Chapter 8
Return to Tariki Hongan Temple
Takumi knelt scarcely believing the ground beneath his feet; at first almost afraid to rise. He stood up looking around at the landscape. No, it was real. He had returned. He looked to his right seeing the deeply cut hillside, before him the curving asphalt road ahead. To his left he saw the valley below. The town was still there. Off in the distance he could just make out the gleaming towers of Tokyo beneath the clouds. They were different, but they were there. He sniffed the air. It seemed cleaner than he remembered, the town quieter, unsure if it was a good thing or a bad thing. He walked on through the streets of the city unnoticed by the townsfolk, one small fragment of the world, but a fragment with purpose. He tried to remain calm walking toward the old road leading to the temple, or at least where the temple should be, finding it with scarcely a backward glance. As he reached the slope of the hill a part of him hesitated, keeping his eyes on the road, afraid to look up.
"You won't find out by standing here," he muttered. He walked on keeping his head down until the curves grew familiar. He came around the last curve finally summoning the courage to look up. As he walked on he could see the generous boughs of great trees gracing – something. A few more steps and he saw it, a corner of the main temple's blue tile roof peeking through the leaves. It's still there, or at least a corner of it is, he thought. Before he knew it he found his steps quickening, walking, then breaking into a jog. Though the interior was hidden he could see the outer wall was still intact. He reached the bottom of the steps, racing to the top. And once there, he could see it all. It was intact! All of it. The house and the temple! He knelt down at the temple's threshold kissing the ground, having no idea why he was so relieved. It was only an old temple he told himself wiping his tears as he touched the ground. But for him it was far more. It was a symbol that Belldandy and Keiichi's goodness had not been washed completely from the earth. He rose examining the temple more closely now. No it wasn't simply intact. He could see now the whole of it had been actively maintained. Several of the house's eaves which he and Keiichi had discussed replacing (but never did) had been repaired, as had parts of the stone path. He breathed a sigh of relief as he headed for the house.
"You there - stop!" came the sudden shout beside him.
Takumi froze, as much from the sound as surprise, turning to find a short monk scowling at him from the other side of the low bamboo gate. "Um, I'm not going to do that, but you're welcome to finish up whatever it is you're doing over there buddy," Takumi replied.
"I'm not your buddy and I told you to get out! What are you doing here?!" he demanded.
"Me? I'm just going to go have a quick look at this house over here," he said paying him little attention.
"No you're not. That is a holy site!"
"Look chief," he said rubbing his face, "I've had kiiiiind of a long day, plus I live here. So why don't you just finish wiping down the temple and take off!"
"Don't be ridiculous you demented vagrant. I am telling you for the last time - get out before I throw you out!"
Takumi began to smile, "Yeah. . . I would really like to see that. Seriously, you and what army do you think is going to make that happen?"
Before he realized quite what was happening the monk struck the stone steps several times with his staff, causing the doors of the temple to immediately open as a large number of similarly dressed monks, far more he thought than the temple could reasonably hold, began to pour out into the courtyard. He did a double take as they assembled. "Did - we add some extra levels in there while I was gone?" he asked trying to look inside. The monk struck the ground once more as they all drew down into a fighting stance. He stared at the group, perhaps a bit paler than before, looking between them and the temple. "Yeah that's - cool and all, but I think I really need to get going," he said growing mildly annoyed. About that time a monk unceremoniously threw a rock at him. But Takumi's reflexes had not slowed and he caught it, crushing it in his hands. "You see that? Your neck's going to look like that in a minute!"
"Kentaro!" shouted the voice behind him suddenly.
"Why does everyone keep doing that with the shouting?!" he said jumping as everyone else immediately knelt low.
"Lady Skuld!" the head monk cried bowing low.
"Lady - Skuld?" Takumi echoed, smiling as he turned.
She blushed walking past him toward the congregation. He noted with interest she was dressed now as something a Miko might wear. "It's alright Kentaro," she said slightly embarrassed, waving to them to get up. "I told you before they don't have to do that," she whispered to him. "This man - will be staying here a while," she said sounding official.
