Yukine was looking over the shopping list Daikoku had given him when Yato came bouncing into the kitchen with a goofy grin.

"Yukine, we've got a job!" the god said as he waved his phone around emphatically.

Yukine fixed him with a flat stare. "Does it involve cleaning someone's bathroom?"

"Well…"

"Then I'm busy. I'm going shopping for Daikoku and Kofuku."

"But I'm your master!"

"And you refuse to help out around here even though they're giving us a place to stay, so I'm doing it for you. You're welcome. Have fun with your bathroom." Yukine walked right past his whiny master to pull on his shoes.

"But what if there's an ayakashi?" Yato whined, trailing after him.

"In the bathroom?"

"There could be!"

"If there's an ayakashi haunting the guy's toilet bowl, I'll make sure to apologize to you later."

"I'm going to hold you to that," Yato said with a huff. "You're such a disobedient shinki."

"I don't know what to tell you. I'm an eternal teenager. Isn't that my job?"

"Man, kids are such a pain. Fine, fine, I'll do it myself. But don't expect me to share the money!"

"You won't share your five yen? Wow, I am just shattered to hear that."

"Yukineee, you're so meaaan."

"Start charging more and get some more interesting jobs, and maybe you'll actually be able to tempt me."

Yato frowned at the floor and muttered, "You know I can't afford to do that."

Yukine was so used to Yato just rolling with the punches that he was taken aback by the sudden serious note. It was true that Yato was afraid to charge more and lose what jobs he managed to scrape up and that he would obviously prefer to get more high-profile and interesting jobs, but he rarely complained about it seriously. He'd whine and play along with everyone's ribbing, so Yukine generally considered it fine to be sarcastic about it without wondering if it genuinely bothered him.

He felt a small pang of remorse. "Yato, I–"

Yato vanished into thin air, and Yukine let out a breath and rolled his eyes. Well, at least he'd have some peace and quiet to go shopping instead of being stuck hanging around someone's nasty bathroom with a hyperactive god.

Kofuku poked her head into the kitchen, glanced around, and headed over to rummage through the fridge. "You know," she said, "you can put off Daikoku's chores to go on Yato-chan's jobs with him."

"Actually, they're a nice excuse not to go," Yukine muttered, hovering by the door. "Most of his jobs are annoying. Sometimes he makes me help, but half the time he does it all himself and I just sit around and wait for him. It's like I'm just there in case he runs into a random ayakashi or something. Like we're going to find one in some old guy's bathroom."

"Well, it is helpful to keep your shinki close in case you run into an unexpected phantom," Kofuku said. She peeked around the fridge door to smile at Yukine. "But he probably just wants your company."

Yukine blinked at her. "Huh?"

"Yato-chan doesn't like to be alone. He's been alone so long that he gets lonely, you know? He likes having you around. He probably just wants you to keep him company, even if it's a job he could really do by himself."

"O-oh… You really think so?" Way to make him feel like a jerk.

"Yep! You don't have to go everywhere with him, but maybe go on even the silly jobs every once in a while. I'm sure he'd appreciate it!"

Yukine scowled at the floor as he stomped off to the front door. "Would it kill the idiot to just say that?"

Kofuku's laughter floated after him. "Yato-chan is great at talking but horrible at communicating!"

"You can say that again… Well, I'll be back in a little while."

Yukine stuffed the shopping list into his pocket and sucked in a lungful of fresh air. He weaved around pedestrians as unnoticed as a ghost and headed in the general direction of the grocery store. It was pleasantly warm and an awful nice day—way too nice to waste thinking about his idiot god or wondering if he should be stuck in a stuffy bathroom instead.

It looked like he would probably have to go on Yato's next dumb job with him, so he might as well enjoy his break while he could. So instead of going straight to the store, he abandoned the road halfway there to tramp through the grass and sit beneath the cherry tree. It wasn't blooming anymore, but he smiled a little sadly anyway and leaned back in the grass to stare up at its branches. A gentle breeze tugged at his hair, and he let the sunny warmth seep into his skin and soothe away his tension.

