Remember, Remember
(Italicized scene is a flashback, set shortly after Mello leaves Wammy's)
Remember, remember
The fifth of November
Gunpowder, treason, and plot
"Mello, are you sure no one's going to get hurt?" Matt asked nervously, his fingers clenching and unclenching at the side of his waist.
"Of course not," Mello snorted as he set the last bomb in the garden. "And if someone does, then it won't be our fault. It will be Adelaida's, remember?"
Matt nodded. "But aren't we three in this together...?"
"No, Matty." Mello stood up, brushing dust off of his pants. "It's something called treason. If something goes wrong, or if Roger narrows it down to the three of us, you and I will say it was Adelaida's fault. That's the plan."
Matt knitted his eyebrows together in confusion, then shrugged it off. He trusted Mello with all of his ten-year-old heart. "Okay. It's only going to blow up in the garden, right?"
"Mhm," Mello said impatiently.
"And you're very, very sure no one's going to get hurt?"
"Yes, Matt. Now, get to your hiding place. They're coming!" Mello pushed him forward before running away to his hiding place behind a large bush. Matt stumbled behind a giant pillar in the patio, watching as Roger's afternoon science class filed in the garden. Adelaida was among them, and she was smiling evilly.
It won't be long until that smile's wiped off her face, Matt thought, getting excited by the second. He knew this was wrong, but he couldn't help the thrill playing tricks on other people gave him. Especially when Mello was his cohort. The chocoholic always managed to think up of something atrocious.
Matt began the countdown.
"We will be identifying different types of flowers this afternoon," Roger said, gesturing to the pretty flowers behind him. The children listened intently, unaware of the explosion that would soon happen. "Now, if someone could tell me--"
KABOOM!
Matt fell back, his backside hitting the floor hard. He swore that the world was shaking, but maybe that was just his eyes. He tried standing up and only succeeded in hitting his head on the pillar. Blinking profusely, he blindly groped around the smoky environment until a hand grabbed his arm.
"C'mon, Matt," Mello hissed in his ear. "We have to get away before the smoke clears. Follow me."
Matt nodded, coughing once before he was yanked forward. He led himself be led out of the garden and into the orphanage, his legs feeling numb. The duo reached their rooms, collapsing on the bed.
There was a short silence before Mello started giggling. Matt glanced once at his partner before starting to chuckle as well. "That was great, Mels," the redhead sighed, clasping the older boy's hand with his own.
"Best trick...ever," Mello said breathlessly, trying to catch his breath in between fits of laughter. Eventually they quieted, and Mello raised their linked hands up to the roof, studying the adjoined appendages thoughtfully. "You're my best friend, Matty, you know that?" He turned his head to smile at Matt lazily.
"Of course, Mels." Matt smiled back, chest heaving. He looked appreciatively at their hands holding each other's, and couldn't help but smile even wider.
--
He was sprawled helter-skelter across the bed that he and Mello had once slept in together. His hand was raised up to the ceiling, much like that moment four years ago. Only now, there was no other hand gripping his, and he was holding air.
With a tired sigh, Matt lowered his arm to his stomach, tapping it mindlessly against his clothed abdomen. "Why didn't you take me with you, Mels?" he murmured, glancing briefly at the calendar pinned to the plaster wall. The date was November fifth, a day that seemed unimportant to most people.
November fifth.
That day, though, held a special place in Matt's heart and he hurt just thinking about it. Every year on the same day, he recalled, he and Mello would play a prank on the orphanage. This time, however, Mello was gone and November fifth seemed so...empty.
This wasn't right.
Matt picked himself up from the bed, going to his closet, searching for those materials he and Mello had used four years ago. He found the half-full jar of gunpowder, along with several other necessities to make a bomb.
Hiding the supplies in a box, he walked down to the garden and hastily prepared the bomb. He set it on the same spot it had been set four years ago: behind the row of sunflowers and roses.
And he hid himself behind that same pillar as he watched Roger's afternoon science class walk in the garden. Adelaida was no longer there; she had mysteriously disappeared two years ago, but that was another story. For now, Matt focused on the class Roger was teaching, as well as starting the countdown. In the middle of a lecture, the bomb went off and smoke filled the area.
Matt leaned heavily on the pillar for a few seconds, then dashed away back inside. His heart raced and he felt that familiar thrill rush through his veins.
However, when he burst in his room and flopped down on his bed, turned to the side, grinned, said, "Was that great or what?" he realized Mello wasn't there.
Yes, the thrill of playing the joke was there, but he found that it didn't feel the same without his partner in crime.
I see no reason
Why gunpowder, treason
Should ever be forgot
I don't care if there's no type of bomb that uses gunpowder. :)
