Chapter 4: 'Bugger'

Disclaimer: Do we really have to go through this again?

A/N: This chapter is dedicated to Essence of Gold, who helped me choose my chapter titles, beta'd, roundly abused me for my inability to write a oneshot and commissioned the little scene at the end, which is now my baby. Chocks away!

'Ichigo-san! Ichigo!'

Ichigo stopped and turned slowly around. 'Yes, Lettuce?'

Lettuce was half-running towards her from the café, pulling her arm through the sleeve of her jacket, her briefcase swinging wildly from her wrist. Ichigo turned fully around to indicate that she wasn't going anywhere, allowing her friend to get herself together and catch up.

'Wow, I'm glad that shift's over,' Lettuce panted. 'Who knew the new summer sorbet range would be so popular, huh?' She gave a bright, nervous laugh.

Ichigo tried to inject some enthusiasm into her voice when she answered:

'Yeah, looks like Kaiichiro's really hit on something.'

'Haha. Yeah.' Lettuce glanced down at the ground, shifting her weight from foot to foot. 'So...you want to walk together?'

'OK,' Ichigo consented. She set off down the road and Lettuce fell into step beside her. Ichigo glanced at her sidelong. The green Mew was chewing her lip, twisting her thin braids with one hand. It was obvious that she was steeling herself up to ask something, and Ichigo had a fairly good idea what. Her behaviour over the last two weeks had been...less than cheerful, and it was just like compassionate Lettuce to want to help. Ichigo sighed inwardly. Well, it would be best to get it over with.

'Did you want to ask me something, Lettuce?' she asked. 'You look worried.'

'Well yes, I –'

Come on, Lettuce, spit it out already.

'I was worrying about you, Ichigo-san.'

'About me?' Ichigo repeated, trying to keep her voice light and even.

'Yes.' Lettuce swallowed. 'Do you remember how, whenever you were really happy, like when Masaya had asked you out, Ryou would say: "Do I hear the sound of floating?" Well, he hasn't said that for an awfully long time.'

Ichigo whirled round to face her. 'Are you suggesting I was wrong to break it off with Masaya?' she fairly screamed. 'That was a crush, Lettuce, nothing but a stupid crush! Kish is a hundred thousand times better for me, you know that!'

'I'm sorry, Ichigo!' Lettuce gasped, her face stricken. 'I didn't mean that!'

Abruptly Ichigo felt the anger drain out of her, leaving only weariness. And shame. Poor Lettuce was always so apologetic for everything, and she had only been trying to help. 'I know you didn't, sister, I know, 'she sighed. 'I'm sorry.'

'I just meant,' Lettuce said timidly, 'that you seem unhappy now. And I wondered what was wrong...if you were OK.'

Ichigo smiled. 'Lettuce, that is so sweet of you. I don't know what I would do without you.'

'Ichigo, don't shut me out like that!' Lettuce cried, seizing her shoulders 'Look at me. Tell me what's wrong. Is it something to do with Kish?'

As Lettuce watched, something seemed to break behind Ichigo's eyes. 'Yes,' she choked out. 'Yes it is.' Then the tears started.

Swiftly Lettuce sat down on the low wall that ran beside the pavement and pulled Ichigo down next to her, pulling her into her arms.

'What happened?' she whispered urgently. 'Did he hurt you?' Ichigo didn't answer, but her crying intensified. 'Ichigo!' Lettuce said in growing alarm. 'What did he say?'

'He didn't say anything!' Ichigo sobbed, tears streaming down her face now. 'He h-h-hasn't b-been here! I haven't seen him in w-weeks. Oh, Lettuce, what's happened to him?'

Lettuce stared out over Ichigo's head, silenced. She stroked her friend's hair soothingly while she tried to make sense of the new information. Unlike the other Mews, she knew a little of what was going on between Ichigo and Kish. Five months ago, when Ichigo brought the news of her meeting with the alien and his promise to suggest a treaty, Lettuce had been the only one in whom she'd confided the whole truth. Since then, Lettuce had been able to put together a sketchy picture of events from the fragments of information Ichigo couldn't prevent from bubbling over when it was just the two of them. For the first month or two Ichigo had been over the moon – floating indeed – but as time had passed Lettuce had watched her joy turn to anxiety. From what she had gathered Kish had begun to visit less often, and when he did turn up he seemed anxious and preoccupied, sometimes even downright distant. And now, it seemed, he had disappeared altogether.

