• Chapter Fourteen

    Otaku/eL

    I was trying to listen to what they were all saying, but I couldn’t make sense of any of it. And with L talking in percents, that just threw me right off the edge. Confused beyond any words, I hugged my knees up to my chest, a familiar position that reflected L’s crouch and basically zoned out, no longer listening. I mean, when I do this I’m thinking, I’m not just daydreaming. Really. I mean, for someone who thinks and analyzes and plans as much as I do in my brain, you’d think I’d be a bit less clumsy and ditzy. Yes, I admit the fact. I’m rather ditzy. And bubbly, hyper, happy-go-lucky, anything else you can add would be appreciated, too!! But I am thinking all the time. Maybe not about things that matter, maybe about the same thing ALL DAY LONG. But I’m still thinking.

    Yagami leaned over to me, noticing that Otaku was staring blankly into space, looking a bit like she was going to fall asleep, and asked me what she was doing. I smiled.

    “I’m basically her brain; I do all the thinking between the two of us,” I explained with a smile. Conveniently, Otaku looked up, a dazed, lost expression on her face. “Huh?” she muttered, sounding dislocated as she was pulled out of her dream world. “Did someone say my name?” I laughed hard.

    “No, no, nothing Otaku-chan,” I replied, giggling.

    * * * (eL wanted me to put that in there, because it’s something she says often. And yes, that has been an experience we’ve had, I zone out then come back to earth just in time to look stupid as she explains her brain theory to yet another, poor, poor person. LOL! But, now we’re back to Otaku’s POV. YAY!!)

    I hate technology. It’s out to get me, I’m sure. Whenever I get too near any semi-complicated technical object something goes horribly, horribly wrong. That’s why I stayed away from L’s fancy computers. The task force team, with eL helping out, sat in front of the huge computer monitors and switches and buttons and keyboards, clicking away. I watched from a safe distance. I didn’t want to seem useless or lazy, but really there was nothing I could do at this point. Ask me to find a cake, I will find a cake (maybe). Ask me to write a fan-fic, I will write a fan-fic. But ask me to work with a computer and I just can’t do it. I might do the commercial scream when you ask me, but I certainly won’t have anything to do with technical crap.

    Suddenly, I heard eL cry out in frustration, breaking the silence. She slapped the keyboard in a rage.

    “I cannot take this!!! I MUST go outside or somebody will suffer!!!” she cried. As she said this, I got an insane image of her in one of those Sunday paper cartoons where they get so frustrated and fed up, they actually pull their hair. I half expected Hattie to reach up and begin ripping viciously at her scalp in a comically aggravated motion. I struggled to suppress my laughter behind my hand.

    “Well, we certainly would like to avoid said suffering, so please, take a break from the investigation. Watari can lead you to the doors outside,” L replied, momentarily turning his eyes from the screens.

    “What!?!” Matsuda cried in anger. “When I asked for a break, you said ‘people are being killed by Kira left and right, and you want to take a break?!’ Why does she get a break!?!?!? She didn’t even have to beg!!!!”

    “Because, Matsuda, eL is a guest here. And she is not officially part of the Task Force, so it isn’t her responsibility to remain here and work, as it is yours,” L shot back. Matsuda shut up then. I marveled at L’s power over the other members of the Task Force, and he IS probably one of the youngest there. Of course, that only proved to make him cooler.

    “Thank you, Ryuuzaki,” eL said, sounding relieved, standing and gathering up her black jacket from the back of the chair. “I just need to get out, get some fresh air or something. I’ll be back soon,” I jumped up from the couch, glad for this out from boredom.

    “I’ll come with you!!” I cried happily, snatching up my ever-present coat from the couch. I suppose it isn’t really a coat, a long sweater to be more exact. Its brown wool and it goes all the way down to the middle of my thigh with long sleeves and big pockets. I have about fifty of them all stowed away in my closet and I wear them all the time.

    “Okay!!” eL replied, matching my bright grin. Suddenly, as if called in by magic, Watari opened the doors and walked inside the room. I gasped and clapped my hands together, all too pleased.

