About Names
This belongs to the "About" Web, although it isn't nearly as good as "About Dying."
I don't own Death Note.
Near though about names. He wondered sometimes if the person who named Mello had a terrible sense of humor. The blonde brat was anything but 'mellow'. Of coarse, Near loved Mello's fiery temper, the way his emotions were his strength. Mello could positively glow if he was angry enough. It put him at the top of Near's list of natural wonders. If Near was being particularly introspective, he could admit that Mello's reaction was the only reason he acted the way he did sometimes.
Mello was beautiful when he cried, too. His eyes would get wider; brighter and instead of getting 'splotchy' like most people, his skin would become almost as pale as Near's. The blonde didn't cry often, but sometimes when he did, he talked to Near. Near loved those times. Mello never actually asked his advice, and Near never offered it. Mello just talked, sometimes for hours, weaving memories and nightmares into vivid imagery. After he cried himself out, Near would always dry his tears and kiss him softly and whisper "I understand." He understood, because Mello was so very like him. The past still haunted them and the future was still so uncertain.
Near wondered about his own name, too. He was always so far from everyone that naming him "Near" seemed almost cruel. No one wanted to be 'near' him either, until Matt came into his life and brought Mello with him. For whatever reason, they accepted him, sheltered him, believed in him.
Matt seemed like he was the only one of them who was named appropriately. His name was normal, and so was he. He never worried what the future would hold, he lived for the day. Sometimes he got frustrated, sometimes he got depressed, but he always managed to pick himself up and accept what life gave him.
Then again, maybe Matt was farther from normal than either of them. That very ability to move on, no matter what happened, made him special. And he was loyal, undyingly so. He'd promised, more than once, that he'd die for them, either of them, if it came to that. Near didn't want that, he just wanted Matt to stay.
Near knew that he could go to Matt when he needed to; the redhead could easily take his place as L's heir, but he never tried. He lived to help them.
Most importantly, Near thought about which name was "real". Mello or Mihael. Matt or Mail. Near or Nate. When he really considered it, names didn't matter. Mello would still be beautiful and emotional, no matter what name he used, and Matt would still be their gentle, loyal shelter when things got rough. And Near knew that whatever name any of them went by, he'd always love them. Hundreds of years later, Shakespeare said it best...
"That which we call a rose, by any other name, would smell as sweet."