A/N: WHAT? AN UPDATE? Lol. Yes, an update. Cx
Thank you so much for your patience...or impatience. Lol. I'm very sorry about putting Anthem For The Underdog under hiatus, but I was super busy with a lot of things. I'm not sure when the next chapter of AFTU is going to be written and posted, but I hope you guys will enjoy this long, awaited chapter. ^ ^ It's the longest chapter so far...I told you guys this chapter was going to have a lot going on in it! Jeez! Hahaha!

I can't help thinking though...I hope you guys like my writing style. o_o Lol. Maybe it's because I was reading some FF stories lately and realized how my style really differs from those I've read. ^ ^;; I just hope that's a good thing. Haha. Anyhow, enjoy the long awaited chapter! :D

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the Death Note Characters. However, this story and Q, my OC character, is mine.

A chilled breeze gently caused the trees to sway. Leaves of copper, gold, and sorrel flipped in the changing wind as they strongly held onto the arms of the trees. The air was cool, and although it was warm enough to be without a jacket, the wind kept the atmosphere slightly tense. Above the detective, a pale blue sky remained deathly still and cloudlessly barren. An emotionless expression rested on his features as he tilted his head up to peer at the silent heavens.

Standing alone, the man stood in front of a black, iron gate that separated himself from Wammy's Orphanage. At the end of the gate, the vertical, iron bars met faded, coral bricks that enclosed the property of the orphanage. L's dark eyes rolled over to the left side of the brick fence and fell onto a silver plack that appeared to be made more out of tin than steel. The plack boldly stated: Wammy's Institution For Gifted Children. The name itself told everyone that Wammy's House was more than just an orphanage. Not every child at the institution was an orphan, but unfortunately, most of them were. Then below the name it stated when the orphanage was founded, and below that it informed those that Watari had been the one to construct the facility.

A soft smile pressed against L's features when his eyes rolled over the name Quillsh Wammy, Watari's true name. It reminded L how confidentiality wasn't needed back when Wammy's Orphanage was first constructed, and it also caused a warm feeling of relief and thankfulness that Watari had survived through the Kira era. L, at one point, asked Watari if he wanted to have his named removed off of the plack, but the senior had declined the offer. The man had wanted to keep his real name on the outside of Wammy's House because he was stubborn enough to hold his identity at the facility; he considered Wammy's House worth dying for. The smile on L's face widened at that thought before his facial expression slipped back to an unreadable mask.

Tilting his head back up again to stare at the barren plain above, the wind brushed over the detective, flowing through his wild, ebony locks. A single wisp of hair blew into L's face and fell over one of his onyx orbs, but he made no movements to brush it out of the way. Through the solemn man's perspective, the wind seemed to hold a silent melody that called out to his soul and his soul alone. A single, amber leaf broke away from the branch it once lived on and leaped into the breeze. It seem to float there gracefully for a moment before smoothly descending from the sky. Peacefully, the orange leaf rested on L's shoulder, the amber color significantly standing out on L's colorless shirt. L was then awakened from his small trance, and his coal-colored eyes fell on the newcomer that perched on him. As black coals reflected the flame-colored leaf, L realized he was probably going to be visiting the orphanage for longer than he first intended, and he knew that it probably wasn't a good thing his visit would be extended. In fact, it was probably a bad idea for him to be visiting the orphanage in the first place, especially when it was so close to that particular holiday.

"L!"

The black-haired man gazed towards the iron gate at the sound of his voice being called. A young brunette was running up towards the closed gate, approaching L. The brunette teen was dressed in a maroon and black, striped shirt, khaki pants, and white-and-black sneakers. There was a pair of dark red goggles sitting on the top of his head, and that item alone told L that the individual racing towards him was Matt. The teen's green eyes that resembled large, puppy dog eyes glistened with curiosity and happiness at the detective's arrival at the orphanage.

Although his eyes still darkly glowed with the same mysterious emotion he was feeling earlier, a small smile replaced his neutral look. "Good afternoon, Matt," L greeted in English, his first language. Although he had been speaking Japanese for awhile back in Japan, L still fluently remembered English. Although he only spoke English with Watari and when he was at Wammy's House, he still preferred that language over the others that he knew. Of course, that could be expected since it was his native language, considering that L was indeed British.

The alert expression still shone on the brunette's features, his nonexistent, dog tail wagging happily. "Roger didn't say you'd be coming for the holidays," Matt told the man, showing him that he was glad that L had decided to pop up at the orphanage unexpectedly.

"I never informed Roger that I'd be arriving. This was an unexpected and unplanned visit," L told the teen honestly. In truth, he hadn't decided to go to Wammy's Orphanage until last night. While working on the case, L had found something drawing him in, trying to persuade him to visit the institution. Again, L pushed those thoughts to the back of his mind. The reality was that the man truly knew why he had come to Wammy's House that day, but the second truth was that he didn't want to admit those reasons to himself. He didn't want to admit that he really was there at the facility for personal reasons—reasons that hardly pertained to the current case at all.

"Oh." The smile, however, didn't falter from Matt's features. He chuckled, "Did you not want anyone to know you were coming?" The brunette reached up to fidget with the goggles that sat on top of his head, a habit of his. "I can keep a secret." A large, toothy grin stretched across his face as he readjusted his dark red goggles.

L shook his head and put his thumbs in his pant pockets comfortably. With a small smile, L replied, "No. No. That's all right, Matt. I plan on letting everyone know of my arrival here at the orphanage."

