Chapter 7: In which war is declared
The next morning Sophie woke up feeling rather glum. It was cloudy outside, and her throat felt scratchy. Oh, botheration, she thought, please don't let me get sick. When she sneezed, she realized that it was too late. She decided to stay in bed for a little while longer.
As the morning got later and later and Sophie still had not gotten out of bed, Fiona began to worry about her. "Ma'am?" the little servant woman called as she peaked into the room. "Are ye all right?"
"I'm sick," Sophie groaned.
"What's wrong with you?" Fiona asked, walking fully into the room.
"Everything." Sophie hated nothing more than to be sick. She could count on one hand the number of times that she had been sick in her life. When she was very little she had the measles. She remembered that her mother, her real mother had taken care of her. It was one of her only memories of her. Then when she got older she caught a couple of colds from her sisters, who were constantly spreading their germs. But Sophie knew that if she kept everyone as clean as possible, they would not get sick as often. Some of the other people in town thought that she was strange for her practices. It was generally regarded as an alliance with the devil that kept her from getting sick, but it was something that she read in a book once, and she had not seen the harm in trying it. Since it had seemed to work, she kept doing it. But this time was different.
What had started as a tickle in her throat had spread to an ache in her whole body. She felt cold no matter how many blankets she had on, and even though it was late summer. Her sore throat also made her feel slightly nauseous. It was the curse of the dreaded summer cold.
"Would ye like me to get ye some tea?" Fiona asked.
"If it's not too much trouble. I would get it myself, but I think if I move I might throw up."
With that Fiona gave her a hard look that was indecipherable. She pressed her hand against her forehead and felt that it was warm and dry. That seemed to satisfy her somewhat, so she began to bustle about the room preparing the tea. When she was finished, she helped Sophie to sit up despite her protests that she could do it herself. No sooner had the cup touched her lips than Sophie had sprung out of bed to empty the contents of her stomach, which was not very much at all, into the chamber pot. When she was through, Fiona began patting her head with a cool wet washcloth and was softly clucking with motherly concern.
When Sophie had returned to the bed and lain down again, Fiona sat down beside her and asked, "Are you sure there's nothin' else ye want to tell me?"
Sophie looked up at her with sad, miserable eyes. "What do you mean?"
"When was the last time ye had yer courses?" Fiona asked directly.
Sophie blushed bright pink. No one had ever asked her such a personal question before. Fanny had simply explained that once a month she would bleed and that she would need to wear special cloths, and that she should not ever let a man touch her there unless she were married. After that Fanny had never spoken of it again. Sophie herself had gone too the library to find out as much information about it as she could. There wasn't a lot, but it gave her a rudimentary education about human reproductive systems. She'd always been skeptical about the story of storks who brought children to grateful couples. "I don't remember."
Fiona let out soft curse. Sophie was surprised when she heard Howl's name mentioned.
"I'm sorry, but Fiona, what does Howl have to do with my being sick?" Sophie asked confusedly.
Fiona softly clucked. "My poor dear. I can't believe I allowed 'im to do this to ye, too."
"Do what to me?" Sophie asked, alarmed.
"Are ye sure yer not sick 'cause yer with child?"
"But I'm not married!"
"Ye don't 'ave to be married to 'ave a child."
"Even still, I'm not going to have a baby. What made you think such a silly thought?"
"Are ye sure?"
"Well, I'm not exactly sure about the entire process..." Sophie had also overheard the other women who worked at the hat shop talk sometimes, but they were usually careful not to let her or her sisters overhear too much since Fanny was pretty strict about the kind of conversation she thought was appropriate. What she'd gleamed from the leftover pieces of conversation was that the act of making a baby was supposed to be rather pleasurable. And the women would certainly get mad if a man tried to do it with another woman! Sophie continued, "But since I'm not married, nor have I kissed anyone, then I can't have a baby!"
"So ye never let that wicked man touch ye?"
"Only a little bit," Sophie replied sheepishly.
"Exactly how much is 'a little bit?'" Fiona asked sternly.
"I let him hold my hand, and hug me. And he's kissed my forehead. But never my lips." Sophie frowned remembering the time that he had almost kissed her on the lips, but they had been interrupted.
