Howl woke up invigorated the next morning, hoping he could corner Sophie when she woke up. He desperately wanted to finish what they started yesterday. He waited in his room, reading a book, until he heard her door creak open. With a bit of magic, he managed to catch her hand as she began to go down the stairs.

Sophie, dressed in her nightgown and robe, looked very pleased to see him. His chest swell with excitement. "You're looking ravishing this morning," Howl said as he put his hands on her waist and pulled her close.

Sophie gave him a suggestive smile, made a low, pleasing hum, and wrapped her arms around chest. She reached up to kiss him. As their lips touched, he ran one of his hands through her red hair. This was going perfectly to plan, he thought. Howl slowly lead them towards his room, but as he turned the knob, she broke away shaking her head.

"Why not, my love?" Howl said as charmingly as he could, caressing her face. "Don't worry about the shop. I'll make Michael take care of it."

She looked away from him, her brows furrowing with unease. Then she steeled herself, looked Howl in the eye, and shook her head decisively. She stared at him, as if she expected to use telepathy. Her eyes grew wide, and she made little sounds with her throat. He didn't know what could be more important than bringing her into his bed. She rolled her eyes and huffed hotly. In a fully agitated manner, she tapped her throat and hummed loudly in a sing-song manner.

"My voice." she mouthed slowly and clearly. "The Hermit?" She raised her hands in the air for emphasis.

Howl gave a dry laugh and awkwardly smiled. "Of course! I didn't forget, darling, only…you don't need that for what we want to do." He pulled her back towards his body, though it felt like caging a tiger. She frowned and pushed his hands away. By the look on her face, he knew he was liable to get bit if tried to capture her again.

Howl put his hands on her shoulders and groaned, realizing Sophie had a completely different objective for the day. "You want to go today? Right now?" he complained.

She growl, shook his hands from herself, and mouthed back, "Yes!"

"He is a lunatic, my love. We really shouldn't rush headfirst into this. As much as we were both victimized by the Witch of the Waste, we won't even have time to contemplate our defeat if the Hermit turns against us."

Sophie didn't like that answer. She began to huff around the landing, saying something or other. Howl was too busy to mind. He had to think of ways to postpone the inevitable.

Sophie, hands on her hips, made a final snarl and went silently back into her room. Howl groaned in misery. Couldn't she wait just a few days. He was liable to end this journey missing a piece of himself. Maybe it was time to let her know how dangerous this quest was going to be.

He had planned on changing his hair today. Since he had no idea how long she was going to take doing whatever it was she stomped off to do, he might as well continue his plans.

Howl was in the bathroom, trying to decide if he wanted his hair to be medium or dark. He already knew he wanted to have curls, as it had been years. Sophie hadn't seen him in that style, and he was curious what she would think. He was debating what shade while searching for the curling spell on his shelf of packets.

The doorknob to the bathroom door rattled. He didn't lock it to keep Sophie out on purpose. It mostly to see if she would barge in or not. The cherry on top would be the look on her face.

"You wanted me, darling?" Howl said in his most attractive smile as he opened the door to see Sophie's scowl.

She pushed her way inside and shoved the journal he had given her into his face. She made more humming noises to stress the importance. "What is it, Sophie? You're acting like mad woman now, calm down." His words had little effect on her, and she stubbornly showed him the opened book. There was a lot of writing on the page, and Howl gulped imagining the scolding she had written to him.

Howl produced as much charm as he could while he reached for her hand to say, "My love Sophie, I understand you want to go right away. I know you are uncomfortable. I want you whole as well, but it's not as simple as finding this man and asking for his help. He is deranged, and the last time I saw him, people died. We have to plan and strategize our approach. It can't happen in one day."

This time, she listened to his words, and her journal faltered as her hand fell slightly. He closed the space between them and put his hands on her arms. He couldn't understand why she wanted to go through all this trouble so hastily when they could be together all day like this.

She gently sighed and caught his eyes. Slowly the journal came up to his face again, and she shook it with intent. Her face looked determined.

"Fine, I'll read the damned thing," Howl said irritably as he took it from her.

Howl, we have all been through a lot these past months, so I understand your hesitancy to move forward on this. But Although I am silent, I will not lose my voice. I am telling you: I need to speak again. I will make you take me to this Hermit one way or another. It must be difficult as you say, since you are so unwilling to even try, but I know you can help me. I trust you. You are a great wiz man. You and I are going to see the Hermit, today. Consider how I feel! I will not be happy until this is made right.

Howl sat on the edge of the tub as he finished reading and blew out his breath exasperatedly. The guilt of her words weighed him down. Why did she make him read this? How did she make him read this?

