Sophie's True Love

Just a little tale that could happen after the events of the anime movie 'Howl's Moving Castle'. Enjoy

"The fight we had was just awful. Howl can be so stubborn. Why can't he just understand? Though I guess I can't complain much, he has come such a fair way and I guess it was a stupid fight. Oh well, it's late, and I am in no mood to apologize. And besides Howl should really say he is sorry first, after all he is the one who started the fight. Oh, I just need to stop think and go to sleep; if I go to sleep I'll stop crying", and with that Sophie stopped muttering to herself, but the tear kept on streaming down her cheeks.

Then, Sophie heard footsteps entering her room. She had forgotten to latch the door.

"Must be Howl", Sophie silently thought to herself, "Only he would enter my room without knocking and at such a late hour. Well, I'll just pretend to be asleep and then he will go away. I don't want to talk to him right now and I don't want him to know that I've been crying, Howl always feels so bad about himself when I cry… even when he's not the cause of my tears".

A hand brushed across her face, pushing a few pieces of hair back behind her ear. Still, Sophie kept her eyes closed, even when the hand moved down along her cheek and wiped away some of her tears.

"Sophie", a familiar voice whispered, a voice that did not belong to Howl.

"Turnip", Sophie's eyes shot open and widened with surprise as they fell upon Prince Justin standing next to her bed.

"Why have you been crying Sophie?" the Prince questioned as Sophie sat up in bed, "Did you and Howl have a fight?"

Sophie nodded slowly, not wanting to relive the fight again by having to explain it someone.

"It's alright Sophie", the Prince pulled Sophie into his arms, "it's alright to cry, I'm here now".

And with those tender words Sophie fell apart again, and she did even know why… maybe it was because Prince Justin had been away so long, ending the war, and she was beginning to think she would never see her Turnip-Head again. And now she had.

Somehow, without either one of them realizing it, they had both laid back onto Sophie's bed. And as her tears started to dry, Sophie laid her head on Prince Justin's chest and fell fast asleep.

"Sophie, wakeup, it's a beautiful day", Howl's voice rang from the front door.

Sophie and the Prince on stirred a little from his voice, but it was not enough to wake them from their peaceful sleep.

"Come on Sophie, let's go to the cottage together", Howl burst into Sophie's room in a marry mood.

However, his smile vanished the second his eyes fell upon Sophie wrapped in the arms of the Prince, the man who thought Sophie was his true love.

The sleeping couple was jolted awake by Howl's intrusion into Sophie's bedroom. For a few moments none of them could move, it was as though they were all frozen in time.

Then, Howl started to stomp toward the bed, his eyes like daggers set upon the Prince.

"No Howl!" Sophie screamed as she tried to shield the Prince's body with her own.

Howl stopped in his tracks.

"It's alright Sophie", the Prince cooed as gently pulled Sophie off of him and got up from the bed, "Good morning Howl, I think it would be best if we left Sophie to dress for the day".

Prince Justin brushed past Howl and exited the room, Howl lingered a moment, his eyes glued to the floor and then left the room himself.