Snowed In

Chapter One

The snow had started falling at around midday. Kagome had been glad to get to the village before the snowfall could become heavy. She winced when she heard Sango whack Miroku over the head with her boomerang when he tried to touch her in places his hands were not supposed to go.

"Feh, serves you right, monk." Inu-Yasha had said, with a contemptuous snort, when he saw the huge lump on top of Miroku's head from where the boomerang had impacted. Miroku said nothing, as he put some distance between himself and the ladies of the group so he wouldn't get hit again.

"Behave thyself, Miroku." Kaede said, as she went about her usual business.

"The day Miroku behaves himself will be the day Inu-Yasha and Sesshomaru get along with one another." Shippou said, with a sarcastic smirk. Inu-Yasha was visibly angered by the little kitsune's smart remark, but restrained himself from knocking Shippou into orbit. He didn't want to get 'sat' again. Before anything more could be said, a frantic looking villager rushed into the hut, bringing in with him a blast of icy air.

"What the hell do you think you're doing?!" Inu-Yasha growled, as other complaints filled the air.

"Please forgive me for the intrusion, but a youkai has been spotted coming towards the village!" the villager said, breathlessly.

"Where is it? Show me!" Inu-Yasha shouted, as he grabbed Tetsusaiga and prepared to follow the villager.

"Follow me!" the villager said, as he rushed back out the way he'd come. By the time Inu-Yasha and his group had gotten there, the youkai in question was easily seen, despite the snow.

"Sesshomaru………………" Miroku muttered, as he fingered the beads that warded his cursed hand.

"But he looks terrible! What happened to him?" Kagome asked, pointing out the fact that something didn't look right. It was then that Inu-Yasha realized that something did indeed seem odd about his half-brother. He seemed oblivious to their presence. All of them were shocked when Kagome approached Sesshomaru, walking up to him till she was only half a foot away.

"Kagome! What the hell do you think you're doing?!" Inu-Yasha asked, when he'd realized that Kagome was in striking distance. Ignoring him, Kagome reached up and brushed the white hair off of Sesshomaru's face, jerking back when she felt the heat emanating from his skin.

"He's got a fever. Inu-Yasha, we need to get him inside." Kagome said, yelping when the once mighty Sesshomaru collapsed into her arms.

"What?! You want to help him, even after all that he's done to you and Inu-Yasha?! Why?!" Miroku asked, not believing what he was hearing. Kagome didn't answer, but she shouldered Sesshomaru's weight and started dragging him to where Kaede's hut stood.

"Feh. Why do you try to do things by yourself?" Inu-Yasha asked, as he helped Kagome drag Sesshomaru into the hut.

Consciousness was slow to return to the fever-wracked brain of Sesshomaru, but when it did, he was vaguely aware that he was someplace warm and dry.

"Where am I?" Sesshomaru wondered, as he tried to open his eyes. The first thing he saw was the weathered face of an old woman.

"How is he, Kaede-san?" a female voice asked.

"Not quite awake, but close enough." Kaede replied, as she moved aside for the speaker and another female to look at Sesshomaru. He flinched when one of the females put a soft hand on his burning forehead, but soon found the touch to be quite soothing.

"He still looks terrible." A boy's voice said, as the owner appeared and sat on one girl's shoulder.

"I wonder…………….why did he come here? It couldn't be from any possible affection towards his brother that drew him here. Nor could it be any promise of security that a human would get from being around family while ill." A man's voice said, the tone laden with suspicion and curiosity.

"Feh." Another male voice muttered, moodily. After that, Sesshomaru's mind drifted from the conversation, when he'd come to the conclusion that he couldn't think clearly. His body ached and was frustratingly weak, and seemed to be hot and cold at the same time. Yet the female's touch was calming and seemed to chase the pain away………..

Kagome watched as Sesshomaru's golden eyes closed and he gave himself to fevered sleep.

"He didn't even recognize us." Kagome murmured, as she gently continued bathing the youkai's forehead with a damp cloth.

"Weird. Even for him, that's very weird." Inu-Yasha muttered, as he looked over Kagome's shoulder, ears pricked with interest.

"Could it be because of the poison Kaede-san found in his veins?" Sango asked.

"That's a possibility. If so, then that would explain the absence of Jaken and Rin." Miroku said, his expression unreadable.

"Then what should we do?" Kagome asked, as she turned to her friends for advice.

"I'd say go and look for Rin, but I don't even know where to start looking. We certainly can't wait for Sesshomaru to fully wake up and we don't know if he'll even remember whom Rin and Jaken are, much less where to find them. Do you have any ideas, Kaede-san?" Sango asked, as she turned to the older woman.

"I would suggest that ye all remain here. If there is anything I have learned thus far, Sesshomaru cared about Rin. Since Jaken was, and I wager, still is, afraid of Sesshomaru, he will take care of Rin until he locates his master." Kaede said, with confidence.

"Feh." Inu-Yasha grumbled, but couldn't hide his concern for the little girl that had become his brother's charge.

When Sesshomaru again awoke, he found that he could think a little more clearly, but he still had no idea as to where he was. For some reason, his memories were in fragments and days and years were missing from his life. He knew his name was Sesshomaru, and that he was the son of the Lord of the Western Lands, but that was just about it. He was startled when a small, childish face popped in from nowhere.

"Kitsune." Sesshomaru thought, as the smaller youkai stared at him with curiosity in his bright green eyes.

"Is he awake, Shippou-chan?" a woman's voice asked, softly.

