Hey Guys!! BerryNaeNae here! Here's a little something I whipped up in my spare time!! I hope you enjoy!! My first not a one, but a twoshot!! (or maybe it might go further…we'll see…) (Squeal!)

Disclaimer: I don't own Tokyo Mew Mew, but if I did, I would pair up Ryou and Ichigo!!! o

Italics means that the character is thinking or there is onomatopoeia

Black and White

Chapter 1: All in the Roses

"Oh Masaya," Ichigo began as she softly whispered his name. The two lovebirds were strolling along one of the many parks of Tokyo. Ichigo's arms were wrapped around one of Aoyama's own arm, linking them incredibly close. The strawberry leaned her head onto her love's shoulder, gently rubbing her pink cheek on the tip.

It was a perfectly great day for cuddling. The excruciating cold weather usually had that effect on people; it gave couples an excuse to hold onto each other more lovingly than usual. Most of those who are in love would probably stay indoors, neatly tucked away under the covers whispering sweet breaths into each other's ears. Then on the other hand, there were couples that rather take a joyful walk, absorbing all the winter beauty nature had to offer.

Ichigo and Masaya continued their slow stride through the bright white park. The miniscule soft flakes were gently floating down onto the surroundings, slightly powdering the tops of the couple's heads.

"I'm so glad to be spending my day off with you Aoyama-kun," replied Ichigo as she placed her hand into his.

"Me too Momomiya-san," he whispered. He lifted his free hand up to her face to carefully brush some snowflakes off her cute nose. "I still can't believe that Shirogane-san gave you the day off."

"I know. He's always so mean and rude when I ask, but surprisingly he let me off easily."

"I'm grateful," he commented with a smile, "If you were working right now, I wouldn't be able to do this."

Masaya halted Ichigo's step and took a hold of her face with his hands. Ichigo's face grew even pinker as his face neared hers. She could feel the warmth of his hands through the freezing mittens. Their lips drew closer. She didn't care if she turned into a cat if he kissed her; that just meant that he would have to kiss her again to change her back to her original state. Ichigo closed her coco eyes and waited for what she had been yearning for…

Ring, ring…ring, ring

The annoying ring tone that blasted from Ichigo's cellphone disrupted the magnetic pull of their lips just millimeters away from each other. Their eyes shot open at the sound, both of them glancing down at Ichigo's coat pocket. Ichigo let out a whiny noise as she reached for her phone. One squint at the unwanted name made her shriek with irritation.

"Shirogane! What does he want?!"

"You better answer," advised Masaya. Ichigo rolled her eyes and rashly flipped her phone open.

"What do you want Shirogane?! I was just in the middle of something really important! How dare you call me on my day off!" she shouted into the mouthpiece.

"Geez, thanks for the lovely hello," Ryou replied sarcastically, "And why else would I call you for?"

"Well gosh, I don't know. Maybe to bug me so much so that I could yank all my hair out?"

"No no. That's a really good reason. I should try that someday, but that's not why I'm calling, or maybe it is…"

"Just spit it out!"

"I need you to come to work today. Surprisingly, we're quite busy. This snowy weather is making everyone order hot chocolate."

Ichigo's eyes narrowed at the sound of "work." Her fist balled up so tightly that her veins protruded visibly.

"What?! How could you do this to me?! Tell Mint to get off her lazy butt and to do some work! Then maybe there wouldn't be so many customers packed because I'm not going in today! Do you hear me Shirogane?!" she shrieked in her high-pitched voice.

"I'll tell Mint to save some tables for you. You better come soon of I'll give your pay to the other girls."

"What?! You can't do that you jerk!" she roared once again. But it was no use; Ryou had already hung up. Ichigo flamed up in rage as she slammed her phone shut with a little too much strength. "That little! Arggh!" She shook her arms wildly around her. Masaya tried to calm her down, but he seemed too terrified to approach her. Her arms acted like giant whet blades ready to cleanly slice his fingers off. Maybe words were a better way of reaching her.

"Relax Ichigo. You can spend time with me any day. You should go to work; you don't want to get fired," he reassured her.

