AUTHOR'S NOTE: HELLO ALL! ...what? You don't remember me? I don't blame you! It's been a LONG LONG LONG TIME! I'M SORRY! *bows down* I humbly beg your forgiveness! I have no excuses...BUT THIS STORY WILL NEVER DIE. IT WILL ALWAYS BE FINISHED. ON WITH THE SHOW.
"What do you mean we lack a warranted emergency?" Ryou said angrily into the phone. "After everything the Mews have done, you can't trust them?"
Everyone in headquarters waited silently as Ryou paused. Finally, he said through gritted teeth, "By the time we can give you evidence, it will be too late."
After another few moments, Ryou slammed the phone shut and cursed. Ichigo sighed. Mint muttered, "Well. That went well."
After a discouraged silence all around, Ryou said quietly, "If we can't evacuate the city, we're just going to have to make sure this thing doesn't leave that stadium.
There was a pause. Then, Ichigo stepped up.
"Alright. Well, we don't have any time to waste." She turned to Pai and Akasaka. "Please keep running tests and find out as much information about this creature as you can." The pair nodded and jumped to work. She turned to Searadesi. "Searadesi-chan, please inform us if you have any new visions whatsoever."
Ichigo's eyes caught on the new members of the alien group, Brittlee, Marzac, and Arigo. The trio had been introduced to everyone, but their reason for being there hadn't been explained. Kisshu, foreseeing Ichigo's question, said, "These three are here to help us fight. They all possess magnificent skill. Marzac here is very adept with a bow and arrow. Brittlee is an advanced flier, and is also skilled with knives. And Arigo…well, I should say his talent is obvious." Arigo grinned and flexed his enormous arms.
Ichigo smiled that warm, bright smile at them and said with simplicity but true sincerity, "Thank you." The other Mews mirrored her sentiments.
Ryou spoke briskly. "Alright, the next thing we should-"
Kisshu cut him off. "Wait!" He leaned over Searadesi, having heard her surprised gasp. Her quicksilver eyes were far away and darting around as if watching a scene unfold. Her hands clutched at the arms of her chair. "She's having a vision," he said quietly, eyes on her face. Everyone grew silent, waiting with bated breath for what new horror could be unfolding upon them.
A few moments later-though it felt much longer-Searadesi blinked and her hands relaxed. Kisshu crouched in front of her, and her eyes focused on his face. "What did you see?"
She sucked in a breath, gathering her thoughts. Her gaze shifted to look at the others. "It's the day after tomorrow. In the morning. Definitely."
Ryou turned to look at Akasaka questioningly. "The information we've gathered so far lines up with that," he confirmed, as Pai nodded solemnly. Kisshu was still watching Searadesi. She was biting her lip, looking at Ichigo with anxiety in her eyes.
He said slowly, "There's something else. You saw something else."
She locked eyes with him, and he saw fear there. "Yes. You…" She looked back at Ichigo. "I saw you dying."
Ichigo stared at Searadesi, mouth open. "Me…dying?"
Seara nodded gravely. "You jumped up, trying to get close enough to the creature to attack it head-on, but it…sort of swatted you out of the sky."
That sounded so typical of Ichigo. Brave and self-sacrificing, but pretty reckless. Kisshu mentally shook his head.
Ichigo sat down heavily in a chair, her eyes wide.
Searadesi hurried to say, "Don't be afraid! Now that we know about this, we can prevent it-the future isn't set in stone. When we were on our way here, I saw our engine failing and the ship crashing! But that didn't happen!"
"Your engine almost failed?" Lettuce asked, looking concerned.
Taruto shrugged. "We patched it together for the time being."
Ryou nodded. "We'll look into that later." He sighed and checked his watch. "It's late. Let's call it a day. We'll be up bright and early tomorrow to plan and discuss things.
Kisshu felt that perhaps he should argue this, as there was so much to be done, but he was, quite honestly, absolutely exhausted. The nerves and tension of the last two days, combined with a sleepless night, left him, and all of the aliens, he was sure, quite weary. Pai nodded his affirmative at Ryou, then glanced at the others. "I guess we'd better get back to the ship, then."
