Light in Amsterdam

Expedition

Before heading back to the crystal hunter base, Doctor Light visits his mother in Amsterdam. As he talks to her, they reflect on the past, and things get a bit emotional. Suddenly, Light gets a ping on his crystal finding device showing that the crystal he's been hunting is actually in Amsterdam. He leaves his mother urgently and heads to where the crystal is.

Its been a couple weeks since Doctor Light began the search for the Zatanna crystal, and with it not being in Germany it could be literally anywhere else. It doesn't help that Cheshire, the person he was teamed with, disappeared without a trace. At this point, he was most probably returning to the crystal hunter base empty handed, meaning the boss would punish him somehow. It's not even my fault, he thinks to himself. He shudders at the thought of what his boss would even to do him, and decides to prolong his return with a visit to Amsterdam, the place where he was born. He'd probably take a break, have a smoke, visit his mom and just mentally prepare for the beating he will most likely receive. Who knows, maybe the crystal will show up somehow? he thinks, however he passes this off as just hopeful thinking and knows there's probably no chance he'd be that lucky.   As he drives into his hometown of Watergraafsmeer, he sees the little shops he used to hang around when he was a kid. He remembers the times when he'd be walking home from school and a group of kids would harass him. He was never the smartest kid growing up, and his want to make friends led to him being used by a lot of people. Eventually this led to a deal that ended with his father being killed and his mom being seriously injured. A man claiming to belong to the "crystal hunters" came to him with a proposition and promised Light that he could give him special abilities so that he can get revenge and the man will make sure that his mom gets taken care of, in return Light works for him. Skeptical, but desperate, Light took the man up on his offer and underwent a process that led to him bonding with the essence crystal of Doctor Light. All throughout this, he would keep telling his mom that the people who did this would pay, however she would just tell him that revenge is a fool's game, and he'll only end up regretting it. Light didn't care though, these people hurt his family and they had to pay. And so that's what he did. He killed every single one of them and his mom was not happy about it. She refused to see him for a couple of years after that. During this time, he had been doing jobs for the crystal hunters and making quite the reputation for himself. He was useful, and as long as he was useful then they would take care of his mom. That's all he cared about at the end of the day.   A couple of years later, she finally allowed him to come see her. She gave him a proposition, stop working for criminals and she would forgive him for everything he's done and she would accept him as a son again. Wanting his mother's approval, he tried to quit working for the crystal hunters. He really did. However, his boss was a cruel man, and told him that the deal still stands. As long as he works for him then his mother will be taken care of, but if he leaves then his mother will be taken care of. Fearing for his mother's life, Light backs out of quitting. When he goes back to his mother, he tells her the opposite - that he had quit and he would look for a new job. Eventually he was able to convince her that he had started working at a company where he would be traveling a lot. That way he would be able to do the jobs assigned to him by the hunters. It's been about five years and she still hasn't found out. And as he pulls up to her house he can't help but wonder, Should I just tell her?   As he enters the house he smells something fishy. She must be making lunch, he thinks to himself. She has no idea he's visiting, so he can't wait to see the look on her face when she sees him. As he enters the kitchen, he hears his mother whistling a little tune. Light can't help but smile. He loved seeing her happy. Then, in Dutch, he begins to speak.   "Hey mother!" Light's mom lets out a scream and turns around. She gives a sigh of relief and playfully hits her son. "Ah, Levi! Don't scare your poor old mother like that! You know I have a bad heart!" Levi. Light doesn't really hear his actual name often. Most people he works with just refer to him as "Doctor" or "Light". Mother's pout turns into a smile as she reaches both her arms out. "Come on! Are you too old to hug your own mother now?"   A big grin forms across Levi's face, "Never." He embraces his mother and she asks him, "So how was the trip to Germany? Hopefully you didn't work too hard." An alarm begins to beep, bringing her attention back to the food she had been cooking. "Oh! The pannekoeken! Go sit and you can tell me about it while we eat."   Levi sits at the table to see plates of different meats. Salmon. Ham. Beef. He loved pannekoeken. It was his favorite growing up. He'd come back from school and the dinner table would be piled with different meats, fruits, and other toppings that he wanted to put on it. It was one of his best memories that he had as a child. As his mom brings out the actual pancake-crepe bread he lets out a big sniff and says, "It smells good, Mom! It's almost like you knew I was coming to visit!" His mom gives him a little smirk, "Of course, you're my son! It's like a sixth sense I have, haha!"   As she grabs a plate and starts to top off her pannekoeken, she asks Levi, "So how was it? Tell me all about it!"   Levi grabs some salmon first and arranges it on his plate. "Well, it's not so good. Me and my partner were there to, um, sell some real estate. House tours and such. But she left three-quarters of the way through and I had to do the rest myself." He then goes for the ham. "Now I have to report back to my boss that we couldn't really sell anything and he might end up hur - uh - firing me." He goes for the beef, but suddenly doesn't feel hungry anymore.   Levi tries to hide his frown, but his mother must be able to tell cause she tries to comfort him. "Tsk tsk tsk. You work so hard for that company and what, they will fire you because you failed one time? You should just quit and find another job that will respect you more." Levi laughs a little bit. "Ha, you know I can't do that, mom."   "Well why not? I'm sure there are other companies out there that you can work at. You're hard-working, good-hearted, and you're-" As she's saying this, Levi's eyes begin to well up and he just looks at his mom. She sees the tears coming down his face and gets up to hug him and comfort him. "There, there. It's okay."   Levi begins to sob and in between breaths he says, "I'm...just...so...tired...Mom."   She pats his back, "I know, I know. I'm so proud of you, you know that?" Levi just continues sobbing. "When you were little, you were so nice and caring. And after that night, I saw how it just broke you inside. And what you did after, I'm sorry that you felt you had to do that. And I'm sorry that that man is still ruling over your life." Levi looks up at his mother, surprised. "Wait, you know?"   "Of course I do, Levi. You are my son. You think I don't know when you're lying?" Levi begins to sob harder. "Oh god. Mom, I'm so sorry. I just- I just- " His mom wipes the tears from his face. "It's okay, Levi. I don't blame you. It's that man. He has something over you. But I promise you, whatever that is, it's not worth it."   "It is, Mom."   "No, Levi, it isn't. Nothing is worth the soul of that young boy who would want to help everyone, regardless of how they treated him. That boy was an angel that the world didn't deserve." Suddenly, the crystal tracker in his pocket begins to beep. "What is that noise?" His mom asks.   Levi pulls out the tracker to see that the Zatanna crystal is pinging in Amsterdam. The Amsterdam Museum to be specific. Oh my god, he thinks. Suddenly he stands up as his mom just stares at him in confusion. "What, what is that?"   "I'm sorry Mom, I have to go." As he turns to leave his mom grabs his arm. "Please, just stay here with me, Levi. Don't let that man pull you in any deeper." Levi pulls his arm away and holds her hands in between his. "I have to do this Mom. A lot is riding on this."   "But what Levi? What is so important that you have to sell your soul to that devil?" He lets go and starts to walk away. As he leaves the room he looks back and says, "I love you, Mom." His mom lets out a sigh. "Just what am I gonna do with you, huh?"   "Don't worry, I'll be back soon!" As he closes the house door behind him and as he enters his car a single thought crosses his mind.   I need to do whatever it takes to get that crystal.