Thorns of a Rose #1 (Howl's Moving Castle fanfiction)

Chapter 4: Truths, Lies, and Broken Promises

Sophie twirled the spoon of sugar in her coffee mug longer than she needed. She rested her chin in her palm and sighed loudly, though her sister was completely oblivious to Sophie's boredom.

About a month after Lettie announced her engagement to Prince Justin, Sophie decided to tackle the maid of honor's duties and take the bride-to-be out for a day of wedding shopping. They had gone to three bridal shops before Lettie decided on the wedding gown she wanted. It was like magic watching her sister fall in love with the dress - yet Sophie's mind was still lost in her own world.

They stopped at a local diner for a late lunch before continuing with the flower arrangements, and Lettie had been elaborating on how Justin proposed to her for the last fifteen minutes. She smiled wide and used her hands for dramatic gestures.

"...and he took me to the rose garden behind the Royal Kingsbury Palace and there was an entire dining table set up in the gazebo! Oh, Sophie, you should have been there. It was so romantic."

"Sounds very romantic." Sophie said with a subtle roll of her eyes as she took a sip of her coffee.

"Oh, I can't believe this day has come," Lettie said, cupping her cheeks as she stared out the window from the booth. "It's like all my dreams are coming true. The day we met, I knew there was this connection between us."

Sophie took another sip and sighed, staring at the hot coffee mug. "I wish I had known you two were dating and didn't find out my sister was getting married until she was already engaged."

Lettie dropped her grin, her face completely emotionless. She stared at her folded hands, coughing softly before speaking. "Well, I hate to say it, Sophie, but we haven't been that close since you moved in with your boyfriend, whom I still haven't met yet."

Sophie burned her tongue on the coffee, pulling the mug away from her lips quickly. She set the drink down and watched as her sister refused to make eye contact. Sophie had forgotten about all the things she missed because of her relationship with Howl. She missed the bakery's tenth anniversary celebration because Howl said he was leaving the next morning and she wanted to spend more time with him; she missed their family reunion because Markl had turned the house literally upside down and she had to help him and Howl reverse the spell.

Sophie couldn't remember the last time she asked Lettie to spend the day together and just be sisters. She couldn't even remember the last time she saw their baby sister, Martha, and every day that passed was a lost opportunity to be with them.

Disregarding Lettie's last visit to the castle, Sophie hadn't seen her except for a few pop-ins to the flower shop, which – as time went by – grew less and less frequent. Sophie hadn't realized how much she had taken advantage of her sister's time, nor how much time she wasted not being with her family.

"I never realized, Lettie." Sophie whispered. "I don't know what to say. I feel so ashamed."

Lettie grasped her hand and tightened her grip. "I didn't mean to say that, Sophie."

"But it's true. I haven't been there for you in such a long time. I can't remember the last time we did any real sisterly things together. We barely see each other anymore, and it's all my fault."

"No, Sophie. Don't think like that. You're not the only one who's been busy with a boyfriend." Lettie giggled as her cheeks lightened a rosy red. "I guess we've both just been blindsided by love."

Sophie laughed and rolled her eyes. "Yeah, love."

"That's such a pretty necklace, Sophie." Lettie said, pointing to her chest. "Where did you get it?"

"Oh, this?" Sophie held the blue stone between her fingers. "Um, he gave it to me as sort of a one-year anniversary gift."

"Wow, has it really been a year?" Sophie widened her eyes and looked up to Lettie, her eyes beaming at this point. One thing about Lettie was that she never let things go that easily, so her moving on from the last subject was quite out of character.