Light slipped quietly into the security room on the top floor, the one that belonged to Watari. The old man's body was slumped forward, lifeless, in the chair before the monitors, his fingers still resting against a big red button on the control panel. Light eyed the panel from where he stood, checking to make sure that the downstairs surveillance monitors hadn't switched back on since the reset. They hadn't.

Relaxing, he moved forward into the room, going straight to the pile of ash in a far corner. The edge of a black notebook poked out from beneath the gray dust. It was Rem's Death Note.

Light bent to retrieve it, shaking the remains of the deceased shinigami from off of its covers. Then he slipped the notebook into his inner coat pocket, before striding over to the control panel by Watari's corpse and flipping a switch. The monitors in front of him flickered back on to show surveillance of the rest of the building, through which task force members frantically combed hallways in search of Rem. None of them were anywhere near the top floor. Good.

Sliding the Death Note back out of his coat, he flipped it open. To his chagrin, the pages were all filled with names written in every direction, without any heed to lines, spacing or order. He scowled. Did all shinigami write in their Death Notes like this? Flipping to the last page, he scanned the bottom, only to find names that were either written in a foreign alphabet, or that were clearly female. What's more, they all went in diagonal directions, piling up in the corners of the page without any indication as to which could have been written last. Light snapped the book shut with a growl and put it back into his coat pocket. He'd have to go over it more thoroughly later.

Pulling his cell phone from his pocket, he flipped it open to call Aizawa. Before he could hit dial, however, a scene on the monitors caught his eye.

It was L and Julie, still sitting together on the floor of the main room. The two were huddled at a close distance from each other, talking quietly.

Light's fingers clenched around his phone. Rage, white-hot and fused with hatred, coursed through him.

L was supposed to be dead. He, Light, was supposed to have won. This whole game was supposed to be over, and he was supposed to be the god of a new world.

But something had gone wrong.

Somehow, L had beaten death. And Light didn't know how he had done it, but he was sure that Julie Amachi—or whatever her name really was—had something to do with it. The thought made him gnash his teeth.

He was going to kill her. One way or another, he would kill both of them, even if it meant making Misa copy down every single unrecognizable letter on the pages of Rem's Death Note into her own. That would take care of L. After that, he just had to figure out a way to kill Julie. And this time, he would make sure that neither of them could come back.

Hitting the dial button on his phone, he held the device up to his ear and cleared his throat, forcing himself to be calm.

"Aizawa?" he said when the other man answered. He took a deep breath and then, in a tone of fear and panic, went on, "It's—it's Watari! I...I found his body. And a strange pile of ash in the same room. I don't know what's going on here, but you all better get up here quick!"

Hanging up, he glanced back at the monitors. His gaze fell on L and Julie again. Slowly, a sinister smile crept onto his lips.

"This game isn't over yet," he said softly. "I can still win."

----------------------------------------

Jubilee had held onto L for as long as she could, long after someone noticed that Light had disappeared, long after Aizawa had rounded up the others to "follow Light's example and find that shinigami." Somewhere in the background she was distantly aware of Hellenos and L's guardian angel, along with a vague flurry of other angelic activity, all apparently rejoicing amongst themselves. Hellenos and the other guardian angel looked to be sharing a high-five or something of its equivalent. But they all seemed to purposefully recede into the background, giving Jubilee and L space to share their moment. Only Matsuda lingered close by, awkwardly hovering over the two of them on the floor while they ignored him and continued to hug.

At last Jubilee reluctantly let go, wishing she could savor their embrace longer.

"You saw it?" she said in a whisper, her hands still on his shoulders.

He returned her gaze with wide gray eyes, and Jubilee noticed then that the gray haze which usually covered him was now gone.

"Yes," he said quietly. "I saw...Him."

A constellation of colors winked around him as he said this last word and, now free from the haze that once shrouded them, they looked brighter and clearer than Jubilee had ever seen. The memory of a glowing face flashed through her mind's eye, and for a split second her heart ached with an unexplainable longing that even L's presence couldn't seem to fill.

