A/N: Thanks to Mewfantasticgirl for some really great ideas! This chapter is probably overdue—I keep getting caught up in Another World and my newer ideas. Don't worry though; I promise to give this story more time so that it can catch up to the others.
Chapter Three: Wings
Catching sight of her reflection in a puddle, nine-year-old Princess Ichigo groaned silently. Not again.
Craning her neck to look behind her, she was extremely shocked to see actual downy white feathers on her back, curving out and away from her spine. They're real this time! "Wow," she breathed.
An idea hit her, and she managed to lift and drop one angel wing. It caught the glistening morning sunlight beautifully—to say that it was colorless would be completely incorrect, because the feathers seemed to glisten with all the colors of the rainbow, and others too. Gorgeous turquoises, pale oranges, frosty pinks, rich greens—all these different hues, and many, many more, were evident in the coloring of each and every feather. Each "white" feather was colorful and exquisite, and unique as a snowflake.
Footsteps and cracking branches reached her ears, and the redhead felt her heart skip a beat.
What will happen if someone finds me like this? She began running through the (extremely short) list of people who could possibly find her out here. Ryou probably would just ask if he could have a single feather to dissect and analyze in that lab of his. I'm not sure what Reta would do or say...but I'm sure I can trust her; she's really sweet. As for Kish... As the other person grew nearer, she recognized the general sound and pattern of his footfalls. Well, I guess I'll find out soon.
The green-haired boy barely blinked as he took in his friend's changed appearance. Carefully he constructed a witty remark that she would love.
At last he came up with: "Ne, Koneko-chan. I always knew you were an angel...why choose now to prove it?"
"I—I don't know where they came from," she murmured, barely taking in what he'd said.
Momentary disappointment flashed across the boy's face, too brief for her to notice. "Really? When did this happen?"
Quiet footsteps reached their ears. Moments later, a tall blonde entered the clearing.
Ryou blinked, temporarily stunned, by the feathers his sister had grown. "Ichigo—what happened?" He glared suspiciously at Kish.
The redhead reached up and plucked a pearly feather from her right wing, wincing slightly as it came free. She held it out to her brother. "Here. Do all the tests you want."
He took it with a smile, pocketing it with a you-know-me-far-too-well look. "But really, how did it happen?"
Unable to evade the question any longer, the nine-year-old girl began to recount the day's happenings.
Ichigo sat up in bed. She felt lightheaded, dizzy—but that wasn't really surprising, considering she was meeting Kish and Reta in the woods today. That always made her ecstatic.
But when she kicked off the covers and stood up, she wobbled and nearly fell. Gripping the footboard for support, she slowly made her way to the full-length mirror on the wall.
The light had a strange quality. It made her look like she had silvery wings on her back. But that's absurd!
Tentatively she reached up, her eyes glued to her reflection. When her lookalike's fingers reached the strange appendage, she felt nothing. Just air.
She sighed with relief and changed out of her nightgown.
"And then, when I came here—I don't know exactly when it happened. But when I looked into the water"—the red-haired princess gestured to the pool at her feet—"I saw the same thing, except this time the wings looked much more substantial, more real. I turned and—they were real. I could see them; I could feel them."
The two boys stood in silence, regarding the wings that made their companion look even more like an angel than usual.
"So—" Ichigo finally broke the silence, uncomfortable with them both staring at her. "Kish, is Reta coming today?"
"No, she had le—I mean, she had lots of things to do." Crap! I almost said that she had lessons. If Retasu really was Reta, a common girl, she'd hardly be taking lessons! Her being seen in that dress the first time was bad enough—lucky neither of them caught on.
"Oh. Okay," Ryou replied when his sister failed to respond.
"Well, shall we go pick strawberries anyway?" suggested Kish cheerfully. "I can always bring some back for Reta." A sudden idea struck him, born of Ryou's disappointed tone. Grinning mischievously, the green-haired boy added, "She'll be glad to know you missed her."
As he'd calculated, the blonde turned his face away—but not so fast that the other two didn't catch the blush on his cheeks.
A/N: What happened with this chapter was that I suddenly had this idea. I know it doesn't have much to do with the main plot—yet. But I really like going back in time to characters' childhoods. It's fun to write about when they were all innocent and pure. Next chapter will be more Masaya-centric: either another flashback like this one, or in the present (during tournament day).
