AN: Takes place after chapter 152 in the manga.

The sun was just touching the horizon as Keima pulled into the driveway leading to their modest home in Kushiro. His motorcycle's engine purring steadily despite the long drive. As he came to a stop, he pushed out the kickstand and let bike idle for a few seconds. Marveling at the machine. It was an older bike, but it ran like a dream and Keima treated it as such.

What had Keiichi's girlfriend said of his bike? "You must really love her, and she isn't even tired."

It was an odd thing to say. Even if it was completely accurate. Keima stroked the handle grips and smiled softly. Beyond Takano, his wife, no one knew he thought of his bike as she. He then silenced the engine and dismounted the bike. He began to wheel it into the garage. Odd, yes visiting his son and daughter had ended up being a very odd experience. Mostly from women who were living with his son in an old temple in Nekomi.

"Women?" he questioned aloud. He almost laughed. He would, in almost all cases, have a near allergic reaction to the opposite sex. An embarrassment he had for most of his life. So, would he really be the best judge of what he had seen? But Takano would be different. And he had a feeling, deep down, that it would not be for the better.

As if on que, the old Datsun pulled into the driveway beside him. He had almost not noticed due to his musing. From the car, Takano stuck her head and gave him a playful smile. "You gonna just let me run you over there?"

"Sorry," he muttered as he got out of the way.

"You should be. What were you doing anyway?" Takano got out and opened the rear door and began pulling the few items they had packed for their travels.

"Nothing, just thinking."

Takano closed the hatch and looked at him. "Thinking, huh?" She smiled and walked up to him and wrapped her arms around his waist. She was one of two women he could ever let get so close. The other was his daughter, Megumi. Leaning close she sniffed and made a playful wrinkling of her nose. "You stink, all that open road on the bike. How about I make you a bath?"

Keima smiled and kissed her gently. The idea of a hot bath banished a good deal of his other thoughts. "That sounds wonderful."

"Good, go put your bike up. I'll get the stuff inside." Takano stepped back and picked up her bags.

"Alright," he said. He watched her go inside for a few seconds before shaking his head and wheeling his bike into the garage. He parked it next to Takano's car and secured the kickstand. Then he made sure the battery was disconnected and turned on the fuel shut off. Once satisfied he patted the seat gently and whispered, "Thank you."

He then left the garage and closed the door. Walking into the house he immediately took off his shoes. He could hear Takano upstairs, already fusing with the old bathtub and trying to get the ancient plumbing of the house to produce some hot water. Keima chuckled to himself. Their house was old, nearly as old as Keima himself. He had inherited it from his grandparents. It was a simple two-story affair. But it was Keima's home. Takano and their children were the only people he had ever let live in it.

Walking upstairs, he moved through the house to their bedroom. He set his travel bag down and began undressing. He then pulled out a yukata and began dressing. The sounds of running water splashing into a slowly filling tub reached his ear. Yes, a bath would be nice.

As he tied the belt around his waist, Takano came into the room. She was still wearing her outfit from today. Pants and shirt with half dirty overalls. The dark weave of her hair tied back in two messy bobs. Compared to himself with his greying white hair, accumulating wrinkles, and persistent aches and pains in his aging body. She was still as beautiful as the first day they had met. All those years ago. She had not changed at all. Not one bit.

"Keiichi, is getting better. He may one day actually beat you in a race," she said with a sly smile.

Keima snorted. "Maybe. But that day was not today."

"No, not today," Takano agreed. Standing in the doorway she asked, with fringed innocence, "What did you think of our little visit to our children?"

"Interesting visit," Keima replied neutrally.

This time Takano snorted. "Interesting? Is that all?" She walked into the room and came up to him. Still with her playful smile, she asked, "Nothing else?"

Keima was silent for a few seconds. Takano waited patiently. Finally, he said, "You saw what I saw. Even if it was just for a moment. Feathered wings on those women? Angels?" He sighed plaintively, "You know more about these...matters than me."

Takano tilted her head and gave a small nod. "Yes, I do."

Keima took off his glasses and rubbed his eyes. He felt very tired. "You're going to call." It was not a question.

