"Hiyori-san. You wanted to speak with me?"
Yukine and Hiyori turned to see the God of Learning approaching them, followed by Mayu. The two immediately bowed to him out of respect.
"Yes," the brunette answered as she straightened up. "I-I have some questions I wanted to ask."
Her gaze slowly turned to Mayu standing beside the god. She felt her cheeks heat up.
"Alone," she then added. "I-if that's alright."
Lord Tenjin turned to look over his shoulder. Mayu caught his gaze.
"Do you mind?" He asked his Regalia.
Mayu blinked at him in slight surprise. Then, her face straightened again, and she nodded gently in response. She gave him a bow before turning to head inside the shrine again.
Hiyori looked over at Yukine, waiting for him to leave as well. Yukine did a double take before he realized what she was indirectly telling him.
"W-wait, me too?" He asked, surprised.
"Just go for a little walk. It shouldn't take long," Hiyori replied.
Yukine huffed out a sigh and turned around to exit the shrine. Hiyori turned to face the god, but he spoke up quickly before she could.
"You are carrying a child."
Hiyori's breath caught in her throat, and she immediately froze. She gaped at Lord Tenjin with wide eyes.
"W-wha-? How did you-?" She stumbled on her words in shock.
Lord Tenjin became visibly upset and ashamed, almost glaring at her with disgust. Or maybe it was because the one time he'd hoped he was wrong, he turned out to be right.
He held his paper fan up to cover his mouth. He cleared his throat as he began to speak.
"You are noticeably fatigued and beaten down," Lord Tenjin replied, directing his fan at her face, then motioned it completely downwards to her shoes, "your feet have swollen, and - forgive me for noticing-" he gestured his fan back up to below her neck, "your bust has grown."
Heat rushed to Hiyori's cheeks as a hand came to rest against her chest, suddenly feeling insecure.
Why did I not expect him to notice? She blamed herself. Nothing gets past the God of Learning.
"I-I see…" Hiyori mumbled, her gaze dropping to the ground.
Lord Tenjin sighed in dismay. "How far along are you?"
Hiyori swallowed hard, biting her lip. "F-five months…" she murmured.
Hiyori had already been building up the courage to prepare herself for her new reality, and she was sure she had made all the right decisions up until then. But then, she suddenly didn't understand why she felt so dirty. Was it because of her age? Because she was living with her consequences despite her young age?
Whatever it was, Hiyori knew the respect she'd earned from Lord Tenjin had quickly plummeted when he learned the news.
"You are nearly halfway through," he replied, raising his eyebrow in surprise. "Then, it appears you've already made your decision."
Hiyori attempted to sound more confident. However, her voice came out soft.
"Y-yes," she mumbled nervously. "I want to keep her."
Lord Tenjin released a heavy sigh, one Hiyori was sure was out of disappointment. She bit her tongue and held back her rising frustration.
"Well, good luck to you. However, as the God of Learning, you must understand my concerns for your studies," he explained.
"O-oh, yes," the brunette nodded slightly. "I'm keeping up with my schoolwork online. I told my friends it was because I had to leave to help at the hospital. The only people who know are my family. And Yato and Yukine."
"Does the father know?" Lord Tenjin asked with slight suspicion.
This she had expected. She just wished she didn't have to answer.
"Um... y-yes. He and I are… together..." Hiyori replied, turning a dark shade of pink.
Lord Tenjin seemed to be taken aback by this as he raised an eyebrow at her. He shook it off, then continued.
"Well, I can understand your desire to inform your Far Shore friends, but now that it seems you'll be with said father and child, shouldn't you be staying in his world now?" The god pointed out, lowering his fan to speak.
This was probably the best time to tell him, she figured. Maybe if she was subtle enough, he wouldn't be as angry, and she could skip past the cut-your-ties rant, it would be worth it. However, he was clever. Hiyori wondered if he would pick up on her hints.
Not to mention, she found herself thrilled to rub it in his face about how he was wrong when he told her how her love for Yato was one-sided.
"A-actually, yes," she answered with a small smirk as she crossed her arms. "I will be spending much more time in the Far Shore now."
There was confusion visible in his expression. Then, when he finally processed what she had said, Lord Tenjin's face transformed into utter shock.
"What do you mean to say by that, Hiyori-san…?"
Lord Tenjin's eyes narrowed, and his eyebrows came together. He raised his fan up to cover his mouth once more, as if preparing himself for the blow that was sure to come.
Hiyori realized by his obvious reaction that the god was furious. Knowing she was the one to have provoked him, Hiyori expected a reprimanding.
Her face fuming with embarrassment and shame, she replied. "Y-Yato... is the father…"
Hiyori could practically feel the wrath oozing out of him. She swallowed the thick air in her throat, readying herself for an explosion. There was no denying he had a few issues with this news.
