Warning: This chapter is incredibly bipolar. Suggestion: for every new word in italics, I think a breather should be allowed, just for the craziness to really soak in. Lol! Oh... and warnings for violence, blood, cussing, very mild hints of shota-con, err... I think that's it. Enjoy.

Title: Che Sarà, Sarà

Certain: Inevitable

Raito looked down at his packed bags in trepidation, feeling the beginnings of anxiety curl in the pit of his stomach.

What the hell was he doing?

Shaking his head forlornly, the boy kicked his suitcase in a fit of silent anger. Everything seemed to be going wrong somehow or another.

A knock on his door proved this thought process to be true.

"What is Raito-kun doing in our bedroom?"

'Our bedroom…' Raito repeated to himself as he looked around their room, half of it organized to perfect, practically sparkling in pristine, cleanliness. The other half lay in a jumbled mess; or what L liked to call his 'organized chaos'. The dark-haired man refused to even let Raito try to clean up his scattered clothes, claiming that if they needed to be washed, they would eventually make it to the hamper in due time.

It was then that Raito would proceed to kick his lover's ass and proclaim that unless he wanted to live on the street, he better get his crap out of their room and pronto.

But that wasn't going to be anymore.

"Raito?"

'All this time, I thought we were above all this.' The 17-year-old brunette thought to himself as he wrapped his arms around his torso, eyes glistening with unshed tears. 'Was it really so selfish of me to want him by my side?'

Pushing all sentiments aside, the teenage prodigy grabbed his bags and finally opened the door, ready to face his future in all its sordid glory.

He refused to be tied down by these stupid emotions anymore.

L stared at the boy standing in front of him, bags in both hands as his eyes became virtually blank. The door creaked slightly at the force Raito had pulled it open, the only sound within the oppressing silence blanketing their thoughts.

Tilting his head to the side, L placed his thumb within his lips as he absently chewed on the appendage offered. Raito continued to say nothing as both men practically stood paralyzed in their positions by the door.

One was ready to say goodbye.

The other refused to even hear the word.

"Get out of my way, L." Raito sneered as his hands tightened their hold over the three bags within his grip.

"I cannot do that, Raito-kun." L stated as blandly as possible, his eyes growing impossibly wide as he did not even budge from his position in front of the agitated adolescent. "Raito-kun is obviously suffering a nervous-breakdown if he truly believes for one moment that I will allow him to leave me to my own devices."

"It's not your decision to make." The orphaned 17-year-old muttered as he glared intensely at the man still slouching in front of him. "Now get yourself out of my way before I have to do so for you."

"Is that a threat, Raito?" The deadly calm within the older man's tone of voice actually managed to send a sliver of fear down Raito's spine as he felt his eyebrow twitch almost completely unnoticeably.

"What if it is?" Raito replied, his eyes narrowing as his chocolate gaze smoldered, the rich dark-brown lightening to a vibrant caramel with the switch in moods.

"I'm afraid Raito-kun will be most displeased by the change of events within his plans." The former detective calmly pulled the digit out of his mouth as his lips set themselves into a straight line; tightly pursed together as obsidian eyes narrowed the tiniest of bits. "I shall not allow him to leave this apartment without some sort of altercation. And even then, Raito-kun will have to subdue me most painfully to allow himself passage through the front door."

Both men stared at each other once more, neither moving a muscle as the tense atmosphere clouding their judgments.

Raito would never know why exactly he threw the first punch.

Yes, L had stated that a fight would have to take place in order for him to leave, but there were other strategies he could have implemented in his plan to 'escape.'

Either way, the 17-year-old teen would never forget the feel of skin-on-skin contact, hand and face harshly pounding together as his fist throbbed angrily against the pain of being thrown at someone's head.

It was a most glorious feeling for a moment.

And then L hit back.

Raito staggered as he fell over backwards, grunting as L's foot connected with his chest. The bags within the boy's hands clattered onto the ground as Raito felt his body collide with the floor. Palms slid against the wood flooring as a pounding ache resonated in the back of the auburn-haired teen's head, his headache from before multiplying in pressure from the incredibly loud smack.

"Is Raito-kun alright?" L carefully kept a bit of distance, knowing how volatile Raito could get when he was angry. Yet all he could see within the brunette's eyes was disorientation and pain, mixed in too perfectly to be faked. Raito attempted to pull himself up, but only managed to trip over his own two feet and land right back on the hard floor, his bottom now aching along with his head.

"Do I look alright?" Raito finally snapped back once he had righted himself enough to be able to speak. Bringing a hand up to feel the back of his head, the teenage orphan winced at the sizeable lump now protruding against his silky chestnut locks. "Did you have to kick so hard?"

"Raito-kun was the one who started it-"

"I know, damn it!" The glowering brunette scowled as the snarl went past over L's head, the now blasé expression completely enveloping the older man's features. A hand was held out towards the painfully weary 17-year-old as L inched his way closer to the infinitely calmer-looking Raito.

Grabbing the man's spindly hand, Raito was yet again taken off-guard as he was then pushed backwards into the decently sized room, the back of his knees colliding against the mattress behind him as he fell once more.

Finding this fall a bit more comfortable than the last, at least, Raito shook his head as attempted to stave off the vertigo. A warm weight settled itself over his body as the chestnut-eyed boy stiffened in shock, closing his eyes as he refused to look up at the obsidian gaze no doubt staring him down.

Cool fingers traced the underside of Raito's jaw as it clenched, eyelids tightly pressed together as the sensation increased in pressure.

"Raito-kun would deny me this?" The normally bland voice trembled slightly with some sort of unknown emotion Raito could not place. "I have fought so hard to keep Raito-kun by my side and for one e-mail that I had no intention in even answering back, he would discard me as if I meant nothing to him?"

