Elfen High 2: Welcome and Welcome Back

[Astrolinium]

After quite some time and, likely, several miracles, Eric managed to find his way back into his room. Looking around, he noticed that some things were out of place. He sighed - Damien had just left his duster on the desk. Shaking his head, Eric went to his own desk and turned on his laptop, searching on Google for pics of adorable puppies to calm himself down after the encounter with Nyarla. Ugh, she - he - it - wasn't at all someone with whom Eric wished to sleep. Not like certain other individuals.

He chuckled softly, thinking, 'Well, technically, I've been sleeping with Damien for a month now, though I haven't been sleeping with him.'

[AETEN II]

"Ah. I was about to poke him with my sword and threaten him to not refuse the offer. And for future notice, stick a note on my hand. I can't feel anything on my head or most other areas of my body that are part of the exoskeleton. If I can feel something on my exoskeleton- that's not a good sign. I also now worry that my soul might have just been sold." Malal stated as he walked up to Nyarla, or rather, Nyarl in its current form.
"That gender swapping is creepy, even by Asgard standards. Don't try it on me- the Nazis attempted to manipulate me when they stumbled upon me in Norway. I then killed so many of them that the partisans made me an honorary member." Malal hissed as stuffed his fiendish hands into the pockets of his robes, his thumbs hooked around the part of his external pelvis that stuck out by an inch.

[The Nuclear Fist]

"Ah. I was about to poke him with my sword and threaten him to not refuse the offer. And for future notice, stick a note on my hand. I can't feel anything on my head or most other areas of my body that are part of the exoskeleton. If I can feel something on my exoskeleton- that's not a good sign. I also now worry that my soul might have just been sold." Malal stated as he walked up to Nyarla, or rather, Nyarl in its current form.
"That gender swapping is creepy, even by Asgard standards. Don't try it on me- the Nazis attempted to manipulate me when they stumbled upon me in Norway. I then killed so many of them that the partisans made me an honorary member." Malal hissed as stuffed his fiendish hands into the pockets of his robes, his thumbs hooked around the part of his external pelvis that stuck out by an inch.

"Don't worry, I don't have a use for souls." Said Nyarlathotep, her body reverting to her female form. She sat back down in her chair, kicking up her slender, well manicured feet atop a footstool. She opened her book and began reading once more, as if Malal wasn't even there. Upon noticing he was, she looked in his direction. "I don't care how many humans you killed, Malal. You are incapable of doing the same to me and we both know it. Now, unless you're here to please me or tell me something important, I would appreciate it if you would leave." Said the Outer God, pointing in the general direction of the door. She had interest in being threatened by Malal right now. She was far more interesting in the Necronomicon, which she was reading. It was an interesting book, bound in human skin.

[Nightkill the Emperor]

Another week went by. Crowley still hadn't been seen. Minh was working as the de facto head, largely because his plain nature and lack of insanity made him a stable person to revolve around. The press was not allowed in, though many students were called back home by concerned parents and governments, and were interviewed then.

Elfen High's reputation took a serious hit. It had been viewed as a "safe" place for one to learn to master their supernatural powers or seek refuge, but now that Loki was able to just enter like that....As one person put it "Not much is certain here, but this is- no kid deserves to be sent to Elfen High." Minh had no bloody idea how the finances would work or how many students would stay. But he knew this.

Crowley had his break time.

He found him where he had suspected- the Scottish bar that led to the school. The man looked dirty and disheaveled, far from his usual clean and suave look. "Have you been outside the bar at all, Al?" Minh asked quietly, placing away the bottle Crowley was drinking. Then sweeping away the various other, more potent drugs.

Crowley gave a brief laugh. "The bar's where the fun is, Headmaster. Enjoy the job. It's yours. I failed at it, how shitty can you be? You might actually try and give a fuck about the students, I sure didn't until it was too late."

Minh dragged him out of the chair. "No. Until you die- which isn't happening on my watch- you are the headmaster. Allan- Fixban, whatever- gave it to you for a reason."

"Yes, he said we needed my ruthless mind. But I think I'm done on that. Have fun with the job." Crowley laughed hollowly.

"No. It's you who needs to do it."

Crowley paused. "You still haven't given up on me?"

"Never."

"Why? Why be Karn to my Duryodhan? You have no curse, no requirement to go down with this sinking ship. You can go now, free to live your life. You don't owe anything to me. And the students would like you far better. They hate me. I kidnap them and force them to fight in glorified death matches. I'm constantly stoned, drunk, or making passes at them. They think I'm likely a rapist and a murderer. I'm insulting, arrogant, and a completely ineffectual authority. You can do my job and do it better."

"You're right. I'm not Karn. But you aren't Duryodhan. You acknowledged those flaws. You can change. And you're a soldier, frankly, and we need those now. We need a soldier and a man who can make soldiers." he said. "Crowley, Elfen High needs you. Fixban's death...the death of the students...it was preventable. But now we learned, though it was at a terrible cost. And now we can fix things."

Crowley stared at the wall with bloodshot eyes. "Alright. It's against my better judgement. But alright. I'll be coming back. Time to fix things."

He stood up. "Oh yes." Minh said before the wizard teleported away. "Lewis wanted to speak with you."

"Of course." Crowley sighed. He started to go to Lewis' room...then went to his office and took a shower and cleaned himself up.

Then he appeared in Lewis' room, to the surprise of the American. "Hello there." he said cheerfully, as though nothing was wrong or out of the ordinary.

[Nationstatelandsville]

Another week went by. Crowley still hadn't been seen. Minh was working as the de facto head, largely because his plain nature and lack of insanity made him a stable person to revolve around. The press was not allowed in, though many students were called back home by concerned parents and governments, and were interviewed then.

Elfen High's reputation took a serious hit. It had been viewed as a "safe" place for one to learn to master their supernatural powers or seek refuge, but now that Loki was able to just enter like that....As one person put it "Not much is certain here, but this is- no kid deserves to be sent to Elfen High." Minh had no bloody idea how the finances would work or how many students would stay. But he knew this.

Crowley had his break time.

He found him where he had suspected- the Scottish bar that led to the school. The man looked dirty and disheaveled, far from his usual clean and suave look. "Have you been outside the bar at all, Al?" Minh asked quietly, placing away the bottle Crowley was drinking. Then sweeping away the various other, more potent drugs.

