Disclaimer: I don't own KnM, yadda yadda yadda...

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Chapter 15

The sun seemed to set in slow motion that day, painting the sky above in brilliant shades of oranges and yellows, and just a tint of red that was the color of blood. Shivering a little, Himeko lowered her eyes from the sky and took a deep breath, shifting her position and feeling her claws dig reassuringly into the rocks she hid among.

Her part was simple enough in the attack plan; the path the wolves had surrounded and spread out along was a common riding path in the forest for humans, whether they be hunters or not. There was no doubt that the hunting party tonight would follow this same path to attack the pack. It was the perfect place for the wolves to get at least one major strike if everything went to hell when darkness came.

At some point in time, Himeko would spring from these same rocks and drag some hunter down by the throat, or topple a horse and go in for the kill once the beast was down.

At the very least, that's what she hoped.

The golden she-wolf closed her eyes and gritted her teeth, forcing her muscles to relax and her fur to lay flat as purples and blues darkened the sky and stars began to shine.

Please, please, don't let me drag down Chikane-chan.

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Night fell faster than Chikane could ever remember, and she tugged lightly on her horse's reins for a moment to ride side-by-side with her mother. The large dark gray stallion snorted and tossed his head excitedly, and without thinking Chikane leaned forward to whisper soothingly into his ear. The horse gave one last snort, but settled. Kazumi raised a brow, impressed. "You're good with him."

"He's excited. He hasn't been on a hunt in awhile, and I guess he's forgotten what it feels like." She rubbed the stallion's neck. "But he listens to me."

"Always a relief." Kazumi smiled and slowed her own horse, a slim black mare, to keep pace with her daughter. She lowered her voice. "So what did you think of them?"

Chikane shrugged, knowing who her mother referred to. "They seem promising enough. I'd keep an eye on Izumi, though… she's absolutely deadly with a gun. I almost feel sorry for any wolf she runs into tonight."

"She's still green, though, and her experience in an actual hunt is limited. Stick close to her."

"Yeah, yeah…"

The dark gray stallion pranced from hoof to hoof again, causing Chikane to shift her attention to him and soothe him again. Kazumi watched silently, wondering if perhaps the stallion's nerves came not from the hunt that they were on, but from his own rider. She sighed. "Chikane," she murmured, her voice soft, "you need to keep your mind completely focused on the hunt."

Blue eyes narrowed. "My mind is focused on the hunt, Mom."

"Dear, I'm your mother. Believe it or not, you can't make everything you tell me a lie." Kazumi smiled briefly.

Scowling a little, unnerved by how easily her mother could hit her mark nine times out of ten, Chikane dug in her heels and urged her stallion on.

Against her back, her bow suddenly felt heavy.

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They were coming.

Himeko could smell them on the wind, could hear the hoof beats of the horses they rode, the low tones they spoke in as darkness fell. Her skin prickled and a small tremor rippled down her spine as her muscles tensed, her fur beginning to bristle and her ears lying flat. Baring her teeth a low growl rumbled from her throat, and she crept closer to the path, moving fast and low across the ground.

Basic instinct rose within her, and she did nothing to fight it.

A single, low howl pierced the night sky.

Himeko's ears swiveled forward at the signal, and she lifted her head slightly, her golden eyes gleaming eerily in the darkness. She heard the hunters pull their patrol to a stop at the sound of a lone wolf, so close by; she recognized the voice as Souma's, and reacted accordingly.

Tipping her head back, she opened her mouth and howled.

Souma howled again, Himeko's howl echoing his own; and slowly, as the golden wolf listened, she heard the others joining in. Makoto's voice, strong and sure, always confident of herself even as battle and death approached; Reiko and Corona, their voices mingling together in a way that they almost sounded as though they were one wolf; Kazuki's deep, crooning bay that could soothe any wolf; Nekoko's high pitched yelping howl, like that of a small pup who had not yet learned how to control their voice; Miyako's howl, gentle and soft but with an edge that promised bloodshed, as a wolf who had spilled both human and wolf blood in her prime; and finally Tsubasa's deep, throaty snarling call that was enough to make anyone stiffen, human or wolf.

Others joined in, her pack mates and wolves she had grown up with even if she didn't know them personally, fading away and calling out again with renewed strength, using the unity of their voices to throw the hunters off. Himeko could faintly smell fear coming from the ranks of the hunters, fear and confusion, and she narrowed her eyes.

