"Here is your tea, Mr. Ottar."

With shaking hands, Haruhime gave Ottar a tea cup with a saucer beneath it. She couldn't help but feel relief when he gave her a nod and the smallest hint of a smile as he accepted the tea from her.

"Thank you."

It was so simple but those words were enough to take the edge off of everyone in the room, especially Haruhime.

"Can we get you anything else? Mikoto is an excellent cook. We could make something for you to eat?"

Ottar shook his head as he declined her kind, but unnecessary offer. He brought the tea cup to his lips and drank. His face gave nothing away as he lowered the cup back onto the saucer and placed it on the side table next to him.

Everyone in Hestia Familia was left speechless at what they were seeing.

'What the hell is going on?'

Welf couldn't believe what he was looking at. The strongest adventurer in all of Orario was sitting in their living room drinking fr

"..."

"Mr. Ottar, what's going on?"

om a cup that was an eighth the size of one of his hands. And he was so polite too. Welf began to question his sanity. Was he high? Drunk? Dreaming?

'That's it. Nothing else in this life can surprise me.'

Freya had raised Ottar not only to be the strongest, but to have manners as well. It was only natural, as he had accompanied her to many parties over the years, that he would know how to have proper behavior during 'social' events.

Hestia shook herself out of disbelief and cleared her throat. As much as she wanted to keep gawking at the baffling sight before her, she had other business she needed to get out of the way first. For the sake of her Familia.

"Ottar, if I may ask, why are you here?"

Ottar's expression hardened as he looked at the questioning Goddess. His posture remained unchanged however.

"I am simply following my Goddesses divine will."

Hestia couldn't help but ponder what that meant.

'Freya's Divine Will? What does Freya even want with us? Is she trying to steal Bell away?! Hadn't Loki warned me about something like this happening a while back?'

Bell on the other hand was truly only concerned about two things.

Was his Familia going to be safe?

And was Ryuu okay?

"Mr. Ottar….sir. Why does Freya want you here? How do you know Ms. Syr? Where has Ryuu gone?"Bell was firm with his questioning of the massive Boaz that sat in front of him. Ottar continued to stare at him. Looking Bell completely over. Almost as if he was sizing him up or assessing him for something.

"Lady Freya wishes for you to be with her Familia."

"Eh?"

"..."

"EHHH?!"

The entire Hestia Familia cried out in disbelief at what the strongest adventurer in Orario had just stated.

Bell stared back at the seemingly unrelated response to his earlier line of questioning.

"What are you talking about!? I'm a member of Hestia Familia!"

Ottar's eye line was focused solely on Bell, ignoring all the others, as he continued his previous statement.

"My Goddess feels as though your current environment is holding you back, and that in order for you to grow properly, you should be around much stronger individuals. I am simply here to invite you to join up with Freya Familia on her behalf. You can still carry the blessing of Hestia if that is what you desire, Freya merely wishes to help you better hone your skills and abilities."

This all made Bell tense up as he looked down to the floor deep in thought.

"You want to get stronger, correct?"

Ottar questioned the young boy's resolve, to which Bell could only nod his head hesitantly in confirmation.

Ottar finished the last of his tea and got up from his seat. His looming figure immediately putting everyone on edge.

"Enough time has passed. The two should be done with their talk. That is all I came here for. I must be going now. Excuse me."

With his business concluded, Ottar turned to begin walking towards the exit door. But before he could make his leave, Hestia came and blocked his path.

"Hold it right there mister! I don't know what kinda game that handsy Freya is pulling here but you let that busty bimbo know that there is no way I'm handing over Bell willingly!"

The size difference between the two was monstrous. To the members of Hestia Familia, it looked like a tiny dog barking at the One Eyed Black Dragon. Ottar simply looked down at the Goddess in front of him and spoke thusly.

"This request came from concern for the boy's safety and growth."

"Safety and Growth?! Oh Please! Everyone knows what kind of "growth" she's interested in! Why would Freya even care for Bell if she wasn't planning on stealing him for herself?!"

"...I can not say."

"Well then you tell that nymphomaniac that she's gonna have to send a whole freaking army over because there is no way I'm letting that silver haired seductress be with my precious Bell for even a single moment!"

