A dark figure stood on the mountain peak staring at the never ending green mounds of land before him.
The summers heat was unbearable making his iron armor and brown furs almost uncomfortable to wear.
His long black hair styled in a high pony tail on the top of his head decorated with braids and silver beads, the strands not braided stuck to the nape of his neck due to the sweat.
A growl escaped his lips as a bronzed hand reached up and wiped the sweat from his brow, his knuckles hitting the simple silver circlet that cricled his head, a symbol of his powerful position - King.

The skies were getting dark and the moon swiftly took its position high in the nights sky. The stars sparkled bright tonight, so bright he could see the the clusters that created the celestial maiden and the traveling wolf Moro.

Breathing in the mountain air he could smell the fresh aroma of rain heading their way.

Damn.

If the situation was any different he'd be grateful for the upcoming downpour that was slowly making it's way to his mountain. It has been weeks since he last felt a rain drop hit his bronzed skin, but most of all the land was in dire need of it.

But, his pack was missing two of their pups.

And as soon as the crystal pellets dropped from the crying sky, it would wash away their scents completely making it almost impossible to find them.

It's been almost two days since they've disappeared now and the only lead they had was that they ventured to the cliffs.
Tracks indicated that they were sprinting playfully, and they ventured to close to the edge falling into the harsh stream below.
The current was strong, stronger than usual during this time of year, swiftly carrying the pups far away from home.
In the back of his mind he was worried that the pups might have drowned while being swept away. But they haven't found the bodies of the two yet, giving him some hope they some how survived.

He sent scouts, hunters, warriors, wolves... whoever he was able pull from their posts to search for the pups in the vast terrain. But, they all came back empty handed.

He also returned with nothing.

The pack was on edge, especially the females. The mothers of the two pups constantly sulking within the caves walls as their mates comforted them.
And as a King this made him feel powerless.

To constantly hear their crying wails through out the night etched away at his innet beast.

Kogas tail flicked with impatience.
He was remembering the events that took place just moments before with his pack men.

Today after returning from the search he sat down with his men in their usual gathering within the cave.
Usually the atmosphere was joyous as they drank sake and tore the flesh from their kill. Talking about women and the hunt.

But today they were all disheartened coming home once again without the pups.

"We will search further down stream." Koga said as he stared at the crackling flames in the fire pit.
His cup of sake and bloody slab of boar meat left untouched at his side.
He leaned back against his throne that was carved out from the cave wall. His elbow placed upon the thrones armrest, fist clenched as his head rested upon it. His azure eyes never leaving the dancing flames.

"My King," his loyal friend Ginta began to speak, "we've already searched..."

"Farther down." Was all Koga said.
He knew where this discussion was going. And he was to tired to hear their opinions on the matter. He already decided what the next plan was. They weren't debating this.

The east was his domain now. Going farther past their usual hunting grounds and running into other packs wasn't a issue anymore. He ruled over them all.

But, it was the other demons that lingered deeper into the woods.
He wasn't worried about it, but knew some of his men weren't comfortable with going beyond the usual territory.
The pack split up during the search to cover more ground. Wolves were accustomed to always being with their packmates at all times. So the thought of splitting up in a foreign area made a few of his men anxious.

"My King," Ginta continued, earning crystal eyes to shift towards his direction causing him to shudder, but bravely he continued. "The young pups wouldn't have survived if they went that far down stream. Even if they some how did, the demons in that territory..."

Koga growled causing Ginta to cower, his words quickly coming to a hault.

Koga knew that the demons were bloodthirsty in that wooded territory. Which is why his men didn't venture out in that direction unless necessary.

Koga sat up from his thrown, all glowing eyes upon him.
"At the crack of dawn we search further down stream for Taka and Kai." His azure eyes turned to slits, "whoever refuses to continue on with the search will personally have to deal with me."

The cave was silent, all you could hear was the crackling of fire wood within the pit.

And with a flick of his tail he made his way threw the sitting pack members towards the entrance of the cave.

Koga growled.

Now he stood on the cliff alone.
Not wanting to return to his bed chambers due to the wailing females.
And not wanting to return to the gloomy pack gathering either.

His keen hearing picked up a set of paws trudging along the rocky service of the mountain slowly making it's way towards him. The sound of panting and soft sounds of whining could be heard.

A large old wolf shuffled his way to Kogas side. He heard the wolf huff as he plopped down on the hard service, his tail swishing around ever so slightly.
His gray muzzle pointed up at Kogas tall form, golden eyes scanning over his sharp features.

"What do you want?" Koga asked.
Not even bothering to look down at the graying wolf sitting obediently next to him.

He was a retired warrior wolf. Having served his pack his whole life aiding the hunters and warriors, but mostly serving Koga himself.
Koga remembered he was fierce and strong in his younger years. Scars that covered his body proved that.
Now the old wolf sat around all day laying in the sun soaking up its warm rays, sleeping most of the day in the shade of the cave and getting hand fed from the females in the pack.

The wolf whined.

"I'm not hungry, Uruno." Koga rolled his eyes.

He's still constantly worries over me.

Another whine escaped through clenched fangs.

"I'm not tired either. I have to much on my mind right now." Koga rubbed the temples of head with his finger tips. "You should head back yourself. Your old body can't handle this heat anymore."

The old wolf growled.

Koga smirked, "I'm King now. You can't call me a whimpy young pup anymore, you old turd."

Growl.

