Entry 1: Re;Take Yatogami 1 – The Girl Who Sold Her Revenge


To Tobiichi Origami, life had always felt like something important was missing.

At first, she thought the answer to that was obvious: her family, murdered many years ago by a rogue creature called a Spirit.

The past few years, she had dedicated herself to revenge. Joined the Anti Spirit Taskforce, or AST for short. Made a name for herself as one of their best new recruits.

Yet, something was still missing. Something that was both related and unrelated to Spirits. But, the more she tried to think on it, the more she tried to figure it out, the further the truth seemed to slip.

It was currently April 10, the first day of her second year of school. Today was only really looking to be a half-day for orientation, so she could dedicate the afternoon to training.

She arrived early to school, and found that so many others had as well. She found her class, 2-A, and took her seat, last row, by the window.

Then, as she sat, she found her gaze drifting to the seat next to her. The seat was empty, and from what she recalled from seeing the seating planner, nobody was assigned to it.

Something about this felt wrong. There was suppose to be someone there. Right? Someone... important.

Origami shook the thought off. It was probably nothing. Just... remnants of a dream, maybe.

Class moved at what she would liberally describe as a snail's pace, with the only outstanding thing being that her homeroom teacher was Okamine Tamae, known to the rest of the student body as Tama-chan. There was really nothing bad to say about her, even for someone as emotionally distant as Origami. She was kind, not bad on the eyes, and didn't really ask that many questions when Origami had to run off during a Spacequake alert.

And speaking of Spacequake alerts, there's one right now. Guess it was time to work.

Origami hung to the back of the crowd, tuning out the teachers that gave instructions to the nearest shelter, as checked her phone for instructions. Once they came in, she slipped away from the group, and headed for the barracks.


Flying was one of the most liberating things about being in the AST. The CR-Units that each member was equipped with made flight for humans not only possible, but easy, and Origami had to admit, the feeling was rather nice.

At least, she would have, were it not for the fact that she was currently en-route to kill the Spirit that had no doubt appeared at the centre of the recent Spacequake. Any sort of pleasure she might have gotten from the flight was overridden by the burning desire for revenge.

"Origami!" called the captain of her unit, a black haired woman named Kusakabe Ryouko. "Remember to keep your head on straight. This is Princess we're going up against."

"I know, commander," Origami replied. Each Spirit had a designated 'code', and Princess was certainly... one of them. Origami had had encounters with only two other Spirits, those being Hermit and Efreet, with the later being the main target of her revenge; the Spirit responsible for the tragedy five years ago that claimed her parents.

Little was known about Efreet, and Hermit was an elusive target when she appeared. Princess, however, was a far more combative Spirit. Origami had crossed blades with her many times now, and each time she was left either defeated, or in a state where, while she didn't lose, she didn't exactly win either. Somehow, that was more annoying.

"We're coming up on the zone," one of her other comrades said.

"Roger. All units, prepare to engage," Ryouko said. "You ready, Origami?"

"Ready, commander," Origami replied. "This time... This time, I won't fail to kill you, Spirit."


The moment they arrived at ground zero, Origami was once again struck by the sense that something was missing.

The Spirit, Princess, was there, in all her unearthly beauty, with hair a nightly black that shone purple in the sun, a dress of steel armour and fabric made out of light, and that strange stone throne that seemed to follow her.

Yet, in Origami's heart, she felt like there should have been someone else. Someone pivotal, whom Princess should have been pointing her blade at. But no, it was just her, waiting for them, as logic would dictate.

Princess leapt to the top of her throne, and drew the sword that laid within. It was a large blade, with a golden guard inlaid with a large blue stone, a core of silver, and an edge of glass. It was sword befitting its wielder: beautiful and dangerous.

The first swing of that sword came like a hurricane. The squad barely managed to scatter before the air they previously occupied was taken up by a slash of light. This was what Princess was; no elemental gimmicks, just raw power.

Almost all of her squad-mates charged at Princess, hoping that the tried and true Zerg-rush tactic would work. This, as one might expect, did not work out well, as all Princess needed to wipe them all out was a single kick.

One kick, and a whole squad was out for the count. Such a monster couldn't be allowed to exist in this world.

