DIsclaimer: I own no part of Love Hina, but Sean and certain other characters are mine.
Well, back to the semi-serious stuff.
Chapter XXXVI: A Heavenly Journey
Sunday, 3/16 6:12 AM
Shinobu woke up bright and early so that she could start making breakfast. This was no different from any other day, so it hardly needs mentioning. As she got up and went to her closet to change into her day clothes, she began something that had become something of a morning ritual: thinking back on past events. The ones that stood out in her mind the most were those on Sean's birthday and Valentine's. The former was a cherished memory, as it was the first time the two have been in such intimate contact, but the latter was something she wished she could forget, just from the way her love was treated, or perhaps, mistreated.
In the middle of changing, she found herself staring at her own naked body in the mirror. It was obvious that puberty was still in its early stages. (Turns out this self-examination had become part of her morning routine as well.) She couldn't help but wonder what she would really look like when she got older, but she knew the real answer would not be revealed to her until then. Only then would she find out if the form she had in Sean's fantasy was as accurate as she hoped it would be. With a sigh, she got dressed and prepared herself for another day of being surrounded by the shapely bodies of the other girls. (Well, Suu's probably the exception, but that's beside the point.)
When she walked out of her room, she found Sean in the hall waiting for her. "Good morning," he said. "Sleep well?"
"Yeah," Shinobu said, a smile forming on her face. He seemed to have that effect on her.
"That's good," Sean said as he wrapped an arm around Shinobu's shoulder and the two headed to the kitchen to make breakfast. It was times like this where Shinobu realized that out of the other girls, she should only be envious of Naru, since she had both the boyfriend and the mature body. "I wonder when she'll show up," Sean asked out of the blue.
Shinobu quickly realized who he was referring to, but she could only shrug her shoulders.
"I'm actually looking forward to seeing her again," Sean thought out loud.
"Why's that?"
"Well, how often does a goddess visit a person's house?"
"I see what you mean." Friday night, Shinobu's dreams contained a message from a certain deity. Luckily, she interpreted it better (or at least more accurately) than Sean did back in October. "You think we should have told the others about Linda's arrival?"
"I doubt we'll have a choice. We'll probably get found out and have to tell them eventually."
"Tell us what?" All of a sudden, the owner of the voice pounced on Sean from behind, sending him to the ground.
"See what I mean?" Sean asked.
"Yeah," Shinobu said, barely able to stifle a laugh when she saw Suu smile innocently as she sat on Sean's back. Just part of another ordinary day in Hinata-Sou.
--- 7:41 AM
"So Linda's coming back, huh?" Keitaro asked as he bit into the breakfast Sean and Shinobu prepared for everyone.
"Sure seems that way," Sean responded.
"We should set up some sort of welcoming party or something," Kitsune said.
"You just want a better reason to get wasted," Naru said.
"She's got a point," Sean said. "Besides, Linda's not just stopping by to shoot the breeze. This is strictly business and I don't want anything to tie up her no doubt busy schedule."
"Well, that's boring," Kitsune muttered.
"Boring!" Suu yelled between heaping bites.
"Sometimes, a break from the craziness that goes on around here is a good thing, ever think of that?" Sean said as he started walking out of the room.
"Hey, where are you going?" Shinobu asked.
"I'm going to go soak in the hot spring for a while."
"You must have had all morning to do it," Motoko said. "Why now?"
"Well, my daily chores take a bit a time. Oh yeah; also, I kinda lost track of time while skating up on the roof."
"Hold on!" Naru said. "How did you--" she started to ask, but Sean was already gone.
"Skating on the roof, huh?" Kitsune said. A few moments went by in silence with everyone looking at each other. "Let's go!" All at once, they ran off to the roof to investigate. When they got there, they saw nothing out of the ordinary.
"Maybe he set everything back to normal after he was done," Shinobu thought out loud. When she stepped out onto the roof, she learned yet again that things are not always as they appear. "Whoa!" she said as her feet slid out from under her, but was caught by Naru. "Thanks," she said as she got back upright, blushing a bit.
Motoko walked up beside her and inspected the floor. "Hmm, it feels like it was just waxed. No wonder it's so slippery."
"WHEE!!" Suu squealed as she ran out and skidded across the roof.
"Watch out, Suu!" Naru said as the younger girl neared the rail at breakneck speed. Much to everyone's surprise, instead of busting through it and landing three floors down, Suu merely bounced off, sliding in another direction.
"Sean must have taken some precautions," Motoko thought as she, along with everyone else slowly edged onto the frictionless surface.
