My door had to have been knocked on at least ten times today. I just didn't feel like talking to anyone. My mind was being mean to me, making me all confused at what I wanted and what I needed to do. Another war has started, and it wasn't going to stop until one side won and the other lost. My body was craving the action, ready to pounce on anything that tried to threaten my planet. My mind wanted to be normal. My heart… knew all along what I was going to do.

My ears and tail haven't gone away since I made up my mind.

College Mew Mew 5

By: Satashi

"Ichigo? Ichigo, are you in there?" Zakuro knocked on my door lightly. I didn't really feel like talking to her, though. She always made too much sense.

My phone was ringing.

"Ichigo, I know you never leave without you cell phone," Zakuro said through the door. "So either let me in now, or I'll sit out here until you either have to eat something or go to the bathroom."

…She was too dang clever.

Sighing, I got off my bed and walked to the door, opening it for her. "Come in,"

"Thank you." She walked in, closing the door behind her as she did so. Looking around, she grinned in her own special way. "Some how, I pictured more boy band posters on your walls."

I laughed before I realized it, getting a smile from her. "See?" She asked, sitting on my bed next to me. "All you need is a good older sister to cheer you up when you're down."

"Zakuro… I already decided what I had to do."

"Before you say anything, let me go ahead and tell you that we've already all had a meeting. Yes, our powers are back, although we're still getting used to them again. But… Everyone agreed that you suffered the most during the first war, and we all understand if you don't want to do it al over again. We'll fight for you."

"You won't have to." I looked up at her for the first time. I could tell by the look on her face that I must look horrible. I had cried almost all day. "I'm going to fight too. But… I don't have my Mew powers anymore."

"They are still inside you," She touched her chest, over her heart. "Keiichiro told us; you are still wild cat." Gently, she stroked one of my ears. "And still a cute one, at that."

"Nya." The weight on my shoulders lightened. "Everyone is together again… We're all going to fight as a team again, aren't we?"

"We'll always be there for each other, you know that."

"Yeah."

"Now come on, you need to get out of your room. I think we both need a large banana split, my treat."

I couldn't help but laugh. It's been months since we've last done that. "With extra nuts?"

"And so much chocolate syrup, you'll have to search to find the ice cream!"

"Sounds tasty!"

"I don't know how you do it, but I'm glad you do it." Lettuce told Zakuro as I ate my half of the calorie infested treat inside the café while everyone else worked.

"It's nothing once you know how they think," She replied smoothly. Even after all these years, she was always so calm and collected.

"Yay! Ichigo is staying with us!" Pudding yelled as she hugged my neck and making me choke on my drink. "Mint, you owe me five hundred yen!"

"You bet on if I was going to stay or not!?" I screamed, standing.

"No," Mint replied, sarcastically. "We bet on how long it would take you to realize you were going to come back to us no matter what anyway. I had two days, but Pudding bet on one."

That was so like her. "You never change, Mint."

She smiled at me. I loved it when she smiled; it looked so nice on her face. Maybe if she did it more often, she would have a boyfriend by now. They were probably intimidated by her.

"Here, Ichigo," Ryou sat a sheet of paper in front of me. "Fill this out."

"What is it?" I looked it over. "A job application?"

"Legal matters," He gave me a pen. "How often can you work? I never got around to asking you?"

"I'm free all day Tuesday and Wednesday. Saturday and Sunday are free as well, but I need them for studying and such if I'm going to work until closing time my other days.

"Fair enough." He looked over the girls. "With all of us, we should always have enough to be a full staff. I can pick up any slack, and Zakuro will help whenever she's free from her real job. Keiichiro and I will monitor possible mew aqua sources. Hopefully this will be over with in a few months time. Any questions, Mew Mews?"

"Yes."

"What is it, Ichigo?" He seemed to be playing it safe with me after what happened yesterday. Smiling innocently up at him, I asked what I needed:

"What's today's date?"

"Masaya."

He turned and looked at me, smiling like I knew he would. Currently he was standing in front of the bus that would take him to the airport along with the other candidate that would go to England with him. "Ichigo, good morning." He accepted my hug and kissed my forehead. "Rainy weather today, isn't it?"

"You forgot your things," I held up a duffle bag. I knew he would do this, after all this time I could just tell.

"I'm not going." He put on his serious look, trying to make me not argue with him. "I'm going to stay here."

"No your not." I thrust it into his chest. "I packed your cloths, bathroom stuff, and a good book I picked up along the way for the plane flight, and made sure you had enough money to keep you entertained."

"Ichigo, I can't..." He tried to push the bag back at me, but I let go, making him catch it by the strap. "You need me here…"

"I'll be fine; I have my friends with me, and maybe even Kish. Lord knows he kept all five of us busy by himself all those years ago. I'm sure with him on our side things will go smoothly."

"Ichigo. You're scared."

"N-no I'm not…"

Wrapping me in a hug, he planted a small peck on my cheek. "I'll stay if you want me to."

