Yato lay in the grass watching the ablution. He writhed in a pain that shot through his entire body. The purple contamination, the blight, had almost consumed him. He gasped for air, losing his strength as he lay there.

Yukine wasn't repenting. Yato knew he should kill him, but something stopped him. Even while he lay stiff in pain, he could remember the moment he'd first seen Yukine and had taken him as his regalia. It wasn't a mistake. Sure, Yukine had caused him a lot of pain, every sin stinging and racking his body with more and more of the deadly contamination, but Yato had grown to love him. It was a weird kind of love, too. Yukine was like a son, a rebellious son and Yato wasn't prepared to slay him by any means.

The regalia screamed and shrieked in pain, cursing all the while as the purification ritual continued. He knew this had to happen for them to be cleansed and that if he just killed the undead boy now, it would all be over, but he couldn't do it. Yukine needed him. Yato sat up and hacked up blood as Yukine's own blight grew worse with every lie, insisting he hadn't done anything wrong.

He could hear Daikoku ordering Kazuma and Mayu, who he had brought to perform the ritual, to stand their ground and shouting to Yukine to repent which was returned with cursing. I have to say his name, Yato thought as the pain and Yukine grew worse. Yukine had began to take the form of a phantom, sprouting demonic wings and the blight started to spread across his face. The mark that read his name was becoming consumed as well and Yato knew he would soon lose the boy. I can't let him cross the border, he thought once more. I found him and gave him the name of a human, he is mine. I must call his name before he is lost.

"Yukine!" Shouted Hiyori as she ran out, dangerously close to those performing the ritual. Yato watched with shock as she began shouting at the boy. "Stop this and repent! You need Yato! He's still here for you and even though you hurt him, he loves you like a father! You need to stop this now!" She shouted emotionally. Yato groaned in pain. "If you don't, even after Yato suffered so much pain for you then, I won't be your friend anymore!" She told him.

"W-we're still friends?" Yato heard Yukine ask, his voice distorted by the transformation.

"Yes!" Hiyori confirmed.

"Yukine!" Yato finally built up the strength to shout. A moment later, Yukine broke down and began to confess all he had done in tears. Yato could hear him sobbing violently as his pain lessened. I won't give up on you, Yukine, the god promised.

"I'm sorry," Yukine began to repeat over and over as he sank to his knees, sobbing in the grass, blight disappearing. Yato, regaining his strength, looked to his regalia, compassion and love written in the blue of his eyes. He gathered his new found strength and stood, stumbling over to the boy. He dropped down to Yukine's level and embraced him. "I'm sorry, Yato." He kept repeating in violent sobs.

"I forgive you, Yukine." Yato told him, voice overflowing with emotion. "And I love you, my son."

Hey there! It's Blue! I really hope you enjoyed my first Noragami fanfiction! I know it's not much and it's not the most amazing story in the world, but this is my written interpretation of my favorite scene in the entire series. I absolutely loved this episode and the rising action before the episode. It was so beautiful to me. Please tell me what you thought and thank you so much for reading! :D

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters in this short story and I do not own Noragami!