#how wilde DID want to stay for zolf but he needed to hear zolf say it

[loverboybrightsideghost]

tell me if you wanna go home from begin again as a zoscar song perchance 🤔

[shy-magpie]

RQG 165

Live blog under the cut

"Hide the fang" sounds like a euphemism, either for killing someone or sex

I love how fast Alex is getting.

Oh first minor storm, so they got some experience with normal issues before hitting magical territory

Briefing time. Oh the one hand I still want to like Earhardt: mostly due to lingering affection from the trip to Prague, but also because I don't want to write her off over what she is like in her worst moments. On the other hand, racism isn't "I said something stupid because I was in a mood"; being reckless with the lives of other people, especially people who trust you, isn't something that can just be overlooked.

Yeah cold turkey is not the kind way to help someone break addiction. Sounds like she is actually doing better physically and mentally.

Having trouble reading her tone, she seems almost bored with the possibility of them being in danger? Ok she sounds a bit more "here" now that its moved to specifics and actionables.

Well those are some things to keep aware of.

They are to shoot at white flags? That's a bit of a line, I expected more protest but Hamid is trying to stay out of the rank issues. Zolf kind of has to back her right up until he mutinies. Cel is noted as baffled. Not sure how this hits Azu. She sort of has a point in that she was hired as an expert and for all we know pretending to be in distress is a common tactic around here.

Helen obliges the needs of the story by having Azu request an exposition dump from Hamid. Aw its nice to hear him recognized for what he knows not just what he does but he sounds nervous or hesitant. It is kind of scary when you are turned to as the one who knows the most on a subject but you know how far from an expert you are. Plus he learned in University so explaining things with accessible language when you only discussed it in a place that values jargon is hard.

Fredrick gives a practical example.

Oh Cel has experience because people live in Wild Magic areas in America.

Elf Lore! Elf Lore! Elf Lore!

Oh nomadic Elves in the North; not all Elves are nomadic these are because they are ducking the shifts of Wild Magic.

Cel is confused because they expect similar groups living in the Wild Magic areas of Russia.

Zolf clarifies that the warning is restricted to people approaching from the air. Which fair enough, everyone said how risky this is as a one time thing to save the world so probs not worth it on a regular basis.

Fredrick says staying high is protective.

Hamid is checking in on Wilde with daily gossip sessions so he doesn't isolate himself.

Re: Wilde's theories:

Eh I'm not personally a Fredrick/Siggif shipper but I could see where someone else might.

Kiko is a wild card and may hit on more than one person. Well yes? Good for her? My understanding is that part of declaring clear interest early is willingness to move on if not reciprocated rather than pining at them all voyage.

Hamid tells Wilde about Siggif being interested in Azu.

Wilde thinks someone should "take the bullet for the team but it might help everyone if Earhardt got some action while they are up here". To which Hamid grimaces, because yeah.

Except for the last it sounds like Wilde is mildly hung up on people's sex lives when personally I find unofficial rank/alliances/who looks to who more interesting but allos amirite? Even in fandom discussions with other aces, shipping is often the easiest lens to discuss relationships/dynamics between characters.

The last was not the kind of joke I like but I think was made to make a point about Wilde not being as deft at his little games anymore and forcing things. So I am going to take a moment at Hamid's grimace rather than be distracted from listening. Wilde always did like playing with boundary pushing. Hell, the first time we met him in the series, he broke into Hamid's apt mostly in a "and what ya gonna do about it" move. He might have grown on me but the man can be an ass.

Altruism!?! Also did he just imply Hamid should be the one to sleep with her?

Aw Hamid is encouraging the Kobolds to be more individual

Huh not following the transition back to Wilde.

Oh no rolling for it. Kobolds make themselves real scarce when not working. I think thats a good sign like they aren't afraid they'll get in trouble for taking time for themselves where the boss can't reach them.

Cel remains awesome and wants to develop their friendship with Skraak specificly. Aw Lydia wants to clarify it was friendship not to gain this mechanical stuff Alex is giving Cel. So 3 ranks in Kobold culture

Hamid is careful to not intrude on Cel & Skraak's time. He knows he needs to be gentle & give them lots of room so they don't get frightened, but he knows he needs to put in the work to break down that "the world will end if the boss gets mad" thing.

Oh Kobolds have a thing about people knowing where they sleep.

Yes the Sasha joke was necessary.

Oh Cel figures out where they are likely to sleep so they never come across them accidentally.

They have a simple game called hide the fang. Its not a euphemism, it just means hiding an actual fang. They are actually playing a silly game just for them and Cel is the only one out of the cohort they trust.

Lydia wants Cel & Skraak to actually be friends. They are also encouraging(?) Azu and Kiko.

Azu finds a package in the crows nest. Its ticking. She takes it to Zolf who goes with her to show it to Cel.

I love this image of Cel in the engine room.

I love Cel. Few things scarier than a clock/the passage of time.

Cel opens it with extendable tools. They have a complete set of extendable tools and Lydia makes it sound sensible. Cel is relaxed because they think its a courting gift from one of Azu's admirers. Zolf is hovering prepared to heal them after the inevitable explosion.

It is trapped so opening it leads to a small explosive charge, but Alex has his 'I'm up to something' voice on & I half remember seeing a spoiler before ducking. Plus Lydia doesn't take it as an actual threat.

Confetti!?!

Alex the condition of the clock is not our priority here. Come back after explaining what the heck is happening.

Cel was actually right from their first guess

There is a note.

Azu is still on the "wait we trust this thing stage" and Zolf is leaving now that he isn't needed.

Cel is dangling the note over Azu's head

"sorry. Here's a clock."

So its an apology from Siggif? Ok that tracks

Please like Carter would be that direct.

She was engaged when she followed the palidan of Aphrodite? "He couldn't come with" and they are friends, he's a potter.

Rock popouri sounds neat

Oh Azu tried to move on but the woman wasn't as serious about it.

Cel was married!?! Multiple times!?! Ah they have a healthy attitude and are imparting their wisdom on Azu.

Azu has the fang behind her ear.

Oh ow, really Sasha never got to do a slight of hand but Cel is using it for the fang game? Oh she did to cheat at cards with Azu.

That viral post was awesome.

Lydia teases us about that roll being the pivot point in whether Cel would have pursued Azu, but she already expressed concerns about a romance with that kind of age gap & as half the players involved that is a totally valid line. You don't need to like, read, or write, much less play a romance that makes you uncomfortable.

Unusual rock formations? If you squint it looks like it says "do not go here"

Azu picks up Hamid on the way to take this news to Zolf who is in the kitchen.

"Draal has been continuously underfoot" smelling and tasting things

Zolf keeps shouting "what do you want?". Draal keeps giving him double thumbs up and going "nice".

Zolf bumps this up the chain to Earhardt immediately.

Hamid knows mountains are in the area in general but not the specifics because maps are incomplete.

Azu apologizes for not looking to Earhardt so Zolf stops to reassure her that she did it right.

Hamid takes a look from the crows nest, there are shifting colors and it looks spikey.

Zolf is professional and efficient in reporting to Earhardt. She joins Hamid in the crows nest. Hamid is polite about asking if they should turn as well as raise the ship.

Zolf summons everyone with the "oh no" bell

Oh there is a borealis, wasn't that a sign of high magic Cel said the nomadic Elves avoided?

Its a rib cage so big they mistook it for a mountain?

Its a bear? "its a grizzly sight" it died about a year ago and has been picked clean.

"Hamid is just muttering swear words...because he can't cope" The cohort is forming a chain off the rail to get a better look. Zolf is falling into hunting the kracken mode. Cel is unimpressed, this is bigger than any they saw in America. (20 stories vs US's 3)

Wilde sounds lively and shares a dirty joke with Hamid.

There are more? Several more?Oh its corpses as far as the eye can see but in an 'elephant's graveyard' way not a 'what killed them' way

They risk going into the cloud cover to stay well above it. Hamid marks it on his map as "ursa major". Alex has to make it ominous.

[kindofwriter]

Just that bit of 177, but as a TV show script, because I have Ideas and no animation skills.

ID (unfortunately) under the cut, bc it’s literally thousands of words long.

ZOLF: Wilde, just talk to me honestly. Why are you... why...

WILDE: (ANGRY NOW) I'll tell you what: I'll talk to you honestly when you talk to me honestly

.WILDE snatches his hand out of ZOLF's.

.WILDE snatches his hand out of ZOLF's.

.WILDE snatches his hand out of ZOLF's.

ZOLF: (HESITANT) I am-

WILDE: (INTERRUPTING) Just say- Just say the words! 'Wilde, we need you to fix it again. Wilde, it's gone wrong, help! Wilde, solve this problem! Wilde; won't take long!'

With each sentence spoken WILDE's appearance changes: we watch him grow older. First we see him as ZOLF first met him: older, but still colourful and fresh-faced. Then we recognise his shorn hair and gaunt features from Damascus. Then, a flash of the man ZOLF has known for the past year: hair at an awkward, choppy length, practical clothes, tired eyes. And finally: thin and exhausted, with a jagged scar splitting across his face. He remains this way as he continues to speak.

