E/N: Ladies and gentlemen, for your viewing pleasure, Tsutomu Teruko's OV contribution. Now to get Serac and Masa...


Operation Valentine: Howell's Story "Another Round"

Today's subject is "Love".

There are many things that the child Howell Fitzwilliam loves. He loves big things and loud things and songs that go Bye, byyyyye Miss A-mer-i-can Pie. He loves being treated nicely and going outside. He loves it when people do the things that he loves. And he loves Yuuna, too.

Which brings us to the beginning of our examination of "Love", one sunny morning on February 14.

"Are you going somewhere?"

We join one Professor Akashi, a teacher of an ambiguous field currently tenured at Mahora Academy, together with his new roommate/pet/nuisance, a rather lackadaisical fellow named Howell J. Fitzwilliam. The scene is the kitchen, where the Professor is currently taking breakfast and reading the paper, while Howell puts on his coat.

"I am," the albino boy remarks, adjusting his tie. "As it happens, I have a date today."

Rather uninterested, the Professor gives him a mild grunt. "Is that so."

"Yuppers," Howell responds pleasantly. "With Yuuna. How's the eggs and B?"

However, at the mention of his daughter in conjugation with Howell and dating, the Professor quite forgets said eggs and B altogether, crumples his newspaper and looks up. "WHAT did you say, Howell?"

He repeats, "I have a date with Yuuna today. They said to take her to get ice cream or something."

"You?"

Now, a bit of backstory here might be necessary, as no doubt you peevish readers are once again clamoring with the questions and comments and read and review plz:

The current living arrangement of the Professor and the Howell relies on the rather strained relationship between the two of them. The reason for the straining, and for the arrangement, is the matter of the Professor's only daughter, Yuuna. As it would happen, when the wayward Howell first wandered onto Mahora soil he happened upon Yuuna, who being a girl far too easygoing for her own good and since, well, everyone else was doing it at the time, decided to invite the mangy hobo to stay in her dormitory.

It was quite the pleasant arrangement, until Daddy came home from his business trip and called Yuuna to invite her to dinner and was instead greeted by a strange, unfamiliar, male thing.

BUSTED with a capital BUSTED.

After chasing Howell out into the snow and sitting Yuuna down and giving her a stern talk about birds and bees, the problem of Where Does Howell Go arose. The Professor and Yuuna searched long and hard for a place for the guy, but without avail, and so, to Yuuna's delight and the Professor's dismay, the only thing to do was to leave him in Daddy's care.

The two do their best to tolerate each other, though each are of the opinion that the other is horning in on their relationship with Yuuna and tend to view each other with muted contempt, while being sent seething at the thought of the other spending time with her and excluding him.

Today is no exception.

"And WHO gave you permission to do something like that?" demands the Professor.

Howell blinks. "Well, Negi set it up… and the ice cream was Connor's idea. I thought it was a keen idea."

The Professor's bloodlust is beginning to show now. "You're a million years ahead of yourself, boy… Someone like you could only dream of having the perseverance to make my daughter happy!"

"Don't worry, I wrote up a full schedule," Howell responds cheerfully, producing a notebook out of no where. "I gave it quite a lot of thought and I'm sure we'll all have lots of fun."

"Oh, you will, will you?" the Professor snatches the book and flips it open to the first page, where, indeed, HOWELL'S OPERATION VALENTINE DAY PLAN VERY IMPORTANT!! is scrawled. The VERY IMPORTANT DAY PLAN, as it happens, reads like so:

10:00- Go to ice cream parlor.

10:05- Eat ice cream

10:06- Still eating ice cream

10:10- Ditto

10:16- As above, but more so

10:30- Done eating ice cream!! Leave ice cream parlor and go outside!

10:37- Feed pigeons outside the ice cream parlor!

10:50- First Kiss (crude approximation of a heart drawn here)

11:00- Go to see a film at the theatre. Film sucks so spend hours making out (heart)

13:00- Lunch!

14:30- Go to museum and look at things. Is boring so have sex in restroom instead (heart)

15:50- Stroll in the park. Find secluded place with park bench and have sex (heart)

17:11- Go to planetarium. Planetariums suck though so have sex standing up against window instead

19:00- Dinner!

21:00- Go home and do it some more (heart)

The Professor lowers the notebook and turns his gaze onto the blissfully smiling Howell.

"I don't know a lot about dates," he says, "So I did a lot of research!"

"What kind of research?"

Howell beams. "I went to Mr. Albert Chamomile the Mahora dating expert and gave him 1500Y to get his expert advice! I don't know about some of that stuff, though. Mr. Chamomile says that 'against the window' is a popular position for girls of Yuuna's build, but I should think she'd get pretty cold so I thought I'd pack a scarf, you see…"

The Professor rewards him for his efforts by getting out of his chair, going up to him and breaking his neck into a 90-degree angle with his bare hands.

BAD END NO. 49

-Try no to continue!


"Well," Howell reasons to himself, "I shall need to think of a way to keep Professor Akashi from maiming me so I can go on a date with Yuuna to keep her from molesting young Negi."

He gives the predicament some serious thought, and then hits upon it: Of course! The solution is so simple! The only true way to keep a body from crashing someone's date is to find THEM a date! Isn't that why we're all here today, after all?

Feeling very proud of himself, Howell at once turns to the telephone and begins punching in numbers.

