There is a young teenager who has white hair and red eyes. Due to his appearance, people often compare him to a rabbit, and he is generally considered cute. He wears a hip-length brown coat with a small black patch on the right side above his chest and a long-sleeved black shirt underneath. In addition, he wears black pants, a beige belt with a silver buckle, and brown shin-high boots.

His name is Bell Cranel; he had a spring in his step as he was heading towards the Loki Familia; having just arrived in Orario, he had to find a family before entering the dungeon. As he approached the estate, a black-haired boy walked past him and gave him a weak smile, "Good luck," he said.

The boy had long hair that reached his shoulders. He wore dark blue pants, a black shirt, and a long black jacket. He carried a small pack on his back. The most noticeable feature about him was his bright violet eyes. Bell watched as he pulled out a city map, turned, and walked down the street.

Bell did not have good luck.

Outside the Freya Familia, the same boy walks past with the same wish of luck. Bell didn't see him outside Genesha's home but saw him approaching as he left. Bell smiled, "Good Luck."

"Same to you," he replied.

It became this thing where he was looking to see if they would see him at the following rejection site. After returning to the inn, he looked at the list of gods and started planning which ones he would visit tomorrow.

After another day of rejection and more chance encounters with the same guy, it wasn't till they arrived at the Hermes facility at the same time they both smiled. "Alexander Christian," he said, extending his hand, "Please call me Alex."

"Bell Cranel." They shook hands and laughed.

"I hoped this would be easier than this," Alex said.

"I know what you mean. Do you want to go first?" Bell said, motioning to the Hermes estate.

"Sure, after I get rejected, I can figure out what to do for dinner," Alex said with a smile. Bell waited until he saw him walking back; Alex shook his head. Bell took a deep breath, and soon enough, he was in the same boat, but this time, Alex was waiting when he came out. "Want to compare notes over food? I found this cart that sells these hot sandwiches. The ones at the end of the day are on discount."

"Discount is good," Bell said as they walked off.

They started talking; it was nice to have a friendly face; they were both from farming towns, Bell to the South and Alex from the West. Alex had come to earn money so his little sisters could go to school; he wanted to earn money to buy a small house in the city so they could get an education. When Bell told him about being a hero, Alex laughed and smiled.

Alex didn't want to save the world but wouldn't mind being a hero to his sisters. They compared lists of gods they had visited as they ate. "It was nice to meet you, Bell."

"Likewise, Alex. Good Luck tomorrow," Bell said as they parted.

The next day, they crossed paths a few times, comparing notes, before meeting again and having dinner. It was nice to have at least someone to talk with; Bell was raised by his grandfather, Alex by his mother. They stood out by the bridge, talking about how tomorrow they would find a family, and once one found one, the other could join that one.

The next day was met with more failure. Bell let Alex sleep on the floor of his room at the Inn when he found out his friend had been sleeping outside. Alex paid for their baths as a way of saying thank you.

This was how it continued for the next two days. On the third day, they both stood outside the inn; Bell and Alex could afford one more night at the inn or food for the next two days before…well, neither knew. Their list of gods was almost nonexistent, but there were still names, and that was all they could hope for. They slept outside under a bridge that night, back to back, with their meager belongings between them.

"Tomorrow," Bell said, "We will find a Familia."

"Yeah, we have to!" Alex replied. "Let me know if you find that Astrea Familia; I will tell you if I find Caerus."

"Then we can team up and go into the dungeons," Bell said sleepily.

"Make our fortune and find love!" Alex replied as they both drifted off to sleep.

They split a small piece of cheese and some hard bread the following day before going their separate ways.

-Bell-

All day, he was wandering, this way and that, trying to find the Astrea Familia home. Only to find out that it was no more, destroyed years ago, just a sick joke played on him but some adventures. The worst part was how others played along; it wasn't until he bumped into an Elf who told him it was all for nothing. At least she was friendly, he thought. He desperately wanted to find a family and tell Alex everything would be alright. He sat in an alley, just feeling so defeated. He knew he needed to find Alex but couldn't get up.

"You shouldn't just sit like that in a dark alley," a woman voice said.

