Howl and Vate's Journal

[Thaliawen]

A cackling laughter came from the living room that made the hair on Zee's neck prickle. He had never heard anything like it. He decided to risk poking his head in to see what the matter was. Calcifer was laughing from his usual roost in the fireplace. The dark elf wasn't able to see what the fire demon found so amusing from where he was standing.

He stepped into the living room, and made his way towards the couch. He paused; a very annoyed black kitten was glaring at the hearth. Its fur was bristled, its tail was fluffed out to make it look like a strangely colored squirrel. Its mouth was opened in a hiss, revealing tiny white points. "Shut up!" it snapped in a high pitched, wispy voice one might have expected a kitten to have. "This is just what I need! Don't you dare tell Sophie!" The kitten looked over its shoulder and noticed its ruffled fur. It promptly started to smooth it.

Calcifer seemed to have noticed Zee, though the firedemon seemed much too busy picking on the kitten to greet him. Then again, Calcifer never did greet anyone. The kitten's worry over its fur seemed to amuse him further. "I told you not to," he taunted. "Your vanity has finally cornered you; at least it suits you as a cat."

"Shut up!" the kitten hissed again. It didn't dare go any closer to the fire place lest it get burnt. "Turn me back."

Calcifer ignored him and glanced at Zee. He winked one fiery eye. "I seem to believe someone telling me not to speak," he said. "If I respond with my usual scorn, my great and powerful master will attempt to put me out." The fire demon paused, allowing Zee enough time to realize that this strange, talking kitten was his son.

"I'm going to put you out as soon as you turn me back!" Howl hissed furiously.

"No, then."

"Calcifer!" wailed the kitten.

"Think of me as your mentor," Calcifer instructed the wizard, looking to Zee again. It seemed even Calcifer understood the authority parents had over their children--even if said child was the greatest wizard in another world, not to mention full grown. When Zee nodded his assent, he continued. "Think of this as an exercise. Unlike an apprentice, you already have the answer to the problem you are facing. Somewhere in your memories is the counter spell. Find it, and you will return to your original form. Well, not your original form," the fire demon said as an afterthought, unable to resist taunting him. "Your current usual form."

"Calcifer! Turn me back this instant!"

The fire demon fizzed with laughter, taking one of the logs Zee had so considerately put on the hearth for him. "No," he said smugly. "This is a good lesson in humility."

The wizard turned kitten seemed to sulk. "I refuse to remain a kitten until my memory returns," he hissed.

"Now you know how Sophie felt after you turned her into a cat," Calcifer teased. Oh, he had hated being a flying carpet. Now was his chance to tease the wizard who had caught him as a dying star; now was his chance to have the upper hand.

"That's not fair!" Howl wailed. "I had to, she knows that! I had it much worse than she did!"

Calcifer argued out that while Howl thought he might have had it worse, being trapped in a bottle and forced to grant wishes, being a magic carpet and forced to carry people and a cat that had stuck its claws into him, not to mention an extremely loud infant had been much worse. Neither of them seemed to take into consideration what the other had felt at the time.

There was a pause, in which Devin entered the room. The golden eyed toddler took one look at Howl and gave a squeal of delight. "Kitty!" he cried, hurrying to it. It was Howl's unfortunate fate that he was unable to dash under the coffee table before he felt a hand close around his tail. It wasn't Devin's fault, not really. The toddler was still learning how to treat animals. "Hi Kitty! Why Kitty all mad?"

Howl was hissing like mad, trying to avoid scratching his younger brother. He really didn't want to end up like their sister Ginger and called a dragon for the rest of his life. "Devin, get off!" he hissed. Unfortunately, the toddler was so astonished to learn that kitties really could talk that he didn't comprehend what his brother said. With a hastily muttered spell, there sat a messy haired wizard with wrinkled clothes.

"...Kitty gone?" Devin looked around the room, to see if the kitty had run and hid somewhere. "Where kitty?"

"There," Calcifer said. "See? With the right motivation, you'll be able to remember every spell."

"...Thank your lucky stars you possess my heart," Howl muttered. "If you didn't, you know I'd--"

"Put me out? Turn me to cinders? Stomp on me until I was mere sparks? You'd miss me."  

[Sunflower-Seeds]

Within a envelope with a butterfly print, there rested a letter, written by a young girl with wings of sparkling silver and hair the color of soft lilac. Her heart was aching, a deep pain that went through her heart and settled in her bones like cold seeping through the cracks in the winter.

It wasn't because of how she felt towards the young wizard, no. It was because she had seen the evils of the world, and knew that as she was, she could do nothing about it.

The letter brings a small smile to her demeanor, the first in countless days, and perhaps it's the beginning of more smiles to come.

With a tender touch, she she gave the letter to the mail carrier, and with it, a wish. That her letter safely reaches the hands of her dear friend, and that they would meet again soon.