"Are you sure Lady Skuld?" The monk said not believing his ears. "This vagrant is not suitable to be on these grounds. He's not bothering you is he?" Kentaro whispered coming closer.
"Eh, No. You see, the fact of the matter is . . . this man is Takumi Sato." The revelation seemed to reverberate through the group causing significant consternation.
"What?! No he's not!" Kentaro cried with surprising confidence looking off to one side. Takumi noticed a number of other members now seemed to be doing the same thing. He followed their gaze, looking slowly toward the side of the temple, his eyes suddenly widening. There - etched into the wall stood an imposing visage of each of them, standing together like true deities. He chuckled surveying the powerful gaze of his own likeness, horrifically idealized as he stood next to Urd, arm around her at the right side of the group.
"That's not him," Kentaro definitively, though studying the portrait now he seemed less certain than he had a minute ago.
"Wow, you know you hear the word hagiography," Takumi said looking at the mural, "- but it's not until you really see it up close that you realize . . ."
"You're not helping -," Skuld muttered.
"Oh right. I am Takumi Sato," he bellowed lowering his voice, straightening his shoulders in a transparent attempt to imitate his likeness more closely.
The majority of monks looked back at him shaking their heads as they wandered off.
"Hey I didn't know it was going to be picture day okay!" he said defensively.
"But great grandmother -."
"Wait - WHAT?!" cried Takumi.
"Kentaro we don't need to get into all this here," Skuld began.
"Anything else you forgot to tell me Skuld?! Sorry Lady Skuld. As a matter of fact you - who was your great grandfather?" he demanded pointing a finger at Kentaro.
"Assuming it to be a dig at his own parentage Kentaro proudly replied, "My great grandfather was Sentaro -."
"Sentaro Kawanishi! Of course! So, I guess biology didn't turn out to be so gross after all, did it Skuld!" he shouted. She looked back at him red faced. "And who are all these guys? They can't all be related to you. Wait - are they ALL related to you?!"
"Of course not!" she snapped. "Kentaro – we will be using this place for a few weeks. Please let everyone know. And you - get over here!" she said taking the path toward the residence. "Why didn't you have me come down with you?" she asked as Takumi followed along behind her keeping pace with her shorter stride.
"Because I didn't want you to see my reaction if the temple wasn't here. I know it's only an old building. But to me it was a symbol, the embodiment of all of your family's caretaking here on earth. To me this place will always be your true home, the house of the sisters; the place where I came to know Urd and her family; the place where Sora was born. I was afraid to find that good washed from the earth. But I see now that some things are hard to destroy."
"Some," Skuld said raising her hands as all the doors and windows of the residence now opened, fresh air washed throughout the building. "It is for those reasons and more we protected it, repaired it, supported it. Though in truth I must thank Kentaro and his brethren, our small assassin friends, and the machiners for most of that. I haven't been here in 12 years, though Sora and Tai visit from time to time."
"Why is that?" he asked.
She looked to the mountain, "I told Sora and Tai to follow in a few days' time."
"Why?"
"Because I want time alone with you of course," she said clapping him on the back. "A lot has changed since you went away. We should discuss it. But first let's open the house."
They worked together preparing every aspect. It made a part of him happy to see each of the rooms, lovingly preserved much as he remembered them. It did take a bit of getting used to for him to see Skuld, now an adult, being able to use her powers so capably. As they finished he put his hand to Urd's door, not wanting to open it until later. He turned in the hallway to find Skuld standing there, without judgement. That too is something that has changed, he thought. As night fell they sat together on the steps eating the noodles they had bought, as they were both still terrible cooks.
"Oh I almost forgot," Skuld said getting up. "I promised Tariki Hongan's overseers I would put the green tea and anko mochi out by the bell. They go crazy for those," she said going inside.
"Don't put food out in the courtyard," Takumi complained. "Rodents will get it."
"Trust me they won't. Nobody takes their food."
"How do you know?"
"A few decades ago I put out some food out early. The next day it was gone, but I found in its place the carcasses of several overly curious red squirrels lying there with throwing stars in them. Personally I think they left them there as a message to the others. Also I think I saw Hikari wearing a red squirrel coat about that time," she said ducking inside.
