Epilogue
Dear readers,
Finally, I am back with the last chapter ( °▽° )! I am SOO SOO sorry guys that it took SOOOO damn long. Jet lag is real! No jokes about that. I was so disoriented for so long that writing was absolutely out of question for AGES (hell, even walking outside and interacting in any meaningful way was a task itself!). So if you are wondering how I feel about posting this little segment so late, I feel GUILTY AS HELL! Especially since this fic has been updated regularly EVERY Thursday minus the last chapter ughhh (┳◇┳)
Anyways, with no further delays, here is the final/epilogue chapter of The Road to Perfection.
｡+.｡ ﾟ:;｡(´• ω •`) ! ALSO, SEE THE END NOTES for more INFO ! (´• ω •`) ｡+.｡ ﾟ
The song I used for this chapter was Stereo Skyline's 'Heartbeat'.
Lulyy Elizabeth Vaca - Thank you for yet another comment! It was a blast reading your reviews every single time you reacted to a new chapter. Thank you. I truly appreciate your words and I feel totally happy that you enjoyed reading this story so much!
DrDark7 – Thank you for yet another comment! It has been a long ride, indeed! Thank you very much for all of your input! It is truly appreciated plus it makes me super thrilled to know that you liked reading what I have written so much! Also, see the end notes for more info. As promised, there will be a second fanfic rated M.
Kishlover985 – Thank you for yet another comment! I am psyched to hear you enjoyed the last chapter and the story so much! Your words were always encouraging, indeed! And, thank you, moving is always difficult, no matter where you move!
MarikoXoD – Thank you for yet another comment! I am so glad to hear that you found this story so entertaining on the overall. Thank you for all of your kinds words, they made me extremely happy!
NeKoGirl – Thank you for yet another comment! Your reviews always made me so happy because they were often loaded with so much emotion haha! Thank you for all your kind words, as well as the fact that you enjoyed this story so much. Yes, regarding the latest update, I totally suck. Breaking my regular Thursday updates bummed me out.
As always, please enjoy and review!
I do not own Tokyo Mew Mew
Ryou drummed his long nimble fingers against the wooden desk in a fairly impatient manner.
"You've gotta be kidding me. Again?"
There was a long pause.
No one dared to answer; no one dared to move, with only the sound of their shallow breathing echoing across the dimly-lit room.
It was ridiculous, truly. And Ichigo did not hold it against her boss in the slightest that he was roasting the hell out of them, when, most certainly, she would do exactly the same thing to him, should she be on the receiving end of their poor apology. All it took was merely one quick glance to note that Ryou's sharp blue eyes were not buying their story. And even if Ichigo had prepared to use a couple of erratic words to defend herself, nothing but an incomprehensible mumble was coming out from her parted lips at the very moment.
"Mm, yeah. What of it?" the Cyniclon replied smugly.
Of course, with Kisshu it was an entirely different story.
Whereas Ichigo could only wish that the ground beneath her would finally open and swallow her, the alien, by contrast, appeared completely relaxed, almost nonchalant, with his response. It did not matter to him how many times they had been in Ryou's lab, having one of the most awkward conversations Ichigo could mentally visualize yet again; directly next to her, was he standing rather unfazed, seemingly resistant to her boss's intense glares and brimming with confidence as any other day.
"What of it?" the blonde repeated in disbelief and Ichigo saw the angry twitch of his eye brow first. Whether Kisshu noticed Ryou's grumpy disposition too, or he chose to plainly ignore it, was left to the Mew Mew's wild imagination.
"You mean to tell me," Ryou continued with extra forced calmness in his voice, "That your bed frame broke again after we have fixed it about god damn two times last month already?"
Kisshu crossed his arms over his chest and tilted his chin slightly upwards.
"Mm, yeah. That is what I just said, did I not?"
Ichigo internally groaned.
