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FAMILY SECRETS

A HOWL'S MOVING CASTLE FANFIC

Chapter 9

Lettie wouldn't stop until we were far away. We went through so many twists and turns that I had no idea where we were. I hated that the most about this area. I never knew where I was! It was insane! All I knew was that I was on some beautiful terrace that's all. There was all these fountains and flowers around us. With a gentle breeze that soothed me. I was suddenly no where near as angry as I was before.

"Feeling better now?"

I felt so stupid losing my cool like that. It's not like I wanted to. It was just that Howl kept pushing my buttons. "Sorry."

Lettie laughed. "Don't worry about it. Howl deserved it. He was going a bit far."

I walked over to the railing. I could see several balconies and terraces like this one laid out below. It was breathtaking. "He makes me so mad! I know that I'm impulsive and I don't think things through. I know that! It's not like he can talk. He's just as bad!"

She laughed, "Nah, he's far worse."

"You're right. He's so much worse!"

Lettie joined on the railing. "He adores you though. You know that, right?"

I closed my eyes. "I know. I love him too."

Lettie sat on the railing. "Good for a moment there I wasn't too sure."

I laughed, "Sorry. I really do love him. He's just driving me crazy lately!"

"How is that different than any other day?"

I hoisted up on the railing with he. "Good point. We really do fight a lot."

Lettie looked off towards the setting. "It can't be easy living with 'Horrible Howl.' It makes sense that get frustrated every-so-often."

"I really do love him, you know."

"I know." We were quiet for quite some time then Lettie added. "Y'know you really should ease up on him. Howl may not look it, but he's worried sick. This whole business with that letter really got him spooked. I've never seen him this desperate. He practically begged Suliman for help. He never does that. Howl prefers to work alone. He might assist others but he never asks for help. He's not the type."

That surprised me. I never thought of Howl that way before. He always asks me for help. "He asks me for help."

Lettie chuckled. "You're different."

I truly didn't understand what she was talking about. "How am I different?"

"You're his wife!"

"Why is that important?"

She chuckled again. I just keep saying things that were funny it seemed. "Trust me: It's always important. Especially, with men. They have a thing about their pride. It's so easy to wound. You should be more careful."

It seemed that there were aspects of Howl that I still just didn't understand. Not that this was new. When I first came to live at his castle Howl resisted my efforts to clean for him. If it wasn't for the delicate balance that we developed then we might have killed each other! Eventually, Howl seemed more willing to accept my help. He even worked with me to defeat . Maybe what Lettie said had merits.

"I see. Then I'll have to apologize to him later."

"Good." She paused a moment then hesitantly, "About the letter . . . Sophie, may I see it?"

I handed her the letter. "Of course."

"Thanks." She opened up the letter then read. I studied her face as she read. I waited to see if she agreed with me on it's authenticity. If anyone would know if this was father's hand then it was Lettie. "My god. How in the world did he write this? How could he know about Howl or your son? It doesn't make sense!"

I nodded. "I know. Nothing about that letter makes any sense. It seems real to me, but it leaves a lot of unanswered questions: How did father write this? How did he know about Howl? Why does this letter contain a spell? How did he get it past Howl's defenses? Most people can't do that! Let alone dead people! Nothing makes sense! Oh, Lettie I just don't know."

She pushed off the railing. "Now, I understand why Howl is so spooked. He doesn't know either."

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