Onegai, Megami-Sama!

Part 1-4: The Old Switcheroo

Later that night, Matagu lay on a borrowed futon, staring up at the ceiling. He'd always found it hard to sleep in places he wasn't used to, and trying to figure out everything that had happened over the last day and a half wasn't making it any easier. He supposed he shouldn't be worrying about it too much; Urd seemed to know what she was doing, and she and Peorth should be able to figure things out, even if they had to stay up all night.

At least, that was his theory, which was promptly proved wrong as the door slid open and he saw Peorth standing there in silhouette.

"So sorry, cheri, but there aren't enough rooms for everyone." He couldn't see her face, but he could tell she had the same mischievous smirk on her face that she wore so often. He liked it, he guessed, but he wasn't sure what was behind it. She walked over to the futon, knelt, and slipped under the blanket with him. "Not enough beds, either."

"I thought goddesses always had to tell the truth," he said. He turned away from her. "Or are you allowed not to, because you're cut off from Yerg - Yzgg--"

"Yggdrasil," Peorth said, scooting closer to him. "And of course, I'm still a goddess first class. You couldn't expect me to lie, oui?"

"I don't know," he said, moving away from her. He could feel her breath on the back of his neck when she spoke, and it was making it difficult to think. "I remember what Urd said, and I talked to Keiichi. You did all this same stuff for him when he called you."

"Not quite, dear boy," she said, inching closer to him again. "Keiichi made it all very difficult, you see, and I thought he might make me do a poor job. You, of course," she continued, trailing a finger up his spine, "have given me no such reason to worry."

Matagu's whole body tensed, and he shivered. That felt really, really good, he thought, but if Urd was right. . . . "I thought so. This is just your job." He scooted away from her again, half-hoping she'd stay put this time and half-hoping she wouldn't.

"It is my job, cheri," Peorth said, "and I'm very good at it." She reached out with arm and leg, and pulled herself closer to him until she lay right up against him.

He yelled, though quietly, and rolled away from her, right off of the futon and onto the cold floor. He winced, then opened his eyes to see that he was now facing her. She didn't look as he'd expected her to. In the dim light, she seemed almost . . . sad. "Peorth?" he whispered. "I - I'm--"

"Forgetful?" she whispered, giving him an questioning look in the near-darkness. "Or did you think that what I told you only earlier today was also just part of the job?"

"What you told me. . . ." Matagu pondered for a moment, then remembered what she'd said when they were standing outside of Mizuho-sensei's apartment. "I remember. What do you mean?"

Peorth sighed, and shook her head, then leaned up on one elbow. She still looked amazing in his old clothes, he thought. "Matagu-kun, you're making this difficult for me. That's not very kind of you."

"I'm sorry," he said, though he wasn't quite sure why he should be apologizing. She wasn't exactly making it easy for him either. "But I guess . . . I just . . . I know it's your job to be like this."

"Of course," she said. "When you call for the best, you get the best, which is me. Don't you think you deserve the best?"

"Why?" he asked, rolling over onto his back. "I've never even had a girlfriend, so why should I start with a goddess?"

"Why should that make a difference, hmm?" She reached out and gently laid her hand over his. "Matagu-kun. The ones who deserve them get wishes, even if not all of them are granted by one such as me. Do you understand?"

"Not really," Matagu admitted. "I've always seen myself as a pretty regular guy."

"Oh, truly?" she asked, a hint of a smile in her voice. "So regular that you'd give up your heart's desire, your intended wish, for another?"

Matagu felt himself blush, and was glad it was dark. He knew she couldn't read his mind when she wasn't in touch with Yggdrasil, so how could she know that he'd been thinking of wishing for more time with her? At least, he'd been thinking of that before Urd had pointed out that it was all part of the job for Peorth. Then again, he thought, maybe that wasn't what she meant.

"You mean Kei and Mizuho?" he asked. He glanced over at Peorth, and saw her nod. "That's not . . . I couldn't do that, they're married."

"Ah," she said, tapping on his hand. "But you didn't know. It was your heart's desire, perhaps it still is. If you knew of them, but also knew that you could make your wish and that Kei would never know, it would be as though they were never married, would you?"

