A

Cardboard boxes litter the floor; some emptied and overturned, others overflowing with wires, machinery, and other assorted clutter. If not for the thin layer of dust beginning to gather one would have every right to assume that the owner had moved in and simply procrastinated on unpacking.

The only true light source is a wall-mounted screen, large enough to take up roughly half the room’s width. It’s connected to a large panel covered in various keys or buttons, several other smaller monitors surrounding it. In front of it sits a woman, roughly in her mid-thirties, hunched over a keyboard with images and code reflecting off of her glasses and tinting her milky white skin a faint blue.

She doesn’t even notice the lock of somewhat greasy brown hair slipping from her sloppy bun, not even when she leans back in her old office chair and stretches her arms above her head. The woman suppresses a yawn as she reaches for a paper coffee cup haphazardly balanced on the console with her left arm before hesitating and switching hands. She takes a sip and immediately cringes at the lukewarm temperature, though it doesn’t stop her from finishing it off and dumping the now-empty cup in a nearby box almost overflowing with food and drink trash.

With a couple more keystrokes, a new window appears on the screen, displaying an email draft ready to be sent off. Several recipients are listed; *Himawari Academy, Sakuragi University Junior High School, Akebono Daizan Junior High School, Nakanishi Elementary School, Shinjuku Hayashi Girls’ High School.*

Each one has some variant on the same message; an invitation to an exhibit with an outdoor play, both with the purpose of celebrating the 10th anniversary of the debut of Tokyo’s saviors.

She reads it over a few more times, then, finally, presses send.

**OP: bitter sweet darling — Smewthie**

**Episode 01: Mew Project Restart!**

*"It was totally just a publicity stunt."*

*"A publicity stunt for **what!?"***

*"UGH! You’re **both** wrong; clearly Tokyo Mew Mew were alien warriors sent to guard a lesser species!"*

*Tokyo Mew Mew:* the quintet of colorful superheroines with their iconic animal features and cutesy (yet powerful) weapons who’d appeared a decade prior, protecting the people of Tokyo from parasitic aliens. They’d gone silent several years back, but their popularity evidently hadn’t waned in their absence.

A forty-something man stands, arms crossed, in front of a class-full of students, all clad in blue blazers and buttoned bolero jackets. He looks utterly unamused as he claps his hands together loudly, silencing the argument, at least momentarily.

"I expect you to be on your best behavior! It may be a Saturday, but you are all still representing Himawari Academy. Anyone found to be acting against Himawari’s values will spend the rest of the day by my side and filling out worksheets, am I understood?"

The dull, out-of-sync *"yes, Takahashi-sensei..."* doesn’t even phase him.

A hand shoots up into the air, shaking excitedly. It then rises a couple feet higher as a head of blonde hair rises above the crowd. "Sensei! Sensei!"

Takahashi takes a deep breath; *in-and-out, Daisuke...* *"Yes,* Momose? Is there a problem?"

Several students giggle at the sight of 13-year-old Momose Ame being held up by one of her friends, not unlike a beloved cat being displayed, complete with her legs dangling above the ground. With all attention on her, she grins. "Ummmm, I was just wondering if were were all staying together or—"

"You want to know if you, Kurosawa, and Sato can go off on your own, is that right?" Three heads nod. "You’re all old enough to be responsible, so... I’ll allow it; you are all free to explore the exhibition at your leisure, but please return to *this spot* at 1:30 pm." The moment he finishes talking, the small crowd disperses into groups of varying sizes.

"Isn’t this *soooo* cool!?" Ame excitedly hops up and down, her light magenta eyes full of stars. The thick braid on her shoulder and a chunky white clip in her bangs keeps most of Ame’s hair in place, though a single lock is left loose to bounce against her nose. "Ai-chan, Ma-chan, what do you wanna look at first?"

Kurosawa Airi, the girl responsible for lifting Ame, hums, her warm brown eyes squeezing shut in thought. "Definitely gotta see Mew Pudding’s section! She’s obviously the coolest!"

The third member of the trio, Sato Maki, is fixated on a nearby TV. The screen shows Tokyo Mew Mew’s five founding members being interviewed by a baffled news crew.

"...Did you know Fujiwara Zacro-san guest-starred on this show? Tokyo Mew Mew actually appeared *in her episode..."*

Ame joins her smaller friend in staring at the screen. "Whoa... I don’t think I’d be *too* mad if I were overshadowed by—"

*"WATCH OUT!"*

It takes Ame a moment to register that she’s even on the ground, or that there’s a human-sized weight on top of her. *"Wow... you’re super bony, girly!"*

Before she can respond, the weight lifts and she’s able to sit up, though by that point all she sees is a figure in a black hoodie and a short blue skirt racing into a random hallway as they laugh boisterously, nearly colliding with several more people. Mere seconds later, a boy with a shaved head and an oversized blue gakuran practically shoves his hand into Ame’s face.

