Tokyo Mew Mew Fan Fiction ❯ To Be A Traitor ❯ V ( Chapter 5 )

I disclaim TMM. My gratitude goes out to those who took the time to review, it's because of you guys that I feel compelled to finish this story of borrowed characters.

 

…..

 

One lone girl sat in a vacant room that once occupied noisy machines and even noisier visitors. All that was left was her sterile bed and a couple of cushioned chairs that had been empty for far too long. A tray of her favorite food sat untouched by her bedside, the ice cream melted and the gooey frosting of a cupcake slowly hardened until it was as dense as rock in the stale air: her friend's desperate attempt to get her to eat something. Ichigo sat on the edge of her bed, her legs curled and folded under her in habitual politeness.

 

She didn't like this hospital room. It didn't have any soothing pictures of scenery or even a television. Ichigo assumed that, since this was one of the five rooms Ryou had built for his Mews-his “ultimate weapons”, atop one of his many company's buildings, that he went for raw efficiency, having not one artistic bone in his body. Therefore, Ichigo was entirely grateful for the single window on the far side of the wall, catty corner to her bed; her little island of white that had served as her world for the past three days. Thunder roared, the fearful, beautiful sound muffled by the thick walls and double paned glass. Her eyes stared out of the window, her gaze fixed and unwavering. It had been raining non-stop for three days, Ichigo remembered waking up to it: rhythmic pounding of the rain beating against the roof overhead drew her away from her sedated sleep.

 

The world outside was coated with dark, gloomy colors, the sky overcast in grayscale. A stark contrast to the blaring white of her desolate room. The dense clouds that blanketed the city made it impossible for anyone to decipher an approximate time, only if it were day or night. Right now Ichigo assumed the sun was about to set. Keichiro would be in soon to give her a couple of pills in a little paper cup. They were to help her sleep… or so they had told her.

 

Through the sheets of rain that fell down her window she could see a continuation of the roof for the room below her, some bulky machinery that Ichigo guessed to be vents and a layer of gravel littered the floor. Other than that the tops of the tall buildings surrounding her and the bleak canvas of sky served as her only view of the outside world. She couldn't see any activity on the streets below from her bed, and she dared not to leave it unless absolutely necessary. Ryou had tried to get her out of her little room for a bit of exercise, but his efforts were in vain. This was her refuge, her safe haven. A tiny part of her, the nagging voice of reason, told her on more than one occasion that her grasp on reality was slipping. She always pushed the thought farther into the corner of her mind, ignoring its warning almost completely. Almost.

 

There was an unavoidable side of her, albeit it a small one, that strived for her survival. Ichigo supposed it was the Iriomote Cat in her that didn't want to give up; that kept her inside this hospital room and not one that kept her from harming herself. That reminded her, her parents had visited her earlier that day, although they didn't stay for more than ten minutes. Her memory was fuzzy, but she remembered them informing her that she was to go home the day after next; she also remembered they didn't sit down. The little part of Ichigo that still felt anything was hurt by her parent's behavior. Then again, she couldn't blame them, or anyone, for that matter. Not even Lettuce.

 

She had relayed the events that must have occurred after she blacked out in the park a dozen times in her mind. It was most likely twilight when it happened, her favorite part of the evening. She imagined that Kish, torn and battered after his encounter with his ex-comrade, must have went to her to aid her wound. She envisioned Mew Lettuce, who saw the enemy, armed and wounded from a fight, standing over her leader with his daggers in either hand. She pictured the rage that must have taken over the usually serene girl's features as she did the only thing she thought was right: protect her friend. Kish must have tried to explain as he blocked the numerous attacks aimed at him. His muscles must have been fatigued, his reflexes slow. Then, Ichigo tried to imagine the final blow, but all she got was a flash of blinding green light, and then nothing. She couldn't bring herself to see the lifeless body of her alien friend, for she couldn't completely believe he was dead.

 

An exceptionally bright crack of lightning streaked the sky, startling Ichigo out of her reverie. Keichiro came in and Ichigo sat back in bed and took the pills he handed her without complaint. Then he left, carrying the tray of wasted food. He had turned off the brighter lights before he left, leaving a small, dim overhead light on. She started to feel the effects of the sleeping pills, but before her heavy eyelids drooped close she saw a dark blur fly across her window in the distance. `What a stranger bird,' Ichigo thought before submitting to unconsciousness.

