The Willow
Kagome stood next to the stranger, determined to pass any test that lay ahead of her with flying colors. At least if it meant that she could go back to her friends...and touch Inu-Yasha again...
"Your tasks are fairly simple," the voice rang out.
"Wait, 'tasks', as in more than one?" Jareth asked.
"You do not expect me to base the sole survival of an entire world on two children performing a single task, do you?" the voice demanded.
Kagome's brow furrowed at that. The voice had been so somber and serious before. Right now it seemed to be sarcastic. Almost as if it thought that was the most stupid question anyone could ever think to ask him.
"Well...I guess not..." Jareth answered reasonably.
"For the first task, you must" the voice began once more but Jareth cut it off again,
"So how many tasks will there be? Five? Ten? How many?" Jareth asked curiously.
"Would you let him finish?" Kagome asked, a little annoyed with him. Here was this powerful being that wanted to inform them of the tasks that they would be doing to save the world and Jareth couldn't stop interrupting it with his stupid questions!
"Oh, sorry...I didn't really...I mean...I'll shut-up now."
"Thank you." The voice said. "For the first task," it left a pause there just in case Jareth had more to say, but none came. "Good, for the first task is that the two of you must find the Scroll of Futility." The voice said simply.
"Futility?" Jareth repeated, "Sounds important."
Kagome looked over at him, "Do you know what futility is?" she asked.
He looked at her a blank expression on his face, "Err...no, not really. But it sounds important." He added with a shrug.
Kagome sighed, this would be harder than she had first thought it would be. Much, much harder. She looked back up, "And where can we find this 'important' scroll?" she asked the voice.
"In the forest." The voice answered.
"That's it? Just the forest? Not the Forest of Incompetence? Not the Forest of Power? Everything has a name. Even the scroll. So obviously the forest must have a name." She said with a shrug. "It's in people's nature to name everything they come across."
Jareth stared at her, "No it's not." He said simply. Kagome ignored him.
"Who ever said that people have ever been to this forest?" the voice asked.
"Well, nobody, but..." Kagome never got to finish her sentence. Instead the light grew so bright she was forced to shut her eyes to keep from going blind.
When she opened them again they were in a dark forest surrounded by trees. There were sounds of animals and the swish of the wind as it rustled the leaves of every tree nearby.
Kagome went to a tree and touched it. Her skin came in contact with the rough bark. She looked up to see that the leaves of the tree were a golden white color. She had never seen such a tree before. The ground looked normal, the trunks the same, but the leaves proved that this was not a place that she was likely to see again. It made her wish she had her camera. She turned to see Jareth standing on a huge blue boulder. "What are you doing?" she asked walking over to him.
"I'm trying to find anything that looks different." He answered.
"What do you mean something that looks different? This entire place is different!" she said. "No, I mean different for here. They're not going to have a scroll just laying about, it's gonna be hidden or something. But if we're supposed to be able to find it at all, it's gotta be somewhere that stands out." He answered.
Kagome cocked her head, he seemed all business, all serious, and all...brain. Whereas a few moments ago he had been rather stupid. "Who are you?" she asked again, more to herself than to him.
"I told you, I'm Jareth. Here, I'll help you up," he answered holding out a hand.
Kagome took it but immediately let go as a shock went through her. "Ouch!" she exclaimed in surprise, holding her hand close to her body.
Jareth jumped down, "Lemme see," he said, gently taking her wrist and pulling it out so he could see her hand.
She opened her hand to see a black mark on her palm where they had touched.
"I'm so sorry, I didn't mean to do that...heck I didn't even know I could." He said.
"It's fine, it doesn't hurt anymore. But how come it happened at all? I mean, it's not happening now..." Kagome trailed off as he brushed the mark with his fingers. It was still hot.
"I really am sorry. I'll try not to do it again." He said, silently cursing himself.
"No, really, it's fine. It just startled me." Kagome said, "That's all..." she pulled her hand away from him and climbed up on the boulder herself, "Besides, I can help myself up." She said with a smile, trying to make him feel better.
