Sorry I can't do replies today, I'm really pressed for time and I really want to get this chapter up for you.

Sophie looked curiously about her as they entered Howl's room. Although she'd been there before, it looked like Howl had changed a few things. While the cobwebs and spiders were still in the corners, you could see just a little more of the floor and everything seemed just a little less dusty. 'Maybe,' thought Sophie as Howl sat her down on the bed and a cloud of dust billowed up and filled her lungs.

Howl went over to the dresser and began rummaging furiously in one of the top drawers. Sophie looked over at him curiously. "Howl? What are you looking for?"

"Questions, questions. Now it's my turn to ask one," he murmured as he turned around. "Why are you so nosy?" he asked, one hand behind his back. He was disappointed in himself – he'd meant to say it then. Why was this so hard? Why? It wasn't as if Sophie had grown fangs or something.

"I'm curious because you said you wanted to talk to me, so you brought me up here, and now all you're doing is slithering out of little questions!" Sophie huffed.

Howl smiled. She was pretty when annoyed – the flush it brought to her cheeks made her look magnificently alive. Approaching her quickly, he wrapped both arms around her shoulders, still standing, and hugged her. Feeling her hug back, he smiled, then bent down in front of her. "Sophie?" he revealed a little black box. "Will you marry me?"

Sophie stared in shock. The ring was nothing most people would think much of, but Howl had catered to her tastes, avoiding a large diamond, opting instead for a silver band, intricately engraved with all sorts of patterns and decorations. Shaking, tears filling her eyes, she nodded.

Howl tackled her up on the bed, laughing in relief. "Howl, you don't know how much this means to me. It's even worth the three days of sneezing that I'll get from being in this room for so long."

"Is it worth enough that when the time comes for you to move in, you won't have to clean everything up?" Howl asked hopefully.

"Absolutely not! There is no way that I'm going to spend the rest of my life sleeping in the Dust Pit of Doom! hmm, also known as your ROOM." Sophie told him sharply, but smilingly. (hey, room and doom rhyme!)

"But Sophie—" Howl sounded amazingly like a 5 year old boy, and he knew it too. Leaning down to cover her mouth with his, Howl pulled Sophie up and wrapped an arm around her. He pulled her towards the door. "Come on, we can talk about this later. Let's go tell Calcifer the good news!"

Sophie stopped dead. "Oh no, you're not slithering out of this one! Marrying me clean room, no matter what! If you want to sleep in the dust, you can go and sleep out in the yard for every night of the rest of your life!"

"Now, you know I don't want that," Howl told her charmingly. He pulled her back to him, kissing her more firmly than the last time. "Come on, let's go down stairs."

This time, Sophie did not protest, but grumbled a little beneath her breath. Howl replied, and the argument struck up again full force. Calcifer rolled his eyes, watching them. "Can someone get me a log? Please?"

There was no reply, as Howl had kissed Sophie again. Calcifer had the feeling that the long and bumpy road life had been so far had just smoothed out a little, although he would never admit it.