The previous day was long and difficult in many ways, even for Inabayama - and that is DESPITE the fact that all the heavy lifting was NOT done by her! No, the dragon could only imagine how tiresome, both mentally and physically, it was for Hiei. Frankly, she would've been surprised if Gardevoir didn't practically fall unconscious the moment she allowed herself to relax (which she absolutely did).

Inabayama also fell asleep relatively quickly - though given her lack of sleep in the past few days, that still meant catching up on some rest. And that is exactly why she woke up to the already familiar sound of Hiei purring (which probably meant she was already awake). And that was frankly amazing (though the dragon still did not plan to mention it any time soon), if short-lived, as the Gardevoir was fairly quick to notice her being relatively mentally present.

"Uh… Morning, Hiei…" Inabayama attempted her best to cut through the mental fog, but it was just a tad too early for that, "Oh, did you catch us a breakfast?.."

"Indeed," Hiei confirmed, then looking ponderously at the dragon, "Also, this might come as a surprise, but I believe that I'm in love with you."

And THAT was a phrase that kicked the rest of the sleep out of Inabayama's body with a force far exceeding any strike she lived through to this day.

"Oh."

The dragon felt as if the world slowed down around her, as she tried to both process the foundational information presented to her, and her own thoughts on the matter, all the while registering those scarlet eyes thoughtfully peering into her being.

"Are you… Sure?.." Inabayama sneakily pinched her own cheek, just to check if she was sleeping.

Ouch.

"Absolutely. You are pretty, you are strong, you are smart, you are emotionally intelligent, but most of all, you get me. Now that I think about it, it would frankly be strange if I did not develop feelings for someone as outstanding as you. Or rather, for you in particular."

Okay, first of all - WOW. She did NOT expect that. To be frank, the dragon figured that Gardevoir was completely out of her league, and would not settle for someone so… So Inabayama. Like, she might be confident enough in her power (slightly less so after meeting Hiei though), but she was vaguely aware of her own shortcomings and, to be completely honest, also worth. The last few decades were enough of an eyeopener on that front. And yet, for some reason, the former King of the Mountain saw her as someone worthy of affection?

Second of all - okay, the Goodra had to admit, that she MIGHT have had a bit of a crush on this gorgeous, impossibly powerful lady. But she was not sure how to act on it in regards to Hiei - or if she should've had even done so in the first place. As far as Inabayama could tell, the Gardevoir had much bigger fish to fry than minute, messy feelings of a stray dragon. And yet, apparently, Hiei felt that it was just the time to subvert such expectation as well.

And third of all…

Was…

Was she ready… To trust?

Don't get her wrong, when Inabayama offered her help in pre-planned deicide, she meant every word of it. Hunting down an almighty God required power, cunning and perseverance - and she had those in spades. What it did NOT require was TRUST. Not to the ultimate degree. Worst case scenario, whoever she went on that hunt with, backstabbed her literally or figuratively, either killing her outright, or leaving her to fend for herself in a REALLY bad situation. She could deal with that any day of the week, like she had been for a long, long time.

But love? Love required far more trust than that. Far more than having a crush. Love required to open her heart, to LEAVE it open, and to trust someone to keep her heart safe. A betrayal on this level left scars that went far deeper. Scars that could be felt for the rest of one's life. Agonisingly painful scars that warped one's entire being around them, the same way a black hole does to everything it touches.

And she was betrayed - really betrayed - once already.

True, she picked up the pieces of what was left of her, and pulled them together into what she could vaguely recognise as herself, but… This was not her old self. It could not be her old self anymore. In fact, she was pretty sure that if she had ever met her old self, the poor young Inabayama would've been terrified of this- this THING she would become. This horrible, violent, distrustful thing with a deep, seething hatred towards her late ex-trainer in particular, and humans in general.

Would her now-self be terrified of her own possible betrayed future self?

Would that possible future self even exist?

Because she was not sure if she'd be able to even pick herself back together after another betrayal like that. To even live afterwards.

