However overwhelming it seemed at first to suddenly see the other almost bounce towards hir with joy, the hybrid stayed calm. Deciding it was time to relax, shi put on a gentle and soft smile. It was time for a change and Krynn would do hir best to protect instead of killing needlessly for once.
"No, it's I who should be thanking you.."
The beast planted a soft kiss on Crimson's cheek, close to the corner of her mouth. The affection could have been deciphered as the monster already teasing the other, but to hir it was a simple affection to be returned.
And Krynn was right. Shi should be the one thanking Crimson to offering her own house. The only other major thing that scratched at the back of the mind- Would her children even like Krynn? Afterall, Krynn wasn't exactly fluffy like shi had been in hir previous body. Shi was more scaly skin, albeit near velvet in feel, more spikes, talons enough to scare most any child. Shi was the very definition of what most had made hir out to be in the past life.
Without giving a second thought to it, Krynn pulled Crimson in close and held her there, embracing her in a hug until she felt the need to break it.

The kiss she got in return was more than enough, but the embrace made Crimson's heart race. She'd been dreaming of something like this for over a year, a chance to be so close to Krynn again, to be embraced by her, and to be hugging her back, a dream come true. She wanted to wrap her tail around the hybrid's leg in a show of affection and closeness but held off for now, smiling and enjoying every breath that brought Krynn's scent to her. There was no need to be thanked, this was definitely better than a simple thank you after all.

The kids weren't something the dragoness was concerned about. Scarlet was the kind to smile at anyone no matter how menacing they looked. Black might be scarier to Krynn than vice versa the way she liked to dress and act sometimes, the boys probably wouldn't admit it even if they did get scared, and Hinata, well, might be the only one to worry about but probably not if all the others were "acting tough" at the same time.

It seemed that the hug was well and appreciated by the other. The beast did not know, or, moreover, understand why shi had felt the impulse to embrace Crimson so closely.
It was almost as if shi were acting suddenly overprotective. No, it was not the sense of being overprotective, just friendly.
As of right now Krynn truly had no reason to look for love or try and attempt to remotely phase others to trust hir when hir intentions were meant for otherwise. Shi needed to figure out what shi wanted for hirself before allowing others into it. For instance, shi needed to make a choice between living in the darkness or living within a commune and having others see hir for what shi truly was. Naturally as confusing as it was, this was a decision to be made over time.
However, tonight shi would have to return to the dungeons again, for at least one more night. Once in a while shi would have to return there if for hir only sanity. Even if that meant chaining hirself up to keep hirself from hurting others.

Crimson had been so overwhelmingly happy at Krynn's acceptance that for a moment she overlooked the thought that if the hybrid had been here she must have been staying somewhere. Probably... probably not with someone else but still. She shouldn't rush things, shouldn't force the hybrid to come home with her instantly. The dragoness almost purred as she kept hugging Krynn, thinking about how wonderful it would be to have her around more often. She'd never really had the pleasure to spend much time with her before her death... well... aside from the time she was stuck with her and in chains. What could she possibly say to express her feelings on the matter? And what would Krynn say to what her lodgings would be if she did happen to come "home" right now?

Such confusing thoughts were swirling and twirling and dancing around in Krynn's head. Such things were often thought to be forbidden in most cases, but for most of this particular case, it could be made into an exception.
Well, now was as good a time as any to ask a few questions.
However, that seeping purr escaped just enough for the hybrid to hear. It made hir smile slightly.

True that neither had been allowed a true moment alone, seeing as almost every single waking moment of hir life there had always been that darkened drive to do something about the happiness of others and kill it off in despair. Other times the old body had often become sickened and weak or another would come and interrupt them. Any other time and Krynn was usually kept under survelliance and locked within that cage of a hospital room, treated just like animal if not worse.
No, stop it. It was not time to be thinking of those times.
Something's on your mind.."
Shi chided softly.

"Mmm, yes, something's on my mind. And I bet there's a few things on yours too. So let's share. I was thinking I shouldn't try to press you to come home with me tonight, and even if I did it'd take a bit of figuring out for the sleeping arrangements." Of course she was more than happy to share her room and even her bed. It was just difficult trying to express that, and wondering if Krynn would take it as a "please sleep with me" or as "I trust you and want you to be comfortable." Really she wasn't trying to rush anything or to force certain emotions to come up but it was hard after the time they'd been apart. And with the way things had ended... she knew just about anything could be a touchy subject. "Now it's your turn to share something on your mind."

