Commandments of Capturing
Chapter 8 – Turning the Tables
Original Title: The World Only God Knows / 神のみぞ知るセカイ and Date A Live/デート・ア・ライブ
Original Concept by Tamiki Wakaki & Tachibana Koishi
Written by: wrathie
Author's Notes: An AU world where 'Date A Live' & 'The World Only God Knows' happens simultaneously.
Author's Notes: Ah, balancing school, work + writing blows. Hope you guys enjoy the awesomeness
Thank you, bowpurity for the beta!
..
'Well then, let me think...'
Keima spoke loudly even as his mind went through all the lines that he had spoken earlier. The Princess was undoubtedly a tsundere who was lost and unsure of her own standing in the world. From Ratatoskr's records it became clear that she was just a lost child with tremendous powers who wanted direction from anyone who was willing to give her any.
She was naïve, probably having only basic knowledge of how the world worked, and thus would be very easily led by anything that he said, as long as he was able to persuade her to acknowledge him as an equal.
That was the point of his questions, to press her to acknowledge that there were things that she was not sure of either. By doing so, she was effectively telling herself, and by extension, him, that if he was able to give her direction, he is an authority figure in that matter. Which would also mean that he was an equal. It was a very roundabout way to do so, but that was a proven way to get around the thorny exterior without actively provoking it.
Basically, Keima was using her own thought processes against her and in that respect, he had been successful.
The spirit had effectively given him a concession and a great weapon by giving him the chance to give her a name.
One thing that Keima neglected to mention was that names were a symbol of great power.
It was said that by knowing the true name of a demon, they were able to command it. Likewise, in the same train of thought, referencing to each other by their first name was creating a bond between two parties as well.
However, giving someone else a pet-name, or in this case a name to use, was of great significance as well. It goes beyond being what someone was going to call them for the rest of their lives, it was the name that when spoken, or being called, or even being written, would remind the person of whom had given it to them.
That was why, Keima had always stuck with his name and title, to do anything less would be an insult to the title of the Capturing God, when pressed to enter the protagonist's name. His name, which would be called by the heroines, would serve as a reminder that they were 'captured' by him.
In this case, whatever the name that was chosen by him, would be the name that this Spirit would be using for the rest of her life.
It was an important decision, and one that he had to consider carefully.
Thus...
'What did you say?'
'Her name, ask Shido-san for it.'
Keima whispered even as he closed his eyes while pretending to ponder about it. It was not a hard decision, he had named perhaps a thousand or more heroines with different, unique names that fitted their personality. But her name, was not his to give. It had to be given to Shido, that much, Keima was aware of.
'Fine, fine... could you stall her-'
Before Kotori could speak further, her eyes widened when Keima narrowed his eyes before leaping forward towards the Spirit, almost as to hug her. As she squawked in indignation, or perhaps embarrassment at seeing Keima do that, Kotori's eyes widened when she realized why Keima did that.
As the next moment, they were rudely interrupted by the same individual who had messed up the whole plan in the first place.
'You...?'
Tobiichi Origami was not alone, this time she had company as the entire squadron of AST burst through what was remaining of the ceiling into the half demolished classroom. It was fortunate that the AST had entered by using their beam sabres to cut through the roof before landing into the classroom itself. If they had decided to make their entrance by firing their weapons into the classroom instead, Keima would be dead by then. Or perhaps like what Origami did, they were able to receive intelligence that someone was with the Spirit again. Whatever the case was, there was no doubt that it was perhaps the worse possible scenario for them, and Kotori found herself holding her breath even as the cloud of dust that had been kicked up at the entry slowly settled.
'Impossible.'
Kotori wasn't sure if it was herself, or someone else that had uttered that out of pure shock, but when the dust settled, all of them could see that the Princess was actually actively placing herself between Keima and AST.
AST themselves was unsure what to make of the situation, they were also not the only ones. Ratatoskr as well as the Princess were confused as what was going on. The only person that would know what was going on, was again, the Capturing God as he whispered something to the Princess.
..
