The Morning After and Then Some

The morning after and then some


Today has to be the worst day of my life. I can't believe that I feel this way. Why am I cold? Oh great.
Rain's pouring down in cascading sheets of water that are impossible to see through which is actually
a good thing. Thunder and lightning, and rain, oh so much rain. Why now? Why did it have to be
raining and a thunderstorm on top of it. My head's splitting like someone's taken a thousand daggars
and shoved them deep through my skull and behind my eyes. Well, that will teach me to drink too
much at anyone's bachelor party ever again! I haven't had a hangover this bad since.. well I don't think
I ever had a hangover this bad before.

Kouga slowly opened his eyes to the dim light of his cave. At least one good thing could be said
about a thunderstorm the morning after partying too much, not a lot of light to add insult to the already
injured headache. There was one major drawback to a winter thunderstorm, though. It made the cold,
dank cave even more dank and musty smelling. One thing at a time. The smell he could deal
with.

Now to do something about the headache, and this wretched feeling in his stomach. Oh No! Not that!
He was not going to... Too late... Aww, that was just too gross, and the smell, stale ale and, what was
it that he ate last night? Oh well, now he had to get up, get cleaned up and clean up this mess.

Holding his head, as if that would really help the stabbing and throbbing pain there, Kouga inched back
from the puddle that he just created next to his bedroll, when he bumped into something big. "Huh?"

Forgetting the mess, he turned around slowly to see what was behind him. It was his cave, and to
the best of his recollection, nothing should have been next to his bedroll. As his eyes adjusted to the
dim light, he could see something akin to a large log wrapped in his bearskin blanket next to him. He
poked at it with a finger and it moved. He poked harder and it groaned. He jabbed it with his elbow and it barked,
"Will you leave me alone for crap's sake? I'm trying to die here!"

Kouga jumped back at the voice right into the puddle of ... well we don't need to remind everyone of that.
He ignored that and grabbed the blanket off the individual and his eyes widened. "Hakkaku,what are you
doing here, and why, OH MY FUCKING GOD!!!, Why are you naked? And why are you wrapped up in
my blanket? And what..."

All of a sudden, the last night came rushing back and hit Kouga in the head. Last night, the bachelor
party, Hakkakus bachelor party. Drinking, dancing, drinking, joking, drinking, drinking... Then it was over
and Kouga came back to his cave and NOOOOOOOOOOOOO! It didn't happen, it couldn't have happened!
"Hakkaku, you slut!"

Hakkaku rolled and Kouga took his fists and started beating on his friend, head, sides, back, everywhere he could.

"Kouga, stop hitting me! What in the hell is wrong with you? Last night you were all sweet and today...Oh no!
Today. Kouga, today's my wedding. What time is it?"

"What time is it? You ass, what difference does that make now? Do you realize what you, we, did last night?"
Kouga was more than a little mortified.

Hakkaku backed away from Kouga as fast as he could until he was stopped by the side of the cave. "Kouga? What
are you talking about? You came to my cave in the middle of the night and asked me to stay here with you.
You said something about a stupid tradition about the bride and groom not seeing each other the day of the
wedding before the ceremony. You dragged me out of my bed and pulled me here by my hair, threw me
down and told me to stay. Don't you remember?"

The previous night's events were fuzzy at best. Kouga remembered the party, coming back to the cave with
someone, having some remarkable sex and then... waking up this morning with the world's worst hangover.
"No, I don't remember that last part at all. All I remember is coming back here, with someone, having great
sex and then waking up with you here."

Hakkaku laughed. "And you thought it was me? Boy you really are hungover. I'm so seme that even if you are
the tribe's leader, I wouldn't let you do THAT to me,ever. I left with Ayame about halfway through the night.No,
it was someone else, so just chill. And will you please clean up. You reek and we have to get ready for the
ceremony. Rain or not, I am getting married today."

Kouga ran a hand through his hair and then cringed. "UGH! That's disgusting." Yup, he had put his hand in
the puddle before he ran it through his hair. This just wasn't Kouga's morning. Knowing that he had to break out
of this pattern, he carefully stood up, only to discover he too was naked. "Was I naked when I came to
get you last night?"

"Uh huh." Hakkaku giggled like a girl. "It was kind of funny too. Ayame couldn't believe that you were storming
into our cave in your naked glory, grabbing me and pulling me out of our warm bed just to waylay some
stupid human superstition that Kagome told you about. But, you wouldn't take no for an answer, so we
decided to go along with it. No harm, no foul. Besides, I thought that you might need me to get you up
today in time for the wedding."

