Yukine crumpled the paper and grumbled, the scribbles now for certain illegible. Earlier, Yato had barged into his room and shoved the paper to his face as he was studying English.

"Yukine! A client needs these so out you go!"

Not quick enough to protest, he quickly found himself outside with his jacket already on. How…?

The young shinki gritted his teeth as he scanned the list. How was he supposed to make anything out of these scribbles? And that damn jersey-wearing god didn't even give an explanation! What the hell was Yato thinking?

Yukine sighed defeatedly and sat down on a bench to smooth the paper out. Focus, focus! S-a? Or was that a "z"? What item began with a 'za'? He decided to move on to the next one. G… or was that a k? K-o…? The more he read, the more his groans sounded like a disgruntled animal's cry. Why was he stuck with something like this? Why couldn't he- Yukine's eyes landed on a family, with the father tossing his son into the air as the mother laughed, telling the both of them to be careful. He slouched down on the bench and jammed one of his ands into his jacket pocket, the tips of his fingers beginning to go cold.

He returned his gaze to the list.

"It's tough to work for a god like that, isn't it?" a familiar voice giggled. Hiyori truly felt for the child, but also impressed that he was able to keep up with Yato. "Here." She handed him a wrapped riceball.

"Oh! Thank you, Hiyori!"

Hiyori returned a smile to the boy. Good, at least he was looking a little better. She asked to see the paper in his hand. "What's this?"

After savoring the few bites, he replied, "A request from a customer. They want us to get those items from the list."

She squinted at the writing and even rotated it in hopes of finding that perfect angle of legibility. She, too, sighed in defeat. "I...see."

"Right! Ah, but Hiyori, I don't want to drag you into this. It's my-"

"Yukine!" Her hands gripped his shoulders.

"Y-yes?"

"Let's march right back and demand an explanation from Yato! You deserve better than this, don't you think?"

"You're right," he answered softly.

"I can't hear you, Yukine!"

"Yes! I deserve better!" This time, his head was held high.

It didn't take long to find the minor god, who was lazing on the floor of Yukine's room snickering as flipped the page of a manga.

"Yato!" the both of shouted.

"Oh, welcome back! And you've brought Hiyori with you." He moved the book away from his face to greet them.

Yukine stomped over to reached for his collar. "What's the meaning of this list? I can't read a damn thing!"

Yato grabbed the list and released it for the wind to take it. "Don't worry about that."

At this point, Yukine had run out of energy to react.

"Wasn't that a request from a customer?" Hiyori spoke.

"Nope," Yato stuck his tongue out. "I made it."

This wasn't making any sense! This damn jersey-wearing minor wannabe god…!

Yato reached for the box behind him and presented it to Yukine. "Here you are."

Still unable to find the energy, Yukine stared at it. "What's this?" Yato pushed the box closer. Hiyori scooted closer, curious to see what was in it as well.

When Yukine lifted the cover, a sharp color bright like the skin of a tangerine caught his eye. He held the scarf in his hands to examine it. Clumsily made, but it was definitely hand-made. So this was why Yato snuck away in the middle of their chores. It was soft to the touch, and so warm when he bundled it between his fingers. Fighting back the tears was harder than the sniffling he was doing to cover it up.

Heh, who was he hiding from? "Well? You like it, right? Bet you didn't know that the great me was able to do something like this!"

"Yukine, you'd look best if you wrap it like this." Hiyori tied the scarf on the back of his neck.

Wiping the "dirt" away from his eyes, he cleared his throat, but couldn't meet Yato's eyes. "It's shitty."

The god smirked, "Heh, call it what you want, but-"he put both his arms around Yukine and Hiyori and brought them closer to him. "Now we all have something around our necks!"

Hiyori pouted but gave in and laughed. "Really, going to such lengths to get him out of the house."

Yato undid his scarf and tied one end to Hiyori's, and the other to Yukine's. "See? Our fates will always be intertwined."

Yukine hated to admit it, but as minor as Yato was, the impact he had on his life was beyond major. The regalia couldn't get the words out now (without his voice cracking anyway), but he'll properly thank him when he does.