Once Upon a Wizard [Howl's Moving Castle Fanfic]

Chapter 12

She knelt next to the wizard's body and stared into the flames, searching for any sign of Calcifer. "Calcifer?"

"Sophie, I'm so tired."

"If I give Howl back his heart, what will happen to you?"

Calcifer sighed. "I'll be okay if you do it. I think. I mean, you dumped water on me and Howl and I both survived."

Sophie gave Calcifer a small smile. "I'd better try then. It's so warm, and fluttering like a bird." She held Howl's heart close for a moment.

"It's still just the heart of a child."

"Please help Calcifer live, and please help Howl take back his heart," Sophie whispered, before leaning forward and pressing the heart into the cavity of Howl's body where his heart should be. It was quiet for a moment before sparks of light suddenly started to dance off of Howl's chest, and a small ball of light drifted up from the man's body.

"I'm alive," Calcifer declared, swirling around Sophie. "I'm alive! I'm free! Free!" He laughed as he spiralled up into the air, disappearing into the sky, overjoyed that he was finally free of his deal with Howl.

But with Calcifer gone, everyone was suddenly aware of the problem. With Calcifer not able to ensure that the house stood standing, or the single wooden platform, in this case, the legs grew weak and crumbled, eventually breaking off of the house and sending the entire platform down the side of the mountain. 

Everyone screamed as they flew down the mountain, Sophie guarding Howl and Y/N's bodies to keep them from flying off the platform. Turnip Head jumped off the wood and sunk his pole into the earth in front of the wood, slowing its descent down the mountain. It seemed to work and they paused just before tumbling over the edge. Thankfully there was another small ledge the perfect distance away and the wooden platform became wedged between the two, holding them up.

"His pole snapped," Sophie said, cradling Turnip Head in her arms. "Are you all right? We'll get you a new pole, okay?" She paused for a moment. "You saved us, Turnip." She pressed a kiss to Turnip Head's cheek, and to everyone's surprise, Turnip's body started to wriggle until he jumped from Sophie's arms. He landed, still slouched over, but a second later, his suit changed to the colour of sand, and he stood up, revealing his now human figure. 

"Thank you, Sophie," the man said, falling into a sweeping bow before the woman. "I'm the prince who has been missing from the neighbouring kingdom. Somehow I got that blasted spell put on me."

"I know that spell," the witch exclaimed, clapping her hands together. "A kiss from your true love breaks it!"

"That's right," the prince said. "If it wasn't for Sophie, I would be a scarecrow for the rest of my life."

Suddenly, Howl started to shift and Sophie turned back to the man. 

"What's going on," Howl asked, grunting as he tried to sit up. "What am I doing here?" Suddenly there was a pain in his chest and he grimaced. "I feel terrible. Like there's a weight on my chest."

"A heart's a heavy burden," Sophie said with a sigh. She glanced over to Y/N's motionless body. "Howl, we were able to save you but..."

"Y/N!" Howl immediately picked up the girl's body, holding her close to his chest. "What happened? Why did she come back?"

Sophie felt the tears coming to her eyes. "She said that she was going to help you. She felt guilty because you were staying behind." She wiped away a few crystal droplets of water. "We had made it to the Wastes, but she went back to look for you after she saw the battleship explode."

Howl stared at the woman in his arms and gently brushed the hair from her face. "Why would she do that?" He wasn't asking Sophie. His heart ached and he held Y/N tighter, lifting her chest to his ear to try and listen for any sign of a heartbeat. He could hear a faint one, but it was weak, and Howl hadn't gotten Y/N's talent for magic.