I do not own the Ah! Megami sama / Oh! My Goddess series
'Well, what would you know!... That mortal wasn't lying when she said that Urd's working in a shop of all things!'
It was something Mara had to see with her own eyes to believe it and as such, the blonde demoness sat on top one of the apartment blocks next to Whirlwind, where she could easily spy her old friend. Despite everything she knew about the half goddess' personality, Urd was indeed working as a saleswoman and on top of that, she didn't seem to hate her work either. Setting down her binoculars, Mara wondered just how much things must've changed for Urd to actually enjoy such a mundane and otherwise boring task.
Furthermore, according to Keiichi's sister, both Hagall-sama and Hild-sama had showed up, and if that wasn't enough, Urd even got to meet her mother, despite centuries of doing her best to keep her out of her life. And to further complicate matters, it appears that it was the Daimakaicho's deputy who offered Megumi the CD that contained her sealed form; meaning that she was released on purpose, although what that may had been was beyond Mara.
'If she remembers about being a goddess, then why is she doing this? Urd hates boring, menial tasks and you can't get worse than working in a tiny store that's more or less made out of a container. I get that this is supposed to be a punishment of sorts, but… why does she seems… happy about it? That makes no sense to me!'
Another enigma was the mortal she was living with, as Keiichi Morisato was just your average bike mechanic. At a first glance there wasn't anything special about the dark haired man, as both his scrawny build and apparent lack of money meant that it was unlikely to provide the half goddess with the exciting lifestyle she was interested in.
'How does that guy keep her satisfied, both in the bedroom and even out of it? He looks a bit skinny to me, and with such an underpaying job, they must be living a pretty boring lifestyle. In other words… the exact opposite of what Urd might be interested in!'
Deciding that she needed a break to adjust to this… bizarre and utterly confusing reality, Mara was about to leave, only to remember a rather crucial detail that she had almost forgotten about.
'Hey… where are her sisters? She never strayed too far away from them at any point of time!'
XXX
Asgard, Gate room
"Thanks for waiting, oneesama!"
Rushing towards her sister with a huge smile on her face, the youngest of the Norns could hardly contain her happiness now that she was reunited with her sister. For the last couple of days, Skuld had worked hard together with Peorth to patch the program that ended up blocking Urd's memories, leaving her in an amnesiac state and as important as that task was, it would've been a lie to say that she didn't feel lonely. As a result, the goddess of the future was delighted when Belldandy called her and asked if she wanted to visit their sister, a proposition that Skuld accepted almost immediately.
"It's nice to see you doing well, Skuld. You've grown a bit since I last saw you," said Belldandy with a proud smile as she ruffled her sister's hair affectionately, much to the latter's chagrin.
"Hey, I haven't gotten any taller! So stop making fun of me, oneesama!"
"I wasn't talking about your height, but your ability to handle yourself, even with me an Urd away on the mortal realm," corrected Belldandy in a gentle tone that made her sister relax and allow her to stroke her hair. "It seems that you're getting a lot more mature by the day, Skuld!"
'Hold on! Does that mean… she thought I was immature, before? Nah… she wouldn't now, would she? That's Belldandy we're talking about…' Pushing away such silly thoughts, Skuld retrieved the bag she had been carrying with her and looked towards the Gate with an excited expression her face. "So, can we go now? Please, please… oneesama!"
"Calm down, Skuld! We'll get there in a minute, so don't be this anxious! I know that you want to see Urd again, but first we've got to sign your papers and…"
"Hey, I'm not anxious to meet that big dummy! It's just that… I can't wait to see her doing housework! Oh, that's going to be so awesome! And not to mention hilarious!" said Skuld with a huge grin, while her sister simply shook her head.
'Oh dear… That's how Urd started with her lies when she was little. And now it's Skuld's turn too… I'm going to end up becoming an old lady from all the stress… At least, she's happy to meet Urd and that's what really matters.' As she started to fill in the necessary forms for her little sister to visit Midgard, Belldandy had no idea that at that moment, another entity was also heading there for visit; albeit an unannounced one.
XXX
Nekomi, Japan
Swallowing hard as she debated whether to go on or simply turn back and leave, Megumi spent a couple of minutes wondering what to do as she stood at the bottom of the stairway leading up to the Tariki Hongan temple. Although she had visited this place a couple of times in the past, she had never done that for such a serious reason and her discussion with Mara didn't quite help her to feel more confident.
Apparently, Urd was a bit of a tease and very reluctant to pick someone as a boyfriend these days, especially after a couple of failed relationships. Although she did get that from Hagall, Mara's words made her worry that perhaps the goddess in question just wasn't serious about dating Keiichi after all. Despite being younger than him, Megumi had already a fair share of failed relationships of her own, and while that made her feel more sympathetic towards Urd, the young student knew that Keiichi's already lacking confidence could take a huge blow if the goddess turned him down.
"Hey, what's up Megumi?"
Nearly jumping as the voice came from behind her, the brunette turned around to see a curious Urd standing there with a puzzled expression as it wasn't common for the otherwise energetic girl to look this worried.
"Uh… I just came to see what you guys are up to. I mean, with four people living here, things must be really lively."
It was a subtle way to tell the other woman that she knew about their other two house mates and judge her reaction, but much to her surprise, Urd barely blinked.
"You have no idea… It's a bit too lively at times if you ask me." Crossing her arms, the half goddess eyed at Megumi's shocked expression with mild amusement. "What? You thought I was going to deny it and come up with excuses?"
"Um… yes?"
"Look Megumi, if you know about all that, then I think that there are far more serious matters to discuss than how many people are living here." Looking around, Urd made sure that it was the two of them and Keiichi was nowhere in sight, she used her powers to summon her goddess attire. "Perhaps, it's more about this... Right?"
Megumi could only gawk and nod, as her eyes remained glued at the purple robes Urd was wearing, especially as they literally appeared out of nowhere. If there was any doubt that she's been a victim of an elaborate prank, this was the last bit of proof she needed to finally accept that Urd was indeed not a human at all. Sure, she had already witnessed Hagall and even Mara use some of their powers, but with this… there was no more doubt at all; Urd was indeed a goddess. "Yeah… But… a goddess?"
"I'm still myself, regardless of what you may wish to call me. Sure, I'm not exactly like you, but don't think that I'll suddenly start to act all important and stuff, just because of a fancy title," said Urd with a casual shrug, changing her clothes back to her earthly attire. "And Keiichi knows all about me, so it's not like I'm trying to fool him either, although I don't blame you for finding this hard to swallow, nor I'll start asking questions as to where you've heard that. Even I had some trouble to accept what was going on at first, until I started to slowly remember random bits from my past."
