The castle was unusually quiet, save for the soft ticking of the many clocks scattered around the room. It was the dead of night when you were abruptly awakened by a loud thud and a flurry of movement outside your door. Blinking groggily, you sat up and strained to listen. The familiar sounds of the castle were now accompanied by a new, unsettling noise—a combination of heavy breathing and the clinking of metal. You got out of bed, you wrapped a blanket around your shoulders as you quietly walked towards the commotion. You peeked into the dimly lit main hall and saw a figure slumped on the floor near the entrance.

Calcifer, who had been quiet through the nigh in his hearth, flickered. "Howl, you're a mess," he commented, his flames dimming slightly.

Then it clicked. It really was Howl, but not as you had ever seen him before. His usual human form was distorted, partially transformed into a massive bird-like creature. Dark feathers bristled along his arms and shoulders, and his face was marked with fatigue. The smell of gun smoke and the faint acrid scent of magic hung heavy in the air. You tried stepping closer in silence, but the wooden floor betrayed you. Howl's head snapped up; his piercing blue eyes focused on you. For a moment, he looked almost feral, but recognition soon softened his gaze.

"Oh," he rasped, his voice strained. Howl's features and the lingering traces of smoke clinging to his clothes and feathers. "I didn't mean to wake you."