"Bell, careful it´s hot."
Ais moved a filled spoon as careful as possible towards Bell´s mouth. He sat in his hospital bed and finally could eat something that was more filling than light bread.
"Ais..I can eat alone...you know?"
"Hm?"
She blinked at him with her puppy eyes...Ais really wanted to help Bell. The feeling on his left side was weird, as well as his sense of balance, due to half of his left arm losing.
He smiled and opened his mouth, letting him getting fed by her. All the time, he felt his fingers on the left side itching...even when there weren´t any fingers anymore on this side.
When he first woke up after getting kissed back to life by Ais, he noticed his left arm after a while. During the battle with the hydra he was in some state of shock and didn´t really realized what this meant.
I really don´t have luck with my left arm...
He had raised the stump and looked at it, slowly moving what was left of his forearm.
"Bell..."
Ais had gently touched him and looked really worried. But Bell only had smiled.
"It was just an arm...the gods were kind enough to give me another one."
"But Bell...your arm...you...I mean..."
Bell had raised his right hand and gently cupped her cheek, smiling lovingly.
"Ais...I would have sacrificed more to save your life."
"That isn´t okay!"
It was one of the few times that she had yelled out to him.
"Bell I can´t thank you enough for saving me, but you have lost your arm!"
Ais was experienced enough to know that adventurers lost their lives or limbs in the dungeon many times...but the man she loved getting hurt like this... She had lost enough Familia members or friends...Ais didn´t wanted to see another one getting hurt.
"Ais...it was worth it.."
"But!..."
He pulled her gently closer to him until their faces were only a hand wide apart.
"If the hydra hat gotten you instead...I would have lost my heart. I love you Ais, more than anything in the world. My left arm is a small price to pay for your safety. And it isn´t like I will have to live forever like this, no matter the prize, I will get an prosthesis.
We fill fight again and live normally. Take Ms. Nahza for example, she has a metal arm for a few years now and she lives a normal life."
"Still...seeing you so hurt...it pains me..."
Bell smiled. "And I am the happiest man alive to have someone as loving, beautiful and kind as you being worried about me. I can´t tell with words how important you are to me...Ais."
"Mouh...don´t try to distract..."
Instead of Bell, it was Ais who initiated the kiss. She had gotten really cuddly ever since Bell woke up, not wanting to miss a single moment with her rabbit. It had gotten so strong, that Riveria had to cough multiple times to get Ais´ attention when she had visited.
While she was happy, Riveria felt unwell to see Ais this lovey dovey with her boyfriend in front of her eyes.
.
.
"Bell, do you want to take a shower?"
"I sure would like to."
"I will help you."
"Ais...I can do that a-"
Her face moved really close to him. "I. Will. Help. You."
He smiled wryly. "Understood."
Walking around was not much of a problem for Bell, Ais was really surprised how fast he recovered from his wounds...as if some miracle had happened to him...or two. Amid had given him permission to move to one of the shower rooms, but he shouldn´t take it too far.
Despite the fact that the hospital was filled very much, it was very quiet here. Thankfully the room wasn´t too far away from his own room and there were separate stalls. After they had entered, Ais locked the door behind them and followed Bell.
The sight of his left arm still hurt her very much. Both only wore light hospital closes, so it didn´t took Ais long to undress both of them. While Bell could normally do that alone, he wasn´t used to only move one arm, it was only a bit embarassing that Ais had to kneel down to help him take off his underwear.
The showers were fully functional and in no way fancy, but it was enough.
Ais took a showerhead and turned on the water, holding her left hand under it until the temperature was pleasant.
"Bell, come."
He smiled, admiring her beautiful body for a moment. "You really are gorgeous, Ais."
She smiled and waited for him, Ais was really careful with him, especially his left arm. Both looked into each others eyes most of the time, kissing now and then.
.
.
"*Hic* *Hic* *Hic* *Hic* Master Bell...your arm..."
Haruhime cried openly together with Lily when they visited him, both really shocked and hurt about seeing Bell like this. Hestia tried her best as his goddess, but she slowly lost the fight against her tears.
Ais was outside for now, being visited by Tiona, Tione and Lefiya. Amid couldn´t hold them off forever, she demanded that they would be quiet when they visited, but all three women cried now together.