"..."

Ottar remained silent as he looked down at Hestia. Eventually, he closed his eyes as he let out a small sigh.

"Very well."

Ottar stepped around Hestia and continued his way out of the room. Before he left however he turned and made eye contact with a certain Renard.

"Thank you for the tea. It was very good."

"N-n-no...problem, sir."

Haruhime nervously let out a response as Ottar exited the room, and then very shortly, the manor.

Hestia turned to face Bell with an expression of both jealousy and nervousness on her face.

"Bell what have you gotten us into?!…. Wait, where are you going?!"

But Bell had already bolted out the back, into the cloudy city rushing into the streets of Orario.

"Astrea…."

Ryuu looked down at the envelope as she whispered the name on the letter that had been handed to her by Hermes. She felt like she had been staring at it for a year.

"What do you think it says, Lion?"

Asfi looked at the still shaken up Ryuu. She quizzically asked what the elf theorized the contents of the letter were.

"I-I..I don't really….."

Ryuu stammered as she was left speechless. She was not emotionally stable enough at this moment to read whatever it was her Goddess had written to her. Especially after what the drunken Chloe had just said to her. Before anything else could be said or done, Ryuu pocketed the envelope and turned her attention to Hermes.

"Lord Hermes….thank you for delivering me this letter. Give me a moment and I will go collect your payment."

Ryuu got up and began to walk towards the staircase leading to her room. Right as she reached the stairwell however, Hermes called out to her holding up both his hands in surrender.

"Don't worry about it Ryuu, this one is on the house. Just let me know when you want me to send one back and I'll get it to her as soon as possible."

"Thank you…"

Ryuu thanked the messenger God for his kindness. She then met the eyes of everyone else who was looking at her. Aisha, Asfi, Syr, and even Hermes all stared at her with worry.

"Everyone…..thank you for….everything. I think I just need some time alone right now."

Aisha skeptically looked over at everyone and then back at Ryuu, genuinely concerned for the elfs well being.

"Ryuu…..are you sure you're ok-...!?"

"I'M FINE!"

Everyone recoiled as Ryuu snapped back at the amazoness. Ryuu looked at Aisha in pure frustration before her face quickly became red with embarrassment and guilt as she realized what she had just done. Obviously, what Chloe had said earlier had clearly gotten to her. Before anyone could say anything else, Ryuu quickly turned around, bolted up the stairs, and escaped into her room.

"What a clusterfuck this place is…..that elf is a little crazy isn't she?"

Aisha looked at Asfi, Hermes and Syr in shock and annoyance.

"It's been a…..stressful week for her."

Syr tried her best to avoid the topic of her best friend's outburst as she looked towards Hermes.

"Lord Hermes...thank you for coming. As you can tell however, we are all a little fried. I think it's best that you and the rest of your Familia leave as soon as possible. I'll look after Ryuu and the others."

Syr looked up at Hermes with a gaze that indicated it wasn't really a request. A look that Hermes very quickly picked up on.

"Yes….you're probably right. Asfi, Aisha, let's go."

Asfi, and Aisha hesitated to leave so soon, but decided to follow the orders of their God. The three of them quickly left the tavern, leaving Syr all by herself in an empty tavern hall.

Syr looked to the kitchen, where she could hear Chloe and Lunor screaming outside the door that led to the alleyway.

She looked towards the room which held a silent Anya, still nursing the injuries from which her former vice captain had given to her.

Finally, she looked towards the stairs, where Ryuu had not moments ago had an incredibly out of character outburst blowing up in front of everyone, before quickly retreating to her room.

"Fuck….."

Syr muttered under her breath in frustration as everything she had been trying to resolve just seemed to be getting worse and now, her friends were in even more pain and turmoil.

Syr tried to make a move towards any of her friends, but her body refused to move. She didn't feel like she could face any of them right now. So instead, she left out the front entrance and started walking towards Babel.

'Maybe Ottar had better luck than me.'

"She'll have our head for this…. And probably the rest of us too. I mean….you saw what happened to Allen, didn't you?"

"Would you shut up for two seconds and be ready, we only get one shot at this."

"Yeah, because if by some miracle she doesn't make us skin ourselves alive, it's guaranteed she'll shoot us in the head.