WILDE: (ANGER BLURRING INTO UPSET) Just give me one of them! Just talk to me honestly, for the first time! Just, what is it? What- What needs fixing? What's gone wrong? What's on fire? 

WILDE gestures, almost absent-mindedley, out of the window.

CUT TO WIDE SHOT OF ZOLF

ZOLF is silhouetted in front of the window, which no longer shows an idyllic Paris day, but is instead reminiscent of the riots and looting that ensued after Mr Ceiling. A plume of smoke curls up out of Eiffel's folly.

CUT BACK TO WILDE

WILDE: Who died? What do I actually need to fix here? Because right now, this is the first chance I've had in I don't know how long. I've got finals coming up-

Suddenly WILDE is young and irritated again.

WILDE: I've got all of the interviews that are lined up on top, and everything's piling up, and all I've got are people asking me to fix things, and I keep doing it, and I keep fixing everything, brilliant. So, tell me, Zolf, I thought we were friends, but no. What do I need to fix?

ZOLF takes one hesitant, shuffled step towards WILDE.

ZOLF: (GENTLY )You don't have any-

WILDE: (INTERRUPTING )Do you want to cheat off me? Is that it? It's fine. Cheat off me, like everyone else does. It's. Fine.

WILDE drops his gaze, turning towards the garden.

ZOLF: (ANNOYED NOW) You don't have uni! You don't have exams! You don't have interviews! You. Are. Dead!

WILDE turns slightly back towards ZOLF and strokes a finger along his face, where his scar used to be.

ZOLF: You have no responsibility anymore. And you don't need to have any responsibility anymore. That's okay. (SOFTER) But I'm giving you a simple choice: you come back with me, or you don't. That's it. There is no other motive.

ZOLF pauses as if he wants to stop, looking upset and annoyed, then forces himself to press on.

ZOLF: Yes, things are broken. And things need to be fixed, and things need to be sorted out, but that doesn't have to be on you. And it shouldn't be just on you.

ZOLF extends a hand again. WILDE doesn't take it, but he's taken his attention away from the garden.

ZOLF: We're all responsible, for everything. And you died, in pursuit of a fix. And it would not be fair for me to tell you that you have to come back.

ZOLF lowers his hand.

WILDE: So why are you here? What, what, what's your actual point?

ZOLF: (INTERRUPTING) To ask you-

WILDE: (INTERRUPTING) Why don't you just let it lie?

ZOLF: (SOFT AND GENUINE) To ask you if you want to come back. You didn't choose to die, but you can, right now, choose to stay dead. 

WILDE takes a moment to compose himself. He suddenly remembers the drink still clutched in his other hand and finishes it, setting his glass on a table by the door. A breeze from the park ruffles his hair.

ZOLF: I know, better than a lot of people, that death ain't the end. Y'know, I'm a cleric for goodness sake. 

ZOLF touches the space on his chest were his dolphin once hung, then quickly drops his hand again, as if he was burned.

ZOLF: So, there is a, a natural order to things. And people die, and they move on, and that's just how it works.

WILDE: I'm just tired, Zolf. 

WILDE hangs his head, allowing his hair to cover his face in the same way he would do when hiding his scar.

WILDE: That's all. I'm sorry, I'm just- I'm just-

WILDE sighs. ZOLF takes another step closer to him.

ZOLF: I know, Wilde, I am tired too.

WILDE and ZOLF share a glance, one they've probably shared on countless late nights in countless safehouses. WILDE is the first to look away.

WILDE: Everyone thinks that they're carrying this, but they're not. 'Cause you know what happens if they drop the ball? I pick it up, and I pass it to someone else, and if no one else is there to take it I carry the ball myself. That-that's just how this works, and I'm just- I'm just tired. I'm just so tired, Zolf. I'm just. So. Tired.

ZOLF takes one final step; he's now right next to WILDE.

ZOLF: Do you really think you're the only person who feels like that? Everyone feels like that, all the time. Everyone's tired. And everyone has work to do. And-

WILDE: So, what? We just go back and carry on until eventually we can't? That's not-

WILDE sighs heavily, trailing off. ZOLF clenches a fist in frustration, but doesn't let it show on his face.

ZOLF: (WITH AN UPSET TINGE TO HIS VOICE, BUT KINDLY) Not necessarily. Not if you don't want to. I told you, when I first came here, I will turn around and I will go back on my own, and that is fine. 

ZOLF grits his teeth a little as he says this: is is clearly not fine.

ZOLF: That is your choice. But I want you to understand the options.

WILDE takes a deep breath, then looks directly at ZOLF.

WILDE: Just give me a reason, other than because there's something that needs doing. That's all I need. Just one reason, other than 'there is another job for you, Wilde.' That's all I need.

ZOLF seems flustered under WILDE's intense gaze, and for the first time since arriving looks directly away from him.

ZOLF: Do you want there to be another reason?

WILDE: What did I just say? Obviously I do! Yes! 

The tension is broken; ZOLF looks back to WILDE. His brow is furrowed slightly, and he looks like he's trying to hold back what he's about to say next.

ZOLF: (EXTREMELY SOFTLY) Fine. (FORCING THE WORDS OUT, BUT REALLY MEANING THEM) Because I need you, Wilde.

ZOLF reaches out a hand, but doesn't wait for WILDE to take it this time; he just grabs WILDE's hand in his own. A small smile twitches at the corner's of WILDE's lips.

WILDE: (SLIGHT SMILE BLOSSOMING INTO A GRIN) And there we go. An honest answer from Zolf Smith. I never thought I'd hear it.

ZOLF: (WITH RELIEF AND ANGER, BOTH MOCK AND REAL)You were just angling for that?!

ZOLF drops WILDE's hand in an over-dramatised manner. WILDE is chuckling slightly.

ZOLF: (GRINNING) You bastard.

WILDE: No, I wasn't just angling for that, but it's nice to know.

WILDE tucks his hair behind his ear.

ZOLF: Well, I didn't wanna say, because it wouldn't be fair.

WILDE: Oh, nothing's fair.

WILDE gazes over ZOLF's shoulder at something for a moment. The window reflects in his eyes, and there appears to be a figure stood on the balcony, dressed all in black, looking out over the city. ZOLF whips round to see what he's looking at, but there's no one there, save for the toe of a boot disappearing upwards, as if someone's climbing up to the roof. All this takes less than a moment. 

WILDE: Look at it.

They're both looking out the window now - from a distance - watching Paris burn. ZOLF turns back to WILDE.

ZOLF: D- uh. D'you want to come back, or don't you? Like, yeah, uh, I-I've said it, I know. But it's still your choice.

WILDE: Here's the plan. We're gonna finish up these drinks, we go out there-

WILDE gestures to the doorway behind him, but as he does the already darkened park fades completely to black.

WILDE: We'll figure it out. We always do. It's fine. It's just useful to know I'm not just beating my head against the wall for no reason, Zolf, y'know?

WILDE smiles fondly down at ZOLF, allowing the backs of their hands to brush together.

ZOLF: Look-

ZOLF pulls his hand away, and for a moment WILDE looks hurt, until ZOLF grabs hold of his lapels and yanks him down to ZOLF's height. Their noses are almost touching. WILDE smirks coyly and ZOLF looks stoic, but both of their cheeks flush slightly from the proximity.

ZOLF: When this is all done we'll go on holiday or something.

A huge, Cheshire-cat-grin spreads across WILDE's face.

WILDE: Where?

ZOLF: (EXHASPERATED AND FOND) Oh, I don't know! I don't know where's gonna be left after all this is done. But somewhere nice. 

WILDE: (WITH MOCK SINCERITY) Zolf, I won't come back with you until you tell me where we're going on holiday together.

ZOLF: Such a dick.

ZOLF lets go of WILDE, allowing him to straighten up, but as soon as he does ZOLF grabs his hand again.

ZOLF: Come on.

With one final shared smile, WILDE pulls ZOLF after him into the darkness.

END ID].

[commander-diomika]

Pspsps come get your angst and inevitable betrayals. (Part One) (Part Two) Part 3 - Fandom: Rusty Quill Gaming Pairing: Zolf Smith/Oscar Wilde Rating: Upped to Mature for graphic depiction of blood/injuries Word Count: ~2200 Additional Tags: Slow Burn, 18-Month Time Gap (Rusty Quill Gaming), Rating Will Change to Explicit in Later Parts, Opposites Attract, Blood and Injury, Angst

Summary: "The longer they stayed, the more it delayed real progress on the mission. Hope had borne them this long, but Zolf knew by the heaviness in his heart, it was time to consider saying goodbye. In more ways than one.

He didn’t want to have this conversation. He didn’t want to be the one to tell Wilde that it was time to stop gambling on the chance that they might see the party again. There was a tragedy in the shape of an executioner’s axe hanging over them both, and Zolf was about to give the nod to drop it."

