Kiba was greeted by the usual sounds of the Inuzuka compound: barking and howling and the shouting of clan members. For whatever reason, being around Ino had lifted Kiba's spirits, and had felt the urge to actually get out into the world and maybe reconnect with some friends and family. He knew Hana and Tsume had been itching to get him back to the house for dinner. He decided that today, he would finally oblige.

Akamaru followed faithfully behind Kiba as he strolled up the pathway to his childhood home. In the front yard, Kiba could see a woman who looked strikingly similar to himself, except with make-up and lady parts hanging up some laundry. A large wolf with an eye patch and one ear lay at her feet, enjoying the soft carpet of grass below him. Hearing Kiba's footsteps, the woman turned to face him and a feral grin spread across her face. On a woman like her, even her smile seemed scary. Her whole demeanor made her seem wild and unpredictable, and yet that was part of her charm. She placed her hands on her hips, unlike Ino, the pose didn't suit her.

"I thought I had a son, but I wasn't quite sure…" Tsume teased.

Kiba rolled his eyes and began dragging his feet. Maybe this wasn't such a good idea. "I get it mom, I need to stop by more often."

"We've missed you," Tsume admitted. She pulled Kiba to her in one quick motion and draped an arm around his shoulders, using a fist to mess up his hair. Kiba struggled against her and whined loudly, trying to pull free from his mother's grip. Tsume gripped him even tighter.

"Speak for yourself," another voice entered the conversation and Kiba paused in his complaining to see another-albeit, less monstrous looking-woman standing at the front door about ten feet away. He glowered at her.

"Ha ha, Hana. You're so funny," Kiba replied dryly.

Hana chuckled and walked over to rustle his hair up some more while Tsume had him pinned.

Akamaru yipped excitedly at all of the commotion and everyone looked down at him in surprise. Hana stooped down to scratch behind his ears. Kiba had never seen Akamaru's tail wag so hard.

"Have you been neglecting this poor dog again, Kiba?" Hana asked.

"I would never neglect Akamaru!" Kiba answered matter-of-factly, folding his arms over his chest and closing his eyes defiantly. Something about his sister always seemed to make him regress into a child again. He'd never admit it, but he sort of missed the sibling rivalry.

Hana directed Akamaru's attention towards three dogs that were playing off in the distance. Kiba instantly recognized them as the Haimaru Brothers. "Go join them, Akamaru. We'll call you in for dinner."

Akamaru barked gleefully, stopping to lick at Kiba's hand as a farewell before trotting off to join in on the fun.

Hana turned and walked back towards the house, disappearing from view. Tsume held fast to Kiba, pulling him in closer and growling in his ear. "So, how's my little pup?"

Kiba gnashed his teeth as he and his mom awkwardly stumbled into the house. "I'm not a 'pup'. And I'm fine, thank you very much."

Hana was at the stove when they entered the kitchen, sautéing some meat and peppers in a pan. The smell invaded Kiba's nostrils and he began salivating at the aroma. He hadn't had a home-cooked meal in months-one of the down falls to living without a woman. Hana snorted. "You'll always be a puppy to us."

Kiba growled and finally tugged free from his mother's smothering arms. He settled down at the island in the middle of the kitchen and picked up a green pepper, biting into it viciously.

"I'm not a puppy…" Kiba muttered sulkily.

Hana shook her head and sprinkled some onions into the mix, causing the pan to sizzle and pop. "Anyway…how's the bachelor pad? You haven't invited us over yet, so we wouldn't know."

Tsume narrowed her eyes at Kiba. "Yeah. What's up with that?"

Kiba's munching slowed to a halt and he glanced back and forth between the two women before him, an eye brow raised. Why were these two prying? Was a little space too much to ask? He made sure to stare daggers directly at Hana; he wanted her to know that he was specifically irritated with her for getting Tsume on his ass. He gulped down the mouthful of pepper he had before speaking. "I'm still settling in is all."

Hana wasn't buying it for a second. "After five months, you're still settling in?"

Tsume gave Hana a sly smile and whispered, "It must not be dirty enough yet."

"What the hell's that supposed to mean?" Kiba snapped.

The women chortled heartily and Hana went back to stirring the food. Tsume turned back to her son and looked him up and down. It had been months since she had last seen him. Her conscious mind told her that Kiba was now a man and she didn't care that he was out on his own, However, deep down, her maternal instincts were wearing her down with worry and she was overwhelmed with relief when she had seen him walking up to the house.