"No," Matagu said without thinking. He paused, surprised at himself. Was he telling the truth? He'd spent hours psyching himself up before he called Mizuho that one night, trying to find the courage to confess his feelings. That wasn't even all that long ago. Did he still feel the same way?

A moment later, he sighed. No, he supposed he didn't. Knowing that Mizuho and Kei were married had taken something away from him, like his dream really was just that. He sighed. He'd always had impossible dreams, he supposed.

"No," he said again, glad that Peorth hadn't said anything while he thought. "I wouldn't. They're happy together, I guess, when they know who they're supposed to be married to." He couldn't help chuckling at that.

"Oui," she said quietly, "so I see. But what about you, Matagu-kun?" She leaned closer, and he started to pull away, but she held tightly to his hand. "What wish would make you happy?"

"I don't know," he stammered. "Maybe. . . ." He looked over at her again, though he could hardly make her out. "Maybe for now, knowing if I'm just . . . just another job for you or not." He turned his head away from her. "I don't want to be."

"Naming your wish when I'm out of touch with Yggdrasil," Peorth said, then gave a small laugh. "Are you trying to get an extra wish out of me, dear boy?"

Matagu gulped. "No, that's not what I meant--"

"Then I won't answer," she interrupted. "But you should remember what I said, cheri. No matter what comes of this, you have my eternal gratitude for helping me when others would have just stood by, or worse, taken advantage of a goddess without her powers."

He cringed at the thought, but he knew she was right. He'd known guys - not many, thankfully - who might only have helped her if they got something more out of it.

"And believe me," she continued, leaning closer to his ear as she whispered, "the gratitude of a goddess, especially one such as I, is not easily gained by a mortal. You are special, Matagu-kun, no matter how regular you may see yourself as being." She pulled away from him this time, and slid across the futon. He looked over to see her laying on her side, holding the blanket open for him.

"And I did speak the truth about the lack of beds," she said. "So, are you going to sleep comfortably or no?"

He swallowed hard, then slowly scooted back to the futon. He lay on his back, more nervous than he'd ever been, as she draped the cover over them both.

"Try to relax, Matagu-kun," she whispered. "Urd and Skuld will help set things right, and then we can finally get to the matter of your wish." She curled up next to him, and rested her head on his shoulder, then twined her legs with his. "Now, sleep."

He was sure he wouldn't be able to, but Matagu soon fell into the most restful sleep he'd known in a very long time.

Kei stumbled out of Keiichi's room, sleep-deprived after having to listen to the other man snore for half the night, tripped over a bundle of cables running through the temple hallway, and fell into Urd, planting his nose in her cleavage.

The silver-haired goddess looked down at him, blinked, and said, "Morning. Shall I tell one of your wives about this?"

Kei jerked back, already halfway to panicking, and held up his arms in front of his face. "It's not what you think! I tripped--"

"Calm down, kid," Urd said with an amused smile. "Last thing I want is more chaos around here, trust me. Besides," she continued, heading past the still-stunned Kei, "we should be able to get things straightened out this morning. Skuld's been up all night working on it."

"Really?" he asked, then let his arms drop. He noticed what Urd was carrying - a bottle of saké and a bag with a '131 Flavors' label. "Wow. So, why did you get ice cream?"

She looked back at him, still amused, and grinned. "How else do you think I can get her to keep working? If she stops, something might blow up like it usually does, and then you're without your wife for even longer."

"Here, let me help you with that," Kei said quickly, joining her as she opened the door with the 'Skuld Labs' sign on it. He glanced into Skuld's room, and immediately facefaulted.

The room looked like a garage owned by someone who was trying to build a fleet of mecha in their spare time. Mechanical parts, most of which Kei couldn't tell what they were for, were scattered across every possible surface. A large workstation dominated one corner, and a futon was shoved up against the wall next to it. Tools hung from every wall. Stacks of ice cream cups stood all around the room like some kind of monument. Somewhere in the middle of it all sat Skuld, piecing together what could have been a virtual reality helmet if not for the multitude of wires and coils sticking out of its top.

"Morning, sis," Urd said casually as she strode in. "Any luck with that thing?"

