Kiesha - He does have a mark, darn it! XD I have this card from the TCG, and Ryou's wearing an unbuttoned vest, and even though my scan of it is crappy, on the actual card it seems like there's a very faint red mark RIGHT WHERE he injected himself. So I'm convinced. And if I'm some loser who's seeing things, I don't care, because I'm a believer. It only makes sense for the injection to leave a mark, right? x.x;
Fairy-chan - You do not need to tell me to R+I... I promise that you don't... O.o
Oh-mi-gosh... must escape evil Mew Mew Power cut by working on this fanfiction...
Chapter Eleven - Melted Icecream
"I'm walking down the line / That divides me somewhere in my mind / On the border line / Of the edge and where I walk alone."
Christmas came and went rather uneventfully. Lettuce had come to visit Keiichiro and myself on Christmas Day, but otherwise the two of us spent our time in the basement in front of the computers. So far she hadn't caused any damage to the humans, but she seemed to have made the forest on the border of Tokyo her playground. I wasn't fooled, though. I knew that an eventual attack on mankind was imminent. The solution was complete and would act sort of like a tranquilizer. At the same time, it would work to weaken her natural defense against an attack. If Mew Ichigo could land a direct hit, full power, at just the right moment, the battle would be over. I knew in my head that things wouldn't be that simple. It would take several tries... and when the time did come, every second would be precious, so overall, our chance of success was slim.
Where was I now? Waiting impatiently in the cold winter air at the train station. With today came our trip to Kyoto, and so far only two of us were present.
"My shadow's the only one that walks beside me / My shallow heart's the only thing that's beating / Sometimes I wish someone out there will find me / 'Til then I walk alone."
"You know, I bet if you didn't listen to such depressing music, you wouldn't be so grumpy all the time." Ichigo's breath trailed behind her like smoke as she rubbed her gloved hands together to warm them, "Then again, when it's this cold outside, I suppose you have an excuse..."
"You wimp. It's not that cold," I taunted. The truth was it was freezing.
"Yeah, yeah, Mr. Macho..." she grumbled, standing next to me as if I was a furnace. She snatched the MP3 player from my hands, unplugged it from my headphones, and reattached them to her own player. "Here! Happy music!"
Bubblegum pop floated to my ears and I made a face, "Atleast it's not Britney Spears..."
"She's on there," the red-head growled as she started browsing through my collection.
"I knew it."
"Actually, your tastes aren't as bad as I thought... I bet you sing this stuff in the shower when no one's around," she said, giving me a suspicious look.
"Hardly," I muttered, searching for any signs of Lettuce or Keiichiro. It wasn't unusual for Lettuce to be late, but Keiichiro was normally early. He had mentioned something he had to do, but with him it could be anything. I heaved a sigh.
"They'll show up, although when they finally get here we'll probably be frozen to the pavement," the girl commented inbetween strings of humming.
"I know that."
"You know we'll freeze? Now you change your mind about it being cold, huh?"
"No, I mean I know they'll show up," I stated, pointing, "because there they are."
"Sorry I'm late..." Lettuce appologized, dragging a large (and very heavy-looking) piece of luggage behind her.
"Lettuce! This is just a day trip. What on Earth did you pack?" Ichigo gawked.
Lettuce blushed, "Um, well... you never know what could happen, so I brought everything I could think of..."
Ichigo slapped her forehead, "Oy, Lettuce! It's not like Mint doesn't already have everything a person could possibly need to survive AND live a life of luxury..."
"Yes, but on the trip down..." she explained.
I shook my head, "Don't worry about it, it's fine. Thanks for considering our well-being."
"Uh, sure..." she squeaked.
"Yeah, it's fine Lettuce. We'll just get Shirogane to carry it," Ichigo said, offering the taller girl a smile.
How kind of you, Ichigo.
"You won't mind, will you, Ryou?" asked Keiichiro with a practiced smile. I shot a returning glare in his direction.
"Sure..." I grumbled, caving.
"No, no! I can handle it!" came Lettuce's protest.
I lifted the suitcase away from her, "It's okay. Don't worry about it." It didn't merely look heavy... it was heavy...
