Chapter 10

A Crown of Daffodils

"Howl, I look ridiculous."

"I disagree. The dress suits you quite nicely."

Sophie gave him a dry look. He thought that this red, gaudy monstrosity suited her? How absurd. "It's too… flashy for me, don't you think?"

Just as he had promised after their somewhat dismal conversation, Sophie found herself in a chic dress shop in Kingsbury picking out and trying on clothes. Well, Howl was doing most of the picking out; she was just trying on the dresses.

"Not at all," Howl leaned back into the powder pink pouffe he was seated upon as he crossed his arms, "You're probably just not used to wearing this kind of clothing."

Sophie turned towards a mirror. The dress had long, puffed sleeves, and the bodice and skirt of the dress was made of ruched satin. A wide, black lace ribbon wrapped around the waist of the dress, ending in a bow tied neatly in the back. Actually, now that she thought about it, it was a gorgeous dress; she just felt silly wearing it. Just as Howl said, she wasn't used to wearing this sort of finery.

"But is this really suited for everyday wear?" Sophie turned to Howl once more, skirts swirling around her as she did so. While the dress truly was lovely, she didn't see how she could wear it with any frequency since it was just so extravagant.

"It is more of an evening dress," Howl conceded, "but you never know when you'll need one."

Sophie raised an eyebrow at Howl. "When would I ever need an evening dress?"

"If you were ever invited to a soiree you'd need one."

"Oh yes, of course," Sophie said sarcastically, "For all the soirees I'm going to be invited to in the near future."

Howl pouted. "Fair point."

Sophie laughed. "While we're on the subject, I can't help but notice that most of the dresses you picked out are completely unsuitable for daily wear." She gingerly pawed through the dresses hanging by her changing room door. "Such as this one!" She pulled out a long, multi-tiered yellow dress with intricate beading along the neck and waistline. "This is truly a lovely dress, but when am I going to have the opportunity to wear it?"

Howl made a dissatisfied clicking sound, not unlike an overbearing mother hen, before standing up and approaching her. "And what would you suggest instead?" It sounded like a challenge, and Sophie was more than willing to take him up on it. She wordlessly hiked up her skirts and re-entered her changing room. With difficulty, she removed the red dress and changed into one of her own dress selections. When Howl hadn't been looking, she had picked out several practical frocks and hidden them among the more ostentatious ones.

Sophie looked at her reflection. The dress was a muted green with long sleeves and a high collar. Unlike the other two dresses she tried on, this one was not a ball gown; the skirt hung loosely around her. It had no real adornments besides three buttons below the neckline. It was a simple frock, but very comfortable.

Satisfied with her appearance, she stepped outside for Howl to see. His jaw dropped the moment he saw her, but Sophie was more than a little certain that he was not blown away in a positive way by her choice.

"Absolutely not."

"What's wrong with it?"

"You look like a spinster in that thing."

"You say that like it's a bad thing."

"Sophie–"

"Howl, this dress is far more sensible than anything you picked out, and it's less expensive." Sophie put her hands on her hips, daring him to try and argue with her when they both knew she was right.

Howl paused, as though he was trying to think of a sighed in defeat. "You're right."

"I know," Sophie said with a small grin, feeling more than a little self-satisfied for besting Howl.

"You're still going to need more than one dress."

"Well," Sophie said, moving towards the dressing room, "I found the same dress in a couple colors." She pulled out a blue, black, and gray version of the frock she had on.

"Of course you did," Howl pinched the bridge of his nose in obvious displeasure.

Sophie giggled again, and did a small twirl in front of the large mirror in the dressing room's waiting room. But as she stared at her own reflection, she realized there was something peculiar about it. Peering into the cool glass she examined herself: her large, light brown eyes, her long chestnut hair that was tied back in a single braid down her back, the green dress. There was something strange about it all, but she wasn't quite sure what.

"Sophie, are you alright?"

Sophie turned around to face Howl. His brow was furrowed in concern, obviously disconcerted by her sudden silence. She blushed, embarrassed for worrying Howl. "It's nothing, don't worry about it." She plastered a bright smile on her face when his face contorted into an unconvinced expression. "Really, I'm fine."

