*Episode 15*
Upon reflection, most people would find what happened next to be quite unusual.
They, however, are not familiar with the customs of our people. We hate over-elaborate
rituals and ceremonies, to the point of a wedding ceremony amongst us typically lasting
around ten seconds, as time flows in whatever universe the ceremony is being held in.
Allison simply walked up to the two of them and touched two fingers to each of their
foreheads. Then, she turned around and sat back down.
"There," she said.
"What?" replied Keiichi.
"Concentrate on the thought of Belldandy, Keiichi. Think about her."
Keiichi closed his eyes for a moment, obviously doing as she said. A second later, he
opened them up again, smiling.
"You're right. I just have to know where to look."
"Yes, well, I decided to play it safe. As I said, the bond will deepen," Allison replied.
"Arigatou, Allison-sama," Belldandy said.
"Belldandy, I believe you've been through this with Sensei. We hate formality.
Besides, you have every bit as much potential as Keiichi. You're one of us as well."
Belldandy looked startled for a moment. "But..."
"Why didn't Sensei tell you earlier? Keiichi is a mortal. He wanted to bring Keiichi up
to your level before dealing with both of you. I've always told him that he moves too
slowly, not that I can really blame him."
Keiichi spoke up, "What do you mean?"
"Keiichi," Allison said, "There are... consequences if we teach someone too much too
soon. If we give someone too much power before they develop the maturity to deal with
it... Well, there's a saying: 'Power corrupts'. It's a bit of an oversimplification, but it is
true. Unless you are responsible enough to deal with that power, you will abuse it. We
have to teach that responsibility as well as our abilities. It helps that most of us are good
people to begin with, but..."
"I see..."
"And as of when he first spoke to you, Belldandy both had more power and more
maturity than you did. That's still true, but not by nearly as much."
"So why did you tell us?" Keiichi asked, confused.
"I am not Sensei. We don't always agree on how to proceed."
"Oh," said Keiichi, not really understanding.
"Keiichi," Allison said, seeing Keiichi's confusion, "Sensei and I are different people.
Usually, we agree on how to do things. Sometimes, however, we don't. It's just like with
you mortals, except that we're a hell of a lot more powerful."
"Oh," Keiichi said, with a bit of comprehension on his face.
Allison chuckled.
"What?" Keiichi said.
"Inside joke," she replied.
Upon reflection, most people would find what happened next to be quite unusual.
They, however, are not familiar with the customs of our people. We hate over-elaborate
rituals and ceremonies, to the point of a wedding ceremony amongst us typically lasting
around ten seconds, as time flows in whatever universe the ceremony is being held in.
Allison simply walked up to the two of them and touched two fingers to each of their
foreheads. Then, she turned around and sat back down.
"There," she said.
"What?" replied Keiichi.
"Concentrate on the thought of Belldandy, Keiichi. Think about her."
Keiichi closed his eyes for a moment, obviously doing as she said. A second later, he
opened them up again, smiling.
"You're right. I just have to know where to look."
"Yes, well, I decided to play it safe. As I said, the bond will deepen," Allison replied.
"Arigatou, Allison-sama," Belldandy said.
"Belldandy, I believe you've been through this with Sensei. We hate formality.
Besides, you have every bit as much potential as Keiichi. You're one of us as well."
Belldandy looked startled for a moment. "But..."
"Why didn't Sensei tell you earlier? Keiichi is a mortal. He wanted to bring Keiichi up
to your level before dealing with both of you. I've always told him that he moves too
slowly, not that I can really blame him."
Keiichi spoke up, "What do you mean?"
"Keiichi," Allison said, "There are... consequences if we teach someone too much too
soon. If we give someone too much power before they develop the maturity to deal with
it... Well, there's a saying: 'Power corrupts'. It's a bit of an oversimplification, but it is
true. Unless you are responsible enough to deal with that power, you will abuse it. We
have to teach that responsibility as well as our abilities. It helps that most of us are good
people to begin with, but..."
"I see..."
"And as of when he first spoke to you, Belldandy both had more power and more
maturity than you did. That's still true, but not by nearly as much."
"So why did you tell us?" Keiichi asked, confused.
"I am not Sensei. We don't always agree on how to proceed."
"Oh," said Keiichi, not really understanding.
"Keiichi," Allison said, seeing Keiichi's confusion, "Sensei and I are different people.
Usually, we agree on how to do things. Sometimes, however, we don't. It's just like with
you mortals, except that we're a hell of a lot more powerful."
"Oh," Keiichi said, with a bit of comprehension on his face.
Allison chuckled.
"What?" Keiichi said.
"Inside joke," she replied.