xuri: ZOMG halfway mark. xD That's right folks. Thirteen chapters down, thirteen to go. Meaning, if I can keep up this breakneck-update-pace, thirteen days until the final chapter. Duna. Duna. Dun dun dun dun dunnnn. -suspense- I bet you're sick of all this by now, but, meh. Deal with it. x3 (I love you all!)
SamKo: It actually is. xD Several times as I'm typing these Masaya luvluv chapters, I'm tempted to simultaneously gag and suddenly write 'Just then, Ichigo realized her love for ugly Masaya was FAKE and her REAL love was a certain blonde bishounen who had always been there for her!' -fangirl squeal- xD However, not only would that be breaking character (in this fic anyway), it would distract from the plot. And we don't want that. No no nos. So I restrain myself. xD And yeah, that's anagrams. I think. ;3 Basically, I'm trying to figure out an anagram that would sound like a computer program name for either LOVELY or MIZUKI, but they're long words so it mostly comes out as jumbled nonsense. Tragic.
Applecake: Fwee, I couldn't stop smiling when I read your uberly long review. Especially when it came to the part about Ari being so evil it's adorable. Which is true, really. -hugs Ari plushie- And I'm especially proud of her because she's the only OC that I own completely, even though most of these characters were fleshed out by me anyways. Yay Ari. -heart- Heee, I'm so happy people aren't on a killing rampage because of the length. The last three chapters especially are really...really...long. xD Is it so obvious that I like words? Because I do. I do like words. That's why I use so many of them. Wow. What talent. xD
Blend (chapter thirteen)
...a fear overcome...
Ichigo fell to her knees.
The world seemed to fall all around her, as she stared at the empty space infront of her eyes where Ari had been just moments ago, holding her Masaya, knocked out, hurt, in her arms. Now they were gone. They were both gone.
And for once, Ichigo had absolutely nothing to say.
"U...unh..." Breathing heavy, Kona managed to push herself upright from the rocks without deepening her already-bleeding wounds, her body seeming too weak to function. Her blue eyes flickered in search of Hanajima, but she had disapeared along with Ari. She would have grimaced, but it hurt too much. Ichigo had been right. That entire attack had just been a distraction.
Ari must have known somehow, about Ichigo and Aoyama-san's date... what perfect timing, then, and how well it worked that we were so easily fooled...
"Ichigo..." The girl managed, dragging her body away from the rocks and onto the soft grass where she could sit more comfortably. Her black-gloved fingers ran across her face, rubbing little streaks of dried blood from her skin. "I'm... I'm sorry...," She said slowly, carefully, and when she got no response from the heap that was Ichigo, she continued, "We should have been more careful... I dunno... but-"
Roxi was up now too, quietly. She hadn't been wounded as badly, but whatever had happened to her was ten times worse because of the damage from the previous day that was still healing. Transforming back into her normal form, the brunette walked over to the wildcat-girl's side, and then gently laid a hand on her shoulder.
"Ichigo-chan," She said softly, tilting her head to see the face hidden from view, "We'll get him back for you. Aoyama-senpai will be OK..."
"But Ari..." Ichigo choked, a tear splashing to the ground. She lifted her head to look at Roxi, her pink eyes brimming with tears, her face stained with the ones that had already fallen, "Ari has him, Roxi! She... she wants me to suffer... and she'll do it through him!" Sniffling, she managed to hold off for another second before wretching a sob and flinging forward, hugging Roxi tightly and crying into her shoulder. Looking only a little alarmed, Roxi hugged her back, patting her gently on the head.
"It'll be okay," She soothed, and silently looked up at Kona and the others, "We promise."
Kikyo was already up, and was helping Yumi climb to be feet, both silent amid the crying of Ichigo. It filled the air with sounds of sorrow, fear, helplessness... emotions she conveyed to them only too well. And they all stood around her, searching for words of comfort, and they knew -- they knew they would have to find Ari and Masaya.
--
"Thanks, Roxi," Ichigo said in a muffled voice, still a little weak from the earlier outburst. She was sitting currently in Roxi's kitchen, dabbing at her face with a fluffy white towel, for lack of any tissues or Kleenex. Roxi was sure she had some, somewhere in this house... the girl sweatdropped. It just seemed like too much work, and, besides, she didn't have the heart to leave Ichigo alone.
