Huh... Chapter 11, no real significance here, just... feeling like I'm still keeping up, even though my workload at work has doubled.

And yes, I did get Cyberpunk. Did I 'buy into the hype?' Hardly. I played a Fixer who could get you anything but drugs, or a Solo who had two replacement legs, thought guns were better used as throwing weapons and was one bad day from cyberpsycosis. (To be fair, he was like... one bad day from cyber-psycosis...). And this was on tabletop, from the rulebooks had stats for Morgan Blackhand and the like...

And now that the game is out, I'm wondering if they'll do Cyber-gen?

Oh, PSA. Do not get it for PS4 and XboxONE. last gen consoles DO NOT handle it.

Anyhow. :)

Chapter 11

"This... Where did you even come up with these ideas?" Maki asked me about an hour later, "I mean, you don't even use weapons."

"Kiba and I had a very low key competition on, to see if I could make something he couldn't cheat out of thin air." I shrugged, "Now... you know that most of these ideas are missing some very key parts."

"Yeah... Shame about the cubes. I mean, if I wanted a 'stealth' weapon, that sword you made, ow!"

She laughed nervously as I threatened her with a second Karate Chop of Justice. "I want to win, but I don't want the world to know me for making weapons. Let's stick with stuff we can at least pass off as 'normal'."

"Yeah... You don't want the same rep as Robert Oppenheimer..." She nodded, "Now, to be honest, my skill is pretty basic with weapons. I mean, I might, maybe, if I tried REALLY hard, be better with Issei with a sword. I might be able to handle say, Tsubasa, if she had a hand tied behind her back, and didn't use her feet... But that was all before I lost my 'Pawn'."

I 'hrrrmed' at that. Now, to be fair, Issei wasn't terrible with a sword, but certainly wasn't very good. Tsubasa was a talented bare hand fighter though, and a rook. "Well, I'd have your skill level someplace in the middle of level one here. Power level aside, you have a reasonable amount of experience and that counts for a lot." I looked over some of the designs we'd come up with, "This does limit you however... Oh! You still have your mask?"

"Well, yeah, I worked hard on that." She nodded.

"Excellent. Since we didn't add in anything other than 'personal' magic, it should still work here. Since you have that as your own magic now, it might improve the effect, or help you keep it up longer. You'll need to figure it out though." I nodded, "Okay... So you want a ranged weapon... Easy to handle... functions as a 'wand' and can be a close up weapon in a pinch..."

"And maybe we can use those capacitors to use different spells?"

"Oh, that's a thought." I did a little editing to a design, "And this here... and add this... and then this..."

"Oh! Heh, that looks pretty functional." She said after I put a little flourish on the design. "I'm not super strong though, so don't make it too heavy."

"No no. This will be proof of concept. I'm sure you'll outgrow it quickly if you keep training." I nodded, "Welf and I will work on it and have it in your hands tomorrow or the next day."

She gave me one of those spontaneous hugs, letting me go after a second, "Thanks! Oh! I should do an equipment check on my other armour. Get used to wearing it again and make sure all the buckles tighten up properly." She paused half way to the door, "Oh... You want the cubes back? Pair of shield cubes, and the ones from my sidearm clips."

"Clips? I thought you left it over there?" I squinted at her.

"I did!" She shook her head, "The clips were in my belt when I crossed over."

"Oh, okay then." I nodded, since the 'clips' for her sidearm changed the 'element' of the bullets, and I hadn't made it so you could change them on the fly yet. "Yeah, I'll melt them down and use the electrum for this."

"No problem. G'night."

After she left, I looked at the design we'd settled on. It was a simple looking long sword (I'd always thought of that as a silly name, since 'long swords' weren't much longer than a metre.) However, when it was sheathed, it would actually be a 'wand'. The pommel and sheath would channel energy like any other wand or magic staff you'd find in Orario. The hilt could hold a couple of capacitors (yes, battery powered sword) and the pommel could be changed out for different elements. And of course, when you didn't want to waste time or energy, you could draw the blade and hit things with the sharp end.

I'd run the design by Welf, and we could refine the design a little, or a lot, depending. With our combined skill we could have this done in less than a half day.

As for the rest of the designs we'd half drawn and discarded, I rolled them up and whapped them over the nearest desk to make them vanish. Waste of paper, but I certainly wouldn't risk these ideas to the city at large.

