"Happy Ever After?"

A/Note: July 5, 2020

Greetings everyone! I hope this newest chapter finds you all doing well! It's been super busy around here so I haven't had much time to work on my stories, but today I was determined to get this next chapter up. It's an exciting one and VERY long! :)

~*~Thank you so much~*~ to everyone that's taken the time to comment! I'm so glad you're enjoying the read and that Kouga/InuYasha sound as close to cannon as I can get them. That means so much to me! Besides Kouga/Kagome, they're my next favorite pair. You know, in that platonic, I love to hate you sort of way lol ;-)

I hope you all enjoy this next chapter, "Happy Ever After?"

big hugs!

~ lady p.

-ooOooOooOoo-SW&tW-ooOooOooOoo-

The little group exchange their farewells at the farmhouse as they prepare to continue on their journey. They pause at the end of the pathway before continuing onto the main road as they wait for Kouga to rejoin them. The wolf had taken off earlier, scouting through the woods to make sure no other demons lay hidden nearby. Kagome had been grateful for the gesture as she was still feeling a little wary about leaving the women on their own, but seeing Kouga take off into the forest alone had unsettled her even more. Something had felt a little off with him, though she couldn't figure out what exactly. The moment she senses his twin shards moving quickly back to their location she lets out a silent sigh of relief.

"You alright, Kagome?" Sango asks, noticing the unsettled expression on her friend's face.

"Huh? Oh, ah, yes. Well, I don't know," Kagome admits with some hesitation. Her hands wring together in a nervous gesture as she glances back at the quiet farmhouse. "I still don't feel right about leaving them on their own," she answers, not really wanting to admit where her thoughts had wandered off too.

"Be at ease, Kagome," Miroku smiles with reassurance. "I've left sacred sutras around the perimeter of the farmhouse to aid them."

Sango's eyes round on the monk with surprise. "You did?"

"Indeed," he nods back. "At the very least it will give them some protection and warning until either Eito or Kaori's husband return."

Kagome smiles gratefully at her lecherous though incredibly thoughtful friend. "Thanks, Miroku."

"If we're done playing good Samaritan, can we get a move on now?" InuYasha's gruff tone interrupts. He walks quickly towards Kagome and the others the moment he sees Kouga emerge from the edge of the forest. Was he a total asshole for hoping the wolf had in fact found some demons during his trek that would prevent his return? Probably. As he nears, InuYasha manages to scoop up the yellow pack at Kagome's feet before Kouga has a chance to retrieve it. Slinging it over his shoulder, it earns him an enjoyable glare from the irritated wolf demon.

"Problem?" InuYasha smirks with satisfaction.

"Not a chance, mutt face," Kouga answers readily, refusing to let the dog demon get to him. Ever since the incident in the barn with Kagome, the hanyou had made an annoying point of never wandering too far off - always keeping him in his sights. It's why he'd needed the excuse to scout through the forest. It was amazing what a quick run could do to clean the stench of dog out of his nostrils.

Kagome watches the tension flare between the two canines, relieved that they'd both been on their best behavior around each other. Well, more or less. They continue on the well traveled road that before too long converges on a large prosperous village situated along one of the main rivers that cut through the land. It's filled with a variety of farmers, tradesmen, woman, and children that bustle about in the waning day. Sounds of voices, laughter, and loud bargaining can be heard easily as they pass through the main gates.

"This is excellent!" Miroku's eager eyes sweep over the many beautifully adorned women in their brightly colored kimonos. Sango rolls her eyes away from the lecherous monk. She'd only just finished polishing her boomerang back at the farmhouse and it would be a shame to mar it with blood so soon. "It seems that this village is a hub of activity for the surrounding area," Miroku comments, a little spring bouncing in his step. "It should be easy to find a comfortable place to rest for the night."

"You mean finding the most expensive looking house with a dark cloud, right Miroku?" Shippou grins, his tail flicking behind him where he's perched on the monk's shoulder.

"It's not my fault that the expensive homes are the most comfortable and often in most need of spiritual cleansing," Miroku replies in a very serious, no-nonsense tone. "After all, Shippou, greed and wealth often go hand in hand. Attracting many unsavory persons."

"Well, you got that right at least," InuYasha comments loudly, making the others around him laugh aloud. Even Kouga finds himself holding back a grunt of amusement.

"Oh, Sango, look at the different stalls!" Kagome exclaims brightly. She rushes forward, dragging her friend by the hand to one of the many small booths that have been set up with various items laid out for purchase.

Kouga's tail swishes behind him, watching entranced as Kagome scurries about the market place with the demon slayer. Her eyes bright and filled with excitement as she takes in the sights around her. Gods, he loves her enthusiasm. How even the most mundane things seem to fill her with a rush of joy. He could watch her forever, taking in the world around her and seeing it through her eyes.

"Better watch where you're looking, wolf," InuYasha scowls, annoyed at how intently Kouga's gaze tracks after Kagome as they follow slowly after the girls and a bouncing Shippou. "Or you're likely to step on something sharp," he rumbles harshly, his hand curling around the hilt of his Tessaiga.

Kouga's forehead creases as he turns to glare at the hanyou that's made a point of sticking much too close to him for comfort. "What's your problem anyways, dog breath?" His stance goes rigid as he stops abruptly, turning hard eyes on the hanyou. "Can't you ever take a break from being a whining whelp for once?"

InuYasha's hand curls tighter on the hilt of his blade. "Can't you ever take a break from eyeing Kagome like she's your next goddamn meal?!" he growls in a low dark tone.

One corner of Kouga's mouth curls up, his eyes flashing with amusement. "A good hunter never takes his eyes off the prize," he replies smoothly, enjoying the flash of anger that streaks across the hanyou's face. "And she's gonna be my last meal, not the next, mutt," he adds, his chest pushing out in a display of dominance. "My goddamn fucking banquet to feast on as I please." A flare of promise burns bright in Kouga's eyes with his words. He can see InuYasha's temper rising at his declaration, but he knows the hanyou's hands are tied, unable to lash out like he clearly wants to. "Better get that through your thick skull," he grunts, double tapping a finger to his temple for emphasis.

