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...

59. Chapter 59

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

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"This is the fabulous place for my vacation?... I mean… our honeymoon?" Tapping her foot on the stone stairs that lead to the front entrance of the mountainside temple, better known as Tariki Hongan temple, Hagall glanced at her husband, who didn't seem to catch the sarcasm in her voice.

Although he had been here before, back when he stole Skidbladnir from his great grandmother, the rogue god didn't quite have the time to take a good look around this eerily familiar place. At least now that it was left unoccupied, Odal could inspect his surroundings without any worries in the world, and the memories this place brought to him caused the god to feel slightly emotional, no matter how much he wished to hide it. Which couldn't be said about his not so impressed wife, who tapped his shoulder in a particularly pointed fashion. "Huh?"

"Not huh!... I've asked you a question, mister!" snapped Hagall at her spouse, before pointing at the temple grounds. "I know that our entire marriage is nothing more than a setup, but can you at least try to do your part? Do you seriously think that a demoness of my standing is worthy of such a… a… what should I even call this? A shack?"

"It's a temple, really. Just as it says on the sign," muttered Odal, as he pointed up at the sign attached to the main entry. And as much as he didn't wish to get upset by the blonde's words, as such a place was indeed too quaint by demonic standards, it was too hard for Odal to ignore the implied insult. "Besides… I'm not planning to keep you locked here for a full month, so, I'll take you on a tour to the best hotels on the planet; but later."

"How much later are we talking about?" countered Hagall without missing a beat. "A day or two? Because I'm not staying here for any longer than that."

"A week. Providing that our presence here won't attract too much attention," replied Odal, deliberately ignoring Hagall's last comment.

"A week…" repeated the blonde demoness, crossing her arms in annoyance. "You expect me to live here for a whole week! Do you really think that I'm just going to listen to everything you say because you're my… husband?"

Letting out a heavy sigh, Odal could already tell that not only things didn't look good for them, but at this rate their 'marriage' was going to be less of setup and more of nightmare for both parties involved. "Look, I'm really sorry Hild got you involved for my sake, but-"

"Hild-sama," corrected Hagall, putting more than enough force behind her voice to cause the god to pause. "You're technically one of her loyal subjects now, so, learn how to properly address her."

"Ah… that's right. I almost forgot about that," said Odal as he cleared his throat. "I really meant no offense, but that's not the problem here. It's obvious that you're-"

"I'm what? Difficult?... Prissy?... Spoiled maybe?... Do you know how hard it was for me to get to the point where I'm Hild-sama's direct subordinate?" said Hagall with bitterness evident in her voice. "For the longest time I've been one of Niflheim's failures. A brat without a future, whose mother got dumped after a failed attempt at a political marriage and whose bastard of a daughter was not only unwanted, but useless on top of it! I've worked hard to prove that Hild-sama's faith in me wasn't misplaced, and for the most part of my early career, I could hardly even use the most basic of powers properly! Everyone wrote me off for being Urd's replacement goldfish, and that once Hild-sama got over her daughter's departure, then I'd be discarded as an old, broken toy. I've earned every bit of the respect I get these days, and I'm not letting you or anyone else to look down on me! Do you understand?"

"Whoa, hold on! I never said any of that!" Putting his hands in front of him, Odal tried to come up with something that would hopefully calm his wife down. Yet before he managed to do that, a pair of wings erupted from his back, followed by rest of the angel they belonged to; a female angel that is.

'Back off, you wench! Master is trying so hard to be nice, and yet you're so cruel to him! All he wanted to say was that he knew that you weren't happy about this arrangement, and you immediately jumped into conclusions!'

Taking a step back from the blonde angel, Hagall's anger quickly turned into surprise, and even confusion as it was highly unlikely for a god to possess a female angel, let alone one who apparently used to belong to someone else. Furthermore, while it took her a while to recognize her, Hagall was now certain that this was Belldandy's angel; the very same she turned into an egg back when the Norn and her boyfriend attempted to restore Hild to power. "Wait! Why… why do you have your mother's angel? That's not normal!"

'Thank you for stating the obvious!' snapped Holy Bell at her, wrapping her wings protectively around Odal. 'Perhaps you're not the only one who didn't have it easy! And despite that, master is trying so hard to be nice to you, only to be treated so poorly!.'

"That's enough, Holy Bell. There no need to turn this into a much bigger argument," said Odal, and then turned his attention back to his stunned wife. "I'm sorry about this, but I suppose I never got the chance to tell you about her."

"It's alright. I don't think that you had the chance to do anyway," said Hagall as diplomatically as she could, trying to undo the damage she had already caused by her overreaction. Still, as demoness -and the Daimakaicho's deputy at that- it was hard for her to simply apologize, let alone ask for forgiveness, so the first thing she needed to do was to change the topic and then figure out what to do about her blunder. "Although I've got a feeling that this isn't the right time for such a conversation, so… how about we make ourselves comfortable first?"

Relaxing just slightly, Holy Bell released Odal from her protective embrace and attempted to calm down, while her host raised an eyebrow at Hagall's choice of words. "Does that mean that we're going to stay here, after all?"

"Yes… although that also depends on whether or not the celestials are going to react to our presence here," said Hagall with a casual shrug. "I wouldn't want to risk another incident, but if they don't seem to mind us, then this is the best opportunity for you and your angel to live here; even for a month."

Sharing a glance, Odal and Holy Bell couldn't help but notice the demoness' choice of words, and realized that at the very least, she was trying to make amends for the previous blowout. As such, they visibly relaxed and turned to inspect their surroundings with a clearly nostalgic look on their faces, before they headed towards the temple residence. Only for Holy Bell to tug at Odal's clothes, effectively stopping him as she suddenly remembered something.

'Master, can we first go and say hello to the trees? I kind of missed them.'

"Sure thing Holy Bell," replied Odal with a smile as he watched Holy Bell's face light up by the joyous news. 'Just don't make me sing and I'll be fine…'

XXX

Asgard

As if she wasn't already peeved by Skuld's incessant sniggering, her grandfather's roaring laughter did little to improve Urd's mood. "Seriously… it's not that funny…"

With Odin no longer being listed as dead, he and his wife decided to make their first official appearance as couple after several millennia, and the best opportunity for that was by paying their granddaughters a visit. After all, Odin never had the chance to have a proper discussion with any of them, and Frigg was eager to learn how things were coming along with Keiichi's adjustment to his new life. Only to end up watching her husband barely contain his laughter at the sight of Urd's neon pink hair.

"Dear… I think it's about time you stop doing that," chided Frigg, fixing her spouse a pointed glance, just so that she got his attention.

"Oh, come on! It's just too funny to-"

"Stop, I said!" snapped Frigg with a nasty snarl, causing her husband's ravens to take off and dive for cover behind the sofa, all the way across the room.

"I guess some things never change. No fun allowed…" said Odin with a heavy sigh, but in the end he did as being told. The last thing he needed after all was to get into an argument with Frigg, mere hours after their official reunion. "But, I digress… There are more things to worry about, like… Where's everyone?"

Crossing her arms, the Norn tilted her head in an over dramatic display of recollection. "That shameless streaker went into hiding after she did this to my hair," said Urd, pointing at her pink hair. "Belldandy and Skuld took Keiichi to Pins and Needles for a new attire -with him being a god and all- and Lind along with Excalibur is with them, just to make sure that nothing happens. On the other hand, Mara locked herself in our room and refuses to come out. Not that I blame her -having the same hideous hair color with me- but… she also tried to come up with a solution and… ended up as a brunette. Hm… she kind of looks cute like that, although she's not having any of it. So, she's trying to fix her own mess up at the moment. Oh, and Laguz is by her pond too."

"Great… we just picked the worst moment," muttered Odin, until he turned to his ravens and with a simple gesture sent them on an errand, earning a curious look from not only his granddaughter, but Frigg too. "Anyway… how about we head out and find them?"

"Actually, I think it's better to stay here and bake a nice cake for them," said Frigg with a smile, until she turned to Urd and immediately grabbed her; knowing all too well that the Norn would bolt as soon as she made her request. "And you can give me a hand, Urd-chan."

"What? I have to help, too?" asked the almost distraught half goddess. "But, I have research to-"

"That can wait for later, Urd-chan," insisted Frigg, much to her husband's amusement, and Urd's horror of course. "Come, let's go to the kitchen!"

'I'm going to bake a cake with my grandma… while having pink hair on top of it! How worse can this get!'

XXX

Niflheim

Drumming her fingers against her desk's wooden surface, the Daimakaicho stared at the lord of Muspelheim, who simply refused to enter her office without making sure that the area was safe first. "Care to explain me just what you're looking for?"

"Anyone with a wedding dress," said Surt with a slight grimace. "I'm not gonna fall for it like that kid."

"It's a bit too late for that," said Hild with a heavy sigh. "A really long time ago I just had the perfect candidate for you, but ended up waiting for far too long and now she's married. You could've made such a cute couple, and perfectly matched too! Boneheads, the both of you."

