Life Is a Cabaret [Arvalyn]

[Finn]

Arry's response to the news made his own settle within him. There was a part of him that felt out of his league, an imposter rubbing elbows with the actually powerful, talented, and the like, but Arry had told him more than once that he needed to get over those things. Talon Novalys was no critic or arbiter of taste, but he had influence and, for whatever reason, he liked Finn. All Finn could do was his best and try to help others up as well.

He grinned. He even raised his glass to himself; they had toasted Arry's success already and Finn certainly would bring the conversation back around to Arry's debut. Then he wondered if he couldn't weave Arry's voice into the as yet unwritten song so Talon could learn to enjoy that as well.

"I mean, if you aren't too exhausted later, you know I enjoy being Finn the Fucking." His fair cheeks flushed; he could manage the silver tongue, but he hadn't yet the panache to flirt coolly. It seemed to work out, though, as Arry did enjoy the sincerity of his lover's compliments. He took a sip of wine to hide his embarrassment a bit, or at least give him time to process it. For all that Arry had honed his wit to a razor's edge at the Velvet Cabaret, he was always sweet to Finn, always inviting him into the joke, which made him feel warm.

"So a love song for Shinsei as well as my capstone project, which is also dedicated to him... Do you think I'll come off as patriotic or enamored of the crown prince?" He smiled, but frank blue eyes cut to Arry, not wanting him to think he had eyes for anyone else. Of course, he allowed the half-elf to read his feelings directly whenever he wished, so he ought to know the truth of things, but Finn knew that being able to read someone's feelings didn't grant them the ability to control their own. That was an entirely different sort of skill, he imagined.

"OH. I'm to be invited to some royal fêtes," he continued. "I'm not quite certain whether to perform or as a guest. I asked to be given some time to observe Lord Aoren and the two of them together, the better to have material to draw upon. I will keep you apprised, but if you aren't working and can spare your voice, I'd bring you to harmonize with me if it's the former, and if it's the latter, I'll need you to be my date. Of course."

[Arvælyn]

"Ha!" Arry lightly slapped Finn's broad shoulder in response to his risque little jape. "Oh, I think I can rally for you later on." He bit the corner of his lip and eyed him up and down, "I've got to please my man, lest I lose him to my betters." It was delivered playfully, but the insecurities were very real. He knew how the monied elite behaved with those they fancied. He'd been fancied before himself. Offered all manner of gifts and promises, some of which were realised others of which were forgotten at the fading of the afterglow.

"I suppose that will depend on the lyric more than anything..." He mused, considering, "From whose perspective will you write? Talon's? Aoren's? A narrator's?" That would speak a lot to how it might be received. If he sung in Talon's internal voice it might seem like he was infatuated with Aoren, or vice versa if he swapped the roles. If he was an outside observer, it would be more like to come off as a chronicling commission. They were not atypical at court, but for Arry's taste they rarely moved the soul in the telling of the story.

"If..." Arry began, his eyes shifting askance of Finn's. "...if you are ever asked to do owt that you think I wouldn't like, just... tell me, yeah? Even if you've already gone through with it, I... I know how it can be with powerful men. Not that I've been courted by demigods or owt like that, but... Well. You know I didn't grow up with Kalzasern morals. I know fings are different 'ere, I just..." He waved his hand dismissively in the air between them and took a few sturdy gulps of his wine.

His concerns seemed to melt away at Finn's mention of including Arry in such high-profile situations. Just the sort in which he'd been imagining himself for as long as he could remember. He beamed,

"Oh, well... I shall have to check my dance card, of course, but I'll do my best to make time for the, um... What did you call them? Royal fucking fêtes?!" He grabbed Finn's bicep and stared at him in wide-eyed disbelief at such a proposition. "Of bloody course I'll come."

[Finn]

Finn grinned at Arry's response. Though his lover was the cleverer of them, he never made him feel as though his humor didn't amuse. He had offered a tip or two when something didn't land, but it always felt as though Arry was tenderer with him than with others. As the golden boy kept talking, picking up steam in his response to Finn's news, he tried to save up his responses so the man knew that he hung on his every word and valued all of them. It felt right that they could be supportive of each other's careers; he knew sometimes there would be flares of jealousy as those were inevitable, but he would also be able to remember times like this and sing them back into existence to share with Arry so he could remember shared joys, as well.

