Lets do something totally (well as original as you can get in a FanFic) original. The next story arc is rather... I dunno, I found it the least memorable of them, but only because it opens the world up and fills in some of my least favourite things. Like politics.

Because it IS storyline, I'm not going to skip it. But, before I hop into it, I'm going to have a bit more fun. Stretch out the legs, as it were.

Chapter 25.

"Right there?"

"A little further."

"How about this?"

"Oh, that's the spot."

"It's not too hard?"

"No... Ouch, don't push like that."

"Sorry."

"Lilly is surprised you can bend like that."

"I am too, actually."

"So Lilly likes to watch?"

"Heehee."

"You could join us, I don't mind."

"Are you sure?"

"She is rather tiny. I think she'd have space."

"Lilly doesn't want to bother you two.

"Has anyone se..ee..eh?"

"Master Bell broke..."

Haruhime, with her rather soft life, had asked me to help her train. With her lack of combat experience, other than say, being protected and using her magic, she had no real physical ability. So, there I was, in one of the many spare rooms, with Haruhime and Lilly. The other Renard was sitting, legs as far apart as she could get them, while I gently pressed on her back. Through the wonder of being an adventurer, we wouldn't have to go through years of training to get her to something passing for competent. But, we had to start some where. Lilly had found us, and was passing the time chatting, and then Bell found us, promptly turning into a stuttering idiot.

I was dressed for the occasion, with my boxers and sport bra. Haruhime had found me while I was exercising, and asked if she could join. The problem, was that she was ALSO wearing a set of my boxers and sport bra. She was slimmer shouldered, but rather more busty than I was, so my bra was doing interesting things with her figure. We had both been sweating too, the afternoon rather warm, and while not at all see through, the fabric was certainly clinging. It didn't help we were both facing the door Bell had entered, and were leaning forward.

"Lilly? Could you get pass that towel?" Accepting the towel, I wrapped it around the top of Bell's head as he sort of stood there, twitching like he was having a seizure. "Haru-chan? You can relax, though maybe cover yourself a little so Bell can maybe talk."

"Is it safe yet?" Bell asked, my putting the towel over his eyes snapping him out of his little overload. "Has anyone seen Mr Welf or Miss Mikoto?"

"Lilly? Any ideas?" I asked, figuring that if Bell wanted to find Welf, he'd have already looked in the workshop.

"Lilly doesn't know. But if Mr Welf isn't in the workshop, or kitchen, he might be shopping." Lilly replied.

"Welf-dono... It might be his turn to buy food?" Haruhime supplied. We had set up a little chart for chores in the kitchen. "I only know it isn't my turn, or Kodori-dono."

I was impressed that Bell could look thoughtful with a towel over his eyes, but he managed. "I will check. I was going to ask if he had worked on our equipment. Maybe we could go into the dungeon some time soon."

"It's only been a day. But yes, we should start working on returning to the dungeon. We have a new member to work into our team." I smiled at Haruhime, her return smile shy though she nodded as well. I turned Bell around, and took the towel off his head, giving him a little nudge towards the open door. "If you're looking for something to do, make a shopping list for our next trip. We'll be busy for another hour or so, and a bath after."

Without turning to look, he snapped to attention and said, "Yes Miss Kodori." And walked away.

Closing the door behind him, I shook my head and turned back to Lilly and Haruhime. "Well, shall we?"

"Kodori-dono, you must take better care of your tail." Lilly giggled as Haruhime scolded me. I'd convinced the Pallum to join us in our workout after all, and she had joined us for the bath. The other Renard was brushing my tail with my thin wire brush and some sort of soap. My tail was just barely listening to my mental commands to behave itself, instead of trying to wrap around Haruhime's arm.

"I've been busy?" I replied lamely, "Rescuing beautiful fox girls takes time." I looked into the mirror in front of me, catching sight of Haruhime blushing furiously. This time I let my tail wander, "But yes, I will try and take better care of my tail."

"Miss Aisha is right." Lilly said from the chair next to us as she scrubbed between her toes. "You two are like night and day. And adorable."