"I…" Raito slowly opened his cinnamon gaze, not wanting to be caught in the other man's stare, but knowing that no matter how much he fought it, those eyes were bound to captivate him, no matter what. "I'm not discarding you, Lawliet. I just don't want to be hurt again… and you seem to be the one person who's always certified to hurt me, no matter the circumstance."

"What does Raito-kun still doubt me, even after all these years of running?" The hand that had been cradling his face slowly lowered itself, stopping just below the chin as the older man tilted his face up just so. "What else must I do to convince you that I…"

Wide brown eyes stared up at the former detective as he lowered his gaze, his throat locking up as the words refused to come out.

"L… How long will it be until you get sick and tired of it all?" Raito whispered as he reached out and threaded his fingers through the older man's hair. "I'm not stupid. I see the look on your face whenever we have to pack up and leave a place or when we have start all over again and create new identities for ourselves in some obscure town that you don't even want to be living in. I've made you a prisoner in some lie that I don't want to let go of, and I don't even know how long I've got until you… until you just decide it's not worth it anymore."

"I don't want to let you go, Raito-kun-"

"Now." Raito interrupted the man before he could go any further. "Our future is as uncertain as the rest of the world's."

"Maybe…" L whispered as he laid his head down against Raito's chest, listening to the gentle rhythm of his heartbeat. "But I like to think that perhaps…"

Raito held in a shuttered breath.

"Perhaps things are more certain than we like to believe."

The boy said nothing more as a tear unnoticeably streaked down his cheek and down onto the mattress below him.

If only things could be this easy…

Then maybe they wouldn't have to keep running anymore.

That was what Raito had once thought before.

Now, all he could do was hold onto this one moment, and cherish the memory it would soon become…

And hope it didn't vanish before his very eyes, much the same way his own parent's and sister had done all those years ago.

Predestined: Inevitable

"Father?"

Raito looked up from his canvas as the small boy by the door shuffled his feet, hands pulling at each other in uncharacteristic shyness. The older man's eyes immediately narrowed in suspicion as Nate smiled adorably.

Something was most definitely up.

"Yes, Nate?"

"Would father like to come play with me in my room?" A cute blush spread across the silver-haired boy's cheeks, and had Raito had not known any better, he would have melted into a big pile of goo at the absolutely endearing sight.

"I'm sure your brothers and L are sufficient company at the moment, Nate." Raito looked back at his canvas, only to turn his attention on the amount of paint still on his palette.

"But I want to play with daddy…" Nate pouted as he crept closer to his incredibly tense father, eyes widening in faux-innocence. "He has yet to spend any time with me for the past couple of days."

'Gee, I wonder where he get's that from?' Raito asked himself as he peered at the manipulative boy now grinning creepily up at him, slouching slightly as he fidgeted with the hem of his sleeve. 'And L says they're nothing alike…'

Bullshit.

"I have a lot to do and not enough time to do it in, Nate." The irritable 25-year-old mumbled. Picking up his brush, Raito tapped the excess color off the painting utensil and once again began in his languid strokes, no clear objective in mind as he did so. "Why don't you go read a book, or something?"

"Father doesn't want to spend time with me?" Large eyes incredibly reminiscent to his lover's glistened as Raito fought to keep his caramel gaze on the canvas. Raito already knew that once he got a glimpse of those watery orbs and quivering lower lip-

"Daddy…"

He was fucked.

"God damn it…" The 25-year-old artist murmured to himself as he dropped his paint brush, turning to his side to face the inwardly smirking child in all his cute wrath. "Nate, isn't there something else you'd rather be doing than inflicting a guilt-trip on me?!"

"… … Is that a trick question?" The silver-haired four-year-old tilted his head to the side, twirling a piece of silvery-white hair against his forefinger.

Raito sweat dropped.

Sometimes, he actually wondered if both his son and lover were really related in some way…

But then that got creepy to think about.

Raito hummed for a moment.

Then again…

"Hey Raito, guess what! Your hunch was right! Nate and Ryuuzaki are actually half-brothers from different mothers!" Matsuda bellowed as he barreled within the room, papers clutched within his hand.

Everyone shifted awkwardly within the room.

"So does that mean that Ryuuzaki is technically both Nate's brother and father?" Mihael whispered as he clutched dearly onto his chocolate for moral support.

Mail blinked in astonishment, Gameboy practically falling out of his hand for once.

THUMP!

Raito had a different reaction altogether.

"Oh my God, Dad, are you ok?!"

"… … …I think he's out cold." The blonde stated as he kicked his easily riled father in the stomach, watching in glee as the older man's body simply flopped against the hardwood floor.

Nate and L glared at each other as they both spoke simultaneously, pointing opposite fingers in blame.

"This is all your fault."

Nope, still creepy to think about.

"To you, I suppose it would be." Raito sighed as he stood up from his stool and placed his hands on his hips. "What do you want to play then, Nate? And remember, I don't have much time to spare, so-"

"Yes, I know," Nate recited as he grabbed one of his father's hands and pulled him out of the room. "You have much to do and no time to do it in. I promise not to keep daddy away from his work for too long."

"You mean like how you promised me the same thing when you had that sudden spontaneous urge for a Lego-marathon?" Raito dryly stated as Nate hid his burning cheeks away from the older man's analytical gaze. "How long did that stint last, by the way?"

"… … … … Three days, five hours, thirty-seven minutes and 14 seconds."

"Yeah. Exactly."

"If it makes daddy feel better, I do not wish to play with any Lego's at this present time." Nate blandly stated as he opened his door, not seeing his father sweat drop behind him. "Hm… I think I would like to play with my cars today."

"Alright…"

"And quite possibly my toy soldiers."

"If you want to, but…"

"And my stuffed bears."

