A/N: I'm back! A lot of this does conform slightly to Oratoria canon but with a few variations of my own so I hope you like it!

Warning: Loki is a bit of a perv. Also, Tione.

As always, please leave a comment or review with your thoughts and opinions! They are a huge part of my motivation. Also, I really hope the FFN people get a notification about this! It seems like they might be working again, but I'm not getting my hopes up.

Hearthfire

Chapter 42

Ais

"Alright, everybody!" Loki called from the beach. "I think it's time we get to what we're really here for! Come on back to shore!"

With a nod, Ais began to slowly swim back to shore utilizing the new skills Tione and Lefiya had spent the better part of the last two hours teaching her. Thanks to the water breathing rings helping her get over her fear of drowning and the goggles helping her see, Ais was finally learning how to swim. She certainly wasn't a very strong swimmer or very confident just yet but the fact that she was able to splash around in the shallows where she could only just touch the bottom was a huge improvement.

Reaching the point where the water was too shallow to continue swimming, she stood and waded towards shore, pulling the goggles from her head as she did so. To her left, Lefiya was doing the same. Once Ais started to get the hang of things, Tione left her in Lefiya's hands and went to play with her sister near the drop-off. Turning around, she could see the amazonian twins leaping out of the water and swimming quickly to shore.

"How are you feeling, Ms. Ais?" Lefiya asked, wiping some of the water still clinging to her face away.

"Good." Ais admitted. "I doubt I'll ever be a strong swimmer, but I had fun once I started to get the hang of things." Being underwater was honestly quite enjoyable once the threat of a horrible death and a watery grave was removed.

"I'm glad you had fun, Ms. Ais." The elf girl smiled. "I'm not exactly fond of large bodies of water but the rings certainly help take some of the anxiety away."

Ais let out a little laugh and looked down at the ring on her finger. "They certainly do. I… don't think I'll be taking it off. Ever."

"That seems a little excessive." Riveria, the green haired elf woman commented from up the shoreline as the two girls waded out of the water and onto the beach. "There are hardly any reasons to need it during your normal days in the city. Aside from places like this, the only time you could possibly need it is in the Water City.

The Water City was a section of the Dungeon that stretched from the 25th to the 27th floors. The beginning of it was a huge waterfall that fell from the very top of 25 all the way to the base of 27. Usually, when they passed through there on expeditions or other excursions, Ais would hug the walls of the thing pathways for fear of falling into the myriad of pools or even worse, the Great Fall itself. Now though? With the ring and at least some instruction in swimming, perhaps she'd be a little more confident. Though, Riviera did have a point.

"I guess you're right." Ais admitted, begrudgingly. "I'm not taking it off till we leave Melen though."

"Fair enough." Riveria chuckled.

"Woohoo!" A thrill-filled shout pierced the air as a figure launched itself out of the water and over their heads, showering them with droplets. Ais ducked out of instinct, looking up just in time to see Tione land on the beach ahead of them. The amazon was grinning wildly with her hands in the air, but… oh. Ais hung her head with a sigh.

"Ms. Tione!" Lefiya shouted, scandalized. Her pale hands flew to her face, covering her eyes.

"Nice!" Loki shouted, giving Tione a thumbs up while simultaneously staring openly and drooling a little.

"Tione!" Riveria barked. "Cover yourself!"

"Flasher." Tiona smirked at her sister, walking out of the water to stand next to Ais.

"What?" Tione looked at them all in confusion before during her eyes downward. "Oh!" Her eyes widened at the state of her bikini, before glancing back up at all of them. "What's with the reaction?" she asked, amusedly tucking herself back into her top. "Our showers are communal. It's not like you haven't seen them before."

"Can we just… move on?" Riviera sighed in exasperation.

"Righto!" Loki agreed, wiping the drool off her chin. "Gather round, everybody!"

The group moved from the waterline to congregate around a large boulder sticking out of the sand. Loki perched on top of it, using a stick to draw an outline of the lake.

