Chapter 5: Pleasantries and Bargains

Kouga was caught off guard by the question she asked. 'Why would she want to know something like that?'

He spared a glance down at her curious expression. Humouring her curiosity, Kouga decided to answer. "Our caves were built fifty years ago when the Elders bequeathed me the honorary title of Eastern Tribe Leader. It took most of our men to fulfill the task of expanding the cave. After all it was just one single cave, and after finding more caves along the perimeter of the main cliffs, we've been able to connect them to the main entrance and den. I'll have to give you the tour today so you can see what I mean."

Kagome thought about the idea of the Prince of Wolves giving her a tour of his home. 'I'm sure everyone else besides Inuyasha would like to join in and see how they built their home. It would make the decision to employ them easier for the group.'

After processing this, Kagome brightened and responded warmly, "That sounds like a great idea. We would love to see your home."

Kouga smirked, his chest puffed out in pride that she was accepting his invitation. He doesn't really give tours of his place, but he would do anything for the young miko.

"Wait, you said fifty years ago. How old are you now, Kouga?" Kagome couldn't imagine he'd be as old as Myoga, but 50 years was half her lifetime. It was a milestone and great achievement to reach fifty if you were a human in this era. Samurai's and warriors could only dream of reaching that age, most live up to their late 20s and 30s before passing away, and most likely from war.

"I'll be 176 in the spring." He responded so casually, but for Kagome it was quite the shock. She would have guessed 80, but a three-digit number was news to her. Kouga noticed the pause after he spoke. He quirked an eyebrow. Did she not know that demons lived longer life spans than that of humans? Did she even know the ages of her demon friends in her group?

Kagome snapped back to reality after realizing her inability to make a comment may have seemed rude. She took a deep breath before spilling out a retort in haste. "I-well, I would have thought...um. Wow you look good for your age! I mean not that you're old or anything. I mean to humans...it's different. We're lucky if we live past 85. For demons 175 is the new 20, right?"

Kouga was confused at this. '175 is the new 20.' He shook his head and thought about the part where she said he looked good, but for his age. He wasn't an old geezer, but then she said she didn't think he was old. This human he admired greatly was a perplexing creature.

"Uh, look at it this way. Your youngest companion is probably between fifteen to thirty years old and he probably looks to be about six to eight in human years. Demons age slower than humans do. By the way, how old did you think I was?" Kouga mused.

"Well, I didn't think you were my age. Relatively speaking. Um, I guessed mid to late 20s?" Kagome wasn't sure if he would take that as an insult or compliment.

"In human years, I am 23." Kouga surmised, but did not take her response to heart. Age, naturally, made no difference to him. "How old are you?"

"Seventeen." Kagome chuckled, "175 isn't the new 20. It basically is 20." Kouga didn't understand this, and decided to question it. "What does that mean? 20 years old for a demon would mean they are a child. Are you implying that I'm a child?"

"No no, well in my tim-village, we have a saying about people in their 30s who complain about getting older. So to make the transition from 29 to 30 more attractive people say that 30 is the new 20, to make them feel younger. It's a bit weird I guess."

"Huh, that's odd." Kouga raised an eyebrow at the idea of saying that to someone in his tribe, but it didn't seem like it was something he could use in conversation since he was still young.. "Say...so since you mentioned that whole 175 is the new 20 bit...you think I'm old. Oh Kagome, that hurts."

"What? No..I mean yes I said it, but I didn't mean to-" Kagome got flustered as she inadvertently was caught in her own verbal mistake.

"Relax. I'm just kidding. Besides, I'll get my revenge." As Kouga said this, he sprang with the extra strength of the jewel shards into the air. His legs propelled him higher and higher, whilst kicking off the sides of the mountain. Kagome shielded her face and ducked closer to Kouga as the cold mountain air nipped at her smooth skin. The sheer velocity of Kouga's pace was astounding. Kagome couldn't quite keep her eyes open with the amount of wind engulfing their forms. It didn't faze Kouga as he bounded towards the caves with his precious cargo in hand. To any other person, it was just a wind tornado travelling across the mountains, but on the inside was Kouga and Kagome.

"Kouga! Do you think you could slow down? I feel a bit disoriented with all this wind, and the jumping, and fast drops." Kagome massaged her temples to prove her point. It felt as though she was on a wild roller coaster.

"Hm?" As if just noticing her tightly shut eyes, Kouga immediately slowed his pace to allow the young girl to relax. Kagome sighed a breath of relief. She didn't know how much more she could take without getting nauseated in his arms. "Sorry, Kagome. I guess I didn't think that speed would cause you pain." Kouga dropped to a lower altitude and planted his feet on the ground of the mountain path. Not quite willing to release his hold on Kagome, but he gave in to Kagome's wishes as he gently lowered her so that her feet were on the ground. Kagome staggered a bit, but recovered shortly after she grasped the feeling of her feet being on the ground.

"It's alright now. Just maybe we could walk the rest of the way..." Kagome looked around at her surroundings. She had no idea how long they had to walk for, but she could hear the sounds of rushing water nearby. She vaguely remembered a waterfall spewing out of the mountain the last time she was here. Perhaps they were just a little ways away from the den.