He found himself still grinning when Arry grabbed him by the arm. His grin might have been a bit goofy, but he was sort of in love—or at that point where the intoxication of infatuation started to turn into something more long-lasting.

"The prince said 'I would like a song composed that honors him.' So my initial thought is that it will be from his perspective, though I haven't decided on first person or a close third person... I'll be observing Lord Aoren, as well, and might learn some of his feelings with a clever bit of Mesmer, so perhaps your harmonies could be those hints of answering devotion?" Of course, now he was already rather sure he would like to have Arry collaborate in the performance if not the composition of the thing. Their feelings for each other and the felicitous way their voices already blended might add to the music rather than make it about their relationship if he was careful.

When he had to address the more fraught thoughts that had come up, his face went more sober. He took a breath.

"I don't think I'm his type," he started. Lord Aoren and the Rathari were both large, muscled men. Finn's physique was fine; he definitely exercised, but he wasn't a tank of a man. Perhaps Talon had other lovers; he didn't know, but he thought it likely—the man was a 'panty-dropper' as they said at the Velvet Cabaret. "If he did proposition me, I..." He paused to consider it. Seasons ago, he had definitely had a winged visitor in his imagination a few times while he was pleasuring himself, but Talon had never indicated any interest in their various times together and Finn wasn't audacious enough to make a move, nor did he even know where one would begin to flirt with a prince, and now a demigod. "If he did, I might not be able to resist. But even before he became the avatar of justice reborn, he was a good man. I don't think he would do that even if I suddenly doubled my weight in muscle and could juggle greatswords while riding a direwolf into battle." His smile was a little lame, as was his attempt at levity. "But I'm still a simple village boy, Arry. I understand the appeal of multiple lovers but I don't feel as though anything's lacking having you. If something happens that I know you won't like, I won't hide it from you. We will talk about it, yell if we have to, and figure it out. And I've never denied you access to my symphony, so if you doubt my word—which I hope you never do—you can see for yourself. And likewise... I know you were worried about being a courtesan, but even if you went back to it, I would still want this. Want you. I mean, we would have to discuss things, figure out how it would work in a way that protected our hearts and what we have together. But if something happens and you think I won't like it, I still want to know... So we can talk about it, yell if we have to, and figure it out." He smiled again at the intentional repetition, a bit more confident in the humor of that.

"And anyway, I'm going to need you to tone it down a little when we go to the royal parties on our reconnaissance missions. It's rude to outshine the rich and powerful like you do. I'll be proud as fuck to have you on my arm, and you don't have to worry about losing me." He reached up to cup Arry's cheek.

"You don't have betters."

[Arvælyn]

"Mmm..." Arry leaned in to nuzzle his cheek against Finn's shoulder, pleased at the minstrel's persistence in including him in his designs for the future. He sounded like he was already planning to incorporate Arry's voice in the commissioned work, which meant that he would potentially be performing for royalty. Only in his wildest dreams, did the urchin of Antiris grace such lofty summits. Where would there even be to go from there?

Arry lifted his head so he could observe Finn's face as he mused over how he'd respond to an indecent, princely proposal. He grimaced slightly, though he knew that Finn might be correct in a very literal sense. He might not be able to resist due to the deific glamours he'd seen depicted in plays and poems. He pursed his lips, considering.

"Well. If he does beguile you into something intimate, at least make sure you get something more than a climax out of it." Arry bade with a vague snarl. "Well do I know that one must occasion to compromise oneself to advance, and I would find such a dalliance forgivable... But don't hazard to take that for a carte blanche, Finn. I'll torture you for months before I officially forgive you." He winked, though he sounded and felt perfectly earnest in so saying.

"Heh..." Arry considered, "Wouldn't that be a lark? I give up the oldest profession only for you to take it up." He chuckled slightly, shaking his head and sipping at the rich, bold red that so suited their surroundings.

"Flattery has served you well, my fetching Finn." He said, in a wistful reply to that closing compliment. "Keep it up, and the world will be ours before I'm twenty-one."

