Enter the Wolf's Den

By: wolf demoness

Disclaimer and Warnings: I own nothing but a blue spiral notebook and some neon orange pencils. Any resemblance to actual characters of the Inuyasha anime is purely intentional, but as I've said I own nothing but a notebook and some pencils, don’t bother suing there's nothing to get. This fic is rated for language, violence, and suggestive situations.

Legend:

'……' thoughts

"……" speech

Chapter One: A Normal Morning in the Feudal Era

It started out as your average day in the feudal era, and by that I mean that even though it was early yet the sky was bright and clear without the faintest trace of the smog and pollution that plague the sprawling cities of modern times. There were song birds singing in the morning air, dew clinging to the individual blades of grass that covered expansive green fields, trees were gently swaying in the breeze, and Kagome and Inuyasha were in the middle of an argument. You see Kagome wanted to go back home to attend a school dance with some school friends, perhaps even run into Houjo, if she's lucky. She had it all planned out. She'd woken up early, packed her bags, and quietly crept out of Kaede's hut to the Bone Eaters Well without waking any of the others. She hadn't seen Inuyasha, but he hadn't stopped her from leaving the village so chances were that he hadn't seen her leave. She'd just scamper off back home, go to the dance, and be back in a couple days. She just had to make it to the well without a certain someone finding out, not that he could stop her, she just didn't want to fight with him this early in the morning. Everything was going perfectly and there was no sight of a certain silver haired hanyou that is until…"Where do you think you're going?"

"Darn it," Kagome whispered under her breath as she swung her leg back over the top of the well. "Um, hi Inuyasha. Well, I was just going to…you see the thing is that I was just going to…"

"Going to run off to your own time, without telling anyone, just when we could actually use you for once," Inuyasha crossed his arms and glared at the errant girl.

"Inuyasha, I'm only going to be gone for one day, two at the most. It's not a big deal."

"Not a big deal!" The enraged half demon shouted. "Where were you last night when we decided to head out at dawn to start collecting the shards? Funny thing, I thought you were right there in the room with the rest of us."

"Well, yes. But this is important! I have to go and you're not gonna stop me." Kagome swung her legs back into the well, but before she could push herself off the edge into the cleverly disguised time portal, a clawed hand grasped her arm and pulled her back over the well edge.

"And what is more important that collecting the jewel shards?"

Kagome balanced herself on the edge of the well and pushed Inuyasha's hand off of her. "My friends and I are going to the homecoming dance at my school all right!?"

"A dance? You think a dance is more important than stopping Naraku from gaining jewel shards. Which he wouldn't be able to do if you hadn't broken the jewel in the first place!"

"The dance isn't the important part," Kagome said. Inuyasha just looked down at her disapprovingly. Kagome sighed and began to explain it to him very slowly so that he'd understand and let her go; she was not in the mood for this. It was way too early to be dealing with a pouty Inuyasha, in her opinion. "I promised my friends that I'd go with them."

"Feh." Inuyasha scoffed and turned his head to the side, his ears going flat against his head in irritation.

"I promised them Inuyasha! I can't go back on my word!"

"What about us? You promised us that you'd hunt shards with us! Your word to us isn't as good as your word to them?!"

"Don't be ridiculous! I'll go shard hunting with you after I go to the dance with my friends!" With that she turned and made to jump back into the well.

"Oh no you will not!" Inuyasha grabbed her arm again and began to haul her out of the well. "You're staying right here!"

"Let go of me! I'm going to see my friends and that's final." She whirled around to face him, "Besides what would you know about it? I doubt you've ever had a friend in your whole life!"

Inuyasha reflexively loosened his grasp on Kagome's arm, "Wh…what?" he whispered.

"You heard me! You're rude, you're arrogant, you're uneducated, and you never think of anyone but yourself! It's no wonder no one can stand to be around you!" she screeched.

Inuyasha's eyes widened as he listened to her speech. He staggered back as if he'd received a physical blow, letting go of Kagome's arm in the process. The moment Inuyasha released her from his grasp Kagome jumped into the well and left the confused hanyou alone with his thoughts. Inuyasha settled at the edge of the well and stared at the unfriendly opening that had swallowed the agitated human girl. "But Kagome…I thought that you were my friend," he whispered.

******

Daybreak woke the hanyou from his reverie at the well side. Turning to view the approaching sun Inuyasha saw three figures approaching him in the distance. Miroku, the promiscuous monk, raised an arm in greeting. His robes fanning out to look like a purple flag blown by the wind, appearing almost black in the early morning light. "Inuyasha!" the woman at his side called out to him. He didn’t reply. He just waited for the trio to draw near him.

The monk was the first to notice that something was wrong and taking into consideration the dejected hanyou's position by the well it wasn't too hard to figure out what had happened. "Has Lady Kagome returned to her era, Inuyasha?"

"Yes."

"She must have had something important to do," Sango said.

"Yes, she would not leave us unless she had a pressing matter at home," Miroku agreed.

"Thee all right Inuyasha?" the aged priestess asked.

"Yes, Lady. I am fine," Inuyasha replied.

The priestess eyes widened at the honorific passing the lips of the half demon. Over her shoulders the demon slayer and the monk shared significant glances. "Are ye certain?" Kaede tried again.

Inuyasha looked up giving the Lady a weak smile. He nodded and said, "She did have something important to do. She had a promise to keep to some friends."

"Weren't we supposed to set out today? Why did she say nothing?" Sango asked the others.

"She forgot. She wanted me to apologize for her, but it was something very important that she needed to do. She'll be back in a couple days." Inuyasha dropped his gaze back to the ground.

"Such a good girl," Kaede said smiling up at the others. "So thoughtful of others. It's important that one keeps their word."

"Yes," the silver haired demon agreed under his breath.

Miroku sighed loudly. "Inuyasha did you quarrel with Kagome before she left? Is that why you're acting so downtrodden?"

Inuyasha's head snapped up allowing him to make eye contact with the holy monk. "I…Yes, we did argue, but…"

"Really, Inuyasha, Kagome has a life outside of us! She should be allowed to see her friends and family without you harassing her all the time." Sango interrupted in exasperation. Inuyasha dropped his gaze back to the ground and said nothing. "We'll never get through to him, I fear. He's far too stubborn." Had Inuyasha looked up at this moment he would have seen the teasing looks on his friends faces, however he was too upset and hurt to hear the jesting tones in their voices and so he took their words at face value.

Miroku, picking up on Sango's jest agreed, "Sadly I believe that you are right, fair Lady. Let us retire to yon village and await the Lady Kagome's arrival." At this the monk moved to the demon slayer's side. For which he received a slap in the face, which was applied with excessive force, in his opinion.

"Keep you hands to yourself Miroku!" Sango said and began the trek back to the village.

"But fair Lady can you truly blame me? For, how can a mere mortal such as myself resist a beauty such as yours?" He followed her pleading with Sango for "...but a gentle caress of your hand, a sisterly embrace…"all the way back to the village.

At length the Lady Kaede stood and patted the half demon on the head before leaving him at the well side alone with his thoughts.

******

'She can't stand to be around me,' Inuyasha thought. 'I thought she considered me a friend. I thought she might even care for me.' The half demon buried his face in his drawn up knees. "I'm such a fool," he moaned.

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Chapter Two: Back From the Dance

"Hey Kagome, don't you want to dance?" one of the girls Kagome paled around with at school asked her.

"Oh, yeah I do. It's just," Kagome sighed deeply, "I guess I'm just not in the mood."

"Not in the mood!" another of the girls exclaimed, sitting down at the same table as Kagome and the others. They were all in prom wear, hair finely coifed, just enough make-up to make a statement, but not enough to appear slutty or loose. In other words they were the epitome of youthful female beauty.

"Yeah, Kagome, what's up with you? You've been out of it all night. It's not your back again, is it?"

"My back?" Kagome asked confused. "Oh, yeah! My back! Oh, no it's not that. My back is fine."

"Is it the Gout then?"

"Yeah, shouldn't you be wearing orthopedic shoes?"

"No!" Kagome shouted, causing several people in the room to turn and look. Kagome laughed nervously and waved at the crowd, which soon grew disinterested and turned back to the dance floor. "I'm fine, really I am. I've been feeling much better lately."

"Ohhh, I get it. It's that guy again isn't it?" Kagome began to blush. "I knew it!"

"You need to get over him, Kagome."

"Yeah, he's bad news."

"Why don't you go dance with Houjo, Kagome?"

"Yeah," she sighed, "I will it's just that I guess I feel bad. I had a fight with Inuyasha before I left and I said some things that I probably shouldn't have."

"What were you fighting about?"

"Oh, it was so stupid. I was leaving for the dance and he told me that I couldn't go and I…"

"He what?!" one of the girls at the table shrieked.

"Who does he think he is?"

"Yeah, how dare he try to tell you what you can and can't do."

"But you guys," Kagome interrupted, "I think I might have really crossed a line."

"Whatever, you're better off without him."

"Yeah, Kagome. We're gonna get you out on the dance floor and you're gonna forget all about what's-his-name. Where's Houjo?" Kagome's friends wrestled her out onto the dance floor and into the arms of the school's most popular boy. And after a few dances she did begin to feel better. Houjo was sweet and kind, asking her if she needed to rest and promising to bring more remedies by her house to help her get well. He brought her punch and even offered to walk her home at the end of the night. All in all it was a magical evening. And after those few brief moments she didn't think of the silver haired half-demon for the rest of the night.

******

Kagome opened the door to her house and walked into the living room after saying goodnight to Houjo. She was happy and worn out from dancing, but it was a good kind of tiredness, the kind that comes from having fun all night with great friends and good people. "Kagome is that you?" Her mother called from her place in the living room.

"Yes, Mom." Kagome flopped down on the couch a big smile on her face.

"How was the dance dear?"

"Oh, it was great! I had a terrific time."

"That's good, dear." Kagome's mother smiled down at her. "Are you staying the night or will you go off with your friends again tonight." "Off with your friends," was code for down the well to the feudal era. Kagome's mother was just a little uncomfortable with her baby girl time traveling down a musty old well to fight demons in the past. But what's a mother to do when her daughter's so set on doing what she will? She just tried to smile and act as if everything was normal; not worrying her daughter with the suspicions from the community and from the school that were impinging upon the family because of Kagome's absences. As long as her daughter was happy and safe she was happy. And from what Kagome had told her and what she'd seen with her own eyes that boy, Inuyasha, was an able and diligent protector.

"I think I'll stay the night, maybe tomorrow too. No one expects me back for a few days, so I can stay here."

"Wonderful, we'll go shopping tomorrow. You could use some new clothes and I'm sure your friends would like some new medicines to refill your first aid kit."

Kagome got up from the couch and hugged her mother; "You're the best, Mom." She stood and stretched her back. "Ohh, I'm going to bed. Goodnight mom."

"Goodnight dear."

******

On the third day after she'd left Kagome returned to the feudal era. Fully expecting to see a glaring hanyou when she clambered over the well's edge, Kagome was surprised to find herself alone. There was no sight of Inuyasha or the others. Gathering her things, Kagome started toward the village. As she approached she heard a shout, "Kagome!" and a small Kitsune jumped into her arms causing her to drop several bags of food and bandages.

"Shippo!" she cuddles the small fox demon to her chest.

"Kagome, I missed you. Why did you have to go?" The little fox looked up at her wagging his fluffy brown tail.

"I promised some friends I go to a dance at my school with them," Kagome said patting Shippo's head. "Didn't Inuyasha tell you?"

"No, he just said you had something important to do and left." Shippo jumped down from Kagome's arms and walked with her toward Kaede's hut.

"He left?" Kagome asked. "You haven't seen him at all?" The little fox shook his head and Kagome began to worry that maybe she had hurt Inuyasha's feelings after all.

As the two approached the hut greetings rang out to the girl from Miroku and Sango. Quickly they ran up to relieve her of her burdens and ask about her time spent in her era. Sango was very excited to hear Kagome describe a dance in the future. She even managed to get Kagome to draw a picture of the dress she wore to the function on some parchment Kaede gave to them. The two girls fell deep into conversation about the school's dance after having chased an over stimulated Miroku away, who had listened in when Kagome had described the clothing she and her friends wore to the event. Apparently the thought of "spaghetti straps" and mid-thigh length dresses was too much for the young monk.

Kaede, Kagome, Miroku, Sango, and Shippo were all gathering around for the evening meal when Inuyasha walked into the hut. The hanyou looked different. His defiant posture was gone; he didn't exude anger, or seem ready to smite anything unfortunate enough to be caught in his path. His entire demeanor was subdued and he was quiet. He didn't say anything to Kagome when he saw her, no remarks about her absence or the reason she left. "Will thee join us, Inuyasha?" Kaede asked.

"Thank you," the hanyou said and took the proffered bowl.

"Inuyasha?" Kagome asked. Amber eyes looked up to meet the young girl's brown. Kagome blushed and looked down, "…uh, never mind." They all went back to eating the meal the priestess had prepared. When they finished Inuyasha helped Kaede clean up after them, much to the shock of the gathered humans. The priestess herself was only mildly surprised. The others simply did not understand the young demon as she did. There was a bond between the young demon lord and the old woman that the assembled others neither sensed nor understood. When the two finished the dishes Inuyasha left to retire back into the forest where he passed the night doing whatever it is half demons do in the long hours before the morning light.

"Inuyasha?" Kagome called out behind him when they were outside the hut.

"Kagome." Inuyasha turned to face the young girl.

"I wanted to apologize," she said as she came to stand in front of the half demon. "I shouldn't have said those things to you."

"It's okay, Kagome."

"No, it's not. I shouldn't have done that," she persisted. She dropped her gaze to the ground in shame only looking up when Inuyasha gave her a warm embrace. "I'm sorry. Please, forgive me."

"You're forgiven." The hanyou replied. 'Besides it's nothing I haven't heard before, nothing that I didn't need to hear. I almost forgot,' he thought. Pulling back slightly the demon looked at the dejected human girl. "On one condition." The human girl met the demon's gaze. "Just don't start crying on me, okay? You know I hate that." He smiled down at her, white fangs glittering in the moonlight. The girl laughed and dived deeper into the demon's embrace.

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Chapter Three: "That he is gentil that dooth gentil dedis" Ibid. l. 1113

In the months that followed the companions saw a great change in the half demon. Inuyasha no longer made snide remarks at the humans he was forced to deal with. He never spoke anymore of gaining the jewel to become a full demon or of increasing his own demonic powers. He no longer fought with the group when they decided to help a village under threat of demons, whether or not a jewel shard was gained in the effort. In fact on days that they designated for rest he would wander off into the forest and return only after night had fallen. No one knew what he would do on these outings until one morning he asked the company to wait half a day before setting out so that he could help the local villagers finish building a damn across the river. Well, naturally no one believed the hanyou when he said he wanted to delay the search for the Shikon no Tama's shards in order to help some humans. However, when they followed him into the village they were startled, shocked even, to see the village men greet the half demon warmly.

But perhaps the most startling change that occurred in the half demon was that he never once fought with Kagome when she stated that she needed to go back to her home. Without the demon's griping Kagome returned to her home more and more frequently. At one point she even asked Inuyasha if she could go home for a month in order to catch up on the assignments that she was behind on. Thought the half demon had been unusually mellow lately the others all expected him to begin screaming at Kagome for making such a ludicrous request. Inuyasha just looked at her and said, "If you really need to go Kagome, and if it's alright with the others, it's alright with me." Everyone was so shocked at Inuyasha's easy agreement that they agreed and Kagome was gone before they even realized what they'd done. Without the Miko they couldn't hunt the shards themselves and with a month lost and winter fast approaching they would have little time to gather any shards before incoming snow began to hamper their movements. That and the threat of Naraku was looming even larger in the minds of the small group of shard hunters.

******

One day, during Kagome's month long absence from the feudal era, the monk Miroku came upon the hanyou working in the fields around Kaede's village with a handful of men. "Inuyasha what are you doing?"

"Digging a hole. What does it look like?" the hanyou teased with a smile.

"Apparently. Why are you digging a hole?"

"Well it's more like a trench really," the demon said as he stepped up out of the trench to stand beside the monk and rest leaning against his shovel. "You see that river over there on the edge of the forest?"

"Yes."

"We're going to divert water from the river into the fields."

The river in question was rather far away and downhill of the fields. "Inuyasha that's not going to work. The only way you could get that river to flow into this ditch is if the water was moving much faster than it is."

"No problem. There are several smaller streams, which don't lead to any other villages, in the forest that we can damn to divert water into the river. That way there will be enough water moving in the river to get it moving into this trench." The demon tapped the upturned mud with his shovel. "So we'll be able to salvage the crop and we won't deprive anyone else of water for their crops."

"That's a huge task, Inuyasha, and the harvest is in a few weeks. How are you going to accomplish this?"

"Well I've already got the frame work up for the damns and we've only got a few more feet to lengthen this ditch before we hit the river. If we get the trench close to the river today, I can probably get the damns finished in a couple days and then we can finish the trench. Hopefully by then the fields won't have dried and the crop won't be spoiled." The monk stared at the hanyou for a few minutes, astounded. He was called back to himself by the silver haired demon. "Hey, Miroku! Are you all right? You kind of spaced out there for a minute."

The dark haired man gathered himself and said, "Yes. I just have one more question to ask."

"What is it?"

"Do you need any help?"

The hanyou smiled, "Grab a shovel."

******

The irrigation ditch that Inuyasha engineered was a great success. It diverted enough water into the rice patties to stop the drought, which had threatened to destroy the village's crops and plunge the humans that lived there into a period of famine. Less than a week after the ditch's completion misfortune struck the village again. A storm of great ferocity swept through the village. Houses were blown down and several villagers lost their lives when their houses collapsed on top of them. Before the winds had even died down, Inuyasha could be seen pulling bodies from fallen houses and rushing them to Kaede's hut for medical treatment. With his acute hearing the demon could direct the men of the village to the collapsed houses under which human hearts still beat. By the time the storm had passed there wasn't a person in the village that did not owe the life of some family member to the half demon. After that the hanyou devoted his time exclusively to rebuilding the houses of the villagers.

When the villagers tried to bring him gifts in payment he politely declined mostly asking them what a demon needed with a horse or house of his own. He was content to help them and wanted nothing in return. Not content with his refusal of gifts the people turned their good will on the priestess Kaede who, it was known in the village, was a great friend of the hanyou's. The old woman wanted for nothing. At first she was greatly flustered with the gifts showered on her and her temple, but when she came to realize the village was seeking a way to thank the hanyou for his good deeds she accepted it with all the grace and duty her station afforded her.

For his willingness to help without compensation and his great contributions to the village the villagers became enamoured of Inuyasha. He swiftly became a vital asset to the community and a source of great pride. Truthfully, how many villages can boast so kind a demon protector?

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Chapter Four: The Little Girl in the Forest

One day as Inuyasha was walking back from a bath in the river outside the village boundary, after having helped the village men clear the clogged irrigation ditches leading to the rice patties, he heard a small girl talking to herself in the forest. Drawing closer he realized that she was reading to herself from one of the tablets that Lady Kaede gave the children to practice their letters. Curious as to what the girl was reading and why she had come so far into the forest he quietly approached her. She jumped when he deliberately stepped into her line of sight, "Sorry. I didn't mean to startle you," he said gently and sat down a few feet away from the girl. She had long straight black hair and was wearing a light pink kimono. As he sat down she regarded him with serious deep chocolate brown eyes. "What are you doing so far out in the forest? It's not safe out here."

"Reading," she said.

Inuyasha smiled and said, "You shouldn't read so far away from the village. There are demons in this forest you know." The little girl looked down at her hands folded in her lap. The silver haired demon sighed and tried a different tactic with the young girl. "What are you reading?" She held out her tablet for him to take which he dutifully studied before giving it back to the girl. "What does it say?"

"You can't read?" she asked timidly.

"No. Can you?"

"A little," she blushed.

"What does it say?" he asked again.

She smiled up at him. "It's a story about a mama and a papa rabbit and their babies. Do you want me to read it to you?" she asked excitedly.

Inuyasha smiled, "Would you, please?"

"Okay," she straightened her back settling herself importantly on the tree root she was using as a stool and laboriously began to relate the story to the amused hanyou. After a few minutes she began to stumble over her words and eventually stopped in mid sentence.

Inuyasha moved closer and peered over her shoulder to where her little finger was hovering on the page. "Don't you know what that word is?" Inuyasha inquired gently. The little girl hung her head and her eyes started to mist. "Hey, don't cry. It's okay," the hanyou tried to console the sobbing little girl. He really hated to see girls cry. He never knew what to do to make them stop. "I know," Inuyasha tried, coming up with a spur of the moment idea that he hoped would work, "why don't you ask Kaede? She's really smart, she'll know."

"No."

Inuyasha cocked his head to the side curiously, "Why not?"

"She's scary."

"Scarier than me?" Inuyasha said settling down on all fours in front of the little girl.

"Mmmhhh," the little girl sniffled.

"How about if we both go ask her what the word is? Would that be okay?"

The little girl thought about it for a moment then nodded her head, "Okay." Inuyasha smiled and stood up offering his hand for the little girl to take. "You'll go with me?" she asked timidly taking his hand.

"I'll even ask if you want me to." The small child gave a happy smile and nodded her head. The two started walking away from the forest toward Kaede's hut. "What's your name?" Inuyasha asked her once they were safely in the village proper.

"Yuki," the small child replied.

"Yuki, that's a pretty name." The child blushed and looked at the ground.

The silver haired demon and the child walked down the dirt road for a few moments before Inuyasha felt a small tug on the leg of his pants. He looked down at the child who smiled up at him and said, "My mommy says you’re a hero."

Inuyasha looked at the small girl puzzled. One of his ears perked up and swiveled forward on his head while the other flattened against the side of his head, making the child laugh. "Why does your mommy say that, Yuki?"

"'Cause!" she said as if it were the most obvious thing in the world and she couldn't believe that he didn't know already. "You dug that big ditch that lets all the water in and daddy says that it saved the harvest, and mommy says that you protected us from the monster that came out of the forest, and you helped build up the houses when the storm came and knocked them down!" Inuyasha looked at the young girl dumbfounded. She sighed at him and stopped in her tracks, throwing her arms around his legs, "You're my hero."

Inuyasha knelt down next to the little girl and returned the embrace feeling his cheeks heat up in embarrassment as several of the villagers stopped to "awwww" at the sight of the little girl and the hanyou. When she pulled back Inuyasha asked her, "That's silly, Yuki. You don't really think I'm a hero, do you?" The small child nodded her head so vigorously that strands of her long black hair went flying up all about her face. Inuyasha laughed at her antics and stood to continue the trip, her small hand firmly ensconced in his larger, clawed hand.

******

"Lady Kaede!" Inuyasha called as the two stepped into the doorway of the priestess' home. "Lady?"

"Here, Inuyasha," the old woman called from the inner room. Inuyasha motioned for the child to go before him into the room as he held up the door screen, but she shook her head and hid behind his legs. Smiling gently Inuyasha went into the room before her. Kaede was sitting in front of the stove tending the fire. As they approached she turned the logs with a long metal pole ensuring that the fire burned hot in the stove's center to evenly cook the stew that she'd begun for the evening meal. "What have ye come to see me about, Inuyasha?"

Inuyasha smiled at the little girl hiding behind him and gestured for her to give him the parchment she'd been reading from. She detached herself from his legs long enough to hand the paper over then retreated to her safe haven behind the demon. "Well, Lady, Yuki and I were reading this story, but we weren't sure what this word meant. Could you tell us please?" Kaede knew that Inuyasha couldn't read or write a word in Japanese, but she rightly guessed that Inuyasha was trying to help the shy child ask for help and went along with the ploy. Kaede held out her hand to receive the paper from the demon. "It's this one right here," Inuyasha pointed out helpfully.

"Hmmm, I see. Well I'm not surprised that you had difficulty here. This is a very hard symbol to decipher." The priestess glanced up in time to see the child perk up a little, glad that she wasn't asking an obvious question and that the Lady wasn't angry with her.

"But what does it mean, Kaede?" Inuyasha prompted.

"This," the priestess held the parchment out for the demon and the child to see, "is the symbol for 'tree.'"

"Oh, so that's what it means!" Inuyasha exclaimed. "You were right, Yuki," he said winking at the child. "Yuki said that that meant 'tree,' but I thought it was something different." Inuyasha said turning to the priestess who smiled at the demon's kindness to spare the human child's feelings by telling such an obvious falsehood. "Thank you for your help, Lady." Inuyasha rose and began to lead Yuki out of the hut.

"Inuyasha, might I speak with ye?"

The hanyou turned, surprised at the request, "Of course, Lady." He knelt down beside the small girl, "You better get home Yuki, it's going to start getting dark soon. Thank you for reading me that story, maybe we can finish it another day?"

"Okay," the small child nodded her head and sped off home to tell her parents of her wonderful adventure with the village's resident hanyou. News travels fast in such a small village and by this time tomorrow the unmarried women of the village would have yet another reason to sigh as he walked by, other than his youthful good looks and kind heart. The next day as he passed young women would lift their hands to their mouths and whisper in their friend's ears how gentle and caring he was with children. They would say to each other; "Did you hear how kindly he treated Yuki…Oh, I wish I could find a man to marry who is so good with children…Isn't he handsome…Do you think that he's courting anyone?" Kaede could conceive of what would be said so well amongst the available women that she imagined she could almost hear the besotted chatter as the half demon walked over to stand before her.

"Inuyasha," the priestess began. "I see ye have taken to the village children."