"I’m so sorry, miss!!" Working on autopilot, Ame accepts the hand and finds herself being pulled up with more force than necessary, earning her another bevy of rambled apologies as he bows repeatedly.

"Hey! What’s your friend’s problem!?"

"I... uh..." He begins backing away. *"Su-chan! Wait up!"* He sprints off down the same hallway as the other figure, Airi ready to chase after him before Maki stops her with a hand on the shoulder.

"Oh my gosh! Did that really just happen!?" From the crowd emerges a chubby girl in the same buttoned-up navy blue bolero and high-waisted skirt worn by all female Himawari students, her chocolate brown ponytail frantically bobbing as she rushes to fret over Ame. "Are you okay!? Did you hit your head!?" She takes Ame’s face into her hands, tilting it this way and that. "Does anything hurt?"

*Just my pride...* "I’m fine!" Ame squeaks, internally cursing her steadily reddening cheeks. "Th-Thank you for worrying about me, Satomi-san!" She momentarily wonders what the chances are of a sinkhole appearing beneath her to swallow her right up. Behind her, Airi lightly elbows Maki with a grin.

Though still visibly worried, Satomi backs off with her hands clasped in front of her chest. *"Good,* I was worried... honestly, I can’t believe the *gall* of some people... I’ll have to let Sensei know so he can report that girl to the museum staff." She offers the trio a friendly smile and a quick bow. "It was lovely seeing the three of you!" Satomi then starts striding off, presumably to go find their teacher.

A moment of silence falls over the trio. Airi holds up three fingers and starts to put them down one at a time. *Three, two, one...*

*"Aaaaahhhh! Satomi-san is sooooo coooool!"* Ame whisper-yells. *"She’s so nice and elegant and **pretty!"*** She dramatically falls back, Airi and Maki quickly catching her as if this is some practiced routine. The scene they’re—or, more accurately, that *Ame’s*—making earns them a few baffled or exasperated glances.

"You should ask her out," Maki suggests.

"I caaaaan’t! What if she rejects me! I don’t even know if she’s into giiiirls!"

Airi snickers at her friend’s dramatics. "You’re never gonna know if ya don’t try, Ame."

*"...I think I’ll stick to pining and admiring Satomi-san from afar..."*

Maki thumbs through a thin paperback book, her droopy blue eyes occasionally widening. *"Interesting... apparently DNA belonging to a subspecies of leopard cat was found at the site of several Mew Mew battles..."*

"Oh, for real? Which one?" Ame asks, holding up a set of hair clips themed after the Mew Mews. "Excuse me, how much for these?" She pauses, spotting a sister set of ribbons. "Oh, these too, please!"

"¥15,000 all together, miss." The vendor holds out a card reader, allowing Ame to pay.

"...Doesn’t say..." She scans the page. "...Apparently there’s many debates about what animal Mew Lettuce is meant to represent; a witness who saw her mermaid form described *horizontal* tail flukes, which are characteristic of cetaceans; so dolphins and whales...!"

Nodding along, Ame slips both sets into her school satchel, patting the gold, sunflower shaped clasp afterwards. "Ohhhhh, so there’s, like, a debate about whether she’s a dolphin or a whale?"

Before Maki can answer, a bag of gummies is shoved in her face, the same happening to Ame. *"Loo' wha' I go'!!"* Airi’s voice is muffled by an identical bag clenched between her teeth.

"Oh, thank you." Maki pops the bag open and takes out a gummy vaguely shaped like Mew Lettuce’s Lettustanets. *"Mmm... not much flavor..."* She comments.

"Oooh, this one’s minty!" Ame exclaims, fishing out another Mintone Arrow.

"Probably lettuce-flavored, dunno why anyone would think *that’s* a good idea..."

After sampling all six flavors—and declaring the white jewel-flavored Berry Rods to be her favorite—Ame re-seals her bag and plops it into her satchel. Her recent purchases don’t escape Airi’s notice.

"Hair bows? You don’t usually... *ohhhh..."* Airi’s expression turns smug. "Tryna buy Satomi’s love, now, are you?"

Ame blushes bright red, shoving her satchel behind her as if trying to hide a crime. "N-NO! Just... wanted... to get her something nice..." Her index fingers shyly tap together. Needing a distraction, she looks around the exhibition room, her gaze sweeping over seas of students in their uniforms. *Perfect.*

"Look! A bunch of schools all over Tokyo must’ve been invited!" She points to a student in a gray uniform that resembles a sailor-collared blazer and a flared skirt. "She’s obviously from Daikan, over in Minato!" Then to a tall, brown-skinned girl in a red sailor uniform who’s in the process of eating a crepe. "And that’s a Sakuragi uniform! I’d recognize that color scheme anywhere!"

