The next few months were filled with dread for Howl. He spent hours upon hours, searching through portals and large expanses of time and space... but, he couldn't locate her. Where could she have gone? There could only be one Pauline in the world.

Pauline was a woman that Howl pursued in the past. The whole tale of him eating the hearts of beautiful women wasn't true... entirely. He collected them, as trophies of sorts. A reminder of how cunning and beautiful he was.

Howl groaned in frustration as he slammed down his books. Running a hand through his blue-black hair, he left his room and went downstairs.

"Howl? Are you alright?"

Howl looked up at the sound of Sophie's voice. She was stirring a pot on top of Calcifer. Howl looked around and only saw the Witch of the Waste sitting at the table with Heen by her feet. "Where's Markl? And, Twila?"

"They're in the Garden. I was just about to go and get them." Sophie said, wiping her hands on her apron.

Howl went over to the door. "No, no. Allow me." With that, he turned the dial to the Garden Door and stepped through.

Markl held his little sister up as Twila pulled a few flowers out of the ground. He smiled as he set her down in front of him. 'I'm gonna miss these times once you can walk...' he thought, a pang of sadness hitting him. Twila was growing up fast, and soon, she'd be walking around, getting into trouble. But, he'd be right beside her through it all.

Markl looked up and saw a figure in a dark cloak watching him and his sister. He pulled Twila into his lap and hugged her close, protecting her as much as he could while sitting. The figure lifted its head and disappeared just as Howl stepped into the Garden. "Markl! Are you out here?"

Markl picked up Twila and walked over to his father. "We're here, Master Howl!" As he passed his sister to Howl, Markl asked, "Master Howl... who all knows about this place?"

Howl looked down at Markl. "Just us and my late uncle. Why?"

"I saw someone in a cloak while me and Twila were playing. It looked like they were watching us. Do you think it was one of Madame Suliman's henchmen, making sure we were okay?" Markl asked. He gasped slightly at the worry etched on Howl's face. "Master Howl? Dad?"

Howl snapped out of his trance when he heard Markl call him 'Dad.' He looked down and smiled at him. "Come on, Markl. I'm sure Sophie's made something delicious for us."

As they stepped back into the castle, Sophie smiled at them. "There you three are. Sit down, I've made fish!"

Both Markl and Howl groaned and said, "I hate fish..."

"Oh, shut up and eat!" Sophie said, taking Twila from Howl. As they sat down, Twila looked over at the window and saw the hooded figure from before. She waved to it, as much of a wave as she could make at her age, and the cloaked being disappeared again.