The sheer serenity of the place threatened to lull him to sleep, and he was just beginning the process of coaxing himself to get up and go to the store already when he was interrupted.

"So, you're the hafuri?" someone asked from behind him.

He sat up and twisted around. It took him a second to place Takemikazuchi and his shinki Kiun. He had no particular love for either the thunder god or his lightning dragon. Past interactions, of which there had been few, had been generally negative.

"Did you need something?" Yukine asked coolly as he pulled himself to his feet and crossed his arms over his chest.

The dark-haired god tsked and shook his head. "An ill-mannered one, but we can fix that. Really, it's a shame to waste a hafuri on such a worthless minor god. Kiun."

Kiun's lips tightened. "Again, I feel obligated to tell you that I disapprove. This is highly inappropriate."

"I don't particularly care. Go."

Yukine slid his wary gaze back and forth between them. "What's going on?"

Kiun, living up to his reputation, moved like lightning and darted forward. Yukine whipped his hand up, intending to draw a borderline, but Kiun grabbed his wrist and twisted his arm behind his back before grabbing the other.

"Hey!" Yukine cried. He struggled and kicked backwards into the other shinki's leg, but Kiun didn't even flinch. "What do you want?"

"Kiun here refuses to become a hafuri for me, so I'm going for the next best thing," Takemikazuchi said with an unpleasant smile.

"I would ask you to reconsider," Kiun said in a flat voice.

"Would you be quiet already? In case you've forgotten, I'm your master. Hush." Takemikazuchi's gaze swept over Yukine in an appraising, almost hungry fashion. "I can't say that I remember your name, but I suppose it doesn't matter anymore."

"My name is Yukine."

"Not anymore, it isn't." Takemikazuchi chuckled as if he'd just said something dreadfully clever and raised his hand in a familiar gesture.

Yukine's eyes widened. "No…"

The truth hit him like a ton of bricks, and his anger morphed into bone-chilling panic. He squirmed and struggled and thrashed about and yelled at the top of his lungs, but Kiun's grip was iron and Takemikazuchi never wavered. Blood rushed in Yukine's ears, nearly drowning out the damning words, but the kanji grew in the air as a series of glowing lines trailing after the god's moving finger.

"Stop it!" Yukine cried. He flinched back, shrinking into as small a target as possible now that his options for escape had been exhausted, but it wouldn't do any good and there wasn't anywhere to hide with Kiun holding him. "Leave me alone! I already have a master and a name!"

The kanji hovered in the air for a moment longer and then sank into the skin of Yukine's left forearm where it burned like acid. He gaped at it, his mind still reeling and unable to comprehend the horror, while Kiun let him go and stepped back and Takemikazuchi laughed in delight.

"Wonderful!" the god said. "I'm dying to see what form you'll take, but I think I'll wait. I don't make a habit of using noras, not even that one I named. I'll wait until I persuade your worthless little god to release you."

"What?" Yukine's head snapped up.

"He's such a minor god that he won't be able to stand up to me. Anyway, who wants a nora? I doubt it will be hard to convince him to let you go."

Yukine's breath caught in his throat. Yato wouldn't…

"Let me go!" he wailed. "Get it off!"

"Tell your god to meet me at the colloquy and we'll settle this. I look forward to working with you soon, Shiun."

"Th-that's not my name!"

Takemikazuchi smiled a pleased little smirk. "Isn't it?"

He turned away, followed by a stoic Kiun, and Yukine lunged after him.

"Release me!"

"Tell him about the colloquy. Remember."

Yukine's hand closed on empty air as the god and his shinki disappeared into thin air. He stared at the empty space where they had just been and then collapsed to his knees with a choked sound. His heart pounded erratically as he stared down at the damning name branded in red on the soft skin of his inner arm.

He was a nora. A reviled, disgusting, disloyal nora. A nora served many masters and was often loyal to none. Submitting to a new master was disloyal, disrespectful…unforgivable?