Origami unloaded her rifle, either until the energy in it ran out, or it overheated and the barrel melted. Whichever came first. In this scenario, it was the later.

Origami drew her blades, and charged. If anything, she was at least confident in her speed. She had to be, otherwise once hit would take her out.

Swing, slash, dodge, counter. Every movement between the two was a deadly dance of death. Even one slight slip up could spell the end for Origami. Fortunately, after all their encounters, Origami knew how Princess fought. It was a style of pure aggression, and was best met in kind.

So, it came as a surprise to Origami when what she expected to be a roundhouse kick turned into the flat of Princess' sword coming in from the same direction.

Origami had to divert all the power in her CR-Unit to mobility, so right this moment, her defences were completely down. On complete instinct, Origami raised her right arm to block.

What followed upon contact was a sound similar to that of gravel being crunched under foot. What followed after that was being thrown into a building that was somehow still standing.

Origami coughed up blood. She tried to move, yet found herself pinned to the ground. She could barely feel anything in her right arm.

Through the opening in the building, she saw Princess look at her with a mix of disappointment and... sadness? Before swinging her sword in a wide arc, causing the building to collapse on Origami.

So, this was how she was to die, then? Unable to accomplish anything? All Origami could do at this moment was curse the fate she had been stuck with, as the world faded to black.


Movement. Crumbling. Rustling. Something was happening, yet Origami was still too far from conscious to tell what it was.

A prick of light. A shout of finding something. Was it the rescue squad, then? If so, then that was certainly a relief.

More shouting, this time commenting on the extent of her injuries. Was it really that bad? This was probably delirium talking, but she didn't feel in that much pain at the moment.

Bright light, and the silhouette of what she assumed was a young girl with her hair in twin tails. "So, this is the one?" the figure asked. "Let's see... Tobiichi, eh? Record states... strong hatred for Spirits, huh? We've got our work cut out for us, then." There was a slight feeling of a hand being placed on her head. "Best make peace with your grudge, buddy. You want to save the world? You're going to have to do things our way."


When consciousness fully returned to her, Origami found herself in an unfamiliar medbay. She attempted to sit up, yet an unimaginable amount of pain shot through her whole body, forcing her back down.

"Try not to move around too much," someone said. "You were on death's door when we got to you."

Origami glanced over to her side, to see a woman with pale blue hair, a pair of blue eyes with dark rings around them behind a pair of round glasses. Her clothes, while not professional, gave the impression that she was a nurse of some kind. There was also the patchwork teddy bear in her breast pocket, if it mattered at all.

What Origami knew for certain, however, was that this woman wasn't part of the AST. "Who... are you?" she asked. "Where am I?"

"One question at a time, please," the woman said. "To your first, I am Murasame Reine. I am the analysis officer for this vessel, the Fraxinus. A pleasure to meet you, Rei."

Origami was confused. "My... name's not Rei."

Reine tilted her head. "Really? You look like a Rei." Reine shrugged. "Oh well. The commander is going to want to speak with you, so just wait here."

'Not like I can go anywhere,' Origami thought. After all, she was fairly certain that her legs were strapped to the bed right now.

Once Reine left, Origami let out a sigh, before realising that right now, she only really had full control over her left arm. Her right arm felt like it was being held up in a cast of some kind, and on top of that, it felt... weird. Hesitantly, she looked over at her right arm, and instantly felt sick to her stomach.

It was a thick, heavy cast wrapped around her arm, but that wasn't what disturbed her the most. No, instead, it was the long bits of metal that stuck out and through it that churned her stomach. Every twitch of her muscles sent pain shooting through her mind.

Origami knew what the extent of these injuries entailed. She had seen such things a few times before, mostly in movies, reports, and photographs. This was the sort of injury that ended careers.

The door slid open once more, and a set of footsteps was heard. "Finally awake, are you?" a voice far too young to belong to someone of employable age said. "Took you long enough, Tobiichi Origami."

Origami looked at the new arrival, and saw a young girl with fiery red hair, kept in twin-tails by a pair of black ribbons. There was a general air to her posture that indicated that she was someone of importance to whatever organisation she worked for, despite her apparent age.

