Hybrid: This story will come out rather quickly since it's already written, I just have to edit all the mess ups I made (spelling errors, punctuation, so on) and sorry about how chapter two came out, I fixed it as soon as I saw it ^^;; This is my first time to post up on FF.net so I'm still a little confused of the posting process.

Part 4: Prelude to Power

Keiichi rang up the last customer at the Whirl Wind shop and locked the cash register.
"Hey Morisato?" Chihiro peeped her head from the back room. "I've got that helmet you ordered for Hope's Yamaha." She held up a box that she had already opened and pulled out a white/red helmet.
"Um, Hope's off somewhere..." He sighed as he pulled on his jacket.
"Really? Man, I really wanted her to try it on." Chihiro handed the box to him anyway and smiled. "She'd look SO adorable in it!"
Keiichi tripped over and laughed. "Chihiro's weakness for kids..."
"Anyway, where's the little racer gone off too?" Chihiro asked.
"It's this program for special kids, um, it's where Belldandy was taught until she came to Nekomi Tech." He smiled then went to the door.
"I really miss that Bell." Chihiro sighed then shook her head. "Well Morisato, I'll see you tomorrow."
"See ya." Keiichi smiled then walked outside.
"YO!" A hand slapped down on his back.
"YEEOWW!" Keiichi spun around and smiled in surprise. "Megumi! When did you get here!?"
"Just a few hours ago, wanted to surprise ya." She laughed
"You did, it's been a few months since I've seen you!" He thought aloud.
"So, want to get some coffee or something with your lil' sis?" She smiled.
Keiichi stared at her blankly then raised an eyebrow. "Aha! You came here for something, what do you need?"
Megumi glared at him then punched his shoulder. "I need coffee! Apparently you do too, and some more trust in your sibling!" She groaned then laughed.
Keiichi rubbed his shoulder with a smile, he didn't know why Megumi started to do that but because of her it became a habit of Hope's when she was a little younger. "Sure, coffee sounds good."
"Your treat." Megumi said happily.
Keiichi fell down. "I knew it..."

Meanwhile in heaven Hope sat on the large tree stump with a disappointed look on her face. "I wonder whatever happened to that tree spirit, there was something about him that was so warm and kind..." She sighed then felt the pain of the tree again. "I know, I wish that there was something that I could do for you but I'm not strong enough yet." She sighed sadly then felt a cool breeze flow through her hair. "Hmm?"
A melody hummed faintly in her ears and she felt something growing in her heart. "This...melody, I recognize this melody....but..."
"Thought I'd find you here."
Hope looked over her shoulder to see her mentor. "Oh! Hello Miss Peorth."
"How come you're not studying?" Peorth sat down next to her. "It's odd after these past three months to not see your little nose in the book." She teased.
"Well..." Hope sighed. "My mother had a saying...now what was it...." she thought then raised her finger up like an instructor. "You can't afford to neglect your homework too much, so when you do... you've got to make the most of it! However, in my case it's studying."
"That doesn't really sound like her." Peorth laughed.
"I thought that too until after I heard all the stories about her, but Poppa would always say that whenever I wanted to take a break from my studies or homework."
Peorth thought about Keiichi for a moment then smiled happily. "Your father is a wonderful man Hope, if your mother didn't get to him first then I would've."
Her eyes widened and she quickly stared at Peorth. "You...you used to..."
"Love your father?" Peorth finished. "Perhaps, but I think it was a little crush. What I think attracted me to him was his loyalty, whenever I made a move I could see the loyalty to her glowing in his heart."
Hope just sat there and twiddled her fingers a bit. "Uh...well...ehe...nothing ever happened between you two right?"
"Hmm...well." Peorth thought.
"YIPE!" Hope yelped and shot away from Peorth. "WHA!?"
"Ahaha! You look just like your father." Peorth laughed.
Hope looked down in embarrassment.
"Don't worry, nothing really happened between us, his love for your mother was much too strong to ever allow me to interfere."
"So...who did you fall for in the end?" Hope asked.
"What's that you say?"
"Y'know." She nudged her. "Tyr's Poppa."
Peorth stared at her a moment then stared up at the skies. "You figured out that I am his mother, no?"
"Yup...speaking of which, how come he never calls you Mom or anything?"
"He used to, but he thinks he's too old for that now...as for his father..."
"Yes?"
"Something you two have in common...missing parent that he hardly had the chance to know."
Hope sunk down then thought about it.
"Well, be sure to finish your studies." Peorth got up and flew off.
"Wait..." Hope reached out a hand but was too late, and left to wonder whatever happened to Tyr's father, and for that matter she wondered who his father was.

