Onegai, Megami-Sama!

Part 1-5: Demon ex Machina

Matagu had the odd sensation of not quite being in one place or the other for a moment, and when it faded, he found himself standing with the others in a field that he knew to be near his hometown. He glanced around quickly, searching for the demoness, then wondered just why he was so eager to get himself into trouble.

The answer came to him quickly - for Peorth, of course. Once she got her connection to Yggdrasil back, she could grant his wish. He was still trying to work out exactly what his wish should be, but he had an idea.

"Mara!" Urd called, stepping out in front of the group and looking around the field, across the grasses to the trees at the edge and the tall telephone poles in the near distance. "Come on out, we know you're here!"

There was a puff of smoke high up in the air, a short distance away from the group. As the smoke blew away, a figure was revealed, the same one that Urd had shown in illusion only a few minutes ago.

"Bwa ha ha! It's been too long, Urd." Mara leered down at the group, then sat down in the air with her legs crossed. She reached into the leather jacket she wore and pulled out what looked like a crystal with wires sticking out of it. The crystal was glowing bright blue. "You looking for this?"

Skuld gasped. "That's my tracer crystal structure . . . I was supposed to have that delivered three weeks ago!"

"Not my fault your mailman's an idiot and let me convince him I was you," Mara said with a shrug. "And what's a kid like you want with something like this?"

"She's got a point there," Urd said, turning to Skuld and raising an eyebrow at her. "What were you going to use that to trace, anyway?"

Skuld looked nervous for a moment, then bared her teeth. "It's none of your business, so give it back!" She pulled out a sphere with several large loops sticking out of it, and brought her arm back to hurl it at Mara. "Skuld Bomb, away--"

"No!" Belldandy put her hand on Skuld's arm. "If you hit her, and break the crystal, Peorth might not be able to get her connection to Yggdrasil back!"

"Oh, really," Mara said, turning around in the air to face Peorth. "I wondered just who I'd snagged with this thing. Who are you, anyway?"

Peorth stepped forward and stood proudly, carrying herself as though she still had all her abilities as a goddess. Matagu couldn't help smiling - it was a side of her that he liked to see. "I am Peorth of the Roses, Goddess First Class, Type Two Unlimited, and I demand that you return that crystal to me!"

"Hah!" Mara dangled the crystal from its wires, letting it swing back and forth far above the ground. "Nothing you can do about it, is there? Looks like you're not much of a goddess without this."

Urd stepped back to the rest of the group, and turned to talk over her shoulder. "Any ideas? I'd rather not try to fight her head-on, she'll probably drop the crystal on principle."

"Can't you just talk her out of it?" Keiichi asked. "I thought you two were friends, you've been like that before, when we were at that hot springs place."

"That was because we had a truce," Urd said tersely. "She's not going to honor that now, not when she has Peorth in the palm of her hand like that." She glanced over at the other goddess. "No offense."

"None taken, dear Urd," Peorth said flatly. She looked at Kei and Mizuho, then at Matagu. "Any thoughts?"

Kei gave a strained grin. "I think this is kind of out of our league," he said uneasily. He glanced over at Mizuho, who just shook her head.

"Maybe if we could get her to come down here?" Matagu offered. "Or can she just get away like Urd and Skuld were talking about?"

"She's a demoness, not a goddess," Belldandy said, "but she's capable of many of the same kinds of things. We may have to find some way to get her to give it up willingly."

"Are you saying we'll have to bargain?" Peorth asked, her eyes wide. "With a demoness?"

"I heard that!" Mara yelled, glaring down at the group of them. "Keep that up and I'll crush this thing, rose girl!"

Peorth bristled, and she and Urd both turned to glare at the demoness. Mara cackled, and tossed the crystal up into the air, then caught it just before it fell past her. Stifling a gasp, Peorth looked over to Skuld.

"Skuld? Do you know what'll happen if the crystal breaks?"

"Nope," the young goddess said. "Could be nothing, could be anything. They're not really meant to store energy, just find out where it goes and where it comes from. And if I could just get a clear shot. . . ."

"Whatever you're hiding, no," Urd said.

"Noh!"

Urd and the rest of the group looked over to Marie, who was standing on Mizuho's shoulder with a frustrated look on its face. Mizuho looked embarrassed for a moment, then waved her hand.

"I know she's scary," Mizuho said to Marie, "but we can't just leave."

"Oh, I'm scary?" Mara dangled the crystal from her finger again, and smirked down at Peorth. "What about having to live as a mortal forever? Wouldn't that be scary, Peorth?"

Peorth tensed, and she started to say something, then paused. She started to withdraw, then nearly jumped when Matagu put his hand on her shoulder.

"Maybe that would," he said, blushing faintly, "but . . . we'd work it out, right?"