"Sophie," he said, not trying to whine but failing, "I'm not sure how much more I can explain it, but he really is a madman. We both will be in danger by showing up unexpectedly. It's not something I want to put you through without proper preparation."

Sophie wasn't having it. She scribbled franticly on the white board. She turned and showed him. "No, today. Must be today."

"Must it?" Howl yelped. "Sophie, really, now you're being unreasonable. I was going to dye my hair today, and then I was making plans for us to go out to Kingsbury."

His words only incensed her further. She was almost able to cry out, but the loudest sound was her growl. She wiped away the ink with her hands and scribbled furiously again. In poorer writing than usual, the board said, "HOWL! TODAY!"

"Ugh!" Howl moaned as he slid from the edge of the tub down to the tiled floor. He lied on his back staring up at her reproachfully. "Sophie…Sophie you don't get it. He can literally wipe us from existence! He could say, 'Wizard Howl will become a wall,' and I will! I will, Sophie! Do you want me to turn into a wall?" Howl cried. He wailed sad sobs as he reached out for Sophie's robe.

Sophie was keen to ignore him. She folded her arms and wouldn't look him in the eye. Howl could see her fury boiling inside her, and he realized he was losing. But this wasn't something he could lose. Howl was not exaggerating. It was time to tell her what his last encounter with the Hermit was like.

Howl calmed himself and began his tale in earnest. "The last time I saw the Hermit was when he barged into the palace to find Mrs. Pentstemmon, God rest her soul. I was her apprentice at the time, assisting her with a warding spell for the king. I remember it was the middle of the night and guards were stationed at our door due to the secrecy of it. No one except the king knew we were there. Still, he managed to find us and entered through where the doors had been only seconds ago. He had made them completely disappear.

"Before he could say a word, Mrs. Pentstemmon told him, 'You must leave now. I see I cannot help you.' He didn't like that one bit. He was angry but said his words one by one, something like, 'I - must – say - every – word - carefully. I – can - not - live – like - this.'" Howl took care to reenact the scene as he continued lying on the cold bathroom floor. Now, Sophie was paying careful attention, even as her arms stayed crossed.

"Mrs. Penstemmon retorted right back saying, 'You must learn to accept yourself and your gift. Once you have done that, I will try to help you again. Now leave.' Again, he didn't like that. Now this part, I remember exactly. He said, 'The guards will be removed from existence.' No hesitation that time, and he spoke every word quite normally. And before my eyes, I watched as four men became nothing." Howl took a deep breath and shuddered at the memory.

"Dear Mrs. Penstemmon was quick on her feet and conjured up the strongest wind I have ever experienced. I recall her hand seizing the back of my shirt to keep me from being blown away. I watched him pummel through the door at such a rate I wondered if he had survived."

Howl paused, then caught Sophie's eye. "Later, I heard from one of Mrs. Penstemmon's connections that he forsake all magic and decided to live in the mountains between Ingary and Strangia, which for any human, magician or otherwise, is an absurd thing to do."

Howl gave a throaty sigh and asked Sophie, "Do you see, now, why I can't risk us to just meet him blindly? We will be in serious danger. I honestly harbored the idea that the Witch of the Waste was going to end my life, and that wasn't very long ago! Now I'm supposed to risk my life again?"

Sophie huffed and looked away from him. She began tapping her foot, probably frustrated that this had become more complicated than she previously thought. After some time, she held her white board and began to write. When she was finished, she squatted down next to Howl and made him read.

"I'm going today. I need you with me."

Howl cried out a sound of bitterness. She wiped the message with her hand and wrote a new one. "Maybe gift? Your gold?"

Howl gave a mock laughter. "Gift of gold? My money! He can make his own gold, Sophie! Are you not understanding this?"

As she stood up, her expression was resolute. There was no argument left to be made. Sophie wanted her voice back today, and it looked like she was willing to die trying.

This proved that Sophie was absolutely the maddest woman alive. Yet Howl found himself at her mercy. If she was determined to go, Howl had no choice but to follow.

Howl never imagined he would fall in love with a woman like her. He would go along with anything his previous fancies would want, but he would always stop short if they insisted upon ridiculousness. With Sophie, he was bound to her decisions, whether he liked them or not. He couldn't understand how it happened, but out-of-the-blue it came to be. He supposed this was what it was like being in real love.

"Hurry get ready. NO HAIR" Sophie's board said.

Howl pushed himself off the floor and half shouted, "Alright, alright! No fun, no fancy, just death and danger. I fully comply."

Sophie giggled silently and finally gave him a softened look. Howl made use of the opportunity and put his hands on her shoulders. "Why don't we save time altogether and take a shower together?"

She blushed and laughed noiselessly again. She had sultry eyes and quickly licked her lips. She moved her hands up to cup his face, and he moved in to kiss her.

