Disclaimer: I don't own Phillip Jackson, Sequential Art, Collected Curios, Kat, Art, Pip, or Hilary.

This is, chronologically speaking, the third part of my Sequential Art series, you really should read the other first.

A Valentine's Day Surprise

It's that time of the year again. Everybody buys cards, flowers, chocolate, et cetera for their loved ones... I hate it. It's just another way for Hallmark to steal your money. Pip usually spends the day trying to pick up chicks in online games and failing miserably, and Kat and I just try to avoid saying anything that might be construed as romantic.

After the incident on New Years, we had silently agreed that nothing would change, that we would still be friends. No need to complicate things any further, right? But still, it was difficult not to think about Kat when I saw happy couples wandering around the city.

So it was with a bit of trepidation that I carefully constructed a Valentines' Day card, utilizing all of my artistic skills to create something that even I was impressed with. I didn't bother signing it, knowing that if she wanted to, she could figure out who it was from. I couldn't work up the courage to actually hand it to her, so I simply snuck into her room and left it on her pillow, knowing that she would see it and hoping that she'd like it.

Morning comes, and I hate mornings, but today is Valentine's day, so I figured I might as well wake up early and make Art a card. Just so he knows that I appreciate everything he does. I'm not half the artist that Art is, but I can usually make do, so I grab a bit of paper, some scissors and glue, and a sharpie and I get to work. The end product is... well, much less spectacular than I wanted, but it was heartfelt, and I know Art well enough to know that he would either love it or pretend to love it for my sake.

Of course, I don't know how to sign it. 'Kat' is too simple, anything else is too complicated and fake, and 'Love, Kat' is too close to the truth to be comfortable. So I leave it blank, and set it on the kitchen table, knowing that he'd find it soon enough. Then I realize that it's only five in the morning, so I go back to bed, anticipating his reaction.

I wake again about three hours later, and I'm not sure if he found my card or not, but I see a bright red half heart-shaped card on my pillow, and there's really only one person it could have come from. I quickly sit up and pick it up, eager to see what he put. I open it, and I'm honestly stunned. It's not just some cheap pathetic store-bought impersonal card, it's a work of art.

The large red heart, when unfolded, is white on the inside and has a beautiful drawing of woman, maybe myself if I were a goddess, standing in some kind of forest surrounded by flowers. And I'm fully clothed, surprise surprise. Then I see the best part: Art has drawn himself, rather wonderfully, I might add, right next to me, with an arm around my waist, and we're both smiling brightly.

Art usually does black and white sketches in his work, because it's quicker and easier to fix mistakes, but the whole thing is beautifully and vibrantly colored, and I can tell he put a lot of effort into it. There's nothing written, but then again, there's nothing that needs to be said. In case I haven't mentioned this before, Art is the most amazing person I know.

I kind of planned to go back to sleep after dropping off the card and flower in Kat's room, but I was too anxious, so I stayed awake. I was a bit surprised when I walked into the kitchen and saw a small paper card, colored red and white, no doubt intended for me, due to the fact that I was almost always the first one awake.

Curious, I approached it, opening it to reveal a wonderfully creative card with snowflake hearts everywhere and a pasted on picture of Kat and I at a Christmas party a year or two back. The party was pretty boring and I've forgotten most of it, but I distinctly remember the circumstances surrounding the picture.

We had meandered around the party for a while, not really talking to anyone, before we found each other again. We simply stood and spoke quietly to each other for a while, before one of Kat's friends from work had pointed out where we were standing. Underneath a bit of mistletoe, of course.

It was more of a joking thing, but something about it had been significant, and we had both blushed deeply. Kat's friends from work had stealthily grabbed a camera while Kat and I contemplated our options, and when we finally thought that people were distracted we leaned in for a quick kiss. Kat's friends took a picture right as our lips contacted, and we both jumped back, Kat threatening death to her coworkers and all their immediate family while I blushed furiously and stared at the floor. We didn't say much the rest of the night, but we did stick pretty close together, and I had ended up sneaking glances at her from time to time.

I shook myself out my reverie, smiling at the memory, then began to question the message behind the card. My thoughts were interrupted by the chiming of our clock, announcing to me that it was time to start preparing a lovely valentine's day breakfast. The holiday may have been commercialized by most people, but I tried to keep it sweet with some homemade chocolate chip pancakes, something I know they appreciated.

I had tossed together a small card for Scarlet, filling it with the usual bullshit, but knowing that she would appreciate it and left it on the table. Pip would be busy "acquiring bitches" so I hadn't bothered with anything for him. Which meant I just had to finish the pancakes and the smell of food would bring my friends to the kitchen.

I don't know how long I remained in bed, but after a while I began to get hungry, so I climbed out, stretching until I could feel my individual vertebrae popping. I grabbed the card and skipped downstairs, stopping when I saw Art sitting at the kitchen table. I smiled at him and he smiled back, beckoning me over,

"Good morning Kat. The pancakes are ready."

"Happy Valentine's Day!"

I grabbed a plate and piled it with pancakes, forgoing the syrup in favor of unadulterated chocolate taste. As I dug in, Art just watched me, bemused.

