Disclaimer: I own NOTHING! Except the plot, but all the characters of Inuyasha belong to the almighty deity of Rumiko-sama. All hail her greatness! Hail it I tell you!

Chapter One: In the ice you'll find…

Cold. Bone chilling, teeth chattering, blood flow freezing, skin numbing, breath icing cold. It was all around the trio of archaeologists, clawing into their skin, trying to wrap its icy tendrils around their soul so it could join its lonely existence in the depths of Alaska. Riding along the smooth skin of the whales, and caressing the fur of the polar bears. Cold.

" It's s-s-s-o f-f-f-ucking cold!" A male voice managed to spit out, his teeth chattering like the clicking of stilettos on marble floors.

" N-n-n-n-o s-s-s-s-hit s-s-s-herlock." Another voice answered, more irritated sounding as they plowed through the deep snow that reached their knees.

" S-s-s-shut u-u-u-p b-b-both o-of y–y-y-y-you!" A clear agitated female voice cried, ringing through the crisp icy air.

" J-j-j-ust s-s-s-hut it Inuyasha and –c-c-c-concentrate on m-m-m-oving!"

"F-f-f-feh!" He answered.

" I-I-I-appreciate the p-p-p-p-ep t-t-t-alk S-s-s-ango!"

" My a-a-a-ss is practically ice!" Sango whined underneath her breath, but loud enough that the others managed to hear.

" I-I-I-'ll warm it up for you!" His hand twitched.

"NO MIROKU!"

Inuyasha rolled his eyes heavenward, earning a snowflake in his eye for it. With a muffled curse, he quickly wiped the intrusion away. He gestured with his gloved hand toward a cave in the looming distance. It was rather small, but seemed deep enough for all three of them to have shelter and some space to spare.

His amber eyes glowed bright against the contrast of the blankness surrounding them. Inuyasha nodded toward them in response to their own jittery physical agreement. And so, the nearly frozen group of archaeologists made their way toward the cave before them.

As they dropped their frozen supply packs on the floor, they managed to pull out a pack of dried firewood. With a group sigh of relief, they struck a match and made a fire. Eagerly, the trio made their way toward it, placing their hands out in front of them, lapping up the warmth like a sun-starved plant.

" Ah…nothing like a fire to make you able to feel your fingers." Miroku sighed, violet eyes becoming half lidded.

Inuyasha nodded and hid a smirk as Sango caught on to Miroku's innuendo and scooted closer to Inuyasha.

" No you can't try your recovering nerves on me." Sango answered, her magenta eyes filled with annoyance as she flexed her fingers, relishing in being able to feel them.

" You wound me."

"Apparently not enough." She quipped, earning a chuckle from the crouched hanyou beside her.

Miroku glared at Inuyasha but brushed it off.

" Where did you get this Shikon no Tama lead anyway?" Miroku asked, his eyes fixed on the tanned face of Inuyasha.

" Shippo found it on his trips to the message boards."

" Ah yes Shippo-san…" Miroku trailed off, and a silence reigned over the group, the colors of the flames glittering in their weary gazes.

Shippo was their information seeker, but kitsunes are naturally sneaky and the young fox child was no exception. He always seemed to get into trouble in school, so his family finally decided to home school him. But his mother had died and his father never had the time to teach him after his wife's demise. So he simply gave Shippo some educational CD-ROMs. Shippo plowed through them like they were 1st grade math problems. So after ward, he merely employed himself under a false I.D. So he scoured the web for various leads for various people, for a price. But it was worth every penny.

Inuyasha stood up and stretched, his fangs showing, before digging a flashlight out of his backpack. He looked over his shoulder as he turned the contraption on.

" I'm going to explore the cave."

Sango stood beside him and picked up her rifle, and she nodded towards him.

" I'll go with you and Miroku can make dinner."

"HEY!"

They both glared at him and he snapped his mouth shut. With a sigh, the man slowly made his way to the supply packs and started to boil some water over the fire.

"Ramen Inuyasha?"

"Yeah. C'mon Sango."

"Hai."

And the pair left, diving deeper into the icy dark depths of their shelter, leaving an annoyed Miroku behind.

Sango and Inuyasha split at a fork in the cave, Sango made her way through the corridor, watching her breath crystallize in front of her as she ducked under icicles that hung above her head. She hummed song underneath her breath as a way to combat the eerie silence that hung about her like the stench of death.

Wait…it was the aura of death.

But, it had the undertones of life with it. Sango shivered and viciously rubbed her free hand against her arm, pressuring her blood to continue flowing as she delved deeper into the corridor. When she stopped, and gaped in shock at what lie in the dead end.

"INUYASHAAAA!"

Inuyasha's ears twitched underneath his cap as he spun around. That was Sango's voice! He snarled and ran full speed toward the echoes of her urgent yell.