The man then turned and casually took a few steps towards the iron gate. Taking one of his hands out of his pockets, he calmly pushed the black gate open and slipped onto the property of the institution. The iron gate shrilled when being opened and closed, but it didn't seem to alert anyone on the outside of Wammy's; the other students were probably too busy playing outside on the chilly Saturday. Since the orphans hadn't been expecting anyone, they wouldn't be paying attention to the sound of the gate opening. They'd probably conclude that the wind was playfully tugging at the iron bars.

Although L was crouched over in his usual—or unusual—standing position, Matt was still a few inches shorter than the black-haired man. The brunette tilted his head up a few degrees so his green eyes could stare directly at the man's facial features. From all of the depressing thoughts and feelings about the BB Jailbreak Case and memories about the Kira Case, the flourishing life in Matt's eyes brought a warm feeling to L's insides, ever so slightly lifting his spirits.

"You've been keeping up with your school work?" L casually questioned the boy.

Matt gave a sheepish smile, quickly remembering a school assignment that he was deliberately putting off that Saturday. It wasn't due until Monday, but he was putting it off nonetheless. Laziness and procrastination were a few things that Matt caved into, and his best friend, Mello, usually commented on it and would remind him of the assignments he was pushing away. Mello knew it, Matt knew, and L knew it. Although Matt was a procrastinator, he wasn't irresponsible. He wasn't the third best student in grades for nothing! Striving to do his best, he worked hard when he did manage to do his work.

Matt nodded quickly, but a sheepish grin still stretched across his face. He began to nervously fidget with his goggles. "Yeah, I've been keeping up with school work."

"Or have you been too busy trying to hack into my computer systems?"

That question completely caught the brunette off guard. He took a single step back, and his emerald eyes widened fearfully. His lower jaw hung open for a moment as his eyes darted around the area, as if something was going to jump out and help him out in this situation. However, nothing ever leaped out to assist him, so he only dipped his head down and drug one of his shoes across the earthy colored rocks of the carved pathway. Knowing he was caught and that there was no way he'd be able to successfully argue his way out of the situation with L, he mumbled guiltily, "Sorry, L."

The man lifted his dominate hand out of his pocket to press the pad of his thumb against his lower lip. His onyx eyes rolled over Matt as he asked calmly, "Might I ask why Matt was purposely trying to break into my computer systems?" The detective knew that the brunette had gone out of his way to particularly search for L's personal systems because even an expert hacker wouldn't just happen to run across it.

"I-I...I...Err," Matt paused for a moment to try to find the right words to explain himself to the respectable man. The teen smiled nervously as he shifted his weight. Finally, he instinctively shrugged and honestly explained, "I just wanted to see if I could."

After saying that, Matt couldn't help but think how foolish those words sounded. Obviously, Matt probably wouldn't be able to successfully hack into computer systems that had a security that L himself had constructed, but it was the truth. If not all the way into the systems, then Matt wanted to see just how far he could get to. Having much more interest in technology than school work, hacking into L's systems was much more of an appealing challenge to him than school assignments.

Matt finally dared to stare up into L's obsidian pools, wanting to see if the man was angry or disappointed in him for trying to invade the man's personal space. However, the moment that Matt lifted his head, a pale hand rested on top of his brunette locks. At the friendly gesture, Matt's green eyes widened. Searching the man's face, Matt didn't find anger or disappointment. Instead, L seemed amused.

"You just wanted to see if you could," L echoed Matt's words. "You saw it as a challenge, I see." Matt nodded at L's observation, causing a the detective to give a small smirk. He moved his thumb across his lip as his thoughts continued to roll over Matt's words and guessing the brunette's thoughts. The man's skinny fingers moved through Matt's cinnamon locks for a moment, ruffling his hair a bit before withdrawing his hand.

For a few seconds that felt like an eternity to Matt, the older man let the teen stand there anxiously for his fate. The curiosity only continued to ascend as his green eyes studied the glint in L's onyx eyes and the light smirk on his lips. Finally, the detective spoke again, "I was surprised that you managed to get that far through the security system."

Not expecting that kind of response at all, Matt's green eyes widened again. "Surprised you?" He couldn't help but echo those words. The fact that L could be surprised about anything seemed unreal and fake. This was probably due to the fact that L, within every student's mind, was almost built up to be some sort of god. Of course, no one would ever consider L to be a god of sorts, but they did admire and respect him to the point to where he could be seen as a high hierarchy. The irony of this was a chain reaction; thinking that L had been surprised only made Matt surprised.

L gave a small nod and internally gave a humored smile at seeing Matt's shocked reaction. Casually and calmly as he was speaking before, L confirmed, "Yes, surprised. You went one step further through the system then I thought you would have."

Large green eyes bewilderedly blinked up at the older man as the gears in his mind slowly began to turn and process the words. As the words began to sink in, Matt couldn't—and didn't even try—to hold back the large, wide grin that spread across his face, stretching from ear to ear. Unable to stop smiling, Matt felt a bit awkward since he was unsure if this was the right emotion that should be showed to the great L. Either way, he didn't hold back his toothy grin, nor the lighthearted chuckles that quickly followed.

Although it wasn't know by many people because L usually kept to himself and didn't confine in or be around others, L was a deceiver to some degrees. He could be seen as a sly liar and cunning trickster. He was shockingly fluent in switching in and out of character if he needed a cover at a certain time or place. If needed, he could show any particular characteristic trait or traits to fool or throw off any individual. This way, L could gain the information he needed to solve a case or to gain ground on one.

If Matt had know this, however, things might have only slightly changed. Slightly? Strangely enough, yes. Although Matt could almost be described as naive and gullible by others, those characteristics didn't describe the gamer. Even though it might not look like it, Matt was actually fairly observant. It was probably an advantage of his that others believed him to be oblivious. This allowed the brunette more ground on observing others because they weren't expecting to be watched.