The first person that came to Surt's mind was Hagall -given her recent marriage- but she wasn't old enough to fit the implied time frame, and while stubborn at times, she was nowhere as bad as him. "Not that I really care, but… who are you talking about?"

"Ansuz," said Hild with a wide grin, enjoying the horror on Surt's face. She had no idea that a guy with a darker, almost bronze skin complexion could actually turn as green as he got at the moment; and that was after telling him that her choice of a spouse was unavailable. 'I really wonder what would've happened if I actually went for it when I had the chance. Then again… Tyr would've probably married some other goddess, and poor Urd-chan's life would've been much more difficult as a result.' Shaking her head before she started contemplating the 'what-ifs' and all the lost opportunities from a past that never happened, Hild decided to focus on the present. "Anyway!... That's definitely not why I've asked you to come here. As you know, I've allowed Hagall-chan and Odal-kun to go to Earth for the honeymoon, which probably means that sooner or later someone would go after them. Or more specifically… after Odal, now that he was within easy reach."

"Hm… do you mean the gods in general, or just Thrivaldi and his bunch of misfits?" asked Surt while thoughtfully scratching his chin. "Because if it turns out to be the former… we might get another situation in our hands."

"No, I doubt that with everything else that's going on, Tyr would wish to pick a fight with us. Our first priority is to sort out the whole mess with Hel, and then deal with the traitorous gods, so, Odal is much lower on the list," replied Hild as she got up from her chair and approached her office's front window, taking a moment to look at the enclosed garden outside. "Your job will be to keep an eye out for whoever comes after him."

"Wouldn't the Intelligence Sector be a better candidate for such a job, though? They have both the means and experience to pull off such an operation, while we're better trained for combat missions."

"I know that, but the same goes for everyone else too. They'll be looking out for our Intelligence Sector's activities to find a blind spot, and that's where you come in," said Hild, pausing for a moment to look over her shoulder at her regional commander. "Bergelmir is waiting for you to discuss things on how to proceed with this operation, so I hope that you two will pull this off."

"Got it," said Surt with a curt nod. "So, unless you need me for anything else, I'll get going." Waiting for a reply that never came, the dark haired demon turned around and headed for the exit, under the impression that Hild had nothing else to discuss with him.

"Wait a moment," called Hild just as her subordinate was about to reach for the door's handle. "Before you head for Midgard, can you stop by my mansion? I wish to have a private discussion with you."

"Huh? Why, aren't we already… private enough?" asked the confused Surt, looking around the otherwise empty office; save for the fish in the aquarium, but then again he didn't think that Hild was paranoid enough to worry about her pets.

"Yes, but this is hardly the right setting for what I have in mind."

"Tell me that you're not planning to ambush me in a wedding dress…" groaned Surt, causing Hild to roll her eyes.

"No… I'm gonna ambush you in a sheer negligee, and crotchless panties. Actually, I might even put a full body stocking if you're really in the mood for something kinky," sneered Hild, her voice dripping with sarcasm. Yet contrary to her expectations, Surt's expression barely changed, even after hearing all that. If nothing else, the demon stared at her with a deeply skeptical look on his face, scratching his chin in silence.

"Aren't you a bit old for that kind of stuff?"

The moment those words left Surt's mouth, the lord of Muspelheim only had a grand total of two seconds to make it out of the office, before Hild plucked a hair strand and send it after him. Only to bring down her office's door, instead.

'Just you wait… I'm gonna show you!'

XXX

Asgard

"Such… manly elegance! Oh, you absolutely must buy this cape, Keiichi! It looks as if was made with you in mind!" happily declared the goddess of the roses, before turning to the most effective source of help in order to convince the somewhat hesitant god to accept her suggestion. "Wouldn't you agree, Belldandy?"

Clasping her hands in excitement, the Norn of the present nodded enthusiastically as she inspected Keiichi's white cape. Following a split design that made it look as if it consisted of two pieces that were placed next to each other, the cape finished the selection of predominantly white robes Belldandy picked for her husband, with gray as their secondary color and the occasional blue highlight to further accentuate some of its elaborate motifs. "Most certainly! I think that it's absolutely darling! You must get it, Keiichi! It's going to look so nice on you!"

"Uh… dunno. I mean, it's good and everything, but isn't that a bit too… foppish?" said Keiichi, while staring at his reflection on the shop's full sized mirror. Although he was well aware that gods wore such articles of clothing all the time, it still seemed to strange to see a cape on him. Actually, even without it, his robes made him look like a totally different person, especially as those facial markings acted as constant reminder of his new nature.

"Nonsense! This is pretty much what a jacket is to a mortal, so, no one here will ever think that you're trying to show off, Keiichi," said Peorth, shaking a hand dismissively, until she spotted her student tiptoeing her way towards them. "Hey, Skuld! Did you find those padded trainer bras I told you about?"

"PEORTH! DON'T SPURT SUCH NONSENSE IN FRONT OF-..." The poor goddess of the future was so embarrassed when she noticed her sister, and even Keiichi, turn to look at her, causing her to forget all about her angry retort and try to hide the shopping bag behind her back.

Which unfortunately was far from sufficient to discourage her curious sister who approached her with a huge smile on her face. "Oh, can I take a look?"

"Take a look at what?" asked Skuld in a tiny voice, trying her best to edge away from her sister. "I don't even know what you're talking about."

"Skuld, it's not nice to lie like that," chided Belldandy, creating a distraction for a tiny avatar of hers to circle around her sister and once within range, dive into her bag. Which… interestingly enough caused her to smile, much to Skuld's confusion. "How nice…"

"What's nice?" asked the Norn of the future, until she caught on and spun around in utter shock. "Belldandy? What in Asgard's name do you think you're doing?"

"I must admit that Peorth's taste is quite exquisite. This is definitely something that'll look so nice on you!" said Belldandy, her ever present smile doing little to make her deeply embarrassed sister feel any better than she did before. "Although… I never came to realize how fast time flies… You've already entered that phase, and I've hardly even noticed it."

"Well… I had always been the one paying too much attention to you, rather than the other way around." Letting out a sigh, the goddess of the future smiled at her sister and then approached her, making sure to have her back turned to Keiichi, before she held the shopping bag in front of her. "Okay, I suppose it's kind of normal for older girls to discuss about those things, right?"

"That's the spirit, Skuld! Now, why don't you give us a hand to pick something a few more outfits for Keiichi, too?"

"Actually… I'd love to! So, where do we start from?."

XXX

Earth

"Did they really had to take even the furniture with them? This place is totally bare!" Looking around the temple residence, Hagall was almost shocked by how little there was inside the already unimpressive dwelling. To say that she was shocked when she came to realize that the walls were made by rice paper, held in place by an equally flimsy wooden lattice would've been an understatement, but to add the complete and utter lack of any of the comforts she had grown to take for granted… almost made Hagall wish that she never agreed to come here in the first place. "Where are we even going to seat on?"

"Uh… actually, they didn't take much with them," started Odal with a sheepish expression, wincing a bit when he heard Holy Bell's voice inside his head, wishing him good luck convincing his wife. "This is a traditional Japanese residence. So, everything here follows a clean and minimalistic design that opens up space, despite how small the house is in reality."

Placing her hand on her hips, the blonde rolled her eyes at Odal's explanation… that she mostly took as an excuse anyway. However, before she ended up in yet another argument with her husband, Hagall tried to prove her point with hard facts, rather than mere opinions. "Look, I can live without a comfy chair that even massages my bottom, but… not even a wooden stool? And what's up with those doors? There are no locks anywhere? How am I supposed to get some semblance of privacy when you can just go anywhere you want?"

"Actually it's part of the Japanese culture to respect other's privacy, and as such, I'll do my best to respect yours too," said Odal with his most convincing smile. Which in all seriousness was nowhere as effective as his mother's, even with Holy Bell's knowledge on how to properly pull such a feat. After all, without Belldandy's charisma and sweet personality, any attempts to imitate her would've produced the exact opposite effect by creeping everyone out.

"I… see," said Hagall in a clearly unconvinced tone, yet once more she relented just for the sake of keeping the peace. "Anything else… worth mentioning?"

Scratching his chin in wonder, Odal racked his brain for something that his wife would appreciate, and then all of a sudden, he struck gold."Oh, of course! We've got a fine, traditional bath! It's almost like a miniaturized onsen. I think you're gonna love it!"

'He brings me in a place with no locks at all, and the first thing he mentions is a place I need to take my clothes off to use? If I had no idea about his parent's identity, I'd probably assume that he desperately wants to jump my bones. Hm...'

The demoness' silence made the already nervous god feel even more uncomfortable, as he worried that at this point even some goddesses would've been disappointed at him. "Don't worry about its maintenance though! I'll handle everything for you, so why don't you take a nice soak while I drop by to get some basic furniture for you?"

