Chapter 10: A Magical Mishap before Shit Hits the Fan
Hey. So, it's towards the end of the semester, so getting this out was a bitch. With the big presentation I have to do, I haven't had much time. 'That sounds like an excuse.' It sort of is, but it's all I've got. Also, hush you. You get your time to shine. 'Really!?' Yes. 'Yay!' There won't be as long as a wait for the next one, though. I've got that one worked out. 'I know. I was there.' Again, hush you. On with the show!
Thanks to Iri's magic, my recovery time was reduced by a week, which Ragland wasn't happy about. Something bout pills being wasted.
"Come on, Dad! We're going to be late!" Monika called out. She had decided that I was going to work with her today. "You promised we'd spend today together." She said, standing in the doorway to my room.
"I know, I know, but you forget that your dad isn't a morning person." I grumbled, pulling on a shirt and my long glove. I glanced at the clock on the nightstand and saw it was the unholy hour of seven-thirty in.
"I'm making coffee. Just wait." Right…I forgot Iri is like Garfield. She absolutely loathes Monday mornings.
"Thank you, Iri. You're a life saver." I replied, entering the kitchen.
"Hm." She grunted, returning to the French press. After the two of us had our intake of liquid caffeine, we made our way to the Basilicom.
"Hey, you three! How are you today?" Monika cooed to the three children. Said kids reached up to her with smiles on their faces.
"You should open up a…" Steven, you foolish man, you just had yourself an idea. "Hey, Histoire?"
"Yes? What is it, Steven?" As she asked, I picked up the one that had crawled over to me. It was Compa.
"Is there any empty business buildings around here that are empty?"
"That depends on what you intend to use the space for."
"Yes, Stevie, tell us about this brilliant idea of yours." Plutie said, lumbering into the room like a dragon awakening from its cave.
"Well, Monika and Iri are reall good with kids, and with everything that's been happening, there's got to be more kids like those three. Why not open a full on daycare?"
"That's a really sweet idea." Iri said. Plutie didn't seem too keen on the idea.
"But then everyone would be gone…" Oh…
"Hehe…What kind of brother am I, not seeing how my idea would affect you?" I asked, rubbing the back of my head.
"Dad, it's a nice idea, but I don't think I'd be able to watch over all of those children, even with Iri's help."
"I get the point already, no need to press it further."
"Hello, Stevie." Neptune greeted, entering the room. "Are you ready to get to work, Plutie?"
"Of course. Let's get going." After several hours, the other CPUs showed up, as was now a common occurrence.
"Hello, everyone." Nepgear greeted as she started giving us babysitters something to drink.
"Hey, Nepgear. Everyone." Noire greeted in turn. "Where's Cynthia? Normally she at least pops in to say hi."
"Guild stuff. She said it was something she wasn't allowed to skip out on, even if one of you said otherwise."
"Nepgear, are there any drinks left? Plutie and I could use a break." Neptune saw the others and paused. "As nice as it is to see everyone, I must ask something that's been on my mind for a while now. Why do you come and hang out in Planeptune's Basilicom every day, Vert? Noire isn't even here most of the time."
"No reason in particular. I am told to get out of my room more often. If I had to pick, however, it would be to discuss plans. I have sent scouts to explore the hidden parts of my nations, and have been giving Steven the reports. It is also more convenient to come here and give the reports to Histoire and Monika."
"And as I have told you, we do not require daily updates on the matter. Also, your attempt to hide the fact that you wish to talk with others has lost its appeal." Histoire countered.
"If everyone is staying for a while, would you like some tea?" Nepgear asked.
"Nepgear, ever since you decided to stay here when Neptune moved out, you've been working yourself to the bone. Why don't you take a break for once and sit over with your girlfriend?" Monika teased. "I learned enough about making tea from a friend, so I should be fine."
"O-Okay…" She replied, turning red as she sat down, looking at an equally red Blanc.
"Wait, how long has this been a thing?"
"You'd know if you showed up more often." Blanc replied.
"True."
"Maybe you should hand the baby off to someone else before going to do anything." Iri said, pointing to the baby Iffy in her arms. She was not exactly thrilled with the idea of leaving her hold.
"No!" She yelled in her tiny voice, increasing her grip on Monika's grey sweater-thing.
"I don't think that's going to happen any time soon." Monika giggled. "It's fine though. I should be able to take care of this as is."
"Are you two going to seal the deal?" Iri asked the still blushing duo. "I know for a fact that you two have been dating, but you haven't really done the whole couple thing. You two might as well be single."
"What about Plutia?" Blanc asked. "As far as I'm aware, she's still single, and you aren't harping on her about it."
"I don't bring it up because I know the reaction it'll get. Stevie's been waiting for the chance to harass me about something."
"I have. Payback will be sweet." No one teases me so viciously Plutie and gets away with it.
"You really shouldn't hide your relationship with Johnny from your brother, Plutia." Noire said. Wait…
"Oh…Ok. This'll be fun. I can rib both of you for this. Maybe I can bring back a joke from back home."
"What joke would that be?" Vert asked.
"Johnny the Masochist."
"Explain." Plutie all but demanded.
"It happened years ago, but he was talking to his family about us while in a party chat with us. Something was said, and thus the joke was born."
"We've talked about that already, so things like that aren't in our plans for the future." Plutie said afterwards.
"Where's Souji? Normally he tags along when you visit, Blanc." Iri asked as Monika struggled to handle both the platter of drinks and Iffy.
"He wished to stay in Lowee. Something about having to plan something and get ready for the exploration of the Leanbox temple." Blanc replied.
"He did say he would be by later though." Neptune added. Hm…well, I'm bored. Kinda want to try something.