Now, why would it only be a slight change if Matt knew that L could be a deceiver? It wouldn't change because even though Matt was a careful individual, there were some people he could not avoid being tricked by them. Mello was an example of this. When Mello lied to him on whatever subject, it wasn't that Matt couldn't see that he was lying. Usually, Matt was able to pick up on the lies, but the difference between Mello lying to him and some stranger was that Matt would accept it with Mello. No, he may not accept the lie itself, but he'd accept that Mello was lying to him. He'd guess that Mello had some reason to do this, and if he didn't want to share this with Matt, he wouldn't pry. If it were anyone else, Matt wouldn't accept it.

If L had lied to him, the same thing would have happened. No, Matt wasn't as close to L as he was to Mello, but considering that Matt admired the man spoke for itself. If L wanted Matt to believe he was surprised about Matt's abilities, Matt would leave it at that and take the praise whether it was false or not.

However, in this case, L was not deceiving.

L wasn't trying trick Matt about what he thought about the gamer's technology abilities. In truth, L held a slight pride towards the teen for advancing further than he had expected him to. L lifted his thumb again and placed it comfortably against his lips. To get his point across further, L even casually commented, "If you keep improving your abilities, you'll soon be highly advanced in the technology area." L was sure to comment vague instead of telling Matt to improve on his hacking skills; L didn't want Matt to misinterpret his words.

L was not deceiving Matt with his words because one, he had no reason to fool the brunette. The man was in no way required to have a liking to any of the students at Wammy's Orphanage. If he didn't like one of them, then he simply wouldn't like them. If he did, then he did. It might seem wrong through some people's eyes because it would be seen as a horrid situation if one of the admiring students found out their mentor didn't like them for whatever reason. However, L was indeed selfish sometimes. He wasn't going to act like he treated everyone equally because he found that tactic ridiculous. Also, would it be better to let someone believe you valued them when you truly didn't, or would it be better to let them know or at least hint that you did not care for them? L didn't want to aimlessly tamper with someone's emotions if he did not have to. Now, whether this was half of the reason L didn't use this tactic towards the students, or whether he used this as an excuse to cover up his selfishness...

Who knows.

It was fortunate for L that the three students at Wammy's House that he valued the most happened to be within the top three spots when it came to grades. Since Matt, Mello, and Near were the three L cared about greatly, he felt no reason to try to trick them. One, he'd gain nothing. Two, it would be aimlessly tampering with someone's emotions again.

L then turned away from the mirthful brunette and took a few steps onto the stone path that lead from the iron gate to the entrance of Wammy's Orphanage. The path also split off to the side of Wammy's House, but L would be making his way to the front because he was needing to speak with Roger. It was only naturally that L wanted to hear how the students at Wammy's Orphanage were doing—especially how Near, Matt, and Mello were progressing.

"I must attend to a few things now," L said simply as he turned away.

Matt reached up and readjusted his goggles yet again only to pull them down over his green eyes. The joyous smile was still plastered onto Matt's face as he gave a quick nod. Now chipper, Matt replied back pleasantly, "All right!" As he turned to race off through the grass to make his way to the back of the building where the fields of Wammy's Orphanage was, Matt called over his shoulder, "See ya!"

With more spirit in his step, Matt didn't feel so bothered by the fact that some of the boys at the orphanage had pestered him to come outside to play football(1). Matt particularly didn't like being outdoors to begin with because he preferred to be inside playing one of his gaming systems, but now he seemed more up for racing across the fields and kicking a mottled ball around that chilly autumn in the late afternoon.

~.:+:.~

"Mello's got a crush! Mello's got a crush!" Matt chanted over and over again while hopping up and down beside me. I became more frustrated and embarrassed as a wide grin spread across the brunette's face. With each jump he took, his goggles that were resting around his neck nearly whacked him in the jaw. I wasn't as violent then, so I didn't want to use his own goggles as a strangling device, but I did wish they'd whack him in the face hard enough to leave a purple bruise.

"I do not."

However, Matt didn't stop at his chanting just yet. "Mello's got a crush! Mello's got a crush!"

I quickly outburst this time. "Matt, I do not!"

The all-knowing grin on Matt's face that I remembered all too clearly flustered me then, but it only made me chuckle in thought now. Matt's large, green eyes were shining with triumph. "Yes, you do! Look! Your face is all red!"

I knew my face had turned a shade of pink, and Matt's pestering was only making my face grow hotter. Before I could object to Matt's words as we walked down the orphanage's hallways, Matt noisily roared out in song again, "Mello isn't yellow! Oh, Mello isn't yellow!"

Do you know how hard it is to ignore someone when not only are they singing obnoxiously at the top of their lungs right beside you but also when their voice echoes off the walls and down the hallways? It's not easy. I tried to find any way I could to ignore the young jokester. Making our way to the back of the orphanage so we could head outside, we passed by the Common Room. Inside the middle of the room, a white-haired boy sat with a plastic robot in his hand. Back then, Near didn't put together blank puzzles; he didn't get his first, blank puzzle until two years after that. Before the puzzles, he was content with just playing with his figurines.

I paused in step for a moment as I peered into the open room. There had to of been other children playing within the Common Room, but I only distinctly remember focusing my attention on Near. As I watched the plastic robot in Near's hand fly through the air as if the robot had suddenly transformed into a rocket ship, I was able to successfully ignore Matt. I don't know which following events was more unfortunate: Near realizing I was watching him, or Matt beginning to interrogate me again.