The howls died away into silence; still growling softly Himeko crept closer, peering at the humans through the rocks, her muscles tense and her whole body trembling.

This is it.

Another howl shattered the silence.

Recognizing the signal for what it was, Himeko surged forward and sprang from her hiding place.

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They'd known.

Out of the corner of her eye Chikane saw a flash of gold, pure fur and muscle; she heard a horse up ahead give a shrieking whinny and topple, and that was it.

She swung off her horse instinctively, dropping to the ground as wolves surged toward them. There were more of them than she dared to think about it, and where the hell had they all come from?

But they'd known. Her brain screamed it again and again, even as she whipped up an arm to shield her face. The wolf was a large light gray male, and the momentum of his attack made her skid back slightly and tumble, her whole body trembling with the effort of keeping his teeth away from her throat.

"Miya-sama!"

Izumi's frantic call slashed over the snarls and human cries and the sounds of weapons; narrowing her eyes and gritting her teeth, Chikane shifted so her free arm flew back, gripping an arrow. Because of her position she couldn't use her bow, but she didn't need it; twirling the arrow in her fingers, she thrust her arm forward with all her strength and drove the arrow straight through the side of the wolf's neck.

Blood spurted from the wound, warm and thick; the wolf yelped sharply in pain and staggered back, shaking its head frantically as though trying to dislodge the arrow, seeming unaware of the fact that causing the weapon to fall out would only make more blood spill and cause it to eventually bleed to death.

It never had a chance to bleed.

A gunshot roared over the battlefield; the wolf jerked once, its golden eyes widened and went dull. The muscles went limp, and it tumbled silently into the grass, blood dribbling from the small circle on its forehead.

Holy crap. Chikane swallowed gamely, fighting the bile that rose in her throat. The bullet went clean through it.

She almost felt sorry for the beast. Almost.

"Miya-sama." Izumi gently touched her uninjured arm, jerking the blue-haired girl out of her reverie. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah." Chikane swallowed again and let Izumi pull her up, rubbing her injured arm gingerly. "I'm fine. Thanks."

"But your arm…"

"It's nothing. Just a flesh wound."

Flesh wound. Right. Izumi raised a brow, but said nothing as Chikane rubbed her arm, wincing a bit, before looking around. All hell had erupted; fur and skin flew together only to break apart, and blood splattered the grass and flew through the air, both wolf and human.

"They knew." Izumi looked at her senior with pained eyes. "Miya-sama, how did they know?"

"I don't know." Blood seeped through Chikane's fingers and dripped to the grass below, red staining green. "I don't know."

The moon shone brightly overhead, white and full. Gritting her teeth, Chikane looked away.

She saw a flash of reddish-brown; a young hunter, a man and green by the look of him, fleeing into the trees, a wolf hot on his heels.

Quietly, Chikane and Izumi exchanged looks. Izumi reloaded her gun; Chikane shifted her bow against her back to better accommodate her injured arm.

They followed the wolf.

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It was over before it could even begin; warm blood filled Himeko's mouth and she turned her head to the side, spitting to rid her tongue of the coppery taste. Stepping back, ignoring the feeling of blood that stained into her fur, she studied the hunter for a moment with narrow eyes.

He was dead. Her teeth had dug into his throat, had torn it open. He wasn't the first she'd killed, and he wouldn't be the last before the night was over.

Turning away, she swiveled her ears forward and tried to catch herself for a moment before spilling more human blood. She could just make out familiar scents over the blood that hung thickly in the air, and her eyes shot over the dark battlefield.

Her head shot up as she saw a human male break rank and flee for the trees, bleeding heavily from a wound to his shoulder and limping; she saw a wolf hurtle after him, and her heart flew into her throat when she recognized Makoto.

Without thinking she tore after her cousin, her heart pounding against her ribs so hard she was amazed it didn't break.

Only dimly was she aware of the two hunters who trailed her cousin.

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Makoto caught the green hunter and dragged him down with ease; all through it she chanted in her head that it was like a hunt, clinging to his throat and not letting go until his hands stopped pounding against her shoulders and his eyes went dull.

It was like hunting, she thought numbly as she released the man's throat and stepped back, trying to ignore the way her shoulders and neck stung from his fists. She shook her head and spat, shuddering a little at the taste of human blood.

