Title: Sweetly Melting
Authoress: SailorChibi
Rating: PG
Couples: Ichigo, Implied Zakuro/Keiichirou
Summary: It's taken Ichigo nine hours, two showers and her best friends to get her chocolate just right. Now, she can finally give it to the boy she loves... Ichigox? one-shot
A/N: It would be my advice to all of you to read the fic all the way through before you make any judgements on who the lucky boy is. I'd advise against peeking at the end to see just who it is. I made my friends read it that way and they enjoyed it A LOT more than if I had told them who it was. So, even if you have a specific pairing you like, why not read it anyway? You might end up surprised...
Chopchopchopchopchop
"Ow! Damnit!"
Aizawa Mint sipped serenely from her cup of mint green tea. It was her favorite blend, dyed a murky shade of reddish green with food coloring for the coming occasion. The taste was so smooth and sweet, with just a hint of crisp –
"Arrrrrrrrgh!"
As the frustrated screech, rather akin to the yowl of an indignant cat when a door was closed in its path, echoed through the café, Mint set her cup down and sighed. There truly was no such thing as peace when came to Mew Mew Café.
"Eeeeeeeeeeek!" As the shriek gained new levels in pitch, a tall young man appeared on the opposite side of the room and darted past Mint, a panicked look on his youthful face. Behind him came three other girls and a second boy, this one with blonde hair and a peculiar grimace on his face.
"What. Is. She. Doing?" Fong Pudding choked out incredulously, too stunned by the howls and crashes to be cute.
"Cooking," Mint replied simply, which seemed to be explanation enough, for the light dawned in everyone's eyes, followed by a collective sigh.
"We'll be cleaning for months," Fujiwara Zakuro commented, pressing her lips into a thin line. Despite the mild exasperation that colored her tone, amusement danced in her violet eyes.
"She's just trying to do something for Aoyama-san," Midorikawa Lettuce said in defence of their friend. The only signs that she minded the current havoc being wrought upon the helpless kitchen were the slight rigidity of her stance and the twitching of her lower lip.
The fifth member, Shirogane Ryou, just rolled his eyes and angrily returned to the place from where he had just exited. Four silent pairs of eyes watched him leave before exchanging glances, sympathy for the fellow teen clear.
"Maybe – " Lettuce began, but her idea would never be brought forth, for at that moment, the kitchen doors swung open and Momomiya Ichigo marched into the room, rose-colored eyes blazing.
"I want to do it for myself, Akasaka-san!" she cried, fleeing towards the heart-shaped window. The cool February wind ruffled her strawberry locks as she pried the pane of glass up. The other four girls gawked at her appearance.
Naturally a teenager but normally caring at least a bit about her appearance, the first member of Tokyo Mew Mew looked as if she had been battling several dozen chimera anima... and barely won. Soot, chocolate, flour and a dozen other substances covered the heart-shaped apron once meant for decoration. There were streaks of chocolate across her cheeks, forehead and the front of her dress. Her shoes and socks were drenched in an unidentifiable liquid, and her hair was covered with a fine dusting of flour. Her headband was long gone, four of her fingers were bleeding, and her cat ears and tail were present.
"What..." Mint began and failed, for the sight of her team member was so truly ridiculous that she could not restrain the laughter rising in her chest. "What were you trying to do, Ichigo?"
"I want to make white chocolate on my own," said the cat-girl defensively, casting a pointed look at Akasaka Keiichirou. "I messed up a few times."
"A few times?" echoed Mint doubtfully. "Is there a kitchen left?"
Ichigo flashed her a murderous glance and appealed to the oldest member of their group. "Please, Akasaka-san! Please give me one more chance!"
It was a positively impossible feat for Keiichirou (or anyone else) to deny Ichigo anything when she truly wanted something, and he had learned long ago to not even try. Defeated, he merely nodded, his heart warming when a brilliant smile lit up the girl's lovely eyes.
"Oh, thank you!" Ichigo cried happily. "One more try, and it will be perfectly perfect this time! I promise!"
"Why don't you go take a shower, Ichigo?" Zakuro suggested. "If you are going to try a fresh start, it will be better if you are relaxed."
This offer was incredibly tempting to the girl, who felt that she would pop if she had to watch one more pot boil over, even if it was in the name of love. Still, she hesitated, aware that if she took even a five-minute leave, her friends would clean up her messes.
