Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

“There you are sweetheart. Sorry I’m late, I was looking everywhere for you.”

You froze at the familiar words, looking up to meet a gorgeous man staring directly back at you with a mischievous grin on his lips. He placed an arm around your shoulder and you felt a slight shock at the contact. But perhaps you had only imagined it, as the man gave no indication of noticing it. 

As he looked down at you with a tender look in his eyes, you could only respond with a weak smile, your mind going blank at his appearance. 

Why was he here?! He wasn’t supposed to be here!

One of the soldiers cleared their throat, bringing your attention back to the dilemma in front of you. You decided to solve the current situation you had been dealing with before the sorcerer’s appearance, hoping your newly-appeared blonde-haired problem would disappear afterwards, somehow.

“Like I said, my friends are waiting for me at the bakery. So if you boys don’t mind, I’ll be on my way.”

You gently shrugged out from under Howl’s arm, brushing past the two pushy soldiers with a huff.

Howl watched the scene unfold with amusement in his eyes, before quickly following behind you. The soldiers merely blinked at where you previously stood, not sure what to make of what had just happened.

As you walked down the back alley, footsteps were heard close behind you; loudening with each step.

“Where to? I’ll be your escort th-“

You stopped in your tracks, abruptly turning around to face the sorcerer. 

“I’m going to stop your right there, Howl.” 

He raised a brow and a brief expression of surprise passed on his face at the mention of his name. 

“You know my name? I would’ve remembered introducing myself to a beauty like you.”

You grimaced at the line, knowing he had probably used the same one on countless other girls before you. And quickly raising a hand, you stopped him in his flirtatious behavior.

“Listen,” you began. “it was really nice of you to “come to my rescue”, but I had the situation handled. And I’m pretty sure you got the wrong girl.” 

Your words seemed to have no effect on him whatsoever; Howl continuing to lessen the distance between the two of you. It wasn’t until his chest reached your opposing hand, that he paused his steps.

You really shouldn’t have been surprised with his actions, knowing what kind of man he had used to be before the beginning scenes of the movie took place.

“Look, I really don’t want to have to deal with messing up the storyline, so please go find Sophie. She should be on her way right about now.”

Howl didn’t seem taken aback by your advice though, responding to your words with a smirk. 

“Why are you so sure this Sophie is the one I’m looking for?”

You let out a sigh. “Let’s just say I’m psychic and leave it at that, okay?” With a shooing motion of your hand, you directed him to go back down the back alleyway. “Now you go on your way, and I’ll be on mine.”

And without another word you turned around to continue walking down the alley, holding your breath in hopes that he had gotten the message and stopped following you. When you reached the end of the shadowy path, the grey-ton brick scenery morphed into a bustling city before you. You could see the bakery where Lettie worked at not too far away from where you stood.

Hesitantly, you took a quick glance behind you to see if Howl was there- heaving a relieved sigh at the sight of an empty alleyway.

___

“Lettie!” you shouted.

She must have heard you, as you saw her crane her neck over the hectic crowd of her admirers. She smiled, spotting you wave to her from the very back, near the entrance of the store.

“(Y/N)! You’re here!”

She motioned you over to the front of the crowd and you squeezed past the hoard of men in the nonexistent line- able to finally take a breath when she yanked you behind the counter.

Lettie gave you a one-armed hug, using her other arm to continue handing out the nonstop requests of confectionary sweets. 

“Where’s Sophie?” she asked, practically yelling over the noise in the bakery.

“She’ll be here any second, I’m sure!” you shouted back.

It was just then one of Lettie’s co-workers rushed inside the counter, whispering something in her ear.

“She what?!” 

The petite girl quickly grabbed your hand, ignoring the complaints of the customers at her leaving. With haste, she ran up the stairs, you having no choice but to be dragged along with.

____

As Sophie explained what she had just experienced to you and her sister, you let a discreet sigh. Thankfully Howl had listened to you and went to Sophie, instead of continuing to follow you around. Although you were still puzzled at why you had met him in the first place, you didn’t think much of it as you were more relieved to hear about the familiar events that coincided with what happened in the movie. Neither did you dwell on the fact that there was no mention of being chased by the Witch of the Waste’s henchmen. 

And before you knew it, you were standing outside the back door of the bakery, while Lettie was unsuccessfully trying once more to encourage her sister to follow her own dreams. For a brief moment, it had seemed as if Lettie had gotten through to Sophie, as the older responded with a change of tone. But it was soon cut off as one fo the bakery workers had bid farewell to the younger girl, stopping her from hearing the rest of her sister’s sentence. 

As someone who had watched the many other attempts from Lettie talking to Sophie about the future, this time hadn’t been any different than in the past. It was always Lettie convincing Sophie to follow her dreams, but never really taking the time to find out what her sister’s dreams exactly were. Of course, Lettie was busy with her own life in the city so you understood, but you couldn’t help but feel sorry for Sophie- who was always the one who took the time to visit her sister, but never the other way around. 

With Lettie momentarily distracted, Sophie quickly changed subjects and the opportunity to dive into a heartfelt conversation disappeared as quickly as it came. 

You both waved goodbye to Lettie so she could get back to her work, walking together down the shaded back street.

“She’s right you know.” you said, breaking the comfortable silence. “No one is going to blame you for following your dreams like Lettie did.”

“It’s what my father would have wanted, (Y/N).” she repeated, as if it was her mantra. “And we’ve talked about this. It’s my responsibility as the eldest.”

Your brows furrowed in slight frustration at her reasoning. 

“No Sophie, it’s not.” Reaching for her elbow, you made her pause in her walking to look at you. “Your father left the hat shop to your stepmother in his will. If anything he gave you an out to go and do what you want with your life.”

“(Y/N)-”

You didn’t give her a chance to give another excuse.

“You always give the same reason every time Lettie or I ask you this. But I think you’re just using your position as the “eldest” as an excuse, because you’re afraid what would happen once you leave the comfort of your home.”

You knew your words had reached her when she bit her lip in worry. 

Sophie had told you in passing that since she was young, she had dreamed of seeing the world- of what existed beyond her home and the city. But with her timid personality and having little to no experience traveling alone outside the city, she decided keeping her roots in her father’s hat shop would be the safer and more familiar alternative.

“I know it’s scary to leave home, to go out into a world with sorcerers and witches on the prowl. I know that better than anyone, believe me. But if you never take that risk, can you really say that you’ll have no regrets when it’s too late?”

“It’s not like I can just up and leave, (Y/N).” Sophie tried to reason. 

“Why not? Your stepmother has more than enough girls working in the hat shop and you have all the money you earned from working that you barely spend, not to mention the portion your father left you.” 

She seemed to really consider the words, quietly thinking to herself. After a minute, Sophie finally spoke. 

“I’ve never been outside the city, though. I mean I don’t know what I would need to do first once I get out, I would probably die all alone out there…” she trailed off rambling, her voice filled with anxiety. 

“Who said you were going alone?” 

Sophie looked up from the ground, giving you a surprised look. You lips turned upward to a grin in response.

“Would you really go with me?”

