AnimeKiwi369: Salvete! So, it wasn't a week... It's inexcusable to go over two and a half years without an update, but I'm insane when it comes to academics (18+ credits every semester except the first, which was 16). I hope you all can forgive me for the long wait. I've had writer's block for my Fanfictions, but not for my original works, so this has taken a back seat to everything else in my life. A fan from another fandom recently reached out and has inspired me to try to get back into Fanfiction. I'll need to re-watch Kamigami, and given how many times I've watched it, I should be able to do work while marathoning it.

Thanks This Week Go To The Following FanFiction Members for Reviewing: Sia Leysritt, souldragon16, arxmuse

Thanks Also Go To The Following Anonymies for Reviewing: guest, Arty, Guest, Guest

I am also dedicating this chapter to Bronzeswagger for the message he recent sent, which has given me the motivation to start trying to get back into FanFiction.

I don't own Kamigami no Asobi: Ludere Deorum or its character. I simply own the storyline and half-won the Goddesses, as they are based from their respective Mythologies

Ad fabulam!

Back in Session

Chapter 20: The Seal

Years Ago…

Kushinadahime picked her head up from her pillow drowsily, wondering how she had ended up face down in her bedroll. She slowly sat up, remembering how she had had a slipped on her blanket and fallen face first. And her body was so heavy that she hadn't been able to move. But she had finally gotten decent, non-haunted sleep. The last couple of weeks or so had been rough.

Although she was eternally grateful to Susanoo-sama for rescuing her, she continued to face the trauma from Orochi. Overwhelming guilt for surviving when her sisters didn't consumed her, and fear thrummed in every muscle when she looked into those awful blood-red eyes.

Things were getting better, though. Slowly but surely. She had to remind herself Orochi was no more. Thanks to Susanoo-sama. Things would only get better from there—especially now that she had a night where she hadn't gasped awake in a puddle of cold sweat, nearly screaming bloody murder. The first night since the Orochi ordeal without a nightmare, dreaming a heavy nothingness instead. It wasn't the most peaceful sleep, but she was content for the decent night's sleep. And hopefully she'd get through her daily chores without wanting to collapse.

The blunette rubbed the remaining sleep from her eyes and carefully changed from her sleeping kimono into a clean white haori and red hakama. She quietly ran a brush through her hair and decided to tie it back with a thin ribbon, rather than try to put it into the low bun she normally did. Kushinadahime hastily put her bedroll away and left the room, wincing as the bright sunlight hit her face. She shaded her eyes as she moved around the shrine to begin her daily chores.

She stared into the reflection pool and sighed. Despite the decent night's sleep, her complexion remained awful. Dark circles and small bags marred her slightly puffy eyes, her skin was paler than her normal, her hair unkempt, despite having run her brush through it. She looked exhausted.

"Kushinadahime-chan!" Her mother's soft voice called, making the girl look up from the water.

When the young Earth Deity had returned from the incident with Orochi with Susanoo-sama, the young girl's parents had been anxiously waiting at the shrine. Both Ashinazuchi and Tenadazuchi, her father and mother, were shocked and tremendously relieved to see their youngest daughter return from encountering the dreaded serpent. Upon seeing her return, both the older Earth Deities had enveloped the girl in a huge embrace and thanked the God of the Sea over and over. Ever since that day a couple weeks ago, Kushinadahime's parents couldn't stop smiling or breathing sighs of relief.

"Yes, okaa-sama?" The aquamarine-haired girl replied, a little surprised her mother interrupted her from her morning chores.

"We have a guest," her mother told her as she calmly walked over. "Can you please go prepare some tea? Your chores can wait."

Kushinadahime tilted her head, blinking, "A guest?"

"Yes," her mother replied, tossing her head in the direction of the kitchen. "Now go, dear."

"Y-Yes!" The young deity nodded, hurrying to make tea.

The aquamarine-haired girl's mouth hung open in disbelief as she sat in front of the guest her mother had told her about. Out of all the people she might have expected, she didn't think Susanoo-sama would come see her after that day. He was a god, and she a mere Earth Deity.

And he was coming to check up on her.

Kushinadahime couldn't help but feel butterflies in her stomach at the idea; she didn't couldn't explain why. She kind of liked it, though. The blue-haired boy was sitting with his legs crossed in front of her, looking half-bored.

The young girl set the tea down in front of him and quietly sat down in front of him. She bowed low, feeling self-conscious of how loose her haori felt as she did so, "I did not expect you to come to see an Earth Deity such as myself, Susanoo-sama." She kept her head down, waiting for a response. When he didn't say anything, she lifted her head ever so slightly, "Susanoo-sama?"

The God of the Sea studied her for a few moments before speaking, "You look terrible."

"Huh?!" She exclaimed, blood rushing to her cheeks.

"You haven't got much sleep, right?" He guessed.