"I see. So they're still quite vicious," he said his eyes following her until he caught something in the trees. He looked again but it was gone; if in fact it had ever really been there.
"Something?" Skuld asked appearing suddenly behind him.
"Huh? No, nothing. I was just thinking how big some of these trees have gotten," he said hiding his thoughts as she descended the steps walking out to the courtyard. "What did you say about us?" he asked upon her return.
"You mean about you and Urd?"
"Yeah."
"Uh well, we told everyone you two had decided to move. You know, new research opportunity and stuff. It all had to be done quick, quick, so no time for a party.
"I see."
"I even forged the occasional postcard from you guys."
"Nice, he muttered sarcastically.
"Well what did you want us to do? Point them to the burial markers on the mountain? I mean . . ."
"I know what you mean."
They talked late into the night until Takumi knew it was time to go in. "Skuld I'm just going to . . ."
"I know. Sheets are in the closet. Let me know if you need anything else," she said.
"Thanks Skuld."
He opened the door going into Urd's room. Sliding it closed behind him he laid down atop the pile, looking around as though it had all been a dream. But this was the room he had been so happy in. The same moonlight flowed through the window. He tried to imagine her sitting across from him, tried to imagine what she would say, and what he would say to her now if he had the chance. He picked up her potions one by one trying to remember, his hands moved over the contours of her clothes. Finally he laid down sadly pulling the sheets around him. But sleep was predictably hard to come by, his mind flashing over a series of images both real and imagined in the past 120 years. He awoke early the next day, hiking the mountain to gain a view of the temple from the slopes, walking until he reached the site of his old grave. He saw now a series of additional markers hidden with his in the forest floor. Keiichi and Belldandy were a little way off, with he and Urd side by side. But he saw now a final set of two markers. Removing the leaves he saw the first was Sentaro Kawanishi, who had passed in 2067, 65 years ago. But the other was someone named Senichi Kawanishi, born 2035 - her son! It had to be. He looked for the final date - 2120; 12 years ago.
That was why she had not come back. With him gone there must have been little reason to return. He knew the feeling. Seeing all of the markers laid out in front of him made him feel tired; as though he had outlived his time. He sat down beside Keiichi Morisato's marker for a long time, meditating upon his thoughts and what to do.
"Takumi!" he heard the call finally from the temple.
"I'm here Skuld," he replied appearing from the forest moments later. He walked down through the back gate patiently, going into the courtyard to hug her tightly. In some way she would always be that little girl to him.
"What's this all about?" she said letting him go.
He said nothing of what he had seen. "I – just wanted you to know I'm ready," he replied folding his hands.
"For what?"
"To know," he said soberly. "To know everything that happened after I left. If I'm to live in this world I'd best know how it came to be."
She nodded taking his hand, leading him to Keiichi Morisato's room. Looking around the room Takumi tried to make sense of all its mementos of Bell and Keiichi's life. But doing so only made him think of Skuld and Sentaro for some reason, walking together across miles of beach in the long days of autumn.
Skuld watched him wondering what he was thinking. She had worried about when they would reach this point, and now it had come. "Don't look so nervous," she said opening the closet to reveal rows of binders. It wasn't all bad," she said pulling down the first of them laying it on the floor before him. Takumi nodded sitting down beside her, drawing his breath.
"There are so many things, too many perhaps that I have forgotten over time. But I remember that day like it was yesterday. You had been gone for several days, we knew not where. Keiichi and I kept busy, hoping that the Valkyries would not come. That afternoon we were working in the shed on the bikes when I heard something. Like the sound of footsteps on loose stone."
'You see? I told you he'd be back,' Keiichi said standing up. 'Stay here. I want to talk with him.' I watched him walk down the side of the house turning the corner. Then I saw it, the look on his face, and I knew."
"What?"
"That it was not you who had returned. The tools dropped from his hands and I ran. Ran as fast as I could down the side of the house that seemed to take forever, running as I reached the corner to see them, the scene I could not believe all at once, them embracing there in front of my room. Then a moment later it was all of us, tumbling together crying, Belldandy hugging me. Keiichi was a man of deep affection, but that day was one of the only times I ever remember seeing him crying so openly, as though everything he'd held inside for the last three years just came pouring out.
