Frostbite

Disclaimer: I do not own the Inuyasha characters.

A/N: Sorry for the long wait, it's probably the longest wait for an update I've ever had… I don't know what else to say. Sorry again. Also I am apologizing ahead of time for the shortness of this chapter. But I thought something was better then nothing, and it's just a filler chapter so we can go on nice and neatly through next two or three chapters.

Chapter Nine- Winter Away

"The sense of the world is short,

Long and various the report,

To love and be beloved;

Men and gods have not outlearned it,

And how oft soe'er they've turned it,

'Tis not to be improved."

Eros by Ralph Waldo Emerson

Kagome glanced in the mirror and groaned a little at the dark circles under her eyes. She splashed some more lukewarm water on her face hoping that when she wiped it dry this time some miracle would have occurred and she would be shining like a fresh spring morning. No such luck though, dark circles still glared at her as if they were secretly mocking her. Giving up the quest for circle free eyes, Kagome walked back into her room and settled on the bed.

The winter dance symbolized much more than a shift in relationships or a fanciful break in school monotony. The winter dance symbolized an end to the semester. Winter break had officially started, which means Kagome wouldn't have to face Kikyo at school. That alone made everything right in the world. It also meant she wouldn't have to face Inuyasha in their daily, awkward rides to school. Unfortunately, Kagome couldn't see much changing in Hemlock, Wisconsin. Maybe it was a form of denial but Kagome refused to treat Inuyasha any differently after their late night, skate park romance. Inuyasha seemed to share the sentiment about that night because he didn't even bother to ask what she was doing over the break, call her, or drop by just to say hi. He lived so close Kagome couldn't think of an excuse for his behavior except that he might not really give a damn about her. He might have just changed his mind.

Kagome let out a frustrated sigh and hugged a pillow to her chest, trying to squeeze all the frustration out into an inanimate object instead of snapping and punching someone in the face. It was either the pillow or the first person to say one word to her that had to deal with the emotionally unstable girl, and Kagome figured that the pillow was probably a much safer bet. Hitting a random stranger on the street would probably get her in a bit of trouble.

What a jerk… what kind of guy says he likes a girl and then completely ignores her the next second? A jerk, that's the kind of guy that does that. And Inuyasha is most certainly that kind of guy. Kagome blinked a bit and flopped down onto her back so she could stare up at the ceiling. Maybe Inuyasha wasn't over Kikyo. Maybe he had lied to spare her feelings during the dance and something really had sparked between Inuyasha and Kikyo that night. It wasn't completely out of the question. Kagome wouldn't put it past Kikyo to kiss Inuyasha. In fact, the more that she thought about her memories of the dance the more it seemed likely that Kikyo would kiss him. And Inuyasha was such an egocentric person that maybe he would want to be around Kikyo cause she acts like he's a god. Someone like Inuyasha that seems to think of himself as a god would probably like having a girl around that agreed with him. Kagome wasn't that girl…

Well why should she care what the two of them might be doing this very instant? It certainly wasn't her business if they were talking… or hugging… maybe cuddling… or even kissing. No, it wasn't her business at all and she didn't care at all either. Oh god, she really is a bad liar isn't she? Of course she cared! If she didn't care, she wouldn't be squeezing the stuffing out of a pillow and sulking in her room (which has to be at least twenty below zero right now, cause her fingernails were going to start turning blue any minute now). She was startled out of her pointless thoughts when the telephone rang. She glared at the phone for a moment, hoping that maybe she could intimidate it into shutting up and allowing her to wallow in her misery in peace. No such luck, the heinous thing continued to ring. Kagome reached over and picked up the receiver, cradling it against her ear.

"Hello, this is Kagome." She muttered monotonously into the receiver. Kagome hated picking up the phone because it was never for her. None of her old friends ever called the house phone, and she didn't readily hand out her phone number to people here. She barely knew anybody. It wasn't as if she stood bundled up outside of school handing out pamphlets that said 'My name is Kagome and I am new here. Call me at this number'.

"Hey Kagome, don't sound so depressed. You're making me feel unwanted." Kagome sat upright and smiled a bit as she recognized the sarcastic, young woman's voice over the telephone. "What are you doing sitting at home moping?"

