The Simplest Things
By: dragonfly-rising
Kagome sat up with a start breathing harshly, shaken from the nightmare that still twisted in her mind. She had been trapped somewhere in the dark well away from anything she needed. It had been terrifying and painful. Unbalanced from the nightmare Kagome shifted and put her hand down to stand. The instant her hand touched the dead wood of Kaede's hut Kagome jerked it way feeling soiled. She sprang to her feet holding the hand that had touched the vile flooring against her chest and took in her surrounding with growing anxiety and confusion. It took her only a moment for her to realize that she was inside Kaede's dwelling...INSIDE!! Panicked she put a hand to her temple attempting to calm herself. There had to be a reason they would put her inside, perhaps she had done something horribly wrong and this was a punishment.
A low moan of terror escaped her as she stared in confusion at the walls of the room she was trapped in. She couldn't bring herself to leave the relative safety of the blanket she stood on, to touch the wood again. She noticed with frustration that there was a small window not far from the blanket where moonlight pooled on the floor. It was so close that she imagined she could force herself to run to it for a moment before whimpering and wrapping her arms around herself. She could not bare the touch of the floor; it hurt her spirit to feel the dead wood so intimately.
Slowly she collapsed upon the blanket, tears springing to her eyes.
~Why would they do this to me? ~ Her troubled mind whispered in anguish.
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"It has to be some kind of curse." Shippo insisted angrily.
"Aye it could be child but there is no evidence of such a thing." Kaede agreed.
Inuyasha shook his head in annoyance. It had been hours since he had brought Kagome to Kaede. Hours and hours of debating what it could be but nothing being resolved. Miroku and Sango insisted it was the work of Naraku. Shippo and Kaede were convinced it was a curse that had absolutely nothing to do with Naraku. Inuyasha himself wasn't so certain that it was such a malignant purpose that was behind the whole thing. He couldn't shake the fact that the entire time Kagome had been encased in the pod he had not once thought of it being an evil spell that was affecting her.
His ears perked as a small sound came from the room Kagome was asleep in. The sound was of a small child crying miserably and secretively so as not to anger the adults further. Concerned Inuyasha went quickly to the door and slid it aside. What he saw not only confused him but also made his heart drop. Kagome was sitting in the middle of the blanket he had laid on her earlier with a hand over her mouth as she sobbed. Fresh tears ran continuously down her cheeks.
"Kagome?" He ventured softly, stepping further into the room.
She jerked violently and stared up at him. His brow furrowed when he saw the hopeless, terrified look in her eyes. She was shivering in her fear.
"Kagome what's wrong?" He asked stepping up to her in one swift motion to kneel beside the blanket.
"I'm sorry I'm sorry Inuyasha I won't do it again I swear I won't ever do it again!" She cried desperately to him, speaking so fast it made his head spin.
"What are you talking about?" He asked even more confused.
One of her small hands reached out to grasp the edge of his robe, clutching it tightly. She pulled herself closer to him and he could feel how strong her shivering was through the contact. Without thinking he put his hands on her shoulders hoping the contact would quiet the tremors but they only worsened as she looked into his eyes.
"What ever I did to be put here...in this this dead place...I'm sorry I swear please just tell me what I did wrong and I won't ever ever ever ever do it again. Please just take me out of here please!" Her voice rose as she spoke and Inuyasha's concern grew in leaps and bounds.
"Kaede!" Inuyasha shouted pulling Kagome against his chest trying to comfort her.
He could not stand the shrill edge of the fear in her voice it cut him to the core to hear such fright from her. He didn't understand why she was acting as if she had done something wrong and that they were punishing her. He heard Kaede come into the room and looked at her knowing his face held his worry and not caring. Kaede gazed at Kagome with a frown.
"Kaede please tell Inuyasha I'm not a bad person...tell him to take me out of this awful place...tell him please!" Kagome choked out noticing the old woman.
"Be at ease child, what is the matter?" Kaede asked softly.
"Why would you do this to me? Why won't any of you take me from this place of death? I can feel it all around me...clawing at me...I can hear the wood singing of life that use to be...please Kaede please I can't be here...I can't feel the air...I'll die in here if you don't tell him to take me out." Kagome whispered in childlike confusion.
"Gods damn me...Inuyasha take her outside now!" Kaede ordered.
Inuyasha nodded and swept the still shivering Kagome into his arms. It took only a few seconds for him to get her outside but the entire time she clung to him tightly and buried her face in his shoulders as if she could not endure to look at the hut even for a moment. Once outside Kagome immediately shoved herself out of his arms and ran to the nearest tree hugging it tightly to her. The others piled out of the hut noisily. Kaede came up beside him.
"I apologize child I had not thought it would affect you in such a way to be inside." Kaede apologized to Kagome.
The tremors subsided from Kagome as she turned from the tree. Her face held a world of confusion in it.
"How could you not know Kaede?" She asked simply.
"Kagome I do not think you understand what has happened to you..." Miroku began.
"Happened to me? Nothing has happened to me except the people I trusted betrayed me." She said softly.
"Kagome that's just not true." Sango gasped.
"What else would you call it Sango?" Kagome ventured in her quiet voice "I have never gone into Kaede's hut...never. You all know that I hate such dwellings, that it hurts me to touch the wood, yet you put me in there."
"We do?" Shippo squeaked.
"Of course you do...when did you all become so ignorant of dryads?" She asked innocently.
