Chapter 40

When I had only one tail, Hestia was usually the one to be clinging to it in the morning. Now that I had five of them, as the fog of sleep cleared from my mind, I had to try and figure out who was clinging to me. One of my tails was being glomped by Hestia. There was no doubt about that. I briefly entertained the idea of snaking my tail down and away from her, but I'd probably overstimulate the poor Goddess and wake everyone up. At least she wasn't drooling on me.

Oddly, a second familiar pair of breasts was wrapped around another tail. That meant Haruhime had gotten behind me, or I'd rolled over at some point. Knowing she'd wake up the room if I did anything, I kept my tail still.

So who the hell was I cuddling? And who WAS drooling on another one of my tails?

Opening an eye, I found myself looking at the sleeping face of Lilly, a pair of my tails curled around her back and my arms holding her like a teddy bear. Okay... So who had number five?

Closing my eyes and taking a breath, I let it out slowly and manifested a little fox near the end of my last tail.

And dispelled it instantly in surprise when I saw the dragon girl's sleeping face, as she lay near my legs, the tip of my tail held gently in her mouth.

The sudden spike of alertness in the room must have disturbed the more combat sensitive of us, and quickly, people started to wake up. It wasn't a rapid or urgent thing, but more a ripple that stirred others to wake.

Deep breaths, groans as people stretched, joints popping quietly, a few quiet puzzled noises.

"Ko-san... Hestia-sama?" Haruhime mumbled, "Wha... huh?"

"Lilly doesn't wanna..."

"Shoulda' brought another blanket..."

"Better than the barracks back home."

"Where is... oh..."

There was a sleepy mumble, unintelligible, but certainly a new voice in the house.

"Cover up before someone sees."

"but... too warm..."

"Where did she... oh..."

There was a click of a blade sliding the last inch back into its sheath.

"Kodori-dono... She's..."

"Drooling on my tail." I said sleepily, untangling myself from Lilly, who pouted, but let go, letting me sit up, but instantly wiggling to where I had just been laying to claim the warm spot. Looking about the room, everyone was slowly shrugging off an uncomfortable night's sleep. Welf and Marius had slept, backs to the wall, swords by their hands, one knee drawn up to their chest. Ouka had done the same, Chigusa near by, but on the other side of the room. Asuka had curled up like a cat in our 'reading chair'. Bell had eventually managed to sort of lay down, still in his armour, on the couch. Probably after our new guest had joined me and the people clinging to my tails on the floor.

Said guest was peeking out from under the salamander wool cloak at me as I surveyed the room. Chime was actually on top of the cloak, around where her hip was, snoozing, oblivious to the usually apex predator under the blanket. Though, being what would be the bottom of the food chain, and being that comfortable near the dragon girl...

If my dog likes you, I'd probably like you too.

"Tail is warm. Soft... Oh... wet? Sorry... eep?" The dragon girl blinked at me as my tail slipped away from her.

"You know. You need a name." I said to her, looking down at Haruhime and substituting our usual morning kiss by running a hand over her cheek and through her hair. "And we should all introduce ourselves. If she's going to be our guest, we should at least be polite hosts."

All eyes in the room, no matter what they were doing, mid stretch or still laying down, went from me, to the girl, then to Bell.

"It seems that since you brought her home, you should be the one to name her." Mikoto said, "Bell-san."

"Sounds good to me." Welf chimed in, finishing his stretch, his lower back popping.

"Lilly..." she yawned massively, the fur on my tail feeling the breeze, then, "agrees."

"So what will it be Bell?" Hestia joined in, my arm going around her back to help her sit up, the motion bringing Haruhime up as well, though she wasn't giving up the blankets.

We all watched Bell as he sat there, emotions playing over his face even as he scrubbed the sleep from his eyes. Even our guest had sat up, though I had to reach over and keep her covered with the cloak, her bare back towards me. I tried to keep my face passive, though I wanted to smile at just how thoughtful he was trying to be. He looked to her, to the ceiling, back to her, scrubbed his hands through his hair, grumbled, then finally stopped.