Naturally Krynn wanted to take it as I want you in my bed now, but given the circumstances she filled in the blank with the latter. To the hybrid, after so long of living in the dark and waiting for hir next meal, shi had become very accustomed to sleeping on stone floors or the rafters or anywhere shi felt like sleeping at the time. There was, or had been, no one place where shi slept on a regular basis. Heck once shi had slept upside from the rafters until Blake had come back.
Well, shi hadn't planned on sharing anything from hir mind right away, or ever for that matter. Yet somehow, for some reason, that red dragoness was able to get to hir everytime.
"I was just thinking, if your worried about the sleeping arrangements, I sleep just about anywhere. But if your really worried about comfort then it can always wait. I won't force you to take me into your home or make room for me if your tight on space. I can always come visit whenever you want me to."
As always, the hybrid spoke softly. A little touchy, yes, but at least shi was letting it get talked out.

"Oh no, if you'd like to come any time you can stay, there's room if you don't mind the floor for one night before getting something better set up. I just didn't want to make it sound like you had to pick the floor if you wanted to come home tonight." Heck if Krynn really wanted to she could sleep in the kitchen downstairs or on the roof, or anywhere in between. And now that she thought about the kitchen the dragoness wondered if Krynn still had her... particular diet. Fresh meat or nothing, not hard for her to provide but not as exciting or challenging to prepare. She'd agree that it could still taste great but being a cook she preferred something with a little extra effort. Maybe she should ask about her food? "Oh, um, are you hungry by any chance? Just wondering."

Naturally now it occurs to Krynn that shi usually had some form of meal in the middle of the night. And lack of paying attention shi had tilted hir head to the side.
Sure thing of all this, Krynn was a little more at ease with hir thoughts. It was sad to feel more at ease when not having to share a bed than being told to deliberately sleep outside just for the safety of the other's children. Krynn deserved no trust after past events. Shi understood that very well.
"Easy there. I would probably choose a place that was discreet so your kids wouldn't think I'm some kind of burglar."
And yet shi wasn't about deny the fact shi'd love to sleep in the same bed as her. The hybrid was just iffy about it seeing as shi did not want to chance hurting Crimson without meaning to. After shi had spoke, the creature gave an odd barely audible chuckle, another rare thing from Krynn.
When the question of food had been brought up, ears went back as hir stomach growled quietly.
"Well I am a little..."
The look shi had by now was that of one a child would give when embarressed of being hungry.

Crimson smiled at her friend's response, giving her a firm kiss on the cheek. "Well you know I'm more than happy to help with that. Come home with me, we'll stop by the kitchen and even if you decide not to stay the night yet, at least we can have a late evening meal together. You still have a diet of pretty much just fresh meat right?" She did have plenty of food at the restaurant but by this time of night the fresh meat was in a freezer or getting delivered in... at least another six hours? Unless they caught something on their way back, something substantial. Was it odd, or wrong, to just imagine Krynn happily tearing into her food and being a little "cuddly" with the hybrid at the same time? Probably, but if the opportunity came up she just might take it anyway. And her laugh, Crimson was pretty sure there wasn't anything wrong with loving that sound and wanting to hear it more often.

It was hard to understand still why Crimson was wanting to keep hir around and practically pick up where they had left off before the darker side of things had taken its toll on hir before.
"Well yeah... but.. I've been slowly trying to eat other things as well but I don't know if I've been as successful as just raiding the meat lockers for fresh slabs.."
Shi smirked, although a tad nervous at admitting to something that most would not dare admit to.
Feeling the dragoness kissing hir cheek, the hybrid blushed badly as shi looked away. That crush that had always been there in the past was still there, lingering around and stirring old feelings.

"Nothing wrong with that. Maybe a few little things added in on the meat will help if you really want to expand your diet." If anyone could help her find a way around getting sick from normal foods it would be Crimson. She took immense pride in her cooking skills and the talent to turn around even the pickiest of eaters. Often little kids who would only eat a hot dog, a burger, or mac and cheese came through and their parents would be pleasantly surprised when they tried something new.

