Koga had a very apparent bounce in his step as he made his way back into his den, and one could outwardly assume that was because he had procured a nice fat boar. That couldn't have been farther from the truth, though. In fact he could care less about the spoils of his hunt. No… all he could focus on currently was the behavior displayed by his love. How she seemed to… dare he jinx it by thinking… be falling for him. A light chuckle escaped Koga's lips. The wolf leader couldn't wipe the grin off of his face even if he tried at this point. Not that he would try. Koga flipped the boar onto the floor before giddily retiring to his mess of hay. What should be noted here is the uncommonness of Koga wanting to and or being lazy. So, it was expected that such a simple action would be returned with a significant amount of confused looks, and curious mutters. Luckily Koga was good at tuning out things, and that was especially true in this kind of state. That was blatantly obvious as he remained there for an hour or two. And during the entirety of that time? He kept that same happiness. Well.. that was until…

A strange scent filled the air. One that seemed… oddly familiar in all the same ways it seemed completely foreign.

"Is that leader of yours finally back?" A rough voice rang out, this confirming Koga's suspicions of an unwelcome arrival. Hmmn? Who in the fuck was that? Koga shifted to lean up a bit and narrowed his eyes toward the entry of the cave. How had he missed that they were coming? Better yet, how had he let them get as far as the entry of his den? Maybe he had let his thoughts get the better of him and he was too distracted… Even still, that was so unlike him to miss.

"Who's askin'?" He returned, raising to his feet once more.

"Choro." He said matter of factly. "of the Northern wolf tribe."

"All the way down here? Must be important." his words didn't match how they were vocally delivered. As it was clear as day that he didn't give two shits what he was here for. He probably should. But, he was too bitter at the loss of the sweetness of his daydreams to even pretend let alone actually care. Why couldn't he just stay up in the northern mountains? Oh, and ya know.. leave him be? First he sends Ayame down here to annoy the shit out of him and now this?

The wolf would slowly wander into view of the demon, followed by who other than Ayame. Fuckin' great. Although, he was pleasantly surprised by the calmness she was displaying. Perhaps they weren't there for what he had thought? Maybe they just needed his aid in battle? That would be much more pleasing.

"Since it seems you don't have time for small talk, perhaps it's best that we get this out of the way quickly. Hm?"

"Not too quickly, apparently. What do ya' need?" Chill the 'I think I'm hot shit' attitude, Koga. He's an elder for fuck's sake.

The elder paused momentarily, take this as a sort of punishment for the disrespectful manner in which Koga was conducting himself in. And forgive him for it, if you can, he was just not interested in the speech he couldn't help but feel was coming. Please say this is about war… not that you want me to- "You're going to marry Ayame." There it is.

Koga folded his arms, and let a look of annoyance fall onto his face. "We've been over this, and I'm tellin' ya the answer is no."

Did he honestly think what he was saying was a question? It was a demand. "You plan to make a human girl the luna of this tribe?" that was a question. Hopefully he would pick up the difference before he dared make the mistake of confusing the two again.

"I do." He responded without a sliver of hesitation.

Who had raised this boy? Who had taught him being such a little shit would get him anywhere? "Are you insane?" The elder's tone was becoming more.. angry.

But, Koga wasn't an alpha for no reason. He wasn't going to back down just because some old guy decided to try and control him. "Not as insane as you are, obviously." He said coldly.

"You're marrying Ayame, and that's that."

"Listen old man! I ain't marryin' her, so go find someone else!"

Ayame pouted at this. It was as if he was rejecting the offering of a mud pie, not a gorgeous girl! What kind of jerk was he?! … Hers. Her kind of jerk. She sighed heavily, dejected in more ways than one. Why was it so hard for him to accept that she was a better match for him than that human girl? What?! Just because she see the jewel shards that meant that she was better suited for him?! … D-don't answer that…

"I'm not taking no for an answer, Koga! This wedding is happening, and it's happening tomorrow."

Koga's eyes widened in shock, eyebrows knitted tightly together. "Tomorrow?!"

"Yes. So I heavily suggest you get this crush out of your mind. It's done."