 

…..

 

Ichigo's eyes opened again to an extraordinarily loud crash of thunder that not only managed to leak its sound through the steel and dry wall of her room, but actually caused the building to sway as if it were the skinny top of a flimsy tree. Lightning flashed across the entire night sky, casting elongated shadows in an otherwise stark white room. Her night-light flickered twice before dying, leaving the frightened girl in darkness. With cat-like agility, she leaped from her bed to the open door of her adjacent bathroom, and reached her arm around the wall to try the light switch. She dragged the little switch up and down a dozen of times to no avail. She then hurried to the light switch by the other door and tried the main lights, the room stayed dark. `The power must be out,' she thought with a strange sense of calm. She then removed her hand from the switch to study it. `What am I doing?' she sighed inwardly, exasperated. She stood there, marveling at her hand yet not really seeing it. She felt the last of her adrenaline pulse through her veins as her breathing steadied. She also felt, well…good. Another rumble of thunder drew her attention away from her inner musings. She surveyed her little room with a fresh perspective, her eyes landing on the window as if on default. She squinted against the dark, cursing her weak human eyes. Something was there, an outline of black in front of the window. Another streak of lightning flashed, giving Ichigo a glimpse of gleaming gold eyes. Her heart leapt in her chest and she reached out desperately to the figure obscured in the dark. The door swung open and white, unnatural light shone in her eyes, blinding her. She shielded the beams with her forearm, looking for its source. Ryou stood in the doorway, a flashlight in his hand. She glanced back at her window; it's face empty of the silhouette. Had she imagined it? She turned her attention to Ryou after she realized he had been shouting since he came in.

 

“What?” Ichigo parried with her own aggravated yell, silencing him.

 

“Your…up,” he finished lamely, his voice considerably quiet. Ichigo knew there was more to it, but ignored him as she broke the distance between her and her window cautiously, as if she'd run into an invisible barrier. When she didn't, she rested her hands on the windowsill to gaze out into the stormy night sky. She had seen something—somebody in here, she was certain of it. She broke her train of thought to continue later and turned back to Ryou, his stare an annoying sensation to the back of her head. They regarded each other for a time, the storm's winds retreating and the splash of water against the building reduced to a mere pitter-patter of raindrops. Ryou was his pajamas, a sliver of bare chest and long cotton pants noticeable under the blue material of his robe. His hair was quite tidy for a person that got out of bed in a rush. Seeing her expecting stare, he explained, although his original gusto had vanished now that he knew his crazy friend was very un-crazy at the moment. He spoke haltingly, as if he were unsure of what he was seeing.

 

“You—“ He began, thought better of it, and started again, “I heard the thunder,” he jerked his thumb down the hallway from which he came from, as if some god of thunder occupied the room next to hers. She arched an eyebrow. It was a glorious feeling, she knew, to be oneself again. Finally, able to think clearly, after so long, she resisted the urge to dance. `Kish is alive!' She repeated over and over in her head, though she knew she had no concrete evidence toward her conclusion, she couldn't help herself. Ryou started to talk again, acting like his normal self once more.

 

“I though you might have been frightened, so I came up to see—“ He paused as the lights in the room flickered on again with a low hum, they both squinted toward the light, adjusting their eyes.

 

“I'm fine,” Ichigo stated simply, then added her thanks and headed toward her bed with a casual air. She then faced a dumbfounded Ryou once more, remembering something.

 

“Oh, and if you wouldn't mind,” she said, “I'm kinda hungry,” Ryou continued to stare at Ichigo, at a lost. She tried again, “Ryou?”

 

“What? Oh, yes, um…right away,” He then strode briskly out of the room, only to return once more. “What would you like?” He asked with an air of politeness that made Ichigo giggle for reasons beyond her. She considered the question seriously for a moment before answering:

 

“Ice cream… Chocolate?”

 

“Sure,” Ryou continued to stand in the doorway, regarding her for a moment before disappearing down the hall again. Once he had left Ichigo allowed her self to fall back on her bed heavily. `I saw him,' She thought breathlessly, feeling a tad overwhelmed, `I saw him, he was here! In this room, right in front of my eyes!' She couldn't help the laugh that shook her shoulders, nor the tear that rolled down her cheek. `He's alive!' It was all she could do not to cry out his name in jubilee, `Kish!'.

 

…..

 

TBC