A/N: If you go back to chapter three *again* you will experience some further edits in the second half, which involves Pai and Lettuce. Just trying to improve the plot experience for y'all.

OK, some quick advertising even though it's WAAAAYYYY too late to bother: read GypsyxSilent's guess the author contest coz I'm participating in it, and my oneshot A True Diplomat to prove that I can write something other than fluff (though nothing without PaixLettuce in it).

Ryou stood frozen in front of the kitchen, staring at the still-swinging doors. It couldn't be true. It couldn't. But the idea made a hideous kind of sense. After all, who had pulled Lettuce out of the sea, that night when they had all thought she was drowned? She had been turning up late, giggling at nothing, closing her eyes or gazing dreamily up into the air...and why would Zakuro have run away like that, if she hadn't been afraid of giving the secret away?

'Ryou!' Keiichiro's urgent voice pulled him out of his thoughts. 'Get down here!'

Ryou ran to the stairs and took them three at a time. Keiichiro's computer was a mass of blinking, flashing lights.

'What is it?' Ryou demanded, his voice rough with dread.

'Cyniclons...a Cyniclon ship...it's bigger than anything I've ever seen before...'

'What?' Ryou darted to the computer, gripping the back of Keiichiro's chair. 'How fast is it coming? Where is it?'

'They're following the moon's orbit now,' Keiichiro answered, 'but I can't tell...it's too far away; there's no way I could get a signal even if I did know how to hack into their computers. They could just be observing, they could be going to rendez-vous with our current Cyniclons and plan a new strategy, or their close enough that they could just teleport straight to Earth and start wreaking havoc... either way, we've got to be ready...we've got to up our sensors and –'

'Wait.' Ryou held up one hand, weaving the other into his hair as though trying to hold his hair together. 'Keiichiro, I...could you handle it, just for now?'

'Ryou?' Keiichiro said, growing alarm in his voice. 'Ryou, what's wrong?'

'I can't...I...I just need to think...' Ryou backed towards the door. 'Look, I'll be in my room if you need me, I'll stay up there for a bit and then I'll come down and help you...' Keiichiro opened his mouth to speak, but Ryou shook his head wordlessly, turned on his heel and ran.

He bounded up the stairs to ground level and then up to his room, slammed the door and leaned against it, shaking. It all fitted together. New aliens were coming, and Pai was trying to use Lettuce for something, some kind of distraction...or maybe he wanted to gain her trust, then take her as a hostage...but after a moment his attempts to think rationally faded, to be replaced by pure rage. Lettuce – sweet, trustworthy, innocent Lettuce – whoring herself out to that...that monster. The bile rose in his throat. Every time he went for a girl, he came in second to someone else – first that spineless, prepubescent Aoyama, and now Pai. Ryou collapsed on his bed and pounded his fist into the pillow. He wasn't even a human, he was an alien. A coldblooded organic computer, practically. The enemy. And Lettuce, the most reliable of all the Mews, was going behind the backs of all her comrades to see him, and Zakuro...Zakuro was in on it, and hadn't breathed a word...oh God. If even the Mews were consorting with the enemy, then who could he trust? Not Keiichiro, not his own creations, nobody.

Ryou forced himself to breath calmly. He had no proof. The whole thing could just have been one of Pudding's far-fetched ramblings...but the youngest Mew's intuition had paid off before, and Ryou knew that she was far more observant than she appeared. Maybe she really knew something. He swallowed hard, his anger turning against Lettuce. How could she have lied to them...to him? Didn't she realise the danger she was putting herself and her team-mates in, consorting with the enemy like that? How could she? She was a hair's breadth from betraying them all...

'Alright, Shirogane, calm down,' he said out loud, staring up at the ceiling. He took deep breaths, trying to calm himself. 'It's not the end of the world. First thing tomorrow you can confront her and find out once and for all what's going on, and if she is...' he grimaced... 'then we can act from there. If that brute doesn't know that we know, we may even be able to gain an advantage from out of this mess. If we can beat him at his own game, make him think that Lettuce still trusts him...' He trailed off, a new thought forming in his mind. The idea that maybe it wasn't a trick, but genuine affection. For a fleeting moment he saw a picture in his mind's eye, of Pai seated on a café chair, his hands out in front of him, gesturing, talking...then the image faded, replaced with a memory of a house on fire, dry smoke filling his lungs, the shriek of chimeras from among the flames.