Crowley gave a brief laugh. "The bar's where the fun is, Headmaster. Enjoy the job. It's yours. I failed at it, how shitty can you be? You might actually try and give a fuck about the students, I sure didn't until it was too late."

Minh dragged him out of the chair. "No. Until you die- which isn't happening on my watch- you are the headmaster. Allan- Fixban, whatever- gave it to you for a reason."

"Yes, he said we needed my ruthless mind. But I think I'm done on that. Have fun with the job." Crowley laughed hollowly.

"No. It's you who needs to do it."

Crowley paused. "You still haven't given up on me?"

"Never."

"Why? Why be Karn to my Duryodhan? You have no curse, no requirement to go down with this sinking ship. You can go now, free to live your life. You don't owe anything to me. And the students would like you far better. They hate me. I kidnap them and force them to fight in glorified death matches. I'm constantly stoned, drunk, or making passes at them. They think I'm likely a rapist and a murderer. I'm insulting, arrogant, and a completely ineffectual authority. You can do my job and do it better."

"You're right. I'm not Karn. But you aren't Duryodhan. You acknowledged those flaws. You can change. And you're a soldier, frankly, and we need those now. We need a soldier and a man who can make soldiers." he said. "Crowley, Elfen High needs you. Fixban's death...the death of the students...it was preventable. But now we learned, though it was at a terrible cost. And now we can fix things."

Crowley stared at the wall with bloodshot eyes. "Alright. It's against my better judgement. But alright. I'll be coming back. Time to fix things."

He stood up. "Oh yes." Minh said before the wizard teleported away. "Lewis wanted to speak with you."

"Of course." Crowley sighed. He started to go to Lewis' room...then went to his office and took a shower and cleaned himself up.

Then he appeared in Lewis' room, to the surprise of the American. "Hello there." he said cheerfully, as though nothing was wrong or out of the ordinary.

Crowley received a greeting in the form of a fist to the nose.

"I've been expecting ye'," he growled, wrapping his fingers around Crowley's throat, "We have to talk."

There was something different in Lewis' eyes, primarily that Crowley could see them for the first time. Lewis' glasses were gone, smashed during the raid on Hell. If Crowley had previously seen them, he would notice something different. Lewis had never looked old, except when he was drunk. He always seemed fiery and full of energy. Now, now he seemed weary and much more wise. He was tired. He was smarter. He was more mature. He hadn't shown up for class at all in the past week, but that's not important right now.

"There are five things that need to be done," he continued, "Things Minh should have told ye' years ago, but was much too attached to ye' to do so. I'll say this, first, though; Allan is dead. I can't say much about the man, but I can tell that ye' liked him. I know what that feels like, to lose a brother. You're gonna' miserable for a long time... hell, forever. But that doesn't mean you run away with your tail behind your leg. Ye' never have permission to do that, and before ye' ask who I am to tell ye' what to do... I am the person ye' wronged.

First, you're going to stop the gladiator matches. These kids, they aren't warriors, Crowley. Some may be, I won't deny that, and some have to be. You've started a war and you've dragged us into it. So the kids, they'll need it, but those fights, they aren't the solution. They only make the kids distrust you. No, from now on, you're going to have self-defenses classes, mandatory, for every students in this school. You'll teach combat magic and responsible weapon use.

Second, you're gonna' have the teachers and the older students patrolling the grounds whenever they aren't busy. If there had been somewhere near Lazrian, maybe this could have been stopped sooner and maybe less people would've died here. Nothing you can do will ever make ye' entirely safe, but this will help. Maybe the rabbits can help, I don't care.

Third, you're put this school in front of yourself and in front of Heaven and all else. This is not just your home, not just your job... this school is all that's left keeping me from caving your skull in.

Fourth, you're going to apologize to Minh for being such a fucking shithead. Ye' could have stopped this. Ye' something like this could happen. And you're let your arrogance blind ye'. Minh was done so much for ye', he's cleaned up after you've fucked up every time. And he does it all with you being a complete and total wreck of a human being. He doesn't deserve that. He doesn't deserve to be forced to deal with ye'. But he won't leave. So, you'll make it better for him.

Finally, you're going to be a goddamn man and stop crying. You're a godawful human being, and I would have no qualms about killing ye' right now. But Elfen High needs ye'. You're, through some divine assholery, the only thing standing between this school and the hundreds of innocents, and Nylara, who have put their lives in your grubby hands. No more disappearing. No more mourning. No more bullshit. Ye' have a job to do, pussy."

He released Crowley.

"Understand?" he asked.

[AETEN II]

As the school's reputation decreased, Malal's mood increased. Time spent with Nyarla (while at times frustrating) prevented the pendulum from swinging away into his mental void of misery, and ensured that no students in his class would end up permanently dead due to a depressed fit. The demigod also was delighted as the number of his slaves servants increased- due to the attack on the school and the various corpses he was finding around the school (there were so many that it was starting to make him wonder about this establishment's past...) and was utilizing as a new security force for the school. Sure it was no-where near the legions his Mother had at her command (his 'army' was the size of a squad), but it was something. With his throne of the undead rebuilt, and now host to corpses with skin on them, Malal felt a bit more evil- and it felt good. He now finally felt his life was beginning to smooth out, and that all the various crises he was constantly involved in were ending. It was- peace. Peace of mind. Something he hadn't felt in a very long time. Elfen High to him finally appeared to be a home, and it was one that was slowly ending his depressive fits. It truly did feel good.

But something else was also bugging the demigod, and it was something in the corner of his eye. It had always been there, but he had just never noticed it. In the main hall, wear everyone dined, there was a very large tapestry, one that had been there the entire time- but something was odd about it. The colors and designs on it always shifted, changing every night into a new form. Sometimes the tapestry itself had moved on the metal bar it hung from- appearing to be wrinkled occasionally. Only those with sharp eyes such as himself likely noticed it, and it was indeed odd. Very odd.

[Nightkill the Emperor]

Crowley nodded to Lewis. He could have escaped easily from the American's attempts at threatening him, but why bother? Lewis was right. Crowley had fucked up. And now he had to change that and make things right again. Except for one thing. "You're right on nearly everything, Lewis, and I sincerely thank you. It was a wake up call. But the gladiator fights need to continue. The school needs an another source income and I need to teach the kids how to fight for real now. The self-defense classes are certainly happening. It's long overdue. And the gladiator matches will be where they test their skills."

