Hushed Willows east of the sun

I apologize for the exposition

Although Valiant had left, ostensibly, to seek his father, he'd really spent the last several months travelling between Round Valley and White Spine. Neither truly felt like home, even though he'd spent a lot of time within the former. Sunspot was always ready to welcome him with a ceremonial hunt. The other yearlings were all growing as quickly as he was, and Skraeling's lone daughter was being spoiled beyond all recovery. Next year, Sunspot said, her daughters would be ready to take mates and have children of their own. Silversong and Blueridge had left together to seek greener pastures, but Valkyrie and Saturnalia were both sticking around. Several times, he'd caught his family hinting at how he might make a suitable husband for one or both of them.

There was less pressure at White Spine. Easy had become almost like a mother to him, except she was quite transparently absorbed with her own newborn children. Dutch and Eldest were cute, granted, but he was still a little jealous. Even so, it was nice to be welcomed into the smaller, quieter pack. He felt big and strong and important when he walked the borders and caught his own scent in the breeze — but there were no prospects for him, here, and every time he caught Easy's eye he remembered that he was supposed to be finding his father and earning his name and he was not.

So he was back in the Teekon Wilds, studiously avoiding his other aunt's pack. He could not, after all, spend his whole life living on the charity of his aunts.

The willows were his first stop, because he missed them dearly, and because he was still keeping up the facade of searching, just in case he ran into anyone he knew. The scent of other wolves was disconcerting, and he spent several long moments investigating these before venturing further into the territory. Presently, he found the rose glade where he'd spent many happy hours as a young child. His tail whisked in idle pleasure as he scratched his back against the fragrant, prickly brambles.

Alejandro had found nothing of true interest in this place as of yet. Travel was his forte, though, and he was certainly enjoying being apart from the Consortium, where he could be his own individual person. Still, the fact that he'd yet to encounter his nephews - or any other St. Clairs, really - was a bit concerning. He'd yet to see a single spot on a wolf at all since he left. 

This place, however, was lovely. Rose bushes and willows surrounded the St. Clair as he strode through the territory. The mercenary was not at all concerned about the fact that he might run into someone else in the brush - perhaps one who was not as friendly as he. 

And, speak of the devil, an individual appeared - white and silver against the thorns. The man smirked, watching the other for a moment before he decided to speak. "Salut l'ami." he called amiably, brushing against the flowering brambles as he approached. "It's a lovely day, isn't it?"

Valiant's ears flicked toward the sound of another's approach. Somehow, he hadn't expected to run into anyone during his little trip down memory lane. The willows were a sacred place within his memories, but the presence of an interloper quickly began to erode this concept. That was disheartening — but at least there might soon be good company.

His nose twitched inquisitively as the other emerged from the brambles. He noticed first that this was not one of the wolves that now frequented his birthplace, and second that the wolf was very pretty. Which would have been fine, except the other's scent was distinctly male.

What? Valiant thought to himself, wondering if he'd been transported to another realm when utter nonsense came out of the stranger's mouth. Perhaps he'd followed the trail of a predatory fae Sunspot liked to warn them about, and was now about to be eaten. This doubt followed him even as the stranger offered a more conventional greeting, and showed on Valiant's face as he began to suspect that the "wolf" before him was the one that'd lured him into this trap. It would explain his confusing allure, at least.

"Yes, lovely," said Valiant, struggling to recall how one was supposed to tell a fae in disguise from a real wolf. The problem was that there were so very many different kinds of faeries; black dogs and banshees, boggarts and ghouls, the selk and the dryads. Which ones were dangerous? Even if he could remember this, he couldn't recall which ones were supposed to be beautiful.

He'd always thought the really pretty ones were supposed to look like girls.

And, well — maybe it was a very confused fae? Maybe it didn't quite know how wolves worked, and so it had a female body and a male scent, and so it was really just fine that Valiant thought he — she — was beautiful.

All this was getting him nowhere.

"Are you hungry?" he asked, thinking that a gift of food might help him escape this encounter unscathed. If the fae was looking for a meal, he hoped he could provide one that was not himself.

please forgive him for being so dumb

not at all! i loved it <3

Well, this one certainly was a starer, wasn't he? 

Alejandro had had many admirers in the past, and occasionally in the present, but it wasn't often that he had starers like this. Usually, it was just cursory glances - subtle appraisement and interest. This guy, though, had his eyes glued to him, near dumbstruck. Cute, but subtlety clearly wasn't his strong suit. 

