Hello,
The creator of that ill fated crossover, "The Way Things Works Out" is
back. After many moons of being a total slacker, I gave up the idea of
finnishing that other fic and started on a new one. Hopefully I'll finnish
this one since I have some clue as to where I want to go with it. C & C
welcome on a private basis please. On with the fic...
=========================
Of Angels and Demons
By: Ben Craton
Aka: Genki Dama
Ah! Megami-sama! Copyright 1989, 1995 by Kodansha and
Kosuke Fujishima.
Story and original characters Copyright 2001 by Ben Craton
Note: This is not a happy go lucky fic. Sure, it has funny parts, but all
in all it will be a dark fic to most. See I figured, hey these gals are
powerful, cool, and awesome yet all they do is sit around not really �doing�
anything. Why not give Kami-sama�s favorite goddesses something to do worth
their merit? And so I set out to do just that. The point is, I�m going to
stretch the characters out of their normal environment, while trying to
preserve their personality. And so� Well, one more thing, this is set about
oh, let�s say a year or two after episode 5 (does it really matter?). So
that makes Skuld about 16, Belldandy about 23, and Urd about 26. Oh, and I
will use things from both the manga and the OVA just because I can, so be
prepared. Ok, �now� on with the fic.
BTW Sentences in �� those are meant to be a thought of a character. Single
words in �� those mean that they are being emphasized. Just thought you
wouldnt want to think otherwise.
------
Of Angels and Demons: Part 1
Nightmares of Fire
The soft light of the candles flickered in the warm tropical breeze,
casting their romantic glow on the inner walls of the small hut. The full
moon shown through the window, adding to the yellow light. The sound of the
surf was making for the best of relaxing backdrops for the night air and the
light of candles. The air was filled with the fragrance of rose pedals and
lavender scented potpourri, and the smell of love. In the center of the hut
sat a larger than normal plush bed, draped with the softest of pink, silk
sheets. The gentle wind swayed them slightly, keeping them a cool and
comfortable temperature.
Laying under one of these sheets, the goddess Belldandy shifted slightly.
They �were� soft, and they felt so clean and fresh next to her already
perfect skin. She felt anxious as her honeymoon night �activities� were fast
approaching. She listened to the waves and relaxed some. She had never been
with anyone before and she had the beginning of nervousness. Sure she loved
Kei-chan with all her heart, but she wondered if she could show him how much
she felt for him with her body.
The wind gusted gently. The candles wained for a moment and Belldandy
pulled the sheet tighter around her. Lying in the nude waiting for
who-knew-what under one silk sheet was a little chilly. Suddenly her
thoughts were interrupted as the door to the hut opened and her love and new
husband walked through the thresh hold. Belldandy�s nervousness now shot
through the roof. Her Kei-chan was dressed as much as she, and he was
walking towards her. Her arms instinctively came up to dram him closer. As
they wrapped themselves around her love�s slender yet masculine neck, her
lips began to tremble.
�Keiichi��
�Belldandy..�
Their bodies moved until they were breathing each other�s air. The anxiety
was almost more than the goddess could stand. Keiichi moved closer to prove
his love to his new wife.
�Belldandy��
�Keiichi..�
�URD!!!!�
Wha?
**CRASH**
Belldandy shot up off her futon, grasping the cover as she went in an
attempt to cover herself while sucking half the air out of the room. Her
wide and confused eyes shot here and there. Where was she? Where was
Keiichi? And why was she wearing overalls? Another crash interrupted her
train of though. The silhouette of Urd and then shortly after of Skuld ran
past her window.
�Urd! I said the last of the ice cream was mine, I called it!�
�Only if you can catch me! Ha ha ha.�
Belldandy�s thoughts were now starting to make sense as she realized where
she was. She sighed and mentally slapped the back of her head. She had had
another one of �those� dreams again. Why was it that a goddess of her
stature was having dreams of �that� sort? She blushed slightly, knowing
fully why. She knew that someday her dreams would not be so surreal anymore.
She sighed again, stood, and stretched a good stretch shaking those thoughts
from her head, yawning at the end.
