IMPORTANT.
This is my SIDE PROJECT.
Meaning: This story will NOT receive consistent updates, only getting them after enough ideas have been thought up, and written down in between working on the main series.
The main series is my FIRST priority, but I do look forward to giving you all some laughs hopefully.
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Things that need to be explained.
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This story takes various Familia's from different times in Orario's past and present, tossing them into the melting pot for the sake of 'FUN', it isn't meant to make complete sense.
All of Orario is effectively soft-locked, never really progressing as a whole, only the events around Bell doing so (Like Apollo and Ishtar being dismantled for one reason or another).
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The current status of Familia's we need to know about. - (WBA = When-Bell-Arrived in the original 'White Haired Elf')
Freya - the Familia is all out of whack, but the important characters are Mia at age 28, Ottar at age 20, Horn at 18, Anya at 19 (Allen by extension), none of the other executives are present.
(Image of younger Mia is linked in my Profile, please check it out.)
Hera and Zeus - the same as a few months pre-OEBD fight. (OEBD fight will not happen.)
Loki - WBA (With aging up)
Astraea - They are set to be a month before the massacre. (Massacre will not happen.)
Miach - WBA
Takemikazuchi - WBA
Ishtar - WBA (With aging up)
Apollo - WBA
Guild - WBA
Anyone and everyone who Bell will be romantically involved with will be aged up, I do not write romance about minors, period.
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There are a series of changes to the history of Bell, these changes include.
-He never met Artemis, and she is still alive, so Bell never lost the abilities that he did in canon.
-Ignoring everything before now, the fact that Bell is a Snow Elf is common, or at least accessible knowledge.
-Bell maintains his ears, never having cut them off.
-Bell did in fact know Albert in this story, but so things aren't weird if Ais and Bell interact (I remember a few requests for this way-back-when), let's say that Bell and Albert were partners. But never really got as close as in my canon, Bell is still concerned for Ais, but more as a friend than as family. Orario is not in Alabama after all.
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Lastly, to reiterate.
This story is for fun! So don't think about it too hard!
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Please enjoy!
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(New line story break, this signals the end of a section, possibly a time skip or just major scene change.)
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Bell recalled his first day in Orario.
He had been immediately found by the Zeus Familia, Bell greeted his old friend, though calling the 'King of Perverts' a friend left a bad taste in his mouth.
He had initially wanted to join the old fools Familia, but after he tried to convince Bell to make a harem in the city. He quickly remembered why he hadn't come with him to the city.
It was fun though to see Hera beat the daylights out of him for saying that.
In Hera's own words. "That perverted old coot needs to learn to keep his mouth shut."
Bell couldn't help but agree with the sage-like words.
Hera and him had become good friends since, Bell even joining the Hera Familia book club after she vouched for him.
Though, he wasn't too upset about the delays in joining a Familia.
It was because of this that Bell had been Falna-less when Freya burst into the room, hell bent on finding him. But stopped abruptly to laugh at Zeus on the floor beneath Hera's boot.
The others from Hera/Zeus Familia expected her to give the same B-S speech about 'falling in love with him' and how 'she would take care of him in her Familia'.
But she surprised them.
They were shocked to witness the usually very outwardly sultry woman run to Bell, wrapping him in a hug. A few Zeus members getting jealous to an extent.
It didn't take long for her to explain how she knew about him, or rather, his species.
Just like that, the cat was out of the bag.
The otherwise sweet moment between goddess and soon-to-be child was ruined.
Bell was now about to kill Zeus where he lay, as the pervert suggested joining Freya for the usual reasons.
"-Join her and build a harem of those beautiful girls who never leave Folkvangr-!".
Hera and Freya were not friends, but they always came to the common agreement of 'The pervert must pay'.
It was quite heart warming really, as they both kicked him and aired their grievances openly.
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News about him spread fast, especially with Freya practically changing as a person overnight, becoming caring and doting.
She had even outright banned the near death duels of her Familia, along with anything else she deemed as 'over the top'.
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Bell was soon introduced to Mia Grand, a dwarf woman who was thin, tall and by all means, in her prime.
