Bizarrely Cute (L/Misa - Death Note)
Title: Bizarrely Cute
Author: archica
Fandom: Death Note
Pairing: L/Misa
Spoilers: All of the first half of the manga. If you don't know how far that extends, you probably shouldn't read. XD
NOTE: I'll add pictures later. I was in a hurry.
Introduction:
L and Misa are two major characters from the manga series (and now anime series) Death Note. The series has become wildly popular and it’s one of the few series that are completely deserving of their vast popularity. Perhaps the most popular character to arise from this story is L, the bizarre genius detective. Like many Death Note fans, I was immediately drawn to L and he became my favorite. Unlike many Death Note fans, I was also immediately drawn to Misa (one of the very few recurring females in the series). Since I have something of a distaste for Raito, it was a no-brainer for me to pair L and Misa up together.
Note: I will be referring to the main character as Raito rather than Light. This is because the translation I read called him Raito and that’s what I became used to. Simple as that. I know Light is considered the correct name for him, and I have absolutely no issue with anyone calling him that. Just wanted to clear that up.
L:
L’s true name is never revealed, though he provides several fake ones throughout the story to various people. It’s fairly safe to assume his name starts with an L though (if Mello and Near are any indication). He’s a highly talented and intelligent detective known for solving many impossible cases. But aside from that, he’s a very strange person with abnormal habits and mannerisms, leading many fans to speculate on whether or not he has some sort of mental illness. It would be impossible to describe L’s odd behavior to someone who hasn’t seen it for themselves so I won’t even try. Let’s just say that L is a unique individual.
Misa:
Amane Misa is a model when the series begins, but she becomes a rather famous pop idol later on when she gets involved in acting and even singing. Accused of being an air head or “stupid” by some fans, she is somewhat ditzy and fun-loving, but she’s very far from being dumb. She was in fact the “Second Kira”, another holder of a Death Note who both benefits Raito’s plans and hinders them at the same time. Raito, as Kira, punished the murderer of her parents, and so she develops a fixation on Kira, and Raito by extension. When L suspects Raito of being Kira and demands that the two of them remain together twenty-four hours a day, Misa moves into the building with them. As a friend said, she’s not the sort of genius that L and Raito are, but she is a genius when it comes to social skills. She has many skills and talents that in fact help the boys to find the “New Kira”.
Evidence:
L and Misa spend a fairly large amount of time together in the series (they live in the same building, probably next-door to each other, for a while and along with Raito, seem to spend a great deal of time in each others’ rooms). Unfortunately, most of the time they spend together is probably off-panel. However, there are a few great moments between that lead many fans to see the potential of this pairing.
When L and Misa first meet is a great example. L and Raito are talking outside the school when Misa approaches. L stares at her for a while before saying that he’s jealous of Raito (obviously he’s saying that he’s jealous of Raito for having Misa for a girlfriend). He admits to being a fan of Misa and knows who she is. In the past, I’ve wondered if he was telling the truth here, but now that I think about it, why would he lie? What could he gain by saying he’s a fan of her? Regardless, Misa seems pleased to hear this. A little while later, a crowd begins growing around Misa. In the resulting chaos, Misa suddenly says that someone touched her butt. We then see L behind her with motion lines around his hand, which is behind his back (indicating that he is the one who touched her). He cheerfully tells her that he’ll catch the culprit and she laughs a little and says he’s funny. With her reaction, I think it’s reasonable to assume that she knew he was the one who touched her (why would she call him “funny” just for saying he’d find out who touched her if she didn’t know it was him?). Misa leaves after this, and we find out L had stolen her cell phone when he touched her (which results in possibly the most hilarious example of Raito being caught completely off guard when he tries to call Misa and gets L instead).
After this is when L brings Misa into custody under suspicion of being the second Kira. He interrogates her via a monitor/speaker system that allows him to watch her and speak to her from another room (so that she’ll never see his face). She is kept tied up and blindfolded (because he theorized that Kira’s powers had to do with seeing a person’s face, which was true). He tells Watari to go so far as to use mild torture to get Misa to talk about Kira. We’re never told exactly what this entails but at one point someone mentions that she was not given any water for a number of days. She was apparently given bathroom breaks and the torture must not have been TOO severe because her reaction to it was rather calm (after she gave up the Death Note). During the interrogation she repeatedly calls L a pervert and believes he is a maniacal fan who has kidnaped her. L’s reaction to this is rather amusing, as he seems genuinely surprised and even a little hurt at being called a pervert.
