Author's Note: Light turned 18 between the previous chapter and this one. Bambi turns 18 midway through the chapter.

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* * * March 3 * * *

The moon was high above Tokyo as the Kira Task Force worked away in their newest headquarters. Aizawa had just relieved Soichiro of his work and was approaching Matsuda and L at the couch. Near was sitting on a chair in the corner of the room as he tried to analyze the newest data to see if he could pinpoint Kira to a specific town in the region. Nearby, Mello was sitting at a table as he dug through the cases that Matt's and Bambi's program had identified as likely Kira murders. His best friend had just stood and approached the door to one of the bedrooms in the suite.

Matt opened the door just enough to peak his face into the dark room and look around. Inside, the redhead saw Bambi sound asleep under the covers. He smiled and quietly closed the door before crossing the suite to the brunette's partner.

"Hey, Near," the hacker began. "What does Bambi usually do on her birthday?"

The white-haired teen twirled his hair as he answered, "She would always talk to her friends for a few hours." After a moment he added, "Last year she planned to visit them, but our case got in the way."

Matt frowned and asked, "Has she ever been home since she started working with you?"

"No."

The redhead frowned and put a hand to his chin as he cast a gaze toward the bedroom door. This birthday might be a bit hard on her, then. A few moments passed as he concocted a plan to cheer up his friend on her special day.

His lips curved into a smile as he turned to Mello. "I've got it! We should throw her a little party."

The blond furrowed his eyebrows. "How do you even know when it is anyway?"

Matt smiled sheepishly. "The same way I know about Robin Hood. So, are you in or not?"

Mello shrugged his shoulders. "Sure."

"I want to help too!"

The trio of geniuses turned to see Matsuda raising his hand and smiling at the group.

Matt smiled back at him, "Cool, you can get-"

"We should be working on the case, not slacking off," Aizawa interrupted.

"Aw, come on," the hacker pouted. "It'll just be a little party with some cake. It's not gonna make a difference with how slow things have been going anyway."

This time L addressed the group. "What kind of cake will it be?"

Matt smiled at the detective's apparent approval, though Aizawa gritted his teeth and returned to his work.

Near chimed in, "She likes vanilla and caramel."

L grinned hungrily before turning to face the old man at the door. "Watari."

The veteran nodded before pulling out his cellphone and calling a nearby bakery to place the order.

Matt beamed excitedly before addressing Mello and Matsuda. "I'll keep her out of headquarters while you guys set up."

"What about a gift?" Matsuda asked.

"I've got something in mind," the redhead admitted.

* * * March 15 * * *

It was late in the morning, the sun bathing headquarters in a warm glow as its inhabitants worked away. Watari had left a few minutes ago to run some errands and buy groceries for the group that never returns home. The geniuses of the Wammy Teams were gathered around the dining room table as they weeded through Kira's newest possible victims and tried to identify patterns in the killings. Matt and Bambi were also making edits to the program as they worked, doing their best to make it as accurate as possible. The brunette's mood was noticeably diminished, though she did her best to keep a smile. The group was mostly silent until they were approached by L.

"I have decided that it would be beneficial to the investigation to have more powerful computers," the great detective confessed before turning to the two computer geniuses. "I want the both of you to go out and purchase the parts you deem best."

Bambi raised an eyebrow before turning to the redhead next to her. It was really up to him since they would have to take his car to be able to bring everything back in one trip.

He smiled at her before looking up at L. "Sure, we'll be back in a few hours."

L smiled and nodded before returning to the couch where Matsuda was sitting. Bambi made sure to save the program before shutting down her laptop and returning it to her suitcase. When she returned to the main room of the suite Matt was waiting for her, keys in hand.

"Ready?" He asked as he crooked his elbow, offering his arm.

The brunette cracked a real smile as a short laugh escaped her lips. "Off to see the wizard?"

"Yeah, sure." The redhead smiled as Bambi walked up to him and jokingly linked arms. "You get to be Dorothy and I'll be the tin man or something."

After stepping into the hallway, Matt dragged her into a dramatic skip. She laughed and smiled as they made fools of themselves all the way to the elevator.

~o~

The pair of hackers had been at the store for about an hour as they discussed their preferences and tried to decide on the best parts for the Task Force's new computer. Matt held a basket containing the parts that they had already chosen for the motherboard as he stood next to Bambi in front of a selection of pricey microprocessors. The brunette pursed her lips as she looked over the options.

