Howl Moving Castle Novels & Stories

I took my time to look either side of me. There was a gentle tugging on my fur. “I know it’s beautiful but we need to get a move on.” I gave a playful growl and continued on. The mountain ahead of us was the biggest I had ever seen. This wasn’t what was the most surprising thing though. When Viola had said the castle was built into the mountain, I assumed she meant that it would be built across a ridge. But it wasn’t. The castle was actually carved into the rock. Viola called to me again.

The witch looked toward the doors. "It was delayed." A powerful sound came from outside. "BOOM!" The entire castle shook.Selene stepped backward. Another explosion followed. "BOOM!" The enormous doors of Ironcrest began to crack. Rowan's eyes widened. The witch whispered, "She is here." The doors exploded inward. A wave of silver and golden energy swept through the hall. The guards were thrown through the air. The windows shattered and the walls shook. Then I entered. My eyes were glowing. My wolf stood behind me.

He simply stepped back to the perimeter of the pit, crossing his arms over his broad chest, his piercing silver eyes tracking my every movement like an apex predator evaluating a test subject. Across the Colosseum, partially obscured by the flickering torchlight, Denzel Darkmoor leaned silently against a stone pillar. His dark eyes were fixed entirely on me, his hands buried deep in his coat pockets where my mother's silver locket rested. I was completely on my own. "Begin!" Hawthorne shouted, bringing his arm down in a sharp, swift arc. Before the professor’s hand even hit his side, Susan moved. She didn't hesitate or test my range; she charged with terrifying shifter speed, a blur of motio

“Who?” He shook his head. “That name was removed from every surviving record.” Kael's jaw tightened. “Convenient.” The stranger looked toward the window. “The wolves outside aren't here to attack.” “Then what?” “To witness.” “Witness what?” The stranger turned toward me. “The return of the Moon Blood.” A strange pressure filled the room. Then—A deep howl rose from outside. Every wolf answered. Hundreds of voices. One after another. The sound shook the castle walls. I felt the baby move again.

Then the stranger turned toward the darkness behind the ancient wall. “He is awake.” Aria’s blood froze. “He?” The stranger smiled. And from somewhere deep beneath the castle came a sound. A howl. Not like Luna. Not like Kaien. Not like any wolf Aria had ever heard. The entire palace shook. The seven symbols shattered from the walls. Kael grabbed Aria’s arm. “We need to leave.” But Aria couldn’t move. Because the howl had done something to her. Her silver eyes began glowing. The crown above her head disappeared.

I scan the first doc. It’s a technical breakdown, all transactional jargon and references to shell corporations. But in the top margin, in Derek’s unmistakable handwriting, is a note: “Final movement, Zurich, window closes 72h post-trigger. No margin for error.” I hand the page to Lucas, then move to the window and look out over the city. My reflection is faint, but I can see the amber flash in my own eyes, the faint trace of my wolf shape lurking behind the skin. I feel the hum of the building in my bones, the pulse of the hunt.

Her skin rippled. Fur sprouted. Brown and gold. In seconds, the small girl was gone. A sleek, golden wolf stood in the room. It wasn't a runt. It was beautiful. Powerful. The wolf looked at its paws. It let out a joyous howl. AWOOOO! The sound echoed through the castle. Down in the courtyard, the sparring stopped. Wolves looked up. "Who is that?" "That howl... it's strong." "Is it the Stray?"

TRINITY The sun was beginning to dip behind the distant hills, casting a golden glow across the kingdom. I sat perched on the balcony, the cool evening breeze tugging at my hair, as I gently sketched the sprawling view before me. The castle spires in the distance, the winding paths of the village, and the lush green fields rolling toward the horizon—there was something calming about it all. My pencil move fluidly across the page, capturing it as best as I could.

I might not be the type to rip someone's entrails out through their nose, but the mountain howled in me too. I smiled at that, pulling out the little charm Arielle had given me to decorate my desk. It was supposed to be a soothing desk lamp or something like that. An invention of someone in the Mountainhowl that was damn hard to get a hold of. Mine had my name on it in pretty, curling letters and took the form of a little castle. A castle for a princess. The little flags rose from within the little castle, billowing a soothing, soft blue. I grabbed a pen, a highlighter, and opened the prior quarter's records before getting to work organizing the pages in the proper order.

It paints the evergreens an ashy silver. As I’m staring, time seems to stand still. Silence sweeps over the land. The wind drops, and the loch is deathly quiet. A howl breaks the night, followed by hundreds more. My arms turn into gooseflesh and the hairs on the back of my neck stand on end. The Wolves have shifted. I’m peering through the glass, wondering if I’ll see any of them, when I hear a roar of pain. It’s distinctly human, and sounds like it’s coming from within the castle.