concern stapled on his face. At least, it seemed like genuine concern, part of him wondered.

Light had never appreciated him more in his life.

“Yeah, let’s do that.”

They walked to the kitchen in silence.

Author's Notes-

Here it is! This is more of an introductory chapter than anything else. There are a couple of storylines floating around so hopefully it’s interesting.

Sky