He removed himself from Lewis' grasp by teleporting to the other side of the room. He spoke calmly. "And take my word- I did not know about Gabriel. If I had, I never would have sent you and the others there. You have my solemn vow on it. And you have my vow that I will improve. And yes. I will apologise to Minh and set up that school guard of sorts. And thank you." he said quietly.

Then he vanished to his office. Work needed to be done.
-------------------------------------------------------------------
Raphael nodded to Ivy. "Elfen High? Hmm...that will be useful." he said quietly. "It's an uncertain situation everywhere now. Gabriel's death...yes, he did die...it affected many people. And Michael especially. My brother Michael has left Heaven now. He told Uriel that he wouldn't tolerate Uriel's unfair rules anymore. And then Michael told Uriel about his relationship with Gabriel, one Uriel would strongly disapprove of."

"Then Michael left, just like Lucifer had, but in better circumstances. We didn't have a war this time, though some angels of his military went with him. They all ended up here, and they're rather puzzled about that. Michael just teleported them here without telling them. I think my brother wishes to be alone." Raphael observed dryly.

"Heavensgate cut off ties with the Kingdom of Heaven. We avoided a war carefully. But now Uriel is the sole head of the Kingdom. And now things are...dangerous." he said. "Ivy, if you could stay here instead of coming back to Elfen High...we would appreciate it. Learning about Earth and humans is something we need to do severely. And I need a useful advisor." he said.

Ivy accepted, of course. We arranged it over TG.

Raphael smiled. "Good. Calliel will show you to your quarters. Welcome."
------------------------------------------------------------
"Welcome back." said Azazel to his guest sitting at the other end of the table.

The woman at the other end growled. "Shut up."

"I didn't say a word."

"I know what you were going to say. I failed horribly at keeping the angel locked up and failed at Loki going out to capture Gram. Shut up."

"Well, you said so yourself."

"Go die, demon."

"I love it when you're murderous. Turns me on. But Morgan, while you are in my realm, you respect me. Understood? I don't care how powerful you are or claim to be or who your masters are. I heard you and Loki trying to plot against me. Nice try. Lord Azazel didn't get to his position by brute strength alone."

"Fine."

"Good. I brought another person to our negotiation table."

"I come here to deal with my enemies- the demons and the Fae- only reluctantly. I should call for war right now. But I believe my father would wish I hear you out."

Morgan gasped in shock. "Uriel?" she screeched.

Azazel was much more calm. "Good to see you, Uriel. Yes, I have a deal that may interest you indeed..."
--------------------------------------------------
Crowley did improve over the two years. He started to enforce his authority and safety much more. Elfen High's reputation was forever soiled, but he was working hard on fixing it. He made the classes moderately more sane, though not completely- that was beyond even his power. But the self-defence classes were set, originally taught by himself and Minh, but this year he had some other people helping Minh out.

Speaking of Minh, he started doing much better. His drinking habits lowered a bit and he became good friends with Lewis and most other people. He generally preformed the duties of a biology teacher, self-defence teacher and Crowley's general right hand man.

The rabbits dwelled underground much of the time, but had an arrangement with the staff that they would not be violent except in self-defence. They became good friends with Sari and many other students.

The school started to get more people. Things were getting better.

Then Richard, when talking with Crowley on the absurdity of a rabbit being a sex ed teacher, started to have his eyes glow and chanted.

"The people of the north will fall. The black prophet will burn many. The good will be broken. The war burns."

Crowley sighed. "I do wish your bloody prophecies were more accurate, Richard." he said. The janitor could only shrug.
-----------------------------------------
In Asgard, Loki sat alone in a special cell. Just for him. Thor remarked that Loki should feel so happy- after all, didn't Loki love being one of a kind?

His powers were gone. No doubt there. Allan had truly finished the job. And the god was rapidly deteriorating. Scars were everywhere and he was nearly unrecognisable. But he had his mind.

The humans failed him. The Gods failed him. The Fae failed him. The demons failed him.

But he had never failed himself. While some didn't see any possible way Loki could see anything good here, he laughed alone in his cell. Loki had a plan. He always did. And then he would be mighty again.

He would rule.

[Nationstatelandsville]

If one had been monitoring Lewis F. Jameson the day after his confrontation with Crowley, they would have seen three extraordinary things happen.

First, he received a phone call. He said nothing during this call, simply listening. There were recordings of this call, but they were deemed meaningless by the recording party and destroyed.

Second, he left a letter on Crowley's desk. It read simply;

Dear Aleister (you are no longer something as cold as Mr. Crowley),

I am sorry. Not for what I did, you deserved that, but for what I must do now.

Something has come up. I made a mistake, though now that I think about it, perhaps it wasn't. Anyways, that's suprafluid supperfluos not important. The important thing is that I can't be here, as much I would like to be. I love Elfen High. It is the most important place in all the worlds. It is my home. I hope you'll let it stay my home while I'm gone, but I have another home to tend to for now. I'll return one day soon, you can trust me on that. You won't get rid of me that easily. But, with your bastardized excuse to make money, one that makes a muckary mokry joke of human life, I don't think I could stay here no matter. Maybe things will have changed by the time I come back. But, for now, I resine rasin quit.

Never, ever, ever, give up,
B.S.S. Lewis Jameson

Third and finally, Lewis took a call from the shadowy figure called Benson. A recording of this did survive and, thus, I am able to parlay to you what was said. Or at least part of it, the rest is classified.

"I won't do it any more, Benson."

"You have no choice, Jameson."

"You know, I've seen Hell now. I used to worry about it. But I've seen it and I know something. They're all a bunch of pussies."

"Death won't protect you, Mr. Berkowitz. You'll make yourself an enemy of the most powerful nation on Earth if you do this."

"No, Benson... you will."

Lewis left that day, in the dead of night. He exchanged letters and phone calls with Minh frequently, and only Minh knew why he had left. Lewis had made him swear to secrecy, for fear of repercussions. Repercussions from whom, Minh was never told, but he listened to Lewis, for he was a good man.

Lewis Jameson did return one day, but that, my friends, is another story.

[Nude East Ireland]

Damien continued to go to school at Elfen High. He became widely recognized, and not just for being the heir to a multi-billion dollar trading industry that stretched around the Earth ten times over. He was one of the non-magical students, one of the few only humans there, and he had shown his skills in defending the school from Loki. He himself killed a large number of demons, and saved students. While James and Jade were too busy with themselves, this young girl assumes, Damien took credit for James' and Jade's rescue from the hordes of demons. His inheritance gave him Seward Manor, and more of the possessions his uncle Owen and father Kent had saved for him, including bigger guns, more technology, and more money as well. Yes, Damien had begun to finally live it up for two years, but he never skipped his training, which allowed him to become ever stronger and more powerful.