But why �was� she wearing overalls? Her thoughts wandered back to the day
before. That was it. She had been gardening all day, trying to keep her mind
from her sisters. They had been acting strange for some reason. She wasn�t
quite sure why and really didn�t want to know anyway. Well, she guessed, at
least the gardening had worn her out and she had gotten a good rest. She
changed out of the grimy overalls and into a robe. Gathering a towel and her
bathy things, she proceeded to the bath.
Belldandy cleaned herself of the mud and dirt left from the day before, and
once finished, climbed into the hot water tub and relaxed her aching arms.
She let her mind wander as the sounds of the temple and of the grounds
washed her mind as well. She knew she could very easily use her powers and
cleanse herself in an instant, but nothing soothed her better in the morning
than the warm water, the sounds of nature outside, privacy, and of course
the bubbles. Bubbles?
**SPLASH**
�Hello!�
�Skuld! What are you doing in here? Get Out!� Belldandy covered her
important regions from her sister, embarrassed from having her privacy so
rudely infringed. Still, something shiny caught her eye. �And why do you
have Vodka?�
Skuld grinned mischievously and hid the large bottle behind her back. �Hey
don�t be so loud. Urd will hear you. She doesn�t know I have��
Just then the door flew open and Urd, dressed in what little she normally
did, stormed in completely oblivious to Belldandy�s presence. She was fuming
and her eyes were as evil as they could be, at least before lunch. She
glared at her younger sister.
�GIVE�..IT�.BACK!�
Skuld giggled nothing short of demonically and dove headfirst back into the
tub and disappeared. Belldandy let out a gasp and curled into a ball to
avoid getting her legs taken off. Urd on the other hand, still not fully
knowing where she was and only focusing in on getting her wondrous liquid
back, dove in after Skuld. There was a very sad and sickening thud and Urd�s
head failed to transport through the water as her little sister could.
Belldandy winced as water splashed all around soaking her more completely.
Little bubbles came to the surface next to the recently submerged goddess.
�Glub.�
Belldandy stood and pulled her sister out, laying her out to dry on the
floor. Deciding that her bath had been ruined past repair, she quickly dried
and brushed her hair and produced a pair of jeans and a simple tee shirt
upon herself. Picking her dazed and stupefied older sister of the ground she
carried Urd to the living room, if one would call it that, and placed her on
the couch so she could keep an eye on her.
Belldandy�s sisters had been behaving strangely this past week. Skuld had
been acting more and more like a bratty 16 year old, and Urd had been acting
like a 12 year� Ok so maybe they weren�t acting �that� strangely. But
something �was� odd. Maybe it was the fact they had been annoying the heck
out of each other for the past week almost continuously. At least normally
they would reconcile after a fight. They wouldn�t even do that now. Well,
whatever it was, she had grown tired of it long ago.
Other things had been happening the past week. Things that were starting to
put Belldandy near her edge, which was completely, not like her at all.
Mara, for one, was making life very difficult. Why only three days ago she
had decided to not only blow Keiichi�s motorcycle sky high, but also to
throw a cake, that Belldandy had spent 2 hours making, right in her face.
And Belldandy still had no idea why she did it. It wasn�t like she was
trying to force her and Keiichi apart; more like aggregate the two of them
till they couldn�t keep their sanity.
And then there was Sayoko� Oooo, she didn�t even want to think about that
one. Who on earth comes over to invite someone to a �poker� game, whatever
that was, wearing *only* a long shirt. Even Belldandy, knew that meant no
good. Fortunately though, Skuld had tested her new �high powered super
deluxe leaf blower� near that silly girl just about the same time Taymia and
Otaki had come waltzing up the path to deliver Keiichi some motor oil. Boy,
did they get paid in full that time. Belldandy giggled. Wait a second, she
never giggled at someone else� misfortune. She slapped herself softly. Urd
must be rubbing off on her more than she thought. Oh well, she though as she
proceeded into the kitchen to make lunch, seeing how she had slept in.
* * *
As she was fixing some sandwiches and tea, something crossed her mind.
