#rqg fic
Read on AO3– Written for the incredible @podcastbigbang; watch out for art by @evieebun125 and a podfic by @guinevere01
Usually the only things capable of dragging Grizzop into sleep are either exhaustion or a begrudging acceptance that he has to rest for his spells to replenish. Tonight, his adrenaline is miles ahead of exhaustion, and he’s not getting his spells back either way, since they seem to be in an anti-magic cell, so he’s awake when it happens–-one moment, he’s squinting into the empty monochrome beyond the bars, and the next, everything is…wrong.
Or: No one gets lost in Rome, but there are consequences to dragging your friends back through thousands of years–-namely, reliving quarantine over, and over, and over again.
Prologue
Sasha’s ears are still ringing from her bomb when the fight kicks off properly. The rush of adrenaline as the first assailant comes into view is somewhat comforting, but also starts a slight twitch in her right hand that she really can’t afford right now. She watches as Grizzop drops a soldier in one shot – can’t be a paladin then, to go down that easy – and buries three more arrows in another’s shield. His fingers are quick and light, gaze focused even as he hisses with frustration; Sasha breathes out, slow, and tightens her grip.
The shield guy seems focused on Grizzop, so Sasha digs her toes hard into the dirt and leaps the way she’s done hundreds of times before—and is blocked before she even gets halfway, thrown off with surprising ease. She drops to the ground ungracefully, instinctively curling up to defend herself from a swing, only to watch the blade go a full six inches wide of her, and then somehow miss Cicero as well.
Well, least he’s not good at both, Sasha thinks, and a moment later watches two arrows graze past the shield in quick succession, piercing the man’s flesh with a sickening thunk . He drops, and a moment later so does another soldier. Sasha allows herself a brief grin at Grizzop; he’s not looking, which is even better.
Then bloody Cicero has to run into the next room, and the real fight starts.
Wilde could hardly believe it. It was years in the making, between the world falling apart, magic disappearing, and their various coping methods thereafter. But now, there they were, he and Zolf, in front of their new house. They weren’t staying in Wilde’s apartment anymore, no – this was theirs, together.
The crew of the Venga had helped build it. There was no way Wilde and Zolf could build a whole house on their own, and, once Cel learned about a construction project, there was no way to keep them from lending a hand and taking over. The kitchen counters had levers to adjust the height, depending on whether Wilde or Zolf wanted to use them, there was a lift to the attic, and Cel installed a strange cannon-like device that would fire a blanket at someone if they stayed stationary in the living room too long, since both Wilde and Zolf had a penchant for staying up late with their work and falling asleep there.
And now, it was done. Their furniture was in place, the walls had been painted, and the front door was open, waiting for them.
“Ready?” Wilde asked.
It wasn’t as if they hadn’t already been inside while building it, but this was different. This was their first proper entrance to the life they’d thought was out of reach for so long.
“Ready,” Zolf replied. “Come here.”
Wilde stepped closer, not entirely sure what Zolf had planned. The curiosity didn’t last long, however, as Zolf immediately scooped him up into his lap, and then began to wheel his way down the front walk and through the door.
Once they were inside, however, Wilde didn’t abandon his position, and Zolf made no effort to remove him. Instead, Wilde shifted so that he sat sideways in Zolf’s lap and was able to look him in the eye.
“I’m pretty sure that carrying someone over the threshold is something married couples do,” Wilde said, a smirk on his lips.
“Oh, I thought it was just when a couple moved into a new house together.”
“I mean, I’m sure it works like that too.”
Before Wilde could say anything more, Zolf casually added, “Well, when we get married, it’ll be your turn to carry me over the threshold. Then we’re even.”
Wilde’s coy expression faded in an instant as his jaw dropped. Some days he scarcely believed that Zolf had come back to him at all, and that he was still there, still with him after so much time had passed. They still had their bad days, of course, and occasionally Zolf needed significant periods of time to himself, but he never disappeared so drastically anymore. And he always came home.