"Good heavens, child! Yer an innocent one. That's fer sure." Her tone was astonished, but she also looked relieved. "Let's make sure it stays that way. Promise me girl, never let 'im touch ye. Only bad things will happen."
"Like have a baby?" Sophie thought that she wouldn't mind so much to have a baby that looked like Howl.
"Promise me, girl!" Fiona insisted.
"But we're engaged to be married!" She raised the hand that once held her engagement ring, and dejectedly lowered it again. She couldn't help but feel that losing her ring was a bad omen.
"Maybe, maybe not…" Fiona replied cryptically. "But until then, promise me," she urged. She leaned in closer, trying to stare her down.
Seeing that Fiona was quite serious, Sophie gave in. "I promise."
Fiona closed her eyes and nodded in relief. "That's a good girl." Then she opened her eyes and patted her on the shoulder soothingly. "Well, since we 'ave that all cleared up, how about I concentrate on getting' ye well?"
"I'm afraid all you can do is let it run its course."
"All right then. I'll get ye some more blankets. Ye just try to get ye some rest, eh?"
"Thank you, Fiona. I appreciate your concern. Would you tell my mother that I'm not feeling well today?"
"Of course, ma'am."
After Fiona settled some more blankets around her, she left, leaving Sophie to contemplate about their strange conversation, and why she would have asked her to make such a promise. She could not help but feel more intrigued by whatever it possibly was that had Fiona so adamant against her doing it. It made her wish all the more that Howl was back and they could get married so that they could do whatever it was that Fiona did not want her to do.
When Prince Justin heard that Sophie was sick, he immediately had one of the Royal Physicians go to the Smiths' home to make sure that she was not in any danger. When the doctor gave him a good prognosis, he sent her a dozen yellow roses and a note telling her that he hoped she would be well again soon so that she could come visit him again.
Sophie grimaced. She already felt uncomfortable because the prince had sent his doctor to see her over something as simple as a common cold. She did not want to feel indebted to him anymore than she already did because he deemed to spend time with her. And she still did not quite understand why he wanted to spend so much time with her. Didn't he have more important things to do? But Fanny just smiled with pleasure at the show of interest the prince continued to invest in her stepdaughter and insisted that she send him a thank you card when she began to feel better.
This note had an immediate response requesting that he be allowed to see her and make sure for himself that she was on the mend. With Fanny staring down at her intensely, Sophie had no choice but to acquiesce.
The very next morning the prince paid a call promptly at ten. He looked distraught. His usually impeccable appearance was in disarray. His hair was unkempt, his eyes hollow and worn-out, his dress uniform unbuttoned at the collar. He rushed to her side and took her hand into his own. "Sophie, my dear, please tell me that you are all right! It has been maddening to me to have to stay away for so long, unsure of how you are doing. You look so pale." He raised a hand to brush against her face. "Your cheeks have lost some of their warmth of color. Have you not been sleeping well?"
Sophie flinched at his touch and leaned away. "I am quite well, milord. It was just a cold. While I have felt a little under the weather, there was never any danger of anything more serious. Surely my condition isn't the reason why you seem so unkempt?"
The prince slowly lowered his hand. "I'm glad to hear that. My doctor told me that I was being foolish for worrying so much, but—" He turned away. Sophie waited for him to continue, but instead he stood up and walked away from her, wringing his hands.
Sensing that something was bothering the prince Sophie asked, "Is there something you wanted to tell me."
Turning back towards her he nodded. "Yes. I'm not sure if you know, but the negotiations between our land and Strangia are not going very well. War seems imminent."
"I'm sorry to hear that. But I almost hope war will be declared if it means that Howl will return to me that much sooner."
The prince simply nodded. Looking down at her left hand he added, "You must let me reimburse you for the loss of your ring. You must know how awful I feel about it, especially since it was on my property."
Sophie responded conciliatorily, "It wasn't your fault, your highness, and there is really nothing that can replace it. The only thing I would like more than that ring would be for Howl to be back here with me. And that you can not give me."
Sighing with disappointment, he walked back towards her and dropped to one knee in front of her, again grasping her by the hands. "Even after all this time you still want Howl?" He lifted his right hand to brush back a lock of her hair tenderly. "When was the last time that you heard from him? How do you know that he's still devoted to you?"
