Ship in Some Minutes with Dax and Inaki

Wanted this to be out earlier on Patreon and talk about Dax and Inaki's relationship with some specifics.

I've made a bio page for them (you can find it under the Legacy tag) where I properly introduce them, but I thought to talk in a more substantial way about them that (hopefully) solidifies their relationship more for y'all. Admittedly, I also hope it solidifies it some for me as well.

Dax and Inaki get married mostly for practicality. If it were purely for practicality, they would have married someone else. However, they've both known OF each other for a long time. They met briefly when Inaki was barely 17 and Dax was 26. Helek, Dax's brother, was also good friends with Inaki and took time to watch over him. Throughout their lives, they often hear of the other via Helek or others within their respective circles. This consists of the usual gossip you would hear about a person: who they're dating, what successes or failures they've had, etc. They've even met multiple times through Helek or work, but their interactions are always on that level of acquaintances because of a mutual friend. This doesn't change until much later when, during a series of really brutal events for the Creatii Alliance, they actually work together directly for an extended period of time. It's in this time that they get to really put a face to a name they've heard and form their own friendship that goes beyond "Helek's friend/brother."
In a more personal perspective: Dax sees their friendship as a friendly one where he's more than happy to welcome him to his house, have a drink, hang out, etc. but he wouldn't feel devastated if they didn't do it or lost connection. Inaki's a man he mentions in passing and thinks of at times, but he isn't integral to his life. He won't confide in him, won't be overly vulnerable if he can help it, and doesn't trust him enough to sleep with his back to him in the same tent. Inaki admires Dax greatly and thinks of him more as a respected ally than as a friend. It's not that he doesn't want to be friends, but rather that he feels he doesn't deserve to call their relationship that. They aren't close enough and he thinks that if given the choice between speaking with him and another friend, Dax would likely choose to talk to another friend. Inaki does however want to know him more and hopes to become closer with him. Essentially: he has a friend crush on Dax, but isn't going to be negatively effected by not becoming friends beyond being disappointed. And, similar to Dax, he wouldn't think to talk about anything personal with him and would never consider allowing himself to show vulnerability.
Time passes and they keep in touch enough that they trust the other is dependable and generally looking out for their best interest. It just never gets farther than that. I don't think it would go beyond that if things worked out differently. Neither was romantically or sexually attracted to the other enough to make advances that could change their relationship. Both of them just weren't interested in pursuing that kind of relationship as a whole with anyone.
Now things become the way they are because of an issue Inaki has. That is: he's a walking furnace and his body literally cannot facilitate that much magic or the intensity of it. Since this is dedicated to the relationship between these two, I won't go in depth about magic. To sum it up: Inaki comes from a line of incredibly strong mages that have a natural affinity for fire--something that is very common among his and Dax's peoples. However, even though his family has a naturally higher tolerance for using this magic, it can still be very harmful and dangerous; potentially even life-threatening. Inaki has the worst of it with incredibly potent abilities and a body that creates an excess amount of magic that manifests as fire and heat. It's this excess that's basically burning him alive. There's more to how magic works that makes the dilemma even trickier to deal with, but the important thing to know right now is that his life is in danger.
This issue isn't uncommon. Creatiks inherently have this problem because they're creatures that live off of magic. They need it for how their bodies function and how they use magic as a whole. Having one container for all that magic can be rough, but two people working together can manage it much better. It's literally twice as effective! There is a way to literally sync magic abilities. Kinda like...a shared bank account in a way. All the magic is put in the same place and can be taken out by both people just fine. It's an abstract, ancient, and difficult magic to work and it's one that has always been seen as incredibly sacred. Traditionally, it's seen as a chain forged by the Goddess of Day herself which connects two (or more) people on a transcendent level. Needless to say, it doesn't happen for just any one. Over time, it gets used for a specific type of marriage. To the Creatiks of the region, it's seen as a legal, physical, and spiritual binding. You do not have this kind of marriage unless you know for certain this is not a person you would consider divorcing. It takes the "until death shall we part" stance while the other types don't.
This is the best way to ensure Inaki doesn't literally burn himself alive. No one would be encouraging him to do it if it weren't so grave. But it is and so his family and friend do their best to help him figure out who would be the most suitable option. They go through dozens of people, listing pros and cons to each. Why one would be more effective, why though one could be a better emotional support, they wouldn't be able to take that kind of sudden change in magic well. When Helek hears of this, he lists out some people he knows and mentions Dax. Dax isn't the best option in terms of Inaki's attraction to him at that point which has to do mostly with his physiology and a subconscious, learned discomfort with mixed-species Creatiks. However, in the end he believes Dax is the best choice and many agree with it as well. Dax also agrees after many long discussions with his family and close friends.
They get married legally and it happens, Inaki feels instantaneously better and Dax feels like he's getting burned alive for a day, but survives to complain and comes out being able to do a lot more fire tricks than he could before.
Because of this, their relationship inherently changes. While they're still talking about it and laying down ground rules, Dax says that doing this implies that at some level, both of them are okay with the possibility that the relationship could become romantic and/or sexual. It could stay platonic, it could change, or it could do both and then go back to becoming platonic, but no matter what they wouldn't be able to go back. And after a lot of talking, they learn they'r okay with that possibility. For the first few years, there's a level of awkwardness, but a definite partnership forms. With more time, actual romantic feelings develop. Things are never smooth sailing, but they talk A LOT. Dax had learned from previous relationships that the earlier they communicate about things that bugged them, the better. So he pushes for it a lot and they sit down and have countless conversations where they set their boundaries, change them, and repeated the cycle over and over. The thing that makes it work is both of their willingness to work through their problems and make their relationship stronger. It is a slow process that requires them to come to terms with their feelings on their own time, but when they do begin to date in earnest, they don't regret it. On a level, there is this feeling that they have to get along, but they previously had already. The attraction and the potential were there. They wouldn't have married if they thought they weren't already compatible.

I've left a lot out, but I hope that helps give a better foundation for how their relationship developed. I felt like the more I wrote, the more I wanted to say haha. Thank you so much for taking the time to read this though! I appreciate it so much and please do let me know if there's something specific you'd like me to go in depth about!