Goddamnit, that was beautiful. I don't know how to give you a well-written, sense-making review right now *shaky*, but I hope you can see that I really like your work.. Huge props

It's honestly not often I say this, but you totally made me cry. :( There's SO MUCH emotion in this story! You're amazing, you really are. ^.^
Honestly, I really did bawl my eyes out. But in a good way! It's so refreshing to read a fic with true tragedy in it! You stuck to the canon events; so many fics I've read to do with the last scene have either had some miracle where they survive, but Kira is obliterated anyway; or they admit they love each other right before it, and...well, follow through on that, and die somewhat happy.

That phone cal! I'm honestly at a loss for words, here. (And that rarely happens! XD)
And every little thing, down to Mello realising Matt was following him because of the swans; and Mello telling Matt he was killing himself, smoking cloves, and the irony in that; and Mello's armchair-- just... wow.

To be honest, I don't actually know Tristan and Isolde, so I can't comment on that. ^^; But I do like the ways you included it the story, it's so perfect that Mello likes opera! :D And rest assured, I'm going to go look it up straight after I finish this review.

And: '“I always thought it sounded like something tragic,” Mello had tried to clarify, mouth moving slowly round the words like they were precious. “Dying because of how much you love someone.” ' That is just so heartbreaking! Mello saying that, all those years ago, and then look what happened to him. :( Fuck you, irony.

This story has given me a good cry, helped me find an amazingly talented author (that's you! :)), and made me fall in love with Death Note even more; but especially Mello and Matt. <3

Oh, and my favourite line?
'Tequila's mine, you fucking bitch'.

Its very rare for me to actually burst into tears when reading a story, but this whole tale just broke my heart. I'm pretty sure I'm going to be depressed for days...so, I'm looking forward to crying again later... But, I suppose that just means that your work is a lot more deep and meaningful than most of the writing on this site.

Seriously, this is one of those stories that will stick with me forever. So, bitter tears aside...

Thank you.

Aw, dude. Dude. Dude, dude, dude.
I fucking /bawled/. Cried my motherfucking guts out.
Oh, god. This really isn't constructive or helpful, but I just want to say this: Fuck you, man. I cried like shit. Goddamn Death Note.

T_T Loved this. Made me cry. **not surprising; i'm such a baby**

Crap, the last review (number 56) was from me. Somehow I didn't realize I hadn't signed in. Sorry. :)

SlvrSoleAlchmst, thou hast cleft my heart in twain.

Where to start? Well, I can barely see the screen, but I shall persevere. Just prepare yourself for some major rambling. :)

I have to say, I was listening to Pandora while reading the last two chapters. As I started on chapter seven, "One More Day" by Vast started playing...and oh, god, the waterworks began in earnest. As if I needed any encouragement...

The.Phone.Call.Killed.Me. They could have had a glorious moment, but Matt, the magnificent bastard, completely ruined it. And Mello tried again--but he wasn't allowed to finish his last beautiful lie to Matt: "...don't be unnecessarily reckless, because I'll find you again and we'll start over." Paired with Matt's last thought,"what we needed was another chance," and oh god...they never,ever (vanilla vodka) were on the same page when it really mattered, were they? Which makes Mello's lament in chapter three that "time was flying and they had tomorrow left to make things right, except it didn't look like they ever would," a nice bit of foreshadowing. Lovely. Brutal and tragic, but lovely.

Incidentally, I found it interesting that Mello's last spoken word to Matt was "I," and the last word in his head as he died--thinking of the opera/them--was "always." Whether you meant for that to have significance or not is inconsequential, I saw it, and I love it. ;)

I also love this, from chapter 6: "Hit me again, Matt. Go ahead, try it. You're nothing but the candle flame, and I'm the gust of wind." Then you use words like "burning" "blazing ruin" "impounded phoenix" etc., in reference to _Mello_. HA. And as a shallow aside, that whole scene was HOT. But then, dammit, Mello had to go and pull out his gun. :O Sorry, it had to be said. LOL

This, my favorite line/image: "For a few precious moments, Matt had submitted like white paper to finger paint, and Mello had smeared him the color of agitation." Gorgeous.

Okay, so I need to address the Tristan chord connection. Dissonance. Yes, in spades. So much left unspoken, broken, misunderstood. Once I found out what the Tristan chord was, I knew they weren't going to get it together (and/or literally get together) before they died; however, that didn't prevent me from hoping for some kind of resolution in the end, however small. Because Mello was wrong. They _were_ both strong enough to handle having loved and lost. In general, Mello didn't believe he deserved any happiness...more specifically, happiness with Matt and his "understated magnificence." And that's perhaps the saddest part of all.

Have so much more to comment on, but this is not a term paper.

Needless to say, this has been favorited. Yes, it's a word.

I absolutely LOVE this story. It flows very differently from the other stories I’ve read, and I find myself wishing they all read the way this one does. This chapter was intense and the interactions between Matt and Mello were perfect. Truly an excellent job. -And for this chapter I was listening to "Forever or Never" by Cinema Bizzare and felt that it completely fit some of the scenes. :)

Okay. I know you said not to read this one if I didn't want to cry--but you see, I was giving you a compliment. Being moved is a good thing. Besides, I had planned reading Tristan Chord anyway. :)

So. I read the first chapter last night--and stopped--because I realized that this one was going to be epic. I was tired, and wasn't able to give this the attention it deserves. Also, I'm not familiar with Tristan and Isolde, so I'm going to have to investigate before reading further. Something tells me it will be necessary...

