Sachiko Yagami knew very well that she was perhaps the most unremarkable member of her family, and she was quite alright with that. She was sure in her role as the foundation of their home, and most of all, her capabilities as a mother. Her children had often remarked over her uncanny ability to tell when something was bothering one of them-- even (Y/n) and Light, both of whom were difficult to read as people.

And right now, her eldest daughter was troubled.

The Yagami matriarch pursed her lips in a thin smile, shifting the weight of the bag of groceries in her arms to fill the void left in the uncomfortable silence left while her eldest delved somewhere deep in the mind that Sachiko had always had trouble understanding. The older woman didn't mind too much, though. When (Y/n) really needed her, the 24-year-old always let her know.

"Hey, Mom?" the younger spoke up at last. Sachiko hummed, trying not to feel too pleased with her motherly intuition. "I've been feeling a little torn up lately."

Fighting off her surprise, Sachiko nodded to let her daughter know to continue. (Y/n) always seemed so sure about herself-- it was hard not to feel a little unprepared for the admittance.

A sharp sigh left her daughter as the young woman seemed to take a moment to gather her thoughts. "What if you were caught in a situation where you had to pick between your family and the rest of the world?"

"What?" Sachiko nearly dropped the bag of groceries, feeling even more unprepared. "I'm not quite sure I understood your question, dear."

(Y/n) blew a wisp of loose hair out of her eyes. "What would you pick between saving one of us and saving a whole bunch of other people?"

The older woman frowned, a cold feeling trickling down her neck that she was quick to shrug off. "Well, morally, I suppose I'd like to say I would choose the greater good. But, that is a choice you're father would make. I don't think I could." She smiled mirthlessly. "Why do you ask?"

"Ah, one of my teammates was telling me earlier about how an agent recently ended up having to face off with his brother, and it's been making me consider a lot of similar scenarios," (Y/n) replied, looking ahead as they strolled through the quiet lanes of the neighborhood.

Sachiko's eyebrows shot up. "Well, you hardly need to think of that kind of situation," she commented. "You're forgetting that not only is your family Japanese, but we're largely one composed of law enforcers."

The (h/c)-haired woman hummed, a careless smile tilting her lips upwards. "And what about a situation where one of our actions threaten to break apart the rest of the family?"

"Where are all these questions coming from?" Sachiko asked incredulously, glancing warily at her daughter. "Is something wrong, (Y/n)?"

"No," the younger responded easily, shaking her head to illustrate. "Nothing's wrong, Mom. I suppose that with the lack of something to really occupy my mind, I've begun thinking recklessly."

Exhaling slowly, the Yagami matriarch turned away slowly. "It's uncharacteristic for you," she murmured. "Nevertheless, as a family, there's very little that should be able to break us apart, (Y/n). And if it involves hurting the rest of us, then you need to remember that family isn't just blood or your last name. It is mutual love and trust. A family protects its own-- it doesn't harm. And if it does, then perhaps it wasn't really a family."

Now silent, (Y/n)'s eyebrows creased in the barest show of being lost in thought. It was enough, however, to set Sachiko on edge.

"It doesn't matter, though," the older of the two started uncertainly. "You shouldn't let it trouble you when it isn't going to happen. Besides, you're starting work again soon, anyways, so that should ease your boredom."

The young woman nodded, shooting her mother a reassuring smile. "You're right, Mom. Don't worry about me, alright?" she soothed as Sachiko fumbled for the house keys in her purse, wrestling the door open. Following her mother in, (Y/n) stood in contemplation for a moment before placing the bags of groceries on the little table in the hallway, turning back to head out the front door. "I'm going for a walk, Mom," she called over her shoulder. "Don't wait up."

"Don't stay out too late," Sachiko called out, her only answer being the door slamming shut. The woman sighed into the silence of her home, wondering why her oldest two children had begun acting so strange lately. It made her all too glad when Sayu bounced into the kitchen, complaining about her hunger.

Meanwhile, (Y/n) was left wondering about when her life had begun seeming so complicated.

Stuffing her hands into the pockets of her sweatshirt, the profiler found herself walking towards a familiar park to the neighborhood park-- one that had seen all three Yagami children outgrow it. Having recently already concluded that she wouldn't be quite as against turning Light in as she had thought, the young woman had encountered a new dilemma.

Just what did she intend to do now? Her plan had been to protect Light. Not just for the sake of protecting her family from the damage his arrest would no doubt do. Now, knowing that Light seemed to have forgotten the very family she intended to protect, her plans needed a change. The question was how.

She had to be back at work in mere days' time, meaning that any active influence she may have been able to hold over the case would reduce significantly. To really get anything done, the only link she'd have would be Light. And while she knew that she could probably manipulate him to an extent, her brother wasn't an idiot. He'd figure it out eventually, and that trust would be lost to future uselessness.