It was a full two minutes before Skuld looked up and realized there was someone else in the room. "Oh, good morning!" Her eyes focused intently on the bag Urd held. "Ice cream!"

"All yours," she said, setting the bag down next to Skuld, who dove in. "All mine," she continued, holding up the bottle of saké. She leered at it for a moment, then looked at Kei. "Oh, Belldandy's probably made breakfast by now."

"You think so?" Kei asked. "This isn't even where she thinks she lives."

"Doesn't matter," Urd said, cracking open her bottle. "She knows there's people who need it, so she'll cook. Besides," she said after a quick swig, "I'd bet she and Mizuho have been up most of the night talking. You might want to head out there anyway."

"Ehh. . . ." Kei put his hand behind his head. "I don't know. It's kind of hard to even think about it. Love triangles are bad enough, but a marriage triangle?"

"Oh, quit worrying and get over there," Urd said, giving him a light shove toward the door. "You'll thank me later."

Kei gave her one last nervous look as he stumbled out the door and she closed it behind him. He sighed. "I might as well," he said to himself, and headed toward the kitchen.

He smelled something delicious by the time he was halfway there, and it lifted his spirits. Just when he was starting to think that things might not be so bad, he walked into the kitchen to find Mizuho glaring at him. He cringed on instinct - he'd always hated fighting with her - then noticed Keiichi and Belldandy sitting on opposite sides of the table, both looking very upset. A tray with teacups and a plate of muffins sat on the table between them.

"Umm . . . good morning," Kei said meekly.

Mizuho didn't say anything, but kept giving him a look. He tried to smile, wondering just what he could have done. After another moment, she looked over at Belldandy.

"You're right," she said.

"I told you," Keiichi said, then sipped his steaming tea.

"It does seem like he's used to it," Belldandy said. She looked over at Kei and smiled. "I'm sorry about that, Kei-san, but it was Keiichi's suggestion."

Kei blinked at Keiichi. "What suggestion was that?" he asked, exasperated.

"To see if you'd act like a husband would if his wife was mad at him," Mizuho said, laughter in her voice.

Kei sighed again. He wondered if this day could get any worse.

Mizuho was still looking at him, and her face had turned serious. "I still don't remember being married to you," she said.

That wasn't technically worse, Kei thought; it was just the same as it had been yesterday. Unfortunately, he had a feeling about what was coming. "But?" he asked.

"But I remember things. . . ."

It took Kei a moment to realize that it was Belldandy who'd said something, not Mizuho. Their voices sounded so much alike; he didn't think he'd be able to tell who was saying what if he didn't have them right in front of him.

At the table, Belldandy was looking down at her hands, seeming very melancholy. Kei and Mizuho sat down. Kei took a glass of tea, while Mizuho pulled out a stick of pocky. He couldn't help smiling at that, despite the mood at the table. It seemed that no matter what had happened, Mizuho was still Mizuho.

"There are things I know," Belldandy began, speaking slowly, "things I've realized. When Mizuho and I were talking last night, I remembered that Keiichi can't swim." She sipped her tea while Kei gave Keiichi a strange look. He was how old, and couldn't swim? And why would Belldandy remember that, of all things? "Everything that Mizuho tells me about Keiichi, it all seems so familiar."

"It's the same with what she says about Kei," Mizuho added, and bit off the end of her pocky. "But Urd says that Skuld should have her machine finished soon, so we can get all this figured out. That's--"

"Priority one," Kei said at the same time as Mizuho. He smiled at her as she looked stunned. "You've been saying that since the day I met you," he said.

Mizuho lowered her head a bit, blushing faintly. "Keiichi-kun, have you ever heard me say that?"

"Nope," Keiichi said, shaking his head. "That's the first time."

She and Belldandy both sighed while Kei and Keiichi nodded at each other. This was going to work, Kei thought. They just needed to give Skuld the time, and she and Urd could fix whatever was wrong. Then they could figure out how to get Peorth's connection to Yggdrasil back, and everyone could go back to normal. But even if that happened, he thought, he might want to keep in touch with Keiichi. It'd be nice not being the only one who had a rather strange relationship.