--- (Meanwhile…)
Sean turned into Alicia as she entered the changing room. After stripping out of her clothes, a thought struck her. "Hmm, I wonder…" she said to herself as she stepped in front of the mirror. Conjuring up an image of herself from back when she first started turning into a girl in October, her suspicions were confirmed. "Well, I never planned that, but I should have figured as much." Sure enough, Alicia had actually grown an inch in the last five and a half months, not to mention a slightly larger bustline. "I never thought this body would actually age, but it might be something to look forward to."
Grabbing a towel, she stepped out into the hot springs and was greeted by the sound of laughing from above. "Sounds like they're having fun," he thought. It took a moment to realize there was somebody else out there already, lounging in the water, but she didn't recognize who it was. "Uh, hey there," she said with uncertainty.
The mystery woman smiled at her. "Have you forgotten about me already?"
As Alicia edged closer, all the pieces suddenly fell into place. "Oh, it's you, Linda." She couldn't help but notice the beautiful figure the goddess possessed. "Welcome back. You here for Shinobu's test?"
"Yes, but I wanted to talk to you alone before I do that."
That caught Alicia's interest. "What about?"
"Well, first, I want to thank you."
This came as a surprise to Alicia. "What for?"
"You remember that skin-tight number I wore the last time I was here, right?" Alicia nodded. "Well, I hated wearing such a confining thing, and after I saw the outfit you wore in that dream I looked at, it inspired me to finally pursue a change in wardrobe."
"Uh, your welcome, I guess," Alicia said, not fully knowing what to say.
"Also, finding out what happened to your eyes got me thinking. How are you able to see, exactly?"
"She must not have seen how I made PAVE," Alicia thought. "Here, I'll show you," Her eyes began to glow and a strange white mist (or whatever you want to call it) poured out of them, forming a ball of energy that floated in front of them.
"So that's how you did it," Linda said, as if she knew exactly what the purpose of the ball was.
"Yeah. At first, I thought I'd have to get used to a third-person perspective for the rest of my life until I figured out how to get it inside my head." With a motion of her hand the ball split up and two trails of energy reentered her head through the eye sockets. After blinking a couple times, she continued. "It's all worked pretty well except for that day you showed up for my test."
"I see."
"Why do you ask?"
"Well, I know someone that should be able to help you regain your normal eyesight."
"Is that right?" Alicia said. "I have given some thought to trying something like that myself, but it seemed too risky to me for some reason."
"After I'm done testing Shinobu--which I probably shouldn't even bother doing, since I've been watching you and her for a while--I'll take you to see her."
"Alright, I'll get Shinobu."
"There's no hurry. You don't have to go anywhere just yet."
"I wasn't going to." Alicia raised her arm in the direction of the roof and wiggled her fingers a bit.
---
Shinobu felt a twitch in the back of her mind, distracting her enough to almost run right into Suu as she whizzed by.
"Are you alright?" Naru asked, noticing the young girl's thoughtful expression.
"Yeah, there was just something I forgot to do," Shinobu said as she made her way to the steps.
"Need any help?"
"I'll be alright." Shinobu walked through the house, following the instructions sent to her through the mind: "Go to the hot spring; come alone." When she got there, she found Sean and Linda relaxing in the water, waiting for her.
"Hello, Shinobu," Linda said. "It's been a while."
"Uh, yeah, it has." Shinobu was blushing a bit at seeing Linda in her current state of undress. "If I may ask--"
"I didn't want this to be too formal," Linda said, cutting Shinobu's question off at the pass. "Though I suppose this is as informal as it gets." Linda then vanished. Before anyone could say anything, she reappeared fully clothed near the door to the changing room, startling Shinobu. "Shall we get started?"
All three of them reconvened inside the changing room (with Alicia also regaining her decency in the process) and the test went off without a hitch, with Shinobu passing with flying colors.
"Well," Linda said when she was finished. "I guess I'll be on my way, then."
"Maybe our paths will cross again someday," Alicia said.
"Maybe," Linda said with a wink as she disappeared from sight.
"What was that all about?" Shinobu asked.
"What was what all about?" Alicia responded. Before Shinobu could question her further, the door flew open and everyone else rushed in.
"Where is she?!" Kitsune asked.
"Where is who?" Alicia asked.
"Don't play dumb! We know Linda's in here!"
"Actually, she just left," Shinobu said.
"What?! Why didn't you tell us when she showed up?!"
"They probably didn't want to make too big a deal out of it," Motoko reasoned.
"How did you do on your test?" Naru asked.
"I passed," Shinobu said.
"Was there a doubt in anyone's mind?" Alicia asked.
"Why couldn't she stay and hang out with us for a while?" Kitsune asked after she calmed down a bit.
"Well, she is a busy woman, you know," Alicia said. "And on that subject, there's something I need to work on up in my room, so if you don't mind--"
"Hold on," Kitsune asked as she grabbed Alicia by the arm, preventing a rather hasty exit. "What's your hurry? We all should go out into the hot spring and celebrate this occasion!"