But he hadn't wanted to! He didn't want to be a nora or have a new master.

Was this some kind of karma? He didn't appreciate Yato enough, so the world threw him a new master. He was a disobedient shinki, wasn't that what Yato had said? So disobedient that he'd gone and gotten himself another name. If he had just gone with Yato on the job like he should have, like he was supposed to, then this never would have happened.

What was he going to do?

What would Yato do? He wouldn't abandon Yukine, would he? He had stood by Yukine before, even to the point of near-death, so surely he wouldn't… But would he be mad? Would he think it was Yukine's fault? He had used Nora for a long time, but would he accept his hafuri becoming a nora? Would Takemikazuchi force him to capitulate even if he didn't want to? What was Takemikazuchi planning?

"What am I going to do?" he whispered, his voice breaking. He buried his face in his hands, and tears leaked through his fingers. He sniffled loudly and choked back a sob.

He felt violated and dirty, like the brand on his arm had turned him into something less than human. He was a nora, and he was ashamed of it. Just a few minutes ago he had been happily enjoying the scenery, idly toying with the idea of doing his chores, and now he was suddenly a broken shinki.

He sucked in a breath as a sudden thought hit him. If he didn't get himself under control now, Yato was going to know something was wrong. He might even blight Yato just from how guilty he felt.

Yukine had no idea how to solve his problems, so he focused on the one thing he could do: calming down. He curled into a ball on the ground and took deep, shuddering breaths. It wasn't easy to tamp down the blinding panic and searing grief and drowning guilt and there was no way he could get rid of it completely, but he shoved it down to some small, dark corner of his mind before sitting back up and scrubbing the tears from his eyes.

Think, think, think. What should I do?

He had no way of finding where Takemikazuchi and Kiun had gone. And even if he did, he had no way of forcing them to release him. He had no way of getting rid of the name on his arm. He was totally helpless.

There was only one thing he could do, so he pulled himself to his feet and staggered through the streets, forcing his emotions to settle down. It was easier said than done. Every time he thought he was burying them deep enough to hide, something reared its ugly head again.

He wandered the streets for a long time, mind still whirling as he tried fruitlessly to think of a way out of his situation, but eventually he gave up and headed back. As much as he wanted to run and disappear, everyone would worry if he didn't come home. They couldn't know anything was wrong. Not yet. He didn't think he could even talk about it without bursting into tears again, and he wasn't ready to reveal his shame to the world just yet.

So when he pushed his way through the door, he was wearing a smile. There was a thump from the other room, and Kofuku scrambled out to the hall in a tangle of limbs.

"Did you find–?" She paused and blinked at him. "Yukki?"

"Hi," he said with a wan smile.

"Daikoku, it's Yukki!" Kofuku grabbed Yukine's face in her hands and leaned in to study him with wide, anxious eyes. Daikoku came hurrying out behind her. "Are you alright, Yukki?"

"Of course. Why wouldn't I be?"

"Yato doesn't think you are," Daikoku said grimly.

Yukine's heart stuttered. "Y-Yato?"

Kofuku released him, but her eyebrows were pinched in a frown. "Yato-chan came bursting in a couple hours ago in a panic demanding to know where you were. He said something was wrong…"

New fear welled up in Yukine's chest. Of course Yato would know. There was no way to hide that.

"Whatever happened, you really worried him," Daikoku said. "He left his job halfway through to come looking for you. When he heard you hadn't come back yet, he ran off to the grocery store. I guess he's been searching the whole area for you. We stayed here in case you came back."

"O-oh…" Think, think, I need a cover story! "It's not really a big deal," Yukine said with a forced laugh. "I spotted a phantom on the way there and freaked out, and I ended up ducking into this alley to hide and it was really dark. I guess I sort of panicked a bit… Sorry, I thought I was sort of starting to get over that whole dark thing a little bit…" His eyes widened. "I was so freaked out that I forgot to pick up the groceries!"

Stupid, stupid! He had totally forgotten about the groceries. And he hadn't even thought to look for a way to cover up the name!

