Microsoft and Yahoo (NSDQ: YHOO) couldn’t make their breakup stick, but maybe they’re not yet ready to move in with each other. A day after announcing their return to the negotiating table, it’s still not clear what kind of relationship they have in mind. One thing that seems clear: Carl Icahn, as reported by CNBC, is not going to be happy with some silver-medal deal that doesn’t involve a sale of Yahoo to Microsoft (NSDQ: MSFT). He didn’t spend $1 billion or so on shares only to see Yahoo hand over its search advertising to Microsoft, as some reports have suggested.

SEE ALSO: Carl Icahn Files Preliminary Yahoo Proxy: Share Purchases Started Monday After Withdrawn Bid

Meanwhile, the latest from Reuters is kind of exotic sounding. Follow along: “Microsoft Corp’s alternative proposal for Yahoo Inc involves Microsoft buying Yahoo’s search business and taking a minority passive stake in the company, once Yahoo has spun off its Asian assets, a person familiar with the discussions said on Monday.” Not clear: how a spinoff of the Asian assets factor into it. The report adds that this is still preliminary and that Microsoft hasn’t put a dollar value on Yahoo’s search assets. Generally though, this would be along the lines as initial reports from yesterday.

—Facebook rumors: Regardless of what happens with Yahoo, rumors of a Facebook acquisition will keep flaring up from time to time. While in Japan, CEO Mark Zuckberberg told Reuters: “You can tell, from our history and what we’ve done, that we really wanted to keep the company independent, by focusing on building and focusing on the long-term.” That really doesn’t mean much once you parse away the rhetoric. If Microsoft were really going to spend $20 billion on Facebook (and I’ll believe that when I wake up to the press release), all that ‘building and focusing’ could easily go by the wayside.