{Chapter 18 : Noise.}
"You have all witnessed it - It is enough."
- John Proctor, The Crucible by Arthur Miller

    Back at the temple, everyone was taking turns showering off and getting changed as Belldandy discussed their plans with Peorth and Uruz in the garden. Them, along with Urd and Skuld, were sitting in a circle where several boulders provided natural seats and for those without, they floated.
    "Since they already know of us Goddesses, I thought it'd be nice to show them our Angels too. We could have a sort of Angel parade. What do you think? Urd has already agreed to it." Urd nodded, grinning inanely. Skuld looked depressed.
    Uruz was obviously keen on the idea, at least. Her head was bobbing up and down just nodding. Peorth scratched her chin for a moment, but nodded, throwing up her hands half-heartedly as if she was feigning disinterest.
    "Sure, why not?"
    Belldandy smiled and nodded. Skuld looked at Uruz, irascibly. Everyone noticed Skuld's jealous look as she fingered the Angel egg hanging around her neck. Uruz too, noticed. She remembered she was just a little more than a year older.
    "Why does Uruz get to have her angel before I do, one-sama??" Skuld whined, sadly. Uruz scratched the back of her neck, looking away apologetically. Belldandy looked at Uruz, then at Skuld.
    "I just guess she developed her powers earlier, Skuld." But Skuld still didn't look convinced. She crossed her arms crossly and sulked mightily.
    "Does that mean I'm a failure at developing my powers quickly??" Skuld protested. She looked genuinely upset. Uruz was facing the other direction now, back to the group. Skuld's unhappiness seemed to be making her uncomfortable.
    "Sorry..." Uruz muttered. Belldandy looked at Uruz, then disapprovingly at Skuld. Skuld blinked. The look turned encouraging quickly, though. Belldandy sighed in jest.
    "Skuld, we all develop at different rates. It only depends on how much you want to develop your power and prove powerful enough to have Noble Scarlet." Skuld nodded sadly. Then Belldandy held up a finger cheerfully. "And at your rate, you're just a year short of being able to have an Angel!" Belldandy smiled happily. Uruz turned back to face the group, still looking at Skuld. Skuld was paying more attention to Belldandy. Urd chuckled.
    "But don't use that as an excuse to get out of training, Skuld." Urd grinned. Skuld frowned at her.
    "Who asked for your amateur opinion, Urd?" She asked, spitingly. Urd laughed it off. She already had an angel long before Skuld was born. Then Belldandy clapped her hands for attention. She got it.
    "Please don't argue, sisters." She pleaded. She looked upset. "Come on, Skuld. You can show off Noble Scarlet next time we get the chance, ok?" Belldandy looked at Skuld. Skuld used her heels and kicked the rock she was sitting on, looking down.
    "But what if I don't?" Skuld asked. She really wanted in on this. Urd sighed and sat up.
    "Skuld, Keiichi's seen her, right? He can describe her to our friends, I'm sure. A cute Angel like that doesn't get forgotten easily, right?" Urd asked, winking at Belldandy. Belldandy caught it, and nodded. But she didn't need it, it was true.
    "Urd's right, Skuld."
    Finally, Skuld nodded reluctantly.
    "Oh, all right." She huffed. Everyone nodded. Uruz went up to Skuld as everyone gathered and made their way back to the temple. She patted Skuld on the shoulder. Skuld looked up to her as they walked. Uruz winked.
    "Don't worry. I only got mine recently too." Uruz grinned. "Your Angel is worth the wait. They all are."
    Skuld looked at her for a moment, fingered her egg, and beamed.
    "You're right."