Damien also learned that Eric was not all that bad, and several drugs made him dizzy enough to mistake Eric for Nyarla, and the two had intercourse, which this girl assumes everyone is fine with. Yet Damien never truly forgot the rush and adrenaline that Nyarla had given him. He never was satisfied with the ass he received, and wished for his own personal Nyarla.

And the nightmares of his parents and uncle grew to become normal. Most nights he would find a situation similar to the hallucinations Crowley once gave him. Death and fire.

But speaking of Crowley, Damien and the headmaster became fast friends of sorts. Damien loved much of the same things Crowley loved; alcohol, drugs, and being a bastard. Though Crowley and Damien indeed took a more modest approach after the disaster at Elfen High, Damien tried to keep up with the headmaster, and to occasionally bring him to the days of old Guinness.

And thus Damien Seward became even more powerful over the last two years, ready always for a battle or a lay.

[Hardened Pyrokinetics]

James continued his studies and worked hard at his relationship with Jade, helping to clean up and repair the school and transport the dead, even carving a new staff for himself. But nothing was ever the same for him. He had changed. He never talked about the fight with Loki, about Ivy, or about the loss of his powers. He never even lashed out when someone mocked him for being unpowered. He just sat there silently, taking the blows. Him and Jade also continued to sleep in separate beds, although James stopped seeing other people. Despite all that, everything seemed relatively normal.

Until Crowley came back. James absolutely flipped, snapping his new staff in two. He went to the principal's office to confront him. What transpired will never be known, but when he came out James was no longer a student of Elfen High. He packed up his belongings, leaving only his rapier behind for Jade, and left. For the next two weeks he stayed in contact with Jade, continuing their relationship, before disappearing entirely with one last email:

Dear Jade,

I'm sorry everything had to turn out this way. I can't forgive Crowley for his callousness, his disregard for the students, and his refusal to own up to his mistakes. I haven't told anybody this, but he tried to bribe me to stay with that stupid fucking sword Loki wanted to badly, sweet-talking me by saying I "deserved" it. Well, I told him exactly how I felt and left.

Now, I've got no home, no place to go. And that's just fine with me. This'll be the last time I talk to you. I hope you find someone else, someone better than me.

With love,

James Callahan

[Mavorpen]

Over the next two years, Izanagi noticed a slight change in atmosphere when he and the others who had major parts in the battle two years prior were around. Other students would mummer things such as, "Those are the guys who went to Hell," and "They fought Loki!" Despite this, Izanagi felt more stressed than he had ever been. Not long after the whole Gabriel/Loki fiasco, Izanagi was asked to be a school counselor along with Nyarla. He didn't know which was worse: having to help other people through their problems or work with Nyarla.

Though, things weren't really that bad. Indeed, despite Kyoko and Natsu being a pain in the ass often, they never really made his life worse. Ironically enough, they were probably the only reason he retained any shred of sanity or joy in his life. Perhaps more ironically, they were usually he only "people" he talked to. After a while, he even realized that he made a decent school counselor thanks to them. They usually gave at least some insightful comments, and they often provided a much needed secondary and tertiary perspective on things.

When he wasn't relaxing or counseling someone, he was either training, or allowing his past incarnations to use his body to train themselves or enjoy things they hadn't been able to enjoy for hundreds of years. These included food, swimming, and other activities.

[Frigola]

Izera spent the next two years keeping herself company, something at which she grew to be very proficient. Recovering quickly from the first battle, she continued her training and learning. Though she had avoided unnecessary contact with him during his teaching spell at Elfen High, she had to admit she was somewhat saddened by the absence of Lewis thereafter. Having forgiven his intrusion and realised the true intent of his actions that day, she maintained a respectful friendship with Izanagi. And though they never became really close, especially after he became one of the school counsellors, he was the closest friend she had and that was fine with her. They didn't share their secrets but each knew that the other would be willing to help in times of need.

After the battle, she found the school changed somewhat, especially in the second year. Several students graduated and stayed on as teachers, the school became less violent and dangerous and the headmaster seemed to have made a big effort to tone things down a great deal. The events of the first battle really seemed to have got to him. On the other hand, a number of the classes were just as crazy and/or dangerous as before and it was with much disapproval that Izera regarded some of the teaching methods of those teachers. For some reason, James had left the school in the middle of the year. She wondered if it had anything to do with the time he jumped in front of that lightning bolt. Either way, things were much different at Elfen High and she had mixed feelings about the new school year.

[The Inritus Extraho]

James continued his studies and worked hard at his relationship with Jade, helping to clean up and repair the school and transport the dead, even carving a new staff for himself. But nothing was ever the same for him. He had changed. He never talked about the fight with Loki, about Ivy, or about the loss of his powers. He never even lashed out when someone mocked him for being unpowered. He just sat there silently, taking the blows. Him and Jade also continued to sleep in separate beds, although James stopped seeing other people. Despite all that, everything seemed relatively normal.

Until Crowley came back. James absolutely flipped, snapping his new staff in two. He went to the principal's office to confront him. What transpired will never be known, but when he came out James was no longer a student of Elfen High. He packed up his belongings, leaving only his rapier behind for Jade, and left. For the next two weeks he stayed in contact with Jade, continuing their relationship, before disappearing entirely with one last email:

Dear Jade,

I'm sorry everything had to turn out this way. I can't forgive Crowley for his callousness, his disregard for the students, and his refusal to own up to his mistakes. I haven't told anybody this, but he tried to bribe me to stay with that stupid fucking sword Loki wanted to badly, sweet-talking me by saying I "deserved" it. Well, I told him exactly how I felt and left.

Now, I've got no home, no place to go. And that's just fine with me. This'll be the last time I talk to you. I hope you find someone else, someone better than me.

With love,

James Callahan

Jade had enjoyed the two years, well... Part of them. She had graduated, and begun teaching self-defense with Minh, until one day she woke up, and found James' rapier laying to her side on the narrow bed. She had also found an email waiting for her. She had smiled at it, and waited, talking and continuing her relationship. She didn't mind that much, she understood why he had to left.

