It has been almost three years since I have logged in to this account and posted... anything at all!
This was laying in my folder for a while. I have looked it over, however, I'm using mobile right now so may have missedsome spellings or formatted incorrectly.
Let me know or I'll find it later when I come back to check.
Much love!
*~ Familiar Defiance ~*
*~ Chapter 2 ~*
It had been a month since Ichigo's close encounter with Kish in the park. In the week leading up to Christmas the aliens attacked central Tokyo and it had gone badly. Not for Tokyo Mew Mew but for the aliens... or one in particular. The Blue Knight had shown up once again to assist the mews in their endeavours and, in his frustration, Kish had made a few hasty mistakes. It earned him a few nicks and bruises… and one slash across his middle that was teetering on the border of being life-threatening. The whole ordeal resulted in the aliens retreat and a ruined date with Ichigo's beloved Aoyama.
The boy of course didn't bat an eye when Ichigo cancelled with the excuse that she had suddenly come down with something. He simply accepted it, wishing her well and letting her know to call if she needed anything. Aoyama was so sweet.
Guilt still huddled close to Ichigo like a lost child. She hadn't lied to him, not exactly; the sight of the green-haired alien black and blue, covered in his own blood, was stuck on replay in her mind and it made her stomach roll. The guilt wasn't entirely for letting her boyfriend down either. For the most part she felt for the enemy. He was beaten within an inch of his life.
He didn't deserve that. Regardless of what he was doing - he didn't deserve to die.
But what if he had? What if he had died then and there? What if his brothers were unable to stop the bleeding? What if he were still dying or worse?
These questions played on Ichigo's mind over and over since the attack to the present, as she walked home with Lettuce. She had brought it up with the others multiple times over the week since the attack. Ryou seemed to care less - "One less enemy to worry about". Yet though her boss said this, she could see the grimace beyond his facade and so she didn't press him any further. Just accepted his words and continued to quietly stress on her own.
The girls also shared her concerns. None of them had thought about the possibility of death until it was staring them in the face… and it wasn't even them bearing death's call on that day.
Each dealt with the idea and inner conflict differently. Mint just outright turned away from any mention of it, choosing to ignore even the implication that an early grave was the price of failure. Pudding decided to dial up the optimism tenfold. Any and every negative sentence uttered was met with bounds and leaps of encouragement and positive reinforcement no matter how small the task. Zakuro was calm on the surface as always but, with pursed lips and a pensive expression, she was resigned and lost in thought on the matter. Lettuce was the only one that Ichigo could talk to about the subject without being met with absolute rejection or overshadowed with overbearing positivity. The green mew was just as concerned about the opposition as she was about her comrades. She didn't want to cause serious harm. She only wanted to defend. She was only a defender of Earth and she would choose peace over every aggression if it were viable.
On this evening, Lettuce tried to fill the silence with idle chatter while Ichigo pretended to be listening. Both girls knew they would end up in the same discussion they had been having all week, it was just a matter of who would initiate it.
The green mew off-hand mentioned an open day for a college prospect happening in two weeks time. Lettuce quietly muttered that she would be in Kyushu visiting the district with her mother for three days so during that time she would be unavailable for work and aiding in the whole 'saving the world' agenda until she got back. Her words were quiet and slow, quickly losing steam.
Ichigo took the initiative and dived in, "Maybe Mint had the right idea after all."
Lettuce's brows rose in surprise, "You mean… pretending like nothing's changed?"
"No," Ichigo sighed, shaking her head, "I mean… Don't you remember two years ago? When all this started. She quit. Soon after we were all together, she quit. Maybe she was right to."
The green mew opened her mouth to respond but paused. She looked forward, noting the busy street and the entrance to the park just a few feet away. After quiet contemplation Lettuce shook her head and replied, "No, I don't think so. Someone had to take a stand and, it just so happened that we were compatible with the red data animals. If we hadn't, we would probably be under Cyniclon rule by now."
"No, we wouldn't," Ichigo frowned and when Lettuce turned to her in confusion, she winced at her own words, "We'd be dead."
A short uncomfortable silence followed as they entered the park. As usual it was quiet but with enough foot traffic to feel at least somewhat safe in numbers. But the girls didn't see anything else except the images of a dying world and a bloody, beaten alien.
When it became too much, Ichigo groaned, "He's always so annoying but I never wanted him to die!"
"Ichigo, he's not-"
"How do you know that?!" Ichigo snapped, interrupting Lettuce's uncertain tone and drawing a few eyes in the vicinity. She glanced around sheepishly and then lowered her tone, "I'm sorry it's just...it's been days and there's not even been a sighting of them. What if he's-?"