"Oh, good morning, Donnet McGuinness! Oh? H-hello? Oh, it seems you're an answering machine! Why hello! I was just wondering…"


"It's not every day you ask me out like this," Professor Akashi remarks. "What's the occasion?"

"Well, I suppose I felt a little bad for you, all alone on Valentine's Day," says the blonde woman with a smile. "An absentminded professor like you could use a walk down memory lane every so often, am I right?"

"I guess so."

Still, Donnet wonders just who it was who asked her to meet up with the Professor today… that's awfully suspicious.

Howell watches the two disappear down the sidewalk gleefully. "JUST AS PLANNED."

Just then, his memetic reveling is interrupted by one Kataragi, a fellow in a smoky black suit with shades and a dark goatee, who appears from behind a telephone pole to glare at the happy couple retreating into the distance.

"Curse you, cruel fate," he snarls to himself, "Donnet McGuinness was going to spend Valentine's Day with me, Kataragi, after I mysteriously fell in love with her offscreen upon glimpsing her for five minutes at a distance of 200 feet away! I have half a mind to go up there and CRASH THAT DATE!"

Unbeknownst to the unsurnamed mage, however, he is also being watched by a woman with long hair and glasses: Touko Kuzunoha. "Kataragi, you philanderer," she hisses between her teeth, "How dare you become attracted to a random female character you've never interacted with? Oh, I'll show him, I'll step in and break up his date!"

This is much to the detriment of Touko's boyfriend, Mr. Not Appearing In This Oneshot. "Oh, Touko… I know that I've never had a real appearance and have never been named, but is that a reason to start pursuing some guy solely because you've been in scenes with each other? Well then, I'll sabotage your date and TAKE you back!"

He says this, however, not seeing the Rhythmic Gymnastics coach, Ninomiya, standing mere feet away from him and watching him forlornly! "Touko Kuzunoha's boyfriend… if I were to somehow ruin your date today, would you notice the feelings I have for you?"

Nor does she notice Seruhiko The Strongest Assistant Teacher watching her from a rooftop. "Ms. Ninomiya, who has the same hairstyle as me… although we have so much in common, you continue to spurn me in favor of a man who loves another AND has never appeared or been named?"

Professor Nitta watches him soliloquize grimly. "Should I tell him that he and Ninomiya are actually long-lost twins as evidenced by their identical hairstyles? …No, I'll just ruin their date!"

Howell looks all down the street and feels the collective jealousy and rage ebbing down towards him. "I think I need to make some phone calls," he decides at last.


Howell doesn't love people who act angry with him. He does love making phone calls. And of course, there is also someone who Howell loves even when she is angry.


Yuuna looks hard in the mirror and wonders if her ponytail would really look better on the other side. After all, it's Valentine's Day and she wants to look her best for Operation: Rape Negi. But still, she's redone her hair about fifteen times; at this rate she's only going to get around to the Operation in December, and only a real twit would sit on her obligations that long!

She's just about to embark when there's a knock at the door.

"Yuuna, my little fish!" Howell greets her enthusiastically. "Let's date!"

She throws her arms up. "Heck yeah!"

The two pointlessly happy people stand there a minute… being pointlessly happy, until Howell asks, "Are you by yourself? Did everyone else already leave?"

"Yeah," says the basketballer. "Akira got picked up this morning by this weird Black Swan who said he was recruiting people for his Epic Harem of DARKNESS or something."

"Well, I'll be. Isn't that something?" Howell responds to this colloquially.

"Yeah, that's what I thought too."

With a smile, the red-eyed boy holds out his arm to her and says, "Then I suppose it's just you and I, Yuuna. Shall we be off?"


Yuuna is little and fast and loud and is nice to Howell, even if she does get cross with him at times. She does all the things that Howell really loves. Thus: he loves her a lot.


The Scene: A downtown Mahora ice cream parlor with high air conditioning and tall, cold metal chairs with round seats. YUUNA and HOWELL sit at a table, having ice cream. YUUNA is speaking, but HOWELL doesn't seem to be paying much attention and instead watches an invisible beetle scuttle over the stage. To the back there is A MAN washing dishes.

YUUNA: ...so after that, I told Akira that we needed to…Howell! Are you listening!?

(She smacks HOWELL on the arm.)

HOWELL: Yeah, you were saying something about… hey, a beetle!

YUUNA: Howell, I didn't say anything about a beetle! You weren't paying attention, were you?

THE MAN: (seeing HOWELL's predicament) Hey, buddy...you know, if I was your age and I had a beautiful girlfriend like that, I would focus more on her. No need to worry about this place having bugs… (quickly) which it doesn't. Maybe you should buy your girl a malt. I'm sure she'd appreciate that... (HOWELL ignores him. He goes on, muttering.) Son, you seriously have a lack of focus. That's what's wrong with you youngsters today. You don't listen to what anybody says, even if they are trying to help you...hey, pay attention!

(THE MAN slams his hands down and HOWELL looks up, surprised for a moment, then regains his composure.)

HOWELL: (smugly) I'm sorry about that, but I was just wondering...where did you get that toaster? It really does get the job done, what with all that smoke and all.

THE MAN: Kid, seriously. I know you're just trying to brush me off, but I'm really trying to hel…

YUUNA: Holy crap! The toaster's on fire!

(Pandemonium reigns. THE MAN hurries off stage right to fetch the toaster offstage. As he disappears, the fire sprinklers turn on, and with a yell HOWELL ducks for cover.)

YUUNA: (covering him) Howell! Are you all right?

