#puzzle prodigy

[flowerhound]

My siblings!!! I would do anything for them. (templates by sonorous-melody)

[flowerhound]

🤩🤔🤫 for mello and near?

🤩 what’s your favourite thing about your familial f/o? what’s their favourite thing about you?

For Mello, my favorite thing about him is his sheer drive. Once he puts his mind to something, he'll move hell and high water to do it. If you can earn his care, he'll burn the whole world down to make sure you're safe. No matter the odds, he's going to succeed or go down trying his absolute hardest. An utterly unstoppable force of nature, as uncontrollable and undefeatable as a wildfire. (His favorite thing about me is my protectiveness, and how dangerous I can be despite coming off as unassuming. He likes and respects that, if I'm finally pushed far enough, I've got the spine and the strength to beat the hell out of someone, or shout someone down. I kind of look like a big softie, so he gets a kick out of the juxtaposition. His respect is earned, after all- I would never have been able to hit it off with him if I couldn't put my money where my mouth is.) For Near, my favorite thing is that, if you can get close enough to see him as he is, Near is so incredibly curious! He always wants to know anything he can about everything he can, especially topics of personal interest. He will leave no stone unturned in his desire to learn, and if he's really comfortable with you, he'll be happy to ramble about it for as long as you seem interested! (His favorite thing about me is that I'm extremely non-judgmental. Despite his intelligence- maybe in part due to it- Near was othered pretty severely his whole life for being "weird" in a way that a lot of people found either childish, annoying, creepy, or all of the above. The first good chunk of our friendship was defined by him slipping into neurodivergent or otherwise often judged behaviors around me only to find I didn't mind and often encouraged it. I was the first person to care a lot about who he was, specifically, and he really appreciates how accepting and supportive I've been.)

🤔 what’s one thing about your familial f/o that most people don’t know? Mello is trans! He knew from a very young age, and god help anybody who ever tries to challenge it. He chose the name Mihael early on, and has been finding ways to get his hands on T for a while. At the time we met his binding habits were...concerning at best, but we've improved on that and got him something that won't cause rib pain in the long term. It was a point of connection for us actually, being that I'm also transmasc and significantly older than him. He's also mlm! He and Matt had something, though he doesn't like to talk about it now. Near is immunocompromised! He has to be careful with his work on how much he's exposed to, and certain precautions have to be taken to keep his health in check. He also struggles with chronic pain from the same condition. He's a workaholic, as most Wammy's kids are, so part of my job as his caretaker is to watch out for signs that he's overexerting or sick. Also help remind him to take his meds- he's smart as a whip but he tends to forget he has a body that needs things.

🤫 do you have any nicknames for your familial f/o? do they have any for you? if so, is it something that has to be explained to anyone that's not one of you, or is it pretty straightforward?

Mello: M, Mel, spitfire, wildcard, punk, wild child. A lot of nicknames that reflect his nature. Even if he's better at directing that energy these days, he's still very much himself. I'm also one of the handful of people who can get away with calling him Mel! Nothing too touchy-feely because he doesn't like it. The sappiest thing is sometimes I'll just call him "little brother" outright. Near: Okay full disclosure...I'm a schmuck with how I refer to Near. He's receptive to it and honestly I think he really likes it- I don't think he got to be treated like a kid by anybody growing up. So, while I keep it professional at work...at home he's baby, sweetheart, kiddo, honey, sunshine... you get it. He can let his guard down and be looked after like he hasn't had the chance to otherwise. It works for us.

[flowerhound]

I love Mello and Near did you guys know that. Myyy siblings I will guard them with my life and also make them dinner.

[flowerhound]

Thinking also about my little siblings.

I would do anything for them. If anyone causes them stress or harm I’m going to Attack.

[flowerhound]

I've had these two on the mind as well lately. I'll blow up the whole world to protect them actually

[flowerhound]

Sometimes a family can be two hyper-intelligent younger orphans who have been trained from childhood to be pushed into very dangerous situations during their teenagehood, and the older orphan who fully desires to beat the living shit out of every person who subjected them to that.

[flowerhound]

🫂🧬🎓 for Mello! ^^ -- violetsareblue-selfships

Thank you! I hope you'll forgive me but I'm gonna do these for both Mello and Near, I wanna talk about both of them <3