"Far be it for me to stop you, but as you know, I was just out there, so there wouldn't be much point in doing it again, would there?" She wrenched her arm out of Kitsune's grasp. "Sorry if I seem inconsiderate, but there really is something that demands my immediate attention. See you girls later."
"Sheesh, what crawled up her butt?" Kitsune asked after Alicia left the room.
"You know how he gets when he's working in his room," Naru said. "We'll check up on him later. For now, let's celebrate!" Everyone started to change until they realized that Keitaro was in there with them.
"GET OUT!!" The group of girls screamed. Moments later, Keitaro flew out the door.
---
"I wonder how long this will take," Sean thought as he neared his room. "If they find out I'm gone, I'm going to get the third degree when I get back." After checking to make sure he wasn't followed, he entered his room to find Linda there waiting for him.
"Ready to go?" she asked.
"Let's do this."
"I hope I don't regret doing this," Linda thought as she teleported both herself and her guest out of the room.
The trip Sean experienced was quite an experience. They appeared to be in some sort of passageway. Everything was going by in a blur, so he figured they were moving at a pretty good clip. This wasn't entirely unfamiliar to Sean however, as he's seen something similar to it when using his own teleportation spells, but until now, it had always been no more than a split-second, as opposed to the minute or two this particular trip lasted. He figured where they were going must have been a great distance away.
Linda was the first appear at their destination. She quickly scanned the room to find that it was empty. "Good," she thought with a sigh of relief. "Nobody's here." With a wave of her hand, Sean arrived right beside her.
"Whoa," Sean said as he gazed at his surroundings. It appeared to be no more than on ordinary living room. "Where are we?"
"Sean, welcome to my home."
"WHAT?!"
"Hush up," Linda quickly said. "I don't want any of the others to find out about this."
"Why not?"
"Well, we're really not supposed to bring anyone up here."
"Would it help if I turned invisible?"
"No, that won't work, trust me."
"Have you tried doing this before?"
"No, but Stephanie has."
"Figures."
"Let's go before we're found out." Linda led Sean down to a hallway that was lined on both sides by doors that looked too closely packed together to be of any use other than being closets.
"What are those?" Sean whispered as he noticed the symbols on each door.
"Each deity's personal quarters."
"Aren't they a bit… small?"
"You'd be surprised." She walked up to the third door on the left and knocked on the door.
"Who is it?" A voice on the other side asked.
"It's Linda. Are you busy?"
"What do you think?" the emotionless voice said.
"I was just wondering if you could do me a favor."
"Come on in," the voice said after a moment. Sean could tell it was slightly agitated.
"Are you sure we should--" Sean started to whisper.
"Don't worry, it's alright," Linda said. She motioned for him to stay put, opened the door, and stepped inside.
"What kind of favor do you want?" The voice asked.
"Well, Amy, it's like this…"
Upon hearing that name, the open book insignia on the door suddenly made sense. He glanced across the hall and saw a heart on another one of the doors. "Stephanie's room, no doubt," he thought. His curiosity taking over, he looked for the symbol on every door he could see while still staying out of sight of those inside Amy's room, partially in search for Linda's room, partially to see which aspects of life were represented. Meanwhile, the voices inside continued.
"Why do you want to help this man?" Amy asked after Linda concluded her explanation.
"Well, I've kinda taken a liking to this guy and, considering what he's been through, I think he deserves it."
"Alright, I'll do it. Take me to him."
"Well, actually…"
"Oh, please don't tell me you brought him here with you." Linda bit her lip and glanced out the door. "Oh great. Well, let's get this over with before one of the others finds out."
Linda nodded, then stepped out the door, where she noticed Sean looking around the hall. Apparently, he hadn't been listening at all. "Psst, hey." Sean quickly turned his head in her direction. "Get in here," she whispered. He quickly obeyed, and Linda closed the door behind him.
"Wow," Sean said as he looked around Amy's rather spacious room. "These rooms really are bigger on the inside." Shelves of books lined the walls that seemed to go on almost forever. About twenty feet ahead of him, a woman was seated at a table, looking at him in surprise. "Dang," he thought. "She looks just like Naru."
Meanwhile, Amy was in shock. "Sean? You brought Sean?!" She got up to get a closer look; to make sure her eyes weren't playing tricks on her.
"You've heard of me?"
"Well, sure. When someone performs their own sex change in the pursuit of knowledge, it doesn't go unnoticed up here."
"I suppose not."
"Let's get those eyes fixed," Amy said. She raised her hand and an operating table rose out of the floor and motioned for Sean to lie down on it.
"Um, not that I don't trust you or anything…" Sean said as he was being strapped down to the table. "…but how do I know you know what you're doing?"
