Part I
It had been three years since Kagome came back from the Sengoku Jidai and never returned. The well had closed permanently after she wished the Shikon Jewel to disappear, and she never saw her friends again. It was difficult returning to normal life in the modern era, and possibly as some form of remembrance for her, she had taken up work as a miko at the Sunset Shrine. It was fortunate that she was willing to don the red and white miko garb, for soon after Kagome decided to do so, her grandfather fell ill from old age and was sent to a nursing home. Her mother and Sota still lived with her on the Shrine grounds, though Sota was busy with his own life and didn't spend much time at the house.
Kagome occupied herself with writing charms to give out to visitors, imbuing them with her reiki abilities which she had honed during her adventures in the Sengoku Jidai. Among other things, she still practiced archery and medicine, a legacy of Lady Kaede who had taken care of Kagome when she first arrived and taught her much of what she presently knew. Every week she would go and visit the nursing home where her grandfather stayed, to deliver a care package to him as well as volunteer to help the other occupants, secretly using her reiki to aid them in their declining health. It was on one of these days where she found herself striding idly down the sidewalk— the nursing home in walking distance from the Shrine— on her way to visit her grandpa.
Her journey was interrupted by a blotch of red and green catching her eye, drawing her gaze to a small wooden stand set up by a group of children peddling fresh strawberries and other homegrown fruits to passersby at the end of their driveway. Kagome's bright red hakama fluttered in the breeze as she strayed from her path to inhale the sweet scent of the berries, musing to herself that she could afford to add a fruit basket to the care package. Oblivious to the approaching figure which had been following her, unsure of whether or not he believed what he was seeing.
It had been five hundred years since Kōga last saw his woman. After Naraku's defeat, she disappeared, and Inuyasha had refused to reveal what had happened to her. Even if she hadn't died on the very day her scent faded from the Sengoku Jidai, it was impossible that she could still be living centuries into the future. Possibly another Kikyō reincarnation, Kōga wondered, irked that fate would be so cruel as to cause his woman to reappear before him, but only in the form of a pale imitation. Perhaps this is how the mutt felt about Kagome, the ōkami thought, for once being able to relate to his old rival's feelings.
Before he could begin to decide whether or not he wanted to meet her, Kōga found that his body was already making the choice for him. With each step forward he could feel his heart pounding his chest, his spine stiff and beads of sweat rolling down his neck. A million uncertainties swirled around inside the wolf prince's head, but one thing was for certain: he wouldn't let her slip through his grasp a second time. So what if she wasn't the Kagome that he knew? It didn't change the fact that his instincts were reacting to her as if she was. Everything about her screamed Kagome— but it wasn't until he entered her sight that he realized that she was no mere reincarnation.
"Kōga?" the miko blurted out, stunning the ōkami prince. Her dark brown eyes were wide as saucers and her pretty mouth was hanging open. Not much had changed about the ōkami yōkai's appearance in the past five hundred years; the mark of a daiyōkai's extended lifespan. Bright blue eyes complimented the man's tanned skin tone, and his straight chocolate brown hair was pulled back into a high ponytail that reached past his broad shoulders. In contrast to the ōkami's past fashion of pelts and armor, Kōga had traded his furs out for a pair of jeans, a black t-shirt, and running shoes, though he still wore a set of fluffy sporting wristbands on his arms. If Kagome didn't know any better, she would have thought he was a famous athlete at first glance.
Kagome hadn't considered the possibility before that the yōkai from the Sengoku Jidai would live into the present era. Momentarily, she felt a spark of hope which told her that she could see Inuyasha again, but was instantly trampled when Kagome remembered that her hanyō friend could not have lived as long as a full yōkai. Her reverie was interrupted when Kōga cleared his throat, having been in a similar state of shock at the realization that Kagome, his Kagome, was here, right in front of his eyes. And she was alive. "You're… Kagome?" he asked slowly, his eyes pleading that he was not mistaken.
The miko's heart constricted at the sight of Kōga's distress. "I am, Kōga," she whispered, afraid that if she raised her voice, the dream would shatter and the yōkai prince would vanish as if he were merely a ghost of the past. "I can't believe— I mean, I didn't think— that I'd be able to see any of you again," she choked on her words, barely holding back her tears. Kagome wanted to collapse into his familiar embrace and sob, unleashing all of her pent up emotions which she had hidden inside her chest after her companions from the Sengoku Jidai were snatched away from her.
"I know, Kagome," Kōga murmured, opening his arms and letting her lean into his touch, "I know." On the day she disappeared, Kōga had sent his entire pack to scour every corner of Japan for even a trace of the miko, and only after two weeks of searching without rest did Ginta and Hakkaku force their alpha to give up and accept that their sister wasn't coming back. For years Kōga mourned, wondering what he could have done differently to convince her to stay with him.
Kagome sniffled, clutching her basket of treats. "I have to go, Kōga," she pushed him away lightly and rubbed her eyes. "I'll be late to visit my grandpa." The little red miko dashed away, desperately struggling to sort out her turbulent feelings. She was confused and scared— for the past three years of her life, she had built an unbreakable wall within her chest, resting upon her acceptance that a piece of her past, of herself, was gone forever. Now, the wall was crumbling, revealing her fragile and wounded heart for Kōga to see. She didn't want him to see how weak she was, so she ran.
Kōga's eyes widened, and he panicked, afraid that he'd lose her yet again. "Wait! Kagome!" he cried out. But she was already gone.