"And then?"
We just knelt there together for what seemed like a long time, hugging each other as though we were the last three people on earth. Our bond strengthened between us that day. Belldandy she was muttering something, saying things we couldn't really understand in that moment. But in time we put it together. About how you had made some sort of exchange for her, about how they had released her so that she might return to us. Finally Keiichi whispered something to her, and I knew he had told her about Urd and Sorano. 'I knew it had to be something like that,' I remember her saying as she buried her head in Keiichi's arms. 'It was the only thing that could have made him leave.' The shock of it all seemed to weaken her. But from that point on everything was different."
"What you mean?"
"I don't know - different. When she began to fade Keiichi's actions became bold, he picked her up without hesitation taking her into the house. He kept it all going, nursing her back to health over the next few weeks. Yes from that point on there was a noticeable shift – because from that point on they were truly together. Over the next few weeks she regained her strength moving more, rising more. Then one evening as he gathered his things to leave I remember her suddenly calling out, 'Please don't leave me.'
'No need to worry . . . because I'm never leaving you again,' he said kissing her. "Can you imagine the old Morisato doing something like that? He was so earnest!"
"No," Takumi replied honestly.
"And that was the beginning. The start of the next phase of our lives. Well - are you ready?" she asked.
"For what?" he said giving her a curious look.
"This was from about a year later -," Skuld replied turning the page. Takumi averted his eyes leaning back. The white of the page was blinding. He wondered why she would show him such a thing, but then he noticed several black outlines toward the middle. Looking closer he saw a girl's grinning face, no -there were two faces actually. He squinted looking harder, seeing a girl had her arms wrapped around Keiichi's neck squeezing him crazily. Wow, that girl looks just waaaay too happy. Must be Keiichi's sister, he thought. As for Keiichi, he looked both happy and scared in equal parts. He now realized there were a number of other faces crowding the picture. Megumi and Keiichi stood out simply because everyone else around them seemed to be dressed in pure white.
"Wait a minute? Is this?!"
"It is," Skuld said smiling. "Big-sis and Keiichi's wedding!"
"Megumi seems more excited than Keiichi."
"She almost was!" Skuld laughed.
"He looks a bit nervous," he smiled.
"Wouldn't you be?"
"Assuming most of the people I don't know in these pictures are probably gods . . . yeah I'd be a bit nervous. Oh wow look at this!" he said turning to a full page picture of Belldandy and Keiichi posing for their wedding. "If I didn't know she was a goddess – I'd say 'she was a goddess'! She would make angels jealous . . . and probably did," he murmured.
"Yeah they looked good that day."
"Where was it held?"
"Here."
"What?! Here at the temple?! Man I barely recognized the place!" he said scrutinizing the pictures more carefully.
"Well it helps having Heavenly decorators," she said. "They covered the all the courtyards with white rose petals several inches deep, and lined the inner walls with garlands.
"Yeah, I really don't recognize it," he said continuing to stare. "Those flowering vines descending on all sides of the temple throws the eye off."
"That was Peorth's work," Skuld replied.
"Where is – oh yeah, I see her here."
"Didn't recognize her with so many clothes on?"
"Well, a strapless white evening gown is still not really the norm at a wedding. Not a bad looking woman really . . ."
"Yeah," Skuld agreed turning the page.
"I assume this is Keiichi's parents?" he said seeing a picture of Megumi standing with several people.
"Yeah that's them."
"Something weird going on there but I'll leave it . . .," he said noticing the apparent disparity in their age. "Who's the person officiating?" he asked seeing a picture of Belldandy and Keiichi kneeling down.
"The priest who's actually in charge of Tariki Hongan temple."
"Oh."
"Looks like the Nekomi Tech Auto Club members were having a good time," he said turning the pages to see Hasegawa laughing in mid-clap and Tamiya and Otaki picking up Keiichi and Bell as the other Auto Club members cheered.
"As usual . . ." Skuld replied turning the page.
