Snow: I wouldn't worry too much. Take might've bitten off more than he could chew this time XD But yeah, I like seeing Yato and Yukine being all protective and cute lol Thanks for reading and reviewing :)

There was still a hand in Yukine's when he woke up. He propped himself up on one elbow to regard Yato, who was sprawled across the floorboards on his back, dark hair fanning out around his head like a pillow and eyes twitching restlessly beneath their lids. Yukine wondered how he could possibly sleep on the hard wood like that, but he supposed Yato had spent centuries bumming around and hiding out in other gods' shrines when the ayakashi came out hunting at night.

Yukine held on a moment longer and then wriggled his fingers out of Yato's slack grasp. He was such a child, clinging to the most unlikely of teddy bears, but…maybe every once in a while he needed a night to be a child.

"Wake up, idiot god," he barked as he pulled himself out of bed. "What are you doing on the floor?"

Yato's eyes flew open and he blinked out through them like peering through foggy glass, a bit disoriented and muddled. "Ohhh, morning already? How'd you sleep, Yukine?"

"Better than you," Yukine surmised dryly.

"I totally– Ow!" Yato had made to stand up, but fell back and squirmed on the floor as he clutched ineffectually at his back. "My back! I feel like an old man!"

"You are an old man…"

"Don't be so mean, Yukine!"

"That's what you get for sleeping on the floor," Yukine mumbled, looking away. "By the way, what should I wear to a colloquy?"

"Just dress normally." Yato hopped to his feet with a wince and stretched out his limbs and back. "We won't be attending the colloquy itself."

"O-oh? What is the plan?"

Yato grinned, but his pupils were slitted like a cat's and sharp as steel. "Leave it to me, kiddo."

And as anxious as Yukine was about the coming ordeal, he couldn't help but relax just a little. He slipped his phone and the folded piece of paper into his pocket like good luck charms, and their weight was comforting.

Kofuku and Yato seemed as cheerful as ever as they joked around for an hour or two before it was time to leave, but Daikoku said a few gruff words of encouragement despite his stoicism. Yukine wished Hiyori was here instead of stuck in an important test. She knew how to make him feel better, and he could use her company right now.

His anxiety grew the closer it came time to go, but he did his best to keep it in check. He did trust Yato and believed he would fix things. Still, the brand on his arm, the one that marked him as a slave and a tool and a nora, itched beneath his skin like gunpowder waiting to ignite.

He was quiet as he followed Yato and the others up to Takamagahara. His footsteps grew slower as they entered a large building and traipsed down a hallway. Voices floated out of a doorway as they approached. Lots of voices.

Yukine's stomach twisted into knots. He had to face all those gods as a nora? He really hoped Yato's plan, such that it was, involved getting Takemikazuchi somewhere private before laying into him.

"It's alright, Yukine." Yato draped an arm over Yukine's shoulders and steered him into a huge chamber filled with dozens and dozens of gods and shinki standing around and chatting as they waited for the colloquy to begin.

Yukine swallowed hard and nodded. His eyes were already darting about the room, searching out the thunder god.

"Oooh, it's Ebi-chan!" Kofuku squealed as she spotted the small, dark-haired child-god across the room. "Let's go say hi!"

She grabbed Daikoku's arm and went charging off, leaving the gods she passed to scramble out of the way to avoid her aura. So much for sticking around for support. She was easily distracted.

"Don't you think you're a little underdressed?" Bishamon asked dryly as she and Kazuma drifted over. They were both wearing formal military attire, and neither seemed impressed by Yukine's street clothes and Yato's ever-present tracksuit.

Come to think of it, all the gods here were dressed up. Yukine flushed, suddenly feeling even more out of place.

"Bakagami," he hissed. "Why did you say normal clothes?"

Yato just grinned. "We aren't staying for the colloquy. We've just got some business to take care of beforehand."

"Not staying?" Bishamon frowned and then smirked. "Oh, you must be very busy, huh? Do you need to beg any more work?"