"Who are you?" Origami asked. "And what have you done to my arm?"

"To the first question: Itsuka Kotori, commander of the Fraxinus, and of Ratatoskr," came the answer. "And for the second: Everything we could to make sure we didn't have to amputate it. After that battle, it took us three hours to get there to exfiltrate you, the rest of your squad was still out for the count, and AST medics were nowhere in sight. It took us another hour to get you out of that rubble, and another again to get you here. By the time we could get the Realisers working on you, too much permanent damage had been done."

"So, I will be unable to fight again, is what you're saying?"

"In short, yes," Kotori admitted.

Origami gritted her teeth. Her revenge, once so close, was now long gone. And she could do nothing about it now.

"Bemoaning your lost revenge, I take it?" Kotori asked. "Trust me, I've seen your record. Can't say I've seen too many with such a burning hatred for Spirits."

"Get to the point," Origami said. "What do you want from me? Why did you bring me, specifically, here?"

Then, Kotori grinned. "Let's say I have an offer for you," she said, as she pulled a lollipop out of her skirt pocket and plopped it in her mouth. "You'll have to make a sacrifice on your wish, but it'll still mean saving the world."

Origami found the whole thing, understandably, suspicious. "What's your game here?" she asked.

"It's quite simple, at the end of it all," Kotori said. "We here at Ratatoskr know of a way to seal a Spirits power, and to do it, we require your cooperation."

Sealing... Spirits power? Was such a thing possible? No, more to the point... "Why should I?" Origami asked. "My hatred is against all Spirits. Why should I seal them when I could easily kill them?"

"And how's that working out for you?" Kotori rebutted. "Still no sign of Efreet either, I take it?"

Origami's eyes narrowed threateningly. "How do you know about that?" she asked.

"You weren't the only victim of the fires five years ago," Kotori answered. "My brother had the same power of sealing that you currently have. He lost his life then, but not without managing to seal away Efreet's power."

Origami felt herself freeze. "Efreet's... already sealed?"

"That got your attention, huh?" Kotori smirked. "Yeah, she's sealed. I would know; I was there when it happened. A regular girl, like you and me, forced to become a Spirit against her will."

That... certainly shifted Origami's perspective a bit. She had always assumed that Spirits were born as such, not force-converted by someone or something else. Several thought began to fill her mind, many of which fell on Efreet.

"Surprised?" Kotori asked. "Believe it or not, but just about every Spirit is like that; a victim like you and me. That's why you fight, isn't it? Not just for revenge, but to make sure there aren't any more victims like us? Like them?"

Origami's mind was becoming overwhelmed with contradicting information and ideas. She had never once considered Spirits to be victims themselves. A small part in the back of her mind seemed to goad her into accepting the offer. After all, what did she have to lose?

'The burning hatred,' a nameless voice in her subconscious said.

'You say that like that's a bad thing,' another voice responded. Oh great, now she was losing her mind. What's next, a voice that speaks in Underline?

"So, what do you think?" Kotori asked. "For the sake of operations security, I can't give you much more information unless you agree to work with us, so what will it be?"

Yes, that was the question, wasn't it? Could Origami forgo her hatred of Spirits and save them, or abandon her quest all together? Either way, her goal of killing Spirits was out of reach for good, considering her injury. So, she either took a backseat in the war, or fought on a different front.

"One question first," Origami said. "You mentioned that Spirits are victims. Does that mean of cosmic chance, or some larger perpetrator?"

"A good question," Kotori said. "We have nothing concrete, but as of five years ago, we're fairly certain about the later."

A picture was forming in Origami's head, specifically of Kotori's plan in the long run. It was revenge from a different approach. Rather than meeting the enemy head-on in battle, she was intending to take the enemies toys away like a reprimanding parent. A different sort of punishment. Almost crueller, in a way, and far more demeaning to the foe than just fighting the battles.

It was almost sadistic, from a certain point of view. Like having an enemy brag about '3D chess' strategies against your '2D chess' ones, only to be blindsided when you pull out the checkers pieces. Like winning at Uno because you had all five pieces of Exodia in your hand.