It's all fun and games until someone loses their smile.

Six days after Bosie’s arrival.

Zolf was walking back to the safe house from the temple of Hephaestus. It had been locked up tight, and there was no response to his hammering on the door.

I think it might be time to move on from this city, he thought. The ringing of his unanswered knocks at the temple had rung with a kind of finality. Both he and Wilde had held on here longer than they should, making any excuse they could to stay put in their current safehouse. Hoping to hear from Hamid and Sasha. Zolf and Wilde clung to Damascus, praying that any day word would come through. If they just stayed in the last place the other party members had been seen, it might make them easier to find. Hoping, hoping, hoping.

But the longer they stayed, the more it delayed real progress on the mission. Hope had borne them this long, but Zolf knew by the heaviness in his heart, it was time to consider saying goodbye. In more ways than one.

He didn’t want to have this conversation. He didn’t want to be the one to tell Wilde that it was time to stop gambling on the chance that they might see the party again. There was a tragedy in the shape of an executioner’s axe hanging over them both, and Zolf was about to give the nod to drop it.

“Ho, Wilde!” Zolf called, coming through the door. He sighed as he unslung his pack from his shoulders, thinking about how best to broach it.

When a few silent moments passed, Zolf surfaced from the depths of his thoughts, noticing that there was no response from within the townhouse. “Douglas?” he added uncertainly.

There was every chance the two of them were cozied up in Wilde’s room again. Zolf had seen a lot less of Wilde this week than usual, and he wasn’t looking forward to prying Wilde out of his torrid nest to have a hard conversation. Whilst it wasn’t any of Zolf’s business who Wilde took to bed, it was Zolf’s business that Wilde was... distracted. And if Wilde was planning on keeping Bosie around...

Depressed about the notion of so many hard conversations threatening, Zolf clanged his glaive into the weapons rack in the entry hall and threw down his bag, heading to the sitting room.

Shock has a way of warping perception, of making a mind skitter when it should seize. For instance, as he reached the door, the first thing that Zolf noticed was that the settee was the wrong colour, instead of Wilde’s bloodied body atop it.

Zolf swore, feeling like his legs wouldn’t respond, like everything moved slowly as the view properly hit him.

It felt like an age before he could move. Wilde’s upper half was drenched in blood, the couch dark and dripping with it.

“Wilde?” Zolf asked, almost inanely, as if expecting a response. Wilde had fallen back as if pushed, limbs splayed. The blood was leaking from multiple messy slices across his torso, darkening the soft turquoise shirt to a purple-black. That was shocking enough, but the real horror was Wilde’s cheek, sliced from temple to lips in a vicious, loose flap. Already Zolf was pulsating with healing light as he ran over, years of combat experience overriding the dumb shock. He nearly slipped in the growing pool of blood.

The wave of power emanating from Zolf slid like oil around Wilde’s body, none of it sinking it.

The cuffs! Zolf could have screamed. He yanked up the hems of Wilde’s pants. He snapped the cuffs off with strangely steady hands and blasted the man with magic.

“Don’t move!” Zolf cried. Can he move? Will he move? Zolf’s hands were slick within moments of touching Wilde’s face, the blood still oozing from the wound. Zolf’s stomach lurched, but he remained focused. He drew the two loose parts of Wilde’s cheek together before slamming more magic through it, his mind a horrified buzz. The point of a safehouse was that it was safe!

Wilde was trying to speak.

“Don’t! Just let me- don’t talk, Wilde, just wait.” There was so much blood- this kind of precision surgical work was better done by, well, surgeons, not hackneyed ex clerics who weren’t even sure why their magic still worked.

Zolf felt the loose pieces of skin begin to knit themselves back together beneath his hands, and no more blood flowed from the chest wounds. Zolf had a brief and horrifying flashback to Sasha, in pieces, her organs floating like a halo around her lifeless body. He didn’t want to keep getting his friends' blood on his hands, even if it was in the service of saving them.

Wilde weakly tried to push Zolf’s hands away and went to speak again through the ruin of his face.

“Don’t worry about me,” he managed this time. “Go after Bosie!”

“Stop! Talking!” Zolf replied, besides himself with anger, incredibly relieved that Wilde was conscious. “Wait- Bosie did this?”

Wilde was awake enough to hold a hand over his cheek and sit up. His face was painted stark red from the bridge of the nose down. His head had slumped to one side, wound facing up, blood flowing down; the effect was like he was wearing a shiny maroon bandana over nose and mouth. But his eyes were remarkably clear and angry.

“Yes. I don’t know- he turned, it wasn’t him anymore, or something took over him. He tried to take me with him and I- I fought back and-” Wilde went to stand, hand still clasped over his face. “I think he heard you- shit, Zolf.” Wilde’s eyes flicked around frantically, looking for the man who attacked him.

“Easy, easy.” Zolf stopped Wilde from rising and as he did, Wilde’s fire seemed to go out. Zolf kept talking. “It’s alright. It’s not important right now.” Zolf’s gut swooped with guilt as he looked at the wound. He’d gotten here just in time, but Wilde wasn’t walking away from this without scarring. “Just let me take care of it, ok?”

Zolf reached and cupped Wilde’s bloody cheek in one hand. Wilde half-closed his eyes and leant into the touch, breathing shakily. Zolf had been about to push more healing magic through the cheek, but he froze at the sensation of Wilde’s lips and breath against his blood-slick hand. Alive. Zolf had gotten here in time and his droll, irritating, shallow co-conspirator was alive.

Suddenly Wilde’s eyes flew open. “No!” he shouted and leapt to his feet, knocking Zolf’s hand aside. He looked completely deranged. “Get away!” Zolf backed up a few steps, hands outstretched as if he were taming a wild animal.

“I- Argh! He was infected!” Wilde clenched the tattered shirt to his chest, as though trying to hold his whole self together. “We spent this whole week together, in bed, fucking, kissing! You need to stay away!”

The wind went completely out of Zolf’s sails, his breath leaving him in an instant. Wilde was only semi-conscious and still reeling. Zolf would be impressed at Wilde’s acumen whilst distressed, if the point he had made wasn’t completely terrifying. Zolf took a few steps backward without realising.

“Wait, Wilde, just wait.” Zolf was still catching up. “You said, he tried to take you away. If you were already infected all he had to do was wait, righ’? A week, Curie said, all of her double agents lasted less than a week before they turned on people.”

“We can’t know that! Maybe he was just getting a head start! Fuck!” Wilde’s cheek started to bleed again with the strength of his swear.

Zolf had backed all the way to the other side of the room, only noticing when his arse gently bumped the wall. “The cuffs, Wilde.” He was grasping, but he desperately needed to find the right words to say to take that hellish look off Wilde’s face. “If it’s at all magical in nature, maybe the cuffs protected you.”

Wilde’s head snapped around frantically. In the carnage, he hadn’t realised they’d been taken off. He spotted them, discarded by the low table and moved to them.

“Wait, at least let me-” Unwilling to come closer, Zolf simply radiated as much healing as he could muster. Wilde, eyes unfathomably dark, nodded his thanks as he snapped the cuffs back on. He’d been on the brink for a moment there, terror threatening to snap him, but Zolf’s words, and the Stockholm-syndrome familiarity of the weight around his ankles had brought him back from whatever edge he’d been teetering on.

Wilde’s mouth twisted. He’d taken as much healing as Zolf could jam into him, but the scar was there to stay. “Here’s what’s going to happen. Zolf, you’re going to go up to my room and bar the window. I don’t care how you do it, move a wardrobe over it, stone shape it, whatever, but make it tight. Then I am going to go into that room, shut the door-” He took a deep, shuddering breath. “-and wait for seven days.”

Zolf gulped. “Righ-…. Right. That’s a good idea. I can bring you food and-”

“No. No food.” Wilde snapped. “No opening the door. Not if I beg, not if I scream. Not for anything.”

Zolf’s mouth was agape, trying desperately to catch up to Wilde, to meet him wherever he had gone. “No food? Don’t be daft, you’ll die.”

Wilde’s head snapped to the side, then to the other. It was unclear if he was shaking his head or simply processing with his whole skull. “No, I won’t. I’ll need water but I can live without food, or whatever we’ve got in the house. What are you waiting for? Do it now!” His demeanor had snapped from terror to fury. “Every second we waste dithering about it makes it more likely that this could take you too!”

Zolf obeyed. His hands had started to shake as the crest of the crisis passed, and he stilled them by taking action. He washed the blood off himself and dutifully collected all the vases from about the place to fill with water, grabbing any food in the kitchen that wasn’t raw ingredients. It amounted to some bread and dried fruit, but Zolf was still obscenely grateful there was any ready-to-eat food in there at all. The horror inherent to spending seven days alone in a single room was starting to spread like a dark inkblot in his mind. He kept moving, as if he could outrun a stain.