Hesitating a bit, Megumi decided to push her luck and ask one of the things she wondered after hearing Urd's story from the others. "So… you did lose your memories for real?"
"That goes without saying. I really hate the damsel in distress gag and I'd never scam anyone into a relationship out of pity; I've got some standards you know."
"Sorry, sorry, I just had to ask! I didn't… mean it like that!" said Megumi, before she stopped and let out a sigh, visibly deflating as she realized how she must've sounded. "Boy, I'm really acting like a jealous sister who's taking her frustrations on her brother's girlfriend…"
"To a certain degree, I'll have to agree with you, although, I'm not one to speak either. You see… It's not like I don't find you trustworthy, but… in the end, I didn't trust you, so there!"
Eying at each other like hungry predators who fought over the same carcass, the two women grinned as this banter kept on.
"Really? I'm the one who should be worried about your housekeeping skills," said Megumi, only to have Urd laugh at the accusations.
"Pff! That's what electrical appliances are for anyway! It's my other skills that really matter, but I don't want to bring those up to such an innocent girl like you," said Urd, tossing her hair over her shoulder while arching her back slightly to make her chest stick out more than it normally does.
"If that's true, pray tell me why Kei-chan's still a virgin?" countered Megumi with a smirk, but failed to phase her opponent.
"Hey, I had to introduce him to my mom first, and… make sure that she wasn't the one who'd deflower him before I had the chance to do so! It's not that simple you know!" said Urd with an over dramatic pout.
"Well, can't blame you for that. I've kind of seen her and boy, she's hot!"
"Easy there, girl! I'd rather have you as my sister in law, instead of my mother's new squeeze!" laughed Urd, totally unaware of the temple's tabby cat walking up to them.
"Dunno, I'd definitely consider becoming a lesbian for such a looker!" said Megumi with a wink, while the possessed feline stopped next to her and groomed himself with a nonchalant expression on his face.
"Be mindful of your wishes or misfortune will befall upon you."
Turning towards the unexpected source of the interruption, the duo's reactions couldn't be more different with one of them freaking out while the other simply glared at the newcomer.
"The cat talked!"
Ignoring the hyperventilating mortal, Urd kept staring at her father instead. "Very funny… Is that a celestial proverb of something?"
"No, I just read it one of those fortune cookies you've brought back with you from that Chinese restaurant," said Tyr in an almost nonchalant tone.
"You ate my cookies?" shouted the indignant half goddess, grinding her teeth.
"In my defense, I only got one, the rest of them met a cruel fate at your mother's jaws," said Tyr, nodding towards the direction of the house.
"Don't think this is over! I just need to save what I can!" said Urd as she rushed back inside, leaving Tyr with the shell shocked Megumi who still muttered about cats not being able to talk. "Now, how about you come inside and have cup of tea with us? Sorry for this, but I had to stop your little game before you actually managed to insult my daughter and end up getting a lightning bolt for your trouble. And stop this stuff about me being a cat, I'm only possessing this body; it's not my real one."
"Ah, sorry…" Shaking her head, Megumi tried to ignore the awkward feeling of having a conversation with a cat and put on the best smile she could muster. "I… I'd love that!"
"Well, this way, then."
XXX
Megumi was already on her second cup of tea when her brother finally arrived at the house. Today was Keiichi's turn to go shopping, and the moment he stepped inside, the young mechanic felt that something was off. Next to Urd's shoes was a pair of sneakers that looked suspiciously familiar, yet… judging by the voices coming from the living room, his other housemates were also present.
'What's going on? If Megumi's here, then…'
Poking his head through the living room's door, Keiichi was horrified when he found not only Vali and Dagaz chatting with his sister, but Hild's avatar was there too; hovering in mid air, as if nothing was out of the ordinary.
"Hey! What's going on here?"
"Oh, hi there Kei-chan!" said Megumi with a big grin, enjoying her brother's panicked look as he realized that this could lead into a lot of questions. "I was having a nice cup of tea with everyone here, so… Want to join us?"
"B-But… she's hovering!" said Keiichi, pointing at Hild's avatar, who giggled and flipped herself upside down.
"Yes… and the cat talks too, but… I've already found out about it," said Megumi, before she narrowed her eyes at her panicking brother who knew what was to follow. "Thanks for telling me, by the way."
Wincing at his sister's sarcastic and rather caustic tone, Keiichi scanned around the room for anyone willing to help him and much to his surprise it was Hild who rushed to his rescue. Floating towards Megumi, she sat on her lap and offered the mortal woman some rice crackers.
"Here, Megumi-chan! They're really good!"
"Hey, thanks Hild! Don't mind if I do!"
Feeling a hand on his shoulder, Keiichi turned to his right to find Urd smiling at him. "It's alright, Keiichi. We… talked already, and…"
"It was quite a spectacle," said Tyr, interrupting his daughter as he took his eyes from the TV and glanced towards the dark haired mechanic. "I've never heard such cheerful… insults. Which probably explains why Hild's so giddy."
Nodding slowly, Keiichi tried not to think too much about what may had taken place, given that everyone was cheerful, or at the very least content with staying in the same room. As such, it was unlikely that the situation had truly gotten out of hand and resulted into a catfight. "Well, it's a relief that nothing bad happened and…"
Before Keiichi could even finish his sentence, the doorbell rang, making everyone look towards the front door.
'Now what?' wondered Keiichi, as Dagaz went to answer the door.
"I've got it!" said the cheerful god, only to let out a startled yelp mere moments later. "Boss?"
Intrigued, the rest of his housemates along with Megumi and Hild peeked around the doorframe and that's when Urd nearly launched towards the two goddesses standing before the stunned Dagaz.
"Belldandy! Skuld!"
Knowing what was about to happen, both the goddess of the present and the blonde god stepped aside, leaving the confused Skuld to come face to face with her nemesis: her eldest sister's bosom.
"Mmph!"
Twirling her around like a rag doll, the overjoyed half goddess ignored the little Norn's angry protests and just kept hugging her tighter. "I've missed you!"
"Just… let go! And stop doing this! I've told you countless times that I hate it!" said Skuld with a gasp, managing to pull her face free from her sister's cleavage. "Find someone else to rub your boobies against their face!"
"Ha! That's the spirit kiddo! Looks like you've grown up a bit while I wasn't looking?" Laughing hard Urd pat Skuld's shoulders, while Belldandy simply stared at her younger sister in utter shock.