It had been Wilde’s idea to get a house together in the first place, and part of him still feared that he pushed Zolf too hard with that, even though it had been a vague suggestion at best until Zolf started drawing out shaky designs. He wanted Zolf to always feel welcome, and they needed a place that belonged to both of them, not just to Wilde, if that were to be the case.
But he never considered marriage. Last time he thought about it was when he was a boy, before he started working constant overtime for the Meritocrats, before the world went to pieces, before they had to try and put those pieces back together one by one. He was happy just to have Zolf in his life, someone that would hold him tight when the nightmares came back and who cooked him meals that were seasoned with devotion.
Marriage, though…
Wilde knew when Zolf was teasing, could recognize the glint in his eye and the faintest rise at the corner of his lips, but this was a sincere comment, said without hidden humor or prodding.
“You alright?” Zolf questioned, shaking Wilde from his thoughts.
“Yes!” He answered, a little too readily. “Sorry, I just…” He didn’t want to press this issue, but he couldn’t stop thinking about it. “‘When we get married’?”
Zolf hesitated. “Is that… bad?”
With a wide smile, Wilde breathed, “Not at all. I didn’t expect it, though, I guess.”
“Yeah, it’s not really something we’ve ever talked about. I don’t know. It doesn’t have to mean anything. I just… I’m finally thinking about my future, believing that I’ll have a future. And when I think about it, you’re always there. It’s taken me a lot longer than it probably should have to realize it and allow myself to realize it, but… I want to stay with you. And not for a couple of months, but as long as you’ll have me. And if one day, you would want me as your husband, then… Yeah, I want that too.”
Wilde couldn’t manage any words. All he could do was bridge the little space between them and wrap his arms around Zolf’s shoulders. He breathed him in and held him tight, so overwhelmed in the best kind of way.
“I would really like that,” he murmured as he drew back from the embrace, meeting Zolf’s nervous gaze and forcing him to look at him.
“It’s not like we have to do anything now,” Zolf added. “We still have things to unpack.”
Wilde chuckled. “Always the pragmatist.” After a pause, he continued, “You’re right though. We should get settled here first, and then maybe we can talk about marriage again later?”
“Yeah.” Despite himself, Zolf smiled, a contagious sight to Wilde.
“Besides, you know I have to put on an extravagant proposal. A simple chat simply won’t do,” he teased, and Zolf let out a laugh.
“Of course you do. Now, get off my lap before you crush what’s left of my legs, you insufferable…”
He couldn’t finish his joking retort. Wilde removed himself from Zolf’s lap, but Zolf stopped him soon after by gently grabbing his hand. Instead of more teasing, he spoke again with sincerity.
“Thank you, Wilde. For being there for me.”
“Always.”
“I want to be there for you. I haven’t always been, but I want to be better.”
Wilde bent down so that he could press a kiss to Zolf’s knuckles.
“We’re both still working on it,” he replied. “We both still have our bad days. You wheel off, I throw myself into my work. But what matters is that we sort it out together, yeah?”
Zolf smiled and gave Wilde’s hand a squeeze. “Yeah. Together.”
Day 8 of @the-line-is-erased:Japan- Reunions - Inventions, creations, and crossing the line.
Cel and Sassraa talk about gender
“Cel, I have a question.”
They leaned back from where they were installing part of the elemental engine that would power the airship. Cel’s draconic wasn’t great, but they were working on it constantly, so between that and Sassraa’s English they could get by easily enough.
“Sure, what is it? If it’s about Skraak’s suggestion for the rudder, I told him already that it won’t work, and if he’s trying to get you to convince me, I’m-”
“No, no.” Sassraa looked down sheepishly. “It’s about your society.”
“Oh. You mean, the society of the village I lived in just recently? Or half-elf society? Oooh, is there an alchemist’s society you’ve heard of that I am somehow not a part of?”
