On A Rainy Afternoon

Misora listened to the pitter-patter sound of the rain as fat drops splattered against the window of her dorm room. The world outside looked grey and dreary. How she wished the sun was shinning, and not just so she could be in the fresh air.

The red-headed student's gaze settled on her and Yuna's roommate, one Howell J. Fitzwilliam. The boy sat in a rocking chair, reading a book as if nothing in the world bothered him. She knew that was a lie as the albino's phobia to water, and by extension rain, was legendary in the dormitory. So too was the havoc his mere presence seemed to bring about. Yuna was out playing with her WWII collection, so it was left for Misora to keep watch over the youth.

'I'm bored,' she thought. 'I wonder if Yuna's program is through taping.' She looked at the television with evident longing, but the green led indicated it was still recording. Misora knew better than to risk coming between her roomie and the shopping network. Again her eyes rested on the boy. "How's the book, Howell?"

Without looking up he replied, "It's a bit difficult to read."

The girl looked closely at the cover then plucked the book from his hands. Turning it over, she handed it back. "That better?"

He studied the pages and smiled. "Much," he responded. "I wonder if the man who threw it away had the same problem."

Howell went back to his reading and the ensuing silence threatened to overwhelm his keeper. Her eyes darted once more to the television with the same disappointing result. 'I could do my homework,' she thought, glancing at the stack of books that lay untouched on her desk. 'Naw, tank girl, er Yuna, will be back soon. I can just copy off her.'

"So do you play any games, Howell?" she asked.

"Games?" he replied as if the concept was alien to him.

"Yeah games," Misora said. "Like checkers, or chess, or Monopoly."

Howell sat his book down and pondered for a moment. "I do have a game that, um somebody sent to me." He spoke as if trying to dredge up an ancient memory. "But Yuna and Akira didn't like it when we played."

The bored-out-of-her-mind girl seized upon the opportunity. "Why don't we give it a try?" she cried enthusiastically. To herself, she thought, 'Anything's got to be better than staring at the walls.'

Howell dug through the closet and came back carrying a black, cardboard box. It was bare save for some blood red letting on the top. "Escape from … what's that last word?" Misora asked.

"I think it's pronounced Ka-thu-lu," Howell answered. "It's a pretty simple game to play, only two rules." He set the box on the table and removed the lid. A single sheet of paper was the only contents.

"What kind of game is this?" Misora wanted to know.

Howell picked up the paper and held it at arm's length. "All we do is read the incantation on the paper."

He began to recite in a language Misora had never heard before. "Ph'nglui mglw'nafh Cthulhu," he chanted. The girl shivered as all warmth seemed to flee the room. Floating in the center of the room, a small, black hole appeared. "R'lyeh wgah'nagl."

To the girl's surprise, the tear grew wider as a strange melody from flute-like instruments poured from it. Misora saw lights that looked like stars shin through from the other side. "Howell," she said loudly to be heard above the music. "Maybe this wasn't a good idea."

"Fhtagn," he finished. The rip had grown to a six foot diameter, and a bone-chilling wind rushed from it. "All we need to do now is escape." Misora watched in horror as a hundred black tentacles wriggled from the hole. She had time to scream once.

Just down the hall, Negi walked in from the kitchen, carrying a bowel overflowing with hot, buttered popcorn. The teacher saw his three students, Asuna, Konoka and Setsuna, seated on the couch. "Where do I sit?"

"You can sit on Asuna's lap," Konoka volunteered.

"Like hell," Asuna replied, her bells sounding as she violently shook her head. "Let him sit on the floor."

"Then you can sit on my lap," Konoka told him.

"Ojou-sama, that wouldn't be proper for a teacher to do," Setsuna reminded her.

With a twinkle in her eye, Konoka stood up then plopped herself on the swordswoman's lap. "There, you can sit between us," she giggled.

Before the boy could move, they heard a pounding on the door. Negi opened it to find a disheveled Howell standing in front of him. Streaks of a black, viscous substance criss-crossed the albino's face and clothing. The reek coming off of him reminded the boy of the reptile house at the local zoo. "What happened?"

"Sorry to disturb you," Howell said, "but there's a trans-dimensional rift in the center of my room, and a nameless horror from beyond the stars is climbing through it."

"What? Again?" Negi cried. "I thought you destroyed that game."

"It must have slipped my mind," Howell admitted. "Could you lend a hand? It's caught Misora in its tentacles and she looks distraught."

Negi turned to the others. "We have a code 3," he shouted.

Konoka sprang up and ran to a metal box mounted on the wall. Above it was posted a sign that read "Use only in case of Howell." She threw open the cover and pulled down a red lever in a single, well-practiced motion. The emergency bell rang, causing frantic students to evacuate the dorm as rapidly as possible.

"Thanks ever so," Howell said.

"This is the last time I'm going to say this," Negi warned him. "Get rid of that game!"

The battle was thankfully short as the combined might of Negi and Konoka, backed by their partners, freed the girl and sealed the nameless horror back in its own dimension. Negi watched Howell burn the cursed game and personally scattered the ashes to the winds. The incident was soon forgotten except by Misora, who developed a life-long aversion to squid, octopus and certain genres of anime.

Months later, Valentine's Day came with a knock. Fuka opened her door to find the person knocking had vanished. On the ground lay a package wrapped in bright pink paper and tied with a white bow. As she brought it in the room, Fumika asked who it was for.

"No name," Fuka answered. "Do you think somebody left Masayoshi a Valentine's present?"

"But who?" Fumika asked.

Carefully, so as not to rip the packaging, Fuka opened the gift. Inside laid a black box with blood-red lettering. "Ooh, what is it?" her sister asked in a hushed voice.

"It's a game," Fuka whispered. "Escape from … I can't read it." She resealed the package so that no one would know it had been opened. "Let's get Masayoshi to play it with us."

"Yeah, that sounds like fun," her sister agreed.