There are few things in life worse than feeling trapped and being unable to see what binds you. The feeling of cold, all-out terror and panic ensue when you try to struggle against an all-covering bond, to no avail. This terror was exactly what she was battling. Just knowing there was an indefinable amount of snow surrounding and slowly suffocating her wasn't helping to keep her calm.

Keeping eyes closed to picture anything but her body surrounded in white, arms and legs separated, was the only plus right now. She was overly worried about the others. She rolled off Inuyasha's back, though tried her hardest to hold on. She couldn't bear to think this was their last adventure. It COULDN'T end like this! Souta, jii-chan, buyo, and mama's faces flashed in her head. No, she had to go home and see them all. Other faces of friends and classmates made themselves known. With resolve hardening, her eyes slit open, peeking through lashes.

Snow greeted her not even an inch away and her head jerked back, arms and legs instinctively trying to escape. Her head pushed at the snow from every direction. When she was forced to stop from fatigue, a small puff cloud was seen as she tried to breathe. Brown shot open. She made a dent! This snow was heavy, but it must be dry. With hope surging her heart, arms and legs continued to kick with her head as she struggled. It was cold and melted against her face and legs but she didn't stop. Though she could barely feel fingers and toes, not to mention legs, she couldn't stop.

After what seemed an eternity from hope and urgency, she managed to make a small, enclosed shelter. It was only a few foot around, but she needed to huddle for warmth anyway. An all too despairing realization came upon looking to her jacket. Shippou's name died on her lips as eyes widened in fright. The weight she previously thought was Shippou's form was nothing more than a pile of snow. Where was he?! Hands wrung together, though she couldn't really feel it, even through mittens. Shippou could be ANYWHERE by now.

Hands pressed against her head as eyes burned. Poor Shippou...and Miroku and Inuyasha! Were they even alive? Her heart beat in worry. A strong case of claustrophobia engulfed her and arms and legs kicked around, not even knowing if she was going up or down. Quickly winding down from exhaustion and numb from cold, hands tried to pack the snow into tunnels to squeeze through. The fire of need for space dwindled as she was forced to stop. Having made a dent, she stopped and stared at the beginnings of a way out. She leaned back and blinked upon feeling something. She whipped around and found part of her bag uncovered. With a small cry, she yanked it from the snow with a sudden bout of energy and tightly hugged it. It was cold, but solid and held all her possessions. Fiery eyes looked to the hole, feeling more alive. She WOULD get out of here! Shouldering her bag, Kagome sat on her legs and started moving snow.

The task was more time consuming and physically harder than she thought. But she was resolved not to stop, even if she didn't know if she was even heading up anymore. The past few tests found her angling nearly straight. She was digging a maze, not escaping. The weight from her pack seemed worse whenever she tried to pull herself forward. Her arms were aching and she couldn't feel any of her hands. Her feet, through winter boots, were numb and of no use. Her legs were freezing, as was the rest of her body. She couldn't feel anything on her skin when she pulled forward. Her bangs were soaked, along with clothes and mittens, and they plastered against her head. She was forced to deal with it, for there wasn't enough room to bring a hand and swipe them from her face.

Climbing countless feet from the last time she was forced to stop, Kagome's body slumped in the snow after dragging herself forward to make another path. Her head drooped, eyes closing. Sleep sounded so good right now. She started giving in until eyes forcefully jerked open, head shooting up in alarm. It collided with the top of the tunnel, sending a small bit of snow over her. Kagome, now fully awake at the thought of being buried alive again, slowly lowered her head and tried to find courage and strength to keep going. 'Come on Higurashi.' She coached. 'You've got to find the others and kick the ass of that damn snow youkai!' The possibility of revenge - sweet revenge - spurred her to eagerness. Her pace sped up a little.