"This is us," she made an X on a segment of the drawing. "The Leviathan Seal should be in the deepest part of the lake, just about here." Another X was cut into the sand. "It should be about halfway between where we are now and the far shore. It's quite the swim and pretty deep so the actual job of checking the seal will belong to the twins. They have the Dive ability."

"You do?" Lefiya asked them, her voice confused. "I thought that was a rare ability." Ais nodded her head in agreement. Dive was an ability earned by operating underwater for long periods of time. Since there was very little opportunity for that in and around Orario, it was a fairly rare ability for a person to have. In fact, the only Familia she knew of whose members consistently developed the ability was the Poseidon Familia and they operated primarily out on the open sea.

"Before we came to Orario, we used to do a lot of work for fishing villages. Hunting sea monsters and that kind of thing." Tiona said, casually putting her hands behind her head and stretching. "It was kinda lucrative, really. Easily paid the bills."

"The two of us got pretty good at fighting under water thanks to that." Tione added. "We both wound up with Dive mostly by accident."

"Your suits being made from Undine cloth should give you a bit of a boost as well." Loki added, glancing at their deep blue bikinis. Undine cloth was a material woven with spirit magic. Any garment made with it boasted resistance to water-based attacks and made operating underwater significantly easier.

"Since we've heard reports of Viola in these waters, you'll want to be armed." Riveria chimed in. "Tione, are your new kukri suitable for the task? We have a pair of Corbel Edges if not." A Corbel Edge was a dagger made from under-coral and sea tiger fangs. Excellent weapons for fighting under water. Necessary too. That kind of dagger was extremely durable and the plant-like Viola they'd encountered at Monsterphilia possessed incredibly tough armor.

"Give them to Tiona." The older amazon said, pulling her daggers out of a pack that was set at the foot of the boulder. "Torrhen made sure these things were all but indestructible so it should be fine, but Urga is just too unwieldy to use down there." Tione then pulled out a holster belt and tied it around her waist. Spinning the kukri around her fingers, she slid them into the holsters on either side of her waist.

"Yeah." Tiona admitted, dejectedly accepting the translucent, crystal-like daggers from Riveria and tucking them into a belt similar to the one her twin was wearing. "I wish I could use it, but swinging my Urga down that deep would be more dangerous for me than for any monsters."

"Well, hop to it once you're ready." Loki told them. "Hopefully nothing is wrong, and we can head back to the city soon. We'll stay vigilant and keep an eye out so if you need help, get up to the surface as fast as you can."

"Yes ma'am, goddess lady!" Tiona shouted with a snarky grin and a salute before bolting towards the lake.

"Oi! Wait up!" Tione called, sprinting after her.

Ryuu

"Level 10?" Goddess Astraea gasped in astonishment, her breath tickling Ryuu's neck. "How is that possible?" The brunette goddess was sat just behind the blonde elf, hands hovering just above Ryuu's bare back. For the first time in 5 years, Ryuu was having her status updated.

Things had been… decidedly awkward for a few minutes once Ryuu stopped sobbing into Lady Astraea's shoulder but thankfully, they'd moved past that when the goddess inquired as to what prompted the elf to visit. She'd only just finished explaining how she'd met the members of the Hestia Familia and the rather startling nature of Torrhen's level.

"Yes, Goddess." Ryuu nodded, her hair flopping around her face. "I hope you can forgive me, but the secrets of how he gained such strength are not mine to reveal."

"Not to worry, my dear. I will not pry." She could almost hear the brunette smiling. "Is he handsome?"

Ryuu blushed and stammered. "I… I suppose, for an older human he's quite striking but I do not think of him like that! He…. I…" She sighed. "I guess he feels more like a cross between a father and a mentor more than anything else."

Lady Astraea giggled. "Forgive me for teasing. I have simply missed how easily flustered you can get." The goddess leaned forward and rested her chin on Ryuu's shoulder. The blonde elf smiled and leaned her head, allowing it to rest against Lady Astraea's for a moment.

"How does it look?" she asked, moving her head back. "I didn't exactly do much to gain excelia since I started working at the Hostess."