He saw pictures of Tamiya looking surprised, of Skuld and Sentaro standing side by side dressed up, of a small girl holding up a ring to Belldandy. There were a predictable number of photos of people wanting pictures with Belldandy, including one of several female warriors gathered around her flexing their bare arms beside her more slender arm.
"Wait - do Valkyries have tattoos?" he asked observing the interlocking triangular pattern on each of their upper arms.
"Err, some groups do. That's the Valknut. Kind of a good luck charm for them. I suppose you've never seen Valkyries in their formal attire," Skuld replied.
"Hmm. I see your Dad made it. Nice. The wedding must have come as something of a surprise after sentencing his daughter to a term longer than Keiichi's –."
"He was also the one who approved your transfer, so I think he deserves a break. Besides I don't think anything is really a 'surprise' to Dad. I told you - things were different after she came back. The two of them wouldn't take no for an answer. But I also believe that Urd's loss affected him very deeply. I think in the end he wanted his remaining daughters to be happy. Still, they had to go through some pretty crazy tests."
"All in all it looks like it was a very good party."
"Oh, it went on for a few days," she replied.
"I see. And I see you and Sentaro standing together in some of these - off in the distance, on your own."
"Well, after Big-sis and Keiichi got married, things . . ."
"You don't have to explain to me Skuld. I'm sure you needed someone to talk to about everything that was going on."
"I did because - a lot of things were going to go on and, well we needed to talk about things; how we felt about the future and stuff."
"And stuff?"
"Yeah. This book here – is the next in the set."
To Takumi's eyes, things around the Morisato's residence seemed to have settled down and taken on a sort of domestic routine. Parties with the Auto Club seemed to continue, they entertained, both seemed to be working hard. But he was sure Skuld must have felt a bit left out by it all, even if Keiichi and Bell tried to include her. He looked at the pictures more closely now. "Skuld, is everything with Keiichi and Belldandy okay? She seems to be sitting out for a number of these games."
"You don't use your eyes, do you?" she said pointing to a photo of Belldandy on the porch, her hand around her stomach.
"Tai?!"
"Yeah."
He smiled turning the pages. Yes, it was going to happen alright. He saw the pace of the Morisato's preparations increasing, more people coming over to help build things. He saw Peorth visiting more frequently with others of the realm he did not recognize. And then . . . "Skuld look at you!" he said seeing her holding the baby, looking only slightly less dazed than the day Sora was born. "You became and aunt!"
"Yeah it was a crazy day. I was soooo nervous. Keiichi too."
"I'm sure." There it was, a picture of Bell, Keiichi and the newest addition wrapped up with their faces close together.
Pictures followed of Keiichi, Skuld and Megumi running around trying to keep things together, cooking, shopping and eating. Later, Belldandy carrying baby Tai into the forest as he tried to grab at things. Takumi saw other pictures too, a group of goddesses, their faces pressing in with the baby in a circle, so many that he could barely see Belldandy. Another showed Hasegawa and Chihiro playing blocks with the Tai, Otaki holding the baby on his lap, sitting on the roof of Tariki Hongan temple at sunrise with a girl he'd seen earlier, her hair longer now.
"The next year flew by," Skuld said looking over his shoulder at the pages. "Those were good days. And then, just when we thought things couldn't get any better – they did. Have a look at this -," she said turning the page.
At first he could not understand why she thought he would be interested in it. A dozen or so members of the Auto Cub appeared to be gathered together on the steps of the temple toward evening. Their faces and clothes looked dirty, as though soiled by ash or smoke. Then he realized he did not recognize any of their faces. He studies the picture more closely. "Their outfits. They're all similar," he said.
"Yeah it's hard to see under all the soot. But you're missing the best part," she said tapping the lower center of the frame.
He studied it carefully now, seeing the small eyes staring back at him, held firmly by the arms of the group's leader.
He stopped dead. "Wait a minute! Is that?!"
"Yeah. You should be able to recognize your own daughter!"
He saw now his mistake. They weren't Auto Club members at all. They were a group Valkyries. Dirty and soot-faced they sat on the steps around Lind! Though her mouth was straight he could she was happy, beaming as she held the child.
"So then this -?"