You shrugged, nonchalantly. “I mean, who else am I going to talk to once you’re gone?”

The eldest Hatter sister looked at you, tears gleaming in her eyes. And before you could try to stop her from crying, she pulled you into a tight hug.

“Thank you (Y/N)!” she said, gleefully. “Oh, I-I don’t know what we need to do first then!” 

It was hard to imagine that the excited girl in front of you had been filled with worry just a few moments ago.

Talking to herself in excitement, Sophie resumed walking down the road with a skip in her step. You shook your head at her happiness, not used to seeing your friend acting this way- at least not since the time when you both had been young teenagers.

Chapter Text

“What do you think? It’s all the rage in Kingsbury.”

“It’s beautiful ma’am!”

“Gorgeous!”

You chose to quietly stand there as the rest of the girls in room fawned over the newly returned Sophie’s stepmother and her hat. The faux smile on your face threatened to loosen with every passing second you were forced to stare at the monstrosity on Honey’s head. 

Were the people of Kingsbury blind? Perhaps that was why the hat was so popular over there, because it was so big and ugly that no one could lose it- and nobody, not even a blind person, could miss spotting it in the distance.

Thankfully, Sophie tugged you upstairs, knowing you wouldn’t be able to keep up the charade for much longer. And as you were pulled away from looking at the hat and to the staircase, your smile immediately dropped.

“It wasn’t that bad.” Sophie said to you, when your true feelings about the hat made its way onto your face.

You gave her a pointed look, to which she relented.

“Okay, fine- it’s pretty bad.” she giggled, before giving a shake of her head. “But that’s not why I asked you to come over.” 

She opened the door to her bedroom, showing you that she had been in the middle of packing before rescuing you moments prior.

“I told Mother about our plans, and she was a bit hesitant at first- but she gave me her blessing!” 

Your excited friend resumed flitting around her room, grabbing items that she deemed necessary to take with her on her adventure. 

Plopping yourself down in the middle of her bed, you reached over to the pile of clothes nearby; folding them before placing them neatly into her nearly empty suitcase. She threw you an appreciative smile at your assistance.

“Is it safe to assume that you’ll be ready to leave today then?”

“Yes, we can leave whenever you’re ready- oh, but there’s no rush or anything!” she exclaimed, pausing in her excitement. “I understand if you need more time to pack and tie up loose ends.”

You smiled, seeing her fretting over possibly rushing you into leaving. 

“Don’t worry, I already packed my stuff before I came. I had a feeling you would want to leave as soon as possible.” you explained to ease her worry. “My suitcase is downstairs, so I’m ready whenever you are.”

“Oh, that’s wonderful! I guess we’re just waiting on me then to finish packing.” 

And just like that, she carried on with the rest of her packing; jumping around the room happily like a child without a care in the world.

___________________________

You, on the other hand, could not be as so carefree as your friend who was currently walking beside you up the hill, a skip in each of her steps.

With no sight or news of a certain Witch of the Waste, you figured Sophie wasn’t going to turn into an old woman anytime soon; thus, creating some hiccups in the currently progressing story.

First hiccup: she didn’t have the body or energy of a seventy year-old grandma. An obvious change from the original plot, yes. But this consequently meant there would be no problem with walking far distances for the young, energetic girl. 

No problem walking would cause no need for a walking stick, equating to no Prince Justin, otherwise known as Turnip-head. He was a necessary character for Sophie to encounter; him saving the main cast in end and effectively ending the war with his return back to his former human self.

After much thought and brooding, you had finally come up with the perfect solution. 

Faking a sprained ankle.

Or that’s what you had planned, before you had actually conveniently tripped over a rock, and in the process effectively sprained your ankle, for real. And while you tried to figure out whether it was karma, for planning to trick your friend, or the universe making sure that the story stayed somewhat in line with the original- or maybe just pure bad luck and stupidity on your part- Sophie had ventured out further into the field to try and find you a walking stick. 

The call of your name broke you out of your train of thought. Looking up, you saw Sophie bounding towards you from afar.

“(Y/N)!” She ran up to you with a beaming smile. She had a hand to her back, hiding what you supposed was the cane that Prince Justin had found for her. “Guess what I found?”

“A scarecrow?” you instead guessed, looking to the figure following her from behind as she helped you up from the ground.

Your eyes pointed to behind, where Turnip-head, or Prince Justin, neared the two of you. 

She turned her head, taking a glance behind her shoulder before letting out a tired sigh. 

“I pulled him out of a bush, and now I can’t seem to get rid of him.” She shook her head at the scarecrow. “But he did help me find this for you.”

Holding up a familiar looking cane, she placed it in your left hand for you to lean on. You gave her a thankful nod in return before turning your attention to the figure behind her.

“Let’s see. Does this guy have a name?” you gave the scarecrow a once-over, tapping a finger on your chin in thought. 

“I called him Turnip-head when I saw first saw him.” Sophie answered.

“Hmm,” you responded, shaking your head. 

Although the prince couldn’t speak in his current form, you doubted that he would enjoy being called Turnip-head, especially by his “true love”.

“He looks more like a Justin, don’t you think?”

Sophie looked at you with very confused look.

“Umm, sure?” she agreed questioningly. 

“Justin, it is then!” you clapped your hands with a smile.

The straw-filled figure bounced up and down with his pole, seemingly ecstatic at the sound of his real name.

Maybe after all this was over, and if you hadn’t returned to back to your own world, you could ask the prince for a job in his kingdom. You had gotten Sophie to not call him Turnip-head after all. He owed you one.

“You don’t think he’s going to keep following us though, do you?” Sophie whispered in your ear, looking a bit warily at the happily bouncing scarecrow. Clearing her throat loudly, she grabbed the scarecrow’s attention. “Maybe you could run off and find us a place to stay?” 

And once the scarecrow was out of earshot, she quickly tugged you in the opposite direction.

“Let’s go, before it comes back!”

“What do you hate Justin so much? He’s been nothing but nice to us, Sophie. He even helped you find the cane.”

“His head looks like a turnip! I’ve always hated turnips, ever since I was little!”

“You and turnips,” you sighed, shaking your head at her. “I’ll never understand your feud with them.”

About to argue about how horrid turnips were, Sophie’s words were effectively cut-off by a sudden loudcreaking of metal in the distance.

The both of you turned your head towards the sound; Sophie gasping in horror, while you couldn’t help but smile.

Right on schedule! Thank you, Turnip-head- I mean, Prince Justin.

“See! I told you I didn’t have a good feeling about Turnip-head!” Sophie yelled, as the castle inched closer.

“Hey, you asked him to find somewhere for us to stay. And Justin delivered!” you shouted back. “Besides, it’s perfect timing! Let’s go in!”

Sophie looked at you, clearly at a loss of words from your suggestion.

“Are you out of your mind?” she argued. “That’s the wizard, Howl’s, castle! We can’t go in there!”

You pointed to your swollen ankle with a sheepish smile. 

“My ankle,” you whined, pairing it with a pout to look even more helpless and make her take pity on you.

