Forever On My Heart
She had died and he brought her back to life.
InuYasha had killed her. Ripped her heart from her body, crushed her very soul, and laughed at her will to live. Day after day, she stood by, watching him think of none other than the dead one and night after night, she coiled into herself and witnessed him steal away from the camp. She knew where he went and each time she would hear his light footsteps moving away, a bit of her soul would liquefy and leave her through the tears she would cry in her sleep.
Why did he always go to her? That body, made from nothing more than clay and dirt held more value to him than a body of blood, flesh and a fierce love directed towards the afore mentioned demon? It was it was unfair fight, that woman already had established her place in his heart long before her reincarnation came along.
And that was it. She was nothing more a reincarnation, a copy of appearance and power, but not of mannerism. She was not like the priestess. Didn't have the same beauty, confidence and inner glow that must have attracted him to her in the first place. She could never be her. Never have the same worth in the hanyou's eyes.
So, slowly, she died. She stood in the shadows, hands clenched, silent, tears both fresh in her eyes and dried on her cheeks. Watching, waiting, begging for him to stop just once and look her way. But no, all he knew to do was look through her. All he could see was the face of another, the one he truly loved.
The pain was excruciating. There was nothing worse than knowing that the one she loved cared only for the stranger with her face. Her entire world dropped away and a thousand of the sharpest knives impaled upon her body couldn't pierce her as severely as the name of his first love tumbling from his lips with such tender reverence could.
He destroyed her. And the worst part of it was that he didn't even notice.
Sesshomaru brought her back to life. The cold, seemingly emotionless demon lord of the West. He was there and he was willing to pick up the pieces of her shattered heart. Slowly… as one… they put it– her- back together. In the process, he learned what it was like to love, how it felt to see eyes once dull and bleak with the colors of eternal sadness sparkle with the immense pleasure of being with him.
She was not the only one to benefit from them getting to know each other. He gradually realized that being monotone, closed off, wasn't necessarily how he had to be. She showed him that emotions were good, healthy. And so, he opened to her the way a new flower slowly stretches its petals to the waking sun.
He marked her as his own. His Kagome. She wanted to do something so he could see that, yes, she was his but he was also hers. She sat, curled in his lap out in the amazing beauty of his garden. Her fingers, slowly but surely traced the lines of his face; his soft, sweet mouth, his arrogant chin.
Carefully, she began to make shapes on his chest with the utmost concentration. He watched silently at first, then curiously.
"What are you doing Kagome?" he asked. The raven-haired girl paused and looked up at him, the love emanating from her eyes and adding an extra glow to her exuberant smile.
"I'm writing my name on your heart." she replied. A soft smile graced his own lips and he waited until she was through, then he kissed each finger on that hand. She peered deep into his eyes seeing everything she'd ever longed for swimming in his impenetrable gaze.
"Will it stay there Sesshomaru?" she whispered, uncertainty hiding in the undertones of her words. Kagome knew he loved her with everything he was. She had his symbol on her neck for life and he had been more than willing to give it to her. Still, after what she'd had suffered through, ambiguity still resided in her heart.
Sesshomaru could see that. It would take time for her to fully heal. He knew that and would do everything in his power to shorten the process. Right then, he recognized, as the first step.
He smiled at her again, but his eyes held a seriousness that told Kagome that his answer came from nothing less than the pit of his soul, his very being.
Gently, he leaned forward and kissed her trembling lips. Then, without backing away, he replied,
"Forever."
FIN