As if sensing her hesitation, Zakuro gently ushered her towards the stairway. As soon as the cat-girl had disappeared, the graceful teen glanced at the kitchen with the appearance of one who was heading into battle.
"How bad can it be, na no da?" Pudding asked cheerfully, sailing towards the door. She grasped the knob and swung the door open.
And froze.
"Good gods..." Lettuce breathed, awed in spite of herself. She had never thought it possible to create such a mess in the amount of time Ichigo had been left alone, but here was the proof.
What dismaying proof it was! Pots and pans littered every discernable surface, including the floor. Several trays containing misshapen, burnt, discoloured and melting chocolates were grouped around the vague area of the garbage can. Smoke continued to waft up from the oven; the acrid scent a clear indicator of why Ichigo had run for the window. A fine dusting of flour covered everything, even the ceiling. A pile of chocolate chunks covered the floor, along with a few drops of blood and a knife. Steam rose from water that had been spilt on top of the stove when the pot had boiled over, and a blob of something that resembled caramel was congealing into a sticky pile on top of the counter.
"You have got to be kidding," Mint said, dismayed. This sight was very depressing to her, for it meant that she would actually have to help clean. Right then and there, the sapphire haired girl resolved to pay her friend back for this somehow.
Therefore, it seemed an absolute miracle that when Ichigo came into the kitchen exactly thirty minutes later, the room was spotless and ready for a second try. More than just a bit shocked, the cat-girl surveyed the area as tears welled up in her eyes. This, if nothing else, proved that she had the most wonderful friends in the entire world. The look of sheer gratitude in her eyes was enough for all of the Mews, although Mint still wouldn't have minded a bit of retribution... at a later date, of course.
"Oh, you guys," Ichigo whispered, fully three seconds from dissolving into tears. She made as if to embrace her friends, but was waved back by Zakuro. Sheepishly, she realized that hugging them would have meant getting a fresh uniform dirty before she had even begun, which wouldn't have been a promising start!
Satisfied that their packmate had everything she needed, the four Mews retreated to do some grooming of their own. Left alone to her own devices, Ichigo narrowed her eyes at the room.
"Now, you lookit hear, kitchen," she said firmly, pointing her finger sternly with flashing eyes, "I don't much like you, and I know you certainly don't like me. We've never mixed together a lot before, and that's been right fine with both of us. But we have to work together, because I am not giving up, and that's just the way it's gonna be. I need to have these chocolates made by tonight so I can give them out to the boy I love tomorrow. Got it?"
Whether the room agreed with her or not, it was clear that Ichigo meant business. Tugging one last time on the ties of her apron, she stepped towards the counter and picked up the recipe, grimly surveying it. Right, first off she needed eight ounces of finely chopped dark chocolate...
Two hours later, a victorious cat-girl gazed proudly at a tray upon which fifty perfectly formed, heart-shaped white truffles sat. The chocolates may have appeared pleasing to the eye, but Ichigo knew from previous experience (in other words, two trays of beautiful chocolates, one of which tasted like salt in a recipe that didn't call for any, and the other which was sickeningly sweet) that one could not trust an examination that didn't include a taste test.
"Well?" she said brightly when none of her friends made a move to try her creation. "Aren't you going to try them?"
Keiichirou, Zakuro, Mint, Pudding and Lettuce all shared a look. None of the five were particularly anxious to deal with a wounded Ichigo, but the thought of food poisoning would be enough to make anyone wary. Finally, however, the temptation of having chocolate and not eating it became too much for Pudding. She plucked a truffle off of the tray and popped it into her mouth. Ten eyes watched carefully as she chewed, swallowed and paused, seeming to contemplate what she had just eaten.
"Well?" Ichigo blurted out nervously, her claws skittering along the delicate skin of her thighs and leaving light imprints. "What did you think?"
A slow smile passed over Pudding's face. "Yummy," she pronounced. "Can I have another, Ichigo-nee-chan?"
"Noooooo," Ichigo said, her eyes shining as the other four obediently bit into a chocolate. "I have to save them, Pudding."
The younger teen pouted. "Aoyama-nii-san couldn't possibly eat all of them!" she objected.
Ichigo blushed faintly and licked her lips. "I'm sorry, Pudding. Maybe some other time," she said nervously, hopping off of the stool she was perched on. The strawberry-haired girl fetched her backpack and returned, pulling out a clear box.
