“So... what now, Light? Things can’t just go back to normal after something like that. I mean, he called you his friend,” Ryuk said, his perpetual, leering grin plastered to his face.
“You’re right. Things can only get better, now that he’s out of the way,” Light replied coolly, folding his tie and smirking. He’d just been to “Ryuzaki’s” pathetic little funeral. “When I die, there’ll be lots more people at the wake alone. Don’t you think, Ryuk?”
“One can only hope,” Ryuk agreed, leaning forward. “It’s never too early to plan, for such things. But I’ll admit that it’s been years since I’ve seen such a lonely death.”
“He deserved it,” Light said, without hesitation. “Idiot savant... he had to be proven right, so he made things difficult for me. But, no more,” he said, yawning. “It looks like tonight I’ll actually be able to sleep peacefully, knowing that he’s six feet under.”
“Sleep well, then,” Ryuk said, taking an apple from Light before the boy climbed under the covers. “Too bad things are about to get reeeaaally boring.”
“Not necessarily...” Light contradicted as he flicked off his bedside lamp. “Life is never boring... only death.”
Ryuk watched as Light fell asleep. “Hm... death is boring, eh? If that’s the case, then why does it intrigue humans so...?”
Light leaned against a tall oak, his hands in his pockets, trying to keep from grinning as Matsuda delivered a fractured eulogy. “Um... Ryuuzaki... er, Lawliet? I’m just going to call him Ryuuzaki, if that’s OK... anything else seems wrong... he was a good person, and great detective... I know that he’s in heaven, if there is any justice in the world. Um...” Matsuda faltered, really unable to articulate the loss of L’s enigmatic presence. “Would anyone like to add anything?”
Mogi and Aizawa bowed their heads. Chief Yagami had already said a few listless words, describing L as “like a son and a father” to him. That had stung Light; the fact that his father would give such high (if contrived) praise to his fallen nemesis had cut him to the quick. “I’ll say something,” Light said, stepping forward as Ryuk snickered. “After all, Ryuuzaki-kun was... my friend.” Outwardly, Light faced Mogi, Aizawa, Matsuda, and his father. Inwardly, though, he turned towards the simple wooden casket, kneeling and placing a chessboard on the rough, closed lid.
“When I first met Ryuuzaki, I knew that he was different, somehow...”
“Checkmate,” Kira said, snatching L’s queen and moving his knight to replace it.
L leaned forward, staring in disbelief at the board. “I did not see that coming,” he admitted, looking stricken.
“At university, he’d gotten a perfect score on the entrance exam, just like me, and I knew that we were two halves of something complete.”
Kira laughed. “You really didn’t. And now you’ve paid for it with your life.” he held the queen in one clenched fist, then dropped it, grinding it into the dirt.
“You are Kira,” L said, biting the tip of his index finger. “It was close, though... we’re so similar, you and I... if things had been even just a little different, we would have been playing on your coffin, not mine.”
“A worthy opponent, at tennis, and a valued colleague, in the Kira investigation...” Light continued to drone, while he kept the endgame alive in his mind.
“There’s a reason things turned out the way they did,” Kira said smugly, staring at L through red-tinted eyes. “I am justice... you can’t screw with justice, L. Now tip over your king and just die, already.”
“But... Kira... that can’t be true,” L said, reaching towards the board and delicately moving a bishop to take the knight. “Because... while you’ve won this battle... the war is far from over. You’ve killed me, but it’s not checkmate yet.”
“... I considered Ryuuzaki much more than an opponent or a colleague; to me, he was a great friend.”
Kira glared at L. “What do you mean? I took your queen, right after taking your rook... how could you recover from such a severe blow?”
“Yes... you killed Watari, as well...” L said, glancing at his captive rook, “but there are other pieces, other options. What if I had to lose my queen... and my life... in order to secure victory?”
“That doesn’t make sense,” scoffed Kira. “Victory is no longer an option for L. I killed you!”
“That is half true,” L sighed. “Unfortunately, you did kill me... but victory is the only option, for justice. Ryuuzaki is gone... but L won’t lose this.”
“Few people are as dedicated to what they believe in as Ryuuzaki was... which is why we have to continue to fight against Kira.”
“You b*****d. You set me up... you gave your life so you could win the game.”
“Correct,” L said calmly, moving his second bishop towards Kira’s king. “You don’t think that someone like me would die without someone to carry on my legacy... they will find you, and you will learn the meaning of true justice. When the power to judge is taken from you, it suddenly won’t seem so fair.”
“L... I hate you, even though you’re about to be put in the ground.”
“That’s a shame, Kira... because I always rather enjoyed your company. Even if ‘Light’ was nothing but a facade, it was wonderful, to feel like someone finally understood me.”
“Go to hell.”
“We’ll see, won’t we? Sit tight. Someone will be along to finish the game for me shortly.”
“I’ll miss him with all my heart. We had our differences, but I think that we understood each other.” Light was such a good actor; he’d managed to deeply move each of the men in attendance. In addition to removing L from the picture, he’d gained the sympathy of surviving the loss of a friend.
Before L was buried, however, a sudden fear gripped Light. He had to see, had to make sure that the detective was actually dead. “I have to say goodbye...” he murmered, and the four men turned away respectfully as he opened the coffin. Even though Light hardly recognized him, wearing a suit and with combed hair, there was no doubt that the motionless body had been Ryuuzaki’s. However... even though Ryuuzaki was dead... L sure as hell wasn’t gone.
“Sleep well?” Ryuk asked the next morning.
“Yes... today, Ryuk, I’m going to show you the creation of a new world,” Light said, running a hand over his Death Note. “L had it coming... and so does humanity.”