He plastered his arm to his side with the mark facing inward. He needed a long-sleeved shirt or something. He didn't want anyone to see it, not yet. Especially not Yato.

"Don't worry about that," Daikoku said roughly, his eyes bright with concern. "What's important is that you're safe."

"I'm going to call Yato-chan and let him know you made it back," Kofuku said, rushing back out of the room to find her phone. "Daikoku, make Yukki some tea, won't you? Or something to help him calm down."

Daikoku nodded. "Why don't you come sit down in the kitchen?"

He reached out, and Yukine took an automatic step back and then laughed nervously to cover his misstep. "Can I just, uh, go change real fast? I think I got this shirt all dirty in the alley…"

Daikoku dropped his hand and frowned, but nodded. "Come to the kitchen when you're ready. And I'd hurry, if I were you. Yato will be here as soon as Kofuku calls him."

Yukine nodded and darted for the stairs. He had to be presentable by the time Yato came charging in here. He ripped his shirt off and pulled on a lightweight long-sleeved one. An immediate wave of relief crashed over him when that ugly name disappeared from view, but it was quickly eclipsed when he heard the door downstairs crash open and Yato's loud voice ring through the house.

Crap, Yato must have teleported. Yukine had no more time to collect himself. He would have to face his master. His master who he may or may not have betrayed. Every step thumped on the wooden floorboards like a death knell, and Yukine descended the stairs like a man going to his execution.

Yato was standing by the kitchen table talking animatedly with Kofuku and Daikoku, but his eyes snapped to Yukine the second the latter dragged his feet into the room.

"What happened?" he demanded, searching the shinki's face.

Not 'are you alright?'. He could probably sense the answer to that despite Yukine's best efforts.

"Yukki got chased into an alley by an ayakashi and panicked because it was dark," Kofuku supplied.

Yukine stared at his feet. He found it difficult to meet Yato's gaze, afraid that the god would be able to read the truth in his eyes. But when the silence dragged on, he risked a glance up to see Yato staring at him with narrowed, suspicious eyes.

"Why don't you tell me yourself, Yukine?" Yato asked.

Yukine flinched. Was he even Yukine anymore? Did he deserve that name when he was now a nora? He had disgraced the name Yato had given him, and the brand on his arm burned like fire.

"Why?" he asked in a thin voice, even though he knew. If he spun that tale from his own mouth, Yato would know it was a lie in a second when he got stung. Or it would confirm it was a lie, anyway. If Yato believed the story, he wouldn't be demanding confirmation. "Kofuku already said everything."

There was another long, heavy pause, and Yato let out a harsh sigh. "Are you going to tell me what really–?"

"Did you finish your job?" Yukine interrupted.

"I don't care about the job."

"You should go back and finish."

"But–"

"You can't really afford to leave jobs half-finished, can you?"

Yato pinched the bridge of his nose between his fingers and screwed his eyes shut in frustration, but then gave up. "Right. Did you pick up the groceries?"

"…No. I panicked and forgot."

"Don't worry about it," Daikoku interrupted. "We have enough for dinner tonight. I'll just go shopping tomorrow."

Yato ignored him. "Do you still have the list?"

"Y-yeah…" Yukine rummaged in his pocket and handed over the crumpled page.

Yato snatched it and headed for the door without another glance back, dark hair curtaining his face. "I'll pick them up after. We'll talk when I get back."

Yukine swallowed hard as he disappeared out the door. Yato didn't believe him and wanted answers. Yukine couldn't exactly blame him. He wouldn't believe himself either.

"Come sit down, Yukki." Kofuku bounced over, dragged him to the table, and pushed him down. "Are you feeling any better yet? Should I call Hiyorin? She dropped off some homework for you earlier, before Yato-chan freaked out, but she said she couldn't stay because she had some kind of big exam today."

Yukine shook his head and accepted the steaming tea Daikoku handed him. "I'm okay. Let her take her test." He took a sip and let the warmth slide down his throat soothingly. Then he frowned down into the cup and swirled the liquid around. "Kofuku? When is the next colloquy?"