She was the current head of the Freya Familia, but there was a catch to her, she wanted out.
She had been begging Freya for the ability to leave, always being denied. She was told that there was nobody else who could do what she did, and that kind of pissed her off.
Freya had made attempts to sate her, buying the pub now known as the 'Hostess of Fertility' for example.
But she still wasn't allowed to retire though. (Early at that, only being 28 years old.)
Mia warmed up to Bell fast though, and it didn't hurt that on his first day, Freya told her-
"Train him to be the next Captain, and then you can retire."
-Mia was a good person, but Bell had it rough the first couple of days.
And that's what led to now.
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Bell paced back and forth in front of the small crowd.
It would have been Mia doing this but she, an adventurer with abnormal resistance, had food poisoning.
Naturally as her trainee, Bell was given this task of scolding the cooks of Folkvangr.
Cooks at Folkvangr were not your normal people, they were all around or at Level Two. An impressive feat, considering only one or two of the dozen plus had ever been inside the dungeon before.
The issue present was minor in Bell's mind, but not to the rest of the Familia. Bell was the only person outside of the kitchen staff still on his feet, the reason?
Bell was one of the few who had developed a resistance to the poisonous substance served earlier, specifically Freya's cooking.
"Please recite rule number ONE." Bell commanded them.
A dozen voices moaned out at once.
"-Goddess Freya is not permitted in the kitchen.-"
"Good." Bell commended.
Before turning on them. "So! Can somebody tell me why she was able to serve the ENTIRE Familia Mustard on oatmeal?!"
They flinched back.
Several of them mumbled, though nobody made eye contact.
Bell sighed.
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An idea crossed Bell that evening.
His own room had a bathroom with a full bath inside, but he was an Elf by nature, the outdoors was where he yearned to be in his moments of comfort and rest.
Bell didn't like to use the Folkvangr bath house, but it was nice in that there was an outside section of the baths.
Of course, this time of year was perfect for bathing outside, the beauty of the season overtaking him as he sat in a temporary bliss while snowflakes fell.
And right now, nobody was well enough to bother him.
"Ahhhh—-" Bell sighed happily while sinking into the steaming outdoor bath.
Along each wall was either fake stone, or vegetation to block the sight of concrete. Bell was quite grateful that the vegetation selected were year round plants, not losing their glamor to the harsh winter months.
He closed his eyes, taking in the heat.
'creak'
He was upset for a moment, hearing the door to the inside open gently. Though you wouldn't expect it, Ottar had elected to follow Bell's lead of bathing outhere.
Bell smiled after a moment, welcoming the Boaz.
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Bell had temporarily forgotten the history behind Freya's taste testers.
The first that Bell was aware of was Mia, she currently held the longest streak of taste testing, being for eight years long. It is said that this was her inspiration to become a cook, wanting to never again taste such bad food. Though, her pallet has since forgotten it's painful past, hence the food poisoning now.
Ottar was the next, he served for four years, and is said to have 'mysteriously' acquired a poison resistance skill during that time.
Horn was his predecessor; she had served for two years. Her smile lit up the room the first time she saw Freya offer Bell her 'experimental dish'. Leaving the poor boy to experience the first of many, many horrible combinations of otherwise good food.
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Otter eased wordlessly into the warm spring bath.
Now, this isn't the tall hulking man we think of, no, Ottar is currently a Twenty year old Boaz, still notably taller and bigger than Bell, but nowhere near what he would become.
Him and Ottar got along well, the Boaz was like Bete from Loki Familia, tough on the outside, but soft inside.
Ottar actually told him this really good joke one night, it was about 'a magician who got so mad he pulled out his hare'.
It took Bell a few moments, but he got the joke eventually, only amplified by Ottar being drunk as could be, shaking his eyebrows up and down in a way that made you question his sanity.
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On the topic of their nights out.
Bell always appreciated it when Bete was around during their shenanigans.
Bete was as much a tsundere, as the sun was bright.
They were all drunk one night (a rare occurrence for Bell) and he had recently hit Level Two, so upon telling them about his 'Luck' ability, they wanted to try it out.