Koga scoffed, looking about at his clan mates almost as if to ask if they could believe the stupidity coming out of that bag of dusts muzzle. He was surprsied when they returned that with almost sad looks. What? Did they think that he was going to actually follow commands? He was the leader, and being leader means he didn't do commands unless he was the one giving them! The very idea of him doing anything else was.. to put it lightly… infuriating. He wasn't going to put up with this.

The elder smiled softly, pleased with his frustrated silence. "I knew you would understand it's for the best of the tribe."

Koga's jaw was trembling, and his hand mirrored that action as he dug his nailed into his palm. His eyes were bloodthirsty, and his thoughts dripped in rage. That mutt should feel very lucky that he was labeled as an elder. If not for that little title, nothing would be stopping the infuriated wolf from taring him limb from limb. His tail flicked around angrily.

Choro would turn his back, proudly strolling out of the den. He felt he had won. And boy was he wrong.

Ayame, however, stayed. She was cautiously making her way toward the angry wolf. Her hands were raised in a surrendering fashion, while also reaching out slightly toward her chocolate haired companion. "I'm sorry, Koga… I didn't want.."

"What?" he snarled. "You didn't wanna to force my hand? You didn't wanna to trap me?!"

Ayame's look of worry started to shift to fear as her bottom lip quivered. This was to be her husband, and only in a days time. She needed to be able to soothe him despite their quarrels. "I won't say I didn't want to marry you, Koga. I did. I do… with all my heart." her voice was almost breaking. Why did he seem so angry about something that brought her immeasurable joy?

The entirety of her feelings, at this point, were lost on the wolf. Koga's icy eyes glared at down on her with contempt. "Well, I don't!" he growled. "But my feelings don't mean a damn thing to you, do they? Yer' always goin on–"

"Koga..!" she whimpered out. She wanted to be there for him.. but….what he was saying.. every word caused the cracks in her heart to extend. It hurt and she couldn't take it.

"And on and ON about how ya' love me!" her words were practically drowned out by his unleashed rage. "Well forcin' me to marry you doesn't sound like love to me!"

"You don't understand, Koga! I'm just trying to–"

"Stop! Whatever you're tryin' to do?! Stop!" With this, Koga took off in a small cyclone. When passing by Hokaku and Ginta whom tried to reach out to him, he would only speed up. He wanted no part of any of these people. The people he had once believed would take his side.. they sat there in silence. It was a feeling of betrayal he hadn't expected.

Ayame wished she could chase after him, but not too soon after he made his escape.. her legs gave out on her. She never wanted to show this sort of weakness around his clan, the one she desperately wanted to prove her luna potential too… but, her heart felt as though it were crumbling. "Am I so hard to love?" she whimpered out. That was all it took to open up the flood gates, and she broke down in sobs. Ginta went to her side, and was soon followed by a backward Hokaku who's eyes remained locked on the entrance of the den.

Koga ran… he ran and ran until his legs went numb and he went crashing into the hard ground below him. He remained sprawled out there for sometime, only the sound of huffing and wind rustling leafs filled his ears. The wolf forced himself to flip over after a bit, and raised a hand to grasp at his armored chest. He wanted to take his overly active heart and rip it from the confines of his chest. It was pulling him every which way and all he could manage was laying right there. Why had he lashed out so horribly on Ayame? And what was he thinking pissing off the elder? The only answer that he managed was that he was defending his love for Kagome. Their future.

But.. this future. What was he really expecting from it? Koga closed his eyes, and swallowed hard. That's all it took for his true emotions to come spilling out. She is mine.. she is my only… he thought to himself, tears blurring his vision and his throat tightened. How do I tell my heart to stop loving when she is every breath I take? And she consumes all that I am? Koga's lip quivered, and he slammed down that same trembling hand from his chest onto the hard ground beside him. There was no way that he could ever bring himself to love someone as he loved Kagome. Not even someone as befitting and as encouraged as Ayame.

