Sophia Chapter 4

Chapter 4: In the Dark of the Night

"Hey!"

Sophie was pulled out of her reverie, as she gasped and her head shot up.

She looked up to see Howl and Doppler glaring at her, as Howl asked her, "What are you doing here?"

She immediately began to leave, while Howl quickly ran down the stairs and chased after her as she ran up the stairs to get her things and Frisky.

"Hey!" He shouted. "Hey! Stop! Stop-stop-stop-stop!" Sophie immediately stopped in her tracks. "Wait, hold on a minute, hold on!" She turned to face him, as he asked, "Now, how did you get in he-here?"

He blinked in amazement. A stray ray of light hit Sophie's face and the faces in the portrait behind her, particularly on a white-haired girl.

Howl continued to gape at her, just as Doppler ran up and said, "Excuse me, my child."

Howl stopped him and said, "Delbert, do you see what I see?"

"No," Doppler said, because his glasses were on top of his head. Howl lowered them, and Doppler gasped in amazement before he said, "Yes. Yes!"

"Are you Howl Jenkins?" asked Sophie.

"Cute," Howl said, picking up Frisky, petting him, and handing him to Doppler, before he walked over to Sophie and said, "Perhaps. That all depends on who's looking for him."

"My name is Sophie," she said. "I need travel papers. They say you're the man to see even though I can't tell you who said." But then, she noticed him starting to walk around her, before she said, "And why are you circling me? What were you? A vulture in another life?"

"I'm-I'm sorry…what was your name again?" He said.

"Sophie," she said.

"Sophie," he said. "It's just that you look an awful lot like…never mind." He then pulled Doppler up beside him, before he said, "Now, you said something about travel papers?"

"Um, yes," Sophie said. "I'd like to go to Toontopia."

"You'd like to go to Toontopia?" Howl asked her.

"Who is this cutie?" Doppler said, currently cooing over Frisky. "I think he likes me!"

"Of course he likes you," said Howl. "You're a dog alien." He then said, "Now, let me ask you something. Sophie, was it? Do you have a last name?"

"Well, actually, this might sound crazy," said Sophie, "but I don't know my last name. I was found wandering around when I was eight years old."

"And before that?" Howl asked her. "Before you were—"

"Look," Sophie said. "I know it's strange, but I have very few memories of my past."

"Hmm," Howl said, "that's…" he then whispered aside to Doppler, "Perfect."

"Well, I do have one clue, however," Sophie said, pulling out her necklace. "And that is Toontopia."

"Toontopia?"

"Yes, so can you two help me or not?"

"Delbert, the tickets," Howl whispered, before he said to Sophie, "Well, we sure would like to," Doppler pulled out the tickets, which were actually tickets to the circus, as Howl continued, "In fact, strangely enough, we're going to Toontopia." Howl then showed the tickets to her, but held them out of reach when she tried to grab one, as he said, "However, I have only three tickets here. And the third one is for her." He gestured to the white-haired girl in the portrait, as he added, "Sophia."

"Oh," Sophie said, as Doppler and Howl pulled her along.

"We are going to reunite the princess Sophia with her aunt," Doppler told her.

"You know, you do kind of resemble her," Howl told her.

"The same brown eyes," Doppler said.

"The king's eyes," Howl said.

"Frederic's smile," Doppler said.

"Arianna's chin," Howl said.

Doppler examined Sophie's hands, as he added, "She even has the aunt's hands!"

"She's the same age, the same physical type," Howl said.

As they led her over to a portrait, Sophie said, "Are you two trying to tell me that you both think I'm Sophia?"

"I'm trying to tell you," Howl said, "that I've seen thousands of girls all over the country and not one of them looks as much like the princess as you!" He pointed at the nearby portrait, as he added, "I mean, look at the portrait!"

"I knew you were crazy from the beginning," Sophie told Howl, "but now I think you are both mad."

She began to walk away and Howl quickly followed her, saying, "Why? You don't remember what happened to you."

"And nobody knows what happened to her," Doppler chimed in.

"You're looking for family in Toontopia," Howl said.

"And her only family lives in Toontopia," Doppler added.

The two led her back over to the portrait as Howl asked her, "You ever thought about the possibility?"

"That I could be royalty?" asked Sophie, as she held Frisky. Howl and Doppler nodded. "Well, I don't know," she said. Howl began to pat Frisky, who growled, as Sophie said, "It's hard to think of yourself as a princess when you're sleeping on a cold hard floor. But sure, I guess every lonely girl would hope she's a princess."

"And somewhere," Doppler said. "One little girl is. After all, her favorite animal was the dove, which is a symbol of hope."

Howl then began to lead Doppler away, as he said, "Really wish we could help you, but as I said, the third ticket is for the princess Sophia. Good luck!"

Sophie was then left to gaze at the portrait.

As they walked away, Doppler whispered, "Why didn't you tell her about the brilliant plan?"