There was the sound of a very loud motor from outside the temple, which came to a sputtering stop. Keiichi looked panicked for a moment, then winced when a loud voice called out, "Morisato!"

"That's Tamiya," Keiichi said, grimacing.

"I know, time to hide," Mizuho said, standing up from the table. "Kei, Belldandy, come with me - there's a place he can't find us."

"What?" Kei asked, blinking. "Why do we have to hide?"

"Because I'm his teacher!" Mizuho said, sounding half-frantic. Kei nodded, suddenly understanding perfectly, and followed her out of the kitchen. The day hadn't necessarily gotten worse, he thought, but it sure had gotten weirder. . . .

Matagu wandered out of his own room around noon. He hadn't really wanted to get out of bed. Every time he'd awakened, he thought about everything that was happening and everything that was probably going to happen today and how he'd gotten into this whole mess and why he should bother worrying about any of it when he just wanted to stay under the blanket and fall asleep again next to Peorth. In the end, hunger had forced him to emerge, and when he did, he nearly clotheslined himself on a line of blue-green glowing energy that was streaking through the hallway.

"Don't touch that!" someone yelled from nearby, and Matagu froze. Skuld ran around the corner, skidded to a halt, and pulled some strange metallic loop from somewhere in her billowy white shirt. She flipped the loop around the energy, then yanked it down to the floor, where it stuck. She then looked up at Matagu, beaming. "Morning!"

"Umm . . . morning," he managed. "What is that?"

"It's an energy tracer," Skuld said. "It'll find what happened to Peorth when she got pulled away from Yggdrasil, and get us enough energy to power my Skuld Mark VII Hyperspeed Mind Restoration Helms. Come on, I'll show you!"

She dashed down the hall, and Matagu followed, scratching his head. She'd been talking so fast that it'd been hard for him to even follow. He shrugged. He didn't think he'd ever understand all this, but at least it wasn't boring.

They passed Keiichi's room, where he sat staring at a box of spare parts with a frustrated look on his face while Mizuho looked on with concern, then hurried into the Skuld Labs. Matagu blinked repeatedly at the bizarre helmets that were hanging from a device that looked like something out of that Frankenstein movie he'd seen when he was a kid.

It was a moment before he could say anything. "And that's going to work?"

"Of course!" Skuld said, a hint of anger in her voice. She picked up one of the helmets, making the mass of wires attached to its top swing back and forth. "All I have to do is make the memories that my sister and Mizuho have that aren't supposed to be theirs switch back. I've been up all night on this, it has to work!"

Matagu had his doubts, but he smiled anyway, as Keiichi had mentioned that she tended to throw bombs or sticky curses when she was upset. "I'm sure it will," he said, smiling a little too hard. He then noticed the piles of ice cream tubs, and understood. Even goddesses can get a sugar high, he thought.

"Shido-san?"

A voice came from behind him, and for a second he wasn't sure if it was Belldandy or Mizuho. Then he remembered that he and Skuld had passed Mizuho, so it had to be the goddess. He turned, and smiled at Belldandy. "Good morning."

"Good morning," she said brightly. "Is everyone ready?"

"Of course, big sister!" Skuld said, still hyper. "Drag the others in here and let's get started!"

Matagu and Belldandy nodded, then headed off in opposite directions. After telling Keiichi and Mizuho that Skuld was ready, Matagu returned to his own room, and walked softly over to where Peorth still lay.

He looked down at her for a moment, then kneeled and sat back on his heels. He'd once heard that, no matter what a woman was like, she was an angel while he slept. While it seemed strange to apply that to a goddess, he could see that it was true. He knew that if he stayed here by her side long enough, he'd forget everything that he'd been wondering about, whether this was just a job for her or not, and he wouldn't care. He sighed. It would be too easy to do, he knew that. And he had to admit, there were some good things about the idea. But after what he'd seen of his friends here, even if their relationships were all messed up, they still cared for each other - it wasn't something that they would just say, something they would throw away as soon as there was reason to end it.

Matagu shook his head, then rubbed his eyes. He wasn't making any sense, even to himself. Keiichi living with a goddess he'd wished to be forever by his side, and Kei living with their half-alien teacher - how could he base anything resembling a normal relationship on them?

