The Song of the Goddesses

by pierre15208

How far would Belldandy go to stay with Keiichi? Would she defy the orders of Kami-sama himself? This is my first OMG fan fiction, and I welcome all criticism

The Song of the Goddesses.

by Pierre R. Wheaton

July 24, 2009

Note: This is a work of fan fiction. It is merely an opportunity for me, an Oh, My Goddess fan, to come up with an idea as to how I would like to see the manga end. While I use various accounts from the manga, anime, and the novel to support the plot, the actual plot of this story must not be construed as being part of the Oh, My Goddess canon. Not unless Fujishima-sensei were to come across this piece somewhere on the internet, and be so enthralled by it that he contacted me and offered me big bucks to use it. Which is highly unlikely, but I can dream can't I? This is my first attempt at fan fiction, so it will be safe to say that I will get some things, OK, a lot of things wrong. The Oh My Goddess purists will have a ball slicing and dicing this thing up looking for mistakes. I don't apologize for any mistakes I make. Fan fiction exists to allow those who love their favorite series a chance to do things the creator would not have done, to expand the scope of his or her creation. As long as I don't portray the characters radically out of personality, pretty much all's fair. This is a work in progress, so it will always change.

The Oh, My Goddess characters in this work are the property of Oh, My Goddess creator Kosuke Fujishima. However, the narration provided for this work is of my own creation. Enjoy.

©2009-10, Pierre R. Wheaton

Chapter 1

A Friday Evening in Spring, approx 5 PM

It was a fine spring day at Tarikihongan Temple. The showers that pelted Nekomi City for the past three days finally moved on, giving way to plenty of sunshine and mild spring breezes. The change in weather also served to clear away the gloomy mood that surrounded the temple. Belldandy never seemed to be bothered by the constant rain, in fact she thought that it was great because it watered the ground and made sure that all the plants in the courtyard got their fill.

However for Keiichi Morisato and Belldandy's sisters, Skuld and Urd, the rains just got in the way and made them miserable. And Keiichi knew that when Skuld and Urd were stuck inside the temple and miserable, inevitably, they'd get into one of their constant arguments about who was going to control the television. Even though Keiichi was able to scrimp and save, and eventually buy a used color TV to put in Skuld's room thereby insuring that everyone who wanted a color TV had one, that didn't stop the goddesses from getting into their confrontations.

Usually they either got into a shouting match that ripped through the entire temple like nails on a chalkboard, especially when Skuld's high pitched voice is in full screech. Or they would play some kind of game to decide who would control the clicker. Initially, these games would start out calm, but as both goddesses were intensely competitive as well as highly excitable, it would not take long for the game to degenerate into the aforementioned shouting match.

The games ranged from mah jong to Monopoly, but today the sisters decided to create their own game consisting of using playing cards, dice and a weird device Skuld cooked up. It was a crystal sphere the size of a bowling ball that had tubes all over it and flashing multicolored lights inside of it. It occasionally made strange buzzing and whirring noises along with the odd bell. Keiichi once observed Skuld and Urd playing this game before. He watched them for about five minutes, and despite his best efforts, he could not figure out the rules to save his life. He suspected that the sisters were making them up as they went along, but thought the better of asking them to explain the rules to him because he knew how snippy they could get.

Keiichi eventually came to the conclusion that even though Skuld and Urd had their own TV's and could watch what they wanted, when they wanted without interference from the other sibling, they just liked to compete against each other and cause each other as much hell as possible. And he was willing to live with that as long as the screaming was kept to a dull roar, and they didn't blow the temple to kingdom-come by using Skuld-bombs and lightning bolts. Although Keiichi did lay down the law to both sisters that if the temple was destroyed, they were responsible for putting it back the way it was.

Belldandy was in her favorite place, the kitchen. She was dressed in a simple white knee length sundress covered with sunflowers and held up with spaghetti straps. Over that she wore a white apron. Her chestnut-brown hair held in its usual ponytail by a yellow ribbon. As usual, she looked radiant. Belldandy could wear a potato sack and still look good. She was standing at the stove humming a tune that only she knew, doing what she loved to do most, and that was cooking for Keiichi. She had been looking through some homemaking magazines and decided to cook a special stew for him. She put on a mixture of vegetable and fish stock, diced up some carrots, onions, chives, a little celery, and then added some fish and shrimp, clams and mussels that she bought at the market earlier today. To that, she added some spices, and that special expression of love and caring that she had just for Keiichi. That was the ingredient that made all the difference. It didn't matter what Belldandy made for him, he would relish every bite and eat it all so as not to offend her. Ever since Belldandy came to live with Keiichi at Tarikihongan, he had never complained about her cooking.

Belldandy had the unique ability as a Goddess First Class to adapt and learn things on a scale that humans could not possibly emulate. She only had to see something done once, and she picked it up. From cooking, to racing a go-kart, to riding a competition sidecar with Keiichi in a race, there was little that Belldandy could not learn. That among many other traits was the thing that so impressed Keiichi about his goddess girlfriend.

Every day, upon waking up, he took the picture of Belldandy that sat next to his futon and looked at it lovingly for a minute or two and then he would kiss it. It was a picture of her wearing that same sundress, and a wide brimmed straw hat with a flower in the hatband. She was standing in the courtyard next to the large temple bell, waving at the camera. She had an innocent smile on her face that never failed to warm Keiichi's heart. It was a simple, wholesome and uncluttered look that on any other girl would merely be cute, but was nothing short of spectacular on Belldandy. His mind often went back to that fateful night, when he was stuck minding the Motor Club dorm, while his sempais Tamiya and Ootaki were out doing who knows what. He remembered dialing the wrong number that connected him to the Goddess Assistance Agency. That sweet voice on the other end that told him that she would take care of his request in person. The initial shock of seeing a stunningly beautiful girl wearing flowing diaphanous robes emerging through a mirror. She introduced herself as Belldandy, Goddess First Class, Second Category, Unlimited License. And she said that she was there to grant him any wish he desired. Convinced that his crazy sempais were messing with him, as they were wont to do, he uttered those words. The words that would change his whole life. "I would like for a goddess like you, to stay with me always!"

Despite what happened afterward, him getting kicked out of his dorm, finding an old Buddhist temple for him and Belldandy to live in, the chaotic addition of Bell's sisters Skuld and Urd into their lives, and all the adventures that went with living with three beautiful and powerful goddesses. Keiichi concluded that if all this was part of living with the most beautiful, smartest, kindest and most wonderful woman he had ever met, and the assurance of knowing that he had her all to himself, Skuld's constant protestations not withstanding, he would gladly pay the price.

Chapter 2

6:30pm Friday Evening.

Keiichi took advantage of the beautiful weather to go out to the garage and perform some much needed maintenance on his motorcycle. This was the first chance he had in quite a while to get his hands dirty fixing and tinkering with his trusty BMW. Besides the recent rainy weather, he was busy with temple chores, working as a mechanic at Chihiro Fujimi's Whirlwind motorcycle shop as well as taking the occasional part time job to pick up extra money on the side. Chihiro regarded Keiichi as a pretty good mechanic, and she tried to pay him a decent wage. But it wasn't quite enough to take care of all the maintenance of the expansive temple grounds, and the care and feeding of three goddesses took its toll. Skuld loved her ice cream, she devoured the premium brands by the pint, and Urd drank only the best sake. And that stuff wasn't cheap by any means. Add to the fact that Belldandy like most Japanese homemakers, went shopping every day for the freshest fruits and vegetables and only bought enough supplies to cook for a day or two at a time. So it was important that a steady flow of cash came into the household.

There were times in the early days at Tarikihongan, that Keiichi and Belldandy stared at the back of an empty refrigerator. But it always seemed that when the couple were at their bitter end, something would happen to get them by. Like the time when Keiichi's younger sister, Megumi came in from their hometown in Hokkaido, to apply to a college on the mainland. Keiichi wasn't too thrilled that his little sister had crashed the temple at a time when he and Belldandy were just getting to know each other and he was even less excited when Megumi told him that she was applying to his school, the Nekomi Institute of Technology. But the 40,000 yen she was carrying with her courtesy of their parents, father Keima and mother Takano, softened the blow. Since then, Keiichi and Belldandy had always found a way to keep the temple running as smoothly as possible despite the occasional dust-up between Urd and Skuld.

Keiichi decided to adjust the bike's valves as well as top off the oil and give the BMW a good cleaning. Keiichi came from a family of mechanics and gearheads. Megumi was pretty good with a wrench in her hand, and his father, Keima despite being a glass blower by trade could find his way around a motorcycle better than some pros. While he was working, he thought about the adventures he'd had with this old Beemer. It was this bike that he used to find a new home for him and Bell when he got kicked out of the dorm. When Keima and Takano visited the temple from Hokkaido, he and his father continued the series of races they had since Keiichi was a young boy. He had to remove the sidecar and rework the suspension in order to make the bike safe for solo use. He had never been able to best his father, but this last time, he drew even. He vowed that one day he would beat the old man. Even though the Beemer had the propensity to break down at the worst times, it was still a fairly reliable old classic that took him and Belldandy anywhere they wanted to go.

Keiichi had just finished adjusting the valves and was just about ready to check the oil when he heard Belldandy call him from the porch.

"Keiichi, Dinners ready."

"Ok, Belldandy. Be right there."

He wheeled the bike back into the garage, and hurried into the Tea Room which doubled as the communal dining space, as well as Belldandy's room. He washed his hands and sat down at the low table just in time to see Belldandy bring in the large pot of fish stew she had made. It smelled heavenly. As did all of Bell's cooking. She put the steaming pot on the table and hustled back to the kitchen to prepare the tea. Darjeeling, Bell's favorite. Keiichi ladled some of the stew into a bowl, spooned some rice into it, grabbed a pair of chopsticks and tasted. Of course, he knew that it was going to taste good. This is Belldandy's cooking after all. But even he didn't expect the explosion of flavors that erupted in his mouth from that first spoonful. The marriage of ingredients was perfection. The fresh seafood cooked just right, not rubbery or flaky. The vegetables picked at the top of their freshness. Even the spices added just the right amount of zing without overcoming the delicate flavor of the fish. Keiichi had many great dishes since Belldandy came into his life, but this simple stew was head and shoulders above the rest.

A perfect meal served by a perfect goddess.

"So Keiichi, how is the stew?"

Keiichi looked up to see Belldandy sitting across the table from him, an inquiring look on her face. Her porcelain skin perfectly complementing the sundress. Not a hair out of place, the 4 strands rising from her forehead like a fountain. Her deep ocean-blue eyes, her dainty lips. That vision coupled with the magnificent stew emboldened him. He wanted so bad just to touch her, to hold her and to look into those eyes and kiss those lips. He started to lean over the table reaching out his arms to embrace his goddess when a familiar and very unwelcome screech shook him from his reverie.

"KEIICHI, STOP OGLING AT MY SISTER LIKE THAT!"

Damn you, Skuld!

Bell's younger sister, Skuld came bounding into the Tea Room upon seeing this latest assault on her big sister's virtue. A Goddess Second Class, First Category, Limited License, Skuld made it her mission to keep Keiichi and Belldandy apart as much as possible. It was an outbreak of heavenly bugs: eight-legged rabbit-like creatures that brought the petite raven-haired goddess to earth. She, Urd, and Belldandy had a hell of a time trying to get rid of the constantly multiplying bugs. And it was only after the use of some of Skuld's outlandish inventions as well as Urd's command of lightning coupled with a lecture or two about singularities, black holes and how multi-dimensional beings can be visible to 3 dimensional humans, that the trio were able to send the bugs back to heaven. Skuld decided to stay on earth to make sure that the bugs didn't come back. But of course, that was also the perfect excuse to meddle in Keiichi and Bell's business.

While Urd and Belldandy were fully fledged goddesses capable of wielding tremendous amounts of magical power, and having a high degree of command over their goddess abilities, Skuld was just coming into her power. It had only been since a boy her age named Sentaro came into her life and befriended her, that she was able to muster even the lowest levels of power. Skuld's strengths lie in her inventions. She had this innate ability to create complex contraptions seemingly from out of nowhere. Most of the time her inventions worked, but not always as she expected them. She also had the ability to perform highly complicated math problems that would leave her sisters guessing. Belldandy tried to convince Skuld in her own way to rely less on her inventions and more on developing her magical powers, but that approach only provided mixed results.

But now, Skuld was intent on making sure that Keiichi didn't get his grubby paws on her beloved big sister Belldandy. She reached under her blouse to grab a Skuld-bomb and pitch it at Keiichi when the oldest of the goddess trio floated into the room.

Urd.

Long flowing platinum hair. Skin like polished bronze. Dressed in a skintight miniskirt with plenty of cleavage. Half demon, Half goddess. All attitude. Urd was the complete antithesis to Belldandy. While Bell was even-tempered, thoughtful, stable and kind, Urd was moody, had a Machiavellian streak a mile wide and very unpredictable. Belldandy always made sure that she dressed in a manner that balanced her femininity and her modest conservative nature. Urd was an honors graduate of the "If You Got It, Flaunt It" school of fashion. There was very little in her wardrobe that wasn't too short, too tight or too low cut, and a good bit of it was all three.

Urd believed completely in the ends justifying the means, however she sometimes got so wrapped up in the means that she lost track of the ends. She was fiercely protective of her sisters. It was because of that desire that she refused elevation to Goddess First Class despite showing clear evidence of having the power and the ability to control that power required of a First Class Goddess. Urd had a tendency to lie. And she believed that sometimes it was necessary to lie in order to protect Belldandy and Skuld. And Heaven forbade First Class Goddesses from telling lies. So Urd was content to remain a Second Class Goddess.

On the whole, Urd could be quite charming when she wanted to be. But there were times when it was difficult to determine what her agenda was. A malfunction in the Ultimate Force that enforced goddess' contracts brought Urd to earth, but she also used that excuse as a cover in an effort to jump start Keiichi and Belldandy's relationship. Urd had always maintained that Keiichi was not being aggressive enough in moving the relationship along to a more "adult" level. And she had used her vast knowledge of potions to manipulate Keiichi and Belldandy's libidos more than a few times, but they never seemed to work. Keiichi was especially resistant to Urd's charms. It just seemed that Kei and Bell were going to move the relationship along only as fast as it suited them, and there wasn't anything that anyone could do about it. But that didn't stop Urd from trying.

Urd floated into the room. "Skuld, put that away. No one's in the mood to put up with your bomb throwing today" she said with a hint of boredom in her voice.

Skuld put the bomb down with a little more force than was necessary and with an indignant look, said "Humph, You're just mad that I beat you in Goddess Poker!"

Urd retorted "How hard is it for YOU to win in a game that YOU invented, and in which YOU kept making up the rules as we went along?"

She had a point, but Skuld refused to back down. " That's no excuse! If you can't adapt, it's not my fault."

Urd was about to respond, but Keiichi interrupted " Ok, you two, can you please settle down and carry your argument elsewhere?, it's dinner time, and I'd like a little peace at the table.

Both sisters looked at him with a hint of anger but decided not to pursue the matter further.

Urd took a sniff at the stew and said " My, Belldandy really outdid herself today. It smells yummy!"

Keiichi said "Yeah, it's great." through a mouthful of fish.

Skuld piped up " You say that about everything Belldandy cooks."

"And it's true."

Urd went over to the liquor cabinet and pulled out a bottle of sake. She popped the cork, took a long pull out of the bottle, and said, "Well, can't have a good meal without a drink to go with it." She grabbed sake cups and poured a shot for her and Keiichi.

Belldandy asked once again about the stew " Well, Keiichi?"

He looked into her eyes and said "It was absolutely perfect. just like you." And he reached across the table and gave Belldandy a very big hug. Skuld stared daggers at the couple and Kei could literally see the smoke coming out of the little goddess's ears, but he didn't care. He was in the arms of HIS goddess and he wasn't going to be denied. As he held Bell, he felt both their hearts beating as one, in perfect unison. Her touch was so soft, her warmth completely enveloped him. Keiichi could actually feel Bell's goddess powers simmering within her. He wanted to kiss her, but he just couldn't bring himself to do it.

And that was his frustration. Beyond holding hands and the occasional hug, he was not able to become more intimate with Belldandy. He knew that Bell was not ready to take the relationship to a sexual level, and he respected her feelings on the matter. He just wished that they could move from an "elementary school" romance to a middle ground between full-on intimacy and their current state. What was stopping him? Was Bell ready to move along and she was just waiting for him to take the lead? Was he afraid that she would be offended and accuse him of moving faster than she wanted if he took a more aggressive approach? Either way, this paralysis by analysis was getting him nowhere. And Bell could feel it as they released from their embrace. She looked at him with concern. "Keiichi, is something wrong?"

Damn, Keiichi thought, she's too good at reading my aura.

"No, Belldandy, nothing's wrong. This stew is wonderful, just like everything you make."

"Thank you, Keiichi. I'm so glad you liked it." And then she reached over the table and gave Keiichi a kiss on the cheek, which cause him to blush a very deep red.

Skuld looked at Urd and asked "What was that all about?"

Urd responded " I have no idea."

Chapter 3

7:30pm Friday Evening.

Things finally settled down in the Tea Room. At Keiichi's request, Belldandy also joined him in eating the stew. As a goddess, Bell didn't need to partake of food for nourishment because she, like Skuld and Urd, derived their powers from the earth which was then processed by Yggdrasil, the hopelessly complicated computer system that governed both the Divine and the Human realms. She could eat food and derive pleasure from it, but it was not necessary for her to eat to survive. If anything, she received more satisfaction from cooking for Keiichi than from eating her own food. But Keiichi told her that it would make him happy if she were to eat with him. And as the first function of a goddess was to make those with whom she interacted happy, she could not refuse his request. They had gotten about halfway through the stew when a set of familiar and not entirely welcome voices from outside put Keiichi's teeth on edge.

"MORISATO-O-O-O-O-O-O-O"

"Oh no, not them!" Keiichi lamented, fearing the worst.

Belldandy got up from the table and walked up to the front door. "Hello, everybody! Come on in, we're just eating dinner."

"T'anks, Belldandy, don't mind if we do." a gruff low voice rumbled.

Into the temple walked Keiichi's sempais, Tamiya and Ootaki. And they also brought along Chihiro Fujimi, the owner of Whirlwind as well as Keiichi's boss and Sora Hasegawa, the current director of the Nekomi Tech Motor Club was bringing up the rear.

