AN: Hey all, 50cal here. Umm, I'm kind of not so good at the whole 'Author's Notes' thing, so I'll keep it brief. Um-kay, some of you might know me from some of my Naruto fiction, and those of you who do know that this is kind of branching out from the usual. Ok, thanks for stopping in!

Happily Ever After

"Mikami," Yagami Light said calmly, turning to face the door to the warehouse, barely cracked open. "Mikami, come in here please."

All eyes, already trained on the steel door, flashed between Light and Near once as the red hatch slid open and a tall man, respectable looking with his jet hair pressed neatly back stepped inside. He stood tall inside the door and carried at his side the leather bound Death Note.

Near turned and glared at Light before turning back to Mikami.

"My God," Matsuda whispered, his voice quivering. "Light," he looked to his long time friend and peer. Is Near going to say it's Light? Is near going to say Light… that Light is Kira. Matsuda swallowed hard. After all, Near has always suspected Light-Kun.

As if he'd read Matsuda's mind, Light turned to his friend and nodded, smiling reassuringly. "Don't worry Matsuda," he said calmly. "Everything is going to be alright."

Touta Matsuda shivered once but straightened himself up.

"Teru Mikami," said Near, tousling his blond hair and crossing his arms. "Would you please hand me that book?"

Mikami and Light exchanged only a glance and a mutual nod. The attorney was utterly silent, crossing the featureless concrete floor, passing between Mogi and Aizawa and the rest of the handful of gathered investigators. He stopped a few paces short of Near. He set the book on the ground and slid it over towards the boy.

"Thank you," said Near, sitting forward like a small buzzard and hovering over the Death Note. "Now we can all agree that this evidence contained in the Death Note, whatever it may be," continued Near, "is absolutely irrefutable. It will prove beyond any doubt who Kira really is."

A pause.

"Yes," said Light, "yes it will."

Near's gaze narrowed just a bit and he paused, looking for a long minute before he went on. "I have here," he said, shifting back and reaching into the confines of his loosely fitting shirt, "the real Death Note." Matsuda and the rest of the Japanese investigation squad all gasped as Near produced a notebook bound in black leather from inside his shirt. He set it down next to the one Mikami had given him.

"Yagami Light," said Near, pointing towards the young man, an edge of solidarity in his voice. "You ARE Kira."

Everyone in the room turned to look at Light as he stood calmly and faced his accuser. Light was silent and only thought for a moment. His face betrayed nothing like fear. He seemed almost… happy, as if he'd been given something he'd been anxiously waiting for.

"Near-kun," said Light, a small smile cracking his lips. "It seems this little game of ours at last comes to an end… and Kira has finally lost."

Near swallowed and turned to face the others. Something wasn't right. "Light-kun is Kira," he repeated. "He is a liar and a murderer. Light and Teru Mikami have been cooperating as Kira for years, and the proof is in the Death Note. You see since Light has been under investigation for being Kira and was thusly unable to move freely, he sent the Death Note to Mikami to act as his stand-in, his substitute Kira…"

Light quietly listened as Near launched into a dramatic and lengthy monologue, explaining how he had not only Light under observation, but Teru Mikami also. Apparently Near had Mikami followed to the bank one day and upon searching the attorney's safety deposit box, discovered the Death Note which they quickly replicated and replaced with the false Note.

Near then posited that Light lured the entire investigation team to this one spot, the abandoned warehouse, so that Mikami could use his Eyes of the Shinigami to kill them all, excepting Light, with the Note.

Everyone listened with rapt attention. Not once face was unaffected or untouched by some kind of apprehension or fear. Matsuda especially wore his horror like a mask. I can't believe it, thought the young police officer, his words bouncing around in his head. Light-kun can't be Kira. He's always been the first to put himself on the line to chase Kira! Light wouldn't betray me like that. but Near- he turned to look at the detective. Near has always been so trustworthy before…

"Thus!" Near raised his voice and pointed again at Yagami Light. "We finally have proof." He slapped the false note with his hand and looked around at everyone. "Whoever's name is not in this book is Kira!"

