In the apartment building across from Origami's, a young Kurumi fragment—eyepatch in place—stood at a window in an unoccupied unit and peered at the floor opposite.
She'd finally worked up the resolve to secretly adopt a cat without the other fragments knowing, and someone had beaten her to it. Since then she hadn't found a cat even half as easy to pet.
She was genuinely happy the kitten was no longer stray. But not being able to get her hands on that soft fur left a quiet hollow all the same.
Something must have reached Yimi through the air, because after finishing her dinner she padded to the balcony and looked out.
The Kurumi fragment's eyes lit up. She tapped a can against the windowsill. "Oh my... come here, little one. Let me pet you and I'll give you this."
"Mrow." Yimi draped herself over the windowsill and looked down.
Not being afraid of heights doesn't mean a cat thinks she can survive the fall.
"Is there something on the balcony?" Origami, who had been reviewing her notes, noticed the cat's movement and came over.
The Kurumi fragment ducked into a shadow and vanished—leaving Origami with nothing to see.
"Mrow mrow." Yimi called twice at the spot where she'd disappeared.
Origami gave the cat's head a rub. "Don't yowl at night."
She checked the time, went back to get ready for bed.
Then Yimi noticed the Kurumi fragment had reappeared.
"Mrow!" Leave the can!
"What now?" Origami turned back—the fragment ducked away again.
Origami followed the cat's line of sight toward the building across the way. The corridor was dark. Only the sound-activated light—the cheap kind installed to cut costs—was on. Just that one floor, with no reaction above or below where someone should have passed. And by the time the light timed out, Origami still hadn't seen a single person.
They say animals can see things humans can't.
"..."
Origami pulled the cat inside. She snapped the window shut. Drew the curtain.
She was an atheist who hunted Spirits as her enemies, someone who told herself she'd reduced every feeling beyond hatred and rage to nothing. And yet, after that, she entered full alert mode—stashed a knife under the bed, and spent two hours tossing and turning before finally drifting off.
That was last night. Now for this morning.
Utterly carefree Yimi, who slept the moment she'd eaten, was up early. She noted the Holy Corpse fusion creeping forward at its painfully slow but at least steady pace, then shuffled in small steps to Origami's bedroom.
The cat was a clever cat. After two days of observation she'd determined that "the person who doesn't freeload" shared habits with Mom, so the cat should repay "the person who doesn't freeload" the same way she repaid Mom.
Yimi settled beside the bed and waited. She waited until the alarm on Origami's phone began to vibrate.
Origami rolled over with a small, barely audible sound. The tension she'd carried into sleep kept her from waking immediately.
At that precise moment, righteous cat justice leaped into action. Yimi used the soft pad between her toes to mimic yesterday's Origami, drew it lightly across the phone screen, and silenced the evil little square before it could disturb the girl's sleep.
You can sleep in now. Say thank you to the cat!
This was why Origami Tobiichi—who maintained a model student image throughout her time at school—was absent for the first two classes, with no camera footage to prove what had happened.
In class.
"Um, Tobiichi-san..."
Tamae-sensei looked helplessly at her desk. "The teacher understands you were late for health reasons, but isn't this a bit much...?"
After yesterday's lesson about leaving Rolly with Reine and losing her, today Origami had absolutely refused to hand the cat over—which was why a small cat was currently occupying half of her desk and continuing her nap.
She'd already slept well enough the night before, but for some reason the droning from the podium made her even drowsier, and the cool surface of the desk was somehow more comfortable than any cat bed.
She was also monopolizing half the class's attention.
"This is an anti-copying measure." The girl offered the explanation with perfect serenity. "The cat blocks other students' line of sight to my answers."
"There's no exam today—why would you need to prevent copying? Don't think you can fool this teacher, Tobiichi-san." Tamae put her hands on her hips and assumed the sternest expression she could manage.
"Then this is to prevent people from copying my notes." Origami patched the argument. "Once people get used to compensating with someone else's help, they grow lax with in-class learning. It's the same principle as cheating on an exam."
"What kind of logic is that? Even so, you'd better copy the first two classes' notes from someone after school..." Tamae sighed. "I'll let it go for this period—after class, bring the cat to the teacher's office properly. And next time at least bring a carrier bag."
She turned back to the blackboard.
"So sweet, Tamae-sensei." A compliment drifted up from somewhere in the room.
Got through it.
"Tobiichi Origami." But a voice called her full name from right beside her.
In Japan, you generally address people by their family name. Close friends use given names. At worst, family name plus -san, or given name plus -chan—calling someone by their full name without any honorific actually came across as rather unfriendly.
Of course, only one person called her that.
Tohka Yatogami—a Spirit Origami despised, and a complete airhead who'd only recently encountered human society. During class, she simply maneuvered around several seats to appear beside Origami.
Tohka produced a plush toy she'd won from a claw machine and held it up. "I have a cat too."
Origami glanced at her, then placed her hand on Yimi's belly. The sleeping cat instinctively pressed both paws against her hand.
"Mm... why weren't you here for the first two classes?"
Origami lowered her voice. "You figured it out. I was meeting with Shiori yesterday to discuss the optimal method of eliminating Spirits. We decided to set up anti-Spirit antimatter traps at the school gate in advance. The moment you step outside this campus you'll be instantly split in two."
"What?!" Tohka's voice shot up. "You're lying—I won't fall for your tricks anymore! Last time you tried to trick me into not wearing underwear! Good thing Shiori helped me put it on!"
Origami had tricked her before by saying human underwear was a high-damage anti-Spirit weapon.
Every head in the class swiveled toward them. Even Tamae—the near-thirty virgin teacher—buried her burning face in her hands. "Ahhhh—anything unrelated to class can wait until the bell!"
Tohka retreated, sulking.
A moment later she crept back over and reached toward Yimi. "Can I pet your cat?"
Origami raised her hand. "Sensei—Yatogami-san is trying to copy my answers."
"You insufferable Tobiichi Origami!"
Surely the classroom couldn't get any more chaotic than this.
Shiori turned her pen over between her fingers and glanced at Yimi.
The sleeping cat twitched, and curled slightly closer to Origami's hand.
Reluctantly, under Tamae's firm insistence, Origami handed the cat over to Reine. She left the office walking backwards, her head slowly retreating through the closing gap in the door, eyes holding contact until the very last moment.
"..."
Reine looked at Yimi, who was still deep asleep, being carried in practically limp, and checked the time on her wrist.
Only one class period left. Aside from a conversation there was little she could do—and if Shiori happened to skip class every time Yimi was away from Origami, it would start raising suspicions.
She gently patted the cat awake.
"Mrow?"
The first thing Yimi did upon waking was stretch. The second was check both sides for any sign of Itsuka Shiori.
Reine held her gaze for a moment, kneading the little paw in her hand as if talking to herself: "How do we get you to go on a date with Shiori?"
"Date?" Yimi looked confused, and glanced down at Reine's hand around her paw.
She pulled the paw free and pressed it down on the back of Reine's hand.
The person who looked like Grandmother had just proposed a deal.
The little cat had a great idea. She told her: "Help me find the First Spirit. Then beat her. Then I'll date."
Reine: "..."