[closed]

[cardfortress]

Characters: Near and Mello
Location: Grand Canyon
Rating: PG 13
Time: September 12th
Description: The day of their Witch hunt is here. It's time to track down and kill Isabella!


[After a particularly gruesome and exhausting battle with far too many casualties happening just the day before, their Witch mission is finally here: Mello and Near are going on a Witch hunt, to get them the final Witch soul that will make Near a Death Scythe. Shibusen agents have reported Witch activity happening in the Grand Canyon, undoubtedly linked to the kidnappings of February 2nd, so both of them are quite eager to get their hands on a Witch involved in that whole clusterfuck: both Mello and Near are unlikely to forget what the Moral Manipulation Machine forced Mello to do at the time, what that did to them, and what it took to make him snap out of it.

This isn’t just a Witch hunt: this is personal.

Before they step through the mirror, and before he has even transformed into his Weapon form, Near tugs Mello into a kiss that is rough enough to be bruising, its message as clear as if it had been said out loud: it’s all or nothing. We can’t die today.

(It’s the first time he kisses his partner in public-- that one time they had a housewarming party at their apartment doesn’t count; they only invited a small handful of people they trusted, and that definitely doesn’t count as ‘public’ to him-- and that makes that kiss even more important than what it already is, because for a small moment, Near dares to openly show how he truly feels about his Meister, with no masks in the way, well aware that anyone watching will be able to put two and two together and figure out how important Mello truly is to him.)

But as soon as they step through the mirror, with Mello already wielding him, Near knows they can’t afford any kind of distraction, so he focuses on the mission at hand and lets his mental walls down completely: for this to work out, they can’t hold anything back. It’s all or nothing: they have to keep each other safe, because no one else will help them if things take a turn for the worse.

They can do this-- no, they will do this. Near has as much faith in their abilities as he does in their relationship.]

Ready?

Comments

[want_the_world]

[Mello is already reaching for his Weapon when Near anticipates him and pulls him into that kiss; it feels so inevitable that he doesn't even think to be surprised that Near would do this in public. (Near echoing Mello's own all or nothing mantra is, in its own way, much more of a surprise.)

They've both tried to convince themselves, and each other, that they're nothing but confident about this fight, but Mello's been able to feel, every time he wields his Weapon, the tumult of the souls Near has consumed so far, and the difficulty of controlling their effects and power. And for Mello's part, even though the last time they faced a Witch turned out much better than the time before that, he's not foolish enough to assume there will be anything easy about this battle.

But he's eager, almost cheerful, about facing this challenge. Payback--for the Moral Manipulation Machine, for the times the Witches have hurt people he cares about, for the times they've fucked with him--has been a long time coming, and Mello's more than happy to finally be dishing it out.

He lets his own mental walls down completely, which by now feels more natural than keeping any barriers between his mind and Near's, and takes a quick moment to feel the steady warmth of their resonance, as he might once have listened to his bike's engine before riding off, before stepping through the mirror.]

You have to ask?

[He starts walking towards the canyon, every sense already on alert, though he knows it's unlikely they'll encounter anything yet.]

[cardfortress]

[Despite how carefully he’s been about hiding the strain of all those souls from his Meister, there is only so much he can hide-- or try to hide-- from someone who knows him as well as Mello does, with no mental barriers in the way. It has been difficult, but over the past few days that strain has lessened slightly, somehow, as if the thought of being so close to finally getting that final Witch soul has been enough to keep him under the control a little better.

Not that he has ever let his control slip; he’s too obsessive for that to happen.

(He has been trying to hide that he’s slightly concerned about letting his control slip after becoming a Death Scythe, however; he doesn’t know how he’ll react to that much raw power.)

He can definitely sense Mello’s eagerness through their resonance, but he doesn’t point his almost-cheerfulness out just yet; he will, if his Meister gets too cocky-- they really cannot allow any distractions during this battle-- but he definitely understands the need to get some well-deserved revenge.]

Force of habit, [he says in reply; they wouldn’t be doing this if they weren’t as ready as they can be.

As they make their way closer to the canyon, Near pays as much attention to his surroundings as Mello, ready to use their resonance attack at any given moment, just in case they need that much firepower all of a sudden.]

Isabella’s familiars are ants, [he begins, thinking out loud through their resonance.] I’ll be on the lookout for signs of ant activity, so you can focus exclusively on watching our surroundings.

[want_the_world]

[Mello nods at Near's suggested division of labor, knowing his Weapon doesn't need words or to see it to sense his agreement.

