* * * January 18 * * *

Clouds hung over the outskirts of Tokyo, obscuring the moon and even the brightest of stars. A lone man entered an abandoned warehouse below, he was a fugitive from the law and the great Detective L. He sat in front of a pile of computer screens and pulled out a small, metallic device before plugging it into one of the USB ports. As he waited for the program to load, the black-haired man shoveled a spoonful of strawberry jam into his mouth.

Another few moments passed before a map of Japan loaded on one of the computer screens. The fugitive placed the jar down and watched carefully as a blinking, red dot appeared over the city of Tokyo. With a few clicks of the mouse, he zoomed in to see a map of the city. The red dot blinked over a set of streets in the west. He zoomed in again and the red dot appeared next to a street, inside one of the most luxurious hotels in Tokyo.

The murderer smiled and took out a notebook. The pages were filled to the brim with notes from every hour of every day beginning almost exactly a month ago. Most of the recent observations were the changing locations of the red dot. They were almost always hotels or on the road to new hotels, with the exception of the previous day's activities. They were always at the high floors of expensive hotels with underground parking garages. They only stayed for a week at most. His notes go on and on.

A slasher smile formed on his lips as he wrote down the current coordinates. Given everything, he knew that they would move again tomorrow night, this time to a hotel near the police station.

"You can't win this time, L." He gloated out loud. "I will end you and replace you as the world's greatest detective." The murderer looked to the blinking dot in the screen. "And it's all thanks to you." He turned to the skull. "You see, Alice? Now we are ready to strike."

* * * January 19 * * *

The sky was cloudy and bleak on this cold winter's eve, and the Kira Task Force Headquarters were being moved to yet another hotel. L and Watari were among the first to leave, as usual, and had arrived at the new hotel several hours ago. Bambi and Mello were the last to leave, and this time it was Matsuda's responsibility to drive them. The streets were eerily bare, though Bambi hadn't been out around this time in a while. Given Matsuda's lack of comment on the subject, she decided that it must have been normal.

After driving for a while, Matsuda pulled the car behind a large hotel and into it's underground parking garage. The young prodigies gazed out the windows and watched as the older detective navigated his way through the dimly lit passages. When he finally located a group of empty spaces, he parked the car and unlocked the rear doors. The two passengers were quick to get out of the cramped space and into the open.

The lights above them flickered as Matsuda walked to the back of the car to retrieve the suitcases. Bambi repositioned her crutches to make them more comfortable as she awkwardly watched. The lights flickered again before the sound of pounding footsteps echoed throughout the parking garage. Her eyes widened as the pounding got increasingly louder. She directed her frightened gaze behind her only to see a tall man with long black hair rapidly approaching, gun in hand. Her heart stopped when she recognized the Cheshire grin plastered on his face. The grin was quickly replaced by pure rage as he got close to the group. A bloodcurdling scream escaped Bambi's lips as she tripped in a panicked attempt to get away.

She looked up at Beyond, frozen in fear as he cocked his gun at the group and wailed, "No! You're not him! Where is he? Where is L?!"

The loud clash of gunfire rang out in the parking garage as Beyond jerked backward at the impact of the bullets and dropped his gun before collapsing. Bambi was shaking in terror, unable to turn away from his bleeding body as he moaned the same questions again. Her eyes were wide open, but they no longer saw the scene before them. Instead, scenes from her time as Beyond's prisoner played out in her mind's eye once more.

Mello's smirk was almost audible as he commented, "Damn, I've been waiting to do that."

Matsuda came into view, smoking gun pointed at Beyond as he cautiously approached the body and kicked the gun away. He then addressed Mello. "I'll call this in as an attack on an officer. Put your gun in the car so you don't burn yourself with it and take Bambi to a safe place."

Mello nodded and tossed the gun into the backseat before kneeling down in front of the terrified young woman. "Bambi, c'mon, we have to go."

She didn't respond, her eyes still wide as she visibly trembled. Mello sighed, knowing that he wouldn't be able to elicit a response from the teen in this state. He then hooked her crutches up his good arm and onto his shoulder before returning to Bambi's shaking form. He slipped one arm under her knees and the other behind her back before lifting her up and carrying her into the hotel.

* * * January 21 * * *

It had been two days since Beyond was shot, and over two days since Bambi last slept. After Matsuda's backup made it to the scene, Beyond was hospitalized under guarded surveillance and underwent surgery to remove the bullets. He was currently thrashing about in his hospital bed, having a fit as he cursed at the camera L had installed. At Headquarters, far away from Beyond, L had set up a corner of live video feed and a two way microphone to be used to interrogate the infamous serial killer. Watari was in charge of Beyond's investigation for the time being, while the rest of the Task Force continued investigating Kira.

