Tokyo Mew Mew Fan Fiction ❯ To Be A Traitor ❯ III ( Chapter 3 )

Disclaimer: Tokyo Mew Mew may be harmful to those allergic to cats, birds, shellfish, apes and/or dogs.

 

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Ichigo's mind was filled to the brim with confusion at what was happening right now. She was on Ryou's bed, with him kissing her. Alright, so she had that part down, but it was the why of it all that had her befuddled. Ryou took advantage of her momentary brain relapse and leaned her back on top of his pillow, kissing her chin and neck.

 

“Ryou!” Ichigo managed to gasp, “Ryou, stop,” She breathed, gaining no response in return except more feverish kisses. “Ryou!” Ichigo finally screamed, pushing him back with both hands with more force than she remembered putting into it. Ryou just missed his computer chair and landed on the floor with a loud thud. “What the Hell was that?!” She demanded, ignoring the pained expression in his usually icy blue eyes.

 

“I just thought—“

 

“Well, you thought wrong,” Ichigo stepped over Ryou and rushed out of his room. She got to the elegantly decorated Café doors when she heard Ryou calling after her, `Well, screw him,' she thought bitterly, throwing open the heavy doors.

 

The sudden wave of heat that engulfed Ichigo once she stepped outside was almost unbearable. The searing hot pavement touched her bare feet, shocking her into running over to the grassy front lawn.

 

“Ouch!” She hissed, dancing on one foot and then the other. Ryou had run after her and was watching the scene near the doors. He, of course, had thought to grab his shoes.

 

“Ichigo! Ichigo, listen to me, please!” He came over to her. She thought of running, but then realized she wanted to sort this all out. He was, after all, one of her good friends, though he pissed her off at times. Ryou had grabbed her hand, as if to keep her from running. She didn't meet his eyes, just huffed and waited for what he had to say.

 

“I'm sorry,” was the first thing to come out of his mouth. Good start, Ichigo thought. When he didn't add anything, however, Ichigo glanced up at him expectantly. Still, he remained silent. Ichigo sighed.

 

“Ryou, it would never work between us,” The mew then remembered the time Lettuce had confessed to her that she was infatuated with Ryou. All of the Mews had slept over at her house for the night and the bold declaration from the shy girl had all of them up in celebration. This detail just made Ichigo feel even worse. Slowly, she pulled her hand away from Ryou's and looked down at her feet. What would she tell Lettuce? She was so lost in her thoughts that she didn't notice Ryou's sudden change in moods until she heard the chilly under current in his next words.

 

“So, whom will it work with?”

 

“Masaya, of course. You know that,” Ichigo stated with forced confidence. However, it wasn't a pair of warm brown eyes that she thought of then, despite her words. No, instead two mischievous gold ones along with emerald green hair and a telltale smirk came to mind. It was then that Ichigo realized that she had a major problem on her hands. She turned back to Ryou.

 

“I need to go,” Was all she could say in her preoccupied state. Her boss managed a stiff nod before she walked purposefully away, making sure to keep off of the pavement. It wasn't until the café was completely out of sight that Ichigo realized there was nowhere else to go. Mint's father was back in Japan after his three-week business trip, she couldn't interrupt that. Lettuce volunteered at a school to teach Summer school lessons to underprivileged kids, Pudding was taking her siblings out to the amusement park, Zakura was undoubtedly busy with her modeling, and there was no way in Hell she would ask Masaya for help after she had attacked him for no reason at all. She would have to bake him a cake or something to apologize. Her stomach gave a painful squeeze at the thought of cake. The waffles she had this morning were nothing but a distant memory. She desperately wanted to go back to her home, maybe cook up some ramen, but she simply wasn't ready to face her parents yet.

 

When she took in her surroundings, Ichigo found that she had walked into an unfamiliar park. A group of children played on the jungle gym and swings while their parents conversed among themselves on the shady picnic tables. She wondered how far she had strayed from her neighborhood adrift in her thoughts, for her legs were sore from walking. Spotting a nice tree, she lay down in its shade. She was exhausted. With a cat-like yawn and stretch she curled up in the sweet smelling grass. `I'll just shut my eyes for a few minutes…' was her last coherent thought before she drifted off into a deep sleep.

 

***

 

The sun was beginning to set when Ichigo was rudely jerked awake by the sound of frantic screams. It took her a moment to clear her foggy mind and realize where she was. People around her were in a panic, all of them running away from the same monster that now occupied the once peaceful park. Gathering her strength, she let out her unique battle cry.

 

“Mew Mew Strawberry Metamorphosis!” Clad in pink and equipped with her Iriomote Cat reflexes, she ran against the herd of people, toward the raging kirema anima; she was stopped for a moment to exchange traditional insults with the enemy. The monster ceased its tantrum once it spotted her.

 

“Without your precious team, you have approximately .00346% chance of defeating our newest creation.” Pai stated, emotionless.

