Kagome swirled her feet daintily through the placid pool of water, causing small ripples to mar the still surface. Her lips upturned slightly at the corners as she thought of the day's events. Today was unquestionably THE greatest day of her life.

She and Yukio had been hiking through the woods all day. As soon as they had exited the hut (and abandoned Inuyasha, she thought, with far less guilt than she would have thought possible), he had pulled her aside and whispered in her ear, telling her all about his favorite spot in the world, a magical, crystal clear pond that sat unperturbed at the end of the forest.

"It's the most beautiful thing," he promised, taking her hand.

"Yes, it is," she had murmured (much to her own embarrassment) gazing at Yukio.

"Just like you," he squeezed her hand tightly as they traveled more deeply through the trees.

Kagome almost swooned.

But then, for a split second, something had itched in the back of her mind. If Yukio can't remember anything, how does he remember the pond? But she had quickly dismissed the thought, as she had more distressing matters at hand. Things are moving really fast. Maybe…too fast? When did we first meet? A week ago? No…no. It was…yesterday? When…Inu…Inuyata? No, Inuyasha. When he was…gone? Who was gone...where? And why? What?

She stumbled again, and he caught her. "Clumsy, aren't we?" Yukio's silky smooth voice overwhelmed her very thought process.

"A l-little b-bit," Kagome had stuttered.

"Well, of course. Why should a maiden as beautiful as you have to walk anywhere?" He scoffed at the very idea. "Here, m'lady," and with that, he scooped her in his arms as if she weighed nothing.

Kagome was used to being carried, but usually it was by people who weren't…well…people. Usually it was by half-demons (Inuyasha, she reminded herself firmly) or even by full demons. Never by humans, which she was fairly certain Yukio was. It flattered her that he could lift her with such ease, made her feel pretty and small.

He trekked the rest of the way through the woods, cradling Kagome against his chest. Normally she would have put up a fuss, but she was too distracted by the fact that Yukio had neglected to wear a shirt and his chiseled, godlike chest was but a few inches away from her cheek.

All too soon, he set her down on the ground and, with a flourish of his incredibly well built, muscular, strong, toned, tanned, bare arms (Kagome hurriedly wiped away the drool that had accidentally spilled out of her mouth), he presented the pond. And he was right. It truly was the most beautiful thing.

In the middle of a clearing the pond lay quietly, not a hint of motion to obscure the fragile beauty. Its glasslike surface reflected the sunlight, casing an ethereal radiance that made everything shimmer with a golden glow. Adorned along the edges of the pond were flowers, the likes of which Kagome had never laid eyes on before. Every petal of each individual flower was a different color, making it appear as if a rainbow encircled the body of water. The jade-green grass underneath her feet felt luxuriously plush.

Yukio tugged her gently out of the spell she seemed to be in and led her to a glittering boulder also seated right next to the pond. Upon closer inspection, Kagome had found that embedded in the rock were thousands of tiny diamonds.

She had been reluctant to sit on such rare, beautiful rock, but Yuko had insisted, and when she refused, he had simply picked her up and plunked her down.

So now she sat there. Yukio had gone off to "surprise her", as he had put it. She was a tad nervous, but excited. Yukio seemed like a dream, one that she would soon wake up from.

Yes, indeed, today was very, very good.

Kagome sighed contentedly. Life was perfect. Life with Yukio was perfect. Life with Yukio at this place was perfect. She was glad she would never have to leave…

Wait, she shook her head violently. Wait a second…What was she thinking? She didn't know anymore. She was supposed to be somewhere else, with another person. She knew that much. A dogman? She couldn't love a dog. Could she? And of course she wanted to leave. I just met Yukio.

She realized, with a start, that she was slightly frightened. What is going on? She wasn't frightened of Yukio, of course. Not at all. But at her hazy, dazed state of mind, at her sudden inability to think straight? Yes. She was terribly afraid.

"Kagome!" Yukio's voice filled her ears, and before she knew it, she didn't know anything.

"You're back!" Glee and relief were painfully evident in her tone.

The man slid next to her and slipped an arm around her shoulder. Internally, Kagome squealed with girlish delight.

"Look." He grabbed her hand and lightly placed a flower in her palm. "They were Mother's favorite."

Of course he'd remember his own mother, Kagome justified to herself when the question of his memory came up.

The flower Kagome was now holding was crimson, except for the tips of the petals, which were ivory. The smell wafted to her nose and she relished in it. It smelled of cinnamon and ginger and tangerine…it was so wonderful. Yukio was so wonderful. She loved…

I love Inuyasha! a small part of her screeched silently. I do not love Yukio!

Yet. Another, larger part, said.

"Yukio?" Kagome attempted a smile. She didn't want him to see the battle raging within her.

"Yes, love?" He purred.

Kagome faltered, but then carried on. "It's getting awfully late, don't you think? Maybe we should head home."

Yukio glanced at the setting sun, his face revealing a fleeting look of disappointment. But then he turned and smiled at her. "Of course, Kagome. You're right."

They were quiet on the walk home. She wasn't sure what Yukio's reason was, but she was attempting to not forget the one man she would ever, ever, ever love. Kagome sighed, trying to picture the molten topaz of his eyes, the sincerity of the few smiles he gave, the warmth of his embraces. Inuyasha…

A/N: Holy freaking mother of crappppp!

Last time I updated was OCTOBER OF LAST YEAR! Eeeesh I'm sooooo sorry! Ugh. I'm slamming my face into the wall, just so you know. UGHHH. Please please please forgive me. There are probably many problems with this chapter, so I apologize even more!

Okay, also...As you may have noticed, my writing style has changed drastically over the year. I'm very sorry if anyone doesn't it like it. I tried reverting back to my old style, but I just couldn't do it. So. Yeah. Again, I'm really sorry for the ridiculously long wait. If anyone is still reading this, that is.