One Year Later

Yato wished, with all his heart, that he could spend a minute on his windowsill to hook his legs around it and fling himself to its mercy. The view was stunning, the summery winds carrying the fresh scent of lakeside algae, and ugh, it had been so long since he'd climbed anywhere.

"Prince Tsuki, your homework." Master Tenjin, Chief Advisor to the King and his substitute for a tutor until a better alternative presented itself, placed yet another textbook on the already towering pile. "The brief history of amendments to the royal law."

"Oh, great." Yato sighed. "Another one."

"The last one hadn't been updated to your father's reign, and believe me, he has amended a fair few laws." Tenjin murmured sagely. "I'll have a test waiting for you by lunchtime tomorrow."

"Tomorrow?!"

"Indeed." The scholarly man tittered, unfurling his decorative fan. "Your petition for a holiday was denied. His Majesty feels you are not doing well enough at your academic pursuits to justify it. Which, in fairness, is true, you are an abominable student."

"Aw, come on." He buried his face in his hands. "It's the lantern festival…"

"Perhaps you should have kept that in mind during last week's test."

"That's not fair! How am I supposed to catch up on twenty years of work in one?!"

"My sincerest apologies."

"I bet Fath- the King doesn't know any of this crap either!" He snapped, cringing at the slip of tongue.

The tutor gave him a patronising smile. "Sweet dreams, my prince." He bowed once, deeply, and swished out of the room.

Yato watched him leave. He could feel himself going insane, the cogs in his brain rusting one by one. He had spent a lifetime serving as Father's magic sponge, but even that had been a more comfortable existence than this. He'd had freedom in his cage, expectations he could achieve, no future to dream of but that was okay because that was Father's problem, not his.

There was a sick part of him that missed the tower, missed Nora and Father and their understated, domestic life.

He hoped it would go away.

Yato (Tsuki!) sighed, gazing out of the window at the lush treetops of the forest beyond the borderline. From this study, at this late hour, it was difficult to pin down the city skyline, the pointed roofs and cardboard boxes that made up his birth father's domain. His domain, technically.

The prince stood up and sauntered to the window, placing his hands on the sill as he leaned out of it.

He could imagine Hiyori in his ear, smiling as she chided him. Shut up and read, Yato. You want to be a great prince, make a change in the kingdom, this is how you do it!

He suddenly, desperately wanted to see her.

He grinned. Okay, for her, he could stay in tomorrow and spend it studying. For her, he could watch the lanterns through the window, like he had all his life.

But they didn't say anything about tonight.

He clamped onto the sill, eyeing the ledge below before toppling himself out of the window into the savoury summer air.

Even after five years of restraint, the pickpocket in Yukine found it extremely difficult to take a walk in the marketplace without his fingers twitching.

"What colour do you think Veena would like?" Kazuma-san went on, oblivious to his partner's predicament. He was holding up a pair of jewelled hairpins. "Lilac, like her eyes? Red, like blood? I can't choose, they'd all look lovely on her!"

There were so many people passing by. So many pockets bulging with gold, jewellery, gifts, precious things bought for friends and family on the eve of the lantern festival. When he'd been a kid, the night before the lantern festival had been prime time to sneak his sticky fingers into the crowd and come out with a hefty pile of loot-

"Eh? Yukine?" Kazuma blinked green eyes behind his glasses. "Aren't you going to get anything for Hiyori?"

"Mmm." Yukine mumbled distractedly, his eyes on a fat wallet poking out of a man's overcoat. "Nah, I'm not wasting my money on her. Yato's gonna ship her a golden goose or something, I don't know."

Kazuma hummed in discontent. "Well, that's a bad attitude to have. It's not about money-" He paused. "Huh."

"Yeah, yeah, she'd like the sentiment, whatever, but she's literally got the crown prince of the kingdom wrapped around her finger, so I think I'd rather save up for candy apples." He glanced up at his bespectacled partner, who was frowning vaguely into the distance. "What?"

