The More, the Merrier
Dear readers,
Thank you for stopping by and reading this story. I would like to hereby thank you all for your comments, reviews, follows and kudos. It's always so nice to hear your feedback, rest assured! (*´∀`*)
As for the plot, we are half way in now. Wow! Time really flies, doesn't it? What will happen next? More drama? More trauma? More…love? Let's shake that Kishigo fandom a bit more, shall we?
The music I used for this segment is Fergie's 'Glamorous (Instrumental).'
Lucero Perez - Thank you for your comment! I hope that you will like the following chapter just as much, if not more! Let me know your thoughts!
ErinNevermore - Thank you for your comment! I hope that this following update would make you scream at the top of your lungs!
DrDark7 - Thank you for your comment! Is it officially the end for Ichigo and Masaya's romance? Or had Ichigo come back to her senses? Read and find out!
Lulyy Elizabeth Vaca - Thank you for your comment! Yes, I totally agree! Masaya is just so plainly dull, is he not? Let's focus on Kishigo now, shall we?
Wildfaerie - Thank you for your comment! I could not agree more and I hope that you will enjoy reading this following chapter as well. Something tells me that you might!
AnimeRoxx - Thank you for your comment! I know, right? Masaya is definitely going to be more suspicious of Ichigo from now on, that's a given!
As always, please enjoy and review!
I do not own Tokyo Mew Mew
Ryou hadn't been kidding when he had asked the girls for help with the preparations for the upcoming Halloween banquet.
If Ichigo had expected to be running an errand or two, while decorating the interior of the Café with various colorful tinsels and wreathes, she was off her god-damn rocker, though. Her boss, evidently, had a vision for this event. But that vision had been changing in accordance with his sudden mood swings, which, in practice, meant that they had to redo everything from scratch almost every other day. Ichigo's daily agenda had hence largely consisted of shopping for various decorative and cleaning utensils, peeling off wallpaper and sometimes also helping Keiichiro in the kitchen. She was crazy busy, in other words; a complete mess, if you will.
And the closer the banquet was getting, the more apparent it had become to her that Ryou had really no actual conceptualization of what the word 'party' constituted, as well as that there was simply too much work and not enough time.
Even if the Mew Mews were officially let off the clock during the big event itself that had not made their boss go any easier on anyone as far as the time before the party was concerned. Quite surprisingly, even Mint was forced to help with the magnitude of the tasks for a change, which had made the whole situation even more bizarre in Ichigo's eyes. Again, Ryou had stressed on more than one occasion to everyone how important this whole banquet was for their organization. Yet, it wasn't until the blue lorikeet Mew had actually lifted a finger that Ichigo had finally come to terms with the sad reality that she was indeed not delusional, and that this was going to be very long three days of her life.
'Three more days, Ichigo. You can do it. Three more days,' the girl mentally chanted to herself, hoping that her inner persona would steel her nerves during such a stressful period of time when her body clearly couldn't.
Every night, Ichigo had ended up falling into her bed face front with a secret prayer on her lips that she would just die already and would not have to wake up and work again the next day. However, no matter how much she had wished for it, her eyes always opened at the crack of the dawn for some reason, as if her inner mechanism simply knew that she had to get up and take care of all the things awaiting her. The only consolidation she had had was the fact that there hadn't been any alien attack so far, which had successfully eliminated at least one thing off from her mental to-do-list.
As for her affair with Kisshu, Ichigo hadn't seen the alien for quite a few days now. And regardless of how wonderful the sex with him was, she couldn't be any happier for that. Her body, as well as her mind, heavily appreciated this sexual absence, since there was literally no space left for anything else save for running Ryou's stupid errands, going to school and sleeping for the remaining part of the day.
In Ichigo's humble opinion, this all could have been easily evaded, should their boss make up his damn mind and finally stick with one of his opinions. She, in fact, blamed solely Ryou for making her entire existence a living hell yet again, but she had known better than to tell him that out loud. He was already grumpy and snarky as it was, causing everyone's hair to stand on an end numerous times. Why to push him any further? Plus, knowing that the blonde was a notorious slave driver who reveled in other people's misery, Ichigo could only hope that the rest of the team would finally see his true colors - in particular that part of him being a sadistic megalomaniac – one day as well.
But, to her chagrin, Keiichiro had always somehow magically managed to step in when things had gotten a little too out of hand, resolving the conflict in the nick of time and making everybody feel at ease once again.
'Some things were simply not meant to be,' Ichigo concluded wryly, as her phone beeped with yet another message from her boss; the sixth in the last two hours.
She regarded the name on her little display groggily before leaning over her school desk and letting out a frustrated sigh.
Speak of the devil.
Could Ryou still contact her, if she had thrown her cell out of the window? Perhaps, it would be much easier to merely pretend that she had not received any of his messages altogether. She could change her phone number, right? Or her signal could get cut off. Or maybe her phone had gotten stolen? Now that Ichigo had really thought about it, the possibilities were boundless. The only difficulty with this plan resided in the notion that Ryou was not an idiot; the other being that he wasn't exactly gifted in the gullible department either.
'As if he ever believed that,' Ichigo noted dryly, placing her head on the back of her hands in growing aggravation.
While her mind continued to run through all of her options of how to efficiently avoid her annoying boss forever, she had barely heard the sound of chairs screeching as Moe and Miwa assumed the seats beside her with their lunch boxes at a ready.
"Look at you. Everything alright? You seem kinda sick," Moe asked, sending the red head a concerned look.
"Yes. Just really busy with work, that's all," Ichigo breathed out, unable to mask her excitement for this terrible event to be finally over.