Really looking at him now, she realized he was taller, darker, his hair was shaggier with some whiskers poking out along his jaw line, and his body seemed much more built. She also noticed the slight bags under his eyes, and the way he held himself seemed a little more serious. Something had changed in him, that she was sure of.

"Something's different about you," Tsume said. She leaned down against the counter top until she was eye to eye with Kiba. "Did I miss something?"

Kiba's eyes widened and he blushed furiously. Hana peered over her shoulder, watching and waiting to see what the sudden pause was all about.

"I don't know what you're talking about," Kiba stammered.

Tsume grinned and Kiba shuddered at the evil smirk and began sweating bullets. Tsume could read him like a book and he didn't want her or Hana figuring out that he had found a mate just yet. It was just too embarrassing, especially the fact that Ino was married and was about as interested in Kiba as she was in the dirt on the bottom of her shoe. He just hoped and prayed that maybe he could rip out a few of the pages before she had skimmed through the chapters of his soul.

Signaling a 'eureka' moment, Tsume suddenly snapped her fingers and Kiba just about fainted with terror. "You've been training!"

Kiba gaped at her like a deer in headlights. "W-what?"

"You've been training," Tsume repeated, beaming like a proud mother. "You're taller and buffer and more serious-looking. I'd say you're training and maybe even starting to grow up a bit."

After the initial shock wore off, Kiba felt his head slowly nodding in agreement. He had been training a little, so that wasn't a complete lie. "Yeah, actually. I have been training a little more lately."

Hana nodded her approval. "Way to go, baby brother."

Kiba let his muscles relax once more as he heaved a sigh of relief. He avoided her eyes as Tsume grabbed some plates and shuffled passed him to set the table. Hana turned off the burner and stirred the food gently. He wondered what those two would think of his predicament with Ino. Tsume would most likely tell him to get off his ass and just tell Ino how he felt. She'd insist that Kiba be the wolf in this relationship and pounce on the voluptuous blond, claiming her as his own. Hana, on the other hand, would probably tell him not to meddle in the affairs of others. She'd scold him just for having considered it. Sure, as his sister she'd feel sorry for him, but she would insist that his actions were diabolical and in poor taste.

Kiba didn't know which one of them would be more right. He didn't know if he'd be able to take their advice anyway. Either way, he didn't want them worrying over him and trying to help him get over Ino. They'd make him focus on bettering himself and forgetting about Ino, which seemed impossible at this point. They'd make him stop going out and partying and picking up girls and they'd probably force him to move back in too. None of these options sounded the least bit appealing.

"You coming?" Hana was standing in the doorway to the dining room, the pan in her hand. Her face was shrouded with worry and Kiba gave her a weak smile.

"Am I coming?" his nose crinkled. "If it's your cooking, I'll take my time getting there."

Hana frowned and rolled her eyes. "Missed you too, bro."

The rest of his family reunion had gone well and Kiba had returned home with Tsume and Hana still as clueless as ever to his circumstances. Still, acting happy in front of others was more exhausting than it would seem. As soon as Kiba had returned home, he decided a nap under the sun would be in his best interest.

Kiba followed Akamaru into the back yard. He sat down, sighed, and rested his head on Akamaru's back. The two friends closed their eyes and began dozing under the sun, a fun pastime the two shared every now and then.

Kiba began drifting in and out of sleep, his dreams being cut up into short snippets that didn't make any shred of sense. At some point, he jerked awake and felt the presence of someone standing over him. Slightly annoyed that someone was interrupting his nap, he didn't even open his eyes to speak. "Can I help you?"

"A boy and his dog. How cute."

Kiba felt butterflies beginning to soar in the pit of his gut at the sound of her voice. He tried to calm himself by focusing on his breathing. That was the only way he'd be able to keep the ball in his court, he couldn't let her get the best of him.

"I am not a boy."

"You look like a boy to me," Ino sounded unconvinced.

"Trust me, I'm much more-ahem-developed than a boy."

He heard her scoff at him and he finally opened one of his eyes to look up at the young woman towering over him. She had a look of disgust on her angelic face and her cheeks were bright pink. He grinned up at her.

"I'll take your word for it. That, or I could just ask every other girl in the village," Ino shot back.

Kiba clutched his chest and winced in mock agony. "Ouch, Yamanaka."