Besides, he hadn't harmed her family just yet. He was still her brother. She couldn't just begin to plot what would essentially be his execution or arrest.

The young woman worried her bottom lip, entering the park with a buzzing mind that reminded her of what the beginning stages of getting drunk felt like. It wasn't enough, however, to stop her from picking up on the familiar figure of the detective she had ended up spending more or less everyday of her leave with. It seemed as though she wasn't fated to get a day away from the black-haired man.

Sighing to herself, she glanced skyward before strolling over to the bench he was crouched on, and seating herself next to him.

"You didn't come to Task Force headquarters today," he commented idly.

(Y/n) hummed in acknowledgment. "I needed to begin on getting all my things together before I leave."

L blinked owlishly, inclining his head slightly in her direction. "You're leaving?" he repeated.

"I do have an actual job, you know." She smiled slightly, glancing at him from the corner of her eye. "It's about time I get back to work."

Letting his lip quirk upwards, L turned to look at her properly. "I've been paying you for your work with us. Technically, you've had an actual job all this time."

"Ah, but my official employment calls me back, so I'm afraid the temporary employment you've provided me with will have to come to an end," she stated, deciding to take a page out of his book and pulling her feet up on the bench, crossing her legs.

"And what if I were to call the FBI, and ask to keep you around until after the case is over?" he pondered.

Her eyebrow shot up. "Isn't that too much effort for a single person? I don't see the point."

"I thought you might say that." He turned his gaze back to the playground at the heart of the park where kids had begun crowding for the evening. "You do realize that you have the power to control the outcome of this case, yes?"

(Y/n) didn't reply, her eyebrows furrowing as she tried to place what he gained from posing such a question. Up till now, she had denied Light being Kira, and she wondered how she would respond if L asked her now again.

He wriggled his toes, tapping his fingers against the tops of his knees in what (Y/n) identified to be signs of restlessness and impatience. "I am almost over 50% sure that your brother is in fact Kira. All I need is physical evidence." Here, he turned to fix his piercing eyes on her. "Evidence that you are in a position to get me, Ms. Yagami."

"Drop the honorific," she scoffed, stubbornly not meeting his gaze. "What makes you think I'd sell Light out like that? He is my brother, after all."

L's lip pulled upward in what was probably his version of a smirk, and (Y/n) felt irritation prickle under her skin. "You're already doubting your loyalty to him, aren't you?"

Her breath caught in her throat for a moment until the (h/c)-haired forced it to even out. "I've never been loyal to anyone but my family," she informed in a low voice, her voice quietening dangerously.

"Then, I suppose, what I should be asking is if Light is still your family? He doesn't seem like he cares much for anyone aside from himself, and perhaps, you," he remarked airily, unbothered by the shift in her demeanor that made her seem openly unwelcoming in an uncharacteristic manner.

"What makes you think that?" She exhaled, forcing back the calm. If anyone could rile her up, it was the asshole in her company.

The man looked oddly pleased with being able to get a rise out of her. "I believe that mostly everyone who knows the both of you can see that above anyone else, Light cares about what you think of him. Perhaps it is childhood influence, but he's strangely insistent on having you on his side. Although, I suppose I know why. In this battle against Kira, whichever side you pick, (Y/n), is the one statistically most likely to win."

Her head turned to face him, lips pursed. "And you're basing all of this on your theory of my brother being the Unsub?"

Unwavering, he held her gaze with a sureness that she hadn't expected from the detective. It wasn't that he was usually unsure, but the level of maturation he was exuding now was one she had yet to feel from the man. "Yes," he answered confidently.

"Then that means that going through all the trouble of talking to the FBI would be in effort to keep me close and have me on your side," she sighed, voicing what she had already concluded.

"Yes," he nodded. "Of course, the fact that you are a well accomplished detective with considerable intellect only adds to the appeal, but that would be the true reason."

She smiled without any amusement behind the expression. "You're being unusually honest."

L shot her a vacant look, shrugging minutely. "I am not part of your family, and that means that I have to win your loyalty. I will be unable to do that if I lie because you seem to realize when I do that."

"I'm flattered, really," (Y/n) drawled, lacing her fingers together in her lap. "Let's see how that works out for you."

Tilting his head, he regarded her with measured surprise. "You're actually open to letting me try," he murmured, mostly to himself. "Well, I expect you to come to Headquarters as usual then. The FBI will be informed. If you'll excuse me," being his parting words, he unfolded his limbs and shoved his feet into a beat-up pair of sneakers before rising to his feet. Before he could quite walk away, however, the man paused and turned to glance at her over his shoulder. "I'll ask once again, (Y/n): Is Light Kira?"

She let out a slow breath, hearing her heartbeat quicken in the silence she answers with.

But it seemed that her lack of response was enough to satisfy L as he nodded once, a small smile on his lips as he walked away.

Because in her silence, she had confirmed that she was no longer fighting on her brother's side.