I do not own the Ah! Megami sama / Oh! My Goddess series
"Yes! We won!"
Watching the goddess bounce up and down in sheer excitement was more than enough to make her two housemates smile at the sight; although part of it was also due to how silly it seemed for a grown up to act like a little child. They were just checking the winning number for the lottery coupon Vali had bought yesterday and much to their surprise, they had apparently gotten the first prize; a free visit to a local hot springs for four people for a single day, with all the expenses covered.
"Well, I guess it was a great idea to buy it, Vali," said Keiichi to the quiet god next to him, as they stood in front of the announcement board set up in one of the marketplace's most central locations.
"I'll have to agree with that. I wasn't expecting much to be honest with you, given how unlikely it seemed for us to win anything," admitted the war god cadet as he checked the coupon once again, just to be sure that they hadn't misread it.
"No kidding! The chances were pretty slim, but I guess we've gotten lucky for a change. Although… I wonder who should we invite to come with us?" said Keiichi, scratching his chin in thought. "After all, there's an invitation for a fourth person."
"How about your sister or your boss? Either of them would be likely candidates for something like this."
"Um… I dunno. Inviting either of them would be like asking for trouble. I fear that they might try to convince Urd to get closer to me and… I'm not sure if this is such a great idea in an environment where she's going to be almost naked," said Keiichi with a sheepish expression.
"That… might be correct. However, it's still going to be a waste to simply leave it like that. Perhaps we can figure things out until the coming weekend."
"Yeah. And let's not mention the fact that we need to find some way to explain... well... you," said Keiichi as he suddenly realized something pretty important. Neither of those two actually knew anything about Vali and on top of that, they had no idea about Urd's true nature, making everything even more difficult to explain.
"Actually, that can be a bit tricky indeed. It would've been easier to introduce me as an old friend of Urd's, although… without her memories, it might seem odd to suddenly have people from her past showing up as if there's nothing wrong."
Nodding slowly, Keiichi had to agree with the god and also wondered for how long they could even keep their fellow housemate a secret from everyone else. There was definitely no way of either of them to ignore the similarities between Urd and Vali, especially when it came to those markings on their faces and also the fact they both appeared to be foreigners. Sooner or later, someone was bound to make that connection and start asking questions about where the god came from or why he was living with them all of a sudden.
"Hey, what's with the long faces? Cheer up, we won a free trip to a hot springs resort!" said Urd as she finally snapped out of it and decided to check on her two housemates. "Have you even read what the rest of the prizes are?"
The pained groan from a bystander close to them made the trio glance over at the trembling young man who won that fabulous prize of… ten kilos of broccoli.
"Um… point taken. We were just wondering who else to invite along, that's all!" said Keiichi, trying to avoid any mention of their issue with how to introduce Vali to the others.
"Let's not worry too much about it for now," said Urd with a shrug. "Instead, we should make the necessary preparations and leave such things for later."
Looking at each other, Keiichi and the blue haired god wondered just what kind of preparations one needed for something as simple as a visit to a hot springs resort. Still, neither was looking forward to find out what the goddess had in mind; especially Keiichi who felt that it might've involved some of the goddess' more daring outfits.
"As you wish, Urd."
"Excellent! Then let's go and buy some supplies for us!" said the half goddess, with a big grin on her face. "Starting with some sake!"
"But… they're going to serve us sake in the hot springs too!" said the baffled mechanic as he had trouble to understand how Urd would've missed something so obvious.
"That they will. However, there's a certain limit on how much we can spend during that visit," replied Urd as she pointed at the details written in tiny letters at the back of the ticket. "See? It only covers the basic expenses, which means that everything else will have to come from our own pockets. In that case, it's going to be much cheaper to buy some booze from one of the local stores, instead of getting it while we're there."
Leaning towards Vali in a conspicuous way, Keiichi had to know one thing. "Um… is she the goddess of avarice or something?"
"I've heard that!" said Urd, making the mortal wince, while the blue haired god wisely chose to remain silent.
"Now, instead of making silly comments, how about we go and buy those supplies?"
Without any hesitation, both her housemates offered her a salute and started for the closest liquor shop, while the bronze skinned goddess giggled at that sight and followed them.
'This is going to be perfect.'
XXX
'So, this is the place. It looks nice, if I have to say so myself.'
Inspecting the temple grounds, not unlike a tourist Dagaz was actually eager to get started with his new assignment. Thankfully for him, Lind hadn't sealed him but informed the blonde god that he was selected to offer some assistance to Urd; a proposition that made him rather excited.
Of course, he was aware that there was already another god stationed here and for a moment he wondered why his presence would change anything, but in the end he decided to go for it. After all, it was a unique opportunity to do something for Urd and hopefully make her notice him in the long run. Without any official boyfriend to monopolize her attention and even throw curses around, Dagaz was optimistic that he would finally get a decent chance, or at the very least earn a few good points.
Deciding that first impressions were important, he checked his robes once again to make sure that nothing was out of place before he rang the doorbell. Waiting for several seconds in vain, the god started to worry that he may have picked the wrong time to visit them, yet as he was about to turn around, the door finally opened and almost immediately Dagaz offered whoever welcomed him a bow.
"Greetings! I'm pleased to make your acquaintance! I'm god third…" started the blonde deity only to notice that there wasn't anyone in front of him; or at least, that's what he thought at a first glance until he looked down.
"Meow."
Staring at the tabby cat who apparently tried to waive a hand or rather… a paw at him, the god couldn't help but wonder if this was some sort of coincidence or the feline really answered the door on its own. Of course, he had no idea that this particular cat was under his leader's direct control and neither did the Daitenkaicho decide to reveal his presence, acting like a strange cat instead.
"Uh… hi?"
"Meow!"
"Wait.. why am I talking to a cat?" Shaking his head despite the amusement of the possessed feline who was using this opportunity to observe the candidate Lind had picked to hopefully replace her son.
Tyr wondered if the Valkyrie commander was upset that Vali was stationed there as some kind of punishment for blowing his cover and sought to find a decent substitute. Although, another possibility was that she may had attempted to prevent him from getting too close to a goddess as wild as Urd. While most fathers would've taken offense at such a notion, Tyr was more than certain that if his daughter was nearly as hard to handle as Hild, Lind's concerns weren't completely baseless.
'Hm… I wonder if this one will even attract Urd's attention. And besides… who said that Vali can leave without my consent? I never thought that the day would come to see Lind of all goddesses act in such a sentimental way and failing to notice something that obvious.'
Meanwhile, the blonde god while hesitant decided to enter the house in search of any of its residents, totally unaware of the fact that it wasn't just his own leader present, but the same could be said about Hild too. Despite being only a mere thousandth of her true body, the little Daimakaicho had more than enough power to be considered as a force to be reckoned with, although at the moment she was keeping a low profile in order to avoid being detected.
"Um… hello? Is anybody home?"
Shaking his head, the possessed cat had a bad feeling that such an action would only lead into problems later on and went after him, just to make sure that, Hild wouldn't get any funny ideas. Unbeknownst to him that was exactly what his ex wife had in mind, as soon as she noticed the blonde god's arrival on the temple grounds.
"Over here!"
Blinking both Dagaz and the baffled cat that followed after him turned towards Urd's room where the voice had originated from and while the former seemed happy that he had finally found someone, the latter knew all too well that this wasn't his daughter, but a much more troublesome individual than her.