"Was taken on the day they recovered her from the Demon Realm."
He stared at the picture intently now. "How did they find her?"
"I don't know exactly, word was they got a tip and both teams went in. From what I heard it was pretty hairy too," she remarked. "But Lind brought them all out with no losses."
"Did she now?" he replied examining the muscles of Lind's arm wrapped around the child. "How did Sora react?"
"She didn't know what to do the first couple of days. She was pretty freaked out. Every time Lind moved to leave she put up her hands not wanting her to go. So Lind stayed with us for a while. But then she seemed to realize 'these people are not going to eat me' so she settled down. She also made friends with Tai. She must have thought, 'hey there's another small person here', so they got on. You see?" she said pointing.
"Yeah. Looks like you got the worst of it," he replied seeing them playing hide and seek around her sleeping body. Another picture caught them peering in at things in Skuld's room.
"They only got to be more of a handful as they aged I can tell you. But I had time to grow into it."
He studied the photos as she talked. Except that these pictures seemed to convey more than they appeared. More than scenes, they seemed to convey feelings and atmosphere as well. He wondered if it was simply his imagination or a kind of enchantment, realizing there were still many things about the goddesses he still did not understand. "Lind seems to be present a bit more in these later photos," he observed.
"Yeah, for Keiichi it became a kind of a running joke. At the time it used to kind of annoy me, Lind's habit of always quietly poking her nose around the house to see what we were up to. Sora could always tell before the rest of us when she was around, always running around onto the grounds yelling wind, wind what you bring me?"
"What did she bring her?" he asked.
"I don't know, the usual stupid stuff, a special rock, a tree branch, you know. She always pretended to be there in some 'official' capacity, walking around rather uncomfortably."
"But obviously waiting to see Sora."
"Of course. Though she would never admit it. Sora would come out trying to copy her mannerisms, marching around behind her. Lind would pretend to be annoyed, chasing her around but they both enjoyed it. You can see some of that here," she said showing him a picture of Sora holding up a flower to Lind explaining to her all about it, Lind's eyes narrowing as she listened. Another showed Belldandy and several goddesses sitting on the veranda talking with their children with Sora on Lind's lap.
"So she took an interest in her."
"Yes. But the funniest part was one night when Lind was here late and Belldandy was putting the kids to bed, ready to read them a story. Sora held up the book to Lind, wanting her to read it to her."
"What did Belldandy do?"
"She took it well, but Keiichi did have to give her a couple extra kisses that night."
"Great."
"Well, it makes sense doesn't it? I mean Belldandy was busy with Tai in those days and . . . Sora didn't really have a Mom.
She looked up to Lind. The truth was they got along well."
"So you're telling me –."
"She definitely looks up to Lind as a kind of Mom now."
He looked over at her less than pleased.
"Well hey I wasn't going to do it!" she said exasperated.
"Of course not. You were busy hooking up with Sentaro!"
"That wasn't until 17 years later. At least that's when we got married. I stayed and helped Big-sis and Keiichi with Tai and Sora until they were grown."
"A small Urd looking up to Lind - the world really has gone crazy. Does she know that Choppy almost killed me!"
"I told her when she was older."
"And what did she say?"
"Oh, we don't have to go into all that."
"No?"
"She said you must have done something wrong."
"Did she now!"
"Well at least Lind never badmouthed you to her."
"Did she ever praise us?"
"Can't say I ever remember that . . ." Skuld muttered. "Look, she could have done much worse with respect to a role model."
"Really? Was Sayoko somehow unavailable as a mother?"
"What's really bothering you?" Skuld asked shaking her head. "Or is this just what it's like to get old?"
"While I was inside I had a peculiar experience. Something that never recurred during the rest of my time there. Hard to know for certain but - I can't seem to shake the feeling it may have occurred around the time of Sora's rescue."
"What kind of 'experience'?" Skuld asked.
"I don't know. I can't make sense of it right now," he said. "What happened after you married Sentaro?"
"He worked for an outdoor sporting goods company so we moved to Hakuba, where he handled mountain biking and ski jumping," she said opening another book.