After I'd gotten another batch of potions going, I went to my room, poked about for the collection of Tarot I'd made for the various important people I'd met and made friends with back on 'Earth'. After finding them, I'd brought the entire stack of them to the lab and got a magic stone lamp to put behind me for some better lighting.

"Akeno?" I called quietly, holding the tarot I'd made of her, "Akeno? Are you there?"

For a long moment, there was nothing. The card remained room temperature, and it simply felt like a bit of metal in my hand. But, unless she had the card in her pocket or something, it was expected there would be a delay. It was also around the time they would be training, if they were keeping up with that.

"Akeno?" I tried again, feeling the card cool down slowly, my breath fogging over the surface, her picture slowly taking on depth, "Almost..."

And suddenly the picture of her doing a little twirl in place (as if she was showing off how not wearing a bra under her Miko robe made it look better) changed to one of her wearing the school uniform. Behind her, I could see part of the big 'entertainment' room in the Hyoudou House. She looked at me, blinked, then smiled, "Ko-san! We were starting to wonder if you'd forgotten about us."

"Well, it's been an odd few weeks." I said, "Is your card in the secondary array I made?"

"Someone is fetching it now. Is something wrong? Did you get home okay? How are they? Is everyone okay?"

"Easy easy." I waved a hand to try and slow her down, "When I got across, I was challenged by Ottar, the one I told you about."

"The King?"

"Yes. Freya, his Goddess, wanted me to bow to her, but, I'd had a bad couple of days, and didn't want to." I sighed, "I won, but..."

Off 'camera' I heard, "Akeno?" It was Issei, "I brought it. Is she still there?"

The view changed a little, and Akeno now had the ceiling as her background. The slowly heating card began to cool down again, the magical 'signal booster' working as intended. I'd have to thank Fels.

"Yes, Issei-kun." She said, "Wait your turn though."

"aww..."

"You can listen in, if you put your hand on my shoulder." She said, then she looked me in the eyes again, "So, you won. Wasn't he the strongest?" She asked as a shadowy hand appeared on her shoulder, followed by an equally shadowy Issei silhouette behind her.

"Yes. It might have been a bad choice, but I dragged him to the middle of town for the city to see, and then went home."

"Ah, you made an example of him to send a message." She nodded, "Did it work?"

"Urg, you're talking about politics? We haven't heard from her in over a month..." Issei grumbled, "But we're happy you got home!"

"Thanks kiddo." I said, "It worked... kind of. Let me explain a little... Actually, could you get Rias? Sona too, if you can? I can talk to them myself later, but this would save time."

"Sure." Issei said before his shadowy form vanished from behind Akeno's shoulder.

"While he does that." I said, "How are things there?"

"Well, Gasper-chan needed a little help, and we all made a trip to his ancestral homeland. Once that was done, we even managed to enjoy ourselves a little. Did you know, he technically owns a large castle?"

"Really? Huh... Well, I knew he was special. Even if I couldn't keep him." He'd probably get some odd looks here. But once people got used to that, he'd get all the headpats.

"Is she still there?" I heard Rias ask from off 'camera', before a Rias shaped ghost appeared next to Akeno, "Hello Sensei." She greeted, "Does this allow for more than one caller?"

"If you have more of my card, maybe. It might work on my end better. One moment." I carefully glanced at the other tarot I'd brought, then picked out Rias and Issei. "Can Sona make it?"

"I've given her a text." Rias said, "Though, she is busy, and may need to join from where she is."

"I wonder if that will work..." I mumbled, putting down Akeno's Tarot, then putting Issei's and Rias's, their long edges touching, and stood up so I could look down at them all at once.

It took a moment, but they also gained depth and a frosty feeling, and suddenly all three of them were in full colour at the end of a slightly expanded dark hallway. "Oh hey it's working." Issei said, "You're in focus now."

"Excellent." Looking good Rias I nodded, "No trouble so far?"

"It took a very small bit of doing to convince the school to let me finish my year online, much to the disappointment of all my fans." She winked at me, touching her belly, "However, only one of my fans needs to see me like this."

Issei rubbed the back of his head and blushed.

"Good good. So, Rias, Akeno, and even you Issei. I'd like some advice. Let me tell you about what's gone on in the past few weeks, and what I'm managed to do so far."

"Oh? Do we get to be the Sensei now?" Rias smiled.