"I… I…" Kushinadahime cast her eyes downward, still embarrassed. "No, Susanoo-sama, I have not."

"Still scared of Orochi?" He asked.

The aquamarine-haired girl nodded, "Yes. I have only had one night of decent rest." She bit her lip a little, unconsciously tilting her head to the side, "Have you come just to see how I am faring, Susanoo-sama?"

The blue-haired boy looked away, a faint tint of red on his cheeks, "And what if I have?"

The Earth Deity felt her eyes widen, then soften as she looked at the god. She smiled gently at him and dipped her head towards him again, "Thank you very much, Susanoo-sama."

Susanoo looked back at the girl, and his face flushed again as their eyes met. He stayed silent, unable to think of anything else to say.

He didn't know why he liked the sound of her giggling so much, but the God of the Sea did. It was a nice sound; it suited her much better than those gut-wrenching screams she'd let out when she met Orochi. He wasn't about to tell her that, though. He'd rather keep his slight affections a secret for now. If they were affections, that was; after all, he didn't know what it really felt like to care for someone else—excluding Tsukuyomi. Susanoo barely knew how to handle women, and Ame-no-Uzume didn't count. So he didn't really know for sure if he actually had feelings for this Earth Deity or not. They were too young to know of love, anyway. There was one thing he was almost positive of, though.

Spending time with her every few days to every couple of weeks did seem to be helping her.

Kushinadahime didn't look quite as terrible as when he first started showing up a few months ago. She smiled whenever she saw him, even if it was a shy one. Her color was much better, and her light gold eyes had gotten brighter, full of life. Her nightmares had mostly subsided, though there was the occasional haunted night. She'd only ever needed to sleep once during his visit, but not because she hadn't gotten enough rest the night before. The two of them had been sitting in one of the gardens on the shrine's grounds, and the sun was too nice to resist napping. He fell asleep first, but he'd woken with the aquamarine-haired girl's head in his lap.

Susanoo also had to admit. Kushinadahime was cute when she slept, especially the way she was curled up like a kitten.

He liked it around the shrine and knew the layout pretty well by now. He sometimes liked to sneak up behind the Earth Deity as she did her chores and see how long it took for her to notice him. Her father and mother didn't seem to mind his presence either; in fact, they couldn't stop thanking him and didn't keep him from roaming their home. Or stop him from being alone with their remaining daughter.

Although lately, he had seen them throw sad glances towards the two of them when the girl's parents thought he wasn't looking. Most of the time the young blue-haired God of the Sea hung around the Earth Deities' shrine, he usually followed the young girl around as she did her chores. Sometimes if she finished early, she would show him the traditional fan dancing she'd been practicing since she was a child.

He was too proud to admit it, but he liked the Earth Deity. She distracted him from the duties he was putting off back home, after being allowed out of his timeout. He didn't know why he trusted her, but he did.

Kushinadahime sighed and then giggled softly in content as she and Susanoo walked through the courtyard of the shrine. He was distracted, and she couldn't help thinking the face he made was adorable. The aquamarine-haired girl felt at such ease with him, even though his personality wasn't the best mannered. She enjoyed the change of pace, though. She didn't mind when he would tease her. Even about her height. Though she always pointed out he wasn't much taller than she was.

Maybe it was because they had gone through a traumatic experience together, but when Susanoo was around, Kushinadahime completely forgot about their class difference. To her, he was the boy who saved her; the boy who just happened to be the God of the Sea. And despite the rough-around-the-edges personality, he really was sweet and gentle. The aquamarine-haired girl wasn't sure how closely he considered her, but for her, he had quickly become her closest friend.

Kushinadahime realized she was young and didn't know much, if anything, about love. However, she knew that because of everything she'd gone through with Susanoo and Orochi, there was an extremely special place in her heart for him. And she cared for him more than she could articulate. She liked the butterflies she had when his hand brushed hers or his eyes met hers. The Earth Deity desperately wanted to hold his hand.

She giggled softly again and pulled her fan from the sleeve of her kimono. The aquamarine-haired girl lightly tapped the top of the god's head, "Su-san-oo-sa-ma?" She questioned, amused as she separated each syllable of his name.

He blinked, shook his head, and threw a light glare at her, "What was that for?"

The Earth Deity hid her smile behind her fan, "I simply wished to know what was on your mind, so I pulled you from your thoughts."

Susanoo gave her an annoyed look, "Next time, just say something, Kushinada."

She scowled lightly behind her fan, "You know I do not care for that nickname."

"Yeah, yeah, yeah," he huffed. "Whatever, Kushinadahime."

The girl closed her fan, putting it away, and grinned again, "So what were you thinking about, Susanoo-sama?"

The God of the Sea sighed and rubbed the back of his neck, "Stuff I have to do back in my part of the realm. Boring stuff I don't want to do."