"Wait!" Lettuce interjected. "Back to the ship? That can't be comfortable." Kisshu chuckled inwardly. Always the mother hen, that one.
"We can handle it," he said patiently.
"No, she's right," Ryou jumped in. "It's probably best all of us to stay close here, in case anything changes."
"Besides," Akasaka said with his gentle smile, "You must be hungry."
Pai glanced at Kisshu, who shrugged. It didn't really matter one way or another.
Lettuce, seeing their exchange, leapt into action. "I'll go find some sleeping bags!" She rushed off.
"I'll prepare dinner," Akasaka said, bustling into the kitchen. Kisshu had a brief mental image of him with a flowered apron and oven mittens on. It wasn't a pretty thought.
Ichigo fumbled in her pocket. "I need to call Mas…" She paused, glancing at Kisshu. "Mmm. I need to make a call." Kisshu smirked. Ichigo could call Aoyama all she wanted. Though now that he thought about it….no matter what his feelings-or lack of-were towards Ichigo now…Aoyama still sort of struck him as a sniveling, girly weasel. Ah, well. Some things never change.
Pai went to help Lettuce with the sleeping bags, while Pudding bounced all around Taruto, bombarding him with questions. Zakuro and Mint conversed politely with Marzac, Brittlee, and Arigo, while Ryou surveyed the room momentarily, then went back to the computer screen. Kisshu sat down next to Searadesi, noting that she still looked pale.
She glanced at him out of the corner of her eye, and said softly, "She seems nice."
He glanced at her, startled. "Who?"
She tilted her head in the direction Ichigo had exited from. "Momiya-san…Ichigo."
Kisshu contemplated this, then resting his chin on his fist, said, thoughtfully, "She is."
Searadesi said nothing. Presently, she excused herself, mumbling something about having a question for Pai. Kisshu stared after her, realizing he might have said something wrong.
The next day was spent in a nearby clearing in the forest, secluded enough to shield them from prying eyes and big enough to give them space to train. The warriors discussed strategy, informed each other of their skills, did everything they possibly could to prepare for the vague monster they would soon be facing. Akasaka and Pai spent a good portion of the day in the lab, running tests and sorting through data. The Mews and the aliens intermingled, all desperately working so that Earth would have a fighting chance.
The latter half of the day featured slight drama, when Pudding, in an attempt to teach Taruto how to juggle knives, accidentally shredded half of the alien's sleeping bags and narrowly avoided impaling Lettuce. While Ryou and Pai were yelling at the pair, Kisshu, suppressing a smirk, slipped away to the basement.
Kisshu entered the supply room to find Ichigo rummaging through a box. He paused, surprised, but, realizing he didn't really feel awkward like he had expected to, continued in the room. She looked up, shaking fuchsia hair out of her eyes.
Kisshu gestured to the boxes. "I was just looking for more sleeping bags."
Ichigo smiled ruefully. "So was I." She pointed up to the top shelf. "I think they're behind that box on the top shelf, but I can't reach it."
Kisshu looked to where she was pointing and floated up the shelf, shifting the boxes to find the stack of sleeping bags. He floated back down to her level.
She grinned, grabbing half of the sleeping bags from the pile in his arms. "Thanks." She was quiet for a moment, before hesitantly saying, "You know, Kisshu, you're a lot different."
Startled, Kisshu dropped his load on the floor. "Really, koneko-chan?" Of course, he knew he'd changed a lot in the past few months-for the better, he hoped. But he hadn't realized it would be so obvious.
She nodded, speaking softly. "Yes. You seem a lot happier." She looked up at him and smiled a bit oddly. It took him a moment to realize that their was a bit of a…knowing look about her smile. "I'm happy for you, Kisshu."
Well, that was nice of her, but…why did Kisshu feel like he was missing something? "Happy for me, kitty?" He bent over to grab the sleeping bags, but froze when he heard her say, "Happy you've found someone."
Found someone? He straightened slowly, looking at her intently. "What do you mean?"
Now she looked confused. "Was I wrong? I'm sorry, I don't mean to pry…I just thought, well, you and Searadesi-chan…
Kisshu stared at her, until a (surely) audible click filled his mind and he understood what she was implying.
He and Searadesi?
Together?