'Maybe he's just having trouble getting away?' she ventured. 'You said he's been coming less often...'

'He's never stayed away this long before!' Ichigo wailed. 'Not without telling me! Not even then!'

'You think he's in trouble?'

'I don't know! He promised me that Pai and Tart knew about us, but what if they only just found out? What if they've hurt him? I...I...' Ichigo buried her face in her hands, unable to continue.

'No, they wouldn't do that. I'm sure they wouldn't. They care about each other too much. I'm sure they haven't hurt him.'

Ichigo shook her head slowly, numbly. 'I know that really,' she whispered, and Lettuce realised with a jolt that all the fears she'd voiced so far had only been skating around the real issue. 'What if...what if...' she breathed.

'If he doesn't want to see you anymore?' Lettuce supplied. Surely it would be better to have it said out loud?'

'He always said...' Ichigo murmured, eerily calm now, '...that it was nothing to do with me, when I asked him what was wrong. He swore blind that he wanted nothing more than to be with me...I thought he might be worrying about the treaty, but he always said there was nothing wrong there either...he promised me Pai was onto it...'

'I'm sure the aliens want peace,' Lettuce murmured soothingly. Did it really matter right now whether she herself believed it or not?

Ichigo twisted around, wrapping her arms around Lettuce's neck and burying her face in her shoulder. 'Oh, Lettuce-chan,' she howled, breaking out into fresh sobs. 'If he doesn't love me anymore, I don't know what I'll do. And if...if...we can't...make peace...' She seemed close to hysterics now, struggling to get the words out. 'He has to fight for his own side! Lettuce, he has to, or he'll die! Oh God, what'll I do if I have to fight them? He'll hate me!'

'Oh, Ichigo-san.' Lettuce couldn't think of anything to do but rock her and wait for it to pass.

'Alien alert! Alien alert!'

Both girls looked up sharply as Masha zoomed into view, darting agitatedly from side to side. Ichigo wiped under both eyes, gulped twice and shouted:

'Where, Masha?'

'Café Mew Mew! In the café!'

'Come on Lettuce!' The rapidity with which Ichigo had pulled herself together was astonishing. She transformed and began to run back towards the café. Her expression was steely but Lettuce could see the hope flaring in her eyes. Her stomach flipped with anxiety as she considered what it would do to her friend if she was disappointed now.

The two girls charged up the road and burst into the café forecourt, stopping dead as soon as they were inside. The other three Mews had transformed, but it was plain that no fight was taking place yet. They stood in an inverted arrowhead with their backs to the café, Ryou and Kaiichiro in front of them. All of them were coiled and tense, their attention focussed on the alien who hovered in the air above them.

Lettuce felt Ichigo slump beside her. It was not Kish but Pai.

'Alright, alien, we've got you covered!' Pudding bawled. 'State your intentions, and make it snappy!'

Kaiichiro looked reprovingly over his shoulder. Zakuro caught his eye and placed a restraining hand on Pudding's arm. The little blond fell silent and stepped slowly back to Zakuro's side. Kaiichiro nodded and then turned to Pai.

'What brings you here, Pai?' he asked.

'There is no need to fear, human,' Pai replied. He raised his hands to shoulder height, spreading the fingers out to show that they were empty. 'I am not here to fight. I come with a message.'

The Mews eyes flickered from one to another. What message could the Cyniclons have for them? Finally Ryou said shortly:

'Fire away.'

Pai glanced over his shoulder at Lettuce and Ichigo, clearly uneasy at having his back exposed to them. Lettuce smiled nervously and began to tug Ichigo round towards the others. Pai relaxed fractionally and began to speak.

'As you know, five months ago my comrade Kishu conveyed a promise to your leader –' his eyes paused on Ichigo – 'that we would suggest to our commander that he consider a treaty. Know that we have kept that promise. But after much discussion, our leaders have decided. We were overruled. There is to be no treaty.' Pai paused, as if in regret. 'Our armada intends intends to attack this city in two of your Earth weeks.'

Kaiichiro opened his mouth as though he might speak, then closed it again and hung his head.

'And your commander ordered you to convey a warning?' Ryou asked sceptically.

'No. I am here on my own account.' Pai looked Ryou straight in the eye. 'I have come to realise over the months I spent here that we have been fighting for parallel causes all along, that you are indeed a race with as much feeling as my own. For myself I believe that it would be possible for us to live in peace, and I am sorry that I must wage war on you now. I came to warn you because I would not have us part as enemies, and because I want to give you the chance to protect your people once more, as I must protect mine.' He stopped speaking and straightened himself. Ichigo realised that he was preparing to leave and started forward, but Lettuce dragged her back.