Sona didn't join the call, and I didn't 'hear' her try and reach me by Tarot either. But aside from that, the three of them listened to what had gone on. My 'not so triumphant, yet far too triumphant return'. Me hiding in the nursery for a while. Calling the top Familia over for a bit of show and tell. Beating up another of the 'strongest' fighters in the city to try and win a little respect, and firmer backing from the Familia. And finally the Donatis, where I was assuming Freya would try and win back or consolidate some support against us... Everything.

"Well, you were certainly paying attention to things here, no matter how much you were grumbling about it." Akeno giggled.

"You would have made a fine devil." Rias sighed, "But this does put you in a rather difficult spot." She said.

"Yeah, it makes me think of what happened a lot here. Too much change." Issei said, making the other two glance at him in surprise (and yes, I did too). "What? I've been trying to learn too!"

"We're proud of you Issei." We all said at the same time.

"But he's not wrong. If you move too fast towards change, those who are set in their ways will rebel. The more set, the more severe their reaction." Rias said, "It sounds like your Loki is quite happy with the idea, but that might be because she would end up as number one, if things fell to 'plan B'."

"I think I agree with your assessment of this Dain Cecht person." Akeno nodded, "I wouldn't rely on him at all."

"I feel you're right. But I don't want to-" I started.

"No no. You must be firm." Rias said, "If you show weakness, he'll try and put a knife into it."

"Is there a way I can trap that knife though..." I mumbled.

"Well, if he likes money so much, why not put your full support into this Miach person?" Issei asked, "I mean... well... When I first saw Riser's peerage, I couldn't stop myself from feeling REALLY jealous. And if he sees his rival getting what he himself wants..."

"That's not a bad idea." I nodded, "Rias? If he sees his 'rival' making loads of cash, do you think he'll join me, or try and sabotage us?"

"If he joins, you win. If he tries to play dirty, he stands to lose reputation." Rias said with a wicked grin, "A loss of 'face' is devastating for a noble. Only your closest allies and useless sycophants will back you then. Could you imagine say, Riser suddenly losing the trust of his peerage? Or losing the support of his family?"

"Oh, that's a good point. Okay. You two should hug that boy later. That was a good idea." I smiled, then sighed, "Okay... So that's one big hitch with a possible plan. Next though is this potential 'inquisition'."

"Ah, you are all still talking. Good." I heard Sona's voice from off camera, "Is it too late to join in?"

"Sona-san." Issei greeted, looking up and suddenly vanishing into a shadowy figure next to Akeno, "Oh damn.. Um, here, I think I'm about to be out of my depth here."

"Thank you Issei-kun." Sona said, "Sensei?"

"Oh, just a moment." I carefully pushed Issei's Tarot aside, then got Sona's from my collection, "Just give me a moment..."

It took few long seconds, but her picture gained depth and colour, and she too appeared at the end of the black hallway, "Ah, good to see you again, Sensei." She smiled that reserved smile of hers, "From the air here, I am guessing this is a serious topic?"

"Let me give you the point form..."

I was really going to have to thank Fels. This little addition to the Tarot was amazing. It had been about an hour, and we were still talking. The cards weren't heating up, there was no weird interference, and the sound was still clear. Asia came in at one point, giving me a ghostly happy wave and a smile that still managed to be just as cheerful, even without being in full colour. Koneko too said hello, but didn't 'look'.

But, explanation done again, Sona made the first comment.

"Have you considered outside help? A cat's paw, of a sort." She asked.

"You mean... fight dirty?" I blinked at her.

"Not quite. It sounds as if that would be not only frowned on, but useless, considering the military power and political pull she has." She hmm'ed a moment, "I was suggesting more of a distraction you could encourage, yet deny outright. Rumour, misdirection, false advertising or the like."

"Okaaaay..." I hmm'ed, "I might be able to arrange something like that..."

"Oh, have you considered 'accidentally' letting someone into your inner circle?" Akeno asked, "Feed them false information, or 'change the plan' at the last moment?"

"Oh, that's a good one too." I nodded. Yes, I was writing this down, in English, just in case.

There was a moment of silence, then Akeno yawned just enough to notice, "Hm, so moving on to the other topic... I want to help Lady Hestia, but I can't be there myself. I can however, give her notes or the like..."

It took another hour, but with the three of them helping, I managed to get a sort of short version of what Hestia might get asked, and what she should reply with. This was full on coaching, and yes, for any other Familia, I'd be overstepping the 'who's in charge' boundary. But poor Hestia was... well, Hestia. We loved her, but she was still inexperienced, and 'politics' didn't fall into her usual 'domains' of Hearth home and family.

