Jubilee's consciousness swirled somewhere amidst the warehouse rafters, coldly aware of the chaos below. She felt no pain, which gave her a distant sense of relief, but any emotional attachment she had to the people and events below was fleeting, sliding in and out of her comprehension like water through grasping fingers.

She recognized one body on the ground as her own. It was pale, half lying in a small pool of blood, half held by a dark-haired man who looked equally pale. The sight provoked a curious feeling of both tenderness and sadness in her, though she didn't know why. Loud shouts interrupted her thoughts before she could puzzle it out. There were more people below, yelling and waving guns, and a tall, dark thing standing among them all.

Shinigami, she remembered.

As she strained to make sense of what they were saying, her perspective shifted and splayed into a confusing multitude of different views and possibilities. She was the dust in the air, floating and falling; she was the light filtering through rafters, shining down from a star far above. Her awareness expanded further, and she saw a whole universe above her, trails of ethereal colors beckoning her to follow their path upwards to a place far, far away from the chaos below.

Longing filled her and she started to reach for the colors, for the starlight, when other thoughts invaded her mind like a flood. Her consciousness intertwined with those of the people below, then, one after another; glimpses of their respective panic and anger flitting through her awareness. When she reached the black-haired man's mind, a feeling of devastation slammed through her. Reeling from the impact, her soul meandered in the ether, torn between retreating to the light above or lingering to witness the scene below...

L surged forward the moment the shot was fired, his arms encircling Jubilee's limp body before she could fall. At the same time, a volley of shots sounded from behind him, and Light screamed a curse as he dropped his gun. Blood coursed down his arm.

Blocking out the chaos, L gently lowered Jubilee's body to the ground in a reclining position against himself. He glanced at her face, his brain giving her a clinical once-over on autopilot. She was unconscious. Distantly, he had the thought that he hoped she hadn't seen Light get shot before she lost consciousness, as it would've surely distressed her. Instinctively, L's hands pressed against her abdomen to stop the flow of blood. There was a lot.

"You fools!" Light was shrieking. "Idiots! What the hell do you think you're doing?" He clutched at his arm, swaying on his feet, as he spun to the shinigami. "Kill them, Ryuk! Write their names into your Death Note. Kill them all!"

At that, L finally felt his own anger. It rushed through him like a forest fire and, for the first time in his life, eliminated every rational from his mind.

The only thing that kept him from leaping up and killing Light right there on the spot was the fact that L was still holding Jubilee. He needed to stop her from losing any more blood. The realization brought him back to his senses.

"Mello," he said quickly, ignoring the still raving Light. "Call an ambulance."

"Yes, sir!" Mello said, obeying immediately.

"Matsuda," L continued, "Go and get the med kit from the car."

"B-but, Ryuzaki..." Matsuda's eyes darted from Light to the corners of the room, searching for Ryuk but unable to see him. "The shini—"

L cut him off with a death glare. "Get the med kit, now."

"Yes, sir!" the police officer gulped. With one last glance at Light and the others, he ran for the door.

"Matsuda and Mogi," L went on, "Arrest Light."

The two men looked dubious but moved to wordlessly obey. Light sputtered as they approached him.

"Keep your hands off me!" He backed away as blood dripped down his arm. Desperately, he looked again to the shinigami. "Ryuk!"

"Heh." Ryuk rocked back on his heels but made no other move. "Looks like it's the end of the line for you, kid."

Light's eyes widened and Mogi grabbed him firmly by both arms, causing him to cry out in pain. Just then, a gurgled scream came from Mikami Teru's direction.

Everyone turned to look. Mikami, while nobody was watching, had retrieved his pen, despite being handcuffed...and forcefully slammed the tip of it into his back. With disturbing accuracy—or perhaps a morbid stroke of luck—he'd managed to stab his own heart. Blood spewed from the open wound as he slumped over. For a moment, every person in the room froze, transfixed with horrified shock.

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Light took advantage of the moment to elbow Mogi in the jaw with his good arm. Mogi stumbled back, his grip on Light loosening, and Light leapt away before Aizawa could grab him. He started to race for the exit.

"Aiber, Wedy—" L shouted, his hands tensing against Jubilee's wound. He couldn't leave her behind to pursue Light himself.

But the con man and thief were already on it, as was Mello, all three of them sprinting after the younger man. Light, however, had already been near the exit before they'd started to give chase, and was almost to the door. Aizawa and Mogi, who'd recovered, lifted their guns.

Matsuda entered through the door at that moment, med kit in one hand.

"Don't shoot," L ordered reluctantly. The girl in his arms would be doubly upset if both Light and Matsuda ended up as casualties.

