Chương 128: Chapter 122 – Chelsea the Diplomat

As they approached Chelsea's bedroom in the Wixx Manor, Freya asked, "What are our plans from here?" Chelsea slowed near the door. The hallway was quiet, and for the first time since returning to the manor, the thought of going into the room didn't make her want to hide under every blanket she owned. She still wasn't fine. She wasn't even close. But there was a difference between being fine and deciding she was tired of letting one horrible moment own every harmless part of her life.

"I haven't bathed since… umm… I think I'd like to try that," Chelsea replied. She felt disgusting. She had never gone two days without bathing. But now, she had officially gone over three weeks without bathing. The thought of removing her armor terrified her.

"Sure," Freya replied.

"Just please don't piss in the water." Chelsea let out a weak breath that was almost a laugh and opened the door. Her bathing room was exactly as she remembered it. She walked a few steps in and started the water.

"OK, can you please do that barrier thing?"

"Of course, where do you want it?" Freya asked.

"Just on the door," Chelsea said. Freya raised one hand, and a faint pressure settled over the room. It didn't look like much, but Chelsea had learned to recognize the feel of Freya's magic by now. The room became more private somehow. More contained. Chelsea stared at the door for a moment before her gaze dropped to the strap holding her shield tied to her hand. She took a deep breath. The shield had been there since she woke up the day after the Passion incident.

She only ever took it off when she was alone but never let it get too far from her. She looked deeply into Freya's eyes.

"I umm… can you promise me you won't do anything? To me, I mean. I know you won't but I just, I need you to promise." Freya's expression softened, though she didn't step closer.

"I promise I won't do anything to you without you expressly requesting it. That includes washing your back. Though, if you do piss in the water I may punch your arm." Chelsea looked at the floor and nodded.

"OK. I can totally do this." She removed the strap around her hand. She removed her Shield and stored it into her slotted pouch. She made herself breathe again, then removed her gauntlets. She pulled Looty out of her special non-slotted bag and set her gently on one of the low shelves. Then she continued. The pauldrons came next, then the belt and boots. Each piece set aside made her feel lighter and more exposed at the same time. When she stood there in only her pants and chest piece, she paused.

Freya waited near the wall, giving her space. Chelsea took another steady breath, nodded once to herself, and removed the chest piece. Finally, she took off her pants. Before she let herself think too hard, she walked quickly over to the door and tested the barrier. It held.

"I know how I look by the way," she said with a shaky voice.

"You look like yourself." Freya replied. Chelsea let out a breath of laughter.

"A frail broken girl in Celeste's body?" Celeste started pounding on the ability, but Chelsea ignored it. She only now realized she'd been walking around with multiple titles assigned. She quickly removed them all except for With Multiple Personalities. She wasn't in the mood to deal with math.

"From what I've heard Celeste had the body of an eleven year old demon with black wings, horns, and tail and orange eyes," Freya said.

"This is far from Celeste's body. This is Chelsea's body." Chelsea laughed again.

"You're good at words." She walked to the wooden tub and climbed in. She still didn't feel warm temperatures, so the water itself didn't bring the comfort it should've brought. She was sitting in the bath because she chose to. Chelsea chose to take her life back. She turned around, and Freya had already made her clothes disappear.

"Spooky Goddess magic." Chelsea wiggled her fingers at Freya, who laughed right back. They sat together at the far edge of the tub, side by side, with enough space between them that Chelsea didn't feel trapped and enough closeness that she didn't feel abandoned. Freya leaned back against the wood as if this were the most normal thing in the world.

"Hey, Freya. Tell me about how you used to look."

"How I used to look?" she asked.

"Have you always been thirty foot eight with more muscles than a… I don't know whatever people have muscles. Body builders?"

"No. No my original body was much smaller and more delicate. Much like yours but without the scary bits."

"Scary bits!?" Chelsea gasped.

"I'll have you know my horns make a natural tiara thank you." Freya playfully bumped Chelsea with her shoulder, light enough not to jostle her too hard.

