It's been a ride, hasn't it? And just think, I originally expected 
this to be done sometime in November. Ah well, sometimes I just got 
stuck writing on it, writing in general, and even just forgot about it 
once in a while. Tell me what you think!

Characters are created by Kosuke Fujishima, and are used without his 
express permission.
The song 'Ice Cream' was written by Sarah McLachlan, and are used 
without her permission or knowledge.
Sue me at my peril (although I'd appreciate it if you didn't, and it 
really wouldn't be worth your time from a financial standpoint).
Figure it begins sometime after OVA 5.

	And now, more Ice Cream!

Ice Cream:

Your love is better than ice cream.
Better than anything else that I've tried 
and your love is better than ice cream
everyone here knows how to fight
and it's a long way down 
it's a long way down
it's a long way down to the place where we started from.
Your love is better than chocolate
better than anything else that I've tried
and oh love is better than chocolate.
Everyone here knows how to cry
and it's a long way down
it's a long way down
it's a long way down to the place where we started from...
do do do...

        Bugs are funny things, aren't they? I don't mean the regular 
type, I mean the sort that happens in computer systems. Big systems. 
Systems that control reality, like the Yggdrassil system. Let me give 
you an example- it involves three goddesses, and a young college student 
named Keiichi.

        **
            **
                **

        Skuld was alone- a situation she found intolerable. Belldandy 
was with (ugh!) Keiichi, they had gone to see some movie together or 
something (a date! face it, they went on a date). Urd, well Skuld did 
not want to know where she was, never mind actually do something with 
her.
        Really, who else was there? No one, now that her older sister 
was being taken away by that foolish mortal. Just poor little Skuld, 
moping away by herself at the temple.

        "I wish," said Skuld to herself (after all, who else was 
there?), "I wish Keiichi made a different wish."
        An explosion of light and sound later, and Skuld's wish was 
granted.
Funny thing about bugs, isn't it?

        "I wish I was successful." That's what I want, isn't it? Keiichi 
thought.

        "Your wish... is granted." Oh Keiichi, you really don't 
remember, do you?

        A thin beam of light burned through the mark on her forehead and 
soared into the heavens, not heeding the nigh invisible tears of the 
goddess it came from.

        Skuld shut down the monitor; she did not need to see anymore. 
Belldandy would be back soon and they would be together again, forever, 
as it should be.

		**
		  **
	  	    **

	Time passes, as it often does. Belldandy stayed in heaven, which 
meant Urd did not get banished to Midgard for interfering with the 
Ultimate Force (although there was that little thing with trying to get 
Idun to make apple cider, but that has nothing to do with us).
	Belldandy threw herself into her work, even more so than before, 
but she always had time to help her little sister, Skuld. Belldandy took 
on more and more assignments, she was on the fast track, and the 
Almighty noticed it.
	Skuld... was happy. Debugging was a lot easier with her sisters to 
help (much as Skuld hated to admit it, but Urd helped her too, 
sometimes, not often, and not a lot of help that definitely was not 
worth it). Belldandy was in heaven and all was right with the world. 
There was actually time for Skuld to do some research, like why she got 
a wish in the first place. After all, goddesses granted wishes, they 
didn't receive them, right?

	On earth, in Japan, Keiichi Morisato drove the Miata home from his 
Motor Club meeting, so he could get changed for his date with Sayoko. 
Things were definitely on the rise for Keiichi and Nekomi Tech's Motor 
Club. Getting Aoshima to handle the treasury was all it really took, and 
that wasn't hard with Sayoko helping. Now the club had no monetary 
problems. The members were so glad that they immediately made Keiichi 
president of the club, and as their star racer he drew in more and more 
members.
	Strange thing is, Tamiya and Ootaki did not mind at all. Maybe not 
so strange after all, when Keiichi thought about it. They didn't have to 
worry about money for the club, or even running the club. Those two got 
to spend their time and energy on making newer and better vehicles, 
which Keiichi usually won with. A few design teams had been sniffing 
around lately, and Tamiya and Ootaki had already received a few offers, 
pending graduation, of course. No, those two had nothing to complain 
about, they were in seventh... ...heaven.

	Who was she, Keiichi wondered. That girl with hair the colour of 
wheat and the markings on her face. That girl who claimed to be a 
goddess and offered him a wish, and her name, Belldandy, was oh, ever so 
familiar. Keiichi quickly put those thoughts aside, he had his Sayoko, 
the most popular, and arguably the most beautiful woman at Nekomi Tech. 
Keiichi had his own place, a good job with a better one guaranteed after 
graduating, the adulation of many with his racing, Sayoko (and Keiichi 
thought she was really starting to get serious about their 
relationship), not to mention being in the top ten percentile in his 
class. His future was so bright he had to wear shades. So why couldn't 
he get that (ever so beautiful) Belldandy out of his head, and why did 
he think he made the wrong wish?

