Ah! The following day

by zeroIQ

Getting married is never really simple for anyone, let alone a certain mortal and his goddess. One might expect that with the hard part out of the way, the rest would be just an ordinary married life. But with those two and the ones around them, there is no such thing as ordinary...

47. Chapter 47

I do not own the Ah! Megami sama / Oh! My Goddess series

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'L-Look at this place!... Everything here seems like a work of art!'

Walking along Thrud and the other Valkyries, Keiichi had to admit that he was genuinely awestruck by the beauty of the celestial capital. The grandeur and unique style of the buildings that integrated both classic, baroque and even modern, futuristic elements in their design was a far cry from the bland, concrete monstrosities humans liked to build for their cities. As a matter of fact, if it wasn't for the towering buildings themselves, Keiichi would've a lot of trouble to classify this as a city at all, given how close to most humans' vision of a utopia this place appeared to be.

Everything around him was spotlessly clean, save for a few scattered leaves on the paved walkways that came from the numerous trees which surrounded every structure as an integral part of the city's layout. Even the air was reminiscent of the countryside; given how clean and refreshing it was. And part of the reason behind it was the lack of the most typical sources of pollution one would find on an urban center on the mortal realm. While there was enough activity with all sorts of celestials walking or even flying around the place, the mere fact that none of them needed vehicles that generated not only pollution but noise was a huge difference from what Keiichi was used to.

'Wow, Belldandy lived in a place like this? To be honest, it makes Nekomi look like a slum; or any city that we've got on Earth for that matter!'

"You seem rather impressed."

"Isn't that obvious?" Staring at the amused Thrud, Keiichi was baffled by how casual the Valkyrie was although he did realize that unlike him, most of the locals were actually accustomed to the looks of their own city.

"Well, I guess that since this is your first time here, it's not unusual to feel a bit overwhelmed. But trust me, after first century you kind of get used to it and no longer gawk at everything."

Nodding, Keiichi had to admit that the blonde Valkyrie did have a point, yet at the same time he wondered how Belldandy and the others could enjoy life on Earth. There was nothing nearly as special there to attract anyone's attention, no matter how much he tried to come up with something. "Actually… I've got a question."

"Yes? What is it?"

"How come everyone considered life on Earth as a vacations of sorts? I mean… look at this place!"

"Probably because it's something different from their daily routine and as such, there's some novelty to it. Although, if you're asking about your wife and her sisters, the answer is even more simple than that: you."

Blushing a bit, Keiichi could only smile knowing that coming from a warrior, such words were pretty rare. However, that also kept him distracted long enough to become unaware that they were approaching the edge of a sheer cliff and none of the Valkyries seemed bothered by that. "Uh… where are we going? This path leads to nowhere…"

"Hm?" Blinking as if the mortal's question was a fairly obvious one, Thrud pointed to the tall building in the distance, before she turned back to Keiichi. "This path is a shortcut to get to the main administrative building where we can get you a permit."

"But… the road continues this way," said Keiichi pointing at his right, as the path curved in that direction.

"Oh! I forgot that you can't fly!" said Thrud with a chuckle and motioned for the two other Valkyries to approach. "Like I said, we're taking a shortcut."

Before Keiichi could even argue, he felt each of the warriors grab him by his arms, causing him to blush as they pressed them against their chests. However, this warm sensation was soon replaced by the feeling of weightlessness as they began to hover above the ground, making Keiichi swallow hard when he realized the implications behind this and how much he wasn't going to like it. "Wait! I don't like heights! Can we take the longer roaaa~…"

Hearing at his scared voice as her sisters in arms shot towards their destination, Thrud couldn't help but smile at how amusing this appeared to be and went after him. 'I can see why the others find it to be so fun to be around him. Although… I need to stop them before they scare him too much, or Bell's going to get so mad at me. And when it comes to her… who knows what's going to happen then.'

As soon as the blonde goddess departed, a pair emerged from behind a nearby column, making sure that their targets hadn't seen them.

"While it's fortuitous that we weren't spotted, it kind of makes me sad that Thrud and the others failed to notice us."

"Well… it's not like we're unfamiliar with covert ops, to be honest with you," said Excalibur at his blue haired companion, in an effort to keep her focused on the task at hand, instead of worrying about the current state of her comrades' training in spatial awareness. "So, how about we go after them? I think it's safe to do that now that they're almost halfway there."

"Agreed! Let's go!"

XXX

Central Command Center, Quarantine block alpha, Muspelheim

Walking along the narrow corridors of one of the most secure areas of the fiery realm, the small group of demons remained eerily silent as none of them was eager to disturb the already nervous Daimakaicho who had no idea what to expect from the upcoming meeting with her parents.

Standing right next to her mother, Urd was slightly bewildered at the sight of Hild in a somewhat different sort of outfit than she'd normally wear. Instead of her favorite pink and black revealing dress, the elder demoness was wearing a far more modest dark purple one, that made the Norn make a double take when first saw her mother hide that much skin.

Even more interesting was the fact that she had requested for a bouquet of flowers to be delivered to her before they even set for Muspelheim, which all by itself was enough to make those familiar with the Daimakaicho to realize that she was taking it a bit too seriously; no matter how impossible that sounded for someone like Hild.

Behind them, the ruler of Muspelheim and Mara were following them along the way, with the former looking a bit sore after listening to Hild ranting for hours about keeping this a secret from her. On the other hand, the blonde demoness next to him was quite the opposite; feeling the tension as she was about to meet her girlfriend's grandparents and wondered what they'd think about her. After all, that was Ymir they were going to meet; the single most important demon in their entire history, who was actually the progenitor of their entire species.

'I mean… it's not like he raised either of them, but, given his status as the first Daimakaicho, it would be bad if he thinks I'm an unsuitable girlfriend for Urd.'

Stopping outside the room where Ymir and Njorun were kept during their stay in Muspelheim, Hild turned to her daughter with a somewhat concerned expression on her face.

"How do I look, Urd-chan?"

"The same since the last time you've asked me," said the half demoness with a tired sigh. "Which… was like… five minutes ago. Seriously, being this nervous doesn't feel like you at all, mom."

"Hey! This is kind of a special occasion! It's not every day I get to meet my parents!"

"Is this why you're dressed like that?"

"Hm?... Why? Is there something wrong with my outfit?" asked Hild as she checked her purple gown once again, making sure that nothing was out of place. Despite its rather tame style, the Daimakaicho's outfit was still adorned with a wide variety of decorations and jewelry that were meant to display her status, as well as the practical need to act as her limiters.

"Aside from the fact that it shows less skin than Belldandy's goddess robes?"

"Ouch! That really hurt, Urd-chan," said Hild with a wince, before she paused and grinned a bit. "Although, if it makes you feel so uncomfortable, I can go topless once we're done here."

"No!"

Noticing the sideways glance Urd gave her mother's former student as soon as she said that, Surt seemed rather confused as to what was going on with her. She had been a bit unpleasant around him since she returned from Earth, although the demon simply assumed it was due to his comments about her and Mara. 'Why is she staring me like that? I wasn't the one who decided to recall her back this early. Sure… asking her if she wanted some credit to buy stuff from some adult shops for her girlfriend may had been a bit too far, but… come on! We're demons, not any of those stuck up celestials! What's so bad about a joke or two? After all, it's kind of obvious that I wasn't serious! If she wants those kind of toys, she can buy them herself!'

"In that case, there's nothing wrong, right Urd-chan?" asked Hild, getting her daughter's attention.

"Very well," said Urd with a sigh. "So, what are we waiting for outside the door? Let's get inside and meet them already."

"Right!" Taking a long breath, Hild took a step forward and all of sudden came to an abrupt stop and made an attempt to turn around. "Actually, I think that bringing them some cookies would've been a good idea. So let's go and…"

"Oh no you don't!" Grabbing her mother before she had the chance to escape. "We came all the way here and you're not running away at the last moment!"

"But!..."

