Sparks of Love Chapter 4:
Ichigo's Recovery
A few hours later, Kisshu was stroking Ichigo's hair, and getting tired. Looking at the clock, he realized it was after midnight, and decided he'd be better off getting some rest while Ichigo did the same. He slid under the covers carefully, smiling a bit as Ichigo snuggled up to him. He fell asleep pretty quickly as she started purring.
The next morning, Kisshu was woken by someone shaking him. He sleepily opened his eyes to see Ichigo's worried face about two inches from his own. "Koneko-chan, is something wrong?" he asked.
"Are you okay?" Ichigo asked, puzzling Kisshu.
"I'm fine, why?" Kisshu asked.
"I guess it was just a dream…" Ichigo said. "I dreamed that we were sleeping together, but when I tried to wake you up, you didn't wake up, and then you vanished. And then I felt really lonely, and started crying."
Kisshu sat up, and said, "Don't worry, I'm fine."
"You're not going to vanish?" Ichigo asked.
"No, I'll stay with you," Kisshu said with a smile. "How are you feeling today?"
"Better, I think," Ichigo said. "I noticed the cuts are gone. Pai's good at healing, isn't he?"
"One of the best," Kisshu said. "But I don't think anyone can heal blood loss. I don't know why."
"Can I try standing?" Ichigo asked.
"Are you sure?" Kisshu asked.
"I feel stronger," Ichigo said.
"Let me get up first," Kisshu said, getting up and coming around to her side of the bed. "I don't want you to fall again."
"Thanks," Ichigo said. She put her feet on the floor, and stood up. She was a bit unsteady, and Kisshu took her arm gently to steady her. "My legs are kind of stiff," she said.
"You haven't walked in about five days, that's not surprising," Kisshu said. "Do you want to try walking?"
"Sure," Ichigo said. She took a few steps, and Kisshu kept holding her arm to steady her. He noticed she was getting steadier, and a few steps later, he let go of her arm, letting her walk on her own. "This is better," she said. "I really didn't like lying in bed all day."
"I don't like it much either," Kisshu said. "Are you hungry?"
"Yeah, can we go get something to eat?" Ichigo asked.
"Sure, but I'm going to teleport us to the kitchen; I don't want you to tire yourself out walking to the other end of the ship," Kisshu said.
"Thanks," Ichigo said.
Kisshu took her hand and teleported to the kitchen- only to find Pai about to turn the stove on. Kisshu immediately let go of Ichigo, ran over, and shoved Pai away from the stove, then made sure Pai hadn't actually cooked anything. Satisfied that he hadn't, Kisshu turned to Pai and said, "Get out, before I make YOU clean the floor in the training room."
"You can't MAKE me do anything," Pai said disgruntledly.
Kisshu raised a hand, his fingers in a position that suggested he was about to snap them, and said, "Wanna bet?"
"Fine…" Pai said. "I really don't want to be mind-controlled today, so I will leave the kitchen."
"And don't come back," Kisshu warned.
"Mmhm," Pai said, and teleported out.
Kisshu looked over at Ichigo, who looked really confused. In response to her confused look, Kisshu said, "Pai is a disaster in the kitchen. Every time he tries to cook, something explodes, and he always sets off the smoke alarm. Keep him away from food preparation at all costs, even if it means knocking him out."
"Wow…" Ichigo said. "So who does the cooking around here?"
Kisshu turned slightly pink and said, "I do…."
"That's so cute!" Ichigo said.
Kisshu turned redder, but that faded when Ichigo stumbled. Kisshu teleported before she fell and picked her up. "I think you should sit down for a while, I'll get what we need," he said, setting her down in one of the chairs.
"Thanks," Ichigo said. "Sorry you've had to take care of me so much…"
Kisshu looked surprised, then smiled and said, "I don't mind, Koneko-chan. What do you want to eat?"
"Are there more peaches?" Ichigo asked. "The last one was good."
"Sure, do you want anything else?" Kisshu asked. "That's not much."
"Do you have bread for toast?" Ichigo asked.
"I think so," Kisshu said. "I know we have jam…" He went over to a closet, and looked in, then took out a loaf of rye bread. "Do you want one piece or two?" he asked.
"Is two okay?" Ichigo asked. "I'm pretty hungry."
"Sure, there's a whole loaf here," Kisshu said. "I think I've got some strawberry jam, do you want that?"
Ichigo's eyes lit up, and Kisshu chuckled. "I guess that's a yes," he said. He put the bread in the toaster, and got out the butter and strawberry jam. Then he cut up a peach and an apple, and put them on plates. The toast popped up, and he put butter and jam on it. Then he brought the plate with peach slices to Ichigo, and sat down with the other one.
"You like apples, don't you?" Ichigo asked, watching Kisshu eat the apple slices on his plate.
"I can't live without apples," Kisshu said. "Pai claims I'm addicted- but then again, he can't live without peaches, so he can't really talk."
"Is there anything Taruto can't live without?" Ichigo asked.
Kisshu sighed and said, "Let's just say that Pudding is a bad influence on the runt."
"Uh-oh, he's addicted to candy?" Ichigo asked.
"Yeah, and the last time he was on sugar high was BAD," Kisshu said. "I ended up sleeping in that big tree in Inohara Park, because Taruto wouldn't shut up about 'snowflakes are trying to eat me!' Boy was that irritating."