"Well, you say that but..." The goddess sounded smug. Ryuu could feel her lay a piece of paper across her back, a finger tracing and copying her Falna onto the page. After a second, the page was handed over her shoulder. Ryuu's eyes bulged out of their sockets. "Congratulations on reaching Level 5. Almost 6, really. You have a new spell too." Turning her gaze down, Ryuu felt tears well up as she read the entry.

Astraea Record: Creates a crystal sanctuary around the caster. Allows the user to cast spells possessed by any being, living or deceased, who has been touched by the Falna of Astraea.

"My ichor is part of your Falna." Goddess Astraea all but whispered, wrapping her arms around Ryuu. "It always will be. This spell. The memory of our family will stay with you for the rest of your life. Even after you return to the city and join Hestia, we will always be a part of you."

Ryuu could only reach up and squeeze the arms wrapped around her shoulders, letting the tears fall once again.

Tione

The waters of Lolong Lake were a brilliantly clear blue, allowing plenty of light to pierce deep below the surface. The slightly translucent blue world filled the vision of the amazon and her twin as the two quickly sawm away from the cove where Ais and the others were waiting. Schools of fish in a myriad of colors swam past them while Tione and her sister pushed their way further out into the waters.

Soon enough, mixed in with the seaweed and scattered rocks that covered the bottom of their watery world, clumps of driftwood and the scattered remains of a sunken ship came into view. Ignoring the wreck, the two began to swim on but a glint of light coming from the wreck caught their eyes. From the depths, a monstrous fish-like creature charged them.

It was a Raider Fish. Likely the very thing that sank the boat it was now using as a liar. They were large, aquatic monsters that while not necessarily strong, were difficult to deal with for any unversed in underwater combat. For Tione and her sister though? Childs play. With a deft movement, Tinoa drew one of her Corbel Edges and slashed at the creature, causing it to dissolve into dust.

Glancing at her sister, Tione saw the girl raise up her arms to show off her muscles. An unspoken, almost telepathic link between the twins meant that they could easily read what each other were saying just by looking into each other's eyes.

"Heh. I still got it." Tiona seemed to say with a gleeful smirk. Tione rolled her eyes.

It had been quite a while since they last fought under the waves, so it was nice to know they weren't too rusty. Back when they did this for a living, they'd have to carefully balance combat time with lung capacity. Even without their new rings, the twins could easily hold their breath for up to an hour if pushed. With the rings, they could stay down there indefinitely.

Moving on from the shipwreck, they continued to dive deeper below the lake as the light around them dimmed. No matter how clear the water, sunlight could only pierce so far down. Just as it was becoming nearly impossible for them to see, they came upon a great stone slab. A giant lid at least ten meters wide. Likely more.

It looked almost like the entrance to some kind of undersea temple or buried tunnel. Actually, Tione supposed it was the entrance to a tunnel. One that was connected to the Dungeon. A tunnel that had released countless aquatic monsters from its depths back in ancient times.

Taking a small wooden wand from her belt, Tione used it to cast the Magelight spell. The Wand of Magelight was a useful tool she'd bought from Welf of the Hestia Familia not long before they left. It made seeing things in the Dungeon a lot less irritating and, as it turned out, it made seeing things this deep underwater considerably easier.

The light of the spell filtered through the water illuminating the sealed lid and exposed the skeleton laid within it. Back in ancient times, before Orario was built, three monsters of unimaginable power escaped its depths. The Black Dragon, the Behemoth, and the Leviathan. It is believed that the scales shed by the Black Dragon acted as a monster deterrent, so there were entire villages that were partially defended by a wall of those fallen scales.

After the Zeus and Hera Familias defeated the Leviathan, they'd discovered that its scales and skeleton acted in much the same fashion so, with the help of the Poseidon and Njord Familias, they'd sunk the colossal skeleton and added it to the seal. After they'd done so, the lid became known as the Leviathan Seal.

