A/N – I'm back, in just a little over a week! Thank you so much to those of you that have favorited (wow!) and followed. A very special thank you to those who reviewed, especially the first guest who gave a very lovely compliment. Diana Wynne Jones is one of my favorite authors, so I very much appreciate your kind words. No further ado!
Ch 3
Howl placed his hands in his jacket pockets and swung his arms limply as he walked next to Sophie. The fabric from his dangling sleeves swished with each movement. Every so often, Howl would bend over to check on Sophie. She had pulled her hat down so low that it was difficult to see her face beyond the cream-colored straw and loose, red hair strands waving in the breeze. As an old woman, Sophie had been a great amusement when she was upset. As a young woman, Howl found utter delight in her rage.
Her cheeks were bright pink, and her lovely blue-green eyes stroked a fire so hot that it could instantly kill one's enemies. Alas, the enemy this time was the one within. Therefore all fire was friendly fire, though it was doubtful she saw it that way. Howl knew it was best to keep a distance from her.
But her face! Her gorgeous, frightening, fantastical face hypnotized him. He firmly reminded himself not to stare too long or –
Wack!
"Right in the nose!" he howled. He pressed the sides of his nose tightly with his fingers and let the tears run down his face. She ignored him and continued walking straight to the castle entrance in Market Chipping. Howl huffed from the lack of attention. He fixed his face and went for another inspection of Sophie.
Her eyes had grown watery and red. She wiped the back of her hand across her face silently. Her frustration had subsided to sadness again. Poor girl had cried her heart out at the café, but there was no one in this world who could hear it. Not only had she cursed away her voice, Sophie had made herself completely silent. No snuffs, no huffs, no sighs, no growls – very, very little sound came from her.
At the café table, shortly after Sophie cursed herself, Howl was both fascinated and terrified at Sophie's absolutely erratic and soul-eating tantrum, absent any noise. Immediately after she spoke her last words, Howl had cast as many curse-breaking spells he could remember. None of them made any difference. This was going to require some work, Howl thought. There were a few potions that might do the trick, but remembering how forcefully Sophie had spoken, he doubted their effect. He might even need to get Suliman involved.
In the meantime, Howl studied Sophie. She was an alluring subject, a bit like lighting in a bottle. Her muted outburst was like watching an old silent movie turned into a theater play. Except for, of course, the main character was the love of Howl's life and quite possibly the most dangerous woman in this world. Sophie never did quite catch on that her words held weight equal to that of kings and gods.
While Howl examined her equally quietly, he would conjure up tissues whenever she needed them. She made no noise, but the rest of the mechanics involved in screaming and crying her eyes out worked perfectly. The waiter politely and respectfully kept his distance during this time. Somehow, a check appeared, gently placed next to the mound of tissues the same height as the three-tiered stand.
Howl looked to Sophie rather than the tally and saw her swollen, red-rimmed eyes stare back at him. She mouthed, very slowly and sadly, the words, "I want to go home."
Howl nodded and gave her hand a squeeze. "Of course, Sophie," he whispered. Howl immediately stood up to compose himself. He straightened his vest and jacket, smoothed his tie out, fluffed his draping sleeves, lengthened the arms of his jacket, and casually flicked his hair back. During his preening, Sophie gathered herself. She was halfway to the courtyard's exit by the time he finished. Howl poked his head back into the kitchen to let the waitstaff know he would come by to settle the bill in two days. "You know I'm good for it," he called back to them as he walked quickly to catch up to Sophie.
They walked back through Market Square with nothing but a thick space between them. Howl's white Oxfords clacked against the cobblestone, but Sophie made no noise, or at least very little of it. She was even wearing her loud old boots, rather than gold heels Howl kept recommending while she had styled the white dress through Madam Toile's. As they walked, Howl performed the counter curses again, just for good measure. It made no affect. Howl then tried sound amplifying spells and the like. Sophie continued to march forward in silence despite it all.
As soon as their door was in sight, Howl dashed to open it up for Sophie. She paid him no attention as she climbed in through one of the doors of their moving castle. Once inside, it was apparent that Calcifer had not come back since that morning.
A thick, smoky smell hung in the air. Michael obviously had worked hard to save Sophie's fire. There was just something about the castle hearth that made it difficult to prevent the room from filling up with smoke without Calcifer, Howl mused. Michael, with a line of soot smudged across his forehead, jumped from his seat at the workbench. He looked excited to see the two of them.