	Keiichi stopped at his home, a nice apartment building close to 
campus. Even that was an interesting story. Sayoko decided to stop by 
the dorm to see him one day, not knowing the infamous 'no women' rule. 
Needless to say, Keiichi had to find a place quick. Luckily, Keiichi's 
job as a test driver (after winning one of his races he was offered the 
job for a car magazine) put him into contact with people, especially 
people who knew people, and soon enough, phfft! an apartment was found 
well within Keiichi's means.
	Keiichi quickly readied himself for the date, and called the 
florists to make sure the bouquet was ready. As he left to get the roses 
(sixteen, one for each week they had been dating), Keiichi grimaced at 
the Miata, wishing he had a different car for the date. The front end 
reminded him of that American movie, Christine. The almost smiling face 
seemed somehow psychotic, never mind how the car actually handled. 
Keiichi consoled himself with the thought that in another two weeks 
there would be another car to test, hopefully something a little better.

	The date went perfectly, as usual. Sayoko's dress was as 
immaculate 
as ever, and she dropped a few subtle hints that she might, perhaps, 
just maybe, like to take the relationship to another level.
	The restaurant was good, with a chamber quartet beside the dance 
floor. 
Keiichi and Sayoko took advantage of the ballroom dance lessons they 
took together, and danced the evening away.
	Keiichi escorted Sayoko back to her house, and stayed to chat with 
her father a bit (the man absolutely adored Keiichi, and treated him 
like the son he never had). Keiichi left, making excuses about a busy 
day, and studying still so that his marks wouldn't drop. 
	Yeah, Sayoko's dad loved him, his parents loved her, and were so 
proud of him he thought they might burst sometimes. He had the respect 
of his peers, good grades, a most promising future with Sayoko, and he 
already had a career on the rise. By anyone's standard, Keiichi was an 
absolute success. So why was it then that he felt so empty inside?

	**							**

	Belldandy ended the scrying spell, letting the mirror return to 
normal. She sighed, seeing Keiichi with that woman again tore at her 
heart, but she could not stop herself from watching it-- watching him.
	He wasn't happy, Belldandy knew, she could tell from the look on 
his face before he went to sleep every night, and every morning as he 
woke up. She could fix that, she KNEW she could make him happy. But 
there were rules, and there were regulations, and Belldandy had to 
follow them. Belldandy sighed.
	Still, maybe just a quick visit would be okay. A quick talk, and 
nothing more. Just once, surely that couldn't hurt, could it? Just a 
chance meeting in the streets, or in a hallway, or something, surely 
nothing wrong with that, was there?
	A happier Belldandy smiled secretively as she made her decision, 
then went to see what Skuld was doing.

	**							**

	When she was off-duty, Skuld found herself looking in on Keiichi.
Just to make sure everything was okay. She did not want him to suffer 
after all. A few quick looks assured her that Keiichi was fine. If 
anything, his life seemed better than before Skuld's wish. Maybe her 
wish did that. Everyone was happier this way. Must be it, her wish was 
good.

	Skuld researched the circumstances behind her wish, quietly, 
slyly. If the Almighty found out she had been granted a wish, who knows 
what trouble she would be in. Urd had never even gone that far, Loki 
hadn't even attempted it. But it was an accident, she didn't actually 
try to get a wish... it just happened. 

Still.  

Even so.

	Skuld searched on the job, a moment here, a moment there; when she 
could, or course. While working, she had much greater access to 
Yggdrassil's resources, and had a much better excuse should she get 
caught. 
	That was interesting, a bug. Well, in and of itself, a bug wasn't
really all that interesting, but the ToG (Time of Generation) had not 
happened yet. While rare, bugs of this nature were not unique. More 
importantly, the ToG was roughly the same as... oh... her wish.
	Skuld quickly cobbled together a cage, and in defiance of her job 
and all the laws the Almighty had, did not destroy a bug on sight. 
Instead, she captured one very particular bug, and stole away to her 
room with it, avoiding all eyes and all ears.
	"I can't, I just can't," Skuld heard herself whisper, looking at a 
very special bug through a thin metal-barred cage. The bug didn't know 
what she was saying, and just wanted to play.
	