She actually smiled at that, sticking out her tongue and winking at him. Kiba couldn't help but grin up at her. Gazing up at the beautiful woman before him, the sun's rays outlining her figure and bathing her in light, Kiba couldn't help but notice that Ino somehow seemed different from when he had first seen her at the party. She seemed genuinely happy today, she wasn't putting on an act this time. Maybe his advice was actually helping her? The realization made him happy and he sat up, patting the patch of grass next to him. Ino took the invite and gracefully sat down beside him. Akamaru raised his head to see why Kiba had left him, but when he noticed Ino, he lay his head back down onto his paws.

"So, how did things go with Shikamaru?" Kiba asked. He picked up blades of grass and twirled them between his fingers. He honestly wasn't too interested in Shikamaru, but he thought it'd be polite to ask.

"Well, Shikamaru woke up and he was surprised I had been out. He said he was worried about me."

Bullshit. "That's good."

"Then, when he finally calmed down, he said he was glad that I had had some fun."

Kiba nodded, plastering a thoughtful expression onto his face to hide his true thoughts: Shikamaru is spewing a bunch of bullshiiiiiiit.

Ino began copying Kiba and started picking at the grass. "And then…something strange happened."

Kiba dropped the grass and looked over at Ino. She seemed to be way too interested in the blades of grass, almost as if she had never seen the stuff before. She was definitely blushing.

Oh Kami, no! Kiba tried to hold back the panic and fury that was growing inside of him. "Oh?"

"He…we…um…" she turned her head so that he couldn't see her face. "We had sex this morning."

Ino's words sent a crushing blow to Kiba's stomach. There it was. Finally, the truth about Ino's virginity. He knew he had been clinging to an almost nonexistent thread of hope, but now that hope had been completely destroyed with the finality of this moment.

Kiba looked back down at the grass. He tried not to, but he kept imagining Shikamaru and Ino, completely nude, their bodies melting together as Ino moaned Shikamaru's name. The image just about killed him and his instincts told him to hunt Nara down and annihilate him.

Control yourself, he thought. Ino loves him, Ino is happy. Don't destroy her happiness.

Kiba instead took his anger out on the poor grass, carelessly ripping it from the ground by its roots and tossing the blades to the side. "And how'd that go?"

Ino shrugged. "He still won't look at me."

Damn him…I'd look at every inch of her body. I'd stare at the goddamn wall if she asked me to.

"That's why you're back for more advice, huh?" Kiba asked. "And here I thought you were starting to like me."

Ino snorted. "Don't flatter yourself."

Kiba laughed and turned towards her. "Well I figured you'd come crawling back to Uncle Kiba for help so I already planned out your next task."

Ino seemed unimpressed. "You're one of those creepy uncles, aren't you?"

He ignored her. "Follow me, young grass hopper."

"Oh, Kami…" Ino groaned.

Kiba stood and offered Ino his hand. Reluctantly, she took it and he pulled her into a standing position. He tried to ignore the tingling feeling he felt in his fingertips as he pulled his hand from her and shoved it into his pocket. He turned and led the way to the front of the house and opened the door, inviting Ino in. Ino shot him a suspicious look but entered the house anyway. Kiba followed suit.

"So, what's the plan this time, sensei?" Ino teased, resting her hand on her hip in her signature stance.

Kiba couldn't help but conjure up a million different glorious fantasies he could play out with this tantalizing woman calling him "sensei", but now was not the time to be a pervert. "When was the last time you hung out with a girl friend?"

"At the party, I ran into Sakura," Ino reminded him.

"No. I mean genuinely hang out. Like a girls' night."

Ino consciously placed a finger on her chin and scrunched up her face thoughtfully. He could see the wheels turning behind those cerulean eyes. "I can't…I don't recall."

Kiba nodded. "Exactly my point. You need friends outside of your husband, and by friends, I mean genuine friends-not random poker buddies you pick up at bars."

Ino shrugged. "I've always been best friends with Shikamaru and Choji. I mean, Sakura was my friend but lately we haven't seen much of each other."

"Ino, there's a distinct difference between guy friends and girl friends. There are things I can tell Naruto that I would never dream of telling Hinata. Don't try to tell me I'm wrong."

He added that last part in when he saw Ino open her mouth to argue. She instantly closed her mouth and looked like she was seriously contemplating what Kiba was telling her.

"How long should I stay out?" Ino finally asked.

Kiba shrugged. "Why are you asking me? It's your night, nobody else's."

Ino tried to hide the smile that was trying to force its way onto her face. "So you're suggesting I go hang out with Sakura for as long as I want?"

Kiba nodded. "Yes, ma'am."

"What about my husband?"

"What about your husband? He's not your master. Call him up and tell him you're going out with friends tonight. Let him know you have a life and that you're not asking if you can go, you're telling him you can go."