"Howl! You're back earlier than you said. I got the spell all ready and – what's wrong with Sophie?" Michael asked as soon as he caught sight of her tear-stained face.
Howl closed the door and draped an arm around Sophie protectively. He wasn't sure if she would fight it. He was sure, however, that she needed something sturdy to rest upon in the face of having to explain the mess she was in.
"Just a small mishap," Howl replied quickly. "Michael, I need you to prepare the Cure for Hoarseness, but don't add the frog bones. Fetch me when you get to that step. Calcifer's missing, isn't he?"
Michael's exasperated look was all Howl needed before he gave out a bellowing yell, "Calcifer! Come back right this instant!" The castle quivered and the glass bottles and vials on the shelves rattled from the strength of his voice. Howl gave Sophie a squeeze after she jolted with surprise from the thundering command.
A tear-shaped blue flame descended down the chimney to the dying fire of ashen logs. The orange flames in his face showed an expression of surprise. "Do you need to shout so terribly?" the fire demon questioned irritably.
"Calcifer," Howl said calmly, "I need some assistance from you." Howl left Sophie to explain the situation to Calcifer as low and privately as they could in the smallish main room of the castle. While discussing what would be the best magic to reverse her condition, Howl watched Sophie slow remove the hat from her head and sigh silently.
Michael dashed about the room, back to the yard, and occasionally up the stairs to his room, his hands full of ingredients. Every so often, Michael would check himself against the spell inside with a thick book open halfway on the table. Whenever Michael caught Sophie's eyes, he would hesitantly put on a good face, unclear what she was suffering from but noticing she was deeply unhappy.
After standing and feeling sorry for herself after a short time, Sophie took a deep breath and went to fetch her broom to begin sweeping.
"If all else fails, I'm afraid we'll have to go see that lunatic –" Howl paused explaining to Calcifer as he caught sight of Sophie sweeping the floor around Michael. He gestured a wait sign to the fire demon. Calcifer's flaming eyes was a mixture of dread and concentration.
Howl snuck behind Sophie and wrapped his arms around her waist. "Why is it, my dear, that that you must tidy when things are going awry?" Sophie turned her head to shoot him a look, but for the first time in a while, she gave a smile. Sophie went back to sweeping, ignoring the fact that Howl hadn't detached himself from her. Michael glanced their way, but embarrassedly turned back to his work.
Calcifer called out with a crackling voice, "Do you want us here or not? You look like you want some privacy."
Sophie became flustered and immediately tried to remove Howl from herself. It became more of a chore than she expected as he was quite reluctant to let go of her. Once they were separated, Howl sighed dejectedly. "No, you're right Calcifer. We better get this taken care of first."
Michael took the opportunity to speak up. "I'm ready for you Howl. All that's left are the frog legs."
Howl strode to the bowl on the workbench. With a few flicks of his hands, a small whirlwind appeared. Howl held on to it slightly, and it began to slow its spinning. Howl flicked his hands towards the mixed ingredients, and the whirlwind splashed inside. The mixture went "poof," then did nothing else.
While adding this last piece, Howl rapidly explained to Michael that the best way to increase these types of spells was to replace frog bones with salamander bones. Howl wanted to get this made quickly, however. Rather than going through the proper steps of getting the salamander and crushing its bones, he simply conjured them. "If you want it perfect, then don't do it this way. But between you and me, this works quite adequately," Howl said quietly to Michael.
Howl poured Sophie a cup of the potion and handed to Sophie. Howl, Michael, and Calcifer all looked expectantly after Sophie drank the whole thing in one go. Her face twisted into an unpleasant expression. She opened her mouth, but nothing came out.
Sophie found the chair next to the hearth and sat down disheartened. Howl spoke rather quickly, "This is all to be expected. I wasn't sure if that would work anyhow, but I thought it best to try. I have a few other potions we could try. We have the time." Sophie acted as if she hadn't heard him. She bent over and hugged her legs.
Howl hurriedly pestered Michael and Calcifer to help him brew up the next couple of potions. While everyone was in a bustle, Sophie quietly picked up her broom again and continued sweeping the entire floor. By the time the other potential cures were finished, Sophie had dusted and swept under every cranny in the main room as well as begin to mop the bathroom.
Howl caught her attention and waved her to the hearth. Two cauldrons full of bright colored liquid were simmering after being taken off the heat. She looked distrustful at Howl. "We really can't make it any worse, so it's best to just try them," Howl told Sophie pleadingly.