Finally, he said hesitantly, "Wilusine?"

Almost everyone made a puzzled noise. Haruhime was the only one who commented, "Bell-sama? Why would you name her based on a fairy from a hero's story?"

I obviously didn't have a clue about that, but I knew both Haruhime and Bell were avid readers of heroic stories. "What's that about?" I asked very quietly into Haruhime's ear.

"Later, Ko-san." She leaned into me and mumbled back, still looking at Bell.

"Well, it isn't a bad name." Welf said causally, earning a few nods from around the room, "Bit..."

"Grand. ee. Ous." Haruhime mumbled to me, teaching me my new word for the day.

"Best girl." I mumbled back.

"How about, Wiene." Hestia said, saying the name like 'We-en-eh'. Not a bad shortening.

Bell looked stricken as the others in the room nodded, "Not too bad, yeah." Welf said.

"Easier to say." Marius agreed.

"More down to earth, and much cuter." Lilly agreed.

"Wilusine is a wonderful name though..." Haruhime pouted, though Bell looked even more crestfallen at her words.

"Even I can say it without an accent." I admitted.

"Wiene? Name?" She asked the room, her slender ears twitching a little as she looked around at the rest of us.

By now, most of us were standing up, or in the process of it. Bell included. "Yes. That is your name, Wiene." Bell told her.

And just like that, the dragon girl, Wiene, was on her feet and clinging to Bell happily. Her smile was bright enough to light the room, innocent and pure. Even Hestia was stunned by just how... human it was.

"Bell! Bell! My name! It's Wiene!" She said happily.

Unable to do much else, he put one arm around her, more to keep them both steady than to actually hug her, but the smile on his face was one of shared joy, of seeing another friend happy.

"Ahem!" Hestia said firmly, snapping them both out of the moment. "Now that is done. My name is Hestia. Bell's Goddess." She extended a hand for Wiene to shake.

"Goddess?" She made no motion for the hand, not surprising but it saved me from having to play 'keep away' with those sharp fingernails.

"Yes." Hestia put her hand back down. "So lets all get along! Bell, how long are you going to hold on to her?"

The cloak had fallen off the instant she had clung to him again. But so brilliant was that smile, Bell had only noticed now that she was naked again.

"Bell-sama... How naughty." Haruhime teased.

"Oh... Bell broke again." Lilly said.

While Bell recovered the rest of us introduced ourselves. With almost as much joy, she gave each of us that same smile as she spoke our names back to us. At some point, Bell had 'woken up' again, but thankfully, Mikoto had covered Wiene back up again. We all skipped our usual morning exercises and went right to a light breakfast.

Mikoto seemed to lose all reservations about the monster girl at this point, when Wiene complimented her simple salad and fish breakfast. Glowing praise had melted the last bit of ice on her heart.

"Bell, Ha-chan? Keep an eye out for anything odd." I told the two of them, "Welf, try and make something that fits her a bit better... and maybe smells less."

They nodded to me, "I will remain behind as well." Mikoto said, "To keep watch."

I nodded back to her. "The rest of us... Well, we all know what we are doing. I'll be heading to see Ganesha... I am still a bit... Hesitant to try the guild. But I might visit them anyhow, maybe talk to Eina."

More nods. Though Hestia and Takemikazuchi were looking a bit worried. To them, I said, "We should be fine, though... Have either of you two actually talked to Ganesha before? I'm not sure how to deal with him... At all..."

Takemikazuchi smiled as Hestia sighed, "We all wear masks, his is just... More obvious." He said cryptically.

I puzzled at that a moment, before feeling a tiny little weight on my foot. "Oh, Chime, I was just about to look for you." I scooped up the critter, getting a happy headbutting into my palm. "Excited for your walk today I see."

"Heehee..." Lilly giggled, "Miss Kodori is funny."

