I Belong To You: A Kisshu And Ichigo Love Story

Chapter 14: You Should Listen To Pudding

O/A/N: My sincerest wish is that I create a good story about love, while also portraying the characters accurately. I know some things the characters say and do don't really match up to what they might do in the anime, but I'm trying to get as close as I can while also adding in my own ideas about how they've changed and matured over two years time...so I hope that I'm at least kind of accomplishing that!

Anyways, that's all the speeches for now...here's the next chapter in Kisshu and Ichigo's saga of LOVE!
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fear: a painful emotion or passion excited by the expectation of evil, or the apprehension of impending danger.

- definition, Webster Dictionary

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"What did you say?" Ryou demanded. "What do you mean, Ichigo is quitting the Mews?"

Mint, Lettuce, and Pudding stood before Ryou, each one of them looking at the ground. None of them had been looking forward to telling Ryou the news, but they had decided that they needed to do it together - the only one missing was Zakuro, who was still away shooting her movie.

And, of course, Ichigo was missing. In fact, according to the girls, Ichigo wasn't planning coming back.

Ryou pushed his thick mop of blonde hair back angrily. Keiichiro stood next to him, his mouth slightly open in shock. Ryou said, "What happened to her? What did she say?"

Mint decided it was her turn to speak up - Lettuce had been the one to break the news. "She says that she can't transform anymore."

Ryou scoffed. "That's ridiculous," he said shortly. "The DNA is in all of your permanently."

"Just because none of you have fought for a long time doesn't mean that it's gone," Keiichiro added. "We should be glad that you haven't had to fight in a while, actually. Did Ichigo try to transform recently?"

"Hai," Pudding said. "In the park, when she met the enemy aliens."

"She couldn't do it," Lettuce added.

"She didn't feel the power anymore," Mint put in.

Ryou shook his head. "That doesn't make sense. Why would it just leave all of the sudden? And why-" he added angrily, "does not being able to transform give her an excuse to quit being a Mew?"

Mint looked surprised. "Well, it kind of defeats the purpose, doesn't it?" she asked. "You can't protect the Earth if you can't transform."

"That's where you're mistaken, Mint," Keiichiro said. "Ichigo could still do a lot of good for the Tokyo Mew Mews even if she can't transform. I certainly don't have any DNA from any Red Data Animal, and I'm here."

"Yes, but you're a scientist," Mint argued. "You and Ryou are the brains behind this whole project. Ichigo isn't stupid, but she's not a total genius like you guys either."

"It doesn't matter what she can or can't do," Ryou said. "She still has the DNA in her, meaning she can still transform. If anything is wrong, it's that she's scared and it's her fear that's keeping her from changing into Mew Ichigo."

The girls were confused. "But...why would Ichigo be scared?" Pudding asked.

"I'm afraid I don't quite understand," Lettuce said. "Ichigo is rarely afraid of anything."

"As far as I know, I'm the only one who's ever wanted to stop being a Mew because I was afraid," Mint said, somehow managing to make herself sound important despite the fact that she was admitting a past mistake.

Ryou didn't reply for a moment; his scowl was actually rather frightening. Finally, he said in a tight voice, "We have to convince her to come back. She's the leader of the Mews, and with all these aliens around, she can't be letting her fear control her."