"Hm? Colloquy? The day after tomorrow, isn't it? Did Yato-chan not mention it to you? I figured he'd be excited to go now that he has a shrine."

Yato probably had mentioned it, but Yukine had probably tuned him out. That was so soon. He didn't have much time to figure out what to tell Yato.

"You alright, kid?" Daikoku asked gruffly.

Yukine pasted on a smile and took another sip of his tea. "Yeah. Thanks for the tea."

He did his best to put on a brave face and relax, but he couldn't help being on edge. Kofuku chattered cheerily and dragged him outside to get some fresh air while she watered the garden. Yukine was torn between appreciating the distraction and finding her bubbly cheer tiring. But he knew she was trying to cheer him up, which he did appreciate.

He couldn't imagine being able to concentrate on all those math problems Hiyori had brought him, so instead he helped Daikoku make dinner. Daikoku and Kofuku kept up a steady stream of chatter and did their best to include Yukine, who was getting steadily quieter as he waited anxiously for Yato to return.

Dinner was almost ready by the time Yato came clomping in with a couple bags hooked over his arm. His face was pinched and pale, his eyes serious, and he didn't make an attempt to fake good cheer like he normally would.

"Yato-chan is back!" Kofuku sang, whirling around the table to take the bags from him. "You made it just in time for dinner! Here, I'll put these away."

Yato grunted something like thanks in her direction and turned to Yukine, who suddenly found the floor very interesting. Please, please don't make a scene here.

"This is for you," Yato said. Yukine darted a look up from beneath his lashes and saw that Yato was holding out a silver phone that looked almost identical to his red one.

"M-me?" Yukine took the phone gingerly and flipped it open. Yato, who made barely any money and was saving it all for a shrine and occasionally wasting it on random charms and things, had bought him a phone?

"Mhm." Yato reached over to press a button so that the screen lit up and opened the contacts to scroll through. "I already set everything up. My number is here, as well as Hiyori's, Kofuku's, and Kazuma's. My number is also the first one on speed dial." He fixed flat, solemn eyes on Yukine's face. "For emergencies."

Yukine swallowed back the lump in his throat and bit his lip. There had been emergencies and inconveniences before, but even as dense as Yato was, he could sense this time was different. Yukine flipped the phone shut and his fingers closed tightly around it, clutching it like a lifeline. It was a reassurance, a promise that he could reach Yato when he needed help.

Sadly, it had come a little too late and he still wasn't sure how Yato would react to all this, but it made him want to cry anyway.

"Thanks," he whispered.

"Oooh!" Kofuku abandoned the groceries and charged over to hang on Yukine's shoulder and drool over his phone. "Yukki finally has a phone! Give me your number! We can talk all the time now!"

Yukine struggled with Kofuku's hyperactive attention and figured out how to send her his number, although he hoped she wouldn't really use it to talk to him constantly. Over the top of her head, he caught a glimpse of Yato silently putting away the rest of the food.

"You're being so responsible for once," Daikoku remarked, elbowing Yato in the ribs as he walked past to dish out food. Yato hummed tonelessly and flopped down at the table without looking at anyone. New guilt twisted Yukine's heart. Yato was so out of sorts because Yukine couldn't keep his emotions in check. "Come on, you chatterboxes. Dinner is ready."

Kofuku chatted blithely through dinner with some help from Daikoku to keep some semblance of a conversation going, while Yukine and Yato stayed quiet and poked at their food halfheartedly. Neither had much of an appetite, which was solely Yukine's fault.

Yukine choked down his food with some difficulty and stood up from the table. "I think I'm going to head to bed."

"Ehhh?" Kofuku widened her eyes at him. "But Yukki, it's so early!"

He managed some sort of small laugh. "Yeah, I'm just pretty tired today."

"Well, you have had a bit of a rough day, huh?" Daikoku asked. "Go ahead and get some sleep. I'm sure you'll be feeling better tomorrow."