*     *     *

    Back in the living room, everyone was waiting patiently to see what Belldandy had in store for them. Except for Keiichi, who was privy to Belldandy's plan, everyone had their guess. Megumi nudged Keiichi in the ribs as they waited for the Goddesses to come in.
    "Hey, Keiichan." Megumi whispered conspiratorially. She had a grin plastered to her face.
    "What is it, Megumi?" Keiichi asked, slightly irritated by her constant guesses to the program.
    "Do you think... they're gonna parade you as a model with all their clothes?"
    Keiichi drew back from her and stared at her with huge eyes and pinprick pupils. Megumi was still sitting there, smiling cheekily.
    "Well? Did I guess correctly?"
    Everyone's head was turned by now, looking at the Morisato siblings. Tamiya whooped once.
    "Hey, Megumi! What'cha say that make Morisato-kun look like that?!" He yelled across the table. Megumi giggled.
    "I asked Keiichan if 'she' was going to be a fashion model with all of the Goddesses' clothes on." Megumi grinned. Everyone clapped in approval.
    "Hey, great idea!" Ootaki nodded.
    "Keiichi would be a great model!" Chihiro laughed, agreeing. Tamiya was grinning.
    "Hey, Morisato-kun! Whadda they gonna make you wear, huh? huh?"
    Keiichi, faced with several pairs of expectant eyes, began to sweat nervously.
    "Hey hey! How would I know!??" Keiichi yelled over their suggestions, some lewd, some outrageous. Her outraged voice sounded most un-Belldandylike. This got everyone to stop for a moment, thinking about what Belldandy would look like if she sounded this offended. They shuddered at the impossible thought.
    "Is something the matter, Keiichi-san?" Belldandy asked as she came in with the rest of the Goddesses in tow. Keiichi looked at her and relaxed visibly.
    "Megumi was suggesting that I parade in front of everyone as a fashion model, in your fashions." Keiichi whined. She expected Belldandy to look disapproving or something.
    Her face lit up and she beamed as she clapsed her hands together.
    "Why didn't I think of that?" Belldandy said, cheerfully. Keiichi fell over with a thud. Megumi looked over to Belldandy.
    "You mean, that wasn't your plan?" She asked, incredulously. It had seemed to feasible....
    Belldandy shook her head and the group of five Megamis came in. Peorth looked smug, as if she had something good to show off. Skuld looked slightly upset, although hopeful. Uruz and Urd were smiling innocently, which was the scariest looks the group present had seen on them so far.
    "We're going to show you a little something else... although we could try that fashion show later." Belldandy said, smiling.
    "Do you all believe in.... Angels?"

*     *     *

    "I summon you, Gorgeous Rose!"
    "Come out, Holy Bell."
    "And I call forth... World of Elegance!"
    "Let's go, Silver Sapphire!"