Her smile dropped away, replaced by a much colder expression. Firm. Iron willed. Takano could wear a mask which was made up of friendly smiles and a happy-go-lucky demeanor. Put it on as easily as a well-worn shoe. But underneath the mask was a core of unyielding resolve. And she rarely removed the mask. Their children had never seen her without it. The fact she was doing it now meant how seriously she was taking the situation with Keiichi.

"Yes. I am."

Keima sighed. "What can you tell me Takano?"

Takano stepped closer and leaned against him. She laid her head against his shoulder. Keima took a small amount of joy in the moment that even this cold Takano could show him affection. "Not much," she whispered.

"Takano," he protested.

She shook her head. "Urd, Skuld, Belldandy, those were the names they used. Sounds like variations of Old Norse of Urðr, Skuld, Verðandi. The Norns."

Most of what she said baffled him. "What does that mean?"

"I don't know. But I intend to find out."

Keima put an arm around his wife. "I don't think they mean to hurt Keiichi. That Belldandy loves him, and he loves her. It's written all over their faces."

"True," Takano admitted. She stepped back, out of his embrace, and looked up at him. Her dark brown eyes meeting his. "That's why I was willing to let it be for the time being. But all more reason to understand what he's gotten mixed up in."

Keima nodded. He did not like it, but Takano was right.

A little bit of the mask returned to her face. "Your bath is nearly ready, husband. Go get clean," she ordered him with a half-smile.

"Don't call me, 'Husband'" he grumbled with a scowl. He had never cared for such formal names like 'husband', 'wife', 'son', or 'daughter' when referring to family members. They were just titles. Real names were more meaningful. He stepped past her and went down the hall to the bathroom.

"Oh? Should I just call you 'mine' instead?"

Keima rolled his eyes, ignoring Takano's playful comment, and continued out of their bedroom.

She watched him go, but as he entered the bathroom and closed the door, her smile drained completely away. There was little point in putting this off and Keima would want no part of what she was going to do. Heading back down the stairs, she moved towards the kitchen and the only phone in the house. It was an old blocky black rotary phone. Nearly as old as the house itself. Takano picked up the rigid plastic receiver and began dialing a long series of digits from memory.

As the phone began ringing, Takano waited. After a few rings, a click was heard, and a male voice answered in English. "Code In."

"Agent Kestrel reporting. Passcode - Alpha, Charlie, Five, Two, Seven, Foxtrot, Gamma, Alpha, Three, Delta, Nine," she recited in perfect unaccented English.

There was a pause as whoever was on the other end verified Takano's credentials. The voice came back a moment later, "Verified. One moment, Agent."

She waited this time longer, uncertain just who she would speak to next. There was a click, and another voice came on, a woman with a rich and full British accent. Her words were aged, but formal. They came with aristocratic yet smooth luxurious ease. "Takano, dear, it's been too long."

Instantaneously a flood of memories came back, and Takano almost dropped the receiver in surprise. But she recovered quickly. "Madam Alexandra, I'm honored you would take my call."

"Nonsense. We owe you much," replied the old woman over the phone. Takano estimated Alexandra had to be in her late eighties by now. "What can I do for you."

Right to the point, thought Takano. "I visited my son and daughter today. But then again, you likely already know this. You've been keeping tabs on them, yes?"

"Per our agreement."

"Then you know about my son's living situation," asked Takano.

"Yes."

"And who he's living with?"

There was a pause. "Yes, we do."

Takano forced her voice to be even and calm, "Then can you tell me what they are? They aren't some type of manifestation. Or possession. Or Djinn. Or Faye. Or a dozen other things I can think of. Who are they?"

There was a click of disappointment from her former mentor. "Their names, I would have thought you would have figured it out."

Takano shook her head. "Urðr, Skuld, Verðandi, Norse goddesses. But they can't actually be..."

"They are exactly that. The Norns. Goddesses of Fate," confirmed Madam Alexandra matter-of-factually.

"Living in an old Buddhist Temple in the city of Nekomi. And one of them is dating Keiichi." Just saying aloud seemed so absurd. And Takano's experiences with strange and the bizarre was far greater than most people.

"Correct."