Three more days. You can do it. Three more days.
In reality, Ichigo was rather surprised at herself that she had made it this far with her current state of insomnia and all the other pressing issues on her mind. She too had a strong hunch that it had everything to do with her Iriomote cat genes which had provided her with resilience beyond any human capacity possible. But, resilient or not, Ichigo could not fight the groan, when her phone chimed once more the next minute, immediately alerting her of Ryou's constant presence looming over her life.
What else could he possibly want? She already had to go to the store today and get another set of cleaning utensils. Did he really have no life whatsoever?
Bringing the phone back to her face, Ichigo scanned through the small letters on her display quickly and grimaced at the content of the message.
Buy a few extra rolls of toilet paper as well. Ryou
No thank you. No please. Just another order without any hint of politeness in it.
A typical Ryou to the T.
The longer Ichigo had glared daggers at the display in her hand, the more trouble she had deciding whether it was simply Ryou's way with words or his annoying face, which hovered directly next to the text, that had instantly caused her energy levels to diminish even more. For some reason, the blonde had always had that draining effect on her. And, maybe on anyone else who was brave to stand close enough to him, waiting to be sucked out of their life and eternal happiness, while simultaneously signing their death wish.
Well, except for Moe, apparently. But Moe had never worked for Ryou, so it was hard to tell.
"Oh, who is that hottie in the picture. Pray tell," her friend inquired, shooting Ichigo a coy smirk.
"That's my boss. We have this charity event happening this Friday, so he wants to make sure everybody is completely miserable before the actual party has even started," Ichigo muttered sarcastically, trying to pocket her phone away but Moe's hand on her wrist stopped her.
"This guy?! No way! You have to introduce me to him, then! Is he single?" Moe squeaked excitedly to which Ichigo could only sweat drop.
"You don't wanna know him. He's a total asshole," Ichigo sighed, hoping this would steer her friend away.
From the looks of it, though, she did not succeed by much.
"But a pretty good-looking asshole," Miwa commented, as she took Ichigo's cell in her own hand and gave the blonde in the picture one long appraising look, "I'm honestly surprised he doesn't do it for you, Ichigo. You usually go after the handsome ones," she winked, giving the red head her phone back.
"Yes, Masaya is very dreamy. But this guy is a complete model, trust me," Moe meowled airily.
Model, huh?
Ichigo could not quite recall if she had ever thought of Ryou in that way, all the more when they already had Zakuro on their team. But to an untrained eye, her blonde boss could be considered attractive, Ichigo supposed, regardless of his terrible character. The only problem was that all the prettiness was inadvertently shattered once he opened his god damn mouth.
"Oh, I think Masaya is way dreamier, if you ask me," Miwa countered, turning to Ichigo and making her breath hitch in her throat, "What do you think?"
"What a silly question. Of course she is gonna say that her boyfriend is dreamier. Stupid!" Moe laughed with her hand close to her lips.
Ichigo considered her words for a second, losing herself in her own train of thinking. Objectively speaking, Masaya was very good-looking. That was primarily why Ichigo had become so vastly infatuated with him in the very first place. But after getting to know him a little better, including the way how he looked naked and what she could expect from him in bed, his beatitude somewhat dissolved in her eyes. What hence remained irrevocably sustained in the minds of many, fell from the ideal of a perfect boyfriend quite rapidly in Ichigo's mind.
Was beauty really in the eye of the beholder?
"Well, yea…I guess. Except that lately I'm more into the fanged grins and, you know, the dark stuff," Ichigo replied absent-mindedly before she caught herself at once, her face red.
"What?" Miwa asked, confused, and it took Ichigo a moment to fully realize what she had just said and marvel even more at where that had even come from.
"N-nothing!" she tried to cover her blunder with a fit of awkward, strained laughter, "I was.…mm..It was just a joke, obviously. As if anyone really had fangs, right?"
"S-sure," Miwa answered, still fairly uncertain of what to make out of Ichigo's weird response until Moe's excited face suddenly filled their vision and a pair of frantic hands grabbed Ichigo forcefully by her shoulders.
"Can I come to the party? Can I? Can I?" Moe implored.
"Moe, I'm not sure if it's possible. Ryou has a really tight guest list. You have no idea how difficult it was to convince him to bring Masaya with me as my plus one to begin with," Ichigo exhaled sharply, not entirely lying.
Even if Keiichiro was very open to the idea of Ichigo coming to the party with her boyfriend, Ryou did not share such merry enthusiasm; thus, once again, merely proving to everyone around him what a colossal jerk he truly was.
"Ryou…..what a gorgeous name for such a gorgeous guy," Moe swooned dreamily.
"You're missing the point, Moe."
"I don't see a reason why your boss would mind someone who would like to contribute to saving the environment," a mild voice came from behind them, causing Ichigo to abruptly flinch and her friends to cheer in unison.
"Masaya!" Moe grinned broadly at the newcomer, beckoning him to join them with the back of her hand.
"Nice timing, you have," Miwa smiled and nodded her head in acknowledgement of his presence.
Masaya nodded back cheerfully before placing a warm hand on Ichigo's shoulder, making his girlfriend's blood instantly stone cold.
In truth, Ichigo could not quite explain why but ever since that slip of her tongue incident last week, she had had extremely hard time being anywhere around Masaya, not to mention looking him straight in the eye. She had no idea how he had missed her tail popping up after their latest love-making attempt. But she was a firm believer that miracles could happen, as long as one was able to believe in them. This, however, did not change anything about the way how Masaya had started watching her like a hawk ever since then. Again, it could all be just Ichigo's innate paranoia speaking, but considering the circumstances, it was fairly plausible that Masaya had decided to keep his tabs on his girlfriend nonstop. And with the amount of work and tension the girl had already acquired in her muscles, this certainly was not helping her mental distress in the least bit.