Howl looked unsure of what to do, and, much to Sophie's relief, he dropped the topic. "In that case, we ought to go pick out some shoes…" he went on and on listing the different necessities they needed to purchase, but Sophie was only half listening. She couldn't stop thinking about her reflection. Why did it bother her so much? Why did it seem familiar, but not in a normal way? That doesn't make any sense, Sophie thought to herself.

"Sophie, how about these?"

Sophie was torn away from her thoughts by Howl's voice. She looked around at her surroundings and realized that she was sitting in a shoe store. And she had no recollection of ever leaving the dress shop. Oh good lord, I need to stop spacing out, she chastised herself, Is there anything else I didn't notice? She looked down at her lap and found that she was till wearing the green dress. She vaguely recalled Howl asking the shop clerk if she could just wear the dress out, but she wasn't sure if that was a constructed memory or not.

She turned her gaze to the pair of shoes Howl was holding up for her. They were white, lace up boots with a slight high heel that ended an inch or two above the ankle. "They are very pretty, but won't they get dirty pretty easily since they're white?"

Howl considered this. "I suppose that's true. Then how about these?" Howl picked up a pair of the same pair of shoes, but in light brown. Sophie liked them, especially since they would match all the dresses they bought. Or rather Howl bought for her.

"I like them! Let me try them on." Sophie held out her arms, expecting Howl to hand her the shoes. Instead he knelt down on his knee and gently picked up one of her feet. "Wh-What are you doing?" She said, feeling more than a little flustered.

"I'm helping you put on your shoes," Howl cocked his head to the side, an innocent expression gracing his features, "Is that okay?"

Sophie wasn't sure what to say, so she simply nodded. Howl unzipped her somewhat anachronistic boots and carefully removed each boot from her feet, revealing her miss-matching socks. His eyes flicked upward at her and her face burned, but she didn't look away. After a minute or so of simply gazing into her eyes, Howl picked up Sophie's right foot and gently placed it inside a boot. He repeated the action with her left foot. All the while, he maintained eye contact with her, scarcely blinking. It was oddly intense considering the nature of the situation.

Howl propped up one of her boot-clad feet against his lower thigh and then began to tie her boot, looking down for the first time in several minutes. "I can tie them," Sophie said weakly, but Howl simply chuckled lightly and ignored her.

When he finished tying her other boot, he placed it down softly on the floor next to her other foot, "How does it feel?" His voice sounded a touch more velvety than usual.

Sophie wasn't entirely sure what he was referring to, but she figured the safest option would be to assume he was talking about the shoes. "They feel comfortable." She responded quietly.

His lips formed a small smirk at her response, but he said nothing. Instead he stood up and held out a hand to her. "Try walking in them."

Sophie cautiously took his hand and rose from her seat. "Thank you."

"You are more than welcome," He flashed her a suggestive smile. Sophie turned her head in hope of hiding her red face.

Sophie took a couple steps forward, testing out the shoes. They seemed to fit her perfectly. She walked around the shop and it became clear to her that they would make an excellent pair of everyday shoes as they were sturdy, but not overly heavy. She tried skipping and jumping around a bit in the shoes, just to make sure they would not hinder her movement in any way, and found that she was able to move with her usual ease. "I like them a lot!" She turned towards Howl and found him leaning against a rack of shoes with an amused smile on his face. She suddenly felt a little self-conscious. "What is it?"

Howl slowly sauntered towards her, grin fixed in place. He stopped before her, perhaps a tad closer to her than he should be, and looked down at her face. It was then that Sophie realized just how tall Howl was. Considering his slender frame, he did not seem all that tall, yet standing before her, he seemed like a giant. "You are absolutely adorable."

Sophie at first was confused, wondering what she had done to warrant the… compliment? And then she realized what he might have been referring to: her idiotic prancing about the store. "Well… That's…"

Howl chuckled and lightly brushed his lips against her forehead. "I'll go talk to the shop clerk about the shoes." He walked away, leaving Sophie at a loss. What exactly was going on between herself and Howl? More importantly, why was the nature of her relationship with him even a matter of question? They had only met several days ago, and yet… To say that there wasn't anything going on between them would be ridiculous and naïve.

But what if she was misreading things? Howl was difficult to read, it was very possible she had misunderstood his intentions. Perhaps he was just being nice. But he tried to kiss me, she thought as she recalled the multiple times they had almost kissed. You don't try to kiss someone unless you are in some way interested. Or maybe he was just messing with her. But he doesn't seem like the malicious sort. She sighed. She was so confused.