"Of course I want Howl!" Sophie cried defensively, trying to pull away. But he wouldn't let her. "I love him. And no matter how far apart we are, that will never change."
"But I can give you so much more, Sophie!" he urged. "I can give you entire rooms filled with gold, wardrobes filled with thousands of all those beautiful dresses and fabrics that you like so much, access to all the libraries in my father's kingdom so that you can read to your heart's content. Anything you want, if you'll let me give it to you."
For a moment Sophie felt his words pulling at her from the outside in. The room began to spin so she focused on the prince whose eyes seemed to being drawing her into his soul. She saw no color or light, and could not concentrate on anything other than his words. "What are you doing to me?" she asked. Or at least she thought she asked. "What do you want from me?"
"All I want is your heart, Sophie."
He leaned in, and her eyes fluttered closed. Her heart that was already thumping loudly in her chest sped up. She felt his lips brush against hers—
"Soph—" Michael walked into the room, coming to a screeching stop when he saw her in such a compromising position. "I'm, I'm s-sorry," he stuttered. "I didn't mean to interrupt, it's just that I just heard you were sick, and I knew Ho-wl," he paused at that, his voice breaking awkwardly, "Howl would want to know that you're all right. But I can see that you are, so I'll just leave you be."
"No, wait! Michael!" Sophie exclaimed, standing up. "This isn't what you think this is!" But Michael had already turned around and left the room.
She turned to the prince and slapped him. "How dare you! First you make the pretense of caring about my relationship with Howl by offering to buy me a replacement ring, then you try to propose…what? Marriage? Somehow I find that hard to believe! Then you have the audacity to kiss me! I can't believe I ever trusted you!"
"Can't you?" The prince asked skeptically, raising an eyebrow. "You wanted so hard to believe in Howl, but somehow you can't make yourself trust him, and with good reason. And then I come along, and I'm there, I make you forget about how lonely you are and how much you miss Howl, and I make you feel good, and you can trust me. Is it really so surprising that you would? Think about that." Before she could respond, he stood up and gently dusted off his trousers. "I shall take my leave of you now. But I hope you take what I said seriously and think about what I have to offer. If you change your mind, you know how to get in contact with me." With that he left leaving behind a devastated Sophie. The most devastating aspect of it all was her fear that he was right.
Two days later, Sophie was well on her way to feeling better physically, while emotionally her feelings were just as turbulent and unsure as they had been since the Prince came to visit her. She was happily surprised, therefore, when Lettie came to see her. It had been weeks since the last time that they saw each other—Midsummer's day, the day that the Witch of the Waste and her fire demon had attacked, to be exact.
After Fiona showed Lettie into the yellow morning room, Sophie gestured for her to sit next to her on the settee and join her for tea.
"What has gotten into you, Sophie?" was the first thing to come out of Lettie's mouth. Not "I hope you're feeling better since you've been sick," or "I'm sorry that I haven't seen you in over two months." Always straightforward and to the point Lettie was.
"What do you mean?"
"You've been the most popular topic of gossip at court these days." As an apprentice to Wizard Suliman she had been required to go court a couple of times. It was there that she had heard about an affair between her eldest sister and the Prince. "Did you know that?"
"No, I hadn't heard. Not that anyone would admit to me that they were talking about me behind my back," she responded sardonically.
"It's become a huge scandal." Lettie's eyes went wide for emphasis. "I'm surprised Fanny hasn't locked you in your bedroom because of the shame of it all."
"Somehow, I imagine that Fanny is as unaware of the gossip as I am."
"Fanny may be dense sometimes, but she's not that dense."
Sophie didn't even bother to try to scold Lettie for her irreverent tone towards Fanny. "So what are they saying about me?"
"They're saying that being the wife of the First Royal Wizard wasn't enough for you and that you've been gunning for Prince Justin as well, which is why they claim you've been spending so much time with him. That doesn't explain why he's been spending so much time with you. But gossips never actually take the time to think about whether what lies they're spreading around make any sense. Anyway, they say that the Prince rebuffed you when you demanded that he ask you to marry him." Lettie left out the part where they also claimed that she needed him to marry her in order "to make an honest woman of her."