'Oh… no… What are you trying to pull this time, Hild?'
Walking towards the room labeled as Urd's Castle, Dagaz paused and knocked the wooden frame of the traditional Japanese door and noticed the shadow that was visible through the rice paper. The outline of a sensual, curvy body could be seen from within as she approached the door and for a moment Dagaz couldn't help but blush at the idea that she might've been wearing something revealing, like she typically does while outside of her house.
Indeed, as the door finally opened, it revealed the almost naked form of Hild with only a tiny towel wrapped tightly around her body and above all, she had assumed a much more mature appearance instead of the typically childlike body of her avatar. "Oh, hello there cutie pie! I was about to take a bath, so, I hope you don't mind me dressed like that."
Dagaz could only stare, unable to form any coherent thoughts as he found someone other than he had initially expected. It was no secret that Urd was of demonic descent and furthermore that the very leader of demonkind happened to be her mother; the very person who stood before him. Despite the impulse to run as far away from her as possible, Dagaz just couldn't take his eyes away from the demoness' ample bosom that threatened to unravel the towel around her. And he hadn't even gotten to see the full version of her, as that one was even more gifted than her avatar. Yet despite all that, it was apparently more than enough to make blonde celestial drool.
"Uh…"
"What is it cutie?" asked Hild with a playful purr as she leaned forward much to the god's delight; at least, one of them, as the other was seething in silent rage. A fact that hadn't gone unnoticed by the demoness who simply couldn't help but tease both celestials a bit more. "Are you really so happy to see me that you can't say anything? Don't worry, I like shy boys, so I might even let you scrub my back!"
Choking hard at the mental image of doing that with the notoriously flirty Daimakaicho, Dagaz was blissfully unaware of the possessed cat's reaction that silently stood by him. With his fur standing up as if he was touching a Van de Graaff generator, Tyr was actually sparking once static electricity began to discharge into the air surrounding him. However, all that paled when the demoness' towel began to slide lower and before the blonde god got the chance to see anything, a blinding light forced everyone's eyes shut.
The sheer force of a Skysplitting Thunder descended upon the face of the Earth, and reduced the whole area around the temple into a smoldering pile of rubble.
XXX
"Aw!... You did get jealous!"
"Leave me alone, Hild! I'm not in the mood for silly games..." Grumbling from his spot on top the temple's roof, Tyr could only blame himself for falling into his ex's trap, and in the most spectacular way too. While it took them a moment to restore the damage he had caused, the same couldn't be said about his pride that took a rather hard hit.
"Oh, come on, Tyr! You're just upset that I've managed to get a reaction out of you!" said Hild, now back into her childlike form, as she hovered next to the possessed cat.
"And in the process, you seem to have forgotten everything about keeping a low profile," said the annoyed Daitenkaicho. "We may have fixed the physical damage, but that still leaves us with an unconscious god in the living room! What do you think they're going to think when they'll find him like that?"
"Hm… We might put three bowls of food on the table; one too hot, another too cold and…"
"This isn't a children's story! And he's a god, not Goldilocks for goodness sake!"
"Dunno… he is blonde, after all. And Urd-chan can be a bit like a bear at times, so…"
"Hild! This is serious!"
"Fine, fine!... Sheesh… you're so serious sometimes," said the demoness, as she scratched her head in thought. "Alright, let's just seal him in a lamp!"
"How did you even remember that kind of container? We can use something more modern…" started Tyr until he realized that she was fully aware of all that and more importantly, she was smiling. "Please tell me that you're not making another reference… We've got a serious problem, and you're just fooling around!"
"Okay! You can simply try to explain what happened, and tell them that it was just a case of… electrostatic discharge. You're a cat after all and they do sometimes cause some sparks when they rub their fur on something made out wool."
"Stop making silly jokes! There's no way I can tell them anything without blowing my cover and…"
"You can wear some boots and claim that this is the reason you can talk! That's gonna do the trick!"
Frustration was already building up in the desperate god who wished his current form had opposing thumbs so that he could pull his whiskers. No matter what he said, Hild wasn't taking this situation as seriously as she ought to, leaving him alone to find out what to do with this whole mess. And while it was true that he caused most of the damage, Hild was far from innocent, yet she seemed totally carefree about it. "For once, just listen to me! We need to find out a plausible explanation for this, and soon!"
"How about cosmic rays? That works most of the time," said Hild with a grin.
"Whenever someone messes with the mortals' aerospace agencies! We're not in space and neither are we dealing with NASA here!" said the god who at this point was close to tears; mostly out of frustration. "Besides, what's wrong with you? It seems that you don't even care at all as to what's going to happen."
"Actually, I do, but unlike you I'm not worrying too much about it. After all, I did delete that god's latest memories and by the time he wakes up, the others will be here," said Hild with a wink. "He can simply introduce himself as if nothing is wrong, and we can call this whole crisis over. Oh, and for your information, there's nothing wrong with me. I'm simply happy, that's all there is to it."
"Huh? About what?"
"Well… a certain someone I knew still likes me," said Hild with a big grin, while the embarrassed god turned around.
"Don't say it like that…" muttered the possessed cat, lowering his head.
"I'll have to agree with that, Hild. If mother hears of this, she might get a bit upset."
Turning to the source of this interruption, they found none other than Belldandy who must've sensed the spell and arrived to see what was going on.
"Ah, it's been quite a while, Belldandy," said Hild, without a trace of malice in her voice; quite the opposite of what one might've expected given that this was the first child her lover had with another woman.
"I'll have to agree to that, Hild. I cannot say how long it's been since we last met, but it pleases me that you're here now. Urd's certainly going to be happy once she learns of your presence, since she still thinks highly of you," said the brunette goddess with a bright smile on her face.
"Maybe… It's sometimes really hard to predict that girl's reactions and her memory loss complicates matters even more than normal," said Hild with a sigh. "Even you had avoided to make contact with her, as a matter of fact."
"That's sadly true. We're worried that if she's exposed to her past all of a sudden, things might get even worse. As such, neither me nor Skuld attempted to come into contact with her so far, at least until she begins to remember more about her background," said Belldandy with a frown.
"And yet, you're still here."
"Yes… It feels wrong to simply go back to Asgard and pretend that everything's fine. I may have to stay in the sidelines for now, but, it's comforting to watch Urd's progress instead of leaving her on her own," said the brunette goddess, smiling a little bit as she glanced towards the city, where Urd and her two housemates currently were.
"I suppose you're right about that," said Hild with a smile of her own, content that her daughter had a supportive sister like Belldandy. "Actually, since you've got nothing to do for the moment… How about we hit a bar? I think I owe you a drink for taking care of my girl, and besides… it's going to be fun!"
"Um… actually I've never been to a bar before," admitted the brunette goddess, while her father seemed to get worried about his ex's intentions.
"Excellent! Then you can try something new, too!" said Hild with a big grin, noticing Tyr's expression as she tugged his daughter along. "Also, put something nice on, dear! Who knows… we might get some dates today!"
"Dates? B-But…I..." tried Belldandy, as the enthusiastic Daimakaicho assumed an older, grown up body once again.
"Don't worry too much about it. I promise that it's going to be fun, you'll see!"
"Hild! What do you think you're doing?" asked the possessed cat, after he began to realize that the demoness was actually serious and not just fooling around like she previously did.
