2016-09-18: Where the Heart Is
12-24-2022, 05:58 PM (This post was last modified: 01-26-2024, 06:46 PM by robkelk. Edit Reason: Slight change to the first paragraph to bring the story in line with "One Night After Death" )
12-24-2022, 05:58 PM (This post was last modified: 01-26-2024, 06:46 PM by robkelk. Edit Reason: Slight change to the first paragraph to bring the story in line with "One Night After Death" )
Yggdrasil
September 18, 2016, Asgard Time
Urd looked over Belldandy's shoulder and gasped. "Bel, are you ''trying'' to make our jobs harder? We really don't need two reality warpers acting against each other as soon as they show up, not with the entire timeline in the state it's in." Then she reached over Belldandy's shoulder and added a command to ensure Drosselmeyer and Fakir would not wake up at the same time. "Take a break; I'll finish up here."
"But..."
"Go! Even Safety wouldn't have made that basic an error. Something's distracting you. You're of no use to anybody else right now."
She went. Grudgingly - there was still so much work that needed to be done - but quietly. Watching her leave, Urd carefully did not add that she was certain what was bothering her sister; it wasn't her place to make that particular comment.
Belldandy eventually found herself at the gate to The Almighty's private garden... which opened of its own accord. "Come in, child."
When you're invited in by The Almighty, you don't refuse. Of course she couldn't see Him; she never could. But she felt comfort in His presence.
"What is troubling you, child?"
"You would know that better than I do, Father." She used the familial term both figuratively and literally.
"I would. I also know that you have a Need to tell someone. It would be best if that someone was not Hild or Hagall."
Belldandy stopped to smell the roses, then replied, "I miss my husband."
"As you should. Morisato Keiichi is a remarkable mortal, worthy of your love. And both he and his sister would be a good influence on both the people you have been sending to New Jersey and the people who will meet them upon their arrival. You have My permission to bring to Somerset your husband, his sister, his employer, and the person who directly followed him as the chair of his school's Motor Club."
Belldandy wondered at that list. It was obvious that Keiichi was being allowed to join her for her own sake, and Megumi was included for Keiichi's sake, but why were Chihiro and Sora on the list?
"Their presence will become necessary. Their effect will be subtle, but necessary for the well-being of others."
She idly wondered why she even bothered saying anything while she was in this garden.
"You need to experience what it is like to speak in the presence of One who is more powerful than you, so that you can empathize with the mortals who you encounter while granting their wishes."
Belldandy realized that she still had much to learn about being a Goddess First Class, if she needed to be told such a simple thing as that. "Thank you, Father."
"Go, child, and do what you must."
She bowed and returned to her duty station at Yggdrasil, stopping only to prepare to visit Earth once she had carried out her instructions.
Somerset, New Jersey, USA
September 18, 2016
11:07 am ET
Keiichi stepped out of Whirlwind's small office for a breath of fresh air, only to discover himself some place he didn't recognize. He quickly turned around, only to discover he was in an empty lot... and his sister was standing where he expected to see the door he had just stepped through. She was standing beside two motorcycles: his BMW, with the sidecar, was parked beside her KSR.
"What's going on?" they asked at the same time.
"That's a good question," he heard Chihiro ask from behind him.
Turning to look at his boss, who was standing where he was certain nobody had been standing a few seconds ago, Keiichi saw that Hasegawa-san was standing beside her. "Morisato-sempai! Where are we?"
"I don't know..." he started, then trailed off as the mirror that he'd mounted on his sidecar back when he was dating began to glow. "But I think we're about to find out."
Sure enough, Belldandy emerged from the mirror and hovered just above the ground (making Keiichi look shorter that he actually was). "I'm sorry that I couldn't warn you, but I didn't have very much time."
Sora Hasegawa was less able to take odd occurrences in stride than the others were. "Belldandy-sempai... How are you... What's... Who are you?" she asked, her voice squeaking even more than usual.
She stepped down from the air to the ground, then smiled at her bespeckled bespectacled friend. "We've told you that in the past, Sora-san. I'm a goddess."