"Hey, Histy? This place is damage resistance, isn't it?" I asked the tome.
"Yes it is, but I would appreciate it if you did not cause such an event to occur."
"I'm not going to, but I don't know how bad this could go." I said, retrieving the grimoire I had found in Hecate's temple and began flipping through its pages.
'Steven. You know that you aren't ready for most of the spells in that book.' The goddess of magic warned.
"I just want to try a simple transformation spell. This shouldn't go horribly."
"Do you think that is the wisest idea?" Vert asked.
"Are most of my ideas wise?" I countered. "But no. I don't, but I'm really not gonna see how much I've progressed until I try the harder stuff. The plan is to make my beard go away. If it works, then I bring it back and everything is right with the world. I don't think I can fuck things up too badly." Finally, I found the page I needed and started casting. There was no fancy chant or anything, just dump in enough magic and focus on a mental image. The seal on the ground showed up like it was supposed to, and the light happened. "So, did it work?" Wait…that's not my voice. It's not that high.
"Um, Stevie…? You might want to pull up your pants and go find a mirror." Neptune suggested. I quickly did so, and was not pleased by what I saw.
"Kyah!" No. I did not just…"Fuck…" I was very much a girl, if the chesticles where anything to go by. "I really shouldn't have said what I did earlier. Leave it to my luck for this to go like this. Instead of removing my beard I removed my masculinity." My hair had grown long like it did with my contracts with Artemis and Hecate, to about the center of my back. While I may have shrunken a bit for my clothes to not fit properly anymore, my hips were wide enough that I could get away with it if I put on a belt for once. Not gonna lie, with this chest, I could give Noire a run for her money. Wasn't even close to Vert's in size, but I think 'Tia will be a touch jealous. As I finished looking myself over, there was a knock on the door.
"Dad, we're coming in." Monika said, opening the door and leading Noire and Iri in. The two older women had a stack of clothes that could have only come from Nepgear's closet.
"Take it off." Noire commended.
"Take what off?"
"EVERYTHING. It's either you do it yourself or Iri does it."
"You've seen how handsy I can be." The Servant added.
"Okay, okay, I'll do it." Stripping was an awkward affair. I've only ever taken my boxers off in front of one woman that wasn't family before, but as soon as they were off, Noire immediately got to work, eyeballing measurements. Then, she began pulling out different articles of clothing, starting with panties and bras. That's when I truly knew it was Nepgear's clothes, because the very first set was white with pink stripes. I hate to admit it, but I struggled with the bras for a long time. Longer than I'm willing to admit.
"Wouldn't he look cute in this?" Iri asked, holding up one of Nepgear's sailor outfits, socks included.
"No. I'm not wearing skirts or anything like that. Give me pants."
"Hahaha! Who said you have a voice in this?" Iri, no. Please. The Servant of the spell jumped me, forcing me into an outfit of her choice. My legs were covered by black tights that went up and over the stripped underwear. Over them was a pleated blue skirt that reached just above my knees. My torso was clad in a plain white blouse and an open denim jacket. "See? Look how pretty you are. Now, let's try some makeup."
"No! I'm putting my foot down there!" I shouted, still a bit startled by my feminine voice. "I've been through enough today, don't you think!?"
"We should be happy he's been cooperating as much as he has. No need to push it." Noire said, much to my relief. "I do suggest tying your hair up in some way."
"Later problems, Noire. I just…I need some time." I could feel may face burn with embarrassment and shame. The worst part was, I couldn't tell if it was from me, or from having the feminine traits of my personality enhanced by my magical mishap. Either way, having my adopted daughter's girlfriend's hands touching my in places or ways I didn't think I'd experience.
"Here." Monika said, pulling the strands that were in my face back with the rest into a low ponytail.
"Thanks." I very reluctantly left the room with the three, doing that thing that girls in anime (because I've never seen it in real life) do when their nervous, pulling the front of the skirt down.
"Hey guys, I'm…Who's this?" Johnny asked, sealing my fate of death via embarrassment.
"That is Steven." Blanc answered.
"He tried using a spell, and it, um…" Nepgear added, giving a bit more detail.
"Hehe...Hehehe…Hahahahahaha!" Johnny clearly tried containing himself, but gave up on the endeavor almost immediately. "That's fucking great! Leave it to you, G1, to fuck up this hard!"
"Fucking laugh it up. I can still beat your ass."
"Sure you can, shorty."
"All my hate."
"If this is temporary, we should lend him some clothes instead of buying new ones." Vert suggested.
"But that requires me wearing your underwear, and that's uncomfortable for everyone." I said. "Also, when you look at everyone, there's only two people that wear clothes that would fit me and are readily available. Nepgear and 'Tia."
"What about me?" Monika asked.
"No. Just no."
"Whatever the case, he's not fighting in borrowed clothes. I'll get started on something." Noire said, going to leave.
"Hey, I've got an idea about that." Johnny called out, running up and whispering in her ear for an amount of time that scared me.
"I can do that."
"Should we be scared?" Plutie asked, looking at her boyfriend's manic smile.
"Nah, you're fine." Johnny replied nonchalantly.
"…I want to go home now…" I don't like this.
'I will try getting in contact with Loki He may have insight on the matter. Please hold out until then.' Hecate said as I left. In my arms was another outfit, courtesy of Nepgear. The blue flats I'd been given to wear were already hurting my feet. Sulking, I unlocked the door and went to my room, lying down in bed.
"Who are you, and what are you doing in my house?" Cynthia asked me, knife to my throat.
"Hey, 'Tia. What did the Guild want you for?"
"Only one person calls me that. Explain."
