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Starlight	By : sarahM Category: +G to L > Howl\'s Moving Castle > Howl\'s Moving Castle Views: 11152 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: I do not own Howls Moving Castle, nor any of the characters from it. I do not make any money from the writing of this story.

Chapter List
- 4
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Starlight

By Lady Mac
For Crystal56: P.I. progress: 25 percent complete.
Content alert: More horniness, but nothing explicit. Enjoy!
Do you like pirates? Yes, you do. And you like humor, also. My brother (Pete the Beta) has a fiction press (dot) com account now, under the pen name TariCorp. He�s writing a comic pirate saga that I�m sort of helping with, and it�s really funny. Go check it out! It�s called �Pirates of the Gulf Coast: Curse of the North Shore.� We were gonna post it here on ff(dot)net, but it�s not really a PotC fanfic. It�s mostly original, though we �borrowed� two characters from real life (you�ll know them; they�re the two who join for weird reasons in the middle of chapter one.). It�s funnier than Chain Reaction, and that�s pretty funny! (�I think he�s missing some cowboys from the reservation.� WTF???)
Y�know who�s gross? Lindsay Lohan. BLARGH!! She�s so skinny and blonde now, it�s awful. Mean Girls was pretty good, but now she�s a diva who won�t get over herself.
And you know who else I hate? Percival Lowell. He was such an un-scientific prick!! I hate him and spit on his grave. We need to rename his observatory before millions of children are corrupted by the notion that Pluto is a planet. :shudder:
� I like deep-sky objects like M-13. My uncle rocks!! He brought over his nice telescope (10-inch (or so) Newtonian –
ours is a kinda-crappy 3-inch refractor) and we saw a bunch of double stars (like Alcor and Mizar, the double in the handle of the Big Dipper (Ursa Major) and Polaris), and a double-double, and a ring nebula and a barbell-shaped nebula and M-13, the Hercules globular cluster which is actually not within the disk of the galaxy (it�s in the halo). And we saw the ISS for a minute (without the �scope) before it went into the Earth�s shadow, and I saw another satellite for a split second in the �scope while I was looking at something else. It�s really quite cool. But we missed the neat Mercury-Venus thing right after sunset because we can�t see the western horizon from my house. (space weather (dot) com sends me a newsletter periodically!! It�s good for predicting major auroras.)
Celestia totally rocks. Go get it from www (dot) source forge (dot) net if you have even the slightest interest in astronomy. It has Cassini and Huygens and ISS and Hubble!! But not Voyager or Voyager II or Galileo, since those are long gone and just drifting in interstellar space now.
Here�s a funny parody-ish thing that is also kind of foreshadowing for plot to come (this isn�t how it�ll happen):

�Howl? Why are there feathers in my broom closet?�

�Oh, those? I � was kinda molting in there.�

�Okay, why were you molting, and why in there?�
Pete helped me write that.
OMG, I got this totally cute bug-pillow-thing from Linens n� Things today!! It�s so adorable. It�s squishy and fuzzy and orange and I wuvs it! And it�s got these wacky antennae with little hearts on �em that are SOO CUTE!!! I�m such a sucker fer cute stuf.
Now playing in iTunes: �Funkytown� by Lipps Inc. They�re playing this for the halftime show next year with �Brick House� and �Can-tastic�!!! Yeah!! Best show ever!!

Ooh! Now it�s �Video Killed the Radio Star� by the Buggles!!! One of my all-time favorite songs!!
You may have noticed I�ve renamed all the chapters. This is because that�s how the chapters in the book are titled (they all begin with �in which,� except for one, �Which is far too full of washing.�). I like it, so I�m doing it this way. It seems less cheesy, and I kinda feel like there�s an excess of cheese in this story.
Disclaimer: Well, some crazy rabid fan girls came and stole Howl outta my closet by kicking the door in. But I�ve still got Sophie�s soul, so he still loves ME even though they kidnapped him (sorry Mark)!
I�m thirsty� okay. I�m okay now.