Yukine wasn't sure of any such thing, but he just said goodnight and slunk away. Yato said nothing at all, but Yukine could feel the eyes on his back the whole way until he ducked out of sight.

The first thing he did when he got into the bathroom was rip his shirt off and twist around to search his back in the mirror. No ugly ayakashi eyeballs stared back, and he slumped over against the counter with a shuddering sigh of relief. So he hadn't actually blighted Yato. That was something.

…Or Takemikazuchi, but Yukine had a vicious desire to blight that bastard. If Takemikazuchi forced Yato to release him—or if Yato released him himself, which Yukine didn't want to think about—he had better be prepared for a lot of stinging. That might be a bit self-destructive on Yukine's part too, but he didn't know how he was supposed to live with and serve such a horrible master.

Yukine shoved his wrath aside, afraid Yato would feel that too, which backfired when his shame and fear came creeping back in.

He took a long bath and scrubbed frantically at the ugly name marring his arm until his skin was red and raw. It stayed stubbornly there.

Yukine wondered what would happen if he carved it out of his skin with a knife. Would it reappear somewhere else? Would it still bind him even if it was obliterated? Would he be free of it? But hurting himself would blight Yato. Wasn't that what had happened to one of Tenjin's shinki a while back? Then again, Yukine wouldn't necessarily be doing it for a bad reason and felt it was justified as an attempt to release himself of the unwanted name in the only way he knew how, so maybe it wouldn't blight Yato after all.

But that wasn't a risk he was willing to take, and even just the thought of peeling his skin open and bleeding all over the floor made his stomach turn.

Feeling entirely helpless once again, he dried himself off and pulled on nightclothes with long sleeves. He stared at himself in the mirror for a long moment, but he didn't like what he saw. Shaking his head in hopeless despair, he headed for bed.

And stopped short when he stepped inside their attic room and found Yato sitting cross-legged on his futon, staring at the doorway with patient anticipation. Waiting. Yukine felt trapped and exposed under the intense scrutiny.

"Shut the door," Yato said. Yukine shut the door with trembling fingers and crept over to his own futon, hoping Yato would take the hint. No such luck. "Is there something you want to tell me?"

"Not really," Yukine mumbled, settling on the bed and picking intently at the covers to avoid the god's piercing gaze.

"…Would you like to tell me what really happened today?"

Yukine flinched and hunched his shoulders. "Not really," he whispered.

Yato sighed. "It'll make it much easier on both of us if you just tell me, you know."

Yukine's lips trembled and he blinked back tears. He was going to have to tell Yato, and soon. But the thought made his insides tie into knots, and…he just wasn't ready to jump off that cliff.

"Can we talk tomorrow?" he asked, hating the thin, pleading note in his voice.

"Yukine…"

He flinched again and his throat clogged up. "I don't want to talk now," he managed. "I need… Can we just talk tomorrow?"

There was another long pause, and then Yato sighed again. "Okay. Get some sleep and maybe it'll look better in the morning. But we will talk tomorrow." Yukine nodded and burrowed under the blankets, flipping over to face away from him. Yato's footsteps trailed to the other side of the room as he turned the main light off and then creaked on the floorboards back to his bed. "You know," the god said into the stillness, "you can always talk to me about anything."

Yukine held back a sniffle and stared out at the circle of light cast by his lamp to keep the darkness at bay. "Yeah," he whispered.

The hopeful anticipation permeated the air a moment longer before the tension snapped like a thread and the covers rustled on the other side of the room.

"Goodnight, Yukine."

"Goodnight."

Yukine stared at the far wall and took shallow breaths and did his absolute best to think of nothing at all in the vain hope that the boredom might entice him to sleep. He was still far too wound up for that to work, but he tried to keep his thoughts and emotions in line at least until Yato fell asleep. The god was liable to go back on their agreement if he felt Yukine freaking out all night. At least it should be safer once he was asleep.