'Screw it,' he growled. 'He'll talk just as fast in a prison cell.'

He rolled off the bed, snapped his fingers for Masha and stalked out of the room.


Lettuce felt miserable. She had made her bed, brushed her hair, done her homework, but nothing could shake the memory of Ryou's stricken face from her mind. She tried to tell herself that he would get over it – he had always preferred Ichigo, after all, and what else could she have said – but still, to reject him, in front of all the other Mews, when he had been so sure of himself...she shook her head. She wanted to see Pai. That would remind her of why she had had to say no, and maybe then she would stop feeling so guilty. Because she had always liked Ryou, up until Pai appeared out of the blue, forced her to accept her feelings for him and swept her off her feet.

'Am I really fickle?' she asked her reflection, slumped in front of her bedroom mirror. 'Am I going to get sick of Pai too? Oh, I wish I could talk to someone about it –'

The telephone rang. Lettuce sat up, blinking in surprise, and then got to her feet and clattered down the stairs to answer it.

'Moshi moshi, Midorikawa residence?'

'Lettuce-san? Oh, thank goodness!' It was Keiichiro's voice on the other end of the line, and he sounded more rattled than she had ever heard him before. 'I was terrified that I wouldn't be able to contact you...you'd already left when the alarm went off, and none of the others had your number...'

'Alarm? What alarm?' Lettuce demanded, trying to keep the edge out of her voice. 'Akasaka-san, what's going on?'

'It was just after you left...' Keiichiro took a deep breath and collected himself. 'As you know, the aliens have been quiet for several weeks now, and we were worried that they were planning a big offensive...well, just now our sensors detected a new alien ship. It's bringing reinforcements, and we don't know what they're planning or when they'll land...'

Lettuce gripped the phone. 'What does that mean?'

'It means we all need to be doubly on our guard. I think an attack is unlikely tonight, but we'll need to meet first thing tomorrow morning for a briefing –'

'Hai,' Lettuce said quickly. 'Akasaka-san...where's Shirogane?'

'He's in his room.' Keiichiro sounded distressed. 'He went up there almost as soon as the signal came in, and he hasn't been down since.'

'Oh.' Lettuce bit her lip. 'I...'

'Lettuce?'

'It's nothing. I hope you're not both too worried. Thank you for calling me, Akasaka-san.'

'Take care,' he responded. A moment later Lettuce heard the dialling tone.

She set the phone down in a daze, then sat frozen. Shocked thoughts were floating around her mind. More aliens...a big assault...but that meant...

'Pai!' she gasped, and snatched up the receiver again. She had to call Zakuro. Her hand was poised over the buttons before she realised. She didn't know Zakuro's number. She had no way of contacting her.

Slowly she set the phone back down. Now what? Call her agent? Call the record company? But even as she stared at the phone, it rang again. Lettuce nearly jumped out of her skin. Quickly she fumbled for the receiver, nearly dropping it in her haste, and gasped,

'Hello?'

'Lettuce?'

'Zakuro-san! I'm so glad you called; I wanted to talk to you but –'

'I know,' Zakuro said. Lettuce had never been so glad to hear anyone in her life. 'Has Keiichiro called you?' she asked.

'Yes, he told me the news. Are you alright?'

'Yes.' There was a pause, and then Zakuro spoke again. 'I'm coming over.'

'Nani? Zakuro-san, why?'

'You're in danger.'

'We're all in danger.'

'But the aliens know more about your human form and habits than any of the rest of ours –'

'Pai would never –' Lettuce began hotly, but Zakuro cut across her.

'Maybe not, but the information is known. If Pai's been to your house, there's bound to be a way for the others to find out where it is. I don't like the idea of you on your own.'

Lettuce was silent for a few moments, biting her lip. Then she said,

'But Zakuro-san...what if Pai comes?'

'What if he does?'

'I don't think he'd be...comfortable...around more than one of us...especially not you, because you're such a good fighter. What if he comes to speak to me and finds you hear and decides to stay away? What if he thinks I don't want him to come?' She hesitated. 'I want to see him, Zakuro.'

There was a long pause. She could almost hear Zakuro thinking. Finally the wolf Mew spoke. '...Alright. I'll leave you alone for tonight. But keep your power pendant on you all the time. Don't let it out of your sight. And if you see or hear anything the slightest bit suspicious, call me again. Do you promise?'