"Kagome…" he breathed out. "I can't wait anymore…" he whimpered out, jaw tensing agonizingly tight in efforts to keep those words from spilling out. Reality was sinking in that going against someone like the elder.. denying their requests… how soon after would his clan suffer for such a thing? They were strong.. of course they were. But… So were the others….

Wait… if he were to… his eyes widened a bit. What if he were to leave it all behind? They could choose a new leader, surely. And he could run off with his beloved Kagome. They could be happy. All there was left to do was to do it.. He was willing to turn his back on everything that he had ever known and all that he ever was. Simply because all of that meant nothing to him if he couldn't share it with her. Koga peeled himself off of the dirt, turning back to look at the path before him…

This was the path his heart had chosen… the one that leads to Kagome. And if they could see what was written within every fiber of that heart of his they would know he had committed no treason in choosing this.

Kagome peeked out of the dimly lit hut to see a significant amount of aggressive downpour. It was lucky that they had taken up shelter when they did.. it would be absolutely awful to be out in that sort of weather. One could catch a cold from simply stepping out in it for a moment, surely. The raven haired beauty leaned against the hard wall, and closed her eyes. The sound of it was soothing, though… Does Koga hide away from this sort of rain, too? She couldn't help but wonder to herself. A smile slipped onto her lips. No.. he would pretend it didn't bother him. She would bet that he would instead power through it and become ill shortly after. And even then, the wolf she knew would pretend that wasn't the case either. Or maybe because he was a demon.. it wasn't the case? Her eyes opened once more and she peeked out into the storm again… this time a bit worried. Could he be out there?

"What's up with you, Kagome?"

She turned her attention to the half demon who was squatted down next to her, beady golden eyes trying to trying to force some sort of answer out of her. But all he would get would be a sigh, and a look of light annoyance. "Could you quit asking me that? You've said it quite enough."

"It's not my fault yer' actin like a woman who lost her husband at war!"

"Poorly worded comment, my friend." Miroku butted in.

"And rather silly considering how he acts after seeing Kikyo…" Sango mumbled before sipping the warm tea from her small cup.

Miroku nodded.

Inuyasha shot them both a look that would silence any future commentary they were intending to spill out for the night. After that he turned back to Kagome, softening his expression the best he could. "Yer' not thinkin' of that fleabag again, are ya'?" Kagome looked toward the ground, and in doing so giving Inuyasha all he needed to say that he was right. "Jeez you'd think you were in love with the guy!"

The hairs raised up on the back of her neck, and it wasn't because of the thunder that cracked down. In love?! How could he say something like that so boldly?! "Leave me alone!" she hissed. She had more than enough of Inuyasha for the day, and if not for the fact it was storming.. she might have just left.

And Inuyasha could tell that was the case. He bit his lip, and folded his arms. Plopping down next to her and leaning forward a bit to look out the door as well. When she pretended that she didn't notice, he let out a heavy gust of wind from his nose. Could he have been any less mature? He wanted to say something to her.. but all that came out was light beginnings of words.. and then nothing. He just sat there and watched her.

Kagome had gotten lost in her thoughts once more so what would have been an unnerving action from the half demon was nothing that she couldn't brush off. Especially when there was something else that had swiftly taken priority. That being someone calling her name.. Koga. She shot up. Again, she heard him again.

"Kagome– I know what yer' thinkin'a doin.. but..!" Inuyasha attempted to reason with her.. or rather.. stop her. Yeah, there wasn't much reason in his actions aside from the fact he wanted her to stay with him and not go after the wolf boy.

It was like instinct took over as she broke out running out into the hard rain. She was trembling, not because she was cold. But because every fiber of her being wanted to get to Koga that very moment. "Koga?!"

She was responded, but was responded to with nothing until a figure appeared in view, one that gave away it's identity with the aggressive flicking of it's tail. It was Koga! H.. he was drenched! Well, she was too. But he was much wetter! As the raven haired girl closed in on the wolf, she noticed he was running toward her as well. And before long they crashed into each others arms.

Koga slipped one arm about her waist and the other found itself around her arm and placed between her shoulder blades… he gripped the fabric of her shirt. But there was a strange warmth on his left hand.. it was her exposed skin. Shyness washed over him and he almost moved his hand before Kagome clung onto him with just as much force.