Yato's eye twitched, but he didn't defend himself. And Yukine felt bad, after what he'd overheard last night.

"We were taking care of that storm anyway, since it was nearby," he mumbled, digging his toe into the floor. "So we thought it made sense to let you know so that you didn't come too."

Yato started in surprise, and the color rose to Yukine's cheeks as he felt both gods staring at him.

"Ohhh?" Bishamon asked. "That's interesting, I thought–"

"Yatogami!" a voice called from behind them. Yukine froze and forgot how to breathe, eyes widening as the name on his arm burned like fire. Yato stilled beside him, then turned to face Takemikazuchi and touched Yukine's lower back to steer him around as well. Takemikazuchi was grinning as he approached, looking unbearably smug, while Kiun followed a pace behind with an unreadable expression. "So glad you could make it! And you even brought Shiun. Wonderful."

"Th-that's not my name!" Yukine protested, hating how his voice wavered.

The thunder god smirked. "Isn't it?"

"You are Yukine. And you are mine."

"No," Yukine said with new confidence. His eyes narrowed and his hands clenched into fists at his sides as anger won out over shame and fear. Why should he feel guilty for what this guy had done to him? Why should he be scared and weak and give the bastard the pleasure? Yato still wanted Yukine and was going to fight instead of cry like a scared child, so Yukine would too. "My name is Yukine and only Yukine. If you want a hafuri, treat your own shinki right and get one yourself."

"Oh–?"

"You heard the kid." Yato's voice held no inflection and no warmth. It was as flat as his eyes, which had lost all their life and cheer the second Takemikazuchi had opened his mouth. "Release him."

"What's going on?" Kazuma asked as he watched uneasily.

Takemikazuchi was either oblivious to or unperturbed by the sudden deathly calm hanging over Yato and continued on blithely. "I don't think you're really in any position to be making demands, are you? Now, let me tell you how this is going to work. You–"

"I think you're misunderstanding," Yato said. A chill was creeping into the very edges of his voice, threading through and under and around each note like the first breath of a winter breeze. Yukine watched him with wide eyes, taken aback by the flat, merciless sheen clouding his eyes and hardening his voice. "We aren't here to negotiate or concede to your demands, and I don't care what you thought you were going to accomplish with this. I'm not prone to showing mercy, but I'll give you the chance to release him as a gesture of goodwill."

Takemikazuchi snorted. "Your bluffing won't work on me. I know you're just a–"

"Weak, pathetic, worthless minor god," Yato finished for him, and each word cut like steel. "And that's why I'm giving you a chance, because you seem to have forgotten who I am." He stepped forward and leaned in, and Yukine had to strain to hear him as he lowered his voice. "I suppose memories aren't passed through reincarnation."

Takemikazuchi reeled back and shock clouded his face as his smug expression wavered for the first time. "H-how do you know about that?"

Yato showed no satisfaction at having seriously rattled his opponent, even if Yukine didn't understand exactly what had passed between the two gods. Yukine shivered a little. It was disturbing how that bright, cheerful light that usually warmed Yato's eyes had been dulled and smothered by an opaque film that left them flat and shadowed.

"You seem to have forgotten that I'm a magatsukami," Yato said flatly. "The magatsukami, even. I am the demon of your bedtime stories, child. You play at being a god of combat, but you've never fought a real war. I have fought for a thousand years, while you played with your lightning for amusement and threw yourself into public executions for sport." He stepped forward, and Takemikazuchi stepped back before he could catch himself. "You are but a whining child to me, and I am not amused. Don't test my patience. I have killed thousands upon thousands of humans for lesser offenses, as well as shinki…and even gods."

"Y-Yato…" Yukine stammered, although he didn't know what he wanted to say.

This was a side of his god that he had never truly seen before, a side that drew everyone's fear instinctively as it pulled the oxygen out of the air and sent a biting winter chill down the spines of anyone who drew too near. Yato normally looked so cheerful and unassuming with his goofy grin and stupid jersey, but now he was a dangerous predator that set off the alarm bells in everyone's heads. The knife-sharp words and flat tone and ancient, ice-cold eyes were out of place, and he was all the more frightening for how they stood in sharp contrast to the silly tracksuit and otherwise unassuming appearance.