"So good with animals." Haruhime agreed.

"Would be a good mother some day." Asuka chimed in.

"Oh... That's a new colour." Welf said.

Both Chime and I looked up, way up, at giant, and I mean giant, ten stories tall at least, statue of an elephant headed man. One hand raised in greeting, the statue was sitting cross legged with a double door at its crotch. A wide ramp led down to street level, with a pair of friendly, but bored looking guards standing at the base.

"That is..." I started, close enough to one of the guards to be overheard, "You know, I don't have the words for this."

A moment of strained laughter from the guard, and the reply of, "Welcome to the Ganesha Familia home, I AM GANESHA." Yes, he said it in bold letters, "Do you have business here Miss Kodori?"

I offered the hand that wasn't holding Chime. We shook, his grip respectful, "I have some questions about taming monsters, and thought I might ask to see how its done, and what sort of monsters are brought up." I held up Chime, "And I was wondering about this one here as well. To learn more about it."

"Well, our zoo is... Open to invitation." He said looking to his partner, who had shuffled a little closer, but hadn't taken his eyes away from his duty of watching the street. "It shouldn't be a problem. You have a number of fans, actually."

"Fans?" This wasn't exactly news, Hestia Familia was growing in reputation, but me? "I have fans?"

"Not just the war game, but yours, and Takemikazuchi Familia have been a big help with city maintenance jobs." The man smiled, touching the centre of his chest, his lip, then forehead, "We are thankful for your help, truly."

I smiled, his formal tone made me feel a little better about the world, "Well, we're happy to be of service."

"This way, I'll bring you to the zoo."

Outside decor aside, the inside was done in a tasteful mix of Arabic and Roman styles, with highly polished tan stone. The inside wasn't incredibly busy, but it made me think a little of the Guild. They had a front desk, with three people sitting behind it. Each of them, two men and a woman, had their heads down, quill in hand, scribbling furiously.

I was told that while the guild handled Familia matters, Ganesha Familia handled a great many civilian matters. Orario, lacking a proper 'police force' relied heavily on the Familia to police themselves, but Ganesha Familia was all about the people. Despite their God's apparent idiocy, the members of his Familia were rather diligent, even when it came to paperwork.

Further in, there were other small 'departments'. The first floor was mostly business space actually. With their own smithy, which could be rented out. A small hospital, which was almost free, and open to the public. A library, that was also almost free. And even a public daycare.

Past all that, exiting out a pair of double doors at the seat of I AM GANESHA's pants, was a truly titanic back yard. Ishtar's entire holding could have been put in here. Most of what I could see was dominated by two things. Pathway, and giant bird cages. Inside almost all of those 'bird cages' were monsters. Some had adventurers inside of them, others were empty, but most of them, had monsters.

"Wow." I said, standing at the top of the steps leading to the main path through the zoo.

"A great many of the monsters we keep for the yearly Monster Festival are here." My escort said, noting that my little rabbit was trying to hide against my belly. "But aside from trying to tame them, or train the ones who are at least a little less... aggressive." He paused as one of the cages had a fountain of flame burst from the top, "they are all wild, and dangerous."

"I'll keep my hands away from the bars." I said petting Chime, who was actually shivering a little.

"Good idea. Now... Oh!" He pointed down the steps, "Lord Ganesha is there, with our master trainer. See? By the wyvern cage there."

My eyes followed down his arm to where he was pointing. I could make out the tall form of Ganesha, his dark hair and red mask standing out just over a hedge. Next to him was a splash of dark blue hair, the top of someone's head.

"Follow the path. You can ask your questions, and observe the monsters if you wish."

"Thank you." I started down the steps, my eyes following the simple path before the hedges obscured them so I wouldn't get lost.

"You are very unfriendly today!" I heard the unmistakeable voice of Ganesha say, just before something growled at him. "Are you not happy that I am feeding you?"