Except she cackled without sound and spun out of his arms towards the bathroom door. Howl stood limply, confused by her behavior.

Only her head appeared beyond the door, and she stuck her tongue out at him. "No," she mouthed playfully. Her next words were far more serious. "Get ready!"She finished it with a final, "Hmph!"

Sophie gave Howl a look of impatience when he finally exited the bathroom. He chose to style himself in a dark blue and silver suit with long teardrop earnings made of Lapis Lazuli. Howl was disappointed he wasn't given time for his hair, so it took him longer than expected to get the right shade of blue to match both his fair hair and Sophie's red hair.

Therefore, he was quite shocked when Sophie's appeared after her turn in the bathroom wearing her other grey dress and straw hat.

Howl choked on the last bite of his eggs and waved his hands to halt her. Sophie put her hands on her hips and mouthed the word, "What?"

Howl swallowed and exclaimed, "You can't be wearing that. Woman, you have a closet to choose from! Go get changed. Chose blue."

Sophie's free hand held her hat as she threw her head back to laugh silently. When she calmed down, she caught Howl's eyes. She raised her eyebrows and formed a word to ask, "Really?"

"Yes, I am completely serious. If you are to have me walk to my death today, then we might as well go out in style," Howl said back, most sincerely as he tossed his dirty dish into the already full sink.

Calcifer's head poked out from above the burning logs in the hearth. A malicious grin was spreading across his blue face. "Did I hear you were heading to death, Howl?"

"Yes," Howl said contemptuously. He had forgotten about Calcifer this morning, which was a strange realization. They had been bound together for years; a situation neither of them much preferred. It was relieving to know that his life changed for the better, and that was all due to Sophie. He sighed pitifully perceiving he had only changed his yoke rather than be made free. All being said and done, though, Sophie was a magnificent improvement over the fire demon.

"Yes," Howl said sadly, "Sophie has seen to it that we must face the Hermit today and demand he reverse her curse."

"Can I come?" Calcifer asked, his wicked smile growing larger. "I'd like to see what scares you so much. Though by the looks of it, Sophie's the one you're afraid of."

Sophie smiled satisfactory at Calcifer's comments and looked to Howl for his reply.

Howl nobly crossed his heart and reached out a hand to Sophie, which she didn't accept. "I only am concerned with breaking her heart. And if my love wants to look death in the eye today, who am I to tell her no?"

Calcifer crackled and sizzled with laughter. "Sophie, you've done something I never expected, even in the thousand years of life you gave me. You've made Howl brave."

Howl added quickly, "That's right, I am being quite brave for you, my dear Sophie. The least you can do is get dressed in a more appropriate outfit to meet our demises."

Sophie rolled her eyes and huffed, unable to hide her smile. "Fine," she said noiselessly, giving him a playful glare.

As she turned around to go back upstairs to change, Howl crouched next to the hearth to talk with Calcifer. "This time, it's not a bad idea for you to come. We will undoubtedly come to an impasse, and I will need you to come and rescue us. If either of us make a wrong move, we could be done for in an instant."

Calcifer waggled his green flames of eyebrows and replied, "I'll make sure to save Sophie. You can handle yourself."

Howl's long sleeves flapped as he crossed his arms. "You're ungrateful. If it wasn't for me, you'd be a stone in the marshes."

Calcifer crawled over the logs closer to Howl. "If I have to choose between you two, I'm chosing Sophie. She's far more pleasant to be around."

"I don't disagree," Howl said, staring at the stairs.

"She's certainly done a number on you," Calcifer said after a pause. "I can barely recognize you, parading around the castle, constantly seeking her attention and approval. Is this what you did outside with the other ones?"

"No," Howl said, feeling offended. A second later, he confessed, "Well, perhaps a bit. But those were just a game. I was bored. This is completely different! As you can see, we march towards our death. You know I would never do something as stupid as this for anyone else."

"You do a lot of stupid things, so I can't see how this stupid thing is different." Howl glared at Calcifer reaching for the hearth's shovel. Calcifer shrunk back behind the crumbling logs but kept his toothy grin.

"If you're going to keep this up," Howl said, "I'd rather you stay here."

Calcifer's grin faded. It seemed he really wanted to go exploring with them and see some action. "I won't say a word. I'll simply continue observe your courtship. After you won her over, assuming that's what you're trying to do here, are you going to run away again? That would be highly risky, even for you."

"You too? No one trusts me! How many times do I have to say it: Sophie is the one! I'm not going anywhere," Howl huffed and turned away from Calcifer completely to stare at the steps.

