Work Text:
Kagome sat by the water, watching the snowfall. The crisp air left her cheeks rosy, and every breath she exhaled curled into a delicate mist. The frozen lake stretched before her, its icy surface reflecting the pale winter sun. Everything was quiet. Peaceful.
Until Inuyasha stomped up behind her.
She didn't turn around, but she felt him there, his presence impossible to ignore, as always. He hovered awkwardly, shifting his weight like he wasn’t sure if he wanted to sit or just complain that she was outside in the cold.
“Are you just gonna stand there like a creeper, or…?” Kagome teased.
Inuyasha huffed. “Feh. You’re the one sitting out in the open like an idiot. It’s freezing.”
Kagome smiled softly and turned back toward the lake. “I don’t mind.”
“Tch.” He hesitated a second longer before finally dropping into a crouch beside her, arms tucked into his sleeves. She caught the way his ears twitched, catching every sound, every crunch of snow, every whisper of wind through the trees.
A shiver ran through her, and Inuyasha immediately noticed. “See? Told ya. It’s too cold for this.”
“I’m fine,” she insisted.
A heavy warmth suddenly dropped over her shoulders, cutting off the bite of the wind.
Kagome blinked down at the familiar red robe now draped around her, the fabric still carrying Inuyasha’s warmth. His scent, something distinctly him, wrapped around her as it settled. She turned to look at him, surprised, but he was already staring stubbornly at the lake, ears tilted back in the way they always did when he was pretending he wasn’t being thoughtful.
"You’re cold too," she pointed out, tightening the robe around her.
"I'm fine," he muttered.
Kagome rolled her eyes, but an idea formed in her mind.
Without warning, she scooted closer, so close their sides pressed together. Before Inuyasha could react, she tugged part of his robe back over him, effectively wrapping them both in the warm fabric.
His entire body went rigid.
“Wha…? What are you…?”
“Shhh,” Kagome murmured, resting her head against his shoulder like it was the most natural thing in the world. "This way we both stay warm."
Inuyasha swallowed hard, his ears twitching wildly. His arms remained frozen at his sides, as if he had completely short circuited.
“Y-you…”
“You what?” Kagome said sweetly, tilting her head up to look at him. “You wanna complain, dog boy?”
His face turned pink. “Shaddup,” he grumbled.
But he didn’t move away.
Instead, after a long moment of internal struggling, he exhaled and let himself relax, just a little. He shifted so that she fit better against him, the weight of his presence settling naturally around her.
Kagome felt his muscles slowly unwind, and she smiled against his shoulder. The heat radiating from him was comforting, familiar. The robe cocooned them in its warmth, blocking out the winter chill.
Then, to her surprise, Inuyasha sighed through his nose and, hesitantly, let his arm rest against her, as if to steady her against him. Not a full embrace, but close enough.
For a long time, neither of them spoke. The snow continued to fall in soft, quiet flurries, the lake still and frozen before them.
Inuyasha was the one to break the silence. “…You really are annoying sometimes.”
Kagome hummed, her eyes fluttering closed. “You like it.”
He grumbled something under his breath but didn’t pull away.
Instead, his fingers twitched slightly, just enough for Kagome to feel the hesitant weight of them resting against her back.
She could feel the way his muscles were still tense, like he was hyper aware of their closeness but trying to act like it didn’t affect him.
Typical.
A particularly cold breeze swept through, making her shiver involuntarily.
Inuyasha noticed immediately. “See? Told ya...”
“It’s freezing,” she admitted before he could gloat.
He smirked, just a little. “Then stop shivering and get closer.”
Kagome blinked at him, caught off guard, not by the words themselves, but by the fact that he said them. And in that tone.
Something in his expression flickered, like he had only just realized what he’d said, too. His ears twitched, and a faint dusting of pink colored his cheeks.
Well.
Kagome wasn’t about to let that opportunity slip by.
Wordlessly, she shifted closer, pressing herself against his side. When he didn’t move away, she took it as permission and slipped her arms around his middle.
She felt him stiffen, comically so. For a second, she thought he might actually explode.
“What...?! You...!”
Kagome hummed innocently. “You did tell me to get closer.”
Inuyasha made a strangled noise, his entire face turning red. “That’s not what I meant!”
She giggled against his shoulder, tightening her hold just slightly. “Too late.”
He groaned, but after a long, agonizing moment of hesitation, he finally let out a defeated sigh. His arm, hesitant, careful, settled more securely around her back.
“…You’re really pushy, y’know that?” he muttered.
Kagome just smiled, eyes slipping shut as she rested against him. “You like it.”
He huffed, but the way his claws lightly, absently, traced the fabric at her back told her all she needed to know.
“Sometimes."
From their hiding spot behind a snow covered bush, two pairs of eyes stared, frozen in shock.
Shippo’s mouth hung open. “Are we…watching them cuddle right now?”
Miroku, kneeling beside him, folded his arms thoughtfully. “It would appear so.”
The kitsune’s fur bristled. “And we’re just sitting here watching this?!”
Miroku hummed. “It’s not every day you get to witness such a tender...”
“We are going to die,” Shippo hissed. “He will kill us if he finds out!”
Miroku tapped his chin. “Then perhaps we should move silently...”
A tree branch cracked beneath Shippo’s foot.
Inuyasha’s ear twitched.
Both of them froze.
Slowly, like a predator catching a scent, Inuyasha lifted his head and turned, his golden eyes locking onto theirs through the trees.
A long, terrible silence passed.
Then...
“OI. YOU LITTLE BRATS!”
“RUN!” Shippo shrieked, already bolting.
Miroku didn’t need to be told twice.
As they tore through the snow covered forest, Inuyasha’s furious yells echoed behind them, growing closer with each furious footstep.
“I TOLD YOU!” Shippo wailed. “I SAID THIS WAS HOW WE DIED!”
Miroku, breathless, only grinned. “Ah, but what a noble cause.”
Somewhere in the distance, Kagome’s voice rang out.
“Inuyasha, SIT!”
A loud THUD followed, then silence.
Shippo slowed to a stop, peeking over his shoulder. “…Did she just save us?”
Miroku sighed, placing a hand over his heart. “Lady Kagome truly is a blessing.”
“I CAN STILL HEAR YOU, IDIOTS!”