"She was crying in the woods. She was too scared to ask by herself, so I told her I'd ask for her."

"That was very kind of you. Ye have a good heart lad," the priestess truly was proud of the hanyou; he'd come such a long way in the last few months. He was almost like a different person, so gentle and kind. He was considerate of others, brave, and giving of himself. His good nature had made him the darling of the village, but either he was unaware of his instant stardom or he refused to acknowledge it. Either way Kaede's opinion of the hanyou was constantly rising.

"Lady Kaede?" the hanyou asked.

"Yes, Inuyasha?"

The half demon looked down to the ground and scuffed his heel on the polished boards of Keade's floor abashedly; "Do you still teach the children how to read in the mornings between the morning and midday meals?"

"Yes."

"Do you think…" he started feeling extremely awkward to even ask, "I mean, would it be alright if I came to the lessons tomorrow?"

"Ye wish to learn to read?" This really surprised the old woman. To her knowledge Inuyasha had about as much use for writing and reading as he had for a bed to sleep in, preferring to take his rest in the limbs of the trees surrounding the village.

"Yes, and to write if it wouldn't be a bother to you."

"Hmm," Kaede went back to turning the logs in her stove with the metal poker. "Tell me Inuyasha, do ye still go hunting with the village men in the mornings?"

"Yes Lady. But we're not going tomorrow!" he tried to reassure her. "I brought down enough today to sustain the village for today and tomorrow so I thought…"

"I cannot teach ye to read if ye can only attend a handful of lessons in weeks Inuyasha." Kaede interrupted.

"Oh," Inuyasha said disappointed, his ears drooping slightly. "I understand. Thank you, Lady. I'm sorry to bother you." The hanyou stood and began to draw aside the door hanging to depart when the priestess called out to him.

"Inuyasha, I did not say that I couldn't teach ye to read. Merely, I said that I could not teach ye to read in the mornings if ye can not regularly attend the lessons. I find myself with little to do in the hour after the day's final meal. Are thee likewise unoccupied, Inuyasha?"

"Yes, Lady." He let the door-hanging fall back and went to crouch in front of the white haired woman.

"You usually take the evening meal with me anyway. Why not stay awhile after that and we can begin your instruction."

The hanyou smiled wide and embraced the old woman in a fierce hug. "Thank you, Lady. I won't be late. I promise." With that the half demon raced out of the hut to go help the village men finish the days labor.

******

That very night Kaede began to instruct Inuyasha in the alphabet. It was very slow going and for the life of her Kaede couldn't figure out why. Inuyasha was by no means stupid, he had a swift mind, but for some reason he just could not decipher the symbols of the alphabet when they were combined into any sort of simple sentence. It was the most puzzling thing. Inuyasha had learned to recognize the symbols of the alphabet, written on the first page Kaede had given him, in a single night. But, after three weeks of trying to identify the letters of the simple story on the second page with no progress, both the student and the teacher were becoming frustrated.

It was a simple exercise he was supposed to do. The children picked it up in no time at all. All that was required was for him to identify the letters on the page, not try to string them into any sort of sentence or read the passage. "Inuyasha, here try this," the priestess said one night. She brought out a page with the alphabet written on it and pointed to a single symbol. "Find on this page," she pointed to the story he was working on, "this symbol." Inuyasha looked at the symbol and then at the page in front of him. He studied the page for several minutes then sighed loudly and put the page down.

"Here, Inuyasha. See. These two are the same," the old woman pointed out to him. The half demon looked at the two symbols and crinkled his brow.

"Kaede, I think you're wrong."

The old priestess gave a dry chuckle and set about explaining to him why the two were one in the same. "See they both curve up this way and see the line that runs up then down through the center of each."

"But what about this line? And this symbol slants toward the right while this one stands straight up, and look at all the dots around this one. How can they be the same symbol?" the confused hanyou asked.

At that moment the priestess started to laugh. Inuyasha looked up surprised than turned his head back down to the floor and began to blush. "I think we now know what causes ye so much difficulty in this, Inuyasha."

"I don't understand, Lady," the hanyou said in exasperation.

"Ye see much better than a normal human, do ye not?" Inuyasha nodded his agreement. "And to ye all the symbols on this page appear greatly different to one another?"

"Yes."

"Inuyasha. A human hand wrote each of these words and therefore each will appear slightly different. The dots and lines that you pointed out on this symbol were in fact unintentionally made by the artist that rendered this page. Do ye see? The problem ye have with reading this page is that as a demon ye see every detail that to human eyes are invisible."

"You're saying I see too well to read the page?" the hanyou queried his ears flattening against the sides of his head in frustration.

"Not at all. Ye can read the page, just look for vague similarities between the characters and not the exact matches ye have been searching out thus far."

Inuyasha sighed, "If you say so, Lady."

It took time, but once Inuyasha learned to identify which marks were not part of the symbol he was looking for and which were Inuyasha began to excel in his studies. Very soon Kaede was running out of texts to give the hanyou. He read everything she could offer and quite often Keade would see one of the village children run up to the demon and ask his help with a lesson in which they were struggling. It was all very sweet and it did the priestess good to see the villagers accept the hanyou into their hearts.

There was however one problem with teaching the attractive young demon to read. The women of the village began to ask him to write letters for them to their family members in other parts of the country. Harmless enough, in and of itself, Kaede had no reason to be concerned until one of the village's more promiscuous girls tried to drag the hanyou into her hut under the pretense of wanting a letter written. Inuyasha, of course, was totally unaware of the girl's motives and the priestess was glad that she'd seen what was happening before the girl could get the youth into her clutches alone. After that Kaede used her influence in the village to impose the rule that if one wanted Inuyasha to write a letter for them they must come to her hut. Her position as the village high priestess would keep the girls in line even if she were not herself present, though she always tried to be.

There were many things that puzzled Kaede about the half demon one of which was that no matter how hard the girls in the village tried to get his attention he utterly ignored them. That's not to say that he snubbed them. He was in fact very polite; he simply did not encourage or acknowledge their advances. At first the priestess thought he acted this way out of his love and devotion to Kagome. However, as time passed, she began to see that a change had taken place in their relationship. Inuyasha treated Kagome with the same polite attitude of rebuff that he displayed toward the village girls.

One day in the village square Kaede witnessed a scene between the hanyou and Miroku. The two were rebuilding a home in the village center that an autumn storm had destroyed when she was passing. This early into the fall the sun was still strong and beat down on the heads of the workers. Inuyasha and Miroku had taken their shirts off to combat the sun's raging heat as they worked. Across the way a group of girls were quietly talking and pointing out their admiration for the hanyou's physique. When Inuyasha turned towards them they averted their eyes and began to giggle before scattering. Inuyasha turned to his companion, "Miroku what are they giggling about?"

The monk gave a wicked smile and replied, "I believe the young ladies were admiring the view, Inuyasha."

"The view?" Inuyasha looked around. "But there's nothing here, but blown over houses."

"Ah yes, so there are!" Miroku said sounding as if he had just realized that same extraordinary thing. "But I don't believe that those exquisite creatures were here to sightsee, Inuyasha. I believe they were 'dog-watching,' so to speak." the monk quirked his eyebrow in a teasing manner that the hanyou completely missed.

Inuyasha's ears flattened against his head in irritation, "Miroku, I asked you a serious question!"

"And I gave you a serious answer!" the monk defended himself.

"Fine. Don't tell me." With that Inuyasha leapt to the rooftop to finish attaching the roofing on the house they were reconstructing. Miroku watched his companion go then caught the eye of the Lady priestess. Giving her a bewildered look he turned back to the task at hand.

It seemed as if Inuyasha was completely unable to fathom that another person might have a romantic interest in him. His recent actions made Kaede wonder what had happened between Kagome and Inuyasha at the well side those months ago, for that's when all this strange behavior began. At first it was so wonderful to see the hanyou acting politely and helping the villagers, but now Kaede began to wonder what had caused the change in the silver haired demon and if she wouldn't rather have the old Inuyasha back. It almost seemed as if, surrounded by people though he was, the half demon had never been more alone in all the time Kaede had known him.

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Chapter Five: The Avalanche

By the time the first winter storms came there were enough rebuilt houses in the village that every person had adequate shelter, though some families had to double up for the winter in a single home. Inuyasha, unable to work on the houses while the snow flew, had taken to wandering the forest in his free time. There wasn't much to do in the village and the silver haired demon was restless. There were some demons roving close to the village now that the humans did not range far afield. At first Inuyasha chased them all away, but as time wore on he realized that the weaker demons would not trouble the village so he allowed them free range within the forest's boundaries. The larger and more powerful demons he still sought out and evicted from their winter homes if he thought they were too close to the village. Sango and Miroku were greatly pleased at the half demon's work. Sango knew that even the more harmless demons could grow vicious as the winter progressed, game became scarce, and hunger set in. Sooner or later the temptation of sweet, warm, human flesh would grow too strong for the demons in the forest. It was best to sweep the area clean as often as possible.

Sango occasionally accompanied the demon into the woods to exterminate the unwelcome residents. But even she would not go out when the snow fell so thick and fast that she couldn't see her hand in front of her face. Inuyasha had the advantage here, his senses of hearing and smell being so acute as to allow the demon to track prey without the use of his eyes. His kimono and his demon blood provided some protection against the cold and it was a rare occasion that the weather drove the hanyou to seek the shelter of Kaede's hut. Kagome herself spent little time in the feudal era during the winter, but when she did there was always great excitement in the village. It was often that there were gatherings in the large communal hall at the village's center in honor of the Miko. The villagers needed something to divert them during the long winter nights and so they took turns hosting parties in the common hall. There was an abundance of food that year and the villagers celebrated their good fortune long into the cold winter nights.

Once when Kagome returned to the feudal era, Inuyasha was returning from a day spent hunting in the lands around the village. He brought fresh meat for the village that night and several fur pelts from smaller animal demons he'd exterminated that day. Kagome was horrified at the hanyou for killing the little demons. She argued that they were so small and cute, how could they possibly prove a threat to the village? They didn't even have jewel shards to make them vicious. Despite the intervention of Sango and Miroku the young girl refused to be dissuaded from her righteous indignation. Kagome pointedly told Inuyasha to stop killing the little demons and when he declined a rift began to open between the two.

It couldn't have come at a worse time either. With nothing to occupy their time the villagers eagerly seized on the argument between the two. Kagome and Inuyasha had attained a certain stardom in the eyes of the villagers and as is natural for human kind, the people of the village frequently swapped gossip amongst themselves about their celebrities. Inuyasha was the savior of the village and had been admired throughout the fall. But, popular though he was, Kagome was a heroine to the village. She was the reincarnation of the priestess Kikyo; a guardian still remembered in song and in the oral tradition of the village. On winter nights the children would gather around the communal hearth to hear the old men tell tales of Lady Kikyo's bravery and sacrifice. In short, what chance did Inuyasha, a relative newcomer to the village only recently looked on with favor, have against the love of the people for Kagome?

The oldest men and women still remembered the days in which Inuyasha was looked upon with fear and hatred in the village. The leaders of the village had grown to adulthood listening to the tales of how the wicked demon had tricked and slewn the Lady Kikyo. Though the villagers now came to see a changed demon in their midst and the old tales were proven false, old habits are hard to break and old hatreds die harder still. Soon the village became polarized against him. Inuyasha was not warmly received at the gatherings the villagers had, no matter that he kept the village safe from attack and brought fresh meat to their tables. Mothers, who had once allowed their children to play with the hanyou and sent them to him for help in their lessons, kept their children back when he entered the room. Thought the members of the small company of jewel hunters tried to include him in the feasts and Kagome herself would ask him to sit beside her, unfriendly glares would soon drive the silver haired young demon back into the wild. Perhaps Kagome could have diffused the situation, but she was rarely there. Kagome spent a great deal of time at home in her era and so when she came back to the feudal era, on rare occasions, she just assumed that Inuyasha had done something to upset the villagers. Never did it enter her thoughts that their one small disagreement had been the source for an avalanche of malice directed at the hanyou.

Things continued to worsen. At first Inuyasha would eat in the hall, perhaps speak a little with Miroku, or Sango, or Kagome if she was there, and then retire into the forest for the night. Until one night he came into the hall looking particularly rumpled and exhausted, glanced around at the uninviting looks directed toward him, turned and was gone. After that he took to eating with Kaede in her hut. Eventually the demon would disappear for days without a word to anyone. Each time he left the span of time that passed until his reappearance would lengthen.

******

Two days before the high priestess' Kaede's birthday celebration Kagome came through the Bone Eater's Well with bags of decorations and presents for the old woman, who was her sister in her previous incarnation. Arriving in the village proper Kagome spotted a familiar figure hurrying through the snow toward the village center. "Sango! Hey, Sango!" Kagome called out. The demon slayer halted and raised a hand in greeting. When Kagome drew near the woman she said, "Can you help me with these bags?"

"Of course. What is all this Kagome?"

"I brought decorations for Kaede's birthday party and I picked out some really great medical books for her present."

"My you certainly have brought many things with you," the dark haired woman exclaimed.

"Oh, you know me. I can't resist a party. It's going to be so much fun, don't you think Sango?"

"Well, yes. The whole village is in an uproar making preparations," she said as the two began to head for the relative warmth of the village's main hall. "I think that Lady Kaede is a bit overwhelmed by all the attention though."

The two stepped into the hall and deposited their things in a corner and went to warm themselves by the fire. "Well, how often is it that a person turns sixty?" Kagome asked as she accepted a cup of tea from an old woman that'd been tending the fire. "She needs some kind of celebration."

"True," the demon slayer agreed taking a cup for herself and thanking the elderly woman at the fireside.

"Everyone is coming, right Sango?"

Sango thought for a moment then answered, "Everyone from the village, yes."

"Who's missing?" Kagome asked. Sango looked up startled. "I take it someone is missing or you would have just answered 'yes.'"

The older woman placed her cup on the ground in front of her and sighed. "We haven't been able to find Inuyasha for some weeks. I don't know if he knows about the party or if he thinks that he's not welc…"

Kagome interrupted Sango by saying, "Oh, that's just like him to disappear at a time like this. Why doesn't he think of someone else for a change?"

"But, Kagome, I don't think you understand. Inuyasha…"

"Is being stubborn and refusing to do something for someone who has done so much for all of us. You watch, I bet that he knows the party's tomorrow night and he just doesn't show up because he doesn’t want to."

"Oh, Kagome," the demon slayer sighed. She did however notice that the old woman by the fire was listening a little too intently to the conversation so she tried to distract the young Miko. "Kagome, tell me how is that boy you've been seeing?"

"Houjo?"

"Yes," the demon slayer smiled encouragingly. "Have you 'gone out' with him recently?" Sango asked, over emphasizing the modern term that Kagome used to describe courtship in her time.

"Oh, yeah. He took me to the movies last Saturday and then we went out to dinner at this new café that opened across the street." Kagome continued on in this manner for some time.

******

Meanwhile in the forest Inuyasha, who was indeed aware of the approaching festivities, was working hard to finish his present for the old priestess. He'd hunted down several low-level demons that were renowned for their thick, velvety soft fur pelts and was in the middle of fashioning a warm cloak for the old woman, who was in dire need of one, if the state of her winter gear was any indicator. In his youth, in his father's house, he'd helped his mother and her ladies make the garments worn by the royal household. He'd had a lonely childhood. As a half demon prince in his father's court he could not attain the anonymity others in his position enjoyed and it was not in his father's nature to end the harassment the small boy suffered from the courtiers. To do so would have shown weakness on Inuyasha's part and made him an even greater target than he already was. Therefore, the young boy often took refuge with his mother and her handmaidens. As such he had early on acquired the skills of a talented seamstress.

The Lady's cloak was lined with the fur pelts he'd prepared for the garment and the outside was made from a bright auburn silk he'd traded for at another village. The buttons that would fasten the cloak across the lady's chest fit into bright silver loops made from his own hair. The silver glittered in the light like precious metal, but unlike the metal it so resembled these loops would neither tarnish nor weaken over time. They were virtually unbreakable. Inuyasha also used his own hair as thread for the garment to ensure that the stitching would never unravel or need to be resewn. The cloak was long and would be loose on the old woman so as to afford her maximum protection from the cold without impeding her movements. He was nearly finished with the garment and had acquired some wrapping and ribbon to decorate the gift. He hoped Kaede would like it. He was very fond of the old woman after all.

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Chapter Six: A Forking in the Road

Inuyasha decided to stay out of sight until the party that night. Whenever he went into the village anymore the dirty looks he got told him very clearly that he wasn't wanted. That and he'd heard that Kagome was angry with him from eavesdropping on a pair of hunters who passed under the tree he was perching on in the forest. He didn't know what he'd done this time, so he figured it was best to stay away and not upset the Miko further. He'd followed the pair on their sojourn into the forest to ensure that nothing attacked the humans so late in the winter. Normally he would have joined the hunters, but recently, with all that was happening in the village, he wasn't sure that he'd be accepted. He really did want to join this hunt though. The men were hunting for meat to cook at Kaede's birthday party and they were going in the wrong direction. The silver haired demon could smell game north of the hunters who were walking east. After some thought Inuyasha quickly ran toward where a herd of deer had congregated in the forest. He chose a prime stag and set about arduously driving it toward the hunters. After half of an hour he managed to drive the stag into the path of the men. Once they had shot down the stag and begun to carry it back to the village, Inuyasha came down from his hiding place amid the snow-covered limbs of the forest canopy.

He felt sad. He knew why, but still it was a strange change for the half demon. Before, when he'd been run out of a village or shunned for what he was it never bothered him. He liked to be alone. It was…peaceful. But after he'd met Kagome and the others he'd gotten used to their company. When it was taken away he felt bereft without it. For the first time in his life he felt lonely when he was alone. It made his heart ache in his chest, but he knew he had no one to blame for it save himself. It was stupid of him to let the humans get so close. He knew that one day they'd want nothing more to do with him. He knew! And still he'd let himself become attached. Humans and demons alike have no use for hanyou's. Especially one so ill tempered as himself. It was a fact of life that for one moment he'd chosen to ignore, but he was paying for that now. Perhaps the thing that hurt most of all was that he was still bound to them. He couldn't leave until the jewel was complete and so he was forced to watch them from afar. He had to see their happy faces as they did simple things like taking the evening meal together, or merely speaking with one another in the marketplace, and know that he wasn't welcome. He could remember when he'd been a part of that, but now it was over. And whenever he tried to speak with them again there was an air of discomfort while they were in his presence. So out of consideration for them he tried to minimize the time he had contact with them. He was merely tolerated, never welcome.

There was a kind of peace in that though. Once he accepted his position in the other's eyes he gained a degree of freedom. There was no need to try to "make friends." He could go where he wanted and do what he wanted and no one would say a thing because no one cared. If only he could revert to his former attitude toward life things would be so much easier. However, he was plagued by a lingering longing for companionship. At first he tried to make himself useful in the village. For even though he never gained a true friend in his endeavors he was never truly alone when he was helping to rebuild a home or plan a way to improve the harvest the following year. There was a free exchange of ideas and the comforting feeling of a common goal bonded the humans and the hanyou together. For a time he thought that he could exist like this. It was enough to be accepted and useful, he could live with that in place of what he'd had before, but even that was not to be. Very soon the humans of the village drove him out, not in the violent way that others had done but with their cold looks and their quiet rebuff. In a way that hurt even more than any angry mob he'd ever had to face.

Shaking these rather depressing thoughts from his head the hanyou left the clearing he'd been standing in to go about his self appointed rounds, keeping the village safe from the ravages the forest could inflict upon it. It was after nightfall and the hanyou could hear that the party had begun in the village from the dim sounds of music and laughter that made their was so deep into the frozen forest grounds. Deciding that he'd patrolled enough for one night Inuyasha raced back to retrieve the bundle containing Kaede's gift. He was just approaching the village boundary when a faint odor on the wind gave him pause. He retraced his footsteps into the forest far enough to identify the scent. The hairs on the back of his neck were standing up and a low growl unconsciously emitted from his throat when he realized what had gotten into his forest. A demon boar had become starved enough to charge the hanyou's territory and try to make it to the village proper. Quickly Inuyasha ran to Kaede's hut and placed his gift just inside the door of her home. If everything worked out he could chase the boar away from the village and still have enough time to retrieve the gift and make it to the party. If not, well at least he could be sure that the priestess would find the gift when she returned home.

******

At the same time Inuyasha was racing out to meet the boar the village was showering the Lady Kaede in gifts of their own. Several women from the village had banned together to make a new quilt for the old woman, others had woven new baskets for her, and still others brought her pottery filled with dried fruits and grains. The men of the village presented her with a new bow and a saddle for her horse, and the village cobbler made her a pair of winter boots. Even the small children had made gifts for the old woman. The party was going wonderfully and everyone was having a good time. Everyone was there, with one notable exception. And it made Kagome's blood boil when a gust of wind caused the door to fly open and the old priestess turned hopeful eyes to the doorway. Kagome knew who she was hoping to see there and she couldn't believe that even he would be so rude as not to come to Kaede's birthday celebration.

Kagome withdrew from the amassed villagers that were presenting the old woman with their gifts to stand with her friends by the fire. Sango was basting the meat slowly roasting over the fire. She and Miroku were taking in hushed tones when Kagome approached them. "I can't believe he didn't come," she said.

"Yes, we are rather surprised ourselves," Miroku said.

"Kagome, I think we should go look for Inuyasha," Sango said standing up from her position in front of the fire.

"Why? He probably just wandered off somewhere and will show up tomorrow like nothing happened."

"Do you really think Inuyasha would do that, Kagome?" Sango asked.

Kagome sighed, "I don't know. I just feel like…I don't know him any more." Kagome looked around the room and sighed again, "I'm going to go get some air." Before anyone could contradict her Kagome stepped out into the breezy winter night. There was a light dusting of snow falling from the darkened sky and here and there stars peeked through the clouds which obscured the night sky. The young woman decided to take a walk to clear her thoughts. Stepping onto the main road she let her feet carry her where they would, barely noticing the passing trees as she walked deeper and deeper into the forest.

******

Inuyasha had tracked the boar through the forest for over an hour when he finally caught sight of the animal running through the trees at top speed. Racing across the treetops Inuyasha came to rest on a branch in the boar's path. When the animal approached he lunged off the branch and laid a deep gash in the animal's side. Boar demons are relatively timid animals and under normal circumstances a wound such as the one he'd just dealt the beast would scare the boar away. Inuyasha gracefully leapt into some bushes out of the boar's path. He waited a moment to see if the boar would stop its charge and swore when the boar sped past him.

The half demon pursued the demon through the trees. Once more he passed the boar and this time he laid its left flank open with his claws, disabling one of its legs. However, the demon driven mad by hunger and the scent of human flesh took no mind of the injury and continued on its kamikaze flight into the village. This was a dangerous match. The hanyou didn't dare get too close to the mad demon. Boar demons were dangerous enough when cornered, without being rabid with hunger. And the horns on its snout were covered in a poison so strong that even Inuyasha's system would be hard pressed to recover from a wound given by the demon's horns.

Inuyasha could here the villager's voices through the trees. They weren't too far from the forest boundary now. He had to bring the bull down before it broke the tree line and had a chance to run into the village. With a great leap he sailed through the air and landed directly in the boar's path. Quickly drawing the Tetsusaiga Inuyasha caught the blade between the charging boar's horns and turned the beast's head. Though his feet were planted firmly on the ground the force of the boar's charge threw the hanyou back several paces. While he was sliding backward, making sure to not to fall for things would be over very quickly if he had, the silver haired half demon quickly clawed out the boar's right eye in a single stroke of his free hand. However, feeling it's eye ripped apart the boar bucked and tossed its head, drawing a thin line of blood from Inuyasha's wrist.

The silver haired demon flipped back to land a few paces in front of the boar. He held the Tetsusaiga before him in his right hand, already feeling his left arm becoming heavy and numb from the spreading poison. The boar was staring straight at him with its one good eye. Inuyasha quickly debated what to do. A charge would be met with a charge from the bull, which was a nearly suicidal thing to do. He could not risk the sweeping blow that engaged the Tesusaiga's full power. He would present too much of a target. In such close quarters the boar could charge his torso and gut him before he had a chance to bring the Tetsusaiga down in the animal's path and release the sword's destructive energy. The decision was taken from him when the scent of a human close by blew past the pair. The next moment the boar was off and running toward the intoxicating aroma. Inuyasha pursued the boar as quickly as he was able. He was greatly alarmed for the human in the boar's path, 'What is Kagome doing in the woods at this time of night anyway?' Inuyasha thought to himself. That was it, he had to bring the boar down right now! Taking another great leap in the air Inuyasha came down with his sword extended to sever the boar's neck. However he became the unfortunate victim of a number of small misfortunes at that moment. You see for some reason the boar reared its head in the last moment of Inuyasha's flight over it and the poison from the cut on Inuyasha's wrist had spread throughout his body, hastened by the physical exertion and his rapidly beating heart. At the very last moment Inuyasha's vision became blurred and, though he did manage to sever the boar's neck, he miscalculated his jump receiving a deep gash in his stomach from one of boar's horns and a wound that laid his upper left thigh open from the inside up and across his hip from the second horn.

The hanyou fell heavily onto the ground beside to corpse of the demon he'd killed. Using his one good arm and leg he forced himself up off the snow covered ground. He could feel the poison moving into his blood and slowly paralyzing his body. The village was too far, but if he could get to Kagome… He had to get to Kagome; it was his only chance. Using the Tetsusaiga as a walking stick Inuyasha slowly began to walk toward the Miko. His left leg was completely useless and blood was already soaking his pants to the cuffs of the legs. Dragging his leg behind him Inuyasha used the sword to pull himself forward bracing himself on the forest trees as he passed. After several long minutes he stopped to lean against a tree directly in Kagome's path.

