"Eyes light moonlight, waves of… hmm…" Nari hummed quietly in the shower, running her fingers through her navy hair. Leaning her head back and forth, she washed the conditioner from her locks, light tints of blue spiraling downward in the drain. Running a comb through the waves, she tried again. "Entwining fates and one desire… no, that's not it." Grumbling, she turned the knob and halted the water, wringing out her hair and sending globs to the floor below with each squeeze.

Stepping out of the shower, she made her way toward the wall mirror and took a look at herself. Her marks finally healed over, leaving her neck pale and smooth. Absentminded fingers twirled through her hair, pulling the strands taut. She quickly took notice of the way they stretched downward below her chest. It was getting longer; she wondered if perhaps it was time to cut it. Shaking her head, she decided to leave it for now, instead focusing on other matters. Dropping her towel, she paused to examine herself, body laid bare. The light ridges outlining her ribcage made her grimace, making her wonder if maybe she should add a snack to her new mealtime regimen. Shaking her head, she continued onward with her morning. Or maybe not.

Humming her draft lyrics under her breath, she made her way to the sink and began her familiar routine. Leave-in conditioner, blow-dry, and a thorough brushing, leaving her hair soft and smooth. Lotion, facial moisturizer, teeth, lenses, and a pair of eyedrops; one in each eye before checking a final time to make sure everything was in order. Satisfied, she exited the bathroom and threw on her uniform, ready for another day. Following her run-in with Tsukito, she had requested a tailored size, this version fitting her much nicer than the one before. Why on earth hadn't she thought to do that in the first place?

With a spring in her step, she passed by her bed, doing a doubletake before leaving the room. On her comforter lay the familiar book, open and forgotten. Spinning around, she marched back over to the bed, tossed in a bookmark, and flipped it shut before retreating once more. With a wave over her shoulder, she bid Fuyu farewell before disappearing into the hall.

. . .

Her trip to class was uneventful for the most part. Enthralled in her story, she had found herself reading the Story of Seasons well into the night, and as a result, she overslept. With little energy to spare, she skipped her morning run today and spent that extra time roaming the halls. Since it was early, she avoided running into any of her more frustrating foes; Thoth would still be lurking in the library and Loki doing gods knew what. The only person she had noticed in the distance was Hades, sulking in a shaded corner along the way to the cafeteria. After grabbing something to eat, she soon found herself accompanied by an unexpected companion.

"I must thank you again for your assistance, Kusanagi. I really appreciate it."

"Don't worry about it, it's fine. That being said… Look, not that I mind it, but you should really do a better job at managing your own feet."

"Haha! Yes, I agree. I do try my best, but I am so clumsy it would seem."

"Biggest understatement of all time…" Nari muttered. And yet somehow, he somehow managed to play tennis. Phenomenally, she might add. Following her playful quip, the pair walked quietly for a few minutes, enjoying the silence of the empty hallway. As they approached the staircase, they slowed to a stop, eyeing the pathway upward. Her eyes drifted back and forth between them until she could no longer contain herself. "Are you... going to be alright?"

Balder smiled. "Of course. Though I will admit, I have fallen quite a few times. Yui typically assists in that regard."

"Yui…?" Nari asked. She lifted a curious eyebrow as they began to ascend, controlling her steps to match his slower pace. Balder had referred to both her and her sister as 'Kusanagi' since their arrival at the school. When he had started calling her by her first name, she wasn't sure. When had the two of them become so casual with one another? It was strange, to be sure, especially considering her sister's more conservative nature. Something to bring up to her later, no doubt. "Yui helps you up the stairs?"

"Not up the stairs, per se. It's more so that we generally walk together to class each morning."

"You and Yui walk to class together? Every morning?"

"Indeed. Does this surprise you?"

"A little," Nari replied. It would be a lie if she said that she wasn't disturbed. It was true that both students were members of the student council, so it only made sense that she would spend more time with them than other members of their class. But she hadn't been aware that the two of them specifically had been spending so much time together as of late.

Of course, that was none of her business, Yui was free to spend time with whoever she pleased. She was a young woman after all. But she couldn't help but feel a bit perturbed that she had chosen the Norse god of light with which to do so. Generally speaking, she didn't have anything against Balder. Doing so would be foolish. He was genuinely the kindest out of all of them. But there was something about him that bothered her... she just couldn't seem to figure out what. Suddenly, a thought crossed her mind. "Wait, why aren't you walking with her today?"

"Yui is in the library this morning. Supposedly, Master Thoth required her assistance with an upcoming lesson."