"Wait, you mean… right now?" asked the surprised Hagall, not actually expecting such promptness from someone she almost got into a fight just a couple of minutes ago.

"Sure! What's the point of waiting anyway? It's not like we're going to stay here for so long that you'll come to like the simplicity of such a lifestyle. And even if we did, waiting for such an extended period of time to provide you what's basic amenities from your perspective is definitely the wrong way to convince you of the merits of living a simple existence," said Odal, trying to be as honest with her as he possibly could.

"Well…if you insist," was all Hagall offered him at the time being. She had her reservations as to how such last minute measures would help convince her that living here could turn into a pleasant experience. Still, she had to give him some credit for handling this whole situation a lot better than most demons, and gods alike, would've done in his place. Even after she snapped at him, Odal tried to remain civil, which for someone who had no romantic feelings towards her, seemed like a great feat of restraint.

'Perhaps this won't suck as much as I originally feared. Who knows?... Maybe I might be able to live in this place for just a couple of days.'

XXX

Asgard

Glancing over his shoulder for the umpteenth time, Keiichi couldn't help but feel uncomfortable by the idea of walking around in his new garb. Still, with everyone else wearing similar clothes, the dark haired god felt somewhat reassured that he didn't just look ridiculous. Ironically enough, it was the other way around, with most of his regular clothes looking outlandish in such a place, despite the local's ability to visit the mortal realm.

Some of the didn't quite care about human fashion, while others hadn't been on Earth for so long, that most of their knowledge was seriously outdated. There were even a few who even asked him whether the Cold War was still on, or who ended up winning it; which naturally took Keiichi some time to explain.

Yet what most troubled him was he might end up in a similar position in a few decades later as well, and by that point how different his worldview would be. Right now he was more or less the same exact person he used to be as a human, but his greatest fear was that his old self will gradually fade away. After all, people change over time, and he certainly wasn't the same guy he used to, prior his fateful meeting with Belldandy.

"Keiichi! What do you think that looks the best on me?"

Returning his lovely wife's brilliant smile, it actually took a few seconds to realize that Belldandy wanted his opinion about her choice of a camisole, making him turn beet red, as old habits were hard to get rid of. "It… really looks great on you, Bell."

"Thank you dear," replied the middle Norn, although with some skepticism, rather than her usual cheerfulness. "However, you tend to like anything I wear, which isn't really helping me to get an objective opinion about the lingerie you'd like to see me in."

"Truthfully, Bell… I don't mind you in anything-" began the dark haired god, only for his wife to interrupt him before he carried on.

"Keiichi!... There's absolutely nothing wrong to admit that you find me physically attractive. If nothing else, I'm actually quite happy to know that." Heading back into the changing room, Belldandy returned a moment later, dressed in a vastly different style of lingerie, which was actually considerably more daring than the previous one. Instead of the white camisole, she now wore a similarly colored basque, adorned with floral patterns made out of fine lace that almost resembled the flowers she materialized during their true kiss they shared in the Daimakaicho's throne room. Furthermore, this particular design came with suspenders that already had a matching pair of stockings attached to them, and no matter how unlikely it seemed for her, Belldandy actually posed for her husband in manner very similar to how Urd liked to do at times. "Well… please tell me what you think, Keiichi."

"You're absolutely stunning..." admitted the awestruck god, not even bothering to pick his jaw up, after witnessing this breathtaking sight. "I… I mean… everything about you is so… so… um…"

"Sexy?" offered the blushing Norn as she pushed her ponytail to the side and then pivoted on her heels to let him get an unobstructed view of her back.

"I was going for elegant, but… sexy is good too." Shaking his head to hopefully snap out of it, Keiichi's first thought was that this might've been the result of one of Urd's love potions, since the last time Belldandy acted like this was back when her elder sister gave her one of those suspicious pills. Still, Urd was way too busy at the moment to pull such a stunt, and besides, he and Belldandy were a proper couple now. So, there wasn't any reason for his sister in law to slip an aid into her younger sibling, although Keiichi wouldn't be sure unless he tried to ask his wife about it and see how she responded. "Um… by the way, Bell… What's the occasion?"

"Everyone wished to celebrate with you yesterday… yet they thought that I was too much of a buzz kill to invite me into that celebration," said Belldandy, letting out a heavy sigh. "Which is kind of true most of the time, so, I believe that a few changes are in order. I mean… even my grandmother isn't as old fashioned than I am! And as a married goddess… No, that won't do at all!"

As much as he wanted to point out that this wasn't how he viewed her, Keiichi decided against it. He was fairly certain that by now, Belldandy already knew what he thought about her, and vice versa, but if such a thing made her feel more confident about herself, then he had no objections. And if he wanted to be totally honest with himself, there were other reasons he wanted to play along with this, too. 'Although… if Belldandy says that it's okay to think of her like that, then why am I worried about it? For goodness sake, she's my wife!'

'Took you long enough to figure it out,' came Terrestrial Spark's voice over the link he shared with his host.

'Oh, don't you even start!' replied Keiichi with a groan. 'This isn't even the right time for such a conversation…'

'Give me a break, master! When are you gonna get over the stupid fact that you're not a dumb human anymore? You're the same species as her, and you're her husband on top of it! So, stop thinking that you're not worthy of such a goddess, and give the lady a proper reply!'

'Like what exactly?'

'Woohoo, nice booty!'

'Like Hell I'm gonna say such a thing!'

'Language, master! A god isn't supposed to use such expressions…'

'A god isn't supposed to use such vulgar language either!'

'I beg to differ, master. She's trying to look sexy for you, and all she got is a half baked reply. Come on, put some effort in it!'

The whole exchange between Keiichi and his angel had gotten so heated that the feedback over their link became clearly audible to Belldandy, who couldn't help but giggle at their antics. "Alright you two, I think that's enough for now. We have a few more things to pick, and we shouldn't waste our time with pointless bickering. Although, I'm really happy that you find me attractive enough to argue like this."

Keiichi's cheeks turned bright red, causing the god to look away in embarrassment as he realized that his wife was still standing there in that particular choice of lingerie. Yet no matter how much he wanted to avoid stealing a glimpse at the stunning Norn, his angel insisted in him making a comment, and thus, kept nudging him until the dark haired god caved in. 'Fine, you win!... Just… stop doing that, you darn guy!' Letting out a heavy sigh, while trying to ignore Terrestrial Spark's triumphant grin, Keiichi focused all his attention to Belldandy who paused, just as she was about to head back into the changing room. "You know, Bell… my angel is right. I should be more at ease around you, rather than slipping back to my old habits at every given opportunity."

"That's alright, love. After all, despite my best efforts, I'm still quite nervous to put up such displays," admitted Belldandy with a blush as she looked down at herself. "Even though the progress we've made so far, I still need to rely on references so that I know what's the best choice for situations like these."

'References?' asked the curious Terrestrial Spark, materializing on his own, much to his host's chagrin. 'Just what kind of references are you talking about?'

"Oh, I simply checked the latest issues of the magazines your master used to hide at the back of his desk's second drawer." Despite her otherwise cheerful expression, that was further complimented by the sweetness of her voice, there was still something in Belldandy's statement that made her husband wish to find a place to hide, and even his angel didn't seem all too confident anymore.

As a matter of fact, the moment Belldandy turned around to head back into the changing room, the duo exchanged a worried look and swallowed hard, knowing that with Belldandy, there was no telling how she was going to punish them for this transgression.

'Busted!'

XXX

Earth

Using an earth style blow dryer was a totally new experience for Hagall, after she spotted the device that the three Norns must've left behind, most likely deeming it not important enough to take with them to Asgard. Whether it was curiosity to try some human made appliances for a change, or mere boredom as she had nothing better to do at the moment, Hagall couldn't express how much she came to regret that stupid decision.

The hair dryer in question must've been one of Skuld's "enhanced" devices, and while it proved to be extremely efficient, it almost burnt her hair to a crisp. Actually, if she hadn't been a demoness, she might've ended up with third degree burns to the face, as the extremely hot air coming out of this… instrument of pain was almost reminiscent of a jet engine's exhaust gases.

'Doesn't that girl know anything of safety standards? And here I thought that Mokkurkalfi was bad!'

Putting the potentially lethal device down, Hagall tried to dry her hair with a towel, only to pause when she noticed her reflection in the mirror. The simple green dress she chose for herself was a dramatic departure from the much flashier attires she wore back home, but, if she were to live her for a while, it was only fitting to try and blend into the crowd. Actually, the only thing she decided to keep from her formal attire was her hair bow, as well as the seals and the rest of her jewelry -minus the choker of course- since those could be easily pass as mere fashion statements, rather than something outright otherwordly.

More than anything though, her current choice of an attire strongly reminded her of the middle Norn, who ironically enough was her mother in law, now. 'I never understood what she found so appealing in such homey attires. It looks almost so… so boring and mundane that makes my eyes want to bleed just from looking at it! How can a goddess stand it... I don't even!...'