Tamiya and Ootaki were the former directors of the Motor Club, which was the group Keiichi belonged to when he attended Nekomi Tech. The club existed to foster a love for various types of motor vehicles. The club was founded by Chihiro, and Tamiya and Ootaki took over from her. They were two inseparable brutes that towered over the rest of the club in terms of height as well as influence. In order to raise money for the club's constantly empty coffers, the two crazies would hatch all sorts of hare-brained schemes, often at Keiichi's expense in terms of both finances and pride. Tamiya was as wide as he was tall and wore a wife beater shirt, dark baggy pants and tabi socks no matter what time of year. Of the two, he was the acknowledged leader even though he was as dumb as a post when it came to knowledge other than fixing cars and bikes. Ootaki was equally as tall, a little more intelligent, had the greatest mohawk mullet ever conceived and wore a leather jacket that had hundreds of tools stored in various loops and pockets of the jacket. He also had two spark plugs dangling from his ears. He insisted that it wasn't a fashion statement, but rather it insured that if he needed them, they were readily available.

Even though Tamiya and Ootaki were graduate students and were no longer technically the Directors of the Motor Club, they made themselves the Executive Council so they could stay in charge and gave Hasegawa all the hassles that came with being the Director, but little of the authority.

Chihiro was an attractive, outgoing woman a little older than Urd, who had a stellar career as a motorcycle racer after she left Nekomi Tech. It was after she raced Keiichi on a minibike through the streets of the Nekomi campus that she rediscovered the fun times she had in the Motor Club, she then left the racing circuit and followed her dream of opening her own motorcycle shop and hired Keiichi and Belldandy on as a mechanic and shop assistant, respectively. Even though she was no longer part of the Motor Club as a student, she used her self-proclaimed founder's privileges to remain involved in club activities.

Sora Hasegawa was a cute, shy girl younger than Keiichi who took over as Director of the Motor Club after winning a mandated race against Keiichi, who assumed the directorship after Tamiya and Ootaki graduated. The only female member of the Club, she had a very young looking face and body and was constantly being mistaken for a high school girl. She was also very insecure, couldn't cook if her life depended on it, and was not at all thrilled about taking over the directorship of the Motor Club. But she was a tireless worker who loved to deflect the credit to her more visible companions, very intelligent when it came down to cars, and Keiichi and Belldandy were quite fond of her.

No sooner had the Motor Club leadership barged into the temple, than in walked Keiichi's younger sister Megumi Morisato. Perky to the point of being a smartass and also extremely cute, Megumi was a year behind Kei when he was at Nekomi Tech. She was almost as good a rider as Keiichi and not too shabby with a wrench either. Despite having an apartment in Nekomi City that she got for a steal with Keiichi and Bell's help, she couldn't resist coming over to the temple on most days for one of Belldandy's delicious breakfasts.

"Hi, Kei," Megumi chirped. "I was passing by, and saw the lights on, so I just wanted to drop by and hang out."

Keiichi said with resignation in his voice "C'mon in, Meg,"

Chihiro walked up to Keiichi and said " There's a Motor Club meeting, and we decided to have it here at the temple. Hope you don't mind."

"Did I have a choice?" Kei asked, and Chihiro immediately responded "No."

"But I'm no longer a member of the Motor Club"

" Nonsense, Once a member of the Club, always a member of the Club."

" Where does it say that in the by-laws?"

" Article 4 Subsection 3, and I quote 'All current members of the Motor Club will retain their full membership status after they cease their attendance at and obligations to The Nekomi Institute of Technology whether by graduation or leaving the institution by other means.'"

"There's nothing in the by-laws that says that" Keiichi blustered incredulously.

"Yes there is, because I put it in there." Chihiro said triumphantly.

"And what gave you THAT authority?" Keiichi bawled.

"Article 4 Subsection 1, and I quote 'The Founder of the Motor Club retains the right to add or subtract from the by-laws as she sees fit.'"

"Oh." Keiichi mumbled. He knew that such authority didn't exist, but he didn't want to go round and round with Chihiro. Besides it had become a lot more fun in the Club since she came back, and Tamiya and Ootaki have been better behaved with her riding herd on them. "Oh, all right. Make yourselves at home. We have a really good fish stew and plenty to go around."

" Hey guys! Keiichi's inviting us to dinner!"

"HOOOORAYYYY!" a loud cheer bellowed from the Tea Room, while Keiichi groaned in resignation.

Keiichi pulled Belldandy aside and said. "I'm sorry this happened, Belldandy. I wasn't expecting all these people to show up. I hope this isn't going to make extra work for you."

Belldandy put her hand on Keiichi's arm and said "Don't worry Keiichi. It'll be no problem at all. Besides, it's been a while since we had company in the temple. This night could turn out to be a lot of fun." Bell was always quick to see the good in all situations, even in the infamous Motor Club meetings.

"Thanks, Belldandy. You're the greatest." And then Keiichi leaned over and gave Belldandy a kiss on the cheek. She blushed and asked " What was that for?"

Keiichi grabbed her hand and lead her into his room so they could have some privacy, and said "That was for the kiss you gave me a few minutes ago. While we were embracing, I was concerned that somehow our relationship wasn't moving along as we'd like. I was afraid that it might be that I'm not being assertive enough in conveying my feelings to you. And if I were, you'd be insulted. Or maybe that you're willing to move along, but waiting for me to take the lead. I'm so confused, Belldandy. I don't know what to do about us."

Belldandy took Keiichi's hands into her own and said "Keiichi, ever since we've met, you have been nothing but a true gentleman to me. You have never taken advantage of me, nor have given me any reason to put anything less than my full faith and trust in you. You have treated me with the utmost respect. And you've always considered my feelings in all things. Every day we have spent together has been a blessing to me. You have taught me so much about life as a human. I can only hope that I have done as much for you, as you have done for me. Our relationship will grow as strong as the mightiest oak. But like that mighty oak has to grow from a tiny acorn. It will take time, don't rush it. One day we'll both know when will be the right time to make the next move. After all, I did say that I would stay with you forever."

Still holding hands, Keiichi said "Thank you Belldandy. That takes a very large load off my mind. But what happens if one day, you can no longer fulfill our contract, and you have to go back to heaven?..."

Bell put a finger to Keiichi's lips and said "First of all, It's not just about the contract. I'm here because I really and truly want to be with you. When and if that day comes, we'll deal with it then, but know this, Keiichi Morisato. I love you with all my heart and I always will." Bell moved in to give Keiichi a real kiss when Chihiro stumbled between them. It was apparent that she had already found the liquor cabinet.

"Aw-right, you two lovebirds-s-s, The date-sh over! Meeting time!" With that, she grabbed both of them by the arm and marched them back to the Tea Room.

Chapter 4

8:15pm Friday Evening.

"This meeting of the Nekomi Tech Motor Club will now come to order." With those words, Sora Hasegawa opened the meeting. "The first item on the agenda is the financial report."

Hasegawa reached into her jacket pocket and pulled out the report and with a mildly disgusted look on her face that gave away the anticipated bad news, read it. "The incoming balance from last month was 200,000 yen. Income: 2,000 yen from the weekly drawing; 10,000 yen from club dues; 100,000 yen from the win over Chiba University in last week's go-kart race; and finally, 50,000 yen from the school festival karaoke concert put on by the Motor Club. Total income, 362,000 yen."

A loud shout of approval came from Tamiya and Ootaki, however Keiichi figured out that the other shoe was about to drop and make a very loud noise when it did.

Sora gulped and continued. "Expenses: 150,000 yen for the damages caused to the athletic field due to it being burned up by the post- karaoke concert fireworks; 65,000 yen for the celebratory beer and sake which mysteriously disappeared from the go-kart race victory party, 80,000 yen in returned dues to the people who quit the club because of the missing beer and sake. Also we owe the Gardening Club 65,000 yen for the damage done to their greenhouse when Tamiya's go-kart got out of control and crashed into it. Total expenses: 360,000 yen. Current balance: 2,000 yen."

The happiness showed by Tamiya and Ootaki quickly gave way to misery. Tamiya grumbled "So whadda we gonna do wit' two t'ousand yen?"

Chihiro shouted " I wanna know what the hell happened to the beer and sake!" The two looked at each other sheepishly and admitted "Well, uh, we drank it!"

Chihiro screamed all the louder "What, You two idiots drank 65,000 yen worth of beer and sake and didn't invite me? I thought I taught you better than that!"

"Sorry Chihiro, we wasn't t'inkin'."

"Damn straight, you wasn't t'inkin!" imitated Chihiro as she glowered at Tamiya and Ootaki with pure hatred in her eyes.

Keiichi then asked "Well, how are you guys gonna raise money?" knowing that he wasn't going to like the answer because it was inevitably going to involve him.

Ootaki said "Glad you asked, Morisato, my man." He then pulled out a piece of paper from his jacket pocket and handed it to Keiichi. It was done up in the usual garish Motor Club style and Kei knew it was going to be trouble as soon as he touched it. He read "Announcing the First Annual Nekomi Tech Auto Club Blindfolded Gas Powered Unicycle Race starring the Champion of Nekomi Tech, Keiichi Morisato!"

Keiichi's eyes grew as big as coffee saucers as he yelped "WHAT?" You want me to ride a gas powered unicycle blindfolded in a race?"

Ootaki said "Yeah, you'll take on all challengers and we'll charge people to watch as well as compete. We'll make a ton of money! You'll do it for the honor of the Motor Club, won't you Morisato?" He said in a semi-threatening tone. The two bullies moved in to shake Keiichi down for his consent, but were stopped by a suddenly very unhappy Belldandy who stood between them and Keiichi. She had been listening quietly to the conversation, and normally she would enthusiastically approve of any idea the Club came up with, but this latest stunt was too much even for her. She glared into both men's eyes and said with finality, "I will not allow Keiichi to participate in this race! It is not safe and I will not stand for him being hurt because of the Motor Club!"

Against his better judgement, Tamiya defiantly stood up to the goddess. "If I'se remember correctly, you ain't a member of the Club, Belldandy. So ya ain't got no say in tha matter!"

Chihiro immediately interrupted "Oh, yes she does!, You two goons forget that Belldandy did a lot for the Motor Club over the years! Who made you guys lunch and served you tea while you were working on your projects? Who singlehandedly won the Economy Race for the Motor Club? Who drove the go-kart against Diana Lockheed? Who wore those stupid race queen outfits when you were trying to get members? If I was told correctly, it was Belldandy."

Tamiya and Ootaki felt about 3 inches tall. But Chihiro wasn't done.

"Just to show you who really wears the pants in this Club, I'm invoking my Founder's Privilege and making Belldandy a full member, with all rights and privileges in appreciation of her service to the Motor Club."

Belldandy said "Chihiro, I appreciate your gesture in coming to my defense, but it isn't necessary. I enjoyed helping out the Club, it was a lot of fun, but I don't want Keiichi to be involved in this race. You don't have to make me a member of the Club."

Chihiro would hear nothing of it. "Nonsense, Belldandy. If you don't ride herd on these two clowns, they'll run all over you. Something you, of all people, should have learned, Morisato!"

Ootaki suddenly brightened up, "Okay, then if we can't get Morisato, maybe, uh, Ha-se-ga-wa? he slowly turned to leer at Sora who turned a deathly shade of white and was looking for an escape route. "Ohhhhh, no! You guys aren't getting me up on that thing. No way!"

Tamiya brusquely reminded her "You're da president of da Club, Hasegawa. You gots ta set the example for de youngah members." He and Ootaki were ready to jump on Sora until Belldandy intervened once again, but instead of gently talking them out of their decision, she merely knocked them out with a discreetly cast sleep spell. The two awoke a half hour later with no recollection of trying to badger the frightened girl into doing their crazy stunt.

There was other minor business to be covered, but the proceedings quickly gave way to the real reason for being there, and that was: gorging on Belldandy 's wonderful cooking; getting blind stinking drunk; and singing astoundingly bad karaoke. Somehow, a case of beer and sake materialized from out of nowhere. Also no matter how much of the fish stew was eaten, the pot never ran out. And while Keiichi didn't own a karaoke machine, Skuld was only too happy to oblige bringing out her latest invention: The Super Magnificent Frank Sinatra Karaoke Master Machine No. 15. Inside of an hour, Tamiya and Ootaki were taking turns wailing into the karaoke machine some fractured tune about what a man's gotta do, and mixing it with the Motor Club Anthem. The result of which was truly awful.

Sora Hasegawa was drunk after three beers and had pinned Keiichi in the corner on yet another of her continual rants concerning her lack of height and womanly features,

"K-e-e-i-i-i-c-h-i, Y-you think I'm cute don't you?" Hasegawa slurred while pushing up against the petrified Keiichi. "I'm not a h-high s-school girl. My boobies are just as big as Belldandy's, D-don't you think so?, well, don't you?" She complained while rubbing up against him. Of course having never seen either Belldandy's or Sora's breasts uncovered, Kei was not in a position to make a comparison. "Well, Hasegawa." Keiichi blubbered, "I c-can't really say o-one way or the other." Oh, crap! If Belldandy sees this she's gonna have a fit, please go away Hasegawa-a-a-a-!

He tried to get away, all the while hoping and praying that Belldandy didn't see what was going on but the hysterical Hasegawa blocked him at every turn. "That settles it, I g-guess I just have to show you!" Sora whined. She pulled up her shirt and was about to give Keiichi an eyeful, when Belldandy came to her beleaguered man's rescue. "Sora dear, can you come outside with me, there's something I need to show you." Belldandy said sweetly while at the same time smoothly and firmly guiding the drunken girl away from Keiichi, who breathed a very large sigh of relief. He thought to himself, "I gotta get outta here, or else I'll go crazy!"

Chihiro, Urd, and Megumi were sitting in another corner getting royally smashed and Meg kept telling the other two girls embarrassing stories about Keiichi, which gave Urd and Chihiro plenty of ammunition that could be used against him if he didn't do what they wanted. Megumi pulled out a picture of Keiichi and showed it to the others. "And here's a picture of Kei when he was in elementary school. He even had that dorky look back then!" Chihiro said "Aaaaaww, isn't he the cutest!" Chihiro had a thing about all things cute, whether it was bikes, boys or kitties.

Skuld was able to use her growing goddess power to make three half gallon tubs of premium Rocky Road ice cream appear from nothing and was happily sitting at the dinner table wolfing down the creamy confection as fast as she could shovel it into her mouth.

Meanwhile, Keiichi found Belldandy. "Bell, why don't you and I find someplace where we can be alone. All this craziness is freaking me out." Bell was only too happy to take advantage of Keiichi's offer. "Yes, Keiichi, I think that would be a really good idea, we haven't had any alone time in a while.", she smiled. And they took advantage of the chaos to slip away and spend some quality time together. There in the quiet of his room, Kei and Bell sat on the floor with their arms round each other looking at the full moon through the window and reminiscing about past adventures and generally enjoying each other's company. She leaned up against him with her head on his shoulder, a contented look on her face. Keiichi said "Thanks for standing up for me back there. I really appreciate it."

Bell snuggled up closer to Keiichi and said "It was nothing. I didn't want you to get hurt, that's all."

Keiichi looked at Belldandy and asked her, " Do you remember the first road trip we took with the Motor Club and Ootaki and Tamiya tried so hard to keep us separated? They kept sending me out on those training runs on the ATV's and I never had the chance to spend any time with you."

Bell answered, "Yes, I remember it well. I put that note in your room and made the words invisible so that only you could read it." Keiichi then said "And then we met at the lighthouse and you were so happy to see me that you tackled me and sent me flying into the ocean." Bell laughed and replied "I wanted to be with you so badly that I got a little carried away. I guess I get like that sometimes." Keiichi said "Yes, you do. You've never been one to hide your feelings."

Belldandy said evenly "Well, I believe that if you love someone, you should always let your feelings about that person be out front so the whole world can see them." Her face brightened, "I've got one! Do you remember when I got sick and you kept mixing up Urd's medicines to find an antidote and you ended up turning yourself into a girl?" Bell giggled. Keiichi groaned and said "You had to bring that one up didn't you?"

"Yes, I thought you looked so cute."

"You're the only one who did. Thank goodness Ootaki and Tamiya never saw me like that, I'd never hear the end of it."

"We've had a lot of fun times together, Keiichi. I never thought that living with a human could be so exciting."

" I could say the same thing about living with a goddess."

"Or three."

"Or four when Peorth decides to pop in."

"True."

Bell then looked at Keiichi with a slight look of concern on her face. "Keiichi, do you ever regret having Skuld and Urd here living with us?"

"Why do you ask?"

"Because, although they mean well, they do get in the way. And sometimes I think that you aren't as happy with them around as when we were here alone. I could send them back if you told me to."

Keiichi weighed his words carefully so as not to upset Belldandy. "First of all Belldandy, I'd never tell you to do anything. You're my goddess, not my slave. Bell, I'd be lying if I said that there were days that I wished they'd go back to Heaven. They can be a pain in the butt. I know that Skuld loves you so much and can't bear to see me taking you away from her. And Urd is the exact opposite, she's so bent on getting us together that she goes way overboard. But at the same time, Skuld and Urd are your sisters. You love them and they love you in their own special way. It's like me and Megumi. She can be annoying, but in the end she is still my sister and I have to love her and take care of her.

I can never ask you to send your sisters away anymore than I could ask Megumi to go away. We just have to learn to live with each other, and you and I will have to take advantage of times like this to spend time together." Keiichi chuckled. "Now if you can arrange for Yggdrasil to have the occasional minor meltdown so that Skuld and Urd have to respond...?"

Belldandy half scolded,"Oh, Keiichi!" and playfully slapped him on the shoulder.

"Bell?"

"Yes?"

"Close your eyes and open them only when I say so."

Belldandy closed her eyes and Keiichi got up and quietly padded over to his clothes drawer and picked out a special article of clothing that meant a lot to him. He put it on and then said "Ok Belldandy, open your eyes."

