As the sun rose over Tariki Hongan Buddhist Temple, a hooded woman dressed in red and white descended on it. The temple's ever-faithful sentry, Banpei, closed in on her, but found itself following a different patrol route with a wave of her hand, leaving her free to knock on the temple door. "One moment!" came an angelic voice from within. The door slid open and the temple's chief maintainer, carrying a jar of miso, stood to greet the visitor.

"Belldandy," the woman said, "It's so wonderful to see you again."

"Lorenne!" Belldandy pulled her into a warm embrace. "It's wonderful to see you too. It's been such a long time."

A door in the hall slid open, a young man poking his head out. "Hey, Belldandy, who's that?"

"Oh! Keiichi, this is Lorenne, Goddess First Class, fourth category, unlimited license."

"Fourth category?"

"Research and Development," Lorenne clarified, tossing her card to him.

He looked it over. "R&D? Then how do you know Belldandy?"

"Well, we-"

She was cut off by Belldandy. "We were close friends before we were assigned to our different divisions."

Lorenne looked as though she'd been punched in the gut when Belldandy said "friends". Belldandy appeared to sense her reaction. "Is something wrong, dear?"

"N-nothing."

"But you seemed..."

"I said I'm fine!" Lorenne straightened up and cleared her throat. "Anyway, I should probably clarify why I'm here. I was sent by Yggdrasil to study the effects of having three goddesses on Earth. The Almighty wants to determine if it's worthwhile."

A chill ran through Keiichi's spine. "I-I see...so if we don't pass your inspection..."

"It's not an inspection, mortal. It's a study. My personal opinions play no part in it."

"Sure they don't," a voice came from another room. Its owner stepped out. "You've got some nerve, showing your face around here, Lorenne.

The visitor sighed, pulling a lock of her shoulder-length red hair out of her face. "Good to see you too, Urd...and I'm here on official business."

"Then make it quick and never darken our doorway again."

Lorenne's eyebrow twitched. "You've got some nerve, issuing orders to a Goddess First Class. Given your recent license suspension, you're treading on thin ice."

Urd's jaw quivered, but she didn't argue any further. "Keiichi, could I please speak with you in private?"

"Um...sure," he said, following her slowly out the back door. Once they were out of earshot, he leaned against the wall. "What's going on, Urd? Why do you hate Lorenne so much?"

She put a hand on his shoulder. "Look, Keiichi, there's something you should know about Lorenne. She and Belldandy aren't just friends. They're former lovers, too."

Keiichi's eyes looked ready to pop out of his head. "W-whaaaaat?"

"Yeah...so you need to pull out your A-game while she's here. Make Belldandy remember why she's in love with you."

Keiichi's shoulders sunk and he narrowed his eyes. "How do I know this isn't another one of your hare-brained schemes? I get that you love the idea of me and Belldandy together, but could you please let us do it at our own speed?"

She flicked his ear. "I'm not lying. Watch their body language. If even that's not good enough for you, just ask Belldandy outright. But you need to hold onto her. It'd be a disaster for those two to get back together, trust me."

"Alright, I'll keep my eyes open," he sighed, "But that doesn't explain why you were so hostile to her."

Urd pushed him inside. "That's on a need-to-know basis. Now go, get your woman back!"

"Don't push me!" he protested.

At dinner that evening, as per Urd's counsel, Keiichi kept an eye on Belldandy and Lorenne, who sat side by side while he sat at the end of the table. As the guest, Lorenne was served first. She took a bite of the pan-fried noodles, smiling radiantly. "As usual, Belldandy, your cooking is exceptional."

"Thank you, Lorenne," she said, "I'm glad you're here to enjoy it."

"So, Lorenne," Urd said with a smirk, "Tell us about this study you're doing. What, exactly, are you measuring?"

Lorenne's smile faded when Urd spoke. Apparently their dislike was mutual. "Oh, I'm studying the effects of your presence on local happiness, as well as on nearby flora and fauna. I'm quite sure that the bulk of benefits will be from Belldandy's presence, though I cannot be absolutely certain.

Urd clutched her sake bottle. "Is that so? Well, I recomment you keep your studies focused on Keiichi. Having Belldandy here has made him a whole new man."

"Is that so? I suppose I'll have to interview him tomorrow, then." She reached for the rice bowl just as Belldandy was doing so, and their hands brushed. They looked at each other briefly, then looked away.

"Please, go ahead," Belldandy invited Lorenne, who was lightly blushing.