It wasn't much Alejandro's either, though.

Of course, the man would have no clue of the faeries that this wolf thought he was. Perhaps, if he did, he'd liken himself to one of those black dogs. Conflicting accounts of whether or not he was sinister or benevolent, with a strong leaning to the former. In truth, he could be either, depending on who he was talking to. 

The attraction here was rather obvious to the St. Clair, however, and a smirk crossed his maw. Icy eyes scanned the boy over - he wasn't too bad himself; even had some little dapples on his legs. Taller than Alejandro, but that wasn't a grand feat. 

"Oh, of course," he responded, turning coy eyes to meet the boy's rose gold. "You wouldn't know where I might find something to eat around here, would you?"

Oh shit! It was hungry, and oh god it was looking right at him. Valiant felt the creature's gaze sweep over his legs, almost as if deciding where to bite first. His tail dropped almost between his legs and gave a nervous little whisk.

"I can get food," he said with deep conviction, taking a quick, hopping step back from the hungry fae. "There's good rabbit hunting here in the foothills. Or — I mean, whatever you're hungry for, I can catch it. Prey things. I'm a good hunter."

He was better, at least, than he'd been the last time he was in the willows. Good enough to feed a hungry fae who didn't even know a boy wolf from a girl wolf, at least. That was comforting because he didn't want to be eaten, and also because — for some stupid reason — he really wanted to impress the fae with his hunting prowess. Maybe it would grant him a wish or tell him a story, or they could just be friends. He could never tell any of his aunts, of course, but it might be a cool story to tell his children one day.

"Tell me what you're hungry for and I'll catch it," he said, forgetting his fears and warming to the idea of earning the beautiful creature's favor. He had heard stories from his aunt and sisters that his grandfather had married a river spirit who had taken the shape of a beautiful shewolf. Maybe this creature could be persuaded to become is wife one day as well.

Well, this was adorable. The fear that he was inspiring in the boy was cute, to say the least, and it brought a smile to Alejandro's face. Of course he wasn't going to hurt him - he had no need to, and... well, this boy was so eager to please. 

A new toy! supplied the more devious part of the St. Clair's mind. It could certainly be fun to make a game of this, but there was something about the white wolf's naivety that was near enchanting. Perhaps he would only take advantage of him a little bit. Not to hurt, but to entertain himself. 

Alejandro huffed out a soft laugh. "What if I wanted bison?" he questioned, wondering what the reaction he'd get from the boy was. Of course, he only let that hang in the air for a moment before he continued.

"Non mon ami," he responded with a small smile. "I appreciate the offer, but I couldn't accept having you hunt for me. Not when I am capable of helping." Another pause, before he continued once more, amusement lacing his tone. "But it is kind of you to offer to feed someone when you don't even know their name."

The fae's first question was a test that Valiant hadn't been prepared for. His heart leapt into his throat, and he floundered: "Well — " But then he realized he was being made fun of, and he joined the creature belatedly with a nervous chuckle at his own expense.

There was more of the strange and incomprehensible tongue; Valiant reclaimed the little step he'd put between them, as if drawing nearer might help him to understand what was being said. It did not, and in any case, the faerie was smiling at him, now, and his heart was pounding against the back of his tongue and he was warm all over and this had to be that insidious fae magic he'd been warned about, but he was powerless to stop himself from becoming enthralled.

"You want to help me hunt?" he verified, feeling almost as dumb as he looked. It did not quite seem to be the way of the fair folk, at least as he understood them, and he was wary of being taken in through his misunderstanding. He had enough of his wits about him to remember that he must never give his name away to one of the fae; Names have power, he could her Aunt Spot whisper in his ear. But that didn't mean he couldn't learn the faerie's name, did it? "What is your name?" he asked, shy but frank in his desire to please the pretty creature.

The boy was just so cute! They hadn't had anyone like this in the Consortium - so naieve and sweet and gullible, and Alejandro was absolutely enchanted. Emboldened by the boy stepping closer, so did he, his head around the white wolf's chin. Perhaps he was a bit taller than anticipated. 

"I would love to help you hunt," he responded, icy eyes crinkling in a smile as he looked up at the younger wolf. "After all, you were kind enough to offer in the first place. It's only right that I offer my help." 