Her ears swiveled back; she froze. Instinct had her assuming her human form, though she knew that it wouldn't do shit on this kind of night. Narrowing her eyes, she glanced over her shoulder.

It was quick; human or wolf, there was no way she could have avoided it even if she tried. The gunshot was loud; the bullet pierced her leg. Blinding pain exploded in her leg and flared through her whole body, and Makoto fell with a scream. Whimpering and gasping she cradled her injured leg with her hands, feeling the warm blood seep through her fingers. Gritting her teeth, she slowly raised her eyes.

She recognized the Himemiya hunter instantly, and felt her whole body tense up even as her leg throbbed merrily in protest. The blue-haired girl had not been the one to shoot her down, though; no, that honor went to the girl beside her. Makoto didn't recognize her. "Well, well," the girl drawled, lowering her smoking gun slightly. "Think you're fooling anyone with that human skin, wolf?"

Makoto narrowed her eyes. "It's worked well in the past."

"I see. Miya-sama, may I ask something?"

Himemiya barely stirred. "Go ahead."

"We're still allowed to shoot, aren't we? Even if they look human?"

There was a moment of silence as Himemiya contemplated this; finally she shrugged, wincing a little and rubbing her sore arm to soothe it.

"She's a wolf. Her appearance won't change that. Do what you want."

The other girl smirked and turned her eyes back to Makoto; the auburn-haired girl gritted her teeth, wincing again as more of her blood spilled. "Wait." Himemiya laid a hand on the other girl's shoulder. "I want to ask her something first."

"What the hell makes you think…" Makoto winced. "… I'll answer you, huh?"

The blue-haired girl ignored her. "Why aren't you fighting back? Your leg was shot, but you could still stand if you put your mind to it. You could still fight us, try to escape. So why don't you?"

Makoto stared up at Himemiya without saying a word; beside her the other girl's eyes had widened and now were completely focused on the disguised wolf, as though she wanted to hear the answer as much as her fellow hunter did. Makoto laughed without humor and pushed sweaty strands of hair out of her eyes.

"Jeez, that's all you can think of? I almost feel insulted." She slowly closed her eyes. "But really, what's the point?" She shrugged. "I may be a wolf, but I'm not dumb. If you don't kill me now, I'll just go back out and get killed in battle. I can't fight with this leg, and I can't run away from the fight."

"Why not?"

"There's a wonderful little thing called pride. We wolves happen to hold it in very high regard."

"But that's no reason to—"

"It's a reason." Makoto's voice was soft. "Everyone has a reason for something, human or wolf. Doesn't matter what we are. All that matters is that we all have a reason, something to fight for. That's something I like to think we all have in common." She opened her eyes and smiled sadly. "Besides, I promised my little sister I wouldn't get myself killed, but I obviously won't be able to keep that promise. At the very least I want to die without her seeing it happen, because otherwise she'll want to avenge me or something." She blew out a long breath. "I don't want Hime to die because of me."

Makoto saw Himemiya's eyes widen slightly at the nickname she'd used without a thought. She shifted and hissed in pain as more blood spilled, a small red puddle beginning to form beneath her leg.

"Well, if you're eager to die…" The other hunter shrugged, lifting her gun and taking aim.

As she pulled the trigger, Makoto dimly heard a scream echo in her head. By the way Himemiya and her companion winced, it was obvious they'd heard it, too.

"MAKO!"

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Himeko's body trembled with the amount of energy she'd used to sprint from the battlefield and tackle her cousin, pinning her body to the grass. Her teeth just barely pricked the curve of Makoto's neck, her wolf form shielding the injured human who gasped beneath her. Dimly she felt her back ache a bit were the bullet had grazed her, felt blood slip through her fur, but ignored it.

She could hear the shooter gasping in pain, cradling her hand to her chest; Himeko had snapped at it as she flew by, dislodging the girl's grip on her gun and causing blood to flow. Slowly lifting her head from Makoto's neck, Himeko relaxed. "Mako?" Her voice was soft, the wall established; the humans wouldn't hear their mental conversation.

"Yeah?" Makoto shifted slightly to look up into golden eyes.

"Are you okay? I'm sorry I came so late."

"Nah, I'm good. What's a bullet to the leg?" Makoto grimaced. "What about you, Hime?"

"Just a scratch. Better than you."

"Ha, ha. Funny."

