Chance by Andromeda

Cold

Please enjoy! This is my first submition to Dokuga!

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The snow was beautiful this year and it fell like flower petals, coating the ground in its essence.

Yet, it was still so cold.

Kagome shivered under the jumper she had purchased when the winter chill had set in. “I hope Miroku can stop flirting long enough to get us a room for the night” she whispered. Her words caused the air to mist; reminding the young woman of simpler times when she and her brother would pretend to be dragons of myth.

Kagome giggled fondly, but the sound quickly caught in her throat when her eyes found a familiar figure barely hidden in the shadows of the forest line. She stumbled as apprehension quickly turned to realisation. I must look absolutely mad.

She blinked in embarassment.

He did not return the sentiment, merely quirking one pale eyebrow.

“Sesshomaru-sama, what brings you here?” Kagome enquired, regaining her confidence. However instead of answering, the demon lord disappeared from the shade to reappear at her side, making her jump. The woman shot him a look out of the corner of her eyes in annoyance before huffing and looking away again. "How can I help?" she smiled up at him.

“Where is my half-brother?” he intoned.

“Last I checked he was with the others beating some sense into our… gracious host” more like an ignorant idiot! Kagome’s eye twitched  “since he seems against letting anyone of demon blood enter his home despite your brothers aid in ridding the village of bandits” her lips thinned in bitterness, she never could understand such prejudice.

“Hn" Sesshomaru turned fully to look down at the small woman, before issuing his warning "Then tell the half-breed that should he fail to find lodge for the night, to refrain from hunting the near-by demons. They are under my protection and any attack against them is one against this Sesshomaru and his Kingdom”

He towered over her easily, quite intimidating to anyone.

Kagome wasn’t just anyone.

Her voice stayed low but it seemed to warm her more than any blanket “I understand that you’ve got a Kingdom to run here Sesshomaru but you don’t have the right to come up to me and start making threats. We wouldn’t harm any demon that didn’t attack us first.” Rant over, the miko’s chin lifted in defiance.

His eyes narrowed in disdain.

“And if said demon carried a shard?”

“Then you would be an idiotic demon lord not to have removed the threat from your lands before pledging your protection.”

He froze in shock at her daring, and seeing her chance Kagome stood. This time her voice, still strong, was quiet. “You have my word that InuYasha will not harm those under your protection tonight” With one last look she turned heel and made her way back to her group.

So much for admiring nature’s beauty…

She sighed, then glanced back over her shoulder to see if the stoic demon had left.

There he stood, regal as ever, with a goddamn smirk on his face. The nerve! She glared.

“I will take my leave now miko, but take my advice. No amount of heated words will warm you from this night.” His eyes steady with seriousness “Stay by the fire, lest you catch illness” with that he stalked back to the forest.

Her breath caught.

“I will not be pleased if you become another worthless player in the quest to defeat Naraku.”

Breath returned.

But before the woman full of confused indignation could respond, his form moved into the forest, seemingly melting like the snow into its midst. With his parting all of the emotions that had swirled like a storm within the miko seemed to settle. With the calm, a small, secret smile adorned her face.

“Perhaps I found something of nature to admire after all”

The woman blinked the snowflakes out of her lashes, peering under them at the sky.

“Cold but so, so beautiful” she whispered.

And this time the heat of her breath coupled with the heat of her heart, was enough to warm her.

What a way to spend Christmas…

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