The girl was a wreck. She'd stopped crying a few minutes ago, and the girls said they'd go report to Ryou and Keiichiro as soon as possible. But even now, Ichigo's face was streaked with tears, her amber eyes red and her nose sniffly. Even just her expression was in a sad kind of pain, regardless of any faux smiles she tried to put on. The dress Kikyo had gived her was laid out on the table before her now, a bit scratched up, and Ichigo now wore a baggy hoodie and skirt borrowed from Roxi.
"It's no problem," She replied quietly with a little shrug, and went to just quickly scan the kitchen. Ichigo seated herself on a stool, covering her face in the towel as she tried to calm down some more.
She just wasn't sure it was working.
Everytime she tried to think 'calm down Ichigo, stop crying, clear your head,', she kept getting this image of Masaya being pulled into the darkness by unrelenting Ari, her mind's eyes zooming in on his blank and unconsious face. It brought the tears again, and she buried her face where no one could see it.
Aoyama-kun... Oh, god, why is this happening?... How can I just be sitting here, while you're in danger? I should be helping! I should...
But the girl was hardly in a state to do anything, let alone help. She just brought her knees to her chest in a tight hug, and let the tears come out silently until they wouldn't come anymore. It was then Roxi walked over with something in her hands.
"Well, we don't have any kleenex..." Roxi looked annoyed at that - who didn't have tissues in their house, anyways? - but held the plate in her outstretched hands, "But we've got chocolate." She grinned. "It's the next best thing."
--
"So... what's the problem?"
"We told you," Kona repeated loudly, trying to get Ryou's attention. He wouldn't pull away from the screen infront of him. "Aoyama-san's been kidnapped by Ari. We have no idea why, but Ichigo thinks it's a way to get back at her. It's...- are you even listening?"
Ryou shrugged as Kona snapped at him, and the other girls just stepped aside. "Mm-hm, I am. I don't see what you think you're going to do about it..."
Kona glowered at that, her blue eyes taking on a look of menace. "Isn't it obvious?" she growled, "We're going to rescue him, baka."
He raised an eyebrow at that. "Did you just - " Pausing, the boy decided to ignore the 'idiot' comment, and continued typing, taking a swig from his water bottle. "And just how do you all plan to go about doing that? It's not like you can just run around town and hope to find her. The alien's probably hiding this time, with that boy."
There was silence in response to that. Ryou, content with the short explanation, set his bottle down and went to furiously typing on his keyboard again, blue eyes scanning through the information on the screen almost hungrily. For a few moments, Kona was quiet, before she sighed to herself. "You want to know what I think?" She went on bitterly. Obviously, Kona didn't care what Ryou thought about what she thought, because she continued without so much of a nod as consent, "I think you couldn't care less about this boy being hurt. In fact, I think that's what you want."
At this, Ryou stopped, the clattering of keys halting. Then in one abrupt movement, he shifted around to face her, expression dead serious. "Do you honestly think I'm not taking this seriously?" He questioned calmly, "That I see this all as some big joke, that I can do as I please without consequence?"
"No," Kona matched him in her serious tone. "I think you want Aoyama-san out of the picture so you can have Ichigo all to yourself."
"Ehm," Clearing her throat, Roxi quickly stepped up to keep an awkward silence from befalling the room. When both heads, as well as Kikyo and Yumi's behind her, turned to face the girl, she realized she had better have something to say for interupting such a dramatic conversation. Then it popped into her head, thank god. "Have you searched for any tracings of Ari nearby, Ryou-san? If we can even get an idea of where she is, then..."
Turning back to the computer, he blipped out of something and pulled up a digital map on the screen. "I have it on the monitor, but nothing's shown up yet," He replied grimly, not noticing a frusterated Kona walking away, "I'll keep it on alert, though. Until then... there's really nothing for you to be doing. The aliens have their presences pretty well masked, so it's almost impossible to track them down, even if they are nearby." He turned his head to look at the girls, standing to his feet, "So really, all you girls can do now is go home and act normally. If you find any leads, no matter how small, wait until you are all together before going out and trying anything. We don't want to find any of you beaten and unconsious."