"Ok. We are just about here anyway." Kouga took a bit of a lead as he walked towards the curved part of the path in front of them. Kagome noticed a wall of a mountain in front of their path, but the drastic right curve of the path suggested that there was more beyond the mountain wall.

As they turned the corner, Kagome's eyes were met with a gorgeous view of the waterfall cascading down into the river below. Beside the waterfall was a cliff, and deep into the crevice of the mountain side, was a wide opening of a cave. She remembered running out to the peak of the cliff and tossing Shippo over into the air so he could escape. She also remembered the moment she slapped Kouga in front of his tribe for calling her his woman.

Kouga glanced back at Kagome to see what made her so quiet. Her breathing was more even now that she was in control of her movements. She had a look of wonderment and contemplation in her eyes. His eyes dropped to her lips where a small smile turned up the corners of her mouth. A grin formed as he watched her take in the view of his home.

"Come on, it's time you were reacquainted with the pack." Without much notice, Kouga grabbed Kagome by the hand and lead her further along the path towards the main entrance of the den.

The spray from the waterfall tickled Kagome's face. The ground leading into the cave was moist from the spray and the air was thick with the smell of wet rock. She could feel the dampness of the ground and the cold air mix together, causing a slight chill to run up her legs. As Kouga dragged her by the hand into the entrance, Kagome could pick out a congregation of male wolf demons clad in armour and similar leather wrappings to Kouga's attire.

"The boss is back, and he brought his woman back with him too!" A gruff voice called out, as more eyes looked up to see if the wolf prince had indeed brought his betrothed back from his patrol. Kagome's cheeks heated to a blush. She wasn't his woman, but she could only imagine these demons were hard-headed to begin with and were set in their own ways. Saying anything to counter the comment just as she entered the cave would be rude. So long as Kouga didn't go on and humour their comments, she wouldn't have to correct anything. She could see all eyes on her and her hand, as it was placed within the warmth of the Wolf Demon Prince's grasp. She made a small 'eep' noise in realization and quickly removed her hand from its current resting place. Kagome looked away with a small blush spreading across her cheeks, and held her wrist awkwardly over her abdomen.

Kouga took no notice of this, as if he didn't want to pay attention to her reaction. He did flex his fingers slightly as he missed the soft skin of her fingers clutched in his own. Hesitantly he shook the feeling away while proceeding forward, and Kagome followed at his heels moving past the group of males that watched them. Kouga scanned the group of males again looking for a certain wolf demon. Once realizing this person wasn't present, he turned to Kagome and spoke, "I'm going to find Hakkaku to see how dinner preparations are going. Your friends will be here any minute, I'll be back shortly." He waited for her to nod in understanding before he left. Kagome looked around, the men were still looking at them curiously. She was nervous because the last time she was left in the den was when she was taken as a hostage. That was before Kouga confessed his attraction to her.

"Of course. I'll just wait here to greet Inuyasha and the others." Kagome confirmed. Kouga nodded, and turned his back to go in search of his right-hand man. Kagome still felt the eyes of the men watching from behind.

She awkwardly waved at them, "Don't mind me, guys. Just carry on with what you were doing before I got here." The nervous waver in her voice made her feel uneasy. She was definitely feeling like the new kid in the neighbourhood. She epitomized the concept of strange and unknown to them. Could she really gain their help in constructing a new village? Doubt clouded her mind as she realized that her friendly relationship with Kouga, may not have been the same with everyone in the room. The same gruff voice from the wolf demon that introduced their arrival earlier spoke out.

"Whatever you say, but don't go turning into a statue on us, Sister." A bit of chuckling echoed in the cave, as the men laughed at her.

Of course they could feel her nervousness of being left alone in a room full of full-fledged wolf demons. Most she didn't even recognize from her last visit.

"Don't worry we won't be eatin' ya anytime soon. Kouga has the whole tribe under a human-free diet." Kagome turned towards the voice. The voice was from a demon perched up on a ledge of the cave to the left side of her. He was a few feet up, and held his head with the support of his left hand. His green eyes lazily regarded her when she looked at him. "We haven't met, but everyone knows who you are. You're under the claim of Kouga, and that means you are under the protection of the clan."

"Oh well, Kouga isn't my boyfriend or anything..." Kagome started to explain, and the green-eyed wolf opened his eyes more to watch her explain.

"Kagome!" Her head snapped to the calling of her name. Inuyasha ran into the cave much to everyone else's dismay. The wolf demons were up on their feet as the dog demon barrelled in with the rest of their friends in tow. Growls of protest for him being there were addressed, and the warriors took on defensive stances at the rude intrusion. Of course they knew he would be here, but it didn't mean he was welcome. They all knew the relationship between their Alpha and the Inu hanyou was not strong.

"Where's that flea-bitten wolf? I'm gonna kill him! Running off with you like that, just makes me mad!" Inuyasha approached Kagome, but there were wolf demons in front of him to block his path. "You scrawny wolves need to stay out of my way." Inuyasha put his right hand on the hilt of Tetsusaiga in warning. Sango and the others stayed a ways back from where Inuyasha stood, as the wolf pack all got to their feet in surprise at the entry.