"I'm trying to show this girl how to have some fun! At least, someone has to do that before she becomes a workaholic like her daddy, so, mind your business… Mr. Jealous Cat," said Hild, sticking her tongue out at the possessed feline.
"I'm not a jealous cat! Well… I may be a cat or rather control the body of one, but… I forbid you to take my daughter to such a… a… suspicious establishment!"
"Are you for real? It's a bar for Hell's sake, not a strip club! Now stop being ridiculous and let us girls have some fun, while you fix this mess," said Hild with a wink as she pushed the reluctant brunette along. "Now you'll have to excuse us! See you in a few hours! Ta ta!"
"Wait! Hold on a second! Hild!"
However, it was far too late for him to change the demoness' mind and with a frustrated sigh, the possessed cat simply shook his head in resignation watching his ex teleport away, along with Belldandy. Hild was difficult to work with at times and especially when he tried to tell her not to do something; which more than often resulted in doing it just to spite him.
'Then again, it probably should be fine. As long as she doesn't make Belldandy drink Cola, there's no way she could get her drunk; even if she makes her drink everything available there. Last thing we need is trying to stop her from another incident like the last one…'
Pausing for a moment, Tyr contemplated how likely it was for Hild to try and pull such a stunt and after a few moments he decided that there was only one recommended course of action: to run after them.
XXX
"Is this really what humans wear for such occasions?"
Inspecting herself, Belldandy had to admit that the clothes Hild had provided for her were comfortable, yet really different from anything she typically preferred. With a blue, sleeveless blouse and a pair of tight, white pants, the brunette was attracting a lot more attention than normal while she walked right next to Hild.
"Of course! It's a pretty stylish choice of clothing by human standards and ideal for a situation like this!"
Offering her a smile, the Daimakaicho had changed into a relatively simple, red form fitting dress and a pair of thigh high boots; a rather modest choice of an attire by her own standards. Of course, in this case, the demoness wished to avoid getting too much attention to herself and instead hoped to make the usually shy goddess appreciate her natural appeal a bit more.
"Then I suppose it'll have to do. After all, I must admit that it's a pretty comfortable outfit," said the Norn of the present, without realizing just how many heads had turned in her wake. One of the interesting side effects of wearing more conservative robes was that it made her less aware of the way her body moved, as her clothes typically concealed a lot of the otherwise extraneous motions; especially the slight sway of her hips. Yet that was exactly what caught most bystander's attention, coupled by the otherwise irresistible smile on the brunette's face, or even the exotic beauty next to her.
"See? I told you you were going to like this! Now, let's take a seat and have a drink," said Hild, leading the brunette along while giving a wink to some of the more attractive boys that eyed them, while the goddess wasn't looking at her.
"Hm.. I can't say that I'm too familiar with alcoholic beverages, so, I'll let you pick something for me."
"Two daiquiris for us," said Hild to the bartender before she turned back to Belldandy. "You know, I can arrange for an apartment for you to stay in while you're here on Earth. The one you're currently using is a bit too… spartan for the lack of a better description."
"Thank you, but I think it's sufficient for the purpose it's serving. I'm not here on vacations and as such, I don't need all those extraneous comforts," said the goddess as she cautiously sipped from her drink.
"Don't be so fast to dismiss my offer, Belldandy. There's nothing wrong for a girl like you to have something beyond the basic necessities, and besides… you could invite some friends there, too," said Hild with a grin as she also drank from her glass. "If you know what I mean…"
"Uh… I'm here on my own, so, I cannot see how I could invite other celestials over for a nice cup of tea."
Resisting to palm herself, Hild made a mental note that she was dealing with Asgard's most difficult goddess when it came to such matters and as a result, a more direct approach was needed or she would entirely miss the point. "Actually, I meant any humans you might meet while you're here. I appreciate that you're spending most of your day observing Urd, but, now that I'm also here on Nekomi, there's no need to do that all around the clock. Just enjoy your stay a bit and use the opportunity to socialize; maybe even date a few boys or girls, depending on your preferences."
"But… that's not why I'm…"
"Why you're here? Look, Belldandy, I know that it's unlikely for a goddess to listen to my advice, but, I think that having some experience is better than getting into a relationship with no prior knowledge. I'm not even saying to end up bedding anyone, either; dates can simply stop at having a nice meal or a few drinks with someone. And before you even ask… No, I'm not talking about what we're doing now. This is more of… a case of two friends spending time together."
"Still, I cannot understand why you wish me to do that. I accept that you've got a point about my inexperience, yet, I fail to see how that's relevant to my presence here."
"It's an opportunity, for the lack of a better word. I know all about that impeccable reputation of yours and while you might see my intent as a way to trick you into doing something you'd normally wouldn't consider, it's probably your ticket out of being everyone's role model and become a person of your own," said Hild as she watched the brunette's reactions for any sign of disapproval.
"And dating others would help achieve that? I may hadn't tried my luck with relationships before, but, I cannot see how doing that would make others stop looking up at me; not that I'm interested for such a thing, as it admittedly gets tiresome at times."
"Like I said, it would remind everyone that you're a goddess… no… a woman and not an abstract set of ideals. You're probably too young to understand this right now, but, whenever someone becomes the center of all attention, their reputation becomes their shackles. It gets to point where one starts to fear getting into any situation where they might be depicted in a negative light and begin to focus only on things that involve no risks. And I'll have to attest that relationships are one the most dangerous things when it comes to making mistakes. Of course, it doesn't happen all the time, but, whenever things fall apart and rumors of what went wrong start to circulate, it can damage a person's public image and in the case of someone with your reputation… You can see where I'm going.." Pausing once again to check for the goddess' expression, Hild was rather shocked to see her giggle, instead of a frown that she had originally expected. "You're not upset with all that?"
"Not at all. As a matter of fact, Urd had once told me something vaguely similar, although she wasn't worried that I was reluctant to do things in order to avoid ruining my reputation or something like that. But with several others doing that very thing, I cannot truly blame you for assuming that this was the case with me too. Instead, neesan's primary concern was that I could end up becoming a workaholic and inevitably leave no time for a private life at all. She even tried to find us a date for the night, and given that she promised to end the entire thing before things got too far, I've agreed," said Belldandy, with a smile as she took another sip from her drink.
Hild on the other hand nearly spat her mouthful, and ended up choking it before she stared at the goddess in utter shock. "Wait! You've actually agreed to that?"
"Yes. Is there something wrong with it?"
"There are so many things to list, that I don't even know where to start," said Hild, shaking her head. "Actually, it's a good thing that we've got something to drink. I really need it, now."
"But… weren't you trying to make me do something similar?" asked Belldandy with a small frown, as she tilted her head.
"I was, but I still find it hard that you went along with it. Actually… what happened? If you don't mind me asking, that is."
"Oh, we had such a great time!"
"Really?" Hild couldn't help but wonder if her daughter had actually given her sister one of her potions back then, but quickly dismissed the thought as it was unlikely for Urd to go that far.
"Yes! We had some tea and then discussed at the various flavors each of us preferred and once we found out that we knew about cooking, we shared a few recipes too!" said Belldandy with a big smile. "I must admit that the whole experience was far more enjoyable than I had initially expected! Even Urd agreed that it was the best date she had!"