'No!' she hissed. 'Think of the trouble you'll get Kish into if they don't know. Keep quiet.'

Their brief tussle had not gone unnoticed by Pai. He turned, his gaze meeting Ichigo's.

'I have no message for you,' he said, coldly and clearly. Ichigo understood his meaning and sagged against Lettuce. Lettuce held her tightly as though she could keep her together with mere willpower.

There was a moment of quiet, and then Ryou sighed deeply and spoke.

'We thank you for your warning, Pai-san, and we do not underestimate the risk you took in conveying it. We must now begin preparing our defences. This once, leave in peace.' He bowed formally and the others followed suit. Pai responded with a strange, flitting gesture of the hand, and then teleported. The air where he had been rippled briefly and was still.

Ryou straightened up and said:

'Bugger.'

'Ryou...?' Mint faltered.

'This is bad, girls.'

'I don't like this at all, na no da!' Pudding cried. Zakuro wrapped an arm around her shoulder and turned to Ryou and Kaiichiro.

'So,' she said, 'what do we do now?'

'We need to find out the nature of this force that's coming for us,' Kaiichiro replied. His voice was as steady as ever but his eyes were disturbed. 'And begin preparing out defences.'

'Not to mention convincing the rest of the world that there's an alien invasion on,' Mint pointed out.

'The authorities already know that,' Ryou said grimly. He met Mint's look of astonishment with a bitter smile. 'What, you didn't think it was just Akasaka-san and I safeguarding the whole planet? No, the government was always aware of the threat. All we've got to do –' he grimaced slightly – 'is go public.'

'Oh, and that'll be fun,' Zakuro said.

'I need to set the scanners,' Kaiichiro muttered, heading towards the café. 'See about hacking into the Cyniclons' databases, try and find out what we're dealing with...'

As the group began to break up and plan, Lettuce turned back to Ichigo. She was silent and pale. Lettuce faltered for a moment, then gave her a brief hug and ran out of the gates.

She looked up and down the street, but it was empty. She ran along the road for a little way, rounded a corner and suddenly came upon Pai, floating in the shade of a japonica bush with his head bowed. Lettuce stopped and gulped. She hadn't actually expected to find him, but now that she was here...

'P...Pai-san?' she called nervously. He turned slowly around, alighting on the pavement and taking a step towards her.

'I have nothing more to say to you, Lettuce,' he said.

'P-please,' she stammered. 'Kishu – '

'What of him?'

'Ichigo...' Lettuce took a deep breath and plunged. 'Ichigo misses him. She needs –'

'Does that really matter now? We are at war. Their ways have parted. Ichigo should keep her mind on things of more importance to your race.'

'I know.' Lettuce hung her head. 'It just...it just seems...'

'Wrong? But true. I have made my goodbyes. By rights I should kill you now.'

'I have failed,' Lettuce whispered.

'Failed?'

'Yes. I tried so hard to stop the fighting, and now...now we're at war.'

'No. I was the only one you ever had the chance to persuade, and you convinced me. You have not failed.'

'I convinced you?' Lettuce looked up with sudden hope. 'Then why, Pai-san? Why are you doing this?'

'I explained this to you not five minutes ago. I have no choice.'

'Yes, Pai, yes you do – '

'What are you asking of me?'

The words stopped her dead in her tracks. What was she asking of him? To abandon his people and die alongside the Mews instead? To go home and continue to argue a case that was already lost?

'I'm sorry,' she whispered. 'I'm not asking anything.'

'Lettuce.' Pai reached out hesitantly, looping his arms under hers and pulling her gently against him. 'Take courage, Imouto-chan. Go and be with your friends. I pray that our next meeting will be in a happier place.' He squeezed her briefly and released her, stepping back and vanishing before her eyes. Lettuce sat down against the alley wall and buried her face in her hands. She couldn't bear to return to Ichigo and the others with no new news of Kishu. Pai's last gesture of friendship was only another wound to her when she thought of what was to come. She stayed where she was, sitting in the shadows where no-one could see her cry.

A/N: Just a little bit of Pai and Lettuce fluff to keep Essence of Gold happy. It does get better again, I promise! Sorry if I have depressed anyone?

Imouto-chan – little sister (I think).