"For your information, I know exactly what I'm doing. I have more information stored in my head than the Library of Congress! Besides, I have some… personal experience with optical surgery."
"In other words," Linda said. "She screwed her eyes up so badly reading all those books, she's had to fix them a few times over the last thousand years."
"Are you sure she's not Naru?" Sean asked.
"Very funny," Amy said. "Let's get started, shall we? First, remove that light ball from your sockets." Sean did so, making PAVE appear, floating a couple feet above his head. "Good. Now, Linda, apply the anesthesia."
Linda nodded, then waved her hand over Sean's face. This would be the last thing he would see before losing consciousness.
--- 9:07 AM
Fresh from the celebration held in the hot spring, Shinobu went to Sean's room to see what he was up to. She knocked on the door, but there was no response. "That's weird," she said to herself. "Usually, he at least says something. Maybe he didn't hear me." She knocked a bit harder, but got the same result. Worry starting to set in, she decided to risk being scolded and entered the room. Finding the door locked, she felt she had no other alternative than to teleport in, and when she did, she found it to be completely devoid of life. She searched high and low for him, but to no avail. "GUYS!!" she screamed as she ran out of the room. "SEAN'S MISSING!!"
--- 12:40 PM
"You feeling okay?" Linda asked.
"Yeah, I'm alright," Sean said as he sat up minutes after waking up.
"Here, catch," Amy said, tossing something at Sean. When he caught it, he quickly realized what it was: PAVE; and he was looking at it instead of it being his vantage point.
"Sweet," Sean said, swatting the ball, causing it to shatter, then fade into nothingness. "I guess I won't be needing that anymore. Thanks a bunch."
"No problem," Amy said. "It's good to help out someone Linda holds in such high regard."
"She does?"
"Are you kidding? It seems all she ever talks about is you and Shinobu; and she's not the only one."
Suddenly, Amy's door opened. "Hey, Amy, could I borrow--" She stopped her sentence short when she saw who was in there.
"Uh oh," Ami, Linda and Sean all thought.
"Well, well, what do we have here?" Stephanie said as she made her way towards them in a seductive manner (which was a given, considering her personality, not to mention the fact that she wasn't wearing anything). "If I had known you were coming, I would have prepared something. Oh well, I can improvise."
"Uh," Sean muttered as he started backing away. "I don't like the way you're looking at me right now."
Stephanie continued her approach. "Hey, Linda," she said with a snicker that was borderline sinister. "Thanks for bringing him to me. After I'm done with him, I should think of some why to repay you."
"And what do you plan to do to me?"
"Can't you tell?"
"Unfortunately, yes." Sean suddenly found himself cornered, and the naked goddess creeping ever closer until she was upon him.
"I could make you the happiest man alive right now," she whispered into his ear as she pinned him to the wall.
"I really don't need your help for that."
"But I'm sure you wouldn't mind if I did, right?"
"Well, actually--"
"And I'll have you know I'm not one to take no for an answer."
"Maybe now's a good time to start," Sean said.
"What are you… talking… about…?" Stephanie's body fell limp, three tranquilizer darts stuck in her back.
"Thanks again," Sean said after he laid the sleeping goddess flat on her back after removing the darts.
"No problem," Linda said, smiling. There was a blowgun in her hand. "That's how she gets when it comes to guys."
"Is she going to be alright?"
"Sure, but by the time she wakes up, you'll be long gone."
"Good. Let's go now just to make sure of that."
---
"Are you sure we should be in Sean's room?" Shinobu asked. "Why aren't we out searching for him?"
"Well," Kitsune said. "He said he was coming here before, and since he pretty much lied to us, he'll show up here before he goes anywhere else to cover his tracks."
As if on cue, Sean appeared right in front of them, and he quickly realized he'd been caught. "Uh oh."
"And where were you?" Kitsune asked.
"Um… well…" Sean then dashed for the door.
"Oh no you're not!" Kitsune said, giving chase. "You won't get away from me!"
"At least I know he's alright," Shinobu thought. "That's all that matters."
---
It took a few hours for Stephanie to wake up from the tranquilizers. "Urgh, I don't believe this," she muttered. "It seems every time I get close to piercing through that thick shell, something happens. Well, that's going to change if it's the last thing I do!"
"If you're do dead set on doing that, why don't you just go after him yourself?" Amy asked as she watched Stephanie head for the door.
"That would be too obvious. There has to be something that can work against that guy." Suddenly, inspiration struck. "Yes, that's it! I know what I have to do!" She walked out of the room, laughing evilly.
"Sean, Sean, Sean," Amy muttered to herself, shaking her head. "You just had to get her full attention, didn't you? She'll never stop testing your fidelity now. I hope your will is as strong as she keeps saying it is; you're going to need it."
End of Chapter XXXVI
What's Stephanie going to do? Will it work? These questions will be answered next time. See you then! Please R&R!