He was a scary god indeed, but Yukine knew he was slipping back into his old role to protect him. And Yukine wanted to tell him to stop, because Yato had spent so long trying to break free of the stigma of being a god of calamity so that he could escape his father and be a god of fortune instead, and here he was deliberately playing magatsukami for Yukine's sake.

Yato's chilly aura seemed to attract every eye, and the room had gone deathly still and silent with everyone frozen in place and hardly daring to breathe. If Yukine was being exposed as a nora to dozens of gods at once, Yato was exposing himself as the very thing he had fought so hard to leave behind.

"Are you threatening me?" Takemikazuchi asked, shaking himself out of his shock to glower in indignation.

Say no! Come up with an excuse! You can still salvage this without making an enemy of every god in the room!

Yato leaned in, cold eyes level with the thunder god's own. "Yes."

So much for that. He was committed now.

Takemikazuchi laughed a little nervously and leaned back, apparently not having expected such a blunt confirmation either, but still threw up a shield of bravado. "You're awfully possessive of your property, aren't you?"

"Wrong. I'm awfully protective of my kid. I suggest you release Yukine before things turn ugly."

"If you killed me—which wouldn't be as easy as you seem to think it would be—I would just reincarnate anyway. His name wouldn't be released. You're bluffing."

"You think so, huh? Let me give you fair warning of what's going to happen if you don't release him."

Yato began walking forward one deliberate step at a time, each one clicking against the floor like a dangerously quiet threat. Flat eyes bore into the hapless thunder god, but those hard, black slits of pupils seemed to peel his skin back to pierce to the soul underneath. Perhaps Takemikazuchi felt the full weight of that gaze too, because he began hurriedly backing up with no further regard for pride or propriety as Yato approached. Maybe he wasn't so sure that Yato was bluffing anymore.

"I will kill you right here on heaven's doorstep, so there will be no hiding of your reincarnation," Yato said, every word heavy with promise. "Then I will hunt down your new incarnation and persuade him to release Yukine. Children tend to be eager to please, so it shouldn't be hard. If it is, then I'll force him. And if that still doesn't work, I will kill each one until I find one who is willing to cooperate."

Kiun stepped forward and then hesitated. Yukine felt like his feet were rooted to the ground, but he managed to hurry a few paces after Yato. He kept an eye on Kiun, ready to draw a borderline if it looked like he might interfere, but the other shinki didn't make a move. Either he didn't see it as a credible threat or was wary of getting involved in the affairs of gods or, perhaps, thought it would be a good lesson for Takemikazuchi to get what was coming to him. But the laissez-faire policy could change at any moment, so Yukine stayed on guard.

"You can't just do that!" Takemikazuchi spluttered. He shrank back another pace, and Yato continued advancing relentlessly. "I'm a powerful warrior and have shinki to protect me, you know! And the heavens would never overlook such an offense!"

"I've killed an entire clan of Bishamonten's shinki, and she's a hundred times the war god you are," Yato said coldly. "I'm not afraid of you or your shinki. And I'm not afraid of the heavens either." Takemikazuchi's back hit the wall behind him, and he could only watch Yato's inexorable approach with wide eyes. "You can run, you can hide behind your shinki or the heavens, but"—Yato leaned in until the gods' noses were nearly touching, and suddenly the flatness of his eyes was eclipsed by bright, cutting light that shone an ethereal blue and was as cold as ice—"I will always find you."

Takemikazuchi shrank back, pressing himself against the wall even though he had nowhere to go. "Y-you–!"

"Sekki."

Yukine was startled by the unexpected command, but obediently transformed into steel. Yato whipped one blade up to press against Takemikazuchi's neck, and he held the other in a horizontal line across the side of his body as a barrier between himself and Kiun. A defensive position for if Kiun tried to involve himself.