Where was Keiichi? She had yet to see him all day. She looked around the
kitchen for some sigh of him close to her but only saw the mess Urd and
Skuld had made earlier. She hmmed.
�Keiichi-san?�
She got no response. Curiosity got the better of her as she put down the
food and wiped her hands. Belldandy went out onto the porch and glanced
about for a sign on her beloved. There was none. She did see Skuld sitting
under a tree, most likely resting from chasing and being chased all morning
long. She also saw some rustling in the bushes behind her sister. Something
silver in color�Urd. Belldandy was about to warn Skuld when the so-called
prey, picked up her hammer and, without even bothering to open her eyes,
swung it behind her.
Once again there was a sad and sickening *THWACK*, and Urd fell out of the
bushes dazed. Skuld set the hammer down and smiling to herself, went back to
her daydreaming. Belldandy grinned and shook her head wondering if those two
would ever grow up.
�Skuld?�
Her little sister opened one eye and looked towards the temple. �Yes,
onnee-sama?�
�Have you seen Keiichi-san this morning?�
�I think he and his sister went into town for some engine parts.�
�Oh. Thank you.�
�Mmm hmm.�
Skuld resumed being lazy as her sister went back in the house. It wasn�t
like Keiichi to leave without letting her know, Belldandy thought. She
sighed; maybe she wasn�t getting enough sleep or something. She knew that
her mood had been slowly sliding downhill, but she didn�t know why. Usually
these kinds of things never bothered her. She went back to the sandwiches
that had been neglected. Her mind neither here nor there.
* * *
Lunch soon was served with much less than the usual enthusiasm. Keiichi was
worn out from being pestered by Megumi about engine ratios and what not.
Skuld was picking food off Urd�s plate when she wasn�t looking. Urd was
picking on Keiichi trying to get him aggravated and to see his, at least to
her, funny �mad� face. And Belldandy sat silently, trying not to let her
surroundings get the best her. All the noise though was far too loud. She
sipped her tea and tried again in vain to regain peace of mind. With her
eyes closed she didn�t see the half sandwich come bearing down on her.
*plop*
Knowing full well what had just happened, Belldandy calmly set her cup down
on the table. The sandwich still atop her head, she stood slowly keeping her
calm as best she could. The room became silent and she could feel their eyes
on her. She thought she heard Urd giggle.
�Belldandy�?�
�I�m going to clean myself and go for a walk,� She took the sandwich off
her head, �and you all can clean this mess yourselves!� She threw her deli
hat down on the table and stomped off, dishes rattling as she went. The room
was way too quiet. Everyone glanced at each other.
Urd turned to Keiichi, �Uh�Keiichi?� �Hmm?� �Has she ever done that
before?� He shook his head. Urd looked to Skuld, �Do YOU remember her ever
doing that?� She too consented.
Urd sat down and scratched her head. �Maybe it was something she ate.�
* * *
Elsewhere a man smiled. �Ah, everything has been set in motion and is
proceeding smoothly.� He turned from the screen he had been watching and
walked back to his desk. Sitting down he pulled out a key and unlocked a
drawer. Reaching in and searching around he found what he was looking for.
Pulling out a thin manila folder with the words �Restricted: Unauthorized
Access in Punishable by Death.� He set it on his desk. �Soon Sashera�Very
very soon.� He laughed out loud to deaf, echoing walls.
* * *
Belldandy sighed as she ran the brush through her hair again. She couldn�t
understand why those two sisters of hers couldn�t stop fighting. Ever since
last week, everyday, every meal they fought or argued or something that was
driving her up the wall. She felt anger and she repressed it with all her
might. She couldn�t get mad; she was too composed and too mature to let
anger get the better of her.
Belldandy set the brush down on the dresser and took a deep breath to calm
down. She heard a knock on the door to her room. She got up and slid the
door open a bit; peering out in order to make sure it wasn�t Urd or Skuld.
There stood her Keiichi looking like a child ripped from its mother.
Belldandy�s mood quickly changed to pity.