"Magic gone wrong. Tried using a transformation spell. Didn't go as planned."
"There's no way that that would happen to anyone but you."
"Yup. Hecate's on the case, but until then I'll be sharing your wardrobe."
"Whose are those, and who said you could? I don't think you could pull off what I do."
"That's mean. These are Nepgear's. Because, as of right now, all my clothes are borrowed, Noire's gonna be over at some point to get stuff for the combat gear she's making me."
"Well, we can't say life is boring. Especially with my promotion to S-class in the Guild."
"That's what that was about? Awesome."
"How long are going to be like that?"
"Fuck if I know. All that I know is that I'm going to use the opportunity while it's here." After she gave me a look, I continued. "Now I can learn for myself what works and what doesn't."
"You are NOT sitting around and masturbating all day."
"That…wasn't entirely what I was planning, but thanks for the idea."
"What else were you planning then?" All I did was wriggle my eyebrows. "Oh." Her face became indiscernible from her hair because of how red it turned.
"We will be learning some things together, my dear." I said, pulling her next to me in bed and stroking her face.
"I thought we were waiting until after the wedding…" She muttered shyly.
"We said that before I lost my family jewels, and I want to make that special for you. If I know what I'm doing from your perspective, I can make our wedding night all the better."
"You're taking this in stride." She commented, amused.
"I've traded out my man bits for two sets of squish squish. Honestly, it could be a lot worse."
"I guess. Now, how did they get you into a skirt?"
"Actual force."
"Sounds about right. Sit up for a second." Cynthia said.
"Okay?" I did as she said, and she scooted up behind me. It didn't take very long for me to feel fingers running through my hair.
"Your hair is still as soft as it was."
"What are you doing back there?" I asked.
"Braiding your hair. Monika and Iri won't let me do it to theirs."
"…Fuck it, I give up. I can't win in all this."
"You're the one that said you wanted to have the experience while you're like this."
"Hindsight is twenty-twenty."
"True. Also, I'll be painting your nails next."
"You're enjoying this far too much." I growled.
"Maybe a little." Sighing in defeat was really the only thing I could do, especially when Monika and Iri came home and decided to take pictures. "Monika, there's a bottle of light green mail polish in the drawer of my dresser. Could you paint his nails while I finish braiding his hair?"
"No problem." She replied.
"I'm going to need more film!" Iri cheered, running off.
"This is my life now." Close to an hour went by before the two were finished. I struggled quite a bit against the weird feeling of the paint on my person, especially for my toes. "Regretting several decisions that were made today."
"Dad. You're fine. You look fine. You'll be fine."
"I don't feel fine at the moment." After a while of silence, I spoke up. "Can we go get some pants? I'd really like some pants."
"Not so fast." Noire? When'd she get her? "I need your measurements."
"Hey Noire? Mind coming with me for a moment?" Monika asked, getting up and grabbing her arm before dragging her out.
"What are you doing?" I heard Noire ask from the other room.
"He's not in a good place right now. His entire reality has just been turned on its head, and it's finally sinking in."
"He seems fine."
"This is my dad. Hiding things is something he's really good at. It keeps people from worrying about him." I mean, I don't think I'm doing that bad. I'm just not comfortable with everyone pushing things on me so quickly. There is such a thing as an adjustment period, and they certainly didn't give me one. "Can it wait a day or so, just so he gets used to this?"
"Okay, but at least let me come with you so that they'll fit right."
"I can help him get clothes just fine on my own, Noire."
"Fine. Just…send me the numbers later so I can get to work on more than just the sketches."
"Sure Noire. Have a nice day." The tsundere CPU could be heard leaving and Monika returned. "Come on, Dad, let's go." I stood up and hugged her.
"Thanks, Monika. Just let me get that coat and stuff on, and then we can go." Once the article of clothing was found and put on, the two of us left. "Where are we going?"
"There's this little place that Iri and I found a while back that had some cute stuff."
"Monika, you know that's not what I want. Plus, do you really think I'd pull off cute?" Really, even if I am a girl for the time being, since when has fashion been a thing I cared about?
"Please? You might just be able to."
"No. Not the puppy dog eyes…Monika, seriously, cute isn't my thing." The pout only grew stronger. "Whatever. Just remember that I reserve the right to say no to anything you show me."
"Okay!" Taking me by the hand, she led me to one of the stores inside the mall that Plutie and I visited. "Here we are."
"Let's get this over with. We get what we came here for before anything else, got it?"
"That's alright." The very first thing I went for was a few pairs of sweatpants. Comfy lounging pants are really a must no matter what. They weren't anything fancy, just solid colors like grey and black. Next were jeans, and that wasn't exactly fun. Unlike sweatpants, I couldn't just grab a size and go. Some things don't change from world to world, like the fact that different brands interpret the same size differently. Then there's the fact Monika was constant trying to get me to get the ones with the sequins on the butt. After much trial and error, a few pairs made their way into the cart.
"These things are so uncomfortable." I groaned, trying to find as much room as possible within the pair that Monika convinced me to put on.
"They're skinny jeans. They're meant to make you look good, not be comfy." Monika countered.
"How do people put up with these?"
"Look yourself in the mirror and find out." I did and saw that if it weren't, you know, me, I'd definitely take a long look. "See? Now try this on." In her hands as a dress that was clearly not for me. The skirt part of it was not very long at all. Hell, it'd probably barely reach my mid-thigh. There was no back, and it was held up by a choker like strap. Fuck man, I don't know what they're called. Lastly, there was quite the cleavage window.
"No. Absolutely not. Why would I even need a dress like that?"
"Mom's birthday is April nineteenth."