Koga let out a hearty laugh.
When was even the last time he laughed like this? He couldn't remember.

The two fell silent as they stared off in the distance. Kogas once smiling face dropping into frown.

"Hey Uruno, do me favor."

The old wolf's ears perked up with interest, his tail swishing back and forth.

"Tell my men that I will be going on alone tonight to search for the pups. Ginta will remain on the mountain overseeing the duties and Hakkaku will lead the search farther down the stream where they will disband and enter the forest to cover more ground. I will rejoin the pack before nightfall."

The wolf ears pinned to the back of his, a bark escaping his muzzle.

"I will be fine, old wolf. Just do what I have asked." And with those words the young Wolf King jumped down from the high peak, gracefully jumping from ledge to ledge as he made his way down the mountain side.

A howl from the old wolf above reached his pointed ears, a howl that said see you later.

Landing on his feet at the bottom of the mountain, knees buckled as he crouched down, the ground slightly cracking from the sudden force of impact.
He looked straight ahead, his eyes adjusting to the blanket of night before him.
The sounds of tree branches cracking, little paws scurrying across the forest floor and the sound of flowing water could reach his ears.
He inhaled the scents around him, picking up smells from miles away.

A growl escaped his lips as he took off in a sprint, spraying dirt, stones and chunks of grass as his feet would plant firmly into ground giving him more support to take off even faster.
A tunnel of wind started to whirl around his form as he took off down the stream. His hair flapped around wildly behind him, beads from his braids chiming against one another, his nose inhaling every scent in hopes of picking up anything that could lead him to the pups.

He didn't know how long he was running. He lost track of time a while ago. Three? Four hours maybe?

He stopped at the edge of the forest, the stream flowing behind him. He noticed the current wasn't as strong in this location.
Cerculian eyes jumped from one area of the ground to the other trying to pick up any sort of tracks.

His nose then twitched.

That smell.

His nostrils flared in and out as he inhaled the air, chest expanding under his plate of armor.
He walked towards the forest, crouching low to the ground, both palms placed firmly on the hard earth. His face millimeters from the forest floor as he continued to try and pick up the scent that had all his senses ringing.

It's faint

His clawed hand scratched at the earth, balling into a fist. His eyes darted straight ahead, a visual line of the aroma leading him to his prize.

The calming fragrance of lavender and vanilla filled his senses.

It's been years since he last smelled the enticing perfume.

Memories flooded before his eyes of the beautiful dark haired miko, the owner of that calming scent.

The last memory of her definitely wasn't his favorite.

He remembered her looking down at the ground, her long bangs hiding her beautiful hazel eyes from his view. She played with the edges of her kimono sleeve anxiously while chewing upon her perfect plump lip.

She was gone for years, disappearing without a trace as soon as Naraku was defeated and the Shikon Jewel was no more. She had vanished before were there were times he couldn't find her scent anywhere, but she always mystically reappeared after a few days. This time was different. She was gone for to long this time.

He questioned the mutt and her companions relentlessly, almost to the point of a fight breaking out between the hanyou and him. But, they wouldn't tell him where she went, only that she was alive and safe.
They all were hiding something from him - he could smell it.

But, when the rumors of a beautiful miko traveling with a dog hanyou reached his ears, he immediately stopped what he was doing and ran to the village where she once resided in to see if it was true.

And there she was again standing before him.

A little older, no more then eighteen years old in human years, even more beautiful then from what he remembered.

And once again when he reached her, he confessed his undying love for her, pleading for her to return to the mountains to take her place by his side.

He waited for her this whole time in hopes that one day she would return.

"I'm sorry, Koga." She said softly. Her knuckles white from grasping the kimono sleeve tightly. "Inuyasha has already laid claim to me..."

No.

He started to panic.

I could challenge him. I could challenge him for mate claim.

"Kagome.." he went to touch her soft hair, his claws just millimeters away.

"I agreed to be his.." she said in a whisper, "I agreed to be his mate."

His hand stopped from touching her, slowly recoiling back from her small form.

She agreed.

He didn't know what to say.
He didn't know what to do.
But he did know his heart shattered in that very moment.
And the beast within him was howling in agony.

Yeah, definently not a good memory.

But, that was years ago.

And she was here.

In this very forest.

Just a few miles away.

Right now.

Something erupted inside his chest as he took off running. Excitment? Want? He wasnt quite sure. But he did know he wasn't going to let this opportunity slip away. His inner beast howled with agreement.

Running past trees at top speed, ignoring as branches slapped across his firm body, his mind was only on the scent that kept getting stronger and stronger with every step he took.

So deep in his tracking, that he barely had to time register the fact that his skin broke out in goose bumps. His wolf senses immediately going off in his head warning him that danger was ahead.

He barely dodged the purple arrow that came flying towards him. His body instinctively jumping to the right just in time as his claws and feet slid across the forest floor bringing up a fog of dust around him.

That arrow.

Azure eyes snapped ahead at the figure before him wearing miko robes. He watched as she sheathed another arrow against her bow, pulling the string back as far as it would go. Her pointed finger aiming directly at him to guide her arrow to kill. He watched as a bright purple glow formed from the tip.

"Kagome!" He shouted.

She immediately stopped, slowly lowering her weapon. The purple light fading away.

Thank god, he thought relieved.

Rounded hazel eyes filled with shock stared at his form still crouched to the ground.

"K-koga?" She stuttered in surprise.

Mmmm

He loved the way she said his name.

"Hey beautiful."