Dear Lord I want you to stay so badly…

"Go. You've been excited about this ever since you told me. I'll be fine, don't worry." Gently I adjusted the strap on the bag for him. "Call me every day, and be sure to eat right. Don't forget to use cold water on your colored cloths and warm for your knitted ones. It's supposed to be cold up there so wear a scarf…"

"Ichigo." His voice cut off my ramble. "I lived there for a year and a half, I'll be fine."

Blushing. "Of course. I know that…"

"Oi! Masaya-kun! Let's move it!"

"They're waiting for me."

"I know…" There was a small pause before I leaned up on my tip toes and kissed him. "Be good."

"Be safe." He kissed me one more time. "I love you."

"You too." I wiped a tear away from my eye. "Go on now, before I start crying!"

With a small laugh, he trotted away, turned to run backwards and waved, then turned back around, slapping a high five with the boy waiting for him. I watched as they got on the bus and waved as it started to drive off.

My cell phone rang then, diverting my attention. Flipping it open, I moved it to my ear but didn't even speak before I heard Ryou's voice. "Mew Mew. Inland Park. Hurry."

"I'm on it."

A small explosion told me I was in the right spot as I arrived in the park, just around the water fountain. Before I could even ponder where everyone was, Mew Pudding came into view; flipping over some type of water based attack and landed next to me.

"Glad you could make it!" She greeted cheerfully, despite the battle. Her tail swung out behind her, matching her small ears as they twitched in anticipation. "There are five of them, one of each element and the last of some type of telekinetic power."

"Where is everyone else?"

"Right here."

Turning, I saw them all run and group around me. Mint, Lettuce, Zakuro, and Pudding were all in their fighting attire, radiating a strong desire to protect, fueling their energy.

"Transform, Ichigo!" Mint shouted as the enemies also regrouped.

I don't know if I can…

Holding up my hand, I called out the words that I remembered from so long ago. "Mew Mew Strawberry! Metamorphosis!"

Would it work? Can I? I'm not sure…

"Jump!"

Following Lettuce's command, I sprang into the air as lightning hit the place we were just standing. Unfortunately, everyone else seemed to be going a lot higher than I was. It was then that I noticed that only my cat ears and tail responded to my call. "I…I can't transform!"

"Rising Lightning blast!"

The verbal shout was soon followed by a loud crack of thunder and the splitting of the earth. Long yellowish white streaks of raw electrical power erupted from the ground. I barely had enough time to roll out of the way, but even though the attack missed me directly, I felt an odd shiver run over my body and down my spine. My vision got hazy and I could feel my legs going numb.

"The power of Incred's lightning is more than a meager attack," Saucer explained while my friends all landed in front of me. "The power of it will dull all off your senses by overloading the nerve endings in your body."

The man known as Incred flew lightly forward, away from the group in the air. His hair was long and blue, trailing into a long ponytail. His clothing was different than the others, having a full shirt instead of a half vest. It was white with a blue cross on it, flowing to his waist where loose blue fighting pants graced his legs. Behind him three loose strands of clothing flowed out into the air.

"That one's mine," He pointed at me with a grin. "Just like Kish said, agile but somewhat of a klutz."

"Kish!?" My world titled. Was he or was he not on my side?

"Where is he anyway?" Another asked.

"Probably somewhere trying to recover after Saucer kicked his traitors butt."

"Enough about him!" Saucer flew forward. "Divide and concur!"

It all happened so fast. Before I knew it everyone had split up, leaving me to run past another bolt of lightning. Incred swept in close and flew in front of me, making me stop dead in my tracks and look up at him, horrified.

"Now, now, Kitty. Don't run before the fun starts." Incred's voice drifted easily, as if he was really enjoying himself. "Once you and your team are out of the way, the world will be ours again. You should feel proud to have dueled with me…"

I'm scared…

"Mew Mew Strawberry!" I closed my eyes tightly. "Metamorphosis!"

"Die little cat!" He swung his fist, but I ducked out of the way and ran. My mind only realized that my legs were still too numb to fully escape when I felt the searing pain of my tail being grabbed. Being an extension of my spine, I could never stand it when it was gripped roughly. "Hey there, the fun hasn't started yet! Where you going?"

My instincts took over and I found myself turning around, slashing out with my hand. Incred's face shot to the side and four claw marks appeared on his cheek, leaking blood. He was shocked enough to let me go, which I took full advantage of. Darting away, I got to a safe distance and tried frantically to think of what to do next. My nerves were on end and my mind was too scared to let me think correctly.

"You…You cut me… you cut me!" His eyes flared. "I'll kill you!"

The surge of energy was so great that I covered my face with my arms and screamed; only waiting for it to hit me. But the cry of pain wasn't from me, it was Incred's voice.

"Picking on Ichigo… Isn't a wise thing to do."

The next thing I saw shocked me to no end. Standing in front of me was Kish, in all his glory. Incred was far away, slowly pushing up from a trench that his own body dug into the ground from whatever attack Kish had unleashed. He turned to me and looked down. "What are you doing!?" He scolded me. "Transform and fight!"

