Hello, guys!

Well, after watching the movie and reading all three books, I decided to go ahead and try to write a story of my own. Now it follows the Myazaki movie, but I'm gonna try and incorporate a couple of characters and scenarios from the book, as well as a few original characters.

The title itself is a work in progress: for now I'm calling it Cirque du Ombres, which means "Circus of Shadows" in French. If anyone has any better ideas for a title, or if I misspelled the title (I'm not French, myself), feel free to send me a message. Yes, there will be a circus in this story, but I'll let you guys read that when I get those chapters up.

Also, to those who've read my other stories: I know I haven't updated them in a long time, but I promise I will get to them. I just want to get this one published while it's still fresh in my mind.

Well, wish me luck!

Prologue

It was two o'clock in the morning that September night, and the streets of Kingsbury were silent and still. The only noises that could be heard were the occasional caterwauling of feral cats in the local alleys, and sometimes the footsteps of soldiers making their rounds to ensure that no one was out past curfew. Many of the streetlights had gone out hours ago, leaving only the light of the nearly-full moon to illuminate the night. But it wouldn't be that way for long, as the soldiers observed: clouds were beginning to hide most of the stars and would eventually cover the moon as well, plunging the city into total darkness. Even the guards patrolling the Royal Palace were lighting lanterns for better visibility. Though the war had been over for only a few months, everyone knew better than to let their guard down for even a moment. People all over Ingary became more and more wary as the nights started growing longer. They knew that the darkest part of the night was also the most ideal time – and the most dangerous – for disaster.

But, unfortunately, not everyone was as cautious…

Down near the deepest part of Kingsbury was an alehouse, echoing with songs, laughter, and shouts from drunken customers demanding more ale. Not many people cared to live in that part of town, so no one complained about the noise, and the only soldiers who ever showed up were old war veterans who came to drink and tell tales of the glory and hardships from past wars. Some nights, the local wizards would come by for some merriment – and the occasional teasing gesture at one of the bar maids, who either responded with a coy giggle, or a slap across the face. Tonight was especially rowdy because a group of "working" girls decided to stop by and offer some of their own entertainment for these individuals, not only because they were considered war heroes, but for their own personal pleasure as well.

At around this time of night, two such girls came out through the tavern door laughing. One girl, who had her hair set in golden curls, was shouting out to someone behind her back: "Now, now, dearie, you've had enough fun for one night. But I'll be back tomorrow if you want an encore!" she winked and giggled at the unknown man as she and her companion turned right into the dimly-lit alley. After talking for a few minutes about how much money they made and what tomorrow would bring, the conversation began to quiet down as they continued to stroll further in.

Suddenly, the girl to her left placed her shawl over her crown of red hair and wrapped it tightly around herself, looking very nervous. "Maybe we should've stayed till morning, Beth," she whispered to her friend, "I don't like coming this way when it's so dark."

"Oh, Charlotte, don't be such a ninny!" the blonde girl retorted, "This is the same route we always take back to our homes. So we stayed longer that we normally do; I think it was well worth it." She dangled her little purse in front of her friend's face, jiggling it a little so that the sound of the coins echoed through the alley.

"Put that away!" Charlotte hissed fearfully, pushing Beth's arm down, "You never know who could be lurking in these shadows; there could be bandits, or killers, or…or even…"

"Aha, now I know what you're so worried about," Beth smirked at her, "you're worried about him, aren't you?"

"Who?"

"Don't play dumb; you're afraid of Howl, aren't you? The wizard who supposedly tears out the hearts of beautiful girls?" Beth said quite haughtily. She had heard all the gossip around town about the dashingly handsome young wizard who was famous all over the kingdom for stealing the hearts of every beautiful lady he managed to win over; of course the rumors made it sound like he literally tore their hearts out and actually ATE them. Some girls believed that he did this because he was actually over a hundred years old and needed the hearts of young girls to keep his youth. Others said that he did this out of anger because the girl did not please him in the end. There were other, nastier stories going around, but Beth didn't believe a word of them.