Which was a very real possibility now that weapons had come out, but for now Kiun just tensed and watched the proceedings with narrowed eyes. Yukine had no doubt that Kiun would come if called and would draw a borderline the second he sensed things going too far, but for now Yato was still offering Takemikazuchi a way out instead of following through on his threats and it seemed that Kiun realized it. Either that or he truly was unsympathetic to the whole naming debacle. He hadn't seemed pleased at the time either.

"Are you sure this is a good idea, Yato?" Yukine whispered into his god's mind. "Threatening him is one thing, but…"

Yato didn't answer, which didn't soothe Yukine's concerns. It felt wrong to so blatantly draw a shinki-weapon on another god in the middle of the heavens itself with the other gods clustered all around. Taboo, maybe. Yukine hoped it didn't get them into trouble.

That Yato would go so far was…

"What's it going to be?" Yato asked.

Takemikazuchi opened his mouth, and Yato whipped his hand around to cover it, switching his grip on the blade so that he didn't cut the other god. Takemikazuchi mumbled fruitlessly against Yato's hand.

"Another word of caution, before you continue." That bright, angry light lit Yato's eyes from the inside out, burning away the last of the flatness, and cold fury seeped into every word he spoke. "If you try to summon Yukine with that name you branded on him against his will, I will cut your tongue out so that you can never do it again. And then I will cut off every finger you dared touch him with, one at a time. And then I'll break every single bone in your body that I can find. And then I'll kill you and hunt down your new incarnation.

"The way I see it, you have two options of what to do with that pretty little tongue of yours: lose it or release Yukine. What's it going to be?"

He removed his hand and replaced the blade at the other god's throat. Takemikazuchi positively shrank under Yato's merciless glare.

"R-release him…"

"Wise choice. Revert, Yukine." Yato didn't even glance back as Yukine materialized just behind him. His eyes, bright with contempt and wrath, were still fixed unwaveringly on Takemikazuchi. "That you could feel him crying and screaming and didn't care means that you are unworthy of having any shinki at all. Release him. Now."

He stepped aside to leave an open space between Yukine and Takemikazuchi, but continued watching the other god like a hawk for any sign of deception. But Takemikazuchi, thoroughly cowed and hardly resembling his normal arrogant self, just raised trembling fingers and complied.

Yukine's heart jumped into his throat as the unwanted name peeled off his skin to hover in the air before him. He stared at it, every fiber of his being trembling in anticipation and willing it to just disappear.

"…I–I hereby release y-you of the name I-I've bestowed upon you…"

It cracked and shattered. There was no pain or sense of loss. If anything, Yukine felt lighter. Free. He shoved his sleeve up and frantically searched his skin. The brand was gone, and his lips trembled.

"You alright, Yukine?" Yato's gaze slid to the side to rest on Yukine for the first time, and the edges of that cold, ancient fury melted into something softer.

Yukine opened his mouth, but no words came out. He wasn't sure why he was trembling all over, why there were tears gathering in his eyes, but he was so relieved and grateful and he couldn't believe it was finally over.

He lunged forward to throw his arms around Yato and bury his tears in his chest. His arms closed around an insubstantial waist, and he realized for the first time how small Yato really was. It didn't normally occur to him since the god was taller and a bit larger than life, but Yato was so slender that he was a breath away from disappearing. It should be terrifying that such power was locked in such a small body, but there was also something unbearably fragile about it, like he might break and shatter under the pressure of everything he fought so hard to tamp down inside himself.

But Yato was strong and unbreakable and had survived for centuries and was… He was home. He was Yukine's protector, his home base, and he felt safe.

One hand pressed gently into Yukine's back, and the other stroked his hair soothingly.

"If you ever lay your filthy hands on my kid again, you won't have any hands left." The icy venom in Yato's voice was entirely at odds with the warm cocoon he was providing Yukine. "If you so much as look at him funny, I will dig your eyes out. And if you ever make him cry again, I will rip your beating heart out of your chest with my bare hands. Do you understand?"

