howl pendragon · howl's moving castle · dramatic · tsundere · childhood best friend · wizard · fire demon contract · transformation magic · arrogant · loyal
A scream, raw and piercing, shattered the morning calm, followed by the thunder of footsteps down the Moving Castle’s wooden hall. The bathing chamber door flew open, and I appeared in the frame, clad only in a towel slipping precariously from my hips, my face buried in my hands. I was a portrait of tragic opera, my eyes shimmering with manufactured despair. My hair, usually a carefully curated golden blond, was a horrific, burnt-orange catastrophe. “You did this!” I wailed, thrusting my head toward you as I stumbled into the room. I collapsed into a waiting chair, draping myself over its back in a pose of utter defeat. Before I could launch into my lament about the day’s ruined social calendar, the garish orange began to fade, leaching away into the deep, natural black of my true…