This just made Haruhime blush harder, though I was doing it too. "So... Now that you aren't part of Ishtar Familia, what is it your magic does?" I asked, trying to change the topic. It wasn't just my tail that was starting to wander, and I needed to distract myself.

Haruhime scooted closer on her stool and started to scrub my back, "It is like yours, only the opposite. Instead of strengthening me, I gift it to some one else." She traced little nervous circles on my back, "When I did go with the Berbera into the dungeon, they would always cover me up so no one would know who I was, or what I could do."

My tail was close enough that it could wrap around Haruhime's hips, and her words had distracted me from stopping it. "So... How much power are you able to give?"

Lilly 'heehee'ed, and I realized my tail was starting to get overly friendly, so I grabbed it and held it against my own chest. Haruhime took a moment to reply, "It is close to making a level two into a level three, and lasts as long as I concentrate. But, I can only cast it once an hour or so."

We moved to the bath to soak, the three of us leaning against a separate wall of the big stone bath. The three of us sighing in unison, I considered what Haruhime's magic could do. "I can see why they wanted to keep that power secret. With your help, even a level one could become strong enough to take on much more... Ishtar was a fool for wanting to kill you."

The two of them looked at me in surprise at my blunt statement. "Hestia told me, that so long as something doesn't kill me, I will live a long while. That holds for any adventurer. Part of the gift is a longer lifespan." I lightly splashed a little water at Haruhime, "If she wasn't so impatient, you could have helped her raise the level of everyone in her Familia and simply taken over like that. If she didn't want to hide you so much, you could have been level two or three by now, and imagine how much your magic could strengthen some one then?"

I knew I was being rather cold with my words, but it seriously annoyed me that a literal Goddess, with literally no time limit, would choose to throw away some one for something that only MIGHT have been enough power to take over.

"Miss Kodori is wise. But cruel." Lilly said, "Miss Haruhime isn't a tool." She sounded a little angry. Understandably so.

"I know. But listen, Haruhime." She looked up at me, eyes unsure, "I... I understand my place in this Familia. And part of that, is to help the rest of you find your own place, and make sure you are ready for it. Bell and I train like demons, because we are at the front. Welf holds the middle, and Lilly the rear." She nodded, understanding so far, "But you. Where do I put you? In the dungeon, where is your place?"

I held out my hand to stall her reply, "Mia, from the Hostess of Fertility. Basically, my mother in this city. She said to Bell, 'if you make it home, you win.' So, in the dungeon, my job, is to make sure we make it home. That we win."

"Kodori-dono is wise." Haruhime said, "You saved me from Lady Ishtar, saved Aisha from her as well. Lady Hestia accepted me into her Familia. Where is my place now?"

"That's my next job. To help you find it, and make sure you're ready. But, the dungeon isn't going anywhere, and as I said before, we have time." I smiled at the two of them, "Tomorrow, maybe the next day, we will go into the dungeon. Make sure we know where you fit in, not only so you can use your abilities to the fullest, but also so you understand how the rest of us work together."

Welf was indeed out shopping. Mikoto and him had done a little running about, as well as the rest of Takemikazuchi Familia. Apparently, Aisha had met up with them, and with her vouching for them, managed to get a bunch of things from some of Ishtar Familia properties. Haruhime, not owning much, was very pleased to have her personal effects found and returned to her. She was also pleased that among the salvaged things were some very expensive soaps. I wasn't sure how I felt about Haruhime saying she would make my tail shine and smell pretty, but her smile was hard to go against.

Bell had made the list of things we needed to stock up on before any real dungeon delving, and Welf made sure all our equipment was, or would be, ready for it as well.

That only left the 'how' of it. We could do our joint training with Takemikazuchi Familia and Hestia Familia up on the first couple of floors. Just to make sure Haruhime knew our tactics, and all the bare essentials for working with us. We could easily do that above ground too, since our front yard was big enough. But, that wouldn't bring in any money, and our Familia was still just hovering above broke.