�Keiichi-san, what�s wrong?� �Nothing wrong�s with me, I�m worried about
you.� Belldandy�s eyes drifted to the floor in shame. �I�m sorry,
Keiichi-san, its just my sisters have been putting me on edge lately.� She
slid the door open fully and gestured for Keiichi to come in. As he slowly
stepped in she looked behind him and down the hall making sure the others
weren�t near. She turned and shut the door.
Keiichi sat down in the middle of the room. Belldandy sat facing him and
sighed again, looking at the floor. �Bell-chan, I�m sorry if I�ve done
anything to you..� She looked up surprised and then her eyes softened.
�Kei-chan, its not you. If it weren�t for you I�d lose my mind.� She put her
hands on his shoulders. �Urd and Skuld have done nothing but fight for a
week, Mara�s been a pain, and Sayoko wont leave us alone, and no one
appreciates anything I do except you Kei-chan.� Tears starting welling up in
her eyes. �I just�I feel like�Oh, Keiichi.� She threw herself onto his
shoulder and for the first time since Keiichi first saw her, Belldandy broke
down.
Keiichi�s eyes still faced forward, not quite sure what had just happened.
He then realized that Belldandy was soaking his shirt. He knew the only
thing he knew to do, he wrapped his arms around her and held her as she let
it all out.
* * *
�Uhg. I hate doing this.� Urd picked up as many dishes as she could, and
carried them into the kitchen.
�Quit whining, you�re the one who got onnee-sama mad at us in the first
place.�
�Did not, it was you and your screaming that did it.�
�Lair, it was you.�
�You!�
�You!�
The two squared off in the middle of the room. Both looking as if they were
going for the jugular and nothing less. �Ahem!� They looked towards the
door. Megumi stood, arms crossed, her foot tapping, very annoyed.
�Will you two shut up. Geeze. I can�t remember the last time..or if ever
Belldandy got this upset.� Urd and Skuld looked at each other. �Why don�t
you two just stay away from one another for a while?� Urd suddenly perked
up.
�Good idea! I�ll just be leaving now.� She ran past Megumi. �Have fun
cleaning up Skuld.� She laughed as she went out of hearing distance.
Skuld was fuming. �Why that little� Oh!� She spun around and angrily began
to wash up. Megumi put a hand to her forehead and sighed. What was anyone
going to do with those two?
* * *
Keiichi gently laid Belldandy on the floor trying not to wake her. She had
cried for at least a half hour before surrendering to sleep. He sighed.
Women never ceased to amaze him. One minute calm, the next a storm, and the
next asleep. But his Bell-chan had never reacted like that to anything
before. Maybe she was just tired, or irritable. Nah, couldn�t be irritation.
You couldn�t get on her bad side, she didn�t have one. This was probably
just one of those freak happenings.
Keiichi felt a little relief. He certainly didn�t want all three sisters at
each other�s throats. He could just imagine what they�d do. He looked down
at the sleeping goddess. She looked just like a� Ah, you know. But he still
was wondering, what if this first class goddess with an unlimited license
went a little on the revenge side. He quickly decided he did not want to
find out.
Watching her sleep though, Keiichi could see her face. Her face was twisting
into different emotions. Anger, sadness, happiness, all of them one after
another crossed Belldandy�s face. He decided that maybe he should let her
sleep by herself for a while, or less she might wake up and kill him. He
nervously laughed at that thought as he got to his feet. He stepped out the
door turning for one last look at his goddess, hoping she would feel better
later.
* * *
Megumi was sitting in the living room watching TV when she noticed her
brother walking by. His shoulders slumped slightly and a tired look about
him. �HI KEIICHI!� She smiled at him trying to cheer him up a little.
�Hi Megumi.� Keiichi sat with a thump on the couch laying his head on the
back. He sighed.
�What�s wrong? Is it Belldandy?�
�Yeah. I�ve never seen her like this before. I mean yeah she�s been upset
and angry before, but she�s never gotten this bad. She�s never been this
depressed before either. Oy, I wish I could do something for her.�
�Oh come now, you�re at least being there for to cry on.� She pointed at
his drying shirt�s shoulder. �And besides you know Belldandy, she can�t stay
mad at anyone.�
�Heh, I guess you�re right. Must just be those two fighting all the time
that�s getting to all of us.�
Megumi could hear more yelling coming from the yard. It was faint, but it
sure was hateful. �I didn�t know Urd and Skuld were that mean to each other.