Kouga plodded over to the opposite side of the cave, got some rags, a bucket which he filled with rain
water and cleaned up the mess he made. Next, we grabbed some clothes, stated he was going to the
springs to get cleaned up and started to leave.

"Kouga, won't your clothes get all wet if you take them out in the rain? Why not just go out like that and come
back? I don't think anyone is going to be out this morning, not with it raining so much."

He knew that Hakkaku was right. Besides, it wasn't like the tribe hadn't seen him naked before. Everyone
had seen everyone else at one time or another. So, he trotted off to the hot springs in all his natural glory
and took a flying dive into the steamy waters. There he relaxed and relished in the warmth of the gurgling
waters. He reached up, grabbed several leaves from a wild eucalyptus tree and scrubbed himself from head to
toes being sure to get any remnants of his morning's problems off his body and out of his hair. Once he was
fully cleansed, he took a final full-body dip under the hot waters and got out of the springs and sprinted back
to the cave in the cooled air.

By now the rain had miraculously stopped, and the sun was starting to emerge from less gray skies. It
was turning out to be a much better day than had started. It was amazing what a bath could do for a person's
perception of things.

Kouga got back to his cave to find it completely tidy. His bed was put up, the bucket of cleaning water had
been emptied and the place smelled fresh. A small table was set in the middle of the floor and breakfast
was laid on it. A nice piece roast or wild boar, some wild berries and a cup of ... milk? "Hey what's with
the baby food?"

"Drink it, Kouga. It will make you feel better. It's a remedy that Ayame gives me when I 've had too much
to drink. It's not what you think it is."

Kouga picked up the cup, sniffed it and scrunched his nose. "What is this?"

"Just drink it down, don't ask what's in it."

Tossing caution to the wind, and vowing to kill the groom-to-be if the stuff made him sick again, Kouga drank
the foul-smelling liquid. It may have smelled bad, but actually wasn't too bad tasting. It had a familiar flavor, but
he couldn't place it. Oh well, at least it didn't make him sick to his stomach. In fact, he was starting to feel a
bit better. He sat cross-legged on the floor at the table and began to eat. He ate and ate and before he knew it
there was no more food on his plate. "I didn't know you could cook."

"I can't. Ayame sent it over here for us. I ate while you were gone." the groom-to-be said over his shoulder as he finished
cleaning is plate in the makeshift sink.

"You saw her this morning? After all the trouble I went through last night to get you here and you still saw her
before the ceremony?" Kouga was now miffed. First he drags his best friend over here, naked, in the middle of
the night to avoid some crazy human superstitious curse, and then Hakkaku goes and gets himself cursed anyway.
"Great!"

"Ah, no. I said Ayame sent the food over. Actually, it was that cute little Ginta that brought it to me. He said
that Ayame told him about what you did last night and wasn't going to try and see me until will we met with the elders
at the sacred spot. Besides, he really wanted to see you again, seemed rather eager, in fact. He's the one you
must have come back here with after the party last night."

Kouga sighed with relief, and then his eyes flew open and he got pale, swaggered and almost fainted. Ginta.
Suddenly, as if the flood gates had been opened, it all came rushing back to Kouga. The party, Ginta looking
at him from across the fire, he was so cute, and then, moving next to Kouga, rubbing his nose in the crook of
Kouga's neck, and then... back to the cave.

Flashback to the night before

Oh, it was hot. Kouga remembered it all. It was like a dream, only it was real. He had
picked Ginta up and carried him bridal style back to the cave. He didn't say a word, he let his actions do
all the talking. First, he laid the wolf demon down on his soft bearskin blanket and laid on top of him. He
lathered his face with warm, wet kisses finally landing firmly on two wanting, inviting lips that parted as
soon as Kouga touched them with his own yearning lips. His tongue darted out and licked the crevice between
Ginta's lips, parting them so he could gain entrance, brushing the tip of his tongue against the younger
wolf's fangs before those fangs parted and he could delve in and taste the other's sweetness. Oh and Ginta
was sweet. He sucked on Ginta's tongue, eliciting moans of pure ecstacy. He savored not only the sweet
dew of this mouth but the moans that his actions elicited. Ah, yes, he wanted this as much as Kouga did.

Kisses broke only for breathing, heavy pants of want and desire that both wolves were lusting for. Kouga
exited the warmth of that sweet cavern to explore more of his newfound love. He licked and sucked on Ginta's cheeks,
jaw and worked his way to the tender area below his ear, nibbling and then.. he dug his fangs deep into the
soft tissue of the neck. He sucked on that spot, drinking in the nectar-sweet blood that flowed into his mouth.