“Maybe I said that wrong…”
“No, no, it’s all good.” Cel offered a supportive smile. “I got carried away. Go ahead.”
Sassraa sat down next to Cel. “Well, I was talking with Hamid, and I realized that much of his culture seems to revolve around two main genders. Not that there aren’t others”- Sassraa gestured to Cel –“but they’re a rarity, and not always well regarded. Among kobolds, we have… eight sort of ‘common’ genders, but there are way more than that and sometimes people have a mix or have multiple. And nobody bothers you for your gender or makes you live and work in a different role because of it. It’s just… very strange.”
“It absolutely is,” Cel replied, nodding and letting out a heavy breath. “A lot of languages are very much not welcoming to a gender that isn’t male or female. You have to make your own rules. But, hey, if your gender doesn’t, I don’t know, translate across from your society, you don’t have to try and press yourself into one that people around here might know of. Just be you.”
“It’s hard.” Sassraa chuckled. “I’m sure you know.”
“I’ve had a lot longer to figure it out, though. You’ve just been thrown into this.”
“You and Hamid have been trying to teach me English, but pronouns… I don’t know which ones to use for me. There are a few that could fit, I suppose-”
“You can use more than one set!”
Sassraa’s eyes grew wide. “I can?”
“Of course! You can use as many pronouns as you want! Or none, as the case may be, and we’ll just use your name. And it can change day by day, whatever you’re feeling. Or! Or you can make your own pronouns! Like I said, you get to make your own rules, which is scary, but also freeing.”
“Hm.” Sassraa thought about it a long while. “I think I’d like to try they and she?”
Cel smiled. “Absolutely. Is there anything else I can try and help with? Not sure I helped at all here or if I just rambled.”
Now it was Sassraa’s turn to smile, placing a hand on Cel’s arm. “You helped a lot. We make our own rules. We don’t force ourselves to play by someone else’s.”
“Exactly.”
“Alright, now I should go tell Skraak how terrible an idea that rudder design is.”
Cel chuckled. “Good luck; he’s real set on it.”
With a fond roll of her eyes, Sassraa stood and trotted away to continue their own construction work. Meanwhile, Hamid came over to Cel with an armful of equipment they had previously requested from the scrap of Earhart’s last ship.
“Is everything alright with Sassraa?” He asked.
“Oh, yeah, she’s all good. I was just helping them out with some cultural things.”
Sassraa wasn’t quite out of earshot yet, and Cel swore they could see her smile as they heard both sets of pronouns used.
Day 7 of @the-line-is-erased:Rome - Sacrifice - Things hidden in history that will never come to light.
Thinking bout those goblin kiddos
“Grizzop? Are you asleep?”
“No. Are you?”
“Obviously not.”
Grizzop let out a huff of acknowledgement, but a faint sob escaped his lips at the same time, just loud enough for Sasha to take note. She rolled over to face him.
“Are you alright?” She asked.
The obvious answer for both of them was ‘no.’ They were trapped in the past, and Grizzop had the added bonus of his surroundings being particularly hostile to anyone who wasn’t human. But the life he left behind was so much fuller than anyone may have realized.
“I have… I have kids,” he said quietly.
At that, Sasha’s eyes opened wide with surprise, and she practically bolted out of her makeshift bedroll. “You’re a dad!?”
“Me and Vesseek, we-”
“You and Vesseek!?”
“Sasha!” He cried in a whisper. “We’re supposed to be laying low, not waking everyone up because we’re yelling.”
“Fine. It’s just a lot, you know?” Despite her protestations, she lowered her voice to a more manageable level. “I had no idea you were a dad.”
Grizzop sighed. It wasn’t something he liked to talk about, but he trusted Sasha, and it wasn’t like he had much to lose since they were stuck in the literal past anyway.
“Yeah, Vesseek and I, we have a clutch. Vesseek looks after them while I do my paladin stuff, and I send whatever money I make back to them.”