"Sometimes I wish I would get fired so that way I wouldn't have to face that jerk of a boss," she grumbled. Her hands were still locked in a fist.

Ichigo let her head fall down; she was now gazing at the snowy white concrete path. Maybe if she went to work on her day off, Ryou might actually give her that raise she had been complaining for. Ryou also hadn't paid her for the last two weeks which also ticked Ichigo off to the fullest. She might as well take the risk and give it a shot.

He's gonna owe me big for this, she thought. She loosened her fierce hands and turned to her beloved.

"You're right Masaya. Will you walk me there?"

"Sure. Let's go," he said cheerfully. He stretched out his hand towards her, his palm exposing a warm welcome Ichigo couldn't refuse.

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"Here we are," pointed out Masaya as he and Ichigo approached the pink-hearted building. It was just as Ryou had said: The place was loaded with squealing teenage girls. Despite the cold weather, the line was rather long, snaking back and forth to compress the people. Ichigo's stomach immediately felt queasy.

"I really don't want to go. I want to stay with you," whined Ichigo.

"Don't worry. I'll call you when you're out okay?"

Ichigo nodded once and gave him a quick hug. Then he was gone. Ichigo turned and dread consumed her body as she headed towards the swarm of the chattering schoolgirls. She pushed and shoved through the pack with great force which surprised her; she didn't think it would take that much strength to squeeze through some skinny girls. She finally reached salvation when she twisted the knob and entered the café…or so she thought.

Inside was even more mayhem. Every single table was filled to the brim with the bubbly girls. She immediately spotted the mews running back and forth for orders and trays, well, all of them except for Mint of course. She was neatly seated at her usual spot taking tiny sips of her foreign tea. Ichigo's eyes narrowed in on her target and rushed towards the blue girl.

"Mint! Get off your snobbish butt and help! Look how busy it is and didn't Shirogane tell you anything?!"

"No. On the contrary, he told me to take an extra break," replied Mint. She took another sip, her pinkie lifted into the air when she raised the cup.

"What?!" Ichigo shouted an octave higher than usual, "Where is that jerk! He's gonna get it now!"

"He's not here," Mint simply replied.

"What?! Where did he go?!"

"Like I'm supposed to know."

"Aaaaahhhhh! I swear I'm gonna pluck all those tiny blonde hairs out of his-"

"Excuse me miss?" Ichigo turned around to see a giddy girl right behind her. The girl flashed a smile and stuck out her china cup out to Ichigo's nose. "Can I have some more hot coco please?"

"Hey you right there!" Another voice had called to Ichigo from a far table. "My table's dirty because of that klutzy green waitress of yours! Clean it up!" Then suddenly, a wave of demanding customers came and surrounded the defenseless cat. Their pleas for more refills turned and twisted Ichigo's mind into a dizzying vortex. Why? she thought, Why me?! Ryou always left her at the café for her to survive alone with a bunch of useless co-workers and a raging mob of customers.

"You better get those orders," said Mint with a snobbish hint. Ichigo shot an evil glare at her, but knew she was defeated, her attempt miserable. She gave a sigh and quickly headed to change into her uniform.

Throughout most of the late morning the mews, including Mint, dashed in and out, back and forth through the saloon doors balancing cups like a circus act. Surprisingly, the little pink cafe became even more crammed with the squealing schoolgirls to such a level that the windows could have burst any minute, the giddy girls pouring out in a fluid motion. Behind the scenes, Keiichiro's arms ached in pain, ready to pop off, as he made his millionth pastry.

Ichigo couldn't fathom how incredibly busy it was. Eventually, her muscles began to scream in horror, pulling and twisting into painful cramps. Her head felt as if it went trough a blender; it hurt even just to think straight. All this pain to endure and her jerk of a boss wasn't there to suffer with them. To even leave her by herself to handle such a terrorizing ordeal: That is what ticked Ichigo off the most. But there was one question that lingered in the corner of her mind: Where the heck is Shirogane? She figured her kinder boss would know.

"Akasaka-san?" whined Ichigo as she sauntered over the kitchen area, "Do you know where Shirogane is?"