"Stop acting like a child, darn it!" snarled Urd, pushing her stubborn mother who was trying to walk away from the door. "Hey, you two! Don't just stand there watching me! Do something!"

Sharing a look, Surt and Mara decided that despite the obvious risks involved, it was for the best to side with Urd. After all, it was very likely that they'd just find themselves visiting this very room again and again until Hild felt that she was ready, and in the long run it was probably better to deal with this sooner rather than later.

"Hey! Stop this insubordination at once before I…" started Hild, only to pause as the door opened, sending her and the rest of her entourage on a collision course with the floor in an almost comical manner.

"Oof! See what you and your bright ideas did, Urd-chan? So much for making a good…" Noting the pair of boots in front of her, Hild paused and looked up from her spot on the floor to find the stunned Njorun who wanted to see what that commotion outside was.

Staring at each other for a few long moments, the two demonesses remained frozen in place before Hild decided to make the first move and shot up from the floor, sending the others on top of her in a tumble. "Oh, you're…"

"Um… I…"

Approaching them, the first ruler of demonkind looked between the two demonesses as they kept staring each other and made several futile attempts to introduce each other. Scratching his chin in thought, Ymir aimed his trusty cane at his lover and without much hesitation, he gave her a smack on her backside, just hard enough to make her snap out of it.

"What do you think you're doing, you cretin?!"

"Ah… you can still talk! I was worried there for a moment. Well… maybe." Grinning as Njorun openly glared at him, Ymir turned to the dumbfounded Hild who stared at them in shock. "Oh, hey there Hild-chan! It's nice to see you drop by, now that you've got some free time! Wasting it on an indecisive mortal who doesn't know the implications of marrying a goddess isn't worthy of a Daimakaicho's attention. Oh well, I hope his trip to her birthplace will be most… educational."

"Wait… how did you know that?" asked Hild with a frown, while the rest of her group raised an eyebrow. After all, he and Njorun was supposed to be in quarantine, but before he had the chance to reply, the blue haired demoness interrupted them.

"Who cares about all that nonsense, Ymir? Step aside and let me talk to my daughter!"

"But you weren't saying anything a moment ago!" protested the elder demon as he was shoved aside by his growling lover, who instantly calmed down when she turned to Hild. "Um… sorry about that… H-Hild…"

"It's alright… mo-..." started the Daimakaicho as she reached for her flowers, while Urd was shaking her head.

'This looks eerily familiar for some reason… Did I really act like that?'

"No, I should apologize for losing my temper," said Njorun, before a baffled Ymir interrupted her.

"Apologize?! For real? I mean… are you feeling alright?"

"I was talking to her, not you!" snarled the blue haired demoness and then cleared her throat as she turned her attention back to Hild. "Now, where was I? Oh, right! I'm sorry for acting like that."

"It's alright, um… mother. I…" started Hild, only to pause when she found herself in a tight embrace as her excited mother almost smothered her.

"Aww!... She called me mom!"

Lowering her head in embarrassment, Urd couldn't help but feel that it was kind of ironic to see them interact in a manner not too different than how she and Hild did in the past. However, while her blushing mother struggled to come up with a response, the half demoness noticed her grandfather staring at Mara with a curious expression that made the blonde demoness extremely worried.

"Hm… So, you're Mara, right?"

"Yes! It's mice to neat you, father! NO! I mean… nice to meet you!" said the nervous demoness giving him a bow. "It's a great honor to date your daughter!"

"Um… I'm pleased to meet you too, but… I think there's a problem," said Ymir, making her flinch.

"I-I'm not g-good enough?"

"No, it's just that this is the typical way of introducing yourself to your girlfriend's father. I on the other hand am one generation up in the family tree. So, unless you're trying to score with both Hild and Urd, I think you need to revise your intro," said Ymir, giving the blonde a toothy grin, much to the rest of the demonesses chagrin; especially Njorun and Hild, while Urd simply palmed herself.

"Don't give her any funny ideas!"

"You've just met and are already ganging up against me? Give me a break!"

Glaring at the grumbling demon, Njorun and Hild glanced at each other before they started to laugh. Apparently aside from the rather obvious physical resemblance with only exception being their hair color and style, their mannerisms were also quite similar when provoked as well.

"You know, I thought that you were going to be all strict and cold, given… um… your..."

"Age?" asked Njorun, when her daughter seemed to struggle with words. "You know, not everyone becomes a prude as they get older. I mean, a lot of those stereotypes comes from the mortal realm and how people act like that when old age settles in."

"Actually, I wanted to say your… descent, if that's okay with you."

"Oh, that? I've got no problems if you want to consider me as a former goddess, but in reality that means little to me these days. Only a few celestials matter to me, and even then I cannot really talk to them anymore; not while everyone thinks I'm dead. The rest consider me as a traitor and even went as far as to delete my records in an effort to erase all traces of my existence. Which was the same case as with every other Valkyrie from my unit that refused to accept Asgard's pathetic excuses. They started a civil war by attacking Vanaheim and in the process several of my friends ended up dead. And you know what happened in the end? They tried to sweep the whole matter under the rag and pretend that everything was just fine and we would all forget it as if nothing happened at all. What we needed was some proper apology and not that kind of garbage. So, I decided to leave and find a place where our lives meant something, and that's how I ended up here in Muspelheim."

"I'm well aware of our origins, mother, but if you excuse me for being curious… who exactly did you leave behind?"

"Ah… Well, aside from the few friends that might still miss me, my brother is the only one I really wish to see. Njord may had declined my offer to follow me, but, I think that he's not holding a grudge because of my decision; at least, I hope so."

"Wait! Njord is your brother?!" asked the baffled Hild, as she found it hard to believe that she was related to one of the most respectable members of the gods' Council. "Then… that means… Freya and Freyr are my cousins?"

"Yes, that would be correct, Hild-chan. Although… why is it important?"

"It's not important per se, rather… I'm surprised to have surviving relatives from your side of the family. Most of the Valkyries who followed you were left alone after the end of the civil war and had nothing to lose by joining the demons."

"Ah, that's true. I found it really hard to leave my brother behind when I made that decision and while I never regretted abandoning Heavens and their stupid ideals and rules, I cannot say that I didn't miss Njord. Even more, I never really got to meet either of his two kids since they were born way after I became a demoness. But that was far from the worst part… I couldn't even see my own daughter thanks to… a certain someone."

"I know… It took me a while after I've heard the story from Urd-chan to calm down and resist the urge to simply come here to kick my father's sorry ass for leaving me back at that orphanage, but… While I do think that what father did was downright wrong, there's little doubt that my life would've been very different if it wasn't for his actions," said Hild after taking a long breath. "For example… I'm certain that Urd-chan would've never been born and without me being the Daimakaicho, there would be no Doublet System either; allowing more stupid wars to happen."

"Yes, and… perhaps that's what infuriates me the most, to be honest with you. I know that based on the outcome, one could say that his whole idea paid off and you got a much more… satisfying life than you would've gotten by staying hidden with us. At best, you'd be doing my job as Ymir's second in command with Bergelmir as the official leader of Ratatoskr. Still, as your mother I cannot say that leaving you to handle things on your own was what I had in mind when you were born."

"That's something I can relate to," said Hild, glancing over at Urd for a moment. "It seems that we both had the same fate as far as our children were concerned."

"Fate… Ha! It's merely the word one uses when something is simply out of their control!" said Ymir with a grin, making everyone turn to him. "I could've used that as an excuse so many times in the past and say that it's fate this and fate that… But in the end, it's just a pathetic excuse. There's no such thing as fate as there's nothing more concrete in this world than chaos. Say what you will about me, but in the end if there's one thing I want you Hild to take after me is to stop accepting the world around you as it is. The true power of a demon is to shape reality the way we want; mere survival is something reserved for the feeble minded and the mortals."

"I'm well versed on the ideals you taught the first demons; as everyone else who bothered reading a history book should," said Hild as she crossed her arms and approached her father. "However, what I really want to learn is why did you decide to get yourself involved into all this. Originally, I was under the impression that you were trying to cover up the whole thing about my falsified records, but… After some careful investigation, I've realized that Ratatoskr was way too active as of late and I doubt that it was due to Bergelmir not having anything better to do with his free time. So, what are you up to?"