"Th-thank you," she said, serving up some rice for herself. They faced away from each other as much as the table would allow. Keiichi glanced at Urd, who had a very distinct "I told you so" look on her face.

"Will somebody please tell me what's going on?!" Skuld loudly demanded.

"None of your business, kid," Urd said, prodding her. "It's grown-up stuff."

"Shut up, Urd!"

"Nothing is happening," Lorenne clarified, "I'm sorry if you're uncomfortable, Skuld. That was not my intention in coming here."

"I'm sick of being lied to!" Skuld reached into her shirt, pulling out one of her trademark bombs. "I want answers, and I want them now."

Belldandy took the bomb from her younger sister. "Skuld, that's enough. You don't threaten people for not telling you everything you want to know. Now, apologize to Lorenne for your behavior."

Skuld stared at her plate. "I-I'm sorry, Lorenne."

"Think nothing of it," Lorenne said, "You had every reason to be upset. But I haven't told any lies about my reasons for coming here. First-class goddesses can't lie." She stood up and bowed to Belldandy. "Dinner was delicious, but that's only to be expected."

"Should I make up a room for you?"

Lorenne shook her head. "I'll be able to do that myself. See you in the morning, Mr. Morisato."

She left the room. "Keiichi, are you alright?" Belldandy asked.

"I-I think so. I'm used to dinners here not always being peaceful." He polished off the rest of his dinner. "Thanks for the food, Bell. It was delicious."

"You're welcome," she said with a smile, "And good luck with your interview tomorrow!"

Keiichi barely slept that night. His dreams were filled with images of Belldandy and Lorenne in each other's arms, Belldandy leaving him after rekindling her love for Lorenne, and Belldandy in proper Goddess apparel, waving goodbye to him as she crawled through the bathroom mirror one last time.

He awoke with Lorenne standing over him, writing on a small pad. "Night sweats, I see."

Keiichi yelled and jumped. "Don't do that!"

"Possible anxiety disorder," she added.

"Well, anyone would be frightened to wake up to a goddess standing over them and judging them!"

"Paranoid delusions, too." Keiichi went silent, realizing he couldn't win this one. "Get dressed and meet me in the garden, Mr. Morisato. I want to conduct this interview in a place where we won't be disturbed."

"R-right." On his way out, he ran into Belldandy.

"Keiichi"

"Yes?"

"Don't let Lorenne's questions bother you. She may seem harsh and inquisitive, but she's a good person and she means well."

He smiled. "Thank you. I believe you."

Belldandy returned the smile. "Good luck, Keiichi! I love you." Why was it that blushing seemed to always seal his mouth shut? "I'll have breakfast ready when you get back."

"Alright!"

Lorenne sat in the garden, notepad ready, and looking rather impatient. "There you are, Mr. Morisato."

Keiichi laughed nervously. "Yeah, here I am. Can we please get this over with?"

"Why? What do you have to hide?"

"N-nothing! It's just...well, I'm really nervous around you."

Lorenne leered at him. Even without a boombox and good luck charms, he'd rather have been facing off against Mara. "If you've done nothing wrong, then you have nothing to fear from me. Now why is it that you're so nervous?"

"Well, um, it's because, ah, Urd, well, she told me that..."

"What did she tell you?"

Keiichi was sure he looked like a beet with a wig. "S-she told me that you and Belldandy, um, were...well, that you are f-f-former lovers."

To his surprise, Lorenne showed no signs of alarm. Maybe she expected Urd to do that. "I see..." She added a few notes.

"W-well? Are you?"

"That is none of your concern. Now, why is Belldandy here?"

Keiichi tilted his head. "Didn't you already know?"

Lorenne narrowed her eyes. "I do. I want to hear it in your own words." He sighed and recalled the story of his wish, Belldandy's help, the revocation of their contract, and her desire to stay. At the rate she was writing, it was likely Lorenne captured his words verbatim. "So, why did you make a wish like that? A goddess, all to yourself...even if you weren't aware of the nature of heaven, doesn't that strike you as something with far-reaching consequences?"

"Well, it's not like I really had a choice!" Keiichi insisted. "Belldandy told me that if my wish hadn't really been my heart's desire, it wouldn't have gone through. What was I supposed to do?!"

"Your contract was erased after the Lord of Terror was vanquished, was it not?"

"But she wanted to stay, contract or no! I wanted her to stay!"

Lorenne frowned. "So your feelings are more important than Yggdrasil's day-to-day operations?" How was he supposed to respond to that? He didn't need to, since Lorenne moved onto the next question. "What does Belldandy do?"

"Well, she cooks, she cleans, and she goes to school with me."

