I own my OCs - Howl's Moving Castle and its characters, the land of Ingary, etc are clearly NOT mine.

Enjoy!

Chapter 1: The Weary Traveler

Thunder rumbled across the rain-soaked, barren lands of the Waste. A small, hooded traveler braced themselves against the wind; the grand effort expended at protecting their body from the ballistic nature of the weather was laughable at this point. No shawl, umbrella, or outercoat would save their body from the unrelenting wind and rain out in the Waste. The terrible, charcoal clouds growled fiercely overhead as vibrant streaks of lightning lit up the sky.

The wind shifted abruptly and with such vigor, the traveler lost their balance as well as their shawl. "Damn it!" the traveler grunted into the wind, shaking their fist at the sky for good measure. A mistake, surely, as Mother Nature took it as a challenge and responded with a deafening clap of thunder that rattled the traveler's bones and drew out an audible scream.

Using the boulders and rocks for support, the traveler continued to negotiate the unkempt grass. The traveler continued, with no sense of direction; just the faintly burning hope of happening upon a dimly lit home to wait out the rest of the storm. Their body ached, knees sore and thighs quivering from exhaustion. Twenty-two miles walked today, the last five through this brutal weather. With each gust of wind, the traveler realized just how cold and tired their body was.

Another misstep paired with the ferocious wind sent the traveler crashing towards the earth. The abrupt decent resulted in a direct collision with a boulder; a faint crack and sharp pain erupted from the right side of the traveler's rib cage. A flood of curses flowed from the traveler's lips as they rolled away from the rock that assaulted them. This is it, the traveler conceded dramatically, I'm lost in the Waste – They'll discover me once this damn storm has past! Silly girl of Market Chipping, thinking she could leave her master with no planning or worldly experience. Oh, joy that will bring him….

Then, there was hope.

A light cut through the terror of the storm, spotted out of the corner of the traveler's eye. Squinting hard, the traveler used a hand to shield their eyes from the rain. Was it real? They couldn't second guess themself at this point. Crouching low and clutcher her wounded rib with their left hand, the traveler picked their way towards the light. Finally, the traveler made their way to the door and grasped the railings under the stoop firmly. Breathing heavily, they took in the scene around them.

Finally sheltered from the onslaught of the weather of the Waste, the traveler noticed the metal pillars holding up the structure. Nay, not pillars, four bird-like appendages complete with knees and talons for each leg. The belly of the beast was huge, mechanical, and somewhat spectacular. Then, it clicked. They had been traveling in the Waste. This structure was no doubt the metal-beast roaming about the Waste that was home to none other than the horrible wizard Howl.

The traveler was stunned. After several minutes of being completely confounded, she burst out in hysterical laughter. Of course, she thought. I won't die in the Waste – that would be too fortunate and too simple for me! I'm going to have my heart eaten by Horrible Howl!

Then the aching, squealing of metal hinges and the hiss of steam reached the traveler's ears. The stoop of the castle shook and rose off the ground, forcing both of her cold, numb fingers to grasp the railings more firmly. The castle rocked with each forceful step the metal beast took, like a fishing boat caught in turbulent waters. Fearing the potential fall to the rocky terrain below, the traveler took a breath and opened the sturdy wood door of Horrible Howl's, admittedly fantastic, moving castle.


Author's Note:

Hello readers! This is my first Howl's Moving Castle fanfic – I hope you enjoy. I have been on quite the hiatus from writing fanfics (haven't done it since high school... EEEK)BUT I am excited to give it another go. I'm not quite sure how far I'm going to go with this story, it just kind of came to me today, so I figured I'd at least start it, right?

I love hearing people's opinions and suggestions, so please feel free to read and review. I only ask for you to constructive AND kind please and thank you 3 I would like to be able to update AT LEAST once per week, but if there are some weeks the creative juices ain't flowin'… well, have patience for little ol' me

Thank you for taking the time to read and enjoy – I'm honored you took the time to read my story.

Best wishes,

JMaine