"Hai." The kitsune replied, as the woman appeared before Sesshomaru. As before, he watched as she touched his forehead with one hand.

"Your fever seems to have broken. How do you feel?" the woman asked.

"Tired…………Like I've walked for miles………….." Sesshomaru said, wincing when he found out how dry his throat was.

"I'd imagine that you do feel like that, considering how we found you." The woman said, as she handed him a cup of water.

"What do you mean?" Sesshomaru asked, after he'd taken a sip of the water he'd been given.

"You were wandering around in the snow badly hurt and very sick. You've been here for about four days." The woman replied.

"Four days, huh? So tell me, what's your name?" Sesshomaru asked. The woman appeared to be surprised by his asking for her name, but she quickly got over that.

"My name's Kagome. Kagome Higurashi." The woman replied. Sesshomaru nodded, storing that information in the back of his mind for the future.

"And I'm Shippou!" the kitsune shouted, determined not to be left out.

"Good to meet you." Sesshomaru murmured, despite feeling that he should have known what their names were. It was then that a man entered the room, but this was no ordinary man.

"Well? What's he told you so far, Kagome?" the man asked, impatiently.

"I haven't asked him yet, Inu-Yasha. He's only just woken up." Kagome said, as the man she'd called Inu-Yasha glared at her, then at Sesshomaru.

"Why are you glaring at me? I haven't said anything to you." Sesshomaru said, calmly.

"No, but you've done more than enough to me in the past to make up for half a dozen lifetimes!" Inu-Yasha growled. Now Sesshomaru was confused.

"Whatever you think I may have done, I don't remember." Sesshomaru said, his voice dropping to a low growl.

"Like hell, you don't remember!" Inu-Yasha snarled, looking like he wanted to kill Sesshomaru right then. But before he could, Kagome intervened.

"SIT!" Kagome shouted. Seconds later, much to Sesshomaru's amusement, Inu-Yasha suddenly met the floor with a sound 'splat' (a la Wile E. Coyote).

"Ouch……….That had to hurt." Sesshomaru muttered, not cracking a smile, but showing his amusement in his eyes.

"Are you hungry, Sesshomaru-san?" Kagome asked.

"A little." Sesshomaru admitted, though he doubted whether his stomach would take solid food, since he couldn't remember when he'd last eaten.

"I'll go and get you something, then. Shippou-chan, would you mind staying with him?" Kagome asked.

"Okay!" Shippou said, cheerfully. Moments later, Kagome reappeared with a bowl in her hands.

"Here you go. It's broth. Kaede had said that your stomach might reject solid food." Kagome said, as she handed the bowl to the youkai.

"Apparently this 'Kaede' has had some experience with people who go for extended periods without food." Sesshomaru said, as he carefully took the bowl from Kagome.

"Well, she is the village healer, as well as the resident miko." Kagome said, as she watched him eat.

"Then she must have an extensive knowledge of herbs, since that goes with her being a miko as well as a healer." Sesshomaru commented, between sips of the hot liquid.

"She does. That's how she saved your life." Kagome said, as she watched him carefully. Silence followed, but it was a strangely comfortable one.

"Kagome-san?" Sesshomaru asked. Kagome jumped; Sesshomaru was being polite and not calling her a 'wench'?! But then she remembered the circumstances.

"Yes, Sesshomaru-san?" Kagome replied.

"What was wrong with me, exactly?" Sesshomaru asked, leaning forward with a look of yearning on his face.

"You had been wounded. Your side had been ripped open by something. That something also introduced poison into your blood. By the time you'd arrived here, you were very sick. We didn't know whether you were going to live or not." Kagome said, but held some of the information back.

"I see………………" Sesshomaru murmured, thoughtfully. By this time, Inu-Yasha and Shippou had left the room, but Sango was there and telling her to follow her.

"Be back in a little bit, Sesshomaru-san. Get some rest." Kagome said, as she stood to follow Sango. Sesshomaru merely nodded, looking like he wanted to be alone for a moment, anyway.

"Is everyone in here?" Kaede asked, when she'd taken a seat by the fire.

"What do you think, Kaede-baba?" Inu-Yasha snapped, irritably. Everyone else ignored his rather rude remark and went back to the situation at hand.

"Since everyone is here, I suppose I can tell ye what is going on with Sesshomaru." Kaede said, grimly.

"Well? What's wrong with him?" Inu-Yasha asked.

"The poison that had been introduced into his blood was extremely potent. He was very lucky to have made it this far after being injected. Since he was a pure youkai, he was able to survive, but I am afraid that there will be long term damage." Kaede explained.

"What do you mean, Kaede-san?" Sango asked.

"The poison has a side effect that can't be overcome, no matter how much he may try to undo it. Most of his memories from the present to a long time into the past may have been destroyed. Among those lost are the memories as to why he acted with much hatred around humans." Kaede said, quietly.

"In other words, he's lost a part of his personality to the poison." Miroku said, as he leaned casually on his staff.

"That is correct. That is why we should take it as no surprise that he might not remember even having a brother." Kaede affirmed.

"Feh, I could care less. If he ever does remember, he'll probably want to kill me again." Inu-Yasha said, before stomping out.

"The thing I'm worried about is, what will happen if Rin and Jaken show up? How will Sesshomaru react to them?" Kagome murmured, speaking up for the first time and voicing her concern.

"We'll cross that bridge when we come to it, I suppose." Miroku said, with a sigh, as he fiddled with the rosary beads on his cursed hand, a look of apprehension crossing his face as he thought of what the next day could bring.