Finally she could no longer keep her emotions in check. "And you did not think to tell me! He's my son!"

Silence weighed heavily on the phone line for long seconds. When Madam Alexandra spoke again, despite her age, her voice was as sharp as a knife. "Takano, you wanted out. You wanted to retire. So, we let you. You have your life and your family. We do not share highly classified information with civilians. I am doing you a favor speaking to you now."

She took a deep breath and let it out slowly. There was no point in arguing over her past. "Thank you, Madam, for taking my call. I know you did not need to. But please, tell me what I need to know. To protect Keiichi."

The elderly woman softened her voice. "Our dealing with their kind has always been limited. But from everything we know, they are very powerful. Dangerous. Several acts of destruction are tied directly to the three in Nekomi. The Convention Center in Nekomi being the largest. To be honest they are outside our ability to directly deal with, so we've taken the approach of observation with minimal intervention."

Curiosity tugged at her, "What type of interventions?"

A heavy sigh came across the phone line. "For all their powers and abilities, they are...sloppy. They leave messes behind. Witnesses. We've had to work with Japanese government and local officials to cover things up. Keep a bit of order to their random chaos."

Takano frowned, "I did not see much in the way of acts of gods while I was there. Chaotic or otherwise."

"Yes, if anything, it seems your Keiichi is a good influence on them. Keeps them in check."

She could not help but smile, "Keiichi is a good boy, raised him as best I could."

Madam Alexandra sounded somewhat amused. "Well, his influence may have saved the city from being reduced to a smoldering crater."

"You're serious?"

"Very."

"Hmm," she mused. In mind she replayed her interactions with Keiichi and Norns. She knew her son backwards and forwards. But she was also a master observer of body language, the subtle stresses as someone spoke, the nuances of movement that could betray volumes about a person. Now how much of her talents would work on goddess, that was an open question. But she was willing to bet more than a little.

"How did this happen? Do you know? The two of them together. Keiichi did not want to talk about it. He tried to avoid or change the topic, every time. So did the others. But not that Belldandy. She...is like an open book. Doesn't lie. Very up front with her feelings." She paused, letting her thoughts permeate together. "She trusts him, almost implicitly, but why?"

Then it struck her, a possible answer. "Something happened, she was vulnerable, hurt or in danger. And Keiichi, saved her or helped her in some way. Maybe they both saved each other. Mutual admiration."

Gentle laughter came through the receiver. "Oh, Takano, I have missed your abilities, your experiences, your insights. You, my dear, are simply irreplaceable."

Takano rolled her eyes at the flattery. She was long past being swayed by such things. "Madam, I'm retired."

"So, you keep telling us," sniffed Alexandra.

She now saw the trap. It was obvious. They had known about Keiichi involvement with this Belldandy and her sisters all along. They then waited till she learned about it on her own. Then the very predictable result of her rushing back to her former employers demanding answers. And they would give her the answers. But at price. There was always a price with them.

Stupid. She should have seen this coming. Maybe her retirement had left her skills a bit rusty. She sighed, Keima was not going to like this. "What do you want me to do?"

If it was possible to transmit a victorious smile over a phone line, Takano felt she was experiencing it at this moment with Madam Alexandra. Her voice raised to pitch like an excited little girl, not the elderly member of a top-secret paranormal research organization. "Takano! This will be perfect. All we wish is for you to consult on a few cases. Lend your experiences. We can set you up from home. No need to come in...Unless you wanted to. You and your Keima would be more than welcome."

Takano pinched the bridge of her nose. She had walked right into their web. Madam Alexandra's voice was now as sweet as honey. And as dangerous as an unexploded bomb. She had to cut the deal off now before Alexandra pushed too far. They still needed her. She could still bend this agreement to her terms. "No Madam, Keima and I are not coming back. Consult only. And the first file I want is my son's."

"Of course, Takano, anything you want. It's yours."

"Thank you," she said. Pleased that her former mentor had not fought her on her demands.

"Think nothing of it dear," there was a pause on the on the line as the old woman cleared her throat, a moment of time that held distance across the world between the two women and the many years they had known each other. "And Takano, it's good to have you back."