Eye twitch.

"Nate…"

"Do you think we should play with the green building blocks or the blue? Though the red look tempting to play with as well…"

Eye twitch.

"Nate…"

"I would like to play dress-up as well. Do you think we will be able to get Mihael to volunteer to shoulder on the pink dress once more?"

"Na-Well… maybe. Do you still have the pictures I gave you?"

"Yes."

"We'll work on that later, then. But first, please, just pick what you want to play with so that I can get back to work." Raito blinked as Nate then plopped himself onto the floor, practically hauling him down with him as he still held his sleeve within his grasp. Picking up the cars scattered in various directions (The boy really needed to learn the art of cleaning up after himself much like someone else Raito knew very well…), he began to make 'vroom' noises, apparently going off into his own world once again.

Raito picked up a car and smiled as Nate crashed it against his own, making booming noises as well. Letting his mind drift for the time being, the 25-year-old artist let the boy run the show. Without even noticing, the older man's back began to relax as the comforting sounds of his son's playing overlapped his worrying mind, leaving him in a dazed sort of contentment.

"Daddy?" Nate suddenly spoke up as both hot red and yellow cars smashed against each other, leaving Raito to wonder just why his son was so inwardly violent. "Is something the matter?"

"No." Was the automatic answer out of Raito's mouth as both cars crashed once more, making the older of the two wince at the harsh sound of plastic meeting plastic. "Work just has me stressed out, is all."

"Hm…" The tiny boy glanced up at his father, large onyx orbs widening in response. "Daddy can't tell the people at the gallery that he needs more time?"

"I'm afraid life just doesn't work out that way, son." Raito grinned as Nate then picked up a toy crane and attempted to pick up one of the toy cars with it. "If it did, God knows I would be a lot happier than I am now."

"And we would hear less noises resonating from both yours and L's room at night? At times, it seems as if the both of you are killing each other whilst we're sleeping."

Raito felt his cheeks flush a bright magenta.

"Err… yeah. That's absolutely right. Totally… less… noises…"

'Note to self; get a bigger place with thicker walls…'

"I think daddy is trying to avoid spending time together as a family."

CRASH!

"Damn it!" Raito clutched as his fingers as the toy cars fell out of his hands, landing on the floor with a small 'clack'. "How the hell does this only happen to me?"

Nate blinked as he stared at the bruise now encompassing his father's middle and forefinger. "That is a good question…"

"And I don't know where you're getting all that crap from, Nate." The caramel-eyed artist mumbled as he cradled his hand close to his chest. "I'm always at home with all of you."

"Locked in your room."

"I play with you whenever you want!"

"After being coerced to."

"I don't complain about being here."

"…"

Raito sweat dropped.

"All the time..."

"…"

Ouch.

That one kind of stung.

"Ok, I see your point on the whole avoidance issue…" Raito spoke slowly, carefully bringing down his abused hand as his son crept closer to him. "But I've just been especially busy lately, and-"

"Daddy, I love you." Nate suddenly stated, cutting Raito off before he could finish his sentence.

Raito stared at the boy now hugging his waist.

Nate stared back, cutely smiling up at his father.

Raito could slowly feel his resolve crumble underneath him as the adorableness of it all made him want to grab the small child and cuddle him for what he was worth.

'Double note to self; Nate's cuteness is potentially lethal when taken in large doses…'

"I…"

"Love you so much, daddy…"

If possible, Nate's eyes became impossibly larger as they glistened.

'What the fucking hell…'

"You are absolutely evil, you know that?"

Nate merely grinned in response.

"I love you, daddy."

"Hmph. I'm sure you do now…"

"What do you think they're doing up there?" Mail threw one of L's cupcakes at Mihael whilst the older man wasn't looking, still glancing down at the gaming device within his hands.

"Ow! You fucking bastard! How the hell should I know?!" Mihael glared at the redhead, throwing the cupcake back at him as it harmlessly bounced off the gamer's head and landed onto the ground. "What do you think, L?"

"Hm…" L stared at the canvas in front of him. "Pie?"

"…"

"…"

"What?"

"You are no longer to be included in any of our future discussions, L." Mail declared quite seriously, glancing over his shoulder and staring at the giant pie enveloping the older man's canvas.

"I second that notion." The blonde stated as he got back to his book, pretending he had never even turned his head to begin with before perking up once again. "Unless it's chocolate pie?"

"Strawberry..." The older man felt his mouth water at the thought of the scrumptious treat.

"Yeah, forget it." Mihael rolled his eyes. "You've just been voted off the island, L."

"Let us see if either of you get any of my delicious pie later…" L muttered as he continued to paint, thoughts of delicious pie still dancing in the back of his mind.

Mail rolled his eyes, goggled-covered eyes still on his game.

"Dude, seriously… you need to lay off the pie."

"I didn't think it needed to be said." Mihael retorted as he turned his attention back to the other boy within the room.

"Oh, it needs to be said." The redhead mumbled. "And it needs to be said now.

"Pie's Anonymous?"

"Nah, that's too sexy for somebody L…"

"Too sexy indeed…"

L felt his eye twitch, paint brush ready to break within his hand.

"Don't make me take away your games and chocolate."

"Yes sir." Both boys cried simultaneously before going back to their aforementioned tasks.

L simply smirked in satisfaction.

It was good being in charge.

"And that's it."

"That's it?"

"That's it."

Nate stared up at his father.

Raito stared down at his son.

"Father…"

"Yes son?"

"You have daddy issues."

"I know, Nate. I know."

"Why would father think such a thing about himself anyways? You are the farthest thing from a horrible father that I can think of." The silver-haired child chided as he closed his eyes, head leaning on top of Raito's thigh as he yawned sleepily. "Raito is an absolutely wonderful father…"

Raito gave a cynical smile as he stroked his young son's hair, throwing his own father's words into the back of his mind.