	**
	    **
	       **

	The end of another day of class for Keiichi. Again, he walked 
through crowded halls towards the parking lot, alone. Sayoko had to stay 
to work on a group project with the other members of her group. Tamiya 
and Ootaki were holed up, working on their latest design. Everyone had 
something to do, some place to be-- except Keiichi, that is.
	This happened more and more often, Keiichi sighed as he hopped 
into the Miata. Another night of around the town driving by himself 
then; there were deadlines to meet, and a job to be done.
	Keiichi started the car-- it turned over easily despite the damp, 
cool weather. A chance glimpse in the rear-view mirror, and he saw her. 
A light mauve woman's business suit and matching beret set off her 
wheat-coloured hair, and accented her pale, cream-coloured skin. 
	Belldandy.

	The wish.

	He needed... he needed to talk to her.

				***

	Belldandy smiled (ah! the heart breaks from the beauty of such a 
sight) when she saw Keiichi wave at her, beckoning her to come and talk.

	"So, uh..." Keiichi managed to say intelligently when she arrived 
at the car.

	Belldandy was not much better, looking at the ground and replying, 
"Yes, er..." underneath the faint blush spreading through her cheeks.

	"Food?" Keiichi asked. "Are you hungry? There's a place I haven't 
been to yet, but it's supposed to be good. We can talk over dinner," he 
said with hope.

	Keiichi's hopes were answered. "Yes. I think that would be a good 
idea," Belldandy said delicately.

	They went to a cosy little bistro on the east side of the city. 
Neither talked on the way there, listening to the faint strains of the 
latest pop sensation on the radio instead. 
	The bistro was not too upscale; the atmosphere reminded one of a 
home-- not your home, this one was cleaner and nicer. The atmosphere 
though, that's what it was-- the same relaxed and welcoming feel 
permeated the place, through the decor (tasteful and subtle) and the 
staff (cheerful, but not forcefully so). The place was somewhat 
appropriately called "Taste of Heaven". They took a booth which offered 
them both privacy and a good view of the window which comprised the 
front of the establishment.
	After ordering two house specials (fresh Pacific salmon steaks, 
slowly cooked with lemon and some very specific spices, along with rice 
and steamed greens), Belldandy and Keiichi started to talk.

	Nervous, though he tried to hide it, Keiichi threw a question into 
the air. "A goddess?" he asked with exaggerated calm.

	"Yes. A goddess. Class one. Unlimited license." Sip the tea 
delicately.

	"It must be... must be fascinating, I suppose." Still awkward, 
still unsure.

	"Sometimes, but most of the time, no. I'd rather hear about you 
though. Was the wish good? Are you happy?" Give me this one thing, even 
if it is selfish. Please.

	Don't go there, don't let her see the emptiness you hide even from 
yourself. "The wish? Oh, heh... yeah, the wish. It worked. I'm the 
president of the motor club, and their top racer too. I have the respect 
of my friends and the admiration of others. I have a good job, good 
grades, a bright future, everything. Why shouldn't I be happy?" Keiichi 
ended off defensively. Why didn't you mention Sayoko to her, eh Keiichi? 
Maybe because if you did, you wouldn't have a chance with Belldandy. But 
she's a goddess. So? You can't lie to yourself, not forever.

	Belldandy, sensing the tenseness in Keiichi, sought to change the 
conversation to something lighter. "Tell me about yourself, Keiichi. 
Tell what it is like to be a mortal."

	And so he did. Keiichi gave her his story-- well, all that was 
written of it at least. He told her about growing up with his more 
outgoing and perky sister, Megumi. He told her about school, high 
school, and finally college. He told her of his friends and family; his 
first date, and his first kiss. He told her about his dreams, both now 
and when he was younger; how they changed over the years, and how 
sometimes they came true. He told her many things: often small, often 
inconsequential in and of themselves, but when put together you got 
Keiichi. 
	There was one curious exception to what he told her; one 
particular deletion. There was a summer, long ago, where he met a friend 
in the woods. They played with each other for those few months-- 
virtually inseparable. He never told her about that, mainly because he 
had no memory of it, though it did happen.

	Belldandy listened to it all with rapt fascination. A dreamy look 
was in her eyes, and a wistful smile on her lips as she lost herself in 
Keiichi's words, in Keiichi's face. She laughed with him as he told her 
a particularly funny story involving Ootaki, Ootaki's girlfriend, a 
meeting with her parents, and the parents' new pet, a miniature 
daschund.	[Auth. note: Ootaki is afraid of dogs]
	Her eyes misted up with unshed tears as she sorrowed with him when 
he related the death of his favourite uncle when he was eleven. 
Belldandy made a silent vow to give the uncle the goodbye Keiichi never 
got to, when she returned to heaven.
	Her eyes flashed with pride and triumph when Keiichi told her 
about the first race that he won-- a soapbox derby when he was five. Her 
nose crinkled in amusement and delight at the image of a five year old 
Keiichi, heady with his first taste of victory, vowing to make the 
Formula 1 circuit someday.

