Disclaimer: I do not own Tokyo Mew Mew
Purin panted running through the street, it was really hot and the cloak she had to wear for disguise was very thick and heavy. Eventually she stopped at a corner, leaning on the wall to catch her breath. Yes, Pudding Fong had run out of breath, the amazing acrobatic girl . But again the cloak was very heavy for her tiny little body, "Taru...!" she breathed determinedly and continued to run down another street until she spotted the familiar brunette boy waiting for her. "Taru Taru!" she squealed grabbing him into a big bear hug.
"Hey! Watch it!" Tart huffed squirming in the yellow Mew's strangely strong grasp.
"Purin has missed you so much na no da!"
"Uh..oh well maybe I missed..." he stopped meeting her huge chocolate eyes glinting with glee. "Maybe I missed your candy drops."
Purin dug in her pocket pulling a candy out wrapped in shiny red packaging. She tugged the wrapper off shoving it in Tart's mouth. His eyes widened slightly and he chewed for a moment before swallowing, "Pudding, me and Pai wanna talk to you guys, its about Mew Ichigo."
"Ichigo onee chan?" Purin's own eyes widened now, "Is she okay na no da?"
"Yeah shes fine but that's kinda what we wanna talk to you about." slowly he took Purin's hand; she looked down before nodding slowly. Gripping Tart's hand like a vice, she set off marching him down the street as he tried to hold in a scream.
--
"We're asking you to hold off the attack please. We know your worried about Mew Ichigo but did you consider she might be happy where she is?" Tart finished holding his breath as he stared at the Mews.
"No, absolutely not." Mint sniffed, "Ichigo was violently kidnapped, she couldn't possibly be happy..." she glanced at her surroundings. "On such a..under privileged planet."
"No, your wrong. " Zakuro replied making Mint blush. "These guys are right, all of us have been so wrapped up in this we never thought how Ichigo feels, and Pai and Taruto must have been given this message from the source, so maybe Ichigo wants us to let her decide."
"But what about her and Masaya's wedding?" Lettuce tilted her head, "The pretend one I mean, even though they're separated now, I'm sure that Ichigo and Aoyama are still in love."
"Maybe they were." Ryou joined in. "But if we're being asked to consider Ichigo's opinion on this it may be she doesn't feel that way about Masaya anymore."
"I think we should give Ichigo onee sama a chance to say how she feels." Purin said clinging to Tart's arm. "Tar Tar tells me Kishu was really upset everyone assumed Ichigo was being held a slave."
"Mew Ichigo may have been sold to Kishu's family as a slave but she's treated as guest really." Pai shrugged, the Mews glanced at eachother.
"So we all agree," Zakuro nodded, "We do nothing until we hear from Ichigo."
--
Today was sunny, it was regularly sunny here. Ichigo pulled the screen door across her walk in wardrobe and looked through it for something nice to wear. She selected a more cultural dress, she was really beginning to like the traditional clothes of Kishu's planet. The dress had a sliver breast plate, holding onto rolls of soft fabric with a creamy tint, the remaining fabric that draped across the floor a dyed lilac. She pulled it on smiling happily as the fabric smoothed across her skin, pushing her hair up into a low sophisticated chignon. Since she had been here the atmosphere had done wonders for her hair, it had grown and turned more red with a natural shine. Ichigo smoothed the dress down before walking out of her dressing room back into the bedroom, she stopped suddenly seeing a very beautiful woman sat on a chair. The woman didn't notice her come in, and continued to stare out of the window from her seat, her clear eyes reflecting the sunshine. Ichigo took a step closer and the woman looked up, she smiled standing up, wearing an equally beautiful dress to Ichigo's; the main part pure white silk with silk rose appliques, and the sleeves layers and layers of sugar pink chiffon.
"Welcome Ichigo, I'm sorry during your stay I haven't had time to introduce myself properly."
"Its..okay." Ichigo nodded slowly, she blushed lightly, was she supposed to know who this woman was?
"I'm Queen Himeko." the woman smiled again and Ichigo curtsied quickly.
"Its a pleasure to meet you your majesty." Ichigo said surprised when the Queen laughed.
"Please, you don't need to do that, I'd like it if we could be friends, for my son."
Ichigo stared at her as she got up turning around, a waterfall of caramel coloured hair cascading down her back. Kishu's mother was very beautiful. "I had some tea for us put out in the garden." slowly Ichigo nodded following the queen, they walked casually side by side through the extravagant palace.
"I suppose you know what Kishu would like, I beleive my husband told you."
"Oh yes," Ichigo replied, was she trying to guilt trip her into marrying Kishu? She blinked when sunlight hit her face as they ventured into the garden, she sat at the granite garden table with Himeko. The queen waited until the tea was served and they were alone before she spoke.
"Ichigo, I know how it feels to be in a position like this."
Ichigo looked up from stirring her tea. "You..do?"
Himeko nodded, "I was born into a particularly wealthy family, I come from a family of...aristocrats you would call them." she began. "When I was sixteen I fell in love with a boy from a working class background, infact he came from one of the poorest families around. But I didn't care, I loved him."
Ichigo nodded confused, but this was the queen, married to the king. Was Kishu's mother not happily married to his father?
"My family didn't approve of course, after our original planet began to collapse they needed a back up plan, if they didn't secure a financial future then they would lose everything." she frowned slightly. "My mother knew the queen before me, as did my father the king, they were looking for a bride for their son..." Himeko looked up at Ichigo's face.
"Do not get me wrong Ichigo, I love Kazuo so much," she frowned, "He's my everything, he just wasn't my first everything."
"I understand..." Ichigo nodded thinking back to Masaya on Earth.
"As you could predict I was unwillingly engaged to Kazuo, I wasn't happy at all. Kazuo knew I wasn't also, yet he didn't force me to love him."