"So, she's a glorified housewife?"

"N-no! She's going to college!"

Lorenne didn't skip a beat. "And what will she do with her degree?" Keiichi didn't answer. "You plan to work for a parts manufacturer, do you not? What would Belldandy be doing with a degree from a technical university?"

"W-well," Keiichi said, "I wouldn't be where I am today without Belldandy. I've had the worst luck throughout life. That all changed the day Belldandy appeared in my bedroom. True, her being there did get me kicked out of my apartment, but look what I moved into! I never would've been able to get this place if the monk hadn't seen her using her powers."

"I see," Lorenne continued her fast-paced notetaking, "And what have you done for Belldandy?"

It was all Keiichi could do to keep from becoming defensive. "I introduced her to life on Earth, I help her feel appreciated...oh! And I took care of her when she got sick."

Lorenne flipped through her notes. "If I'm not mistaken, Belldandy fell ill after overusing her powers to protect you from danger. So you corrected a problem you created in the first place. How is that a net gain for her?"

Something in Keiichi snapped. "Why don't you ask Belldandy herself?"

"I beg your pardon?"

He balled his hands into fists. "You keep asking me—no, interrogating me—about what SHE thinks. She's intelligent, independent, and very self-aware. She's told me time and again that the contract isn't what's keeping her here, and you can't accept that! Well, go ask her what she thinks yourself. As far as I'm concerned, this interview is over." He turned away. "I need to get to work."

Lorenne didn't move an inch, and her normally busy writing hand was frozen in place. On his way out, Belldandy immediately noticed his dour mood. "Keiichi...what's wrong? What did Lorenne say to you?"

"I..." Try as he did to be mad at Lorenne and think of her as a jilted former lover, he had to admit, there was something to her words. He needed time to think. "We'll talk about it later. Chihiro said we've got a big order coming in today."

Belldandy handed him a large box, but taking it didn't seem to cheer him up, so she kissed him on the cheek. "Have a good day, dear."

"Later," he said, picking up his helmet.

And I'll have a talk with Lorenne, Belldandy thought. Nobody gets away with making my Keiichi unhappy. She found Lorenne in the back yard, setting up a mandala with several instruments. "Ah, there you are, Bell! I've been needing you." She handed her a small bracelet. "Could you please wear this? I need it to measure your energy output."

Belldandy put it on, but didn't sway from her goal. "Lorenne...what did you say to Keiichi?"

She shrugged. "I just asked him about his relationship with you," she said, clearly convinced that she had done nothing wrong.

"Whatever you said, it made him very upset. He only skips my breakfasts in absolute emergencies."

"Not my fault," Lorenne said, igniting the mandala "He's the one who took it so personally. If he'd had nothing to be ashamed of, my questions wouldn't have bothered him."

Inside the temple, one of the lightbulbs exploded. "Is that really what you think?! You really should know better, Lorenne, as both a researcher and a Goddess First Class."

For the first time in her visit, Lorenne looked caught off guard. "What do you mean?"

Belldandy gestured all around her. "We of the higher realm control the lower realm in ways they can't see. Humans go about their lives in harmony with nature, because they have studied it for thousands of years. They know the consequences of particular actions, and how to make improvements to their lives. Keiichi clearly didn't think he was doing anything wrong. Not until you put the idea into his head. Can you imagine what a disaster it would be for humanity if the laws of nature ceased to work predictably?"

"You're not telling me anything I don't know, Belldandy. I'm the last person who would want the universe to be ruled by chaos. People can be wrong without realizing it. It's a good thing Morisato is starting to see the truth about his actions."

"What truth?!" Belldandy's voice grew shrill.

Lorenne's eyebrows turned down. "Just as I thought, he's blinded you to it."

"To...what?"

Her face flushed and angry, Lorenne grabbed Belldandy's shoulders. "Can't you see? Keiichi Morisato has robbed you of your potential! Everyone I talked to in the commercial division has said that you are by far the most talented goddess there. And what are you doing? You're down here, waiting hand and foot on a mortal who's too self-centered to appreciate you. Don't you see what's wrong with that?!"

Belldandy took a step back. "No, you're wrong! Keiichi isn't like that at all!"

"He is! He just likes you because you make his life more convenient."

Taking a deep breath, Belldandy steadied herself. "Lorenne, what is this about? You know what I've achieved on Earth. I'd be more than happy to give you my findings on human culture and emotions, and I'm sure you'd find it helpful. So tell me: Why did you really come here?"