	"Belldandy... Belldandy, are you awake?" Belldandy was startled to 
find a hand waving in front of her face.
	"Sorry for boring you. My life really isn't that interesting, I 
guess."

	"Oh no!" Belldandy protested, "That was fascinating. I mean I 
loved hearing about it/you. I must have got caught up in it, I suppose. 
Your world is so different, so alive. I wish I could be part of it."

	The sky was dark now, and the waiter, who had earlier on decided 
that they would rather each other's company over him interrupting them 
with offers of tea or dessert, was going off shift, so he hovered 
nearby. Suddenly aware of the time, Keiichi asked for the bill.
	As they left the bistro, Keiichi asked Belldandy a question she 
dared not even hope he would ask. "Can I see you again sometime?"

	Belldandy's smile brightened the night, and cleared the overcast 
skies, letting the stars shine through. "Oh course."
	An offer of a drive to wherever she needed to go, and a peck on 
the cheek later, and Keiichi was gone. Belldandy put a hand to the cheek 
where Keiichi kissed her, and went to look for a mirror to return to her 
home. She smiled again. This would not be their last time with each 
other.
	

				***

	Keiichi and Belldandy went out again to a different restaurant a 
week later. They both ordered the house special, a pasta dish with a 
rather bland sauce. The rather sub-par and over-priced meal was ignored 
as the two talked of inconsequential things that laid deep within their 
hearts.

	"Have we met before? When we were kids, I mean?" Keiichi asked. 
"You remind me of someone from my childhood, I think."

	"No!" Belldandy said a little too quickly. "You must be 
remembering someone else. It would be impossible for you to remember 
me." A lie? Not exactly, but just as untrue as one, nonetheless.

				***

	Time passes, as it is wont to do. Autumn approached, changing 
things, turning the leaves to a multi-coloured shower as they fell off 
the trees and get blown by the winds. Belldandy and Keiichi continued to 
see each other, and their relationship deepened and grew.

	"Keiichi?" asked Sayoko once, at the end of a date.

	"Mhm?"

	"You seem, oh, I don't know... happier lately. Not quite as 
single-minded I suppose. Content, I think that's the word I'm looking 
for: contented."

	"I guess I am," he smiled, the one that melted her heart each time 
she saw it; something which happened more and more lately. "Maybe I just 
realised how much I have, and how lucky I am to have-- you." Almost 
screwed up there, didn't you Keiichi? Almost said Belldandy. How much 
longer until you can drop this facade? The longer it goes on, the more 
Sayoko will be hurt when it ends, and she doesn't deserve that.

				*** 

	"Skuld?"

	"Yes Belldandy," Skuld replied eagerly.

	"Could you do me a favour? I need someone to cover for me 
tomorrow. Would you be a dear and do that for me? It would mean a lot. 
I'll pay you back, promise."

	"This is happening more and more big sister. We don't see each 
other as much as we used to. Why do need me to cover for you?"

	"I... have to go to the Surface World. I left something important 
there." My heart.

	"Okay, but this is the absolute last time. I know I said that 
before, but this time I mean it."

	"Oh Skuld, you're such a dear. How about this? This weekend we'll 
go on a picnic, just you and me. I'll make all of your favourites, and 
we'll get some ice cream afterwards."

	Skuld nodded tiredly. Belldandy flashed a smile, kissed Skuld on 
the forehead, and left for parts un(but not really)known.

	The secret bug in Skuld's room nibbled on a bit of code Skuld had 
taken out of Yggdrassil; it was old and Skuld was recoding it anyway, so 
why not take it? The bug was happy.

				***

	"Bell, how much longer do we have to go on like this?" Keiichi 
asked, smoothing her hair reflexively as they huddled together under a 
tree, staring at the city below them. 

	"I don't know. I still can't think of a way to break this to the 
Almighty easily. Until I can we have to, otherwise he might order us 
apart."

	"Is seeing me getting you into trouble Bell? I couldn't bear it if 
you got into trouble because of me."

	"Oh Kei," she laughed softly, "seeing you is the high point in my 
day. I wouldn't give you up for anything."

	"Love you."

	"Always and forever."

				***

	Keiichi burst into the Motor Club meeting, panting and out of 
breath.

	"--ink that maybe we should elect someone else then, He's not 
taking..." Tamiya noticed Keiichi coming in and stopped talking.

	"Hi guys," Keiichi said in between breaths, "Sorry I'm late, I got 
caught up in something, a last minute thing, and didn't realise the time 
and--"

	"Try and make it on time next time, okay Morisato?" said Ootaki. 
"It helps if the president of the Club opens the meetings, y'know?"

	Aoshima was silent, although when Keiichi walked by him maybe, 
just maybe he noticed the scent of a perfume which was not Sayoko's, and 
perhaps he noticed the slightly dreamy expression in Keiichi's eyes. 