"Dunno… Maybe I was just bored?" said Ymir, trying to sound as innocent as possible, which didn't quite work as intended; not that there were any chances for such a thing to happen anyway.

"Out with it! I'm the Daimakaicho now and as such, you have to obey my direct order!"

"Hm… Will call me daddy if I tell you?" asked Ymir much to everyone's shock; as even Njorun wasn't expecting that kind of request.

"What?!"

"That reminds me of someone…" muttered Urd which was more than enough to earn a glare from her mother.

"Not now, Urd-chan!" Turning back to her father, the Daimakaicho paused for a few long moments struggling to read the demon's expression. While her daughter did have a point, even she knew when to mess around like that and when to be serious. "I don't think that such a request is important at the time being."

"It's my way or no way."

"You stubborn old…" grumbled Hild as she glared at her obstinate father. "Fine! You win, but I warn you that… Hey!… what are you doing?"

"Huh? Who me?" asked Ymir as he retrieved his communicator.

"Who else? Wait… don't tell me that you're planning to record that! Even I wouldn't have gotten this far!"

"But it's going to be so nice to have a new video from you! The last one was ages ago!"

"There's an old one?" asked the curious Hild, while her mother and even Urd approached the demon to see whether he was telling the truth.

Grabbing the communicator from her grandfather's hands, Urd searched through his photo album and could help but laugh at the sight of what turned out to be her mother's baby photos. "Aw!... She's so adorable!"

"Let me see!" said Njorun, before Hild too joined in what ended up in a tug of war as the three demonesses fought over the communicator, much to Ymir's annoyance and the astonishment of the last two remaining bystanders.

"Are you sure you want to want to become part of this family?" asked Surt with a grin as he turned to the blonde demoness next to him. "It's not too late to change your mind you know."

"I think I'll take my chances. After all, it's totally worth it, and besides… according to the rumors you seem to agree with me," said Mara, before she realized just who she was talking to. "Uh… I mean…"

"Rumors? Don't tell me that you believed…" started Surt, only to stop when Ymir leaned closer to them, as he suddenly found their conversation to be interesting.

"Oh, don't mind me! Go on..."

Shivering a bit as she felt the sudden change in the ancient demon's attitude, Mara as well as everyone else in the room immediately became aware of the bloodthirsty aura that threatened to overwhelm those around him.

"T-They… s-said… t-that… H-Hild-sama… s-slept… w-with..."

"Yes? Go on… Don't stop when things are about to get interesting!"

Feeling everyone's eyes on her, Mara was unsure what to say or do, but in the end, the chilling glare she was getting from Ymir forced her to fess up and point at Surt.

And that's when all Hell broke loose.

XXX

Asgard

"I'm sorry sir, but you cannot write your name in Kanji. The application form is required to be written in Runes, whether in the celestial or demonic dialect and signed with a proper sigil. In the event you're unable to fill it in, please ask one of the Valkyries escorting you to do it for you."

"I think I can handle it. Is there anything else I need?" Keiichi was already feeling a headache as he tried to read all the requirements for a permit and the list the clerk had given him was quite extensive. As a matter of fact, we started to realize why everyone was so happy to spend time on a dirty, backwater planet instead of staying here for vacations. Apparently there was a darker side to Heavens and that was called bureaucracy.

"No, I think that covers everything," said the goddess in charge of the Registry. "Once you get all the necessary application forms filled in and pass the tests, you can bring them back here and let me check them to make sure that nothing is missing, then go and get a protocol number from that office in the other end of the corridor, and then return back so I can submit all the documents."

Nodding slowly as he tried to absorb all that, the mortal noticed one particular word among that whole explanation that he sure didn't like; not in the slightest bit. "Wait!... Tests? What kind of tests?"

"Well, you need to get through a few medical scans in order to make sure that there's nothing potentially threatening on your person. After all, given the fact that you've come into contact with several demons, we must ensure that they haven't put any curse or anything of that kind on you. It's merely a standard procedure I assure you; there's nothing to worry about."

"Very well… Where should I go now?"

Approaching him, Thrud put a hand on his shoulder to get his attention and motioned him to follow her. Once they were out of earshot from the clerk, she turned to him as they walked towards the rest of the Valkyries. "So… how was your first experience with divine bureaucracy?"

"Honestly? I can now see why everyone likes to stay on Earth," said Keiichi in a somewhat sarcastic tone. "I mean… this place looks amazing and all, but…"

"You don't have to try so hard to avoid saying that it sucks. With all the automated systems we've got in place and... it's still required to compile a whole stack of documents for every little thing we need to do!" said Thrud with a groan.

"Well, maybe it's kind of a… habit? You know, a lifestyle that everyone here got used to?"

"Actually, you've got no idea how right you are. It's true that humans are creatures of habit and with immortals… it's even worse. Once you get used to a certain way of doing things, it's very hard to accept any other alternative, even if it's actually better than the older method. That's why we cannot fully automate a lot of things in our daily lives. However, there's also the fact that those who perform those tasks manually aren't going to like the idea of being forced to do something else because their posts became obsolete," explained the blonde Valkyrie. "In a way, despite the youthful appearance of everyone here, some celestials act like obstinate old people who refuse to let go of their outdated ways and in the process they cause problems to everyone else."

"Then I suppose that this place isn't as different from Earth as I've originally thought," admitted Keiichi as he looked around while they walked towards their new destination.

"Yes, that's correct. While a lot of things look different at a first glance, you might be surprised by how familiar some of the concepts behind them are. Just take your time and you'll see how easily you'll adjust to this kind of lifestyle."

"And speaking of that… I'm noticing that we're heading to another ledge," said Keiichi with a rather worried tone on his voice. "You don't mean that…"

"Yep! We're going to fly!" said Thrud with a grin, while the mortal felt a his stomach tighten.

"I knew it…"

XXX

Central Command Center, Quarantine block alpha, Muspelheim

"Care to explain to me what's the meaning of this? Well?… Daddy?"

Narrowing her eyes at the grinning demon, Hild was more than tired by his seemingly silly mannerisms; even though she typically loved that kind of stuff. Perhaps her father simply picked the wrong time to act like that, or maybe the fact that she was currently holding Surt's cursed form after Ymir decided to deal with the latest of his daughter's suitors.

"But, look at him! He's so adorable and fluffy!" said the ancient demon, struggling not to laugh, while Hild fumed by his attitude. "Maybe you should keep him like that!"

"Thanks but no thanks! I need him the way he was, and no, I don't mean for that!" snarled Hild as she struggled to keep the enraged bunny from attacking her father. Deciding to use all the means available to her, she also turned to her mother for some help. "Is there an easy way to fix this?"

"Yes. Just smack your father's head a few times and he'll eventually give up," said Njorun with a sigh. "Trust me, I do it all the time and works like a charm."

"Hey, what kind of advice is that?" objected Ymir.

"The best one to deal with a moron who suddenly decided to become an overprotective father!" countered Njorun, with a snarl. "Seriously! What's up with that? First you leave her to grow up on her own and then you get all jealous because she had some fun?"

"I'm not jealous! And you're just saying that in order to get some grandkids!"

"What?! Sure… I want a few more, but that has nothing to do with this!"

"Of course it has!"

"Enough!"

Turning to the frustrated Daimakaicho, the couple decided not to get their daughter any angrier than she currently was and remained quiet as she tried to calm herself down.

"Alright, now that you've got my attention, how about we do something constructive? First of all, I want Surt the way he was, and second… I want an explanation. What are you really up to?"

"Quite honestly… I don't think that breaking the curse is even necessary since it's only supposed to last for an hour or two; so until then, you've got a fuzzy bunny and… Hey, what's so funny?"