Bell opened them and exclaimed " You're wearing the sweater I knitted for you! How sweet!" One chilly fall day, Belldandy had noticed that Keiichi was outside working on his bike and he was shivering. So she decided to knit him a sweater to keep him warm. It took her three days away from classes to finish the garment, and despite never having knitted before, as usual with almost everything Belldandy undertook, it turned out perfect. It was cream colored with blue diamonds on the torso and sleeves. On the right sleeve she knitted the letters K1 after Keiichi's name. She locked her feelings about her man into every stitch. She never had a chance to present it to Keiichi in person due to Sayoko Mishima's interference, but it eventually found its way into his hands. And the look of appreciation on Keiichi's face was one that Belldandy would never forget. And he never felt the cold while he wore that sweater. He walked back to Bell and sat down next to her. She lovingly put her arms around him and held him tight and nuzzled her head against his shoulder. She caressed the soft yarn of the sweater, felt the warmth coming from his body and sighed contentedly.

"I love you, Keiichi!"

Keiichi smiled and though to himself "I love you too, Belldandy. One day, I'll have the guts to tell you, but until then, I'll have to show my feelings in other ways."

Keiichi knew that this could have been a perfect time to explore the possibility of moving their relationship forward somewhat, at least on a physical level, but he also remembered Belldandy's words about taking time for the relationship to grow and not rushing things. Still, he wondered what it would be like to make love to a goddess.

That thought had conveyed itself to Belldandy who could still read his mind on a limited basis. One day, Keiichi, my love, she thought to herself, you will find out.

After a while, Keiichi said "So Belldandy, how do think the party's going, the place must be a mess by now."

No answer.

"Bell."

Nothing.

"Belldandy?"

He looked down at his goddess and she was fast asleep, head still against his shoulder, arms still wrapped tightly around him. He could hear her silent breathing. A stray strand of hair across her face. Keiichi thought "Even in sleep, she's so beautiful."

He put his arms around Belldandy and held her tenderly, as if she was like a china doll, kissed her on the forehead and watched her as she slept. It was a long day for the goddess, preparing meals, doing chores, making sure that Keiichi and her sister's needs were met, and on top of it all acting as the gracious host of a hastily thrown party. It was only right for her to deplete a lot of energy. He looked out the window and silently thanked the Almighty for allowing this woman, this goddess to come into his life. "She does so much for me, it's just not right." As he was watching the night sky, he saw one particular star flash brightly for an instant, as if the Almighty was saying "you're welcome."

After a while, he too succumbed to the call of sleep.

The next morning, Urd was busy in her lab preparing hangover medication for the gang. Because she used sake as an alternative energy source, and had a tolerance for the stuff that only a goddess could have, she was the least affected of everybody there. The Tea Room looked like a Skuld-bomb went off in a bar with bodies stacked on top of each other like cordwood. The odor of stale beer and sake hung like a thick fog through the temple. Skuld was sitting at the dinner table surrounded by half gallon ice cream containers, trying to ignore her aching tummy. Megumi and Chihiro were still sitting in the corner passed out leaning up against each other. Somehow, Tamiya and Ootaki ended up outside in the courtyard with Banpei, Skuld's watchman robot continually whacking them with his staff trying to get them to wake up. Sora was further out in the courtyard near the Tanuki statue alternately complaining to it and flashing it. And being a statue, the Tanuki showed no reaction whatsoever. All in all, a typical night with the Motor Club.

Keiichi woke up a little bit woozy. The clock said 9:30 am, Saturday morning. He didn't remember drinking all that much. He spent most of the night in his room with Belldandy. He looked through the window at the sunlight streaming in and thought to himself, at least it's going to be a nice day. He stretched out his arms, gave a big yawn, and dropped them to his side. His right arm fell on something soft yet firm. Startled, he looked to see where his arm landed and almost lost it when he found his hand on a sleeping Belldandy's naked upper thigh. Bell had fallen asleep curled up next to him and her sundress, while already fairly short had ridden up quite a bit, affording Keiichi an eyeful of his girlfriend's long and very shapely legs. He also noted that she had the good sense to put on a pair of underwear, although the sight of the alluringly brief and lacy French cut bikinis plus the fact that he wasn't completely awake yet caused his heart to skip a beat.

"YAAAAAAAGH!" his scream resonated all through the temple.

Urd sauntered into Keiichi's room to see what the trouble was. She said "Kei, can you keep it down, people are trying to slee...Whoo-hoo-hoo! Hmm, Keiichi, is that you got up to last night?" Urd cooed with a lascivious tone in her voice. "We were wondering where you two went. Congratulations Keiichi Morisato, you are now a man! I am impressed! And without any help from me either."

"Urd, cut it out. Nothing happened last night"

"Bell? Bell. Wake up. It's morning."

No answer.

"Belldandy?"

"Hmm?"

"Wake up Belldandy, it's morning."

Bell stirred next to Keiichi, opened her eyes, and took one look at him and his wayward hand and then looked at the clock.

"Oh No! I'm late. Everyone's waiting for me to fix breakfast. I'm so sorry, Keiichi. Please forgive me!" Bell cried as she got her bearings together.

"Don't worry, Belldandy" Keiichi said "Everything's all right. With the exception of you, me, Urd and, I think Sora, everyone else is still asleep. Take your time getting ready. Do you remember what we did last night?"

Belldandy sorted through her thoughts and then said "Well, I remember we were sitting here in your room. We had our arms around each other and we were looking out through the window at the full moon and talking about all the great times we've had over the years. You put on the sweater I made for you. I guess that I used up a lot of power last night with the cooking and the entertaining of our guests, that I ended up going into a dormant phase and went to sleep. But I did get to sleep in the arms of the one I love." Belldandy closed with a contented giggle.

Keiichi blushed and asked "There's nothing else you remember?"

"No...why do you ask?"

"Urd, here thinks that we had gotten up to no good."

"Gotten up to no good?" Bell asked, clearly not knowing what that phrase meant.

" She thinks we did something we shouldn't have done."

"Did we?"

" No, Belldandy. We didn't do anything other than what you said. See, Urd, nothing else happened."

"Too bad." Urd said "You had a chance to really move your relationship ahead, but you didn't take it. I don't know whether to pity you for blowing the chance or commend you for showing such restraint. Either way, I'm going to get the rest of the Sleeping Beauties up and about. Don't let Skuld see you two like that, she'll hit the roof and the last thing a bunch of hungover drunks want to hear this time of the morning is that mouth of hers at full blast. I suggest that Belldandy leaves first and Kei, you leave about 5 minutes later.

"Hmm, That's the difference between you and me, Belldandy. If it were me and Keiichi in a room all alone, I would have been all over him." Urd winked at Bell and shuffled off towards the Tea Room.

Chapter 5

10am Saturday Morning.

Belldandy got herself sorted out, and quietly went off to the bathroom to take a bath and change clothes. Keiichi grabbed a clean shirt and pants out of his clothes drawer and waited for the bathroom to clear so he could get cleaned up. While he was waiting, his mind drifted back to last night. Was Urd right? Did I blow the best chance I'd ever have of getting intimate with Belldandy? Was Bell giving me the green light, but I was color blind? He grabbed the picture of Belldandy standing next to the temple bell in that very sundress she wore last night, and as was his custom, he looked at it for a few moments, and then kissed it. Maybe a little longer than usual.

Meanwhile, Belldandy was sitting in the hot bath relaxing. Like a traditional Japanese bath, she scrubbed herself clean with a bucket and soapy hot water before lowering herself into the bath to soak. It was during this time of day, that Bell would think about the day's events, and what she had to do, as well as what she was going to prepare for Keiichi. She thought about making a Western style breakfast for Keiichi today. She tried that once before, and he liked it a lot. Obviously the temple had to be physically and ritually cleansed. All the drunken debauchery that occurred last night would not be good for the temple's vibrations. She started to think to herself as well. Am I denying Keiichi that which he clearly wants most? Am I being selfish in withholding myself from him? Is it time that I finally allow myself to clear that final hurdle that prevents me and Keiichi from getting intimate? And by denying him this intimacy, am I violating my first function of a goddess which is to bring happiness to all I encounter? His happiness is supposed to come before mine. But Keiichi would never want to be happy if I have to suffer. And most of all, am I interfering in the natural course of the relationship if I continue to hold back? Or am I interfering if I move ahead?

In the course of being employed by the Goddess Assistance Agency, Belldandy had fulfilled wishes of a sexual nature. It didn't happen all that often because Yggdrasil matched goddesses to wishes based on their basic compatibility with the wish in question. That's why Yggdrasil sent Peorth down to Keiichi when he had his unspoken sexual desires. Peorth was more compatible with fulfilling the desires of the flesh. But occasionally, Yggdrasil had a hiccup in its programming, and sometimes sent Belldandy to a client with a sexual wish. It was part and parcel of being a Goddess First Class, Second Category. That license she held was the license of a field goddess, which meant that she had the authority to go to Earth and make contracts with humans. As opposed to a First Category license like Skuld and Urd possessed. They didn't have the authority to contract with humans and really weren't supposed to be on Earth in the first place.

But when Belldandy was presented with sexual wishes she didn't take them personally. Her training dictated that as a Goddess First Class, she had to do whatever it took to fulfill a clients contract. So she would perform the desired service required to the best of her ability, and all the while maintaining her happy and pleasant demeanor. To her it was all about the fulfilling of the contract. In all those cases, the relationship was strictly goddess/client. Once the contract was fulfilled, the relationship was over and she went on her way. Nothing more. There were no moral hangups in Belldandy's mind about fulfilling those wishes, because she was not subject to human morality. Unless it was a wish that directly threatened the Earth, she could not refuse to grant it. It was part of the job.

But now she had a contract with a human who's happiness was directly tied to hers. Keiichi would never be happy as long as Belldandy was unhappy. And vice versa. This is the first contract of this type she had encountered.

She didn't expect to fall in love with Keiichi when she first met him in that dorm room years ago. She just figured that he would wish for something more mundane like a million dollars, or a brand new car, or that he could be irresistible to Earth girls. She could knock out a wish like that with her eyes closed, and be on her way in a few minutes or a day at the most. But he had to come up with a crazy wish like "I'd like for a goddess like you to stay with me always!" Who'd come up with a outlandish wish like that?

Then after submitting the request to Yggdrasil, she assumed that wish would be kicked out in a heartbeat because it was just plain impractical, unprecedented, and maybe even unenforceable in the fullness of time. After Yggdrasil approved the wish, and she was stuck here on Earth for the time being, she thought that she would go along and do what he asked in order to fulfill the contract. Be cheerful, put on the happy face, play the good little goddess. After all, that was what her job was all about, right? And maybe after a few weeks or months on Earth which is merely a tiny slice of time in Heaven, he'd get bored with her or feel that she fulfilled enough of his wishes and desires that he'd send her back.

But no. She had to get the one guy in the world that was totally selfless, and put others happiness before his own.. The one guy who actually cared about her feelings and wants. The one guy that wanted to share his life with her. The one guy who was most like her. And then she had to fall in love with him.

Keiichi did more for her in those few short years than all the time she spent in Heaven. He taught her, a mighty goddess, about life as a frail, mortal, limited human. Through his humanity, he helped her to become a better goddess. Through his strengths, he showed her her weaknesses and flaws. And even when those flaws manifested themselves, sometimes in quite destructive and ungoddess-like ways, he never turned her away. He never turned his back on her. He accepted and loved her unconditionally. That touched Belldandy.

And tipped her attitude from just staying around to fulfill the contract to wanting to spend her life with him.

When Urd became the Lord of Terror and she threatened the Earth with destruction, Keiichi didn't turn and run like any other human. He stood up to the Lord of Terror, even to the point of containing the Lord of Terror himself until the goddesses were able to vanquish him.

When the Angel Eater had stolen her angel as well as the angels of Urd, Peorth, and one of the twin angels of the warrior goddess, Lind, It fell to Lind, Skuld with her tiny angel, Noble Scarlet, and Keiichi to fight off the beast. Kei even showed the ability to support and deploy Lind's remaining angel, Cool Mint. No human had ever shown that power. He was even able to host that demonic familiar implanted in Belldandy by the head of Demonkind, Hild after Bell had turned that familiar into an angel..

That situation didn't go nearly as well, but the fact that the familiar latched herself to Keiichi was remarkable just the same.

This human, This Keiichi Morisato, though unassuming and ordinary in appearance had something about him that intrigued Belldandy. The love and respect he showed her. The willingness to put up with the antics of Skuld, Urd, and Peorth. The almost god-like powers that he sometimes manifested. Keiichi Morisato was no ordinary human. What other human could hear the song of the Lorelei, or fix the intricate parts of the Machiners? What manner of man was this Morisato?

Bell still had a lot of thinking to do, but she had spent almost 45 minutes in the bath and she still needed to get some kind of breakfast on the table. She climbed out of the tub, dried herself off and conjured up a blue and white long billowy housedress and a white ribbon for her hair. She left the bathroom and as she passed Keiichi's room she said " Keiichi, the bathroom's clear if you want to use it. I'll have breakfast ready by the time you get out.

"Ok, Belldandy. Are you alright?"

"Yes, Keiichi. I'm fine. She smiled. "It was a lot of fun spending time with you last night. I really enjoyed our night together. We have a lot to talk about over the next few days."

With that she walked down the hall towards the kitchen.

Keiichi wondered about that last sentence. "We have a lot to talk about over the next few days?, What does that mean?"

Chapter 6

11am Saturday Morning.

Despite Belldandy's late start on preparing breakfast, nobody complained. Most likely because they weren't really sober enough to put two sentences together. Chihiro finally came to, stumbled into the bathroom to wash her face. She then went out into the courtyard and rounded up Tamiya and Ootaki, who were cowering against the wall with Banpei angrily waving his staff at them. She then went over to the Tanuki and convinced Sora that the badger statue totally agreed with her viewpoint and would she please put her top back on. After she got her bedraggled bunch of drunks in one place, she then went back into the kitchen and spoke with Keiichi and the goddesses.

"Keiichi, thanks for letting us have our meeting here. We had a great time, and once again, Belldandy was the perfect hostess."

Belldandy apologized about the lateness of the breakfast for the third time in ten minutes and then added "I'm glad you enjoyed yourselves. Everyone seemed to have a lot of fun. We must do it again sometime."

Chihiro responded "I'm sure we will. Hey, I noticed that you and Keiichi weren't hanging out with the rest of us." With a sly grin, she said "Were you two off k-i-s-s-i-n-g?"

Urd, always game to put Keiichi in hot water, piped up "Oh yeah! They were going at it hot and heavy! I'm surprised that Kei is still standing after the night they had."

Keiichi stammered "H-hey, you're embarrassing Belldandy! We did spend the night together, but absolutely nothing happened, right, Bell?"

Belldandy thought about playing along with Urd and Chihiro, but decided against it. "No, nothing happened at all. Although I did fall asleep in his arms."

Chihiro mused "Well, that's a start. We'd take you up on the breakfast offer, but I'm dragging these losers back to the campus and putting them to bed. They don't have classes today. Also we've been in your hair long enough. See ya on Monday, Morisato. "

Chihiro collected her Motor Club charges and drove them back to campus.

Annoyed, Keiichi grumbled " At least they could have offered to help clean up this place. It's a mess."

Looking around, he wasn't wrong. There were ice cream containers, sake and beer bottles all over the Tea Room. Futons were scattered all over the floor. Skuld's karaoke machine was laying on its side, the song, "I Did it My Way" playing continually. The floors were sticky with spilled sake. And the place smelled like a bar.

Belldandy said "Keiichi, let me handle this." She stood up, waved her arms in a precise flowing gesture and intoned "Spirits of the wind, sweet breath of spring. Hear my call and come to my aid. Cleanse this hallowed place and restore this room to its former beauty!"

A rushing wind blew through the open window, and picked up all the trash on the floor.

A stray gust stacked all the futons in a neat pile, another swept all the bottles into the trash and righted the karaoke machine.. A third carried away the stench of the sake and beer and left a fresh smell of spring flowers and new mown grass in his place. Thirty seconds later, it was impossible to tell that a full-blown booze-up had occurred just hours before.

Belldandy dropped her arms and said "Now that's much better!"

It was at that time Megumi finally woke up. She roused herself out of the corner she had sat in all night, shook the cobwebs out of her head, wandered over to the table where Kei, Bell, and Urd were eating breakfast, and said groggily " Morning. I'm not feeling too hot, so I'll pass on breakfast. I'm heading straight home. Thanks for letting me hang out." She staggered out the door towards the garage where she kept her bike. Belldandy wondered aloud "I hope she'll be all right."

Keiichi said "She'll be OK, I've seen her in worse shape than that. At least she slept a good bit of it off. She doesn't need a DUI on her record. I'm surprised she passed on breakfast. She never met a meal she didn't like, especially one of Belldandy's."

Urd got up and headed out of the Tea Room "I better go and find out what our little Skuld has gotten herself into. She was eating ice cream like there was no tomorrow. I might have to make up some medication to treat an upset tummy. Ciao, guys."

Belldandy and Keiichi sat in the Tea Room eating their breakfast. Bell had prepared a Western style spread consisting of omelets, pancakes, toast with butter, tea, and jam, and fresh fruit. Any ill effects Kei suffered from the beer and sake immediately went away once he started digging into the food. "Ok, Bell. Last night, you said that we some things to talk about. What's the matter?"

Bell took a sip of her tea and said " While I was in the bath, I was thinking about some things. I was wondering if you think that my holding back on our becoming more intimate is hurting our relationship. Do you think that I'm being selfish in denying you something that you clearly desire? I never want to do anything that would take away from your happiness. I really want to become closer to you. But I don't feel ready to make such a sudden change just yet. I'm a Goddess First Class, and I'm supposed to do all I can to fulfill the contract between us, and as long as any part of that contract remains unfulfilled, I have failed in my mission."

Keiichi looked Belldandy straight in the eyes and said with all the seriousness he could muster. "Belldandy. Forget the contract! If it didn't mean that you'd have to go back to heaven, I'd release you from this damn contract. The contract is no longer the primary reason you're still here. You told me that and now I'm reminding you.

" I would never force you to do something you're not ready to do. I admit that I have thoughts about becoming more intimate with you. Some of those thoughts get pretty intense. But never would I act on those thoughts until you were ready. You are NOT being selfish by holding back. I can only be happy when you're happy. And making you do something that you clearly are not prepared to do would not make you happy and it would not make me happy. What did you tell me yesterday? A mighty oak has to grow from an acorn. There will come a day when the time will be right. I can wait until then because when it finally happens, it will be well worth the wait for both of us."

A tear came to Belldandy's eyes. "Keiichi, I don't deserve you." Keiichi came back "And I don't deserve you, I guess that makes us even, right?" Belldandy's laugh sounded like a pure note of a fine silver bell.