Bell looked up, and staring back at him was an actual goddess. She had black hair and beautiful blue eyes that just bore into him. "Are you looking for a Familia?" she said with a smile.

"Yes…"

"Would you like to be part of My Familia?"

"Yes, please, goddess, please," Bell said, scrambling to his feet.

"Great, come on, I will take you to our new home so I can give you my blessing," she smiled at him as his face, once so sad and downtrodden, became so alive.

"Can I have your name?" he said shyly, realizing he didn't know what goddess he had just agreed to serve.

"I'm Hestia," she said with a blush as she realized she never introduced herself. She was happy she finally had a family member. "And what is your name?"

"I'm Bell…Bell Cranel goddess," he said as he followed her, "Goddess, I know that I haven't even received your blessing, but would you be willing to meet a friend of mine? He has been looking for a Familia as well."

"How well do you know this friend?" his goddess responded.

"We came into the city around the same time; we would see each other as we got rejected by other gods," Bell said. "We started talking and tried to help each other; I know he is a good person. He wants to become an adventurer so his little sisters can attend school. I swear, goddess, please give him a chance." Bell pleaded.

"What if I told you I have only one spot open in my Familia?" Hestia responded.

Bell faltered, "Then please give it to my friend. I will try and find my way."

"Do you not want to be an adventure?"

"More than anything, goddess, but Alex, he wants to help his sisters; other than you, he has been the nicest person I have ever met." Bell had his eyes shut as he saw his dream slipping away, and then he felt a tender hand on his cheek. He opened his eyes, and Hestia stood there, her hand on his cheek, looking at him with warmth and tenderness.

"You are such a good person, Bell," she whispered. "After I give you my blessing, go find your friend and bring him to me; if he is half as good as you believe, I would be more than happy to welcome him to my family."

"Thank you, Goddess," Bell whispered as he wiped away a few tears. "I swear you won't be disappointed."

Hestia led him to the dilapidated church that would be their new home. To Bell, it was a golden palace where his Goddess lived. He swore he would work hard to make it a place where she could rest comfortably. He cried joyfully after she gave him her blessing, but soon, he ran off to find Alex.

He found his friend in the usual spot, holding a hot potato and another in a bag. Alex looked downtrodden until he heard his name called; once he saw Bell's face, he hoped it was the news he had hoped for. Bell ran up and explained that he had found a family and the goddess wanted to meet with him; Alex's heart nearly burst from his chest as he grabbed his bag and raced with Bell to the church.

Alex looked at the building, and like Bell, he saw a golden palace; when Hestia came out, he froze and fell to one knee.

"Tell me your story, Alex," Hestia said. Alex began to talk; he spoke of his sisters, how much he wanted a better life for them, and how much he desired to help them. That he wanted to become an adventurer, and how he met Bell, and they shared their hopes and dreams. Hestia smiled as he spoke faster and faster about his life, love of family, and desires; he was breathless when he stopped.

He looked up at Hestia's smiling face, "Come join my family, Alex," she held out her hand; with tears, he took her hand to descend to the basement apartment to receive his blessing. Once it was done, she sat back and laughed as he and Bell jumped around and hugged each other, calling the other brother. The goddess of the Hearth had not one but two children now; it was a new beginning for a new tomorrow.

-Hestia Familia-

Hestia was worried as she saw her two new and only Familia members walking towards the dungeon. She had accompanied them to the guild to register them as family members so they could be issued some standard gear from the guild, as she had nothing else to offer them other than her blessing.

She could see their excitement as they walked; they were playfully punching each other as their pace quickened. Hestia smiled, "Please come home to me, boys," she whispered.

She did her best not to worry but instead to send them off with a smile; once they were out of sight, she found a quiet place to let out all her worries, and then she took a deep breath. "They are going to be working hard, and that means I need to work hard as well!" she said to no one in particular. She pumped her fist and headed off to her job at the food cart. She had to work hard today; it wasn't much, but she needed to do her best to support them.

-Dungeon-

Bell looked over at Alex as he adjusted the small buckler on his arm; both were very nervous; this was the dungeon. But it was also the vessel to their dreams. "You ready, Alex?" Bell asked.

"As ready as I can be," Alex replied nervously. "Remember, we work together; I will try and distract them. You cut them down." Bell nodded with a grin. "Let's do this."

