A/N:
H-hey!
This is my first TMM fic and I am incredibly nervous about posting it. I'm sorry if it seems really random, my writing isn't quite as sharp as it should be, nya! *Hides from Azidagan before he gets mad at poor little Kauriamine* Please try to R&R, I try not to be, but I'm easily discouraged by my terrible writing skills.
I've only ever read the manga (owns themz all) so readers might notice slight variances. (First time I ever read a TMM fanfic I was all like "what the hell is a power pendant!"). Also, as it'll become quickly apparent I am not a Masaya fan so I am terribly sorry to those who are. This is straight up Kisshigo!
I do not own Tokyo Mew Mew or Kisshu would be MINE! ALL MINE, I SAY! *ahem* Anywho...on with the show!
Prologue: Twin Hearts Shattered
It was over.
Tears streamed relentlessly down her pallid cheeks as she dug her feet deep into the ground with every stride, pushing her legs for all they had. Her chest heaved frantically with each ragged gasp. She was such an idiot. This was all her fault, and if something happened to him...
No. She wouldn't let it happen. She couldn't
She glared up at the floating figure, clenching her fists into little balls as he fled into the forest. He hadn't beaten her yet. With a single bound she leapt into a tree, nimbly springing from branch to branch, tree to tree, preparing for an aerial assault. He couldn't take him. He couldn't take her Aoyama-kun.
Ichigo's long pink hair whipped wildly behind her as the roaring wind dried her tears. Her feet hardly landed upon each branch before she'd sprung to the next one. Sorrow wasn't an option now; she had to focus all of her energy on saving him before it was too late.
Two years had gone by since the last true test of her Mew abilities, but she'd been far from dormant in that time. Ryou had taken special care in training her, the leader of the planet's only protectors. Each day she could feel the wildcat genes merging ever deeper within her.
She could feel the power resonating within her very soul.
"Strawberry bell!" she called, catching her weapon the moment it materialized without shifting her gaze in the slightest. She had to keep an eye on her enemy, in case he decided to teleport, taking Aoyama-kun along with him. She couldn't quite understand why the alien hadn't already, but it was possible he simply couldn't. This alien wasn't Cyniclon, in fact, she didn't know what the hell this alien was.
She couldn't help but shudder at the memory of the ghastly man she pursued. It was only a split second, but could clearly remember that ghastly pale skin, those knarled horns protruding from his forehead, and those menacing eyes...
Those eyes, she shuddered again. Never in her life had she seen eyes so full of malice. Those twin pools of pure white seemed to surge up and drown her in their hate. It was so staggering she hadn't the time to react before she'd received the glancing blow that sent her headlong into a tree.
That wouldn't be the case this time. It was over now. She wasn't the same little kitten playing with non-committal games with Kisshu. She was stronger than ever before, and she'd stop anyone who tried to hurt her friends.
No matter what.
Ichigo could feel her heart pounding painfully in her chest as she contemplated using her full power. She still couldn't quite grasp how far it could go, or how it would react in these circumstances. It had never been truly tested, for she had never found an opponent she was willing to use it on.
Until now.
She closed her eyes for a brief moment as soft pink glow emanated from the strawberry bell. She took in a deep breath, clasping the bell with both hands and began to tug at each side. The bell emitted a white-hot blast of heat, but her hands quickly grew accustomed to the pain as the bell diverged into two distinct forms. The heart-shaped bell was now two, one sharper than the thinnest blade, and the other rounded off at the edges.
Her eyes shot open revealing the alien floating a mere twenty feet away, facing her with overwhelming animosity. She glared back defiantly, barely managing to skid to a halt at her speed and height. Her eyes quickly darted around for Aoyama-kun, and she relaxed when she saw him safely on the ground, unconscious, but without major injury.
A grin tugged at the corner of Ichigo's lips. With Aoyama-kun out of the way there was no reason to hold back. She stared into alien's iris-less eyes without so much as batting an eyelash. She'd show him exactly why he should never mess with a mew.
"I do not wish to run from the likes of a weak, insignificant human like you," he rasped, his gravelly voice echoing across the distance between them. "Give up, and I might let you live." A shot of cold fury shot through Ichigo, only partially riled at the insult. Give up? Abandon her love? Never!
"As if, you alien slime!" She shouted at him, pointing the sharp bell at him with conviction. "I will see that justice is fully served! Nya!"
With that Ichigo leapt from her perch, her body twisting and flipping with inhuman grace. Flowing pink light trailed after the bells she expertly swiped through the air, following her every movement like gymnast's ribbons. Her focus was intense; every thought was consumed by each successive movement. A bead of sweat dripped down her brow as her midair acrobatics began to climax.
"Lynx Trap!" she called as she plummeted head-first to the ground below, hurling the interwoven light at the kidnapper. Completely unimpressed he raised his arm to block the feeble attack only to have it wrap around the outstretched appendage, seizing him in its iron grasp. Ichigo grinned, finally straightening herself before landing feet-first on the ground.
