Anna's POV

"Matt, Mello, What have I told you about picking on Near?" I called to the blonde and brunette who were once again harassing Near.

Matt and Mello's faces lit up when they saw L and I walk into the courtyard of the orphanage. The abandoned Near slowly got up and followed them over to greet us. I smiled and hugged Near close to me along with Matt while Mello gave L a timid hug.

"How did the case go in LA?" Mello asked as Matt went to stand next to him.

Near stayed next to me allowing me to keep my arm around in shoulders. I smiled at L who just shrugged, "Same as always."

"Where's Watari?" Matt asked suddenly.

I picked up Near and frowned at the two older boys, "If you two hadn't been so busy picking on Near, you would have seen him walk by twenty minutes ago. He went inside to talk to Roger."

Mello scowled at me, "Hey, Near started it." I looked from the hot-headed blonde to the eleven year old in my arms having a hard time believing my sweet little Near would start anything.

I shook my head and sighed, "I don't care who started it. You two are too old to be acting like that." I ruffled Near's hair before I put him down letting him return to his puzzle. I took L's hand and picked up my bag, "Come on, we should go put our stuff away." I pulled him along behind me and looked over my shoulder at Matt and Mello, "Behave you two."

I hung up my clothes as L sat on the bed in the room we'd shared at Wammy's house for the past four years.

"You know, you make it painfully obvious that you like Near better than Mello and Matt." He said scrolling through his computer.

I hung up my last shirt and turned to him, leaning against the closet doors, "I do not like Near better than Mello and Matt. I love them all the same." I said defensively.

L didn't look up from the screen, "We both know that isn't true. In fact I'd even say you like Mello least out of all three of the boys. Am I right?" He looked up at me for confirmation.

I shook my head and sat on the bed next to him watching as he scrolled through his email looking for a new case. I placed a kiss on his cheek, "Please stop trying to interrogate me. So what if I'm slightly partial to Near? He's the baby." L didn't reply as he continued to scroll. "You're going to pick Near, aren't you?" I asked.

"I haven't decided yet."

I wrapped my arms around his waist and rested my head on his shoulder as he continued scrolling through the emails, "Liar."

Near's POV

I popped my head into the open door of the room I knew L and Anna would be in. "Anna? I want to play a game."

Anna looked over to me and pulled herself away from L. He looked up at her and smiled faintly as she walked over to me. Anna took my hand and I led her down the hall to my room. I looked her over as she pulled out my train set. She was wearing a long sleeve, crimson red crop-top and a short black skirt with all black high tops. Her dark brown hair was curled loosely as if she'd done it the day before and slept on it as she probably had.

"Do you want to play with the train set or do a puzzle?" She asked turning back to me. She had in a baby blue flower shaped ring in her belly button with a tiny diamond in the middle.

I thought for a moment, "The puzzle."

She nodded and put back the train before going to the shelf. She reached up on her tippy-toes, but still couldn't reach the puzzle she wanted. She looked over to me and pouted, knowing I couldn't get it either seeing as I was still four inches shorter than her. She held up and finger and stuck her head out the door, "L! Can you come in here?"

I few moments later L came into the room and looked at her with his normal bored expression, "Yes?"

She pointed up to the higher shelf she'd tried to reach, "Can you get that puzzle for us?" He nodded and got the puzzle down effortlessly and handed it to her. "Thank you."

She got on her tippy toes again and pecked him on the lips before plopping down next to me in the funny way she does with her legs folded at her sides. L watched us for a moment as she dumped all the pieces on the floor and started helping me finish it.

"Anna, L?" All of us looked to the door to see Watari standing there looking at us. "I have a case you might be interested in."

L looked down at Anna who waved him off, "You go check it out, I'm doing a puzzle with Near."

L chuckled under his breath at us before following Watari out and down the hall. Ten minutes and four thousand pieces later, Anna and I finished the puzzle. We sat back and admired our creation. It was a nature scene with a waterfall and trees along with a deer. It wasn't my favorite puzzle, but it was one of Anna's.

She smiled, "That wasn't too hard. Where's your white puzzle?" I was about to reply when L came back into the room. She looked at him expectantly. They seemed to be having a silent conversation and then she nodded, "When?" She asked finally as we put the pieces back in the box.

"Tomorrow." She looked at him again and held out the box to him. He came into the room and took it from her and put it back on the shelf.

"What's tomorrow?" I asked finally.

Anna looked to L who sighed, "We're starting the case. We leave for Japan tomorrow afternoon."

I looked at them with indifference, but I felt a slight disappointment in my chest, "You just got back from a case."

Anna nodded, but took one of L's hands in both of hers, "We know, but this case is important." She said although she obviously didn't know for sure seeing as she'd been in here with me. I nodded and pulled my puzzle off the shelf and dumped out the pieces. "I'll be in to pack in a little bit." L nodded and placed a kiss on Anna's forehead before leaving. She fell down beside me again and watched as I put the pieces in expertly. After an hour of me doing the puzzle over and over Anna took my hand, "Come on, Near. It's time to get cleaned up for dinner."

Anna's POV

I finished repacking everything I'd just hung up and sat on the bed again next to L, whose eyes were glued to the screen of his laptop. I looked at the time at the bottom of the screen to discover it was only nine thirty. "I'm going to go make sure the boys are asleep."

L grunted in response and I got up, leaving him to his work. I slipped into Matt's room only to trip over the countless wires from all of his video games. "Ouch." I mumbled and sat up.

Matt had the covers pulled over his head, but the faint light from his PSP screen was still shining through. I pulled the covers down and he looked up at me in surprise. He was in his pajamas, but still had his goggles on.