"Sophie? You there?"

She blinked and looked up. Howl was looking at her with a small, amused smile. "Are you alright? You've been rather out of it today."

"I'm fine," Sophie mumbled, face warm.

Howl chuckled, but said nothing more on the subject, much to Sophie's relief. "Is there anything else you need to get?"

"I don't think so."

"Great! We best get a move on, or we'll be late."

"Late? To what?"

Howl said nothing. He simply wore his usual enigmatic smile as he whisked her out of the shop.

"And…. Open your eyes."

"What did you do?"

"Here, look in this mirror."

"Howl! It's beautiful!"

Sophie gingerly stroked the petals of the lovely flower crown Howl had… Made? Purchased? She wasn't sure. She suspected that he may have just magicked it into existence. It didn't really matter though; she absolutely loved the crown of daffodils adorning her head.

"Now we are ready to enjoy the May Day Fair," Howl said with a bright smile, "What would you like to do first?"

Sophie looked around. A line of vendors stretched as far as she could see along Market Chipping's streets, selling all sorts of different goods: jewelry, candles, toys, just to name a few. In the town square, a tall pole stood proudly at the center with long, colorful ribbons swaying around it in the gentle breeze. "What is that?" Sophie asked.

"It's a Maypole. A common way to celebrate May Day is with a Maypole dance," Howl explained, "You see the ribbons hanging around it?" Sophie nodded. "Each of the dancers take a ribbon and then weave in and out of each other until the entire pole is tied." As he spoke, a group of young women dressed in flowing white dresses with beautiful pink tulip flower crowns upon their heads stood in a circle around the pole, each holding a ribbon. "Do you want to watch?"

"Oh, yes!" The ritual of sorts fascinated Sophie. Somewhere in the back of her mind she felt that she should be more familiar with the concept of the Maypole. But why? She had never actually seen one before, and she certainly had never gone to a May Day celebration before today.

Right?

Now that she thought about it, a lot of her memories were starting to blur and run together as though they were ink being smudged by a careless hand. It was disorienting, and frightening to say the least that almost all of her memories seemed to be covered by an impenetrable fog, making it difficult to remember even the basic things, like what high school she went to or the name of her pet turtle in third grade. She wasn't even entirely sure if she had a pet turtle in third grade. In fact, the only memories that were clear were –

"Sophie?"

– Howl. The time she spent with Howl was as clear as day, untouched by whatever was affecting her mind. She felt his hand squeeze hers, and her heart skipped a beat. At some point while she had not been paying attention, Howl must have grabbed her hand, and that in itself made butterflies flutter in her stomach. "Yes?"

"It's about to start," Howl replied, gesturing to the Maypole. A small crowd surrounded the dancers, though they gave the dancers a wide berth so as not to hinder them. A group of musicians were settled within the ring the crowd created. When they began to play, the dancers immediately sprung into action. They moved to the beat of the music, weaving in and out of each other just as Howl said they would. Their actions were nimble and swift as well as very graceful. Though she imagined that this took a lot of concentration, the dancers looked at ease with themselves, their movements as smooth as liquid.

As the dancers continued, the ribbons intertwined on the pole began to form a pattern, hiding the wood of the pole. The ribbons were tightly woven together, seemingly without mistake, completely hiding the wood of the pole just underneath. It was then that Sophie noticed that the ribbons were all shades of red, pink, or white. A smart decision, Sophie concluded.

Ten minutes passed and the dancers did not show signs of exhaustion though Sophie was certain they must be at least somewhat tired. As they neared the bottom of the pole, it became clear even to Sophie's untrained eye that the dancers had to be more careful as to avoid collisions. Their circle was much reduced from before, and while this should have made their task more challenging, they continued on as easily as before.

When they finally finished wrapping the entire pole in ribbons, a loud cheer broke from the crowd. The dancers smiled at one another, chests heaving from the exertion. It was the first time that Sophie saw any indication of exhaustion. After a moment of applause, the musicians moved towards the Maypole, settling at its base. Once they were ready, they played a fast and jaunty tune. In response, members of the crowd broke away. "What's happening?" Sophie asked Howl.

"In Market Chipping, it's tradition to do a circle dance with the crowd after the Maypole dance. The musicians always play a quick song before the dance starts. If you don't want to join in, then you have to leave before the musicians finish playing this piece."