"Skuld? There did you pick such language?" asked the horrified Norn of the present, making her sibling realize her blunder; although it was too long to fix it now.
"Uh… a book?" suggested the young goddess, hiding behind the amused Urd.
"Just what kind of books are you reading?" asked the scandalized Belldandy, trying to get to her unruly sibling who was probably entering the dreaded first stages of adolescence.
"Normal ones?" said Skuld from her hiding place, her voice full of uncertainty and even concern as her big sister tried to peek around their eldest sibling who stood between them.
"Calm down Bell… It's not that much of a big deal," said Urd, placing her hands on her sister's shoulders, causing her to visibly relax. "We all know that Skuld's more like your mother, so it's a bit… of a family thing."
"Huh? What do you mean, neesan?" asked Belldandy, tilting her head in confusion, all while Hild tried to keep herself from laughing out.
"Well… she's kind… From what I've heard, Ansuz can swear like a sailor if someone really manages to piss her off," said Urd, eying at her mother, who simply stuck her tongue out in response. "Especially when that someone casually floats behind her and plops her overgrown boobs on top of her head…"
"Oh… did you hear that, Bell-chan?" asked Hild in a singsong tone, giving the middle Norn a playful wink. "I think you found out where our little Skuld learned that word from. Although I'll give her credit for coming up with a lie to cover up for my Urd-chan! Aww... how cute!"
Letting out a sigh, Belldandy simply sidestepped her sisters, much to their surprise and headed towards their father. Looking down at the possessed cat whose ears perked up as Belldandy stopped before him, the brunette goddess cleared her throat to regain her composure, doing her best to ignore Hild's amused expression. "Father, is it true that mother is… foul mouthed?"
"Daughter of mine, if I were to give you a sincere answer to that question, then I'd end up sleeping on the couch," said Tyr in a low and level tone, doing his best to ignore Hild's sniggering. "And in all honestly, I really don't like our couch."
"Ha! You never complained about my couch!" laughed Hild, not been able to restrain herself anymore. "Then again, we normally used that for…"
"Don't you dare finish that sentence!" shouted the possessed feline, his fur standing up in shock.
And while the two former lovers bickered about what they were supposed to say in front of the kids or not, Megumi gave her brother a long look. "And here I thought that Keima and Takano were weird…."
"That's so true… Especially since our parents cannot blow up planets and who knows what else these two can do," muttered Keiichi, keeping his voice as low as possible; just enough for his sister to hear him. "So, keep that in mind before you put your foot on your mouth and end up pissing off either of them. For all I know, they can turn you into a hamster, or even a car..."
"Gotcha!"
XXX
Roughly half an hour later things had calmed down considerably as everyone decided to enjoy a rather peaceful moment together; especially given the rather unusual situation of having all three Norns in the same room with Hild. Given that she was Urd's mother, one would've expected her to show some level of animosity to her ex's two other daughters; the result of his union with another goddess and living proof that their relationship was over.
Yet despite that, the Daimakaicho's avatar chose to sit between Belldandy and Skuld, especially as this was the first time she really got to meet them in person and even made an effort to get to know them. It almost seemed uncharacteristic for a demoness to do such a thing, although in reality it was within demonic nature to repay a debt, and given that Urd was welcomed by Ansuz as a member of her family, Hild would settle for nothing less than return the favor. Doing anything other than that would've made her appear as a petty demoness and for someone of her status, that was absolutely unacceptable. Then again, the mere fact that she and their mother were friends was a colossal bonus as well.
Still knowing how much Hild loved to tease others, most of the bystanders decided to keep a safe distance between themselves and what appeared to a recipe for a disaster. Keiichi suddenly remembered to take a look at Megumi's KSR despite his sister's complaints that she was taking good care of her bike, while Vali volunteered to go to the city and grab some additional supplies, now that they had guests. With nothing else to do in the kitchen until Vali returned back with the supplies, Dagaz thought that sweeping the temple grounds was a great idea; and so he left the Norns along with Tyr and Hild to have their family reunion of sorts.
'Well, I guess that's the last of them!'
Smiling as he proudly inspected the stack of leaves in front of him, Dagaz was happy to see that thanks to his hard the temple grounds were as clean as never before. Not a single twig could be found lying on the ground, and hopefully that would make everyone realize how hard he must've worked to accomplish that without using any magic. Although he could've gone for that, given that the whole point was to buy himself some time and keep out of Urd's hair during her sisters' visit, he avoided the much faster method, using the good old straw broom to sweep the yard.
'Oh… I bet Urd might even offer me a compliment and… huh? What the?'
A sudden gust of wind picked up and ruined everything as it sent the leaves flying all over the place, making the blonde god growl in frustration and Mara to cling onto the tree she was sitting on while spying them from a safe distance with her binoculars. And if that wasn't enough, the leaves were pulled into a small cyclone as a figure formed in the middle of it; a very familiar form.
"Oh, Urd!"
"YOU?! What the Hell are you doing here?" shouted the blonde god, interrupting the newcomer as he started to strum his harp and forcing him to look in Dagaz's direction with a startled expression on his face. "And what about this mess too, pal? Don't care about the whole oh look how sexy I am with my cape picking up the wind nonsense, I just finished sweeping the place you know!"
"That should be my line! Why are you living here? I thought that this was my Urd's home!" shouted the Earth Spirit back at the god, pointing him with a shaking finger.
"It is, and before you even bother to ask, no… I'm not the only guy living under the same roof. There are two others and we're kind of out of rooms to spare, so… beat it!" Smiling from ear to ear as the astonished musician stared him with his mouth hanging open in shock.
"THREE?!"
"Well… as they say, sharing is caring. Plus, someone needs to keep her busy during the night, and it's so much easier if we take shifts." As much of a lie as that claim was, Dagaz was more than happy to turn this guy's jealousy against him. Last time this bully got away with trying to curse him just because he dared to try and talk to Urd, acting like the perfect control freak of a boyfriend; only to dump her when it was convenient.
"I… I must put an end at this! Your vice deeds will come to an end right now!" Resisting the urge to just curse him on the spot, the Earth Spirit ran past him, towards the first source of noise he could hear, hoping that it was Urd. "My love! Come back to me!"
'What a nutcase…' Shaking his head, Dagaz was about to head back into the house and warn the others of this uninvited guest, but stopped when he spot Vali by the temple's stairs. He had just arrived back from his shopping trip and immediately an idea formed in the god's mind.
"Vali! We've got an intruder!"
XXX
"Urd? Are you in there my beautiful flower?" said the plum tree spirit as he approached the shed where Keiichi kept his Beemer.
