Howl and the Soulmate Stone

Part Seven : The Prince's Castle

Prince Justin was really regretting his decision to bring Howl back with him.

The boy did not cease crying the entire ride and he had taken to wiping his nose on the back of Justin's shirt which was quite frankly horrifying, not to mention unsanitary. Every time Justin told him off for it a new wave of waterworks would begin and the endless cycle was wearing heavily on the prince's nerves.

It was after sunset when the again reached the moving castle belonging to the wizard. Justin was about to simply leave the annoying boy there he realized that the crying had stopped.

Justin paused and realized that the wizard had actually cried himself to sleep with his head pressed to the prince's back.

Once again he found himself feeling sorry for Howl and that was all that stopped him from letting him off there. He guided Sir Barnaby away from the monstrous machine that the wizard called home and towards his own home beyond the meadow.

The long grasses brushed at his feet and bats swooped above his head and Justin found that he likes the wishing of the wind and the coolness of the night.

Hanging above them in the navy sky was the nearly full moon and thousands of shimmering stars. It was almost peaceful.

The mood was shattered by the awakening of Howl, who sat up with a jolt and looked around him. "Aren't we there yet? It's cold!"

Justin gritted his teeth as the waves of regret returned. "We're almost there, impatient wizard," he replied.

"Why are you insulting me at a time like this? After my true love abandoned me for that good for nothing wicked witch? Why would you say such a thing?" he cried, tears once again streaming down his face. "Oh Sophie... why would she leave me? How could anyone leave someone as amazing as me!"

"I can think of a few reasons," Justin muttered. Unfortunately, this only caused Howl to cry harder. The prince spurred Sir Barnaby on faster.

When they reached the castle Justin guided the horse into the stables. He climbed off and tied Sir Barnaby to the post where a stable boy would unbridled him.

As he turned back to Howl to assist again in his decent, he saw that the wizard was now laying across the back of the horse. "Alright, sit up so you can get off." Howl only moaned and kicked his legs. "Howl."

After a few moments it became clear the wizard was not planning on moving. He's hopeless... Justin thought to himself. He was about to ask Howl again when he remembered the state of his fancy shirt, now covered in the wizards tears and snot.

He pushed Howl over the side of the horse.

There was a shout of fear and a muffled thud. Justin strode around his horses flank to look down at the wizard now laying in a pile of hay. Howl was gazing up at him with an affronted look and a quivering lip.

"After all I've gone through?" he wailed.

"After everything you put my shirt through?" Justin replied.

The wizard sniffled a few times before once again breaking into tears and wrapping his arms around some of the hay. "Oh Sophie..."

"Pull yourself together!" Justin exclaimed, tugging at one of Howl's arms. When it yielded no results and the wizard merely clutched the hay tighter, Justin seized one of the his ankles and pulled.

For the next several minutes Justin manually dragged Howl out of the stable and across the courtyard, all the way to the side entrance of the castle.

The wizard sobbed and complained and tried to yank his foot away with no success.

A soldier bowed to Justin without asking questions and ignored Howl's offended cry for help and exclamation that he was the best wizard in the world.