Animal Instinct
Chapter II
This should not be happening. It could not be happening. Tokyo Mew Mew was a myth, an urban legend. Something the people of Tokyo had thought up to get themselves a spot on World News Tonight.
But it was happening, Leon realized. The members of Tokyo Mew Mew were standing in front of him, facing down the monster that had been T-chan until only a few short minutes ago.
The Chimera Anima swung it's paw out again, and again Tokyo Mew Mew scattered; jumping out of the way before the paw could crush any of them.
Mew Ringo headed off to the side, out of the monster's view. Her powers were healing, and wouldn't be needed unless someone got hurt.
Which she was hoping wouldn't happen.
"Mint Arrow!" The lorikeet-girl elegantly tossed her hands up, releasing two circles of energy that formed into her weapon.
"Lettuce Castanets!" The porpoise-girl's antennae began to extend until it could wrap around her legs and feet, and her castanets appeared in her hands.
"Ribbon…Lettuce Rush!"
"Ribbon…Minto Echo!"
The two attacks flew through the air hitting the Anima's thick hide. It swung around and roared at them, angry. Mint flew up out of the way and Lettuce ducked to the side as it swung at the two of them.
"No!" Was it worse that T-chan was a monster, or that those… those humans were attacking him?
But before Count D could take another step, Keiichiro and Leon grabbed him and held him back.
"Count, you mustn't!" Keiichiro warned him.
"Yeah, D, I think you'd better leave this one up to the catgirls." Leon added.
That was right. They were more than human. They were part animal, too.
However that was possible.
He stopped struggling and watched as the Mews continued their attacks on his pet. And then he heard something that made him struggle to get free again.
T-chan was screaming.
"Hmmm… It would seem Gateau was right." Pie mused, watching the battle from high above.
"You had doubts?" Kish asked, floating nonchalantly in the air with his hands behind his head.
Pie scowled at him.
"But you know the Mews are going to stop the monster." Kish continued. "What do we do?"
"You wait here and see what happens, like Gateau said." Pie said. "I'm going back."
"Suit yourself." Kish replied.
Pie teleported away. Kish looked back down and continued to study the scene below.
"I already know how it's going to end."
I don't want to do this! Stop making me do this! Stop it!
And that was how the screaming ran; an endless loop of T-chan's begging whatever it was that had control of him to stop making him attack. Certain that if something didn't change soon he would be driven mad, the Count struggled to free himself from Leon and Keiichiro's grip, but they held on tighter.
"T-chan! You don't have to do this!" He called, hoping the totetsu could still hear him.
"Count! This thing won't let me stop!" When even T-chan was scared, D was seriously starting to wonder if it was time to get worried.
"Look out!"
It was a rather redundant warning, since neither D nor Leon and Keiichiro could miss the huge paw now swinging down towards them.
A gray cat with a kink in it's tail lunged forward, aiming at the paw. It started to glow and expand as the paw collided with it, knocking the animal to the side. As it fell to the ground and rolled to a stop a few feet away, the glow faded and the three men could see that the cat was actually Ryou.
"Ryou…" Keiichiro gasped. Then he saw Mew Ringo come running over.
"Look out!" This time it was Leon who called the warning. The Chimera Anima was attacking – again.
"Ribbon Zakuro Spear!" A sweeping arc of purple light blocked the monster's paw, knocking it back a pace. Mew Zakuro hit the ground a moment later and jumped out of the way as the monster lunged at her.
"Pudding! Go, now!" She yelled, then darted away as the Anima came after her again.
The monkey girl backflipped into view, tambourines held high. "Ribbon…Pudding Ring Inferno!"
A huge gumdrop-shaped blob of energy had trapped the Chimera Anima a moment later.
Mew Ichigo glanced at Mew Berry. "Berry, let's go!" The rabbit girl nodded.
"Strawberry Bell Bell!"
"Red Berry Rod!"
Berry spun around, a long ribbon of energy appearing from the tip of her Rod as the Mewberry Rod attached to Ichigo's Strawberry Bell and the catgirl started to charge up her own attack.
"Ichigo, catch!" The rabbit girl shouted as she finished charging up her attack and sent it flying towards the other girl.
Ichigo caught Berry's attack in the smaller heart on the top of the Strawberry Bell and aimed her weapon at the Chimera Anima. "Ribbon…Doubleberry Check!"
The wave of healing energy spread out and engulfed the monster, and a moment later, amidst the glow, the parasite Alien that had taken control of T-chan released the Totetsu.