"No reason…" Raito muttered as he heard a crash reverberate from downstairs, and the familiar screeches of Mihael and Mail laughing uncontrollably as Nate twitched within his lap. "No reason at all…"

'With an insane family like this, who needs insecurities?'

Raito knew that he should probably get back to work and put Nate in his bed for a nap, but after so long without really interacting with any of them…

The 25-year-old smiled as he caressed the hair out of the small child's closed eyes.

He supposed work could wait just the once.

Inescapable: Inevitable

L didn't know what to make of the strange silence emanating within his usually bustling home.

Dropping his bag onto the floor and toeing out of his extremely uncomfortable shoes, L slowly closed the door behind him. He was expecting a barrage of children to come flashing to him in a gaggle of groping hands and wide innocent eyes, all wondering just how his day had been, who he had seen, and if they could see the new design specs he had most probably just created for another building coming to creation.

The panda-eyed insomniac was for once disappointed that this was not the case.

Yet the complete silence permeating throughout their home was what most alarming to the architect in question. Instead of calling out his children's names, L simply grabbed his bag off the floor and placed it on one of the chairs pushed up the dining room table as he bypassed the rather spacious room and silently padded his way towards the stairs.

The stifling quiet surrounding the household began to crawl up his bones as L grasped the railing and looked around. There was nothing that suggested any foul-play whatsoever, but there was a feeling stirring deep within the man's gut that refused to calm itself as the pale architect took his first step up the whirling staircase within his home.

"Raito…" The 31-year-old whispered to himself as he slowly walked up the stairs, the feeling of anxiety steadily growing within the back of his mind, accompanying the distress rather winningly.

L's soft voice seemed to echo off the walls of the hallway as he reached the top step, eyeing the children's rooms one by one.

Yet all the doors were closed.

That was not right.

Raito hated it when he wasn't able to immediately see what their kids were doing. Though they were hellions walking, so he really couldn't blame his lover's anxiousness when it came to their activities…

Carefully opening the first door on his right side, L peered inside the deathly white room, which belonged solely to the smallest of the three; Nate. His eyes widened at the nearly pristine sight, as neither child nor his ever present toys were stacked in the middle of the room. The brightly-lit room was completely vacant, leaving no sign of anyone having been there at all. K

The alarm bells began to ring even louder in the older man's ears.

Slowing his shuffled steps, L repeated the same process with his two son's other rooms, finding both to be as empty as Nate's. Checking his watch, L blinked down at the time, quite sure he wasn't hallucinating just yet.

With nothing to go on, L only had one last place to look.

Wide dark eyes narrowed as the older man silently straightened his back and wearily glanced at both his and Raito's door. A pale hand gripped the knob as L carefully twisted it to the right, opening the door with as much trepidation as possible.

L was met with nothing more than silence and a completely empty room.

A perplexed expression overcame the older man's face as he took in the rather large master bedroom, neither hide nor hair of his lover appearing forthright. Hand still on the knob, the older man took a small step forward, eyes scanning every speck of space within both his and Raito's bedroom-

Click.

When the steely feel of cold metal met the back of the pale architect's neck, pressing itself almost intimately against L's skin.

"You look lost…"

L almost flinched at the slithery calm voice invading his ears, the recognizable tone of faux-tranquility taking him almost completely off-guard as he relinquished his normally slightly slouched position and stood ramrod-straight.

"Or maybe you're just looking for something?"

The hidden smirk behind the man's voice was loud and clear, letting L know that he knew something that L himself didn't.

This was not good.

The beginnings of anxiousness that had first formed when the gangly architect had walked into his nearly empty home evolved into heavy tendrils of panic, overriding every other emotion building up within the back of L's mind.

"Hm… you're not answering, Lawliet…"

"I didn't think you wished for me to do so." L answered slowly as the cold barrel of the gun held against the back of his neck lowered just a fraction, though that did little to calm the growing tendrils of anxiety eating at the 31-year-old's insides. "What have you done to my family, B?"

The obscured man gave a snorting laugh as the gun was once again pressed against L's neck once more, the deranged giggle echoing within the empty room as L fought the urge to clench his fists.

"Your family, L? Those people weren't your family…" The man chuckled once again as the gun was lowered completely, making L more frightened internally than relieved. "Aren't you done playing pretend now?"

L said nothing as he refused to turn around, eyes closing in veiled anger.

"What have you done to my family?"

At the reiterated question, the severity of the situation seemed to weigh all the more heavily in L's mind as a million thoughts ran through his psyche all at once. Unanswered questions, unforeseen situations and irrevocably gruesome scenes seemed to re-play through the cinematic screen within his mind as L tried to calm himself and focus on the situation at hand.

"I killed them."

L felt his heart drop to his feet at the words.

"First, I started with the three boys…"

'No…'

"The big-mouth blonde seemed to be the most excitable about dying…"

'Stop it…'

"So I was good enough to shut him up first."

'Stop talking… stop talking… stop talking…'

"Then the redhead got in the way. Let me tell you, he was a feisty one too-"

'Why won't you stop talking…?'

"But a bullet hole to the head'll pretty much shut anybody up."

'Oh God, my children…'

"Then there was the quiet little bastard… kind of reminded me of you, actually."

'Mihael… Mail…'

"He was extra fun to get rid of, ya know. Barely even made a squeak as I popped one right in his face and chest."

'Nate…'

"But you know who I had the most fun with?"

'Oh God, no.'

"Please, stop…" Came the uncharacteristically subdued voice as L lowered his head, eyes beginning to shimmer with unshed tears. "I can't…"

"He was so pretty, Lawliet. Where did you get him by the way?" A cold hand ruffled L's hair as he stumbled away from the touch, not willing to look at the man now standing barely a couple feet away from him. "Maybe I'll get one for myself, huh? He looked like he was quite the boy-toy."