(HOWELL, in a moment of panic, shoves YUUNA over as he scrambles aside. Cut lights. Enter CLYDE, unseen.)

HOWELL: Oh, hello. What are you doing here?

CLYDE: Defending a friend.

(A collision can be heard.)

CLYDE: You okay, Yuuna?


It's not like Clyde and Howell ever talk. Not really, anyway.

It wasn't so long after Clyde and Yuuna first met that she found Howell in the woods and took him in. Clyde expressed his disapproval when Yuuna came bragging about it to him, but she insisted that he worried too much. Still, he didn't like it.

If you were to say he's jealous, maybe he is. It just doesn't sit right with him, seeing Yuuna lead that guy around like her new best friend, doting on him like some sort of little pet. Especially since the guy in question is so creepy. Even without being a mage, he'd be able to see that there's something wrong with Howell, what with the general idiocy and the mood swings and the fact that she found him knocked out in the woods for chrissakes.

Suffice to say, Clyde usually tries to avoid Yuuna's new little friend when he can. However, there are some things he can't ignore. For instance, he's not going to stay seated if Monochrome Boy is treating Yuuna in an un-gentlemanly manner.

And he's certainly not going to sit still if he hits her.

He tries not to waste too much time smashing the guy over, just slamming him into the counter once or twice, and then turns to Yuuna right away. It's a good thing he and Makie happened to be at the parlor at this time…

He holds his hand out to his friend, asking, "You okay, Yuuna?" He is then met in the chin with Yuuna Katon: Don't Bully Howell no Jutsu! Believe it!

"What's the big idea, Clyde-kun!?" she demands, standing victorious over him. "Quit picking on Howell!"

"What? Hey, that's my line!" Clyde protests. "I'm not the one doing the 'picking on' here!"

She blinks. "Wuh. Well, I'm certainly not picking on you. This is righteous anger, here."

"I mean THAT GUY!"

Yuuna follows his accusing finger pointed at the once-again-very-dead Howell, and laughs riotously. "What? Oh, come on, ya big loser, that was an accident! An accident." She then takes to snuggling the corpse's head, fondly crooning, "Isn't that right, Howell? It was just a great big accident, wasn't it? Wasn't it? 'cause you're such a big scaredy cat, oh yes you are, YES YOU ARE! Awww, good boy…"

Um, is that thing seriously her dog?

"Well," Clyde retorts, "Maybe it was just an accident that my fist hit his sorry face?"

"Nah," Yuuna shoots this possibility down. "You're just a jerk."

"YUUNA, I've had it up to here with—"

Makie makes her appearance now, intervening cleanly. "Clyde-kun! Are you okay? MAH! Your face! What happened!"

"Nothing, I'm fine," Clyde grumbles, and gets up. "You know what? Just forget it. You just go do whatever you want and I'll stay out of it. Would you like that?"

Yuuna starts to realize that she probably did something wrong now. "Um… wait up, Clyde-kun…"

In a deep funk, Clyde stalks off, waving to his would-be date tiredly. "Come on, Makie, let's get going."

"Okie dokie smokie!" she salutes and skips after him, energetic as ever.

Yuuna sees this and begins to put pieces together in her mind. "Eh? Clyde-kun, you're… with Makie today?"

Of course he's too distracted to answer this, and the two exit the shop with the chime of the door, leaving Yuuna deeply suspicious and consternated. Meanwhile, Howell finally manages to revive, coming to the conclusion that he does not love Clyde. At all.

"I live!" he declares, sitting aright again and throwing his arms in the air. Then, spying Yuuna and seeing her distraction, he asks, "Oh, Yuuna, are you quite all right?"

"Yeah," she says, a little vapidly, "Just kinda like… huh?"

"You're confused!" Howell translates for her.

"Exactly!"

A moment of mutual understanding is spent. Then they are approached by the very exhausted man behind the counter—and it's not even lunchtime yet!—who politely asks them to leave while he salvages his store.

Thus, Yuuna and Howell find themselves cast out into the streets once again, damp and disgruntled.

"Man! I never got to finish my ice cream!" Yuuna's first reaction is to pitch a fit. "Stinkin' manager guy!"

"What do we do now?" Howell wonders.

Yuuna considers this. "Well," she says, "Let's walk down this street!"

"That is a good idea!"

And walk down the street they do! Such glorious walking down of the street has never been seen, no, nor never shall be seen in Mahora Academy for many a year.

And as they walk, they think.

Howell thinks, I don't love Clyde Metro at all. He's angry and hits people. I'll have to be wary about him in the future. After all, he is an American. He may carry a Bowie knife with him everywhere he goes… I should try to keep Yuuna away from him, too.

Because if Yuuna got hurt, what would I do?

Yuuna, meanwhile, is thinking, Well, I had totally no idea that Clyde-kun was into Makie. And I thought that Makie liked Negi-kun! Man, I am so confused! And what's with him acting all weird and mean back there, huh? When did all this happen?! Did I miss something!? I don't get it. This is bugging me…!

Wait, why IS this bugging me so much?

Just then, the two come upon something strange.

"Oh?" Howell scrutinizes it, "What is this?"

They've come upon the front gates of a strange land. It is bright and loud and busy. Above it, a long roller coaster track like a dragon rears, but is still dwarfed by the enormous, majestic ferris wheel slowly turning behind it. The sky is full of color and slowly ascending balloons.

