Oops! This image does not follow our content guidelines. To continue publishing, please remove it or upload a different image.
┌────────────── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ──────────────┐
𝐏𝐀𝐑𝐀𝐂𝐎𝐒𝐌
𝘤𝘩𝘢𝘱𝘵𝘦𝘳 𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘵𝘺-𝘧𝘰𝘶𝘳: 𝘪𝘮𝘱𝘰𝘴𝘴𝘪𝘣𝘭𝘦 (𝘱𝘢𝘳𝘵 𝘵𝘸𝘰)
𝘯𝘰𝘳𝘢𝘨𝘢𝘮𝘪
└────────────── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ──────────────┘
𝐲𝐚𝐭𝐨
A YEAR. IT'S BEEN a whole year. Hiyori has been dead an entire year. How has it already been that long? It's unreal how long it has been. Neither Yukine nor I have been coping well over the months, and neither have Hiyori's family. Kofuku and Daikoku have been there for us when they haven't been out killing Phantoms in mine and Yukine's place. We can't even think about going out and killing Phantoms. Every time I see one, I hesitate as Hiyori fills my mind.
'She's a half Phantom,' I'd think. 'This could easily be her.'
I can't bring myself to kill one, and neither can Yukine. We're a useless god and regalia. We can't even destroy a Phantom or two in order to protect the humans that sustain us gods. That's the worst of it. Hiyori's also human, and we can't protect that half of her. We can't kill one half, and that means we can't protect the other half. Useless is not a strong enough word.
"Yati!" Kofuku cries, running over to Yukine and me. "Yati, can you sense it?!"
I look up at her, the bags under my eyes dark and my pale face drawn. "Kofuku. What are you yelling about?"
"You're not strong enough to sense it! You need to eat and get some rest! Now!"
Yukine looks at Daikoku. "What's going on?"
Daikoku hesitates. "I wish I could tell you, Yukine."
A wave of pure emotion washes over me and my eyes go wide as I lurch to my feet, staggering and swaying on the spot. Kofuku yells at me to stop, but I can't. There's no way that I can stop now. Nothing can stop me, except maybe the continuous running into walls. Yukine grips my arm and helps me upright as we walk faster, the emotion filling me and causing tears to spring to life. The salty liquid runs down my cheeks and a few slide into my mouth as I breathe, but I'm not too concerned about that at the moment. I have to find it.
Long brown hair is the first thing I see. The glimmering pink-purple eyes are the second. A pink cat tail swishes behind her and brushes her hair slightly each time it moves. She's not wearing the skirt and sweater of her usual attire, but a pair of pale grey skinny jeans and a deep blue sweater with her pink scarf that makes her stand out like a sore thumb.
"Hiyori," I croak, making her eyes look over to me and brim with tears. "Hiyori!"
The smile that stretches her face is beautiful. "Yato! Yukine!"
She runs over to us and pulls us into a tight hug, laughing happily as she grips our shirts tightly in her fists as if we're going to disappear. Tears are running freely down her face and soaking into the clothes covering us. Yukine isn't in that much of a better shape. He is sobbing uncontrollably and it's beginning to border on hysterical. I try to compose myself as much as possible, but it doesn't end up being that much. All the pent-up emotion from the past year begins to flow free with my tears.
•
𝐡𝐢𝐲𝐨𝐫𝐢
"WHERE HAVE YOU BEEN?" Yato manages to rasp. "You died in my arms and vanished for a year."
I pull back and stare him in the eyes, suddenly serious. "You can't sense it, can you? Oh, Yato. I told you two to take care of yourselves and that everything would be alright. You look dead, Yato. That's why you can't sense it."
"What can't I sense?"
"You're a God of Calamity, but a god nonetheless."
His eyes flash to mine, but there is an edge of danger in them this time. "You aren't...?"
"A God of Calamity?" I laugh. "No. That takes centuries, Yato. Don't you remember?"
He snorts in amusement. "Of course. That's right. So, if not a God of Calamity, what are you?"
Yukine frowns, staring at me. "You're not human, that's for sure. You're giving of a strange reading."
"Yukine! That's rude!" Yato glares at him for a second before looking back at me. "Although, you are right. There's something off."
I chuckle. "I'm not a God of Calamity, Yato."
His eyes widen. "You're a God. But, of what?"
"God of Cats," Kofuku yells.
Yato's jaw drops. "There hasn't been one for centuries. Somehow it is you. How?"
I smile, stroking his cheeks. "I talked to Tenjin. He talked with someone, and then a few strings got pulled. I got back here only a few days ago."
"Days?!" Yato and Yukine exclaim, the disbelief evident in their voices. "Hiyori!!"
I smile at the two distraught boys before me. Their eyes are disbelieving and filled to the brim with tears, but there is delight and happiness combined with them. They don't know why I didn't go to them as soon as I came back into existence, and I don't exactly plan on telling them as to why that is. The first time was bad enough, and it would only break their hearts even more.
When I came back, I had no memories of Yato or Yukine - or Kofuku, Daikoku, or even Bishamon and her regalias. All I knew was that I had to find a regalia and protect the humans from the Phantoms that fill their world and cause more harm than good. Kofuku found me on my second day, recognising me and then taking me in. She enlisted the help of Nora of all people to help me regain my memories.
That came at a price of course. I had to give Nora another name and make her my regalia. Her vessel name is Sumire (菫), meaning 'violet', and her shinki name is Ken (剣), meaning 'sword'. Neither Yato or Yukine are going to be happy about it, but they're going to have to live with it. If Nora and I end on bad terms, then she has every right to take my memories again and leave me to get to know Yukine and Yato all over again.
"Wait." Yato's voice is hard and unyielding. "Who is your regalia?"
