Disclaimer- I should be doing homework right now...but no, had to update, right? Anyways, he ain't mine...better not fail U.S cause of this...

Chapter 25-Only You

"The mountain is so beautiful." Inuyasha snorted as he listened to the girl, who stood next to him in amazement. Her eyes seemed larger as she stared at the massive creation, her breath pushing past her lips in white clouds.

"How can a mountain be 'beautiful'? It's just a bunch of rocks clumped together to make a huge rock. There's nothing great about it." Inuyasha replied bluntly. Kagome sighed glared up at him.

"You know how to ruin every moment don't you? This is my first time going anywhere near a mountain, give me a break here." A thin line of danger lined her voice enough to button Inuyasha's lips.

"Why do you two have to argue every time we get out or onto a bus? Is it some unwritten rule that nobody wanted to mention to me." Both heads snapped in Rin's direction, who was now leaning against her skis.

"They are in love. How disgusting." At Sesshoumaru's remark, Rin burst into laughter. She didn't take in account the shocked looks that now formed of the two teen's faces.

"I guess I could see how that works. They would be pretty cute together."

"Wonder if they'll remember us when they mate."

"Oh I hope I can be a bridesmaid!"

"Will you two shut up!" Inuyasha screamed. The continuous rambling ceased when the consolers realized that Inuyasha and Kagome were both standing in front of them. "Me and Kagome are NEVER going to get married because I don't like the stupid girl!" At the strong comment, Rin quickly backed away from Inuyasha.

"You know what; me and Sesshoumaru have to go!" Grabbing the boy's arm, Rin dragged Sesshoumaru away from the two campers. Inuyasha stared after them in confusion.

"What's with those two?" He glanced back at Kagome, who now had her head bowed. He moved towards her, eyes filling in shock when she backed away. "Kags?"

"Don't call me that." She snapped. At the sudden mood change, Inuyasha couldn't shake the feeling of guilt. "Why do you always do that to me?"

"Do what?"

"Put me down. I mean, you say you don't hate me, but then you say things like that and it just tears me up inside. It really hurts..." Her voice wavered as she pushed her hair out of her face, trying to keep her mind occupied from the rush of pain that flooded her senses. He didn't answer, causing her to sigh. "Forget it; I'll meet you back here with Sango."

"No wai-" Inuyasha sighed when Kagome tore down the small path that led to the rental shop, bumping into Miroku on her way. She mumbled an apology before she continued to run. He glanced after the girl before walking up to Inuyasha, who was kicking the snow in front of him.

"Kagome problems?" Miroku asked humorously. He concluded his hypothesis correct when Inuyasha sent a heated look his way. "Better than Sango problems. She doesn't slap you when she's angry."

"Why, what's up with her?" Inuyasha asked, looking from the frozen water to catch Miroku's serious expression.

"How come you didn't tell me she knew about you?" Miroku asked. Inuyasha stared at Miroku with confusion before he realized what Miroku was asking about.

"Because I didn't get to talk to you last night. She found out on the bus, but she promised she wouldn't talk to Kagome about it." Inuyasha explained.

"Why'd you tell her!"

"I don't know honestly...it just sort of happened." When Miroku glared at his friend, Inuyasha only stared at him. "What's with the look?"

"You put her in danger."

"She knew what she was getting into when I took the necklace off. Don't lecture me because your girlfriend tricked me into telling her."

"She isn't my girlfriend."

"Well then why do you care?" Stuck as a sardine, Miroku only moved his eyes towards the mountain. They sat there for a moment of silence until the girl's laughter caught both boys' ears.

"Well you two seem happy. And to think I just saw you in a cloud of anger just before." Miroku smiled teasingly as Kagome, who just shrugged.

"When you're with your best friend, it's easy to forget what you were upset about. Then again..." Kagome trailed off when she caught sight of Inuyasha, who was already making his way towards the mountain trails. "Being with the person who made you mad can put you back into a foul mood. I'll talk to you both later."

"Those two are really something else." Sango said, watching her friend chase after Inuyasha. Once the two were out of sight, Miroku and Sango grabbed their equipment, heading off to the lifts.

"Until one submits to the other, they won't gain any ground." Sango tried to keep her sigh quiet as she stared at the huge contraption she would be soon riding.

"They better do it soon. The camp ends at the end of the month. What's going happen if they don't tell each other by then?" Sango glanced over at him, watching the mountain breeze shift through his hair. What about us Miroku? What will happen if I don't tell you...

"Let's stop thinking about the end of camp. Besides, we're at the lifts." Miroku smiled at her, stepping into the line for the lifts.

"I've never been on one of these before." Sango admitted. No taunting came from Miroku, just a quick shrug.

