Hello! And welcome to Chapter 4!
I again got nothing to add so let's continue!
The mews and the aliens went back to Café Mew Mew and greeted Shirogane and Keiichiro, suddenly the two asked the aliens to come backstage with them, asking the mew mews to wait in the main hall.
"Its been 5 minutes already what are they doing" Mint questioned
Right on cue Shirogane opened the door "Here we go! The aliens are staying here on earth and since we're getting more and more customers lately me and Keiichiro thought-" before Shirogane finished his grande speech Kisshu stormed out in a neat dark green butler outfit "Welcome to Café Mew Mew!" He said sarcastically
The mews stared in shock "HUH WHAT" Ichigo shouted
Shirogane put on an annoyed look and sighed "yeah so I temporarily hired them until they go back home"
Kisshu snickered as he happily skipped over to Ichigo "its going to be a pleasure working with you Koneko-Chan~"
Ichigo was speechless as she only let out an "eh-"
Taruto and Pai soon also came out from the back, Taruto and Pai were wearing the same uniform Kisshu was wearing but Taruto's color was dark red while Pai's color was Dark Purple
Pai did a neat bow while Taruto looked uncomfortable in his new work uniform
"Where will you be staying?" Zakuro asks
"Well Wolfie-Chan we'll just stay up in our ship, there is no problem with that since Pai parked it far enough so that you humans don't detect our ship" Kish proudly presented
"Its Zakuro." Zakuro said a little bit annoyed
"Thats very smart of you Pai-San" Lettuce smiled
Keiichiro proceeded to hand Pai the working schedules "here are the working schedules, you will probably be working more here in the evening if that is fine with you, and Ofcourse you also will have more off days than the girls since you're here on vacation" he smiled
Pai nodded "that's more than fine"
"Awww no fair" Ichigo whined "I want to spend more time with Aoyama-kun"
Kisshu's head turned fast "now you'll be spending more time with me!" He grinned.
Ichigo rolled her eyes tiredly
They all closed up for the day and most of them already said their goodbyes, Pudding however stayed a little longer with the aliens
"Now then, I think it's time for us to head back up" Kisshu says "I need to catch up on my favorite show" and without giving more context the dude just teleports away
"I'm tired from the flight so I will be leaving too" Pai says "what will you do Taruto? I won't force you to come with us since it's not really that late"
Taruto softly glanced at Pudding, she had sparkles in her eyes, hinting at him that she'd like to play some more.
He sighed "I'll come up later" Pai nodded and said his goodbyes and teleported back up
Pudding, happy that he got her hint bounced up and down "YAY! Taru Taru is going to play with Pudding Noda!!" Taruto sighed with a smile "I guess so"
Pudding grabbed his hand and went on her way "lets go to the park Noda!" Shaken by her sudden boldness Taruto blushed but he didn't pull away his hand and neither did she, so they walked hand in hand.
"So how is Taru Taru's planet noda?" She asks making small talk
Taruto hummed "it's going alright, we've rebuilt everything in the past 2 years, everything is looking great. But I still favour Earth's foods though" he chuckled
Pudding giggled at his comment "Pudding has lots of candies waiting for Him at home, Pudding saved them for Taru Taru" she says sweetly as she gave him the sweetest smile the boy has ever seen.
Taruto blushed and looked away "...thanks"
The further they walked the more crowded it became, everyone was looking at Taruto because of how weird he was dressed and the fact he has large ears.
The boy was getting a bit uncomfortable by all these stares and tugged Puddings arm "hey Pudding... I'm getting a lot of stares from everyone.."
Pudding blinked and gasped "oh right Noda! Your clothes don't really fit in here on earth" she says
"Lets go buy Taru Taru some new clothes Noda! Taru Taru can wear it the time he's here on earth! Doesn't that sound good noda?" She asks him
Taruto nodded and followed her way. He doesn't know how he's going to hide his larger ears though. He should ask Pai if he can invent some kind of hallucination chip or something, or maybe the two dudes at café Mew Mew have some device to help him and his brothers.
They entered a store and Pudding immediately looked around for something suitable to fit him, a few shirts here and there and a few shorts later Taruto stepped out of the fitting room with a fitting red hoodie and blue shorts presenting himself proudly to her "whatcha think?" He grinned
Pudding clapped excitedly "Taru Taru looks amazing Noda!!"
Taruto sweat dropped at his sudden realisation "ah- wait I don't have any money on me"
Pudding shakes her head "it's fine Noda. Pudding will pay" she smiles at him, he smiles back but feeling a little bit guilty using the girl's money for his own clothes.
Pudding is really nice, and has always been nice. She has not changed one bit. Taruto always wondered why she tried to make friends with him the entire time while they were fighting, he remembered her also not liking him at some point in the beginning but the closer they came to the climax the more she wanted to hang out and play with him and the little alien just didn't understand why.
Without Taruto realising Pudding already payed and they were back outside, it's gotten pretty late already, being around 8 pm
"Pudding has to go home now Noda, Pudding needs to take care of her siblings" she says as she turns towards Taruto "oh alright, thanks for the clothes" he half smiled, he secretly wanted to spend a little more time with her, he was surprisingly enjoying himself which he would never admit.
