12NOTE: THIS FIC TAKES PLACE IN THE MIDDLE OF VOLUME 7, FROM CHAPTER 56: "EMBRACE"ON, DIRECTLY AFTER THE HANDCUFFS CONSTRAINING RYUZAKI AND LIGHT ARE REMOVED. HOWEVER, ONE MUST HAVE READ ALL OF VOLUME 7 TO UNDERSTAND THE STORY LINE.
Façade
Deneuve
Prelude: Contact
"Near, this is L," a scrambled voice said, echoing throughout the cramped orphanage room.
The one called Near opened his eyes from his position on the ground, where he had previously been meditating in order to concentrate on a certain problematic scenario he'd just formulated. He climbed into the chair by his desk computer, sitting with one knee to his chest and spoke clearly into the mic set up in front of him.
"Yes, L? This is Near," he answered.
"Verify this," came the scratchy voice again.
"V847B. This is Near," the boy said, as if he were bored. A lone finger twirled a lock of white hair almost subconsciously as the conversation continued.
"I am setting up a place and time in which we can meet," the one named L told the boy, "You can assume this means I have chosen you as the successor to the L name."
"I thought as much," the boy, now L's heir, replied. His finger released the strand of hair it encompassed. He said no more, because it was clear he understood the other's motives if one only looked into his distant, charcoal eyes.
"I'll be in touch," L promised, a piece of emotion escaping his monotone. It was gone before Near could even acknowledge it, lost within the static of the transmission.
Chapter 1: RendezvousA message came a day later, instructing Near to meet L in a secluded office. His alibi was that he was merely paying a visit to the town's new psychologist because of anxiety he was feeling over constantly competing with an equally intelligent rival. This was true in part; he was in constant competition with Mello, but he never felt anxiety over it. If anything, he felt completely confident in his abilities to outsmart him. The reverse side of this alibi was easy. "L" was already a licensed psychologist. He had to be; otherwise there would be no reasonable application of his logic.
Near arrived at a sheltered, run-down building that masked the fact a world-famous genius resided there for the time being. Any passerby would dismiss the rusty sign saying, "Dr. Cane – Psychologist" as a joke. 'How could a good psychologist have an office in such a dank place?' they would say. But the human mind is easily tricked.
"Thank you, Roger," Near said as he exited the average-looking car.
This was another part of the alibi; his orders were to always seem completely inconspicuous. The man nodded and drove away without a word of dismissal. The boy didn't need to be told in order to know the man wished him luck from the bottom of his heart; that was what emerged after living his entire life with the man. It was akin to father and son, though Roger viewed all the children at the institution his sons and daughters.
As Near approached the entrance, he immediately noticed the sign and almost smiled. Instead he climbed the steps and entered the building, noting the hidden security items every which way.
An old man sat in the lobby of the office, which only had enough chairs for pair of people. He was reading a newspaper intently, pretending not to notice the young man who had just entered. Near saw his eyes flick to him for an instant as he changed the page and then he hid them in the shadow of his black top hat.
"Verify," the old man muttered as Near took the seat next to him.
"V847B. I am Near," he recited.
"L is waiting for you through that door."
The old man nodded toward the correct portal and then returned to his paper as if his meeting with the boy had never occurred. Near entered this room now, his eyes adjusting to the dimmed lighting. 'Dr. Cane' perched on a loveseat with both knees to his chest, his face hidden in darkness.
"Verify," he ordered, his deep, smooth voice faultless.
"V847B. I am Near," the boy repeated, taking a seat opposite his employer; his finger immediately began twirling his silver hair.
"Hello, Near," he greeted, flicking the light next to the small couch brighter so that his face was revealed.
Black eyes scrutinized the other pair for a moment and then L smiled in a childish, innocent way. The boy across from him smiled back; this was the gesture of saying, "Good to see you after so long, friend."
Though, admitting they were 'friends' would be inaccurate, since they had never actually met before. L's name and face were kept completely secret from the orphans in Watari's institution, in case any of them were ever tempted to betray him to the countless enemies he had made during his short life. The truth would be closer to saying, "Nice to meet you,"; it was a sign of trust.
"You may call me Ryuzaki. Get accustomed to it because it is now your name as well. If you haven't already figured it out, the reason I am meeting you is because my position as L is being stressed beyond my realm of comfort."
He paused and waited for Near to nod, which he did. He had calculated this much from what he'd gathered from the Japanese News, Sakura TV, and the fact that Kira hadn't been caught yet. But he sensed now there was more behind this meeting than he'd originally resolved.
"This isn't the only reason you are here. The truth is that I am almost ready to give up the name 'L'. This is a final test to see whether you are really the one to be my successor."
Again, Near nodded; this was not out of his scope of reasoning. Everything Ryuzaki was saying made complete sense to him from what he'd felt moments before. He knew how important this position was.
"As of now, you are no longer Near. You were never Near. Near is the name of one of the orphans at Watari's institution who is most likely to become your successor. You must not think of yourself as Near anymore. From now on you think as Ryuzaki, as 'L', Eraldo Coil, Hideki Ryuga, Deneuve. You act as he does, as you have practiced. You think as he does, as you have been taught. Understand?"
"Of course I understand…Near," the new L replied.
The new Near smiled, pleased with his successor's potential. Nothing needed to be explained, as expected. Nothing needed to be said twice, as expected. This boy was as much a genius as he was. The only question that dangled in front of him was: would this boy be able to win against Kira?
A/n- what did you think? Is it good or no? Let me know via REPLY! I'll admit this is as far as I've gotten because I wanted to post as soon as possible, but I assure you I do not desert the fics I feel strongly about, and this is one of them. I have another fic about to be finished at the moment but…sometimes one needs a change. I know I do. Soo…right, let me persuade you this is a RYUZAKI fic and not about Near at all, except for the part he plays in the first few chapters. Ryuzaki will be watching from the sidelines, safe and sound for the time being. (which is where I like him T.T)
NOTE: All negative energies (in the form of writing) will be given to Ryuzaki in order to catch Kira.
Disclaimer: I DO NOT OWN DEATH NOTE. IF I DID THEN THIS FIC WOULD BE TRUE! (and many would be dead. Hehe)