"Right… Of course... it sounded so nice!" said Hild with a forced smile, as she gulped down her glass and ordered another one. 'I really hope Urd-chan was lying. Because if that was her best date, I'd hate to find out what her worst was.'
"Although… for some reason, neesan didn't try to do that with me again. I wonder why?..."
'I don't…' Shaking her head as she drank some more, the Daimakaicho decided to change her strategy, as her original plan was probably going to end up in a fiasco. "In that case, how about we try something a bit different? Dates aren't the only thing one can do to have some fun in their free time! For example, how about going to a hot springs resort?"
"Like the one, neesan will visit?"
"Yes! I'll even come to keep you company!"
"Umm… I must admit that it sounds nice, but, I don't know what it has to do with anything you've previously mentioned," said Belldandy with a raised eyebrow.
"Oh that? Don't sweat about little things like that! The whole point is to help you relax a bit and learn to do stuff that everyone else does when they want to have fun!" said Hild, trying to reassure her. "So, do you want to give it a try?"
"Well… I don't see why not."
"Perfect! We'll go to one on this weekend!" said Hild with a big grin. "I'll make all the arrangements, so, you don't have to worry about anything at all!"
Offering her a nod, Belldandy couldn't help but notice that there was something suspicious about the date, Hild had chosen. Urd and her housemates will be visiting one during that period of time and it was too much of a coincidence in her opinion. However, if Hild was planning anything, then he goddess reasoned that tagging along would prove to be better than letting her do whatever she wished on her own and as such, Belldandy decided to just play along and see what was going to happen.
'Although, I do sound like neesan. For all I know, maybe Hild isn't planning anything and I'm just unfair with her. At any rate, I'll make sure nothing bad happens. And maybe… I could have fun, too.'
XXX
"Just a few more minutes mom…"
Turning around, Dagaz tried to ignore the incessant poking on his shoulder and instead, attempted to go back to sleep, totally unaware that not only he actually wasn't in his bed, but the one trying to wake him up wasn't his mother.
"Should I try my method, now?" asked Vali from his position next to Urd who was far too stubborn to admit defeat and let the others deal with the intruder.
"If that involves giving him a sharp kick in the groin… then, no," said the half goddess as she eyed at the war god cadet who had already changed in his battle uniform and held his axe in a menacing manner.
"Actually, I would've gone for his chin. So, can I do it?"
"On a second though… no. I still have an ace up my sleeve!" said Urd as went and retrieved a green tube from the fridge.
"Uh… hold on a moment! Isn't that the wasabi paste I bought the other day?" asked Keiichi with a horrified look on his face, before he turned to the cadet next to him. "Quick! Give him a kick! It's a much better fate than…"
However, it was already far too late for the mortal to stop what was about to happen, much to Vali's confusion, who had no idea what wasabi even was. Watching Urd unscrew the cap, Keiichi winced as she poured a generous amount of the hot, green paste into the sleeping god's mouth and then took a few steps back.
"There! That ought to do the job!" said the half goddess with a such an evil gleam in her eyes that would've made her mother proud.
"Can someone tell me what that stuff is?" asked the still confused Vali, looking between his housemates.
"It's a paste made out of a variety of horseradish we have here here in Japan. In normal quantities it's something to spice food up, but…" started Keiichi, as he glanced over at the now half empty tube in Urd's hands. "In such quantity, it counts as a bioweapon…"
"Oh, you're just exaggerating, Keiichi!" said Urd, as she tried to reassure them by emptying the rest in her own mouth. "See? I'm perfectly fine! So, stop making a huge deal about…"
"HOT!"
Nearly jumping up from the bed in a state of shock, Dagaz's mind had finally registered the burning sensation that threatened to overwhelm him and caused his powers to manifest in the most literal interpretation of his feelings. As a result, the three bystanders had to dive for cover when the blonde god began to breathe fire while he still struggled to figure out what was going on here. One moment he was ringing the doorbell and the next, he was living blowtorch.
"Whoa! That's real fire!" said Keiichi, as he dived for cover behind Vali, who formed a shield to prevent them from getting singed by accident.
"And that's why we should've gone with my idea," said the cadet to Urd, who tried to act as if nothing was wrong at all, despite the unfolding drama.
"Oh come on! You saw me eat nearly as much of that stuff and I'm perfectly fine! How was I supposed to know that he'd over react like this?" countered the half goddess, while Dagaz desperately tried to find something to soothe his burning mouth.
"That's only because you like spicy foods. Which is clearly not the case with this guy… whoever he happens to be, anyway…" said Vali as he stared at the distressed god who accidentally tripped on the low table and fell flat on his face.
"At any rate, I think we should try to help him first, or he won't be able to answer any questions we might have," said Keiichi as he headed towards the kitchen to grab a glass of milk, since it was the best remedy he knew for spicy food. "Here, this will make the burn go away."
"Thank you!" Grabbing the glass, Dagaz didn't even bother to get up from the floor and simply gulped its contents in one go, desperately hoping for salvation. "Ahh!... That's much better! I'm really in your debt, um…"
"Keiichi," said the dark haired mortal as he introduced himself before turning to do the same for the others. "That god over there with the axe is called Vali and the goddess is…"
"I'm Urd! Nice to meet you, handsome!," said the Norn of the past with a wink, trying to hide the wasabi tube she was holding.
"She acts so innocently for someone who just made him suffer so much," whispered Keiichi to the blue haired god, who only nodded in agreement.
"Truly frightening if you ask me…"
"What are you two mumbling over there?" asked the goddess in question, glaring at the duo, before she got an idea on how to teach them a lesson for talking behind her back. Turning to the still dazed god on the floor, she helped him get up on his feet and made sure that she hugged his arm a bit too close to her bust. "Here, let me give you a hand, sweetie!"
"Oh, thank you very much," said Dagaz, before he realized where his arm currently was and as a result, the god's mind turned into mush; raveling at the soft and warm sensation he was experiencing. 'A-Am I still dreaming?... So…so... nice!...'
Shaking his head in disdain, Vali was less than impressed, let alone jealous from Urd's sudden display of affection towards the same god she had pulled that prank moment ago. "Great… First she made him breathe fire and now she switched his higher functions off."
"And she didn't even bother to get rid of the murder weapon," added Keiichi as he stared at the wasabi tube that was left in plain sight on top of the low table. "Talk about an amateurish approach."
"Don't listen to those nasty comments! They're just jealous that I'm not so nice to them, right honey?" said Urd with a low purr, causing the blonde god's already overwhelmed mind to come to a screeching halt.
"Honey…" said Dagaz, repeating the word he so much wished to hear from her
"Well, she does have to call you something," said Vali, clearing his throat. "Not to mention that it sounds better than hey you over there…"
"I'll have to agree on that, actually. After all, you still haven't properly introduced yourself," said Keiichi, trying to sound a bit more polite than the blue haired cadet, who subconsciously tightened the grip on his axe.
'Heh… they may try to deny it, but they sure sound jealous to me.' Trying to hide her grin, Urd was actually pleased that her two housemates were reacting to her flirty attitude towards the newcomer, yet not in an exaggerated way that would've ended up in a rather ugly scene. The goddess wished to be desirable enough to those around her, however she also valued her independence and hated it when she was treated like someone's property. Even with most of her memories inaccessible, Urd's attitude towards that subject hadn't changed at all and as such, she felt that a quick test was necessary to ensure that neither of them was far too possessive. And while she had definitely expected a reaction from Keiichi, it was rather interesting to see that Vali was also acting a bit different than his quiet and collected self. However, she had to admit that they did have a point there and finding out more about the newcomer's identity was more important than playing games and as such, Urd decided to ask him a few questions while he seemed to be smitten by her. "Actually, they do seem to be correct about one thing, sweetie. How about you tell us your name and what you're doing here?"