It was trivial to stone shape the window closed; the townhouse wasn’t particularly big or lavish. When he stepped out of the room, Zolf was met with the ghoulish sight that was Wilde waiting for him down the corridor. He had put a jacket over his slashed shirt but hadn’t even tried to clean the blood off his face.

Zolf paused in the door, looking Wilde over. “Curie said something about- about blue veins?” he said softly. He didn’t want to ask. The last thing he wanted to say was I told you so.

“What? Everyone’s veins are blue.” Wilde’s voice was flat, emotionless. Shock was setting in properly, Zolf diagnosed.

“I dunno. It weren’t clear, but… did you notice anything? On Bosie.” It felt horrible pushing Wilde right now, but knowledge was power. Wilde in his right mind would understand.

Wilde’s eyes shifted in either shock or deception. “No. I didn’t. But we spent a lot of time with the lights off.” Wilde gave his head a little shake, as if to dislodge a memory... or stop one from surfacing.

More than the blood, it was the blankness on Wilde’s face that was most unsettling. Zolf couldn’t remember the last time he’d seen Wilde without a smirk or an arched brow or, more frequently these days, a soft little smile, usually when he thought Zolf wasn’t paying attention.

“What’s done is done. Worry about the “how” if I come out the other side of this.” Wilde took a step forward, waiting for Zolf to back off. “Go to the end of the corridor. Once I’m inside, I’ll shut the door. Bar it from the outside.” Metres between them, they performed a grotesque mockery of a tango step, Zolf stepping back, Wilde stepping forward. When Wilde reached the door, he stared into his room.

“And Zolf?” Wilde didn't look over at him, considering the darkness inside as though it held a secret. Perhaps pondering the poetic implications that his love den of the last week was to be his prison for the next.

“Yeh?” Zolf knew this had to happen. Knew it was a good idea. But gods, he wouldn’t wish this on his worst enemy. Wilde had just been betrayed in the most vile way, and now he had to sit in the dark with that for a week. Zolf hadn’t wanted Douglas around, but he certainly hadn’t wanted this.

“At the end of these seven days... if it’s not me in there-” Wilde finally tore his eyes away from the room and turned his gaze to Zolf’s. “-if I’m, monstrous or sick, if I try to hurt you...” He didn’t finish the thought.

“I won’t let you.” Zolf whispered through dry lips. Wilde didn’t have spell it out; they understood each other well enough by now.

Wilde nodded once, satisfied, and stepped into the dark.

[celsidebottom]

things you said when you thought I was asleep for zolf/wilde? 👀

12: things you said when you thought i was asleep

From this list of prompts

Thinking about them as soft life partners somewhere between platonic and romantic just makes me go aaaaaaahhhhhhhhh

It had started with nightmares and pain.

When one of them had a nightmare, a vivid flashback to the horrors they once faced, they would step to the other’s bedside and ask if they could crawl in to find solace in not being alone.  And when Zolf’s phantom pain acted up, he used what strength he could to crawl to Wilde’s room, and let Wilde hold him as he cried.  They had their own bedrooms, their own spaces, but eventually it became easier and more natural to just fall asleep together, safe in each other’s company.

And one night, long after the war was over and the plague was cured, Zolf and Wilde found themselves side by side in bed, sound asleep.

Or, at least, Zolf was, until he heard the faintest voice.  Part of him immediately flew into attack mode, ready to analyze the situation and strike if necessary.  The other part of him, thankfully, recognized the voice, and realized that it wasn’t a threat at all.

“Oh, Zolf, I… I wish I could tell you aloud how I feel, but… neither of us is good at emotions.”

Zolf peeked open one eye to watch Wilde speak into the darkness of the room.  There was the faintest smile on his face, and a forlornness in his gaze.

“Because,” Wilde continued, his voice a nearly silent whisper, “I love you, Zolf.  It feels good to say it out loud, even if you’re asleep.  I love you.”

He paused for a moment, and Zolf let out a fake snore so that Wilde would assume he was still asleep and carry on with his midnight confession.  Zolf could have woken up, told Wilde he felt the same way, but his body was frozen with irrational fear.

It wasn’t as if they hadn’t been living together since their adventures concluded, if they didn’t find comfort in the other’s arms, if it wasn’t the most natural thing in the world to share their space and their lives.  But for Wilde to say those words… Zolf still couldn’t quite believe it.

“And I know you worry sometimes about what we are,” Wilde said.  Apparently Zolf’s fake snoring did the trick, and he suspected nothing.  “Or that you’re holding me back from finding a whirlwind romance, or something, but… none of that matters.  What matters is you, and I wouldn’t trade what we have for anything.  I…”

He buried his face in his hands, and Zolf wanted nothing more than to reach out and hold him, but didn’t want Wilde to feel self-conscious.  So, instead, Zolf scooched a little closer and let his arm drape ever so slightly over Wilde’s midsection, a gentle acknowledgement even while he pretended to sleep on.

Wilde let out a quiet chuckle.  “Goodnight, Zolf.”

***

Even if Zolf had kept knowledge of Wilde’s nighttime admission to himself at the time, he couldn’t just let it go entirely.  His heart panged at the thought of carrying on like nothing had happened, when he longed to tell Wilde that he also loved what they had and that, not only did Zolf still need him, he loved him too, more every day.

So, he quietly crawled out of bed when the sun started to shine in through the curtains and made breakfast for the pair of them, then brought trays up to Wilde’s bedroom.

“Breakfast?”  Wilde asked, bleary-eyed as he heard Zolf enter.

“I got up early, so decided to make some.”  Zolf shrugged and handed a tray to Wilde, before climbing back into bed himself.

“Well, thank you.”

They silently munched on their eggs and bacon, until Zolf couldn’t take it anymore.

“I love you too, you know.”

He never had been great at subtle delivery.

Wilde dropped his bacon and spun to stare at Zolf, practically throwing his breakfast all over the room in his haste and surprise.  However, in a rare instance, he couldn’t find any words to process what Zolf had said.

“I heard you,” Zolf confessed.  “Last night, when you were… talking.  And I just… I want you to know that I love you too.  And I also love what we have.  I do worry that you want a more traditional, romantic type relationship with someone, and what we have going on isn’t quite like that, but… if you’re happy, then that’s what matters, right?”

“I am happy,” Wilde said softly, the faintest tears glimmering in his eyes.  “Even if I am so annoyed you let me spill my heart out last night and you didn’t say anything!”  He added, louder, though there was a grin spread across his features.

“If you’d known I was awake, would you have said all of those things?”

Wilde opened his mouth with an immediate rebuke, then slumped.  “No, I probably wouldn’t have.  But… since you did hear me, thank you for saying something now.”

“I know I’m an ass, but I couldn’t just stay quiet about it.  That wouldn’t be fair to you.”

Wilde chuckled.  “When has life ever been fair?  After all, a man like me somehow ended up with someone as wonderful and infuriating as you.”

“I’m going to take that as a compliment,” Zolf teased.

“You should.”

They both smiled, then Wilde reached out, grabbed the collar of Zolf’s shirt, and tugged him in close until their foreheads pressed together.

Their breathing fell into sync as he said, “Thank you, Zolf, for everything.  I… I love you.  And it feels good to say that out loud.”

“I love you too.”  After a calm moment of savoring each other’s presence and the bond they shared, Zolf joked, “Now finish your breakfast before it gets cold, will you?”

[redactedquill]

Your writing is so good! “Cradling someone in their arms” and the arms are Azu’s? I’m tempted to say Sasha or Grizzop, but I’m also not sure I’m ready for the feels that would give me rip. So Hamid or her brother would also be great!

Aw thank you so much! I’m so sorry this took me like… three months to finish.

[AO3 Link]

It was nothing more than a glancing blow, certainly shouldn’t have been enough to knock her off her feet the way it did, to fling her backward so sharply that her head cracked sickeningly against the concrete wall. But it had, against all logic, and within moments Sasha’s crumpled form lay in a heap at the base of the wall, completely still, watching the steady drip, drip, drip of dark red falling from the gash on her head to pool on the already wet ground below her. Everything hurt, her head was swimming, darkness creeping in at the edges of her vision, and she could feel the bright starbursts of pain radiating from the back of her head, from the deep cut in her side. 

But even through all of that, she could still hear her; the usual brightness of her laugh, twisted into something unfamiliar and wrong as her clanging footsteps brought her closer and closer to where Sasha lay. She didn’t dare move, both because she knew it would be no use (given how quickly her vision spun even when she was still), and in the vain hope that she might look dead.

That Azu would think she was dead, or even that she would think she was close enough to it and leave her to bleed out.

And wouldn’t it be ironic, she couldn’t help but think, for her to survive all that she had - for her to finally escape Barrett, to somehow, despite the odds, make it back from Rome completely unscathed - only to be taken down like this, at the hands of someone she’d thought of as a friend.

(At the hands of someone who was still a friend, no matter what happened in that moment, because it wasn’t her fault. It wasn’t her; it was the blue veins that had somehow worked their way under her skin, the infection that none of them had noticed until it was far too late.)