Sophie expected Howl to pull them both away from the circle as to avoid the dance, but he remained rooted in place. "Howl? We should go before the song ends."

Howl didn't respond, he merely flashed her a small smile.

Sophie narrowed her eyes suspiciously. "You can't seriously expect me to dance." Although frankly she wasn't surprised that Howl was contemplating something so ridiculous.

"Why not?" Howl asked, his lips twitching into an amused grin.

"Because I don't know how –" Before she could finish her sentence, the musicians finished playing, eliciting a loud applause from the remaining crowd. As the applause died down, the crowd began to form a circle around the Maypole. Sophie found herself being offered the hand of a petite girl in blue with lily of the valley weaved into her hair. "Howl, I don't know how to do this," She hissed at him as the girl gently clasped Sophie's hand in her own.

"Don't worry," he responded as he took her hand in his, "The Maypole dancers will demonstrate the dance first." It was then that Sophie noticed that the young women had formed a circle within the larger one. When the music started the dancers demonstrated a series of simple moves consisting of pivots, grapevine steps, and the occasional clap of the hands. It seemed straightforward enough, and as the music began to play, Sophie found herself following along with relative ease. She even found herself enjoying herself. Perhaps this wasn't such a bad idea.

However, as people grew more comfortable with the steps, the musicians slowly increased the speed of the music. The music went from being a leisurely stroll to a frenzied flurry of movement. Sophie struggled to follow along. She became tangled in her own clumsy movements. It was exceedingly frustrating, and for a moment, she considered attempting to break from the circle. But then she noticed that she wasn't the only one having trouble. The dainty girl in blue fumbled several times and occasionally clapped on the wrong beat. However, her face was aglow with a bright smile, betraying the fun she had despite her mistakes.

It was at that moment that Sophie decided to try ignoring her shortcomings. She let the music fill her being simply danced. When she messed up, she moved on to the next step rather than dwell on it. It was a magical, liberating moment that filled her with a sense of joy she had never quite experienced before. And it was over far too quickly.

"Sophie, do you want to get something to drink?" She turned towards Howl. She wouldn't have said he was panting, but his breathing was perhaps a touch more labored than usual.

Before she could speak, a sweet, almost spicy scent filled her nose. Her mouth watered at the delectable aroma. The dancing had thoroughly exhausted her, leaving her both hungry and thirsty. "What is that smell?"

Howl blinked for a moment, as though he was unsure what she was talking about, before saying, "Oh that! That's Tippaleivät. It's a type of cake," he added when he saw her blank expression, "Would you like to try some?"

Sophie nodded her head, "Yes please!" Howl, with a light chuckle, led her towards the source of the delightful smell. Howl brought her to a booth called Cesari's. The line was so long, she couldn't even see the people running the stand. The large crowd eagerly waiting on line strangely consisted almost entirely of young men. It was quite peculiar, and Sophie wasn't quite sure as to why that was the case.

When they finally reached the counter, Sophie felt her mouth go dry. A girl on the cusp of womanhood stood there, serving what appeared to be a sort of fried cake not unlike funnel cake. It was not the cake, however, that captivated Sophie. The girl turned towards Sophie, and she too was overwhelmed by shock. "So– " But she didn't finish.

At least Sophie didn't hear her finish. She was yanked from the booth and dragged away. She looked at the person responsible for grabbing her and felt her blood run cold. A glittering mask of white covered half of her captor's face, and the other half was not a face at all, but a black gelatinous mass. There was no mistaking it: She was in the clutches of the Witch of the Wastes' henchman.

Author's note: Hello all! I hoped you enjoyed the latest update. It was a lot of fun to write, especially after that last chapter. I have to say, some of my favorite scenes to write about in this particular fanfic are fluffy HowlXSophie moments.

So, I'm going to college in about two weeks (scary, I know) so it's very possible that updates may start to take more time. Hopefully not, but I figured I'd give you all a warning.

Anyway, a quick note on Tippaleivät. It's a type of finnish cake that is often used to celebrate May Day. It's essentially funnel cake. I don't think it actually would have a smell like I described in the story, but I'm taking some artistic liberties.

The dance that I described I actually made up choreography for, but it is not an actual May Day or Beltane dance.

That's all for now folks! Stay tuned~