Carefully, using a pair of tongs, she began piling the truffles into the box in a neat, two by two square. At the top, she hesitated with the last chocolate, her eyes darting from the box to the pleading gaze Pudding had put on the instant she sensed a weakness in the older girl. At length, Ichigo caved, and flipped the last truffle into the air.
Yelping with glee, Pudding somersaulted off of the counter in her haste to catch the desired treat. She caught the candy neatly in her mouth and chewed with gusto, offering Ichigo a brilliant, chocolately smile in return.
Unable to contain the proud smile that crossed her face and hardly able to believe that something she had created would warrant such behaviour, Ichigo arranged the top three truffles into a triangle and closed the lid. Plucking a crimson ribbon from her handy pack, she wrapped all four sides before making a bow on top. The resulting box, a tidy little thing comprised of thirty-nine truffles, some plastic and ribbon, and a whole lot of love, was adorable in its own way. Although it lacked the gaudy quality of the store-bought boxes, it had a homemade feel that could not be purchased.
"Aoyama-nii-san sure is lucky," said Pudding, who had watched with mournful eyes as the candy was packaged. "Do you think he will share, Ichigo-nee-chan?"
"I doubt that he will," responded Ichigo absently, gazing at the box with such a glowing gaze that Lettuce and Mint gave her envious looks while Zakuro and Keiichirou exchanged soft looks.
"Darn," Pudding sighed. She tapped her finger on her chin for a moment in thought, then smiled triumphantly. "When Taru-Taru comes back, I'll make him chocolates and we can eat them together," she said decisively and bounced out of the room. Keiichirou followed, smiling.
Ichigo could feel her mouth twitching with mirth. She carefully avoided the faces of her friends, knowing she would burst into laughter if she met their eyes. The strain proved too much, however, and the giggles exploded first out of her, then Mint, Lettuce and Zakuro in a wave.
Their laughter subsided only when the persistent ringing of a cell phone breached their awareness. Dusting tears of laughter from her eyes, Lettuce hurried into the main room to retrieve her phone before the person on the other end hung up. Swinging her arms above her in a stretch worthy of a cat, Mint followed, yawning daintily.
Ichigo picked up her box and patted its ribbon gently, a painfully tender look in her cherry eyes. Zakuro touched her shoulder with a sister's guiding hand and offered a warm, encouraging smile at the enquiring look.
"He will love it," the wolf mew prophesized. "As he loves you."
The wondrously content smile that appeared on Ichigo's face at that moment made life worth living. "I hope so," the cat-girl whispered. "I hope so."
When her alarm clock went off at nine the next morning, Ichigo threw her sheets back with such violence that they pinned poor Masha to the mattress and leapt off of the bed, already worried that she would be late. She flew into the bathroom past her father and slammed the door, narrowly missing his foot. Ignoring his surprised and then indignant voice, she stripped her clothes off and jumped into the shower, where she performed the quickest wash, shampoo and conditioner of her life.
Exactly ten minutes and twenty-six seconds later, she sprinted out of the bath, wrapped herself in a towel, and fled back to her room. A quick inventory of the somewhat messy space enabled her to locate her outfit before she sprang into action. Another five minutes had her dressed in a silk white dress that had a pattern of pale rose hearts dancing across the skirt and lace of the same color lining the collar. A snow white ribbon was wrapped around her waist and tied into a tiny bow at the small of her back. As a finishing touch, she pinned her mew charm onto the ribbon and slipped her feet into light cherry flats that matched the hearts on her dress.
Halting in front of the mirror, she fetched her special hair-ribbons (pure white with miniature, heart-shaped rose bells) and tied her hair into pigtails. Ichigo smoothed some strawberry pink lipgloss onto her lips and winked at the mirror in a flirtatious manner, then laughed. She was incredibly nervous.
At half past, the cat-girl galloped down the stairs and into the kitchen, where she shovelled the special heart-shaped chocolate chip pancakes, syrup and strawberries that were a Valentine's Day treat into her mouth at top speed, then drained her milk glass.
"Bye Mama, bye Dad!" she cried, grabbing her coat and opening the door. "I'll be back later... seeya!"
"Did she even taste her breakfast?" her father asked her mother in bewilderment. Sakura merely giggled in reply.
Ichigo ran down the street, feeling so happy she could have screamed her joy to the heavens. Her positive emotions lent her extra energy, and she made it to Mew Mew Café, coat flapping and hair bells jingling, in three quarters of the time it normally took.