It also worked in your favor that the nearest town would be too far to walk on with a sprain. And knowing the girl wouldn’t want you to sprain your ankle any further, you both knew going into the castle was your only option- other than getting eaten alive out in the wastelands.

Sophie let out a heavy sigh, her fingers massaging her forehead from the sudden headache. “Fine. But I’m going to sacrifice you to Howl if he’s in there.”

You smiled, nodding readily in agreement. And when Sophie turned away for a second, you threw a wink over a Prince Justin, giving him a thumbs up for his help.

Chapter Text

When I think a castle, this is not what I had pictured.”

Helping you walk up the steps of the entrance, Sophie looked around the dimly lit room with a grimace.

Layers of dirt and cinder covered the entirety of the wooden floor, while cobwebs were strewn on every possible surface of the ceiling. The smell of soot and burnt firewood thinly masked the unpleasant odor emitting from the direction of the kitchen.  The windows rattled every so often with the howling wind, increasing the eery feeling of the castle tenfold.

“I think we should leave while we still can,” she whispered to you while helping you settle into the wooden chair sitting in front of the fireplace.

Feigning not to notice the small eyes watching the two of you silently, you turned to  your friend with a cheeky grin.

“I think it’s homely.”

She didn’t share your humor, giving you a pointed look in return. As she opened her mouth to comment on your nonchalantness of the whole situation, she was interrupted by another voice in the room.

“I don’t envy you, lady. That is one bad curse.”

The girl visibly flinched, whipping her eyes around the room to find the source of the voice. You, however, tried not to laugh at your friend’s response, knowing who had actually spoke.

When she was still looking around the room a minute later, still unsuccessful in her search, you felt pity for the girl and tapped her arm, directing her attention to the voice’s owner.

“The fire spoke?!” Sophie’s eyes went round in disbelief.

Seeing eyes on the now talking fire, she crouched behind the chair you sat on, popping her head out just enough to see from over your shoulder.

“Is that Howl?” she squeaked.

“No, I’m an extremely powerful fire demon named Calcifer.” the fire proclaimed, growing in size for an added effect. Laughing to himself, he returned back to his normal state. “I just like to do that once in a while.”

“A fire demon?!” Sophie’s grip on your shoulders tightened with fear. “We should get out of here, (Y/N)!”

“Don’t worry, Sophie. Calcifer won’t hurt us.” you calmed down your frightened friend. Turning your attention back to the fire demon, you raised a brow recalling his original words. “What do you mean, curse? Sophie isn’t cursed.”

Had you missed something?

“Not your friend” he responded, shaking his head, “you.” When you gave him a blank stare, he returned the look with one of pity. “You didn’t even know you were cursed?”

“How?- Wha-,” you took a breath to calm down. “Wha-who cursed me?!”

“That, I do not know.”

“Then how do you know I’m cursed?”

He shrugged at your question. “I just do. It’s hidden well, but it’s still there.”

“Is there a way to break it?” Sophie asked. “You’re a fire demon- you should be able to break her curse, right?

With the news of her friend being cursed, she now had forgotten about being scared of the fire demon and now confronting him into breaking your cursed state.

“Maybe, maybe not.” Calcifer shrugged again. “I’ll make you a deal. If you can find a way to break the spell that’s on me, then I’ll break the spell that’s on you.”

Sophie gave him a narrowed look before questioning, “If you’re a demon, how do we know we can trust you? Do you promise to help her if we help you?”

“I don’t know, lady. Demons don’t make promises.”

“Then go find someone else.” Sophie crossed her arms. “Come on, (Y/N). Let’s go find someone who we can actually trust to help you.”

As you watched them bicker, you couldn’t help but think what went wrong for you to have been unknowingly cursed. 

Calcifer gave a huff. “Come on! You should feel sorry for me! That spell keeps me stuck in this castle, and Howl treats me like I’m his slave!” He continued his rant by starting to list all of the things he was forced to do by the elusive wizard.

Having a feeling he wasn’t going to stop anytime soon, you told your friend to take a rest on the nearby cot located in the adjacent small room. Thankfully, after some heavy convincing, and partly due to her frazzled state from the eventful day before, she eventually relented. It didn’t take long for her to slowly  nodded off to the fire demon’s ramblings.

And eventually, Calcifer came to a close on his monologue.

“-so if you can figure out how to break this thing I’m in with Howl, then you can break my spell. After that, I can easily break the spell that’s on you.”

If only it were that easy.

Sure you could definitely just shove Calcifer into Howl’s chest the minute he returned to the castle the next morning. But you had a feeling that in order to break the curse successfully, it wasn’t the “how” that was important but rather the “who”. And something was telling you that the “who” needed to be someone who was truly in love with Howl, and vice versa; i.e. the future Sophie.

“I have one condition, then.” you said after some hard thinking.

The fire demon huffed, exasperated. “What? I’m giving you a bargain by offering to break your curse! Others charge for that sort of thing you know?”

“Then I guess I’ll just go to someone else then.” you replied, nonchalantly. “Money’s not really an issue after all.” you trailed off. 

At the rustling sound of you attempting to stand up from your seat, Calcifer quickly spoke.

“Okay, okay.” he agreed, reluctantly. “What’s the condition?”

Shuffling back into a comfortable position in your chair, you clasped your hands together with a a smile.

“My condition is that you,” pointing at the fire demon for emphasis,  “do whatever I ask for. Within reason of course.”

“Fine, fine. Do whatever you want. It’s not like I don’t do that already.” He griped. Wanting you to agree to the deal before Sophie woke up and changed your mind again, he asked you once more. “Do we have a deal, then?”

You smiled.

“It’s a deal.”

Chapter Text

“Hey, who’s this lady?”

“Porthaven door.”

“And who’s that other lady sleeping in the cot? How’d they both get in here?”

Voices near the entrance awakened you; eyes blinking open slowly, bleary with sleep. Daylight lit up the dreary room of the castle, consequently showing the cobwebs, dust, and cluttered state of the room much more prominently compared to the night before.

A creeping pain up your neck turned your face into a grimace, causing you to bring your fingers up to massage out the knot. 

After breakfast, first priority is to search the castle for another cot.

As you languidly straightened out your limbs with a yawn, a voice to your left interrupted your morning stretch.

“What do you think you’re doing here lady?”

“Calcifer let us in.” you smiled with your eyes closed.

“I did not!” he argued. “They just wandered in here from the Wastes.”

“They’re from the Wastes?” Markl gave you a wary look before glancing behind you to Sophie, who was still sleeping amidst all the noise. “How do we know that they’re not witches?”

“Do you really think I’d let two witches in here? One maybe, but not two.”  

Any further questions were interrupted by another series of knocks on the door.

“It’s the Porthaven door, again.” you informed the boy, seeing as Calcifer was busy munching on the new log you had handed him.

It was hard to hold in a laugh when Markl’s eyes widened at Calcifer nodding in agreement. Even as the boy went to deal with the little girl who came to pick up a spell for her mother, he continued to look at you with a puzzled expression hidden under his disguise.

You merely grinned innocently before shifting your attention to the groan coming from the makeshift room/supply closet near the stairs.