Nari nearly stumbled in surprise. "Thoth… needed Yui's help… on a lesson?" Now, that was strange. In her experience, the Egyptian god of knowledge knew almost everything — or at the very least, he certainly liked to pretend he did. What on earth could he possibly need her help for? Shaking her head, she gave up on the matter. "Well, that's the weirdest thing I've heard all week."

"I must agree." Balder turned to her and offered a warm smile.

Nari felt her heart skip at the sight of him, soft, thin lips, and pearly white teeth all framed within a shimmering border of gold. It was easily the most beautiful image she had ever seen, a true prince straight out of a painting. Just a glimpse would be enough to sweep any woman off their feet. And yet...

Ignoring the uncomfortable knots in her stomach, she forced a smile in return.

"Balder!"

"Wagh!" Nari yelped, nearly tumbling into the wall as a student plowed into her full force. She was all but launched out of the way from the impact, immediately sending her into a decidedly foul mood. Turning, she opened her mouth to give the woman a piece of her mind, only to find that she was no longer alone. Surrounding Balder were three different female students, all clamoring around him with high-pitched squeals. "What the — bwah!"

Her second sentence was interrupted by yet another impact, this one from a male student pressing her forward. Any attempts at retaliation were quickly quashed as Nari soon found herself surrounded by a small army of students. It seemed that nearly every doll student on the floor's radius had flocked to the area. They were like a sea of rabid moths, and Balder was the flame. Her body was jostled around left and right, leaving her jerking and staggering as she tried desperately to maintain her balance.

The sound of Balder's voice, shouting apologies was barely audible, drowned out by the din of the growing mob. She was three elbows away from seeing stars when her savior arrived. A firm grip on her bicep was her only warning before she was yanked away. Then, Nari was free. Air filled her lungs and light shined in her eyes again, no longer blockaded by arms, legs, and uniforms.

"What the hell?!" she shouted, watching the god of light slowly vanish down the corridor, washed away by the ocean of smiling faces.

"Yeah, that'll happen sometimes."

Turning, Nari felt her mouth fall open at the unexpected face. "Loki?"

"You remembered my name! Such a clever puppy," he taunted.

"Asshole," she muttered. Even in doing something nice for her, it seemed he was still capable of being a jerk about it. "What was that all about?"

Loki shrugged. "Balder is the god of light. He tends to attract a crowd wherever he goes."

The image of a massive swarm flooding the tennis court reentered her mind. So, it wasn't a fluke after all. "I see. So, Balder always gets the celebrity treatment?"

"The what?"

"Never mind." Nari shook her head to dismiss it. As a god, he would have no idea what a celebrity was, and she was in no mood to explain it to him. "Anyway… thanks for helping me. A little longer, and I probably would've been suffocated."

"Eh, don't take it too personally. I'd be bored if anything happened to you, you know?"

Was that supposed to be a compliment? "Yeah, I'm sure. Come to think of it, how'd you even find me anyway? There were probably over 30 students in that mosh pit."

"Mosh pit?"

Again, Nari sighed. "Don't worry about it."

Shrugging, Loki answered. "Well, you stand out. It was pretty easy to find you."

"Uh huh." Nari didn't believe him for a second. Sure, her hair color wasn't overly common, much like her sister's violet. However, she wasn't particularly tall, and the crowd had contained more than enough male students to mask her simply by height alone. The likelihood that he had spotted her among the waves of screeching students was slim to none. In fact, there was no reason for him to have even known she was in that hallway. Unless… "Wait. Were you following me again? "

Loki balked. For just a moment, Nari saw a look of surprise in his silver orbs; the look of someone who'd realized they'd been caught. Within less than a second, he had recovered with a Cheshire grin. "Not at all, puppy, not at all. You see, I was going to play a trick on Balder this morning... You just so happened to be in the way."

Her eyes narrowed. Another lie. As she had just learned prior to her assault, Balder had made a habit of walking with Yui to class every morning. Chances were, Loki knew this, which meant he knew that Balder would have been with Yui. And as her sibling hadn't been a victim of the fire god's pranks in recent days, that meant that, for whatever reason, he probably wasn't willing to harass him in Yui's presence. He would therefore have had no reason to bother Balder, under the assumption that Yui would be with him. Yet, he had been following him on this morning; the one day when her sister happened to be preoccupied with their instructor. There was no way this was a coincidence.

But Nari wasn't going to call him out on it. Not today. "Riiight. Well, I appreciate it, nonetheless. Getting trampled wasn't in my plans for the day." Loki gaped at her, a look of genuine surprise on his face. "What? Did I say something funny?"