Maybe its just, ya know�that time of the month.� She giggled at her brother�
s cheeks turning a little pink.
�I really have no idea.� He laid down and put a pillow over his head trying
to drown out the arguing. �I wish they would just shut up.�
Megumi sighed, as the sound gradually grew softer as the two sisters went
out of earshot. She went back to watching TV.
* * *
Urd and Skuld were fighting again. Belldandy could hear it from
the kitchen. Why do they keep doing it? She sighed and walked out of the
temple and watched as her sisters flew back and forth, each time nearly
killing each other. They flew so fast the wind they generated was making her
dress ruffle. Their speed amazed her. She could hardly keep her eyes fixed
on them.
Something else caught her eye though. Something dark moving
quickly past the bushes and towards the two combatants. Belldandy tried to
scream out a warning, but nothing came out. She was mute. She tried running
towards her sisters, but she couldn�t move. She watched in horror as the
dark object darted directly under the fighters and then leaped.
Suddenly Urd hit the ground, dirt flew everywhere. The force of
the impact shook the temple. Skuld stopped in mid air, turned, and flew
straight toward Urd, a look of hate on her face.
�Now witch, you die!�
Belldandy was taken aback. Had Skuld just threatened Urd? She desperately
tried to move, but her body refused to obey. She �had� to do something. Then
it was over before she knew it.
Urd raised her head a bit to move out of the way, but Skuld was already
upon her. Skuld spun her hammer around. Holding the mallet, she drove the
pointed through her sister. Urd screamed in pain. Belldandy�s emotions were
out of control. Her power was not responding either; she could do nothing
for her sister. Skuld uttered a chant and a power ball formed in her hand
and ran along the shaft of the hammer into her sister�s torso. The blast
left nothing but a hole where the goddess of the past, Urd, had been.
Skuld then stood straight up. Looking to Belldandy across the yard, she
held her hammer in both hands, offering it to her now only older sister. A
tear ran down her cheek. �Onnee-sama�Kill me.� Belldandy couldn�t believe
this was happening and could only shake her head. Skuld nodded and hung her
head, letting her hammer slip out of her hand. The dark creature appeared
again behind her, and raised a shadowy arm.
Belldandy once more summoned her power unsuccessfully. The hand came down
without mercy on the head of the dark haired goddess. A sickening thwack
rang out across the temple grounds. Tears ran freely down Belldandy�s face
as the limp and lifeless body of her sister fell to the ground with a thump.
Her heart had fallen through the ground and yet she still could not even
utter a word.
�Belldandy. Where are you?�
Belldandy�s eyes turned to the side of the temple where Keiichi was coming
toward her. �There you are. There�s something I�ve been meaning to tell you
Bell-chan.�
He leaned closer to her and she could feel his breathing.
From the corner of her eye, she saw the monster bearing down on the two of
them. Her eyes widened with fear. Keiichi still spoke, seeming not to notice
the shadow behind him. �From the first time I met you, I�ve felt this
emotion in my heart��
The monster rose up behind Belldandy�s life and stood still.
�I feel like the love I have for you has moved through the heavens and
back. You are my light, Bell-chan��
Belldandy kept her eyes in the monster. She could hear Keiichi but he
sounded distant. Then she could hear another voice, not with her ears but
her mind.
�If you kill me now, your love will live.�
�No one more needs to die,� she pleaded, �please leave Kei-chan alone.�
�Kill me or he dies.�
She looked from the monster to Keiichi and back. But by that time the
shadow had formed an energy sword in its hand and began to swing downward.
�Bell-chan, will you mar-ack�
�AHHHHHHHHHHHHH! KEI-CHAN!�
Belldandy shot up from the floor to a fighting stance, energy ball in hand.
She looked wildly from side to side sweat pouring down her face. It was dark
again. Her room? She took in her surroundings. She �was� in her room.