Ryou glanced at them, and they all nodded in confirmation, Kona a bit grudgingly. Right afterwards, he dismissed them, and they all headed back up the stairs, talking quietly. Once all four had left, he shut the door behind them and made his way back over to the computer, sitting back down. The boy clicked around a bit, checking for any signs of Ari, just like he promised, before opening another window entirely. It was a map as well, but there were red lines traced along streets, as well as a blinking red dot. The sight of it seemed to invite a frown to his face.
"Avoiding roads and public areas... straying mostly in parks and forests..." The light of the computer shining into his eyes made him blink, and furrow his brows.
"...So... who are you?"
--
"I'll see you tommorow, Ichigo-chan," Roxi had said, just as the mentioned redhead stepped down from the porch of her friend's house. As Ichigo walked home in silence, she wasn't so sure. 'See you tommorow' had been such a simple, innocent phrase - Roxi had just been talking about school, and the cafe. But that seemed so unlikely, as common as it usually was.
For one thing, she doubted she'd be getting much sleep. And for another... well, how could she just bear school and cafe duties, when her boyfriend was out there somewhere, under the captivity of an alien?
Her mouth felt sour. Of course, there was always the possibility it was an illusion, created by Hanajima. She checked her cell phone while crossing the street. No calls. Ichigo sighed in distress. If it had been an illusion, Masaya would have gone to the restaurant, and waited, and when she didn't show up, he'd call to ask what was wrong. So, there disapeared that tiny thread of hope.
Now all she had to hold onto was the danger he was in.
Upon arriving back home, Ichigo skipped her meal (she hadn't the slightest idea what time it was, and she felt sick anyways) and went straight to her room. She dumped the contents of her sleepover bag, and changed out of Roxi's borrowed clothes and into her pyjamas, before plunking face down on her bed.
"A...Aoyama-kun," She whispered, blinking back the mist of tears she felt gathering in her eyes. All that plagued her mind was thought after thought, horror after horror. So Ichigo closed her eyes, tried to shut her mind off.
And to her dull surprise, the girl fell asleep almost instantly.
It must have been the fatigue, she reasoned with her dream-self; after all, how tired must Ichigo have been after engaging in a difficult battle, and then having to spend the rest of the day in a state of reckless worry? Her body accepted sleep the moment it offered its careful hand. And with that, she was whisked off to a (hopefully) pleasant dream.
Her mind decided to show mercy that night. There were no horrible darknesses, no voices taunting her stress, no fire dancing around important images. At first, there was nothing, but slowly little dabs of flowers and gentle music began to flood her mind's eye, and Ichigo felt oddly comforted and safe. The sky was drawn in gentle, pastel colours, meeting the soft green grass in a gentle blending. It was like a sanctuary; quiet, comforting, sacred. She breathed the mind-created air and relaxed, the cheerful images playing out all around her.
It was interrupted soon enough.
"Who's missing from this picture?" In her warm daze, Ichigo was unsure whether she had really heard it or not. She felt her own reply coming easily, without a second thought.
"My Masaya..." She answered with a sigh, imagining the feel of grass against her palms, "Where is he? Where's Aoyama-kun?"
"Aoyama-kun, Aoyama-kun... but he won't come, will he?"
Ichigo pouted at that, trying to scoot over to the flowers, almost in hope they would make the soft voice go away. "Why not? Why won't Aoyama-kun come?"
"...Because he's my prisoner..."
Just like that, the entire dream-image shattered before Ichigo's eyes, into a million glass shards. They fell all around her, decorating the darkness she was now surrounded by. As if awoken from a spell, Ichigo stared in horror, memories flooding to her attention. "Where is he?" She demanded more strongly this time, but feeling weak on the inside.
"Somewhere you can't go... never."
"How am I supposed to help him, then?"
"Meet me," It echoed in reply, almost joyously in torment, "In the place we first met. Not as a facade, but where you met the real me, the fear that constantly grows in your heart."
"I don't fear you, Ari," Ichigo growled, feeling anger bubbling in her chest, "I'm not afraid of you."