"It's Magical Land!" Yuuna exclaims at once, then double takes, "What the—we WALKED here? We should sign up for the Strolling Club…"

"Tell me," Howell inquires, "What exactly is Magical Land? We didn't just walk into a dimensional portal, did we?"

"Non, non, Howell!" the girl next to him chides him, then explains, "Magical Land is a theme park. It just opened up a month ago and I don't know if it's any good, but everyone says it's really fun! It's got this song that goes Magi-magi-magical, and it's got these big blob mascot things called Phlegm-kun and they're really cute!" This, naturally, segues into: "Let's go inside!"

Howell, who doesn't get it, agrees. "Well, that sounds like fun!"

After waiting an eternity in line and signing away their mortal souls at the admissions counter, the two finally arrive in the nebulous Magical Land!

"Woooow!" Yuuna absorbs the furor inside with exultation. "Look at all the people! This is so cool!"

"It certainly is big and loud and fast," remarks Howell, enraptured.

Yuuna grabs his arm and begins hauling him deeper into the abyss of happiness. "Come on, let's get going! I wanna do stuff!"

Howell follows her frenetic pace as best he can. It's interesting having her hold his arm. She's wearing a fluffy coat and it feels soft on his wrist, and she feels nice and squishy. Howell resolves that he loves having his arm held.

The first stop for the two is a shooting gallery, which Yuuna blazes towards the minute her eye catches sight of it. "Wow!" she exclaims. "Wow, wow, wow!"

"Have I got a customer, little missy?" laughs the guy behind the counter. "Step right up and give it a try!" Then, aside, he mutters, "Ho, ho! Little do they know, but I this is a corrupt shooting gallery and everything is rigged against them! Heh, heh, heh."

Yuuna, all starry-eyed, pushes Howell forward with a bark of, "Howell! Get me something!"

"Oh, all right," Howell says, accepting the rifle from the corrupt rigged shooting gallery guy.

"Okay, I want… hmm… that one!" Yuuna points at an otter stuffy with a lazy eye, but Howell is currently entertaining himself by shooting a cork bullet at the evil corrupt nefarious shooting gallery guy. "HOWELL!"

He looks at her blankly, and with an exasperated sigh, Yuuna snatches the rifle away. "Okay, I'll get something for YOU, then."

"Give it your best shot!" heartily chuckles the horrible awful no-good very bad shooting gallery guy. And, "Heh, heh! It will never work, because this shooting gallery is RIGGED!"

Yuuna aims her rifle, letting it drift over the line of unharvested treasure. Then, POP-POP-POP-POP! With a force ripping the prizes off of their bolts, she shoots! Deranged otters and various doodads fill the air! Yuuna, calm as can be, blows the smoke off the rifle. Howell claps. The evil gallery guy gawks.

It was as if I were seeing a ghost, he writes later in his memoirs (The Evil Shooting Gallery Guy In His Own Words, by the Evil Shooting Gallery Guy, Dokusensha Ltd.) Like the ghost of the legendary lady sharpshooter Annie Oakley had returned to earth and was righting wrong and shooting holes in inanimate objects once again. Yes, in that instant I knew that I was beholding an event beyond the normal, and my soul shook. –The Evil Shooting Gallery Guy, February 14

"Wow," laughs Howell as Yuuna collects her prizes. "You're very good at this, Yuuna!"

"I guess so."

"Like a real shooter!" he continues to enthuse. "Like an outlaw! Like… Charles Manson!"

"I-I don't want to be like that!!"

"P-please," gasps the now-not-so-evil and more pathetic shooting gallery guy. "Just… go…"


Howell loves shooting galleries. He loves risky things and unexpected things. But he especially loves it when Yuuna wins and is happy.


Howell points. "So, what is that thing?"

"That?" Yuuna laughs. "That's the legendary Ferris wheel!"

"It's legendary even though the park just opened really recently?"

"Yuppers! Legend has it that if you confess your love to someone at the very tippy top of the Ferris wheel, you'll become a couple!"

Howell says, "I think I've heard this legend before…"

"We call it the World Ferris Wheel!" Yuuna exclaims.

The albino man nods, understanding. "Oh, I see! Mahora is a place full of magic and mystery."

"Yeah. I oughtta show you the World Locker Room sometime. They say if you confess your love in front of the World Locker Room, you'll definitely become a couple! Oh, and the World Bus Stop, World Diner, World Manhole, World Fire Hydrant, World Curb, World Water Fountain, World Crossroads and World Bookstore!" Yuuna says excitedly.

Howell smiles. "I'd like that."

"Also, the World Ferris Wheel is a big meeting point for people coming to Magical Land on dates, 'cause it's so big. And that is your Magical Land lesson for today."

"You sure are knowledgeable about Magical Land," the albino remarks, admiringly.

Yuuna puffs out her chest and declares, "I read it all in this pamphlet!"

"…I see."

"Well, enough of that," Yuuna grabs his hands again and says, "Let's go do something fun!"


Yuuna loves fun things more than anything in the world, it seems. Howell likes them, too. It's nice to love the same things as someone you love.

And the park is fun. Howell soon realizes that he loves the roller coaster and loves the giant swing and loves the sidewalks and the pigeons. And Yuuna.

He'd always heard Yuuna and people talk about going on dates and things, but he hadn't imagined they'd be so fun. This must be why everyone always talks about them like they're such good things and why everyone is looking out for boyfriends. Dates are fun. Being in love is fun. Love is a fun, happy feeling!


