xuri: Hiyas! This is Blend, my very first fanfic, revolving around the Tokyo Mew Mew series. Yay for non-4Kids-slaughterhouse-version. 3 All 26 chapters are complete - however, I will be editting them to the best I can, so there will be a slight delay in between each one. There is also hoard of made up characters to come - If this bothers you, you might want to avoid this fanfiction. HOWEVER - give it a chance, m'kay? I believe I've done a fairly good job of developing them all through the twenty six chapters of Blend, so if you do read it, you will come to know them as well as you know Ichigo and co. I hope. xD

Furthermore, Tokyo Mew Mew does not belong to me. At all. And credits to mentioned made up characters will be given after all chapters are posted.

Now. On with Blend!

Blend (chapter one)

..Learning to Cope..

"... Oh. That's right."

Sighing, Ichigo shook her head and resumed her walk. When had it become such a habit? It's not like she looked forward to coming here every day. Still, it felt strange to her, almost as if a huge part of her daily routine had suddenly been cut off. The girl hated to admit it, but Cafe Mew Mew had become like her home away from home. It had only been a few days, but she already missed it. Of course, Ichigo knew it wouldn't be even remotely the same - not without the other girls.

"It's pretty quiet around here," Ryou had commented, in a conversation the two had a few days back, "Did everyone finally decide to disown you?"

"Wah! It's not like that!" Ichigo snapped back, fumbling with the broom, "They're just... just..."

"...busy," He finished, a bit wistfully. Ichigo paused, then nodded, and continued to struggle with the gathering dust on the cafe floor. It was silent for a long time. Finally, Ryou spoke up again, glancing off to the side. "There's no real reason for you to still be here."

"Huh? What's that supposed to mean!"

"My, aren't we quick to take offense?" Ryou scoffed, "I just meant that I'm not going to ask you to take care of everything on your own. Business hasn't exactly been booming lately, anyways."

The red-haired girl looked over in surprise. "Shirogane? Does that mean -" Her eyes glimmered hopefully, smile widening just at the thought. She didn't notice that Ryou was avoiding her gaze. "- That you're actually letting me have a vacation?"

"Yeah, well," He just shrugged, "You need it. I've noticed that you've been slacking off lately, Strawberry."

"Wha!" Ichigo fumed, clutching at the mop handle angrily, as if planning to use it as a weapon. "Shirogane! You ungrateful little-!"

Ryou calmly stepped towards her, flicking the girl playfully on the forehead. "I was kidding," He said softly, leaving Ichigo speechless, an odd look on her face. Burying his hands in his pockets, the blonde turned away from her and started making his way over to the stairs. "Have a nice break, Ichigo."

"Euuuh!" Shaking her head vigorously, Ichigo stuck her hands in her hair and pulled until her head hurt. "It's not fair! That Shirogane was just looking for an excuse to get rid of me, I know it! He could have at least given me some sort of warning instead of just kicking me out. How inconvienient! Now I need to find another job, and fill out a resume, and go through an interview, and have to completely change my schedule and... Would it have killed him to take the uniform back? It's just going to take up closet space! I don't have closet space! Besides..."

After she finished rambling, her voice trailed off and she looked down at the ground. Okay. Maybe she missed the cafe. Maybe she would miss working there. Maybe. And only a little bit.

But Ichigo knew she wouldn't miss Ryou bossing her around all the time.

Well...

"Ugh! Not that too! Nonono!" Some passing people had turned to glance at Ichigo nervously as she huffed down the street, talking angrily to herself. "Why am I the only one who has to go through all this, anyways?"

Ichigo sighed in frusteration. It really wasn't fair.

Sometimes she thought that Ryou was right - that the other girls had abandoned her on purpose. Of course, Ichigo knew better, deep down, and that it was all just a very bad and untimely coincidence. Lettuce had taken a page from the Book-of-Strawberry and travelled north to study abroad for a few months. She'd sent a few letters and emails, but most of the time Ichigo didn't hear anything. Berii and Tasuku went on a tropical cruise together with their families; Mint had followed Zakuro overseas where the older girl had a high-paying modelling job. And Pudding... Ichigo sweatdropped. Who knows where Pudding went - the main thing was that she wasn't here, either.

"At least Aoyama-kun's still around,"

With a nod, the girl decided that this fact would console her until someone returned. Even though they didn't spend much time together anymore... But Aoyama-kun was busy. He was loaded down with his studies, and Ichigo respected those as a top priority to him. Still...

Her shoulders slouched, and she kept her head up as she walked quietly along, back towards her house.

...Ichigo couldn't help but feel more lonely than before.

--

The next morning, Ichigo started off towards school, having left early enough to go by her own pace. It felt kind of strange to be on time, for once. What else had changed?

