Reunited.

Kagome stirred in her sleep, her body insisting on her to rise for the day. She groaned quietly to herself and became aware of a body besides her. She jerked her head and stared wide-eyed as she found Koga nestled up behind her. The sun was up, and usually Koga would have already been up too, but today was an exception. Kagome felt her heart begin to beat rapidly and she smiled. Carefully, she turned over to face him, his eyes peacefully shut. Running her hand against his cheek, she felt the warmth of his skin rise to greet her.

Realizing that today they would be hunting Inuyasha, Kagome shivered. In seconds, she felt a pair of warm arms embrace her from behind, startling her. She turned her head to see Koga's sleepy eyes gazing into hers with a kind smile, one she had not seen. Her lips trembled slightly before being able to return the smile. She couldn't ignore the fact that everything with Koga was so new to her, but it didn't frighten her. She felt unbelievably comfortable with him and knowing that he looked at her with only love was enough to make her want to continue reaching further from her limits. She wanted to make him happy and keep him happy.

"Good morning," his rough voice called to her.

"Good morning to you," she replied sweetly.

"How did you sleep?"

"Great," she smiled.

Koga pulled Kagome to face him and pressed his lips to hers firmly, running his warm hand over her neck. She felt her body instantly tingle all over from his kiss and nearly melted. She felt his fangs brush over her lips and a small bite to make her giggle. Koga smirked and lifted her up, now realizing that he had overslept. Although feeling slightly disappointed, Kagome went with the flow and followed his lead.

"We'll eat and then get going, you should wear the wolf pelt again," Koga instructed.

Kagome nodded and gulped. She didn't want to show him her fear, she wanted to be as strong as he was. Ginta and Hakkaku quickly gathered food for them and immediately got out of their way. They knew the importance of the day. Kagome couldn't find her appetite, but she nibbled lightly on her fish.

"Now then," Koga started, "We'll be running into the western territory. We know his scent and if he's truly reeking havoc, we shouldn't have a problem catching it. Since we're going alone, we'll need to keep a fair distance. Think of this as a hunt, Kagome. You can do this."

Kagome listened to him and nodded. His complete faith in her made her believe she could in fact do what he asked. After a shaky goodbye from Ginta and Hakkaku, Kagome and Koga ran. She followed him closely, now a master at her movements. She couldn't shake the natural flow of energy that coursed through her body with every step she took. The wolf pelt against her skin hugged her body protectively and reminded her that much more that the wolves were a part of her now. She was guided by one inside her and in love with another. This was her life as it was meant to be.

"I can smell them," Shippo whispered.

"Don't worry. They'll be no match for us," Sango assured.

Dressed in her demon exterminator gear, she gripped her Haraikotsu tightly. They were approaching a village, one that had seen much destruction recently. Inuyasha had been reported being seen in the area, followed by hoards of demons. It didn't look good for the villagers, to say the least. As they headed further into the western lands, they had begun to see more and more devastation. Still, they had not seen Inuyasha since their first meet and were not entirely sure of his intentions. What did he seek? Or was it all simply aimless destruction?

"We're here," Miroku announced grimly.

Sango gasped, pulling her hand to cover her mouth. At the bottom of a hill, a village sat burning, the smoke drifting depressingly into the sky. She could see the demons ravishing on livestock, deteriorating huts, and it's people. Without another thought, she flung her weapon out into the sky and ran after it. She watched as it cut it's way through the mouths of hungry, brainless demons, sending their bodies to pieces. She caught it as it returned to her and threw it again to her next target. She could hear Kirara attacking from behind her, along with her other companions.

Sango ran from hut to hut, searching for survivors. Her heart raced desperately in her chest as she found nothing but blood and lifeless bodies. Once reaching the center of the village, she took one last look into a hut.

"Don't hurt us!" A small voice cried.

"I... I'm not. I'm here to help," Sango said as she lifted her hands.

Injured adults sat against the walls or were laid out onto mats with children huddled around them.

"Are there no more of you?" Sango asked.

"They're out fighting, or looking for help," a woman near the door answered weakly.

"How long has this been going on? How many demons?"

"We can no longer count. Our village is ruined. We are nothing."

"No, you are something. You're survivors. And we will get rid of these-"

"Watch out!"

Sango turned, but felt the harsh sting of a jaw clamping onto her shoulder. She whimpered once before pulling her sword free from its sheath. The jaw bit down harder on her, causing hot blood to leak from the wound. Sango's hand shook as she fell over. And then the demon was off of her. Kirara growled viciously from behind and tore the demon apart, her eyes full of flaming rage. Sango sighed and placed her free hand over her wound, which was gushing blood.

"Demon exterminator! Are you okay?!" A girl ran to her side.

"I'm alright... Just... Ouch."

