Yato couldn't remember the last time he'd seen an open sky.
"Whoa, it goes on forever!" Yato found himself running ahead of them, standing in the middle of the meadow to gaze up at the blue abyss. He then bounced back to Hiyori, grabbing her arm. "It's going to rain, look!" He pointed up at a cluster of puffy clouds, a dreamy smile tugging at his lips.
The lantern festival would look so lovely in this endless sky.
"Oi, Yato-san." Bishamon clicked her fingers in front of his face. "You do realise this is a top-secret, dangerous mission to us, don't you?"
"Many thanks for the service, Bishamon-san!" He grinned, folding his hands behind his back and quickening his steps to match her long strides. "I'll make it up to you. Have you heard of my super-powerful heart? It has healing powers, there are bounty hunters looking all over the world for it."
The blonde woman blew out a breath. "That isn't what I meant. Keep it down and keep walking, that's all I need from you."
"Okay!" A weak breeze caught his face, smelling like damp moss, and he couldn't help but beam.
Nature, he could live in nature, like a hermit. He could set up home somewhere remote and spend all day sniffing wildflowers, moss and wet tree bark.
"Hey." He felt an arm loop through his, and Hiyori appeared at his side. "Your head-wound isn't bothering you anymore?"
"Of course not." Yato waved a hand dismissively. "It's been, what, fifteen minutes since you hit me?"
"Yeah…?"
"I keep telling you I have a super-powerful heart. How can it be super-powerful if it takes more than fifteen minutes to heal me?"
He loved the look on the brunette's face then, her roseate eyes round and disbelieving. "No way."
"Yeah!" The black-haired boy sauntered on, his smirk smug. "All I need to do is chant a little verse, and poof, everyone's fine, all healed, I've fixed the world. I'll put apothecaries out of business, mark my words."
"Is that all you can do?" Yukine trailed at his other elbow, unimpressed. "Healing? That's it?"
Yato coloured, deeply offended. "Instantly! I can heal people instantly! And reverse aging, to an extent!"
"Eh. I bet Fujisaki uses your magic better than you."
His mouth dropped open in shock. "He uses it to hide doors and attempt murder!"
"Yeah." The blond smirked. "Now that's creative."
Yato struggled to find a response to that. It wasn't as if he hadn't wanted to learn. Father had just been so stingy, all he'd taught him were ways to keep himself safe. He hadn't really needed anything else, with the kind of life they'd led.
He felt Hiyori squeezing his shoulder in sympathy. "Aw, it's okay. Once we're in Takamagahara, we'll visit the library and get you a bunch of spells to try out."
He nearly snapped at her to assert the usefulness of his healing skills, but her eyes were so earnest that he found himself smiling again.
"Sounds fun!" He declared, because it did sound like fun. Anything with Hiyori sounded like fun, after how she'd spoken to him on the stairs.
She'd called him a friend. Not even Kazuma called him that, outside his head.
"You three, what're you doing dragging your feet? Come on!" Bishamon called from near the bush that led into the mysterious outside.
As he neared it, Yato felt the talisman necklace around his neck grow warm. The shields Father had set up around the tower were resisting his presence so far into the meadow.
They were old shields. Father didn't have the materials to refresh them anymore, he'd grown too poor over the years, but even so, Yato was glad they'd thought of the talismans.
"Right on through, come on." Bishamon urged. Yukine went forth first, stepping unhesitantly through the leaves of the bushes and popping out of existence.
All he left behind was a dim purple glow.
Yato felt a prick of unease, glancing back at the tower. His home for so many years, standing tall and proud in its lush meadow. He'd watched that shrubbery grow, and those twisting rose bushes at the tower's base. He could see his bedroom window, the sill he used to hang upside down out of as he waited for Nora to return home.
For the briefest moment, he balked at the idea of leaving.
But a hand touched his, lacing fingers and holding tight. Hiyori gave him a quick smile before she yanked him into a sprint.
He was reminded of the stairs outside his bedroom, and what he'd told her before he'd dragged her down them that day. You won't fall if you don't look down.