Mew Ichigo dropped back to the ground a moment later, and Masha flew over and ate the Parasite alien.
Leon and Keiichiro released the Count as the Totetsu came bounding over and jumped back into his owner's arms.
Keiichiro walked over to Ryou, who was sitting up now, Mew Ringo kneeling next to him, her Applesticks on the ground.
"Are you alright?" Keiichiro asked.
Ryou nodded. "Ringo healed me. But I think we'll have to do some explaining now."
Keiichiro nodded as he looked back at the Count, who was talking to goat-like animal in his arms.
"He's actually talking to it, you know."
Both of the men turned and looked at Ringo. She inclined her head towards where the count was standing. "He can talk to animals, and hear them when they reply. Maybe more than that."
"Well we owe that guy a big explanation." Ryou sighed.
"Are you sure you want to do that?" Keiichiro asked.
"What else can we do? The girls didn't have any choice but to transform in front of those two, and the Count's pet just turned into a Chimera Anima. Last time something like that happened we didn't have to explain, but we will this time." Ryou said. "Come on, let's go."
"It was awful. There was this thing stuck on my back and I couldn't get it off, and then it made me transform and go on a rampage." The shaken totetsu was telling the Count.
"Don't worry. That's all over now." The Count replied.
"Will you please stop talking to yourself? That thing is not replying." Leon said.
D gave him an angry glare, but before he could retort, Keiichiro, Ryou, and the Mew Mews came walking back towards them.
Leon crossed his arms over his chest. "So, Shirogane, want to explain what all of that was about?"
Ryou gave him a level stare. "As a matter of fact, I do. But let's not do it out in public."
The Count nodded. "Back to the shop, then."
"Kish!" Ichigo gasped, and everyone turned to look at her. She looked at Ryou. "I just saw Kish up there."
Keiichiro and Ryou exchanged a long glance. We've really fallen into it now.
"What are you people talking about?" Leon asked.
"Like I said," Ryou replied. "We'll explain."
Ichigo took the cup of tea the Count handed her and turned to Ryou. "Are you sure about this?"
"No." The blonde replied. "But it's a bit late to be worrying about that now." He waited until everyone had been given a cup of tea and the Count had returned to his seat, then he began.
"Count D, Detective Orcot, you're probably wondering what all that was about."
"No shi-" The detective was interrupted as Ryou grabbed one of the leftover pasties from tea and shoved it into the other man's mouth.
"Detective, for the next ten days or so, I am guardian of six girls under the age of fifteen. Stop swearing or shut your mouth." Ryou ordered.
Grumbling inwardly, the Detective swallowed the pastry as Ryou resumed his tale. "This story starts out back when my father led an archeological group on a dig in Southeast Asia. They found evidence that once, thousands of years ago, the Earth had been inhabited, not just by humans, but also by a different race that eventually left the planet, apparently just before the advent of the Ice Age. But now something has changed, and they want to take the planet Earth back from us and use it for their own kind."
"What made them come back now?" The Count asked.
"We don't know." Ryou replied. "What we do know is that they want Earth back, and they're willing to do anything to get it. Usually they try to reek as much havoc as they can by messing up something in the environment, be it plants or animals."
"But animals are their favorite option. Their parasite aliens, known as Para Para, can take an animal and turn it into a monster known as a Chimera Anima." Keiichiro added. "That's what happened today."
"And Tokyo Mew Mew?" Leon asked.
"Settle down, we're getting there." Zakuro replied as she sipped her tea. The other girls stayed quiet and watched the scene unfold.
"It was originally my father's idea that superheroes could be created by infusing them with the DNA of endangered animals." Ryou said. "He was a respected scientist world over, and he had begun working on plans to create a team of superheroes with animal abilities." Ryou took a deep breath. "But before act on it, he and my mother were killed by a Chimera Anima."
"Shirogane-san, I'm sorry to hear that." Count D said.
Ryou nodded, looking down at the floor. "We were overseas at the time – in America. The home we had here was destroyed. That was five years ago." He looked up. "Together with Keiichiro, who had been my father's assistant, I went back to Tokyo, and spent the next five years finishing my father's project. The Mew project. It couldn't have been finished sooner. The aliens initially started with small attacks over a wide area, and then they began focusing on multiple attacks in one area; in this case, Tokyo."
"So what? You couldn't just shoot the monsters?" Leon asked, ignoring the dirty look the Count was giving him.
Keiichiro shook his head. "It's never worked before."
"If it did work, the Mew Project wouldn't exist." Ryou added.
