soul_campaign | [14 // video // 10 March]

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[14 // video // 10 March]

[The video shows not the sender's face, but a puppy, most of a black-clad leg, and a bare foot with the remnants of black polish on the toenails. The puppy's growling and tugging at the jagged hem of the leather pants, as if they're a threat that must be neutralized.]

Who the hell does this belong to?

[Mello tries to pull his leg away, but the puppy seems to see this as escalation of the game, and gives a little bark before seizing the leather again.]

Hey! These were expensive, you little fucker!

[The picture goes dark as the communicator lands on the floor.]

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[Oh, the irony. There's definitely some amusement in his voice when he speaks again.]

You could just kick it away.

I'm not an asshole!

...not that kind of asshole.

Of course not.

Lure it outside with food and close the door, then; be creative. I'm sure there are many ways you could get rid of it without harming it.

Its owner knows it's here.

[Not like Mello cares about getting the little asshole home safely, or anything.]

Hey. I owe you something.

[He tries to keep his tone casual, but he suspects Near will be able to tell he means something serious.

It'll be easier to do this when it's just audio.]

Edited 2012-07-30 01:54 (UTC)

Unless that means its owner is going to retrieve it anytime soon, I don't care.

[That makes him pause. He doesn't recall Mello owing him anything at all, unless his partner has secretly stolen or borrowed one of his belongings while Near was away... There's a slight change to Mello's tone of voice, too, and he sounds serious. What is he going to say next?]

Do you?

The dog should be gone by the time you get back.

And yes, I do.

Ljubljana.

[He knows Near will understand the significance of the place, and that he'll quickly figure out why Mello feels he has to tell him. It's been a few days since Mello overheard Near and L's conversation, and the feeling of listening in on something deeply private, something that wasn't for him, hasn't left him. He's been too distracted by other concerns to even things up.]

I'll tell you how they died, if you want.

[This comes out more quietly than he means it to.]

Good.

[Indeed, Near understands the significance and implications very quickly, and the sudden realization that Mello listened to everything he said to L that night makes a chill run down his spine, freezing his entire body and stripping him of his ability to do something as simple as breathing.

And then, he remembers every single word he said to their mentor under the influence of alcohol, from his life before the orphanage to why he could never, under any circumstances, allow his Meister to get any closer than what they already were. He remembers everything with the distinct clarity of those blessed-- or cursed-- with excellent memory, even while being too drunk to distinguish between what he should and should not tell someone else.

The fact that Mello is willing to share even more information about his own past (beyond what that single word implies) tells him that part of him feels guilty, perhaps, that he listened in on a very private conversation, but Near knows that his guilt was not strong enough to stop him from listening as much as he could. Not only that, but whatever guilt he may feel does not change the fact that, intentionally or not, he listened to things he was never, under any circumstances, supposed to know.

Near is very glad that Mello decided to do this through a voice transmission, because he would have hated for his Meister to see his reaction. His eyes have widened comically and Near has gone white, even paler than what he usually is. He feels exposed, vulnerable and angry, and there is only one thing he can do in such a state, to avoid making an even bigger fool out of himself.

He turns the transmission off, letting go of his communicator as if it has just burned his hands. ]

[Mello's not going to let it end like this. He's let Near walk away when things get difficult too many times.]

I didn't mean to overhear!

But come on. Am I supposed to not be curious?

[It stings equally that neither Near nor L had told Mello the details they told each other. He listened as much to hear L's story as to finally learn Near's.

At first. He kept listening to find out the twit's rationalization for pushing him away.]

[One hour after his last reply, Near finally feels like he’s in control of himself; enough to speak about this subject without betraying his thoughts, at least. He hadn’t expected Mello to just sit back and be quiet while he took a moment to think, of course, but the constant stream of short messages trying to catch his attention only annoyed him further, until the Weapon decided to speak up again.]

You are supposed to not listen in to private conversations.

[It’s not just the fact that Mello listened in; Near would have done the same if their situations had been reversed, after all. That is not the point here: the point is that Mello knows the truth, and now Near has been stripped off of his defenses and no matter how tall the walls he builds around himself are, Mello will know what they’re made of, and why they’re there. That is what has put him on edge.]

The kitchen of the flat I live in isn't the place to be having a private conversation!

[He can't tell if Near's angrier about Mello knowing the details of his early life, or about what came after. He's sure the twit would never have admitted that he checks to make sure Mello's still in Death City if he knew he'd be overheard.

(He sort of likes knowing it.)]

Why do you think I'm trying to even things up? I didn't have some random fucking urge to spill my guts.

That hasn’t stopped you from doing the same thing before, and I didn’t listen to anything you said.

[He leaves out the part about how the only reason he didn’t overhear Mello’s previous conversations was because there was no way he could do so without being caught.]

Really now. You seem to be forgetting something very important, however. [His tone is flat and seemingly emotionless, but some of his anger shows through; it’s not even about his past, surprisingly enough. No, the fact that Mello heard what came after made him a lot angrier than he would have felt if his partner had simply learned about his past.] If you really want to even things up, then all you have to do is drink enough alcohol to let down your inhibitions, and then proceed to spill out details about your life before the orphanage, before moving on to other aspects of your life that are just as private as that. Don’t forget to speak as if the person you’re talking about isn’t listening in, and remember to maintain a level of honesty only achieved through absurd levels of alcohol in one’s bloodstream.

[Mello assumes Near overheard most of his conversation with Gemini on Valentine's Day. The timing of his entrance to the kitchen would've been just too convenient otherwise.

The flat tone doesn't fool him. He knows the difference between truly disinterested and Near trying to hide that he's pissed off.]

Let me just bottle up every emotion I have for a few years. Then I'll be ready.

[Just when he thought he couldn’t feel any angrier or exposed, Mello goes and proves him wrong. For a moment, Near sees red; how dare Mello say such a thing when he knows the reason his emotions were bottled up in the first place? Does he even realize how humiliating it is to hear that, after everything Mello overheard during Near’s conversation with L?

It takes all of his willpower not to end the transmission right then and possibly throw his communicator into the far corner of the surveillance room immediately after. No, there is only one way to reply to that: by being a hurtful, childish brat in return, of course. Right now, a “fuck you” just doesn’t cut it, not when Near feels so angry that his hands start shaking. His voice, thankfully, does not.]

Go die in a fire. Oh, never mind, you already have.

[He turns the transmission off, and this time, he won’t turn it back on again. He’s had enough of Mello’s bullshit, and he refuses to be humiliated again.]

[Mello actually stares at the blank screen in open-mouthed shock for a long moment. Then he sends the thing flying across the room, as he's done far too fucking recently.

He has to go retrieve it, though, because he's going to need it. The good thing about owning next to nothing is you can clear out at a moment's notice, and once Mello shoves a change of clothes into his bag, he's ready. He doesn't plan on coming back for a while.]

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[14 // video // 10 March]

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/gently time paradoxes to happen last