Disclaimer: I do not own Kisshu, Ichigo or Tokyo Mew Mew.
The included lyrics (the ones in italics) are also not my property: they belong to Slipknot, who belongs to Roadrunner Records. These lyrics were taken from their 2004 album Vol. 3: The Subliminal Verses.
"Hello?"
Her footsteps ring eerily hollow off the concrete sides of the tunnel, reverberating echoes reminding her of her fear as she walks on. Her eyes dart to skulking shadows, her mind conjuring shapes of the monsters and mutants that she imagines would lurk there. The only sounds are human, apart from the steady plip-drip-plop of the green, watery liquid that oozes between cracks in the walls. The tunnel stretches forebodingly before her into eternal blackness.
Pathetic (benign)
Accept it (Undermined)
Your opinion (My justification)
Happy (State)
Servant (Cage)
Malice (Utter weakness)
"Is…is anybody there?"
She dreads and anticipates the voice who might answer. Her saviour, her comfort, her end…
There is no draft blowing through this tunnel of leaky concrete: the air is stale and old, acrid and musty in her nose, like a thick layer of dust on her tongue. Still, as she walks timidly onward through the echoes and ebbing terror, the darkness stretches further and further away.
No toleration
Invade (Kill me)
Enraged (In minutes)
Don't condescend (Don't neither disagree)
Desire (Decay)
Disappoint (Delay)
You suffered then (Now suffer into me)
Breathing – hard and fast, faster as her heart beats hysterically; sweat trickling from her hairline to her temples and down along her face and neck; eyes swivelling desperately in her skull, searching for a sign of light, an opening.
"Hello…is anyone there? Hello?" Her own voice swirls around her, knocking against the walls, in front of her, behind her, in front of her again…
"Hello, little kitten. How did you manage to find your way in here?"
Obsession (Take another look)
Remember (Every debt you took)
Decide (Either live with me)
Or give up (Any thought you had of being free)
There is no malice or threatening aura about this creature: although he has, as she thought he might, emerged from the depths of shadow. As pale as death itself, hovering uncannily in the air, he surveys her with an expression of pure, guiltless interest. A smile curves its way onto his thin lips, revealing sharp, white canine teeth that glow in the darkness, reflecting a non-existent light. Long-fingered hands rest on narrow hips; moss-green hair dances in the still air.
"Are you lost, kitten?" he chuckles, floating down to stand in front of her, his smile widening when he recognises her fear. "You look so frightened, little one."
"K-Kisshu?"
"None other than," the alien cackles, amber eyes flashing. "Nice of you to show up, strawberry."
"Leave me alone." She hates the way her voice quavers, wishing she could talk in her usual authoritative tone that she uses with this boy. But there was something different about him today, a shadow in his eyes that she had never noticed before.
He laughs louder, shaking his head at her. "No."
(Don't go)
I never wanted anybody more
Than I wanted you
(I know)
The only thing I ever really loved
Was hate...
"I don't have time for this, Kish," she hisses, mustering as much venom into her voice as she possibly can, clutching her hands together to stop them shaking. "I have a date this afternoon. With Masaya."
"Oh, I know," he replies casually, kicking back into the air, lying on his belly and tapering his long claws. After a pause his eyes snap to her face. "I don't really care, kitten."
Why do I (Feel) Anything (Guess)
Anyone (Fall) Anybody (Will) Anybody (Kill me)
I want (You) I need (You) I'll have (You)
I won't (Let anybody have you)
"But-"
"Don't you like it here?" he interrupts, sweeping his arm about her surroundings. Shadows shift with his movements. She shakes her head abruptly, taking several steps back.
"It frightens me."
"Good." Something moves in his eyes, that dark shape she can't quite make out.
"Kisshu?"
"I'm tired of your behaviour, koneko-chan," he says in a completely matter of fact way, going back to cleaning beneath his fingernails with a nonchalant claw. "You are constantly trying to disobey."
She frowns, frustration edging over her fear. "I'm not yours to order about."
"That's exactly the attitude that irritates me, little kitten. You're too head-strong," he states, looking her directly in the eye as an attempt to unnerve her. She bites her lip and forces herself to match the intense stare.
"You don't understand. On earth…it's different. You can't just choose to have someone as your own. They have to…agree? I don't know. But you don't own me," she explains, as gently as she can. When he's like this, so mysterious, so forbidding, she doesn't want to unnecessarily enrage him. To her surprise, another smile appears on his ashen lips.
"Yes I do."
"No-"
The smile falters, a new expression begging to take over his face.
"Yes I do."
The look in his eyes terrifies her.
Obey (Me) Believe (Me) Just Trust (Me)
Worship (Me) Live for (Me)
Be grateful (Now)
Be honest (Now)
Be precious (Now)
Be mine (Deserve me)
He lands for the second time, only inches from her. His breath falls on her face, warm in the chilly tunnel air. Those sun-coloured eyes bore into hers. She feels her skin prickle, while cat ears stiffen in alert.
"You've been mine for a long time, strawberry. You are simply resisting me. I won't have that anymore," he warns, voice dangerously low. That flickering shadow behind his pupils dances forward, almost in sight. "You'll come with me now."
"What do you mean I've been yours for a long time? There's been no agreement, or…or contract or anything like that!" her voice rises hysterically, echoing around her in an eddy of her own panic. She gulps to calm herself. "We can sort this out, can't we? Let's go to my house, we can talk."
He shakes his head. "The time for talking is over now."
"Well, let's still go to my house. I don't like it here," she insists, trying to smile convincingly. He chuckles.
"But don't you see?" he questions, mocking laughter tickling his lips. "You're so much easier to overcome when you're frightened. Take my hand now, we're leaving."