"Look at all that snow! You're a real mountain girl Skuld!" He said seeing them standing together, two small figures in the immense alpine whiteness. "Is that from your house?"
"Yes. He liked the overlook it had on the town."
"The two of you look happy. What did Keiichi say?"
"He said it was time we pursued our own happiness."
"Must have been a big change though. For all of you."
"Yes and no. Remember, for us travel is a little different. While we wouldn't do it in populated areas, between our own houses is a simple one-step operation. Because of that Big-sis and Keiichi would often have breakfast with us in the morning; and Christmas Eve was always at our place. In fact, in the beginning they kind of visited too often."
"Oh, I see."
"Then two years later this little guy was born," she said showing him far too many pictures of the baby - most either showing Bell and Keiichi enthusiastically holding or Sora and Tai less than enthusiastically holding the baby.
"Senichi Kawanishi."
"That's right, she said kissing a picture of him with his father.
"Did you see them much after that?"
"I can't tell you how many times we suddenly had 4 extra people for dinner."
"I see," he said leafing through the later pages. Sora seemed to be in her early twenties now, Keiichi in his forties.
He turned the page and suddenly the feeling seemed to change. There were pictures of people hastily gathered, bearing scattered looks of anguish and concern. But it was the picture of Keiichi standing alone, his jacket beside the bike that truly struck fear into him. "Skuld . . . what is this?" he asked looking up only to see her eyes watching him.
"That was . . . the day we lost Belldandy of course."
"But - that's not right. She died with Keiichi didn't she?"
"Who told you that?" she said surprised.
"Well . . .," The revelation struck him like an icy blade. No one had. He had simply assumed it.
"Keiichi lived another 24 years after Big-sis . . . my precious sister passed away.
The room seemed to be spinning. "But that's - impossible. How? How was she lost?"
"The way you all were - you, Urd, Belldandy, you were there one day, the next you were not."
From within Takumi suddenly felt a deep stabbing sadness. He had never considered the effect from her perspective. He had only ever thought about himself. He found himself hugging her, whispering, begging for forgiveness. "How did it happen?" he said finally.
"There was no warning if that's what you're asking. She said she was going on an errand and would return. When she did not Keiichi grew anxious. Eventually the Valkyries came to the temple and told us the terrible news."
Just like Urd, he thought. "And then?"
"I - don't really have clear memories of that time. We were all in a state of shock. Keiichi did his best to try and support us but he . . . was not well. It seemed to drain everything from him. He and Tai – they had a number of conflicts over what to do. Because I was in Hakuba with Senichi, who was three at the time, Sora played a big role in keeping things together here. During that period she seemed to fight almost constantly with Tai. But I think it also caused her to grow closer to Keiichi. I know they talked more. She seemed to listen more to him."
"And his son?"
"He was angry. He had lost his mother. For a while it seemed he might lose his path in life. But in time Sora managed to pull him back. He appeared to find something within himself. The experience made them closer. I don't know the details, but eventually he and Keiichi could sit and talk once more."
"How did you explain Belldandy's loss to - everyone else?"
"We told them there had been a terrible accident while Belldandy was away visiting her home country."
He still could not fathom it. "The repercussions in the Heavens must have been huge."
She looked at him as though he was insane. "Huge?
Takumi - that was what started the war. Urd, and a number of other things had been simmering a long time but - that was the spark that set everything off."
"War?" If Takumi Sato had believed his long incarceration in the absence of Urd represented the depth of his despair he was beginning to understand how disastrously mistaken he truly was. "What war . . .?"
"The war between the Heavens and the Demon Realm."
Now he knew what it was that had been nagging him at the back of his mind all this time. Lind's scar, Skuld's nervousness, the weapon she carried at her side, the fortifications he had seen that morning outside Yggdrasil.
Now it all made sense. He returned, scanning the pictures to confirm his suspicions, "Skuld when I came here, did I expose you to danger?"
Skuld smiled, but it was not an easy smile, her hands sweeping over dark hair. "I speak of events that occurred 94 years ago. I assure you Tariki Hongan Temple is quite safe," she replied proudly. "It's been thoroughly reinforced using my, Sora and Tai's powers. It would be a foolish demon indeed insane enough to come here looking for trouble. They have enough to worry about I think, given that three-quarters of the demon realm now lies in ashes. May they all be destroyed . . ."
