InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Once Upon a Snowstorm ❯ Chapter One ( Chapter 1 )

Well. This is, believe it or not, a Kagome and Miroku story. A certain reviewer (*coughsRurouniStarcoughs*) suggested that I'd turn out a fairly decent M/K fic if I put my mind to it, and now that the idea has been implanted into my brain, it won't let me rest until I actually write it out (There! Are you happy now? You've ruined me! *sobsob* ^_~). So all you Inuyasha/Kagome puritans out there who are unhappy with the fact that I've turned to the dark side this once…blame her.

But read her stories first, 'cause they're really, really good.

And also, blame Sandra E, because before writing this, I was reading the latest story she just posted, thus letting down my guard and allowing my evil muse to sneak up behind me and brain me with a story idea. So…thanks for the inspiration, Sandra E. Although I doubt I could give Miroku and Kagome half the justice that you give them. ^_^

Summary (Or, "What the hell is this thing about, anyway?!"): Okay. This is just one of your typical blanket-scenario stories with the typical blanket-scenario plot, but hopefully written well enough that nobody cares how cliché it is and will read it anyway. And yes. The title sucks. I'm putting what little creative writing energy I still actually possess into the story itself, in the hopes that I'll actually be able to finish this one, and thus have sapped my reserves to think of a creative title. But oh well. I may change it. Or not.

Warning: I've forgone sleep just to write this today. And I didn't edit it, either. It might not make any sense, plot-wise. But don't let that scare you. Think of it as a challenge, like bungee-jumping off a cliff. Without a cord.

Rating: On the citrus-rating scale, I'd say this makes a limeade. Or, if I'm feeling really naughty, maybe even a Sprite. I haven't decided yet.

And for those of you who have NO idea what a citrus rating scale IS…

Orange juice = PG…ish (I completely made that one up, btw. Go me! Or not.)

Limeade = PG13

Sprite = R (lime with a touch of lemon, heavy on the lime)

Lemonade = banned from ff.net. You get the idea.

Btw…this story takes place pre-Sango, because I have no idea what to do with her. And because she's the competition, darn it!

Once Upon a Snowstorm

A Miroku & Kagome-type…thing…

byQuickening

Chapter One

She couldn't believe how cold it could get in such a short amount of time. The day had started out unusually warm-almost spring-like, in fact-for that time of year, complete with cloudless sky and brilliant sunshine, tempting her to abandon her heavier coat for a simple sweater to wear over her uniform as she walked through Inuyasha's Forest.

Perhaps she should have paid a bit more attention to where she was going; she tended to get lost rather easily, after all, when she was distracted. But the weather was so pleasant and the day so peaceful (not a single youkai or shard had appeared, a rare treat indeed), that she couldn't help but let her mind drift as she wandered aimlessly through the trees. She supposed she should have gone home and gone to school, as she normally did during the rare, quiet times. But the truth was she was avoiding school for a bit, since there was a trigonometry test that she'd failed to study for. She hated trigonometry almost as much as she hated Naraku, so she'd decided, in an unusual moment of teenage laziness, that since she'd probably fail the test anyway, why bother to take it in the first place? It was perfectly good reasoning, and besides, it was cold and snowing in her time, and she absolutely loathed the cold, so it was all the more reason to remain in the feudal era and soak up some of the spring-like warmth before winter forced it away again.

She'd walked a long way already before she began collecting her wandering thoughts and decided to take note of where she was; she was only slightly alarmed to realize that she was in a part of the forest that was unfamiliar to her. As much as she'd traveled back and forth through this forest, most of the trees were nearly as familiar to her as her own yard, and yet she could find no trace of a recognizable landmark anywhere around her. I couldn't have walked that far already, she thought, a bit peeved at herself for not paying attention. She turned and started to backtrack, before abruptly coming to a halt as she recalled the first rule one must always remember when they are lost: Don't move.

There was no telling which way she'd come from; she could have been walking in circles for all she knew (though she could only hope that was the case), and if she tried to go back the way she thought she'd come, she could end up somewhere else entirely. She was without any weapon of any kind, save what little miko power she possessed (and that was unreliable at best), and with her luck she'd probably wander straight into a nest of starving youkai or something.