They'd crunched into the bushes before he knew it, and the glow swallowed his sight. He sank into nothing, and the talisman scalded his skin as if punishing him for betraying the father that had raised him.
He squeezed her hand, locking onto it as if it was his only link to the world.
And then he was tumbling onto muddy grass, the talisman colder than ice against his collar. Hiyori's hand slipped from his, and he opened his eyes to a sky marred by a canopy of leaves.
He smiled, opening his mouth to make a profound statement, but came up with nothing at all.
He was outside .
"Psst! Yukki! Hiyorin! Bisha! Psssst!"
Yato pushed himself up, spying a bobbing pink head cowering in the midst of a dense crop of bushes. She spotted him at the same time, dark eyes twinkling.
"Kofuku-san, did you face any difficulties? Did you see anything?" Bishamon's regal form emerged from the bush, her cape swirling under long honeyed hair as she walked over to kneel by the pink-haired woman.
"Yato, come on." Hiyori hissed in his ear. She crawled past him on her hands and knees, doing her bit to stay hidden in the shrubbery. He looked to his right to see Yukine doing the same.
He shrugged. His father wouldn't be returning for hours now, but... "Okay." He followed suit. The grass and twigs scratched at his palms like nothing had in forever. He cherished every scrape.
"No, no, there was nothing special, Bishaaa." The pink-haired stranger claimed, waving a hand in Bishamon's face. "Yato -chaaan , I've been dying to see you!"
"Oh, um, thank you." He replied, startled as she scrabbled towards him with her sparkling, inquisitive eyes.
Kofuku giggled, grabbing Yato's face with dainty but surprisingly strong hands. "Wow, you have pretty eyes! So blue~" She nearly poked one out with her finger.
"Oi!" Yato jerked his head away, but she surged forward again, her lips a breath away from her ear.
"You know, Hiyorin was soooo excited to save you, she set up an extra mattress in her room~"
Beside him, Hiyori turned a peculiar shade of green. "Kofuku- san. "
Kofuku's voice lowered to a conspiratorial whisper. "Oh, oh, you know she even tied her hair differently today? She spent ages in front of the mirror-"
"I can hear you, Kofuku-san." Hiyori's head was now in her hands.
Yato grinned. He'd read such banter in his storybooks, Kofuku was using him as an excuse to relish in Hiyori's embarrassment. And it seemed to be working, the brunette was turning an adorable shade of beet-red.
"Aw, Hiyori." He edged closer to her, glad to participate in her torture. "Really, I'm flattered, I didn't know I made such an impression on you."
"Ooooh!" Kofuku tittered, clapping her hands together.
"Shut up, Yato!" Hiyori glowered at him, red-faced. "You know what? You can sleep in the attic with Yukine instead!"
"Whoa, mind asking me first?" Yukine drawled, unamused.
Unfortunately, their banter was cut short when Bishamon cleared her throat.
The blonde wore a mask of pure annoyance. "Shall we continue this discussion after we've reached home?"
"Yes!" Hiyori seized on her words, jumping up. " Thank you, Bishamon-san. We have several yards of sneaking to do before we get to the castle walls, let's go!" She began trudging through the bushes before they could react, her eyes set determinedly in front of her.
Yato sprung to his feet to follow her. His face was as warm as the time he'd drunk a pitcher of his father's wine, and he couldn't help the spring in his step.
Yukine, beside him, smirked at him. "Could you please stop bouncing?"
"How can I?" He grinned, throwing out his hands. "I'm outside!"
"You're ridiculous." He shook his head, but Yato could tell the kid was pleased.
Behind them, Kofuku was hanging by Bishamon, tinkering with one of her talisman necklaces. The pink-haired woman looked up at the blonde, pensive.
"Bisha…" She began. "You know, something weird did happen today. I thought I saw Kazu behind that tree a couple minutes after you went into that bush, but maybe it was my imagination because when I tried to surprise him, he wasn't there anymore…"