Again, I Thank everyone who has ever read or commented on this in such a positive manner. It pleases me to know that I can affect or even relate to someone through a story. This will sound stupid, and I apologize in advance, but... it honestly leaves me with a fluttering feeling in my heart. I appreciate every person who reads this, and that is no lie or exaggeration.

The last chapter was an emotional one, for me to write; most of this story is. Near took a look into his tragic past and, soon after, the cougar came back...

What happens now?

Disclaimer - I do not own "Death Note" or any of its characters.

Chapter 12

Realizations

The beast had, in fact, stalked Near. It had been secretly following him at a distance ever since he had climbed down from that tree that very morning.

Why?

Pure curiosity. This white creature was unlike anything it had ever seen and desired to taste its blood.

It had let its prey get away the first time, because the lion wanted to watch and learn what the creature's strengths and weaknesses were before killing it... Perhaps now, would be the time to do it.

Near bit his lower lip, trying to think of a way to escape this cougar. There's no way I can possibly outrun it... and there's no way I can hide from it. Not this time.

A deep, rumbling growl erupted from the monster. It took a confident step towards the white haired boy and crouched to the rocky ground. Its tail flicked from side to side, anxiously waiting for the unknown creature to make a move. After all, taking prey down easily was no fun at all.

Okay, running into the forest is not an option, Near calculated, his heart thumping all the while. I wouldn't make it. My ankle is hurting, and there's too much space between me and the forest... and turning around to run wouldn't be very smart... What can I do?

The lion took another low, step forward and the boy mimicked the motion by taking one step back. Near knew he had limited options. He didn't know when the cougar would finally pounce, and he didn't know how much time he had left, but he wasn't going to give up just yet. Dying here would be too easy... He just had to make it!

Something clicked. The river. He glanced down at the rushing water. This lion wouldn't follow me. I could jump in, let the current carry me a ways down, and then get out... but there are two possibilities if I go through with this. One, the currents might be too strong, and I might drown. Two, I might be carried too far away from the others, and they may not find me...

A piercing roar screeched through the air. Near gasped and looked back to see the lion spring from its position and race towards him.

It's too late, I have to jump now!

Near lept away from the cougar and down into the cold, fast moving waters. He immediately felt himself being harshly pulled through and under. He struggled to stay above the surface, but the current, as he had originally guessed, was too strong.

He desperately gasped for air, hoping to latch onto something. Everything is slippery from the water. I can't hold onto a boulder, and there are no tree roots or fallen limbs to grab!

Freezing water poured into his lungs, as his vision started to become blurry and distorted. He could feel the stinging blows, from colliding with rough rocks and boulders. All he could hear were muffled crashes of water. Near found that the river was quickly becoming wilder and deeper the farther down he went. At the pace the river's current was going, he couldn't even distinguish how far down he was.

He splashed through the rushing water furiously, just trying to reach one of the river's sides. He was going far too fast to even catch a good enough glimpse of anything. He could, however, see that the afternoon sky was now hidden completely behind gloomy clouds, only making the experience that much more surreal.

Suddenly, a faint, but loud, crashing sound came from in front of him. Near whipped his head around to see what he would face next. Up ahead, he could see were the wide river was cutting off...

A waterfall.

Near's eyes shot wide open. Oh, no! No, please...! He was coming upon it quickly and from the looks of it, it would be a long drop.

I... I-I can't avoid this; it's inevitable.

The preteen's strength was almost gone, and he allowed his body to relax. It can't be helped, Near thought, closing his eyes. He didn't want to see what was about to happen to him. I am going over, and there is nothing I can do about it.

Near felt more of the swift, powerful currents... and then came the frightening sensation of falling. He fell silently, back first, down the powerful wall of water, imagining sharp rocks waiting to gut him below. Maybe the fall alone would be enough to kill him...

The fall felt like it would last an eternity, but Near knew it would be over in seconds. As he braced himself for whatever impact he would feel, Near pictured the faces of his parents, Quillish Wammy, Roger, L, Light, Matt, and...

Mello.

His heart tightened again, at the thought of the blond teenager. Near couldn't explain why it hurt to think of him, but... maybe Mello would be satisfied now. The young boy was certain he would die, and he knew that his body may not ever be found.

Mello might have wanted this all along… His heart ached once again. Without me around, he could succeed in anything... I really don't want to believe that.

Even after everything Mello had done, Near could never bring himself to hate or feel bitter towards him. He had always wished the best upon the blond, and had always hoped that Mello could, somehow, see him as a friend… Perhaps, it was never meant to be.

One, warm teardrop fell from underneath his eye lid and, feeling that this was truly the end, he thought one, final prayer...

God... please, don't blame Mello.

"Matt, I hear water! Come on!"

The two teenagers rushed through the thinning forest and soon came upon a wide river.

"Wow, it's huge!" Matt exclaimed. "Mels, do you think Near's been here?"

"... Yes," the blond answered, taking a few steps forward, "In fact... it feels like he's been here."

The goggled boy tilted his head slightly. "What do you mean, Mels?"

"I'm not sure, but it's a strong feeling. He... He had to have been here," Mello's sharp eyesight caught something on the ground next to the river. He walked over to the spot and knelt beside his discovery. "And here's my proof. Come and look, Matt!"