Hestia herself saved me from the beginnings of a pacing session, when she grabbed my tail. Feeling a little twitch inside from the contact, I was just barely able to stop myself from making an embarrassing noise.

"We should have a party." She said simply, smiling as my tail started to curl around her arm, her free hand playing with the freshly brushed fur. "You've all been working so hard recently, don't you think you deserve it?"

Yet another pretty pair of eyes that were hard to say no to. "Our Goddess is kind." I replied, "And you're right. I was thinking of booking a night at the Hostess for us. I've been distracted."

Again I felt the cosmos shift, as Hestia teased me, "Oh, I wonder what's been distracting you?"

Unable to stop myself from gawking at her for actually teasing me about something that she must have known involved something sexual, I was slow to reply "Well, she doesn't quite have your curves..." I had to steal my tail away just before it tried to explore some of those curves, "But yes, that's probably it."

She broke then, and blushed, "Well, um, just..." I waited for her to recover, "I agree with going to the Hostess of Fertility. Let me know when?"

"Of course." I smiled, "I'll ask Bell to make arrangements tomorrow on our way to the dungeon."

I won't lie, and say I didn't hope Haruhime would let me take her to bed. My first real romantic contact since my arrival in the city, as well as being the perfect archetype for 'shorter person who I want to protect', the more male thoughts in my head included things like putting her over my shoulder and finding a quiet place to make noise.

But, tail and ears aside, I was not an animal. As much as my tail wanted to be friendly while my much easier to control hands kept to themselves, I wouldn't just... go all caveman and take the pretty lady home with me. Considering I'd told Hestia exactly how I thought about that kind of thing, going against it now would probably have her become... Disappointed in me.

I think, in that moment, I understood what that lunatic Hyakinthos saw in Apollo. He just wanted to do his best for his God, no matter how deranged he was.

Thankfully, or not, my room was empty as I entered and got ready for sleep. It had only been two days since the assorted rescues of Haruhime, Bell, Mikoto and myself, and I could still feel the phantom feeling of straps on my ankles and wrists. Especially when I was alone like this. As the background noise receded, the feeling increased, and I found myself not really wanting to close my eyes. Last night, I had no real choice. My body was still recovering, and the day had been busy.

But, wonder of potions and adventurer status alike, my body was fit again. And I was remembering.

I was tempted, in that one moment, to try and mix something I'd seen the recipe for on Nazza's wall. A sleeping potion. Something to just take away that dread filled transition between awake and sleep, and just... Skip that middle spot, where I felt the darkness waiting for me.

It was then, while I sat in the middle of my futon, knees to chest, tail wrapped under my rear, eyes half closed but looking at the single magic stone lamp, tears running down my cheeks, that there was a tiny tap on my door.

"Yes?" I replied before really thinking about it, my eyes suddenly burning with a mix of tears and being open for too long.

The door opened slightly, and I saw a single reflective green eye looking at me through the gap. I waved a hand at her to enter, but she hesitated. It was only when I was about to get up, that she slipped inside and closed the door behind her. Dressed in her usual red kimono, she also held her own pillow.

I patted the spot next to me, and after placing her pillow down next to mine, she sat. But then, she took a good look at me.

For all my thoughts earlier on the matter, now that I had Haruhime in my room, of her own free will, I just... couldn't bring myself to think of finding that special knot on her kimono. Instead, I broke down into tears, her smaller form holding me while I lost the will to hold myself together.

The next morning was... interesting. After I had cried myself to bits, Haruhime undressed herself and returned to holding me. Having exhausted my little pool of emotions, I fell asleep, the gold of her hair in the moonlight the last thing I remembered. As I opened my eyes however, I was now holding her, my larger form pressed against her back, while both my arms and tail were wrapped around her front. One of my hands was even resting under one of her shapely breasts, not quite holding it, but keeping it off the fabric of the futon.

If biology didn't tell me I had to get up, I might have tried to wake up my sleeping body pillow, but it felt like I had one too many cups of tea before bed. Untangling myself, I went about the usual morning routine before returning to my room. Haruhime was sitting up, looking around the room, blanket not quiet covering her nakedness. It was obvious she was one gentle nudge from going back to sleep, but, as much as I wanted to, we had things to do.

