paradisalost | [log] Past & Future

Who: Near (

dyna_m_ite)
What: Upon discovering that Near is from a short time ahead of him, Mello seeks him out to get some answers about his future.
When: March 6
Where: Near's room (room 919)
Rating: PG-13

Near sat in his room, absently curling a lock of hair around his finger. Mello would be arriving shortly, undoubtedly. The other would have questions about what his future held, and he would likely be rather demanding about trying to get them. Of course, no matter how insistent Mello was, it would hardly matter if Near had made up his mind not to tell the other. Near was stubborn enough to refuse to answer something no matter what force was behind the request.

Near had not decided exactly what he would tell Mello, however. Near had no personal reason not to tell Mello what his future held. It was his own future, after all, and by all accounts, it could not be changed based on information obtained here. Mello would still die no matter what Near told him, and the result of Mello's actions would be Near obtaining the real Death Note and overcoming Kira finally. The very Death Note that remained hidden away safely in his room was proof enough of that triumph. Because of the efforts of both of them, Kira had been defeated. It was a shared victory, even if it did come at a high cost.

However, Near doubted that Mello would see it that way. He would see it as Near's victory, most probably, and he would be unhappy about his demise. Near had not been happy about it either.

Near wondered how he felt about Mello arriving in this world. The other was alive here, rather than dead and gone forever. His rival. The one who would always resent Near's position as number one more than anything. There was not hatred on Near's part where Mello was concerned. Mello was someone important to him. The one always chasing after him, racing him to the goal that L had set before both of them. The only one in the world whose mind was so interestingly unpredictable. Someone Near enjoyed talking to, even though such conversations inevitably ended with Mello becoming angry. It was curious... there was some sense of happiness at the thought of seeing Mello again. Perhaps it was just that things felt more natural this way.

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Near was confident that Light's behavior would only continue to embarrass him when Near returned home. The matter was truly decided now, for the Death Note sat in Near's hands. "So, I was just beginning to explain how your actions combined with mine to yield victory over Kira. To reveal fully the tactics we employed," Near said.

He fell silent at Mello's words, his own gaze rising to rest on Mello's features. Praise from most people was fairly meaningless. Most people did not understand the level of the game. Coming from Mello, however, it meant something. It meant that Mello knew that his own death had not been in vain. Mello understood the precise nature of everything that had gone into the victory over Kira, and he knew the standards that they both strove to meet. Near gave a small nod of acknowledgment, but he did not press the matter. It was enough that Mello had said the words. While Near enjoyed provoking Mello on occasion, doing so when he was actually paying him a compliment was not such an occasion.

"A room close to mine would be preferable. There are too many floors here to make things very feasible otherwise. Sharing a room here is possible, but less desirable." Mello would probably want to kill him in a matter of days, and privacy was a normal thing for a person to desire. In addition, it made it far easier for Near to keep the Death Note out of the way. He had no intention of using it on anyone here, but it could be of use to him aside from that.

"You should be able to request a change of room from the castle if there are spaces available. Or we could both move onto a floor with vacancies," Near added, giving a small shrug of his shoulders.

The lack of teasing from Near was a relief, although Mello hadn't expected otherwise. He knew that his rival respected him as much as he did Near. Despite the huge abyss between them, their minds tended to work at the same level. Or almost.

To Mello, it was also preferable not to live in the same room as Near. This place had become a new race, thus scheming in front of his rival would make competition pretty pointless. A certain level of intimacy was required, and yet their proximity would be a good way to keep Near's movements under control. Mello was even considering the idea of sneaking into Near's room at night just to steal his journal and take a look at all his filtered conversations. Just like when Near was at the SPK, Mello would feed off the information the brat obtained like a parasite.

"That's fine with me," Mello said, shifting from his position against the wall to stand firmly. He turned his back to Near and faced the door; if the pale genius had anything else to add, this was the moment to do so.

"We'll keep in touch," was the first promise to fulfill his word, before he walked to the room's exit.

Near gave a slight nod at Mello's words. "It should be fine. Different arrangements can be made if that were to prove unsatisfactory." In other words, if Mello were of insufficient help when it came to keeping Near from being harmed, then he might have to just deal with them sharing a room. Near was not quite certain how dangerous this place was. It might just be the only way, given Near's tendency to leave his room whether he wanted to or not.