Chapter 7

4pm Saturday Afternoon.

The rest of the day went smoothly. Skuld was holed up in her room whimpering like a lost puppy and clutching her stomach. It took three doses of Urd's medicine before the little goddess was feeling somewhat better. Keiichi finished the rest of the maintenance on the bike and settled down in his room to grab a nap before dinner. Urd took advantage of Skuld's upset stomach to monopolize the television, and was soon absorbed in a Ninja Slasher TV marathon. Belldandy stayed busy by preparing lunch, and doing the laundry. She had just finished hanging sheets out on the clothesline when the phone rang.

Brrrrrrrr!

Brrrrrrrr!

Bell was the closest to the phone. "Hello, Morisato Residence, Belldandy speaking."

An unmistakably majestic voice came through the speaker. One that Belldandy was quite familiar with. "Belldandy."

"Yes, Kami-sama" she responded with a slight catch in her voice. Even while Urd was totally into the Ninja Slasher show, her goddess hearing picked up the mention of the Almighty's name. Quietly, she padded out of her room and joined Bell at the phone.

Kami-sama continued "Belldandy, It has been decided that it is time for you to resume your duties at the Goddess Assistance Agency. Your contract with the man named Keiichi Morisato will be voided without penalty. You must prepare to return to Heaven immediately."

"Why Kami-sama? Is my performance inadequate? I have not yet fulfilled my contract with Keiichi. I cannot leave him now." Belldandy said, tears forming in her eyes. She looked at Urd as if searching for her next response. Urd shrugged her shoulders.

"I understand that you have grown quite fond of Keiichi Morisato. He is a unique person, one with many traits that make him stand out from the rest of humanity. But remember Belldandy. You are a goddess. Your first duty is to me and Yggdrasil. You are needed in Heaven. No amount of time spent on Earth can alter this fact." Kami-sama spoke, a tinge of irritation entering his tone. "So now. Prepare to return to Heaven."

Belldandy knew that Kami-sama was right. She was bound to Heaven and to the Almighty, for it was he who gave her her powers, and he could take them away just as easily. But she didn't want to leave Keiichi behind. She did not want to throw away those memories, those associations and friendships. That special man who completed her. She knew that once she left to go back to Heaven, the chances of ever seeing Keiichi again were very slim. She would promise to return to him as soon as possible, and she would endeavor to keep that promise and knowing Kei as she did, he would faithfully wait for her. But goddesses are immortal, and humans are not. Would it be realistic for Keiichi to spend the rest of his life waiting for his goddess to return to him? Would he eventually give up and find another woman to take Belldandy's place, as impossible as that was? As idealistic as it sounded, even Belldandy knew that she could not expect Keiichi to forgo female companionship for the rest of his days while waiting for her to return. And the pain that would cause him would be more than she could bear.

And conversely, she knew that no matter how many contracts she fulfilled, and no matter how many people she would meet, and no matter how much joy she received in doing that which she was born to do, nothing would replace the void in her heart left by the loss of her love, Keiichi. She would never again meet another man that did for her what Keiichi did. She could never again fall in love with a god or man unless it was Keiichi.

Unless she found some reason to convince Kami-sama to reconsider, she would have no choice. Orders were orders, and Bell was nothing if not conscientious. Sadly, Belldandy was about to submit to Kami-sama's command, but then a voice in the very back of her mind softly told her to pause and look down at her left hand.

The ring.

It was not the fanciest ring, really. Just a simple gold band with a small solitary diamond. It was the ring Keiichi gave her on their first anniversary of living together. It took him five days of working back-breaking part-time jobs to save up the money to buy her that ring. And it wasn't even the ring he wanted to get her. The one he wanted cost 30,000 yen more, but he forgot to figure in the sales tax.

She remembered the nights that Keiichi would come home late dead tired from working his butt off. He was so beat that he didn't even bother to stop and eat dinner, he just shuffled straight off to bed. She had always wondered what he was doing and why he was toiling so hard. But she had implicit trust in him, that whatever he was doing was for the best. So she never questioned him. When he finally presented that ring to her, she scolded him halfheartedly about working so hard on her behalf. But her heart was filled with so much love and joy that he would buy this for her and her alone. She treasured that ring, and never took it off.

Keiichi had always had a hard time telling Belldandy how much he loved her. He always got tongue tied, and the words never came out, or if they did, they didn't come out right, or something or someone got in the way. But this ring, this simple ring said what Keiichi could not. It was at this point that she had made up her mind about what she was going to do. If Keiichi could put so much sweat and toil into showing her what he thought of her, it was time to return that affection in kind. She weighed the costs of both sides of the decision. No doubt what she was about to do was going to land her in big trouble. But when it came down to her and Keiichi, she swore to protect him at all costs and to stay by his side, and she would do so even without Heavenly sanction. And to a Goddess First Class, her word was her bond.

"Kami-sama" Bell said, her resolve rising. "With all due respect, I will not leave Keiichi. I will not return to heaven."

Steel was in her voice. Urd gasped. Never had she seen Belldandy refuse an order from heaven. Bell was always known as the goddess' goddess. She earned the highest marks in her training. She flew the fastest broom in Heaven. She had the finest singing voice of all the goddesses. She showed evidence of great power long before those her age. The entire company of goddesses attended her commissioning ceremony, as a testimony of how loved and respected she was amongst her peers. Something that rarely happened in heaven. While Urd feared for Belldandy's career as a goddess, she was silently congratulating her for standing up for her principles, as well as a little intrigued to see what Kami-sama would do next.

Kami-sama remained calm, although his voice betrayed that he was not used to hearing back-talk from a goddess, and that this uprising had to be nipped in the bud. "Belldandy, I am sure you understand the penalty for disobeying an official order from Heaven. Your license could be suspended for up to 100 years heaven time. That is 500 years earth time. This would be a very large black mark on an otherwise stellar career. "However, because you are such a valued goddess, I will give you one more chance to comply without penalty. Your contract with Keiichi Morisato is hereby rescinded. You are no longer required to remain by his side. You will now prepare to return to Heaven. If you comply, no more will be said of this. Your record will remain clear. But if you refuse to comply, the penalty stated will be implemented, and you will be returned to Heaven by force if necessary. Consider well your decision, Belldandy."

Belldandy needed no time to make her decision. She spoke with the utmost clarity and reason, with no sign of nervousness or intimidation. "Kami-sama. I love being a goddess. I love spreading happiness and joy to all I meet. And under any other circumstance with any other person with whom I would be contracted, I would comply without hesitation. But I love Keiichi as much, if not more, than my calling as a goddess.

"I swore to him that I would protect him and stay by his side forever. And my word is my bond. I am a better goddess for having lived with him. He has taught me so much about life as a human. I would rather lose my license, my career, and even my life rather than break my oath and bond to him. Because my love for him and my obligation to him reaches beyond the words of a contract. It is embedded deep in my heart and written indelibly on my soul, and it cannot be erased or rescinded. If you wish to suspend or revoke my license, do it. If you send other goddesses to escort me to heaven under guard, I will resist them and if necessary, will fight them. There is nothing you can say or do that will cause me to leave Keiichi. I love him with all my heart, and will give everything for him. So Kami-sama. The answer is no. I will not return to heaven."

Silence. Urd and Belldandy looked at each other. Looking into Bell's eyes, Urd could see that she was not kidding, nor was she calling Kami-sama's bluff. She was dead serious. The only other time that she had seen Belldandy with that look in her eye was during the incident with the Lord of Terror, after the Midgard serpents bit Keiichi while infected with the Lord of Terror program and transferred the virus to him. Bell had removed her power seal to battle the Lord of Terror. At that time, Bell had access to her full range of power. Enough to destroy the Earth. She was willing to give her all back then for Keiichi. Just as she is willing to do so now. Belldandy was displaying a backbone of steel, and Urd had gained tremendous respect for her younger sister.

Urd inquired, "Well, Belldandy, what do you think? You're playing a very dangerous game here. I hope you're prepared to face the consequences."

With great confidence, Bell answered, "Urd, I have never been more serious in my life. This is no game. I am fully prepared to lose my license, and my life if necessary to protect Keiichi and to stay with him. One thing that has happened since I've lived here with Keiichi is that I have learned a lot about myself.

" Much of what I've learned showed me that despite my being a goddess aligned with the light, I have a dark side, also. I have become extremely protective of Keiichi and I am also a very jealous and possessive woman. I am not proud of it, but it is what it is. When I see other girls and goddesses flirting with Keiichi, even you Urd, I get so full of rage and anger. I try to hold it back, but sometimes it just gets so hard to restrain that I can no longer contain myself. Then it comes forth as a jealousy storm that causes much destruction. I want Keiichi all to myself and I can't countenance any other woman being with him.

" But I have to be the good goddess that puts on the happy face. I have to preserve my reputation of being pleasant and positive and loving. I love what I do, Urd. I love you, and Skuld as only sisters can love each other. I love all the friends I've made on this Earth. Megumi, Chihiro, Tamiya, Ootaki, Sora, I even love people like Sayoko and Aoshima. It is in my makeup to love. But there is one whom I love most of all and that is Keiichi Morisato. And I am willing to give all this up to be with him forever." Belldandy looked down as if ashamed of what she had just admitted.

Urd sighed and took Belldandy's hands. "I've gained a whole new level of respect for you Belldandy. I didn't think you had it in you to be the little rebel. I like it. And whatever happens I'll support you."

Kami-sama came back on the line. " Belldandy, you have put me and the Heavenly Council in a difficult position. I wanted to revoke your license permanently. But the Council thinks that you're too important a goddess to lose. So they have taken the unusual step of having you appear before them in a hearing to determine what should be done with you. I will defer to the Council in this matter even though I have the authority to override their recommendation. The hearing will require that you appear in the Council Chambers along with Urd, Skuld, and Keiichi Morisato. You have my word that once you appear in Heaven, you will not be placed in custody nor have your license suspended or revoked until the Council makes their decision. Your goddess privileges and your contract are still in effect for the moment."

Belldandy considered this for a few moments. "Kami-sama, I accept the council's summons for a hearing. I thank you for coming to this decision. But how will Keiichi be allowed to enter heaven? He's a three dimensional being. He would not be able to function in a ten dimensional world. No human has ever been able to glimpse Heaven much less enter."

Kami-sama said. "There is a spell that can convert Keiichi Morisato's body into one that can function in our environment. However it is only temporary. It only lasts forty-eight hours. Also, even though this spell exists, it has never been performed before because there was never any need for it. It is a very precise and demanding spell to cast. It requires three First Class Goddesses with Level One Song Proficiency. There are only three First Class Goddesses in Heaven that hold that degree of mastery. You, Belldandy are one. The others are Peorth and Lind. I will be sending those two down to the earth to assist you in casting this spell, as well as escort you back to Heaven. I must warn you that this spell leaves no room for error. The slightest wrong note and at the least, the spell will not work. At worst, Keiichi's body may be destroyed in the transition process. And if he does not accompany you to the hearing, your punishment will be carried out.

"Do not thank me yet, Belldandy. Your future as a goddess is by no means secure. You could still have your license suspended or revoked. Or you could suffer the ultimate penalty for a goddess—being cut off from Yggdrasil completely. That would place you in a state of limbo. Unable to derive power from Yggdrasil, unable to use your abilities and powers. Unable to re-enter Heaven. But also unable to stay on Earth. I appreciate your desire to remain on Earth and live with Keiichi Morisato. He is quite a man for you to oppose me like this. But I cannot allow goddesses to challenge my authority without facing the consequences of their actions. The hearing will take place in two Earth days. Prepare yourself, your sisters, and Keiichi Morisato." Kami-sama rang off the line.

Urd scratched her head, looked confused, and said "Lind and Peorth have Level One Song Proficiency? That's news to me. Then again I had never heard either one of them sing."

Belldandy responded "Yes, they do. They both have beautiful singing voices, almost as good as mine. Not to brag of course. In order to become a Goddess First Class, one must have at least a Level Three Proficiency. You sing at Level Two. But for some reason, Lind and Peorth have never done much in the way of singing. Being that Lind is a combat specialist, perhaps she doesn't have much use for singing spells. Also, she's a good singer, but she's not very good with non-combat magic. That could be a problem. I'm not sure about Peorth, either. Well, we will get to see both of them in two days."

Urd then remarked "Well we, or should I say, you, better get our boy Keiichi ready for what's to come. He has no idea what he's in for. However, with all the things he's been through since we've been living with him, he may come through it with flying colors. Or we may have to scrape what's left of him from the courtyard.

Chapter 8

4:30pm Saturday Afternoon.

"WHAT?" Keiichi screamed when Belldandy broke the news to him. They were in the Tea Room standing face to face. "Belldandy, what were you thinking, opposing the Almighty like that? Do you want to lose your license? Am I that important to you that you'd risk everything for me? Please tell me this is a dream. Yeah!, it's all a dream. I'm really asleep and my girlfriend didn't just talk back to the Almighty, and I'm not going to Heaven and I don't have to put up with Peorth again..."

Belldandy grabbed Keiichi by the shoulders and shook him a little more violently than she intended, "Keiichi, this is not a dream, this is very real. You, I, and my sisters will have to go to heaven for this hearing before the Council in two days. I'm sorry that what I did caused you so much grief, but I love you so much that I can't stand to be without you. I'm willing to put my license, my career, and my life on the line to stay with you.

" I confess that since I have lived here with you, my weaknesses and flaws have been made clear to me. And one of those weaknesses is that I am possessive of you and very jealous. Seeing any woman flirting with you enrages me. You've seen my jealousy storms. You've seen the destruction I can cause. Can you still stay with me knowing this? Can you, will you still love me, knowing this?" The full import of what Belldandy just admitted combined with her actions of a few minutes ago caused her emotions to overcome her.

Belldandy collapsed to the floor at Keiichi's feet with a wail and cried out tearfully,

"I am so horrible!, I am undeserving of you, and my goddess license. Goddesses are supposed to be kind, gentle, warm, and loving. Above all they are supposed to be selfless and I am not selfless. I am the worst kind of selfish. I want you all to myself! I want to give you all of me. Just like I want all of you. But I'm not ready for that yet.

"Keiichi, my love. Please tell me you'll forgive me! Please tell me you understand!" Bell's face turned red as the tears flowed. Her shoulders heaved as she continued to cry. Her hair, always in place and immaculate, was disheveled. The ribbon holding her ponytail fell off, and her hair cascaded down the middle of her back flowing free. For the first time ever, Belldandy didn't look the perfect goddess. She looked like a frightened and traumatized young woman. All pretense was stripped away, and Belldandy's true feelings were laid bare for all to see. Keiichi was stunned. He had never seen Belldandy open up to him to this extent before. She hadn't revealed anything he didn't already know. But he never saw her in such a vulnerable state. His heart went out to the goddess.

Keiichi reached down and extended a hand to Belldandy. He helped her to her feet. He grabbed a towel and gently wiped the tears from his goddess's eyes. He looked into those very same deep blue eyes and saw the innermost depths of Belldandy's soul. A soul filled with pain, and self doubt. A soul that was scared and scarred. He spoke to that soul.

"Belldandy. You have given me the greatest years of my life. You have taught me what love really is. You have stood beside me. You have protected me and saved my life many times. I owe you a debt that I can never repay. It is not just your warmth and kindness and gentleness that makes you a great goddess. It is also those weaknesses that complete you. Light cannot exist without darkness. The function of light is to dispell the darkness. Your light, your pure light scatters the darkness within you. The darkness, it will always be there. But you can control it through your light. It is alright to be jealous as long as it does not consume you.

" And being possessive, I don't mind you being possessive of me. I'm glad that you find me worthy enough to be possessive. It is good for you to acknowledge your flaws. That means that we, and I do mean we, can work on fixing them together. Belldandy, you mean the world to me and I would go through hell itself before seeing a hair on your head harmed. There is nothing to forgive. You have done nothing wrong.

" And even though you're not ready to become completely intimate with me, I think that you need this right now." And he pulled Belldandy to him, put both arms around her slim waist and kissed her hard on the lips. She offered no resistance, and threw her arms around Keiichi's neck. Her lips were so soft and moist. Belldandy never wore perfume, but Keiichi could smell honeysuckle, and cherry blossoms and ocean breezes. In his mind he could hear a mix of Belldandy's infectious giggles and her and Holy Bell singing a song just for him. His mind started to drift away on a cloud of passion. He could feel Bell's love flowing through his body, radiating through his soul, Energizing him. Fulfilling him. He started to feel himself becoming aroused, and it would have been so easy to carry her to his room and make love to her. But out of respect for Belldandy's wishes, he didn't want to give into his desires just yet. In response, Belldandy drew him even closer to her. Not wanting to let go. She melted into his arms. She felt at home. She wished that they could stay like this forever. Her goddess powers started to stir within her, flushing away her despair, filling her with new hope and courage. Once again their hearts were beating together in perfect time. She wanted to give her all to him right there in the Tea Room. But she knew that it wasn't the time. After what seemed to be hours, but was only a few minutes, they released from their embrace. They looked into each others eyes, and Belldandy said "Thank you Keiichi, I did need that. I didn't want to let you go. I wanted to stay in your arms forever."

Meanwhile, Urd was standing just outside the Tea Room watching the entire exchange. She said to herself with a chuckle," Good for you, Belldandy. Maybe this relationship has a chance after all."

Chapter 9

6 pm Saturday Afternoon.

Keiichi and the three goddesses were at dinner in the Tea Room discussing the upcoming hearing. Skuld was mad that she didn't get to hear the phone call between Kami-sama and Belldandy, and she wasn't excited about going back to Heaven because the first thing she'd end up doing was going back to work debugging Yggdrasil. Of course she blamed the whole mess on Keiichi.

"SEE KEIICHI, THIS IS WHY I HATE YOU SO MUCH!, IF YOU HADN'T GOTTEN SO LOVEY-DOVEY WITH BELLDANDY, WE WOULDN'T HAVE THIS PROBLEM! Skuld screamed, her voice ripping through the thin walls of the temple like a tornado. "I was just getting to enjoy life on Earth, Sentaro and I have been getting along so well, and now this! I HOPE THE ALMIGHTY ZAPS YOU WITH A THUNDERBOLT, KEIICHI!"