Kagome smiled a little at the tone of voice. It was obvious Sango was making fun of her a bit, but Kagome didn't really mind. It was better then thinking about Inuyasha and Kikyo making out in some dark, secluded corner. Oh there she goes again thinking of them! She was hopeless, utterly hopeless. "I didn't choose to be sitting here for my winter break." The Kagome added, more as an afterthought, "and I am not moping!" Unfortunately the last statement didn't come out sounding like righteous indignation, more like defensively pouting. Which wasn't the emotion she was going for. "So why are you calling me, Sango?" Kagome just prayed that Sango missed the whole 'I am moping cause I am a pathetic human being but I was kind of hoping you wouldn't know I was sulking' thing.

Luckily Sango didn't dwell on the fact and went straight to the heart of the matter, why she had called. "Well, my family rents a small cabin out near the mountain and since you're obviously not doing anything important this break I thought you might want to join Miroku, Inuyasha, and me there." The sentence came out rushed and Kagome was under the distinct impression that Sango didn't want her to fully absorb the fact that she mentioned Miroku and Inuyasha, and left out any mention of parental guidance.

Kagome played with the phone's cord for a moment before thinking about a reply. Since the mountain wasn't that far away her mother wouldn't complain, but her mom wasn't the problem. Hadn't she spent the better part of the evening complaining and debating about the 'Inuyasha issue'? She definitely didn't feel prepared to be trapped in an old, cold mountain cabin with Inuyasha for a couple weeks. There were just so many obvious things that could go wrong. Like what would happen if they didn't have any electricity and there was a sudden snowstorm and all their firewood was buried and they had to cuddle for warmth? Actually… the blizzard wouldn't even need to happen for that situation to arise. Kagome wouldn't be the least bit surprised if Miroku cut the electricity and hid all the firewood if it meant having a chance to cuddle with Sango. And where would that leave her? Exactly, that would be she would freeze to death or suffer through that egomaniac's, Inuyasha's, embrace. "I don't know about this Sango…" Her voice trailed off lamely. She couldn't tell Sango that she didn't really want to go because of the awkwardness between Inuyasha and herself and she had no other excuse for refusing the invitation.

"Don't worry about a thing Kagome. The cabin is a little small I really can't deny that. It only has two bedrooms. But the guys can bunk together in one room and we can share the other. Plus the doors have locks. After the first winter break I spent there with Miroku, I decided the place needed to be a bit more secure. Plus each room has two twin beds. It will be just fine." Kagome was about to respond to that, but Sango cut her off. Maybe it was better that way since she still couldn't think of a good excuse for not going. "Come on Kagome, I'm always all alone up there with the guys. It would be so perfect if I could have a girl up there with me so I'm not completely surrounded by testosterone all day, every day. Please." Sango's voice sounded to sincere… and so whiny when she hurried through the last phrase.

Kagome bit her lip gently, a habit she does when she is either nervous or being rather indecisive. She could spend her winter break at home with a mother who would probably be working the whole time and a bothersome younger brother or snowboarding with Sango, a pervert, and a complete jerk in a winter retreat. She had been practicing really hard lately with Sango's old snowboard too and was eager to see if she could last more then five minutes on her feet on an actual slope. Kagome relented. "When are we leaving?"

Kagome could hear Sango trying to muffle a victorious laugh on the other side of the phone. That manipulative teenage girl. Kagome almost had a mind to refuse the offer of a fun winter break just so she could actually say 'no' to Sango once in her life. But Sango decided to speak up first. "I knew you wouldn't leave me to the dogs, Kagome! We are leaving as soon as possible. I just have to talk to the guys first; you know make sure that they know that we're leaving. I'll call you right back after I get all the messy details worked out. You won't regret this Kagome!" There was a quick decisive click then the dialing tone sounded before Kagome could have even said goodbye.

Placing the phone back on the nightstand, Kagome was under the impression that Sango wasn't as terrified of spending the break alone with the guys as she had shamelessly hinted at before. Manipulative… And Kagome did have the distinct feeling that she would regret agreeing to this whole scheme. Kagome could think of at least one possible way to get out of this without upsetting Sango. It was worth a try.

