Oh goody. Chapter 1, up in the same day as the prologue. I have Chapter 3 written, but I'm still touching it up. So I'll post it soon, don't panic. NateFate, you said you wanted me to post this ASAP, so enjoy it.
-KingofthePocky
Chapter 1 - Leaving our home, sweet home
Shall we start from the day the top three Wammy's House children found out that the great detective L died? Yes, that sounds good to me. The Wammy's caretaker, Roger, had called Near, Matt and myself into his office some time at the end of the day, around late afternoon. It was raining heavily outside what could only be called a manor when I opened the heavy wooden door to his office.
Near was sitting on the floor in his usual position, his left knee tucked up under his chin while his right rested on the rug beneath him. He remained perfectly still and attentive only on the blank puzzle before him, slowly clicking in the pieces with almost no effort. I noticed that Matt was absent from the room – probably in his room under his blankets playing a video game of some kind while the dim light reflected off his goggles.
"What is it, Roger?" I asked the old man seated on the far side of the desk, his hands folded in front of his chin. He paused for an unbearably long moment and remained gazing almost sadly down at his desk,. I could see my own face mirrored in the glass of his spectacles, perched precariously on his beak-like nose.
"L is dead." those three words struck me to the bone and I felt my jaw drop. L... Was dead. Had he chosen a successor yet? Had he... chosen me? Or Near... I wanted to know. No, I had to know.
"Dead?! W... Why..." I stumbled over my words in my haze-like shock. Not only did I need to know who his successor was, but I admit I was terribly curious as to who could kill the greatest detective alive. The infernal click, click, click of Near's puzzle was the only sound in the room aside from my heavy breathing. "Y... You mean Kira killed him? Is that what you mean?!" I slammed my fist onto his desk, causing Roger to jump slightly, his gaze still focussed on the wooden surface of the table.
"Probably." he mumbled, keeping his eyes averted as I leaned over the desk. I was so close to his face that I could smell what he'd eaten for lunch. A strong hint of lettuce, tomato with bread. As focussed as I was on L's death and the question of his successor, I noticed everything in the room, every tiny detail. My eyes widened and I grabbed the collar of his coat, pulling him up to look into my eyes.
"He said that he would make Kira face the death penalty but he was killed instead... Is that what you're saying?!" I demanded in an almost growling fashion, my low voice showing just how furious I was.
"Mello..." he said as I gave a light shake to his collar. We both froze at the sound of dozens of puzzle pieces falling onto the rug.
"If you cannot win the game, if you cannot solve the puzzle, you are just a loser." the quiet feminine voice interrupted from behind us, the voice I knew belonged to Near. I turned my head slightly to look at him, my rage beginning to simmer within me.
"So between Near and me, which of us did L pick?" I let go of Roger and moved my hands away to grip the edge of the desk, as if it was the only thing tying me to this room. His silence confirmed the sly thought nagging at the back of my mind. Perhaps... Perhaps L died before he could choose one of us to succeed him! The soft clicking of puzzle pieces resumed behind me and I narrowed my eyes slightly.
"Neither." he said softly, hesitantly raising his eyes to look up at me. "Since he died, he cannot pick any more." I froze for the second time that afternoon, my fingers tightening on the edge of the desk almost imperceptibly. "Mello... Near... How about it, the two of you combining your abilities..."
My lips twisted into what I can only assume was a look of absolute disgust. Me? Work with Near? Impossible. "Yeah, that's a good idea." murmured the albino boy behind me, his grey eyes still focussed only on his puzzle.
"That's impossible, Roger." I said quietly, my voice beginning to shake from how angry I was. "You know that Near and I don't get along well together... You're always calling us out." Always. I was always second. No matter how much I worked... No matter how much I struggled. A soft sigh escaped me and I felt my heart sink.
