The hours following the student's separation were spent searching the campus for the missing truants. The goal was their attendance, and each group went about their tasks with equal vigor. Unfortunately, the results were about the same as Nari expected.

Dionysus had outright refused, citing a lack of interest in his studies, and having "more important things to do." Hades had also refused, his reason being a bit more selfless than his younger nephew. Insisting that misery would befall all who attended, he sharply turned them down before vanishing into the shadows. Nari and Balder had even less luck, as the majority of their time was spent simply trying to find where the fire god had gotten off to. Upon locating him, his response was, unsurprisingly, a resounding no, before kidnapping Balder and catching Nari in a purple cloud of smoke. Aggravated and thoroughly dyed, she was left to find Thor on her own. Just as Balder had warned, he also refused, simply citing that he would do "whatever Loki decided to do."

All three parties reconvened, as planned, at the end of the day to discuss their progress. They each arrived in various states of disarray; Yui and Apollon in lowered spirits, and Tsukito stone-faced as ever. Balder arrived late, exhausted after escaping from Loki and Nari arrived furious, with purple powder staining most of her body. Her mood soured even further upon the discovery that even Tsukito had been unsuccessful, which seemed to surprise even the moon god himself. Or possibly not. Not a single one of them could tell.

Thus, Operation Round-Up was a deemed both a disaster and a failure.

With nothing further, the gods dismissed themselves, deciding to reconvene another day. The Kusanagi sisters retired to their dorm rooms. More specifically, they retired to Nari's as the two hadn't had a single chance to really catch up with one another since arriving at this ridiculous school. Yui sat idly at the table, her mind wandering deep in thought. The pencil between her fingers tapped rhythmically against the wooden table, and the sound of running water faded into the background. It wasn't until the shower stopped that Yui snapped out of it, turning her attention to the bedroom door.

After a few minutes of silence, the door swung open and Nari finally emerged. With a pair of shorts slung lazily over her hips and a t-shirt thrown on, she dragged herself over and collapsed into the opposite chair. Her hands fumbled with the towel, rubbing it vigorously over her wet hair. After absorbing all it was going to, Nari tossed the wet fabric to the floor, taking careful note of the navy-blue and violet hue dyeing the white fibers.

Yui noticed the coloring too, shaking her head at the display. "Loki got you really good, didn't he…?"

Nari sighed, checking herself once more for good measure. Stubborn remnants gave her pale skin a lavender shade, like faded bruises along her forearm. It was going to be at least a few days before she got the rest of it out. Her previous relaxation forgotten, she grumbled. "I'm gonna kill that son of a bitch…"

"Nari!" Yui exclaimed, her mouth falling open at her sister's raw display. The older Kusanagi had always been a bit more abrasive than her younger sibling, but never in such an aggressive manner. Additionally, there were the implications of the words themselves. Vulgarity aside, surely threatening a god in such a manner was some form of blasphemy.

It took a few moments for the words to register, realizing the implications of what she had said. Then, she sighed and lowered her heat with a sheepish frown. "Sorry."

Yui shook her head, lowering her eyes to the ground. While highly inappropriate, her sister's outburst was understandable. "No, I… I mean, I get it, I guess. If someone dyed my entire body purple, I'd feel a certain way about it too…"

"I just don't know what his problem is."

"No idea…"

With those words of affirmation, the two sisters fell quiet after that, each staring idly at the other. Such silence was relatively common between them, both often choosing to simply bask in the other's presence. But something was different this time. It wasn't the usual comfortable silence that Yui was used to. There was tension there, so palpable she could nearly taste it, the air thick with the bitter flavor of words unsaid. Finally, the younger sister couldn't take it anymore.

Cautiously, she lowered her eyes and spoke. "I, um… I got the tickets you sent. For your concert." The way her sister immediately tensed at the mention didn't escape her notice.

"Oh… I'm glad." Silence again. The two stared at the table for four more breaths before Nari spoke again. "Were you… were you planning to go?"

