Interlude
Beta 1.3
April 9, 1996
* * * * * * * * * *
Thursday evening, and Keiichi was happy. His cousin Kenji's
visit(1) had not turned into the disaster that he had feared. The fact
that Skuld had become enamored with Kenji had left Keiichi and Belldandy
more time to themselves. Even now Keiichi was packing the BMW with a
picnic dinner that Belldandy had made. With Urd off drinking somewhere,
it would just be the two of them tonight.
"Are you ready to leave, Keiichi-san?" asked Belldandy as she
emerged from the temple with a blanket in her arms.
"Yes," Keiichi replied, starting the motor-cycle, and wondering
why Belldandy felt that they needed two blankets on such a warm spring
night.
"Keiichi-san, it's really nice to be able to go on a picnic with
you," Belldandy began as Keiichi maneuvered the motorcycle out of the
temple grounds. "The mountains are so pretty this time of the year.
The air is so fresh. You can smell the happiness of the wind. Can we
go to the lake tonight?"
As he gunned the cycle down the road, Keiichi replied, "I thought
we could end up there after we take a little ride through the mountains."
"That sounds perfect, Keiichi-san. Can we go to the far side of
the lake? We can watch the sun set over it that way."
"Your wish is my command."
Belldandy giggled.
"What's so funny, Belldandy?" asked a slightly dismayed Keiichi,
"is it something I said?"
"Hai, Keiichi-san. It was your wish that allows me to be here.
I do not know why, but it just struck me as being funny when you said,
'your wish is my command', and I am . . ."
"And what?" asked Keiichi.
"I am worried about Skuld," replied Belldandy, changing the
subject, and covering what she was really thinking, "should we have
left her and Kenji alone?"
Keiichi, irritated that Belldandy's sisters always seem to
intrude upon them, even when they are alone, countered, "Don't worry,
Kenji is a gentleman, he won't do anything to Skuld. And she has
Banpei-kun to protect her. She also has all of those bombs she is
always pulling out of hyper-space."
"OK, Keiichi-san. I won't worry about Kenji and Skuld tonight."
Actually, thought Belldandy, I'm more worried about what Skuld might try
and do to, that is with, Kenji.
* * * * * * * * * *
As the last rays of the sunset disappeared from the surface of
the lake, Keiichi laid back on the picnic blanket and watched the first
stars of the spring night come out.
"Kawaii. . .," Belldandy breathed out at the dying sunset. Laying
down beside him, she snuggled up against Keiichi as she threw her right
arm over his chest, and her right leg over his legs.
Putting his arms around her, Keiichi broke the silence of the
moment, "Belldandy?"
"Umm?"
"Who knows about our contract?"
"You, me, Urd, Skuld, and of course Kami-sama. Mara knows we
have a contract, but probably doesn't know the details, and would not
understand if she did. Urd and Skuld might have told some of their
friends, but I don't know for sure. And there must be some talk among
the office ladies back at the Goddess Technical Help Line Office.
And . . ."
"I see," interrupted Keiichi. "Will you really always be
with me?"
"Yes," Belldandy simply answered.
"But you are a full fledged first class goddess, could you
leave if you wanted to?" asked the inquisitive Keiichi.
Emphasizing 'if', Belldandy told Keiichi the simple truth,
"If I wanted to."
"Is there anything on earth or in the heavens even more binding
than my wish or your will?" asked Keiichi.
Belldandy simply replied, "Yes, Keiichi-san."
"Well it seems to me that if we had an official contract on
file here on earth . . ." Keiichi paused unsure of what he was starting
to say. 'What am I thinking. Am I really talking about . . .' Not even
in his own thoughts could Keiichi finish this thought.
Her heart in her throat, and with tears of joy beginning to form
in the corners of her eyes, she asked, "Keiichi-san, are you suggesting
what I think you are?"
Startled, Keiichi tried to feign innocence by whistling. "Er,
um. . . just thinking out loud, Belldandy, just thinking out load."
Angered at his words, Belldandy's tears of joy evaporated.
Rolling onto her side, she looked at Keiichi. But she could not stay
mad at her Keiichi-san. For this boy, no this man, had granted her a
joy reserved for mortals with his wish. With a mischievous smile on
her face, Belldandy leaned over his prone body, and reaching forward
she placed her hands on Keiichi's flanks, and smiling sweetly, waited
until Keiichi relaxed at her touch. Belldandy then announced, "You
will pay for that, Keiichi-san," as she began to tickle him.
Reaching out through the pain Keiichi grabbed Belldandy,
tickling back in retaliation. For the next several minutes that
seemed like hours to the two combatants, they tickled each other in
the shear unadulterated joy. Exhausted, they were forced to stop and
catch their breath, Belldandy now lying on top of Keiichi. Looking
into each other's eyes their breathing slowed. Reaching up with his
left hand Keiichi cradled Belldandy's head in his hand. Drawing her
to him Keiichi began to kiss her, and when Belldandy returned his kiss,
the stars in the sky stopped in their tracks at the wonder of it.