"Sir... I still need more time with it." A quieter, some what resigned voice said, "You should not be trying to hand feed a monster with more teeth than you have spare masks."

"Nonsense!" This time the growl was deep enough that I could feel it vibrate the scales of my coat. Chime liked it even less, and abandoned my hand, crawling into my coat and into a pocket. "Now now! The meat is tastier than my hand! I Ganesha promise you!"

A quiet, yet distinct sound of a facepalm.

"OH! We have a guest!" Ganesha announced as I rounded the corner, the cage behind him containing what looked like a greenish dragon about the size of a small car.

Only having hind legs and wings, and not four legs and wings, made it a 'drake' or 'lesser dragon'. Its tail, almost as long as its body, was capped by a nasty looking scorpion stinger. The end of the tail also had a heavy cuff and chain attached to it. Probably so it couldn't try and spear anyone through the bars.

"Yes." I said, bowing to the both of them, "Lord Ganesha, I am Kodori. I had some questions about the monsters here."

"I Ganesha would be happy to grant you audience and answer your questions!"

Being nearly two meters tall, athletically muscled, and wearing an elephant mask, his 'happy to do so' pose made him look rather silly. But, the woman beside him actually looked thankful I was here.

"Miss Shakti! Please continue your work! I look forward to the next Monster Festival!"

The woman, with her dark blue hair, and wearing a rather fetching orange outfit that showed off her shoulders, but was rather modest otherwise, bowed to him quickly, then before I could even react myself, snapped a whip off her belt, and CRACKED it against the snout of the wyvern as it tried to bite the back of Ganesha's head.

"Yes sir." She said simply, as the beast jumped back from the bars and snarled at her.

For all his flamboyant and honestly rather childish mannerisms, Ganesha was a good teacher. If you ignored all of the silly posing, muscle flexing, and occasional 'I am Ganesha!'s he taught me a great deal in a very short amount of time.

First, he really was good with animals. Normal ones, at least. I didn't even have to tell Chime 'friend'. The instant I handed the micro rabbit over to Him, Chime did the 'happy to see you' headbutting thing, and had a nap. She (yes, Ganesha told me so) felt perfectly safe with Him.

Aside from the odd one, all monsters hated the Gods. It was almost like it was programmed into them from the instant they cracked themselves out of the walls. Old info, but confirmed.

They had already tried to breed hell hounds. Limited success, and most of the time the results were mules. Getting my hands on one who wasn't deformed, able to breed, and still trainable, would cost more than one of Welf's swords, if he ever wanted to sell one.

But he managed to teach me all kinds of information that never seemed to come up with Eina. Breeding habits, feeding, life span, predators, his theory on why irregulars spawned.

"Ah! So we are at the end of the zoo!" He said, handing me Chime again, who opened an eye and curled back up in my palm. "Can I Ganesha answer any more of your questions good miss Kodori?"

We were basically at the farthest end of the massive field Ganesha Familia used for the zoo. There were only two cages, both with grumbling, sleeping monsters in them and no one else around. If I was going to ask a question, this would be the best place.

"I've wondered." I held up Chime, petting her fur and very lightly booping her nose. "For a monster, this little one is very smart. Almost like she can understand what I'm saying, or even thinking some times." I watched Ganesha's expression change, his posture relaxing from the silly double flex he had adopted. "I mean, I've only ever taught her one thing, and that's 'friend' and 'food'."

I paused, the little rabbit ears perking up at the word 'food'. Ganesha's smile had faded a little, only a little, but He reached into a pouch and put a dark green leaf into my hand. Chime gave it a sniff and started nibbling it.

"If she had a mouth that could do it, I'd almost think she'd be able to speak." I switched over to English, just in case, "I mean, it wouldn't be impossible. Right?" I raised an eyebrow at him while trying to see past the glass covering his eyes.

Those eyes, behind the mask, changed slightly. It reminded me of Lilly when she dropped her usual childish mannerisms.

