A/N: I love reviews! I love reviews! I L.O.V.E. reviews! Thank you, peoples of the world who are giving me wondeful reviews that keep me more full and focused than a bowl of Wheaties! Here's another chapter. R&R. Eat some cake. Buy a puppy. Have a looovely evening/day!
Disclaimer: I do not own Tokyo Mew Mew.
Chapter 14:
Kotoni was the first to fly through the doors of the café and change back into her human form. She pulled out a chair and collapsed into it, feeling mentally and physically exhausted. The other girls followed suit but were not planning to give Kotoni the silence she was craving.
"It's a good thing the maze came down when it did, Mint," said Zakuro, "It looked like Keki was about to sneak up behind you and attack you off-guard."
"Oh no! Pai agreed to hold the fight so I'm sure Keki wouldn't have hurt her," argued Lettuce.
"Please," scoffed Ichigo, "Think of how crazy Keki and Shukurimu get in our fights. Promise or not- they'd never pass up an opportunity to try and take one of us down."
Mint shrugged and said, "I'm guessing he was on the other side of a wall next to me or something along those lines. I'd certainly never get snuck up on- I'm much too careful for that."
"Pudding loved the maze, na-no-da!"
"You loved it?" asked Ryou, who had just walked in.
"Yes! It was like Pudding and the aliens were friends in the maze! If only Pudding found Taruto…"
"The aliens are not our friends," stated Ryou, coldly.
Pudding sighed and whispered, "Pudding knows."
"We should all keep that in mind," said Ichigo who shot a worried glance at Kotoni.
Keiichiro walked in and smiled, saying, "Well done, girls. It seems you defeated the aliens and the shock absorber."
"Well, we all fought the aliens for a while but… Kotoni took care of the shock absorber."
"Really? How?"
Ichigo looked at Kotoni, waiting for her to tell the story, but Kotoni continued to look away and stay silent.
"I don't know actually. During the fight, I finished the Chimera and Kotoni came over to me and asked me to take over her fight with Shukurimu. She went to follow Kisshu, who was looking for the generator and I didn't see her after that. I found her after the maze had already come down and Kotoni was by the generator with Kisshu…" explained Ichigo.
"Kotoni? You shut down the generator?" asked Ryou, condescendingly.
Finally Kotoni spoke and said, "Yeah… it asked for a four-character password. RYOU. Your parents used your name."
Ryou opened his mouth to speak several times, making him resemble a fish. He finally responded, "Ah, I see."
"Why would your parents create a maze, Ryou?" asked Lettuce, curiously.
Keiichiro took over for Ryou who didn't seem able to speak at the moment.
"It was actually quite a good idea. The magnet in the shock absorber would render an enemy without their weapons. The maze itself was really ingenious, though! It's complex design and sheer size... Only Ryou's parents would have a map of the maze so they would have a good block of time to locate and shut down the generator. I believe they also had a way of cloaking the shock absorber once they were close to it, but I have yet to figure out how."
"It was a bad idea," stated Kotoni, flatly.
Keiichiro raised his eyebrows in surprise and Ryou looked offended.
"A bad idea?"
"Yes."
"And why would you say that?" asked Ryou, furrowing his brow.
"Kisshu and I had pretty much the same truce as you guys in the clearing except we were traveling together until we could find you guys and make sure you were safe," explained Kotoni, "I got to that machine by sneaking off on Kisshu and was barely able to shut the thing down in time. If I had taken just a few more seconds…"
"But you didn't," concluded Ryou, obviously done discussing any flaws in his parents' plans.
"You're right, I guess. I didn't."
"Kotoni…" started Ichigo, falling into silence by Kotoni's death glare.
Zakuro raised an eyebrow.
"What, Ichigo?"
"Kotoni, what happened back there? I ran over to find you and Kisshu fighting…"
"Oh, how odd," Mint said, sarcastically, "Kotoni was fighting an alien. We'd better alert the media."
"It wasn't just that," Ichigo continued, watching Kotoni who was now staring at the wall, "Kotoni pinned Kisshu. She had him but… she didn't do anything."
"I lost my nerve, okay?" yelled Kotoni, repeating what she told Ichigo in the forest, "He almost had me but I managed to pin him and… I don't know… I should have just knocked him unconscious or something. I was freaked out at the idea of killing him and I panicked."