However. Lord Tenjin quickly collected himself, setting aside his irritation. This anger, Hiyori knew, he was holding back specifically for Yato. He cleared his throat and turned around, shaking his head in disbelief.
"Heaven have mercy," he mumbled to himself.
Hiyori's earlier confidence quickly faded as she realized she shouldn't have been bragging about her teenage pregnancy. While she was grateful to have a child with the person she loved, there was nothing glamorous about the situation in the rest of the world's eyes.
"I-I'm sorry, Tenjin-sama…" Hiyori muttered under her breath. Then, she sighed and raised her voice. "I don't mean to upset you, but there's nothing we can do about it now. I came to you because I need answers."
The god turned around to face her again. "Ahh, yes. I assumed you wouldn't have come here to simply chat. Forgive me. What was it you came for?"
Hiyori took a deep breath. "I-I was just wondering…" she began nervously, "can gods and humans be together?"
The God of Learning sighed in response, sounding slightly agitated. "I thought we'd already had this conversation."
Hiyori could have sworn she saw him roll his eyes, but she let it slide. She wandered a few feet away to sit on a bench beside one of the plum blossom trees. She massaged her foot, her soles aching as much as her back had been.
"No." She spoke, displeased by the god's rude response. "Last time, you insisted that Yato wasn't capable of love."
"I never said that," Lord Tenjin defended himself. "The point I was trying to illustrate was that Yato-kun does not express love the way you do. He is unfamiliar with such emotion."
There were no words that could explain how much she hated when people stripped Yato down that way. She knew better than to believe it.
"Well, considering I'm about to have his baby, I'd say otherwise." Hiyori glared at him.
"Hmm…" The god hummed in thought, following a short moment of silence as he continued to ponder. Once his thought seemed to finish, Lord Tenjin spoke aloud.
"And the night you two both became so physically intimate, did you make a wish to him?"
This took Hiyori by surprise, and considering how it sounded, Lord Tenjin had already developed a theory on the whole situation. She wasn't sure if she wanted to answer his question, as she may just end up giving the exact information he needed to confirm that theory.
Hiyori opened her mouth to speak, but immediately bit her tongue. She stared down at her feet in shame, remaining silent instead.
"I see…" He finally said.
Crap! Hiyori thought. I unintentionally answered his question.
"So, what did you wish for, exactly?" Lord Tenjin asked, hiding a smirk behind his paper fan.
"I-..." Hiyori debated not saying anything - and then she also considered lying, but she knew in either circumstance, he would only see right through her.
"I wished that we'd be together. F-forever…" She responded, playing with her thumbs in her lap and trying to hide the blush forming across her face.
"Ahh." Lord Tenjin became serious again. "So, you had your wish granted? You gave yourself to him and got pregnant in an attempt to anchor him down into staying with you forever."
His words took a moment to process in her head. When they did, Hiyori kept up from her seat, tightening her fists by her sides.
"E-excuse me?!" She cried in fury.
Hiyori could tell that the bitterness he held back earlier had finally slipped out. It was only a matter of time before he showed his true colors.
But then again, what if he was right? What if Yato didn't actually love her the way she thought? What if he was just mirroring her feelings for him in order to please her because that was what she wished for? What if he was only acting on his responsibilities as a god, unable to choose his fate for himself? What if she ruined his life because of it, and that was why he ran away?
Lord Tenjin ignored her and continued as if nothing was wrong.
"Well, for the sake of this conversation, let us suppose Yato-kun does possess feelings for you. But you must explain. Your question was rather vague."
Hiyori retreated down to where she sat. She silently began to convince herself that Yato still loved her.
Her voice was soft when she spoke up again. "I-I was just asking if it's okay for us to be together…"
"Can you? Yes. Should you? No." He replied.
Lord Tenjin closed his fan, tapping it against his chin thoughtfully. Then, he noticed Hiyori's distraught expression and came to sit beside her.
"I don't know what Yato told you, but the Far Shore and the Near Shore should not interact with each other more than they already do," he added.
Hiyori looked at the god cluelessly. "What are you talking about?" She asked, sending a lecture coming.
"Heaven thinks of it as a business relationship - and it is. Humans need gods for their prayers, and gods need humans in order to exist. The gods act upon their wishes because their entire existence is to work for the humans. It is the same for the workplace in your world, right?" He glanced over at Hiyori to ensure she was still listening. "Workers are not allowed - much less, expected - to be so involved with each other outside of the office."
"So," Hiyori reviewed what Lord Tenjin said, "there is a rule against it…?"
The brunette thought back on when Yato told her how "gods can do no wrong." If that were true, why would Heaven care about what any of the other gods were doing?
The god nodded in response. "More of an unspoken one, yes. You have never realized that?"
"W-well," Hiyori's cheeks turned pink with embarrassment, "I asked Yato, but he didn't really know."