The duo took their first steps into the dungeon; it didn't take long for the dungeon to welcome them.

They both looked at each other, breathing hard but with a smile. The first goblin had been much more complicated than they both thought, but when it went down, the feeling of vitality was worth the moment of their epic battle. After some clumsiness in extracting the magic stone, the satisfaction of seeing the monster ash made them both grin like idiots.

"First one," Bell said, dropping the small stone in his pouch.

"First of many," Alex said with a grin.

They charged ahead…

They emerged hours later, tired and sore, and they couldn't stop smiling. They entered the guild. Bell handed Alex their loot for the day as he walked over to make their report to their dungeon advisor, a very pretty half-elf, Eina Tulle. Her expression didn't show it, but she was relieved to see the two young adventures return; it was their first day. She couldn't help but smile as Bell relayed their first day in the dungeon. His excitement and enthusiasm were infectious.

Once done, he walked up to Alex, who smiled, "30,000 Valis!" The two adventures high-fived and ran out, wanting to get home to their goddess. It was cramped in the little room, but neither of the boys would even dream of asking their goddess to sleep on the couch, so Alex slept on the floor as he had a bedroll and bell on the sofa. Hestia hugged them both, so relieved they had made it home safely.

They all sat around the small table, staring at the pile of money; Hestia was nibbling a piece of her hair. "Okay!" she said, placing her hands on her hips. "We will put 5 thousand to the family, food, and stuff. Five thousand so we can save and try and renovate our home, then each of you split the rest."

"But Goddess," Bell began to protest.

"You two have to pay for repairs to your gear and set aside money for other things; it is more important that you come home to me; today was a great day. Let's update your statuses and dinner."

"Thank you, Goddess," Alex said, bowing. "You can go first, Bell."

Bell took off his shirt and lay on the bed as Hestia climbed onto his back.

Bell Cranel
Familia: Hestia
Rank: 1

Strength: I10-12
Endurance: I10-12
Dexterity: I10-16
Agility: I10-16
Magic: 0

Skills: None

Magic: None

"Not bad for your first day, Bell," Hestia said after transferring his status for a paper to read. Bell smiled as he looked over the sheet. It wasn't much, but at least it was something; his Dexterity and Agility went up much more than his other stats, but then again, Alex was taking the front line with his shield and mace. "Your next, Alex," Hestia called out, patting the bed.

Alexander Christian
Familia: Hestia
Rank: 1

Strength: I10-17
Endurance: I10-17
Dexterity: I10-12
Agility: I10-11
Magic: 0

Skills: None

Magic: None

"Good job, Alex, you keep it up and go slow. I don't want to lose my first two precious children any time soon."

"We promise, Goddess," they said in unison as they read their status updates.

After dinner, they all drifted off to sleep. Alex and Bell were used to working on a farm, so they would wake up early and head out of the dungeon early.

"Think we can make it to the second floor today?" Bell said excitedly.

"I think we can go to the third, but no lower; if we do, Ms. Eina will murder us," Alex replied with a shiver. "I swear she could go into the dungeon, and the monsters would turn ash if she glared at them."

Bell laughed, "That glare is something else."

"But she sure is pretty," Alex replied with a smile.

"Yeah," Bell said with the same smile. "There are so many pretty ladies here; well, my grandfather said this was the center of the world."

"And he told you to build yourself a harem," Alex said, nudging his brother with his shoulder. "I mean, it is good advice," Alex laughed.

"Good advice or not, we are going to get strong and become great heroes," Bell proclaimed, pumping his fist.

"Get rich, make our dreams come true, and find love!" Alex added, causing both boys to laugh. "I am glad I met you, Bell; I can't think of anyone else I would want to do this with." He held out his fist to his brother.

"Same, Alex," Bell replied, bumping Alex's fist with his own.

They went into the dungeon daily except on Sunday when Hestia made them rest, fearing they would burn themselves out. Spurred on by their success, they were hard to keep contained; they made more money daily. Hestia had money in her coffers; she could start paying Hephaestus back, as her work at the food cart wasn't what was needed for survival. Instead, she used that money to repay her friend, who was pleasantly surprised at the change in Hestia. It seemed her two children were inspiring her to do better, which made the goddess of the forge very happy.