"Huh? Oh, right!" Snapping out of it, even though he was still feeling somewhat woozy from the sensation of having his arm trapped in the goddess' supple bust, Dagaz tried to collect his thoughts and avoid giving her a bad first impression. Retrieving his business card from his robes, the blonde god cleared his throat before he finally introduced himself. "I'm god third class, first category, limited license, Dagaz. Given the recent developments, and more specifically the fact that, Urd is now aware of her true nature, I was tasked to provide her all the necessary aid and support she needs to learn how to properly use her powers. It was determined that leaving her figure out her abilities on her own could be far too dangerous and that's why I'm here."
"Well, that sounds nice, actually," said Urd, before she was interrupted by Vali, who seemed to be rather skeptical by the blonde's explanation.
"No offense, but I find it rather peculiar that a third class god was sent to act as a mentor for Urd," said the cadet with a raised eyebrow. "In most cases, that's the task for a first or at the very least a second class celestial, and while I don't want to sound rude, I'm rather intrigued as to why you've been chosen. Furthermore, you said that you've got a first category license, which basically means an administrative position as you primary career."
"Is that a problem?" asked Keiichi, who had little idea about celestial licenses; aside from the tiny bits of information Vali had provided for them.
"In a way, it might be. Administrative positions typically deal with handling Yggdrasil as well as well as keeping records and overseeing every aspect of our everyday activities; except from what is considered as part of our private lives of course. To make it better understood, you could say that they handle Asgard's bureaucracy. Second category licenses involve commercial activities, but in this case it's the third category that's really important. Those deal with all kinds of services, including healthcare, education, manufacturing of goods and even commerce," explained Vali, before pausing to see if Keiichi and Urd seemed to understand what he was saying. "Most mentors, any other kind of consultants or even physicians would normally hold a third category type license and as such, I find it strange that his, is an administrative one instead."
Nodding slowly, both Urd and Keiichi turned to Dagaz, who was suddenly looking a lot less comfortable than a moment ago. He too was perfectly aware of this tiny issue and personally hoped that it would've taken some time for the others to notice it; only to be exposed in mere seconds. The only other solution was to lie about his license, but aside from the fact that it was technically illegal to provide a fake business card, such an attempt would've ruined any chances to make a good impression to Urd in the long run.
"Well, I have to admit that I'm just a debugger, and never really did anything like that in the past," admitted Dagaz, before he tried to come up with something to explain his presence here. "But then again, it's a highly unusual case and sending someone without any preconceptions could perhaps give us the break we needed. Most experts in Asgard cannot really figure out what to do with Urd's situation, but that's most likely because of her unique..."
"I think we've got the point, even if I still have my reservations," said Vali interrupting the other god, before he accidentally said too much about Urd's heritage. So far he had avoided to reveal the fact that she's not a full blooded goddess, but a hybrid, and while he had no idea whether she remembered anything about it, Vali didn't want to be the one to break the news to her if that happened to be the case.
As a matter of fact, both Urd and Keiichi noticed how abruptly the cadet decided to interrupt his fellow god and given his otherwise quiet and reserved personality, it was definitely something suspicious. However, the biggest question was what to do with the newcomer, who was looking around them with a hopeful expression on his face; almost like a lost puppy that needed a home.
Scratching her chin, Urd had to admit that wasn't sure to do with this guy at all. He did sound like an honest person so far and his cheerful attitude was reassuring, considering that he looked forward to help her, but a darker part of her mind doubted his sincerity. In a way, he was a bit too happy to offer his assistance and that only meant that there might've been something he was after from all this and if Urd had to make a guess; he might've been trying to earn a few good points with her. The half goddess knew that the blonde's responses to her previous acting was definitely a sign that he wasn't terribly bothered by the idea of getting close to her, whereas a totally indifferent god would've politely remind her to respect his personal space.
Feeling everyone's eyes on her, she realized that they were expecting her opinion about the subject, since this god claimed to be here for her and as much as she doubted parts of his story, Urd knew that in the end she had to make a decision.
"Hm… I suppose I could give you a chance and see if you can actually help me or not. Besides we've got an empty room, so you can stay here without inconveniencing anyone. I just hope you like instant noodles because that's on the menu most of the days."
"Thank you very much! And I can can actually cook, so it won't be a problem!" said Dagaz with a big smile, seeing that this was his first opportunity to impress her and even make the others accept him.
"Really?" asked Urd with a raised eyebrow.
"Of course! I may not be a gourmet chef, but I can definitely make a lot of different dishes and I even know a large variety of desserts," said Dagaz before he paused as the excited goddess slapped his shoulders.
"Great! You're hired!... I mean... You're staying here!"
"That was easy…" said Vali, as Keiichi offered a slow nod.
"Way too easy…"
"Oh give me a break! If you've got a problem with it, then why don't you cook for once?" said Urd, making both of them to look away, since neither actually knew how to prepare anything other than instant food.
"Well… I'm a mechanic and cooking wasn't never one of my strongest points. Although... I can cook rice..." started Keiichi, looking over to Vali for some support, only to have the blue haired god summon a white bag.
"I can prepare MREs, actually," said the cadet in a desperate yet futile attempt to say something for himself. "The new versions are better than the ones we used in the past. They even come in several flavors, and there's even an option for dessert, too!"
"Thanks but no thanks! I'm not going to eat those if I can have real food instead," said Urd, before she turned to Dagaz with a big smile on her face. "So, what's on the menu today? I must admit that I'd like some Italian for a change? I'm kind of tired at the cheap noodles we eat all the time!"
"Um… how about... uh… lasagna?" asked the worried god, as he worried that in his overzealousness he may had raised her expectations a bit too much. "Would you like that?"
"It's a deal!" said Urd with a big grin, despite Vali's sore expression as he stared at his MRE. "Actually, we haven't had any launch yet!"
"Oh, that's fine. I can start cooking right away," said Dagaz, swallowing a bit as he began to get nervous, especially knowing that other than the goddess herself, her two housemates would be much harder to impress; especially the cadet.
'I… I must pull this though, or I'm going to make a fool of myself in front of everyone. I guess I need to stop wasting time and get busy in the kitchen.'
XXX
"Hey, that's actually really tasty!"
Smiling as he sampled the food Dagaz served them, Urd was actually glad that she took him in. It was far better than most of the instant stuff they've been having for a while now, and the prospect of having someone who could actually cook was really appealing not only to her, but for the mortal who stood next to her too.
"I'll have to agree with Urd!" said Keiichi with a smile on his face. "You really did a great job!"
"Oh, thank you both! You're so kind," said Dagaz, scratching the back of his head despite the cold glare he was getting from Vali who sat outside the living room where everyone else was gathered and enjoyed his own meal in silence.