Failing to notice the Morisato sibling who sat next to Megumi's KSR and peered over the green bike to see who this weirdo was and what made him think that Urd was here.
"You do not have to hide from me, Urd. I shall make you remember our love with a song!" Taking his ever present harp in hand he began to strum.
"Oh! Urdy!" he warbled. Strumming another chord, he continued.
"You are as beautiful as a birdy!" closing his eyes and tilting his head back the amorous immortal poured his heart into his ballad.
"I need to be..." Troubadour was abruptly cut short by an icicle that smashed against the back of his head, before shattering into tiny bits of ice. "OW!"
"State your name and purpose, or face the consequences!" Standing next to a grinning Dagaz who thoroughly enjoyed this, Vali had already changed into his combat uniform, before summoning the standard issue battleaxe of the Fighting Wings.
xxx
"That's my boy!"
Heads turned around Valhalla's Combat Information Center, as the astonished Valkyries could hardly believe that the enthusiastic and rather loud exclamation originated from the most stoic among them.
Daring to voice hers concerns from her station next to Lind's, Chrono did what few war goddesses had the guts to do. "Uh… captain? I thought that it was generally frowned upon to shoot first and then ask questions?"
"True." Wiping her tears of motherly pride off, Lind tried to remind herself that encouraging her young protegee to follow protocol was really important. Even… if she didn't restrain herself from doing the very same thing her son just did. "I'll have to reprimand him when he comes back. Oh, and keep that in mind too, Chrono!"
"Yes, ma'am!"
Offering her a content nod, Lind returned back at her task at hand: take a few more photos for the family album.
xxx
"EEK!"
The shrill shriek made everyone, Vali included to stare at the Earth Spirit in wonder, as the musician jumped to the roof of the shed, getting as far as possible from the terrible object the blue haired god was holding.
"What's up with that guy? Who is he anyways?" asked Megumi, while her brother stepped out of the shed and looked up to the trembling spirit who shook in terror.
"He's called Troubadour and happens to be Urd's ex boyfriend," spat Dagaz, giving the aforementioned Earth Spirit a glare. "Although don't underestimate him due to how stupid he looks... This bloke loves to curse anyone who dares to talk to Urd, so keep your guard up."
"Hold on! Curse?" asked Keiichi, who started to feel that this didn't involve mere curse words, but something a bit more substantial. "What kind of curse are we talking about?"
"The kind that makes your body to fill up with crawly bugs until it bursts…" muttered the blonde god, making both mortals present turn green, although Vali couldn't care less, his training providing him with the means to counter all but the worst kinds of curses.
'Besides he's an Earth Spirit, so I doubt that he can overpower me. And even if worse comes to worst, I can always do what mother instructed me for situations like these: beat the daylights out of him.
However, the aforementioned Spirit managed to muster all his courage and get off the roof, determined to face his adversaries. Ignoring Megumi, he was certain that the blue haired god and the other mortal were Dagaz's accomplices in this filthy scheme to corrupt poor Urd and use her to their heart's content. "That's right! I'll never allow you… you fiends to keep exploiting my Urd's kind heart! I'll make you all disappear!"
Strumming his harp, Troubadour's eyes turned red as his ominous tune caused dark tendrils of energy to gather around him like some kind of unholy miasma. "Bugs… bugs… bugs on the march… bugs… on… OW!"
With a flick of his wrist, Vali launched a fist sized hail ball that smacked Troubadour right between his eyes, causing the Earth Spirit to stumble back and land hard on the ground. "Nice try… but no cigar."
"That was so cheap!" protested Troubadour, pointing at the war god cadet with an accusatory finger.
"So says the guy who thinks that including a mortal as a target is a sign of bravery. And let's not mention that you're assaulting us without any provocation while you're technically an intruder. Because I highly doubt that you were invited here," said Vali, narrowing his eyes at the musician.
"I'm here to rid my Urd of you three perverts who are taking advantage of her!" cried Troubadour, strumming his harp. "Oh, Urd! How could you let these brutes touch you, my innocent flower!"
"Innocent?" asked Dagaz, as images of Urd's most daring outfits popped in his mind. "Are we even talking about the same goddess?"
"I may have hit him a harder than intended," said Vali, scratching his head while Keiichi noticed a scroll lying on the ground, but before he could pick it up, the rest of the immortals joined them to see what the commotion was all about.
"Hey, what's up with all that noise all of a sudden?"
Staring at them with a raised eyebrow, it took Urd a moment to notice that there was a newcomer among them, but a very… familiar looking one. 'Oh no… not this again! Why is Troubadour back? I thought he had departed on a journey to find the Golden Nightingale. So, what is he doing here?'
"Oh, Urd!" getting up in a hurry, Troubadour ignored the looks we was getting from her sisters and continued with his song. "Your hair, while like the purest snowflakes in the winter. Your eyes reflect the sun like the most beautiful amethyst gems! Your cherry lips so enticing like…"
"Hey, if we keep going south, I'm out of here. I want no songs about my hooters, especially not while a certain someone's around," said Urd, interrupting the amorous Earth Spirit and doing her best to avoid looking towards Skuld who was giving her a dirty look, realizing who she was most likely talking about. "Besides… why are you here to begin with?"
"I'm here to rekindle the flames of our passion!"
"Can we not have any flames? She already burnt the house down yesterday." said Tyr, surprising the musician when he decided to voice his thoughts.
"I was trying to light up the gas stove!" objected Urd, but to no avail as her father was relentless.
"The oven, my fluffy tail! You light up the whole temple along with your mother's britches and nearly got the rest of us in stitches!" shot Tyr back at his daughter, while Hild couldn't help but snigger in the distance. "And if you think that it's funny that I rhyme, then tell that to someone who gives a dime."
That childish giggle caused Troubadour to look up from the wise cat, and towards a sight that made his face lose all color. Standing next to Keiichi who had just picked up the scroll he previously found, was a little girl that greatly resembled Urd. "No! How could fate be so cruel?! They had already sown the seeds of their foul desires into…"
A lightning bolt ended his sentence, as a growling Urd narrowed her eyes at the soot covered Troubadour. "Which part of we've got minors here can't you get, you nitwit?"
"I'm not a kid!" barked Skuld, sticking her tongue at her eldest sister, who simply returned the favor.
And while the two quarreling siblings went on with the middle sister trying to defuse the situation, Troubadour jogged towards the unfortunate mortal and the Daimakaicho's avatar with a sense of purpose written on his face. "You, mortal! Who's this one's father?"