… What was up with all these analogies Origami was coming up with? She didn't play those kinds of games.

But it all came down to whether she wanted to take the backseat in this battle or not. In that case, there wasn't really an option.

"Fine," Origami said. "I'll play by your rules. Point me at the targets, and I'll do what you need me to do."

Kotori let out a breath she had been holding for a while. "Glad to hear it," she said. "For now, focus on your recovery. Tomorrow, we'll begin your initiation."

Great. Initiation. That was always fun. As Kotori left the room, Origami was once again left with her own thoughts.

How unpleasant.


Time seemed to blend together, and before Origami really knew it, tomorrow had become today.

The Realisers that had been used to expedite the healing of her arm had done all they could, and both the cast and braces were removed early that morning.

The only word that Origami could really use to describe the state her arm was in was 'gnarly'. Huge swaths of scarred tissue covered her arm, from her shoulder all the way to the tips of her fingers. Her hand was covered in many small cuts from any number of surgery, and even the simple act of closing her hand was sent waves of pain through her body. It was almost like someone had taken the nerves and tendons of her arm and rewired the whole thing in the most unoptimal way ever. Even poking the ends of her fingers with her other hand felt like a nail being driven through her skin

Strangely enough, it also made Origami feel like suing an electrician.

Presently, she was in a dark room with Kotori and that strange not-nurse, Murasame Reine.

"So, you ready?" Kotori asked. "I will warn you, there's no backing out at this point."

"I am aware of that," Origami replied. "If I wasn't, I wouldn't have agreed. This is the only chance I have remaining to get back at the Spirits."

"Oh, trust me," Kotori smirked. "You're gonna wish you could back out after seeing this. Reine, start the program."

"Roger, commander," Reine saluted, before typing away at the keyboard. The screen flashed white, before...

"... What," Origami said, "is this shit?"

"What does it look like?" Kotori responded, not masking the sarcasm in her voice. "I told you you'd hate it."

"This is not a training program," Origami pointed out. "This is a dating sim video game."

A very pink, very bright, and very girly dating sim, to be exact. It was so garish, in fact, that Origami couldn't even read the title screen.

"There is a good reason for that, Rei," Reine said. Seemed she was sticking to calling Origami 'Rei'. "In order to seal the Spirit's powers, they need to be placed in a state of heightened positive emotions directed at you, whereupon you will be able to seal and house the the power within yourself through the primal intimate act."

"Basically, what you need to do is make them fall in love with you, kiss the girl, and save the world," Kotori summarised. "Simple, right?"

Origami could only stare dumbly at the two. There big plan, the only alternative to killing she had, was the Power of Love? That was... that was...

"What an utter load of shit," Origami stated plainly. "Do you really expect this plan to work? Seriously? What sort of fool do you take me for?"

"One desperate enough to try anything," Kotori answered. "Isn't that the case? You don't have what's needed to fight the war, so by that equation, your only option left is 'Love' isn't it?"

Origami got what she was saying. Didn't make it any less stupid, though. Unfortunately for Origami, though, she was still right; this was the only path left for her, as far as she could see.

"...Tch," Origami clicked her tongue. "Fine. I'll play by your rules. But, if this turns out to be a load of shit, you're dead."

"I'd be that, one way or another."


It was a few days later. After the first day, her arm had healed to the point that, while it still looked like roadkill, it could at least she could hold cutlery with it.

From the second day onward, however, she was taking part in this new farce that Ratatoskr called 'training'. It was basically just a Dating Sim marathon.

It wasn't even all that useful. Just a matter of choosing the right options based on the target. It was liking firing a rifle in the practice range, only instead of a rifle, it was cheesy one-liners.

After those few days, though, she was done. That finish line came with a sigh of relief that Origami didn't realise she had been holding on to until just that moment.

Origami really wasn't sure what to make of all that. In fact, she really didn't know if that 'training' would even prove useful. The characters in visual novels, and just about any work of fiction, were caricatures; exaggerations of tropes and traits done for the sake of appealing to a wide audience. They weren't actual people, and those stupid, cheesy one-liners that the protagonists of these dating sims wouldn't actually work in real life.

At that point, Origami quickly dropped that train of thought. It was getting a little too meta for her liking.