"You impudent little-" he shouted, lunging at the cat-girl in a blind rage only to find himself hurtling to the ground. He struck the ground with an bang, his bloody form just managing to stagger from the impact crater. She had him now. A brief flicker of uncertainty shot through her as she looked to her rounded bell. It never seemed to emit as much power and the bladed one, they weren't balanced.
Ichigo brushed off the thought, breaking into a swift sprint towards her enemy. She raised her bells high above her head, preparing to strike. After time it had become apparent that the red data animals weren't the only ones with the will to survive. As she grew to understand this more, she began to feel the presence of more than just the wildcat whose form she so often took, but the strength of the entire species' family.
"I'll show you just who's weak here!" she roared, leaping up in one mighty bound and swiping her bells though the air viciously. "Panther Slash!" Dagger-like pink light shot from each bell, the raw power of the attack shredding tress around them as it careened towards her foe.
Ichigo felt a rush of smug satisfaction at the look of sheer terror plastered on her enemy's face. The power was as raw and untamed, completely unstable. Her mirth faded fast as the light sliced through a foot-thick branch, sending it plummeting straight down towards Aoyama-kun.
Her stomach jumped into her throat as a strangled scream escaped her lips. Her feet reacted before her brain could process what she was doing as she tore off towards her love's unconscious form. She dove for him, her body just managing to cover his as the branch collided with her delicate frame.
She let out a pained cry as a sickening crunch resounded in her ears. Blood flowed relentlessly from her mouth as she slowly sank down into Aoyama's chest, closing her blurring eyes. Her body burned with and excruciating pain she had never known in her life.
Slowly Aoyama's eyes began to flutter, consciousness coming back to him with the excess weight, only to reveal the crumpled, bloody form of the mew he called his own. She smiled up weakly at him, her cat-ears lowered as she tried to keep from succumbing to the pain.
"Ichigo!" he exclaimed, attempting to sit up and failing under the combined weight of the branch and the helpless Ichigo. His soft brown eyes were wild with panic as he flailed underneath her. Ichigo let out a low moan at the movement, unable to take being jostled in such a way. She felt Aoyama's body stiffen, and when he spoke his tone was low and deadly.
"Who did this to you?"
"Me," came a gravelly hiss. Ichigo's ears and tail stood on end at the sound of the alien's voice, Aoyama went rigid. She watched helplessly as he limped towards them, his body heavily lacerated and drenched in blood. The alien kicked the branch from off the wounded cat-girl and seized her by the hair, dragging her up to face him.
"You only wish you could have done this much damage to me," Ichigo taunted through a half-drooping eyelid and a sly grin. "You sure do make a fine scratching post though." Fury shot through the alien's eyes as he connected a vicious punch with her face, sending her flying.
Ichigo flew into a tree, a flash of boundless pain making her cry out in agony. Her breaths were laboriously painful as she staggered to her feet. There was no question in her mind she would die there, but she could buy Aoyama just enough time to get away.
"C-come..on..." Ichigo taunted between ragged gasps, "that...a-all...you...g-got?" the alien staggered slowly towards her, sheer menace his only distinguishable feature. She held all of his attention, and all of his hate. She smiled to herself; he wasn't in the greatest shape either. He could easily die right there with her.
That attack should have killed him though. The raw power she had put into that blast should have torn him to ribbons. What had she done to fail? She was perplexed, staring down at the rounded bell still firmly clenched in her hand.
She wasn't strong enough.
The alien stopped a foot from where she stood before cranking his arm back for another swing. Ichigo braced herself, ready for another blow.
"Ichigo!" came a shout that paralyzed her with fear. Aoyama was supposed to have escaped by now! With a quick glance at Ichigo's expression a malevolent grin overcame the alien's features. In one swift movement he spun on his heels, pulled a dagger from his sleeve and threw it straight towards her Aoyama-kun.
Time dragged on, each second a life time as she watched the blade delve deep into Masaya's heart. She watched as his eyes glazed over where he stood before he crumpled to the ground in a lifeless heap. Ichigo could hear somebody screaming, but couldn't recognize her own voice. She sank to her knees, violent sobs ripping through her.
"Look what you've gone and made me do," the alien mocked, kicking the broken mew, "that boy was to be used as a research subject." The alien stepped on Ichigo's hands, forcing her to release the weapons that hadn't one left her grasp. "I should kill you here and now."
Ichigo looked at the alien lifelessly, wishing for death. Awaiting the punishment for failing her Aoyama-kun. The alien bent down grasping her chin and forcing her gaze to meet his. His marred face made him all the more revolting to her, and she squirmed to break free.
"But I'm not going to kill you," he hissed at her, "I'm going to leave you here to die slowly and contemplate exactly how the death of this Earth-boy is all your fault." His words hit her like a bag of cement, sending her even deeper into a pit of despair.
The alien let go of her chin, tossing her back into the dirt. "And if you do survive, even better. I want to be able to enjoy killing you by my hand. Anything I could do now would be too rushed. I want you to suffer." With that the alien turned and walked away, leaving her there to watch the dirt soak up her blood greedily.
Leaving her knowing she killed the man she loved.
Endnote: Little rushed, but I'll get around to editing it, I swear . Sorry if the ending was lame.