"That was AWESOME!" Yuuna declares, upon leaving the Gut Smasher for the third time this afternoon.

"Nothing like having your guts smashed to fill your day with happiness!" a very chipper Howell agrees.

Now sufficiently free of all guts, the two begin to seek out some other way to destroy themselves, but are intercepted by none other than a trio of cheerleaders.

"Yuuna!" they give their usual bellow of greeting, then spot Howell.

"Who's that?" Sakurako demands.

Misa adds, "Your boyfriend!?"

"N-no way!" Yuuna retorts, going red. "Howell is just my gigolo! Right, Howell?"

He gives an OK sign with his fingers and is done with it.

"How is that any better?" Madoka asks incredulously.

Yuuna crosses her arms and explains haughtily, "I'm afraid of commitment!"

With a sigh, Misa pats her on the head and mumbles, "I can't tell whether you're serious or not, but…"

"And I thought you were too busy with your Electra Complex to bother with real boys," Sakurako points out.

Yuuna gives her the thumb's-up. "Don'cha worry! Daddy's my bride. Howell's just the secret mistress."

"That's SICK!" cries Madoka.

Misa mumbles, "Geez, how come everyone's getting a boyfriend all of a sudden? I don't feel special anymore…"

"Yeah," Sakurako agrees. "Even Negi-kun and Makie and people…"

Yuuna blinks. "Makie?"

Misa nods and says, "Yeah, I think we just saw her with Clyde-kun a while ago! We might not have, though."

"With Clyde-kun? You mean they're here?" asks Yuuna.

"They were," says Madoka, "I don't know where they are now."

Sakurako moans, "Lucky Pink! Landed a good one… I'm jealous! How the heck did someone like her manage that, huh?"

"I never even noticed…" mumbled Yuuna.

"Well, she's pretty dumb, and Clyde-kun is pretty dumb, so they've got a lot in common," Misa reasoned. "Maybe they have the same idiot hobbies."

Yuuna asks, "You think Clyde-kun might like gymnastics and Makie might actually like gardening?"

"Well, they do other stuff, right?" Madoka said. "Makie likes cute things. Maybe they bonded over bunnies or something. What does Clyde-kun like?"

"Hitting people," Howell suggests, earning him an incredulous stare from all present. Hastily, he adds in explanation, "He is American."

The cheerleaders nod slowly. "Ooooohhhh. Yeah..."

"What does being American have to do with it!?" Yuuna demands, very distressed. Aside from gardening and saving the day and stuff, she doesn't know much about what Clyde does. When they talk it's usually Yuuna who talks about herself the most and Clyde who listens. She knows, she begins to realize, hardly anything about her friend (friend, friend) and, somehow, that upsets her.

Meanwhile, the Cheerleaders are giving Howell a good interrogation, beginning with, "And hey, who are you, anyway?"

"I'm Howell J. Fitzwilliam, but the people I really like call me Howell," he says cheerily.

Madoka asks, "Do you go to school here?"

"I go to the school sometimes, yes."

Misa scrutinizes his face closely, and asks, "Soooo, then, what exactly is your relationship with Yuuna?"

He beams. "I love her!"

This effectively blows the cheerleaders away with the force of a nuclear bomb, mushroom cloud and all. "WHOOOOOOOAHHHH!!!"

"YUUNA! You lucky thing!" Sakurako exclaims with a sob for her ill fate. "How could you? I thought you were my friend!"

Yuuna looks up sullenly, having been lost in angst during the entire exchange. "…whut."

"She wasn't even paying attention!" laments Madoka. "Yuuna…!"

"We won't forgive you for this! Come on, girls!" Misa snaps, and the trio stampede off into the distance while Howell waves cheerily after them with a "Cheerio, ladies!"

Eventually he turns back to Yuuna, as she becomes oriented to her situation again. "Are you all right?" he asks. "You look unhappy."

"Me? Uh, no, I'm cool! I'm rarin' to go! Come on, Howell!" Yuuna punches the air and takes off again. "There's gonna be fireworks later, so let's try and scope out a good place to watch 'em!"

"Okay…" Howell says and follows. Follows as best he can, anyway, before he suddenly finds himself faced with a sudden deluge of humanity. He stands still to allow the crowd to pass, but Yuuna doesn't, and before he knows it he can hardly see her anymore. "Yuuna, please wait while I—Yuuna!" he tries to shout, but alas, he is unheard, and is left standing among the pulsating throng.

Quickly he pushes himself free of the crowd and stumbles out onto the path, but Yuuna is no where to be seen. He tries to remember which direction she went in. He fails.

So he picks a random direction and runs it. There are people everywhere, but no Yuuna. There are also pigeons, but no Yuuna. He picks another direction to search, but he's fairly certain she didn't go this way. And he can't even find the spot they were originally…

As Howell comes to a stop by a water fountain, the thought of "what if I never find her?" crosses his mind. Well, he can leave and walk home, for sure. But what about Yuuna? What if he leaves, and Yuuna is left searching for him, lost and alone? What if Yuuna is scared?

Who knows what could be happening to her at this moment, somewhere in the park!? Howell grabs his head at the thought, horrified. What if Yuuna is sad? Oh no, what if she is crying?! She could be hurt! Someone could knock into her! Guys could hit on her! She could eat something bad!

Or worst—worst, what if she's run into that maniac American, Clyde?! The cheerleaders warned them that he could still be loose somewhere in the park… what if he found Yuuna before Howell did?! He might bully her! He might hit her!