"Snowflakes were trying to eat him? Sounds more like he was high on drugs rather than sugar," Ichigo said.
"To Cyniclons, sugar IS a drug," Kisshu explained. "I have a sweet tooth too, but unlike Taruto, I can usually control myself."
"Have you ever been on sugar high?" Ichigo asked.
"Once," Kisshu said. "Pai knocked me out, and the only thing I remember is waking up in bed with him standing over me, asking why I was acting like Taruto."
"That doesn't sound fun," Ichigo commented.
"It wasn't," Kisshu sighed. "He overdid it knocking me out, and I had a pretty bad headache when I woke up. NOT fun."
They were both finished with breakfast, and Ichigo started to get up, but Kisshu said, "I'll take the plates, you still need to rest a bit. I don't want you to fall again."
Ichigo sighed and sat back down. Kisshu came over and took her plate, then took it to the sink with his. Then he went back to Ichigo, and picked her up again. He noticed she was looking a bit tired, and said, "I'm going to take you back to my room, k?"
"K," Ichigo said. "Are you going to stay?"
"I apparently have to clean the floor in the training room, but I'll be back after that," Kisshu said.
"Why do you have to clean the floor?" Ichigo asked.
"That's where Moe, Miwa and I killed the treehugger," Kisshu explained. "I left a pile of ashes on the floor, and still haven't cleaned it up."
"But you'll come back?" Ichigo asked.
"Of course," Kisshu said.
"K…" Ichigo said. "I don't like being alone."
Kisshu teleported to his room, and set Ichigo down on the bed. "I'll be back, I promise," he said. "Try to get some more rest, you're looking tired."
"Okay…" Ichigo said. She laid back, pulling the blankets over herself, and went to sleep pretty quickly.
Kisshu quietly left the room, and went to the closet, taking out a broom and a trash bag, and then teleported to the training room. He sighed, and went over to the pile of treehugger dust, then swept the dust into the bag. As he was finishing, Pai teleported in, and said, "I'll finish up, you go back to Ichigo. I heard her screaming, and woke her up, but she panicked when she saw it was me and not you. You'd better go to her."
Kisshu dropped the broom and teleported to his room, where he found Ichigo crying. "Koneko-chan, what happened?" he asked, worried.
Ichigo looked at him as he sat down- then threw herself at him, hugging him like her life depended on it. He hugged back tightly, feeling her shoulders shaking. "Can you tell me what happened?" he asked softly.
Ichigo sounded scared as she said, "Pai killed you…"
"Pai killed me?" Kisshu asked, puzzled. "Pai wouldn't do that, don't worry."
"Someone was controlling him, and he killed you," Ichigo said. "And I couldn't save you…"
"Someone was controlling Pai?" Kisshu asked.
"She had red eyes, and all her clothing was some shade of red," Ichigo said. "Her hair was black, though. I don't know who she was, but she was scary."
"Cyniclon or human?" Kisshu asked.
"Neither," Ichigo said. "She wasn't human, but she didn't have ears like yours either. She looked kind of like a Mew Mew, but evil. And she was older than Zakuro."
"She had animal features?" Kisshu asked.
"Yeah, but I don't know what kind," Ichigo said. She wasn't much calmer, and Kisshu noticed that.
"It's okay," Kisshu said softly. "I'm not going to die, k?"
"Promise?" Ichigo asked.
"I promise," Kisshu said. "I think I should warn Pai that we might have a new enemy soon, k?"
"Don't leave!" Ichigo said. She sounded scared again, and Kisshu started stroking her hair to calm her down a bit.
"You can come too," he said softly. "Can you stand, or do you need me to help you?"
"I think I can stand," Ichigo said. She slowly let go of Kisshu, and stood up. This time she didn't look too shaky, so Kisshu took her hand and teleported to Pai's lab, not bothering with the door.
Pai appeared to be drawing, and he looked up, startled, putting a hand over the paper. "What happened to knocking?" he asked crossly.
"Ichigo had a nightmare that sounded pretty real," Kisshu said. "She said that you were being controlled by a woman wearing all red, with red eyes and black hair, and you killed me. For some reason, she wasn't able to save me."
"I was being held back, and I couldn't break free, but I couldn't see who or what was holding me back," Ichigo said.
"Is the nightmare why you looked scared when you saw me?" Pai asked.
"Yeah… I thought the nightmare was real, so I assumed you were going to kill me too, because I didn't see Kisshu," Ichigo said. "I don't want Kisshu to die…"
"Do you remember anything else about this woman?" Pai asked.
"She looked like a Mew Mew," Ichigo said. "She had some kind of furry black ears and a tail. But they didn't look like mine."
"Alright," Pai said. "I'll try to find out who that might be, and if she's actually coming. Kisshu, you take care of Ichigo."
"K," Kisshu said. "Koneko-chan, do you want to go back to my room?"
"Yes…" Ichigo said.
Kisshu took her hand and teleported them back to his room.
Ichigo didn't have the nightmare again, and by the third day after she had it, she was back to full strength, and able to walk on her own. Kisshu and Pai had decided to take her back soon, and they were getting ready to go back to Earth. Pai was going to Café Mew Mew, and Kisshu was taking Ichigo home.
I'll try to get the next chapter up tonight, but I can't promise. Review plz!