"Inuyasha!" Kagome advanced towards the half demon, ignoring the questioning looks of the wolf pack. "We're supposed to wait here until Kouga returns."

"He just left you here being ogled by his men?" Inuyasha scoffed as he took in the sight of the pack. The wolves growled in response, not appreciating this intruder insulting them on their own turf.

"We're protecting our own," one of the male demons spit back in response. "A female claimed by one of ours is a part of the pack. Anyone to pose a threat to the claim, will not go near her."

"Claim my ass! Kagome, tell them that Kouga's so-called claim is a load of shit! Besides, he only wants her to track down the jewel shards."

"The only load of shit around here, is you Inutrasha!" Kouga's voice echoed as he made his reappearance alongside Hakkaku. He walked calmly towards the hanyou and stopped a six feet away from him with his hand on his hip. "Why are you here anyway? There's no reason for you to be here. As I recall, it's Kagome who wanted to speak to me not you."

Inuyasha growled. "Trust me I don't want to be here. I'm just making sure you keep your filthy paws off Kagome!"

"Kagome is safe with me, mutt. She's lucky I drop by to check in on her while she's travelling with you. I've had to rescue her multiple times because you couldn't!"

"Why you!" Inuyasha clenched his fist and lifted his hoari sleeve in preparation of punching this guy's lights out. How dare he critique his ability to protect Kagome.

"Inuyasha...can we just carry on with what we came here to do?" Kagome huffed in annoyance. Someone had to stop this mess of bickering before it escalated. Usually they would bicker and Kouga would run off in haste. He would rile Inuyasha up just enough to drive him crazy and then leave.

Kagome felt Kouga cup her hands in his while staring deeply down into her eyes. "Don't worry Kagome, soon Naraku will be gone and you won't have to put up with that puppy anymore. You'll be able to stay with me."

"As if she would want to stay in a cave of stinking wolves for the rest of her life!" Inuyasha pressed forward and separated the two by stepping in front of Kagome to shield her. Kagome was thankful for his intervention at that moment. Hakkaku took this moment to break up the spat.

"Hey boss, I don't mean to interrupt but the Elders will be here soon for the ceremony. Shouldn't we be making sure everything is ready for their arrival?" Kouga didn't peel his eyes away from Inuyasha, and answered with a huff. He would have to deal with the mutt later. There were other matters calling his attention. Whatever business Kagome had with him would have to wait until he was done with the ceremony preparations. "Don't get too comfortable around here, Inuyasha. We're far from done." Kouga whipped his head around searching for Ginta. When he picked out his duo coloured hair from the crowd of demons, he motioned for him to step forward. "Ginta, you'll be in charge of giving Kagome the tour of our caves. Make sure Inuyasha stays behind. I don't want to smell his stench through the tunnels."

"Come back and say that to my face, moron!" Inuyasha lunged at Kouga when he decidedly ignored him by turning his back on him. "Come back and fight me!"

Kagome tried to grab Inuyasha by the sleeve of his haori, but the cloth slipped too fast away from her fingers for her to stop him.

Inuyasha pulled his fist back to swing a punch, but with the help of the sacred jewel shards, Kouga was one step ahead. He dodged the attack and watched as Inuyasha's fist connected with thin air. Inuyasha's body slumped forward as he missed his target by seconds and looked up to see where the wolf demon escaped. Kouga smirked at the failed attempt. "Too slow as always, dog-boy. This is your last chance to walk away before I end your life. No one strikes at me and gets away with it." Kouga cracked his knuckles waiting for Inuyasha to hastily attack. All he had to do was end the mutt's life and Kagome would be his forever. There would be no more competition.

"Stop!" Kagome ran in between the two demons. "We aren't here to fight!"

"Tell that to him!" Both of the demon's shouted in unison, and after hearing the other say the same thing they growled with menacing ferocity.

"Inuyasha, I've told you before we arrived. We're not here to fight, only to talk. We can't afford to make enemies of ourselves."

Kouga smirked as he watched the dog get scolded by the woman of his dreams. Kagome turned around and pointed at Kouga so suddenly he had to re-evaluate if he was seeing right. "And you! Make sure you get whatever you need to do done and fast because I'm not going to wait around all day to talk business with you. I've got shards to find and Naraku to kill."

The wolf demons were all in shock at the priestess who dare speak to their leader. For those who had recently joined the pack, they feared for the girl's life, but for those that knew Kagome and her temper well they grinned knowing that Kouga would just be enticed by her commanding tone even more. Still the majority of the stares waited for Kouga's ultimate response on the situation. Kouga noticed an eery silence wash over the cave as they waited on him.

"You never cease to amaze me, Kagome. Come with me then, we'll talk as I oversee the preparations." Kouga grinned a toothy smile as he waited for the priestess to make up her mind. Kagome's shoulders relaxed slightly as she made her way towards to wolf prince, but not before Inuyasha grabbed her wrist to pull her back. "Kagome don't go with him." Kagome looked back and smiled softly. "We're just going to talk. Hakkaku is with us and there will be others around. Stay here with the others, I'll be fine."