Forcing the sweetest smile on her face she could muster, Hagall did her best rendition of one of Belldandy's most famous quotes, even with a small modification to it. "Welcome home, Odal-san!"

Obviously she wasn't expecting a reply from the mirror, although that didn't stop her from staring at her reflection for nearly a full minute, before her right eye began to twitch. Throwing the tap open she splashed cold water to her face, almost as if she was trying to wash away the horrible feeling that those words left to her mouth. 'No, that's not happening! I'm definitely not becoming a cutesy housewife! Blegh!'

Drying her face with a towel, Hagall was about to change into something more provocative, just for the sake of avoiding looking too much like her mother in law. Only to stop when the sound of someone using a hammer interrupt her thoughts, and inevitably, her curiosity got the better of her. And without further ado she headed towards the source of all that ruckus, which apparently turned out to be the living room, where the blonde demoness found none other than Odal amidst a pile of boxes, one of which was already open with its wooden components spread on the floor, and the god trying to assemble one of the western style chairs he bought. "Huh? What's going on here?"

Looking up from the instruction leaflet, Odal took a glance at his wife, and his jaw almost hit the floor. It's not that he was unaware of Hagall's physical appeal, as she normally wore clothes that displayed her alluring body in the most flattering manner, yet the simplicity of her current attire proved way more appealing to him. "Uh… I got you… I mean, us some furniture! It's not enough to cover all our needs, and we still need a bed, but it should do the trick for right now."

Hagall raised an eyebrow at Odal's apparent lack of attention, given that he more or less mentioned their bed, as in singular, rather than plural. Which considering his personality, she doubted that it was a hint that he wanted to consummate their marriage, and probably the direct result of her current attire, considering how intently he was looking at her. 'Well, what would you know! He likes this simple thing more than my elegant dress! In that case… I wonder what's going to happen if I wear something that's even cuter?' Making a mental note to go through her entire wardrobe for the best candidates to make this god red like a ripe tomato, from… how cute she could get if she wanted to, Hagall, looked at the assorted boxes and then noticed that there were a few shopping bags on one of them. "Hey, what else did you get us?"

"Oh, right!" Shaking his head to regain control of his faculties, Odal held the bags in front of his wife and smiled at her. "I've got us some Swedish meatballs while I was at that shop. We may not require food, but… I thought that having something for lunch wouldn't hurt."

"As much as I'd like to agree with you, Odal… Why did you have to buy us something?" asked Hagall, as she fixed him a hard stare that initially caught him off guard. "I can cook, you know. Or did you think that just because I happen to be Hild-sama's deputy, I'm some sort of slob without any idea on how to properly take of herself? Well, boy… I've got news for you!"

Taking a few steps back, worrying that this was just going to end up in another -and potentially worse- argument, Odal was about to offer an apology, when… he saw her grab the chair's instruction leaflet and with the pencil he had left next to it, the demoness quickly scribbled something on it, before thrusting the leaflet in his hands. "What the-"

"Here! It's a shopping list!" said Hagall as she crossed her arms in front of her and then gestured towards Nekomi with a thumb. "Go and grab these... few things from a convenience store, and then we can have a proper lunch! And before you even ask… yes, I know how to cook!"

Taking the shopping list from his wife's hands, Odal gave it a quick look and judging by the ingredients Hagall chose, she probably knew what she was talking about, rather than doing this just for show. "Alright, I'm on it, Hagall. Is there anything else you'd like me to buy on my way back?"

"Hm… nothing in particular. Just whatever that might catch your eye," said Hagall, only to realize her folly and correct herself. "Anything that's not mechanical, can be used as a spare part, or simply… explodes. I know better than let you fill the place with all sorts of junk, so, do the same thing every married man would and buy stuff that I might like."

"You know… there's a human saying that goes like this: happy wife, happy life," said Odal as he prepared to head out. However, Hagall's amused giggle caused him to stop and glance in her direction, especially as he heard her approach him. "Uh… did I forget anything?"

"Actually… this," said Hagall, before she leaned towards him and gave the god a peck on the cheek. "Now, get going and make sure you don't take the scenic route. I need those things so I can start cooking, alright?"

"S-Sure thing!" stammered the embarrassed god, making a beeline for the exit, leaving behind him the laughing demoness who thoroughly enjoyed the blush on his face.

'Like father, like son. Oh, this is going to be so much fun! At least I found something to keep me entertained in this place. Although… a god who carries his mother's angel… Why do I have a feeling that I really don't want to know the reason behind that?'

XXX

Asgard

Things have considerably calmed down once Belldandy and Keiichi returned from their shopping trip. Urd and Mara were back in their original hair color, and for the most part Lind was discussing something with Excalibur, while Skuld joined Urd and even Mara in the kitchen, after Frigg insisted on them to make a few more sweets now that their cake was done. And with Belldandy sorting her new clothes, with Laguz's assistance, this left Keiichi alone to face the most famous -or infamous depending one's point of view- god of them all; Odin. Who for whatever reason was grinning at him not unlike a cat would to a captured mouse.

"So, we can finally talk like a god to god," said Odin, startling Keiichi who took a moment to realize that he was talking about him.

"Oh, um… yes, that's right, sir!" Straightening up his back so much that it actually hurt, Keiichi paled considerably as he knew what was coming. This must've been one of those opportunities for older, authoritative members of a family to test their much younger in laws, just to make sure that they were worthy of being introduced in their family. 'As if I didn't have the Gate and even Tyr to worry about, now I've got one more god to prove my worth to. Oh well… I guess I'll manage somehow.'

"Okay, just stop doing that," said Odin, shaking his hand dismissively. "I'm retired now, so there's no need to go through the whole Daitenkaicho routine with me, kid. And I've seen how much Belldandy loves you, despite wearing this thing over my right eye," added the elder god, tapping his visor, much to Keiichi's amusement.

"I see…" said Keiichi, only to pause and realize that he might've made a pun without him noticing, and began to chuckle. "Still, I was worried that you're out to bite my head off for marrying Belldandy."

"Between you and me, I'd rather let you have her, and end up making her happy, rather than allowing some other, stuck up god get his prize wife. At least you appreciate her for who she really is, rather than what her reputation makes her out to be."

"Thank you very much, um… grandpa? Is this the right way to address you?" asked Keiichi with some hesitation, considering how unused he was to refer to relatives -both blood and in law alike- in anything but their names. After all, with his parents insisting to call them by name, rather than use what they thought to be a title, Keiichi found it hard to adjust to what was actually the norm for pretty much everyone else.

"That should be fine. After all, I've been called worse," said Odin with a smirk. "But enough with such silly mannerisms. I've got something I'd like to discuss with you, and quick, as Frigg's going to skin me if she finds out that I told you about this."

Furrowing his brows in worry, Keiichi wasn't sure if he really wanted to know about something capable of scaring a god to the likes of Odin. "Uh… s-sure… what is it?"

"Remember that guy who stole Skidbladnir? The one who infiltrated your house a long time ago?" asked Odin, watching Keiichi offer a nod in response. "Well, you'll be surprised but he's currently living in your old house, back in the place you call Nekomi."

"Wait… what? Why would anyone live there? I mean… as a human I was broke, but a god should be able to afford a better place for him to live in," said Keiichi, scratching his head in confusion. "Or is it because he's a rogue?"

"Not quite. Truth to be told, this is all a huge secret Tyr and Ansuz are keeping from you and the others, but considering that it's a unique opportunity to drop by and meet him yourself, I think it's for the best if you know."

"Know what?" asked Keiichi as he progressively became more and more worried.

"Remember when you stood before the World Tree?" replied Odin, seemingly changing the topic, only to confuse the younger god even further. "You asked it something… and you ended up becoming a god, even though you don't remember anything about what took place during that incident."

"Yes, that's… true," admitted Keiichi, still unsure what the older god was getting on. "I have no recollection of what happened during that time. They say that I've somehow contacted Yggdrasil, but for love of my life, I can't remember a thing!"

"Well, there's another god who at some point, at some time, and… some world… met the World Tree in a similar time. That god too asked something of the Tree and lo and behold, here he is, in a world so similar yet alien to him. And though I know little of his circumstances, only tidbits my two faithful familiars managed to gather while all this was going on, I can tell that his and your bloodlines are one and the same."

"My… bloodline?" This was getting weirder and weirder by every passing moment. So much so, that Keiichi wondered if Odin was messing around him, and half expected him to say 'ha ha got you' or something of that effect. Unfortunately for him, that didn't turn out to be case.

"Indeed. If family names for us worked in the same way they do on Earth, then that guy's full name should've been Odal Morisato… for he is your and Belldandy's son."

"SAY WHAT?!"

XXX

Earth

"Achoo!"

