"Y-Yato?" Her voice rang through the speaker of his phone.

"Hiyori? What's wrong? Daijoubu?" Yato's breathless voice replied.

"Oi! Keep your eyes on the Phantom!" Yukine cried from within the Sekki's.

Yato eased his way through the alley ways, attempting to confuse the massive creature hunting him. He clutched both the swords in his hand, using his other to hold his red flip phone to his ear. He looked over his shoulder to see how far it had reached him, only to lose his footing and trip over himself. His momentum sent him rolling a few meters.

"Fuck!" He cried, crashing into a vending machine.

The feedback was enough for Hiyori to cringe and pull the phone away from her ear.

"S-sorry, sweetie…" Yato groaned, holding the phone back up to his ear.

"I-is this a bad time?" Hiyori asked.

"No, no. We're alright."

"Don't listen to him! We're being chased by a big ass monster that can swallow us whole!" Yukine shouted loud enough for her to hear. "Get up, blockhead! It sees us!" He called to his master.

"A-ano…" Hiyori mumbled.

"What is it?" Yato asked as he scrambled to his feet and rushed in the opposite direction of the Phantom. "Are you sick? Do you feel alright?"

There was a slight pause before she answered.

"I-I...I don't know. Something's...wrong - well, I guess, it's not wrong, but it's not...normal?" She nervously tried to word it. "Ahh! It's nothing. Y'know, it's not really that import-"

There was a sudden flash of white light behind her, followed by a bell-like chime. Hiyori immediately spun around on her heel. She was greeted by her lover, and two shiny swords standing in her brother's apartment kitchen. She gasped, a hand instinctively coming up to protect her stomach.

"Y-Yato! What-?"

"What the hell?" Yukine's voice cried. "We weren't done with that Phantom yet!"

"Revert, Yukki."

The Sekki's lit up, shooting out of Yato's hand and transforming into Yukine's human form. He did not seem pleased by his master's behavior.

"We don't have to drop everything just 'cuz Hiyori calls, y'know," the blonde boy crossed his arms and rolled his eyes.

"We weren't gonna win against that thing anytime soon," Yato said, waving it off. "Leave it for Bishamon."

"Wimp!" Yukine mumbled under his breath, sending a glare at the god next to him.

Yato ignored the comment, and approached Hiyori. "What were you saying? Something's wrong? Are you in pain?"

She blinked, surprised by his sudden change in attitude. He looked at her with worry.

"W-well, actually…" Hiyori sighed, sensing her lover's clinginess come to the surface. She turned towards the sink, and pulled out a shard of white broken glass. "It's because of this."

Yato and Yukine blinked in confusion. They looked down at the object in her hands, and up at her face. Although, she seemed very serious.

"A broken plate?" Yato stared at her cluelessly.

"You called us because of a broken plate?" Yukine asked with a deadpan expression.

"N-no, of course not!" Hiyori shook her head. "I-...I broke it while I was doing some of the dishes, a-and then I-...it-..."

She tried to think of how to explain it to them, but came up short with words. She sighed, turning back towards the sink.

"Just-...look."

Yato and Yukine shared curious expressions before looking over her shoulder at what she was doing. Hiyori seemed to hesitate as she hovered the plate over her open palm. Then, she closed her eyes and sucked in her breath. She dug the sharpened edge of the plate into the crevice of her hand, tearing her skin and drawing blood. She cringed, letting out a strangled noise.

"What the hell?" Yukine exclaimed, backing away from her in shock.

"W-woah, woah! Hiyori!" Yato nearly shrieked, grabbing her wrist with the glass shard away from her other hand. "Stop it! What are you doing?"

Yato looked over his shoulder at Yukine with wide eyes, ordering him to get a first aid kit. Yukine obeyed him, and went to the bathroom to search the cabinets.

"No, no - Yato, look!" Hiyori told him.

"What was that about? You can't just-" Yato's gaze fell to the wound in her palm, and he suddenly fell silent in shock.