"Uh-huh? Sounds like *someone’s* embarrassed~" Airi says in a sing-song voice, leaning in.

Maki mimics the motion. "You’re very bad at hiding your emotions," she comments, tossing another gummy into her mouth. Her smug expression melts into a cringe. "Bleh! Pomegranate!"

Ame and Airi burst into giggles at her reaction, continuing to wander into the exhibit.

Nearby, a petite green-haired girl in a Sakuragi uniform wanders past a security camera, one that almost seems to follow her until it can no longer turn any further, though the girl doesn’t seem to notice at all. She quickly ducks into the nearest bathroom, barely restrained tears filling her eyes as she clutches a torn book to her chest.

As the day drags on, the *Tokyo Mew Mew 10th Anniversary Exhibition* seems to only get more busy, and before long it’s 1:30 pm. The intercom system plays a series of soft, digital tones before a vaguely artificial-sounding woman’s voice begins to speak.

*"Attention guests, the outdoor performance is about to start. Interested parties should begin making their way outside. Thank you, and have a **mewtiful** day."* With another series of tones, the intercom goes silent.

"Nee-chan! Can we go!? Can we, can we!?" A little girl with chubby cheeks and two orange braids tugs at the too-short-to-be-proper-uniform skirt of a teenager whose hair is a duller shade of the same color. The older girl doesn’t even look at her sister, too busy checking the state of her make-up with a mirror compact covered in yellow cats and citrus fruits.

"Why’re you asking *me?* Go find your teacher, or whatever." She makes a dismissive shooing motion as her sister pouts and storms off.

"I dunno why you’re so mean to her, Yucchi!" Says a chubby girl with purple pigtails. Next to her stands a short, black-haired girl with covered buns.

"Yeah... little siblings are annoying but you really should lighten up."

The girl rolls her eyes. "I really don’t care." She snaps her compact shut and slots it back into her bag. "Are we watching that stupid play or what?"

"We have to!!" The purple-haired girl holds up a proplica Strawbell Bell. "I gotta see the battle of Tokyo Tower!!" She exclaims, the gold bell hanging off of the fuzzy hot pink frame jingling with her movements.

*"For the future of the Earth, we’ll be of service, meow!"* Five performers, each dressed as a Mew Mew, pose dramatically, their prop weapons held in hand. The stage is rather simple in appearance, with a painted background and sliding doors for actors to come in and out of the scene without needing to stand awkwardly to the side of the stage.

Ame sits near the front of the crowd, hands clasped together. *"The costume design is **amazing!** Look! I wonder if the sewing patterns are available anywhere!? I think they might’ve used crinoline for Mew Pudding’s flared skirt...!"*

The Mew Mint performer readies her weapon, her Mintone Arrow emitting music as she pulls the arrow back. *"Ribbon... Mint... Echo!"* She shouts, releasing the shot. A whoosh sound effect plays, and an actor dressed like the infamous Moth Chimera that’d terrorized the area around Tokyo Tower mimics the act of dodging an arrow, a screech playing.

*"You’re like a kid, Ame-san!"* Satomi’s joyful whisper comes from Ame’s right, making her jump and slap a hand over her heart. *"I’m sorry! I didn’t mean to frighten you!"*

*"No, no, no! It’s fine!!"* Ame clears her throat and takes a breath to get herself back in order. *"Um... after the play... would you... like to hang out? For a little while?"*

"I’d love to!"

Ame deflates a little. *"That’s okay, I under—**HUH!?"***

*"I said, I’d love to! You’re a nice person, I think we’d be very good friends."*

*Friends... just friends...* She’d be lying if she claimed not to be hurt hearing that, but she still nods happily. *It’s better than being outright rejected... you can do this!*

*"Asakusa, get over here."* Takahashi’s gravelly whisper cuts through Ame’s momentary elation. Satomi shoots her an apologetic smile.

*"I’ll see you later, okay?"* With as little commotion as possible, Satomi sneaks away from the crowd and makes her way over to a pair of exhibit employees standing next to Takahashi.

While Ame sits in a total daze, Airi claps her on the shoulder. *"You did it! Step one of Operation: Get Ame A Girlfriend is complete!"*

*"Don’t you wish you’d done that earlier?"* Maki earns herself a puffed-cheek, pouting expression, one that leaves her stifling giggles with her hands.

