(no subject)
He often wondered why anyone had let her stay.
For years his life had just consisted of the three of them; master, apprentice and spirit. Then one day she wandered in and suddenly they were all apprentices, and she the master. He never imagined that he could learn so much from her, then just a pathetic-looking old lady.
At least, he had thought she was just an old lady. But she grew younger, rather than older, with the passing weeks, although her hair stayed the same shade of silver it was when he first met her. His master frequently told her it looked like starlight.
At first, he could not fathom why his master housed her and gave her work. Howl was too reserved to let just anyone into his home. But he had looked closer, realized that the way they interacted the first morning after she had arrived, that this was not their first meeting. It had crossed his mind that she may have been his mother, but the way she looked at him when she thought no one was looking was not remotely maternal.
He hadn't liked her, at first. She was curious and outspoken and he was not used to being around someone like her. But once she won the fire over, he knew he had to get used to having her around.
In retrospect, it was not very hard to warm up to her. She was kind and insightful, and nothing frightened her. He loved having a good cook in the house, too. He was always hungry and she always knew exactly what to make. And boy, could she clean! Every day, she was taking great pains to keep the castle spotless. Ironically, she was often the one that made the mess.
She completely ruined the castle, and Howl still gave her her own room when he rebuilt it. No one understood why he even wasted the energy on his own room, for he only moved into hers after professing his love to her in front of the whole family.
The old wizard nodded his head in thought. "That was what broke the spells on both of them. They saw through each others' ugly masks to the beauty underneath. She didn't care that he often grew feathers and claws after exerting a lot of energy on something, and he loved her just as much when she was fat and wrinkly as when she was youthful.
"I was taken from my birth parents before I knew what they looked like. Howl and Sophie are all I see when I try to imagine a mom and dad. Sophie coddled and mothered me as much as she did her own blood children, and while Howl was not the best role model I learned from him. I learned from his mistakes as much as I did from his accomplishments."
A boy at his feet bounded to his feet in front of his master's face. "That's it, Master Marcal? Aren't you going to end with a great spell you learned from Howl?"
Marcal chuckled at his apprentice's youthful energy. "Patience, child. You will learn everything I know, all in due time. But right now it is time for me to relax.
"You will learn when you are my age. When you're old, all you want to do is stare at the scenery."
For years his life had just consisted of the three of them; master, apprentice and spirit. Then one day she wandered in and suddenly they were all apprentices, and she the master. He never imagined that he could learn so much from her, then just a pathetic-looking old lady.
At least, he had thought she was just an old lady. But she grew younger, rather than older, with the passing weeks, although her hair stayed the same shade of silver it was when he first met her. His master frequently told her it looked like starlight.
At first, he could not fathom why his master housed her and gave her work. Howl was too reserved to let just anyone into his home. But he had looked closer, realized that the way they interacted the first morning after she had arrived, that this was not their first meeting. It had crossed his mind that she may have been his mother, but the way she looked at him when she thought no one was looking was not remotely maternal.
He hadn't liked her, at first. She was curious and outspoken and he was not used to being around someone like her. But once she won the fire over, he knew he had to get used to having her around.
In retrospect, it was not very hard to warm up to her. She was kind and insightful, and nothing frightened her. He loved having a good cook in the house, too. He was always hungry and she always knew exactly what to make. And boy, could she clean! Every day, she was taking great pains to keep the castle spotless. Ironically, she was often the one that made the mess.
She completely ruined the castle, and Howl still gave her her own room when he rebuilt it. No one understood why he even wasted the energy on his own room, for he only moved into hers after professing his love to her in front of the whole family.
The old wizard nodded his head in thought. "That was what broke the spells on both of them. They saw through each others' ugly masks to the beauty underneath. She didn't care that he often grew feathers and claws after exerting a lot of energy on something, and he loved her just as much when she was fat and wrinkly as when she was youthful.
"I was taken from my birth parents before I knew what they looked like. Howl and Sophie are all I see when I try to imagine a mom and dad. Sophie coddled and mothered me as much as she did her own blood children, and while Howl was not the best role model I learned from him. I learned from his mistakes as much as I did from his accomplishments."
A boy at his feet bounded to his feet in front of his master's face. "That's it, Master Marcal? Aren't you going to end with a great spell you learned from Howl?"
Marcal chuckled at his apprentice's youthful energy. "Patience, child. You will learn everything I know, all in due time. But right now it is time for me to relax.
"You will learn when you are my age. When you're old, all you want to do is stare at the scenery."