His brow was still furrowed, his face unsure, but he climbed up to stand next to her. He watched her face as she scanned the area for anything that didn't seem to fit. Anything that seemed out of place.
"Look," she said, pointing out in the direction opposite where he had been looking earlier.
He looked. There was a tall weeping willow, but it's leaves were normal, a deep green in color. It was surrounded by trees with pink and purple and white and gold leaves. It didn't look at all like it belonged in a forest like this. It was a normal tree in an enchanted forest where faeries should live, not people or demons.
"Yeah, I guess that's where we're headed then." He said.
Kagome jumped down, "Well come on, I can't do this without you."
Jareth stayed a moment longer on the rock. This all seemed much too easy, even if it was their first task. He jumped down next to her but kept alert, watching for any surprises that might be waiting for them.
They walked in the direction of the tree for what seemed to be hours.
"You'd think we'd be there by now," Kagome said. She was getting kind of tired.
"Yeah, you'd think." He said. Then he froze in his tracks.
"What? What's wrong?" Kagome asked him.
He pointed ahead of them, "That's where we started." He said.
Kagome looked and sure enough, just ahead of them was that blue boulder they had climbed up on. She ran to it and climbed it quickly. She looked for the willow but couldn't see it. She turned around, "There it is!" she said, pointing in the direction they had just come from. "But...that doesn't make any sense." She shook her head, "We didn't pass it did we?" she asked, looking down at Jareth.
"I didn't see it. Maybe we took a detour somewhere and went around it." Jareth suggested.
Kagome looked back up to the tree, but it wasn't there. She looked about to find that it was on her right. "Oh no!"
"What?" Jareth asked worriedly.
"The tree moves!" Kagome wailed.
"What?" he said climbing up.
"Every time we look somewhere else it's in a different spot!" Kagome explained to him. She found the tree again and pointed it out to him, "See?" she asked.
"This is going to take a while. A very, very long while." He breathed.
Kagome stood next to the stranger, determined to pass any test that lay ahead of her with flying colors. At least if it meant that she could go back to her friends...and touch Inu-Yasha again...
"Your tasks are fairly simple," the voice rang out.
"Wait, 'tasks', as in more than one?" Jareth asked.
"You do not expect me to base the sole survival of an entire world on two children performing a single task, do you?" the voice demanded.
Kagome's brow furrowed at that. The voice had been so somber and serious before. Right now it seemed to be sarcastic. Almost as if it thought that was the most stupid question anyone could ever think to ask him.
"Well...I guess not..." Jareth answered reasonably.
"For the first task, you must" the voice began once more but Jareth cut it off again,
"So how many tasks will there be? Five? Ten? How many?" Jareth asked curiously.
"Would you let him finish?" Kagome asked, a little annoyed with him. Here was this powerful being that wanted to inform them of the tasks that they would be doing to save the world and Jareth couldn't stop interrupting it with his stupid questions!
"Oh, sorry...I didn't really...I mean...I'll shut-up now."
"Thank you." The voice said. "For the first task," it left a pause there just in case Jareth had more to say, but none came. "Good, for the first task is that the two of you must find the Scroll of Futility." The voice said simply.
"Futility?" Jareth repeated, "Sounds important."
Kagome looked over at him, "Do you know what futility is?" she asked.
He looked at her a blank expression on his face, "Err...no, not really. But it sounds important." He added with a shrug.
Kagome sighed, this would be harder than she had first thought it would be. Much, much harder. She looked back up, "And where can we find this 'important' scroll?" she asked the voice.
"In the forest." The voice answered.
"That's it? Just the forest? Not the Forest of Incompetence? Not the Forest of Power? Everything has a name. Even the scroll. So obviously the forest must have a name." She said with a shrug. "It's in people's nature to name everything they come across."
Jareth stared at her, "No it's not." He said simply. Kagome ignored him.
"Who ever said that people have ever been to this forest?" the voice asked.