"So who is it?" Matt eagerly asked me with that wide grin still on his face.

When I was younger, I wasn't able to successfully lie about what I was doing or what I thought. I snapped my head around too quickly, my blond locks whipping me in the face. The blush on my cheeks only darked a deeper shade of pink as my blue eyes were wide for a moment. Although I was able to quickly narrow my eyes, it was more out of frustration at being caught than my original annoyance I was showing my best friend. Matt quickly caught on, being as sharp back then as he was now.

His green eyes trailed over to where I had been originally staring. The grin left his face as he blinked at the albino boy who went back to playing with his figurines as if neither of us were standing near the doorway and were staring at him. "Him?Near? A boy?" Matt scrunched up his nose, and his reaction only made my face turn redder. I tilted my head down a bit so my blond locks would cover my face.

Suddenly, I fumed, "I do no—!"

"You do too!"

"Well, you like Sydney!" I retorted.

"Yeah, but she doesn't have cooties!"

I blinked at him in confusion. "Cooties?"

"You know. Cooties! They're contagious!"

I rolled my eyes at the brunette. "There's not such thing as cooties, Matt. Teachers just make that stuff up to scare us."

"Nu-uh!" Matt rejected my explanation. "Cooties are real! I even got a cootie shot a couple of days ago because cooties are everywhere!" The brunette then extended his arms up to emphasize his words. He flapped his arms wildly as he exclaimed, "If you're not careful, Mello, then you'll get cooties!"

Blue eyes blinked blankly at him. "Cootie shot?"

Matt nodded. "Yeah, cootie shot." He stopped waving his arms around for a moment and brought attention to his left arm. He lifted it up, so I could see it. Faintly, pen markings could be seen on the side of his forearm. Drawn in black pen, there were two, lopsided circles and two dots in the center of them. "See?" He traced over the lines as he sang the short song, "Circle. Circle. Dot. Dot. Now, I've got my cootie shot."

A sly smirk stretched across my face as a mischievous glint shone in my blue eyes. Matt gave me a cautious look as my smirk widened. "You know, Matt...you need a cootie shot every day to make sure you don't get cooties." I then moved my attention away from Matt and took a few casual steps to the side, succeeding at making Matt's uneasiness grow. I lifted my hands up and shrugged as I finished, "I guess that's just too bad for you."

"Why?" Matt quickly asked, uncertainty in his voice.

I then turned my head towards him and grinned. I lifted my arms up and stretched out my hands to make them appear like claws. Straightening myself up quickly, I tried to make myself look taller than I was. Wickedly, I exclaimed, "Because I have cooties!"

Matt let out an astonished squeak and flinched back. "Eek! Mello, stay back! Stay back!"

At seeing Matt's reaction, my wild grin only grew. As I began to charge forward, I shouted, "You better look out! I'm contagious!"

Mello's memory faded out with him chasing Matt down the hallway and out of the building, both of them laughing hysterically as they playfully raced through the back property of Wammy's House. As the memory faded away in the blond's mind, a nostalgic, small smile pressed against his lips. He slowly walked through the orphanage with more weariness than usual. Due to Mello's distraught mood, the nostalgic smile didn't last long.

Bypassing Roger's office, Mello rolled his eyes at the closed door. Knowing that the caretaker was off at a teachers' meeting, the blond's hand brushed over the handle to find the door to Roger's office unlocked. Mello couldn't help but smirk at the careless caretaker. He really is forgetful. However, since Mello wasn't in a mischievous mood or even in a content mood, he quietly closed the door and left it as it was.

Walking through the large, main entrance of the building, Mello found that the more his mind wondered, the more distracted he became. The one thing that had been on his mind all day—and for awhile, actually—was Near. It had been a couple of weeks, nearly a month, since the incident between him and Near in the Common Room. Ever since then he couldn't get the teen out of his mind, and every so often, the image of Near broken on the tile floor of the Common Room would plague his mind.

Although unfortunate that he was growing restless with these thoughts, he found himself slightly lucky because these thoughts and memories blocked out his night traumas—the ones that accidentally caused him to waylay his best friend. However, it still didn't bring any comfort to the blond. All that day, memories casually circled his mind like a marry-go-round. However, this ride was becoming unpleasant, even if the memories were joyful.

Mello paused in his stroll when he found himself in front of the entrance to the Common Room. Recalling the memory that most recently went through his mind, he gave a small, lopsided smile; he wasn't quite sure how he felt about that particular memory. Again, he pictured a younger version of Near sitting contently in the room while playing with a pale blue, plastic robot. The young Matt's words echoed tauntingly through Mello's mind. "Mello's got a crush! Mello's got a crush!"

The blond gave a short chuckle through his nose at the remembrance of Matt's rambunctiousness when they were younger. Although the subject had never been brought up again nor acknowledged, Matt had been right that summer day. Of course, though, it was nothing serious. At that age, nothing quite went past let's share our candy with each other or let's hold hands. Crushes or admirations for any child of that age never lasted for too long; even at such a young age, human emotions still proved to be fickle.

Although the truth of the matter was, that crush towards the snowcapped boy came back years later. The only people who had known about this had been the people involved, Mello and Near. Mello never informed even Matt of the infatuation due to embarrassment. Mello was fairly sure that Near knew about how he felt at the time or at least had a decent guess. It's not like that now. Mello quickly defended himself in thought, even though he was only versing himself. He's nothing more than a rival...isn't he?

However, his thoughts and memories continued to flow through his mind. His mind reminded him how the attraction abruptly ended. When the orphans at Wammy's House were younger, Roger wasn't very strict with them when it came to grades; it was always 'do the best you can' and so on. However, once they reached the age of eleven, competition over grades began. The caretaker would give all of them a large lecture about L, who he was, what he did, and how they were all involved. That turning point had been the point of no return.

