Haru's POV.

Haru sprinted through the pounding rain, ignoring the fact that the umbrella and the hood on the back of her coat weren't doing her much good. Where was he? She was running out of places to search; after all, he didn't know his way around Tokyo, so there could only be a few places he would go.

But she had already checked the Crossroads, the art supplies shop, the restaurant they'd eaten at the other night, and he wasn't at any of them. Where in the world was he?

Choking on the rain, she stopped to lean against a tree to regain her breath. What if Baron had gotten lost? What if he had been hurt, or robbed, or kidnapped? What if... what if he was... She couldn't even bring herself to think the word, let alone say it. But what if he was?

A brilliant flash of light blinded her suddenly, and she lifted her arm up to block it out, and while that succeeded in shielding it, it did not stop the glitter from showering her in gold.

"Hello," a high-pitched, though oddly sorrowful, voice said, and Haru dusted the glitter out of her hair to see who had addressed her. It was a daffodil-haired, golden-winged woman, a sad frown imprinted on her heart-shaped face, who was less than two feet tall.

"Um... hi?" Haru said nervously, leaning back to press herself further into the tree. "Um... who are you?"

"I'm Belinda," the winged person said. "I'm here to grant you your wish."

"Wait... Belinda? As in the fairy who turned Baron Humbert von Gikkingen into a human?"

The fairy looked startled. "You know about that?"

"Well, yeah, of course! He's been staying at my house for a week. He had to give some explanation for suddenly being a human and everything." She narrowed her eyes. "You're not going to turn me into a bird or something, are you?"

The fairy stomped her feet, which looked particularly strange because she was still hovering in the air beside her head. "No, I'm not going to turn you into a bird! Baron thinks you're engaged and in love with someone else, but he loves you so much he wished for your happiness! He's such a selfless jerk he didn't want to make you fall in love with him even though that's all he wants."

Haru was caught off guard. "He... he loves me?"

"Duh! He's been in love with you for, like, ever!"

"Really?" Well, she shouldn't have been surprised; he'd basically told her so yesterday.

"I always thought you were beautiful Haru, from the moment you first looked through the window of my house to the last moment on top of your school. You looked especially beautiful in the ball gown you wore in the Cat Kingdom, but it doesn't really matter what you wear because you could pull off any outfit."

He thought she was beautiful…

"I love every minute we spend together. You are sweet and kind and funny and you make even the simplest and silliest things like running through a park and eating ice cream and cleaning a house fun and I wouldn't trade a single moment we've shared for anything."

He liked spending time with her, and he wouldn't trade that time for anything…

"I admire your spirit because you're brave and confident and when you stood up for yourself to the Cat King I was amazed and proud because I knew you could do it and I knew I played a small part in finding yourself. I admire your heart because you confessed you had a crush on me on top of your school even though I wasn't any taller than your knee and I was leaving but you were honest and truthful and I was delighted to see that you were."

He admired her. And he was proud of her. Her spirit and her heart... but why?

"Haru, the truth is I—"

Love you. He loved her. Baron Humbert von Gikkingen loved her. And you know what? She loved him too.

She loved his kindness, his fearlessness, his honesty, and his selflessness. She loved his sense of humor and how sweet he was, and how ready and willing he was to defend her. She loved his wit, his intelligence, his thoughtfulness, and his cleverness. She loved his bravery, his strength, and the fact that he treated her with respect. She loved that he could make her laugh, cry, scream, blush, and experience a thousand other emotions whenever he was near. She loved him as both a cat and a human, and she'd fallen in love with him long before he showed up on her doorstep.

Looking up at the exasperated fairy, Haru remarked, in all seriousness, "Belinda, the only thing that would ever make me happy is Baron."

Belinda's face lit up almost instantly, like a candle that's flickered out and has been relit. "Really?" Haru nodded. "Well, come on then!" she cried, wrapping her hand around Haru's umbrella and tugging her in the opposite direction. "I'll lead you to him! This should brighten up his day!"

"You know where he is?" Haru asked, astonished even as the fairy kept pulling on her umbrella.

"How do you think I know he made a second wish? And if we don't hurry up who knows what he'll do!"

"Then by all means, let's go!" Letting the still open umbrella dangle at her side, Haru began to run, her sopping boots slapping the sidewalk as she tailed the fairy constantly flitting ahead and yelling back every five minutes to give a report of how close they were. Haru, far too excited to really pay attention, ignored her.

Eventually Haru began to recognize the scenery as she dashed through a sandbox and past a swingset. "The park…?" she mumbled under her breath.

Belinda appeared beside her head. "Yeah. Don't know why, though. Maybe he got lost."

"Where is he?" she demanded, restraining herself from grabbing the fairy by her wings and shaking her in frustration.

She pointed toward a tree, its branches heavy with rain and pale, drooping blossoms. Beneath its heavy boughs was a wooden bench, a wooden bench she recalled sitting on herself yesterday. On the bench today was a completely drenched man, his dripping blonde hair plastered to his scalp and his head tilted downward as if he was studying his shoes. But Haru recognized him instantly as she began walking toward him, calling out his name as she did:

"Baron!"

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