[Finn]

"I have no plans to seduce the Shinsei nor his various lovers," he promised, brow arched. Finn knew Arry's insecurities intimately, but sometimes they pushed against him in ways that made him uncomfortable. He did everything he could to assuage those fears, and sometimes he couldn't help but feel as though no amount of affection, good treatment, and loyalty would be enough for Arry.

He wanted to be enough for Arry too, and to be trusted. Perhaps in time they would get there together.

But when Arry let it go for the time being, he did as well, only smiling at the thought of becoming a courtesan. He didn't think he would be very good at it in the end. He didn't think he could separate his feelings from the work and both his feelings and the work would likely suffer for it. His eyebrow rose once more, though, as he wondered whether Arry's age was as made up as his elven name. It didn't matter to him, really. Arry was an adult and they seemed to fit together rather well and that was what did matter in the end.

"Court bard and darling of the Golden Peacock..." He paused. "Is a six-year difference... Does that make me a bad man? I mean, you have more experience than I do, but... Hm." Finn wasn't about to break things off, but he did want to do right by Arry. He wanted to be a good man. Sometimes he worried that his magic gave him undue influence over people, even though he largely used it to snag attention and put people at their ease. And now, to have more intimate sex with his lover, but that was still relatively new in the scheme of things.

Perhaps less so for Arry, who was younger. His life had been shorter, so their brief time together took up a greater portion of his entire life. Finn wondered what that did for his perspective on things. He took a sip of wine and looked adoringly on the golden man who was so enamored of him. He smiled. Sometimes, he was lucky.

[Arvælyn]

Arry just smiled and patted Finn's leg in response to the minstrel's demurring from notions of taking other lovers who could offer things he could not- Like wealth and status. Not yet, at any rate. But, as Finn was about to point out, Arry hadn't had much time to achieve his goals compared to some...

"Oh, don't be daft! I'm a man grown. I can't grow a beard because I'm well elfy, not because I'm wee!" He chided with a chuckle and, to assert his adulthood, took another sip of wine. "And, for the record, I think you're a very good man. Maybe the best man I've ever met in a city, but that's like to be because you aren't from one. Sometimes I think we cityfolk learn too much too quick. With so many bodies about, we see things you countryfolk don't at a younger age... Death and sex and all them things what children are meant to be shielded from, are things we see on the day to day..." He trailed off. Perhaps the wine was tinging his thoughts with such things, or maybe it was carried over from his performance.

"Sometimes I do worry after you, you know. That you'll be taken advantage of..." He paused for a beat, "I hope you don't take that for condescension. I don't think you're stupid in the least, just... Innocent. Or maybe I mistake sweetness for innocence, when they ain't the same." He furrowed his brow, and seemed to get lost in his thoughts. His mind felt unmoored, for some reason, which loosened his tongue withal to utter whatever strange sequiturs sprung forth from his restless mind.

[Finn]

After a sip of wine, Finn squinted at Arry, trying to imagine him with a beard. He was half-elven, so he should be able to, but perhaps it was light and patchy and awkward and best left shorn, or perhaps his mother's blood was just the stronger. He certainly seemed more elven than human to Finn, but he was, as Arry pointed out, a village boy with a village boy's understanding of things, even if he had spent years in the city now.

"Sometimes I wish I could take some of that burden from you," he murmured thoughtfully into his glass. He sipped again. "Trade you a bit of innocence for experience. Share that with you." He smiled and ducked his head a bit when he realized he had said it out loud, fanciful as anything. "I'm glad you think I am. A good man, I mean. Your opinion is one that matters to me. And I suppose you'll just have to take advantage of me so nobody else can."

He flushed a little; he usually did when he made innuendos, though so far, he hadn't proven too shy to engage in any sort of thing Arry wanted in the bedroom. But he didn't mind the way Arry's mind was wandering, nor how his native dialect came to the fore. There was a music to that, and while Arry was always Arry whether playing Arvalyn or not, the way he spoke denoted the way he thought and Finn was endlessly curious as to the workings of his clever mind.

"Anyway, if I'm sweet, I'm glad you like sweet things. And if I'm innocent, well, I know the world can be dark, but I choose to look for the light. Perhaps that's foolish." He shrugged. "I think I'd be unhappy if I looked for the darkness in every person and every situation, though."