She wondered how strong the hybrid's feelings for her were. There was a clear desire to avoid hurting her but there was a chance that was just a sort of side effect from their last encounter. If it hadn't been for her kidnapping Krynn probably wouldn't have been killed in the first place, but the dragoness was pretty darn sure it was more than that. There were real feelings, whether left over from the previous life or new to this one she didn't really care. All she knew was her own feelings hadn't changed much in the hybrid's absence.

Krynn's heart raced a little. It kept leaping into hir throat as it did a fast pitter pat, causing hir chest to ache a bit. How could shi not get around to liking the dragoness again? It was pretty hard to ignore the feelings of both past and present. And the beast was pretty certain that even if shi ended up dying once again with Crimson as the cause, and resurrected, shi would still have the same feelings for hir just as before. The only thing shi hoped for this time around, was to die protecting instead of letting the darker spirit have its own happiness in killing her.
Expanding hir diet had never really been the problem in the past, but hir current body was so used to nothing but raw meat and every once in a while, going out into the forest in search of cattails and johnson to munch on to solve hir sweet tooth. Shi did want hir body to crave other things instead of just meat. It had only been recent that shi could eat those things, it took even longer to get the hang of gripping with hir hands after years of being nothing more than a spirit floating around and pestering everyone.
"Ah... Okay.. We can try it, I don't want to start out with too much though, I don't want to ruin it if it doesn't sit well in the end.."
Shi spoke quietly, trying to hide the fluster in hir voice.
It was hard to concentrate with hir heart beating so fast. Somehow the red dragon always had that affect on hir. No matter what they were doing, shi always felt a little awkward and uncertain with her. The hybrid rarely knew which way to go with everything they had done in the past, but nonetheless shi had always followed without a second thought when Crimson led the way. It was sad to admit, Krynn was like a puppy around Crimson.

"Oh of course, little steps at a time, not rushing anything." Crimson started off at a fair pace but she made sure Krynn was still with her, and keeping up. The dragoness didn't want to take too much of a lead, she was afraid if she did it would only lead to the hybrid choosing to run off in another direction with a bit of a head start. No, she needed to stop worrying about that and start focusing on everything else. Helping Krynn with her diet slowly, if she wanted to be able to eat other things of course. Getting her used to the kids... she wasn't so much worried about the kids getting used to her really. If anything Scarlet would be too "happy" and some of the others might be too annoying for Krynn to be comfortable around at first. Each of them could easily stand up for themselves by now if they had to, the challenge was helping her long lost friend learn how to deal with them and not seem too scary.

She was trying to stay calm and not show how thrilled she was, but the dragoness' tail swaying back and forth and the bounce in her step would be obvious to anyone. She wouldn't hide the fact that she always had a bit of a crush on Krynn, she normally hadn't advertised it either because of what most people thought of her but the dragoness always had a soft spot for her and wanted her to have a better lot in life. And now it felt as though that chance had finally come, she wasn't going to let the hybrid down.

Krynn followed with slight hesitation at first, but hir curiousity still got to hir in the end still. Shi did notice the bounce in the red dragons' steps that led to the other smirking a bit, although shi did not notice that tail swaying with little care until it almost tripped hir.
Thankfully Krynn had amazing balance, despite how tall shi was now, and kept on walking. Looking around as shi walked, the hybrid almost ran into Crimson when she had stopped briefly. Blushing and giving an apoligetic smile, hir ears fell back and looked away until the other began walking again.
The beast kept wondering why shi was so nervous around Crimson. Sure Crimson was a big crush this monster had, always having thought that the phase would pass. But yet instead it had stayed and grew bigger every time Crimson had made a small gesture or lightly touched hir. That wasn't even the beginning of it either.
Krynn had quite a bit of things that shi needed to tell Crimson and be truthful, but how could shi tell her that shi wasn't the Krynn she cared for? The true Krynn that she cared for was actually Inno, the almost mirror image of Krynn's old body when shi was just a baby a long time ago. The only difference between the dead body and Inno was the child had green hair, Krynn had black. How could the demon explain that shi was actually the monster that wanted to kill and die? It was going to be a good several months, maybe even years, before shi could even bare to begin telling Crimson everything.
But would she listen and be able to accept hir still?