Disclaimers on everything that I don't own, especially the characters from Inuyasha. They belong to Rumiko Takahashi. However the rest of the original characters are mine.
By Winterwing3000
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-Snippet 7
She sat on the furs and dry straw within the leader's den, soon to be shared by another wolf. Her eyes were solemn as she stared at the cave wall, illuminated with shadows from the small fire a couple feet away from her. All her armor was shed, placed aside, leaving her in her dirtied skirt and chest bindings. One of the healers from her tribe was finishing up on the most serious wounds on her arm and side, applying some salve and herbs just in case there was poison or infection in the wounds.
Kouga leaned on the wall to her left, ankles and arms crossed, eyes closed. His expression came out nonchalant aside from the furrowed brows on his forehead, mostly hidden by his fur headband.
The healer proceeded to wrap small strips of cloth around her arm and around her waist. Done with her job, the healer bowed to Ayame and Kouga before taking her leave.
Noiselessly, the white she-wolf reached for one of the cleaner, larger pieces of white fur brought to her by one of the tribeswoman and threw it over her shoulders, hanging around her like a bodied cape. The only thing visible from underneath the cover was the wrap around her stomach and a bit of her shoulder.
Sparks jumped into the air when a twig flew into the dying fire.
"What happened?" Kouga asked, staring hard at the fire, waiting rather patiently for her explanation.
"She came to me, few moments before the feast, when I was here in the cave. Said that she wanted to show me something by the border and I went with, past the waterfall before she came onto me. We fought when the rain clouds came in. It started with claws before she drew. Twice she got me. And… you probably know the rest." She said, resting her head on her arms, folded across her drawn knees. The soft hairs on the cape tickled her nose.
"Why didn't you run? She was from my pack. Any signs of violence against each other would've immediately broken the silent treaty our packs had with each other. And you were no match for her. She has more experience and ability than you in battle."
Ayame snorted. "And prove to my pack a coward who couldn't defend herself, or her pack for the matter? As if. You would've done the same, Kouga. So don't try to be all high-and-mighty on me."
"Yet you wanted to gamble your life in a situation which was, in no way, your favor? Have you forgotten your duty to your clan! Or what is to be our clan within a matter of time?" he snarled, finally facing her, red glinted in his blue orbs.
"Duty! How can I forget my duty to my clan when you keep reminding me of it! Can't you understand that… that… I don't want to marry someone who doesn't love me. All these years, I've loved you without a fault and when I came to terms with my feelings, letting you go… you come back to me. I-I can't keep doing this Kouga! I'll go insane if you keep doing this to me!" she hissed.
"Goddamnit, woman!" the brown wolf stalked over to her, towering over her. "What part of 'my choice' do you not understand!"
She held back a frightened whimper from his sudden change in attitude. True, he could have avoided the challenge with Yuujin completely and left her to marry unhappily to the black wolf leader. But he decided, with his own hands, to defeat the other wolf and take her as his mate instead.
It was all that she had wanted, ever since her youth. She's thrilled that he finally came through to keep his promise to her and make her his mate. Years of waiting and here was her chance, presented to her in the utmost beauteous ways. Yet, part of her wished to deny his proposal, having a twisted gut feeling that he truly did this out of pity and was using her as a rebound rather than having true feelings for her. Despite his argument and confession that he no longer held Kagome in his heart, he still lacked the love she needed, wanted.
Mating him, of all people, without love, seemed meaningless.
"Just because it was your choice, did you ever considered what I wanted! What I had thought of this before you ran your mouth and challenged Yuujin-sama!" Ayame snapped back with equal viciousness. Standing up to her full height, ignoring the sharp pain that jolted through her system, she felt less intimidated.
In a flash, his clawed hands gripped her shoulders, carefully avoiding the bandages on her left arm. "Ayame." He made sure to enunciate every syllable. But paused, struggling to find the words.
"… Will you…" a scowl suddenly appeared on his face, realizing just how hard and how much trouble one damned female could give him. "Look, losing at things isn't the greatest for a man and I've lost everything."
"Oh, so now I'm a prize now?" she muttered bitterly, turning her head away from him but made no move to remove his hands from her shoulders.
"No! Ah fuck it." Kouga gave up trying to reason with her and did the next best thing.