"You would think that Chime knew how to express happiness. Not like a cat or dog, but something more."

It was about then that I knew the 'elephant' in the room wasn't nearly as dim as he let on. Not by far. I'd cracked his cool for an instant, he knew I'd seen it, but instead of trying to cover that up, he said, "Miss Kodori! I have never heard that language before! It is almost like you are trying to keep a secret about something!"

His voice was still enthusiastic, but not 'loud'. I doubted his voice carried past the nearby hedge. He was about to say something else, but we both heard someone running towards us. "Lord Ganesha! There is a problem with the wyvern cage!"

"Miss Kodori!" He said to me, as he looked towards the man running towards us, "Take good care of her. Little Chime as well." Louder, he called back to the man, once more adopting the silly poses and showman's voice, "I AM GANESHA! What is wrong?"

By the time I felt the ice inside my chest thaw a little, I had been escorted back to the street. To keep up appearances, and distract my self from the implications of that last sentence, I asked where I could find more of these odd leaves Chime seemed to like. On my way to the market, I tried to figure out just how big a pit Bell had opened in front of us.

I didn't blame him. Not for a second. Especially after seeing Wiene interact with people. But Ganesha knew something. He didn't admit it, but he knew about intelligent monsters. He also knew Chime wasn't the only monster at the Hestia/Takemikazuchi home. How THAT got out... I had no idea. But the fact we didn't have trouble at our door already...

Chime got my attention with a headbutt, her soft fur tickling my neck as she perched on my shoulder.

"You're a good critter you know that." I said, bringing her to eye level with my hand, and petting the soft fur. I was hardly surprised when she sat up on her hind legs and booped my nose with a paw. "And you are smart, aren't you."

Another nose boop. And her paw slid off the tip of my nose and rested over my upper lip.

"Your secret is safe with me." I said seriously. "Let's go find you more of those leaves. And go home. I think I need a drink after all this."

I came home to Welf, Bell, Mikoto and Weine gathered around at a small table in the living room. Bell was dressed casually, unarmoured, and looking much more relaxed than how we had left him this morning. His shirt however, had his left sleeve shredded off, and his upper arm had a slightly bloody bandage around it.

Mikoto was looking sternly at both Wiene and Bell, though her hand was not on her sword.

Welf had a small array of metal files, the ones used for not just putting a rough edge on a sword, but also for finer work like jewellery.

And he was using them to trim the long slender needle like claws at the end of each of Wiene's fingers.

The girl herself, now dressed in a better fitting robe, was nervously flitting her gaze to what Welf was doing, and Bell. Her eyes were also puffy and red. It didn't take a genius to figure out what happened.

"She..." Bell started when he noticed me, one hand holding Chime, the other a bag of vegetables.

"Went to touch you without your armour on." I said with a sigh, putting Chime on Bell's head. "And now Welf is making sure it never happens again."

"Sorry sister." Welf replied, his eyes never leaving his work. "I waited until the trouble happened."

"First time is free, second time is shame." I said, putting a hand lightly on his shoulder. So far he'd finished one hand, and they looked perfectly normal, healthy fingernails. "Though, if you insist on apologizing, where's that bottle you had last week..."

"Kodori-dono? It's hardly past lunch." Mikoto said giving me a surprised look.

"I'll tell you all later. I just need a little to remind myself why I don't drink." I said to her, "I'll be on the balcony. Welf?"

"Second cupboard on the left, above the sink, behind the pots we never use." He still had his head down, but I heard him mumble, "I'll have to hide it again..."

"Thank you."

"Ko-san?" True to my word, I was sitting on the balcony, sun to my back, a single small glass, empty, in front of me. "Ko-san? Is something wrong?"

I didn't open my eyes. I was trying to focus, and the white and gold trim of our home, lit up by the sun, was distracting. That, and I was feeling the slow alcoholic burn of what tasted like brandy as it sat in my stomach and spread through me. Behind me, my tails were spread out, each wrapped around one of the many pots we never used anymore, holding it off the ground. Silently, I reached forward, moved the cup, and patted the ground in front of me.