*"Yeah... well..."* Ame fumbles for an excuse before sighing and slouching. *"Okay, you’re right..."* She covers up her pink cheeks with her hands, squirming slightly.

Back on the stage, Mew Ichigo has discarded her Strawbell Bell in favor of a pink and gold wand with a heart-shaped head. *"Mew Aqua Rod!"* She calls out, holding it up in the air. *"Mew Aqua Drops!"* Bubbles begin to blow over the stage and audience while Mew Ichigo spins. The Chimera Moth makes a show of twirling around and dropping to their knees before skilfully dropping off of the stage and out of sight.

*"Targets in sight..."* The woman mutters while a camera zooms in on a crowd of elementary, junior, and senior high school students gathered around a stage, clapping as the performers bow and wave. She types rapidly, gloved fingers dancing over the keys as she puts in coordinates. *Everything's going better than expected...* she's almost teary-eyed upon realizing that her goal is in sight.

A shaking hand comes to hover over a simple red button... a button that'll determine the fate of Tokyo—no, the human race—once pressed.

*Click.*

That's all it takes. A single movement of the hand and now the course of several young girls' lives have been irreparably changed...

The ground begins to shake, eliciting surprised shouts from the audience and sending one of the performers to the ground. It's soon followed by several colored beams of light shooting into the air and rocketing down towards the panicked audience, all distracted by the sudden quake.

Ame doesn't even get a chance to register what's happening before a soft pink light strikes her directly in the chest, sending her into unconsciousness.

*"AME!"*

*She's floating... trapped in some kind of mysterious void, and yet, she doesn't feel scared in the slightest. In the distance, she hears hoofbeats, one set light and one set heavy, both coming straight towards her.*

There they are; a horse and a rhino, both matching each other's pace and running side-by-side on pure energy and stardust. These clearly aren't normal animals however: their bodies are made of something other than meat, more akin to solid light than anything physical.

She should be running, should be ducking down and protecting her body from these large beasts...

...But she doesn't...

Ame remains in place, her eyes fluttering shut the closer and closer they get. She doesn't so much as flinch when they begin running circles around her, their forms slowly dissolving into light...

*"...se... Mo..."*

Distantly, she can hear someone calling for her.

"Momose! Wake up!"

Ame's eyes slowly flutter open, and she's met with the faces of her teacher and concerned peers. Siri and Maki let out simultaneous sighs of relief, wrapping her in a bone-crushing hug.

"We were so worried about yoooouuuu!" Cries Airi.

"You were out for a while... Sensei almost called an ambulance..." Maki sniffles, her eyes watery.

"What... happened...?" She asks, a hand over her unusually warm chest.

"You passed out during that tremor," Takahashi explains, "are you unwell? I can have someone take you home, if you need."

Her thin blonde eyebrows furrow as she stares down at her lap, absentmindedly picking blades of grass off of her otherwise pristine white stockings. "...I *feel* fine..." She murmurs.

"Are you sure? We don't want a repeat of all that."

Another student—a girl with long, curled, strawberry blonde pigtails—rolls her eyes. "She probably just faked it for attention!"

Ame glares at the girl, but Takahashi responds before she can speak up. "Oshiro! That is so inappropriate I don't even know where to start! I doubt your father would be happy to hear about your behavior."

Oshiro at least has the decency to lower her head and grumble out an apology.

It’s only then that Ame actually looks at her surroundings; a plain, mostly-empty room... well, empty with the exception of multiple concerned bystanders and students lying down. She quickly surmises that this must be a backroom in the exhibit.

*What was that light...? That dream...? Why does she feel so warm inside...?*

With an exasperated sigh, Takahashi turns his attention back to his previously incapacitated student. "I was planning to get everyone back to school soon anyway... doubt it’d hurt to head back slightly earlier than expected..."

The rest of the day trip passes far too quickly for Ame’s liking, her head stuck in clouds of her own making; the time spent in that room, the drive back to school, the visit to the school nurse to double-check that nothing’s wrong. It’s not until she, Airi, and Maki are making their journey home that Ame really comes back to reality.

"We’re going back to that exhibit!" She declares, much to the shock of her friends.

Airi’s the first to speak up. "What? Why? Did’ya forget something?"

"No! I just *have* to figure out what happened to me!"

"You passed out after a tremor... actually..." Maki’s expression twinges with concern. "...Several people collapsed..." She turns around, charging in the opposite direction of home, ready to get to the bottom of this brand new mystery before she can even *think* about resting. Ame is the first to catch up with Maki, Airi trailing behind a little. "Something’s wrong, we need to know *what!"*

"...Uh... guys...? What *exactly* d’ya expect to find? A gas leak? Some weeeeiiird new disease?" Shaking her head, Airi pulls a half-empty bag of rice crackers from her satchel. "Hey, ya want some? They’re curry-flavored!"

