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If you want to do this thing, we do it now. I'm short on time.

[Mainly due to Mello rejecting a monster bond for too long. L said it was unsafe. Mello thought he was being weak. Turns out L was right.]

Edited 2020-03-25 21:19 (UTC)

This is short notice.

Where do you want me to be?

I just told you I'm short on time. So you get short notice.

[Even now, Mello grits his teeth as he types out the message. This might be the worst decision he's ever made.]

The Coven. An hour.

[And because Mello is Mello — ]

Don't show up in pajamas.

[Near has had some actual clothes for a while now (baggy though they may be). They're kind of a requirement for running a shop. But he can understand Mello's concern.]

Alright.

Is there anything you would like me to bring?

[No. Mello would like to get this over with as quickly as possible. The outcome is one issue; the ceremony is something he's dreaded since the moment he decided this had a high chance of turning out to be a beneficial arrangement.]

Just yourself. Don't be late. I'll leave.

Alright.

[He puts the device away, slipping into proper shoes. Whatever reason Mello has to want this done quickly is probably an important one, so he can't waste any more time.

Grabbing a ride of some sort will be his best bet. If he relies on his own two feet he'll never get there as fast as his potential bond wants him to.]

[His last Bonding ceremony was... awkward at best. It's Mello's goal to avoid a repeat at any cost. He doesn't overdress for the occasion, but he's always been one to appear a bit on the sharper side, hasn't he? The average person might say he's dressed for the occasion. Mello would vehemently disagree.]

[By the time Near arrives, he's pacing. Enough where anyone would note a distinct impatience. Back and forth in front of the entrance to the Coven. The presiding Witch has been informed. The ceremony will go on unless God, himself, strikes the goddamn place with lightning.]

[Part of Mello kind of hopes He does. Near will find him impatiently glancing from his device to the road, occasionally tearing at a piece of black polish with his thumb. He just fucking found good, solid, black polish. Just made sure he keeps up with how he prefers to look. And now here it is: a chip in the paint. Ominous. Maybe nothing at all.]

Edited 2020-03-29 03:21 (UTC)

[Near arrives as soon as he can. As demanded, he's not in pajamas. Instead he's in a loose fitting t-shirt and pants. He got tired of wearing a jacket all the time, especially as any fabric makes his skin itch. The measures he's taken to keep his body temperature warm make it unnecessary anyway.

The areas around his wrists are red and dry from all the scratching he's done at them, same as his neck and scalp. He's doing his best to ignore the irritation for now, focusing on the task at hand. Mello will want this done properly on the first attempt.

He's not wearing any socks, though. Shoes or socks, one or the other. It still feels like too much to wear both.]

Here I am.

[There were street kids eating out of back-alley dumpsters who took more pride in their appearance than his rival does. Not that Mello had expected anything else; the fact that Near is even wearing shoes shows that he at least made the slightest attempt.]

Yea.

[He notes the red marks; doesn't touch on it. N is transforming in unfortunate ways; it's only a matter of time before it looks worse, isn't it?]

It's quick. [He's already making his way towards the entrance.] When it's over you might feel something -- I can't describe it -- but it's a lot. Just don't fall.

[Mello almost ended up on his damn back, last time.]

[Would it hurt anything but their egos if he did fall? After getting dizzy from just teleporting Near can't make any promises.

It's at least a good thing that Mello has done this before, but that will likely mean very little given that the blond doesn't give Near the same allowances that he himself was probably given originally. Mello should know he's not very physically capable. He'll do whatever he can.]

How do we go about this?

[He asks mostly to keep things moving, and so that Mello doesn't just start directing him completely without him being allowed any say in it.]

[Mello understands something so basic and human at Near's question. There... is no proper way to go about this. Situations like these are why people leave their others at the altar, why they flee and choose to avoid the commitment altogether. And this? Is more than a commitment. Mello is taking something he doesn't want; he's giving something of himself which is no one's to witness.]

[It will be beneficial. He tells himself this as he glances back to Near: small and so weak. But he isn't, is he? He became L, and Mello never doubted his abilities.]

Just agree to whatever the Presiding Witch presents. It's a vow. On both our parts.

[Christ.]

If you need to say anything, say it. Don't fucking lie to me. Ever. I'll know.

[And if he's projecting his frustration with L onto N? Then that's what it is.]

I'll promise the same.

[A lie in and of itself.]

[He's holding the door open, waiting. If Mello were a nervous individual, now would be the time to back out. But he's determined as always, even if everything he's done since arriving here has been nothing short of painfully self-destructive.]

If you're gonna back out, do it now.

I'm not backing out.

[This had been Near's idea, after all. What would it say about him if he gave up at this stage? No, he very much intends to see it through. If he's going to have to bond with at least one person in this place, he'd rather it be someone from his world - and someone who understands him on a deeper level than most. Even if that individual generally hates hi guts.

It's a one-sided dislike. Improvements can be made.

He walks in when he's meant to, not looking particularly nervous about the ordeal. If his fingers twitch at all it's because he wants to dig his dull nails back into his skin in an effort to be rid of the itching. He'd been hoping he'd get used to it after a while and be able to forget about it completely, but he hasn't been that fortunate.

Near doesn't need to be bonded with Mello to pick up certain insecurities. Lying has never really been a concern between the two of them, but he can only imagine how it's been with a certain someone else.]

Are we expected?

ic inbox (aefenglom)

[Deneuve]

backdated to March 2nd

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