"Ichigo!"

"Ichigo-chan! Over here!"

Glancing up, she saw two girls hovering over by the school's pathway. One had long, neatly kept brown hair, adorned with two simple blue ribbons; the one standing beside her had shorter red hair, styled so it looked purposely messy. Standing upright, Ichigo put on a smile and made her way over to them.

"Good morning..."

"Neh, Ichigo-chan! You're never here early!" Cherii commented, running a hand through her red hair and smoothing her uniform out at the same time.

"Uh-huh. Usually you're all rushed and show up with a piece of toast still in your mouth. I don't see any toast in your mouth today, though. Are you feeling alright?"

"Uhm, yeah, I'm fine, Roxi."

"You sure?" The brunette stared at her long and hard before shrugging. "Oh well. It's just not like you to be organized like this."

"Eheheh." Smiling nervously, Ichigo sweatdropped visibly. She wasn't always that late, was she?

"Come on, Ichigo. Moe and Miwa are waiting for you too. Won't they be surprised to know you're on time today!"

"Wah, you guys! It's not that big of a deal!"

--

Paying attention in class suddenly seemed so much easier. The lectures, though... They were boring as ever. But still, Ichigo noticed that her attention didn't wander nearly as much as it used to. Usually, she had her mind on other things - aliens, the Mew Aqua, Chimera Anima... Even before she became a mew, the girl spent most of her school time daydreaming about Masaya. They were together now, so she didn't have to daydream anymore. It made Ichigo wonder if there was ever a point in her life when things were this normal.

"Ehh, no one is in my Science class this year," Ichigo reminded herself with a sigh as she wandered down the busy hallways, gripping her textbooks. "Boring, boringboring. Well, maybe I can actually try to get good marks for once..."

As she stepped into the Science classroom with a bit of a stifled yawn, she noticed the startling silence inside. This made her stop in her steps. The room was full - she was one of the last to arrive - but no one said a word. At least, an audible word.

While Ichigo wandered through the desks to find a seat, she began to pick up soft whispers from the students she passed by.

"...some sort of car accident. Can you believe it?... I bet he was -"

"...I've never heard of her before, but the principal claims -"

"Maybe this one will be better. You know, assign less homework -"

Ichigo had taken a seat at an empty table, and was about to ask someone what was going on when the class door opened and two adults strode inside. The man, dressed in a ridiculously formal suit, was the principal of Daikan Junior High. Ichigo had never seen the woman before, though. She was tall and very serious looking, with brown hair tied up in a neat bun, and icy blue eyes gazing blankly back at the rest of the class. A hush fell over the students as the door closed behind them. Clearing his throat, the man straightened up and began speaking.

"Good afternoon, students. Please excuse the hold-up. Some of you may or may not know about Mr. Yoshimura's unfortunate accident last week. He is in hospital as of now, and we are all praying for his recovery. Until then, Mrs. Kazuhawa - " a hand motion was made towards the woman, "- will be your new Science professor." He turned to leave, but the brown haired woman glanced over at him expectantly. Pausing, the principal seemed clueless, until he appeared to remember something else. "...Oh. That's right, I apologize..." He hesitated again, looking around for several moments. Giving up after a second or so, he drew his eyebrows together toward Mrs. Kazuhawa. "...Where is she?"

"Ari! Chiyako! Heeere!" A voice announced as the door burst open once again, all those in the room turning towards the source. Dark blue hair floated dramatically through the air as the newcomer positioned herself front and center, standing tall with a proud smile. A tad flabbergasted, the man adjusted his glasses before shaking it off and stepping back up. Ichigo could have sworn she saw the new-girl glare at him.

"Oh, yes. Students, this is Chiyako Ari, a transfer student from Kyoto. She will be a member of your class from now on. Please make her feel welcome to Daikan School. I believe that is all." He looked over at Mrs. Kazuhawa for confirmation, who nodded before he left to get back to work.

"Miss Ari," The older woman finally said to the student, who seemed to be enjoying all the eyes on her, "You may take a seat now. Just find an empty table."

"Uh-huh," Ari replied, obviously not paying attention to the teacher's instructions. Instead, she was looking around the room, as if looking for something. Mrs. Kazuhawa simply turned to the blackboard and began jotting notes. The new student continued glancing around without moving. And, after some time, her blackish-blue eyes found and fixed on Ichigo. Ichigo just stared back. There was something sinister about that look, something that made the seated girl suddenly feel cold. They held gazes for only a moment before Ari pulled away, satisfied, and went to find a seat at the other side of the room. As short and meaningless as the encounter had been, Ichigo was left with an eerie feeling. She made an effort to pay attention to the lesson in order to get her mind off it.

--

"Aoyama-kun? Hauu... Please pick up..."