				***

	"Keiichi?" asked a worried Sayoko.

	"Yes Sayoko?"

	"You seem distracted. Are you okay?"

	"Hmm? Oh, no. Sorry Sayoko. Things have just been a little hectic 
for me lately."

	"I'm just worried about you, that's all. We haven't seen each 
other as much as usual. My father is beginning to miss you," Sayoko 
cracked a tentative smile with her last sentence.

	Keiichi laughed half-heartedly. "I'll make it up to you. Promise." 
Inspiration hit as Keiichi suddenly came alive. "The Ritz-Carlton. Next 
week. You, me, dinner." Sayoko loved fancy places like that. It would 
work.

	Sayoko's eyes lit up with joy: it worked.

	"Mean it Keiichi? You better not bail on me like last time," she 
ended off ominously. 

	Keiichi smiled, the gentle one which transformed his face and 
melted Sayoko's heart all over again. "Of course not." The smile 
convinced her. She believed the smile's lie. God forgive, she believed.

				***

	"Belldandy," the Almighty said. Others would make it sound like a 
question, but not Him. Never Him. He never questioned, He stated fact; 
He knew.

	"You have been derelict in your duties lately. This is not like 
you. Belldandy, you are quickly replacing your sister Urd as my most 
delinquent goddess, and after Idun and the apple cider incident..." He 
trailed off, leaving Belldandy to work out the implications of what he 
said for herself.

				***

	It wasn't supposed to be this way-- we were supposed to be happy. 
Skuld sighed as she checked on the Bug in it's cage. The Bug nibbled on 
some lettuce; it seemed happy enough.

				***

	"Keiichi, we're going to have to ask you to step down. You're not 
taking the Club seriously enough," Tamiya said sombrely, while his 
omnipresent friend Ootaki nodded behind him.

	"Wuh, what do you mean?" asked a shocked Keiichi.

	"You're hardly here for any of the meetings anymore, you don't 
know what's going on in the Club, and you aren't taking the races 
seriously!" Tamiya ended in a righteous thunder.

	"There's other reasons Morisato, but these are the important 
ones," Ootaki added. "No hard feelings, right?"

	"Yeah. No hard feelings." Keiichi slumped away to his next class.

	By the end of his last class, Keiichi began to feel better. Not 
being president of the Motor Club meant less responsibility, which meant 
more free time, which meant more Belldandy. A rationalisation? Maybe, 
but any port in a storm will do.

	Keiichi went to his job at the magazine, only to find a note on 
his desk to see the editor when he got in.

	"Morisato, do you have your article ready yet?"

	"No sir, I was just about to type it out now."

	"Don't bother."

	"What do you mean?"

	"I mean clear out your desk." The editor wrote something on a 
piece of paper. "Go to payroll with this. They'll give you your two 
weeks of severance pay."

	"I don't understand, why sir?" asked a bewildered Keiichi.

	"Don't understand! Keiichi, this is the second month in a row you 
haven't met your deadlines; and last time it was over a week and a half 
late! We have a magazine to put out." 
	The editor sighed. "If you were having problems you should have 
came to me. I'm not heartless, regardless of what the office gossip says 
about my operation last year. We could have worked it out; could have 
made it into a bi-monthly column for you or something. You didn't 
though-- we're a team here Keiichi, a family. We help each other out 
when asked. That's all you had to do."

	"But wait! Can't I--."

	"No," the editor shook his head sadly. "It's too late now."

	Keiichi left the office, left the building and retreated to his 
apartment, alone. He needed her, needed Belldandy, now more than ever. 
In his distraction, his need, Keiichi was briefly aware that there was 
something he was forgetting, but he shrugged off the nagging feeling. 
Emotionally drained, he went to sleep curled up tightly, and hugging his 
pillow fiercely.

	In the Ritz-Carlton, a beautiful woman waited with increasing 
impatience-- forgotten. again.

				***

	Aoshima-- a friend. Just the man he needed to talk to, Keiichi 
thought, not seeing the expression on Aoshima's face.

	"Hey, Aoshima! You got some time? I need to talk to you man."

	"You definitely need to talk Morisato," Aoshima replied snidely, 
anger obvious on his face. "You have some serious explaining to do about 
YOUR TREATMENT OF MY COUSIN!"

	"Cousin?" Sayoko. Last night... I... we-- oh no.

	"You stood her up-- again. This was not the first time, but it was 
the worst... and the last." Keiichi shook his head dumbly while Aoshime 
continued.