"I thought that was a metaphor... You're really..." As she saw Keiichi nod in reply, Sora asked Belldandy, "Should I bow?"
"Only if you want to," Belldandy replied. "I would prefer to have you as a friend, though, not as a worshipper." She looked at Chihiro and Megumi, and added, "That is also how I would prefer to think of both of you, as well."
Megumi looked at Belldandy, then looked sideways at her brother. "This is just crazy enough to be true. Kei, how long have you known?"
"Since I met her. And I'm sorry that I tried to keep the truth from you."
"You'd better be sorry!" After a quick beat, Megumi added, "And you'd better tell me the truth: Was I dreaming a couple of years ago, or was I really turned into a car?"
"That wasn't a dream, Megumi-san," Belldandy replied.
Chihiro looked surprised. "Turned into a car?"
Before anyone else could answer, Keiichi said, "That story can wait. Bel, where are we?"
"You're in another world. There was, to sum up quickly, an incident. This is Somerset, about an hour's drive from New York City. Here's a map." The blonde goddess pulled a sheet of paper from a pocket that wasn't there a moment ago and wasn't there after the sheet was in her hand. Pointing to the end of a line drawn on the map, she continued, "We're here right now. There's a residential complex called Douglass Gardens here -" she pointed at the other end of the line "- and the people there will be able to help you adjust to your time here. I'm sorry that I can't stay - I have to get back to work."
And she dove into the mirror and disappeared.
Nobody said anything for a moment. Finally, Chihiro said, "Okay, that happened. What do we do now?"
For the first time since they had arrived in New Jersey, Keiichi knew the answer to one of his companions' questions. "We go to Douglass Gardens and ask for their help. Who's riding double with Megumi and who's riding in my sidecar?"
"I'm not riding in a sidecar," Chihiro insisted. Sora didn't complain.
As the members of Whirlwind drove their bikes out of the lot and turned toward Douglass Gardens, a half-dozen bikes - most with female riders, one with a male driver and a younger female in a sidecar - passed them going the other way. Chihiro grinned and yelled, "Looks like this might be a good town to set up shop in!"
September 18, 2016, Asgard Time
Urd looked over Belldandy's shoulder and gasped. "Bel, are you ''trying'' to make our jobs harder? We really don't need two reality warpers acting against each other as soon as they show up, not with the entire timeline in the state it's in." Then she reached over Belldandy's shoulder and added a command to ensure Drosselmeyer and Fakir would not wake up at the same time. "Take a break; I'll finish up here."
"But..."
"Go! Even Safety wouldn't have made that basic an error. Something's distracting you. You're of no use to anybody else right now."
She went. Grudgingly - there was still so much work that needed to be done - but quietly. Watching her leave, Urd carefully did not add that she was certain what was bothering her sister; it wasn't her place to make that particular comment.
Belldandy eventually found herself at the gate to The Almighty's private garden... which opened of its own accord. "Come in, child."
When you're invited in by The Almighty, you don't refuse. Of course she couldn't see Him; she never could. But she felt comfort in His presence.
"What is troubling you, child?"
"You would know that better than I do, Father." She used the familial term both figuratively and literally.
"I would. I also know that you have a Need to tell someone. It would be best if that someone was not Hild or Hagall."
Belldandy stopped to smell the roses, then replied, "I miss my husband."
"As you should. Morisato Keiichi is a remarkable mortal, worthy of your love. And both he and his sister would be a good influence on both the people you have been sending to New Jersey and the people who will meet them upon their arrival. You have My permission to bring to Somerset your husband, his sister, his employer, and the person who directly followed him as the chair of his school's Motor Club."
Belldandy wondered at that list. It was obvious that Keiichi was being allowed to join her for her own sake, and Megumi was included for Keiichi's sake, but why were Chihiro and Sora on the list?
"Their presence will become necessary. Their effect will be subtle, but necessary for the well-being of others."
She idly wondered why she even bothered saying anything while she was in this garden.
