Chapter Text
The days pass much quicker than Hiyori would like, her daylight hours spent assisting her father and her evenings spent sneaking out to meet Yato at the docks. Every conversation they have only bolsters her resolve to run away and live a life at sea. Sure, her parents will be heartbroken—but doesn’t every heroine in her favorite novels risk it all for love and adventure?
Of course, these heroines had the support of their love interests to help them persevere. Hiyori’s plan still has a wrinkle in that regard—and that is how she finds herself hiding behind a candymaker’s stall amid the chaos of market day.
She peers around the corner, scanning for any dear friends or family members she’d rather not run into. The weekly markets draw not only fishermen with the day’s best catch, but all sorts of artisans looking to sell and advertise. The resulting jumble of stalls combined with the crowd of civilians makes for a lot of noise, perfect for having private conversations. Now if only she could find the person she’s supposed to be meeting...
“Oh! Hiyori, is that you?”
Unfortunately, the sheer amount of people milling about also makes the likelihood of an unwanted run-in very high indeed.
Hiyori turns just in time to be greeted by Kofuku’s bear hug. “Hi, Auntie.”
“I haven’t seen you at one of these in ages! Did your father give you the day off?”
“We both took the day off, actually,” Hiyori says. “He said he had some other business to attend to.”
“Taking the day off just to work, huh? That sounds like him.” Kofuku shakes her head in either admiration or exasperation. “Then I guess it’s just the three of us, Bisha. Bisha? Damn! Where did she go?”
As Kofuku cranes her neck for anyone tall and blonde, Hiyori slips into a passing gaggle of schoolchildren. When she reemerges, somewhat stickier but otherwise no worse for wear, her aunt is nowhere in sight. Bishamon, you lifesaver.
Hiyori continues along the rows of stalls, trying her best to be inconspicuous. Her mother does not usually attend market days, claiming they give her headaches, but it would be just Hiyori’s luck for her to change her mind. Today is not a day to take chances.
A bright flash of movement at the end of the row catches her attention. There, perusing a fishmonger’s wares, is a young man in an atrocious hat. It is wide, it is floppy, and it is adorned with an absolutely massive red feather. Hiyori’s smile of amusement drops into horror when she realizes the young man attached to the ridiculous hat is Yato.
“There you are! First Bisha disappears, then you—I know the market can be hectic, but seriously.”
Oh no. Hiyori turns, again, to see Kofuku standing there. It seems Bishamon has yet to reappear.
“Sorry, sorry,” she says, trying to subtly block Yato from Kofuku’s line of sight. “I thought you were following me.”
“I was trying to look for Bisha, but—Oh my. Hiyori, you might want to turn around.” Kofuku giggles, her eyes trained on something over Hiyori’s shoulder. Double oh no. Screaming internally, Hiyori looks behind her.
Yato’s hat is somehow even more absurd on second viewing. The feather dances obnoxiously in the breeze, taunting Hiyori. The real problem, however, becomes apparent when she sees Yukine on Yato’s shoulder. He’s seen the feather—and is gearing up to pounce. At that moment, Yato looks over and notices Hiyori. His face lights up. Triple, quadruple oh no.
Hiyori wheels around and flails wildly in a direction over Kofuku’s shoulder. “Look!”
Kofuku turns—as do several strangers—and Hiyori makes a mad dash in the other direction.
She dodges left, right—barely misses a small child—vaults over a barrel of mussels—and seizes Yukine from Yato’s shoulder before he causes any more of a scene. Yato can barely protest before she grabs him by the arm and plunges into the crowd. It’s hard to sprint in skirts with a cat in one hand and a pretty sailor on another, but Hiyori makes it work.
A minute later, they’re both crammed in the most secluded alley Hiyori could find on such short notice. It smells unpleasantly of fish. (Well, it’s unpleasant to her. Yukine is probably enjoying it from his new perch on her shoulders.)
