Okay, okay. I know that the idea of Kouga being able to cross the way he did is a stretch. I just wanted to bring him into modern Japan, so please bear with me. Fanfiction is all about stretching the truth, ne? Otherwise there would be no point to it, I think.

Disclaimer: I own nothing. I tried hanging jewel shards around my neck, but I didn't even get Naraku to come. Hm, wonder if carrying around Tetsusaiga will help…


"Ow, you damned wolf!"

Inuyasha reached back to reclaim his hair, which was still grasped tightly in Kouga's claws.

"Cheater!" he cried angrily. "Quit fighting like a sissy, and face me!"

"All right," Kouga said smugly as he opened his hands. "But I don't know if it's such a good idea. Kagome might not like you causing a commotion in her world."

"Her world? What?" Inuyasha looked up and narrowed his eyes when he saw a familiar wooden roof. "Damn it!" He looked back at the wolf youkai. "How the hell were you able to cross?"

"Dunno. Figured I might be able to hitch along for the ride, and I guess it worked!" Kouga stretched, still holding one hand gingerly to his stomach. "Well, I guess I'd better find Kagome."

He jumped out of the well, completely oblivious to the dangerous growls coming from the hanyou. Immediately, hundreds of new smells and sounds hit him. He crouched low and pinched his nose. "What are all those scents, Inukkuro?!"

Inuyasha jumped beside him, glad that he was already used to Kagome's world. "Kagome calls it 'pou-loo-shun'," he informed him proudly. "She says it's caused by all the smoke that modern 'ma-sheens' put out, or something like that."

Kouga grimaced. "Kami, there're so many humans here too! I can hardly keep track of Kagome's scent! What kind of world is this?"

Inuyasha shrugged. "A ningen world, wolf boy. There're hardly any youkai here."

Kouga looked at him in disbelief. "No…youkai?"

When Inuyasha shook his head, the wolf youkai stood up decisively. "Kagome can't live in a world like this. She deserves better; I'm going to take her back with me once and for all!"

"Will you stop with that!" Inuyasha muttered, cracking his knuckles threateningly. "Don't you see that you'll never…hn?" A vein popped on his forehead when he noticed that the wolf youkai was already gone.


"Ah, there's nothing like a real bath!" Kagome chirped from a cloud of steam as she sunk in the bathtub. "And nothing like shampooing in one!" she added happily, reaching behind her.

When her hand only touched tile, she frowned. *Hm. Must've left the bottle sitting by the sink.* With an exasperated sigh she stood up, as the bathroom door swung open and banged against the wall.

Kouga strode in, with a fuming hanyou at his heels. "Kagome!" he cried happily.

The miko grabbed a towel and plopped back in the water in the blink of an eye, then said the only thing that came to her.

"SIT!"

"Kagome!" Inuyasha roared as he crashed into the hard tile floor. Kouga looked down at him and smiled. "That's what you get for trying to sneak a peek at my woman, Inukkuro!" he stated, sniffing. "You hentai."

In the tub, a shocked miko was staring at them with wide eyes. The first thing that ran through her mind was that Kouga was in her era. However, that novelty was quickly pushed far back in her mind as she realized with indignation that they were still in the doorway..

"Why are you still in here?" Her face was a deep shade of red. "GET OUT, BOTH OF YOU!"

They tried to rush out, pushing each other when they became stuck in the doorway. Inuyasha's ears were flattened against his head, and Kouga's tail was wedged between his legs.

After the door finally shut behind them, Kagome dropped her head into her hands and slid farther down into the tub, feeling the headache of her life coming on.


"So, he was able to cross also, was he?"

"That's right, Kaede-sama," Miroku stated seriously. "All he did was grab onto Inuyasha as he went in, and they both disappeared. That can only mean that they were both able to cross into Kagome's era."

The old miko shut her eyes and remained silent.

"I still don't understand how Kouga could have done it," Sango said incredulously. "I mean, we've tried and we've never been able to cross."

Kaede looked at her slowly. "Inuyasha is able to cross, regardless of whether or not he possesses Shikon shards, is he not?"

Miroku nodded. "Well yes, but-"

"Kagome can only cross with the jewel, however," Kaede continued. "That is because she belongs in that world, and the jewel belongs in this world, in a way." She looked thoughtful.

"The only one that has true rights to pass through time seems to be Kagome, then," she added.

Sango looked at her doubtfully. "But then how can Inuyasha cross?"

Kaede nodded. "By virtue of the bond that they share, which was placed on Inuyasha against his will."

Miroku rubbed his chin thoughtfully. "You mean that Inuyasha can cross because he is connected to Kagome, who is the one with the true power to cross?"

Shippo tugged at his hair. "What? That doesn't make any sense, though! How can Kouga cross?"

"Sango," Kaede asked slowly, "what do ye know of the mating practices of wolf youkai?"

Sango shrugged. "Very little, Kaede-sama. I know that a wolf youkai mates for life, and that their bonds are extremely strong."

"What about a simple claim?"

Miroku's eyes widened. "Are you thinking that Kouga created some sort of bond between himself and Kagome-sama just by claiming her as his mate?"

Kaede shrugged. "It is a possibility. However, we must take into account the youkai's possession of those three shards, as well as the fact that he was making physical contact with Inuyasha. Perhaps it was with Inuyasha that he made a bond of sorts, and he was able to cross in part because of that."