And yet, when that last email came... She lost it, at least a bit. She cared less about everything, and became one of the first - if not the first - teacher in all of Elfen High to go in for counseling at that same school. She stopped teaching the students by example, simply making them fight. She stopped giving them shields, building more and more armor around herself, and began to hate everything.

She needed nothing, she told herself. She just needed to get stronger. And so, she layered shield after shield, and trained. Her life was no longer enjoyed, it was made of her training. She became stronger, faster, and simply better in her opinion. However, she never did draw the sword James had given her. She left it, sheathed, on her hip, opposite from her blade.

She really needed a new sword, she was afraid to use her current one (or James') with her newer strength and speed for fear of breaking it.

And as for her depression, she did get over it, a few weeks later. She went back to shielding the others, but no more than she needed to. She shielded their weapons, not them. She let them heal, instead of making sure they didn't hurt. And her strikes became stronger, her sword an invisible blade of force instead of a true weapon.

[Astrolinium]

Eric Manischewitz stood on a deserted beach in December. He was in the outer banks of North Carolina, and sand - carried by the strong wind - bit into his face. The sun was rising, painting the sky and surf a multitude of brilliant colors. Eric had always loved sunrises so much more than sunsets: he used to think that a sunset was so sad, because it meant the day was dying. His experiences at Elfen High, of course, had taught him that death was far from permanent.

He sat down on the beach blanket and smiled as he wrapped his arms around his George, his boyfriend. George was no Damien Seward in bed (Eric had very fond memories of his first time that were likely tinted heavily by nostalgia), but he was in all other respects everything that Eric thought he wanted in a man.

Eric sighed, and George asked (eyes twinkling with love), "Something wrong, baby?"

Eric hugged George closer and brushed his lips against the man's neck. "Just reliving some old memories. You know how I get at sunrises."

George smiled and said, "I do, don't I?" He rested his head on Eric's shoulder.

Eric sighed again. "George, there's something I need to tell you. I don't know how to say this, and... I should have told you before. But I just... promise me you won't react badly."

George chuckled. "What, are you coming out of the closet as straight or something?"

Eric shook his head. "This isn't a joking time."

George shrugged and said, "Then go ahead. You can tell me anything - I love you."

Eric took a deep breath and continued, "I'm magic. I can do things that normal people can't. When I whistle or hum or sing or play an instrument, I can make things happen. I can sprout extra arms and light up like a menorah, and there's probably more that I still haven't discovered."

George looked up and stared at Eric. "Oh, so I can't make jokes but you can?"

Eric brushed off his boyfriend and held out his hand. He whistled a few familiar notes and a tiny blue police public call box appeared in his palm. Eric stopped whistling and put the box in his pocket.

George's eyes were as big as saucers. The man just shook his head and repeated, "That's not possible."

George stood. "What are you?"

Eric stretched his hand out again and stepped towards George. "George, no, don't!"

George began to back away. "You're a freak! A witch!"

Eric couldn't help but see some irony in one gay man freaking out because of something another gay man was born with. "No, I'm not. I'm Eric. If you meant it when you said you loved me a moment ago, then that's all that should matter."

George just kept shaking his head. "No, it's... I don't know, but it's wrong. It's weird and unnatural and I don't care how this sounds, it's just true."

George turned around and ran. Eric sighed, furrowing his brow and looking down at the sand for a long time. He'd made a big mistake, and he was pretty sure it had cost him the first consistent relationship he'd ever had. But he'd had more than enough of hiding who he was - it was 2020, but clearly the world wasn't quite liberal and tolerant enough just yet.

Eric turned and looked at the sunset - sunrise, he corrected himself -, pulling out his cell phone. He dialed a number he'd never dialed before, but he'd looked it up just in case this had happened. As soon as the other end had been picked up, he said, "Hi. Eric Manischewitz - perhaps you remember me better as 'Gay Eric'? Anyway, Mr. Crowley, I'd like to apply for a job. I don't think the outside world is ready for me yet."

[Olthar]

As promised, Sari-chan visited the rabbits every day, bringing them new abominations of cooking for them to eat. Strangely, the rabbits seemed to actually enjoy her food, likely being the only creatures, living or dead, to claim that. Maybe they were just so fucked-up and mutated, themselves. Maybe it was just because the only thing they were eating before this was random scraps of garbage, or maybe it's just some sort of plot convenience to make this paragraph longer. Either way, Sari-chan became the de facto "official" chef for the rabbits, which caused the food bills to skyrocket.

A couple days after the attack on the school, Sari-chan found a baby rabbit, orphaned when his parents died in the attack. Deciding to adopt the bunny after Queen Cuddles said it was alright, Sari-chan named him Apple-chan when he ate an entire crate of apples that Crowley had ordered. The two got along quite well, and Sari-chan spent a lot of time with him over the next several months. Eventually, he went back to live with the rest of the rabbits when he was old enough, but he still sees Sari-chan whenever she goes down to visit them.

Things with Rayne also advanced as well when she finally broke through Sari-chan's incomparable innocence and convinced her to go all the way. Of course, there was a rather awkward conversation when Rayne had to explain to Sari-chan what "sex" was and that it wasn't a type of food. However, things were just fine after that, and once she got a taste for the pleasures of sex, Sari-chan couldn't get enough of it, her insurmountable energy and excitement carrying over into the bedroom, as well. What was worse, though, (or better, depending on your perspective), was that Sari-chan didn't exactly have a sense of shame and, for the first few months, would try and have sex with Rayne in very public places, once even in the middle of the cafeteria. It was always stopped before it went too far, of course.

Sari-chan did adequately in her grades. She was certainly no genius, but she was also one of the few who actually did her homework, at least, when she wasn't being distracted by Rayne. However, Sari-chan didn't really care about any of that. She was just there to have fun, and didn't see any purpose or importance in having high grades. She just did her homework because her teachers told her to. She just figured that it was something important to them.

During the summer break after the first year, Sari-chan decided to go home for a month to visit her parents, and she decided to bring Rayne along so that they could all meet. It was an...interesting experience to say the least. Her parents were obviously shocked to find out that Sari-chan was a lesbian, but that was all water under the bridge when she told them about the demon attack. Apparently, her parents don't watch the news, because this was the first they had heard of it. They, naturally, tried to get her to leave the school, but she refused them. Normally, with parents as stubborn as these two, this would have been the kind of thing that would tear them apart, but no one can stay mad at Sari-chan. Also, Rayne had magic powers of suggestion. So, that helped, too.