    In the garden in front of the temple, the Goddesses called their Angels amidst a fascinated group of onlookers, summoning their Angels in many different, but equally fascinating ways. With a flutter of cloth and a small shower of transitionary down feathers, four Angels made themselves known. Everyone 'ooohed' and 'aaahed' at them as they proudly beamed at the group, hugging closely to their Goddesses. Skuld looked on, slightly unhappily that she was being left out, but she had no choice. Belldandy had warned against swallowing that egg again until Skuld's powers were reliably stable. As the group came closer to have a better look at the Angels, Keiichi caught Skuld's depressed look and came up to her.
    "Skuld? What's wrong? You jealous they've all got Angels of their own?"
    Skuld bit her lower lip and nodded. Keiichi chuckled, and suddenly thought that Skuld must have been responding more to the voice than the person. Why not play along?
    "Well, I guess you'll be ready for Noble Scarlet soon enough, Skuld." Keiichi coaxed. Skuld nodded.
    "I guess so, one-sa-" Skuld stopped herself in mid-sentence. She turned around, remembering that Belldandy was among the group in front of her. Keiichi was smiling at her, as if not knowing what Skuld was saying. Skuld stuck her tongue out at her indignantly.
    "Hey! That was mean, impersonating my sis!" Skuld protested. Keiichi scratched her head.
    "I didn't mean it. I just sound like her, was all." Keiichi replied. She didn't sound the least bit apologetic, but Skuld didn't take it to heart. It's not his fault. Skuld thought.
    Then Skuld and Keiichi joined the group. Tamiya and Ootaki were admiring World of Elegance and Gorgeous Rose respective, Chihiro was admiring Holy Bell, but all the Goddesses were looking at Silver Sapphire. Keiichi and Skuld were, too. Silver Sapphire looked a little indignant at being left out of the limelight by the three mortals there. But she noticed the rest of them, other Angels included, were looking at her all of a sudden. She rustled her wings with the distinctive tinkling, then hid behind Uruz shyly. Uruz looked left, right, and ahead. Everyone had turned to look at her.
    "Erm, guys?" Uruz asked, tentatively. She wasn't used to the attention she was recieving. Chihiro pointed behind Uruz.
    "Are those wings... real?" She asked. Silver Sapphire came out in a flash and nodded, irritatedly. She tinkled irritatedly too. (Everyone wondered how tinkling could sound annoyed.) She got touchy too, when the genuity of her hair and wings was questioned. Everything tinkled for a second. Skuld was looking at her own face in Silver Sapphire's wings. She made a few faces in it, then grinned and turned around.
    "Hey, her wings are like mirrors!" Skuld chirped happily. "Cool!" Silver Sapphire smiled widely and nodded enthusiastically. Her hair shimmered blue. Belldandy looked up at her own Angel and noticed Holy Bell looking at Silver Sapphire. The other Goddesses did the same and noticed it too. Uruz was too caught up in the attention given by the rest to notice.
    "Ah..." Belldandy uttered. "Holy Bell likes Silver Sapphire's wings."
    Truly, Holy Bell was stroking her own wing feathers, looking wishfully at the other Angel's wings. Belldandy stroked Holy Bell's feathers.
    "They're soft and beautiful, no?" Belldandy soothed. Holy Bell nodded. "Your feathers are as special as hers, Holy Bell." Holy Bell looked at Belldandy and nodded.
    Urd looked at World of Elegance, but her Angel wasn't as touchy as the other twos'. After all, who could boast an Angel with a black and white colour scheme? Apparently Urd's Angel knew that too, but she looked at Silver Sapphire all the same.
    But Peorth, well... Peorth was always the showy one, and it came to no surprise to those who noticed her expression that the two were bitterly jealous when it came to Uruz and her Angel. Urd and Belldandy noticed her look, reflected in Gorgeous Rose's face.
    "Really. So what if she's got silver wings and sapphire hair and she tinkles like a windchime? Why does she get all the attention??" Peorth asked to no one in particular. Gorgeous Rose nodded. Uruz turned to look at her seniors' reactions, and noticed that while Urd and Belldandy were still ok, her most respected adopted sister was scowling. Her smiling face drooped. Everyone looked.
    "What's wrong? Uruz?" Skuld asked. She followed the look and saw Peorth.
    "Oh."
    Indeed, everyone was looking now. Peorth was still scowling when she noticed everyone looking at her. Her scowl turned into a surprised look.
    "Eh? Why's everyone suddenly looking at me all of a sudden?"
    Uruz twiddled her fingers, looking at them with a sudden spurt of interest.
    "Well... one-sama, you don't look happy."
    Peorth caught her own feelings all of a sudden. She looked even more surprised.
    "Huh? Oh! Erm....."
    Urd shrugged nonchalantly while Belldandy looked at Peorth and her Angel.
    "Peorth..." Belldandy started. "You shouldn't let envy and pride get their way."
    Peorth looked angrily at Belldandy. Belldandy suddenly wished she hadn't said that.
    "Who said I was envious and proud??" Peorth retorted, hurt. Her voice was growing louder, and she didn't know it. She threw up her hands. "Really, I mean, must I be proud to get the attention all the time? Do I have to envy others when my attention is stolen away from me?"
    Everyone crossed their arms and nodded sadly. Peorth slumped over in defeat. Her Angel looked embarrassedly nervous as she patted Peorth's shoulders, trying to calm her down. Her Angel knew as well as anyone else there in the temple Peorth did like, nay, loved and adored to be in the spotlight, and she got irate when people took it away from her. Peorth sighed. She sounded defeated.
    "You're right. I do get envious and proud. Sometimes." Then she looked up. Uruz had dismissed her Angel, as had Urd and Belldandy.
    "Sorry I messed up. I guess everyone's angry at me?"
    Uruz shook her head.
    "Nah nah! It's me! I... well, I shouldn't have... you know."
    "No no, it's me and my ego." Peorth said, holding up a hand. Uruz shook her head.
    "No, my-"
    Belldandy looked at Urd. Urd looked at the group. They looked back.
    "Methinks we'd best leave these two alone for a while. Belldandy?"
    Belldandy smiled as Peorth and Uruz started a sort of unusual apology match, seeing who could be more self-effacing. Strange, considering Peorth. But knowing her, she didn't like to lose. Even when it came to humility. What a paradox.
 "I think we could do that fashion modelling Megumi suggested. What do you all think?" Belldandy suggested, smiling.
 Everyone cheered loudly, nearly drowning out Peorth and Uruz. Off to a side, Keiichi sighed.