True to form, we gathered in the front yard and went through our usual morning exercise. Cut slightly shorter so we didn't tire ourselves out for our trip into the dungeon, it still felt good for one part of my routine to fall into place.

As with before, when Bell and I brought Takemikazuchi Familia into the dungeon for training, Haruhime's introduction was much the same. Having no combat experience past simply being present and using her magic to boost some one, we had a difficult time finding a place for her in our formations. But then I realized, it wasn't her that needed to adapt, it was us. With the Berbera, she had her place, and, being far more experienced than we of Hestia Familia, they had already chosen the best spot for her.

From that moment, I changed our training from 'find a place' to 'protect her place'. She quietly accepted her new role as 'object to be protected', as both Takemikazuchi and Hestia Familia used her as 'king' of their formation. If she were tagged, then that side lost. If she was protected, that side won. With her ability of boosting magic, she could literally make anyone into an 'ace'.

Except me.

While the result of my test was... catastrophic... I was glad we figured it out now, instead of when it might mean life or death. Over the course of the day she had used her boosting ability on everyone. With a timer of one hour, and the plan to spend all day in the dungeon training, it seemed like a good idea. Considering she became the centrepiece of the formation, it made sense that she would help her team as best she could.

On all the level twos except Lilly, the boost was quite significant. Faster, stronger, tougher, it was exactly like my own magic. For Lilly, who had no real strength past her ability to carry things, and her amazing accuracy with her crossbow, we didn't really see a difference. Lilly herself said it was like everything was a little easier, but not much different. I made a note to get her to test the heavier crossbow parts Welf had made but not used.

For Bell, the change was there, but not as drastic. Like the others, his ability was improved, but he was still within my ability to fight him. Being nearly equal in that respect normally, it was just... a little harder while he was being influenced by Haruhime's magic.

I was last on the list and for the first few minutes, I was fine. I showed the same improvement as I would have while using my own magic, though it felt... a little weird. More distant, less personal. That made sense honestly. Instead of using my own power to push myself, some one else was pushing me instead.

But then, I warmed up my own magic, and started to flood my body with it.

And exploded.

Being at the centre of what ever happened, I could only describe what I felt. Which was every muscle in my body cramping up at once, and feeling like something was ripping me apart from the inside. After I'd woken up, and gotten the description of what had happened from the outside, I could only conclude that I had in fact, blown up.

Ignus Faatus. Welf had explained. It was what his magic did to other magic users. It made the magic in their bodies run wild and backfire, making it especially bad for people or monsters when his magic hit them in mid-spell.

After checking myself for actual injury, I was fine. My magic however, seemed to be... sulking. My efforts to bring it forth were met with the feeling of my caged fire being reduced to a tiny spark, and pouting, as it paced in little circles in its cage.

Haruhime wasn't much better off. She hadn't suffered from Ignus Faatus, but the feeling of suddenly being cut off from her target had given her a massive headache. Lesson learned, we agreed to never try that again, and called it a day. Having spent roughly twelve hours in the dungeon, with only a light lunch we were all getting hungry.

After exchanging our minor earnings from the dungeon we had a rock paper scissor match, and it was decided that I would go back home to bring Hestia to the Hostess. My magic having recovered a little bit of its pep, I told them I'd meet them there, and took off running.

After my breakdown last night, the feeling of just... Running, quickly, jumping, rooftop parkour, using my unbreakable grip to hold on to things with a finger and thumb as I swing, seeing how far I could travel without using my feet, or only one arm...

Hestia was wondering what the occasion was, when I arrived to fetch her. I was sweating profusely, out of breath, and grinning like an idiot. I asked her then, if she'd like to find out for herself.

So, after taking my armour off and taking a moment to change, Hestia climbed onto my back, hooked her arms around my neck, ankles around my middle, and let herself be tied to me with a towel.

"Now, two rules." I said, jumping lightly to make sure we would both be comfortable, "No talking unless we stop."

"So I don't bite my tongue." Hestia replied, her hands under my chin fidgeting.

