Chapter 2: In which Sophie receives two visitors

Sophie woke up in the unfamiliar room and blinked her eyes sleepily until she felt reoriented. Sophie could not yet feel completely comfortable in her mother's house. The night before, her mother had dragged her out of Howl's home, threw her into her carriage and whisked her away to a large newly renovated mansion. Or at least it felt like she had been abducted when her mother had not too subtly hinted that it was time for them to leave. She hadn't wanted to go, and had only relented at Howl's gentle urging and promise that he would come see her the next day.

After meeting her new stepfather, a small older gentleman who didn't say very much, but who seemed polite enough, her mother had introduced her to a servant named Fiona who had helped her get ready for bed. It had been strange to have been waited on after she had spent her entire life waiting on other people. It was strange to have her own room rather than a tiny cubbyhole. And the room was rather extravagant. A huge four post bed with large fluffy pillows and luxurious bedspread dominated the room. There was also a large wardrobe filled with pretty clothes that she was almost afraid to touch lest she dirty them. But the most disconcerting thing about the room was the fireplace that warmed it with a simple blaze rather than a talking fire demon. It had only been one night and she already missed the blue-faced flame. She also missed Michael, and supposed that he had already returned to eating a breakfast of bread and cheese without her there to cook for him. Or perhaps he had gone out to Cesari's for breakfast, and to see Martha, of course. But mostly she missed Howl despite how insufferably long he took in the bathroom, and how lazy and dirty his habits were. Because when he smiled at her in that roguish way of his, she felt her knees go weak and thought that she had swallowed a field full of butterflies. She really hoped that he would come to see her soon, as he had promised.

Getting out of bed she quickly washed herself with the cool water left in the hand basin and got dressed, unwilling to wake Fiona and allow her to help. Then she went downstairs to the kitchen for a small breakfast. It was full of servants bustling around doing their chores. Among them was Fiona. Obviously Sophie had had no need to worry about waking her, but was still glad that she hadn't bothered her with something as simple as getting dressed.

"What are ye doin' down 'ere?" Fiona asked, scandalized to see her mistress in the kitchen.

"I was hoping I could get some tea and toast."

"Ye aren't supposed to even be up yet. Mrs. Smith told me to let ye sleep in since ye 'ad been through such an ordeal yesterday. And then I was goin' to let ye break yer fast in the mornin' room."

"There's no need for that!" Sophie replied good-humouredly. "As you can see I woke and got myself dressed. I'm a morning person. I hate to waste the day sleeping in." Unlike Howl, an impatient thought flit through her mind.

"I'm so sorry, ma'am! I'll never let it happen again."

"It's quite all right. I really don't need you to take care of me."

"But that's my job!" she exclaimed, reminding Sophie of herself when she was told to keep her busy hands out of Howl's room. Hopefully Fiona wouldn't be as stubborn as she was.

"All right," Sophie relented. "Show me to the morning room."

Fiona quickly got off the stool she had been sitting on kneading dough and hurried out of the kitchen. Sophie followed into a brightly painted yellow room on the side of the house where the morning rays shone in and reflected the light, reminding her of the funny light she had seen coming out of the ceiling in Howl's sister's home that was too strong to be from fire. Fresh cut flowers filled the morning room, and a cozy fire in the hearth knocked off the chill of the early morning. Sophie sat down at the table Fiona indicated she should.

"Where is my mother anyway? Do you know?" Sophie asked.

"She's still asleep, mum. She won't be up until much later."

"And Mr. Smith?"

"Gone to his offices. 'e works quite hard, 'e does. E'en though 'e doesn't have to. I think 'e's afeered of bein' poor."

"So I'll be eating breakfast alone?"

"Aye. But everyone will be 'round come supper time." With that said, the maid scurried away like a little mouse, leaving Sophie to tap her fingers against the linen tablecloth as she waited for breakfast. I'm so bored I don't know what to do with myself, she thought. And this place is already so neat there isn't even any cleaning for me to do. Not that Fiona would let me, I bet. Just as she was debating whether she should rearrange the flowers in the vase before her on the table, Fiona came in again telling her that a caller was here to see her.

Howl! Her heart jumped with excitement. Once again she thanked her lucky stars that she was young once more. She didn't think her heart would be able to take it if it was still ninety years old.

She stood up with a huge smile on her face that disappeared when she saw that her visitor was none other than Prince Justin. Then she immediately curtsied low when she realized that he was Prince Justin.

"There is no need, milady," he said, stepping into the room, and lifting her to stand by her elbows. "It is I who should be bowing to you."

"Me?"

"It is in part to your kindness that I stand here before you today."

"I didn't do anything. It was Howl who broke the curse on you. You remember that I tried. But I do not have enough power for that."