"Huh." He repeated, bemused. "That...that's Yato , isn't it?"

Yukine's head snapped to the direction he pointed to, searching the thick crowds for his friend. So far, Yato had snuck out of the castle so often, sometimes carrying enormous textbooks to forget in their house (giving him an excuse to visit again), that Yukine had become attuned to his presence. If he wanted, he could pick out his characteristic laughter, his smarmy smooth-talking, from the other side of the kingdom.

Sure enough, he noticed the head of unruly black hair bobbing around the far end of the marketplace, turning this way and that as if the halfwit had somehow gotten himself lost in his own bite-sized kingdom.

The blond boy sighed. "Yep. I'll go deal with him." Without another look at the brunet, he elbowed through the crowd, eyes set on the prince in the silken clothes (a string bag chock-full of gold at his waist). "Oi, idiot prince! What the hell are you doing here?"

Yato spun towards him when he grabbed his elbow, blue eyes shining with surprise. "Yukine?! Hi!"

"Yeah, me." The kid rolled his eyes to disguise his flattery. Why did he always have to look so pleased to see him? "You're not supposed to be out unguarded. It's nearly midnight."

"Aw, are you worried? You know I can protect myself." The older boy grinned, reaching out to ruffle his hair. "You never told me there's a festival the night before the festival!"

Yukine batted his hand away. "This isn't a festival , Yato, it's literally just the regular marketplace with a couple more lamps." His eyes darted down to his moneybag. "At least give me your gold. You're going to get yourself robbed, showing it off like that."

"Oh, really? That's why you want it?" Yato's smirk widened in amusement, though his fingers did still go to fiddle with the string bag tied to his belt. "Whatever, help yourself. I've gotten what I wanted, anyway."

He undid the knot and plopped the bag into Yukine's open hand. The blond gaped at its weight, at the number of cold, heavy coins piled inside it. "What the- why're you carrying this much money in the middle of the night , Yato?" He hissed, careful to keep his voice low, out of earshot of greedy passers-by.

"I wheedled a spending allowance from my mother." The blue-eyed boy winked. "Plus, I wanted to buy something, but it ended up costing a lot less than I expected, so. You can have it."

"Ugh, you spoilt brat." Yukine peeled the bag open to get a peek at the treasure within. "Holy shit." He whispered under his breath in awe. "You know what, I might actually get Hiyori something for the festival after all."

"Well, don't get her anything too special." Yato wore a giddy smile, hands folded behind himself as he tilted back on his heels. "I don't want you outshining my present."

"What did you get her?" The blond asked off-handedly, still fixated on the prize in his hands. So much money, he could quite realistically join his sister Yuka across the sea with another bag like this one. Not that he would, but-

"Oh, nothing special." The prince purred, dipping his hand in his pocket. "Just a ring. And a proposal or two. Nothing too grand."

The music screeched to a halt. Yukine whipped his head up, startled. "Pro- what?"

"Nothiiing." Yato skipped down the cobblestone path with a singsong voice. "Wanna check in on Hiyori with me?"

"It's late, she's probably asleep!" He called out behind him. With a rush of frustration, he caught a glimpse of Kazuma-san heading back home without him, and let out a haggard sigh. "Okay, okay, but if you're doing what I think you're going to do, don't think you can cry on my shoulder after it's done!"

"O ye of little faith." The black-haired boy sang back. "Hurry up, I want to get back before the palace guards notice I'm gone!"

Hiyori had been nodding off over a thick, dogeared translation of an ancient magical tome from across the sea when she heard her mother cry out in horror.

"Dear!" Her mother hollered. "Where in the world has all the pudding gone?"

"I was hungry, sweetheart." Her father piped up, on cue. "Don't be making such a fuss."

"Fuss? Fuss? We have company coming in the morning! How am I going to explain this- this disgrace?"