*     *     *

    A full two hours later.....

    "Fine, we're both sorry." Peorth said, having reached a compromise at last. They were out in the front yard of the temple gardens, and it was growing dark. The two looked up at the sky, at the darkening clouds and the golden glow of the sun setting, bathing everything in shadows and light.
    "Geez... how long have we been debating?" Uruz asked. Peorth blinked and looked around. She shrugged.
    "I have no idea. But it's getting late." Peorth replied. She looked around again.
    "Say, where are the rest?" It was Uruz's turn to shrug.
    "No idea."
    Peorth sulked a little.
    "Great, we have a little debate and they leave without even a word."
    Just then, a great roar came from one side, and the two turned to look at the temple. There was a great flood of light coming from the backyard, and the noise was coming from there. Peorth looked at Uruz.
    "Shall we?"
    Uruz nodded.
    They both flew towards the source.

    When they got there, they stopped in midair in shock. It was all Peorth could do to stop herself from dropping out of the sky laughing. Uruz just stared on, blinking, as Urd presented a dress designed by Belldandy with the model being...
    Morisato Keiichi!?

*     *     *

    "Ok! Everyone ready!?" Urd yelled into the microphone as everyone sat in the back yard, facing the temple porch which was, at the moment, an impromptu stage. Everyone clapped and cheered and yelled. Urd grinned. It was approaching evening, but there was plenty of light to see by, most of it thanks to the Skuld Light and Effects Co. . Today had been way too much fun, even for Urd. She was enjoying herself so much she couldn't stop grinning. Everyone else was too, it showed. They were all smiling and grinning from ear to ear, clapping and cheering all the way. For a small group of people, they sure made a lot of noise. But that added to the atmosphere. Things were a lot livelier this way. Urd went 'backstage' and peered in. Belldandy was standing in front of a door, hands behind her. She was smiling too, a glad smile, not one of those over-exaggerated grins the rest outside were wearing.
    "Rearin' to go, Belldandy?"
    Belldandy nodded. The shadows made Belldandy's hair look darker than usual, but contrasted by its natural shine, Urd thought Belldandy would have made the perfect model in this light. Ah well...
    "We have liftoff!" Urd grinned. She walked outside as Belldandy went into the room to get Keiichi. She greeted the 'crowd' with open arms and a ready grin. Using her best showcase voice, Urd started the ball rolling.
    "And our first costume for the evening show is : A Belldandy logo brand name product, designed and crafted by Belldandy!" Everyone cheered.
    Keiichi came out in the first dress for the night amidst the cheers. The lights came on with a snap and shone brilliantly on her in a white glare, enhancing every fold and emphasizing every curve by effect of shadow, glint and glow, Urd was impressed by Belldandy's fashion sense. She could make Keiichi look as good as Belldandy herself and not ruin the effect. Keiichi's hair was combed close to her head on one side and held in place by moussel, while the other side was down with a fringe in a conservative but feminine fashion. Keiichi was wearing two pearl necklaces of alternating lengths, with a gold chain choker and a pair of turquioise stud earrings. Urd was impressed by what Belldandy could do with Keiichi's short hair. She started her commentary as Keiichi posed, rather nervously.
    "Our first design for the night, a beautiful evening dress worn by the exclusive model Miss Morisato Keiichi-"
    Cheers and wolfcalls, among other things. Keiichi was glad she was wearing makeup, she was blushing to death from the attention she was getting via her small, but devoted group. Urd was obviously enjoying her part as Fashion Commentator.
    "Wearing an elegant shoulderless white silk dress with double folded side hems and beautiful, lace gloves, notice it complements the sparkling silver and inlaid gemstone lace design that runs across the chest area, and down as a thick line to the waist with intricate sea life designs, done by Belldandy, of course. Note the expansive, yet soft and flowing skirt that needs no lifting and adjusting to walk properly, yet manages to sweep across the floor in a graceful and smooth manner?"
    Belldandy, from the side, cued to Keiichi to turn around. Keiichi did the best she could manage in heels. She swept around gracefully enough, the dress flowing like water to follow. Everything was featherlike as they settled after the turn.
    "And from the back, we see that a V-shaped incision emphasises our lovely lady's back without excessive exposure, and the large, soft white ribbon that trails along with the dress with ethereal beauty. Ladies and Gentlemen, allow yourselves to enjoy this award winning design brought to you by Belldandy, a member of the Goddess Fashion Corps.! Now, I shall leave you as our model parades for your viewing pleasure. Enjoy."
    Belldandy cued from the side to have Keiichi do a walk up and down the 'catwalk', which doubled for Urd's platform and everything else aside. Urd hopped off and went to meet Belldandy by the back. Belldandy was leaning against the pillar, smiling. Urd came up to her and nudged her.
    "Doing good eh, Belldandy? Where'd you come up with that design anyway?"
    Belldandy chuckled. She sighed wistfully and looked on as Keiichi turned to face them. Belldandy could see Keiichi was a little nervous.
    "I was saving it for the wedding gown I was designing. It's not done yet, but for now, it'll do. Keiichi looks marvellous in it, doesn't he?" Urd put a hand over her mouth to stop her from laughing out loud and ruining everything. Instead, she let a puff of heated air to escape through the cracks at the side.
    "Bell...Belldandy!" Urd said, half gurgling with humour. "For a 'he', Keiichi sure looks good all right!" Urd allowed herself a silent laugh, since she couldn't help it. Belldandy got the joke and giggled.
    "You're right, Urd. But still, Keiichi is going to be all right, I'm sure of it."
    But Urd didn't catch that. Keiichi had finished her rounds and was heading backstage. Urd had to go out and keep the small but loud audience waiting and hyped up for the next dress, and so Belldandy kept her little comments to herself and went backstage.

