Chapter 1 – Osana

Set ten weeks before Prologue

Akademi High was nothing more than a detached community of its own, set just outside of Buraza Town, populated by the wealthy, xenophobic students who expressed little tolerance for outsiders as they did for one another. Decades earlier, the school had a part to play in national news, a brief wink of notoriety. But now those days are long gone, ancient history to the students, and buried within the archives of the city's records.

"Uggh, you are always keeping me waiting." the orange haired was telling her friend as they walked side by side along the trees that lined the walls of the prestigious school.

A tsundere, Osana has been close friends with the boy ever since they were very young children. Having grown up next-door to one another and always walked to school together. To the untrained eye, her rude and harsh demeanor towards Senpai might have made her appear as unfriendly or even cruel to her friend. But in fact, Osana has always used this harsh attitude towards Senpai to mask her own romantic feelings, afraid of revealing her true nature.

"I guess you can say I've always been sort of like that," said Senpai, showing a smile.

Osana's lips twitched in disapproval, and rolled his eyes in annoyance.

"Uggh, you've been like this ever since our early years." she added.

Senpai endured the rebuke. He had been friends with Osana for as many years as he could remember, and still Osana never failed to find fault when she could.

"Osana, Can you believe that we're almost finished with School?" Senpai continued. "Aren't you excited to begin a new chapter in life?"

Osana kept her thoughts to herself, just as she kept her feelings to herself as well. She had planned it over in her head many times, thought about it, and contemplated the perfect moment. And indeed what more appropriate place for Osana to admit her feelings for her beloved Senpai than the school's own cherry tree. The aptly named "Confession Tree" located at the back of the school was in legend, said that if a girl brought a boy to the cherry tree on a Friday afternoon, and confessed her love for the boy, he was guaranteed to accept her love. The two would have years of happiness together.

The two students were outfitted in the required school uniforms. A short sleeved shirt with a blue torso and skirt for Osana. Wrapped around her collar was a red bow. As for Senpai, he wore the required male student uniform, a black gakuran with matching slacks and brown shoes. The school was a three story, architectural marvel. Funded by Saikou Corps back in the 1980s, theschool was well equipped to train the leaders of tomorrow. From a modern, state of the art gymnasium to a well-equipped computer lab, the school had it all. Classrooms and rooms for the use by students line the halls, creating a labyrinthine system. Osana and Senpai continued walking to the twin doors of the school, just short of entering the building.

A few stories above, stood Yandere-Chan, bucket full of dumbbells in hand. While Osana was preoccupied, Yandere-Chan quickly reoriented herself, aiming her raised hands at her rival and, with a downward motion of both arms, brought them down so quickly and with so much momentum that Osana was buried almost before she understood what had hit her. Hurled face-first to the ground by the intensity of the blow, Osana pressed-down, head cracked open like an egg.

"Osana-Chan!" cried Senpai, scrambling to his feet in vain effort to save his childhood friend.

Watching the commotion below, Yandere-Chan stood rooted in place as students and faculty gathered to understand what had just transired. But she gave it no thought. Her success in bringing the contents down on Osana was proof enough that the girl was unworthy of Senpai's love and was thus expendable. Otherwise, Yandere-Chan would be the one pressed to the ground of the grotto, head cracked open like an egg and chest cavity pierced by the pointed end of a fallen stalactite.

Now, though, it was Senpai who stood down on one knee, in an attempt to save Osana.

"Stop, Baka…" Osana strained to say.

"I can bring help. There's still time-"

"I'm dying… Senpai. There's time only for that."

Senpai continued to hold Osana's pained gaze. "I don't know what to do."

Tenebrous interrupted him once more. "Can't you… just shut up for one moment Senpai..." A stuttering cough of blood silenced her for a moment. "I have one last thing to say..."

Plagueis nodded. "What is it Osana?"

Tenebrous canted his huge head ever so slightly. "I.. lo…I.. lov…"

"Osana? Osana? "

Osana was paralyzed and now unconscious but not yet dead. Yandere-Chan had no interest in saving her, even if it were even possible. But she was interested in observing the behavior of the others below as life ended. As the school entered lockdown, students panicked and teachers struggling to gain order, the feelings were running wild. But to Yandere-Chan feelings were nothing, running interference and standing in the way of her and Senpai's love. Through years of experimentation, Yandere-Chan had honed an ability to mimic the emotions and behavior of others, though not yet the ability to truly feel them.

Osana then finally died while Yandere-Chan observed. Osana and all she had been in life were beyond Senpai's reach.

If Info-Chan was convinced, she kept it to herself, and said: "You are fated to repeat history Yan—han""She sent over text message. "It falls to you to bring these rivals of yours to their knees and to save your Senpai from himself."

Yandere-Chan texted back. "Luring her to that location wasn't hard. I simply had to forge my Senpai's signature."

"But I need to warn you …," Info-Chan texted back. Started to say and fell abruptly silent.

Even across a wall of text, Yandere-Chan could feel Info-Chan's highly intelligent mind replaying the day's events, calculating odds, reaching conclusions.

"Warn me about what, Info-Chan?"

"Your Senpai was depressed by the death if his childhood friend, and entered the local bakery. There he met another girl who works for her parents there. Amai Odayaka, of the Odayaka Bakery."

Yandere-chan gripped the thin phone in her hand tightly and gave a look of disapproval.

"But we were fated to fall in love." Yandere-Chan texted back.

"That's not my problem, but I can tell you the girl will be attending Akademi High next week. And she's invited your senpai to join that cooking club of hers."

Yandere-Chan's cell phone batter was winking out. The lights slowly deprived of a power source, and slowly died. Yandere-chan put the phone back into her pocket and laid down on her bed, lost in thoughts of Senpai. One day she would succeed in imposing her will on the boy. But such fantasies of the perfect life with that boy were for another time. Just now she had yet a new enemy to remove.