“Must be hard to leave them all the time.”
“It is.” Grizzop tried not to think about how he might never see them again, never hold Vesseek again, never hear his kids call out ‘Papa!’ again. “But if I can make the world a little safer for them, then it’s worth it. Got to make sure they have a future, right?”
Sasha nodded, but said nothing, silently scanning Grizzop’s features.
“Here, this is them.” He handed over a magical photograph of his family. “It took almost an hour to get everyone to sit still for that.”
“I believe it,” Sasha chuckled as she looked over the image in the dim light of their safehouse.
Grizzop continued. “And it just hit me… I always knew there was a risk that I would die while doing my duty, and that I would leave my family behind. But now… now I’ll be living out the rest of my life without them. The thought of spending however long I have left without ever seeing them again, it…”
There was another sob again, building up in his throat, but he swallowed it down and shut his eyes tight.
With his eyes closed, he didn’t see Sasha reach out for him, but he felt her place a hand on his shoulder. “We’re going to get back,” she insisted. “You’re going to see them again.”
“I hope so.” He let out a heavy exhale, then took the picture back from Sasha and tucked it carefully into his armor. “And if we arestuck here, it’s not like I’m going to be overly reckless or anything. There’s still plenty that needs fixing here, plenty of good to be done.”
“Don’t worry, Grizzop, we’ll get you home. After all, you have to introduce me to all your kids. I can’t wait to teach them some knife tricks.”
“Absolutely not!” He shrieked, and Sasha burst out laughing. “That’s a disaster waiting to happen!”
“Well, we’ll just have to see about that.”
Day 6 of @the-line-is-erased:Damascus- Party - The choices we make and the consequences, whether good or bad, therein.
aka when Paladins have conflicting oaths
How could she be so blind? There was more at stake than just the life of one person she cared about. If they didn’t shut down the factory, stop the production of the simulacra, the entire world was going to fall, including her brother.
Grizzop vibrated with rage. Azu just stood there, acting like love conquered all. Foolish. But he shouldn’t have expected anything else from the Aphrodite lot.
Of course he wanted to go after Vesseek. It was hard enough to leave them alone with their clutch, but it all hinged on the fact that the entire world could fall apart if someone didn’t do what needed to be done to save it. And if Grizzop had to leave in order to be that person, then he would be.
Vesseek knew that the greater good came first. They understood this from the start. And Grizzop remembered his oath to Artemis.
As much as he longed to run off to Rome and save Vesseek and the others, he set his sights on the funnel above and the machinery around them. There was still work to be done.
~~~
How could he be so heartless? Was the life of someone he loved worth so little to him that he would let them be beaten and tortured by the Cult of Hades? If they didn’t go to save their loved ones, all of them, then they would be killed.
Azu clenched her fists tight. Grizzop just stood there, acting like the world would fall in an instant if he didn’t try to stop it. Foolish. But she shouldn’t have expected anything else from the Artemis lot.
Of course she knew that their current mission was important. It was a major setback to have to leave the factory as it was, but Emeka and the others could dieifsomeone didn’t do what needed to be done to save them. And if Azu had to be that person, then she would be.
Emeka knew that love came first. He understood that when she left their village in the first place. And Azu remembered her oath to Aphrodite.
As much as she wanted to finish the task at hand, to destroy the factory and stop more simulacra from being made, she racked her mind for any knowledge she had of Rome. There was a long journey ahead of them.
~~~
Then Azu noticed the tears in Grizzop’s eyes, tears he tried to blink back as he looked at anything and everything but her.
“Grizzop,” she said softly. “We’ll rescue them. All of them, okay?”
“Please.” Grizzop never sounded or acted his size, but in that word, he was smaller than he ever was before. With a cough and a shake of his head, he puffed out his chest and, in a clearer voice, added, “I know you will. And I’ll take care of things here. We both have our own jobs to do.”