"No, I was nothing like this. I slowly adapted this body over time."

"I mean, I don't hate your body. Definitely makes me feel weirdly safe next to you. But knowing it's not how you always looked just made me curious." Freya's form shifted. The towering goddess was still there in presence, but the body in front of Chelsea became smaller, softer, and younger. Short brown hair framed a face Chelsea didn't recognize, though the strange static of Freya's eyes remained.

Her voice changed with the body, higher pitched now, but still carrying the same calm confidence Chelsea associated with her.

"This is how I was reincarnated. I grew up in this world in this body." Chelsea leaned forward slightly, fascinated despite everything.

"Whoa, I didn't even think about that. You grew up in a different body like me. How different is it from your Earth body?" Freya's face shifted again. This time, Chelsea knew what she was looking at. The face in front of her looked painfully familiar in the bathroom light. Not exact, but close enough that Chelsea's breath caught. The shape of the face, the line of the mouth, and the expression beneath those strange eyes all pulled at a place in Chelsea that still remembered Earth too well. Chelsea's eyes lit up.

"Oh gods! You look just like your little sister!" She wanted to add more, but she swallowed it down. Some details didn't need to be dragged into a quiet bath. Freya smiled calmly.

"You think so?" Her eyes were still that strange television static. Chelsea had asked about it months ago and learned Freya was physically blind. It was a tradeoff for being able to see and hear everything inside her area of influence, and being a goddess made that range enormous. Chelsea still wasn't sure whether that sounded like a good trade. Freya switched back to her reincarnated form. Chelsea looked at the smaller version of Freya for a moment, then carefully wrapped her arms around her and pulled her close.

Freya let herself be moved. It felt good to be the one offering comfort for a change. Chelsea held her gently against her chest. It was only warmth, trust, and the strange relief of knowing they both understood what it meant to be shaped by a body they hadn't been born with. They sat like that for a moment. Freya's long black hair had been replaced with plain brown hair, flat and soft beneath Chelsea's fingers. In this smaller body, she seemed less imposing.

The strange eyes were still there, and the presence behind them was still Freya, but Chelsea could almost imagine the person she had been before. Chelsea buried her fingers in Freya's hair and scratched lightly at her scalp. Freya chuckled at this.

"What?"

"That actually feels really good is all," Freya replied quietly. Chelsea smiled and kept doing it. They stayed that way for some time, not saying much. The bath water shifted faintly whenever either of them moved, and the barrier on the door held the room in absolute privacy. Freya had one shoulder leaned against her. It felt strange. Good, but strange. Chelsea had spent so much time being with her guard up that simply sitting there while Freya rested against her felt almost rebellious.

"I've been thinking about my class," Chelsea finally said.

"You designed it right?"

"Yeah?" Freya replied.

"Why did you add charisma when not holding weapons?" Chelsea asked.

"Not that I mind. It's fun to see how high I can get that stat by stacking titles."

"Ah. That has a whole history lesson involved. So initially the class wasn't Havoc it was Diplomacy." Chelsea gasped.

"Whoa! Really?"

"Yeah. Still they were my favorite to talk to because they could actually hold a conversation. They all still seemed to have your quirk though. The bloodrage, or in your case, bloodlust. The smallest thing would set them off. Without anything adding to their offensive or defensive attributes they would die regularly because of this." Chelsea's hand slowed in Freya's hair as she took that in. She had thought of Havoc as something built for damage, chaos, and surviving the terrible parts of herself.

The idea that it had started as Diplomacy felt almost hilarious, but Freya's tone kept her from laughing. Did you know this story is from Royal Road? Read the official version for free and support the author.

"Why? They were still Valkyr so they should have been pretty strong." Freya scoffed with a laugh.

"No. They weren't what they are today. No, the training they received was sub-par. The others relied heavily on their boosts to their Attributes the title gave. I ended up scrapping the diplomacy subclass. While looking at concept subclasses I came across Havoc. I honestly just went with it because I thought the name was edgy and cool. It had a strange set of abilities tied to it. The spectral abilities. I eagerly awaited my first Havoc. When she finally accepted, it was strange. She was a bit like you.

