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Description
     Jingle bells was playing, several trees were glowing with lights, the computer station was surrounded with Santa statues, and Matsuda was happily decking the halls with bows of holly.
     Raito merely frowned. He had never celebrated Christmas before, but L had insisted and the police dolt happily obliged to decorating. Christmas was, while celebrated, not such a big deal here in Japan as it was in England. Or at least, it was far less important to Raito than the Detective.
     On the other end of the chain binding them, L was happily sucking on a candy cane and staring at his usual multi-computer consol and humming along with the tinny music playing through the speakers.
     “You seem hideously out of character, L,” Raito said, staring at his own screens. L didn’t take his eyes off his work.
     “Why is that, Kira?”
     “Because you seem so…happy.” Raito sighed. “It can’t be you found a lead, as you’re still calling me by that name. So why so happy?”
     “Because it’s Christmas Eve, Yagami-kun!” L said, turning to the younger man. “I love Christmas. It’s a cheery, festive time of year.”
     “It’s also the time of year a lot of crimes and suicides occur.”
     “That may be true,” L said, “but it’s still a pleasant time.” He turned back to his computer screen and Raito rolled his eyes.
     “I remember…the fabulous Christmases when I was young. The others had turkey and bread sauce and dressing and potatoes but I’d always go to the dessert table. Oh, the pies, the cakes, the treacle, and the Christmas pudding…oh, I’d love a pudding right now. I wonder if I can get one in this country…”
     “So that’s how you got hooked on sweets.”
     “…And then we’d open presents. We all saved up pocket change to buy presents for each other, and Wammy got us each one too. We may have lost our families, but that house really was family togetherness at Christmas.”
     “Hm.”
     L stared at Raito. “You are ridiculous. Surely you have happy Christmas memories.”
     “We don’t really celebrate Christmas.”
     “Japan is lacking in that,” L sighed. There was a moment’s pause before the detective stood suddenly and walked towards a doorway, dragging Raito along with him.
     “Wha--!”
     “Your grinchiness raises my suspicion of you being Kira to sixty-nine percent,” L said cheerily, tugging the chain between them so that Raito fell into his arms. The young man frowned.
     “How many times do I have to tell you that I am not Kira?” he said, and L just grinned. He hugged Raito tighter, and the younger man tried to wriggle away.
     “Why exactly are you in my personal space, Ryuzaki?” Raito said with a frown, and L just looked up. Raito screwed up his eyebrows in confusion and slowly looked up.
     Mistletoe.
     Damn Matsuda.
     “It’s required. The law of Christmas. We have to kiss, Kira.”
     “I’m not Kira, and we’re grown men. We shouldn’t do that,” Raito said in all seriousness.
     “And now I’m seventy-two percen
     “Oh stop it,” Raito said, pushing L away lightly.”
     “Would you rather I call Misa here for you?”
     A pause.
     “Fine. Let’s make this quick.”
     Awkwardly on Raito’s part and giddily on L’s, the two locked lips under the little green leaves and white berries. It was a sweet, chaste kiss, like the kiss of schoolchildren.
     Innocent. That’s the best word.
     Their lips parted, and L laughed a little at the serene look on Raito’s previously concerned face.
     “With that kiss…” the detective mused, “I think you’ve dropped down to just forty-seven percent…”
     There was a sudden BANG that made the two of them jump, as they turned around to see Matsuda grinning at them. The entire taskforce was sitting around in paper crowns with remains of paper crackers, examining their contents.
     “That was unexpected,” the cop laughed, looking right at the two blushing men. “I guess you finally managed to get Scrooge into the Christmas spirit, huh?” He turned over his shoulder. “Mogi! You owe me ¥2000! I was right about them!” The other cop grumbled.
     “Wh-what? Right about…We’re not…” Raito stammered, while L just looked at Matsuda with befuddled amusement.
     “And I’m eighty percent sure he’s Kira now,” L whispered to Raito.
     “Aaanyway, lovebirds, cracker?” Matsuda said cheerily, handing two of the shiny poppers to the two of them. “You’ll like them, Ryuzaki. I called in to your old home, that Wammy house? This is the kind they used every year.”
     L examined the paper cracker with a smile. “Brings back memories,” he said fondly, and offered an end to Raito. “Want to pop it with me?”
     Raito shrugged, offering an end to his own cracker. “Alright, fine.”
     “Be more cheery, Raito!”
     Raito forced a terribly fake smile on his face.
     “For real…”
     “Fine, fine!” Raito said, smiling more genuinely as he grabbed the end of L’s cracker. The two pulled them sharply, emitting two loud bangs. L promptly put a flimsy green crown on Raito’s head.
     “Happy Christmas, Raito,” he said, positioning his own purple hat and looking over the plastic toys and trinkets inside his cardboard tube. Raito looked warmly at the detective, joyous like a child over such a simple occasion.
     “Merry Christmas, Ryuzaki. And a happy new year.”