Inuyasha looked into her eyes and saw the serious tone of her words. He loosened his grip on her wrist hesitantly and crossed his arms looking to the side where all the wolf demons watched with increased interest. "Keh. It's not you I'm worried about." Kagome touched his arm, and smiled at him reassuringly.

"I'll be back before you know it." With that said she parted from the group and followed Kouga and Hakkaku down a tunnel leading towards the location where Kouga was needed.

Inuyasha watched anxiously as his best friend departed from the main cave and away from his sight. He could only hope she was right. He couldn't trust that love-struck wolf around her, but he could try and trust her. Either way he was ready to kick the wolf's ass if he tried anything with her. Just the thought of it sent him into a jealous rage. He took off past his friends to get some much needed fresh air. The scent of wolves clustered behind him was making his head spin fast and heightened his rage.

He could hear the distant calls of his friends echo within the caves. He sped past them so fast they barely managed to catch sight of where he was headed. When they caught up to him outside along the rocky face and cliff of the mountain, they urged him to trust Kagome and her plan.

"We don't like this situation anymore than you do, but the faster we get through this, the sooner we can move on to finding the rest of the jewel shards." Miroku reasoned with the hanyou in hopes of calming the poor guy down. He knew it wasn't easy watching one of their own walk off with a rival, let alone someone he swore to protect.

"I hope you guys are right," Inuyasha looked back to the cave where he just came from and scowled with distaste.

...

Kagome continued down the passage with Kouga leading the way. Hakkaku made sure to stay beside Kagome to keep her company as they made their way to their destination. When a whistle of wind echoed to her ears, and a natural light illuminated the end of the passage, Kagome began to see pieces of the scene unfold before her eyes. As they reached the next room, she took in the scenery of a grand room that had a half roof-like dome shielding a portion of the area underneath the sky. The air was colder as it was a partially outdoor type of room. She could see female wolf demons setting up vine-like garlands around a circular platform where she presumed the fated couple would take their vows. It wasn't set up like a traditional modern wedding with pews or an aisle. What she did notice were five cushions and bowls placed on the ground around the platform.

On either side of the entrance there were what looked like fire pits with a thin weird-looking reed placed up against the pillars of wood. She was about to question what the reeds were for, but Kouga was approached by a female wolf demon with long black hair and green eyes similar to the demon that spoke to her earlier in the main cave.

"Prince Kouga, the females and I have finished with the preparations. Kora is working on the feast with the help of Naiko and Misa. I believe Hana and Souku are in their respective rooms getting ready for the ceremony."

"Good, good. What of the accommodations for the Elders?" Kouga asked curiously.

"We left that duty to the younger ones: Bea, Mikasa, Luna, and Reena." Kouga eyed the she-wolf skeptically. Noticing this look, the she-demon quickly explained her decision. "We wanted to give them more responsibility so they know the honour of hosting the Elders."

"Very well. Shall we go check on them then?" Kouga waited for the demoness to lead the way to the guest chambers. Kagome again felt the stares of the wolf demons looking at her. Some in confusion, and others in disbelief. If they wanted to make her feel uncomfortable then they succeeded. Her nerves jumped inside her stomach, not knowing what she should do or say if one of them approached her. As she left the room with the others, Hakkaku sensed the tension rise and fall with Kagome's breathing.

"Don't worry, Sister. Once they get to know you they won't look at you like you're a threat." Kagome pondered his words and nodded. Not that she wanted them to get to know her. She was fine with keeping her distance. Is not like she was there to stay. Not now, not ever.

As they rounded a corner to a narrow corridor with fur covered floors, Kagome felt Kouga stop suddenly to look at her. "This is as far as you can go, Kagome. Humans aren't supposed to set foot in this area. Eda and I will be back shortly." Taking the queue to stay behind, Hakkaku kept Kagome company as they waited for the chief and the demoness to return from the inspection.

Kagome could hear Kouga's booming voice as he opened one of the stone slabs covering the entry way to a room. Kagome and Hakkaku jumped from the commotion down the hall.

There was a tumultuous cry of surprised female voices that filled the air. In seconds Kouga was pointing his finger at the lot inside the room while looking disapprovingly at the females. "You call this teaching them to respect the honour of hosting the Elders, Eda?"

Eda looked just as surprised, and forlorn at the state of the room. The room was in disarray as they walked in and found the younger girls jumping up and down on the bed and running amok with fur pelts wrapped around themselves. "Reena, Luna, Mikasa, Bea! Stop this immediately. You should be ashamed! I asked you to help with the preparations, and look at this mess. Clean this up right now!"

Soft whispers of apologies were murmured in conjunction with the patronizing words of their superior. "I'm so sorry, Kouga-sama. I'll make sure these rooms will be ready. You have my word."

"Make sure you do. As for the rest of you..get these rooms in order before the Elder's arrive and I won't mention this to your parents later." Kagome could hear the frantic footsteps of furniture being moved around as Kouga left the mess to Eda.

Kagome could hear Eda's voice ringing through the hallways as Kouga led her away from the circus. "We don't need the four of you working on one room, split up and go tend the others. You better hope that those ones are in a better state than this one, or there's going to be hell to pay!"