"Ah, shit, that's right. I made a reservation to that fancy place we went to a while back too."
"So…Try it on?"
"No. If I have to do this, I'm not going out in something that makes me look like I'm looking for a one night stand. Can you find one that's tamer?"
"Of course." After about half an hour of looking, I had made my choice about what prison suit I was going to wear. It was a light green one that reach my knees. The skirt was frilly and had a floral lace design separating it from the rest of the dress at the waist. That pattern went upwards from the center and covered the entirety of the chest area. The thing was held up by two thick strips of fabric that extended up from the slight v-cut and had no sleeves. "Better?" She asked as I looked myself over, before making me do a spin. "Better."
"Yeah." Okay, I'm starting to get used to this faster than I thought. It's almost like someone is dictating my life *The Office camera stare*
"Why are you staring at the ceiling?" Monika asked.
"No reason. Now, time for me to get changed and leave. I'm tired of changing."
"Ah, ah, ah…There's just one more thing we have to get."
"What's that?"
"Underwear."
"Can we not?"
"No. I know for a fact that you can't mooch off of Mom's."
"And why's that?"
"You're bigger in both places than Mom is, and you've already said you refuse to use mine."
"Yeah, that's true, though I'm not entirely sure about that first bit. Why are you checking Cynthia out anyways?"
"What?" She asked innocently. "I was just covering my bases. You never know what could happen." After hitting her with the bullshit look, she caved. "I just want things to be a bit more even between us. You tease me all the time, especially about Iri, and I've got the chance to return the favor now."
"Ah, I see. Okay. We aren't leaving until you get your way, anyways." Even though I agreed, I very hesitantly followed Monika to the other side of the store.
"Hm…Let's see…These would fit you…Ooh, that set is cute…Hehe, Mom would like to see you in this set." She grabbed handfuls of panties and bras that ranged from modest and normal to something only put on to be taken off in the bedroom. "Come on, in you go. Let's see…Where to start? This one." Pushing me into the changing room, I was forced to change even more. The cute one she talked about was stripped like the ones Nepgear lent me. The last one…I'm starting to rethink my thing about thigh-highs, if that's the embarrassment women feel wearing that kind of lingerie. Paying out bill, we went home and had dinner.
"Did you get pajamas?" Cynthia asked, crawling into bed.
"I didn't make a plan for pajamas. Figured I'd do what I normally did." I replied, stripping down to just what covered my newfound lady parts down under. "Ah, freedom." I groaned, cuddling up to her. "…Why don't you ever try to be the little spoon? This feels nice, having them pressed up against you."
"Because you wouldn't be able to latch onto me. Also, I get the same effect against you when you do."
"…And now I feel like a fool."
"Cut yourself some slack. Everything is new for you, and you have questions about it."
"Mhm. Are there any plans for tomorrow?"
"Well, you need to get used to fighting in your new body, but Noire would throw a fit if you tried without whatever she's making. We could get away with exploring the temple in Leanbox, though your usual getup will be a touch big on you. Other than those, I don't think there's anything going on."
"Oh, well that works out, doesn't it? Vert will stop hounding us about exploring. If we go and don't tell her, well, I don't think I'd be able to deal with the aftermath."
"Her whining can get old quickly. Otherwise she's fine."
"I love you." I said, kissing her.
"I love you too."
"Hey, Tia? You kissed a girl, did you like it?"
"It's not the first time but…Yes, but just because it was you"
"It's nice to know that I won't be replaced if another lady comes into our lives."
"You wouldn't be replaced anyway." This was followed by another kiss. "Goodnight, babe."
"'Night, 'Tia."
Turns out that Noire was having absolutely none of it. She made us wait two days before letting me do anything involving fighting, going ahead and setting up shop in our living room just to do so. After those days were up, I learned the hard way that Johnny was milking this for all it's worth. How else could I explain the Nohr Noble uniform from Fire Emblem Fates that the CPU made? At least my feet weren't bare like the original.
"So, how does it fit?" Noire asked, as she made adjustments.
"Like a glove, holy crap. This thing is fucking tight." I replied, tugging at the armored stockings and leggings. "It's a little hard to breath."
"Well, it's supposed to be tight. Hold on, I can fix the chest issue." After a bit of finagling, using my lungs were able to do their job properly. "There."
"Thanks, now I can head over. Cynthia and Souji are waiting for me." I called them to let the two know I was on my way. The easiest way to do that was to call Vert.
"Hello?" She asked, picking up after a couple rings.
"Hey Vert. Mom said it was okay for me to come outside and play today."
"I see, though, I thought I was the only one who called Noire Mommy."
"What the hell is the conversation you two are having!?" Noire yelled, hearing our jokes because I had the phone away from my ear.
"Oh, just teasing, my dear." You could practically hear Vert waving her hand.
"You better be." Her face was decorated crimson red and with a smile, so I don't think her statement was completely sincere.
"Very well. When will you be over, Susan?" Vert asked.
"Susan?" I asked in turn.
"Yes. Johnny suggested that we should call you by a female name while you are in your female form."
"I'm going to fucking strangle him." I sighed, dragging my free hand over my face. "I'll be there soon as I can."
"Okay. We'll be waiting." The call ended, and I pocketed the phone.
"Thanks Noire, but I've got to ask you to leave"
"I understand." Noire packed her things and headed towards the door. "Good luck."
"Thanks." I locked the door after she left, heading to the green nation. More than once I had to stop and beat someone's ass because they tried to grab mine.
"So, this is what everyone was talking about. I have to admit, I did not think it was possible for someone to fail at transformation magic to such a degree." Souji commented as I entered the Basilicom.