Keima was very glad that Haqua was still around, invisible to everyone but her. Haqua had actually made several comments and faces at him while he was delivering his lines. Even if she was a good partner, much better than Elsi, the lack of respect she had for him was starting to show. Especially when he started the actual 'capturing' process with the Princess. There was no doubt that he was winning this little tug-of-war between the two of them, at least until Haqua's warning that AST was moving towards their direction. Even as Haqua took cover herself, Keima grimaced before throwing himself at the Princess.
Understandably, she was not at all pleased with his actions, and she squawked angrily while blushing in embarrassment. Even if doing that was a potential part of Keima's plan to capture the Princess, doing so right now was not just to keep her off balance, both literally and figuratively, it was part of the next step that he could see happening.
As a matter of fact, this development was even better than he thought. Since he was going to go all out with an ambitious plan to safeguard the identity as well as the protection of the spirits anyway, delivering that plan to the only force that was authorized to attack, and was thus the number one enemy of Keima's own plan, was a blessing in disguise.
As Keima apologized to the Princess about the rough treatment, the Princess's own reply was cut short as the two of them saw the roof being sliced apart in front of them.
Keima was also pleased to note that the Princess reacted almost immediately to the threat as well. Keima might be the Capturing God, but he was fundamentally human, and thus was unable to defend himself if the superhuman beings duelled it out again.
If the Princess was aware that she was actively defending him as well, she was not aware of it till she noticed Keima's hand releasing hers. That was Keima's cue to speak again, whispering into the Princess's ears, even as the Princess turned redder than ever while standing in front of Keima.
'I said that I'll save you, Hime-sama. But for now, could you please save me as well?'
It was a ridiculous request, one that came out of the blue. But as there was nothing else for her to do, and everything else to gain by accepting Keima's plea, the Princess nodded her head in agreement.
..
'What are you doing with him, Princess. Let the boy go.'
One of the members of AST took a step forward while gesturing to him. The one who spoke up was probably the leader of the entire group, but Keima's attention was not on her at the moment. His attention was on Tobiichi Origami, who didn't look too interested till the two of them exchanged looks. The moment they did, Origami's eyes widened just a little in recognition before she bit her lip nervously. Good, Keima wanted a 'shared memory' with Origami as well. He wanted a part of Origami's route as well, that route itself would surely unlock another part of the history behind itsuka Shido, Keima could just feel it.
'I am with her of my own violation. All of you are part of AST, the Anti Spirits Team, am I right?'
Keima spoke out loudly to let everyone of them hear him. Judging from the way that almost all the members shifted a little, they were unprepared for someone, or anyone for that matter, to know who they were.
Before they could even continue the conversation, Keima continued on patiently, scanning his eyes around the entire squadron to try and remember their faces. It was not in his nature to do that, he simply had no time for the real, but in this case, it might pay off to do just that. The members of AST might be ordered to come for him, either to interrogate him, or to simply threaten him after this event. It wasn't like Keima could ask Haqua to just wipe their memories when he successfully captured the Princess.
Well, he could do just that, but it would be just postponing the problem, and making it clear that he was not just normal human.
What Keima wanted to accomplish right now was to have an unidentified third party between the Spirits, and AST. Ratatoskr was supposed to be the third party, but they were too conservative and wished to worked in the sidelines. Doing that offered some benefits but it also had their own flaws. Keima was not the sort to hide in the shadows, he would rather tackle things head on if he could.
Especially since they had already broken the balance by telling the Spirits why they were attacking and hunting them actively.
'I made a promise to her, that I will save her. I won't let all of you continue to hurt her.'
Keima declared loudly, and even as the Princess's face heated up even more, not to mention how some of the AST members did the same, Keima remained impassive. If one could get so easily embarrassed so easily by such a simple line, they wouldn't last against one of Keima's more dramatic confessions.
'You're insane, do you have any idea what this thing, what this Spirit has done?'
Keima frowned when the leader of AST spoke again, this time a little fiercely. It was also worth it to notice that everyone of the girl seemed to flinch, before going back to their ready position. If all of them reacted so strongly to the Spirit's identity as well as their destructive powers, there might be a connection between all the girls and the spirits themselves.
Most likely they had similar circumstances with Origami, but Keima was just speculating at this point.
