A slender foot stepped into watery depths of a large hot spring. Goosebumps dusted creamy white skin as the rest of the girls body submerged into the steamy water.

Kagome sighed happily as she scrubbed her face with the warm water, the dried up blood from the blessing from the night before washing away. Her hazel eyes scanned over the empty community hot spring shared by all of the tribe.

"How long are the two of you going to be in there?" Kai whined as he stood at the entrance of the cave, his arms crossing over his little chest in annoyance.

"Does it matter? Just stand and keep watch, Kai!" Tomoe shouted as she stepped into the hot spring to join the miko.

They both could hear the little pup complain about getting stuck on guard duty.

"I can hear you!"

"I didn't say anything, Tomoe! Why do I have to stand here anyways? No one wants to look at your ugly body."

Tomoes eye twitched "Fine, you can leave. But, don't be surprised if our King comes looking for you later when I tell him you left us to peeping eyes."

The pup was silent for a while and then with sudden groan he replied, "Fine! But, don't be to long, okay?!"

Kagome chuckled softly.

She remembered waking up to the young boy this morning. She was surprised that he wasn't Koga, but he reassured her that his King has placed him as her protector while he was away.

"Aaahhh finally, we can relax." Tomoe sighed with happiness as her back leaned against a stone, her eyes slowly shutting. "Did you have fun last night, Sister?"

"Yes!" Kagome smiled widely as she continued, "I honestly haven't had that much fun in so long. Village life can be rather..."

"Boring?"

"In some ways, I guess." Kagome laughed, "I guess I mean.. hectic. I'm always busy with priestess duties or going off to other villages to help whomever I can. There really isn't that much time for fun..."

"Your village doesn't have festivals and celebrations?" Tomoe asked.

"We do! Actually in a few weeks we will be holding a autumn festival. I will have to perform a kagura dance as the village priestess."

"Oh, so that's why you're such a good dancer. You danced as if you were all wolf, Sister." Tomoe praised, as she pulled her mass of curly hair to one side of her shoulder, running her clawed fingers through her brown tight spirals.

Kagome flushed bashfully at the praising girl before her, "Thank you." She simply said.
Obviously, she couldn't tell the demoness that she originally had some practice from going to high school parties and clubs five hundred years into the future.

Kagome watched as the girl struggled before her hait as she tried to the tame the wild brown curls, cursing when her slender fingers got caught in the knots.
Taking a few steps forward she was about to offer help to the girl, until her hazel eyes landed on Tomoes bare shoulder.
Right above her collar bone sat a scar with four very noticeable indentations... almost like fang marks.
The mark seemed to glow somewhat on her caramel skin as the light from the lanterns bounced off of it.

Tomoe noticed Kagomes sudden pause of movements.
Amber eyes following the human girls line of sight to see what had caught her sudden interest.

Kagome stiffened as Tomoe looked back at her, "I-I-I'm so sorry," she stuttered, "I didn't mean to stare.. I just didn't think demons could scar." She said softly.
She remembered everytime Inuyasha got severely injured during battles. And with just a few days of healing, the wound would be completely gone. Leaving his skin just as flawless as it was before.

"We usually don't, unless we get injured from a spiritual weapon."

Kagomes eyes furrowed as her mind began to race trying to figure out what spiritual weapon could leave behind bite marks.

"Another way we can get a scar is through mating. This is a mating mark." Tomoe pointed to the bite marks, "This special mark was left behind by my mate. A symbol that I belong to him and only him."

"A mating mark?"

Tomoe quirked a thin eyebrow in confusion.
She didn't know what a mating mark was? She could have sworn the girl was claimed by some half breed that she heard about countless times during drunken nights with her king as he sorrowfully drank away his heartbreak and sorrows.

Not one to beat around the bush, Tomoe bluntly asked, "You didn't mate with a hanyou?"

Kagome could feel her whole body redden with embarrassment. "Umm no... I didn't."

"But you were betrothed to him?"

"Yes," Kagome said softly, sadness leaking into her voice, "but, that was a long time ago.."

"And he never explained to you about how demons mate?"

Kagome shook her head.
Inuyasha never explained anything to her about demon mating in the past. They were going to have a simple wedding ceremony in the village, surrounded by loved ones. Maybe because he was half human and following the human wedding traditions he didn't see a point in explaining his other demon half to her.

"My mate, Jin" Tomoe began, as her fingertips lightly traced over the indentations on her shoulder lovingly, "left his mark on me while we were connected as one and I left mine as well upon his flesh. It's sign of our joining as one body and soul. As soon as our fangs pierced each other, tasting eachother; we became connected for all eternity to one another."

Kagomes eyes widened curiously.
That bond... she was slightly jealous of it.

"Jin? What's he like?" Kagome asked. Her mind wondered off trying to figure out who the wolf demon was.