"Of course you do." He smiled handsomely at her, showing two rows of perfectly white, perfectly straight teeth. He wasn't attractive in the striking way that Howl was, as his features were rather unremarkable, his hair an unruly mass of curls on his head, and his eyes a dull brown, but he had a charming and amiable air that made him seem better-looking than he really was. Noticing his meticulous appearance she wondered if he spent as much time getting dressed as Howl did. Then she quickly batted that thought away. He couldn't have if he was here this early.

As if sensing her thoughts, "I haven't come too early?" he asked.

Sophie shook her head. "Oh, no! Of course not. Though, I was just about to have—"

"Splendid!" he interrupted. "Would you mind taking a walk with me around the garden? Mr. Smith is a good friend of the Royal family and I do believe I'm pretty familiar with the property. Have you been able to take a look around yet? Oh, no, I'm sure you haven't seeing as you've only been here a night. I'll show it to you. It's quite beautiful." He took her arm in his and escorted her out the house.

The morning was so young that the grass was still wet from last evening's showers and she felt the dampness soak through her soft slippers, which were not made for walking outside. She hoped they wouldn't be totally ruined as they were so lovely. They quickly crossed the lawn and made it into the garden enclosure where rows and rows of petunias, begonias, pansies, marigolds and impatiens of all different colors were neatly on display. It reminded her of her little flower shop and she wondered when she would get a chance to see it again. She had to remind herself that she had only just been there yesterday, and surely Michael would take care of it without her.

They walked in silence, admiring the view until the Prince stopped to look at her, finding her to be the most beautiful object in the garden. The sun glistened off her red-gold locks making it shine like a halo. Her pale skin glowed fresh with her youth and health. And her blue eyes sparkled with intelligence and good-humor.

"My dear, Miss Hatter—"

"Please, call me Sophie. 'Miss Hatter' makes me feel like an old maid."

"Sophie, then," he replied smiling graciously. "I was wondering…if there is anything that I can do to repay you for the kindness you have shown me. I feel indebted to you, and I could not live with myself if you would not let me return the favor in some way."

"Why—no! You don't owe me anything. I only did for you what I would have done for any stray animal. I cannot help but feel sorry for the poor dears."

"Well, I'm very glad that you have such a kind heart. But I cannot help but hope that you showed me just slightly more attention than you would have to any other, considering you always slipped me the choicest scraps from the table." He winked at her, and Sophie could not help but laugh.

"I—well, of course I did. I think I new instinctually that you were a prince and that being nice to you, I should be nicely rewarded."

"Sophie, you wound me, by not allowing me to think that you like me for my own merits."

"Well, I do like you…" She didn't like the way that came out. "Well enough…considering I don't know you that well."

"That's good enough…for now. I now consider my ego sufficiently flattered. But again, I'd like to help you. In some way. Please let me."

"I don't know what you can do."

"Have you given any thought as to what you'd like to do with your life now that your curse has been broken?"

"Yes…" she rather thought that she would live Happily Ever After with Howl, like in the story tales she'd read incessantly when she was a child. "I think I'd like to continue running Howl's flower shop. I can balance ledgers, and order things that we'll need like vases and ribbons and cards, just like I have been doing."

"You don't think you'd like to do…something more?" he asked, leaning in close to peer at her face.

"Like what?" She had thought about asking Howl to teach her some magic. She had a natural gift for it, but there were things that were out of her league, as long as she remained ignorant about them.

"You were wrong about not being able to take off the curse on me. I think you have the potential to be a powerful sorceress. I could sense that immediately." He stared deeply into her eyes and she realized that they had flecks of crimson that made them quite beautiful in an unusual way and not as dull as she originally thought. "I think you've put a spell on me."

Whatever the spell was, it was broken when Sophie's stomach let out a loud grumble letting them both know how hungry she was. She looked away embarrassed.

"I should get you back inside. I can see I interrupted your breakfast. Why didn't you tell me earlier?"

Sophie was going to tell him that she had tried to tell him, but he'd already taken her arm in his again and was walking back towards the house. He left her on the top of the stairs to the front door after kissing her hand.

Sophie returned to the morning room and tried not to think about her disconcerting tête-à-tête with the Prince. As soon as she was finally able to settle down for some tea and toast, Fiona came into the sitting room to tell her that she had another visitor. She didn't want to get her hopes up again that it was Howl only to be disappointed, so she stayed seated where she was. When Howl walked into the room she jumped up and flew into his arms, much to his surprise, and was obliged when he wrapped his arms around her in a tender embrace. She pulled away with some discontentment at how he had doused himself liberally with a flowery scent. It was so strong that she thought perhaps that he had bathed in a tub of roses. She also noticed that he had dyed his hair blond again, and his cheeks were as bare and smooth as a baby's bottom. She felt disappointed and Howl noticed immediately.

"Is something the matter, Sophie dear?"

"I was just wondering…how long did you spend in the bathroom this morning?"

"Does it really matter?" he asked in that same confused tone he had when she wanted to know whether the black suit he'd worn to Mrs. Pentstemmon's funeral was the charmed gray-and-scarlet suit or the blue-and-silver one.