"I feel like there would have been some kind of retribution by now," Lettuce offered with a shrug, still donning that expression of uncertainty.
Ichigo pursed her lips for a moment and then next sighed heavily, "Is it weird for me to hope that he's okay? Don't get me wrong - I don't like the guy, I just don't think he deserves to die." Ichigo kicked a stray pebble across the pavement as she pocketed one hand to absentmindedly hold her pendant while simultaneously gripping the strap of her bag with the other. "I know that Ryou said the aliens are trying to kill us so why should we worry about them. But then I feel it's more complicated than that."
Lettuce nodded with a thin-lipped sympathetic smile, "I know what you mean. I agree. They're doing this because they're desperate. They're trying to save their families. It's not just because they simply want to."
Ichigo mirrored the nod of acknowledgement but her eyes stayed on the ground ahead of her feet. People passed them but again all Ichigo could think about was Kish reaching out to her just before he passed out. His blood on the ground. The concern and fear in his brothers faces as they carried him to safety. Had they carried him to safety? Had they saved him?
Once again Ichigo groaned and ran one of her hands through her hair in frustration, "Ugh! I can't get it out of my head."
The green mew sighed and nodded, "Yeah, me too."
Another uncomfortable silence enveloped them as they made their way through the park. Both girls lost inside their own heads, with similar horror scenes stuck on repeat.
As they approached the quiet part of the park, Ichigo's eyes strayed to the place between the trees just off of the path. Her eyes scanned the dark spaces around the trees and bushes, as they did everytime they walked through this particular part of the park since she and the alien had come face to face out of battle. A few times she thought she may have caught sight of a glowing pair eyes or a glimpse of a boot vanishing behind a tree. But nothing that she could one hundred percent guarantee was anything but a trick of the light.
That is, to say, until this evening. She almost missed it. Had she not been looking, she would have never noticed it.
A long thin strip of brown cloth hanging down from a tree branch. Her chocolate orbs zeroed in on it and she watched as the breeze caught it and a second one came into view from behind the tree trunk. They waved in the gentle breeze before falling back to hang underneath the tree branches, their point of origin hidden within the treetop.
Was it him? Or one of his brothers? Or was it nothing at all? She didn't know but she was going to find out.
First, however, she needed to get Lettuce out of the situation before it even began. Ichigo didn't want to cause any unnecessary harm to her friend just in case this ridiculous plan of hers went quickly south. The mew leader was less concerned about her own safety in favour of learning whether her enemy was alive or not.
"Shoot!" She snapped making Lettuce jump in surprise. The redhead made a show of patting down her coat pockets and then dramatically sighed, "I've left my pendant at the cafe."
"Oh, we should-"
"No, it's okay. I can go myself," Ichigo quickly interjected, waving one of her hands dismissively as she half turned away, "You're nearly home anyway and you've got a busy day tomorrow, right? You're helping your mother get groceries, right?"
"Well, yes but I don't mind going back with-"
"No! No! Really, I'm fine," Ichigo shook her head and threw a smile at her friend to which Lettuce frowned back in return, "I think the walk might help me clear my mind a little anyway. See you tomorrow?"
For a tense moment, Ichigo thought Lettuce was going to question her but she just sighed and nodded her head. She threw her a sad smile before turning to leave, "Okay, be careful Ichigo. See you tomorrow."
"Bye bye," Ichigo replied and turned to make out like she was heading back. She kept going until she turned to check over her shoulder and watch as Lettuce disappeared around a hedge.
Her heart pounding loudly in her ear, the mew switched direction instantly, treading immediately off of the path and into the wet dewy grass. She came to stand directly under the tree and her fingers lightly brushed one of the hanging tassels. The fabric was rough and slightly weathered. She glanced up but all she saw was darkness.
She opened her mouth to speak but in her fear nothing came out. She huffed irritated with herself and tried again.
"Uh, K-kish?"
She wasn't sure if it was just the breeze or not, but the streamers swayed and there was a very soft rustling from above. However the sound stopped shortly after it began. Tense, seconds passed that felt like minutes until a pair of feet were swung over the tree branch and, as they floated down, a body followed.
The green haired alien floated down to the ground. Ichigo's heart raced. He's alive!! He was okay!! But as his form touched the ground, one hand came up to the tree bark and he was hunched over. He met her eyes and tried to smile but his face was swollen on one side and his skin was blotchy around the bandaging.
Ichigo just stared wide-eyed for a moment taking in his beaten person.
"Are you…" she croaked, "Are you okay?"
His eyes and brow twitched before he looked down at himself and hissed a quiet laugh, "Peachy."
The mew winced. She looked down at her feet, "Sorry, that was a dumb question."