"Well, nobody, but..." Kagome never got to finish her sentence. Instead the light grew so bright she was forced to shut her eyes to keep from going blind.
When she opened them again they were in a dark forest surrounded by trees. There were sounds of animals and the swish of the wind as it rustled the leaves of every tree nearby.
Kagome went to a tree and touched it. Her skin came in contact with the rough bark. She looked up to see that the leaves of the tree were a golden white color. She had never seen such a tree before. The ground looked normal, the trunks the same, but the leaves proved that this was not a place that she was likely to see again. It made her wish she had her camera. She turned to see Jareth standing on a huge blue boulder. "What are you doing?" she asked walking over to him.
"I'm trying to find anything that looks different." He answered.
"What do you mean something that looks different? This entire place is different!" she said. "No, I mean different for here. They're not going to have a scroll just laying about, it's gonna be hidden or something. But if we're supposed to be able to find it at all, it's gotta be somewhere that stands out." He answered.
Kagome cocked her head, he seemed all business, all serious, and all...brain. Whereas a few moments ago he had been rather stupid. "Who are you?" she asked again, more to herself than to him.
"I told you, I'm Jareth. Here, I'll help you up," he answered holding out a hand.
Kagome took it but immediately let go as a shock went through her. "Ouch!" she exclaimed in surprise, holding her hand close to her body.
Jareth jumped down, "Lemme see," he said, gently taking her wrist and pulling it out so he could see her hand.
She opened her hand to see a black mark on her palm where they had touched.
"I'm so sorry, I didn't mean to do that...heck I didn't even know I could." He said.
"It's fine, it doesn't hurt anymore. But how come it happened at all? I mean, it's not happening now..." Kagome trailed off as he brushed the mark with his fingers. It was still hot.
"I really am sorry. I'll try not to do it again." He said, silently cursing himself.
"No, really, it's fine. It just startled me." Kagome said, "That's all..." she pulled her hand away from him and climbed up on the boulder herself, "Besides, I can help myself up." She said with a smile, trying to make him feel better.
His brow was still furrowed, his face unsure, but he climbed up to stand next to her. He watched her face as she scanned the area for anything that didn't seem to fit. Anything that seemed out of place.
"Look," she said, pointing out in the direction opposite where he had been looking earlier.
He looked. There was a tall weeping willow, but it's leaves were normal, a deep green in color. It was surrounded by trees with pink and purple and white and gold leaves. It didn't look at all like it belonged in a forest like this. It was a normal tree in an enchanted forest where faeries should live, not people or demons.
"Yeah, I guess that's where we're headed then." He said.
Kagome jumped down, "Well come on, I can't do this without you."
Jareth stayed a moment longer on the rock. This all seemed much too easy, even if it was their first task. He jumped down next to her but kept alert, watching for any surprises that might be waiting for them.
They walked in the direction of the tree for what seemed to be hours.
"You'd think we'd be there by now," Kagome said. She was getting kind of tired.
"Yeah, you'd think." He said. Then he froze in his tracks.
"What? What's wrong?" Kagome asked him.
He pointed ahead of them, "That's where we started." He said.
Kagome looked and sure enough, just ahead of them was that blue boulder they had climbed up on. She ran to it and climbed it quickly. She looked for the willow but couldn't see it. She turned around, "There it is!" she said, pointing in the direction they had just come from. "But...that doesn't make any sense." She shook her head, "We didn't pass it did we?" she asked, looking down at Jareth.
"I didn't see it. Maybe we took a detour somewhere and went around it." Jareth suggested.
Kagome looked back up to the tree, but it wasn't there. She looked about to find that it was on her right. "Oh no!"
"What?" Jareth asked worriedly.
"The tree moves!" Kagome wailed.
"What?" he said climbing up.
"Every time we look somewhere else it's in a different spot!" Kagome explained to him. She found the tree again and pointed it out to him, "See?" she asked.
"This is going to take a while. A very, very long while." He breathed.
