Hushed Willows east of the sun

Valiant was beginning to think that this wasn't a faerie after all. Except he was pointedly not thinking that, because regardless of how sincere and convincing Alejandro was, Valiant just couldn't wrap his head around the concept. Especially not while continuing to be as bullheaded about it as he was.

That, and he thought that Alejandro was oversimplifying things. He had goals — goals that had been given to him, but goals none the less — that required he play by a certain set of rules. Success, in his family, meant a strong mate and a passel of sons and daughters. You weren't a man without these things. And even if he could have both — unlikely, he thought — Valiant couldn't help but feel that there was something wrong with him for liking the idea of Alejandro so much more than the future he was supposed to have.

"I wanna know you," he said instead of all this. He had still not quite been convinced that any of this was okay, but for a chance at... whatever he was feeling, he was willing to play outside the rules. "Do you stay around here?"