Later on, both Misa and Raito (who had voluntarily went into custody and eventually gave up the Death Note) were released, but only under the condition that they remain under surveillance twenty-four hours a day. To accomplish this, both Misa and Raito move into the same building (I assume it’s a hotel) as L. Monitoring systems are set up in Misa’s room so that she can be watched and L and Raito are chained together so that Raito can never get out of L’s sight. The three of them are working along with a few ex police officers (including Raito’s father) to find Kira (who is a completely new Kira). During this time, L and Raito frequently hang around in Misa’s room where they discuss the case, eat cakes, or just talk about normal things like Misa and Raito dating. When not in Misa’s room, L and Raito are most often seen sitting in front of the monitors that display Misa’s room.
There is a cute moment during this time when Misa expresses an interest in Raito coming to her room at night and tells him not to be shy. As soon as she leaves, L says “Don’t be shy, Raito!” in a very amusing way. It’s possible that L wanted Raito to visit Misa’s room because they are chained together and L would have to go with him. Maybe he was hoping for some action? XD L also tells Misa that she and Raito can date and be together, but he has to be there as well. Misa seems bothered by the fact that he would be seeing them kiss, but she eventually says that she doesn’t mind as long as she can date Raito. The reason these little scenes were significant is that L is often called a voyeur by fans. Many people are convinced that L has some sort of voyeuristic fetish, as he often watches people through monitors (sometimes for several days without sleeping). The other characters in the series even seem a little creeped out by this. So, it’s entirely possible that he wanted to watch Raito and Misa together. If this is the case, it’s easy to assume that he at least feels physical attraction to Misa and has an interest in seeing her in action (this is supported by the fact that he is so often seen watching the monitors displaying her in her room).
Perhaps the best evidence for L and Misa came when L hatched a plan to use Misa to get Raito to help him with his own efforts to find Kira (when the ex police wanted to pursue another method). He goes to Misa’s room (Raito of course in tow) and begins questioning her. He asks her if she loves Raito and if she would help catch Kira even though she respects Kira. She answers that she prefers Raito over Kira, and L recruits her to help him. This leaves Raito with little choice but to help as well. At this point L says that Misa is a good woman who will make an excellent wife. He compliments her sense of loyalty and devotion. Misa is extremely pleased with his comments and says that she used to think he was weird but now she realized she was wrong about him. She kisses him on the cheek, and he makes a comment about falling in love with her. She says that they can be friends, and he says that his number of friends has now increased (previously he stated that Raito was his first friend, so apparently Misa is his second). L and Misa then join hands (with Raito, who doesn’t seem all that enthusiastic about it) and appear to sort of dance around in a circle because they’re going to catch Kira.
There is very little strong evidence for the pairing after this point, aside from small things like Misa grabbing L’s hair (something she does quite often when she’s annoyed with him, and he never tells her to stop or seems all that bothered by it). There is also a moment where L apparently asks her to use her sexual charm in their plan to find out more about the group of businessmen of whom they believe the new Kira belongs. While he is not shown asking this, we do see Misa’s reaction (she’s screaming that she won’t do it XD).
It is later that L dies and we never get to see Misa’s direct reaction to this. Was she sad that he died? It’s possible, since they had become (in their own words) friends. However, by this point Misa had regained her memories and no doubt viewed L as Raito’s enemy and therefore it was necessary to eliminate him. Even so, she could have felt bad about it. But we’ll never know.
Their Relationship:
It’s doesn’t take a huge leap of the imagination to assume that L may have had some sort of strange crush on Misa. He admitted to being a fan of her before the whole thing started and made the comment about possibly falling in love with her. Had he not suspected that she was the second Kira, I find it likely that he may have actually fallen in love with her. For Misa’s part, before she recovers her memories from the Death Note, she seems to view him as a strange, funny boy. She is annoyed with him at first because he interferes with her relationship with Raito, but begins to warm up to him and grows to consider him her friend.