"I'm sorry Ichigo-san, but I'm afraid I don't. Ryou just said he had to run some errands. I only can imagine what kind of errands he could possibly be doing in this weather."

Then, ironically as it was, Ryou appeared through the café's doors, the blizzard's fury slighty entering through the crack. Feeling the cold breeze tingling down her spine, Ichigo turned to see him standing there. She was immediately ready to dish out her anger.

"Shi-ro-ga-ne!" She accented every syllable, "How could just leave me here to deal with this all by myself!" To no surprise, her cat ears and tail sprung up. Ryou gave her a blank look, staring into her eyes for awhile. A blank expression remained on is face. Ichigo hated that look.

"You weren't by yourself. Besides, even if I was here, I wouldn't even bother to help you."

"How can you even say that?! You're a meanie! Well, you want to know what I think?!" Ichigo's sword-sharp finger jabbed into Ryou's apparatus, or so she thought.

Crackle

"Huh?" Ichigo blinked twice. Bossy jerks don't make that sound when they are harshly poked. She glanced down at his arm and to her surprise, she had poked the loveliest bouquet of roses, neatly wrapped up in transparent plastic paper, which she had ever laid eyes on. The petals were as white as the falling snow outside, smoothly twisting into its intricate design that was signature to the rose. After some observation, Ichigo had counted a dozen roses found in the bundle, but it was quite hard to tell; the blossomed buds have grown to such an extent that it appeared as if Ryou's arm was made of the beauties. The thorns were still intact with the stems which Ichigo wondered about the reason behind it. She also wondered why she hadn't noticed the bouquet before; they were simply breathtaking.

But why would Shirogane have them? Who are they for? Are they for me? Or did somebody give them to himIchigo couldn't accept that those were for her, if they were for her. Most likely they weren't for her or him, but if they were meant of r her, why? Is it the bonus she had been craving for? Sure even if it wasn't in the form or a paycheck, Ichigo wouldn't mind receiving a gift from Ryou "Jerk" Shirogane once in awhile. Maybe it was a prize for her…"Ryou Shirogane's Most Hated Person on the Planet Alive" Award…yes, that had to be it. What else could it be?

"Wow Shirogane." Ichigo's eyes trailed up and down the flowers one last time. "These are really…gorgeous." Ichigo wasn't quite sure why Ryou was holding such a spectacular bouquet, but she had to find out, one way or another. She extended her arms and grew closer to the snow white roses. The possibility still lingered: Maybe they are for me…

"Not for you baka strawberry." His voice came out swiftly and cold like ice.

…Or not.

"Hey!" whined Ichigo as she crossed her arms over her chest. Her face scrunched up into a pout. "Fine! I didn't even want them anyways!" she shouted, even though a slight piece of her wished they were for her. But she still wanted to know who they were for and why.

"Then who are they for anyways Shirogane?" Her arms were still crossed and her mouth was still pouted.

"None of your business baka nosy strawberry." Figures he would answer like that….

"Well then, let's forget the flowers." Ichigo immediately stood up straight, her chin slightly raised above normal level, and stuck out a palm-showing hand. "I want my bonus plus those two weeks you never paid me." The pout never left her face.

Ryou remained silent for a moment, letting the background noises of the giddy laughter and the clinking of the cups and plates fill the air. Then he finally spoke.

"I used it to buy these flowers." Ichigo's face twisted up into horror, her mouth agape. But then Ryou had to make matters worse. "It's not like you need the money anyways." His statement rang through Ichigo's head, echoing back and forth, torturing her to phenomenal depths unknown. She felt as if the wind was knocked out of her, Ryou's words raging their force upon her stomach. That was it. That was the last straw. She wasn't gonna back down out of this one. She had enough of being treated poorly and unfairly! She couldn't take it anymore!

All became quite, the fog of tension growing thick in the atmosphere. The laughter and the clanking died down. Every single pair of eyeballs slowly shifted towards the two, their glares piercing burning rays of attention at the two. Ichigo quickly felt the attention, but she didn't care. She wasn't going to let Ryou win this one. She was going to have the final blow; the K.O.