Focusing on their task, Tione and her sister swam up and around the ancient seal, checking it for cracks, gaps, or any other defect. Tione swam carefully around the edge of the seal, looking for any signs of gaps or tampering. Swimming back over top, she looked at her sister.

"Not a scratch!" Tiona signaled.

"None here, either." Tione shook her head. If the Leviathan Seal was completely intact, then it meant it was impossible for monsters such as the Viola to have escaped through it. Was it possible the rumors were wrong? She was just about to gesture for them to return to the surface when Tiona started pointing frantically behind her. Turning, she caught sight of a long, green shape. Some kind of mix between a plant and a snake with a large colorful bulb full of teeth at one end. Violas.

With a nod to her sister, Tione drew her daggers and swam towards the closer of the two. Its tentacles pierced though the water but the twin's underwater agility, augmented by the Undine Cloth, allowed them to avoid it easily. Tione continued towards the first while Tiona shot off after the second.

Diving swiftly, the elder of the amazons struck, daggers flashing. The gnashing, bulb-like head of the creature was severed in an instant and the creature exploded into a cloud of dust that slowly started to sink to the bottom. Looking over, she was just able to catch Tiona finishing off the second one. It too exploded into a cloud that began to sink. With a gesture, she and her sister both began to swim directly up towards the surface.

"Well, that was fun!" Tiona shouted cheerfully once their heads broke the surface.

"I don't get it!" Tione called back. "How can the Violas be here if the seal isn't broken?"

"Somebody must have moved them here! Maybe Loki will have an idea who did it!" Her twin said. "Oh! Look! A ship just pulled into the harbor! Wait… it can't be…"

Turning around to see what had Tiona so suddenly spooked, Tione felt an uncontrollable rage fill her heart. She knew the ship that was slowly pulling into the lake from the direction of the ocean. It was moving towards the docks at a slow clip, and she could see the bronzed forms of women on the upper deck. She knew the design and recognized the flag flying from the crow's nest. The flag of Telskyura.

"Kali." She growled.

Loki

"What in all the hells is she doing here?" Loki muttered under her breath. Glancing out towards the lake she saw the twins swimming furiously towards them.

"This is not good." Riveria whispered to her. "Why would Goddess Kali travel so far from Telskyura? It's over a month by sea at least."

"More like two if they're not in a rush." Loki said back. "We need to be careful. I know the twins have a history with Kali, but I don't want them starting anything. I need you and Ais to keep them calm if you can. I'll try and get to the bottom of this." Riveria nodded in quiet acknowledgment.

"What the fuck is she doing here?!" Tione shouted, spittle and lake water flying from her mouth in her rage. She gestured furiously towards the ship while she marched out of the water. Behind her, Tiona was sporting a look of anger and confusion.
"I don't know," Loki told the angry girl, raising her hands in a placating manner, "but we'll head back and find out as soon as we can. For now, I need to know what you saw down there." Tione nodded and closed her eyes, breathing heavily while she tried to calm down.

"The seal is intact." Tiona chimed in, since her sister seemed unable to speak. "No signs of cracks or tampering, but we did fight two Violas not far from it. They're definitely here, but they didn't come out of the seal."

"That's not good." Loki muttered. If the seal was undamaged, it meant that someone had released the monsters into the lake. Somehow, they'd carted monsters out of the Dungeon and then brought them all the way to Lolong Lake without being seen by anyone. How was that even possible?

"Go get changed." Loki said, turning to them all. "We'll head back as soon as you're ready." With nods from the girls, the four in bikinis moved to collect their clothes and change back into their normal attire. Loki changed while the others were gone, but Ais and Lefiya had continued to play in the water while the twins investigated the seal.

"Where do we go first?" Riveria asked. Loki hummed and rubbed her chin in thought.

"You head to the Guild branch." She replied after a moment. "Try and find out as much as you can about the Violas and anything else odd that might have happened around the lake in the last year or so."

"What will you be doing?"

"I…" Loki sighed, "will be dealing with Kali."