Azu nodded. “And we both have our own oaths to fulfill.”
With a toothy smile, Grizzop met her gaze. “Thanks, Azu. I’ll meet up with you all when I can, yeah? And tell Vesseek… tell them…”
“I will.”
Grizzop gave one last nod and then climbed up to the top of the funnel with an adamantine arrow between his teeth. He didn’t need to worry about Vesseek – Azu was on her way, and she would never let anything happen to them.
Day 5 of @the-line-is-erased:Cairo - Mistakes - Noble dragons don’t have friends.
“I understand that you were there when Aziza died.”
Hamid hated how small his father made him feel. It was a different kind of smallness than being around someone like Bertie, who was huge and imposing physically. Hamid’s father had a piercing gaze that cut through to his bone and a tone that could quell a storm.
“Yes, Father, I was. I was there with my friends, my mercenary group.”
“And you couldn’t save her?”
Hamid wrung his hands. “We tried. There was a lot going on, there was a necromancer, and… It was a horrible accident; it shouldn’t have happened. She shouldn’t have been in the crossfire.”
Saleh huffed. “I see. Just another of your mistakes then.”
All of Hamid’s breath left him in an instant. Saleh turned and left, but Hamid forgot how to move his feet. The only movement he could muster was the pounding of his heart, the quivering of his lip, and the racing of his mind.
“It was an accident! A mistake!" A younger Hamid yelled, standing over the shattered pieces of a priceless vase as his father glared down at him. He had been racing through the house with his siblings, playing, as kids were want to do, but such childish behavior did not suit the heirs to the al-Tahan name, especially when they were so careless as to not watch where they were going.
"I don’t know what happened, it was an accident, I swear.” This Hamid is a little older. He could still feel his fingers tingle with the warmth of the first fire spell he ever cast, the first manifestation of his magic. It was a brotherly spat between himself and Saleh Jr, leaving a singed bit of wallpaper in their wake. But there were to be no excuses for either of them when their father saw the mark.
“Father, I made a mistake. There was an accident at university…” It had only been a matter of months, but this Hamid felt lifetimes younger than the one replaying these memories in his head. That was the coldest Saleh had ever been to him, as if he wasn’t already chastising himself enough internally.
Or at least, it was the coldest he’d ever been to Hamid until he let Aziza die.
In the suffocating miasma of disdain that Saleh left behind long after he stepped away from that conversation, Hamid knew that he would never prove himself to his father. All he could do was try to prove worthy to himself.
~~~
As Hamid and the others climbed onto the rooftop, the infected city of London below them, he felt the chill of fear race up his spine. This was it.
In the back of his mind, he heard the faintest melody.
“Thank you, Aziza,” he breathed almost silently. “I may be seeing you soon. But… let’s finish this.”
And as Hamid faced down dragon fire, he knew that he might never make up for his past mistakes, but at least he could do right in that moment. Whether or not his father would ever see his worth was his problem. Hamid knew who he was.
And with Aziza singing to him from beyond, he was the one who would help them save the entire world.
“Hey, Hamid, you got a minute?” Zolf wheeled over next to Hamid as they both found themselves at a lull in the reunion.
“Sure! How are you?”
Zolf gave a noncommittal shrug in response, and Hamid nodded knowingly. Then, Zolf added, “I don’t know how to say this without sounding like a dick.”
“Zolf, I mean this in a kind way, but when has that ever stopped you before?”
For a split second, Hamid regretted his words. Zolf was actually reaching out, trying to make conversation with him despite all of the time and arguments between them, and the first thing he did was call him rude.
However, he didn’t have to worry long, as almost immediately Zolf let out a loud laugh, a sound neither of them had heard in far too long. Hamid couldn’t help but smile as he did so.
“You know, that’s fair,” Zolf said. “I guess, I just want to say, I know you’re not doing well, and-”
Hamid slumped and sighed, then tried to right himself as much as possible. “Is it that obvious?”