Kouga ran a hand through his bangs and huffed as he walked away from the site. Kagome couldn't help but giggle. She didn't expect Kouga to be the type to deal with children. He was like a mentor in the way he addressed the kids.

"Damn kids. You leave them alone long enough and they begin to think they run this place." Kouga was exasperated. He never had to host these kinds of functions, and he was hoping that it would be a long time until the next one. Kagome smiled, "That wasn't bad back there." Kouga and Hakkaku looked at Kagome credulously. Kagome picked up on what they thought she meant. "I mean the way you handled the situation."

Kouga shrugged nonchalantly. "They need to learn respect for their superiors. I can just imagine what the Elders would have done if they saw their accommodations in such a mess. Those kids would have been severely punished. Of course, they don't know that kind of treatment here. They have it good. Anywhere else, they might not have been so fortunate."

"What are you saying? What would the Elders have done?"

"They would have beaten them, or sent them off to a distant tribe to serve their punishment away from their families. Or they would be put in an arranged marriage to another member in one of the four wolf tribes."

"Sounds like the Elders have a lot of power."

"Disrespect is a serious offence. Kagome, I must ask that you and your friends refrain from attending the actual ceremony. It just dawned on me that humans aren't exactly permitted to these types of events. If I had the choice, I wouldn't have to bat an eye in agreeing that you be permitted, but like I said disrespect is a serious offence. I could be ousted as tribe leader if I'm not careful." Kagome softly nodded her head in understanding. It was probably for the best that they take their leave earlier than originally planned.

"Understandable. About the business I want to talk to you about...if now is a good time, I would like to start discussing a few things with you." Kagome held her hands behind her back diplomatically. Kouga stopped for a moment to assess her request. He didn't have anything else he needed to look over just yet, other than give Kagome a tour.

"Ok. What is it you need to tell me?" Kouga had his hands crossed over his chest and Hakkaku leaned up against a wall silently listening to the two.

"Well, first, I must say that some things I disclose with you cannot leave your lips after we are done here. There is a lot at stake, and I am trusting you, both of you, to keep my secret safe." Kagome never lost Kouga and Hakkaku's eye contact as she finished speaking. She had their undivided attention and so now she just had to work up the courage to ask them for a very large favour. Kouga and Hakkaku pledged their loyalty in keeping quiet.

It took a good chunk of time to explain the impending doom of war that was upon them all, but when Kagome explained how she knew this in advance their looks of incredulity surfaced again. She just spilled the beans of how she was able to travel back and forth between this time and her own.

"It's with a great sense of purpose and responsibility that I must carry out the preparations for this task. On an alternate note, I initially came here to ask for your support in the fight against Naraku, and in the support in building a safety zone for the villagers. I know this is a lot to ask in terms of resources and man-power. There will be an established effort from the villagers and my group to accommodate wolf demons while the building of such a village is in the works. There is only a two month window to build this village and it must be done discreetly. That means anyone possessing the jewel shards cannot be anywhere near this proposed area. Any unnecessary attention directed to it, will render the effort futile." Kagome took a long pause before continuing. "I wouldn't trust anyone else with this, and am asking you and your tribe to help save the lives of the innocent."

"Finally! A battle against Naraku. You have our support," Kouga gave a toothy smirk to the young miko. "As for the building. It's not going to be easy to enlist the support of the tribe. Even though I have enormous pull in the way of eliciting support, most demons will not willingly go to the aid of humans especially if there is nothing in it for them. We have amalgamated with more tribes and these demons were initially on a human based diet before relocating here. If having the jewel shards means I cannot be anywhere near the development, then I can't keep my men in line from previous nasty habits."

Kagome's shoulders slumped, but an idea formed in her head that would make sure the support would be won in her favour. "What if you "set-up" a camp for your men in the safety zone and make them think it's a spot for them to develop a temporary camp and when it gets close to the time of the battle we'll place the villagers in the camp while your men leave for battle?"

"Hm, I guess that could work..." Kouga peered over at Hakkaku who was in the middle of picking the dirt out of his claws. "Hakkaku."

Hakkaku's head jerked up at the recent call of his name. "Ya boss?"

"I'm putting you in charge of this development. The camp will be made before the date of the battle...and you will make sure that no humans in the village nearby will be harmed during this agreement or else you'll pay with your life. Is that clear?"

Hakkaku straightened his stance and made a salute towards Kouga. "Oh and one more thing. Take Ginta with you." Hakkaku nodded, and ran off to notify Ginta of the recent change in events. Kagome quickly reacted after realizing that she didn't confirm with Hakkaku about keeping things on the down-low.

"Wait! Hakkaku!" Hakkaku stopped mid-run and looked back to Kagome. Kouga watched curiously as Kagome ran towards his comrade. She stopped a couple paces before him before relaying her final message. "I need to ask you to do something for me. On the day of the battle, I would like you and Ginta to select a few trusted, non-human eating comrades to protect the villagers. Can you do this for me?"