But why, he thought as his eyes settled on Peorth again, why would he want to have a normal relationship when he could be with a goddess?

He stopped just short of smacking himself. He had to stop thinking about that, it'd just drive him crazy. Besides, how could he wish for her to be with him like Keiichi had with Belldandy?

Peorth stirred, and slowly opened her eyes, looking up at him. Matagu felt his face turn red and swallowed hard. He felt that wish becoming much easier to ask for.

"Matagu-kun. . . ." she murmured, sounding as though she was still half-asleep. She sat up partway, pulled her arms out from under the cover, and reached for him. He found himself unable to move, and sat just short of paralyzed as she pulled him close. . . .

. . . and hugged him. No teasing, no flirting, no telling of how she was the best or any mention of service. Just a warm hug. It didn't take long for him to unfreeze himself and return the embrace. She was warm, more than he'd thought she'd be, and he didn't think it was just because she'd spent all night under the cover. After a moment, he just stopped thinking entirely, and gave himself over completely to holding her.

He had no idea how long it was before one of them started to let go, nor did he think he'd ever be sure who had started it. All he knew was that he felt better than he had in as long as he could remember.

He remembered the time when he and Kei and Hyosuke had been sitting around on a warm summer day, and when asked about how things were going with Kaede, Hyosuke had been able to say little more than how it was going great and he had 'this feeling all over.' Looking down at the goddess in his arms, Matagu began to understand how some things just couldn't be put into words.

"Matagu . . . ?" Peorth murmured again.

"Peorth?" he whispered.

She looked into his eyes for a moment, just long enough for him to start to get lost, then began smiling. "You snore."

He paused, blinked, then started to laugh at the same time she did. He felt all the tension and worry run out of his body, then collapsed on the futon next to her.

"Skuld says her machine's ready," he said, still chuckling. "Mizuho and Belldandy are probably waiting for us."

"Oh, if we must," she said, pulling herself the rest of the way out of bed. "But I'm taking a bath after this."

Matagu nodded as he stood, and the two of them headed down the hall.

Urd smirked at them as they entered Skuld's room. "What's the matter, kid, have trouble getting out of bed?"

"S-something like that," Matagu said, feeling himself turn red again. He looked to where Mizuho and Belldandy were laying, side by side on the floor with the strange helmets on their heads. Kei and Keiichi were sitting next to them, and both of them seemed worried. Mizuho looked very nervous, while Belldandy looked peaceful. He wondered if anything ever really bothered her.

"You're sure this is going to work, Skuld?" Kei asked. He sounded like he was trying to keep his voice steady.

"Of course it'll work!" Skuld said. She was hunched over her work station, typing furiously with one hand while adjusting a dial on a control panel next to her at the same time. "It has to work, because I'm . . . a genius!"

Skuld launched into a laugh reminiscent of Urd's earlier one, and Matagu winced. Next to him, he saw Peorth cringing.

"You about ready to get started on this, sis?" Urd asked. She was sitting in the corner opposite Skuld, and had the tangled illusion of the patterns of holy energy hanging in the air in front of her again. Several of the strands, Matagu noticed, were the same blue-green as the one he'd nearly run into when he woke up. "I've got a hold on the energy you're working with, so I should be able to trace it back."

"Right!" Skuld tapped three more keys, then looked back to everyone else. "Skuld Mark VII Hyperspeed Mind Restoration Helms, go!"

The entire room went dim, and the helms that Belldandy and Mizuho wore began to glow bright blue. Matagu heard Peorth gasp next to him, and he could understand - it looked almost the same as she had when she'd been about to grant his wish. Bursts of green and purple light traveled through the wires that connected the two helmets, flickering and dancing around them and the women. Nobody moved and no one said anything until the lights died down. After a moment of hopeful silence, Mizuho and Belldandy looked at each other.

"Belldandy-chan?"

"Mizuho-san!"

"Whoops! I forgot to reverse that one. . . ." Skuld tapped in a few more numbers just as the two women started to reach for each other and Keiichi and Kei started to scream.

The play of lights and energy began again, though only for a moment, and when the energy faded, Mizuho and Belldandy both sat up quickly.