"Okay. Thank you very much for the help." I said, "I'll try and call more often, just so it doesn't seem I'm only talking to ask for help."

"We understand you've been busy." Sona said, "Reconnecting with family is important."

"It is... hey, wait, did you and your sister have a heart to heart or something?" I asked with a sly smile.

"I didn't say that." Sona blushed.

"We'll do our best to support you, Ko-san." Akeno smiled, "And now that we know you have more free time, we'll start calling occasionally too."

"Around this time would be best. It's the 'quiet hours' where children are napping or playing in the common room, or both, since they seem to be like cats, and able to get comfortable anywhere." I felt someone run a hand through one of my tails suddenly, and my tri-coloured tail started wagging energetically "Speaking of... seems my time is up anyhow. Someone is trying to get my attention."

"Very well Sensei." Rias smiled, "Oh, before long you should contact Riser's peerage. They are going to be very VERY busy soon, and you should maybe give them some last minute advice, if you can."

"Good idea. Good night everyone. Oh, last thing. Give Gasper a hug, and tell him HIDA-lite is still online, when I can charge her."

"Very well." Rias nodded, and their Tarots went dark.

The next morning started almost the same as yesterday. This time, it was my turn to get a few extra minutes, though, I didn't actually fall asleep, but cuddled the children awake while Haruhime took care of 'pre breakfast' feeding. It was so fascinating to watch them open their eyes and... recognize me. Just that sleepy look of 'oh, its O-ma!' followed by either a smile or yawn, sometimes a look of concentration (warning me of an impending wrap change), or even an attempt to cling to me and try and sleep more. Once they were all awake, and we'd both taken turns feeding, changing and getting them ready for a trip downstairs to the living room, my wife and I shared a kiss, and got on with the day.

Morning practise saw myself, Maki, Haruhime and Shinkage doing Tai Chi with Takemikazuchi. Ryuu had been right, and while I'd fought, and beaten the 'strongest' in Orario, I could always do with more 'skill'. Haruhime was actually sharper than I remembered, which only made me love her more, while Maki and Shinkage were opposite sides of a coin. Maki was trying very hard to follow along and doing well. Seeing as she wanted to get the 'go ahead' to join the expedition in two days, and only a 'yes' from Bell would let her she was putting in her best effort. Shinkage didn't seem to be struggling with the 'effort' needed, but was moving like an amateur, her body lacking coordination.

That was really to be expected with a body that only looked to be ten to twelve years old, but was really like... three months old? Two? We had an idea now how strong (very) she was, and tough (incredibly) but she lacked any of the muscle memory to really back it up. Once she did have full control of her body though...

"Pay attention, Kodori." Takemikazuchi said, not pausing his motions.

"Pardon, O-Sensei." I replied.

"Can you guys manage for a couple of hours?" I asked Haruhime, Weine and the three gods of the house, "I have to work with Welf on something for Maki, and I don't want to bring them to the shop."

"So long as you don't leave the grounds." Hestia squinted at me, but then stopped when Kei gave her BIG PLEADING EYES, "Did you want a hug?" Hestia ignored me and went about cuddling Kei happily.

"We will manage." Takemikazuchi said with that little smile of his, "I am sure you and Welf will put your best efforts towards Maki's safety in the dungeon."

"Have you considered making something for little Delly as well?" Astraea asked, bending and picking up Toshi, who had been tugging on her dress for attention, "I will hear your request." She said to him.

"aaaablehmmmphhh." They'd all been getting more talkative in the past few weeks, but it was really noticeable now.

"Oh I suppose." Astraea replied, rubbing her nose against Toshi's, getting a giggle from him.

"Well, if Delly... Where is she anyhow?" I asked.

"I hear my name!" Followed by a collection of 'wooWoowooooooo' noises.

We turned to see Delly walking towards the steps of the manor, all of the phoenix(?) chasing after her with little 'patpatpat's of feet on the grass.

"Welf and I are going to make Maki an all purpose weapon. Want one too? A wand or something?" I asked.

"I... guess? I mean, I've never used anything more dangerous than a pointy stick. But I was much smaller then..." She hmm'ed and nodded, "Wouldn't hurt to think on it at least."

"Delly-chan?" Haruhime started, "Can I pet one? I've been meaning to, but..."

"Oh sure! Since Lady Astraea gave me her gift, my talent with animals came back! Watch this." She turned around and look at the collection of birds. "Friend." She pointed at Haruhime.