She was trying to think of pleasant things to keep her mind from going crazy and falling asleep. Sleep meant death and she was decades away from wanting to meet kami-sama. 'A warm bed that buyo has been sleeping on especially for me with a pair of thick, dry pajamas and no school...and no shikon no tama to worry about going after. A nice long, undisturbed sleep and waking up to the smell of udon cooling on my desk waiting for me to eat.' At the thought of food, her stomach clenched and growled. There were dried meats and fruit stuffed away, but she couldn't reach it, which only added to the unfairness of it all!

Inches seemed like feet and just as she was about ready to make a spot large enough to let her dig through her bag, she thought she heard her name. From what sounded like... "Inuyasha." Kagome breathed. She was nearly at the surface! Patience and her plan dashed to pieces at the need to get out of her snowy prison. "Inuyasha! Inuyasha!!" She screamed, digging with her reserves. Her hands were clumsy and only useful to punch and push snow aside, mostly by her mittens. Her legs struggled to work as she pushed forward.

A hand hit something hard, making her stop and blink in confusion. Mittens swiped snow away, finding things of both hope and anguish. She managed to survive and dig her way to the surface...only to find a relatively thick, blurry coating of ice. She stared at the barrier, of what she couldn't break through. Her legs and hands had no strength to them. She was too weak to use boots to strike against it. Helplessness when she was so close welled tears and made them fall. It wasn't fair - she was so young! Feeling all was lost, a despairing scream bounced off the snow and all but shattered her eardrums. Inuyasha wouldn't be able to smell or see her under this ice. More panic, probably worse than first seeing how badly she was trapped, brought hyperventilation to the surface.

Legs tried to kick and her hand weakly slapped ice, doing nothing but making a dull thud. Her breathing wouldn't go back to normal and her body was shaking from that and the cold. "Help me! Inuyasha!" She screamed again, moving herself to the ice. She tried to push against it, but it didn't budge. Sobs wrenched from her body as her head flopped over. She lost this battle, there wouldn't be any more. The tama would be forever scattered; all from her initial arrow at crow demon. It was all her fault. Everything came upon her, exhaustion, cold, fear, panic, worry, sadness, guilt, and sorrow.It rushed through her and she was forced to give in to blissful darkness of sleep. Her mitten remained pressed against the top.

-----

As soon as consciousness came back, the first thing Inuyasha did was try to open his eyes and move. Big mistake. He quickly discovered limbs separated from each other and snow in his eyes. With a growl, legs and arms savagely kicked to be free. The snow was figuratively as well as literally suffocating him. Using the rage over their enemy, it didn't take long to make a good-sized hole to sit in. As he sat and tried to get his breath back, he found a small comfort in knowing he was at least sitting toward the ground.

He couldn't sit here any longer. Though he was tired and battered from the snow, he had to get to the surface. He was worried about the others. Shippou would be able to use his fire to get free, but Miroku and Kagome... Ningen. It left a bitter taste in his mouth and he was angry at himself for not protecting them better. He should've attacked sooner instead of waiting for Miroku. He should've kept a better hold on Kagome, who he prayed still had Shippou tucked in her coat. But he wasn't hoping for very much and the worst scenarios were running through his mind. Damn him for not agreeing with Miroku when he asked to turn back!

Fists and muscles clenched in anger. Part of this was his fault, though he was loathed to admit it. Had he noticed the unusual wind and snowflakes, as instincts were hinting, he would've known they were being trapped. His lips pursed. A SNOW youkai? Until now, he didn't know they existed. But he already encountered Hinten and Manten, there were bound to be other elemental youkai out there. A claw flexed and shook as anger came rushing back. It made no difference, he'd defeat them all. And this youkai would pay dearly!

It was time to chance leaving. He needed to find the others for a peace of mind and finish the bakemono. Gold looked to a claw. Using his attack wasn't a good idea. Others could be in the way. He quickly, but carefully, moved to kneeling position. The only safe way was to dig and he wasn't going to waste any more time. "Sankon Tessou!" Yellow beams easily shot through snow, also creating a back draft. Arms instinctively covered his face as powder got in his eyes. After everything seemed to calm, he peeked up to find a clear, starry sky. Eyes momentarily widened before narrowing. Bracing his legs, he jumped high into the air. Brows twitched upward in shock at seeing what the moon reflected.