"Of course you would!" Belldandy said, turning to the two of them with her hands folded in front of herself. "Even if you were mortal, Peorth, we'd still be friends, and you two would help each other, of course!"

Matagu and Peorth both blinked at Belldandy.

"I think we still have other things to worry about, Bell," Keiichi said, though he was smiling faintly.

"Oh, so that's how it is for you two," Mara said, then laughed wickedly. She held her hand out toward the group, and Matagu was thrown upwards. He hung in the air next to Mara, flailing his arms and legs about, searching for something to hold onto.

"What are you-" Matagu yelled as he twisted himself around to face Mara. He was trying hard not to panic, though getting to fly like this did strike him as kind of fun. He shook his head, and glowered at Mara. "Put me down!"

Mara cackled again. "Hey, you asked!" She flicked her hand at Matagu, and he started to fall.

"Matagu!" Peorth dashed toward him, Kei and Mizuho right behind her. He screamed as the ground got closer and closer, then was jerked upward again like he was attached to a bungee cord. Behind him in the air, Mara kept laughing.

"I could do this all day," Mara cackled, letting Matagu bounce down near the ground again and whipping him back up.

"Lift me up," Peorth whispered frantically, motioning for Kei and Mizuho to come closer. When Matagu dropped toward the ground again, the two of them heaved Peorth into the air, and she reached for Matagu.

He had just enough time to gasp as Peorth slammed into him, knocking the breath from his lungs and pushing his face into her chest.

Mara blinked. "What the--"

"So sorry, cheri," Peorth whispered as the two of them were yanked back up into the air again.

"Mmeh mmkah," Matagu tried to say, not minding at all.

Peorth pulled herself over Matagu as he sailed back up toward Mara. The demoness, baring her teeth, swiped at Peorth with her free hand. Peorth leaped off of Matagu just as he dropped down toward the ground again, and latched onto Mara, reaching for the crystal.

"What the hell are you doing?!" Mara yelled, struggling to keep her hand away from Peorth's reach.

"Taking back what's mine, of course!" Peorth said, smiling with a determined look on her face. "For stealing from one such as I. . . ." She pulled herself over Mara's shoulder, then nearly flipped over her as the demoness turned over. ". . . you shall pay!"

"You think a lot of yourself, don't you?" Mara snorted, then elbowed Peorth hard in the stomach. She gasped, and slipped, only to grab onto Mara's legs. Peorth looked down at the ground, a little too far down for her to risk the fall. This, she thought as she looked up at the smirk on Mara's face, had not gone as planned.

"Bwa ha ha! Looks like it's time for you to choose, flower girl!"

Down on the ground, Peorth could see everyone else standing and looking up at them. Urd had an attack spell held ready, but Belldandy was holding her back, probably out of fear that Urd would hit Peorth or Matagu by accident. Skuld and Keiichi looked scared. Matagu himself was flying back up toward Mara, and looked a bit sick. His friends were still right below him, staring up in shock.

"Let's see who falls faster," Mara said, obviously enjoying this. She held out the crystal in one hand, then raised the other, bringing Matagu up to the same level. "Your power . . . or your boyfriend!"

Without even a gesture, Mara let them both drop. Matagu started to scream. Urd's attack spell flared. Mizuho said something Peorth couldn't make out, something about priorities. And in that second, she made her decision.

Peorth let go of Mara and dove toward Matagu.

She sailed through the air for just a moment before catching him from behind. She wrapped her arms around his chest, and rested her head on his shoulder, then sighed.

"Peorth!"

"Matagu-kun. . . ." She smiled at him as he looked over his shoulder. "You worry too much."

"But you're going to lose--"

"I'll manage," she said, giving him a squeeze. She then closed her eyes and waited for the inevitable.

Sure enough, a cushion of holy energy wrapped around them, carrying them gently to the ground. They landed safely, and Peorth looked over to see Belldandy glowing with a smile on her face. She nodded her thanks, then turned to look for the crystal. She gasped.

The crystal was dangling from a long wire, and Mara held the other end. The demoness was laughing maniacally. Peorth grimaced, and was about to yell for Urd to attack when the crystal suddenly glowed brighter, then was surrounded by a white aura.

Mara stopped laughing all at once, then stared down at her hand. All she held was the long wire. She glared down at the group, her teeth bared. "How did you--"

Mizuho held up the crystal in one hand, and patted Marie on the head with the other. "Getting it away from you was, of course, priority one," she called up to Mara. "Thank you!"

The demoness snarled and dove for them just as Mizuho handed the crystal to Peorth.

A burst of holy blue energy sparked forth from her hand, sending up a column of light that illuminated the area for nearly a mile around. A ring of blue burst out from the crystal, and Peorth began to glow. The diamond mark on her forehead grew bright and flared, and she began to float about an inch off the ground. Mara was thrown to the grass by the holy light, and shielded her eyes from the glare.