'What, this 'thing' has done?'
Keima's actually sounded outraged as he repeated his line, causing AST to pause again as Keima stepped out to stand beside the Princess. With his hand still firmly holding hers, Keima told them angrily that it was not right to call the Princess as a 'thing'.
'She is a human being, just like all of us. Just like you.'
'Just like... us? You have got to be kidding! They are the ones who caused so much destruction, they kill people for gods sake! Can't you see what she did to the school? Or what she did to the town before? You wouldn't call this... this THING a human if you know what they are truly capable of!'
The AST commander snarled angrily as she advanced, only for the Princess to pull Keima behind her again nervously. She had turned paler again, and her head had lowered a little due to guilt. But since she was more than willing to keep her promise to protect Keima, he was satisfied with this turn of events.
..
What Keima wanted to do was to allow both sides, the Princess and AST to know each other's stance. The main problem had already been highlighted by Ratatoskr and New Hell a long time ago. The problem was simply that there was a lack of communication between the two parties. It might be that the Spirits were aware of what was going on, or they might be ignorant to it. Simply interacting with the Princess showed that it was the latter, and if it was the latter, it meant that there was still room for negotiation if both parties were willing to talk.
Unfortunately, at least one party was not willing to talk with the other. But if they got over that barrier, there was the chance for reconciliation.
With the Princess's mood fluctuating between both levels, and the AST members getting more agitated and madder at Keima for saying those words to them, Keima knew that he needed to give the AST members some time to cool down.
With the Princess standing between the two of them and him not agitating AST to actually ignore his status as a human to start attacking again, Keima instead took the offensive again when he asked the Princess whether did she killed anyone.
It was a very blunt question, one that made the blood drain from the Princess's face. But she did answer in the end, telling Keima that she definitely did not.
'I believe you.'
Keima's words made the Princess blush again, but that was not the reaction he was fishing for. He was fishing for reactions from AST instead, and from how the members stiffened but never objected meant that the Princess was probably right.
'You did mention that the Spirits were responsible for the deaths of thousands, of perhaps millions... but she, is not one of them. Why would you attack someone who does not wish to hurt anyone?'
Keima asked reasonably, even if he knew instinctively that reason did not always apply to everything. That was the main flaw of the ideal. Sadly however, Keima did understand the rationale of AST as well, it was always better to be safe than sorry when facing beings of unnatural power that could destroy entire cities by themselves. It was by no means a bad plan, if Keima did not know that the spirits could be saved in this way, or if they were not heroines, would Keima have agreed with them?
Sadly, since the ideal did not give him the chance to be on their side, Keima had to side with the Princess and the Spirits in general.
'You don't know anything about her, Katsuragi.'
It was Origami who spoke up this time as she strode up to stand beside her commander. Even as she brandished her light saber in front of her, Origami told Keima to step aside.
'She might not have done all those things by her own accord, or even willingly. But that does not mean that she is not a threat to humans just by existing. Step aside, Katsuragi, you do not know who what are dealing with.'
Origami's words made sense as well, and this time it was the spirit's turn to look down guilty as Keima internally applauded her words. This was a battle of words now, not a battle of strength. And it was a battle that Keima could not lose, not without putting the entire plan of Ratatoskr in jeopardy.
'That is true, what you said is true, Tobiichi-san.'
Keima's confession made the AST members relax even as the Princess stiffened as well. It was like the ultimate betrayal to her, and Keima felt her hands tremble for a moment before they dropped again. No doubt she was giving up again, but this wasn't what the end of Keima's speech. No, it was far from over.
'But all I am seeing here, is all of you trying to attack someone who, has explicitly shown no desire to hurt anyone. As a person, I cannot allow that to happen. It might be true that she could be a threat to all of us, but right now, all of you are the ones threatening her, not the other way around.'
Keima's words made the Princess face grow hotter, and redder again. It also had the side-effect of making the members of AST fidget even more. The standoff was complete, both parties had acknowledged each other's stance.
