Resolutions(Eros/Mano)

"Never." Eros tipped up his chin a bit, but his eyes gleamed. A fight was all well and good between the sheets, but he wouldn't dream of such a display on a dance floor, crowded or otherwise.

"I suppose now is the time to give you this gift," he said. He withdrew both hands to retrieve the box from the coffee table and offer it to Mano. "I said earlier that I will not disappear again, and though you have my word, I thought you might appreciate a bit more."

The box was wrapped only with a narrow ribbon, but Eros hadn't intended to buy his husband's forgiveness. Inside was a small, round wooden case, which did not hold the gift, but was the gift itself.

It was a compass, and on the inner lid was inscribed:

For my husband;
May we never find ourselves apart.
Love always,
Eros

Mano pulled the thin ribbon, and he glanced up at Eros briefly before he pulled out the little wooden circle. He noticed the hinge nearly immediately, and so he opened the trinket. The inscription made him smile, and nearly brought tears after the stress of the past day. Thankfully, he managed to keep that under control. He didn't manage to keep himself from shifting to give Eros a brief kiss, with one hand rising to touch Eros' neck as he did so. "This is wonderful," he said. "You put your name on it."

"I did," Eros said, shifting on the couch to be closer to his husband. "It's enchanted," he went on. He looked down at his hands, then carefully slid his wedding ring free of his finger. He held it up a moment, met Mano's eyes, then looked down to tuck the white gold into the circular opening at the center of the compass. Rather than settle awkwardly against the needle, it hovered just above, and gave a soft glow.

Eros drew his wand and touched it lightly to the gold rim around the compass proper. "Eros Jariath d'Avonderre," he said. The gold glowed in response, and as Eros fetched his ring, returning it to his hand, the needle shivered. "Should you lose me," he said, looking at Mano once more, "my name and a touch of your wand will find me. Should we have children, a small item belonging to them, a name, a touch of a wand and their consent will add them.

"The strength of your need, of your emotion, will power the device. Should I ever need to leave suddenly, you will be able to find me."

Mano cradled the little thing in his hands, as if it was the most precious thing in the world. "Thank you," he said. This was the first time he had ever been given something that let him track someone with that someone's explicit consent. He never would have thought it could mean so much. He forced himself to look away from the device and look at his husband. "I mean it when I say you can have space in the future. If you just need a few days..."

"If I need a few days, I'll let you know," Eros said, "and I'm sure you'll allow me my space, which is why I have no reservations about you knowing where I am during that time. If the person I trust most in the world finds comfort in knowing that I am seeking solace in a particular Muggle hotel in France, I shall not be disturbed in the least. I shall rest easier knowing that you have comfort."

Mano eyed Eros for some few moments before nodding. He closed the thing and held it in both hands. "You are giving me this comfort, but I don't have anything to give to you." Almost without his consent, his hands wrapped protectively around the box, as if it might be taken away from him if he said the wrong thing or stopped touching it for a second. At the moment, he wasn't willing to let anything that involved Eros out of contact with his various senses.

"We are different men, my love, and for now, my comfort is home, and knowing that our marriage has survived its so-called honeymoon phase. Whatever difficulties come our way, I believe we can conquer them, separately, or as one."

He had no delusions that their problems were now solved, or that the worst was now behind them, but Eros had suffered what was more or less a complete breakdown, and there hadn't been nearly the drama of Dare's. Mano and Eros were older, more mature, and had settled most of their differences before they'd been married.