"Of course!" Yui's head shot up, eyes locking with Nari's in a widened stare. She looked almost appalled at the question. As though she would ever miss her sister's concert for the world. It was filled with such determination and adoration; incredulous that she would even assume her to do anything less than support her. It made her heart ache. "It was going to be your first concert in our area… I was looking forward to it…"

Nari listened to her trailing words, the hole in her heart growing larger with every second. She could easily fill in the remainder to her faded sentence. I was looking forward to it… before it was cancelled. Her mind seized at the thought of it. The concert was cancelled for obvious reason, chief of which being the murder of a renowned talent agent. Were she to allow Yui to continue down her train of thought, the dreaded questions were inevitable. Was it true? Did you do it? Why? Instead, she responded with the first thing that came to mind. "Sorry…"

"It's okay… it happens." Yui responded. The pencil in her hands lowered to the table, rolling away once left to its own devices. Her mind was reeling with questions, all of them surrounding her sister's arrest. She wanted to know everything. What had happened, how it happened, and why. Yet she couldn't bring herself to voice them. The words wouldn't come, trapping themselves in a painful lump in her throat. What if Nari got upset with her? It was clearly a sore subject she didn't want to address. She had just gotten her sister back. She wasn't about to send her running off again. Her line of thought shifted, taking her down another road filled with other, less sensitive inquiries.

"Nari…" Her sister flinched, steeling herself for whatever was to come. "Why did you leave…?"

"What?" Her eyes snapped upward, surprise evident on her features. That was not the question she had been expecting.

"Why did you leave us?"

"I-I… to go to school, and…" Nari couldn't bring herself to finish her sentence. Even in her own voice she could hear that it was the start of a lie.

"Yeah, but why did you… disappear? I mean, we used to talk all the time, you and I. We would voice chat and text almost daily. Then, you just…" Her voice faltered. "You didn't even invite us to your graduation…"

The last words came out as barely a whisper. The sound nearly tore Nari's heart in two. "I…" What was she supposed to tell her? The truth wasn't an option. But to deny her something so simple would hurt her even more. She deserved to know something… anything. But what could she possibly tell her that wouldn't give her away? That wouldn't destroy the fragile thread that currently held them together?

"Was it… did I do something wrong…?"

"No!" Her voice startled even herself, rocketing out of her mouth before she could even consider. She wasn't sure what exactly she had hoped to say. Whatever reason she could offer could never erase the damage she had done. But she could say with nary a doubt, with absolute certainty… "It wasn't your fault. I… it was…" She swallowed thickly, trying to recompose herself. "Life just… got in the way."

"O-Oh…"

Silence fell between them once again. The look on Yui's face was devastating. Her eyes gazed unseeing at the table, pupils trembling with strain. She wouldn't push any further. There was no reason to. Nari had made her reasons perfectly clear. She had left them behind. At least, that was what her sister implied. But Yui didn't want to believe that. She didn't want to believe that her sister had forgotten her promise. That she had let fortune and fame stand in the way of who she was and tear them apart. No. There had to be another reason. Something else that was keeping Nari away… her eyes said so.

But that was a story for another day.

With a deep breath, Yui shook away the depressing thoughts and forced an understanding smile. "Well, you're here now… and that's what matters."

There. A small glimmer of light in the darkness. With those three words, Nari gained new hope. You're here now. Perhaps redemption was possible. Despite her best efforts to show otherwise, it was clear that Yui hadn't forgiven her… but she wanted to. She was willing to let go of the past few years, and start anew with her here, in this strange new world. It was an opportunity that Nari couldn't afford to waste. "Yeah. I'm here."

"Actually…" Yui began, a new train of thought materializing from thin air. "How did you end up here?"

"The same way you did, I imagine."

"Yeah, but… I was dragged here by this strange blue light." At Nari's obvious confusion, she elaborated. "I was in the storehouse, getting something for mom. There was this strange sword… the Sword of Heaven's Gathering Clouds." Yui absently thumbed the pendant sword under her blouse. "I think… I think the sword is what brought me here. But you…"

Nari froze. Yui was right. The sword had transported her to this other realm without any rhyme or reason, as far as they were aware. What her sister didn't know was that the sword had transported Nari right along with her. It had captured both of them as she hid, unbeknownst to her, behind the storage boxes in the warehouse. But she couldn't tell her that. If Yui knew that Nari had been with her that day, she would question why she had been there in the first place. And that would lead her down a line of questioning that she wasn't ready to face. So instead, she opted for ignorance.