More than a friendly relationship?
Was that a possibility?
But…Ichigo was the only girl he'd ever loved. And that hadn't even started out as love, more as a sort of twisted amusement. In the end, his obsession with her hadn't even been love at all.
So was that what this was?
This feeling that he could talk to Searadesi better than anyone else he'd ever known?
The way she always knew what he was thinking?
The way she was strong and fragile at the same time?
This incredible urge to protect her at all times?
Was this what love was?
As these thoughts swirled through Kisshu's head, Ichigo watched him with an understandably concerned expression, especially when she said, "Kisshu?" and he didn't answer. She stepped forward and gently shook his shoulder. "Kisshu, I shouldn't have said anything, it's not my business. I'm sorry."
He broke out of his reverie. "No," he said slowly. "No, it's okay. You might be-"
A shuffling noise cut him off, and he and Ichigo in unison turned to see Searadesi standing at the doorway, having just opened the door. Her eyes widened, and Kisshu had a sudden flash of the scene she must be seeing: He and Ichigo, standing closely together, her hand still on his shoulder. A blush washed over Searadesi's cheeks, and before Kisshu couldn't say anything, she forced out, "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to-to interrupt-"
She turned to leave, but not before Kisshu identified the presence of pained tears filling her eyes.
Kisshu stepped away from Ichigo. "Searadesi-wait-it's not-" The words died on his lips as he realized she was already gone. He stared after her, feeling utterly helpless and confused.
Ichigo touched his arm, and he turned to face her. To his surprise, she was smiling. "Well?" she stated expectantly. He could only look at her, at a loss. She smiled wider and gently shoved his arm. "Go after her, idiot!"
Kisshu looked at her, mouth open, until he realized she was absolutely right. He slowly nodded, and went to the door, picking up speed as he went. He stopped and turned back to Ichigo once more, throwing out a few last words. "Thank you." Then he turned and raced after Searadesi, feeling that nothing was more important that clearing up this misunderstanding. He raced up the stairs and into the main seating area of the café. He could hear, distantly, the voices of the rest of their party, but Searadesi was nowhere in sight. He was on the verge of calling out her name when he noticed the main door of the café was slightly ajar. He pushed through it, stepping out into cool, breezy night air. He looked around. The street was silent save for the peaceful hum of cicadas and the far-off engines of cars. And to his left, dimly lit by the streetlights and walking slowly away from him, was Searadesi.
Her head was bowed, and as he watched, her hand came up to wipe at her face. He called her name. "Searadesi!" She paused, but didn't face him. Instead, she sped up, hurrying down the sidewalk and away from him. Kisshu ran towards her, "Searadesi, wait! Let me explain!"
She ran from him faster. Her tear-choked voice floated back to him. "I'm fine, Kisshu, there's nothing to explain, I know she's what you wanted-"
"Searadesi-"
"That's not something anyone could compete with, just don't blame me because I thought-I thought-" Her voice broke.
He had caught up with her. He reached out and touched her arm, and she stopped, so suddenly he almost crashed into her. Still turned away from him, she said softly, in a calmer voice, "It's okay, Kisshu. Go away."
"Searadesi, damnit, let me explain! There is nothing going on between Ichigo and me!"
She didn't speak, so Kisshu took that as his cue and hurriedly went on. "That was just a misunderstanding, I swear. We were just talking. She has someone she loves, anyway. Besides…" He trailed off, wondering how to continue.
And suddenly, Searadesi, his hand still on her arm, turned to face him. Her violet hair swirled around her face and her eyes, her great starry silver eyes, aglow by the light of the streetlamps, blazed. "Besides?" she repeated, the word a question that held the depth of the sea.
And he understood, in that moment, that he was in love with her.
The realization was a crashing transformation, sweeping through him and leaving his thoughts incoherent. But when it was finished, there was a new, tentative sense of peace.
Kisshu slowly let his hand drop from her arm, staring at her, attempting to gather his thoughts, and simultaneously reveling in this new emotion. It was so much deeper, so much purer than anything he had ever felt for Ichigo. The force of it left him reeling.