"Nothing," said Hild trying to get serious once again; pushing the memories of that visit at the amusement park aside for the moment. "Go on…"

"Well, if you really want to know what I'm up to, then I suppose you could say that we have similar goals, yet very different methods. I, too wish to unite everyone under my control, although I've got no tolerance for those who seem to disagree with such a vision. And if they can't serve any other purpose for me, I might as well get rid of them," said Ymir, much to his daughter's surprise. "What? You don't think that I've got my reputation by being such a nice guy to those who opposed me, did you?"

"No… it's just that because of said reputation that I never thought that would've even wished for something like that to begin with," said Hild with a frown. "According to the old tales, you never liked celestials and…"

"Excuse me for pointing the obvious, but I think that there's a rather big problem with that theory," said Ymir, pointing at Njorun. "She was a goddess at some point of time, and yet she became my wife. Not to mention that, Muspelheim's whole history is further evidence to the opposite."

"I know that, although I've always wondered if that was the exception of the rule, instead of your actual policy. After all, the whole subject was kept under wraps and far from what I'd call as public knowledge."

"Only due to the means involved in the actual conversion process," said Ymir, shaking his head. "But, I can see how one could assume that I was trying to hide the fact that Muspelheim's population originates from a unit of former Valkyries. However, the biggest issue here isn't whether someone misunderstood my intentions, but the simple truth that history isn't necessarily a recollection of what happened; it can be very well be what they want to make you believe that took place."

"You mean that most of those stories were altered on purpose?" asked Hild, even if she didn't look all too surprised.

"More times than I'd even bother counting, actually. Most of those tales were heavily censored, altered or even outright fabricated based on some actual facts and a lot of… creative imagination filling in the rest of the details. Given that I was a very prominent person back then, being the creator of demons and all that, my loyal subjects looked up to me as if I was some sort of authority. And while that became the basis of our chain of command with me as the undisputed ruler, those who succeeded me, often found it necessary to try and use my name whenever they wanted to justify their stupid views," explained the ancient Daimakaicho with a sigh. "In all irony, many of their followers became victims of those lies they helped spread, whenever I appeared and graciously offered to 'assist' them in their ever so important task; only to use that as an excuse to get them somewhere secluded enough, where no one would ever find out how they died."

"I knew it… all those nobles disappearing left and right…" said Hild, with a raised eyebrow. "That was your job, right? Although why were you targeting them specifically?"

"It's simple, really. I absolutely hate weaklings who try to make themselves look important by such poor excuses as… their family tree," said Ymir with a snort as his irises started to give a faint red glow. "By that definition, every demon descends from me, and besides… most of the second generation of the demons were deeply flawed, until I've got the hang of how to produce better ones."

"Wait… second generation? But… I thought that was the first," said the confused Hild and by the looks of it, she wasn't the only one who had no idea what the ancient demon was referring at.

"Eh? Did I say second? My bad!... I must've counted myself or something," said Ymir, scratching his head in a manner not unlike a certain mortal, which made him look even more suspicious thanks to that mood swing.

"Right… Still, that doesn't explain what you're trying to do now. After all, there are no more demonic noble houses to deal with, and the Doublet System should prevent us from killing each other. And don't you even start with the whole I'm not part of it kind of nonsense, either!" said Hild, while her father scratched his chin.

"Because I didn't have any better ideas for a retirement plan?" tried Ymir, even though everyone seemed to be rather skeptical; including Surt in his bunny form. "I mean I never got any hobbies aside from scheming."

"Get serious! I'm not here to listen to such nonsense!"

"Okay, fine! Look… there are those on both sides who want to maintain the status quo and keep demons and their celestial counterparts as enemies even if we could've solved all our differences. It may sound weird, but in a way, it's what helped them maintain order up until now. By having an enemy to fear, you can rally your compatriots to a common goal, and for both species that was quite convenient. Demons thrive for power and without anything to keep their personal ambitions at bay, our whole society would've collapsed as everyone would've fought for a more prestigious position. However, with the threat of the celestials, everyone had to make some compromises and work for the sake of all the Demonic Realms, instead of caring only about their personal agenda," explained Ymir, making a short pause to make sure that the others were following him. "As for the celestials themselves?... Well, they always loved to control others and the their leadership used the whole situation to their advantage. As long as the evil demons posed a threat to their lives, all kinds of extreme measures were justified; for the sake of everyone's safety of course! And the effort to make everyone look so nice is to promote a way of thinking where nobody dares to question those who are making all the important decisions; ethics has nothing to do with it."

"What you basically described us isn't something new, but rather the way things always were. So, I still cannot see why you suddenly decided to pick this particular moment to act," said Hild after taking a few moments to consider whether this sounded as a plausible answer or just another excuse.

"Like I said, there are those one either sides who like to maintain the status quo. You may think that it's an insignificant incident, but the news of a young couple passing the Gate had rattled some… less kind celestials who now face the possibility that the world around them is changing," said Ymir with a grin, as Hild and Urd shared a look. "And let's not mention that the Judgement Gate is now offline as well. Surely, with Belldandy and her husband paving the way, others might seize the opportunity and consider having a relationship with a non-celestial. Any guesses as to what's going to happen?"

"Someone's going to be sore about it…" answered Hild, narrowing her eyes as she started to see what was going on here.

"You got that right! Which is exactly why…"

"Wait a second!" said Urd, interrupting her grandfather. "Are you trying to use Belldandy and Keiichi as bait?"

"In this situation, what I intend to do is irrelevant, child. Sooner or later, those two are going to be targeted just to create yet another tragic tale and scare everyone from following their example. As a matter of fact, you and Mara aren't all that different; especially once you go back at being a goddess. At the very least, I'm planning to do something about it, instead of trying to pretend that everything's alright."

Frowning, Urd didn't like the sound of that, but no matter how she wanted to argue with her grandfather, she had to admit that he had a point. If anyone had a problem with cross species relationships, Belldandy and Keiichi's marriage would've certainly gotten their attention. "I think that I need to warn them. Since they're staying over at Asgard, it's going to be a lot easier for other celestials to approach them."

"Alright, I think we can all take a break," said Hild with a nod. "And while you try to reach them, I can make the necessary arrangements for mother and father to stay in my mansion."

"Eh? You really mean that?" asked the somewhat surprised Njorun, ignoring the fact that Ymir was also part of her daughter's plans.

"Yes, I'd like to let you stay with me, mother..." started Hild before the blue haired demoness grabbed her daughter in a tight embrace.

"I'm so happy, Hild-chan!"

Clearing his throat, Ymir poked his former lover's shoulder and without waiting for her response, he pointed at the struggling bunny that was getting squished between her and Hild's ample bosoms. "Do you mind getting the poor guy out of… there?"

However, as the two demonesses stared at the ancient Daimakaicho and then shared a look, they both grinned and simply hugged each other even harder.

"Yay! We're going to be together forever!"

'They're totally doing that on purpose to piss me off… Oh well, at least they're getting along nicely and that's more than would've asked for. Still…' Turning to Urd who was busy with the communicator Skuld made for her before she originally left for Muspelheim, Ymir tried to get his granddaughter talk some sense to them. "Urd-chan! Do something! Those two are crushing… um… Mr. Bunny."

"Hold on a moment, I'm trying to... Wait, who?" Looking up from Skuld's device, Urd struggled not to laugh when she saw the utterly ridiculous scene that unfolded before her very own eyes. "Hey! Cut it out, mom! Surt's about to pass out!"

"Huh?"

However it was far too late for the unfortunate demon who lost consciousness in the most embarrassing manner possible.

"Oops… I think I need to do something about him. And make those arrangements for your room too," said Hild, taking a step back while her mother stared at her.

"Wait! Our room? Aren't we getting one each?" asked the worried demoness, although Ymir couldn't be more happy about the news.

"No, I think one would suffice," said Hild much to her mother's chagrin. "Oh, and before I forget about it!"

"Yes?" asked Njorun with a frown.

"It may be a bit late, but I don't mind some siblings, so…" trailed the Daimakaicho with what was her best attempt at looking innocent. "Try to make up, please?"