 

[Thaliawen]

Taken from Miles' Journal

"I've told you, happily ever afters don't happen," said an irritated looking Miles. "Never. They never do. I can't predict one, because you aren't going to get one. There's so much more to your life what a fairytale would make you believe." Honestly, why did Howl insist on believing in fairytale endings? Wasn't he too old for this sort of thing? True, he had come from a book where fairy tales wouldn't have been out of place--but the oracle had never expected him to ask when his next happily ever after would be.

"And I've told you that I've already had one," Howl retorted. The wizard couldn't see why his useless oracle of a cousin refused to see facts. "You said our past determines our future. Certainly, if I had one before, I'll have one again." The wizard's tone was smug, but Miles thought he saw something in those blue, glassy eyes. Belief. Absolute belief. His younger cousin really thought he would be having a happily ever after.

All at once, Miles seemed to regain his patience. "Did you really, Howl? Have a happily ever after? You've said that your happily ever after was stolen from you. Meaning that technically, you didn't have one." After all, happily ever afters weren't supposed to end, were they?

Howl opened his mouth to retort, but clearly thought better of it. He glared at his older cousin with marble-like eyes. "I had one," he insisted finally. "I had one, and it was stolen from me."

"No," said Miles, and when he saw his younger cousin open his mouth to argue, continued, "you had everything that a happily ever after might include; a wife, a son, a mansion, not to mention various assets to your moving castle," he added, noticing that Howl seemed prepared to list what he had missed. "Happily ever after implies that it cannot be taken from you--and even before it was, you had difficulties keeping it. Remember the Djinn?" Miles could see that he had puzzled his cousin; and in all reality, he couldn't blame Howl. It must have been hard for him, coming to the realization that happily ever afters didn't exist.

"Happily ever after never implies that there won't be difficulties," Howl pointed out at last. "It promises happiness, and we had that."

Miles paused. Now that he couldn't argue with. "I suppose happiness could be stolen..." He hesitated. "Still; if that is what you believe happily ever after to be, you will soon have it returned to you." Finally, he could do what he did best; prophecy. Yes, his cousin would soon be happy. He was sure of it. "But," he added with a smile, "to be happy, you must first get your heart back."

"How do I do that?" Howl asked. "Get my heart back, I mean."

"It's more fun not to tell you. Besides; if I don't tell you, will you still do what the future holds for you? Or will you do something different? If I told you that you were going to make Devin cry, would you?"

Howl thought about it. "Never," he said. "You know what Devin means to me."

"There, you see? You're already fighting fate. I hope you continue to do so. It makes things... Interesting."

 

[Thaliawen]

ORP: Midnight Ball

Everyone's going to the midnight ball--but it looks like they forgot to invite Howl! No matter, he knows they didn't mean to forget him, and goes anyway.  

[Thaliawen]

Howl stared down at the homework his aunt had provided him with disbelief. She had given him an English assignment, but that wasn't what troubled him. Nor did the fact that she was grading him on a advanced scale. No, it was the question written out in his "teacher's" hand.

If one was to lose their heart, being able to live without it, would they be able to love?

If Howl hadn't been the wizard he was, and hadn't been through all he had experienced, he would have thought that this was merely a philosophical question. One with no clear answer, one that could be answered in many ways. He knew better. His aunt was trying to tell him something.

Could one love without a heart? No, certainly not. It was as simple as that. As simple as stating that a person without a brain would be unable to think. The wizard puzzled over the journal he was supposed to be writing his essay response in. With his head bent over it, he wrote;

Howell Jenkins Zulpen
English Grade Six
May 10th

Then, when nothing more came to him, he hesitated. What did his aunt expect? It was a difficult question. He decided to follow his aunt's advice. "When writing an essay," she liked to say, "always, always, restate the question." For what purpose, she had never told him. Maybe it was so the reader could understand the following essay better, or maybe it was for the benefit of the writer.

Can a person love without a heart?

The question was was written easily enough; it was answering it that was the trouble. He felt as if he should have known the answer; after all,who could say better what it was like to lack a heart than someone who already lacked one? He absentmindedly rubbed a hand against his forehead in thought.

A better question, he thought, might have been whether he loved Sophie or not, though he was without a heart. He knew that answer at least, for certain. Maybe love didn't come from the heart, not really anyway. Maybe the heart was only a small part of it. Maybe love was something that came from the entire being. Howl knew, without a doubt, evem in the books written by that strange stalker lady who had spied on them, that he had loved Sophie before she had returned his heart.

Howl smiled. He knew how to answer the puzzling question at last. He wrote one word, one three letter, important word.

Yes.  

[Thaliawen]

Another essay? Howl was growing frustrated with his aunt. True, his last essay had been less than satisfactory. Though it was also true that his aunt had humored him and given him a good grade. He looked at the sticky note Thali had placed on his journal with a sigh.