InuYasha takes a threatening step towards the wolf demon that doesn't flinch at the movement. Not even when a curled fist rises before him, shifting the pack on his back. The other tightens its grip on his blade's hilt, the knuckles whitening. "You better back the hell off of Kagome or else," he growls menacingly.

"Or else what?" Kouga grins cockily, knowing the hanyou won't risk Kagome's ire by taking a swing at him, just like he won't. At least, not while she's standing within visual sight. His arms cross indifferently over his chest. "You gonna bore me to death with all your complaining?"

InuYasha's lips curl back, revealing short tipped fangs as he takes another step closer. "Or I'm gonna make sure that Kagome sees you for exactly what you are," he replies curtly.

"And what am I?" Kouga scoffs in a bored manner.

"No good for her," he answers hotly. "And you fucking know it!"

Kouga's expression turns hard and cold on the dog demon, his amusement evaporating in the heat of an ugly truth that he himself has battled with. Maybe once he'd have no choice but to agree with the mutt, but he's gone to great lengths to change his life around from the first moment he'd met her. Determined to be exactly the kind of man that Kagome could give her heart to. Someone she could love.

"You're lucky I'm a changed wolf, mutt face," Kouga squares his stance as he drops his arms at his side. "Or I'd be picking my teeth with your bones by now." His tail swishes sharply behind him in a release of pent up energy.

It's InuYasha's turn to laugh sarcastically, knowing he's hit a raw nerve with the wolf. "You ain't fooling nobody, flea bag. Least of all Kag –" He's cut off by the miko's jubilant cry as she waves over to them from farther down the market.

"Kouga! Come look!" she calls out, waving ecstatically at him.

Kouga grins at the scowling hanyou. "Sorry, dog breath, can't play with you anymore. My woman calls." Pivoting on his heel, he turns to march confidently to where Kagome and Sango are fawning over something at one of the stalls.

"What's that about?" Sango giggles, whispering quietly to Kagome as they watch a broad grinning Kouga stride quickly towards them.

"You saw them," she whispers back. "It's probably a good idea not to leave those two together alone for very long."

"True," Sango concedes, rubbing at Kirara's ears that sleeps easily in her arms. Her gaze turns towards Miroku and Shippou at another stall that just happens to be manned by two young attractive women. Speaking of not leaving certain people alone together. "Excuse me, Kagome," Sango speaks curtly, her gaze sliding back to the monk that is now leaning over the table top where the two women are giggling at him, their eyelashes fluttering. "I'll be right back." Her tone turning darker, she walks away, leaving Kagome alone.

"Uh, sure, Sango." Kagome's heart flutters against her chest, feeling suddenly nervous about being left alone with Kouga. Well, alone as two people can be in a busy market.

"What's up, Kagome?" Light dances in Kouga's eyes as he approaches, loving the soft flush of his woman's cheeks as he nears. Knowing that it's because of him her heart rate is speeding up.

"Oh, ah," Kagome rolls back on her heels, her arms clasped firmly behind her back in an attempt to appear casual and not in any away trying to keep her hands from sliding along Kouga's strong forearm. "I wanted you to see this." She points to a table top where delicately carved statuettes made of wood adorn the surface, clustered among other trinkets such as whistles, bowls, and spinning tops. One the size of her palm stands out. "It made me think of you," she smiles sweetly.

Kouga's gaze falls on the item in question and a warm chuckle rumbles in his chest. "That's pretty good actually." Impressed at the craftsmanship and how expertly the artist had captured the profile of a lone wolf in mid run. Kagome beams at him, pleased with his reaction. "It never ceases to surprise me how creative humans can be," he adds in a soft tone as his finger caresses the smooth lines of the carving. The fact that Kagome had been gazing at figurines of wolves and had been thinking of him stirs a powerful feeling deep in his heart.

"I like this one too," she adds, pointing at a carving of a stallion reared up on two legs with a single horn protruding from its head.

Kouga's gaze flickers back to hers. "You like horses, Kagome?" Thrilled to be learning something new about her.

"That's a unicorn, actually," she smiles brightly. "I have always wanted to go horse back riding though, but unicorns are something else." A wistful light enters her eyes, stirring Kouga's curiosity.

"Oh yeah?" He steps to follow after her as Kagome turns away from the table, continuing her walk along the market stalls. "Why's that?" he inquires, enjoying the feeling of walking next to her, of talking so easily with her. Getting to know these little things about her.

"It's silly," Kagome's eyes cast to the ground, ignoring the press of people around her that seem to be giving her and Kouga a wide berth and tentative stares as they stroll slowly along the causeway.

"I doubt that." Kouga's shoulder brushes against hers and he hears the small inhalation of breath she takes. His yoki howls at the sound. "Tell me," he encourages, nudging her with his shoulder again, intentionally this time, just so he can hear it again.

Kagome laughs as she turns her gleaming eyes on him. "Didn't anyone ever tell you, you can't always get what you want?" she teases, her hand unconsciously pressing against his wrist. Kouga feels the electric touch sizzle through his whole body as the heat from her fingers seeps into his skin. He stops at the same moment Kagome does, turning to face her completely.

"I never give up on what I want, Kagome." Barely repressed desire burns through him, filling his gaze with the fervor of licking flames as Kouga stares deep into her eyes. "That's something you should know about me by now." The husky timbre of his voice sends a rush of heat Kagome feels curling all the way deep in her belly.

"K-Kouga," she swallows the dryness in her throat, her tongue flicking against her lips, wetting them.

"Yes, Kagome?" Kouga's rough voice fills with longing as he steps closer to her, his gaze darting to the wetness of her lips even as the air between them crackles with electricity.

"Don't tell me you actually want to buy any of this junk," InuYasha gruffs sourly as he approaches, interrupting the much too uncomfortable scene.