Mello sat next to Bambi on the couch, his arm protectively slung over her shoulder as the two of them looked through information about heart attacks that occurred in prisons. Although he was majorly unaffected by the events two days prior, they were visibly taking a toll on her. The shaking had stopped, but her skin had turned a sickly pale, contrasting with the new dark circles under her eyes. The brunette tried her best to focus on the case, but every time she heard Beyond's screeching from his surveillance station, she involuntarily tensed and had to focus on preventing her flashbacks from returning.

Matsuda had told Bambi that they found a tracking device in Beyond's pocket, and when L decided to test it, the device pointed to exactly where she was. L concluded that Beyond must have implanted a tracking chip in her before Matt was able to access the live video feed of her prison. The mere thought that he always knew where she was had spiraled Bambi's already-deteriorating mental condition even further downward.

"L, you bastard!" Beyond's voice cried out. "You're the reason Alice is dead. You killed her! You drove her over the edge. You don't deserve your title! We were going to be better than you, you hear me?!" He groaned as he clearly strained his injuries. "Amelia! I know you're there! When I get out of here, I swear you'll be the first person I kill!"

Bambi tried her best to ignore his threats, but she couldn't help herself from tightening her grip on her knees as she looked down. Mello studied her face as she reacted. His eyes widened momentarily when he realized that Beyond was threatening with her real name, just like when he teased Mello with his own.

The blond clenched his fists before turning around and roaring at the microphone, "Over my dead body, you bastard!"

Mello's outburst attracted the attention of everyone else in the room before Beyond's voice snarled back, "I will gladly oblige to-gack!"

The beeping from the heart monitor rapidly increased before stopping on a single tone.

Bambi's eyes widened as she realized what just happened.

"A heart attack," Soichiro pointed out.

Beyond Birthday was dead.

* * * January 22 * * *

Several hours had passed since Beyond Birthday died. It was the wee hours of the morning, so the only members of the Task Force who were awake were Bambi, L, and Mello. Soichiro had gone home for the night, and Matsuda had fallen asleep on top of the files that he was supposed to look over. L wanted the original team to finish the work for Beyond's case, so Watari was waiting at the airport for Matt's and Near's arrival.

Beyond's words had shaken Bambi to her core, so she was completely unable to focus on the Kira case. While L and Mello were diligently working, Bambi sat on the couch and fiddled with the Rubik's Cube that Mello had given her. Every time she got close to solving it, Mello took the cube away and messed it up to give her more to focus on. Despite his intentions, her thoughts still strayed to Beyond Birthday.

Watari had said that the coroner reported that Beyond had no symptoms that should have lead to a heart attack. With that information, Bambi began questioning her stance on the Kira debate again. Killing is wrong, right? No matter who does it, even if the victim is a criminal, killing should be wrong. She sighed quietly. But, if that's true, then why do I feel so relieved? With him gone, I should be able to sleep well again. Is that what Kira is trying to do for people? Make them feel safe? A bitter smile found its way to her lips. I guess now I see why Kira's followers like him so much. Whether those are his true intentions are not, he makes people feel protected. She frowned. Am I really doing the right thing?

As she continued to contemplate her stance on the case, Bambi turned the sides of the cube faster and faster until a hand came into view, clasping her fingers to the cube, stopping their motion.

She narrowed her eyes as she growled, "Hey!"

The brunette looked up, expecting Mello again, only to be surprised that it was L who had grabbed her hand and was looking at her with his signature stare.

"Bambi, you should go to sleep," he suggested.

She looked back up at him and insisted, "I'm not tired."

His gaze never faltered, but due to her lack of compliance he added, "As your boss, I'm telling you to go to sleep."

She still didn't comply. Instead, she tugged at the Rubik's cube, trying to free her hands from L's as she stared him down with her tired eyes. "I'm fine here, thanks."

L was clearly irritated by the young woman's defiant behavior, but he let go, opting to walk behind the couch, toward the kitchen. As Bambi refocused her attention to the puzzle in her hands, she felt a pair of arms grab her waist from behind the couch. She yelped and dropped the cube as she was hoisted over the back of the couch. The brunette was put down to stand on her good foot as L grabbed the crutches and handed them to her before he let go of her waist.

"There. Now, go to sleep."

Bambi sent a fierce glare in his direction and just as she opened her mouth to address him, she heard the door open. The three geniuses looked toward the door as it opened, revealing Matt, Near, and Watari. Matt immediately crossed the room to greet his best friend. Near, upon spotting his partner, walked over to her. Bambi smiled and met him halfway. As the brunette opened her mouth to greet him, her jaw dropped. Not only was Near smiling-though it was a subtle smile-but, he had grown several inches during their separation and was now taller than her.

Bambi laughed at what was undoubtedly a stupid look on her face. "Geez, Near. I've only been gone for a month and you've grown this much? Oh, man. Now I'm the shortest person in the room again!"

"It was bound to happen. Men are usually taller than women," he stated.

She laughed again. "I know. Still, it was nice while it lasted. Anyway, it's nice to see you again."

