Disclaimer: I own nothing from Guilty Crown and everything belongs to their respective owners.

Is This Love?

"Have you fallen in love with him?" As soon as the words left Gai's mouth, Inori knew that she couldn't answer him. It wasn't because she was sure of her answer; no, it was the exact opposite.

"I don't know, Gai." she shook her head, crimson eyes half closed as she brought her hand up to her heart. "Have I fallen in love with Shu?"

What is love? The thought beckoned at her mind as a slight frown appeared on her face. She didn't verbalize the question; she knew Gai had more important things to be worrying about than answering that for her. Still…

'Love' seemed like a very foreign word to her. Was the way Gai had taken her in, given her a purpose and name, was that love? Did he feel love towards her? Most likely not; if anything, it would have been more familial love or mutual respect. She felt respect for Gai.

Was what she felt towards her comrades, towards Ayase and Tsugumi, love? Shu had once asked her if they were her 'friends.' The mutual trust and worry that she felt for them, for everyone who took part of Funeral Parlor's dangerous missions, must have been similar to the 'friendship' he had been describing.

Shu… when she thought of the brown-haired boy and all they had been through, her chest tightened. It was a sickening, unfamiliar feeling. Their last meeting… when he had slapped her hand away… it wasn't a memory that she liked to dwell on. The song crystal had shattered on the ground; the boy unable to ever listen to it. Of course, if she sang it to him directly, then the boy would hear, but it was unlikely that she would ever see Shu again.

Was the way that her heart sped up when he smiled, when she felt tears threaten when he became disheartened and depressed, was that love? Like the unfamiliar cold feeling she had felt when he had been turned over to the government – that feeling that she never got to ask him about – was that greater than the everyday worry that she would feel for her friends?

Gai had looked at her, eyes calculating as she thought. The semi-darkness of the room did nothing to sever the familiarity of it. Shu had stood on the other side of the curtain at her request. He had been here too, which only served to remind her of him.

She shifted slightly at the thought, finding that the natural thing to do was direct her thoughts away from him… forever even. That didn't explain why she found the task near impossible. Maybe it was his near constant presence since he had 'joined' Funeral Parlor; maybe she wasn't used to that being gone yet.

"Survive first," Gai's words brought her back to the present as he walked past her. "Then you'll figure that out."

The man left a moment after, his advice ringing in her mind. Inori stood there, staring at the wall and a moment beyond that. Despite Shu saying that he would quit, that they wouldn't see each other again, he would come for them.

The thought caused another fluttering in her chest; this time it was warm and comforting. The worry she felt since he could be hurt was still there, but the feeling caused a small smile on her face.

She left the room a moment after, closing the door behind her. As she walked down the hall in order to finish preparing for the mission, a realization came to her. She knew that she would accept it when she saw him again – that she might even say it out loud to him – but for now she would keep it hidden in her heart.

This is love.

I haven't finished the whole anime for Guilty Crown (I'm only… 11 episodes in, I think) but I wanted to get this out there while I could. This is… sort of a test as to writing Inori (it's hard to gauge how to write her, considering so far she hasn't shown much emotion-wise) so I hope that I did her justice. I had this idea when the moment came in the anime and I apologize if the direct quotes are a bit off… this was a spur of the moment sort of thing. Either way, please let me know your thoughts and I hope you enjoyed this!

-AnimeWolfGirl9