A/N: Chapter four tiem! 8D omg this is so crazy fun… I think I said that already but who cares? xD Anyway… In this chapter, Mello and his new sidekicks cause sum havoc and… other stuff happens. I won't ruin it for you, lol. Thanks to all my fantastic reviewers! ILY GAIS!! T3T

Disclaimer: I still don't own.

Chapter 4: Shit Hits the Fan

"Well, I got them." Matt announced, dumping an armload of what were basically less destructive bombs on Near's bed. Near glanced at them, a surprisingly devious smile crept across his face for just a moment, then it was gone so quickly Matt almost thought he'd imagined it.

"Excellent… these will be perfect for tomorrow. Although I am curious, how did you get them?" Near questioned, peering up at Matt quizzically. Matt tapped the side of his nose and smiled.

"A magician never reveals his secrets." The redhead said simply. Near merely shrugged, it had been worth a try. The pale boy began sorting through the fireworks, filing them under 'Destructive', 'Aesthetic', and 'Health Hazards' respectively.

"So what exactly do you have planned here?" Matt ventured, poking one of the more dangerous-looking fireworks tentatively.

"All-out Pandemonium." Near responded, arranging his prizes neatly.

"And you're sure about this?" Darryl raised an eyebrow, examining the object in front of him carefully.

"Of course." Mello scoffed. "Just hook that line up like I told you."

"Which one?"

"The blue one."

"This one?"

"No, you idiot! Blue! Blue! That's clearly teal!" Mello growled. Darryl made an 'ohhhhh' face and swiftly reconnected the wire.

"Should we be doing this?" Jimmy asked hesitantly from the doorway of the small technician building. Mello rolled his eyes.

"Hell no. That's why we're doing it, genius." Darryl laughed.

"Jamie," Mello began.

"Jimmy." Jimmy corrected. Mello waved a hand dismissively.

"Jimmy, what is your job?" The blonde continued.

"…Lookout." Jimmy replied slowly.

"Right, and what does the lookout do?" Mello asked pointedly.

"He… watches for anyone who might be coming?" The mousey boy said, confusedly.

"So what the fuck are you doing in here!?" Mello exploded. Jimmy yelped and rushed back outside. Mello sighed; it was so hard to find good help these days. Too bad Matt hadn't been sent with him.

"Done!" Darryl proclaimed triumphantly. Mello checked over the other boy's work. It was admissible.

"Great, let's go." The blonde ordered, and the two exited the building, collecting Jimmy on their way back to the cabin.

"What was supposed to happen, again?" Jimmy asked, looking around disappointedly for any signs of the fruits of their labor.

"It's going to set off the ceiling sprinklers in the cafeteria during dinner." Mello answered automatically. "Now come on, the day's still young and I just had this great idea for the air conditioner in the psychiatrist's office."

"Could you hand me that string?" Near requested lightly. Matt obligingly delivered the desired item, and sat back down to watch. Really, if he didn't know any better Matt would say that Near had done this before. "Thank you." Near continued fidgeting with the string and a few of the fireworks.

The newly formed duo were seated in the garden shed behind the house, the shadows were beginning to grow long, implying that soon one or both of them were likely to be missed. Especially since Near had a very conspicuous ladder leaned up against his bedroom window.

"Finished." Near sat back with the smallest of satisfied smiles. Matt stared at the amalgamation before him.

"Incredible. I didn't think you were capable of this sort of thing." The gamer admitted. Near shrugged.

"I found a book about pranks in your and Mello's room earlier today, when you were digging that whoopee cushion out of your closet." The pale boy explained.

"Oh, that makes sense." Matt smiled with relief. "Whew, for a second there I thought you might be… I dunno, experienced or something." Near shook his head. "So, ready to set them off?"

"No, as I said, this is for tomorrow." Near replied.

"Whatever, this is your party." Matt stood and stretched. "Guess I'm headin' to bed then." Near nodded.

"Yes, I'm going in now as well."

The two walked out of the shed, checking for onlookers. Luckily, everyone in the orphanage was in bed already, shuddering about the events from dinner. Near clambered clumsily up the ladder, which Matt stowed in the bushes for him when the smaller boy was situated back in his room. Matt began his way back to the front door, and Near was about to shut his window.

"Hey." Matt called, causing Near to pause in his previous action. Near looked down expectantly. "This has been fun, Near. You're all right." Matt gave a jaunty sort of wave and completed his journey inside. Near smiled lightly and slid the window into place, heading for his bed exhaustedly.

The first thing that entered the psychiatrist's mind as she went in to close her office for the night was 'Oh my god I'm going to be sick!' She promptly was, though she managed to make it to the wastebasket first. The smell of animal feces permeated the room from an unknown source, and from the smell it had likely been there for quite some time. Holding a scarf to her nose, the psychiatrist began the search for the cause of the stench with great trepidation.

