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Wow, there's a TMM section and I never noticed. How long has this thing been here? I feel all stupid now... Anyway, this is dedicated to Maegsirwen, who doesn't even like TMM, but she wanted me to write her a fic...

Just a couple notes/warnings, Zakuro's personality is a little distorted, but it had to be for the fic to work... I'm making everyone 16 instead of 11. That doesn't mean it's 5 years in the future. They got their powers when they were 16 in my little universe.(So Zakuro is about 20...) Confused? Good. And this obviously contains yuri, which won't make it past PG-13-ish-ness (if even that) Oh, and it's from Minto's POV. I should hope that last one was obvious.

Disclaimer: If I owned TMM, that penguin Mew Mew from the video game would be the star of the show. Be happy I don't.

I stared into my tea, trying to build up courage. 'Just do it,' a little voice in my head nags, 'you've never been afraid of confrontations before. Why start now?' 'You don't understand,' I answered my headvoice, 'I've never done anything like this before. It feels...unnatural, somehow...'

"Minto?" a panicked voce breaks me out of my metal conversation, 'Minto watch out!" I spring just in time to avoid a falling stack of dishes. Purin Fong looks up at me from behind the stack of broken china with big, innocent eyes.

"PURIN!" She lets out a little whoop of joy, then bounds off, probably to break something else. I growl but don't chase after her.

"Gomen, Minto. I should have warned you earlier, but I thought you saw her..." Retatsu Midorikawa trailed off with a little flinch, as if expecting me to slap her.

"No, it's fine. I was just practicing my dish jumping. You have to wait till the last moment possible."

"Really? Oh, I never knew!" Honestly, some people just lack the mental facilities to handle sarcasm. I tried not to let my scorn show on my face. I didn't want her launching into another round of apologies.

"Hai. Have you seen Zakuro anywhere?"

"She just left. Something about having a shoot."

"Arigato, Retatsu. Can you and Ichigo manage the café for a while?" I was out the door before she had a chance to respond.

The harsh sun outside contrasted sharply with Café Mew Mew's soft lighting. I squinted out across the street, searching for Zakuro. I thought I caught a flash of purple hair in the distance, so I ran down the street, forgetting any semblance of composure.

"Zakuro, wait up!" The purple-haired girl tuned around, the expression on her face proclaiming her distaste at being hailed so crudely. I forced a small smile, trying to seem as though I wasn't intimidated by her attitude. "Konnichi wa, Zakuro."

"Konnichi wa, Minto. What are you doing here?" she sounded uninterested. I gulped mentally. This was going to be harder than I would though.

"I...I have something I want to tell you..." I knew I was losing my nerve. I cursed inwardly for being so cowardly, and forced myself to continue. "But I need to talk in private. Can we talk after your photo shoot?" Zakuro laughed.

"That was just an excuse to get out of working at this miserable café. We can talk now, I guess," she said with a small, elegant shrug. I looked at her, impressed and a little shocked that she'd actually agreed to talk to me. She steered me into a small restaurant, more modern-themed than Café Mew Mew. We sat at a table for two by the front windows.

"Konnichi wa. What would you two like today?" The peppy, blonde waitress flashed her white teeth with every syllable. I was impressed by her ability to sound realistic when she was probably faking every word. Zakuro eyed her contemptuously, and I tried to do the same. 'Her uniform is horrible compared to the ones at our café,' I thought with a chuckle.

"I'll have green tea, onegai." The waitress smiled and nodded as she jotted it down.

"Make that two." Zakuro never even looked at her.

"All right, I'll have your teas in a couple minutes."

"So, Minto, what do you want to tell me?"

"Um...well, there's someone I like." I blushed, wishing I had my tea to occupy my hands.

"So? Everyone likes someone. I can't believe that's all you wanted to say. That's not even news!"

"But...the person I like, she's a girl." My face became even redder, if it was possible. "Oh? That's different, then. Go on." Her utter lack of shock unnerved me.

"I mean... Is that normal? To like another girl?" She shrugged.

"I guess. Tell me about this girl you have a crush on."

"Well, she's older than me, with beautiful long purple hair. She's kind of a loner, but very loving once you get to know her. She's famous, and I don't think she likes me. She thinks I'm annoying..." I broke off, embarrassed at being so specific.

"What makes you think she doesn't like you?" Something changed in Zakuro's voice. It lost its cold, aloof edge and sounded soft and gentle. I lifted my head a fraction of an inch and saw that her eyes, too, had lost their hardness.

"She...she mostly ignores me when I try to talk to her, and the way she looks at me makes me feel like dirt."

"And yet you still love her in spite of all that?" I lowered my head, ashamed.

"Hai."

"Then maybe she'll find it in her heart to show you how SHE really feels." Zakuro leaned over to me and planted a kiss on my cheek. My hand flew to my mouth, and she smiled a little. "And, who knows, maybe she feels the exact same way."

"Err...your teas." My head shot up. The blonde waitress stood there, with the same smile plastered on her face, only this time, I could tell it took effort to keep it there."

"Arigato." Zakuro's cool composure returned in the blink of an eye. She tossed money for both teas onto the table and we walked out, hand-in-hand.