The Ark's gentle humming had lulled the white and crimson wolf into an uneasy sleep, her breathing was slow; and her sides heaved up and down with every breath. A blonde male leaned casually against the interior of the ship, watching clouds pass by as they gradually rose higher and higher into the air- closer and closer to the Celestial Plain. A loud yawn brought his attention back to the crimson shaded wolf. "Are you awake, Ma Cherie'?" He asked quietly.

Amaterasu had lifted her head to look at him, the wolf's golden eyes blinked sleepily, and she forced herself to smile up at him, tail thumping the ground in a wag. "I'll take that as a yes…" Waka chuckled as she lowered her head once more onto her paws. The goddess let her eyelids droop, and she seemed to be dozing off once more.

Ugh…I'm so sore, that stupid Yami…I hope he stays dead. She thought as she forced her eyes open to look up at Waka. Waka, and herself, had both been injured by Yami; of course when the fish-like creature had knocked Waka off the edge, she had been sure he was dead. Only her friends' faith had brought her to unlock her true power, and defeat Yami. A weak smile creased the wolf's lips as she fondly remembered her companions. Issun, and Kushi…Susano, Mr. and Mrs. Orange… The list ran on and on until she got to her new-found friends in Kamui. Lika, Kai, Samickle, that crazy old chieftain…And Oki… The goddess' ears flicked forward at the name. Oki! Besides Issun, the Oina warrior had aided her in the battle against Lechku and Nechku, and despite her reluctance to say so; he had probably had a huge effect on the outcome of the battle.

"Amaterasu," The wolf's thoughts were interrupted, she shifted her gaze from the ground up to Waka, and tilted her head questioningly at him. Waka was staring outside of the ship, a slow grin creeping across his face. "We're here." He stated. Amaterasu's eyes widened as she heaved herself onto her sore paws, a sudden throbbing in her head made her stumble a bit, but she shook it off and pushed herself onto her hindlegs, tail wagging as she stared out. A wide expanse of clouds stretched before them, though one sight made her brighten. The other 12 gods were waiting for her.

As the ark came into sight, Kabegami was the first to notice it. The cat goddess' tail suddenly went upright, and she let out what looked like a meow, before nudging Yumigami beside her. The rabbit goddess scowled at Kabegami, before turning to look at what the cat was meowing about; almost immediately her ears perked forward. Amaterasu`s grin widened as she dropped onto all fours, her past injuries were forgotten for a mere moment as she dashed away, "Wha- Ma Cherie'! Where are you going?" Waka's voice was tuned out as she wandered through the ark's corridors; until finally, she was at the door.

The wolf slowed her steps as she approached the ark's grand door. This had been the place she had watched Issun fall…An involuntary whimper escaped her throat, she missed the little Poncle, but…She would soon see Issun again or at least watch over him from the Celestial Plains, right? The goddess jumped as light seeped through growing cracks in the door, her heart skipped a beat, it was opening! Almost immediately, welcoming greetings filled her ears.

"Mother Amaterasu!" "She's finally come home!" "Welcome back, Mother Amaterasu!"

The wolf's heart swelled at the warm welcomes, and before the door had even hit the ground, she bounded forward, and leapt out of the ark. The goddess landed hard on the other side, and winced slightly as her left back leg began to quiver under the strain of the landing. Amaterasu forced the pain aside and lifted her head, ears pointed towards the other gods and goddesses.

"Amaterasu, welcome home! Welcome to the Celestial Plain!" Kabegami meowed warmly, the she-cat pressed her way through the crowd, and gracefully strutted towards her. Kabegami`s eyes twinkled excitedly as she stretched out her neck to press her nose against Amaterasu's, who had lowered her head to greet the cat.

"Welcome back, mother Amaterasu…" The second voice belonged to Gekigami, he watched her with piercing yellow eyes, the faintest traces of a smile left on his face; and his tail wrapped around his paws.

