AN-- So it's been quite a while since I've posted anything here. Then this past Valentine's Day I saw MirrorMask for the first time and absolutely loved the character Valentine, which is only appropriate. So I wrote this little bit of fluff as a late gift to any readers. Forgive me if they seem a bit OOC, but I'm very new to the fandom and this is my first story for it. Enjoy! Or...don't. But either way, let me know what you think, as long as you use constructive criticism.

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I sit on the wall lining the bridge and swing my legs back and forth impatiently. I look up to watch a school of fish pass by. That's the eighth one today. Ten minutes ago, I saw the fifth sphinx to pass me today. Luckily, three hours before that a copy of All The King's Men was floating by and I had the insight to grab hold of it before it reached the library. After munching on a few pages, the creature saw fit to continue on its way. No great loss. From what I'd managed to read, it was a terrible book anyway.

I reach into my pockets for the third time since I arrived and dig out a small bead-filled sack. I toss it into the air and catch it on my left foot. Then after kicking it in the air five times, I pass it to my right foot. It's a new form of juggling I've been working on. I call it 'foot juggling'. She calls it 'hacky sack'. I call that 'stupid'. But it doesn't matter what she calls it anyway, because she's late. Not that I'm waiting for her or anything. I've just had nothing better to do...for the past six hours.

I guess I shouldn't be surprised. It's not like she shows up every day. I just thought it would be nice if today, she were here. But it's not like she knows what today is. I never told her. And it's not like I couldn't do a thousand other things today. I just didn't feel like it.

A few minutes later I get bored again, kick the sack back up to my hand, and drop it into my pocket. I drum my fingers together and let out a frustrated sigh. Valentines are very good at keeping ourselves occupied. Usually though, we don't have to do it for hours on end. But that's her fault for not being here on time. The fact that an 'on time' was never established is beside the point.

After a moment, I see a small, familiar figure walking towards me out of the corner of my eye. I feel a smile creeping onto my face and stare intently at my hands as I twiddle my thumbs, pretending not to see her. I whistle to myself, waiting until she is standing right in front of me. "You're late," I say, still not looking up.

"Sorry, I was a tad bit busy." She looks at the picnic basket in her arms and sets it down as I jump to the ground.

"Ah, don't be." I wave it off. "Not like I was expecting you."

She folds her arms and looks at me intently. "Oh, no?"

I look at her for a moment. It's the first time she's visited that she's not wearing her jammies. She's clad in a simple red button-up blouse, jeans, and comfortable looking sneakers. A clip holds her hair out of her face, which I'm starting to think would look way too weird with a mask on it. She looks...nice.

"At least you had the good sense not to wear those nasty bunny-things on your feet again. I tell you, it's cruel and unusual treatment, what you do to those creatures." I start tossing a ball in the air and catching it in my right hand. "The shirt's good, though."

She lets out a chuckle of disbelief and ask almost accusingly "Did you just...give me a compliment?"

"No, it's just a good color is all. Same as mine." I give a little tug on my t-shirt to draw her attention to it. "What's in the basket?"

She smiles, and nods down to it. "Take a look."

I neglect the ball and hear it bounce away as I lean down to the ground and open up the basket, excited at the prospect of any food. I pull out a large covered tray. Curiosity getting to me, I lift the lid ever so slightly to peak in and see a..."Cake?"

She moves so she's standing next to me and nudges my shoulder. "Oh, come on. Don't tell me you've never heard of getting a cake on your birthday."

"No," I answer her quietly. "I mean, I have heard of it. I've just never gotten one before. Mum wasn't exactly the baking type." I look over at her, still holding the tray. "How did you know?"

She lifts one foot up and points the toe of her shoe to the ground, using it as a sort of pivot to spin herself back and forth in a partial circle. She looks utterly delighted with herself. "In my world, just about everyone celebrates your birthday."

"Well, I am a very important man," I say, as if that explains it completely.

She takes hold of my arm and guides me to sit on the ground next to her. "Come on, let's eat already!"

I laugh in agreement, and take the lid off to look at the whole creation for the first time. A thick layer of white icing covers it, having very much the look of being put on by someone who didn't exactly know what they were doing but spent a lot of time trying to get it right. The top of the cake reads in legible-but-not-perfect red script 'To My Valentine'. I can feel my grin reach all the way up to me eyes. I hope she can tell, even if they're hidden behind the mask. "It looks delicious."

She puts her arms around me and kisses my cheek. "Happy Valentine's Day." Suddenly I'm very glad the make-up on my face makes it impossible for her to see that the skin on it probably matches that stripe down the middle.

I return the hug and with more sincerity than I've ever said it before reply "Thank you."