"Look, I know I fucked up. I don't need everyone reminding me. Honestly, it's getting old."
"My apologies. It slipped my mind how this has been affecting you."
"It's fine."
"I'm guessing that was also Johnny's doing?" Vert asked, looking me over.
"Of course it was. Can we get going? I've already had enough guys, as well as a few girls, trying to cop a feel."
"Really?" Cynthia asked. "Then again, after the handful I got this morning…" Of course she takes the opportunity to tease me.
"Again. Go. Now. Please?" I begged, face burning.
"Let's." Vert said. The walk was rather short, given the fact that Vert's goon squad made a real path. Honestly, the temple wasn't all that exciting. Sure, there was the occasional monster room, but most of the trials were ones of strength. The best part of this excursion was when Souji could wrestle a statue, then Vert fucking bodied it. Not fucking with her any time soon. You don't mess with someone that can suplex something that was ten times her weight and twice her height.
"Anyone else tired?" Souji asked, exhaustion breaking his mask of seriousness.
"Very, but we are at the final test." Vert replied. "Stopping now would only delay the inevitable. We may as well continue." Doing as she suggested, I approach the crystal, which was in the shape of a lightning bolt. As per the usual, my attempt was thwarted by the mechanics of the temple. Unlike any other time, we weren't greeted by some horrid beast, but something surprisingly human. It was too tall to be, but t definitely had skin underneath the metal is had on.
"A Valkyrie, huh? Okay then. Anansi!" Thankfully my GCG adapted to my new form, covering my chest in the same material that covered my lowers. Now armed with a staff with numerous blades forming the shape of a spider web, I got ready for the fight.
"That's a weird one to start with." Cynthia commented, knife in hand. "But I can see it in your eyes. You've got a plan."
"Now is not the time." Souji stated. The oddest thing about this situation was that the Valkyrie had yet to move. Its eyes were just watching us. That changed after the serious man blasted her with a bolt of dark magic. With sword raised high, she slew at him with a surprising amount of speed. Time to put my plan into action. I threw the staff like a javelin, intercepting her before she could land a hit on the physically squishy magic man. With a firm grip in its story thread, I pulled, returning the weapon to me.
"You dare to interrupt our duel!?" She roared with a surprising amount of humanity, changing her attack target to me. With the grace of a spider I dodged the attack while swiping my weapon, leaving a gash across her face.
"You forget that we are, ultimately, not here for a battle, but the object that you are protecting. Nothing more, nothing less." Vert replied, also taking action. The three of us melee combatants proceeded to slash at her from different angles, not letting her single one of us out. The Valkyries were known as some of Asgard's fiercest warriors for a reason.
"Move!" Souji yelled, a massive sphere of blackness above him. With a flick of his hand, it launched itself at the knight of Asgard. The attack hit, and she looked to be on her last leg, both figuratively and literally.
"Allow me." Vert said. "Rainy Ratnapura!" With the skill dealing out its damage, the boss was beaten, the light fading from her eyes.
"We really didn't do much this time, did we?" I asked.
"Not really, and I don't know what that means. To be fair though, we clashed with her a lot."
"Yeah. Well, time to do the thing, I guess." The crystal shattered easily enough, just like every other.
'Well done! The might of you and your friends is great indeed! I, the Prince of Asgard, Thor, shall lend you my aid.' Well, that was abrupt. Normally they let me talk or ask a question.
'It is Thor. He is one to use his muscles to talk far more often than his mouth.' Anansi replied.
"Who was it this time?" Souji asked.
"Thor, Norse God of Thunder." I replied. "He explained nothing about his contract, so I'm gonna have to find out the hard way."
"He's like that tank you were talking about. All power, no brains." Cynthia commented.
"That certaint sounds like an apt description." Souji added.
"Indeed it does. However, I believe it is time to leave. We have obtained the quest item." Vert pointed out.
"Sounds like a plan. These things are uncomfortable." I said, once more tugging at the stockings.
"As you have stated thoughout this excursion." Souji deadpanned.
After a few days I got a call from Histoire. She doesn't normally call me, and when she does it's never on my cell, so it must be important.
"Good afternoon, Steven. Er, Susan?"
"Is Johnny nearby?" God damn him.
"Yes. I am calling because there is someone here at the Basilicom for you. I must also ask that she stay with you for the next few days."
"And make it snappy!" A high pitched voice shouted.
"Okay. Give me a few to change" I hadn't planned on going anywhere, so I was walking around the house in black sweats and a matching black bra. I swapped this ensemble out for black leggings, a grey t-shirt that was a bit on the long side, and a pair of fuzzy knee high boots Monika insisted on me buying.
"Hello Steven." Histoire greeted. She would have continued if not for the obnoxious cough from a smirking Johnny. "Susan."
"I hate you, Johnny. From the bottom of my heart I truly do."
"Love you too buddy." He quipped, smirk growing into a shit eating grin.
"My brother said I was meeting a guy. Who's this?" A girl who looked oddly like 'Tia asked. The only real differences were that her hair was in two braids that reached her waist and was smaller overall.
"Brother…Looks like my fiancé…You're the girl Cynthia was made from, aren't you?" I asked rhetorically. "You're smaller than I thought you'd be." She quickly kicked my shin, which didn't hurt as badly as a kick from a DGU should.
"Who the hell are you calling small, and why the hell are you looking at my chest!?"
"I'm happily to be married, pipsqueak! I was saying that you barely reach my waist!" I yelled back.
"Whatever." She huffed, crossing her arms.
"Solar, this is indeed the person your spawn is to marry. Because of an incident involving the misuse of magic, he been forced into the form of a woman for the foreseeable future."
