Fallen Stars [Howl's Moving Castle Fanfiction]

Chapter Eight - The Journey Starts Now

Chapter Eight -  The Journey Starts Now

"So... what brings a young lady like you out here?"

"Yeah, we'd like to know why you decided to visit our village out of the blue!"

I munched on a piece of bread. The two standing in front of me, one man in his elder years and a girl a few years younger than me, asked me with encouraging smiles. I swallowed the piece of bread in my mouth and smiled faintly at them. "Well you see, that's kind of hard to explain... but I'm trying to find something."

Both of them glanced at each other and then turned to me with curious glimpes' in their eyes. "You're searching after something? Well, in this village doesn't have so much to afford, so if there's something special you're searching after, you might not find it here." The older man answered and rubbed the back of his head and adjusted his little cap. I munched on my bread and shook my head. "It's not really something in this village that I'm searching after, I'm trying to find my way out to the mountains, but I can't find my way." 

Their eyes widened into almost a golfballs size. "The mountains? Why would you want to go up there? It's kind of hard to get up there you know."

"Like I said, it's kind of hard to explain, sorry for keeping you two out of it, but it would probably be better if you didn't know." I explained once I was done with eating the piece of bread. I dusted of my clothes from bread crumbs and brushed my light brown bangs behind my ear. They glanced at each other as if they could talk with eye-contact, and shrugged their shoulders. "Seems like we're in the same boat, Alice."

 *

Weeks passed since that incident in the bakery with my family and those wizards. At that time, I couldn't even comprehend what happened, I couldn't even figure it out now. What did actually happen at that time? The thing that I've cleared out most of all is that I am in fact a wizard. I don't understand how, but I can use magic when needed. Maybe not so much, but magic is magic, isn't it?

Just at the time I stepped out from the door that time, I knew where I would head off too. But, the problem was only, how would I get there? Those mountains and that field sure was a bit further away than I thought. Since the town I lived in was at the opposite direction of the mountain-area in the country, the walk got both more complicated and difficult than I thought. Since no mist and no Mr. Fireball wanted to show the way there this time, I needed to find it out myself. 

I travelled by train alot these days, and walked more than my legs could bear. Thankfully, I kept some spare money in my pockets in my jacket, so I didn't feel the need of food that often on the journey. If there was something I really wondered when I passed all the different kinds of landscapes and small towns, would be that I barely even seen wizards. It was plenty of them in the town I lived in, but no trace of them out here in other parts of the country. Weird, how come they only appeared to be in our town for? 

There was many questions filling my head, but one of the most noticable things were: Did my parents know about me being a wizard? Why did they want me to run away and not return back before it was "time"?

 After just a few days ago, I arrived at this town by the coast of the country, also where the trainstation seemed to end. That's where things started to slow down. People in the town didn't know the way to continue up to the mountain, and if people knew they would choose to not answer. It's kind of strange, since this town is the closest to the mountains and it shouldn't be that far to travel there. 

In the end, I crashed in to two persons that seemed to be in my situation to, for some reason. Just when I was about to give up and take a paus, I literally ran in to two friendly strangers. A elder man with a cap and a light grey beard down his chin, namned Richard and Jacelyn, a young girl with two scarlet red braids. They started talking about this town and news they've heard around the country, more likely of what the king have decided and so on. As we talked, I actually got to know that they were only visitors in this country, they came here and somehow ended up in this village. I gulped, that did kind of sound like what happened to me, but I won't stay here hopefully! 

I raised my back and stretched out my arms. "You two still wouldn't know the way up to the mountains, would you?" 

Richard scratched his chin while Jacelyn frowned slightly. "Well... we do know that..." 

I nodded. "Could you please tell me? I need to find it soon, I'd really appriciate it if you'd help me." I asked with a sincere smile. They glanced at each other and began whispering something to each other sneakily. I raised an eyebrow. "Hm?"

They sighed and shrugged their shoulders. "Yeah, we could! We need to get up there sometime after all, why not now?" They cheered with sheepish smiles. I tilted my head at the side. "So you two were supposed to travel up to the mountains too, but got stuck here?"

 "Basically, yes! This village was way too nice to leave, and the habitants in this village didn't want to show us the way to the mountains so we ended up here! Sure took a while until we realized that it only was to start walking, not just trying to find the correct way! Because doesn't everyone see the mountains in the horizon? There might be different paths, but they'll all lead there in the end!" Jacelyn said in a happy tone and pointed at the horizon in front of us. My eyes widened. "That seems very accurate, why wouldn't people just say that instead of doubting?" I asked and scratched the back of my head.

"Because it's dangerous." Richard said and cleared his throat. "At least that's what people say, I, however, have no idea what lure behind those giant rocks." 

"It's dangerous?" I mumbled to myself, but not feeling doubting about it. No, because I need to get up to that field, no matter if it the way there was threating or not. "But if people haven't been up there and won't go up there, then how do they know?" I asked and crossed my arms.

Once again the two glanced at each other, as if they communicated with eye-contact. "That, Alice, was a good question..."

 I ate up the last piece of my bread that I've kept, and stood up. "Then, how about we start walking?"

"Don't you want to know why we are going up there?" Jacelyn asked almost at the same moment I was done talking. I smiled at her and Richard. "If you want to tell me that is, otherwise it's just nice knowing that you two will be keeping me company on the way up there." 

They shared a look with each other and nodded. "Have you ever heard of the great wizard named Howl?"