"Don't. You. Dare…" L felt his hands begin to shake as the carbon copy of himself slouched forward, smirking out of the corner of the architect's eye. "Where are they and what have you done to them?"

"I just told you…" B swung the gun within his hands rather playfully, the small grin perched upon his face dripping with maliciousness. "They are gone…"

"Really?" L stalled for a moment, taking in the man's presence. "Then where is the blood that is supposed to be on your clothes?"

B's grin stretched out even further across his face as he faced his former lover completely, shaggy obsidian locks overrunning his macabre gaze.

"Caught me."

Staring eye to eye in front of the man who had caused his significant other to be hospitalized and almost completely brain-dead all those months, L could only imagine the terror Raito must have felt at having to look this man in the face; seeing only a barrel of a gun and feeling only the stinging cold behind his own neck that the brunette had admitted to remembering most vividly.

The urge to find his lover grew all the more unbearable.

"Those little brats managed to get out of here before I could get my hands on them," B yawned as he kept a careless hold over the gun still held within his hand. "Lucky for them, too. But your little boyfriend, however, really wasn't so lucky Law-liet… Really, you should take better care of your things than that!"

L kept quiet as B took another step towards his direction, smile still completely intact.

"He really was pretty, L…"

"Ngh…"

Raito hazily blinked as he coughed, specks of red falling from his lips as an unimaginable pain erupted from all of sides of his body. His face felt unbearably numb as a horrible ache resonated from the back of the 24-year-old's cranium, wincing as a lifted a hand and felt the split with his bruised fingers clinging with coagulating blood.

The pools of the dark brown substance were now drying underneath his cut up torso and legs, feeling itchy against the lawyer's skin and only amplifying the throbbing bursts of pain pounding against both his head and his limbs.

The familiar slight darkness of his own basement met Raito's disoriented gaze as he attempted to carefully sit up-

"Fuck!"

Only to then fall back with a grimace of pain. His abdomen absolutely felt on fire, as Raito attempted to catch his breath. The hitching in his breathing alerted him to his lungs and ribs, which felt… off. Slowly brushing his fingertips down his sides, the uneven feel of his bones made him slightly sick to the auburn-haired man's stomach.

Carefully lifting himself up with one arm over his torso and the other leaning against the floor in support, Raito ignored the stabbing pain cutting both his legs and midsection and slowly got to his feet. The feeling of light-headedness caught the beaten-up young man off-guard for a moment before stumbling back in an attempt to regain his poor balance.

'L…'

With a strain that Raito was quite sure he had never felt before in his life, Raito took one small step towards the stairs towering over him, already feeling the pain before even trying.

'I won't let him get you too.'

"I don't think you'll find him so pretty anymore, though…"

L lowered his head, not able to even look up into those maniacal eyes so full of morbid glee.

"What do you want with me?"

B smiled once more, this grin much more sinister than the last.

Raito cringed as the door opened with a slight creak, causing him to practically dive headfirst onto the ceramic tiling of their home. With leaded feet and an equally throbbing head, Raito held onto the knob connected to the door. The kitchen was practically pristine, except for a slight smudge of red against the counter and a bright red cloth hanging off the edge of the sink…

'Bastard.' Raito thought in a daze as moved his hand from the door to the wall, keeping himself as steady as possible. As the exhausted young man slumped his way out of the kitchen, mumblings of not one but two voices along with the reverberating creeks echoing against the ceiling began to resonate from the stairs in front of him, alerting Raito of another presence within his home.

'Oh God no…'

The thrum of adrenaline began to pump arduously through Raito's veins as he concentrated solely on the sounds and the pounding of feet becoming surreptitiously louder than before.

"What don't I want to do with you, would be the better question…" B slithered as he crept even closer to the almost twin-like man across from him. "How long do you think we have before those kids of yours come back with their cute old grandpa…?"

L didn't even twitch as he stared at a spot just above the deranged stalker's head, paying attention to the words without seeming to.

"Or how much time do you think your little lover-boy has before the blood loss becomes a little too much?"

Once again, L felt his insides tighten as he tried to outthink his way out of this situation without becoming too hurt in the process. B was still too far away to subdue with force, and tackling him would only spurt an even more dangerous situation with that handgun still hanging off his fingers. Of course, if L managed to time it just right…

Deep halted breaths enveloped the hallway as Raito practically heaved himself up the last step, the piercing stabs of pain beginning to heavily burn against his side and chest. Molten amber eyes watered as the man gripped the wall, the words now becoming audible outside the hallway.

"I don't think you'll find him so pretty anymore, though…"

Raito inwardly gagged at the condescending whisper resonating from the open door down the hallway, the throbbing anger clogging up his throat as his fist clenched against the wall.

"What do you want with me?"

The bedraggled auburn-haired man held his breath as h listened to the rest of the conversation, making sure to keep his steps as silent as possible. Now that he was sure that L was in that room with that psycho…

"What don't I want to do with you, would be the better question… How long do you think we have before those kids of yours come back with their cute old grandpa…?"

Raito pressed himself up against the wall, sneering at the implication. His head felt as if he were swimming underneath water and had yet to pull up for air. His body was bruised and battered beyond belief, along with the streams of blood still dripping off from the multiple stinging cuts decorating his face and torso, and his chest felt as if it were on fire, but Raito would be damned if a man like this threatened the person he not only shared his life with, but was willing to die for.

You only got a person who made you feel so free once, maybe twice in a lifetime.

"Or how much time do you think your little lover-boy has before the blood loss becomes a little too much?"

The 24-year-old sighed as he readied himself, counting down internally from five to one.