She did as he instructed, but the results yielded no change. At this, Sophie's miserableness and anger boiled over. She began a noiseless tirade, pouring all of her frustration out on them, though it was unclear what the charges were. Michael, Calcifer, and Howl all watched quietly as she silently ranted and raved around the castle room. It might have been for the best that no one could read her lips. Her energy was very easy to interpret.
Howl cleared his throat to interrupt her noiseless tirade. "Michael," Howl said, "why don't you go fetch the second edition of Miracle Cures for Magic from your room. I'm fairly sure that's where you had it last. And Michael, it has to be the second edition." Michael nodded and eagerly went up the stairs.
Howl moved his hand behind himself and made a flapping motion towards the hearth as he edged closer to Sophie. Sophie had, by now, marched into the bathroom to finish her mopping. She still was mutedly complaining to herself. Howl whispered impatiently towards the hearth, "Calcifer, you can go back to doing whatever it was that kept you."
"You urgently call me, then you wave me away! Ungrateful –" Calcifer complained in a fiery voice.
"Yes, and so? Just go!" Howl cried back at Caclifer.
Calcifer slowly flew up the chimney, grumbling the whole way. As soon as his voice was decidedly gone, Howl closed the gap between himself and Sophie, who was stubbornly pushing her mop underneath the claw-footed bathtub. He gently wrapped his arms around her and said, "We'll get this fixed, Sophie. I promise you."
Sophie paused, then threw the mop down on the floor with a wooden clatter. She turned around to look at Howl, staying within his arms. Her eyes were welling up with tears again.
Howl felt a shooting pain in his own heart seeing how hopeless and broken-hearted Sophie was. "Oh cariad, you've had a quite a day, haven't you?" Howl cradled Sophie close to himself, while she slowly wrapped her arms around him and melted into his embrace. Sophie nuzzled her head into his chest. Howl brushed her red hair out of her face and considered that, on her, it was a lovely color.
Sophie looked up to Howl and studied him. In all forms she was lovely, Howl thought, but she looked the loveliest in his arms. Sophie hesitantly put her hands up to cradle his face. In the next instant, she reached up to kiss him. Howl was momentarily surprised but didn't let the moment slip away.
Though Howl had been anticipating this occasion for a while, it was clear that Sophie's eagerness almost outmatched his own. They were alone together in the bathroom for a quite a while. Eventually Howl began to pull her through the bathroom door, even while their hands and faces were busy. He slowly edged toward the staircase, hoping Sophie wouldn't notice a short climb to his bedroom.
Sophie did notice, however, and broke away from Howl with a sly, questioning look. She mouthed the words, "Bedroom?" Howl vigorously nodded. Sophie laughed noiselessly, then smiled back at him. "No," was very clear to read from her lips.
Howl slumped to the stair step underneath him and whined, "Sophie! You can't do this to a man!"
Sophie sat down next to him and cuddled close. She put a hand on his cheek to turn his face towards hers. Her smirk seemed to reply, "I can." She gave him a peck on the lips that easily returned them to their prior activity.
Another long while passed until Howl broke free to impatiently look around the castle room. "We're completely lacking comfortable seating, aren't we?" Howl asked Sophie frustratedly.
Sophie had a soft smile on her face as she nodded in agreement. The next moment, she gave a silent exclamation and a small frown. Sophie then began to move her hands as if she was writing on a paper made of air with a pen of nothingness.
"Yes! Something to write on. Let me think," Howl said. He dashed to the workbench, but he hesitated to bring the paper and his quill pen. "Sophie," he started, "What you really need is something easily writes and removes, like a chalkboard or..."
Sophie's eyes lit up with agreement. "But," Howl continued, as he edged to the door, "chalk can be an utter mess. I have a better idea of what to use, but I can't summon it here. It's not in this world-"
Howl knew as soon as he said those words that Sophie's interest would peak. She couldn't hide her strong interest in his native country. She sprang to her feet and found herself next to Howl, holding his arm. Though it was a bit out of the way, and he'd risk running into his sister, he thought the journey might liven her spirits more than anything here.