[Arvælyn]

"But you do, Finn!" Arry countered, with a boyish grin that seemed to affirm his point. "When we are bound together, I feel what it is like to be your brand of innocent... It is wonderful. To feel so much less suspicious, scared and grasping... To feel secure in who and what you are, without all the cynicism and detachment that protect me." Finn had those attributes too, of course. He wasn't some fairytale ingenue, but he may as well have been for how differently he processed those emotions. It truly was refreshing, delving into the warm, wonderful waters of Finn's symphony.

Arry blinked at Finn, mouth slightly agape.

"Finn! Are you trying to get me all 'ot and bovvered right here in this classy establishment? Caw, you're a baddie, after all..." He trailed off with a chuckle, then sighed contentedly and lifted his ever cool-skinned hand to cup Finn's cheek.

"Well, I'm glad you like salty things, then. I think sweet and salty pair very nicely, but I know salt can be corrosive, so... I guess, just let me know if I'm ever being destructive. I don't always notice on me own... Not till it's too late and I've done the sort of damage what can't be undone." It was sort of like how he plied his magic for years without realising he was doing it. It just slipped beneath his notice, subtly manipulating his environment until he had to question all the relationships he'd forged since receiving his Rune. Unsure of whether they were earned in earnest or twisted by his subconscious to meet his whims. He furrowed his brow at that noxious notion, before forcing a smile and lifting his gaze back to meet Finn's. He patted his cheek, kissed his lips and then withdrew his hand to lift his wine glass to replace his minstrel at his lips.

"I don't think I'm that bad, I'm just... I ain't had a lot in me life, so I cling 'ard to what I go'."

[Finn]

Finn beamed at the notion that he was able to share what and who he was in a way that made Arry's life better. He blushed when Arry teased that he was lascivious. Of course, he often felt that way around his golden boy, and he knew that it was well-received. Everything seemed good, really, and the blushes weren't bad either. He liked that Arry could always get a rise out of him—in the lascivious manner and otherwise.

He turned his flushed face into that cool hand, not opposed to public displays of affection.

"I don't think you're that bad either," he hastened to assure him. "I was just thinking in extremes, I suppose. And while I don't enjoy suspicion, I do like how complex your mind is, whether we're engaging magically or otherwise." He smiled.

Then he leaned in and kissed Arry a bit, lingering a while with his lower lip between his own. A quick swipe of his tongue and he let go.

"Mm, salty." Then he grinned again. There was generally something playful about him when interacting with Arry; he could be serious, but it never stuck. It was clear he wanted to say more, but instead, he reached for his wine for another sip. Between them, they had sweet and salty covered, and the wine mellowed everything out.

"Are you coming home with me tonight?" he asked. The question was, at least in part, innocent. He had a lot of Arry's schedule memorized, but he didn't always know if an early meeting had been called or something and he tried to make Arry feel welcome, but not smothered. And the sex was amazing, but what he craved most at the moment was falling asleep with Arry and then waking up with him still there. Of course, even when only that was the plan, they tended to get riled up. Perhaps it was Arry holding onto what he had, but it was also Finn reveling in what they were building together.

[Arvælyn]

"Is it?" Arry tilted his head, pensively. "I don't reckon anyone's ever told me I've got a complex mind before..." His background was just so simple that it made him feel like he was. Like everything he projected was an illusion, but he supposed it was an illusion of complexity. And to feign complexity was complex in itself.

Arry chuckled at Finn's playful nibble and tipped his head down, as if trying to hide his beaming grin.

"I'd like to, if you'll have me..." He arched his eyebrow to emphasise that the obvious pun was very much intended. Something in the glint of his eye and the minor melody slithering into his symphony seemed to suggest that he was keen to do a sight more than cuddle if they were to spend the night together.

He downed the rest of the contents of his glass, and ordered a bottle for the road rather than a refill. The night was young and mild enough that he suggested they stroll rather than take a coach, taking in the stars, the moons and the artificial lights that lined the streets of this eldritch city.

Arry regaled Finn with his excitement about his future at the Golden Peacock and their future as artistic collaborators. That was, perhaps, his favourite part of their relationship- That their careers could be entwined so symbiotically. The two pillars that held Arry's happiness aloft were love and career, so for the twain to be aligned made Finn an ideal partner in his golden eyes.

When they finally got back to Finn's apartment, Arry would worship his body for hours, relishing every moment.

End