"Leaving where?" she implies in a trembling whisper.
"Nowhere."
"I'm…I'm not going with you." She breathes deeply to strengthen her tone. "I'm not going anywhere with you. Let me out, Kisshu."
Possession (Feed my only vice)
Remember (I won't tell you twice)
Decide (Either die for me)
Or give up (Any thought you had of being free)
She turns and walks away from him, back the way she has come. She feels his eyes on her back and she closes her own, willing her resolve to stay strong. She won't look back, she won't look back…
"Don't wander too far, little strawberry," he rasps warningly behind her. She doesn't glance back. One step, two steps, three steps away from him…
"Turn around, kitten. Come back." He is more insistent this time, she can feel his irritation. She keeps walking.
"Turn around, Ichigo." She does not.
All of a sudden a rush of light, a strong wind, a bellowing howl: she is swept from her feet and thrown forward, skidding across the concrete, tumbling head over heels. She screams and covers her head, trying to steady herself with her feet, flailing. She bites her tongue and feels the familiar tang of blood in her mouth. She hits her head against something solid, feels something sharp against her side, all the while being pushed along by the screeching wind. Then, as suddenly as it began, it stops and she is resting against something warm. Looking up into Kisshu's eyes, she begins to cry.
"Leave me alone!"
"You're not leaving." His voice is almost gentle, almost apologetic. "I told you. I told you, koneko-chan."
(Don't go)
I never wanted anybody more
Than I wanted you
(I know)
The only thing I ever really loved
Was hurting you
(Don't go)
I never wanted anybody more
Than I wanted you
(I know)
The only thing I ever really loved
Was hate...
"I don't want to stay with you. Kisshu…you have to understand," she cries, wiping tears from her eyes furiously. "You can't just own me!"
"You belong to me, Ichigo," he explains desperately. "I need you to be with me."
"No! Kish…"
"No one else can have you," he hisses, glaring down at her. She does not know which is more frightening: that intense fury she saw before, or the way he is acting so selfishly now; the way tears of anger gather in his eyes; the way his lip curls to a snarl over his sharp teeth. "You are mine."
"NO! I'm not yours! Leave me alone, Kisshu!"
A hand strikes her face, the blow knocking her backward and causing her to bite into her tongue again. Curling into a ball, she sobs as the blood fills her mouth and he kneels beside her, stroking her hair and face.
Stay inside the hole
Let me take control (Don't let it)
You were nothing more
You were something less (Innocent)
Something had to give
Something had to break (Omnipresent)
Fingers on your skin
Let my savage in (You deserve it)
She flinches at his touch. "Go away."
Gripping her hair in his fist, he wrenches her head upward, ignoring her yelp of pain. "Shut up," he spits, slapping her again. Those long claws leaves thick cuts her on her cheek.
You deserve it.
He grips her face in his slender hands, kissing her gently on her mouth, holding her tighter when she tries to tug away. She bites down hard on his lip, making him cry out: a heavy blow falls on her side, and she screams, covering her head when he kicks her again.
You deserve it.
She feels him sob when he kisses her for the second time, roughly and more insistent, hands grasping her shoulders in an iron grip. She feels his tears on her cheeks when he slides his mouth down along her neck.
"I own you, you don't understand," he whispers into her hair, his eyes fierce even through the tears. "You belong to me, Ichigo."
She pushes him away and he drags her up by her shirt, hitting her hard across her cheek. "You have to obey me," he murmurs gently.
You deserve it.
Blows to her face and shoulders; a foot to her stomach that makes her wretch; a punch that makes her jaw jerk sidewards and causes another scream to fly from her mouth.
You deserve it.
(Don't go)
I never wanted anybody more
Than I wanted you
(I know)
The only thing I ever really loved
Was hurting you
(Don't go)
I never wanted anybody more
Than I wanted you
(I know)
The only thing I ever really loved
Was hate
Pain makes her queasy and she lies still on the tunnel floor, hearing only her own whimpers and his heavy breathing.
"You didn't listen to me," he croons, as though offering her comfort or explanation. "It's your own fault, Ichigo. Little strawberry."
You're mine (I know you are)
"It's…it's not…" she coughs and rights herself, ignoring sharp pains in her ribs. He has his back to her, his shoulders shaking. He is afraid for what he has done. She feels his confusion.
As quietly as possible, she gets to her feet, watching him all the while. If she gets a good head start, she might just be able to get away from him…
She runs.
You're mine (I know you are)
Her footsteps are too loud, he can hear her too easily: she is panicked, she runs crazily, legs almost going out from under her. She feels a hand on her shoulder and she is thrown against the tunnel wall, his bellows in her ears.
"LISTEN TO ME! LISTEN, ICHIGO!" he yells, shoving her repeatedly against the concrete wall until her breath is torn form her lungs. She starts to weep. "You're not leaving! You're coming with me."
"I don't want…don't want to…"
She is knocked to the ground again, screaming and trying to block his kicks with her arms.
You're mine!
As the pain engulfs her, she feels her strength leave her: determination slips from her mind and all hope of escape is thrown to the wind. She closes her eyes and waits for the blows to stop, lying perfectly still on the ground before him as he cries by her, sorry for what he has done to hurt her, relieved that she has stopped resisting.
"If you had just listened…it's your fault…"
She does not retort. She lies as still has death on the floor, hearing him whisper to her, feeling his cold hands on her skin.
"You belong to me know, Ichigo. There's no leaving."
She doesn't disagree. She feels a hand wrap around hers.
YOU'RE MINE!
"Take my hand, there's a good girl. Let's go."
They disappear, into oblivion.