"No! Out of question! Won't happen! Not in a million years!"

"Okay, okay! No need to get upset over a little joke," said Hild as she headed for the exit. "I'll be back in a moment, and I'll even bring something for us to eat too!"

"Sorry about that, Hild-chan," said Njorun with an apologetic smile. "Actually… want me to come with you? I want to give you a hand with the food."

"Oh, sure thing! Come on then!"

Meanwhile, Urd was still trying to call her little sister, without any success so far.

'Come on! What are you doing Skuld?'

XXX

Asgard

"How does that look, oneesama?"

Holding up the big banner she and her robots were trying to secure in place on the wall, Skuld was doing her best to help the others with the preparations for Keiichi's welcoming party. After all, this was not only the first time the mortal was visiting Asgard, but also, the first time he was going to see the Norns' house.

Considering that their parents were far too busy with their jobs, the three sisters spent most of their time with their youngest uncle, Baldr. Acting as both their caretaker and even Belldandy's mentor, the blonde god had graciously offered to let them stay in his house instead, but soon realized that they needed far more space for themselves than he had originally anticipated. As a result, he arranged for an expansion to his house, although what he ended up with was a lot bigger than his own home.

The three storey building that was erected next to the blonde's residence had one floor specifically dedicated for each of the sisters, along with adjacent common area that was interconnected with their uncle's house via a short skywalk.

While not as large as what one would've described as a mansion, their house was still more than comfortable enough by celestial standards; although none of them doubted that Keiichi was going to look rather impressed by this place. After all, each of them had a floor of their own that contained a bedroom, a small kitchen and living room combo, a bath and even a study. And on top of all that, there was a much bigger kitchen in the common area, along with a living room of its own, a guest room and a considerably bigger bath that was designed to allow all three of them along with a few guests to use it at the same time if needed.

With such a spacious home, Belldandy needed all the help she could get to make all the preparations for Keiichi's welcoming party, and much to her relief there were more than enough volunteers up for that task.

"Thank you Skuld, I think that looks really nice," said the smiling brunette goddess when she saw the banner with the message 'Welcome home Keiichi!' written on it.

"Say, have you seen grandma and Peorth?" asked the Norn of the future while looking around the living room. "They were here a moment ago."

"Hm… I remember seeing them here before I got into the kitchen, but, I've got no idea where they went," said Belldandy with a thoughtful expression on her face.

"What about Laguz, then? I haven't seen her either."

"She offered to help me with the food, so, she's currently in the kitchen and keeps an eye on the cake we're baking. And while she's taking care of that, I decided to come here and make sure that everything's okay here as well. I want this to look nice for Keiichi since this is the first time he's visiting our home and…"

"Don't worry about anything, oneesama! We've got everything covered!" said Skuld as she offered her sister a proud smile. "Most of the decorations are already in place, leaving just a few details to add here and there. Also, I've invited everyone you told me to and they promised to come, even if this was a bit sudden."

"Excellent! Thank you so much, Skuld! You're such a good sister!" said Belldandy, offering her younger sibling a hug, much to the little goddess' delight. "Actually, I'll make you some ice cream as soon as I can tomorrow and even take you to the market in order to buy a few things Urd wanted to get for you."

"Yay! I'd love some ice… Uh.. wait! Things? What sort of things?" asked the curious Skuld, especially as this was supposedly Urd's idea.

"Well… I kind of noticed that you've gotten a little bit taller than you used to be when you first came to Earth and… I think it's about the right time to get you something, uh… nice," said Belldandy, fumbling with her words; which was a rather unusual thing for everyone who knew the kind goddess, making Skuld even more suspicious.

"Come on, oneesama! I want to know!"

Seeing her sister's pleading eyes, Belldandy found it hard to keep this a secret from her and while she thought that telling her was probably a bad idea, the gentle goddess simply hoped for the best and decided to go ahead and reveal her plans. "Since you're developing into a fine young lady, I think it's about time I get you some bras."

"EH?! No way!"

"Now, don't look this surprised Skuld. You're no longer a little girl and I'd be really happy if you do this with me," said Belldandy, placing her hands on Skuld's shoulders. "Trust me, it's going to be much better this way, instead of doing that with Urd or even… with our mother."

"Huh? But… why not?" asked the confused goddess of the future. "I mean, I know that it's a bad idea to take Urd with me, but… why shouldn't I do the same with mom?"

"Promise that you won't tell her? Or anyone for that matter?"

"O-Okay, I promise."

Taking a deep breath, the middle of the Norns looked around to make sure that there truly alone; except from Skuld's robots of course. "I think that it's unlikely to happen right now, but… with mother there's always the chance for you to end up buying a bra bigger than hers. It happened to me at one point when we went to get some swimsuits, and I really felt sorry for poor mom."

"Was it really that bad?"

"Yes. You see… Urd was with us too, and the whole incident took place after she started filling out in all the right spots."

"Ouch…" said Skuld with a wince, knowing all too well how he eldest sister was whenever she got to flaunt her body.

"Which is why I need to make sure that everything goes well with you. Besides I need to get a few things for myself too."

"Eh? Like what?"

"Oh dear! I need to… check the cake, before it turns into charcoal!" said Belldandy in a desperate effort to change the subject, as well as get out of there.

"Ah, that's right! It's probably something too spicy for the kid... No, wait! The young lady, who still needs a bra and yet, when it comes to spicy topics, she goes back at being the kiddo," said Skuld with an angry huff, tapping her foot on the floor. "If you actually wanted to talk about it, I would've recommended you to take a look at Divine Leathers for something a bit more interesting over the regular stuff you're going to get from Nimbus Mall. Plus, they don't just specialize in synthetic leather, but also have other materials too, if you feel like trying something out of latex for example."

There was a long pause as the brunette goddess simply stared at her little sister in shock, wondering just how much things had changed since she was a young adolescent herself. Sure, she may had always been rather reserved, but at the same time, Belldandy possessed no knowledge about such stuff back then. "S-S-Skuld… w-where did you… learn about… l-latex?..."

"Huh? What do you mean, oneesama? It's just a common material we use to make gloves," said Skuld with a shrug. "That, and some think it's a great idea to make clothes out of it."

"B-But.. where did you hear about that?! And… about that shop too!"

"From uncle Loki, actually. I wanted some materials for a new type of fireproof fabric and he told me that they had the greatest variety of advanced synthetic fabrics in Asgard. So, I decided that I just had to go and check it out," said Skuld, much to her sister's horror. "Uh… oneesama? Are you feeling alright? You're kind of pale…"

"I'm so telling him on mom!" said Belldandy, biting her lower lip. "And what do you… mean… you checked it out? That's not a place for young goddesses!"

"Well, I needed those textile samples for my work and the only way was for me to go there and check what suited my purposes," said Skuld in her defense. "And it wasn't like I saw anything new to begin with, just the same old stuff you'd find elsewhere but made from different materials. I mean… you can definitely find even racier ones in the mall, and… Uh… what's wrong, oneesama?"

"I… Am I really this boring?" asked the brunette goddess with a sad frown, startling her sister by her sudden question. "I'm a married goddess and still I've hardly know much about… things that you're aware of!"

'Blame all those ecchi manga I'm reading as of late. So much… plot…' thought Skuld, but then shook her head to clear those thoughts. The main problem was her sister's lack of confidence, and while that sounded a bit strange for everyone who knew how determined the Norn of the present was, relationships was something new and scary for her. "Is this why you were wearing Peorth's clothes the other day?"

Offering a shy nod, Belldandy wasn't sure if talking to Skuld was the best idea, but then again without Urd, she was the next person she trusted the most; even amongst her other relatives. "Yes… I wondered if he liked Peorth's… unique style."

"And?... Don't stop there, oneesama!" pouted Skuld as she got closer to her blushing sister. "You don't have to say too many details, just a yes or no."

"Y-Yes," said Belldandy as her cheeks turned into a rich pink shade.

"The little pervert! I knew I was right all along!" said the scandalized little goddess. "That's it! I'm making a new version of my bombs: the Widowmaker!"