"And you," he answered before reaching into his pocket and pulling out a cellphone. "Here, this was left behind."

Bambi smiled as she returned the phone to her own pocket. "Man, I really could have used this the other day. Hey, did you bring my laptop too?"

"It's in the car," he said before making his way over to Watari's station for the Beyond case.

Bambi smiled again, glad to have Near back as well as her precious laptop.

L's stern voice pulled the hacker out of her thoughts. "Bambi, go to sleep before I make you go."

"Alright, already," she grumbled before making her way into the bedroom.

After closing the door behind her, Bambi shut off the lights. She frowned as she stared at the bed before redirecting her attention to the balcony doors. After a few moments of contemplation, she turned and made her way out onto the balcony. She shivered in the crisp air as she looked up at the bleak sky. With all the city lights, only the moon was visible.

When she returned her attention to herself, Bambi took her crutches and leaned them against the railing next to her. Standing on her good foot, she leaned her arms on the railing for extra support. As the brown-eyed girl gazed down at the desolate streets below, her thoughts returned to her earlier contemplation. Is it really Kira who's doing the wrong thing? Before the events earlier that night, Bambi was so invested in trying to catch Kira that she never bothered to stop and actually think about where she stands on the situation.

Snowflakes began to drift from the clouds above, but Bambi remained outside to think. Some of the criminals that he killed weren't in custody yet, so he's just doing what the world leaders haven't been able to. A corner of her lips curled up into an ironic smirk. Sometimes you need a vigilante to get things done right, or at least to get the leaders to do something. Maybe it's not so bad that he's killing people. She frowned. No, it's not just criminals. He tried to kill L and he killed those FBI agents. He went too far and I have to remember that. Kira may act like a god, but his morals aren't consistent. She paused for a beat as a bitter smirk returned to her lips and she let out a quiet scoff. Though, I can't exactly say that mine were consistent either.

Winds howled around the building as the snow started to come down even faster. Bambi shivered and returned her crutches to their places under her arms before returning to the bedroom and closing the balcony door behind her. She then did her best to pull the curtains shut and made her way to the bed.

Bambi sat down on the bedside before looking to the pillow and sighing. Her eyelids felt heavy and started to conceal the brown irises behind them. She took a deep breath and forced them open again as she ran her hands through her dark hair. As welcoming as sleep may have felt in that moment, she was painfully aware of what visions would follow. Even past those unwanted flashbacks, this whole day had felt unusually surreal. No matter how irrational she knew it was, Bambi feared that if she went to sleep, she would wake up only to find that this was all a dream, that Beyond Birthday was still alive and could find her again. She frowned as she tried to remind herself just how ridiculous her paranoia was.

The door creaked open, pulling Bambi out of her thoughts. She slowly looked over and saw L in the doorway. He stood there, studying the young woman's face for a few moments before walking in and closing the door behind him.

L stopped in front of Bambi, hunched over with his hands in his pockets as he said, "I thought I told you to go to sleep."

Bambi folded her hands in her lap as she looked to the side. "I'm not tired."

"Yes, you are," he stubbornly affirmed. "You're a bad liar when you don't sleep."

Bambi sighed and closed her eyes, knowing full well that he was right. She felt the bed dip down as another weight was added beside her. The teen opened her eyes and looked to find that L had decided to sit next to her.

He blinked owlishly as he looked her in the eye. "Bambi, do you know why you are here?"

The brunette sighed and pouted as she folded her arms and looked away. "You wanted to keep me away from Los Angeles so that I couldn't screw up the other case."

"This is true," he mused, "but, there is another reason." Bambi looked back at him in genuine curiosity as he smiled. "You have real talent and I want you to use that talent to help me catch Kira."

Bambi's eyes widened as she processed his words. She just had the honor of L, the world's greatest detective, complimenting her on her skills. Caught aback by the situation, she was left speechless.

Taking the opportunity, L finished. "I need you to be well rested to be able to use those talents. So, please, go to sleep. There is nothing left for you to fear." After he finished, he stood and began to walk out.

When he reached the door, she called out to him. "Ryuzaki."

He stopped and turned. "Yes, Bambi?"

"Thank you."

L smiled. "You're welcome."

After his long day of writing down names in the Death Note, Light Yagami leaned back in his chair and folded his arms behind his head in satisfaction.

The notebook's shinigami cackled, "You seem happier than usual, Light. Did you figure out the next step?"

"No, I need more information before I decide." He returned the Death Note to its hiding place. "It's just nice to put a face to the people I'm protecting."

____________________________________________________________

Author's Notes: I don't condone vigilantism, that is coming only from the character.

Anyway, I have a question for you guys. Do you guys ship Bambi with any of the characters so far? If yes, who? I would really appreciate some feedback on this question (but, any feedback at all is nice too. I like hearing your thoughts and comments on the events of the story.)

Anyway, this chapter marked the end of the Beyond Arc. Up next is the Recovery Arc.