Half an hour later, just when she thought she was going to have to burn down the whole building, a thumping sound from the air conditioner drew her attention. Cautiously, oh so very cautiously, she approached the object.

She would swear that the screws on the outside of the a/c weren't as tight as she remembered. Carefully, she inspected the object. Definitely tampered with, and now that she was in close proximity to the thing, she could tell it was undoubtedly the origin of the horrific aroma.

Rather than attempt to clean it out, the psychiatrist fetched a screwdriver and forcibly removed the entire device from her wall, running it out to the dumpster and throwing it in with the righteous anger of an out-smarted shrink. Of course, she had a pretty good idea of whose fault this was. Not that she could prove it, but oh that boy was in for some trouble if he thought he could get away with this!

"Dammit!" The psychiatrist cursed, as screams began erupting from the cafeteria building.

Near hadn't realized how truly important Mello's presence was to him until he tried to sleep. Even though his room wasn't at all close to Mello and Matt's, Near could feel the blonde's absence distinctly. It was a hole in his mind and his chest, keeping him from shutting his eyes for long periods of time.

Near tossed and turned even though he was perfectly comfortable, trying to coerce himself into slumber. It just wasn't working.

The pale boy stared up at his ceiling through the darkness, defeated. Memories of the older boy swam in and out of focus. 'I need him, I need him to be close…' Near thought, upset at the dependence he had developed. The pale boy thought of all the times Mello had snuck into his room, hiding or stealing toys, maybe tossing cold water on him while he slept. They wouldn't be considered pleasant by most children, but Near knew that Mello always gave the toys back eventually, and that there was a towel on the end of his bed when he finished sputtering. Near knew that Mello understood him better than anyone else, except perhaps L. And Near knew that even the sunshine wasn't as bright as Mello's smile could be. Oh god, had he really thought that? How cheesy. Near rolled over, faintly disgusted with himself. It's the exhaustion, yeah that must be it…

"I miss you…" Near mumbled into his pillow. "I miss you… Mello…"

"WHAT DID YOU DO!?" It wasn't often that the psychiatrist exploded like this. In fact, none of the other children had ever seen her so furious.

"I thought it was pretty obvious." Mello shrugged, unfazed. "I rewired the system so that the sprinklers would go off during dinner."

"WHY!?"

"Because I can." Mello grinned. The psychiatrist almost grabbed him, but thoughts of lawsuits that could provoke swam through her head like piranhas. Taking several deep breaths, the psychiatrist assessed the situation. He'd done this for attention… yes, that had to be the truth! He was an attention seeker! Counting slowly to ten, the psychiatrist deduced that the thing to do was not to punish the clearly disturbed boy, but to help him. 'That's why I chose this career, to help children.' She repeated this thought like a mantra in her head until she was able to force a smile onto her face.

"Ok. Mello, I want you to go to bed now. We'll discuss this in the morning." She said, her voice syrupy-sweet. "In fact, I want all you children to go to bed now. I'll call the clean-up crew and the cafeteria should be useable by morning." The children groaned disappointedly, but shuffled off. Mello raised an eyebrow, but also turned to leave. 'Maybe I underestimated her a bit.' He thought mildly, 'Oh well, she's still in for a world of hurt if she thinks she can psych me out.'

"Dude, that was so cool!" Jimmy squealed as Mello re-entered the cabin. "Aw man! How all those guys shrieked when the water came down, and I've never seen the Doc that pissed!" The mousey boy was bouncing up and down on his bed, making various 'action' poses.

"Hey, that was awesome, how you took the heat." Darryl clapped Mello on the back. "Thanks for not selling us out."

"Of course." Mello rolled his eyes, retrieving a chocolate bar from his bag and starting in on it. "Only a total jackass would rat on his team." Darryl nodded, smiling and going back to his own nightly preparations. Jimmy continued his own fantasy-version of the 'showdown' between Mello and the psychiatrist. Mello lay back in bed, staring up at the rafters in the cabin. It had been a productive day, this 'Brat Camp' thing was gonna be a walk in the park.

So why did it feel like something was so wrong? Why was there a part of him that couldn't stop thinking of the color white and all that it signified?

"Near… I… miss you." Mello found himself mumbling softly around his chocolate bar. He shot a wary glance at his roommates, but they were wrapped up in their own lives. Mello rolled over, setting the rest of his chocolate bar on his bedside table. Suddenly, he wasn't hungry for it anymore.

TBC…

A/N: Awww aren't they sweet? …Well sorta… lol you know what I mean, right? I wanted to end the chapter on a fluffy note, so I did. Try not to die from the corniness pls, you'd miss the next chapter! xD Oh, and sorry for those of you who wanted to see the fireworks display… you'll have to wait a bit longer.