Near's done a good job of shielding his concern about what will happen when he finally consumes that last soul, but it would take an excellent job, and no resonance, to completely hide it from Mello. Besides, it's a concern Mello shares; it's his job to make sure his Weapon is all right, no matter how much Near might argue that the burden falls on both of them equally.

He's aware of his bad habit of getting cocky in fights, but this is one case where that's not going to happen. They've yet to come out of a Witch encounter without at least minor injuries, and falling from the floating city still makes regular appearances in Mello's nightmares.

He starts to follow the path down into the canyon, not seeing anything unusual yet.]

They shouldn't be expecting us, but.

[He knows he doesn't have to add we can't take anything for granted.]

[cardfortress]

[It’s a good thing that Mello hasn’t brought up his own concern about what will happen once Near reaches Death Scythe; not only because that would most likely increase Near’s concern, in turn, but also because it would lead to yet another pointless argument over that subject-- it happened in San José and it will happen again, because Near fully believes that they share the responsibility of keeping each other safe, while Mello insists that’s all on him, and they are both too stubborn to give in.

(Near doesn’t think he’s being too stubborn, anyway; stubbornness doesn’t count when you’re absolutely certain you’re right.)

The Weapon doesn’t see anything unusual, either, but they’re getting closer to the entrance to the caves they were both thrown into when they were kidnapped, so he expects to see signs of ant activity at any given moment.]

I know.

[Indeed, Mello doesn’t have to add that last part at all: Near has become so well-attuned to his Meister’s thoughts during missions that they barely have to communicate verbally anymore.

A few steps ahead, Near sees a blur of movement moving to hide behind a rock, and that definitely makes his brain go into battle mode.]

There’s something hiding behind that rock to your right, up ahead; get ready to use my laser ability.

[want_the_world]

[Mello also doesn't believe in backing down from an argument when you're right, except he's obviously the one who's right about where the responsibility lies for keeping Near safe when they go into battle.

He might have said something joking, to keep both of them from dwelling on the seriousness of this mission--it's their most important one ever, but being constantly aware of that will make them less effective, not more.

He doesn't get a chance to say anything, because he spots the motion ahead the same moment Near alerts him to it, and has the cube trained on the rock in the moment after that.

When the giant ant darts back out into view, Mello sends the silent signal for Near to fire, and the laser catches it right in its head segment. Mello tries not to be alarmed at how huge the disgusting thing is, but he knows he won't be able to keep his initial flash of surprised dismay from his partner. He squares his shoulders and keeps walking towards the caves, letting anger at the memories of the last time he was here firm his resolve even more.]

All right. Now we know some of what we're dealing with.

[cardfortress]

[That’s one ant down, but they have no idea how many of them there are left; Near hopes that the number of ant familiars isn’t the same as the average number of ants per ant colony, but if there happens to be a whole army of them, at least they know that they can finish them off in one quick move.

Despite how brief it is, Mello’s surprise is quite noticeable through their resonance, but Near doesn’t react to it: he knows that the worst thing about those ants isn’t their size, but the acid they can spit out instead.

He gives a quiet hm of agreement before speaking again.]

When attacked or crushed, ants may emit an alarm pheromone that sends nearby ants into attack mode, and attracts more ants from farther away, [he begins, paying even closer attention to their surroundings. There doesn’t seem to be anything usual just yet, but still…] We have to be careful, it’s entirely possible that these ant familiars communicate in the same way and--

[His suspicion comes true before he’s even finished speaking: he can hear the sound of many insect jaws clicking together in a frenzy, coming from inside the caves, and is it just him or does the ground feel like it’s shaking, as if there's a stampede coming their way?]

Mello. Run.

[They have to use their resonance attack, but they can’t do it from where they are: they’re too close to the caves, and they need to be at a safe distance in case any part of the canyon wall collapses.]

[want_the_world]

[They use each other's names rarely enough that even his alias raises prickles of alarm on the back of Mello's neck, not that the emphasis is needed right now; he can feel his Weapon's alarm, and hear the approaching herd--or whatever the fuck ants are called when they stampede.

Near doesn't have to tell him twice. Mello breaks into a sprint back the way they came, not daring to look back to see if giant ants are faster than he would've expected as well as a hell of a lot louder.

He makes for the path they came down, so they can direct the attack from above and, hopefully, be out of range of anything they might dislodge with it. When he judges they're in a good position, he spins and immediately tells Near to send their resonance attack. The ants are a lot closer than he likes, but not right on his heels as he half-feared.]