 

“Ya, you old hag! You don't stand a chance!” Tart taunted and made a face. The two of them hovered a safe distance away from the battle zone like the cowards they were. Ichigo was only half surprised to find that Kish was nowhere to be seen.

 

“Shut up, midget!” She countered, smirking slightly at the brat's indignant face. She then turned to the monster, ready to kick some ass, but faltered when she realized what animal the aliens decided to fuse their Kirema with. The jagged red stripes that ran down its back against white fur eerily reminded her of blood, and the evil yet intelligent gleam in its bright green eyes made Mew Ichigo more than uneasy. Yellow teeth protruded from the creature's snout, dripping foam. Only the pointed ears and long, whipping tail hinted that the creature had once been a tabby cat. The giant beast flexed its claws and twitched its tail, waiting impatiently for its master's signal. No, this battle would not be like the others; the sense of awareness she got from the alien-fused beast towering above her told her so.

 

Without warning, the monster slashed out with razor-sharp claws. Mew Ichigo, caught off guard, jumped out of the way a moment too late, leaving once perfect grass mangled and torn in her wake. She winced and only caught a glimpse of her flesh wound on her side when the animal reeled back and pounced, forcing Mew Ichigo to take the offensive once more. She berated herself for mentally for starting off the battle so clumsily. With her wits about her this time, and a strong will to survive, she surveyed the park, searching for an advantage point. This time she jumped onto a high branch on the nearest tree. The height gave her a slight gain, and also precious seconds of time.

 

“Strawberry Bell Bell!” She called out, grasping the heart shaped device firmly. The noise had earned the cat's attention, but it was too late. Aiming at its great snout, she focused on the weapon's power, and yelled:

 

“Ribbon! Strawberry Check!” There was a bright flash of light and then silence. Mew Ichigo wiped her brow, triumphant. Her glory died immediately. When the dust had cleared, she looked on with horror to find the monster not only unharmed, but dramatically larger! She was dwarfed by the colossal monster who now snickered over its prey.

 

“What?” Mew Ichigo's panicked expression reflecting in the green eyes now level with her own, with only a few tree branches between them. With an angry yowl, the beast gnashed its way through the thick branches as easily as if they were toothpicks. Mew Ichigo jumped away without thinking, landing on the ground far below her with a revolting crack. She screamed in agony as pain jolted from her left leg over and over again. She threw her useless weapon to the ground, fighting back her scream and the fresh wave of nausea that filled her senses when she realized the gash on her side was gushing blood. She was seized with panic, the fear overwhelmed her, knowing these moments would be her last. The cat was coming toward her, its belly low to the ground in a hunting position. It dawned on her that the monster would kill her any second now, just like any cat would pounce on its prey. She couldn't help but notice the irony of it all as she tried to stand up and face her doom with dignity, but her dislocated hip wouldn't permit it.

 

Her last moments were filled with regret. Oh how she wished she had talked with her parents, letting them back into her life, as they were when she was a little girl. She regretted leaving Ryou the way she did, knowing her good friend deserved a better explanation. She wished she hadn't been so self-absorbed all her life; that she had taken the time to get to know her friends better. And more than anything else, she wished she could see a certain extraterrestrial youth, one last time. The monster lunged, it's claws unsheathed, and Mew Ichigo could only brace herself for the inevitable.

 

When the inevitable didn't come, Ichigo opened eyes she hadn't realized she'd closed to see Kish, of all people, standing over her protectively, his daggers unsheathed. She was speechless, utterly and completely speechless with a voice she had thought would never be used again. Even her mind drew a blank. Here she was, about to face an unexpectedly impending and abrupt death, her very life flashing before her eyes, when, suddenly, 50 or so years of her future are ungracefully plopped back into her lap.

 

“How dare you show your face to us, traitor!” It took a moment for Ichigo to realize the icy voice had come from Pai. Her? A traitor? No, that wasn't right…

 

“I didn't betray anything!” Kish roared, shocking her out of her pensive state, “You and Tart and the others have lost sight of the original goal I had sworn my life to protect. There is nothing left to betray,” He finished in a ragged whisper. Ichigo could hear the defeat and hurt in his tone.

 

“Sure there was!” Tart bit out. She didn't register that the boy had angry tears in his eyes, for her mind was beginning to fuzz over, the severe pain in her leg had numbed down and her stomach could not find the energy to be nauseas any more, even at the sight of her own blood pooling around her. Tart's voice was distant, like she was hearing him through layers of cement.

 

“Tart…” Kish's voice was softer and pained in a way she had never heard before. His presence cleared away some of the fog in her brain, and she raised her head to look up at him, standing before her, protecting her. `What's going on?' she managed to ask herself before slipping away again. Her last conscious image was of Kish and Pai, fighting to the death.

 

TBC

 

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A/N- Thank you very much to those of you who reviewed. You wonderful people give me the strength and extra boost of motivation to write. I'll make sure to return the favor if you have stories of your own.