All seven pairs of alert black eyes turned on Haruhime, and they all started hopping up the steps. A couple of them needed a few tries, but once on the stone deck in front of the door, they all gathered around Haruhime and tried to encourage her to pat them, brushing their heads against her legs and hands. It was really single minded too. They ignored the children too, (who the rest of us quickly picked up before they could try and drool on the fluffy birds).

"Why yes, you are all very good birds." Haruhime said, "Ko-san? How large will these get? They've gotten quite tall already."

"The closest relative of those birds grow taller than Lord Takemikazuchi, on average." I said, giving Yumi and Yuki cheek rubs since both my arms were around them. This of course got me drooled on, but that was fine. "And weigh more or less the same too."

"They've been eating more too." Delly said, "Okay guys, go back and keep Grumpy company." And just like that, they lost interest in Haruhime, and mobbed their way back down the three steps and across the field towards Gros's birdcage. "I haven't had much luck with more than a couple of birds, and something that looked like a squirrel, but there isn't much wildlife in this city..." Delly sighed.

"I wonder how you might do in the dungeon. Would that work with the monsters?" Haruhime asked, dusting off her hands and taking the twin girls from me (also getting a little drool on her, but again, it was fine.)

"If I get the okay from Mister Bell, we can find out." Delly smiled.

"For now, lets see if we can get you some equipment first." I said.

"Anyone ever tell you that you have the coolest friends?" Welf said as we (Maki Delly and I) got into the workshop.

He was in the 'quiet' half of the shop, where my alchemy set used to be, along with all 'finer' craft tables we had. Leather, cloth, final touches on jewellery, that kind of thing. Welf was standing in front of what looked like a stand up loom, looking at a big bolt of cloth that was still attached to it. Sir Skitters was sitting on the chair in front of it, where the operator would, and was feeding his own silk into the simple machine.

"I mean, I feed him, and he makes silk." Welf scratched his head, "It's not quite like Chani's, and we're almost out of dried meat now, but wow."

"You better not be overworking my friend." I said, "But yes, he's the best spider ever."

Delly went over to give Sir Skitters a bit of attention, while Maki and I took Welf aside, "Big sister and I came up with a bit of an idea for a weapon." Maki said, handing him the bit of paper with our rough sketches on it, "And, here's the spares." She handed those to me, and I quickly pulled the revolver 'clips' apart and pulled out the electrum cubes and rarer metal bits.

"Oh, this isn't too bad. You've gotten a good handle on design, even if you don't really make them." Welf said, "Oh, speaking of, I want to compare notes on those... you called them 'capacitors'? Like those spirals we put into Ganesha's sword, right?"

"Yeah." I grinned, "I had a lot of time to refine and work on stuff while I was there, and well, its all in here now." I tapped my forehead, "And I'm just as eager as you are to share it." I looked to Maki, gave her back a pat, "Go with him and work the bellows, he'll get it done. I'll work with these two and get you a proper set of armour made. Her too."

"Sure." Maki grinned.

"You're going to make me armour too?" Delly asked, "Well... It can't be too heavy."

"I know, but there is no way I'm going to let anyone into the dungeon without proper coverage. What do you think Sir Skitters?"

Sir Skitters paused his leg motions of pulling silk from his spinnerets and poked Delly in the belly with a front leg, making her eep and hop back a little, "Hey no fair."

"See? Your soft bits need protection." I gave Sir Skitters a pat, "This should be enough... maybe..." I raised my voice, "Hey Welf?"

"Yeah!?" From over the sound of the furnace being warmed up.

"Is everything in the same spots in storage?"

"Why change what works? The stuff you sent is on the last couple of shelves!"

"Excellent. Let's get to work."

Maki's 'armour' already had bits made. She had her bracers, and a good pair of combat boots (yes, JSDF combat boots) and a mask that was only slightly softer than the one I'd made. That only covered like... ten percent of her body, so that didn't pass for proper dungeon armour. She relied on mobility, and as a caster, getting the hell out of the way of front line combat would be very important.

The choice of materials? Leather, silk and salamander wool.

Thanks to my own skill, and Delly being large enough and strong enough to hold things as needed, we made Maki a sturdy set of leather leggings, a leather 't-shirt' vest (with a high collar), and some extra elbow and knee pads. Rolling about in combat sounded great, until you put your full weight on something bony (knee, elbow, shoulder), so those got a little extra protection. The 'under layers' were silk then salamander wool, giving her joints and other exposed bits reasonable protection and protecting her from things like flaming breath or the like.

