Sacrifice--Hozuki x Reader (Hoozuki no Reitetsu)

Chapter 10

(F/N) sat in Hakutaku's shop feeding a rabbit. She was acutely aware of the divine beast standing behind her, eyes on her back, but chose to ignore it. She didn't feel like talking at the moment.

"You'll get wrinkles if you keep scowling," he told her. "What's wrong?"

(F/N) sighed. "I have a date with Hozuki-kun later."

"Isn't that a good thing?" he asked. "He's your boyfriend. Aren't you supposed to be madly in love with him or something?"

"I do love him!" she insisted. "It's just..."

She trailed off, and shut her mouth, turning back to the rabbit.

"Just what?" Hakutaku prompted.

(F/N) frowned. If she told him she was still worried about her past life, he would just tell her she was being silly. She had to keep lying.

"It's nothing..."

~o0o~

The date reminded (F/N) quite a bit of a certain incident that happened soon after she and Hozuki met. The only differences were the fact that it was a fox café instead of a cat café, the animals could talk, and she and Hozuki were far from strangers.

"I'm so glad they have places like this in Hell!" (F/N) exclaimed as a fox led them to their table. "Do they have them in Heaven, too?"

"Probably," Hozuki replied, "though I'm not the one to ask about Heavenly matters."

(F/N) nodded. "I understand. I'll ask Hakutaku-sama, then."

"Don't ask him, either. He'll probably lead you to a love hotel."

"There's no need to talk about him like that," (F/N) scolded him. "Why do you hate Hakutaku-sama so much, anyway?"

"...It's a long story."

(F/N) narrowed her eyes at him. Was he embarrassed? She made a mental note to ask Hakutaku for the story later. Preferably when he was very drunk.

"That's an awfully cute companion you have with you today, Hozuki-sama," commented the fox as he stopped by a booth.

(F/N) blushed.

"She's my girlfriend," Hozuki said as he sat down. (F/N) hurried to take the seat across from him. She'd never gotten this much attention when she was alive.

"Girlfriend?" the fox echoed. "Well, that's nice. We owe a lot to Hozuki-sama, you know. He's the one that gave us the idea for the café."

"Really?"

The fox leapt into her lap. (F/N) stroked his head and, surprised by how soft he was, pulled him against her chest.

"You're so fluffy!" she squealed.

"(F/N)-chan," Hozuki muttered, "please remember he's not an ordinary fox."

(F/N) narrowed her eyes at him. "This is a fox café, Hozuki-kun, don't go getting jealous of the foxes."

She turned away from him, and continued to cradle the fox to her chest, trying to ignore Hozuki's seething glare. She looked down at the fox. Perhaps it was sort of strange to be cuddling an animal that could talk. This became even more apparent when she saw another fox transform into a human some feet away. Sighing, she admitted defeat, and released the fox, sending him back to his work. As he trotted away, Hozuki shot him a glare that sent his tail between his legs. She almost made a bold move and said that, to make up for this, Hozuki had to cuddle with her later.

Almost.

Another fox came to take their order. This one, too, recognized Hozuki, and seemed pleased to see him, albeit a little scared at the same time. When (F/N) thought about it, she didn't think she'd met one person in the afterlife who didn't know and respect Hozuki.

"You sure are popular," she commented as they waited for their food. "Everyone here in Hell loves you."

"I don't think it's anything unusual," Hozuki replied.

(F/N) thought for a moment.

"I guess I had a lot of friends, too, when I was alive."

It didn't hit her until then how much she lost when she died—her friends, her family, her job. She'd spent so much time worrying about her past life, she'd forgotten her previous one. She hadn't even gotten to say goodbye.

Hozuki slipped his hand over hers, and (F/N) blushed. His hand was warm, dry—a little rough—and it was perfect.

In spite of herself, (F/N) smiled.

"I guess it isn't so bad," she commented. "I get to spend more time with you now, and I love that."

For once, it wasn't a lie.

Their food came, and Hozuki still didn't let go of her hand. (F/N) didn't mind—it felt good, and he was always a little bit odd. She didn't realize, though, that he would get even more odd by saying a very important thing at a very random time.

"I love you."

(F/N) stared at him. She knew she should say it back, but her lips wouldn't move. Why was it so hard? She'd told Hakutaku how she felt just that morning. Why couldn't she say it to Hozuki's face? All she could think of was the cold look in his eyes all those years ago, when he'd promised to send the village to Hell.

"...Thank you..."

(F/N) mentally slapped herself. What was she doing? This amazing man loved her, and she kept screwing things up. What was wrong with her? Why couldn't she just forget about it? Why couldn't she be happy?

"Something is bothering you," Hozuki said with a scowl. "What is it?"

(F/N) hesitated. Of course he would notice. He probably noticed a long time ago, but (F/N) had never thought of how to reply to that question.

"Is it your death?" he asked. "I'm sorry—"

"It's not that!" (F/N) insisted. "Not exactly...I suppose it is related to it."

Hozuki thought for a moment. "Is the relationship not to your satisfaction? If that's the case—"

"No!" (F/N) exclaimed. "There is something bothering me, but it's not really something you can help with, and I don't feel comfortable talking about it right now, so can you please be patient while I work things out? Please?"

Hozuki stared at her a moment, and sighed.

"Very well, but I hope you'll be able to tell me someday."

(F/N) forced a smile. "Of course."

Another lie.