Mello heard his friend run up to his side. "What is it?"

"Look," he said, "Here are Near's socks." Mello picked up the tarnished footwear and observed the amount of blood on one in particular. "This is his left sock... so his injury must, obviously, be around his left ankle."

Matt knelt down to look. "I can see what you mean. There's even a spot where fibers were ripped... and here," he pointed to the pebbly ground, a few inches away, "there's a little bit of fresher looking blood on the ground, than what's on the sock."

"Hey, you're right, Matt!" Mello looked intensely at the blood spots and then at the cloudy sky. "I don't know what time it is, but judging on the color and dryness of the blood..."

"He had to have been here within an hour's time!" Matt finished.

"Yeah," Mello stood and turned to the left, the direction the river was flowing. "My best bet is that Near went this way. If I were in his position, I would follow the river."

Matt nodded positively. "I think you're right. We should go this way and fast!"

"Right... but there just seems to be one problem, though," the blond narrowed his blue eyes in thought.

Matt's suddenly felt perplexed. What was Mello thinking about, now?

"W-What? It's a good thing we found this much... right?" the brunette asked.

"Truth is, I don't know myself," Mello admitted, "But still... something doesn't feel quite right..." he shook his head, "Forget it; we need to go!"

"So, you're saying it's because of Mello's desire of being first, in succeeding you, is the reason he hates Near so much?"

"Yes, Light," L responded, "that is correct."

The two, young men were making their way through the thick woods. They had found the thorns that Matt had told L about and changed their course of direction. Now, they were on the right track.

"Ryuzaki," Light began, "How would you solve this problem? You've told me already that they're both brilliant, but work in different ways."

The dark haired detective breathed softly and shoved his hands in his jeans front pockets. "I would, personally, want the two of them to work together. Mello thinks with his emotions, while Near thinks more like I do. I believe that, if I were to die, those two would be an unstoppable team... I believe that they would be more capable than I."

"You... really think that?" Light asked. "Do you also think that they could catch Kira?"

"Yes."

"... Well..." he rubbed the back of his neck. Wow, he didn't hesitate on that answer.

"Wait, then," Light wondered aloud, "why haven't you had them around for the case?"

"Because, I am the one who challenged Kira," L answered. "I have to finish what I started."

I suppose that's the kind of answer I would expect. He had one more question. "Do you think Mello would want to work with Near now? I mean, after all that's happened?"

The two of them walked in silence before Ryuzaki finally proclaimed his answer. "That would be all according to Mello, now. Hypothetically speaking, if I were to ask him if he would work with Near before, he would definitely turn it down. I have reason to believe that he would have rather given up the job of 'L' to Near entirely, before ever working with him."

Light nodded, wanting to know more. "And now?"

"Hmm... I would hope that he would want to, now. Mello seems to have changed dramatically because of Near's disappearance..." he paused for a moment, "and I have a few thoughts on that, as well."

"Huh?" Light was a bit puzzled now. "What do you mean, Ryuzaki?"

"What I mean," L started again, "is that he is like a completely different person now. I didn't see it at first, because of my concern for Near, but I quickly realized that Mello seemed... guilty."

The chestnut haired teenager raised a brow. "Guilty?"

Ryuzaki nodded. "Yes, he did. What I am thinking, is that he left Near behind, on purpose."

Light halted his steps, digesting what the detective had just said.

L turned around, that same, unexpressive face greeting the younger man's. "Light, we have to keep going... Light?"

"Ryuzaki... how did you come to that conclusion?" he asked. "I would have thought the guilt was for leaving him behind, but by accident. I thought that was it."

I thought he would've thought the same thing I did... The great detective wagged a finger from side to side. "No, his eyes revealed differently and, while I am disappointed about that... I am also not so worried."

Light, again, felt more confusion. "Why?"

L chuckled to himself and began walking again, waving for Light to follow.

The younger man caught up to him and asked again. "Why?"

"Because, Mello seems to have understood his mistakes... and he might see Near from a different perspective, now. In fact," he smiled, "I have no doubt that he and Matt will find Near, before we find them."

"Mello, it's a dead end!"

Matt and Mello had been running alongside the river, and had now come to realize that it cut off into a large waterfall.

Matt shook his head, looking in every direction. "Now what? Where could he be?"

Mello said nothing, but stared at the waterfall's edge. That feeling from before... it was stronger now. Something was dreadfully wrong, and he already had an idea of what it was. The boy took an uneven, deep breath and slowly walked towards the cliff.

"Mels, what are you... doing?" Matt asked, watching his friend from behind.

Mello continued to walk, as if he had never heard Matt.

The brunette suddenly began to feel sick. What is going on? Ever since they found the river, Mello had been acting strangely... and now Matt felt like he was going to lose his balance... What was happening?

The blond stopped at the cliff's edge and gazed down below. After a few moments of silence, he gasped and fell to his knees.

"Oh, my God!"

"M-Mello!" This was getting weird! "What's going on? Why did you-"

"Matt!" Mello screamed, "It's Near! He's down there!"

Well... this one... literally hurt to write. I never knew I could feel such strong emotions while writing a story. Then again, I am not surprised... Bless Near's heart, that was horrible.

I will not reveal a single detail of what will happen next, but I hope you all will continue to read and enjoy it.

Thank you, for reading.