'I promise.'

'Good. This is my number.' She said it slowly and Lettuce wrote it down, repeating it back to her as she did so.

'Give it to the press and I will cheerfully eat you,' Zakuro said once she'd finished dictating it. Lettuce laughed.

'I promise I won't. Goodnight, Zakuro-onee-chan.'

'Goodnight, Lettuce,' Zakuro whispered, and hung up.

Lettuce sat by the phone for a few moments, then got up and jogged back up the stairs. She walked slowly along the landing, pushed open her bedroom door – and froze.

Her bedroom window was flapping open, the curtains swirling in the breeze.

Lettuce stood in the doorway, forcing herself not to panic. She had left the window open when she went downstairs to answer the phone; there was no evidence whatsoever of anything amiss...

Stupid, stupid, stupid! she berated herself. Enemies all around and you leave your bedroom window hanging open...

Cyniclons don't need open windows. And anyway, it wasn't stupid. You didn't know that more aliens had arrived when you went downstairs.

All the same, where before she had been almost inclined to laugh at Zakuro's paranoia, she was now thoroughly spooked. Swallowing hard, she closed the bedroom door and began to make a slow and thorough search of her room, peering into the wardrobe, under the bed and behind her desk.

'There,' she said to herself, exhaling slowly. 'No nasty aliens lurking anywhere. Now, shut the window, read a book, maybe go downstairs and ask Zakuro to come over after all...'

She turned back to the window and screamed. There was a dark, wavering shadow moving against the curtain.

Lettuce backed against the wall. Where was her pendant? Sitting on her desk, right beneath the window. She had done everything that Zakuro had told her not to do.

A white hand slipped around the curtain and gripped the window frame. Lettuce tensed. Then the curtain was ripped back to reveal Pai.

He balanced on the sill, supporting himself on his arms as he swung his legs into the room. His eyes were searching, and he saw her expression immediately.

'You know?' he asked.

Lettuce nodded. Her mouth was dry. She remembered his unswerving loyalty in the old days...where did this new development leave them? He stepped forward and she backed up a half-step, then stopped. He'd flinched.

'Lettuce, is that how much you trust me?' he whispered. Next instant she was stumbling forward into his arms, tears spilling down her face.

'It's not about trust,' she mumbled. 'It's about what I've got the right to expect of you. If you had to help your people...'

'Sssh.' He sat down on the bed, pulling her onto his lap. She wrapped her arms tightly around him, nestling her head in the crook of his neck. 'I know. But I...' She heard him swallow. 'Lettuce, I need you.'

She hugged him fiercely, fresh tears welling up.

'Don't cry, Lettuce,' he soothed, rocking her. 'It will be alright, I promise...'

Lettuce gulped, trying to pull herself together. 'What can we do?' she asked, reasonably steadily.

'We have to make them talk. These are men I trained alongside; I was a commanding officer to some of them. They'll listen to me...but Lettuce, they're not going to like it. I'm afraid that some of them will see it as a personal betrayal; they've always counted on me to lead them. If I had something concrete to offer them...do you think you could have any influence over your friends, to persuade them to a truce with us? Those two leaders of yours, could you talk to them?'

Lettuce was silent, chewing over what he had said, and she realised that her falling-out with Shirogane couldn't have come at a worse time. He had seemed to look favourably on her – maybe even to have a soft spot for her. But now he was bound to be angry.

'Lettuce?' Pai prompted.

'Maybe,' she said, 'but Shirogane-san...'

'What about him?'

'Shirogane-san might be...difficult...because...you see, today he asked me out.' She finished the sentence in a rush.

'What did you say?'

'No. What else could I say?'

'And that made you sad?' Pai asked quietly. He must have heard her distress, despite her efforts to keep her voice level.

'Oh, Pai-kun, I...I didn't want to say yes, but he looked so shocked...and I told him no in front of everybody, they all heard, and Ichigo was being hateful to him...' She stopped, sensing that asking Pai to be sympathetic to Ryou was stretching him a bit. 'It doesn't matter,' she muttered.

'Yes it does,' Pai disagreed. 'Lettuce, you know I'm not human, don't you? And I never can be, no matter how much...'

'It doesn't matter for what we've got to do,' Lettuce clarified impatiently. 'Ryou might be angry with me, but I'm sure he'll see sense.' She paused, then spoke decisively. 'Pai, tell me when the new Cyniclons are going to land?'

