Chapters 13 through 15 Summary

In Chapter 13, Howl takes Sophie and Michael to see the king. At the palace, Sophie and Michael are passed from one courtier to another, until finally Sophie is alone and is introduced to the king. The king seems almost like a normal person until he speaks to Sophie, then the weight of his position bears down upon her, leaving her almost mute with stage fright. Sophie knows that she is supposed to delicately blacken Howl's name to the king, so that the king will still use him for small jobs, but not trust him to find his brother. Sophie only manages to tell the king how vain and whiny Howl is, and that he is a coward who sends his old mother to give excuses to the king. The king, however, is not convinced. He knows why Howl has sent Sophie...