They watched as the blood dripping from her hand suddenly slowed down, and the wound began to close up by itself. Hiyori turned on the faucet and rinsed it, revealing fresh skin with no scars. She looked up at the god, waiting for him to react. However, it seemed to take a while to process for him. He blinked, trying to make sure what he had witnessed was real.

His eyes met Hiyori's. "That's...new."

Hiyori nodded slowly, still trying to comprehend it herself. Then, she suddenly was pulled from her thoughts when Yato pulled her into a tight hug.

"Don't scare me like that again," he told her, relief clear in his voice.

Hiyori felt her cheeks heat up. She closed her eyes and reciprocated the hug. She nodded against his shoulder blade.

"Mm. Gomen."

"Found it!" Yukine came rushing back into the room, holding up a first aid kit. He stopped when he noticed the two hugging each other. "Uh-...I'm...guessing you don't need this anymore...?"

. . . . .

"So," Yukine thought aloud, sitting on the couch beside Hiyori, "you can heal a lot faster now…"

"Y-yeah," Hiyori answered, "I guess so…"

"What do you think that's about?" Yukine asked curiously.

"Not sure…" Hiyori said, holding a finger to her chin. "One thing's certain," she looked down at her baby bump, gently running her hand over it "I don't think she's gonna be entirely human."

Yukine seemed fascinated by the idea, and stared down at her round stomach in thought.

Yato came to her side, handing her a mug of hot tea. Hiyori smiled and thanked him. He then proceeded to adjust an ice pack against her swollen ankles. The brunette sighed in relief, easing into the couch cushions.

"How's that, my goddess?" Yato asked, grinning warmly.

Hiyori shared a smile. "Much better. Arigato, my god."

Yukine quietly rolled his eyes, reaching for the TV remote on the coffee table. The two then shared a kiss, much to Yukine's disgust.

Yato reached down and pressed his hand against her stomach, feeling the roundness of it. Hiyori kept her eyes shut as she pressed her hand against his on her belly as well.

"She's getting kinda big, isn't she?" Yato whispered, his face pink with joy.

Hiyori smiled widely. "Mm-hm!" She replied. "Have you thought of a name yet?"

"Hmm…" Yato said, softly drumming his fingers against her baby bump. "Nope. Nothing yet."

Hiyori giggled at the sensation. She looked over at the boy innocently watching a movie. "What about you, Yukine? Thought of any names?"

Yukine looked at her, eyes wide with confusion and disbelief. "Huh? M-me? Uh - n-no! No ideas - can't think of anything!" He panicked, waving his hands frantically in front of him.

The door swung open, suddenly interrupting them. There was the sound of a loud sigh, followed by someone kicking off their shoes. Masaomi revealed himself, trudging past the three of them.

"Hey, Hiyori. How're you feeling?" He asked with a yawn.

"O-oh, I'm alright, Onii-chan. Actually, I-"

"That's great. You guys can order a pizza or something. I'm gonna go lay down," he replied, not turning his head or stopping to talk to any of them.

He headed straight for his bedroom, the sound of him closing it behind him echoing throughout the apartment. The three of them sat in quiet disbelief for a moment.

"Poor Onii-chan," the brunette sighed. "He works so much now…"

Yato thought for a second, then he pulled away from Hiyori and stood up. "Well, let's let him sleep. Dinner at Kofuku's anyone?"

"Yes!" Yukine raised his hand eagerly.

"You sure?" Hiyori blinked, wondering where his sudden burst of energy came from.

"What's there not to be sure about?"

Hiyori chuckled softly, and stood up, placing her cup of tea on the coffee table in front of her. "Alright, well in that case, let me tell my brother before we go."

Yukine ran to grab his sweater after turning off the TV set. Hiyori approached Yato, giving him a quick peck on the lips before pulling away to speak.

"Pack me a bag, will you?" She asked politely. "I'll be right back."

Yato seemed dumbfounded by the sudden kiss, but he nodded in response and headed into the bathroom to grab medicine bottles.

Hiyori approached her brother's bedroom door, gently knocking on it. "Onii-chan?" She quietly pushed the door open, light filling the darkened room.