"Hey, who the hell asked you over here, dog face?" Kouga growls, more than a little annoyed at the hanyou's interruption. Something the insufferable dog was getting quite good at doing.

"Like I need your permission to go where the hell I want," InuYasha snaps, his spine stiffening.

"Funny how where you want to go is exactly where you're not wanted," Kouga growls louder. Frustration at the hanyou's constant interference scraping his voice.

Dark golden eyes narrow on the wolf demon. "Keh. Like I care what you want!" InuYasha barks back even louder, his anger rising.

"Boys, this isn't -" Kagome's cut off by Kouga's answering retort as he takes a single aggressive step towards the hanyou.

"Why don't you take a hint for once and scamper off like a good little puppy," he challenges, voice thick with disdain.

InuYasha's jaw clenches tight, his fists balling at his sides as he too takes a single step forwards, their foreheads nearly touching. "Why the hell don't you just try and make me!"

"Demons!" A cry breaks out from farther away among the crowd of villagers.

"Goddamn these people," InuYasha snaps with irritation. "Don't they realize nobody's fucking fighting?!"

"What else are they supposed to think when you keep shouting and yelling like that, dog shit?" Kouga sneers, baring his teeth and revealing threatening fangs.

"Guys . . ." Kagome's eyes haze over slightly as her head pans around the village, seeking something she can't see but can feel plucking at her senses as it hums under her skin.

InuYasha's lips curl back, revealing slightly shorter fangs with no less threatening malice. "Who the hell's yelling?!" he yells at the wolf while a vein pulses at his temple.

The strings along Kagome's senses pluck more forcefully, vibrating through to the bottoms of her feet. "You guys . . ." she tries again, turning her whole body away from them. At the action, Kouga's gaze immediately shifts to Kagome, ignoring the mutt.

"Kagome?" He asks her. "What is it?" The rest of their group runs up to them, worry etched across their faces as the commotion in the village continues to escalate.

"What's going on?" Sango asks, clutching a stirring Kirara protectively in her arms.

Kagome stares off towards the bordering forest, her eyes growing wide. "Something's coming," she whispers hoarsely.

The cries of the panicking villagers are lost to the little group that all turn to focus in the direction Kagome is gazing. The direction the first cry had rung out from, yet no threat appears.

Kouga snarls low at the back of his throat, his predatory senses exploding at the sudden rush of yoki energy that comes on so suddenly. His own howls in rage and anger. How could he possibly have allowed an enemy to get so close without him detecting it?!

A waft of cold air streams through the village, ruffling hair and robes.

"W-What . . . what is it?" Shippou asks, feeling his own demonic senses explode with warning.

"I don't know, Shippou." Kagome's skin tightens at the feel of cold that rushes over her, prickling the hairs on her arms. "But it doesn't feel . . . good."

Kouga watches Kagome carefully, noticing the chill that crawls over her skin, to the way she crosses her arms across her body, rubbing at her shoulders as if to rid herself of whatever sensations are tripping through her holy senses.

Sango squints her eyes as she attempts to focus on a strange haze beginning to obscure the edges of the forest. "What is that?" Wisps of fog begin to emerge from the deep of the woods, moving slowly along the ground as it crawls towards the little town and its panicked inhabitants.

"Fuck. Not this again," InuYasha scowls, observing the strange mist moving closer. He spares a glance towards Kouga, curious as to how he'll react, but the wolf's gaze is locked onto Kagome; the sight provoking him to action. "Well, whatever the hell is in there doesn't look like it wants to come out and play," InuYasha growls. "Guess I'll just have to go in there myself." He drops the pack he's carrying at his feet, taking a single step forward when Kagome's hand grips the side of his shoulder, halting him.

"InuYasha, wait." She can't explain it, but she feels . . . shaken inside.

"Kagome?" He looks down at her and at the fingers clutched tight in the red of his robes.

"Something . . . something doesn't feel right," she clarifies. There's just something about the feeling creeping through her senses that sends a cold jolt of ice tumbling in her stomach, grinding painfully within.

Kouga has a hard time fighting back the flare of jealousy that rises in his gut when Kagome clings to the hanyou's shoulder, confiding her concerns to the mutt. His yoki howls and snaps at the back of his mind, clawing behind his chest as it overrides the sense of urgency he knows he should be feeling at the appearance of the mist. Even though he has no claim to her, it doesn't stop Kouga from hoping that one day he'll be the one Kagome turns to when she's in need. When she's scared.

"Yes, Kagome, I think you're right." Miroku's eyebrows twitch in concentration as he focuses all his senses on the strange aura beginning to envelop the village. The bank of fog moves slowly past their ankles as it begins to cover the ground, intensifying the feeling.

"Keh. What do I care about bad feelings?" With more gentleness than he usually portrays, InuYasha carefully wraps his hand around Kagome's fingers that are still clutching him tightly. Dark golden pools fill with a mix of emotions, his tone softening on the distressed miko. "I'll be alright, Kagome." From his peripheral InuYasha can see the sour, annoyed look on Kouga's face at their closeness. Suck on that, wolf boy.

Sango watches the scene carefully, shifting her boomerang over her shoulder and at the ready as Kirara jumps out of her arms, quickly transforming. She's surprised that no demons have yet attacked despite the energy blanketing the area. The sensation growing so strong that even she can feel it now. Nor does she miss Kouga's angry glower as Kagome clings to InuYasha, her concern for the half-demon most likely provoking the wolf demon's jealous ire.

It takes every last bit of strength inside him for Kouga not to push himself between Kagome and InuYasha as he remembers the words the dog had claimed she had said about her feelings for the hanyou. Words that Kagome had confirmed. Words that ring at the back of Kouga's mind, darkening the flare of his yoki in response to the scene before him.

"I told Sango that I still have feelings for you."

Needing to take out his mounting frustration on something. Anything. Kouga decides that whatever is surrounding the village seems like an excellent place to start.

"Well, I for one ain't about to stand around here waiting for whatever the hell is in there to come out!" Kouga flexes his claws, the power of his yoki blazing hotly around him.