He became like a feral animal at the taste. He tore at Ginta's furs, stripping him bare in a matter of seconds and
then, with little warning and no preparation, plunged deep within the other wolf, claiming him as his own. He
paid little to no attention to the cries of his conquest as he pumped himself deep inside, fevered and in need that
only Ginta's submission could quell. He raised up, eyes a crimson red, the sign of his dominance shining like
a beacon, demanding that Ginta give himself to Kouga, body and soul.

Ginta, ever so willing, the heat of Kouga's mating mark spreading through his body, complied; his own eyes now
starting to glow a deep crimson as he grabbed Kouga around the back and dug his claws into the tribal leader's back.
He moaned as Kouga drove deeper inside him, pulling him closer to his chest, so close that you could barely tell
where one body ended and the other started. A melding of bodies and souls.

Kouga arched his back at the intrusion of those claws into his flesh, at the same time, plummeting further
into lust and need. He pumped Ginta, like there was no tomorrow, heaving his breaths as he dove deeper
and harder, claiming that which was to be his and only his from now on. "You're mine!" That's all he remembers
saying as he reached his climax and the claim was finalized as he shot his essence deep within the hot
confines of Ginta's ass and again bit down on the tender neck, marking him for all to see.

end flashback

Kouga plopped on the cave floor. Well, he did it. It was a done deal, Now all he had to do was wait until Ginta
came back. Once he checked his neck and verified the mating mark, he was going to have to do the unthinkable.
He was going to have to ... marry Ginta.

Hakkaku came over and sat beside his best friend and put his arm around his shoulder. "It's alright Kouga. We
all make mistakes. Ginta will get over it."

Astonishment overtook Kouga's face. "You don't understand, I marked him last night. I remember it all now."

Hakkaku fainted. After several minutes, he was revived by a bucket of cold water being splashed on his face.

"You okay, 'Kaku?"

The soon to be groom sputtered water from his nose and mouth and sat up, a bit dizzy, but alive. "Yeah, I'm
okay. Did you say you marked him? What are you going to do now? I mean, he's Ayame's little brother."

"Uh huh. I don't know. What can I do?"

The two wolves sat side by side in silence for a several minutes when there was rustling heard outside the
cave that brought both back to reality. Standing at the cave entrance stood the old man, himself, Ayame and
Ginta's grandfather. THE elder of the tribe, and he didn't look none too happy.

The two wolves stumbled to their feet and moved closer to the gray wolf. Acting like he hadn't just heard his
best friend tell him the most astonishing news of the day, save his own wedding, Hakkaku was the first to speak.
"Grandfather. Have you come to get us for the ceremony already? It's a bit early isn't it?"

"Yes, I've come to get you for the ceremony. Now, you two finish dressing and follow me." At that the old wolf
turned and walked out.

Kouga and Hakkaku scrambled around, got their finest furs on, checked their hair and were out of the cave in
just a few minutes. The solemnly walked behind the gray wolf up the winding path to the sacred grounds, and
there, standing in the clearing, stood the bride.

It was strange. The entire village had been invited to the ceremony, yet here stood only a bride. No guests, and
now the three males that were to be the groom, best man and senior-most elder to officiate. As they approched the
altar site, the would-be bride turned to face them. It was Ginta!

He smiled somewhat embarrassed at Kouga. As the old wolf approached he growled, "Take your places."

Hakkaku and Kouga froze in their places. What was going on here? This isn't what was rehearsed the day
before. The two best friends looked at each other and then to Ginta and then the elder.

"Grandfather, what's going on? Where's Ayame and the others?" Hakkaku played dumb. He knew what
was happening, he just didn't want to believe it, and neither did Kouga.

"I saw the mark on Ginta's neck before. There's only one in the tribe that would leave that kind of mark on
another, the mark of the tribal leader. Kouga, you marked my grandson, you took him for your own last
night and today, you will take him for you own for life. Now come forward."

As Kouga and Hakkaku stepped forward, they exchanged places from where they were supposed to be
standing at this time and place. As the elder spewed out the words, Kouga halfway toned them out. He vaguely heard
a question and mumbled some answer as he tried to remember how he got where he was. He thought back to
that morning, the hangover, the rain and everything up till now, then, just as he was totally lost in
his thoughts, Ginta leaned over to him and whispered.

"Kouga, wake up."

Owari