Alex and Bell had found their rhythm; dealing with Kobolds and Goblins was getting easier and easier every time they went in. They had even begun picking up a few drop items, which added to their fund and desire to stay in the dungeon longer. They had even made a few short trips to the sixth floor, but those monsters were proving difficult, so they returned to the fifth to keep working on getting stronger.

Then, on the anniversary of their third week, the dungeon reminded the two boys just how dangerous it was. It had started like usual; with the aid of Misha, a guild worker, Alex had written a letter to his family. Misha had even helped Alex set up a deposit unit in the bank where he could store his Valis. The boys would tease each other for their crushes on the guild ladies.

On this day, it was strange; the monsters seemed more agitated, and in fact, the boys had just managed to get out of a fight where eight kobolds had just spawned right on top of them. Cut battered and bruised; they were thankful that Hestia and Eina had insisted they start carrying potions. Hestia had introduced them to a friend of hers, a god named Miach, and his pharmacy. As each of them drank a potion, "I think I may need to upgrade my shield," Alex said; his guild issue buckler had taken a pounding over the past two weeks, but this battle had been tough. A larger-than-normal Kobold had spawned and seemed to be giving orders to the others, driving the boys back and forcing them to think on their feet. Ultimately, a wild gamble of Alex launching Bell off the shield and over the normal Kobolds allowed them to seize the day. As Alex began to dig out the magic stones while Bell kept watch, he turned and saw Alex smiling as he held up a heart-sized magic stone from the larger Kobold and long Black Claw.

"I have never seen this kind of drop item before," Alex said as he slipped it into his bag.

"Neither have I," Bell said. "Those were our last potions. We should probably go home; today has been a strange day."

"I agree," Alex replied. Then they heard it.

"MMMRRROOOOOOOOOOOOOO!" they both froze; they heard a loud stomp coming closer; they got into combat formation, Alex at the front, Bell just off to the left, ready to flank whatever was coming their way. Then they saw the leg, the hoof, and the horns. It was a Minotaur; a Minotaur had wandered up from the lower levels.

"BELL RUN!" Alex yelled as the two boys turned and ran for all they were worth. The Minotaur had spotted its newest targets and took off in pursuit. They were running for their lives; Alex managed to duck under a wild swing by the best; he stumbled but didn't go down.

Bell ensured Alex was behind him as they headed to a fork in the path. He went right, he heard Alex yell, and he turned and saw his friend dive to the ground as the Minotaur crashed into the wall behind him. Bell pivoted and leaped over his friend, bringing his dagger down towards the beast's face. Bell watched in horror as his blade shattered; the vicious monster just backhanded Bell away. He was sent tumbling across the floor, and he slammed into the wall, blood flying out of his mouth.

-Guild-

Misha and Eina were enjoying a quiet moment at the guild, as most of the adventures were down in the dungeon; it was the lull before they started to return.

"So, what was the letter you helped him write?" Eina asked as she sipped her tea.

"It was a letter to his family, to his mother and sisters, telling them how he is doing and that he was going to send money next week," Misha said with a smirk. "It was lovely."

"Oh, do you like him?" Eina decided to tease her friend.

"He is different; he wants to help his family and get his little sisters an education; it's not all about the glory of conquering the dungeon," Misha said with a blush. "What about you and your white rabbit?"

"Bell?" Eina smiled. "He is earnest, innocent, and bound to be a headache. But he listens during our lessons; he pays attention."

"So you do like him?" Misha said, smiling.

"I am fond of him; I believe it would be a better term," Eina looked sad for a moment. "But he is an adventurer; they don't come home sooner or later."

The doors opened, and a member of the city watched with two young half-elven girls in tow. The two guild employees walked over; the two girls were adorable twins. Both had black hair, with one green eye and one silver, but mirrored on the other. They were dressed in a simple brown dress, with traveling cloaks and backpacks; they appeared to be about eight years old. The one on the left appeared to have been crying as she wiped her face as they walked in. The one on the right seemed to be angry. Eina walked around the counter along with Misha.

"I can't imagine these are hardened criminals," Misha said, smiling at the girls.

