Howl
With less than an 5 minutes before they got to the mountain where Howl had trained as a boy, Howl and Sophie had to get ready. Howl had no doors in the village that lay at the foot of the mountain, beside the forest, so they would have to fly in. Sophie kept staring out the window, the forest and mountain were in view and Howl knew she was anxious, he was too, but they had to believe in The FireWalker to keep themselves sane. If Bronté was dead, Sophie would probably have a mental breakdown. If Bronté was dead, Howl would kill Suliman with his own two hands.
"It's time" Howl spoke, Sophie snapped out of her daze, and turned to him, her face was serious and there was a sense of anger in it.
"yeah" she said, Howl nodded and they made their way to the door. She opened it and grabbed on to Howl. He transformed and took off, leaving Markl to take care of the castle. The wind was harsh and the sun was just about to rise. The light shone onto them, and they watched it together. Howl looked down at Sophie and she was smiling, "it's beautiful, huh?", he smiled,
"yeah" Howl muttered back, "we'll get her back. I promise". Sophie still smiled and nodded.
"I want to finish this", he sighed,
"we all want to finish this, but in the right way". Sophie's hands balled into fists and tears were streaming down her eyes, she looked angry,
"I want to kill her. I want to rip her apart for stealing our daughter and ruining our chances of being parents" she hissed. Howl sadly smiled and grabbed her hand, before kissing it. She relaxed,
"I know, but we are still young and will have another chance once this is over" he said. Sophie blushed, but nodded.
They landed just outside the forest, Howl put Sophie down
"Let's go" he told her, she nodded, "stay close, the animals in this forest aren't the friendliest" Sophie understood and trailed behind him as they entered the forest of his childhood.
It was just as how Howl remembered; quiet and lonely. He was guessing that Bronté had to be hiding somewhere off the path, so it was no use keeping to it. He was praying inside that she was with The Fire Walker. He used to hear stories about him when Howl was only a boy and am wondering how old he is now.
He grabbed on to Sophie's hand,
"we're going to have to stray from the path. Do not let go of my hand, people have gone missing in these forests and have never been seen again. It's not for the normal person" he said. Sophie nodded and gripped his hand with both of her hands,
"lead the way" she said. Howl nodded and led them away from the path. To be honest, Howl had actually no idea where they should be going. They may run into some of Suliman's men or, if they are extremely lucky, they may run into Bronté herself.
They moved further and further away from the path, the forest grew darker as they went in deeper and the scenery around them continuously looked the same, it was to be expected. Noises were all around them, but when ever Howl looked back at Sophie her facial expression never changed. He expected her to have a little fear in her eyes but it was always serious and, in a way, full of anger.
He remembered when Bronté was meant to be 7 and Sophie had tried to sneak out to see her.
(flashback)
7 years had passed and not a day went by when Hosl and Sophie didn't miss their daughter. Suliman had been on their trail lately, but never seemed to attack. She came after them a year after they gave her away and they told her that she had died, but Suliman didn't believe and has been searching of any source of power since.
Today was supposed to be their daughter's 7th birthday, and again they couldn't celebrate it with her. When it was her birthday Howl used to create a single star for the occasion, and cast it off into the sky. One day it would become a constellation and he would name it after her.
That night, Howl woke up and found Sophie missing. He sighed, knowing her too well and what she was up to. He left the bedroom and quietly moved downstairs. He could see candle light and followed it.
Howl found Sophie in front of the door, while Calcifer was trying to tell her it wasn't such a good idea,
"well, what would you have me do? I have spent 7 years without my daughter and I just want to see her, I won't go in, I'll just look through the window" she said. He sighed and walked up to her, putting his arms around her. She jumped, "Howl? How long have you been there?" she asked,
"long enough?" Howl replied. They stayed silence for a while, Sophie still facing the door,
"I want to see her" she said, Howl nodded and kissed her neck,
"I know, I do too" he whispered,
"we don't know her name or what she even looks like. If you were listening to what I said then you would know that I only want to look through the window". He buried his face into her neck,
"I'm sorry, Sophie, I can let you do that" he said before picking her up. Sophie thrashed around in his arms and cried,
"Howl, put me down" she cried. As much as he wanted to, it was too dangerous. Calcifer watched them as Howl carried Sophie to a chair and sat on it with her on his lap. She continued to cry,
"I'm sorry Sophie, but it is too dangerous. Suliman's men are always watching us and if we suddenly go out on the night of our daughters birth, they're going to be suspicious. We'll have her soon, I promise. We're half way there." Howl said trying to comfort her. He knew Sophie understood but it still had to be hard, he was close to breaking inside. Then Calcifer said something,
"I know it's hard Sophie, but just think about what it will be like when everything is over. You have done so well so far" he said. Sophie calmed down and whipped her tears away, sniffing.