It was obvious to her now that this conversation could probably go on and on and on, unless she decided to intervene. These lengthy oral interactions between Kisshu and Ryou were nothing short of ordinary and it thus hardly came as a surprise that they were at it again even now. Curiously enough, it was exactly through such a little banter that the two of them had bonded and found a way how to communicate with each other in a productive way. If Ichigo was not presently so angry and embarrassed, she would be almost tempted to take mental notes of how to deal with them both.
The truth was that after Ryou had agreed with Pai on the biweekly visits that were meant to strengthen the relationships between Cyclonia and Earth, Kisshu was spending every other weekend with Tokyo Mew Mew. He was assigned a room at the headquarters in the upstairs area of the Café due to various reasons, the most obvious one being that it was cheaper, as well as more convenient, and far safer than to let him go on the rampage in the middle of the streets. Because who in their right mind would want to see an alien floating around in broad daylight, right? Yes, when her boss had suggested this option, Ichigo had felt ecstatic about it at first. But the longer she had really thought it through, the more discrepancies she could see with this peculiar set up. And she could not forget about the fact that whenever she wanted to see her 'boyfriend', Ichigo oftentimes had a feeling that Ryou was breathing on her neck. Quite literally.
Just like now.
"Strange how it only happens right after Ichigo pays you a short visit. That is a fairly cool coincidence, would you not say?" Ryou pressed and his eyes imperceptibly narrowed.
At this, Kisshu's lips twitched but he remained collected and impassive otherwise.
"There are far greater unrelated mysteries in the universe yet to be resolved. Perhaps, you should focus on these, instead of some damaged furniture," the alien remarked sagely.
"And you expect me to believe it?" Ryou leant further down in his chair, as he stared Kisshu down.
"Absolutely," Kisshu's golden cat-slit gaze sparkled.
Ryou seemed like he was about to run a screwdriver through the Cyniclon's thick head if he had one right next to him, but, after a while, he took a deep breath and turned to Ichigo instead.
"I will dock it from your pay again, just so you know," he said in a low, threatening tone.
Her face immediately reddened with fury.
"What?! That is not fair, Ryou! I didn't break anything! I don't even live here!" Ichigo whined at the injustice that had been done to her well-being once again.
"That doesn't matter," the blonde dismissed her protests, with a single wave of his hand, "He is your boyfriend. So I will hold you accountable for any and every of his misconduct on the premises."
"I prefer the term 'lover,' or the 'love of her life.' Thank you," Kisshu interjected at which Ichigo could only growl in annoyance.
"You are not helping the case!" she hissed in anger.
"Sure, boyfriend, lover, whatever you wanna call him. You take the full responsibility of him, which involves damaging our property as well," Ryou paused as a devilish smile crept onto his features, "And if you break the frame again, you will pay for the whole new bed too."
Ichigo paled, imagining all of her money leaving her pockets in the next instant. This could not do. She had to save for college, clothes and any other girly stuff she did not necessarily need but which was always nice to have the option of buying. Only the image of her utterly broke persona pulled her back from her grim thoughts.
She turned to her significant other with pleading eyes, positive that he would find a means how to shut Ryou up instantly.
"Kisshu, say something, this is unfair!"
Alas, apparently, Kisshu was not willing to fight any of her battles just as eagerly as Ichigo had anticipated, if at all.
"Life is not fair, kitten," the alien smiled lovingly as he brushed a lock of red hair from her face, "It's time you learned that," he chuckled while he reveled in her panic and frustration.
"Oh my God!" Ichigo exclaimed when the realization that none of the males would side with her side of the story had fully hit her, "You two are impossible! No wonder you can live under one roof without killing each other. You're practically the SAME person!"
She turned on her heel, ready to take off, but Ryou's voice had made her pause.
"Of course, you can always try and repair the bed yourself, Ichigo," the blonde called after her, fairly amused with her emotional outburst.
"Or go to the store and look for a new bed altogether. I will gladly help you with that, kitten," Kisshu chimed in.