I swallowed my current bite of pancake and asked "What? What are you staring at?"

He shrugged and replied, "You." then he blushed and corrected himself, "I mean, it's just amazing how you can pile down that much food and stay..." he trailed off, looking for a good adjective. I finished for him, "slim?"

He considered it and nodded, "I was going to say something along the lines of sexy, but yeah, slim works."

I nearly choked on my food as he said this, did he really just describe me as 'sexy'? I couldn't help but blush furiously. When people speak sincerely of me, they say a lot of things. Sexy is not one of them.

"Wait, what?"

He tilted his head questioningly at me, "What?"

This was definitely not the Art I knew. "Do you honestly think I'm sexy?"

He nodded slowly, "Well... yeah. You don't?"

I was speechless. The way he was saying it, so innocently, as if it was some obvious fact of life, was so unlike the pervy Art I was used to, it was actually kind of scary. He took the fork from my unresponsive hand and stole a bite from my pancakes, shaking me out of my trance.

"Hey hey hey! Get your own!"

He just smiled brightly at me and took another bite, I growled playfully, then pounced on him in his chair, my tail twitching happily. He was taller than me, but I had the advantage and I eventually managed to wrestle my fork away from him. We just sat there for a moment, smiling and panting, then I noticed the awkward position we were in, and I quickly jumped off, distancing myself a little bit.

I shuffled a bit, looking for something to break the now-awkward silence, and nearly slapped myself when I blurted out "So I see that you got a card for Valentine's day..."

He smiled genuinely at the card on the table, left open to reveal the picture my idiotic sleep-addled brain had picked out.

"Yeah. It's a nice one too. Has a picture of one of my favorite memories."

I was again rendered speechless. His favorite memory was the kiss at the Christmas party? I tried to remember what else had happened that night, who else was there that might have given him reason to enjoy the party that much, but could come up with nothing. I cautiously observed him, seemingly oblivious to the turmoil I was currently going through, just smiling at me and sipping his coffee. I shook myself, "Ahh, I uh... I see."

"So how about you?"

"Ummm, sorry, what?"

"Did you get any Valentine's Day cards?"

And of course, he's pretending he's clueless, for whatever reason, but I can see that smug grin of his, hidden behind his mug. Any other day, I might mess with him a bit, but I know he worked on this, so I just nod wordlessly and show him the card.

He studies it for a moment and shrugs, "Yeah, that's nice. Not as good as the real thing, though."

I can only stare at him. He's completely sincere, yet at the same time, so full of crap.

"Art... this is better than anything I could possibly imagine, much less actually draw."

He shrugs, smiling openly now, "I know. I meant it."

I don't know if Valentine's day is affecting his mind or if he truly believes that, but either way it's causing me to blush furiously under his praise. I don't know if he can tell what I'm thinking, but it seems like he does when he quietly tells me

"Happy Valentine's Day, Kat."

He stands up to refill his coffee cup and I grab him, hugging him tightly, hoping he knows what I mean. I can tell that he does when he hugs me back, just as tightly. I take a small step back, just far enough to look at his face, and he's looking down at me with his wonderfully warm dark eyes. Time is frozen for a moment and as corny as it sounds, it really is just me and him. But then as quickly as it began, it ends as Scarlet bounds into the kitchen, excited at the flowers and chocolate.

"Happy Vawentines Day!"

She hands us homemade cards, red and white glued on in impossible patterns. Art and I laugh at both her interesting cards and excitement.

"Thank you Scarlet. It's very nice."

She nodded, "It's a fwactal pattern." And suddenly she starts going on about infinite number series and concepts that are as abstract as the cards she's handed us. I look over at Art, and he's always as wierded out by her occasional intelligence as I am. And then, as if someone flipped a switch, she's back to normal.

"And lotsa pretty colors!"

"Yes Scarlet, it's lovely. Thank you."

I watched as Art handed her a card and hugged her, and I felt a slight pang of... something. Not jealousy, surely, but I did wish I could be in Scarlet's place right then. Scarlet opened her card, then dashed off up the stairs. I tilted my head questioningly at Art,

"What was in the card?"

He smiled and said "Directions to a cache of chocolate. I figured she'd appreciate it."

I laughed at him, quietly. "You know she's going to be extra-hyper for the rest of the day, right?"

He nodded, "Yeah, but it's Valentine's day. What else am I going to do? Besides, it's not a large amount, just enough to have her bouncing off the walls for a few hours."

I can only laugh again as Pip makes a short-lived appearance, grabbing a pancake and mumbling something about how the females are clamoring for the great Pip. Art says nothing but I can tell from the hand over his mouth he's trying to suppress a laugh at his friend's idiocy. I don't know what was different about this Valentine's Day but it ended up being a bit more romantic then it has been in years past. Maybe Art has plans for us. Whatever they may be, I can't wait...

A/N: Tenses-shmenses. Time has no meaning to a divine being such as myself. Or something like that. Also, I know it's supposed to be 'him and I' instead of 'me and him' but it sounds better on this occasion.