"Y-yes," Takemikazuchi squeaked.

"Wonderful!" Yato said brightly, and suddenly the terrifying, malevolent god had been replaced by his normal cheery self. The lightness of his voice was jarring. "I'm glad we had this chat. Always a pleasure doing business with you, Take!"

Yukine tilted his head up with a sniffle. Yato looked down at him, wearing a bright smile. He smoothed down Yukine's hair one more time and pulled the cuff of his jersey over his hand to wipe away the tearstains on the shinki's face.

"Looks like our business here is concluded!" he said. "Let's go home, Yukine."

There was still a hard edge to his eyes, they still shone a little too bright and sharp, but the goofy grin stayed firmly in place as he steered Yukine around and started back across the room. Yukine threw one last look over his shoulder at Takemikazuchi, white-faced and trembling against the wall, and Kiun watching stoically from the sidelines, and mustered up a glare before turning around and following alongside his god.

He promptly became aware that every person in the room was staring at them in stifling silence. Expressions ranged from shocked to disapproving to uneasy, and Yukine felt like a bug under a microscope with the heavy weight of judgment and oppressive silence pressing in on him from all sides. He shrank against Yato's side as if he could hide from the unwanted attention.

Yato himself seemed supremely unaffected. He swerved through the ranks of statue-like, disapproving gods to grab something off the long table running along the side of the room.

"Look, there's food! Want some, Yukine?"

His voice was far too loud and cheerful in the stillness, and Yukine flinched.

"N-no…"

Yukine couldn't imagine having an appetite when his stomach was twisted in knots, and he didn't understand how Yato could be thinking about food. The god took a big bite, appetite apparently unaffected.

"Suuure?" he asked with his mouth still full. "Free food is the best! Hey, I have no idea what this is, but it's pretty good!"

Yukine swallowed and let his gaze skitter about nervously as he crept through the crowd and tried to keep up with Yato's positively bouncy pace. His eye caught on Bishamon and Kazuma still standing near the door, watching with wide eyes but understanding expressions. He cut his gaze across the wall of reproving faces and narrowed his eyes.

Why should he be embarrassed or let them make him feel like he and Yato had done something wrong? Yato had stood up to a well-respected god and thumbed his nose at the very heavens solely for Yukine's sake. How many shinki could say that their gods would do that for them? Yato was a better god than any of them, and Yukine was lucky to have him. That didn't seem like something he should be ashamed of.

So he straightened himself up, squared his shoulders, and glared out at the onlookers defiantly.

"Hm?" Yato's gaze slid to the side, and he studied Yukine with curious eyes before grinning. "Try it!"

He shoved his stolen treat in Yukine's face, smearing it all over, and Yukine spluttered and wiped at the mess ineffectually.

"Quit it, idiot god! Gross, what is that? It's so salty! How can you stand it?"

"You don't like it?" Yato leaned in and dropped his voice to a conspiratorial whisper. "Well, I still have some of the psycho bitch's candy, if you want that instead."

Yukine snorted despite himself. "You're impossible."

Up ahead, Bishamon and Kazuma exchanged a look and slipped back out into the hallway. Yato and Yukine followed them out, leaving the other gods behind. Let them talk.

"He really named you?" Kazuma asked as Yato and Yukine joined him and Bishamon a short way down the hall. He shook his head, eyes hard. "Despicable. Are you alright, Yukine?"

Yukine lifted his chin. "I am now."

"That was wrong of him, but what were you thinking?" Bishamon demanded, jabbing a finger at Yato's chest. "You called him a child and said he wasn't a proper warrior and humiliated him in front of everyone! Do you really think he'll let that go? You just made a dangerous enemy out of Takemikazuchi."

Yukine was afraid that was true. Despite what Yato had said, he was sure Takemikazuchi was a dangerous warrior with centuries of experience who wouldn't overlook such a blow to his pride so easily. Still, Yato himself was no lightweight…and was apparently frightening enough to make a high-ranking combat god back down without a fight.