Finally, the boy asked for his name, and Alejandro smiled again. "I go by a handful of names. Alejandro is my favorite, or Ale. But I am also called Alexandre, or Alex, or Baby. You can use whichever you prefer." He had a feeling the other was too suspicious of him to give him his own name, but it was worth a shot, wasn't it.

"And you?" he questioned then, an amicable wave of his tail behind him as he stood before the boy.

Oh.

The creature was all the more alluring up close, smiling at him like this. All at once, Valiant was sure that it was in a friendly mood rathe than in a murderous one. He was happy to ignore the voice at the back of his mind that told him this was exactly what a faerie would want him to think. It didn't matter, anyway; one of the fae would undoubtedly be able to find him wherever he went, and to chase him down through the thickest brambles. It was best to do whatever this creature wanted, and then do his best to either be rid of it, or to do some ensorceling of his own.

But he doubted this would be possible — what did he have to offer one of the fae? This one didn't even want him to bring it an offering.

"Alright," he agreed, reluctant to accept help when it meant any success would be a joint effort rather than his own victory. And then, to his surprise, the fae gave him its name after all — First a few sound-names that Valiant carefully commited to memory, marvelling all the while over their strangeness, and then a thing-name that was much more in the family tradition. Baby. A girl name, he was fairly certain. Perhaps Alejandro was as well.

After the fae had so kindly given its name, Valiant was embarrassed to be so nervous about giving his own. "Grayday," he said, choosing the first name that came to mind. It was sort of fitting, he thought, if he was going to be courting his own fae creature just as his grandfather had courted the Spiritwalker.

Except — he felt embarrassed and guilty to be thinking about his dead grandfather while being so sorely tempted by the confusing fae in disguise. "I mean — but nobody calls me that. You can- I mean, my name's Swan."

Stupid, stupid, stupid! He was sure the creature must know he had lied (it was written plainly over his face).

"The rabbits are this way," he said, backpedaling several steps to put some space back between them. He felt a little more himself when he could breathe his own air and not the disconcerting, somewhat masculine, oddly appealing scent of the creature. Alejandro. Baby.

Well, it wasn't like Alejandro had never been in a murderous mood, so perhaps the boy's apprehension wasn't unfounded. And there would be no need to harm this boy, so he didn't need to be afraid. Perhaps he'd learn, if they were to spend more time together, that Ale had no intentions of eating him.

Unless he wanted to. (wink, wink.)

Grayday was the first name he was offered, followed by Swan. Are you sure your name isn't liar? the spotted man thought to himself, a small smirk playing on his lips. It was rather obvious to the spy that he was being deceived, but he thought perhaps it might be clear to even a passerby that the boy was dishonest. But still, did it really matter? The St. Clairs had many names, so why could this boy not have one as well. "You're certainly pretty light a Swan, but... I must say, it doesn't suit you," he began, scanning him up and down, but humored the boy in the end.

"May I call you Day?" the man questioned with a tilt of his head, studying the younger's rose gold eyes. It did not surprise him when he stepped away again, but it did make him feel a little put out. Why wouldn't you want to be close to me?

Still, he let the younger lead him, eager to hunt these rabbits with him, and did not encroach on his personal space too much. That would come later. "Perhaps I can hunt one for you and you could hunt one for me? Or we could work together."

Valiant felt too-warm again when Alejandro called him pretty. Part of him wanted to argue that he was nothing compared to the other — but it occurred to him that he'd never really been able to look at himself, so maybe he was something to look at. His tail whisked in shy acceptance of this compliment, and he hurried to say, "Whatever you like best," in response in response to the dainty creature's question.

He felt strong and important leading his new acquaintence through his old territory, and was dangerously flattered when the fae suggested it would hunt for him in turn. "Alright," he agreed again, his feelings on the topic broadcasted freely in the pleased but bewildered expression on his face. "I used to live here," he said as the passed an overgrown trail that would've led them straight to the old dens. Valiant's original purpose for being here had been wholly overshadowed by the arrival of Alejandro; he did not think to take a detour to revisit these precious memories. "I was born just over there."

