Prettyinpinkgal: Hello! Here's another chapter for all of you awesome readers and reviewers! Merry Christmas!

Disclaimer: I don't own HMC or AIR.

THE THOUSANDTH SUMMER

CHAPTER TWO

She couldn't stay here. No matter how much she wanted to, no matter how much she wanted to stay here with Howl and live happily ever after, it was a fool's dream. She simply wouldn't be allowed to. It was impossible.

...She would never reach it, would she?

"Sophie," Fanny said, holding Sophie's hands and startling her stepdaughter from her thoughts. "Are you going to stay here? I don't really think it's proper, but I suppose you're a sensible girl and--"

"No," Sophie cut in. "I'm not staying here."

Fanny blinked in surprise. "But Sophie, I thought you said you were going to live, how did you put it, happily ever after with Howl?"

"It was a silly thing to say," replied Sophie, her voice and face expressionless.

Howl walked in just then, his face looking both confused and annoyed. "What has gotten into you?" he demanded. "You agreed--"

"As I was saying, it was a silly thing to say. It'll only cause problems if I'm here."

"Sophie, be reasonable..." Howl began.

"Sophie," Fanny cut in. "If you really don't want to stay here, you could stay with your stepfather and I..."

"I'm not living with any of you."

There was silence in the castle.

"Why ever not, Sophie?" Martha asked, who was holding Michael's hand tightly.

Sophie looked at her half-sister. Martha was quickly approaching the age Sophie was when--

"Because," Sophie said. "It'll be safer for everyone. There was a reason I kept the curse on myself to stay as an old woman. I don't want to say anything more, but please believe me when I say that it's the only way. Now that I'm young again, I have to stay away from all of you." In a quieter voice, she added, "I'm sorry."

Howl grabbed her hand, knowing that she would be more likely to say more if she wasn't speaking to such a big group. He drug her out the door, closed it, and demanded, "Sophie, why did you bother saying you wanted to stay here if you were just going to take it back?"

Sophie looked at him, her eyes filled with pain, yet mature with a unhappy knowledge. "I was happy," she answered honestly, a slight smile on her face. "I was so relieved you were okay, I didn't even think about the c--well, it doesn't matter now. But thank you, Howl. I've gotten a bit closer to my goal, but I don't think I'll ever completely reach it."

"Stop talking in riddles, Sophie," Howl shouted, desperate to understand why the woman he loved--his woman true and fair--was leaving him.

Sophie frowned and looked away. "You always talked in riddles before, you know. Talking about things like Wales and Denmark that no one but you would understand." She looked back at him, smiling so he'd know she was kidding.

"Sophie," Howl said, his voice pleading now. "Tell me what's wrong. I'll help you."

She shook her head, her red-gold hair bouncing. "You can't break it."

Howl stared at her. "'Break it'? So it's a curse then? Was I too late saving you? Did the Witch put another curse on you before I got to her castle?"

"Howl, this isn't your fault. Please don't think that," Sophie begged. This was tearing her apart. This dratted curse! "I've..." What was she doing? He can't know. She couldn't tell him the details of the curse.

Why did she always have to leave the people she loved?

Howl stared at her more intently now, and Sophie knew he was trying to find the curse in her. "It's ages old," he said finally, obviously surprised. "It's so far in you, it's almost as if..." His voice trailed off, and he looked Sophie in the eye. "As if you were born with it."

The breeze ruffled Sophie's skirts and Howl's suit, the flowers bending and swaying.

"You're staying here," Howl said finally.

"Howl," Sophie began to protest.

"You're staying here no matter what, whether you want to or not. I can't tell what this curse will do, but I'll break it. I swear," Howl told her, grabbing her and pulling her back to the castle.

"Howl, no! You don't know what you're saying!" But even if Sophie used her powers to make him stop, she knew it wouldn't work. Howl was more powerful than she was. Not to mention, she didn't have the strength of will to leave. She loved living at the castle.

But no one would love living there once the curse came back.

Prettyinpinkgal: I'm very sorry for another short chapter. But at least it's an update. On another note, I got all the Air TV DVDs for Christmas (yay!!) so I'm very happy. XD I didn't cry, but I almost did. I did cry the first time I watched it online though TT. So if anyone has yet to watch Air, expect this story to only get sadder.