"AAAAAHHHHH!" Her scream was so impenetrably loud that it seemed as though she broke the sound barrier, shattering all those eardrums that were tuned in. "HOW DARE YOU DO SUCH A THING! I WORKED HARD TO EARN THAT CHECK! I WORK HARDER THAN ANY OTHER GIRL HERE, BUT YOU STILL TREAT ME LIKE DIRT! AND THEN YOU HAVE THE NERVE TO MAKE ME COME IN TO WORK ON THIS DAY THAT SUPPOSEDLY YOU GAVE ME THE DAY OFF! WHAT IS YOUR PROBLEM SHIROGANE?!"

Everything fell silent; a fork fell to the ground. Everyone turned to look at the expression on Ryou's face; he looked like he didn't budge at all. But Ichigo wasn't finished. Her hands were squeezed tight together, turning purple with pressure. She glared down at the ground, too afraid to look Ryou in the eyes. Who knew what kind of emotions might come to her; she knew somehow that she was going to regret what she was about to do, but that didn't matter now for her. She didn't care if Ryou's heart was breakable at that moment. She wanted to strike back, to strike back where it would hurt Ryou the most; a cobra in disguise. She opened her mouth and whispered it.

"I hate you." It was the sound of a mouse's squeak.

It grew louder. "I hate you."

Even more so. "I hate you."

With more force. "I hate you!"

No more indoor voice. "I hate you!!!"

Screaming. "I hate you!!!!"

Now the whole world heard it. "I HATE YOU!!!"

Then there came the poison.

With all her strength mustered up, anger and frustration built up and overflowing, Ichigo marched up to Ryou and whipped her hand across the delicate silk roses. All Ryou could do was watch in repulsion as he viewed his perfect gift fall to the ground. Time held back its hands for Ryou, for the pain of his lost love to be demolished. The innocent petals fell to the floor. The burning inferno became vivid once again in Ryou's mind.

But as always, he took simple action. He calmly bent down and collected his ruined roses.

Ichigo couldn't help but to stare at Ryou as he was on the ground, picking up the mess she had caused. Then, half way through picking up the petals, Ryou stopped what he was doing and glared up at her. The look he had plastered on his face; a blank face. Ichigo's eyes glued to his, unable to break the hypnosis that face cast upon her. There it was again, that face she hated the most. She hated that face to the extreme, but somehow this one was different from the rest: Ryou had no passion in his eyes. Love, fear, fright, loneliness, rejection, fury: None of these were present in his beautiful crystalline eyes. Just a big blank.

Shirogane! Why do you have that look?! You're supposed to be mad at me! You're supposed to say 'Baka strawberry! Look what you did! That's coming out of your paycheck,' but instead you are looking at me like this?! Show me something Shirogane! Anything!

Nothing. That was the look that Ichigo hated beyond all the others.

Unable to take the guilt washing over her, she fled the café as quickly as she could, not wanting to remember her childish act; not wanting to recall those ghastly numb eyes that terrified her so. The only thing that she left behind was the tiny prints of her feet in the snow, later being quickly covered by a new layer of the flakes.

Back at the café, the customers were left in shock as the continued on with their meals in dead silence. Keiichiro observed the act that had just happened before his eyes. He finally realized why Ryou was gone to get the roses for in the first place. Without wating another second, he hastily went to the aid of his best friend.

"Ryou…let me help you. Let's go order another dozen. They know what you tried to do was out of love and they understand that." Ryou could always count on Keiichiro to be his glue when he was broken. Finally after collecting all the petals, Ryou lifted himself up. The dirty destroyed roses laid delicately in his arms like a newborn infant.

"That was the last dozen."

Wow…I loved writing this!!! Sorry if it was a little long, but that is just the way I write. May not seem like a RyouxIchigo fanfict, but it will be! Love the story so far? Or maybe you don't think you like it? Tell me in your reviews!! Whatever you would like to say, please feel free to do so. Chapter 2 of Black and White coming soon to a computer near you! Thanks everyone for reading and reviewing! BerryNaeNae (previously known as oakysan0108) out!!!