Thankfully for the trio, the exhibit is only a short train ride away, one spent munching on rice crackers and pretzels and various other snacks Airi had stowed away. Before long, they’re once again standing in front of what was once an empty, unused building before being temporarily repurposed. It’s nothing too extravagant, but the bright, multicolored banners and feather flags make it much more visible from the street.

Ame wastes no time rushing around the back of the building, Airi and Maki right behind her. There, they find the performers from before on break with the less practical parts of their costumes removed. She approaches them without hesitation, catching the attention of Mew Ichigo’s performer. "Hey, you’re that girl who passed out earlier... you doing okay now, honey?"

"Mhm! Much better. Um... did any of you see anything... strange... when it happened?"

A man in half a Chimera costume raises an eyebrow. "‘Course we did; not every day a bunch of kids pass out after a wacky lightshow."

"Oi, Satoshi, don’t joke about that crap!" Chastises a woman dressed as Mew Pudding. "...Guess he’s not wrong, though... there *were* some funky... I dunno what to call ‘em... just these weird lights that started rainin’ down! Someone musta set off a light show or something."

"Swear I saw then coming from... that way? I think?" Says Mew Lettuce’s performer as she points.

"That any use to you, honey?"

"...Oh... so I *didn’t* dream that part..." Ame mutters more to herself than anyone else. "Thank you very much!" She takes Airi and Maki by the wrists and begins pulling them further into the attached park.

*"Yuuki! Put yer wig back on! We gotta get set up again!"* With that, the stage performers start piecing together their outfits to prepare for the next wave of audience members.

The deeper they get into the trees, the more picturesque their surroundings get; sunlight dappling through healthy trees, their leaves swaying with the faint breeze, frogs croaking in a nearby pond, birds chirping... it’s almost *too* perfect, if Ame’s being honest.

Before long, the sea of trees and flora give way to a two-storey building; one colored in simple, soft shades of pink and white, matching metal rails surrounding the flat roof, a clean white picket fence surrounding the back and sides, with a dramatically sloping verandah on either side. Two square wooden planters sit by the front, overflowing with pinkish-white balloon flowers, and an arch of star jasmines is centered in front, right in the gap of the fence. The view through the building’s front French doors and side sliding doors are obscured by plain white curtains.

The three girls pause, just *staring,* until Ame breaks the silence. "Oh. My. God! That’s *such* a cute little building! Do you think it’s, like, a café?"

*A translucent creature, reminiscent of some strange combination of a jellyfish and a teruteru bouzu floats aimlessly through the air. Its ‘face’ is almost expressionless; plain, round, cartoony eyes and a jagged ‘mouth’. The lifeform’s yellow tendrils twitch and squirm, as if seeking something out. It finds its target in the form of a green mottled frog resting by a small pong. The tendrils shoot out, trapping the frog in its clutches even as the animal struggles. The creature begins to meld into its victims body and, with only a brief moment of relief for the poor frog, its body mutates, growing several feet in size and girth and gaining a set of horns that match its slimy skin.*

Once the metamorphosis completes, the giant frog lazily blinks its large round eyes and releases a loud, deep, distorted **riiiiiibbit.**

"Uhhh..." Airi turns around, swiveling her head and causing her two ever-present cowlicks to sway from the movement. "...Did you two hear that? Or am I going crazy...?" Upon glancing back at her friends, she notices that Ame looks *incredibly* on edge; her eyes wide and her hackles raised, as if ready to bolt at any moment.

"What’s wrong, Ame?" Maki has her hands balled up by her chest, eyebrows creased in worry.

Ame doesn’t answer right away, hurriedly scanning the treeline for signs of danger. She hears it before she sees it: the *thump, thump, thump* of something *unnaturally* heavy...

...and it’s coming right towards them...

*"We need to leave, like, **now."***

Before Ame can decide on an escape route, a gigantic frog with thick horns bursts from between the trees, releasing another wrong-sounding ***riiiiibbiiiiit*** that sends shivers down Ame’s spine.

*"Crap! **Run!"*** Airi is the first to act, shoving her smaller friends away from her (and, by extension, the frog) and frantically waving her arms in the air, hopping up and down and shouting. *"Heeey! Big, round, and ugly!! Come and get me!!"*

The tactic works and the frog locks its attention on the stocky teenager, giving Ame and Maki the perfect opportunity to flee.

...But they remain stuck in place, paralyzed by fear and concern.

*"We can’t abandon Airi!"* Maki buries her hands in her short hair, crouching down and focusing on not hyperventilating.