Hiyori grimaced, plugging her ears with her fingers as she squinted at spidery lettering. Moving in with her parents had changed a lot of things, but the worst change had been the noise. Day in and day out, her parents chattered on and on about everything at the highest volume possible.

She didn't think they'd been this disruptive before. This was what happened when two people had been stuck home, jobless and dishonoured, for six years straight.

"And just look at the time. The markets will be closing soon, they certainly won't be serving any pudding to us so late!" Her mother's shriek was accompanied with a clatter of pots and pans in the kitchen. "How will you explain this to the guests? Not to mention if, god forbid, the Prince decides to drop in-"

Hiyori clapped her hands over her face. She wanted, more than anything, to run back to Daikoku's pub and finish this damn book before the festival. She wasn't a frequenter of the thieves' pub anymore, considering she now had a legal job that required a nice, well-to-do, legal image... but she longed for the peace and quiet of her bedroom now more than ever.

She had to get this book finished tonight. Tomorrow, she would have Yato at her heels dogging her down. He wouldn't let her get anything done, he would whisk her away at the crack of dawn to frolic for hours around town, just like last year. They would eat candy apples, coo over stalls and while away time wandering the streets. They would dance in the square and let loose lanterns into a starry sky.

They might even get a hold of one of those ponies he'd wanted last year.

Hiyori's face was hot as a stovetop. A quick glance in the mirror showed she was tomato-red, her cheeks flushed as if she'd spent the day lifting weights in the sun.

God, she was hopeless.

She fanned her face, pushing off from her desk as she abandoned her ancient tome for good. Fresh air, fresh air would do her good. It would clear her head.

With a sigh, the brunette blew out her candles and padded over to her shuttered window, ignoring the thrum of her bickering parents downstairs. She couldn't let it go on this way, she couldn't let the very thought of him turn her into a blushing, fluttering, empty-headed mess. She was better than that, she was a sorceress, a master thief, almost a qualified healer-

She threw open her shutters and heard a loud thwack.

"Ow!" A shadowy figure grabbed at the shutters, scrabbling at the sill to restore his balance. "My fault, my fault!"

"Oi, careful!" A younger voice shouted from the backyard below. "You absolute idiot! I knew this was a- hold onto the ladder, I've got you!"

"Got it!" The high-pitched shadow yelled back, and then there was a pair of bright blue eyes in front of her, so close she could topple right into them. "I'm fine, I'm fine!"

Hiyori would've slammed the shutters shut again, if his head hadn't been in the way.

"Yato-?" She stuttered instead. "Why on- why can't you- why are you here?"

"Hi, Hiyori." Yato wore a charming, self-satisfied grin, rubbing his pinked cheek as he balanced on a long bamboo ladder propped against her house. "I didn't even knock. How'd you find us, thief's instinct?"

"I-I- " She paused and shook her head, jostling her late-night dazed brain. Now that she thought about it, how hadn't she heard them? Were her parents that loud? "Is that Yama-chan's ladder?"

"Yama-chan's your neighbour?" Nonchalant, the blue-eyed boy pulled himself up, swinging his legs into the room. "I saw it behind their house. I may be an extraordinary gymnast, but your walls are so smooth I figured I could use some help climbing them."

Hiyori goggled. "And is there a reason you're climbing in here at this time in the night?" She felt a sudden stab of irritation. "I'm trying to study here, you know. I'll see you tomorrow."

"I know, I know." He lifted his palms in a peacemaking gesture. "I won't stay long. I can't , anyway, I'm not supposed to be here. I just...wanted to give you a present."

Hiyori's lips quirked up, but she crossed her arms, refusing to thaw. "And you can't give it to me tomorrow, why?"

"Because…" He winced, scratching the back of his neck. "...I, uh, did badly on my tests, so-"

"Yato." She narrowed her eyes to slits. "You promised me you would study."

"I did!" He shot back defensively. "I'm just not used to studying, I'm a...visionary type. I'm- agh, this isn't even what I'm here to talk to you about." He groaned, tipping his head back. "Look, I have something important to ask you, okay?"