Howl turned the doorknob to black-down and opened it up to the nothingness beyond the doorframe. Before they walked through, a rustle swept between Howl and Sophie. Howl's white suit with gold embroidery morphed into a white-collared shirt and white dress pants with a leather belt and gold buckle. He fastened a pair of gold cufflinks on each wrist as he watched Sophie's reaction. Her eyes widened, seemingly impressed, and then looked to her own outfit. Nothing had changed. She shot Howl a questioning look.
He shrugged and said, "You don't need to change anything." Sophie rolled her eyes and slowly grinned, grabbing his arm tightly as they walked into the black void.
At this time, Michael bravely made his way down the stairs. He had been stuck at the top of for quite some time, stumbling quietly upon Howl and Sophie in a moment he wished terribly he hadn't seen. Michael did not realize that Howl had purposely sent him on an impossible task. The second edition of Miracle Cures for Magic has been lost last year when they performed a dimensional-change charm. Only Howl remembered this incident. But what Howl didn't know was that Michael had improved his divination spells since that time and was able retrieve it in a timely manner. While he waited at the top of the stairs, he read through passages of the book he thought might help Sophie. The biggest problem was Michael had only gleaned what might be her problem. No one had outright told him.
Michael caught sight of the castle door shutting with the knob turned down to black. "Oh bother," he muttered. "I was really looking forward to showing them the spell."
Once Sophie and Howl were through the void, Howl quickly pulled her toward the garden gate. The sooner they could get out of sight, the better. Sophie couldn't help but glance at the yellow house and wavy glass door they had just came out of. In that short moment, as Howl flung the gate open, Sophie saw the front door burst open.
"Uncle Howell!" little Mari, his niece, screamed as she ran deftly around Sophie and bounded into Howl.
After Howl recovered from almost being knocked down, he scooped her up and hugged her tightly. He burst into Welsh, telling her how glad he was she was alright. "Only because you saved us!" Mari cried back, gripping him tighter.
Neil, his nephew, came out from the house not long after and ran toward Howl as well. "Uncle!" he said as he too gave Howl a strong yet brief hug.
Howl moved Mari around to hold her with one arm and gave Neil a squeeze with his other arm. Sophie stood close by, her eyes and smile softened by the familial affection. "This is more like it!" Howl exclaimed. "I expect this sort of greeting every time I come by now."
Neil backed away but stayed close. He scoffed and put his hands in his pockets, muttering, "Only because you saved our skins back there. What the hell –"
"Language!" Howl retorted.
"-was that bat-shi-" Neil continued.
"Really!" Howl remarked.
"-crazy lady trying to do?" Neil finished. Sophie's were wide, and Howl had a smirk on his face.
"Well, she's gone now-" Howl started.
"Howell!" Megan said from the front doorway. She didn't yell but her voice resonated with fury, and Howl tried his best not to flinch. Her arms were crossed, and she looked in no good mood.
"Neil. Mari. Get over here, now," Megan commanded her children. Howl put Mari down, but the children didn't move away.
"Mum, he saved us," Mari started, with Neil about to agree.
Megan waved her hand to silence them. "No, he caused this. I know him, and somehow this is just another mess he's dragged us into," she said.
"So glad you all are in good health," Howl chimed to the children. He wrapped his arm around Sophie as they continued to make their way through the garden gate to the road. "We'll just be going on our way now."
Megan shook her head with frustration. She crossed her arms and began to tap her foot. "Unbelievable – but actually, no it's quite believable coming from you. In and out. Hither tither. Do you have a job yet, or are you still just galivanting after strange women? What are you even wearing? Where are you going? And where on earth did you steal this poor girl from?"
Mari said, looking happily up to Sophie, "She looks like a princess Mum!" Howl whispered into Mari's ear in Welsh that she was indeed a princess. Mari's grin widened, and she sneakily reached out to touch the fabric of Sophie's dress.
"Are you alright dear?" Megan focused on Sophie. "That's quite a dress to be wearing in town. Do you know who my brother is? He's a good-for-nothing. Best not get too serious with him as he takes everything for granted."
Howl had enough. "We're off!" he said as he slammed the gate behind Sophie and himself. He glared at Megan, who couldn't be happy for him even if she tried. She was a jealous, spiteful woman, Howl thought. Thank God her kids had some sense.
Howl fumbled with his ring of keys as the two of them walked towards the white shed where his car was parked. Once he opened the lock on the shed, he slammed the doors open and marched to the driver's side of the car. He flung the car door open, crashed into the seat, still fuming, and muttered, "Well, that went as badly as expected."