'Traitor…' thought the blue haired god as he stared at the dark haired mechanic who decided to side with the enemy. Or at least, with the newcomer who still seemed suspicious to him, feeling that there was something off about his story. 'Everyone just accepted his obviously weak story as soon as he bribed them with food. Seriously…'
Taking a bite from the cheesecake flavored biscuits that came along with the solidified mix of nutrients that comprised the celestial version of an MRE. Munching at his food that only needed some water to soften the hard brick-like mix into something that didn't require the bite force of a tyrannosaurus rex to chew, Vali enjoyed what few actually looked forward to eat. As a matter of fact, he had once witnessed the abhorrent sight of one of his comrades in arms asking a demon to exchange his collection of manga for a one of their rations that included pre-cooked meat, vegetables and bread, followed along with a pudding like dessert, all stored in cans.
'At least that was due to being stuck in that, weeks long standoff. Not that I justify his act or anything, but I could find an excuse for that traitorous behavior. This, on the other hand… I cannot forgive!'
"Hey, don't sit here on your own, Vali. Why don't you come inside and have lunch with the rest of us?" Approaching the blue haired god, Urd did her best to try and convince him to join them, given that he was the only one who declined to eat the newcomer's food and simply sat outside on the patio.
"I am having launch, actually," said the war god cadet pointing at his MRE, which made Urd frown at how quickly he turned her offer down.
In all honesty, the bronze skinned goddess was beginning to realize that despite his calm and collected attitude, Vali wasn't all that different than the average person… or god for that matter. Apparently her acceptance of Dagaz may had a rather unwanted side effect which could be best described as jealousy. It was something that she actually had expected from Keiichi who after all, was the one that she had spent the most time together and even shared a kiss, despite the circumstances behind it. Not to mention that the cadet was already aware of how close she and the mortal were and yet remained relatively unaffected by it; unlike his current reaction to the blonde god who was just trying his best to make himself useful.
'Hm… I must've underestimated him. He seems so polite and calm that I never thought it was possible to get him jealous, or even that he might've been interested in me to begin with. Is it possible that he didn't perceive Keiichi as a threat, being a mortal and all that? Or is it just that one guy around me is a bit too much for him to handle? Then again, I probably went too far with my teasing and… I guess it must've been the same for Keiichi, even if he's doing his best to act as if nothing is wrong…'
Looking on the ground as she sat next to Vali who was still eating his lunch, Urd had to admit that despite her best efforts to act in a more controlled manner. Whenever she really had to show reservations, she ended up doing the exact opposite, not unlike a young child that was being told not to do something. And the worst part of all was that she was starting to involve those around her, making her worry that inevitably she'd end up pushing them away. After all, if someone as calm and collected as Vali started to get pissed with the way she acted around moments ago, it was definitely proof that she was doing something wrong here.
"You know… I'm sorry."
"Huh?" Blinking, the cadet turned to the half goddess with a baffled expression on his face. "What for?"
"You know… about trying to make you and Keiichi think that I was flirting with Dagaz back there," said Urd, glancing over at the god next to her, only to notice that he still seemed rather confused.
"We never thought that, to be honest with you."
"Really? But… Why? I was all lovey dovey with him!"
"Well… it's just that…" started Vali, but suddenly stopped as he hesitated to go any further with his explanation.
"Just say it!"
"Promise you won't get mad?" asked the worried cadet as Urd narrowed her eyes at him.
"No and if you don't, then I'll definitely get mad!" snarled the now irate goddess, making Vali edge away from her.
"It's just that… You see, if I have to be frank your acting is horrible. I mean… that was the least convincing performance I've ever seen in my life, actually. There's no way we would've even bought that as a legitimate attempt to flirt with anyone and…" Suddenly, the crackling sound of electricity discharged in the air surrounding the goddess made Vali pause in his admission and realize that he may had done a poor job with the way he worded all that.
"So, I'm a lousy actress? Is that what you're saying, mister 'I'm totally not interested in your boobies, unless you rub them against another dude?' I bet you wouldn't be that much of a critic if that was you I was flirting with!"
"Wait! I never said that!"
"Oh yeah? Let's see how honest you are!" snarled the half goddess as her demonic side felt that her pride had taken such a hit by the disrespectful words of this god that she absolutely had to prove her point; even in the most crude way possible. Opening her top even more than it currently was, the half demoness managed to grab Vali and pulled him close to one of the most tantalizing yet quite uncomfortable examples of what some called the marshmallow hell; which of course involved a lot of contact between the shocked god's face and her cleavage.
"Mmph?!"
"There! No need to be so jealous anymore!" pressing him even harder against her, Urd could hear the tiny voice at the back of her mind that struggled to calm her down and put an end to this silliness, yet the half goddess was too annoyed to listen and continued with her audacious act as if nothing was wrong.
Meanwhile, the two other residents of the temple were in the middle of enjoying a nice cup of green tea, and used that as an opportunity for some small talk and even try to ease off some of the tension that was caused by Vali's observations about what the blonde god's license; and the indirect accusation that he had no business here.
'Hm… so far he seems like an okay guy. Although, I do have to agree with Vali about his license and all that stuff. But.. hey… maybe it wasn't his fault! After all, Urd's whole situation was caused by some mess up in Heaven's bureaucracy, right? Although… for some reason that makes me feel even worse about everything. What if they make another mistake and blow up the Earth to… I don't know… build a highway or something?'
However, the newcomer had also some reservations of his own about their mortal house mate too. Given that he never got Keiichi's profile, Dagaz had no idea as to what kind of a person this human really was and while he knew that, Urd dated others in the past, his run in with her latest boyfriend had left him with the worst of impressions.
'So far this guy isn't anything like that... pompous, self absorbed jerk of an Earth Spirit. Well, that's good to know at the very least! And besides, Urd has a war god cadet to keep an eye on her, so if he tries to pull anything funny, I know that he deal with him. Although, at the moment Vali wants to deal with me, instead! Great... me and my rotten luck!'
As the two housemates quietly drank their tea, the sudden sound coming from the patio inevitably got their attention and resulted in both of them choking on their drink when they realized that those were the muffled protests of Vali while he was being smothered by Urd.
"I-Is that normal?" asked the wide eyed Dagaz as this was way more titillating than Urd's previous attempt at flirting with him.
"No! I've never seen her do that!" replied Keiichi with a blush, missing the blonde's somewhat disappointed look while he watched at Vali flail his arms in an almost comical manner.
The whole scene was both embarrassing and hilarious at the same time, especially given that Urd's target was the most stoic and reserved of her three housemates and yet he found himself in such an unlikely situation that he had no idea how deal with.
"There! I bet you're feeling much better now!" After what appeared like centuries for the blushing cadet, Urd finally decided to release him from her vice-like grip and let the dazed god recover from his rather surreal experience.
"I… Uh… You… Umm…" stammered Vali, still too shocked to offer a proper response. In all honesty, this was the first time he was experiencing anything like this and no matter how embarrassing, the cadet had to admit that it actually felt really good.
However... in a strange way, Vali wasn't the only one who had some difficulty to come up with something to say. Despite her bold actions, now that she managed to calm down a bit, Urd was having some second thoughts about her decision to tease him like that and worse; the whole incident happened right in front of everyone else. While her intent was to deal with what she assumed was a case of jealousy, there was a fair chance that her actions may had simply made everything way worse. Not only she accomplished very little in terms of making Vali feel any better, but in the process she may had annoyed Keiichi too. 'Great... Now everyone's going to think that I'm far too loose and probably won't want to deal with me anymore. Seriously… that was the worst idea ever!...'