“Any chance you’re gonna tell me what that was about?” Yato says, winded. His ridiculous hat is lopsided; Hiyori, filled with sudden nerve, reaches up and fixes it for him.
“I need to talk to you,” she says. “If my aunt and Bishamon hadn’t shown up, this wouldn’t be necessary.”
Yato smirks. “Let me guess, they don’t approve.”
“Definitely not. But they mean well, I swear—they just don't want me to end up heartbroken or worse.” Hiyori chuckles halfheartedly.
“I wouldn’t do that,” Yato says, frowning, teasing gone. “I mean—um, I know I haven’t known you for all that long but, you know. It’s, um, you’re special. I think you’re…” He clears his throat, face red as a tomato. “Really great. Yeah.”
Hiyori can feel her heartbeat in her throat. “Me too.”
“You think you’re really great?”
“Oh, shut up, you know what I mean,” Hiyori says, but she’s grinning. “That’s kind of what I wanted to talk to you about, actually.”
She takes a steadying breath. “When the Fortune leaves next week, I want to go with you.”
“Huh?”
Here goes nothing. “I like you a lot, Yato—I really like spending time with you and I’d like to spend more, and I’m going to go crazy if I have to live my whole life in this town with no adventure or even breaks in routine, so please, please, let me go with you.” Hiyori lifts her chin and looks him right in the eyes, hoping he can see the conviction on her face. “What do you say?”
Yato looks slightly stunned. “Um. Honestly, I’d love that, but are you really sure you wanna do this? You’ve got a whole family here that loves you. Are you really set on leaving them?” Hiyori’s heart twinges, but she ignores it. It’s not like she has to leave forever, right?
“I’m sure,” she says. “Although my parents really will be horrified, both by what I’ve done and who I’ve done it with…” She grimaces. “Maybe it would be easier if I ran off with some nice, respectable boy.” Crap — Nice going, Hiyori! Way to put your foot in your mouth! “Not that I want a nice, respectable boy! And you are nice! I just—”
Yato doesn’t seem to notice her sputtering. His eyes are trained on some point in the distance and a smile slowly spreads across his face. “Hiyori, that’s it!”
“That’s what?”
He gives her another one of his devil-may-care grins, eyes sparkling. “I’ve got a plan. You said your parents might take this better if you ran off with someone they liked.” Hiyori nods. “Well, you’re probably aware of this, but I’m very charming. We’ll just make them like me!”
It’s not a good plan. One might say it is, in fact, a very foolish plan. Her parents? Being charmed by Yato? But Hiyori has to admit it might just be crazy enough to work.
“Okay, let's do it. What’re the details of this plan?”
“Uh, I haven’t thought that far ahead yet. Got any ideas?”
“No.”
“Me neither. Yukine?”
“ Mreow.”
They stand there for a long minute. Hiyori discovers that it’s hard to brainstorm when she’s standing so close to Yato their chests are mere inches apart. Bad choice of alley. Or very good choice, Hiyori thinks. No, focus!
A second later, she’s got it. “Oh! I know what we’ll do. In Gelwe, families typically host dinner when meeting a daughter’s suitor. It’s the perfect opportunity to cast yourself in a good light!”
“Great!” Yato’s eyes resume their twinkling. “Wait. Does that mean you’re going to introduce me to your parents as a suitor?”
“Well, no, I guess we’d have to tweak it a bit if we don’t want my mother to completely lose all perspective,” Hiyori admits. “There’s an absurd amount of work that goes into courting; they’d never accept me just showing up with some guy I say is a suitor. It’d be simpler just to throw a dinner party and have you be my guest.”
“So it’ll be a surprise?”
“You could say that.”
Yato rubs his hands together. “Hiyori, you’re a genius! This is gonna work so well.” Potentially whipped into a frenzy by the excitement, Yukine makes another attempt to kill the feather in Yato’s hat.
“Furball! I’m gonna turn you into a rug!”