Kagome pulled back just enough to look at his face, and unbeknownst to her she had began crying. Albeit he was too, so it wasn't seeming so strange anymore. Why were they acting like he had, as Inuyasha so kindly put it earlier, just come back from war?!

"I needed to see you-" Koga choked out.

Kagome could only nod, a smile slipping onto her face and she let out a light sigh of relief. Was this how Inuyasha felt when Kikyo came back to him? Was that a bad comparison to make? She couldn't help it though! Blame it on her young teenage mind going haywire but it was as if she was experiencing a classic romance novel. And she wasn't going to stop it.. being in Koga's arms right now.. it felt like water after days without it..er… she blushed a bit… It uh… it felt necessary.

Koga couldn't peel his eyes away from hers. "I am in love with you, Kagome!"

"I know." she responded as playfully as she could but it still came out weak, her smile only brightening.

"Run away with me! Leave everything behind..! I'll take care of you!" he scrambled to make sense of his words. "I… I-I'll get'ya the jewel shards! I'll get'ya Naraku's head! Just…"

"Run away with you?" she echoed his words in a mixture of awe and disbelief.

"Yes! Just come away with me!"

The rain. The passionate words. All that was left was a cheesy kiss, at this point.

Kagome didn't know what to say, looking into his eyes with a dazed but surprised expression. "Koga…" she said in her previously weak tone.

The wolf seemed almost desperate at this point. "Please…" he whimpered out.

Kagome's heart was thrashing about her chest, and she raised up a hand to touch his surprisingly warm cheek. It seemed every moment since they last parted she had been trying banish these feelings and yet she still burned. And not knowing anymore what to say, or what to do, instinct took over once more. She closed her eyes and began leaning in…

Koga took lead, closing his eyes and leaning his head forward as well.

"Kagome!" Sango called out, clearly searching for her. This was startling for the young girl who pulled out of the wolfs arms and worriedly covered her face.

You would expect Koga would be sad at the loss of a kiss with Kagome, but he was just in awe that they had almost kissed at all.. that she had actually, without his imagination's embellishment of the situation, leaned in to kiss him first.

Sango stumbled out of the trees with the trio of Inuyasha, Miroku and Shippo closely behind. She got kind of red when she realized what the two must have been doing and Inuyasha shared that redness… but in anger. Not embarrassment from intruding. But pure rage from Kagome running from his arms (er.. company..) into the arms of that poor excuse of a wolf!

"Kagome?" he asked out in a pained voice.

Kagome didn't acknowledge the half breeds words, she only shyly glanced at Koga. "Come warm up? You must have been out here for a while…"

This was more embarrassing than their interrupted kiss… him admitting that he was searching high and low for her. He could feel warmth raise to his face, and he sheepishly scratched the back of his head. "I dunno…"

"There's food, and warm drinks.." she pressed.

"I guess I could.. walk ya back.." he replied shyly.

Kagome grinned in victory. She reached out a hand to take his hand but the new found confidence didn't keep as she instead shyly grasped his fur covered wrist. With this new connection, she dragged him in the direction of the groups hut. Sango and Miroku had taken the hint given off by her grabbing his wrist and were already half way back to the hut. Shippo, small and cold, had clung onto Sango to keep from having to get his trembling body back. Inuyasha, however, was frozen where he was. He was watching them with envy, readied claws trembling. He wasn't cold.. he was a hair away from lashing out at Koga.

"Are you coming?" Kagome asked.

Koga was simply watching Kagome, practically with hearts in his eyes. He hadn't even noticed Inuyasha, or the fact that she was asking him to come with them. Only that she had asked him. Wow. This bold action… this path was a good choice to follow.. Almost kissed her… and now she holding his wrist.. making him food– It was bliss.

Inuyasha was shook out of his funk, looking to her and he pretty much steamed off under the cold rain.. "Yeah…" he said reluctantly.. slowly dragging himself back with them. Koga would pay. He would pay for taking Kagome, even if it was only brief.. he would suffer for it.

To be continued…