Sure enough, Masaomi was collapsed on his bed, his arm hanging over the edge with his glasses in hand. He cracked open and eye at her, blinking cluelessly.

"Hiyori. What is it?" He asked with a small yawn.

"Kon'nichiwa," Hiyori walked up to his bedside, bending over slightly to meet his gaze. "Yato n' Yukine n' I are leaving to go to a friend's for dinner."

"Yeah…?" He replied tiredly, rubbing his tired eyes with his free hand. "Don't forget your vitamins. And stay with Yato."

The brunette smiled down at him. "Of course."

Hiyori straightened up, using a hand to massage her back. Just before she was about to leave, her brother called out to her again.

"Oh! By the way," he weakly waved his glasses in her direction "Mother left some more maternity clothes in the other room for you. She says if they don't fit, to just 'em back."

Hiyori grinned and nodded. "Oh, that's great! Arigato." She started closing the door, heading out. "And remember to eat, Onii-chan."

Masaomi closed his eyes and gave her a thumbs up. Meanwhile, Hiyori quietly shut the door behind her and went into the guest room, where her - along with Yato and Yukine's belongings - were sprawled across the room.

She locked the door, in case someone walked in. She found a shopping bag filled with brand new clothes. Once she finally tried them on, Hiyori observed herself in the mirror.

"Hmm…" she adjusted the round collar around her neck, her eyes wandering downward to look at her baby bump. "Do you think Daddy will like it?"

Hiyori giggled, smoothing out her shirt around her stomach. Almost on cue, there was a knock on the bedroom door. Hiyori came to unlock it, finding Yato standing in front of her with her bag and a bottle of tomato juice. He seemed to be caught up in checking something on the label of the juice as he spoke.

"Hey, Hiyori? Ya think you need thi-?"

As soon as his eyes landed on her, he stopped and blinked. He looked her up and down.

"Uh - are those new clothes?"

Hiyori chuckled at his reaction. "Hai! What do you think?"

Yato smirked, setting down the bag and juice on the floor before straightening up to meet Hiyori's eyes. He took hold of her hand, placing his other against her abdomen.

"Yeah," he whispered, his eyes softer than she'd ever seen them. "You're both very beautiful…"

Hiyori felt warmth fill her cheeks. She looked at him, their noses touching, as she wrapped her wrists around his neck.

"Both of us?" She glanced down at her bulged stomach between them. "How would you know? She's not here yet," Hiyori giggled.

Yato's response came much easier than Hiyori expected. "Do I necessarily need to see her? I know what her mother looks like."

"Y-Yato…" Hiyori exclaimed, her blush spreading to her ears.

How does he always know exactly what to say? The brunette wondered, swooning over him.

Yato pulled away enough to attractively smirk at her, and ran his fingers through his hair. "Plus, her father's quite breath-taking as well. He is a god, afterall," he flaunted.

Hiyori rolled her eyes and groaned, teasingly shoving him away. "Alright, let's go!"

Yato blinked, stunned by her response. He knelt down and finished packing the bag, grabbing it up and quickly catching up to his lover.

"Would you get those for me, Yukine?" Hiyori asked the boy, pointing down at her shoes at the bottom step by the door.

"Oh. Sure," the Regalia answered, reaching down and handing them to her, while grabbing his own sneakers.

Yato came to her aid, helping her slip on her shoes. He continued to put on his boots, slinging the bag over his shoulder.

. . . . .

The three headed towards their friend's shrine. It was a comfortable silence, with Yukine following behind the couple. Hiyori had her nose in her phone for a while, accidentally bumping shoulders with Yato a few times. She apologized each time, but still seemed more concerned with the person she had obviously been texting.

Finally, Yato looked over her shoulder curiously, attempting to get a glimpse of the screen. "Who is that?"

Hiyori bashfully lifted her head and tilted the phone screen away from his prying gaze. "J-just my friends from school…" she answered.

"Really?" Yato blinked, taking a hand out of his jersey pocket to ruffle his dark hair. "What're you talking about? You seem pretty invested in it."