"I… honestly, I can't remember. I was just sitting there one minute and the next, I'm lying on a marble floor."

Yui frowned slightly at her answer, but she didn't pry. "That's not too surprising. It's possible that you hit your head on the way down…"

"Maybe. My head was kind of sore…" Another half-truth. Her head was sore that day, but not for the same reason.

"Well, I suppose it doesn't matter. Honestly, I should be thanking Zeus for bringing us here. After all, he brought us back together, right?"

"Yeah… I actually hadn't thought about it that way. Heh… Maybe it's not so bad."

"Maybe. So, what do you think?"

"About the school?"

"About everything." Yui perked up a little at the change of subject, a light returning to her eyes. "The school, the gods…"

"Honestly… it still doesn't feel real. I mean, yeah, I've always believed that the gods exist, but I never really…"

"Never figured you would meet them in person?"

"Not at all! And to be teaching them no less… It's just all so surreal."

"I know… it doesn't feel real to me either."

Nari lifted a leg onto her chair, resting her chin on her knee. The sight brought a smile to her face. Her sister was finally starting to relax. It was just like old times, the two of them hanging out in the other's room, laughing and talking late into the night about whatever nonsense came to mind. "What about you? How are you enjoying the gods so far?"

"I… well, to be honest, I'm a little unnerved. It's not every day you get to stay in a room like this one." 'Well, you probably do.' "And the gods themselves… well, they are different than I imagined. I was expecting… they just seem so…"

"Human?"

"Yeah! It's weird, you know? I always imagined gods to be… I don't know."

"All-powerful, all-seeing beings staring down at us from the heavens?"

"Exactly… and yet, they are going to school, taking notes in student handbooks…"

"Tripping over everything in sight."

Yui snorted at Nari's backhanded comment, earning a smile in response. "Yes, and tripping over everything in sight. What's up with that, by the way?"

"No idea. Maybe the Norse have a hard time standing up right." Of course, that was blatantly untrue. Loki flipping down from a tree branch was proof of that.

"I wonder… oh, then there's Apollon."

"Oh, you mean the literal freaking sun?"

"Ha!" Yui covered her mouth, to muffle her own outburst. She had missed her sister's sarcasm. "Yes, he's certainly what you'd expect, that's for sure. And Tsukito…"

Both sisters fell silent. Their eyes met, each holding the same expression. It was as though they could read other's thoughts. They didn't know what to make of the moon god. After a few moments, they burst into laughter. There was nothing more to say.

"Well, anyway. We should probably get to know them better." Yui finally caught her breath. "After all, we're going to be spending an entire year with them."

"Agreed."

"I'm going to head back to my room. See you tomorrow?"

"Of course,"

"Okay… good night, Nari."

"Goodnight, Yui."

. . .

Two hours passed after Yui's exit. Nari lay restlessly in the dark, staring up at the ceiling of her room. Her mouth twitched at the sound of scuffling feet. Fuyu's claws scraped softly against the side of her cat tower, every scratch grating on her nerves. She was frustrated and anxious, her arm reaching out to halt her tapping fingers for the fourth time that night. Sitting up, she emptied her lungs with an aggravated sigh. Her eyes drifted downward to the damp body-shaped spot where she had previously lay. One look at her shimmering skin showed the light sheen of cold sweat.

"Damn it…" Nari groaned, slowly dragging herself out of bed. Her feet softly padded across the hardwood floor, each movement slow and precise. Exiting her bedroom, she looked around the room for any signs of movement. All was still with the exception of a lazily swishing tail peeking out from the cubby of the cat tower. Fuyu was asleep. Excellent. Moving quickly, Nari slipped out of the dorm room, closing the door silently behind her.

Her feet carried her all the way across the grounds. From the dorm rooms, down the forest path, through the courtyard, and into the school building. The halls were silent and empty, students long gone to their dorms. It was a familiar sight, having seen it when she first arrived. Yet somehow, so late it night, it seemed far more ominous. Growing uncertain, Nari picked up her pace, making her way down the halls towards her destination. As she rounded the corner, however, she wavered. Despite her trek across the school campus, she hadn't actually expected the store to be open. Part of her was wishing that it wouldn't be.