All that was left to do after a couple hours was to make sure the buckles were where they needed to be, and to soak it in 'the usual dungeon hazard treatment' I put everything through while back on Earth. But I'd made that up last night, so it was really just 'add water and wait'.

While I'd been doing that and didn't need Delly, her and Sir Skitters were taking measurements and working with the fresh batch of spider silk. Since she still wanted to be light enough to fly, we couldn't do much with metal or even leather. But, with the tricks I'd learned in Rias's workshop, we could make that silk proof against almost everything but physical force.

What did we make? A recreation of her 'I'm a flower don't eat me' dress from when I'd first met her. It had lost a bunch of the layers, the 'dress' becoming leggings and a single 'butt skirt' layer. A bit of style over function, but since it only went just past her knees, it wouldn't interfere with movement (so I approved it). The upper body also lost a bit of frill, but it was still several layers thick and while I had a 'love/hate' relation with 'capes' (because they were really easy to grab, and I was a close combat type who liked grabbing things), we put a layered cape on the back, that Delly could hide her wings in with a couple of simple shakes. So long as she wasn't getting chewed on, or being grabbed, she could protect her wings from all kinds of 'monster weapons' like flame, acid, poison mist, little rocks, etc etc.

And yes. She looked super cute in it too. It even had a hood, and the collar pulled up over her nose and mouth.

Aside from treatment, and colouring, it was done about an hour after Maki's armour. So, I got the various bits that needed soaking into the tubs of treated/dyed water, and we three went to see what all the hammering was about in the 'noisy' side of the workshop.

It was a hit of nostalgia to see Welf smashing metal at his anvil. Just the confidence he had while moving from heat, to anvil, to hammering, and back again, made me think of all the fun we'd had in here, making new things, silly things, serious things...

For instance, he was having Maki hold a wedge shaped tool, so Welf could hammer the end of it, and bend a flat bar of steel into what was (ninety nine percent sure) going to be the 'sheath' for Maki's sword. Maki herself seemed just as focused as he was, which was good, since it would be a pain to fix if either of them screwed up.

The 'sword' was still unfinished, but most of the parts were. They were off to the side, laid out and basically ready for assembly. This included two of the 'capacitors' I'd sent back with a dungeon segment after the second fairy circle was up and running. The blade (a nice double edged piece with a half fuller and a super solid thrusting point) itself was a bit thicker than I'd have made it, but, so long as nothing bad happened, Maki would be strong enough that she'd be able to use it properly very soon. The crosspiece flowed into a nice basket hilt to protect her hand, and the pommel was actually an empty square receptacle for one of the garnets I'd grown and sent back. The dim red gem was next to everything as well.

Then Welf said, "Stop." And I turned to see Maki back up, and Welf put the half folded sheath into the furnace again, "Hey sister!" He grinned, "The magic bits took a little longer than I thought, but what do you think?"

"This is super shiny." Delly said, still nervous around iron, but daring to touch the items laid out on the table.

"I agree." I nodded, "A little future proofing I see?" I motioned to the blade, not daring to pick it up myself.

"You're little sister is stronger than the usual rookie. I'm sure she can handle it with a little warming up." Welf grinned, "I see you've gotten her trained as an assistant too. Didn't need to teach her anything!"

"Best sister I could adopt." I nodded while Maki made a 'V' sign at the praise, "Want me to put this together? Anything I should know about?"

"Yeah, I worked in the high silver, and I think I got it all right, but well, you put in that warning about crossed wire."

I nodded, "Sure. Hey Delly? Take Sir Skitters to the nursery, and tell them I'll be another half hour. Then." I pointed to Sir Skitters, "You take a day off. Maybe visit Jiru, or beat Astraea at chess again."

Our spider friend gave me a salute, and Delly said, "I think you'll like the stuff Kodori made for you Maki." She held up Sir Skitters, "Lets go get drooled on or something. Bye now."

She left, and I sat at the bench with the laid out sword bits. To the background music of Welf and Maki smashing metal to shape, I made sure his work had no crossed wires (it didn't) and hooked up properly inside the hilt (it did). As a 'hilt' this was the fanciest I'd ever seen Welf make. Now, to be fair, this was where all the 'magic' would be happening, so it needed to be more elaborate.