The train still waited for us. We boarded with me still lugging Lettuce's things. Inside there were cushioned seats lining the walls and other places with handholds where you could stand. I wasn't even going to try to shove that heavy thing in the luggage rack above our heads. I took a seat in the rear of the car. Good thing this wasn't a plane, or we'd have issues to deal with. Lettuce came over and sat next to me. Keiichiro stood a ways off, and Ichigo claimed the next seat over from Lettuce.
"I'm sorry you had to carry that... I know how heavy it is..." Lettuce appologized again.
"Nevermind," I grumbled, shutting my eyes, "It's good exercise."
"This is gonna be one long boring trip..." Ichigo pointed out, "Is there anything to do in that bag of yours, Lettuce?"
"Well, I did bring some snacks, but as far as travel games go, I'm afraid I forgot to bring any..."
"No worries! You have a pen and paper, don't you?"
"I have several!" she replied, digging in the front pocket of the suitcase for them, "Here."
"Great!" the catgirl cheered, "Okay! Akasaka-san! Shirogane, you're gonna play too, right?"
I opened an eye and cast it at her, "Play what?"
"A travel game!" she answered excitedly, "Okay, so it goes like this... you look out the window and keep track of what you see. Birds are 5 points, cats are 25 points, dogs are 20, cows are 100 points, horses are 125. A bridge is 50 points. Sweet shops are 40, book stores 60, Chimera Animas 1000."
"Chimera Anima?" I asked, twitching.
"Yeah... sure?" she sweatdropped and laughed a bit, "No worries. I was joking. So, who's in?"
"I'll give it a try," said Lettuce.
"Sure, Ichigo-san," Keiichiro agreed with a nod.
"How about you, Shirogane?"
"I guess. But you're going to lose badly..."
"I doubt that! Hey, how about we make a deal?" Ichigo plotted, pointing a finger in my face.
"Oh yeah? What kind of a deal?" I asked with a smirk.
"Loser does whatever the winner says!" she announced boldy,
"Fine, but there won't be any cows, you know..."
"Um, I think I'll sit this one out..." Keiichiro said decidedly.
"Me too. Sorry for backing out at the last minute," Lettuce echoed.
"That's the point, smartie, it makes you look!" she defended, handing me and pen and a sheet of paper. "Okay, go!"
This was such a childish game, but what the heck? Ichigo and I dived for seperate windows. Lettuce and Keiichiro sweatdropped and found a safe place far away from us at the front of the car.
"Book store, 60 points!"
"A trio of cats, 75 points!" I countered, scribbling down what I saw on a sheet of paper while scanning the terrain.
"Dog, 20 more points, and five birds, another 25..." she said, breathlessly.
"Ten birds, 50 points."
"Sweet shop! Forty!"
"Bridge, fifty."
"Oh my god, two horses carrying a buggy! That's 250 points, pal!" Ichigo whooped. At this point we were getting stares. And lots of them.
I fell silent, "...Chimera Anima..."
"What! Don't pull my leg, Shirogane!" Ichigo snapped, whirling angrily, "You can't cheat!"
"I'm not..."
Keiichiro and Lettuce rushed back over towards me, with Ichigo following suit. The colorful form stood out like a sore thumb amongst the gray clouds. She swooped down towards a lake, snatching up a large swam in her claws. I turned away quickly to avoid the scene ahead, as the graceful creature's body was shattered.
"Oh no..." Lettuce cried out, trembling.
"It's so close to the city... Ryou, we can't wait much longer."
"Now!" Ichigo questioned, ripping her eyes away in mixed emotions of disgust and confusion.
"No. Not now," I answered, "We have to wait until everything's in place... even if it's painful."
"Shirogane!" Ichigo shouted.
"It's true, Ichigo-san. Our plan won't work if all of the elements aren't ready... but at the same time, we can't procrastinate..." he snuck a glance in my direction as he said this.
"Oh... okay then..." Ichigo replied shakily as she picked up her pen and pad and started tallying things up.
Lettuce placed a hand on my shoulder and smiled sadly. I looked away.
"Let's just try our best to enjoy this trip..." I muttered.
"Okay..." everyone agreed finally.
Ichigo next busied herself with counting up my findings, "And the results are in!" She shoved the two notes towards my face. "I win by five points!"
"How do you figure that?" I growled.