"Hey, all she wants to do is go to Toontopia," Howl said, as they walked down the stairs. "Why give away a third of the reward money?"

"I'm telling you," Doppler said, "we're walking away too soon!"

"Not to worry," Howl told him, "I've got it all under control. Now, walk a little slower."

Meanwhile, Sophie continued to look at the portrait, which was of young Sophia and Queen Elinor, and touched it. After staring at it for a while longer, she made up her mind.

"3, 2, 1," Howl said to Doppler.

And just like that, Sophie called out, "Howl!"

"Right in the palm of our hands," Doppler whispered, as Sophie approached.

She ran down the stairs and called, "Howl, wait!"

Howl stopped and asked, "Did you call me?"

"If I can't remember who I am," Sophie said, "who's to say I'm not a princess or a duchess or whatever she is, right?"

"Go on," Howl told her.

"And if I'm not Sophia," she said, "the Queen will certainly know right away and it's all just an honest mistake!"

"Sounds plausible," Howl said.

"But if you are the princess," Doppler said, "then you'll finally know who you are and have your family back!"

"You know, you're right," Howl told her. "Either way, it gets you to Toontopia."

He held his hand out for Sophie to shake and Sophie said, "Right!" before she shook his hand and Howl yelped in surprise at how tight her grip was.

"May I present her Royal Highness, the Princess Sophia!" Howl said.

"Frisky, we're going to Toontopia!" Sophie said.

"What are you talking about?" Howl told her. "The puppy stays."

"What are you talking about?" Sophie retorted. "The puppy goes."

"No, the puppy does not go."

"I say he's going."

"I'm allergic to dogs.

Unknown to them, a certain parrot was up in the rafters watching the argument with a candle and a reliquary near him. It was Iago.

"Sophia?" Iago said. He didn't notice the reliquary start to glow and the candle go out. "Yeah, just one problem there, buddy. Sophia's dead. Heck, the whole royal family is dead! They're dead!" He didn't notice a Night Mare drift out of the reliquary as he said, "Dead, dead, dead with a capital D in it!" The Night Mare landed beside him and stared at him, as Iago turned and said, "Am I right or am I right, my friend? I mean, how can that be So—"

Iago's eyes widened when he realized what he was talking to and the Night Mare let out a bloodcurdling neigh, making Iago scream and jump near the reliquary, only to scream again when another Night Mare drifted out of the reliquary. Iago almost fell off of his perch, but managed to pull himself back up.

"Oh, c'mon, you've gotta be kidding me," Iago said. "Am I supposed to believe that thing woke up after ten years, just because some guy claims she's Sophia?" The Night Mares began to drift away from the perch toward Sophie, and Iago said, "Alright, alright, I get it! Enough with the black sand shaped like horses with glowing yellow eyes!" Then Iago said, "If that thing's come back to life, then that means…Sophia's alive?" He turned to look back at the scene and watch as Sophie, Howl, and Doppler walked off, before he said, "And that's her!"

Suddenly, without warning, the reliquary rose up in the air and took off, taking Iago along for the ride.

"Mayday, mayday!" Iago screamed, as he went through the floor with the reliquary, underwater, through a cave, and then through the earth's core before he finally arrived at some sort of floating planet made of bones and darkness and crash-landed inside of it.

Iago sat up and rubbed his head, mumbling, "Ow, that's gonna hurt in the morning."

"Who dares intrude on my solitude?!"

He turned to see a familiar man in black.

Upon seeing Iago, the man kicked a pillar and shouted, "GET OUT!" He stormed over to Iago, as he screamed, "Get out!" He grabbed Iago by the throat, as he screamed, "OUT!" But once he saw who he was attempting to strangle, he looked surprised and opened his hand, releasing Iago, who staggered about in his hand dizzily, as he said, "Iago? Is that you?"

Iago fell out of his hand and landed on the ground, before Iago looked up and said in surprise, "Pitch? You're alive?"

Pitch picked up Iago, as he said with a frown, "In a way, yes."

Just as he'd said that, his eye popped out of his head and Iago caught it.

"Whoa," Iago said. "That fell right out there."

"Something's happened," Pitch said, before he took his eye from Iago, put it back in his head, and hit the side of it so he could see normally. "I knew it! I can feel the Nightmare Sands and the dark forces stirring!"

"Well, I'm not surprised," Iago told him. "Because I saw her. Sophia!"

At this, Pitch looked surprised.

"Sophia?" Pitch said, just as his lips fell off and Iago caught them, looking slightly disturbed. "Alive?"

"Uh, sir, your lips," Iago said.

"That little brat," Pitch snarled.

"Yeah, ain't that the surprise of the century," Iago said, as he put the lips back where they belonged. "I guess the curse isn't what it used to be, huh?"

"So that's why I'm stuck here in limbo!" Pitch said, grabbing Iago again. "My curse is unfulfilled!"