“Good morning,” you warmly greeted your friend as she sat up in the cot with a dazed look.

Sophie only hummed in response, taking a second to stretch her arms. In the midst of fighting off the lingering drowsiness, her eyes slowly moved around the room before stopping on Markl in his blue cloak. Confusion entered her features before quickly turning into alarm.

Knowing what your friend was thinking, you spoke up. 

“Don’t worry, he’s not Howl.” You waited until the girl left the castle to add, “-his name is Markl, Howl’s apprentice.”

The young boy’s face snapped to you having overheard your conversation. “H-how do you know my name?!”

“Calcifer mentioned it, no?” you tried to play it off.

“No, I didn’t.” Calcifer quipped from the fireplace. “Maybe she is a witch, after all.”

Unlike Markl, the fire demon didn’t seem to affected by the possibility you were a witch, promptly returning back to chomping on his firewood hungrily.

“Calcifer, stop scaring the poor boy. I’m not a witch.” you assured Markl. “…or am I?” you added mysteriously, with a teasing grin. “Guess you’ll have to find out.”

But before he could have the chance to ask if you were being serious, another set of knocks pounded the door, making the young frazzled apprentice jump in surprise.

“It’s the Kingsbury door this time,” you whispered to him with a wink.

You didn’t think his eyes could get any bigger, only to be proven wrong when they did so after Markl looked to Calcifer for confirmation. You even had to remind to put his hood back on right, before he was about to pull open the door. 

As Markl talked to the Kingsbury official, you watched as Sophie gravitated towards the door, after having seen a glimpse of what looked like the royal city behind the uniformed man. 

When Markl returned from speaking with the man, he resumed his curious look on you, choosing to stand a bit farther from where you were sitting than before. 

It wasn’t until he heard Sophie’s giggles from the doorway, that his cautious eyes finally turned away from you.

"This is a magic house, isn’t it?” she asked with glee.

He watched as she played around with the door portal, groaning with each turn of the wheel. Ignoring his obvious frustration, she continued to open the door to each shade of the wheel, until only one remained.

“Where does the black one lead to?” she asked, curious. 

“Only Master Howl knows that.” Markl grumbled, rolling his eyes.

“It leads to the war zone, in case you were wondering.” you whispered to him on the side, Sophie wholly occupied with continuing to play around with the other colors on the dial. “Oh, don’t tell Howl I told you that.” you said, putting a finger to your lips in secret.

Watching his reaction to your words, you decided you had teased the poor boy enough for one day (anymore and you would scare him to death). Standing up from your chair with the help of your cane, you spotted a familiar looking basket in the kitchen.

"You hungry, Markl? How does bacon and eggs for breakfast sound?”

The quick change in attitude he showed at the mention of food reminded you of how much of a kid Markl still was. His face lit up when hearing your suggestion, as if he hadn’t been scared of you being a witch moments ago.

“Yeah, but we can’t use the fire. Master Howl’s not here.”

Waving off his worry, you asked Markl if he could bring over the basket of food while you hobbled over with the help of your cane to grab the large frying pan hanging on the wall. Whether it was because he thought you truly had magical powers, or so you could find out for yourself about Calcifer’s stubbornness, the young boy brought to you the basket.

“Calcifer only obeys Master Howl.” he informed you, handing over the pan and basket of food.

“That’s right, lady!” Calcifer griped. “I’m not taking any orders from you.”

Thanking him with an affectionate pat on the head, you assured him you would be good to your word. “Not to worry, sweetheart. I got this. Have I been wrong yet?” 

The boy turned red hearing the name you had given him but still sighed, for sure thinking the three of you were going to end up eating cheese and bread in the end.

“Calcifer~” you called out to the fired-up fire demon, “Could I please-”

“Nope. I don’t cook! I’m a scary and powerful fire demon! Bleh leh leh-” 

As he stuck his tongue out waving it haphazardly around, you couldn’t help but wonder if the fire demon’s flair for dramatics had been something he learned from Howl or if it came to him naturally.

Either way, they're really made for each other.

Within a few minutes of listening to his temper tantrum, you quickly realized he was nowhere close to being done yet. So wisely, you sat back down and used the time to grab the small bag you had brought with you from home. 

When you finally found what you had been looking for after a minute of searching, you sighed in relief. “I knew I remembered to pack it!” you said, mentally patting yourself for being smart.

Meanwhile, Calcifer was still going strong with his presentation of showing how much he was unwilling to cooperate. 

“-blah lah lah blah-”

“Okay, Calcifer. You can stop now, I completely understand.” you assured him, holding a hand up to stop his whining.

“Blalalala- wait, what?”

“I respect your decision.” you said, calmly.

Calcifer narrowed his eyes at you with suspicion, your admittance to defeat having been too easy.

“Right…”

You nodded. “I mean, there must be a reason only Howl can use your fire to cook.”

“That’s right!” he agreed, looking smug. 

“I don’t want to force you to do something you can’t do by yourself.”

“Mhmm-wait, what did you say?”

“I’m just saying, it makes sense. Your fire is only powerful through Howl, right?”

“That’s not-“

“But don’t worry, it’ll be our little secret!” you whispered to him, loudly. 

The sound of giggling was clearly from the back, Sophie and Markl obviously having overheard the conversation. 

You pursed your lip in an effort to force back the smile that was threatening to show, and continued to talk as fire demon seethe with anger. “Luckily for us, I have some matches!” You exclaimed, holding up the box of matches you brought from home.

“Hey, I’m powerful without Howl! I don’t need him to cook some measly bacon and eggs! I’ll show you a fire, lady!” His arms struggled to grasp the frying pan that was just out of his reach. “Gimme that frying pan!”

You shook your head, pulling the pan further away from him. “Oh no, Calcifer. It’s truly alright. I just need some wood, and I’ll have a fire up in no time-”

“Ha, I’m the only fire in this castle! You won’t be able to get anything cooked with a fire made from matches! Bring that frying pan over here.”

With a loud sigh, you made a show of putting the matches away and set the pan over his flame “Well, alright. If you insist.” you sighed again, acting as if you couldn’t win against him.

He grinned as he heard the bacon sizzling. “Ha, how’s that for a fire?”

“Amazing!” you gasped, dramatically. “I didn’t know what I was thinking comparing you to the likes of a match! There would’ve no way a match could do all of this!” you praised him.

“Hm, that’s exactly what I thought you’d say.” he boasted proudly.

As you continued to sing praises to him, his ego grew; as did his flame.

“Oh no.” you frowned, acting very sad. “I think the bacon is going to burn on the outside before it’s cooked all the way cause your fire is just too strong.”

Calcifer scoffed, pompously. “If you had used a match it probably would’ve burned. But you have me, and I can control how hot my fire is.” 

You watched with widened eyes, making sure to open your mouth in faux surprise, as he lowered his fire. “Wow! Are you sure proving me wrong.” you continued. “That level of control, just wow.” you shook your head in disbelief.