Taking a nervous step forward, she paused again, shaking her head. 'What am I doing…?' She didn't know. Or perhaps she did know and that was part of the problem. Her brain told her to turn around and return to her room. But her body wouldn't listen, moving slowly onward toward the store clerk, waiting patiently for her to approach. Her mind was a tumultuous battlefield of conflicting emotions… but in the end, the darker voice won out. It always did.

"Evening, Hermes…"

"Hello, Nari. You are up late tonight. How may I help you?"

"Um…" Nari stammered for a moment, momentarily rethinking all of her decisions over the past hour. According to Thoth, the school store had anything that she could possibly need. If it existed in the human world, then they could acquire it. But did that mean that she should? "I…"

Hermes noticed her struggling and offered a kind smile. "Is there something I can get for you?"

Nari chewed her bottom lip nervously, a familiar tremor growing across her body. Her feet tapped anxiously against the floor with quiet clicks. This was a terrible idea. She knew it was. For a moment, she tried once more to turn around and walk away. To bid him goodnight and pretend this conversation had never happened… but she didn't. Instead, she took a deep breath and slowly nodded her head. "Y-Yeah… Yeah, there is."

. . .

"Hmm, hmm, hm, hmm, hm"

Loki hummed a gentle tune to himself as he strolled his way through the campus grounds. It was late at night, far beyond any time appropriate for a high school student. Of course, he wasn't one, and actively refused to be, so he could so whatever he wanted. He often spent his nights awake now, having done so now for longer than he could remember. The evening air and the clear sky called to him, his eyes drawn to the big white orb floating in the sky.

'Hm?' Loki halted in his tracks at the sound of approaching footsteps and rustling branches. Twirling behind a large tree along the path, he ducked out of sight and held very still. The footsteps grew louder, heading — rather quickly from the sound of it — in his direction. Loki's lips tightened as he prepared himself for an encounter with a particularly moody Egyptian god, come to scold him for wandering about so late into the night.

Yet the figure that emerged was not Thoth's intimidating form. Nor in fact was it a man at all. Instead, it was the opposite, a familiar small form making her way up the path. He remembered her from their last encounter. Nari Kussanagi. But strangely, she bore little resemblance to the frustrated firecracker he ran into. She was moving quickly, anxiety radiating from every pore in her body. His eyes followed her as she turned toward the courtyard, making her way into the open. 'Hm…? She's going into the school building?' Loki kept an eye on her as she moved, her eyes never losing focus. It was obvious she had a clear destination in mind… but where?

Eventually, curiosity got the best of him, and Loki found himself silently following the woman into the school. He tailed her through twists and turns, dipping behind ornaments and statues as necessary to keep out of sight. Strangely, he didn't need to do so very often as Nari continued forward, never looking back. Where was she going? He didn't know… but he was desperate to find out.

Their journey led him all the way to the school store, deep within the building. He nearly stumbled, stopping suddenly as her movements slowed. Ahead of him, Nari stood still and rigid, shoulders hunched, and head lowered. Even from his distance, he could see that she was unsettled. Something was going through her mind as she stood, eyes flicking back and forth between the store and the nearest exit. He wasn't sure just what had her in such a thoughtful state, but the confusion didn't last long. Finally, the older Kusanagi found her resolve, wandering slowly towards the salesclerk waiting for her.

Loki narrowed his eyes, keeping a close eye on the two of them. From his distance, it was impossible to hear the two as they exchanged words. What he could see was her body language, low and fearful. Lika a child caught doing something they shouldn't do. He watched them for a few more moments. He watched them converse. He watched her face fall and her head nod. He saw the pair of them finish their transaction. And he watched as Nari quickly nodded her head and spun on her heel, shoving a small orange bottle into her shorts pocket.

Seeing their business was finished, Loki slipped into the shadows, watching her as she walked away, slowly heading back in the direction he came. He didn't follow. Instead, he contemplated what he had seen. What had Nari purchased from the store clerk, and why did she seem so desperate to hide it? When she finally disappeared down another hallway, Loki shook his head. It seemed there was even more to the older sister than he had originally thought. This was a woman with secrets.

And he intended to uncover every one of them.

. . .

**AUTHOR'S NOTE**

Thanks for reading!

For status updates on the translation project, check out my Tumblr, TheMuffinsAvenger