Lord Tenjin scoffed."Did he 'not know,' or did he simply dance around the question and tell you what he thought you wanted to hear?"
Hiyori felt her patience dwindle. She opened her mouth to try defending Yato, but then, she rethought it. With anger rising in her chest, she realized he's right.
"I'm sorry I have to be the one to inform you of all this." Lord Tenjin sighed.
"W-well…" Hiyori bit her lip out of worry, "then, what would happen if someone broke that rule?"
"No one knows for sure." Lord Tenjin replied, shaking his head.
"It's never happened before?" The brunette blinked in surprise.
The fact that she and Yato might be the first to break such a rule made her uneasy. She couldn't help but dread the idea of it.
"It might have. A very low time ago. But that story would be lost in history by now," Lord Tenjin explained. "Although, I believe Heaven would definitely try to intervene, resulting in divine punishment. Just like Ebisu."
Chills went down her spine. Hiyori had already witnessed the length of Heaven's mercy when Yato was accused of something that hadn't been his fault. Though, he could courageously call for a ceasefire and make it out alive, Hiyori knew they wouldn't be so forgiving the next time around.
"A-and...what if Heaven doesn't get involved...? What would be so bad about both of us being together? What would happen?" Hiyori asked, afraid of the answer.
Lord Tenjin passed her a side glance of suspicion. "I hope you're not suggesting keeping this private from them. Though I understand the idea, it could only result in something much worse for you."
"W-what do you mean…?" She stuttered anxiously.
"Any outcome would not be a pleasant one."
"What are the outcomes?"
The god raised his eyebrows and widened his eyes in astonishment. He knew literature by heart, but he'd never truly experienced an incidence better than now that fit the phrase, "curiosity killed the cat." He cleared his throat, signaling his next rant.
"Even without Heaven's help, one of you would have to go. The universe needs to stay balanced, and it will make sure it stays even." Hiyori appeared to be listening intently when Lord Tenjin looked over at her. "The god will remain because it has the support and admiration of the human, but because the human has invested so much into the god, it could eventually mean he or she crosses the line between the Shores. Because the human subconsciously wished to be so close, he or she also wished to die without realizing it. Once they pass that line, they never truly cross over to the other side. If you yearn for Yatogami so much, you won't see him after you die prematurely."
A sense of deja vu swept over Hiyori. She immediately recognized this from when Fujisaki directly targeted her family's hospital. Every part of her being cried out for the God of Calamity until she wandered too far over the line to find him. It sent a chill down her spine to realize she'd almost died that day. Ironically enough, the man she craved so much was the only one who could save her.
She was about to open her mouth to mention that recent incident, but quickly decided against it. She knew it would only further prove his point.
"Then… w-what about…-?" Hiyori glanced down at her stomach, a gentle hand instinctively stroking her bump.
The God of Learning followed her gaze. He felt some sympathy towards the young girl. He quickly turned away to refocus on the empty branches of the plum blossoms swaying in the autumn wind.
"I cannot say for sure. Whatever it entails, I strongly wish to be uninvolved with that mess," Lord Tenjin explained, the slight irritation clear in his voice.
"And Yato knows all this?" She mumbled, frustration building up inside her.
"He didn't exactly need us to tell him," Lord Tenjin replied, failing to hide his smirk.
That was when Yukine entered the temple after his brief walk. He tucked his fists in the pockets of his dark green jacket. He watched the two conversing from afar, afraid to interrupt them. Their aura was gloomy and melancholy.
"I see. S-so…-?" Hiyori sulked, tension easing from her shoulders.
"So, in short-" Lord Tenjin turned to face the girl to be sure they were making strict eye contact, "would you be willing to sacrifice your humanity - and with it, your memories - for this 'Yatogami?'"
Those words… the brunette thought with fear. That's the same question Yato asked me the night we confessed. So he really did know...
Something caught in Hiyori's throat. She felt her bottom lip tremble, and her pink eyes began to sting. She stood up, wiping the corners or her eyes on her sleeve.
"I-I'm sorry. I think I should go now," the girl choked out.
The girl gave the God of Learning a respective bow, containing herself until the moment she spun around on her heel to leave. As Hiyori passed Yukine by the front gates of the temple, the blonde Regalia glanced back and forth between the god and his friend. He wondered what had made Hiyori so upset. Yukine then quickly caught up to the brunette, deciding it would be best to stay quiet and keep a small distance from her on their way back to the apartment.
The god returned to his usual post in the shrine. He was almost immediately spotted and approached by Mayu, receiving a polite bow from her. It was quite obvious she had been secretly listening in on the conversation.
"Perhaps you were a bit too harsh on her, My Lord?" Mayu pointed out calmly.
Lord Tenjin sighed in response, sounding exhausted. "I had to be. They failed to understand my previous warnings," he explained as he observed the Regalia and half-Phantom leave the temple and turn the corner.
