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He turned his head to face the table a small ways away. "That is alright, my dear Miss Reese. I have a beverage at my table. For now, I'd like to enjoy your company."

Where as some men could not pull off that line without sounding like they were flirting, the opposite was the case for the effeminate lad. His tone sounded friendly, but acceptably distanced so that his intent remained true. Returning his glance faithfully to the girl's emerald colored ones, he smiled and tilted his head to the left.

"I would love to hear more about Cirencester though. I have never been there, but Mother and Father have mentioned it before on rare occasion."

Casually, he drew his fingers up to one of his dangling turquoise earrings and began to smooth it between his pointer finger and thumb.

As he listened carefully, he nodded his head upon each mention of a place Miss Reese liked. It was only upon the mention of schools that his fingers stopped their silly motions over the smooth stone at his ear and retreated to his lap. Trying to keep his tone as conversationally pleasant as possible, he delivered some bad news.

"I am, unfortunately, stationed at the Hillworth Grammar School for boys." Thanks to his roommate, he was very aware of the propaganda that Crystal Academy had handed out about their school. Where as, the propaganda was probably all truth, it still impeded his ability to hold a pleasant conversation for too long. Despite this, he sat there as pleasantly as he could, hands now folded in his lap, and his face with a gentle expression that seemed far from the stereotypical "Hillworth material."

Howl carefully observed the reaction, attempting to read it accurately. The arched brow and the head shaking signified some sort of doubt. The lip chewing read as she was uncertain. And the words (which were perhaps the most important part of the puzzle) revealed she was naive. Most certainly, he seemed safe for now when it came to continuing conversations.

In an attempt to appeal to something the girl could relate to, he pinned the whole thing on his looks.

"My dear, Miss Reese. I would just like you to imagine looking like this in a school of boys. A school of boys who are frequently denied the right of being in the company of a lady their own age. I suppose for most, it is not a very horrible thing to be in Hillworth. Yet, in my very special case, it is a bit annoying being treated as if I was a girl. I mean it not as an insult to the sex, but I actually prefer being treated as my appropriate sex-assignment."

It was a convincing enough argument as to why he'd dislike being at Hillworth, should the school only be meant as a "boys only" school. It was far from the truth, but he was not about to let on that the school was meant for delinquents.

What a delightful girl this Melinda Reese was turning out to be. Attempting to gain some points with compliments fitting for his gender. Supplying a small chuckle, he uttered "Oh, I rarely get called 'handsome' by anybody. It is a pleasant change." He smiled in her direction. It was now time to test how well he was doing in this little game.

"If you would permit me to be a little forward as well. I suspect if you were in the same position as myself, you would have nearly no time to yourself at all. You are enchantingly beautiful, and I suspect you would need to fight off the boys with a stick at times." His words did not come out in a fashion that read "I am flirting with you," but more in a fashion of sincere honesty, as if he was merely stating the facts. And where as Miss Reese was indeed a lovely girl, he found his use of the words "enchantingly beautiful" to be a bit of an exaggeration.

Ah, so the girl was modest and from the Academy. It was a wonder this girl didn't realize that his school was for delinquents. He listened to her explanation, justifying why she was not considered "beautiful," and could not help but mentally chuckle at it.

He pointed a finger at the girl and pointed out his opinion on the matter. "Some guys have no taste or true appreciation for beauty. And my dear, makeup does not make one beautiful. If that was the case, then I would not be considered beautiful as well. I do not fancy myself wearing any makeup." With that, he scooted his chair back quietly and stood up.

"I shall take my leave now, Miss Reese. It has been pleasant talking with you. I wish you luck on your instrumental repairs, and I do sincerely hope we can meet again sometime." It might have seemed sudden or abrupt, but it was growing a bit late, and he wanted to encourage the girl to head on her way before the repair shop closed. Where as before, when he introduced himself with a kiss to the hand, when he left, he instead was more mild and simply bowed his head forward before lifting it and returning to his table.

Being the gentleman he was, Howl watched the girl as she hurriedly gathered her things and fled. He did catch her wave to him, which he returned with a small wave of his own. Now with the girl gone, he turned back to his tea. It had gone cold, which wasn't exactly a tragedy, but a slight disappointment.

Now that Miss Reese was gone, he resumed his observation work. Some old habits were hard to break.

[FIN]