*No time to think or plan or do anything but **act.*** Ame’s slender fingers wrap around a palm-sized rock, the weight in her hand grounding, but also heightening her anxiety. She thinks back on that one baseball match Airi had shown her, mimicking the pitcher’s arms movements and throwing her makeshift weapon with the meager amount of strength available to her.

Miraculously, the rock hits its mark, striking the monster’s side right as it opens its gross, drooling maw. Slowly, it begins to turn around, rotating its whole body to face Ame, whose knees are beginning to knock together as she processes just what a mistake she’s made.

*"N-Nice giant frog monster... pleeaaase don’t swallow me and add my face to your belly..."*

*"No... no, no, no!"* The woman grabs one of her monitors, the screen displaying footage of the three school girls’ encounter. "Activate already!" She shakes it, causing the image to blur momentarily and triggering a flurry of exclamations.

Back outside, the large frog has begun bounding towards Ame at full speed, its footsteps thunderous and bordering on earth shaking. Ame tries to back away, only to stumble in her panic and hit the ground with no hope of getting back up in time. She holds up her arms as if it’ll do anything to protect her.

*"I DON’T WANNA DIIIIIEEEEE!!"* A loud scream rips from Ame’s throat as pink light engulfs her form.

***"MEW MEW CANDY, METAMORPHOSE!"***

*Ame finds herself back in that same glittery pink void from her dream, though she can now spot a pair of ornate, curved double doors, which quickly open to reveal the same horse and rhino she’d previously seen. Her school uniform has been replaced by a galaxy covering her body from the neck down. She presses her palms flat against her chest, right next to each other, one leg bent at the knee as she quickly leans back and pulls her hands away from her body at the same time, light gathering around them.*

The light rapidly crawls over her hands, torso, and thighs, forming frilly pink gloves, a pink sweetheart bodice, and a matching skirt with a frilly white hem, box pleats, and big white bows on either side. Her neck then flashes, revealing a frilled pink collar with a large write ribbon tied around it, a gold-based, heart-shaped brooch with a pink gem appearing in the middle.

Her hair falls loose to just above her hips, fading from blonde to white as a golden hair-clip with a heart-shaped gem appears in her bangs while a lock of hair in front of her ear twists into a thin braid. Ame kicks her legs, causing a frilly white garter accessorized with a large white ribbon on the side to manifest, followed by light wrapping around her feet and calves to form a pair of pink boots with white cuffs, laces, and soles.

More light unravels from Ame's back, fading into a gray horse's tail. It's quickly followed up by a pair of gray horse ears and a matching rhino horn sprouting from her head.

Once she returns to reality, not only does it appear that no time has passed, but the frog has been thrown back several feet. She’s left staring down at her gloved hands, turning them over to find a small white heart affixed to a thin wrist band.

*"She did it... oh thank **God..."*** She rests her head against the plastic frame, her whole body shaking with adrenaline. Taking a few deep breaths, she races away, hurrying up the stairs and slamming the door behind her.

Airi blinks a few times, as if needing a moment to process the sight in front of her. "You look like... like..."

*"A MEW MEW!"* Maki finishes, her voice uncharacteristically loud as her eyes light up.

Shakily, Ame rises to her feet, the short, thick high heels of her new boots causing her to stumble slightly, though she quickly regains her bearings. "I... I’m..." She laughs a little in disbelief. *"I’m a Mew Mew! **A Mew Mew!"*** A grin spreads over her face, horse ears twitching and perking up.

Steeling herself, Ame fixes the frog—a Chimera Anima, there's nothing else it could be—with a pink-eyed glare. "Halt! Monster, for I am here to defeat you!"

*"No offense but that was **super** cringey...!"*

She sputters and pouts, her expression turning almost bratty. "I’m doing my best, okay!?" Ame stomps her feet a little, tail flicking angrily. "Fine! I’ll think of something better!"

"Is this *really* the time to be bickering!?"

"Yeah!" "Of course!"

The Chimera is still stunned, allowing Ame a moment to think. "Okay! Got it!" She lets the serious expression melt back onto her thin face. "Today, I’ll be of service!"

*"You just ripped that off from Mew Ichigo!"* Despite the tense (and potentially life-threatening) situation, Airi bursts into raucous laughter.