You hadn’t noticed that Markl had been watching the whole scene before him quietly in complete surprise. He had never seen anyone other than Master Howl being able to control Calcifer, let alone a random stranger like you. Even he had tried many times, only to be rejected by the stubborn fire demon. So it was nothing short of a surprise to him when he watched as Calcifer was being compliant to all your requests, while you in return fed the magical being number of praises and eggshells. 

“You think you could make some tea as well?” Sophie asked from behind, in the middle of trying to clean up some of the clutter to make more room at the table. “I think I saw a kettle somewhere.”

“I’ll get it.” Markl volunteered without being prompted; and he couldn’t hide the blush when you threw him a thankful smile. 

As you returned to cooing at Calcifer, who just ate it all up happily, you suddenly remembered who was going to be back home soon. You quickly turned to Sophie, trying to act calm.

“Sophie, you want to take over for me?” you said with an anxious smile.

 “I’ve got my hands full at the moment.” she frowned, too busy with trying to clear out the dining table. “Besides, I don’t think Calcifer will listen to me unless I use force.”

“But I really think you should-”

“Master Howl!” 

Chapter Text

“Master Howl!”

You froze up at the sound of the castle’s owner entering the door. A faint trace of gunpowder and ash entered into the air, mixing in with the smell of bacon and eggs cooking. 

“The King’s messengers were here- they said you have to report to the palace as both Pendragon and Jenkins.”

Trying not to panic as the sound of the wizard’s footsteps grew closer to where you were, your head remained down with your eyes focused on the frying pan. You could see Calcifer taking a glance at the new figure beside you for a brief moment, before looking away disinterestedly. 

“Calcifer,” Howl’s tired voice sounded surprised, “you’re being so obedient.”

“No, I’m just proving how wrong sh- wait a minute!” Calcifer gasped. “You tricked me!”

You shrugged your shoulders, ignoring the look of betrayal thrown your way from the fire demon. 

“I don’t know what you’re talking about?” you replied innocently. “I never forced you to do anything.”

“B-but, you…Still! You tricked me!” the fire demon whined.

A deep chuckle was heard from beside you.

“Even so, not just anyone can do that.”

When the wizard’s attention turned to you, all you could do was put every ounce of your attention into cooking the bacon and eggs; acting as if it was the most interesting thing in the world to you.

Outwardly, you were calm and composed- but internally, your mind was in a state of panic and chaos. What were you supposed to do? How were you supposed to act? Should you address how he had mistaken you for Sophie previously? 

You considered the thought of just ignoring him and acting like you couldn’t see him. However, your conscious happened to suddenly chime in to remind you of the fact that you had spent the night in the man’s own house without his permission. 

Perhaps you could just flee out the door in the next second? The story was progressing just fine without your interference, right? Sophie and Howl were bound to fall in love eventually, and who were you to play Cupid? Technically speaking, you weren’t supposed to be in the story at all, so you would be doing them a favor by leaving. 

“We meet again.” The baritone voice sounded from beside you, interrupting your inner tumultuous dialogue. “I had a feeling we would see each other again.”

Ultimately your conscious won the argument of not abandoning your dear friend, and also that Sophie would kill you if you were to do so, you sighed silently in your head. You braced yourself for a brief second, before looking up to meet his gaze. 

“Oh, uh…yes?” you responded, inwardly cringing at your choice of words. But once you finally met his eyes, a frown made its way onto your face.

It really isn’t fair him to be this handsome. 

You had to wonder if the man knew what his face did to people. But then again, you were talking about Howl here- the world’s biggest narcissist.

You couldn’t help yourself from taking in every feature of his face, and Howl looked nothing but pleased to see you do so. The grin on his lips soon turned into a smirk once he realized how long you had been staring at him for.

“Bacon’s burning.” Calcifer muttered, interrupting the interaction between the two of you.

“Oh thank God.” you whispered under your breath, tearing your eyes away from his sapphire ones. You probably might have ended up staring longer if it hadn’t been for Calcifer.

Snapping your attention back to the fire demon and the frying pan, you quickly moved the pan off of him.

You breathed a sigh of relief noting that only one of the pieces had begun to burn slightly; feeding it to the awaiting open mouth of the grumbling flame. 

“Markl, can you get the plates?” you asked over your shoulder, grasping the heavy frying pan handle with two hands. 

“Give that to me, sweetheart.” 

You could only comply with his words, as he brushed up against your side with no warning, enveloping your hands on with his before taking it from your grip. 

Was he trying to woo you? Cause it was working...

“Wait a second, you’re all gonna eat, while I do all the work?” Calcifer shouted from behind.

You looked back the fire with a look of pity. 

“I’ll go find some extra fresh logs for you later, alright?” you offered the disgruntled fire demon, before making your way over to the table with the others.

_____________

“So, what brings you two beautiful ladies to my castle?”

Sophie’s eyes widened, still a bit timid in front of the wizard, before looking to you hoping you’d answer instead. But you hadn’t even heard the question, too occupied with watching Markl devour his meal in fascination. 

When you felt an elbow to your side, you looked at your friend with a confused look. Sophie responded by pointing her head repeatedly to the wizard across the table, giving you a panicked look.

“(Y/N), why don’t you explain why we’re here?”

“Oh, I sprained my ankle and Calcifer let us in for the night.” You explained as you cut into a piece of bacon.

“Are you in any pain still?” Howl asked a bit concerned. 

You waved off his worry. “It doesn’t hurt anymore-“

Wait. 

Sophie needed to stay at the castle in order for her and Howl to fall in love, but she would definitely want to leave right after breakfast if she knew your ankle was completely healed now.

“-but still far from painless.” you finished with a frown. “I actually think it’ll be a while until it’s completely healed.”

“You were walking just fi-“

“Would it be too much to ask to stay for a while longer? Just until my ankle’s fully healed, of course.” you quickly interrupted your friend, giving the wizard a hopeful look. 

“(Y/N)!” Sophie exclaimed from beside you with a piercing glare.

You’ll thank me later for this.

“We wouldn’t take advantage of your hospitality, though. We can do the cooking and cleaning during our stay here.” you proposed gladly, trying to ignore the glaring daggers from the woman next to you.

Howl smirked in response to your proposal. “What makes you think I need a cook and cleaning lady?”

You deadpanned at what you hoped to be him joking. “I don’t mean to be rude, but have you seen the place?” you gestured to the castle’s interior. “You can’t look at this place and tell me you’re not affected by it. Not to mention, there’s a child living here.” you pointed out. “Look at the poor boy eating like he hasn’t had food in days. This is no place to raise a child in.”

You narrowly missed the elbow jutted at your side by your friend who had been first, completely blindsided by you, and second, now insulting the castle of the powerful wizard while eating breakfast in the said castle.

“Sophie agrees with me- right, Sophie?” 

“Yes. Please. I insist.” Sophie smiled tightly, gritting her teeth. She then turned to you with a big smile, that kind of freaked you out. “But since my dear friend has trouble walking at all, I don’t think she should do anything that requires movement.”

“Wait, what?” you were suddenly confused.