He looked for Sophie in the passenger seat, but she wasn't there. She was still hesitantly waiting outside the car, wringing her hands. Howl leaned over and opened the door for her, "Come sit. I need a minute, then we'll go back home." Sophie nervously poked her head in the car, then slowly sat down. She frowned at Howl and made the writing gesture with her hands.
"Yes, yes, apologies," Howl said and immediately a small white-board appeared in Sophie's lap. It had a metal frame, a holder for the marker, and small string for carrying. Sophie appeared mystified by the apparatus, and Howl quickly explained how to use it. Instantly, she began to write the words. "Don't listen to sister."
Howl gave short laugh. He grabbed Sophie's knee and squeezed. "You're too good for me. Of all the things you could say." Howl sighed and stared at the shed wall in front of him. "Right, it went as bad as I could have expected. Since we're here already, let's go for a drive, shall we?"
Sophie hurriedly wiped away her message and wrote in large letters, "NO."
Howl laughed and started to tickle Sophie's side. "Are you afraid or something?" She began to laugh noiselessly while trying to stop his advances. It was a good feeling for them both to laugh. Yet, surrounded by Sophie's silence, Howl felt the pressure of his mission to get her back to normal. For now, he would have to wait until he could see what Suliman's opinion was. He was the next best wizard in Ingary compared to Howl, but even then Howl was unsure if Suliman would be any help. If all else failed, there was an absolute card that Howl knew would fix her, but Howl wanted to avoid it altogether if he could.
While they were sitting in his car, he thought it obvious to continue the ruse he told his sister and to do a bit of light driving around the town. "You've nothing to fear. I'm an excellent driver." Sophie gave Howl a glaring look. He reached over her and buckled her belt in. "There, even safer. Let's go."
Before Sophie could protest, Howl turned on the car and roared in reversed. Once on the road, Sophie's face turned white, and she shut her eyes. Her hands clutched whatever she could find. As he sped down the country road, flying down the steep hill, Howl told Sophie intently, "Open your eyes." She was being far too exaggerative, Howl thought. "It's a rare we get a lovely sunny day like this. You'll probably never see another day like it." At this, Sophie slowly let one eye slip open. The car sped over a hill. As Sophie's stomach flew upwards, she smacked Howl's chest, gripping tightly onto his white shirt.
"Here's the town," Howl announced, ignoring her hand on his chest. The road flattened and the houses on the side grew narrower and taller. He slowed down a bit for Sophie's sake. She opened her eyes but didn't let go of Howl. Howl wasn't sure if she would be impressed or not. His hometown was not much even compared to Market Chipping. Even so, her eyes were glued out the window to take in every sight. "I keep underestimating how nosey you are," Howl chuckled.
Sophie pointed at the tea shop where Ms. Angorian had lived. She looked back to Howl, then wrote on the board, "Did you know Angorian demon?"
Howl raised his hand from the steering wheel in a half shrug. "Well – I found out fairly quickly, but her disguise was very good, very high quality – oof!" Howl cried as Sophie smacked his arm with her board. She gave the white-board a second consideration, and nodded with satisfaction. It was both a tool and a weapon. "It was all to trick me, obviously! Can't you give me some sympathy for being the focus of that inane man-hunt? And so? I can't make small mistakes? Ouch!" Sophie had been lightly banging the board against him, smirking the entire time. Then Howl hit a wide crack in the pavement, and they jolted in their seats causing Sophie to smack him in the head.
"It's not meant to be a weapon Sophie!" Howl cried. He was suddenly flush with frustration, for a completely different reason. The car refused to speed up and began to sputter. Howl took a half-second glance at the petrol gauge and rolled his eyes. "What a day!" Howl said, quite exasperated. He coasted them to side of the street and parked. His hands twisted around the steering wheel as he stared at the bustling road, awfully full of pedestrians as well as motorists.
Sophie's board appeared before his face with, "Why?" written across it.
"Because there's no fuel," Howl said, unable to control his snark. "This machine takes fuel, and we have none. I can make fuel," Howl continued as he thought outloud, "but I'll need to go to the boot to get it and fill the tank. Alright, I'll be back."
He opened the door and went to the trunk of the car. Nothing was inside but a few pieces of trash and towels. After checking around the lid, left, right, and behind, Howl conjured a full, portable red fuel tank.
Standing casually with one hand resting on his white car and the other hand filling, he began filling the car's gasoline tank. There were quite a few people on the street today due to the good weather. Sophie reached out the car window to poke him with her board again. "What Doing?" was scribbled on there, and her face expressed much of the same concern.
