Disclaimer: Ah! My Goddess and all its associated characters are owned by their creator, Kosuki Fujishima ( © 1988 – 2007 ) Any other characters specifically created for this fictional work are fictitious. Any similarity to any persons, living or dead is purely coincidental.
My personal gratitude goes to Mr. Kosuki Fujishima for creating the wonderful Manga, characters, settings, and plots that this fiction is based on.
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"AAAAHHHHHHHH" Sam screamed. All he could see was a rainbow-spiral all around him. Although he couldn't see Skuld in front of him, he could still feel her hand grasping his wrist. Within a moment, the spiral faded, and he stood in a new place, a truly beautiful place.
"Wooooooooooooow" Sam gasped in awe. "Where is this place?"
"Welcome to Heaven, Sam!" Skuld said with a slight giggle.
"Oh, hi Skuld, welcome back. The Almighty One wants to see you in his office. Now." Peorth said with a stale tone.
"T…The Almighty One…..wants…..me?" Skuld quivered with the thought that she did something wrong.
"Yup. He's been waiting for you to show up for a while now." Peorth chastised. "Oh, and I'll take real good care of your friend here." she said putting her arm around Sam's waist, pulling him close to her side.
Sam grunted as the wind was knocked out of him, and then bounced back away from Peorth a few inches.
"Hey! Watch it, Peorth!—" Skuld said with vengeance. "Sam, I'll be back shortly." she continued in a sweet voice while glaring at Peorth. After a few moments of exchanging glares, Skuld turned and started walking to the Almighty One's office.
The Almighty One's office was more like a mansion, and was really only a short walk from where Skuld originally left. However, to Skuld, the journey seemed to take forever. As soon as she entered the lounge, an assistant pointed Skuld down the hall, informing her to turn right at the flower garden and then follow the corridor until she reaches two large mahogany doors.
Skuld followed her instruction, and having never really been in His office before was taken a bit back with all there was that filled the massive hallway. The flower garden that she passed by, was exquisite, with beautiful flowering plants, some of which she had never seen before, and some had such a seductive fragrance that even Urd couldn't match with her potions. As she continued to walk, she felt different and was filled with feelings she had never felt before.
Once she had passed the garden, she continued on through a scenic hallway. The walls varied in colors, shifting often between reds, greens, and blues. Above her, she could hear birds cheerfully chirping and floor was as soft as freshly cut grass. After a few more moments of walking, Skuld had reached the two massive doors. She pulled one open, just barely enough for her to slip into the next room.
"Oh, come on in, Skuld. I've been expecting you." Skuld heard from around the corner. In front of her was a round Mother-of-Pearl table that could easily fit eight people. On top of the table was a huge dish of ice cream. There was everything from Vanilla to Mint to Peanut Butter Fudge. It had to be at least a couple of gallons worth, sitting there perfectly scooped right in front of Skuld. Off to the side there was file folder and a pen laying across it in a diagonal fashion.
"Eat up, Skuld, you've had quite a difficult job, and you deserve to recharge for all your hard work." the Voice came from around the corner.
"Thank…you….Almighty One." Skuld said with a hint of hesitation as she sat down and started to shovel cold ice cream into her mouth.
The ice cream was a definite treat; it tasted like nothing she had ever had before. It was sweet and creamy and melted in her mouth at just the right moment. It also had an aphrodisiac-like effect which Skuld had failed to notice.
"I noticed you met a friend while you were down on Earth." again the Voice said from around the corner.
"Um, yes. I did. His name is Sam. But how--" Skuld responded inquizically.
"What happened to you was most unfortunate……." He paused. "…. Have you had a chance to thank him yet?" the Almighty One asked rhetorically.
"No." Skuld said between gulps, "I haven't seen Belldandy yet to—"
"Why would you need your sister, Skuld?" He asked.
"Because….I don't—" Skuld started but was interrupted again.
"Do you see that folder in front of you?" the Almighty One asked.
"Yes." as she moved the pen off the top of the folder to examine the contents of the folder. When she opened the flap, she started to choke on her ice cream in mid gulp.