"It's not as bad as people make it seem, though we should put our snowboards on before we get on." He said. Placing each snowboard onto the floor, both teen made sure that their boots were clipped in securely before moving into place for the line.

"Oka, now all we have to do slide onto the platform and wait until we feel the seats under us before we sit down." Miroku explained quietly. Sango nodded in understanding, moving forward until she got into position. Miroku followed suit, following his own directions. Sango laughed as she lifted off the ground, glancing at the white ground they were floating above.

"That wasn't as bad as I thought it was going to be." Sango said, letting her gaze drift to Miroku. His head was still facing the ground, his neck slightly craned to see better. Her gaze fell onto his neck, only to catch the silver locket that had fallen out of his shirt and dangled down. "Miroku..."

"Hm?" He glanced up at Sango, pulling himself upright again. She bit her lip slightly. She stared at it for a moment, reconsidering her curiosity. I have to know, it's killing me. I never really ASKED if he did, I just assumed he didn't because of his pervertedness...but why else would he have a locket? Did she give it to him so he didn't forget her over the vacation? I can't pretend I don't wonder, and if it is true, I can't keep hurting myself like this.

"Why do you have that locket?" Once the sentence was out, Miroku's hand grasped the ornament, staring at her for a moment. "It's just I've always wondered...is it from another girl?"

"Another girl?" Miroku repeated, gazing out towards the smaller trail they would be using to teach Sango. A warm smile crossed his features as he nodded. "Yea, I got it from another girl." At his words, Sango felt her heart clench.

"Oh." She too brought her gaze towards the scenery, though only to shield her eyes away from him. "I didn't know..."

"Sango?" She didn't move her gaze towards him like he expected, but keep the two broken orbs of brown away from his face. "Hey, are you Oka?"

"Yup, I'm fine. I just love it out here, it's so beautiful." How couldn't I see it? It was right in front of me, why didn't I ever realize it? Miroku has a girlfriend...but then why did he try to kiss me before? Was he trying to pretend she didn't exist? Was he ever going to tell me about her?

"The women who gave me this was named Aikia." At the mention of the girl, Sango shot Miroku an angry stare.

"Oh really? And how long have you two been going out?" Miroku blinked in shock as Sango slumped in the ski lift. "I bet it's been pretty long if she gave you that necklace."

"I don't have a girlfriend. She was my mother." His depressed smile shifted Sango's fury to shame, struggling to keep her gaze up.

"Your mother?" Asked Sango.

"Last thing she gave me before my parents died." He replied. "A long time ago you and Kagome asked why me and Inuyasha don't live with our families. It's simple really. Inuyasha thinks his family hates him, and I don't have a family anymore. Both parents were killed in a car accident, so I didn't have anyone else to go to.

"That's the main reason Inuyasha moved out of his house. He says that his family hates him, but they really don't. I always knew that him and his brother fought a lot and all, but they all do care about each other. His family was just never there for him when he was a child, only his mother. But she...died of after effects from medicine, and so he was alone for most of his childhood. I guess we're alike in the lack of family, which is why we moved in together."

"So the locket..." Sango couldn't find her words, too wrapped up in his story and the emotions that flowed through her.

"It was my mother's locket. She gave it to me, told me to keep it with me forever." He reached for the locket, opening it to show Sango the two pictures that sat in it's holders. On the left side, a young Miroku sat with a beautiful older woman, both waving to the camera. On the other side, an older man had his arms wrapped around the woman from before, and the picture was slightly tilted as if the camera had been turned during the picture.

"Is that your mom and dad?" She whispered, feeling as if the whole world was listening.

"And me, if you could ever believe I was that little." He replied, staring at the girl beside him. Her eyes were blocked from view, her bangs covering them from Miroku's eyesight. "What's wrong, is it so hard to believe I was that young?" His humor seemed to pass Sango's ears as she lifted her head, her eyes glassy with unsheathed tears.

"I'm so sorry!" Miroku was slightly startled as Sango launched herself into him, hugging him as if he were her last life line. He quickly sobered as he placed his arms around her, making sure she wouldn't fall out of her seat, and placed his forehead against her shoulder.

"It's not your fault or anyone else's. It was a long time ago, there is no reason to apologize." He tried to comfort her by rubbing slow circles on her back.

"I got so angry when I thought it was your girlfriend's, I'm such a horrible person." She whispered, more to herself than him. Even though the sentence was not directed towards him, Miroku shook his head and held onto her tighter.

"Anyone could have made that mistake, it's not just you. Besides-" Miroku lifted both their heads, smiling warmly at her. "It was time to tell you anyways. You had the right to know." She stared at him for a moment, her cheeks coated with tear lines, before she nodded weakly. "Good, now let's talk about the first rule of snowboarding..."