And.This.

"But why Tristan and Isolde?" Matt had asked after they'd played the opera through for the third time one night.

"I always thought it sounded like something tragic," Mello had tried to clarify, mouth moving slowly round the words like they were precious. "Dying because of how much you love someone."

Oh god. This is the crux of the story, isn't it? Sigh.

Will review again when I've read more...

...Wow...that was...incredibly beautiful and sad at the same time. You deliver the bittersweet existence of the two so well...and its something that most people can't pull off. You did a really good job with this one. I promised myself I wouldn't cry, but I did anyway.

I hope that you'll continue writing and setting the bar for stories on this site. You have a gift, and I have little doubt that you'll be able to have some of your work published one day, if you go for it.

FRONGI, HOLY SHIT WOMAN.

(( dish ish Maddeh jusht sho you knowsh ;) ))

I just read through that -entire- fic, just now. I'd read bits before, but I just decided like...however long ago to read it whole. I...don't even think my vocabulary has the right words for what...how, that made me feel. Seriously, that totally just swallowed me whole. That has to be one of the most cleverly written pieces I've read, well fair to say ever. The whole thing -was- secretly Tristan and Isolde! To me, it seemed, anyways. The whole chapter of Matt and Mello getting wasted in the apartment, to me the alcohol was the turning point, the love potion. After that came the last-chance romance before the death. Which, by the way, was beautiful. I love how you kept everything true to the series in the sense that, all of the last chapter -could- have actually happened, because we never saw where Matt and the car came from, never saw if Mello actually ever said anything while wearing the helmet. The real clencher ( among a story FULL of them XD) was how Matt cut Mello off just as he was saying something, and how he dies wanting a second chance, not knowing that what Mello was going to say is that it'd all be worth it because they -would- get a second chance.

so there you have it. It's 11:30 at night here in Britannia ( enter snicker of Geass here) so I am hitting the haysack as we Canadianshesh call itsh. But seriously, Komori con or not, we have to hook up at some point this summer. Sherioushlysh.

P.S: *guppy face*

That really put a lump in my throat. Thank you for writing such a moving story, the feelings were very real, and very painful. I appreciate that.

Wow - it's finished! I have to say that the whole operatic theme really works well for this story, because you have written their story much like those classical tragedies, complete with doomed lovers who can't, or refuse to, see any alternative course to the one leading straight to their deaths. It's also very true to the spirit of Death Note. Mello was always a larger than life--and I think, tragic-- character.
I'm still not quite clear on just WHY he was so afraid of them being in love though. It couldn't be because of what he said - that losing one another would make it that much worse, because - well, they'd be dead. It didn't seem like he thought Matt might survive, (like he apparently did in canon) and I found that slightly odd, because Matt could well have survived if he had managed to outrun the bodyguards - not all that unlikely. The only reason I could really find that seemed to hold up to scrutiny was hinted at - that the intensity and passion of the unrequited love was what made their last living days worthwhile, and in fact, I really LIKE that idea! So, I guess that's my question: What was YOUR idea about why Mello refused to give in to what he wanted?
Oops, this is rambling on a bit, isn't it?
Anyway, I want to say that I enjoyed the story, very emotional and, of course, well written. Kudos. A bag full of them! :D

god, i was totally kidding myself when i told myself that maybe there was a chance that this wouldn't end with them both dying. i really did know all along that it would end this way, and i'd be bawling my eyes out throughout the entire second half of the chapter. i hate that they died, but i love that you made it so that it wasn't just two more deaths before kira's downfall. i love that they weren't just matt and mello and boom they were gone, but they were matt and mello and they had a tragic yet realistic impossible romance and i love that you finished with "matt, don't be unnecessarily reckless, because i'll find you again and we'll start over." that somehow made it all okay.

this probably makes no sense, because i can barely see the screen, and i can barely think, but this was so beautiful and it hurt so much to read even though it was such a joy to read because it was so beautiful. (ah, i'm making no sense! i'm so sorry!) this is what a matt/mello story is supposed to be like. they're supposed to be mind-blowingly amazing, and you've managed ot do that with this story, and i think i'm going to have to go reread it all again when i have time because stories this good only get better with more reads.

i wish this was more coherent and that i could explain how much this story has affected me, but everything sounds cheesy. i think i'll go blow my nose now... and when i've calmed down i'll see if i can think of a question. and if the next chapter's already posted by the time i've thought of one, maybe i'll PM it to you. who knows.

since there's one more chapter after this one, i normally wouldn't review until i got to the last updated one, but the way you asked for a review here just won't let me not give one. i'd feel like a terrible person.

OH. MY. GOD. i could CRY that was so...so...(deep breath) beautiful; brilliant; heart-wrenching; painful; perfect; blissful; so damn sad! everything you put into this chapter - all the things you were nervous about cramming in - all paid off in making this chapter a work of art. i could feel EVERYTHING, their passion and fear and indicision and matt's rage at mello's dismissal and mello's bitter remorse at having to make matt leave.

basically the whole scene was a makeout session, but it was so much more that just tongues and slobbering and grunting and the regular old cliche. the metaphors and imagery and the way everything was painted out so elaborately and carefully and eloquently just made me wish that this chapter would never end. and the way it ended just rips my heart out even though it was inevitable. this story is SO FREAKING GOOD, and i'm half terrified to find out how it ends, but i NEED to know because i'm so caught up in the way matt and mello are portrayed in your story that i need to know their ending.

i'm crossing my fingers.