"No, they just entered the city; they say they need to find their brother; he is an adventure for the…" he looked to the one on the right.

"Hestia Familia!" she responded sharply.

"Are you Asuka and Kairi?" Misha said, kneeling. The one on the left looked surprised; the right looked suspicious. "You must be Asuka," Misha said, pointing to the angry one, "and you are Kairi." The left one nodded her head. "You, Alex's sisters, but what are you doing here?"

"How do you know our brother?" Asuka demanded.

"Can you help us find our brother," Kairi said softly.

"Where is your mother?" Eina asked, looking past them.

Kairi began to wail, causing Eina to jump back; Asuka angrily wiped a tear away. "She died." That was all Asuka said.

-The Dungeon-

Death stomped towards the poor doomed adventures; Alex struggled to his feet; desperately, he swung his mace, which connected under the Minotaur's chin, knocking its head up slightly. He ran over and took a position in front of Bell.

"BELL, GET UP!" HE YELLED, "WE HAVE TO ESCAPE. GRAB MY DAGGER!"

Bell struggled to his feet, pulling the dagger from the sheath at Alex's back. The Minotaur lowered its head and charged, the dove to the side. Quickly, they got to their feet and ran.

"My dagger broke on its skin," Bell called out.

"It shrugged off my mace," Alex responded as they were again running for their lives, with the thing in hot pursuit. "We can't die here," Alex said, almost pleading.

Bell took a deep breath, "I will hold it off. You have to make it out of here for your sisters!"

"No, we are both going to make it out of here," Alex replied. "I won't sacrifice you."

"But…"

"No buts, Bell, you're my brother," Alex said as they both dived to the right as a substantial downward strike from the Minotaur sent them tumbling.

"Then we need to live!" Bell shouted as they turned the corner, and both their hearts froze. It was a dead end.

"Oh fuck," Alex said, turning around. "Any ideas?"

"The eyes!" Bell said as he readied the dagger.

"Huh," Alex said, raising his shield and Mace.

"We can't cut it, but it's because its skin is too strong, but if we blind it, maybe we can get by it," Bell said quickly.

"This is so fucking stupid; we are going to die!" Alex lamented. "Fuck it, I'll distract it, you blind it."

Bell gulped as the Beast roared at its prey. It charged suddenly, its massive fist ready to turn them into a bloody smear against the wall. Bell pulled a miniature dagger he carried for carving magic stones; Alex raised his shield towards the underside of the arm, moving it slightly up and off target. With a mighty scream, he swung the mace up as hard as possible, catching the beast under the chin again. The mace shattered; Bell leaped up, planting off Alex's shoulders, propelled himself higher, and came down towards the Minotaur's face. He screamed as the Minotaur horn impaled him on the shoulder, forcing him to drop the smaller knife, but Bell grits his teeth and drives the second one deep into the monster's eye. The thing roared in pain; its head jerked violently, throwing Bell into the wall. Its one good eye seemed to glow as it swung its fist toward them. Alex was in front of Bell, raised his shield, and braced for all he could. The fist collided with the shield, shattering it and Alex's arm, sending the boy crashing into the wall.

Bell got up and stood over Alex, "You can't have him!" he yelled in defiance; he knew he wasn't even yelling at the monster but at the dungeon itself. The Minotaur fist came down to tell the boys they were wrong.

Bell didn't close his eyes; he would meet death with his eyes open. He thought, I am sorry, Goddess, we won't be coming home tonight.

-Guild-

Misha had managed to calm down Kairi; she explained to Asuka, who seemed ready to attack them, that she had helped her brother write a letter recently, and he had told her all about them. Though he neglected to say anything about them being half-elves; wait, is he a half-elf? Why doesn't he have pointy ears, she thought.

"Why did you bring them here?" Eina asked the guard.

"They wanted to be directed to the Hestia Familia. I have never heard of them; when I asked that one if she had the right name, she just yelled Hestia Familia again. I volunteered to bring them here; I figured you guys would know if there was such a Familia," he shrugged.

"There is; we will try to get a hold of their Goddess; their brother should be by at some point to exchange magic stones," Eina said, adjusting her glasses. "We can watch them until then."