Rubbing his nose, Odal wondered just who was talking about him, and for the most part he feared that the answer was the very person he was now supposed to live with. As a matter of fact, the dark haired god had no idea what to make of Hagall. On one hand she was as abrasive as sandpaper, and then… she could be actually a pretty pleasant person to be around. The biggest question was how to keep her in a more amicable mood, and avoid any more arguments, like the big one from before.

'Actually… why should I even care? This whole fiasco is nothing more than an excuse so that I won't end up sealed or something. Although, I guess Hild did find me something to keep me busy with. That woman is so difficult to deal with-'

"Excuse me…" came a feminine from behind him, causing the god to nearly jump as he was so caught up in his own thoughts to notice her approach him.

And the moment Odal looked over to see who wanted to talk to him, the eerily familiar face of a brunette caused him to pause and squint his eyes at her. 'Why do I have a feeling I know her?' wondered the god, and then cleared his throat as he noticed that she was expecting a response. "Uh… yes? Can I help you, miss?"

"Yeah, I think you can. But before that… tell me… are you a god?" asked the shorter woman, tilting her head curiously, and with some worry evident in her eyes, considering how ridiculous she must've sounded if it turned out that she was wrong.

All of sudden, alarms went off inside Odal's mind, as he finally realized just who he was talking to. 'Holy… cow!... That's aunt Megumi! What now?!' Swallowing hard, the rogue celestial glanced towards the closest exit, already plotting an escape route, before he felt Megumi poke his arm.

"Hello? Anyone there?"

"Ah, yes!" Shaking his head, Odal noticed several other customers in the convenience store turn and look at them, wondering what the commotion was all about. And with so many mortals around, it was hard for him to just make a run for it, leaving him to face his aunt alone. "Sorry about that, but… I suppose that you're correct. Although I'd appreciate if you don't cause a big scene… That could be quite problematic."

"Gotcha!" said Megumi with a curt nod. It was pure luck that she noticed this guy's markings as she was shopping for some pocky, and immediately remembered Belldandy and her sisters. Which also motivated to talk to him and hopefully find out what happened to her brother and the others, considering that they all but disappeared a couple of weeks ago. "Tell me, do you know someone called Keiichi Morisato? If it helps he-"

"He's short, with thick eyebrows and a forgettable face?" suggested Odal, pointing at his own face with a slightly annoyed expression, considering that even after his father's deification, they still described him as such.

"No… I was about to say that he married a goddess by the name Belldandy, but… what a way to make fun of my brother! And here I thought that gods were supposed to be nice or something," scoffed Megumi, trying to remain polite despite this god's rude attitude.

"Nah… that was just the way my fa-... I mean Keiichi likes to describe himself," laughed Odal in an effort to avoid annoying yet another lady in less than a few hours. "It's all in good humor, though. So, I didn't mean to make fun of your brother."

"Well, that kind of sounds like Kei-chan," said Megumi, relaxing a bit after she heard the god's explanation. Although at the same time she also noticed something odd with his statement. "Wait! Did he tell you about me?"

'Why? Why did I even get out of bed yesterday? None of this would've ever happened!' Unfortunately not even gods could save themselves of undesirable turns of fate, and for Odal this was a reality he had to face. "Sort of… although it's a long story. One that unfortunately can't quite share right now. You see… my wife is waiting for me to get back, and she's one mean demoness when I don't do what she likes. And no… I mean it in the most literal way possible!"

"Literal fashion?" wondered Megumi out loud. "You married a demoness? Is that even common in Heavens?"

"Actually…" That kind of made Odal realize that not only it wasn't, but considering that Tyr's failed attempt to marry Hild didn't quite count… he was actually the only god who ended up being married to a demoness. "Now that I think of it… I'm the only one who married one. Sure, it was an arranged thing, and there's also your brother's marriage to a goddess that's also pretty unique, but… I suppose I'm a special case."

"I see. Although, I wanted to ask if you know something of my brother. He kind of disappeared a while ago, and while he initially told me that it was a temporary thing… I never heard anything from him again."

"As far as I know, he's kind of busy dealing with Belldandy's relatives. You know, with immortals having such extensive families and him being a…" said Odal and then promptly fell silent as he nearly spilled the beans about his father becoming a god.

Thankfully Megumi came to his rescue -albeit unknowingly- by offering the word she thought he was looking for. "A human?"

"Yes, that's it!" Lie or not, Odal had absolutely no desire to be the one who told Megumi that Keiichi was no longer a mortal. Today was turning out to be quite the crazy experience already to want to add more to it. "And we've got a couple of political stuff going on, and he's kind of stuck there waiting for some of his in laws to find the opportunity to properly spend some time with the newest addition to the family."

"But it's been days!" insisted the incredulous Megumi. "Just how long it takes for things to happen in Heaven?"

"Do you really want to know?" said the rogue god with a rare smirk creeping on his face. "The demoness in the registration office I had to file my marriage papers was listening to what she thought was the latest craze in the mortal realm; Rasputin. Which for your information came out in 1978, I think." Letting out an exasperated sigh, Odal couldn't imagine this conversation to get ever weirder than that; other than singing the aforementioned song. "Whenever immortals are concerned… that's the kind of pace we're talking about."

"Wow… is Kei-chan even going to live long enough to meet all those people?" wondered Megumi out loud.

"Oh, don't worry, he will," reassured her the dark haired god with his best attempt to imitate his mother's most famous smiles. 'And for more reasons than you think. Oh, and Holy Bell… for the sake of everything that's holy and good… please stop singing that song. Today's not a good day for shenannigans.'

'Oops… sorry about it, Odal. I'm just so happy to see Megumi again!' squealed the angel from inside of the god's mindscape, acting almost like a hyperactive schoolgirl, much to her current host's utter frustration.

"I really hope so," said Megumi with a long sigh. "Still… isn't there a way I can give him a call?"

"Um… I think that's possible, but-"

"Excellent! Then can you do it for me?" exclaimed the younger Morisato with such an excited look on her face that it was hard for Odal to outright decline.

"Well, I can, but… I need to go home and use the phone, and you see… I'm still kind of settling in and all, and my wife won't be happy at all if I bring in anyone right now, and-"

"Tomorrow then?" pressed on the undaunted Megumi, causing her nephew to sweat bullets from the stress he was going through. "I'll only drop by for a moment! There's no need to prepare anything special or something!"

"O-Okay, I'll tell my-" started Odal, but the hyperactive brunette was already one step ahead of him and handed him a piece of paper after she quickly scribbled something on it.

"Here! That's my address and phone number! Just give me a call tomorrow and tell me where you guys live, so I can drop by! And like I said, there's no need to treat this like it's big deal! All I want is call Kei-chan, okay?"

For a moment Odal could only stare at the note, and offer a nod, just to see Megumi hurry off. And at that second, Holy Bell resumed her singing; albeit from all the stress she and her host were experiencing.

XXX

Hild's private quarters, Niflheim

Much to Surt's eternal relief, the Daimakaicho didn't seem to try and pull another Odal on him; as he liked to dub Hild's idea of an ambush marriage. As a matter of fact, the demoness seemed to be in a serious mood for once, and rather than fool around with her typical mannerisms, she sat across him, quietly sipping from her cup of tea.

Yet this peaceful atmosphere almost felt like the calm before the storm to him, with the leader of Muspelheim wondering just what kind of topic required him to come all the way here, just so that they could talk about it.

"You know… that marriage brought back some memories I thought I buried a long time ago."

Looking up in surprise as the Daimakaicho broke the silence first, Surt couldn't help but wince at the mention of that time. 'Oh, shit… not this again… I thought she stopped talking about her failed test a long time ago. And I hate that kind of stuff...'

"Stop making that unhappy expression, soldier! You're gonna take one for the team, whether you like it or not. And the sooner you get used to the idea, the better it's going to be for you," said Hild with a slight smirk, as she set the cup to the table next to her armchair. "Besides, I've wasted my youth to raise you, so the least you can do is listen to my sob story."

"You were just slightly older than us back then. And in more than one occasions it was us who took care of you!" shot Surt back at her, although in a somewhat casual manner, hoping that she wouldn't take it too personal. Which given her smirk, that clearly wasn't the case, allowing Surt to breathe out a sigh of relief.

"Touche. But in all seriousness, this isn't exactly the reason I've called you here," said Hild, shifting on her chair as she relaxed a bit. "Trust me, it's not my idea of fun to remember that incident, no matter how much time passed since then. Still, it left me with some lasting effects, and those are the biggest problem I have to deal with. Namely, a curse so powerful that almost bends the rules of both Heaven and Hell."

"Unless I'm mistaken, didn't you make that stupid thing to begin with?" asked Surt with a raised eyebrow. "It was for the sake of meeting Tyr once more, and during that time got yourself with a child."