“Your friend is right.” Howl agreed. “It would be best to stay away from any physical activities in the interest of your ankle. I am the need of an assistant anyways to sort out my affairs while I’m away from the castle.”

“You do?” Markl asked with a mouth full of bacon.

“Perfect!” Sophie clapped her hands. “It’s settled then. I will do the cleaning and (Y/N) here will be your personal assistant.”

Maybe Howl didn’t need his curse broken. He seemed to be doing just fine. Best if you and Sophie just left after breakfast. Or maybe just you, Sophie was a big girl. She could decide for herself what to do. 

“You know, now that I think about it, I think my ankle is feeling much better-“ 

Your confession was drowned out by the sound of Howl pushing back his chair, standing up with his plate in hand.

“Welcome to the castle, ladies.” he smiled, eyes lingering on you for a second longer. “I’m afraid I have things to take care of so excuse me, my friends. Please, continue your meals.” 

Walking over to Calcifer, he dropped the remainder of food on his plate into the fire demon’s open wide mouth before giving out instructions to move the castle and heading upstairs for his bath.

When you looked back at Sophie with a questioning look, she merely returned the same innocent smile you had given her moments before.

Chapter Text

Once the after-breakfast tea in your hands started to taste more like dust than the tea itself, you knew Sophie had finally begun her cleaning rampage of the castle. And lest you wanted to be swept up into the growing pile of miscellaneous items on the floor, you quickly followed Markl’s lead- grabbing what you deemed important and heading towards the door.

But between Sophie’s loud complaining and the noises coming from outside the open castle door, you hadn’t registered the sound of footsteps descending down the staircase.

“And where might my beautiful new assistant be heading off to this time?” When you paused to turn around- your first mistake- you saw Howl leaning against the edge of the staircase sporting a lopsided grin. “I do hope she’s not trying to run away from me again.”

Seeing him still in his disheveled state from earlier, you raised a brow. “Weren’t you going to take a bath?” you asked, instead of ignoring him and continuing towards the door.

You missed the brief glint of mischievousness in his eyes. “There’s something I forgot to bring with me upstairs.” he responded nonchalantly, pushing himself off the railing.

“I see, well I’m off then-!!”  Your sentence was cut short in surprise, finding yourself suddenly being lifted off your feet. Your hands quickly clasped each other around the back of Howl’s neck in fear of being accidentally dropped. “Howl, put me dow-“

“It’d be best for my beautiful assistant to be off her feet in the interest of her ankle.”

With his smug face so close to yours, you were so very tempted to push it away if your hands weren't already occupied with holding onto each other for dear life.

You rolled your eyes with a retort. “Unless you plan to carry me around everywhere I go, I suggest you put me down.”

“That’s good to hear then,” he laughed whilst turning around back in the direction of the stairs.

“Wait,” you tried to argue, your feet lightly kicking in the air, “I wasn’t being serious!” Spotting Sophie walking back into the kitchen, you cried to your dear friend for help. “Sophie! Help me!”

The girl just waved you off, not even bothering to give you a glance; currently being too occupied with creating somewhat of a dust storm in the kitchen area.

“Stop Howl, I want to go out not up!”

______________

Plopping you down onto a massive bed, Howl only gave you the words, “I’ll be back”, and disappeared behind the door leading back to the hallway.

Looking around the somehow familiar room, you soon realized the wizard had left you in his own bedroom.

The walls were cluttered with a variety of magical items and papers, extending to the surrounding floor. Toys and trinkets of various sizes were scattered throughout the room, giving the room a child-like touch. The only places that weren’t as cluttered were the bed and small area on the floor leading from the door to the bed.

Though the reasonable choice was to get off his bed and sneak back downstairs while the wizard was gone, your body decided to forego the logic and instead burrow under what was his soft, plush comforter.

You had to wonder if the mattress was laced with magic as well, like the rest of the castle was. It had to be by far the most comfiest, soft, plush bed you had ever laid on top of.

Maybe you could take a quick power nap and leave before he gets back.

But you had soon lost track of time, already slowly drifting off to sleep when Howl walked back into the room- who was looking highly amused upon seeing only your head poking out from under his covers.

“I would tell you to make yourself at home, but it seems like there’s no need to.” he chuckled as he watched you only snuggle deeper under the covers as a response.

Fighting the drowsiness off your drooping eyes, you properly looked at him and noticed his clean state. His clothes were no longer crinkled, hair styled to perfection and without a single strand out of place. There was no trace of fatigue or dark circles found on his face, only immaculate smooth skin glowing back at you. You wondered how all of it was possible, when you knew what his bathroom looked like before Sophie was to clean it.

Which reminded you to tell Sophie to avoid cleaning Howl’s bathroom when you went back downstairs. You heavily doubted that foregoing the experience of mopey, green goop Howl would prevent Sophie and Howl from falling in love, and it was frankly something you could go without ever seeing as well.

“Leaving again already?” you guessed by the look of his attire. “You really should rest for a bit, Howl.” you muttered sleepily.

“Is that an invitation to join you in bed?” he asked with a waggle of his brow, walking closer to your side of the bed. Despite your sleepy state, you managed to gather enough energy to throw a pointed look up at him, garnering a laugh from him. “As tempted as I am to take the offer,” you rolled your eyes at his suggestive words, “I do have to leave.”

“That’s too bad.” you replied, sarcastically. And using what little energy you had before succumbing to sleep completely, you nodded and bid him goodbye with a slight wave of your hand from under the blanket. “You should head downstairs anyways, Calcifer should be whining about being smothered to death by Sophie right about now.”

Once Howl realized you had actually fallen asleep after a few moments of silence- not caring to explain what you had meant- his eyes took the opportunity to carefully trace your features. In your sleep, a small frown formed on your lips as if you were aware he was staring at you. He reached out to push back the few strands of hair covering your face and placed a gentle kiss on your forehead, noting with a grin how your frown disappeared soon after the action.

___________

When you woke up again, you realized you had somehow slept until noon. Just in time to help out with lunch. You would’ve helped with putting up the laundry too, if you hadn’t been scolded for hobbling around with your sprained ankle. One of Sophie’s narrowed gazes was all it took for you to give up and got sit down next to Calcifer.

Thankfully Calcifer didn’t put up much of fight like in the morning, instead bragging about how Sophie called him a “first-class fire demon” and how she liked his spark. You made a mental note to remember that he responded well to praise the next time he was being fussy. But then again, when was he ever not?

With the leftover bread and bacon from earlier, you decided on making sandwiches. Cutting the bacon into thinly sliced pieces, they crisped up nicely on the frying pan, and the sliced pieces of bread were briefly toasted until they turned a warm golden color on both sides. With the kitchen clean and spotless, you were able to find tomatoes to slice and add in as well. You also made sure to throw the occasional praise to the resident fire demon every so often to keep him in his good mood. You didn't want to chance him purposely burning the bacon or curse it.

You were happy to see Prince Justin again outside, relieved he was able to find his way to the castle alright. He seemed to return the sentiment too, immediately jumping up and down on his pole when you greeted him with his name.

“Justin?” Markl asked, munching on his sandwich next to you. “I thought his name was Turniphead?”