What is love in it's entirety?
(Howl, I expect more than one word this time. Write at least one paragraph on what you think love is in it's truest form. Answer it to the best of your ability, and don't say you're the embodiment of love. I know you too well, nephew.)

For someone who knew girls like he did the back of his hand, for someone who had already been married and had a son, this should have been a simple question. Or so he thought. Still, he didn't think his aunt should have assumed that he would have claimed to be love personified--alright, maybe he would have. If love wasn't him, what was it, exactly? Was it a word that could be easily defined? What did he do to make girls love him?

Howl picked up a pencil, and without bothering to head the page he flipped to, he began to write.

Love is playing a guitar when you really don't know how to play it. Love is writing poetry, giving flowers, buying expensive gifts that you can’t really afford, and kneeling on the grass to admire a girl's beauty without getting a grass stain. Love is spending at least three hours in the bathroom each morning to get ready. Love is running away from mothers, sisters and aunts when they chase after you with rolling pins.

Howl paused in his writing, and frowned slightly. That wasn't at all what love really was, he thought. If it was, love wasn't what he and Sophie had.

What was love in it's truest form?

He crossed out what he had written before, and started again. What was love?

Love is arguing about the littlest things and then laughing about it because you forget what you were arguing about. Love is going to save a life without putting anything on at all; with red-rimmed eyes and without taking a bath. Love is being honest while running like the wind. Love is turning your wife into a cat when you don't know if you'll ever see her again. Love is... The act of loving. Love is patient, love is kind...

Howl crossed out what he had written once more and sighed. Why couldn’t he write an essay on the subject? It was a simple question, really. One should have been able to answer it if they had experienced it. He used an elbow to support his head as he wrote.

I think love is indefinable. Love has many guises and ways of showing itself; it never comes about the same way. Love is a feeling between two people so strong that they never want to be apart; and when they are, magical things occur to bring them back together. It may be that love is disguising yourself as a six year old boy so you can be with your wife; even if she threatens to send you to bed without dinner. It may be that love is protecting someone with all you have--even if that includes fighting a terrifying witch and her equally if not more frightening fire demon. Love is knowing that the person you love would accept you for who you are without any kind of cosmetic magic--even if you won’t accept yourself.  

[Thaliawen]

Taken from Sammi and Reiya's Journal

"I'm bored!" It was a rainy day, and three children were sitting at the coffee table in front of the couch in the livingroom. Two of them were playing checkers rather intently; Reiya and Howl, who was visiting for the afternoon. "Let's play 'Never Have I Ever'!" Sammi was on the sidelines, watching the two take turns moving their last piece each, with increasing disinterest.

"I've never played that," Howl said, looking up from the endless game at last. "How do you play?"

"It's easy," Reiya said, looking up as well. "Someone says 'Never have I ever' and then they say something they've done or haven't done. If they've done it, they give a thumbs up. If they haven't, they do a thumbs down. Whoever gets the most points--the person who's done the most stuff, wins."

"Sounds easy," Howl agreed with his cousin. "You want to go first, Sammi?"

"Sure. Never have I ever kissed more than one person." All three thumbs were pointing downward, to the disbelief of the two girls. "Really? You've only ever kissed one person?" Sammi asked. "Or are you just counting the time you've been here?"

"Only person I've kissed is Sophie," Howl said with ease. He said it with such conviction that the twins found themselves believing him--but if it was true, how had he courted those girls? "Is it my turn now? Never have I ever eaten cold pizza for breakfast."

This time, all three thumbs were up.

"My turn," said Reiya. "Let's see. Never have I ever owned a dog." The twins' thumbs were both down, while Howl's was still pointing up. "Hey, Percival doesn't count!" Reiya grumbled. "He wasn't a real dog."

"You never said it had to be a real dog," Howl argued. "Besides, I didn't know he wasn't a dog until--" Sammi had laid a hand on his arm with a smile.

"We know, really," she said earnestly. "Let's keep playing. Never have I ever believed in fairies." The three children exchanged looks and started to laugh, before each gave a thumbs up. "Well we were right, weren't we?" Sammi continued. "Fairies do exist."

"My turn, right?" Howl asked, glancing at Reiya. "Never have I ever made a wish on a star." Again, three thumbs were pointing upwards. "Not when it's falling, though," the wizard added, quite seriously.

"No," Reiya agreed. "It's too sad to wish on a dying star. Never have I ever been creeped out by younger siblings." Reiya and Howl's thumbs both went up, while Sammi's went down. Reiya rose an eyebrow at her sister in disbelief.

"What? Kaleb's never creeped me out."

"Really? He creeps me out everyday."