No one spoke or moved as Near shifted and opened the false Death Note to the final page. They all watched as the boy's eyes scanned through the names. The atmosphere of the room thickened and undulated. Every heart was thrumming like a bird's, but the expressions were all so very different. Aizawa was stone faced and serious, Matsuda was trembling with balled fists and a locked jaw. Light however was openly smiling, and Ryuk, visible only to a few people present, was laughing almost uncontrollably.

Near froze. He stared down at the book.

Everyone paused as the room fell silent. Light's grin widened and he uncrossed his arms.

"Well?" asked Aizawa, tensing. "What is it N?"

Near looked up. His eyes wandered between Light and Mikami before turning to Ryuk and finally back to the book. "Oh," he muttered, almost too quietly to be heard. "I see it now."

"What is it?" asked Aizawa again, walking forward and picking up the book. Near made no move to stop him. "Whose name isn't here?"

Aizawa scanned the page once before he went rigid, mirroring Near.

"Who the hell is missing?" shouted Matsuda. "Who is it!!"

"Control yourself Matsuda," said Light, very calmly. "Aizawa-kun, could you please read down the list of names on the last page?"

Aizawa swallowed hard but began. "Yagami Light," the name slipped from his lips and rolled throughout the room. "Followed immediately by Mogi-san, and then my own, then Matsuda and…" Aizawa read down the list like it was an obituary. Everyone in the room was accounted for; everyone except for Near.

Every eye trained on the blond boy as Aizawa finished and looked up from the book. "How?" stammered the large man, "how is this?"

Near was silent but Light spoke up. "Now the truth can come out," he said as though he was shirking a great weight from his shoulders. "Near was telling you all the truth when he called me a liar and said I was working with Mikami, but I'm afraid that's the only honest thing this murderer has ever told any of you. I apologize to you all, especially you my dear friend, Matsuda," he continued, "but I've been deceiving all of you about my true motives ever since Near, though now we can all see that he is Kira, first appeared and claimed to be L's successor."

"I don't understand," sad Mogi. "Light, what are you talking about?"

"I mean that Mikami and I have been working on our own for months now to bring Kira to justice, even though Teru-san didn't know it" said Light, his voice filling with zeal. Mikami's jaw dropped open and he looked between Light and Near.

"Kami!" shouted Mikami, his voice frenzied as he looked at N. "Kami! This isn't right! Light-time has betrayed me!"

"Restrain him!" Light barked as Mikami leapt at Light with teeth bared to bite.

Matsuda collided with Mikami in midair and tackled him to the ground. In the ensuing frenzy Aizawa and Matsuda wrestled Mikami onto his stomach and held his arms behind his back.

"Kami," growled Mikami, staring at Near. "Kami, help me!"

"Enough," said Light. "Now you can all see clearly."

Mikami stopped struggling as Aizawa un-holstered his revolver and pressed the barrel to the back of the man's skull. Near didn't so much as stir. He only looked at the ground blankly.

"When Kira killed L, killed Ryuzaki, I thought all our hopes of catching this criminal died with him," continued Light his tone somber, "but when Near appeared claiming to be L's successor, I knew that Near had to be Kira. We all know just how upright and honorable L was in life, and we also know he would never endanger anyone needlessly. L would have known that if Kira ever killed him, it would be over. L was the best and he knew if he couldn't catch Kira then no one could. He never told us about a successor because there was no successor!

"So when Near showed up and claimed that L left him as the next to search for Kira, it clashed so violently with what I knew of our L. L would never put anyone in a position he knew was so dangerous, and I knew this from my friendship with him, but I had to find a way to prove it to all of you before I moved."

Light looked at the whimpering Mikami before going on. "That was where our friends Takada and Mikami came into play." Everyone breathed a gasp of realization. "I knew that as the voice of Kira, Takada would know how to get to Kira, but what I didn't anticipate was that Mikami was the one doing Near's bidding and Takada accidentally led me to him instead."