*     *     *

    A couple of hours later, everything was over and everyone packed up. Everyone was exhausted, but none moreso than Keiichi herself. Modelling was a tiring and sweaty job, Keiichi realized. The lights were a lot warmer than she was expecting, and wearing the dresses was a lot of work. Not that they were particularly heavy (not some of them, anyway.), but wearing one and prancing around made them stuffy. These were meant for indoor activities and showcases, Keiichi realized with a hint of resentment at her own ignorance about such a matter before. Right now, everyone was in the living room having tea and dinner as they discussed the day and anything else of interest. Keiichi smirked. Let them talk about her, then. She knew they would. She'd earned it.
    Keiichi herself was in the bathroom, staring at the ceiling in an ice cold tub of water. It was pure bliss to soak in the cold water after that hot and sweaty event. Keiichi let out a long, drawn out breath.
    Ah... this is the life. Keiichi thought. Cold water on a hot day. And no better way to enjoy it than alone. Keiichi grinned. Megumi had agreed to stay out of the bathroom this time. Keiichi felt a little regret for not having invited Megumi in for a talk, but they could do that later.
    For now, Keiichi kicked back, soaked, relaxed, and thought about the last few hours. She had noticed Peorth and Uruz's arrival just as she had come out, and their initial responses had been discouraging enough. But when they had warmed up to the idea, they were more than a keen and willing audience. Keiichi sighed. Being a woman was no easy task, and Keiichi hadn't even tried cooking and cleaning yet.
    Keiichi dipped her head under the water and scrubbed her face vigorously, paying special attention to the nooks and crannies of her face where some trace makeup might've found its way into and refused to leave. Then, remembering Megumi's action the other night, she scrubbed her hair too. The effect was soothing to the scalp, in addition to washing away all that mousse. She brought her head up.
    Keiichi looked at her arm. It was a darkish shade now, but not sunburnt at least. Keiichi had remembered the suntan lotion this time, fortunately. But the skin that was burnt was peeling off. Keiichi scratched her arm and watched wet flakes of dead skin stick to her arm.
    Old ways die hard, eh? Keiichi thought. Then she decided to finish her bath quickly so she would be out in time to listen to them talk and have dinner. She got out and toweled off, looking at herself in the mirror.
    Those eyes. Blue eyes, crystal clear. Like Belldandy's. Keiichi frowned in the mirror, and wondered. The skin on her face was peeling too, and in much greater force. Keiichi picked a small flake near her hairline and pulled. It came down in one neat slice. Keiichi looked at it wonderingly, and tossed it aside. Then she looked back in the mirror.