"You need to experience what it is like to speak in the presence of One who is more powerful than you, so that you can empathize with the mortals who you encounter while granting their wishes."
Belldandy realized that she still had much to learn about being a Goddess First Class, if she needed to be told such a simple thing as that. "Thank you, Father."
"Go, child, and do what you must."
She bowed and returned to her duty station at Yggdrasil, stopping only to prepare to visit Earth once she had carried out her instructions.
Somerset, New Jersey, USA
September 18, 2016
11:07 am ET
Keiichi stepped out of Whirlwind's small office for a breath of fresh air, only to discover himself some place he didn't recognize. He quickly turned around, only to discover he was in an empty lot... and his sister was standing where he expected to see the door he had just stepped through. She was standing beside two motorcycles: his BMW, with the sidecar, was parked beside her KSR.
"What's going on?" they asked at the same time.
"That's a good question," he heard Chihiro ask from behind him.
Turning to look at his boss, who was standing where he was certain nobody had been standing a few seconds ago, Keiichi saw that Hasegawa-san was standing beside her. "Morisato-sempai! Where are we?"
"I don't know..." he started, then trailed off as the mirror that he'd mounted on his sidecar back when he was dating began to glow. "But I think we're about to find out."
Sure enough, Belldandy emerged from the mirror and hovered just above the ground (making Keiichi look shorter that he actually was). "I'm sorry that I couldn't warn you, but I didn't have very much time."
Sora Hasegawa was less able to take odd occurrences in stride than the others were. "Belldandy-sempai... How are you... What's... Who are you?" she asked, her voice squeaking even more than usual.
She stepped down from the air to the ground, then smiled at her bespeckled bespectacled friend. "We've told you that in the past, Sora-san. I'm a goddess."
"I thought that was a metaphor... You're really..." As she saw Keiichi nod in reply, Sora asked Belldandy, "Should I bow?"
"Only if you want to," Belldandy replied. "I would prefer to have you as a friend, though, not as a worshipper." She looked at Chihiro and Megumi, and added, "That is also how I would prefer to think of both of you, as well."
Megumi looked at Belldandy, then looked sideways at her brother. "This is just crazy enough to be true. Kei, how long have you known?"
"Since I met her. And I'm sorry that I tried to keep the truth from you."
"You'd better be sorry!" After a quick beat, Megumi added, "And you'd better tell me the truth: Was I dreaming a couple of years ago, or was I really turned into a car?"
"That wasn't a dream, Megumi-san," Belldandy replied.
Chihiro looked surprised. "Turned into a car?"
Before anyone else could answer, Keiichi said, "That story can wait. Bel, where are we?"
"You're in another world. There was, to sum up quickly, an incident. This is Somerset, about an hour's drive from New York City. Here's a map." The blonde goddess pulled a sheet of paper from a pocket that wasn't there a moment ago and wasn't there after the sheet was in her hand. Pointing to the end of a line drawn on the map, she continued, "We're here right now. There's a residential complex called Douglass Gardens here -" she pointed at the other end of the line "- and the people there will be able to help you adjust to your time here. I'm sorry that I can't stay - I have to get back to work."
And she dove into the mirror and disappeared.
Nobody said anything for a moment. Finally, Chihiro said, "Okay, that happened. What do we do now?"
For the first time since they had arrived in New Jersey, Keiichi knew the answer to one of his companions' questions. "We go to Douglass Gardens and ask for their help. Who's riding double with Megumi and who's riding in my sidecar?"
"I'm not riding in a sidecar," Chihiro insisted. Sora didn't complain.
As the members of Whirlwind drove their bikes out of the lot and turned toward Douglass Gardens, a half-dozen bikes - most with female riders, one with a male driver and a younger female in a sidecar - passed them going the other way. Chihiro grinned and yelled, "Looks like this might be a good town to set up shop in!"
--
Rob Kelk
Sticks and stones can break your bones,
But words can break your heart.
- unknown
Rob Kelk
Sticks and stones can break your bones,
But words can break your heart.
- unknown