Hakkaku smiled, "Sure thing, Sister." Kagome sighed and smiled in return. Without further adieu, Hakkaku left Kagome alone with Kouga. Things would turn out now that everything was set into motion all that was left to do was to gather the wolves that would be leaving for Inuyasha's Forest.

"So this is a new side of you I haven't seen before, Kagome." Kagome was brought out of her thoughts by Kouga's comment. "I like this commanding tone you have going on. It's everything I look for in a woman." Kagome blushed crimson. Here he was again going on about her being his woman.

"Well, I just need to make sure I take care of my own. You know how it is." Kagome paused before continuing she wasn't sure how to navigate this part of their conversation. He had walked up beside her, and had his right hand placed on his hip while looking down at her in admiration. "Kouga...I think I should be getting back to my friends. I've been away from them for awhile now, and we've finished our discussion."

"We have?" Kouga looked a bit put out at her statement. Without thinking, Kouga grabbed Kagome softly by the arms. "Hey, about what I said earlier with the party thing. You're not upset are you? You know I wouldn't ask you to leave if I had the choice, right?" Kouga looked in her eyes for any doubts that she had about his choice. Kagome was stunned for a couple seconds at the close contact and soul-searching look he was giving her.

"Oh, Um. No not at all. I understand that things are complicated. Don't worry." Kagome felt his shoulders fall as he breathed a sign of relief that he hadn't hurt her feelings. It was different watching him care about her feelings, unlike Inuyasha. He didn't dare to take hers into account most often. There was a silence between them now, and Kagome in a rush to get out of the awkward situation decided to cut things short. "But you should get back to making sure everything is ready. I'm going to find my friends and we will be out of your tribe's way before the Elder's arrive. Thanks again for helping me out!" Before Kouga could protest or say anything, Kagome had dashed away from him in the direction Hakkaku left earlier.

...

Kagome was confused on where she was going. After all, they hadn't exactly come through these tunnels on their way to the ceremony room. She ran until she reached a fork in the path. There were two other tunnels that led in different directions she assumed. She could hear distant echoes of voices but didn't know how to distinguish one from the other or which tunnel they were coming from. Kagome paced in front of the entrances of both tunnels. 'It's not like I can do Eenie Meanine Minny Moe...ok, Kagome, left or right. Which one is it gonna be?'

"I've honestly always wondered how humans could bare not having the same abilities we do. It's such a shame people like you get lost all too often because of your weak sense of smell." A familiar voice spoke cooly, and spooked Kagome from behind. Kagome whipped her head around to see Ayame. Kagome could feel her eyes pierce her in every way. This wasn't a friendly meeting, she was here for a purpose. Kagome took a step back subconsciously.

"Oh, Ayame. It's just you." Kagome retorted.

"Yeah, just me..." Ayame flicked one of her pig tails over her shoulder with her hand, as she looked on at Kagome with contempt. "You know it's a surprise finding you here on the day of my cousin's ceremony. And with Kouga's scent all over you."

Kagome was a little shocked at her comment, but it wasn't like she did anything with Kouga. They just talked as friends, or at least she did. "Look, nothing happened between us if that's what you're wondering."

Ayame laughed at Kagome. "You think I don't know that? I don't know what he sees in you when he's got me around. At least I'm a full demon and can bear him strong sons."

Kagome frowned at this whole situation. "Ok. Nice chat, but I don't have time for your melodrama." She turned her back on the female wolf demon that was in the middle of insulting her. She immediately regretted turning her back when she felt herself being yanked backwards roughly. She felt the offending hand pierce the fair skin on her arm. Before she knew it, she was spun around and another hand gripped her chin and jaw tightly as if she were a child being scolded.

Ayame's eyes coldly cut through Kagome's warm orbs. "How dare you turn your back on me. I wasn't done talking to you, Kagome." Kagome gasped when she felt the slightly prick from Ayame's claws against her face. "If I see you with Kouga or smell Kouga's scent on you again, I will end your pathetic life. Do I make myself clear?"

Instead of Kagome looking on at Ayame with fear, she glared with intense rage. Kagome gripped both Ayame's wrists tightly, and pressed forward so that their noses were no more than a hair apart. "Let me make myself clear." A flash of purification power radiated through Kagome's hands as she held on to Ayame. Adam's eyes widened in shock and pain as she felt quick waves of purification power spread into her nerves. "Whatever you think is going on is all in your head. You make me out to be a villain, when I'm not even interested in Kouga. You should be more concerned why Kouga isn't interested in you instead of taking it out on me. I'm not the problem here, Ayame. You are."

Kagome instantly let go of Ayame's wrists as she could smell burnt flesh. Ayame's wrists were red and swollen from the burns. She didn't know whether to attack Kagome or stay away after being given mercy from Kagome's wrath. The priestess had walked away and left her to her thoughts. All she could do was think about the words Kagome left her with after the confrontation. 'You should be more concerned why Kouga isn't interested in you intend of taking it out on me. I'm not the problem here, Ayame. You are.'

"That little bitch! She almost purified me!" Ayame was boiling over with rage and forgot about the pain from the purification burns. She followed in the direction Kagome walked off to, and the scent of the human was burning in her flared nostrils. This was going to end in blood, and not her own. Kagome will die here and now. All her problems will be gone, and Kouga will be hers.