So… She could just say 'no'.

That would've been the safer thing to do. From what she had seen, Hiei would not hold it against her, and they would proceed with their journey as if nothing had happened. The Gardevoir would just put all of her apparent feelings in a box, hide it in the deepest part of her mind, and go back to business without much of a second thought. Hell, even IF this was some sort of a less reasonable, alternate version of Hiei that would kill the Goodra for daring to say 'no', it would've still been the safer way to go - a minute of absolute, mindbreaking agony before the endless oblivion of death was preferable to a life of anguish.

And yet…

Wasn't it worth the risk?..

Ever since violently setting herself free, Inabayama simply survived. Regardless of how powerful she was, of how cunning she was, she could never afford anything other than to scrape by. Always hunted down by humans whenever she slipped. Always in too much danger to allow herself to settle.

Always alone.

And oh, she might not have noticed it while being on the run, with the feeling being an everpresent, background noise, but meeting Hiei made her realise just how much she HATED being alone. And the mere thought of returning to that same life made her feel like she wouldn't make it. Like she would break.

The Gardevoir was the first living being she had met in decades who she did not automatically endanger just by being nearby. Who even genuinely enjoyed her company. The first meaningful relationship since the well-deserved demise of that rich brat all those years ago.

And as much as she hated her own cowardice, she was not brave enough to leave. To face that crushing loneliness once more. To be, once more, completely and utterly alone.

She could also say that she didn't want a relationship, but intended to stick with Hiei. To support her, and to help her realise her ambition. To be her friend.

That would've solved her apparent loneliness problem, true. And while the Gardevoir might've claimed that she did not know just how long she still had to live, Inabayama was fairly certain that she'd be able to make good of this promise for decades, if not centuries, if needed be. Despite how low energy Hiei constantly was, she made an impression that she still had at least as much of a lifespan as she already lived through. And having a close friend that could live for about as long as the Goodra herself would've been amazing.

Which… Still left one tiny, diminutive, absolutely minuscule issue on the dragon's hands.

Hiei kinda checked all of her boxes.

This woman was gorgeous, powerful, frightening, surprisingly capable of overwhelming violence, and yet was passionate, knowledgeable and level-headed. The dragon was yet to notice a single fault in the Gardevoir - and THAT was exactly the issue.

She did not trust herself not to start crushing even harder on this scary lady.

And Hiei deserved better than to confess her love to someone, being said "no, let's just be friends", and then have them quietly and insufferably crush on her for years and centuries to come.

No, just the thought of someone, of ANYONE playing with Hiei's feelings like that was enough to fill Inabayama with seething, murderous rage. And the thought of the dragon HERSELF being said someone was NOT helping said rage in the slightest. This Gardevoir deserved better, SO much better than some feebleminded, cowardly, pathetic scum like that. No, Hiei's feelings were only to be met with utter respect.

Which meant… That if she could not bear the thought of leaving Hiei, she had to face Gardevoir's feelings with absolute honesty. And while Inabayama still did not believe herself being worthy of Hiei's love - the Gardevoir herself, for some inexplicable reason, believed otherwise.

So…

She would trust Hiei.

She would trust Hiei with her own fragile, barely stitched together heart. And she would ask for that same level of trust.
It would require work - just like any other relationships based on trust and mutual understanding - but she could put in all that necessary work. Both for her own sake, and for Hiei's sake.

One last time.

"I'm… I'm also in love with you, Hiei. To be honest, you're kinda everything I ever wanted in a partner, to the point where I thought you were too good for someone like me. But if you'll have me… Then I promise that I'll be with you for as long, as you let me," the Goodra had finally answered, noting a pang of surprise in those scarlet eyes, as if they did not expect this kind of answer. Snickering, she nuzzled against Gardevoir's cheek, "But if you break my heart, I'm killing you, and then myself"

"You know, fair," Hiei murmured, her embrace getting slightly tighter, "Also, likewise, Inabayama"