I pulled them off gently and placed them on the table next to him, "Matt, it's time for bed. Save the game." I told him, knowing he'd throw a fit if I took it from him without saving it.

He sighed and did so before handing it to me and lying down, "I'm almost thirteen, you know. I should be allowed to stay up later."

I pulled the blankets up over him and gave him a kiss on the forehead, "No, you most certainly should not. Maybe when you really stop smoking, you can stay up later." I said opening the window slightly.

He looked at me shocked, his face only visible by the moonlight. "How did you know?"

I smiled down at him and ran a hand through his hair, "Your room smells like cigarettes. Now go to sleep, Matt."

He yawned and rolled over. I picked up the PSP controller and put it on a higher shelf in hopes that Matt would actually go to sleep and not just go back to playing videogames when I left.

I let myself out of Matt's room, careful not to let too much light in and went into Mello's room next door. The room was dark and smelled like chocolate. I picked up a few of the empty candy bar wrappers around Mello's desk, "I need to teach him how to throw away his trash." I said to myself.

I walked over to his bed to find him sleeping soundly. His breathing was light and even and I smiled. He looked almost as sweet as the chocolate he was addicted to. I leaned down and kissed his forehead like I had done to Matt and pulled the covers up over him more, covering his exposed shoulder. I slipped out careful not to wake him. The first two were always much easier to get to sleep, now for the challenge: Near.

I opened the door and found Near in the middle of the floor building a train set around himself and watching as each little car roamed around the different levels he had created. "Near, it's bed time."

The little boy looked up at me indifferently, "But I'm not tired."

He yawned, giving himself away and I picked him up, "Come on." I put him on the bed and tucked him in tightly. "Good night, Near." I said starting to leave.

"Wait, Anna."

I turned back to him. The light was now off and the light of the moon had turned the young boy's hair silver. "What is it?"

He watched me, "Will you stay with me until I fall asleep?"

I nodded and got into the bed lying next to him. He snuggled closer to me and I held him lightly. It wasn't uncommon for Near to want someone to stay with him. He was very codependent. I took responsibility for that seeing as I had a slight tendency to baby him. Something L liked to point out whenever he got the chance. I soon felt Near's body grow heavy and heard his breathing even. He was asleep at last. I kissed the sleeping boys forehead and cautiously pulled myself away from him leaving to return to my own room.

L's POV

"What took you so long?" I asked not looking up from the computer screen as I heard Anna reenter the room.

She picked up the pajamas she'd left out for tonight and sighed, "Near wanted me to stay with him until he fell asleep." She said and I shook my head. "What?" She asked watching me.

"You baby him too much. If he's going to be the next L he needs to be able to do things for himself." I looked up at her as she pulled off her top to change into her sports bra.

She caught me staring and winked at me, causing my face to go red. Five years with this girl and she could still get me flustered like this. I looked back to the screen while she finished changing into her sports bra and yoga pants.

"Anna, I've been thinking and I think you should stay here. This case is going to be dangerous. I don't want you to get hurt." I said not looking at her.

"If it's dangerous then I have to go."

I looked up at her, "Anna-"

She shook her head, "There's no way in Hell I'm letting you go into this alone. We're a team remember?"

I watched her and sighed, "Anna, it's not that I don't want you there I just don't want to put you in any danger."

She smiled to herself as she folded her clothes she'd just taken off and shoved them into her bag, "If you go, I go, L. We're in this together. Forever and always, right?" She walked over to the bed and kissed my lips.

I sighed as she pulled away and looked back to the screen, "Right."

"Anyways come on, L it's time for bed." She moved to sit behind me on the bed, she wrapped her arms around my waist and kissed my shoulder.

"I'm not tired." I said looking at her over my shoulder.

She rolled her eyes and shut my laptop then picked it up and put it on the desk at the far end of the room. "We have to be up early tomorrow and you haven't slept in two days. I put all my other boys to bed, now you need to go to sleep, L."

I sighed, knowing she'd already made up her mind and there was no changing it now. "Fine."

I got out my own pajama pants and changed quickly before turned off the light and getting into bed next to Anna. I wrapped my arms around her and she cuddled closer to me her hands on my bare chest. She kissed me quickly on the lips and smiled sleepily, "I love you."

I kissed the top of her head and closed my eyes, "I love you too."

I barely heard her mumble, "Forever and always" into my chest before we both fell into a deep sleep.

Anna's POV

I laced up my black and white high-tops and looked at myself in the mirror. I'd straightened my hair so it didn't look too bad and my makeup was cooperating with me for once. I had on a pair of ripped black skinny jeans and a fitted tank top that read 'INTROVERTS UNITE WE'RE HERE WE'RE UNCOMFOTABLE AND WE WANT TO GO HOME'. The saying was more suited for L or Near, but I thought it was cute.

"Anna, are you ready to go?" L asked popping his head into the room.

I nodded and looked over at him. The bags under his eyes were visibly lighter and I smiled. He really did need to sleep more often. We walked out to the courtyard and put out bags in the trunk of the car parked there. Near clung to me and I hugged him tightly.

"You're going to come back soon, right?" Mello asked L.

"As soon as the case is solved." L said giving Matt a hug goodbye.

"What if something goes wrong?" Mello asked, "What if you don't solve the case?" Tears welled up in the emotional boy's eyes.

L put his hands on Mello's shoulders, "We're going to solve the case. I promise." Mello nodded satisfied.

L's word was enough for him. We hugged they boys goodbye and I gave each of them a kiss on the top of the head, "Be good for Roger." I smirked and they all nodded in understanding. L and I got into the car and drove toward the airport with Watari to begin our journey to Japan.