"Well, obviously you don't know Ryou at all, if you say that," she pushed his hand away and stood up, intending to leave, but Moe's fingers on her arm had made her pause in her tracks and turn back to regard her friend.
"Please, Ichigo. I would also like to have a sweet and handsome boyfriend whom I love helplessly like you do. Come on! Make it happen! Please. Please. PLEASE!"
At this, Ichigo visibly froze, catching Masaya's eye on her instantly and feeling her heart speed up.
With significant effort, she forced her anxious gaze back onto Moe's pleading face before her attention shortly transferred back onto the hand which was still tightly holding her.
Moe was a good girl. This would be a terrible idea. And Ryou would only blame Ichigo for everything, as had always been the case. Still, there was no way that she could merely say 'no' to her best friend and leave her high and dry. Both Miwa and Moe had supported Ichigo in even much greater foolery in the past. It was only fair to repay the favor now, regardless of how much the situations varied from each other. Besides, this party was for a good cause.
Making up her mind, Ichigo turned her face back to Moe and answered her at last.
"Sure, be at the Café Mew Mew on Friday at 8pm. It's a costume party, so you should wear something cute too. Miwa, you wanna tag along as well?"
Moe gave out another excited squeal, while Miwa shook her head, somewhat amused.
"Haha, thanks. But costume parties aren't really my thing. Plus, I already have plans for the Friday night."
"Ohh, Miwa has a date!" Moe pointed an accusing finger at her, waving it from side to side.
"No, not really."
"Come on. You can tell your best friends. Who is he?!" Moe began to tug at Miwa's arm desperately, her former conversation with Ichigo long forgotten.
"Hard pass," Miwa noted with a soft laugh, making Moe pout like a child.
Ichigo successfully tuned out the rest of the girl talk, and, instead, trailed her eyes back onto Masaya. That was a mistake, because her boyfriend had been already staring at her back. Again. And, when their eyes met, the smile on his face only broadened.
Somehow, that had made Ichigo feel even worse.
Why did she invite Masaya to the party if being around him had made her physically uncomfortable? And Moe, for that matter? She could already mentally picture Ryou's less than enthusiastic scowl in her mind when he would see them all together at the banquet. Why did she invite them, then? It was just so not worth it!
'Maybe you simply really enjoy making things difficult for you, Ichigo, even more so than they already are,' her conscience snickered at her wickedly, 'They call people like that masochists, you know.'
'No,' Ichigo shook her head resolutely, letting out another sigh.
If calling her behavior merely masochistic could suffice, she would have already solved all of her issues by now. This was something else. Something that was creating all the more unease and tension in her muscles, causing her to jolt whenever a new unexpected trouble emerged in her line of life.
Had inviting Moe and Masaya fallen into such a category? Only time would tell.
But, as she observed her female friend twirl all around the classroom in total elation, the corners of Ichigo's mouth subconsciously curled upwards, making her relax her rigid posture at long last.
It was going to be alright.
She would survive these three long days.
And, after all, the more, the merrier.
"Some alone time, finally!" Ichigo exclaimed in pure joy, sinking down into her bubbly bath with a loud splash.
She could not quite conceptualize how she had made it through this completely nightmarish hell of a day, but she could only thank her lucky stars that it was officially over. No more almost passing out, no more tasks, and no more Ryou barking even more tiresome orders her way.
She was free, high as a kite with excitement, and absolutely content with this subsequent revelation. That was, at least, until her inner voice corrected her false assumption of freedom and made her spirits drop again.
'For today,' it sneered, causing Ichigo to groan in annoyance once more.
She grabbed a hold of her razor angrily, hoping that shaving her legs would put her back in a better mood.
Girls liked to be pampered, after all. And, Ichigo was, by no stretch of her imagination, an exception to that rule.
She was just about done with removing her body hair from her left calf when a startling thought had made her stop with her antics. Masaya was not coming tomorrow. She had cancelled their study session already this morning based on the heap of tasks she had been asked to do. Why was she shaving, then? Was it really because she wanted to relax her mind?
Or was it because of…
Kisshu?
Was this another instance of her compulsive behavior that had strictly derived from her lack of sleep and work overload? Or did she want to be ready and looking her best for an incoming attack just in case? Touché, there hadn't been one for a really long time now. Still, Ichigo doubted that her present state of mind could be simply ascribed to her neurotic need for filling her weekly superhero quota, all the more as far as her physical appearance was concerned.
'Listen to yourself!' her conscience jibed, 'You are talking about the upcoming battles with the Cyniclons as if they were some kind of dates!'
Realizing this, Ichigo broke from her trance and almost cut herself with the razor.
Since when had she started to put more effort into how she looked during their fights? Had she gotten really insane? But as the mental image of Kisshu's smirking face conjured up in her thoughts, Ichigo's cheeks immediately reddened, supplying her with an answer right away.
Dipping further below the water level, she tossed the razer aside in shame.
What was happening to her?
God, that felt so wrong. She felt so wrong. The next time Ichigo had a chance, she should definitely tell Ryou about all of this, otherwise things could only go downhill from now on.
Was it the accumulated stress? Or was she really losing it?
All of a sudden, a robotic, chiming voice delved through her musings, as the pink fluffy fur ball of Masha appeared in a puff beside her, screaming the two words that Ichigo had dreaded the most.
"Ugh, as if life wasn't difficult enough,' she wailed, throwing her head back in a dramatic cry of exasperation before her eyes darted back onto the razor still lying on the edge of the tub.
