Title: A Paparazzi Love Story

Disclaimer: Should read DeathNote by Tsugumi Ohba (writer) and Takeshi Obata (artist) before reading this drabble.

Rating: PG for adult conversations and hints of sexually suggestive material

Epilogue: The Heart of Everything

Light raced around the room, picking up clothes, towels and potentially everything they owned tossed here and there by L, Misa and Matsuda. After little over a year living with the three most slovenly individuals on the face of the earth, the young man had learned he indeed was the "mother" in the bizarre living arrangement the four now found themselves in.

Even though, L had doubted he would ever see the former two Kiras resume their former mass-murdering identities, he was not willing to stake anyone else's life upon it. Meaning, Misa had to be monitored every moment of her life as well. Matsuda had willingly stepped in to take that role, but as her manager and lover, he had his stressed out self pushed to his very limits. In a fit of graciousness of insane proportions, L had agreed to be a part of Misa's entourage, although a hidden part. Light, on the other hand, had been very much in the public's eye and the paparazzi had had a field day, especially when Light seemingly appeared wherever Misa had for the past year. Thoroughly disgusted with his roommates' lack of tidiness and their jibes made at his expense ever day since the Sun had begun following Misa's movements, Light felt he had taken the brunt of it all.

"Light, they are at it again," Misa called from the kitchen.

The agitated male stopped cleaning the connected suites they occupied and walked into the shared kitchen between the rooms. Matsuda had finally overcome his fear of L and Light and openly defied them on a regular basis lately. Neither of the two men found it amusing, now that it had become a regular annoyance for them.

"There's only enough for one bowl," Matsuda complained loudly. "You had two bowls last night! I should get this last little bit."

"Cocoa Pebbles is the only kind I like!" L ranted, exasperatedly. "You can eat any of the others!"

Misa and Light watched as the two grown men fought over the sugar saturated kids cereal.

"Tell me again how you became the world's greatest detective," Light bit out, as he walked towards the two bickering men. He grabbed the cereal box, pulled the toy out and handed it to Matsuda. "Here, this is the only reason you eat this cereal, isn't it?"

The other man had the decency to look slightly apologetic before grabbing the toy. "They're collectables!" He tried to justify his childish behavior, but when Light simply stared at him unimpressed, he walked off. Misa followed him, shaking her head and keeping her laughter silent until they entered their suite. She had no problem handling Matsuda on her own.

The younger man turned all his attention on the still scowling older man. He was watching the swinging kitchen door with something akin to hatred.

"Seriously, L, must everything be a fight with you?" Light questioned irritatedly, grabbing a bowl and pouring the cereal in it for his distracted lover.

"No." The older man pouted, finally focusing on the other male left alone with him in the room. "Matsuda grates on my nerves though."

"We need a decent break," Light agreed, pouring milk into the bowl where it immediately turned a dirt-colored brown. "That's disgusting."

"I like it," L said mulishly.

"Eat what you like, just don't be surprised if you die of a heart attack!" Light retorted, suddenly realizing he was sick of being understanding and trying to keep the peace. He stomped out of the room before the lanky detective could get a word in edgewise.

Knowing Light needed some time, L ate his cereal in silence propped up against the music room door frame. He watched, enthralled with how the younger man could lose himself in his music. The boy didn't have any clue how beautifully he played or appeared when he went into his music-induced trance.

The detective waited quietly for his lover to calm down. Eventually, Light would slink back into their shared bedroom and find L waiting for him. He walked away, hearing the close of Liszt's La Campanella, Light's usual finale to his musical moping.

When Light walked into their room a few minutes later, L was walking around the room in his sexy masculine way that let the other male know he was deep in thought. Even though Light had known L's odd mannerisms were just exaggerations of his many eccentricities, sometimes it still threw him off. He liked watching this L—a lot! The man exuded a "jump me" vibe.

The two men stood together in the room for the longest time, just watching each other warily until Light, normally being the first to break, flopped onto the bed. Looking over at a still pacing L, he announced dispiritedly, "I'm bored."

And L heard the "nothing good ever comes of that," that was implied but left unsaid.

"I may be a little resentful and angry too," Light confessed, feeling it would be best to just get everything off his chest since he was talking. "Everyone here expects me to tidy up and keep them on schedule as well as be nice about dealing with them…, My life is back to its meaningless pace."

He knew he had tried as he tucked his hands under the pillow, fluffing it up and elevating it. His chin propped on it, he stared down L, who was making him feel ungrateful, even though the other man simply looked at him thoughtfully.

"You don't have to get defensive, Light." Laying down beside his shame-faced bed companion, L tilted his head so that it rested on the other's shoulder. "You have every right to feel the way you do."

"Not really," Light whispered guiltily, knowing he should be thankful to be alive much less working on cases with L and having as much freedom as he did.

