Lil' Clover: Howa-Life in

If there was one thing Howa learned in the short time since her creation, it was how life was full of surprises.

Her earliest memories were of she and her sisters watching the fall season reach Kiyosu, their birthplace and headquarters of their creators.

For many the change in season was a time to prepare. The hunting season was coming up and hunters were becoming something of an endangered species in Japan. Many of the girls feared they would spend a large portion of their lives in a display case, or tucked away in storage. To give themselves the best chance of being purchased the bolt action rifles would spend their days making sure everything, from their internals to their paint jobs, were absolutely flawless.

When the shipping orders finally arrived they learned that only a handful of the girls would remain in Japan, with owners already waiting for the paperwork to go through. The rest would be exported to countries across the globe. Most were destined to Europe, awaiting a life of hunting deer and range shooting. A select few, to the surprise of all, were being sent to Ukraine to fight In the Donbass region.

In Howa’s case, she was to travel to America.
In anticipation for her journey Howa would regularly remember her schooling. Practically indoctrinated by a daily regimen of discipline and strict living she anticipated a lifestyle akin to a soldier, simple and utilitarian. To Howa the idea of serving her owner to the best of her abilities would be satisfying enough.

“Will you hurry up with the salt?”

“Hold on, I need to get this just right…”

“For fuck’s sakes, you’re making a salad!”

This mindset quickly changed the moment she arrived in the States.

Since her first day in the small yet quaint gun shop Howa witnessed just how carefree the guns of America could be.

Israeli bullpups conversed with German bolt actions casually. Soviet handguns and their
American counterparts traded stories like old friends. In one case a Chinese SKS introduced herself and acted as a guide of sorts on the strange new world that awaited her.

Needless to say the whole experience shattered Howa’s expectations.

Now, as she watched M1A and AR snap at one another as they prepared dinner, Howa mulled over all the information she had garnered over the past two weeks. The idea of minimal acknowledgment and unspoken respect had been drilled into her mind since her inception.
Instead she was seated at the kitchen table with her owner and Hi-Power as they talked and joked away like family.
SmK
This was a far cry from the life she had been expecting. Howa knew she had to adapt. But could she? The Japanese mentality of shunning, almost fearing, firearms still stuck to her and wouldn’t just go away overnight. The culture shock would take some time to get used to.
Just how long that would be was Howa’s concern.

“Thirsty?”


Howa’s train of thought came a halt as 5906 took a seat next to her, two cups of coffee in her hands. The handgun handed over one of mugs before taking a few hearty gulps of the dark roast drink.

A bout of laughter caught Howa’s attention.

Turning to the source she saw Hi-Power spinning around to show off her new leather boots, a result of the wood grips Anon had bought for her. She gleefully danced around before hugging her owner from behind, repeating ‘thank you’ like a broken record.

Howa watched the sappy scene unfold, absentmindedly taking a swig of coffee. As the unsweetened coffee reached her tongue she realized just how bitter the brew was. With some force she managed to gulp down the mouthful, giving a brief grimace that did not go unnoticed by the handgun nest to her.

“Sorry about that,” 5906 said with a chuckle. She reached across the table and grabbed a container of sugar packets.

“You know, we all felt the same way,” she stated as she slid the porcelain bowl to Howa.

“What do you mean?” Howa avoided eye contact with the handgun, focusing on pouring packet after packet into her mug.

“I’ve seen that troubled look on your face a few times.” 5906 motioned for Howa to look before extending a finger at Hi-Power.

“She’s Belgium Federal Police. Or she was before she retired,” 5906 let the fact soak in as she took another gulp of coffee. “When Anon brought her home she was stiff as a board. Kept calling him ‘sir’ and everything.”

With the spectacle going on across the table
Howa almost didn’t believe her. Regardless, she knew well enough to stay silent.

5906 then nodded towards the kitchen, where the two rifles kept, clearly deliberately, bumping into one another as they continued preparing dinner.

“Those two came together. They didn’t talk much for the first few weeks, didn’t come out of their gun forms for the first two,” Howa noticed the handgun’s smile wavered slightly, a somber expression on her face.

“They don’t talk about their previous owners.
And I don’t plan on bringing it up,” 5906 locked eyes with Howa. She quickly got the hint; that story was not hers to know.

As 5906 nursed her half-finished drink Howa sat quietly, piecing together all the information she had gotten.

After a few moments Howa finally broke the silence.

“So…what you’re saying is-“

“We’re a bunch of pre-owned, dysfunctional guns with a ton of baggage?” 5906 gave a wry smile as she leaned back in her chair, enjoying the shocked look on Howa’s face. She

“N-No! I didn’t mean…What I’m meant is-“

“Relax, I’m just messing with you,” 5906’s laughed, much to the chagrin of Howa. Once again she stayed quiet, though her expression told 5906 everything.
The handgun regained her composure before continuing, “Look, what I’m saying is we all had a rough start on our first few days. It’ll take some time to get adjusted to the change, we all get that.”