The show of light and energy was over almost as soon as it had begun, and when it faded, Peorth stood there, wearing the outfit she'd arrived in, holding the crystal in her hand. The crystal was now grey and dull, hardly even reflecting any light.

Peorth turned and looked at Mara, her eyes narrowed. The diamond on her forehead began to glow.

"Uh-oh," Mara muttered, then disappeared in a puff of smoke.

Kei blinked at where she'd been, then looked over at Urd, Belldandy, and Skuld. "Why didn't she just do that in the first place, if she didn't want us to get the crystal?"

"That's just the way Mara is," Urd said with a sigh. She let the holy energy around her hands dissipate, then ran her fingers through her hair. "She'd rather play with us than just give up."

"Do you think she'll be back?" Kei asked. "If she comes after Matagu, or Mizuho and I, then--"

"I wouldn't worry about that," Peorth said, looking over at Mizuho with a smile. "She knows you can thwart her, in your own way, right?"

Mizuho nodded, then gave Peorth a concerned look. "What about you, are you all right? Are you, Matagu?"

Matagu nodded quickly, then looked over at Peorth. She stood tall, stretched her arms back behind herself, then threw her hands forward. A cloud of rose petals burst forth, filling the air around the entire group. Peorth began laughing uncontrollably.

"Yeah," Urd said, blowing petals away from her face. "I think she's just fine."

A short while later, the nine of them arrived via Marie's teleport at the beach where Kei and Mizuho had their honeymoon. They had determined that, after everything that had happened over the past two days, they all needed a small vacation, and the beach had been easy for them to agree on.

Kei, Keiichi, and Matagu leaned back in three beach chairs, relaxing in the sun. Kei and Matagu weren't sure just where the beach chairs had come from, to say nothing of the towels and the large umbrella, but Keiichi assured them that sometimes it was best just not to ask, especially around the goddesses. It wasn't hard for them to agree.

The women were down at the water. Peorth, over-eager to indulge in her connection to Yggdrasil, had been more than happy to provide Mizuho with a swimsuit. After seeing the swimsuit, Kei had thanked her profusely while turning bright red.

Matagu thought about that as he watched the five women down in the ocean. It was easy to look at Mizuho in a different light, now that he knew she was Kei's wife. She was still beautiful, that was for sure, but he didn't feel the same way. He glanced over at Kei, who was also watching the women and looked completely at peace.

"Hey, guys?" Matagu asked.

"Hmm?" Kei looked over at him, a half-dreamy look on his face.

"Yeah?" Keiichi said.

"What's it like being married?"

Keiichi laughed, and put his hand behind his head as he grinned. "I'm not married, not yet I guess."

"But how long have you and Belldandy been together?" Matagu asked.

Keiichi thought for a moment. "Almost three years," he said.

"It's been most of a year for us," Kei said, and sighed. "But what's it like?" He shrugged. "It's hard to say. You learn everything about the person you're with, all the good things and all the bad things, everything you didn't know before you got married."

Matagu frowned at him, looking concerned. "Is that bad?"

Kei chuckled. "It's not always easy," he said, "but it's always worth it."

"You thinking about making the same wish I made?" Keiichi asked.

Matagu nearly yelped, and shook his head. "Not like that," he said quickly, then paused. "Maybe asking her to be my girlfriend, though . . . I've never even had a girlfriend before, I wouldn't want to start off with a wife." He chuckled weakly.

"You only get one wish, though," Keiichi said. He looked back down to the ocean, and the two other men followed his gaze. "Are you sure she's what you want to wish for?"

Matagu watched Peorth, watched her exclusively, finding it rather easy to cut out the other women from his personal picture. He thought about everything that had happened over the past two days, everything they'd been through together and all that she'd said to him. He took a moment to wonder . . . was he really just another job for her?

A single moment flickered through his memory, and he nodded to himself. She had chosen him over the crystal. She surely knew that Belldandy wouldn't let him get hurt if he fell, so she could have just let him go and gotten her connection to Yggdrasil back. But she'd gone after him instead. And he knew he'd have done the same for her, even if he didn't know they'd be saved.

Matagu looked over at Keiichi, and nodded. "I think I am," he said slowly. "I don't think there's anything else I'd want to wish for."

Keiichi smiled at him, and broke into a grin. "I know what you mean," he said. "I wouldn't change a thing, no matter what, even if I had the chance."

"I did have the chance, and I still didn't," Kei said quietly, then smiled and waved his hand when the other two looked at him strangely. "Don't worry about it. . . ."

"Kei-kun!"

"Keiichi-san!"

"Ma-ta-gu-kuuuuun!"

The three men all jumped at once, then looked at each other and laughed before heading down to the ocean.

