Tough Decisions

Eyvan sat comfortably on the floor, his legs curled up around Linden's harp as he carefully added a piece of lighter inlay to its frame. His hands remained steady even as the door to the small apartment flew open and Yossef strode in, still shaking snow out of his hair.
"Elsebeth will murder you if you got any of that on her stairs," he commented, pressing gently with two fingers as he waited for the glue to set.
Yossef just grinned at him, his amber eyes glinting with energy as he reached up and yanked the grey ribbon out of his hair, which fell down around his face in an ebony mass, and Eyvan smiled back at him, shaking his head.
"You're early." He pulled his hand away from the inlay and tipping the harp away from him to make sure it was lying flush.
Yossef shrugged and stretched, as he lifted his swordbelt from his hips to its peg on the wall next to the door.
"No one's out today," he said, as Eyvan began to put away the remaining pieces of inlay. "There's no point in staying when its snowing like this." He whirled his heavy cloak from his shoulders as he crossed the room to the coatrack between the two windows. Eyvan carefully put the harp back in its case.
"Do you have to do that in here?" Yossef demanded irritably as he hung his cloak. "That glue stinks to high heaven."
"I'm sorry," Eyvan answered softly, putting the lid back on the glue and carrying harp, glue, and the box containing the pieces of inlay over to the shelves opposite the coatrack. "I didn't expect you back for at least another hour, and Linden asked me to fix this for her." Yossef wrinkled his nose at Eyvan and reached out to the window latch.
"Yos, don't. The carpet will get soaked," Eyvan said, reaching up to put the glue away. "And it's cold enough in here..."
"The wind's blowing the other way," Yossef answered, flinging the window open. He then quickly came over and wrapped his arms around Eyvan from behind, brushing Eyvan's ash-blond hair from his shoulder and kissing him just below his ear. "And I can think of a much better way to keep warm than leaving the window closed," he murmured against Eyvan's neck, the movement of his lips sending pleasant shivers down Eyvan's spine. Eyvan sighed and turned a little in Yossef's strong embrace so he could bring one hand up into Yossef's hair.
"If that's why you came home early why didn't you say so?" he asked, a faint smile ghosting across his lips as he looked up into Yossef's wolf-amber eyes. The answer came in the form of a half-leer as Yossef backed him toward the screen that separated the bed from the rest of the room.
Later, when they were settled in for the night, with Yossef's arm draped comfortably over Eyvan's chest and both of them drowsing slightly, Yossef startled Eyvan by asking, "What's on your mind?"
Eyvan turned his head a little, and discovered Yossef was watching him intently.
"I got a message from Father this afternoon, at House Carmine."
Yossef's eyes narrowed and he almost growled, "What did he want?"
Eyvan hesitated, and looked up at the ceiling.
"He wants me to stop seeing you," he replied, his usually rich tenor gone thin with tension.
"So what else is new?" Yossef said, shifting so he was coiled more closely around Eyvan, his irritation plain. "I can't believe it's still bothering you."
"Well, this time it's serious. He's threatening me with rites abdicares if I don't leave you and come home." Eyvan looked worriedly at Yossef, who was studying him calmly.
"Can he do that?"
"I don't know," Yossef said, regarding him with calmly narrowed eyes. "but your father's made a great many empty threats in the past. Do you really think he's serious this time?"
"I don't know. I think he might be." Eyvan tucked his head under Yossef's chin, and curled closer to him. Yossef's arms stayed loose around him, and Eyvan felt himself trembling.
"What will you do if he is?" Yossef sounded distant, and Eyvan hesitated a moment, not sure if what he was going to say would upset him further.
"I'm not going to give him the chance. I'm not going to let him scare me into running home. If he wants to go that far, I'll find a way to make do without him. I've been kind of thinking about living under the name I use around the Council, anyway, since they disapprove of us so. And I don't really need the allowance he's been giving me. We do well enough on our own," he hesitated again, and looked up at Yossef. "And I think maybe, if he realizes I'm not going to back down, he won't disown me. He probably won't even disinherit me."
Yossef considered for a moment, his amber eyes focused on something in the distance. "I think you're right, Eyv. He's just trying to scare you into doing what he wants. Go ahead and throw it back in his face."
Eyvan nodded, smiling as Yossef squeezed him, then said, "I'm still worried ÷" and was silenced as Yossef kissed him, much gentler this time.
When he let Eyvan up for air, Yossef said, "Don't be. You love me, don't you?"
Eyvan nodded.
"Then fear not—I'll be here to take care of you even if he does disown you." He smiled slightly, as though something in his thoughts amused him, and asked, "So who will you be now, if you use your Council name?"
Eyvan colored slightly. "Matteo Harpwright."
"Oh, I like it, Eyv, very subtle. About as subtle as your Bard's uniform."
Eyvan wrinkled his nose and whipped a pillow at Yossef's head. The resultant struggle continued until Yossef reached over and extinguished the lantern, leaving the lovers in darkness.