"You know, Komaeda. You look better without glasses," Hajime said.

For some odd reason, Nagito's heart pounded harder than it should have. Was it something that he ate? His heart never pounded so rapidly before.

He placed a pale hand to his chest, feeling the beating muscle within him.

He wished that he were still alive and in the land above, where he could enjoy life again. But those were only dreams, and he promised himself he wouldn't get lost in them ever again. 

~

"Wake up Hajime. We got lots to do." He tugged the sleeping brunet out of his futon by his armpits.

"Hngh? I wanna sleep in... What time is it?"

"There's no time for sleep. And there's no time in Hell," he deadpanned.

"Where are you going?" Hajime mumbled sleepily.

"Correction. We. I'm taking you along so your soul doesn't get destroyed by another one of those Wanderers." Nagito put on his jacket and lifted his scythe behind him.

"Eh? Komaeda? Where are your glasses?" Hajime asked.

"I misplaced them." The albino lied.

"Okay then. I honestly don't care. You look better without them anyways."

There was that sentence again. The exact same one that made the Grim Reaper's heart pound in an emotion he couldn't explain.

"Take my hand," Nagito ordered.

"Why should I?"

"We're going to travel to the world of the living, and I'm one of the people who actually can. Now hold it."

The brunet's hand was warm when he placed his palm upon the albino's.

"How are we going to travel then?"

Nagito's lips twisted into a smirk.

"Like this."

His arms wrapped around the brunet's waist, securing him in the albino's embrace.

Two gradient black to red wings unfurled behind Nagito's back, the crystals hovering an inch above them creating a twinkling sound.

The crystals illuminated the room with a soft golden glow as he beat them against the air to reach the window.

"WAIT!!!!!" Hajime yelled.

Nagito laughed at the poor brunet who was dangling in his arms.

Loud wingbeats filled the air, propelling Nagito up into the dark red sky of Hell.

"Hold on tight!" Nagito laughed.

How long was it since he'd had this much fun?

Hajime continued yelling at the albino as Nagito dove upwards headfirst into the dark gray clouds.

As he broke from the ocean in the living world, the sun's rays landed on his face.

"Did you like that?" Nagito chuckled.

"NO!!!"

"Ah well. Today's first death will be in Tokyo. You ready?"

"No."

"Too bad."

At the speed of light, Nagito flew from the North Pacific to the bustling streets of the most populated city in Japan.

Diving headfirst, the albino brought the brunet and himself into a white room that smelled of flowers.

His wings shrunk behind him when his feet touched the marble floors.

"I think I'm going to hurl..." Hajime gagged.

"Do it in the trash can. I'm pretty sure the hospital employees won't mind."

"We're in a hospital?"

"Most deaths occur in hospitals."

The Grim Reaper sat in a green chair that stood in one of the corners of the room.

"Sit."

Hajime obediently sat on the chair next to him.

Nagito crossed his legs and rested his head on his fist.

"Why are there crystals on your wings?" Hajime suddenly asked.

"Oh. Those represent Heaven. My wing colors represent Hell. The souls I take are sorted into the three parts of the Afterlife remember?"

Hajime nodded.

Nagito summoned his scythe, placing it against the wall.

"I place the pure souls in those crystals and the tainted ones in my scythe. For those souls who I cannot classify just yet, I place into my wings. Now be quiet. It's her final moments. I want you to see how sad death really is."

"Her?"

Nagito shushed him.

In front of the pair, a hospital lay at the center of the room, with flowers and balloons next to it.

"The first victim of today is a little girl at the age of seven. She's diagnosed with cancer and is about to die in ten minutes."

The girl's parents entered the room.

"Hey, sweetie. How are you?" The mother's voice leaked with sadness.

The father's eyes were filled with sorrow.

"I'm fine, mom. There's nothing to worry about."

"I just want a few moments to myself, please." She looked at her parents.

Both exchanged concerned looks but excused themselves.

A moment of silence.

The girl's blue eyes landed on Nagito and Hajime.

"Who are you guys?" She asked.

"She can SEE us?" Hajime asked.

"People who are on the verge of death can see Death itself. Don't you read any books?"

Nagito turned to the blonde girl.

"We're no one. Just a fragment of your imagination," he lied. It broke his heart to lie to a sweet girl like her.

Three minutes left.

"But you're certainly real to me," she paused. "Will you be my friend before I die? Even if you're part of my imagination?" She clutched the hospital sheets.

"Of course." The Grim Reaper's heart broke again.

Hajime leaned next to the albino's ear.

"Why are you lying to her? Doesn't that depress her even more?" Hajime whispered.

Nagito placed a finger to his lips.

Two minutes.

"I was always lonely. I've been stuck to a bed ever since I was born. I never had any... friends or siblings," she explained.

Hesitation.

"So, since you're older than me, will you be my older brother? Just until I die?" Tears leaked down her face.

One minute.

"Yes."

A lie.

"Thank you."

Nagito rose out of his chair and walked towards the blonde's bed.

It was time.

Death has come to collect its dues.

His pale lips kissed the little girl's cheek.

"It's time." He spoke softly.

The girl took her last breath with a smile on her face.

The heart monitor went flat.

Doctors and nurses rushed into the room, attempting to bring the girl back to life.

It was no use. She was dead.

A transparent figure rose out of the girl's cold body.

"Thank you for being my brother." She smiled before Nagito took her soul and inserted it into one of the golden crystals on his wings.

The albino turned around to face Hajime, ignoring the parents' wails of despair behind him.

Hajime was unemotional.

"Death takes even the youngest and purest of them." Nagito started. "You were seventeen when you died. You were lucky. You had been lucky enough to survive until your teens. But this girl died at seven. What do you think about death now? It's unfair? You hate it? You regret all those lives you took?"

"I didn't kill people younger than me." Hajime faced the wall. He was clearly upset.

"Death is a natural thing. It should come naturally. But you. You forced it to come to people. You were a murderer."

He wanted Hajime to feel guilt for the things he had done. It was for his own good.

"I don't regret anything."

Nagito sighed.

"Well then. Come on, we still have two more souls to collect today." He beckoned the brunet.

As they rushed into the blue sky, Nagito wondered if Hajime's soul would ever be cleansed if he kept thinking like this about Death.

__________________________________

Nagito's wings and scythe