"Rei, are you listening?" Reine spoke, dragging Origami from her thoughts.

Ah, right. There was now that matter or Reine having taken up the job of assistant teacher in her class. Guess there would be no separation of work and life, then.

"Of course," Origami lied.

Reine, not believing that for a moment, continued to speak. "Now that your training is complete, it's important to do a live-fire test." She handed Origami and earpiece. "For this trial, I'll be handling operations. In the future, you'll have a team of experts backing you up, understood?"

So, even after all that, she'd have someone else feeding her lines. Somehow, that made it worse. Deciding it was whatever, Origami put the earpiece in, and stepped out of the room.

[Am I coming through alright, Rei?] Reine asked over the com-piece.

"Loud and clear," Origami replied. She had to admit, the audio quality was quick stellar. How was it that an organisation she had never heard of had better equipment than the AST?

[Now, for this test run, we'll need a suitable target,] Reine continued. [Fortunately, one's coming your way now. 12 o'clock, sharp.]

Origami turned her attention to the 'target'. That... was Okamine Tamae, her homeroom teacher. Great. For her training, she was going to have to hit on her own teacher. This seemed like the sort of thing that would come back to bite her on the ass.

"Ah! Tobiichi-san!" Tamae greeted, equal parts enthusiasm and worry on her face. "How are you holding up? Is your injury okay?"

It wasn't like Origami could hide an injury as severe and as obvious as what happened to her a bit over a week ago. The 'official' cover story was that she was caught in a building collapse rescuing a child during the last Spacequake.

Nobody said it was a good cover story, but people bought it anyway.

"I am holding out, at least," Origami responded. "Tamae-sensei, there is something I need to discuss with you."

"Oh? What is it?" Tamae asked. "And please, feel free to call me Tama-chan, like everyone else."

This... might prove to be an easy trial run. Tamae was a very gentle soul, and even Origami, indifferent to other people as she was, found it impossible not to at least somewhat like her. Thinking over her 'training', Origami chose her approach.

"I cannot do that," Origami said, much to Tamae's confusion. "If I were to call you something that everyone else does, I would be doing a disservice to my feelings."

"Eh?" Tamae was caught completely off guard.

First part; catch the target off guard. Next, go in for the combo. "Truth be told, Tamae-sensei, I've been holding on to something for the longest time now," Origami continued. "Feelings that I have been unable to express since the day I met you, but if I held on to them any longer, I fear my heart may burst."

"Y-your heart?!" Tamae exclaimed.

"Yes, my heart," Origami elaborated. "You see, the truth is... I have been in love with you for the longest time." Origami gagged internally at how easily and faithlessly the word 'love' just left her lips.

"L-l-l-l-l-love?!" Tamae stuttered out. "T-Tobiichi-san, that's...!"

"I realise the immorality of it," Origami cut in. "You're a teacher, and I'm a student. There's at least a 13 year age gap between us. But, I do not care about that. What I care about, more than anything, is you, Tamae."

For a brief moment, Origami could see Tamae gradually become redder and redder, like a ripening tomato. Then, the air changed. Okamine Tamae's eyes, previously filled with unbridled kindness, now showed glints of tamed madness, like a caged beast finally being shown light for the first time in years. "Do you mean that, Tobiichi-san?!" she yelled. "Do you truly, absolutely, totally, whole-heartedly mean that?!" Origami was completely caught off guard by the sudden change in the direction the conversation was going.

[Ah, the sign of madness,] Reine spoke up. [Using multiple exclamation marks in one go.]

"If we were to do a ceremony, it would have to be on the small side," Tamae began rambling. "The combination of two girls and the age gap would no doubt draw ire from all sorts, but this is the 21st century! There's no problem with two girls of consenting age to be together or get married! As for children, medical science it at an amazing point in life! Fertilisation between two women is more than possible! And if that's not an option, there's always adoption! What do you think, Tobiichi-san?!"

By the time Tamae had finally turned her attention back to Origami, she had long since bailed from the scene. Roughly two corners, a flight of stairs, and a hallway away, Origami lent against a wall, catching her breath.

"That was... unexpected," she decided.