"Aesica creeps me out everytime I see her," Howl admitted, almost guiltily. "But I bet Kaleb's never tried to eat you." The twins shook their heads, grinning. They had heard enough about Aesica from Howl to know he was just as afraid of her as he was the vampires his wife was staying with.

"My turn. Never have I ever broken a bone." All three thumbs went down at this. Both girls looked at their cousin curiously. "Really?" Sammi asked.

"Yes, really," Howl said, looking rather irritated. "Do you have to keep asking if I'm telling the truth?" The girls exchanged looks; while it was true that Howl was known for not being especially truthful, they had never known him to lie to them. "Never have I ever eaten lunch with royalty." Three thumbs pointed towards the ceiling. "That's right, I forgot who I was playing with," he muttered. "Your turn, Reiya."

"Never have I ever written poetry for someone," Reiya said, and was surprised to find that her thumb was the only one down. "Oooh, for who?" She asked, looking at Sammi. "A boy?" The only response she recieved was a blush. She smirked. "Matthias, or Milo?"

"Milo... I won't give it to him though, he'd laugh."

"Knew it! Miles said you guys would be good together."

"Really? He said that?"

"You guys'll be so cute!"

"Let's finish the game," Howl said, rather hurriedly. "Your turn, Sammi."

"Never have I ever seen a genie," Sammi said, trying to distract her sister from the topic of Milo. Honestly, Reiya was getting more normal by the day. "Howl, it counts if you've been one." Howl's thumb went up, with a roll of the eyes. Both girls had their thumbs turned downward. "Go on, Howl."

"Never have I ever dyed my hair." Howl's thumb stayed up, while the girls' went down. "Not even a little?" He asked in disbelief. When Sammi shook her head, he sighed. "You're just like Sophie. I don't see why people put so much value on what's natural."

"Never have I ever been in love," Reiya said, in attempt to keep the two from discussing the importance of hair at length. Her thumb was the only one pointing down; Sammi and Howl exchanged looks. "Which boy this time?" She asked with interest. When Sammi was silent, she glanced at their cousin. "I don't need to ask you," she said.

"I'll tell you anyway. It's Sophie."

"We know."

"Never have I ever--"

"Guys, the storm ended a while ago! I thought you wanted to go outside?" A voice called from behind them. Sammi and Reiya's older brother, Vincent stood in the hall. "Come see the rainbow," he added.

The three children looked at each other. "Nah," Sammi said. "Come play with us, Vinny. We're playing Never Have I Ever."

 

[Thaliawen]

Quote:

Forty (or more) Words that Describe Howl

Whimsical Magical Flirty
Flighty Slitherer Vain
Selfish Intelligent Coward
Whiny Caring Messy
Kind Welsh Non-musical
Dishonest Helpful Immature
Passionate Powerful Romantic
Playful Sensative Cunning
Active Good-With-Kids Sly
Tease Talented Courtly
Heartless Chivalrous Wandering
Handsome Dramatic Maddening
Happily-Ever-After Determined, Excitable
Flamboyant Charming Stubborn
Proud Mysterious Fair
Loving Lovable Flawed
Divining Spendthrift Fancy
Graceful Elegant Oblivious
Willing Afraid-of-change Princely
Smug Alluring Charming Polite
Feigning Cordial Extraordinary
Remarkable "Wicked" Wizard

Admittedly, I could go to five hundred.  

[Sunflower-Seeds]

Within a envelope with a butterfly print, there rested a letter, written by a young girl with wings of sparkling silver and hair the color of soft lilac. Her writing seemed to be a bit more firm that it was before, perhaps she had come to a decision about something.

 

[Thaliawen]

In which fireflies and magic meet
Howl, Sophie, Leyla and Deirdre meet up and chase fireflies. At least, that's the plan.  

[Thaliawen]

Of Enemy Pie and Starry Sights

Howl apologizes to Alome, and they eat enemy pie.  

[Thaliawen]

Taken from Leyla's Journal

Zee had taken to telling fairytales to improve Devin's English; and if Devin was listening, that meant Howl and Leyla were listening to. Naturally, they were a toned down variation; the former assassin did not believe that violence was appropriate for children, especially not his children, who tended to be violent enough as it was. Today he was giving a verbal rendition of Beauty and the Beast. According to Howl, it was a story for girls, and he and Devin should have been allowed to leave the room. No such luck for the two boys.


Of course, Zee had something up his sleeve. Being an elf, and with the reputation elves had for being story tellers, he was bound to change the story just a little bit. "Once upon a time there was a poor elf. He had three daughters, and wanted to give them all presents despite their poverty. Two of the three were selfish, they wanted expensive items they knew their father would never be able to afford (spoiled brats...) the third was sweet, and knew her father meant well. She asked for a single rose, a beautiful rose.

The elf went to search for such a rose, for none could be found in the elven kingdom. He went far into the forest of Lynwood, and eventually got lost."