Belldandy came to Keiichi's defense. "Skuld, if there's anyone to blame, blame me. I was the one who challenged the order. Keiichi didn't put me up to this. He has done nothing wrong. As a matter of fact, he's taking a very big risk by agreeing to go to heaven with me. If the conversion spell goes wrong, he could be destroyed. Even if he wasn't and the spell didn't work, he would still remain on earth and couldn't accompany me to the hearing, and that would cause Kami-sama to implement the punishment against me. So please don't put this on Keiichi. It wasn't his fault that I fell in love with him. It just happened."

Skuld was satisfied with Bell's answer for now. " Well, I guess that it really isn't Keiichi's fault. It's just that he's such a convenient scapegoat for all the crap that happens around here, she said with a smirk at Keiichi.

Keiichi took this time to divert the discussion to the matter at hand. "So, what do I need to know in order to prepare for this trip to Heaven?, I mean I'll do whatever it takes to make sure Belldandy is all right, but this spell business has me a little concerned. I mean I could be scattered all over Japan if something goes wrong. I'm sure that Belldandy can do her part singing-wise, but I don't know about Lind and Peorth."

Urd tried to add a little levity to the situation. "Well, if I were you, I'd make sure I had a will in place, for one thing. Lind's magic leaves a lot to be desired. I've got dibbs on the liquor cabinet and the TV's." And Skuld jumped in, saying " And I want all your tools, your computer, your motorcycle..." she was bouncing up and down gleefully in her place just thinking about the cool inventions she could make with Keiichi's stuff.

Keiichi said "All right you two, cut it out. Let's get back to the subject at hand. What do I need to know about Heaven?"

Belldandy said "It's very hard for a human such as yourself to understand what heaven is like. No offense, Keiichi, but humans like yourselves are much too limited in their senses to appreciate and fully comprehend what Heaven is like. Heaven is a ten-dimensional place. The majority of what goes on there will be well beyond your understanding. The conversion spell will most likely allow you to do the basic things like see the sights, interact with us as well as Kami-sama and the council and move around as well as understand the language. But much of the deeper aspects of heaven are simply not describable to you in a form that you can understand. I can tell you that it is the most beautiful place you will ever see, even with your limited vision. The colors are so bright and rich. You'll see things that don't make sense in this world, but make perfect sense there. Even us goddesses will look different than what you're used to."

Keiichi said with a grin "Hmm, will you be as beautiful up there as you are here?" Belldandy blushed a deep crimson.

Urd said slyly. "If you think she's hot down here, Keiichi-boy, you haven't seen anything yet. You'll barely be able to keep your hands off her once you see what she looks like in Heaven. And if you think I'M hot down here," Urd continued, suggestively fondling her voluptuous breasts. "I know you won't keep your hands off ME!" She moved in to toy with Keiichi's affections, but quickly jumped back when the teapot exploded sending hot tea all over the table. Skuld let out a scream and ran back to her room. Urd turned to look at Belldandy and could see the intense look in her eyes, her thin pursed lips. The massing energies of jealousy that were coming off Belldandy like lethal rays of radiation. "Belldandy!, Belldandy!" Urd cried out, panicking. "I was only joking. Settle down!" And just like that, the jealousy storm was over. Belldandy snapped out of her trance, blinked a couple times, and said, "Huh, Oh I'm sorry, Urd. Please forgive me."

"Geez, Belldandy, you're going to have to get a grip on those jealousy storms. It's just me. I'm not going to take your Keiichi away. You know I like to play around with him. I don't mean anything by it." Urd complained while wiping the tea off the table.

" I know that you aren't serious about seducing Keiichi, but when I see other women even playfully flirting with him, It just makes me so mad. I can hardly control myself."

Keiichi leaped up and rushed to Belldandy's side. "Are you all right?" "Yes, I am" Belldandy said. "I need to go and clean this mess up." She picked up the broken teapot and ran off into the kitchen.

Urd grabbed a towel and finished cleaning the table and then sat down again. "Urd, Keiichi asked, "Belldandy has been under a lot of strain lately. I wonder if she did the right thing by confronting the Almighty like that. She could end up in some serious trouble if I don't make it to the hearing and also if the Council rules against her. She could be disconnected from Yggdrasil. That sounds harsh."

"That is the worst punishment a goddess can face, it's almost a living death. Urd replied with all trace of mischief gone from her voice. "She would literally be floating in a netherworld. Conscious, but completely isolated from everything. No one would be able to see or talk to her, and she would not be able to respond to anything. She'd be better off dead rather than disconnected from Yggdrasil."
"How long would this punishment last?" Keiichi asked, not wanting to hear the answer.

Urd gave the matter a little thought and replied, "It depends. For Belldandy, who has a clean record, maybe a year in heaven time which comes out to 5 years in earth time. The maximum sentence that is given is 10 years. But even the Almighty has never passed that sentence. But those who go into isolation, even for a year, never come out the same. And for a goddess like Belldandy, who thrives on being around people, it would be like slow torture. It would destroy her. But that's the extreme punishment, It's unlikely that Belldandy would be sentenced to that. Most likely she'd lose her license for a while. Which is serious because she would not be able to do her job with the Goddess Assistance Agency. Most likely, she'd be shunted off to a desk job to work off her sentence. But it would still tear Belldandy up because she loves doing things for humans.

" Defying the Almighty is a serious offense, Keiichi. He's not known for taking kindly for such insubordination. It's a testament to Belldandy's character and to her greatness as a goddess that he's even granting her a hearing. Also, It's a credit to you."

Keiichi looked confused "How's that, Urd?"

"If Belldandy would have been contracted to any other human when she defied the Almighty, the moment those words would have left her mouth, she would have been punished on the spot. No exceptions, whatsoever. Believe it or not, Kei, the Almighty knows a lot about you. You've done quite a bit of service to Heaven since we've come to live with you. The Lord of Terror incident, the separation of my demon half from my divine half, the Angel Eater getting loose. All those dealings with Mara and Hild. The bug problem. You played a major part in all those situations and The Almighty has quite a bit of respect for you. You could almost say that he likes you. That's why he's granting Belldandy a hearing and allowing you to come along. He would never do this for any other human.

Keiichi said "Wow." I didn't think the Almighty even knew me, much less had any opinion about me."

"Remember one thing, Keiichi" Urd cautioned. "Belldandy is putting a lot on the line because she loves you so much. She would not have done this for anyone but you. You're a very lucky guy." Urd then reached over and gave Keiichi a kiss on the cheek and a wink. Keiichi leaped back "Urd, don't do that, you'll cause Belldandy to go off again." He tensed up waiting for the fireworks.

"No, Keiichi, I'm all right this time." Belldandy said, walking into the room just as Urd leaned back. Keiichi looked like he was going to go through the floor. " I could tell that kiss was out of respect and affection, not to flirt with you." Belldandy then sat down next to Keiichi. "But I may have to do this to get you back into my good graces." She said with a touch of mischief in her tone. And she pulled him to her and gave him a very big kiss on the lips.

Chapter 10

10 am Monday Morning.

Sunday passed without incident. Skuld and Urd were once again engaged in one of their running battles to control the television. This time instead of a game of Goddess Poker they decided to go out into the courtyard and throw Skuld-bombs at each other and whoever got blown up lost TV rights for the day. Banpei and Sigel, the female robot Skuld built from a old junk shop's welcome doll, who kept avoiding Banpei's advances, were chasing each other around the temple. Sigel kept shooting her rocket punch at the amorous robot, and he kept dodging them. Keiichi was working on his computer which burned out yet another hard drive. This was the third one in three months. And Belldandy was once again in the kitchen looking through Western homemaking magazines trying to find a new delicacy to serve Keiichi. This was the morning that Lind and Peorth were to show up to help Belldandy to cast the spell and escort the gang to Heaven. But no one knew the exact time they were to arrive, so they kept themselves busy until they showed up.

It was a little after noon when it happened. Belldandy was in the kitchen preparing lunch, when she suddenly tensed up. There was a familiar stirring of energy in the air. Urd ran into the kitchen and said "You felt that, right?" Belldandy answered "Yes, the gate's opening." Both sisters dropped what they were doing and hurried outside into the courtyard.

They stopped next to Skuld who pointed into the sky towards the west. The clouds in the sky started to turn a purplish blue and the winds kicked up suddenly. All three goddess sisters stared at the sight, the winds blowing their long hair wildly. Lightning bolts flashed in the distance and an opening developed in the clouds. The center of the opening rippled and shimmered like the surface of a pond.

After a few seconds, an object appeared in the opening. It was hard to describe, but it looked somewhat like a Celtic knot with an empty space in the middle. It was the gate. The edges of the gate glittered with an unnatural sparkling. In the empty space, waves of energy flowed in upon themselves from the edges of the opening to the center. The lightning continued to flash as the clouds started to recede. The gate became much clearer as the clouds thinned. After about a minute, the clouds had completely disappeared leaving a completely blue sky. Two figures materialized in the gate. As they came closer to the opening, Belldandy could make out the silhouette of the figures. One was shorter, much more scantily dressed, and voluptuous than the other which was taller, slimmer and carrying a long handled ax that looked like a medieval halberd. The figures exited the opening of the gate and floated down to land softly in the center of the courtyard. It was Lind and Peorth.

Lind was the taller of the two. She was dressed in her Valkyrie battlesuit and carried her halberd in both hands across her chest. She had a stern look on her face as did all of the warrior goddesses of the Valkyries. Lind was a combat specialist. Trained to fight demons and defend heaven from all attackers. She had the reputation of being the most aggressive of the Valkyries and she also employed the most extreme training regimen. It was hard to understand how this goddess who was trained to fight could have such a beautiful singing voice. She was unique in that she alone employed two angels instead of the customary one that all goddesses possessed, but her angels were unusual in that they both had only one wing. Hence, her nickname, Lind of the Binary Angels.

Peorth was the more attractive. She was dressed in a revealing black outfit that resembled a bikini, but with a tank top. Over that she wore a brown harness/garter belt. She wore brown matching gloves, boots and garters that had undone clasps on them. Her hair was in a short pageboy with a long ponytail going down the middle of her back. Peorth was employed in the same job as Belldandy except she worked for the rival Earth Assistance Agency. Peorth's specialty was in "services." She was also qualified as a system administrator for Yggdrasil. Both Goddesses were First Class, but Peorth held the same type of license as Belldandy: Second Category, Unlimited. Lind held a First Category, Special Duty license as befitted her combat status.

Lind stepped up to Belldandy and her sisters, and said in a firm, clipped tone, "Belldandy, Urd, Skuld. It is good to see you again, although I wish the circumstances were more positive." Peorth added "Oui mon chere, Belldandy has been the talk of all heaven. Everyone's all a twitter about her defying the Almighty. I can tell you, he is not pleased."

Belldandy stepped forward and clasped the hands of Lind and Peorth and welcomed them. "Welcome back to the temple. It's been a while since you both were here. Shall we have some tea and discuss what's before us? Lind responded curtly. We can't stay too long. We need to get going as soon as possible, but a cup of tea would be satisfactory.

The goddesses walked back to the front door where they were met by Keiichi. He waved and shook the Valkyrie's hand. Lind's grip was firm and decisive. "Hello, Lind. I'm glad to see you. I remember you said you wanted to come back on your next vacation." Lind said " I did make that promise, but I've been really busy with the demon problems we've been having lately. Unfortunately, this is not a social call. We have a lot to discuss and little time to do it."

Peorth took one look at Keiichi, and floated over to him and put her arms around him in an smothering embrace. "Ke-e-i-i-i-i-c-h-i-i-i!, you're not going to welcome me back to the temple?" She nuzzled her face against his and cooed, " You didn't miss me?, I missed you! I'm still waiting to grant you that wish, anytime, cherie." Keiichi wanted to blow away on the wind. "Hello, Peorth." he sighed. She was about ready to plant a kiss on Keiichi when Urd cautioned her "Peorth, I wouldn't do that if I were you. Remember Belldandy's jealousy issues?" Sure enough, thunderclouds appeared overhead, a savage bolt of lighting struck the temple roof and blew a foot wide hole in the shingles. Belldandy stood there her ocean-blue pupils the size of pie plates, her lips set in a firm frown. Murder written across her gorgeous face. Peorth let go of Keiichi, but only after lingering just a few seconds in seeming defiance to Belldandy. "Hhhumph, she's no fun." Belldandy snapped out of it and acted none the wiser.

In the Tea Room Belldandy, Peorth, and Lind sat at the table while Urd floated nearby, Skuld and Keiichi sat next to each other, but the young goddess was still sore at him for bringing all this on her big sister. "You're gonna get it up in Heaven, Keiichi!" She said and stuck her tongue out at him. Keiichi shook his head and ignored her.

Belldandy opened the discussion, "Lind, how is this going to work? Lind said "The spell requires a special magic circle drawn according to these specifications. She waved her hand and a piece of paper with very complex equations and formulas written on it, materialized from nowhere. She handed the paper to Skuld. "Skuld, you are one of the best magic circle designers and mathematicians in Heaven. You're responsible for setting up the circle. It has to be laid out exactly as these formulas state. No deviation." Skuld beamed at her new job. "It's about time someone around here recognized my sheer genius!" She happily ran off to her room to do the calculations.

Lind continued "Now, here is the spell program." She waved another gesture and three more papers appeared. She passed them out to Peorth and Belldandy. "As you can see, this is a very high level spell. We will definitely need our angels for this one. There is only one chance that we have to do it right. Any mistake would be unfortunate to say the least.

"Once we get to heaven, I will escort you directly to council chambers. You should know that the entire company of goddesses is expected to observe this hearing. This is an unprecedented occasion. And the Almighty is very intent on revoking your license. I've been told that isolation is out. So you won't have to worry about that." Belldandy breathed a sigh of relief.

Lind went on, "But if you're guilty, it's safe to say that your license will be revoked. The question is for how long. He's hoping to get five years heaven time at least." Keiichi raised his hand. "Lind, what is my role in this and why was I asked to come along. I don't know what I as a human can do to help Bell." Lind looked straight at Keiichi and with all seriousness said " Keiichi, you are the most important part of this whole thing. You will testify to Belldandy's character. You're going to be the one who'll tell the Almighty and the Council about what Belldandy has done for you and how she has helped you since you've been living with her. While we will all have a role in trying to sway the council from passing sentence on Belldandy, it will be your statements the council will listen to most. If there was ever a time for you to convey your truest and deepest feelings about Belldandy, that will be the time. Do not hold back under any circumstances. If you truly love Belldandy and your statements reflect that, your feelings will come through and she will be acquitted.

Peorth was sitting silent during the discussion, but she then added her concerns. "One major problem with this whole situation is Lind. As you know, Lind has Level One Song Proficiency. But you also know well that when it comes to non-combat magic, her skills are...well...lower than average. This level of magic is well above her abilities." Peorth said her last sentence nervously ready to dive out of the way should Lind take offense. But Lind didn't flinch. " I do admit that I am the weak link in this whole affair. My magical skills leave much to be desired. I am a combat goddess, we in the Valkyries have no use for singing spells. But I'm the only other First Class Goddess with the required singing credentials. There is no one else qualified. All I can ask is that Belldandy and Peorth can cover for my weakness. I will give all I have to make this work, but I will need help in casting my parts of the spell." It pained Lind greatly to make this admission. She was a supremely confident goddess. The best fighter in heaven, but this kind of magic was lost on her.

Belldandy put her hand on Lind's shoulder. "This problem presents a challenge, but I have faith that you will do your very best. We all have shortcomings we must overcome. But only by hard work and support from people who care about us, will we achieve success." Lind looked at Belldandy, smiled and said "Thank you, Belldandy. With you helping me, I'll be all right."

It took Skuld two hours to draw the circle according to instructions. She borrowed every calculating device in the house including Keiichi's computer and soon had her room filled with arcane formulas and calculations. She had to convert ten-dimensional math into three-dimensions, take into account the difference in time calculations between Heaven and Earth and also make sure that the gate deposited them in the correct location. Keiichi stopped by to ask if Skuld needed any help crunching the numbers. She looked at him as if he had grown a second head and kept doing her work. He looked at her calculations and within ten seconds had gotten hopelessly lost. She was doing math that wasn't found anywhere on the Earth. Not even the most advanced graduate level math classes taught at NIT was equivalent to the simplest calculations that Skuld was working on. He had to admit, that even though she was annoying, immature, self absorbed, and incredibly moody, Skuld was a hell of a mathematician.

Belldandy walked up to Keiichi and pulled him aside. She had serious concerns on her face. "Keiichi, I'm nervous. I'm wondering whether I made a mistake in defying the Almighty like I did. So many things could go wrong. The spell could fail, you could be destroyed, and even if we make it to Heaven, I could still lose my license." Belldandy wrapped her arms around Keiichi and said "Hold me, for just a little while." Keiichi held his goddess, and spoke words of reassurance to her.

"Belldandy, there comes a time when people have to take a stand for their convictions. Standing up for what you believe is not an easy thing to do. If it were, everyone would do it. You love me enough that you would disobey an order from the Almighty himself. I am humbled and awed that you care enough for me to do that. Whatever happens, you have my word and my bond that I will always be with you. No matter what. The Almighty can take away your license, but he can't take you away from me. What's done is done, you can't go back now." Belldandy didn't say anything, she just held on tight to her man. She could once again hear hers and Keiichi's hearts beat as one. She took comfort from his reassurance. She drew on his strength and retreated into his warmth. Keiichi looked into Belldandy's face and kissed her on the forehead. "Hey, you're supposed to be the big bad Goddess First Class who could destroy the earth with one wave of her hand. And you're taking solace from a frail human like me? Something's wrong with this picture." Belldandy smiled.

Chapter 11

12:30pm Monday Afternoon.

The time came to work the spell and go to Heaven. Belldandy and the others went out into the courtyard where Skuld put the finishing touches on the magic circle. She was quite proud of her creation and didn't hesitate to let anyone who stood still long enough know how proud she was. While it looked deceptively simple, there were highly sophisticated calculations that went into its construction. It featured sub-circles around the edges for the goddesses and a larger space in the middle for Keiichi. Around the edges of the sub circles and the circumference of the entire circle were runes of a language Keiichi had never seen before. The circle was charged with immense power and even a human such as Keiichi could not fail to notice it.

