Prettyinpinkgal: Hi! I bought the DVD for "Howl's Moving Castle" about a week ago, and I've watched it about a billion times already! So, due to my new obsession for it, I've decided to write a little fic about it. It takes place at the scene where Howl sees Sophie's true age while she's sleeping, right after he tells Calcifer about how terrible the war is. Enjoy! And I'm sorry if Howl is a little out of character. Oh, and Howl doesn't know about Sophie being the girl from his past. I wanted this to be simply his feelings for the quiet Hatter girl he met by chance in the alley. I hope you enjoy it!!

Disclaimer: I'm not Hayao Miyazaki, Diana Jones. Thus, I don't own "Howl's Moving Castle."

BEAUTIFUL DREAMER

Howl got up from his seat, still aching a bit from transforming back into his human state. He was originally going to walk upstairs, but he paused by a curtain. "Grandma" Sophie was probably behind it.

He knew she was a young woman, probably not even twenty. The Witch of the Waste must have put a curse of old age on her. Besides the little "love note" that was hidden in Sophie's pockets that proved she had an unfortunate meeting with the witch, Howl could tell by her energetic way of doing things that she was most certainly not a ninety-year-old.

Drawing back the curtain, Howl quietly stuck his head in the small room.

If he had his heart inside him, it probably would have skipped a beat.

Sophie definitely didn't look like a elderly woman. She didn't even look human. Sophie looked like an angel.

Something about the girl reminded Howl of someone. He then recalled the event that took place a few days ago...

Howl walked down the streets, smiling proudly as he noticed the girls swooning at him. "I love being me," he thought vainly.

The women soon poured their attention into something and someone else, so Howl decided to go down the alleyway for a shortcut to his destination. As for what his destination, it was anywhere that would be bare of the Witch of the Waste's henchmen.

"Hey," Howl heard a man say. "Looks like a little mouse lost its way." Curious, Howl decided to check out what was going on.

He saw a couple of soldiers, obviously flirting with a woman. The girl, however, looked nervous. She certainly was different than most girls Howl had encountered. Any girl he'd met would be thrilled to see a soldier flirting with her. But not this one. "She really IS like a little mouse," he mused to himself. Her brown hair was tied back in a braid, with a plain hat and dress on. She was the sensible type, all right. But she truly was cute.

The girl timidly replied. "Oh, no, I'm not lost." She even looked like a mouse that was spotted by a cat and was planning to dart away any moment.

The same soldier said smoothly, "This little mouse looks thirsty. We should take her for a cup of tea." The girl tried walking away, but he blocked her. The soldier with the mustache stepped out from the doorway, ready to flirt with her as well.

The girl said, "No, thank you. My sister's expecting me." It was an amusing sight at first, but Howl felt himself getting ready to help "Miss Mouse."

Instead of letting her go, the mustache man said, "She's pretty cute, for a mouse."

The blonde said, "How old are you, anyway? Do you live around here?"

To Howl's surprise, the girl stood up for herself. "Leave me alone." That was pretty impressive for a girl who acted like a mouse.

The blonde joked with the man with the mustache. "You see? Your mustache scares away all the girls."

"So? She's even cuter when she's scared!"

All right. Time to rescue the damsel in destress. Howl walked up from behind and placed an arm around the mouse-like girl. "There you are, sweetheart. Sorry I'm late. I was looking everywhere for you." He felt the girl tense.

The men tried arguing with him, claiming they saw her first. By using a little bit of magic, the men walked stiffly away.

The girl was obviously frightened, and Howl tried reassuring her and offered to escort her wherever she needed to go. He had to agree with the man with the mustache; she did seem cuter when she was scared.

"I'm being followed, but act natural," he said to her. The girl stiffened. Maybe Howl shouldn't have said that.

Soon, the Witch of the Waste's henchmen began chasing them. The girl clung onto him, and Howl smiled to himself. With a large jump, they went soaring above the buildings. The brunette gasped, grasping onto him even more.

Howl pretended not to notice. Instead, he instructed, "Now straighten your legs and start walking." They began to do so, although the girl was hesitant at first. Below them, the festivities carried on, oblivious to the couple walking on the air overhead.

He had to admit, he was surprised by how quickly the girl caught on. "You are a natural," he quietly said. He saw her begin to smile--really smile--out of the corner of his eye, and for some reason, he found himself pleased; not in his normal "I-have-another-victory" way, but in a "I'm-glad-I-was-the-one-who-made-her-smile" way.

It confused him, which was saying something, seeing as Howl was not easily confused. He didn't know what, but there was something about this girl...

Before he could ponder it any further, they had arrived on the balcony of the bakery. He helped the girl down and caught a full glimpse of her smile. If he had a heart, he was certain it would have stopped.

He gently warned her not to go outside for a while, and when she agreed in her quiet, but sweet, way, he replied, "That's my girl," and took off.

It wasn't until after he shook off the Witch's creatures that he realized he had never gotten the girl's name. He chastised himself mentally. He was so frustrated with himself that he came home after a few days with the quiet frustration written plain on his face (Howl always did his best to be charming, so showing evenquiet anger was shocking for those who knew him) and discovered a ninety-year-old stranger cooking on Calcifer's head.

He gazed a bit more at the girl's face, who was quietly slumbering, unaware of his presence. Then he closed the curtain and went upstairs.

Thinking about how she acted as an elderly woman, he mused to himself, She certainly is an energetic little mouse.

Prettyinpinkgal: Yeah, I know I changed some stuff. Sorry about that u.u But other than that, I hope you enjoyed it! Maybe I'll write a multi-chapter story for HMC, who knows. Please review! Thanks:)