She frowned, debating her options carefully, until she let out a final sigh of frustration and, with a quick precise movement of her wrist, took care of the rest of her body hair.
It was always better to be safe than sorry.
That was, at least, what her life as a Mew Mew had taught her intensely.
According to Masha's information, the imminent Cyniclon attack had been taking place at the outskirt of Tokyo near Ayase railway station in Adachi.
This would hardly pose a problem for Ichigo, quite the opposite. The farther away from the city center they were, the easier she and Kisshu could sneak out without anyone noticing them.
However, if she had thought that she would make it to the battle field, she was sorely mistaken in her judgement.
This time, Kisshu hadn't exactly waited for her arrival, nor did he show any sort of remorse for abducting her straight from mid-air, when she was in the process of jumping from one roof of the building to another.
It all happened so fast. Quite suddenly, she was grabbed from behind shortly before the familiar feeling of teleportation assaulted her senses, only secretly praising herself for not underestimating her instincts and shaving all of her body hair as quickly as possible.
"What are you?! Dumb?!" she whacked the alien immediately, once they reappeared in what looked like a forest and landed safely back on the ground, "We could have totally crashed!"
"We wouldn't. I wouldn't let you fall, kitten. Don't worry," Kisshu smirked as he inched closer, snaking an arm around her waist casually, "I take good care of my toys, when I want to," he threw her his signature smug grin, making her want to bob him on his head all over again.
That anger was soon drowned down, nonetheless, when his mouth found hers, making her reconsider her previous irksome thoughts in a matter of a few tantalizing seconds.
Maybe, it was for the better that they hadn't even made it to the fighting scene.
She would have less explaining to do that way; less eyes she had to evade.
Plus, she could always say that she had been running errands for Ryou and had left her phone, Masha, as well as her pendant at home; a statement which was factually seventy five percent accurate, as her phone and Masha did stay home for cautionary reasons.
"You're so tense. You don't want it?" Kisshu asked, snapping her instantly out of her reveries, while his tongue continued to tease the soft skin around her artery.
"N-no. I mean. Yea…I don't know. I have just had lot of work lately…and it would make my life definitely easier, if you guys laid off with your plans for invasion for a couple more days, that's for sure," Ichigo responded simply, letting out a small whimper when his lips began to suck at the spot where her neck met with her jawline.
"Mmmhm, if you say so. I'll take extra good care of you today, then. Worry not," the Cyniclon laughed, as he helped her out of her pink corset dress with a couple of expert movement of his fingers, leaving her practically naked to his hungry eyes.
"Kisshu."
"Keep your head and eyes straight," he instructed, while his hands returned to her body only a moment later, feeling every inch of her bare skin with his calloused fingertips.
She did as he said and the next thing she knew Ichigo was sighing in utmost pleasure, as his fingers slowly traced her vertebrae, one by one.
The way how he was presently touching her left the Mew Mew wondering.
It felt so vastly different from his usual urgent, hungry touch on her body that it had made Ichigo think that she must have been temporarily lost in some sort of a dream.
It wasn't that it was anyhow unpleasant, or that his fingers conveyed any less of the familiar intimacy that she grew to enjoy the most whenever they had shared any kind of physical contact. But, for some odd reason, his touch felt even more precise, more focused now. And with the way how his eyes burned through her skin on her exposed back, Ichigo could feel herself fight the shiver of anticipation in her spine.
"Here, right?" he murmured in her ear when his index finger stopped right at the small of her back, pressing into her skin softly.
"Mm, yea-! What are you. H-hey!"
Quite unexpectedly, he flicked his wrist backwards with a light crack and, from the corner of her eye, Ichigo could see a sudden blue flicker of light emerge in the background. It was the same kind of blue light, bright and vibrant, that she had remembered from their previous fight in the cave after she had made her impulsive dive from the cliff.
How much time had passed since then? How many things had changed?
Don't flatter yourself. As if any girl would wanna be anywhere close to you! You disgust me!
Ichigo had to purse her lips in order to mask her embarrassment about her own words.
She could no longer agree with the accusation she had once made of Kisshu. Not when he had proved to her over and over again that he, indeed, had some qualities of sorts. Even if their nature was almost always morally questionable at best
Just like now.
Her eyes widened in alarm at the same time that her head reclined back in shock when she felt his fingers unexpectedly push further in and broke through the barrier of her flesh on her back, letting his glowing hand slowly sink inside her body.
"Ah-!"
Was he going to kill her? Was this his plan all along? To pretend to help her, only to hurt her in the end?
Her heart was pounding so fast and hard against her chest, making her gulp in fear at what was going to happen next.
Was she really trapped?
Ichigo was about to start thrashing madly in his grip, but then, out of nowhere, a sudden rush of warmth surged through her insides, as the pain in her sore muscles began to gradually dissipate from her system. She had no idea what was happening but it was as though he was pressing some secret points located deep inside her that were slowly releasing all of her muscles from the pain and tension at once, causing everything to turn soft and relaxed in the wake of his deliberate touch.
"Trust, kitten, trust," Ichigo shuddered violently when his silky voice reached her ears, making it extremely difficult for her to keep still and not melt into the ground under the amalgam of emotions that had been currently roaring through her like a tidal wave.
"What...is that?" she breathed out, utterly entranced, when she sensed that his hand started moving inside her all over again, "Some Cyniclon magic?"
She heard him snicker in response but say no more, once his fingers continued to glide up her spine and then across her shoulders, pressing points here and there, forcing her to moan in a rush of immense delight uncontrollably.