"Where could they possibly get such an idea from?"
"My guess is that all of the women are jealous of all the attention the Prince has been giving you, and all the older women are resentful that he's not paying any mind to any of their daughters. Some people also happened to notice how upset the Prince was after his last visit with you. To his credit, though, he has not deemed the gossip worthy enough to either confirm or deny."
"Well, of course, he wouldn't. It's not his reputation that's being wrecked."
"You shouldn't worry about it, Sophie," Lettie said dismissively. "I'm sure it will all blow over once Howl returns and you get married."
"I'm not so sure there will even be a wedding." Sophie held up her left hand where her diamond ring was conspicuously missing. "I didn't take it off. I lost it. That is an ominous sign, don't you think?"
"When did it happen?"
"It was at the Royal Palace."
"So you have been spending a lot of time with the Prince. I wasn't sure. I've been so busy with my studies with Ben—Wizard Suliman." Lettie smiled secretly at the mention of the magician's name. Sophie noticed.
"What are you smiling about?"
"I shouldn't tell you. I wouldn't want my happiness to overshadow your pain." That too was just like Lettie. Even though she claimed selflessness, it was obvious that she was bursting to spill her news.
"Just tell me."
"I have fallen in love!"
"With Wizard Suliman?"
"Yes!" Lettie exclaimed.
"How wonderful!" Sophie pulled Lettie into a tight embrace. "Tell me everything that happened!"
"Well, as you know, Wizard Suliman—Ben asked me to apprentice with him and I accepted. However, mother refused to let me move in with him, so I've been staying on at Mrs. Fairfax. But every morning he sends a carriage to come fetch me and then we go off and he teaches me magic." Lettie sighed dreamily and gazed off into space.
Sophie waited for her to continue, but when she didn't she gently nudged her sister. "And?"
Lettie's smile turned into a frown. "And I'm completely in love with him, but the man is either too shy, or so completely daft that he doesn't know that I'm in love with him. But I shouldn't say that. He's always a perfect gentleman to me, but not in that sickeningly besotted way that Wizard Howl was. And once he even serenaded me with his guitar. But I think that he's got so much on his mind that he doesn't know how to express it. And there is the fact that he's much much older than me. I believe he's even older than Howl. I'm afraid he only thinks of me as a little girl, or worse his student."
"That does pose a problem," Sophie said consolingly.
"The biggest thing distracting him is, of course, this looming war. He's already mad that Howl got First Wizard over him, and now that he's gone to Strangia, Ben has been working like crazy trying to prove that he is just a good a wizard as Howl. It's all I can do to get him to relax a little with me. He's wound up so tight."
"He's lucky that he has you to care for him."
"Lucky is right. If I had any control of this, I'd never have let such a wretched emotion as love overtake me. I planned to become a great sorceress on my own, and never marry if I could help it."
Sophie could not help but concur. If she had only known what would happen, she would have steeled herself against Howl, gray-and-scarlet suit or no.
"So anyway, what happened between you and the Prince?"
Sophie was unfazed by the quick turn in topics by her sister. She began to explain herself. "Ever since Howl left I had been writing him letters every day, but when he stopped writing me, I stopped writing him as often. And when Prince Justin asked me to spend time with him, I said yes. I've been to the palace several times, and to the races, and he took me to the opera once. And every time I'm with him, I forget about Howl. It's like he doesn't even exist!"
"That's understandable. The prince is probably only trying to repay you for saving his life. And Howl, too, by making sure that you are all right while he is away. There's nothing wrong with letting your friends cheer you up during your separation."
"But I keep thinking, if Howl were gadding about with other girls in Strangia, I know I would be madder than a hive of hornets! And I think it's more than friendly. Lettie, he tried to kiss me!"
"Did you let him?"
"No! Of course not! I told him that I never wanted to see him again."
"Then let that be the end of it. When Howl returns, he'll never have to know. And then you can get married."
"There's just one thing, though. Michael saw us. He walked in on us just as the Prince kissed me. Then he left before I had a chance to explain. I'm sure he'll tell Howl."