And then, embarrassingly, his stomach gave a frightful growl. He laughed to cover up his chagrin and picked up the pace a little. "We're not far — just through here," he said, pushing through another overgrown path to enter and equally overgrown clearing. "This is where I cut my teeth." He was already in hunting mode, nose-to-the-ground in an attempt to be the first one to capture a meal — but he paused to look up at Alejandro with a cheerful wave of his tail. It looked like it belonged here among the magic of the willows, which were ethereal in their own right. it was difficult to tear his eyes away and focus on the hunt, and he could not quite wipe the bashful, besotted grin off of his face even so.

Day. Day Day Day Day Day.

It was a fitting name for this boy, with sunshine eyes and stormcloud fur. How cute and fascinating and interesting he was, and he likely didn't even know it. Which made him even more interesting, because most of the Consortium had not been at all unaware of themselves or their surroundings. 

The St. Clair followed him through the willows, enraptured in his words and eager to let the boy talk to his heart's content. "It's a beautiful place," he responded, hearing that Day had been born there. "I love the plants. Willows and roses are a fascinating combination." Was it somewhere he could see himself staying? Perhaps, so long as there were wolves like Day around to entertain him. "The Consortium - where I'm from - is beautiful as well."

A soft chuckle escaped the man at the growling of the other male's stomach, and he flicked an ear. "Sounds like we need to hurry up on those rabbits, hm?" he questioned, watching the boy begin to hunt, and did the same. 

His splotched muzzle touched the ground as he sought out a rabbit, veering off from the boy's side from a moment.

"It is," Valiant agreed wholeheartedly, but all he could see when he looked up from the trail was Alejandro. He directed his gaze back toward the ground, trying his best not to become too distracted even as he eagerly absorbed this new information. The Consortium, he mouthed to himself, not quite sure what to think of the name. It didn't sound like the sort of place a faerie might live, but he was interested all the same in learning more about the other.

Hunting rabbits was a trifle; it seemed to take a lot longer than usual, just because he had other things warring for his attention, but he was as proficient as usual at tracking down his prey and snapping it up in his jaws. He gave it a few violent shakes to scare the life out of it, and then sat quietly to observe the hunting fae — who had balls.

Valiant stared, feeling frozen and tongue-tied in his surprise.

His own hunting experience went fairly well - a young rabbit, smaller in size but a rabbit nonetheless, was quickly dispatched by the St. Clair only moments after Day had caught his own. And when he turned back, he was not quite surprised to see that the boy was still staring. He had thought it might end up irritating him or making him uncomfortable, but not yet. Alejandro was still entertained by this boy.

"Do you like what you see, amour?" he questioned before lifting his own prey off the ground and approaching the white wolf again. "Afraid it isn't as big as yours, but it should do, right?" A double entendre? Yes. Was Alejandro ashamed? No.

When he watched the other pounce, he began to doubt himself once more. It hunted just like a wolf would, with no special show of magical ability. Just the same easy grace that he'd been admiring the whole time, and the strong lines of its body that Valiant now admitted were only almost feminine; no matter how pretty it was, the creature was still clearly male.

"Of course," Valiant agreed when prompted, lumping both of his answers together an awkward beat after the question had been asked. He sensed that he was being teased once more, but the play on words was lost on him — even though he'd been taught a whole lot about sex and reproduction, it wasn't something he'd thought of or joked about very much. "Here," he added, ducking his front half in an appeasing bow and nudging his own kill toward the fae. He laid his head on the ground, throat to chin, and whisked his tail in idly pleasure at being able to offer up his kill. Then he was popping back to his paws to do a quick circle and dance, too full of vigor to keep still.

"Will you tell me about the Consortium?" he asked as he pounced on smaller rabbit, his childish hind brain suggesting this would be the perfect target to unleash his excess energy.

After the exchanging of rabbits - and Day hopping onto his, which was super cute, even though the white wolf might not be aware of that - the younger asked about the Consortium.

How would someone describe the Consortium, he wondered. Was he even really allowed to discuss much of it? Or did it matter anymore?

Ale took a bite of the rabbit offered, but not before a gracious "thank you," was offered to the boy. He chewed and swallowed before he spoke again. "It is full of liars, but it is a beautiful place," he explained slowly. "You must earn your place, and your methods are not questioned. Only the results." And my results were always good, he wanted to say, but refrained. "It was not a bad place, per say, but it was... difficult. Sometimes I wish I had been able to live among the willows instead." Huh. That was a surprisingly true and heartfelt statement, which felt weird as hell.