Way too nice but still had the bloodrage. She didn't last long either so I tweaked the title and kept trying. To be completely transparent, the charisma was tacked on because I had it just laying around from diplomacy. I stole a little bit from a duty title here and a little bit from Law there. That's how we landed with what we have today." She laughed, but there was a tired edge under it.

"The Law title barely does anything at this point." Chelsea gasped.

"Please tell me you do something else for her!"

"No, weirdly Laws have always been some of the more competent fighters. They last longer than most Sufferings, present Suffering not included." Chelsea leaned back against the tub, still keeping one arm loosely around Freya.

"It's so easy to hear you say eight hundred years but to have you explaining generations of people like this really puts it into perspective. You're old!"

"Yeah. Yeah I am," Freya sighed.

"I used to be so into this Valhalla Freya thing. But now? I'm so bored with it." Chelsea looked down at her. The smaller body made the admission feel different. Coming from the towering goddess, it might have sounded like frustration. From this version of Freya, tucked against Chelsea's arm with her wet brown hair under Chelsea's fingers, it sounded more worn than anything else.

"Can you start something else? I mean technically you're not locked into being Freya. You're the god of battle right? So you could say fuck it and become some Greek God like… oh what was that one battle God, uh Ares or Athena? I think?" Freya sighed and sank down into the water. She reached for Chelsea's wing, careful enough that Chelsea noticed, and wrapped it around her back before leaning into Chelsea's arm.

"Is this ok?" she asked. Chelsea checked herself before answering. The contact didn't make her want to pull away. Freya had asked. She nodded.

"Yeah."

"I don't want to be the battle God," Freya said.

"I'm not even that good at fighting. I just happened to collect some godly classification armor. Then poof."

"Is it the helmet you always wear?" Chelsea asked. Freya laughed.

"No no. When I put the armor on it soaked into me. That helmet, I just wear to hide my eyes and I thought it seemed very Freya-ish."

"It definitely is defining," Chelsea sighed. She rested her chin lightly against the top of Freya's head, then shifted when she realized the gesture was maybe too much. Freya didn't seem bothered by it, so Chelsea let herself settle again.

"Everyone asks me this question and I never really understand. So I will ask you because I really want to know. Why me? Why have you decided I'm worthy of the great and powerful Freya Harrison?" Freya let out a breath of laughter.

"Freya Harrison." She pulled Chelsea's arm a little deeper around herself.

"You know I want to ask you that same question right?" she asked.

"You're kind of a bigger deal than anyone else on this continent. Have you realized that?"

"Don't change topics on me."

"Are you going to let me give you my long winded answer or not?" Freya asked, bumping Chelsea with her elbow. Chelsea had to admit, Freya was so much like her little sister that it kept catching her off guard. Her voice was different, and the eyes were still wrong in that strange way Freya's eyes were always wrong, but the mannerisms were there. The humor. The easy irritation. The way she could sound annoyed while clearly enjoying herself.

"Your strength is on par with a lower tiered A-ranker if we are comparing it to the adventurers guild in power. In six months that's unheard of."

"Yeah but I'm almost capped. I have to find a ton of historic gear to really go any further and that will put me at what, high A-rank in power? Fine but I was summoned to fight some sort of god beast. I wouldn't even match up with my mother fully capped, let alone a god." Freya remained silent as she lay against Chelsea. The water shifted gently around them, and Chelsea kept her wing where Freya had tucked it around herself. She could feel Freya thinking.

"Not necessarily," Freya finally said.

"Oh, are you about to bless me with your godly wisdom?"

"There's the Agony and the Torment."

"Ah," Chelsea sighed.

"Yeah that thing."

"Not just as a weapon. It wants you to be stronger. Have you checked your attributes lately?" Chelsea hadn't. She brought up her status, the familiar text settling into her vision.