"...That's it?"

"Huh? What's it?"

"No retort, no snappy reply? Just a... thank you?"

Nari blinked. "...Well, yeah. I'm sorry, did you want me to be angry with you?"

Loki quickly shook his head. "No, of course not. I was just surprised... Wow. I guess it's true what they say about food and savage beasts. Who knew a rice ball was all it would take to make you nice again? I guess all this time you were just hangry, huh puppy?"

His classmate responded with a roll of her eyes, turning away from him, and striding down the hall. Leave it to Loki to make her cordiality into a bad thing. It was true that since eating more, she had felt a little healthier and been in a better mood as a result. So, maybe it had drifted a little into everyday life and affected her usual behavior. Not that it was any of his business what she...

In a moment of realization her eyes blew wide. Spinning 180 degrees, she stared at him. "Wait... wait a minute, that was you?!" She had been under the assumption that her evening meal was her sister's doing, sneaking her snacks after dinner hours. Different foods had been left at her doorstep at intermittent intervals over the last few days, typically on days when she hadn't much to eat. Chalking it up to her sibling's concern, she had tolerated it, and eaten the food she brought with a warm smile. It was nice to know how much she cared about her. But to think that all this time...

"Oops! Looks like the cat's out of the bag," Loki shrugged, seemingly unconcerned with being caught. But there was no way Nari was letting it go that easily.

"...Why?"

"Hmm... because you were hungry, I assume."

"You would have no way of knowing that."

"Sure I do. Skipping meals makes you hungry, does it not?"

Growing irritated, Nari rubbed her hand over her face. "How do you —" Recomposed, her eyes reopened only to find him missing. Startled, she spun around again, only to find him behind her staring at her with that trademark mischievous grin.

"My, my, aren't we curious this morning? You're asking alooot of questions today, aren't you?"

"Of course, I'm asking questions, this is beyond strange! How did you even — why would you —"

"I owed you a favor, you know?"

"A favor... for what?"

"Oh, puppy, how short your memory can be. You helped me out the other day... If not for you, the talking rock would have stolen my treasure." Leaning forward, Loki narrowed his eyes. "And we wouldn't want that... would we?"

"I-I... that doesn't excuse —" Her questioning was halted once more by a gentle painted nail, a finger pressed softly against her lips.

"You think far too much, puppy. I wished to repay the goddess of song. Just accept the friendly gesture, hmm?"

In accordance with his wishes, Nari fell silent. Not because he had asked her to but because he was standing uncomfortably close to her. Her eyes gazed forward, locked with his as he gave a warm... oddly genuine smile. Her heart leapt up into her throat and tumbled down again, thumping so hard it threatened to beat right out of her chest. She was so dumbfounded that she said nothing, even as his fingertip moved away. She didn't know what to think. What to feel. Only that she slowly growing lost in those silver eyes.

When her voice finally returned to her, it came out as a whisper. "Why..."

With a smile, he leaned even closer, stopping barely an inch from her. A shiver ran up her spine as he tilted his head and whispered in her ear. "I don't know... maybe I like you."

With that, Loki disappeared, creating some distance before skipping away. "Don't stand there too long, puppy, you'll be late for class!"

It took a full three seconds for her mind to reboot, and when she finally turned around, he was gone. She could say nothing more, mind reeling in utter confusion, along with another hodgepodge of emotions she couldn't identify.

What the hell was that?

. . .

Nari's chopsticks moved mechanically in her grasp, following the same set pattern over and over from again, from her bowl to her lips. Eyes glazed over, she recounted the last few hours... and her unusual moment with Loki. The intense look on his face as they stood in the hallway. His silver eyes and Cheshire cat smile. His lips. His voice. It was driving her crazy, not knowing what was going through his mind. She didn't know what this feeling was that encompassed her every time he drew near. What was it...? Was something wrong with her? Could he feel it too...?

"Hey, are you alright? You were zoning out a little there."

Nari blinked, mentally shaking herself to regain focus. That's right. She had been in the middle of a conversation. "Yeah, I'm fine. Sorry."

"Are you sure...? You've been distracted all day..."

"I'm just a little tired, that's all." Nari quickly redirected the attention from herself back to what she remembered of their discussion. "Anyway, so the sky just opened up?"

Seeing her sister was with them again, she continued the tale, nodding emphatically in confirmation. "Yes! It was pouring, Nari. Literally, out of nowhere. It went from a bright, starry sky to a torrential downpour in three seconds!"

"Everywhere except for Balder," Dionysus added, popping a grape into his mouth.