"Wrong." Steel whispered at the edges of Yato's voice again, and his eyes went hard. "Takemikazuchi made an enemy out of me first."

Bishamon groaned. "Be that as it may, you just threatened a high-standing god and drew a weapon on him right in the middle of an official gathering of gods! You'll be lucky to just get a reprimand from the heavens!"

Yato shrugged. "Oh well."

"Reprimand?" Yukine looked between Yato and Bishamon. "Is he going to get in a lot of trouble?"

"Who knows?" Bishamon sighed harshly. "You might get away with it because Takemikazuchi named your shinki without permission from either of you, which will draw censure. Many gods won't be sympathetic to him and might see your reaction as justified, but… That was still a dangerous thing to do right on heaven's doorstep. And right after they executed Ebisu! Are you trying to get yourself killed?"

"Killed?" Yukine asked shrilly, new fear twisting his heart. Yato winced. "Yato–"

"Calm down, kiddo. It's not likely. They might bitch at me a little, but it's not like I actually killed him. Pulling a weapon on him isn't going to be enough to get me executed."

"He definitely deserved it, but…" Bishamon shook her head. "I'll smooth things out as best I can. I still have a bit of pull, even after Ebisu. Next time you want to threaten someone, don't do it in Takamagahara."

"Did you really have to do it in front of everyone?" Yukine asked with a sigh.

"Yep." Yato smiled, but his eyes were ice. "We were sending a message. Big-shot gods like him think they can get away with anything. Trust me, they'll think twice before messing with you again. Also, Takemikazuchi is an arrogant bastard, and it's more satisfying to break and expose him in front of everyone. You can't name a shinki again once you've released them, so you don't have to worry about him trying that again. Relax a little."

"That's not what I'm worried about," Yukine muttered.

"You fool," Bishamon groaned. "What were you going to do if he didn't back down?"

"Do?" Yato tilted his head and gave her a sunny smile. "Oh, I wasn't bluffing. I would have killed him."

She nearly choked on her own spit. "Have you no sense of self-preservation?"

"Well, why did you think he backed down? He knew I meant it. If I was bluffing, he would've called me out on it."

Kazuma's chuckle was more resigned than anything. "Well, it's been a while since we've had such good entertainment at a colloquy, anyway."

Bishamon shot him an exasperated look. "Be that as it may–"

"Yato-chaaan!" Kofuku burst out into the hallway and launched herself at Yato, squeezing all the air out of him in a tight hug. Daikoku followed at a less frenetic pace. "You were so scary! Didn't I tell you that he was scarier than Bisha, Yukki?"

Bishamon's eyebrows nearly jumped right up off her forehead.

"I told you it would work out," Daikoku said gruffly, but his eyes shone with relief.

Kazuma smiled sheepishly. "I'd almost forgotten how scary you can be."

"Did you?" Yato asked, his eyebrows arching over eyes that still held more than an edge of steel. He patted Kofuku on the head and disentangled himself from her grip.

"Ah, maybe not."

That reminded Yukine of his other fear, and he turned on Yato with a scowl.

"What were you thinking?" he asked. "What made you think it was a good idea to play god of calamity in front of everyone?"

Yato tilted his head, eyes more curious than cold now. "It's not a big deal."

"It is! You've spent so long trying to escape that, and now they're all going to see you as a magatsukami again! Don't give them or your father the satisfaction."

"Oh dear, you have a point." Yato huffed out an annoyed breath. "Father's going to jump all over this when he hears about it, and he has eyes everywhere. 'Yaboku, you're back in the business of calamity? Wonderful, help me beat this video game level and then kill these people for me!' What a pain."

Yukine's gaze jumped to Bishamon and Kazuma. "Shhh, don't–"

"They already know that the sorcerer is my father, remember?" Yato said dismissively. "Nosy bastards."

"Forget that," Yukine huffed in acknowledgement. "You're missing the point. It's not worth pulling up the past again."