Well, back to the semi-serious stuff.
Chapter XXXVI: A Heavenly Journey
Sunday, 3/16 6:12 AM
Shinobu woke up bright and early so that she could start making breakfast. This was no different from any other day, so it hardly needs mentioning. As she got up and went to her closet to change into her day clothes, she began something that had become something of a morning ritual: thinking back on past events. The ones that stood out in her mind the most were those on Sean's birthday and Valentine's. The former was a cherished memory, as it was the first time the two have been in such intimate contact, but the latter was something she wished she could forget, just from the way her love was treated, or perhaps, mistreated.
In the middle of changing, she found herself staring at her own naked body in the mirror. It was obvious that puberty was still in its early stages. (Turns out this self-examination had become part of her morning routine as well.) She couldn't help but wonder what she would really look like when she got older, but she knew the real answer would not be revealed to her until then. Only then would she find out if the form she had in Sean's fantasy was as accurate as she hoped it would be. With a sigh, she got dressed and prepared herself for another day of being surrounded by the shapely bodies of the other girls. (Well, Suu's probably the exception, but that's beside the point.)
When she walked out of her room, she found Sean in the hall waiting for her. "Good morning," he said. "Sleep well?"
"Yeah," Shinobu said, a smile forming on her face. He seemed to have that effect on her.
"That's good," Sean said as he wrapped an arm around Shinobu's shoulder and the two headed to the kitchen to make breakfast. It was times like this where Shinobu realized that out of the other girls, she should only be envious of Naru, since she had both the boyfriend and the mature body. "I wonder when she'll show up," Sean asked out of the blue.
Shinobu quickly realized who he was referring to, but she could only shrug her shoulders.
"I'm actually looking forward to seeing her again," Sean thought out loud.
"Why's that?"
"Well, how often does a goddess visit a person's house?"
"I see what you mean." Friday night, Shinobu's dreams contained a message from a certain deity. Luckily, she interpreted it better (or at least more accurately) than Sean did back in October. "You think we should have told the others about Linda's arrival?"
"I doubt we'll have a choice. We'll probably get found out and have to tell them eventually."
"Tell us what?" All of a sudden, the owner of the voice pounced on Sean from behind, sending him to the ground.
"See what I mean?" Sean asked.
"Yeah," Shinobu said, barely able to stifle a laugh when she saw Suu smile innocently as she sat on Sean's back. Just part of another ordinary day in Hinata-Sou.
--- 7:41 AM
"So Linda's coming back, huh?" Keitaro asked as he bit into the breakfast Sean and Shinobu prepared for everyone.
"Sure seems that way," Sean responded.
"We should set up some sort of welcoming party or something," Kitsune said.
"You just want a better reason to get wasted," Naru said.
"She's got a point," Sean said. "Besides, Linda's not just stopping by to shoot the breeze. This is strictly business and I don't want anything to tie up her no doubt busy schedule."
"Well, that's boring," Kitsune muttered.
"Boring!" Suu yelled between heaping bites.
"Sometimes, a break from the craziness that goes on around here is a good thing, ever think of that?" Sean said as he started walking out of the room.
"Hey, where are you going?" Shinobu asked.
"I'm going to go soak in the hot spring for a while."
"You must have had all morning to do it," Motoko said. "Why now?"
"Well, my daily chores take a bit a time. Oh yeah; also, I kinda lost track of time while skating up on the roof."
"Hold on!" Naru said. "How did you--" she started to ask, but Sean was already gone.
"Skating on the roof, huh?" Kitsune said. A few moments went by in silence with everyone looking at each other. "Let's go!" All at once, they ran off to the roof to investigate. When they got there, they saw nothing out of the ordinary.
"Maybe he set everything back to normal after he was done," Shinobu thought out loud. When she stepped out onto the roof, she learned yet again that things are not always as they appear. "Whoa!" she said as her feet slid out from under her, but was caught by Naru. "Thanks," she said as she got back upright, blushing a bit.
Motoko walked up beside her and inspected the floor. "Hmm, it feels like it was just waxed. No wonder it's so slippery."
"WHEE!!" Suu squealed as she ran out and skidded across the roof.
"Watch out, Suu!" Naru said as the younger girl neared the rail at breakneck speed. Much to everyone's surprise, instead of busting through it and landing three floors down, Suu merely bounced off, sliding in another direction.
"Sean must have taken some precautions," Motoko thought as she, along with everyone else slowly edged onto the frictionless surface.
--- (Meanwhile…)
Sean turned into Alicia as she entered the changing room. After stripping out of her clothes, a thought struck her. "Hmm, I wonder…" she said to herself as she stepped in front of the mirror. Conjuring up an image of herself from back when she first started turning into a girl in October, her suspicions were confirmed. "Well, I never planned that, but I should have figured as much." Sure enough, Alicia had actually grown an inch in the last five and a half months, not to mention a slightly larger bustline. "I never thought this body would actually age, but it might be something to look forward to."