"Uh - n-nothing really," Hiyori replied. "They're just filling me in on what I'm missing."

"But then-" Yukine suddenly chimed in, "what did you tell your friends about why you weren't in school anymore?"

Yato didn't say anything. He looked from Yukine to Hiyori, curious about her answer as well.

"O-oh, yeah," the brunette felt sweat drip down her temple as she answered. "I just told them I had to drop out to help out my parents after the hospital incident."

Yato's eyes suddenly faltered, and he found himself staring down at the pavement in shame. He stopped walking, falling behind his Regalia and his lover. Hiyori noticed, her small smile quickly becoming a straight line when she saw the god's reaction. Yukine stopped in his tracks as well, noticing him pass by his master. He watched as Hiyori turned around and approached her lover.

After knowing him for nearly two years, Hiyori knew the distinctive look of self hate on the god all too well.

"Yato…" she called softly, her eyes reflecting sympathy. "My father's hospital - that wasn't your fault. It-..." Hiyori twiddled her thumbs, her eyes nervously darting away from him. "It was mine. I provoked him - and then he came after me..."

Yato remained silent for a long second. He lifted his head just slightly enough that he could see her through his long bangs. "That's not it, Hiyori," he mumbled. "I-... I just-" he finally sighed and straightened himself "if it wasn't for me, you'd still be able to see your friends and enjoy yourself - n' you would be able to graduate…"

I'm tying you down.

Yato heard her breath shudder. He wondered if he said something wrong - no, he had said something wrong. Before he could try to speak again, Hiyori pulled him closer, wrapping her arms around his neck. Her mouth came down on his, and Yato froze in surprise.

Yukine's face cooked faster than a biscuit. He spun around on his heel, avoiding the scene unfolding.

Yato's earlier surprise faded, and his tension ceased. His eyes closed on their own accord as he settled to place his hands on her waist. Their kiss deepened, and the god's head lightened. All of his previous thoughts seemed far out of reach, and the only thing he could wrap his mind around was the sensation of her lips, and his unborn child comfortably pressing against his abdomen.

"Alright, I get it!" Yukine called over his shoulder. "Can we keep going now?"

. . . . .

"Oi!" Yato called into the shrine, sliding the door open. "We're here!"

There was the sound of a cheerful shriek, followed by the pink goddess rushing around the corner. She headed straight for the young Regalia, squeezing him until he turned pale.

"I thought you guys were never coming back!" She cried, rubbing her cheek against Yukine's.

Daikoku came into the room, immediately having to pry his master off of the innocent boy. "Quit bein' dramatic! They visit all the time."

Once Kofuku had freed herself of her Regalia's grasp, she continued to give Yato a hug. "I miss you, Yatty!"

The goddess quickly moved on to wrap her arms around Hiyori. "I missed you too, Hiyorin!" She exclaimed.

Kofuku then pulled away and bent over to be eye level with the girl's bulging belly, waving joyfully to it. "Hello, Yatty's baby!" She greeted, her cheeks pink with happiness.

Hiyori giggled a bit, gently running her fingers over her round stomach.

"How've you been feeling, Hiyori?" Daikoku asked, sounding somewhat worried.

The brunette smiled kindly to the tall man. "Ah, I've been alright. I haven't left my brother's apartment much recently, but luckily, Yato and Yukine-kun are almost always there with me."

"Just had her last check-up yesterday," Yato added. "Everything seems alright."

She neglected to inform them of her stranger symptoms, not intending to worry them more than they already somewhat were. In any way, how was she supposed to explain it to them?

"Glad to hear it. We'll make you extras for dinner," he answered with a similar smile.

Yato settled down Hiyori's bag, and Hiyori excused herself to use the bathroom. Kofuku guided her, despite her already knowing the way.

"Let me know if you need anything, Hiyorin!"

The brunette grinned and nodded in response. "Hai. Arigato."

. . . . .