"I-I can't!" I breathed out, scared. "I tried but I can't! I can't fight! I can't protect anything! I can't, I'm too weak, and I can't! I just-"

My head ripped to the side. A stinging feeling pierced my cheek before starting to burn. Slowly my hand reached up to it and gently tested on how sensitive it was. Kish had… Just slapped me.

"You can't, huh?" He asked; voice low. "I didn't turn on my people, fly thousands of light years back to the planet that was stolen for me, and almost die just to hear you say you can't." His shoulders were shaking. "I come here, after all this time…thinking of you every day…Knowing, just knowing, that when I arrived you would hug me… Say that you missed me…But what do I get? Nothing. You ignore me, ditched me, and left me alone when I needed you… I fought my own race!" His voice shouted at me. "I did not suffer through all of this just to hear you whine about how you can't fight! I am not going to sit and watch you die! Now get up and fight!" He grabbed my arm and yanked me to my feet, glaring deep into my eyes.

His eyes…were sad, angry, and hurt. He had done so much. He went against all odds, just like I used to…Like I…I…

"Mew Mew Strawberry! Metamorphosis!"

The feeling was indescribable. Familiar and new all at the same time. The energy flowed through me like the warmth of a fire on a cold Christmas day. It filled my lungs, my heart, and my body all at the same time. I was fully complete now.

"For attacking my town," I began, glaring at Incred as he finally was able to stand. "And for hurting me and my friends, I'll be of service, nya!"

The ground under Incred shattered as he dashed forward. The dust on the ground was blown away from the sheer speed he was moving at.

It was too slow. Way too slow.

I neatly leapt to the side and grabbed his arm; slinging him out of control and making him slam into a tree. "Strawberry Bell Bell!" The item appeared in my hand. "Ribbon!"

Incred slashed his hand upward, making lightning strike. Dodging neatly into the air, I took the time to gather the power inside of me. "Strawberry Check!"

The flash of pink flared around me and shot like a bullet to my opponent. His eyes widened at the attack, and he teleported out of the way just before it struck. "This isn't over, Mew Mew!" He yelled as he faded from view. "Not over at all!"

The ground touched my feet gently. I stood, smiling, at the place where he had vanished from. "I did it…I did it… I'm a Mew Mew again!"

"I knew you could." Kish spoke behind me. Turning, I smiled brightly at him, about to say a word of thanks to the alien. But then I saw what he was holding.

"Is that…?"

"A Mew aqua drop," He finished for me, bottling it. "Incred lost it in the battle. With this I can track down the real forms of it."

"But…why do you need it?"

Kish looked away. "I'm collecting them to take back to my planet."

"But…We…I mean…"

"You need them to counter the attacks that they are planning." He gripped the small bottle in his hand.

"Kish! If they do something like you did last time, then we'll have to have the mew Aqua to counter it!"

"And I need it for my planet!" He yelled back at me. Seeing my hurt look, he softened. "Ichigo, come with me! Help me collect the Mew Aqua and return to my planet! Together we can save it!"

"I can't. I have to have them to fight for my planet."

He didn't answer for a while. "I'm sorry that it's going to be like this." He flipped the bottle into the air and caught it. "I will find them first. If anyone tries to stop me…"

"If you're going to keep them for yourself then I'll have to service you..."

"…I'll fight them with all I have!" he finished his sentence just as I did mine. "So we're enemies again."

"Seems that way."

He smirked.

I grinned. "Thanks, Kish. I owe you one. But that doesn't mean I'm going to go easy on you!"

"Ah! I wouldn't have it any other way!" His hand shot to the heavens. "Chirima Anima!" The parasitic alien appeared. "Go!"

"Ribbon Zakuro Pure!"

A purple whip of energy snapped the parasite in half neatly.

"Mint arrow!"

"Pudding Ring inferno!"

"Lettuce Rush!"

Kish skillfully dodged all the attacks and took to the air, looking down as everyone gathered around me. "Well then, I'll retreat for now since it's five on one! Ta-ta!"

"This has been a looooooooong day…" I spoke aloud after everyone stayed silent for a while.

"It's not even lunch yet."

"And I missed all of my classes already," I realized. "Oh man, I was supposed to turn in that paper on the Mejia era for Japanese Literature!"

Another small pause.

And then we laughed. Laughed long and hard, hugging each other close. "Another milestone!" Pudding exclaimed happily. "Tokyo Mew Mew!"

"Leave the future of the planet to us, nya!" We all posed. I don't know why, but we did.

And it was fun. I was no longer scared; I was happy. I knew what I had to do, and I accepted it. No longer would I run from my responsibilities or hide in the past. I was a Mew Mew, and I would protect the planet I lived on. From the new enemies, even from Kish again.

"Come on, let's go to the café."

"I'm hungry after a battle!"

"Maybe we'll get a free lunch!"

"I want a burger."

"I need to go back to work."

It was almost as if we were in the past again. Laughing. I walked with them, transforming back to our normal clothing again.