Peorth cautioned Keiichi, "Whatever you do, don't step on any lines entering the circle, and once you get into the center, don't move and don't talk, we're going to need our best concentration and can't afford distractions. Focus all your energies and attention on our song. Nothing else. It will feel a little uncomfortable as the spell progresses, but you should be able to handle it. Now can I have a kiss for luck, Hmmmmm, Keiichi?" She slid uncomfortably close to him and he stole a glance at Belldandy. Bell saw what was going on and waved at him. "I guess that one little kiss won't hurt, Peorth." That's all that she needed to hear. She grabbed Keiichi and laid a real smacker on the lips. "Thanks, cherie, Hope you enjoyed that as much as I did." She tipped him the wink and took her place in the circle, hips swaying provocatively under her tiny bikini bottoms.

Keiichi took great care to not touch any of the lines as he entered the circle. When he got into the center, he turned to look at each of the goddesses as they took their places also. Belldandy was in front of him. Skuld was to his right, Peorth was slightly behind him on the right, Urd was in the same position on his left and Lind was directly to his left. He took one last look at Belldandy. She looked at him with eyes of pure love and confidence. He smiled back at her. With a flash of light, Belldandy, Urd and Skuld changed into their formal goddess robes. The very same robes that each goddess wore the first time they met Keiichi. Belldandy's, a long white with blue and gold sawtooth trim. Urd's, a royal purple, and black and gold trim. Skuld, a pink skirt and jacket with red buttons and a cape.

The courtyard was silent as night as the goddesses started the spell. Belldandy with her angel Holy Bell, led off with a rich golden soprano. Peorth came in next with Gorgeous Rose with a crystal clear alto, Lind came in third with Cool Mint and Spear Mint with a deep smoky tenor. And while they weren't required to sing, Urd and Skuld lent their angels World of Elegance and Noble Scarlet as well as their highly competent alto and soprano voices, respectively. The harmony of the five goddesses was exquisite. Keiichi felt himself being quite moved by the experience. His mind emptied itself of all thoughts and just concentrated on the beautiful harmonies these goddesses were singing all for his benefit. Lind's powerful tenor was clearly not the voice that one would associate with a goddess who fought demons and hellish creatures. Belldandy's and Skuld's sopranos were in perfect pitch as well as Peorth's and Urd's altos. Keiichi could feel the first hints of the spell working deep within him. There was a feeling of lightness that began in the pit of his stomach and radiated out towards his limbs.

A dome of power began to form over the circle and its inhabitants. The pitch and intensity of the goddesses song began to rise as the harmony remained in sync. Keiichi could see that all the goddesses forehead marks were glowing with a powerful blue-white light. He could see the runes of the circle mixing with the runes of the spell spiraling round and round over his head. His mind started to expand, wanting to break free of the constrictions of working in three dimensions. It began to hurt his head, but Keiichi continued to concentrate on the song of the goddesses. All five goddesses were singing with looks of joy on their faces.

Their song becoming more and more complex as the spell went on. His mind continued to change and reconfigure. It kept straining against the mental bonds that held it back. The pain in Keiichi's head grew until it matched the worst headache he'd ever had. It felt like someone drove a chisel into his head with a hammer. Still he kept focusing on the song, that beautiful, powerful song. The dome of power grew brighter. Almost blinding in intensity. Each goddess's marks grew brighter and brighter. The song was nearing its crescendo. Each voice scaled higher, the harmonies remained tight and precise. Suddenly at the point where Keiichi could stand it no more and he feared that his head would explode, he felt something give way in his mind. It was almost an audible snap, and the pain suddenly disappeared. But now his mind was working much differently now. He could actually understand what the goddesses were singing. Every word. He looked up at the runes floating over his head and he could read and understand them. Not only could he understand them, but with a mere mental command, he could see the complex mathematical equations that made up each symbol. It was very similar to the math he had seen Skuld working on as she was assembling the circle. He still could not perform that math, but he could see the exquisite and elegant equations that made it up. He marveled at the complexities of the song and gained new respect for the goddesses that were performing it. He found that if he shifted his vision slightly, he could see other dimensions. Dimensions that could not been seen by human eyes. He saw the Machiners, and other extra-dimensional creatures. The sights had been overwhelming to the point that he experienced a sudden release of power that radiated out from him.

At this exact moment, the harmonies of the goddesses slowly started to become disjointed. Notes started to go flat, parts were missing. The mystical runes became misshapen and unintelligible. The goddesses tried desperately to pull the unraveling song back together. There were looks of surprise and worriment on each goddess's face. The dome of power began to lose its structure as well as it's intensity. The goddesses forehead marks started to flicker, and one by one went out. The dome gave one final powerful flash and then collapsed, the runes disappearing into the sky. Keiichi and the five goddesses passed out all at once.

Chapter 12

Approx 3:30pm Monday Afternoon

It was another 3 hours before everybody was able to recover from the fallout from the spell. Keiichi was the first to awaken, and he went around to each goddess to check and see if they were all right. They awoke dazed and disoriented. Belldandy got up and looked at her man. "Keiichi, are you OK?, how do you feel?" She inquired, worried about the outcome of the spell. Keiichi reassured Belldandy "I feel all right, I had a bit of a headache but I did what Peorth told me and concentrated on the song and it helped me to get through." ,downplaying the splitting headache he experienced in order not to worry Bell. Belldandy gave a sigh of relief. "I'm glad you're fine, at least your body's intact. I hope the spell worked because that was the only chance we had.

Lind got up and faced Belldandy looking ashamed. She said remorsefully, " I'm sorry, Belldandy. I tried to keep up. I was doing fine and then the calculations just got too far ahead of me. I know that you and the others were trying to cover for me, but I'm afraid that I may be the cause of the spell failing." She lowered her head in shame. Belldandy lifted Lind's head and drew the warrior goddess in for a hug. "Lind, you have nothing to be ashamed of. You tried your best. You met the challenge head on, and maybe you didn't succeed, but it's better to try your best in failure than to not try at all." That made the Valkyrie feel a little better.

The rest of the goddesses awakened. Urd asked "Well, did it work?" Belldandy replied, "I'm afraid not. The spell got away from us." Urd couldn't resist a dig at Lind. "Well, if Lind hadn't been over matched from the beginning, it would have worked. She has no magical skills at all. If there was ever a time that I regretted not accepting a Goddess First Class commission, it's right now." Eyes blazing, Lind drew her halberd. "Maybe I can't do magic as well as you, Urd. But I can take you down in a fight!," "You do NOT want to fight me, Lind!" raged Urd as she raised her hands to summon the lightning, but was restrained by Belldandy. "Urd!" She said angrily. "Don't criticize Lind, she did the best she could. This was a group effort, we were to support and help each other out, the spell was just too powerful and complex for us." Urd and Lind stood down, but continued to glare at each other.

Skuld started to cry. "Now my big sister won't be able to attend the hearing and she'll lose her license, and she won't be able to live down on Earth anymore and she..." Bell knelt down and comforted Skuld " We don't know that yet. There may still be a chance we can make the hearing." Peorth chipped in. "Well I don't know any alternative. We can't do the spell again. The gate won't open for a human."

Then Keiichi stood up and pointed to the gate which still hovered overhead and started to speak. It was the language he heard the goddesses use during the spell. "Ieyaches, Kobunotana, Parakecis, Lokinoshana. Arakunalete Boricheses." Translated, it meant,O Gate, the Guardian to the Heavens! The Portal between the worlds of Gods and Men. Bring forth your heavenly winds. Illuminate us with your light. Let the heavenly waters roll over us in a celestial stream. Throw wide your doors and open unto us. Let us ride upon the waves of spirit and power to arrive at our chosen destination. This I request by the power of the Light! The goddesses looked at each other in utter disbelief. They all asked the same question "Did he just request access to the gate?" In response to his command, the gate shimmered, it's opening rippling just like it did before Lind and Peorth arrived. The rippling gave way to the rays of energy collapsing in on themselves and then the gate portal opened. Urd remarked slack-jawed "I don't how he did it, but Keiichi just opened the gate." A beam of light streamed down from the portal, and five utterly confused goddesses and one seemingly transformed human stepped into it and were drawn through the gate.

The portal between Earth and heaven was a long wide tube of constantly shifting lights and colors. The tube's structure seemed to constantly change while also remaining the same. Written on the walls of the tube were words written in the language of Heaven. Rocketing through the tube, the goddesses were still wondering how Keiichi managed to open the gate.

Peorth was totally at a loss for words. "I just don't get it, how did Keiichi summon the gate, IN OUR LANGUAGE, none the less. Impossiblé"

Urd thought to herself "I didn't think Keiichi-boy had it in him, this could be very interesting."

Skuld thought " Now Keiichi's gonna get it, but I knew my circle was perfect in design and function. The utmost in elegance. I'm such a genius!

Keiichi broke in and asked "What are these words lining the tube?" Belldandy answered "Those are the spells that form the tube. When you get to heaven, you'll see them on every building." "Oh" Keiichi said and then he spoke some of those words as if he knew the language all his life. "A-tanosun, Pe-akansa, Ea-Ta-anisi, Ou-Al-LaCetee." "Now he's speaking the tube's spells. Strange" thought Belldandy "What happened to my Keiichi?" she wondered.

Though it appeared that the group weren't moving very fast, they were actually traveling many times the speed of light. Heaven was located outside the universe in a multi-dimensional plane all its own. The gate portal was the only way to access the domain of the Gods and Goddesses from Earth.

After flying for what seemed like ten minutes or so, the group reached the end of the portal. Ahead of them, the tube opened out into a wide open space that looked like part reception area, part border crossing. This was one of the anti-demonic measures erected to prevent demons and their familiars from attempting to enter Heaven. There was what looked to be a guard house with two stern-looking Valkyries dressed like Lind armed with halberds blocking the entrance. Lind led the group to the guard house. The taller of the two Valkyries approached Lind and requested ID's for all present. "Please have your party present your ID's." Lind raised her right hand and her goddess symbol appeared. The intricately designed marks served as identification. Unique to each goddess, the symbols represented not only the goddess's name, but also her class, license, restrictions, access privileges, job description and location of employment as well as her powers, predilections, and alliances. Each of the other goddesses followed suit.

When the Valkyries approached Keiichi, Lind stepped in to tell them that he was expected. "He is with us, he is attending Belldandy's hearing in council chambers." The shorter Valkyrie checked the list that appeared in her hand. It confirmed that Keiichi Morisato was granted access to the council complex.

"Hmm, she said. "We've never had a human up here before." Keiichi spoke to the warrior goddesses in their language. "I'm here to help Belldandy out in what ever way I can, I'm excited to see what Heaven is like."

The Valkyries looked at each other in confusion. "He understands our language?" Urd said impatiently, "Yeah, he does, it's a long story. Can we get going now?"

"Of course, everyone checks out."

The group was immediately teleported to the middle of the main thoroughfare of Heaven. Even though Keiichi had been prepared for this moment, the scene took his breath away. The city was immaculate. Clean beyond any human measure. No pollution or smog. The trees glistened with liquid light. The waterways were clearer than the most flawless of diamonds. The colors literally leaped out at him. It felt like his senses had been enhanced by a hundredfold. He could see and hear things that normal humans couldn't comprehend. He looked up into the sky. It was a constantly changing whirl of colors. One moment it was as blue as the sky on earth, the next it was green, the next it was red. Then it turned colors that were not found on earth.

He looked at some of the buildings. They were of all shapes and sizes, some reaching impossibly high into the sky, some only one story tall, Some floated in the air, others on the ground. Each building was the height of architectural splendor, with curves and lines not seen on Earth structures. All of them had the words representing the spells that maintained them written all over them. Keiichi could see the same kinds of words written in the sky. He even read some of them. "Hitachine, Malakutonos, Peletenekeechee, Arakunoteche." And while it all would have looked highly distracting, garish, and tasteless in human eyes. In Heaven. It looked perfectly natural. It was unobtrusive, and only presented itself if the watcher wanted to see it. It all worked. It was beautiful. A bird unlike any that Keiichi had ever seen flitted by and landed on his shoulder. It showed no fear of him, and its song was incredibly complex and enchanting and Keiichi understood every note. He held up a finger and the bird hopped on it, sang him a song as if welcoming him to Heaven and then flew away. That song touched the man.

And the people were the most interesting. They were all gorgeous beyond human standards. Even the Gods were extremely attractive. He turned to Belldandy to marvel at what he saw. And just like Urd had said, she was even more beautiful in Heaven than she was on Earth. Her long flowing hair was platinum blond. The clasp on her left ear that sealed her powers on Earth was missing. Her face glowed even more than usual. Her smile was even more innocent and even though she was a couple feet away, he could feel her love for him and for heaven even stronger than before. Everything about her appearance was ten times that of what she looked like on Earth. She looked at Keiichi and smiled at him. He nearly collapsed at the sheer power of that smile.

Belldandy said to him "Well, this is my home, what do you think?" Keiichi was about to answer but then realized that Bell's mouth hadn't moved at all, he was hearing her words in his mind. He tried to answer using his human voice but Bell put a finger to his lips. "No need to use your mouth to talk here. Just think of the words you want to say in your mind, look at the person you want to talk to and they'll hear them."

Keiichi said (through his mind) " You left all this to come and live with me? Why?"

She said "Simple, I love you. And did you notice, that you're not speaking Japanese or English. You're using the language of Heaven itself."That didn't seem to surprise Keiichi since he had so quickly learned the language, it was as natural to him as the languages he learned on Earth.

Urd came alongside Keiichi and said "I told you she looked even hotter in Heaven, how about getting a load of me, if you can handle it?" He turned to look at Urd and it took a supreme effort on his part not to grab her and ravish her in the street. While Belldandy simply looked even more elegant and wholesome, Urd had turned into lust personified. She had become even more fetching just as expected, but her raw sexuality washed over Keiichi like a tidal wave. His hormones were raging. "Must...hold...back!" Just the sight of Urd in her heavenly body played havoc with his libido. He could not look at her for more than a few seconds before he would submit and cause himself an embarrassment.

Apparently Heaven had the ability to take the qualities of each God and Goddess and amplify them a hundredfold. Keiichi made it a point not to look at Urd any more than he had to.

Keiichi and the goddesses walked along the street towards the council chambers. Belldandy said " Normally we'd just teleport to the chambers, but we're walking so you can see what Heaven looks like."

Keiichi said with a slight impatience, "We can sight-see whenever we're done. Let's just get this over with. It's really awesome to be up here in Heaven, but we do have business to attend to. Can we teleport to the chambers?"

Belldandy passed his request to Lind, who responded, "That's a good idea." She produced a small crystal cube from her right hand, and spoke some words into it. A shimmering light came from the sphere and enveloped the group. Keiichi felt a familiar lightness from the pit of his stomach again, and in a flash, they disappeared. Seconds later, they were at the Council chambers in front of a very tall translucent door. There were two more Valkyries with crossed halberds blocking the way. Lind approached and informed them of their presence.

The Valkyries stood down and let them pass. "The Council is waiting to see you. You may enter."

The door opened and they went in. The chamber was a very spacious rectangular room much longer than wide. It looked the size of a hundred football fields. The ceiling was higher than any building Keiichi had ever been. The entire space was bathed in white light, although there wasn't a light source visible anywhere. He looked up and literally could not see it. Along the length of the chamber on both sides was a seating area that looked like the bleachers of a stadium. And the entire seating area was full of goddesses. Thousands upon thousands of goddesses of all classes, categories and licenses. In all manners of colorful attire, some in colors Keiichi didn't even know existed. Some were dressed in long robes similar to what Belldandy and Urd were wearing. Others were dressed in revealing sexy outfits akin to Peorth. And they were all extraordinarily beautiful. Keiichi could barely keep his eyes in his head seeing so many exquisite looking deities. There was a palpable feeling of immense power that issued forth from the seats because of the presence of so many goddesses in one place. And they all had their eyes on him. So because they were all looking at him, he could hear every thought in their minds.

It wasn't a hopeless jumble of chatter that turned into so much noise, but Keiichi could hear each conversation simultaneously, clearly, and intelligibly. All he had to do was pick one and that exchange would become louder as the others would fade down. Some of what he heard was the usual goddess chat, whatever it was that goddesses gossiped about, but a most of it was talk about him. And it wasn't positive. "That's the human that Belldandy defied the Almighty over?" "He's so plain!"; "What a homely excuse for a human, Belldandy must have been nuts to fall for him"; "I'm glad I don't have a Second Category license.; If I had to go to Earth to contract with a guy that ugly, I'd resign." ; "He's a loser." ; "Belldandy needs to come to her senses and get rid of him. A goddess like her deserves much better than that!"

Keiichi didn't hear one comment that went his way. He thought to himself "Well, at least goddesses could be as catty and bitchy as Earth girls. He looked at Belldandy and said "They don't seem to like me." referring to the goddesses that were casting aspersions on him.

Belldandy said "They obviously don't think you can hear them. If they knew you could, that would quiet them down."

That gave a Keiichi an idea. He looked all around the room at every goddess and said, "Ladies, despite what you think, I can hear every word you're saying. And not only can I hear them, I can also understand them. Let's get this straight. Belldandy is my goddess and my love. I would do anything for her including giving up my life. I risked destruction to come here and testify on her behalf. None of you can do anything to take me away from her. And there is nothing that the council, nor even the Almighty can do that will diminish the love I have for her, so you can gossip all you want, but remember, I can hear you. If you have a problem with me, take it up with Belldandy. I'm sure that she would be more than interested in hearing what you have to say. Thank You."

Silence. Dead. Cold. Silence.

Peorth turned to Keiichi and said "Wow Keiichi, I didn't know you had it in you. You just shut up every goddess in Heaven right then. Some of them pretty high ranking. You've got balls, Monsieur. You just earned a ton of respect, not only from me, but everyone in here. That can only help you."

Emboldened by Peorth's comment Keiichi replied "I may be a wimp when it comes to everything else, but if it's Belldandy we're talking about, I stand down to no one."

Chapter 13

Heaven

4th rotation, 3rd Interval, 2nd Period of Cycle 17 Year 2,800,000,000

or .2,800,000,000

Approx 4pm Monday Afternoon of the 17th week of year 2,800,000,000.

The goddesses and Keiichi finally made it to the head of the chambers. High above them in a horseshoe shaped balcony sat eighteen seats. Nine of each side of a large throne In each one of those seats sat either a God or a Goddess. They looked older than the rest of the crowd, but they hadn't lost any of their attractiveness. Keiichi could tell that these deities had great power and also great wisdom. They were also the only ones in the room that he could not hear with his mind. When he looked at each of the councilors, he heard nothing but silence. "They're either trying to intimidate me, or they know that I can hear and understand the language and they don't want to give anything away." He thought to himself.