how does your familial f/o comfort you when you’re feeling down? or vice versa, how do you comfort them? Near: Near, while he has to keep up his "detective" persona at work or in public, is a very clingy, touchy feely sort otherwise. If I'm feeling down, he usually just stays in very close proximity, sitting right beside me or leaning on me or curling into my side. He's not the best with words, but he's found out that he can keep me grounded and calm through contact. I comfort Near in a similar way, though mine is definitely colored more by our actual dynamic. I hug him like I'm trying to shield him, a hand on the back of his head and his face in my shoulder. He never really got to be a little kid, so when he's struggling he likes to feel like one sometimes. If not that, then I let him just ramble a stream of consciousness at me until he gets through his own train of thought. It helps, sometimes. Mello: Mello has hardly a single clue what the hell to do when I'm in bad shape. He has VERY little precedent for how to handle that, but he tries. It's mostly quiet gestures with him, leaving a snack and a cup of water close to me wordlessly, dropping a blanket or a fidget object as he walks by. Once he actually figures out I care about him he also stays nearby, like he's reassuring me he's alive. Rarely he attempts words, and they're always clipped and awkward, but I appreciate it anyway. When Mello is struggling, I always bring him chocolate. I know his favorite brand and flavor by now and I keep it in stock always. A peace offering of candy tends to help relax him so he doesn't immediately push me away. From there it's either gentle pushing, talking to him as an equal so that he might actually talk a bit about what's bothering him, or if he's not up for talking, I try to give him a task to help me with. Mello copes better if he can spar, or help cook, or do something active to take his mind off of things. -----------------------------------

Are you biological family or found family? if you’re found family, how did you meet? what were your first impressions of each other? Near: Found family! None of us are related, but we did all grow up at Wammy's House, albeit not all at once. Near and I's meeting was a huge part of the lore- I had been trying to stay away from detective work because I refused Wammy's doctrine after graduating. Only after L's death did I agree to get involved with the Kira case, specifically to try to help and assist whichever new kid was put on the chopping block. I came onto the case with the credential of being another graduate from L's class, and was there as a consultant/extra mind on the case, then as Near's official caretaker, technically an employee of his. (In my version he has high support needs autism, I make sure he's okay!) His first impression of me was neutral but not bad. I was a volunteer brought onto the case, he found me mildly interesting because absolutely nothing in my demeanor read as formal or 'official'. He had many people working under him, but my Wammy's pedigree made me different. He didn't think a whole lot of me at first though outside of polite curiosity. I intended to try not to get too attached to whichever kid I was going up to bat for, figuring it was best that way, but failed literally immediately. Near's quirky mannerisms and bright, unique view of the world ensured I cared about him instantly. I was deadly protective of him from meeting one. Mello: I had met Mello in passing when he was a child at the orphanage and I was an older student. It was only a couple of inconsequential encounters though. We properly met when I remembered him and took the risk of seeking him out, offering to be the go-between for him and Near, feeding him info in exchange for his own intel. We met often in back alleys and parking garages, trading our insight, and I came to worry for him. My job was to protect Near, but I feared for Mello's safety too. I started offering to buy him meals, which he reluctantly accepted sometimes, and otherwise trying to offer him support and facilitate a positive line between him and Near. His first impression of me was that I was either playing for ulterior motives or extremely stupid lol. Offering to meet him alone, all but unarmed, registered to him as a show of insane naivety or some sort of long con. He was certain I had some favor I needed or advantage I was aiming for, and when he grew less confident in that he thought I was just a dumbass with a death wish. I, conversely, had a lot of compassion for him. I saw the hurting young man who'd been told he was second best his whole life, and worried for his safety. It didn't take me long to decide I was going to try and interfere with his bad situation too, even if that was a risky maneuver all things considered. -----------------------------------

what’s something that you’ve learned/picked up from your familial f/o? what’s something they’ve learned/picked up from you? Near: I've learned a whole lot about actual strategy from Near, while working with him on cases and observing his work as well. Both he and Mello are doubtlessly smarter than me, emotional intelligence is my edge but they have me beat on logic. He had to teach me a lot of actual procedure and tactics, especially during the Kira case. He also teaches me how to do puzzle toys a lot, though he hasn't gotten me to grasp the Rubiks cube yet. One day! From me Near has learned a lot of self care tricks, like breathing exercises and ways to ground himself when he gets overwhelmed or shuts down. I've taught him a number of tricks and systems for getting out of his own head, stopping a panic attack or a flashback, just general stuff like that. On a slightly lighter note, I've also been teaching him to cook! He's a quick study, even if he overthinks it. Mello: Mello has taught me a _lot_ about combat and self defense. When we got close enough for him to care, he was really stressed out by my apparent lack of self preservation that he had previously construed as a death wish. He appreciates my determination to reach him, but never wants me in that position again and maintains that it was a dumb thing for me to do. He insists on sparring with me often and shoring up my self defense skills, just in case. ...Genuinely I haven't taught Mello very much as far as practical skills go. Not even the same self help tricks that work on Near, Mello is a different kind of traumatized and those don't often work for him. The only thing I think I can really say I taught him is the idea that he isn't second best, and that people can care about him for who he is, nevermind L's legacy. He can still matter as more than a cog in the machine- but really, that's probably the best thing I could have taught him, isn't it? thank you for asking! this was a lot of fun!

[flowerhound]

I know I say it a lot but I love my siblings? I love my siblings. I love them.

My siblings.