"Then you'll just have to explain to Howl just the way you've explained it to me. He'll understand if he loves you! He hasn't been very communicative either, what with not writing to you anymore! It wouldn't surprise me if he was trying to woo some girl in the Strangian court."
"Don't say that! Even if it's true, I don't want to know about it. I just want him to come home and then we can put this all behind us."
"I still don't trust him, Sophie. Not meaning to toot my own horn or anything, but if he could fall that easily in and out of love with me, then are you sure that he is truly in love with you?"
The truth was that as much as Sophie wanted to trust him, she was beginning to have her doubts. As she stared at her sister, it felt like more proof that she should give up on Howl. First it was Fanny, then his own sister, and now both her sisters. And she still hadn't heard from him, and had been too ashamed of what he had seen to ask Michael if he had gotten anymore. Seeing the truth in her eyes, all Lettie could do was pull her into her arms and hold her.
Howl could not believe what his eyes were telling him as he read his most recent letter from Michael. He had been looking forward to taking a break from his busy schedule of meetings and demonstrations (that were not going very well) in order to hear from his friends, and hopefully, learn why Sophie was not responding to his letters. But with every sentence he began to give in to the despair that had been haunting him for weeks. I'm not sure how to tell you this, the letter said, but I saw Sophie kissing Prince Justin... Every moment that he was away from Sophie he feared that she would be tempted by someone who could give her all the things that he couldn't; all the things that she deserved. But he had never imagined that it would be Prince Justin. And the proof was in the letter from Michael. And the fact that he had not received a letter from Sophie herself in weeks.
When he finished reading, in that moment he cursed the King for sending him on this mission that was deteriorating closer and closer to a declaration of war with every minute, he cursed himself for not being good enough for Sophie to wait for, and he cursed Sophie for her perfidy.
Before he could give in to the tears that threatened to overflow, his solitude was interrupted by even more bad news. Christian, Howl's diplomatic advisor, knocked on the door and then came in declaring, "I have bad news Howl. The Strangians seem determined not to compromise on their demands for absolute sovereignty, and our King isn't prepared to give it to them. So that means war."
Howl looked at him miserably. "Then I've failed my country."
"You did your best, Howl. We all did. Now it's time for us to return home and prepare for the inevitable."
Howl simply stared at him, feeling like a complete failure at everything he had tried to accomplish. He had dedicated almost twelve hours a day almost every day for the past two months trying to dazzle the King of Strangia, courting his daughter Beatrice, while at the same time demonstrating the power of his magic in a subtle threat to show what they would be up against if they did decide to pursue war, and all for nothing. And it seemed that his failure there in Strangia was also the cause for his failure at home in his relationship with Sophie. Looking at the outcome he wished he had devoted as much time as he did there to ensuring that Sophie was as madly in love with him as he was with her. But as he stared at Christian and thought about the futility of the political situation, he refrained from giving into despair over Sophie. Perhaps the Prince was a better man. He was certainly richer and more powerful. But Howl was a wizard who had spent the past four years of his life womanizing the ladies in this world. He was not about to go down without a fight. Prince or no prince, he was going to fight for Sophie because he knew without a doubt that she was his one true love.
"I must leave at once," Howl said finally.
"Yes, sir. I will make the arrangements at once. We should be back in Kingsbury in a number of days."
In only a few days I will be able to see Sophie again, Howl thought after Christian left. However, he feared that a few more days would still be too long, and that by the time he returned all would be lost.
Sophie was curious as to Michael's reaction to seeing her with the Prince, but too embarrassed to go to the castle to ask him. Ever since Lettie had come to see her she had begun to notice that people were staring at her strangely as if they expected her to grow a second head. She supposed that stories of her "affair" were spreading quickly. A petty, vengeful part of her hoped that Michael had written Howl to tell him, too, if only to get some sort of reaction out of him. If not getting anymore letters from her could not propel him into writing back to her, perhaps hearing that she was moving on would. However, she still hoped that he cared for her, and if he did then he would be undoubtedly hurt by such a revelation and the last thing that Sophie had ever wanted to do was hurt Howl. Pondering these possibilities Sophie thought that she ought to at least ask Martha about Michael, since he had surely told her, yet as her sister she would still allow her to tell her side of the story.