The flare of demonic energy sweeps up against Kagome's aura, suddenly snapping her from her daze. Realizing that she's still hanging onto InuYasha's arm, his hand holding hers, she steps back, releasing the hanyou. Her eyes cast guiltily towards the wolf that gazes at her with an unreadable expression on his face. She opens her mouth to speak when Kouga turns towards the forest, releasing a powerful roar as he rushes forward into the swirling bank of cold fog.

"Kouga, no!" Kagome cries out, watching helplessly as he disappears into the thickening mist.

"Ha!" InuYasha barks, drawing the Tessaiga from its scabbard with a loud scraping sound of metal. "Come back here you stupid wolf! This is my fight!" Leaping quickly away, he follows after him.

"InuYasha, wait!" Kagome reaches for the dog demon, but he's already gone.

"Kagome, what is it?" Sango asks, worried and curious.

"I . . . I don't know, Sango. I just, I have this awful feeling in the pit of my stomach." Her palms cover her belly as she speaks. "Like something bad is going to happen." She doesn't know how to explain it, but the moment the first trickles of cold energy had brushed over her skin, it had set off a dark warning in Kagome's heart.

Kouga and InuYasha move swiftly through the growing mist, leaving the village behind them.

"Damn it! What the hell is up with all this fucking fog?!" InuYasha growls, leaping through the high tree tops where the air is clearer. He can see the silhouette of the wolf somewhere farther ahead.

"I told ya already, whelp!" Kouga shouts over his shoulder. Something shoots out from between the trees, concealed by the rising vapor as he spins to avoid it.

"Ha! Nice try, flea bag. Miroku already told us what's causing the fog!" Not wanting to admit how much stranger this mist seems compared to what they'd experienced last night, or even how much more of it there is.

"Watch out, mutt!" Kouga calls out, just as something else goes shooting past him, narrowly missing him this time.

"What the hell?" InuYasha feels a rush of wind against his back among the high tree tops. He drops to the ground where the fog reaches up to his waist, knowing he'll have a better fighting chance on the level surface. A loud screeching sound is heard from above just as several winged demons burst through the hazy trees. Their large grayish and greenish bodies attacking swiftly and in numbers.

"Shit!" InuYasha leaps out of the way of a sharp talon swipe that comes flying towards him.

"Ksss! Die hanyou!" A rough voice rasps. The demon's deadly tipped arm swings with ferocious intent, but InuYasha side steps the creature, taking it in the back with a loud screeching sound of death; his Tessaiga neatly severing the wings from its body.

"Not today, asshole!" InuYasha grunts through clenched teeth. He moves swiftly through the trees, ducking, cutting, and swiping with his blade. "Fuck! Where the hell are they coming from?" he shouts, blocking another incoming attack from two green scaled demons that decide to tag team him.

"I'll give ya three fucking guesses, dog breath!" Kouga growls, making quick work of the demons that attack. Several charge him from the hazy ground while others fly low over his head. He parries the blows easily, attacking and dodging with swift powerful strikes, severing heads and limbs as the creatures fall lifelessly at his feet.

InuYasha is about to retort angrily when loud screams are heard rising from the village.

"Kagome!" both canine's call out, faces stricken with horror.

"Fuck!" Kouga snarls, swiping his claws and taking out another demon, its jugular exploding in a spray of blood as it collapses at his feet. "We've been drawn out on purpose!" Furious at himself for having taken the bait, Kouga races back towards the village, InuYasha hot on his heels, when a human foot soldier materializes out of the fog, attacking swiftly with his blade.

"Get out of my way!" Kouga snarls, blocking the downward strike of the blade with his bracer. His eyes lock hard to the young human male, his pale face and dark gaze oddly vacant. Something about him stirs a thought in the wolf's mind. "Eito?" It's the brief flash of recognition that lights in the vacant eyes that tells Kouga he's guessed correctly. "Shit," he rumbles under his breath.

He jumps back, avoiding the warriors swipes and lunges, suddenly unwilling to take him out as he'd done with the attacking demons. Remembering Kagome's words to him about hope, it's suddenly very important to Kouga that the warrior has a chance to get back to his woman. He knows if Yuki-Onna dies, all the souls in her possession will be freed.

The screams of the villagers grow louder, urging him on. "Better sit this one out, pal!" Kouga barks. Pulling his fist back with a perfectly controlled amount of power, he unleashes a right hook that takes Eito in the side of the head, knocking the warrior out cold as he tumbles to the ground, his body a vague outline in the mist. "You'll thank me later," Kouga rumbles under his breath before leaping away.

Fighting his way back to the village with the hanyou flanking him, Kouga's eyes widen at the smoke now rising from several homes that are burning. Scores of winged bat-like demons fly overhead, others attack from the ground as the terrified villagers attempt to fight them off with pitchforks and spears. Village guards swing wild with their sharp swords, clearly outnumbered.

"Shit! Kagome!" Kouga roars, moving in the direction he scents her. InuYasha keeps pace with him as the hanyou attacks with powerful swipes of his sword, clearing a path.

They find their friends battling together in an open part of the village where Sango and Miroku attack with swift strikes of their weapons, a transformed Kirara uses her powerful claws to swipe at the demons, and a little Shippou sends out blasts of fox fire amid spinning tops and other kitsune tricks. The sight of Kagome shooting her sacred arrows from the center of them, lighting up the darkening sky, sends a powerful bolt of relief coursing through the wolf's veins.

"Kagome!" Kouga rushes towards her, moving past hurtling bodies with practiced ease.

"Kouga!" She shouts, her eyes alighting with joy at his arrival.

"Kagome, are you alright?" Kouga grips her by the shoulders, unable to help himself as he pulls her closer. He skims his hands down her arms, checking her over, needing to reassure himself that she is in fact, really okay.

"Uh-huh," she nods, flushing with heat at Kouga's sudden nearness and the touch of his firm hands sweeping down her arms as he looks her over.