Pudding shyly tapped her feet, putting her arms behind her back avoiding eye contact with him, which was not in character for her and it freaked Taruto out a bit "what's wrong?" He finally asked
"Well.." she starts "Pudding was wondering if TaruTaru is fine sleeping on the ship Noda" she says
Taruto gave her a puzzled look "what? Ofcourse I am, I mean I've slept there before you know" he chuckled
Pudding nodded "right Noda! But Pudding wanted to ask Taru Taru if he wanted to spend his time at Puddings place instead!" She happily offered
Taruto flinched "w-why?!" He asked a little bit too loudly
"Well wouldn't it be fun Noda?" She grins
Taruto went into thought, he'd be living with HER. Like actually living under the same roof with his former enemy, this annoying monkey, his crush.
Taruto blushes "w-why?!" He asks again
Pudding tilts her head "Taru Taru already said that Noda"
Taruto was getting a little too flustered by her offering, but if he did go with her, he wouldn't be bugged by Kisshu every morning or do chores for Pai everytime he got a bit lazy, and he would have more quality time with her without embarrassingly asking her if she wanted to hang out.
Taruto had an idea "Can I come by first and then decide?" he says as he tries to not make eye contact as his cheeks are burning with red
Pudding giggled "does Taru Taru need to rate Pudding's house before he can sleep there Noda?" She joked which made Taruto stutter "o-ofcourse not! I just..." "Pudding is messing Noda" Pudding snickered
Pudding smiles and bounced up and down "it makes Pudding very happy Taru Taru wants to see her home" she says as she immediately grabbed his hand "lets go!" She says in excitement as she leads them through the streets of Tokyo
After a few minutes of small talk they arrived in a big front yard, Taruto immediately already recognised it as he remembered he unleashed a Chimera Anima here once, a chicken one and Pudding was too sick to fight. The boy sometimes feels guilty for doing all these horrible stuff to her in the past but the past is the past and he can't change his encounter with her, they would always start off as being enemies even if he liked it or not.
Pudding grabbed her keys and gave Taruto a cheesy smile "Oh Pudding forgot to mention she has 5 siblings Noda"
"Huh"
Pudding opened the door and immediately started yelling "PUDDING'S HOME NODA!"
Taruto felt the ground rumbling as multiple children all with similar features as Pudding, especially the small girl, come out of different rooms to greet her
"Onee-Chan is back!"
"How was your day onee-Chan?"
"What are we eating?"
"Can I get the candy Onee-Chan promised na no da?"
"Play games with us!!"
Pudding crossed her arms "QUIET NODA!"
And surprisingly these children were very obedient unlike some monkey mew Taruto knew.
Pudding smiled as she closed the door behind them "everyone! This is Taruto Noda!" She says
Taruto awkwardly gave a small wave.
"What's up with your ears?"
"Hey Taruto-niichan why are you almost naked?"
"What's up with the bandages are you hurt?"
"Are you onee-chan's boyfriend?"
"We've never seen you before!"
What. The. Hell.
Taruto's mind was spinning, these children were even more hyper active than Pudding and he thought SHE was bad, they were all talking through each other at the same time so he had no idea who to answer first
He was slowly losing his temper at these little brats but before he could tell them off Pudding already did it for him "QUIET NODA! What did Pudding tell you last time? Don't all talk at the same time!!" She says as she taps her feet.
Pudding sighs and smiles at her siblings "Pudding told you all about Pudding being part of Tokyo Mew Mew right?" Pudding says
Pudding told her family about her being a mew mew? Well that's interesting.
The boys and the girl nod excitedly "Mew Pudding!" They say in sync.
Pudding put on a big smile "that's right Noda! Well Taruto was Pudding's enemy noda"
Taruto sweat dropped, what a great first impression.
"What?! He's one of the aliens who tried to invade earth!!" One yelled
"Nee-Chan why did you bring him here noda?!" The smaller version of Pudding panicked.
Great. Just great
Pudding shakes her head "WAS Pudding's enemy. He's now Pudding's best friend noda! So he's welcome here!" She smiles
"Best friend " Taruto thought, he knew they were friends but why did that sting a bit.
"Ohhh then its fine" one boy chirped
"Then can we call you Taruto-niichan?" One asked again
"You can just call me Tart" Taruto says
"Tart-niichan"
"No need to add the niichan"
"Tart-niichan"
Taruto sighed, just like he couldn't stop Pudding from calling him that stupid nickname he can't stop these Pudding look a like children from calling him niichan, they sure are a family.
Pudding Nods "okay noda, Pudding will prepare dinner, then you can ask Taru Taru some questions noda" she smiles
Taruto raises an eyebrow "do I have any say in this"
"Nope noda!" Pudding giggled as she skipped over to the kitchen counter "Also Taru Taru is helping with dinner noda"
Taruto whined "awww why"
Pudding puts her hands on her hips and pouted "'cause Pudding is Taru Taru's friend and He'd like to help her"
Taruto blushed a little and rolled his eyes "I guess"
The two prepared dinner while Pudding mostly still did most herself as Taruto had no idea what he was doing. They all rounded up at the dinner table and the question round began
"So Tart-niichan where do you come from?" One boy asks
"I come from a planet called Cynth, as you know I'm not Human, I'm a Cyniclon" Taruto explains
Puddings head pops up "Taru Taru's race are called Cyniclons?"