"And it's been great to point and laugh at him all the while." Johnny commented.
"Yes, Johnny, but the rest of us grew tired of the joke after the first day." Histoire countered.
"Meh. This is fine, all things considered. I'm getting my laughs."
"I'm pretty sure that you're lucky that Plutie isn't here. She'd beat your ass." I quipped.
"It'd be worth it to mock your sorry ass."
"Can we get going? I can't stand his stick anymore." Solar said.
"Sure, but in just a sec. Hey Histy, where is everybody?"
"Monika and caster took the children to the park. Neptune is at a doctor's appointment, and Souji went with her. Plutia decided she wanted to spend the day with Blanc."
"Ah, okay."
"If I may ask, where is Cynthia?"
"Ever since the Guild made her an S-rank member, she's had to go on some seriously difficult missions the last few days. She told me that she can't say anything about the one she's on now."
"I see. Have a nice day." I started to leave and Solar hung back a foot or two behind me.
"I hope you're up for a walk. I live out in the suburbs."
"I've fought in a war. That's nothing."
"Tehg brought that up before when we had that little get together. What happened that pulled you into a war?"
"There was a civil uprising that eventually boiled down to a war of attrition."
"Fun." I said sarcastically. After a while, we made it home with no issue. "Here we are." Opening the door resulted in the usual greeting I get whenever I come home. Sayori climbed her way up onto my shoulder, making herself comfortable.
"What's up with your cat?"
"She likes people."
"Tehg wasn't kidding about how much junk you have." She said, looking around the different parts of my house.
"First of all, how would he know about what's in my house? Secondly, I'm an archeologist. It makes sense that I have some souvenirs."
"Point."
"Make yourself at home. There's a spare room upstairs. Plutie uses it sometimes, but you should be fine if she decides to come over. Just prepare to be spooned."
"Ooookay then…" Solar said, eyebrow raised.
"Do you happen to have a dress or something on you?"
"Why would I?"
"I was hoping you did because, according to your brother, tomorrow is Cynthia's birthday. We're going to a lace that has a dress code, and was really banking on not having to spend more money than I had to this week."
"Looks like your dream isn't coming true."
"Yup." I agreed, disheartened. I took Solar to the same place Monika took me. The trip didn't take nearly as long, thankfully. A very simple red ball gown was selected that didn't look to bad on her, given as simple as it was. "Good to go?"
"Should be." Paying for it wasn't as bad as I thought it would be, seeing as how she footed half of it. The rest of the night went relatively boringly. Cynthia never came home, which made me worried, but I was confident that she could handle herself. My faith didn't settle Monika down. I was the first person up, which wasn't really out of place.
"Good morning…" Plutie said, as I set the table.
"Mornin'. Enjoy your newest pillow?"
"Mhm…She was like Blanny, but warmer. Coffee?"
"It'll be ready in a minute or two. How was her reaction?"
"Disappointing, really. She grumbled something about chest sizes then stormed her way to the bathroom. I heard the shower going as I passed and may just join her."
"Plutie, chill. If she's anything like Blanc, she'll wreck my house when you try."
"Oh, don't worry, I won't do anything too extreme." After taking a long swig from the mug I placed in front of her, she stood up from the table. "Just let me know when breakfast is ready."
"I'll give you a holler." It didn't take long for the excitement to start.
"H-Hey! W-What are you doing!?"
"Why, taking a shower." She left the door open too. Lovely. "Oh, don't cover yourself. Look at how cute these are. They're like little buttons." God dammit, Plutie. I don't think Tehg will appreciate you making his sister question her sexuality.
"Stop! Don't touch-*Squeal* Why are you grabbing my butt!?"
"Hey, everybody! Pancakes are done!" I shouted, giving Plutie her signal as well as attempting to wake the two logs that inhabit my house.
"Oh thank God!" Solar shouted. Plutie came down much shortly after, smugness written all over her face. Solar followed shortly after. "Why?"
"Because you didn't react the wat she wanted you to this morning." I answered, passing her a plate.
"But I got them on round two."
"Aren't you with Johnny?" Iri asked, being the first of the two awake.
"Won't stop me from teasing. I've done it with the two of you, after all."
"Yes, I remember." She deadpanned. "I couldn't tell if you were trying to steal me away from Monika."
"That means I'm doing it right. Putting on an act is how you get the best reactions when you're punishing someone."
"Ah, there's the sadism. It's been a while." I commented. As we ate, there was a knock on the door.
"You gonna get that?"Solar asked, mouth half full.
"Yeah, I'm on it." Swiftly, while double checking that I was decent, I moved to the front of the house and opened the door.
"Hello. Is this the residence of Cynthia?" The person asked. They were in the uniform of a high up guild official, so I had no reason to be wary.
"Yeah. Come on in." She did, and I beckoned her towards the table. "Sorry, but we were in the middle of breakfast."
"I'm sorry to intrude. Good morning everyone. Unfortunately, I come bearing bad news. As of late last night, it was confirmed that Cynthia, as well as the agent that she was with, were confirmed missing in action. The agent's arm was found, indicating that those that took them have no qualms about bringing them physical harm."
"What was she doing that could result in something like that?" Iri asked.
"That information is classified to anyone that isn't an S-rank agent."
"This is my fiancé we're talking about, and we've been taking on much tougher. You better tell me."
"I can't. I want to, but I can't. But it's why I'm here. Cynthia added a condition to her acceptance of the Quest. If anything were to go wrong, we were to contact you for her rescue."
"We can't do anything if we don't know what's up." Solar commented.
"Perhaps what is being said isn't being understood." Plutie said with venom, standing up and activating her processors. "As the CPU of Planeptune, I order you to tell us!"