"Anyway," he drawled, turning glacial eyes Day's direction. "Can I ask why you keep staring at me?" He already knew, for the most part, but he wanted to hear it. After all, it'd been quite some time since he'd heard that he was beautiful.

Valiant remembered to say thank you only after Alejandro did. And then, right after he'd said it, he rememebred that you were never supposed to thank a faerie, because it meant that you were acknowledging a debt. He supposed that, in this case, it could be canceled out by his own contribution to the meal. And the faerie had thanked him as well.

He lowered himself to his belly across from the strange man and set about ripping out the rabbit's soft belly fur, making a proper mess of the scene. Now that Alejandro explained it, he thought the Consortium did sound like just the sort of place the fair folk would keep — a place where no one could be trusted, and dangerous things must be going on behind the scenes. He turned these ideas over in his head for a moment before being distracted once more.

"It was very peaceful," he supplied. "There were a lot of other children, and mothers — " Until there weren't anymore.

He was almost glad when the subject was changed, even if it was to something almost equally uncomfortable. Valiant's stomach felt tight and full of leaping frogs, and his face and neck were blazing under his pale fur. He avoided Alejandro's gaze for a moment before his frank nature took over:

"I've just never seen anyone so — you're just really... really beautiful. And I thought — " He thought he probably shouldn't say anything about the fair folk directly. "It doesn't even seem real." Valiant was half expecting his friend would disappear in a shimmer of mist, or else eat him after all.

Such a messy eater, this boy was. The poor little rabbit's fur was torn off, and Alejandro huffed out a quiet laugh. Childish, playing with his food. It was rather cute. But then, this wolf was cute as a general rule. Objectively, of course, because Ale was sure he was not putting too much meaning behind it. 

Apparently, his home had been peaceful, with children and accompanying mothers. But the way he broke off there led Ale to believe that that was not the full story there. He wondered what might've befallen the tranquil land. 

A small smirk crossed his maw when Day found it in him to answer his question, and he waited a moment before he tilted his head and responded. "That's kind of you to say, but... it doesn't seem real?" he asked, seeking out eye contact with the younger male as he tried to decipher that sentence. "And what if I wasn't real? What then?" It was a simple question - Alejandro, of course, knew he was real, but did Day? He'd have to wait and see.

Some of the tension Valiant had been holding within himself seemed to break when he was not met with confusion or censure; the faerie, of course, thought it was perfectly normal for him to be so entranced, regardless of the masculine form he'd taken on.

He prodded the rabbit with his nose, feigning interest in his meal as Alejandro went on. The question threw him, but he understood at once that Alejandro had known all along he'd been sussed out.

"I would just have to dream about you, I suppose," he said after a moment of thought, unwilling to acknowledge the keen sense of loss this idea left him with. "But you are real," he added, his rose-gold gaze lifting to the man's colorless eyes. "I know you're real. I just meant — maybe you put me under a spell, or something. Because — " Because he'd never been so taken with another wolf, and there was absolutely no reason for him to find another male so captivating. "I guess I don't really mind if you did," he admitted with a huff of confused and nervous laughter.

Perhaps it was mean, but Ale was an actor at heart, and this was a fun game. But it was normal for the boy to be so interested - Alejandro was a professional harlot, after all, so he was not unaccustomed to this kind of attention. 

I would just have to dream about you, I suppose.

He'd heard stuff like this before, from men and women who had wanted to keep him around for longer than he'd wanted to stay. It was usually crooned in sensual intonation, right into his ear, and it had been so easy to resist because the only feeling behind it was lust. Perhaps a few had developed emotions toward him, but none had ever sounded so genuine as this boy.

It had to be naivety. Inexperience. This poor kid, Alejandro tried to think, but all he could focus on was how his chest tightened a bit at the statement he'd offered out. 

"Such a romantic, aren't you, amour?" he questioned, clearing his throat and tilting his head to the side with a small smile. "Why would you think I put a spell on you?" He had to know. It wouldn't be fair of him to keep fooling this kid.

Throughout his young life, Valiant had adopted many labels — loner, wanderer, nomad, hunter, outsider — but romantic had never been one of them. Girls were still an uninviting mystery to him, even if he'd met a few he'd thought were rather pretty. He'd never given much thought to romance in general, aside from being assured that he would, one day, "Find a mate and proliferate!" as aunt Spot's saying went.

