Mew Amai

Episode 10 Part 1

The night was calm and quiet. Well, not really in a part of the city where Tokyo Mew Mew was fighting against a horde of bat Chimera Animals. The girls cornered the creatures. "There's no escape for you!" Mint announced with a finger outstretched. Retasu landed beside her. "Your turn, Mew Amai!" Pudding stepped up. "Finish 'em!"

"Ribbon Sweet Shine!"

The bats turned back to normal. Amai saw one of the newer aliens, who by now they've identified as Pai, above. He disappeared seconds later. The girls rode down the building in an elevator.

"That was easy!" Mint exclaimed. "We've been doing awesome lately!" Ichigo added. Everyone was smiling at how well their battles have been going as of late. Honestly, and strangely, the fights have actually been helping to distract Amai from the painful stress that her secret carried. Guess the optimism from her friends in every fight aided, too.

It would be good if it stayed like this for a while.

........................................................................................................................................................................................

"I'm so excited for this date, Amai-chan! You have to help me pick out a cute outfit!"

Amai laughed at Ichigo's bubbly excitement over the phone. "Of course, Ichigo. I've got you covered."

"Yay! I gotta go now, bye!"

"Bye." Hanging up, Amai sighed. Ichigo was so happy, having a date to look forward to. A normal teenage girl thing, for once, with little worry about anything, even aliens attacking. Oh, how Amai wished she could have what her best friend had. "She's so lucky."

"Who's lucky?"

"Well, Ichi-"

Amai stopped, recognizing the voice that had asked her that. Spinning on her heel, she came face to face with..."

"Ryou?"

The blonde boy was smiling, his hands in his pockets. He stood a few feet from her on the sidewalk.

"What are you doing here?"

"I was walking by when I heard a familiar voice. Turned out it was you." He said. "Remember that you have work later, Ichigo too. Make sure you're both on time."

"I know, I know." She started to walk away but stopped when she caught him staring at her. "Ryou? Do you need something?"

"Not really. Just..." His tone dropped a bit, as did his grin. "You seem to be on and off edge lately. Is there anything going on you wanna tell me about?"

"Oh, no! He can see that, too?!" Amai panicked inside. "Zakuro getting suspicious is one thing, but.." There was no way she could let any of her friends, never mind the maker of the Mew Project find her out. She couldn't help the rapid beating of her heart at the thought of it, nor her head starting to swim.

Ryou looked at her state with growing concern. "Amai? You good?"

She didn't answer. "This is too much!" And she bolted. It was a cowardly act, but necessary in that moment. She was unsure of exactly how long she ran for, but finally she stopped and took a breath.

"That was a lot. I feel bad for just leaving him there, but..."

She trailed off. She'd just passed a low window and backtracked to it, noticing something off about herself. When she saw that something, she freaked out.

A cat. Amai was a cat. A small, soft white cat with a bow on her tail like the one she had in Mew form. Her eyes went wide.

"What in the- I'm a cat!"

"Look! A kitty!"

Amai felt small hands grab her, startling her as she was lifted off the ground. A group of young children surrounded her, petting her all at once. Amai felt embarrassed, confused, and alarmed by what was going on. She wanted to run but didn't with the wish to not hurt the kids that had her. So she let them play with her for a little while, the petting and cooing actually helping her relax a bit. As soon as the children left she ran down the street, hoping to find her way to the café or one of the girls to help her.

Along the way, Amai accidentally ran into the open road where a truck was coming her way. In a panic, she jumped into an alley, bumping into something which made her fly back.

"Ouch..." She winced, getting up. Seeing what she had run into, she froze. The back of a yellow/brown cat much larger than her. It sat up straight when it sensed her, turning around. Amai was grossed out by its face, it reminded her of someone sleezy or drunk. Its beady eyes stared at her, drool coming out of its mouth.

"Oh-oh, you're a cutie. Wanna go on a date with me?"

"EH?!"

The cat pranced over to her. "Aww, c'mon, don't be shy, cutie."

Amai jumped and ran. The alley cat followed her. "Why is this happening?!" Amai cried as she ran. Thankfully, an arm swooped down and grabbed her, keeping her out of her pursuer's reach. Said pursuer bumped into the newcomer's legs and fell.

Amai sighed in relief.

"Goodness, I was afraid of this happening."

That voice!

Amai looked up. "Ryou?!"

The boy was looking at her with pity. Taking her out of the alley and to a bench by a park, he spoke to her. "Look, I'll try to explain. This is just my theory, but I believe that as you grow stronger in battle, your DNA shifts more and more towards the animal side. Meaning your body will become more catlike. And if that continues, you won't be able to go back to being human."

"What?! No!"

"I don't know if this transformation will happen to the others. At any rate, if we take out the aliens and you no longer have to fight, your catlike features will go away."

Amai listened intensely, but suddenly the urge to groom herself came over. And while Ryou continued talking she licked all over her white fur, smoothing it down. "Are you listening?!" Ryou's voice re-reached her ears. She looked at him embarrassed. "Come on, I'm a cat!"

Ryou's phone vibrated and he picked it up to answer it. He said Keiichiro's name and started to talk with him, leaving Amai for the moment. Amai's eyes trailed away from him, soon landing on a child walking down a nearby pathway. On the child's backpack was a keychain that moved with her every step. The girl's cat senses heightened, falling in love with the object. Though she shook her head vigorously.

"No, I have to focus!"

She tried to fight it, but the longer she stared at the keychain, the more hard it got to resist. Finally she gave in and leaped off the bench.

"Okay, I'll be back." Ryou hung up the phone. "For now, you should head to the café and..." He looked at the cat, only to find her gone.

"Amai?!"