Mentally cursing herself as all kinds the fool, Kagome muttered a few obscenities under her breath-ones learned through Inuyasha, which would likely give her grandfather a stroke if he ever heard them repeated from her lips-stomped to a nearby clearing which housed a large patch of sun-warmed grass, and flopped somewhat gracelessly down into the middle of it. She figured it wouldn't be too long before a certain hanyou came tearing through the woods in search of her, ready to chew her out for going off alone without protection of any kind. Without bothering to tell anyone, even. The boy was like clockwork when it came to that. Of course, she'd eat her shards before she ever admitted that she'd gotten lost, but in the meantime, she might as well enjoy the serenity of being alone for once. That having been decided, Kagome lay back in the grass with her arms tucked firmly beneath her head, closed her eyes, heaved a deep, contented sigh, and drifted off into a pleasant slumber.

~~~{~@ ~~~{~@ ~~~{~@

It was the biting cold that forced her to awaken some time later. A good deal later, she realized uneasily, taking note of the darkening sky above her. The sun had disappeared and the brilliant sapphire hue of the sky had paled into a dull and roiling gray; it looked like a storm was approaching alarmingly fast, and…she was still lost, she remembered with a start. She jumped to her feet, shivering violently as she was met with a gust of biting wind, wishing now that she'd worn her heavy jacket, after all. The heavy jacket with the fur-trimmed hood and goose-down lining that her mother and grandfather had given her just this past Christmas. Or maybe the thick, knitted purple scarf that was nearly twice as long as she was tall that her best friend Yuka had given her the year before last. Or her fur-lined hat that she'd bought in Osaka and had worn approximately once, which now gathered a collection of dust bunnies under her bed. Heck, at that point, she'd have settled for the pair of ratty old gloves with the holes in the fingers that she'd had since she was eight years old!

The wind howled again, bringing with it a flurry of small, white flakes, and Kagome decided that perhaps staying in one place wasn't such a good idea anymore. Inuyasha's internal clockwork was obviously broken today; he would have been there by then if he was coming at all. Kagome didn't know what could distract the temperamental hanyou from his favorite shard detector, but boy was he gonna get an earful when she got back to the village!

Assuming she got back, of course…

No, no! Bad Kagome! Happy thoughts. Think happy thoughts, darn it!

Another blast of wind, followed this time by a splattering of icy raindrops against her back, abruptly sent whatever happy thoughts she might have managed to acquire screaming for the hills. Kagome growled under her breath, wrapped her arms around her body as far as they could reach, and proceeded to walk as swiftly as she could back into the cover of the trees, although their mostly-bare branches afforded her little protection from the elements. There had to be some kind of shelter around here, though. She was in a forest, for pity's sake. Weren't there caves or something in the forest? The little woodland critters-like bears and wildcats, and the numerous youkai, of course-had to sleep somewhere, didn't they? Of course, she had no idea how she'd convince any of the afore-mentioned critters to share their homes with her without losing a limb, or maybe a head, in the process, but she supposed she'd worry about that matter when she came to it.

In the meantime…she was freezing, and wet, and the mixture of snow and rain was coming down harder and harder as the storm front moved overhead, and she was clearly in what Inuyasha would cheerfully describe as some deep shit.

And damned if she didn't wish she was taking that trigonometry test right now…

~~~{~@ ~~~{~@ ~~~{~@

"…agome-sama…"

Kagome, from where she'd been resting wearily against the half-frozen trunk of a fallen tree, raised her head and looked around blearily, certain that her mind was playing tricks on her. She'd been walking now for…she didn't know how long anymore, having lost track of time long ago…and she could barely feel her body anymore, she was so numb from the cold. No wonder she was hallucinating. Surely, she couldn't have heard her name being called, not after all this time. It was quite obvious to her that nobody even realized that she was missing, or weren't concerned enough about her to venture the weather to look for her. Chances were, they'd all just assumed she went back to her time when the storm began, since shard-hunting was now out of the question, even if there were shards to hunt. She was, after all, the sensible one. Certainly not stupid enough to get lost in the middle of a forest during a blizzard without a coat, of all things.

