Chapter 54

Inuyasha woke to Kagome's face, peaceful and calm. He smiled at her but then noticed something; there was frost on her eyelashes. When she breathed, little puffs of mist came from her lips. He looked around and gave a confused growl, the hut was freezing! Ice hung from their window and he could see snow falling from beyond it. He turned back to his still sleeping mate and leaned down to wake her.

"Kagome, Kagome wake up." He said while gently shaking her.

She blinked awake and sniffed as she sat up. "Hmm … what? Brrrr ….. why is it so cold?" she asked realizing the temperature.

Kagome stared out the window as he pulled her to her feet. "It's the middle of the summer still. Something is wrong. I don't like this."

He untied the top of his kimono and shook his arms free. He placed it over her shivering form and put and arm around her, offering her some of his body heat. "Neither do I. C'mon."

They walked to the main room and she raced over to the still fire and threw some logs on the ashes. Inuyasha glanced out the door and sniffed the air. He didn't smell anything except ice. Black clouds were overhead as he exited the hut, the fresh snow crunching under his bare feet. He turned back inside just as Izuma came in.

"W-w- what the hell is g-going on?" she asked.

Kagome held her hands in front of the now sparkling flames. "We don't know honey."

"Jezzzz … I'm freezing my ears off!" she complained.

Kagome bit her bottom lip. "There is nothing we can do about it! We're all cold Izuma. You're not the only one, so suck it up!"

Izuma stared at her in anger. "Okay then." She walked back down the hall and came back a few minutes later, dressed in her kimono along with her hoodie and sneakers. In her hands she held the new skates and a scarf. "Well I'm gonna enjoy this weather while it lasts. I'm going skating out on the lake. BYE!" she snapped. Barging out of their hut, she wrapped the scarf around her neck and bounded down the hill in a huff.

Kagome automatically regretted her words. "I … I didn't meen to say that."

Inuyasha came over and sat down next to her. "It's okay Kagome."

"No it's not! I yelled at her for no reason." She argued. "I need to go say I'm sorry."

Inuyasha rubbed her back and put his chin on her shoulder. "She'll be fine. You should just let her cool off. If that brat is anything like me, she won't want to talk to anyone."

"That's what I'm worried about. You know how long it took us to forgive each other when we got in fights." She said.

Inuyasha nodded and rubbed her shoulder. "Good point."

Izuma stormed through the village, getting stares from the people who had emerged from their huts because of the sudden odd weather. She passed Shippo without greeting him and the fox looked after her and swallowed. She looked very, very mad. He decided not follow her like he had wanted to. She gave off this vibe that she wanted to be left alone.

Swinging the skates over her shoulders, she used both hands to push her way through the now bare bushes and tree branches that blocked her path. Thorns tugged at her scarf and she ripped them away. Tons of snowflakes still showered down from the dark sky, covering the land in white. She finally got free of the hard part of the route and the lake came into view. She glanced back to where she had come from and saw that Shippo had not pursued her. Smart boy, she probably would have tried to kill him. Skidding down the slope that led to the frozen water's edge, she could see a few fish which had no knowledge of the freeze, solid in the thick ice. Sighing, she sat down in the snow and pulled her shoes off. She shivered as her sock met the ground, but lifted the skates of her neck and began to loosen them. Being careful not to cut herself on the fine blades, she slipped them on to her feet and tied them tight. Balancing herself with Osanti as see stood up, she heard crows screech above her head. They sat up in large oak tree watched her, their eyes like little black beads. She ignored their calls and steadied herself on the ice. Once she was sure she had her legs, she pushed hard and glided away.

Paying no attention to her surroundings, she moved gracefully across the glossy surface. Wind whipped her face but it felt good on her cheeks. Twisting into a figure eight, she pulled her hood high up on her ears. The only bad thing about not having normal ears was they were highly sensitive the cold.

Izuma rubbed them roughly with both hands, trying to get some feeling back into them. "She knows my ears hurt when it's cold, so why'd she get pissed at me?" she mumbled.

She skidded to a dead stop when she noticed she wasn't alone. She growled when she recognized who he was; he had the same scent of who'd brought her to the wolf den, she was sure of it.

He smiled at her, showing his ugly yellow fangs. "Hello Izuma, I believe we have met."

"Stay away from me or I'll cut you into sushi!" she said, clicking Osanti up with her thumb.

He laughed and ran a clawed hand through his dirty hair. "You would do well not to threaten me girl! You have no idea who stands before you."

She pulled Osanti all the way out of its sheath, pointing it at him. "I'm shaking, really I am."

"You are just like your father foolish child." He growled. He pulled his own weapon free and charged at her head on. "Challenging a foe when you do not know what they are capable of!"

"I'm tired of hearing you talk!" she yelled as she braced Osanti in front of her.

Her eyes widened as he collided with her, sending her flying across the ice. He made no attempt to strike again but just laughed. His sword glowed and he drove it deep into the ice. It cracked and shattered like a mirror, snaking across the surface toward her. She tried to stand up but her skates slipped out from under her, giving her feet no traction. The ice broke into chunks when it met her, and she clung to one in panic. She lost her grip and screamed as she plunged into the icy water.

She floundered helplessly as she felt the air leave her lungs. Her arms grew numb as she tried desperately to cling to a solid piece of ice. She reached to grab Osanti, who was sitting on a small drifting one. The space beneath the ice sucked at her body, threating to pull her under. She lost feeling in her limbs and sunk into the dark water.

Odomaru watched the little bubbles of her struggling breath come to an end and he grinned in satisfaction. "I think that stupid wolf will find that she is no longer an issue. I don't know what Naraku is planning, but it must be pretty important to get Koga involved."