Telling Fiona to tell Fanny that she was going to Market Chipping to see her sister, Sophie set off for Cesari's. When she entered, she noticed that everyone in the story went completely quiet until someone coughed conspicuously, and then everyone began to whisper. As soon as Martha saw her, she asked Mrs. Cesari to be allowed to take a break, which was immediately given because Martha was one of their best employees. Martha grabbed Sophie by the arm and rushed her off to a back stockroom.
"I was wondering when you'd get up the nerve to come see me. And I don't mean because of the silly people gossiping about you."
Ignoring Martha's admission that she was aware of the gossip, Sophie asked, "Has Michael written to Howl?"
"Yes."
"Does Michael hate me terribly?"
"He's incredibly angry with you, Sophie. He told me that if he had not seen it with his own eyes he would not have believed it of you. Hearing it of you, I still can't quite believe it, but I trust Michael and that he would not make up something like that. He has no reason to. So now I want you to tell me what happened."
"As you know, I've been spending a lot of time with Prince Justin. It seemed like a harmless way to pass the time while Howl was away. He paid attention to me and got my mind off how much I missed Howl. I thought it was totally innocent, and it was on my part, but apparently the Prince thought it was more and he tried to kiss me. That was when Michael showed up. But I swear to you that I never kissed him, and if I had known that he had romantic feelings for me, I never would have spent so much time with him!"
"I believe you, Sophie. That's what I tried to tell Michael. I told him that he ought to give you the benefit of the doubt, or at least ask you about it before he went running off to tell Howl. But did he listen to me? No." Martha shook her head.
"Well, I guess there's nothing I can do now, but wait. Maybe Howl's so enraptured in his new courtesan that he doesn't even care about me anymore. At least then he won't be hurt by the news."
"But what about you? Aren't you still hurting?"
"I've always known that Howl was scoundrel. I went into this with my eyes wide open, so I have no one to blame but myself."
"You know, Michael doesn't understand why Howl hasn't written to you. He asks about you in every letter he writes to Michael. He's asked both Michael and Calcifer to make sure that you were all right, as if they were your guardians. And even though he says that he misses you and wonders why you haven't written him, he's also said that he was glad that you had found someone who makes you happy to spend time with. That's why Michael feels partially responsible for what has happened. He thinks that if he had spent more time with you then you would have stayed faithful."
"I have been faithful!"
"Well, that's kind of hard for him to believe, you understand?"
"Yes, I know. And that's all my fault."
"No, Sophie. I don't think it's really anyone's fault. Howl has been gone for months now. You are allowed to spend time with other people and not be miserable. And while Michael may believe that Howl has been faithful to you, I'm skeptical about the honesty of his letters. We all know how well he can string together a few words. It could all be artifice."
"Well, thanks for telling me about what he wrote. Do you think you could tell Michael what I said?"
Martha nodded. "Of course I will."
"Then I should probably let you get back to work."
Martha and Sophie hugged. Then Martha showed Sophie the way out. Martha made a point to glare at all the people in the pastry shop as a show of solidarity with her sister. It made Sophie feel better. She was glad that Martha told her everything. Now all she had to do was wait for Howl to return home.
When Howl finally made it back to Kingsbury three days later, he was first debriefed. Not only did he have to endure the King's disappointment, but he could have sworn that there was a look of glee in Ben Suliman's expression. He only fleetingly thought to wonder if there might be a demotion in his future. He didn't rightly care, though. The only thing he could think about was getting to see Sophie again, the way the sunlight glinted off her red-gold hair, her eyes sparkled with health and youth, and her skin radiated beauty.
Of course, he managed to run into everyone butSophie at court. He could tell that something was keeping the gossipmongers salivating, but every time that he asked someone about it, they would change the subject. That let him know immediately that he was the object of their wagging tongues.
He was the subject of their gossip to some extent, but he wasn't aware that the one whom they were really talking about was Sophie until he ran into Mrs. Johnson. When she saw him, her entire face just lit up with anticipation. She deliberately sauntered over to him.
"Mrs. Johnson," Howl said, nodding cordially to her, even though she was the last person he wanted to talk to. She might tell me what she knows, though, since she gossips more than a dog pees on fire hydrants, Howl thought.