Taruto nodded "thinking about it we never told you mews that, you just call us Aliens" he snickered
Pudding sweat drops "Pudding's sorry Noda" she giggled
Heicha, the youngest girl who was sitting across from Taruto was really observing the connection between him and her big sister
"Tart-niichan, are you onee-chans boyfriend?" She asks
Taruto flinched, just by one sentence his blood already flushed to his cheeks and he was readying himself to deny it.
"Taru Taru isn't Pudding's boyfriend Noda" Pudding says as she answers for him "he's Puddings best friend"
Sure, he was about to deny it himself in a very much rude way, but why did it sting his heart when he heard her say it instead of him?
Taruto remained silent and nodded to Puddings answer
"Ohhh Heicha sees now na no da" she says as she continues eating
Taruto also continued eating, he found it weird that Pudding and Heicha were the only ones in the family that talk in third person, since her brothers don't at all.
But besides that this uncomfortable hurt feeling stuck by him until after dinner when he agreed to Help Pudding wash the dishes, they had a fun conversation which distracted him from the feeling.
But while having a fun conversation with her another question popped up in his mind "Pudding can I ask something?"
"Sure Noda!"
"If I do decide to stay here, won't your parents think it's weird having this super pale person with long ears stay over for a long period of time? Or did you tell them about the mew mews too?" He asks putting the plates down in the dish washer
He awaited an answer but there wasn't any, he turned to her and she looked down with an expression Taruto wasn't familiar with. Pudding was always smiling no matter the circumstance, for the first time since knowing this girl he finally witnessed how her sad expression looked like, after 2 years.
Sure, back then he'd babble for hours how he wants to make her cry all the time but now, actually witnessing it in person, he felt horrible, the horrible feeling came back, stabbing his heart with a million knives. A sudden urge to protect this girl emerged from his heart, but at the same time he regretted asking his question.
"Well" she starts, breaking Taruto's thoughts
She slowly turns her head to him looking him in the eye as she tries to maintain a smile
"Pudding's dad is in China Noda, he's training in the mountains" she says
Taruto nodded slowly
"And Pudding's mom.." she trembled, her smile slowly fading as she looks away "Pudding's mom is not around anymore..." she choked
Hearing that broke the boy's heart. He has never known the situation she's in cause he never asked, for the past 2 years or hell, maybe even longer. She had this insane responsibility at such a young age to take care of the house and take care for her siblings. Part of him got annoyed at her dad. Dealing with such a big loss and he continues to leave to another country, leaving the house to his eldest. What kind of bullshit is that?
Taruto shook off his anger for right now, Pudding needed comfort.
He slowly reached out his arms towards her and gave her a hug, which made her flinch "I'm ... sorry" is all he could let out.
He felt the small girl hold him back, snuggling against his chest "it's okay TaruTaru Noda" she pulls back from the hug and she puts on her smile "but even so, Pudding is doing her best to help out everyone!" She smiles.
Everyone has sadness, everyone has stress or everyone can feel down from time to time. An entirely happy person with no problems do not exist. Behind her smile are probably a thousand tears locked behind walls she built up so that she can take care of her siblings. And so that they don't have the carry the burden of their loss. She did everything alone, was always alone. Taruto made up his mind.
"Pudding" he says "yes Noda?"
"I'll stay here, I'll accept your offer" he says putting on a soft smile
Pudding's eyes lit up "really Noda?!"
Taruto nodded "yep indeed, BUT" he says putting his index finger up "I am not letting you do anything by yourself anymore, let me help with the housework or something or with dinner or whatever"
Pudding blinked and shook her head "but Taru Taru is Pudding's guest! She can't do that to a-"
"That doesn't matter! This offer has no refusal option" he says
Pudding sighed and gave in, smiling back at the alien boy "okay na no da"
At that exact moment the two heard small footsteps going down the stairs, a head popped out from the hallway "Onee-Chan... can Onee-Chan read Heicha a book? Heicha can't sleep" the small girl cried
Pudding put down the final plates in the dishwasher "Ofcourse Heicha Noda! Pudding can-"
Taruto stopped her tracks "Heicha, Pudding has something else to do at the moment, is it okay if I read for you instead?" He gently asked which surprised both Pudding and Heicha
Heicha got excited "yes yes yes!" She squealed as she ran upstairs again
Pudding blinked "but Taru Taru-" "sit down on the couch and rest, I got this" Taruto waved as he proceeds to walk up the stairs.
But if he waited just a little longer he would've noticed the obvious blush that crept up on Pudding's face while she was grinning like an idiot.
Taruto absolutely hated little children, children younger than him. But he can make an exception for Pudding's family.
Here's the end of chapter 4! Sorry that took so long ehe.
Thanks for reading and I'll see you in the next again3