Chapter One: Kyandei
By Pikagalmish
Disclaimer: Tokyo Mew Mew belongs to Ikumi Mia-sensei and Yoshida Reiko-sensei, not poor little Sa-san. And I wouldn't own Mew Mew Power if you threatened to kill me.
Hey there, little brother,
I'm wrapping up my studies here and will be heading back to Tokyo. I'll be home on the twentieth, nine o'clock sharp! Say hi to Keii-chan for me!
Kyandei
"Voila!"
Keiichiro threw back the cloth that covered the case, and five of the girls in front of him gave squeals of delight. Even the usually-cold Zakuro gave a nod of approval.
"In honor of the one-year anniversary of the Mew Mew Project!"
"Oh, WOW, Keiichiro-san!" Berii said, her mouth watering. "You really overdid yourself this time!'
The beautifully decorated cake in front of them looked almost too good to eat. Rainbow trims overlapped the sparkling white frosting, and seven small figurines were mounted on the surface.
"Hey, this looks just like me!" Purin picked off a yellow figure, holding it up next to her.
"Purin-chan! You're ruining Keiichiro-san's cake!" Retasu cried.
"It's alright, Midorikawa-san," he smiled.
"What about you, Ryou-san? What do you think?" she asked.
The blonde teenager grunted.
"I don't care either way," he muttered, going into a back room.
"Huh? What did I say? Did I offend him?"
"What's his problem?" Ichigo frowned. "Yeesh."
"Oh, don't worry about it," Keiichiro waved it aside. "He's just been in a bad mood lately. We're about to open, so you girls get in your uniforms. I'll be in the kitchen. And you too, Meguru-kun," he added at a glare from the young boy.
They heard him humming as he prepared the pastries.
"He's right... Ryou has been in an especially bad mood lately," Ichigo said.
"And what about him? Keiichiro's been in an especially good mood lately," Minto remarked.
"Hey, what's this?" Purin poked at an orange decoration on the cake. "I didn't know there were seven of us."
"There aren't."
Before they could get a good look at it, the clock struck nine. They heard a thump from the back room, as if someone had fallen out of their chair. Keiichiro came up to the swinging doors of the kitchen, looking expectantly at the front door.
A black car pulled up to the entrance of the cafe. Ryou came running, pushing open the doors. The door on the driver's side of the car opened, and, a moment later, a girl in her late-teens came into view. Brushing back some red hair, she looked up at the cafe with unusually green eyes. Something was oddly familiar about her...
"Ryou," she said simply to the younger boy,entering the cafe.
"Kyandei."
Watching them together gave the others the chills. Keiichiro seemed to sense the friction between them, and decided to intervene.
"Ohisashiburi, Kyandei."
She turned, and upon seeing him, a smile appeared.
"Keii-chan!" she said, completely different from the cold and distant manner she had been in only moments before. "Ohisashiburi!"
The Mew Mews watched, some sweatdropping a bit. Keii-chan?
He bent down, kissing her hand, as he had when he and Ichigo first met. Ichigo felt herself turning slightly red at this thought.
"Here, a little something for you," Keiichiro put something in her hand. It was the extra figurine from the cake. He turned to the rest of them.
"Girls, this is Shirogane Kyandei. She was a key scientist in the Mew Mew Project."
"Shirogane?"
All of them stared at her, Purin's mouth slightly open.
"Yeah, my sister," Ryou muttered. "My annoying, busybody, know-it-all older sister," he added under his breath.
"EXCUSE ME?" Kyandei rounded on her younger brother. "You gaki! Take that back or I'll force you to!"
"Gaki, gaki!" a little fox in her shirt pocket poked its head out.
"Shut up, Ki," Ryou growled.
"Can we try and get through the day without you two trying to kill each other?" Keiichiro said calmly, pushing them apart. "Now, Ryou, Kyandei hasn't been home for two years. Try to get along, will you?"
After another moment of silent hatred passing between the two, they turned, each huffing, "Fine!". Ryou headed up the stairs, and they heard a bedroom door slam.
"These are the Mew Mews," Keiichiro gestured toward the younger girls.
"Eh? I thought the plan was to inject five girls, Keii-chan..."
