~~Alternate Ending~~

A/N: Well, there was another way it could have ended... Maybe some of you thought I would write a different end to this little adventure. I considered this ending for a grand total of 5 seconds because I am pro InuKag, but its been on my mind recently and I thought I would put it out there for the KagomexKouga fans who stuck with me. This will pick up when Kagome was being attacked by the demon...Enjoy~

"AH! I left my bow back at the wolf demon tribe!" Kagome exclaimed out loud, a look of pure shock crossing her face as she realized exactly how much trouble she was in. How could she defend herself without her usual weapon?

The body of the demon shuddered, then the head raised and looked at Kagome. "Pitiful mortal," that otherworldly voice sounded slightly pissed off. "I will make you pay for that. GIVE ME THE JEWEL!"

As the demon started to rise from the ground Kagome stumbled to her feet and started running. With no weapons her only choice was to try to make it back into the wolf demon territory and hope someone was nearby to help her. She didn't make it far before she felt her feet lose their ground, later she would realize that in her rush she must have stepped on or tripped over something and lost her balance.

Laughter made her look back at her pursuer. The demon was already so close to her and was moving quite fast. Kagome covered her head with her hands in a futile attempt to defend herself, squeezing her eyes shut as the demon rose up to make the final attack.

Then, a familiar voice rang through the trees, "Kagome!" As a sudden strong wind tosseled her black hair around, Kagome lifted her arms barely an inch to get a glance at the situation.

Kouga knew trouble was brewing the instant he smelled another demon along the path Kagome had taken. He had put on an extra burst of speed with the aid of the Jewel shards in his legs. Coming on the scene of Kagome on the ground with a demon rearing over her, he couldn't even consider hesitating as he ran forward and landed a solid kick on the demon's midsection. He dropped Kagome's weapon as he twisted into a roundhouse kick.

The blow damaged the demon badly and sent it sprawling backwards. Even the temptation of the Jewel would not keep it in the fight now. Fighting a mortal was one thing, but this was a fight it might not live through. It used the momentum from Kouga's blow to begin a hasty retreat.

Kouga was not about to let it get away. He drew the sword that hung at his side. It was mostly for show, his instincts led him to ignore it so he could count on one hand the number of times he had actually used the thing. Still, now was as good a time as any to use it. A few running steps and a jump gave his thrown sword more force than if he had just leaned into a throw. His aim could not have been more perfect than if he had thrown the sword point-blank. The tip of the sword plunged through the skull of the demon, impaling it on a tree where the body writhed in pain and death.

Kouga waited for the demon's death struggles to cease, outwardly calm but inside raging with impatience. When the body fell still he walked forward and withdrew the sword, allowing the body to sink to the ground. Black blood fell from the now open wound like a twisted waterfall. If it wasn't already dead it would certainly die from blood loss. Kouga only thought that the smell of the blood was offensive to his nose, so he cleaned his blade on the demon's body before returning it to the sheath at his side.

"Oye, Kagome!" Kouga called over his shoulder to her, he wanted to keep an eye on this demon for another moment or two in case it wasn't truly dead yet, "It's alright, I killed -," he paused, sniffing the air. A new smell had caught his attention, it smelled kinda like salt and kinda like water. He turned toward the source of the smell. He saw Kagome, at some point she had sat up but her hair was hiding her face. Kouga had no doubt the smell was coming from her and noted her shoulders were shaking ever so slightly. Is she crying? Kouga quietly approached her and squatted in front of her. "Kagome? Are you hurt?"

A small shake of her head was her only response. This close he realized she wasn't crying, not yet anyway. A tear or two might have run down her cheeks but she was doing her best to hold it in. Kouga had to wait in silence for a few moments, his only movement being a small twitch of his tail, before she spoke, "Kouga? Could you...take me home?"

Out of everything she could have possibly said right then, this was one he hadn't been prepared for. His mind reeled to find a response to her request. Instead, he found himself reacting to the scent of her tears. In one fluid motion he shifted his body so that his knees were holding his weight and he pulled Kagome into him, her head just below his chin. "Kagome, it's okay to cry."

It was a simple statement, but it must have been the right thing to say. Kagome let her tears flow freely as she buried her face deep into Kouga's chest. Kouga quietly let Kagome grieve for her lost friends, wrapping his arms around her and gently resting his chin on top of her head. It was a small gesture, but one to let her know he was there for her.

They stayed like this for what felt like an eternity, Kagome crying and Kouga offering quiet support. Kagome's sobs started to fade to small hiccups, but Kouga stayed as he was. It felt good to have her in his arms. Oh he had held her before, but never like this. Nothing he had experienced before compared to being in his arms like she was now. Besides, Kagome was making no effort to pull away from him and normally he could barely keep a hold on her hands.

Kagome spoke up again once she was all but cried out, voice muffled as she spoke into Kouga's chest, "Kouga? Really...can you take me home? Back to Kaede's village?"

"Hey," Kouga finally broke their embrace to look her in the eye. Without realizing what he was doing, one of his hands came up and wiped the last of the tears from her face. "It's almost sunset, it would be dangerous to start traveling now. Why don't you come back to the den for tonight? If you still want to go home in the morning, I swear I'll take you."

Kagome considered his offer. She really did just want to go home, but Kouga was right. Traveling at night was pretty dangerous, and he had just said he would bring her home in the morning... She nodded in agreement to his plan. Kouga gathered up Kagome's weapons before picking up Kagome herself. He carried her back to the pack's den exactly like he had carried her there three days ago.

On the run back, Kagome kept her face buried in the pelt that served as Kouga's left shoulder plate. She had never really been this close to Kouga before but now that she was she noticed his smell. The sweet smell of his straw bed was there, a smell Kagome knew well after sleeping in the same area. There was also the smell of soil, not deep earth like you might smell on a gardener but the smell of light dirt that got kicked up while Kouga went for a run. Underneath those was Kouga's unique smell. Kagome couldn't say exactly what the smell was, maybe if she had a nose like Kouga's she could. He smelled kind of like a dog but kind of not, kind of like sweat and strength but not quite. Whatever the smell was, Kagome found she actually kind of liked it. It smelled good, almost right, and the smell made her feel safe.

From what she could see when she peaked out from Kouga's pelts, they were almost back to the familiar den area of the wolf demon tribe. It was a welcome sight for her, and this made her feel conflicted. She still wanted to go home, but the den had almost become like another home for her.

Tomorrow, Kagome thought as she heard Ginta and Hakkaku calling out greetings and questions, Tomorrow I'll see if I want to ask Kouga to take me home...

~~End~~

A/N: Well? Better/Worse/about the same as my chosen ending?

I feel I should explain why Kouga used his sword, yes he could have caught up easily or used his Goraishi to defeat him but those deaths would have been too quick and painless for having attacked his Kagome.