She pointed to one to the far left. "From what I remember, this company's pretty good. I haven't had problems with them in the past."

Matt cringed. "I don't think that one's such a good idea. I had one in my last gaming PC and it's nowhere near as good as they advertised. It crashed a lot too."

"Well, that's disappointing. I haven't used them since my first laptop," she told him. "It's a shame to see the quality drop like that."

"Yeah," he agreed as he looked over the rest of the options. "I don't know about you, but I think all of these are gonna suck."

The brunette took a final look over the microprocessors before sighing. "I think we're going to have to order one online."

Matt nodded. "Well, I guess that's about all we can get today." He looked to the side before adding, "I'll be right back. I'm gonna grab a fan and some screen cleaner."

"Okay. I'm going to ask if we can order a microprocessor through the store," Bambi told him before heading in the opposite direction and toward a worker.

After a short conversation with the person at the counter, she discovered that ordering to the store would not be an option. She frowned as she tried to think of an alternative. Maybe we could use my fake address in Canada. She turned to approach Matt down the aisle.

"Emily? Is that you?"

She froze, eyes wide at the sound of the familiar voice. Why would he be here of all places? A moment passed before she calmed herself and turned to face the speaker with a smile.

"Light?"

The Kira suspect smiled warmly at the brunette as he nodded. "I'm glad to see that your ankle has healed."

A nervous laugh escaped Bambi's lips as she instinctively glanced down. "You and me both."

"Hey, Bambi. What do you think of-" Matt caught himself when he noticed Light standing next to his friend, both of them looking at him. "Whoops, sorry about that. I thought you were someone else."

She watched as Matt walked over to the counter to pay for the parts, though he was clearly keeping an eye on Bambi as he pulled out his phone.

"So, have you heard back from To-Oh yet?" Light asked, drawing her attention back to him.

Bambi smiled as she told him, "Yeah, I was accepted. What about you?"

His smile grew. "I've been accepted too. Have you made your schedule yet? Maybe we have classes together."

She watched Matt leave out of the corner of her eye as she told Light, "No, not yet. I-"

Her phone began to ring.

Bambi smiled awkwardly. "Could you excuse me for a second?"

The hacker walked away to answer her phone. "Hello?"

"Bambi, you alright? Matt told me what happened," Mello's voice rang through on the other end.

"Yeah," she said, opting for something short that won't make Light suspicious should he be listening.

"Is he still there?"

"Yes."

There was a pause before he told her, "I'll be there in fifteen minutes."

"Okay."

They bid short goodbye's before hanging up. As Bambi returned to Light she tried to recall the name that Mello had used back in January.

"Sorry about that, my friend just wanted to tell me that he'll be picking me up in a bit."

He raised an eyebrow. "Takeshi, right?"

Oh yeah. She smiled. "Right."

He nodded, almost to himself. "So, what are you doing here?"

"I'm just browsing. Takeshi's computer keeps crashing," Bambi told him. "Why are you here?"

"My parents are getting Sayu a laptop for her grades and because she's entering high school," Light explained. "My mom sent me because she doesn't know anything about computers. I don't know as much about them as she thinks, though." He laughed.

I shouldn't, but... The hacker smiled at him as she offered, "I could help you pick something before I go."

"I would appreciate it," he told her.

After going over his budget and what Sayu would primarily be using the laptop for, Bambi led him around the store to each of the main parts he'll need to build one. As the hacker explained the importance of each piece and showed him which would be best for his budget, she felt her mood lift immensely. Time passed almost too quickly, because before she knew it, Mello had pulled up in front of the store on his motorcycle.

Upon noticing the blond, Bambi turned to Light. "I've gotta go. I'll see you at school."

"Goodbye," he responded. "Thanks for helping me out today."

"It's no problem."

The brunette then turned and exited the building, though she could still feel his eyes on her back. She crossed the sidewalk to Mello, who was standing in front of his motorcycle with her helmet in his hands.

"Thanks," Bambi said as she reached out for it.

Before she could grab it, Mello lifted the helmet and pulled it down on her head. The brunette froze, dumbfounded. When he reached for her chin strap, she narrowed her eyes at him and swatted his hands away.