You gave Sophie a look, to which she feigned ignorance and commented on how delicious the sandwich you had made was. Justin could be seen behind her, holding up one end of the drying clothesline.

Poor Prince Justin. It wasn't his fault his head looked like a turnip.

“Do you think he’s some kind of demon?" Markl asked again, finishing the last bite of his food. "Calcifer doesn’t seem to mind him at all.”

“That or he could be the lost prince of a neighboring kingdom that was cursed, and can only return back to human with a kiss from his true love.” you suggested, watching as the child frowned at the realization he already ate everything. Markl turned to look at you strangely, which you shrugged off while handing off the untouched half of your sandwich to him.

You watched with a smile as the boy happily took a bite out of his new sandwich- a slight pang when you realized he probably couldn't eat like this when his master was gone. Maybe you would teach Howl the wonders of meal prep when he came back, just for Markl.

“It’s beautiful isn’t it?” Sophie suddenly sighed from beside, turning your attention to the view of the lake. “I never imagined seeing this kind of thing back home, you know?”

You nodded, humming in agreement.

It was beautiful. The mountains in the far back connecting to the lake and the endless green fields. The gentle sound of the waves and the breeze creating a peaceful harmony in the air. It really was a sight to behold, giving you a chance to breathe from the worries of how the original storyline was being changed because of your interference and everything else.

You really would’ve been at complete peace if not for Sophie’s next words.

“And I feel like the waves are washing away all the stress from having cleaned Howl’s bathroom.”

Chapter Text

Knowing it was now futile to try and stop Howl’s meltdown from occurring, you put your remaining energy into something useful and decided to make dinner. Purposely making extra for Howl when he came back, on the slight chance that having food in him would somehow lessen his dramatics in the future- and put some sense into him.

Sophie and Markl had retired to bed soon after dinner, leaving you to spark a conversation with the only other awake in the castle. And though he remained silent when asked about a certain topic of yours, others the resident fire demon had no qualms chattering your ears off about. 

“Well, first thing would be to get out of this place.”

“And then? What’s next on the list for the Great Fire Demon Calcifer once he’s free?” Expecting another lengthy response, you were surprised to see the fire demon with such a pensive expression. 

“I-I never thought that far...” he replied after a pause. “...I always thought that once I leave this hellhole, I’d figure out what to do, you know?” A moment passed before he spoke again, this time with a much lighter tone. “All I know is that I’m never coming back to this castle, that’s for sure!”

A teasing smile formed on your lips at his certainty. “Are you sure? I feel like you would miss us too much to leave in the first place.”

The fire demon gasped in horror. 

“I would never! Never would I willingly come back to this place unless it was to burn down everything down in front of Howl’s eyes.”

“Mhmm,” you hummed with a knowing grin, choosing not to argue with the fire demon for now.

With the help of Calcifer’s endless jabbering, eventually the talk turned into another one of his rants about the unfair working conditions for- and in the exact words he used- a “poor fire demon” such as himself. But apart from the noisy fire demon, it seemed as the castle itself had fallen into a slumber, calm and serene with its walls bathed in a golden warmth emitting from the fireplace. 

As the night grew, the occasional noise or nod of agreement with his words became more lethargic by the hour. It wasn’t long until your drooping eyes eventually closed shut, joining the rest of the castle into a peaceful sleep. 

_________________________

The whirl of the door dial broke the stillness of the castle, the entrance opening for the master of the castle himself. 

His feet trudged to the front of the fire place, feathers covered in the debris from the aftermath of bombs dropped on civilian homes. He immediately dropped down into the nearby chair in exhaustion. A small groan was heard as feet were propped up onto the edge of the fireplace.

“You okay? You smell terrible.” Calcifer grimaced, worried about the state of the wizard. A strong smell of ash and soot wafted into the room, growing stronger within the confined castle walls. “You shouldn’t keep flying around like that- soon you won’t be able to turn back into a human.”

The wizard could only groan. Feathered wings seemingly disappeared back into his grand coat, sharp claws back into shoes that had now lost their shine. His transformation ended with a heavy sigh, sinking further down into his chair. A brief conversation of the ongoing war was made before the castle returned back to silence.

The figure beside him went unnoticed- whether due to his current state or because he hadn’t sensed any threat- until a soft breathing was heard through the quietness. Head lazily turned to the right, his tired eyes landed on the source of the noise.

You were curled up in the wooden chair, head in a position that would most likely result in stiffness in your neck the following morning. 

His gaze lingered on you for some time, before noticing the plate of food on the fireplace in the corner of his eye. With the realization that the plate was meant for him, his attention returned to you once more. Calcifer observed the two of you in front of him while munching on his log, before looking away disinterestedly. 

Soft light now streamed through the windows as dawn approached, birds soon to chirp to the early morning.

His eyes glazed over trying to recognize the familiarity he felt in the moment, but the memory refused to come within grasp. He searched through the dark expanse of his mind, only to draw a blank. 

“I’m tired. Make some hot water for my bath.”

“Again?” Calcifer whined, waving what was left of his half-eaten log around in the air in annoyance.

The visibly displeased fire demon was ignored as Howl stood up, bringing his arms out of his coat to carry you. With a flick of his finger, the chair you had been sleeping in now was transformed into a well-sized cot. And with another, you were wrapped cozily in a blanket that had appeared out of nowhere and then tucked into the cot. 

Satisfied with his work before him, Howl quickly disappeared up the stairs- a warm plate in his hands.

Chapter Text

“I hate potatoes.”

“Nobody hates potatoes, Markl.” 

You were really starting to get worried that he was taking after Howl and his dramatics. “How many times have you even had potatoes to have taken such a disliking to them?”

“...Once,” he frowned, “b-but I just need to have it once to know I don't like something! If it’s bad peeled, it’s gonna be bad cooked anyways.”

You stopped looking at the fish for a second, staring at the boy in front of you. “Markl, did you just eat the potato raw?”

“Well, yeah. Master Howl never has time anymore to make food so I did it myself. I washed it, peeled it, and ate it. It was bleh.”

You shook your head, wondering how this poor boy survived under the care of the irresponsible man-child of a wizard that he called “Master”. Resuming your inspection of the fresh-caught fish, your eyes traveled down to see a huge blue fish displayed on the ground, with its eyes seemingly staring into your soul. Grimacing, you slowly backed away, inching towards Markl.

“Umm, I’ll take this one.” you quickly said, pointing to one of the fish you had been looking at earlier. 

“Great choice, ma'am,” the seller complimented as he took the coins from Markl, before moving to start wrapping the said fish for you.

A sudden commotion from behind, paired with an increasingly strong burning smell grabbed the attention of everyone at the market. Even the fish seller stopped midway in his wrapping, hurrying out of his stall to get closer to the harbor to watch what was going on. 

“But my fish,” you frowned, just staring at the half-wrapped fish with Markl. You looked down at the child and shrugged, before pushing up your sleeves to finish the wrapping. You had already paid for it anyways.

“Can we go look too?” Markl asked, as you placed the wrapped fish in the basket and took the basket from his hands.

