Chapter One: Wake Up

Through the dimming light, Calcifer was moving the castle slowly over the Wastes. Sophie, Howl, and Markl stared deeply into the reddened horizon. Sophie let out a small sigh, but suddenly she cut this off. Something had caught her sight.

"Howl, do you see that?"

"Hm? Where?" Her finger traced a dark figure on the ground.

"It looks like a person," she said, "or maybe two."

"Yeah I see. They look really young too. I hope they aren't planning to sleep out here!"

"Are they dead?" Markl said cautiously.

"I can't tell. But if not, we better go get them before..."

"Before they do die?" Howl nodded.

"Well then we must! They can't just die out here!" Sophie exclaimed running down to the door.

"Calcifer, stop the castle!" Calcifer stopped just in time to give Sophie a little push through the now open door. Howl and the eager young Markl jumped out after her. Howl pulled her up, but Markl was already running.

"Why are they sleeping out here?" Howl shrugged again. What they had found had been two teenage girls, sleeping. Both he and Sophie were carrying the girls.

"Damn it," Howl said blowing hair out of his face. The hair belonged to the girl in his arms. She had waist length blonde hair, and the wind was just strong enough to whip it in Howl's face. "Why'd I have to carry this one?"

"Because she's bigger and you're stronger than Sophie."

"Are they going to wake up?" Calcifer asked. They had set the girls down side-by-side, three days ago.

"They're not dead if that's what you mean."

"Howl, they need to leave soon. Even the Witch of the Wastes and Solomin's dog left."

"Dump a bucket of cold water on them, Markl." Markl ran off to the bathroom.

The girls were close enough that it would only take one bucket. With the bucket over their heads one of the girls snapped an eye open and rolled over. This was the long-haired one. The other did not move, until the water hit her. Somehow she jumped on the ceiling! She made a cat like hissing noise and sprouted a tail. Blondie was staring around the room with piercing green eyes. This faded to dull blue, then a calm, cool grey.

"Ow. Claws! CLAWS?" The girl on the ceiling fell, and landed gently on her feet, or paws, rather. Cat's paws to be precise. Her paws changed into hands and feet, but the tail remained.

"Where are we? Who are you?" She said sounding confused and nervous.

"Why were you girls sleeping in the Wastes?"

"Please, where are we?" She was shaking now. "Y-You're not with Solomin, are you?"

"No, I assure you we are not with Solomin." She stopped shaking.

"I'm very sorry, Sir," she said," if we caused you any trouble." Howl shook his head. "Oh! My name is Kurayami."

"And I'm Yoru. What's your name?"

"I'm Markl, this is Sophie, and that's Master Howl!"

"Markl!" Sophie snapped. "You forgot Calcifer." Calcifer glowed with pride.

"Sophie... what a curse."

"Excuse me?"

"Nothing, that's just quite a curse," Kurayami said slyly.

"I would say you have some spell on you too." She smirked.

"Why would you say that?"

"Because," Howl said, "you have a tail."

"Yeah, so what? I think that at least five-out-of-six of us here have spells on them."

"What?" Came the replies from everyone except Yoru.

"Now I'm positive of that." She stood and walked softly over to Sophie. Sophie glared at the girl and noticed her eyes were a dark purple. "We can try to help you."

"And how would you do that?"

"We're witches," Yoru said calmly. "The entire time you've been speaking, I've been trying to figure out how to break that curse of your's, Sophie."

"Did you figure it out yet, Yoru?" Howl said not believing her words.

"Yes, and thank you for addressing me by my name."

"Then will you do it?"

"On one condition."

"And what's that?" asked Sophie.

"You let us live here!" Kurayami exclaimed.

"WHAT?"

"I didn't think us moving in would make this family any weirder."

"It's not that. Why can we trust you? Why don't you just go home? We can pay you in gold."

"Home," Yoru sighed tears in her eyes. "Our home is no where. We live in the Wastes."

"We live in constant fear of being attacked. And if you don't want our help, then FINE! We're leaving, Yoru!" Kurayami stormed to the door and stepped out unknowing that they were moving.

"No! We want your help!" Sophie cried out.

"I-I'm sorry! Come back!"

"Fine," came Kurayami's voice from under the castle. She swung back up. "Thank God for claws."

"We would never think of leaving children in the Wastes," Howl said.

"We're not children. We can take care of ourselves," Kurayami growled. Yoru just sighed.

"You're so full of yourself sometimes, Kura."

"Shut the fuck up, Yoru."

Hope you liked it! Read and review please!