"yeah, I'm okay now" she said, getting off Howl's lap and walking upstairs. The witch of the waste was at the top and pulled Sophie into a hug and they walked off. Howl turned to Calcifer,
"where is Suliman at the moment?" he asked,
"She is still following us, and she has been getting closer. She must have thought that we would go see the kid" he said. He nodded,
"thank you Calcifer." he said before going back to bed. Howl knew they couldn't use the teleporting door because Suliman would be able to sense the use of magic, it was hopeless.
(flashback ended)
Thinking about that time, Howl realise Sophie has grown so much stronger. She got through 14 and 3/4 years without her own flesh and blood, her child that she gave birth to but was forced to give up straight away.
He snapped out of his daze when he heard a twig snap. He turned to Sophie and pulled her into a bush, gesturing to keep quiet. She nodded and they looked out to see who was coming,
"I'm telling you, that brat has disappeared. We have searched this forest for days and still nothing" came a voice. Two of Suliman's men came from behind a tree and walked right past them,
"shut up" said the other man, "if Suliman hears you say that it won't end pretty for you. She'll throw you into the darkest parts of the forest where no one has ever escaped. No one knows the route, apart from the Fire Walker and a few others".
Howl turned to Sophie and he knew that she knew what he was thinking, they shared the same look and nodded. The Fire Walker had to be there, which means that Bronté could be there too. The men continued on past them and vanished.
They moved out of the bush and looked at each other,
"Bronté has to there" said Sophie. Howl nodded and grabbed her hand and continued on walking, "but what are we going to do. Those men said that only a few others know the route". He smiled and squeezed her hand gently,
"good thing I know the route then" he said. Howl heard her giggle,
"of course, you were here during you childhood, weren't you" she said smiling.
Bronté
The silence around the forest was nice. Bronté missed her parents but it wasn't so bad. She told Sam about her life up until she walked through the door to her home at Ariana and Alex's place and saw her real parents. He listened to every detail and shares a few stories about the old Fire Walker.
Sam told me that this hut was one of the hardest places to find, most people got lost and never made it out. The thought of that scared Bronté a bit, she felt like she was trapped and if she tried to escape, she would be lost forever. Sam reassures her that he would never let that happen, but still.
Occasionally, Bronté and Sam would go out to hunt or to just go for a walk. He told her that only a few people, including himself, knew the way around this part of the forest. His predecessor taught him, and he wanted to teach his successor as well.
"Do you know who the other people are?" she asked. Bronté was concerned about whether Suliman also knew the way around the forest and was just stalling for time to make her feel like she was safe when she wasn't.
"Sadly no" Sam replied, "however, the old man used to get visitors a few times a year."
They continued on with their walk,
"so, what was that man like, other than being like a father and the old Fire Walker?" Bronté asked. Sam looked at her and smiled a bit,
"he was the type of person you would never see give up. He was determined to help people and be a symbol. He was obsessed with the stories he heard about the Phoenix and told me them too. He occasionally rescued children who's parents suffered the same fate that mine did, but he gave them new homes and made sure they were loved." he said.
Bronté smiled gently, "he sounds like a very kind person, one you wouldn't usually meet. Do you remember anything about you parents?" she asked. Sam bit his lip and she felt like she asked the wrong question, but he answered
"no, I don't. However, the old man told me that the day he found me, I was being protected by my mothers corpse" he said, it made Bronté frown, "apparently I strayed from the path myself and encountered a deer. It charged at me, but my parents got to me just in time before I was hit. They were killed but I wasn't. The old man watched all that happened and often told me how sorry he was that he couldn't save my parents" his eyes grew sad and Bronté felt guilty for asking, but he stopped walking and fully turned to her, "that is why I believe that your parents are going to come for you for sure, because parents always come after their child, and I will protect you until they come".