Keiichi sat down at a bench and handed Megumi her coffee; that he so wholeheartedly purchased for her.
"So, tell me, where's your little scholar girl gone off to? I went by the temple earlier today and Skuld said that she went to a training resort." Megumi asked.
Keiichi popped the tab off his drink then nodded.
"What is she training for?"
"Everything."
"Uh yeah...." Megumi stared at him blankly.
"It's the place Belldandy went to before she came to Nekomi."
"Oh..." Megumi thought aloud then tapped the bench. "...So she's following in her mother's footsteps?"
Keiichi looked at her for a moment. "I never thought about it like that."
"That's awesome!" Megumi smiled.
"I wish I felt the same way as you do."
Megumi stared at him then tapped his head. "What's wrong?"
"I couldn't tell you..."
"Come on, when has there been a single time in your life when my consoling didn't help you out?"
"Look, you're right in all but, this time I don't think..."
Megumi grinned. "Aha, I know what's bothering you!"
"And what's that?"
"...Listen, after Belldandy passed on, Hope was just a little child still forming her personality and life. Along the way, she formed herself from you, Skuld, Urd, and even me." Megumi sighed. "A little piece of everything right?"
"What are you getting at?" Keiichi asked.
"Hope is like a part of us, and now that she's off to this institute or wherever; you feel as if a part of you is missing."
Keiichi looked at her and smiled. "Yeah...I guess that's what's bugging me, she's never really been away from home for more than two days."
"Aww, my big brother is such a good Poppa." Megumi teased. "Don't worry, Hope will be back before we know it."
"Thanks Meg." Keiichi smiled.
"So, have you two kept in touch?"
"Not really."
"Then call her." Megumi smiled then got up from the bench. "Tell her Aunt Megumi said go for the gold." She said then walked out. "Well, I gotta head over to Keima and Takano's and give them a shout, see ya!"
"That Meg." Keiichi sighed then thought. "I've managed to call heaven more than three times...I should be able to do it again!" He jumped up from his seat and ran out to his BMW.

Meanwhile a strange person appeared in the heavens, a cloaked figure wearing a big black hat. "Yugh...how innocent and pure this place is." It growled then felt a slap on the back.
"Come now come now Miss Mara, not so bad here in heaven, many happy people for Senbei to make unhappy!" The formerly small now normal sized god giggled.
"Will you keep quiet!?" She slapped a hand over his mouth. "If my cover is blown then its curtains!"
"Right, right, now who are we going to make unhappy again?"
"That damned Morisato offspring, and as soon as we take care of her we're going to track down Belldandy and finish her off too!"
"Hmm? Senbei thought Mara wanted Belldandy in heaven, not kill."
"Things change." She said in an odd tone then held out a charm; it swerved around in the air for a moment then drifted northwest.
"That direction of forest." Senbei said.
Mara quickly walked off.
"Hey! Wait for Senbei!" He darted after her.

Meanwhile Tyr sat up on his balcony and twirled his dagger around in his only hand. "Fenrir..." He growled then slammed the blade into the marble rail next to him. "Damnit." He cursed aloud then stared over at the forest. "When's Hope gonna get back? I wanna study some new techniques and spells." He formed a glowing orb in his hand. "She can make some use of herself and hold up my test target." He laughed as he flung it up in the sky and watched it explode in a brilliant flash of light.
"Why do you hate her so much?" Peorth questioned from the other side of the balcony.
Tyr glared at her. "Why do you always appear out of nowhere like that?" He growled then looked away from her.
"Hey kiddo, I asked first." She grinned then yanked the dagger out of the formerly beautiful rail.
"First, she stole my room! Second, she's a slow poke, it's been three months and she can't even make an energy sphere!"
"I gave her your room since she's our guest, she's not a slow poke, it's very hard for her to make power attacks and summon spells because she's half mortal!" Peorth barked then answered his question. "I always appear like this so I can find out what your problems are and help you through them."
"Well I can solve them on my own, after all I am the god of war!" He growled stubbornly.
"And I am your mother!"
He huffed then looked over at her.
"Tyr, don't keep hateful feelings and thoughts locked away inside, I once did and it made me cruel and bitter, but I met someone who made it better because she and I were able to solve it."
"Let me guess, it was Belldandy?" He groaned.
"So what if it was?"
"You're gonna say somethin corny like, 'You should talk it out with Hope...blah, blah, blah.' and all that mushy junk!"
Peorth walked over to him and dropped the dagger in front of his feet. "You'd be surprised how much better you'd feel."