"Keiichi-san!"

"Kei-kun!"

Matagu blinked twice, then sighed with relief. By the time he'd done that, Belldandy and Keiichi were holding each other tight, while Mizuho and Kei were kissing with more passion than he'd expected from either of them. Matagu was happy for them all, but he couldn't help suddenly feeling very lonely.

From behind him, he felt Peorth drape an arm around his shoulders and lean over to whisper in his ear. "There's still more to come, cheri, don't you worry. You and I, we're not done yet."

Matagu looked over at her and started to smile, doing his best not to break into a big silly grin.

"Believe me, I hate to break all this up," Urd said, drawing everyone's attention, "but I found the answer to our little problem."

Everyone turned to look at Urd - even Skuld, who was already trying to push Keiichi and Belldandy apart. The dark-skinned goddess was holding a single strand of blue energy that twisted back and forth in the air. It was the same bright blue as Peorth's energy, Matagu could tell, but there was a thin band of dark red wrapped all around it.

Peorth gasped, then leaned forward to stare at what Urd held. "That's what happened?" she asked, sounding like she found it hard to believe. "To me?"

"Yeah, even to you," Urd said with a nod. "The energy trace worked, but I wasn't the first one to do it. You got snagged by a demoness."

"Oh, no," Belldandy said, looking from her sister to Peorth and back again. "Do you think--"

"I do," Urd said, winding the stream of energy around her fingers. "I know that signature. It's Mara."

"Urd Interspatial Slide Technique!"

"No, we'll use the Skuld Ultra-Delivery Gun!"

"Not that again," Peorth said wearily. "Do you not remember what happened last time?"

Keiichi did a maneuver remarkably similar to the classic duck-and-cover behind one of the kitchen chairs while Urd and Skuld glared at each other. The others in the room - namely, everyone who hadn't been dealing with goddesses for more than two days - looked more confused than anything.

"Don't you think we should figure out where she is first?" Belldandy asked, looking at both of her sisters in turn. "If she was close enough to affect Peorth, she might be closer to your hometown." She nodded at Kei, Mizuho, and Matagu.

"You never know with Mara," Urd said, shaking her head. "Besides, if she knows we're coming she'll make herself scarce unless she has something planned."

"Can you show me what she looks like?" Mizuho asked, and the three goddesses looked at her.

"Yes," Urd said slowly, "but what good will that do?"

"I have something that might help," Mizuho said. She looked up toward the ceiling, but at nothing in particular. "Marie, can you hear me? Teleport yourself to me, it's priority one!"

A moment later, there was a soft glowing aura over Mizuho's shoulder, and a strange yellow-suited humanoid being with a conical head and a round, flat face appeared there. It seemed to be floating with the help of a small orange inner tube. Once it had faded in completely, it glanced around, then put its small hands to the sides of its head in confusion.

"Noh?"

"This is Marie, my ship's maintenance computer," Mizuho began. That was as far as she got before Skuld stepped close to her and began examining Marie from about an inch away.

"Full teleportation ability in something that small, combined with long-range vocal sensory and response to command--"

"Stop drooling, kid," Urd said, snatching the back of Skuld's shirt and dragging her back from Mizuho, who looked a bit relieved. Urd held up one hand, and an image appeared above her palm. The woman she showed had more than a passing resemblance to Urd herself; they shared the same dark skin and long hair, though the demoness's was curlier and more blond than silver. But the marks on her forehead were distinctly different, as was her expression. "That's Mara," Urd said. "Now what?"

"Marie, find that woman," Mizuho said, holding Marie close to Urd's hand. "Can you get a lock on her?"

Marie leaned close to the image, and focused for a moment. It then turned its head nearly all the way around and blinked at Mizuho. "Noh? Noh!"

"I don't care if she's scary!" Mizuho said, suddenly angry. "Just teleport all of us to her now! It's priority one!"

"What happens now?" Matagu asked Kei nervously.

"Ehh. . . ." Kei smiled, also seeming nervous. "Now we go somewhere else . . . it's kind of a weird feeling."

"Noh!"

The soft aura flashed around the entire group, and with a soft hum, they disappeared.