Kapitel Fü
nf

In Which Many Arrangements Are Made

Sophie woke up alone in her own bed on the morning of June 18^th. She got slowly out of bed, stretching as she watched the rays of light come in through the windows above the work bench. It was the last time she would ever wake up to that particular view.
She dressed quickly, and packed her nightgown in the box with the rest of her clothing and other personal belongings before heading out to the kitchen to start breakfast.
�Morning, Calcifer.�
�Hm? Oh. Morning, Sophie.�
�Take your time waking up,� she said, beginning to gather baking ingredients at the table. �I have to mix up the batter before I cook.�
�What�re you making?�
�Blueberry pancakes,� she said, smiling. �And bacon, of course. I don�t know how Howl manages to eat so much of it.�
�He�s always loved it, I suppose,� Calcifer said, watching as she mixed dry ingredients together, then went to fetch milk, butter, and eggs from the pantry.
�We�re low on milk,� she said. �Make sure Markl buys more when he goes out today.�
�Don�t count on me to remember things.�
At that moment, Howl came bursting down the stairs in a jovial mood. �Good morning, Calcifer! Good morning, Sophie!� He swept her up in his arms, ignoring her protests about the spoon being wet, and kissed her warmly before setting her back down. �I�m so excited! It�s moving day!�
�What?� Calcifer said, obviously surprised. �Moving? Why in the world are you moving the castle?�
�Not the castle,� Howl explained, filling the kettle with water and hanging it above the hearth. �My study. We�re putting it in Sophie�s room, and she�s moving into my room.�
�That�s a relief,� Calcifer said, flaring up brightly. �I was afraid we were doing major renovations.�
�Nope. Just putting my little Sophie by my side, where she belongs.�
Calcifer rolled his eyes. �You�re so sweet it�s disgusting.� The wizard stuck out his tongue, but Calcifer ignored him. �All the same, you should be flattered, Sophie. You�re the only one he�s ever let in there.�
�Is that so?� she said, moving to the hearth with her bowl of batter and a frying pan. �I�d have thought that our playboy would have brought home a fair number of conquests.�
Howl turned bright red. �I never!� he sputtered. �I stole their hearts, never their purity! As a matter of fact, none of them ever even came in here before you. And that wasn�t my idea.�
�Set the table, dear,� she said, laughing at how flustered he was. �Then go get Markl up. We�ll be eating soon.�
-----#%&%#-----
Sophie stood back with a sigh, finally able to admire her work. It had taken several hours, but the bedroom was now actually a livable space. Howl had moved hundreds of his books and baubles downstairs, and hundreds more had been thrown out. The end result was that you could walk across the floor without tripping on anything, and both bedside tables and the desk were clear of clutter. Sophie had allowed some decorations to stay, since she liked the mood they lent the room, and it looked far too empty without them. On the other hand, Howl�s stuffed animals –
which he had so lovingly recovered from the ruins –
had been banished to the study downstairs. Unfortunately, the one thing the both wanted to remove –
Howl�s oath –
had been entirely unwilling to come down off the wall, so they had to leave it up, voodoo doll, scissors, and all.
Additionally, she and Howl had gone through his closet and dresser, removing everything and submitting it to an intense interview process from which only half emerged unscathed. In the newly-freed space, Sophie was able to fit her entire wardrobe with room to spare. The sheer amount of clothes he possessed never failed to amaze her, but she loved him for it. How she saw it, at least one of them should have a fashion sense. And since it sure wasn�t going to be her, she would let him keep being as beautiful –
or vain, she thought quickly –
as he pleased.
While Howl was putting his new study in order, she had been able to sneak in her wedding dress, with the help of the salesgirl at the bridal shop. She had hidden it in the back of their closet, behind Howl�s four winter coats and ten pairs of wool trousers. The coats were, incidentally, just long enough to completely obscure the bright white lace.
She heard Howl come dancing up the stairs and pulled the door open for him. �It�s finished!� she said. �What do you think?�
He stepped in cautiously and looked around. He could tell it was his room, but it looked very, very different. The windows and shades were wide open, bathing the room in bright natural light and airing out the slightly musty smell. He walked around, looking carefully at the walls. It surprised him how much of his stuff still remained. Hundreds of books were packed neatly into the bookshelves, and she had even made an effort to alphabetize the ones with titles.
Sophie wrung her hands. �You don�t like it.�
�No, no, I do,� he insisted. �It�s just very different. It�ll take a little getting used to.� He smiled at her, then scooped her up and dumped her playfully on the bed. �It�s nice. I like it.�
His kisses forced her into the mattress, and she giggled as she tried to escape. �H � Howl! Come on! We don�t � have time for this!� She squeaked as he caught her around the waist and pressed kisses down the exposed part of her chest. �I mean it,� she said breathlessly. �I have a lot of work to do.�
�Oh, come on,� he purred, firmly grinding his hips between her legs. �Let�s have some fun, to celebrate.� He pulled her skirt up, and rubbed her through her underwear with a pair of fingers.
She gasped at the sudden touch. �Howl, no � we � the door�s open!�
He released her quickly, and she stood up, straightening her clothes. �There will be plenty of time for that later,� she said. �I bet you�re hungry. Let�s go have lunch.�
-----#%&%#-----