He was also coming off of months of 'get it done' equipment maintenance, and just like his father and grandfather in Rakia, I was sure he was just itching to be properly creative.

"No problems here." I said after I finished putting the hilt together and they'd paused in hammering again, "All that's left is slotting the blade, tapping in the pins and wrapping the hilt." The wire and leather wrap was ready, and the pins were all set to go. "I notice a little notch here..."

The pommel, with its square slot and dull crimson gem, were level with the crosspiece, opposite the basket hilt. And on that side, was a little rounded point of metal, that looked suspiciously like a handgun's 'Iron sight'.

"Maki said it would help her aim." Welf shrugged, "And since I'm not the magic one here, I saw no harm in tapping it on."

"Huh." I gave Maki a look, getting a shrug and a stuck out tongue in reply, "Well, we'll see how weapon tests go." I motioned to the sheath as Welf pulled it out of the furnace, "Hows that looking? Need anything small made in the mean time?"

"Yeah actually, could you make a cap for the bottom? Maybe..."

Okay, so it was more than a couple hours...

So as soon as I got into the nursery, Fen-chan walked around me, and started to headbutt me into the room. "Thank you Fen-chan." Haruhime said, "How did it go?" She asked, not looking up from the child at her breast, "You're just in time for dinner too."

"Well." I gave Fen-chan a pat, then an ear scroofle, then a hug for being the best/weirdest fox I could... have on staff? Be? And then changed around my clothing for the 'pre-dinner' dinner for the children, "Who's hungry..."

After a moment or two of child sorting, using my tails to distract those who hadn't been fed yet, and to cuddle those who had been, I got seated and started again. "Delly will be a centre, or maybe an 'orbit support'." I used formation terms, one for where Delly might fit into a combat line. "Since she wants to use her wings, she can't use heavy armour, so she's wearing treated silk and a bit of battle cloth."

"Oh my..." Haruhime giggled, "I wonder if she knows she will be wearing a small fortune in rare materials? Sir Skitters?"

"Is the best spider ever." I nodded, "Oh, she knows. In a way, she's also a little bit of advertising, that we, a small Alliance, have access to such fine materials. Reputation is important, when you're trying to gain support."

She nodded, a little sadly, but then asked, "And Maki-chan?"

"I stuck with something similar to what Asuka has. She's a mobile type, but more on the ranged side than the melee side of things." I winced as Tatsuko nibbled on me a little too hard, "Gently please?" This bit of pain reminded me to use that new numbing cream I made as well.

"Do you think they will go with us on the mission in two days?"

"Mayb-" I paused, "Us?"

"I was thinking of going too." She said quietly, "Now that you've returned, I was thinking..."

Tatsuko made a grumpy noise as my arms went a little slack and she lost her 'place'. "I'm sorry..." I cuddled her closer again, and got nibbled on in return, "Ow... I said I was sorry..."

Haruhime giggled a little, but it was obvious she was waiting for my real reaction.

"Sorry. I thought... well no. I didn't think." I said, "You want out of the house after most of a year of being inside." I nodded. "I don't feel good about the idea." I said, but smiled, "But I won't ever deny you your freedom. I'm sure I can hold things together a day or two."

I rescued her not just because I loved her, but because she had been trapped in a room, just like I'd been, before I'd become what I was now.

"Thank you." She smiled, looking relieved, before wincing, "Oh dear... I'm sorry, but those are not for chewing..."

"I'll make some chew toys for them, maybe it will help." I set Tatsuko down, and picked up her twin brother, "Okay you... no biting." After getting a 'blep!' and a giggle in reply, he settled into place, "We'll do a little equipment check as well. I have to talk with our three Gods about the meeting. Rias, Akeno, Sona and even Issei came up with some really good advice."

"They've become really good friends, haven't they?" She nodded.

"There were a few little hitches, but yes. While I hope to never go back, I hope we can at least keep in touch." I hmm'ed, "I should probably get a message to Momiji and Kaede. It they want to go, they need to get ready, maybe get a little more of our brand of sparring in."

"You should send Loaner then." She smiled, "He seemed very fond of them."

"Anyone who can pet his ears well." I nodded, using my free hand to play with Tatsuo's ears, "Yes, like these ears here. Hm... maybe we'll clean them later... yes, once you're all properly full and all sleepy."