"Great. Now back the fuck off, wolf!" InuYasha growls, pushing hard against Kouga's chest and stumbling the wolf backwards, effectively separating him from Kagome. He grasps the Tessaiga hanging at his side tightly, his knuckles flexing with tension.

"Watch yourself, mutt!" Kouga snarls at the dog's intervention. "I told ya you were putting the others in danger!"

"Ha! This has nothing to do with whatever snow queen bullshit you were spewing before," InuYasha snaps. A particularly large bat demon flies towards them, talon tipped claws descending fast and diving straight for the hanyou.

"InuYasha be careful!" Kagome warns. "The sun is near setting! You know what that means."

"Please, these guys are a joke," InuYasha grunts, leaping high to meet the incoming attack. He easily separates the demon's head from his body with a single swipe of his sword, its parts dropping to the ground with squelching thuds. The battling in the village continues to intensify even as the sky continues to darken, the sun dipping into the horizon.

"Kagome, stay here with the others," Kouga tells her, waiting for her nod before rushing into the fray. She prepares more arrows while Miroku, Sango, Kirara, and Shippou continue to battle around her.

"Damn, how many of them are there?" InuYasha easily dispatches several more demons. If it weren't for all the villagers mixed in the battle, he'd use the wind scar to wipe them all out.

Kouga does his best to keep Kagome in his sights as he battles when he hears a desperate cry break through the cacophony of sounds.

"Help! Someone please help!" An older man screams as he rushes through the commotion, pointing up towards the sky. "My daughter! They've taken my daughter!"

Kouga's gaze darts up towards the form of a screaming girl dangling from the demons clawed feet as it sails through the sky.

"I've got him, Kouga!" Sango cries out to him just as Hiraikotsu goes sailing towards the flying demon. It severs the creature in half, releasing the young woman from its clutches as she drops like a stone from the deadly heights. With a rush of power funneling into his legs, Kouga runs, leaping high.

"I've got ya," he grunts, catching the falling young woman in his arms. He's surprised when the terrified girl wraps her arms tight around his neck. It's the first time any human other than Kagome has felt safe enough with him to do such a thing. The innocent gesture stirs an unnameable feeling inside him as the wolf drops safely to the ground, his cargo intact.

"Oh, thank you good sir! Thank you!" The older man cries, hugging his daughter to his chest.

"Uh, yeah, sure," Kouga answers as he watches the father and daughter rush off to safety. He's still mulling over the strange sensations in his chest at the human's gratitude and lack of fear of him when a familiar smell suddenly wafts under his nose. That scent! He knows that scent! His head whips in the direction his nose tells him, his eyes falling on the sight of the monk battling farther off than all the others. A dark mist begins to accumulate around him, thicker than the rest of the vapor enveloping the village.

"Miroku! Behind you!" Sango yells just as a demon flies low over his head. Its sharp talons grip him by the shoulder, puncturing the skin and making the monk grunt with pain as it releases him, dropping him towards the bank of rising fog.

"Argh!" Miroku's teeth clench tight, biting back the pain, just as a lithe shadowy figure begins to materialize from the mist and a long slender arm reaches out towards him.

"Careful, monk! Don't let her touch you!" Kouga shouts, speeding towards him. Miroku rolls away from the mist with a painful grunt, and the silhouetted figure disappears back into the haze just as the wolf arrives. Kouga's claws swipe over empty air. "Fuck!" he snarls.

As the sun finally disappears, dipping beneath the horizon, InuYasha feels his strength begin to wane. "Damn it!" he growls. His body pulses as the yoki in his blood dissipates; white triangular ears meld and disappear into now dark hair and the Tessaiga in his hand reverts back to its rusty useless shape.

A screeching horned demon rushes towards him. "Ksss! You're mine!" it caws, intent on taking down the now human dog demon.

"I don't think so!" InuYasha drops low to the ground as the demon's claws swipe over his dark hair. As the creature stumbles forward, he uses the hilt of his Tessaiga to crack hard against the demons skull that staggers on its feet before dropping to the ground unconscious, blood dripping from the wound. "Nighty night, fucker," InuYasha grins, holding his blunt blade tightly in his fist.

An attack from behind surprises him, knocking him to the ground with a painful grunt. He tries to roll out of the way of the demon's stomping foot, but the sharp talons rake over InuYasha's twisting body, catching on his robes and slicing at the tender flesh beneath.

"Fuck!" InuYasha grunts with pain, feeling heat blossom on the back of his calf and upper arm. He shoves his rusty blade between the demon's feet, tripping it over and onto the ground. "You'll pay for that!" he snarls hotly, driving the rusty blade with all his strength into the demon's back that gives a loud dying shriek. Taking a minute to catch his breath, InuYasha grips his bleeding arm with a clutched hand, slowly staggering to his feet, but his injured leg makes it difficult.

"InuYasha!" Kagome screams, watching as more demons begin to descend on the now unarmed and transformed hanyou.

His head snaps up at Kagome's cry, seeing a group of bats flying straight at him. "Shit!"

Kagome sprints towards him, her arrow drawn back. "Duck!" she cries, releasing her arrow with a powerful twang just as InuYasha drops back to the ground. A bright purifying light shoots over his head, disintegrating the incoming demons in a brilliant display.

"Are you alright, InuYasha?" She asks, dropping on her knees at the hanyou's side. "Oh no, you're hurt!" The panic is clear in Kagome's voice as she does her best to stem the flow of blood in his arm with pressure from her hand, but his leg wound is much graver.

"Keh, it'll take more than a couple of weak ass demons to do me in, Kagome," he grunts, holding back a wince of pain as she looks him over. Kagome smiles at him. Even in his human state, InuYasha was never one to give up.

"Maybe it's better if we stick close to the others," she suggests. Reaching into the side of her quiver, she retrieves a roll of cloth in the little compartment that she kept there for exactly these type of situations. Huddled close together, Kagome is so intent on patching him up that neither of them notice the mist that begins to form behind InuYasha as she quickly wraps cloth around his calf and upper arm, her bow and arrow cast on the ground at her side. She hears Kouga howl a warning at her from somewhere farther away and her head snaps up, finally seeing the fog accumulating around them. "What the?"

