This heart, it beats for only you. My heart is yours.
Her finger stung. Her middle finger on her left hand stung. It stung so badly her eyes were watering. Blood was pouring down it and she thought she was going to pass out. Seeing her own blood had always made her a bit ill, and this was very visible.
She was staring at the blood on her hand, not sure where she was going, dazed. She had a sense of vertigo, and she swayed as she walked, stumbling, and eventually catching her entire weight against a tree, and stayed there. Maybe I've lost more blood than I thought. But she didn't think to cover it. She had to find InuYasha.
She didn't know where he had gone. Probably to see Kikyou. The thought crossed her mind without her consent, and she slid into a sitting position, feeling defeated. Kikyou …
Her one downfall. She couldn't compete with Kikyou.
She closed her eyes, feeling weary, forgetting about the middle finger on her left hand, which was staining her shirt crimson.
A hand was on her shoulder, a voice begging her to wake up.
She moaned and closed her eyes more tightly. She was vaguely aware that she murmured out, "I don't want to wake up. It hurts too much."
The hand moved to her own, and a hiss of breath came at what she figured was the sight of the blood cakes on her hand. Then warmth and wetness, and she gasped as her eyes shot open, to see the white-haired demon boy that she adored licking away the red liquid. He looked up and his amber eyes met her chocolate eyes, and he gave a tentative smile. "Are you alright?"
She just gazed at him, not answering, for a long time, then looked away and whispered, "Where'd you go?"
He sat back on his heels, astonished. "Where did I go? I've been looking for you for hours."
Kagome's head shot up. "But. You left. You said you were …" she trailed off.
He leaned forward, so that their faces were just inches apart, and stared her in the eye. "I said what?"
Her face flushed, but she whispered out, "… going to find Kikyou."
InuYasha blinked and sat back. "Kikyou's dead."
"I know," she whispered, fiddling with the hem of her skirt with her unhurt hand. "But … I didn't know not to believe it. I mean, you have gone to find her before and –."
She cut off rather abruptly as InuYasha pressed his lips against her jaw. Her eyes widened, and she wondered what had just happened as he pulled away. But then she wasn't thinking because he was pulling her with him, and he wrapped his arms around her waist.
Kagome tensed, then smiled and relaxed, her head settling against his collarbone.
"Kikyou," he whispered against her earlobe, "is the past. You are my present, and my future, and I wouldn't give you up for anything – not even to have Kikyou back."
Kagome looked up at him, gave him a soft smile, and touched a hand to his face. He squeezed it, careful of her injured finger, and she couldn't ever remember him being this gently. He kissed her palm, and each finger, like a warm caress, and finally came close enough for their lips to touch. It wasn't a kiss, but a connection, like a spark.
Kagome held her breath expectantly, until finally he leaned into her, consuming her mouth, and she melted into him, pressing entirely against him, wanting to disappear inside that beautiful kiss.
It was all she had ever wanted, really. She had just wanted to feel beautiful beneath his lips.