[Perhaps using the 29 year old single woman was a bad starting point,] Reine conceded. [Still, you handled that quite well for your first time. You're a regular Casanova, Rei.]

"Do not call me that," Origami said. "This is merely a means to an end. Nothing more."

[How about we try one more practice target?] Reine continued, unfussed by Origami's comment. [How about that girl on 9? Black hair with one red eye showing?]

Origami looked to her left, and saw the person she was talking about. A girl that looked to be her age, with jet black hair kept in uneven twin-tails and blood red eyes, or at least, eye, as her left eye was covered by her hair. Strangely, Origami couldn't help but think that this girl was uncomfortably familiar.

"... No," Origami decided. "Last thing we need is another situation like that. The sooner we can prove whether this strategy is legitimate or not, the better."

[Fair enough, Rei,] Reine conceded.

Then, much to Origami's relief, the alarm for the Spacequake sounded.


The bridge of the Fraxinus was, Origami had to admit, state of the art. In fact, the whole Fraxinus itself was pretty out-of-this-world. It had freaking personnel teleporters. Even the AST didn't have those.

Origami really couldn't help but wonder who was backing Ratatoskr. The AST was, in a way, the front line in regards to dealing with Spirits, yet the most they had were basic Combat Realisers. And now, along came an organisation she had only learnt about a week ago, with airships, teleporters, and probably a bottomless budget, since it could afford to hire at least six other people that Origami had yet to meet.

"Now, before we begin, it's high time I introduce you to the rest of the crew," Kotori spoke from the captain's seat. "Everyone, sound off!"

With a resounding 'Yes Commander' from everyone, the tall, blonde haired man that stood next to Kotori spoke first. "Vice Commander Kannazuki Kyouhei, at your service. It is a pleasure to make your acquantance, Tobiichi Origami. I am sure our relationship will be a fruity one-" He was quickly interrupted by a swift kick to the ass, courtesy of Kotori. Somehow, he looked quite pleased with it.

Kannazuki Kyouhei. Origami knew that name. He was the previous commander of the AST, and a master at using remote-controlled Combat Realisers. The only thing more outlandish than his skills were his quirks; namely, he was a huge masochist. She remembered the horror stories of his 'punishments', which involved cosplay and stepping on him. Rumour has it, he left the AST to 'find his true master'. Guess that true master was a 14 year old girl who could kick good.

Then, there was the rest of the crew. They had: Kawagoe 'Bad Marriage/Master of Love' Kyouji, Mikimoto 'Boss' Masaomi, Shiizaki 'Nail Knocker' Hinako, Nakatsugawa 'Dimension Breaker' Munechika, and Minowa 'Deep Love' Kozue.

Origami wished she could call these oddballs 'background characters', but she was more horrified by the prospect that these were going to be her 'wingmen', so to speak. Apparently, even after all that 'training', she still needed some kind of guidance through all this. That alone wasn't a problem, but these... people? These divorcees, stalkers, otakus, and flirts?

It's official, the world is doomed.

"Now that introductions are out of the way," Kotori continued, using Kannazuki as a foot-rest (much to his delight), "it's time to begin the operation. "Origami, are you ready?"

"Arguably, no," Origami said, "but it's not like I have a choice in the matter."

"Well said," Kotori smirked. "All hands on standby! Mission is a-go!"


The Spacequake this time around was a small one, and strangely enough, took place at Raizen, Origami's high school.

Even stranger, however, was the fact that, right this moment, the Spirit Princess was currently holding up inside her own classroom. She wouldn't call it irony, as that was blatantly the wrong use of the word. But, at the very least, there was a strange sense of humour to the idea that Origami was going to a place she considered one of her 'safe havens' to meet someone she considered one of her greatest enemies, in the hopes of getting her to fall in love.

What a strange turn of events.

[Alright. Princess is just beyond that door,] Kotori said over the coms. [Take it away.]

Letting out a small sigh, Origami gently opened the door.

The setting sun illuminated the wrecked classroom. Standing at the far wall, staring out the half broken window, was Princess. The sunlight shone against her black hair, giving it a warm glow, and her translucent dress fluttered gently in the breeze. It was moments like these that gave rise to the cliché line 'it was like we were the only ones in the world', and Origami could kinda see why.