The two of them seem comfortable in each other’s company (they sure do hang around a lot together) and they get along fairly well. Despite their earlier comical arguments, it’s safe to say that they cared about each other, at least as friends. It’s also indicated that they admire each other, to a certain extent. L compliments Misa far more than Raito ever did (even when he wasn’t Kira) and I feel that he appreciated her more.
Sadly, the two of them were rather locked on opposite sides of a conflict, as Misa felt devoted to Kira because he avenged her parents. I feel that she didn’t truly love Raito, despite her claims. She was drawn to Kira, and only “fell for” Raito because he was Kira. It could have been anyone, as long as they were Kira. Either way, she was tied to Kira and L was determined to capture Kira. And then, of course, L died. But had he lived, and had Misa not regained her memories of the Death Note, who knows what may have eventually happened between them? It’s worth exploring in fandom at least.
Why Support L/Misa?
As I’ve said on another manifesto I wrote for an alternate pairing, it’s different! L/Raito is the most popular pairing, and Raito/Misa is fairly popular as well. But L/Misa is refreshing. L is a socially awkward, lonely boy who needs more friends and certainly needs more fun. I think Misa is the perfect person to help bring him out of his shell, so to speak. On the other hand Misa is a devoted, caring, talented young woman who deserves attention and the same devotion in return. She needs someone to appreciate her, and I think L is more than capable of doing this for her. And plus, they’re both rather comical at times.
The fact that they lived so close together for a relatively large chunk of the series gives fandom plenty of chances to come up with scenarios between them. It also works in their favor that Raito tells L that he isn’t in love with Misa (so L won’t feel like a jerk for “stealing” her). I’ve talked to several people who share my belief that L had something of a minor crush on Misa. And she kissed him on the cheek. All the adorable signs are there for a cute and fun pairing. And hey, you can easily add in some angst because of L’s lonely nature and Misa’s tragic past (of losing both her parents so suddenly and violently).
L/Misa is fun and exciting and cute and sweet. It’s about time more people discovered it.
Brief Fandom Guide:
Utterly Bizarre
This is the fanlisting I run for the pairing. Has some fanfiction, icons, and wallpapers as well. Will soon be turned into a full-on shrine.
lxmisa
This is the L/Misa lj community. Not much there but it's in the process of developing.
Fanfiction.net Community
L/Misa fics collected in a fanfiction.net community.
Author: archica
Fandom: Death Note
Pairing: L/Misa
Spoilers: All of the first half of the manga. If you don't know how far that extends, you probably shouldn't read. XD
NOTE: I'll add pictures later. I was in a hurry.
Introduction:
L and Misa are two major characters from the manga series (and now anime series) Death Note. The series has become wildly popular and it’s one of the few series that are completely deserving of their vast popularity. Perhaps the most popular character to arise from this story is L, the bizarre genius detective. Like many Death Note fans, I was immediately drawn to L and he became my favorite. Unlike many Death Note fans, I was also immediately drawn to Misa (one of the very few recurring females in the series). Since I have something of a distaste for Raito, it was a no-brainer for me to pair L and Misa up together.
Note: I will be referring to the main character as Raito rather than Light. This is because the translation I read called him Raito and that’s what I became used to. Simple as that. I know Light is considered the correct name for him, and I have absolutely no issue with anyone calling him that. Just wanted to clear that up.
L:
L’s true name is never revealed, though he provides several fake ones throughout the story to various people. It’s fairly safe to assume his name starts with an L though (if Mello and Near are any indication). He’s a highly talented and intelligent detective known for solving many impossible cases. But aside from that, he’s a very strange person with abnormal habits and mannerisms, leading many fans to speculate on whether or not he has some sort of mental illness. It would be impossible to describe L’s odd behavior to someone who hasn’t seen it for themselves so I won’t even try. Let’s just say that L is a unique individual.
Misa:
Amane Misa is a model when the series begins, but she becomes a rather famous pop idol later on when she gets involved in acting and even singing. Accused of being an air head or “stupid” by some fans, she is somewhat ditzy and fun-loving, but she’s very far from being dumb. She was in fact the “Second Kira”, another holder of a Death Note who both benefits Raito’s plans and hinders them at the same time. Raito, as Kira, punished the murderer of her parents, and so she develops a fixation on Kira, and Raito by extension. When L suspects Raito of being Kira and demands that the two of them remain together twenty-four hours a day, Misa moves into the building with them. As a friend said, she’s not the sort of genius that L and Raito are, but she is a genius when it comes to social skills. She has many skills and talents that in fact help the boys to find the “New Kira”.