*     *     *

    Belldandy had set aside Keiichi's portion for dinner as everyone gathered around the table for a lively social gathering. They were all excited and chatty as they sat down for a wonderful dinner by Belldandy and prepared to discuss the day's matters, as well as the plans for the near future. After the usual pre-meal preperations, Chihiro started the topic as everyone dug in. Better to get the bitter medicine down first, Chihiro thought.
    "So, what's Keiichi going to go up against in Nekomi Tech when the next semester arrives, hm?" Chihiro asked as she swallowed a mouthful of rice and eel. She knew as well as anyone about what Keiichi would find waiting at the other end for.... him.
    Dinner's pace slowed visibly as everyone nodded sullenly. They were wondering how best to keep Aoshima and Sayoko from spreading horrible rumours and freaking out, respectively; Although those were interchangeable. For Uruz, who had no idea what Keiichi's school was like, her thoughts wandered to more generic things germane to the issue at hand.
    "That's true..." Belldandy said.
    Everyone looked thoughtful and forgot about dinner. Totally.
    Tamiya thought for a moment. He was thinking unusually hard today. He got an idea.
    "Couldn't we just tie up the chest and do something about the voice?"
    Skuld nodded.
    "We could do something about the voice, and it's possible to bind the chest. Morisato-kun put up a good show the last time."
    Chihiro shook her head severely. The loopholes were obvious from the word 'do'.
    "No good. Let's say someone invites Keiichi to the beach or the pool, or, against all odds, someone gets Keiichi drunk? Then what? Turn them down?"
    Everyone sweated at the thought of a drunk Keiichi and all the implications... they shook that out. Images of a drunk Keiichi stripping bare was more than they could bear to think about. The first thought was more plausible, and it was a point in Chihiro's favour. Keiichi would be expected to wear some beach wear... and with that body....
    Ootaki clapped his fist against his palm. He had an idea too.
    "Let's just say Keiichi tried to save Belldandy from a speeding car, got knocked down there, and had to go for an operation! Nobody'll-"
    Everyone (except, of course, Belldandy) tossed the heaviest thing they could lift at him. Ootaki was buried under a barrage of books, bombs, hammers, plush toys and cushions. Nobody bothered to dig him out. Chihiro sighed.
    "Two down, eight to go."
    Belldandy did some maths on her fingers. She looked confused.
    "But aren't we missing out Ootaki? He could come up with other ideas." She asked. Chihiro shook her head.
    "You really want those types of ideas? In fact, I should even discount Tamiya if he hadn't made a sensible idea at first."
    Tamiya looked relieved. At least Chihiro had some faith in him there. She was scarily blunt when she wanted to be.
    "Oh. I see... point taken." Belldandy said, thoughtfully. "But still..."
    Uruz raised a hand. Everyone looked. Uruz spoke without even thinking that it might not work, confidently and brightly.
    "Can't we just tell them we're Goddesses and something happened?" Uruz suggested. All the Goddesses shook their heads, even Skuld. Urd and Peorth shook their heads.
    "Won't do." They both said. Peorth looked at Urd. Urd looked back. Urd pointed to Peorth.
    "You first." Urd said. She didn't want to fight with Peorth over this. Peorth smiled and graciously took the honour.
    "Gladly. First off, our job is to get people into Heaven when they die, not Hell. We do that by building trust in Heaven and goodness. Even those who are unaffiliated to any religion may be affected, so we're not doing the Almighty a favour if we break their confidence by telling them something went wrong. You know how it is with preconceptions about the infallibility of us Goddesses." Everyone nodded. Strange, Peorth thought. The mortals don't even seem to be affected by the failure of a Goddess. This is interesting... But Peorth remembered Urd. She pointed at Urd. Urd cleared her throat.
    "Belldandy, remember Sayoko?" Belldandy nodded. That entire issue with Sayoko was scary. She didn't believe in the Divine, had a loose spirit feeding off that disbelief and expanding it, and she very nearly killed herself because of it. Belldandy was worried enough that Sayoko wouldn't believe in her completely, but that she would attempt suicide because she didn't believe in herself, let alone us..."
    "Well, chances are, some people just won't admit to there being Gods and Goddesses in this world and as you know then, they won't believe a word we say." Urd said. Then she muttered something nobody could hear, but was distinctly vulgar, and continued. "You know how it is that they expect us to take an active role in changing the world if we existed. Hmph, as if we don't have enough to do Up Above as it is."
    "True spoken." All the Goddesses at the table said sombrely, and shook their heads.
    Megumi and Tamiya looked at Chihiro, then at the Goddesses, and back at each other. The Goddesses had a very true, and very scary point. They didn't know what the Goddesses did up there besides Wish Granting, which was the only thing they were told about, and they wouldn't assume to know. Keiichi might've known more, but he wouldn't talk about it anyway. Megumi suddenly realized that it was selfish of them... and everyone around them... to assume that the Gods were there to help them.
    Directly. As if.
    Everyone sighed and kept thinking as Ootaki finally extricated himself from the pile of projectiles. For minutes, the air was still for lack of sound to move it, it stifled everyone and made them uneasy. Quietness pervaded the air, became palpable in the ears of those present as an everpresent pressure. Every once in a while, someone would shuffle, but that made the silence worse. Peorth scratched her head.