Bronté smiled and gently hugged him, receiving a hug in return, "thank you" she said, he nodded,
"always". I sighed and pulled away,
"right, shall we head back, it's getting dark after all" she said. Sam nodded and realised that she was right, it was getting dark and he didn't realise it. Bronté followed Sam back to the hut and by the time they got back it was completely dark. He opened the door for her and let her in. They hung their coats up before sitting down on the sofa. Bronté hugged her knees and looked sad,
"what's wrong?" Sam asked her, Bronté's eyes were full of sadness and fear,
"you say that you think my parents will come for me, but I'm just wondering if their going to be too late. I have no idea how long I have left before Suliman burns down this forest to get to me, she could be on the move right now and I have no idea. I don't want to hurt a town and ruin everything, I just want to go home." she said. Sam sighed and put his arms around her, making her blush,
"okay, say you're right. I have only known you for a while and I know you are strong, you will find a way to get out of this mess. I understand you can't just talk things through with her but there has to be a way to stop her. Your parents will come in time and if they don't, like I said, I will be here to protect you, even if you don't need it." he said, kissing her lightly on the forehead,
"mmm" she hummed, not in agreement or disagreement.
"come on, bed. You take the bed and I'll take the sofa" he said, Bronté pouted,
"but I took the bed last night, you take it" she said, Sam laughed,
"are we really going to argue over thing? Please, just take the bed", Bronté huffed and surrendered before going off to bed.
The morning shone bright in the dark forest, and it made a difference. Bronté woke up feeling refreshed and walked out of the bedroom to find Sam awake and making breakfast. It wasn't an eventful afternoon and Bronté wanted to make sure she got the most out of it before Suliman came for her.
It wasn't until noon when they heard a knock at the door. They both exchanged looks of shock, expecting it to be Suliman's men,
"Bronté, go hide in the bedroom" Sam told her. As much as Bronté didn't like that idea, she obeyed. Sam grabbed one of the knives from the kitchen and placed it ready before opening the door,
"Hi Sa-ahhh!" screamed a young man. A man about Sam's height and had brown hair. His eyes were green and he had pale skin and a kind face which was currently in the expression of mortal horror. Sam literally almost stabbed his friend through the chest,
"Jesus christ Miles, what the hell are you doing here?" Sam asked. Bronté could tell that it wasn't one of Suliman's men and peered round the corner to see who it was,
"well, this is a way to greet a friend that you haven't seen for weeks. I didn't know you hated me that much to try and stab me" he said. Sam sighed and turned to Bronté,
"Bronté, you can come out now" he called. The young man, Miles, frowned and looked into the direction Sam was looking. Bronté came out from behind the corner. She could see Miles' mouth drop and he whistles,
"wow, Sam, you've got a looker there. Where did you find her?" he asked. Bronté huffed and walked away, Sam sighed,
"I rescued her. Try not to say stuff like that okay, she doesn't like it" he said.
"But why? She's hot" Miles complained. Sam pitched the bridge of his nose,
"what do you want?" he asked. Miles smiled,
"I came to see my best friend, but I see you already have company" he said in a sly voice that sounded perverted. Sam almost choked,
"no way man, she's 14, I would never do that!" he nearly shouted, Miles' jaw near dropped,
"she's 14!? No way, she can't be. When I was 14 I have spots from hell." he said rubbing his face.
"Well she is. Now go away" Sam said, shutting the door, but it was stopped by Miles' foot,
"now, now. I won't cause any trouble. I came all this way to say hi" Miles said. Sam's expression was plain,
"Hi" he said before trying to close the door harder.
"Please Sam, I had to sneak past some weird men to get here" he said. And with that, Sam froze. He flung the door open and grabbed the collar of his friend before pushing his against the wall,
"you weren't followed, were you?" Sam asked in a death voice. Miles began to sweat, but shook his head,
"no, I wasn't. I promise" he begged for his life. Sam let go and Miles straightened his shirt, "okay, so what the hell was that about?" he asked, watching Sam close the door. Sam sighed,
"those men are after Bronté" he said. Miles' jaw dropped again,
"her!?" he pointed to the corner, "but she's 14, what the fuck did she do to get that many soldiers looking for her? Kill someone?"
"Sshhhhhh!" Sam hushed, "do you ever shut up? No, she didn't kill someone. Look just sit down and I'll explain everything, but only if Bronté wants me to"
Miles nodded and they went over to the sofa to discuss what was going on.
Oh my god, I am so sorry. I have updated in a year and I feel so guilty. However, as you can see, my writing style and improved. I have introduced a new character, Miles, and he's a bit of a funny one. I will be using him quite a lot later in the story.
I would like to thank -
afraidofspiders, RedTears14, Shiori Kudo, PearlMay13TigerSweets, Iname Kohaki, lilkathra and Akira Delandy
For reviewing. I know I don't deserve reviews but I am planning to update more frequently now. This time I won't leave you guys hanging for a year, I promise. And if I do, you guys can throw flaming torches at me, deal?
Well, until next time.