"…It was a stealth mission. There is a group of radical terrorists belonging to the Cult of Geardite that believes that Gamindustri is for humans and humans only. They take extreme action against any and all they perceive as inhuman or in the way of their goals. Their goal was to infiltrate the base of this group and gather intelligence."
"And to save them we have to ninja our way in like they had to. Awesome." I deadpanned. "Alright. Where do I need to get to?"
"You aren't going alone." Iri stated.
"None of us are really subtle Iri. If it's just me, then the risk is at least a little lower."
"I can help. It is ME, after all and I've got silencers." Solar said.
"No offense to your magic, but it's too flashy for this." Monika observed.
"Time is of the essence." The Agent said. "They have been known to sacrifice prisoners. We must be on our way."
"Solar, come on. We've got peeps to save." I stated before going to change. We were led to an area in the woods near where the borders of the continent's three nations met.
"This is where we found the arm. From here, you're on your own." She left, and we sat there for a second.
"You got a silencer for this thing?" I asked, holding up my hand cannon.
"How the hell would you silence something like that!?"
"No idea. All I know is I need something. Both of my usual weapon aren't really meant for stealth, even though my staff is good for nonlethal takedowns."
"Here." Solar said, handing me a M1911 with a silencer attached to the barrel. "That good?"
"I'm used to heftier, but this'll do. This'll do nicely." From the corner of my eye I saw some light. Turning back, she had two five-sevens in her hands, silencers included.
"Let's go." Very carefully we made our way deeper into the woods, following trampled plants and the info we were given. "Two guards at the bunker entrance." She said, looking down the scope of her Hécate sniper rifle, checking out possible entrances.
"See any alternative ins?"
"Looks like there's a vent to our left. There's a guard and a camera within watching range."
"Shit. Either way has presents a problem."
"Pick your poison."
"Vent sounds like a good idea, but taking out the camera will set of the alarms immediately. The front guards would at least give us a little time."
"Front it is. I'll take the one on the left."
"Then I'll get the right." We approach as silently as we could until we had a clear shot with our pistols. The puffs of air signaled the dropping of two bodies. Moving them into the bushes bought us that much more time and we entered the facility. "That room." I ordered, pointing at a close by doorway.
"Why?"
"If I could get the story of this place, I can learn where they are, and what exactly has been going on here."
"Oh." We opened the door slowly and found that it was a break room, and was currently housing six goons having a snack. We were as surprised as they were, but we had one advantage. Our guns were in hand. We unloaded as quickly as we could, trying to drop them ASAP. "Bad room."
"Very bad room." I agreed. "Next one?"
"We can try it." Leaving the break room for the next one down the hall, we found that this one was much better. It was an armory, but was currently empty. "This gonna take long?"
"Depends." I replied, using Anansi's passive gift to retrieve the base's story thread. "Oh, that's longer than I thought. This has been here for a while." It took five minutes to sort through everything, and I was disgusted by what I saw.
"Are you okay over there? You're looking a little green." I stood up, sharply turning towards her and the door she was watching.
"We need to pick up the pace. They've already scheduled the sacrifice of the agent and 'Tia's on the docket. She's down on the fourth floor."
"Fine by me." We didn't really run into anyone on the rest of the first floor, but I chocked it up to the rest being on the lower floors. The second floor hallway was empty, so we checked and cleared rooms so that our escape would be that much smoother. The first two were barren. The third had four of the cultists in it. The screams of pain told of a sacrifice in progress. Killing the four was simple, seeing as how they were distracted. The body on the table matched the description of the woman 'Tia was with. Seeing the look in her eyes as well as what they had done, I put her out of her misery with a bullet between the eyes. We returned to the hallway, where seven armed goons were waiting. I took a bullet to the stomach during the shootout, but other than that we were fine.
"You okay?"
"Had worse and I know a good doc that's usually on standby."
"Alright then." The third floor was about as empty as the above two, except for the seven men that were in the server room. With a quick flurry of trigger pulls, they were dealt with. "Go on. I'll get the info the Guild wanted." Nodding, I did as she said. The last floor was nothing but cells, with armed guards here and there. This one was significantly larger than the rest, having off shooting corridors separate from the main one. Dispatching any that was in my way went slowly, but that was probably because I was making sure my shots counted. 'Tia was in a cell all the way at the end of the hallway on the left side of a T intersection. She was covered in cuts and bruises, and her left wolf ear was gone.
"'Tia? What happened? Your ear."
"Steven? They jumped us in the forest. I was trying to protect my partner when one of them swung at me. I was able to keep from losing my head, but they got it. It hurts. It hurts so much."
"Oh, baby…Come on, let's get you out of here."
"But the cell-"
"Don't you worry your pretty little head about that. I didn't come alone." Tugging the door yielded the desired result, freeing her. "Did they take anything else from you?"
"No. I managed to get my knife in my inventory. What happened to-?"
"Put her out of her misery. They had opened up her stomach and chest, and carved 'Freak Lover' into her leg."
"I…Okay…Who did you come with?" As we walked the alarms started to blare.
"Run now, questions later." I grabbed her hand and pulled, keeping the pistol leveled in front of me. Anybody that wasn't Solar and was either in robes or holding a gun were gunned down. I never ran into Solar until after we had exited.
"Hey! This way!" Said DGU yelled, waving us over.
"Solar!?"
"Later, 'Tia!" We sprinted until we were nearly to Planeptune. We had to stop because of 'Tia's exhaustion via blood loss. "There. We should be fine now."
"You two came for me?"
"Of course I would." I replied. "I love you. Trying to get info out of your boss, however, was a bitch."