"No you won't! I don't want you to bully poor Keiichi for something I also enjoy and…" said the Norn of the present with a deep frown, before she stopped when she realized just what she was saying and to whom. "Uh… what I meant was… Well…"

There was a long pause as both sisters stared at each other for a while, each trying to come up with a way to break the silence. And while the younger of the two siblings seemed to be ready to go on a rampage, a rather intriguing thought came to her.

"Say, oneesama?... If I support this right now, will you do the same with me when I grow up?"

"Eh? What do you mean?"

"You know… Wearing some more interesting things. Like the ones… Urd likes to wear, for example."

"I'll tan your bottom if you ever consider such a thing!"

"Okay… In that case, you'll have to excuse me. I've got a new bomb to make," said Skuld as she was about to turn around and head to her apartment.

"Wait! I'll be… lenient," said Belldandy with some effort, trying to find an acceptable compromise. "Just nothing too… extreme, okay?"

"Like wearing Peorth's clothes?" shot the little goddess back at her sister, much to the latter's embarrassment. "After that incident with the Lord of Terror I know that once I'll grow up, I'm gonna have the figure to fill in that bikini of hers quite nicely!"

Watching her little sister aghast, Belldandy made a few attempts to rebuke her, but no sound came out of her throat; given how shocked she was. Of course, it was mostly thanks to the mental changes all young goddesses experienced when they first hit puberty. For the mortals it was due to the effect hormones had on the young adolescents, although for celestials the real culprit was the changes in their powers as they started to grow beyond the most basic of skills all immortals possessed.

Still, that was a bit too extreme, given that Belldandy herself had never experienced such urges back when she was a teenager, although most of the goddesses she knew had a few… moments. 'Maybe I'm a late bloomer? Or is Skuld a lot more like Urd than anyone had expected? But if that's the case, then… Oh… dear…'

"Whose bikini are you talking about?"

Blinking, the two sisters turned to find the goddess of the roses standing by the living room's door frame, and dressed like a French maid no less. Putting her hands on her hips, Peorth glanced from Belldandy to Skuld while she slightly narrowed her eyes in annoyance. "Here I am, cleaning this place to make it look nice after years of neglect, and you're making fun of my clothes! How ungrateful!"

"No! We weren't doing that!" said Belldandy in her defense, raising her hands in front of her, before Peorth lost her temper; something relatively easy to happen whenever someone made fun of her in any way.

"Yeah! Oneesama's right, Peorth. I was just saying that I when I'll grow up, I can wear something as… fun as your regular outfit," said Skuld, despite that it was partially the truth. Then again, unlike her sister she didn't have to worry about telling a lie, as long as she managed to appease the other goddess. However, when Peorth's expression changed from mild irritation to sheer excitement, Skuld couldn't help but wonder if she had gotten a bit too far.

"Oh! You really mean that?" asked the delighted goddess of the roses, hovering towards the stunned Norn of the future who wasn't expecting such a strong reaction. "I'm so happy someone appreciates my sense of fashion!"

"S-Sure thing, Peorth…" said Skuld, not knowing what else to say in a situation like this, turning towards her sister for help; only to find her staring at their grandmother who just arrived in the living room, dressed like a maid as well.

"Actually, I think that you can learn a lot more from our good administrator, right Peorth?" said Frigg, as she approached her granddaughters. "As a matter of fact, you never had anyone under your wing, so why not giving it a try? I'm sure that, Skuld will be delighted to have you as her mentor."

'Who's delighted?!' thought the young goddess in question, wondering just what her grandmother was trying to achieve here. Aside from both of them being brunettes, there was little in common between Peorth and Skuld, making such a suggestion a rather questionable one to say the least. There was a profound difference between a joke and something that could get her stuck with the Vain Rose as her mentor for at least several decades. Worse, looking over at Peorth, she could see that the other goddess was actually considering the idea, instead of politely declining the offer outright. Although it could've been the fact that it was a request from a senior and well respected goddess like Frigg which prevented her from simply saying no. 'Come on! Say something! Don't just look at her like that!'

"It… It would be an honor, Frigg-sama! This is the first time anyone asked me to mentor a relative of theirs!" said Peorth, much to Skuld's chagrin. As a matter of fact, most goddesses would use her as an example to teach their girls what they weren't supposed to wear in public, let alone ask her to take care of their children. Yet despite that, Peorth did her best to stay competitive in her field of work and prove that mannerisms didn't mean much when it came to results. Not only she had managed to get a first class license, but for those who actually knew her, she was considered as a respectable and competent goddess; despite those who wished to judge her for what kind of clothes she wore. And while she wasn't particularly interested to become anyone's mentor, the mere fact that Frigg herself asked her to take care of Skuld was more than enough to make her feel that all her efforts had finally paid off and someone acknowledged her for who she really was and not by what she used to wrap her body in.

'Thanks for nothing, flower girl! Ugh… I can already see it… Me, flashing my bikini clad bottom to the whole world, and not while being at the beach too!' Letting a frustrated sigh, Skuld did the best she could to remain silent, hoping that the party they were planning would prove to be enough of a distraction to make her grandmother forget the whole matter.

"But… are you sure that it's for the best gra-..." started Belldandy, only to stop when she heard the doorbell rang. Aside from themselves, they've pretty much invited all their close relatives, including all their uncles and in Thor's case his family too, as well as some of their coworkers they were most familiar with, like Chrono and the rest of the bridge bunnies from the Yggdrasil command center. And while it was a tad early for the visitors to arrive, some of them had offered to give them a hand with the preparations and as such they came a lot sooner than necessary.

"Go, dear. I'm pretty sure that this must be Sif. She was so excited about the party, that I bet she could hardly wait to come here," said Frigg with a smile, before she turned to Peorth and Skuld. "And why don't we file the necessary tutoring papers for Skuld before we get too busy?"

'So much for letting her forget that… I can see now why others fear her. Oh well, at least it's Peorth who's going to train me. I mean… how hard it's going to be?'

XXX

"We're done, Mr. Morisato. You may get up now."

The whole examination had been a rather familiar experience for Keiichi, although at the same time, the methods involved were considerably more sophisticated than those available to his kind. Unlike doctors back on Earth who loved to poke and prod a patient, their celestial counterparts primarily relied on non invasive procedures, including a series of scans that depicted every possible detail of his body with a level of detail that mortals would've only dreamt of.

As a matter of fact, it took them less than half an hour to complete all the necessary tests and have the results ready, something that would've taken hours if not days on Earth to do the same. At least with most of the tests, since the rest of them were simply beyond his kind's technological capabilities to begin with.

What impressed him the most though, was how vastly different a hospital was in Heavens, compared to what he was familiar with. From what Thrud had told him, celestials didn't visit a healer unless it was absolutely necessary. Most viruses, curses and other ailments could be handled by anyone who could cast the appropriate healing spell; and in most cases that happened to be the patients themselves. Only if it was a something that the average person couldn't handle, or a variation of an existing disease did they visit this institution. Even then, treating the patient was only part of the goal, with the most important task being the investigation as to how they came down with that particular condition and conduct the necessary research to develop countermeasures that could be used by everyone.

"So… I can leave now?" Despite the much more comfortable environment, Keiichi really wished to get this done with, since all those tests made him feel a bit like a guinea pig; and the fact that he was the only mortal here didn't help either. In a way, that reminded him those films with aliens and how humans ended up being studied by them, although in all fairness this experience was far from unpleasant so far.

"Hm… not so fast, I'm afraid," said Kvasir, the head healer who was in charge of his examination, as he reviewed the results of the tests.

"Why? Is there a problem with me?"

"Physically speaking, I cannot find anything wrong with your body. As far as I can tell, you're a perfectly healthy human being; at least within certain tolerances that have to deal with your lifestyle and habits."

"Then what's the matter?"

