Reasons
Summary: She was running away. Running away from the past, from her present, from her failures. When she lost everyone important, everyone who mattered, she lost her reasons to live...a glowing gold butterfly is hoping to help her find it again.
Anime/Movie: InuYasha/Encanto
Genre: Romance/Family (Hurt/Comfort)
Pairing: Kagome (17)/Camilo (16)
-x-x-x-
(Tokyo, Japan)
Over the last two years, Kagome had never questioned the difficulties of her adventures down the well. She found them favorable to the mundane lifestyle of the average school girl. However, she did acknowledge that her adventures were, in fact, difficult. Yet somehow, the walk through her front door had proven to be the most difficult she'd faced despite such heroic adventures and dangers embarked upon. After finally making it inside, she came face to face with another problem, one bigger than the previous one. The last three months had her closing her eyes and asking herself therapeutic questions.
How would you define the biggest challenge you're facing right now?
Opening her eyes, she took a careful breath, inhaled, exhaled, thought she might throw up. "I need to clean the..." trailing her eyes along the darkened stained floor, she felt a sting at the corner of her eyes. Quickly shaking her head, she forced the tears back. Pushed away from the feelings of heartache and swallowed the lump in her throat. "I need to clean or replace the floorboards. I...I'm not able to stay here. I can't."
How does this problem typically make you feel?
"Hopeless," she muttered, "and incapable, and sad and...alone. Very alone." Walking across the room, she lifted her bow, arrows scattered across the floor. They'd been knocked from the quiver useless in this tight space that day. "Deep breath, Kagome, you can do this." Taking another few steps, she grabbed the blood-splattered yellow backpack and stilled. The reddish-brown stains seemed to be growing, her eyes playing tricks on her. She watched as the blood began spreading across the yellow bag. Dropping it, she took two steps back; looking down at her shaking hand, Kagome could hear something from outside. No, inside? No, it was like she was hearing a drowned-out and muffled scream.
CLATTER
Her bow fell in front of her. Kagome felt sick, her body buzzing. "No, no, stop it!"Bringing her hand to her ears, she tightened her fists in her hair, dropping to her knees, she heaved in and out. She was unable to catch a breath, her heart racing, her cheeks burning—flushed, stained with tears. Wait that can't be. When did she start crying? Kagome stilled, lifting her eyes to the glass on the ground, stumbled back, and her back was met with resistance. Leaning against the wall, she brought her hand up and locked her eyes with the shimmer of the golden thread. The bracelet which was intricately braided around her wrist. "Breathe.." whispering, she placed her hand over her heart.
What makes the problem better?
'...' keeping the golden thread in sight, she knew what made things better. It was unethical and made no sense, but she felt safe simply by seeing the gold thread. Quickly reaching forward, she took up her bow once more, stood, and staggered off into the kitchen. If not for her living room, she wouldn't be able to tell that three months ago had happened. She couldn't deny it. She'd been there. Still, seeing it was harder than she could have anticipated. "It's early enough. I need to figure out what to do. First, selling and leaving, I'm sure they can figure out what to do with the floor...not me." Shaking her head, she picked up the landline and stared blankly. "I don't know who to call."
Kagome cringed at what she was about to do. Pulling out her cellphone, she opened her search app and typed "What to Do When a Loved One Dies" the results were promising but had her heart in knots. 'Find the will and the executor...Meet with a trusts and estates attorney...Contact the CPA?' This was too real. She climbed the steps upstairs to her room, her eyes tracing every minute detail made available. Placing her bow in the corner next to her door, she kicked her shoes off and glared at the clock. It had only just turned three in the afternoon, yet she felt exhausted. More emotionally than physically, but it all took its toll on her body. Falling back on her bed, she listened. It was eerily quiet in her home.
Kagome rolled over, not wanting to think about the inevitable tasks that lie ahead of her. She closed her eyes and hoped for a peaceful sleep. Her friendly golden bracelet liked to assist with that occasionally. She'd noticed the golden butterfly that would stay by her side throughout her dreams during her stay in the Health Center. After she'd noticed it, her nightmares had ceased to bother her. She could rest easy. Thankfully, she could at least count on this little bit of magic to keep her safe.
(Dreamscape)
Kagome peered out at the endless ocean before her. By her side, her bike leaned into her, gripped tightly at the handles. Glancing back, she could barely make out a crowd of faceless figures. Silently, she counted them in her head. The number matched up with those she lost. The idea of seeing them in her dreams, she would rather not. What kind of disappointment would she see?
Returning her eyes to the ocean, a golden flutter of wings grabbed her attention, and she followed the familiar butterfly. It was already making its way over the waves. She took a nervous step forward and peered out at the endless waters before straddling her bike. Pushing forward, she started applying pressure to the peddles and moving forward. Where she thought she might meet the waves with resistance, she closed her eyes tight.