And that was when Ichigo had had truly enough.
"NO! In fact, I am LEAVING! And you two morons can deal with the situation yourself," she quickly whirled back to stick her tongue at them, "Mark my words, if you dock it from my paycheck again, Ryou, prepare for the war!" Ichigo pointed an accusing finger at her boss who did not look nonplussed, or scared in the least bit.
"And what will you do? Kill me with your singing ability," the blonde mocked, "Get real!"
"I will claw your eyes out!" Ichigo retaliated.
"Right," Ryou nodded, before adding, "Weren't you about to leave?"
"Oh my God, you're REALLY impossible!" then she turned to regard Kisshu briefly, "You both are!"
And with that, Ichigo dramatically stormed off out of the basement, taking two steps up the stairs to get away from the intolerable duo as soon as possible.
"Well, you gotta respect her energy," Kisshu cackled once Ichigo was out of the earshot.
He enjoyed seeing his kitten angry just as much as when she was happy. Her facial expressions never ceased to amaze him. It was, in all actuality, the different reactions that he was able to draw out of her that entertained him to no end.
"Hey, Kisshu," the blonde's harsh tone cut through the alien's thoughts, jolting him out of his reveries a little too early for his liking.
"Hm?"
Ryou fixed him with a serious look.
"I don't care what you're doing in your spare time, but I gave you the sound proof room for a reason. You know what I am implying by saying that, don't you?"
The corners of Kisshu's mouth curled into a wicked smirk.
"That you perhaps care about privacy?" he supplied.
"No," the blonde answered briskly, massaging his temples while he went on, "I gave you the room so that I don't have to personally witness what you and Ichigo are up to all the time."
"Touché," Kisshu smiled, "This time it was an accident though. I really jumped on the bed and broke it cause I was elated."
The news that Ichigo and him could go on a real date to an amusement park had excited him to great lengths. They had never really been on a proper date before, so to say. Plus, if some precautions were to be taken, perhaps they could even do it more often? As long as he covered his ears, what else was there to give away his true identity? Besides, Pai might as well come up with some kind of serum or potion soon, which would remedy this predicament indefinitely. His brother was extremely smart, Kisshu would not put a task like that past him. But that was not the problem now. Judging by the human scientist's unwavering stare, he should not let himself be so overjoyed with emotion in the future. Sometimes, it was just so damn hard, however.
"And you honestly want me to believe that?" Ryou groaned tiredly, running his fingers through his blonde bangs in exasperation.
"Mm, yea. I have no reason to lie to you," Kisshu put his hands behind his head and lifted himself slightly off of the floor into a sitting position, "I am thankful for all of your help. Don't get me wrong. You're a good partner in crime and I know that when I'm not around, you keep an eye on Ichigo for me. So thanks for that too."
"If you're so thankful, how about you try and not destroy everything around next time you come?" Ryou muttered sarcastically.
"Hehe, no promises. But I'll do my best. I will send your greetings to Pai as well," Kisshu winked and descended back onto the ground, waiting till the blonde stood up to shake his hand goodbye.
Understanding this, Ryou rose from his seat and squeezed the alien's hand in a firm handshake.
"Farewell. Despite the usual crap, it was good to have you here as always. I expect to see you again in fourteen days."
Kisshu grinned.
In reality, this treaty between their respective nations had initially scared him. But, little by little, he found himself slowly growing attached to it, to the point that it had become precious to him, almost as precious as Ichigo herself. Furthermore, Kisshu knew that if he wanted to see his kitten again, he might as well not screw it up this time. Pai had put his trust in him and, from the looks of it, even the blondie was somewhat getting accustomed to his ways. Maybe Ichigo was not wrong when she had thought them similar. Though, how similar a mere human could be to a Cyniclon was yet another question to ponder.
Well, he needed to occupy his mind somehow for the next six hours anyway.
"Thanks. The pleasure's all mine."