"It's okay Roger... The one who'll succeed L is Near." Roger blinked in surprise and looked up at me again, the clicking of pieces continuing behind me. "Unlike me, Near is cool and acts objectively, like he's solving a puzzle. I'll leave... From this institution as well." I turned away, my bare feet brushing over the woven rug beneath me.
"Mello!" he called as he stood up, the office chair skittering back onto the wood from the force.
"In any case, Roger, I'll be 16 soon." I shut the door behind me harshly and stalked off to my room. "I'll live my own way."
My own way...
I broke out into a sprint once I was well enough away from Roger's office, darting down the empty corridors to my room. Flinging open the door, I stepped over to my wardrobe and pulled out an empty backpack, the dark black material covered in a light coating of dust. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw the blankets on Matt's bed fall back and a mop of tousled burgundy hair peeking out.
"Mells?" he murmured sleepily, his goggles pulled down around his neck. I paused in the frantic rummaging in my wardrobe and turned to look at him.
"Yeah, Matty. It's me. You were supposed to come see Roger with me, remember?" he cursed and sat up properly, throwing back the covers as he got out of bed.
"Shit... Sorry, I forgot. I was playing Pokemon again." he pulled his goggles off from around his neck and blinked in the darkness.
"It's fine." I sighed and sat down heavily on my bed, resting my head in my hands. "I can't do it any more. I can't just sit around here, studying and working while Near becomes L. I just can't."
A warm arm wrapped around my shoulders and I parted my fingers slightly, my ice blue eyes meeting emerald green. It shocked me as he very rarely showed his eyes to anyone, so this made me hesitate. "Matty..." I began, brushing a lock of blonde hair out of my eyes.
My redheaded friend shook his head and wrapped his other arm around me, holding me tight against his chest. "You're leaving, aren't you?" he sighed once I nodded, lifting my hands to clutch at his striped shirt. "I'm coming with you."
I looked up at him and opened my mouth to protest, but before I could say anything I felt his warm lips press against mine. Wait... What? Did he... He just... My mind was fragmented. I couldn't think. I could only press my lips up against his.
He smiled against me and pulled away. At least, I think it was a smile. I internally shook my head to clear away my hazy thoughts and looked at him again. "I've been wanting to do that for a long time now, Mells." he murmured.
Smack.
A heavy thud followed the sound of skin on skin – the sound of my palm hitting his face hard enough to knock him back onto the floor. "H... How dare you!" I growled, clenching my hand into a fist. "L just died, and all you can do is take advantage of..." I trailed off and covered my face again, shaking from rage once more.
"L died?" Matt's eyes widened from where he sat on the floor. My eyes swivelled to glare at him and his eyes widened. "You gotta be kidding... So that's what Roger wanted us for... Wait, lemme guess. He died before he could chose a successor and now you're planning to run away to fight Kira on your own."
As always, Matt knew everything that I felt without me even having to open my mouth. It was almost as if I had no privacy around him, with the way he knew me so well. Oh, wait. I did open my mouth, and that's when he kissed me, I thought angrily.
"God, Mello. Let's get going." he stood up smoothly, only to be met with my fist. The redhead crumpled to the floor again, winded this time.
"You are not coming with me." I said slowly, standing up in one swift movement. "You are going to stay here and study or I swear to God I will kill you right now."
Bingo. Right about then was when I started becoming the cold-hearted killer, the man with no mercy and no fucks to give. I wasn't even phased when he looked up at me, the way a kicked pup looks up at his master. It was almost pathetic.
He opened his mouth to speak and I slammed my foot into his gut, causing him to sprawl out on the ground. "If I have to say it again..." I threatened, stepping over him to grab my bag. Once I had shovelled a few changes of clothes into it and a few of my precious belongings, I pulled on a dirty white jacket and walked to the door. "Don't try to follow me, Matt. You'll be killed."
That was the last thing I said to him before walking out into the corridors, my hand clutching one of his game consoles.
A memento for all the good times we shared?
Something for this icy blonde boy to remember him by?
How about all of the above?