On 'unfulfilled,' he flung his arms out.  This action resulted in his left hand flying off, taking Iago with it until it hit a pillar. The hand was the first to hit it, followed by Iago landing inside of the hand. The hand's fingers closed around Iago before it landed on the ground, freeing Iago.

Upon seeing his missing hand, Pitch gasped and grabbed his wrist, gaping at it in horror before he broke down, sobbing.

"Look at me," Pitch lamented, as Iago picked up the hand and carried it over. "I'm falling apart!" He sat down with a sob before he dramatically threw himself over a rock table, saying, "I'm a wreck!"

"Well, actually," Iago said, "considering how long you've been dead, you look pretty good!" Pitch just continued to cry, not believing Iago. Iago set the hand down and said, "Pitch, I mean it! You do, you do!"

At this, Pitch gave Iago a hopeful smile as he asked, "Really?"

"Does this look like the face of a parrot who would lie to you?" asked Iago. He tried to keep a straight face, but when he realized it wasn't working, he said, "Come on! I mean, for one minute there, it looked like you had your spark back!"

Pitch sat up, as he said, "If only I hadn't lost that gift from the dark forces. The key to my powers."

"What, you mean this?" asked Iago, as he pulled out the reliquary.

Pitch gasped in shock, before he asked, "Where did you get that?"

"Well, I found it," Iago began.

"GIVE IT TO ME!" Pitch screamed, snatching the reliquary.

"Alright, alright, don't get so grabby," Iago said.

Pitch reattached his hand to his wrist, as he said, "My old friend, together again." He laughed, as he hugged his reliquary before he added, "Now, my dark purpose will be fulfilled! And the last daughter of the royal family will die!"

Lightning struck around him and Iago, scaring the latter. Then Pitch began to sing.

Pitch: In the dark of the night
I was tossing and turning!

At that moment, a bunch of Fearlings popped out of the ground.

And the nightmare I had
Was as bad as can be!

The Fearlings then surrounded a nervous Iago, glaring at him.

It scared me out of my wits

Pitch then fell apart and bounced toward Iago.

A corpse falling to bits!
Then I opened my eyes
And the nightmare was me!

He then reassembled himself.

I was once the most powerful man in all Toonia!

Fearlings: Ooh-ah-ooh

Pitch: When the royals betrayed me
They made a mistake!

Fearlings: Ooh-ah-ooh!

The reliquary made an orb appear. Inside of it was an image of Sophie boarding a train with Howl, Doppler, and Frisky.

Pitch: My curse made each of them pay
But one little girl got away!

Little Sophie, beware
Pitch Black is awake!

Fearlings: In the dark of the night
Evil will find her

As the Fearlings danced, they began flinging Iago on the ground.

In the dark of the night
Just before dawn

Pitch: Revenge will be sweet
When the curse is complete

Fearlings: In the dark of the night

Pitch: She'll be gone!

Iago was then being swung by two lady Fearlings, as they hummed.

"Oh, hi, ladies, listen," Iago said.

Pitch: I can feel that my powers are slowly returning

A bunch of Fearlings held up a white wig to him and Iago yelped as he avoided a Fearling trying to grab him.

Tie my sash, add a dash of cologne for that smell!

The Fearlings lifted up a bottle of cologne while Iago bounced up and down on it, spraying him.

An image of Sophie appeared in the mirror.

Pitch: As the pieces fall into place

The image faded.

I'll see her crawl into place!

He took the wig off and began to walk away from the mirror.

Do svidaniya, Sophie, your grace!
Farewell!

Fearlings: In the dark of the night
Terror will strike her

"Terror's the least I can do," Pitch said to the readers, as he marched down the stairs with the Fearlings following him.

Fearlings: In the dark of the night
Evil will brew
Ooh-ooh-ooh!

Pitch: (holding a bunch of Fearlings in his hands) Soon she will feel
That her nightmares are real!

Fearlings: In the dark of the night

Pitch: (tossing the Fearlings into the air) She'll be through!

Fearlings: Ooh-ooh-ooh!
In the dark of the night
Evil will find her

Fearling: (deep voice) Find her

Fearlings: In the dark of the night
Terror comes true

Iago kicked away a bunch of Fearlings that were trying to attack him.

Fearling: (hitching a ride on Pitch's robe) Doom her

Pitch: My dear, here's a sign
It's the end of the line

Pitch then set the reliquary down on a spire.

Fearlings: In the dark of the night
In the dark of the night

Night Mares began to fly out of the reliquary.

Pitch: Come, my minions
Rise for your master
Let your evil shine

Fearlings: In the dark of the night
In the dark of the night

Pitch: Find her now
Yes, fly ever faster

Iago and all the Fearlings quickly flew around and dove for cover, trying to avoid the Night Mares.

Fearlings: In the dark of the night
In the dark of the night
In the dark of the night

Pitch: SHE'LL BE MINE!

He laughed evilly as he watched the Night Mares gallop off after Sophie.