My Heart Gone Missing (Howl's Moving Castle)

Chapter 4

"Marius I'm going out!" you called out to the water demon in the corner of the room, "do you need anything?" slung easily around your shoulder was a simple backpack, a clear sign that you were going to get something, considering how empty it was.

"Where's 'out'?" Marius asked forlornly.

You sighed at Marius' depressing aura, "I'm going to town to get food. Now is there something you need?"

"I need you to take your soul back and free me from this curse." Marius replied.

You sighed and adjusted the bag, "anything serious?"

"Why do you-"

"Okay bye Marius!" you didn't bother to listen to the rest of his sentence before you flung open the door and left your house into town. You walked around the town and looked at the food stalls and thought about what you could make. "Well, I could always get some chinese take out." You laughed quietly to yourself before you picked up a bright red tomato.

You quickly finished your shopping and began to wander around the town that your portal had led to. As you wandered around the town, you noticed a quaint looking shop nestled in the wall, "huh. 'The Great Wizard Jenkins'." You read aloud the painted words above the door. "Well, may as well check it out." You gave a few knocks on the weathered wood door.

"Hello, how can I help you." The door swung open and you had to look down to notice the small bearded man.

"Oh." You carefully looked at the hooded man, "you're not Jenkins, are you?" you said slowly.

"Why? What do you need?" he asked gruffly.

"Uh, nothing." You slowly backed away from the building and the stunted man, "I can see you're busy. So, bye." You waved before you hurried down the street. "Why on earth was a little kid pretending to be an old man?" you talked to yourself. "Unless he really is Jenkins." You shook your head, "no, that doesn't make sense, he's just a kid, who has a strong sense of magic already." You muttered quietly. "Agh!" you screamed out suddenly, attracting the attention of some innocent passerbys, "why does nothing ever make sense around here!" you then proceeded to storm off to the small house that your portal resided in.

"Oh, you're home." Marius said when you closed the door behind you.

"How can a kid have such a strong sense of magic that he can create a disguise out of thin air?" you shoved your face into the water demon's face as you demanded your question.

"Woah woah woah, I never said I was going to help you! You're awful! Why would I help you!" Marius replied snarkily as he shrunk back in his bowl.

"Because you're going to be living with me." You answered sharply as you turned around and slammed your bag down onto the countertop in the kitchen.

"Oh, is somebody jealous that a child has a stronger sense of magic than you?" Marius teased as he looked excitedly at you.

"He definitely is not stronger than me." You said vigorously as you placed food into the refrigerator with more force than necessary, "he just doesn't go to the academy and yet he still can use magic!" you slammed the door shut for the refrigerator.

"Well, maybe he's got an apprenticeship or something, that's not too unusual." Marius shrugged as he leaned back into his bowl. Any source of entertainment that you were providing to him was long gone.

"He probably did!" you yelled out excitedly as you slammed your hands down on the countertop. You then winced and took your hands off of the countertop. "He worked at the shop of 'The Great Wizard Jenkins'! That explains so much!" you said excitedly. "And here I imagined 'The Great Wizard Jenkins' as an old man who disliked children and like loneliness."

"Sounds like you." Marius called out from the corner.

"Shall I give you a rock?" you threatened in return.

"How many times do I have to tell you? Rocks are terrible, horrible creatures who just want to see the world crash and burn!" Marius yelled back in a fury as he waved his fists around.

"Of course." You rolled your eyes and threw your bag down on an empty chair before turning the dial to point at the second color. "I'm going out."

"Again?" Marius whined, "shouldn't you be figuring out how to get your soul content?"

"That's what I'm doing."

"Doesn't seem that way."

"I'm getting inspiration." You explained, "not like you would know how to make people happy."

"Of course I don't! I'm a water demon! I'm only happy with myself! I don't care about people!" Marius yelled furiously after you.

"Stop yelling, you'll lose your voice someday." You called back to him before you opened your door to exit the house. You shut the door behind you when you heard Marius shout angrily at you. Probably something along the lines of 'you're awful'.

Outside the small house the Waste blew around you peacefully. The lake where you had first met Marius was easily less than five minutes away by walking. The air blowing around you was crisp and cool. Not at all like what you would think of when you heard 'waste'. It was clear like the countryside that was miles away from any sort of civilization. The sun was shining brightly, which cast a comfortable blanket of warmth on everything it touched. "Marius, I'm sure you'd love it out here!" you yelled back to the house to spite Marius.

You laughed happily as you ran through the rolling waves of grass and then fell back into it. "Perhaps this is all I wanted for." You muttered to yourself as the grass around you gently tickled you. "I don't think I ever had a chance to truly appreciate the Waste." You set your gaze upwards and saw the small figure of something flying, and it wasn't a battleship. "What is that?" you sat up in the grass and watched the black figure. Upon closer inspection you noticed that it was a bird...but with a man's head. "That's what I want." You nodded to yourself as the figure flew above your. "I'll turn into a bird."

You stood up before you ran back into your little house. "Marius!" you called out.

"Did you get your inspiration?" Marius asked sullenly.

"Do you know how to turn into a bird?"

"A what?"