Evidence:
L and Misa spend a fairly large amount of time together in the series (they live in the same building, probably next-door to each other, for a while and along with Raito, seem to spend a great deal of time in each others’ rooms). Unfortunately, most of the time they spend together is probably off-panel. However, there are a few great moments between that lead many fans to see the potential of this pairing.
When L and Misa first meet is a great example. L and Raito are talking outside the school when Misa approaches. L stares at her for a while before saying that he’s jealous of Raito (obviously he’s saying that he’s jealous of Raito for having Misa for a girlfriend). He admits to being a fan of Misa and knows who she is. In the past, I’ve wondered if he was telling the truth here, but now that I think about it, why would he lie? What could he gain by saying he’s a fan of her? Regardless, Misa seems pleased to hear this. A little while later, a crowd begins growing around Misa. In the resulting chaos, Misa suddenly says that someone touched her butt. We then see L behind her with motion lines around his hand, which is behind his back (indicating that he is the one who touched her). He cheerfully tells her that he’ll catch the culprit and she laughs a little and says he’s funny. With her reaction, I think it’s reasonable to assume that she knew he was the one who touched her (why would she call him “funny” just for saying he’d find out who touched her if she didn’t know it was him?). Misa leaves after this, and we find out L had stolen her cell phone when he touched her (which results in possibly the most hilarious example of Raito being caught completely off guard when he tries to call Misa and gets L instead).
After this is when L brings Misa into custody under suspicion of being the second Kira. He interrogates her via a monitor/speaker system that allows him to watch her and speak to her from another room (so that she’ll never see his face). She is kept tied up and blindfolded (because he theorized that Kira’s powers had to do with seeing a person’s face, which was true). He tells Watari to go so far as to use mild torture to get Misa to talk about Kira. We’re never told exactly what this entails but at one point someone mentions that she was not given any water for a number of days. She was apparently given bathroom breaks and the torture must not have been TOO severe because her reaction to it was rather calm (after she gave up the Death Note). During the interrogation she repeatedly calls L a pervert and believes he is a maniacal fan who has kidnaped her. L’s reaction to this is rather amusing, as he seems genuinely surprised and even a little hurt at being called a pervert.
Later on, both Misa and Raito (who had voluntarily went into custody and eventually gave up the Death Note) were released, but only under the condition that they remain under surveillance twenty-four hours a day. To accomplish this, both Misa and Raito move into the same building (I assume it’s a hotel) as L. Monitoring systems are set up in Misa’s room so that she can be watched and L and Raito are chained together so that Raito can never get out of L’s sight. The three of them are working along with a few ex police officers (including Raito’s father) to find Kira (who is a completely new Kira). During this time, L and Raito frequently hang around in Misa’s room where they discuss the case, eat cakes, or just talk about normal things like Misa and Raito dating. When not in Misa’s room, L and Raito are most often seen sitting in front of the monitors that display Misa’s room.
There is a cute moment during this time when Misa expresses an interest in Raito coming to her room at night and tells him not to be shy. As soon as she leaves, L says “Don’t be shy, Raito!” in a very amusing way. It’s possible that L wanted Raito to visit Misa’s room because they are chained together and L would have to go with him. Maybe he was hoping for some action? XD L also tells Misa that she and Raito can date and be together, but he has to be there as well. Misa seems bothered by the fact that he would be seeing them kiss, but she eventually says that she doesn’t mind as long as she can date Raito. The reason these little scenes were significant is that L is often called a voyeur by fans. Many people are convinced that L has some sort of voyeuristic fetish, as he often watches people through monitors (sometimes for several days without sleeping). The other characters in the series even seem a little creeped out by this. So, it’s entirely possible that he wanted to watch Raito and Misa together. If this is the case, it’s easy to assume that he at least feels physical attraction to Misa and has an interest in seeing her in action (this is supported by the fact that he is so often seen watching the monitors displaying her in her room).