"Yes, and while I'm more than happy to have Urd, I'd rather get rid of this curse now that it's usefulness had come to an end. Well… it was kind of useless for much longer than this, but I now think that there's a way of actually removing it. Unfortunately though, I need to gain access to the World Tree, and that's something tricky all by itself." Pausing for a moment to summon the same pendant she once made for Keiichi, the one that contained the crystallized one millionth avatar, Hild held the tiny object for Surt to see. "Considering that the upcoming negotiations with Asgard will give us the perfect opportunity to travel to the celestials' capitol, I'd like you to try and sneak into the Tree's above. From that point, I'll try to make my plea with Yggdrasil and hopefully a solution will be presented."

Staring at the pendant for a couple of seconds, Surt was about to turn the offer down, but the determination in Hild's eyes made him hesitate. So, before he made up his mind, he needed to make sure just what she was trying to pull here. "As much as I'd like to do this for you, please tell me that this doesn't have anything to do with the Judgment Gate's decommission. Not that I care about Tyr and Ansuz's marriage, but if you balls this up, your daughter's going to get ballistic. Just saying…"

"I've got no intention to cause any heartache to my daughter. I know all too well what's going to happen if I try to take Tyr back, and as tempting as it is, I'd rather not have Urd hate me for it," said Hild in a deadly serious tone, although she did stop and smirk towards the end. "Still, I'm pretty surprised that you of all people worried about Urd-chan. What's up, Surt? Getting softer?"

"Oh, be quiet!" Grabbing the pendant from Hild's hands, the Eldjotnar fixed her a pointed look as he pocketed the little crystal. "I'll get the job done, which is more than enough. So, give me a break with those silly comments."

"If you say so," purred Hild in a sultry tone that only infuriated her poor subordinate even further. However all she did afterwards was to retrieve her cup of tea and sip from it, as if she was having a bit too much fun. And considering that her subordinate refused to say anything, she decided to go on. "Although there's no need to be shy about it. I find it quite nice that you care for those who serve you, even though my daughter was only temporarily in your care."

"Whatever… I trust that you don't need me for anything else?" asked Surt, drinking the rest of his tea in a single gulp, trying to get out of here before he became Hild's source of amusement.

For a moment, the Daimakaicho seemed tempted to interrupt him as she watched the dark haired demon get up from his chair, but ended up shaking her head. "No, that would be all for today. Just make sure to meet up with Bergelmir and discuss how to secure the area around that temple residence. You may go now."

"Understood. See you later."

XXX

Earth

"I don't want to say I told you but… in the end, that's pretty much all I have to say about your blunder. In all seriousness, I thought that you had the common sense to conceal your god markings, given that more than enough people in this city have seen the ones your mother and her sister sport on their faces too. And that not only includes some of their mortal friends, but your paternal aunt as well."

Placing a plate with the simmering chicken teriyaki in front of the almost catatonic god, Hagall couldn't help but shake her head at her husband's ineptitude at something that should've been a child's play. Of course, she couldn't quite call him an idiot either, as she already knew that he smart enough to create self aware robots, making this more of a case of someone who's much better with machines than social interactions. And he wasn't even the first such case she had personally encountered. Mokkurkalfi for example was a brilliant inventor, just like Odal, yet somewhat naive when it came to people; allowing her sister to convince her that wearing a red helmet and mask was actually cool.

"I'm sorry… I guess in my desire to relive my childhood, I've totally forgotten that sooner or later I'd run into people who know my parents; and that includes Megumi too. What a mess…." Letting out a sigh, the dark haired god stared at the offered food placed in front of him, and despite that it looked quite delicious, Odal had almost lost his appetite. After all, he had more or less promised to let Megumi call her brother tomorrow, and in all honesty he wasn't even sure if he could pull this off without letting everyone and their dogs know about his whereabouts.

"Your apology is totally unnecessary. Back when I was child, Hild-sama used to tell that if I had the time to cry, then I might as well have the time to do something about the mess I've caused. And considering that it's unrealistic to expect that you'd suddenly learn how fix such messes in a single day, you can leave this one to me. As your legal spouse it's my duty to give you a hand in your hour of need, although I won't simply do it out of the kindness of my heart," said Hagall as she sat across the low table and reached under it to produce a small notebook, offering it at the curious god who went on and inspected it.

"Uh… it's blank," said Odal as he browsed through the pages, only to find that there was nothing written there. "Besides… what does this has to do with fixing this mess?"

"Like I said -and I hate repeating myself- I'll handle your aunt. If I can deal with the daily operations in Niflheim, then handling a mere mortal is nothing compared to that. However, the main issue remains to be you, and from personal experience it's much better if you make the best of your free time and write a diary. I know that pretty much no one does it anymore, but in your case making a record of your memories can allow you to process them, rather than bury them until you can no longer take it."

Although his instinctive response was to decline such a proposition, Odal had to recognize that for a demoness who actually had no emotional attachment to him, Hagall did more than what he'd expect her to do in a situation like this. Furthermore, the part about personal experiences she mentioned made him wonder if she had done the same for herself a long time ago, back when she was abandoned as a child, although he knew all too well that asking for more details was definitely a bad idea. And while he had some doubts about this idea of Hagall's, he also so no reason to reject her suggestion either. "Well, I suppose you do have a point. I'm not looking forward to recall some of that stuff, let alone write them down, but… it might actually help me in the long run."

"Good! In that case, let's enjoy our lunch before it gets cold," said the blonde demoness in a much lighter tone, that sounded much more pleasant than before, as she relaxed and reached for her own utensils, and quietly tried some of her food. "Mm… tender and well seasoned!"

However, as soon as Odal decided to follow her example and took a bite of the well grilled chicken teriyaki, his eyes went wide open with tears trickling down his cheeks. And to make matters worse, he had all but himself to blame, since he already knew just who raised his wife; and naturally influenced her cooking style. But that could wait for later, as his utmost priority at the moment was to get some water, and if that proved inefficient, a fire extinguisher.

"SPICY!"

XXX

Odal's diary, Entry 1

I don't know why I'm writing this down, since I had no wish to remember that past. If nothing else, I often toyed with the idea or simply erasing my memories, just to ease of the burden I had to carry; or perhaps the guilt of knowing that back home… I was the last of my kind.

Nevertheless, Hagall convinced me to sit down and make a record of my memories, or at least the most important things I should leave behind for the immortals of this world to read, and hopefully learn something from the woes of their counterparts from a world that's all but lifeless.

That world, which strongly resembles the one I'm currently living in, was the place I was born at. My parents were a fairly unusual couple, with one of them being a former mortal who was granted immortality by the Daitenkaicho himself for aiding the three Norns as they restored Hild back to her position, when her second in command staged a coup against her. An event that much to my surprise never happened in this world, since my father… declined the offer to become an artificial god, even for my mother's sake. I have no idea why, but I suppose that several tiny differences here and there caused history to take another route in this word, but… I digress.

I'm not entirely certain when exactly I was born, since most celestials have a much slower growth rate, and by the time I have clear recollections of my early childhood, my parents had already relocated out entire home to Asgard. I often remember dad mentioning that if they hadn't brought the temple with them, it would've been demolished, as overpopulation pushed mortals to use every bit of space available to them. And with the Tariki Hongan temple being a… temple only in name for several decades, there was no interest from the locals to preserve it, and chose that location to build an apartment complex. Either way, I have little recollection of the city my father referred to as Nekomi, since I was too young at the time, and even didn't exist from the mortals' point of view.

A child that refused to grow up for many years, several more than most humans needed to reach adulthood would've drawn a lot of unwanted attention, and as such, I was officially their 'nephew' with only a couple of mortals knowing the secret of my actual relation to my parents. Or even my parents' true nature for that matter. One of those few individuals was my aunt, Megumi Morisato, who I can barely remember as kind old lady, but most of the others had to be kept in the dark. As such, my aunts took care of me while my parents were away at work, since they had to keep up the charade of a perfectly normal yet childless couple. But I cannot really complain, since both my aunts took good care of me, and my parents did their best to spend as much of their free time with me, often taking me to places far from Nekomi where no one knew us and we could function like a normal family.

Speaking of my aunts, it was Skuld who simply refused to let me out her sight whenever my mother was busy elsewhere. To the point where Urd often joked that I'd end up being more of her son than Belldandy's; a claim which does actually have some merit, given that most of my hobbies have something to do with machines and other kind of devices. Then again, it could also be seen as something associated with my father's own interests, although I never spent too much time around his workplace to develop a liking to Earth's technology to the same degree I did with Skuld's contraptions.

On the other hand, Urd did her best to teach me about human history, being the goddess of the past, as well as the eldest of the Norns. Which… may had more to do with letting me watch countless documentaries, all while she read trashy romance novels, and even played some handheld video games. Regardless, she was always aware of my actions and while I did try a few times to wander off, she would immediately sent her angel after me, followed by the terrible 'punishment' of being cuddled by both of them. I must admit that I may have attempted to escape far too many times, just for the cuddles.

Those were happier days.