'Two days from now.'

'Not long...' Lettuce bit her lip. 'Then we have to get the other Mews to talk, as soon as possible, so that you'll have something to show when your people get here. Pai-kun, come to the park near the café at five o'clock tomorrow afternoon. When I go to work in the morning I'll tell the others that you're coming to negotiate peacefully with them, and I'll...I'll soften them up somehow. Then at five o'clock I can go and fetch you.'

'Yes.' She could see that Pai was less than pleased at the idea of coming alone into the heart of the enemy, though he tried not to show it. 'Why as late as five, though?'

'It's when the café closes. It wouldn't do for the customers to see you.'

'No.' Pai gave the shadow of a smile. 'What shall I tell Kisshu and Taruto?'

'Tell them whatever you like,' Lettuce said. 'But I'd tell them the truth.'

'Yes,' Pai sighed. He looked as though he were steeling himself. 'I could only have kept it from Kisshu for so long, anyway...'

'Mmm.' Lettuce sighed, leaning her head against his chest. Their plan, such as it was, was decided. Now there was nothing to do but try to stay calm. She put her hand on his arm. His muscles had little more give in them than steel, and his hand was broad and strong against her cheek...but she could hear his heartbeat too, resounding steadily through his chest wall. 'Pai-kun, I'm afraid.'

'Don't be. I can look after myself, and I promise I'll look after you too. I won't let them come anywhere near you until I've got them to see sense. And you can look after yourself as well. You're incredible that way.'

Lettuce blew out, fluttering her fringe. 'I don't want to lose you.'

'I know.' He stroked her face. His eyes were locked on the far wall, unseeing, and for a moment she saw the grim warrior in his face, perfectly fused with the tenderness he showed to her. He was so beautiful that he took her breath away.

'I hate...what this is doing to you,' he said, gesturing vaguely with one hand. 'I hate that you have to go against your friends...'

'Not going against them,' Lettuce murmured. 'For them, in the end.'

'In the end, if our two sides went back to fighting, you would have to fight with your people. It would be perfectly justified.'

'That won't happen,' Lettuce said clearly. 'I swear to you, it won't. I won't fight against you.'

His expression was intent. Brittle. His eyes oddly bright. 'Hold me,' he whispered, bending over her as though he didn't trust his face to remain impassive.

Were those tears in his eyes? Lettuce shifted her position, wrapping her arms around him. It was difficult – he was so much taller than her – but she pulled him close and laid his head on her shoulder. He buried his face in the side of her neck, his fingers slowly tracing her neck.

'Meia tyedana,' he whispered. He had asked her to hold him, but he was clinging to her instead, so tightly that she struggled to breath.

'Is that Cyniclon?' she asked softly.

'Hai. It means my darling.'

'Speak some more to me.'

He smiled, and began to speak, eyes closed, cheek resting on her collarbone. It was a rhythmic language, full of compound consonants and fluid, sliding vowels. It made her heart skip. Not his perfectly cultivated, military Japanese...his own language...

'What are you saying?' she whispered.

'That I love you. And then a lot of sentimental comparisons.' His voice was offhand, but his expression was dreamy.

He turned his face into her chest again, nuzzling closer. Lettuce placed her hands in his hair, and tilted her head back against the wall, and the tears welled up where he couldn't see.

A/N: Just a little bit of lingo-fluff for y'all there. I'm SORRY, I KNOW that the fluff at the end was bad, but it's late and I promised people this update, I will totally go and edit it tomorrow...

Also, this onesided RyouxLettuce is turning out to be a very, VERY bad idea. Because I am beginning to realise that PaixLettuce is not about Lettuce pining after Pai and Pai turning up and magically revealing that he returns her feelings, but about Pai pining after Lettuce while Lettuce dithers between him and Ryou. And now that I've given Lettuce a hint of Ryoulove, she's tugging at the reigns, all, 'come on, True! Give in! Give up and pair me with Ryou, face it, it's cannonical!' I don't know why my muse can't just do as it's told. Why does it have to go out looking for opportunities to plunge the metaphorical dagger of romantic pain into its own breast? OH. BECAUSE I AM A FAILED PERFECTIONIST, THAT'S WHY.

If ye love me, you will inundate me with LettucexRyou breakup ficlets and reasons why PaiRet is the better couple. Srsly guys, I need help.