“I have a feeling Sophie’s going to need our help back home right about now.” you frowned, remembering what was soon to come. “Also remember, we run away from bombs, not towards them, Markl.”

“Huh?” he replied confused, as you led the way back home with the basket in one hand and Markl’s hand in the other.

When the two of you had reached the castle door, a sudden series of explosions sounded from the harbor making you both jump. 

“Are those-”

“Yup.”

“How did you-”

You merely shrug, opening the door before it started raining flyers on the streets.

“Are you sure you’re not a witch?” Markl asked, suspiciously squinting his eyes at you.

“Do you want me to be?” you laughed, placing the basket near the sink to prepare later. “Sophie?” you called out, wondering what your friend was doing.

“Here!” she called out, from somewhere. A few seconds later, she finally popped out from behind the curtain in the makeshift bedroom. “Just organizing some stuff. Oh,” she noticed the basket, “you should have woken me up. I could have gone too.”

You shook your head, placing a hand on her shoulder for support. “No, no. You need your energy. There’s a greater evil coming upon us soon.” 

And as if right on time, a shriek pierced through the air as the castle shook in fright. Crying sounds accompanied by bumping into the wall noises sounded from above, quickly travelling to the stairwell.

“Sophie, you-you sabotaged me!” Howl shouted, glaring at the young girl. “Look!” And running to her, with no sense of personal space, butted his head to her face in anger. “It’s hideous!” he cried, with nothing but a towel on his waist.

Orange, orange, orange. Keep your eyes on the hair, (Y/N). Do not go any lower.

You definitely were not watching the drops of water cascading down his smooth chest and back, until the droplets disappeared behind the towel. And you definitely did not notice how the towel was barely hanging on to the man’s waist due to his wild movements. Hair. You were only paying attention to his hair. Nothing else.

“Now I’m repulsive. I can’t live like this.” he whined, sagging into the chair behind him.

Black. Now the color was bla- wow, that towel deserved an award for how it stayed on him without falling off. And oh look, there’s his back. His very wide shoulders on full display- no. Focus, (Y/N). Stop ogling.

“I give up. I see no point in living, if I can’t be beautiful.”

Coming to your senses, you looked in disgust as the man sat slouched over, moping. And having a tantrum over what? His hair. 

A child- he was a literal man-child.

Sophie and Markl looked in fear at the shadows lurking along the walls that were growing by the second, encasing the castle in darkness. Calcifer tried to save his logs from the slime that was quickly getting everywhere. Howl didn’t listen, what a surprise, continuing his murmuring- his pale skin turning increasingly green and slimy. You didn’t even want to know what the slime was made up of.

“Alright, that’s enough for today.” Rolling your eyes at the man’s childish meltdown, you stopped Sophie just in time from touching the slime on Howl’s back. “I’ll take of him, don't you worry.” you ensured her.

Suddenly grabbing the back of the chair, you pulled Howl’s weight towards the door. The only sound heard in the castle now was the screeching sound of the wooden chair being dragged across the floor.

The rest of the group remained in their positions, Calcifer really having no choice though, as you turned the dial to the purple color.

“(Y/N), what are you doing?” the fire demon asked, hesitantly. Half curious, half afraid for Howl’s well-being.

You looked up from tugging on the chair, to give him a thin smile.

“It’s raining.” 

“So?”

“Well, I thought since Howl didn’t like the bath, maybe a shower would be more to his liking.” And with a smile, you opened the door to face the pouring rain outside. “Markl honey, can you help me with the umbrella?”

The boy hurried to the door, grabbing the propped up umbrella and going ahead outside. Opening it, he held it up to make sure the two of you were shielded from the rain. Sophie and Calcifer stared from the doorway, as you pulled Howl out of the castle and into the pouring rain.

“She’s not going to kill him outside, is she?” Calcifer whispered to Sophie, while munching on a log.

“No. At least, not in front of Markl.” Sophie responded thoughtfully.

Once fully under the rain, Markl whispered to you from under the umbrella.  “Is he dead?”

“No, he’s just throwing a tantrum.” you responded, watching the green slime wash off his back from the rain. “Are you sure he doesn’t have a spell or something like your cloak, that makes him look older but he’s actually a child. Because I could believe that.”

Markl laughed at your theory. “No, I don’t think so.”

Sudden rustling in the grass made you look over to see Prince Justin hopping over with another umbrella in hand- honestly having no clue where he kept getting his things from- using it to cover Sophie who was coming out of the castle as well.

“Oh, thank you Turnip- Justin.” Sophie smiled, correcting herself.

Hehe, I did that, Justin. You can thank me later by giving me a high-paying, low work job in the palace after all of this is over.

“Justin, are you okay to be out in the rain like this? Can a scarecrow get a cold?” you asked when the two came near. He just bounced up and down a few times, so you assumed it meant he was okay.

Turning your attention back on the moping wizard, you thankfully saw that most of the slime was washing off his body with the rain. 

“Should we just throw him in the lake, and check on him tomorrow?” you whispered to Sophie. She slapped your arm at your suggestion with a forced frown that soon turned into a giggle. “Okay, next time then.” you laugh.

When Sophie and Markl soon left to clean up the mess Howl had made by the fireplace and to start a bath for him, you were tasked to drag him back in once he finished his “shower”. 

The rain felt nice on your face and for the small headache that was forming, once you had decided to forego the umbrella, and it was peaceful with Howl still unresponsive and spacing out. 

Laughter. A child’s laughter. Your headache grew a bit more painful.

“Markl, are you back to play in the rain?” you laughed, turning around expecting to see the boy in a raincoat. But there was no one. 

Another laughter. Two distinct ones this time. You rubbed your temples in an effort to relieve the continually growing headache.

“Markl? Sophie?” you called out, hoping they were playing a trick on you.

But there was still no one. 

“(Y/N).” A child’s voice whispered in your ear.

You whipped around to see only rain and the lake. Now you were getting paranoid. And your headache was feeling like a migraine now. 

Is this place haunted?

“(Y/N).” The same voice sounded from beside you. But only Howl was there, unresponsive as ever still.

With the headache worsening, and hearing children voices in the rain not being a normal occurrence, you quickly grabbed the back of the chair, pulling Howl back into the castle with haste. 

Just as you stepped foot in the castle, the voices and pain stopped. 

Maybe it was the rain that was causing the headache? But the voices? 

“-him up the stairs.” Sophie waved her hand in front of your face to grab your attention. “(Y/N)? I said I need help taking him up the stairs.”

Though still perturbed, you grabbed ahold of one side of Howl, lugging him up the stairs with Sophie’s help. A sudden wet plop sound from behind made Sophie turn her head to see a small wet towel on the floor, making her suddenly lock eyes with the ceiling.

“(Y/N), don’t look down.” she warned, keeping her eyes above and ahead. 

“Hmm, what?” you asked, moving your eyes down to look at what she was talking about. 

Your eyes wandered around until they landed on something that took you a second to realize what you were staring at. Your eyes shot up to the ceiling, face burning red.

“You looked didn’t you?” Sophie laughed.