With the rest of the Inu gang, they were waiting outside the main den when they saw Kagome quickly approaching. They were relieved to see her as Inuyasha was impatiently pacing outside the entrance in worry and frustration. Their faces immediately went from her eyes to her chin where small gashes were noticeably glaring at them for attention.

"Kagome!" Sango rushed forward with her hands clutching the smaller girl's shoulders. "What happened to you? What did he do? I'll kill him!" Sango released Kagome's shoulders and grabbed for her Hiraikotsu. There was going to be hell to pay, but not as much hell as Inuyasha was about to start with the wolf prince. He had shot off with the speed of light following the direction of the scent that assaulted Kagome. No one was going to get away with this, not while he was living and breathing.

Kagome finally noticed that Inuyasha was nowhere in sight as she had been distracted by Sango's interrogation. "He's gone? Oh no!" Kagome motioned to run after him, but Miroku held her back telling her that if she interfered it would only make matters worse.

"But he thinks Kouga did this. It wasn't. It was Ayame!" Kagome pulled against Miroku's hands urging him to let her run after Inuyasha to correct the problem. Miroku let the girl go in realization. "Why would Ayame do this to you?"

"She's insanely jealous, and might I emphasize the part where I said insane." Kagome looked at them with huge eyes hoping they'd catch her drift.

Sango grimaced when she noticed the marks just below Kagome's elbow. "She did that to you too?" Kagome followed Sango's line of sight to her arm. There was a noticeable bruise forming where clawed marks had grazed her flesh. "Don't worry she didn't go unharmed either. Hopefully she learned her lesson." Kagome looked down at the ground. It actually did hurt her to see Ayame so upset, after most interactions with her were civil at best. She never expected the wolf demon to attack her like she had in the tunnels.

"Shouldn't we be going after Inuyasha like Kagome said Miroku?" Shippo asked nervously. "It's awfully quiet in those caves." Coincidentally, Shippo said that moments before the sounds of a fight broke through with a startling boom. The sounds of malice tinged words being exchanged and the cracking noise of fists being thrown. They could only guess that Inuyasha had found Kouga.

They ran into the main den where everyone had gathered around the scene of Kouga and Inuyasha in an intense and deadly scrap. Inuyasha was hellbent angry, and Kouga was defending against Inuyasha's attacks. From the looks of them, they were sustaining injuries. Inuyasha had a grazed thigh, and Kouga was nursing a wounded left arm.

"You think you can take her away and mark her up like that, you piece of shit!" Inuyasha's fist aimed to connect with Kouga's stomach, but the wolf prince evaded the attack and just missed the fist that would have sent him flying into the cave wall behind him.

"I told you! I have no idea what you're talking about! I didn't lay a hand on Kagome!" Kouga dodged yet another fist Inuyasha had flung his way.

"Kouga! Inuyasha! Stop!" Kagome pushed her way through the crowd of wolf demons until she reached the center where the fight was taking place. Kouga looked at Kagome and saw the marks Inuyasha was speaking of, and the scent that drifted to his nose was even more shocking to him. 'Ayame..' It didn't take long for Kouga to search through the many eyes that were watching them, until he landed on those of Ayame. Her face turned away in contempt when he locked eyes on her. She would be damned if he was going to make her apologize.

"Ayame!" Kouga ignored another incoming assault from Inuyasha as he barrelled through his comrades to reach the snooty wolf princess of their neighbouring clan. Her eyes had widened not expecting his reaction to be so aggressive.

"Inuyasha, SIT!" Kagome had halted Inuyasha's attacks against Kouga to Inuyasha's dismay. The wolf demon audience avoided being thrown out of Kouga's way as much as possible in the wolf demon's pursuit to the culprit. Ayame noticed little room for an escape, when an elderly but commanding voice broke the commotion.

"What in God's name is going on in here? Where is Kouga?" Four older demons presented themselves in the main entrance with incredulous looks at the scene in front of them. Each of the Elders wore grey cloaks over their wolf demon armour and padding. The newcomers were in a procession of sorts with all four members in a horizontal line, but the middle right figure more pointedly in the front. The Elder on the far left zeroed in on the scene between Ayame and Kouga, unfortunately for Kouga, Ayame was that Elder's granddaughter. The main Elder that lead the group hushed Ayame's Grandfather as he looked at the congregation of wolf demons.

"Kouga! Explain yourself and this appalling mess in your main entrance!" the Elder had deep forest green eyes that narrowed at the sight of Kouga. Kouga glared a bit longer at Ayame, and slowly peeled his eyes away from hers to address the First Elder that spoke.

"Hai, Elder Miatku. I understand what this looks like, but you have no need to worry. The ceremonial room is ready for the bonding. It's unfortunate that Ayame decided to attack an ally of mine just before your arrival." Ayame looked away childishly. She couldn't believe he ratted her out to the Elders in front of everyone.

"Ayame, does Kouga speak the truth?" Ayame's Grandfather spoke searchingly. Kouga looked back at Ayame as if to challenge her to go against his statement.