Calcifer bobbed around the logs, chewing on the last bit of unconsumed wood. "Humans have this thing – like a contract – to prove to each other they won't run away. What was that called again?" Howl didn't answer, but slowly went to reach for the ash bucket on the floor nearby. "As an outsider, I think that might be something you should consider, to avoid any misunderstandings."

Howl stood up, his bucket in hand. A wicked grin grew across his face. Bringing the bucket closer and closer to the fire demon, Howl said to Calcifer, "I have some water conjured in here. Do you think it would still hurt you if it happened to spill on you?"

Calcifer made a loud, fiery "pop" and immediately dug into the ash under the logs. Footsteps from the stairs made Howl's body jerk toward the sound. A bit of water splashed and sizzled onto a log.

"Sophie!" Calcifer cried miserably, "Sophie, he's trying to put me out."

Howl's grasp of the bucket slackened when he caught sight of her. She was wearing a dandelion-yellow dress that brought out the golden hues in her hair. The collared dress was buttoned from the top to the bottom with a white sash around her waist. She looked stunning.

Howl clumsily pace the bucket on the edge of the hearth, to Calcifer's visible dismay, and went to grab Sophie's hand. "We can't go now, you look to lovely to die today."

Sophie grabbed his suit jacket in desperation, shaking him and groaning. She didn't look like she could handle any more delays. Howl couldn't help himself. She was too beautiful not to pester.

She moved away from him to the workbench and held up her board. "We're going now."

Howl followed her and leaned against the workbench coolly. "And where exactly are we going? Are you suggesting we search every mountain cave until we find him? That will take eternity."

Sophie wrote out, "Use magic," and looked at him very plainly.

Though Calcifer couldn't read the words from where he sat, he added, "It must be good fortune, then, that you excel at divination spells. 'One of the best,' I recall you telling Michael one day."

"Divination, you say? I don't recall," Howl said airily, inspecting his nails.

Sophie yanked at his jacket again and silently yelled out "Howl!" Now she was very cross, but it only made Howl's heart want to drag her back upstairs and not go through this very stupid plan.

Quickly, Sophie found the bucket of water and threatened Howl with it to Calcifer's great delight – "See! She is much more pleasant than you." Howl needed no further encouragement.

However, his first divination spell left him wandering around room in confusion.

"Well, it doesn't make much sense, but that seems par for the course. He is alive and exists, but the spell is not working. He could have set up wards, but that seems odd for a person that gave up magic."

Sophie nodded in agreement. "We wait," her board said. Howl hoped waiting would mean upstairs in either of their rooms, but it turned out to be the exact opposite. Sophie, with her extraordinary feelings of empathy, felt bad that Michael had been stuck in the flower shop all morning by himself. Therefore, the two of them were resigned to helping him until lunchtime. At least, Howl thought to himself, he would have a few more hours to enjoy his domestic life with Sophie.

As she made sandwiches for everyone, Howl was tasked to try the divination charm again. This time, unfortunately, it worked.

"Ah, he's at an inn on one of the mountain roads near the border of Strangia. It's far, but I can get us there." Sophie beamed, and Howl concluded she was also beautiful that way too.

She packed the sandwiches into a small basket and dragged Howl out of the castle door to the fields of flowers. They stood next to rose bushes as Howl sprinkled the speed spell powder onto both of them. Howl led the way with his arm around Sophie, enjoying how tightly she held onto him.

Little time passed until the found themselves on dirt road surrounded by an oak and pine-filled forest. A fat, two story inn stood a bit farther down where the road bent. It had a thatched roof and white plaster and beam walls. Tables and chairs were set around the front surrounded by a wild garden. A couple was having lunch outside, under a sign with a picture of a boar digging for truffles hanging from the inn.

A cowbell rang as they entered the inn, and a middle-aged woman greeted them from behind a bar.

Howl bowed and said to the innkeeper, "Good day fair maiden. And where might I find the owner of this fine establishment?"

She giggled and said in a northern accent, "Good heavens, it's me. What a charmer you are. Haven't been called that in ages. I don't think I've seen you around here before. What's your name?"

Howl could feel the heat of Sophie's stare. She could get too jealous too easily. You win more flies with honey, Howl thought. "I am Alexander Tiggles, and this is my wife Isabel," Howl felt Sophie's heat reside a bit upon hearing her alias.

The innkeeper looked disappointed by the news but happily replied, "Welcome Mr. and Mrs. Tiggles. Would you be needing a room?"

Howl put a hand on Sophie's waist and squeezed her close to him. "We might later, but right now we are trying to catch up with an old friend. Have you seen a tall, lanky fellow, my age – could look older – with light-brown hair. He might look a weathered as I understand he's been living off the land."

The innkeeper's eyes lit up, "Yes, why I know who you're talking about. Old Gene, that's what we call him around here. We trade with him every so often. He lives up in a cave in those hills over there. You just missed him."