******

Kagome was just starting to calm down from her irritation at Inuyasha when a voice called out her name. "Kagome," came a hushed whisper off to her right.

Startled, Kagome looked to her right and saw Inuyasha reclining against a tree as if he hadn't a care in the world. Or at least that's what it looked like to Kagome who couldn't see the blood staining the demon's clothing thanks to the dark cloudy night and the dark red fabric the hanyou favored. 'No one has ever had worse timing than him,' Kagome thought to herself. "Inuyasha," Kagome said crossing her arms and turning toward the hanyou. "What are you doing out here?"

"I…"he began.

"No wait," Kagome held out a hand then turned away. "I don't want to hear it. No excuse you could possibly have could make up for what you did tonight." The enraged Miko turned to face the demon; "Did you know that Kaede's birthday was tonight?"

"Yes, I…" the injured hanyou tried to respond only to be cut off once again.

"You knew!" Kagome hissed. "You knew and you didn't even bother to come. She wanted you there, Inuyasha! She's been looking up at the door every few minutes all night waiting for you to come! For God knows what reason she actually likes you and wants you there, thought at the moment I'm not sure that you deserve that!" Kagome screamed.

"Kagome…please…I need…" the demon panted fighting to stay conscious despite the effects of the poison and the large amount of blood pooling at his feet.

"You need? You need! This isn't about you Inuyasha!" Kagome was so angry that she was shaking. She turned and began to storm off before she was tempted to seriously hurt the hanyou.

"Wait. Kagome," the demon called after her.

"Osuwari!" The binding spell pulled the half demon from the tree he was leaning against and to the ground with a resounding crash. During the fall the demon lord's luck had taken another poor turn and he'd dashed his head against a tree root, rendering him unconscious and dislodging accumulated snow from the tree branches above him. As she walked back to the party Kagome was completely unaware that she'd just left Inuyasha half buried in the snow to slowly bleed his life out on the frozen ground.

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Chapter Seven: Fortune Turns the Wheel

In perhaps the only stroke of luck he'd had all evening a group of wolf demons was skirting the forest edge at the moment Inuyasha's fight had begun. Koga, the young leader of the wold demon tribe was traveling toward the village at that very moment to try once again to prevail upon Kagome to return with him to his den and become his wife. With him were two of his most trusted lieutenants. At the moment that Inuyasha drew first blood in his fight with the boar the wolf demons were able to scent the blood on the air. At first the scent was ignored, that is until Inuyasha's blood was drawn. Koga, never being able to pass up a chance to rub his rival's face in his obvious superiority, veered in the direction that the scent of Inuyasha's blood was coming from. They went at a leisurely pace until the scent of the hanyou's blood became heavy on the wind.

"Damnit," Koga growled and began to run through the forest quickly enough so that he would not loose sight of his men. Though Koga liked to rib Inuyasha, he did respect the hanyou's fighting abilities and whatever could injure the hanyou that badly could surely do some damage to the small group of wolves. The blue eyed wolf decided to keep close to his comrades. After twenty minutes of running as fast as he could safely push the other two wolves, Koga came upon the decapitated carcass of the boar. His men quickly joined him.

"A boar?" Ginta asked.

Koga knelt next to the severed head; he picked it up and studied the boar's ruined face. "Rabid," he said as he carelessly tossed the head so that it rolled on the ground and came to a rest against the beast's back. It's one eye blindly staring up at Koga menacingly as he surveyed the abandoned battle scene.

"He took down a rabid boar?" Hakkaku asked with just a hint of awe in his voice.

"Yeah, yeah. All very impressive, but mutt-face is still bleeding to death somewhere around here," Koga said nonchalantly. Though he was avidly searching the forest for some sign of the hanyou. "The scent of his blood is everywhere, I can't find the source."

"It's been snowing too long for us to find any tracks," Hakkaku pointed out. Never the less the wolves began to scan the terrain. They spread out from the carcass looking for indention's in the snow, broken twigs on the surrounding shrubbery, blood, anything that would give their search some direction.

"Koga! Over here!" Ginta called from a few paces away. When the others joined him they saw that he'd dug down into the snow to uncover a thin layer of rusty red colored snow.

"Good work, Ginta," Koga praised. "Okay, fan out. Let's see where this trail leads." The three demons went forth following the trail of blood and scooping up handfuls of snow whenever a turning caused them to loose the path. Eventually they came to the half-buried body of the hanyou. Koga noted that the snow around the fallen demon was colored red with blood and Inuyasha's skin was cold as ice as they began to dig the hanyou from the embankment. The wolves winced and Ginta hissed when the demon was overturned and the extent of his injuries became apparent. "How much poison do you think he got, Ginta?"

"Too much. He's only a half demon." Ginta was the best healer among the three and so, though he was not the alpha male, the others deferred to him in medical matters. Ginta began to try to stem the bleeding and dress the wounds the hanyou had sustained. "The cold probably saved his life. If he wasn't buried in the snow he might have bled to death."

"How serious are the wounds?" Hakkaku asked.

"Bad, but not lethal."

"And the poison?" Koga asked from his position behind the two.

Ginta stopped wrapping the wounds and look up at the alpha wolf. "I think we should try and make him as comfortable as possible."

'No!' Koga growled mentally. "How long?"

"A day. Two? I can't be sure."

"Bind his wounds. I'll alert his friends in the village." After he gave these orders Koga ran to the village at top speed.

******

Kagome was just stepping into the doorway of the communal hall when she sensed a sacred jewel shard approaching her. Kagome turned just as a dust cloud cleared revealing the wolf demon Koga. "Kagome, I have urgent news!" the wolf announced before the winds around him even died out.

"Koga!" Kagome ran up to hug the wolf, happy to see a friendly face after her confrontation with Inuyasha. "I'm so glad to see you. Did you come for the party?"

"K…Kagome," Koga said flustered from the embrace from his chosen, though not yet bound, mate. "I'm glad to see you too, but I have something important to tell you. Inuyasha…"

"Oh, don't talk to me about him!" Kagome said pulling out of Koga's arms. "Would you believe that he wouldn't even come to Kaede's party! Oh, he's just so rude. I can't stand it sometimes!"

Koga was a bit stunned to see the Miko acting so violently, but being the brave demon that he was he pressed on with his terrible news. "Yes, but Kagome, Inuyasha is…"

"Still sulking in the forest after the sitting I gave him?" Kagome asked sarcastically.

As gleeful as it would usually make him to hear that Kagome made Inuyasha take a swan dive into a pile of mud, now was not the time. "No, Kagome. I was just with Inuyasha and he's…" the wolf paused. A "sitting" certainly would explain how deep the half demon had been buried in the snow. "Kagome, when was the last time you saw Inuyasha?"

"About ten minutes ago. Why are you looking at me like that Koga? What's wrong?" The Miko placed a gentle hand on the wolf demon's arm.

The demon looked into her eyes then to the hand resting on his arm and violently pulled away from the young girl. "And you left him there? Alone?"

"Well, yeah! He was being a total jerk. Why should I hang around him when he's going to act that way?" Koga just continued to stare at the dark haired girl in amazement. "What's gotten into you, Koga?" Kagome asked gently. "Look, why don't we go inside?" She tried to soothe the bewildered demon, smiling up at him innocently. "I'm sure everyone will be happy to see you."

"I…I have to go. Goodbye, Kagome." In a whirl of kicked up snow and wind the wolf demon was gone.

"Bye, Koga. Well, that was certainly strange," the Miko said as she turned to rejoin the party. Before she could even open the door to the hall she was met by the guest of honor.

"Ah, Kagome"

"Hello, Kaede," she greeted the priestess.

"I was wondering where ye got to child." Kaede stepped out of the doorway to stand next to the young girl.

"I took a walk to get some fresh air. Are you turning in already?"

"Aye, child," the priestess said smiling. "These old bones have seen too many years for such excitement. Celebration is best left to the young at so late an hour."

"May I help you carry your packages Kaede?" Kagome held her hands out signaling her readiness to help.

The old woman laughed, "Nay child. I have already enlisted the help of two youths to carry these gift back to my home." Kaede then opened the door further to give Kagome a better view of Miroku and Sango bent nearly double stumbling toward the door with Kaede's packages draped over their backs. The priestess and the young girl laughed at the sight the two made before Kagome hurried over to lighten their burdens.

Between the three of them they managed to bring all the gifts the village had bestowed upon the priestess to her home in a single trip. Once inside Kaede's hut Miroku began a fire and Sango began to organize the packages in the corner of the hut. Affixing the door hanging tightly to the wall to keep out the nighttime chill Kagome noticed a bright package just inside the doorway. She bent to pick up the package and began to inspect it. It was wrapped in brightly colored parchment paper and tied into a neat bundle with a deep purple ribbon. The tag attached to the ribbon simply read "Kaede." There was no note or name to tell whom the gift came from and it certainly wasn't one of the ones that Sango, Miroku, and she had just brought in.

"Hey, Kaede. I think you missed one," Kagome said as she walked over to where the priestess was sitting. When Kaede took the package from Kagome and read the tag she smiled to herself and quietly shook her head.

"Who is it from, Lady Kaede?" Sango asked curiously.

"Inuyasha, my dear."

"How do you know, Kaede?" Kagome asked perplexed.

"'Tis his writing on the tag," the aged priestess said flipping the small shred of parchment to display the neat line of text crawling down the square.

"Inuyasha knows how to write? When did that happen?" Kagome looked from face to face in the small room.

"I taught him myself some months ago," the old woman replied.

"Kagome, didn't you notice Inuyasha helping the village children in their lessons?" Sango prompted coming over to kneel with the monk and the two other women by the fireside.

Kagome looked down at her hands. "No, I didn't. I guess I haven't spent very much time here in the past few weeks."

"Open the gift, Lady. I'm sure we're all curious as to what's inside."

"Yes. Miroku's right." Sango smiled up at the youthful monk. "Open the gift, Kaede." Gasps rang through the room when Kaede drew the beautiful cloak from its wrappings. "It's beautiful," Sango said reaching out to touch the garment.

"Where did Inuyasha get such a cloak? I knew he was the son of a demon lord, but even so…" Miroku exclaimed as he came forward to admire the piece.

"He made it. Look," Sango said gently pulling the garment apart at the seams to display the nearly invisible line of silver stitches that bound the garment together. "He used his own hair to sew it together."

"He made it with his hair?" Kagome asked.

Sango turned to Kagome and began to explain to her the significance of the hair. "Demon hair has very special properties. Garments sewn together with it will never fall apart at the seams and look, see these buttons. It would take a very strong human all his strength to break the thread that attaches these."

"A garment such as this, made from the hair of a demon, would easily pay the ransom of Lords. It's a kingly gift," Miroku continued.

'Okay, I feel bad now,' Kagome though to herself. 'I was so mean to Inuyasha earlier and look at the great gift that he brought Kaede. Even if he didn't come to the party. I know he's not a people person. So why was I so mad? Alright first thing in the morning I'm going to go apologize to him.'

******

When the winds around him cleared Koga turned to face his companions. "Are the others coming, Koga?" Hakkaku asked.

"No. Ginta, get him ready to travel as best you can. I'm taking him back to the den tonight. You two catch up with me later."

"Koga, he could die on the trip," Ginta said.

"We're not getting any help from the village and he will die if we leave him here. I won't abandon another warrior to die alone in the forest. I'm taking him to our den where at least he can die in a warm bed instead of freezing to death in the snow."

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Chapter Eight: Koga, the young leader of the wolf demon tribe

After Ginta had tightly bound Inuyasha's wounds Koga ran until he reached his den. He ran for a little over a day and a half, at full speed, and covered over thirty leagues. When he reached the mountain pass that lead to his den he ran past the sentries stationed over the cliffs not willing to stop and identify himself. He'd probably get intruder reports from his guards later, but that could be dealt with. True to form shortly after he sped past he saw a wolf running from the cliffs in toward the den's center to raise the guard. Koga made a mental note to reward the men on duty in this area for the quick discharge of their duties. Koga ran past the cave in which the majority of the wolves spent their day and all pack matters were discussed in Council with the elders.

Koga was a relatively young wolf. He had taken control of the tribe at a younger age than any other Alpha in recent memory. As his first official action he'd organized a Council of elders to advise him on matters of pack rule. He'd selected a number of knowledgeable wolves, both male and female, and organized a system of meetings and duties for each of them, based on their personal strengths and intellectual achievements. For instance Koga put Makoto, a venerable male elder who had lost the use of his sword arm in a battle over six hundred years ago, in charge of the training of the young wolf demons. Makoto, though he could no longer wield a sword with the accuracy he'd enjoyed in his youth, was a skilled teacher and under his tutelage the pack began to produce stronger warriors than ever before. In the old system a warrior unable to fight for the pack was seen as useless and though the pack cared for the disabled warriors they were widely acknowledged as burdens on the able-bodied wolves. When Koga organized the Council he was upsetting several thousand years of established tradition. At first the wolves in the pack questioned his ability to lead as the pack's Alpha. No other Alpha had ever asked the opinions of the pack before giving orders. At first it was seen as a sign of weakness, but after a few years, as the pack grew stronger, the wolves embraced the Council.

Koga was no fool, he knew that his strengths lay in his abilities as an administrator. Yes, he was the fastest wolf in the pack and a strong warrior in his own right, but he was rash and impulsive. He knew that he had a quick temper and though he tried to keep it in check he was quick to anger. Though when angered he was not malicious or dangerous in the least, save when the lives of his pack depended on it. The young wolf surrounded himself by loyal wolves who would balance him out. That's not to say that Koga took everything to the Council, he was after all the Alpha and as such he had his pride. He would never have become the Alpha if he weren't able to rule his people. The Council's main purpose was to give the pack some say in the actions of their leader.

Most transfers of power in the wolf demon tribe stemmed from disagreements between the pack and the Alpha male. When the Alpha stopped ruling in a way that the pack accepted another wolf, typically a youth, rose up to challenge the Alpha. Eventually one of the challengers would kill the Alpha and take his place. Koga himself had deposed the former Alpha of his tribe. However in an unexpected act of mercy, that defined his rule over the wolf demons, Koga had let the dethroned ruler live. He was later forced to kill the old wolf when he stole one of the jewel shards the pack had worked so hard to collect in order to defend themselves from the Birds of Paradise. The old wolf intended to use the shard to increase his own power and take control of one of the northern packs, before coming back to settle his score with Koga. It was an unforgivable crime, to try to gain power for oneself at the cost of the pack. Regrettably Koga was forced to end the demon's life after he tracked him down through several human villages. After seeing the mistakes made by the former Alpha, Koga wanted to make sure that the pack had some share in their own governance so that, hopefully, he wouldn't have to fight to keep his position any time soon. Disagreement within the pack weakened the pack and Koga knew that in these times the last true pack of the wolf demons needed to stay strong in order to survive. Though his hope for the future began to wan after he'd met Kagome and she'd never heard of wolf demons. That a Miko wouldn't know of his people saddened him. In five hundred years, in his own lifetime, Koga would see his people pass from life into myth and legend. But, Koga did not believe in fate and he'd resolved to do everything in his power to preserve his pack, his family.

Running past the Council hall and leaping across the small river that provided the pack's water Koga came to the hut of the pack's healer and midwife, a she-wolf by the name of Yuuka. "Yuuka!" the Alpha called out as he approached her home.

"Koga?" Yuuka called stepping out of her hut. "What's happened?" Yuuka rushed forward to walk beside Koga as he entered her home.

"He's been injured by a demon boar," Koga said as he entered her home and set Inuyasha down on the table Yuuka inspected the injured pack members on. Yuuka had been the pack's healer when Koga was a young cub. He had fond memories of Yuuka patching him up on this table. There was even a chip in the wood where Koga had thrust his claws when Yuuka had set his broken leg as a youth. Koga was one of those children that could never sit still. Energetic and curious, Koga was also one of Yuuka's most frequent patients, especially when he'd gone through that awkward phase where he grew so quickly that his center of balance changed almost daily. Yuuka at one point even congratulated him on staying out of her hut for just over a month. She had a great sense of humor about the whole thing. All things considered Koga loved Yuuka, he would probably even have mated with her if things were different. As it was Yuuka had mated and lost her husband early in her life. As such she would never take a mate again and so she'd never have any children. A crime of sorts, Yuuka loved children. Koga loved her like an older sister.

"Get out of here you're finished." Yuuka waved a young cub with a sling on his arm out of the hut. She quickly began to peel back the half demon's bandages. "Kuso," she swore softly. "Help me strip him. I need to get at these without his clothes in the way." Yuuka was perhaps the only wolf in the pack that would blatantly order the Alpha around in his own den, but Yuuka never had much use for authority anyway. As the two went about removing the silver haired demon's clothes Yuuka continued to ask questions. "How long has the poison been in his system?"

"Almost two days now."

"Not good. Not good," she muttered to herself. "Get me some water, there's a bucket over there. Take…" Yuuka turned and looked around the small room until she found what she was looking for. "…that bundle of herbs," she pointed to a small thong from which wilted flowers and stems were suspended from her ceiling, "and wash them in the river." Koga hurried to do what Yuuka asked. First washing the blood from his hands then filling the pail with river water and washing out the herbs. When he got back into the hut Yuuka was inspecting Inuyasha's belly wound. "Bring me a bowl of water then boil the rest."

"Here." Koga gave Yuuka a bowl filled with the water he'd just collected and a clean cloth from her cabinet. Yuuka began to wash the wounds. "How bad is it?"

"Bad bad."

"Is there a good bad?" Koga grumbled sullenly.

"Mmmhm. Good bad, I can fix. Bad bad is out of my hands. Is that water boiling yet?"

Koga moved over to the pot of water over the fire. "What should I do with it?"

"Drop half of those herbs in the pot, then crush the rest and give them to me." Koga quickly started the herbs boiling and retrieved a mortar and pistil to begin crushing the remainder of the herbs. Once the herbs were ground into a coarse powder he set the mortar aside. "You could have become a healer you know, Koga? I'll never understand why you had to go off and become an Alpha."

"And drive you out of a job, Yuuka? Never. Besides, I like being an Alpha. I'll take that over hanging out around sick people any day."

"To each his own I suppose. Are you done with those herbs?" Koga gave Yuuka the mortar. She reached in and scooped a handful out of the bowl. Yuuka sprinkled the powder in Inuyasha's wounds. "He lost a lot of blood didn't he?"

"Yes. Ginta, Hakkaku, and I only found him by the trail of blood he'd left behind him. The snow we dug him out of was bright red."

"Alright," Yuuka sighed and brushed some strands of hair from her face. "Wait ten minutes then take that pot off the stove and start a new one with the herbs in the top drawer of that cabinet. We'll see if we can get some of that down his throat to help him replace his blood." She went back to tending the half demon's wounds while Koga watched her.

"Yuuka. Is there any chance?"

"There's always a chance, Koga. He just doesn't have a good one."

******

Koga took Inuyasha to his home to recover. As the pack Alpha Koga was given the largest hut in the den. He had several guest bedrooms one of which he put Inuyasha in. Yuuka's hut wasn't equipped to deal with a full time patient so Koga moved them both into his home. Yuuka was given a room next to her patient, which Koga often had to order her to go to so that she'd get any rest at all. The hanyou ran a high fever for days. Though that wasn't normally cause to celebrate Yuuka assured Koga that it meant that the half demon was fighting the poison. She also swore that Inuyasha must be even more stubborn than Koga was to stay alive so long after being exposed to that much poison.

Hakkaku and Ginta arrived at the den three days after Koga arrived with the silver haired demon. They'd run all through the day and late into the night every night until they arrived home. Koga gave them both time off from guard duty. Hakkaku and his mate took their cubs to see Hakkaku's brother, a lone wolf who lived in the mountains to the south of the pack. Ginta stayed with Koga. He wasn't invited of course; he just showed up at Koga's door and threw his things in an empty room. Ginta was one of Koga's oldest friends and his second in command. He sat with Koga through the night when the other demon had trouble sleeping. Koga felt sick. He was sick to death. His woman, his chosen had left her friend and protector to die. He couldn't stand it. That she could do something so cruel. He tried to rationalize it. 'It was a dark night she might not have seen that the mutt was injured,' he told himself. 'But hadn't she said she'd talked to him? Inuyasha was dying, he wouldn't have engaged in a merry little conversation and forgotten to mention that he was poisoned and bleeding to death.'

Koga felt lost. He thought he loved Kagome, but he couldn't stand what she had done. Inuyasha was a member of her pack. How could she abandon a pack member to die? He hated it. If any member of his pack had done what she'd done he would have exiled them without a second thought. Ginta was a source of comfort. He just waited for his friend to decide that he needed to talk and kept him company when he needed it. But Koga didn't want to talk. He knew what Ginta would say. The pack would tell him to find a more suitable mate, a better woman. They'd never liked Kagome. They had merely tolerated her because he had announced his intent to mate with her. The entire pack would be relieved if her renounced his intentions. They were worried that his children would be tainted by her human blood.

In some ways the wolf demon pack was very progressive. Age between mates wasn't a factor in choice and neither was gender. As long as both parties were willing and the relationship wasn't incestuous it was fine with the pack. Wolves mate for life. There was only ever that one person in their life so wolf demons always mate for love. Those in the pack were great believers in love; each person was allowed to find and mate with their chosen. Some wolves never mated, fearing that if they settled for anything less than that one person they'd be unable to be with them once they found them. The Alpha male was the only member of the pack that had any restrictions placed on him. He had to produce children for the good of the pack because, even though the position of Alpha was not hereditary, any male that achieved that position was considered too important to the gene pool to remain childless. The Alpha had to mate with a young woman of childbearing age, preferably a young she-wolf demon, but occasionally the Alphas mated with other breeds of demons, not wanting to deprive any young she-wolves of the chance to mate with their chosen. There was no law against the Alpha mating with a human, but it wasn't considered a good thing either. The point of the Alpha producing children was to strengthen the pack. What use were hanyous? They were notoriously weak and had severely shortened life spans.

Koga would often go to sit with the half demon at night. When he'd finished his meetings with the Council and every matter the pack needed his judgement on had been settled, he would go home and he watched as Inuyasha fought the fever, as he slept deep and long. The hanyou never woke whenever Koga came into the room. He never woke when anyone came into the room. He just lay on the bed lost in-between life and death, a silent testament to the betrayal Koga felt. It was strange, but he felt a bond with the half demon. They'd both loved Kagome, and she'd betrayed them both. It seemed he had a lot in common with the hanyou. If it hadn't been for Kagome he might even have befriended the half demon. He'd never hated Inuyasha; he'd just been angry that Inuyasha had killed his pack mates as they fed on some villagers, when they'd first met. However, Koga had banned the consumption of human flesh after he met Kagome. It wouldn't do to have his pack members eat his mate's relatives. In an effort to better understand his chosen's people he even spent some time in the local villages and he had come to appreciate the humans in the area. They were especially useful for trade purposes and the pack had come to enjoy the market days he arranged with the local humans. Some of their silks were absolutely stunning and the weapons certain villages produced were of superb quality. Later on Koga had only been protective of his chosen and begrudged the fact that she'd rather travel with the hanyou on some sacred mission than come with him to be his wife and the alpha female of his tribe. She was spurring both his love and the great honor he'd offered her, she'd be the equal of any human queen, but she'd rather sleep on the ground and run around on a holy mission. Women were incomprehensible.

******

"I don't think that the movements of the Kitsune should bother us."

"But they're encroaching on our borders!" Koga listened while two of his councilors argued back and forth over the movement of a small band of Kitsune scouts had reported coming in from the south.

"But Osamu, the Kitsune are a strictly non-violent species. They've never been aggressive towards us. Why I bet that if we send a few men to politely ask them to move on, they will."

"After trying to seduce the scouts," Ginta whispered in Koga's ear causing Koga to try to cover a snort of amusement with a coughing fit.

"Are you alright, Koga?"

"Yeah, fine, Saburou. Please, go on." Koga smiled trying to look interested. The loquacious old wolf began to draw in his breath to continue just when they were interrupted.

"KOGA!"

"Yuuka! What is it?" Koga stood from his seat on the Council floor.

"It's Inuyasha. You must come," she panted out, winded after her run from Koga's home to the Council chamber.

"He's gotten worse?" Koga asked with some trepidation. The half demon's fever had broken three days ago, but he still hadn't woken. As far as any of them knew Inuyasha hadn't so much as moved or opened his eyes in two and a half weeks. Despite Yuuka's best efforts the demon was loosing weight, his muscles were loosening, and he was beginning to grow weak as only protracted illness can do to a body.

Yuuka shook her head. "You have to see this," she said.

"Ginta, take over. Please excuse me gentlemen," he said then nodded in the direction of his female Councilors, "Ladies." Koga bowed to the assembled Council and followed Yuuka from the room. It was a dark and moonless night that the two wolves hurried through to get to Koga's home.