Ame doesn’t get a chance to retort before a voice cuts through the light-hearted argument. *"GIRLS! FOCUS!"*

The trio whip their heads around to the source of the noise. There, on the roof of the cutesy pink building, leaning so far over the railing that they’re almost worried she’ll fall, is a disheveled woman in a blue turtleneck and a white coat, her black hair just barely staying in its bun. *"Listen to what your heart and soul say! Speak the words out loud!"*

"My... heart and... soul...?" Ame has no chance to ponder the woman’s words before the Chimera begins charging again, having regained its bearings. Shouting, she jumps out of the way in the nick of time, softening her fall by rolling and transferring back into a standing position. Not wanting to be caught off-guard again, Ame launches herself onto the Chimera’s back, cringing as her boots slide against its slimy back.

*"YOU CAN DO THIS, AME!!"* Airi has her hands cupped around her mouth as she cheers.

*"Ah, wait... shouldn’t she have a fancy name...?"*

*"EW, EW, EW, EW! YOU’RE SO SLIIIIMYYYYY!!"* She cries out, gagging slightly when her bare knees touch its skin.

*"You can do this! Just **focus!"***

"I... I think I understand what you mean!" Ame presses the soles of her boots against the Chimera, waiting for the perfect opportunity before jumping off and away, putting some distance between her and it.

She holds a hand out in front of her. *"Candy Keysword!"* Ame grips down on the light that appears in her palm, causing it to morph into a defined shape: a pink and white sword with a broad, flat blade... well... perhaps *blade* isn’t the most accurate term, as the surface area that would be the blade instead appears to resemble white piano keys. The blade’s hilt features a pink gem heart placed in the middle of a stiff, angular golden bow.

*"You did it!"* The woman calls out. *"Now! Defeat that Chimera Anima!"*

Ame shifts into a more defensive pose, holding the weighty sword out in front of her. *Listen to your heart and soul...*

*"Ribbon..."* She slides her fingers over the stiff ‘keys’ of her weapon. *"Candy..."* The sword lights up. *"Charm!"*  Ame slashes through the air, firing off a blast of pink energy that overcomes the Chimera, leaving it cowled in light before shrinking, and shrinking, and shrinking until it dissipates, leaving behind a harmless (if panicked) frog that immediately hops away with a series of shrill ribbits.

That’s not all, however, as the same jellyfish/teruteru bouzu that’d mutated the frog in the first place is now no longer occupied.

*"DON’T LET IT GET AWAY!"* The woman cries out, prompting Maki to hurriedly empty out her satchel full of books onto the grass and desperately swing it around like a net. Airi follows suit, dumping her own belongings onto a suitably clean patch of pavement so that she can join her mousy friend.

Ame, meanwhile, is left leaning against a tree and panting, her weapon dissolving into light and disappearing.

Finally, one well-timed swing from Airi creates a downwind that puts the creature right in the path of Maki’s bag. She wastes no time slapping the clasp down, trapping it for the time being. *"I... did it...!"* She announces, glasses askew.

*"Wait right there!"* The woman disappears from her spot on the roof, giving Airi and Maki ample opportunity to rush over to Ame.

"That was *totally insane!"* Grinning, Airi slaps Ame on the back, drawing out a surprised noise.

Maki, meanwhile, has her satchel clutched against her chest, heart-rate increasing every time she feels the creature move around.

The front doors swing open as the disheveled woman rushes out and makes a beeline towards the shaken-up girls, holding her hand out for Maki to give her the satchel, which she does immediately. *"Not the most secure container, but... better than nothing, I suppose..."* She mutters.

"Uh... ma’am?" Ame pipes up, tugging at the pink and white outfit. *"What’s going on!? **Why am I a Mew Mew!?"***

"And why the hell was there a Chimera Anima!?" Demands Airi.

"What life form was that?" Maki gestures at the satchel.

Quickly growing overwhelmed, the woman takes a few steps back. "Calm down. I’ll explain everything inside." Without checking to make sure they’re following. she turns and strides right back to the building.

"I can’t go home like *this!"* She tugs at her ears, immediately wincing at the pain that shoots through her scalp, then storms after the mysterious woman, Airi and Maki right behind her.

The interior matches the exterior; pink, cute, soft, feminine, resembling a stylish uptown café. A pink and white-striped counter sits near the back wall, an empty display case sitting on top of it. The woman doesn’t spare a second glance at anything, instead making her way directly to the kitchen. That, interestingly enough, has a much more plain, practical, and sterile design, more akin to your standard restaurant kitchen than something affiliated with the rest of the building. From there, she leads the trio to a plain door that, when opened, reveals a descending staircase. She goes down first. "Follow me."

*"...Are we **really** gonna follow some strange lady into a basement?"*

Ame shrugs at Airi. *"I guess so!"* She takes the plunge and starts making her way down, gesturing for the other two to follow suit.

Though Ame seems quite confident wandering around in the low light, Airi and Maki hold each others’ hands as they squint, waiting for their eyes to adjust. The basement is, again, entirely different from any of the other rooms they’ve seen so far.