There seemed to be laughter in response to that, fading off into the distance until silence was all she could hear. Then her mind stirred, and Ichigo opened her eyes back to reality.
For a moment, she just stared up at the ceiling, almost in wonder. Then, her eyes shut, and when they opened again, were filled with a sort of determination.
"I'm not afraid of you, Ari," Ichigo whispered.
--
That morning, Ichigo marched downstairs, intense determination flaring in her eyes. Then, when Sakura Momomiya caught sight of her and rushed over to greet her, she remembered the plan. And wondered why it had escaped her attention.
"Eh...ha!" Instantly, she let out a cough, bending over and clutching the stairframe for effect. Her mother stopped in her tracks, a look of confusion appearing on her face instead of worry. Ichigo winced. In an attempt to be more convincing, she let out a few more coughs and clutched at her chest, quickly running a hand through her hair to make it looked mussed (instead of carefully combed down with hairspray and gel). Unable to see her mother from the angle she sat, Ichigo waited nervously.
"Ichigo...?"
"Uh, uh, I feel really s-sick!" She sputtered, standing upright and stumbling a bit to the side. Sakura blinked. Then, letting out an anxious giggle, the red haired girl quickly turned around, let out a few more coughs,and hurried up the stairs. She could could hear her mother calling a short 'But - ' from behind, before she disapeared into her own room and shut the door.
Breathing a sigh of relief, Ichigo leaned up against the door, ignoring any muffled protest. Sick people are too busy being sick, she reminded herself, and waited until they stopped. When she heard her mom and dad talking in their normal cheery chatter, she knew the coast was clear and she was no longer the center of attention.
Glancing at the clock, she started grabbing some clothes to change into - something she could easily move around in. Afterwards, the girl grabbed a smaller backpack and put her cellphone, as well as some other trinkets, inside. She slung it over her shoulder, and quickly checked outside her door, peering down the staircase. Her mother seemed occupied, preparing some sort of food off in the kitchen. Taking a deep breath, she crept back into her room and over to the window, sliding it open and clambering over the edge.
"I'll be back soon," Ichigo silently promised herself as she sprung from the windowsil to a tree using her cat reflexes.
"Right now, I need to find Aoyama-kun."
--
Roxi wasn't surprised. Really, she wasn't.
"Momomiya Ichigo, absent," The secretary stated, glancing up from the computer at the inquiring. Roxi sighed. But she'd expected that, hadn't she?
"Okay, thanks," She managed a little smile, but the woman didn't seem to care. She just went back to her work, wordlessly sending Roxi away.
The girl had come to the administrator's office for one simple reason - Ichigo wasn't at school. Cherri had said it well enough. "Either she's really, really, reaaaallly late, or something traumatic happened. Or, she could just be sick. That seems too normal for Ichigo, though." And hadn't Roxi even told herself the girl would be out of it, if she showed up at all? Even now, she didn't believe for a second that the girl was ill.
Illness of the heart, maybe. Ichigo was so loyal to that boy - that Masaya - that Roxi wouldn't be surprised if the strawberry-head had already plunged off a cliff for his sake. She hoped it hadn't come to that. But, with a glance to the clock, Roxi was helpless to do anything for... about another 4 hours. She sighed in distress as she headed for her locker.
School. Why does it have to interfere with saving the world?
--
A pink length of fabric fluttered around the corner of a building. A man passing by blinked, perhaps thinking he had been seeing things, before swiftly moving on. He had business to take care of, after all. Pink things were hardly enough to distract him from that.
Pressing her body up against a wall, Ichigo tilted her head to see out the alley and breathed in relief. There were too many people around. Looking down at herself, she couldn't help but think that transforming ahead of time wasn't the best idea. Besides that, she now held her strawberry bell in a pink gloved hand - if anyone saw, they'd either be very confused or ready to 'shoot the mutant'.
All the more reason for Ichigo to hurry.