Then Matsuda cleared his throat, and the moment passed. Jubilee let go of L's shoulders and drew back.

"So," began the other man, in an almost inaudible squeak. "It's...all true then? Everything you said you saw, Miss Julie?"

The two of them turned to Matsuda, who was staring down at them with wide eyes that held equal parts fear and excitement.

"Yes," answered Jubilee. "Do you believe me now?"

Matsuda put a hand to his head, overwhelmed. "Wow," was all he could say at first. "Wow." From a few feet away, some of the columns of light glided towards Matsuda, sweeping over him gently while tittering in quiet but happy tones. Matsuda dropped his hand and the columns of light, seeming satisfied, disappeared. "What do we do now?" he asked, his tone more level but his expression still awestruck.

Jubilee looked to L. Cogs of colorful light whirled over his head as his brain re-engaged the situation. "We do what we were doing," he began slowly, his eyes regaining focus as he glanced around himself to get his bearings. His guardian angel moved back to his side, putting a hand on his shoulder and giving Jubilee a cheerful wave before slowly fading from her sight. L continued, "We proceed as planned. Physical evidence is still needed to support the supernatural evidence that we have. We will need to test the thirteen-day rule." At this his eyes clouded over a bit, and the colors above his head darkened.

Matsuda nodded furiously. "Okay, boss," he said.

Jubilee was still looking at L. "What do we do about Light?" she asked, as Hellenos returned to stand quietly by her side.

"Wait, what?" said Matsuda, just as L replied, "We can do nothing right now."

Jubilee glanced between the two men, bewildered. "What do you mean?" she demanded both of them. They began to speak simultaneously, then stopped, Matsuda fumbling as he shut his mouth and mimed in confusion.

Jubilee rolled her eyes. "You go first, Matsuda," she told him. "What do you mean, 'wait, what'? What about the program do you not get?"

"I—I—" Matsuda stuttered. "I just...I believe what you said about your background now—coming back and all that, and the stuff you saw. But I guess...I guess I just...didn't really think about the part about Light yet."

She quirked an eyebrow at him, irritated. "So? Think about it!" She waited expectantly as a few colors churned above Matsuda's head while he thought and processed. "Well?" she prodded after a moment.

Matsuda looked at her, his brow creased in distress. "You don't—you don't really suspect Light of being Kira, do you?" he asked timidly.

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"What!" Jubilee exploded. Hellenos' presence flickered out from beside her.

The officer held up his hands in self-defense. "I'm sorry, I'm sorry!" he cried. "Don't be mad, it's just...it's just...can't there be some other explanation? Like he's being controlled, or something? I mean, it's Light! You don't really think that he would actually do all this himself...do you?" At this he gave Jubilee a pleading look.

She gazed back at him helplessly. A steady black line floated over Matsuda's head and a fragile baby blue shone shyly around him. The man was practically begging her to tell him that there was another possibility—anything other than someone he knew and trusted being a mass murderer. She glanced over at L for help. Surely he would know what to say. He knew for certain now that Light was Kira. She had heard the thought come from his own brain, right as he died looking up into Light's eyes.

The detective's expression was unreadable. "All will be clear when this case is solved," he said simply. "Don't worry about Light for now, Matsuda."

Matsuda's shoulders visibly sagged in relief at that. Jubilee was about to protest but then stopped, catching a glimpse of the still clouded look in L's eyes. Above his head, the swirling colors turned ominously dark. Understanding came over her.

"Yes," she agreed finally, turning back to the other man. She felt suddenly sad as she saw the look in Matsuda's eyes—so concerned, so worried, just as she once had been about Light's fate. Just like she still was. "We all want the best for Light here. Just know that."

Matsuda nodded slowly. "Okay, Miss Julie," he said.

The walkie-talkie clipped to his belt crackled then. "Matsuda!" barked Aizawa's voice. "Meet us on the top floor. Light says he's found something strange...and Watari's body."