Lorenne turned her head to the ground, and a couple wet spots appeared in the dirt. "Guess. It shouldn't be too hard, nowt that you've got all the pieces of the puzzle."

Belldandy's eyes went wide. "Oh dear!" She took Lorenne's hands in her own.

"I regret it," Lorenne said, tears flowing freely from her eyes, "I regret it more than any other decision I've ever made."

"I'm sorry things didn't work out between us," Belldandy pulled the red-haired goddess toward her. "Truly, I am."

"Why are you apologizing? I'm the one who broke your heart."

Belldandy kissed her forehead. "And I forgave you."

"Th-thank you. I promise I'll talk to Morisato tonight and apologize to him."

***
"Hey boss?"

"Yeah?" Chihiro Fujimi didn't raise her head.

"Can I ask you something? Something...emotional?"

She sighed. "We've been over this, Morisato. Things wouldn't work out between us."

Keiichi tore open a box of fuel injectors. "Don't flatter yourself. That's not what I was going to ask."

"What, then?"

He hesitated. "Do you...do you think I'm a good boyfriend to Belldandy?"

"Well, I know what she'd say."

"That doesn't help," he said, stocking the shelf. "I want to know how it looks to an outside observer." She finally looked up. "Your asking me this isn't making any sense, Morisato. What makes you wonder?"

Keiichi sat on the floor. "Well...Belldandy seems to always go along with whatever I say or do. I feel like I'm monopolizing her affection."

Chihiro laughed. "Morisato, that's the most ridiculous thing I've ever heard, and I've known Tamiya and Ohtaki for years. Believe me when I say that you and Bell are simply perfect for each other. Hell, even I'm a bit jealous of you, and I'm not into girls."

He looked up. "You really think so?"

"Have you seen that girl? She can throw herself into absolutely anything and love it. She treats every bike she works on like it's a unique person with feelings and desires. I haven't gotten a single complaint about her repair jobs."

"Really?"

"Morisato, is it really so hard to believe that a woman could find so much pleasure in making another person happy? Honestly, the only place you could improve as a boyfriend is to take her at her word when she says she's happy. If she says it and acts it, she is."

Keiichi stood up. "Thanks, boss."

"From now on, no more stupid questions, alright, Morisato?"

***
"I'm home!"

"Welcome back!" Belldandy greeted Keiichi with a hug.

He returned it and looked her in the eye. "Listen, Belldandy..."

She put a finger over his lips. "You don't need to say a word, dear. Lorenne and I spoke. She wants to see you in your room."

"So, everything's fine?" She nodded. "See you in a few!"

He found Lorenne in his room, examining his computer. "I see Belldandy was right about you."

"What do you mean?"

She faced him. "Everything you own...it's well-cared for. You're more like Bell than you realize." Keiichi couldn't say anything. What could he say? "Morisato, I owe you an apology. My questions this morning were out of line. I let my emotions get the better of me."

"So, you and Belldandy..."

She nodded. "Urd was telling the truth."

"Then...why aren't you still with her?" He sat down next to Lorenne.

"I ended it. You know what Belldandy's like...kind, sweet, accommodating, and understanding to a fault. And the best cook I've ever known."

Keiichi chuckled. "Yeah, I know. Every now and then, I kinda feel like I'm..."

"...using her? Yes, I've been there. I didn't feel like I was worthy of the attention she gave me, or that I could ever return it in kind. In the end, that's why I called it off."

"You did?"

Lorenne raised an eyebrow. "Of course I did. Can you imagine Belldandy breaking up with someone?"

Of course he couldn't. "I can't imagine that went down well."

"No. Bell was devastated at first, but Urd helped her get over it." She sighed. "You know how First Class Goddesses can't tell lies? Well, that doesn't apply to being mistaken, or to lies of omission. Part of my reason for coming here was to try and get her to come back to heaven with me. But seeing just how much she's enjoyed learning a new way to live...I'm glad I didn't succeed. And if she absolutely had to fall for a mortal, I couldn't ask for anyone better than you."

Keiichi nodded. "Thank you. That means a lot, especially coming from you."

Lorenne stood up. "I just have a few more measurements to take, but I promise I'll be gone first thing in the morning. To disturb what you two have...it wouldn't be right."

"I appreciate it," Keiichi said, escorting her to the front door.

"Dinner's ready, everyone!" Belldandy called from the kitchen.

"Even a goddess has to be big enough to admit when she's wrong. Now, don't you have dinner to eat?"

"I guess so. See you."

Lorenne leaned forward, kissing him softly. "Take good care of her, alright, Keiichi Morisato?"

"I will."