"The poor elf!" Leyla cried, as her father paused. "Is someone going to help him?"

"Poor elf..." Devin agreed, putting a hand on the wooden sword at his side. "I'll thave him!"

Zee smirked. Time for a little fairy-tale twisting then. "Just then, a handsome and noble elf named Devin came to the elf's rescue, for he was hopelessly lost, and may have been caught by fae or adders if he had continued his search for the rose.

'There's a light over there,' Devin said, gesturing to a light shining in the woods. "Maybe you'll find shelter there.'"

"It's a castle!" Leyla guessed.

"Not jutht a cathtle," Devin corrected her. "A moving cathtle! Like Howl'th!"

Another twist to the story, Zee thought. It was getting better and better; why hadn't the original author decided to write it like this? "It took just a moment for the two elves to notice that the light was getting closer. There were no snapping of branches or other signs of movement. As they drew nearer, they realized the castle was moving. Hovering, and things seemed to move out of it's way as it went. The castle was engulfed in light, full of marvelous statues and a garden full of roses, the most beautiful roses in the world."

"My castle's better," Howl said. It was the first time the wizard had spoken since the start of the story. Devin nodded in agreement; though he had never seen his brother's castle.

"Keep going, Daddy," Leyla prompted. "I think it sounds pretty."

"Devin left the poor elf, for he had more important things to do, such as save sleeping princesses from evil dragons. The elf decided to go inside the castle, where it was even more beautiful than it was outside. Surely he would be able to take the things his daughters wanted from here, and no one would notice? The elf was not only poor, he was also very dishonest. How cruel of him to steal from someone! How rude to enter someone's home without knocking!"

"Agreed. Just because someone lives in a castle doesn't mean he won't miss his things," Howl said.

"But he's rich," Leyla pointed out. "He lives in a castle, so he can buy more stuff."

Zee ignored his daughter, and continued the story. "When the man stole from the castle, the beast who lived within became very angry. Reasonably so, too. He wasn't being entirely cruel, he had every right to be angry with someone he had provided food and gave shelter, and then had stolen from him. So the beast told the man to bring him his youngest daughter, warning him that if he did not do so, he would kill him. Leyla, don't worry. I'd rather die than give you to a beast."

Leyla smiled. "But the beast is a prince, isn't he? I think he's just lonely. He needs a friend."

Zee grinned. Another way to change the story, then. "The beast asked for the man's daughter not to punish the man, but because he was in truth a very lonely beast. An evil witch had cursed him, and who could ever love a beast? No one ever went to his castle to visit, for fear that they would kill him. The witch's curse was that if he didn't find someone he could love, and in return, love him, despite his looks (she must have been a very egotistical witch, to think that this wasn't possible), by the time he turned twenty one, he would remain a beast forever."

Leyla gasped. "That horrible witch! I hope the beast gets back at her!"

"Me too! That mean witch!" Devin agreed instantly.

"This isn't the way the story goes..." Howl groaned.

Zee ignored Howl. "When the girl arrived at the castle, the beast was waiting for her. She was very frightened of him, because she had heard the lies her town told about him, saying he was cruel and heartless. The girl was really rather rude to the poor beast, who had provided her with one of the finest rooms in the castle, and everything she would ever want. The beast would sit for hours, watching her."

"That's creepy," Howl stated. "You make him sound like some kind of stalker."

"No, he loved her!" Leyla corrected her older brother. "She was mean to him, but he still loved her!"

Zee nodded at Leyla in approval. "He loved her, yes. The beast would say kind words to the girl, and eventually, she enjoyed keeping conversation with him. They slowly became friends."

"But she was so mean to him!" Leyla protested. "Doesn't she know you're not supposed to judge a book by it's cover?"

Zee sighed. "No, because the girl was very stupid, you see. The beast asked her to marry him, but you know? She said no, because she thought she could never marry such an ugly creature. The beast wasn't at all offended by her refusal, he knew she could never love him, she was far too beautiful. The beast gave the girl a magical mirror, where she could view anyone she wanted from the world outside his castle."

"He's so nice," Leyla said. "She really should have married him."

"Thould have married him," Devin agreed.

"The girl wanted to see her father, because despite his selfish and dishonest ways, she loved him. Her father had made himself sick with worry. The girl knew he would die if she didn't go to him. The beast, kind as he was, allowed her to leave, asking her to make sure she came back within seven days. She promised she would return before the sunset of the seventh day."

"She didn't, did she?" Leyla asked. "Poor beast... Did he cry?"

"I think he did," Zee agreed. "Fourteen days passed until the girl remembered her promise to the beast. By that time, her father was completely well. One night, the girl woke from a terrible nightmare. She dreamt the beast was dying and calling her name."

"Oh no!" Leyla cried, horrified. "He can't die!" Zee loved telling stories to children. They always reacted in the best possible way.