Her evergreen eyes widened in shock as he molded his rough lips against hers, eyes half-lidded, staring at her with such… intensity and sincerity. She felt his hands slowly slide down, ending at her narrowed waist, despite the cloak of fur wrapped around it.
Finding no response, Kouga pulled away from her, disappointed that his point hadn't gotten across. "Ay-." He became startled when she hesitantly leant toward him, arms snaking out of the cape, leaving a silvery heap behind her.
Grinning as if he had gotten the whole Shikon no Tama for himself, Kouga eagerly (but gently nonetheless) wrapped his arms tightly around her waist as hers slipped behind his neck, tangling into his ponytail. Her lips connected with his shyly, allowing him to lead. Soon, they broke away, her arms still hooked around him and his rested comfortably on her hips, panting.
Feeling slightly loose, he nudged his forehead against hers and sighed. Ayame felt her cheeks heat up a bit, but a smile pulled at the corners of her mouth, showing a glint of her canine.
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Ayame sat still as ceremonious mothers came to her aid, dressing her into martial clothing.
Half of her fiery locks were twisted into an intricate knot, irises and lavenders decorating it. The rest of her hair was let down, tumbling behind her back. A large ornament carved of rare white pearls and dark green jade into two long hair pins on either side of her head. Bit of gold pieces tied with hairs of a said-nymph hung down on the ends of the pins. In the center, holding the two pins together was a small stone rock crown, a wolf figure with a moon behind it.
As for her dress, it was an elaborate kimono, golds and silvery-greens. It reached down to her feet, barely showing her bound feet. Wisps of blue wove around her body, matching with the black obi tied around her waist, holding it together. Brown twigs with peony blossoms decorated it.
They moved onto to do her face with the various paints and colors filled in the shells and small brushes lined up on the large boulder in front of her.
Once finished, they left her, gathering down at the festivities to help with the other necessary preparations.
Now alone, Ayame couldn't help but wonder just how she looked. Did she look different? Or ugly? Deciding that it wasn't as important at the moment, she busied her thoughts with Kouga and what was to come just after sunset.
She smiled. She was finally going to be Kouga's mate, his wife, the mother of their pups.
Her smile faltered. But, could she really?
Commitment was forever. Once marked, they were bound forever and the mark was to remain until either died… would she have her freedom still or would Kouga keep her bound?
Could she live with herself, knowing that there was possibly something more waiting for her, out there in the world? What if… she wasn't ready for this? Acting on impulse… it was finally in her own hands, her own decision. Kouga would not force her to do anything. He told her once, if she remembered correctly, to stop listening to what others tell her to do and do things her way, the way she wanted to.
She wanted this… for a very long time. It has been over fifty years since that incident. And now, it was happening. But why? Why was it happening? Was this going to be her happy ending? No… Ever since she was born, luck and happiness was rarely by her side.
Her parents died before she reached her prime. Her grandmother followed shortly afterward. Now her grandfather was no longer. She had no friends while growing up, and difficulties while training. She devoted most of her life to her training and to her pack, despite her childish attitudes. And all for this moment, her time to be side by side with Kouga.
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The sun was at the end of its setting, the sky now colored in purple, yellow, orange, and red. Women were bustling around, roasting the large wild bear they found stumbling out of its home. Rare sake was brought from a raided, ran down village. A large bon fire get already crackling in the middle of it all. The Elders had gathered, discussing quietly. Kouga and his two favorable comrades were laughing merrily, exchanging and accepting felicitations.
"KOUGA-SAMA! KOUGA-SAMA!" shouts for the ookami no ohjisama were heard from half-way up the mountain, as a few girls raced down to him, panic written all over their faces.
Irritably, Kouga turned to them. "What?"
"It… It's Ayame-hime! S-she's gone!" one of them wailed, falling to her knees in forgiveness.
Incredulously, he stared at the girls with bulging eyes. "What… did you just say?"
"A-Ayame-hime, she's not in the cave! We were just about to get her and she… just wasn't there!" the second female shook her head helplessly. "We tried looking for her, but I think that… her scent has been covered."
Cursing, Kouga immediately ordered Ginta and Hakkaku to start searching when a black wolf broke through the ranks and came in front of him. Eyeing him untrustingly, Kouga asked what Yuujin had wanted.