"Huh?"

Apollon nodded. He took a moment to finish a bite of souvlaki before continuing. "Bal-Bal is immortal, so rain doesn't bother him!"

Nari blinked. Despite his explanation, she now found herself even more confused than before. "…What?"

"Apparently, nothing can hurt him. His mother made a pact with creation. With all of creation."

"Does… can rain hurt gods?" Nari asked with genuine curiosity. Her mind drifted back to the comment she had made to Loki days before regarding water and fire's weakness. The idea gave her a pang of guilt; wondering if he had indeed put himself at risk for her sake.

"Not really, but it can be inconvenient. Unless of course..." Dionysus' voice fell to a sultry hum. "...you enjoy being wet."

Nari ignored his comment, pointedly avoiding his seductive gaze. "I-I... see. That's certainly interesting. So, I guess that means you guys never saw the stars then. That's disappointing."

"No, we did," Yui replied. Her sister quirked an eyebrow, once again getting lost in the story. Yui continued. "So, then, the gods all stripped down to their swimsuits and started running around in the rain!"

"Even Tsukito?" Nari's eyes widened in surprise. Dutiful or not, she had a difficult time imagining the lifeless god frolicking in the rain with the others.

"Yeah! It was amazing! Everyone worked together and turned the misfortune into a celebration. Eventually, the rain stopped, and we could see the sky. It just went away like nothing happened. Nari, you should've seen it. It was amazing!"

Pressing his thumb and index finger together, Dionysus complained. "I was this close to getting him into a swimsuit too. Eh, maybe next time." He shrugged, pouting in mock disappointment.

Nari shook her head. The day Hades wore a speedo was the day that hell froze over. Honestly, she would probably have a better chance at becoming the prime minister of Japan than seeing such a sight in her lifetime. Not that it would be a bad one. Concluding their story, the others twittered amongst themselves, recounting their fun-filled night. With their focus directed elsewhere, her tired mind started drifting to thoughts of the lord of the Underworld in a tiny black swimsuit leaving little to the imagination. From there, it took off on its own. She began to wonder how the other gods would look in such a thing. Particularly a certain redheaded —

Her chopsticks halted, hovering over her gyudon. The other three paused their discussion and turned their attention, noticing her sudden pause. Yui swallowed her mouthful of rice and gave her a concerned look. "Nari? Is everything okay?"

She didn't answer for a few moments. Her mind wandered back to the evening she had spent with Loki, the strange circumstance, and the starry sky. Then, she was hit with realization. "Wait, hold on. This was a little while ago…" Yui nodded. "Is that what happened back there?" Nari asked, eyes growing wide.

"Hmm? What do you mean? What happened?"

"Some time ago… when I was in the courtyard with Loki, it started raining suddenly without warning. Clouds appeared out of nowhere and it started pouring. We had to hide out under Dio's tarp… It was really strange."

"Probably. I can't imagine what else it could've — wait, hold on. You were with Loki?" Yui asked, her own expression mirroring her sister's. As unusual as her own experience had been, the thought of her sister willingly spending time with Loki was stranger still.

"Oh… uh, yeah. We were just chatting for a little while."

"Without an argument? Wow, that's a first," Dionysus replied, taking a sip of his wine.

"We're civil… sometimes," Nari muttered. Her chopstick jabbed awkwardly at her egg.

Yui frowned. "Civil…? Nari, you nearly went over the desk at him a couple of weeks ago. Since when have you two been on civil speaking terms?"

"Since the lord of all douchebags locked us alone in a classroom with no other way out."

"…Douchebag?" Dionysus asked.

"You don't wanna know," Nari replied. Although, it was possible she could be wrong. The man was a degenerate, she wouldn't be surprised if he did.

"That's great, Siren! That's really great! You and Loki-Loki are finally getting along! You're forming bonds!" Apollon exclaimed, utterly oblivious to the other's exchange.

"Would you relax? You're getting ahead of yourself, we just hung out for a bit."

"In my garden no less. Hmph."

Nari blinked, shifting her attention to the fertility god. His handsome face was pulled into a playful pout. "Ha… what, you jealous?"

"Maybe a little…" he replied with a wink.

"Well, you can relax, Dio. I lost something earlier. He was just returning it, that's it."

"Lost something…? Nari, that's not like you." Yui placed down her chopsticks, her focus now entirely on her sister.

"I just wasn't myself that day. I got into an argument with the falcon, so I was little distracted."

"You got into a fight?!" Yui exclaimed, her surprise shifting into alarm.