There wasn't a whole lot that happened the second year, but Sari-chan did take up a regular exercise routine. She didn't do it to keep in shape as her stomach seemed to operate under its own form of Hammerspace, and she probably couldn't become fat even if she wanted to. No, she did it for herself. Though she didn't think much of it at the time, Sari-chan had displayed a surprising level of martial skill that she didn't even know she had. She must have been a skilled fighter before coming to Earth, though she still couldn't remember anything. So, she began exercising and training in her free time in the hope that it might trigger something in her and help her remember something, but it wasn't particularly successful. She occasionally had spontaneous flashes of memory, but they were really little more than vague feelings of deja vu as she rediscovered moves and techniques from the depths of her psyche. Despite this, however, she kept with it as it made her feel good, and she figured that it would make her better prepared in case the school got into another fight, which it undoubtedly would.

Strangely, she didn't appear age even a single day during those two years. In fact, nothing about her changed. She didn't even have to get a haircut at any point. It's as if she had some sort of anti-aging powers. Or, perhaps, her player was just being lazy and didn't feel like searching for a picture of an older-looking catgirl.

[Metanih]

Rayne had a nice two years, arguably the best two of her life thus far. One more year of schooling, where she had taken Laz's advice (who would have thought?) and trained more to become a fighter on par with, or at least approaching, her girlfriend in fighting capacity. She paid attention in classes too, specifically ones that related to herself in some way, or combat. In the end, Rayne even managed to hold her own in the gladitorial combats. That was a source of pride to her, even if she disliked the concept still.

During that time, she visited Sari-chan's parents, who were nice, if a bit annoying. It had taken a bit of her charm and Sari-chan's natural adorableness, which Rayne would swear was a more powerful power than Hammerspace, to convince them Rayne was an ok person to spend time with their daughter. Of course, even with that, Rayne thought it best not to mention sex, even though Sari-chan's insatiability was hard to conceal sometimes. Half the times, Rayne had been tempted to go along, and had a particularly close moment once in the cafeteria. The other half, Rayne managed to get the pair to somewhere more socially acceptable first. Can't blame the succubus for lacking self control.

Speaking of succubi, over the summer between years, Rayne learned her origins, something that shocked her a bit, but only until she thought about it. With the help of some... unnamed... people at Elfen High, Rayne even summoned a succubus once, and it taught her a bit more of her abilities, expanding her arsenal of skills. The succubus had been a bit upset to learn that Rayne was a lesbian, expressing shock that she did not appreciate the "wonders of men." Rayne rolled her eyes, and with some help, sent the demon back to hell.

After that, Rayne applied to be the teacher of sex ed, which went shockingly well, given Crowley being Crowley. Then again, he had changed a bit, but it was still a shock that Crowley did not ask for a demonstration. That went well, and Rayne began fixing up the old classroom where she and Sari-chan had shared their first kiss. She felt it a bit fitting. Work remarkably slowed down a bit when Sari-chan helped, but work was hard to come by with the combined sexual appetites of a succubus and a catgirl, combined with the isolated location of the classroom.

All in all, Rayne really enjoyed the years. She was getting paid, had a wonderful girlfriend, and spent time in the most wonderful place on earth, especially to her.

[Amon and Friends]

At the end of the year, Pierre sat down in his mostly empty dorm room, and sighed. He almost couldn't believe that the year was over. He had graduated from school, supposedly. That amused him. He really didn't feel like he had learned that much.

On the plus side, this year was the best one of his life, so far. Of course, it had it's downsides, such as the fact that he hadn't really learned anything in the classes, and he had almost died at least once (probably a lot more than once, to be honest), but...well, it had some positive aspects as well. The biggest change in his life was that for once, he had a friend. He smiled. That was a major highlight. Unluckily, he was still single, and that was really too bad. But that wasn't really much of a priority at the moment. He was only eighteen. Romance and all that rubbish could wait.

But now, he had infinite possibilities, and he realized it. He was invincible. Bulletproof. He could do anything he wanted. And he sure as hell intended to.

He turned to Laz, who was sitting on the bed, nearby.

"Laz, I've got plans. I'm going on what's going to be one hell of a journey. Want to come along?"

--------------------------------------------------

Two years later, Pierre popped the cap off of a beer in Cancun, Mexico. He sighed. This was his last stop. He couldn't think of anything else to do, really. He ran his fingers through his hair, adjusted his sunglasses, and straightened his leather jacket.

"It was definitely one hell of a journey." he thought, as he took several sips of the low-quality alcohol.

The first stop of the journey, unluckily, happened to be a small bank in the small town of Rotherham. The bank workers who were working there on that day claim that "they shot the damn robber at least five times" and that "he ripped the doors off the bank vault", but most people passed it off as nonsense.

Pierre felt slightly bad about that, looking back. That was a bit unethical, and, really, he probably could have gotten the money in a more ethical manner, but, on the other hand, he was going to give the amount of money he stole back.

Eventually.

After that, he had bought tickets to a boat for him and Laz, and sailed to America. The first thing he did was burn all his old papers, registering his previous identity. Because, well, he had robbed a bank. He was going to pay the guy eventually, but he had a sneaking suspicion that the police would be after him eventually. When he had done that, he went off to do something that Lewis had mentioned to him once. It sounded fun, and Pierre figured that it wasn't that bad of an idea.

So, Pierre went to go punch bears in the Rockies. Unluckily, the Rockies were a bit cold for Laz, and so he went off and cooked for a restaurant for a few weeks. Punching bears, of course, was all fun and games, until, after 67 punched bears later, he managed to find, piss off, and punch a Yeti. Pierre shuddered, and took another sip of the drink. That had been nasty. He was never doing that again. He'd probably always remember that encounter, though, judging by the giant scar across his back.

After a week or two in the hospital, he had went off and partied in Vegas for a few weeks. That had been fun. Apparently, being immune to diseases also made you immune to hangovers. That was probably the most fun he had ever had. Although, he did feel a bit bad about him and Laz completely wrecking their hotel room, but, on the other hand, the hotel had overcharged him, so they deserved it.

Following that, Pierre went and trained in a martial arts dojo for about half a year. He had learned some useful stuff there. The next few months after that was mostly just ridiculous nonsense like racing trains, stacking abandoned cars in a junkyard into a giant tower in the middle of the night with Laz (admittedly, he wasn't quite sure why they did that one, but it was fun), parachuting out of airplanes, and going off Niagara Falls in a barrel. Looking back, admittedly, some of those things were rather stupid and he could have spent the time a bit more productively, but, they were rather fun.