STATUS Name: Chelsea Wixx ▸ Race: Infernal Hellspawn Demon Class: Valkyr of Havoc Profession: General Chosen Title: With Multiple Personalities Level: 1 (Fixed) Attributes Physical Strength: 1 Dexterity: 1 Constitution: 5 Stamina: 2 Mental Intelligence: 3 Wisdom: 2 Psyche: 4 Social Charisma: 6 Luck: 2 Usable attribute points 315 Titles: 17 Blessings: 1 Abilities Passive Fireproof (Racial) Attract (Racial) Bloodlust Active Instinctive Control (Racial) Shield Bash Shield Slam Auto-Shielding Havoc Spear Spectral Javelin Spectral Scythe Spectral Sky Lance(Evolved) Spectral Bulwark Heartline Strike Vaulting Spear Retreating Jab Usable skill points 126* Current Enhancements: The Perfect Outfit(soul-marked) Current Ailments: Forever Young and Beautiful (soul-marked) Chelsea stared at the number for a moment.

"315 free points," she said.

"I feel gross with those."

"Why?" Freya asked.

"315 times ten is 3150. That's about how many people I hit with my lance and scythe. Oh and a couple of javelins." Freya's expression softened, but she didn't try to make it smaller than it was.

"Yeah," she said.

"Sorry. But Agony and Torment are making you stronger without getting more gear. You could assign those points to your attributes and no longer have the stats of a level one while naked. And who knows, you may even outgrow the valkyr class and evolve again." Chelsea let the status fade from her vision and stared down at the bath water instead. She didn't like thinking of those points as useful. They were gross.

"Is that a thing? I thought hitting valkyr was the tip of the peak." Freya swirled her fingers in the water, watching the ripples move away from her hand.

"For most it is. Chelsea Wixx isn't most though. But, that evolution is a bit scary. You don't get choices. You just say yes or no to evolving."

"Why does everyone seem to think something like that about me? You're a fucking goddess, Freya. You've seen it all."

"Except someone like you. You're an enigma. Do you know how hard it is to get Bodarex's attention? You have his blessing… His fucking blessing."

"Still waiting on yours," Chelsea interrupted.

"Going to have to do battle with your little cousin to get it," Freya laughed.

"Hey," Chelsea said seriously.

"I'm not joking. I really do want your blessing. We keep bringing it up but I mean it." Freya sighed and leaned harder into her.

"Chels," she said as if in annoyance. Chelsea adjusted and twisted her body as she had when declaring they were best friends. She ran her hands into Freya's hair and scratched at her scalp with both hands.

"Gimme it or I'll stop! I swear to g… you."

"Chels," Freya sighed, but she adjusted her head so Chelsea would get certain spots.

"Please don't make me regret this." Blessing of Freya has been bestowed. Chelsea gasped.

"Really!?" she exclaimed as she did a small victory dance.

"I have to assign it. Like now!" Freya cleared her throat. Chelsea looked at her strangely, then smiled.

"My bad." She kept scratching at Freya's scalp. Blessing of Freya Blessing of Freya: A godly blessing given to those of true honor and will. Grants +1 to all numbers inside of assigned title. Grants title: The Battle Goddess's Chosen. Assign Blessing? Y/N Chelsea stared at the prompt, her hands still in Freya's hair.

"Oooh! I forgot I'd get a title too! Yes." New title acquired: The Battle Goddess's Chosen Chelsea's smile spread before she could stop it.

"That sounds so badass! Chelsea Wixx, the Battle Goddess's Chosen!"

"Oh hush. I called it that like six hundred years ago and haven't been able to change it since."

"No," Chelsea said, staring into Freya's eyes. The excitement softened into something much quieter. Chelsea leaned her forehead against the goddess's, careful with her horns, and kept her hands buried in Freya's hair.

"I mean it. It means the world to me to have something of yours show up in my status screen. I know you think it's stupid but it makes me smile. It makes me happy." She smiled with her eyes closed.