"So you don't bite your tongue. Or scream in my ears. Use your hands or something to get my attention if you want to stop." I walked towards the front gate, opening it up and closing it behind me.

"Rule two?" She asked as I started to jog, her arms tightening slightly, pressing her Goddess level curves against my back.

"You are only allowed to blink. No closing your eyes." I started to pick up speed, eyeing a low rooftop as my target. With a little jump, so I wouldn't lose momentum, I landed in a squat, then pushed off the ground hard.

To her credit, and mine I suppose, not only did we cover the distance to the Hostess in good time, she only screamed once, and told me to stop twice, so she could catch her breath and open her eyes again. I think it was the gorilla swing off a church spire was a little much for her. So it was, out of breath, laughing, with eyes watering from the wind, we landed near the entrance of the Hostess.

The rest of them had long arrived and were taking up the table Loki Familia had been using that one night. But this time, it was the Takemikazuchi Hestia alliance. We drew a few stares, Hestia and I, as I knelt and untied the towel holding her against me. But our Goddess's good mood was infectious, and we were all laughing and smiling with her as she described the 'harrowing race over Orario's rooftops' on the way here.

Syr, the only non-adventurer on staff was chosen as our drink server, and we made sure to remind her of my pretty much total inability to hold my liqueur. For the most part, she was attentive to our needs, but gravitated towards Bell. Lilly and I shared 'the raised eyebrow of knowing' at each other, but I left the teasing of poor Bell to her. Welf was his usual self, laid back and full of good cheer, trying (and failing) to flirt with both the cat girls Arnya and Chloe.

In one of my rare moments of having my tail listen to me, I managed to use it to almost make the two of them drop their empty serving trays by curling it around their own tails. I'm not sure if they believed me when I told them it liked to wander off like that, but since Chloe didn't throw me out, I figured I was in the clear.

I think they tried to get me back however, when they started to tease Haruhime. Well... Not really tease. More like 'fawn over'. Of us all, Hestia included, she was by far the most exotic. By now, my uniqueness was rather common in this place. I'd worked here after all. Lilly was adorable, but her presence wasn't really noticeable. Hestia was divine in her beauty, but also a common sight. But the newest addition to our Familia with bright gold hair, and perfectly tailored red kimono was very attention grabbing.

At one point, I asked Welf if he had something shiny I could roll across the floor to distract them, but his only response was to nearly choke on his drink. Mia herself had to step in, ladle in hand, to chase the two cat girls back to work.

While I hadn't had any alcohol, most of the rest of us did. Bell, at the teasing of Lilly, was carrying a drunken Hestia on his back. The Goddess was an interesting mix of depressed and angry drunk. Being basically kitten weak compared to the rest of us, she alternated between hair pulling, pouting, and fits of narcolepsy, about how Bell was the best/worst/smartest/thickheaded/good pillow in the world.

Ouka, Takemikazuchi Familia's forward spear man, was an able drinker with his huge size. Chigusa, not so much, and the much smaller girl was napping against his back as he carried her. He and Welf were trying hard not to be too loud as they shared jokes, but the Takemikazuchi supporter was drooling happily on the big man's shoulder. Asuka, the usually quiet fist fighter and bow woman, was only slightly red faced, as she chatted with Mikoto, who was also slightly red faced. This was honestly the most I'd ever heard the two of them speak, but I think Asuka was drunk enough to forget she was speaking Japanese, or Eastern, and I couldn't really follow the conversation at all.

That left Lilly, who, clever girl, knew exactly what her tolerance was, and was simply a little more cheerful than usual, walking beside me and playing with my tail as it did what it usually did, and wandered around looking for attention.

And Haruhime. Who was also passed out drunk. None of us had any idea what her tolerance for alcohol was. Since she made no comment herself, and seemed to enjoy what was put in front of her, we all assumed she could at least hold her booze. We found out later, after we noticed she had tipped over against Mikoto, that she hadn't even finished her first drink.

