𝙁𝙤𝙧𝙚𝙫𝙚𝙧 | 𝑯. 𝑱. 𝑷𝒆𝒏𝒅𝒓𝒂𝒈𝒐𝒏

1|Metanoia

Metanoia
(n.) The journey of changing one's mind, heart, self, or way of life.



Y/n's POV

I couldn't believe the mouth of this man. I couldn't believe what had just come out of it. His room?! If Madam Suliman had heard this, she would strip him of his powers for sure. I didn't realize I had been staring at him for the past few minutes. He wore a gentle grin on his face.

"You must've misinterpreted my wording. I'm rarely in there. It's free to use." He smiled. I blinked twice as it hit me. Why did I let myself get fooled like this? He turned to face Calcifer, who was happily getting adjusted to the new logs.

"Calcifer, will you take care of the house whilst I'm gone? I won't be long." Howl smirked and flew out the door. The crackling fire merely rolled his eyes and yawned. I couldn't tell him Calcifer and Howl were on good terms or bad terms. Suddenly, I jolted out of my chair. Heen! Where did he go?! I knew Suliman would scold me tenfold if I didn't come back with Heen. Yet, at the same time, Heen was a spy. She could easily locate him. Noting this, I calmed myself down. I went up the wooden stairs. They were creaking beneath my feet. I turned some corners and eventually made my way to Howl's room. It was even messier than the rest of the house. I admired it all. Even the tiniest details wouldn't be ignored. Madam Suliman was expecting a lot of me, so I would do my best. That's when I realized his room. Everything in that room was sorcery. His way of keeping himself bound. I sat down on his bed. It was fluffy, and it felt like I was sitting on a cloud. I slowly rested my hand against a big, soft pillow. It was still a day, but I couldn't help falling asleep.

Sophie's POV

I was walking through the waste. Despite several warnings. It was nearly dark. I had to find Howl. If I could just locate the castle, sneak inside, confront him, and make him break my spell, I'd be myself again in no time. These thoughts were what kept me going. Right up until I finally tracked down the castle. Regrettably, leaving turnip head behind, I enter and shut the door behind me. This place was filthy. Littered with junk. I slouched down on a wooden chair in front of a really nice fireplace. I was so tired and out of breath that all I wanted to do was sleep. My eyelids were getting heavy, threatening to close.

"That's some spell you're under. It won't be easy to break." I slowly regained my senses. The fire talked! I stared at it for a moment.

"And you can't even tell anyone about it." Don't tell me... no... this can't be him?

"You're Howl?" I said in utter surprise. From what I had heard back home, Howl was this handsome man. Not... a fire?

"Wrong. I'm the fire demon, Calcifer!" The fire responded proudly. Maybe a little too proudly...

"Well, then, Calcifer, can you break the spell I'm under?" That was the only thing on my mind. I had to get rid of this spell. I hated the fact that I had to walk crookedly so that my back wouldn't hurt. I even had to carry a walking stick around with me.

"Easy. If you break the spell that chains me to this place, I'll break your spell in a flash." Of course. The demon wanted to bargain with me. I knew from books I had read before that you shouldn't ever make a deal with a demon. Those books were fantasy, but nonetheless, I would take no risks.

"So, in other words, a bargain with a demon. Are you sure you can keep a promise like that?" I ask in suspicion, though I kind of knew the answer already.