Fast forward to late night turned to morning, they were still drunk, Bell was roughly Fourteen-Million valis richer, and all three of them were banned from four different casinos.
Oh, and let's not forget how they almost destroyed an operation going on by the Astraea Familia. Leading to a pretty awkward first meeting between him and Ryuu at the Hostess.
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Bell got up, having been sitting comfortably for some time now.
He Slowly walked past Ottar as… Wait, was he sleeping?
"Hey- Ottaaaaar!" Bell smacked his face light.
Nothing.
'No other way.' Bell thought, grinning mischievously.
He formed his towel into a whip, aiming for the back of his head.
'Whap!'
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(New line story break, this signals the end of a section, possibly a time skip or just major scene change.)
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Bell trudged on, slowly crawling up the dark stairway which seemed to grow taller as he went.
He could see it.
The faint beam of light signaled their return to the surface, Bell's pace quickened.
He reached the top of the stairs, a wide and relieved smile spread over him.
He stopped, if only for a moment to bask in what little of Orario he could see through the open double doors of the dungeon's entrance.
A new sense of relief and excitement washed over him, gone were the days of smelling himself until they could find a stream to bathe in.
Gone was the constant smell of iron and oils!
And gone was the dungeon food!... Actually, if anything, it was amazing, and it was all thanks to the person who dragged him down there in the first place…
"Hey?!" Mia shouted, having seen Bell about to take his first step out of the dungeon.
He froze, looking back at her.
She seemed dissatisfied with him. "Don't just run off like that!"
"S-Sorry Mia!"
"Excuse me?!" She was even more upset.
He got quieter. "C-Captain.(?)"
She glared now.
He was just above a whisper. "M-Mama Mia.(?)"
After a moment, her scowl shifted to a neutral, if barely happy expression.
"Good, and don't mess it up again!"
Mia stepped through first, Bell was only her supporter, and even though she stressed that he was never to mistreat a supporter, he wasn't just her supporter right now.
Bell was her trainee, her charge, and most importantly, her replacement.
And if all went right, he'd be the next captain, and the first regular to her pub.
That isn't to say the pub wasn't open already, but she had to leave it closed frequently, their impromptu dungeon expedition being an example. So the 'Hostess of Fertility' wasn't exactly well known and visited right now.
Her foot crunched as it compressed about two-inches of snow under foot, something that hadn't been there when they left.
She sighed. "Looks like we'll need to hustle there."
She looked back to Bell, who was wearing a thick shirt, while she was wearing a puffy jacket that's been in Bell's bag since they left, till now.
"You gonna manage okay?"
Bell nodded. "Yes, Mi-" She glared. "-Mama Mia."
She smiled, turning back to the road ahead.
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As they walked, Bell couldn't help but receive a good few stares.
Looking no worse for wear while not in anything but what the average Orarian would call 'fall clothes', everyone around them shivering on the way to the dungeon, not wanting to carry the extra weight.
Bell trudged on, annoyed as the snow dampened his pant legs.
He wasn't generally the type to complain, simply dealing with the cards given, but it was annoying.
Along with this, Bell couldn't help but notice his mentor was going west, not south.
As if sensing the question on his mind, Mia spoke. "We're gonna make sure the Hostess is still there,-" She joked. "We'll be home in no time."
Bell sighed, but followed willingly.
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They came to the stairway leading to the front door, Bell still getting looks as people passed.
"It's here! Are we good now?" He asked.
"Keep your pants on kid." She took the slippery steps up, getting to the landing after almost slipping down the last step.
Bell grinned when she turned, Mia scowling.
"What? I don't like ice!"
Bell huffed in amusement, taking his first step up, immediately face planting on the second.
"HA!" Mia shouted to the high heavens.
"Can it!" Bell shouted, snow on his face.
Mia shook her head smiling, turning to the door.
The key slid in smoothly, though Mia had a habit of forgetting which way was to open, so she had to juggle it left and right, trying not to break the key with her Level Six strength.
The door came open, revealing the dark dining room, the window covered in accumulated snow.
Mia almost unbuttoned her coat, but thought twice as the heat hadn't been on for two weeks, leaving the room as cold as outside.