Jubilee's hand flew to her mouth in horror and Matsuda flinched, then looked down at L uncertainly. The detective's head had lowered so that his face was hidden underneath black hair.

"Go on, Matsuda," he said without looking up.

Matsuda gave another hesitant nod and then turned, pulling out the walkie-talkie as he jogged for the stairs. "I'm on my way," he said into it before disappearing from view.

Jubilee turned back to L and lowered her hand, tears stinging her eyes. "I—I'm so sorry, L," she whispered. "About...Watari." Grief filled her as she remembered the moment she had felt the old man's life ember go out.

L said nothing for a long beat. Then he murmured, "It's alright." A line formed over his head that did not break. He looked up to meet Jubilee's eyes, and his own were clear. "I saw him, too."

Jubilee stared at him. "You mean...?"

"Yes." The colors above L lightened again and the corner of his lip lifted. "He is happy."

Relief flooded her. She smiled, restraining the urge to throw her arms around L again in joy. Then she frowned. "Something is bothering you about testing the thirteen-day rule," she said. "I'm assuming it's because you saw...the other place."

A shuttered look came across L's features and the colors around him darkened once more. He looked down. "To know that that is the kind of place someone could go to—" he began slowly, a haunted look in his eyes, "I...I do not know if cutting short the time someone has to escape that fate is something that I can still do—even for criminals on death row. And...and that is most likely where they would go, if they were to test the notebook now." He passed a hand over his eyes. "I chose two men who, as far as I can tell, are completely deserving of that fate. They showed no signs of remorse and were completely unrepentant of their crimes. But...even so..." He trailed off, his head lowering further as his shoulders hunched.

"Even so, there's always a chance that that could change," she finished for him quietly. Next to her Hellenos' presence pulsed faintly back into her awareness with an empathetic glow.

L's hands clenched into fists against the floor. "The chances of that happening are one to five percent," he said lowly. "Not everyone is the apostle Paul. But...even if the thirteen-day rule proves to be false, one of those men will still die after being written into the notebook. And after that...he will have no chance left to repent. None at all." He finally looked back up at her. "I don't know if I can stomach facilitating that...not after I've seen and felt exactly what it is like there."

Jubilee gazed at him for a long moment, a tumult of different emotions swelling within her. "See," she said softly. "I told you you have a heart."

He smiled a little at that. "I suppose it just needed to be restarted."

She smiled back. "What will you do, then?" she asked.

His smile dissipated. "I don't know." Slowly he pulled himself off the floor and got to his feet, wobbling as he did so. Jubilee rose too, awkwardly trying to spot him from behind lest he should fall. He either didn't notice, or pretended not to, for he went on, "But I will have to do whatever I must, in order to stop Kira. He is cutting short the chances of hundreds of people...as well as murdering innocents along the way."

Jubilee hurriedly dropped her hands, which had been held out to catch him. "You mean Light is."

L paused at that. "Light is as much a victim of Kira as everyone else," he said finally. A fiery orange undertone lit his features and he bit out in a low voice, "And as despicable of a human being as he is being at the moment, he wasn't always this way. So, there is at least a twenty percent chance that he may revert to how he once was...even if it takes him the rest of his life to do so, in prison," he finished with a scowl.

Rubbing his chest with a grimace, he made his way to the table in the middle of the room where the black notebook lay. Jubilee worriedly followed him, distantly noting that Hellenos' presence had become dim to her once more. The observation was quickly forgotten as L flipped open the back cover of Death Note and began reading aloud.

"If any person who has written in this notebook fails to consecutively write in it at least once every thirteen days," he murmured, "Then the user dies." He looked to Jubilee. "I don't suppose you could tell if that was a lie simply from me reading it just now, could you?"

She shook her head. There had been nothing over L's head just now, nor had there been anything over Aizawa's when he had first read the rule aloud.

"I'm sorry," she said. "But I do know that the shinigami was lying when she said all Death Notes have that rule."