Swinging her legs over the bed, Kagome winced as her bare toes brushed the cold wooden floor. Note to Self: Buy some more carpets. She stood up and scampered to where her slippers lay discarded a few feet away. Sliding her feet into the fuzzy warmth of her white, bunny slippers (ears and all) Kagome headed upstairs. Kagome's mother should be in the kitchen preparing dinner about now and her last resort was the chance that her mother might not approve of such a venture. In fact, most mothers would definitely consider this a bad idea. Maybe her mother wouldn't think it was acceptable for a young woman like Kagome, merely a high school girl, to spend two weeks alone in a cabin without any parental supervision within miles with two teenage guys.

Kagome found her mother exactly where she thought she would be. Kagome was facing her mother's back as the older woman hummed and stirred something on the stove. Kagome nervously cleared her throat to attract her mother's attention. "Mom," Her mother stopped stirring the mystery meal in the saucer and glanced over her shoulder at Kagome. Deciding that she should just jump right into the explanation, Kagome started before her mother could say anything. "Sango just called me mom, and she asked if I wanted to spend the break with her. Her family rents a cabin out near the mountain and Sango is staying there over the break alone with two completely irresponsible and hormone driven guys without any parents or responsible adults within miles. She asked if I wanted to come too and even out the numbers." Kagome smirked a bit on the inside. No sane parent on this planet would agree to that.

"Sure honey, have fun. I'll let you go since you were being so honest to me and I'm sure it won't be nearly that bad. I trust you, just make sure you keep your cell phone on you at all times and call to check up with me at least once everyday." Her mother turned away from her and back to the now bubbling concoction in the saucer as Kagome's jaw hit the floor. What the hell… "Will you be leaving soon, Kagome? I want you to pick up your room a bit before you go."

It is official… her mother probably wouldn't even care if someone raped her as long as the person involved told her the truth and was incredibly polite about the whole ordeal. It must be because she's a lawyer. That couldn't be the reason. If anything she should be stricter just because she hears what happens to oh, I don't know, GIRLS THAT STAY ALONE IN MOUNTAINS WITH MEN! "I don't know yet. Sango has to call up the completely irresponsible guys first who are probably out buying alcohol so when they get us alone in the cabin, they can get us drunk too. She said she would call back when she finds out the rest of the details."

"Oh dear, don't be so dramatic. In a small town like this there is no way those boys would get away with a fake license. Everyone knows each other. Unless they go to Madison first of course. Besides, I trust you honey. Just don't drink anything that has been opened before." Kagome let out a little sigh. What was wrong with this picture?

Without another feeble attempt at having her mother put her under lock and key for the break, Kagome turned out of the kitchen and heading back downstairs into her basement bedroom (that was still below freezing) to start packing. Sango seemed eager to leave as soon as she could and Kagome didn't want to be dragged out of the house before she got a chance to pack everything she could possibly need, including a space heater just in case the electricity magically gives out.

And Kagome was correct about Sango being overly eager to head out. Just a few hours later Kagome got a call from her saying that the estimated leaving time would be tomorrow morning. Both the guys were already packed and ready since they had been doing this cabin thing for the past few years. It had turned into a bit of a tradition between the close friends. That would explain why Sango's mother allowed them to go out like that. And it made Kagome feel a bit better that she was being included since it seems that Kikyo had never been invited to go, even when she had been dating Inuyasha. This gave Kagome a sick sense of satisfaction.

But Kagome didn't sleep well that night. She tossed and turned throughout the whole evening and never slept for more then an hour at a time. For some reason, the thought that she was going to regret her decision to tag along, even though Sango assured her that she was going to have a great time, kept her awake. So much could go wrong… But Kagome tried not to dwell on that thought too much and eventually did fall asleep around four in the morning.

She found herself being woken up by the blast of a car's horn early in the morning. Kagome groaned as the second sounding of the horn screeched out at her while she stumbled out of her bed. She was already regretting this.

A/N: Once again, I am so sorry for the long wait and the short chapter. Only around four/five pages, I should be ashamed of myself. But I'm not; cause short is better then nothing. Plus this is just a filler chapter so that the next few will run smoothly without too many loose ends. So please, please leave a few reviews and tell me that you don't hate me too much. I do feel kind of guilty about the wait…