"Keiichi-san, are you thinking what I'm thinking?" Belldandy
purred into Keiichi's ear, after they broke their kiss.
"I think so, Belldandy. But how will we explain it Skuld?"
"Keiichi-san, let's go swimming."
"But I can't swim, and we didn't bring our swimsuits."
"I know," Belldandy purred back in his ear.
* * * * * * * * *
Saturday afternoon Keiichi was working on his motorcycle in
the yard, when he saw Skuld and Kenji come out of the temple and leave
the grounds. 'Hum. . . with Skuld and Kenji out the house and Urd
gone bar hopping, Belldandy and I are alone. Hum. . . I wonder what
Belldandy is doing?' thought Keiichi as he got up and entered the
temple in search of Belldandy.
Keiichi listened, tracing Belldandy to a back room by her soft,
sweet singing. He found her knitting, her back to the doorway.
Keiichi smiled in anticipation. Belldandy smiled in anticipation of
Keiichi's touch when she sensed him approach. Belldandy cried in
delight as Keiichi placed his hands on her flanks and began to tickle
her.
Throwing away her knitting, Belldandy twisted around in
Keiichi's arms. "You will pay for that Keiichi-san," she vowed.
"I'm sure I will," laughed Keiichi.
* * * * * * * * * *
Exhausted from their tickle fight, Keiichi and Belldandy
continued to softly tickle each other, their tickles slowly becoming
sensual.
Unexpectedly from the courtyard Skuld's voice was heard,
"I am home everyone!"
Gasping for breath, Belldandy answered in a panicked voice,
"Oh, hello Skuld, I'm afraid dinner will be a little late tonight,"
as Keiichi continued to lightly stroke her.
Skuld replied, "That's all right, I'm not really hungry. I'll
be outside if you need me."
Burying her head in Keiichi's chest, Belldandy giggled in
relief. With cherry blossoms floating through the air, everything
was right in the world.
* * * * * * * * * *
Sunday morning, Keiichi was on his motorcycle, warming up the
engine. Kenji's bags had already been packed on the back of the
sidecar. Belldandy, Urd, and Kenji were standing in front of the
motorcycle. Skuld was not to be seen.
Urd started the good-byes, "Kenji, you are an OK guy. I'm
sorry I gave you such a hard time." Taking Kenji's head in her hands
Urd gave him a quick kiss on the forehead. "Ciao," she finished as
she headed into the temple.
"Skuld is waiting for you under the cherry tree to say good-bye.
Never give up hope, Kenji." Belldandy informed him. After giving him a
hug, Belldandy turned and entered the temple.
Moving off towards the cherry tree, "I will be right back,
Keiichi," Kenji informed his cousin.
"Take your time," replied Keiichi. 'Take your time,' thought
Keiichi. 'Take your time; you and Skuld are still young. You have all
the time in the world, what with Skuld being the goddess of the future
and all. I wonder, Kenji, would you still feel the same way about
Skuld if you knew she was a goddess? I know I would feel the same way
about Belldandy if she was mortal.' A smile crossed Keiichi's face as he
remembered, 'Belldandy sure was frisky at the lake. I wonder how serious
she was about going skinny dipping. Maybe I should have called her bluff.
After all I am considering. . .'
Keiichi's thoughts were interrupted when Kenji silently climbed
into the sidecar.
"Everything OK, Kenji?" asked Keiichi.
Shaking his head to clear his thoughts, Kenji turned towards his
cousin and asked, "What was that, Keiichi?"
Repeating himself, "I asked if everything between you and Skuld
was OK," Keiichi asked again.
"Yes," answered Kenji.
His curiosity getting the better of him, Keiichi probed Kenji
as to what he would tell his mother. "So Kenji, I bet you can't wait
to get home and tell your mother all about me living with three
sisters."
Kenji, taken back at Keiichi's question, replied, "What! Are
you crazy? You think I am going to tell my mother I just spent the
last week living under the same roof with three gaijin sisters with no
chaperone. I would like to live, thank you very much!" Adding under his
breath, 'I also want to come back.'
Reassured that his mother would not for the time being find out
about his living arrangement -- or what he was considering to do to make
it permanent -- with Belldandy, Keiichi gunned the motorcycle down the
street.
* * * * * * * * *
A late Sunday afternoon, a week after Kenji left, Keiichi and
Belldandy sat on the temple porch, his arm around her waist, the two of
them watching the cherry blossoms bloom, and simply enjoying the silent
presence of each other.