"You have an angel," said Kvasir as he put the datapad down on his desk and approached the mortal who remained seated at the edge of the examination bed. "In all honesty I cannot say that I recommend you maintaining an angel of your own. It's currently unknown as to what the long term consequences of hosting one could do to your body, as there are no existing records of any mortal managing to accomplish such a feat."

"Well… there's always the first time, right?" said Keiichi with a nervous laugh, as he didn't think much about the whole matter.

"Personally speaking, I'll have to agree with you. However, since you're here for my professional opinion, I cannot say it's a great idea to put your body under such strain for a prolonged period of time."

"But… I feel alright at the moment. And from what I've been told, Terrestrial Spark is only drawing the minimal amount of energy an angel could require. So, it should be okay to keep hosting him," said Keiichi, hoping that this information would be sufficient to convince this god, only to realize that things weren't that simple.

"I'm fully aware of his low energy requirements and even then, I cannot guarantee that it's 100% safe for you, Mr. Morisato. You may not feel any different right now, but please remember that your body is still at the peak of its youth; something only temporary for a human. Once you start growing older, it's everyone's guess whether this could be a good thing for you," said the healer, pausing for a few moments as he considered his next words. "I won't sugar coat this for you, Mr. Morisato. This strain could affect your expected lifespan, robbing you… months or even years in the worst case scenario."

"Well, I am a mortal and as such I do have a limited lifespan to begin with. I'm not just going to toss my angel away to gain some extra time; if that's what you're suggesting here," said Keiichi in a calm yet forceful manner. He honestly didn't want to sound too confrontational, but he did realize where this was likely leading and he wished to have part in it.

"Then we agree that we disagree, Mr. Morisato. My job is to ensure that there's nothing life threatening in your body and your angel makes matters very hard for me. With that knowledge, I cannot give you my permission to leave."

"But then what? I won't agree to let you take my angel away and by the end of the day, I cannot stay here forever."

"Don't be so sure about that. That's what quarantine rooms are useful for and until you see reason I'll have to make sure that your stay here will be quite comfortable," said the god, although Keiichi really doubted that he even meant that. After all, he wasn't the one who was going to stuck in whatever room they intended for him and given that he had no powers to speak of, put him in a rough spot.

"Can I make a call, at the very least?" asked the mortal, as he saw no other option at the moment. 'Terrestrial Spark? Please, stop giving him the finger… I need help…'

'Yeah? What is it, master?'

'Well…'

Unaware of the mortal's plan, or even that he had one to begin with, the healer simply pointed at his desk where the phone was located. "By all means, be my guest. Although, try to be brief if that's possible, that's my work phone after all; there could be patients calling for assistance."

"Oh, that won't be a problem at all!" said Keiichi with a surprisingly pleasant smile, at least for someone who was in such a pinch. Picking up the receiver, Keiichi dialed the number he got from his angel, and tried not to smirk as he glanced at the unsuspecting god who was apparently far too certain that he was going to get away with this. "Oh, hello father! I've got a small problem…"

'Oh, he called his dad. How quaint… I suppose that's not unusual considering that he's got no other option but to do as I say.' However, the healer's smile suddenly disappeared when he remembered a tiny, yet incredibly crucial information about this mortal boy. 'Hold on… which father is talking to? His biological one or… Oh… no…'

"Excuse me, but, he wants to talk to you," said Keiichi, as he passed the receiver to Kvasir who had suddenly starting to realize that the one who was in deep trouble wasn't the mortal, but him.

"Um… hello? Who am I speaking to?" Whether a man or a god, everyone experienced denial at some point when they faced impossible odds and a miracle was all they could wish for. And while some of them got spared of whatever cruel fate awaited them; not everyone was that lucky.

"It is I."

For a few long moments, the only sound that could be heard in the room were Kvasir's rattling teeth.

XXX

"He's late…"

Peering around a nearby column, Lind narrowed her eyes as she checked the time. Whatever was going on in that office was taking much longer than necessary and she had a feeling that it wasn't a good sign; not by far.

"Is he still in there?" came a voice from behind her.

"Yes, and I don't like it one bit," replied the Valkyrie without even turning to the synthetic who approached her hiding spot. "Where have you been?"

"Oh, me? I've stopped by the cafeteria for coffee and a cold sandwich! And I've got some for you, too!" said Excalibur with a smile as he held up the paper tray with the two cups and the wrapped sandwiches, trying to ignore the stern look he was receiving from the blue haired goddess.

"For real? We're tasked to keep an eye on Keiichi and the best thing you could do was go and grab some food? I'm really disappointed in you…"

"Make fun of me as much as you want, but with you already being here, I've felt that getting some information out from the waitresses would've been a more productive way of spending my time," explained Excalibur as he handed the goddess her share of the food. "And guess what? Our healer had received a visit late last night from a Councilor and by the looks of it, he wasn't here as a patient."

"Why would they know that?" asked the baffled war goddess. "Actually, never mind that… How did you even manage to get that information out of them?"

"To answer your first question… that moron ordered a cup of joe during his apparently not so secret meeting. And as for the means of getting them to talk about it? Why, my incredible psychovisual tactics of course!"

"Your… what?"

"My incredible sex appeal," offered the synthetic as an explanation, making the goddess choke on her coffee.

"Have you completely bugged out? What are you even talking about?"

"I'm perfectly fine! It's just the way of acquiring information by acting like a protagonist from a bishonen manga, combined with the appearance of a boy band's lead singer amongst other things. Who said that being a shapeshifter doesn't have its benefits?" said the synthetic, momentarily assuming the form he had used earlier and flashed her a toothy smile that almost sparkled.

It was a sight that truly looked like something out of a cheesy romance manga and enough to make most girls weak on the knees; although, not one like Lind. "How… revolting… Now get back to normal before I sock you across that baby face of yours."

"Okay, okay! It was a demonstration! There's no need to get violent!" said Excalibur, changing back to his normal appearance and silently thanked the runtimes that originally came up with the rather 'bland' look for his humanoid form.

"Hey, Lind!"

Blinking, the duo turned to see Thrud standing next to them, as their conversation had apparently distracted them for long enough to miss her approaching them. Worse, she was looking from her roommate to the synthetic with an expression that only meant trouble for everyone involved.

"It was about darn time to get some vitamin S in you system! Ah… I'm so jealous!" said the blonde warrior, much to her comrade's utter confusion.

"What are you talking about? We don't need vitamins and… I don't even recall any that's called by that letter, either." Feeling a tap on her right shoulder, the Valkyrie turned to Excalibur who leaned closer to provide a much needed explanation.

"That's a euphemism for someone having an active love life. And by that, I mean… you know…doing this and that," whispered the sentient weapon, much to Lind's utter horror.

"No! You got it wrong, Thrud!"

"Aw… that's a pity. I thought that this time you've finally decided to…" Stopping abruptly when she noticed one of the other two Valkyries that escorted Keiichi approach them, Thrud smiled as she was under the impression that the mortal's examination was over. "Oh, Hlin! Tell Keiichi I'll be there in a moment! I'm just talking to his friends and…"

"No! There's a huge commotion! Tyr-sama himself came here with a detachment of Einherjar and arrested Kvasir on charges for professional misconduct and threat of forceful removal of symbiont!"

"Say WHAT?!"

XXX

Keiichi had to admit that the whole situation had escalated a lot quicker than he would've hoped for. What started as a simple phone call, ended up in a military raid of that healer's office and the eventual arrest of the offending god; something that the mortal wasn't really anticipating.

So far in his life, Keiichi faced adversity on several occasions and had to come up with all kinds of creative ways to deal with it, especially after that fated day Belldandy showed up to grant him a wish. People to the likes of Aoshima tried to make his life more difficult and time after time Keiichi had to thwart their plans, although up until now nobody was hurt in any shape or form.

As a result, seeing Kvasir being led away by the war gods was something that rattled the mortal man and left him with a bitter taste in the mouth so to speak. It was undeniably a victory for him, but at the same time he felt no joy from knowing that he may have sent someone to prison or whatever sort of punishment celestials used instead of incarceration.

"What's with the long face? You're free to leave, as I've already made all the necessary arrangements to have your permit ready."