Hiyori raised her eyebrows. "I'm not going to bring you souvenirs from the festival." She said, while immediately making plans to bring him a basket of assorted candies. "The King will kill me-"

"No, no, listen to me." Yato waved his hands before him, standing up. "This isn't... though, yeah, I would appreciate it if you could get me something, but this is different. I've, uh, I have something to tell you."

"This better be serious." She walked over to her bed, plopping down onto it. She gestured for Yato to take her study chair. "Go ahead."

The blue-eyed boy gulped, electing to keep standing as he picked at the nails of his hand. "It is. Serious." His eyes flitted about the room, taking in her messy desk, her raggedy nightgown, her sleep-mussed hair. "Y'know, maybe this isn't the right time to do it."

She stared at him blankly. "You've already climbed in through my window, Yato. It's a little too late to back out."

"I know, but..." He began to pace the room. His hair was windblown, his shirt rumpled, his eyes alight with a kind of manic anxiety. "I-I didn't wake you, did I?"

"No, you didn't." Unbidden, she felt her own nervousness rising, as she watched him stop at her study chair, pout at it and turn back to the window. Yato was usually unflappable, nothing moved him unless it was a threat as dire as- "Fujisaki? Is it...did something happen to Nora? Did the King make a decision about her?"

"No." Yato carded his fingers through his hair. "Hiyori-"

"The King, then. Or the Queen?" She mused. "Did they punish you? Are they hurting you? Or-" An idea flashed in her head. "No. They're not...they're not planning to fire me, are they?"

"No! Of course not-!"

"Don't worry about it, Yato." She got to her feet, grim with resolve. She'd prepared for this. "I'm not a dud anymore. You've done enough for me, it's about time I put on a presentation for them. I'll knock their socks off, you wait and see-"

"They're not firing you, Hiyori!" The prince cut in furiously. "It's not them, it's not about them. It's…i-it's…"

"What?"

"It's about me."

Hiyori felt a gaping pit open up in her belly. " You want to fire me?"

"Will you cut that out?" He snapped. "Nobody's firing you. You're fine. Fath- er, the King likes you, believe it or not, you're his favourite civilian."

"Oh." She felt strangely flattered by that. "That's...that's nice?"

"Yeah." He gave her a cold look, shoulders stiff. "So stop thinking like that. You're here to stay."

Not for the first time, Hiyori thought she could hear a hint of resentment in his voice. She couldn't tell if it was really there or if it was just a phantom of her own paranoia, but even if it was , she could understand it.

This was where he wanted to be, wasn't it? Working to be a sorcerer, using his heart to perform magic, enchant crowds, solve problems. Hiyori had essentially stolen his dreams from him...and, judging by the look on his face, it seemed he had reached his boiling point.

Her stomach sank. She hadn't wanted this. It was wrong, it was cruel of her to have forced him to ask this of her.

"Listen, Hiyori, would you, er, what would you do if I asked-"

She noted his adam's apple bobbing as he swallowed, eyes squeezing shut, the slight straightening of his posture. His mouth opened, and she knew what he was going to say, she'd prepared for it for close to a year now-

"Will you marry me?!"

Eh?

Hiyori tilted her head to the side, sure she'd misheard. "What did you say?"

His cheeks turned a vivid shade of scarlet. "It's not a bad idea!" He defended. "I mean, I love you, and you make my life better, and you ...well, you can get something out of this, can't you? Like, I'm your friend and I'm a prince , and, yeah! A-and here, you can have this ring!"

There was a resounding silence. Even her parents downstairs had stopped their bickering, as if they'd fallen asleep at some point (or, were listening in). Yato pinned her down with a piercing gaze, a sparkling trinket between his index finger and thumb, golden and glittering.

Hiyori stared at the ring, dumbfounded.

"...when did this happen?" Her words came out slow, dazed.