There was a long moment of silence as each of them waited for someone else to say something and as such, they ended up in an awkward deadlock, which only worsened by every passing second. The root of the problem was the fact that males, whether immortal or not, were inherently territorial despite their best intentions and coupled by Urd's rather playful personality, the whole situation was a recipe for disaster. One that actually happened way sooner than anyone had anticipated and in a manner that made the goddess look as the primary cause of this entire mess. It was one thing for the men around her to accept that one of the others tried to attract her attention and a totally different thing to watch her flirt with everyone around her in such a shameless manner. Worse, Urd now worried that with both Keiichi and Vali being rather reserved, such a seemingly promiscuous attitude could definitely have some severe ramifications in the way they treated her, or even make them wish to leave.
Noticing the distress in the goddess' face as she realized her own blunder, Vali felt that he was partially responsible by acting in such a childish manner in the first place. After all, even Keiichi that was the closest one to Urd at this point of time, made an attempt to welcome the newcomer who actually tried his best to please them by offering to cook; something that none of them was particularly good at. Even more, as he was still sitting right next to her, Vali could see tears well up in her eyes and before things deteriorated even further, he decided to make an attempt to lighten up the mood, despite that he wasn't all too familiar with telling jokes.
"Actually, I did find it to be a rather enjoyable experience. My only regret is that I didn't listen to the shop assistant and pick that other bra which exposed a lot more skin."
Given how serious the cadet sounded, everyone did a double take, wondering if it was their imagination running wild or that the blue haired god did actually say all that for real. However, unlike moments ago, this time the silence was almost immediately broken as everyone aside from Vali himself burst into laughter, which greatly helped to diffuse the situation.
"What?" Feigning ignorance, the blue haired god couldn't help but smile a bit as he watched Urd hold her sides while she laughed and even his other two housemates were doing the same; which was a much better outcome than what nearly happened.
'That was a close call… It's my duty to take care of her and while I merely wanted to make sure that there wasn't anything fishy with Dagaz, I ended up making her almost cry in the process. I need to be more careful from now on and perhaps… try to relax a bit.'
XXX
Several hours later during the afternoon, things had settled down quite a bit, with most of the temple's residents trying to relax and forget the whole incident. And since Dagaz was now a member of the household too, the rest of them found it appropriate to include him in their plans for the trip to the hot springs that was scheduled for the upcoming weekend.
With Keiichi tinkering with his beloved BMW, Dagaz trying to show Urd some very simple spells that included levitating objects and Vali performing some training exercises to clear up his mind from the rather... distracting thoughts after his first contact with the fairer of the two sexes, the house was left empty; at least as long as everyone was concerned.
Sitting in front of a Vali's share of the lasagna that he eventually forgot to eat, the possessed cat was more than happy to make sure that they wouldn't go to waste. And considering that everyone else was outside, Tyr found the opportunity to watch TV without worrying that the others would find such a thing to be strange for a cat; well, aside from Vali who was perfectly aware of his true identity.
"Gluttony is one of the seven deadly sins, you know."
Groaning as he looked up to find Hild's hovering form, Tyr really wished she would've found something more interesting to do than messing around. It was already bad enough that he had to follow her while she took Belldandy to that… absolutely suspicious place, distracting him long enough for a near disaster to occur here. "Sloth is too."
"Really? I thought I was more along the lines of lust…" said Hild, sticking her tongue at him, much to Tyr's annoyance.
"And after making such a bold proclamation, you still expect me to give my consent for taking my daughter to a trip at a hot springs resort?" asked Tyr in a somewhat intimidating voice that utterly failed to impress the demoness; especially given the body he was currently inhabiting.
"Don't worry about a thing! I'll be gentle with Bell-chan!" said Hild, trying to appear as bashful as possible, making the possessed cat feel even more annoyed than he previously was.
"That's not funny! And… wait! What are you doing?" asked the baffled cat as he stared at the demoness who shifted from her chibi version to the normal, childlike appearance of her avatar and unceremoniously took his food, helping herself with the delicious pasta.
"I'mph giffing iff a tryiph!"
"Don't speak with your mouth full!" yelled the indignant cat, as he tried to grab the plate back, even though his paws proved to be rather inefficient for such a task. "Now, give me that back!"
"Fat chance, fat kitty!" laughed Hild, poking his flabby belly, making it jiggle, much to the god's announce.
"Cut that out! Besides, shouldn't you be doing something else? Like watching out for Urd-chan?" asked Tyr, trying to swat her hand.
"Oh really? Then what about you, mister? I was trying to give some life lessons to your middle daughter and the best you did was to try and spy on us, instead of making sure that Urd-chan was fine!" said Hild as she pointedly poked his belly again.
"How was I supposed to know that she was going to shove Vali's face between her… you know!..." protested the god, but to no avail.
"You dated her mother, right?" said Hild in a sarcastic voice. "Make a wild guess! I still do that all the time, even though the one on the receiving end isn't you, but... your wife!"
"About that…"
"Don't change the subject!"
"I'm not! Poor Ansuz really hates to have that fact rubbed at her face! And quite literally too!"
"Oh? What fact are you talking about?" asked the grinning Daimakaicho, feigning ignorance.
"Stop acting as if you don't know!"
"No, do tell! I insist!"
"For goodness shake! After making fun of her... not so… large bosom, I'd think that you'd connect the dots, already!" said Tyr, narrowing his eyes at the demoness who still pretended that she didn't get it.
"Really? I've done that to other demonesses and even a few goddesses and they never got that sore about it, as to complain outright…"
"That's because most of them aren't as flat as a floor board!" said the frustrated god, before he paused and realized the trap he had inadvertently fallen into. "Oh… no!..."
"Hell, yeah! Good luck explaining that to your sweetheart, you insensitive, jealous cat!" laughed, Hild as she finished her, or rather his meal and even licked the plate clean just to add insult to injury.
"You framed me!"
"Serves you right, mister! Next time you do a poor job at taking care of Urd-chan, I'll do worse!" said Hild with a sadistic gleam in her eyes, causing her ex to take a few steps back. "What? You think I'm all fun and games? That's the Daimakaicho you're dealing with, here!"
"She… she might not be listening in to…" started the petrified god, before the demoness interrupted him.
"Sorry, but as soon as I've told her that I'll be staying here for longer, there's no way she's not currently watching what's going on here."
Turning back to her chibi sized form, Hild offered the horrified god a wink as she disappeared back to the attic thought a loose floor panel, leaving him to alone and absolutely terrified.
'I'm done for..."
XXX
Daitenkaicho's office, Asgard
Looking up from his paperwork, Tyr felt a sense of dread as he knew what was coming and the sudden knock on his office's door left him with little doubt as to who wanted to see him without any appointment.
"Enter."
Swinging the double doors open, Ansuz marched up to her husband's desk with an almost unreadable expression on her face; which troubled Tyr more than anything else. He could handle an angry outburst or some other more predictable response, but right now, he had no idea what his wife was thinking.
"Well… I think someone's enjoying their vacation…" Tapping her foot on the floor, Ansuz crossed her arms as she glared at Tyr, who desperately tried to hide his nervousness behind a calm facade. "Up until now, I was under the impression that you were trying to help Urd-chan. Care to explain how exactly your… actions are doing doing her any favors?"