Hope stood in the middle of the tree stump and closed her eyes, the melody was faint and yet she was determined to find its source. "Over there." She jumped off and slowly marched around. "Hello? Is someone...ouch!" A twig scratched her cheek and small drops of blood started to form. She merely rubbed it with her hand and continued her way, until she came to a large opening. "Hello?" The melody was at its strongest here, but again it faded, and faded, until it was silent. "I know that melody somehow, but I can't remember..."
"Hello there."
"Huh?" Hope spun around and saw the cloaked figure and an odd looking god. "Are you two the ones that were singing that melody?"
"Melody? Senbei heard no melody. No he didn't." Senbei giggled.
Hope stared blankly at him then switched her stare over to the cackling figure.
"Whatever melody you heard, it surely wasn't mine." it tossed aside the cloak then flung the hat up into the air. "...But the melody I seek...is the screams of a dying hybrid."
"Who...who are you!?" Hope stepped back.
"I am Mara, demon first class...servant to Surt, the destined Lord of the Universe!" Her eyes had an odd green glare to them as she grinned evilly.
"Ooh, she very, very scared! Miss Mara taking Senbei's job away!" He whined.
"Shut up!!" She barked at him then glared over at Hope. "When I finish you off, I'll drag your corpse before your mother and enjoy her agony!" She laughed then charged up a ball of fire in her hand.
"My..." An image flashed through her mind. "...Mother!?"
"HELLFIRE THUNDER BLAST!" Mara unleashed the blast.
Hope hit the ground as if flew over her head.
"AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!"
"That...laughter..." Hope saw more images flash through her mind then glared up to see Mara standing in front of her.
"What's the matter?" She grinned then picked up Hope by the neck of her shirt. "Too hot to handle?"
"Hope!" A voice shouted from close by.
"What?" Mara quickly glared back in shock.
"Ooh! Someone for Senbei to make unhappy?" He grinned then shot towards the voice.
"What the!? YAAAAH!" Senbei soon crashed back into the ground next to Mara with a large kick mark in his face.
"Help Me!" Hope cried.
"Hope!?" the caller was Tyr. "What the...."
"You!" Mara glared.
"Mara!!" Tyr yanked out his dagger and charged at her. "Let her go!"
She grinned and flung a talisman to the ground, from it emerged a fiery hell hound.
"I'll deal with you in a moment." Mara rammed Hope against a tree and went after Tyr.

Keiichi walked into the temple and over to the phone. He stared at it idly for a moment then shook his head. "I don't think I could afford the bill, no telling how many dials it'd take me to find the right one."
"What's up K?" Urd stared out at him from the Tearoom curiously.
"Hey Urd, do you know how I can contact Hope?"
Urd gave him a certain look and walked out over to him. "I can't call, but you can." She wrote a number down on a piece of paper.
"Thanks Urd, you don't know how much this means to me." He said happily.
"Hurry up and call, I wanna hear how the kid is doing." She smiled then called Skuld.
"Wait for me!" She shouted and ran out of her lab with black smudges all over her face.
*Bring* *Bring* *Bring* *Bring*
"That's odd." Keiichi said quietly.
"What?" Skuld asked.
"No one's picking up."
"Huh?"
*Click* "Hello, you have reached the goddess help-line, we're sorry, but we are temporarily unavailable due to the presence of a demon within our premises, we'll be sure to get back to you with your wish as soon as possible! Have a nice day!"
Keiichi's eyes were wide and his mouth dropped.
"What is it?" Urd asked.
"A demon...it said a demon was in heaven!"
"What!?" Skuld turned pale white.
Urd slipped out of the room and ran outside.

Tyr vanquished the hound then turned to Mara. "You know that by now the heaven's system has detected your presence!" He growled at her as he prepared to charge her with his dagger again.
"Heh...they'll never get to me in time, after all, what I have to do won't take me that long." She created another fiery orb in her hand. "HELLFIRE THUNDER BLAST!" It struck Tyr into a tree. "How pathetic, you don't even know how to cast spells do you?" Mara laughed.
"That...that laughter..." Hope coughed. "It... It was..." Images flooded her mind.
"Damn you!" Tyr shot back to his feet but Mara struck him with another blast.
"This is too easy!" She laughed as she shot over and held him up by his throat.
"IT WAS YOU WASN'T IT!?!" Hope shouted.
"Hmm?" Mara glared back at her.
"It WAS you..." Hope had tears streaming down her cheeks. "It's all your fault! Because of you...because of you my mother was taken away!!" She shouted.
"You cry too much!" Mara fired a blast at her. "Let me dry those tears for you!"
The angered hybrid shot an enraged glare, and the blast was stopped in its place.
"I stood there alone in the forest...and there you were, laughing as my mother was attacked by that hell hound you summoned...laughing..." Her fists clenched. "...I didn't want her to get hurt anymore...so that's why...that's why..." The fire roared in her eyes. "...THAT'S WHY I MADE YOU HURT INSTEAD!"

Peorth's head shot up and she felt the immense power coming from the forest. "That...that power!!!"