Scene Change

This was a stupid idea. Kagome thought gloomily. Inuyasha, who had still refused to talk to her, was now a couple of feet in front of her and walking in a faster pace then she had intended. What was I thinking? Why didn't I take Sango up on that offer and have her and Miroku come with me? Then I'd have someone to talk to.

I don't even remember what I said that got him so mad at me. Probably nothing, he's just overreacting again. And to think, I though I'd be the one who was ignoring him, not the other way around. I mean, didn't he insult me today? Shouldn't I be the mad one? Kagome's mouth thinned in aggravation as she realized Inuyasha had no right to be angry at her. Right when she was about to scream at him, she noticed that Inuyasha had stopped abruptly in the middle of the trail.

"What is your problem!" Inuyasha growled out, spinning to face her. She tried to keep a gasp from sprouting as he glared at her. "This whole time we've been on this stupid trail, you haven't said one word to me! And you're walking so slow, it's like you want to be by yourself. If you wanted me to leave so bad, why didn't you just say something!"

"My problem? You're the one who's mad at me!" She replied. His blank expression proved he had no knowledge of her accusation.

"I'm not mad at you, why would I be? You haven't said a damn thing this entire time, I can't be mad at you."

"Well then how can I be mad at you if we haven't even spoken this entire time?" His body dropped, an invisible weight being placed on either shoulder.

"I thought you were still mad at me because of what happened this morning." She blinked at him, surprised at his response.

"You mean you avoided me this whole time because you thought I was mad at you?"

"Well what was I supposed to do, pretend it didn't happen?" He snapped irritably, watching with caution as she approached him.

"A little communication would be nice you know. Even though I doubt you care, I don't kill people when they ask me things. I didn't talk to you this entire time because I thought you got mad at me." He dropped his gaze.

"Like I wanted to get you more pissed off then I thought you were. I hate it when you're mad at me...because then I feel alone...and I have to listen to Miroku all the time." His admission was slow, and the words weren't as pretty as some, but all the same it got Kagome to smile. She sighed and glanced at the practice slopes that trailed lazily parallel to the trails. Though the forest was covering most of the sight, Kagome could still catch a good glimpse of the skiers who were flying down the slopes. Her eyes widened in excitement as she pushed against Inuyasha's arm lightly.

"Look, you can see Kouga and Kikyo from here!" At the mention of his two companions, Inuyasha glanced away from the trail and joined Kagome's eyes on the slopes. His fascination was thin, and barely grew when he saw Kouga take off. He was about to continue on the trail when he heard Kagome's laughter.

"He's really good at skiing, I never saw him as the type." Keeping her eyes on Kouga, she didn't have time to notice the angered look that passed Inuyasha's face. Her reaction to Inuyasha's hand around her wrist was slow as well, and she only started to struggle when he started to pull her forward. "Get your hands off me!"

"Why, so you can drool all over Kouga some more?" With a quick release of his hand, Kagome was sent tumbling forward into the trail, which seemed warm compared to Inuyasha's icy glare.

"I wasn't drooling over Kouga; I just said he was a good skier." Replied Kagome, pushing herself into a sitting position. Trying to keep her confusion masked with her temper, she reached her hand up for assistance. Inuyasha seemed to hesitate with his decision before grabbing her hand, pulling her up.

"You were watching him like a hawk. If I had known you wanted Kouga to come with you instead of me, why didn't you just say something?"

"Because I didn't want Kouga to come with me, or else I would have. I don't know why you're being so uptight now, but I didn't do anything wrong." Kagome words hit Inuyasha like a bombshell. "If you're getting jealous of Kouga because I said-"

"Why would I ever be jealous of that idiot? He can barely tie his shoes on his own, never mind cause me to get envious. And no matter what you said, I wouldn't get jealous!"

"Why are you such a jerk to me? Have you ever thought that maybe just once, once, I want you to stop opening your mouth if all you can do is insult me?" She pulled her hand, which was still encased in his hand, away from him and shoved it into her jeans. Inuyasha's confusion gave him no time to keep his next sentence from dribbling from his lips.

"If you hate hearing me talk, why don't you invite you lover boy to come with you next time." Her eyes seemed to lose their shine as she stared at Inuyasha, a black hole sucking the emotion from her.

"Because I wanted to come here with you...only you Inuyasha." Her soulless eyes now connected with his, sending a deep shiver slinking through his spine. "I wanted to be with you Inuyasha. Is that so hard to understand?"

How a question so simple could destroy Inuyasha's entire composure was still a mystery to him, though he knew it was rapidly dissolving. He stared at her for a moment, her absent brunette gaze now settling for his pained chocolate irises. Unconsciously he moved closer to her, placing his hands against her shoulders. Her helpless gaze never wavered from his. Please Inuyasha, say something. If you don't, I don't think I can keep trying for you anymore...