With a bowl of ice cream in her hand and a spoon in her mouth,
Skuld emerged from the temple. Inserting herself between Keiichi and
Belldandy, Skuld sat down on the porch.
Looking across Skuld at Keiichi, with sorrow in her eyes,
Belldandy spoke, "I am sorry, Keiichi-san."
Irritated at the interruption, and not bothering to hide the
sarcasm in his voice, "It's all right, she's just a little kid,"
Keiichi responded.
"I am not!" Skuld snapped back, whacking Keiichi with her
spoon.
The three sat in silence as Skuld ate her ice cream.
"Ring ----, ring ----," the telephone in the temple shouted.
It was followed by Urd yelling from somewhere inside the temple,
"I'll get it."
"Oh, Skuld-chan, it's your little play-mate Kenji-chan," Urd
shouted in a teasing voice from the temple.
Squealing in delight, Skuld jumped up and ran into the temple,
leaving the two alone with her forgotten ice cream.
Leaning back against Keiichi's chest, Belldandy took both of
Keiichi's arms, wrapping them around herself like a shawl. Closing her
eyes, Belldandy snuggled deeper into Keiichi's embrace, her heart
almost breaking at the joy of the moment.
Not wanting this moment to ever end, Keiichi held Belldandy in
his arms. And in doing so, he learned that heaven did exist. Burying
his head in her hair, Keiichi drank in the fresh smell of her hair.
For an hour they stayed like that, a single perfect movement.
"Belldandy?" Keiichi began the question he couldn't ask
before.
"Yes," mummered Belldandy.
Keiichi continued, "Will you . . ."
"Ka-Boom!" Keiichi's question was destroyed by a deafening
crash of thunder from the other side of the temple.
Getting up, the two went to investigate. Turning the corner
of the temple the ringing in their ears subsided enough for them to
hear Urd laughing. Actually, Urd was in hysterics.
"Oh my!" exclaimed Belldandy at the sight that confronted them.
The sight that confronted Keiichi would have caused any normal
man to question his sanity, but Keiichi was no ordinary mortal. The
scene before him was simply just one more bizarre chapter in his life.
Urd continued to lay in the courtyard, laughing hysterically.
Her face had turned red, and since she had forgotten to breathe, she
was on the verge of passing out from the lack of oxygen reaching her
brain.
The most surprising sight was Skuld. She lay in a small crater
surrounded by scorch marks, dressed in a short skirt of parboiled
leather reinforced with metal studs, and a light form-fitting breast
plate of black enameled metal. In addition she had on a pair of
low-top boots, each with a large brass button on the toe. Along with
greaves and vambraces of some sort of golden metal, she wore a small
helmet of black enameled metal topped with horse hair dyed red. Her
hands, covered with red leather gloves, clutched a massive hammer.
Actually she was dressed in the smoking remains of her armor. Next
to her knelt a young boy.
"Ice-creama, ice-creama," was all Skuld could say. Endlessly
repeating the word, her eyes spun crazily.
"I'm sorry, Skuld-chan; I'm sorry, Skuld-chan," the boy kept
repeating.
Keiichi moved toward the pair, intent on finding out just what
the hell was going on. As he approached Skuld, the young boy
interposed himself between them.
"Who are you, mortal?" demanded the boy, "Dare you not, to
come closer."
At his words, Keiichi halted his forward progress to take a
good look at this boy. He was short, only a hand's breath taller than
Skuld, and of the same age. His bright red hair was tied in a small
braid. He, like the three goddesses, had small markings on his forehead
and each cheek. Where Skuld's were shaped like rounded plectrums, his
were shaped like small lighting bolts. In his hand he held a hammer,
twin to the one in Skuld's hands.
Coming up from behind Keiichi, Belldandy wrapped her arms
around Keiichi's waist and resting her chin on his right shoulder,
she answered the boy's question. "He is Morisato Keiichi-san."
His eyes now wide in awe, "The Morisato Keiichi?" the boy
asked.
Simply, "Yes," Belldandy replied as she gave Keiichi a squeeze.
Bowing, the boy introduced himself, "I am Donner, Son of
Thunder. I apologize for my earlier rudeness. May I stay with you
while I am here on Midgard?"
"Why?" asked a puzzled Keiichi.
"Why? Why I am here to visit Skuld-chan. She is my best friend
after all," Donner stated in a matter-of-fact tone.
* * * * * * * * * *
That night Keiichi sipped his tea and sighed, 'Kami-sama must
be testing me,' he thought. 'To achieve great things great sacrifices
must be made I suppose. Belldandy did promise that she would be with
me as long as I needed her. My question can wait a little longer.'
Setting down his cup Keiichi looked up to see Belldandy smiling at him.
Finis
* * * * * * * * *
1 See "No Mere Mortal" by the same author.