Sophie bolted upright in her bed, her heart beating faster than ever. It wasn't the first time this had happened either.

She had been living with Howl, Markl, and Calcifer for a long time. The Witch of the Waste had moved on to live somewhere else when she decided that seeing Howl and Sophie together was too painful for her (which honestly kind of weirded Sophie out that she liked him considering the significant age difference).

There was no doubt in her mind that things were going well with everyone, and she was happy. Except for at night.

Sophie swung her legs out of the bed and carefully tiptoed past Markl's room, careful not to wake him.

After a few more steps, there she was. In front of Howl's room. She'd been in there before, and he wouldn't mind waking up since he usually didn't sleep much anyway, yet she still hesitated in front of the door. She placed her hand on the knob and slowly turned it, her heart beginning to beat faster again.

"Howl?" she said quietly to the dark room. There was no response, and if it hadn't been for the quiet moan she heard a second later, she might've thought the room was empty. "Howl?" she said again a bit louder.

"Hmmm?" she heard him groan groggily. The lights turned up a little bit, but the room was still rather dim. "Sophie?" All his tiredness seemed to go away at the sight of the girl in front of him. "What's wrong?"

"I…I had a nightmare," she said softly.

His face softened a bit. "How long have you been having these?"

"A while," she admitted.

Now it made sense to him why she seemed so drained lately. He stood up from his bed and went over to her. "What happened?"

Sophie avoided his eyes and looked down at the floor. "I keep having nightmares that you're going to leave me. Or that someone is going to take you away from me."

Howl gently took her hand and led her over to his bed and sat her down beside him. "Sophie, you don't ever have to worry about me leaving you. I've spent years searching for you, ever since I saw you when I was a boy."

Sophie gave a small smile as she remembered seeing his childhood and when he met Calcifer.

"After everything we've been through, I could never leave you. I love you, Sophie. And I want to be with you forever. And if someone does try to take me, I'll never stop trying to get back to you. Because you're absolutely perfect in every way. I've thought so since the first time I saw you in the alley. Even when you had been cursed, I knew who you were and I still thought you were perfect. I never, ever want to leave you."

"People can change, Howl," she said softly. He could notice her voice cracking and felt his own heart break. He couldn't bear to see her so upset.

"Sophie, look at me." He took her chin in her hands and gently forced her to look at him. "I will never leave you, no matter what happens. My feelings for you will never change. Because I love you, and I promise that I always will."

Howl took her in his arms and they shared a tight embrace. Sophie clung onto him, afraid to let him go. She could feel his hands digging into her back, pulling her close to him.

"I love you too," she whispered.

The two of them laid down on his bed still in their tight embrace. Sophie's head rested on his chest as she felt his fingers twirling through her silver hair. She felt so safe and protected, like she always did when she was with him.

Howl began to hum a beautiful song she had known as a child. She could feel his chest vibrate beneath her as his wonderful voice reached her ears.

Ever so slowly, she began to fall back to sleep.


When Sophie awoke, she smiled. Nothing but sweet dreams.