Yukine stayed tense until he heard Yato's breathing even out and deepen. Only then did he dare relax a little and breathe properly again. The first deep breath sent hot tears pricking at the corners of his eyes, and he did his best to just stop breathing as if that would help. Instead, it made his next deep, shuddering breath draw out a new handful of tears.

He curled up in a ball and pulled the blanket up over his mouth to stifle his shaky breathing. He cried silently, with only his muffled, hitching breathing to give him away. He was afraid to make too much noise in case he woke Yato, so he just curled up ever tighter and buried his tears in the silence.

It felt like an eternity, like there was an ocean in his chest and he would never run out of tears, but then the blanket was jerked down away from his face. His eyes flew open and he scrubbed at the tears until the blurred film over his vision was wiped clean.

Yato was crouched in front of him, silhouetted in the circle of light from the lamp, watching him with narrowed eyes and a frown.

"Y-Yato?" Yukine stammered, his voice wavering dangerously. "Did I wake you up? I'm–"

"No," Yato said flatly. "It's impossible to sleep when my chest feels like a warzone, anyway."

Yukine's eyes filled with tears again. "I-I'm s-sorry."

"Forget that." Yato waved a dismissive hand and nudged Yukine's legs out of the way with his foot to sit cross-legged on the futon. "Come on, kid. Neither of us is going to be sleeping any time soon anyway, so we might as well talk."

"I-I don't really–"

"Something obviously happened to mess you up this much. And you can barely even stand to look at me anymore and keep flinching like I'm going to hit you or something. What did I do this time?"

Yukine sat up in a flurry of blankets. "You didn't do anything! It's not like that…"

Yato tilted his head, blue eyes glowing with an almost ethereal light from the shadows as they slid across Yukine's face as if trying to pry into his very soul. "Obviously something else happened, but it's starting to feel like I'm somehow involved."

Yukine pulled his knees up to his chest and hunched his shoulders. "It's not–"

"Then talk to me. You can't expect me to ignore something this big, and obviously it isn't doing any good for you to be ignoring it either if you're crying alone in the dark when you think I'm asleep."

Yukine shrank into himself as much as he possibly could until he looked as small and miserable as he felt. He couldn't keep running away forever, and his prolonged silence was only making things worse. He had to admit what happened to Yato, but…he still didn't want to.

"Don't be mad," he said in a small voice.

"Hm?" Something like worry glinted in Yato's eyes even as they narrowed. "About what?"

Yukine opened his mouth, but the words got stuck in his throat and he choked on them. Yato stayed perfectly still and quiet as he watched the shinki's struggle and waited patiently for a resolution.

Yukine gave up and dropped his gaze, shame flushing his cheeks. He couldn't force himself to say the words, so… It would be like ripping off a Band-Aid, right?

He held out his left arm and flipped it over so that the inside was facing up. It was quivering, and his fingers shook as he pulled up the sleeve.

There was a long moment of nothing, but then warm, slightly damp hands closed gently around his arm and drew it forward another centimeter or two. Yukine risked a glance up. Yato was studying the red-printed name in the faint light of the lamp, and no matter how desperately Yukine tried to decipher his expression, it remained shuttered.

"Who?" Yato asked, the word falling heavily in the darkness between them. His face was utterly unreadable, and he didn't look up.

"Takemikazuchi," Yukine rasped. The name scraped painfully along his cotton-dry throat. "That guy who's super obsessed with hafuri?"

"Hm."

"Are you mad?" Yukine asked, his voice growing ever smaller.

"Furious," Yato said tonelessly. His eyes had a strange, flat sheen to them. "But not at you."

"I-I'm sorry…"

"Why?" Yato released Yukine's arm and met his gaze with those strange eyes. "Did you ask him to name you? Would you rather I release you so that you can work with him instead? Are you looking for a new master?"

