Chapter 14

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(A/N: I'm sure most of you thought the story ended BUT that was never where I intended on leaving the story. This chapter could be considered ending #1... I guess. BUT if you like sad stories then I'd advise you read the next chapters after this one. Sorry for the confusion!)

"Dammit Yuta! We have to go or you'll be late!" I yelled upstairs. I quickly tapped my foot while my brother dragged his feet.

Yuta skipped down the steps and folded his arms behind his head. "Don't you mean you'll be late? For your long awaited date with L~" I flicked his nose. "Ow! (Nickname)?!"

I chuckled, "I already told you, it's not a date! It's a homicide investigation!"

"Same difference!" Yuta rubbed his red nose and walked out of the house. "Why do I have to go to school on my birthday? It's not like my teacher is teaching anything new or interesting."

As we walked to the train, I straightened up my brother's uniform and smoothed his hair down. "Because it's what other 10 year olds do Yuta." Yuta clicked his tongue and walked close to me. "Unless..."

His head shot up and his eyes sparkled. "What? Unless what?!"

"Unless... you wanna help with the investigation?"

Out of the corner of my eye I see my little brother bounce around. "Really (nickname)?! You're being serious?!" I nodded my head. "Alright!"

"Hold it!" I put my hand out in front of him. "First you have to tell me what you think about this fictional case." Yuta sighed but agreed to my test. "A single woman is home alone and has no close family. She lives by schedule but one day decides to break that schedule and try something new but is found dead 2 hours later! Who did it?"

Without missing a beat Yuta says, "online date? That's the most common theory anyway."

"That's what I was thinking!" I grab Yuta's hand and start running to the building L had built recently. "Come on! We'll be late if we don't hurry!"

We run and laugh all the way to the train. "Hey (nickname), I thought girls aren't supposed to run when they're in dresses."

I ruffled his hair. "Who put that stupid idea in your head? Plus this is a pan suit not a dress."

"Well dad said it once, right?" There was a small resistance in Yuta's voice when he said that. Bringing up dad always made us terribly sad. However, I have been more emotional about the loss of our father, even more so after Light died.

"Yeah... he used to say it all the time." An involuntary tear trickledown my cheek. "Oops! How did that get there? Haha, anyway we need to get to the base. It's a little further now." I grabbed Yuta's hand and drug him along behind me.

Yuta's POV

'She's doing it again. She always gets like this. I never met mom and I don't remember every moment with Light and our father, but I know how special they all must have been to (nickname). She's been my mother-figure since I was born.... ten years ago today. I wish there was something I could do for her...'

"(Nickname)?"

"Hm?"

"Whenever I get old enough, I'm gonna help out too! I'll get a job and run errands! I bet I could do-"

(Nickname) playfully punched the top of my head. "I don't need your help Yuta. I can manage! How about you focus on growing a couple more feet?" I looked into her (e/c) eyes and I saw how bright her soul was. I feel her sincerity through her words and felt her warmth from her smile.

"But you have been working non-stop for 5 years now!"

She pulled open the building doors for us to walk in. "Mhm. I worked at the bakery and cafe until I made it through college, yes, but now that I can support us, there's no need for you to worry about growing up too quickly."

"Yeah okay."

After we made it through several security clearances, we walked into a large room with several large monitors in them.

"Oh? Looks like you brought Yuta with you." L's familiar voice carried through the open space.

"Y-Yeah. It's his birthday so I let him ditch school and hangout here." There was an airiness in (Nickname)'s voice when she saw L. It was as if she saw her favorite celebrity and wanted to greet him, but I knew why she held back.

"Mm." L hummed in response. He couldn't answer her properly because he ate some of his cake.

"Good morning (y/n) and Yuta. Would you care for tea?" Watari asked.

"Sure. We'd appreciate that." (Nickname) put her hand on my shoulder. "Will you help him Yuta?"

I look from her to L before I gave in and help Watari in the kitchen. "Yeah. Sure."

(Y/n)'s POV

I walked over to L and sat with him on the couch. "Finally back in Japan, huh?"

"Yes I suppose I am." L took a sip of tea.

"5 years have passed and you're still the same sweet nut you've always been. I guess you haven't really changed." I found it difficult to look him in the eye, so I stared at the dark circles under his eyes. "Haven't been sleeping?"

"...(Y/n) I understand that you might be a little upset with me-"

"Why would I be upset?!" I asked sarcastically. "I mean it's not like you said you would be there for me and then left. You didn't even go to Light or my father's funerals." As mad as I was, and have been, I couldn't hate him.

There was a silence. "I was there for y-"

"I'm not talking about paying the electric bill L! I needed someone who I could trust. ...but you left me. You didn't even call or leave a note."