Soon, her breathing had become even more labored, as her body leaned further against his and only the cries of his name were slipping from her semi-parted mouth. She could feel her pulse racing, while her facial expression twisted and immediately loosened up whenever his fingers inside her tugged or pulled in a new, completely unexpected direction.
"K-kisshu."
It was so weird.
The fact that something like that was even humanly possible.
Or the notion that these hands that were destined to kill her; that could hurt her so easily, could also feel so soft and tender at the same time.
'What a paradox,' Ichigo mused as she let herself immerse fully in the delectable pleasure he was giving to her.
Come to think of it, though, didn't all their 'relationship' rely on a paradox?
Wasn't it a complete paradox that the only way how they had actually begun to communicate with each other was without words but only through their bodies? Wasn't it a paradox that if her sex life with Masaya wasn't so abominable, she might have never engaged herself in these secret meetings with Kisshu? Wasn't it a paradox that they were both the leaders of the opposing teams, yet still, in the moments like these, it had hardly made a difference?
Yes, the word paradox could not even begin to describe the contradicting thoughts that Ichigo had garnered of Kisshu and his fingers inside her body.
What else could he do with these hands? Could they really commit a murder, when they felt so heavenly and great on her all the other times? What else could he do that she had no idea of?
What else was there to know about Kisshu?
"Wow, you're…you're actually really good at this, aren't you?" Ichigo said with genuine praise in her voice, as she stretched her muscles and reveled in the obvious absence of pain, once it was all over.
She still could not fathom what he had done to her, but that scarcely mattered.
The blue glowing light was gone and she felt as good as new; that was more than satisfying enough of a result for Ichigo.
"Tryin'," he replied, with a fang poking through between his lips.
"T-thanks. That was….super bizarre but…actually really great," Ichigo shot him a grateful smile, not really certain what else she should say.
"That's alright. You can always repay me the kindness," Kisshu let out a dark chuckle before his tongue darted out and he licked his lips suggestively, "In fact, you can do it right now," he finished, letting his mouth morph back into a devious grin, while his fingers hooked around her underwear and yanked it down.
He spread her legs wide apart for him and was just about to dip his head in between the juncture of her thighs, but Ichigo's hand against his brow stopped him mid-way.
"Wait!" she called out, taking in the blatant difference in the state of the remaining clothes on their bodies.
"Mm?" he blinked in confusion, pausing his hands on her exposed skin abruptly.
Too flustered, Ichigo averted her eyes, not really sure if she could truly share with him her present train of thoughts. But when his fingers grabbed her chin and tilted it upwards, she was aware that there was no way she could escape his scrutinizing gaze. Not now, and possibly not ever.
"What is it?" he inquired, leaning forward, suddenly rather serious, the usual playful edge to his tone offbeat.
Noting the obvious change in his voice, Ichigo immediately missed the cheeky lightheartedness that had never failed to accompany any of their encounters; although she would never, under no circumstances, ever admit as much.
"H-how…How come I am the only one who's naked…and you're still fully clothed?" she asked timidly, making the alien's face instantly lit in recognition.
She saw how his eyes momentarily flashed, as the little fires in his golden orbs quickly came back to life, sparkling with giddy mischief.
"Mm. Well then, undress me," Kisshu retorted, smirking widely.
Her face instantaneously blossomed into a flush at his words, yet, after a beat of silence, she started peeling off his shirt slowly, breaking eye contact only when the shirt needed to go over his head. Her anxious gaze briefly roamed over his pale body and Ichigo had to bite her lip to suppress the rush of excitement of how much the image of him in front of her aroused her. She had never thought that there would be a day when Kisshu, of all people, would make her blush; or when his proximity would make her crazy and yearning for more.
But even more unbelievable things had happened to people in the past.
With his shirt off, her eyes immediately returned to his and only when she was about to pull down his shorts along with his boxers, did she hesitate, feeling her ears growing hot at how intensely he had been still staring at her. But, despite how embarrassed Ichigo was, she refused to look away and give him the upper hand.
Come on, Ichigo. You have seen him naked already. You have seen other guys too, including Masaya. Why so shy, now? What is the big deal?
Well, the deal was that she felt really, really small under Kisshu's burning gaze. Very small, sometimes nervous, and also like a complete idiot from time to time. It was not that he was taunting her or mocking her inexperience, quite on the contrary. If anything, Kisshu was extremely supportive of her sexual awakening, giving her both skill and confidence. Confidence to ask for what she needed, or, better yet, what her body wanted. Not to mention that he was actually rather considerate sex-wise which had startled Ichigo at first to a significant extent. She thought that he would focus only on his pleasure but it never came to it. In fact, he had made sure that it was always Ichigo that was in the center during their brief encounters and his top priority during their steamy sex sessions was to make her come. Over and over again, and as many times as necessary. Just that simple notion sent a shiver of anticipation straight down to the pit of her belly.
There was nothing to be afraid of. Kisshu was there to make her feel good about herself again. She would not allow her own traitorous thoughts to take that pleasant feeling away from her.
Taking a deep breath, Ichigo let her hand slide down the waistband of his shorts and pulled the excessive layers of material out of her way.
"That's more like it," the alien gave her a hum of approval before his mouth inched closer and he quickly connected it with hers.
When they had finished, Ichigo felt stratospheric.
It was truly remarkable how easily he had made all of her problems and grim thoughts flood away, leaving only satisfaction and starry-eyed gaze behind him.
Incredible, really.
She could still not exactly pinpoint what it was, but whenever Kisshu had made any kind of contact with her skin, it felt as though some electric current had jolted through her, sending her mind instantly reeling before her whole existence shook and rattled with the burning monster of lust that had scorched her to ashes in the most pleasurable way.