Grabbing a towel, she stepped out into the hot springs and was greeted by the sound of laughing from above. "Sounds like they're having fun," he thought. It took a moment to realize there was somebody else out there already, lounging in the water, but she didn't recognize who it was. "Uh, hey there," she said with uncertainty.
The mystery woman smiled at her. "Have you forgotten about me already?"
As Alicia edged closer, all the pieces suddenly fell into place. "Oh, it's you, Linda." She couldn't help but notice the beautiful figure the goddess possessed. "Welcome back. You here for Shinobu's test?"
"Yes, but I wanted to talk to you alone before I do that."
That caught Alicia's interest. "What about?"
"Well, first, I want to thank you."
This came as a surprise to Alicia. "What for?"
"You remember that skin-tight number I wore the last time I was here, right?" Alicia nodded. "Well, I hated wearing such a confining thing, and after I saw the outfit you wore in that dream I looked at, it inspired me to finally pursue a change in wardrobe."
"Uh, your welcome, I guess," Alicia said, not fully knowing what to say.
"Also, finding out what happened to your eyes got me thinking. How are you able to see, exactly?"
"She must not have seen how I made PAVE," Alicia thought. "Here, I'll show you," Her eyes began to glow and a strange white mist (or whatever you want to call it) poured out of them, forming a ball of energy that floated in front of them.
"So that's how you did it," Linda said, as if she knew exactly what the purpose of the ball was.
"Yeah. At first, I thought I'd have to get used to a third-person perspective for the rest of my life until I figured out how to get it inside my head." With a motion of her hand the ball split up and two trails of energy reentered her head through the eye sockets. After blinking a couple times, she continued. "It's all worked pretty well except for that day you showed up for my test."
"I see."
"Why do you ask?"
"Well, I know someone that should be able to help you regain your normal eyesight."
"Is that right?" Alicia said. "I have given some thought to trying something like that myself, but it seemed too risky to me for some reason."
"After I'm done testing Shinobu--which I probably shouldn't even bother doing, since I've been watching you and her for a while--I'll take you to see her."
"Alright, I'll get Shinobu."
"There's no hurry. You don't have to go anywhere just yet."
"I wasn't going to." Alicia raised her arm in the direction of the roof and wiggled her fingers a bit.
---
Shinobu felt a twitch in the back of her mind, distracting her enough to almost run right into Suu as she whizzed by.
"Are you alright?" Naru asked, noticing the young girl's thoughtful expression.
"Yeah, there was just something I forgot to do," Shinobu said as she made her way to the steps.
"Need any help?"
"I'll be alright." Shinobu walked through the house, following the instructions sent to her through the mind: "Go to the hot spring; come alone." When she got there, she found Sean and Linda relaxing in the water, waiting for her.
"Hello, Shinobu," Linda said. "It's been a while."
"Uh, yeah, it has." Shinobu was blushing a bit at seeing Linda in her current state of undress. "If I may ask--"
"I didn't want this to be too formal," Linda said, cutting Shinobu's question off at the pass. "Though I suppose this is as informal as it gets." Linda then vanished. Before anyone could say anything, she reappeared fully clothed near the door to the changing room, startling Shinobu. "Shall we get started?"
All three of them reconvened inside the changing room (with Alicia also regaining her decency in the process) and the test went off without a hitch, with Shinobu passing with flying colors.
"Well," Linda said when she was finished. "I guess I'll be on my way, then."
"Maybe our paths will cross again someday," Alicia said.
"Maybe," Linda said with a wink as she disappeared from sight.
"What was that all about?" Shinobu asked.
"What was what all about?" Alicia responded. Before Shinobu could question her further, the door flew open and everyone else rushed in.
"Where is she?!" Kitsune asked.
"Where is who?" Alicia asked.
"Don't play dumb! We know Linda's in here!"
"Actually, she just left," Shinobu said.
"What?! Why didn't you tell us when she showed up?!"
"They probably didn't want to make too big a deal out of it," Motoko reasoned.
"How did you do on your test?" Naru asked.
"I passed," Shinobu said.
"Was there a doubt in anyone's mind?" Alicia asked.
"Why couldn't she stay and hang out with us for a while?" Kitsune asked after she calmed down a bit.
"Well, she is a busy woman, you know," Alicia said. "And on that subject, there's something I need to work on up in my room, so if you don't mind--"
"Hold on," Kitsune asked as she grabbed Alicia by the arm, preventing a rather hasty exit. "What's your hurry? We all should go out into the hot spring and celebrate this occasion!"