Kisshu squeezed Ryou's hand back and he meant it.
Ichigo was beyond livid.
Why the hell was this happening to her? Again?
Hadn't they had enough? And why was she the one who was always being punished for Kisshu's idiocy and carelessness in the very first place? What had happened to the mature Cyniclon guy that she had met and kissed some million space miles away? The one who had it all figured out and was smooth and clear about everything; the potential next ruler of the Cyclonia.
My ass!
Despite how much progress Kisshu might have made back home, deep down Ichigo knew that he had not really changed in the slightest. He was still the same obnoxious ass and these character traits had become all the more apparent every time he was with her back on Earth. Was it because he was outside of his usual environment wherein no strict social Cyniclon standards thoroughly influenced his mannerism? Or just the fact that he could gladly discard every norm that Cyclonia had ever taught him and do as he pleased?
Whatever it was, it proved infuriating, really.
And once Ichigo had given it more thought, she bitterly realized that Ryou was no better.
What was her boss even thinking when he had said yes to this weird intergalactic exchange? Kisshu was such an idiot! There was no way that these ad hoc meet ups would lead anywhere, or supposedly bring any sort of valuable addition to their research whatsoever. But Ichigo was not that stupid not to understand what the real motivation behind Ryou's reasoning was. And the minute she realized it, she could not be angry with the blonde male anymore; in spite of Ryou's obsessive hobby, the only reason why he had conceded to this impromptu set up was due to her; so that she and Kisshu could spend at least some time together. And for that, Ichigo could never truly lash out on Ryou, at least not sincerely.
Although seeing each other every other weekend was not an ideal option in any way, it was better than nothing. And, as Ichigo liked to remind herself fairly often, everybody had to start somewhere. The plan was that Kisshu would move to Earth for good and work remotely eventually, if Ichigo would not kill him by that time, that is; which, in all likelihood, was an extremely probable possibility, considering all the current circumstances and such. Yet, as always, her fury shortly transformed into a sudden wave of sadness, once she had concluded that it was Sunday again and he would have to go soon.
It was so weird.
On one hand, Ichigo felt like on the verge of tears and, on the other, she was still riled up and even somewhat happy that she would not have to face Kisshu's annoying face for the time being.
What a weird combo, heh?
Except that no, not really. As far as she could remember, it was always like this with him; always unpredictable, never fully in control; his presence ever so exciting, thrilling and beyond any rational explanation. And Ichigo would lie if she said that she would want it any other way. Sometimes she found her own feelings towards the alien simply overwhelming; the way how different they were; the manner wherein they interacted. After every upcoming visit though, Ichigo learned to understand a little better. And, with the help of the book Kisshu had procured for her, the courtesy of Yuri, Ichigo felt like she was slowly starting to get the hang of it. The title itself was quite telling, as 'How to Date Cyniclon Guys 101' really provided what it outwardly advertised. Ichigo found it extremely helpful, since dating someone like Kisshu would have turned out to be a truly daunting experience otherwise.
Nonetheless, she oftentimes could not shrug off the inexplicable feeling that it might all be just in her head. Why was she overthinking everything still? Hadn't she promised that she would stop with that and grow up already? Nobody else seemed to have had any kind of trouble communicating with Kisshu? Could there be something wrong with her?
Once Ichigo stepped back into the main room and saw how easily Kisshu chatted with everyone, her previous doubts resurfaced and more daring questions presented themselves to the forefront of her mind. Against all odds, Kisshu had meshed with the Tokyo Mew Mew team rather well. He laughed at Pudding's jokes and applauded her tricks. He likewise rather enjoyed a cup of Earl Grey tea with Mint while the two of them indulged in the recent train of gossip circulating around. With Lettuce, Kisshu often spoke about culture and well Pai, and his brother's not so cool moments, which proved often hilarious to everyone. Ichigo was sure that Pai would have one thousand percent killed him, if he were there, but, for now, she was just positive that the purple haired alien's ears must have been hot from all the stories Kisshu was so willingly spilling on Earth. And, with Zakuro? They strangely shared their thoughts in regards to society and social standards, mostly bashing the latter. Even with Keiichiro he had a topic to talk about, cakes. It was unbelievable. And somehow Ichigo came to the conclusion that Kisshu was so eloquent that he could win over anyone, including Moe and Miwa and, perhaps, her parents as well. Minus the ears, the ears would naturally pose a stark problem, but there was always time to deal with that issue; no need to stress oneself with that now.