Yato, in contrast, had been wound up to maximum. "I don't know!" He admitted at a frantic pace. "I saw a ring in a store a couple months ago, and Kofuku-san said it looked like a wedding ring, and then tonight I saw it again! It's my brain, my stupid head making stupid decisions-"

"Okay." She held up a palm. She had the sneaking suspicion that this was all a very immersive dream. "When did you decide you want to marry me? Me, Iki Hiyori, in particular. And don't say it's because I'm the only girl you know."

"Hey, I know a lot of girls!" He countered hotly. "Don't be mean, I wouldn't ask anyone else this."

"Huh." She held the bridge of her nose, feeling the beginnings of a headache blooming there. "You've never brought this up before."

"...Because I didn't have a ring before." Yato drew back, still holding it between his fingers. "I...kind of assumed you felt the same way. I mean, you're the one who kissed me."

"I didn't-" She blushed at the memory. "That's not fair. That one doesn't count, it was a year ago and we've never talked about it-"

"Oh." Slowly, he withdrew his hand. "So, what you're trying to say is…"

Hiyori stared at him for a moment, watched as his gaze twitched down to his feet. She stepped forward, cupping his hands with her own.

"It's a no." She confirmed. He blinked once, startled, before a wobbly smile lifted his lips.

"Right! Right, that's okay."

"Yeah, you idiot." A laugh bubbled in her throat, warping her words. "You haven't even kissed me once, and you think I'll marry you?"

"Um." He fidgeted, red-faced. "Yeah, I guess I should've expected that-"

"Right? Common sense, isn't it?" She smirked. "Put it on a list. I expect a good, long courtship period from you. At least one kiss, a bunch of love letters, as many as you can write, and I need you to be sure. No impulsive decisions, and especially no acting on advice from Kofuku-san." She held onto his hands, memorising his long, clammy fingers, the cold metal of the ring between her palms. "And next time, try making it a little more romantic."

Yato narrowed his eyes at her, giving her a once over.

"I think I get it." He decided, slipping his hands out of hers. "You're saying I went too fast."

"Exactly!" She chuckled. "You get it."

"Yeah, I've got to dazzle you first."

"You've got to- eh?"

Before she could comprehend it, Yato had cupped her jaw, drawing her up to press a light, chaste kiss to her lips. Her eyes opened wide, she stared into his blue depths for a good second before his hands snaked into her hair, threading through her unbrushed curls.

She had only just closed her eyes, opening her mouth to deepen the kiss, when Yato randomly jerked back, an enormous white grin on his face.

"Time's up!" He chirped, backing smugly away from her. His sapphire eyes sparkled. "Got to have you yearning for me later!"

"Yearning for-?" She turned pink. "Shut up!"

He winked. "See you after the festival!"

Fluidly, the black-haired boy slid onto her windowsill, tromping down the rungs of Yama's ladder like they were a solid staircase. She could hear Yukine cursing at him from beneath, Yato placating him with a casual I've lived in a tower for twenty years, I can manage a ladder, Yukine.

Hiyori bit in her lips, holding in the giggle of a hopeless, empty-headed mess. She flew to the window, watching after them as their dark silhouettes disappeared into the shadows of the night, but not before turning back to wave at her.

Tomorrow, she would fill a basket with the best candy in the festival, and bring a lantern along to boot. Three lanterns, and a rowboat to whisk them into the lake for the best view they could imagine.

She fell back onto her bed with a sigh, and curled onto her side, her eyelids bursting with dreams.

No, she wasn't getting any reading done tonight.

The End

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A/N: And, finally, we've reached The End! I wanted to use all three of their perspectives for this last chapter, with a flourish of Yato/Hiyori, so there you have it! :D they're going to live happily ever after, by hook or by crook.

I hope you enjoyed my little (novel-length lol) story. It was a joy to write, and I'll miss writing it. Oh, and special credits to my ever-faithful beta reader (who's filtered through a lot of crap for me), my sister San :)

Thank you for reading, and for the lovely comments you've left along the way!