"Kagome...I..." His throat filled with sand as he stared at her weakly, trying to capture his voice again. When all that could be heard was the lonesome mountain wind, Kagome ducked her head before pulling away from him.

"We should get back, I promised I'd...meet Sango for lunch soon..." She whispered, turning sharply before making her way back down the path they had taken together. She bit her lip and stared up at the sky, trying to calm her raging emotions.

She wanted to hit him, scream at him, tell him how much she hated him...most of all, she wanted to cry on him. She wanted to cry until her pain was felt by him, until his heart ached the same way hers did.

What she failed to notice was that his heart was beating the same painful beats as hers were, and she was not alone in her heartache.

Scene Change

Kagome's eyes drifted shut as she shifted against the warmth of her bed, smiling dreamily as her tired bones rested. The day had taken a toll on the girl, and no matter what she tried, she couldn't seem to shift into a position without a small shiver of pain seeping down her body. Every muscle seemed to only scream in pain when she sat back up.

Rubbing her shoulders to ear the strain, she glanced around the empty room. Both Sango and Kikyo had taken another visit down to the hot tub, which they had invited Kagome to come enjoy. As tempting as the invitation sounded, Kagome decided to stay in the room to rest. When she declined, they only shrugged before grabbing their towels and heading down to the steamy waters that awaited them.

Kagome's main reason for not going with the girls was because she didn't think she could move her body any father than her door before her body would go numb. The first experience on a snowboard had been hard, and was even tougher when learning with a beginner as well. Instead of taking her original plan and ask Inuyasha for lessons, she had gone to the safety of Sango. Though she could tell Sango would have rather spent some time in the town with Miroku, she had agreed to help her friend.

The idea had seemed like a good idea at the time, until they actually got onto the ski lift. At the feeling of being lifted off the ground, Kagome panicked. Always being one who had never gotten used to heights, Kagome was trembling in her seat the entire time. Even as she got off, the fear of falling to her death was too much for Kagome's mind to handle.

So instead, she had to continuously take the path up to the top of the practice hill in order to fall flat on her face countless amounts of times. Sango was no better than Kagome, and the newbie had sworn she had gotten better than her teacher by the end of the day. No matter how she saw it, walking up the path with the snowboard more times than she wanted to bother counting had worn her out.

When they had finally gotten back from their adventure, they had been informed from Miroku that on the way to the more challenging slopes, Inuyasha and Miroku had had a small encounter with Naraku and Gatenmaru. Kagome shifted once again as the memory of Miroku's description of the argument rolled in her head.

Flashback

"What do you mean you got into a fight with Gatenmaru and Naraku! Are you two crazy?" Sango scolded the boy who sat in front of her. In a surprising action, Miroku only threw his hands up.

"I already told you. We were on our way to the trails and Naraku cut us off. Said something to Inuyasha that I couldn't understand, and started to laugh. Whatever he said caused Inuyasha to tackle him to the ground. He only got one good shot before Gatenmaru shoved him off, I grabbed Gatenmaru's arm and warned him not to touch my friend. The kid went crazy and tried to kick me before I shoved him backwards into the snow, grabbed Inuyasha, and dragged him off towards the trails again." Miroku explained slowly.

"You two are going to be kicked out now!" Kagome replied, glancing at the boy with slight concern.

"I don't think that's what those two's main purpose for meeting us was. Whatever Naraku said to Inuyasha he didn't want me or Gatenmaru to know, which means it's something we should be on the lookout for. Just keep your eyes open oka?"

End Flashback

Kagome shook her head as she glanced out her window, realizing that it had gotten much darker then she had expected. Sighing, she slowly pushed herself up to stand, looking around for towels. Once spotted, she grabbed the two towels that were folded next to her bed.

"I guess I should go take my shower before the other two get back." She mumbled, slowly moving herself towards the door. She stopped abruptly when catching sight of a folded piece of paper which now lay in front of her door. Realizing that the piece of paper had not been there prior to her arrival in the room, she reached down and snatched the paper back into her hand. Opening it slowly, she let her eyes travel the paper before widening in surprise. Shock slowly seeped into joy, which made her beam before rushing to the showers, the note still tucked tightly in her hand.

...You wouldn't kill the writer right? I mean, if you did, then I couldn't write anymore! Ha, you all need me for any more! Yes, I left it in a terrible position again. But what can I say; I'm a natural at it. So anyways, what did the note say? Who was it from? Is Kagome going on a secret date with Kouga who turns out to be Inuyasha disguised as Kouga to prove Kagome really likes him and then they fight and then decide to fall madly in love and get married in Vegas!...I'm hyper Oka! Leave me be!

Chapter 26-Frozen in Time

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