"Hit the lights." Mia told him as he entered behind.
A flick came, and the room lit after a moment at the cold crystals reinvigorated from the returned activity.
"You hungry?" Mia called, pushing open the kitchen door.
"Y-Yeah!" Bell responded, raising his voice as the door swung closed between them.
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Mia walked into her kitchen, hands landing on her hips as she looked around the barren room.
The Freya Captain had the foresight of giving her perishables to the employees beforehand, things like bread and vegetables, basically anything that couldn't last a few weeks.
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The employees were another thing she had going for her, all of them had business of their own to take care of, only working for her part time.
Syr would show up whenever Freya or Horn needed something to do or went stir crazy.
Anya was much the same as Syr, though more frequent.
Ryuu took up work after her goddess commented on the outfits, resulting in her Captain Alice pressuring her to work part time so they could see her wear it.
Lunoire would come by whenever she had time, though this always seemed to coincide with Demeter stopping by.
The rarest of workers was Chloe, always picking up a shift if she needed a place to stay, which was every time she came to Orario to aid in her Familia's fish sales.
May just kind of showed up sometimes, but she worked for free, so Mia never questioned it.
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Mia had collected potatoes, honey and some canned fruits.
Mia wasn't going to get fancy, being just the two of them.
She diced three potatoes, placed them on a baking sheet with some parchment paper, drizzled honey over them, then placed the sheet in the oven for the next ten-fifteen minutes.
The canned fruits were to be served as just that, fruits. She had peaches, kiwis and strawberries.
After some time, the kitchen began to warm from the oven as Mia took inventory, not finding anything odd from the back rooms and doors.
The timer dinged at ten minutes, but they were not done yet, so she let them sit for a few more minutes.
She looked upstairs, giving the rooms once over each.
She came back down stairs, stopping the timer as it was about to ring.
The sheet came out fine in her hand, not bothering with a hotpad.
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Mia walked into the dining room, finding Bell as he looked up from inspecting their equipment atop one of her tables.
She had two plates, one in each hand.
They sat at the neighboring table, both slowly chewing through the honeyed roasted potatoes.
Mia was satisfied the same as Bell with this, both sitting in silence as they stared down the walls around them.
Mia was the first to stand up, stretching her back, then grabbing both their plates, heading towards the kitchen once more for clean up, while Bell moved to repack everything into his bag.
He had a good amount of extra space, not carrying Mia's puffy coat any longer.
His knives were still in good condition, a testament to their quality rather than lack of use.
The rope was usable, but could be replaced.
Potions were spent, entering with two small crates of twenty, now with only four total remaining.
A small shovel used for if they ever needed to dig, or as a last resort weapon.
A small pouch with basic first aid.
A heat stone that can light fires when Mind is focused into it.
And finally their combined magic stone loot.
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As Bell tugged the last strap on the backpack as Mia returned.
They shared a quick look, before Bell tossed the oversized backpack over himself, exiting the building the same as he entered.
Mia locked the front door, leaving the duo a hefty walk before their next and final stop, Folkvangr.
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The tall gate closed behind them on their way towards the furthest back building, doing all they could to avoid the rest of the Familia. Neither caring for the whole superiority complex they all seemed to have for just being in Freya's Familia.
Bell also had another reason, and that was specifically how the entire female populace short of Mia wanted to have his kids, something he found quite tiring, and annoying.
The two of them weren't trying too hard right now, being around noon, so the main building in the compound should have everyone inside for lunch.
The paths were cleaned of the snow, any build up since was miniscule at best.
As they approached the building, Bell stumbled up the long staircase of maybe twenty shallow steps, not hard, but he hadn't slept in a proper bed for two weeks, and just walked the distance from the Hostess to here.
Bell just wanted to sleep.
Unfortunately, fate had other plans.
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Mia and Bell froze at the top of the steps, as the door ahead opened slowly due to its size.
And out came the (currently) walking nightmare herself, their goddess Freya.
"MMiiaa~" She called slowly, a grin doing nothing to mask the world ending anger of the goddess.