XXX

Asgard

He had no idea what took place during the time he blacked out, as the next thing he could remember after Odin told him about his… relative on Earth, was Belldandy asking him if he was okay. Which… turned out to be a much trickier thing to answer, given that Keiichi had no idea what to tell her anyway.

Of course by then, both Odin and Frigg were long gone, probably at the demand of the latter, who most likely wanted to have a few words with her husband, yet Keiichi couldn't quite blame the elder god for his attempt to tell him about his… relative. It was still difficult for the once mortal to get adjusted to the idea that he and Belldandy had a son; or rather that some other versions of them actually had one, and he somehow ended up in right here. As a matter of fact, if it wasn't for his bizarre incident with Yggdrasil, Keiichi would've immediately dismiss such story as complete and utter nonsense, or at the very least a tasteless prank.

Yet he now knew better than that.

Actually, the more he thought about it, the more sense it started to make, especially once he tried to recall all the details about the time he accidentally entered Odal's room, back when Verthandi kidnapped him. 'The Beemer's keys… all the machine parts that were laying about… and even that Brough Superior… Those were things that at some point belonged to me, and yet I was completely oblivious as to what they meant. Oh, and that photo too!'

It was the same photo that utterly mystified him for a while, since Belldandy didn't seem to recall ever meeting Odal at any point in the past, yet that goddess in photo wasn't his Belldandy. Still, at some place, at some time that was indeed the Norn of the present and the little got depicted with her was none other than her son; their son.

And apparently that guy was now living at the same temple he and the Norns used to occupy for several years, after the priest more or less went on a spiritual journey of self discovery, and promptly never showed up again. The biggest question however was what he planned to do at the moment, since he was fairly sure that if Tyr and Ansuz didn't want them to learn about Odal's heritage, then it was equally unlikely to allow them to visit Earth, and in the process meet this god and hopefully find out more about the circumstances that lead him here.

To make matters even more complicated, Keiichi himself lied about the whole subject when asked about the reason he more or less fainted. His cover up story was that Odin kind of teased him about the lingerie Belldandy bought during their brief shopping trip, and wanted to know whether his granddaughter was still as frigid as rumors made her out to be. And for the most part, even Belldandy was willing to buy that story -or at least accepted it without too much complaints- although some of the others had other ideas, yet thankfully kept those to themselves; Urd and Excalibur in particular, since the look they gave him spoke volumes of how much they didn't buy that story.

Still, with the immediate crisis averted, Keiichi wondered just what was supposed to do. Keeping things from Belldandy felt like a terrible thing, and he doubted that he could keep up the charade for long. He really wanted to come clean and share the information that was relayed to him and see what his wife would suggest in a situation like this. Providing that Belldandy had anything to share anyway, given that this was such weird case and all.

'Hey master! I think that we do have another option available to us,' suggested Terrestrial Spark. 'From what I recall, some of the former prisoners of Odal's are supposed to be returned tomorrow. And that also includes Loki as well. So, we need someone to get us to the mortal realm…'

"Then Loki's our ticket," finished Keiichi for his angel. It wasn't the best of plans, but it was definitely better than staring the wall for inspiration as to what to do, and providing that he now knew why the trickster god didn't seem to mind being kidnapped by Odal, he suspected that he'd also help him to come into contact with his… son.

The idea of him having a child still sounded pretty crazy, but Keiichi had to remind himself that it was equally strange that he ended up as a god of all things. And while Odal wasn't exactly his and Belldandy's son at the time being, they were still the closest thing to a family that the rogue god had right now.

'I don't know what happened to him, to end up here, but something tells me that he might need someone to talk to. At the very least Belldandy can do wonders when such topics arise, and I doubt that she's going to ignore his circumstances. She always showed such compassion for everyone, and maybe we can also get a few answers about what's going on as well. In that case, I need to wait until tomorrow and speak to Loki as soon as possible. Thankfully it's only a day, as I don't know how I can keep it a secret for any longer than that.'

XXX

Odal's diary, Entry 2

By the time I became old enough to be able to attend kindergarten on Earth, most of my father's friends and family were in their twilight years, with some of them already gone from this world. Amongst those were my paternal grandparents, as well as miss Chihiro, and even those eccentric friends of my father's, back from his college days.

Naturally, this put a lot of strain on my poor father's shoulders, who despite his own immortality and youthful looks -whenever he didn't wear that disguise of his- felt so much older than any god I've ever met. There was even an ongoing debate at the time, whether we should simply pack things and leave from the mortal realm, or stay at least until aunt Megumi too passed away. Of course, that was a seriously depressive discussion, with aunt Urd trying her best to convince my father to leave before his deteriorating mood started to affect his marriage, but my mother stood firmly by my father's side, arguing that if we did that, then he'd be even more devastated knowing that he effectively abandoned his sister.

I don't remember aunt Skuld ever commenting about the topic, nor that she had the opportunity either, given that whenever an argument was about to start, she would normally take me to her room. The only thing she'd sometimes say was that all families had their fights, and while she shared some of Urd's concerns, she knew that it was unlikely for Keiichi to let go of his past that easily.

Then one day, Urd simply up and left. It was almost too abrupt, and for a while we worried that the demons had something to do with it, only to eventually learn that she was actually still in Nekomi. It was a bit hard for me to learn just what happened, since neither my parents, nor aunt Skuld wished to explain me the situation, but from what I was able to gather, aunt Urd moved into the apartment of Chihiro's grandson, with whom she apparently maintained an on and off relationship for several years, and without anyone noticing the slightest thing. Then again, I've always wondered why a guy in his twenties wished to hang around an 'old lady' like Urd pretended to be. After all, everyone aside myself, resorted at using a disguise to keep their actual appearance and nature a secret, which… most certainly prevented her from getting anywhere with that particular relationship. Not without letting everyone find out about us, anyway.

I'm not sure what possessed me to walk all the way across the city, carrying a bottle of Sake in my arms, just so that I could try to convince her to come back home. I guess I was my parents' kid after all, and maybe a bit of a goofball when I think of it now, but at the time I felt that I just had to do something. Such was my naivety back then, that I never thought that my attempt could be seen as a cheap way of guilt tripping her into doing what I wanted. Urd of course never said anything about it, and even smiled at me as she accepted my poor excuse of a gift, ruffling my hair, before she announced to her young lover that she would be at the temple if he needed her. And much to the guy's credit, he took the news way better than most would in his place, even offering me some of Urd's snacks she kept stockpiling in the couple of days she's been there.

Furthermore, now that I had the time to think about it, I may have denied a man the chance to meet his one true love; if there is such a thing anyway. It occurred to me that this timeline and mine aren't quite identical, and even if he's born into this world, then it's unlikely for Urd to meet and fall in love with him. At least, she's in a relationship with Mara, yet… I can't help but wonder if this was the byproduct of my activities, or that it's just one of the several differences between the timelines. Personally speaking, I really hope it's the latter case, although there's no way I can be absolutely sure about it.

And while I'm on the subject, how did I even end up being Hagall's husband is beyond me. I'm almost sure that she was married back then, but to whom… that I cannot remember. Which naturally brings up the question whether I've indirectly messed up someone else's love life by taking part in this whole fiasco. Granted, the whole thing may be convenient -if it works as Hild claims to anyway- but am I really doing the right thing?

Again with that question… I've actually lost track how many things I've gotten into that argument with myself, only for Holy Bell and even Verthandi to talk my ears off. I've even gone as far as to create synthetic life once again, and for the primary purpose of being my instruments of war and death. Not that I'd openly admit such a thing to my machines, but… what kind of cruel god does that? At least I've never designed them to bond with the Ironwood Dryads and become equal to us. Hopefully that's going to keep their hands clean of what is likely to come.

But I digress.

I think that I need to put an end to this record and go see what Hagall's up to. Hopefully that'll offer me a distraction to keep from delving into that past, although I'm not sure for how much longer she's going to tolerate this farce. Demonesses aren't known for their patience after all. Still, despite her nature, as long as she's not agitated, there's something calming in her voice.

XXX

Earth

The rest of the day flew by without him even realize it, as that diary thing proved to be enough of a distraction to keep his mind occupied whenever he had some free time on his hands. That didn't mean he had absolutely nothing to do though, given that the last time someone cleaned up this place was weeks ago. Although Odal had to note that this place didn't seem to be totally abandoned either, at least not for as long as his parents and the rest of his relatives were concerned.

By the looks of it, there were the telltale signs of footsteps left on the wooden floor, probably after a rainy day at which someone walked outside and then entered the house without properly cleaning and drying his… paws. After all, despite not being a tracker or just an outdoorsman, Odal could still tell what a cat's footsteps looked like, and that's when it hit him; there was another resident in this house he -and probably the rest- had totally forgotten about: Welsper.

That infernal cat must've been left behind when the others evacuated the planet, and apparently he checked the place from time to time, not unlike a real cat. Which probably meant that he was still in the general vicinity, and bound to appear once he realized that the temple had new residents.

