InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Snow storm ❯ Chapter 2

The snow was falling around the silver-haired hanyou as he made a path through the snow. Inuyasha was starting to get annoyed not only for the fact that they lost a Shikon shard, but they also were stuck in a harsh blizzard.

The cold was slowing them down, especially Kagome, and he was anxious to get his hands on the shard. The demon escaped when the winds changed in the evening, before the blizzard began, taking the advantage of the winds for escaping, without Inuyasha catching his scent. Kagome had been little help as she seemed suddenly unable to sense exactly where the fragment was located.

-`The cold must be clogging her brain,' he thought sourly and then shook his head.

Kagome was just only a “shard detector” for him? Somehow, he felt a little guilty for saying that. He was such a fool! Why did he always make her suffer? She had always been by his side, she smiled for him, she cared for him when he was injured, but why he always make her feel horrible? Even when he told her that he will always protect Kikyou, she still remained beside him. He knew that Kagome still knew that he loved Kikyou but, in the last period, things weren't the same. Now, whenever he saw Kikyou, he didn't feel the same warmth, like at the beginning. But, when Kagome was near him, when he saw her radiant smile, when he felt her sweet smell, his heart started to jump. He had thoughts if Kagome will stay with him or will she go in her world after the end of the battle with Naraku. To stay with him? Why should someone so perfect like her stay with someone who wasn't a full demon, neither a human? He shook his head, trying to erase these thoughts that were confusing him and tried to think of something else. The snow crunched beneath his feet as his mind drifted back at the demon. His only condolence was that he was surprisingly weak considering he had a shard embedded into his flesh, and he was badly injured as well. A cruel smirk developed on his face as he thought that he would rip the shard from the demon's neck with his claws. But first, they had to track him tomorrow, when the storm broke.

When he heard Kagome cough again, he glanced over at her his shoulders. He didn't like the sound of her coughs. He knew from the beginning that Kagome was ill, but he knew that she wouldn't accept any help from him. He was glad that they were in a part of the valley that he was familiar with navigating. A small, rundown cabin was only a short distance away and he figured the sooner they got out of the snow, the better for them both.

Inuyasha watched her as she stopped for a moment to rest. When she waved at him, he returned to break a path in the snow. He didn't like the fact that he couldn't smell her or clearly hear her footfalls behind him, but he wasn't about to turn around and get her. He knew that she wouldn't accept his help, but also his own stubbornness and pride didn't let him do it.

After a few moments, he turned around and glanced over his shoulder to check on her. The whiteness of the landscape was obscuring his sight. He waited for her to appear…and waited. He began to concern as he retraced his steps, as he went in search of her. Kagome still didn't appear. He bit his lip and scanned the area more thoroughly, the fringes of true panic beginning to form in his chest.

-„Kagome!?” he yelled, but the wind was blowing in his voice, making it impossible to hear. „Kagome!” He retrailed his path, silently praying that she didn't get out of the track and got lost. He wouldn't be able to find her in these conditions.

-„Kuso...” he muttered under his breath. ‚Where is she!?'

He walked back another meters, when he saw something black peeking through the snow. When he came close, surely there were some shoes sticking out of the snow. He ran to the „object” and found Kagome, partially burried in snow, only her backpack visible. Trying to remain calm, he picked her up and held her.

-‚How...When did she fall?!'

He brushed some of the snow off her face and clenched his jaw worriedly when he saw the paleness of her flesh and the purplish tinge to her lips. He put his palm against her cheek and fear ebbed into his heart. Her skin felt... unnatural.

-“K-Kagome? Wake up, Kagome. Come on...Wake up!”

she remained numb in his arms. Her face was pale, her eyes were slightly open, but unsseing,and her lips were agape and purple. He closed to her face and inhaled her scent. She but her sent was tinged strongly with the stentch of vomit and illness.

Anger repaced the panic.

-‚Damn it, Kagome! What the hell were you thinking!'

He put her on his lap as he removed the top of his red haori and whrapped her in it. It was wet, but it was warm enough from his body heat. He throw her backpack on his shoulder and ran straight to the cabin...he jut needed to get there!

 

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He finnaly made it to the cabin only to realise that it was abandoned. Panic was slowly repaced by rage as he searched for anything that could keep Kagome warm. But everything that was valuable was stolen, remaining just some old and rotten chairs, and some broken pots. There was also a fireplace, but going out for flintstones and leaving Kagome alone was out of question. She was fighting with the cold, and she would loose this battle and freeze to death in front of his eyes if he didn't do something.

Inuyasha grunted and punched the floor with his fist. He breathed, trying to remain calm, not to distroy the cabin out of frustration and worry for Kagome's health.

Panic continued to develop in him. Kagome needed some medicinal plants, some warm blankets and a fire, which he couldnt provide her. Helpsesness started to spread through him.

Inuyasha moved to her and sat beside her. She was whrapped in his haori, with her legs up to her chin, her face the same paleness like before, but her lips weren't the same purple color like before.

He took her in his arms and hold her tight, trying to share his bodyheat with her, but the fact that they both were wet, didn't help at all.

He scanned the room again in the vain hope that he had missed something when he remembered her backpack. His heart leapt into his throat with hope as anxious amber eyes darted about the cabin, searching for the familiar article only to find that it wasn't anywhere in sight.

-`I brought it with me, didn't I? Where...?'