"She is my friend and my ex-fiancée, and as a leader, I would like to aid in the search of Ayame-sama as well." Yuujin said, determined. Sighing in resignation, the prince nodded. "Fine." And he turned to the girls. "Keep the preparations going. Then tell the Elders what's happened. I'll be back before the sun sets for sure."
Taking off into the woods without a thought, he was half sure as to where she went.
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"Why did you come looking for me?" she whispered with loneliness, looking up to the waterfall when she noticed the familiar masculine scent coming up behind her.
"Why did you run?" he asked back, right behind her now. He made no move to turn her around and face him, only watching as she reached out to spread out her hand into the light spray of water coming down the rocky side.
Droplets wetted her fingers, dotted the sleeve of her kimono. Slowly, they slid down her palm, slipping underneath the cloth, making a short journey before being soaked up by the silk.
Cocking her head downwards, she finally looked over her shoulder to him. "…I don't really know."
Raising a brow, he gazed at her with doubtful eyes.
"You told me… that I should do what I want and not what others tell me. And now, even with the choice in my hands right now, I don't know… what I want to do. I want to be your mate. I've always did. I've given up everything I had just for this. And I did everything that I could just for this…
"But what can you give me?" she asked him woefully.
Resisting the urge to tear out all his hair, he inwardly fumed at how many questions a woman could ask before she was satisfied. But she posed a good question this time. Something he hadn't really thought of until recently. He looked up into the darkening sky, contemplating before locking gazes with her once again.
Kouga came up with nothing.
Shaking her head sadly, Ayame walked away slowly. "You can not even offer me one thing…"
Head bowed, Kouga bit his cheek, fists clenched.
Hearing no other response, Ayame continued forward, crestfallen with miserable eyes. "I shall announce to everyone that there shall be no mating ceremony tonight…"
Arms from behind snaked around her waist, jerking her backwards and colliding into Kouga's chest. She gasped but gave no struggle. "Don't… I… Give me one chance."
"For what?" Ayame rasped, blinking back tears.
"Just… let me protect you. And our family. I'll show you what I can give you." with an after thought, he added, "Please."
Her heart raced at his words, and kept silent. All that was heard were the rushing waters behind them and his quiet breathe on her neck. Closing her eyes once more, she exhaled and turned in his arms.
With a teary smile, she said, "Okay."
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AN: And voilà! I declare to you, Shadows in the Light, finished! Epilgoue? Maybe not this time. Sorry. (Kill me later for the grammar and misspellings. I'll correct and edit them all when I have another long vacation. Maybe during winter break LOL!)
Anyway, I probably wrapped things up too quickly. All the drama going on here. Sheesh, going over board or what! I could have ended the whole thing after their short (or … long!) kiss three break lines from here, but I really wanted to add the 'run-away-bride-with-cold-feet' idea, even though, it wasn't really 'cold-feet' that she had. Plus, it was a rerunning scene in my head ever since I watched this amazingly old but extra cool (times ten) Chinese epic. Don't worry, I didn't copy the scene, just borrowed the idea. (After all, Ayame did not cut her hair. The Chinese heroine did! And there weren't any waterfalls in it, last I checked). XD At first, I thought of having Yuujin find Ayame and then talk her into mating with Kouga because all that blah blah blah. Yeah. The stuff you usually hear people say to run away brides to get them into the church. Lol. But then NAH! I liked how the end came to be and I'll keep it that way. Even though it is a semi-cliffhanger, it'll have to do. I'm too lazy to make a sappy-happy-ending like everyone else because not everything ends with a happy ending like fairy tales! But since the Interlude gives you more than enough of a foreshadowing about Ayame and Kouga's ending, I'll add nothing more and take away nothing less. Teehehe.
Okay, enough of my long-run on-sentence talking about this story. I want to thank you all for the wonderful support you've given me, despite my lengthy update spans (especially during my time from around late May to late July, with school finals and France vacation and all). Even if you just told me that it was great, it really appreciated it! And final thanks to my reviewers of chapter 6 – wolfcries, mysterious advisor, rebel queen, indigo eyes, shadow vixen, angelgrl, and sumomo92!