L began eating again. "How is Mr. Yagami?"

I looked at him in shock. Surprised that he had nothing to say for himself. "He's still not doing well. Yuta and I visit the Yagami family every Sunday and eat. Sayu will babysit Yuta sometimes and Mrs. Yagami had to get a job and help support the family. Mr. Yagami hasn't come back to work yet. He's still heartbroken."

"That's to be expected. His son was-" I couldn't help but feel angry when he talked about Light.

I grabbed the pillows from the couch and threw them at the thin man. "What the hell is your problem?! Why do you have to be such an ass?!" L tried to talk me out of hitting him but I wasn't in the mood to listen.

Yuta's young voice called to me. "(Nickname)?! What are you doing?!"

I felt a tug on my arm and swiftly turned around. "Not now Yut-" But the boy beside me wasn't my brother. I dropped my pillow and crouched down to meet this child's eyes. The mother in me kicked in and I focused solely on this boy. "Who are you? What are you doing here, little one?"

This adorable child is about as tall as Yuta is. The boy's hair is a pale blonde, almost white, and short except for one strand in the front. He had an action figure in his hand and my sleeve in the other. "My name is Near. I'm L's apprentice."

I tilted my head. This kid's voice was much deeper than I expected it to be. The apprentice part didn't surprise me at all. After all, the kid is in L's top tier security building.

Another voice came from the shadows. "Yeah and I'm Mellow. If you don't mind miss, we would like you to get off of our mentor." A teenage boy with longer orange hair walked up and pointed to my feet. When I looked down, I found a sore L underneath a stack of pillows.

"Oh. Right." I hopped up and allowed the jerk to sit up.

"You see miss (y/n), master Ryuzaki needed to teach these two so he had to leave when he did." The butler handed out tea to everyone.

"I understand. These boys couldn't miss class so he had to leave the night before dad and Light's funeral. I'm so glad you cleared that up." I shot L another glare.

"(Y/n)-" I shushed him. "If-" and again.            "* breathes*-" and one more time.

"I don't want to hear some stupid sob story. You could have called but you didn't. End of story. Now where's this murder site I'm supposed to investigate?"

Yuta jumped up and pulled on my ear as a way of asking me to let him whisper something to me. "(Nickname) you need to calm down. He's here now, isn't that enough?" My brother's (e/c) eyes met mine and we both knew what the other was thinking.

"Fine! I forgive you L..., but don't do it again!"

Yuta's POV

'Does she always have to be so over the top? Geez. It's obvious why she's so crazy today; L is exactly the way Light used to be. She's holding to him... even after his death.'

The Near kid walked up to me while (Nickname) and L talked everything through. "Is your sister always so mean?"

I giggled and watched my older sister visibly calm down. "No. She's just super passionate about stuff like this." Near and I sat and talked with each other and played with his figures. Mellow stood in a corner by himself, observing the scene. He came and talked with us every once in a while. (Nickname) and L apparently talked everything over and were now catching up and eating cakes together.

"So Near," I started. "I thought we were here to solve a murder case."

Near played with a strand from his bangs. "Yeah. Why aren't we doing that." The way he said that sentence didn't sound like a question. More so that he was asking me to answer the question myself.

I looked at my sister and then to her tragic hero. "He invited her here to make her feel better, right?"

"Exactly." Said Near.

(Y/n)'s POV

'I know it's stupid but... with him back... it's like a light has shown through the darkness.'

Yuta's POV

'I should see how she's doing. She hasn't said a word since we came home.'

"Hey (Nickname), you okay?"

It took her a moment to get out of her thoughts. "Yes. I'm fine," Reaching our a hand, she stroked my head. "What kind of sister would I be if I wasn't okay?" (Nickname) has a strange air about her; it's as if she has made up her mind about something. But what?

(Y/n)'s POV

I stood to go to the kitchen and make dinner for my brother and I.

"I'm making teriyaki chicken with vegetables and rice. Want some?"

"Um. Yeah I could eat." Yuta's face was a bit stern looking and his head was slightly tilted to the side. His thinking face had been activated.

'Hm. So you can tell, huh? I've already decided. There's no place for a lover in my life. As long as you're still here, I'll provide for you and protect you with this broken soul of mine. Finally, you'll have a home in me, Yuta, my treasure.'

We ate and talked, about everything under the sun, for hours. Yuta ended up passing out at the table, so I had to carry him upstairs and put him on his bed. Walking across the room to my own bed, I whispered sweet dreams to him before falling asleep myself.

'This is the right path for me. Protecting Yuta is priority.'

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