Chapter 1

Beyond the Mountain Pass

"Kouga wait up!"

"Please Kouga we can't keep up this pace any longer."

A scoff left his lips, strong legs bracing against the ground as they propelled his body off, sending him sailing through the air. Hair flowing about his shoulders he stared up towards the sky, his bangs brushing across his eyes. He felt the hard stone beneath his feet, each foot pressing against the rock ledge, scaling up the side of the mountain. He didn't bother looking behind him, he didn't have to. He knew both of those idiots were still stuck at the bottom, trying to find a path way around the small mountain.

The air bit at his skin, his breath rushing out of his mouth in a hot wave. The further up the mountain he could feel frost grip the rock sliding beneath his feet. He skid to a stop, reaching the mountain peak. He turned back, light blue eyes glancing down the rock, piercing through the clouds that gathered at the bottom.

Strange… he was never aware of these mountains before…

The echo of his name rose up the massif, bouncing against the hard surface back to his ears. He rolled his eyes, his fingertips brushing the frost that had accumulated upon his shoulders. His tail brushing off the tips of hair that froze under the icy conditions. Kouga glanced up, staring beyond the mount pass. His curiosity was peeked to say the least… He wondered what kind of demons could inhabit such a place…

"KOUGA!"

Blue eyes flew open wide as the mountain let out thunderous roar. He felt the slight tremor rip through the side, the rocks vibrating beneath his feet. He held his breath, afraid the slightest movement would cause the snow and sleet to shift… One moment passed before the mountain side finally settled causing a sigh of relief to fall from Kouga's lips, his fists tightening at his sides.

Those… MORONS!

Falling down the mountain was much quicker the scaling up it. For most of the way Kouga was able to slide down the ice that coated the rock wall, his feet slipping down until he felt the hot temperature increase, his feet alternating as he booked it down the mountain side. A flash flew through his memory, the simple dust tornado at his feet dulled in size. He snorted, the feel of power that once resided in his legs was nothing short of a memory now… Especially with the jewel completed…

He didn't even know where it was anymore… Where it resided… Perhaps it was for the best that way. Any demon that had come into contact with that cursed gem was forever cursed himself. There was nothing good to come out of that jewel, Kouga new that from experience…

Still he couldn't help but miss the intense feeling. The added jolt to his step, the extra force that propelled his legs… it was now just a dull ache. The hard realization of how heavy his legs actually were. That power was definitely addicting…

He used to be the fastest demon alive…

Two heads peeked out beyond the fog, their tired bodies stopping to rest against the side of the mountain, both panting and out of breath. Kouga came to a stop, his eyes narrowing in on both of them as he glared. "Don't ya be yelling in a mountain peak understood?! You trying to get my ass killed or what?!" He reprimanded, a vein pulsing in his head.

The two gathered together, both bowing his head at him. Ginta was the first one to speak. "We're sorry Kouga! We just couldn't find you and we were worried." Hakkaku piped in not long after that. "Plus you're just so fast Kouga we can never keep up to you."

Kouga just rolled his eyes, bopping them both on the heads before turning his back to them. "Well keep yer heads about ya. Loud noises ain't exactly welcome in a place like this. You idiots are going to bury this entire place in snow. And us along with it."

They became eerily quiet, their mouths forming a soft 'o' shape as they watched him. The truth dawning on them that Kouga was indeed right. The upper half of the mountain was covered in snow and ice. Enough to wipe them clean off the mountain. And in an instant that, that reality sunk in, the two were shivering like a bunch of morons.

"S-shouldn't we be getting back to the cave?"

Kouga rolled his eyes, his attention focused on a small little pathway that leads up into the mountain tops. That was interesting… He ignored them to walk closer and investigate.

"But Kouga what about the pack? We've been gone for a long time?!" They whined reluctantly following him. Kouga rolled his shoulders, waving them off with his hand. He had no interest in returning back to the pack at the moment. They had more than enough food, as well as protection; they could handle their own if anything mediocre came their way. And anything bigger than that, he'd be able to sense and lend a hand at a moment's notice.

"The pack will be fine. Will you two shut up and come take a look at this."

The inched forward to him, peeking around the wolf leader as they're eyes came upon the same pathway carved into the mountain. "What about it Kouga? Do ya think humans did it?" They asked.

"Y-you aren't suggesting we go in there are you?!"

Kouga walked closer to it, his feet jumping up onto the dirt, the elevation taking him slowly up the mountain. He looked up, taking notice that the pathway went deep into the mountain, being carved from the hard stone.

"There are no way humans made these pathways… They couldn't survive out here…" He frowned, taking another step towards it.

Hakkaku walked forwards as well, his eyes looking down along with Kougas. "You don't think that… Maybe Naraku…"

Ginta glared at Hakkaku, whacking him on the shoulder to stop his sentence. "Don't be stupid Hakkaku! Naraku's been dead for two years." His eyes shifted over to Kouga sneaking the look to his comrade. Hoping that Hakkaku would get his subtle hints.

"Oh… Right I remember… Of course there's no way it could be Naraku," he agreed, laughing a bit nervously.

Kouga scoffed, his eyes narrowing dangerously at the thought. "…I wouldn't put it passed that bastard… Naraku always had one life left. He always slipped away at the last possible second…" Kouga cursed under his breath. He hated every waking moment, knowing he left the fate of his arch enemy, to a lowly half-breed…

Inuyasha…

"I bet he let him get the fuck away…" He muttered, his feet crossing over the earth as he crept further along the path, the two idiots whispering amongst themselves. He could remember his encounter with Inuyasha, like it happened only minutes before him.

Although… he made an effort to avoid the hanyou at all costs. There wasn't a damn thing he wanted from Inuyasha… at all.

Naraku was dead… Kagome was gone… And that was all Kouga needed to know…

"Kouga… Let's go back…" Kouga blinked, turning back to the other two that had been following him. He arched an eyebrow before turning his face up towards the sky. He could see the light from the sun setting, disappearing into the wide blue sky. It would be night time soon. Going any further into the mountain probably wouldn't be the smartest thing.

Kouga sighed, his body turning as he began walking back down the path, finally giving the two what they wanted. "Alright… Let's go home. We can check this out later…"

They're expressions fell at the thought that they would be returning to this place. Kouga gave them a look, not being able to believe how much of a wuss they were. The two idiots grinned happily with their leader's decision as they followed him. Ginta appeared on his left, smirking at his friend.

"And here, we thought you were just avoiding Lady Ayame."

The tree appeared out of nowhere. Kouga's body slamming straight into its tall trunk, his eyes wide and locked on Gintas as his chest released a shallow breath. Ayame… She came down from her mountain and was waiting for him at his den…

"…He completely forgot…" Hakkaku concluded, staring at Kouga with a dead panned expression. Ginta soon mirrored the same look, sighing as he shook his head.

"Uh… heh… Y'know I've been thinkin…" Kouga took a step back, scratching the side of his cheek. "That… Why put off tomorrow what ya can do today! I'm gonna go explore that pathway!" He whipped around, shooting off like a bat out of hell before either of the two could say another word.

"… KOUGA?!"

~Tricky.D