"N-no!" Yukine cried, the tears spilling down his cheeks as his defense finally broke free in a tangled jumble of words. "Of course not! H-he cornered me and I–I– I would've used a borderline, but his shinki trapped me and– Why would I want a master like that? You're annoying and a pain, but–but you're the only master I want! I-I'm your–your hafuri, aren't I? Doesn't that mean that–that I swore eternal loyalty to you? I didn't want–"

"Then why are you apologizing?" Yato interrupted. His eyes glowed like ice as he dropped his gaze and pulled Yukine's sleeve back down over the other name. "It's not your fault. You wouldn't be such a mess if it was something you had agreed to." His hand rose to rub at his chest absently, and his eyes narrowed to slits. "The fact that you feel so guilty over it is unforgiveable," he muttered.

Yukine hooked his arms around his knees and pulled them closer to his chest as he watched Yato uncertainly. "You aren't… You aren't going to release me, are you?"

One eyebrow quirked upwards. "Do you want me to release you?"

"O-of course I don't!"

"Then I won't."

Yukine sniffled and rubbed at his eyes. He didn't know what to make of Yato's odd reaction, and it was making him nervous.

"He said he was going to make you release me," he mumbled. "He wants you to meet him at the colloquy."

"The colloquy, huh?" Yato propped an elbow on his knee and rested his cheek in his hand as he stared out blankly into the darkness edging the room. "He's a showy, prideful bastard. Either he thinks I won't want to make a scene in front of everyone and will let him get away with it, or he wants to publicly humiliate us."

"What are we going to do?" Yukine whispered.

"I'm going to force him to release you, of course." Any lingering warmth in Yato's eyes hardened into cold steel. "Don't you worry about it. He made a mistake crossing us. He thinks I'll roll over without a fuss because I'm just some weak, minor god. Either that or he really thinks I'm so averse to noras that I'd release you the second I saw his mark on you. Either way, he's a fool."

"I don't want to be a nora," Yukine mumbled, sniffling loudly.

Yato shrugged. "Not all noras are bad, and not all noras chose to become strays. Some get stuck with a name when their god disappears, some are named against their will, some just don't know any other way to live. But if it bothers you so much, I'll fix it. Takemikazuchi is a fool to think I would fall so easily to prejudice. I'm not stupid. I know it doesn't change anything."

Yukine stared at him like he'd grown a second head. "Are you crazy? It changes everything!"

"No, it doesn't." Yato leaned forward, and gentle fingers tugged at the collar of Yukine's shirt to reveal the name written on the skin. Half-lidded eyes watched as his finger traced over the kanji. "You are Yukine." Each touch seared across Yukine's skin as if rebuilding and strengthening the name Yato's finger traced along his collarbone. "And you are mine, for as long as you wish to be."

Yukine's breath hitched and shuddered. "You are Yukine. And you are mine."

That was all he needed to know, all he had been afraid of losing, all he had needed Yato to promise him.

He burst into tears. His hands flew to cover his face as his body heaved with all the ugly sobs that had been building and building behind the dam struggling to hold back all the emotions he was afraid to feel. It hit him all at once, everything he had been trying and failing to hide from.

Arms wrapped around him snugly, tugging him forward, and Yukine fisted his hands in that stupid jersey and cried into Yato's chest like a child. Yato said nothing, but he held Yukine close and it felt warm and safe in his embrace.

Yukine cried for what felt like an eternity before finally running out of tears and succumbing to sleep. He didn't even realize he'd cried himself to sleep until his eyes fluttered halfway open and he realized groggily that Yato was leaning over him, supporting his head and back as he lowered him back to a lying position.

"Y-Yato…" Yukine mumbled, his heavy eyelids already beginning to slide back down.

"Shhh," Yato crooned. He pulled the blanket up and tucked it beneath Yukine's chin, and the ice in his eyes had melted to a soft, loving blue. "Sleep, Yukine."

Yukine slid back into sleep with a sigh, almost sure he could feel fingers tenderly brushing his hair out of his face and dry lips brushing lightly against his forehead.

Note: I know Takemikazuchi is supposed to be getting some redemption and stuff now, but he seemed like the most obvious antagonist to use here. I didn't want to actually make up some random OC for it, and he's canonically a bit of a troublemaker and obsessed with hafuri. It made sense to me XD