A single pure note from a deep bass gong resounded through the room. This heralded the arrival of Kami-sama, the Almighty. All looked to the throne at the head of the chamber. A shadow had appeared in front of the throne and took its seat. He had arrived. Kami-sama could not been seen directly, only by that shadow. The feeling of immense power that Keiichi felt earlier, rose even higher. It sent chills down his back. He immediately grasped the seriousness of the situation. This definitely was not an everyday occurrence. All the goddesses in the seats knelt down on kneelers in front of them. Skuld, Urd, Belldandy, Peorth and Lind went to one knee and bowed their heads in respect. Keiichi didn't know what to do. Should he kneel in respect to the Almighty as the goddesses did, or would that be considered an insult because he was a human and not entitled to show respect to him? After a few seconds, he figured, "When in Heaven, do as the goddesses do." So he went to one knee and bowed his head. Keiichi wasn't the most religious person in the world despite living with Goddesses in a Buddhist temple. He hoped that the Almighty would not hold that against him.

A deep and powerful, yet fatherly voice rumbled through the chambers. Like all the voices in Heaven, Keiichi had heard this voice in his mind and in the language of Heaven. He thought "So Kami-sama knows that I can speak the language."

"Today, we have gathered here for the disposition of the case of Goddess First Class, Second Category, Unlimited License, Belldandy."Kami-sama's voice said in a totally neutral tone. "He's not giving anything away, either" thought Keiichi.

"Belldandy stands charged with one count of gross insubordination, and one count of defiance of an official order. Due to Belldandy's outstanding record prior to this point, it has been recommended by the council and I have agreed that the punishment of isolation will not apply in this case. Also because of her reputation, the maximumpunishmentthat can be sentenced will be: revocation of license for a period of Five Years Heaven Time."A murmur went through the crowd. As Keiichi listened, some thought that Belldandy should have gotten a heavier sentence, while others thought that the sentence mentioned was too harsh. A couple even thought the case should be thrown out and Belldandy left alone. Another note from the gong brought everyone to silence.

Kami-sama continued "Testifying on Belldandy's behalf as a direct witness will be Goddess Second Class, First Category, Limited License Urd. Testifying to Belldandy's character will be: Goddess Second Class, First Category, Limited License Skuld; Goddess First Class, Second Category, Unlimited License Peorth; and Goddess First Class, First Category, Special Duty License Lind.

"Special Testimony will be given by Keiichi Morisato, the person with whom Belldandy is currently holding a contract. If Belldandy herself wishes to address the council, she may do so after all other testimony has been given. The conduct of this hearing will be as follows: Each witness will take as long as necessary to testify as to the act itself, or to the accused's character. The Council will then sit in recess to consider the information gathered, and then render its decision. I will either agree with the council's decision or exercise my right to override that decision. However, as was made known to the accused, I hereby waive my right to override, and will abide by the Council's decision, either for or against the accused."

Peorth whispered to Keiichi "That's a big concession. That should make it easier to get Belldandy a reduced sentence or a complete acquittal. As long as no one says anything too stupid, she should come out of this in pretty good shape."

Keiichi whispered back "I know. I'm not a lawyer, nor am I up on Heaven's legal system, but it seems like there's something else going on here. Belldandy is not the real focus of this hearing."

Keiichi thought, "That's weird, Peorth's heavenly body was just as amplified by her presence in Heaven as Urd's was, but I'm wasn't nearly as overcome with her sexuality as I was with Urd, and Peorth is just as alluring as Urd is. What is the deal here?"

Peorth heard that last bit, and turned to him, licking her tongue. Keiichi shook his head as if trying to shake something loose in his brain, and turned his mind back to the hearing.

Kami-sama spoke"Will Goddess Second Class Urd please step forward."

Urd rose to her feet, stepped forward to the witness box and bowed her head. "I swear to tell the truth upon my honor as a Goddess." she swore clearly.

Another murmur went through the crowd, Keiichi noted. "Apparently Urd's reputation for telling falsehoods has preceded her."

Keiichi checked Urd's back to see if she crossed her fingers when she swore the oath. She didn't.

Kami-sama was quite familiar with Urd and let everyone know that. "Urd, your reputation for telling lies has gotten you in trouble on more than a few occasions. It would be in your best interest if you would just stick to the truth. Please do not give me a reason to put you before a hearing, or worse, punish you outright."

Urd was visibly shaken by that revelation. "Y-yes, Kami-sama, I will tell the truth."

Kami-sama began the questioning. "Urd, were you with Belldandy at when I contacted her regarding returning to heaven?"

Keiichi thought "4.3., what kind of time system do they use in Heaven?" Almost in response to his thought, one of the councilors spoke up. "Kami-sama, for the benefit of our guest, may I explain to him the way we keep time in Heaven? Our system is different from the one used on Earth."

Kami-sama said "Yes, our visitor is not fully accustomed to our ways. Proceed." The councilor stood and addressed Keiichi. "The Heavenly time system is divided into: rotations; intervals; periods; cycles; and years. Each period, or what you would call a day is made of four intervals of six rotations or hours each. The first interval starts at what you would call midnight and lasts six rotations, the second interval lasts six rotations and so on. A cycle is equivalent to your week and contains seven periods and each year consists of 52 cycles. So the numbers are all the same as your time system except for the terminology and the addition of the intervals. The format for a time reference is Rotations. Intervals. Periods. Cycles. Years. So would translate in Earth time as 4pm Saturday Afternoon of last week. Is that clear?"

Keiichi responded "Yes, sir I understand. Thank you." The councilor smiled and sat down.

Kami-sama continued. "Urd please answer the question."

"Yes, I was at the phone with Belldandy when you called."

" And did you hear Belldandy twice refuse to comply with my order to return to Heaven?

"Y-Yes, Kami-sama."

"And what was the reason that Belldandy gave for refusing my order?"

Urd hesitated.

Kami-sama said with a touch of irritation. "We're waiting for your answer. Urd."

Urd was completely stiff with fear. She wanted to protect her sister with an alibi. She refused her First Class Goddess license because she felt it was sometimes necessary to lie to protect her younger siblings. But this time around, they had her dead to rights. She couldn't lie her way out of it if she tried. "Well, Belldandy and Keiichi. Sorry to drop you two in it, but I have no choice." she thought.

"Kami-sama, the reason Belldandy gave, was that she loved Keiichi as much as, if not more, than being a goddess. And that is the truth."

"Thank you Urd, you may step down."

"That's it?, Can't I even say what I think about all this?"

"You were only brought up to testify to the act committed. But if you have anything else to add, I'm sure the council would have no objections. Are their any objections to Urd continuing her testimony?"

There were no objections noted, so Urd stayed at the witness box.

Urd composed herself, thanked the council and continued on with her statement.

"When I first met Keiichi, he seemed like a spineless wimp. He was indecisive, ungainly, plain, boring and frankly, I wondered what Belldandy saw in the man. He was so easy to manipulate. I toyed with him constantly." Keiichi thought "Thanks for the vote of confidence."

"But even though I was pretty rough on him, he always resisted my attempts to push him and Belldandy together. I tried drugs, seducing him, nothing seemed to work. It was as if those two were going to proceed only as fast as they wanted to and no faster." Urd quickly realized that she admitted some things she should not have said and quickly shut up.

Kami-sama said "You're own questionable conduct in this matter not withstanding, is there anything else you want to add?"

Urd countered "Yes, as I said, I ran Keiichi through the wringer, but he seemed to have this indomitable spirit that kept on going no matter how much bad luck he had. Him and Belldandy never ever seemed to get down no matter what negative situations they went through. He showed a lot of courage when I had become the Lord of Terror and captured him. Any other human would have just given up. But he had complete faith that Belldandy would rescue him. And during Belldandy's illness. He was the only human to ever call heaven intentionally to ask me about how to cure her. I don't know of any human that could have pulled that off.

" And the situation with the Angel Eater. He was able to support one of Lind's angels. The explanation was that it was the love of many goddesses that allowed him to do that. That may be so, but there is something more to Keiichi Morisato than meets the eye. And with all that's going on now. I have gained a new level of respect for him. He could have been destroyed when that spell collapsed, but he somehow survived to make it up here to attend this hearing. He's quite a man. I have to admit.

"He's still pretty geeky, and plain and has no common sense and little in the way of social graces, and he still has no idea how to court a woman, but I'm glad to count him as a close and trusted friend. That doesn't mean that I won't stop messing with him. He's too easy a target to not have some fun. But he's still my friend. I can see why Belldandy would defy an order from you, Kami-sama. In his own way he captured Bell's heart, and as you and everyone else knows, it's very hard to capture the heart of a First Class Goddess.

"Believe me Kami-sama, there's no one else on Earth that would compel Belldandy to do what she did. Those two are deeply in love. And Belldandy was very much in her right mind when she made her decision. Keiichi did NOT put her up to it, as some may think. It's not in his nature. She loves Keiichi down to the very core of her being. Those two are one of a kind and they belong together. And that's all I have to say,"

She left the witness box and took her place in line. As she passed Keiichi, she looked him in the eyes and said to him. "And that's the truth. However, if you ever mistreat Belldandy, I'll kill you." she said in a way that left Keiichi wondering whether she meant it or not.

Keiichi tensed up waiting for Urd's sexuality to overtake him. But nothing happened. "Thanks for the ringing endorsement, Urd. I think."

Chapter 14

4th rotation, 3rd Interval, 2nd Period of Cycle 17 Year 2,800,000,000

The next in line to testify was Skuld. She was clearly very nervous as she had never seen the Almighty in person. The little goddess' stomach was doing backflips. And she still hadn't completely recovered from the incredible amount of ice cream she devoured.

Kami-sama called her forward.

"Goddess Second Class Skuld, please step forward."

She almost jumped out of her skin at the sound of Kami-sama's voice. She slowly made her way to the witness box, and looked around at the vast sea of goddesses as well as the eighteen councilors and the Almighty who would decide her big sister's fate.

Kami-sama's voice changed from the omnipotent voice of power that befitted the role of the Almighty to a quieter, comforting fatherly one. "Skuld, I sense that you are afraid of what's going on. You think that we're here to hurt your big sister, We are not. We're here to discuss what happened down on Earth and whether or not your sister should be held accountable for what she did. It may sound unpleasant, but it must be done. We will listen to every word of everyone's testimony and weigh them carefully before coming to a decision. You have nothing to be afraid of. Just say what you have to say. Everything will be all right."

Kami-sama's words did little to quell Skuld's fears, but she pressed on.

"Well, Belldandy is simply the greatest goddess of them all. She's so kind and caring. She's helped me a lot since my powers started to work. She always gets me ice cream and appreciates my inventions. No one else on Earth appreciates my genius, but Belldandy does. But then she had to go down and live with that Keiichi." She stared at Keiichi with unbridled loathing. "Keiichi took my big sister away from me and now she'll lose her license because of him!" She pointed at Keiichi as she said her last sentence.

"Why do you think that Keiichi is at fault for what was clearly an act of Belldandy's choosing, Skuld?" Kami-sama asked.

"Because she had to go and fall in love with him! Goddesses don't fall in love with humans. It's not right. He's so nice to her and he's always doing things to make her happy and I just hate him! I wish he'd just go away and leave us goddesses alone!" Skuld ranted, her voice and actions becoming more animated. She clearly forgot that it was the goddesses that entered and disrupted Keiichi's life and not the other way round.

"No offense Keiichi." Skuld continued, softening her tone. "You're not completely useless. You don't complain too much when I borrow your stuff for my inventions. And you tolerate it when me and Urd are fighting over the television. By the way, thanks for giving me my own TV, but you gotta know that me and Urd just like to argue. And you do understand my love of creating, although you can't come close to my brilliance.

"You're not a bad guy, Keiichi, but I just wish you hadn't summoned Belldandy, and I wish you two hadn't fallen in love. She really does love you, you know. She's crazy about you. Although I don't know why. Am I done?"

Kami-sama said "If that is all you have to say then you are done. Please step down."

Skuld stepped down from the witness box and walked back to the line, satisfied with her performance.

Keiichi nudged at Peorth, and said "Isn't it odd that the testimony so far is more focused on me than on Belldandy's conduct? I don't understand this. There's clearly an ulterior motive here."

Peorth answered "Yes it is a little strange. Then again, it's pretty much an open and shut case. Belldandy clearly admitted to us that she defied the order. Urd corroborated the accusation. Why else do we have to go through all of this. The Almighty should have just passed sentence and been done with it. Let's just let it play out and see what happens. By the way, do you really think I'm as sexy as Urd? I'm way hotter than her. Too bad you won't let me prove it! I'm up next, wish me luck." Peorth looked hungrily at Keiichi and turned away.

"Goddess First Class Peorth, please step forward." Kami-sama intoned. Peorth strode to the witness box brimming with confidence. Keiichi had to admit, she was a looker. He hoped that Belldandy didn't hear that.

"Peorth, how would you describe your relationship with Belldandy?" Kami-sama asked.

"Well, I would say that it's a bit complicated." Peorth responded. "I don't hate her, but there are definitely some things about her that I don't like. We get along well. I've spent a lot of time with her and her sisters on the surface world. And I've had quite a good time in her presence, but I would say that we are, shall I say, friendly rivals. We work for competing agencies. We have different clienteles. And she's much too goody-goody for my tastes. But as a goddess, she's the best at what she does. I'll give her that. And she definitely has Keiichi wrapped around her little finger. I honestly don't know what's so great about him. Like Urd said, he's a bit plain and boring, and despite my best efforts, he wouldn't give into his desires when he summoned me. But he's a nice guy and they do fit together very well."

"Does your opinion of Belldandy stem back to the "grudge" you harbored against her?"

"I wish you hadn't brought that up. Kami-sama. I still catch a lot of heat from the Earth Assistance Agency about that. I mistakenly thought that she was going to take credit for that debugging. But I found out from her that the bugs had found their way inside me and she was willing to mark it as a team effort between her and myself. And after checking the debug logs, I found she was telling the truth. But we're all good with that now. That is one thing about Belldandy that I did appreciate. She could have taken credit for that job, but didn't. She is truthful to a fault."

Kami-sama asked "Is there anything else that you'd like to say at this time?"

"Only that I ask the council to take it easy on Belldandy. She is not the type to go off half-cocked about things. She clearly had her reasons for what she did. With any other human, she'd have come back to Heaven in a minute. But there's something about Keiichi that when he's in trouble, she'd go to the ends of the earth to find him." She'll protect him at the expense of her own life. It's not the most goddess-like behavior, but then again, Belldandy is not your usual goddess."

"Thank you Peorth. Please step down."

She stepped back to her place in line, and gave another wink to Keiichi.

Keiichi was still pondering the direction the hearing was taking. "Well, so far everyone has given Belldandy a glowing testimony. I'm not sure if it's enough to get her off clean, but it looks like she should just get her license suspended for a while. At least she'd still be able to live with me. I just wish I knew why it seems like she's not the main focus of this hearing. I seem to be on trial more than she is. Well, nothing I can do for now."

Kami-sama called the last of the goddesses to the witness box. "Goddess First Class Lind, please step forward."

Lind proceeded to the box, and her face was totally unreadable. She betrayed no emotion or intent. No matter how hard Keiichi tried to read her thoughts or her visage, he got nothing. "That must be part of the Valkyrie training she goes through." he figured. "Demons can't get the jump on her tactically if she doesn't give them anything to work with. She's a pretty serious goddess. I'm glad she's on Belldandy's side. She'd be a nightmare as an enemy."

Kami-sama opened the questioning of Lind "Lind, what experience do you have with the goddess Belldandy?"

Lind, still showing no emotion, replied flatly. "I don't have a lot of experience with Belldandy except for the Angel Eater attacks. I was with her when her angel, Holy Bell was taken from her. It was only after that attack, that I realized that somehow, I had carried the Angel Eater with me down to Earth. That was a lack of vigilance on my part for which I am still haunted to this day. I pride myself on my combat readiness. But it failed me that night." Lind's icy facade wavered for a moment, but then recovered.

" Belldandy is a truly powerful and incorruptible goddess. She sees the beauty in all things, and she knows how to provide encouragement to those who get down on them selves. I should know. She didn't lose confidence in me when the transition spell broke. She knew that my magic was not strong enough to ensure success, but she still had faith when others doubted." Lind turned to look at Urd and Peorth as she said her last sentence.

"She was able to convert the familiar implanted into her by Hild, into an angel, albeit one of demonic origin. Even under demonic influence, Belldandy never lost sight of the light. Through the love that she had for Keiichi, he was able to support one of my angels long enough to head off the Angel Eater and Skuld's Noble Scarlet was able to eventually rescue those who were captured. It was a total team effort and a total team victory. And it could not have happened without Keiichi and Belldandy. Both of them are formidable allies for Heaven. And I feel that the council should think twice before revoking Belldandy's license. She possesses remarkable courage and great power for a Non-Valkyrie. She would be a credit to the Combat Section, if she were inclined to join us. That is all."

Kami-sama excused her from further testimony. Lind stepped away from the witness box and returned to the group.

Keiichi knew that his turn was coming up. His mind raced as to what he was going to say. All he could do was just testify to what Belldandy had done for him over the years. But, he wondered whether it would be enough to save her license. He didn't want to be one that swayed the councilors vote to suspension or worse, revocation. Like he told Belldandy, standing up for one's convictions was never easy. But if he truly loved his goddess, and wanted her to live with him forever, now was the time to act.

Kami-sama announced, "Our final witness, Keiichi Morisato." Keiichi's legs felt like jelly as he strode to the witness box. He could feel the eye of every goddess on him. He even heard a few stray comments hoping he'd fail to convince the Council. But for the first time, he also heard many comments in support of him. But those comments only seemed to ignite his competitive nature.

Keiichi lived for competition. He had an innate desire to win fostered by all those races against his father. Belldandy fed that desire with her own intense need for approval. Together they were both driven and single minded when opposed in a race, and together they were a team that was damn near impossible to beat. Both of them had won more than a few awards for the Motor Club in competition, but this time the stakes were infinitely higher. He didn't know if he could convince the council, but he remembered the words that Belldandy spoke to Lind to spark her confidence. 'It's better to try and fail, than not to try at all'

Kami-sama spoke to Keiichi in an encouraging tone. "Keiichi Morisato, I know that this is something that you're not totally prepared for. You have been through a lot the past few days, and I would understand if you'd prefer to withdraw from testifying, but any light you can cast on the matter would be appreciated."