Welf only sent him a message so stop slack off and come back as soon as possible, Bell knew that he really cared for him.
"Everyone...pleashe cheer up..."
"Bell...Bell...my cute little Bell...hurt so much...*Sniff*"
Hestia stroked Bell´s hair while she hugged his head, it was hard to talk for him, nearly drowned in her bosom.
"I´m sho glad you are awake, Mashter Bell *Hic Sob Sniff*"
Lily couldn´t even wipe away her snot fast enough, she had to use one handkerchief after the other. It didn´t got better when Bell gently patted Lily´s head. Since he couldn´t hold Haruhime with his other arm...she curled up her tail and touched his left arm this way.
Bell was very important to all three of them, so it was easy to understand why they were so sad.
"Thish ish not the...Heshtia I can´t talk like that..."
"*Sniff*"
She moved herself a bit, the giant rack wasn´t always helpfull for the tiny goddess. On his right side, Lily still clung to his arm and Haruhime curled her tail around his left elbow. Somehow Bell was more concerned with comforting others that losing his arm wasn't the end than anything else ... it made him smile wryly.
"Can you tell me what happened after the battle?"
Lily looked up to him. "The secured the gate and the damaged tower, currently they are deconstructing the tower, since it had melted halfway. Also-.."
She continued to explain to him what happened. Orario´s defence was still in high alert in case more monsters would attack, but the dark clouds over the city had vanished. They got reports that the dungeon spawned monsters in a normal rate again, it was dangerous at first to go into the dungeon, since every Floor was at it´s maximum of monsters at once.
The Loki Familia would send more cleaner than normal into the dungeon, to make the top floors less dangerous. Due to the drought, Orario was missing magic stones. And Lily also explained to Bell, that the Loki Familia had taken the dropp items from the hydra for now, they wanted to talk with Bell and Ais when they came out of the hospital, to decide what they should do with it.
Bell was curious what items had dropped...if it was more than one.
"But everyone from our Familia is save?"
"Otara´s right arm got broken during the fight, Haruhime and Cassandra fainted, a few light injuries, but nothing too bad."
"What about the girls from the pub?"
"Everyone is safe as far as we know."
"That´s good..."
Bell needed more than one hour to calm those three down a bit, then they moved on to pamper him as much as they were allowed. When Hestia offered Bell to give him a lap pillow, the tiny goddess suddenly felt an icy chill running down her spine...as if a pair of golden eyes stared into her direction from somewhere.
At the same time, Ais felt the dire need outside to go back to her bunny again.
.
.
"Mr. Cranel."
"Ms. Teasanare?"
"It is time, we have to begin immediately."
"Huh? So early? I thought it would take longer?"
"Not this time, and we can´t wait until tomorrow morning."
It was late evening of the fifth day after the end of the fight. Bell slowly had gotten used to the change...and now it would be changed again. Ais sat on her bed next to Bell and looked as confused as he was.
"You are already done? I thought a new arm would take a longer time."
Amid walked to Bell´s bed. "As I said, not this time."
Both got up from their beds.
"I´m sorry Ms. Wallenstein, but you can´t come with us."
"Can´t I wait in front of the room?"
"No, this part of the hospital is only for patients and staff members."
"Mmmh...Bell...I will wait for you here."
He smiled lightly. "I will be back in a short time."
"Aiiiis! Don´t ignore meeee!"
"Oh, s-sorry..."
"Pfüh!"
Loki turned her head to the side and pouted, the goddess had visited both of them a while ago.
"In the moment your bunny comes up you forget about me *Sniff*..."
"Loki...it isn´t like that..."
Ais looked back and forth between Bell and Loki, panicked. She squeaked in surprise when Bell leaned towards her and gave her a short kiss.
"I will be back, everything will turn out okay."
"Bell...okay, I will wait."
Amid looked at Loki now. "Could you send a message to lady Hestia? We will need her afterwards."
"No problem! Alicia!"
Loki had opened the window next to her, the female elf waited outside for her goddess.
"Yes?"
"Could you get the bunny´s chiby for me?"
"His...what?"
"You know the chiby...the small, ridiculously stacked goddess."
"Goddess Hestia?"
"Yes!"