"What do you mean by that?" In all honesty, Tyr was somewhat taken aback by the goddess' words as this was definitely not the reaction he had been expecting.
"So far, you've done nothing other than watch her from the sidelines, and now that Hild's there, you all but forgot about the real problem," said Ansuz with a sigh. "Urd-chan has lost her memories and just staring at her won't change anything at all. Not to mention anything about running after Hild or even Bell-chan for no reason at all."
"I'm really sorry about that. I'll… have to admit that I've been rather distracted ever since she showed up and…"
"Look, I don't want to sound like a jealous wife who's angry that her husband met his ex. However, the longer we procrastinate while she's struggling to figure out what's going on, the worse it's going to be. For starters, it wouldn't be a surprise if wonder why her family doesn't seem to try and contact her while she's in such a state."
"I fully aware of that, and the very reason why I've accepted captain Lind's suggestion to send someone she had met in the past, but at the same time she's not terribly familiar with him. Obviously, her sisters would've been ideal, although pushing her that hard to remember could have some adverse side effects; even if it proves to be effective."
"That's true, but…"
"Uh… sorry, the door was open and…"
Stopping abruptly, Ansuz turned around only to find the youngest of her daughters standing by the doorframe with an uncertain look on her face, while she wondered if she picked a wrong moment.
"Please, come inside Skuld, there's no need to stand over there like that," said Tyr as he cleared his throat, while his wife stepped to the side of his desk, curious to see what the little Norn wanted to talk to her father about.
"Thank you, my lord," said Skuld as she offered him a deep bow and walked towards him, holding a folder that she carefully placed on her father's desk.
Picking it up, the Daitenkaicho instantly realized what she was here to report the findings of her investigation and decided to read the details later, turning his attention to Skuld in order to hear her personal opinion first. "There are no need for such formalities right now. So, why don't you tell me what you discovered about Urd's condition?"
"Well… me and Peorth searched all over the subsystems to find out what triggered that response from the protector server, and by the looks of it… we're most certainly dealing with a one of our security routines responding to what seemed like an outside program attempting to access Urd's files," said Skuld with a frown.
"When you're saying an outside program…" started Ansuz, as her eyes narrowed a bit, "you mean a demonic one, right?"
"Yes. It's strange, since the source seemed to be Nidhogg itself, which… doesn't seem like a regular attempt to hack into our system. After all, that's absolutely forbidden and I can't think how any demon would've thought it was great idea to use his own work terminal to try and pull something like that," explained Skuld, scratching her chin, as she tried to think if she had somehow overlooked something important here.
"Yes, we're not allowed to hack into each other's systems and given how severe the punishment for such a thing is, I find it hard to believe that anyone was foolish enough to try it while being this careless," admitted Tyr before he paused and turned to his wife. "Any ideas, Ansuz?"
"Not really. I'll have to agree with both of you that such an attempt would've been rather foolish. Unless… we're talking about an officially sanctioned program that's allowed to interact with our systems. Although, if that's the case, I fail to see how it could be possible to act like that. After all, we scrutinize all such programs to make sure that the demons hadn't snuck any kind of malware in there."
"Hm…" Thinking about it for a while, Tyr suddenly remembered a rather obscure but crucial detail about his first born daughter; one that might've caused the demonic mainframe to try and update her files. "Skuld, did that program try to access her licence certificates by any chance?"
"Yes! That's exactly what it did!" said the little goddess with surprise evident in her face.
Letting a tired sigh, Tyr rubbed his temples as he really wished that this was some kind of an internal problem that was caused by a glitch somewhere in Yggdrasil. However, with the likely involvement of the demons, things got really complicated all of a sudden, making him realize that they were far from finding an actual solution to their problem. "Alright then! First of all, I want you to trace that security routine and prevent it from interacting with the protector server. If it can cause amnesia, I think it's too dangerous to be triggered like that, so, that's our first priority. Then, I need an exact copy of all the logfiles that implicate the demons, since we need proof of their involvement before we throw any accusations around. Once done, let me know that we're ready to make our next move. That's all for now Skuld."
"Yes, father! I'll start working on all that with Peorth, right away!" said the little goddess, before she turned and rushed to carry out her new orders.
"You don't think that it has to do with Urd-chan's demonic license, do you?" asked Ansuz as soon as their daughter was out of the room.
"I fear that this is exactly the case, to be honest with you," said the frowning leader of the gods.
When immortals are born, it's mandatory for their parents to register them and in that process, they acquire their first license; albeit a very simple one at that. However, what appeared to be a mere routine for most, proved to be a big legal challenge in Urd's case as the infant hybrid was appearing as a goddess in both systems, despite her rather obvious demonic heritage that made up the other half of her being. Still, that did little to solve the problem Hild faced when she tried to register her daughter: it was impossible for her to legally offer her own child a goddess' license and Asgard couldn't do the same without listing her as a celestial citizen. Considering that such a development would've required Hild to send Urd to her father almost immediately, the Daimakaicho desperately searched for a different solution and that turned out to be a rather controversial move. Since the infant hybrid was halfway a demoness, she got registered as one, too, despite the fact that her goddess side seemed to be the dominant one. Of course, as soon as the Daimakaicho sent her daughter to Asgard, Urd's demonic license was revoked, to avoid a case of a double registration, as that would've caused a whole lot problems on its own too.
"But… that requires a rather high ranking demon or demoness to authorize the reactivation of a revoked license. You don't think that… Hild is behind this?"
"She may be crafty and manipulative whenever the need arises, however, I doubt that it's her style to pull such a move at this point of of time. Even if she came to regret her decision to let Urd come here, it's just not like her to try and force Urd return after all this time."
"Are you sure about that, Tyr?"
"Absolutely and beyond any doubt. You can say a lot about Hild, but when it comes to Urd, she won't put her own desires over her daughter's."
"In that case, we'll have to search for the culprit elsewhere. And speaking of that, I think it's the best if I go back to work and even give Skuld-chan a hand," said Ansuz as she smiled a bit, and headed for the door, pausing for a moment before she walked out of the office. "Oh, and before I forget!"
"Yes? What it is?"
"Tonight you're sleeping on the couch!"
'Well… it could've been worse, I guess. However, for a good measure I should buy her a present, just in case.' Offering a nod as he tried not to wince, the god lowered his head in defeat as his wife hadn't apparently forgiven him for his comment about her figure.
'Still… I need to talk to Hild about this whole mess. Even though any official actions will require us more time to collect the evidence, I think it's for the best to warn her, so that she's going to take the appropriate actions, too. After all, I refuse to accept that this is her work.'
AN: I would like to thank everyone that has offered their feedback and support both here and on the Goddess Relief site.
I would also like to thank ObeliskX for the initial suggestion for a reverse harem setting that led to this story.
There are a few things that I'd like to note for this chapter.
Originally, I wanted to include the trip to the hot springs in this chapter, but I've felt that it would've been a bad idea to rush Dagaz's introduction to the rest of the main characters. So, I did paid more attention to that, as well as the reactions it caused to the rest of Urd's housemates.
Technically speaking, I don't plan to change the overall tone from the lighthearted comedy I'm currently going for, but I've thought that acknowledging the issues that might arise from a situation like this.
So, it's safe to assume that the next chapter will mostly focus on the hot springs visit, which will be the first time all four of the temple's main residents (I'm not counting Tyr and Hild who are there in incognito) are going to do something together.