Curious [Howl x Reader]

Chapter Four: There's Something About Howl

 All the way back to the village square, you stared down at the cobblestones, muttering under your breath. What on earth was all of that? Murderous dining ware, a mysteriously well-timed deliverance, and a rescuer with no reason to be there.

It reminded you of the fairy tales you'd read as a young child: beautiful princesses, brave knights, and mighty sorcerers inhabiting that far-off land that was half story, half your own imagination. So long ago, that had been as real to you as the very air you breathed. Dragons crowned the top of every tower; mermaids sang from the depths of every tide pool. True love came to life with a glance and a kiss, and every good person got their happy ending.

But you'd long ago shed any beliefs in magic, mystery, or anything less mundane than a chemistry textbook. It was hard to believe in true love when you knew people were just chemicals in fanciful arrangements; it was hard to believe in happy endings when the headlines screamed robbery, arson, and riots.

And so, you sighed, shaking your head. There—there must be a perfectly ordinary explanation for that, whatever it was. You just hadn't found it; that was all. But no matter how many ways you twisted it, you couldn't explain it away. A very elaborate prank with strings? Your head hurt just trying to pull it all together.

So instead, you thought back to your aunt's words. A hot rush of anger engulfed you. She was right; what kind of warning was that? So vague and unhelpful. And he didn't even mention the most important thing: the violence!

The bulge in your satchel suddenly felt more present than before. That was right; you had his wallet! His stupid, fancy wallet, full of its thirty pieces.

You yanked it out. The gutter was right there. It would be so easy—a turn of the wrist, a flick of the arm, and you'd be rid of it. The leather seemed to heat up in your hand as you balanced on the edge of the gutter in the early evening sun, tottering between possibilities. Throw it into the gutter. Don't. Throw it into the gutter. Don't.

You sighed and closed your eyes. The sight of the garden welled up behind your eyelids: the red mark on Clara's cheek, the lemonade, the furniture scattered everywhere.

Then, before you could stop yourself, you found yourself drawing your arm back.

Before you could let go of the wallet, though, you yelped and almost fell into the gutter. It bit you!

You reeled back, letting loose some decidedly un-family-friendly curses, as you shook your hand over and over, trying to dislodge the teeth that sank deeper and deeper into your flesh by the second.

The sight of the blood gushing from you almost made you faint. Heart thumping, the adrenaline rushing through your veins permitted you only one thought:

Get to Howl.

In your desperation, you clung to it. Your head swiveled back and forth over the square. Let's see, Howl's shop was... there! Down that alley! You sprinted towards the entrance. Rushing down the street, you couldn't get to Howl's shop soon enough. Clambering over the threshold, you practically fell into the shop.

An unfamiliar voice rang out. "Oi, Master Howl, we're running a little low on firewood. Could you get me... some... oh, no."

You looked up towards the source of the voice and straight into a pair of eyes that were floating in the fireplace.

You stumbled backwards, almost exiting the shop in your haste. Your head swam. Yep, you were definitely feeling the blood loss now. You were having auditory and visual hallucinations. You closed your eyes for a few seconds. If it was a hallucination, it should go away if you did this, right?