	"Do you know what you did to her? She waited at the restaurant 
until one-thirty, when it closed. I woke up to a ringing phone then, to 
come pick her up, and when I got there....
	"How could you do that to her Keiichi? How could you...? When I 
arrived, she was crying. Not loudly, not excessively; I'm not even sure 
she was aware she was crying anymore. Her tears fell continuously; a 
quiet, constant trickle from her eyes."

	"Aoshima.... I.... Last night was bad for me, I--"

	"I don't care Morisato! You didn't show! You didn't even call her 
to make an excuse. That's not the worst thing though," Aoshimaa hissed.
	"The worst are the rumours. Rumours of you and a girl-- not 
Sayoko. Rumours of you and a foreigner-- A FOREIGNER!
	"Don't.... Just stay away from her-- and from me too, okay 
Morisato?" and Keiichi's best friend walked out of his life.

				***

	Two weeks. Only fourteen days, only three hundred and thirty-six 
hours without her. A mere fraction of a fraction of his life up until 
now, and an even smaller amount of the rest of his life. Paltry-- an 
insignificant amount of time. Forever. 
	Where is your Belldandy to play with you by the temple and around 
the cherry tree? Where is the girl who you never got to give a ring to, 
Keiichi? Oh, wait. I forgot. You're not supposed to know that, are you? 
Forget I mentioned it. Never happened, right?
	Belldandy, Belldandy where is your goddess Belldandy, Keiichi? 
Where is she when you need her the most? Where is she when everyone else 
has forsaken you?


Everyone?

	That's not entirely true now, is it? Megumi came by a week ago, 
didn't she? Well, at least she tried to. What did you tell her then? 
What did you say?
	Oh yes, that. Harsh words-- painful words. Didn't mean them 
though, did you Keiichi? You just needed release. Some way to ease the 
hurting, lessen the pain. She knows that, doesn't she? Surely she knows 
you didn't mean it, right? Right?

				***

	Skuld saw enough. For two weeks she watched, for two weeks she 
observed. She might not like Keiichi, but spending the better part of 
two weks curled up in a ball, alternatively crying or catatonic, was too 
much.
	Belldandy was little better. Every morning she was red-eyed and 
raw. Her calm demeanor, once filled with love, was fraying and being 
filled with despair.
	She had to act; Skuld had to do something. She went to her room, 
and stared at the cage. To be more precise, she stared at what was in 
the cage. The Bug. 
	Not yet. Skuld was not going to admit defeat just yet. Perhaps it 
was salvageable. She could make Belldandy give up Keiichi, given enough 
time; Belldandy just had to be sure Keiichi was happy-- that he was 
willing to let her go.
	It was time for Skuld to go to the Surface World. She grabbed the 
cage-- safer by far to keep the Bug with her. Less chance of it being 
caught, with it under her eye on Midgard.

	Where to though? Someplace close to Keiichi, yet secluded enough 
so that no one would notice her appearance. To bad Keiichi wasn't using 
any hot water right now; then she could appear there-- he should be used 
to sudden appearances with Belldandy.
	There was a source... hmm. It would have to do. Skuld made her way 
to Midgard, appearing in a public bath carrying a travel cage with a 
dusty pink cloth over it. Exiting the building quickly, Skuld got her 
bearings and headed for Keiichi's apartment.

				***

	Wake up. There's someone knocking at the door and they're not 
going away.
	"Go away!" Keiichi cried out in a voice hoarse from disuse.

	"I have to talk to you. It's about Belldandy," the unfamiliar 
voice replied.

	Belldandy? "Come in."

	Keiichi stood up and slowly made his way to the door, joints 
popping all the way. He was greeted by the sight of a cute dark-haired 
twelve-year old girl, holding a travel cage for pets in front of her 
with both hands, some sort of mallet or sledgehammer strapped to her 
back, and markings on her face like--

						 "Belldandy?" Keiichi said dumbly.

	"She's my big sister."

	"Then you must be Skuld. She's told me a lot about you." They 
sttod a moment longer before Keiichi remembered himself. "Come in, come 
in. It's a bit messy...," he waved his hands aimlessly, gesturing to the 
mostly concealed floor.

	"I know. I've been watching you for the last two weeks. That's why 
I came, really."

	"What do you mean? Did Belldandy send you?"

	"No, I came here myself, I--"

	"Why hasn't she come? Why isn't she here? Doesn't she know 
that...? Why?"

	"Let me finish, and I'll explain it all." Skuld paused, and waited 
for Keiichi's acknowledgement, then continued. "Belldandy can't come-- 
she's not allowed.
	"Belldandy's being watched closely. If she came down, the Almighty 
would notice. That would be an act of open defiance, and I think you 
could remember what happened to the last ones who defied His will." 
Skuld punctuated her statement with a long look at the ground.