"So you did what, went on and injected a bunch of girls with animal genes and turned them into superheroes?" Leon asked suspiciously.
"Yep."
The detective jumped up and grabbed Ryou by his shirt. "I oughta have you arrested!"
Ryou batted that detective's arm away and then crossed his own arms over chest. "You can try whatever you want. But no matter how high you make bail, I can still raise it, and my travel visa expires in fourteen days and they'll just deport me back to Japan anyway."
Irritated, the detective sat back down in his own chair.
"Every girl was infused with the DNA of a different animal." Ryou continued.
"What animals were those?" Leon asked.
"I can answer that." The Count spoke up. "Mew Ichigo is part Iromote Wildcat, Mew Mint is part Ultramarine Lorikeet, Mew Lettuce is part Finless Porpoise, Mew Pudding is part Golden Lion Tamarin, Mew Zakuro is part Grey Wolf, and Mew Berry is both Andean Mountain Cat and Amami Rabbit. Mew Ringo is just barely part penguin."
Everyone in the room was looking at him curiously. Leon turned to Ryou. "Is he right?"
Ryou nodded. "He's right. And Mew Ringo doesn't have any animal DNA, but she represents the Humboldt Penguin."
"And you, Shirogane-san, what animal do you represent?" The Count asked, looking straight at Ryou.
"The Fishing Cat." Ryou replied.
"Okay Count, how do you know this stuff?" Leon demanded.
The Count gave him an eerie look. "I know animals."
"You knew we had some type of animal powers before we came here." Ryou realized.
D nodded and glanced at Ichigo. "I…met one of your group earlier this afternoon."
Mint and Berry gave the redhead a pair suspicious looks, and Ichigo's face turned as red as her hair. The Count smiled at her. "No harm done, though. I had just never met a human who could transform like that before."
Ichigo sighed. "You're too nice, Count."
"Where does your café come into play in all of this?" Leon asked, and Ryou didn't seem surprised by the question.
"It serves as our headquarters." Ryou answered.
"It's also a café." Keiichiro added.
"We all work there." Mint joined in.
"And we make some pretty lucrative wages, too." Berry chipped in, lest Leon assume all the work that was done at the café was slave labor.
"Hmph. You've got this all figured out, don't you?" Leon asked.
"As long as I've spent working on it, I should sure hope so by now." Ryou replied, then turned to D. "Count, with your permission, I want to leave somewhere here to keep an eye on the situation."
"You think there will be more attacks." The Count replied.
"This is a petshop. Until we can figure out if this was an isolated incident or part of a larger plan, I think we'll all be better off someone is here." Keiichiro added.
"You think the aliens are going to start attacking L.A. now?" Leon asked.
"They've already started." Mint pointed out.
"Still, it seems strange that they would have followed us all the way from Tokyo." Lettuce said.
"Especially because the Mew Aqua is still back in Tokyo. Weren't the aliens after that, too?" Berry asked.
"I thought so. I could have been wrong." Ryou admitted.
D set his teacup down. "I don't mind some of you staying. I don't want anything to happen to the animals."
What, not caring about the people who could be hurt? Leon thought but he didn't voice the comment.
"I'll stay." Zakuro said.
"And I'll stay with her." Ringo added.
"Then I suppose it's settled." D replied.
Ryou stood up. "We need to get back tot the hotel and start tracking down the alien's movements. If there are other attacks, it might show a pattern. Ringo, Zakuro, we'll have stuff brought over for you."
"Nothing, then?"
"There's nothing," Keiichiro confirmed, adjusting the phone as he did. "This is the first Chimera Anima attack in L.A. There've been lots of other crazy things going on in this town, but this is the first alien attack."
"Wonderful." Zakuro said as she watched Ringo running by, chasing after a raccoon.
"How is everything there?" Keiichiro asked.
Zakuro switched her cell phone to her other ear. "Everything was quiet last night. Masha slept out on the table all night and never made a sound. Ringo and I had a good night's sleep. The Detective left, and the Count is off taking care of some animal or another. His mutated goat is currently warming my feet."
"The one from yesterday?"
"Yep."
There was a pause, then Zakuro spoke again. "Keiichiro, what does this mean? That there was only one attack, and right where we were?"
Even though there was no way she could see it over the phone, Keiichiro shook his head. "I don't know, Zakuro, we can't figure it out." Ryou entered the hotel room and saw the other man on the phone. He mouthed the word 'Zakuro?' and Keiichiro nodded. "It could be that the aliens are stalking us, but it makes more sense that they would stay behind in Tokyo to wreak havoc while we were gone."