Kagome's senses trip wildly moments before she's hit with an arctic blast of cold wind that sends her flying backwards, hitting the ground with a hard thump just as a lithe figure steps out of the fog. A beautiful woman with long snowy hair and ethereal blue robes smiles down at them, a bright slash of red across her porcelain features that's as cold as the mist.

Kouga had watched with mixed emotions as Kagome had run towards a human looking InuYasha, intervening and putting herself at risk to protect the now weakened hanyou. It had been impossible to stop the possessive growl rumbling in his chest as he continued to fight his opponents while keeping an eye on her and watching how tentatively she looked after InuYasha's wounds. It's why he sees the thick fog rising behind them, his senses screaming danger at the familiar scent now beginning to surround the pair.

"Kagome, watch out!" Kouga howls. Quickly dispatching his opponent, he surges forward, but a familiar looking Samurai suddenly steps out in front of him, blocking his path.

"So, decided to show your ugly face again have ya?" Kouga snarls, immediately recognizing the warrior from his encounter at the river days ago. Just as before, the samurai says nothing. "Sorry, pal, but I don't have time for you!" He kicks out with his legs, needing to get to Kagome as fast as possible, but the dark armored warrior moves faster than he expects, somehow blocking him with every strike.

Kouga growls with annoyance. "That's right, you're not what you seem and that ain't a normal blade you've got there, is it?" He dodges the lunge the warrior takes at him, the powerful sword sweeping just over the top of his head. "Guess I'll just have to take it from you then!"

His armored adversary stares at him with an empty, unblinking gaze. The sight as eerie as the wolf had remembered it. The warrior swipes across several times in quick rapid succession, forcing Kouga to leap backwards. The usually silent fighter yells out a battle cry as he changes tactics, lunging with fast, heavy strikes, forcing the wolf to parry each successive attack.

Kouga hears Kagome cry out and his head snaps in her direction. He sees her precarious predicament, setting the wolf's fury and protective instincts seething. "You're starting to get on my nerves!" he snarls. Spinning into a strong kick, his leg takes the warrior full in his chest plate that staggers back, holding up to the powerful strike much more easily than a human should be able to do. Didn't this guy feel any pain?

Kouga's gaze darts back in Kagome's direction, seeing InuYasha battling futilely. The now human hanyou doesn't stand a chance, and he's running out of time! The samurai flies towards him, his bright blade flashing overhead. The moment it swings down, Kouga grabs the warrior's wrist, twisting and turning the blade out of his head.

"Sorry, pal. This is the end of the road for you!" With a feral snarl, Kouga takes the blade now in his possession and rams it through his opponents heart, piercing through him as easily as his claws would split open a boar's belly. The warrior makes a gurgling sound as he drops to his knees, his hands clasping the blade protruding from his chest. His wide, vacant eyes shimmer with a brief flare of light.

"T-Thank you," he rasps through blood stained lips, surprising the wolf as he collapses onto his side, still and unmoving.

"My, what a touching sight we have here," Yuki-Onna purrs as she steps out from her concealing mist. Her deadly gaze falls over the transformed hanyou and the miko that struggles to her feet a little farther back. One can never keep a priestess far enough away.

"Who are you?! What do you want?!" Kagome shouts, rubbing at her bruised backside, but she has a pretty good idea of who the demon is, and her bow is too far from her.

"Kagome, stay behind me!" InuYasha staggers as quickly to his feet as he can, keeping his body between her and the deadly creature before him. He doesn't need the beautiful demoness to answer Kagome's question, he already knows the answer. The real question is, can he feel like any more of an asshole? He'd been so intent on not believing Kouga's story that he really had gone and put his friends in danger! "Don't come any closer to her!" InuYasha warns, doing his best to ignore the pain pulsing in his body as blood slowly seeps through the binding cloths, trickling down his arm and leg.

"It's not her I want anyways," Yuki-Onna purrs, her tongue flicking across her bright ruby lips. She spares a quick glance over her shoulder, seeing that Nori, her favorite samurai that she'd enhanced with her power, keeps the wolf at bay as she'd instructed. All she needs is but a moment and she'll finally have everything she wants.

"Yeah? Well I'm right here!" InuYasha shouts, his uninjured arm rising a curled fist before him. "Come and get me!" he challenges.

"InuYasha, no!" Kagome tries to push past him, but his good arm snaps out to the side, holding her back.

"No way, Kagome," InuYasha growls low under his breath, never taking his eyes off the demon before him. His pride got all of them into this mess and there's no way he's letting Kagome take the fall for him. If he can just hold out long enough, Kouga will no doubt rush in to save her. He holds back the ironic snort at the thought. Would he ever have imagined actually wanting the wolf's help? For Kagome? Yes, even that.

Yuki-Onna throws her head back, laughing darkly. Her unearthly eyes lock on the transformed hanyou before her. "You are not the one I crave either," she purrs. "Only a means to an end."

"What the hell is that supposed to mean?" InuYasha barks, his nostrils flaring with his anger and frustration.

Kagome takes advantage of Yuki's distraction, turning to race for her bow, but the demoness is much quicker. Yuki's arm shoots out, her hand glowing bright with power that releases a rapid succession of large icicles that blast out from her palm in a deadly display. They hurtle fast towards Kagome's feet, missing her by a hair as they puncture the ground around her, effectively trapping her within an ice barrier.

Yuki-Onna makes a dark tsking sound at the back of her throat as she glares at the miko. "Now that's not very nice."

The moment Yuki-Onna's attention is diverted from him, InuYasha dives to the side where he retrieves a sharp blade no doubt dropped by one of the village warriors. Ignoring his weakening leg, he springs back up to his feet, clasping the sword tightly with both hands around its hilt.