Hiyori opened the bathroom door, noticing Daikoku cooking in the kitchen, and Yukine at the kotatsu with a book in hand. Kofuku was busy humming and sweeping the floor, with her Regalia keeping a close eye on her in case she somehow broke something.

Hiyori approached Yukine, attempting to get his attention while he was reading.

"Yukine-kun?" She called gently. "Yukine-kun?"

"Hm?" He answered, not turning away from his book.

"Where did Yato go?"

"Umm…" Yukine paused. Then, he raised his arm to point in the direction of the stairs behind her. "I think he went upstairs to get something."

Hiyori looked back at the stairs leading to the attic. She turned back to Yukine, and noticed the cover of the book he was glued to.

Basics of Painting Art Techniques

Hiyori smiled to herself. He really is growing so much.

"Arigato," she finally said before heading up to the attic.

"Uh-huh," he said back vaguely, turning the page.

Hiyori noticed the door to the attic room was already open, almost as if inviting her in. She quickly found Yato sitting in the windowsill, holding his miniature shrine in his lap.

"Ahh, so that's what you're doing," Hiyori's voice rang, revealing herself to him.

Yato immediately turned and looked over to see his lover coming towards him. He smiled at her, and looked down at his shrine.

"Yeah…" he mumbled. "Just wanted to make sure it was still okay…"

Hiyori chuckled. "We should probably keep it out of sight once the baby comes, huh? Wouldn't want her to break it."

Yato laughed a bit, too. "Yeah, that would be bad."

"Let's go back downstairs. I think Diakoku's almost finished preparing dinner."

She took hold of his little treasure, going to the wardrobe to carefully place it on the top shelf. Yato followed her, coming to her side and wrapping his arms around her to hold her stomach. Hiyori smiled warmly, placing her soft hands over his. They both settled into each other for a long moment, observing the mini shrine sitting in front of them.

Then, something suddenly caught Hiyori's eye.

"Hey. What's that?" She asked, pulling away from Yato to wander over to the back of the wardrobe.

She pushed the furniture out of the way to see. Once she had a better view of it, Hiyori's mouth dropped open. She couldn't tear her gaze away from the sight.

Mountains of jars filled to the brim with mounds of money - coins and cash of all kinds.

"W-what-?"

"I-it's nothing! Don't mind that!"

Yato appeared panicked as he shoved Hiyori out of the way, and forced the wardrobe back into place, hiding the money again. Hiyori staggered back, appalled and confused.

"What do you mean? Is that all yours? Where did you get that much money? Why didn't you tell me? How'd you get all that?"

Yato threw his hands to his head and gritted his teeth, trying to contain his anxiety. His hands found their way to his face, where he vigorously rubbed his stressed features. He sighed heavily, dropped to his knees and reached out to take Hiyori's hands.

"Hiyori…" he began, staring straight into her pink eyes. "I told you on the night we made love that-...that I'd never lie to you."

Hiyori blinked in surprise, slightly leaning away from his gesture. "Y-yeah, so…?"

"So, I won't lie to you. I choose not to say anything," he finished, sincerity in his eyes.

Hiyori almost didn't seem to know how to react, glancing back at the crack between the wall and the wardrobe, where the money was hiding.

"Did you steal that?" She asked, panic rising in her voice.

"What?" Yato scrambled to his feet, frantically shaking his head. "No, no! Absolutely not! I earned it - more or less."

"S-so…" Hiyori calmed down a little more at this - even seeming to grow excited, "if it's really yours, then why didn't you tell me? I mean, we-we could use it for the baby, right?"

Yato blinked and looked back at the hiding spot. He appeared to consider it, but it wasn't long before he shook his head again, refusing the idea.

"No no no! Of course not!"

"What?!" Hiyori exclaimed, pulling her hands back. "Why not?"

Yato tore his gaze away from her. "B-because! It's...not meant to be spent," he replied, then lowered his voice. "It's dirty money."

Hiyori became silent, unable to process what he had meant. She stared at his back, while he stared at the floor in shame.

"Don't tell anyone about this... Please - it's really not that big of a deal."

With that, he quietly left the room, leaving Hiyori alone to wonder.