What he was about to do…

Was going to hurt like fuck.

Later on, both men would only remember a massive blur of bodies and bullets once the thrum of adrenaline and rushing of blood had finally calmed.

Though in truth, it had been a bit more complex than just that.

L felt his muscles tense for a moment, readying to spring forward as B looked off towards the door in suspiciousness. Before either man could react, a blur of white, red and mahogany brown came rushing through the open door, aiming solely at the man still gripping onto the gun.

It took barely a handful of seconds for B to pull the trigger.

It took even less for Raito to punch him in the face.

By the time L had come out of his self-induced shock, B had managed to kick Raito in the ribs, which erupted a barrage of sharp wheezing along with more blood being spilt out of the younger man's mouth. Stumbling off the L look-alike, Raito felt his eyes widened as the barrel of the gun was shoved into his face, bringing back sensations long forgotten.

Cold.

Everything was cold.

Consciousness lost, Raito could only stare as B once again began to pull the trigger.

And wet.

Sticky and wet.

Why couldn't he see?

Why was it so…

"RAITO!"

Cold?

Blood seeped onto his hands as Raito blinked.

"Raito…"

Raito didn't hear B drop the gun.

"I…"

The caramel colored gaze watered as L slumped over his lap, white shirt completely staining red.

"You idiot." Raito rasped as the echoing footsteps stumbled back before running out of the room. "You fucking idiot."

L smiled as his hand clenched his chest.

"But I am Raito-kun's idiot… so that makes it alright."

Neither man flinched as the sounds of screams and whirling sirens echoed from outside, both too caught up in the other gazes as the pools of blood surrounding them only grew in vigor.

"Daddy?! Are you ok?! What's going on?!"

"Dad?!"

"Father?!"

"L?! Raito?!"

The chorus of voices faded into the familiar darkness both L and Raito knew so well as both men leaned back against each other and shut their eyes.

Fate had never been truly kind to them until now.

Unavoidable: Inevitable

"Raito-kun?"

The 21-year-old college student nearly dropped the pieces of paper within his hands as he cautiously looked up into his lover's eyes.

"What…" L moved from his spot on the couch and crouched closer to the boy who seemed to be in another world, tears brimming from the corners of his eyes. "What has Raito-kun so distressed about the letter?"

"You really want to know?" Raito asked hesitantly, placing the pieces of paper upon the table as he did so.

"No." The dark-haired professor answered easily enough, shifting his feet on top of the cushions of the couch as L squelched his toes against the rough leathery fabric. "But I do not wish to be oblivious to Raito-kun's obvious distress in concerns to me either. So I suppose I have no other choice than to read the letter alongside Raito-kun."

"I don't think you should read it if it's just because of me." Raito whispered as he leaned back against the couch, shutting his cinnamon-brown eyes in exhaustion. "If you don't want to read it, then don't."

"Raito-kun does not have to get snippy." L felt his lips pull into a frown as Raito turned away from him, almond shaped eyes still glistening mysteriously as they snapped open into a strictly narrow glare. "I… suppose that the letter has something that Raito-kun wishes that I read if he is purposely goading me to read it."

Raito said nothing more as he locked sights with his lover, silently conveying the message with just his eyes. With trembling hands (though L would never admit that his hands were trembling, per se) the older man gently picked up what looked to be a letter and lifted it to his own gaze, giving Raito one last glance before turning his attention back to the pristine paper between his pale fingers.

At the first line, L already felt the headache thrumming against his temples intensify in anticipation.

To my one and only son, Lawliet…

I'm so sorry.

I know that's probably the last thing you ever expected to hear from me, but it's all I can think of to say at the moment, Lawliet. You probably don't believe me, since you gained all the cynicism that I once held so dear close to your own chest as well. But I am, son. I truly from the bottom of my heart am sorry.

You must be wondering what an old man like me is doing reminiscing about things he can't change and apologizing for things that he can never truly make amends for. It would be so cliché to say that after years and years of ruthless abandonment, that now would be the time for regret. I want to say that I'm truly seeing the light now after so long of dismissing both you and your mother…

But that would be a lie.

I know you won't be here for my dying day but this truth has to be set free. I continuously lied to you and your mother and left you both without any sort of real reason to cling to as I walked out of both of your lives. I think in the end, your mother understood, even if she refused to acknowledge she did so. And in that, I only have myself to blame as well.

It's why I went to her funeral and tortured myself with the sight of her dead body.

It's why I watched you both silently over the years and secretly funded your schooling when you refused to come to me.

It's why I'm writing this letter, hoping that for at least one moment, you'll find it within yourself to not feel that unerring hate that no doubt thrives within you to this day.

I didn't wish to leave either of you. You may not believe it, but it is true. I tried my very hardest to keep us together; to keep your mother and I's marriage together, in hopes of one day breaking apart from my own family, which seemed destined to abhor both you and your mother's existence.

You do not remember, as you were still but a baby, yet I can still see the fresh tears clinging to your mother's eyes as she was constantly rejected by my parents and siblings. The silent sobs that would shake her body at night as the cruel words and ugly looks burned her down to her core, leaving nothing but a shell of who your mother once was.

I did not realize just how much the taunts and horrid looks continually affected her until one day I found her… doing horrible things to herself. I do not wish to say, but it sickens me to this day to remember just what it was I found her doing within that bathroom. In that moment, as I held her sobbing form close to my chest, I knew that I could not subject her to this for the rest of her life.

Not when both she and our son deserved so much better.

It killed me to leave the both of you, especially on such horrible terms, but I knew of no other way to let Mikomi go without her chasing after me. Your mother was an indomitable spirit despite her hidden soft interior and refused to let anyone tell her she couldn't do something or fight for what she believed in. Mikomi defied all odds and punished herself in order to get what she wanted at all costs much like yourself Lawliet. But I couldn't watch her suffer anymore; not for someone like myself who never even deserved such devotion to begin with.