By: dragonfly-rising
Kagome sat up with a start breathing harshly, shaken from the nightmare that still twisted in her mind. She had been trapped somewhere in the dark well away from anything she needed. It had been terrifying and painful. Unbalanced from the nightmare Kagome shifted and put her hand down to stand. The instant her hand touched the dead wood of Kaede's hut Kagome jerked it way feeling soiled. She sprang to her feet holding the hand that had touched the vile flooring against her chest and took in her surrounding with growing anxiety and confusion. It took her only a moment for her to realize that she was inside Kaede's dwelling...INSIDE!! Panicked she put a hand to her temple attempting to calm herself. There had to be a reason they would put her inside, perhaps she had done something horribly wrong and this was a punishment.
A low moan of terror escaped her as she stared in confusion at the walls of the room she was trapped in. She couldn't bring herself to leave the relative safety of the blanket she stood on, to touch the wood again. She noticed with frustration that there was a small window not far from the blanket where moonlight pooled on the floor. It was so close that she imagined she could force herself to run to it for a moment before whimpering and wrapping her arms around herself. She could not bare the touch of the floor; it hurt her spirit to feel the dead wood so intimately.
Slowly she collapsed upon the blanket, tears springing to her eyes.
~Why would they do this to me? ~ Her troubled mind whispered in anguish.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
"It has to be some kind of curse." Shippo insisted angrily.
"Aye it could be child but there is no evidence of such a thing." Kaede agreed.
Inuyasha shook his head in annoyance. It had been hours since he had brought Kagome to Kaede. Hours and hours of debating what it could be but nothing being resolved. Miroku and Sango insisted it was the work of Naraku. Shippo and Kaede were convinced it was a curse that had absolutely nothing to do with Naraku. Inuyasha himself wasn't so certain that it was such a malignant purpose that was behind the whole thing. He couldn't shake the fact that the entire time Kagome had been encased in the pod he had not once thought of it being an evil spell that was affecting her.
His ears perked as a small sound came from the room Kagome was asleep in. The sound was of a small child crying miserably and secretively so as not to anger the adults further. Concerned Inuyasha went quickly to the door and slid it aside. What he saw not only confused him but also made his heart drop. Kagome was sitting in the middle of the blanket he had laid on her earlier with a hand over her mouth as she sobbed. Fresh tears ran continuously down her cheeks.
"Kagome?" He ventured softly, stepping further into the room.
She jerked violently and stared up at him. His brow furrowed when he saw the hopeless, terrified look in her eyes. She was shivering in her fear.
"Kagome what's wrong?" He asked stepping up to her in one swift motion to kneel beside the blanket.
"I'm sorry I'm sorry Inuyasha I won't do it again I swear I won't ever do it again!" She cried desperately to him, speaking so fast it made his head spin.
"What are you talking about?" He asked even more confused.
One of her small hands reached out to grasp the edge of his robe, clutching it tightly. She pulled herself closer to him and he could feel how strong her shivering was through the contact. Without thinking he put his hands on her shoulders hoping the contact would quiet the tremors but they only worsened as she looked into his eyes.
"What ever I did to be put here...in this this dead place...I'm sorry I swear please just tell me what I did wrong and I won't ever ever ever ever do it again. Please just take me out of here please!" Her voice rose as she spoke and Inuyasha's concern grew in leaps and bounds.
"Kaede!" Inuyasha shouted pulling Kagome against his chest trying to comfort her.
He could not stand the shrill edge of the fear in her voice it cut him to the core to hear such fright from her. He didn't understand why she was acting as if she had done something wrong and that they were punishing her. He heard Kaede come into the room and looked at her knowing his face held his worry and not caring. Kaede gazed at Kagome with a frown.
"Kaede please tell Inuyasha I'm not a bad person...tell him to take me out of this awful place...tell him please!" Kagome choked out noticing the old woman.
"Be at ease child, what is the matter?" Kaede asked softly.
"Why would you do this to me? Why won't any of you take me from this place of death? I can feel it all around me...clawing at me...I can hear the wood singing of life that use to be...please Kaede please I can't be here...I can't feel the air...I'll die in here if you don't tell him to take me out." Kagome whispered in childlike confusion.
"Gods damn me...Inuyasha take her outside now!" Kaede ordered.
Inuyasha nodded and swept the still shivering Kagome into his arms. It took only a few seconds for him to get her outside but the entire time she clung to him tightly and buried her face in his shoulders as if she could not endure to look at the hut even for a moment. Once outside Kagome immediately shoved herself out of his arms and ran to the nearest tree hugging it tightly to her. The others piled out of the hut noisily. Kaede came up beside him.
"I apologize child I had not thought it would affect you in such a way to be inside." Kaede apologized to Kagome.
The tremors subsided from Kagome as she turned from the tree. Her face held a world of confusion in it.
"How could you not know Kaede?" She asked simply.
"Kagome I do not think you understand what has happened to you..." Miroku began.
"Happened to me? Nothing has happened to me except the people I trusted betrayed me." She said softly.
"Kagome that's just not true." Sango gasped.
"What else would you call it Sango?" Kagome ventured in her quiet voice "I have never gone into Kaede's hut...never. You all know that I hate such dwellings, that it hurts me to touch the wood, yet you put me in there."
"We do?" Shippo squeaked.
"Of course you do...when did you all become so ignorant of dryads?" She asked innocently.