(It wasn’t her.)

She could only hope that she’d bought everyone else enough time.

She heard more than saw what happened next. The clanging of Zolf’s legs as he ran, and Azu’s grunt as he threw himself into her. The loud clattering of the two of them crashing to the ground, Hamid’s muttering as he cast Hold Person again, and again, and again until it finally took. The vicious words that sounded so foreign as they were hissed between Azu’s teeth.

Grizzop was crouching over her, laying on hands in that brusque way of his, but the spell fizzled out, ineffective, as Azu shouted suddenly. He was distracted, of course he was, they all were; they all knew that what they were trying to do was risky at best (and at worst, deadly, though none of them had ever dared say it aloud). But it was a chance, their only chance, a chance they had to take for Azu’s sake. They all owed her that much.

Sasha tried to move, shift her head so she could at least see what was going on, but Grizzop wouldn’t release her long enough for her to do so, muttering under his breath about a possible spinal cord injury as he laid on hands again (and again, the spell was less effective than it should have been as Hamid whimpered, the effort of keeping Azu in place obviously straining him).

Then she heard Cel, or rather, heard the sound of glass vials clinking together as they moved toward Azu, speaking so quickly Sasha couldn’t parse what they said through the haze in her head. But their tone, despite the rate of their speech, was as soothing as Sasha had ever heard it (not that the thing that was controlling Azu seemed soothed, as she continued to shout at them).

There was the sound of Cel fishing something out of their coat, of Azu struggling against the hands still pinning her down. Then, suddenly, Azu stopped, and everything was silent. Or not silent, she supposed, as Grizzop’s hands stilled, hovering just over her skin. No, the rain still pounded down around them, the sky still rumbled with thunder, she could still hear her own laboured breathing. But it all seemed dulled, muted, muffled under the absolute absence of sound from Azu. 

(Sasha had always liked silence, had found it soothing. She’d never understood the need some people had to fill it, or what they could possibly mean when they called it oppressive or uncomfortable. But just then, under the weight of that horrible silence, she thought she might be beginning to.)

She finally managed to move just enough to see what was happening, gritting her teeth against the pain her shifting caused. Next to her, Grizzop’s gaze was locked on Azu (Azu, laying on the ground, surrounded by the rest of the party, so completely, unnervingly still). Zolf stood above her now, his beard partially unbraided, likely from Azu trying to struggle away as he pinned her down. Hamid was next to him, leaning on his arm as he panted, still winded from the effort of holding Azu in place. And crouched near Azu’s head was Cel, the now-empty syringe still clutched in their hand, as still as Sasha had ever seen them as they stared down, unblinking, at Azu’s form.

Sasha tried to sit up further, hoping to be able to see Azu’s face, to see if the blue veins had changed at all, if they were starting to disappear. The moment she did, however, her vision spun wildly, and the blackness at the edges crept in further. She collapsed back to the ground, her head colliding with the wall behind her as she fell. 

The last thing she heard before the darkness finally swallowed her was the sound of Azu’s gasp, and Cel’s triumphant cry.

—

After what both felt like a moment and an age, Sasha was jostled awake. It was instantly clear she wasn’t still outside where she’d lost consciousness. For one, whatever she was lying on was much softer than the ground outside had been, and her head was resting on what she could only assume was probably a pillow. A bed, then, or a mattress. 

Then, the probably-pillow moved.

Sasha’s eyes snapped open as she jolted upright. Or, at least, as she tried to. The movement sent pain lancing through her torso, set her head spinning, and she had to bite her tongue to suppress a groan as she half-collapsed once more. But she didn’t stay there for long, instead rolling over to her uninjured side to try to push herself up that way. She couldn’t stay down, couldn’t stay there with whoever, whatever had taken her unconsciousness as an opportunity to strike. 

Before she could struggle to her feet, something grabbed her arm. Not pulling her back, not even restraining. Just… holding.

“Hey, it’s alright, you’re alright,” came Azu’s voice, as soothing as always, so different from how it had been when she’d been taken, all the sharpness the infection had caused softened once more. Not that she believed it, not in the least; the thing that had taken Azu had pretended to be her for weeks before they’d noticed.

(Weeks of gentle smiles, gentle words, even gentler hugs. She would not fall for it again.)

She pulled her arm free of Azu’s grip, pushing herself up to her hands and knees despite the pain, scrambling to put as much distance between them as possible. Another jolt of pain, sharp, like something tearing, knocked the breath out of her. It felt like something in her had torn, and she stumbled forward, colliding with the wall in front of her. Or, not a wall. It certainly didn’t feel like a wall, felt more like… bars.

She was in a cell.

Trapped. In a cell. With the thing that had taken over Azu’s body.

She gripped the bars, resisting the urge to try to shake them loose. She already knew it wouldn’t work, the familiar texture of adamantine told her that much. Behind her, she heard Azu get to her feet, the sound of her armour against the stone floor almost deafening in the small room.

“Sasha-”

“Don’t!” Sasha snapped. “Don’t you dare. Don’t try to- to trick me.” She turned, pressing her back to the bars to keep herself upright, and stared up at her (not that she could see very much in the dim, flickering light cast by the torch on the wall outside the cell).

Azu froze in her tracks, hands out in front of her, palms open. “I’m not trying to trick you, I promise. It’s me, the cure worked.” She paused, brows furrowed. “Or we think it worked. That’s why we’re in here. We’re waiting out the seven days, just to be sure.”

“Then why am I here, too?” Sasha reached for one of her daggers, only to come up empty (she didn’t believe her, or at the very least didn’t want to believe her, no matter how sincere she seemed).

“You were alone with me, with it, before the cure,” Azu responded. “Wilde and the others are fairly sure you aren’t infected, but they couldn’t take any chances.” 

Sasha opened her mouth to respond, but before she could, her fingers brushed against something warm and wet on her side as she withdrew them from her jacket (from the empty sheaths). Lifting her hand, she could see dark red staining her fingertips.

Azu must have seen it too, as she gasped, seemingly forgetting Sasha’s distrust as she rushed to her side. Sasha couldn’t even find it in herself to be angry about it as her whole world tilted, her body listing sideways, only saved from bashing her head against bars or the floor (for what would have been the third time in recent days) by Azu catching her.

Sasha didn’t fight it. What did it matter? Either she was infected, or she wasn’t. Either Azu was infected, or she wasn’t. Nothing she did would change that, so what did it matter if she let Azu lower her gently to the floor, pull her into her lap to cradle her in her arms? So what if she let Azu’s calming words lull her into a sense of security, of safety, of home? So she let herself drift, ignoring the wetness slowly soaking her shirt, ignoring the pressure of Azu’s hand as she pressed on the wound, ignoring her muttered prayers to Aphrodite that they both knew would do nothing, in this anti-magic cell.

She let herself drift.

—

The bleeding must have stopped while she’d been asleep, because when she woke next- 

Well, because she woke up at all.

The room was bright, when she opened her eyes, the light from the single torch having been bolstered by three or four more. Zolf sat on a bench by the wall, reading, Hamid asleep on his shoulder. 

Azu was asleep as well, sitting against the bars, head tilted back and light snores escaping her with every breath. Her face and neck lacked the blue veins that had stood out so starkly while she’d been infected.

So, despite it all, despite everything that had happened to her, before and after leaving Other London, and every reason Sasha had ever known not to trust a happy ending, she trusted this one.

Everything was going to be okay.

[commander-diomika]

(Click to Read From the Beginning) Part 7 Pairing: Zolf Smith/Oscar Wilde, James Barnes/Howard Carter Word Count: 1600 Rating: Mature Additional Tags: Slow Burn, 18-Month Time Gap (Rusty Quill Gaming), Opposites Attract, Trans Male Character, Barnes and Carter have a mild D/s thing going on but there's nothing explicit in here

Summary: Wilde opened the Campbell. He genuinely tried to read, but like bubbles in a glass, his eyes rose off the page and over the top of the book. He enjoyed this one, truly, but a fictional romance held slightly less fascination for him than the reality of the one relaxing in his sitting room.

It’s been almost a year and they still can’t bear to take their hands off each other, Wilde thought bemusedly.

Barnes lounged on one of the comfy chairs in Wilde’s sitting room, watching the fire, whiskey in one hand. Carter had a pile of knives and complicated-looking tools laid out on the low table, humming softly as he did inventory and repairs. He knelt on the floor practically between Barnes’ uwabaki-clad feet, and as Wilde walked in, Carter reached behind himself almost absently to pat Barnes on the thigh, finishing with an affectionate squeeze before shifting focus back to his work.

The pair of them had just finished up yet another round of quarantine and, post bath and debrief, had seemingly settled in for the evening.

Wilde nodded to Barnes and went to pour himself a drink then settled in opposite the pair with a book. Zolf was away once again, returning to his old network with the Harlequins to see if they had discovered anything on the simulacra since he’d left their employ. He was due back in the next few days, and the fact that Wilde had timed each deployment so that the other men could do the inspections for Zolf… well, it was just good luck, not good management.