"You have to let the past go," L argued, a finality to his tone that Light hadn't heard before. "I was going to wait and surprise you later, but right now might be better. I've been worrying about how you would take the news."

Light propped himself up further on his elbows, displacing a crown of messy ebony-colored locks. The older man seemed intent on not facing his lover when he spoke, but Light wasn't going to tolerate hiding tactics. "L, look at me, what're you talking about?"

"You…, you know the disc of original music you made for my birthday?" L asked hesitantly, his incriminatory tone damning.

"Yeah, I know it. Considering I made it! For today. As a surprise for your birthday!" Light shot back, confused and hurt that Watari, the only other person who knew of his gift, would have given it away. Now tense, both men glared at each other, desperately willing the other to understand and not over-react.

"Please don't be angry with Watari, he only took liberty of something he has always hoped for one of his own pupils," L quickly clarified. "You have a remarkable musical talent, Light-kun. And you don't even know it!"

"So what?!" Light blurted out, feeling too betrayed to know what to say or argue intelligibly. "What has my talents have to do with anything? I can't do this anymore!" And Light put a pillow over his head, wondering how one lived in the catch 22 he found himself in.

"Well you don't have to anymore," L replied softly. "You're going to be going to New York in a couple of weeks to study at Julliard."

Light froze. Whatever else he had been about to say, didn't register. Nothing did. L was sending him away? He just lay there peeking out at L in shock, deflated, unsure and lonely. He knew nothing good could come of getting into a relationship!

"It's not what you're thinking, Light-kun," L gently said through a smile, watching the display of emotions flit across his lover's face as he processed what he had just been told. "I'm not sending you away because we're done, but because it's something that would be good for you."

"You aren't interested in solving cases. You don't get excited about them except when it means that I'm happy or feeling good about them or when I'm irritated or depressed that they're not going well. You have the brains for it but not the calling. Has no one ever mentioned how amazingly gifted you are? Your music flows naturally and you haven't ever had a lesson. It calms you. It's what you should be doing."

"Your music professors at Julliard can hardly contain their excitement over you. Watari has been fielding questions non-stop about when are you going to arrive, how old you are, have you had any formal training and the list goes on. You probably could demand to live off-campus and they would let you, so long as you showed up every day."

Light perked up at the mention of living off campus. "Why would I need to live off campus?" He questioned, scooting closer to L and maneuvering himself into the man's open arms.

"Hmmm, because I haven't any talent they would be interested in, and I don't plan on sharing you that completely with them," L mockingly answered. "I found you first!"

Light laughed at the possessiveness of L's response. Not surprised by it, and very thankful for it too. He sometimes wondered how compatible he and L were. Their habits and behavior were very unlike each other in extremes, but somehow when it came down to the actual heart of the matter, they always felt and thought the same about it. A strange connectivity only they seemed to share.

"So how did you like your birthday present?" Light asked, tucking into L's tight hug while trying to angle his head to peer into his eyes.

L gazed appreciatively at the man encircled by his embrace. "I loved it." He whispered in the younger man's ear and followed it with sweet, enticing kisses.

LxLxLxLxLxLxLxLxLxL

"Another surprise?" Light intoned exasperatedly. "It's your birthday, L!"

"Not so much a surprise as it is a birthday celebration, mine in fact, that I haven't had a chance to attend in ages," L hurriedly detailed, sorting through a pile of clothing by his bed that he really had no idea if they were clean or not. "Gah, you know it was much easier when Watari just bought me the same outfit in duplicate!"

"Yes, but I prefer my eye-candy with a bit of style," Light teasingly comforted, handing L some clean clothing and picking up the pile and tossing it in a hamper that the older man would have never noticed if he hadn't been watching Light's backside so intently.

"Oh." L grabbed Light and pulled him flush against his chest, letting his hands slide down his lover's back and lower and grinding their hips together. They both moaned, before Light recovered his wits enough to smirk knowingly at the other man.

"Celebration? With whom?"

"I haven't visited them since before the Kira case, and they have planned a party for tonight. We're running late!" L groaned, even as his heated glances and roaming hands slowed them down more.

"Quit feeling me up then and clothe yourself!" Light laughingly scolded. "You're out of luck anyway, my pants are on to stay. For now." He pushed his touchy-feely partner away with another cheeky grin and walked into the bathroom to finish getting ready, leaving L with no other options but to get dressed.

LxLxLxLxLxLxLxLxLxL

Watari grinned when he saw the two men dash for the front door. Light, of course, curious at finally seeing some insight into L's early childhood and L because he knew there would be chocolate cake. The elderly man couldn't help the swell of pride at the sight of the two of them bickering over something stupid as they waited, out of habit, for Watari to open the door for them.

L had changed and become more human and empathetic this past year. His appearance so altered, Watari hoped it didn't scare the majority of the kids to see him like he was now. Even though the change was stylish and attractive, the Wammy children only knew L from his old persona. Oh well. They would adjust.