Ichigo was leaned up against the school building after the day's classes had ended, her pink cell phone pressed up to her ear. Ring. Ring. She hadn't talked to him for a while, and she was hoping to go for a walk, or even just talk for a little bit. Just like she missed Mint and Lettuce and the others, she missed Masaya too, even if he was still right here nearby. Riing. Click. 'You've reached the Aoyama household. Please leave a message, and we will --' Hanging up, Ichigo stowed her phone away with a sigh. He was probably just busy again, or out studying... Stop being so selfish, Ichigo. Not everyone has the free time that you do.

Maybe that was why she felt so lonely and depressed - she had too much spare time, and no one to spend it with. Most of her friends from school spent their hours at the mall, or with their boyfriends, or even at home studying. Masaya wasn't an option right now, and neither of the other two things really appealed to Ichigo much at the moment. But she knew she had to do something... Even if it was just to take her mind off being alone.

The girl lugged her books along as she wandered through town, crossing streets and passing stores. She did her best to avoid Cafe Mew Mew. After about 15 minutes of waiting aimlessly, she found herself standing at the very entrance of Inohara Park. Ichigo froze.

"Ah... I haven't been here in... a while,"

Looking around cautiously - though she wasn't sure for what - Ichigo stepped further into the park, allowing herself to admire the trees and wild plants. It brought back so many memories, and, because they made her feel warmer and more comforted, she allowed them to flow through her mind. A park bench. A tree branch. Ichigo was sure she could even pinpoint the exact tree Ryou had pushed her out of, before she transformed for the first time. All of this reminded her of the life she had grown so accustomed to, and even taken for granted. And now that it was gone, Ichigo wasn't sure what to do with herself.

She spent a few more minutes just wandering, looking around for nothing in particular. When the sun began to dip down into the sky, she told herself it was time to head back home. Not that there was anything better there, but okaa-san would be worried if she stayed out any later. I'll call her on my way, Ichigo decided, and began heading off.

"Ichigo."

"Huh?" Ichigo stopped in her tracks. Had she just heard Mint's voice...?

"Ichigo? Ichigo-san, what's wrong?"

"Lettuce?" She whispered back in disbelief, spinning around, searching for the sources of the two voices. There was no one.

"What are you doing, Ichigo-oneechan? Why aren't you fighting, na no da?"

"Hurry up, Ichigo! Stop stalling!"

Ichigo kept turning around, looking over her shoulder, but there was nothing there but trees and grass. "Pudding! Berii! Where are you? I can hear you, but I can't - "

"Ichigo.." Zakuro's cold voice echoed through the air, "You're so weak."

Ichigo's eyes widened. "Z-Zakuro..."

"You're giving up, aren't you? I always suspected your power was too great for you..."

"But I don't - "

"You're letting them get away, Ichigo! They're going to hurt us!"

"Mint! Mint, tell me where you are!" Ichigo was shouting now, searching for her friends, whose voices she could hear so clearly. "I can't find you. Tell me where you are! Please!"

"Help us, Ichigo!"

"What are you doing, na no da!"

"Weakling! Get up or die where you stand!"

Ichigo's hands were shaking. What was going on? Why couldn't she see them? Slowly, she began to step backwards. And then, without warning, she bolted off through the trees.

"ICHIGO! Help! Don't let them capture us!"

Pudding's voice whimpered, "Ichigo-oneechan... Why are you abandoning us, na no da?"

"Ichigo, stop!"

"Help, Ichigo! Use your power! I know you can!"

"You aren't worthy. Coward."

"Fight, Ichigo! Fight!" Their voices began to overlap and blend together. No matter how fast Ichigo ran, they just kept getting louder and louder.

"Stop it!" She cried, ducking under a tree branch, tears in her eyes, "Stop it! I'm not a coward... I can fight... I can!"

"Ichigo!"

"STOP!" Ichigo screamed. There was a flash of pink, and she had transformed into Mew Ichigo. She kept sprinting through the park, putting her hands over her ears. It didn't make the voices go away. They kept on getting louder, and louder, booming in her head mercilessly until she couldn't make out a single word any longer. Ichigo was unable to find the exit of the park, and just kept running, running, trying to get away.

"... I thought you cared about us, Ichigo." One voice broke through the others like a bell.

"I do... I do! I care about you all!" She sobbed, her legs burning and her vision beginning to blur. "Please, don't... I..."

"We thought you were our friend."

Her foot caught on a root, sending her keeling to the cold, hard ground. Ichigo blacked out before her head could hit the dirt.

Next chapter:

Something strange is going on. The aliens are gone, and so are the girls - so why does Ichigo suddenly feel so uneasy? Even Ryou doesn't understand the sudden and bizarre occurances Ichigo has witnessed. And what about the strange transfer student...?