"It says you chose me." She giggled. Her smile fell slightly. Chose me? Her heart started racing. The thought arrived too quickly for her to prepare for it. She stayed still, forehead against Freya's, but everything inside her shifted. She had been happy because the title felt special. Then the reason it felt special became much harder to ignore. Oh shit. Was she falling in love with Freya? Chelsea did the only test her panicked mind could think of.

She imagined Freya in her usual giant form kissing another woman, holding her close, wanting her. The anger came fast enough to scare her. Shit shit shit. It wasn't only irritation. It wasn't friendship jealousy. It was hot and ugly and immediate, and it made Chelsea pull back as if distance would make the answer less obvious. She looked down at Freya in this smaller form and repeated the test. Then she imagined Freya with someone else while wearing the face that looked so much like Amber. Both thoughts hurt.

Both made something in her chest tighten in a way she couldn't argue with.

"Are you ok? Your heart is going crazy," Freya asked. Chelsea stared down at her friend. She didn't want more. She loved Freya, but not like that. Right? Was it the blessing?

"Do blessings implant feelings?" she blurted out. She was breathing too heavily, and she knew Freya could hear every part of it. The heartbeat.

"Chels, you're worrying me. What's going on? No. They don't unless it's written into it."

"I umm." Why would Freya be interested in her that way? Friendship made sense. Freya was a goddess. If Chelsea tried to say something and Freya didn't feel the same, it would sit between them forever. One confession in a bathtub. The rejection would always be there. The friendship changed because Chelsea couldn't keep her feelings to herself.

"Can you go back to your normal form?" Maybe that was all this was. Maybe being so close to a face that was small and delicate had crossed wires in her head.

"Sure." Freya's body changed about as fast as Bradford did when shrinking. The smaller frame lengthened and strengthened beneath Chelsea's arms. The soft brown hair returned to the long black hair Chelsea knew, and the body tucked close to her became the rugged goddess she had grown used to relying on. Oh shit. That made it worse. Chelsea felt the muscles form beneath her arms and watched Freya settle back into the shape that made her feel safest. The shape that had carried her home.

It was the Freya that had lain beside her without touching until Chelsea asked.

"Seriously, are you feeling OK? Your heart is faster now." Chelsea stared into Freya's eyes and slowly nodded. No, Chelsea.

"I'm fine," she said. The lie sounded thin and obvious. Chelsea took a breath and tried to steady herself. She needed to grow up and stop letting pain make decisions for her. She sighed.

"Freya."

"Yes?" she said calmly. Chelsea could hear her voice echoing lightly off the bathroom walls. Chelsea took a deep breath.

"I think…" She didn't have to say it. She could swallow it down, lock it away. The problem was that the words had already climbed too far up her throat.

"I think I umm…I need to tell you something."

"I need to tell you something too," Freya responded.

"You go first!" Chelsea quickly said with a laugh. Freya laughed in response.

"Fine." She lolled her head to the side, then back up.

"I'm in love with you Chels. With everything you've gone through and a lot of it my fault…" Chelsea quickly looked up at her. For a terrible second, she thought Freya might be teasing her. Maybe Freya had heard her heart and guessed what was happening. Maybe this was some joke meant to pull the tension out of the room. Then she saw Freya's face. Freya was blushing. Did goddesses blush!? Did she actually mean it?

"I… me too. I mean with you, I… I love you. I say it all the time but as friends but…" She shook her head, not knowing how to continue. Chelsea squeezed her eyes shut and tried to gather the sentence properly.

"I am beyond in love with you too." She expected Freya to lift her, pull her close, or do something that matched the wildness rushing through Chelsea. It didn't come. Then Chelsea understood why. She had made Freya promise not to try anything. Chelsea stood up from the bath. She was happy to see she was taller than Freya while Freya was seated on the floor of the tub. She reached down and grabbed Freya's hands. She pressed one to her face, then placed the other on her back, right above the wings.

She went to kiss Freya but was stopped.

"Are you sure this is what you want?" Freya said, with a finger pressed to Chelsea's lips.

"Really. Think it over. I don't want you to…" Chelsea moved the finger out of the way and pressed her lips to Freya's.