Making sure that no one else lurked around the corner, Ichigo hurried on, darting from side to side and always checking to ensure there was no one around. No one was. It was an abandoned alley, after all. The alley where alien Ari and transformed Ichigo had met, face to face, true forms. Was she reluctant to believe a dream-voice? A little. Under normal circumstances, she would have hesitated, even waited for further notice before jumping out and doing something like this. But this was Masaya. Any leads, any clues... she wouldn't hesitate, not for a second, if it meant a way to find him.
I will find you!
Dashing quickly around another corner, Ichigo took a second to catch her breath before moving on. This had to be where Ari meant, right? In her dream, she - whether it was a conjuration of Ichigo's imagination, or an actual message - had said, specifically "Meet me in the place where we first met". That wouldn't have been the school, then, right? Why would she want to fight, or at least confront, Ichigo in a Science classroom? Besides... hadn't Ari even said to meet where they met as 'not as a facade, but where you met the real me'? As in, the real alien Ari?
"This has to be it," She panted, hurrying swiftly down the abandoned alleyway, "This has to be!"
She didn't notice the black feather that drifted to the ground behind her footsteps.
Keeping up the pace, she began to feel as if she were running in circles. Around, and around, without a destination... but she had to be getting close. She remembered, almost exactly, the spot in the alley where Ari had snuck up on her, threatened and revealed herself for who she really was, and what her intentions were. It was implanted in her memory. Now she just had to find it.
"Ari!" She shouted, not expecting an answer. She was nearly out of breath, nearly on the verge of having to slow down. She just wanted to feel like she was doing something...
That's when she heard it. "Ichigo..." Her running lurched to a halt. Ichigo's eyes widened, and she felt her blood turn to ice. That voice hadn't been Ari's.
...It was Masaya's.
Whirling around, she was faced with the rippling air-image of two people, slowly coming into view. Ari, her alien ears protruding from her dark blue hair, wore a heavy overcoat, hands buried deep in the pockets. She was smirking. But that didn't have Ichigo's attention.
The pink-haired catgirl was focused solely on the dark haired boy leaning against the wall beside her.
"Ao...yama-kun!" She cried, and instinctively ran forward. A hand forcefully shot out infront of her face, blocking her way, not allowing her to come any closer. Ari cast her a sidelong glance.
"You remembered," The alien noted, almost in glee. With a thoughtful look, she glanced absently up at the sky, smiling tauntingly. "You remembered. How sweet. I'd have thought you would have been running around blindly." Then she laughed.
While Ari was seemingly distracted with her own childish taunts, Ichigo attempted to duck under her hand and run at Masaya. She only got a few steps closer when a cold hand grabbed at her arm, jerking her backwards.
"No candy for you, neko," Ari seethed and smiled, pulling Ichigo over to face her. Ichigo flinched, feeling her nails digging into her skin.
"L-let him..." Biting her lip, Ichigo mustered her most brave look, "...Let him go!"
"Ah-ah-ah," She clicked her tongue and wagged her finger, as if lecturing a young child, "What fun would that be? You haven't learned a thing. Neko should know nothing in life is free..." Her last remark had a strangely serious air to it.
"What do you want?" Ichigo demanded, only to feel Ari's icy grip on her bare arm tighten. She didn't let the pain show on her face. She just frowned, and breathed in deep. You're not afraid, Ichigo. Don't let her think you're afraid! "I'll fight you! Is that what you want? To see me hurt, to see me and everyone I care for suffer? Just give me Masaya back!"
With a remorseful sigh, Ari flashed her a grin and shoved the girl roughly backwards, quite a few paces away. When Ichigo caught her balance, she saw the alien standing just to the side of Masaya, her arms out at her sides, the long sleeves of her overcoat almost reaching her fingertips. "Maybe so," She said softly, and licked her lips. Then, in a booming voice, she continued, "Or maybe I want revenge. A loss for a loss. Pain for pain. I told you already, Ichigo-neko; You took someone precious from me. So I've just returned the favour."
"What are you talking about?" Ichigo cried in disbelief, brushing a hand over the nail-marks on her arms, "You keep telling me I've... I've bewitched Kishu. I don't know how you got that idea into your head, Ari..." Gritting her teeth in an attempt to look stronger, she planted her feet firmly in the ground, feeling hatred burning in her eyes, "...but have you ever thought how delusional that claim is? Why would I want to bewitch an alien?"