Then he realized that he maybe he left it outside. He gently laid Kagome on the floor, and whispered:

-“I'll be back, Kagome.”

He rushed to the door and he was surprised by the fact that the snow had risen just above his knees. The cold wind hit him hard, and the blowing snow almost blinded him.

The snow crunched under his feet as he stepped outside, closing the door behind him. Lowering his face to keep the snow from hitting his eyes, he began his search. The path he made was already covered with snow. He had no clues where the backpack could be. After some precious minutes of searching close to the cabin, he thought that he had lost it, and it made no sense to continue searching. Kagome didn't have much time on her side.

Only the thought of Kagome dieing from freezing, made his eyes prick from the feeling of tears. He clinched his fists, blood staining the snow beneath him as a sense of self-defeat came over him.

-`No! She isn't dead yet! I'm not giving up!'

Turning, he head back to the cabin, determined to save her…somehow. But only a meter away, he tripped over an object.

-“Ow,” he mumbled under his breath as he rose on his feet. He looked at the object he tripped on and examined it closely. As he whipped off the snow over it, he recognized the backpack, which was resting very close to the door.

-“Stupid!” he grumbled as he remembered he left it outside, trying to bring Kagome to shelter.

Finding new determination, he rushed t the door and dug out the snow that was blocking the door, which had settled after he left the cabin. He entered the cabin and placed the backpack on the floor.

Inuyasha opened the backpack in a rush, not caring if he damaged it, and started to search for anything that could be of any help. Frustrated, he emptied it on the floor, spreading all the weird things that Kagome brought from her world. Extra clothes (which were damp and useless), a kettle, some books, some other things…the sleeping bag!

He took it and looked at it. It was a little wet on the top, but Kagome told him that was made from a special, waterproof material or something. It took him some minutes to open the iron locket. He saw Kagome do it a lot of times, so it shouldn't be hard. After another mote tries, he finally made it. He laid the sleeping bag on the floor and examined it. He almost cried in relief when he felt the dry interior. At least now Kagome would be out of the immediate danger of freezing to death. Turning back to Kagome, he realized that he wasn't finished. He had to wrap her quickly, but first he had to undress her. Her clothes were all wet, and she had to be dry first. He gulped as his face began to heathen as he knew what was coming. He knew that he would get a thousand “sits” for this, but he had to do it. For Kagome's safety.

He pushed her close to him, cursing himself for acting so childish for something so…trivial.

-“Kagome, I have to get you out of these clothes. I have to get you dry.”

There. He informed her about his actions. He wasn't a lecher like that Miroku.

Swallowing hard, he began his work. Carefully he unwrapped from his haori, then continuing to remove her sweater and skirt. Only two pieces to go. The one around her breasts was a tough one. He didn't know how to get her off. He searched for something that could make him open it, and after a few minutes he found the locket at the back. He removed it, and there was a last piece of clothing that he decided to leave it on, for the sake of her pride, and not to make her too angry for when she will awake.

He put his hands under her shoulders and pulling her to his chest, he froze.

Her skin was clammy and it felt like it was on fire.

He put his hand on her forehead and surely, she had fever. He knew that this was a problem because now, she could lose heat through fever. He quickly wrapped her in the covers.

Inuyasha began to rub her arms and legs through the covers, trying to warm her somehow. He hit his brain, trying to find a way how to reduce her fever. He still didn't like the idea of leaving her alone and go out for medicinal herbs. Then it came to him.

-“The medicinal box of her! Surely she has something there!”

He went to the backpack once again and searched through the things once again, tossing aside the things that didn't interest him. Then he came upon a small box with the words “Fever reducer” written on it. Smiling at his good fortune, he returned to Kagome and sat down beside her.

Ripping the box, a hard, silver piece of paper fell on the floor. He took it and saw that it had two…seeds? He continued to read and he found out that they were called capsules and he had to give Kagome those once every 6 hours.

-“Open up, Kagome,” he said slowly, as he held her head. He tilted her head with his left arm, and with his right one, he grabbed her chin and forced her mouth open. Then, he took a capsule and jammed her into her mouth, not to harsh to choke her, but enough to make her swallow it. He gently massaged her throat to encourage her and then checked her mouth to be certain that she had indeed swallowed the capsule before administering the second one in the same fashion. Satisfied, he laid her back down and carefully wrapped the sleeping bag around her again.

-“What am I going to do now?”

He remembered pictures of his childhood when he was sick. His mother wrapped him in blankets and gave him the most worst-tasting tea ever. Kagome needed that tea right now, but he couldn't let her alone in this blizzard.

What he could do now is just to make sure that she was warm, and the only way he could do that is by sharing his body heat, because he couldn't make a fire now.

Making his decision, he also removed his wet clothes and slid next to her. He felt his cheeks warm up, realizing the situation between them. He decided to turn her, facing her from him. It was the only position he could think of where he could be close enough to her to warm her and that would make her the least angry.

-“Kagome?” he whispered in her ear. “Kagome if you can hear me, say something...”

He continued to rub her arm, as she continued shivering. He pulled the sheets higher.

-“Everything will be alright, Kagome.”

He kept rubbing her arm and talking to her quietly until she stopped shivering. He slowly began to feel her relax next to him. With the relief came the urge to sleep realizing now how exhausted he was. Kagome was already sleeping beside him, her breathing evening out. He yawned and hugged her, nothing holding him to retreat in the dream world.