"He was a brave warrior with a caring heart." She smiled softly as she continued " Before the eastern tribes joined as one under King Kogas rule, the tribes were scattered about in the East lead by different leaders. Jin, came from a distant tribe wishing to be a warrior for Head chief Yoshikazo, our Kings Uncle. At that time I was betrothed to another man and when Jin found out he challenged mate claim for me."

"Challenged mate claim?" Kagome questioned with wide eyes.

"Yes, when two demons fight for the right to claim a mate they have both chosen. It's a fight to the death, unless one forfeits the challenge... which rarely happens."

"To the death? Did you stop them from fighting?" Kagome gasped in surprise, she was so enthralled with the story.

"No? Why would I stop two of the strongest warriors of the tribe fighting over me? If I were to pick between them, I'd have to see who could protect and provide for me."

She has a point, but still...

"But, you secretly wished for Jin to be victorious right?"

A light blush crept it's way onto caramel skin, "Yes, and he was. He killed the other man with ease; showing the entire tribe that if another would step up and challenge to claim me they would surely be defeated."

Oh...

Kagome secretly hoped that everyone came out of the story alive.

"That's.. so romantic, I can't wait to meet him."

The demoness was silent for a moment, her eyes downcast, "He died, my Jin" she said with sadness, "he was killed by that wind witch, Kagura, along with our other packmates."

With widened eyes full of remorse, "Tomoe, I'm so sorry... I didn-"

"Don't be. He died a honorable death along with the other warriors. And when it is my time for my soul to leave my earth body and to return to our Moon Mother, that is when I'll be reunited with my Jin. We are still and always will be connected as one."

"So it's true? That wolf demons only mate once."

"Yes, that is why we take choosing a mate so seriously. They say when you find the one you were destined to be with, your soul will howl out and yearn for that person till the ends of time."

"Did your soul howl for Jin?"

"Yes, it did."

"But, what happens if the other man won against Jin? Would your soul still yearn for him even if you were mated to another?"

Tomoes eyes furrowed.
She had heard of tales of wolves experiencing such heartbreak, though very rare it has happened.
"Yes, I would have always yearned for him even though I belonged to another."

"That's a little sad..."
To be destined to be with someone, to have all these feelings for that person, but to be married off to someone else.

"Are you two done yet? You guys been in there for an hour!" Kai shouted out loud making Kagome to break away from her thoughts.

"Yes! I'm coming!" Kagome replied as she hurriedly lifted herself from the warmth of the pool of water. She quickly went to grab her kimono that laid neatly on top of an nearby stone and hastenly dressed not wanting to make the little boy waiting.

"Kai!" Tomoe shouted as she started to ring the water out of her hair, "take Kagome to her rooms that I've prepared for her."

"Fine." Kai grumbled from the distance.

"I was supposed to show you your rooms last night, Sister, but I just couldn't find you anywhere." Tomoe said slyly with a smirk.

Kagome paused in her movements on tightening her obi, crimson blush evading her pale cheeks.
She remembered falling asleep next to Koga the night before under the painted stars and swirls.

"I'll be to your rooms shortly to do your hair again. You look so pretty with your hair pulled away from your face."

Still blushing, Kagome said a quick thank you and hurriedly made her way to where the wolf pup waited.

She followed him down the lit tunnels, turning right and left while passing wolves and demons on their way as the boy chatted away about last nights festivities excitedly.

When they finally reached her room, Kai pulled back the pelt of fur for her to enter into the little room.
It was small and simple, but cozy, candle light bounced off the walls, highlighting a chest where her bow, quiver and satchel leaned up against. Her eyes landed to the mounds of furs, silks and pillows that lay in the center of the room for the bedding.
She soon noticed that dozens of purple flowers that were neatly placed upon a piece of white fabric at the corner of the bed.
Kneeling down she picked up a flower bringing it close to her face. The flowery aroma swimming around her as she twirled the flower between her finger tips.

This was the very flower that she set out on her journey through the forest for.

"Pft. He really did it." Kai said as he kneeled down next to Kagome, his eyes scanning over the hundreds of flowers. "Do you think he plucked enough?"

"What are you talking about?"

"The King, I told him that the reason why you were in the forest that day was because you needed these flowers for your village. He must have went into the storm this morning to retrieve them for you." Kai sniggered, "pfttt and he said he was going hunting."

He did this... for me?

Kagome could feel a blush dust her cheeks at the thought of the wolf king plucking flowers for her in the pouring rain.

"Hey, Sister," Kai pulled on her kimono sleeve to get her attention, "tell him you want crane for dinner tonight?"

Kagome looked down at the little boy next to her, eyebrows raised in question, "Why would I ask him for that?"

And with all seriousness, the boy replied, "Because I want crane for dinner tonight. And if the King will stand outside in the lightening and pouring rain to pick you some flowers, then he will do just about anything for you."