She was certain the fates were laughing at her.

"Kagome-sama! Are you there?"

She perked up, the numb feeling in her brain leaving for a moment as hope flooded through her in a sudden, warm glow. She'd definitely heard something that time, and it had definitely sounded like her name. A faint glow caught her eye; a light was moving toward her through the dimness of the trees, swinging gently back and forth. Like…a lantern! Youkai didn't carry lanterns, right? And they wouldn't know her name either, right? Unless, of course, it was one of Naraku's many offspring…but even they had more sense than to venture out into this weather, didn't they? Kagome straightened a little more, wincing as she forced her stiffened limbs to move. Youkai or not, right about then anything sounded better than freezing to death in the middle of nowhere, so she mustered all her courage to call out, "Here! I'm right here!"

Truthfully, her intended shout came out as more of a sick croak, but the light swung in her direction, and began moving closer to her, and through the low howl of the wind and the faint pattering of frozen rain against the ground, she thought she could hear a faint, musical ching, like that of little bells. Or perhaps the rings on a monk's staff chiming together. And just as the thought passed her mind, the light caught on a flash of gold, and in another moment a blurry figure emerged from the gray shadows, holding the lantern before him with a gloved hand, and Miroku's tired, concerned face came into Kagome's vision. The concern melted briefly into relief when the monk first took in Kagome's bedraggled visage, but worry quickly came to the fore again as he hurried to her and knelt at her side. When had she sat down, she wondered dazedly. Hadn't she been standing just a moment ago?

"Kagome-sama, are you alright?" he asked, setting the lantern in the gathering snow to place a hand against her frozen cheek. The surprising heat of it shocked the rest of the lethargy from Kagome's system, and she blinked up at him, suddenly alert. "What happened to you? I've been searching all over for you!"

"I…I…g-got lost…i-in the…w-w-woods," Kagome managed to relay around her chattering teeth. "I…f-fell asleep…w-waiting f-f-for Inu…yasha to come f-find m-m-me and th-the storm c-came an-and I…"

"Hush, now, no more words," he shushed her gently, helping her to her feet and wrapping his arm firmly around her shoulders. Normally, she would have brained him for such an action, but at the moment she was more than a little grateful for the warmth. Besides…if he tried to grope her she doubted she'd even feel it, she was so cold. She could only hope he wouldn't come to the same realization.

"It is more important now that we find some shelter from the storm," Miroku continued calmly, seemingly unaware of her suspicions. "We're not too far from the village, but in your current state, I don't believe it safe to travel the entire way back in this weather."

"Wh-where's Inuyasha?" she asked. "H-how come he d-d-didn't come get m-me s-sooner?"

She didn't see the way his eyes darkened at the mention of the hanyou's name, or else she might have apologized for that seemingly-ungrateful question. But, "The storm threw off his senses," Miroku replied calmly. "By the time we realized you weren't coming back, the sleet had already erased most of your scent. We had no idea which direction you'd gone. He thought that perhaps you'd snuck back to your home, so he went back for you. I imagine he'll return soon enough once he realizes you aren't there."

"H-how did you man-manage t-t-to find m-me?" she asked.

He flashed his most charming smile as he led her through the forest. "Why, I have always been able to seek out a beautiful damsel in distress! Have you forgotten?" he replied teasingly, earning a disgruntled look in return. "In any case, there's a cavern nearby where we can wait out the rest of the storm. It doesn't seem to be letting up anytime soon, so best we seek shelter there." And fast; he was starting to shiver, as well, and his robes really weren't that waterproof, after all.

"A-are you s-sure it's s-s-safe?" she asked. "No a-animals l-l-live there? 'Cause it'd b-be a sh-shame if w-we invited our-ourselves for d-d-dinner unannounced a-and all."

Miroku chuckled heartily. "I see the foul change in weather hasn't dampened your sense of humor," he teased.

"S-sure. L-laugh in the face of d-d-death and a-all th-that," she replied with a weak grin. "I-I c-can't f-f-feel my t-toes anymore."