"Far be it for me to stop you, but as you know, I was just out there, so there wouldn't be much point in doing it again, would there?" She wrenched her arm out of Kitsune's grasp. "Sorry if I seem inconsiderate, but there really is something that demands my immediate attention. See you girls later."
"Sheesh, what crawled up her butt?" Kitsune asked after Alicia left the room.
"You know how he gets when he's working in his room," Naru said. "We'll check up on him later. For now, let's celebrate!" Everyone started to change until they realized that Keitaro was in there with them.
"GET OUT!!" The group of girls screamed. Moments later, Keitaro flew out the door.
---
"I wonder how long this will take," Sean thought as he neared his room. "If they find out I'm gone, I'm going to get the third degree when I get back." After checking to make sure he wasn't followed, he entered his room to find Linda there waiting for him.
"Ready to go?" she asked.
"Let's do this."
"I hope I don't regret doing this," Linda thought as she teleported both herself and her guest out of the room.
The trip Sean experienced was quite an experience. They appeared to be in some sort of passageway. Everything was going by in a blur, so he figured they were moving at a pretty good clip. This wasn't entirely unfamiliar to Sean however, as he's seen something similar to it when using his own teleportation spells, but until now, it had always been no more than a split-second, as opposed to the minute or two this particular trip lasted. He figured where they were going must have been a great distance away.
Linda was the first appear at their destination. She quickly scanned the room to find that it was empty. "Good," she thought with a sigh of relief. "Nobody's here." With a wave of her hand, Sean arrived right beside her.
"Whoa," Sean said as he gazed at his surroundings. It appeared to be no more than on ordinary living room. "Where are we?"
"Sean, welcome to my home."
"WHAT?!"
"Hush up," Linda quickly said. "I don't want any of the others to find out about this."
"Why not?"
"Well, we're really not supposed to bring anyone up here."
"Would it help if I turned invisible?"
"No, that won't work, trust me."
"Have you tried doing this before?"
"No, but Stephanie has."
"Figures."
"Let's go before we're found out." Linda led Sean down to a hallway that was lined on both sides by doors that looked too closely packed together to be of any use other than being closets.
"What are those?" Sean whispered as he noticed the symbols on each door.
"Each deity's personal quarters."
"Aren't they a bit… small?"
"You'd be surprised." She walked up to the third door on the left and knocked on the door.
"Who is it?" A voice on the other side asked.
"It's Linda. Are you busy?"
"What do you think?" the emotionless voice said.
"I was just wondering if you could do me a favor."
"Come on in," the voice said after a moment. Sean could tell it was slightly agitated.
"Are you sure we should--" Sean started to whisper.
"Don't worry, it's alright," Linda said. She motioned for him to stay put, opened the door, and stepped inside.
"What kind of favor do you want?" The voice asked.
"Well, Amy, it's like this…"
Upon hearing that name, the open book insignia on the door suddenly made sense. He glanced across the hall and saw a heart on another one of the doors. "Stephanie's room, no doubt," he thought. His curiosity taking over, he looked for the symbol on every door he could see while still staying out of sight of those inside Amy's room, partially in search for Linda's room, partially to see which aspects of life were represented. Meanwhile, the voices inside continued.
"Why do you want to help this man?" Amy asked after Linda concluded her explanation.
"Well, I've kinda taken a liking to this guy and, considering what he's been through, I think he deserves it."
"Alright, I'll do it. Take me to him."
"Well, actually…"
"Oh, please don't tell me you brought him here with you." Linda bit her lip and glanced out the door. "Oh great. Well, let's get this over with before one of the others finds out."
Linda nodded, then stepped out the door, where she noticed Sean looking around the hall. Apparently, he hadn't been listening at all. "Psst, hey." Sean quickly turned his head in her direction. "Get in here," she whispered. He quickly obeyed, and Linda closed the door behind him.
"Wow," Sean said as he looked around Amy's rather spacious room. "These rooms really are bigger on the inside." Shelves of books lined the walls that seemed to go on almost forever. About twenty feet ahead of him, a woman was seated at a table, looking at him in surprise. "Dang," he thought. "She looks just like Naru."
Meanwhile, Amy was in shock. "Sean? You brought Sean?!" She got up to get a closer look; to make sure her eyes weren't playing tricks on her.
"You've heard of me?"
"Well, sure. When someone performs their own sex change in the pursuit of knowledge, it doesn't go unnoticed up here."
"I suppose not."
"Let's get those eyes fixed," Amy said. She raised her hand and an operating table rose out of the floor and motioned for Sean to lie down on it.
"Um, not that I don't trust you or anything…" Sean said as he was being strapped down to the table. "…but how do I know you know what you're doing?"
"For your information, I know exactly what I'm doing. I have more information stored in my head than the Library of Congress! Besides, I have some… personal experience with optical surgery."