So I threw in the towel and gave into the pressure, knowing that both of you would hate me all the more for it. Yet it was a small price to pay to not have to watch my wife slowly wither away at the hands of my 'family'. I would gladly have you hate me if it meant being able to bring your mother back and giving her the happiness she truly deserved, even if it was with another.

That day in her funeral when you spoke so harshly to me, it was then that I realized that I had doomed her from the start, and your hatred was completely founded in so many ways. Lawliet, you must realize that though I have done many horrible things in my life; though I will continue to do so many horrible things until my dying day, I have never for one moment stopped loving either you or your mother…

And this ring… the ring your mother gave to me the day I gave her that matching necklace she kept so close to her heart… is testament of this fact. I couldn't throw it away, just as I could not truly throw away the love I held for either of you. So now, if you still feel the need to hate me with every fiber of your being, hate me only for the truth.

It's the only thing I can ask of you, Lawliet.

Forever your father, even if not wanted-

Lawliet L Sr.

L stared down at the crisp papers within his hand, the neat creases the only flaw against the smooth planes of creamy white and scrawling of black ink. The impulse to destroy such faux perfection weighed heavily on the professor's mind before he simply let the fragile pieces of paper fall from his fingers, dark eyes finding their way back to the angelic looking brunette who stared at him with enquiring eyes.

"It makes no difference to me." L stated before standing up and shoving the necklace now threaded around his wrist into his pocket. "This does not change anything, Raito-kun."

"Doesn't it?" The now soft-spoken student countered, knowing that underneath the calm façade lay a man who honestly did not know just how to deal with the information he had then now been given. "I mean, if he's telling the truth…"

"He was a complete idiot who thought leaving his family would be better than trying to hold onto what we could have been." The beginnings of L's outer calm began to crack as his ebony eyes narrowed, voice tinged with bitterness. "That man was a spoiled child that could not let go of his money long enough to actually see that my mother and I could have been more than a sufficient replacement for his supposedly horrid parents and siblings…"

"I think it sounds a bit more complicated than that, L." Raito felt the hostility pouring out of his lover's gaze as he attempted to defend a man he did not even know. But the brunette knew this was not about L's father; at least, not completely. "I just think that if you tried to talk to him, maybe you'll be able to find out just a bit more about yourself and maybe even your mother. He obvious knows things that could give you some closure, and damn it, L, whether you want to admit it or not, he's your goddamn fathe-"

"I will ask Raito-kun now to halt in his attempt to connect myself to that man in any way, shape or form." Came the suddenly deathly quiet voice, pale face hidden beneath a curtain of charcoal hair. "He is and has always been nothing to me."

Raito sighed before standing up, knowing when to stop before things got too far. As he stretched his arms up into the air, obsidian orbs finally caught his attention, locking the 21-year-old into another age-old staring contest that he honestly did not wish to be a part of.

"You're going to regret not speaking with him." Raito finally whispered before letting his appendages fall to his side. "Even more so than if you did speak with him. Remember that, L. Don't make the same mistakes he made."

L said nothing as Raito grabbed his coat and left the dark-haired professor to his own thoughts, knowing that trying to get the older man to speak at this point would be null and void.

Dark eyes closed as L huddled his knees closer to his chest, laying his head down against the pulled up joints.

'What am I supposed to do?'

"It's not about fighting for what we think is right…"

L stared up at his mother as she smiled, eyes bright against the backdrop of the setting sun hitting their open window.

"It's about what we can do with what's wrong in this world; how we can change and become something entirely new."

The small boy smiled as his mother finished putting the last dish in the cabinet, drying her diminutive hands with the small towel lying next to her.

"But then again, I suppose it's easy to say pretty things you think that people want to hear, Lawliet."

Laying her soft palm down against the minute boy's head, L closed his eyes and held onto the warmth of his mother's supple skin against his own.

"It's when you have to stand up and prove such things that you realize just what it takes to actually live your life. Something I learned the hard way, mind you."

The small child blinked as his mother's voice seemed to echo within his ears uncomfortably, eyes completely out of focus as he attempted to catch a glimpse at her now blurry face.

"Promise me you won't doubt yourself, Lawliet. Not now, not ever…"

Raito grumbled to himself as the sound of his home phone awoke him from his land of dreams, wondering why the world seemed so against letting him get at least one full night of sleep.

Staring up at the bland white ceiling of his new apartment, the brunette's eyebrow twitched at the erupting clash of rings against the peaceful silence that had at one time completely settled over his apartment.

'Who could be calling at this hour?' Raito thought sardonically to himself as he pulled himself out of bed and slumped over to the phone which lay on his desk, barely charged. 'It's not like I have some overly-possessive older boyfriend who doesn't know that nighttime is for sleep… Oh wait! I do!'

"Hello?" Raito groggily answered, raking a hand through his disheveled locks as he did so.

"Raito-kun…" L voice seemed to stagger on the phone as his usually vague monotone slipped from the owner's tone. "I must ask you a very dire question that must be answered promptly."

"Yes?" The normally snappy brunette caught himself before he could say something derogatory; the feeling of helplessness within his lover's voice conveyed discreetly by the low lilt within L's tone of voice. "What is it, L?"

"… How does Raito-kun feel about England this time of year?"

The 21-year-old nearly dropped the phone in shock before a small grin quirked up the sides of his lips.

"I guess it depends on the occasion, now doesn't it…"

And Raito knew in that one moment that this was just one more battle he had won in the never-ending war that came with courting L Lawliet.

Not that he minded.

Not one bit.