Howl and Sophie glanced at each other meaningfully. After getting the exact direction of the location he went, Sophie and Howl raced outside, barely saying thank you. Howl performed another divination spell on the other side of the road, but as it had earlier that day, Howl could not pinpoint him. "We'll have to follow the trail she told us about," Howl told Sophie regrettably, hoping against fate that she would give up. Sophie curtly nodded and began making her way through the dried grass and dead leaves in the direction of the closest mountain.

Calcifer descended through the forest not long after them. He was a bit slower than Howl's speed spell. To his credit, he only hovered above them a few feet, dodging in and out of the trees carefully to avoid any catching on fire. They trudged wordlessly through the forest floor of dried debris. Already ten minutes had passed, and Howl was ready to turn back around. Sophie ignored his complains and continued onward. Howl then asked Calcifer to scan from the skies for a lived-in cave, "And avoid setting the whole place on fire, would you?"

More time passed, and Sophie handed him his sandwich from the small basket she had brought. As he ate, Howl anxiously searched the rising tree line for any sign of their terminus. Their food was finished by the time the ground began to incline. It grew steeper and steeper, and their breaths became louder and louder. His clothes had gotten caught in stray branches countless times, and his feat grew wearing of stumbling on tree trunks and animal holes. The trees grew tighter together, and the trail was barely visible now. It could be mistaken for a rabbit trail. Howl lightly groaned, imagining the state of them. He became a wizard to avoid these goose chases and time-wasting chores. He glared at Sophie. She somehow enjoyed this kind of thing.

She glanced back at him, raised her eyebrows, and laughed. Her cheeks were pink with exertion, but she looked as if she was gaining energy rather than losing it. She stopped and reached up to Howl's hair to remove a twig. Howl sighed. He wasn't finding the journey difficult, but man created cities for a reason. The woods were for animals.

"I think I spot it," Calcifer said confidently as he lowered back down to them.

"Thank God, where?" Howl said tensely.

"Go more northwest. I'll tell you went to turn," Calcifer said, taking his job as scout far too seriously. He guided them to a granite cliff face that appeared to have a portion of the peak cut away. From Howl's perspective down below, it looked like a cave was within the cutting. To get to the stone shelter, a steep, rocky trail zig-zagged up the face of the cliff. There were some points where the only way to continue upward would be using all four limbs.

"This is ridiculous," Howl muttered to himself. "Wait! Sophie!" Howl called out as she continued forward on the granite rock towards the steep entrance. He caught her arm, but the moment he stepped from the forest's edge to the bare-faced stone, a shudder went through him. It reminded Howl of the feeling of passing through a ward or magical barrier. He groaned in his throat, imaging of all the dangers they just set off.

But nothing happened in the next few seconds, other than Sophie cocking her head and studying him. Maybe he had grown two heads or went bald. Howl immediately put his hands on his head and face to check everything was where it was supposed to be. As he inspected his hair, he felt his stomach drop slightly. It was dark brown and thin, not like what he had last seen in the mirror.

His clothes were shades of grey and frayed at the ends. Sophie looked completely fine, so he questioned what the barrier's target was exactly.

Calcifer was so high up they could barely see him. He descended in an archway until he was where Howl had stood moments ago.

"He's put up some sort of invisible wall I can't get through," Calcifer said, with a twinge of worry. He then grinned wide with delight upon focusing on Howl. "Look at you! You appear oddly similar, but something's happened."

Howl didn't want to know what horrors befell him, and instead he looked to simplify this mission. He had on his person all sorts of spell packets, and luckily for them, he had a flying one. No more of this hiking and climbing nonsense.

Sophie stood a few feet away and continued inspecting him as he pulled out the twisted blue paper packet from an inner jacket pocket. Howl poured out a sprinkle and applied it to his head.

Something should have happened, but nothing did. Howl froze, considering all the evidence. In one last experiment, he spoke the incantation to call up a wind. The wind never materialized, and Howl's words fell to the ground. Calcifer broke the silence with a crackling sound. Realizing the culmination of all the evidence before him, Howl bent over and put his hands on his knees, his brown hair curtained his face.

"He created a field where magic doesn't work," Howl muttered to himself, saying the words out loud so that he could fully comprehend them. Sophie looked at him oddly. He slowly laughed as he began to understand the situation.

After he finished, he composed himself and said to Sophie with newfound hope, "This actually evens the odds for us! He made himself a home where magic cannot exist. Therefore, we actually stand a chance of getting him to cooperate." He wasn't on the rugby team for show, anyhow, Howl thought to himself.

Sophie smiled brightly and clapped, causing the basket hooked on her arm to swing. The only real obstacle they faced now was climbing up the trail.