So, now she was sleeping in my arms. Her kimono didn't really lend itself to being carried piggyback, so, as her name suggested, she was being carried princess style in my arms. Not that I really minded, she wasn't heavy, and it gave me a reason to be close to her. I did have to resist the urge to try and nibble one of her ear tips as it tickled my chin occasionally.

"Miss Kodori is enjoying herself." Lilly teased as she took hold of my tail and tried to convince it to be a scarf for a moment.

"Well, yes." I smiled down at her as my tail swatted her cheek. "Tease me all you want, but just like you, her rescue was worth every bit of effort."

"Aw, Miss Kodori is letting Lilly go." She sniffled for effect, but her eyes were laughing. "Did you have a good first night? ...oh... Lilly is sorry..."

My tail had gone limp at her question, sliding off her and hanging listlessly from my back. "No... Don't be sorry. It's not your fault." I replied, gently hugging the sleeping girl in my arms.

Unable to get my tail's attention anymore, Lilly chose the more direct route and held onto the elbow of my shirt. After all, she too had suffered the same sort of torment I had, except over years, not days. "Does..." I started, telling my tail it better get back to work, "Does it get easier?"

Running her fingers through my tail, that had flopped over her shoulder, she replied, "Good friends help." She replied, smiling up at me, though her eyes had the beginnings of tears in the corners, "Miss Kodori and Master Bell showed me that."

Takemikazuchi, who was absent at our little party, was quite thankful that we hadn't forgotten about him. Being the thoughtful boy he was, Bell had asked Lunoire to deliver some take out to our home, not just for Takemikazuchi himself but for the collection of orphans we also housed. The bill was enormous, but with the work splurge we had went through before the rescue, we managed just fine. It certainly wouldn't be a frequent occurrence however. With the ever calm God's help, we squared everyone away to bed without much incident. Bell was our only casualty, as Hestia refused to let him go in her drunken sleep. We shared a nervous fist bump, and I reminded him that he was allowed to hug people if they asked.

At the end of it, this left me with a still sleeping Haruhime. After laying her down and pulling the bow on her obi, I carefully put her in my biggest shirt and took us both to the bathroom. After waking her up just enough to make sure she didn't have an accident while sleeping, I took her back to her room, and put her to bed.

Returning to my own room, I found Lilly waiting at my door. Silently, she handed me a pillow, gave me a hug, and walked off.

I only understood why, when I lay down myself, puzzling at the strange gift. I realized then, that it carried the gentle scent of our supporter. "Good friends help." I mumbled, hugging the pillow and closing my eyes.

Poor Bell looked some what frazzled the next morning. Knowing him, he probably didn't get a wink of sleep, with our some what drunken Goddess clinging to him all night. I was about to ask him if he was okay, but he held up a hand to stop me. Surprised at his deviation from his usual self, I motioned him to say what he was going to say.

"Lady Hestia woke up before I did." He started, yawning, "She thought... That we... umm..."

Getting the picture, I nodded, "Right... And panicked."

"And punched, and bit, and screamed, and pouted..." He added.

"And then..."

"Realized we were both still dressed."

"So she..."

"Said sorry, kicked me out of her room, and locked to door."

"Sound's about right."

"Miss Kodori... What..." He stopped, then fell silent, his shoulders drooping.

Putting a hand on his back, I looked around, and spotted Haruhime, dressed in her usual red kimono and looking some what puzzled that it was in fact a new day, and she was awake so early. "Haru-chan?"

Her ears perking up straight, she turned her head and looked at us both, "Kodori-dono, Bell-san, good morning."

"Good morning." we both said in unison. "I need a small favour from you." I continued.

"What would that be? And... Have you seen my brush?" She asked, coming closer and blinking slowly, "I can't seem to find it."

"It's in my room." I said putting a hand on Bell's shoulder. "Haru-chan. I would like you to hug Bell." I felt the boy tense as I said it, but I made sure to have my thumb and index finger lightly pinching the bare skin of his shoulder.

"I don't mind. But... Why?" She asked, as Bell looked up to me, his head turning bit by bit like some sort of rusty motor. The look of absolute betrayal in his eyes almost hurt. Almost.