“I know we didn’t really spend that much time together, but when you fight alongside someone… I can tell. I think we all can. The others are just too polite to say something outright.”
With a smile, Hamid teased, “Your bedside manner did always leave something to be desired.”
“And it hasn’t gotten any better,” Zolf chuckled, then he continued. “If there’s anything I can do to help with things, let me know, yeah? I don’t know what I can do, but if you think of anything, just say the word. I know losing magic hit me hard; I can’t imagine how it’s been for you.”
Hamid scoffed into his drink. “Please. You needed magic to walk. I used it to do my makeup and tailoring. I should be handling it better.”
“Magic was a part of you, mate, part of who you were, and you lost that. It was a tie to your family and your past. Plus, I saw you in combat. Fireballs and lightning bolts and magical armor – you saved my life more than once. Your magic did a lot; we wouldn’t be standing here today, one way or another, without it.” After a pause, Zolf added, “And, listen, I never entirely understood the whole obsession with prestidigitation all the time, what between you and Wilde always worried about how your suits fit, but it was important to you, and that means that being without it is hard.”
“I suppose you’re right.” Hamid’s fingers tightened around his glass as he tried not to cry. “A lot of people have it worse, though. I have a family I can go back to, a home that was able to be repaired without too much trouble. I shouldn’t be worried about magic, or even my own line of clothing.”
“They matter to you, so they matter,” Zolf insisted. “Just because someone else has it worse doesn’t mean it can’t still hurt. I know I spent long enough dismissing my own pain because of that mentality, and it still gets me sometimes. And, Hamid, I don’t mean to upset you,” he said as he noticed the tears at the edges of Hamid’s eyes, “I just want you to know that I’m here for you.”
Hamid whipped around a little more intensely than he meant to. As he did so, Zolf looked down at his hands.
“I mean, we’re allhere for you, but I can’t speak for the others. I canspeak for me, though, and I wish there was something I could do to help you out, to help you feel more like yourself in this new world. Or to give you back your prestidigitation, if nothing else.” He smiled, briefly meeting Hamid’s gaze for a moment and then looking away.
“I think I overheard that you might be staying with Wilde for a while?” Hamid asked several moments later, choking down a sob.
“Yeah, that’s the, uh, that’s the plan.”
“I might come visit, if that’s alright.”
“Of course. I mean, it’s Wilde’s place, so you’d have to ask him, but I know I’d be happy to see you.”
Hamid chuckled, “Though, it would only be fair for me to break into his place after he broke into mine, all those years ago.”
“I think I headbutted him?” Zolf said as he scratched the top of his head.
With that, both of them burst out laughing. “We’ve had a crazy ride, haven’t we?” Hamid said.
“We have. And it’s not over yet. Come visit, or maybe I can come visit you in Cairo.”
Hamid beamed. “I’d like that.”
“Again, like, if there’s anything I can do… I know we haven’t always seen eye to eye, but I think I kind of understand what you’re going through, in a way. You’ve lost a part of yourself.” Zolf gestured to his missing legs. “Not quite the same, of course, but…”
“Thank you, Zolf. I really appreciate it. And, obviously, if there’s anything I can do for you…”
“We’ll keep in touch, yeah? Something I want to try and do with everyone, truthfully, since I’ve never been very good at it.”
“You are entirely within your right to say no, but do you think I could give you a hug?”
Zolf rolled his eyes and sighed, but there was a smile on his lips. “Yeah, alright.”
Hamid lunged forward to embrace Zolf. Zolf was a bit slower to move his arms around Hamid, patting him on the back as if he still wasn’t quite sure what to do in a hug. Not wanting to overstay his welcome, Hamid gave a quick squeeze and then drew back, wiping his tears as he did so.
“It’s good to see you again, Zolf.”
“Yeah… I wasn’t sure I was going to come, to be honest, but… I’m glad I did.”
Hamid smiled. “I’m glad you did too.”