Sango suddenly realized how much blood she was losing and cursed herself for letting a lowly demon get the best of her. Her eye sight began to blur as she rolled onto her back, trying to hold her wound tightly. Voices shouted in the distance. Where was he? And then, quite unintentionally, she passed out.

Miroku vanquished the last of the demons with Shippo at his side and wiped the beads of sweat from his forehead. As he looked around, he could see Kirara running towards him anxiously. Seeing blood matted into her fur, his eyes frantically looked around. Kirara growled and ran back from the direction she came, this time with Miroku on her trail. They had battled for maybe an hour or so, could something have happened without his notice? He soon received his answer when he entered the hut. Dropping his staff, he rushed to Sango's side."

"Sango! Sango!" He yelled hysterically.

"She passed out, monk. She has lost a lot of blood.

"I need clean water and bandages. Someone, please."

"I'll go," a young woman volunteered. "Is it safe?"

"Yes, the demons are gone. I'll need to place some sutras around your village to ward off any remaining demons, but you all should be fine to go out. Is there somewhere private we could rest while in your village?" Miroku asked, to no one in particular."

"Come with me, we have a guest house," a child answered.

Miroku agreed, carefully lifting his fiancé into his arms. The hut was to the side of the village with the least damage and near a small stream of water. It was large enough for the group to find comfort in the tragedy that they were surrounded in. Shippo and Kirara left with the child to help repair what they could around the village, while Miroku began to undo Sango's gear. At one time, he might've done this gleefully and lecherously, but all he cared about was her waking up. The girl returned with a large bowl of warm water, a thick cloth and the bandages he requested.

"Thank you," he said solemnly.

"You saved what was left of our village, I am indebted to you."

"Try to do what you can for the others and the wounded. I'll be out shortly."

"Thank you, monk," she said again.

Miroku moved as quickly as he could, wanting to prevent even more blood from escaping her body. He dipped the cloth into the water and gently dabbed it against her bare skin. He wasted no time in cleaning the wound, but was dismayed to see just how deep it was. She had a horrid gash deep into her shoulder and near her collar bone. It was a wide wound. Shaking his head, he dried the area and began to tightly bandage her up. She wasn't supposed to be the careless one, not with demons. In 10 minutes time he had her tightly covered in the bandages and began to carefully pull off the rest of her demon exterminator gear. He placed a blanket over her body and reached into her bag with her kimono inside.

"Miroku?"

He wheeled around at the sound of her voice and breathed a sigh of relief, planting a kiss on her forehead.

"You're okay?"

"Yes, you idiot, but you aren't."

"I got distracted, sorry."

"Don't apologize for being attacked, woman. What am I going to do if something happens to you? Don't be selfish. I need you."

Though his tone was hard, his eyes were full of love and worry as he knelt over her. Sango smiled and reached for him, giving him a kiss firmly on his lips.

"I love you," Miroku said.

"I love you too. The villagers are safe? Shippo?"

"Yes, I'll send him in here while I finish up out there. We'll need to stay and rest a few days. Thanks to you," he said with a mocking smile.

"You can help me get better."

"Well, I have a few ideas," he said seductively, "But they might kill you in your condition so no, I can't."

Despite herself, Sango laughed and shooed him on. She had just gotten distracted, she wasn't going to be killed over a simple flesh wound. She was glad to see Miroku taking charge and being the man she knew he was. Still, she cursed herself for being careless. They all needed to be in their best condition if they were going to stand a chance against Inuyasha. At this rate, he would chew them up and spit them out easily.

Once the sun was gone and the moon was highly perched in the sky, Miroku finished his work with his sutras. He sat outside the hut as Shippo cooked dinner and looked up distantly at the stars. He was grateful to have a strong group of allies with him and to have met villagers willing to help them, when they clearly needed the help more. As he thought the events of the day over, he could suddenly hear the sounds of twigs breaking and wind howling. Cautiously, he stood up and held his staff out defensively. He could feel someone approaching and was not at all up for another battle. Kirara joined him seconds later and the two were both looking into the darkness of the trees. To both of their surprise, it was-

"Kagome!"

"Hey, Miroku," she smiled warmly.

"What are you doing here?" He asked, pulling her in for a hug, in which Koga quietly growled at.

"I smelled you," she said proudly.

"Um, thanks?"

"You know what I mean, where's Sango?"

"Inside, resting."

"Oh, so it was her blood I smelled."

"Afraid so, demons were attacking the village and one of them got her too. She just needs time to heal."

"Can we go in?"

"Of course," he grinned.

Miroku directed them inside, noting Koga's protective hand placement on the small of Kagome's back. That was going to be a story he definitely would want to hear about.

Sorry about the long wait, to anyone who is reading. I have really been struggling with teh writing, and I've started a couple of other stories as well. PLUS I am currently in Toronto (I'm from TX), but the next chapter will be better. PROMISE! 3