Travelling to Mount Everest and then climbing it was also pretty great. Laz, of course, had to stay behind, because of the whole "below 0 temperatures" deal. Most of the trip was pretty easy, but he had never reached the top. About five hundred feet away from the top, he had stumbled into a Yeti cave.

Pierre scowled violently.

He fucking hated Yetis. He hated them so much.

Sighing, he took another sip of the drink. He'd have to try to get to the top of Everest some other time. After that, of course, Pierre and Laz had spent the next year travelling. Most of it was pretty enjoyable, although the time he and Laz had gone to the Louvre Art Museum was pretty terrible. Laz was a nice guy, but he had no appreciation of art. At all. Now that he thought about it, that day in North Korea was also pretty terrible. He probably still had landmine pieces stuck in his foot.

And now, exactly 730 days from the day he graduated, he was sitting in a bar in Cancun, with Laz, drinking some beer. He smiled. It had been quite the two years. He turned to Laz.

"It was one hell of a journey, wasn't it?" he said, looking slightly sad. "Of course, I told myself that I'd go back to Elfen High some day, and I can't just wander the earth aimlessly forever. Also, to be honest, we're pretty much out of money. We've got enough to buy two airplane tickets to London, but that's about it. Then again, I could be a billionaire if I wanted, but I don't want to go rob another bank. I still need to pay that man back. And, eventually, INTERPOL will find us. That's just going to end badly."

He shuddered, remembering that one night in Naples, Italy. He had been pulled over for driving with a busted headlight, and then he had almost been arrested and sent to jail in the UK. That was actually almost close. After that, he was much more careful about covering his footsteps, and he created several new identities after that. After a short moment of thought, he continued.

"I think it's time to go back to Elfen High, Laz. I talked to Crowley before I left. He said that the gates were always open. So...I bought two plane tickets to London, and we're going tomorrow."

Unluckily, speak of the devil, and he will appear. And, in this case, the devil was INTERPOL. Suddenly, the door to the bar burst open, and officers stormed in, holding M4s and various other guns. Pierre swore under his breath. They had found him. Many of the occupants of the bar dived under tables and hid, women screamed, and there was general chaos. The officer in front, a Mexican, holding a pistol, aimed his gun at Pierre.

"Stick your hands up! Faris Mohammed, you're under arrest for three accounts of armed burglary and theft, armed robbery, and vandalism of private property. Stick your hands up. You can't get away this time. We've surrounded the building."

Laz stood up, fists at the ready. Pierre shook his head at him. "I'll do this." he said, and he stood up.

Then, he started walking quickly towards the officer. The officer pulled the trigger, and then all of them fired at him. He felt a storm of bullets bounce off his chest, shredding his jacket, but bullets were minor nuisances. The officer visibly paled, seeing Pierre still standing, and started to back away. He fired all six rounds of the gun at him, and continued to pull the trigger even after all the bullets were gone. Pierre stopped walking, and stood there as every single officer unloaded every last bit of ammunition on him. Then, the last man ran out of bullets. Pierre smiled. His jacket, shirt, sunglasses, pants, and hair were all ruined, shredded to pieces, but he was fine.

"Big mistake." he said, and he dashed at the officers. He grabbed the first one by the arm, and threw him to the ground, dropped another officer with a punch, broke a leg of another with a swift kick to the shin, and dropped another one to the ground with a kick, all in a matter of a few seconds. The way he fought them was almost casual. Suddenly, one of the officers leapt at him with a knife, stabbing it at his face.

It broke.

Pierre smiled maliciously, enjoying the look of terror in the officer's eyes, and threw him into another officer, knocking him into a table. The few remaining officers paled, reaching for their knives, but they were all terrified. One appeared to be shitting his pants. He slowly walked towards each one, dispatching them with ease as he walked. The last one huddled in a corner, pulling a communications device out of his vest. Pierre snatched it out of his hands, and crushed it in his hands, dropping the pieces to the floor. Then, he slapped the terrified man, knocking him out. He smiled, and then turned to Laz.

"I think we should consider going back to Elfen High."

[Constaniana]

Over the course of two years following Loki's attack Eddie struggled to find answers about his Grandad Charlie or the mysterious auto-defence program in his head, Sheila. He failed in both pursuits however, and so resigned himself to simply staying at Elfen High, away from any threats that could trigger his horrific auto-defence program. Eddie began keeping more to himself, and even though he still remained a kind person at heart many students were afraid of him now. Oh, they wouldn't say anything like it to his face, certainly not. But he could hear whispers as he walked through the halls, and definitely saw the terrified looks many people gave him. As time went on students got even more afraid of him as the rumours about him distorted as they were passed down to the newer students. It went from warnings of "Watch out, I hear that guy can be pretty dangerous when you mess with him. Nice guy the rest of the time though," to tales describing him as a raging murderer who would kill you if you so much as looked at him funny.

He saw almost all the students from his first year graduate and simply leave or come back as teachers, which surprised him. Then again, they probably had more reasons for staying at this school than he did. The last two years had few good memories, and those were mostly things he had done for himself, by himself. Things like nursing a red squirrel or cat back to health after he saved it from dying, or hiking the West Highland Way, or things that pretty much didn't involve anyone from Elfen High. It was nice for him to be able to simply go somewhere or talk to something that wasn't convinced he had committed genocide several times over, even if that something was a cat that just slept most of the time. He barely even noticed the fact that he seemed to be getting stronger, that his endurance grew even more, and his fighting skills seemed to be mysteriously improving as well. The last part worried him of course, but Elfen High was different now. He doubted Loki was going to pop out of Laz any time soon, and that was fine by him. It would be nice having a quiet, peaceful last year before he left Elfen High, moving on with his life.

[Cthulhutu]

Raphael nodded to Ivy. "Elfen High? Hmm...that will be useful." he said quietly. "It's an uncertain situation everywhere now. Gabriel's death...yes, he did die...it affected many people. And Michael especially. My brother Michael has left Heaven now. He told Uriel that he wouldn't tolerate Uriel's unfair rules anymore. And then Michael told Uriel about his relationship with Gabriel, one Uriel would strongly disapprove of."

"Then Michael left, just like Lucifer had, but in better circumstances. We didn't have a war this time, though some angels of his military went with him. They all ended up here, and they're rather puzzled about that. Michael just teleported them here without telling them. I think my brother wishes to be alone." Raphael observed dryly.