Seriously, there was nobody in the world who pissed off Loki more than that little brat! Okay, maybe Hestia back before they became friends, but that was only because Loki was jealous of the other goddess' bust! And wanted to play with it. No! Bad Loki! Not the time! Kali was flat as a washboard anyway and tiny! No jealousy or hidden attraction there! No, it was Kali's attitude that pissed Loki off. Condescending bitch.

"I'll take the girls with me while you handle the guild." She shook off her thoughts and nodded towards the rocks where the girls were changing.

"Are you sure that's wise?" the green-haired elf asked. Heh. Loki could see in her eyes that Riveria's mama bear instincts were kicking in.

"There's no way the twins will let this go. They'll come whether I want them to or not. Hopefully, Ais and Lefiya can keep them in line long enough for me to find out why Kali is here.

Ais

"Tione?" Ais asked, hesitantly watching the other girl frantically stuff her bikini into a bag. "Are you alright?"

"No!" She snapped before recoiling "I'm… angry."

"Is it that ship? Do you recognize it?" Lefiya asked.

"It's the flagship of Telskyura." Tiona muttered. She was sitting on the ground with her back leaning against a rock and her knees drawn up to her chest. "If the flagship is here, it means Goddess Kali is onboard.

"Kali?" Ais asked, confused. She'd heard of Kali, but the twins had never mentioned having any connection to her or her nation. She only knew a few vague details about Telskyura though. It was a peninsular nation situated far to the southeast of Orario. Like Rakia with Ares, the country was one huge Familia controlled only by the goddess Kali.

"Do you… know the goddess?" Lefiya bravely asked the question.

"Yeah." Tione said, curtly. "You could say that."

"We were born in Telskyura." Tiona admitted, quietly. Ais had never heard either of the twins speak much about their past. It was… disconcerting to see them so out of sorts. The two were usually cheerful. Tiona was bubbly and always bouncing around and while Tione had a serious temper, she'd never seen the older twin acting like this before.

"Every amazon born in Telskyura is inducted into the Kali Familia. You don't get a choice." Tione snapped. Before Ais could ask another question, Loki came walking over.

"Let's go, girls. We're headed back."

"Where are we going?" Lefiya asked, glancing at the twins with a worried look.

"The docks." The redhead admitted. Ais didn't like the angry gleam in Tione's eyes. "Riveria will head to the guild branch to start investigating the Viola while we figure out what Kali is doing here."

"Good." Tione growled out, stomping away towards the city followed closely by her sister.

"Goddess…" Lefiya said, hesitantly.

Loki sighed. "They have a… delicate history with Kali. It's not mine to share, but it will make this difficult. I need the two of you to keep them as calm as possible. Tione especially. Let me handle the talking."

"We'll do our best." Ais replied, hesitant and unsure.

Ryuu

"Ha!" Erza, the elder of the two redheads let out a grunt of effort, thrusting her sword towards Ryuu's belly. Not even letting out a sound, Ryuu's own wooden blade batted it aside. Using the momentum, she turned and, placing a hand on Erza's shoulder, the elf swiftly guided the huma past her. Sticking out a foot, she tripped the girl causing Erza to fall face first into the dirt.

"Nnnah!" Came the grunt from behind her. Twisting, Ryuu caught the shaft of the spear Pyrrha, the younger redhead, had just driven towards her back. In an instant, she pulled her feet away from the downed form of Erza and yanked on the shaft. Pyrrha let out a gasp of surprise which was replaced by a pained exhale when Ryuu lept up and planted her feet directly into the center of the girl's golden shield and pushed. Pyrrha was sent flying for several yards before she hit the ground and tumbled to a stop.

"Nice try!" Ryuu shouted out, complimentarily. "A sneak attack while I was focused on your sister was a good idea. A word of advice though." She rested her sword on her shoulder. "If you're attacking from behind, try not to grunt or make any noise. It'll give you away. If you're going to make a sound like that when going from someone's blind spot, you might as well run up screaming 'sneak attack.' It'd be about as effective."