I listened as Haruhime sat down, the ruffles of fabric sounding more like her french maid outfit than her casual kimono.

It was a monumental effort of will, but I stopped all of my tails from dropping what they were holding and going to visit my golden opposite. Or worse, NOT dropping what they were doing and going to visit. I couldn't hurt her, but the pots would probably get her dusty when they dissolved against her. Slowly, I put each pot down with a faint metallic 'clink' of metal on stone, then opened my eyes slightly, squinting at Haruhime's golden hair and ears as the sun made her almost glow.

"I'll tell you later. All of you." I said, my mouth feeling a little dry. "But yes. It's been... an interesting day. Your day too I guess? How did it happen exactly?"

"Mikoto-san says you guessed it right away." She replied, shifting so she was kneeling a little closer, just within arms reach. "I was with them when it happened. Bell-san was reading Wiene-chan a story. When it was over, she reached out to him, just to touch his arm, but her claws... She didn't mean to. It was a happy story, she was excited at the ending."

I touched her bare knee with my fingertips. Haruhime sounded very upset about what had happened. "She pulled her hand back when she realized, and started crying. It was... like she had lost her favourite thing in the world, she was so sad. That her show of affection only hurt Bell-san."

I felt bad about not thinking about it sooner. I'd even stopped Wiene from accidentally poking someone more than once. This was as much my fault as Welf's. "I'll have to apologize later as well." I admitted. "Say... Ha-chan... Want to help me with something?"

"I was done cleaning for today, what do you need, Ko-san?" She replied, her gloomy face brightening slightly with a smile.

"Well... First." I finally relaxed my 'no hugging' edict on my tails, and they curled around and visited my lover, nearly burying her in poofy black fur. "Lets get you changed into your work clothes. I want to make something in the smithy."

Unconcerned that she was now being lifted up by my tails as I stood, she asked in that shy voice, "Will Ko-san help me change?"

Once again, Bell explained to someone why his arm was bandaged. Hestia was not impressed, but understanding. She actually complimented Wiene and Welf on how nice her fingernails looked now. Smooth, pink, and perfectly harmless. They didn't even catch on the cotton of my shirt when I examined them, giving the dragon girl a pat on the head for being brave enough to let someone trim her nails for the very first time.

She had showed everyone her new nails. Both Takemikazuchi and Hestia Familia members alike. Her new robe too. Still made of salamander wool, but tailored more for her figured, so she didn't swim in it, like she had with the taller Bell's cloak. She still didn't really 'get' modesty, but we could work on that, before she gave everyone a nosebleed.

"So, what did we learn today?" I asked as we sat at the table, Takemikazuchi Himself peeling potatoes behind us in the kitchen, listening in.

"Lilly asked, but thinks she might have found the wrong people." Many concerned looks went her way, and she continued, "I was followed, but escaped cleanly. Lilly thinks some one does know. But they wouldn't be helpful."

"Lady Hestia?" I looked over to Hestia as she pet Chime.

"Hephaestus didn't know anything." She said, "None of the Hephaestus Familia were in the raid either, or mentioned anything about it before."

"Long shot, but did anyone hear anything while doing odd jobs today?" I asked the Takemikazuchi Familia as a whole, getting a bunch of no's. "Didn't think so, but, Ganesha Familia is thankful for all your hard work. They told me so today." This got a few smiles. "Our two Familia actually have fans in Ganesha Familia. And they hope to work with us more."

"That's actually good to hear." Ouka said with a grin. "I mean, we are mostly a dungeon Familia, but a good reputation can mean a lot."

"Truly." Mikoto added, "Honourable acts pay for themselves in time."