"'Come back! Come back!' the beast pleaded in the dream. Once she woke, the dream caused her to leave home and return to the castle."

"It's her fault if the beast dies," Leyla said with a frown. "You shouldn't make promises if you're not going to keep them. Why can't she die instead? She's as bad as the evil witch who cursed him!"

"Promitheth not 'pothed be broken," Devin agreed with a nod of the head. "Might end up killin' thomeone."

"The girl hurried to the castle as fast as she could, afraid she would be too late. She almost was. She found him in the garden, on the ground. She thought he was dead, and hugged him tightly. 'Don't die, don't die! I love you!' Those words made something wonderful happen. Instead of the beast's ugly face, there was a face of a handsome prince. And so, not even a day later, they got married."

Leyla looked disgusted. "He's going to forgive her and get married, just like that? To someone who treated him so badly? What if she runs off on him again? She probably agreed to marry him just because he's handsome!"

"Thee wouldn't marry him while he wath ugly," Devin said, agreeing with his sister. "Thouldn't have married her. Thee a meanie."

"No, sillies. They lived happily ever after."

 

[Thaliawen]

Quote:

Howl was having trouble with his younger sister Leyla. Not because she was disobeying, but because the wizard was terrified of her. It wasn't even that she was being remotely scary; it was the mere fact that she had fangs. Why had his father insisted he babysit anyway?

He picked up the phone and dialed Natalie's phone number. "Natty," he whined. "Come help me babysit my sister. She's scary!"

"Am not!" a voice retorted. "You're scarier than me!"

Natty giggled into the phone. "Why do you think she's scary? She's your sister, after all." Natty covered the phone with her hand, walking to where her father sat watching the football game. "Daddy, can I go over to Howl's house to help him babysit?" she asked sweetly.

Luke glanced at her. "Well, I don't see why not. It'll be halftime in a few minutes, tell Howl you'll be there soon." Natty smiled, her sweet voice almost always worked on her father, especially while her mother was at work in the bookshop. Natty uncovered the phone. "Be there soon, Howl!" She said happily.

"Because she's scary!" Howl said. "She's got fangs like a vampire and she bites!" He clearly didn't trust anyone with fangs. Not since Adrian had frightened him so much. "You'll come soon?" he asked, pleading. "Please? Dad took Devin and I'm all alone with her! She's going to eat me!"

"Am not! You don't even taste good!"

Natty smiled. "Yeah, I'll be there soon, promise! See you soon!"

Luke walked into the kitchen. "Ready to go?"

"Sure! But we have to make a quick stop first," Natty said, smiling mischeviously.

Ten minutes later, Luke pulled up to Zee's house. Natty hopped out of the car and smiled at Luke, revealing her fake fangs. "Thee you waiter, Dad!" she skipped up to the front porch and rang the doorbell.

Howl wasted no time in opening the door. "Thank goodne--" he noticed her smile. "You're... You're... You're a vampire!" he exclaimed before running back into the house. He didn't even close the door.

Natty laughed, chasing Howl into the house. She paused to wave to Luke before shutting the door. "Howl! Howl! Where'd you tho?" Natty called. "I have fwake fwangs! Stop wunning!" Natty took out her fake fangs. "See? Come out!"

Howl poked his head out of the hall way closet. "You're not a vampire?" he asked doubtfully. "But you had fangs..." Then he noticed the fangs in her hand. "You made fun of me!" He whined, before hugging her. "I've missed you!"

Natty smiled. "I just like to tease you! I've missed you too!!" she gave him a big hug. "Now let's get down to business! Where's your sister?"

"That was mean," Howl pouted. "My sister's in the living room," he added, gesturing. "Be warned, though. She bites." He took Natty's hand and led her to the livingroom. "She's in the playpen."

Leyla pulled herself up with the help of one of the playpen's sides. "I can't get out!" she complained.

Natty followed Howl into the living room. She frowned, letting go of Howl's hand to go to the playpen. "Poor Leyla!" she said, reaching down to pick her up. "Being locked up is no fun, huh? Ooh! You have very pretty wings!"

Howl frowned. "Don't let her out!" he protested. "Now she'll cause all sorts of trouble!"

Natty looked at Leyla. "Are you going to cause trouble, or do you just like annoying your big brother?" she asked the infant.

Leyla smirked, a look that might have been out of place on any other infant's face. "I just like annoying him," she confessed. "I wouldn't really cause trouble," she added, leaning against Natty. "I like you," she said. "You belong to Leyla."

Natty blinked. "Thank you?" she questioned. She looked to Howl. "This isn't that hard!" she told him, smiling. "Have you guys had dinner yet?" Mommy taught me how to make mac and cheese, and grilled cheese and other stuffs! And I brought cookies for later!"

"Cookies?" Leyla repeated. "What are cookies?"

