Disclaimer: I do not own Howl's Moving Castle or any of its characters.

A/N: Ha ha, well... I suddenly felt the urge to try my hand at something cute and fluffy :D I know this is supposed to be pre-Sophie and based off the movie, but I accidentally mentioned Ms. Angorian in there Dx Anyway, I have no idea how old "Markl" was, so I settled with around 8 or 9. Interestingly enough, the inspiration for this was "Super Bass" by Nicki Minaj, lol.

I

It had never occurred to Markl that Howl's bedroom was a sort of foreign land until he found himself scampering inside, shivering in the aftershocks of a horrid nightmare he had forgotten. Nonetheless, he was here. Though it was clustered with all sorts of nifty bric-a-brac and whirling mobiles; bearing more resemblance to a jewelry box instead of an actual bedroom, it was also incredibly lonesome. Like a child had left their playthings and never returned. Howl lay in the vast bed, snoozing supine and unmoving even as the door creaked behind Markl who tip-toed to where Howl's limp hand and gave it yank.

"Nnn... Five... Tucksitoodles...t-to go..." Howl's muffled voice uttered. What's a tucksitoodle? Markl wondered as Howl flopped onto his stomach with a blissful sigh. He had been dreaming of stacking blocks upon blocks of tucksitoodles in order to claim his Rapunzel: an incredibly ecstatic, love struck Ms. Angorian caged inside a silver clock tower laden with chorusing sparrows and yellow, flapping butterflies. Truly a dream only Howl would concoct.

Markl shook the bed slightly. "Howl," he whispered. "Howl, wake up, you lazy heart-muncher!" He tugged Howl's long ruby earring impatiently, finally able to wake his mentor. As he had expected, Howl was the type who greatly valued a full night's sleep, sans interruptions.

"And why the pressing need to wake me at this hour?" Howl griped, his hand fumbling over to the stack of books in search of his alarm clock, but knocking a few peacock feathers out of his way and disturbing several spiders instead. Right in the midst of sweeping Ms. Angorian away from her luxurious prison, for goodness' sake! His normally sleek, impeccable hair fanned into wisps that flowed down the back of his threadbare nightgown. Markl suddenly felt ashamed that he allowed his trivialities to becomea disturbance. I didn't plan anything up till this point!

Howl heaved himself into a seated position. With a soft click from the tassel above, the room was teeming with light again and Markl's teary cheeks were in clear view. Howl's expression softened. "Had a nightmare, did you?"

Markl nodded as Howl reached to swipe a thumb over his smudged cheeks. "Have any idea what it was about?"

"I think it was about that green slime you summoned the other day," Markl said with a forced smile. He hiccupped. It was terribly embarrassing to be reduced to a trembling child in place of the spunky wizard's apprentice Howl was used to. Feeling the awkward vibe between them, Howl waved it away with the coverlet.

"C'mon. I'll teach you a charm to dispel unpleasant dreams tomorrow. Until then you sleep with me." A welcoming smile accompanied his invitation. Markl, for one, could only soundlessly accept the outstretched hand and scrambled up.

"T-there's such a thing?" Markl asked, sitting on a misshapen stuffed cow next to Howl. Now that he was comfortable and no longer alone in the dark, he was at ease. Howl's presence was so gentle at the moment.

"Mm, what? Oh! Yes potions for every bloody thing you need, practically," Howl said, taking a pillow from under his bed and plumping it for Markl. "Now get some rest. Young men like us need beauty sleep!" Markl rolled his eyes.

Snuggled between the silky emerald sheets with only his eyes and feathered hair peeping above, Markl nodded to Howl to shut out the lamp.

"Howl, do you think of me as...a decent apprentice?"

"Decent? I'd give you more credit that. I owe you for all those times you had to escape without meals and stay home to cater to customers!" He laughed.

"That didn't really answer my question." He wriggled himself until he was completely submerged in sheets to mumble a barely audible 'good night'. However, Howl had different ideas and fetched him out like a lobster.

"No, no! Don't leave it at that, tell me what you meant to say. It doesn't matter how foolish you think it is, I want to know!" Markl's blush deepened and he shook his head as if he were trying to fling away that rosy pink color. "J-just that... Well, if you saw me as your son, is all. Not that you would, it's just...a possibility. That's all."

Markl shifted his view to where his fingers were twiddling. That confession felt worse than any begging he ever had to do. The light flickered on once more.

"Son?" Howl's glassy eyes brimmed with curiosity. His blonde hair tumbled from back to shoulder as he got uncomfortably close to Markl. It was briefly quiet as Howl let it sink in, but not much later the nerve-wracking pause gave way to laughter. Markl could have died.

"I know it's ridiculous! That was why I wanted to leave it at good night, but you wouldn't listen!" Now he folded his arms and harrumphed defiantly.

"Of course it isn't," Howl said, recovering from his outburst. "Actually, I suppose I somewhat do consider you my son. Though I must say, it may solely be your age. Most apprentices are well into their teens. But you've been here for quite some time, so who's to say it's not genuine, parental love? Feeding you... Teaching you... Providing a home for you..." Howl counted the reasons off his fingers offhandedly.

Fool! Markl thought to himself. He knew it wasn't a good idea to ask, and look where it had led him! Howl didn't like to answer questions and if he did, he was never inclined to be straightforward in his responses.

The counting ceased and he heard the crinkling of linen sheets as Howl moved in and smoothed Markl's hair. The touch was affectionate. "Would you like to be my son, Markl?" Soft smile, deep gaze. "I wouldn't mind being your father. I'd love to, actually. You need someone to be there for you, don't you?"

When Markl didn't answer, Howl peered at him in the eye. Markl nodded, ashamed. Whether Howl was joking or not wasn't a concern; he was clearly being serious.

"You see, that wasn't so hard!" Howl exclaimed merrily. In one fluid motion he had Markl propped atop his lap, hands in the boy's downy fringes and connected forehead to forehead like a lovesick child.

Markl didn't know what to say. He just knew that he felt unbelievably overjoyed. He had a father now. Not bound by contract of course, and with still more experienced to be gained, but a father figure in his life nonetheless.

"So does that make Calcifer my older brother?" He laughed in attempt to fend off further mushiness. Howl slid a hand through Markl's hair affectionately. "A brother hundreds of years older than you. Don't you think he'd be the grandfather?" said Howl sleepily.

"Mm... I wonder if he can hear us at this hour," Markl mumbled. He rubbed his drooping eyelids. He was beginning to feel rather tired, and Howl's gentle playing with his mousey hair did nothing to help.

Howl only smiled as he let Markl to slide comfortably between the covers. As he settled down, he wrapped the boys up in his arms like a pearl within an oyster.

"Good night." A kiss to the forehead and a turn of his head, and Howl was finally nestled in bed, with no qualms about what had happened.

Although there was no heartbeat to lull him to sleep, Markl nuzzled his soft cheek against Howl warmly, hiccupping one last time. Howl chuckled, tightening his embrace. Together they drifted into the warm summer night.