"Right." Pyrrha gasped, rolling onto her back and then standing. "I'll try and remember that."

At Ryuu's feet, Erza too was standing. "I am not used to losing." She grumbled good naturedly. Erza was one of the rare few who managed to hit Level 3 while living outside of Orario.

Most monsters that lived in the open world were the weak descendants of creatures that escaped the Dungeon in ancient times. They were a challenge for Level 1 adventurers but to someone like Ryuu, they were little more than a pest. Monsters strong enough to challenge someone even at Level 2 were hard to come by outside of Orario. This meant that the vast majority of adventurers belonging to outside Familia were Level 1. Some were Level 2 and an exceptionally rare few made it to Level 3. Erza was one of these few while Pyrrha had only just reached Level 2.

The two of them combined might have been at least a bit of a challenge while she was still Level 4, but with her newfound strength she was more than a match for the two of them. She and Goddess Astraea had spent the better part of the previous night and evening together. Talking, crying, reconciling. It was easily one of the most emotionally exhausting nights she could ever remember experiencing and while it was more than worth the emotional turmoil, the next day she'd found herself desperate to hit something. Erza and Pyrrha were more than happy to oblige.

They'd been at it for a few hours now and it had quickly changed from a friendly spar to Ryuu giving them tips and advice on how to better their combat ability. They were good. Especially for outside adventurers but they were not quite up to the standards of an Orarian adventurer at a similar level.

"I think that's enough." Cecil, the new Captain of the Astraea Familia called from the door. The three of them had been sparring in the front lawn of the house since it was the most advantageous area nearby for such training. "Erza, Pyrrha, I applaud your dedication but you both have things to accomplish before the day is out."

"Sorry!" Pyrrha apologized, bolting back inside. She had an odd tendency to apologize for… something… every other sentence. Erza, on the other hand, was far more brash and unapologetic. She was a stickler for rules however and would never disobey her captain so, the elder redhead inclined her head towards Ryuu in thanks and trapsed into the house just behind her sister.

Ryuu strolled slowly behind them, stopping on the porch next to a reclining wooden chair. Sitting in it, having been watching the bout, was Goddess Astraea. Ryuu sat down on a stool next to her and bowed her head.

"What do you think of them?" The goddess asked.

"They're good." Ryuu admitted. "They'd be better if they were able to challenge the Dungeon, but they've done very well for what few enemies can be found out here."

"They may yet get the chance." The brunette deity commented. Ryuu gave her a confused look, searching for more.

"What do you mean?" Lady Astraea reached into a pocket on the cloak she'd donned and pulled out a letter. Handing it to the elf, she continued to speak.

"I will likely never reenter Orario." She sighed, forlornly. "The memories are much too painful. But that doesn't mean I will stop my children from going if they wish. That letter," she pointed to the envelope in Ryuu's hands, "is for Hestia. We were great friends in Tenkai, so I hope she will be willing to grant my request."

"Request?" Ryuu asked, not quite understanding.

Lady Astraea sighed. "It is my hope that she will accept any of my children who wish to challenge the Dungeon into her Familia and release them back to me if they decide to return to Solingen. As I understand it, she has a similar agreement in place with Takemikazuchi."

"She does." Ryuu nodded in affirmation. "Goddess Hestia is kind. I'm sure she will agree, but are you sure there are any who would wish to go?"

Goddess Astraea nodded. "I am certain that Pyrrha, at least, will decide to go. She's been asking about the Dungeon more and more since she hit Level 2. Cecily will likely never leave, nor will most of the others. Erza and perhaps one more will likely wish to go but stay out of obligation. It will be difficult to convince them to follow their dream, but I believe they will come around eventually. I'm hoping your name will be cleared and you'll be settled as a member of the Hestia Familia by the time they go and will be able to help them settle in."
"I… I would be honored, my lady." Ryuu bowed her head to the goddess.

"Speaking of, how exactly do you intend to clear your name?"