Wilde liked sending out Zolf alone about as much as Zolf had liked the reverse. But that was part of the job. They no longer lived in a world with much room for sentimentality. Besides, Wilde was almost accustomed to the underlying hum of anxiety every time one of the team was away. He was adept at neatly packaging up that fear, that preemptive grief, and putting in a quiet corner of his mind to either be unboxed when the worst happened or discarded if it didn’t.

“Thought you’d already read that one,” Barnes said by way of breaking the quiet. This was often how it was after a mission, by unspoken understanding; conversation carved deliberately out of the soft, the easy, questions neatly avoiding the state of the world or the work.

“If one cannot enjoy reading a book over and over again, there is no use in reading it at all.” Wilde replied. Truth was, between the enforced waiting between missions and the inescapable breakdown of the global market, books he hadn’t read were becoming harder to find.

Barnes gave a non-committal grunt that said he didn’t know the feeling.

Wilde opened the Campbell. He genuinely tried to read, but like bubbles in a glass, his eyes rose off the page and over the top of the book. He enjoyed this one, truly, but a fictional romance held slightly less fascination for him than the reality of the one relaxing in his sitting room.

Barnes reached out with the hand that wasn’t holding the whisky, and without taking his eyes from the fire, gave the back of Carter’s neck a squeeze; strong grip working into the muscle. Carter’s tune transformed into a low hum of pleasure, hands briefly stilling on his tools.

It’s been almost a year and they still can’t bear to take their hands off each other, Wilde thought bemusedly.

This had been the last thing he’d expected when he’d paired them up together. He had honestly been worried they would both crack after the first quarantine, and either quit or demand someone new to work with. At the very least after the umpteenth round of spending a week in a small room together, Wilde thought they’d want a little space. But here they were.

Wilde felt a strange pulse of guilt. If either one of them died whilst out on a mission- he snapped his eyes back to the book. It was a harsh world. As their handler, it could only be viewed as a good thing that they had become, well, devoted to one another. A strategic benefit, he said to himself, wanting ardently to believe it.

Wilde turned a page without having read a word on it.

“Hey sailor,” Carter said softly. He’d finished repairing his thieves’ tools and was pulling out a weapon-care kit. “Grab your sword, I’ll do her first.”

Wilde fought to keep his eyebrows level as Barnes fetched and handed his sword over to Carter. “Use my whetstone; don’t think yours is quite up to the task.” Barnes settled back in his chair, looking like a man without a care in the world.

Wilde swallowed. They really did feel safe here, safe with one another. If only they all could just… stay here. Hope that the war would not come to their doorstep. If only they could be left in peace, if only there was no threat eating away at the world. If there wasn’t a job to do, Wilde felt like he could just stay here; with these two, and the locals, and be happy.

He could put it all down. And Zolf would be there too.

His dreams used to be much bigger than a life of relative safety and obscurity in a tiny Japanese backwater, but the looming decay of a previously ordered world had a way of shifting priorities.

Carter eventually finished his chores, and then successfully watched the fire for three whole quiet minutes before announcing he was going to the kitchen.

“Don’t be a pest,” Barnes said in a well-practised farewell. “When you come back, I’ve got some shirts that need mendin’ too.”

Carter blew air through his teeth. “I’m not your valet, Barnes,” he replied, and Barnes just raised an eyebrow at him. Walking out, Carter muttered something under his breath about buttons that didn’t even get used.

“If you’ve got anythin’ that needs repairing, I’d get Carter to do it to,” Barnes offered, secure that Carter’s departing comments in no way reflected his actual intentions. “He’s a fair hand with a needle.”

Wilde smiled knowingly as he shook his head, and without conscious thought, a question popped out of his mouth.

“How did you two… happen?”

Barnes looked surprised at the question. Not that he felt it inappropriate, Barnes just wasn’t used to Wilde being confused about the obvious. “Well,” he said, brow furrowed as he tried to figure out how to phrase it. “He just needs a firm hand on the rein, y’know. Didn’ take us long to figure out I could be that for ‘im.”

The noise that Carter had made as he came, muffled in said firm hand, was still remarkably fresh in Wilde’s memory. The sound flashed through his mind as if to punctuate Barnes’ comment.

Barnes must have seen the brief rise of heat in Wilde’s cheeks, because his next comment, mildly spoken, was, “You interested in joining us, Wilde?” When Wilde’s only response was a raised brow, Barnes continued. “I don’t mind sharin’.”

Wilde leant back in his chair, considering this surprise twist of in the conversation. It had been quite some time since he’d been openly propositioned, and despite the languid set of his body, he felt his heartbeat speed up and a slight blush heat his cheeks. A younger Wilde, an unshackled Wilde, would have said yes in an instant. He’s fallen into bed with someone, or someones, for less.

Wilde briefly allowed the beast that was his imagination off-leash. He saw himself, besieged with pleasure. Bodies surrounding him, hands and lips on him, stuffed at both ends, absolutely overwhelmed, worshipped, had.

It was a very nice thought.

But it was more complicated now, without his magic. It wasn’t that he felt shy, or that he thought either of his co-conspirators would react poorly to his… unconventional physiology. It was just that sex for the younger version of Wilde didn’t used to be so revealing. It used to be something he could just fold into his performance persona, slide straight from stage to bed without having to play a single open card.

Skies above, Wilde missed those days. He investigated his drink, calm face hiding the stream of images bubbling through his mind. Somewhere amongst the tantalising and lascivious, were the complex and confusing. Barnes and Carter fucking in the cell downstairs, the very same one where Wilde had been pushed to let Zolf in on a secret truth. An expression of conflicted desire on Zolf’s face.

Wilde couldn’t sort those images into a cohesive narrative, so he put them aside with a dark, self-deprecating chuckle. “I thank you, but no. I was merely seeking satisfaction for my curiosity.”

Barnes nodded, unruffled. Wilde had seen the man fight and had heard him fuck. He knew the energy, the potential Barnes contained, and yet in conversation he was such a mild creature. He was a contradiction. It was almost as though he saved up all that vitality, that power, for when it was needed the most. The rest of the time he simply… switched it off.

Wilde pulled his mind back to business with a sigh, “Besides, if we don’t hear from Zolf in about twelve hours, I’m sorry to say you two will be heading out again. It’s a short turnaround, I know. You should spend it together.”

“For sure, I wouldn’t mind a sleep in a proper bed for one.” With that, the two lapsed back into a comfortable silence.

When Carter returned from the kitchen, he had a bottle of sake and a bunch of grapes. He came up behind Barnes, dangling both his prizes into the seated man’s eyeline.

“C’mon, sailor. Let’s get out of Oscar’s hair.”

Barnes smiled slowly, making deliberate eye contact with Wilde. He wasn’t the sort to waggle his eyebrows or leer, but his gaze communicated last chance, offer still stands, as clear as a sunny day.

With a small smile, Wilde waved them off. There was something like envy bubbling in his chest, over the ease which Barnes and Carter shared with each other.

He sighed and picked up his book.

[shy-magpie]

RQG 159

Live blog under the cut

Pre Episode Nonsense:

Crossing my fingers we get Earhart today. Either way we broke the "no name" rule on the Kobolds last week and got Alex to assign a personality trait himself, so hoping we see them grow more individual as they relax their guard. Also Zolf traveling: sucks Poseidon got the sea in the divorce, but maybe he'll fly better? Also I need Cel on an airship. As to Azu: please have someone talk to her about her concerns instead of it always being a one way street, I know Zolf offered.