Eina dispatched a runner to the home of the Hestia Familia and some to the market area, as Bell had mentioned that their goddess worked a part-time job. Once Kairi had calmed down, Misha got the girls sitting down at a table with some tea and cookies; a few of the other guild mates pitched in some money after the girls expressed their hunger and got some food from a nearby café. Eina's heart melted a little as she watched Asuka make sure that Kairi ate first before she started eating, citing that she was the older sibling. Just like how Adam made sure they ate before he did.

Misha found out their things were being held at the gates, so she had the city guard bring them to the guild so they could store them until the situation was resolved. Hestia apologized to the kindly older man who owned the potato cart she worked at for having to leave during the middle of her shift. Still, as soon as the guild official came into view asking for her directly, her heart sank immediately thinking of her children.

-Dungeon-

A flash of the blade, so fast that neither beast nor boy could see it. The strike was so strong and so quick that the Minotaur's brain didn't register that its arm had been removed; it was the spray of blood that made the boy register that death was indeed coming, but it hadn't come for him. The beast managed to look as its missing limb tumbled through the air.

A beautiful woman, skin a beautiful bronze, wearing nothing more than a tube top covering only her chest and a pareo around her waist, a pouch tied to her waist, spun before the beast; her duel-bladed weapon spun faster than anyone could follow, the Beast or the boy. The Minotaur's head spun off its head; its roar died on its lips as it fell to its knees before turning to ash, its massive magic stone and Bell's knife clattered on the floor.

Bell would, almost falling back, but he was still standing over Alex, who still hadn't moved; they had been saved, and his eyes drifted to their savior; her black hair seemed to glimmer like the night sky; she whipped her blade to the side, removing the blood from it. Their eyes met; green met red, "You did an excellent job of surviving; let's help you, brother."

In another world, if Bell had been alone, he may have screamed and run away from the woman before him, this Amazon, but Bell couldn't move. Instead, though his heart fluttered, he was able to focus, his hand on his bleeding shoulder; he instead turned to Alex. "Thank you, Crusher. He hasn't moved."

"Oh, you know who I am, do you," she responded as she placed two fingers on Alex's neck. Bell watched as she pulled out a potion and splashed some of it on Alex before tilting his head back and pouring the rest slowly into his mouth.

Bell wavered and fell against her, "Whoa, you are a cheeky bunny."

Bell blushed and sat up as the world wobbled once again, "No, I wasn't.." he held his head, and he almost toppled only to be caught by the Crusher; his world was going dark, as he suddenly was cold. His world was going dark, and Tiona began to panic as his eyes rolled back in his head; then she noticed the blood pumping from his shoulder; she pulled out a potion and held it to his lips.

Her twin sister, Tione, came around the corner and smirked at her sister, "A little young," she smirked.

"Stop teasing and help," Tiona said with a slight pit of panic.

Rivera is a tall woman who has jade-colored hair tied in a ponytail that reaches to her waist. She had the same eye color; her ears were a telltale sign of her elven heritage. She wore a green outfit with yellow borders, a white cloak over it, a black belt, a yellow sash, black leggings, and long brown boots. People describe her as exceptionally beautiful and say she is more beautiful than several goddesses. Her arrival was a welcome sight. She immediately called for an update from the twins as the sword princess appeared at her side. "I see no evidence of any more Minotaurs."

Ais, also known as the Sword Princess or Kenki, is widely regarded as a gorgeous woman with long, golden-blonde hair, gold eyes, and a slender physique, much like her mother. She wore her white and black battle clothes, arm covers, and long blue boots. Her armor includes a head guard, breastplate, arm guards, hip guards, and knee guards.

"Tione and Tiona get those boys to the Hospital immediately; Aiz tells Arimid we will cover their medical expenses. I will report to the guild as we will have to pay a fine to whatever Familia they are a part of for our mistake," she said, rubbing the bridge of her nose as the girls raced off. "Catch up afterward," she called after them.

-Guild-

Hestia came running in nearly in a panic; her dramatic entrance made everyone in the guild freeze. She saw Bell's dungeon advisor, who waved Hestia over. Hestia noticed she seemed calm enough, but she was still worried. Seeing the panicked goddess racing towards her, Eina raised her hands in front of her. Before Hestia could say anything, Eina grabbed Hestia's hands.