    “*GASP* Watari!!” I cried exuberantly. “I love Watari!!” I added towards Hattie. Hattie smiled and nodded, but she seemed a bit distant, as though she didn’t notice him just walk in. Watari smiled, pleased.

    “I’m glad I’m liked, Miss Otaku,” he said with a small, formal bow. “Now follow me and I will take you and Miss eL to the front doors,” Bubbly and simply ecstatic, I began to follow after the retreating Watari, but stopped to push eL along.

    “Zoning out, there, Miss eL?” I asked with a laugh, snapping eL from her daze. She offered me a dreamy smile, then clicked out of her head and remembered we were supposed to be leaving.

    “Bye, L, I mean Ryuuzaki!!” I called over my shoulder. “Bye Matsuda, bye Chief Yagami!!!” A chorus of ‘goodbye’s’ rang out as the door shut behind me.

    “I like her,” I heard Matsuda say from behind the closed door. “But she REALLY hates YOU!!” he added playfully.

    “I really do not care that Otaku hates me for no reason. Really!” I heard Light protest against Matsuda. Laughing, I shouted towards the door so he could hear; “I don’t host a loathing from within my heart for no reason, Light!! Believe me, there’s a method behind the madness of my hate!!” I could hear Matsuda’s laughter from all the way down the hall.

    “That’s not funny!!” Chief Yagami barked.

    “Sorry…” Matsuda stopped laughing, sounding a bit dejected.

    “Exactly,” he replied, sounding pleased to have succeeded in stopping Matsuda’s mouth. I laughed at the two of them, still following Watari and eL down the hall. We reached doors at the first floor.

    “Well, thanks for showing us-“ eL started as she began to leave, but Watari cut her off quickly, glancing quickly over his shoulder to make sure they were alone. From his jacket pocket, he swiftly drew out two cell phones, giving one to each of us. Perplexed, I turned mine over in my hand. It was the exact same model I own now, one of those pretty new version wireless ones. It was warm and familiar in my hands.

    “I already have a cell phone,” I said. “Thank you, though,” I tried to hand the little phone back to Watari, but he refused it, pushing it back into my hands.

    “But these cell phones were made special by Master L for you two girls. They have tracking devices inside them, and an extended memory for videos and voice recordings at the click of a button. And, if you use a special setting, it turns the entire phone into a bomb,” Eyes wide, Hattie and I exchanged looks of shock before returning our gazes to Watari for an answer. He chuckled upon seeing our expressions and straightened up.

    “Master Ryuuzaki just wants to take special precautions with you two. He feels its better safe than sorry, and if your phones have the same settings as his, he would just feel more at peace about your safety.”

    “Our SAFETY!!!” eL cried. “These phones have SELF DESTRUCT BUTTONS inside them, what is he expecting!?!?! World War Three?!?!” Watari smiled.

    “Master L is just trying to keep you safe. You never can know what to expect,” He warned.

    “But I thought cell phones weren’t allowed in the Task Force Building?” I asked, a bit confused.

    “You two are the exception to that rule. Master L is determined to keep you as safe as possible. He said to keep those phones with you always. Now I must go, have a fun walk, girls!” He added cheerily, quite the contrast to the doom-and-gloom cell phone business, and he turned and left.

    “I’ve never known you one to refuse a free cell phone, Hattie-chan!!” I cried, throwing my arm around her shoulder as we waltzed out the door.

    “I know, I normally wouldn’t, but don’t you think L-I mean, Ryuuzaki, is being a bit paranoid?”

    “Paranoid? … I guess, but doesn’t that make L who he, well, is?”

    “Yeah, I suppose. And, you called him L.”

    “…But that’s his name. ??”

    “You have to call him Ryuuzaki!!”

    “We aren’t even in the Task Force Building anymore!”

    “It’s his LIFE, or you calling him by his alias!”

    “Okay, okay!!! Paranoia makes Ryuuzaki who he is!!! Yeesh!!”