The Actual Liveblog:

Nice to be in a properly diverse city. Wilde gives Hamid the funds. Zolf asks if Wilde needs them to pick up anything, gets a shopping list Earhart is still not a fan of Wilde? Hey nice allusion from Zolf Character growth as Hamid prioritizes location over poshness. Azu gets a room that is actually a bit big for her. Scaled as if she was 12-13 human equivalent Ben don't remind us Azu and Grizzop are that young, its a crime. "I delight in showing the Kobolds the finer side of life" Maître d comes to talk to Skraak about security needs. Skraak has this. Hamid finally hawks all that adamantine he's been carrying. Hamid goes to the family bank with Cel as a local guide (well local to Japan) Tahan and Zalia's? Zalia was a competitor. Also how does Zalia from discord feel about this? 32, Hamid is so diplomatic Oh the bank will handle the Adamantine. 60k? For something he grabbed on a whim? Good going kiddo. Cel is asked to leave after fiddling with an ATM and the red panda plush is sparking. Azu gets to see an Aphrodite temple. Eren Fairhands is leading efforts at the front. The temple is "awash with light" from all the candles lit. Party talk? Break Oh Hamid is such a leader sometimes. Oh bless he wants to split the earnings from the Adamantine. Zolf refuses because he wasn't part of the group when Hamid got the stuff. Hamid spins a bit, Cel & Azu also push for even split. I'd have left his boots out of it, but otherwise a good point. Even split 4 ways its a silly high amount Turns out the dragon destroying the factory drove up adamantine prices War profiteer? Bryn! Zolf only agrees to accept what is left after the others have bought what they need. Azu argues with Zolf on it. The others agree not to spend beyond their share Airport time Wilde jumps up & down waving because its so busy. Azu jumps up & down waving back, while glowing pink. Zolf has Wilde's stuff in a bag The Flying Noodle Monster! "what's left of Earhart's ship? " how bad is it? Cel and the Kobolds are to fix it. Earhart might "need fixing"? Zolf doesn't appreciate the round about phrasing Earhart lost the majority of her crew and is having a mental crisis. Hamid and Azu are to talk to Earhart. Zolf is ordered to help Cel "ship shaped" Hamid! Wilde thinks "a ships a ship" Hamid explains he will be starting with the Kobolds and switch after Azu has made contact. Seems to think Earhart won't like seeing them (him?) again. Zolf volunteers to go with Azu to make initial contact. (ow Zolf) Earhart did like him or rather his father. Cel talks with Hamid about Zolf. Hamid speaks well of him. "one of the greatest men I've ever known" also "frustrating to be his friend". Cel is willing to take this as Hamid vouching for him. Unlike some people, Hamid is naturally good at words and says some lovely things about Cel & Cel working with them. The front of the ship is okay. The back is in a bad way. Hamid describes what it used to look like. <Insert ship description here.> They will need more parts but core is fixable. They will need to buy elementals. How sentient are those again Alex? Zolf might be able to summon the elementals if someone else can capture them. Thanks to Hamid's adamantine stunt they can. mainly need source the elemental housing. Azu & Zolf time. Earhart is staying in "a glorified squat". Azu asks Zolf about Earhart. Yeah "Bertie is the one we don't like" doesn't get old. Oh Zolf! Actually hard for me to picture a place without a housing shortage. Sign on door hurts Zolf thinks Earhart might shoot him and tells Azu not to worry about it. Alex! Meta!Zolf discussion ends the episode before we find out if he is right. Still like hearing him read the patrons. He does read phrases as handles differently than names but bless him for always erring on the side of words as names. Also the voice for "Cookie of Doom" was delightful.

[shy-magpie]

RQG 158

liveblog under the cut

pre episode nonsense:

Roman Rogues was a delightful palate cleanser, but I am ready for the main campaign again. Hopes for this ep:

Bring on the Kobolds! (and Hamid figuring out how to behave ethically in a relationship with unsought but unavoidable power imbalance)

Azu please talk to someone about what you are feeling, not just take on everyone else's pain

is it too early for more on Dwarves since we're headed to Svalbard?

Cel's village pls, and everything we can get about how they fit in and how they feel about leaving. Yes we got a lot with "the Fete of Cel's village" but I want more. Also if it turns out Jasper actually ends up with a Kobold assistant like I've been joking about since the little guy we left in the onion room, I will laugh for a week.

Zolf: Zolf & mental health; Zolf & Wilde; Zolf & the guys who acted as his party during the 18 months; Zolf learning to see S4 Hamid instead of S1 Hamid with new spells; Zolf & Kobolds; and did I say Zolf?

_______________________________

Now on with the show:

Ah poor Alex sounds so down about the audio quality, its the first time doing something unusual without a lot of warning. I hope he knows we're happy to trade the risk of sound issues for knowing they didn't risk people and went remote before mandatory. I do love the intros. Oh nervous Alex, really we're not going to bite. Alex fishing for praise for not destroying Cel's village is a nice transition back to more normal energy, namely fear of GM!Alex. As a person he seems lovely, and with things like keeping the company going under lock-down safely I am happy trusting him with the cast's lives, as a GM? He has killed before, will kill again, and the worst part is it will be well crafted. Azu is putting everyone else before herself again. I know helping others is part of how she copes (seeking agency is valid) but I am serious about wanting her to lean on someone from time to time. Oh bless RQ they really do hold their quality up to the highest standards, is this the audio Alex was apologizing for? Oh Hamid, he really is trying to do the right thing by these poor traumatized Kobolds. "you do no damage". Eee! Tailor!Hamid!!! Tailor!Hamid! Tailor! Hamid!!! Over the armor hooded parka for Azu, using all his materials. Such a sweet kid. Zolf is "being outside & alone", he is so valid. Cel time! Cel won a cuddly toy red panda, Alex makes them roll for it. Cel has a night at home. Wilde calls meeting for party, sans Cel who is not summoned from their village. Hopefully that means this isn't terrible & actionable news, and not that Wilde doesn't see Cel as a party member. Earhart? Please Alex we've been ever so good! Einstein is off grid, might be intentional Earhart's ship was damaged, she was injured. They need to go to her. Wilde asks if Cel will be continuing with the party, everyone volunteering at once to get them is reassuring of their place in the party. I suppose I should also give credit to Wilde for not making assumptions about how Cel would make a major life decision. Aw goodbye Inn! Oh Barnes and Carter could go either way. Sounds fancy. Zolf still has that instinctual knack for leadership, decreeing he will do the necessary but less fun bit of packing, while Hamid does the people bit of fetching Cel. I missed whether Azu was going with Hamid, but we'll find out in a minute. Helen calls out Alex. Oh Hamid, Azu, and all seven Kobolds are going. Are they staying or not? Bless the kid, Hamid is telling Skraak the itinerary as information rather than leverage to make the decision he wants. Whether the other Kobolds come with or stay in the village, informed consent is important. Also by telling Skraak first they can figure out how to tell the others along with info on the plan rather than leave them scrambling to figure out what Hamid wants to hear. I love this village. Cel set up a sound system for the village band to do their spring cleaning montage to. Azu & Hamid are charmed. Oh Jasper made the sound system! Hamid praises Jasper for that and taking care of the village. God I love that Alex isn't doing that thing where the stutter goes away as Jasper's character arc progresses. Yes stress can make stuttering worse, but it isn't a flaw that means you won't progress until you fix it.* Hamid introduces the Kobolds as his friends. Is Alex going to let the names pass from WOG to canon? Nope fair enough, as soon as we get names he'll have to use them and we'll soon need character traits and its a whole "if you give a mouse a cookie" thing. Jasper resorts to giving them tea as a universal. Cel enlists the Kobolds in improving the sound system. "Burrow through the center of the Earth?" I love Cel's suggestions. Oh please can Cel help repair Earhart's ship please? Speaking of ships, a half dozen authors just opened a new doc. Hamid is so careful not to pressure Cel while still being welcoming. Roar, Alex!?! What enormous roar!?! Oh he would break there. He is getting entirely too much mileage from being out of throwing range of the cast.

~break~

Thwarted Hamid Cel hug? Oh its the Kobolds! Bless em maybe they'll relax when Hamid doesn't turn on them for messing up. Name! Names! Thank you Alex! Yes I was just resigning myself to it being reasonable for us not to get them as individual characters, thank you! Thank you! Meerk likes loud noises, canon! Cel invites the Kobolds to stay, Skraak suggests they bring in Kobolds from the island instead of Hamid's 7. Hamid sounds a bit frantic as replies, like he thinks he offended Skraak & the others. It was a good suggestion for more reasons than just shaking the new kids, no one thinks you were just dumping them. A runner is sent to the island. Skraak wants to them to stick with Hamid. Perception check on the morning of departure. They roll ridiculously well. Oh Wilde is still wearing his antimagic cuffs on his ankles. Bell bottoms to disguise them. Oh Wilde, what happened to our peacock? They walk to the fishing vessel where Barnes and Carter are waiting. Oh Azu helps the little ones wade. Hamid flies. Zolf punts. Cel turns into a dolphin. The Kobolds are either ferried by Hamid air or swim. So Azu doesn't get to help after all. Zolf is not a happy sailor "Like going back to the place your ex works". Helen says Aphrodite would fight Poseidon for Zolf. Yes Alex you trained them well. Aw Azu and Cel play while Cel is a dolphin. I love Alex's world building Yes Lydia! The Soggy X is a favored call back. Mood Cel I have to work to remember how long ago I've been somewhere. Aw Alex gives them a wonderful meal. Hamid loves Sushi! Hamid overpays, good lad. Horse riding time Japan is historically a gnome heavy area and caters towards smaller races. Alex's world building is great. Oh Alex is learning to give them proper down time. Hamid gives Azu the parka he made. He is so sweet. Zolf tells him that he already has cold gear. Poor kid takes it as a rejection. I honestly think Zolf was trying to get him to relax about not having made him one too. Its well made for a coat that goes over armor. He will make one for Cel. Azu picks Hamid up to hug him. Cel praises it. Oh Carter asks for one, Hamid perks up a bit. Hamid put pockets in Azu's. Zolf turns Hamid down again. Azu offers to share and Zolf remains a great conversationalist. Oh the Kobolds need coats. That should keep Hamid busy until they get to Svalbard. No one trusts the low stakes episode. *yes I still resent all the time I spent out of class with speech therapy, and I resent more people who knew it was hard for me to speak properly, knew what I meant well enough to correct me, and still interrupted me mid sentence as if an extra/wrong syllable was more important than the rest of the sentence combined.