The day light might have been long gone, but Ichigo's problems no longer seemed relevant, nor unsolvable to her, quite the opposite. Her worries were driven out of her mind in the similar way how the pain was forced out from her muscles, through pleasure and skillful touch. It did not matter anymore that there was about zillion more things that she still had to do tomorrow. Somehow, Ichigo had acquired the feeling that she would make it all in time now. No rush. No problem.
That's right, there's the party.
Before thinking, she propped herself on her elbows and looked up just to see Kisshu almost done with putting back on his clothes.
"A-are you free Friday evening?" Ichigo asked, her tone somewhat hesitant.
What the hell, Ichigo? You are seriously not thinking about-
He eyed her warily before his signature smug grin resurfaced on his angular alien face.
"Was I that good today, hm? Making sure I won't be booked for Friday night?"
Oh my god.
"No, you jerk! That's not what I meant," Ichigo huffed and crossed her arms across her bare chest in indignation.
What was his problem?
And what was hers? Inviting an enemy to the Mew Project party? To their HQ basically? Had she completely lost her mind? Again, she had already invited Moe and Masaya. What more damage could one extra person make?
'More than you think,' her conscience cautioned, but Ichigo squished that worrisome thought in a flash.
"Mmhm, what did you mean then, I-chi-go?" Kisshu grinned wickedly, taking in the massive conflict of emotions that was currently flicking across her expression, his intense eyes never leaving hers.
Clenching her fists, Ichigo mulled over her options.
What she was about to say sounded dangerous, preposterous even, to her own ears. Wasn't all of this what they had been doing enough? Why was she willing to push the boundaries even more? And was it truly safe to propose such an outrageous idea to him? How much could she really trust Kisshu? He was still her enemy! A Cyniclon, for god's sake! There was no way in hell for her to lower her guard around him just because he had made her feel awesome a couple of times. But, again, if Kisshu had sincerely wanted to hurt her, he would have already done it, wouldn't he? He had had plenty of opportunities to kill her whenever she was so caught up in sex, not paying attention to anything else but her own release, today included. And he didn't. Could that really mean that he was never there to hurt her in the very first place?
Ichigo drew a large intake of air before meeting the alien's amused stare with a solid determination and only partially concealed nervousness.
There was no coming back now. Judging from the expectant look on his face, he would not let her live it down, so she might as well get it over with and pretend that it had never happened. Besides, the chances that he would actually come to the party were close to zero anyway. Yes, what he would reply was largely inconsequential. This was not about him. This was about Ichigo and her guilty conscience. He had given her a fabulous massage and even better sex today. It was only fair. And, as her mother had always said, good manners cost nothing and it never hurt to be too polite.
Right, because what you've been doing with him all this time perfectly qualifies as polite.
Ichigo shushed her inner voice and before she knew it, the words automatically started to roll off of her tongue.
"Th-there will be a Halloween banquet held at our Café. Tokyo Mew Mew is hosting it to raise some money for the local charity. I-I was thinking….if you'd like to come too. I-I mean if you're not busy or like if-if you don't mind wearing a costume? Because it's a Halloween costume party…Did I mention it? I did, didn't I? I- I will be wearing a really cute outfit. And with your ears and stuff…I thought that, maybe, w-well-"
Why the hell was she stuttering? Oh my god, this did not go well at all! Actually, it went terribly! And the longer she had heard her voice cracking and breaking under the strain of her nerves, the lamer and more uncool she felt about the whole thing. If she could take it all back, she would not hesitate for a second! That was for sure!
Where had all her former positive energy from the aftermath of sex gone all of a sudden?
Talk about being smooth.
"Are you asking me on a date?" Kisshu's grin stretched further down his face in a crinkle of amusement.
"Da-? NO! Never! It's NOT a date. It's-it's…It raises money for a good cause!" Ichigo gestured with her free hand in the air wildly, trying to grasp at everything and nothing all at once.
"Is that so?" Kisshu held his cheek in one of his palms, thoroughly enjoying her reactions.
"Y-yeah. It starts at 8pm. So feel free to stop by and check me out. I mean the party. To check out the party, right?"
"Right," he snickered, still heavily entertained by her fairly inarticulate proposal, "I'll think about it."
"Is that a 'yes'?" Ichigo asked, hopeful, even though she would feel much more relieved at the present moment, if he had downright rejected her offer.
"No," he smiled.
"Is that a 'no'?" she verified quickly.
"Maybe?" he let one of his fangs bare, while he continued to watch her struggle in glee.
Ichigo scowled.
His equivocal answers had made her head spin, causing her to feel both dizzy and angry at the same time. It was maddening. On one hand, she wanted to suck all of her previous words back in and forget that she had ever said anything; yet, on the other, she wanted nothing more than having him at the party as well. Why did she want him there so badly, though? There must have been some valid reason why inviting Kisshu had even crossed her mind; simply must have been, even if she currently could not quite understand it herself.
"Come on, it-it will be so much fun," Ichigo pressed, hoping that her extra level of persistence would crack his resistance, "A lot of people, free drinks, free food. And with everyone downstairs," she trailed off, shooting him a shy look, "We might, you know, have the second floor to ourselves."
His eyes slid down her naked form and she immediately felt hot and longing under his burning gaze all over again.
"Don't think it's a good idea, unless, of course, you want your friends to find about."
"You mean the radars?" Ichigo clarified.
"For instance," he smirked, his eyes ablaze, "Among other things."