"A week later the planet totally collapsed, people died as you know, we lost alot. That's how I lost Aito. But Kazuo..he let me grieve, he let me cry and he let me insult him even though he was my superior. And then when I thought I had nothing more to lose my father was among those whose bodies refused to adapt to our new planet. He died of pneumonia."
"This time Kazuo didn't let me grieve, he wouldn't let me sit around and think of what and whom I'd lost, he entertained me everyday for a month, because he loved me. And I was to ignorant to open my heart to two loves, but the heart can Ichigo, you cant not love another because you promised your heart to the first. There is enough love for everyone you choose, its only if you choose to promise someone your love."
Ichigo sat totally dumbfounded, maybe...maybe the reason she had refused Kish so outright was because she didn't contemplate his love, didn't realise that she could love him too if she looked past his flaws.
"What I'm trying to say here Ichigo, " Himeko spoke again, "Is I cannot force you to love my son, but I would like you to open your heart to him, to see if you can love him as a lover even though you already have loved another. And if you can't..then please let him down gently."
"I don't think I can open my heart yet." Ichigo replied, "I don't think I can open it until I'm sure where the other love is going."
Himeko nodded, "Then I have a proposition, I...I can send you to Earth temporarily..if that would help." Ichigo gasped,
"Yes..yes it would..so much!"
Himeko giggled, "I'm glad you understand me Ichigo."
---
It was three forty six pm in Tokyo when Ichigo arrived, if she hadn't known the aliens were aliens and personally met them, she would have noted them down as magic Tolkien elves. It rained horrifically much to Ichigo's fortune, as she had dressed for bad weather. She wrapped the comfy coat around her tighter and opened her umbrella before she stepped out into the downpour, quickly she trotted down the busy street until she reached a little cafe, how ironic she thought. Shaking the umbrella dry she took it down stepping inside, it was half full of hungry customers chatting in their own private conversations. Spotting Masaya in the corner she walked over sitting down smiling.
"Ohiyo Masaya." she grinned and he laughed. "Ohiyo Ichigo-chan, except it isn't morning."
"Oh. Yeah I knew..." she giggled. Stupid planet time difference.
"I'm glad you called." Masaya nodded thoughtfully, unsure where this was going.
"I am to." Ichigo smiled, she wasn't sure how to tell him she had got here thanks to an alien queen.
"So..." Masaya sighed looking at her still thoughtful. "Is there...an us?"
Ichigo took his hands across the table. "Of course there is," she sighed, " There always was an us and there always will be an us..." she trailed off before continuing. "Just not as we knew it."
Masaya stared at her, taking it in. "I see...so you did meet someone."
"You could say that yes." Ichigo sighed retracting her hands.
"Do I know him?"
"Kinda..." she replied trying to think off a way to explain it all.
"Kinda?"
"Its Kishu." Ichigo burst out, what way would change the impact? Masaya leaned back surprised.
"Oh..." there was silence for a moment before he leaned forward again. "Well I can't say I understand really..after everything that happened."
Ichigo nodded slowly looking down. "I thought that..."
"But Ichigo...if he makes you happy and he looks after you. I have no objections."
Ichigo looked up again smiling, of course she could trust him to be so mature about this. "Thank you Masaya."
"Just please look after yourself?" he asked smiling the cute smile Ichigo always dreamt would be smiled at her. "I will, I promise you I'm safe where I am."
They didn't talk much walking back to the station, Ichigo found herself repeating 'What nice weather' just like their first date,despite the weather was awful. They sat on a platform bench waiting, when Masaya turned to her.
"Ichigo, I respect your wishes and everything...but should anything happen, I'll always be here to protect you."
Ichigo nodded politely, should something happen she would have Kish to protect her.
"I won't stop loving you Masaya,"Ichigo said to him, "I cannot stop, I've just realised I love Kishu more. We can love more than one person, and I love you both."
"Thats complicated but I get the gist." Masaya replied leaning his head back. "I will never stop loving you either Ichigo, even if I meet someone, I might love them less than you. Because I was the Blue Knight, I'm sworn to protect you."
"I understand that. But Kishu is my love, and I would die for him. Its took me awhile, but somewhere I unlocked this and it was like an eruption of love...No matter what I've been told.." her mind drifted back to Himeko. "I don't think I can love you the way I did anymore. Only as a someone who I once loved." Eventually the train arrived and they got up, Masaya hugged Ichigo tightly ; awhile ago she would have desired nothing but this. But now her feelings had changed, it was no longer a hug between lovers.
"Goodbye Ichigo."
---
Kishu frowned gazing out across the balcony, Pai and Taruto had told him the Mews accepted that Ichigo's opinion was the ultimate one, but he worried. What if she really didn't want to marry him, feelings were confusing, her affection to him could have only been temporary. Slightly he winced, remembering the night in Tokyo where he sat on a rooftop, and it actually hurt to love her. It was the most excruciating pain ever, his chest had closed in gradually, getting tighter and tighter until he couldn't breath and everything was a black facade. Why, why didn't she love him? Kish's eyes widened and he gasped for breath realising it was happening all over again, he turned quickly to move inside when someone gently grabbed his arms. He stopped, coming face to face with the red headed beauty. The one he loved, the one he would never stop loving, the one... who could kill him with her words. She leaned closer moving, and whispered the cure in his ear.
"I want to marry you."
I love emotional chapters, there so much fun to write. Even if sometimes they are sad blergh. I would like lots of reviews please...please?
Himeko = It means princess child, I thought it would be very fitting for her being the Queen and all even if she wasn't born royal.
Kazuo = It means first born son, so obviously he's King because he is the eldest son and inherited the throne blah blah blah.