"How am I supposed to know?" asked Keiichi, as he honestly knew nothing about Hild's background, other that she was Urd's mother.
"Oh my poor Urd!" cried the musician, strumming his harp almost out of habit. "Having a child born out of wedlock, without even knowing who sired your offspring!"
While the rest simply gawked at the almost delirious Earth Spirit, Hild couldn't help but find it utterly amusing that not only did he fail to recognize her, but also ignored the simple fact that she was a pure blooded demoness. None of Urd's housemates had any traces of demonic blood ancestry and as such, having a child with her was highly unlikely to result in a demoness like Hild. At best it would have some of her demonic ancestry, but not to such a degree.
"Huh? Wait, you think that she's…" started the confused Keiichi only to be rudely interrupted by the jealous musician whose intense gaze was downright murderous.
"Mortal! Tell me which one of you filthy lot fathered her, now! If you're honest with me, I might decide to spare you," said Troubadour, leaning closer to Keiichi while that dark aura manifested around him once again.
However, before the mechanic had the chance to offer a reply, Hild decided to do that for him, but not in the way most would've expected from her. Attaching herself to Keiichi's torso, the little version of the Daimakaicho simply uttered one, yet utterly shocking word. "Daddy!"
"What the?!... Hey, let go of me, Hild! That's... that's not funny!"
"I knew it!" Despite Keiichi's rather obvious shock, Troubadour was already convinced that this was perpetrator of sullying his Urd. And that heinous crime had to be punished before he even got to deal with those other two gods that were also guilty but to a somewhat lesser degree. "I hope you enjoyed your short life, you vile vermin! Because I'll now make you disappear!"
"Oh, for goodness sake!" Urd had had enough. Considering that this guy refused to take the hint and his actions were starting to genuinely disturb her, she fired a lightning bolt, but this time it was more than a warning; it was meant to hurt. As distasteful as it was to actually harm someone, even without getting to the point of injuring them, Urd came to realize that Troubadour's jealousy has gotten out of hand. Perhaps it had always been that way and she simply wanted to think that her boyfriend was a nicer person than he actually was. Or maybe she ignored those faults by subconsciously considering those overreactions as a sign of undying love and affection. Either way, Troubadour had gone from being an overzealous boyfriend to someone who could be very well described as a stalker and she needed to put an end to this before somebody got hurt. "That's my mother, you dumbass!"
"EH?" Picking himself up from the ground with some effort on his part, as he was still recovering from getting electrocuted, Troubadour gave Hild a much better look and soon enough he bowed his head down to the ground. "Honorable mother! I'm really pleased to meet you in person!"
"Uh… that's something you're supposed to say after you've married my daughter, you know." Scratching her head, Hild ignored Urd's glare, knowing the goddess was far from pleased by her actions but then again, someone had to prod her in order to react. It was disturbing to see Urd simply sit idly while this Earth Spirit got away with bullying Keiichi, let alone threaten to effectively kill him. A mortal certainly couldn't survive having their body filled with insects and that should've been obvious to Urd, yet she hesitated to act which only encouraged Troubadour to go on with his act.
"Enough! I'm done with this!" Glaring at her ex, Urd wanted to make it clear that this time there would be no further misunderstandings. So far she had opted to avoid a particularly nasty breakup for the sake of what happy moments they had in the past, but this was clearly too much. "I don't have a child, and neither I'm sleeping with anyone, but!... Even if that was the case, that's none of your damn business! And let's not even talk about leaving a child of mine orphaned because you cannot accept reality!"
"But, I…"
"You, departed on a journey to find some bird and while I let you pursue your dreams. That was your decision, and if you're a real man, then stick to it! And since we're no longer a couple, my personal life is none of your business!" She finally said it and for a moment it felt really good, even though part of her worried that it may had sounded a bit cruel. Then again, subtlety wasn't going to work with Troubadour, as he clearly failed to get a hint and it was better to scare him than have to rely on more extreme measures, like sealing him. "Now, tell me why you're here and no more nonsense!"
"I.. I found it! I finally found it!" said Troubadour, his face slowly regaining his color after Urd snapped at him.
"The Golden Nightingale? Then where is it?" Looking around in wonder, the half goddess along with most of the bystanders made an effort to detect the aforementioned bird, but to no avail. "I can't see anything!"
"Oh, that's the… problem, actually. I've only found the scroll to summon it, but…" Reaching for his robes, Troubadour paused when the scroll was nowhere to be found. Panicking he tried every one of his pockets, until he reached a dreadful conclusion. "I've lost it!"
"Seriously…" Letting out a sigh, Urd shook her head in disdain reminding herself that this was Troubadour they were talking about, and despite his way of intimidating others, he was even more prone to accidents than Mara. 'Hold on… I… forgot about her. What did I do with her again? Did I seal her? Or was it me and Bell? Ugh… I can't recall that.'
"Excuse me, but are you looking for this?" asked Keiichi, getting both Troubadour and Urd's attention, as he held up the scroll he found previously. "I found it lying on the ground and…"
"YES! That's it!" grabbing it as if it was the most valuable thing in the world, the Earth Spirit cuddled the scroll, much to his audience's amusement. "My precious!"
"It's not a ring, so give me a break! Now, why don't you summon that bird and get this over with," said Urd, only to blink when Troubadour got the scroll right in front of her face and pointed at the ring around it. "Huh? There is a ring?"
"That's right… It's the seal that keeps me from opening the scroll and according to legend, only the tears of a goddess can remove it," said Troubadour with a hopeful, almost pleading expression on his face.
"To begin with I'm only half a goddess, and even then I'm not in the mood for crying," said Urd before immediately turning to her smiling middle sister, who was already holding a feather in her hands. "Even from tickling, thank you very much, Bell! Now… where was I? Oh, right! If it's a ring, just toss it in a volcano!"
"No way! I need the scroll!" said Troubadour, taking a few steps away from the grinning half goddess. She had that look on her face, and whenever that happened… bad things were likely to follow.
"Come on, don't be a wuss! Gimme!"
"No!"
"Chicken!"
"Meanie!"
'And they call me a kid' thought Skuld with a groan, watching the otherwise ridiculous exchange between those two that even managed to have Hild stumped as to how to respond. 'Just you wait, Urd… Once I get a bit bigger there, I'll show everyone who's the most immature in the family.'
Looking directly down, Skuld paused for a moment when an idea struck her. Reaching into her blouse where she stored all her contraptions, the little goddess knew what she had to do. "Hey! I've got something for a situation like this!"
"Huh?"
