I opened my eyes and jolted upright, gasping and feeling strong arms tighten around me. They pulled me back gently, pressing me against a strong, warm body. "Shh, Em. It's okay. I'm right here." a familiar voice whispered in my ear.

I froze, tears springing to my eyes. It couldn't be, yet I could feel him right there next to me, cradling me in his arms. I looked up to see a face I thought I'd never see again. "Tsume." I whimpered, leaning into him and starting to cry.

He rubbed my back, rocking gently. "Em, it's okay, I'm right here. I'm here now."

I looked up at him, sniffling and blinking away tears only to have more replace them. "But how? How are you here?" All the sudden my eyes went wide and I started crying harder. "I'm dead, aren't I?"

Tsume shook his head, gesturing to our surroundings. "Look around, Em. Does this look like Heaven or Hell to you?"

I did as he said. I wiped my eyes and looked around. My vision was greeted by a small cave, a fire dancing in front of us and my wet, sopping clothes drying off next to it. I was wrapped in a rough blanket, and the storm still raged on outside. I was sitting on Tsume's lap, his arms wrapped around me, protecting and comforting.

"I'm not dead?"

He looked down at me as I looked into the fire, brushing a wet curl away from my face. "Not anymore."

I looked up at him, up into his worried and caring amber eyes, those beautiful amber eyes that I thought I'd lost forever. Tears sprung to my eyes again but I kept them back. "What do you mean?"

"I escaped from that man a few days ago and I'd been following after you and the pack, trying to catch up. When I got to the lake I found a patch of broken ice. The pack had left that spot, but your scent didn't follow." He paused for a second, looking like he was struggling with some inner emotion that he didn't let show on his face. "I jumped in and found you at the bottom. You were cold, but not dead cold. Just cold, from the water. So I brought you up to the surface and got you breathing again. I used that CRP or whatever the humans call it. I guess you hadn't been gone long because you came back. So I brought you here and now you've woken up."

His slightly cold hand went up to my neck, which hurt at his touch. I had bruises there, but he was gently rubbing them. It actually felt better. "What happened? Why is your neck bruised?"

I sighed and leaned my head on his chest, hearing his heart beat underneath. He was really here. I smiled a little, cuddling into him. "Kiba got mad at me, for taking us across the plains and the lake. He thought I was going to kill them all. We started to fight, and the ice cracked. The piece we were standing on flipped over, trapping us in the water. He choked me."

He froze then, his soft, worried expression hardening into something shocked and full of rage. "Kiba did this to you?" His voice was quiet, but only because he was holding back his fury.

I just nodded. Something sparked in his eyes then, something dark and pissed and blood thirsty. He was thirsty for blood, alright. Kiba's blood. I hadn't seen this look on his face before, and it honestly scared me. He looked like he was going to rip Kiba's head off.

"He killed you?" he snarled through gritted teeth, his fists clenching. "That f*cking bastard! Who the hell does he think he is? What on earth made-"

I put a hand to his cheek, frowning. "Please don't. Not now. If he hadn't you wouldn't of found me."

"Yeah, but maybe later on I would of found you actually alive."

"I'm alive now. Isn't that enough?"

He sighed and relaxed, shaking his head. "I'll get him for this, but I'll drop it for now." I smiled a little and nodded, thanking him. He tightened his arms around me and leaned down. "It's been too long."

And then he kissed me. I felt tears spill out of my closed eyes. It had been too long, too horrible, not knowing if he was alive or dead. But he was here now, with me. He was back, he was safe, and he was with me. His warm mouth moved gently against mine, his body familiar as he pulled me closer. His arms tightened again, holding me so close I couldn't even expand my rib cage all the way.

"Don't ever let go." I whispered when we pulled away for air.

"I won't." he whispered back, his lips brushing against mind and then locking together.

He traveled his hands up my back, twining them in my hair. My arms were wrapped around his neck, his grey pony tail wrapped around one of my fingers. His kiss tasted like relief and care and love and desire. This is what we both wanted. Each other, right here, right now. just us and nothing else. I slid one of my hands to his cheek, only to find it wet with tears. I started to cry then too. Tsume was crying and it touched me in a way that nothing else could. It was then, right there, when I realized that I love him.