				***

	Belldandy jerked forward, alerted to Keiichi's condition by the 
alarms set in her heart. There was another goddess, or possibly a 
demoness with him. Only three things were known: it was female, it was 
powerful in ways mortals were not, and it was with Keiichi.
	Her Keiichi. Trying to take him away. Hers. Never happen. Never, 
never. Even if the price be defying the Almighty. 
Never.

				***

	Belldandy appeared in the only clean spot in Keiichi's apartment-- 
a large full-length mirror with an ornate cherry-wood frame. Keiichi 
bought it so that Belldandy would "always arrive in style."
	She heard a female voice in the next room, but couldn't make out 
who, or what the voice was saying-- only that it was familiar. Belldandy 
powered up a force-bolt and threw caution to the wind, rushing into the 
room. There, she found--

	"Skuld?" Belldandy asked, her voice lost in her sister's apparent 
betrayal. The force-bolt began to dissipate.

	Skuld panicked. "No! Wait! It's not what you think! You're not 
supposed to be here!" Skuld wailed. "What if He finds out?"

	Keiichi's reaction was much more simple. The pain in his face 
shattered and was replaced with a smile of nearly inhuman relief as he 
ran to her, saying only, "Belldandy."

	Belldandy did not know what to do. Perhaps Skuld was trying to 
help them. What was important was Keiichi was with her now, arms around 
her and whispering her name ceaselessly. In her distraction, Belldandy 
let the force bolt dissipate a little too quickly. No one was harmed, 
just the mirror The glass shattered and the cherry-wood frame turned to 
ash. 

	Keiichi suddenly broke off the hug and looked at Belldandy 
strangely. "I remember."

	"What do you remember?" Belldandy asked, though she knew exactly 
what it was he was talking about.

	"It. I, you, us. When we were kids. Everything.
	"I remember how you had to--"

	"...how I had to..."

	"...how you had to erase my memory. You sealed it in that cherry-
tree by the old shrine, didn't you?"

	Belldandy merely nodded, no other reaction possible for her. The 
sky outside began to turn dark and grim.

	"I was starting to get it back in little glimpses that I would 
soon forget, ever since you came back."

	"Why all of it now, then?"

	Skuld spoke up. "I might know. The mirror-frame must have been 
made from the cherry-tree which held the seal. My guess is that this is 
all that was left of it, or it used the heart of the tree, or something 
like that. Either way, once it was destroyed...," Skuld trailed off, 
leaving the obvious unsaid.

	"What does this mean?" asked Keiichi. "What will happen now that 
I've regained my memory?"

	"Oh, Belldandy. He'll find out for sure," said Skuld, her voice 
laden with ages of guilt and regret.

	"It does not matter. I do ot care. All that matters is that I am 
hee... now... with Keiichi."

	Dark clouds grew and spiralled together outside with unnatural 
speed. Skuld, who was closest to the window, noticed this. There could 
only be one reason for it. She pointed outside.
	"You can feel it, Belldandy, can't you? He knows. He's already 
started...."

	"There's nothing we can do about it, Skuld," Belldandy said gently 
as she clung to Keiichi, who did the same to her. "If this is the price 
to be paid so that Keiichi and I had this time together...."

	"Skuld shook her head violently, flinging tears around the room in 
her denial. "No! You don't understand, honoured sister.... Sorry, I'm so 
sorry.... It's my fault... it's all my fault," so saying, Skuld 
uncovered the cage and revealed the bug inside.

	Belldandy said nothing, her eyes asked enough questions, while 
Keiichi did not understand enough to begin to formulate any questions.

	"The wish, Keiichi's wish, was supposed to be different, but a 
bug, *this* bug, allowed me to change it," confessed Skuld. 

	Timidly, hesitantly, Keiichi asked, "But why? What was my wish 
supposed to be? Why did you change it?"

	Arcs of power, disguised as lightning to mortal eyes, leapt from 
cloud to cloud-- forming a complex pattern to those who knew what to 
look for.

	"Because you two were together," Skuld spat out, "and I... I was 
alone.
	"Do you hate me, honoured sister?"

	"I could never hate you, Skuld. You know that."

	The gentleness, the kindness, and the absolute sincerity in 
Belldadny's voice, which was mirrored in the expression Keiichi wore on 
his face, was too much for the young goddess to bear. Skuld nodded.

	"And that's why I have to do this." 

	Skuld took out her hammer, the Mjolnir Mk. II, from its resting 
place on her back.

	High above them, the clouds finished their roiling and seething, 
having finally shifted to their final formation.

	Skuld raised her hammer high above her head, and closed her eyes. 
Belldandy and Keiichi looked on, expectantly.

	The lines of power connecting the clouds stabilised, closing the 
circuit. As the pattern was completed, the set of instructions it 
carried was enacted.