Alicia looked a bit confused but nodded. Without intending to do it, Alicia let Hestia panic a lot when she send the message to come to the hospital immediately.
.
.
"Sleep...Sleep...Sleep..."
Amid slowly moved a magic stone over Bell´s head, his eyes blinked sleepy and he slowly drifted away. This operating room was different than the other, strange gadgets with bubbling liquids stood around, as well as a large cupboard with alchemical symbols on it.
Two other healer waited next to the bed when Bell fell completely asleep. One of them would continue to use the magic item, so Bell would continue to sleep, the other would give Amid all the tools she needed. Amid covered her face with a mask and prepared everything nessecary.
"Amid Teasanare."
"Mr. Fels."
"Shall we begin?"
"Yes."
Fels moved to the large cupboard, moved one of his skeleton hands over the door and the symbols started to glow. Slowly the cupboard opened, cold steam came out of it, revealing the inside, it was something about the length of a forearm, wrapped in bandages that were covered with runes.
As careful as possible, Fels took out the item, while Amid was already busy with Bell´s arm. Now came the part that was the most critical, she had to open his wound again, fold back the skin.
Magic items all around Bell´s arm held the blood back from spilling out, but she had to hurry.
"Now."
Fels unwrapped the runes and mumbled a low chant. The process was different from normal, since Bell´s arm was different from normal. Amid had to work for a long time, much longer than usual.
.
Come one...move...
Amid looked down at Bell´s arm, he was still held in artifical sleep. She had a needle in her and and moved it slowly towards Bell´s fingers. When the tip came in contact with one finger...Amid smiled...the finger twitched.
Thank the gods!
One by one she gently poked the fingers, each of them twitched slightly, in the end she put the bandage back on.
.
.
"Bell...how are you feeling?"
"It itches...a lot..."
Bell raised his left arm, it was covered in bandages from his elbow down, having the same length as his true arm.
"Is that normal?" Hestia looked at Amid.
"I thought a metal arm can´t itch?" Loki leaned back on her chair.
All three women tried to ignore Ais, who sat next to Bell and hugged him as if to protect her bunny.
Amid allowed herself to smile. "A metal arm can itch in the first moments...but this isn´t a metal arm."
"Huh?"
"Hm?"
"Oh?"
"What?"
Amid adjusted her glasses, she only put them on rarely when she needed to explain something...it was quite fun to push them up and let the glasses flash this way.
"I had a lot of help...but I am happy to tell you Mr. Cranel...this is your own, new arm."
"I...don´t understand."
"We saved the biological components of your arm, unlike the first time I had to heal it, it was damaged too much this time. So Mr. Fel-"
"Mr. Fels?!"
"Yes, do you know him?"
"Of course! What did he do?"
"He came up with an idea. To explain it simple, we used adamantit and your broken knife to rebuild your bones, with fragments of your old bones. Then he used his elixiers and the flesh of your arm to...let´s say repair the flesh. This time...we rebuild your arm completely."
Bell blinked perplexed and raised his arm again.
"This is...my arm?"
"Not completely, your bones are mostly made out of adamantit, also you will have no hair growth on your arm and the finger nails won´t grow longer. Mr. Fels said it was a great success and he wanted to call it "The hare´s paw".
I have never seen something like this myself, your fingers reacted to pain stimuli. You have to wait for a while, but when everything is healed, you should be able to move it normally. I don´t know if it will vanish over time, but you have a scar around the point where it is attached."
"I...my...own...arm?"
"I dare to say, you are beyond lucky, Mr. Cranel. But!"
"But?"
Amid leaned closer and smiled at Bell intimidating. "I would advice you to stop destroying your left arm, from what you told me, this is the third time you nearly lost it."
"R-Right..."
Bell felt Ais´ hug tighten and saw her smiling happily. Strangely his vision got blurry...Bell started to cry. He got a new arm...his old arm...his old "new" arm. Different from before...but not made of metal.
Ais smiled happily and kissed him, not caring about the others at the moment. Hestia gently put her hand on Bell´s plastered arm, while Loki put her hand on Ais´ back.
"Thank you...Ms. Teasanare...you really are an angel..." Bell sobbed but smiled brightly.
Please don´t stare at me like that...you´ll make me pregnant...