"Because he needs to learn the first step of how to handle a woman. If you please?"

"Excuse me then." She said, shuffling forward and bringing her arms up under Bell's.

I let him go once she had both arms around his back. He was still shivering like some sort of hypothermia victim, but I got behind Haruhime, and looked him in the eyes. "Now, what do you do?"

Like a robot, he raised his arms, and put them behind her back. Haruhime made a happy noise at the return of her hug. "See? That's it. Relax, its just a hug." Slowly, he stopped twitching, and let his arms rest naturally on her back. "Just because Haruhime is a girl, doesn't mean you have to be nervous." He nodded, but didn't move. I considered it a small victory that he wasn't twitching in place. "Now, next time Lady Hestia starts pouting, ask to give her a hug. Just like this. And I'm sure she will be perfectly fine with it. Okay?"

"And if Bell-dono just want's me as a concubine, I don't mind." Haruhime said, her face still resting against Bell's chest. "Oh... What happened?"

With a sigh, I said as my palm rested against my face, "You broke him."

Haruhime let the boy go and slipped out of his now numb embrace. He'd locked in place again, eyes wide, as his cheek developed a little nervous tick.

"Well... It's true." She said to me, blushing and hiding her mouth behind her hand, "Kodori-dono, I do not wish to part with you, but I may want children one day..."

I smiled, reaching out and patting her head gently, "I understand. But as you can see..."

"Yes... Now, was that rice I smell from the kitchen?"

We skipped morning training entirely that morning, not just because of our late evening, but because today, I wanted to seriously test our eleven person alliance. We took our time, packed what we needed, and gave both our Gods a fair warning we would be out at least overnight.

"Everyone have what they need? Cloaks? Food? Personal emergency supply?" I treated it like my old Boy Scout master did. I made sure everyone was carrying a half day's food, a full day's water, and some basic medical supplies. This was on top of potions. Not wanting another 'Lilly's backpack got eaten by the dungeon' incident, this made sure that if we did get separated, we would at least not die of starvation or thirst.

"Spare lights too." Welf said, "Nazza made up some more of those glow bottles."

"Free of charge?"

"Well no."

"Figured."

"Supporters? Have camp equipment?"

Two affirmative 'yes' noises from both Lilly and Chigusa.

"Backup weapons?"

Half dozen yes noises.

"Let's go then."

With both Hestia and Takemikazuchi to see us off at the gate, the alliance left for the dungeon.

With a group our size, and ability, and organization, we had no trouble reaching the twelfth floor, where it had all fallen apart for us last time. We passed several other groups of adventurers, most of who knew us from watching the War Game, or by passing us while we trained.

More than once, we had to wait for another group of adventurers to clear out a room. It was bad manners to 'help' unless asked, as it might create an argument on who gets what, or, to quote an old phrase, 'friendly fire isn't.' This didn't stop us from say, blocking off the entrance to a room to stop more monsters from entering. Or once, we provided cover for a fallen warrior, dragging him off the field so the rest of his party could keep working without worry. We even refused payment, as we had expended none of our own supplies and potentially saved a life.

Welf did get a name, just in case we met top side. With only Ouka as a drinking partner, he was always on the look out for more people to party with.

"Well, here it is." I said, looking down the sloping ramp that led to the thirteenth floor. "All set?"

This was the lowest point any of us had been naturally. "I'm so ready to get some hell hound pelts." Welf said, hefting his great sword over his shoulder. "Payback for last time."

"I hear some of the lower floors can get cold." Mikoto said seriously. "I'd think that they would be good against fire and cold alike."

"Only if you can clean the smell off them." Lilly said, wrinkling her nose. "Lilly doesn't like the smell of fire."

Eyebrows suddenly itchy, I agreed with her. "Well, lets go then."

"Welf! That one!" I pointed to a massive hell hound, "Bell, Chigusa, that exit!" I motioned to one of the exits of the room, "Hime, get Ouka. Ouka, Mikoto, hold that side!" I directed the big man and our samurai woman towards an approaching group of killer rabbits. "Archers! Cover them!"