"Hmm." L traced the words with the finger of one hand, while thumbing his mouth with another. Jubilee leaned over his shoulder to scrutinize the rules on the cover as well.

"Any person who has written in this notebook..." she repeated, racking her brain for some kind of clue. She turned to L. "You don't suppose that means someone could write anything down, even if it's not a name—and the rule still supposedly apply to them, do you?"

L lifted his gaze to her. "That...is an interesting idea," he said slowly.

At that moment, the rest of the task force entered the room. All of them wore haggard expressions, and Soichiro was carrying a clear plastic bag that held what looked like gray ash. Light followed behind his father, a mournful look on his face. Catching sight of Jubilee and L standing together at the table, he came straight to them.

"Ryuzaki," he began, taking the detective by the shoulders. The haze of midnight black around him shrank away from the bright colors emanating from L. "Man, am I glad you're okay. But—" His eyes became downcast then. "But, Watari...he didn't make it. I went looking for him and that shinigami as soon as I could, but all I found was..." At this his voice caught, and he shook his head, gesturing vaguely. "My dad will tell you more. We've...we've wrapped up Watari's body and sent for a funeral director already." He lifted his eyes back up to meet L's, looking sorrowful. "I'm so sorry, man."

L's face was completely void of emotion. "My thanks," he said stiffly. "For your heartfelt condolences."

Jubilee watched the line over Light's head snap over and over again during his speech, and felt like she had never in her life wanted to punch someone in the face more than she did right now. But she held her tongue.

Light went on, "I want you to know, Ryuzaki, that I support you, whatever you decide to do next. Aizawa and Matsuda just told me about your plan to test the thirteen-day rule. Even though—even though I'm not completely comfortable about the ethics of it all...I choose to stand by you, Ryuzaki. Consider me on your side."

Again the line over his head snapped violently. Jubilee's eyes narrowed. What was the kid planning now? Behind Light, his father and the other members of the task force, including Matsuda, looked at him admiringly. They were all eating this up.

L's eyes had also narrowed imperceptibly. "Thank you again, Light," he said, shrugging the other boy's hand off his shoulder. "But you all should know that I am having second thoughts about my original plan of how to test the rule."

"Really?" cried Matsuda, sounding caught between surprise and relief. "So you're not going to do it after all?"

"Looks like you came back with some more sense," remarked Aizawa, then caught himself and put a hand behind his head, looking abashed. "I—I am glad you are back," he muttered. The line over his head was straight. Beside him, Mogi and Matsuda both nodded emphatically.

Only Light seemed to pause at L's statement, staring hard at the detective. "I'm glad to hear that, Ryuzaki," he said at last. Jubilee noted with interest that the line over his head didn't break this time. So—he'd rather not have the rule tested after all. "But," Light continued warily, "That doesn't sound like you."

L gave Light a cold look. "Make no mistake—I will do what I have to." He turned to the rest of the task force. "But I want to explore other options, if we can."

Soichiro stepped forward. "I am as relieved as the rest of us are about not using the notebook to cause more deaths, even if it is for the sake of catching Kira," he said. "And, of course, I am glad to see that you are alive and well. But I agree with Light—this seems uncharacteristic of you, Ryuzaki. It makes me wonder if there is either a catch, or..." Here he paused. "Or, if something happened to you while...while you were..." He trailed off uncertainly.

"While I was dead?" said L dryly. He leveled a serious look at all of them. "At some point, we will have a thorough debriefing about exactly what I saw, and you will also tell me exactly what you all saw in Watari's room." He eyed the bag of ash, still in Soichiro's hand, before turning away to pick up the notebook from the table. "But, for now—" He faced them all again, Death Note in hand. "Suffice to say that, after one has literally been to hell and back...one's convictions change."

There was a collective stunned silence at this pronouncement.

"Now," he continued before anyone could think of what to say, "I want to address a very interesting point that Miss Amachi has brought up."

All eyes turned to Jubilee.