Anger flashed in the other's eyes, but it was replaced by something amused, something cruel. "I don't question the motives of a sorceress," She said quietly, a wisp of hair falling over her eyes, "I just let her suffer how much we have. You can't possibly know what my kind has been through..."
"How was I supposed to know?" Ichigo shot back, taking a determined step forward. She knew what the aliens had lived under, why Kishu and the others had come to Earth in the first place. And she knew there was no way she could fully understand the extent of their suffering, but... how was Ari attacking her supposed to help? "What does that have to do with Masaya? What do I have to do to get him back?"
Ari shrugged at that, passing it off as unimportant. Clearly, she was not here to argue further about the many faults of Ichigo. Another day. "He's mine, of course. Finders keepers," She revealed a sly grin at that, waving her hand to keep Ichigo from charging her just then. "But you seem to really care about him, neko. How about I make you a deal?..."
She left it at that, obviously waiting for Ichigo's consent. The catgirl visibly hesitated, trying to look as defensive as possible. Could this just be another trap?.. "What?" She asked coldly, keeping a solid glare.
Sighing, she made a 'tsk tsk' sound and a little mutter about her attitude, before holding a hand out, palm face up. A dagger rested in her palm. "I believe you have the other one," She said slowly, her golden eyes trailing down to meet the metal object, "It doesn't matter. But just so you know, don't underestimate me... My power is still the same." Obviously, the stare Ichigo gave her prompted her to 'get to the point' wordlessly. "But I have a proposition. You offered a fight. I'll give you a fight. No weapons for me, no weapons for you. A true test of power and strength. If you can fight me off, you can have your little Aoyama back... if not..." She sniggered at that, cocking an eyebrow, "Well, I've won then, haven't I, neko?"
"Fighting?" Gripping her Strawberry Bell defensively, she levelled a glare with Ari. "Why would I do that? Why would you do that?... More importantly, why would I even trust you? Anytime, let alone in hand-to-hand combat?"
"Come now, you're not really going to hide behind your little fuzz-bell all this time, are you?" Shaking her head in disapointment, Ari shifted the direction of her arm so she held the sai sideways, clutched tight in her fingers, "You know I'll only grow immune to it eventually, anyways. Besides. You don't have a choice..." Ichigo's eyes widened in horror when she realized how Ari had backed up, and was now pressing the side of the knife against Masaya's neck. The unconsious boy winced and Ichigo could see blood. "Or, maybe you do. But I don't think you'd like the alternative..."
"Stop!" Ichigo cried with a little sob, not tearing her eyes away from Masaya. On the verge of tears, she swallowed, as Ari pulled the weapon only an inch away, ready to close in again if she tried anything. Squeezing her eyes shut, Ichigo took a deep breath and set her bell down, taking a few steps away from it. "Fine. I'll... fight you," She said quietly, closing her fists and looking off to the side. "Just... just don't hurt him... please don't hurt him..."
Ari grinned. "I knew you'd like it."
Releasing her hold on the knife, everything else was silent as the metal clattered against the concrete, greeted by the usual sounds of cars rushing by and refineries blasting their horns. The sound of civilization, off in the distance, too far away to reach and yet close enough to boom in Ichigo's ears...
"GO!" The moment the weapon lay still against the cold surface, Ari sprang forward, tackling Ichigo in the gut before she could react at all. She landed with a thud on the ground, swearing she heard a crack, and lay temporarily paralyzed as Ari aimed a punch at her face. Letting out a squeak, Ichigo managed to roll out of the way, catching her breath and climbing hastily to her feet. Ari took a run at her again, but she was quick to dodge, and sent a light kick at the alien in hopes of knocking her over. As Ari struggled to catch her balance again, Ichigo's eyes fell over her bell that lay only a few feet away. She could get rid of Ari then. But then her gaze cast upon Masaya, who was also only a pace away from Ari. Ichigo felt her muscles tense. There's no way I can put him at risk like that...