"Don't worry, we're nearly there," he assured her warmly. "You see? There it is." He pointed to a shallow hill, which was marred by a jagged opening near its base. To Kagome's surprise, the entrance was covered by a thin mat, like a makeshift door. She shot Miroku a questioning glance. "It's a hunter's refuge, I believe," he explained briefly. "Man-made. There are supplies in the cave. I looked in, thinking perhaps you'd taken shelter inside."

"I-I was looking f-f-for shelter b-but I obviously m-missed it," she replied sheepishly. "T-tell me th-th-there's wood for a f-fire in here…?"

"Why don't I show you instead," he replied easily, leading her into the dark cave and setting the lantern on an alcove above their heads. The flickering light revealed a shallow fire pit near the back of the cave, away from any drafts, and a small but suitable stack of firewood resting against the wall beside it, eliciting a sigh of relief from Kagome's lips. In another few minutes, Miroku had built a small fire in the pit and had a bright and merry blaze going. Kagome crawled to the back of the cave, sitting as close to the fire as she dared, and held out her frozen hands over it, relishing the warmth. In no time at all the feeling began to return to her limbs...and so did the pain. "Ow ow ow!" she hissed, straightening her legs out before her as pins and needles began to stab at her fingers and toes. "Dammit, that hurts!"

"Take off your shoes," Miroku commanded, having already removed his outer robe, which he spread before the fire. "Let me look at your feet. They may be frostbitten."

No duh, she wanted to snap, but bit her tongue and obeyed. Taking off any part of her clothes in front of Miroku didn't really sit right with her, but she painfully removed her soaked shoes and set them by the fire, then her frozen stockings. Miroku knelt beside her, and she realized with a shock that, while she'd been stripping her feet, he'd been busy stripping his torso, and now sat in nothing but his black pants (which were slung disturbingly low about his waist, she noted with a blush), with his inner robe spread neatly beside him to dry.

"What are you doing?!" Kagome yelped, hastily averting her gaze from Miroku's surprisingly well-sculpted chest (although the marvelous display had already burnt itself into her retinas by then), thus missing the amused glance he cast her way.

"I thought I was examining your poor feet," he replied with utmost innocence...which was exactly the kind of innocence that Kagome had learned to trust the least.

"Wh-why are you examining them w-without your sh-shirt on?" Kagome was stammering again, and it wasn't because of the cold, this time.

His lips curled up in a wicked little smirk, and she just knew he was laughing at her on the inside. "My robes are a bit damp themselves, you see. They'll dry much faster if I'm not wearing them," he explained calmly. "Perhaps you should follow my example, Kagome-sama, and remove your garments, as well. They are much damper than mine are, after all, and…" He suddenly found his hands bereft of feet, as Kagome had quickly jerked them from his grasp and turned her back on him. He could see her cheeks blazing; from fury or embarrassment, he couldn't tell which, but the sight was rather charming.

"My clothes are just fine where they are, thanks very much," the girl gritted out, hands clenching into little fists in her lap.

Miroku grinned, not at all ready to give up just yet. "But you must be freezing in that thin cloth. You'll catch a chill…"

"I'll sit closer to the fire."

"Kagome-sama. With all due respect, if you sit any closer to that fire you'll be sitting in it." His voice was wry with humor and she clenched her teeth, aware that he was simply toying with her.

"I am not removing my clothes for your viewing pleasure, hentai," she growled. "End of discussion."

There was a long-suffering sigh, and then, "Perhaps wearing my robes would be suitable for you?" came the suggestion. "At least until yours dry out."

She couldn't help but grin at the offer, shaking her head in exasperated amusement. "Nice try, but your clothes aren't any drier than mine are, and you know it."

"Actually, my inner robe is only slightly damp, as my outer robe was covering most of it. And then there's the fact that I wasn't running around in the storm half as long as you were. I assure you it would be quite adequate."

"Then why aren't you wearing it?!" Kagome exploded, turning to fix him with a suspicious glare.

He immediately put on his innocent face again. "I was too warm?" he offered, then blinked in surprise. He had never known Kagome could growl like that before. "I assure you, I have only your best interests at heart," he hastened on, placing a hand over his heart for added drama. "I do not wish to see you fall ill. Surely wearing my robe for a little while wouldn't harm you…"

Kagome chewed on her lower lip in concentration, scowling into the fire as she attempted to weigh the pros and cons of taking him up on his offer (and completely missing the fascinated expression in Miroku's eyes as they fixed with predatory intensity on her mouth).