Ice. A clean, unbroken sheet of ice. Except for the hole he made, no one else was on the surface. He landed with a clenched jaw. This wasn't good; they were all hidden. His eyes assessed their location, finding them in the valley. A few branches from tall trees stuck out over the ice. He gasped and squinted at what looked like the end of Miroku's shakujou jutting from the ground. Eyes shot to the ice skeptically. Running wasn't a good idea and using tessaiga to stop a slide across ice might stab someone. Trying to clear the way by jumping was his only option.

It was a relatively good thing no one could see him. Not dealing much with ice left him inexperienced. He ended up falling and skidding a few feet from Miroku's staff before jamming a claw into the ice. Blushing despite himself, he took more care and crossed to the staff. Everything was clouded by snow and it was hard to tell where Miroku was exactly. It wasn't certain that Miroku was still holding his staff. Lips pursed as he crouched. He'd just have to pray the monk was just underneath.

A fist rose and came back down, cracking the perfect sheet into shards. He threw them at a distance until there was a wide enough space around the staff. Hands pushed into the snow to his elbows and felt around. "Come on bouzu..." He muttered, hope in his eyes. "You'd better be here. Make me waste time when I can finally track down that youkai. If you're not here, I'll smack you with your staff when I DO find you!"

Hand bumped something and he gave a gasp. That hand quickly fisted freezing cloth and he pulled. A grunt sounded from the effort until he cried out and yanked. The staff's end shifted as Miroku surfaced. His eyes were tightly closed, a hand covering both nose and mouth. He couldn't help but feel relieved when Miroku moved and peeked eyes open.

"Inu...yasha." Miroku mumbled, trying to smile relief.

"Lose some weight bouzu." He retorted. In one smooth motion, he stood and dropped the monk on his rear on the ice. He turned and scanned the area, wondering where to search next.

Miroku looked at the hanyou and smiled. The comment didn't faze him, not after seeing the relief in Inuyasha's eyes. His friend was just covering up his worry. "Oi...Inuyasha." He mumbled, trying to get to his feet. The shakujou's rings clinked as he used it to stand. He was forced to loosen his hold when shivering overtook him. At least there was no wind. A hand moved and hovered in the air when Inuyasha didn't move. "Ano...Inuyasha -"

"Uresai!" He snapped. His head turned, ears flipping. Closing his eyes and letting hearing take over, he took a few steps. "Something is moving under the ice. Almost sounds like -"

"Kitsune-bi!" A blue flame suddenly shot into the air and mere seconds after it died down, Shippou jumped from the snow.

"Shippou!" Miroku shouted in relief.

Shippou looked to the voice, but didn't have much to say except a cry of surprise. Inuyasha slid across the ice and in one fluid motion, grabbed the kitsune by the scruff of his tail and slammed a claw in the ground to stop. "Where?" He demanded, shaking Shippou. "How could you lose her?! You were inside her jacket!"

The shaking was painful on his poor tail and Shippou gave a cry of pain. "MIROKUUUUU!"

"Inuyasha!" Miroku called, coming to Shippou's aid. He carefully trod across the ice. "It's not Shippou's fault. If you're going to blame someone for this, blame that damned youkai." Miroku reached out and almost forcefully pried his grip loose before safely depositing the youkai on his shoulder. "What do we do now?" He asked, looking across the sheet. He barely managed to survive the cold, only due to the many layers he wore. Kagome didn't have that protection and he feared for her health.

"How should Iknow? I can't smell or hear a thing under this ice." A hand waved over the land. "You expect us to search all that!? Your Kaazana is useless, as are my claws and blade."

"There has to be something we can do!" Shippou denied. "Can't we go by eyes rather than sight and sound?"

"That takes too long!"

"We don't have any other choice. If we don't start looking, Kagome-sama won't be alive when we find her."