Obviously quick on the uptake, Ari was eager to fight back, a wild grin on her face. She charged sideways at Ichigo, who only barely managed to sidestep out of the way without a chance to return the attack. Ichigo felt a harsh rap on her shoulder, and clutched it momentarily from Ari's hit. "Ungh..." The alien's energy wasn't going down at all. In fact, the fighting only seemed to make it grow, and Ichigo could swear she could see her power radiating from her skin.
"Kishu-sama!" Ari called out with a wild laugh, her gloved hands trailing idly across her lips before she jumped back into the fray. "Don't you see? Don't you see how weak this witch really is?"
"Enough!" Ichigo screamed, and leapt high into the air, trying to land a fumbled jump-kick at Ari. All it resulted in was the alien grabbing her by the ankle, pulling her down, and Ichigo managing to push the other to the ground before she fell herself. Gasping and feeling as if her skin were raw from all the scratches and bruises, Ichigo struggled to get up. Her lips began to move, barely able to form words. "There's no reason for you to be doing this, Ari...!"
"Oh, but there is! For Kishu-sama..." One minute, Ichigo heard the words from a distance, and the next from directly above her. Her head snapped upright. Ari positioned her own gloved fist. "...And ifor you/i!" The hard attack hit Ichigo square in the face, sending a riot of pain through her jaw. Letting out a scream of pain, Ichigo felt her leg hit a wall as she tumbled a few paces back, hand clutching a slightly bloodied cheek. Her body wanted so badly to submit, to slip into unconsiousness so she wouldn't have to feel this anymore. But her heart still saw Masaya, still safe, still untouched. What would Ari do to him if Ichigo was out? Wasn't her goal to just hurt her more?
"A-aoyama-kun..." She breathed, straightening up, trying to summon all her power. "I'll stay strong... I'll stay strong, for you..." Taking one last breath, she dashed forwards, feeling her power eminating from her fingertips. Apparently Ari felt it too. And for one brief moment, she looked frightened. Ichigo hazily thought just seconds later that maybe it had all been a facade. Maybe it had just been a trick, so when Ichigo went in for her attack, Ari would have the chance to grab her arm, twist her around, and get the girl into a headlock with her arm wrapped around her neck. Or maybe, Ichigo thought, trying to keep her airway open, maybe she really had been afraid.
"You're such a brat, neko," Ari growled, narrowing her eyes and tightening her grip. Ichigo tried to gasp. "Getting in the way of everything. But you're nothing special. If you didn't have these animal powers... you'd be nothing. You are nothing."
Somewhere in speaking, Ari loosened her grip only slightly around Ichigo. Just slightly enough. Taking the chance, Ichigo's hands flew up and gripped her sleeve, and not having any other way to fight back, she bit hard into the alien's arm. Crying out in shock more than pain, Ari released her, and Ichigo dashed forward, making a dive for her Strawberry Bell. She was hit hard in the back first, knocked to the ground with a thud. Sputtering, Ichigo rolled onto her back hastily in an attempt to get up, only to have Ari pin her down by shoulders, kneeling on top of her.
Ichigo faintly noticed, in her own try for breath, that Ari was breathless herself, some sweat having gathered on the blue haired girl's brow. At least she's not invincible, Ichigo mused silently to herself, and made a growling noise in her throat as she struggled against the hold.
Ari hesitated, and then grinned, staring down at Ichigo with firey gold eyes. Then, without warning, her left hand shot up from one of her captive's shoulder, and before the catgirl could do anything, she felt the length of an arm press its way across her neck and saw something glint in the dim sunlight.
Her pink eyes widened. "You..." She was unable to move, unable to struggle, even her muscles refusing to budge any further. But Ari was right above her, with a bronze dagger clutched in her hand, held and pointed a few feet above Ichigo's chest. Just the sight made her feel faint. "...You said no weapons..."
Ari just grinned. "Witches don't play by the rules," And with a wild look of excitement in her eyes, she reeled her arm back and thrust the sai at Ichigo's heart. Ichigo felt everything turn to a piercing white, her mind numbing itself, everything seeming to freeze at that moment, that one second, even the swirling of her mind coming to an abrupt halt.