In the end when Mello and Near ended up being towards the top of the totem pole of grades, Mello quickly used the competition between grades as an excuse to mask his attraction. The infatuation that had been going towards its third month anniversary was kicked into the gutter instantly, and the friendship that the two of them had fairly maintained over the years gradually demolished.

As the years went by and the friendship collapsed, the crush and friendship had been strongly replaced with annoyance and irritation. As the years continued on even further, the annoyance and irritation had been replaced with malice and spite. Unfortunately, the hatred awakened a darker part of Mello, but it wasn't because of this transgression alone. Mello then reached up to take hold of his red-and-black, beaded rosary. He gently twirled the silver cross in his fingers as he was luckily able to block out a different, specific memory. It was the day that a specific item came in for Mello. An item that Roger gave Mello while trying to carefully word his sentences. An item that held the remembrance of Mello's past. His beloved rosary had been that item. Although it brought him comfort, it also plagued him with insecurity. An insecurity that could only be caused from a particular memory of his that would forever be dark and dreadful.

Mello's eyes narrowed bitterly as he tried to cleanse his cluttered mind of these specific thoughts. His blue eyes rolled over the Common Room once again before he smirked. As he went back to remembering the conversation he and Matt held when they were younger, Mello didn't suppress his laugh. He shook his head, and as he continued to walk down the hallway, he amusedly mumbled, "To think Matt ever liked that bitch."

"Please don't say it...Please save me the trouble."

Near plagued his thoughts once more, causing the blond to frown as he continued down the hallway. No matter what he thought about or what he did, Near always crawled back into Mello's mind. In life, there were a number of subjects that got under Mello's skin. When Matt didn't open the window in their shared bedroom and let the secondhand smoke pollute their room, Mello became instantly irritated. When Linda tried to spark up a conversation with him and would ramble on, Mello found himself annoyed beyond belief. Now, when he thought of Near and the incident that happened in the Common Room, Mello felt...

Remorse. Sympathy. Curiosity.

At the moment, Mello felt the strong urge to turn and punch his fist right through the closest wall. It was entirely frustrating to the blond that he could feel any one of those emotions towards Near, who Mello claimed to be his rival. All these mixed up, cluttered emotions were conflicting with Mello's claim to see Near as a rival and rival only.

I shouldn't care about a rival, but I do...The blond paused when he found himself at the far east side of the building. That side of the building wasn't usually where the Wammy orphans played rowdily and nosily. The reason being is because the fields and places to play were on the west and south sides of the building. Here on the east side, there was an enclosed, stone patio. On the patio there were large, stone columns that stretched from the the stone railing around the patio to the thin, stone ceiling. There were a few benches, a single, white, metal table, and two white chairs on the patio. This area was mostly used by the teachers when they needed a break. However, it was also used by the orphans when they wanted to relax or relieve stress by sitting or standing on the patio and gaze across the field at the woods or the few trees that kinked the small grassland before the woods. Then right before the patio was a stone and brick porch that wrapped around that side of the building, a small entrance in between the wrap around, stone porch and the stone patio.

Standing near the double, sliding door made of glass, Mello's blue eyes widened for a moment. Is that Near? Sure enough, the albino was standing on the patio, staring out at the distance. The wind ruffled his loose, over-sized pajamas as he stood there. Although Near's white pajamas were long-sleeved, Mello highly doubted the thin material provided much warmth from the autumn chill. Milky white locks of curly hair were being swayed by the breeze, a few strands falling across his face. Although Mello couldn't see the other teen's face completely due to the angle of where Near was standing, he could see there was a look of isolation on Near's features.

What's happened to you, Near? You've changed. The others don't notice it, but I do...Have I changed? Was it me that somehow changed during all of this? ...Or was it both of us? A soft frown pressed against Mello's lips as he stood there in front of the sliding, glass doors. Reaching up to rub his left shoulder while shifting his weight, Mello's right arm rested across his chest for a moment as he pondered. You look so abandoned out there. Are you pushing away from the world, or is the world pushing you away? Maybe we're all to blame.

The blond's eyes lightly narrowed as he asked himself again why he was standing there, gazing out a Near gazing out at an empty world. It was like staring at a blank canvas, but instead of this canvas giving encouragement to the artist and reflecting the vast room for growth, hope, and wonder as to what the masterpiece could become, this canvas remained blank. Blank. Hollow. Empty. After thinking about this subject for longer than Mello found comfortable, he internally sighed as he gave into his heart and emotions, accepting something he didn't want to accept. The fact that he cared. Ugh. Damn it all.

The moment that Near turned his head, feeling that someone was watching him, Mello froze. Flickering, blue fire met dead, gray fog. Neither Mello or Near moved once their eyes locked with one another. It didn't take long for Mello, who was indeed competitive, to see the hidden challenge of their situation. Near's dull, ashen pools reflected nothing as he waited for the blond to make his move in the challenge that had silently presented itself to the two of them. The glass door between the two of them was the only barrier that separated Near's detached world from the world Mello was a part of. Now, it came down to whether Mello would break down the obstacle between them to accompany the gray-eyed teen, or if Mello would turn away disinterested and leave Near alone. Staring into the hollow, ashen pools while Mello tried to think about what his decision should be, he couldn't help but wonder if it had been him alone that scorched Near down to cinders or something more abstract and complex.

"Forgive me. Am I interrupting something?"