"Slide across the ice to cover more ground and draw an 'X' to mark where you looked." Instructions given, he took a few steps for momentum and slid across the ice again, eyes avidly on the untouched surface.

His brain was churning with worry at Miroku's words. Dead? He wouldn't let that happen! He wouldn't fail Kagome and subject her to death! He failed Kikyou and lost her, he wouldn't lose Kagome. 'Be safe.' He prayed, jamming a claw in the ground to mark his spot. Ears perked at the others running around, calling Kagome's name.

It seemed they were never going to find her, even if they didn't start that long ago. Fear and worry upped adrenaline, mixing with anger at himself and the one truly responsible. The urgency in both his comrades' voices was magnifying his. Though he stayed silent to help keep emotions away, he was betrayed by his human side. "Kagome!"

A sound nearby caught his ears. His head whipped around and he lost his balance, slamming to the earth. The others stopped to look at him, but there was no time to be embarrassed. Just before they went back in their search, a hand shot out, halting them. "Uresai! I hear something." Getting on hands and knees, his head bent above ice as he crawled around. Trepidation and hope burned in his heart and eyes and he tried to fight it. He didn't want to be let down if it was nothing, but nothing else was out here! He paused when the sound stopped. He remained still, not daring to let breathing be heard. His heart was screaming that the sound he heard HAD to be Kagome, but instincts pointed that she was still buried. Just as he was about ready to start haphazardly digging, a faint, heart-wrenching scream spooked his muscles to move. "Kagome!" He jumped up and pushed off, skidding in what he was sure her location was.

"Inuyasha?" The houshi watched as the hanyou quickly slid past and near Shippou's spot where he was stuck in the snow. Trusting his friend's instincts, he hurried over and found Shippou doing the same.

The noise stopped and it felt like his heart stopped beating. Gold went wide with a surprised gasp at seeing a blue blur against the ice. His throat locked as he kneeled and slammed a claw to stop. "Miroku, Shippou!" He was trembling, but not from cold. Kagome's mitten rested against the ice, the rest of her body not moving. Adrenaline surged and he felt his heart was going to slam out of his body. "Kagome!" Repeating the same actions as with Miroku, a fist went through ice and wedged inside. He spotted the others closer, but his attention was on Kagome, but she didn't even look at him. "No.." He breathed, moving chunks out of the way. Hands dove under the surface and grasped her under the arms. With a strong yank, he pulled her form from the snow.

His calculations were off. With adrenaline increasing his strength, her weight off-balanced him. With a startled cry, he slipped back with Kagome landing on him. His face flamed, but he cast embarrassment aside when eyes spotted her face. Her lips were tinged blue. He sucked in a breath and sat up, propping her up with his arms. "Oi." He muttered, shaking her. Her face flopped away from his and the second he touched her chin to make her look at him, breath hissed through clenched teeth. She was ice!

"Inuyasha?" Miroku called, worried eyes on his friend's face. With a swallow, the houshi kneeled by her side.

"Kagome!" Shippou hurried to her side and touched a knee. He quickly let go with a cry. "She's freezing."

"No shit!" He barked, smacking the kitsune on the head. He glared as Shippou glared at him.

"Stop!" The two demons looked at him and cowered under the force of his glare. The monk sighed. "What do we do now?" Eyes remained on Kagome's face, mentally willing her to open those beautiful eyes. If only his houriki was part of mental persuasion. His worry wouldn't have been so great, if only she would shiver. Even unconscious, the body would do what it needed to do to keep warm. She was worse than he imagined.

His eyes never left Kagome's face. He too, was willing, as well as pleading, Kagome to open her eyes. Despair was rising by the minute. He failed to protect her. "Nani??" He breathed, ears going to her chest. Eyes squeezed shut as utterly grateful tears threatened to give away his relief. Heaving a sigh, he straightened. "She's still alive."

Both Miroku and Shippou gasped. "Thanks to the gods." Miroku murmured, clasping hands in thanks.