The trek was as difficult as either of them could imagine. The trail was only wide enough for one person, and so Sophie was in front while Howl followed behind. He thought, if she slipped, he would be able to catch her. Plus, the view was much better. Calcifer yelled words of encouragement to them until Howl finally flashed him a look more furious than the fire demon had ever seen.

Half-way up, Sophie glanced down and immediately regretted it. She yelped and froze. Howl noticed her legs quivering. He knew better than to look down. If he did, he'd be as useless as her, and that wouldn't do them any good. He had to be the strong one. "Keep looking at the goal. We're almost there," Howl said finishing with a deep breath. He walked closer to her and began gently pushing her forward, holding onto her waist. She regained some courage after a few more feet of incline, and Howl was able to let go.

They both were panting as they stopped at the final part of the trail, which seemed to go almost straight up. There were a few strategic rocks that could be used to get to the flat part of the stone. It would only be a few more yards of climbing, and then the cave would be visible. Howl knew that they were by no means sneaking up on him. He probably heard there coming for a long time, so Howl needed to be prepared.

Sophie caught Howl's eyes and, for the first time, had a look of real fear. She shook her head at him and mouthed, "I can't!"

Howl sighed. They were not going to turn back now. "I'll tell you where to put your feet and hands, and I'll push you up. You can do this," Howl said firmly.

Sophie held her basked up limply, as if to ask what she should do with it.

"Why did you bring that thing?" Howl exclaimed.

Sophie mouthed back as if it was obvious, "The gift!"

Howl rolled his eyes and had to hold his head. This was neither the time nor place to argue the uselessness of this idea. He took the basked from her and pointed out where to put her hands and feet to begin the ascent.

It was a very slow climb. Howl pushed Sophie up far more than he expected, though he would take any excuse to touch her rear. He had to close his eyes at certain points because it was too easy to see how far up they were. This was the worst thing to go through as someone afraid of heights. Eventually, the landing part of the stone was within reach, and Howl pushed Sophie up over the edge.

She lied down, exhausted but happy to be on something solid and flat, where gravity was a friend rather than foe. Howl crawled up onto the granite platform, but he pushed himself up to standing position. Right away, he inspected the area for any sign of the Hermit.

A person definitely lived here. There was a large cave that contained a makeshift bed of animal skins and natural fibers. Clay pots were littered around the area along with a lot of twig furniture. Strings were hung around carrying something like a cave-man's laundry. A black spot with ash and bits of wood was the center of the area. The cave was cut out of the rock, like a book removed from the shelf only sideways, and there was plenty of shade from the sun. To both of their surprise, a brood of hens roamed about silently.

Howl bent over to help Sophie stand. Howl said, "Well, it appears we beat him home. While we wait, we can plan accordingly to how we should approach the situation – "

A sharp tip dug into his neck. Howl eyed to the direction it came from. A bald man with a foot-long, brown bristly beard held a spear. He had a fierce expression and said with a raspy voice, "Who are you – what are you doing here?"

Howl held his hands up and slowly turned to face the Hermit. He was thinner than Howl had last seen him, but his muscles could be seen clearly. He wouldn't be easy to take down, but it was possible with a bit of maneuvering and surprise.

"Good afternoon. I am Howl Pendragon, and this is Sophie Hatter. We made this arduous journey in order to request you remove a curse. We brought payment," Howl said, shifting his eyes to the basket he held. He glanced back at Sophie, whose eyebrows creased slightly. If she was worried about the phrasing of the gold bag, then she had better things to think about.

The Hermit slowly took the basket from Howl and placed it on the stone floor. Then he kicked it over with his foot, and the gold bag tumbled to the basket opening. The Hermit never took the spear away from Howl.

The Hermit's eyes stared back at Howl as he said, "I don't do magic."

"I know we are completely in the wrong by invading your private domain, but it is a very serious issue. And you are the only one, probably anywhere in the universe, that can cure her."

The Hermit shifted his glance to Sophie. "What's wrong with you?" he asked, his raspy voice becoming clearer as he talked.

Sophie held her hands up helplessly and tried to talk. "As you can see," Howl explained, "she cursed away her voice. Her gift is similar to yours. I've tried every counter-curse possible, but she still can't talk."

The Hermit loosened his stand, and he took away his spear from Howl's neck. Howl rubbed his neck and checked for blood. There was none, but it still hurt miserably.

"If your magic is like mine," the Hermit began, talking to Sophie, "then you're better off silent."

Sophie frowned, very clearly not liking his answer. She smacked the back of her hand into her palm, as if she was ready to give a lecture to a misbehaving child. She mouthed the words clearly, "No! Fix me!" A few seconds later, she added another word, and Howl guessed it looked like "please."