At least, she would, if it wasn't for the remnants of her grudge causing her right hand to twitch like she was holding a gun. Guess old habits die hard.

Princess turned around, saw Origami, and her expression immediately soured. "You again," Princess spoke. "What, do you think coming at me without a weapon will give better results?"

Now that she was listening to her voice outside of the battlefield, Origami had to admit, Princess had a melodic tone to her. [Alright, folks, we're up!] Kotori spoke before Origami had the chance to. [Options are as followed!]

A. Perhaps I wanted to try a more intimate form of combat. (75%)

B. Your combat prowess has left me head over heels for you. (25%)

C. Indeed. Square up.(0%)

What. The hell? Was that seriously how this was going to go? All that training, and they were just going to feed her lines? And this was the stuff they were going to feed her?

Screw that noise. If Origami was going to do this, then it would be her way. Those wack-jobs on the Fraxinus can offer advice, sure, but she is not using such cheesy lines unless she intends to do it herself.

"Fighting you is no longer an option," Origami responded. "Our last battle has left me unable to ever cross blades with you again."

The statement caught everybody off guard, for two different reasons. For Princess, it was the surprise of the person who was effectively her greatest adversary admitting to hanging her hat. For the Fraxinus crew, it was the fact that she disregarded their call.

"You've... stopped fighting?" Princess asked, while Origami quietly ignored Kotori's yelling in her ear. "Why? You hated me so much, why are you just letting it go?"

So, she was aware of that, then. Origami couldn't say she was surprised; she made her rage very clear. Before the Fraxinus crew could try to tally her options, Origami rolled up her right sleeve. "Because during our last battle, you were able to do extensive damage to my arm. Even with top of the line medical treatment, this is the best they could do for it. I am no longer capable of trading blows with you, yet alone trying to kill you."

There was something... odd, in the way Princess was looking at her arm. It was like she was horrified by it. Suddenly, Princess seemed a whole lot more human to Origami than she was a moment ago.

Princess slowly approached Origami. Origami had to fight her own instincts just to stay still, as Princess reached down and grabbed both of her hands, looking at them curiously.

"These... are human hands?" she asked.

"... Yes?" Origami replied, more a question if anything. Oddly enough, Princess' hands were strangely comforting on her scarred hand. "Why is that strange?"

"Well... The only humans I've met up to this point were you buzzy people," Princess answered. "I just started to assume all humans had big patches of grey and black skin that was kinda metal-like."

There was a brief moment of silence between the two. How was Origami suppose to approach this now? "So, if you're not going to fight," Princess continued. "What are you here to do?"

Before the crew could try to come up with options, Origami replied. "Have you ever wondered why the AST attacks you?" she said. "Why the world looks so destroyed when you're around?"

Princess looked at her with wide, confused eyes. "Kinda, yeah," she admitted. "I just kinda thought that was how the world was whenever I woke up."

Woke up, huh? Origami was definitely starting to see the informative side of this job. "The reason behind all that is because, whenever a Spirit like yourself wakes up, a Spacequake occurs, and leaves the area devastated."

Princess looked shocked by this revelation, and looked around the wrecked classroom. "So, this place... isn't suppose to look like this?"

Was she... terrified of what she was capable of now? Origami was starting to feel conflicted herself. Here was this embodiment of destruction, realising that she herself was a walking force of nature, and being horrified of herself. In Origami's eyes, gone was the destructive Spirit, and in its place was just... a girl forced into an unfair game, where she was the bad guy without even knowing or wanting it.

As much as the commander was really starting to get on her nerves, Kotori had been right. The Spirits were as much a victim as Origami and others like her were.

At that moment, Origami was sure that she was going to commit to this path, strange as it was.

"What if I told you," Origami began, "that I had an option for you to live in peace? No more destruction, and no more being attacked by the AST?"

Princess looked at Origami with wide, hopeful eyes, though quickly replaced that look with suspicion. "How do I know I can trust you?"

"You don't," Origami admitted. "And in a way, neither do I. But that's what trust is; a risk." After a moment's pause, Princess nodded hesitantly. Origami felt herself smile slightly at this progress.