"Seems like it's time for me to go," he chuckled as his golden eyes surveyed the room and found Ichigo's, whose form still lingered in the door frame with her arms crossed over her chest.
When she met his amused gaze, she broke the eye contact abruptly and huffed.
"You're not still mad at me, are you?" he quipped while he came closer to her and wrapped a hand around her waist.
"Like hell I am," Ichigo bit back.
What was his problem? Did he really think that he would throw her under the bus and act as if everything's going to be ok?
He tried to stroke her cheek but she swatted his hand away.
"Don't come again, if all you do is cause havoc!" Ichigo tried to wrangle herself out of his grip, but he held her tight.
"Aw kitten, you don't really mean that. Now, be a good lover and give me a goodbye kiss and a present too, if you have one!" Kisshu teased and Ichigo stopped struggling to eye him for a moment.
"A present?" she cocked a surprised eye brow at him.
He nodded fervently, pointing to the little purple box he had tucked underneath his arm, and Ichigo could only guess that it was Lettuce's subtle way of saying 'hi, I miss you!' to Pai.
"Pai is such a lucky bastard. He gets the girl AND the candy. Damn him," Kisshu drawled in frustration.
"And you get a girl and your eyes clawed out, if you break the bed frame again," Ichigo warned frostily.
"You did not seem to complain about it that much last night, if I'm being perfectly honest, mm. Why the sudden change?" Kisshu asked, grabbing her chin and tilting her face up so that she could meet his expectant stare.
In a reaction to that, Ichigo's cheeks instantly flushed, as the inner urge within her to smack him grew tenfold. She was just about to raise her hand but he pulled it back down and pressed his body further into hers. With his fangs grazing her ear, he then whispered in a low almost conspiratorial voice.
"It's ok. Don't worry about it. I will be back before you know it, and we can look for a new bed to break together, if you want."
"Kisshu," Ichigo fumed.
But before her reflexes could act out her vengeful intentions, he brought her even closer to him and placed his lips on hers, ending their argument instantaneously. It was remarkable. No matter how many times he had kissed her, his kisses always had the same maddening effect on her. They were hungry and full of emotions and never too short. He would never kiss her for too short. He was far too intense for that and Ichigo loved that about him immensely. The second she felt his mouth moving against hers while his tongue continued to explore her, somehow everything wrong about him evaporated and everything bad was forgotten. Only the good things prevailed and the need to want more, far more, and never letting go began to rumble in her chest with uncontrollable passion. She wondered what would happen if her arms decided to never release him from her grasp.
"Do you guys need a room or something?" Zakuro's cold tone cut their make out session short.
"Or another bed to break?" Mint snickered and that comment was enough to remind Ichigo where she was and whose hands had been entangled in her hair fairly quickly.
Kisshu gave a soft laugh, whereas Ichigo blushed some more.
Easing back, she shoved him away rather harshly and averted her eyes, too embarrassed that she had been caught in such a public display of affection by everyone. Her humiliation only heightened when she noted that her partner did not seem to mind at all, quite the opposite. His voice was anything but sweet and calm. Yet, again, he never truly suffered from stage fright, nor any unnecessary side effects of being in the center of attention, be it the good ones, or the bad ones, as was the case now. But this was Kisshu. She should not have expected anything less, which is what had made her lift her eyes from the floor and venture to meet his. When their gazes locked, Ichigo realized that this was really it for now and her stomach immediately sank at that sudden thought. Regardless, his next reassuring words had made her heart jump high in her ribcage, sending a shiver of excitement down her spine as a consequence.