Giving her a puzzled look as Skuld brought her compact chainsaw out of her secret stash, the assorted crowd took a few steps back, as the tiny device looked like it was capable to cause some real damage. And the red letters on its side, identifying it as 'Texas Murder Mk. III' didn't make anyone feel much better, eithe. Especially the Earth Spirit whose teeth were rattling louder than hungry piranhas in the middle of a barbeque contest.
"C-C-C-CHAINSAW?!"
"Oh, I get it now!" said Dagaz with a big grin, as he finally figured out what was going on. "He's a tree spirit, so he's scared of all sorts of axes! And the more efficient they are, the worse it is!"
"Hm… so that's why he was afraid of my battleaxe," mused Vali, scratching his chin while in the distance Skuld started to chase the terrified Troubadour around the temple grounds.
"Hey, come back here, you wuss! I Can cut that dumb ring!"
"Somebody help me! They'll turn me into wood pellets!"
'Skuld's getting more and more like her mother. Then again… I kind of like her spunky attitude of hers, though. She really doesn't take no for an answer.' Nobody actually noticed Tyr's smile, considering that mischievous grin cats had on their faces at times, but it was rather clear by his tail that swung from side to side that he was indeed happy. He had always worried that his youngest daughter was too dependent of her sisters, both of them, and that things would've hard for her as she grew older. However, with Skuld getting more confident, it was possible that her future seemed promising. A rather fitting prospect for the goddess who governed that particular domain of time.
XXX
Fifteen minutes later, things finally calmed down a bit, allowing Urd and the rest to sit in the front patio for a steaming cup of tea and crackers. Despite Troubadour's earlier attempts to run away from a chainsaw wielding Skuld, the little goddess managed to catch up and slice the offending seal of his scroll. Of course, the aforementioned Earth Spirit did have a few issues with her methods, but then again, arguing with someone who still carried a chainsaw was… far from a smart idea even for him.
Even Mara who had been spying them all this time decided to take a break and eat some of the stir fried noodles and chicken she had bought on the way here. Besides, it gave her a perfect opportunity to reassess the situation after seeing what was going on here and in all honesty, she was even more confused than before.
'Okay… so she seems to remember a lot more than I had initially thought. That rules out the possibility that she's like a lost puppy looking for a home. Heh… as if that would've worked with her.'
Trying to keep herself from chuckling and in the process blow her cover, Mara's turned her attention to the most peculiar of Urd's housemates. While it was fairly obvious why the half goddess might've wished to attract the attention of the other two gods, a mortal was… a totally different matter altogether. He had a limited lifespan, no magic powers whatsoever and even his looks were more or less average; not to mention his financial status. And yet, she knew that this one had caught Urd's eye more than anyone else, much to Mara's disbelief.
'Seriously… what are you thinking Urd? A mortal is hardly your equal, although… that talentless hack of a musician sure looks way more dumb. Maybe, she likes hanging around idiots or something?'
Mara's amused grin slowly turned into a frown when the demoness realized that she was the one who spend most time than any of those men.
'S-She doesn't think that I'm an idiot, right? I mean… sure, I've done some silly things and my plans have a tendency to backfire, and my luck just sucks and…'
Her lower lip was trembling at this point as the list kept growing by the second. Taking a rather angry yet utterly satisfying bite of her chicken teriyaki, Mara dismissed such negative thoughts and tried to focus on the current problem. This whole situation gave all those celestials the perfect opportunity to stick around the… partially amnesiac goddess and at this rate, it wouldn't take long for their influence to spread across the city.
Yet more than anything else, Mara's biggest fear was that this incident could trigger some long lasting changes in the half goddess' personality. At a first glance it was really hard to notice, as Urd's current behavior wasn't all too different from what she could recall, but… there were all sorts of tiny details that told a different story. Sure, people changed over time and it's been indeed a while since she last saw her, but if said changes were solely attributed to her memory loss and subsequent exile to the mortal realm, then Mara had no desire for this to go on. Despite of messing around with each other, Urd was one of the few real friends she had and the prospect of letting her become a boring and utterly generic goddess was too much for Mara to bear.
'We already have Belldandy as the perfect little goddess, so there's no need for another one. Hm… maybe she won't become exactly like that, but… I don't want an Urd that I can't have a couple of drinks with. Or… that she won't try to use one of her bizarre pills on me. Okay, maybe it won't be too bad if she stops doing that, at least on me, but, I want the good old Urd back, dammit!'
Contemplating her options, the blonde demoness knew that the root of the problem was Urd's amnesia. Even with most of memories within reach, Mara doubted that the half goddess would go back to normal until she finally regained all of them, and that in her opinion was the biggest priority here. None of those men did anything to help, perhaps as an excuse to stick around her, and the worst part was that her sisters went along with it too.
'Well, just because nobody wants to do anything doesn't mean that I have to follow their example. I bet that I can find something to help her recover her memory in no time and that should make everyone happy too. Oh!... Especially Hild-sama! I'm going to become the demoness of the decade for sure!'
With newfound confidence, the overjoyed Mara began to plan all the intricate details of her most ambitious scheme so far. This was her ticket to success, and even more, Urd was going to owe her a favor.
'This is the best comeback in history! Now, I'll better buy the latest catalogue and see what kind of stuff I can order!'
XXX
"Ahem! Mi mi mi miiii!... Hm… not, that's not right… It kind of lacks depth, so need to go lower..."
"Hey, are you gonna start now, or what?" Eying Troubadour with annoyance evident in her voice, Urd tapped at her wristwatch. "My soap opera is starting in fifteen minutes, so let's get it over with!"
"Urd! You shouldn't rush a creative artist!" objected the musician but to no avail.
"What's so darn creative about singing something written on a scroll?" countered the half goddess, as she bit another cracker. "Now do it, or I'm gonna sing it!"
"Okay, okay! No need to get so upset about an opera of soaps! I swear… real artists get no respect these days…" grumbled Troubadour, clearing his throat one last time before he actually started his song.
It was actually a rather pleasant tune, although for the assorted celestials there was something… awfully familiar in those verses. Especially to the Norns and their father who exchanged a look of utter confusion and disbelief.
"Father… isn't that?..." trailed Belldandy, only for Tyr to offer a nod.
"I think so, although… why did he got that song?" wondered the celestial leader, looking skywards where a portal formed as a result to the Earth Spirit's aria.
And as the rest of the unsuspecting gods along with the awestruck Morisato siblings gazed at the portal, a form emerged from it. A very different form than one would've expected, as this was no bird, even if she had four little winglets attached to her head; two on either side.