"Until it is arranged, however, you should sleep here." That would give Near a chance to test the parameters of what must be his loss. "It is a better temporary arrangement than to have you several floors away."

"............"

Mello stopped short at Near's words, his back still turned to the boy. It was a reasonable request, getting a room right next to Near's would take more than a day for sure. However, Mello couldn't help but frown at the idea of spending the night with his rival. Not even back in the orphanage had they been forced to share their personal space more than what was necessary.

Looking at the bright side, this might grant Mello the chance to study Near's sleeping patterns. If he wanted to take a look at his notebook without using violence against the boy, he better do it without Near noticing.

"You're at the edge of shitting your pants in this place, aren't you?" he said, finally turning to face Near once more with a teasing smirk. Either the idea of spending a single night on his own was too frightening for Near, or he was planning something-- perhaps something related to reading Mello's journal when the blond was asleep?

"Fine with me. You've fulfilled your part of the deal, so I can't refuse."

((ooc: *AMUSED* I assume that there are two beds?))

Near had no intention of explaining his loss to Mello just now. It would be difficult for Mello to figure it out quickly, and if Near played it off correctly, he could delay that for quite some time. He had no intention of showing that particular liability too quickly. This just happened to be the best way to test whether his loss related to him leaving his room or if it had more to do with human companionship. How many people did he need to see? Was one guest sufficient to prevent him from needing to leave his room? At least Near would begin to answer those questions that way.

Near had no doubt that Mello would seek to take advantage of the situation if he could. He was also confident that Mello would not find anything that Near did not want him to find.

"I believe my bowel control is completely in tact," Near replied dryly, curling a lock of hair around his fingers. "I value my personal safety, and this place is unpredictable. Temporary losses could strike at any given moment. You might benefit from the arrangement as well."

Near gave a slight nod in response to Mello's assent, playing with his puppets again. "Good. Return here when you are ready."

[ooc: LOL... not at the moment~ Though they can ask the castle for another one anytime.]

It was funny how Near acted as if Mello wasn't unpredictable himself. The ex-mafia member might be unwilling to hurt Near now as a matter of pride, but if any of those curses everyone kept mentioning hit him, only god knew what could happen with the remains of his precious self-control.

Seeing that there was only a single bed, Mello assumed that Near'd want him to sleep on the floor, the little brat. If it weren't because Near was younger and more fragile, Mello wouldn't have doubted to take the only bed. But as things were, he'd feel pretty stupid to do such a thing. Mello wasn't a delicate Princess like Near, he was supposed to be able to adapt to any sort of situation and sleep wherever.

Still, he didn't fancy the idea of sleeping on the floor right next to Near's bed, as if he were his dog.

"You better start wishing for a second bed while I'm gone," he stated with annoyance. "I want to see two beds in this room when I return, okay?"

This said, Mello made his way to the door again, hoping to find the chocolate bars he'd wished for a moment ago in his own room. If he was going to spend some time with Near, tons of chocolate would be required.

((ooc: I'm going to make Mello post today. Finallyyyyy!))

Near knew that there was risk involved for everyone in this place. Losses were unpredictable and caused behavior to shift. They were nothing that he could control, even when it came to himself or Mello. In the meantime, however, Mello was a known quantity. He was the only real known quantity in the whole place in spite of his unpredictable nature. There were still certain things that Near knew Mello would not do.

"Dear Mello does not want to share a bed?" Near asked, keeping his expression perfectly blank.

Near knew that he obviously would not be sharing a bed with Mello. That would have made sleeping uncomfortable, considering how rarely Near had physical contact of any kind with anyone. Other people in the bed probably meant kicking or shifting or a strange distribution of weight on the bed. Near would be requesting an extra bed from the castle as soon as Mello was gone, but he saw no reason to make it appear as if it were in response to Mello giving him orders.

"I will be waiting."

[ooc: There is a little sidebar on the ooc comm with upcoming events, but it's usually not done out a full month ahead. ^^]

((ooc: Where's the events calendar? I'm so clumsy and didn't find it in the wiki ><;))

[log] Past & Future

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