Her wheels turning, she pressed forward, there was a brush of mist along her ankles. Peeking out from her eyelashes, Kagome stared out at the view. Behind her, the shoreline was no longer in sight. She knew she hadn't been riding the back long enough to be this far out, yet there she was. Slowing to a stop atop the water, she shook her head as her bike began to sink. Kagome wasted no time in pressing onward. Her eyes locked on the butterfly, and she yelled out loud, "where are you going!? Where are you taking me?"
It gave off a bright glow and kept on in front of her. She had no way of knowing where it was leading her, but it kept flying, and she kept peddling. Then the world began to spiral and shimmer a familiar pink. Kagome watched as the glow further washed across the world around her. Engulfing her in all its gentleness, she could feel herself breathing for the first time without resistance. Feeling gravity fade away, she began floating, the bike vanishing from her touch. "What?" When the glow faded, she hovered for a moment longer before her feet met the solid ground. Gone was the glow, Kagome stood in an empty hall of what appeared to be closed doors. Each shimmered a familiar golden hue that she'd come to depend on.
One step. Two. Three—and she kept walking along the hall of doors. Each one had a portrait of someone unfamiliar. No one door was the same as another. Kagome stopped in front of one of the doors. There was no picture like the others. It was just magic moving across the wood of the door. She reached out to touch it—
"Quién está ahí?"
Kagome pulled her hand back away from the doorknob and turned around. As she'd walked the hall, she had failed to notice how the lights had dimmed more and more around her. Only where she stood was there any light. Spinning around, she looked for the source of the voice.
"Quién eres tú?"
It was a guy, she could tell that much, but she couldn't see anyone.
Soft padded steps began to sound, she began shaking, and finally, she yelled, "stay away!"
-x-x-x-
(Somewhere in Colombia)
"No, wait!" Sitting up, heaving in short breaths as he glanced around his room, Camilo groaned as he ran a hand down his face. "What was that about?" Not able to put his finger on it, he felt as if he'd just been kicked out of his own dream. "Was it a dream, though?" He wasn't too sure.
Sighing, he kicked his blanket off of him and threw his legs over the side of his massive bed. Even though it was just him, the bed was big enough to fit his entire family. Whether this was to give him room to mess around on the bed, jumping on it, and playing when he was younger, he couldn't say. He never understood the magic of the Encanto and Casita; what he did understand is that even if you didn't know what you wanted, Casita always seemed to know what you needed. Growing up, he didn't know what he wanted to be, but what he needed, what he missed, was his family. He wanted to play with Mirabel and Dolores again.
Knocking the dream out of his mind, he sought out his sandals that were somewhere next to his bed. Camilo wasn't disappointed when Casita moved them over and helped them onto his feet. Smiling, he stood up and stretched. It was early, really early. Around one in the morning.
After getting his gift, he received a lavish room that was more than he could ask for. It was spacious, with a cozy boho theme, a mirror on every other panel of the wall had him perfecting his image. Well, the ones everyone saw, the ones they all asked for. Whoever that was at the time of need. He was alone in warm hues of brown and soft and gentle cream colors. The room recognized his need for his family, and so, when he was younger, a special door was made behind one of his mirrors. It took him straight to the Nursery, where he would sneak to every night.
Sleeping alone, he didn't like it. He missed his cousin. Growing up with her, she was his best friend, and then they grew separate after Antonio was born. He would be staying in the Nursery now, so he would have to be a good Hermano and be an example for him when he got older. It was best to start early. It was better for him.
Grabbing three large pillows from his bed, he walked off to a single spot in his room with a large glass lookout in his ceiling. Keeping true to the comfortable theme of his room, a stylized wool woven blanket in shades of off-white and oak was lying atop a pile of pillows. He was a pillow guy. Specifically, lying in a large pile of them, staring up at the night sky. He slept in this pile more often than he did his bed.
Tossing the three pillows he'd stolen from his bed onto the pile, he flopped back onto the pile and pulled the blanket around him. He wasn't in any particular mood to analyze his dream. He felt like the moment he started delving into it, he'd be a precursor for his own personal misfortune. Still, he couldn't help thinking about it, about her. Antonio had grabbed one of the many prophecies made of him, because he'd totally asked for one! In the corner of his room, hidden beneath his ruana, he could faintly make out the green glow of the prophecy.
"Why was she in my dream?" Closing his eyes, he shook his head, "no, it wasn't my dream. I wasn't dreaming of the doors before. Did I step into her dream?" Smirking, his eyes slipped open, and Camilo laughed, "wouldn't that be an amazing gift. Dreamwalking? Not that she can have a gift—can she? Could she?! Ay, vaya!" Rolling onto his side, he fell back into a lighthearted sleep as exhaustion claimed him one last time for the night.
-x-x-x-
Me: Here is chapter 4, and I know it's been a slow start to a slow build, but the next chapter will feature a bit of a time skip. Hopefully, that will make up for it?