As Yato tries to wrestle Yukine off his face, cursing loudly, Hiyori allows herself to imagine what her new life will be like. Salty winds snapping the sails, endless stars at night, new places, new people...it’s more than a dream come true. Surely her parents will understand eventually.
“If I’d known he was gonna be like this, I never would’ve worn the hat,” Yato grumbles, Yukine now stashed in one of his large coat pockets. Hiyori can see his ears peeking out the top.
“May I ask why you’re wearing it in the first place?”
Yato tips the hat jauntily and winks at her, badly. “Because it makes me look so rakishly handsome.”
“It makes you look like a pirate in a bad stage play,” Hiyori teases.
“That’s what I said.”
A comfortable moment passes with them just smiling stupidly, then Yato sighs. “Anyway...it’s supposed to be my turn to swab the deck. I guess I should get back.”
“Yeah, I guess you should,” Hiyori says, heart sinking a little. It kicks into high gear, however, when Yato carefully reaches forward to tuck her hair behind her ear.
“See you later, then,” he says with a crooked little smile.
“See you,” she manages, a few seconds after he’s already left the alley.
Hiyori’s mind is already racing as she carefully makes her way back to the crowds, watching for anyone she knows. It should be easy to convince her mother to let her throw a dinner party, but what won’t be easy is keeping her from getting carried away. And there’s the menu to plan, and everything...Like trying to keep from Kofuku and— Bishamon?
On the other side of the small square, a tall blonde woman is wrapped up in conversation. It is Bishamon! But since when does she smile like that? Hiyori cranes her neck, trying to get a better look at the man her friend is talking to, but of course everyone chose to come to this part of the market right at the moment she needs to see. Oh well. Bishamon looks happy, so Hiyori decides to leave her be. Curiosity will have to remain unsatisfied today. She casts one last glance across the square and continues on her way.
“Hiyori Iki! Get over here right now!”
Hiyori suddenly, horribly remembers the events of half an hour earlier.
“Hi, Auntie.”
“Hi Auntie, my ass,” Kofuku says, planting her hands on her hips. “You better have a good explanation for the stunt you just pulled.”
Okay, Plan A: Feign Innocence. “What do you mean? I just saw an interesting, uh, bird behind you. Then I guess I got swept away in the crowd…” Hiyori backpedals as Kofuku’s face turns dangerously pissed. “Or not.”
“I’m talking about how I and half of Gelwe saw you run through the market dragging a man with a stupid hat! What were you thinking? You know how people gossip in this town! Wait—” Her eyes narrow, then widen comically. “That was the sailor boy you told us about, wasn’t it!”
Crap crap crap. Plan B: Lie. “No…”
“Liar! You can’t fool me, Hiyori—I know every trick in the book. Hell, I wrote the book!”
“Okay, fine, it was him. But I swear it was only—a medical thing,” Hiyori says, struck by sudden genius.
“A medical thing?”
“Yes! He told me he was having tooth pains, so I said I’d help him out. I don’t even like him anymore, Auntie, I was just doing him a favor.” Kofuku is starting to look gradually less suspicious, so Hiyori plows on. “You know how I want to continue the family business and be a doctor. I can’t say no to a person in need of medical attention, even if he isn’t a respectable member of society!”
“All right…” Kofuku thinks for a second. “Then why’d you drag him off?”
“You saw that hat he was wearing,” Hiyori says. “His cat was about to attack it. I was trying to avoid a scene.”
“Well, you sure failed,” Kofuku says, but she’s back to being her easygoing self, so Hiyori must have fooled her. Sometimes she’s glad her aunt is a bit dandelion-brained.
“Yes, well, anything for a patient,” Hiyori says, eager to change the subject. “Did you ever find Bishamon?”
Kofuku huffs. “No. You think she’d be easier to spot, being drop dead gorgeous and all, but I haven’t seen her anywhere.”
Hiyori hums noncommittally, sneaking a last look at the other side of the square as they head for home. Bishamon and her unknown companion are nowhere to be seen.