Narrowing her eyes, Himeko gave in to the urge for a moment and gently nipped at Makoto's neck, making her cousin squeak; slowly she lifted her head, focusing dark gold eyes on the two human hunters.

Her heart dropped to her paws when she saw Chikane; she narrowed her eyes.

"What do you think, little sister?" Makoto's voice was soft, but firm.

"That girl beside her. She looks a little green to me."

"You want me to take her, then? I already told you, Chikane's your territory."

"Yeah. That sounds good."

Moving slowly, Himeko shifted her body so she was standing between the hunters and Makoto; she pointedly ignored the other girl, focusing her eyes on Chikane and Chikane alone. The challenge was wordless but clear.

Without warning Himeko shot away, pointedly brushing Chikane with her shoulder as she sped away, giving the dark-haired girl one narrow look before disappearing into the trees. For a moment Chikane stared after the golden wolf; never one to resist a challenge, spoken or not, she shouldered her bow and ran after the wolf.

"Miya-sama?" Izumi turned in confusion, frowning.

The next instant she crumbled to the ground as she was—rather cruelly—pistol-whipped by Makoto, who had dived for her gun and used it to smack the girl clean across the face. The auburn haired girl slumped back to the ground, staring at the girl in disbelief.

"You're a wolf hunter? Really? Are you sure, because you know—really? I mean, you're good with a gun, but—REALLY?"

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Instinct and memory took over; Himeko ran without even knowing exactly where her paws were taking her, letting nothing but her heart guide her. She had nothing left to lose.

She couldn't kill Chikane. Of that much, at least, she was dead certain. As she ran, she came to that conclusion in only a matter of seconds. She knew the blue-haired young hunter too well to tear her throat out. If this ended in blood, it would be her who lay dead in the grass, and Chikane would be none the wiser, still thinking Himeko had returned home and not knowing the truth about her.

With that thought in mind, she burst through the trees and stumbled to a halt, nearly falling, as she came into the clearing. The same clearing she and Chikane had seen wolves only a few nights ago, the same clearing where they'd danced….

The same clearing where Tsuki's human mother was killed. The same clearing where Tsuki and Orihime had died.

The realization made Himeko's stomach roll.

A high whistling sound was her only warning; she ducked down and narrowly missed getting an arrow buried in her skull. It shot through the air and buried into a nearby tree; growling a little, the golden she-wolf swung around. "A little hasty, aren't we?" she snarled, baring her teeth slightly. "I never said I wanted to kill you."

"I kind of got the vibe you were thinking it, though."

Himeko breathed a mental sigh of relief. Hours of fighting and killing had roughened her voice slightly; Chikane didn't seem to recognize her. She snorted and lifted her head slightly, cocking it to the side and swiveling her ears forward. "So now you can read my mind?"

"… Maybe."

Snorting softly in the wolf equivalent of a laugh, Himeko shook her head. "You're crazy," she decided, sitting down and wrapping her tail around her paws. "Even for a human." The moonlight touched her fur silver, making the shell pendant around her neck gleam.

Chikane saw it immediately.

"Where did you get that?"

It took a moment for Himeko to realize exactly what she was referring to; she lowered her eyes, gazing at the pendant that rested against her chest. "What, this?" She narrowed her eyes and looked at Chikane again.

And that was when it hit her. The perfect way to lure Chikane into killing her without the risk of revealing herself.

She lifted her eyes and stood, stretching leisurely. "I got it off a human," she said conversationally, rolling her shoulders and shaking her fur. She moved her shoulders in a wolf shrug. "Some girl. Can't remember her name for the life of me, though." She parted her jaws in a yawn and sat down again, studying her paws with a bored expression. "Pretty easy to kill, she was. Put up a bit of a fight, but she bled easily enough. A pretty thing, too. Golden hair, clear eyes."

Himeko shot Chikane a discreet look out of the corner of her eye. It was obvious that the young hunter knew exactly who she was talking about; the color had completely drained from her face, her eyes wide and so anguished that it took all of the golden wolf's restraint to not transform and pull the other girl into her arms.

"She said a name before she died," the golden she-wolf continued, making a show of tilting her head back and gazing up at the sky, as though trying to recall the words. "Something… about a girl, I think. What was it? Chika, Chika, something with Chika in it… Chikane-chan? Yeah, that's it. Chikane-chan."

A choked whimper eased past Chikane's lips; Himeko lowered her eyes and gazed at the young hunter, and she bared her teeth, letting her fur bristle as she stood.