"I do believe in Karma." I said, "Speaking of the elephant in the room." Both Hestia and Takemikazuchi laughed, while most of the mortals sighed, "He knows something. I don't know what. But he knows. He also knows about our guest." I looked to Weine, who was sitting next to Bell, but had her attention on one of my tails as it lazily kept itself away from her hand. "I don't know how. But, since we are all still here, and no one had come with torches and pitch forks... This might need a more... Official touch than that of a mere mortal." I looked to Hestia, and she nodded, "But not yet. Let that cool for a day or two. See if anything else comes by. Keep activity normal."

Nods around the room, then from Takemikazuchi, "Dinner will be ready soon then. May I ask for some extra hands?"

The translation for that was "Can some one rescue dinner from me, I'm a terrible cook." Ouka and Chigusa both got up and headed to the kitchen, shoo'ing out the God of War a moment later.

"So what to do in the mean time?" Bell asked, "I mean..."

"If I may?" Marius asked, raising his hand, all attention focusing on him, "If you wish things to remain normal, then simply keep doing what you are doing. Maybe change who goes out, rotate the guard, so to speak."

"That's a good plan." I agreed, "We would hardly be a dungeon Familia without going to the dungeon, right?"

"Are there any other places we can look for information?" Welf asked with a grumble, "Something like this... You can't just go to a library."

"Welf would just eat the books." Lilly said, the mood lifting slightly as we laughed.

"Need help with the second shelf again?" He shot back, making Lilly stick out her tongue at him.

"I've one more place I can ask, and I'll do it on my way to the dungeon." I said, "That means however, we need people to look out for Wiene."

"Yes? Me?" The dragon girl perked up at her name, her sudden question stopping my tail from getting away. "Yay!" She captured the appendage with both hands, "Soft... I want a tail too..." She pouted, rubbing her cheek with my tail.

"Yes." Bell said to her, "I have to go out tomorrow." He started, holding up his hands to keep her from panicking. "It won't be long. But someone will be here for you while I'm out."

It took a while, but she eventually (still pouting) accepted the explanation of Bell needing to leave her here. Afterwards, the girls, minus myself, carted her off for a bath. Not feeling particularly dirty, nor wanting that much excitement in a bath, I worked on finishing up what Haruhime and I worked on.

If all enchanting needed was an item that accepted magic, then all I needed was to think of what I wanted while I worked on my own magically charged 'ko-steel'. Haruhime's delicate hands were perfect for jewellery craft as well, and together, we made a replica of Chime's collar. More ornate, we had made two small black and gold yin-yang pendants. One of the pair actually came apart, while the other was solid. The solid one was set into a bit of soft leather, made into a tasteful collar. The other, the two halves, could each track the collar. I could feel the same weak but insistent pull from each half of the yin-yang, as I could from the little compass that lead to the token on Chime's little vest.

My only concern was how long Weine would keep it on. I could hardly imagine her not liking it, but at the first sign of it being itchy, she'd probably tug it off or something. Just like any clothes we might put on her, until she understood 'modesty' in some way.

Like now, as she ran through the living room, calling excitedly for Bell, the rest of the girls chasing after her, towels in hand and around their bodies calling after her to stop and put something on.

...

Too much excitement for my bath. Yup.

NOTES!

And so we stop here for the day. Plot happening! Events cooking! And Genesha with his JoJo poses! (Yes, he actually does this in the books. He's a silly God.)

As of writing this, let it be known I might be starting to work again. This might (maybe) slow down my writing slightly, so I might actually break my 'every five days' updating timetable. Something I haven't missed once since I started. :)

Also, at some point, I might end this story. Or, because I'm waiting for the next book, have to stop for a little while. But that being said, I don't plan on vanishing. I am editing some older works, original content stuff, and might post that here as well. It is not fanfiction, but I don' think I'll ever bother trying to publish it. So, yeah. That's a possible thing.

For all my Canadian readers, and some of you people in the USA. Anyone going to Anime North? I'm going, and if you see someone in Red and Gold scales, come and say hello.

Until next time.