Hogni and Hedin were going at it once again on a rooftop overlooking a now empty street in Orario.

"Would you two-"

"Please stop your constant-"

"And might I add loud-"

"Bickering?-"

""""He's coming.""""

The four Guliver brothers chimed in, shutting down the two elves' conflict.

Hedin sighed looking down on the street where a certain white haired boy was about to enter, knowing that the executives were crossing a dangerous line.

"You better be right about this Helun…..."

'Where is she? Where is she? Where is she?'

Bell didn't know where exactly he was running to, he had lost track of Ottar almost as soon as he found him, he just kept bolting full steam ahead, searching the countless faces he passed on the streets looking for a certain elf.

To any normal bystander, he was simply a white blur, like a crazed bunny with super speed.

Bell swerved in and out of alleyways and people, taking every possible road he could find.

It was getting darker outside and he felt the air shift around him. The hair stood on the back of his neck as he felt a storm slowly moving into the city.

Before long he found himself in a street all alone….

Except no, that wasn't quite right. There was one other person in the abandoned street with him.

A familiar silver haired waitress stood with her back turned to him.

The frantic bunny stopped for a moment to catch his breath. He slowly walked over to Syr, who he had been told had been the one to last see Ryuu.

" ! I'm so glad I found you. Do you… know where Ryuu is?"

Bell was still recovering his breath as he casually went up to Syr to ask where his girlfriend was.

Syr turned around to face him. She smiled as she made eye contact with him.

"Why of course Bell! I'll take you to her right now."

"Oh that's wonderful! Thank you so much Ms. Syr"

"Yes of course! Well that's who you want most right? She's all that matters now right?"

Bell winced for a moment, picking up on the resentment in Syr's words.

"Syr, I don't know what Ryuu said to you, but…..is something wrong-?"

"No! Nothings wrong! I mean, it's not like I've kept you well fed, or trained you, or kept you alive. Not like I helped you stay out of Apollo's greasy fingers or anything. I don't even get a 'Hello! How are you?' anymore. I'm just your helper aren't I? Just a nifty little tool? Always more than ready to serve the almighty 'Record Holder'. The Great Bell Cranel. Just like all the other girls who have fallen head over heels for you, you just use them to get to where you want to go, and who you actually want to be with."

Bell knew something was wrong. The way she smiled at him was wrong. The way she postured herself was wrong. The things she was saying to him felt wrong. Even the surrounding street, which should have been bustling with people, was completely empty.

Everything about this was just wrong.

"Syr…what are yo-"

"SHUT UP! Shut…..up. You don't get to act all concerned now. It was all fake. You. You're so fake Bell. You act all innocent and pure but you….you tear us up. You tear me up. And you know you do. But you're a hypocrite and a coward. You can't even be honest with us, even when we clearly are showing you interest . You just string us along, getting our hopes up, and then before you know it, you go and bang up our best friend! Did you not think I'd be devastated?!"

"Wait! Syr, I don't know what Ryuu said to you, but please, I never meant to hurt you…..or anyone!"

Syr had tears in her eyes as she held tightly onto her chest.

"I don't want to hear it. Not from anyone, and especially not from you. You were supposed to be her hero. Her Odr! And instead you betrayed us and broke our hearts. Well. I can't accept that. I know what I need to do. For her…..and for me."

Syr took the hand holding her chest and lifted it up in the air, her slender, long fingers snapping in the empty, silent street.

Bell looked at her confused, but then he felt it. A lightning bolt hit him dead on, sending him flying into a wall.

"ACKHHHH!?"

Fragments of the building pierced his back as he toppled to the ground. He had never felt that kind of raw electricity course through him. His whole mouth tasted like metal.

He barely had any time to react before 6 warriors all surrounded him. He was still recoiling from the lighting and his vision was blurring.

Syr calmly walked over to him and looked down at him coldly.

"I will make you hers."

The last thing Bell saw was the heel of Syr's boot as she kicked him in the face, knocking him into unconsciousness.

"What am I doing? I can't do this…..I can't do this."

Ryuu was pacing in her room as she frantically tried to calm herself after what Chloe had said to her.

She stopped herself for only a moment and looked down.

