"Shiori." Origami called.
"What is it, Origami?"
"Did you come by a moment ago?"
"Why do you... I mean, yes, I was just at your place."
"What were you doing here?"
"I went to buy millet and pumpkin and bring them over... I'm sorry, was that overstepping?"
Ratatoskr was monitoring Origami's side of things continuously, so Ratatoskr knew exactly what Yimi had done.
"No. Thank you."
The call ended. Origami crouched in front of the step stool and studied it for a long moment—it was the one she normally used to reach things on higher shelves. The small footprints on it belonged to a child.
Perhaps Shiori had brought that distant cousin of hers along to help. Though the girl was clearly a little menace—she'd gotten Origami's cat filthy.
The sickness was gone. Her nose was clear. It felt almost as if the illness had been an illusion—except the thermometer on the table still faithfully displayed its terrifying reading of 38.9°C.
She looked down at the things scattered across the floor, then reached over and grabbed the peacefully sleeping cat, pinching the furry face and giving it a good shake.
"Mrow?"
Origami said nothing. She pointed at the mess on the ground.
If it had been Shiori's cousin, Shiori would have tidied up before leaving.
Yimi misread the gesture entirely and assumed Origami wanted a demonstration of how it happened.
She tottered over, bit down on the next drawer, and pulled it open.
Shoved everything inside onto the floor.
See. That's how.
"..."
Origami looked around for something within reach.
Cat Journal:
Sunday — Weather: Overcast
Do not buy a play tunnel mat that has no opening large enough to reach inside—if Rolly does something wrong and hides in it, there is no way to get her out.
————————
Monday morning. Outside the gates of Raizen High School.
"Tobiichi-san, you really cannot do this!"
"Why not?"
"It's just—this goes too far, don't you think! Don't assume you can walk all over a teacher, you know."
"Is she not cute?" Origami lifted her shoulder bag forward. Through the gap in the half-unzipped opening, a cat's head peeked out and meowed at the slightly baby-faced teacher in front of her.
She'd actually done it. She'd brought the cat to school.
"It's not a question of cute or not cute..."
Origami nodded and set the bag down. "Tamae-sensei doesn't appreciate cute things."
"What?! I have a pure and innocent heart that is absolutely not inferior to yours!"
"The pure heart of someone nearly thirty."
"I know, I know! I'm terribly sorry for being nearly thirty and still unmarried!"
The scene played out at the school gate. In Japan, stricter schools sometimes stationed disciplinary staff at the entrance to check uniforms and appearance—typically gym teachers with lighter schedules—but today's encounter was purely coincidental.
Inside the bag, Yimi yawned.
With a temporarily stable food source secured, the little cat had no immediate plans to run off. In her mental registry, Origami had been successfully reclassified from exploiter to person who doesn't freeload.
"What's going on?" The physics teacher and vice homeroom teacher passed by.
"Mrow?" The one who looks like Grandmother.
"Reine-sensei, look at her." Tamae latched on to her like a lifeline and pointed at Origami.
Reine looked down at the cat head. "I see. Tobiichi lives alone—there's nothing to be done about the situation."
"Eh?" Tamae's mouth fell open.
"Even so, school rules should be taken seriously." Reine unzipped the bag, supported Yimi under the sides, and lifted her out. "Confiscated for now. I'll look after her—come to my office after school to retrieve her."
Origami gave a small nod, accepting the practical solution. She glanced once at her cat—who appeared completely unbothered by the whole arrangement—handed Reine a few cat treat sticks, and turned to walk toward the building.
Tohka jogged up alongside her moments later, apparently having been watching from nearby. "Is that a cat? It's a cat, right? Tobiichi Origami, since when did you have a cat!"
"Shiori won't play with people who don't have a cat," Origami answered with a straight face, then countered: "Don't you have a cat?"
"I—well—who said I don't have a cat! I just didn't bring mine today!"
"Mrow~"
On the other side of the gate, Yimi let out a soft, honeyed sound toward Reine Murasame. The woman reminded her so much of Grandmother—the warmth was immediate.
Reine didn't respond to the meow. She carried the cat like a child—one hand supporting Yimi's bottom—all the way to her private office, where she set her down on the desk.
The private office was a courtesy of Ratatoskr's arrangements.
She looked down at the cat looking back up at her and fell into thought.
Still no sign of returning to the Neighboring World—clearly the long-stay type, able to exist in the present world indefinitely. Unlike Miku or Kurumi, however, she couldn't manifest in the world as quietly as they could.
"You're confiscated goods now."
Reine patted Yimi's head. The cat's ears drooped just slightly, leaning into the touch.
Though the two of them were worlds apart, there was still something about this that felt like being stroked by Grandmother.
"Can you take your human form?"
Yimi complied without hesitation. A white arc traced her outline, and the small girl in a pure white dress sat in the cat's place on the desk, dangling two little white legs that didn't reach the floor.
Reine produced a lollipop from her pocket, unwrapped it, and tucked it into the little girl's mouth—she always kept them on hand because Kotori loved them.
Yimi's first lollipop: (._.) → (p≧w≦q)
Apparently she liked it a lot.
Reine calmly took out her phone in front of Yimi and began sending a message to Ratatoskr, letting Shiori know this was a good chance to come by and make progress with her.
Then she felt a small paw tap her phone with great curiosity.
She pocketed the phone without breaking composure. "That's a communication device. It lets you talk to people remotely."
Yimi lost interest. She slid off the desk onto Reine's lap, curious to see if lying against this person might feel something like resting in Grandmother's arms.
Reine didn't object. She tilted her head slightly to see past the cat and set about making herself a cup of coffee—adding, one by one, a full twelve sugar cubes.
The moment it was ready, Yimi stole it and gave it an experimental lick.
"Ow!"
Hot. Instant transfer.
At DEM headquarters, Executive Director Isaac Ray Pelham Westcott—reviewing the file on the new Spirit, "Calamity"—felt his hand jerk. Coffee splashed across the desk.
He recovered, then smiled faintly. "I see. So that is the power to redirect misfortune. Truly dangerous."
Unaware of what had just transpired on the enemy's side, Reine pressed a hand to Yimi's head. "Cats can't drink coffee."
"Mm..."
Yimi straightened up slowly from Reine's lap and turned to inspect the office for anything worth investigating.
"Host, if you're bored—you might want to check the number of gacha draws you have waiting."
Oh right!
The little cat had completely forgotten.
"System—draw."
"Skipping the draw animation."
The capsule opened. Inside was a single slip of paper.
[Achievement Hint]:Randomly reveals the unlock condition for one unearned achievement.
So she'd unlocked an achievement and earned a draw—only to draw something that told her how to unlock the next achievement.
Yimi looked down at her small hands, unable to decide whether she'd come out ahead or behind.
At that moment, the office door opened.
"Reine-sensei... oh? What's Yimi doing here?" Shiori walked in with exaggerated surprise.
At the sight of Shiori, Yimi immediately jumped down and ducked behind Reine. "Weakling."
"..."
Reine closed her eyes briefly. "Shi—Shiori. What are you carrying?"
Shiori lifted the box in her hands. "Strawberry pudding. I made a point of having it with me today."
According to Ratatoskr's records, Yimi had shown a preference for this flavor during their last outing.
"Mm?" The little girl peeked out from behind Reine with half a head.
With Kotori in her earpiece as backup, Shiori raised an eyebrow and forced out words that felt vaguely excessive: "Because I've been carrying it ever since—waiting for the chance to run into that child who loves it again."