Well, not if Howell could help it! If that guy even touches Yuuna, he'll… uh… slam his head into a counter! Wait a minute… Howell is struck with a sudden sense of déjà vu as he considers this potential situation compared to the unfortunate encounter earlier at the ice cream parlor. It'd be kind of like then only it would be CLYDE hitting Yuuna instead of Howell and HOWELL would be the one to…

Hm.

"Well, it doesn't matter!" he declares to the world. "I need to find Yuuna!"


When a person is in love, they naturally start wanting to protect that feeling. And if the person they love is in danger, then they will want to help them as soon as possible. Howell is the same way. He loves Yuuna and he loves it when Yuuna is smiling; so he tries as hard as he can to keep it so that Yuuna won't have to be sad.

Is that what love is? Is it really that unselfish?


Yuuna, meanwhile, quickly realizes that she and Howell have been separated and stops, turns around and goes back—but he's already dashed off.

She groans. "Geez, Howell, I take my eyes off of you for two seconds and off you go… maybe Clyde-kun is right about you, honestly…" She stops herself.

Clyde. She really has no idea what is with that guy today. Getting all mad and picking a fight with Howell and going out with Makie… She wonders if they really are here.

But it's none of her business!

She tries to envision the scene: Clyde Falls In Love With Makie, Take 1. Makie is cute. She's really sweet. She's like an energizer to Yuuna and to everyone around her, and a great friend. And hey, maybe she and Clyde do have some similar hobbies. Though Yuuna has no idea what those would be…

Which is why it's none of her business! She doesn't know much at all about Clyde, so it's no place of hers to get all picky about who he's dating. There's a lot he hasn't told her.

Why hasn't he told her anything? She wants to know more about him.

Yuuna isn't his girlfriend. She's just his friend. A classmate. It's natural not to know every little thing about a friend. You can still get along fine without it.

But Clyde is so nice to her. He's a showoff, yeah, and he's really awkward, but Yuuna likes it when he's like that. He messes up a lot, and it makes her want to cheer him on. It's fun being with him. And somehow it always seems lonelier when he's not around.

So she wants it to be her business. She wants to know all about Clyde. She wants to know what he likes to do, what his home is like, things he dislikes. She wants to know more about him than anyone else.

But it's already too late for that, right?

All of a sudden Yuuna feels very stupid, being totally alone but surrounded by a huge crowd. And she doesn't even know where Howell is. But she's got to find him—if she finds him then he can cheer her up, and she won't feel so completely lonely anymore, at least.

She wanders through the crowd, turning her head this way and that, trying to catch a glimpse of white hair. It's getting dark and the crowd is thick; everything seems so unfamiliar and daunting.

Geez, Howell, where are you? she wonders. She hopes he hasn't gone and gotten himself killed or kidnapped or anything. He's pretty dumb, so she wouldn't trust him not to get into trouble… She should be annoyed by Howell's wandering and denseness, but she doesn't really mind. She's been dealing with her spacey dad since she was little. At this point, there's no way she can just leave a hopeless guy like Howell alone…

As she searches she remembers: Hey, there was one time when she was lost just like this, and looking for someone but with no idea of where they were or where she was going. And there was a broken tape, and it was raining. Eventually she met some guy and he sent her back. She doesn't remember who the guy was—obviously it wasn't Howell, since there's no way it could have been Howell—but she's beginning to wish that he'd pop out of no where and help her again.

Suddenly feeling quite hopeless, Yuuna staggers over to a bench and sits. She's right next to the Ferris wheel, which has already begun to light up in the pale evening.

I can't keep chasing after everyone, she decides, exhausted. Someone, just find me already.

Someone—

"Yuuna!"

She looks up. Standing before her, looking slightly worn out, is Howell.

"There you are!" she jumps up, pointing at him. "I've been looking all over for you! I thought you were lost forever!"

He retorts, "I wasn't the lost one, you were!"

"You're the one who wandered off."

"You wandered; I tried to stop you!"

The two stare each other down for a minute or two, before Yuuna gives up, sighs, and sits back down. "Fine… I'm just glad you found me."

"I remembered what you said about this wheel thing being a meeting place, so I came right here!" Howell brags, then admits, "But I was really worried about you!"

Yuuna laughs. "Yeah, I was pretty worried, too. I was scared you got kidnapped! …it was lonely."

Howell studies her expression. She seems very downcast now. "Well," he says, "Now that I'm here, you're not lonely anymore, right?"

"Not so much…" She feels his hand on top of her head, and he speaks softly:

"Good. You know, if you're ever lonely, I want to help. And if you're lost, I'll definitely come find you, wherever you are!"

Yuuna goes red at once. "Really?"

He smiles and gives her his hand. "Of course."

Taking it, the pigtailed girl says, "Howell, let's go home." Then, realizing where they are, "But first, let's try out the Ferris wheel while the line's small! Maybe we'll be able to see the fireworks!"

"Whatever you'd like to do, Yuuna."


Love is a precious feeling. It is happy and warm and mysterious and so, so sweet, like maple syrup. Just being with the person he loves makes Howell feel warm and shiny. He loves it when she is happy and sad, and he loves it when they love the same thing. And so the question arises: "Do you love me, too?"

Love is a precious feeling. It feels like it would disappear like a bubble if he tries to touch it, and he wants to protect it.

Does that mean that Love is weak?