The Hermit seemed unfazed by her strong reaction. He pulled his staff close to himself and started to use it like a cane. "You're lucky," he said, a bit smugly. "I always tried to curse myself silent, but my magic doesn't work on myself. I am nature's perfect flaw. I can affect everything else, but not myself."

He paused, taking a new notice to Howl. "You… we've met before."

Howl straightened himself and said commandingly, "That's right. I was Mrs. Pentstemon's, God rest her soul, apprentice when you went to ask for her help."

The Hermit scoffed and gave Howl a look of satisfaction. "Yeah, I remember you. I can see my barrier negated all your magic." He turned to Sophie and asked, "He's usually very fancy?"

Sophie nodded assuredly in agreement. The Hermit looked back to Howl and said, "Yes, I remember you now. You were something special. Because I remember I expected her to be retired, but she continued on for you." He looked back to Sophie, saying, "And even you couldn't remove her curse." He seemed to think on the situation, and Howl wondered maybe Sophie's trust had not been misplaced. Maybe there was no need to resort to violence.

"I think this is something nature has decreed for you. It will only happen again. Man was not built with a brain faster than the tongue, and therefore trouble only follows magic-folk such as ourselves. That is why I came here. There was no one left to cure me of my own curse. That was when I realized that if it was a means of survival, then I would need to change my environment since I couldn't change myself. Living all these years off the land and with the ability to say what I need to say, I've found peace. In that peace, I realized that we are not meant to be. Humanity cannot handle such a gift. It only results in violence and pain-ugh!"

After Howl understood that the Hermit would not comply, he had been waiting through his absurd soliloquy for a moment to strike. As soon as Howl saw the Hermit's eyes gaze to the sky in some sort of religious awakening, he kicked him in the shins and grabbed the spear.

The Hermit didn't let go so easily, and Howl kicked again to pull it away. They both were yanking on the spear so hard that the spear rolled away, and they both fell on their backs. From that point, it devolved into a schoolyard brawl. Occasionally, the chickens yelped as the men collided nearby them. At last, Howl was able to crawl away, reached for the spear with his outstretched fingers, and rolled it into his hand.

Another tussle occurred, but Howl gained the upper hand. Howl ended up kneeling behind the Hermit with the spear's wooden stick in both hands, pulling it against the Hermit's throat. The lower half of the Hermit's body was lying on the floor while his arms flailed, attacking Howl's head. Howl didn't flinch as he was pulled and scratched; he only pulled the spear tighter against the Hermit's throat. "I'm not leaving until you cure her!" Howl said, more intensely than he had meant.

"Yes," the Hermit's choked voice said. "Yes, yes, I will," he said again as Howl loosened the spear away from the Hermit's neck.

The Hermit said a bit sheepishly, "I-I might have needed that." Howl was surprised by his words. This man is a certified lunatic, Howl thought. The Hermit continued, "We'll have to leave the cave and go back into the forest. That's where my magic begins to work again."

Howl agreed but kept a tight hold on the spear. Sophie gave him such a loving stare that Howl couldn't help but smile back at her. They both were surprised at how nimbly the Hermit made his way down the steep trail. He made it look so simple. The two of them practically slid down with their eyes shut. Neither of them made any indication to look farther than their feet as the made the rest of the way down.

The Hermit met them at the area where the granite stone ended and forest floor began. His arms were crossed, and he appeared irritated. Calcifer was hovering above the trees, and Howl wondered if the Hermit even noticed him.

Howl and Sophie crossed the anti-magic barrier back into the regular world. The Hermit hesitated, but Howl threatened him with the spear. He took a deep breath then passed over. He glared at Sophie for a second, then asked, "Her name?"

"Sophie Hatter," Howl replied, his spear still pointing in the Hermit's direction.

"Sophie Hatter's curse is removed. She can talk the same as she did before the curse."

No sooner had he said it did he move himself back to the granite stone face.

"There, I've done what you wanted," he said with a growl.

"Can I-?" Sophie asked hesitantly. "Yes! I can! I can talk again!" Her eyes welled with tears, and she ran to embrace Howl. She heaved her body as if she let out a terrible cry, then calmed herself down. She separated herself from Howl and wiped her eyes quickly. "I apologize. I'm a bit emotional. Thank you," she said, directly to the Hermit. "Thank you very much. I'm truly indebted to you. If you ever need anything, please come find me in the moving castle-""

"Wonderful, you can talk again darling," Howl interrupted. He put his arm around her shoulders and pulled her back towards the forest trail. "Well, we must be going. Thank you, and keep the gold – and the basket. "

"Don't come back," was all the Hermit said before he turned away and began climbing back to his cave.