    “Okay!!” It only took us about two seconds to start laughing our heads off. But the cheery, friendly aura didn’t last long, and it only took me maybe a minute to bring up what had been bothering me.

    “Er, would be it bad to bring up the whole ‘switching-worlds’ business now?” I felt Hattie stiffen next to me. She knew what I wanted to ask.

    “I-I guess not…” she responded hesitantly, trying to sound nonchalant.

    “Okay,” I started. “I know that you said something about L being born human, but not us. I know I didn’t dream that. I’d-I’d appreciate an explanation,” I pressed. eL moistened her lips and began fiddling with her hair as we walked, to stall, I suppose. Finally, she answered.

    “Do you want the truth?”

    “Yes.”

    “I didn’t say that,” her answer caught me off guard.

    “What do you mean, I heard you! Of course you said that!” I cried, confused and a bit frightened. Hattie shook her head, eyes wide, face solemn.

    “I didn’t say that. Someone else, in my mind, did,” I stopped and turned to stare at her.

    “In… In your … Mind?”

    “Yes. Like, like voices or something. But it’s only one and it kinda sounds like me, but older. A bit deeper, you know? And it says things that I couldn’t possibly know, and it talks to me in my dreams, shows me things. I feel comfortable with it, but still I feel… strange… like that shouldn’t be happening. But I guess no one really SHOULD be hearing voices in their head,” Hattie paused. I swallowed, trying to wet my dry throat.

    “You hear voices?” I asked tentatively. Hattie nodded.

    “And I have dreams.”

    “What are the dreams about?”

    “Some place. I don’t really know. There’s a big castle, and a huge beautiful garden, fenced in, in the back. With like, flowers and bird baths and stuff. And, beyond the garden… Beyond the garden is a forest, almost. It’s really dark and evil-looking. With all these dangerous creatures, but they aren’t REALLY real. There are these panther-looking things and dragons and all that. That’s why the have the fence, to keep the creatures out. The only people who can come back from the forest alive are the person who owns the voice and her twin sister,” I listened intently to Hattie’s story. She sounded afraid, flustered. The first time I had really seen her so frightened.

    “Well, maybe it’s just your imagination, you know? Like, I dunno… your subconscious or something,” I offered weakly. eL shook her head slowly.

    “I don’t think so. I certainly would like to believe that, but I can’t,”

    “Can you hear them now?” I asked hesitantly, fearing her response. Hattie paused, then shook her head again.

    “No. And, it’s not a ‘them’. It’s a ‘her’. Just one, and it’s a girl,” eL corrected. I ignored her.

    “Have you told anyone else?” I asked. Another head shake. “Not even L?”

    “Nope,” Suddenly, I didn’t want to be the only other person with the secret here. I didn’t know how to handle this kind of stuff!

    “Maybe, maybe we SHOULD tell L. He’d know what to do,” I pushed cautiously. Jumping up, eL whipped over to face me, gripping my shoulders tightly and staring intently into my eyes.

    “No. You have to promise me you will tell NO ONE about this,” she warned. I blinked.

    “Not even L?”

    “Especially not L.”

    “But, but why?” Hattie dug her nails deeper into my arms.

    “Because,” she began painstakingly. “If we tell anyone, they’ll think I’m crazy. They’ll lock me up in a straightjacket! And… and it’s just too scary. I’m not prepared to tell anyone ANYTHING yet,” Inches from my face, eL certainly LOOKED a couple degrees of crazy, but I didn’t say anything. Just nodded. Letting out her breath, eL relaxed her iron grip and sat back down, finally realizing that she had been invading my personal bubble. I rejoiced in elbow room.

    “I, uh, I guess we should go back now, huh?” I asked, glancing around myself. We certainly were a ways away from the Task Force Building. I could barely see the top of the building, dwarfing the others as it scraped the clear, blue sky. eL followed my gaze and nodded solemnly.

    “I suppose,” she mumbled and we turned to walk back to the Task Force Building.