The hairs on the back of Mello's neck stood straight up as a chill raced up his spine. He leaped around, feeling awkward that he had been caught in between the act of debating whether or not he was going to venture outside with Near. "God damn it! Could you just mind your own busin—?" Mello froze the instant he turned around, coming face to face with L himself. It was the fact that he actually didn't come face to face with someone, coming a few inches below the raven-haired man who was bent forward in his usual, strange position with his back curved. With Mello's blue eyes wide in surprise, L seemed to be smiling slightly with his thumb pressed against his lips.

"L-L!" Mello stammered, now embarrassed by the fact that he just snapped and cursed at his respected mentor. The blond took a step back in reflex, now feeling shameful.

"Good evening, Mello," L greeted in his usual, calm, and considerate manor, like he was ignoring the blond's original, harsh words. "Now, did you need to talk to Near? I can speak to the two of you later if you are both going to be busy."

Now, the great detective, L, knew that Mello and Near hardly ever got along. He knew this, but something seemed a bit off that evening. It wasn't the holiday aura that was soon to come. No, L knew that trivial things as that wouldn't cause Mello and Near to form a compromise of any kind. Having the intuition that something was different, L said these last words to prove himself either right or wrong. Although he expected himself to be right about this situation, it still came as a bit of a shock to the detective. He was curious as to what had happened during the period between this visit to Wammy's and his previous one.

Observing closely like L usually did, he noticed how Mello's independent, confident stance had changed. He was now standing to one side with slight awkwardness, like he couldn't get comfortable while standing there. His cerulean blue eyes were making contact with L, yes, but out of respect alone. The usual, glistening pride had left Mello's eyes. Rich eyes glistened like the eyes of an underdog. Troubled. Unsure. Lost. However, these pools of blue still belonged to Mello. These eyes, even though they reflected the struggle Mello held, still belonged to the independent and confident blond. In saying that, these eyes also shined with an undying determination to figure out what was going on within him to fix the issues, whatever they may be.

Although only for a second, L watched as Mello blinked his eyes away before locking them back with the detective's onyx orbs. The blond appeared uncomfortable, wanting to shift his weight but not wanting to admit that he felt awkward standing there. Was he uncomfortable because L was here now, or was he uncomfortable because Near was watching him now, or was it something else? Mello's arms were stiffly at his sides, trying to relax them but unable to. "No, I don't need to talk to Near," Mello simply informed the man. "You're not interrupting anything."

An alertness filled the black-haired detective's eyes after the blond spoke. Not interrupting anything? "So you came here to enjoy the autumn scenery on the porch?" Although L didn't say it, he might as well said at the end 'with Near'. If Mello wanted to enjoy the outside aura, his general resistance against being around Near would have been stronger. This would have kept Mello away from the white-haired boy, but it had already been a little late to cover up that something was different between them.

Mello's blue eyes rolled over to where the glass, sliding door was, seeing that Near was still watching them. The blond mumbled out, "I was passing by..."

A lie. A discovered lie between the two of them. Why would Mello lie if he were already caught, especially when it had been L who had caught him? The detective had seen him standing there, internally debating something in his mind as him and Near's eyes were locked. Mello knew the man had saw him, so why? A silent confession? Maybe. The chances of that were high. Mello was admitting to lying about standing there without the intension of wanting to bash Near's head in. Then why lie? Was it that Mello was ashamed? Embarrassed?

Uncertainty. Mello lied because of uncertainty. Unsure about the situation, unsure about the outcomes, and unsure about the motives. Those misty eyes had already reflected a struggle, and now this lie told L what it was that Mello was struggling with. Then the fact that Mello's tone of voice told L that he was silently seeking help. He wanted L's help. He wanted help from the one adult that Mello truly respected. However, L knew he could possibly be overlooking things, so he would be unable to give Mello the advice and assistance Mello was searching for if the blond could not ask for it. Also in saying that, Mello fortunately knew this as well. The question was now if Mello would hold his pride down long enough to seek for assistance. Of course, however, L could be wrong completely and if that was the case, Mello wouldn't need to ask anything at all.

Things have changed since the last time I was here.

Mello's eyes rolled over to where Near was again, stayed locked on his for a moment before narrowing with bitterness. There was a long-termed bitterness that was pushing its way up through Mello. The bitterness shifted to a wild anger similar to that of a wildfire; the fire was unstable and threatened to scorch everything instead of just a particular, controlled fire. This deep-rooted anger surged through him, but only for a moment. He then looked away from both Near and L and closed his eyes. His hands tightened into fists as he sighed.

"L," Mello began quietly with his eyes now half-lidded and directed away still. "Have you ever been...confused on a case?"

Surprise flowed through the detective at the blond's question. L was about half ready to head outside to see Near or ask Mello about how his school work was doing, not believing that the blond would actually pop the detective a question. Knowing Mello, L expected him to avoid the subject or leave, not actually search for help and assistance. There must be something really bothering him if he's going as far as to talk about it... Although L was weighing these thoughts in his mind, his exterior remained the same.

Mello had shook his head, looking like he was ready to bail out on the question he just asked. Before he could get a chance to brush off the subject or change his mind, L simply answered, "Yes, I have."

Blue eyes widened momentarily, his attention heading straight back to the detective and the conversation itself. A shocked echo of L's statement almost escaped Mello's lips, but he held it back. Pondering it for a moment, the blond tried to figure out in his mind what it was exactly that he was getting at. For a second, Mello wondered if L was lying out of sympathy, but he quickly threw that thought out.

"What did you do?" Mello asked carefully, "To cure your...confusion?"

A small, half smile, half smirk formed against the thumb that was placed against L's lips. The detective gave a small pause before responding in his even tone of voice, "I found the answers by clearing my mind, debating the options, and confronting the most likely ones before weighing the results."

