Rhane returned to her proper time along with the rest of her scattered team. Time passed, friends, relationships and loved ones came and went. She had many more adventures and faced many adversaries both with the New Mutants and with other teams.

Likewise, Hakkaku, along with Kouga and Ginta, proceeded to reunite and rebuild the scattered tribes of wolf demons after the fall of Naraku. He, like his friends, eventually settled down and started a family of his own.

Over the course of both Rhane's and Hakkaku's eventful lives, however, each occasionally found themselves thinking of the other and wondering about the would-be prophesy and what might have been. Neither knew of the divergence created when Rhane heard Hakkaku's call and started back through the still open teleportation disk before being stopped by Xavier.

In a parallel universe...

Aoi, a ten year old villager sat near the lake watching the other children play. Admittedly, he wasn't a true resident of the village. His home was actually in the woods nearby, but he knew every resident in the village by face at the very least, and all of the kids by name. The ones currently out in the field belonged primarily to the Monk and his former demon-hunter wife. There were twin girls a few years older than him who gathered an arrangement of wild flowers. Their younger brother wrestled with another boy who was the son of the miko Kagome and the half-demon Inuyasha. Aoi observed the two ebony-haired playmates together - it was difficult to tell that one of them wasn't fully human. He ran a hand self-consciously through his own shaggy auburn hair. He could have gone over and asked to play - he believed they would have let him, but he felt more content with his own company at the moment and enjoyed watching people almost more than being around them.

Aoi's eyes traveled absently over the surface of the water, an unexpected gust blew against his back and caused him to look up. He stood and breathed deeply; a grin spread over his face. He immediately started off in the direction of the hills. From the field, the voice of the young quarter demon yelled after him, but Aoi did not look back.

He gradually made his way to a point that overlooked the valley and stopped, gazing about him expectantly. He couldn't see her, but he was certain she'd be nearby.

"Did I not tell you that I'd cut you up the next time you came snooping around?"

The boy jumped at the voice right behind him. He spun around and ducked his head apologetically at the woman who had one hand tucked warningly into her colorful sleeves as she glared down at him. "Y-yes..."

"Then I can only assume that you lack any sense of self - preservation, because here you are."

He noticed that her appendage did not stir from deep within it's fabric lair. Aoi clasped his hands behind his back and stared down at this toes, "I was surprised to see you again," he mumbled.

She observed him carefully with crimson eyes, "I don't stay in one place for long."

"But you don't have to run from anyone anymore," he peered up at her questioningly.

"I'm not running," a faint smile now appeared on her face, "I just enjoy being free."

Aoi ventured a step forward, "Speaking of which, would you please tell me more about the time when you were Naraku's servant?"

Her smile suddenly withered like a scorched flower; she brought her hardened face level with his, "What would your parents think about you coming to me and asking for stories?"

A long pause followed. "I don't know," he offered weakly.

"Don't lie."

He cast his turquoise eyes down in defeat. "Well I don't have to tell them..."

"I don't need you causing me any trouble," she turned away, dismissively, "I'm through with all of that."

Aoi's face fell, he leaned dejectedly back against a tree. He loved stories, and Kagura's were almost as good as his mother's - albeit with a much more of an edge to them. He'd first learned of the demoness through the tales told to him by his mother and had ever since desired to meet her, but she proved difficult to find, much less to catch. He'd been very diligent and had at last been rewarded only several months ago when he'd succeeded in approaching her. She'd seemed to know him even before he'd introduced himself, and with a nasty smile, proceeded to regale him with a yarn about how she'd slain all the members of the Eastern Wolf Den. She'd seemed surprised when he'd enjoyed it, but he didn't belong to the wolf demons himself - even if his father did. He just loved the action and fast pace of her stories.

Her eyes closed for a moment and she looked back at him with a thoughtful frown, "Look, what if instead I told you about how I ended up escaping from Naraku?"

Aoi straightened up, his eyes widening.

Kagura smirked, "It all started when I paid a visit to a certain river god..."

Nearly an hour later Aoi held on tightly as the wind swept himself and the sorceress over the valley and hurtled them to the ground. The boy stepped off the feather, feeling exhilarated and only the slightest bit dizzy. He suddenly turned to the woman who was already rising back into the air in preparation to depart. "There's just one other thing I've been wondering..."

She shot a glance over her shoulder in exasperation. "What is it now?"