"Since you've done such a great job up here with Yggdrasil, and you've seen Belldandy in action here's your chance to reward Sam appropriately." He paused. "Just sign that License Waiver, and begin your training as a First Class goddess."
"But……….." Skuld choked out, "I haven't gotten my Second Class powers yet— I'm too young—" Skuld protested.
"This isn't a permanent upgrade, and you still have to pass the official exam, when the time is right. This only upgrades your access level, and most importantly, allows you to reward the good deeds of those around you." He said with a reminding tone.
Skuld picked up the pen and skimmed over the terms and conditions of the waiver, and then hastily signed her name, making the contract effective.
"You will still be a Category One goddess, and your primary duties will still include the upkeep of Yggdrasil, however, for the time being, you will be spending your time on Earth."
"What will I be doing on Earth? How can I maintain Yggdrasil down there?" Skuld asked.
"I'm sending you on another mission. This one is a personal one, just for you. …… and Sam." He ended with a small chuckle.
"Now please go meet up with him, and return to Earth."
"Um, yes……Thank you, Almighty One." Skuld said very quickly. Without a moment of delay, she left his office. Skuld practically ran back to where she left Sam and Peorth. When she got there, she found Sam lying on the floor, face down, with Peorth straddling his back.
"Peorth!?" Skuld yelled.
"What….he was—" Peorth started.
"I don't care! Get off him! He's got to come with to the Registration Office."
"Registration Office huh? So, He knocked you down from Second Class to Third? Or did you get booted out like your sister!?" Peorth began to laugh.
"NO! I did not!" Skuld yelled.
"Really? Well then what happened!?" Peorth demanded.
"Like it's any of your business!" Skuld screamed back at Peorth. "Come on Sam, let's go." she said picking Sam up off the floor and stormed out.
"Where…are we going?" Sam asked.
"To the Registration Office. I have to turn in this paperwork." Skuld said still with a hint of frustration in her voice.
Sam figured that it would be best to drop the subject. This seemed to be a touchy subject to Skuld. The journey only took a few minutes to reach their destination. Once there, Skuld approached the large silver and gold desk and impatiently waited.
"Hi, Skuld! Long time no see?! How have you been?" a red haired woman spoke in a cheerful manor.
"Oh, I'm fine…I guess. I need to file this paperwork." Skuld said without any concern.
"Just fine? Come on….! I know you've got something juicy. After all, you've been to Earth recently, haven't you?"
"Yes. Could you please just file this?" Skuld asked impatiently.
"Okay. Coming right up!" the woman responded with glee.
Skuld handed her the paperwork, and the clerk opened the folder. She carefully typed in the sequence of numbers and letters to open Skuld's personal file and then began to scan in the file.
"What!? WOW Skuld! Congratulations!" she screamed with joy. "You must have done something very impressive to warrant this! If I recall, I think there has only been one other goddess to achieve this—" she continued.
Sam over at Skuld and noticed that she was blushing
"There, all done, Goddess First Class, Unlimited license! Oh, it looks like you've got a message here." the clerk said with cheer.
Skuld walked behind the desk and glanced at the monitor. Pressing the Retrieve key, a message from the Almighty One displayed on the screen.
"He wants me to do WHHHAAAATTTT!?" Skuld screamed in panic.
"Way to go Skuld! That assignment should be a piece of cake for you! After all, you've got your older sisters to help you out…….if you know what I mean. They have quite the reputation now."
"Hey! Haven't you heard of COFIDENTIAL?!" Skuld yelled.
"Sorry about that. Oh, I have one other thing for you." she said as she opened the drawer on her right. After shuffling around for a moment, she produced a fairly thick booklet. "You'll want to study that soon….it's for your test." she concluded.
"Oh, okay! Thank you." Skuld said plainly.
"After you know all that's in there, you should have no troubles with your ….. assignment." she said with a small giggle and looked towards Sam.
"Is …..is there something I should know?" Sam asked reluctantly.
"No." Skuld answered quickly, "Nothing at all. We should get going now." she finished as she pushed Sam out of the office.
"Where are we going now?"
"Back to Earth, I need to see my big sis." Skuld said with a hint of concern.