Our Goddess - Chapter 1 - The Shrine
Centuries ago, the city of Shinjoh had been the center of a vast agricultural region that grew rice and other food to feed people all across Japan. Its residents believed in Shinto spirits and gods of nature, and the people paid tribute at shrines as...
Our Goddess - Ch 2 - The Spirits
Akari awoke in an unfamiliar place that was warm, stuffy, and dimly lit by sunbeams that slipped through wooden shutters. Before her was a long workbench that ran the length of the room. The surface was coated with sawdust and there were shelves...
Our Goddess - Ch 15 - Nine Tails
Less than eight hours after the festival ended, Akari was back outside, helping the moving company pack out all the rented equipment. Inara's spell allowing humans to see the major spirits was still in effect, so they assisted as well. Inu and Usagi...
Our Goddess - Ch 3 - Recruitment
Akari was still sitting at the little table in that elegant room, trying to keep from being overwhelmed by the majestic presence of a goddess just a few feet away. After her torrent of questions, which still hadn't received any answers, Akari had...
Our Goddess - Ch 4 - Moving In
A medium sized dog with a long fluffy tail and pale blonde fur jogged ahead through the forest. Akari tried to keep up, but the path was faint and fraught with branches at inconvenient heights. Judging by the occasional hoofprints in the sandy soil and...
Our Goddess - Ch 5 - Telling Tails
Dinner was served shortly after the bath, since Usagi had started preparing it before taking a break to bathe. It was a simple homestyle meal of spicy vegetarian curry over rice with radish salad on the side. It was also absolutely delicious. "Wow!...
Our Goddess - Ch 16 - Running Wild
After that heavy and emotional conversation about Inara's needs and her nine different forms, Inu quickly returned to an oddly rambunctious mood. Over the next two days, the dog-spirit's mischief and roughhousing ramped up until it was genuinely...
Our Goddess - Ch 17 - Homewrecker
Akari was halfway dressed when her phone rang. And she actually recognized her ring tone this time. She finished pulling her t-shirt down and answered, "Hello? This is Akari." A shy-sounding voice said, "Hi, it's Hanako. I got your number from Jin....
Our Goddess - Ch 22 - Memories
Akari considered it a good thing that her shrine maiden duties at Mori-jinsha had become routine, almost boring. Once you got past the fact that her boss and coworkers were supernatural, the job was basically the same one she'd been doing for years. Of...
Our Goddess - Ch 14 - The Festival, part 2
As the sun set, the festival transformed from a marketplace into a celebration. Beautiful lanterns were suspended on long ropes to illuminate the open center of the shrine grounds, where volunteer musicians played traditional instruments. Women in miko...
Our Goddess - Ch 6 - Rendezvous
Akari stood before the imposing double doors, her legs shaking. She tugged on the sleeve of her white and red outfit, the uniform of a Shinto shrine maiden, and thought, _This is stupid. Why did I think it was a good idea to wear my miko outfit to this...
Our Goddess - Ch 10 - Bribery
Two more days went by in a flash. Everyone in the shrine, be they spirit or human, was busy preparing for the festival. Akari was on the hook for anything involving talking to other humans or traveling into town and the other girls helped around the...