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Chapter Nine: "To hold with the hare and run with the hound." Ibid

Koga and Yuuka ran from the Council chamber to Koga's hut. The path was dark, but that was no bother to the wolves, whose night vision allowed them to see even on a night such as the one they now traveled through. It was dark. The moon's face was hidden from the night sky and only the stars served to guide their steps. When the two demons reached Koga's home Yuuka slowed to a walk. She stopped before the door to Inuyasha's room and looked at Koga nervously before stepping through the doorway and into the room. When Koga entered he couldn't believe his eyes. There in place of the silver haired hanyou he'd sheltered these past weeks was a black haired young human man. Koga walked over to his bedside and knelt on the floor. At first he'd wondered how a human had gotten into his home, but as he looked down on the sleeping face he could recognize the hanyou's features. In repose Inuyasha looked peaceful and as helpless as any human would be once they entered the wolves' den. If he so chose Koga could end the human's life in an instant, a slight wound that no demon or half breed would suffer from would be all that was necessary to stop the beating of his heart. And yet the human slept, seemingly all unaware or perhaps unconcerned of the danger that surrounded him. Tentatively Koga picked a lock of hair up from the pillow. "Yuuka, what's happened to him?"

"I…I've heard rumors," she said and moved to sit on the floor next to the Alpha. "I never thought that it was true though."

"What is it?" Koga asked, an edge of panic on his voice. Koga was worried, he wondered, what if Inuyasha was stuck this way forever? The hanyou-turned-human would be dead in no time at all; there was no way the wolf demons could protect him from his enemies forever. Koga couldn't turn him away from the pack after they'd sheltered him for so long, could he? It would be easy to drop Inuyasha off in the forest and leave him for the scavengers to find, but in a way Koga felt that the hanyou was his responsibility. His woman had done this and so he had to repair the damage she had done.

"I've heard stories. Stories that say that there's a period of time in every half demon's life when their demon blood recedes and the hanyou is left as a human."

Koga sighed in relief, "Then it's not permanent?"

"I don't know. I've never seen this before, but the stories all say that the half demon will return to their demon form after a certain amount of time."

"Can you guess how long?"

Yuuka shrugged, "I honestly have no idea."

"Yuuka, don't tell anyone about this. He's obviously kept this secret for a reason," Koga mused aloud.

"That or it's never happened before," Yuuka pointed out.

"We keep it between us," Koga said with an air of finality that precluded any further discussion.

Yuuka stared at him, appraising her long time friend and leader. At last, under the weight of the demoness' gaze, the Alpha wolf turned from observing the hanyou. "Koga, why are you protecting him?"

Koga drew his hand away from the human's hair, "I don't know."

"Does it have something to do with what happened in the village?" Yuuka asked.

Koga tried to hide his shock by returning to his study of Inuyasha's silky black hair; it was interesting stuff. 'I didn't know human hair glittered in torch light,' Koga though to himself. "What are you talking about, Yuuka?"

"You know what I'm talking about, Koga. Ever since you came back with him you've been creeping around like a shadow. You keep coming in here to stare at him and you never talk to any of us anymore. Ginta told me that you went to the village to get help, but came back alone. Why was that, Koga?" Yuuka pressed on not giving the Alpha a chance to respond. "We're all worried about you. Ginta's has been hoping that you'll come and talk to him that's why he's commandeered your guestroom. He could tell you were troubled when you came back from the village. But you haven't come to any of us. We're your friends, Koga. We want to help you, but your making it very difficult."

"I know, Yuuka. I'm sorry. I just need some time to think things through."

The green-eyed she-wolf apparently wasn't pleased with this; "You've had time. Now," she pounded her fist on the floor in emphasis, "it's time to start talking, before you drive yourself mad with worry." Koga didn't respond. He didn't know what to say. "The pack is worried," she said. Yuuka paused and looked at her dejected friend. Maybe she should have let Ginta deal with this, she mused; she hadn't handled this at all well. She hadn't meant to add to his burden. She reached over to him and clasped his hand; "I'm worried."

"Yuuka," Koga took the woman's hands in his and held them to his heart. He paused for a moment trying to find the right words for what he had to say. "I don't understand it all myself, Yuuka. Trust me to come to you when I'm ready?"

"You are my pack brother, Koga. It hurts me to see you like this. But I have faith in you, just don't keep me waiting too long."

"Thank you, my friend," Koga smiled as he met the demoness' eyes. "What would I do without you Yuuka?"

"Well, for starters you'd have a horrible limp. I did some of my best work on that leg of yours, you know," Yuuka teased.

******

The two wolves stayed by Inuyasha's bedside all through the night. About an hour after Yuuka came to collect Koga from the Council chamber, Ginta came home. Guessing that Koga would be with the half demon he went directly to the guestroom where he knew the three demons would be. Yuuka heard Ginta coming down the hall and roused Koga to go out and meet him, telling him to hurry to if he didn't want the little secret they were keeping to be exposed. Koga managed to get Ginta to leave the two of them be only after promising to sit down the next day for a nice long conversation about why he'd suddenly become a basket case. It seemed that though Yuuka was easily appeased Ginta was much harder to deal with.

At about midnight Inuyasha's fever returned. His human body was too weak to deal with the poison in his system. Yuuka hurried off to her hut to bring more medicines to help him fight the boar's venom. As Yuuka was gone Koga sat with the human. "You cause a lot of trouble, you know that don't you?" he asked the sleeping young man. Inuyasha's head turned to the side; surprising Koga so that he drew back from the futon the other man was lying on. The dark haired man's eyes blearily opened. Instead of the amber orbs the demon usually sported deep chocolate brown eyes tried to focus on the startled Alpha. Koga crept nearer to the bed, bringing his face so close to the other's that he could feel Inuyasha's breath ghosting over his cheeks. He thought he heard the human whisper "wolf" before he fell back into a deep sleep.

Koga jumped back when he heard the door slam shut behind him. Yuuka was at the door, a steaming pot of water cradled to her breast and a bundle of herbs clutched in her other hand. She was looking at Koga intently. Koga blushed and said, "He opened his eyes," feeling the need to explain his actions to the other wolf without really knowing why.

"He did?" Yuuka seemed startled.

"Yes."

Yuuka put her burdens down on the floor and walked over to crouch by the futon. "How long was he awake for? Did he say anything?"

"It was only a few seconds. He mumbled something. I think he called me a 'wolf.''"

Yuuka threw her arms around Koga then got up and began to bounce around the room happily. "He's getting better. He's getting better," she chanted as she pulled Koga up to dance with her.

******

After Yuuka had ministered to the human and his fever had begun to subside Koga told her to get some rest. He promised her that he'd alert her at the first sign of movement or deterioration in the young man's tenuous medical state. She insisted that she needed to monitor her patient, but Koga reminded her that he did know enough about doctoring to tell when a fever was increasing. After she went to bed Koga was again left with the unresponsive human.

The sun was beginning to rise when the wolf noticed that strands of silver were bleeding through the human's glossy black mane. Rapidly his hair was bleached a shining silver and very soon Koga was looking down at the very same hanyou he come to know and, well not love, but tolerate. No, that wasn't the right word either. Well anyway, Inuyasha was back to normal. The rest, Koga was sure, didn't bear thinking on.

Koga reached his hand out and placed it on the demon's forehead to see if the transformation had wrought any change in the fever the he was suffering with. And sure enough it had. The fever was gone. And what's more, at the touch of his hand Inuyasha's eyes began to blink open. Koga withdrew his hand and waited to see what the other would do. Inuyasha first looked around to room then turned to look at Koga. Quickly he tried to sit up. "You're injured," Koga said as he pressed the half demon back onto the bed with a hand on his chest.

"W..wh..why…" Inuyasha tried to rasp out end in a coughing fit. Koga quickly retrieved a glass of water and held the glass to the silver haired demon's lips as he drank. When the glass was empty Koga replaced it on the small table in the room's corner. Inuyasha looked at him steadily, appraising him with his eyes. "Why am I here?" the hanyou asked his voice scratchy from disuse.

"My men and I found you in the forest."

"Why did you bring me here?"

"What was I supposed to do? Let you die?" The half demon just stared at him flatly. "Would you have left me if I was in the state you were in?"

The demon sighed and relaxed against the futon. "No, I wouldn't. The village?" he suggested.

"Wouldn't help." The half demon just lay back and closed his eyes. "You're not surprised are you?" Koga asked with a hint of wonder in his voice.

"No," came the soft answer.

"Why not?" Koga asked softly.

"They didn't want me there."

"What did you do?" Koga reasoned that the hanyou must have done something, rumor had it that the village Kagome stayed at was quite take with the silver haired young demon. He must have done something seriously wrong to have the village's opinion of him change so rapidly. The half demon shrugged in response, then winced realizing that yes, he was injured and no, it wasn't a good idea to move around a lot. "That's not an answer," Koga growled.

"Kagome was mad at me," the demon whispered without any of the usual venom in his voice he normally used to address the wolf.

'Well, that's a start,' Koga thought. "Why was she mad at you?" The Alpha tried to keep the rising dread he was feeling out of his voice as he brought his former chosen into the conversation.

"She…" Inuyasha fell into another couching fit then paused to catch his breath, the fever had left him very weak and his wounds weren't healing well. "She was upset that I was killing the squirrel and rabbit demons in the forest."

Koga furrowed his brow in confusion. "They would have attacked the village once the winter set in, surely she must know that," he said.

"Tried to tell her…wouldn't listen," Inuyasha said as he drifted back to sleep.

"Inuyasha. Inuyasha, stay awake for just a moment more." Koga gently tapped the half demon's cheek to bring him around. "Did you see Kagome in the forest the night you were injured?" he asked in earnest. He had to know what really happened that night. For weeks he'd felt like he was being torn apart he needed to know what exactly Kagome had done.

"Yes," the demon breathed out sleepily.

"Were you injured when you saw her?" Again a sleepy affirmative was his answer. "And she left you out there," it was more of a statement than a question, but the hanyou answered it anyway.

"She didn't know…" the demon yawned sleepily, "…I was hurt. Too busy yelling…then she left." Inuyasha's eyes were closed and he was more than half-asleep.

"Why was she yelling?"

"Didn't go to Kaede's birthday party. The boar attacked…went there instead…left her present in her hut." The demon gave another sleepy yawn as he settled farther under the covers. "I wonder…if…if she…got…it…" Inuyasha trailed off, as his breathing became deep and even.

Koga rose and turned to walk out the door. As he opened the door he came face to face with Ginta, who looked very grave and solemn. "You heard." Ginta nodded. "Send out a message to the scouts. Kagome is banned from the territories surrounding the den. If she's seen in our outer territories she is not to be harmed, but she's not to be helped either."

Ginta nodded again then placed a hand on Koga's shoulder sympathetically before he turned and left to make the announcement to the Council.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Chapter Ten: The Awakening

The next time Inuyasha woke up he had only a vague recollection of speaking with Koga. He didn't recognize the room he was in. There was a window above his bed through which light filtered into the room. His back and muscles hurt, he tried to stretch in the bed to relieve the kinks in his back, but a sharp pain in his abdomen reminded him of that night in the forest. "Where am I?" he whispered.

"You're in the den of the wolf demons. More specifically you're a guest in Koga's home." A woman sitting on a cushion by the door said. "Oh, and my name's Yuuka in case you were wondering." The woman went back to sipping her tea calmly ignoring the hanyou.

"Who are you and what are you doing here?" Inuyasha said defensively sitting up in the bed wincing and clutching at his belly.

The demoness stood and walked over to the hanyou's bed. "Like I said my name's Yuuka and I'd appreciate it if you didn't ruin all the work I put into you by ripping those wounds open in your first five minutes of consciousness." Yuuka pressed a finger to Inuyasha's chest, using the applied pressure to prompt the hanyou to lay down.

"The work you put into me?"

Yuuka directed a slow wink down at the hanyou; "I'm the pack healer." She then gathered some pillows that were stowed in a nearby basket. "Here, if you feel well enough to sit up at least do it with these." The green eyed demoness brandished the pillows at the silver haired demon and began to prop him up in a sitting position by piling the pillows behind his back.

"Uh, thanks." Inuyasha said to the strange woman. "Um, can you tell me why I'm here?"

"Only if you promise to eat something," the demoness said sternly looking down at the hanyou with a disapproving look on her face. Inuyasha nodded his consent, completely at a loss for what this woman was up to. One moment she was flirting and the next she looked ready to throttle the hanyou. "Oh, goody!" the demoness jumped up and happily clapped her hands together before running out of the room giving Inuyasha a view of the hallway made completely of polished wood. He heard footsteps pounding down the hall and the demoness returned plopping a steaming bowl of soup down in his lap. "I'm so glad you're hungry. I was afraid that with the poison still in your blood you wouldn't want to eat. But, you do! And you're getting better and damn I do good work!" Inuyasha stared up at the perky demoness as she babbled away happily. When he caught her eye she blushed and looked down at the ground. "Sorry, I'm not usually like this, but I really didn't think that you were going to pull through." The wolf gave a crooked smile displaying her fangs; "I haven't had such a challenge in a long time."

"Okay, you were going to tell me why I'm here?" Inuyasha prompted.

"Are you eating, yet?" Inuyasha looked at the woman in disbelief and, deciding that arguing with such an obviously unbalanced person was futile, he picked up the spoon and began to eat his soup. After a few spoonfuls he looked at the woman hopefully, when she shook her head the half demon continued eating until he was very sure that his stomach couldn't hold another bite. Which was strange, considering that only half of the soup was gone. He made to put the bowl down on the floor. "It's not empty," the demoness pointed out.

"I'm full," Inuyasha replied.

Yuuka frowned, "I'd really feel better if you finished it all."

"Look, Lady," the half demon said with just a hint of irritation in his voice. "You don’t understand. I can’t eat anymore."

The demoness sighed, "I was afraid of that. Okay, we'll wait a little while then try again." Inuyasha looked at her pointedly. Yuuka sighed then launched into her story, "Koga brought you here, injured and more than half dead. I've been taking care of you ever since. Which has been for about nineteen days now."

"I've been sleeping for nineteen days?" the half demon asked in surprise his ears perking up and his pupils dilating in surprise.

"No." Yuuka came forward and placed a hand on Inuyasha's forehead to check for any sign of fever. "You'd been asleep for nearly two days when Koga came running up to my hut in a panic." Inuyasha sighed heavily in surprise. "It's a bit to take in, I know, but be glad he got you here as fast as he did. You wouldn't have lasted much longer without medical help. He ran for a day and a half to bring you here."

"He did that for me? Why?"

"Because you were hurt and needed help! Why else would he have brought you here?" Yuuka rolled her eyes in exasperation.

"But, I thought…he hated me." Inuyasha whispered in confusion.

"Listen to me, sweetie," the demoness placed a hand on Inuyasha's shoulder and said sociably. "I've known Koga for a long time. There are very few people in this world he hates and right now I don’t think that you're even in his top ten. If he has ten that is." The last part she mused to herself quietly before shaking her head and starting to pull the covers off of the hanyou.

"What do you think you're doing!" the hanyou shouted when he realized that he wasn't wearing anything under the blankets.

"It's time to check you're bandages." The half demon blushed and clutched the covers closer to his body. "I've been doing this daily you know. It's your own fault for getting injured there in the first place." When she got no response from the hanyou Yuuka asked, "Would you rather I wait until you fall asleep?"

"Okay, fine." The hanyou lay back and let the healer work. "Damn, this is embarrassing."

"Cry baby. It's nothing I haven't seen before. I am a healer after all," she said as she tenderly examined the swollen edges of flesh around the gaping wounds in the hanyou's belly and leg. The wounds hadn't been healing well because the half demon was giving everything he had to fighting off the poison. The wound on his belly had mostly closed, but the tear that went over his thigh and across his hip was still open on top of his thigh and where the boar's horn had struck the bone of Inuyasha's hip. Hopefully, now that the poison was almost entirely gone, they'd start to close a little farther than they already had before any sort of infection set in. The silver haired demon tried not to pay attention to what the healer was doing out of embarrassment, but after a particularly painful prod to his thigh he looked down and blanched when he saw the extent of his injuries. Yuuka tried to reassure the hanyou by lightening the mood; "Oh, it's not that bad. I'll be done soon then you can go back to being all modest again." Yuuka looked up at the hanyou mischievously. "Besides from where I sit you've got nothing to be ashamed about." Inuyasha yelped and blushed harder.

******

When Koga came home that night he first peered into Yuuka's room, looking for the demoness. Seeing that she wasn't there it wasn't difficult to guess where she was. Koga continued into the hall and stopped at Inuyasha's door for a moment, hearing two voices conversing inside the room, he opened the door. Yuuka was bundling up some used bandages and the hanyou was blushing and muttering to himself under his breath. Something about, "Perverted women." Koga looked at Yuuka questioningly. The demoness in question winked then waggled her eyebrows at Koga before leaving the two in the room together.

"Yuuka, I'd like to talk to you," Koga called.

"Later," she called impudently from down the hall. Koga watched the woman walk away from him marveling at her disobedience, especially in front of an outsider.

"I owe you," Inuyasha said.

"Hmmm," Koga muttered noncommittally.

"Why did you bring me here?"

"I thought we went over this," Koga sighed and dropped down to sit cross-legged on the floor. Inuyasha looked at Koga puzzled. "After you pulled your little hair color changing trick."

The hanyou paled, "My what?"

"Your hair turned black, you turned into a human, and kept Yuuka and I up half the night because you couldn't fight off the poison in that body. Ring any bells?" The hanyou opened his mouth to speak then shut it and gaped at the other demon, eyes wide. Guessing the direction of the half demon's thoughts, he tried to reassure him of his safety if nothing else. "Only Yuuka and I know and I ordered her not to say anything," Inuyasha just looked up at him. "I won't say anything either."

"Why?"

In Koga's opinion the demon was just being dense. "Do you have any idea what easy prey you are like that?" The hanyou nodded mutely. Koga sighed; the other demon was acting strangely. For one thing he hadn't insulted Koga since he came into the room and for another he was unusually subdued. It might have been from the long illness the hanyou had suffered, but Koga had encountered Inuyasha when he was wounded before and didn't believe that the half demon would act so restrained even under these circumstances. There was something else going on. "It's happened before?" there was no answer. "Often?"

"Every month," came the quiet reply. Now Koga knew that something was wrong. No one would give that kind of information away. Weaknesses were strictly guarded even amongst good friends. Koga crawled over to look the half demon in the eyes. "What?"

"You're acting funny."

"I don't feel well," the hanyou sighed and laid back down on the futon, purposely toppling the mountain of pillows that'd been holding him up.

"I'll get Yuuka then," Koga said rising.

"No!" Inuyasha sat up in the bed his hand shooting up to grasp Koga's shirt preventing him from leaving the room. Koga began to blush when he saw that Inuyasha's sudden movement had caused the blankets to settle low on the demons hips. Koga noted that lying immobile in a bed all that time hadn't done any noticeable damage to the half demon's washboard abs. Inuyasha wrapped an arm around his stomach obstructing Koga's view. "Oww."

"You shouldn't do that. Yuuka will have my head if I let you reopen those wounds."

"I thought you were in charge around here," Inuyasha panted through the pain as Koga helped him lay back on the bed and covered him with the blanket.

"Trust me you don't want to deal with Yuuka when she's pissed off."

The half demon gave a weak laugh. "She's nutty I'll give you that."

Koga smiled back at the demon, thinking of his friend's antics. Either Inuyasha was unusually observant or Yuuka must have been in one of her moods when the half demon awoke. "Get some rest," Koga patted the silver haired demon's shoulder.

"Koga?" Inuyasha said.

The wolf looked down at the Inuyoukai laying on the futon. His hair was fanned out across the pillow he was laying on and it shone silver in the torchlight far brighter than his human hair had. His golden yellow eyes reflected the light and he held his lips slightly parted allowing just the barest glimpse of pearly white fangs. Yet another blush stained Koga's cheeks as he tried to reign in his slightly less that pure thoughts. "Yes?"

"Thank you."

The wolf rose from his position next to the hanyou and turned to the door. Before he shut the door behind him though he looked down into the half demon's shining gold eyes. "Not necessary."

******

Koga silently padded down the hall to his room. As the Alpha Koga was given the old leader's hut and a ridiculously over sized bedroom. Koga who grew up sleeping on the ground curled up against his parent's fur still had trouble adjusting to the disturbing softness of the raised futon in his room. When he first became Alpha, Hakkaku used to tease him for sleeping on the ground next to the bed rather than in it. One time he made the mistake of complaining that the bed was too soft to sleep on so that night while he was asleep, on the ground, Ginta and Hakkaku covered his bed with rocks and moved Koga on top of them. Koga woke up feeling like he'd gone ten rounds with Makoto and lost. He still missed sleeping in the caves. Most of the wolves had homes, but the pack members would often sleep inside the caves in a pile of bodies. The only time Koga got to do that was when the winters got so fierce that he could claim the cold as a reason to sleep with his pack.

Eventually Koga had grown used to the "fluffy" furniture in his home. As he sat down on the bed he heard Yuuka walking over to him. "You wanted to see me."

"I need you to talk to a group of Kitsune near the southern border."

"When?"

"Whenever you think you can leave Inuyasha."

"It's pretty much just changing bandages and training his stomach to eat again at this point. You can do that, provided he doesn't do anything stupid to reopen those wounds." Yuuka stretched and lay back on the bed letting her legs dangle over the side. Koga looked down at her then laid on his back next to her.

"You're sure that it's safe to leave him so soon?" Koga wrapped his arms around the woman and snuggled up against her.

Yuuka stroked the Alpha's head as she replied. "I'll wait a few days to make sure that he's on the mend. I'll leave you some instructions on how to care for him, but I won't leave unless you or Ginta takes over for me. No one else here has any sort of medical training."

"I'll do it." Koga closed his eyes and rested his head on Yuuka's chest.

"Don't get too attached, Koga." Koga blinked his eyes open and looked up at Yuuka questioningly. "I just worry about you. You know that." Koga dropped his head back down and listened to Yuuka's heartbeat. "Why do you need me to talk to them?"

"They're encroaching on our borders. Ask them to leave or tell them that the human village we host will allow them to live with them."

"How did you manage that?"

The Alpha snorted in amusement, "I was surprised myself, but the human men were especially excited about the idea."

Yuuka laughed to herself, "Figures. Why me though?"

"I don't want anyone unattached on the mission. I'd send Hakkaku, but he's still in the mountains visiting his brother, I don't want to cut his vacation short. Other than that Ginta isn't mated and I don't trust any of the others not to start a battle over territory." Koga started to fall to sleep.

"Good point. Most of them are rather hot headed," Yuuka said beginning to run her fingers through Koga's hair.

"Yuuka."

"Yes?"

"Stay here tonight?" Koga asked.

"And sleep on this monstrously squishy thing?" Yuuka feigned outrage at the idea.

Koga started to laugh which sounded like a deep chuckle in his chest, almost a growl. "Please?"

"Oh, alright! You big puppy you."

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Chapter Eleven: A Wealth of Meaning is Found in the Smallest Touch

Four days after the hanyou woke up Yuuka left with a small company of wolves for the southern border. Koga hoped that they would return soon, he was very nervous about sending his pack's only healer out into the wild for an indeterminate amount of time. He and Ginta were fairly competent in basic first aid, but if anything more serious were to occur, Koga didn't even want to think about it. After Yuuka returned he decided he would order her to take an apprentice. The pack couldn't go on with only one healer, Koga saw that now. He'd never thought about it before, but too much was riding on Yuuka. Koga couldn't personally imagine the pack without the demoness as its healer, but it could happen and for the safety of the pack Yuuka had to share her skills.

The Council upon hearing of Kagome's banishment and the implied disavowal of intentions on Koga's part, decided to suspend all but the most necessary of deliberations for a period of seven days to give Koga some time to cope with the situation. Koga for his part was very upset though he didn't show it. He had been infatuated with the dark haired Miko for so long that it was hard to forget her. Also he got the feeling that the Council wouldn't wait very long before demanding that he find a new woman. The mini-vacation they'd given him was as far as they were willing to go to accommodate their lovesick leader.

However, there was a sense of relief that came with giving up on Kagome. The Alpha couldn't imagine being bound for all eternity to a woman so hard hearted. And though Kagome was powerful and she would have made the pack much stronger, the children they had together would age and die, perhaps even before Koga himself died. He knew that had he mated with her he would have lost her in a mere handful of decades. It would be inordinately painful to live without his mate. Many wolves wasted away and died when their mates departed this earth, those that lived were never the same afterward. Yuuka was a prime example, her slightly bipolar behavior and mood swings started as a direct result of her mate's death. At first the pack wondered if she would fall into complete insanity, but as a testament to her great personal strength she only became mildly unstable. She would jump up and down happily then start to cry because she was so happy without knowing why and do funny things like that. She wasn't dangerous to herself or to anyone else and she was an enormously skilled healer and negotiator so when the pack saw that her symptoms didn't affect her work they let her be. Koga had a strong will and he knew that he could live on after his mate had died, but he didn't think he would cope well with his cubs dying. Especially if he had to watch them waste away with age, weaken, and eventually die while he remained young and strong.

Yuuka left on her trip on the fifth day of the Council's recess and so Koga cared for the hanyou for the first two days after that. On the third day he checked on the hanyou early in the morning then went to the Council chamber. He would come home when the Council broke for the midday meal and lunch with the hanyou until he needed to return. Then he would join the young warriors on the training field until the Council reconvened in the evening. After that they discussed new business until just after nightfall. Koga hated the winter. There was nothing for him to do so his Councilors took up all his time with discussions. Koga was very much a person of action. He hated sitting still all-day and going over unimportant minutia again and again and again. Koga actually began to look forward to the quiet of his home.