Howl bent over to grumble, "I told you, the car is out of petrol! We're stuck until I finish here. Then we are most certainly going back home. There's far too many people-"
"Oi!" a deep voice shouted down the pavement.
Howl instinctively brought his head up to see who had shouted.
"Ha! I thought I recognized that head. Stay there Jenkins," the deep voice jovially said.
Howl groaned a bit. It was Gregory Davies, but he went by Greg. He was a long-time friend from Howl's Rugby Club. Friend was a bit of a stretch, but acquaintance was too cold. Gregory was a bit taller than Howl and far bulkier. He had sandy hair and an easy smile. Also, he was a player you definitely want on your team.
"What happened?" Greg asked with a perk in his voice. "Forgot to fill up?" he then laughed greatly while he smacked a thick hand on Howl's shoulders.
"I did completely," Howl said back, unamused, "and of all things, right here on the main drag. Perfectly humiliating, am I right?"
"It happens to us all mun. Just glad to see you in one piece after you left us that night, huh?" Greg's eyes seemed to twinkle.
Howl happened to be staring into the car when he saw Sophie align his sight with her board. "WHO?" was written on it.
Howl refused to be pestered and turned to look Greg straight in the eyes. "Did you end up in the drunk tank then? By the time I left, no one was sure-footed."
"Ah, none of that," Greg said easily. He pulled his hand from Howl's shoulder. He stuck both his hands in his sports jacket. "Was good to see you though. Seem a lot better today than before. Looks like you got that muck sorted out, then? You remember - you were going on and on about some ladies trying to kill you?"
The conversation Howl didn't want to have arrived. "Ah, yes. I do recall complaining a bit. I was mostly upset to hear you all were still playing, whilst I was getting no invite. Tell me about that!"
Greg's brows furrowed slightly. "Cause your damn hard to get a hold of! Your sister won't give the time of day, and your postbox got closed down cause you never pay. People saying you don't even live here, but then every address we happen to find has you at your sisters."
"That does seem oddly suspicious of me," Howl shrugged. "But I assure you, I'm still in town. I'm just needed at the college most hours of the day."
"Right," Greg nodded, the twinkle in his eye coming back. "That's the other strange part. We contacted the college – they said you left a few years ago."
Damn, they really did try, Howl thought. "I'm going to a different college now," he said, waving his hand airily. The red gas tank was finally, mercifully empty, and Howl went to put it back in the boot. Greg followed him as he continued to talk.
"You're still going to college then mun? We went to primary together Jenkins. How the hell are you still in college? You'd have to be a professor or something." Howl ignored his comments as he slammed the boot lid shut, went around the car, and opened the driver-side door. Howl was ready to give Greg one final answer as he leaned against the car, resting an arm atop the roof. That was until Greg noticed Sophie.
He was bent over by his waist to get a good look at Sophie. His eyes light up, and his easy smile appeared. "Good God, why didn't you tell me you had an angel in the car Jenkins!" Howl's expression became cross, and he huffed. Before he had a chance to speak, Greg began to talk to Sophie. "Hello miss. I am Gregory Davies, at your service. Are you sure you mean to be in Howell Jenkin's car? He's a known womanizer around these parts."
Howl burst out, "Gregory! Angels don't need to spoil their ears with such inappropriate language."
While still flashing his smile to Sophie, Greg asked Howl, "Is she one of the ladies that was torturing you?" He gave a small wink to Sophie.
Howl gave up pleasantries and got into the car. As he entered, he said loudly, "Yes and now you can tell the rest of them that Jenkins will be forever tortured in heaven."
Greg straightened himself, and said heartily, "I suppose that's where I'll send your invite then mun?"
The car growled to life, and Howl sped off without a goodbye. Both Sophie and Howl heard a laugh and a shout, "Pob hywl!"
A/N – The last phrase means goodbye in Welsh, and if anyone is a native speaker, please let me know if it doesn't make sense. I learned that the word "goodbye" in Welsh actually mean "big fun" and I think that's just great. I have a bit of time this next week so I'm hoping to continue my current good upload streak, but I know it will eventually slow. Yet! I'm still determined to make this a completed story! Reviews, favorites and follows are a great way to keep me encouraged, so if you like it please think about giving this story some love. Thanks again for reading – mrs.k