And if L had become more human, the Yagami boy had become all but unrecognizable. His emotions, feelings displayed for the world to see. His acting skills still remained as precise and intent as L's were, but he rarely used them around L or Watari anymore. It would be interesting to see how he behaved tonight around L's heirs.

The elderly gentleman opened the door, only to have a blur of yellow and black leather fling himself on L. The famous detective nearly buckled under the force and Light had to steady him. "L, L…, you bastard, why haven't you visited us?!" The blonde-haired freak of nature yelled, still clinging to L's neck. "I missed you!"

"You know why, Mello," L replied good-naturedly, forcefully setting the boy back on his own two feet and ambling over to where two other boys stood, fretfully waiting their turns to visit with L. Although, Light noticed, if it had been anyone less intuitive than himself, they would appear the picture of disinterested ease.

"Hello, L," the red-headed breezily welcomed, briefly nodding his head in acknowledgement before returning to his Nintendo DS.

"Zelda?" L asked pleasantly, as if the boy's rude behavior was normal.

"Yup, how'd you guess?"

"Seems to be the game of choice, now-of-days," L responded, ruffling the boy's hair and dislodging his goggles precariously pushed up and causing them to drop around his neck. The boy never budged. He just kept playing.

"You aren't labeling me ordinary, are you?"

"Never," L reverently said, but the teasing lilt of his voice let the boy know he was being mocked.

"Aw, L, that's just not cool, man!" But it was said with just as much ease as L's taunt that Light knew the boy could care less.

"Hello Near," L said, moving on to the last boy in the group.

Light had already taken note of this one. He looked the most like L in his demeanor and in his eyes. Gah! The eyes freaked him out, how eerily they watched and pierced him just like L's did.

Near peeled his gaze off of Light and focused on L.

"Hello L," he replied politely, if not a bit coldly. "Who is he?"

The two other Wammy boys standing directly behind Near and having only eyes for L, now turned their attention to Light. He stepped up and introduced himself before L could say a word.

"Light Yagami. A pleasure to meet you."

Near assessed him intently. Matt and Mello gaped like minnows waiting to be hooked on the fish-line. L stood and waited for the inevitable outcry whenever anyone new made an entrance at Wammy's House. None came. The silence carried and when Watari stepped back into the room to announce that dinner was ready, he found the odd group of boys still surrounded in silence. He quietly walked back out before anyone noticed him. They'd figure it out on their own, somehow.

L felt certain he was going to have to bring a halt to the stand-off. His heirs versus his lover. He almost, almost snickered at the sight. Neither party wishing to give into their curiosity first. But it was Near who broke the silence first.

He slipped his hand into Light's and tugged on the man in an effort to get him to lower himself. Light kneeled in front of the boy. Near came as close to Light as humanly possible and cupped his other hand around Light's ear as he leaned into it to whisper, "I know you were Kira, but I can see why L would want to keep you."

Light gasped. He couldn't help it. This boy was dangerous. Oh, he would make a wonderful L. Light felt his smile creep across his face and as it widened, he glanced up at L's apprehensive face. The detectives' eyes only grew larger at the grin spreading across his lover's face and strangely enough, his youngest heir's face too.

"Oh dear God, you two cannot be friends," L cried, staring in horror at the two most intelligent beings on the planet looking at him with glee.

"C'mon, Light, you can sit next to me," Near commanded, still holding Light's hand and pulling him to the dining room.

L, Mello, and Matt watched, bewildered and a bit frightened as Light and Near walked off. Light angled his head in a forward motion at L when it looked like the man wasn't going to follow. The detective couldn't move quite yet and simply nodded that he'd be there soon.

"Have you ever seen Near like anyone?" Matt asked in shock.

"No," Mello said frankly and not without a bit of awe. "Who the hell is this Yagami guy, L?"

L peered down at his two confounded heirs. "He's my boyfriend."

Mello and Matt were strangely quiet the rest of the night. In fact, in the entire history of their time at Wammy's House, they had never been so polite or well-behaved as that night. Of course, everyone knows there's a calm before any storm!

A/N: My Light in this story has always been frustrated that he was expected to be something that he really is not. I tried to hint at it here and there and the music thing, I threw in blatantly many times. And so this epilogue is the resolution to that character development issue. Also, sorry this piece is so long. Yes, I know the epilogue is suppose to be a short, tidy summation to the story or a lead or hint at a continuation. However, just consider this epilogue a unique specimen, that it is neither of those, but contains elements of both. Who knows? Anyone interested in Matsuda and Misa? Yeah... well Misa will shoot a movie in NY, but she and Matsuda will live across town and L and Light will send Watari to check on them from time-to-time. Truthfully, they won't care anymore. Oh... look there's a true epilogue of sorts ;)

PS... Thanks for reading!