"Easy, I only called out every other thing that I saw. And I also saw a cow," she explained with a smile, "That means, you owe me."
I looked them over, redid the math. Unless she was lying, she apparently had won. I sighed, "So, what do I owe you, mistress?"
"Quit making me sound old!" she growled, placing her hands on her hips, "I want a three scoop strawberry, mint chocolate chip, and cookie dough waffle cone. Oh yeah, and I'd like to see you NOT being a jerk for the next twenty-four hours!"
"Is that all?" I asked.
"Hrm..." she rubbed her chin as she thought, "One more thing! Can you make me a copy of your Maroon 5 CD?"
"No way. Not the CD," I teased.
"Yes, the CD!" She nodded and stalked off back to her seat, singing, "...Try so hard to disregard / The rhythm of the rain that drops / And coincides with the beating of my heart."
Ichigo walked happily along the sidewalk, licking her ridiculously tall icecream cone which was dripping onto the cement.
"Ugh! Why does it have to melt?" she whined, "Not that it's that big of a deal, because it's really good. Anyone want a bite?"
"Ewww... Ichigo germs..." I gagged.
"Hey! You're supposed to be nice today, you loser!" she hissed, waving the cone at me.
I made a face, "But I am being nice... I'm letting you enjoy that cone all by yourself."
"Yeah, whatever..." she mumbled, returning back to her job at hand.
"Wow! So this is it? It's even bigger than the Aizawa mansion back home!" Lettuce marvelled, clapping her hands together.
Indeed, it was a very, very large house...
"Shall we ring the bell then?" Keiichiro asked. Making a 'ladies first' motion with his hands.
"Oh, okay..."
"My hands are kinda full, so Lettuce, you ring the doorbell!"
"Alright..." she agreed, reaching towards the flashing button before the peace was interrupted by a loud wailing.
"Noooooooo! I dropped it!" the catgirl fretted, ears twitching annoyedly. The other two laughed nervously.
"Well, this is a fascinating sight..." I teased, rubbing the tip of the velvety black ear that now protruded from the strawberry's head, "And I almost thought they were fake!"
"What! My ears!" Ichigo whimpered, trying to shove them back down. In the process, a long black tail snaked out behind her and waved in the air of its own accord. I grabbed it.
"Kyaaaaaaaaaaa!" she screamed, slapping me.
A familiar head scowled back at us from behind the door. Cool amber eyes were framed by glossy black hair put up in odangos (buns) on either side of her head. Aizawa Mint. From between her legs there came a furred cinnamon-colored face with beady black eyes and a lopsided canine grin. Miki. His tongue lolled out as he barked a greeting.
"My, my, it certainly took you long enough," she replied in a bored tone. "But really, do you have to make so much noise?"
"You haven't changed either..." growled an annoyed Ichigo, ears and tail still easily visible. I rubbed the side of my face where her palm had contacted. She hit hard.
Mint sighed, holding the door open for us, "Well, won't you please come in? And by the way, Ichigo, those black cat accessories really do suit you well. You miss fighting aliens so much that you bought them to remind yourself of the wonderful time we had together, didn't you?"
"Oh! Be quiet!"
The inside of the mansion seemed even larger than its exterior. Entering, two lines of maids parted like the Red Sea as Aizawa Mint ushered us inside. Within moments we were seated around a low table with steaming cups of tea infront of us.
"So, Mint was right after all... about you being late, that is..." came another voice.
"Oh my gosh! Zakuro-san!" Ichigo practically screamed, running towards the model and hugging her tightly.
"Zakuro-san..." Lettuce smiled.
"Hmmph..." Mint watched them, "I told onee-sama you were coming and she wanted to see you."
Zakuro nodded silently and patted the catgirl on the head. I took a sip of the tea.
"You haven't changed much either, Ryou," Mint pointed out, sitting her cup down.
"I suppose not..."
She looked me over suspiciously, then turned her attention back to Ichigo, "So, you still have your powers, hmm?"
"Apparently... unfortunately..." she grumbled, "I just figured it out a while ago and already my cat ears are popping out."
"Mind over matter, Ichigo. You thought it was gone, and so you didn't worry about it, but now that you know, well..."
"Quit being so smart, you sound like Shirogane."