Light charged straight at the young police officer, ready to bowl him over. Matsuda's eyes widened in startlement. He started to lift the gun in his other hand.

L tensed. It was too late to shout an order for the officer to hold his fire.

And then, Matsuda slugged Light across the temple with his gun.

Light went down like a rock. Aizawa and Mogi were on him immediately, handcuffing his arms behind his back. He groaned weakly, still conscious enough to feel the pain of Matsuda's blow. Good, L thought with satisfaction. This was a good enough compromise with what Jubilee's wishes would've been.

Lifting a. bloody hand from her side, he gestured Matsuda over. "You are first-aid certified, yes?" he asked.

The other man nodded, pale at the sight of the bloodied woman in L's arms.

"Staunch the bleeding while I deal with Light and the shinigami," L instructed.

Matsuda nodded again and knelt to get started, but L didn't let Jubilee go, supporting her while the other man worked. Meanwhile, the other two police officers had dragged Light over. They pushed the young man to his knees in front of the detective.

L gave Light a cold look. "You should know that the only reason you're alive right now is because that's what she would've wanted." He dipped his head at Jubilee's prone form.

Light grit his teeth, in pain and agitation, but said nothing.

L continued, "As such, you will have a fair trial, to determine your sentence, and then you will answer for your crimes."

"I have a better idea," Ryuk's voice interrupted.

L's head swiveled to the shinigami. Light wore a look that was equal parts trepidation and hope. The others in the room watched L in confusion, unaware of Ryuk.

"Ryuzaki?" Matsuda whispered, finished binding a sterile pad to Jubilee's abdomen. "What are you—"

"It's the shinigami, isn't it," Mello said softly. "What's he saying?"

L slowly held up the real Death Note with one hand. "Anyone who wants to see and hear the shinigami, please touch this notebook."

Mello came forward immediately to do so, then turned to Ryuk and inhaled sharply. Hesitantly, Matsuda raised a hand, and Aizawa and Mogi reached over as well. L passed the notebook to them. Wedy and Aiber remained where they were. The three police officers, after touching the notebook, slowly turned to Ryuk.

The demon grinned at them all. "Yo," he greeted with a salute.

Nobody said anything.

"Well, can't blame you all for being a little tense, I s'pose," the shinigami chuckled. "After all, I could kill all of you on the spot if I wanted to! Well, most of you. Someone's lucky enough to be off limits." He waved cheerfully towards L. "Fortunately for you all though, I'm in a good mood because you've given me such a good show, and because that little pest is finally on her death bed. For good this time—God willing." He guffawed.

L stiffened, his grip tightening over Jubilee.

Ryuk turned to Light. "And that's thanks to you! Nice shot, little Light. Might I suggest going for the head next time, though?"

Light gaped warily at him. "Ryuk...what are you planning to—"

"To show you my thanks, Light...I'm going to do you a favor." The shinigami whipped out his own Death Note.

Shots rang out then, but the bullets passed harmlessly through the demon. He laughed at the three police officers whose guns were trained on him. "Oh, relax," he chortled. "I think I've got a solution that will make everyone happy. Especially—" His yellow eyes slid over to L. "You."

L was still.

Ryuk flipped open his notebook. "Tell you what, Light. Since they're probably going to lock you up for life, and neither you nor I want to wait around forever for you to die...I'll just give you a nice clean death, right here, right now."

"What!" Light snarled, in horror and outrage. "You stupid shinigami, don't you dare—" At the demon's narrowed eyes, the boy instantly changed tactics. "I, I mean, I can still make things interesting for you, Ryuk! Just kill all these people, and I will make this world into whatever you want it to be. You—you can have all the say...alright?"

Ryuk threw his head back and laughed long and hard. "Oh, I'm not falling for that. That's what people have been saying to God for ages!" Leaning forward, he leered at Light."Unlike Him, I see you mortals for what you really are—two-faced, untrustworthy creatures who don't deserve a second chance." He spun gleefully to L, gesturing to the wounded woman in his arms. "Certainly not after doing this, am I right?" The demon was addressing L now, grinning as he produced a pen. "Even if I couldn't smell the desire for vengeance on you, Sherlock, I can see it clear as day. I'm just doing exactly what you want, and saving you the trouble of getting your own hands dirty. So, you're welcome." He bought the pen to the page.

For a split second, L was frozen, as was everyone else in the room. It was all too easy to simply let the shinigami carry out the punishment Light so richly deserved. Jubilee may not like it—if she even made it out of this alive—but it wasn't as though there was much he or anyone else could do to stop a demon. And even if there was...would he even want to?

No, he wouldn't. In fact—

"Wait," he said. The shinigami paused. L continued, his voice like ice, "I want to be the one to write his name down."