Mello frowned. "Wouldn't thinking about the issue too much cause more confusion?"

"Not if you think about it enough and act."

The blond pondered this thought for a moment before giving a short nod, looking away again. As the words echoed in his mind, Mello gave a second nod, this time to L in thanks. The detective replied with, "Is there anything else you wish to talk about, Mello?" When the blond shook his head, L began to move more towards the glass doors. "I'm going to talk to Near for a bit before I depart back. Good day, Mello, and happy holidays."

Mello gave another curt nod before giving a halfway smile. "Happy holidays to you too, L." A part of the blond wanted to add a thank you to the end of his sentence, but he debated against it. Even in this strange state of his, Mello was still Mello; he felt a bit too awkward and embarrassed to say thanks. However, he was sure L knew that Mello was grateful either way about the small bit of needed advice.

As L slipped outside and as Mello started down the hallway, the weight of the situation circled the detective's mind. Some say that unfortunate events happen in pairs, but I wasn't expecting that from Mello. The wind met the detective, lightly brushing through his raven black hair the moment he walked outside. It was already unusual that Near was outside of all places, especially without any toy or puzzle, but L didn't think too much into it. Well, at least L didn't think he was thinking too much into it. There was always the possibility that L just caught Near on one of those rare times during the week where the prodigy wanted fresh air.

Near turned slightly towards the detective when he exited Wammy's House to head out to the patio. He greeted him in his usual, monotonous voice. "Good afternoon, L."

L exchanged the same, formal greeting before standing near one of the patio walls, close to where Near was standing. Their conversation was a brief exchange of questions on how the orphanage life was going for Near. After a couple of minutes, they allowed themselves to silence. Near continued to stare out at the colorful, autumn scenery. In fact, the only moment he took his eyes off of the background was when L first approached him. L had noticed this and lightly took note of it. Within the silence, L's obsidian eyes side glanced over to where the albino was standing. The detective couldn't quite place it, but something felt strange; the comfortable silence was seeming to lack in complete comfort and relaxation.

Something seemed odd and off, and L was going to find out exactly what it was that was going on. L wasn't one to brush things off. After deciding on what route to take on this, L asked casually, "How are you and Mello?" He didn't ask more, and he didn't ask less. He'd leave it up to Near as to how he took the question and as to how he'd answer it. Near still didn't turn his attention away from the scenery, but L could see a light frown take form on Near's face.

Near told L simply, "We still have the same misunderstanding." Like L, he didn't say more, and he didn't say less. L left it at that. Things were different with Near and Mello both together and individually, but at the same time, they were the same. The detective wanted to know what it was that was going on, but he knew that it wasn't his place.

Mello and Near's relationship was never L's decision to make or his place to change. He had to explain this to Roger a few times because the caretaker wished to believe that the detective could fix and alter things. No matter how much Mello and Near looked up to L, the only ones who could change the relationship were those two involved. The only thing L might possibly be able to do was mask their relationship in short bursts and short periods of time, but he knew that was not what Roger was wanting and asking for.

However, that didn't mean that L didn't want Mello and Near to get along. By all means, he wished his two successors would get along as much as Mello and Matt got together. Although it might not seem like it from the perspective of outsiders, L really did care about all three of them—Mello, Near, and Matt, so of course he'd want them to all get along well. L also knew that if it wasn't for Mello's relations with Near that Matt and Near would be on swell terms. After all, they were all getting along before the rivalry between Mello and Near began.

L was just about to leave the patio to head back to Japan, but before he could give his farewell, Near commented first. What Near said next caught L so off guard that he froze. The small comment caused the hairs on the back of his neck to rise. His dark, coal eyes widened sharply as a mixture of emotions swirled inside him.

"Autumn's looking quite captivating this evening."

The detective's thought process cut off when those words wrapped around his brain. His attention was turned and placed fully on Near who stood beside him. Obsidian eyes blurred the reality around him, his memories blinding his site. Two images flickered in L's vision: the image of Near, and the image of someone L was subconsciously thinking about all day. Long, red-orange strands replaced curly, white locks. Even tan skin replaced the ghostly pale pigment. Before L knew it, A had replaced the image of Near.

Misty gray eyes gazed over at the detective, an even smile on the face L knew to be A. "Don't you think so, L?" The words echoed through L's head before he was put into a flashback. A flash from the past of the days when L was still living under the orphanage's roof. For a particular reason, L was subconsciously grateful that the memory he was getting tossed back into was back to a time when A was still smiling.

The rich smell of fresh, pumpkin pie flowed through my nose as I carried a plate with a slice of pie on it close to my chest as I walked. Walking around the slight wrap around porch that was within the back of Wammy's House where the patio area was, I quickly spotted the long-haired teen. He was sitting on top of one of the stone walls, staring out at the scenery. The redhead lightly kicked his legs back and forth casually. In his hand, he held a mostly eaten, red apple. For as long as I knew him, I knew very well how much that redhead loved apples. Not just any apples, but specifically red apples.

He spotted me quickly. He turned his head to gaze over at me with those misty, gray eyes of his. A smile stretched across his face as he greeted, "Good afternoon, L!"

That smile always did something to my insides. That smile that made his eyes twinkle silver and brighten his facial features, his smile making my heart skip a beat in my chest. At the time, it always ruffled my insides and made me want to look away in embarrassment. Now, thinking about the feeling just made L's heart hurt. The feeling made him not ever want to think of the time or him again. However, it wasn't L's choice to be thrown into this flashback.

Dipping my head to him friendly, I returned the greeting. "Greetings, A. Happy holidays to you."