"N-no, Grandpa. He speaks the truth." Ayame bit her lip and cast her attention to the ground with a brooding attitude.

"Now then, who is this ally you speak of that was ruthlessly targeted by Ayame?" Elder Miatku questioned assertively while scanning the room for the injured victim.

Kouga was cautiously mute. He wasn't sure what the Elders would do if they saw Kagome and her group. This was the end of his reign in the Eastern Mountains, there was no doubt about it now. He could feel the rising tension between himself and the Elder's he had to say something.

"My allies from the East...a group that allies in the fight against Naraku." Kouga tried to remain allusive and cooperative, but he couldn't bare to find out what they would do when they see a group of humans in his cave. The crowd of wolf demons looked to the mentioned group in their presence. It wasn't long until the Elders caught a glimpse of the scent of 3 humans, a hanyou, and two outsider demons.

Elder Miatku raised a brow at Kouga in his interesting choice in allies. He now had a clear look at the group, and instantly noticed which of the individuals was indeed the victim of Ayame's assault. Miatku started walking over to Kagome, intrigued that a female ningen was deemed worthy as an ally of the Eastern Wolf Tribe. "Ayame, Kouga come hither." The Elder motioned with his hand for the two demons to come forward to his side without taking his eyes off Kagome. Inuyasha was growling at the emotionless look Miatku was giving Kagome. When Kouga and Ayame approached, Miatku ordered Kouga to restrain Inuyasha. Kouga looked at Inuyasha seriously as he quickly did a somersault jump over Inuyasha's head to pull the hanyou's hand behind his back. "Kouga, you bastard. What's the meaning of this!" Kouga growled and whispered for Inuyasha to listen. "Don't do anything stupid right now. Just trust me."

"Some ally you have there Kouga." Miatku chuckled at the hanyou's growing impatience and skepticism. Miatku resumed his attention to Kagome. He raised his hand to tilt her chin up to see the damage that was done to the woman's chin and jaw line. "Now let's have a look at you my dear." Kagome was nervous about what was about to happen. Was he going to end her life and cast Kouga's rights as leader away? She looked at Ayame's smug smirk as if she knew an inevitable death order was going to be called against Kagome's life. "Ahh, yes. It seems you are a priestess with substantial power if you could melt the flesh of a demon, it seems you could have done more damage than you inflicted however...explain why you didn't kill her." Kagome was shocked at the question, but was about to speak when Ayame rudely interfered and vibrantly started her rendition of the story.

"Well, she was encroaching on my territory-" Miatku glared at Ayame for speaking when not asked. Kagome waited a couple seconds before she knew she had Miatku's attention again.

"She is an ally. I did not wish to kill her. I only defended against her assault, hoping it would stop her from continuing to hurt me."

"Ahh I see. What was the reason for the attack?" Miatku remained emotionless in his inquiries and responses as if he were unfazed by Ayame's conduct.

"Because I'm female, human and I'm allies with Kouga."

"Jealousy does not become you, Ayame. You'd do well to remember that this is not your territory so long as you are not mated to Kouga. You will also do well to remember that an ally of Kouga's is an ally of yours." Miatku chastised the female demon and Ayame was insulted with the remark. "You are dismissed from attending the ceremony, Ayame. Elder Choro...please escort your granddaughter away from the Eastern Lands and back to the Northern tribe. We are finished here." Kouga released Inuyasha as soon as Miatku concluded the interrogation. He was even silently celebrating in happiness from the look of relief that passed over his face. Of course he was also relieved to still be leader of the Eastern Tribe.

Elder Choro grumbled underneath his breath as he roughly grabbed Ayame by the arm and lead her away from the First Elder. Kagome looked on in amazement. Her mind was racing over the events that just took place.

Kagome looked over to Inuyasha and Kouga to see if she was indeed safe. Inuyasha glared menacingly at Kouga for the hundredth time that day. "We're leaving." Inuyasha grabbed Kagome's arm and pushed her to move her feet towards the entrance.

"Oh, and where do you think you two are going?" Miatku turned around to Inuyasha and Kagome. Inuyasha put a hand on his hip and defiantly looked at the old geezer. Kouga's celebration came to a quick end as he cursed Inuyasha for his stupidity.

"Look you old coot, I don't have to answer to you. We've been here for far too long today and we are leaving." Inuyasha proceeded to walk away with Kagome when the Elder held him back by his shoulder.

"I insist you stay. Besides, a lot of damage has been done to your friend. I would like to extend our hospitality out to your group for the inconvenience of Ayame's actions."

"Well, we don't need your hospitality. Come on Miroku, Sango, Shippo, Kirara...we're going."

Elder Miatku and the remaining Elders within seconds had Inuyasha standing still as they pointed their spears in a circle around his neck.

"I don't think you understood me the first time." Miatku said with a small smile.

"I said, I insist." Miatku smirked triumphantly as the hanyou was given an ultimatum. Fight or Stay. Kouga shook his head in aggravation. They were almost out of the danger zone, and of course the mutt had to open that big mouth of his. There was no bargaining with the Elders...only pleasantries and submission.


Another chapter done, and more to come. Thanks for reading! :)