"Well, wouldn't you be, too?" Charlotte asked, "I mean, think about it: any minute now he could just step out onto the street, offering to take us home. Then, when you least expect it, he has you against the wall. A dagger or something in his hand, ready to come down and – "

"STOP IT!" Beth growled angrily, not because she was scared, "you're starting to sound ridiculous! Those are obviously just stories made up by a jilted lover to get back at the poor man. I swear; women nowadays don't understand the proper way to keep a man happy. Now as for me," her voice softened to a tone that merged sympathy with pleasure, "I could give him every pleasurable experience known to Man; he would have to be crazy to toss me out."

"And what if he tries to steal your heart?" Charlotte looked at her friend in both shock and exasperation.

"I'll just tell him outright, 'Darling, if you want my heart, it'll cost you double'."

Beth let out a round of hysterical laughter, while her friend just sighed in defeat, 'And you said I sounded ridiculous…' she thought.

A few minutes later the two women arrived at the house where Charlotte was staying. As she stepped over the threshold, she turned back to her friend. "Why don't you stay the night, Beth? You shouldn't be walking home alone at this hour."

"Lottie," Beth answered stubbornly, "I appreciate the thought, but I've been working these streets much longer than you have; I can take care of myself."

"I'm not saying you can't, but…I do worry about you. You're such a dear friend and it would break my heart if something happened."

"Oh, you darling girl," the friends embraced and kissed each other on the cheeks, "I'll be just fine, don't worry so much. Oh, I forgot –" She reached into her dress pocket and pulled out another purse, "Don't forget this; you'll need it to pay your rent. I'll meet you at the usual place tomorrow morning at ten o'clock."

Charlotte took the purse and nodded, "Alright then, be careful going home. Good night."

"Good night."

Closing and locking the door, Charlotte stood by the window and watched as Beth sauntered further down the alley, disappearing into the shadows. "Please…be very careful…"

Beth continued down the alley with no fear whatsoever. What she said to Charlotte was true: she had been living on the streets of Kingsbury since childhood and had learned to survive by her wits. There was no way in Heaven that any killer, thief, or wizard would dare mess with her. Smiling with pride, she kept walking, the light of the moon guiding her way until the clouds finally passed over it.

BANG!

The sudden noise made Beth stop dead in her tracks. She immediately grabbed the nearest stick she could find and turned around. "Who's there?" she called out. But the alley was still and quiet; not even mouse was stirring. As her eyes got accustomed to the darkness, she surveyed her surroundings carefully, ready to strike at any disturbance that came her way. It seemed like hours before Beth decided that it was only her imagination. She relaxed a bit, though still keeping a firm grip on the stick as she was about to continue on her way when…

BANG! CLATTER!

"Alright, show yourself!" As she once again readied herself for a fight, she suddenly heard what sounded like something moving towards her. She backed up against the nearby wall, which was shrouded in darkness, and raised her stick over her head to strike whatever it was. Just then, moonlight managed to peek out from behind the clouds, revealing and empty coffee can that had somehow been knocked off from the wall further back. It managed to roll its way in her direction after falling. Looking at it in confusion, Beth heard softer movement from that same direction. She glanced out of her hiding spot to see a mangy alley cat tottering along the opposite wall before disappearing over it.

Relieved, Beth put her arms down and sighed, leaning back against the wall. Then she burst out laughing as she put the whole thing together: the cat had obviously pushed the can off the wall to get it out of its way.

"Foolish Lottie," she giggled to herself, clearly ashamed of her actions, "Her nerves managed to get to my nerves…he he he…ACK!"

Just as the clouds overcame the moon again, a dark figure chose that moment to appear in front of Beth. It wrapped what felt like a hand around her throat, preventing her from screaming. Fighting her fears Beth attempted to raise the stick again, only to have another hand grasp her wrist tightly, forcing her to drop her weapon. She started gasping for air as the grip on her neck grew tighter. Her efforts to fight the thing off were fruitless: if this was a man, he was clearly very strong.

Eventually the lack of oxygen took its toll; she felt faint and weak, unable to stand or see as everything started swimming. As she stopped trying to fight, the figure guided her body to the ground, hovering over her as she finally lay down on the pavement. Beth could only watch in terror and silence as whatever it was appeared to raise an arm over its head. Before passing out from fear and suffocation, she suddenly thought of Charlotte and her own fears, and with one final effort she managed to whisper one single word before succumbing to the darkness:

"…Howl?..."