Chapter 2

A/N: Dear readers, thank you for reading! I promise to keep writing and I appreciate all reviews. If you have something rude to say, don't say it unless it makes sense, cause I got a flame on my last story that just made me laugh at how silly it was. Thanks to everyone out there who reads my stories!

Inuyasha and Kagome sat in the cave, freezing. The fire was beginning to die out, and the wind blew so hard and bitter that getting more firewood would be impossible. Kagome grabbed the last packs of "hot hands" and cracked them, handing some to Inuyasha. They were both huddled in their sleeping bags.

"H-here. Th-th-these will h-help you s-s-s-st-stay w-warm." Kagome shivered out through clenched teeth. Inuyasha took the packets from her, grimacing. He couldn't stand to see Kagome struggling so. He looked at her face as he held the warm packets in his frozen hands. Her hair had shiny bits of ice dangling in it and her lips were turning blue.

"T-take my h-hot packets, K-Kagome," Inuyasha held them out for her, "Y-you n-need these m-more than me." He was shivering too. Damn this human body! Inuyasha thought to himself, If I were a half-demon right now I could keep us warm! Kagome accepted his packets, too cold to manage a sentence of protest. She examined Inuyasha's freezing figure beside her. His lips were a deep purple and his skin was a deathly pale. He had chunks of ice in his hair. She scooted closer to him, trying to warm him. He reacted the same way, until their bodies were pressed close, side by side. Through the fabric of the sleeping bag, Inuyasha felt the delicious warmth of Kagome's body heat seeping in. He shuddered, the warmth was wonderful. Kagome nuzzled her face into his side, enjoying the comforting heat he provided. Suddenly, a wicked burst of wind rushed through the entire cave, exterminating the fire and whatever small warmth the two had managed to hold on to within their layers of cloth and zippers. Kagome cried out, misery overwhelming her. Agonized, Inuyasha could do nothing but cringe against the torturous winds. A laughing voice echoed against the walls.

"Hahaha, you two thought you could dare to stop me? Now you will feel my full wrath and die a miserable, freezing death! No human can withstand my powers!" The witch called from her unseen position.

"You j-just w-w-wait, BITCH!" Inuyasha roared, torn between standing up to fight and staying by Kagome to keep her warm. He never got the chance to choose, though, for the witch seemed to have disappeared as quickly as she made her appearance. She left behind her bitter winds, causing the humans to suffer from back breaking shivers. The temperature seemed to drop to impossibly low levels. Kagome's eyes searched for Inuyasha's, terror and pain emanating from them. Inuyasha could take it no more. They would die like this if he did nothing. Hastily, Inuyasha unzipped his sleeping bag and stepped out, unzipping Kagome's sleeping bag on the way. The cold wind hitting her exposed body made Kagome yelp, but then she felt Inuyasha's warm body beside hers and she heard him zip the sleeping bag shut, enclosing them. He wrapped her in his arms, the life or death situation erasing any embarrassment as he burrowed against her hair. Kagome trembled against him, his hot breath soaking into her crown.

"I'm s-s-sorry I'm so w-weak." Inuyasha mumbled.

"You're n-not weak." Kagome said. She tried to look at his face, but it was too dark. Being a human, Inuyasha had trouble seeing in the dark as well, but he could still feel Kagome's eyes on his face. He felt her shiver. Even lying like this, they were still freezing. Inuyasha gulped when he realized what he had to do. Carefully, Inuyasha reached for the zipper on Kagome's coat.

"W-what are you d-doing?" Kagome gasped.

"Do you w-want to f-freeze out here?" Inuyasha said, unzipping his own coat. Kagome almost had a stroke when he pulled at her clothes, trying to remove them.

"INUYASHA! Wh-"

"Kagome! We h-have to k-keep warm! I w-won't let you d-die out here!" Inuyasha pulled off his own clothes and continued working on Kagome's. She struggled, but he ignored her.

"I don't see h-how t-t-taking off my c-clothes will m-make me w-warmer! N-n-now I will s-surely die!" Kagome said through clenched teeth. She kept protesting until she was entirely naked. It was too dark to see, but she knew Inuyasha's clothes were off too. She was about to scream that they were going to die, when Inuyasha pulled her against him, wrapping them in a cocoon of coats and clothing. Kagome was silenced by his hot skin against hers, and she quickly pressed all of herself to him, greedy for more warmth. Inuyasha returned her actions with vigor, grasping her and crushing her to him, delighting in her body heat. Their instincts kept them close like this, until slowly, the shivers relaxed in their bodies and they began to feel warm again. Kagome marveled at how resourceful Inuyasha was. He certainly knew how to survive! Inuyasha was just beginning to unwind when suddenly a new instinct gripped him.

The softness of the girl's warm body against his sent a message to his maleness. Inuyasha gritted his teeth as he tried to think of something else.