"It's… a long story." Nari sighed. She could feel herself shrinking beneath her sister's gaze, so she took another large bite of her lunch to distract herself. Her mouth chewed slowly, trying to buy some time as her eyes swept across the table. After a few moments, it became clear to her that the three of them weren't going to let her off the hook without a change in topic. Swallowing, she shook her head and did just that. Turning her attention, she addressed the brothers. "Look, never mind that. Tell me more about Hades. Your uncle controls the weather, or what?"

"Not exactly…" Apollon responded. His mood shifted almost immediately. The look in his downcast eyes started making her regret her decision almost instantly.

"It's a result of his curse," Yui replied. Her face bore a similar expression to Apollon's.

Nari looked between the two of them with a raised eyebrow. "Curse…? The god of the Underworld… is cursed? How the hell does that happen?" Hiding her incredulous expression proved impossible. It wasn't that she had a problem with Hades. In fact, aside from his constant complaining, truthfully, she enjoyed his company. It was more so that the idea struck her as absurd. His role as a god of death seemed more akin to giving out curses than receiving them.

Dionysus seemingly read her mind, giving a saddened nod. "Being the lord of the Underworld is the reason he's cursed."

"…I don't understand."

"Humans — well, all creatures fear death, but…" Apollon began. "Many humans, they're unhappy. Unhappy with their end."

"Well, yeah… I mean, who wants to die?" Nari asked. The majority of living beings wanted to continue living. That seemed obvious.

"Yes, and that's understandable. The problem is there are many. So, so many."

Dionysus swallowed his final grape and stepped in. "As shrine women, you are probably familiar with how curses work."

Nari shrugged. "People with unfinished business, right?"

Yui nodded. "Right. It is said that when a person dies in the grip of a powerful rage, a curse is born."

"Right." Dionysus nodded. "And some of these people are very, very angry. And there are a lot of them. Countless, even."

Apollon frowned. "So much bitterness… so much hatred. All towards whom they perceive to be the cause of their misfortune."

"Eventually, those curses manifest into the form of an all-consuming grudge. A grudge that surrounds him."

"What?" Nari blinked. Turning to her sister, she frowned to see her nodding in affirmation.

"It's true. He showed me the mark on his chest."

"There's an actual mark?"

"Yeah... I was startled too. Turns out he was being serious. The curse is so powerful that it brings harm not only to himself but to others around him."

"So… all that mess about bringing misfortune and misery…?"

Dionysus nodded.

"That's —" Nari was flabbergasted. As a self-proclaimed pessimist, she was more than familiar with the idea of seeing the worst in situations. But even she had always found his antics to be a bit excessive. He went so far as to keep physical distance between himself and everyone around him and blamed himself for literally everything that went wrong in his vicinity. But the more she thought about it, the more she began to see what they were talking about.

She had seen on multiple occasions unusual happenings going on whenever Hades was around. She had seen Yui get smacked by falling books in the library. She had seen Apollon slip and fall in the cafeteria, on an ice cube that just so happened to be sitting right in his path. She had seen Takeru get hit in the face with an opening door and Thor by a falling branch. She had even seen Balder nearly go tumbling headfirst down the staircase — although, in fairness, that wasn't all that strange.

Nari herself had been clocked by a flying tennis ball while speaking with him, and that wasn't to mention the ocean trip itself. While she was one to chalk up most unfortunate incidents to coincidence, the number of accidents that seemed to occur in his presence were undeniable. And all of this was because of his curse? A curse placed on him by the hatred of humanity. And humans hated him, why? Simply because he exists. The story was startling familiar. "Damn... that's... that's awful..."

"Such is his fate..." Apollon mumbled.

Dionysus nodded sadly. "It's unfair, but..."

Nari's mind drifted back to her book, a chapter she had finished the previous night. "Yeah... fate. I'm starting to hear that a lot these days... Oh, Yui, that reminds me. What were you doing earlier this morning? Balder told me Thoth needed you for something?"

Dionysus pouted. "You're spending time with Balder too? Hmph."

"Dio, hush."

Yui nodded. "Yeah. There is a modern topic he wants to cover, and he asked for my assistance on the matter. He probably would have asked for yours, but..."

"Nope. Not interested. I'm glad he asked you."

Yui sighed. "You're so unreasonable, Nari..."

"Only with you, little sister," she snarked.

The table erupted into amused laughter, Nari growing even louder at her sister's pout. But Yui couldn't help herself. Within moments, she was joining them with a smile on her face.

. . .

**AUTHOR'S NOTE*

Hehehe, movie reference. New chapter for anyone who can figure out what it is. :P