There was a loud clash of metal, and outcry, and then Ichigo felt the weight of Ari being knocked off of her. Wait. Was she supposed to feel anything, when she was dead? Still hardly able to think, her hand immediately flew to her right side, to her heart, where she felt no wound and no blood. Her eyes closed and she felt the sheet of panic lifting off of her, letting heavy coughs and heaves through that would not come before. As she tried to catch her breath and clear up her mind, Ichigo heard a fight going on - yelling, cursing, all too jumbled for her to make out. There were more clashes of metal, but not as many; as she rolled onto her side, Ichigo felt the cool metal of Ari's dagger brush up against her arm.
Is it him? It only occured to her then, that whoever had appeared and was now fighting Ari was the elemental swordsman. No, that couldn't be it. She heard only two voices; one was the screeching, cursing voice of the alien Ari. The other was distinctly female.
So... Ichigo lay perfectly still, unable to move. She willed her muscles to break free of their tension, but they were still recovering, and her mind was still a mess from the near death panic. ..Who is it then?
Something happened then, something Ichigo couldn't see. She could barely even make it out with her ears, but the battle had ended. One last swing of a metal weapon, and a body crumpling to the ground, letting out a few angry words before the voice faded off into the distant. Then it was silent, though she could hear gentle footsteps.
I want to see her... I want to know who she is... Finally finding the will to move, Ichigo pressed her hands against the ground and pushed herself up, opening her eyes with much difficulty and tilting her head so she could see forward. Her vision was blurred and shaky, so horribly she almost missed the figure there. But she saw, faintly - dark from head to toe, long black hair waving lightly in the wind. And there were wings - black wings. Or... was there only one?
"You..." Ichigo only managed to say in a breath. She heard the sound of a sword entering its sheath with a click. She wanted to ask who she was, thank her, talk to her, something... But her arms chose that moment to give out on her, sending her face flat against the ground again. When she managed to cough the dust out of her lungs and look up again, the figure was gone. So was Ari. She looked from side to side - she was alone.
No. No, I'm not, Eyes falling over Masaya, energy and strength suddenly sparked back into her body and she practically leapt over to where he was, grabbing him gently but firmly by the shoulders.
"Aoyama-kun!" She choked, having to try several times to get her voice as she shook the boy almost violently. A tear ran down her face in desperation. "Aoyama-kun... Aoyama-kun! Please, please, wake up!"
"Ih..."
After being shaken quite enough, the boy's eyes squeezed tightly, and then slowly opened, focusing in on the pink haired girl before him. Ichigo's eyes widened in relief. "...Ichigo?"
"Aoyama-kun!" She cried out, tears splashing from her eyes and she sprang forward and hugged him tightly, burying her face in his shoulder. Realizing he might be hurt, she quickly pulled away, looking him over quickly. "Masaya... are you alright? What did she do? Did she hurt you? Poison you? Do you know who I am? Are - "
A little bit of life returned to his dark eyes as he chuckled softly, a chuckle of someone exhausted. "I'm fine, Ichigo," He said rather hoarsely, but smiled. "Are you okay, though? You look... Oh, Ichigo, I didn't realize the aliens had come back. I'm so sorry." There was a look of guilt on his face, but Ichigo couldn't figure out why. It was as if he'd done something he shouldn't have.
A smile trembled onto her lips, and she sniffed a little bit. "How could you have? I'm just so glad you're not hurt... I was so scared!"
Masaya just smiled again, shifting a bit as his body seemed to be in the process of waking up still. "Don't worry, Ichigo... just... smile. It's you."
With that, the pink haired girl pulled Masaya into a tight hug again, crying a little bit out of relief and pent up worry. Holding him tightly against her, she let the tears run from her eyes, leaning against Masaya's shoulder and holding the back of his head gently with her hand.
"I'll never let her take you away from me again, Masaya," She whispered, and closed her eyes. "Never."
--
Next Chapter:
The heart is a fragile thing - so easy to darken, so simple to break. The strings of Kona's heart have been pulled especially lately, making her vulnerable and easy to hurt. It becomes a simple task for an enemy to find that weakness and exploit it for all that it's worth. With Ichigo temporarily unable to participate, in battle or in work, things are becoming a little edgy for all the girls. Not to mention the mysterious appearences of a one-winged angel...