Ryuu's expression turned sheepish. "To be perfectly honest, I'm not sure. Master Torrhen indicated that he would be speaking with the Guild about me. He had an idea for faking 'The Gale's' death so that I can join with a new alias. Very few ever knew my real name after all, but I don't know if he has a finalized plan ready."

"I hope he handles it soon. When are you returning to the city?"

"Well, I was hoping to stay here for a few more days if you will have me, my lady."

Goddess Astraea smiled. "My dear child, I would love nothing more."

A/N: There we go! What do you all think?

I know some of you will ask about why Kali is there if Ishtar is dead, but we'll get there. As for Ryuu, what do you think of her bits of this chapter? There's not a whole lot about Astraea's personality so I took a few liberties. She's described as kind, calm, and charitable but I get the feeling she was probably a bit of a snuggly, teasing mom/older sister in private so I went with it.

Answers to Questions

On FFN

Clagann: We shall see!

RikuKage: Thank you very much!

Monkey D. Conan: Riveria isn't exactly subtle, so there's every chance Ais and Bell will catch on.

NinjaFang1331: Thank you!

Last Primaris: I'll be getting to Alduin soon-ish. As for Sheo, probably not except for maybe a cameo like during the War Game.

Frostwolf3227: I don't think dragon-type Xenos will be very similar to Dovah. Maybe he'd feel a distant kinship but nothing like a true dragon. Oh, and that thing about Lili and all the wolf connections, that wasn't a coincidence. That was fully intentional!

Blueassassin996: Should be a few more chapters before we see them talk.

Neo Juubi no Ryu: I'll consider it! Thank you!

Haziq Saffari: We've got a few things to wrap up first, but we'll get there!

M1stymix: He has never encountered her before!

Chirstalm: I have a few ideas on how I want to handle the whole Syr/Freya thing but I'm still working on it so I appreciate the ideas!

The Disquieting One: I always have plot bunnies running around my head but they're rarely worth writing down. I do have a Star Wars idea bouncing around, but I don't know if I'll do anything with it. Two stories is already a bit too much for me to handle. As for Danmachi ones, the only idea I've had recently that was interesting was an Assassin's Creed crossover. Eivor and Kassandra from Odyssey and Valhalla winding up in the Danmachi world. Either in the same Familia or different ones. It has potential, but I doubt I'll do anything with it. Oh, and for the FrankTHaddoc comment on Ao3, I'll be honest, I'm blanking on which quote you're talking about.

Walkmanapprenticewordsmith: Did you like the look at Ryuu? I originally was only going to focus on the Loki Familia in this one but I felt like I needed something more so I went back to her.

VirusZyX: Thank you!

Guest: Freya is more concerned about securing her power base at the moment, but I do think she's seen the flaws in her previous methods.

LionLordEscanor: Glad you liked it!

Posideon93: Thank you!

Examiner: Honestly, since this is just a hobby, I'm happy with that score. Thank you for the honest review!

Guest: Sadly, the Danmachi level cap is 10 and even that is pushing things. Nobody in canon has ever actually done that. I like the idea though.

Lost Diongo22: I have a scene or two in mind that should prove interesting on that front.

Visual Bliss: Freya has spent thousands of years getting her way. The arrogance is strong with her.

Selet: It would be an upgrade if they took it to Welf, no doubt about that. I'm trying to show it more as a matter of prestige than anything else. I do get your point though. I'll try to be a little clearer.

Nexusplayer: Sorry! Hestia x Loki has been one of my intended pairings since I started writing the story! I hope you continue to enjoy it though! About your spinoff thing, I'm sorry but I'd rather you didn't do that. If you want to do something inspired by my work then that's great and I support it, but please don't use my character, plot points, or dialogue. I'm sorry, but that business with somebody from Wattpad stealing my story has made me a little uncompromising about that.

Guest: Thank you!

On Ao3

RoAKingofShadows: We'll see what happens!

SaNa_Miden: I'm glad you're enjoying it!

GenericMarySue: Thank you!

MagnustheRed: Glad you like it! I'll admit, I'm softening to the idea of Airmid x Naaza but I still make no promises!