"Wizard Pendragon," she replied politely. Then she sidled up next to him until she could whisper in his ear. "Why do you look so morose? You shouldn't worry about the war thing. There are too many people too set on this war to let something as insignificant as a peace treaty step in their way. Some people see what you did as doing the country a favor, so that we could play all our diplomatic cards, even though all the while we've been gunning for this ever since Strangia decided to declare independence."
"That is the least of my worries."
"Oh, then you must be upset about The Prince and Sophie."
"What about them?" Howl demanded.
"You haven't heard?" Mrs. Johnson asked incredulously.
Howl shook his head. "Michael wrote me, but I'd like to hear the details from Sophie herself."
"Well, if you'd like to hear what happened from an impartial point of view I can tell you."
"I highly doubt your impartiality."
"Nonetheless, you'll listen." Howl didn't say anything, so Mrs. Johnson took it as her cue to continue. "Sophie has made a spectacle of herself cavorting around with the Prince. First it was a tour of the castle, then the city, and the countryside. All of it alone without a chaperone. Now that's not enough for anything but conjecture, but then suddenly the Prince stopped seeing her. And as her sister by-law, I got hold of the entire story. It's so ironic isn't it?"
"What are you talking about?"
"You who have hurt so many women with your heartlessness have finally fallen in love, only to have your heart broken in return."
"Stop speaking in riddles and just tell me what's going on!"
"Fine. The truth is, your virtuous, faithful Sophie is nothing but a common tramp who has somehow gotten her claws into the Prince. And for the life of me I cannot see what you men see in her. Perhaps it is a certain easiness in her expression. A man knows that all one need do to get her to—"
"And what you saw this with your own two eyes?" Howl scoffed.
"Maybe, just maybe. And I wasn't the only one. You should ask around."
"I will," Howl said calmly, even though all he wanted to do was run out of there and find Sophie. He managed to stay until the King dismissed him, then he left as quickly as he could.
Despite his rush to get to Sophie, however, Howl decided to that he must talk with Michael first in order to be absolutely certain of what exactly he was accusing her of doing in his absence. Michael had only written of one kiss, but Howl wondered if he thought there were more. If perhaps it was only just an innocent stolen kiss, or if there were feelings involved, indicating an affair. One look at Michael told him to fear the worst.
"I don't know what's going on with Sophie," Michael explained sadly, "but I know that she's been spending a lot of time with the Prince. And I know what I saw. I'm sorry that I was the one to write you such news. I never would have imagined it of Sophie in a million years. But Calcifer thought I ought."
Calcifer concurred from his place among the logs in the fireplace, his demonic face filled with worry. "I convinced him that you would want to know. That you deserve to know."
"Thank you for your honesty," Howl responded. Then he squared his shoulders. "Now it's time for me to confront my errant bride-to-be."
"Or not to be is more like it," Michael muttered beneath his breath as he saw his teacher depart from the castle orange-blob side down.
A/N: Sorry for the long delay in between updates. I've always intended to continue this story, but I allowed myself to make excuses for not writing in so long. Really, it all boils down to pure laziness. Hopefully, it won't be so long before the next update, especially since I've already got some of it already written.
I hope this chapter lives up to the ones before it. Since it's been a while since I've written, I'm afraid that this chapter isn't very cohesive. So please let me know if I've messed up the continuity somehow, or something doesn't make sense. I'm aware that Sophie's mother died when she was two, so it's unlikely that she remembered her taking care of her, BUT I figured that if George Lucas can get away with Leia remembering her mother who died in childbirth, then I can say that Sophie remembers her mother. On the other hand, that's probably not a good reason since Lucas is such a complete hack, who almost managed to destroy my love of the Star Wars Universe. So if it really bothers you that much let me know lol Also, anything else you want to tell me, feel free to do so. Even if you just want to tell me how awesome I am :P I appreciate all of my reviews.
Anyway, Wales was awesome. I learned some interesting things about the country that I hope to be able to incorporate into the story. I figured that Howell was a pretty common Welsh name, but I didn't realize that Howell is a historical figure, a Welsh king whose reign was unusually peaceful in comparison to other kings. So, somehow, I doubt that our Howl is based on him :)