Glancing over at his father in law, Keiichi was still at a loss of words from having to meet him under these circumstances. One moment he handed the phone's receiver to Kvasir and the next a huge portal opened in the middle of the room, allowing the dark haired leader of the gods to emerge along with his entourage. "I don't want to sound ungrateful, but… was this really necessary?"

"Yes. A healer must meet the highest of standards as far as integrity is concerned and he failed to do his part by trying to pull this… amateurish attempt to rob you of your angel. Especially since he attempted to deceive you in the process; because that's what all that talk about Terrestrial Spark shortening your lifespan."

"Eh? That… was a lie?"

"Well… technically speaking it was a lie of omission as his statements would've been correct if you didn't have that amulet Loki gave you. That apparently repairs your body and in the process also negates the stress caused by your angel, making that whole discussion just pointless and more of an excuse if you ask me."

"But… what if he didn't knew about the…"

"If he ran all those scans and failed to detect the amulet and its effects on you, then he's definitely not doing the right job to begin with. A healer should display a much better level of professionalism instead of jumping in hasty conclusions and then try to use that as a way to bully a mortal. Either way, he's not your problem anymore," said Tyr trying to reassure him. "Now, stop worrying about someone else's faults and try to focus on what's really important. From what I've heard, Belldandy is preparing a welcoming party for you."

"That… sounds like her," said Keiichi with a smile before he noticed Thrud, Lind and even Excalibur arrive at the office's entrance. "Oh, hello everyone!"

"Are you alright, Keiichi?" asked the blue haired Valkyrie, pausing to offer Tyr a salute together with Thrud.

"Oh, I'm fine actually," said Keiichi as he nervously scratched his head. "He was just after my angelf for some reason."

"Even if you say that, it still doesn't make the whole incident any less serious," said Lind with a shake of her head.

"That may be the case, but I've got things under control here," said Tyr, interrupting them. "Like I already said, just go and enjoy the party Belldandy had prepared for you. Once I'm done here, I'll try to join you later on. Oh, and you're also allowed to go with them, Thrud. Your parents are already there and besides, you can file the report of the incident tomorrow."

Offering a nod, Keiichi along with the two Valkyries and their synthetic friend excused themselves and headed towards the Norns' home, leaving the Daitenkaicho behind.

'Hm… this could be just a case of someone being too stubborn, but… I've got a bad feeling about this.'

XXX

"This is their home?"

Keiichi could hardly believe his eyes as he stood before the enormous structure, wondering just how unimpressive that temple they've spent the last couple of years in, must've looked for the three sisters. "I didn't knew they lived in a mansion!"

"This isn't a mansion Keiichi, just what counts as a standard housing for three goddesses here on Asgard," said Lind much to the mortal's disbelief. "A true mansion is several times this size, starting from five and up to ten times larger than this building."

Offering a nod, the dark haired man was still kind of overwhelmed by the lavishly decorated three storey house, although it appeared that his standards may had been rather off. Asgardian architecture was indeed a lot more impressive compared to what he was used to and as would probably take a while for him to get accustomed to the idea that this was considered as normal here. Still, more than anything else, Keiichi had to remind himself that this was his new home for the time being and with a deep breath he stepped closer to the main entrance, trying to figure out where the doorbell was.

As a result, he failed to realize that the door had opened on its own, revealing a smiling Peorth still dressed in her maid uniform, along with Frigg, Laguz and even Ansuz all wearing similar outfits.

'Where is it? It has to be here somewhere…'

'Uh… master?... I think you need to take a look to your left, actually,' sent Terrestrial Spark over their link, in a desperate attempt to grab his attention.

'Thanks, but I can find something like as simple as the doorbell on my own, you know. Just give me a moment, will you?'

'I'm not talking about that, but the… maids of this household.'

'Good, then let me try… Wait! Maids?' Turning to look at the assorted goddesses, Keiichi's eyes went wide from both surprise and horror. A god with a sinister agenda was one thing, but… a couple of goddesses dressed like that was something a bit too much even for him; especially once he saw them bow.

"Welcome home, master!"

Keiichi didn't waste any time with any of the rather obvious questions about this setup and just bolted, as he was already certain that this must've been part of an elaborate scheme that would've ended up with him in a deeply embarrassing position; whether figuratively or physically.

"Hey, where do you think you're going? After him!" said Peorth, narrowing her eyes at the sight of the fleeing mortal.

"Sorry I was late! I couldn't pick a design for my maid uniform!" said Belldandy, only to find that her husband was nowhere in sight, and neither was the rest of her fellow 'maids' that volunteered to help with this party she was planning. "Uh… where's…"

"If you mean a certain mortal… he went that way," said Excalibur, pointing on his right, after the fleeting man and the rest of his pursuers.

"Thank you! Please come go inside and make yourselves comfortable," said Belldandy as she was about to go after her husband. "I'll get back with Keiichi in a moment!"

"But…" Letting out a sigh Lind couldn't believe how carefree they seemed to be, especially given how serious the situation was, just a couple of minutes ago. "There she goes… This really isn't the time for this kind of stuff."

"Hey, relax a bit Lind. I know that we've got to be more careful, but at the same time, it's a nice opportunity to let them relax a bit."

"I won't disagree with that, although I'm not sure whether Belldandy and the others are even aware of what happened."

"We can tell them later," said Excalibur after a short pause, glancing over at the scene that was unfolding in the distance. "Keiichi needs something to cheer him up and like I said, this can be the best opportunity."

"Fine… I guess you're right about that. In that case, let's all get inside the…" started Lind when she noticed that her fellow Valkyries were also wearing maid uniforms all of a sudden. "Wait! What's going on here?"

"Um… we wondered if we should join this… activity," said Thrud with some hesitation, as the blue haired warrior stared at her.

"Actually, I think that's a great idea!" added Excalibur with a smile, making Lind pause and consider that proposal as ludicrous as it sounded to her.

"Hm… I'm not so sure about that."

"Oh, come on! I'm certain that you'd look great in a maid's uniform! And it's for the sake of cheering up Keiichi, too!"

There was a long pause, as the other Valkyries took several steps away from the blue haired warrior and the synthetic who kept smiling despite the rather obvious glare he was receiving from Lind.

"Alright… but only this time." Changing into a maid uniform similar to Peorth's, the war goddess was content that it fit her quite nicely. "Okay, then! Let's get busy then!"

"With… what?" asked the other Valkyries, quickly exchanging a worried look.

"Cleaning up the place, what else? If we look like maids then we might as well play the role properly, too. So, don't just stand there! We've got a job to do!" said Lind, much to the others' chagrin.

"After all, I love cleaning up! Oh, and Excalibur?... Stop smiling like that and change into something more useful. I need a vacuum cleaner."

"Eh?! No way! That sucks!"

"You got that right. Now, stop arguing and give me a hand, will you?"

"Yes ma'am!"

---

AN: I would like to thank everyone that has offered their feedback and support both here and on the Goddess Relief site.

There are a few things that I'd like to note for this chapter.

In many ways the situation Keiichi is currently in has some similarities to what Belldandy had to deal with when she first arrived on Earth. He's on a totally different world both literally and figuratively speaking, and in the next chapters I'll explore more of the goddesses' daily life and by that extend, what's going to become Keiichi's daily routine as well. So, one could say that it's like early AMG but in reverse.

Also, just like the beginning of the series, there are a lot of problems and challenges for the couple to overcome; especially as far as Keiichi's concerned. While the majority of the celestials will welcome him, there are those who won't hesitate to make his life more difficult.

A fairly interesting part is Skuld's choice of a mentor. The most obvious candidate would've been Belldandy, however, I've decided that not only the latter would be busy trying to help her husband adjust to his new life, but also it was better to have someone other than her sister for that purpose. Peorth, no matter how strange of a choice is fairly familiar with Skuld (compared to a complete stranger) and yet she's not a family member, which means that the young Norn will have to take her training a lot more seriously since she's not dealing with one of her sisters.