"Well, let's be glad they didn't do that." Zakuro said. Back in the pet shop, the Count came walking by, and she waited until he had passed before continuing. "Anything else?"
"Ryou's been thinking about what might happen if the aliens decided to release twenty or thirty Para Paras into the pet store. He thinks there's something suspicious about a pet store being attacked. See if you can get the Count to take you around the pet store and get a rough estimate of how many animals there are there."
"Sound like fun," Zakuro said, her voice dripping with sarcasm. She pulled her feet out from under T-chan and stood up. "I've seen about twenty animals in the last half hour and the only thing I've been doing is sitting in the front room."
"That doesn't bode well." Keiichiro said. "Another thing is that there might be something there that the aliens could be after. Maybe you should tell the Count about the Mew Aqua."
"I thought Mew Aqua was only in Tokyo."
"That's what I thought. But we might be wrong. Mint and Lettuce will be over a little later to relieve you and Ringo."
Zakuro sighed. "I'll see you later, Keiichiro." Then she pulled the phone away from her ear and snapped it shut. What a mess.
Well she would have to talk to the Count. There was no doubt about it. Zakuro sighed again, and then headed back towards the room she and Ringo had spent the night. It didn't have to be done immediately, and she wanted a few minutes to think.
T-chan watched as the purple-haired girl walked away. "Something the matter, T-chan?"
The totetsu looked over and watched as Count D re-entered the room, Femuto-kun on his heels.
"Zakuro was talking to her friend with the ponytail." T-chan reported.
"Keiichiro?" The count asked.
"I think that's what she called him. Anyway, the thing that attacked me yesterday was the first one in the city."
"Well, at least it's not widespread." D replied.
"And this Keiichiro wants to know about how many animals are in the shop, because someone named Ryou thinks it's suspicious that these aliens attacked the pet shop, and that Zakuro should tell you about the Mew Aqua, because they think the aliens might be after it." T-chan added.
D frowned at him. "Were you eavesdropping?"
"Not intentionally."
Back in the hallway, they could hear Zakuro's cell phone ring again.
"She's sure been busy." T-chan said as the Count headed back towards where they could hear Zakuro talking.
"Zakuro, Ryou says that if there is any Mew Aqua there, don't disturb it. And if you don't want to tell the Count about it, that's fine. Ryou or I can tell him later." Keiichiro said.
"How urgent do you think it is?" Zakuro asked.
Keiichiro sighed. "I don't know, Zakuro. We're playing this by ear. It seems very strange that there would be any Mew Aqua in America because it should only be found in Japan."
"Don't worry. I'll tell Count D about it."
"Alright. And Ryou wants to talk to you about something. Here, I'll give him the phone."
As she listened to Ryou talk, Zakruo didn't hear the Count enter the hall behind her.
"Ryou, that's awful." Zakuro told him, a bit humor coloring her voice. "I can't believe you would suggest that."
"It has to be done." Back in the hotel room, Ryou sat down on one of the beds in the room the he and Keiichiro were using, one hand on the phone and the other on his laptop. "We've got to keep that detective from telling anyone else anything about us. Will you handle it?"
"Yep, I'll take care of it. See you later this afternoon." She closed her phone, staring at the outer screen for a moment before putting it away.
Zakuro turned and was not surprised to see Count D standing there. "Is something wrong?" He asked.
"No. Ryou and Keiichiro say that the Chimera Anima attack yesterday was the first in L.A. I have an errand to run, but it shouldn't take me very long. Ringo will stay here, though she won't be able to help much if something does happen." Zakuro said as they walked back towards the front room.
"And when I come back, I'd like to take a walk through the pet store, if it's alright with you." She continued.
"I will be happy to show you around." D told her.
Zakuro headed for the door. "There's something else I have to talk to you about when I come back."
"Mew Aqua?" The count asked.
She gave him a sharp look. "Your goat eavesdropped."
"Not on purpose."
Zakuro shook her head and headed out the door.
T.A.R.N.S.: Okay, so I was thinking this soty last night, and I realized, you know, it's been a week or so now since I put up the first chapter; I think it's time for an update. And there's the battle scene that I didn't get to squish into the last chapter. Mostly what we have here is plot development, I believe, but don't worry, we'll get back to the battles soon.
Thanks for coming back for this second chapter of AnIn, and I'd also like to thank MarzBunni and SageofAges729, who reviewed the first chapter.
I hope everyone enjoyed the chapter, and please review! I love feedback!