After they had eaten, Howl went back to setting up his study, and Sophie got to work on the dishes while Markl went out grocery shopping for her. She admired her ring while she worked, watching it as the suds fell away and it emerged from the dish water clean and sparkling. �Aren�t you a lovely thing,� she said to it. �I imagine Howl�s put all sorts of spells on you that I�ll never know about.� It seemed to sparkle in agreement. �Well,� she continued, half to herself, and half believing that the ring was actually listening, �I doubt he put a cleanliness spell on you, though. He�s not exactly the type to think of something like that. So as his cleaning lady, I�m going to have to order you to always stay clean like this. Because who knows what kind of cleaning this house is going to need in the future, and I may not have time for you!�
She dried her hands, then put the dishes away. Just as she was finishing, Howl stepped out of his new study. �Do you always talk to yourself?� he asked, drawing himself a glass of water from the tap.
�Not to myself,� she countered. �Just inanimate objects. Like when I used to work at the hat shop, I would talk to the hats while I made them, telling them who would buy them, and so on. Just something I do to combat boredom.�
�It sounds almost like placing spells, to me,� Howl said, taking a long drink.
She shook her head. �You�ve got the wrong girl. There�s no magic in me.�
�I think you�d be surprised.� Smiling, Howl took her in his arms, but a loud knocking interrupted their moment. �Market Chipping door,� Calcifer said.
Howl and Sophie looked at each other. �Well, it�s not Markl,� Sophie defended. �He doesn�t knock.�
Howl shrugged, then went down and opened the door. A woman in a salmon-colored dress with curly blond hair and bright blue eyes drew back a little in surprise at the sight of the tall, dark-haired man who stood before her. �Can I help you?� he asked.
�Um, yes,� she said, obviously nervous. �I�m looking for � I mean, are you Mr. Jenkins?�
The voice suddenly tripped a memory in Sophie�s mind. She rushed to the top of the stairs. �Mother!�
The woman�s entire face brightened. �Sophie!�
She rushed down and brushed past Howl to embrace her. �Mother! Oh, it�s so wonderful to see you!�
�And you!� she said. �You�ve changed so much! You look lovely, Sophie.� She smoothed her silvery hair. �This is a very interesting color, though. How did you come by it?�
�It just stayed after my curse was broken, I suppose.� She suddenly remembered the man standing behind her. �Oh! I�m so sorry, I�m being rude. Mother, this is Howl, my fiancee.�
He caught her hand and kissed it. �A pleasure to meet you, madame.�
�Oh, my!� she said, blushing. �Such a gentleman. I can see how you got your reputation.�
�Well, my skirt-chasing days are over,� he said, squeezing Sophie�s shoulder. �Would you like to come inside?�
�Oh, no thank you. I don�t want to impose. I just stopped by to see if all of this was really true! And since it is, I�d be delighted to attend the wedding. Oh, and I was wondering if you still had the old shop. Are you going to do anything with it?�
Sophie nodded. �We�re going to open a flower shop after we�re married. It should be a lucrative business venture, I think.�
�Oh, that will be perfect for you. You always did have an eye for design; the hats you made were always so wonderful.�
Sophie shifted uncomfortably, not wishing to relive her boring days in the hat shop. �By the way, Mother � um, we�re not meaning to be a nuisance or anything, but would you be interested in cooking for our wedding?�
Her face lit up. �Would I! I�d be positively thrilled! What were you planning on having?�
�Nothing fancy,� Sophie said quickly. �Just a salad and a main course, maybe some hors d�oeuvres, and we�d get the cake from Cesari�s.�
�Well,� said Mrs. Smith, checking a watch that hung from her handbag, �if you�d like to sit down and get it all figured out now, I have some time.�
Sophie looked at Howl, who shrugged noncommittally. �It�s your kitchen.�
For the next hour, Howl watched amusedly as Sophie and her mother discussed every possible food that they could serve, and finally decided on fruit-and-spinach salad, and smoked salmon with mashed potatoes and asparagus for the entrée. But she refused to let the �couple of the moment� buy all the food, and insisted that she would bring some stuffed mushroom caps that the guests could eat while she was making everything else.
Sophie�s mother glanced at her watch just as they finished hashing out the shopping list, and jumped up in alarm. �Oh, my! I�m so sorry, but I have to get going, I said I�d be back forty minutes ago!� She gave Sophie a quick kiss and waved to Howl as she bustled out the door, presumably to the car that had been waiting all that time.
�Interesting woman, your mother,� Howl said, closing the door behind her.
Sophie nodded. �She is, isn�t she? But she�s so wonderful.�
He looked at the list in her hand. �That doesn�t look like much food.�
�But there�ll be a lot of it. I�ll have to go buy this to make sure there�s enough, but I�ll probably need at least one helper to carry it.�
�Don�t look at me,� he said, backing away. �I�ve got work to do, and you usually take Markl, anyhow.�
�Oh, grow up,� she laughed. �It�s not a big deal. Then you can help pick out our cake, too. And anyways, we won�t go today.�
�Good,� he said, catching her around the waist and planting a kiss on her lips. �Now where were we?�
She grinned. �Just like this, if I recall properly.�
�Right.� He kissed her again. �And now I�m going to show you my new study.�
They hadn�t emerged when Markl returned with the groceries, so he put them quickly away and amused himself by working on noisy spells at the kitchen table.

Ende Kapitel Fü
nf

Well, I hope you enjoyed that chapter! It kind of took me a while since it slowed down at the end. But chapter six is forthcoming, and that should be pretty long. Look forward to it!
Word count: 2099, not including Author�s Notes. Wooh-yeah! That�s sixteen more than last chapter!
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