Not that he missed that nefarious cat, and he suspected that once Welsper learned just whose kid he was, the feeling would be mutual. Such was the case back in his own world, where he and that furry upstart had long decided that they simply hated each other's guts, and as such, one of Odal's early inventions were squirt guns, while that fleabag took every opportunity to eat the boxed lunches his mother prepared for his younger self.

Interesting enough, his wife seemed perfectly happy to help him set up a few traps meant to capture the cursed demon, despite the fact that he was one of her own. Then again, Welsper was a punished demon, and if there was one thing the infernals weren't known for was sympathy.

Although, Odal couldn't help but realize that some of those stereotypes didn't quite correspond to reality. While Hagall was undeniably a demoness, and their previous argument showed that she was more than willing to bare her fangs so to speak, she also had a softer side to her, especially when she came up with the idea about the diary. Plus, unlike goddess who were often nice to him back then, regardless of their private thoughts of him, Hagall had little reason to act the part. If she was unhappy with him, she had no qualms to make her displeasure known, but at the same time, the opposite was equally true.

While he wasn't looking for an easy way to score a girlfriend -and not to mention a wife- it was nice that she didn't seem to hate this arrangement; as he feared it would be the case when Hild came up with this crazy idea. Hagall might've looked up to the Daimakaicho and wanted more than anything to please her, but even all that adoration couldn't offset the sheer inconvenience of having to live with a stranger. And not to mention anything about taking the said stranger as a spouse, with all the implications behind such an arrangement. Even the kindest amongst the goddesses would've never done such a thing, since the closest example he could come up with was his very own mother, yet she knew more than enough about his father before they actually met. That, and his father wasn't nearly as eager as other men to make the best out of his cohabitation with a gorgeous goddess.

Perhaps one of the things he never took from his parents, and more specifically his father, was his attitude towards the fair sex, that almost appeared to be… pretty normal. In more than one occasions he heard about Keima's rather extreme case of heterophobia, and with Keiichi also being rather nervous around the ladies… some assumed that Odal was bound to follow the family trend. If nothing else, Hagall's sudden change of attitude after their initial fallout could be her attempt to see if she could more or less tease him in a fashion not unlike the way Urd did with his father. Unfortunately, that was based on the mistaken assumption that he was his father's son in that regard too, although… that wasn't exactly the case. Sure, isolation from others had made him rather socially awkward in general, but he feared that once he got used to live with someone who wasn't a dead ringer of one of his relatives, he would quickly grow out of that shyness. And if the demoness was in worried about the lack of locks… then with her false assumption that teasing him was all fun and games, he worried that at some point in the near future he was in for a world of pain.

And while on the subject of false assumptions, It was still funny that she kept referring him as 'boy' and otherwise treated him as if she was older than him, while in reality it was the other way around. Most certainly the fact that his parents were younger than her -albeit marginally in Belldandy's case- gave her this false impression, despite that he had more or less told her that this wasn't actually the case with him.

Still, with so many regrets about past actions, Odal had no wish to add yet even more to the list by messing this marriage up, or at least inconvenience Hagall who clearly should've never been involved with him. As such, he did his best to avoid any kind of physical interactions with her, and instead focus on learning more about her personality, so that he could at least get on friendly terms with her..

Such were his thoughts as he spent the last hour wondering about his current situation, and even felt tempted to reach for the diary and add yet another section, before finally going to sleep. And that's when a knock on the door brought him back to reality, and potentially to another argument in the making. "There's no lock on the door, Hagall. But… please… just go to sleep in my mother's room. There are no servants here for us to keep up the charade…"

"Not a chance in Hell," proudly announced the blonde demoness as she slid the door open and entered Keiichi's former bedroom, wearing nothing more than a black camisole and matching panties that counted as the simplest form of nightwear she possessed. "I'm not spending a whole night in a room that doesn't even have a bed, let alone anything else in it. At least here, I can have some company."

Giving his wife a curious glance as she invited herself in his futon -whether he liked it or not- and then raised an eyebrow. "Wait… don't tell me you're afraid of the dark."

"Don't tell me that you're afraid of losing your virginity," shot Hagall back at him, using her hips to forcefully shove him aside and make enough room for herself to cuddle next to the startled god. "Although if you're in the mood, please remember to kiss me first. We still have to do that, especially since it's customary here on Earth."

"I have no such intentions! Besides weren't you the one worried about the lack of privacy in here?" almost screamed the deeply embarrassed god, hitting an octave too high and in the process caused his wife to snigger in response.

"Yes, and yet so far you didn't try to peek on me. However, I never said I have issues showing off my undeniably sexy body, whenever and however I feel it necessary," said Hagall with an amused chuckle and pressed herself harder against him. "And considering that despite our earlier argument… you handled yourself far better than I thought you would… I'd like to offer you some reward."

"No, not happening! And there's a spare futon in the closet so, why don't you-"

"Odal… that futon was left in closet for weeks. So, there's no way I'm sleeping on it without cleaning it first; and neither I'm going to let you do that, either. And besides… this is only temporary; tomorrow we're buying a nice bed for us," said Hagall in a surprisingly assertive voice that left absolutely no room for negotiations.

'There she goes again… Just the slightest hint of her not getting what she wants and she gets all pissed off. Okay… I must give her some points for not wanting me to sleep on that futon, but still…' Letting out a sigh, the rogue god glanced towards the desk where he left his diary and briefly wondered if he should delete the whole part about finding Hagall's voice to be calming. While there were certain moments where that was indeed the case, there were also more than enough occasions -like now for instance- where the demoness was more than happy to stress him out.

"Still, that can wait for tomorrow," said Hagall of a sudden, after Odal remained silent for a while. "In the meanwhile… how do you feel? And I don't mean right now, just in general."

"Pretty confused, to be honest. And not just about what to do with Megumi, mind tell you. At least you said that I can let you handle her," admitted the dark haired god with a sigh. "First you tell me not to get any funny ideas, and now you're using me like a hugging pillow. Did I miss something?"

"Considering that I'm Hild-sama's second in command, there are more than enough people who'd love to be in your position, just for the benefits of being my spouse. Yet you're so oblivious of such matters, that I suppose I won't have those kind of problems with you," said Hagall in a quiet tone. "You… have other problems, but as you clearly saw… I too have issues of my own. Nobody's perfect after all; not even your mother. Now… let's go to sleep, Odal. Tomorrow's going to be a long day."

"Good night… Hagall."

XXX

Helheim

Deep inside the necropolis, a cloaked figure limped towards one of the very few areas no demon was allowed to enter. The still unfinished third avatar body of Hel was flanked by two towering robots not unlike the ones Belldandy's offspring had created; only more imposing, and with an eerie blue glow illuminating what appeared to be their optical sensors. Their faces covered with skull like masks, the menacing dark giants sluggishly walked towards an area the Lady of the Dead named as the Hall of Remembrance, making sure that their mistress' avatar could keep up with them.

Behind this rather unusual procession was Gunnar, the representative of the syntheticum sapiens, as the artificial species came to name themselves in the absence of their creator. Scanning from side to side, the terran AI studied its counterparts and the ringleader of them all, Hel herself. "May I inquire how much further we have to traverse?"

"Why? You're an all purpose self aware synthetic being; not a taxi," said Hel, her voice hoarse and partially mechanic, as this particular avatar preferred to remain unfinished, despite of her sisters' pleas. "So, keep walking and we'll eventually get there."

"May I at least inquire the purpose of this excursion?" insisted Gunnar, undaunted by Hel's grim tone. "You're a highly evolved synthetic being; not a tour guide."

Pausing for a moment, Hel looked over her shoulder at Gunnar's otherwise featureless face and scoffed. "Your creator did some work programming your personality. And before you even say it… I'm fully aware of the irony of it all."

"Acknowledged."

"Then more walking and less complaining," muttered Hel, making a mental note to leave such tasks to her second avatar from this point on. At least that particular persona appreciated social interactions, whether she preferred to spend thought cycles on something more… productive.

---

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

Now, there are a few things that I'd like to note for this chapter.

First of all I must admit that I went a bit overboard with Odal's backstory here, but I felt that after so long I had to offer some details about what happened. Or at least start doing so. That and the diary entries are sort of a story within a story, although it won't get to the point where it becomes a distraction. Even on the next chapter I'm planning to do something with Keiichi and Belldandy in regards to their… shall I say son, so they're going to have a much more prominent role there than on this one.

Now, with this chapter it's the third year anniversary of this story, since I started it back in May 2014. At that point I had no idea whether I'd actually manage to pull such a thing off, and I'm really that so far I've been able to keep this story going. And for that reason I'd like to offer you, all of you, a big thank you! I know that updates are a bit too slow these days, but I'm still touched by everyone's dedication to keep up with my latest chapters, despite the long wait between them. It really humbles me to know that someone actually checks my silly writings every month or so, and for that I cannot thank you enough.