His smile widened for a second at my greeting. For some reason, he always thought it was pleasantly odd the way I said 'greetings' to people. For some reason he had a liking to that word. Well, when I said it anyway. A quickly nodded. "Happy holidays to you too, L."

Stepping onto the patio and making my way towards the redhead, I held up the pumpkin pie slice I was carrying. I glanced down subconsciously for a moment before looking back at him and explaining, "I went ahead and got you a slice of pumpkin pie."

A's face brightened up at the presented gift. Taking the plate, the redhead grinned and heartfelt thanked me. The thanks with gratitude gave a light squeeze to my insides. Then the smile that he flashed me after savoring a single bite of the sweet, holiday pie made me shift my weight. For some reason I was feeling exposed standing there.

I stood near one of the stone walls, looking out at the same scenery that A was looking out at as he munched one of his favorite treats. Standing there in a calm silence, A quietly murmured, "Autumn's quite captivating this evening...Don't you think so, L?"

A had always loved nature. Whether it was the gentle breeze, a flourishing tree, a beautifully painted flower, or a newborn fawn prancing through the forest, A loved it all. Most of all the nature he loved to see was the autumn season. To see everything changing was very magical to the teen, remembering that not everything stays the same. Even though the seasons were destined to change, the way it changed every year was different. Then seeing everything so colorful was quite captivating in the redhead's gray eyes. The way amber, golden, ruby, and sorrel colors painted the land was relaxing and mystifying. To speak the truth, anything relating to the autumn season was associated back with A in my mind, especially the color orange—A's favorite color.

When my dark eyes glanced over at him, he had his head dipped down, a sad smile on his face. "I wish Quill could come out here to see it...He's been in the infirmary all morning and all last night." A deep sigh escaped his throat, changing the entire mood of that holiday afternoon. "It's his stomach again."

I gave a half nod of acknowledgement, pausing for a moment. Trying to sound at least half hopeful and wanting to bring the mood back up again, I told him, "Nurse Claire might let him out of the clinic for a bit this evening for the holiday. You could show him then."

A gave a small nod. "Yeah, you're right...I could show him then."

Many images then quickly flashed through L's mind, smothering the original, calm, nostalgic memory that slowly turned to a sorrowful aura. Many memories of the redhead flashed through his blinded eyes, along with a few images of A and Q together and Q alone. Suddenly, a not so wonderful memory strongly shoved its way to the front of L's mind.

The image of a broken A.

The redhead's ginger strands messily fell over his face and around his body. His body shook and trembled from horrid shock and continuous lamenting. He was huddled in the corner of one of the empty hallways of Wammy's Orphanage. When approached, the redhead weakly lifted his head an inch to barely glance up at the black-haired teen. Hollow, gray eyes fogged over with depression stared through L as the redhead scratchily told him, "I-It finally happened, L...It f-finally happened."

Coming back to reality, L's senses were still a bit blurred from being in reality one second and being within the past the next second. Slowly L's senses began to sharpen, but when he began to concentrate, there was an unreal feeling wrapping around the detective. The image of A's hollow, gray eyes slowly faded to Near's own gray eyes that were now staring directly at L. Foggy, arsenic eyes morphed into hollow, gray pools; the present reflecting the past and the past foreshadowing the present. The emotion L felt next made L's heart sink, unease sweep through his body, and a bit of fear surge through his veins. Realizing the weight of the situation, L was beginning to fear for Near's safety.

Near quietly tried to awake L out of his dazed state. Slowly, he asked, "Will you have to be leaving soon...?"

By the way Near asked the question carefully and slowly told L that the prodigy was confused why L had suddenly spaced out. Honestly however, L was a bit confused himself. After having a couple of flashbacks, L was trying to sort himself out, trying to figure out what he needed to do next. Unfortunately, he wasn't sure on what to do either.

L just gave a small nod to Near, his spaced out appearance replaced with his usual, calm expression. He reached up to press his thumb against his bottom lip as he tried to recap on the memories and try to figure out his next move. "Yes, I must be leaving," he admitted. Countering his spaced out moment, he commented, "I was just thinking about a case I have and that I need to be heading back soon."

L turned and moved away from Near, heading back towards the orphanage. With a mix of emotions flowing through L's insides, the raven-haired man stopped for a moment, turned his head slightly, and murmured to the albino, "Enjoy your holiday, Near." However, L had a bad feeling that Near wasn't going to be enjoying the feasts tomorrow on the holiday like L would hope. Unfortunately, L's guess was right, and what was even worse than that was that L knew there was nothing he could do about it.

Note #1: In England, soccer is called 'football'. (:

I hope you guys liked it!
Hope it was worth the long wait! Dx

So what do you guys think about the interaction between the characters so far? :O
Lol. By the end of this, you guys are going to have to tell me what you think about my version of A and my two OC characters that are within this story. X3
Hahaha. Did I abuse my OC powers? I guess you guys will have to tell me by the end because you guys really won't know until then. C:
...I just hope I have all the major relationships between the characters right and that I'm not forgetting anything! Dx Like I hope Mello and Near's relationship isn't getting rushed, etc. Hopefully not though. I'm hoping that I did pretty well on that.

Anyhow! Anthem For The Underdog is starting to progress through the storyline now~
In fact, a couple of things are going to be explained in the next chapter. P: Yay for explanations! You'll find out more about the arc behind L's past. ^ ^
And yay for fluffy, MelloNear flashback memory? XD Lol

Love you guys, and your reviews make me feel very loved. C:
So tons of thanks to those who review and have reviewed!
They keep me inspired and happy~