"Well, if your heart was still with Naraku when he died, how did you manage to survive? You never explained that."

She snorted, "That's an entirely different story, kid, and I have to split - maybe next time." With that, she hurtled away and was gone.

Aoi watched until she was a small speck in the blue sky - silently happy that he had another reason to seek her out again. He then made his way into the brush and further into the woods to his home. When he reached the bald patch he saw, to his surprise, his parents standing in front of the hut; both turned to look at him as he approached. The thought immediately occurred to him that they would still be able to detect Kagura's scent on him - he quickly tried to think up some excuse so that he could go jump in the creek first before approaching any further. Unfortunately, his father's expression abruptly hardened and Aoi saw his nostrils flare - the boy slunk back guiltily.

"Aoi, where have ye been," his mother called to him.

"More importantly," added his father, "who have you been with?"

The red haired woman looked sharply at her husband,then transitioned into a wolven form - her auburn fur contrasting strikingly against her green kimono; her lips pulled back from her fangs in a grimace as she also recognized the scent.

"Aoi," she growled.

The boy shrank under her 'wolf voice' which, though rarely directed at him, never meant anything good. The last time he remembered her speaking in it was to a demon serpent that had been about to devour him - right before she ripped it to shreds - the memory was still seared into his skull.

"It's okay," he placated, "she doesn't mind - she only pretends not to like me."

"Pretends," exclaimed his wolf-mother, "an' how d'ye know that she's pretendin'?"

"Because she tells me stories, and she brought me back on her feather."

"She what," barked Rhane.

Hakkaku glanced from her to Aoi, "She tells you stories," his father wanted to know.

Aoi nodded enthusiastically.

"About what?"

The boy then grinned toothily, "She told me about you," he indicated both his parents.

"About us," his mother's hands flew to her hips, "bletherskite! What did she tell you?"

"About how you came here from a faraway land and met father, but that your friends came looking for you and tried to bring you back with them - you never told me about any of that," he peered curiously at her, "Is it true?"

His mother let out a heavy sigh, mercifully releasing her wolven form along with it. "Go inside," she ordered him, "yuir father will be in tae talk to you shortly."

Aoi meekly crept into the house under the watchful gazes of his parents. No sooner than he'd disappeared into the doorway Rhane turned a troubled look to her husband, " I've no idea how long this has been goin' on - I cannae keep my eyes on him every minute of the day - and yet it seems I must!"

"I know," Hakkaku touched her reassuringly on the elbow, thinking wistfully about everything he would rather be doing with his wife instead after such a long separation, "he's only a boy - I'll talk to him."

"He's lonely," Rhane sighed, "It's hard tae grow up with no friends; I would know."

"Doesn't he have any friends?"

"Sometimes he plays with Inuyasha and Kagome's son and perhaps Sango and Miroku's children, but nae any of the other village children will go near him."

Hakkaku shifted his weight, suddenly feeling his hanyou son's burden very heavily, compounding his guilt, "Maybe I should be around more often - I could tell Kouga..."

She shook her head, "I ken the clan needs you - just keep coming around as much as ye can." She reached around pulling his face to hers and kissing him sweetly. When they pulled away again he was smiling despite himself.

"Speaking of Kagura, do you ever think of that vision we saw of ourselves in her magic water?"

She smirked, "'Course I do; I think of it all the time."

"I think about how it almost never happened," he replied, gazing contentedly at her, "When you left through that glowing circle I thought that was the last time I would ever see you - then suddenly you re-appeared!"

"I had tae," she absently traced the outline of his ear, "ye called me back after all."

His eyes lingered on her a moment; she wasn't the shy, insecure girl of fourteen that he'd met nearly that many years ago. He'd watched her bloom into an even stronger and more beautiful woman than he could have imagined and a fiercely protective mother to their child. He was sorry he hadn't developed as quickly, but he hoped she was still satisfied with him. He then looked at the modest hut surrounded by woods where she had raised Aoi while he remained Kouga's lieutenant and carried out the business of the tribe. After a moment's hesitation he asked: "Do you ever wonder if you'd have had a better life if you'd gone back with them?"

She stared back at him a long moment as he began to regret his question. At last she closed her eyes and shook her head. "There's nae point to that," she smiled, a light scolding in her tone, "I'm sure it would be verra different, but I wouldnae give anything fer what I huv now."

From the doorway, Aoi peeked out to see his parents embrace and all his worries melted away.

THE END