50. Inevitable: Incapable of being prevented or evaded.

"You're an asshole, you know that?"

"Raito-kun has already informed me of this, thank you."

"Don't worry, I'm just re-affirming the fact. I already am quite sure I've let you know of your asshole-status before this."

"Of course, Raito-kun, of course."

"… … Asshole."

L sighed as he looked away from the computer in front of him, chain jingling in the process. "Is Raito-kun still upset about the other night?"

Raito pouted adorably. (To L, anyway)

Raito himself would more or less call it a scornful scowl.

L let the boy believe whatever it is he wanted to as long as it got him to shut up for more than five seconds at a time.

"What do you think, you ass?"

"It is not as if I did anything I wouldn't have normally had done, Raito-kun." The dark-haired detective replied innocent, twirling the lollipop within his mouth to hide the semi-smirk threatening to split between his lips.

"You surprised attacked me with the camera's still on!" Teenage prodigy Raito definitely was, but when it came to reigning in his temper, he definitely needed more efficiency. At least, when it came to demonic insomniacs in love with both cake and declaring themselves the sole bringer of Justice (with a capital 'J' because L was just that damn weird).

"I already told Raito-kun that I am the only one who watches these feeds-"

"And then you had us watch it together whilst forcefully tying me to the bed after slipping me a damn roofie!"

"… … … Did Raito-kun not enjoy that part?"

The venomous glare set on Raito's face gave away his answer plain and clear.

"Enjoy which part, L? Do you mean the part where I got rope burn on my arms and chest, or the part where Watari walked in on us whilst we were both still in the middle of our 'session'? Or how about how I threw up all over you and you STILL wanted to have sex with me?!"

"Raito-kun can be very persuasive when he wants to be." L nodded as he absently crunched into his lollipop. "Especially when he is lacking in comprehension and can barely understand a word that is being said to him and likewise."

Raito stared.

"You… are sick in so many ways." The younger of the two proclaimed before flopping onto the bed, back facing his arch-nemesis/really-kinky-lover.

"And yet Raito-kun sleeps with me anyway." The panda-eyed detective hummed as he felt more than saw the glare shot at him before the bed shifted once more.

The clicking of keys once again enveloped the silence of the room as Raito felt his lips twitch upwards. Yes, L was a weird pervert who honestly had no social decency whatsoever. Yes, Raito was quite possibly the most neurotic and overly obsessive-compulsive teenage nervous wreck just waiting to happen. But somehow, that worked for them.

"Chances of Raito-kun being Kira after directly challenging my authority and insulting both my interests and mental state of mind, 46 percent."

Raito felt his eye tick in irritation.

Or maybe not.

Who knew what tomorrow had to tell, after all.

Especially when strangling the person you were tied to was oh-so-tempting…

PILLOW SLAM!

Raito sighed as he snuggled within the blankets once more, smirking at the visual image of the lump now resting on top of his lover's head along with the broken laptop now sprawled out against the floor.

Yes, things had been destined to be a runaround for the both of them from the start.

Disclaimer: My one and only disclaimer for this entire fic. No, I don't own Death Note. XP

In lieu of the breaking of chapters within this chapter, I think an AN for each universe is in order before some of you attempt to string me on a line. Yay.

1st One-shot (Orphan A/U): Before anyone goes 'But that didn't really conclude anything!', there is a reason for. The orphan universe is more complex than this series of drabbles actually suggests, and you don't really feel the impact from the changes of characterization in the small snippets of this story that I give you. I may write a full-length story based on the orphan universe in the future, but for right now, I just don't have the time to really develop a storyline like that... which kind of makes me sad, but still. Truth hurts. Lol!

2nd One-shot (Artist A/U): All of you should know why I left it as such a cliffhanger, as most of the people who read this story have read 'Discordant Harmony' (and should totally check out the sequel, 'The Fundamentals of Family', out right now! ((shameless plug))). You are getting a small peak at the conflict of that story if you know where to look, so check out for that as well. Yay for this universe!

3rd One-shot: (Coma A/U): I've left so much open for interpretation in this universe, it kind of kills me inside. Lol! I think this series is going to stay a one-shot series, but if I do do another collection of one-shots or decide to continue this one once again, I wouldn't be opposed to continuing on with this universe that way. Did BB get caught? How badly are Raito and L hurt? How did the police get there so fast? What did B actually do to Raito? The kids, what about the kids?! Lol! I'm so mean.

4th One-shot: (Professor A/U): I love this universe. I have always loved this universe. I don't think I could ever be able to STOP loving this universe. The first universe I decided to continue on, which grew only made it grow on me even more. Yay. XD This is one that also is ended ambiguiously, but once again, there is a reason for that. I am in debate on whether in the future I want to write a story beginning from when they met, or sometime after their relationship begins and expanding from there, or just writing a super long one-shot about what happens once they get to England and what the hell happens there. Right now, I'm more leaning towards the one-shot. Lol!

Whoo! For the last one-shot, I don't think a note is necessary. Though it is an extension of another one-shot within this series... hm. That actually gives me an idea. The first person to tell me what chapter the last one-shot is connected to will get a one-shot dedicated to their name (and can choose the premise as well, as long as it is not a part of any of these universes!). I want to see how many people caught the hints I placed within the last one-shot and if anyone can remember that far back! ((hint))

Have you guys gotten the connection the one-shots have altogether, though? If you haven't... I think the words I used in this chapter hammer it down heavy enough for you. Lol! Many thank you's to Kitsune55 for beta-ing despite her super-busy-ness. She's that awesome people (though I've said that before, so if you haven't caught the hint yet, catch it now. XD), and I hope you enjoyed the end of the my first piece of work within the DN fandom. ((sniffles)) I'm fine... just fine... Just give me a second.. ((bawls)) Thanks for reading!