"We don't have time for that!" Inuyasha snapped, cradling Kagome's body. "We need to get her warmed up."

"How do we do that?" Shippou snapped. Green eyes scanned the area. "We can't build a fire and traveling won't help Kagome."

Miroku looked to their surroundings. "I can feel the youkai in the area. He must be biding his time until we're dead to take the kakera." Eyes shot to Inuyasha upon hearing a deep-throated growl. His hold on Kagome tightened and one hand was clenching the frayed hilt of tessaiga. "Inuyasha! Kagome's health is more important!"

After a minute of silence, his eyes rested on the hole Kagome came out of. He studied it and found she dug her way up. He squelched a smile, keeping the scowl rooted. An idea formed and he looked to Shippou. "Oi, we're going under the snow."

"You think I wanna go back in THAT?" Shippou squealed, eyes widening.

"You have any BETTER ideas?" He spat . He looked to the half moon illuminating them. "We're sitting out in the open and Kagome's defenseless. She's dug a tunnel to get to the surface; I can see some of it from here. Since you're the smallest, you're going first to widen it. If you get stuck, you can get out like you did last time."

"You can do it Shippou." Miroku coached, giving a smile. "Inuyasha's right; we can't stay up here. We're counting on you."

Shippou's face turned grave, but determined. This was the only thing he could do to help Kagome. He WOULDN'T fail! Swallowing the suffocating déjá vu feeling from being stuck in the snow the first time, magnified into terror upon realizing he was alone, Shippou jumped off Miroku and landed next to the hole. The snow melted considerably and was easily shoved aside. Shippou quickly made his way down, gone from Inuyasha's eyes when the slope seemed to straighten.

The sound of fox fire floated up as he got farther and arms absently tightened as eyes remained glued on the hole. Kagome must've been buried farther than any of them. Knowing that wasn't helping his frame of mind any. Ears were acutely tuned to her slow, quiet heartbeat and shallow breathing. Arms clenched as he stole a quick look. 'Kagome... Hold on a little longer.'

After what seemed an eternity, sounds of Shippou running back up were heard. His body popped back into view and tiny hands beckoned to Inuyasha's eyes. "Okay." Without waiting, he slid back down.

Miroku strapped his shakujou to his back and slipped feet in. His eyes locked with Inuyasha's, serious meeting grave. "Hand her down and we'll slowly edge our way back in."

Eyes narrowed skeptically, but he nodded. Part of his mind was berating that they wasted time. Instead of handing her over, he carefully laid Kagome on the ice and untied his haori. He eased Kagome up, trying to get her arms through the sleeves. When a hand grabbed her covered one, her eyes clenched tight. He stilled in fear and hope, especially when her hand trembled under his. Wide eyes remained glued to her face, looking away when her face slowly relaxed. She didn't wake as he hoped. After gently sliding her hand through the sleeve, he made double care with her other, as not to pain her so bad.

Trying to get the fire rat robe situated as best as possible, he speared the houshi a fierce glare. "Bouzu, if I see you looking where you shouldn't be -"

Miroku gave a fierce glare back. "You may call me a bouzu at times from my habits, but I would NEVER take advantage of Kagome-sama like this."

'Or any OTHER time.'

Satisfied with the answer, he slid Kagome into the hole and kept a firm grip under her arms until he felt a gentle pull. As her head disappeared from above the ice, he followed head first until he was also gone. Eyes remained on her face as he pushed her shoulders with Miroku's grip around her ankles. They inched down until Miroku was suddenly blocked from his view. He stopped, wondering if there'd been a cave-in. Just as his mind was pondering ways to make Shippou suffer, Miroku's arms came into view as hands carefully took hold of Kagome's waist. His jaw momentarily clenched before he breathed a quiet sigh that everything was still going smoothly and pushed Kagome the last few inches.