No considered it a moment longer. "It would be nice to actually talk about girly things for once."

Kiba walked over to where his phone was hanging up on the wall. "Go on, Ino. Call up Sakura, make some plans, then drop your hubby a line and tell him what's up."

Ino bit her lip and came over to stand beside Kiba. She looked between him and the phone, her fingers reaching up to her mouth so she could nibble her nails. Kiba could see the conflicting emotions and he knew he needed to sell to her the importance of this task. She desperately needed to find herself again. Today, outside, he had seen a glimpse of the old Ino and the difference had been striking. Now, she was faltering, and he needed to help her back up.

"Come on, Yamanaka, girls need their girl friends. Shikamaru has his friends, you need yours. They keep you sane, they can be your rock, and they're great for advice and fun and laughter-"

"I thought you were my friend."

The words had caught him completely off guard and his eyes widened. She actually considered him a friend? He tried to stabilize his heart rate and relax, but the excitement was too much. After how horribly he had treated her so many years ago, he had been worried Ino would never speak to him again, and yet here she was asking for his advice and going so far as to call him her friend. It was such a pleasant surprise and he was glad she had said it. He smiled down at her warmly, but his voice was teasing. "I thought you just wanted my advice?"

Ino looked down at her feet. "I was only teasing."

Kiba chuckled. "I know. And you're my friend, Ino. But let's be honest here, how awkward was it telling me about your sex life?"

Ino's face flushed and she glared at him. "Okay, okay, I get it. I need more friends."

With that confession, Kiba lifted the phone from its hook and held it out to her, wiggling his eye brows suggestively. Ino ripped the phone from his hand, dialed Sakura's number, and turned so that her back was to him, leaning herself against the wall. Kiba grinned down at her, listening intently as the phone rang on the other end.

"Hey, Sakura. How are you?...Yeah, same….Listen, I was wondering if you'd want to hang out tonight. You know, just us girls…..Really?" Kiba's grinned widened even more at the excitement that made her voice tremble. "Yeah, eight o'clock sounds great! I'll see you then."

Ino twirled around and hung up the phone. Kiba could see that she was beaming from ear to ear. "She said yes!"

"I guessed as much," he hid the joy he felt for her.

"We're going to some fancy club.

"Which one?" Kiba asked. He knew every club in Konoha. Some were so exclusive, that bouncers wouldn't allow you in unless you looked like you just got spit up by the red carpet. He knew Ino would have no problem getting in as long as she had an over-the-top, sexy outfit in mind.

"I think it was…Club Hoshi?"

Kiba's eyes bulged. Club Hoshi was without a doubt the most prestigious of every other club in the village. He hadn't even considered it when going over the list of clubs in his mind only because it was nearly impossible to get into unless you were VIP or knew someone as equally important as a VIP. How did they plan on getting in?

"Are you sure she said Hoshi?" Kiba sputtered.

"I'm pretty positive," Ino confirmed.

Kiba stared at her for a moment. He thought she was gorgeous-a beauty to behold. But he knew that at Club Hoshi, beauty wasn't the only thing you needed, otherwise Kiba would've gotten in a long time ago. "Do you have any dresses?"

"Only the one I wore at Choji's party. Shikamaru and I don't go out much."

Kiba thought back to that party and Ino's dress. It had been sleek and black, hugging the curves of her body tight enough to drive him wild. Still, it wasn't Hoshi material. "Let's go shopping."

Ino cocked her head to the side. "What? Why?"

"Hoshi is extremely exclusive. You need to look like a star. Let me take you dress shopping, I'm buying."

Ino gave him a suspicious look. "I thought guys hated shopping, let alone spending money on women."

I'd buy you the moon and the stars. "Well fine. If you don't want a free dress, have fun being rejected from Club Hoshi for looking subpar-"

Kiba let out a shaky "whoa" as Ino snatched his wrist up with her hand and dragged him out the door. He beamed with satisfaction. He knew that the young vixen wouldn't be able to pass up the chance to spend his money on her, and he didn't mind buying things for her, if only to see her smile again like she had been earlier that afternoon.

A/N: Hey guys, sorry it took so long to update. Work and school and my lack of a laptop are all factors as to why this took longer than it should have. Don't hate me please! Sorry this chapter was kinda lame and boring. Kiba's head over heels, huh? Next chapter should be better though. I've got a lot of cute stuff planned for our star-crossed lovers ;)

R&R, as always, I love to hear your thoughts, opinions, ideas, etc. Love it all :) Love you all! Thanks for reading!