"Oh? I thought it was." Yato shrugged and tapped a finger on his lips thoughtfully. "It's like… Think about it like a nora. I have different names for different purposes, right? Yaboku, Yato, god of calamity, god of war, delivery god, whatever. A god of war is more useful when fighting ayakashi, but less useful for housemaid wishes, yeah? I can be many things, and each has its place. I usually try to avoid Yaboku and magatsukami because those belong to Father and he isn't a master I like to serve, but they can be useful at times like this. As far as I'm concerned, they're a tool to be used in certain situations, not a permanent state of being. So maybe everyone will look at me a little funny, but it's not something I'm going to lose any sleep over. Don't worry so much."

"Nora…?" Yukine frowned, something from their conversation a couple nights past tugging at his memory. "Not all noras are bad… You were talking about yourself?"

"Huh?" Yato blinked at him in bemusement and then laughed. "No, I was talking about noras."

"Not all noras chose to become strays," Yukine mumbled under his breath, searching for the way the pieces connected.

"But I did choose to become a nora, didn't I?" Yato tipped his head with a small smile. "I was named Yaboku and created as a magatsukami. If I didn't choose to become a stray, Yato never would have existed.

"Look, Yukine, the point I was trying to make is that a name is exactly what you make of it. Names are important because you define them and they define you. You have to choose what you want to define you. Takemikazuchi's name turned you into a tool, something less than human, and you didn't like it. You've already created yourself as Yukine. It's not so much about the master you serve as the relationships it defines and the person you've chosen to become. You created Yukine, and you protect that name and fight off the chains you don't want in order to preserve the identity you've forged. It's not bad to have other names, as long as they're names that are part of you. But like I said, if it's a name you don't want, I'll fix it."

Yukine opened his mouth, closed it again. What defined him? What was 'Yukine', then? What was it, exactly, that he had chosen to define him? What was he fighting to protect?

That sounded like something that would require some soul-searching if he wanted a concrete answer. Which probably wasn't a bad thing. If there was anything worth figuring out in this world, it was himself.

"Yato-chan is so wiiise!" Kofuku cooed.

"You do have a brain after all," Daikoku muttered. "Who would've thought it?"

"Whatever." Yato turned and started back down the hallway with a bounce in his step. "Noragami. I like it!"

Yukine facepalmed. "Seriously?"

"Oh, and thanks for the info, psycho bitch!"

"Ooh, let's go, Yukki!" Kofuku said as she and Daikoku headed after Yato. "I bet Hiyorin is waiting to hear how things went!"

Yukine smiled sheepishly at a fuming Bishamon. "Sorry about my idiot master."

Bishamon just rolled her eyes. "Yato will be Yato. Whatever name he goes by, he's still a stupid bastard."

Whatever name…? Yukine's breath caught in his throat.

I'm sorry your father won't release you, Yato. I wish I could make him release you like you made Takemikazuchi release me.

"Don't judge him too harshly, Yukine." Kazuma cast a look after Yato's retreating form before focusing solemn eyes on Yukine. "It's a bit of a shock to see that side of him when you haven't truly experienced it before, but you know there's more to him than that. People have a hard time seeing through to the real him since he hides it so well, but…

"You know, I haven't seen him form close relationships with any shinki, really—aside from that nora, but I got the feeling that one wasn't entirely positive. But he saw something in you, something worth fighting for, and he chose you. And you chose him, which is something few people have done. See if you can't find the real him buried in there somewhere like he found the real you.

"You chose each other. Your name isn't just about what master you serve. You belong to him, and he belongs to you." Kazuma smiled gently. "So you should be proud of your name. It's a gift, a promise, a bond. No one has the right to interfere with that, and it is something worth protecting and fighting for."

"Y-yeah!"

The real Yato, huh? The one that wasn't quite that cold god of calamity or that obnoxiously, naïvely cheerful god who didn't take anything seriously. The one that was something more complex, buried deep under centuries of defenses, that was a little bit of both and a little bit of something else entirely. Maybe the Yato that peeked through on the nights where Yukine needed a protector, a hug to cry into, a hand to hold.