The alien glanced over toward the path then back at Ichigo, "I'm alive. Sorry to disappoint."
Ichigo was silent again for a moment wondering what she was supposed to say next. She hadn't really thought this through, driven only by her need to confirm that he was still alive and breathing. Now that she had what she was looking for, she felt dumbfounded as the alien boy looked on expectantly.
Said boy took the initiative in the silence and asked, "Did you particularly want something? Not that I mind being disturbed at all, but I'm-" he gestured to his chest, wincing with the action, "not really capable of much at the moment."
The secret mew opened her mouth to speak but stopped herself. Instead of coming up with some excuse, she instead bypassed the question whilst still remaining relevant, "You didn't deserve what the Blue Knight did. That seemed… too violent."
"You were there, huh?" he sighed deeply and leaned his back against the tree bark, letting his head fall back and looking up into the tree, "You realise I'm your enemy, right?"
Ichigo averted her eyes sheepishly and muttered in response, "That's not the point. W-! ...they're supposed to be the good guys. To us at least. That was overkill! You could have died."
He didn't notice her slip, or if he did it was misinterpreted thankfully.
With a tilt of his head, he considered her openly with dipped brows and curiosity gleaming in his eyes.
After a tense few seconds he gave a small shrug accompanied by a wince, "But I didn't."
Somewhat appalled by the blasé response, the mew's mouth flapped wordlessly once again. She stopped when he kept his eyes cast toward the path, refusing to meet her gaze.
Ichigo bit her lip and considered her words carefully. She walked over and stood beside him, just round the side of the tree. Two feet apart, she leaned back as well and asked, "Kish, why are you here?"
His brow furrowed and he asked in confusion, "In the park?"
She chuckled softly and shook her cherry locks, "No. Earth. Why are you on Earth?"
He turned away from her and grumbled, "We need this planet."
Ichigo gazed at him curiously and after a moment she asked, "What's wrong with your own planet?"
He jolted at the question and for an instant Ichigo thought she had stepped on a landmine. As she opened her mouth to apologise and withdraw her curiosity… he laughed.
The sound was hoarse and broken but his face lit up slightly. He looked at her sideways and, evading the question entirely, he stated, "You are so nosy."
"What?!" She yelped, not expecting the tiny jab at all, "No, I just-"
"Care? Unlikely," he muttered, his tone less friendly this time. Ichigo winced and went to defend her selflessness but he stopped her with a raised palm and a shake of his head, "It doesn't matter. I don't expect you to care or understand. How could you? You have everything here."
Still frowning, Ichigo huffed and averted her eyes again, grumbling, "Just because I'm an inexperienced human doesn't mean I'm incapable of empathy… and I'm not nosy - I'm just curious."
The alien once again considered her out of the corner of his eye and muttered, "Mm, maybe I have judged you too quickly. I mean why else would you seek me out? Not trying to finish off the job, are you? Help out where the mews failed?"
"They weren't trying to kill you!" The secret mew leader exclaimed, somewhat hurt by the accusation.
He rolled his eyes and heaved a sigh, "Well, it's not like she… they didn't exactly help."
"How were they supposed to?!"
"They weren't. That's the point. Look, Ichigo. Clearly something is wrong with you," she made a face but didn't respond. Instead she froze as he brought a hand toward her and let it simply rest lightly on her head while he continued, "You seem to think that I don't deserve the evils that we are equally trying to inflict on your whole race."
"But you're doing that to save your people, aren't you?" Ichigo muttered.
For an instant Kish froze a look of surprise crossing his face before he expertly wiped it away and continued on with what he was going to say - not without a gentle pat to the head. Ichigo wasn't entirely sure if she was comfortable with the action but she allowed it nonetheless, "Yes, but that doesn't make it any less… you shouldn't confuse me for your friend. The mews and the Cruel Knight understand that we're here to do a job and we won't stop until our families and friends are safe. On earth."
Once more she opened her mouth to speak but he interrupted before she even began. His tone was firm but his expression was not at all hostile causing it to seem like he was contradicting the statement, "We're not friends."
He took his hand back and waited as she frowned at the ground before nodding. She looked back up and quickly stated with a respectful bow, "Alright. But I'm still glad that you're okay - or as much as you can be at the moment. I suppose I'll leave you be now."
"That would probably be for the best," he nodded and then just as she turned to leave he added, "I really didn't mind the disturbance. Thank you for… seemingly caring."
"I do care," she enthused but smiled at him before she ran back to the path, "Bye, non-friend."
She heard him laugh but when her eyes trailed back he was either gone or hidden once more in the tree top.
Remember to read and review, loves.
Lv Lv Hazard