"Heavensgate cut off ties with the Kingdom of Heaven. We avoided a war carefully. But now Uriel is the sole head of the Kingdom. And now things are...dangerous." he said. "Ivy, if you could stay here instead of coming back to Elfen High...we would appreciate it. Learning about Earth and humans is something we need to do severely. And I need a useful advisor." he said.

Ivy thought about it for a long time. And then she nodded.

"I will."

Raphael smiled. "Good. Calliel will show you to your quarters. Welcome."

The next two years were the loneliest years of Ivy's life. She, of course, agreed to help the angels. Times were dangerous. They needed her help. And she thought it would be easy. But the angels...they weren't human. She felt horribly out of place among them. They were stoic, quiet, and noble, and she was energetic, excitable, and common.

Most of the time, she was depressed. Her parents thought she was dead. James thought she was dead. Even her roommates believed that she was dead. She was almost amused. If she was alive, she would have been graduating this year. She would have had a driver's license. She probably could have had a boyfriend. Maybe even James would have been it.

But, instead, she was in Heaven, helping the angels. Of course, she felt like it was the right thing to do. The angels needed help, and it wasn't like they were mistreating her or anything. They were...friendly, if you could call it that. Human descriptions and emotions fit poorly with them.

She had changed a lot in two years. Physically, she was much different. The angels didn't have much in the way of human clothing, and her old clothes didn't fit anymore, so she wore a white robe-like dress which the angels supplied her with at most times. Her hair started to fade from green to a paler white, and her skin started to pale as well. She almost looked like one of the angels, and her mannerisms started to become similar to theirs.

It was not a happy two years, but she drew hope and happiness from the thought that she was helping others. And for Ivy, that was enough.

[Ameriganastan]

Traveling the world with Pierre(Whom Laz hadn't referred to as "Lackey" since an incident in Mississippi that involved a bottle of hot sauce, a very agitated alligator, and a high speed pursuit with the cops) was oddly enjoyable. Though there was a downside. Several downsides actually. While on his little excursion around the globe, Laz had decided to sow his wild oats. In several different countries. In other words, there were a lot of mini-Laz's running around out there somewhere. As such, and considering the situation with INTERPOl and Pierre, he decided rejoining him at school was a smart move.

[AETEN II]

Malal meanwhile seemed to grow more joyous as the misery around him spread throughout the school, his ranks further increased and his time spent with Nyarla increased as well. With news of his quest into the that dungeon and scuffle with the fallen Gabriel, Malal was also accepted back into Asgard. He wasn't installed as a god, that would take a venture grand enough to become an Epic, but he was allowed to return to his home and this made him overjoyed. Reunions with the extended family was most wonderful, and while Thor was unwary (but eventually warmed up over some mead), Odin was fairly accommodating and seemed to slightly regret allowing Loki to banish Malal- the creature certainly didn't exhibit the same loathsome behavior as Loki. While he was certainly chaotic and twisted, he did have several redeeming features, including a strong sense of loyalty. While Odin would certainly never trust Malal to guard anything, he could be let in. The only thing he had to worry about was him murdering Loki while he was in his cell, and that was an enjoyable positive.
As for his teaching, Malal continued to terrify his students with live vivisections, and he did live up to his threat of dragging those that did not miss his class for good reason and using them in his demonstrations. This proved to be a useful strategy as well, as it ensured that all participated in his classes, or at least those who were intelligent. The idiots had a habit of ending up as demonstrations repeatedly, to the point that they themselves expected it.

[The Nuclear Fist]

Nyarlathotep had a strange period. She had fulfilled her initial purpose of ensuring the destruction of a threat to Elfen High, which ended up involving the slaying of Gabriel. She had, it seemed, unwittingly cultivated a blossoming relationship with the Asgardian demigod, Malal. This resulted in repeated snogging, which (unbeknownst to her) ended with the expulsion of a vile spawn of writing, chaotic flesh. A horrible, twitching beast born of two pantheons. Nyarla did her best to ignore it, nurturing it only as much as she needed to, which included bringing it to the attention of Malal. Worried about this spawn, she attempted to contact her masters, but to no avail. Upon the birth of the wretched creature, it was as if her link to Yog-Sothoth, Shub-Niggurath, and Azathoth. This worried her immensely, although she refused to show it or discuss it. To keep her mind busy, she kept up with bedding as many lovers in the school and beyond as possible. The Outer God continued her advances on Jade, having developed a particular interest in the student, a soft spot.

As the two years passed, she felt her body changing, as if she had grown stronger. However, she was no longer capable of detecting the memories of the dead. However, she felt stronger, faster, more durable. She was however, no better at geography. Because of this, she had switched from geography teacher to counselor, along with the other one. She forgot his name. Still, a pit of worry developed within her heart. Her masters would not remain silent for so long if they did not have something planned. As she could not figure out what that could possibly be, she deduced that it was certainly not good. Little did she know just how correct she was, or how impossibly doomed she, the spawn, and Malal were. What was coming was nothing short of calamity. This thought remained stuck in her mind, even as she found solace with all manner of men, women, and other. She had taken her two summer breaks to travel to R'lyeh, but even there she was not wanted. An audience with Cthulhu was not possible, and even the nightmare creatures of that dreaded city kept their heads down and turned away from her. The myriad of otherworldly prostitutes that populated its slums, despite gladly servicing her, did not stay for the usual conversation. She was being shut out of the Eldritch realms, the invisible grip of Azathoth's wrath closing in around her throat. She needed to know why, to know if she should prepare. She needed to know if she could sleep with someone to prevent the hammer from coming down.

[Agritum]

Those two years passed fast, for Hildegard, but were full of happenings. Some pleasant, some a little less, but nothing terribly sad.
It happened that, one day, she woke up to discover that her hair was seemingly becoming more bright, while her eyes had started to assume a reddish tone. In a matter of two weeks, Hilde was full albino. Not really happy of this, she sent plenty of letters to her father, asking why that was happening. He replied, saying that it was normal decayment of the pigments of her eyes and her hair. Basically, she would have been remained stuck as an albino up until her father would have recoloured her again.

In the meantime, she had also gave up on studying offensive magic, preferring to focus on more mundane battle skills. She became a quite skilled user of knives, eventually being gifted a balisong by her father, which she called Siebenachte, since it sounded cool.
Hilde also noticed a pleasant increase in her speed, maybe due to maturation of her genes.