Confused, she slumped back on to the floor, breathing a sigh of relief. The
dream she just had, it had been so real. She looked at her clothes. She
still wore the blue jeans and white shirt from that morning, not a dress.
A soft knock came from the door.
�Come in.�
Keiichi peered in as he slid the door back. Belldandy sighed with fierce
relief. Keiichi walked over to her and sat down facing her.
�Are you ok?�
She put a hand to her head, �Yeah, I�m ok.� She looked up to her love, a
smile coming to her face. He smiled back.
�Look Bell-chan, I know you�ve been up tight lately. And well, it�s it a
little late. How about we just order out tonight?�
* * *
Keiichi hung up the phone. He couldn�t remember the last time he had
ordered out for dinner. Belldandy had just woken up a few minutes before and
it was well past 7:00. He had decided not to put more pressure on her and
told her that she didn�t �have� to cook that night. Of course that went over
like a lead balloon, but she gave in when he used his patented �Keiichi�s
Look of Sadness and Get Most Anything You Want From a Woman� look. He walked
back into the living room where everyone but his Bell-chan was.
�So wadya get?� Urd looked over the couch at him
�Uh, well, I hope you all like pizza.�
Skuld got a funny look on her face. �What�s that?�
�Ha ha ha. You don�t know what pizza is?� Urd fell over on the couch
laughing.
�Shut up Urd! Its not you know everything!�
�You wanna bet you brat!�
�YEAH!�
�SHUT UP BOTH OF YOU!!!!�
Urd and Skuld froze in mid swing of fists. Slowly they turned towards the
door. Belldandy stood in the door way, panting slightly. Her fists were
clenched, her head looking at the floor, but her eyes looking straight at
the gladiators. She looked like death waiting to strike, fire seeming to
emanate from her eyes. Skuld gulped.
�Uh, hi onnee-sama.� She smiled at waved nervously. �H..How was you nap?�
�Don�t you �onnee-sama� me! I want this fighting to stop NOW or so help me
Kami-sama himself will cry when he sees what I�ve done to you!�
Suddenly she stood straight up and blinked few times. She looked around the
room. The looks of shock staring back at her. �Did I just say that?�
Keiichi�s eyes stuck in open mode, his mouth open slightly. �Did� she just
say that? Did Belldandy�could she have just threatened someone?
Urd sunk down on the couch out of sight. Skuld started to get teary eyed.
�Onnee-sama I didn�t mean to�I �I�� She burst into tears, jumped off the
couch, knocking Urd off, and ran from the room, pushing Belldandy out of the
way.
Belldandy wavered and looked over at Keiichi with questioning eyes.
�I�I�I�� Keiichi walked over and put his hand on her shoulder. �Shhhh.�
Silence took over the room. Megumi, who had said nothing or moved since Urd
and Skuld started fighting, finally said her mind. �WOW! That was awesome
Belldandy.�
Urd looked up at her from the floor and glared. �Shut up, megumi.� Megumi
ignored her and got up from her chair. Walking over to the still stunned
goddess, she gave her a pat on the back. �Good for you. It�s about time you
stood up to those two.�
Belldandy looked at Megumi, tears starting to form in her eyes. �But I didn
�t mean to�� �Sure you did and they needed it.�
Belldandy was so confused. She went silent and hugged Keiichi, her head on
his shoulder, staring blankly into space. He wrapped his arms around her in
his way of comforting her. Megumi�s face slowly fell. Urd laid on the floor
still a little shook, thinking. Skuld�s sobbing could be heard from down the
hall.
�What�s happening to me?� A tear ran down her cheek.
----- End Part One ----
Next time: What has happened to the happy family they were? Did Belldandy
ever take a day off before? Can Keiichi and Belldandy finally be alone? Why
is Belldandy actually getting angry? Why is Urd being meaner than usual? Who
invented cheese puffs? Some of these questions answered next time. Stay with
it.
Comments? Critisism? Rampent idiocy? Send to tsunami.no.ai@home.com
Ben Craton
--------
http://members.home.net/tsunami.no.ai
--------
"Ghaaaaaa! I'm an idiot!!!"
-Keiichi
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