The sky is dark by the time that the Ferris wheel begins to move. The gondolas are a little cramped, and Yuuna's leg is touching Howell's. He's incredibly aware of its presence there, and he's not sure whether he likes it or not.

"Wow!" Yuuna exclaims. "Look, the city's all lit up!"

Mahora is in the distance below them, sparkling gold and white among the shadows, like broken glass. It looks almost as if the bustle and noise of daily life in the enormous city has completely disappeared as the whole school district sleeps, shining silently.

Yuuna stares down at it in wonder. Her expression, Howell notices, is different today. Usually Yuuna is like a hyperactive lop-eared puppy bursting with energy, eager and excited to be finding something new. But today, she seems more subdued; something in her eyes just seems sadder and more thoughtful. The lights outside add golden highlights to her hair and a glow to her skin. It hurts a little to look at her, in a way.

She glances at him. "Howell? You okay?"

He didn't mean to stare. "Sorry," he says, "You just seemed a little… kerfluffled!"

"What does that mean?" she asks, confused.

He thinks about it. "Nothing, I guess."

She chuckles, then turns her face back to the window. "…I am kerfluffled," she admits. "Totally and royally kerfluffled."

"Oh…" Howell says awkwardly. "Really?"

Yuuna frowns and tells him quietly, "I got in a fight with my friend… even though I really, really like him, I still got mad at him, and now everything is messed up. I didn't want to fight with him, but…"

"You're not angry at him anymore, though, right?" Howell asks. "So it's okay now, right?"

Shaking her head, Yuuna says, "But what if he stays mad at me? I like him, and I don't want him to be mad… It sucks when I can't talk to him…"

"I'm sure if you talk to him then you can be friends again," Howell points out.

Yuuna pauses, and tears come to her eyes. "But," she replies, "I don't want to be friends."

Howell is now thoroughly confused, but he can see that Yuuna is upset and resolves to do something. He turns her shoulders so that she is facing him in the gondola, and gently he thumbs a tear off of her eyelashes.

She blinks. "Howell?"

"Say…" he tries, "I… said that I'm not going to let you be lonely anymore. That is, personally I think you are cutest when you're crying… not that you're not also pretty when you're smiling or anything, that's just what I think. But you should still be happy!"

Yuuna stares at him for a second, then breaks into chuckles. "Howell," she says, "You suck…"

He pulls back. "What!"

Smiling, Yuuna sits back and stares out the window—just in time to glimpse the first firework climb into the sky and explode in a shower of green sparks. She gasps, "Look at that!"

Howell gazes on in silence. He's never seen anything like it before.

Just then, he hears something from beside him: "Thanks, Howell."

He looks at her. "What's that?"

"Thanks for being here," Yuuna grins up at him. "I dunno, it's just like all my problems seem a lot simpler when you're there. You're great."

Quietly, he murmurs, "You're great, too, Yuuna…"

She smiles.

It's a feeling that's bright and warm and sweet, something that he wants to protect and keep forever.

"Wow!" Yuuna exclaims at the next firework, a bright red burst that bathes her in pink light. She applauds as the light dies down.

Howell gazes at her for some time, then he speaks at last: "Yuuna."

She looks at him again. "Yeah?"

He hesitates.

"Yuuna," he says, and it's almost drowned out by the explosion of blue fireworks just above their position at the tip-top of the wheel: "I love you."

The pale blue light fades away and the crackling sound dies off. The shadowy gondola is completely silent. The silence is broken again by the crack-pop of a firework, orange now. It isn't until that firework has died that finally someone speaks again.

"Um…" Yuuna stammers, "What…?"

"You're cute when you cry," Howell says. "And you're always trying to look out for people, even when you're the one who needs to be looked out for the most. And even though you're scared, you still try hard, and that makes me want to hold you tight. There are lots of things I love about you."

Yuuna doesn't say anything, and he takes her fingers in his own and looks her in the face closely. "I love you very much," he says again, in case she missed it. "I really do. Do you love me?"

She doesn't say anything, but she turns her face away slightly. Perturbed, Howell touches her chin and brings her back to face him. "Yuuna?" he tries again.

Yuuna keeps her eyes on her knees, though.

"…I—God, Howell…" she swallows hard and squeezes his hand tightly. "I—I love…"

(There's a legend about this Ferris wheel—)

"I... love Clyde-kun," she barely whispers.

Howell draws his hand back.

"…What?"

Yuuna looks like she's ready to cry. "Gosh, I'm sorry, Howell… I'm real sorry…"

"But…" Howell stammers, "You mean… you don't want me to love you…"

"…Sorry."

A pink explosion fills the sky, and the gondola rattles to a halt. The doors open.

"Here we are! Watch your feet on your way out."

Then they are back in the street, facing each other. The sound of the fireworks persists in the distance.

Howell and Yuuna stare at each other for a long time.

"Why not?" he asks at last.

She says, "I'm sorry… I just really like him…"

"But why?! He's…"

"I dunno. There's not really a reason; I just like him. I don't really have choice in it."

"Then—what about me? What will I do, Yuuna…?"

She bites her lip and averts her gaze again. "I dunno…"

Howell begins to speak again, but trails off, all his words dying on his tongue. So he just stands there silently with his fists clenched at his sides, with nothing left to do.

"Um, Howell," Yuuna says lamely, "I've… gotta go."

"Wait," he says at once. "Wait, this is all wrong…"

He runs a hand between his shoulders, as if trying to locate the source of an itch, and knots his fingers in his shirt. "This is—different. This doesn't feel good at all."