After dinner, some tea, and some communal 'playing with the children' time, the three Gods, myself, Haruhime, and all the children got into the infirmary. This was mostly for the clean space and the medical supplies, and the small specialized magic stone hot plates we used to boil water and clean bandages. It might sound a little odd, but cleaning ears was serious business with us long eared types, and well, Renard were in fact, long eared types. Sure, we had a little bit of fuzz inside the ear to help keep the inner ear clean, but, when you spend your days crawling about and getting drooled on by siblings who think your ears are tasty...

Anyhow.

With the three Gods distracting the children Haruhime and I weren't tending to, I got into the 'serious business' of coaching them on 'city scale' politics.

"I'll give you the notes later, but, we can expect a few key questions from Freya or her supporters." I started.

"We already know they will attempt to discredit us." Takemikazuchi said with the smallest of frowns (that made Yumi pout at him), "Sorry." He said quietly.

"Yes, that is certain. I'll start with the two Oni. While yes, I am going to be a focus I'm sure, they are 'wild cards', and not 'bound' to anyone. They wear your colours, Lord Takemikazuchi, but they do not have Falna."

"Some find it hard to understand their level of loyalty. They need no such bond to encourage them to follow you or our Alliance." He nodded.

"They do seem quite steadfast." Astraea nodded.

"So long as they don't smile." Haruhime laughed quietly, "Almost done, shh shh."

"Be sure to explain to everyone what they are. And that they understand the rules of the dungeon. If anyone asks if they can be trusted not to attack someone, I'd like you to say something like, 'Would any of your Familia stand idle while they were attacked or insulted?'"

"Ah, a clear meaning." He nodded, "Leave them be, or treat them as you would like to be treated."

"Also remind them, that we have reports they have already stepped in to defend weakened adventurer parties, and that Loki Familia has worked with them to return the dungeon fragments." I added.

Poor Hestia looked like a student just before a pop-quiz in a class she was failing already. "She's going to ask so much about you, I can tell..." She groaned.

"And this is why we're talking about it now." Haruhime smiled, "Here, go visit Hestia-sama." She put Kei down, and scooped up a sleepy Toshi, "We all know how much you dislike surprises."

Hestia picked up Kei who 'oop'ed her nose, "Thank you for trying." She said, "As your Goddess, everyone will ask all those hard questions. Like how you're so strong, and if I'm cheating, or what skills you have..."

"Those are the easiest questions to answer." I smiled, "The guild, and I'm going to guess Royman or even Lord Ouranos will be there. So, all you have to say is, 'the Guild is aware of everything'. Under the rules, the guild may only archive an adventurer's stats. The only thing they can tell a rival Familia, is our names, race, Familia and levels." I glanced to Haruhime, our tails swishing together, "Then, the guild will say, 'Yes, we know, and she's level six now'."

"The rules are meant to protect people." Astraea nodded, "And even though you did leave Mr. Ottar in the middle of the town, you didn't break any rules." She smiled, "You didn't damage city property, and didn't fight in the streets."

"Urg... well okay..." Hestia nodded.

"This will be a simple match of 'who has the better friend'." I said, "Loki will defend our two friends in the dungeon. The guild will hold to its own rules when questioned about my abilities." I looked to Hestia, "Lady Hephaestus will stand behind us when someone asks about the information and tools I sent back. And Lord Ganesha... well, he'll at least be cheerful in our direction."

Even with the heavy atmosphere, we laughed, since yes, Ganesha would be in 'public' and acting like a fool.

"I know you watch us in combat, Lady Hestia. And this is just like Ouka and Chigusa. Ouka fights, while Chigusa is his shield. You simply need to deflect the questions to the appropriate shield." There was a scratching at the door, and after a moment the lever handle turned and admitted Fen-chan and Loaner. "Ah good."

The big foxxo trotted over and curled up to the side, attracting the attention of all the children we'd finished cleaning, while Loaner came over to sit between Haruhime and I, curling up as well among our tails.

"It seems you've left out Dain Cecht." Takemikazuchi said, reaching out and giving Fen-chan a pat on the head then picking up the next child in line for an ear cleaning.

"Yes... Well, he's going to be a problem. So, we're going to deal with the eventual betrayal like this..."

NOTES!

And so the gears of politics get a little push, and the Alliance makes ready for a trip into the dungeon.

Party on, and I hope your Yule shopping is done. And that if you get snow where you are, that it isn't bad.

Daeore on Ko-fi, if you want to toss a coin to your writer.

Daeore on Inkitt, if you want to read my book 'Were Too?'