"In other words," Linda said. "She screwed her eyes up so badly reading all those books, she's had to fix them a few times over the last thousand years."
"Are you sure she's not Naru?" Sean asked.
"Very funny," Amy said. "Let's get started, shall we? First, remove that light ball from your sockets." Sean did so, making PAVE appear, floating a couple feet above his head. "Good. Now, Linda, apply the anesthesia."
Linda nodded, then waved her hand over Sean's face. This would be the last thing he would see before losing consciousness.
--- 9:07 AM
Fresh from the celebration held in the hot spring, Shinobu went to Sean's room to see what he was up to. She knocked on the door, but there was no response. "That's weird," she said to herself. "Usually, he at least says something. Maybe he didn't hear me." She knocked a bit harder, but got the same result. Worry starting to set in, she decided to risk being scolded and entered the room. Finding the door locked, she felt she had no other alternative than to teleport in, and when she did, she found it to be completely devoid of life. She searched high and low for him, but to no avail. "GUYS!!" she screamed as she ran out of the room. "SEAN'S MISSING!!"
--- 12:40 PM
"You feeling okay?" Linda asked.
"Yeah, I'm alright," Sean said as he sat up minutes after waking up.
"Here, catch," Amy said, tossing something at Sean. When he caught it, he quickly realized what it was: PAVE; and he was looking at it instead of it being his vantage point.
"Sweet," Sean said, swatting the ball, causing it to shatter, then fade into nothingness. "I guess I won't be needing that anymore. Thanks a bunch."
"No problem," Amy said. "It's good to help out someone Linda holds in such high regard."
"She does?"
"Are you kidding? It seems all she ever talks about is you and Shinobu; and she's not the only one."
Suddenly, Amy's door opened. "Hey, Amy, could I borrow--" She stopped her sentence short when she saw who was in there.
"Uh oh," Ami, Linda and Sean all thought.
"Well, well, what do we have here?" Stephanie said as she made her way towards them in a seductive manner (which was a given, considering her personality, not to mention the fact that she wasn't wearing anything). "If I had known you were coming, I would have prepared something. Oh well, I can improvise."
"Uh," Sean muttered as he started backing away. "I don't like the way you're looking at me right now."
Stephanie continued her approach. "Hey, Linda," she said with a snicker that was borderline sinister. "Thanks for bringing him to me. After I'm done with him, I should think of some why to repay you."
"And what do you plan to do to me?"
"Can't you tell?"
"Unfortunately, yes." Sean suddenly found himself cornered, and the naked goddess creeping ever closer until she was upon him.
"I could make you the happiest man alive right now," she whispered into his ear as she pinned him to the wall.
"I really don't need your help for that."
"But I'm sure you wouldn't mind if I did, right?"
"Well, actually--"
"And I'll have you know I'm not one to take no for an answer."
"Maybe now's a good time to start," Sean said.
"What are you… talking… about…?" Stephanie's body fell limp, three tranquilizer darts stuck in her back.
"Thanks again," Sean said after he laid the sleeping goddess flat on her back after removing the darts.
"No problem," Linda said, smiling. There was a blowgun in her hand. "That's how she gets when it comes to guys."
"Is she going to be alright?"
"Sure, but by the time she wakes up, you'll be long gone."
"Good. Let's go now just to make sure of that."
---
"Are you sure we should be in Sean's room?" Shinobu asked. "Why aren't we out searching for him?"
"Well," Kitsune said. "He said he was coming here before, and since he pretty much lied to us, he'll show up here before he goes anywhere else to cover his tracks."
As if on cue, Sean appeared right in front of them, and he quickly realized he'd been caught. "Uh oh."
"And where were you?" Kitsune asked.
"Um… well…" Sean then dashed for the door.
"Oh no you're not!" Kitsune said, giving chase. "You won't get away from me!"
"At least I know he's alright," Shinobu thought. "That's all that matters."
---
It took a few hours for Stephanie to wake up from the tranquilizers. "Urgh, I don't believe this," she muttered. "It seems every time I get close to piercing through that thick shell, something happens. Well, that's going to change if it's the last thing I do!"
"If you're do dead set on doing that, why don't you just go after him yourself?" Amy asked as she watched Stephanie head for the door.
"That would be too obvious. There has to be something that can work against that guy." Suddenly, inspiration struck. "Yes, that's it! I know what I have to do!" She walked out of the room, laughing evilly.
"Sean, Sean, Sean," Amy muttered to herself, shaking her head. "You just had to get her full attention, didn't you? She'll never stop testing your fidelity now. I hope your will is as strong as she keeps saying it is; you're going to need it."
End of Chapter XXXVI
What's Stephanie going to do? Will it work? These questions will be answered next time. See you then! Please R&R!