Howl forced a smile. "We can make dinner together," he suggested. "Leyla can stir it, maybe."

Natty smiled. "Great! Let's do it!" she said, picking Leyla up and grabbing Howl's hand, dragging them to the kitchen. She sat Leyla down on a chair and grabbed a box of mac and cheese from the cupboard and instructed Howl to grab a pan. "Don't worry, it's been a long time since I burneded mac and cheese. I can make it real good. Do you want to stir, Leyla?"

"What's mac and cheese?" Leyla asked, looking up at Natty. "I want to help!"

Howl nodded at Natty in approval. "I can help," he offered. "I can cook."

Natty smiled at Leyla. "It's nummy, just wait and see!" She fluttered, flying up to reach the top of the stove to turn on a burner. "There! Now what do we need?"

Howl read the box. "Water, milk, and butter," he said. 'Want me to get it?" he asked, but before waiting for a response went to the fridge. He handed Natty the milk and butter; and gave Leyla a pan.

"What's this for?" Leyla asked. She studied the pan.

"I don't know. Babies like to bang on them."

Natty nodded. "It's fun! You can make your own music!!!" She began to bang on the counter. "We could be a band!"

Leyla thought about it. "But it wouldn't sound like music," she said. "It'd sound like banging."

Natty paused. "....I guess you're right... We'll have to wait until we're old enough to play instuments..."

Leyla shook her head, and started to bang on the pan she'd been given. "You're right, it is fun!"

Howl rolled his eyes. "Well now we have music while we cook."

Natty smiled. "You're right!" She looked at the stove and said, "The mac and cheese is almost done!" she skipped and fluttered around the kitchen helping Howl as best she could.

"Do you think Leyla can eat it?" Howl asked. "She's only got the two teeth."

Leyla stuck her tongue out. "I can eat!" she said. "Just not hard stuff."

"Well, then the mac and cheese should be fine!" Natty said happily. Truth be told, she hand't even thought of that, beings she forgot how old Leyla was with her speaking at their level. "Get some glasses, Howl! I'm going to try something." Once Howl had grabbed the glasses, she turned and grabbed a carton of juice from the fridge and opened the lid. Concentrating as hard as she could, she began to make the juice come out of the carton; swirling and twisting, heading towards the glasses.

"I'm hungry," Leyla complained, chewing on her hand while watching the juice. She was fascinated. How was the older girl doing that? It wasn't fair!

Howl put the glasses on the table, not willing to get juice on him.

Natty carefully placed the juice in the glass, and went to pour the other two glasses. "It's pretty, but I'm not good enough to do it very fast," she said, smiling. She grabbed a few plates and held them out. "Time to dish up the plates and dig in!" Natty placed the plates and the table along with the juice and grabbed a couple of forks. "What do you think?" she asked Howl and Leyla. "Did we do a good job?"

Leyla took a handful of macaroni off her plate and shoved it into her mouth. "This is good!" she said, sounding surprised.

"No need to be so surprised," Howl muttered, taking a bite. "We make a good team."

"We do!" Nattie said, grabbing a forkful of mac and cheese. "Hey, where's Calcifer?" she asked, looking around. "I thought for sure he'd be supervising or helping us..."

Howl smirked suddenly. "I'm sure he'll pop up sometime," he said. He had noticed Calcifer lurking behind her earlier.

"I want some," the fire demon piped up. "I'm hungry."

"There he is!" Leyla said, pointing with a cheesy hand.

Natty jumped, startled at the fire demon. "Calcifer!" she cried happily. "I've missed you!!" Then she offered a forkful of mac and cheese to him. "Want some?"

Calcifer opened his mouth in response.

"He's missed you too," Howl said. "And your treats."

"I found him," Leyla said smugly. "I found him."

Natty dropped a few forkfuls of mac and cheese into Calcifer's mouth. "Okay, I'll grab the cookies!" Natty said. She skipped off to the hallway to grab her Toy story backpack. "Lookie! I made chocolate chip cookies!" she said, holding up a large bag of cookies.

"Cookies?" Calcifer repeated eagerly. He loved Natty's treats, more than he loved maple wood--and that was saying a lot.

"I can't eat them," Leyla said with a pout.

"Hm..." Natalie thought. "What about some pudding? I have chocolate pudding cups."

"What's chocolate?" Leyla asked. "What's pudding?"

Howl sighed. "She doesn't know anything... about food," he added, when Leyla glared at him. "Chocolate's the best thing ever."

"Just wait and see, it's indescribable, it's good!" Natty grabbed a pudding cup out of her bag and handed it to Howl to open. She skipped out into the kitchen to grab a spoon.

Howl opened the pudding cup. "You won't like it, Cal," he said, smiling at the fire demon. "It's too wet."