"I-I could try and turn them off," she responded readily, "Besides, I don't think Ryou would be working during the banquet. If you don't hatch some unexpected attack with your Chimera Animas or something, that is."
That caught his attention.
Slowly, the sly grin grew on his face once more, stretching the delicate skin around his mouth broadly. In an instant, he was kneeling next to her and Ichigo held her breath in anticipation as he bore his golden hypnotizing orbs into hers.
She momentarily marveled at how these cat-like eyes, so alien in both their shape and color, gleamed in the ever encompassing darkness surrounding them. With his fangs bare, he really reminded her strongly of a vampire in so many ways; an evil nocturnal creature whose sole goal was to devour every last breath out of her with desperation and scorching intensity, until there wasn't anything left to be consumed anymore.
"If you manage to cancel the security, I can promise you that there will be no Chimera attack that night," Kisshu paused, cupping her cheek between his long pale fingers, his voice dropping to nothing but a low, seductive whisper, "I can promise you that, kitten, and much more."
A slight, involuntary shiver ran down her spine at his words, causing Ichigo to swallow thickly when his intoxicating scent invaded her senses yet again.
As she kept on staring into his deep, magnetizing orbs, she briefly contemplated how much more of a risk she would be willing to take for Kisshu in the future in order to sustain this addictive supply in her life. But the scary implication of that notion was soon drowned in her ears, the second her brain had ultimately processed his affirmative answer.
"I-I will see what I can do," Ichigo replied and her eyes brightened up, when he unexpectedly dove forward and pressed his lips onto hers, pulling her into another heated kiss of unrestraint passion.
Once more, she was playing with fire.
Of that much, at least, Ichigo was aware.
But, then and there, at that very precise moment and with his mouth slowly devouring hers, she could not care for anything but the sudden flutter of joy and excitement that was bursting in her heart.
"So, Ryou. The banquet is on Friday, right?"
Click. Click. Click. Click. Tap. Tap. Click.
To no one's surprise, there came no verbal response from the blonde, as he continued hitting the buttons on his keypad fervently, making Ichigo think that she had been talking to a stone wall all along. What, however, seemed rather puzzling to the Mew Mew was the audible scoff of disbelief that inevitably followed once his hands finally paused at their semi-mad dance.
"You asked me about the Halloween banquet five times already within the last hour, Ichigo. We were still scheduled for Friday twenty minutes ago, and guess what? We are still good to go with Friday even now. Have you hit your head today or something? Or was acquiring a few extra rolls of the toilet paper really that mentally demanding of a task for you?" Ryou drawled not willing to tear his eyes from his screen just yet.
Strike one.
Ichigo felt how her eye brow twitched in irritation at his jab but she refused to give in to the temptation to roll her eyes at her boss. Not now, when they were trying to mend their relationship and act towards each other in a bit more civil manner at least.
And especially not when she had an objective here.
"No, I, um… I am just a little nervous that's all," she answered hesitantly, twirling the hem of her white cotton apron between her fingers.
Ryou swiveled in his chair and gave her a quick once over.
"You want Masaya to come too? I thought I already told you that you can bring him with you, if you want."
Now, that was a first.
Ichigo had heard from the others that Mint had apparently given Ryou some kind of a pep talk. But it was not until now when she had finally the chance to witness the unexpected change in his character herself that she was willing to start to really believe it. What exactly the blue lorikeet Mew had shared with the blonde was largely irrelevant. What truly counted, though, was the fact that Mint must have told Ryou something severe, since he had ultimately seemed to loosen up on his rules and reconsider his poor social skills toward his employees at long last. The old Ryou would never ever allow her to bring her boyfriend anywhere close to the Café, unless he was there to order a cake and thus add to their financial budget, of course.
With Ryou, it had always been only about business and gain. Nothing else had ever mattered in his mind.
"Oh-no that's not it. I mean, yes…Yes…That's it! I feel very stressed because of Masaya...he does not know about the Mew project. Yes, that's it," she eventually said once she digested what must have been Ryou's first attempt at sympathy towards her in the history of their whole social interaction.
"Then don't invite him. Problem solved," the blonde crossed his arms over his chest dismissively before remembering himself and, with a little softer tone, he immediately added, "You are so weird sometimes."
And something about that unprecedented softness in his voice had made Ichigo pause. He was offering her genuine help now, letting her know that it was alright to open up to him; making her believe that she could truly rely on him and that he would listen and provide her with the much needed emotional support that he had been painstakingly withholding from her all this time.
Would he act the same way if he knew that I have also invited Kisshu?
Probably not, but Ichigo began to slowly understand that Ryou might not be her ultimate nemesis here. Could she really count on him and tell him everything when it had mattered the most? That was a question she did not dare to ask herself just yet.
"B-but I already told Masaya about the event, Ryou! I can't just take it back now, can I?" Ichigo lamented, while her head kept swimming with the new possible dimensions of her relationship with her boss.
There were so many things Ichigo could still not quite understand.
All her life, she had been living under the impression that things would simply always solve on their own accord, if she was just a little patient and nice. But the moment she had become a Mew Mew, Ichigo started to see that that did not necessarily always have to be the case. A fact which had been only further solidified when she had begun to question Masaya's inability to please her in their bedroom head on, and shortly after when she commenced her affair with Kisshu. Why did she make herself presume that someone would come out of nowhere one day and save her? She wasn't foolish enough to believe that there was some sort of fairytalish ending awaiting her at the end of the tunnel. With Masaya, there was no real happy future ahead of her, Ichigo was sure of that now. But it was not like that there was any bright prospect of the future with the alien either. What was she supposed to do, then? Continue with these pretenses and let things take their own course, while endangering everybody in the process? Wasn't it just too selfish of her? Would it not be wiser to simply cut off all her ties with both of the guys instead of betting her life on uncertainty? How much longer could she survive like this, really? Bouncing back and forth between them and their respective shortcomings? And would Ryou find out before she had a chance to tell him about everything herself?