He felt himself shiver at her words. "Uh, don't you guys have some rules that prevents any actual -."
"So great was the mourning upon Belldandy's loss that the old ways fell apart completely. It seemed the demons wished for anarchy, and we provided it to them . . . in abundance."
Takumi said nothing, trying to scan the remaining photographs. As he suspected Lind's scar appeared about that time. But it was Morisato he was really interested in. When he came upon pictures of him some time after the memorial it seemed to confirm his suspicions. Still it was hard to tell from pictures alone. "What did Keiichi think of this 'war'?"
"Keiichi - was confused. I loved him dearly but he didn't see the whole picture."
"And you and Tai did?"
"How did you know?"
"Call it a feeling. I assume he wanted you to have nothing to do with it?"
"He just didn't want anyone getting hurt. It wasn't that he . . . I wasn't a little kid anymore. I had children of my own!"
"A three-year-old. All the more reason to stay out of it."
"She was my sister!"
He could see where this was going. "I'm not even going to ask what happened with Sora. I'm sure Lind had just all kinds of helpful ideas for her."
"Not as many as you might think. Among us she was the one who spoke the most with Keiichi during that period. It was about that time she began to get more curious about you."
"Oh?" he said looking through the pictures, stopping at one that caught his eye. Keiichi and Sora seemed to be sitting together in front of the bike, from the sun and waves he guessed it was somewhere on the east coast of Japan. It was a windy morning, something about the rock formations looked familiar. But it was Keiichi's look that struck him most. It was as though he was looking directly at him. Takumi stared at the picture trying to read his eyes, like a message out of time. There must have been so much he wanted to. . . . He realized he was being ridiculous. He turned the page. "I see more of Peorth in these pages," he said stopping at a picture of her and Keiichi walking together under the setting sun. "Do you think they ever . . . ?"
"I don't know - I don't think so. But they had a lot in common as time went on. Keiichi needed someone to talk to about things, someone who could understand it all, who knew all the principles. But I have to say he was strong in those days. I knew he felt concern but he never really showed it. His club friends came and went often seeking his advice. Some did well, Hasegawa became a celebrated writer, Otaki married the president's daughter and they had a big family up north. Tamiya and Chihiro kept Whirlwind going . . ."
Takumi swallowed. "And at the end?"
"Keiichi was surrounded by all of us at the end. Peorth was the last to say goodbye. Not a bad way for a human to go really. Five years later I said goodbye to Sentaro," she said looking away. "But I stayed here in the human world for much of the next half century."
"Because of Senichi."
She nodded. "He had three children, Daichi, Kento's father, is still alive; as are Akemi and Aiko. Akemi is in fact a noted engineer in this world."
"Grandchildren. I never would have guessed it. "
"And Kento welcomed his son Hayate this year."
"To think there are that many troublemakers in the world. You must be terrifying as a grand-/great grandmother."
"After Sentaro passed in 67' I returned to Tariki Hongan Temple. For most of the next fifty-three years I was here."
"Until twelve years ago."
"Yes. Since that time we've mostly been in the Heavens."
He looked over the last of the photographs in the book. The last picture was of three of them standing in the temple courtyard at the end of day, with all the lights of the structures out. In his mind's eye he imagined Bell and Keiichi dancing together in the outer darkness.
"And the demon realm?" he asked.
"Much of it now lies in ruin, little more than a smoking hulk in most places. Only one group still appears to be largely intact, and their numbers are relatively small."
"Who are they?"
"The Fallen."
"What are they?"
Skuld shrugged. "Who knows? They may have been part of Hild's elite guard; perhaps something else. In either case it does not matter. Soon they will be gone and concern us no further."
It was the coldness of her words that made him shiver, largely because of who they came from -Skuld, the little sister of Belldandy, who had grown to be . . . who knows? Certainly someone far different from the girl he left that day at Tariki Hongan temple.
"It is late, the sun will be up soon. We should retire."
"Indeed."