"No—well, yes, it does…to me anyway."

"Just to soothe your raging curiosity, Mrs. Nose," he told her, kissing her nose affectionately, "I spent no less than three hours. I even got up early to do it—"

"You up before noon?" Sophie gasped.

"After my misadventures yesterday I was thoroughly in need of a makeover. You had given me the scare of my life—taking off ten years of it, I'm sure—and I looked it. You know, I think I saw a gray hair growing? What with you running off after the Witch of the Waste. It was enough to split hairs, which I naturally had to trim off…"

"Howl, you are the vainest man I have ever met!" Sophie exclaimed, exasperated.

"But you love me anyway," he grinned confidently.

Sophie smiled at Howl adoringly, knowing that he spoke only the truth. Then her expression turned more serious. "You know, I've never told you how I felt."

"I could tell."

"How?"

"The way you would look at me when you weren't looking."

"What do you mean by that?"

"I mean sometimes when you weren't so determined to look like a ninety-year-old woman I could see the real you peaking through."

"Isn't that more of a reason for you to fall in love with me?"

"I fell in love with you the moment I saw a little gray mouse on her way to visit her sister."

"Howl!" she growled. "You're not being serious!" She hit him in the arm as he laughed at her.

"Well, this is going to sound terribly unromantic, but at first I felt sorry for you. I knew you were under a spell, but you still looked old enough to be my mother…grandmother even. And I was curious about what you would look like without it on you. I tried rather hard, but you kept resisting me. So you see, at first you were just a challenge. Like all of my other conquests." Howl smiled self-deprecatingly thinking about all philandering he had done.

"But you saw through all of my tricks. You weren't the only one hiding behind a mask. I was too. Hiding how scared I was about my responsibility to the king, hiding my fears about my contract with Calcifer, hiding the doubts I had about my ability to love by chasing anything in a skirt I could find. And you wouldn't let me get away with it. Not with you. And I didn't need to impress you. In fact, I did my very best to show you the very worst sides of me. But you weren't afraid of me either." Howl admired Sophie's bravery, and how her eyes would light up when she was angry. Sophie was one of those women who looked best when their dander was up…even when she was ninety-years-old. Or maybe especially. And Howl had found their fights to be some of the most exhilarating and stimulating moments in his life.

"I realized how much I cared for you when that scarecrow came and nearly gave you a heart attack. You looked so pale and sick; I was desperate to get the spell off of you." He shook his head as if to ward off the feelings the memory brought up. "You really must let me die before you. I don't know what I'd do without you," he quipped. Even though he smiled jokingly, the harsh quality of his voice belied the levity of his words and revealed deep emotion.

Sophie let his words settle in her brain. Even though it wasn't as romantic as love at first sight, it made sense. Not only had she been old, but she had been quite temperamental and volatile. But he had been patient with her.

"Do you want to know why I fell in love with you?"

"Is it because I'm so devilishly handsome?"

"No! None of that is real, anyway."

"Why you—I oughta—contrary wench!" Howl sputtered.

This time it was Sophie's turn to laugh. "It's the truth. There's no use denying it."

"I set myself up for that one," he conceded, grumbling.

Sophie reached out a hand and caressed his cheek. "You are beautiful, though. The most beautiful man I have ever seen. But that's not why I love you. I love how brave you are. And how kind. You let an old woman come into your home and turn the whole place inside out. You adopted a young boy who lost his parents and agreed to teach him magic. You caught a falling star and gave your heart away to save its life. You have such a big heart. And I'm so honored that you let me have a piece of it."

"Not just a piece," he told her, covering her hand where it rested with his own, "You have all of it." He brought her wrist to his mouth so he could kiss it. A shiver went down her spine at the sensation. His other arm went around her waist where he pulled her closer to him and gently began stroking her back. Their faces were so close together she could feel his breath blowing across her nose. It had a clean minty scent. She closed her eyes and leaned closer as he bent his head.

"Yer breakfast, mistress," Fiona said, interrupting them. She glowered at Howl whom she seemed to think was standing too close for propriety's sake. Or perhaps she was remembering all those rumors about what a womanizing lecher he was.

Howl sighed and kissed Sophie's cheek, then let her go. "I should let you eat."

"Stay and have breakfast with me?" she implored.

"I would love to. But I have a meeting with the King and Ben Suliman. Besides, I'm sure your maid would have a conniption fit if I stayed."

"Come back for dinner, will you?"

"I will try. If I don't die from boredom first." He bowed reverently, then walked swiftly out of the room.

Sophie sat down and began to eat her breakfast. She wished more than anything that Fiona had not interrupted. She knew that Howl had been ready to kiss her. Her heartbeat sped up and she panted slightly just at the thought of it. Her first kiss. They hadn't gotten a chance to be alone last night, and she was sure that if they had, he would have kissed her then. If only…she mused, licking strawberry jam off her lips.