"And there's no way I was going to leave myself out to dry."
"I…thank you…I was going to die in there." My reply was to pull her into a deep kiss.
"Get a room, you two." Solar groaned.
"Maybe later. I want Ragland to check out those injuries." I stated. "I don't want you to not be able to enjoy dinner tonight."
"Steven."
"'Tia, it's your birthday, and you were about to be killed by a ult. Being around friends and family is something you need right now."
"He's got a point, though she does need some real rest." Solar commented.
"The reservation isn't until 8 tonight." I replied. "Though a trip to Ragland is the only thing to worry about right now."
"Will this be your first trip to Ragland's without being a patient?" Cynthia chuckled weakly.
"Nope." I said. "Bullet to the stomach."
"Let's go, before any of those get infected." The walk was exhausting, given everything that happened today, but we eventually got there.
"Welcome to Doctor-" The desk worker Ragland hired paused. "Doctor!"
"What is i-?" Ragland walked out to see what was up and saw us. "Cancel my appointments for the afternoon. You three, in here. Now." We sat down on the table thing that doctors have. "What the hell happened to you two? You're shot." He said, turned towards me. "And you look like you've been through a blender." He continued, now towards Cynthia.
"It's…complicated." Cynthia said, clearly not comfortable with talking about what she went through.
"Cultists." Solar said, having no such qualms.
"I can wait, Ragland. 'Tia goes first."
"Not with that hole in your stomach. You. Get that bedpan and tilt her head toward it. We need to get the fluids out of that ear." The good doctor went to work, closing me up with a scary proficiency. He then did the same to the cuts on 'Tia, as well as cleaning up what he could around her ear. "I'm sorry, but there's no way I can do anything about this besides the cleaning I just did."
"Oh…" Cynthia said dejectedly, reaching up and touching the bandages that were already becoming red. "I'll live. That's what's important."
"Other than that, you're both free to leave. I don't want to see you again until it's time to remove those stitches."
"Sir, yes sir." I said, placating him. The walk home was awkwardly quiet, with 'Tia occasionally reaching up to try and touch something that wasn't there.
"Hey, I'm just…I'm just gonna be alone in my room for a while." Solar said, going up to her borrowed room.
"Hey 'Tia? Let's call Monika and Iri. They'd appreciate knowing that you're okay."
"I'd like that." As soon as Cynthia started talking. The call ended. "I think they're on their way home."
"I figured. They love their mom."
"Iri isn't-"
"That's just a matter of time." They crashed through the door in record time.
"Mom!" The two shouted, tackling her into a hug. She looked at me for help, but I just gave her the "I told you so" look before joining them.
"Hey, since everyone's here, I think I should say this before it gets bottled up." I said, voice quieter than I thought it could be. "I did some bad things today. No, terrible things. I killed people. Real people. I know that they were killing tons of people, but still."
"It hurts, doesn't it?" Monika asked. "Deep down, you feel…wrong. Like there's a piece of you missing. It's not going to go away either, not completely at least. Neither are the memories. Dad, you were there for me after I did something like this. Now, let me return the favor."
"Of course, Monika. Of course." After about an hour, Solar came down, eyes red and face stained with tears. We just sat around and enjoyed the fact that we were still alive. Dinner, while it was very much a celebration for 'Tia's birth, was much more subdued due to the visible injuries and everything that had happened. I couldn't have as much fun, given the horrors I saw in those cells. It was certainly entertaining when the staff started to sing and she got embarrassed. When we got home, it was well into the night.
"Steven, what are you doing?" Cynthia asked as I held her as close as I could while we were in bed, tears running down my face. "What's wrong?"
"Look at what they did to you, and I couldn't do anything about it. I was so scared when I saw you in there. Scared that you wouldn't answer when I said your name. Don't leave me. Promise me you won't leave me." I felt a hand snake through my hair.
"I'm not going anywhere. After this, I'm taking a long, long break from being a Guild Agent."
"I love you. So much."
"I love you too." A day later, Solar went back via the Histy bus, and things fell into a rhythm. After about a month of what Hecate described as "gentle persuasion" we figured out a way for me to turn back. This resulted in me being able to shift between the two at will, but took away my ability to become anything else. Oh, and there was sex. A bunch of sex. Months passed by in the blink of an eye.
"What do I do? What do I do!?" Souji questioned, panicking super hard.
"Calm down, first of all." I said. When he didn't, I slapped him.
"Neppy wouldn't want to see you like that."
"Souji! I'm gonna kill you!" Neptune shouted, clearly undergoing labor pains. Her birth was being taken care of by Ragland and Nepgear.
"Clearly." It was quite the struggle to get him to stop wearing a line into the floor, and it took even longer for Ragland to come out.
"Come on. It's time for you to meet your daughter." He said with a smile on his face.
"Y-Yeah." Souji entered the room that Neptune was in. After a few minutes, we were waved in by the new parent. Souji was holding a small girl that had his black hair with bits of purple at the tips. Her eyes were wide open, and were the Nep family purple. "Everyone, this is Aiko."
"She's precious." I said, moving a little closer."
"Want to hold her?" Neptune asked.
"I'll have plenty of time in the years to come. This is your guys' moment."
"Congrats, you two." Johnny said, speaking up for the first time in a while that night. "Kind of wish it didn't wake me up, but still. Nice going."
'STEVEN!' What? There's a happy ending there. 'Still!' Look, I decided to get the ball rolling for things later on down the line. I needed to show the scale of things. 'I don't like it.' And I didn't like writing it, but sometimes you have to do things you don't like. Jeez, 9k+ words for this thing. I'm proud of this, and I hope you liked it. Later.