prologue – remember

Hiyori bumps into him on her way out of the shrine. Her forehead smashes into his temple and from the sickening crunch she can tell that it's hurting him a lot more than it is her.

"Fuck," the man mutters under his breath, clutching at the side of his face. "Ow. Ow."

"I'm so sorry! I didn't mean to, I was just – in my own world – I wasn't paying attention and ohmygod are you bleeding – shit I am so sorry –"

"It's okay," the man replies, stepping back from the fretting girl. He's dressed in a blue jersey and looks to be about her age – and maybe man isn't the right word to use, then, but he has the air of someone much older than twenty-two. He's tall, with dark hair that falls into his face and the most electric blue eyes she's ever seen. "My fault, I was going the wrong way."

A shiver creeps down Hiyori's spine and she feels the hairs on her arms stand on end. Suddenly, she is cold, chilled to the bone.

"Oi!" a voice calls out from behind the man. "Watch where you're going or you'll end up killing someone."

A teenager – he can't be more than 14, 15 at most – steps around from behind the man. The kid is short and blonde. His eyes are a strange fiery colour, a sort of red-orange. Contacts, thinks Hiyori. No one's eyes are that like that naturally.

"Ah, see? Did you knock over the poor lady, you fucking brute?"

Such language! They look nothing like each other but they've got to be siblings or at least good friends if he's talking to the tall guy like that.

"Actually, I think I cut him with my teeth," corrects Hiyori. She laughs uncomfortably, stifling a nagging feeling. "He got most of the damage."

The taller man – who is indeed bleeding from a small cut on his cheek – smiles and extends a hand.

"Don't worry about it, really. I'm – ahem – Yato," he says. "This," gesturing to the kid, "is Yukine. And you are?"

"Uh – Hiyori. Iki Hiyori."

She shakes the man – Yato's – hand, and feels her heart pick up at the contact. Yato, and Yukine…where have I heard that before? Hiyori racks her brains, struggling to bring up a memory. There is a pounding at the base of her skull and she feels unexplainably dizzy.

"Well, Mister Yato, Yukine…I'm so sorry I bumped into you, I didn't mean to. I hope your cheek doesn't hurt too bad but uh, if you'll excuse me – I'm not – ugh – my head is hurting, I'm not feeling too well. I should go home."

Yato nods at her and Yukine hangs his head, kicking a pebble on the ground almost angrily.

"You see?" Hiyori hears the boy hiss as she walks away, "I toldyou, you piece of shit, I told you, but do you ever fucking listen to me? No, you just do whatever the hell you want and –"

"I'm sorry," Hiyori blurts out, turning on the spot. "This is going to sound really strange, but – have we met before? You two just look – I don't know – really familiar for some reason, I swear I've seen you somewhere."

Hiyori cringes at her impoliteness and is completely ready to be rebuffed but to her surprise, Yukine looks up sharply, staring at her with something akin to – hope? Beside him, Yato sucks in a breath through his teeth.

"Yes," he says excitedly. "Yes, we have met before, a long time ago." He takes a few steps forward, and Hiyori notices his fingers are shaking.

Voice trembling, Yukine chimes in, "Think - you were in high school. You know us, Hiyori, just remember."

The girl stares at them as the ache at the base of her skull grows stronger and – all of a sudden, she's overcome with nausea. She sways dangerously on her feet, moments away from falling. Her head feels like it's going to split in two and her vision is swimming and, distantly, behind a thick layer of pain, she thinks she feels a pair of hands on her shoulders, guiding her to a bench and sitting her down. They're saying something to her, both of them talking at once – she can hear sounds dimly but – almost as if she were removed from her body – she can't make out a single word.

Images flash before her – there's a cat, a tiny little ball of fur and – a bus? – a boy in a jersey chasing after the animal – a tail, growing from the base of her spine – a bright, blinding light and then a sharp bandaged sword – glowing, disembodied eyes, unseen monsters preying on innocent people – a dark bruise the size of her palm, purple-black and pulsing – a pink-haired girl and a tall blonde woman and an old man in robes and guns and lions and image after image, memory after memory rushes through her.

Yato and Yukine search her eyes as they go from bewildered to shocked to overwhelmed to an expression the God and his Shinki thought they'd never see again: recognition. Hiyori's breathing slows, heart rate slowing down, and the nausea disappears just as fast as it came. Kneeling before the bench, Yukine grins, the relief making him lightheaded – and slightly further away, Yato struggles not to cry.

But as she counts the time between her last memory and the present and realizes just how long it's been, Hiyori's gaze turns to pain and then, finally – anger.

13/07/2014 - The first story I've attempted in a long time, forgive my rusty writing. For my most recently joined fandom and the characters that stole my heart away and managed to break me of my writer's block. I'm not sure how long this is going to be, honestly, but definitely not over ten or so chapters. Updates should come every couple of day or weekly at the very latest. Comments and criticism are welcome and much appreciated. Thanks so much for reading!

Published also on my AO3 account ~sayanora_fallinlove