Inuyasha was unusually subdued. He didn't talk very much, only answered questions when spoken to or thanked the wolf for a meal or his help. He didn't fight with Koga when the wolf dictated his day to him. Eventually Koga became sure that the root of the half demon's listlessness lie with Kagome. Koga himself was depressed and quiet. Seeing his symptoms mirrored and intensified in the hanyou he could imagine the feelings of betrayal that the half demon was dealing with. He wondered if he would act the way Inuyasha was if the woman that he'd loved had left him to die. He decided to give the demon time and as he sat with the quiet young half demon and took his meals or prepared medicines to help the hanyou heal he felt the animosity he had toward the other slowly dissolving. In all the time he'd been in his home Inuyasha was a polite and courteous guest. He didn't want to be a burden on the wolf demon and when he told Koga so, Koga couldn't believe his ears. The hanyou was a very different person and Koga was sure that that wasn't a good thing.

After much thought Koga came to the conclusion that the hanyou was much too passive and he wouldn't stand for that. He'd admired the hot headed half demon that'd refused to ever give up no matter how wounded he was or how ill advised the fight. He did not like this shell he had in his home. So Koga set out to deliberately irritate the hanyou until he got a response. He rationalized his interest in the demon's well being as a way to alleviate the unceasing boredom the winter months imposed on him. First he tried referring to the demon by the old titles he'd used, "mutt," "half-dog," and others. It became apparent though that name-calling didn't work. Inuyasha would ignore it or, startlingly enough, ask him why he was calling him that. He never asked him to stop or reciprocated in kind. Koga really couldn't restrict the hanyou's freedoms as Inuyasha was already confined to a bed by his wounds. However, the wolf tried various other methods of irritating the hanyou to get a response, leaving his food just out of reach, being unnecessarily rough when changing his bandages and such. He didn't do anything that would set back the half demon's progress though; after all he was trying to help him. Nothing worked. Finally he tried an unusual tactic. He completely stopped talking to the half demon, he didn't insult him or respond to questions and he refused to be engaged in any sort of conversation. Inuyasha was surprised, but let it go for several days. Eventually Koga noted that Inuyasha would turn toward him as if he were about to speak then change his mind and stay silent.

One day Koga was really angry. Yuuka had sent a message saying that she was going to be gone for another month at the least and the Council members had gone so far as to present Koga with a list of names of unmated young women. It was insulting. They gave him a list of names to pick his life mate and the mother of his children from as if he were signing a treaty or ordering goods from a distant distributor. It was so impersonal and cold-blooded that Koga had gotten up and left the room so that he'd calm down before he hurt them all. Eventually Ginta had come outside and pulled him on a walk through the inner territories to calm him down. When Koga had come home he was irritated with everything, especially the quiet hanyou. Inuyasha was sitting up in bed looking out the window when Koga walked into the room. One of the first things he'd done after he woke up was demand the return of his clothes. So the half demon was decent when the wolf walked into the room. Koga dropped a plate of food on the ground next to the Inuyoukai then roughly began to pull medicines and bandages out of a sack in the room's corner. Koga wasn't conscious of it, but he was lowly growling.

Inuyasha heard the deep growl coming from the wolf demon and at first chose to ignore it. But it was very irritating! The wolf was being a complete bastard and Inuyasha was starting to get pissed off at the demon. Finally he just couldn't take it anymore. "What the hell is your problem, Koga?" he snapped, barring his fangs at the Alpha.

Koga looked up; "Well it's about damned time!"

"What are you talking about wolf-boy?"

"You've been sulking around for long enough! You need to get over it."

"Get over what?" Inuyasha growled dangerously, his ears lying flat against his head.

"Whatever is making you act like a shadow. Get over it. Deal with it. And quit it because it's pissing me off!"

"Deal with it like you're dealing with whatever's making you act like a compete jackass right now?!" the hanyou snarled.

"Don’t compare your problems to mine." Koga ground out.

"And what, is this horrific problem?" the hanyou asked sarcastically.

Koga began to stuff the extra bandages into the satchel with excessive force. "They gave me a list of names to pick my mate from today."

"I though you were going to mate with Kagome?" The half demon asked puzzled.

"What?" Koga asked in surprise, puzzled for a moment before he realized that no one had told the hanyou what was happening yet. "I mean, yes, I was." Koga glared at the demon. "I thought you wanted Kagome."

Inuyasha crossed his arms over his chest and turned his head to the side. "Feh. I didn’t say I thought you were ever gonna get her just that you thought you were. I'm glad you finally came to your senses and gave up 'cause you were never gonna win her over."

"And I suppose that you had a better chance than I did, puppy?" Koga spat.

"Right, Koga," the hanyou said with sarcasm dripping from his voice. "That was gonna happen." Inuyasha turned back toward the puzzled wolf demon and elaborated, "She's seeing some human back 'home.' You never had a chance wolf-boy," Inuyasha smirked at the Alpha.

Koga clenched and unclenched his fists in anger at the thought of his woman seeing another man while his claim was on her. "Did you?"

"Did I what?"

"Have a chance with her."

"Oh get real, Koga. No one wants a hanyou so stop rubbing it in." Inuyasha glared at the wolf, growling low in his throat, until the Alpha stood and left the room.

Outside, standing alone in the hallway, Koga leaned up against the wall and thought, 'Kagome, what did you do?'

******

"Koga, please!" Inuyasha begged.

"Absolutely not!"

"But I'm soooo bored. Just five minutes."

"Yuuka's going to kill me for this," the wolf moaned before he walked over to the bed and helped the hanyou up. "Five minutes and then we're coming back inside."

"Five minutes, I swear." Inuyasha promised. Leaning heavily on the wolf demon Inuyasha walked out of the house and into the open air for the first time in over a month. When the two got to the house's perimeter Koga sat Inuyasha down on a tree stump and kept him company while the hanyou enjoyed the afternoon sunlight. Inuyasha was very glad to be outside. He'd never had to wait so long to heal from anything ever and this slow recovery was torture to the hanyou. Although, by all rights, he should have died from the demon's venom so he supposed that he didn't really have a right to complain, that didn't meant he wouldn't though. His damned human blood was slowing his demon blood from fighting the boar's poison. It made him feel weak and nauseous and because of that he wasn't eating enough. And because he wasn't eating enough his body was healing slower than it should. If he transformed into his full demon form he'd probably heal in no time, but then he'd go on an insane rampage and start killing the wolves in the den. He'd keep killing until they killed him or there was no one left alive, of course in that case he'd just travel down into the valley and continue his murderous rampage until something killed him or he died of exhaustion. So obviously that option was out.

The half demon directed his gaze to the wolf standing a few paces from him. Koga was staring off to the cliffs bordering the den, the midday guard change was happening and the demon was monitoring his men as they went about their duties. Koga was confusing. Inuyasha couldn't figure him out. Whenever they'd met before the demon had seemed arrogant and hostile in a way that grated the hanyou's nerves. It hadn't helped that the wolf had started harping on his human heritage almost the moment they'd met. Inuyasha was sensitive about his hybrid status. It was, after all, the main reason for the majority of the suffering he'd endured in his life, which was by no means in short supply. The wolf reminded him of his brother, in some ways. Sesshomaru, his only family in all the world, who didn't think he was worth the air that he breathed simply because he had a human mother. That wasn't his fault! He'd had nothing to do with that. Did he deserve to be punished because he'd been the result of a liaison between his father and the youngest daughter of a human lord? It didn't seem right. It didn't seem fair! And Inuyasha hated that the whole world seemed to be in agreement with his estranged brother. Humans everywhere treated him like a lower demon and as a child, after his mother had passed, he been the subject of more than one hunt to rid the world of the abomination he represented. Demons wanted to kill him, if not for the simple pleasure of it, then to purify his father's bloodline. Inuyasha didn’t think he could endure being exterminated for any of these reasons. There were demons waiting in the rafters, figuratively speaking, to swoop down and kill him in a moment of weakness if they could just get their hands on him. That was the reason he guarded his secrets, the weaknesses that his human blood imbued him with, so well. Inuyasha had always assumed that Koga was a member of that group. The only comfort he derived from the thought of dying by the wolf's hand was that Koga would not kill him because he was a half demon. No, the wolf would end his life, and claim Kagome as his prize. There was no shame in that sort of death and to be allowed to die with dignity, as the demon that he was, was a privilege not usually given to hanyous. But Koga had not tried to kill him, though he'd repetitively had the opportunity and the means to do so.

Inuyasha observed Koga. The wolf was in a better humor than yesterday. He wondered what had made the demon so angry to begin with. Not that he cared about the wolf's feelings, he reminded himself. He was just curious and had nothing better to do. "Koga?" the silver haired demon called. When he got no response from the wolf he tried again, "Koga? Hey, Koga?" Inuyasha reached forward and tugged on the wolf demon's tail to get his attention.

Koga violently jumped away from the half demon with a shout and whirled around to face him attracting the attention of several wolves who'd been passing by. "What'd you do that for!?"

"Oh my god! It's real!" Inuyasha began to laugh hysterically clutching his sides and panting for breath through paroxysms of laughter.

"Of course it's real! What did you think it was?!" Koga yelled at the hanyou cradling his abused tail in his hands.

"I thought…I thought it was part of your costume," Inuyasha said gasping for breath with tears streaming down his cheeks.

"Why would you think that?" Koga asked scathingly while trying to groom his fur back into the right direction.

Inuyasha gasped for air as he slowly stopped laughing. "None of the other wolf demon's have them."

"I'm a first generation wolf demon."

"Pardon?"

"My parents were wolves, I'm a wolf demon."

"So you have a tail?"

"What's wrong with my tail?" Koga asked defensively. He liked his tail; it wasn't too long or too short, it was a nice color, and he always kept his fur neatly groomed and tidy.

"Nothing. It's sorta cute actually," the demon looked up eyes wide and a light blush staining his cheeks. He couldn't believe he'd just said that. "If you're into that sort of thing that is," Inuyasha turned his head to the side and studied a tree growing near the front door.

Koga blinked in surprise. He scratched the back of his head in confusion and cast about awkwardly. "Right. Let's go back inside." Koga got no complaint from the silver haired man as he led him back to his sick bed.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Chapter Twelve: See Clearly, But For the Dark

After that first day the pair established a system. Inuyasha knew that he was too ill to go off on his own so he would wait for Koga to come home in the afternoons and they would go for a very short walk before Koga had to get back to ruling his pack. They would go to the tree stump outside Koga's front door or, when the hanyou was feeling a little better, they would walk down to a nearby grouping of boulders overlooking a cliff edge. They never ranged far afield, but Inuyasha was happy to be outside and was increasingly frustrated with his prolonged convalescence. Koga eventually got the silver haired young man to open up to him and tell him about his last few months in Kaede's village. There were a lot of issues that the demon had to work through. His friends turning on him had been the final offense in a long chain of insults and casual disregard from his family and the world in general that had convinced the hanyou to give up utterly and completely.

It was amazing what a change of environment can do though. Not having to deal with the humans who'd betrayed him and being around the wolf demon tribe was slowly bringing the hanyou out of the depression he'd fallen into. Seeing that Inuyasha was cheering their leader up and still being grateful for his help in defeating the Birds of Paradise the wolf demons made it a point to make the hanyou feel welcome in the den. Ginta and Inuyasha became especially close after Ginta offered to lend the hanyou some books, to help alleviate the hanyou's boredom while he was confined to bed. After Inuyasha finished one of the books the two would talk about it and Inuyasha slowly began to trust Ginta. Really, what else did he have to do? It was just nice to have another person to talk to, not that Koga wasn't around, but lately he felt uncomfortable around the wolf, he wasn't sure why. Koga had been a rival and an enemy so long that he had an easier time opening up to Ginta, who had been fairly neutral in every confrontation the half demon had had with the wolf. Inuyasha had nothing against Ginta, he seemed like a decent warrior and an all around good guy. He was honest at least, as far as Inuyasha could tell anyway. The silver haired demon eventually began to ask Ginta about the wolf demon tribe.

Koga, for his part, was glad to hear of it. It was encouraging, seeing the half demon take an interest in something rather than just waiting in bed to get well or for someone to tell him to leave. Koga suspected that the hanyou was wary of all the help he was receiving and was waiting for the other shoe to drop, so to speak. His conversations with Ginta were also the way that he came to understand the pressure that Koga was under to preserve the rapidly decreasing wolf tribe. Lone wolves were arriving everyday asking to join the last pack that remained. But even these new arrivals couldn't offset the number of wolves lost in demon attacks and to Naraku's minions. Too few cubs were being born these days and every mated wolf was under pressure to produce children. Since it was not the nature of wolves to mate for any other reason that love the Council would never dream of encouraging mating within the tribe, but the urgency they felt for their situation transformed itself into pressure upon the one wolf who could be coerced into mating. The Council pursued the naming of Koga's next chosen with all the fervor of a pack of zealots.

Inuyasha was sympathetic, he understood what it felt like to be forced to do things you didn't like, and soon Koga found that they got on rather well together. The inuyoukai was able to provide another perspective on the wolf's problems. An opinion that was especially valuable because Inuyasha had no political agenda that he was trying to encourage Koga to follow. He gave astute unbiased advice that often time's was not feasible, no matter how much Koga liked the sound of it. An example that Koga especially liked was to walk into the Council chamber and stuff the scroll of names down the throat of the first Councilor he saw. Fun? Yes. Satisfying? Yes. Politically suicidal? Yes. But it was fun to think about doing it anyway.

Eventually the two became close enough to be comfortably called friends. The half demon was nearly back to his old sarcastic, moody self, but Inuyasha did retain the easy way of making friends that he'd gained over the last few months. Koga began to hurry home every day to take the hanyou on a walk. Once when Koga was unable to get away for the midday meal he asked Ginta to help Inuyasha take a short walk, to which he readily agreed, but Ginta returned not ten minutes after leaving. Koga cast a questioning look at Ginta when he entered the room. Ginta shrugged noncommittally and took his place on the chamber floor next to Alpha. When the Council meeting was over Koga asked Ginta what had happened to make him return so early.

"He wanted to wait for you," Ginta said.

"What?"

"He said that he wanted to wait for you."

Koga walked home that night trying to figure out what that meant. He did enjoy being with the half demon; maybe Inuyasha wasn't just in it for the fresh air either. It was late, but Koga was determined to take Inuyasha out if he was up to it, the stars were especially bright tonight. Koga looked up into the night sky as he walked to his den. He had the strangest feeling that he was forgetting something. When he got home Koga went to Inuyasha's room. The Alpha wolf felt a slight pang of disappointment when he saw that there was no light coming from the hanyou's bedchamber. Inuyasha must have gone to sleep early. Deciding to get something to eat before turning in for the night, Koga padded down the hall to the cooking area and made himself a small dinner before walking to his own room. When he got into the room he lit the oil lamp by his bedside with a candle he'd brought from the kitchen.

"Took you long enough," said a voice coming from the middle of the bed. Koga whirled around his hand going to the hilt of his sword. "You must be tired. You're reaction time's crap today," Inuyasha observed from his position sitting up in the middle of the bed, wounded leg stretched out in front of him, arms folded across his chest.

Koga stared at the human sitting in the middle of his bed. "I forgot," he said.

"I figured as much when you didn't come home this afternoon."

"Did you walk in here by yourself?" Koga asked.

"Yeah," the human gave a crooked smile as if he was amused by some private joke. "I thought it would be weird to ask Ginta to drop me off in your bedroom and all. Might give him ideas."

Koga sighed, "Let me see your leg." Inuyasha shifted the wounded limb toward the wolf and pulled his pants down just enough to display the bandages, but not low enough to damage his dignity. The normally white gauze had a rusty red stain on his upper thigh. Koga moaned when he imagined what Yuuka would have to say to him when she got back.

"I know. We're both dead men. Who do you think she'll kill first you or me?"

"Me. Definitely," Koga said as he began to unwrap the bandages. "She'll wait for you to get better before she kills you."

"Quick death?" Inuyasha asked as he watched the demon wash his wounds from a bowl of water on his nightstand and replace the bandages on his leg with fresh gauze and linen.

Koga snorted, "You wish. Actually, I wish." The wolf demon paused a moment before asking, "Why did you come in here?"

"I didn't think anyone would barge into your room without you being here."

"How did you know that this was my room?" Koga asked, gently smoothing the linen over the top and inside of the human's creamy white thigh. He tried to concentrate on what he was doing and not the soft and silky skin beneath his fingers that radiated such delicious warmth. Had he ever felt anything so warm and yielding, Koga wondered. Beneath the satiny skin were powerful muscles, that offered a hard resistance, barley felt by a delicate touch. The dichotomy of the limb was fascinating to the Alpha and he was momentarily startled when the other male answered his recent, but long forgotten question.

"Your scent's all over this room," Inuyasha cocked his head to the side as he watched Koga tie off the end of the new bandage, wondering if the light blush that covered the wolf's cheeks was actually there or simply a trick of the dark on his weaker human eyes. Inuyasha, not for the first time, cursed his human blood. He couldn't trust his eyes, but wouldn't it become interesting if the wolf really were blushing?

Koga reluctantly drew his hands from the dark haired human, his task completed. "I always thought humans couldn't smell very well," he said casually trying to cover his embarrassment, thoroughly confused by the emotions the half demon brought out in him.

"Can barely smell anything."

"Then how…"

The hanyou interrupted the wolf and said, "I've been in here since Ginta left."

"Then you must be hungry. I'll be right back." Koga took his candle and went back into the kitchen to make the hanyou a plate. He quickly selected the choicest bits of meat from the roast deer he'd just finished feasting on himself. As an after thought he grabbed a loaf of sweet bread that Hakakku's mate had made especially for him, knowing how much he liked her sweet breads and wanting to cheer him up from all the current unpleasantness he'd been dealing with in Council.

"Thank you," Inuyasha said when he received the plate filled with food from Koga.

"Can I ask you a question?"

"Sure," the human said around a mouthful of roast deer.

"Why didn't you go out with Ginta today?" The dark haired human mumbled something under his breath in response. "What?"

"I said that I wanted to go with you," the human glared at the other side of the room.

"Oh," Koga was stunned. The hanyou wanted him there?

"Hmmm," the hanyou shrugged and went back to eating his dinner. "Sit down."

"What?" Koga asked still trying to process the events of the last few minutes.

"Don't just stand there like an idiot. Sit down," Inuyasha gave a careless wave toward the empty space on the bed next to him. Not knowing what else to do Koga sat next to the dark haired man. He watched the human eat from a few moments, suddenly feeling very awkward. Nervously the Alpha wolf stretched his legs out and settled his back against the bed's headboard. Trying to act as if he didn't notice the wolf fidgeting next to him, Inuyasha finished his meal and reached over to place the plate on the nightstand opposite him. Then he took a deep breath as if he were bracing himself for something and leaned back until he was lying full against Koga, resting his head on the wolf's chest. Koga waited a few moments, hardly daring to breath, before he slowly lifted his arms to encircle the dark haired man's waist, being careful of the human's injuries. They stayed that way until the sun rose and the young demon lord's hair bleached silver and his eyes returned to their golden yellow color.

When the sun had risen full in the window, Koga looked down to see that Inuyasha had fallen asleep sometime during the night. Carefully he lifted the demon into his arms and carried him back to his room. He checked the bandages on the demon's leg and left a basket of food for the hanyou when he awoke before going to the river for a quick bath. It wouldn't do to walk into the Council chamber smelling of Inuyasha and humans, especially with all the fuss over his next chosen. If the Councilors even thought he was looking at a male demon there'd be hell to pay.

******

That afternoon when Koga arrived home he saw that the half demon hadn’t woken yet and the basket of food remained untouched. Feeling the hanyou's forehead he swore when he realized that the half demon was running a temperature. Immediately checking the reopened wound Koga saw that the bandage was stained with blood and the flesh around the wound was red and swollen. Some swelling was normal as the body tried to heal, but this was too much. Koga didn't need Yuuka to tell him that an infection was setting in. There was also what looked like a bruise forming on the hanyou's thigh. Koga wondered if the silver haired demon had fallen on his way to his room last night, which would certainly have reopened the wound.

"Koga?" a weak voice called.

"I'm here," he moved up to where he could meet the hanyou's eyes.

The hanyou smiled up at the wolf and asked, "Bad?"

"No, just needs some medicine and you'll be fine," the wolf reassured the hanyou.

"M'kay," Inuyasha sighed and closed his eyes again. Soon his breathing became deep and even.

"Damn it," Koga swore quietly before setting off to find Ginta. He found his second in command sparring with a youth on the training field. "Ginta!" Koga called as he ran up to the wolf.

"What's wrong Koga?" the soft-spoken young demon asked.

"Inuyasha's running a fever and one of his wounds has reopened."

"I'll get what I need from Yuuka's hut and meet you there," with that Ginta sped off the training fields.

Koga watched him go before directing his gaze at the young wolf Ginta had been training with, "Go to the Council chamber. Tell the Councilors that the evening meeting has been canceled."

"Right away, sir," the young demon sped off to relay the message to the elders. Koga watched him go before running at full speed back to his home. Ginta arrived moments later and began treating the hanyou's injury.

Ginta did the best he could, but as the hours passed Inuyasha's fever grew higher, the bruise on his leg darkened, and the wound became obviously infected. The wolves could smell the odor of spoilage that accompanied such infections reeking from the wounded demon's leg. After scarcely a day and a half Ginta came to Koga and told him that the infection was beyond his skill to heal. Koga agonized for a couple hours over what to do, but at last he decided to bring the high priestess Kaede to the den. She was the most skilled healer in the area and if her got her himself he could have her here in less than four days. That was too long though, he reasoned. Inuyasha might not last so long. Eventually Koga remembered that there was a group of hawks to the north that owed him a favor, he'd been hoping to call that favor in on securing trade routes through their territory. It would greatly benefit the pack, but if he sent one of his men to retrieve the priestess the hawk could have them both back before nightfall. There was really no other way to help the hanyou. And Koga didn't want the demon to die.

The mere thought of it sent chills down his spine and his instincts told him that it wasn't right. He felt that he should do everything in his power to help the demon. The Alpha was confused. Why should he feel such loyalty to the hanyou? Inuyasha was not a member of his pack. Yes, at first Koga felt he had a responsibility to the silver haired demon because it was his woman that had put the demon's life in peril. But, Kagome wasn't his woman anymore, was she? And even if she were his responsibility for her actions only went so far. He'd repaid his debt, hadn't he? Yes, he knew he had. Why then should he bother with the hanyou? What benefit to the pack was there in saving this demon's life? The trade route would bring them wealth, comfort, and weapons to ensure their safety in these dangerous times. He should honor his pack and strive only for their betterment, but he didn't want the demon to die. It was unbearable. The hawks, Koga thought, it was worth a try.

After some haggling, Koga arranged passage for one wolf and the priestess with the hawk leader. The Alpha wolf sent Hakkaku with the demon bird to bring the old woman back to the den. Now all he could to do was wait. And standing on that mountaintop, watching as the powerful bird lifted into the sky, he knew that he performed the first selfish thing he'd ever done in his reign over his people. Was he any better than the old wolf he'd deposed, he wondered. At that moment he truly didn't know.

******

The high priestess Kaede was saying goodbye to the children she tutored in their letters when she felt a strange presence in the air. The old woman walked out into the field that surrounded her house in time to see a giant bird fly overhead. As the bird began to circle over head she saw Kagome, Sango, and Miroku run up to stand between her and the landing demon. As soon as the animal touched ground a wolf demon leapt from its back and ran to kneel in front of the old woman.

"Priestess Kaede, the Wolf Demon Tribe of the East, humbly asks your assistance. Your skill as a healer is known throughout the land. We humbly ask you to ply your trade, a demon in our pack is fatally ill and our healer is unable to aid him. Koga, Alpha male of the Eastern tribe, requests that you come immediately to our den and minister the fallen demon. He guarantees your safe travel to and back from the den and promises to reward you richly for your help," the wolf demon finished his rather formal speech and waited for the Lady's response.

"Koga, seriously?" Kagome asked.

"A most strange request," the monk mused as he studied the kneeling demon.

"Yes. I've never heard of a wolf demon asking a human for help," Sango agreed.

"But guys, its Koga," Kagome said. "Of course he'd ask for our help. He's our friend."

"I don't know Kagome..." Miroku began to say.

"Enough!" the priestess Kaede cut off the human's deliberation. "I will go with you to tend your friend."

"Really? You will?" the demon looked up hopefully, momentarily forgetting the formalities. "Thank you, Lady. We're all very worried about him."

"I'm sure you are. Now come young man," the priestess waved for the demon to rise and follow her. "I must gather my things and you must tell me what ails this demon you speak of."

Hakkaku swiftly began to follow the woman back to her hut detailing the symptoms of Inuyasha's illness. The old woman gathered her things into a small satchel and donned the cloak Inuyasha had made for her to protect her from the chill of the long flight. She wondered how the hanyou was. She'd never gotten to thank him for this lovely cloak. A few days after the party Kagome had confessed to fighting with the hanyou that night. Everyone assumed that the argument drove the demon off, but he'd never been gone so long before. It was now nearing seven weeks since the hanyou had left the village. They all wanted him to come back soon. It seems that some things are most sorely missed when they are gone.

When the old woman was seated onto the hawk, Miroku, Sango, and Kagome ran up with their traveling things. "We're going with you, Kaede," Kagome smiled up at the old woman.

"My orders are to bring back no one other than the priestess," Hakkaku said. He hoped this wouldn’t be a problem, Koga said it might. And he'd be damned to the lowest circle of hell before he brought that traitorous human bitch within ten miles of the hanyou while he was injured.

"What? Why?" Kagome asked puzzled.