"Is she right? Am I really….a bad person?"

"Do I put everyone else in harm's way for my own safety?"

"If that's true than…. ….and even…"

Ryuu trailed off as she looked down at her stomach. If she was really carrying Bell's child then how safe was the baby from Ryuu's constant misfortune?

"What if I get Bell killed? What if I get my baby killed? No…..No! That is unacceptable! I won't let that happen!"

Ryuu layed down on her bed, forcing her breathing to calm down.

'But how can I avoid it though? Orario is so dangerous. The dungeon is a deathtrap and I have so many enemies from Evilus that would do anything to hurt me or Bell, or our child.'

Ryuu began imagining all the horrible things that could happen to her and Bell.

' …..that settles it, Orario is out of the question.'

Ryuu steeled herself. Sure, leaving Orario meant leaving behind her friends and her current life, but her adventuring days died with Astrea Familia and she was never going to be a waitress forever. She had to keep moving.

"But if I can't raise the child here….than where else could I go?"

Ryuu sat on her bed for a moment as she pondered the question to herself. She didn't have a whole lot of options. She still didn't feel like she was worthy to go back to Astrea. And even still, it's not guaranteed to be much safer than Orario. She just felt so much shame from what happened all those years ago.

Ryuu glanced over at the letter she had been given from Hermes. She didn't want to open it. Not now at least. She wasn't ready to read whatever it said.

'So then, if Astrea Familia isn't an option, then the only other place I can think of is….'

"Oh! That could work! Safe, secure, no one would know where we were. The only issue would be….would they even accept him? Or our child?"

Ryuu pushed those worries out of her mind. Or at the very least, lingering in the back for now. She would cross that bridge when she and Bell got to it.

The elf quickly left the room and went into the streets of Orario to go find Bell.

"Ottar, how did Hestia Familia react to brining Bell to Folkvagnr?"

Freya slightly scoffed as she asked the mostly rhetorical question. She knew what thier response would be. But she still thought putting out the offer, even knowing the

"Not well, my lady. Though the boy did show some interest."

"Huh, we'll color me surprised."

Freya closed her eyes. She hated to admit it, but she was tired. Trying to keep everything together and operating out in the open was so much harder than it should be.

"Ahhhh, I'm so sleepy Ottar, I think I'm going to go to-"

*Knock Knock*

Before Freya could begin planning to drift off into the night's embrace, Hogni came knocking on the door to her room.

"My lady, may I request a moment of your time?"

Freya looked to the side, smirking the smallest of smiles and then focused her gaze on the dark elf.

"Yes Hogni, what is it?"

Hogni stood up straight and even somewhat smirked, trying to match her demeanor.

"We have a present for you."

Freya really wasn't in the mood for yet another statue, or combat display, or poetry reading session.

'That poetry reading was creepy.'

"Hogni, I really appreciate you trying to cheer me up, really I do, but right now I would really like to go to be-"

"Trust me my Goddess, you're going to want to see what we got you, isn't that right Ottar?"

She turned to Ottar to see what all the fuss was about, but Ottar simply bowed his head slightly, like a simple nod of approval to what Hogni had prepared for her.

"Very well"

Freya got up from her chair and followed Hogni to one of the guest rooms in Folkvangr.

"You're present is right in there my lady. We hope you enjoy it."

"We?"

Freya looked at Hogni with curiosity at his choice of words.

"Yes my Goddess, this is from the executives of your Familia, to you. Well, I'll leave you to it. Please enjoy"

Hogni began to briskly walk away, almost as if he was trying to get as much distance between himself and "the present" as possible.

'That's weird…..oh well, let's get this over with."

Freya opened the bedroom door and gasped at what she saw.

There on a rose covered bed, layed the man of her dreams, tied up, and half naked.

"Bell…..?!"

I hope you enjoyed the chapter….only took two years to get out. Truth is, it, and a lot of the rest of the story has been ready for a while, I just didn't know if it was a high enough quality to post. But I'm putting it out there and seeing what you guys think and if there is still any interest in this story. If I do continue I may do some rewrites to previous chapters….and maybe add a lemon in Chapter 2. As always constructive criticism is always appreciated.

Until next time,

CGQ