Inside the warm space, she trotted down the stairs to where their lockers were and hung her coat inside of her own. She wasn't sure how long she would be there, but she did not want to lug her coat around. Keiichirou kept the café plenty warm in the winter and cool in the summer.
From the pocket of her coat, she removed the little box she had so carefully prepared the day before. For a moment, she remained still, clutching it to her chest and thinking lovingly of the boy she had made it for. Then, she sighed, kissed the ribbon for luck, and climbed the stairs to the main floor.
"And I... w-wanted... to g-give you th-this..."
The stuttered voice caused the teen to stop in her tracks. Eyes wide, she peeked around the corner and spotted Ryou standing with a slender young girl in the middle of the room. The girl was beautiful, with soft hazel eyes and waist-length cinnamon hair. Her face was flushed as she bowed slightly, still offering the boy in front of her the container of candy in her hands.
Ryou gave her an indifferent look and said nothing for several seconds. Finally, he gingerly accepted the box but held it at arm's length, as if afraid the candy inside would attack him. "Thank you," he said stiffly.
The girl remained still for a minute more, clearly hoping for further affection. When none came, her face fell and she turned sharply, fleeing the shop. Ryou sighed, tossing the box onto a nearby table. He started to return to his office, but was halted in his tracks by a kitty whose fur had been severely ruffled.
"Shirogane!" Ichigo blurted furiously, eyes blazing, practically tripping over herself in her rush to scold. Her cat tail lashed the air sharply as she glared at his back. "How can you be so mean? That girl went to all the trouble of bringing you those chocolates, and you were so cold to her – "
"I don't even know her," Ryou interrupted without turning to face her. "Would it be better if I led her on?"
"Of course not, but you don't have to be that way!" sputtered Ichigo.
"Whatever, Strawberry," the blonde-haired boy sighed. "Let me guess. You are meeting your precious Aoyama here to give him your candy. I'll make myself scarce, then – "
"These chocolates are for you, you jerk!"
Shirogane Ryou froze in mid-step. His icy sapphire eyes nearly doubled in size from shock as he slowly pivoted to face the girl standing in the middle of the floor. He almost felt faint as he regarded her with no small amount of absolute astonishment. "What did you just say?" he asked dazedly. "I think I just hallucinated."
"You heard me," Ichigo uttered, her anger softening under the stunned gaze of the boy opposite her. "I made these chocolates for you, Shirogane. Not Aoyama-kun."
Revelation dawned. "Oh. You mean as a friend. I'm stupid. For a minute there, I actually thought..." Ryou trailed off and shook his head bitterly.
"You thought... what?" Ichigo pushed, moving over to him. She looked him square in the eye. "You thought... maybe I made them because I like you? Because I want to be your girlfriend?" Her cherry eyes were gentle and warm.
"But..." Ryou tried, "What about..."
A finger was placed across his lips. "Aoyama-kun and I have our differences, Shirogane... Ryou. In the end, they proved to be too different. We broke up two weeks ago." A shy smile danced across her face. "I wanted to surprise you."
Twice, he tried to speak and failed. On the third try, he actually got his vocal cords to respond. "Ichigo... I..."
Again, she pressed her finger to his mouth, then offered him the box of truffles. "Nyah, Shirogane, will you toss away my candy, too?" she asked, her eyes twinkling.
He smirked mischeviously as he took the box from her and untied the ribbon. He choose one of the white chocolate and bit into it, chewing for a moment with a thoughtful look.
"How is it?" she questioned, looking expectant.
"Haven't you tried them?" he responded, surprised.
Shaking her head, she reached for a truffle and pouted when he pulled the box out of reach. Stepping forward, she tried to stretch to get a candy, but he kept it out of her grasp. "I want to try them, nyah! Don't be greedy!"
For the first time that day, a smile lightened azure eyes as they locked onto rose colored orbs. Ryou set the box down and reached for his new girlfriend. He dipped Ichigo and kissed her so sweetly that her breath fled her body and both of them felt quite dizzy with passion and longing.
And the truffles, as they discovered much, much later, tasted just as delectable melted as they did hard.
Before anyone, and I mean ANYONE, says anything, you will notice that Ichigo never said the chocolates were for Masaya; it was merely assumed. So nyah! I hope you enjoyed this Ichigo/Ryou fic. Please leave a review. Ciao!