He waited until Kagome was from his view before sliding inside. The hole was tall enough to sit in and stretch out. He eyed the kitsune and gave a small nod on a job well done before casting eyes on the scene before him. Miroku was cradling Kagome in his lap, a thumb rubbing her cheek as he stared at her face. That little action would've given him enough basis to smack the bouzu with his shakujou as he promised, if not for the look in those eyes. Miroku's stare was sad and pleading. A brow twitched. "Oi..."

Miroku quietly sighed. The thumb stopped and his hand moved away. "I was merely hoping...maybe Kagome-sama would wake up and smack me...or yell at me...or...SOMETHING."

He looked to the snow and gave a small, understanding nod. Suddenly, he found Kagome in his lap and his arm quickly situated itself behind her head. "Nani -"

Miroku met his eyes before scooting back to the far wall. He looked to Shippou with a smile. "Shippou...you look rather cold sitting there by yourself."

That hint was all the kitsune needed. He eagerly jumped onto Miroku's lap and was soon covered with wide, purple sleeves. After a second, his head popped up and stared across the way. Worried green stared at Kagome's closed eyes. "Kagome." He whispered, feeling his heart sink at how pale she was. Inuyasha looked to Shippou and was pinned with worried, innocent eyes. "Inuyasha, will Kagome be okay?" Miroku's arms moved and a hand patted his head, but did little to reassure him.

He looked to Kagome's peaceful face. Ningen... The word almost taunted him. That was beginning to piss him off. Forcing indifference, he shrugged and looked to the others. "Sleep. I'll try and figure out what to do."

"But -" Miroku's arms covered Shippou and cut him off. He leveled his gaze on Inuyasha's before giving a quiet nod. The houshi scrunched up more against the wall for warmth and was silent. His head bowed.

Inuyasha stared at the pair in expectation. Ears flipped around as they listened for both heartbeats and breathing to even out. Once he was satisfied they were asleep, he took the fire rat off Kagome. There was a plan in mind and he suspected the houshi knew by the look in his eyes. Fighting with both sides of his blood and uncertainty, a hand paused while clutching part of her jacket. Eyes squeezed shut with a forceful shake of his head. No, this was the only way. Screw embarrassment and uncertainty of new territory, this would save her life. If Kagome didn't like it, that was tough.

Feeling a little better and more justified, he removed the jacket and set it aside. A claw paused above her chest. Fangs harshly bit his lip. It HAD to be done though. While he didn't know of the healing skills in Kagome's time, he knew wet clothes only made things worse. Feeling impatient at his doubts, a claw gripped the top of her shirt and sliced it open. A blush stained his cheeks and he faltered with the sudden urge to cover Kagome back up. She always hated when he peeped on her...

His head shook again and he carefully slid the top from her arms, fighting a growl at his own, two-sided behavior. When had he become so weak? It was no wonder Kagome always called him a baka! Gold cast a quick, wary glance across the way. Seeing the two hadn't budged, he untied his inner kimono and pulled it from the bottom half. He laid Kagome in the snow and stretched out. After getting the fire rat underneath him, he withdrew arms from the kimono sleeves. Eyes rested on Kagome's face with a gulp, ears flattening. While mentally berating himself, he slowly pulled Kagome to him as close as possible. Using one arm as a pillow for her neck, his free arm maneuvered hers between them. It took a bit of work, but his legs finally sandwiched hers to keep them warm. That done, he grit his teeth and fumbled with his kimono and haori tops. He finally succeeded in getting it over Kagome's shoulders and the bulky haori over their heads. After managing to cocoon them for however long was needed, he tucked Kagome's head under his chin and sighed. He prayed this would work. And if it did, she'd wake up and call him the baka he was.

I am a BEGINNER Japanese learner...so if these are not 100 correct...please let me know if you care to do so. I only have a web page to learn from, a dictionary, and a few months experience to work with.

Translations: Jii-chan-Grandfather Kami-sama-God Bakemono-Monster shakujou-Staff Bouzu-insulting term for a monk Kitsune-bi-Shippo's attack Onegai-Please

Houshi-Monk Houriki-Power of Buddha