'This is ridiculous, you, Katsuragi, was it? Stand aside! We are authorized to take down the spirit no matter what the cost would be. We cannot afford to threaten millions in Japan because of your selfishness. Stand aside, or be viewed as a threat to all of as well. We would give you ten seconds to consider'
Even as AST was the first side to blink, they were the first to raised their weapons at him. Keima had the chance to witness the first sign of his successful capturing of the Princess. It was her turn to grip his hand softly as she pulled Keima to the side with a sad smile after a few moment of the tense face off. To be honest, even Keima himself couldn't plan this out better himself.
'… Thank you, Katsuragi... was it?'
The princess's actions made everyone but Keima pause. The Capturing God however, recognized what was coming next and he was glad to see that the Princess had decided to make that particular decision. It meant that he had read her accurately.
..
'Thank you, for saying that you'll save me. You, already saved me by defending me for so long.'
As the princess walked towards AST, Keima simply refused to let her go, despite her trying to shake his hand off. The AST members on the other hand, was unsure what to make of the situation, but nonetheless they retained their aim at her till she stopped a few feet in front of the commander and Origami.
'Thank you, Katsuragi... but I don't want you to get hurt because of me. Y-You're a human... not like me, so...'
With that line, the Princess raised her hands up in surrender to the dumbfounded AST members even as Keima told her desperately that she didn't need to do that.
'I won't resist, and I won't run away... I understand what all of you had said. That I am a threat, that I might cause danger and harm to the rest of the humans. So... please, at least don't hurt him because of me.'
It was stupid, and it went against everything that she had done up till now. But seeing what the boy was doing for him, seeing what he was willing to give up, seeing how brave he was, the spirit felt that she had to do something for him as well. For everything that he had done in that short time, from stealing her breath away, from making her believe in hope again, even if it was for only a short time, there was only one thing she could do for him.
In front of AST, the Princess, who had valued pride above everything else, gave it up for the boy who had stood up for her. She closed her eyes, no doubt waiting for the end till she sensed someone standing in front of her.
'That's not right.'
Keima's words made the Princess's heart skip a beat as he stood firmly in front of her, stubbornly not giving way even as AST continued to raise their weapons against the two of them.
'If you have to kill her, you will have to do it over my dead body.'
Keima declared emphatically, the clique line would normally be enough to make anyone else roll their eyes before rolling over in laughter, but when it was delivered by Katsuragi Keima in this exact situation, it only served to make things even tenser than before.
The stalemate was now completely and utterly set, the two sides had played their cards and Keima had successfully used each of their own moves against them.
By utterly abusing the Princess's naivety as well as her own track record, he had been able to cause the AST to hesitate, and to even cause them to question their own mission and loyalties for a moment. It was the same for AST as well, Keima had been able to hammer home the human's fear for the Spirits to the Princess, causing her eagerness to defend herself be replaced with a wish to be understood.
What they needed now, was for one side to give in...
..
On board the Fraxinus, the entire bridge, no, the entire ship was totally silent in the face of the Capturing God's script. It was important to note that Haqua, who was looking over the entire thing, was in the same state.
Only she was more inured to the Capturing God, and was silently cursing and yet praising him at the same time.
The crew of the Fraxinus on the other hand, was simply flabbergasted at the web that Keima had weaved, seemingly at the drop of a hat. It apparently wasn't enough for Keima to raise the love points of the Princes to the max with his actions, but he had to also challenge, and apparently cause a deadlock with AST?
'… Katsuragi is just... too much.'
Reine finally commented while rubbing her forehead, and the other members of the Expert Panel agreed with her. Some of the members had even fainted from some of the more intense standoffs between Keima and AST.
Itsuka Kotori on the other hand, barely noticed that the chupa-chup lollipop that she had been sucking on, had dropped to the floor in her shock. Like the rest of the crew, she had not expected such a performance by Keima, nor had she expected all of his ruses and gambles to work as well as it did,
Even as she finally gathered herself to think logically again, Kotori recognized and acknowledged that just in the matter of around ten minutes, Katsuragi Keima had effectively held the first talks between the Spirits and humans, and to think that the first party to actually exchange such talks were AST, the group that was actively adamant to wipe them off the planet.