Shippo chuckled. "Kouga and Inuyasha?"

Miroku laughed too. "That would be a funny way of thinking about it, Shippo," he said. "Though I don't think Inuyasha would find it so amusing."

"Aye," Kaede agreed with a grin. "Though," she added, turning serious again, "it is an alarming prospect that a youkai was able to cross into Kagome's time, be it through a direct bond with her or an indirect bond through Inuyasha. It is now even more important that the well be kept secret."

The houshi and the taijiya nodded somberly, each still deep in thought.


"Kami, how many times is it now that a guy has seen me naked?" Kagome muttered as she stepped out of the bathroom, fully dressed. "Don't men from the feudal era understand the meaning of privacy?"

Her thoughts were suddenly interrupted by a crashing sound from downstairs. Her eyes widened. "Now what?"

She ran down the stairs quickly and barely managed to avoid a nasty tumble. Her bare feet hit the first floor, and her jaw dropped wide open.

"Our television!" she squeaked, running toward the sparking appliance. She reached down and pulled the plug, and the television finally died. Smoke rose from it sadly, and stung at her nose.

Kouga was sitting on the floor of the living room, licking at a scratch on his hand.

"Who did this?" she cried, pointing at the broken TV. "Was it you, Kouga?"

"Yeah." The wolf prince looked up from his hand and nearly choked on his tongue. Kagome looked like she was about to explode. "But I…there was a guy in it…he said…uh…he was asking you to take a vacation…with him…"

Inuyasha laughed and shook his head. "Ha, you stupid wolf! Don't you know that those are just pictures on the 'tell-eh-vishun'? Isn't it true, Kagome?"

Kagome turned on him with a sweet smile, and his eyebrow twitched nervously. "That's right, Inuyasha," she said softly. Then, her face darkened. "SO WHY DID YOU LET HIM DESTROY IT!?"

She opened her mouth, and Inuyasha flinched instinctively. He shut his eyes, waiting for the command to bring him speeding toward the ground.

Nothing happened. He opened one eye, and frowned. Kagome was still glaring at him, but her mouth was closed.

"I'm not going to do it," she said finally, "only because it wouldn't be fair, since I can't sit you both!" She threw a warning look at Kouga, who whimpered slightly and licked the scratch on his hand. "Don't touch anything," she added, starting back toward the steps. "I'll be right back in a second."

"You knew I'd get in trouble!" Kouga hissed as soon as she was gone. "Too bad you got in trouble too, stupid," he added sarcastically.

Inuyasha crossed his arms into his haori and smirked. "It was worth it," he said. "I didn't even get a SIT. Nope, not bad at all."

Just then, Kagome came bouncing back into the living room. "Good, you didn't break anything else," she said as she knelt by Kouga. "Let me see," she ordered, pointing at his bandage. Kouga sat obediently while she unwrapped it, and cleaned the wound with saline. She applied some medication on it and wrapped it up again in clean bandages.

"It looks really good," she said finally. "I'm surprised that you were able to heal this fast in just a day or so, Kouga."

The wolf prince shrugged. "I've been telling everybody, youkai blood is a fast healer. And if that don't cut it," he added smugly, "then three jewel shards aren't any harm."

"I guess so," Kagome replied, smiling. Her smile quickly faded, though, as a familiar sound buzzed through the house.

Both Inuyasha and Kouga looked confused. "What's that?" the hanyou asked. "I've never heard that sound before."

Kagome stood up quickly, and began to look around frantically for a place to hide them. "Someone's at the door," she explained quickly. "They push a button that makes that sound, so that I can know that they're there."

"Kagome?" A familiar female voice came through the door, making Kagome even more frantic.

"Kagome, it's us!"

"Kagome, are you home?"

"Quick, upstairs!" Kagome hissed, pushing the two boys toward the stairs. "Inuyasha, make sure Kouga stays hidden, okay? They're friends from school, and they can't see you!"

"I'm not baby-sitting any stupid youkai, Kagome!" Inuyasha protested, crossing his arms. Kagome looked at him like she was going to pass out. "Inuyasha!"

"Feh."

Inuyasha started up the stairs, and the miko heaved a small sigh of relief. Then she turned to Kouga, who was still eyeing the door suspiciously. "Are you sure you'll be all right, Kagome?"

Kagome rolled her eyes. "Yes, but I need you upstairs!"

Kouga had just started up the stairs when a fourth voice came through the door.

"Kagome? Kagome, are you home?"

It was Hojo. Kagome felt the dull throbbing at her temples flare up into a full-blown headache just as Kouga stopped and growled.

"That's a male," he said slowly. "What is a male doing at your house?"

"Kouga," she began, but the wolf youkai had already come back down and was making his way toward the door.

"Kouga, no!"

She sprung at him and managed to grab hold of his tail. Kouga yelped just as the door opened, and a very energetic trio of high school girls bounced into the living room. They were followed by a very uncertain-looking young man holding a nicely wrapped package in one hand. Everyone froze.

What they saw was Kagome kneeling behind a very strange-looking guy, holding on to what appeared to be a tail.

"Uh, Kagome?"


Oh, gomen! I know I haven't updated in a long time, but I hardly have any time to write this stuff out. However, I have worked out an outline of sorts for the rest of the story, so hopefully you'll start to see some sort of coherency in the course of this story. As always, reviews are greatly appreciated!