It was after sunset when they finally left the beach. The three goddesses and Keiichi went back to the temple via a spell of Urd's, and Mizuho promised she'd stop by tomorrow for tea, pocky, and to get her car back. Belldandy of course offered her best wishes for all of them, looking particularly at Matagu and Peorth. Mizuho had Marie teleport them all back to their hometown, and when the white glow faded away, Matagu found himself standing back in his living room with Peorth.

She looked out the back window at the sky for a moment, then turned to him, wearing the smirking smile he'd come to like so much. "So, Matagu-kun," she said, walking slowly toward him, "there is still the matter of your wish."

"I - I've thought about that," he said nervously, rubbing at the back of his head and looking away from her. "And I guess . . . I wanted to ask you about it first."

"Oh, really?" She kicked her legs up, and floated in the air, laying on her stomach and folding her hands under her chin. "I'm all ears, cheri." She gazed at him, and it took him a second to recover after looking into her eyes.

Matagu took a deep breath, and decided he'd better just spit it out and ask before he lost his nerve and ended up asking for a new telescope or something. "I've never had a girlfriend," he began, "I'm sure you know that. So that's . . . well, that's what I wanted to wish for."

"A girlfriend?" Peorth asked, somehow managing to make it sound innocent. "Just any girlfriend? You should count yourself fortunate, dear boy, that I'm not one to have a wicked sense of humor."

"Not any girlfriend," Matagu said, then summoned courage he didn't know he had and grabbed both her shoulders. "You," he whispered. "If you want to, I wish you would be my girlfriend."

Peorth actually looked surprised, but only for a moment. "Just your girlfriend, then?" she asked coyly. "Not your wife, not by your side forever like Belldandy?"

"Well . . . maybe eventually," he said nervously, looking away from her for a moment. He still hadn't let go of her, though - he feared that he'd lose his nerve if he did. "But if you didn't want to be with me, then I really couldn't wish for that."

She looked at him, and smiled tenderly. "You are only the second mortal I've met who would say that," she said quietly. She cupped the side of his face in one hand, and floated down until her feet touched the ground, still looking him in the eye. "And for that, Matagu-kun, I will grant your wish."

He only had a second to be surprised before she pulled him close and kissed him.

He felt her lips on his and forgot everything, let himself go completely, made her the only thing that existed in his world. All he wanted to feel was her pressed against him, the warmth of her body, and the tingling of the holy energy that wrapped around them both as she granted his wish. At some point he realized that he'd never actually kissed anyone before, and that her tongue was doing things that he'd hardly even wondered about. It was an experience he'd never forget.

He had no idea how long they stayed like that, but when it was over, he held her close as they both caught their breath. She looked up at him, and he could see what she felt. He was sure she could see the same in him.

"Your wish," she whispered, "has been approved."

Matagu strolled through the familiar halls of his school, ready to begin his third year. He knew that things were going to be getting a lot more serious soon, and that he'd have to worry about college. However, the first thing he heard as he headed down the stairs toward his first class took his mind away from all of that.

"Have you seen the new girl?"

"She must be foreign or something, with those marks. . . ."

"I'm gonna ask her out!"

"You wouldn't have a chance!"

He did his best to keep from smiling too widely, and slid open the door to the familiar classroom. Kei was there, of course, as were Hyosuke and Kaede, Ichigo and Herikawa. However, there was a huge group of students, mostly boys, gathered around the front table. Matagu peered around them, then chuckled to himself.

Peorth was sitting there, her school uniform adorned with cloth roses, looking as though she was just loving all the attention. 'Peorth Bara' was written in flowing script on the chalkboard. She smiled and laughed at the things people said, then looked over to him. Her face lit up.

"Matagu-kun!" She kicked off of the table and shoved aside her admirers to get to him.

"Matagu-kun?" most of the boys and a few of the girls repeated, sounding utterly shocked.

He grinned, then opened his arms just in time for her to latch onto him, wrapping her arms around his neck. "Peorth-chan!"

She kissed him then, in front of the whole class, utterly shameless. He loved every moment of it, and held her close when they were finished. He smiled, and put his hand behind his head as he'd seen Keiichi do more than once.

"He's finally lucky," Ichigo said, her voice flat as usual.

"Ehh?" Herikawa gave her a shocked look, drawing back.

Hyosuke looked equally surprised, but then broke into a fierce grin. "Matagu! I knew you had it in you!" He walked over and clapped Matagu on the back, nearly sending him tumbling. "Come on, tell us how it happened!"

"Umm. . . ." Matagu looked down at Peorth, a bit nervous. "It's kind of. . . ."

"Kind of a boring story, really," Peorth said, still clinging to him. "I was moving in, and I just happened to dial a wrong number. . . ."