Description
     Jingle bells was playing, several trees were glowing with lights, the computer station was surrounded with Santa statues, and Matsuda was happily decking the halls with bows of holly.
     Raito merely frowned. He had never celebrated Christmas before, but L had insisted and the police dolt happily obliged to decorating. Christmas was, while celebrated, not such a big deal here in Japan as it was in England. Or at least, it was far less important to Raito than the Detective.
     On the other end of the chain binding them, L was happily sucking on a candy cane and staring at his usual multi-computer consol and humming along with the tinny music playing through the speakers.
     “You seem hideously out of character, L,” Raito said, staring at his own screens. L didn’t take his eyes off his work.
     “Why is that, Kira?”
     “Because you seem so…happy.” Raito sighed. “It can’t be you found a lead, as you’re still calling me by that name. So why so happy?”
     “Because it’s Christmas Eve, Yagami-kun!” L said, turning to the younger man. “I love Christmas. It’s a cheery, festive time of year.”
     “It’s also the time of year a lot of crimes and suicides occur.”
     “That may be true,” L said, “but it’s still a pleasant time.” He turned back to his computer screen and Raito rolled his eyes.
     “I remember…the fabulous Christmases when I was young. The others had turkey and bread sauce and dressing and potatoes but I’d always go to the dessert table. Oh, the pies, the cakes, the treacle, and the Christmas pudding…oh, I’d love a pudding right now. I wonder if I can get one in this country…”
     “So that’s how you got hooked on sweets.”
     “…And then we’d open presents. We all saved up pocket change to buy presents for each other, and Wammy got us each one too. We may have lost our families, but that house really was family togetherness at Christmas.”
     “Hm.”
     L stared at Raito. “You are ridiculous. Surely you have happy Christmas memories.”
     “We don’t really celebrate Christmas.”
     “Japan is lacking in that,” L sighed. There was a moment’s pause before the detective stood suddenly and walked towards a doorway, dragging Raito along with him.
     “Wha--!”
     “Your grinchiness raises my suspicion of you being Kira to sixty-nine percent,” L said cheerily, tugging the chain between them so that Raito fell into his arms. The young man frowned.
     “How many times do I have to tell you that I am not Kira?” he said, and L just grinned. He hugged Raito tighter, and the younger man tried to wriggle away.
     “Why exactly are you in my personal space, Ryuzaki?” Raito said with a frown, and L just looked up. Raito screwed up his eyebrows in confusion and slowly looked up.
     Mistletoe.
     Damn Matsuda.
     “It’s required. The law of Christmas. We have to kiss, Kira.”
     “I’m not Kira, and we’re grown men. We shouldn’t do that,” Raito said in all seriousness.
     “And now I’m seventy-two percen
     “Oh stop it,” Raito said, pushing L away lightly.”
     “Would you rather I call Misa here for you?”
     A pause.
     “Fine. Let’s make this quick.”
     Awkwardly on Raito’s part and giddily on L’s, the two locked lips under the little green leaves and white berries. It was a sweet, chaste kiss, like the kiss of schoolchildren.
     Innocent. That’s the best word.
     Their lips parted, and L laughed a little at the serene look on Raito’s previously concerned face.
     “With that kiss…” the detective mused, “I think you’ve dropped down to just forty-seven percent…”
     There was a sudden BANG that made the two of them jump, as they turned around to see Matsuda grinning at them. The entire taskforce was sitting around in paper crowns with remains of paper crackers, examining their contents.
     “That was unexpected,” the cop laughed, looking right at the two blushing men. “I guess you finally managed to get Scrooge into the Christmas spirit, huh?” He turned over his shoulder. “Mogi! You owe me ¥2000! I was right about them!” The other cop grumbled.
     “Wh-what? Right about…We’re not…” Raito stammered, while L just looked at Matsuda with befuddled amusement.
     “And I’m eighty percent sure he’s Kira now,” L whispered to Raito.
     “Aaanyway, lovebirds, cracker?” Matsuda said cheerily, handing two of the shiny poppers to the two of them. “You’ll like them, Ryuzaki. I called in to your old home, that Wammy house? This is the kind they used every year.”
     L examined the paper cracker with a smile. “Brings back memories,” he said fondly, and offered an end to Raito. “Want to pop it with me?”
     Raito shrugged, offering an end to his own cracker. “Alright, fine.”
     “Be more cheery, Raito!”
     Raito forced a terribly fake smile on his face.
     “For real…”
     “Fine, fine!” Raito said, smiling more genuinely as he grabbed the end of L’s cracker. The two pulled them sharply, emitting two loud bangs. L promptly put a flimsy green crown on Raito’s head.
     “Happy Christmas, Raito,” he said, positioning his own purple hat and looking over the plastic toys and trinkets inside his cardboard tube. Raito looked warmly at the detective, joyous like a child over such a simple occasion.
     “Merry Christmas, Ryuzaki. And a happy new year.”