"My, my… I'm rather shocked anyone even remembers my summoning song," said Ansuz with a giggle as she reached her robes and retrieved her communicator, turning to Troubadour. "We use phones these days, young man, so there's no need to resort to such ancient methods. Still, I'm kind of curious to hear what this is all about and so, here I am. Well? What did you call me for?"
To say that at this point Troubadour was utterly confused would've been an understatement. He had done everything according to the scroll's instructions, yet… this Nightingale was really… really different than what he had in mind. But, then again, maybe he was different compared to the other plum tree spirits and his companion reflected that uniqueness as well. With a wide, confident smile on his face and tears of happiness running freely down his cheeks, the musician launched himself at the baffled goddess, and pulled her in a bear hug. "My golden Nightingale! I've finally met you!"
A collective gasp of shock and surprise could be heard across the audience, as everyone save the two mortals knew who this goddess really was, and even more… what was going to follow.
"Brace for impact!" shouted the possessed feline as the rest of the celestials hit the deck, with Vali moving to shield Keiichi and Megumi, Urd grabbed her sisters and erected a barrier, and Hild… reached for a bag of popcorn.
"YES! Live action adultery! Swe~et!" squealed the demoness, much to Tyr's chagrin. "You never see it in full detail on those TV dramas!"
Before the cat could scratch the offending demoness, a shockwave pushed them all back as the air around Ansuz erupted. Static charges went off in every direction, striking anything within reach, Troubadour included, while a vein popped in her forehead. Finally, her eyes went from teal to a rich golden color as she could no longer hold her tongue back.
"WHO DO YOU THINK YOU'RE GLOMPING, YOU SON OF A BITCH?!"
"Uh…"
The harsh sound of rapid slapping filled the air, as the outraged goddess denied him any chance to offer an explanation. Instead she punished him for this most inappropriate act of immorality and then turned to the one she knew that was behind it. "Hild! What's the meaning of this?"
"Aw… come on! You should've at least given him a smooch," said the Daimakaicho's avatar, puckering her lips, only to infuriate her old rival even more than she currently was.
"SMOOCH? HIM? RIGHT IN FRONT OF MY DAUGHTERS?"
Most would've simply broken down to tears by how terrible the goddess' gaze was, and those who could still control their faculties would definitely start apologizing. Hild however belonged to neither of those groups, as she was a category just by herself. "So… if that happened behind their backs, I could get to see the smooch?"
"HILD! I'm serious here!" thundered the furious goddess, reminding herself that there were innocent bystanders that had nothing to do with this… troublemaker's mannerisms. "I warn you… If you keep acting like this, you're gonna get a spanking!"
"You know, if you put it like that. Then I'd definitely love getting a spanking from you, my naughty birdy," purred Hild behind half closed eyes, causing the goddess to instantly calm down; albeit from sheer shock. "You're the best one in all nine worlds when it comes to that stuff!"
Taking a step back in utter horror, the scandalized goddess immediately turned to the Norns who were staring back at her in wonder; especially the two younger ones whose faces were glowing crimson. "NO! I'M NOT DOING THINGS LIKE THAT!... SHE'S JUST LYING! THEY'RE ALL LIES, I TELL YOU!"
As comical as it was to see the second highest ranking deity panic and flap her winglets so hard that she could've taken off, Urd thought that this was getting out of hand. "Okay, that's more than enough, mom. Stop saying naughty stuff in front of everyone, or I'll take extreme measures."
"Hm… you mean either an Urd bolt, or weird medicine?" asked Hild, causing her daughter to narrow her eyes.
"Hey! My medicine's not weird!"
"Okay, okay… calm down Urd-chan." Chuckling, the little Daimakaicho turned back at the teal haired goddess, ignoring Urd's glare who was still complaining that her medicine was perfectly normal. "It's been a while Ansuz. How have you been?"
"Busy, but what else is new?" replied the goddess as she finally relaxed completely, offering her adversary a tiny smile. "Say… this couldn't be your way to get me all they here, right Hild?"
"Oh, where did you ever got this silly idea from?" said the demoness, yet neither her tone nor her wink made anyone believe her.
"Uh… Kei-chan? I'm really confused… Are they friends or enemies?" asked Megumi as she gave her brother a puzzled look.
"Honestly? I've got no idea. At first they looked like enemies, but…" Turning to Vali who was still next to them, just in case his defense barriers were needed, Keiichi offered him an inquiring look.
"She's Tyr-sama's second wife and the mother of Urd's little sisters. I think that should explain more than enough," said Vali, a bit reluctant to say more while within earshot of those two. Still, given their stunned expressions, that was more than enough for now.
"Eh? Mother?" asked Keiichi, hardly believing his ears. Even though he had seen what Hild looked like, Ansuz appeared to be even younger than her or at the very least, not as… developed as the aforementioned demoness.
"Oh, yes! That would be me!" With a wide smile on her face, the teal haired goddess stepped closer to Keiichi and stared at him. "Hm…"
"Yes! We can still have some live action adultery!" said Hild, earning a few groans from the rest of them; Ansuz in particular.
"You're really looking for trouble… Although, I must remind you that this is my full body, while all you have is a thousandth of your actual power! If you think you can win a fight against..."
"Defensive aren't we? Well, not that I blame you when you're so obviously intrigued by our Keiichi-kun! He's so cute!" squealed Hild, much to everyone else's horror as Ansuz's eyes turned yellow once more.
"You!..."
"Enough! This banter is upsetting your daughters, so, find another game. Both of you!"
It was rather surprising to hear a cat speak in such a deep, resonating voice, yet both Hild and Ansuz recovered much faster than anyone else present. Sharing a look, they let out a sigh and lowered their heads in resignation, as it became clear to them that fun and games were over.
"Yes, darling!" said both of them in perfect unison, before Ansuz gave Hild a rather pointed look.
"Hey, who are you calling my darling, your darling?"
"That's my line, humming bird!"
"Humming bird? Oh, you boobzilla!"
"So be it… I wash my paws of this," muttered the possessed feline, utterly fed up with their incessant teasing. Turning to his side, the funny Daitenkaicho's eyes burned with a vibrant blue glow as he stared the only one who could put an end to this madness. "Urd, I leave it to you."
"With pleasure!"
Grinning like a madwoman, the half goddess strode towards the quarreling duo and two karate chops later, peace was finally restored at the Tariki Hongan temple.
XXX
"So… you stole the scroll I've found and replaced it with a fake?"
Glancing to the side where Hild sat on Ansuz's lap, Keiichi had to admit that he was utterly lost. One moment those two were acting like enemies, the next like friends and now the goddess was actually cuddling the little demoness as if she was her best friend in the whole world. Then again… Urd standing behind them dressed in a UN soldier compete with the characteristic blue helmet might had something to do with it.