"Goddess Hestia," she said quickly. "I need you to calm down. As far as we know, your children are fine, but there is a situation, and I need you to be calm. Can you do that?" Hestia at first wanted to smack the woman for grabbing her, but her words and her eyes made her hesitate. Instead, she nodded. "Goddess Hestia, has Alex told you about his family?"

"Yes, he has told me a lot about them. Why?" she responded.

"His sisters arrived here today; they told us their mothers had passed away," Eina said, making sure to convey the gravity of the situation. Hestia stopped and took a deep breath.

"I understand," Hestia said. "Please take me to them."

Eina nodded and led Hestia to the back, where she saw the two girls sitting and sharing food while another guild employee talked with them, keeping them company. Both girls immediately turned when she entered; her divine presence caught their attention.

While Hestia could not see souls as clearly as other girls, she could tell the anguish within them; one of the girls looked angry as she stood before her twin protectively. "Asuka, Kaire, it is good to meet you; I am your brother's goddess, Hestia," she said, stepping forward. "I have come to wait with you till your brother returns."

Hestia saw Asuka's demeanor soften some as Kaire stepped out from behind her sister. "It is a pleasure to meet you, Goddess," Kaire said with a slight sniffle. "I don't know if you can, Goddess, but can you bring our mother back?" Tears were forming at the corners of her eyes. "I will serve you for the rest of my life if you can. I...I have healing magic and can make some potions; I know that is not a lot, but please, can you bring our mother back? She was a good mother." Her tears fell freely now as she kneeled before the goddess.

Asuka also kneeled, fighting to hold back her tears, "Please, goddess, I will serve you as well…I…I miss her."

Misha and Eina were both crying as they could feel the girl's pain; they knew the answer Hestia had to give them.

Hestia knelt before them, "I am sorry, but that is not in my domain. Even if I was a god of Death, they couldn't do so either. Once a soul has ascended, there is nothing we can do. I am so sorry, girls," Hestia wrapped her arms around them, letting her divinity wrap around and try to comfort them. Kairi fell into Hestia's arms first, then even Asuka did, and they just began to sob in the tiny goddesses' arms. She just held them tight and let their grief wash out till they fell asleep in her arms. Once they were asleep, Eina and Misha picked them up and laid them on couches, covering them with a blanket.

The trio exited the room so they could speak; Misha and Eina relayed as much as they could, which admittedly wasn't much. Hestia bit her lip; the boys had brought home some money over the past few weeks, but it wasn't millions; in fact, it wasn't even close. Maybe they could repair the ceiling, but the walls still had holes; there wasn't anything to proper beds. Bell slept on the couch, Alex on the floor, and she on the bed. All they could do was bear it for now; she wondered if Adam would want to leave, but where would he go? She needed to work harder and figure out how to do this. She needed someone to help her. She bit her lip, and an option crossed her mind, but she didn't like it.

When a nurse from the Hospital busted in looking for Hestia, that chaos came again. Eina and Misha told her to go. They would look after the girls.

-Hospital-

Arimid quickly went to work on the two adventures the Loki Familia had rushed into. The white-haired boy had lost a lot of blood, and there was more damage as well, but the high-level health potion he had been administered had helped him quite a bit. The black-haired boy, on the other hand, his arm had been crushed, and there was still internal bleeding; the high potion had stabilized him, but it was going to require high-level healing magic to save him, and that wasn't cheap. She would have to talk to Hestia about the debt this would incur, but then she heard Aiz tell them that the Loki Familia would pay for the treatment. Arimid smiled and immediately called in the healers.

Hestia came running in with the nurse; Arimid immediately went to the nearly hysterical goddess and set about calming her down while she explained the situation.

-Loki Familia-

Tione, Tiona, and Aiz were on a light jog back into the dungeon; they had just left the two boys at the hospital with their belongings.

"Loki is going to be so pissed when she sees that hospital bill," Tiona said with a smirk. "But it was our fault after all."

"I didn't expect them to run like that," Tiona blushed.

"Riveria said they ran like that 'cause you killed too many too quickly," Aiz said deadpan.