Part II
When Kagome arrived at the nursing home, she had managed to calm her rapidly beating heart. Cursing herself for running away so suddenly, she hoped that the ōkami prince wasn't angry with her. Stepping through the automatic doors, the visiting miko was instantly greeted by the cheerful receptionist. "Good morning, miko," the bubbly woman flashed her a friendly smile, "Your grandfather is upstairs in his room. He's currently seeing the other visitor who had arrived right before you did."
Kagome frowned. "Other visitor?" she pressed, instantly suspicious. Her mother was still at the shrine and had sent Kagome off herself. Her little brother, Sōta, was on a date with his girlfriend. Other than those two, Kagome couldn't think of anyone else who knew her grandfather personally. She barely knew her extended family, and her grandfather had few friends due to his eccentric personality. Shrugging, Kagome wondered if maybe it was someone he had met while working at the Sunset Shrine, coming to pay their respects to the old monk. Silencing her concerns, she headed upstairs with the care package.
To Kagome's surprise, when her grandfather's doorway came into view, she noticed that the door was left wide open, and a cacophony of shouting could be heard coming from inside the room. Knitting her eyebrows and clutching the basket close to her heart, she rushed forward, swung into the room, then skidded to a halt at the sight before her. Her grandfather was spewing gibberish mantras as he threw slips of white paper with incomplete sutras at the boy in his living room. Kagome recognized the mantras as made-up yōkai-warding chants created by her grandfather, and luckily, they did not affect the ōkami yōkai who had simply stood there blank-faced as he was assaulted with parchment and incantations.
"Demon be-gone!" the elderly monk cried out, beginning to run out of his stash of fake sutras and thus resorting to the table salt which had accompanied his egg breakfast platter. Kōga wasn't sure if he was offended by the old man's antics, or if he was surprised that he could tell that he wasn't human.
"You can tell I'm not human?" Kōga asked, his eyes sparkling with amusement. The monk may be senile, but he was definitely Kagome's blood.
Grandpa huffed, then crossed his arms petulantly. "Yes," he agreed, giving the ōkami prince another cynical once over, "You're just like that cursed inuyōkai, who broke my granddaughter's heart. I can tell!" The elderly man raised his chin with scorn, leaving both teenagers shocked after his honest confession. Kagome didn't realize that her typically airheaded grandfather had caught onto her heartbreak, and Kōga was humiliated that he was being compared to the two-timing mutt. The yōkai pursed his lips and scowled.
"If it were me, I wouldn't break her heart," Kōga insisted, his fists clenched. Now that he had found her again, she wouldn't need to cry anymore. He would make her his mate, and she'd be the happiest girl in the world. He whipped his head around and grabbed her hands suddenly, looking into her eyes affectionately. "You look beautiful wearing red, Kagome. Be my woman," he told her, appreciating the subtle pink tint which dusted her pale cheeks.
Kagome shifted her feet nervously. She had always rebutted his advances in the past because she wasn't interested. She had Inuyasha then, but now? It wouldn't be fair to Kōga if she accepted him just because Inuyasha was out of the picture. Kagome didn't love him then, and she didn't love him now, right?. However, her heart still longed for a connection to the past, causing her to unearth hidden feelings. When Kagome had parted with Inuyasha, she had accepted that she would never be able to replace Kikyō; She would always be in second place. But Kōga didn't see her as 'Kikyō's reincarnation', he saw her as 'Kagome'. With him, she didn't have to worry about living up to any unreasonable expectations, or pretend to be someone she was not. "Kōga…" she whispered, unsure of how to respond to his feelings with her own. The ōkami sensed his woman's uncertainty and steeled himself, clutching her hands tighter.
The couple was interrupted by Kagome's grandpa, who jumped in between the two, splitting their hands apart. Sending a protective glare at Kōga, he placed his wrinkly hands on his hips and huffed. "That's enough, demon!" he spat, "I won't let you have my granddaughter." Kōga flailed backward and whimpered. If her family didn't want to give their blessings, Kagome would never agree to be with him. He was going to lose her. Again.
"Wait! Grandpa!" Kagome exclaimed, the desperation in her voice making Kōga's pointy ears perk up. "Kōga is my friend," she insisted, "He's never betrayed me for someone else and I love that about him. He's different from Inuyasha!" Kagome's declaration was music to the ōkami prince's ears—minus the friendzone. It filled him with hope, to know what Kagome saw in him, and reassurance that he wasn't the same as her past love. Even if it took years to find his place in his woman's heart, he would wait, just like he waited five hundred years to see her again. Every day, he would show her how much he cared, and that she was his one and only.
Kōga faced her grandfather proudly, and bowed, silently requested that he grant him a chance to prove that he could make Kagome happy. Stunned by the yōkai's show of respect, the elderly man cleared his throat and pursed his lips. "If Kagome thinks so, then I'll let it slide just this once," he muttered, retreating from in between the two teenagers to sit back down in front of his breakfast tray. Kagome beamed and set her care package down. Ushering the yōkai prince to join her around the table, she seated herself across from her grandfather, with Kōga sliding into the chair to her left.
It wasn't much, but when Kōga reached out to grasp the little red miko's hand underneath the table, she glanced at him out of the corner of her eye fondly and squeezed back. "I love you," Kōga whispered when her grandfather wasn't paying attention. Kagome giggled. Slowly, the big bad wolf would heal her broken heart, and they lived happily ever after.