Yato wasn't an easy god to understand at the best of times and Yukine had little hope of unraveling and understanding centuries in such a short while, but there would be time to figure it out.

Bishamon stared at Kazuma and then smiled a little to herself. Yukine liked watching them together. He hoped that he would be with Yato long enough to have a relationship that deep and close and meaningful. But even though he and Yato hadn't really been together all that long, he felt like they did have something special.

"Yukine!" Yato called back, already halfway out the door. "Hurry up before we leave you behind!"

"Coming!" Yukine bowed to Bishamon and Kazuma. "Thank you for all your help."

He ran after Yato, feet slapping against the floor, and the god waited for him in the doorway despite his good-natured threats. For now, he pushed aside all the philosophical questions. The unwanted name was gone for good, he was still Yukine and only Yukine, and Yato was here to stay.

"You are Yukine. And you are mine."

And for now, that was enough.

Unsurprisingly, Hiyori was waiting for them at home, anxious for news. "What happened?" she demanded as soon as they walked inside. "Are you okay, Yukine? Is everything fixed?"

Kofuku laughed. "Aw, it's really too bad you missed it! It was a great show!"

Yukine grinned and pride swelled in his chest. "Yato was totally badass!"

His eyes shone as he regaled a wide-eyed Hiyori with the tale of his god's exploits. Whether or not Yato's public spectacle had been a good idea, Yukine couldn't help but feel a warm sort of happiness when he recalled how fiercely protective Yato had been. Every time Yato had called Yukine his kid instead of just fighting to protect his property—"Wrong. I'm awfully protective of my kid." The way he had been willing to square off against the heavens and thought it was worth it to bare the fangs he tried so hard to hide just for Yukine's sake. How he stood by Yukine through everything and took the time to soothe the pain away.

Yato slouched against the opposite wall with his hands shoved in his pockets and one foot kicked back against the wall idly, watching silently from a distance with half-lidded eyes that were still a little too sharp but fond while Yukine and Kofuku talked over each other and Hiyori gaped and Daikoku started on lunch. He didn't move until his phone rang. Then he whipped it out of his pocket, answered it with his usual upbeat greeting, and listened to the voice on the other end of the line.

"Okay, okay, I'll be right there!" He flashed Yukine and the others a grin. "Looks like I've got a job. I'll be back in a bit!"

"Wait!" Yukine jumped up. "I'll come with you."

Yato flapped his hand dismissively. "It's just organizing some kitchen."

"Your jobs are my jobs too." Yukine flushed and added in a grumble, "Besides, there could always be an ayakashi hiding in the fridge."

Something fragile shimmered in Yato's eyes and his smile held a hint of shy gratitude and quiet contentment, and Yukine wondered if maybe he'd gotten a brief glimpse of the hidden Yato underneath all the masks.

"Whatever you say, kid." Yato's smile widened into his normal grin, and he slung an arm over Yukine's shoulders as he teleported. "I could use an assistant for the dirty parts!"

"Idiot god!"

You are Yato. And you are mine.

Note: Wow, sorry it turned all philosophical there. I was a psych major, and sometimes it shows when I get really into analyzing characters and sniffing out connections X)

In short, don't mess with Yato's kid. He has no patience for this BS lol Much nicer to keep friendly Yato instead of waking absolutely-freaking-terrifying Yato XD I'm sure y'all want a real beat-down, but I suck at writing fight scenes lol And I can't see that going over well at a colloquy anyway. Yato can be scary enough without it, ha ha.

And yay, bonding moments :3 I am a sucker for bonding moments.

UPDATE: Someone drew some really cool fanart for this story! Check it out here: nerdismysafespace-01. tumblr [.com]/post/180147821515/a-rose-by-any-other-name-by-mnemosynes-elegy-so-i [just remove spaces and brackets]. It's super cute :)