She was still looking at him, waiting for an answer. The million things he could have said jammed inside his throat and clogged it, letting only a few words slip through. "Besides…" he began, staring at her. Unbidden, his hand rose, and oh-so tentatively, brushed against her cheekbone. Her mouth fell open softly, her eyes widening.
He felt a flush across his cheeks, but tried again. He wanted her to know, he realized. "Besides…I…feel that way about someone else." His thumb caressed her cheek just below her eye, and she was blushing, too. "Kisshu?" she questioned breathlessly.
With those orb-like eyes piercing his, the words couldn't have felt more right. "I feel that way about you, Searadesi." His voice was low and barely audible, filled with suppressed emotion and uncertainty.
Her eyebrows creased and her lips slightly parted, she looked at him, as if assessing him. Then, slowly, she raised her hand to rest it upon the hand on her cheek and gently twine her fingers with his. She smiled softly. "I feel that way about you, too, Kisshu."
A breath he hadn't realized he had been holding whooshed through Kisshu's lungs. His hand, pressed between the warmth of her palm and the silken touch of her cheek, slipped out of her grip and around her shoulders as he pulled into her into an embrace. Her hands were trapped against his chest and her forehead was tucked below his chin as he wrapped his arms around her and held her securely, a shuddering sense of warm delight filling his heart. "You do?"
She nodded her head against his collarbone, maneuvering her arms to hug him back. "I have for a long time." Her voice was quiet, tentative, shy-yet coursing with a newfound tenderness.
Kisshu drew in a breath and let it out slowly. "I have too," he confessed. "But I…I only just now realized. Partially because of Ichigo." As he spoke, he was aware of a clean, floral scent coming from Searadesi's hair, so close to his face….perhaps lavender? He couldn't place it.
Searadesi was quiet for a moment before pulling back from him somewhat. Her hands still resting on his shoulders and her face close to his, she looked up at him with wide, serious eyes. "You really don't care about her anymore?"
Kisshu didn't answer right away. He wanted to be absolutely certain before replying. Searadesi deserved that much. So he thought, and he searched his mind, not breaking contact with Searadesi's eyes while doing so. And he was overjoyed and satisfied to find the only feelings left for Ichigo in his heart were ones of friendship.
Looking deep into her eyes, he said earnestly and with certainty, "I do not. I care about you."
Her gaze lingered on him a moment longer before she smiled, closed her eyes and leaned forward to rest her forehead against his. "Well, that's good to hear," she said contently.
Her reply surprised a light laugh out of him. The wind brushed against him, chilling him, and he saw a wave of goose-bumps rise up on Searadesi's arms. He pulled back from her and looked at the sky, realizing how late it was. "We'd better get back. Big day tomorrow, and all that."
She nodded, worry crossing her face. He realized that with the revelations of tonight, he was going to be doubly anxious about her tomorrow. "Searadesi, maybe-"
She cut him off, shaking her head. "Save it, Kisshu. We've already talked about this. I need to be there for our best chance of success."
"But-"
She stopped his words by placing her hand over his mouth. "I'll be fine. You're going to be in far greater danger than I am-worry about yourself." And it was clear, from her expression, that she was certainly worrying about him.
Kisshu absolutely did not want her there at the scene of the battle tomorrow. In fact, he didn't want her on Earth at all-far better for her to be far away on their planet, safe. But he didn't want to ruin tonight with thoughts of it, so he shoved the matter out of his head for the time being. Her soft hand still pressed over his mouth, he nodded. Then, suddenly feeling mischievous and wanting to lighten the mood, he darted his tongue out.
Her hand flew away instantly. "Did you just lick me?" Her expression was comically incredulous. He grinned, fang poking out. "Maybe."
"What are you, ten?" But she was smiling, and that had been his intention. She wiped her now diseased hand against his shirt, laughing, and he caught her hand and held it, twining his fingers through hers. Thoughts of the impending battle gone for now, a sudden elation filled him as everything that had happened tonight struck him again. Letting their connected hands drop to swing between them, he smiled and said, "Let's go back."
She nodded, and, hands still connected, they began to walk back to the café, the twinkling stars the only witnesses to all that had occurred.
AUTHOR'S NOTE: NEXT CHAPTER WILL BE THE LAST. SEE YOU SOON.