"I could have just done it myself," she grumbled as she fastened the strap.

Bambi heard him huff as he turned and mounted the motorcycle. She waited for a moment before climbing on behind him and wrapping her arms around his waist. The teen took one last glance toward the store where Light was watching her before Mello started the engine and pulled away. She tucked her exposed face behind his back as he flew in and out of traffic toward headquarters.

It took about twenty minutes for the pair to return to the hotel and park in the parking garage. By the time they made it to the elevator, Bambi's mood had returned to the same gloomy state as earlier. Both teens were silent on the way up, though it seemed as if Mello was holding his tongue. When they reached the top floor and stepped into the hallway the blond hurried to the suite, looking back only once.

The brunette was sluggish as she made her way to the door that Mello had just disappeared behind. When she finally reached the door, she stopped and sighed. Bambi took a moment to try to collect herself before opening the door. She raised an eyebrow at the sight on the other side. No one was there. Not only that, but when the teen looked down she saw pieces of yellow craft paper taped to the carpet, forming a path into the kitchen.

Bambi closed the door behind her before looking back down at the path where she noticed crudely written instructions: 'follow me'. She looked back up to the empty main room and over to the kitchen door. For a brief moment she noted the significance of the day, though it was quickly cast aside. Near would never do something like that. Still, curiosity got the better of the hacker and she followed the path. She hesitated for only a moment before opening the kitchen door.

A collection of voices called out, "Happy birthday!"

Bambi's jaw dropped and her eyes went wide. Near and L were sitting at a table in the middle of the kitchen where a cake decorated with lit candles was sitting. Watari, Matsuda, and Mogi were standing behind the pair, smiling, though Matsuda was much more animated than the other two. Matt and Mello were standing on either side of the table, grinning at the birthday girl.

She remained where she stood, glued to the floor in utter shock. Matt walked over to her and put a hand on her back before holding onto her hand and leading her to the empty seat in front of the table.

"Make a wish," Matsuda told the teen as he pushed the cake toward her.

Bambi pursed her lips as she smiled and tried to fight back tears. After a few moments, she took a deep breath and blew out the candles. Watari took over from there, removing the candles and starting to cut the cake. As she watched the veteran hand out pieces of cake, the brunette felt a tap on her shoulder. She turned to see Matt extending a wrapped box toward her. She hesitantly took the box as Mello and Matt sat down and Matsuda stood behind them.

The young woman returned her attention to the gift as she carefully unwrapped it and removed the lid, revealing a pair of white goggles and a matching scarf. Her lips curved into a soft smile as she took them out of the box.

"They match the detailing on your moped," Matt pointed out. "I thought it would complete the look."

"I picked out the scarf," Matsuda proudly informed her. "Everything else was Matt's idea, though."

Mello commented, "Way to pick a lame gift."

"Hey, goggles are cool," the redhead said as he adjusted the pair on his head.

Bambi laughed at her two friends before smiling at Matt and Matsuda. "I love it. Thanks, guys."

The blond groaned and rubbed his temple. "I should have seen that coming. You guys are dorks."

"You know you love us," Matt teased.

Mello smiled and rolled his eyes before getting up to return to the main room of the suite.

He stopped to say, "Happy birthday, Bambi."

"Thanks."

After all the cake was handed out, L announced that everyone should get back to work. One by one, the investigators returned to their stations. First was L, then Mogi with a short 'happy birthday' on his way out. Near left shortly after that, sending a small smile toward his partner. Matsuda glanced to Matt after finishing his cake before standing.

On his way out, the Japanese detective placed a hand on Bambi's shoulder. "I hope you had a happy birthday."

"Thank you, Matsuda," the teen quietly answered as she looked up at him.

Bambi remained sitting quietly next to Matt, looking down at the crumbs on her plate as she smiled softly to herself and listened to the redhead describe how the whole party came together. As his story went on, her vision was blurred by tears. Near the end of his story, he stopped and brushed her hair behind her ear.

"Hey, are you okay?" he asked, a small frown present on his face. "I know things have been rough lately, but you shouldn't be sad on a day like this."

A genuine laugh escaped her lips as she wiped her tears. "Sorry. No, I'm actually really happy. I haven't had a real birthday like that in a long time." She smiled warmly at him. "Thank you."

Matt caught her smile and returned it. "You're welcome."