"And neither is this!" Ignoring the pain shooting up his arm and the back of his calf, InuYasha rushes forward, intending to drive its pointy end through Yuki-Onna's body.

"Fool!" Yuki hisses. Her body shimmers as the hanyou passes through her, stumbling forward with his momentum when he meets no resistance. InuYasha spins back around just as Yuki-Onna re-materializes. He rushes her again with a loud battle cry, the blade sweeping high over his head, but the demoness hisses as she raises a robed arm, blocking the downward stroke of his blade with her forearm.

"You think some human's weak blade can pierce this flesh?" she cackles. Striking her arm against the blade, she rips it out of InuYasha's hand as he stumbles backwards and the sword clangs uselessly to the ground.

"InuYasha!" Kagome screams, her eyes wide and horrified as she watches Yuki-Onna advance on the unarmed hanyou. Her once snowy white hair begins to darken to a coal black as she reaches for InuYasha, clutching him by his neck and drawing him towards her. "Let him go!" Kagome shrieks. She rams her shoulder painfully against the barricade over and over again in an attempt to break past her icy prison but to no avail.

Holding the struggling hanyou turned human in her powerful grasp, Yuki-Onna dangles him by his throat before her. InuYasha struggles as he fights for breath, his one good arm clawing futilely against her grip, but she's much too strong for him. Gurgling a harsh sound as he struggles to breathe, it only widens the satisfied smile on Yuki-Onna's face.

"Just one taste, yes?" she purrs, drawing InuYasha closer to her. She opens her mouth and a white mist begins to flow from between her parted lips and towards the hanyou's face.

"Paws off!" Kouga's roar is heard seconds before he materializes through the vapor. He slams his body into Yuki-Onna's, but she glows brightly, turning into mist and releasing her hold on the now human hanyou. Kouga passes right through her non-corporeal body, slamming straight into InuYasha with powerful force and knocking them both backwards and onto the ground. He collapses on top of the coughing dog with a hard grunt.

"Get the... fuck off me!" InuYasha barks through harsh drags of breath, coughing painfully as he struggles to push off the wolf's heavy body.

"Keh, ungrateful whelp," Kouga growls, quickly righting himself. Behind him, the mist converges again revealing Yuki-Onna herself at a safer distance.

"So, you finally show yourself?!" Kouga snarls at her, standing between her and InuYasha that struggles slowly to his feet, scenting the blood from the dog's wounds. His peripheral tells him that the slayer has arrived and begins using her powerful boomerang to break Kagome free of her prison, sending a wave of gratitude through his whole body that he'd reached them in time.

Yuki-Onna hisses at him, her dark lips drawing back to reveal the sharp points of her teeth. "Fool! With the dog gone nothing will stand in your way of claiming the miko!"

Kouga's eyes widen in shock. "You think I'm worried about the mutt?" he barks back. There may be a partial truth to that, but he'd rather win Kagome from the hanyou fair and square. "Please, like he's a threat to me!" Promptly ignoring InuYasha's scathing comments behind him.

A dark glower dominates Yuki-Onna's face as she takes in the sight to the wolf, things are not exactly going to plan. The power of his flaring yoki expanding around him, and the determined yet unwavering bite of his loyalty all entice her need for him. Kouga takes several steps towards her and they begin circling each other, each seeking their moment. Yuki-Onna's dark eyes flash with her own determination as she maintains the circling distance from the wolf. Two powerful predators dancing the dance of ages.

"Join me, and we can rule these pathetic beings together," she offers with a bright flash of teeth.

Kouga nearly staggers back at the declaration, barking with a loud sarcastic laugh that the demoness before him doesn't seem to appreciate. "You've got to be fucking with me, right?"

Yuki-Onna's gaze softens on the wolf demon despite his disrespectful tone. "Not yet, pet, but soon." Her eyes flash with heat, her meaning clear.

"Keh. You're barking up the wrong damn tree, witch!" Kouga lunges forward, his powerful claws drawn back as he releases a deadly swipe before him. "I suggest you take the hint," he snarls, watching as Yuki-Onna dodges his attack just in time, leaping high. Around him he can hear the others battling the remaining demons, but he has no time for them, needing to trust to his human allies.

"Don't you know anything, wolf?" Yuki lands behind him, lashing out with a powerful ice blast the moment she does that takes Kouga full in the chest as he spins around, knocking him backwards with a surprised grunt. "A good hunter never takes her eyes off the prize." Her gaze fills with a knowing light, the corner of her lips twitching in a half smile. "And I never give up on what I want."

Kouga's eyes widen at her words as he jumps back to his feet. The exact words he'd used with both the mutt and Kagome when they had walked through the market earlier. His gaze narrows hard on the demoness even as the jewel shards in his legs begin to hum with power.

"Didn't anyone ever tell you it's not nice to eavesdrop!" Racing forward with a blast of power, Kouga spins into his cyclone as he charges her, intent on taking her out once and for all. He's surprised by Yuki's cackling laughter as she disappears in front of him, only to reappear directly behind him, his winds still spinning powerfully around him. "What the?"

Kouga attempts to halt his forward momentum, always a little more challenging when he's full on in his wind tunnel, when a powerful blast of cold takes him in the back, freezing him in place.

"Kouga, no!" Kagome watches aghast as Yuki-Onna blasts Kouga from behind, trapping him inside his frozen wind tunnel. She can see the tension on his face as he struggles to break free of the solid ice surrounding him.

"Kagome, stay back! You can't help him right now," InuYasha urges, keeping her from jumping into the fray. Kagome's gaze bounces between InuYasha and a frozen Kouga, torn with indecision.

"See! She cares nothing for you!" Yuki taunts as she nears the immobilized wolf. "It'll always be the hanyou she cares more for and you know it!" she presses, seeing the doubt that blooms on Kouga's nearly frozen features. Her hand swipes down the wall of ice, feels the tremble under her palm as he fights to free himself. "But with me at your side, we'll be unstoppable," she hums, stroking the ice lovingly, and a patch begins to melt away from Kouga's head, leaving the rest of him still encased in ice.