    *scritch* *scritch* *scitch*

    Megumi suddenly came up with an idea, a lightbulb over her head.
    "Maybe we could tell them that Urd was trying some new formula, had Keiichi try it, and well... you know! Everyone knows Urd's a chemical freak..." Then Megumi cringed suddenly, expecting to be buried like Ootaki, courtesy mostly belonging to Urd. But when she looked up, Urd wasn't angry. She wasn't even half annoyed. She was thinking.
    Everyone looked thoughtful, their faces brightening. Belldandy looked at Urd.
    "Urd? Why don't you try making that medicine now and reverting Keiichi to normal?" Belldandy suggested, too hopefully. Urd shook her head.
    "Won't do. Metamorphosis spell would just bring us back to square one. Which reminds me...." Urd said, suddenly remembering something. She looked through Belldandy's hair. Something about it seemed strange to her, even during that show. "Here, Belldandy. Lemme check your hair."
    "Metamorphosis?" Chihiro asked. She knew that word. "Is that what's happening to Keiichi?"
    But nobody heard her. Everyone was looking at Urd, looking through a surprised Belldandy's hair. Urd looked through one part of Belldandy's scalp, then another. She began to look distraught as she pulled her head back to let the light in.
    "No.....way." Urd was muttering something. "This can't be happening."
    "What can't be happening?" Megumi asked. "Urd?"
    Urd stopped the inspection and looked at them. She held out a loose strand of hair, which glinted in the light. Everyone looked. It was the usual silver-honey blonde for the most part, but at its root....
    "It's turning black."

    "GYYAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!"

    That came from the bathroom.

*     *     *

    Belldandy slammed the door open and ran in, while Megumi closed it behind her, following at a slower pace. She walked through the changing area, then into the bathroom proper. Keiichi was standing there, naked, staring into the mirror with her hands on her face. She was sobbing, Megumi could hear the choked gasps which Keiichi couldn't hold back as she took shuddering breaths. Belldandy was standing directly behind Keiichi, shaking Keiichi slightly.
    "Keiichi-san!" Belldandy cried. She was frightened. Keiichi didn't scream unless something bad had happened. She knew what bad was, because Keiichi had explained it to her once, during a dream. Only thing was, he didn't know it.
    Keiichi slowly turned and looked at Megumi through the cracks between her fingers. Megumi caught the blue glint of Keiichi's eyes, in contrast to Belldandy's now brown eyes. Megumi could see the tears running from the bloodshot eyes. Keiichi took the hands off, trembling all the way. Megumi saw them.
    "KEIICHAN!"

{End of Chapter 18}
{Chapter 19 : Beginning}