"I don't know about that," he said with a tiny grin, apparently finding the label quite funny. It did fit him, little did he know, but he was not quite introspective enough to think so. This smile faded quickly at the creature's next question, and he found he could not quite meet the man's gaze. "Well," he began, but seemed unable to carry on. He shut his mouth again and, after a moment, pushing himself back to his paws, too full of nervous energy to be still.

"It's just not supposed to be this way, is it?" he said delicately, his phrasing implying a question, but his tone leaving little room for argument. "I'm not supposed to — because I'm a man." This time, his tone suggested this statement was meant to clarify things. "But you... the fair folk, I mean — you have different rules, right? So it wouldn't be..." But by then, he was too ashamed to go on, still not quite ready to think about how well he liked the other wolf and all his sundries.

Alejandro was a far cry from romantic. Sexual, lustful, nasty, but not romantic. This boy had the potential to be, though, and that was adorable. Way too cute and sweet to be messing with a fille de joie like himself. Perhaps he was gravely wrong for toying with Day like this. 

"Well, I do. I don't care if you put a spell on me. I'll see you in my dreams. You're a poet," he responded with a smirk, leaning in a little bit to try and capture eye contact with him again. This was fun, perhaps even... enjoyable, in a way that wasn't lust-induced or cruel. 

Oh, internalized homophobia. That sucked. Alejandro had always embraced his sexuality - desires for both genders - with open arms, from an early age. It was sad that this kid couldn't do the same. "I think you need to worry more about what you want rather than what might be considered normal by other people's standards." The words were calm and sure. "The only rules should be don't harm anyone else unless they harm you; don't do ill toward another unless they deserve it." Or unless you're ordered to, his brain supplied. "After that, does it really matter who you like? Or are attracted to?"

The other man's poor mimicry of him broke through some of his nerves. He laughed, a little more freely than he had thus far in Alejandro's presence. "That's not what I said," he argued, but did not seem terribly bothered at being misquoted. He could acknowledge that it amounted nearly to the same thing, even if he maintained that he hadn't sounded quite so sappy.

Alejandro's next argument was a little harder for him to accept. It sounded a little as if the faerie was suggesting he had a tendancy toward liking other men — which was absolutely not the case! Even thinking it took him back and made him feel oddly defensive. This wasn't about him, after all, it was about Alejandro and his allure.

"It does matter," he said, sounding as though this was just the beginning of his rejoinder. After a moment, however, it was clear he had no follow-up. "It does where I'm from, anyway," he ammended, his tone a little less firm. "But maybe — I mean — " my grandfather married a river. He realized that voicing such a thing would absolutely make him a romantic, and with a rueful smile, he decided he was not quite ready to concede this victory to his new friend.

"I guess where I'm from doesn't matter much, these days," he admitted instead. This place was obviously done, and he didn't want to go back to Easy or Sunspot empty-handed. Or maybe he did. Maybe he wouldn't mind living at White Spine forever, and helping Easy raise a million dumb little pipsqueaks. Or maybe he wanted to go back to Round Valley and marry his cousins after all, or maybe —

He wasn't sure. What he wanted was tied inexorably with what he thought others wanted, and with what he thought others thought. Sometimes he wasn't sure if he really wanted to find his father, or if he just wanted to want to. It made the way he wanted Alejandro so much more strange and disconcerting; wanting things just for himself was too guilt-enducing to contemplate, never mind the implications of the creature his adolescent mind had chosen to fixate on.

But being in Alejandro's presence made it easy to push such worries away. The other kept pushing for eye contact, which felt almost as equally unnatural as eyeing the other man's junk, but Valiant hadn't averted his gaze then, either.

"It's basically what you said," the man argued with a chuckle, eyes softening when the boy laughed. That was a sweet sound, and it seemed like he was getting more comfortable with him. At least until their conversation took a turn into something more serious. 

He knew how it felt to question yourself and where you were from and everyone's expectations of you. It was scary, and he could imagine it was worse for a younger wolf. For Ale, he'd only been truly out of the Consortium for a little while, able to be as free as he wanted to be and taking missions for himself instead of getting them from others. And it had been hard, but certainly worth it. 

Alejandro took a deeper breath and smiled at Day. "Listen, you won't ever be happy if you try to live just based on what other people expect," he told the younger male, tilting his head to the side, rabbit forgotten. "I'm not trying to push you one way or another, but I am pushing you to think about it a little. Just consider what you might want, without wondering what people would think."

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?"