Sacrifice--Hozuki x Reader (Hoozuki no Reitetsu)

Chapter 6

Hozuki hadn't seen (F/N) in a week. It was his own fault—he'd been busy with work. Still, a week was too long.

As he walked the familiar path to the zoo, he remembered the last time he'd seen her. The embarrassed look on her face when they almost kissed was too adorable. He knew she would turn cherry-red when she saw him again. There would then be a few minutes of stuttering half-conversation before she returned to her normal smiling self, brimming with confidence and happy to see him. She would also have koala pictures. That was important.

He waited at the gate for half an hour. Nothing. It was strange. She usually got off then. He took out his phone and sent her a quick text.

This number has been disconnected.

He frowned, and looked around. A young woman left the zoo. He recognized her as one of (F/N)'s coworkers.

"Excuse me," he said, walking up to her. She froze at the sight of him. Was he really that intimidating? (F/N) never seemed to mind it.

"Ye-yes?" the woman stammered.

"I usually see (F/N)-chan around this time. Is she here?"

All the color drained from the woman's face.

"Oh...you're that friend of hers. She talked about you a lot. Have you really not heard? (F/N)-chan is dead."

~o0o~

Hozuki confirmed it himself when he returned to Hell. (F/N) had been murdered after letting a strange man into her apartment, and was sent to Heaven almost immediately after. Hozuki couldn't believe she was that stupid. He would have to give her a stern talking-to when he found her.

Hozuki wondered if she'd heard of him by then. She already seemed to have figured out, by some miracle, that he was dead—he had the flowers she gave him drying in his room. He'd always intended to tell her about it eventually, when their relationship got more serious. He wasn't sure how their relationship would fare with him being dead and her being alive, but he knew they would find a way.

Of course, with her being dead, things would be more conveniant.

As he sat at his desk, reading the scroll detailing her life, he wondered how she took dying. He was sure she had many things to live for. She'd wanted to be promoted in her job, and travel to various countries. She'd wanted to get married, and buy a house...he would have to prepare himself to comfort her when he found her.

He stood up. Finding her shouldn't be hard. He'd just have to turn in a favor with the higher-ups of Heaven, and if that failed, he was sure the idiot divine beast knew of every cute girl. Hozuki would just have to smack him around a bit. Not that he minded. Actually, maybe he should go there first. He hadn't tormented Hakutaku in a long time. The breaks which used to go towards beating him to a pulp had recently gone towards seeing (F/N).

Just as he was preparing to leave, Karauri and Nasubi passed by.

"Hozuki-sama," Karauri said, "where're you going?"

"Heaven," he answered. "There's someone I need to find."

Karauri flinched. Really, what did they take him for?

"This person must be really special for Hozuki-sama to go all the way there for them," Karauri whispered.

"I wonder what they did to incur his wrath?" Nasubi wondered.

Hozuki wondered if they knew he could hear them.

"She is special," he told them. "She's my girlfriend."

"What?"