"Do I?" she raised an eyebrow at the red-head, glanced at me, and then repositioned herself.
"So, where exactly do we stand?" Zakuro asked me.
"The Chimera Anima... it hasn't attacked any humans yet, but it's gaining strength... we need to take it out as soon as everything is ready..."
"What is there to be ready? Akasaka-san already said the solution you created was finished."
"Just finalizing a plan... since Ichigo is the only one who can still transform, we are left with limited options..."
"I see..." Zakuro scowled at me.
"Well, this should be a good experience for Ichigo. Let's see if she can do this alone and not botch it up," Mint suggested calmly.
"Mint!" she yelled.
"I was joking ofcourse. I'm sure you'll be fine as long as you don't trip."
"Mean! Mean Mint!" she accused.
"Well, besides that, would any of you care for more tea?" Mint accepted a tray from one of the maids.
Without warning, I didn't feel so well. I rose clumsily.
"Ryou?" came Keiichiro's voice.
"Oh, it's nothing. I think it's from the ride... please excuse me..." I appologized and rushed off.
"Hunh."
Making my way down a wide corridor, I slipped into one of the bedrooms that looked like it had been empty for a while. I shut the door lightly behind me. The room was dim, lit only by the fading sun rays that flowed in from the window. I knew what this was. It was going to happen again, at the worst of times. A sudden sharp pain shot down my back, making it hard to breathe.
"Why do you have to haunt me right now?" I hissed. Tripping when my legs gave out, I cursed under my breath. Why does this have to happen right this minute? Here? With people around?
I sank down to my knees. My view of the carpet became blurred as another wave of pain shot through my head and down my spine. Something wasn't normal. I was distracted by the nauseous feeling in my stomach, but the realization finally hit me as something furry brushed against my bare feet. A tail... ears...? I wasn't in much of a position to be shocked. My field of view finally focused itself. At about that time, the sound of porceline breaking purged my eardrums. My head shot up.
The person by the door took a step backwards. I could tell that she was trembling even from this distance. There was no point in asking how much she had seen, because I knew she had witnessed the entire scene. My new limbs apparently chose that moment to disappear again.
"You... you're..." she stuttered.
My eyes sought out hers, when I found them in the dim light, they were glistening with tears.
"It's over," I said, keeping my voice as level as possible.
"How can you say that so calmly? How long has this been happening!" she shouted.
"It's been about five years hasn't it?" Not like she would know if I had the date right.
"...this has been happening ever since you and Keiichiro finished testing the Mew Project, hasn't it?" she asked quietly.
"Please don't tell him."
"Tell him what?"
"He doesn't know... about these attacks I mean. If he did, he'd worry about me even more," I explained.
Ichigo tilted her head a bit, "Is it such a bad thing that people worry about you?"
"I hate pity. People get that sad look in their eyes and it makes you feel helpless. Almost like you did something wrong yourself. Like you can't do anything for yourself. I hate that."
Ichigo looked away quickly and wiped her eyes, "Uh, yeah, but, if people worry, then they must really care about you, don't you think?"
I shook my head, laughing bitterly, "It's not really the same thing."
"Well..." she turned back towards me, "If you do me a favor, I'll promise not to tell Akasaka-san about this." She tried on a smile, which was genuine. A "cheer up" smile.
My frown lightened, but I wasn't in the mood for smiling, "And that would be?" Now I was suspicious.
"Um, well... you have an injection mark, too, right? I want to see it."
"Where did this come from!" I almost yelled before realizing it was probably best not to.
"I dunno," she laughed nervously, "It is why you wear that stupid dog collar, right?"
"And you've seen me without it before," I added.
"Yeah, but you were kinda... and I wasn't paying attention. Besides, it's no big deal, right?"
"No, but still..." I fought back.
Ichigo huffed, "Pleeeaase? I'm doing you a favor... actually two, since I agreed to fight for you."
"I told you that you didn't have to fight, remember?" I growled.
"Let me see!" she insisted, narrowing her eyes at me.
There was a long silence in the dimly lit room. She was glaring at my face, and I was staring right back into her amber orbs. Finally I gave in, finding a more comfortable sitting position.
"Fine, but I don't want to hear another word about it. It's not like you haven't seen it before," I stated, as I brought my hands up towards the back of my neck where the collar latched.