It’s filled almost to capacity with what, on first glance, appears to be boxes of junk; the remains of broken machines, old piles of paperwork collecting dust, there’s even a couple old, broken monitors tossed into a corner and forgotten. Ame tries not to let her feelings about the state of the room show, though she’s careful to not *touch* anything.

The woman reclines in an office chair that appears to be held together with duct tape and pure will. "I suppose you’re wondering who I am, Momose Ame."

The usage of her *full name* catches Ame off-guard and puts her on the defensive. "How do you know that!?"

"And who’re *you!?"*

"Your name?" The woman raises a dark eyebrow. "You’re the daughter of one of the biggest names in the Japanese fashion industry, it wasn’t exactly difficult." She then turns her attention to Airi. "There’s no need for outbursts. My name is Ginza Yasuko. I’m a geneticist and the head of the new Mu Project."

"Mu... project... wait... so... I’m *actually* a Mew Mew...? Like... as in *Tokyo Mew Mew?"*

"That’s right. I understand this must be very confusing and sca—" Yasuko is cut off by Ame jumping and cheering loudly.

"This is the best day *ever!* I’m a *Mew Mew!* A *superhero!"*

*"Calm down!* This isn’t going to be all fun and games, Momose-san." She adjusts her thin-framed glasses. "I assume you would be at least somewhat aware of the attempted alien invasion that occurred a decade ago?"

"Of course I am! My nannies and maids talked about it *all the time* when I was a child! I had all kinds of Mew Mew backpacks and water bottles and chopsticks!" Ame exclaims.

Yasuko takes a breath to collect herself. "Well, we may be experiencing a second invasion. Tokyo Mew Mew diligently eliminated every known Chimera in Japan." She looks down at the satchel on her lap. "Clearly, it wasn’t enough..." Her brown eyes lock with Ame’s. "Momose Ame-san, will you accept the responsibility of defending our planet from danger at any cost?"

"Yes!" Ame’s response is immediate, her eyes bright and excited. *"Ahhhh! I’m gonna be so famous! Everyone’s gonna **love** me!"* She grabs Maki and Airi by the hands, ready to celebrate, then she looks back at Yasuko. "Wait, so... were Tokyo Mew Mew school girls too? What are they like? Is Mew Lettuce a whale or a dolphin!?"

"Or a porpoise," adds Maki.

"Or a porpoise!"

The questions leave Yasuko exasperated, pinching the bridge of her nose. "Yes, I never met them, and *Neophocaena phocaenoides."*

"A finless porpoise, *I knew it!"*

"Now, can you let me speak?" She sighs. "Are you familiar with Red Data Animals?" Ame enthusiastically nods, pointing to Maki, and Yasuko quickly continues to prevent any further interruptions. "In the course of the original Mu Project’s development it was discovered that Red Data Animals have a unique desperation to *survive*, one that could be harnessed and implanted into humans with compatible DNA, such as yourself, allowing them to combat the aliens."

Turning back to her monitors, she pulls up a collage of videos on the largest screen, showing off security footage, news footage, and cell phone footage of a variety of mutated animals rampaging. By the quality, they’d have to be close to a decade old.

"These aliens have access to endoparasites that rapidly mutate their hosts’ DNA, creating Chimera Animas such as the one you fought today. For whatever reason, Red Data DNA is the only effective weapon against this threat." She then goes quiet, allowing Ame a chance to process everything.

"...Do... I have teammates...? And... wait, Tokyo Mew Mew all had cool names, do I have to come up with my own?"

"You have five teammates to find and convince to join you." Yasuko’s dark brows furrow slightly. "The original team simply... *knew* their names. I’m sure you’ll figure it out."

"Um... How do I find the others? And how do I go back to normal!?"

With a gloved hand, Yasuko gestures at Ame’s chest, where a pink symbol shaped like a ribbon sits smack-dab in the middle. "Each one will have a unique, symmetrical mark on the midsection of their body, just like yours. As for your second question, all you need to do is picture yourself and focus."

"...It’s really that simple...?" Ame squeezes her eyes shut and, just as Yasuko had assured, her appearance begins to morph; the ears, horns, and tail fading away, her hair wrapping back into a braid, and her outfit switching back into her school uniform.

Maki steps forward, eyes shining. "Ginza-san! Thank you for this opportunity!" She bows deeply.

"Yeah!" Airi joins her with a shallower bow of her own. "We won’t let ya down!"

Finally, Ame offers the exhausted-looking woman a bright, beaming smile. "I’ll be the best Mew Mew Earth has ever witnessed!" She declares.

**ED: Resolution of colors — Smewthie**