"Yes, that's quite correct! The moment I glomped you, I swapped those two scrolls," said Hild with a proud smile, turning back to the sight of a bandaged Troubadour practicing for the proper summoning song.
With an ice pack strapped on either side of his face to offer his swollen cheeks some relief, the almost comical looking Earth Spirit had just managed to rehearse the trickiest parts of the song and right on time too. Urd's favorite show was about to start any moment now and she was starting to lose her patience, as it became evident by the way she tapped her foot on the patio's wooden flooring.
"Are you ready now or what?"
"Huh? Uh… yes, that's right! I think I can give it a try now," said Troubadour, clearing his throat and with a short pause he began to strum his harp. It was a soft, soothing tone and far different than his corny love songs, making Urd shake her head at how he wasted his talent on such obvious attempts to come up with some love song.
'If only he used his skills properly, then he wouldn't need a stupid bird. Okay… maybe that's a coming of age ritual for the plum tree spirits or something, but… He's probably better without any help as far as the vocals are concerned. All he really needs is someone else to write his lyrics. Boy, they're so corny!'
"OH! Here it comes!" said Skuld as she pointed up in the sky, getting everyone's attention.
"How pretty…" said Belldandy, although her elder sister wasn't as impressed.
"That's it? Looks like an overgrown canary," muttered Urd with a rather bland expression on her face, as her father voiced his opinion.
"Mm… roasted on a low fire and served with sun dried tomatoes and sage." It took him a moment to notice that everyone was gawking at him, before he reached the inevitable conclusion that he had actually said that out loud. "Hey! I'm a currently using a cat's body! So, stop staring at me like that!"
"Hild's absolutely right, dear! Using a mortal body made you susceptible to gluttony!" said Ansuz, giving her husband a stern look. "From now on, you're on a diet, chubby kitty!"
"What?!"
"My Golden Nightingale, I finally meet you!" The delighted Troubadour could hardly hold back the tears of joy as his feathered familiar landed on his shoulder; only to turn to tears of pain. "Ooof! You're heavy!"
However, instead of a normal chirp for a reply, the bird let out a series of harsh, repeating tweets, some of them short while other drawn out. It was so loud, distorted and brutal, that most of the bystanders just had to protect their ears with their hands; Troubadour included.
"Why is it making these sounds!" asked the devastated Earth Spirit.
"Dunno!" shot Urd back at him, trying to shout over the pulsing sounds "Just kill it with fire! Please! Anyone!"
"Uh… hold on a second!" said Megumi, one of the two unaffected individuals that didn't react as negatively by the Nightingale's… chirping. Turning to her somewhat intrigued brother who was the other one not cringing by this performance, she had to make sure that her assumption was right. "Kei-chan… isn't that?..."
"Dubstep? I think that's the case Megumi," said Keiichi with a nod, despite being the first time hearing such a thing from a bird. Sure, some of them chirped in a repetitive manner, but this took it to a totally different level altogether.
"Huh? Dub… what?" asked the still shell shocked Troubadour after he found out that having longer, more sensitive ears wasn't always an advantage.
"Dubstep. It's pretty popular these days," said Keiichi with a smile, while Megumi offered a nod to affirm her brother's claim, seeing that the immortals around them were rather dubious. "With a bird like that, you'll become famous in no time!"
"But! It sounds… weird!" protested the poor Earth Spirit as the Nightingale offered its version of a happy chirp, causing his teeth to rattle.
"Well, it is certainly something different, especially for a more traditional musician, but… like I said… it sells!" Shrugging, Keiichi could almost feel the intense battle going on inside the Earth Spirit's head, with one side begging him to just roast the stupid thing, while the other saw it as a golden opportunity to become really popular.
"Hm… In that case, I shall prevail and master this new form of music to reach out and touch the very souls of my audience!"
"And instead blow their ears off…" muttered Urd under her breath, wincing as that infernal bird started again with its dubstep.
Preparing to fly off, Troubadour paused for a moment and then looked back. "I…"
"It's fine… Just go and and realize your dreams," said Urd with a smile, before her expression turned sour. "And take that overgrown chicken with you too! Boy, it's really loud!"
"T-Thank you Urd! Farewell my love!"
Watching him fly away, Urd couldn't help but look at the ground for a while, but quickly shook her head and tried to cheer up. "Okay! I think it's about time to… NO! my show had already started!"
Rushing back into the house and accidentally stepping on the possessed cat's tail, Urd left the others laughing with her spontaneous reactions; well, all except for Tyr who caressed his trampled tail. It was nice to see her in high spirits after her ex's unexpected visit, and slowly the others started to head back in too.
Only after everyone was gone did Mara emerge from the tree she's been hiding; just outside of the temple's perimeter wall. With a huge grin on her face, the demoness was pleased with the huge success of her reconnaissance mission, and more specifically the fact that she came up with one in the first place. Normally, Mara would've simply charge head on, but in a situation like this she knew that a different sort of approach was needed.
'I think I've got everything I need now! A memory booster will help Urd remember everything and after that, considering that this was Asgard's fault, her license suspension will be revoked! And… and if she's angry with them, she might even decide to join us instead of going back there! In that case we can hang around any time we want and Hild-sama will give me a huge promotion! I mean… why would she stay with those guys anymore? Oh, this is it! I've finally got a foolproof plan! There's no way it's going to fail!'
Resisting the urge to cackle like a madwoman, Mara flew towards the city where she could prepare her memory booster without any interruptions. She was so happy that she didn't even notice the power line until it was far too late.
"Oowww! Who put that there?!"
From within the house, a shout of sheer outrage could be heard when the lights went out.
"NO! Just when he was just about to kiss her! DAMMIT!"
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.
Although Mara's role in this chapter was very limited, I've felt that it was necessary for her to take a look of what was going on before she gets really involved with what's going on at the temple. However, rest assured, that this will most certainly happen in the next chapter.
Now, as far as the current chapter is concerned, I must admit that I was a bit cautious as to how to approach Troubadour's situation. While I wanted to offer some realism as to how Urd would react to his rather silly yet dangerous curse, going overboard could easily turn this into a case of character bashing and no matter how unpopular he may be, I don't like writing such stories. On the other hand, I believe that her reaction in canon AMG was a bit underwhelming and as such, I felt that I had to find a middle ground between those two approaches. Hopefully, my approach along with the added humor kept this chapter in the right track and it's not too much of a one sided critique of a particular character.