"Yes, welc-" Kasugami's voice suddenly broke off in what sounded like a hiccup. Lifting, and turning her head, Amaterasu smiled at the drunken sheep that clumsily made her way towards the wolf, "-ome, Amaterasu." She finally finished after pausing a few feet away, Kasugami leaned to one side, then stumbled and began to lean on the other, all the while giving Amaterasu a stupid grin.

"Ah, mother Amaterasu. How good it is to see you again." Yomigami, the god of rejuvenation, loomed over all the other gods- more than likely the biggest of them all, he craned his neck over the small crowd to see her-casting a shadow on those below.

"Yes, it's so nice to see you once more!" Kazegami nickered, his ears swiveled backwards, and then forward as he lashed his tail from side to side- as if flicking away annoying flies.

"I knew you could do it, Mother Amaterasu." Moegami's monotone chirp hit her ears, and she ducked as the Pheonix swooped past. Moegami had circled the group, and hovered just above Gekigami. Amaterasu barked towards the Phoenix, and wagged her tail wildly- making the Inferno god grin.

"Amaterasu," Tachigami squeaked shrilly, and she looked down. A rat sidestepped away from Kabegami, who twitched an ear as it did so. Tachigami, the goddess of her brush power, Power Slash, walked towards her. "It's so good to see you again, I'm so glad you made it out of that battle with only minor injuries."

Three voices chimed into the welcoming, though all seemed to be one. "Welcome back, Amaterasu! We knew you could do it!" The Hanagami trio watched her excitedly, one even began banging on his symbols, though was soon shushed by his brethren.

The boar was the next to appear; he apologized quickly to the small Tachigami as he rolled over her tail with the large cherry bomb. Tachigami pulled her tail close to her body, and glared up at him. "Mother-"He broke off to hurriedly blow out the fuse on the bomb, sighing in relief, the boar balanced precariously on the front of it. "Mother Amaterasu! I give you my warmest greetings, welcome back to our home." He said, Amaterasu laughed lightly at him, her golden eyes sparkling. Itegami was the next to step up.

"Welcome, Amaterasu." He greeted, and bobbed his head, "We're all so glad to have you back."

"Ama-Amaterasu," Nuregami rolled towards her, pausing to push up on the cork that blocked her only exit, after a moment of straining to get it off, she began to pant and shake her head, though a moment later was grinning at her. "Welcome back to the Celestial Plain!" The serpent exclaimed joyfully.

"Yes, welcome Amaterasu." Yumigami, the rabbit goddess of the moon was the last to greet her, though her words didn't seem anything close to welcoming. The rabbit trailed off, and inhaled sharply before continuing. "I wish we could all bring you great news on your return, but I'm afraid not. As you may already know, the Celestial Plain has fallen into disarray since you fell down to the mortal's world." She rumbled, the small crowd around her fell silent, and Yumigami turned her head to look towards the others. A few of the other gods and goddesses split apart.

It felt as if someone had a death grip on Amaterasu's heart. The clouds in the distance were dark, seething with evil. Red sparks flickered away from the darkening clouds, "The cursed zones- Yami and Orochi's powers, they spread to the Celestial Plain." The rabbit murmered.

Most of the gods shifted uncomfortably, unsure of what Amaterasu's reaction would be. The wolf finally sat back on her haunches, staring towards the darkness that seemed to be spreading by the second. Back in Nippon…Issun and I blessed the Cursed Zones, why are they here? We killed both Orochi and Yami, why didn't they all disappear? Unnoticed, Waka stood beside the goddess.

"Ma Cherie'?" He asked, a moment passed before Amaterasu realized that Waka had called her, and she looked up curiously. His face was grim, and he didn't bother to look down at her. "I believe we still have some work to do."

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(( Ahahaha, this is my first time submitting a story here, so forgive me.

I apologize for the boringness of the first chapter, it'll get more exciting in the following chapters, don't worry, I'll make sure of it! *marine's salute* And I know I didn't have to make ALL the gods greet her...I just...Wanted too. T-T; ))