"What do you mean? I told you I've never seen it before..." came her confused response.
My fingers slowly undid the collar, as if by going any faster the fabric would snap in half, "You want to be on the right side..."
"Your right? My right?" Ichigo wondered, "Oh, your right..."
The final latch was loosened. I let my eyelids drop as I pulled the collar away from my skin, and lowered my hands out of the way.
Ichigo let out a short breath, "But... what? You're joking right? This is my mark!"
"Ofcourse it's your mark," I stated carefully, "The Iriomote Wildcat DNA ended up being the most unpredictable, and it was also the DNA we had two seperate samples of."
"I knew you were fused with a cat, but... I figured it was a different type of cat?" she leaned closer to me to get a better look at the marking. A faint reddish design that looked like hers in every way.
"Nope."
I opened my eyes as I felt a finger tracing the outlines on my neck. I gave her an odd look. "Oh, sorry! I guess it's the same way with you, too. It always feels weird... the mark I mean..."
"Hmmph," I grumbled. She was so close... so close that I could feel warm air on my shoulder as she breathed.
"Are you like this because I'm still a Mew Mew?" she asked.
"What are you talking about? You know very well that my body couldn't utilize the DNA. I'll always be like this, unless my human side starts to degenerate... then I'll turn into a cat..."
"What!" apparently this had never occured to her.
"You heard me. One day, I could become Alto permanently."
"But... isn't there some way...? Maybe the Mew Aqua... or..." she suggested, but her voice was uncertain.
"No. The Mew Aqua won't do any good. It kept me from being stuck as a cat in the beginning, but more wouldn't have any effect whatsoever. There's nothing we know of. How many times do I have to tell you that I don't want you feeling sorry for me?" I frowned a bit.
"I'm not feeling sorry for you!" she countered, "Maybe... maybe I actually care what happens to you, okay! Is that such a bad thing? You are human afterall... well, you know what I mean..."
"Why would you care?" I practically spat.
"Well... you've put yourself at risk for us! You saved me when I was stuck as a cat... I'm sure there's some quality in you somewhere that makes you worth caring about."
"You're too kind," I growled sarcastically.
"But I mean it... if there wasn't something or other, then I'd totally hate you, but... I don't, so I must care, right?"
"You're not making any sense."
"Unlike you who never makes sense because you use all that smart scientific vocabulary that only you and Akasaka-san understand."
Ichigo's head thumped against my shoulder.
"Gomen..." she murmured in a tired voice, "I've suddenly gotten really sleepy... it's been a long day..."
"Long rides usually make people sleepy," I explained.
"That and being a cat... Shirogane...san? Can I ask you something?"
This was unusual. -san? I had never heard her being formal with me. Ever. "You can ask it, doesn't guarantee an answer."
She punched my arm lightly, "Geez... But, anyway, well, I was wondering if you..."
"If I...?" I prodded.
"If you have-" Ichigo's voice was cut off by a cheerful digital melody coming from her back pocket. She whipped the device out, checked to see who it was, and clicked on a button.
"Moshi moshi, Masaya," she greeted. Pause. "Yeah, sure I can chat with you for a while... hang on a minute..." Putting the call on hold, Ichigo dragged herself to her feet.
"Um, well... it wasn't important. I promise I won't tell a soul, and, I'll come back and clean that mess up..." she told me, before dashing off down the hallway to resume her call.
Notes: The song is "Boulevard of Broken Dreams" by Green Day.
Lyrics from "Sweetest Goodbye", Maroon 5. Gotta love Maroon 5.
A/N: Nah. Hope you like. I surprise myself. I still haven't gotten so much RxI in the story yet. Geesh, Lindsey, what's wrong with you? Anyways. The chapters are getting long. Heh. Kinda cool, huh? But I can assure sappy scene in the next chapter, because there's no way for me to avoid the sappiness, and the story is set up for it. Might add in an extra since the gang spends the night at the Aizawa house. Suggestions, comments, all that are appreciated.
More suggestions for games at RYOU's B-DAY PARTY! Are also appreciated. Thank you.
Chapter Twelve, "When I Fail", another title change so as to not be a spoiler as to what happens. Please wait for it, nya. n.n