"Thank you, Amid! Shall I give you a thank you grope?" Loki grinned.
"N-No thank you..."
"Aw c´mon, I make you feel really good! Make you forget that you are a saint for once!"
"*Cough*" Amid got red and backed away from the red-haired goddess, who moved her hands in an indecent way.
"Ms. Amid...thank you...so much...for doing that for Bell."
Amid smiled slightly. "No problem lady Hestia, this is my job after all."
Now Hestia looked uneasy. "And...how...much..."
"One-hundred and fifty million Vals."
"Oh..."
"Everything paid already."
"Huh?! By whom?!"
"I am not allowed to tell you that, medical confidentiality."
.
Amid rememberred the moment very well when a certain silver haired goddess had "cornered" Amid, putting a hand on her chin, the other on the wall next to her, whispering seductive to the blushing Healer.
Explaining to her that she would pay for everything, but that Amid wasn´t allowed to say a single word about it. Amid wanted to ask why, but squeaked loud when Freya bit playefully into her earlobe.
"Understood...Amid?"
"Y-Yes..."
.
"So Ms. Amid, I thank you for the information, but why do you need me here now?"
"To update Mr. Cranels status, this will help his arm to connect completely with his body.
"Oh...okay...how does that work?"
Amid smiled and...shrugged her shoulders... "Honestly I don´t know, but it works like that, the gods have to do that every time when a child of them gets a new limb."
"Hm."
Hestia looked at Bell, then at Ais and Loki.
"Alright Ais-tan! Let´s update your status too!"
"Loki?"
"Don´t you want to do it together with your bunny? Let´s see what defeating that giant thing brought to you!"
The two gods looked at Amid, but she shook her head. "I´m sorry, I have to stay in case something happens to Mr. Cranel, but I will turn around. So Bell and Ais sat down on the edges of their beds, faced to each other while they took their shirts off. Instead of covering her chest like normal, Ais gently took Bell´s hands and smiled to him.
Hestia moved behind Bell, while Loki stood behind Ais. Loki smiled when she saw how much Ais was in love with Bell, both only had eyes for the other.
I´m really happy that you found him, my little Ais.
Suddenly, Loki and Hestia got a really strange feeling. Both goddesses took out a needle and poked their fingers, a drop of blood appeared.
What...is this feeling?! Hestia got goosebumps.
What the hell?! Loki felt the same.
Ais and Bell looked deep into each others eyes when the blood fell down. Suddenly Ais´ hand clutched around Bell´s right hand and the jerked up.
"Irkh!"
Bell´s body jerked up too...something felt really strange.
"Bell, keep up with it!"
"Hold on, Ais!"
The goddesses moved their hands over their childrens backs as the Falna appeared and the runes started to move.
"Kya!" Amid staggered when the whole building started to shake.
A tremble came from the outside, as if a sudden thunderstorm was about to be unleashed, torches all over Orario suddenly got bigger and wind howled along Babel. It was a feeling as if the world was reacting to something.
The eyes of the goddesses widened when the runes moved faster and faster, rushing down from 999 in Ais´ case and over 1000 in Bell´s. The two young people gritted their teeth and groaned, a feeling like lighting washed through their bodies.
Bell´s left forearm and hand itched like never before.
"Akh!"
"Owie!"
Amid dared to turn around and her eyes widened in shock. She had seen the update of a status before, but never looked it like this. Not only drifted the runes behind their backs, but around their bodies. Faster and faster moved the runes as if the gods had trouble to keep them in check.
In the light of the runes, Amid noticed that both got goosebumps and the tips of their chests got hard. Thankfully Ais had let got of Bell´s left arm and she clutched her hands only around his right. By her strength, she would have broken the hands of most other people in Orario.
.
What is happening?
Freya leaned out of the door and looked at the sky, clouds whirled in the sky, circled around Orario and a thunderclap echoed over the city.
"Syr? Is a storm coming?"
"The weather looks strange, look Ryu."
The elf leaned out of the door of the pub and looked up. The sky didn´t looked like when the monsters had attacked...but like unleashed power of elements. .
.
In the Heart Mansion, every person looked out of the windows into the sky. Wind howled all over Orario, moving faster and faster...it looked like lines of gold and green were in the wind. Flames rushed upward as if they were reacting to something...or someone connected to fire.