Sophie looked as if she could fly, she was so happy. She practically danced and chattered the whole way back to the inn.

Howl had instructed Calcifer to get them a carriage from Fanny and to have it meet them at the inn. He hoped that it would take them long enough for Howl and Sophie to get a room.

There wasn't much else they could do, as all of Howl's spells packets were neutralized. He could conjure up a wind to take them home, but Sophie needed the time to release all the pressure she'd been containing the whole time. Howl didn't realize that one small woman could produce so many words.

Eventually she ran out of things to say. Sophie walked next to Howl and wrapped her arm around his. "I've been meaning to tell you, I like you better with dark hair."

"You do? Well, I wouldn't have picked this color," Howl said dismally.

"You look fine without your spells! You look just as handsome and charming as before," she said sweetly.

"Ugh, don't look at me. I'm as ugly as ever," Howl exclaimed, only partially joking.

"Oh, you're so dramatic! That's what I've wanted to say every day to you: You are so dramatic!" Sophie laughed.

"Drama is part of the crucial conflict of life. We're given emotions, why not feel them?" Howl said rather seriously.

Sophie rolled her eyes and squeezed his arm.

They were almost to the road of the inn as the forest started to clear. Howl stopped in his tracks, thinking about Sophie's words. He could at least improve upon his appearance a bit. He touched his worn grey suit and transformed it back to the fresh, dark blue suit. After, he applied a temporary dye spell he learned for emergencies like this. The only thing he couldn't fix was his face, but if Sophie didn't mind, he could survive the next couple of hours.

It was hard for Sophie to pause longer than a minute, and she talked to him as he performed the spells. "I have wanted to confess to you about something," she said rather serious.

"Did you burn the rest of my clothes?" Howl asked checking his suit for any remaining tears, "Or did you flush all my spell packets in the bathroom down the drain?"

"Oh! You haven't done anything bad to deserve that. No, it was me. I went snooping where I wasn't supposed to and … I'm afraid I stumbled on something private."

Howl paused to think of the incantation for the dyeing spell, then said, "Ah, was that when you looked like you found a ghost? I bet you picked out the red book at the top."

"I did," Sophie said miserably. "I feel very foolish."

Howl began to laugh. "You must have looked at every page, for how long you stayed up there."

"I did!" Sophie wailed again, but a grin was slowly creeping on her face.

While Howl's hair turned several shades darker, Howl appeared lost in his memories. "My sister gave me that when I went off to college. I thought to myself when I went through it, 'She had to pick the worst pictures.'"

"Oh, not to me. I liked them all," Sophie said.

Howl found himself hugging her close and said, "And that's why, cariad, I love you more than anything."

It would seem the end of the tale of how they fell in love has arrived. However, nothing ever ends so simply.

The innkeeper welcomed them in, though she did make a funny face at Howl's changed appearance. "Mr. and Mrs. Tiggles?" she questioned.

"Yes, that's us!" Sophie said cheerily. "We're having a carriage come by and pick us up, but in the meantime, could we sit and have some water, or whatever drinks you have available. Also, what type of food do you serve here?"

Howl was momentarily surprised by Sophie's voice. Of course she could talk now, he must have heard her speak 10,000 words. But it was only just now did he realize everything was back to normal. This curse could have easily ruined their future, but Howl was glad they worked together to reach the other side. It was a wonderful feeling knowing that the rest of their lives were ahead of them.

They waited inside at a table while the innkeeper fetched their food. As soon as she emerged from the back Howl stood up to talk to her privately. To Sophie, he made up some excuse about changing his order. He had a feeling if he surprised her by getting a room, she would be more accepting of it.

"Yes, I put in your order so it should be coming out in a bit," the innkeeper said without prompt.

"Actually, we were wondering if we could stay in a room for the afternoon. She's had quite a time these past few days, and I think a bed to rest in would lift her spirits."

The innkeeper didn't need to hear an excuse to sell a room. She was quite pleased to get the business. It took her a bit of rummaging to get the right key, but she found it at last. As Howl turned around with a grin to sit back at the table, planning on what he would say to convince Sophie to come with him to the room, she was gone.

A/N - Thank you for continuing to read! One more chapter left! I have thought of making a sequel or even a one-shot (but it would probably be rated M because that is just who I am haha). The problem is I don't have a lot of time, especially now it's July so my slow month is over. That being said, if you really enjoyed my writing and would like to me to write more, please consider going to my twitter KapranosMrs to find out how to support me.

Thank you for reading, I'm so glad I can share this with other fans of Howl's Moving Castle.

-small update 7.17.21- I am so busy suddenly so I'm getting this last chapter out very slowly. In the meantime, please check my twitter for updates.