Oh my god!
It was then that a horrible chill went down Ichigo's spine with a sudden realization of what bringing both Masaya and Kisshu to the party could actually trigger, adding to her already high volumes of stress.
If Ryou saw her and Masaya together, he would know immediately that something was wrong. He was rather perceptive and not exactly dumb when it came to reading Ichigo's emotions and erratic body language. But if she chose to cancel on Masaya at the last minute, would she not raise even more suspicion among her friends that way? Wouldn't it be really better to just follow through with her original plan? To grin and bear and put on a mask of false joy and undying happiness? But could she? And, furthermore, should she?! What if Kisshu really decided to show up against all odds, and he would end up seeing her hand in hand with Masaya? Would he tell on her? Would he get angry or jealous? How could she even begin to explain her extraterrestrial affair to a mere human when Masaya did not even know about her Mew identity? And what if her secret would get revealed to everybody among all the absolute chaos?
Oh no!
Kisshu was right. This was not a smart idea at all. Basically, everyone who could spot them together could be a potential problem. And, Halloween party or not, Ichigo had ultimately reached the conclusion that it was extremely naïve of her to think that a Cyniclon could really blend in with humans. Even if for only a second.
Stupid. Stupid. Stupid.
Somehow, gleaning information out of Ryou and locating where exactly the electricity outlets were seemed no longer like her crucial problem anymore. No. Ichigo had bitten off far more than she could chew and she would have to pay a high price for it sooner or later.
"Your love drama ain't my problem, scatterbrain," Ryou deadpanned, pulling her instantly back into the room with him.
There was something remarkably different about his voice, though, as the derisively mean tone that Ichigo was so used to hearing from him was completely absent in his words.
He was really trying this time, she could tell.
Not only that, he gave her an actual choice to decide for herself, which was a rather unprecedented instance of Ryou's generosity in all of her books, since, never in her life, had he ever supplied Ichigo with any kind of agency, much less control, over anything pertaining to the Café Mew Mew.
Noting that, a part of her brain even wanted to form a cheeky comeback just for the hell of it, but she had thought better of it.
There was a purpose for this little chit-chat, after all. She had not spent the last hour within his presence for nothing. Even more so, when she had finally acknowledged what a fuck-up situation she had once again created for herself.
"Ryou?"
"Hm? I hope you have no more sex questions ready for me, cause I'm done with this conversation otherwise," he arched an eye brow at her, expecting her to elaborate.
"No, that's not it," Ichigo shook her head with a mock sigh, "I was just wondering how many guests are coming on Friday? I mean, have you really thought it through with the security and all? I saw the little camera at the main entrance, but is it really enough to monitor the activity of all our attendees? How big is it going to be, anyway? And what if something happens and we suffer a black out or something? And what about an alien attack?"
Ryou leaned further back in his chair and gave her a long pensive stare. As his eyes continued to roam over her skin, Ichigo was almost certain that she was not subtle enough to get her answers straight. Regardless, she had remained looking as pathetic as possible because if Ryou would think that she was a complete idiot or a scaredy-cat, it was okay. Anything to get him off of her tits and make him any less suspicious of her was okay.
"I don't know where this newfound interest in our security measures has gotten into you, but rest assured that we're good. There's a digital keypad lock installed on every door with restricted access, and our radars scan the place for any Cyniclon activity 24/7 within 5 mile radius. If you're still worried about the black out, though, why don't you go and check the switches yourself? The main fuse box is behind the kitchen."
Hearing his reply, Ichigo internally sighed in relief.
This went much better than she had anticipated, making her once again consider whether it was really alright to bring Kisshu to the HQ in the very first place. Despite his cold exterior, Ryou still trusted her. Trusted her enough to tell her about the security measures; trusted her to be the leader of the Tokyo Mew Mew; and let her get closer to his heart and mind solely based on this power of trust.
Everything that Ichigo had been doing behind his back was a direct violation of that contract between them that she had signed up for when she had initially accepted the Mew Mew pendant in the palm of her hand.
How disappointed would Ryou be, if he found out that I am fraternizing with the enemy?
This single isolated thought had made Ichigo feel really queasy on the inside in regards to what she was intending to do, as well as why she was even doing it.
"I just don't want for anything to go wrong," she let out after a while, with sincere worry reflected in her voice.
She wasn't lying. If anything, voicing her inner fears was as close to the truth as this whole conversation could get.
Ryou's gaze briefly softened at her proclamation, as though he could really read her true feelings in that moment. It was the familiar insulting tone of his next words, however, that had eventually made Ichigo understand that nothing much had really changed between them. And that no matter what Mint did or said, Ryou was still as evil and wicked as ever. That was alright, though. In times like these, Ichigo needed the aspect of familiarity in her life, grasping at something tangible and solid that could help her to keep on going without losing herself within the smothering disarray of humans, aliens and objects thrown haphazardly into her life.
"Worry just about serving cake, Ichigo. That's what I am paying you for," Ryou said evenly, ignoring her baleful glare.
"And saving the world?" a vein popped in Ichigo's head, trying her hardest to refrain from lashing out at him.
"Well, yeah, but you do that free of charge," her boss smiled and it took Ichigo all of her willpower not to deck him.
Even though there was obviously some visible progress in his behavior, Ryou still had a very, very long way to go.
Why were all the males in her life just so damn annoying?