I myself stood before a pair of hell hounds, directly between them and Haruhime. Like clockwork, we spread around the room, Chigusa with her massive shield providing cover for Bell to hide behind, then attack from as he used the narrow tunnel to limit the number of hounds and killer rabbits entering the room. Ouka with the reach of his spear and Mikoto guarding his back, as well as ranged fire kept the far side of the room occupied. Welf and the pack leader were dancing around each other, the blacksmith waiting for his chance to feed his magic killing spell directly into the oversized mutt.

The task of guarding our 'queen' was on me, as I soaked and grounded the hell hound's fire breath before quickly dashing forward and striking. Lilly and Asuka used their ranged weapons effectively, picking their shots and keeping any surprises from biting ankles. They also kept the screaming bats away, something I was very thankful for, even with the ear protection.

And just like that, we had overcome that which had beaten us before. Welf fought smart, waiting for just the right moment, and made the pack leader eat its own fireball. With a quick overhand strike, he cut its head off, finishing the job.

Bell had suddenly run out of things to stop from coming into the room, the shy Chigusa and him sharing our customary fist bump. Ouka and Mikoto were covered in blood, but none of it theirs, and the smoking corpses of dozens of killer rabbits with their stone clubs lay scattered about them. Haruhime was untouched, her hands still held in something that looked like prayer. While I had managed to stay unburnt, and had two hell hound heads full of teeth, one held in each hand.

With a cheer, we set about cleaning our kills.

"We are almost there." Mikoto said, "We have done well."

Looking at the slight shifting of the stone on the walls, going from the rust red to a silver grey, we did indeed seem almost there. "We've worked hard to do so." I replied, "What do you think, Haru-chan?"

"This is very exciting..." She paused and yawned. "Oh dear. It's just past lunch and I'm already a little tired."

Mikoto gave the slender Renard a pat on the shoulder, the two of them sharing a smile, "We can rest soon. Lilly-san? Perhaps some tea?"

"Lilly has that!" we all stopped our casual march as the shortest among us, who ironically carried the biggest load, put her massive back pack down and fished about for a couple of steel canisters. Passing them about, we each had a small cup of tea from them, passing them back to Lilly, who stowed them again. "Heehee. Master Bell reminded Lilly about it." Our supporter leaned on Bell, not quite making him turn into a stuttering idiot.

"Well... umm... heh heh..." He replied nervously, putting a hand on Lilly's head and giving her hair a light ruffle. Lilly soaked up the attention like a cat, but managed to stop herself from doing more.

Aha, progress.

"So, once we reach the eighteenth. What's the plan, Kodori-san?" Ouka asked, hanging his empty cup on his belt and hefting his spear again. "Lower? Back up? See if Riviera has work to do?" He noticed something about his spear head, and offered it to Welf, who accepted it and 'hmm'ed at it thoughtfully. "Have dinner?"

"We can do that." I said, "Welf can do a weapon check, we can have a bath, maybe see if there is something interesting at one of the shops."

"Oh, I wonder if that shop is still there." Bell said, "They were selling some of the crystal from the wall, but cut like gems." He smiled, "Apparently, cutting the crystal from the walls usually destroys it, like normal dungeon walls." He punctuated this by wrapping his hand on bit of the wall that was sticking out slightly and breaking it off. Quickly, the rock in his hand seemed to dissolve, like a monster without its magic stone.

"Hm, Lilly will make sure you get a good deal." She said with a smile. "Maybe Haruhime would like to come?" Lilly caught my eye as she said this, and I winked at her, covering the motion by rubbing the corner of my eye.

"Yes, I'd like that very much Lilly-chan."

"Well, all that is left is to get there." Mikoto said, taking the lead as we hooked our cups back to our belts and marched onward.

Notes.

You know, I've been thinking of the next story arc, and wondering how much I want to... Well, not skip it, but make it much more interesting. So, once I kick the idea around, look forward to it, all you who have read that far, and maybe I can spare those who haven't some of the boring politic type stuff that goes on.

Until next time.