Broken Antler Fen Absolute zero

There was a deliberate pause before she replied. Tambourine braced himself, wary of it, though he was more prepared to learn she already had a suitor than for the words that actually came out of her mouth. First came mild surprise, then a sense of dejection he couldn't quite help nipping at its heels. Should he bother telling her he didn't care about having any more children? But Wraen spoke so succinctly; she surely knew her own mind. Tambourine figured it would only be a disservice to both of them trying to change it.

He nodded his acknowledgement, then smiled, though it didn't quite reach his pale eyes as his visions of a date night quickly dissolved in the face of such certainty. "Well, your candor is appreciated," he replied with a dip of his snout before thinking to add, "as is your friendship." Some small part of him still wished he could convince her otherwise, show her what he was worth, but he would respect the boundary she'd set.

He waved his tail to demonstrate his good faith, then laughed a little self-deprecatingly as he decided to share with her, "I'm not sure about romance myself. I'm going on five and I've never tied the knot." It wasn't something he particularly pictured for himself, it was just that something about Wraen had finally caught his attention in that special way. It was a bummer the feeling wasn't mutual. They were both entirely whole on their own, though a romance would've been a nice added bonus.