"So tell me…" Her lips curved in a cruel wolf smile. "… Where were you when she needed you most, 'Chikane-chan'?"

And with that, she attacked.

She moved fast and low, using Chikane's shock and grief as an advantage; the momentum of her attack was enough to send the dark-haired girl stumbling back, and Himeko's jaws closed on her bow, yanking it from her fingers as she leaped over her.

Skidding, Himeko managed to stumble to a halt and whirl around, still gripping Chikane's bow in her teeth. Rearing up onto her hind legs she snapped the bow neatly in two and hurled it away, sending it crashing into the grass somewhere; spitting out bits of wood, she turned to face the blue-haired hunter again.

Chikane had managed to get up onto her knees at this point, though her head was low; Himeko couldn't see her eyes. Growling low in her throat, the golden wolf streaked to her again.

Come on, Chikane-chan, come on, I know you have it in you…

With a snarl, Himeko sprang into the air.

Chikane's arm was a blur.

The gunshot rang through the clearing like a bomb.

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From where she sat guard over Izumi, having no real choice in the matter due to her injured leg, Makoto looked up sharply at the sound of gunfire, the scent of gunpowder. Her eyes widened; her fingers curled into fists. "Himeko," she choked out as Souma stumbled through the trees in his human form, panting and his black hair falling into his eyes.

At the battlefield, Tsubasa's head shot up; his ears swiveled forward. Narrowing his good eye, he slipped away and sped into the trees, a blur of white.

Overhead dark clouds began to form, blocking out the stars and the moon above.

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Himeko's body fell silently through the air, her muscles limp; she hit the grass with only a dull thud and lay there, unmoving. Chikane was braced on her knees, panting, tears leaking out of her eyes and down her cheeks. A gun was gripped tightly in her shaking hand, pulled free from the harness at her hip at the last moment. Her whole body trembled.

Blood pooled beneath Himeko's body, dark and black in the darkness of night, black with just a tint of weak silver from the moon above. The golden wolf's eyes were closed, her body still and her muscles limp.

Around her neck, the shell pendant was stained with blood.

It began to rain.

Panting, ignoring the rain that fell all around her, Chikane slowly lowered her gun; she staggered to her feet, trembling, and slowly walked toward the fallen wolf, eyes narrow. As she watched, the wolf's eyes slowly opened; gold and dull, dazed from pain.

"… You missed my heart…"

Himeko's voice was soft, groggy; the bullet had struck not her chest but her shoulder, not that it did much to lessen the damage. Her whole leg was numb; she could only imagine what had happened. Wincing, she shifted her body and froze at the soft click, lifting her eyes.

Chikane had the gun aimed at her head. One bullet in the brain—that was all it would take.

The golden wolf swallowed. "I'm surprised your first bullet didn't kill me…"

"Shut up."

Himeko let her voice fade away and watched the raindrops drip from Chikane's fingers, roll off the barrel of her gun; she closed her eyes and made a decision. God forgive her for her weakness… but she had to have this last goodbye.

"… Do you… wish to see my human form?"

"What?"

"My human… form. Do you… want to see it?"

"Why?" Chikane's voice was harsh, angry, pained. "It won't change the fact that I'm going to kill you."

"Don't be so quick to say that." Himeko slowly opened her eyes. "You might be surprised to see… who I really am."

"I thought I told you—"

"Have you forgotten already…?" Himeko laughed softly, without humor. "This is the path I'm walking… Chikane-chan. This is why you can't follow me."

Chikane's eyes widened; her face registered nothing but shock. Seeing her chance, Himeko focused on her human form, wincing and grimacing as pain shot through her body. The bullet hadn't struck her heart, but it had been dangerously close to her left lung; she was having a hard time breathing.

Despite it, she managed to make the change as easily as she'd always done.

"… Himeko?"

In the silence, Himeko bit her lip and squeezed her eyes shut, trying to fight the hot burn of tears, her fingers curling into fists against the wet grass. "I'm sorry, Chikane-chan," she rasped. "I'm so sorry."

The rain continued to fall.

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This chapter was a bitch to write; I knew what I wanted to happen but it didn't come to me easily. I hate it when that happens. My favorite part though was probably Makoto's little monologue when Chikane asks her question... Dunno, I feel like it kinda sums up the fic on its own. (sweatdrops)

Read and review, please!