"I am on my way then. See you in two weeks, kitten," Kisshu smiled and pat Ichigo's head one last time before his silhouette started to vanish in front of her eyes.
She watched him speechlessly, as his fine lines began to disappear out of her sight, leaving nothing but a strangely familiar feeling behind. There were no words to describe the unexpected warmth that had been spreading through Ichigo's chest in any articulate way; nor could she fully account for the flames of happiness that had been flickering inside her, making her head swoon. All she could do at the present moment was to think, loud and clear, whether or not they had truly reached the final point on their road to perfection.
The End
｡+.｡ ﾟ:;｡+ﾟ *ﾟ¨ﾟﾟ･*:..ﾞ((ε(*⌒▽⌒)†｡+.｡ ﾟ:;｡+ﾟ *ﾟ¨ﾟﾟ･*:..ﾞ｡+.｡ ﾟ
And that is it, ladies and gentlemen!
Thank you VERY MUCH everyone for sticking up with me and this story for so long! You have no idea how much fun I have had writing this and seeing that someone else actually enjoyed reading it just as much made my eyes go woooooow and my heart thump thump! It truly gave me so much joy to put this piece together and I cannot thank you enough for all of your love and support throughout!
Let me hereby take a minute and thank everyone who has happened to come upon this story. One last time, I would like to personally thank every single one of you who has left any comments, reviews, kudos or follows on this story and supported it with your time and words. Whether you joined me towards the end, somewhere in the middle or even just stopped to say a quick hi and that you enjoy my writing, rest assured that I really appreciated all of your support and kind words! You guys are truly amazing and the fact that this fandom is still so strong literally make me wanna cry!
And, finally, a VERY VERY SPECIAL THANKS goes to DrDark7, Kishlover985 and NeKoGirl who have all reviewed EVERY single chapter of this story! If that is not called dedication, I don't know what is!
We started in May 2022 and look at us now, it's October. Wow, what a ride it has been! ＾▽＾
As far as this fanfic is concerned, maybe there might be a sequel/series of unrelated one shots one day. I can totally see something happening, whether it is some kind of a rift between Kisshu and Ichigo; Ichigo asking Yuri for help with dating Cyniclons again, or even Pai and Lettuce/Taruto and Pudding spin off. Maybe even a Ryou and Yuri spin off! B-day parties/vacation on Cyclonia; aliens visiting Earth; the Mews trying to find a girlfriend for Ryou so that he would stop being such a nerdy workaholic. Really, the situations and scenarios that could be created are endless now that I really think about it, especially with Kisshu and Ichigo being so intense and funny together all the time haha.
Which brings me directly to my next point and NEXT project (≧U≦❁)β. There will be a new fanfiction getting posted on Thursdays again (regularly!), a little different in both mood/content and storyline. It is going to be called Libidinous and it will feature everything that this story did not cover or completely lacked; plus it will be a canon divergence, instead of a post AU story concentrating solely on Kisshu and Ichigo's relationship. No OC's, Pai/Lettuce or Taruto/Pudding moments. Only Kishigo running super wild!
So hold onto your hats, Libidinous is going to start soon every Thursday again! Probably in 6-7weeks, maybe less, depending on how my settling in Florida will go (any Tokyo Mew Mew fans in South Florida, hmm?!), as I intend to post again regularly without any interruptions. If you do not follow me as an author, or you read this story only on as a guest, I will post an extra chapter with an update when the first chapter of Libidinous gets published, so you will get notified one way or another! (I know that AO3 shows all fics regardless of their rating, but might hide it due to its M content; so in case you don't want to miss it, follow me/this story just to make sure.)
That is all for now. See you in a couple of weeks! (灬 ω 灬)
With love,
MewMily