"I can't believe this!" exclaimed Ryou, "Kisshu is one of their best fighters and you had him? Why didn't you finish him? It could've changed everything!"
"I know, Ryou! I tried! But can you blame me? Look at me. Just picture killing me real quick. It's not easy to just kill someone!"
"You're human, Kotoni. Kisshu is not. Besides, even if Kisshu were human, his life means the death of countless others! Did you consider that?"
"I'm sorry! I just lost my nerve- I swear! It won't happen again!"
"Are you sure you can handle this job, Kotoni? Obviously, if you can't stain your hands for the sake of the world, we made a poor choice!"
"Ryou," said Keiichiro, "Leave her be. She's not the only one who had to warm up to this job."
"She's the only one who's ever had the chance to take out their best fighter!"
"Listen," said Kotoni, "I know I blew it today. It won't happen again."
"I'll say! We'll never get that chance again!"
"Enough," interrupted Zakuro, the first of the girls to speak since Ichigo, "If you have so little confidence in us, Ryou, I'd find an alternative to the Mews. The opportunity will present itself again and Kotoni will be able to handle it."
Ryou took a deep breath before finally saying, "I'm sorry, Kotoni. I shouldn't have lost my temper like that. But keep in mind- you're not fighting for you. You're fighting for the world."
No pressure there, thought Kotoni.
Kotoni allowed herself to look at the other girls for the first time. Much to her surprise, she didn't meet any scowls or accusing glares like she had from Ryou. They were all looking at the ground, and seemed resigned as if the lecture given to Kotoni was directed at them all. Only Lettuce met Kotoni's eye, giving her a sad but understanding look.
"So…" began Kotoni, trying to fill the silence, "Where were you guys during our crazy shenanigans?"
"We were monitoring the area from the car," explained Keiichiro, "We followed you girls into the forest until it was too thick to continue, and then stayed by the computer. It helps us keep track of the aliens in case they change location or activate more Chimeras."
"Ah," answered Kotoni, praying for someone to strike up a conversation.
Lettuce gave a sigh, but wasn't the one to answer Kotoni's prayer. Instead, it was Zakuro.
"I'm concerned," she began plainly, making sure everyone was paying attention, "Our fights are normally competitions of strength, basically. These shock absorbers are a problem. They put us at a serious risk and make things very... dicey."
"I'm already on that," answered Ryou, "We were able to gain some information on the shock absorber while its defenses were up. I think I can find a way to make you powers stronger when that happens again."
"How?"
Ryou cocked his head and answered slowly, "I'll just add some developments to your Mew forms. I don't have enough information to share any more than that."
Kotoni took in Zakuro's suspicious expression and shrugged it off.
"Can Pudding go home now?" asked Pudding, rubbing her eyes and yawning, "She has to get home to her brothers and sister, na-no-da."
Keiichiro nodded and all the girls stood up, grabbing their bags and practically flying out the door. Kotoni was about to turn on the street that marked her route home when Ichigo called her.
"Kotoni! Wait for me!"
Kotoni sighed. She was tired, hot, and feeling ready to collapse on the ground.
"What's up, Ichigo?"
"Um… gomen. For earlier. I shouldn't have said anything about you and Kisshu. I know you would never betray us."
"Yeah… well, it's okay. I know it must have looked strange but I swear- the guy messed with my head. I'm not as used to dealing with him as you guys."
Kotoni pulled out a water bottle from her bag and took a long swing. She was parched just standing outside, and even though it wasn't that hot, it felt stifling to Kotoni.
"Weird," commented Ichigo, "I don't feel hot at all."
"That's because you weren't built for arctic climate."
"Right."
Kotoni started walking now, and was surprised to see that Ichigo was following her.
"Is it okay if I come with you? I don't really feel like heading home yet."
Kotoni shrugged and said, "Sure. My Aunt Cho won't really care if I have anyone over."
"Arigato."
The girls walked in silence for a while, broken only by Kotoni's water bottle when she'd take another swing.
"So Kotoni… I get the whole Kisshu thing but-"
Kotoni interrupted Ichigo with a sigh and said, "Can we drop it? Every time I think about it I feel killing something."
"Too bad you couldn't earlier," Ichigo gasped at her own words and eyed Kotoni carefully only to find that Kotoni was laughing.
