Another chapter of the tale of mystery.

FAMILY SECRETS

A HOWL'S MOVING CASTLE FANFIC

Chapter 8

I was kind of excited to go see Suliman. He had been the dog who protected me while I was cursed. He was one of the two the court wizards for the King of Ignary and my sister's teacher. In other words, generally a good guy. I was also excited to see my sister again. It had already been too long. Then again Lettie was still in training and I had young son to care for. We just didn't get to spend as much time together anymore. This was a great excuse to do that. Even if the circumstances weren't ideal. So, I packed up Arthur then accompanied Howl to the castle.

Visiting the castle with Howl along really sped things up. He had a portal right in Kingsbury. From there Howl flew us the rest of the way. Which quieted down Arthur for a bit. Making the next bit a little easier. Getting shuffled around from room to room was both confusing and annoying. The last thing that I needed was Arthur to wake up in the middle of it and start crying. Personally, I would have preferred not to have taken Arthur, but I didn't know where to take him. Martha was out of town at the moment and Fanny was angry at us. I couldn't trust just anyone to handle him. He hadn't shown it yet, but he was certain to develop powers. Magic was in his blood. Not everyone could care for him.

So, I did everything that I could to keep Arthur quiet during our conversation. Luckily, Arthur remained fairly quiet. He was still a little sleepy. Personally, I wondered if Howl had placed a sleeping spell upon him. It was rare for Arthur to be this quiet and this peaceful after waking up from a nap early. It was so convenient that I strongly suspected it. It annoyed me slightly. I preferred that my husband not cast any spells on our son. One shouldn't simply cast a spell on your child willy-nilly. That was more damaging than anything else. If the situation wasn't so dire then I would have complained. I would have forced him to remove the spell. As is, it was important that Arthur stay quiet. So I let it pass. Instead, I tried to remain focused on what they were saying:

"Hmm . . . That is a unique ability that you have there Sophie. Not all wizards can develop it. Even with training it is still pretty dangerous. One's tether can snap easily. Most do not want this power. It is often finicky and unreliable. Personally, I'd rather avoid the whole area. Prediction, Soul Walking, traveling through space and time, all of it is extremely dangerous." He looked at directly, "To attempt it as a novice would be suicide! You have almost no magical training to speak of. You have talent, yes, but that does not make up for it. It would crush you like a bug!"

I didn't like what he insinuating. Sure, I had no great power. Just some latent abilities such as talking life into things and this new soul walking thing. That didn't matter. I could do this. I already had! I just needed his help to make it a little easier. That's all. I didn't need a lecture about my deficiencies.

I was going to say something when Howl intervened, "Ben, Sophie is strong. She can handle it. I wouldn't have brought her here otherwise." He looked back at me then gave me a look that did not fill me up with confidence. He was going to say something that I was not going to like. "Besides, if you don't help her then she'll try on her own anyway. That's far more dangerous. Don't worry, I can act as her tether. I just need your help to guide her."

I closed my eyes. There it was. He just accused me of being reckless. Again! This is the man who gave his heart to a demon. Who also adores that thing he calls a car. Which is the most terrifying thing that I have seen! Well, short of flying, that is. He really loves that. He goes about town acting like a maniac! He's also been known to pick fights with demons and witches. How dare he call me reckless! That's like the pot calling the kettle black! It's stupid. Maybe he should look in a mirror. Then get back to me about recklessness.

Lettie tried to smooth things over. "Now, now, surely, you don't mean that Sophie is reckless. She's just a little impulsive at times, right?"

"No, I mean that she's reckless." Howl said flaty.

Idiot. I am so going to kill you when we get home. I might even kill you now. I don't know. Just keep talking Howl. See how far you can push me! Just keep talking!

"She'll try this on her own without us. She won't give it up. God knows I've tried to convince her to stop. This letter is provably a fake. Although the spell is very real. Personally, I would rather that she stay away from it. Alas, that's not going to happen. Sophie will try again. It would be so much better if we helped her."

That's it. I've decided to kill my husband here and now. Consequences be damned! That was a complete one 180 from what he said before. He never said that he thought that the letter was fake! Or that he didn't believe me! Hell, he's the one who suggested that father was cursed to death! Now, he's saying that it's all in my head? I'll kill him! I'll make sure that I kill slowly so that I'll enjoy it.

Suliman grunted. "I see what you mean. She is impulsive. Look at her. She looks like she's ready to kill you."

Howl nodded sagely, "Oh she is. She is."

I felt a headache coming on. My husband apparently wasn't as dense as he appeared. Not that it made it any better. That means he intentionally did it to piss me off! That so did not make it better! I was going to kill him.

My son woke up and started to cry. The spell must have worn off or my temper broke him out of it. I had to quiet down my son. I cooed, "Shh, it's okay. Mommy didn't mean it. She didn't. Mommy only wants to kill daddy a little."

Suliman seemed more than a little uncomfortable. "Alright then. I will help you. We'll try tomorrow morning. I'll ask the King to prepare rooms for you in the meantime."

With that the Wizard Suliman tried to get up and leave the room. He wanted to leave me to yell at my husband in private. That is assuming that Lettie allowed me rip him apart. She stole Arthur then handed him to Howl. Who looked mildly surprised. "Come on Sophie, let's go for a walk. I'm sure that you boys can find something to do in the meantime, can't you?" She dared them to argue as she whisked me away.

Next Chapter coming up!