"Er, long story..."
"So, where have you been all this time?" Ichigo asked during her lunch break.
"I've been studying abroad in New York," Kyandei replied, sipping her tea. "I left about a year before the Mew Mew Project was planned to begin; I'm planning on finishing college at Tokyo U... No, Ki! Don't jump!"
Too late.
The little fox leapt onto the plate Keiichiro was holding, landing squarely on the jelly bun. Grape-flavored filling flew everywhere.
"Oh, this is just nasty..." Minto muttered, looking at her ruined uniform.
"So what's the story behind her?" Berii asked, licking some jelly off of her fingers.
"About a year into the Mew Mew Project, Kyandei found a wounded fox cub outside of our apartment," Keiichiro explained, wiping himself off with a handkerchief. "It was too late to save it, but we had some extra DNA samples from our tests, so with a few modifications, we created Ki."
The tiny animal's large eyes followed Masha around the room.
"EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!"
Ki sank her fangs into the robot, clinging on as Masha flew around frantically.
"Get it off, get it off!" it squealed.
"Ki, off," Kyandei commanded firmly, snapping her fingers.
Ki let go instantly.
"She still enjoys torturing R2000, I see," she said, scooping Ki up from the floor.
"It's Masha now," Ichigo told her, petting Masha comfortingly.
"Finally, someone had enough sense to get rid of that ridiculous name," Kyandei said approvingly.
"Uh, guys?" Purin poked her head into the room. "I think you should come see this..."
The five of them joined Purin in the control room, along with Zakuro and Meguru. Ryou was talking to someone, his face hidden in the shadows.
"Ah, it's my little kitty cat!"
Ichigo gasped, spinning around. Her fist made contact with Kisshu's face.
"Ow! What's the big idea?" he demanded.
"I'm taken, you jerk!" she shouted.
"Who are they?" Berii asked, looking at Taruto, who was being hugged by Purin.
"The aliens who first created the Chimera Anima," Zakuro said.
"So are they the bad guys, or what?" Berii cocked her head, confused.
"Not anymore," Ryou said, coming over. Pai was behind him. He glanced at Zakuro. She quickly looked away, feeling awkward.
"So what's up?" Ichigo asked. "Why are you guys on Earth?"
"It's odd, really," Pai said. "We've been monitoring the Chimera Anima on Earth, and apparently, they're becoming stronger on their own."
"What?"
He nodded.
"It's probably the Earth's climate; they're now able to merge with much stronger hosts. It's not exactly good."
"How many of them did you leave on Earth?" Retasu asked.
"A couple dozen," Taruto replied. "You guys got rid of quite a few of them, but I think those humans who used them a while ago managed to create more."
"You won't see as many, though," Kisshu said. "The reason they're becoming stronger is that they've learned to merge with each other, therefore strengthening any host that they find."
"Well, life should be more interesting around here now," Minto said with an air of boredom. Ichigo twitched.
"We should be getting back," Pai said. "Good luck."
With that, they disappeared.
"Keii-chan, any luck?"
The neon light from the screen lit up the man's determined face.
"Not yet. I can't seem to get a lock on any unusual activity; it should be easier now that they're stronger."
"You can stop now. I've found one," Ryou came into the room. "Contact the Mew Mews; we're heading to the park."
The setting sun glowed in the horizon. Minto shifted uncomfortably.
"This place feels odd..."
"It's the Chimera Anima," Zakuro said, looking around.
Kyandei was holding a pocket laptop, scanning the area.
"It's all over the park; I can't pinpoint it," she said.
"Then we'll just have to wait," Purin said.
"WATCH OUT!" Retasu shrieked, pointing at a dark shape behind Kyandei.
She turned, then jumped just in time. The Chimera Anima, apparently a transformed squirrel, slashed at her with its paw, ripping off the choker around her neck.
"Wha-?" Ichigo exclaimed, seeing an odd mark on the front of her neck.
Kyandei didn't reply, but instead took out a small pendant.
"Mew Mew Kyandei Metamorphosis!"
Hi there, everyone! Hope you're enjoying the story so far. :3 I have the story pretty much planned out; I just need to write itit, so it should be updated frequently enough. Until next time!
- Sa-san