[Okay, as much as I'm very annoyed with you,] Kotori spoke, [you're making some damn good progress. Try getting her name now.]

Finally, a course of action that doesn't involve them trying to feed her cringy lines. "Perhaps we should introduce ourselves," Origami said. "My name is Tobiichi Origami. What is yours?"

"Origami..." Princess muttered, as if rolling the name on her tongue. Then, she smile. "It's a nice name. I'm... Hmm... actually, I don't think I have a name."

That managed to raise more questions than Origami was comfortable with. It was already easy enough for her to dehumanise the Spirits back when she worked for the AST, and they were just threats with code-names. Now she was learning that they didn't even have names of their own?

"Could you give me one?" Princess asked. "A name?"

'Oh no,' Origami thought. 'I was not prepared for THIS level of responsibility.'

[Origami's brainwaves have elevated!] Kotori shouted. [All hands, get to work! Make suggestions! Anything!]

Several different names, all of varying quality, shouted through her ears. When two names, Tohno and Renka, passed her ears, a combination of the two popped into her mind.

"... Tohka," she said. "How does 'Tohka' sound to you?"

"Toh...ka?" Princess repeated. "Tohka, Tohka... Hmm!" She nodded pleased. "I like it!"

[Well damn, that was a good call,] Kotori commented. [Her affection meter's risen quite high. Now, go in for the kill and ask her on a date!]

'Do you have to say 'go in for the kill'?' Origami thought. "Tohka," she said. "If you are willing to trust me, would you go on a date with me?"

[Way to phone it in, bud,] Kotori muttered.

"Date?" the newly christened Tohka asked. "What's a date?"

"Ho boy, this'll be a tough one," Origami couldn't help but mutter under her breath. "A date is a sort of... get together, between people who care about each other, where they... have fun together?" She'd have to admit, while she conceptually knew what a date was, trying to explain what it was was a whole different ball game. "You wish to see the world as it really is, right? Then, I..." A small blush crept onto Origami's face, as Kotori's voice egged her on to finish the line. "I... can show you the world."

[She said the thing!] Kyouhei shouted. [Pay up!] What followed with the sound of a swift kick, followed by a 'Thank you!'.

"A way to see the world..." Tohka muttered quietly. "I think I-"

A sudden tension filled the air. Tohka's gaze, now a glare, had turned from Origami to somewhere to the right, and just as quickly, she dragged Origami to the ground, covering her as explosions suddenly blanketed the area.

"It's the buzzy people!" Tohka said.

"Buzzy... the AST?" Origami muttered. "They took a while to get here."

[Origami, you need to get out of there!] Kotori shouted. [Find a chance to slip out, quick!]

Before Origami could think to respond, Tohka had pulled Origami up, and was looking into her eyes.

"Origami," she said. "Next time we meet, okay?"

"Wha-?" Origami tried to speak, before she was all but thrown through the door, and out of the combat zone.

The last thing she saw, before Tohka charged off to fight the AST and Origami was teleported back to the Fraxinus, was a sad smile.


A/N:

Well, now. This is a strange place for me to be.

It feels kinda weird to me that the first season of Date A Live is just over 10 years old. Really makes ya feel old, doesn't it?

Oh, right. Gotta talk about the fic. Focus, Flame.

So, this is the classic 'Protag is replaced by another character' type of thing, as you can plainly see by the fact that our boy Shido's been completely retconned.

As for the choice of using Origami as the new protag, I just thought it'd be fun to take the girl who hates Spirits so much, and force her down the 'enemies to lovers' route.

Also, fair warning, this fic will get rather horny in places. I can't say for certain just how horny that will be, but it will get there.

As for how far this fic will go into Date A Live, considering I'm an anime-normie who, while buying up the Light Novels as they get released, is only only really as far into the story as DaL IV, I honestly can't say. Especially when I think about the amount of changes that'll be going into this (you might have noticed a slight early cameo of a certain someone in this chapter). At the very least, I've plans for the story arcs up to and including Season 3/Volume 12 of the story. Anything beyond, we'll see.

Well, that's out of the way. Let's press on, shall we?