Keiichi gathered up his courage and put it before him. "Kami-sama, no disrespect intended, but can you please just call me Keiichi? I've never been comfortable being referred to by both first and last names." Kami-sama, a note of surprise in his voice, said "Keiichi it is, please continue."

Chapter 15

4th rotation, 3rd Interval, 2nd Period of Cycle 17 Year 2,800,000,000

Keiichi began his testimony. As he started to speak, he could feel his nervousness fall away. His competitive desire coupled with the objective of saving his goddess combined to give a new found strength and confidence He spoke.

"As you heard the goddesses say, I'm not the best looking, or the smartest, or even the luckiest man on Earth. I've even heard such comments from some of the goddesses in the gallery. But that's alright. I guess that's why Yggdrasil sent Belldandy to me. It knew that I needed someone in my life that would give me a chance to show them what I was all about. And that someone was Belldandy.

"When Bell first came to me, I thought she was a joke played on me by my sempais. They were always picking on me and taking advantage of my gullibility. They knew that I had little experience with women, so I figured that she was put up to it by them so they could have a laugh at my expense. I made the wish that I made partially because I thought it was a joke, but deep down, I hoped that it was true that Belldandy was a goddess who had come down to grant me a wish. It was only after the wish was granted and I was kicked out of my dorm, that I realized that I had a living, breathing goddess from Heaven staying with me. And that I had to take care of her.

" We had no place to stay, a kindly Buddhist priest took us in and left his temple in our care. During those first days together, we were barely able to make it from day to another. I had to take part-time jobs to buy food for the both of us. But even though we had those hard times, Belldandy never lost faith in me. She has done so much for me. She kept my spirits up. Her constant encouragement gave me the strength to carry on. With her in my corner, I can take on the world. And I knew that I never wanted to do anything to let her down. I was even willing to put up with Urd and Skuld's as long as I had Belldandy. If that was the price to pay to have a goddess like her my life, It was a small one." The entire chamber sat in complete silence as Keiichi continued to speak.

"For sure, living with three goddesses presented challenges that normal humans wouldn't face. Urd and Skuld are a handful. But I appreciate having them around. They liven up the temple. It's never boring with them." He looked at Belldandy's sisters. Urd looked back coyly and Skuld stuck her tongue out at him. Keiichi continued, "Urd becoming the Lord of Terror and then having her demonic and divine halves separated. Dealing with Hild and Marller. The Angel Eater. Skuld's crazy inventions. Outbreaks of bugs and being turned two-dimensional. Boy, that one was strange. So many crazy adventures. But also so many wonderful days just living with this goddess and enjoying all the blessings she's given me. And I've had the privilege to face the good times and the bad with Belldandy by my side. Thank You, Kami-Sama, for allowing Belldandy to come and live with me." As if on cue, Belldandy ran up and stood next to Keiichi.

He turned to her and looked into her deep blue eyes. She smiled as a tear began to form. Somehow she knew what was coming.

He took her hands and said "I've been wanting to say these words for a long time, but I never had the guts to say them. I guess I needed the right time and to be in the right place." Other times when Keiichi tried to profess his love to Belldandy, his words would get caught in his throat, his nervousness would get the best of him. He was afraid that maybe Belldandy wouldn't feel the same way. But this time, before all of Heaven, there was nothing to get in his way, nothing to stop him from saying those words that summed up his life with Belldandy to this moment. Keiichi peered deep into his goddess's heart and soul and confidently declared:

"Belldandy, my friend and my goddess, the one who has brightened my days and filled my life with joy. The one who has stood by my side in sunlight and the rain. The one whose smile chases away the blackest of darkness.

I LOVE YOU.

from the deepest recesses of my heart! I live for you and would die for you, and if you'll have me, I'd like for a goddess like you to stay with me always!"

Belldandy looked into Keiichi's eyes, and as the tears started to flow, and with a smile that spanned the length and breadth of Heaven, she tilted her head back and shouted for all to hear.

"I Love You, Keiichi Morisato! and I will stay with you forever!, I really do love you Keiichi!"

Her voice carried throughout Heaven. Every God and Goddess bore witness to Keiichi and Belldandy's declaration of eternal love.

For a few moments, there was total silence in the chamber, except for Belldandy's muffled weeping. Then at the very back, one goddess released her angel and began to sing. It was only one goddess but her voice filled the hall. Then another goddess joined in, and another and another. Soon, the chamber was filled with the complex, celestial harmonies of thousands of goddesses singing with their angels. The angelic choir was like none Keiichi had ever heard. One that no choir on Earth could reproduce. He could understand each word. He could see the runes that made up the song spiraling over his head towards the ceiling.

The song was about the love between a man and his goddess and how that love could never die. As the goddesses sang their song, Keiichi looked towards Lind and the others, they all had their angels out and were singing, including Skuld. He looked back at Belldandy and she too was singing with Holy Bell, a look of rapturous joy on her beautiful face. As the song filled his heart, he felt the lightness in his stomach again, but this time his mind had been even further expanded. He felt power surging through his body, the likes of which he had never felt before. This power started in his head and radiated out down through all his limbs and out through the soles of his feet. It cleansed him, invigorated him, transformed him. His senses were completely released from their human constraints. It was as if he had been removed from his earthly body and was floating free of the bonds and limits of humanity.

He felt as if he could move the universe with just a thought. He closed his eyes and drank it all in. The power called out to him and gently urged him to trust and submit, and not resist.

And so he did.

He let his body go. He cast off the last shred of mortality. And yearned to float freely on the notes of the song of the goddesses. He opened his eyes again to see that he had done just that. He was airborne with Belldandy floating high above the chamber. Her wings were fully extended. He looked at his clothes. The street clothes were gone, and they were replaced with royal blue and gold robes, the same color as the trim on Belldandy's uniform. Belldandy raised her right hand and produced a mirror. Keiichi looked into it and saw that he had indeed been transformed. On his forehead was a mark that looked like a crescent moon. With boundless joy, he grabbed hold of his goddess and pulled her to him and kissed her. She returned the embrace, and folded her wings around them both. This time, they knew, was the right time. There would be nothing to hold them back. He could give all of himself to her and she could give all of herself to him.

The song finally ended. The chamber returned back to normal. Keiichi and Belldandy returned to the floor. Keiichi could still feel the power flowing through him. He felt in total control. His senses could now experience the fullness of Heaven in all its eternal glory. Keiichi thought to himself "So this is the power that Belldandy feels every day." He and Belldandy looked around at the gathered masses and saw nothing but approval and joy on everyone's face...even Skuld's.

Kami-sama said "The council has spoken. Goddess First Class Belldandy, you have been acquitted of all charges against you. You are free to return to the Earth, if you so choose. And Keiichi Morisato, in recognition of your exemplary service to Heaven during the time that you and Belldandy have been together. You have been made a Second Class God with all the rights and responsibilities thereto..."

Peorth interrupted "Kami-sama, Before you go on, can you answer a question for us?

Why did the transition spell fail, and why was Keiichi able to still come to Heaven? My fellow goddeses and I are confused."

Kami-sama thought for a moment and said "Peorth, the spell didn't fail. Keiichi would not be here if it did. The spell was executed correctly, and despite what you may think, Lind performed her part quite admirably. You see, Keiichi is a one of a kind case. He had God-powers which were sealed unto him when he was born, but only a specific set of circumstances performed in a specific sequence would have caused these powers to manifest themselves.

" It was pre-ordained by me that he and Belldandy were to meet, and she would grant him his wish. No other goddess could have put things in motion. Belldandy alone was the key. She knew this from the beginning, but was sworn to secrecy and forbidden to speak of it to anyone. This was a topic of special significance and even if Belldandy would have been tempted to reveal this, she would have been physically silenced. Once Belldandy and Keiichi met, his God-powers started to slowly develop.

" Keiichi's wish was the next piece of the puzzle to fall into place. His wish for Belldandy to stay with him further unlocked his powers and also advanced the plan. This was the only wish that would have done so. That is the reason it, as unusual as it was, was accepted by Yggdrasil. The arrival of Skuld and Urd into his life was not part of the plan, but just happened to provide an unintended benefit, because as all here know, Belldandy, Urd, and Skuld are not ordinary goddesses, at least not in the sense that there is such a thing as an ordinary goddess. They are the Norns of Time. Urd of the Past, Belldandy of the Present and Skuld of the Future.

"The presence of these three special goddesses in one place and the love and respect that Keiichi showed them over the years only served to strengthen his powers quicker than expected. But because Keiichi was still only human, his powers could only grow so much. He had to be released from his human bonds for his powers to fully develop."

Belldandy looked at Keiichi, and with a touch of remorse in her voice said "I'm sorry that I had to hold this information from you, Keiichi. It was for your protection that this had to play out as it did. I would understand if you're angry with me about holding out on you."

Keiichi said "Bell, there was nothing you could do. It was better that I didn't know. There's nothing to be sorry about. You really need to stop apologizing about things beyond your control."

Kami-sama reasserted himself "You are probably wondering why I contacted Belldandy and ordered her to come back to Heaven." Urd said, "Yeah, the thought had crossed our minds." with a touch of irritation.

Kami-sama ignored her insubordination and pressed on. " I had to determine the level of devotion Belldandy had to Keiichi. While I could pre-arrange their meeting, I could not influence the way they ultimately felt towards each other. I had to find out the lengths to which Belldandy would go to protect the man she fell in love with. Had she not have been able to bring Keiichi here to this hearing, she would have been punished. This test would not have been effective without the threat of repercussions. Admittedly, the punishment would have been light. But the fact remains that Belldandy was willing to put her life as a goddess on the line for Keiichi and I am impressed by that.

Urd spoke up once again " So, Kami-sama, this was all a test, just to toy with Keiichi and Belldandy's relationship?, That's pretty low, if you ask me."

Kami-sama replied calmly, but clearly showing that he had had enough of Urd's backtalk. "Coming from one who admitted before this council and myself in the presence of all these witnesses that she used various methods including drugs and seduction to toy with their relationship, I find your statement more than a little hypocritical. Urd, you are reaching the limits of my patience, so please refrain from any more sarcastic comments."

Even Urd knew when to back off, so she quit while she was ahead.

Kami-sama continued.

"Now, on to the transition spell. The spell did work, but not precisely as the goddesses expected. You raised the dome of power and Keiichi's mind was opened and expanded as expected. But what happened was that at the precise moment that his mind had opened, he exerted a rush of power that interfered with the spell and caused the dome to collapse. So there was nothing wrong with the spell. The Song of the Goddesses just performed was the final act that sealed Keiichi's elevation to Godhood.

Kami-sama continued, "Keiichi, did you notice that whenever you and Belldandy embraced, both your hearts beat as one in perfect time with each other? Keiichi and Belldandy nodded together. "That was clear proof that it was your destiny that you and Belldandy belonged together. Such a phenomenon could only occur between a goddess and a human if they were meant to be bound together for eternity. Did you also notice that the testimony laid before this council was skewed more towards assessing your character than Belldandy's?"

Keiichi said "I was aware of that. I was wondering why it seemed like I was on trial instead of her", pointing to Belldandy.

Kami-sama said "In a way, you were on trial. Look around you, every goddess in heaven is represented here. There are thousands in this hall. For sure, I have had the rare case of goddesses defying my orders and had they been found guilty of disobedience without a legitimate excuse, they were swiftly disciplined. But Belldandy was the only goddess ever to defy an order from Heaven because of her love for a human.

"Goddesses like Belldandy are taught to always do what ever it takes to honor their client's contracts, but that orders from Heaven supersede all contracts with no exceptions. The fact that Belldandy chose to do this speaks highly of you and your ability to impress a goddess like her. Field goddesses are not easily impressed. They are trained not to be.

"Sometimes the contracts they undertake require them to witness the worst in humanity. And they have to put on a pleasant demeanor to make the client happy, even though they consider the contract to be distasteful and not worth their time. To a goddess, the fulfillment of the contract takes priority over their personal feelings about the contract, or the person with whom they have contracted. They can become cynical and jaded. Happily, Belldandy has never reached that point. She has always taken each of her contracts in a positive and upbeat manner. But it took a very special human for her to fall in love.

"And you were able to convince all these goddesses that you and Belldandy deserved to be together for eternity. And that could only occur if you were elevated to Godhood, hence the Song of the Goddesses. That Song served to finish the expansion of your mind and senses and the transition of your soul and spirit from your human self to your immortal self. From this moment forward, you and Belldandy are bound together for eternity. As you are no longer human, the contract between you and her is dissolved. And to insure that another incident like this never happens again, I have ordered that Yggdrasil's wish servers be reprogrammed to reject wishes that require a goddess to stay with a human longer than 30 Earth days." Kami-sama finished.

"You and Belldandy can either choose to stay here in heaven, or return to the Earth.

Of course, you can come to Heaven to visit anytime you wish. With these great powers do come great responsibilities. These powers are not yours to be used frivolously. You are expected to use your power for the good of the Earth and all the people on it. You will be held to a high standard of conduct. And know that you are subject to heavenly discipline should you misuse your powers. Just ask Urd about what can happen should you do so." Kami-sama completed with an uncharacteristic chuckle.

He then continued in all seriousness, "Keiichi Morisato, Do you accept these powers and all the privileges and duties that come with them?"

Keiichi looked at Belldandy, and then looked at the other goddesses and said, "Yes, I accept these powers, and with the help of Belldandy and all the rest of these goddesses, I strive to not betray the confidence you have in me."

Kami-sama said "So it has been declared, so it shall come to pass. You are the only human to ever be elevated to Godhood. It is a testament to your goodness and your love for this goddess that you have received this gift. Go in peace."

In a flash of light, the massive chamber and the thousands of goddesses disappeared from the gang's sight as they flew back to Earth.

Epilogue

There was another flash of light and Keiichi and the goddesses were standing in the temple courtyard. He wondered whether his powers would remain with him on the Earth. He raised his right hand and effortlessly conjured a rose that he presented to Belldandy. She accepted it and smiled "Thank You, Keiichi, my love. May our days be always filled with happiness." Keiichi held Belldandy and said "Belldandy, they already are."

Lind and Peorth came up to the happy couple, and congratulated them. Lind said "Does that invitation still stand?" Keiichi said "Anytime. Both of you have a standing invitation." Peorth said "Well, well, well. I never thought I'd see the day. Keiichi becoming a God. I guess they'll let anyone into Heaven these days." She tipped Keiichi a final wink and said "Au revoir, mes amis" Both goddesses stepped into the beam of light and disappeared through the gate.

Urd came over to Keiichi and Belldandy, gave them a thumbs up and said to Skuld, "Hey Brat, how's about I treat you to a big old ice cream sundae." Skuld said "I'm not hungry, maybe later." Urd said "Yes you are hungry, and you want a big ice cream sundae with lots of chocolate fudge and whipped cream and strawberries..."

"No, Urd I'm not hun-o-o-o-o-o" Skuld squealed as Urd dragged her little sister by the ear down the steps of the temple and towards town.

Keiichi and Belldandy were alone in the courtyard. Bell said "Well, Keiichi, "

"Yes, Belldandy."

"We have some time before dinner, and there's nothing to do."

"Oh, I can think of something..."

Belldandy whispered in Kei's ear. "Remember that thought you had about what it would be like to make love to a goddess?" she said in a very un-Belldandy-like way.

Keiichi gulped and said "you heard that didn't you?

Bell said "Yes, I did, and you're about to find out."

Uh-oh.

Belldandy grabbed Keiichi's hand and eagerly led him towards the temple. "Well, we will have plenty of time."

Keiichi picked up his goddess, light as a feather, held her in his arms, and said "Belldandy, we've got forever."

And for the first time, Keiichi and Belldandy made love...as God and Goddess.

(Author's Note: If you're wondering whether I will ever include an account of that first time, don't even think about it. Let's just leave these two crazy kids alone, besides that's what imaginations are for. PRW)

A few miles away in the Nekomi business district, Urd and Skuld were sitting in the ice cream shoppe enjoying their sundaes. Or, rather Skuld was enjoying her sundae, Urd took one look at how her little sister was cramming the ice cream confection down her throat and that put her off her appetite. She sighed and turned her sundae over to Skuld, who grabbed the bowl and started in on it without missing a beat. Urd was wondering whether Keiichi and Belldandy had finally done what she had been trying to get them to do ever since she came to Earth years ago. She got her answer a few minutes later when her goddess senses detected a powerful rush of raw, primal, magical energy coming from the direction of the temple.

While Urd knew what that energy represented, she had underestimated its intensity. It literally knocked her out of her chair and she landed on the floor on her backside. Quickly saving face, she got up off the floor and straightened her clothes, saying, "Well, that was Belldandy," A minute later a duplicate wave of energy roared through the shoppe, but Urd was prepared this time. "And, that was Keiichi." she said to herself. "Judging by the power of those waves, they must have had a lot of pent-up desires. Good for them. I guess this means I'll have to come up with new reasons to drag Skuld out of the temple whenever those two want to get frisky, and that's going to happen quite a bit now that Keiichi has unlocked Belldandy's sex drive. Lucky for him he's a God now, that's the only way he'll ever be able to keep up with her."

She looked at Skuld, who was still eating the two ice cream sundaes like she hadn't eaten in a year, and had not even noticed what had just happened. She touched the top of Skuld's head, tousled the little goddess' black tresses, and thought to herself "Here's to hoping that you and Sentaro can have as great a relationship as Keiichi and Belldandy."

An hour later, Urd returned from the ice cream shoppe and walked by Keiichi's room. There she saw Keiichi and Belldandy asleep on a futon, his arms holding her tight against him. The looks on their faces showed that they had a very good time to say the least. Their clothes were piled up in a corner, and nothing but a sheet covering their bodies. Urd thought to herself, "Now this could get verrry interesting."

THE END.

Credits

Thanks to the creative writing and Communications Skills faculties at the Community College of Allegheny County and Robert Morris University for awakening my dormant writing gifts. Also thanks to Kosuke Fujishima for creating, in my opinion, the finest manga I have ever read. Also thanks are due to the largest OMG community on the web, The Goddess Relief Office for all their great content from which I drew inspiration.

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