"The hawk can not carry that much weight and no one but the priestess is invited into the den," Hakkaku explained as respectfully as he could, keeping his anger so firmly in check that he could feel the bile rising in his throat. It sickened him to have to deal with this woman; he would love to pay her back for everything she'd done to Inuyasha and to Koga. However, Hakkaku was observant enough to realize that hurling recriminations at the human was not the fastest way to bring the priestess to the den and therefore would not aid his friend. There was very little time to loose and aside from all that it was not his place to deal with the Miko. Koga would or Inuyasha, when they got around to it. It wasn't his place to interfere in their affairs.

"Wolves are very secretive about their lairs," Sango said.

"What if just I went? I'm sure the hawk could carry me and Koga won't mind if I come for a visit," Kagome asked.

"Lady Kagome you are banned from the den of the wolf demons and Koga has revoked his claim on you. You are not welcome in our lands and for your own safety I suggest you stay away. Koga has ordered that you are not to be harmed, but there are plenty of wolves angry enough with you to temporarily forget his orders." Hakkaku tried to maintain control over his voice, but he knew he was unsuccessful when the last part came out as a low growl in the back of his throat.

"Is that a threat?" Miroku stepped forward.

"No, I am merely warning the Lady so that nothing bad will happen to her." Hakkaku turned to the priestess and took several deep breaths before continuing, "Please, Lady. He hangs between life and death. Might we go?"

"Yes. But I expect some answers from your leader when we arrive." The wolf nodded and jumped onto the hawk's back, making ready to take off.

"Wait! Why has Koga banned me from his lands?" Kagome yelled.

"You should know that already," Hakkaku snarled and kicked the hawk into flight.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Chapter Thirteen: The Birth of a Legend

When the demon bird landed Koga ran forward and helped the aged priestess from her perch on the hawk's back. When the woman was safely on the ground and all her things had been retrieved Koga addressed the hawk, "Send my thanks to your King. Tell him the debt between us is repaid." With a bow of its regal head the hawk agreed to relay the message and took flight toward its nest. The hawk lifted to the air and circled once over the wolves and human woman before ascending above the clouds and disappearing from sight.

"Lady, thank you for making the journey," Koga began.

"I've come to minister to your friend Koga, but I will require answers from ye," Kaede said to the wolf.

"Answers?" the wolf said flatly, displeased with the woman's manner and the time they were wasting.

"Why have ye banned Kagome from these lands?" the priestess asked, her voice strong and passionate, filled with concern for the young girl who'd become as dear to her as her sister had ever been and as loved by her as though she were the woman's only child. "I thought ye loved the child," Kaede pressed, the gaze of her single eye boring into the wolf with such intensity that a lesser man would have ducked his head and turned from her. But Koga was tired. He was worried, he hadn't slept in a little over two days and at the moment Kagome was a problem that didn't bear thinking on. There were much larger matters at hand and the wolf felt that there was only so much sympathy he had to give, right now he had no emotion to spare for the old woman or her apprentice.

Koga looked tiredly at the priestess and motioned for her to walk with him. "I can not mate with someone who has no sense of pack loyalty," he said.

"What do ye mean?" the priestess asked Koga as she followed him toward his home. "Kagome is a caring and goodly child. I can see no wrong that she has done ye, Koga."

The Alpha kept his voice neutral as he replied, trying not to show the old woman the burning rage he felt toward Kagome for harming Inuyasha. "She has not wronged me, Lady. You will shortly see her handiwork then you can judge her loyalty for yourself." Koga drew back the sliding door to Inuyasha's room giving the priestess a view of the feverish hanyou.

"Inuyasha!" the old woman yelled and ran forward into the room. She dropped down on her knees next to the sleeping hanyou, "How can this be? What has happened to him?"

"He defended your village from a demon boar and was left to die," the Alpha snapped, inadvertently letting his temper slip, showing the priestess his rancor in the venom of his words.

"She couldn't have known! Kagome would not do such a thing!" the human cried out in horror.

Koga took a deep breath while he inwardly castigated himself over his loss of control. He knelt beside the distraught old woman. Placing a hand on the woman's shoulder he said, "he needs your help now, Lady. I will tell you everything I know later, but you must help him."

The old woman seemed to shrink into herself for a minute before sighing heavily and becoming a woman defined by her profession. She turned to the demon and said, "I need boiling water."

Koga nodded. "Hakkaku!"

"Yes, sir!" Hakkaku ran out to fetch the water.

Turning to the other demon in the room Koga gave another order, "Ginta, get the priestess some clean towels and bandages."

Koga glanced at the elderly woman, seeing the lines of strain on her brow. It had been a hard journey for her and now he'd laid this burden on her as well. Instantly Koga reminded himself that it was no fault of his that troubled the old woman before him. He had no cause to feel guilty, though he did; the blame lay with Kagome. The wolf just wished that he hadn't been the one to bear this bad news to the old woman. It must hurt her beyond reason to see what the folly of the child she so obviously loves has brought on another that she cares for, the blue eyed wolf reasoned. He touched to woman's shoulder and gave her a small smile, hardly more than a lifting of his lips at the corners. "I won't have you depleting your stores if we can prevent it," Koga said to the priestess.

"Thank ye, young man. Kagome told me ye were courteous and well mannered, for a demon," the old woman gave the wolf a small sly smile as she began to check Inuyasha's temperature and pulse. "Where is the wound, child?" Kaede began to blush when the wolf made to remove the hanyou's pants. Koga pulled the fabric back and partially unwrapped the bandage on Inuyasha's thigh to display the half demon's open wound while keeping the fabric over certain parts and avoiding some embarrassment on the old woman's part. At that moment Ginta returned with the items Koga had asked for.

Ginta set the basket of towels and bandages down next to the old woman. "I have some training, Lady. Can I assist you in any way?" Ginta asked.

"Thank ye, child. When the water has arrived take these herbs," Kaede handed the wolf a bundle of dried herbs, "And place them in a small bowl of water. We'll use it as an astringent to clean the wound." Kaede turned back to the half demon's leg and continued inspecting the wound. "When did he acquire these wounds?"

"On the night your village was celebrating your birthday, Lady," Koga replied.

"I see," the priestess said. "And they were given by a demon boar?"

"Yes."

"The poison must yet be in his blood for such wounds to remain for such a length of time. It will have to been drawn out."

"My healer treated his wounds for the poison," Koga said.

"Yuuka's very thorough," Ginta agreed.

"Inuyasha heals so quickly that it's possible a small scratch might have healed over sealing the poison inside. Your healer would not have seen it," Kaede said.

"Wouldn't those wounds take as long to heal as these, Lady? If they were poisoned," Ginta asked softly.

"Nay, child," the old woman shook her head. "These wounds are healing slowly because of the great amount of poison that was in his blood. His body is tired from battling the boar's venom and so the wounds knit together at a much slower pace." The old priestess gently prodded the edges of the open wound on the hanyou's thigh. "If he were first given a small injury and some time passed before more poison was added to his blood a small wound might heal," the gray haired woman straightened and sat up from where she'd bent to inspect the demon's wounds. "Child, what is your name?" she said turning toward Ginta.

"Ginta, Lady."

"Ginta. Do ye know how to make an ointment from these herbs?" Kaede held up a new bundle she'd taken from her satchel.

"Yes, Lady." Ginta received the herbs from the healer and went to find where Hakkaku was with that water.

"Koga, I will prepare some fresh linen. Will you please remove these soiled bandages?" she asked politely, showing respect for the powerful demon, as she waved a hand in the direction of the half demon's prone body.

Koga moved toward the hanyou and began to gently unwrap the linen from his thigh. The angry red wound marring the hanyou's soft and pale flesh seemed to mock him. How long ago was it that he'd been admiring the healthy glow of the demon's limb? Yes, the leg was injured at the time, but overlooking that small imperfection the half demon's limb had been smooth and strong. The skin had had a hearty pink coloration that was incomparable to the red swollen tissue that suffered now as bacteria ravaged it. Koga angled the half demon's knee up and rested it against his chest to give him better access to the bindings of Inuyasha's bandages. He then gave the utmost care and attention to unwrapping the soiled and reeking linen from the seeping wound. Ever so gently he uncovered the pale line of scar tissue left from the portions of the original wound that had healed wholly and completely. It was only where the boar's horns had nicked the bones of the hanyou's hip that the skin remained open and troubled the silver haired demon lord. The Alpha wolf took special pains to ensure that his claws did not accidentally brush the tender flesh. From time to time he glanced at the sleeping hanyou's face, checking to reassure himself that there had been no change in the sleeping demon's breathing that could have been caused by the pain of this movement or the wolf's roving hands. Koga was unaccountably upset to see the hanyou lying there, obviously suffering, and he was only beginning to suspect why. Silently and unbeknownst to the Alpha Kaede observed him for several long moments before turning back to her medicines.

"Lady?" Koga asked in a strangled voice.

"What is it, child?" Kaede turned toward the wolf demon. The Alpha, ignoring what the priestess had just called him, pointed a clawed finger at the mark on the hanyou's thigh. "Is this what I think it is?" The mark that the wolves had assumed was a bruise had clarified into three swirls that began in the center and extended out of a thinly etched and wavering circle. At that moment, before Kaede could move to inspect what was causing the demon wolf such agitation, Ginta returned. "Ginta, close the door!" Koga snapped conveying some urgency by his tone. Ginta promptly obeyed.

"How is it that Inuyasha can bear such a mark?" Kaede wondered aloud, reaching out curiously to touch the mark as if to assure herself that it was indeed there. She drew her hand back quickly when a warning growl emanated from the wolf kneeling next to her, who'd seen the hanyou flinch in his sleep as the human laid her fingers to his fevered flesh.

"I've never seen this before." Koga growled. "Why would it show up now?"

Ginta, curiosity piqued by Koga's odd behavior and the human's sudden quiet shock, moved closer to see what all the fuss was about. "But he's only a half demon, how can he have that mark!" Ginta shouted in shock when he saw the mark on the hanyou's upper thigh.

"Quiet, Ginta!" Koga yelled back.

"Inuyasha has never spoken of this to me. Perhaps he is not aware?" Kaede mused to herself.

"Why would this just show up now?" Koga demanded of the priestess.

"There are only three ways for that mark to arise," Ginta began to explain his voice taking on the singsong quality of a person reciting a lesson learned by wrote. "The mark of a Harbinger arises when the demon goes through the ritual of identification on their fiftieth birthday, upon mating to another male, or upon prolonged exposure to an all male community."

"There are women here," Koga pointed out, cutting off his underling's recitation.

"Yes, but has Inuyasha gotten close enough to touch any of them?" Ginta replied. "A Harbinger's body senses when there are too few women in a population. When there aren't enough women to sustain the population the mark rises and the Harbinger's, umm," Ginta thought for a moment trying to find the right words, "…special ability becomes active?"

"What is this ability that ye speak of? I know only that such a mark denotes powerful demons and bearers of this mark are sought after by other demons who seek to gain their power." Kaede asked the two wolves as she took the prepared astringent from Ginta and began to clean the wound on the hanyou's thigh.

Koga took over the explanation from Ginta; "Harbingers are male demons that can bear children. In legends they're often referred to as Bearers. Demons seek them out because the children they produce are extremely powerful," Koga looked at the startled priestess and then shifted his gaze to Ginta, who guessing what he would say nodded his head in tacit agreement while he worked on the ointment the priestess had asked him to make. "We can't let anyone know of this. If this information were to get out every demon in the world would try to get their hands on him."

"Demons truly are strange creatures," Kaede said. She sat back on her haunches and sighed deeply before reaching out to brush the half demon's bangs from his face, "He already has so much to bear. The poor child."

Ginta moved forward handing the Lady the medicine she'd asked for, "We won't let anything happen to him, Lady."

"No, we won't," Koga agreed.

******

There was a light shining in his eyes. It was annoying. He was trying to sleep. Inuyasha turned to the side and was brought a little closer to the waking world by a dull throbbing originating in his left leg. 'I'm hungry,' the half demon thought struggling to open his eyes.

"Inuyasha?" a voice called him.

He opened one eye partway in response. "Old woman," the hanyou greeted giving a wide yawn and stretching his arms in waking. "What're you doing here?"

"I came to help ye, Inuyasha. Ye gave the wolves here quite a scare, child."

"Ahh, it's good for them," Inuyasha said gingerly sitting up on the futon, careful not to jar his leg. "Keeps 'em on their toes."

Kaede chuckled at the demon, "How are you feeling, child?"

"Hungry. And I ain't a child," the half demon smiled wide displaying his razor sharp fangs.

"No, indeed ye are not. Here," the priestess pulled some bread from a nearby basket and gave it to the demon who eagerly began to devour it, breaking off large chunks of the loaf and quickly swallowing them. "I'm pleased to see ye have an appetite, child." Inuyasha waved a clawed hand dismissively while he continued to consume the bread. When the demon finished the priestess came forward to check his bandages. The priestess looked up at the light blush covering the silver haired hanyou's cheeks as he allowed her to undress him enough so that she could expose his wounds. "Do ye see this, Inuyasha?" she said calling his attention to the discovery of the previous night.

The hanyou looked down at the design on his thigh. It looked as if someone had painted the symbol on with deep blue ink. He raised a finger to poke at the patterned flesh. "Is it…why is it…" he trailed off again. Kaede cleared her throat and began to explain the significance of the mark to the hanyou. "I know what it is," the hanyou interrupted. "Father's father had one. But why do I have it? I'm not a purebred."

"Did ye never go through the ritual testing?" the priestess asked gently.

"No, I'm a half breed. Only purebreds can carry the mark. I remember Sesshomaru was tested, when I was still little. He was really upset when he failed the test. I think that was the only time I ever saw him really angry. Kaede?" the hanyou looked up at the priestess questioningly.

"Ye bear the mark, child. More than that I cannot tell you. I know so little myself," the priestess took the demon's hand in hers and smiled encouragingly.

Inuyasha crinkled his brow in thought then shook his head. After a moment he asked, "Kaede?"

"Yes, child?"

"Do I have to stay in the bed?"

"Ye cannot yet walk by yourself, Inuyasha."

"Then get Koga in here. I'll lean on him," the demon said casually. Kaede was stunned by the suggestion, believing that the half demon was jesting, but he looked very serious. "Please, Kaede? I'm starting to hate this room," the hanyou gave the flabbergasted priestess a crooked smile.

The priestess rose and sought out the wolf demon. She found him just outside the front doorway speaking in hushed tones to his second in command. He turned and looked at her attentively as she approached. "Inuyasha wishes to come outside."

"Is he allowed?" the Alpha wolf asked. The priestess nodded and to her stunned disbelief the wolf began to walk past her into the house and returned moments later with Inuyasha. The two walked past Kaede and Ginta quietly talking to each other as they continued down to the cliff edge that Inuyasha seemed to favor. Inuyasha had an arm wrapped around Koga's neck and Koga's right arm was firmly around the hanyou's waist as he supported him to the boulder.

"They've been doing this since he was well enough to get out of the bed," Ginta said to the priestess.

"I hope Inuyasha's not rushing in too hurriedly," the priestess sighed deeply, fearing for the young hanyou. He'd had such a hard life and been betrayed far too often. It seemed that just when the demon was learning to trust others, those who purported to be his friends again played him false.

"I don't think that you have to worry about Koga, Lady."

"Do ye think…" Kaede began to ask.

"Let's just see where this goes," Ginta interrupted as he watched Koga carefully set the demon down on the knee height end of a convenient boulder.

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Chapter Fourteen: A Peaceful Interlude

As time wore on Inuyasha grew stronger and began to heal. Within the week of Kaede's arrival he was able to walk unaided. Days after that he was able to join the wolves on the training field. He began to recover his strength and impressed many of the younger wolves with his skill with a blade. Makoto, the pack's master swordsman took an interest in the young hanyou and soon they had set up regular lessons to improve the half demon's technique. Inuyasha became a popular sparring partner and the younger wolves would clamor for him when he walked onto the fields. Busy though he was with the rest of the tribe, he continued to walk every day with the leader of the wolf demons. Koga and Inuyasha were often seen together by the members of the pack. Indeed it was difficult to find one without the other most days. The only time that Koga was away from the hanyou was when he was pulled to a Council meeting, but since the meetings were open to anyone who wished to view the proceedings, it wasn't long before Koga invited the hanyou to sit in on the Council sessions. At first the Councilors were uncomfortable with the hanyou's presence and with the great deal of time he was spending with the Alpha. But Inuyasha, having spent time as a boy in his father's court, was easily able to cope with the politics that were emerging amongst the Councilors of Koga's pack. The politics of Koga's court were new, having just started with the Council's formation, and as a result they were infantile compared to the underhanded scheming that went on in the great inuyoukai's court during his life.

For the first few days Inuyasha observed the proceedings and gave Koga his opinions later, in the evening or in the afternoon when they'd walk through the den's inner territories. Eventually he began to speak out in the Council chamber itself. The elder Councilors were at first resentful of the young demon's impudence in suggesting that he, an outsider, knew what was in the best interest of the pack. However, even the most jaded xenophobic Councilor could not deny the import of the half demon's suggestions. Koga was immensely proud the first time one of his Councilor's had asked the half demon for his advice in open Council. When he thought back on it he wasn't sure if he was proud that his people were reaching out into the world around them, even if it the channel they were reaching through was the half demon. Or perhaps he was glad that the pack elders were beginning to accept Inuyasha, maybe it was a bit of both. The elders were the last hurtle the hanyou had to pass to gain complete acceptance into the pack. As the wisest and most distinguished members of the pack the other wolves looked to them, and were guided by their opinions. Not even the Alpha could change that. Koga had tried. He'd tried to make the pack accept Kagome. They had not. She'd been tolerated out of consideration for him, but the Council had never warmed to Koga's betrothed and so the pack had never really accepted her.

Koga found himself thinking of the half demon more and more frequently. The silver haired hanyou had an adroit and dexterous mind hidden beneath his rather volatile temper. He was quick to anger, but quickly appeased. He had a delightful, if slightly malicious, sense of humor that suited the wolf's tastes perfectly. Koga was above all things a warrior king and though he'd thought that a kind and gentle mate was what he wanted in life, nothing thrilled him quite so much as the rugged dangerous soul that the hanyou contained. There was nothing naïve or gentle about the half demon. He'd seen the worst the world has to offer and learned at a very young age that trust and mercy were often luxuries one could not afford. Though he was a congenial and welcoming companion, he had a darker side that he made no pretense of hiding. He was a warrior through and through and he could understand and would never hold Koga back from the necessities of being a warrior. In fact he would gladly join in the slaughter if it were truly a necessary thing. He was also a cunning politician. Sly and quick-witted he could easily outmaneuver the cagiest Councilor, that is when he wanted to. More often than not Inuyasha preferred to cut to the heart of the matter as bluntly as possible not caring who he offended in the process. But even more stunningly for someone so inclined, the half demon had a sense of honor and a system of ethics that were beyond reproach. The silver haired demon was direct and honest he never lied, at least unless it was about a wound he was hiding. Inuyasha had the most infuriating habit of denying that he was in pain and refusing to ask others for help. Koga firmly believed that he would lie to your face saying that he was fine and you should mind your own business even if he were an inch from death. Which is why the wolf never trusted any answer he got from the young demon lord regarding his health.

Despite his best efforts Koga's growing infatuation with the half demon was slowly coming to the attention of the Council and the pack in general. Though Ginta tried to ally suspicion by spending time alone with Inuyasha in view of the other pack members and accompanying Koga and the half demon as they walked in populated areas. The affection between the two demons soon became obvious to the rest of the tribe. Eventually the Councilors approached Ginta and asked him some very leading questions about the nature of the relationship between the two demons. Ginta, ever the consummate actor, pretended to be completely baffled by the Councilors insinuations before he ran back to Koga and informed him that they had trouble in the Council. Koga chose to ignore the Councilors suspicions, knowing there was nothing he could yet do to allay their worries.

******

"Hey, wake up," Koga whispered into Inuyasha's ear as he gently shook the hanyou awake.

"If I open my eyes to find that you're waking me up while it's still dark and Naraku himself isn't banging down the door you're getting it wolf boy." Inuyasha said his eyes still firmly closed as he sat up in bed and stretched languidly. Amber eyes opened to meet Koga's gaze. The half demon's ears flicked forward then back as he listened carefully to the night. After that the hanyou made a show of smelling the air before turning to the wolf demon, "No Naraku. You'd better have a good excuse or else." The venom in the silver haired demon's voice was offset by the small smile that played across his lips, quirking them upward just enough at the sides to tell Koga that for all his blustering the hanyou wasn't truly angry.

"Or else what?" Koga said back challengingly, though he too was smiling, enjoying the small game the two played.

"Can you live without your tail?" Inuyasha asked looking at the appendage in mild interest.

Koga gave a startled yelp and clutched his tail to his chest protectively; "I'd rather not."

"Then explain. Now."

Koga laid a hand on Inuyasha's thigh, "I want to show you something. Come with me, please?" Inuyasha groused a bit about being dragged out of his bed, but followed the wolf down into the main valley where most of the wolves lived. It was a full moon and the silvery light that illuminated their path was nearly as bright as daylight. When the two arrived they saw a great congregation of wolves in the den's center. There were no demons to be seen, these were the ordinary wolves of the tribe. They had gathered in a great circle around the center of the valley. They were all facing inward toward the center of their circle.

"What are they doing?" Inuyasha asked. From the vantage the two were observing at, nothing could be seen of the focus of the wolves attention.

"Watch," Koga pointed out to the congregated wolves. Suddenly a thin high wail cut through the night, an infant's cry. As if in response the group of wolves threw back their heads and howled into the night air. Inuyasha watched the gathering in fascination, until he felt Koga slip a warm hand into his grasp and give his fingers a gentle squeeze. "Follow me," the Alpha whispered and let go of the hanyou's hand to begin walking into the valley. When they arrived at the edge of the circle the wolves began to make way for the two to pass. As they walked by the circle closed in around them and the wolves pressed in closer on either side. Inuyasha could feel their anticipation in shivers up and down his spine as he followed in Koga's wake. In the center of the congregation was a mother wolf licking clean her newborn babe. She whined at Koga in greeting. Koga dropped to a crouch in front of the new mother and patted her on the head before lifting the young demon babe into his arms. "What is her name, sister?" The wolf whined and howled a low response to the Alpha. Koga's face broke into a wide smile and he held the squalling babe before him, "Welcome to the pack, Chiyoko."

Inuyasha gave a small jump when all the wolves around him howled. His ears flattened against his head as he tried to drown out the deafening noise. He didn't dare lift his hands to cover his ears. He didn't know what was going on and it's never wise to offend so many wolves at a time, especially in their den. When the sound died out, Koga turned and offered the babe to Inuyasha. "I don't know how to…" Inuyasha started.

"It's easy. Just make sure you hold her neck up," Koga placed the babe in the half demon's arms. The little girl immediately quieted and snuggled into the warmth of the half demon's chest, giving a soft giggle. Inuyasha was immediately entranced. He'd never held a baby before. She was so light and small. Her skin was so soft that he was afraid an accidental brush of his claws might break it. The little demoness was so fragile; the worried thought crossed his mind for a moment that he might break her accidentally. Inuyasha could hardly believe that anything so weak could be alive, but she felt alive. The life was radiating off of her in waves that left the half demon reeling. The silver haired half demon sat down on the ground holding the babe against his body. He was startled to see Koga begin to move the baby in his arms. Quickly the Alpha dressed the little girl in a small outfit he'd brought for the purpose, before he lightly kissed her on the forehead and took her from the hanyou's arms. He presented the babe to her mother and with one last pat to the she-wolf's head he stood and turned to leave.

Inuyasha stood and was beginning to follow the retreating wolf from the valley when he felt a tug on the sleeve of his kimono. The father wolf pulled on his kimono, leading him over to where his mate and pup lay. Not sure what to do Inuyasha crouched before the mother. She gave a low howl and lapped at the hanyou's cheek for a moment before butting her head into his hand. Inuyasha smiled and scratched behind her ears. "You have a beautiful cub," he told her before rising to join Koga. This time the wolves let him pass. Inuyasha walked toward the cliff edge and sat on his usual boulder next to Koga. "What just happened?"

"We just welcomed another demon wolf to the pack. You were the witness."

"Why me?"

Koga sighed and lay back to look at the stars over head. "Usually the Alpha and his mate welcome the new demons, but as long as I don't have a mate I can take any witness I want. Anyone I trust."

Inuyasha crawled over to lie beside Koga. He rested his head on the demon's chest. "Thank you," he said quietly, realizing the great honor that had been bestowed upon him. "How often does it happen?"

Koga sighed and began to run his fingers through the hanyou's hair. It was cool and silky and it felt good against his fingertips. Inuyasha was a comfortable weight against his chest and he thought for a moment that he could very easily become accustomed to this. "It used to happen ever year, in my grandfather's time. But now," Koga paused, "this is only the second demon I've welcomed in over a decade."

"Why so few?"

"We're dying out. There are fewer and fewer of us each year. Too many wolves are dying in battle. Those that remain grieve for their lost mates, many of them loose the will to live and let themselves die. Young wolves die in battle leaving their mates to mourn for them. Few ever have pups before their mates die anymore."

"And wolves only mate once. So none of them will ever find new mates to breed with," the hanyou continued.

"No, they won't." Koga replied quietly.

Inuyasha raised his head to look at the depressed wolf demon. He moved forward and pressed a brief kiss to Koga's cheek before lying back down, "The moon is beautiful tonight."

"Yes," Koga agreed drawing the silver haired young lord closer to him.

******

The next day Koga was siting down in the Council chamber conducting a meeting of the Council when he heard a voice he'd been dreading for some time. "What did you do?"