Natty skipped back to the table. "But you can have a cookie!" she said. She tossed a cookie to the fire demon.

Calficer caught the cookie in his mouth. With much gobbling, he swallowed and opened his mouth for another.

Leyla looked at the spoon Natty was holding, then she looked at Howl's pudding cup. "Looks messy."

Natty nodded. "It is messy. Maybe Howl or I could feed it to you." She tossed another cookie to Calcifer. "Do they taste good Calcifer?"

"I want you to feed me!" Leyla said. "Please," she added, remembering her manners. Natty was much nicer than Howl.

"Perfect as ever, Natalie," Calcifer assured her. The fire demon was especially fond of this friend of Howl's.

"Sure!" Natty said, grabbing the pudding cup from Howl. She tossed another cookie to Calcifer, and then threw one at Howl's head for fun. "What do we do after we're done?" she asked.

Calcifer gobbled the cookie greedily.

Howl caught the cookie in his hand. "You tried to hit me!" he whined. "Do you know how much that would have hurt? I could have died!" He took a bite of the cookie, much more polite than his fire demon. "Thank you," he added.

"Howl do I eat it?" Leyla asked, glancing at the spoon.

Natty laughed. "You don't eat the spoon, silly!" she said, getting some pudding on the spoon. "You eat what's on the spoon!"

 

[Thaliawen]

"Home videos?" Howl groaned, glancing at his father in disbelief. "Dad, you can't be--" Zee put a long finger to his son's lips with a smirk. His golden eyes twinkled with mischief, which usually meant he was going to kept to what he'd said.

"I thought you'd be vain enough to want to see them, Howl," he teased. "If they bother you this much, maybe I should show them to Sophie." Rewarded with the desired effect; a horrified expression, the dark elf ruffled the wizard's hair. A gesture that displeased Howl greatly. "They aren't that bad. Besides, Leyla wants to see what you did when you were around her age."

Howl raised an eyebrow as he caught sight of his younger sister, sitting on the couch. She grinned at him, flashing two pearly white fangs. "Dad, no. They're humiliating. I burnt my first ones--" he broke off into Welsh. Zee didn't need a translator to know the boy was using four lettered words that shouldn't be repeated in front of children. Howl looked from his father to his sister, who was still showing off her fangs. "Fine. She can see them. No one else."

"Don't you want to watch them, Howl?" Zee asked. He didn't see what was wrong in home videos; he knew if they had had video cameras when he was a elfling, he would want to view the videos. Maybe it made a difference, being willing to watch videos from so long ago.

"No."

"Come on, just one?"

"I'm not watching."

"Please?"

"I'd rather turn myself into a toad."

"They aren't that bad."

"They're humiliating. I'm not watching."

Devin poked his head into the living room from the hall. He had goggles on his head, and was wearing an aviator jacket and camos. "Pleath, Howl?" he asked, making his way into the room. "They got me in em too."

Howl smiled suddenly. If there was one person he'd suffer through home videos for, it was his younger brother. "Alright, Dev. We'll watch."  

[Thaliawen]

"Planning to give your heart to another girl?" Leyla asked, frowning at her older bother. The infant was watching Howl's daily routine in front of the mirror with disgust. Why was he always combing his hair so it looked just right? Why did he care so much about what he looked like? He wasn't going out to impress anyone. What was with his need to look perfect at all hours of the day?

Howl looked at the mirror, and smirked at the reflection of his younger sister. "I couldn't even if I wanted to," he said. "And I don't, mind you." That said, the wizard went back to fixing his hair. Stupid humidity, making it the wrong texture. It felt bumpy and brittle, like Calcifer had been too close to it. It wasn't at all the perfect softness Howl usually enjoyed.

"Why not?" Leyla asked, tilting her head. She was much too young to have read the books, and what she knew about her brother, she had experienced first-hand. She'd seen him flirt with girls. She'd seen him holding hands with a pretty silver-haired girl, too. He had seemed so much more genuine with her. Was he really going to give up on her?

"I'm married," Howl told her, matter-of-factly. He wasn't interested in telling his youngest sibling his life story. "So I couldn't give my heart to anyone else, now could I?"

"You could if you wanted," Leyla pointed out. "You could."

"No, I couldn't," argued Howl. "My heart belongs to someone already." He didn't once look at her. He knew Calcifer wasn't far off, and could only hope the fire demon would keep his mouth shut. No such luck, as usual.

"Howl's quite heartless, you know," Calcifer fizzed.

"Heartless?" Leyla repeated, curious. "How's he alive if he's heartless? You can't live without a heart."

That made Howl turn around. He crossed his arms and frowned at his fire demon. "Yes you can," he muttered. "I'm proof. I could take any part of you I wanted and keep you alive, if I went about it in the right way. Let's just say someone's set my heart on fire. I plan on keeping it that way, until she can get it back for me."