The goddess wore an oversized light blue sweater, black leggings underneath, with slippers, hair in a loose ponytail down her back, signifying that she'd just come from relaxing in her room.
Mia actually looked nervous, which scared the daylights out of Bell.
Mia tried to cover for herself.
"I know I didn't tell you we were leaving but-!" Mia was being defensive, another scary sight.
"Two weeks!" The goddess shouted. "You took Bell away for two whole weeks! I had things planned, you know!"
Freya was angry, but to Bell it just looked funny seeing her shout while in the oversized sweater that partially covered her chin.
Freya noticed him, finally taking a moment to look the boy over, immediately seeing how exhausted he was.
"Not only did you steal him from me, but you ran him ragged!" Freya shouted again.
Before anything else, the goddess marched over to him, pushing the backpack straps off, and pulling him by the arm.
Mia watched with her own fear being replaced by mounting exhaustion.
Freya promptly brought Bell inside the door, before shutting it, Mia's eyes widened, realization dawning as a click resonated from the door.
Mia shot forward, trying the door knob, then pounding her fist against it. "Freya?!"
"Go sleep at the Hostess!" Came muffled through the reinforced solid oak.
"Don't do this!" It was worse than Mia could have dreamed, adding insult to injury, she turned and saw a small crowd of people leaving the main hall, all headed towards her.
"...Shit…"
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Bell sat on Freya's bed as his status glowed, lighting up with a matching hue to Freya's sweater.
"I can't believe her! We were supposed to go to the Banquet of the God's together, dance and bond…"
Freya pouted, shifting the numbers as they disappeared from his skin, reappearing a few moments later with new values.
"All done." She chirped.
He smiled, but faltered as the small energy boost hit him from the update. Being as exhausted as he was, the boost felt like drinking a gallon of coffee on no sleep for a week, doing nothing but making him feel anxious, but still tired.
"I-I'm gonna head to bed now." He spoke sleepily from over his shoulder.
"YOU are not leaving this room, mister!"
Bell looked at her in confusion as she climbed off the bed.
He was confused. "Why not?"
She stared at him, before moving to close the curtains of her windows.
"Excluding the past two weeks-" She spoke bitterly. "-You've been involved in a total of TWELVE different incidents around Orario, since last month. I'm not risking that walk from here to there."
"...But this is a locked building that not even the Zeus Familia could get into."
"You'd find a way." She spoke as the last window became covered.
He sighed, knowing there was no winning this time around.
Bell slid back gradually, finding a pillow and the blankets opening.
He pushed the covers down, maneuvering his feet below, then pulled the heavy fabric over him.
A wave of exhaustion washed over his mind, the past two weeks catching up to him.
A few moment's passed before Freya spoke up.
"I'm going to go take a soak, shout if you need me."
"-M-kay." He mumbled out, turning himself to lay his head on it's side.
Freya watched with a soft smile, complimenting herself on the design she had made for the Snow Elf ears, stretching outward, but also down and back just slightly, allowing him to comfortably sleep with his head on it's side.
She turned and walked to one of her several dressers, picking out a new set of 'comfy clothes' for when she was done bathing.
As she walked over to the couch she'd been on as Bell and Mia arrived, Freya looked over to the now sleeping Bell, hearing his calm and rhythmic breathing.
Freya picked up her book from the couch, she checked the bookmark, finding it correctly placed.
She smiled, happy to have Bell back as she walked through the doorway to her personal bath.
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Bell woke the next day feeling warm.
This was very unusual for him, considering slept with his windows open.
Only a moment after his head fog dissipated, not the norm for him to clear up so quickly, but it did happen on occasion.
He tried to move, but found himself stuck, now noticing the arm over him.
He was startled for a moment, before remembering that Freya had made him sleep in her room, though he never agreed to sleep beside her.
He sighed, just sucking it up and letting her continue to basically spoon him, no matter how embarrassed it made him.
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A/N
Hope you all liked it!
Sorry for taking so long!
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Please! I am not an idea machine, I will happily take suggestions!
Though I will not do them all, if it's funny, I'll probably do something with it!
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Thank you all for reading this… This… Whatever this was.
Hope you all have a great evening and/or morning!