(So, Mr. Fitzwilliam, in your own words, what, exactly, is Love?)

"I love you," he insists desperately, "And it hurts!"

He stops as Yuuna rushes him and throws her arms around him. "Howell, cut it out," she begs, "Stop saying stuff like that."

Howell obeys and is silent, returning the hug tightly. He buries his face in her hair and prays, Please, please, god please don't let her leave me now. I don't want to be alone. I don't want her to hate me.

She pushes away.

"I'm really sorry," she says. "But I like him, and I can't give up."

Howell doesn't say anything, a little grinning grimace frozen in the corner of his mouth.

Putting on a strained smile, Yuuna tells him, "Bye."

She turns away from him then, and hurries away. She must have wanted to run this whole time.

Howell is alone.

He stands there for a long, long time, while fires illuminate the sky high above him.


"You're home late," notes Akira. Yuuna grins sheepishly, shutting the door to the dorm and slinging her jacket onto a chair.

"Yeah, I had a lot of stuff to take care of. How about you?" she changes the subject quickly, "How was the Epic Harem of DARKNESS?"

Akira considers this. "It was fun."

"Was there a big turnout?"

"Not really. Just me and Rokugou-san and Windia-san… we used the powers of DARKNESS to break up random couples in the park, though. Then we inducted the ladies."

"Sounds like you had fun."

"Yes… we left Cygnus with a tentacle monster, though. I hope he is all right."

"…Ya don't say…"

Akira has picked up Yuuna's discarded jacket and is now hanging it up in the closet. "Did you have fun with Howell, too?"

Yuuna is very quiet for a moment, then, coming to stand right behind her friend, mumbles, "I… turned Howell down."

"What?" Akira glances back at her, slightly taken aback.

"He told me he l-likes me…" the pigtailed girl is very red in the face, deeply embarrassed, "I didn't know what I was supposed to say! I said I was sorry, but I hurt his feelings."

"You don't like Howell?"

Yuuna shakes her head. The tension of the evening is beginning to catch up with her, and there are tears assembling in her eyes. "It's not that, it's just that there's some other guy I like."

Akira gazes at her solemnly. "Clyde?"

She nods.

"I know it's hopeless, b-but I think I really, really love him… Akira," she pleads, "Do you think I did the wrong thing?"

At once her friend takes her into a reassuring hug. "It's okay," she says softly. "You did fine."

"But what about Howell? I totally blew it with him…"

"That's okay," Akira assures her. "People's feelings are always moving. That's just how things are. I'm sure Howell will be fine."

"I hope so…"

"So," asks Akira gently. "What are you going to do now, Yuuna?"


Professor Akashi has had a very long day. He was only minding his business, taking a walk with an old acquaintance, and then suddenly all these psychopaths attacked… After hours of fierce battle and bizarre hijinks, though, he is pretty certain everything has been settled, as Kataragi and Touko's Boyfriend eloped and adopted Seruhiko and Ninomiya with Nitta as the godfather. Strange times, these.

Having walked Donnet back home, the Professor now returns to his own little house in good spirits. It's also a good thing he remembered to bring an umbrella—it has already started raining a bit.

Passing by the train station, he catches sight of something rather interesting: Howell Fitzwilliam standing under the eaves of the building, watching the rain sullenly. He doesn't even seem to notice when the Professor waves to him.

Yuuna isn't with him. Quickly understanding, the Professor approaches him. "Waiting for a train, Howell?"

"It started raining," he murmurs vacantly. "And now I can't move."

The Professor offers him the umbrella. "Get in, kid."

Howell looks at him, surprised by the kind gesture, but does as he is told. "I dislike sharing umbrellas with men," he laments to himself.

"Would you rather walk in the rain?"

"No."

They walk together. Howell is quiet, looking completely forlorn, like an abandoned cat in a cardboard box.

The Professor asks, "Have a fun Valentine's?"

"Hey," Howell mumbles. "Have you ever loved someone who doesn't love you too?"

"Once or twice, probably."

"What did you do?"

The Professor shrugs. "Nothing, really."

"Oh…"

Silence now, except the pitter-patter of the raindrops on the umbrella.

"I'm sad…" Howell finally says, mostly to himself. "She's little and fast and loud and nice to me… all the things I love. But thinking about it doesn't make me happy anymore. It hurts. Does that mean I don't love her anymore?"

"What do you think?"

Howell thinks. "I don't know if I can keep loving her if she loves someone else."

The Professor sighs.

"You've still got a long way to go, kiddo."


We've learned many things about Love today. Love is very complicated. It can be both happy and sad. The happier it is at first, the sadder it becomes later. Love can be fun, and it can also make people feel terribly lonely.

What exactly is Love, then?

Does Love come from being loved by others as well as yourself? Or is real Love denying yourself and every part of yourself just so that another person can be happy, even for a minute?

Until the day comes when Howell fully understands, first a little more time will pass.


FIN


Notes: Thank you for reading, and I hope you enjoyed my incoherent little offering for this challenge. For those who have read Pactum Factum, consider this a non-canon supplement; it came out of my considering what sort of relationship Howell and Yuuna have, and whether that relationship would really make it in the long run. It's a little different from how I first pictured it, but I'm very pleased to have it done.

Apologies as always to the TS' taskmaster, the fabulous Hyd, for making him wait eleven months for my submission. You're the best.