"When . . . I get out . . . of here," Kouga grunts, feeling the ice slowly beginning to weaken around him as he continues to exert his force against it. "I'm gonna . . . make you pay!" he snarls, eyes flashing with veins of red.

Yuki smiles indulgently at the trapped wolf. "Such loyalty for a human girl that still has feelings for her hanyou companion, yes?" Enjoying the flash of anger and denial that race across Kouga's face, knowing she's struck a chord with him. Words she herself had heard in her mirror. "Do not worry my pet. Soon you'll only have loyalty for me." Drawing closer to him, the sounds of battle around her drift to a soft hum, her goal within reach. Yes, perhaps it's enough. She only needs a crack after all to slip inside. Yuki-Onna's mouth parts and a white mist flows out from her dark lips, drifting towards the trapped wolf.

"Get away from him!" A bright glowing arrow shines like a beacon in the dark night, flying directly towards the distracted and vulnerable demoness as Kagome's sacred arrow burns through the fog.

Yuki-Onna has only enough time to raise her arm in a protective gesture, her scream filling the night as the sacred arrow melts through the demonic mist in a powerful blast of blinding light. When the bright glare finally fades it reveals only emptiness where Yuki-Onna had been standing. Everyone gathered nearby watches as the mist evaporates from the village and the remaining bat demons quickly disperse, flying off, leaving only destruction in their wake.

Kagome rushes towards the frozen wolf demon but he halts her with a cry. "Kagome, no! Stay back!" Kouga shouts. His eyes close tightly as power surges through his being. With a loud cry the ice shatters around the rest of his body sending sharp shards of ice flying in all directions as the wolf is finally freed from his prison.

The moment he's free, Kagome runs up to him. "Kouga, are you alright?" Concern tinges her voice as she watches the wolf stagger on his feet from the effort, shivering with cold.

"I'm fine, Kagome," Kouga answers, brushing off the last of the ice from his body. "Thanks to you," he adds, reaching for her as he cups her chin in his palm.

"I think I got her," she smiles shyly, the feel of Kouga's hand on her, heating her skin.

"You're amazing, Kagome." Unable to stop himself, Kouga pulls her towards him by her chin, his lips pressing to hers in a firm, chaste kiss that has the power to melt the rest of the cold from his body.

"I'm gonna fucking kill him, I don't care!" InuYasha is heard hollering in the background while Miroku attempts to hold back the incensed hanyou.

The moment Kouga's lips brush against hers all Kagome wants is for the kiss to keep going, to grow deeper, but he releases her all too soon. The sensation of his lips still tingles on her mouth as he pulls away from her.

Kouga's thumb strokes over her bottom lip, his eyes bright and wild. "Sorry, I couldn't help myself," he grins.

Kagome attempts to form words but the unexpected kiss has left her brain more than a little muddled. All she can do is nod, her cheeks flushing a deep rosy pink. At InuYasha's hollering, she steps back, her eyes dropping to the ground in an attempt to quell the riot of emotions twisting low in her stomach.

"Ah, Kagome?" Sango's tentative voice draws the miko out of her stupor as her attention turns to her friend. "The headsman would like to speak with us," she says. The slayer's gaze drifts back and forth between Kouga and Kagome, doing her best to fight back a smile. "It seems that Kouga here saved his daughter from the demons that tried to carry her off."

"Please," the man says as he approaches, bowing deeply with respect. "I am the headsman of this village, and as gratitude for saving my daughter's life and that of our village, I shall pay whatever fee you ask," he says with earnest.

"Oh, no, we couldn't accept any money," Kagome answers, finally finding her voice. She sees the disappointment in Miroku's eyes as the rest of the group approaches. The monk nurses his wounded shoulder as he stands next to an equally wounded InuYasha that can't stop glaring evil daggers at the wolf demon that promptly ignores him, standing close to Kagome's side.

"Then I insist you stay with us at our home so that I can repay your kindness. I believe your friends need attention," the headman declares, noticing the wounded companions. "You must allow me to provide you with somewhere warm to sleep and food to eat. You may rest with us for as long as you need."

"Yes, thank you," Miroku quickly accepts the invitation with an eager smile. Finally! A proper bed to sleep in! "That would be most gracious of you."

-ooOooOooOoo-

A gray mist begins to dissipate in the deep of the dark forest where Yuki-Onna's badly burned body lays motionless. Her breaths come in slow, raspy sounds. She'd been lucky that when the miko's arrow had come for her, she'd been half materialized already. The bodies of her priest Mojin and that of her longtime warrior, Haru, lay still and ashen next to her. Not even drinking every last ounce of soul from them as they raced to her aid had been enough to heal her, and now she's left to die a slow, painful death, alone, in the dark of the woods.

If she had the strength, she'd laugh.

There's a rustling in the trees near her, and for the first time in centuries Yuki feels a shock of fear go through her. She's wounded and vulnerable. Easy prey for any manner of beast.

"W-Who goes there," her voice rasps in a hoarse, cracked sound.

"It is only I, my lady. A humble servant." A man in a baboon pelt emerges from the darkness.

"What . . . do you want?" Her breaths are growing more painful now. She is not long for this world and Yuki knows it. To have come so close to her goal and then have it snuffed from her burns more painfully than her charred body.

"I wish only to serve you my lady," the soft, soothing tone reassures.

This time Yuki-Onna does laugh. A low harsh sound. "It is . . . too late for me."

"Not with this," the man counters, holding out a bright glowing shard in his palm.

"The . . . the sacred jewel," Yuki gasps with surprise. Well, a shard of the sacred jewel, and a rather large one at that.

"Yes," the voice answers. "And I will give it to you if you wish it. It will heal you."

Yuki-Onna's gaze narrows on the baboon covered man. Something in his scent speaks not quite human and yet, not quite demon either.

"W-Who . . . are you?" she asks.

"As I have said, merely a humble servant. But you may call me Naraku."