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• The Valdai Romance: The Granite and The Flame by Xeni_Davyd

  Fandoms: Original Work  

  • Mature
  • Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
  • M/M, Other
  • Work in Progress

  13 Jul 2026

  Tags

  • Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
  • Virgil Carter/Edward Brotherton
  • Virgil Carter/Januar Walday
  • Virgil Carter
  • Edward Brotherton
  • Januar Walday
  • Ambrose Carter
  • Oyishsha Carter
  • Mary Brotherton
  • Mary Thornton
  • Alister Brotherton
  • Edgar Brotherton
  • Original Characters
  • Asexual Character
  • Asexual Relationship
  • Canon Asexual Character
  • Asexuality
  • Asexuality Spectrum
  • Drama & Romance
  • Slow Romance
  • Angst and Romance
  • Human/Monster Romance
  • Alternate Universe - 19th Century
  • 19th Century
  • Androgyny
  • Asexual Romance
  • Non-Sexual Intimacy
  • Nonbinary Character
  • Crossdressing
  • scifi
  • Friendship/Love
  • Childhood Friends to Lovers
  • Lovers to Friends
  • Frame Narrative
  • Flashbacks
  • Family Dinners
  • Cleveland
  • Cincinnati
  • Tactile hunger
  • Boston
  • New York
  • Valdai
  • Russian Empire
  • America
  • Brotherville
  • Same-Sex Marriage
  • Queer Youth
  • Queer Themes
  • Queer Character
  • Queer Families
  • Strangers to Lovers
  • Xenobiology
  • Kissing
  • Boys Kissing
  • Duelling
  • Boarding School
  • Dark Comedy
  • Original Fiction
  • Family Drama
  • Psychological Drama
  • Tactility
  • Queerplatonic Relationships
  • Androromance
  • homoromance
  • Slow Burn
  • masculine intimacy

  Summary

  Cleveland, 1844. Virgil Carter sits at a grand family dinner alongside his secret husband, Januar Walday, surrounded by the suffocating atmosphere of the family estate. But when Virgil catches sight of Edward’s cousin, Mary, the present cracks open. A flood of memories drags him back into his youth - back to his deep, slow-burn friendship with Edward Brotherton, which, through the years of shared growth, inevitably transformed into a poignant romance.
  This story is an emotional standalone spin-off exploring Virgil's past, his intricate xenobiology, and the bittersweet ghosts that shaped him before he built a sanctuary with Januar.

  Series

  • Part 1 of The Valdai Romance Universe

  Language:

  English

  Words:

  25,128

  Chapters:

  6/11

  Kudos:

  30

  Hits:

  101