"You will do it, though, will you not?" She inquired, tilting her head to the side, "After all, it is your duty as a god."

"Yeah, yeah," he repeated. "It's so boring, though. And I don't get much respect as it is."

Kushinadahime frowned for a moment, then gave another shy smile, "But if you do your duties, will that not show those who look down on you that you are a respectable god?"

Susanoo raised an eyebrow and stared at her for a few long moments. The longer he stared, the more uncomfortable she became, as if she'd stepped over a boundary she shouldn't have. Slowly, her smile quivered, faded, and she pulled out her fan, hiding an intense blush, mumbling an apology.

He smirked and leaned toward her, "I knew you couldn't handle my stare."

The warmth in her face increased and she pulled her fan closer to her face, shrinking back from him, "That was not fair, Susanoo-sama."

"You had a point," he sighed, standing up straight. "I like it better here, though."

It wasn't in her nature to be mischievous, but she hid a coy grin behind her fan, "Than why do you not get your duties done in order to come here sooner next time."

He stared at her again, silent, leaning towards her intimidatingly. After a few moments, the expression faded as well, and she hid her entire face behind the fan.

"Please, do stop that, Susanoo-sama," she half-whimpered, half-begged. "It is not fair how easily you do that."

The blue-haired god looked out towards the end of the shrine, sighing, "Fine."

"'Fine'?"

"I'll do what you suggested," he told her. "I'll go get those boring god duties I put off done, so I can come back here to you sooner."

Kushinadahime nearly dropped her fan at his words. He'd never said those exact words. He was going to do as she suggested in order to see her sooner! The words echoed in her head and sent pleasant shivers down her spine, butterflies fluttering in her stomach. She didn't realize her mouth hung partially open until she realized the God of the Sea was snapping his fingers in front of her face.

"Y-Yes?!" She asked hastily, breaking from her excitement.

"You were spacing out this time," he half-grinned.

"I… Well… Oh…" She trailed, hiding behind the thin fabric of the fan once more.

Susanoo turned, "I guess this ends my visit this time, Kushinadahime."

"Oh." She cringed hearing the disappointment in her voice, "Very well, Susanoo-sama."

The God of the Sea smiled softly, "Until next time?"

Those words sent more giddiness through her veins, "Yes!" She watched him take a few steps before she took a nervous step forward, "Susanoo-sama?"

"Yeah?" He looked back over his shoulder.

"Do you think… That next time…" She trailed off, unable to believe she was about to ask something so silly, "That we could… Maybe… If you are all right with it… Maybe…"

"What is it?" He demanded, a little irritated at her talking in circles, though he knew it was a nervous habit of hers.

Kushinadahime swallowed the small lump that had formed in her throat, "Do you think next time you visit…we could possibly hold hands…?"

Susanoo's face heated slightly, and he looked away, rubbing the back of his head. He didn't know if he wanted to do such a thing, but he also didn't want to dishearten the girl. He looked back to her eager expression, "Maybe."

Her light gold eyes lit up, and she smiled brighter than he'd ever seen her smile before. She nodded excitedly as he began to walking away, "I look forward to seeing you again, Susanoo-sama!"

Kushinadahime couldn't sleep, her excitement keeping her awake. She couldn't wait to see the God of the Sea again. She grinned at the prospect of holding hands with him when he next came to see her. She didn't know whether or not that could lead the two to something more, but she was excited to find out, even if it didn't. She let out a content sigh and closed her eyes, wishing she could fall asleep. The blunette didn't even know why she wanted to know what she might feel for the god, when they were still too young to think of courtship. But she didn't care; she just wanted to know if her heart held true.

"Kushinadahime-chan?" Her mother's voice asked softly, "Are you still awake?"

She didn't even hear her mother come and sit at the shoji door of her room. She quietly sat up from her bedroll, curious why her mother had come at this hour, "Yes, I am awake, okaa-sama."

Her mother's silhouette stiffened, apparently expecting her to be asleep. There several silent heartbeats on the other side of the door before Tenadazuchi said, "Please come with me, then."

The young Earth Deity blinked, "Why?"

"Please just do as I say, Kushinadahime," her mother's voice was strained. She didn't even use an honorific.

Something's wrong, the aquamarine-haired girl thought as she obediently followed her mother.

She didn't like the palpable tension her mother exuded. She swallowed the lump in her throat as her mother led her away from the residence part of the shrine to the temple. Her mother showed her into the temple, where her otou-sama, Ashinazuchi, was bowing before two other men, neither of whom she recognized. The shadows thrown throughout the room made it difficult to see their faces. One looked plainer in his attire, and the girl thought it was another Earth Deity. The other man wore ornate robes and his posture of authority told young Kushinadahime he was a god.

The color drained from her face, every muscle in her body bunching in anxiety.

I am scared, she thought. But not the same way I was with Orochi. I feel like I am about lose something precious to me.