All over Orario felt the gods something strange and got goosebumps. Windows rattled in the wind...it was a feeling that didn´t happened for years now. The last time was when...back then...
.
.
In the Heart Mansion in Bell´s room, the Hestia Knife started to shine as it´s runes glew in fiery orange and flames washed over the scabbard. Olympus shone blue as lightning washed over the scabbard.
In Ais´ room in the Loki Mansion, wind whirled around Hurricane as it shone green.
.
.
"Aaaah!"
"Hrnngh!"
"Ais!"
"Bell!"
Two times...two times echoed the sound of titanic bells over Orario.
Announcing something that would change the world.
Eventually, Loki and Hestia tamed the runes and pushed them back into the backs of their children. Both gods panted heavily, sweat covered the body of all four. Bell and Ais sunk forward, hugged each other when their bodies came into contact, giving the other a passionate kiss.
Hestia and Loki placed the special papers on the backs of their children and drew circles with their fingers.
"Hah...hah...hah...hah...that was...intense..." Loki wiped her forehead.
"I never felt like this before..." Hestia panted.
After a few moments, Bell and Ais separated their lips and looked at each other from up close, feeling that something was different from before. The sheets of paper appeared above their shoulders as their gods reached them forward. Instead of giving it to their own child, they gave it to the other.
Bell lowered his eyes.
.
.
Ais Wallenstein
Belongs to: Loki Familia
Level:...7
.
.
Ais lowered her eyes too.
.
.
Bell Cranel
Belongs to: Hestia Familia
Level:...7 .
.
Everyone went silent. The status update and rise in level was different than normal. Levels were different from each other, one to two was a big jump. Three to four let someone go into the ranks of upper class adventurers. Five to six made sure this person was a "monster".
Their strength and skills already abnormal strong. Each level gave the mortals the strength to fight monsters...made them much stronger.
But...
Six to Seven.
That was...the path of heroes.
"Level..."
"Seven..."
The two deeply in love people were shocked. Amid blinked many times as she heard the words.
.
Bell and Ais looked at their own sheets.
.
Bell Cranel
Additional Skill: Magical Blood, Gift of Love
Magical Blood: Increasing magical abbilities.
Gift of Love: Due to immense love from "the big Sister", grants super short chant magic, produces a wave of sound from a thunderclap, shockwave crushes foes and environment. Activated by chant "Argo Verion".
There was a line which Bell couldn´t read since it was in the language of the gods, and Hestia didn´t understood what "Big Sister is actually called Aunt, but don´t want to be called old" meant.
.
Ais looked at her own sheet.
.
Ais Wallenstein
Additional Skill: Spirit princess, Mistress of the Wind
Spirit princess: Immunity to all spirit based attacks, Spirits feel the kinship.
Mistress of the Wind: Spirit blood awakens, increasing magical abbility of wind based magic by three times, grants additional ways to use wind magic.
.
And there was one line that both sheets had.
.
Bound Souls
Bound Souls: Allows the other soul use of own magic when up close, to a certain degree.
.
.
Due to Bell and Ais loving the other so much and their bodies touching while they moved on from "normal" mortals to the path of heroes...of becoming "demi-gods"..their souls were connected to the other...bound together by a band of love.
"Bell..."
"Ais..."
.
.
.
.
Authors note: A bit shorter than usual and the end of this arc. I didn´t wanted to make it too similar to the chapter from "Like a Fairy". The end of one arc and the beginning of the next is a bit hard to write for me.
The next Arc is called. "The Grand Festival." And it will mostly be slice of life...and something very important will happen for Bell and Ais. Of course Hermes will have his fingers in the game. (I hope the last sentence makes sense in engish "Finger im Spiel haben" is a german saying.
To answer: R3d-Ga1ns question: Amid will get her own "short" story in "Blood of Zeus" called "Healer of my heart". And yes I will use a few of your ideas in there.
And a biit of information: The What-If story I will start after Spirit Child is finished, will start much earlier than usual for me in the timeline. It will start when Bell is still a child and a certain white haired woman will play an important role, when things turn out a bit different after she got defeated and she decides to go and care for her nephew.