"Ugghh," Tione said. "Don't say that that means the Captain will be mad at us, and we will have to pay the Familia back for that medical bill! And most of all, the Captain will yell at me again!"

"I will help," Aiz said.

"You will?" Tione said, surprised.

Liz nodded, "You would help me, right?" the twins nodded. "Then I will help you because we are friends."

Tione and Tiona giggled and hugged Aiz, halting their jog and making her blush as they rubbed their cheeks against hers. "Aww, Aiz, you are so cute sometimes," Tione said. The two amazons laughed before they all started moving again.

"They did well to survive until you got there, Tione," Tiona called out.

"Yeah, when I cut off its head, a dagger was sticking out of one of its eyes!" Tiona responded excitedly. "I heard the nurse say they were like total newbies."

"Maybe they will get strong then," Liz commented.

"I hope that one that looked like a rabbit was kind of cute," Tiona said.

"Are you going to claim him, sister?"

"Not now, maybe if he gets stronger, then I may just have to," Tione said as the trio rushed to catch up with their Familia.

-Hospital-

Alex slowly came awake; he jolted up, immediately grunting in pain as he held his arm. Hestia was by his side quickly; he saw Bell there as well.

"Holy shit, we lived?" Alex said. "Please tell me we are alive?"

"You are alive," Hestia said as her eyes filled with tears. "You two scared me half back to Heaven! But Bell told me what happened, so I can't be too mad at either of you. You both tried to run and were trying to save each other." She squeezed Alex's hand. "But…" Alex froze. "Alex, I am so sorry. Your mother has passed away."

His entire body was suddenly dunked in ice water, and Bell was beside him. Bell understood that feeling when they came and told him that his grandfather had passed. Alex began to cry, but suddenly he said, "MY SISTERS!"

"It is okay, Alex, they are here," Hestia said. "They arrived today; they spent most of the day with Misha and Eina. I wanted to give you a chance to process them before I bring them in." She wrapped her arms around her child and brought his head to her shoulder. Alex stiffened, "It is okay, Alex; I may not be a great goddess yet, but I can do this for you." Alex began to cry, wrapping his uninjured arm around his goddess as his grief poured out.

Once he calmed down, "What will we do, Goddess? This healing is going to bankrupt us before we even start. Our home is so small."

"That it is, Alex," Hestia said, brushing some hair from his face. "It will be tight living, even more so, but we will figure it out. Don't worry about the medical bill; the Loki Familia is paying for it as they are responsible for the Minotaur getting loose in the first place. We have enough saved to repair the roof but not the walls; we must keep working hard to get the chapel repaired, and then we can work from there."

"Arimid said you will be out in a few days, and you should be able to go back in the dungeon within a week," Bell said, trying to cheer his brother up.

"A week!" Alex said. "That is so long," he said, sounding dejected.

"Think of it this way," Hestia said, lifting the boy's chin to look at her. "Your sisters need you right now, and it was not like you were going to run off to the dungeon tomorrow even without the Minotaur attack, right?" Alex nodded. "So don't fret. Are you ready to see them?"

"Yes, please bring them in," Alex replied. "After you bring them in, can you leave us alone for a bit…" Hestia nodded and kissed his forehead.

Bell got up and went to the waiting room. Alex could hear their feet as they ran to the room; the door flung open, and Kairi ran to him; she scrambled up on the bed and started crying. Asuka did the same. Hestia and Bell stepped out to allow the family to grieve in peace.

Once they were sitting outside, Hestia hugged Bell tightly. "You two scared me to death today; when I first was summoned to the guild, I was so scared that something had happened. But it was about Asuka and Kairi, then the nurse came in…"

"I thought we were done for as well, Goddess," Bell said, hugging her back. "I tried to get Alex to run because of his sisters, but…"

"That was very noble of you, Bell," Hestia replied.

The two sat there till the girls emerged, and they could see Alex was tired; they promised to come back tomorrow to see him and bring his sisters by. The two young girls took Hestia's hands as they returned home. That night, the girls all shared one bed; Hestia's presence helped the girls get some sleep, but it took Bell a bit longer. He gazed at the ceiling for a long time; it wasn't till he thought of the beautiful Amazon that, with a smile, sleep finally claimed him.