Tsume: Oooh-kay . . . tsume.hack doesn't own Wolf's Rain or any of the characters. Ha ha ha . . .

tsume.hack: That's not very nice. Oh, and by the way . . . um, I've only actually watched one episode of Wolf's Rain, but I've got a pretty good idea of what happens, thanks to Kiba spoiling it all for me . . . bows Thank you, Kiba-san! For that, and putting up with me when we go to McDonald's! Oh, yeah . . . the story . . . kinda forgot about that... o.O;;

The businesses and shops opened late on the weekends, but there was still the regular early-morning crowd on the streets today. The bustle of the masses mingled with the sounds of automobiles and buses driving by on the congested streets, while anxious-faced office workers on bicycles jockeyed for space in the narrow bike lane.

On the sidewalk, food vendors were hawking their wares to the crowd, and street performers amused those who cared to stop and watch, and maybe donate a little money as well. The people in the crowd were mostly nine-to-fivers on their way to work, and they were too absorbed in their own thoughts to notice a certain young man, probably in his twenties, walking along against the flow of foot traffic, unmindful of the crowds.

He looked normal enough, with his weatherbeaten black jacket, jeans, and white shirt. His hair was a little unruly and hung over his serious blue eyes. He kept his hands in his jacket pockets as he walked, ignoring the morning rush, and pausing once to glance at a hot dog vendor.

With a slight smile, he remembered a golden-brown muzzle stealthily inching closer to another hot dog vendor's goods, in another time.

That muzzle belonging, of course, to Hige: the king of fluff and hot dog connoisseur extraordinaire –

" Hey mister!" Kiba started, and snapped out of his reverie to see the vendor pointing at him. " You look hungry! C'mon, get one! Best hot dogs in town!"

For a second, he thought about getting one, just in memory of Hige, but then he thought the better of it, and walked away. He hadn't liked hot dogs back then, and he still wasn't too fond of them.

He continued to walk. Was Hige here? he wondered. Then he dismissed the thought. Chances were, if he had been reborn as Kiba had, he was somewhere else, far away. Kiba had tried over and over to catch any familiar scent in this bustling city, but the faint traces he had happened upon disappeared as soon as he tried to follow them. For a while, he had considered leaving the city, but something kept him here, something that urged him to wait just one more day, and see what the next would bring.

Always the next day . . . Kiba repeated in his mind. He bumped shoulders with a middle-aged man hurrying by, who apologized hastily over his shoulder and continued on his way.

His hand came up to his shoulder. If that had happened back then . . . they would have bumped into a wolf. Now, he was a human.

He let his hand drop, then stuck both hands in his pockets. Maybe he did have the body of a human . . . but all the time, he could feel the wolf in him stirring still, and on nights when the moon was full . . .

He soon left the business district and found a quiet park some way away from the noise of zooming cars. He sat down on a bench and surveyed the glittering expanse of skyscrapers punctuating the skyline.

Was Paradise here? he wondered. Would he find peace here?

He hung his head and rubbed his eyes with a sigh.

If only there was some way to tell . . . If only he could be sure . . .

" Oh, hey!"

Kiba ignored the call, thinking the person was calling someone behind him.

" Hey! It's you, isn't it?"

Okay, now it sounded like they were talking to him. Come to think of it, that voice sounded familiar –

" Kiba!"

His eyes shot open, and he jerked his head up. There stood Hige, looking very much alive and well, a half-eaten hot dog in his hand, and another one wrapped in foil tucked under his arm.

" Been a while, Kiba," he grinned, then offered, " Hot dog?"

Kiba shook his head, still surprised. He was at a loss for words for a moment or two.

" You too?" he managed at last. Hige's grin faded into a somewhat sad smile. He still wore his collar.

" Yup. Human," he said matter-of-factly. " I'm not a wolf anymore." He reflected on this with great seriousness for a moment before cheering himself up with the rest of his hot dog.

" How've you been?" he asked around a particularly big mouthful. Kiba shrugged.

" I've been okay. Surviving, if that's what you mean."

Hige laughed. " I knew you'd say something like that. Y'know, we're not wolves anymore, but it still feels like we are. We still talk about surviving as though we're hiding from the humans, but think about it: We don't have to hide anymore. We finally belong."

" Do we?" Kiba asked quietly. Hige stopped chewing to look at him.

" Hm, well that all depends. I guess we don't. But we can try."

They watched the distant skyline, and the sun reflecting off the polished buildings. After a few minutes Hige asked, " Have you seen the others?"

Kiba shot him a glance. " They're here?"

" I dunno. I thought maybe you'd have seen them." Hige stuffed the rest of his food into his mouth. When he had swallowed he continued, " I thought I smelled them the other day, but it's hard to be sure."

" I know."

Hige rubbed his nose with one finger thoughtfully, then he grinned.

" It sure was weird, walking through here and seeing you on this bench. Freaked me out," Hige laughed. " I thought I was seeing things." He clapped his hand on Kiba's shoulder. " But it's good seeing you again after all this time."

Kiba smiled. " It's good seeing you too."

" Man, we should see if we can find Tsume and Toboe now," Hige got up and stretched. " We wouldn't be a whole pack without them." He examined his foil-wrapped hot dog and said in a dubious tone, "Are you sure you don't want it?"

" Pretty sure."

Kiba got up, and the two wolves – or rather, former wolves – started walking toward the city.