'Dammit Sango…why can't I hear your rifle? Why aren't you shooting instead of screaming for me?'

He dove back to the fork in the cave where they first parted ways and stopped, with a sniff of the air, he growled.

Death.

It hung in the air like a thick layer of smoke. With a curse, he ran headfirst into where he smelled Sango's scent, his fists clenched, preparing to fight.

"SANGO!" He cried out as he saw her form come into view.

'If you're dead…Miroku's going to kill me!'

He gasped as he came to a skidding halt beside Sango's fallen body. The hanyou pressed his fingers onto her wrist, feeling for a pulse. He sighed with relief.

Good, she was alive…But the death wasn't coming from her…so…

He sniffed as he turned, his gold eyes glowing darkly in contrast to the ice.

Life…he smelled life now. And it overpowered the stench of death…what in the seven hells…

Inuyasha fell backward with a gasp as his eyes laid on the form of a girl beneath a thick sheet of ice.

And the ice was cracking…

"INUYASHAAAA!"

Inuyasha-Kun? I haven't heard you name in so long…nay, I haven't heard or felt anything in what seems like an eternity.

Inuyasha-Kun…

Why did you betray me?

Why did you seal me? Did you hope to get the Shikon Jewel once you did? But you told me you loved me, and that you would always stay with me. And protect me…

You JERK!

I feel tears fill my eyes and I choked as I feel my heart beat. Nani?

"INUYASHAAA!" The name echoes again, blaring through my consciousness.

My eyes clear and I gasp as I see him. His long flowing silver hair and a strange piece of cloth covering his ears, but his eyes are the same. The same beautiful amber gold that snared my heart and soul the first moment I laid eyes on him. But his eyes are in shock, as are mine.

I am supposed to be sealed forever. Apparently both our expectations were not fulfilled. He is not full demon like he told me he wished to be before he sealed me with his spell.

My eyes widen as I see the ice around me started to crack, and the breath of fresh cold air hit my pale skin.

The seal is breaking!

Inuyasha stared, as the cracks became more numerous. And suddenly, the entire sheet exploded.

He shielded his eyes as the flash surrounded the area around him. Slowly, he opened them and stared in shock.

He felt anger and hurt towards this girl, but why? He'd never met her before in his life!

Slowly, she got to her feet and opened her eyes, they were a stormy color, a mixture of blue and gray, he found himself drawn to them at once. The girl had long wavy black locks that contrasted the white of her blouse and the blood red of her hakama pants. Priestess clothes, a bow and quiver was slung over her right shoulder. As her eyes scoured the area around her, she laid her eyes on him.

Her eyes held sadness, regret, and anger.

" You JERK!" She rasped her voice scratchy from lack of use.

"Nani?"

"JERK!"

" What the he-" He couldn't finish as an arrow flew past his head, glowing with a purifying light.

"Miko!" He whispered his eyes in shock.

" You said that we would be together. You promised that you loved me. And what do you do? You SEAL me!"

"Sealed y-" Again the hanyou was cut off as another arrow whizzed past his face, managing to cut a few strands of his hair.

Growling, he quickly picked up Sango's fainted body and leapt out of the way as an arrow flew past his torso.

"STAY STILL!" The girl cried in agitation. " AND LET SANGO-SAN GO YOU FILTHY HALF BREED!"

Inuyasha winced as he heard those words. How often had he been called that as a child?

But how did she know Sango?

"Kuso!" He ducked out of the way, but was off and cried out in agony as the arrow managed to dig into his shoulder. With a rasp, he fell to his knees, letting Sango's body fall to the frozen floor. With a wince, he grasped his shoulder, his hand shying away from the fading pink glow of the arrow shaft and grasping his wound. The smell of blood grew thick in the air as the smell of the liquid bashed his senses. The fluid seeped through his fingers and stained his claws. With a grunt of exertion, he managed to put himself into a standing position.

"Why are you attacking me?" He rasped out as he felt the cold slowly freezing the blood staining his clothing.

"Why? Why? WHY? You have the nerve to ask me? When you betrayed me? The only man I ever loved?" The teenager yelled at him, before she gasped. A searing pain shot through her right shoulder and she whimpered and fell to her knees.

" Itai…" She let the quiver fall to the floor and grasped her shoulder. Claw marks…his wound that he gave to weaken her body.

" Inuyasha…Why did you break my heart?" The girl whispered as a lone tear managed to escape her long lashes. With a shudder, her skin paled and she fell to the floor in a dead faint. The dark blood pooling around her upper torso and staining the white of her blouse.

Inuyasha stared confusedly at the girl before turning behind him, hearing footsteps. He turned, wincing as the arrowhead managed to dig deeper into his skin.

Miroku gasped at the scene before him.

"Miroku…" Inuyasha managed to spit out, before falling flat on his face from the loss of blood.

"INUYASHA!"