Aizawa's breath caught. That's why he was always speaking with her in private and without any video-bugs, he thought, his eyes widening. He couldn't risk any of us finding out and alerting N by accident. It would have ruined all his hard work… Light… I'm sorry I suspected you…

"But Mikami had actually met with N and knew him" said Light. "So I convinced him through Takada that I was N's secret representative, the one who would work behind Takada as a backup should anything happen to her, which is why I was able to lure him here to the rest of us, so he could prove to you all that Near is Kira!"

Light watched from the corner of his eye as Matsuda clenched his jaw tight. He was clearly irate and ready to snap. "Aizawa," said Light when he saw Matsuda's face, "you can let him up now. This is over."

"Kami," whined Mikami as he got up and stood in front of Aizawa. "I'm so sorry, he tricked me. Kami…"

Near was silent.

"Kami?" asked the attorney, his voice strained.

Still Near didn't answer. This is it then, thought the boy. By my own statement 'whoever's name is not in the Death Note' I'm implicated completely. Light has convinced them all that Mikami is my subordinate and since Takada is dead and can't deny that, she wouldn't anyway given her allegiance to Kira, I have no options. I can't fight. I won't use the Death Note. And Light has turned them all against me… … I'm undone and Kira has won.

"NOO!!" shouted Mikami, lunging at Light again and grabbing him by the throat. "Kami cannot lose!"

Light caught Mikami's wrists and forced him to the ground again, rolling his own body between Mikami and the barrel of Aizawa's revolver. "Stop him!" shouted Light, jerking his hand towards Near as the boy shifted only the slightest bit.

Can't let him write in the Note! Aizawa mentally screamed.

Matsuda whirled around, drawing his revolver faster than anyone could see, and snapped his wrist towards Near. A single gunshot split the air and Near's skull jerked back in a flash of red and pink. A single pen fell from the pocket of N's shirt and clattered to the ground.

"KAMI!" shouted Mikami, seeing the limp body lying motionless on the ground as blood pooled around the corpse's ruined skull. He froze on the ground and immediately began to wail and cry uncontrollably, sobbing and heaving and screaming incoherently.

Light cautiously stood up and left Mikami as a mess on the ground. He walked over to Matsuda. The young ex-office of the law was breathing raggedly and trembling, his fist white-knuckled around the smoking gun.

"You did well," said Light, his voice full of relief. "It's all over now."

Matsuda nodded once and lowered the gun, still shaking. Adrenaline was burning in his veins. "I never doubted you even once Light-kun," he said.

"I know," said Light, patting him on the shoulder. "I've always been able to count on you. Aizawa-san" he turned to the second ex-cop who snapped to right away. "Can you and the rest of these gentlemen," he looked around the room at all of the stunned faces, "escort Mikami out to the cars and see that he's secured?"

Aizawa nodded immediately. "Of course," he said. Light, how could I have doubted you? "Everyone, let's go."

Aizawa heaved Mikami, still whimpering and whispering to himself, to his feet and began to lead him from the warehouse as everyone filed from the room one by one, all heading for the cars outside. Light waited until they were all gone, almost surprised that none of them had questioned what he planned to do.

"No matter," he said nonchalantly, walking over to Near's corpse and picking up the real Death Note. He stooped down and plucked up the ebony pen that had fallen from Near's pocket when Matsuda shot him. "This is a nice pen," he noted, flipping the Death Note to an open page and scribbling in it for a moment.

Light closed the book and slipped Near's pen into his own jacket pocket. He waited for a minute and then turned as he heard footsteps outside walking towards him from the cars. The doors slid open on grinding hinges and Mikami stepped inside, his eyes wild and red as he grinned maniacally. Light smiled.

"Kami-Sama," said Mikami.

AN: Hope you enjoyed and review please!!