"Haha! Okay, I guess I deserved that one. I didn't think you'd say it out loud though."
"Um… Kotoni, I do have one question."
"Hai?"
"Well… why did you call Kisshu a human?"
Kotoni paused a moment and furrowed her brow.
"I wasn't calling him a human. I was thinking, trying to get myself to do something. But then I started panicking and my words just slipped out, you know? But I know Kisshu isn't a human. I just don't think he's anything less. He feels pain and happiness and… I don't know. I'm not making a lot of sense to you, am I?"
"Actually," confessed Ichigo, "We all kind of feel that way. We've just accepted it after a while… Plus, it's impossible to argue with Ryou about it."
"I understand that. Keiichiro mentioned what happened to his parents to me. He's never quite gotten past it, has he?"
"No, he hasn't."
Kotoni turned toward her apartment and pulled out her key. After inviting Ichigo in, she bolted for the kitchen and poured herself a huge glass of water. She chugged it down and handed Ichigo a glass.
"This whole fox thing is making the world hot as hell. But I guess I shouldn't complain. Lettuce probably has to chug water all the time."
"She does drink a lot of water," admitted Ichigo, "But at least she doesn't freak out everytime she's near a fish like me."
"Yeah? Does Pudding do anything weird?" asked Kotoni, making her way up the stairs to her room.
"Not really. Pudding is just… Pudding," laughed Ichigo.
"Hey, Aunt Cho! I've got a friend over- we'll be in my room!" Kotoni called into her aunt's room.
"Huh, she's not here," said Kotoni, looking around, "She'd better not be at the office still…"
"Oh, Kotoni! I love your room!"
Kotoni walked in and smiled. She had styled her room with the simple idea of only using black and white. Her comforter and dresser were solid black, while her desk and small rug were pure white.
"Thanks. I've always loved the combination of black and white. Opposite colors that for some reason look like they belong together."
"It's so cool," commented Ichigo, lightly poking Kotoni's lamp, which was a series of small black and white spheres.
Kotoni flopped onto her bed and stared up at the ceiling. Ichigo turned the desk chair and put her head on her hands.
"Anything else I should know about being a Mew? Like am I going to start barking at people who annoy me? Wait, never mind. Foxes… well, I don't think they bark. I kind of picture this little hissing noise or something."
Ichigo giggled and said, "Um… when you're in human form it's possible that your fox ears and tail will pop out… or you'll turn into a fox."
"Turn into a fox?"
"Only if you get kissed. The tail and ears though are a little harder to avoid. Whenever your heartbeat quickens too much they'll just pop out without warning."
"Well, that's great. I'll be sure to thank Ryou for the head-up."
Ichigo sighed and said, "Well, it sucks. It really sucks, actually. But at least you're not alone."
"Yeah, that's true," agreed Kotoni, "Hey, um, I shouldn't pry but if you're dating Masaya and you turn into a cat whenever you get kissed…?"
"Oh," sighed Ichigo, blushing, "We just… don't kiss that often."
Kotoni raised an eyebrow.
"Well, that doesn't sound too fun."
"Oh no! It's not a big deal to us! Masaya and I love each other so we're happy just being together."
"That sounds… nice."
"It really is," said Ichigo, looking out the window, contently.
"But didn't the girls say you kind of had a history with Kisshu?"
"Ugh! Will I never live this down!"
"I'll take that as a yes?"
"Sort of," she started, going from pure happiness to downright dreary, "Kisshu… he had this obsession with me. It all started when he kissed me one day as I was leaving school."
"Did you turn into a cat?"
"No. I don't know if it's because he's not human or if my Mew powers were too young but no, I didn't change. Anyway, he ended becoming so obsessed with me that he tried to take me away from earth. By force. And he was more than willing to kill Masaya to do it."
"Damn."
"Yeah…"
"They are kind of pretty, though. The Cyniclons, I mean. With the skin and the eyes."
"Kotoni…"
"Hey, I was just pointing it out."
Ichigo cocked her head, looking concerned and said, "You don't want to get mixed up with them, Kotoni. They may be pretty but the truth is they're willing to kill anyone to get what they want."
"Like we're supposed to."
"Exactly," answered Ichigo, missing the point entirely.
"I'm a Mew," said Kotoni, calmly, "It's a learned job. Swallowing my conscious will have to be learned too."