It was equivalent to salmon negotiating with bears, or rather lollipops negotiating with humans, whatever the better metaphor was. Whatever the case was, this was big, and depending on what happened next, it could very well spell the next stage of negotiations between the Spirits and humans!
'Katsuragi, you magnificent son of a bitch.'
Kotori gripped the handle of her chair tightly even as she ignored the sound of her phone ringing incessantly.
..
'Tsk, we're leaving.'
In the end, AST was the one who blinked first. The commander, who had apparently been in contact with someone else, gave the order that caused the entire ranks of AST to mumble in surprise.
'Shut up, and get moving now.'
As she snapped and ordered the other AST members to leave, she paused to take one last look at Keima and the Princess.
'What is your name, Kid. You got definitely got some balls... or is just crazy.'
'Katsuragi, Katsuragi Keima. I'm a transfer student in Raizen High school and Tobiichi-san's classmate.'
Keima did not hesitate or fall for the gibe at his character, in fact he was waiting for her to ask this question. Normally it would be good to keep his identity a secret but with his intervention in probably the biggest kept secret in the world, it was useless to expect his identity to be kept secret. He might as well give it all up now to gain some information in reply.
'Hmph... I'll remember this, Katsuragi. Some day, what you said earlier will be engraved on your tombstone. Count yourself lucky I didn't pump you full of lead today.'
As the commander prepared to leave together with Origami, she paused when Keima asked her for her name as well.
'Kusakabe, Kusakabe Ryouko, captain of the Anti-Spirits Squad.'
She answered calmly before taking off, leaving Tobiichi Origami to hesitate even as Keima gave her a small nod.
'I will see you tomorrow, Tobiichi-san.'
'… Tomorrow.'
Origami gave him a small nod as well before leaving the two unmolested in the destroyed classroom. As they did, Keima finally relaxed. It was a mixture of his own nerves of steel, as well as his experience with the Weiss that had kept him so stoic up till now. But with AST gone, and probably for good this time, Keima found himself too tired for words.
In front of him, the invisible Haqua had a resigned smile on her face as she applauded Keima's oscar winning performance. If she was a sceptic before, she was won over now. A moment later, Keima felt someone hold on to his hands again, this time holding it tightly as he was pulled down to sit on the ground.
'Y-You, you idiot! What were you doing just now!'
The Princess gave him an angry look before burying her face into Keima's chest in disbelief, and in an apparent attack of her derey-derey nature. Even as Keima awkwardly petted the girl's head, Keima was aware of Kotori's voice congratulating him over the microphone as well. It wasn't just her, it was the entire crew of Fraxinus who was cheering and congratulating him over the din.
He had done the almost impossible, chasing away the AST while saving a spirit under their very noses. There was almost certainly going to be a follow up with AST and with Ratatoskr after everything settled down, but it was obvious that the Princess was the first spirit to be let off by AST, ever.
Even if she still retained her powers as a potential Weiss and might currently still be a target, AST had still been forced to make the decision to leave her alone for a while. It could be for investigation, it could be to avoid a bigger conflict, but whatever it was, Keima had indeed did what he had said out to do. He had saved her, and now, it was time to wrap up the first success for him and for Ratatoskr.
..
'I said that I'll protect you, didn't I? I did, as I promised.'
Keima's words only served to make the Princess turn redder than ever as she started to strike at him half-heartedly while hiding her face from him. Standard Tsundere gesture, nothing that Keima was not used to, and Keima chuckled even as he slowly eased the Princess's grip on him.
With the two of them face to face, and staring at each other, Keima reminded her of what they were talking about before they were rudely interrupted by AST.
'I have the perfect name for you.'
'O-Oh... what is it, Keima?'
'Tohka.'
'T-Tohka...'
As the princess repeated her name to herself softly, Keima gave a small sigh before turning to stare at Haqua again, who gave him a confused look as she tilted her head in confusion, not understanding what Keima wanted now.
This battle wasn't over, it was just starting... Keima just hoped that she, and Shido was up to the challenge.
'Let's go, Tohka.'
'G-Go... where?'
'You'll see when we reach there.'
Author's Notes: If you like it, drop a review to tell me why you liked it!