5906 chugged the rest of her coffee, giving a satisfied sigh before giving Howa a pat on the shoulder.

“If you have any questions feel free to ask. We’re here if you need us.”

With that the handgun stood up and walked towards the kitchen, leaving Howa to her thoughts.

‘Maybe I’m just overthinking this,’ Howa thought to herself, “Maybe things won’t be so bad.”
Feeling the knot in her stomach finally fade
Howa smiled to herself, taking a swig of her long neglected coffee. The moment the drink reached her tongue however she instantly regretted do so.

‘Maybe I put a few too many packets in...’

As Howa tried to take another sip a foul smell reached her, burning her nose and irritating her eyes. A faint haziness engulfed the room and as fear and realization kicked in all eyes turned towards the kitchen.

“That’s too much oil AR, you’re gonna burn it!”

“It’s fine, it’s fine. I saw this on the Food Net-AAGH!”

A brief yet bright pillar of fire rose from the pan, causing the two rifles to jump away, M1A in particular diving for cover behind the island dividing the kitchen and the dining room.

Driven by instinct, and mostly panic, AR-15 spun around, lunging for the drawer under the sink. Finding what she was looking for she grabbed a small, red fire extinguisher and pulled its pin.
In one fluid motion AR-15 turned around and with her eyes shut tight, sprayed the entire contents of the extinguisher towards the stove.

No longer hearing the crackling of burning meat, or much of anything, AR-15 slowly opened her eyes. Through the white mist she could make out a very familiar outline. It was short, coated with white dust and holding a lid over the smoldering pan.

“Oh shit…”

Were AR-15 not frozen with fear she probably would share M1A’s sentiment.

5906 wiped the dust from her face and turned towards AR-15. Tritium green eyes locked with the rifle’s, whose survival instincts made her take a step back.

“Uh…S-Sorry about that,” AR-15 stuttered, unable to hold eye contact with the oddly calm 5906.

For a moment no one dared to even take a breath. M1A huddled behind the island. Anon and Hi-Power watched on from the dining room dumbfounded by the fiasco. Time almost seemed to stop.

The tension was too much for AR-15. Dropping the empty extinguisher, she made a mad dash for the stairs.

5906 ran after the rifle, a wall of dust billowing behind her as she ran up the stairs. The four left behind could only imagine what was happening upstairs as they heard a symphony of pounding, screaming and cries for mercy from above.

The three firearms turned to their owner, flinching when the roof made a loud crack as something, or rather someone, slammed into the second story floor.

Anon rose from his chair and looked at the charred mess that was his kitchen. He shook his head, but chuckled to himself nonetheless. It was almost like this was nothing new to him.
Anon pulled the phone out of his pocket and held it up to his ear. With his free hand he silently motioned Hi-Power and M1A to the windows. Quickly knowing what he was ordering the two Western guns went about opening the windows to let out the stench of burnt steak and anti-fire chemicals.

“Hello, Pizza Hut?”

As Anon spoke into the phone he turned his gaze at Howa who was still sitting silently, likely out of shock, at the kitchen table. He gave her a smile that practically screamed ‘I’m sorry you saw all that’.

Picking up on this Howa smiled back, waving her hands and silently mouthing ‘it’s okay’. The worry on Anon’s face seemed to fade as he stepped away, ordering several pizzas over the phone.

Now left alone Howa slumped back into her chair, letting out a sigh of relief and exhaustion.

She let the events that took place in the last few minutes soak in. She almost felt like she was in a dream. These guns…these girls, they lived a life like she had never dreamed of living. Carefree and happy, if a bit dysfunctional. And now she was going to spend her life with them.

Another bout of crashes and bangs emanating from the second floor caught Howa’s attention. She could hear the panic in AR’s voice through the wood flooring above her.

“Wait, not the bore snake! Not the boreaaagh!”

Well, maybe they were more than a bit dysfunctional…

Still, as Howa looked back on how elated the rifles were when they had arrived home, Hi-Power’s reaction to her gift and just the overall jolly mood she felt coming from them all, she could tell just how happy they all were together.

A smile slowly grew. She could get used to that.

Howa’s eyes fell on the half full coffee cup in front of her. She stared at it for a moment before taking hold of it and chugging its contents down. She slammed the mug down and rose to her feet.

If there was one thing Howa learned in the short time since her creation, it was how life was full of surprises.

“Hi-Power-san, can I help you clean up?”

She couldn’t wait to see what would happen next.