	Skuld let the hammer hang in the air for a second or two, before 
beginning its descent.

	A beam of pure power erupted from the clouds, seeking a divine 
target in the profane world.

	Skuld's hammer picked up speed and momentum as it raced towards 
the bug.

	The beam lanced through the top of Keiichi's apartment building, 
going through the floors as if they did not exist for it.

	Skulds hammer reached the cage and destroyed it without pausing.

	The beam breached Keiichi's apartment and did not stop until it 
reached its target, Belldandy. In the same scintilla of time, Skuld's 
hammer found the bug, and destroyed it.


Author's notes: Which happened first, that's what you're thinking, 
right? Well, unfortunately, this is a far as I've written up to, before 
getting stuck. I thought I'd put this out to see what you guys think 
about it though. Some of the earlier bits have been changed slightly, 
and I've added a few more scenes since the last time I've put it out. 
Hopefully, some of the changes in the characters won't seem quite as 
quick.















































Henh. I might be a bastard, and I might fit the dictionary's definition 
of evil, but I'm not THAT bad! Here's the rest:


	Skuld destroyed thet bug just as she noticed the beam engulf 
Belldandy. Was she too late, was she--

						   --at the temple, by herself? 
Skuld blinked, before running to check... yes, her room, Urd's room, 
Belldandy's room, and Keiichi's too. They were all there, just like she 
remembered it.

	"We're back!" a cheerful cry from the temple entrance. Keiichi's 
voice. 

	Skuld ran to the couple at full speed, and tackled Belldandy with 
a hug. "Honoured sister! I missed you!"

	"Where'd this come from?" asked Keiichi wryly. He dug in the paper 
bag he carried, and pulled out a carton. "I, ah, we thought you might 
like this, Skuld."

	Skuld looked at the box Keiichi had in his hands. Ice cream, from 
One Hundred and Thirty-one Flavours. Her favourite flavour, in fact. 
Skuld looked at Keiichi, and gave him a quizzical look which changed 
into a rare smile-- rare because it was directed at him. "Why don't we 
all have some?"

	The trio entered the temple, talking and laughing, living and 
loving, and most importantly, eating ice cream together, like a family.

Bugs are funny things, aren't they?

Your love is better than ice cream.
Better than anything else that I've tried 
and your love is better than ice cream
everyone here knows how to fight
and it's a long way down 
it's a long way down
it's a long way down to the place where we started from.
Your love is better than chocolate
better than anything else that I've tried
and oh love is better than chocolate.
Everyone here knows how to cry
and it's a long way down
it's a long way down
it's a long way down to the place where we started from...
do do do...

-An ending-

Author's lyrics: Well, I've already done the notes, eh? A few comments, 
and questions. Namely, my decision to use "honoured sister" as opposed 
to "oneesama." It's equivalent enough for me, for the purposes of this 
story. I haven't slipped in any Japanese words in my works, and I really 
don't see the reason to start to do so now (I'm not against it, mind 
you. With my knowledge, or more appropriately, lack thereof, of 
Japanese, I'm much more likely to make a gaffe. Besides, makes it a 
little different, eh?)>
	The ending: doesn't seem to be quite right, somehow. It didn't 
come out the way I wanted it to (then again, why should it be any 
different than life? ^_^). Suggestions for it, anyone? In fact, 
suggestions for any part of it?
	Be kind, be harsh, it doesn't matter, I can take it. I'm good 
about that. Of course, explanations would be nice too-- telling me that 
fragment x sucks does nothing to me unless you tell me why it sucks. 
Also makes it more likely to heed your comment.

Until next time!

And because I feel so bad about it taking so long, here's something I plan
to do in the summer....

The year 2000, Antarctica:

	I am Misato. I am fourteen. I just saw my father put me in an 
experimental survival capsule, to save my life from an explosion. Whatever 
it was they were digging blew up, and--

At the same time, Japan:

	I am Akira. I am young. I am no longer totally in the Flow. Even 
with the drugs they give to enhance/control my powers, it is too much. I 
feel like I'm going to--

					The year is now 2015

		The world is starting to repair itself from destruction.

	         Second Impact, Third World War, or something else?

				   SEELE? NERV? Akira Project?

				   Tokyo-3 is about to explode

Coming, probably this summer-- we're gonna get all Otomo on Anno, or all
Anno on Otomo....


Matthew "Maybeso" Lewis
Maybeso on IRC
Sojiro_Seta on Kawaiimuck
Warped, in Real Life
Member of:
FFML, FFIRCML, El Hazard ML
	maybeso@ican.net
___________________________________________________

I have no problems with reality, I ignore it, and
it ignores me. We're quite happy with the 
arrangement, actually.
___________________________________________________