Koga turned and forced his face into a smile, "Yuuka, you're back! And so soon!" Koga stood and slowly began to inch toward the doorway opposite the one the demoness had entered. "I wasn't expecting you for another week."

"What did you do, Koga?" Yuuka advanced on the retreating wolf, her voice low and deadly. "He was almost well when I left. All you had to do was change the bandages and make sure he stayed in the bed. Any idiot can do that, Koga."

"Well, Yuuka, you see…I…" Koga cast about the room only to be met with the amused gazes of his Councilors, who'd apparently settled in to watch the fun, thankful that they weren't on the receiving end of the demoness' temper.

"Imagine my surprise when I heard that you had to call in a healer from a human village. So, I'm gonna ask again. What," she spat the word out, "did you do, Koga?"

"It was really an accident, Yuuka. You see what happened was…"

"Koga."

"Yes?" the Alpha said very intimidated under the woman's fierce glare.

"Run."

"Run?"

"Or I swear I'll shave your tail when I catch you."

Koga frowned, "Why does everyone threaten my tail when they're mad at me?" He looked up as Yuuka started to growl, "Oh, run. Right," and with that Koga was gone in a whirlwind of dust.

Ginta stood to address the assembled Councilors, of course he had to wait for the laughter to die down first, "Gentlemen and Ladies, I think it's safe to say we won’t be reconvening for the rest of the day. I hear by call an end to this session of the Council. Saburou," Ginta called, "You did get this in the minutes, didn't you?"

"Oh, yeah," Saburou said with a wide grin.

"Excellent," Ginta chortled. "We're adjourned."

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Chapter Fifteen: Epithalamium

It was late at night when Koga finally crept back into his home. Sure he could have slept in the main hall, but it wouldn't look good for him to let another wolf drive him out of his home, even if that wolf was Yuuka. Peering into the main hallway from his place outside the barely opened front door, he saw a light shining from one of the back rooms that he fervently hoped was Kaede and Inuyasha. Slowly he opened the door and slipped in. Swiftly he closed the door behind him, taking care that the hinges wouldn't creak giving away his presence to any she-wolves lurking in the shadows, possibly with razors intent on desecrating that perfectly groomed appendage that was Koga's tail. Yes, Koga would freely admit that he was a little vain where his tail was concerned, but wasn't he allowed to have quirks too? If only Yuuka hadn't figured that out though he wouldn't currently be in this position. The she-wolf was getting too far out of line. Public embarrassment was one thing, but Koga just wasn't sure that he liked Yuuka exploiting his teensy little infinitesimally small preoccupation with his tail for her own benefit and as if that weren't bad enough, now Inuyasha seemed to have no compunctions about using his tail to threaten him. Koga sighed heavily; this just really wasn't shaping up to be a great day for him. Not that he wasn't happy to see Yuuka, though she'd done little to endear herself to him recently, but she'd upset some rather important plans he'd had for the day and then there was the whole running and hiding thing to consider. 'Well,' Koga thought, 'there's always tomorrow.' Now he just had to get to his room unseen and hope that Yuuka forgot about the whole tail shaving thing by the time he woke up. Koga momentarily grimaced as a mental image of what he'd look like once Yuuka got through with him popped unbidden into his head. Maybe he'd barricade his door tonight, just to be on the safe side.

He began to make his way down the hall, keeping to the shadows and stepping around the boards in the floor that he knew would groan if he put his weight on them. The Alpha slipped from shadow to shadow like a specter, when he was just in view of his room he paused. Koga didn't hear any sounds coming from his bedroom and Yuuka's scent was faint on the air. She'd been in the hallway earlier, but she hadn't passed by in at least a couple of hours. Deciding to chance his luck Koga made a quick dash for his room. As he passed an empty guest's room he was pulled bodily into the darkened chamber. A hand was firmly clamped over his mouth and his arms were pinned to his sides.

Instinctively Koga started to panic and struggle against his unknown assailant. He writhed in the vice like grip he was caught in trying to get free. "Shhh. You should have stayed in the forest," a familiar voice whispered into the wolf's ear. Realizing that he wasn't in any danger, Koga stopped his struggles and stood still in the hanyou's arms. "She's still mad at you," Inuyasha's warm breath ghosted over Koga's ear making him shiver ever so slightly. After a brief moment Inuyasha removed his hand from it's place over Koga's mouth.

"Where is she?" Koga whispered making no move to escape the hanyou's grasp.

"Talking with Kaede," Inuyasha said abstractedly as he ghosted a thumb over the wolf's cheek in a feather light touch; mentally he noted how soft the flesh there was. Koga's cheeks were cold from the winter air he'd run through to get back to his home. The wolf had been chilled to the point of shivering when he'd come in the door, but he was rapidly warming with the borrowed heat he was collecting from Inuyasha's body. Koga relaxed into the warm embrace. Relishing the relief the hanyou's body provided from the biting chill that had pervaded his body and savoring the feeling of heat soaking into his numbed limbs. The dark haired wolf turned slightly so that he could rest his head in the crook of the half demon's neck.

"Inuyasha," Koga began, "I want to ask you something."

Inuyasha shifted Koga slightly in his arms before he bent his head, pressing his nose to the nape of the Alpha's neck. Koga gasped when he felt the half demon deeply breathe against his skin. Inuyasha's long hair fell over the wolf's shoulder and curtained his chest in a silvery cascade. Absently Koga noted that his breathing was slightly shaky as the hanyou tightened his hold on the captive wolf's waist. Realizing his vulnerable position with the other demon's fangs mere centimeters from the exposed skin of his throat, Koga tried to extricate himself from the half demon's grasp. A low growl from the hanyou's throat stopped the wolf's attempted escape. Koga froze, his muscles rigid, and his heart racing, caught somewhere between excitement and anxiety. The Alpha wolf closed his eyes and for several long moments counted the passage of time by the pounding throb of his frantically beating heart. Slowly Inuyasha loosened his grasp and drew back. The half demon took Koga's hand and led him across the darkened chamber to sit in a corner where a small candle caused the room's shadows to dance about the pair. When the two were settled, resting against each other, Koga firmly ensconced in Inuyasha's arms, the half demon asked, "What is it?"

"Your strength is coming back. What were you planning to do when you could leave?" Koga asked quietly.

"The jewel's not finished. I should find Kagome and the others and help them put it back together," Inuyasha said as he gently rested his head against Koga's.

"I don’t want you to," Koga said impulsively, the words flying from his mouth thoughtlessly and unwilled. "Stay here." Inuyasha turned his head to look the demon in the face. Koga glanced downward, struggling to recall all that he'd wanted to say, but being unable to remember a single word of the carefully phrased speech he'd agonized over for just this occasion. Feeling the other demon's eyes on him and knowing that he could not remain silent any longer Koga lifted his gaze to meet the hanyou's questioning amber orbs. "I want you to stay here…with me."

"Koga, I…" Inuyasha began. Koga silenced the hanyou by pressing a finger to the hanyou's lips.

"As my mate," Koga looked down blushing. He'd never asked anyone something like this before. It was so much easier just to make an official declaration and move on from there, it was far less…personal. "I don't want you to leave. Those humans don’t deserve your loyalty, not after what they did to you. I like having you here and I…" Inuyasha cut the wolf's ramblings short by fisting a hand around the wolf's pony tail, tilting his face upward, and kissing him with bruising force. He was startled at first, but after a moment Koga responded eagerly. When the need for air made itself known the two broke their kiss and greedily gulped air into oxygen starved lungs. "Is that a yes?" Koga was the first to speak.

Inuyasha gave a low chuckle, "That's a yes."

"Good," Koga said before diving in for another taste of the half demon's lips.

******

They told no one of what had happened between them, though Koga came to suspect that Ginta had guessed. He never could hide anything from Ginta; they'd known each other far too long for that. Koga went about his daily duties lost in an euphoric joy that seemed infectious. He was so happy. It was the most amazing sensation to love and be loved by your chosen. He'd never had that with Kagome and he could never have dreamed how much he had been missing. The pack members were overjoyed to see their normally serious and proper Alpha playing like a cub again with the youths on the practice fields and conducting business in Council with an almost palpable joy. The only perplexing, or bothering, aspect of Koga's greatly improved mood, depending on how the situation was viewed, was that it seemed centered around the hanyou they'd taken into their midst. There were several times that the Alpha wolf called a half-day in the Council and left to spend the holiday with his guest and second in command. Though once the trio had passed the prying eyes of the pack and was safely secluded in the forest bordering the den Ginta would casually wander off, tacitly understanding that the two wanted time alone together.

It wasn't long before the whispers originating in the Council chamber became a dull roar; hidden just outside of the Alpha's hearing. And like a poisonous miasma the Councilor's suspicions leaked out into the pack. There was some debate within the pack. Many of the wolves believed that if the half demon made Koga so happy he should be able to mate him. The younger wolves, who were especially loyal to Koga, were very enthusiastic to add the hanyou to the pack. Inuyasha had won the hearts of the people and they were, for the most part, eager to call him "brother." Only the older wolves, who trusted in the history and traditions of the pack to keep them strong, objected to the union. Koga, for his part, was so preoccupied that he didn't even notice the dissention starting within his pack until an old friend called him on it.

"Koga, we need to talk."

"Aw Yuuka, you're not gonna give me another lecture again, are you?" Koga winced at the memory of all the resounding yells he'd been forced to endure while Yuuka had berated him for "his unparalleled stupidity" in letting the hanyou reopen his wounds and develop an infection. Normally he wouldn't let anyone speak to him that way, he was the Alpha after all, but this time he figured that he deserved it and so he let Yuuka vent to her heart's content.

"No, I think I've pounded that into your rock hard head well enough," Yuuka replied as she led the Alpha to her hut. When they arrived Yuuka poured tea for the both of them and waited until Koga had settled himself and was half way through with his tea before she began. She made small talk, confining the conversation to trivial matters, before trying to find an opening in the conversation where she could interject what she had to. Though Yuuka was loath to begin. The she-wolf couldn't remember a time when she'd seen Koga so happy, but she had a duty. A duty to her brothers and sisters in the pack and, perhaps most importantly, a duty to Koga himself. If Koga should travel down the road that she now saw he intended upon, he would suffer greatly. Though there was some talk in the pack of removing the mating restraints on the Alpha, such talk was confined to the idealistic youths of the pack. In short, the ones who were in no position to help the Alpha should it come to pass that he do this thing. By the power and judgement of the elders in the Council, Koga would be labeled an inside detractor and a detriment to the well being of the pack. A punishment that carried with it a sentence of death or worse, banishment. Banishment being worse than death for the proud Alpha. Yuuka knew that Koga would not survive the loss of his position, even if he had a strong mate beside him.

Yuuka sighed softly, but deeply. It broke her heart to have to be the one to bear this message, but what could she do? Koga had chosen to abide by these laws when he became the Alpha, he couldn't ignore them now. Yuuka would not let him. Koga was as dear to her as anyone she'd ever met. If only she'd met Koga before Yori, her departed mate, she would have…. Yuuka paused, leaving the thought unfinished. It didn’t matter what she would have done. There was nothing she could do to change the past, but there was a way to save the life of the man before her, if only she had the courage and the will to do it. To end his happiness and take the knowledge that she had committed that crime against her pack brother on her continence forever. She had to be strong and do it swiftly, like setting a broken bone or removing an arrow from a wound, the work must be done quickly so that the patient does not writhe too long in agony. "Koga?" Yuuka called softly from her place directly across from him.

"Yuuka," the Alpha replied, favoring the woman with a small smile that was really just a quirk of his lips at one corner.

"You can't have him, Koga," she said, filling her voice with determination that in truth she did not feel.

"What?" the Alpha asked startled.

"Inuyasha. You can't have him."

Koga set his tea down on the ground before him, "Yuuka, I don’t know why you…"

"I'm not blind, Koga. The entire pack knows or at least suspects what is going on between the two of you." Yuuka reached out to take Koga's hand. "Koga, I know that he makes you happy. I can see it, but you have a duty to the pack that you can't ignore."

Koga smiled encouragingly at Yuuka and warmly gripped the woman's hand. "Yuuka, I swear to you my interest in Inuyasha does not interfere with any duty I have toward the pack. I will never abandon my duties to my people."

"What are you up to, Koga?" Yuuka eyed him suspiciously.

"Well, I thought it was a good speech," Koga groused.

"Not good enough if you were trying to fool me. What are you planning?" Yuuka stood to glare at the wolf in her hut. Here she was trying to help him and he was playing games with her!

"I'm going to mate with him."

Yuuka fell to her knees before the Alpha and tried to reason with him, "Koga, you can't…"

"I love him, Yuuka!" Koga shouted startling the both of them. "I won’t let him go," he whispered.

"I know," she said fighting back the tears that threatened. "I know you do, but Koga, the Council…" Yuuka began.

"Won't have anything to complain about," the Alpha wolf interrupted.

Yuuka sighed and sat back on her haunches, "Explain." This was too much for her; she was developing a throbbing headache. Mentally Yuuka wondered if she still had some willow bark she could boil for the pain or if she'd be forced to go gather some later, she really needed to recruit someone to help her inventory her herbs.

"He's a Harbinger, Yuuka," Koga said with just a touch of amazement in his voice. "That means that he's fair game. The Council won’t object," Koga said that same small smile playing at the corner of his lips as his gaze seemed to turn inward for a moment. Yuuka didn't have to ask to know what he was thinking of, or rather who.

Yuuka rose to pace the single room of her home. She rubbed her forehead and tried to figure out just who she was going to have to maim, Koga for deceiving her and trying to get out of his obligations, or Inuyasha for lying to her friend. "So let me get this straight, you're in love with Inuyasha?"

"Yes," Koga answered absently, still lost in his daydream.

Yuuka took a deep breath and nodded, "And he, as a Harbinger, fulfills the qualifications pack law sets for your mate." Koga nodded his reply. "Did he tell you this?"

The Alpha wolf turned his head to look at the pacing demoness and after a long moment of observation replied, "No, I saw the mark."

Disappointing. She was going to have to beat sense into Koga. "When?"

"It was right after the fever started again. I arranged for Kaede to come to the den and when I was unwrapping the bandages for her I saw it."

Yuuka noted that it was a plausible answer. Not only did it keep with the mythology of the Harbinger, but it would also explain why she hadn't seen the mark herself. "Is it still there?"

"No, it faded after Kaede took over his care."

Yuuka nodded to herself. "I'm going to go speak with her."

"Yuuka," Koga leapt up from his place on the floor, "you won't tell anyone about this, will you?" he said, desperate for her secrecy, his authority to command her silence gone in the face of his admission.

"Not unless I'm convinced you're not being toyed with," the woman growled her green eyes flashing.

"Yuuka!" Koga said offended. "Give me some credit. I'm not a complete idiot. I know how farfetched it sounds, but it's true!"

"Then prove it to me," Yuuka challenged. So Koga took Yuuka to see Kaede and there the old woman confirmed what Koga had told her. It took time and oaths that they were telling the truth from not only Koga and Kaede, but from Ginta and Inuyasha as well. When the she-wolf was finally convinced she became ecstatic at the prospect of her best friend's imminent marriage. Which is also how Kaede and Ginta found out about the betrothal.

******

Yuuka turned out to be a splendid asset to the small group of conspirators. One of the main issues that faced the pair was how to find a way to escape for a few days and commence with solidifying the mating bond without causing suspicion within the Council. Since Koga had ordered Yuuka to take an apprentice, between bouts of cowering and hiding from her, Yuuka decided that she'd announce to the pack that she has chosen to train Ginta and that she wants to take him into the wilds for a few days to study in solitude. Koga would announce that he wanted to observe the apprenticeship and pick a Councilor to leave in charge. As they made preparations to go out into the wild Inuyasha would make a pretense of escorting the Lady Kaede back to her village. The two groups would set out on different days, meet up somewhere in the mountains, then Inuyasha and Koga would go off to some very nice hot springs in the area while Ginta, Kaede, and Yuuka waited for them to get back.

It was a good plan and it went off without a hitch. In fact, Koga noticed that some of his Councilors looked distinctly relieved to see the half demon leave. Rather than that making him angry, Koga was elated. No one suspected a thing. The Alpha wolf could hardly wait. Just a few more days and Inuyasha would be all his, forever. Just the thought of it sent chills racing down his spine. Koga carefully arranged the scouting missions and guard duty for the area they'd be in a few days in advance. On his timetable, they'd be the only ones in the area for nine days, any longer than that would have raised suspicions in the Council. After three days Ginta, Yuuka, and Koga set out into the wild. They walked for a day and a half before meeting up with the priestess and the hanyou. Koga grew more impatient with each passing mile and his friends were greatly amused to see the Alpha so anxious. They arrived at Inuyasha and Kaede's campsite by midday on the second day of their departure. The Alpha wolf and the silver haired hanyou immediately said a rather hurried goodbye to the rest of the troop and set out for the hot springs.

The two arrived just as night fell. They hunted together and roasted the meat they'd caught over a pleasantly warm fire they'd made. When dinner was finished and camp was set the two passed a very pleasurable night in the hot springs. Koga was deeply in love with his mate. He felt that he was the luckiest wolf in the world, especially when he saw his feelings mirrored in the half demon's amber eyes. They slept underneath the stars wrapped in each other's arms and when Koga awoke on the third day at the springs he smelled something different. There was something new in his mate's scent it took him a moment to identify the new odor. Inuyasha's eyes blinked open wearily. He smiled up at his mate as Koga leaned over him. "What is it?" he asked, his brow furrowing in confusion when he noticed the wolf's strange behavior.

"You're in heat."

Inuyasha sniffed the air around them; "I don't smell it."

Koga leaned forward to kiss the silver haired demon's brow, "Do you want to stop?" he asked gently.

Inuyasha thought for a moment, "No," he said as he pulled his mate down to meet his lips.

Two days later and on the morning the pair had chosen to leave their little sanctuary Koga woke to yet another change in his mate's scent. He could smell it. His child was growing within his mate's body. Koga was the happiest wolf in the world. He woke Inuyasha up to dance around the clearing with him, the half demon of course thought that his mate had lost it until he noticed the subtle shift in his personal odor that betrayed his pregnancy to anyone with a nose keen enough to smell it. Inuyasha smiled at his mate's antics as Koga continued to bounce around the campsite happily until they were ready to leave. "Come on you mangy wolf. We gotta get going," Inuyasha called when the time had come to set out for their meeting with the other three.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Chapter Sixteen: Noblesse Oblige

Ginta and Yuuka smelled the two before they arrived. Yuuka had already worked herself into a frenzy over Inuyasha's pregnancy by the time the demons stepped into the clearing. Yuuka lunged at Inuyasha and began to hug him to within an inch of his life as Ginta moved over to pound Koga on the back in congratulations. Kaede showed her affection by sitting Inuyasha down and having him drink a tea she'd prepared for him, in case of this eventuality, to keep him strong through his pregnancy. She told him to drink one-cup everyday to make sure that the he and the baby were healthy.

When Kaede was satisfied that Inuyasha had drunk enough tea and the campsite was packed up they began to walk back to the den. Yuuka was still bouncing up and down excitedly. "I'm gonna be an auntie. I'm gonna be an auntie. I'm gonna be an auntie," she was chanting.

"But, Yuuka, you're not Koga's sister. So you can't be an aunt to his children," Ginta pointed out good-naturedly.

"I can be an auntie if I want to! Right?"

Instead of asking Koga she looked at Inuyasha with big wide eyes, her lower lip trembling as if on the verge of tears. 'Damn it!' the silver haired demon thought; he hated to see women cry. Inuyasha sighed deeply before saying, "Okay, Yuuka. You can be its auntie when it's born."

"Yaaayy!" Yuuka cried and flung herself at the hanyou once again.

******

As they crested the last hill surrounding the den a brisk wind blew past the company, pushing at their backs as if ushering them home, urging them on. Arriving at the den the company was met with curious stares. Runners had seen the small group of travelers as they approached the den and had alerted the pack that the Alpha had returned. Of course they had also relayed the fact that the hanyou and the human priestess had returned as well. Interest sparked a gradually increasing number of wolves to gather in the central valley and await the company's return. As the Alpha and the hanyou entered the central valley the demons of the pack could smell the change in scent that accompanied the establishment of a mating bond on their leader as well as the olfactory evidence of the hanyou's pregnancy. Murmurs and confused whispers ran through the assembled wolves. Koga, choosing to ignore the questioning glances his wolves directed at him, pulled Inuyasha closer to him, wrapping an arm around his shoulders and head held high continued on through the den. He'd decided early on to force the Councilors to come to him. He would not justify his actions to them on their terms. A small smile tugged at the corners of his lips when he heard a few congratulatory howls originating from somewhere inside the crowd. Heartened, Koga tightened his grip on his mate and the two exchanged a relieved glance as they walked toward their home.

Koga and Inuyasha came to a stop at the fore of the party when a group of furious looking Councilors crested the hill directly in front of them. The angry wolves made straight for the small company and upon seeing how closely the Alpha and hanyou were standing their glowers intensified. "Koga! How dare you!" Osamu yelled out as he approached at the vanguard of several other Councilors who'd obviously assembled in haste if their shabby dress was any indicator. It was still early in the morning and many of the wolves that came to see the spectacle looked rumpled and tired as if they'd hurriedly risen from their beds.

Koga swore under his breath, moved his arm to release his mate, and stepped forward to address the Councilors, "Osamu, calm down. I'll explain everything in the Council chamber."

"I think we have a right to be upset with you, Koga," Makoto agreed with his peer.

"Indeed. How could you countenance not informing us that you’d found such a splendid candidate?" Osamu smiled slyly at the startled Alpha before turning to the assembled crowd. "This calls for a celebration!" the crowd roared its approval. "Make preparations for a feast in the caves," Osamu waved to a group of wolves who eagerly began running toward the den's center. "You there," this time a group of demon warriors and wolves were singled out, "bring down some fresh meat."

The assembled Councilors began to laugh as the old wolf's orders were promptly carried out leaving Koga with a stunned expression on his face. He had been expecting something a bit more hostile upon his arrival. "Very good, Osamu, but you forgot one thing," Makoto came forward and wrapped his good arm around Koga's shoulders. "Bring out the ale!" the Councilor shouted and was met with rounds of applause and howls from the wolves around him.

The feasting and revelry lasted long into the night. It was in the very early hours of the morning that Koga and Inuyasha retired back to Koga's house on the periphery of the den's inner territories. "We should do that every night," Koga said as he threw himself down on his bed.

"You'd all end up fat and lazy if you did," Inuyasha taunted his companion. "It was fun though." Inuyasha stretched out on the bed beside his mate.

Koga turned his head to look at his handsome mate. Inuyasha's hair reflected the glow from the taper they'd brought into the room. He was dozing so his eyes were closed. Visually Koga traced the curved lines of his eyelashes as they brushed his cheeks. Letting his eyes travel from the hanyou's cheeks down to his ruby lips, Koga could see tiny points glittering between his parted lips as Inuyasha breathed in slowly and deeply. His mate was a marvel. Most hanyous appeared entirely human or else, rarely; they were grotesque caricatures of demonic beasts. But his mate was elegant. His silvery hair fell in cascades down his back, highlighting his slender form. He was strong though, well muscled and thin, there was not an ounce of fat clinging to the half demon's form. And amazingly, for all the injuries he'd taken in battle, and there had been many, his skin was unblemished, save for the rapidly fading marks garnered from his latest hurt. The hanyou's pale skin was accented by the jet black brows above his eyes. When the demon was awake his amber eyes with their silted pupils and his ivory white fangs provided a hint of the exotic. He could have passed for an exquisite human at a distance except for the triangular ears sitting atop his head that marked his heritage as an Inuyoukai prince. Inuyasha was truly a wonder. "Quit staring at me," the hanyou said without opening his eyes.

"I like looking at you."

Inuyasha yawned then snuggled closer to the wolf, "You're a weird one, Koga. 'Wonder why I like you so much."

"I thought it was my ravishing good looks and my charming personality," Koga suggested mischievously.

"No. I think it was your unparalleled stupidity and your rock filled head," Inuyasha said with a smirk.

Koga winced, "You heard that?"

"Yeah. Me and half the pack."

Koga moaned and used his arm to cover his eyes. "I'm gonna have to talk to Yuuka about berating me in front of the tribe."

"Why don’t you just set a weekly place and time? Then she can plan ahead and think up more creative insults and maybe a few good synonyms." Inuyasha leaned over his mate and moved Koga's arm away from his eyes. "She was starting to repeat herself by the end of that last speech."

"It lasted over an hour! I was happy when she started repeating herself because that meant that she was finally going to quit soon."

"Poor wolf boy," Inuyasha gently mocked his mate. "Yuuka's really got you running scared, doesn't she? Maybe I can get some training tips from her."

"I'll show you a trained wolf," Koga said as he rolled on top of the half demon, pinning his mate's arms above his head as he kissed him deeply. Koga broke from the demon's tempting lips to trail a line of hot kisses down to the crux of Inuyasha's neck. He paused for a moment resting his mouth against his mate's heated flesh, relishing the feeling of the half demon's rapid pulse throbbing against his lips. When he heard a low whine coming from the restrained demon he resumed pressure on that spot, sucking at the flesh until a metallic taste filled his mouth. Inuyasha writhed under his mate's attentions, struggling to free his hands, but Koga held the struggling demon to the bed, throwing a leg over him to straddle his hips while firmly holding the silver haired demon's hands stationary above his head. Satisfied with the darkening bruise he'd marked his mate with; Koga lapped at the abused flesh in apology before torturously, slowly making his way back up to his mate's lips. He kissed the demon again, brushing his tongue along the hanyou's bottom lip, begging entry. Permission granted; he explored the steamy cavern of his mate's mouth thoroughly, running his tongue over the points of Inuyasha's fangs and over the sensitive skin on the roof of his mouth. Impishly the wolf broke the kiss and smirked down at his flushed and panting mate.

