Cloak and Dagger

Chapter 3

I lean on the sink, staring at my new hair. Silver. No rat tails. Straightened fringe. A side cut shaven up the right hand side. With such light hair, I almost look like an entirely different person - especially after bleaching my brows for good measure.

My fingers ache against the slowly warming porcelain. What am I doing? Why am I changing everything - if I do, if Light gets aggravated...

What will he do? How many more people will he kill if I act out of turn?

But... my very existence in this world... changes everything... If Light truly is attached to me, everything I do has the ability to affect him. And if L's right, if I'm actually something Light doesn't want to give up...

I rest my still-damp forehead against the cold mirror, trying to dispel some of the heat that tends to build when I stress.

"What are you doing, Smith?" I ask myself. I throw on some of the clothes Watari bought for me - a spaghetti-strap top, a loose grey sweater and black skinny jeans. The clothes fit quite well, even if the jeans could use a belt.

Instead of going directly to the main room, where L is, I detour to the kitchen and plate up some chocolate chip cookies. Comfort food for me and fuel for the sugar-addicted genius. I carry the plate out to the main room.

"Hey."

"Are you already finished? I somehow expected you to take longer."

"Yeah, well, I'm not one of those obsessive girls. Biscuits."

"Thanks."

I set the plate down on the coffee table, watching a pale hand dart out to take several at once. When I stand again, L is staring at me.

"Un...?"

"You do look very different." L states, turning back to the computer before him. "But, certainly not in a bad way."

"Oh... thank you."

"For the time being, you'll have to pretend to be my girlfriend."

"Wh-what?!"

"We don't look similar enough to pass as siblings. I don't want to risk the two of us having separate hotel rooms. And we're going to be together for most of the next few weeks. It would be easier to pretend we're lovers studying in Tokyo."

"Ah, I... suppose that makes sense, but..."

"I'm not going to make you do anything drastic - simply hold my hand and cheer me on if I get into any sort of spat. Also, we'll need to arrange an alias for you. Do you think you'd be able to answer to false names?"

"Yes."

"Right. How does 'Uta Kinobori' sound to you?"

I touch the shaved portion of my hair, unable to resist thinking of Uta from Tokyo Ghoul even though it's on the opposite side. 'Uta' means song or poem, while 'Kinobori' means tree climbing.

"Have you been stalking me?" I ask. L gives a soft hum of confusion.

"I love to sing, and I've been an avid climber since I was small."

"Strange that I haven't been made aware of that... I suppose that will be your most consistent alias, for now. Also, we're being signed up for the same university Light is going to."

"Doesn't that make this whole kidnapping scheme moot?"

"You know him; therefore, you can make observations that I cannot. Most likely you are privy to the habits and quirks that his father is unaware of."