The Pros: She'd be out of her wet, freezing, completely inadequate uniform and in something much heavier and, no doubt, much warmer, which also, now that she thought about it, would cover a lot more skin than her short skirt could ever hope to.

The Cons: The entire getting-out-of-her-clothes bit. She was, after all, stuck in a cave with no privacy and one very lecherous monk. That equaled trouble like nothing did.

Still, she had to admit that the offer was tempting. She was freezing! And if he got horny, she could always beat him over the head with a piece of firewood. So, after another moment's thought, she abruptly turned to fix a stern glare on his face (wondering suspiciously just what he'd been thinking to put such a guilty look on said face), and nodded primly. "I'll put on your robe," she told him seriously, "but when I change you had better turn around or I swear on all that's holy I'll gouge out your eyeballs with my fingernails and feed them to the crows!"

He grimaced. "How pleasant," he murmured. "And I'm offended that you should even think I would…"

"Save it for the suckers," she interrupted, laughing a little despite herself. "I know you better than that."

"Do you really?" He tilted his head and gazed at her with twinkling eyes. "And how well does Kagome-sama know me, I wonder?"

She smirked at him, egged on by the sudden playfulness in his gaze. "Not as well as you'd like, I'd bet," she replied suggestively, then immediately gave herself a mental smack. Good grief, was she flirting with him? Don't encourage him, dolt, she scolded herself. You're really asking for it, aren't you?

Miroku, for his part, looked outright surprised at her comment, and she felt a moment's satisfaction at having caught him off guard. Ha! Take a bit of your own medicine for once, why don't you, she crowed silently, forgetting her embarrassment. "Turn around, Miroku-sama," she commanded. "I'm gonna change now."

To her surprise, he obeyed without comment, and she wondered if she'd flustered him more than she'd thought. Of course, it would probably snow in hell before that happened. She stripped off her wet shirt quickly and grabbed the black yukata, slipping her arms into the sleeves and belting it as tightly as she could before removing her skirt. To her dismay, even with the robe wrapped halfway around her torso, it still hung open much more than she would have liked. But…it was warmer. Much warmer, and she had a feeling that it wasn't just because of the fire that it was still so warm. And it smelled like him, she thought vaguely, then caught herself with a blush. Not, of course, that she knew what he smelled like or anything!

"Can I turn around now?" came Miroku's questioning voice, and she jumped slightly.

"Er…I guess so," she muttered, frowning at the sleeves, which hung three inches past her hands. She shook the sleeves back, wondering if it was possible to tie them somehow, then looked up to find that Miroku was watching with a strange sort of half-smile on his face.

"What?" she muttered, glancing away with a scowl, feeling strangely self-conscious all of a sudden, and rather spooked by that weird smile.

"Oh, nothing, nothing," he replied casually, waving one hand dismissively. "It's just that I never realized how good you look in my clothing, is all." He smiled at that blush that immediately rushed to her face and she shot him a scandalized glare.

"Th-this is just a temporary thing!" she sputtered, clearly flustered. "It's only 'cause I'm cold and wet and…and…if you tell anybody about this your eyes aren't the only things I'll be gouging out of your body!"

"Of course I wouldn't tell anyone, Kagome-sama," he replied soothingly. Then, with a wicked smile, he dropped his voice to a low purr and added, "Inuyasha would kill me before you ever got to lay hands on me, anyway, and I'm sure I'd die much less pleasantly by his methods than by anything you would do to me…" He trailed off suggestively and was immediately rewarded by a resounding shriek of "hentai!" and a small log rebounding painfully off his head.

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Aaaaaandthat's all she wrote. For now. More will follow…sometime or other. Sooner, or maybe later. Or maybe whenever I just feel like writing it, darn it! My muses are spastic, at best. And evil. Very, very evil. Especially the…evil…one. *coughs* And, it's obviously waaay past my bedtime so…sleep now. Bye.

Quickening