Inuyasha returned his mate's smile, "Good boy," he said.

******

Immediately Inuyasha was given an active role in the Council. He sat at Koga's right and by virtue of being Koga's mate he became the co-ruler of the pack. Between Inuyasha, Ginta, and Hakkaku, Koga was now free of many of the burdens his position as pack Alpha imposed on him. Inuyasha was an able commander and he was also acquainted with the traditions of humans and other demons that proved invaluable to the pack in dealing with outsiders. The hanyou took an active role in negotiations the pack was conducting with hostile demons in or around their territories and with the human village in the pack's territory and those surrounding it. After a few weeks the casualty numbers that were reported daily cut in half. The Council attributed it to Inuyasha's guidance and he became more and more popular as time went on. When word got round that the pack's Alpha was mated to a Harbinger, lone wolves who'd been living in isolation in the mountains came down in droves to join the pack. For the first time in years the pack's numbers were growing by leaps and bounds. But the addition that Koga was most concerned with was not any wolf living in the mountains.

After a single week a small bulge betrayed the presence of their child within the hanyou. But the hanyou's clothes were baggy and hid much. It was just over a month before the obvious signs of pregnancy could be see through the demon's clothes. The pack watched the hanyou's growing waist with a barely restrained sense of excitement and anticipation. Everyone was eager to greet the child.

Inuyasha himself didn't allow his condition to slow him down. He rose early and worked with Koga on pack business all day. He trained on the practice fields and helped to instruct the young warriors in battle skills. The only consolation toward his health that the silver haired demon made was to drink the tea Kaede prepared for him everyday and to let Yuuka give him weekly checkups. Normal term for a dog demon was sixty three to sixty five days. Wolf demons carried only slightly longer, but the x factor in Inuyasha's case was his human genetics. No one could be sure how long the hanyou was going to carry so the two healers insisted on regular checkups and badgered Inuyasha incessantly about his health. It finally came to a head when, in the demon's seventh week, a very angry and heavily pregnant Inuyasha was seen chasing Yuuka through the den after the demoness had made the mistake of asking the hanyou how he was feeling one too many times that day.

Koga was very anxious about the birth of his first child. He wanted the half demon to take things a little slower but he knew better than to suggest to Inuyasha that he dispense with his daily routine. Actually he'd learned that the hard way. Koga was by no means in control of the half demon as Inuyasha had eloquently and loudly explained to him one night. It was Koga's firm opinion that Yuuka could take lessons from the hanyou and learn something about bringing the wolf down a few pegs. Inuyasha was not about to be treated like some type of invalid nor was he going to alter his normal routine in any way. He was going to do what he wanted, when he wanted and Koga had no say in the matter.

It was on the seventy first day of his pregnancy when the hanyou excused himself from the Council chamber. It was a little odd for the demon to leave so early, but Koga had noticed that Inuyasha had been very tired lately. He was just glad that the silver haired hanyou was finally going to get some rest. Inuyasha though had other things in mind. He walked through the den, pausing a few times to talk with acquaintances or to offer advice to a young demon training with unfamiliar weapons. When he finally arrived at his destination he knocked on the wooden door before him. "Hey, Yuuka! You in there?"

"Inuyasha? What are you doing here? Is something wrong?" Yuuka opened the door and invited the hanyou in.

Inuyasha walked past the demoness and sat down in front of the fire. "Feh. You worry too much."

Yuuka laughed slightly and poured tea for the two. "I guess I am getting a little paranoid," she chuckled put at ease with the half demon's relaxed posture and unworried countenance. The two chatted amicably and drank their tea until curiosity prompted Yuuka to ask, "Inuyasha, not that I don't like your company or anything, but why are you here?"

The half demon waved off the question; "I've been in labor for awhile so I'd thought I'd stop by."

"What!" Yuuka jumped up and seizing the hanyou's arm bodily dragged him over to her examination table. "Why didn't you say something?"

"It's not that big a deal. It doesn't even hurt that much," the hanyou rolled his eyes as if he were bored with the whole thing and he thought that the demoness was over reacting.

"Not a big deal? Gods Inuyasha!" Yuuka swore. "How long have you been having contractions?"

The half demon shrugged, "Yesterday," seeing that the demoness looked ready to explode he decided to clarify that statement, "Early last night, some time."

"Last night?" Yuuka asked. Inuyasha nodded. "It's after midday! And you're just telling me this now?" Another nod. "What the hell's wrong with you!" Yuuka screamed at the cringing demon. Inuyasha had never had the full force of Yuuka's wrath directed at him before and he now saw what a truly scary thing it was. The thought briefly crossed the half demon's mind that maybe he owed Koga an apology. "What were you thinking?" the she-wolf continued as she violently disrobed the hanyou. "Were you even thinking? Of all the bone headed, idiotic things to do…"

"Well I got here before anything happened, didn’t I!" the half demon defended himself earning a withering glare from the demoness.

Yuuka jabbed the half demon in the chest and said, "I am going to deliver your children then you and I are going to have a talk about why exactly idiocy is not something to be proud of."

******

Three and a half-hours later Inuyasha was delivered of two sons. The infant children were identical. They had Inuyasha's silver hair and Koga's ears. Their eyes were blue, but that might change. All infant's eyes are blue when they first open, Yuuka assured him. Yuuka helped the half demon clean himself up and after an hour or two he was able to walk around feeling only slightly sore. "Yuuka?" Inuyasha called.

"Yes?" the demoness queried from where she was fussing over one of the twins.

"When's everything going to heal?" the demon asked looking distinctly uncomfortable. That'd been more painful than he'd imagined and he was slightly off put by the whole, messy, process.

"I imagine you'll be fine by tomorrow," she said absently.

"Um…then…it'll close?" the half demon asked feeling extremely awkward.

"The birth canal?" Yuuka turned to look at the blushing demon.

Inuyasha rubbed the back of his head and said sullenly, "Yeah."

"Nope," she said turning back to the baby in her arms. "Sorry, sweetie, you're stuck with it."

"You're joking, right?" There was a slight edge of panic in the demon's voice.

Yuuka sighed and came over to sit next to the demon. The silver haired man was cradling his first born in his arms, the small demon was adorable curled up in his father's arms. "I thought you knew."

"What?" the hanyou asked. His ears flattened against the sides of his head and his eyes dilated until the amber color of his irises was nearly swallowed up by the black of his pupils. "How was I supposed to know that! How can I know these things if no one tells me!"

"Oh, calm down," Yuuka patted the demon's shoulder comfortingly. "It's not like it's a major change or anything. It'll shrink down to almost nothing and you're not even gonna have to deal with periods. You won't even notice that it's there."

"Yuuka?"

"Yes?"

"I'd hate to see what you think a major change is," the half demon said in a strangled voice.

"Why?" the wolf asked puzzled. The hanyou just sputtered and choked on his words. "Whatever," Yuuka waved off the hanyou's odd behavior as residual stress from what'd just happened. Plenty of women acted strangely after giving birth, why would a man be any different? She lifted the baby she held up bringing his pudgy little face eye level with her own, "Wanna go meet your other daddy-waddy, widdle baby?"

"Don't talk to my son like he's an idiot."

"He can’t understand me anyway," Yuuka said defensively rolling her eyes. The hanyou growled at her. "Oh, fine! Take away all my fun," she pouted, cradling the baby to her chest, hanging her head, and sticking her bottom lip out. Suddenly she perked up and started walking out the door.

"Where are you going!" Inuyasha shouted, slightly alarmed when she walked out of the hut with his newborn son in her arms.

"What?" Yuuka turned around looking surprised.

Inuyasha sighed heavily, "Where are you going?"

"I thought we'd go see Koga," she said giving the hanyou a pleading look, her eyes wide and her bottom lip trembling.

"Okay," Inuyasha sighed and followed the skipping demoness out of the hut and into the dark.

Just before they entered the cave system Yuuka thrust the second child into Inuyasha's arms and ran toward the Council chamber. Inuyasha swore softly as his sons began to cry attracting the attention of several wolves in the caves. He tried to quiet the babies while he followed Yuuka, cradling a baby in each arm. "That was your aunt," he said to his sons. "Don't pay any attention to her. She's crazy." It took the hanyou several minutes to catch up to the demoness because he had to stop and let the pack members he passed coo over his sons. They were cute babies and Inuyasha found himself swelling with pride at all the attention they were attracting.

******

"Hi, Koga!" Yuuka shouted as she jumped onto the Alpha's lap.

"Yuuka! What are you doing here?" Koga shouted falling over at the sudden onslaught from the she-wolf.

"What? I don’t even get a 'hello?'" Yuuka crossed her arms over her chest and sulked.

Koga, recognizing when the demoness was in one of her slightly unstable moods, apologized. "I'm sorry, Yuuka," he said. "But were having a meeting right now and I'll talk to you when we're done, okay?"

"But, I have something important to say!" the demoness clapped her hands happily and began to bounce up and down on Koga's lap.

"Yuuka! Get off of my mate!" Inuyasha yelled from the chamber's entranceway. The Councilors who'd been laughing at the she-wolf's antics hushed as the hanyou entered. All eyes in the room were riveted to the half demon's burden. Yuuka slunk off of Koga's lap as the silver haired demon flopped down on the chamber floor, sitting Indian style next to his mate. "Here, take one," Inuyasha passed a baby to the stunned wolf.

Koga looked at the baby in his arms, then the one in Inuyasha's arms, then finally he directed his gaze up at his mate. "This is why you left today?"

"Yeah."

Koga closed his eyes and swallowed before taking a deep breath, "Why didn't you tell me?"

The hanyou shrugged and said, "You were busy."

"Busy," Koga said flatly, before reaching over to pull the half demon into a soft kiss. "I love you, but don’t ever do that again."

"Do what?" Inuyasha asked looking utterly confused with his brow slightly furrowed and his ears perked up to stand at attention on the top of his head.

Koga smiled and wrapped an arm around his mate's shoulders. The hanyou was cute, but sometimes he just didn't get it. "I'll tell you later," he said kissing the demon yet again. "Ginta," he called.

"Yes, Koga?"

"Take over for me. We're going home," he said smiling broadly at his mate as he stood.

"Koga?" a voice called as the two approached the entranceway. "What are their names?"

As the Alpha it was his right to name his children without consulting his mate. Usually Alpha's named their children after themselves and their family members. Koga looked into his mate's golden eyes and said, "We'll tell you later."

When the two arrived at their home they dressed their children in outfits they'd been given and traded for in other villages before settling them in the crib they'd acquired and moved into the bedroom. Kaede was already in bed so the two tried to be quiet. Koga was enthralled with his cubs. He kissed the tops of their heads and the bottoms of their feet as he dressed them. He counted their fingers and toes and stroked their soft cheeks with the back of his fingers, being sure to watch his claws. Inuyasha was equally enamored of the small babes. The silver haired demon leaned on the side of the crib and watched as his mate fretted over the children. The hanyou smiled and reached out to touch the little demons from time to time. The infants soon fell to sleep under the pair's ministrations. Inuyasha told Koga which child was the oldest and the two quietly discussed names they liked. They'd had this conversation before, but it was as yet unresolved. In the end they chose to name the oldest Tetsuya and the youngest Ren.

When the children were asleep in their crib and the two finally found it within them to tear themselves away from their newborns, Koga led his mate over to their bed. Inuyasha was obviously tired. He was yawning and having trouble keeping his eyes open. The half demon allowed the wolf to lead him over to the bed, in an unusual display of submission brought on by his fatigue. Koga carefully undressed his wearied mate and laid him down. He pulled the blankets over Inuyasha before swiftly disrobing and joining him under the covers.

Inuyasha snuggled into his mate's arms and tucked his head under Koga's chin. "Are you alright?" Koga asked.

"Yeah, I'm fine," Inuyasha assured his mate.

Koga stroked a hand down the hanyou's back. "I mean really. Are you okay?"

There was silence for a moment and Koga thought that Inuyasha might have fallen asleep. "I'm a little sore, but it's nothing," the half demon finally admitted knowing that his mate would press the issue until he got an honest answer.

The wolf smiled and held the Inuyoukai closer. Koga moved his hand up to stroke the half demon's furry ears. Inuyasha sighed in contentment and leaned into the wolf's touch. Inuyasha was not so different from one of the wolves in his pack in this way; wolves loved to have their ears scratched. Half demon though he was, as an inuyoukai Inuyasha did have some dog like traits. Koga could understand that, wolves were canines too. Koga laughed when his mate practically purred in sheer rapture, "I love you," the blue eyed wolf said softly.

Koga felt a hand move in his hair. Inuyasha's fingers sought out the tie to Koga's hair and pulled it loose. He liked the wolf's hair when it was down and whenever they got a moment alone Inuyasha took the opportunity to liberate Koga's hair from it's bonds. Koga had even considered leaving his hair down to make the hanyou happy, but it turned into a tangled mess whenever he ran anywhere. He just didn't have Inuyasha's uncanny ability to maintain his coiffeur in the face of gale force winds "I love you too," the silver haired man whispered into the wolf's pointed ear.

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Chapter Seventeen: Of Canines and Mikos

After several weeks Inuyasha came to the conclusion that it was a miracle life existed anywhere. He loved his children, he did! He would do anything for them and he even caught himself thinking that it was cute when Ren drooled all over the front of his kimono. But after intense and close observation he determined that children were sticky, gooey, wet, and usually dripping from somewhere all the time. They never seemed to sleep more than an hour or two at a time and they had lungs powerful enough to wake the dead. Between Inuyasha, Koga, Kaede, and Yuuka the children were well cared for, but very soon everyone was exhausted. The boys grew quickly. Being three quarters demon the twins grew only slightly slower than the average demon of the canine variety, but they still were walking within a month and a half of their birth. In another two months the boys no longer needed diapers, to the immense relief of all. Tetsuya and Ren resembled six-year-old human children by the time they were six months old. They would continue their growth spurt for about a year before their bodies would slow into a slightly slower than human growth rate. By the time the boys were ten human years old they'd look as if they were in their late teens. After that growth would be incredibly slow, they might spend several centuries without appreciably aging.

The whole pack was fond of the twin boys and treated them with great kindness. Inuyasha and Koga were doting parents, they spent time playing with their sons everyday, which was no small feat with their demanding schedule. The boys were truly identical, which caused some confusion in the den. They had Inuyasha's eyes and hair and Koga's ears. As a matter of fact Inuyasha was slightly disturbed to note a striking resemblance between his sons and his older brother. If only Tetsuya and Ren had Sesshomaru's markings on their faces and hands they would look like miniature versions of the older inuyoukai. Well, no matter, he loved his sons dearly and it truly didn't matter to him who they resembled. The twins were precocious boys, curious about their environment and especially attached to one another they never wanted to be parted and often one twin would finish the other's sentence. Which only added to the confusion when they were so alike in behavior and form, it seemed that the only ones who could tell the boys apart were their parents and, strangely enough, Yuuka. The twins slept, ate, played, and bathed together. They loved their fathers and their aunts Kaede and Yuuka. There was never a happier family. Everything was as it should be, the pack was growing and for a short while it seemed as if time itself had stopped and the troubles of the world outside the den would pass them by. Inside the borders of the wolf demon tribe was a safe haven, untouched by worry, want, or woe. And so it remained until a small group of strangers was found entering the den's inner territories.

"Koga, we've found some trespassers," Hakakku reported as the Alpha sat in council. His mate was away, playing with their children at the moment. It was just after midday and Inuyasha had gone ahead, leaving Koga to deal with some minor but important business before he joined them. Hakkaku shifted from foot to foot awkwardly, before he motioned for the guards under his command to bring the prisoners into the Council chamber. Three humans, a demon cat, and a very small kitsune were brought before the Alpha.

Koga observed the bound prisoners dispassionately, before he addressed the guard holding Shippo. "Let the child go," he ordered. The kitsune's bonds were cut and the small child was placed on the chamber floor. Immediately Shippo huddled behind Kagome, shivering in fear. "Why are you in my territory?"

The monk spoke first, "We are seeking the priestess you took from our village nearly a year ago. Why was she not returned? What have you done with her?"

Koga waved a hand to silence the young monk. "Kaede is well and is still in these lands." Koga paused for a moment looking at the humans thoughtfully. "Though you have trespassed on my territory I understand that it was out of concern for your friend. In your case I would probably have done the same thing. I will overlook the transgression this once, for you two. But you," Koga turned toward Kagome. "You were warned not to enter these lands. You are banned from my den, woman. Why are you here?"

"Koga, I don't understand why you banned me," Kagome said. "I came to find Kaede and I thought that maybe if I talked to you I could find out what's wrong. Why are you angry with me, Koga? I don't understand it."

Koga knelt down to look the kneeling woman in the face. "You are a vexing creature. But there is something I want from you. Give it to me and I'll allow you to leave unharmed. I'll even let you stay awhile to see the priestess you followed here, provided that she will see you."

Sango growled at the arrogant demon, "If it's the sacred jewel shards you're after we'll never give them to you!"

"Please!" Koga said, his voice dripping with disgust. "Keep your shards. I don’t want them."

"What do you want?" Kagome asked.

"Break a spell for me and you're free to go," Koga stood and stepped back a few paces observing the cowering humans.

"A spell? What spell?" Kagome asked puzzled. At that moment there was a commotion in the entryway and three silver haired demons burst into the Council chamber.

"Inuyasha!" the three humans cried out in surprise. Inuyasha came to a halt several steps away from Koga and stared at his former friends. Tetsuya who had been riding on his father's back slid to the floor and stood next to his brother at his father's side. The twins looked at one another puzzled as to what was going on and worried at their fathers' serious expressions. Curiously Tetsuya, who was the bolder of the two, crept forward to inspect the strangers in the den. They were so strange looking; he'd never seen real humans before, except Kaede, but these humans didn't look like his auntie. The one in the purple robe reminded him of his daddy when the moon was gone, but he was different and his daddy didn't like that form so maybe he wouldn't like the man in the purple robes, the small boy reasoned. Tetsuya looked up to see that his daddy Koga was frowning at the humans and they were all tied up. Tetsuya wondered what they had done wrong. Maybe, he thought, it was because of the man that looked like daddy, but not really. Whatever they did, it must have been bad if his daddies were so mad at them. Tetsuya and Ren's daddies were never that mad at them, the little demon noted.

Tetsuya felt a tug on his sleeve and looked behind him. Ren looked at his brother solemnly before pointing past the dark haired woman dressed in green. When Tetsuya turned back and looked to where his brother was pointing he noticed another little boy huddling behind the woman. The twins exchanged excited grins before scurrying over to talk to the strange looking little boy. It was with some delight that the twins noted their new friend had a tail, just like their daddy Koga! And it exhilarated them that the rusty haired boy had feet like an animal, almost like one of the wolves in the den. He was so interesting! They'd never seen anything like him before and the boys instantly liked him. The twins drew the little fox away from the Miko and excitedly began to ask him his name and what he was doing in the den.

Meanwhile, Inuyasha was stunned to see the trio of humans inside the chamber. Inuyasha stood stock still where he was and made no move, as he was still unsure of how to receive his former friends and allies. His time among the wolves had helped him realize just how deeply these people had hurt him and he was hesitant to give them that sort of power for a second time. But then again, though Sango and Miroku had contributed to his hurt by their silence and inaction they had not sought to hurt him with the maliciousness present in Kagome's actions. The hanyou could easily forgive them that, though he would never place his trust so fully in them again. That right to them was forfeit, but he didn't mean to cut them out of his life completely. They were, for the most part, good people. He could associate with them and, if he were truthful with himself, it would please him to do so. But he wondered if it was too soon, the scars on his body were only recently faded and he was still very confused and angry with the lot of them.

Sango, who was well versed in demon lore, looked from the silver haired little boys to the demon lord then to the Alpha wolf and back again with wide eyes. Koga had edged toward the boys and was following his son's movements intently, unconsciously falling into a protective stance whose purpose was obviously and unequivocally the protection of his cubs. It only took the demon slayer a moment to analyze his motions and draw the correct conclusion to the wolf's actions and the boys' parentage. Sango managed to catch Miroku's attention and nodded first at the hanyou then at the little boys. Miroku quirked an eyebrow in confusion, his eyes widening in understanding when Sango tossed her head toward the Alpha wolf standing before him.

Well aware of the silent conversation passing between the humans and its potential danger to his mate, Koga pressed forward with his demand. Walking over to his mate Koga lifted the strand of enchanted beads around the hanyou's neck and turned toward the Miko. "Koga, what's going on?" Inuyasha whispered under his breath.

Koga turned his head away from the humans and winked at his mate reassuringly before turning to face the woman who was, in his mind, responsible for his mate's near death. "Remove these, then I'll allow you to see your friend," Koga said.

"What?" Kagome asked startled. "I can't do that!"

"On the contrary, you're the only one who can. Kaede has already tried and failed," Koga ground out at the human woman.

"Kaede wouldn't do that," Kagome said. She pointed a finger at the beads in question, "Kaede put those there for a reason and I won't remove them!"

"Then die on the spot," Koga yelled back. "Guards!" Two wolves sprang forward to grab the Miko's arms and hold her. One of the men drew a curved dagger from a sheath belted around his waist and held it before the young woman's face. The man paused awaiting Koga's signal to strike. Inuyasha whined in the back of his throat, too low for anyone other than Koga to hear it. Koga responded to his mate's query by placing a reassuring hand on his shoulder. Taking this woman's life would deeply bother his mate. Koga loved his mate and had no intention of harming Inuyasha, emotionally or otherwise. Pushing Kagome like this was a calculated risk. Koga had to do this very carefully so that things didn't get out of hand, but if it worked it would benefit his mate greatly and get rid of the damned collar this woman had chained around his mate's neck.

"Release her!" Miroku screamed.

"You can not do this!" Sango yelled equally enraged.

Kagome stood frozen, staring at the knife blade inches from her throat. "She has but to break the spell and she may leave here unharmed," Koga told the humans.

'He'll do anything for his mate,' Sango thought. "Kagome, I think you should do as he says," she said.

"I agree," Miroku said, coming to the same realization as Sango. "Kagome, you must break the spell."

Kagome looked at the other two startled before she turned back to face Koga. "Alright. I'll do it." Koga motioned of the guards to release her and cut her bindings. The dark haired woman rubbed at her newly freed wrists for a moment before moving toward the hanyou. Her hands hovered for a moment over the strand of beads, which held the binding spell in place. She looked over at the intent look on Koga's face before taking a deep steadying breath and lifting the beads from around the hanyou's neck. She pushed Inuyasha's great mass of hair away from his neck to grasp the stand and gently lifted the beads from the base of his throat. All the while the hanyou made no move to stop or help her. He stared at her face dazed and shocked to the core by all that was happening around him. When he felt to necklace lifted over his head, but caught on his hair he raised his hands to lift his silvery locks and allow Kagome to pull the beaded chain fully free. Once removed the strand fell apart in her hands; the magic that held it together dispelled. Individual beads fell to the ground with a clatter and rolled across to chamber floor.

"Thank you," Inuyasha said. Just then he felt a tug on his pant leg and looked down. Tetsuya and Ren were standing next to him.

"Daddy, can Ren and I go to auntie Yuuka's hut with Shippo?" the small boy asked.

"Daddy!" Kagome shrieked, in shock.

"Sure," the hanyou smiled at his son, grateful to the small boy for offering him a moment's respite to collect his wits. Inuyasha patted the small child on the shoulder and looked to where his youngest boy was clutching the little fox's paw in his hand, a grave look on his face. Ren was always so serious, it was adorable, and it brought a smile to the gruff hanyou's face whenever he saw the little one's intense undaunted gaze. "Shippo, are you hungry?" he asked to the small fox hiding behind Ren.

"Mmhhm," the kitsune murmured from where his face was hidden against Ren's back, still frightened and confused by what had just happened.

Inuyasha knelt down so that he was eye level with the children, "Tetsuya, Ren, take Shippo to Yuuka and get him something to eat, okay? We're gonna go visit your auntie Kaede, so I want you to stay at Yuuka's until I come to get you. Understand?"

"Yes, Daddy," the twins chorused.

Inuyasha ruffled Ren's hair, "Alright, ya trouble makers, get outta here and go terrorize your aunt." The twins left the Council chamber giggling happily and pulling Shippo along behind them.

When his son's had left the room Koga motioned for the other humans to be released from their bonds. "How old are they?" Sango asked Inuyasha, stepping forward and smiling at her estranged friend. She was truly happy to see him; she'd been so worried when he'd failed to return to Kaede's village that winter.

"Seven months tomorrow," the hanyou smiled at the demon slayer.

"Twins. They must be quite the handful," the dark haired monk said.

"Yes, they are," Koga replied coming up behind his mate and wrapping his arms around the hanyou's waist possessively.

"What is going on here!" Kagome screamed. "When did you have kids? Why are you hugging him? And where is Kaede!" the Miko screamed on the verge of hysterics.

Before Inuyasha could say anything Koga cut in, "I would prefer that you not take such a tone with my mate!" The wolf smirked at the woman's stunned expression. "To answer your questions; our children were born seven months ago, I'm hugging him because I love him, and Kaede is residing in a room I've given her in our home." Koga put an emphasis on the "our" and visibly tightened his grip around the hanyou's waist pulling the half demon back against his chest.

Kagome stared fo