Perhaps the best evidence for L and Misa came when L hatched a plan to use Misa to get Raito to help him with his own efforts to find Kira (when the ex police wanted to pursue another method). He goes to Misa’s room (Raito of course in tow) and begins questioning her. He asks her if she loves Raito and if she would help catch Kira even though she respects Kira. She answers that she prefers Raito over Kira, and L recruits her to help him. This leaves Raito with little choice but to help as well. At this point L says that Misa is a good woman who will make an excellent wife. He compliments her sense of loyalty and devotion. Misa is extremely pleased with his comments and says that she used to think he was weird but now she realized she was wrong about him. She kisses him on the cheek, and he makes a comment about falling in love with her. She says that they can be friends, and he says that his number of friends has now increased (previously he stated that Raito was his first friend, so apparently Misa is his second). L and Misa then join hands (with Raito, who doesn’t seem all that enthusiastic about it) and appear to sort of dance around in a circle because they’re going to catch Kira.
There is very little strong evidence for the pairing after this point, aside from small things like Misa grabbing L’s hair (something she does quite often when she’s annoyed with him, and he never tells her to stop or seems all that bothered by it). There is also a moment where L apparently asks her to use her sexual charm in their plan to find out more about the group of businessmen of whom they believe the new Kira belongs. While he is not shown asking this, we do see Misa’s reaction (she’s screaming that she won’t do it XD).
It is later that L dies and we never get to see Misa’s direct reaction to this. Was she sad that he died? It’s possible, since they had become (in their own words) friends. However, by this point Misa had regained her memories and no doubt viewed L as Raito’s enemy and therefore it was necessary to eliminate him. Even so, she could have felt bad about it. But we’ll never know.
Their Relationship:
It’s doesn’t take a huge leap of the imagination to assume that L may have had some sort of strange crush on Misa. He admitted to being a fan of her before the whole thing started and made the comment about possibly falling in love with her. Had he not suspected that she was the second Kira, I find it likely that he may have actually fallen in love with her. For Misa’s part, before she recovers her memories from the Death Note, she seems to view him as a strange, funny boy. She is annoyed with him at first because he interferes with her relationship with Raito, but begins to warm up to him and grows to consider him her friend.
The two of them seem comfortable in each other’s company (they sure do hang around a lot together) and they get along fairly well. Despite their earlier comical arguments, it’s safe to say that they cared about each other, at least as friends. It’s also indicated that they admire each other, to a certain extent. L compliments Misa far more than Raito ever did (even when he wasn’t Kira) and I feel that he appreciated her more.
Sadly, the two of them were rather locked on opposite sides of a conflict, as Misa felt devoted to Kira because he avenged her parents. I feel that she didn’t truly love Raito, despite her claims. She was drawn to Kira, and only “fell for” Raito because he was Kira. It could have been anyone, as long as they were Kira. Either way, she was tied to Kira and L was determined to capture Kira. And then, of course, L died. But had he lived, and had Misa not regained her memories of the Death Note, who knows what may have eventually happened between them? It’s worth exploring in fandom at least.
Why Support L/Misa?
As I’ve said on another manifesto I wrote for an alternate pairing, it’s different! L/Raito is the most popular pairing, and Raito/Misa is fairly popular as well. But L/Misa is refreshing. L is a socially awkward, lonely boy who needs more friends and certainly needs more fun. I think Misa is the perfect person to help bring him out of his shell, so to speak. On the other hand Misa is a devoted, caring, talented young woman who deserves attention and the same devotion in return. She needs someone to appreciate her, and I think L is more than capable of doing this for her. And plus, they’re both rather comical at times.
The fact that they lived so close together for a relatively large chunk of the series gives fandom plenty of chances to come up with scenarios between them. It also works in their favor that Raito tells L that he isn’t in love with Misa (so L won’t feel like a jerk for “stealing” her). I’ve talked to several people who share my belief that L had something of a minor crush on Misa. And she kissed him on the cheek. All the adorable signs are there for a cute and fun pairing. And hey, you can easily add in some angst because of L’s lonely nature and Misa’s tragic past (of losing both her parents so suddenly and violently).
L/Misa is fun and exciting and cute and sweet. It’s about time more people discovered it.
Brief Fandom Guide:
Utterly Bizarre
This is the fanlisting I run for the pairing. Has some fanfiction, icons, and wallpapers as well. Will soon be turned into a full-on shrine.
lxmisa
This is the L/Misa lj community. Not much there but it's in the process of developing.
Fanfiction.net Community
L/Misa fics collected in a fanfiction.net community.