The aquamarine girl stiffly followed her mother to where the men were and sat between her parents. She bowed respectfully, "Welcome to our humble shrine, good sirs. Forgive me for not knowing who you are so as to properly address you."

"Kushinadahime-chan," Ashinazuchi started, "these are—"

"Let's get straight to the point," the god interrupted. "Kushinadahime, was it?"

She answered nervously, "Hai."

"You survived the attack from Orochi, yes?" The Earth Deity asked, and she nodded again, "With the help from the young god, Susanoo-dono?"

She inclined her head towards them, smiling a little at the thought of the blue-haired boy, "Hai. Susanoo-sama risked his life to save mine, despite having never met me before. Since that time, however, he has come by time and time again to see how I am faring."

Both the other men were silent, and an unpleasant feeling seeped in to the aquamarine-haired girl's bones. She hesitantly glanced up through her eyelashes so as not to appear disrespectful. A shudder made its way down her spine from the looks the other Earth Deity and the god were giving her.

They were not pleased.

"You are aware, child," the god said in a scolding tone that made her cringe, "that interacting with a god, lest it be serving him, is controversial."

Kushinadahime swallowed, nodding once more.

"And that Susanoo-kun is already not in very good graces with the majority of the other gods?" The god asked, almost rhetorically.

"Y-Yes," she stuttered. She wanted to scream he wasn't at all the way they saw him, but held her tongue, fearful what punishment might befall her if she did.

"This is only going to make his reputation worse," the Earth Deity told her. "It will bring him down even further than he has already."

"Therefore it is necessary to cut your ties with him," the god told her coldly.

Her light gold eyes widened, "Wh-What?!"

"You are never to interact with Susanoo-dono, Kushinadahime-chan," Ashinazuchi said quietly.

"But why?! He has helped me so much!" She protested, forgetting her manners, "He should be praised for that! Not punished!"

"It is not he who is being punished," the god replied calmly, coldly. His dark gold eyes bore into her, "It is you. For you have developed forbidden feelings for Susanoo-kun."

Embarrassment colored her cheeks, but she hardly felt that next to the anger growing inside her chest, "A-A-And if I have…?"

"Kushinadahime!" Her mother scolded harshly, making her wince.

The god continued to glare, "Love, if you even know what such a concept it, can never be between a god and a lowly Earth Deity such as yourself."

Tears burned aquamarine-haired girl's eyes, "Why? Can I not even stay acquainted with him?"

"No," the other Earth Deity sighed. "It cannot be, Kushinadahime."

"You… You…" She trailed off, her voice shaking, "I… I…"

"Spit it out, Earth Deity!" The god yelled with such force the girl shrank backwards.

"You cannot make me forget him…" Kushinadahime mumbled defiantly.

"That is why we are here," the Earth Deity told her softly. At least he was kinder than the other man. He placed a blank talisman in front of him, "We have come here to seal your memory."

"S-Se-Seal my memory?!" She exclaimed, "But…!"

"All you will remember is the basic details of Orochi and that you were saved by a god," Ashinazuchi explained. "You will not remember Susanoo-dono or that he has come to see you these last several months. Nor will you remember what you have come to feel for the boy. You will remember what Orochi was, but not what it specifically looked like, the fate of your sisters, and that you survived. You will not remember this conversation, and you will understand that this seal on your memory was to help you get through your trauma caused by Orochi. Kushinadahime, do you understand me?"

She stayed silent.

"Kushinadahime, I asked you a question," her father ordered, his tone forced. He didn't want to do this, but his hands were tied.

The young girl looked at her father, anger and sadness in her eyes as she abruptly stood, "No, I do not understand! Why would you want to make me forget the most wonderful thing that has happened to me?! You are going to take Susanoo-sama away from me just as Orochi did my sisters!"

Kushinadahime watched as a shadow loomed over her as she faced her father. She hesitantly looked over her shoulder to see the god stand behind her, his face contorted in rage. He was furious.

The next thing she knew, something hit the base of her neck. Her world plunged into darkness.

AnimeKiwi369: Two and a half years, and I leave you with a cliffhanger?! Either I'm terrible with timing or a sadistic author. Possibly both. And after editing this last night, I have no idea how this garnered such a following, or any of my FanFics for that matter! My writing has vastly improved since then, and I hope it shows.

I know it's a long flashback, but I hope it was worth the wait. Unfortunately, I don't have many more chapters written after this one, but at least the Awkward Blues Arc is complete. That I can at least promise you will be updated soon-ish. Hopefully, I can get back into the swing of things with the way my semester is laid out.

I can't promise an update every weeks, but I'll try to make sure you aren't waiting another two years! Please be kind and please review! Valete! :3

Current Music: "History Maker" Dean Fujioka. Either you like Yuri! on Ice or you're wrong. ;)