[shy-magpie]

RQG 155

Wherein there are unexpected visitors. Live blog under the cut

Pre episode babbling:  there really wasn't any way quarantine was going to last as long as the dungeon crawl, and (for all I joked about it) I really am satisfied with what we got. That was a lot of backstory and character moments in a short amount of time. Now we have a kobold, a mysterious attack on the inn, and an episode title referencing dragons? Nice consolation for them almost certainly being forced out of the basement or having plot come to them. Please be Skraak? Please be Skraak either trying to rescue them or at least be here as an ally? Oh well time to hit play: Weird energy? That’s promising Inevitable locked in a Cel(l) joke Zolf needs to be nicer about the Kobolds Alex needs tell us if this is Skraak or not before Hamid gets the blame Skraak(?) Just unlocked the trap door Nice outfit Alex, is it our Skraak? It seems to be Zolf wants Skraak to join them in quarantine. Cel doesn't see why to bother when Skraak's been in contact with hundreds of Kobolds Skraak gestures for them to leave and Zolf is going to be force the issue. This will go over well. Beats his defense by 1 Hamid is trying to play peacemaker again. Really Zolf? Couldn't have calmly refused to leave and explained through the door? I know you are under stress but you are low charisma, not stupid. Love you Cel, Skraak has been speaking to varying degrees since "My Liege" Hamid tries to explain, Zolf speaks over him to say they didn't explain because they forgot. Hamid apologizes to Skraak. Skraak starts to leave. Azu backs Zolf in preventing him from leaving. Skraak is subdued by Zolf & Azu Skraak is locked in with Hamid? No Zolf has some limits thank goodness. He did call Skraak one of them.  Bound but not gagged as Hamid apologizes. Skraak points out that he just has to wait for the rest (of his team?) Skraak "monitor"ed them!?! Holy... I was merely comparing the situations, did he actually scry and see them held by a human in a small space underground beneath a trap door disguised by a table? If he thinks Wilde is their Shoin then how many pieces is he going to be in when Zolf gets out? Kobold lore please! Hierarchy is important and it was "considered a good idea to keep track of the saviors". Skraak is sarcastic in his tone when he uses the term and it sounds like at least Hamid & Azu object the instant they hear it, possibly others. Cel makes a pitch for quarantining the whole inn. Wilde is in the cupboard Zolf asks about the kobold numbers and makes some unnecessary remarks about the village & Jasper in particular being lost as he writes off Japan. Zolf is far too relatable for some who needs to stand the flame down before someone takes it personal. Deciding you've already doomed yourself along with everything you care about is a crappy way to avoid panic in the face of uncertainty. Cel tries to call him on it, he switches to "everyone else is infected and it will be our job to fight them". Scary thing is, while in the long term it would be a suicide mission, with their combined abilities they could make a serious dent in the numbers. Hope they are aware of the Hiroshima comparison if this is leading to calling for a air strike on Japan. They explain what little they know to Skraak who insists none of the Kobolds were sick but may not understand the symptoms. Possible kobold immunity? Gonna be annoyed if something Shoin did protected them. Skraak seems to be saying that no new people were exposed since his party of 7 followed the route of the party. Zolf wants to send them back under Skraak's guard to prevent any more coming for them. And they're back. Cel points out its better Skraak came since the kobolds didn't know to implement quarantine. They go upstairs. They form a phalanx and draw spear against the party when they don't see either Hamid or Skraak. Alex & Ben are doing the "these lines are already written we have but to speak them" routine while Bryn points out Alex doesn't get to sound like that when he's the one doing it. Very Hamid, if you know how this is going to play out and don't like it, just make another choice. Initiative and a lot of dice. Grapple rules. Not clear where Cel is/if they got grappled but it sounds like Zolf did and is throwing them off so he can check on the inn keeper. Hamid runs upstairs and every one of them kneels like Skraak did at their first meeting. Helen & Bryn both sound distressed. Should have cleaned up that unreadable little ficlet I made of Hamid going bad because he didn't know how to handle Kobold worship and accidentally took over Japan because he thought autonomy meant respecting their decision to look to him as their leader. The innkeeper is bound but fine. Zolf unties him and looks for Wilde. "Wilde is also bound and... Has a look best described as "the bleep? "" Zolf is a stress cooker and Barnes updates Hamid is flustered and embarrassed which buys him some small grace from Skraak who explains Hamid is "the biggest dragon here" Cel: Also you could introduce the concept of democracy. Eh skip em straight to anarcho communism if you ask me. Group decision meetings rather than just vote for the head dragon Hamid tries to side step a bit by suggesting they explain the situation and asks for their names. Hope Alex thought to name all seven before the cast does.  Siggif the kobold might be pushing it. "Hamid the polite tyrant"-Lydia Break Alex skips them to "a large dinner" cooked by Zolf who got a nat 20 on how good it is. Cel speaks draconic. Neither Zolf nor Azu can make out the difference in their names. Because Alex is like that: didn't want to come up with 7 names, did want to block anyone else naming them. Bryn however has all 6 names and is going to give Azu & Zolf their translations. They aren't interested in the rest of the party and "insist on maintaining a guard phalanx around Hamid at all times". Helen points out this is Bryn's fault. Yeah he's been playing with Alex long enough to know "King of the Kobolds" would come back to bite him. Hamid should be embarrassed. Hamid is sat at the head of the table by the Kobolds. Skraak: it'll pass eventually Zolf: good Aw Cel asks about traditional kobold food and Skraak has to struggle to remember. (Cel seems disappointed meal worm burgers would be poisonous to non kobolds) Zolf is a grumpy boy Long story short it seems to be a controlled risk: no contact off the island; no reason to believe the kobolds are infected Kobolds might be immune Oh screw Shoin (sent waves of Kobolds as dungeon monsters) Zolf doesn't think that the level of contact the Kobolds had with infected adventurers without being infected is proof since they don't know how the infection is passed or activated. Hamid says they shouldn't rely on it but its reason to hope. Zolf needs to remember that team moral is a thing and quit taking things from Hamid especially in a way that could piss off their new housemates. Thank you Azu! Hamid is not stupid! You can say there is reason for hope and still be careful Hamid calls him on jumping down his throat at the slightest provocation, reminds him they talked about this and that trying to stay positive is not a crime. God it's weird relating to both sides of this argument. My bias is towards Hamid as being right, but Zolf is so relatable. You have any idea how hard it can be not to snap at some of these kids they are setting themselves up for heart break when they talk about school in the fall or hug piles at cons? Thank you Cel Zolf is going to leave and sit on the coast behind the inn because he considers the quarantine broken not expanded. Backing out of an unproductive conversation, especially one were others have pointed out you are being harmful is valid, giving into "burn it all" moods is not. Hamid moves to stop him because he gets that the inn is now their cell Wilde calls him back and says he was building to them talking to the borb. So there is a reason he's the boss. Zolf declares he wants some time not thinking about this, which is what he should have done several paragraphs ago. Ffs this can not be the first time he's had it strike hot/destructive instead of cold/immobilizing; it sucks but you don't let yourself make any permanent decisions, stay away from the breakables and try not to talk to much, it passes. Cel suggests he go to one of the upstairs rooms instead, he accepts the redirect with ill grace but does accept it. Barnes has pointed out that locking everyone in a small box makes things worse not better before. Aw did Alex not like the fandom begging for the platonic version of the lock em in a closet until they sort out their feelings trope? Azu: I thought we could make friends Cel: he seems quite opposed to that Azu: I feel like he'd be a really good friend but not very friendly if you know what I mean Cel:we I know he hasn't been at all friendly Azu: you're friendly! Cel: well thank you, I do try Azu: I think you are my friend Cel: I am so honored! Thank you so much Azu! That's delightful Carter declares Cel the only friendly one because he is grumpy about Azu stepping on him, stopping him from breaking quarantine, and drank all the good stuff. Barnes suggests they start fresh in the morning. Skraak explains the kobolds are expecting Hamid to step into Shoin's role as tyrant just one they like. Skraak: even if they know you're not a tyrant, neither they nor me will be abandoning you because that's how Kobolds work. Good Hamid is taking this seriously Oh no pressure Skraak The most chill inn keeper in the world Skip to lunch time Zolf is still making himself scarce, which is not the worst way to handle it  dawning on you THAT YOU TRIED TO DESTROY A RELATIONSHIP YOU VALUE BECAUSE YOU WERE IN A MOOD Bryn makes the "he's secretly infected" joke. Bryn spotted the veins in discord avatar thing and Alex sounds so pleased Wilde is fine, stop asking Oh really we needed that insight in how Wilde thinks Brorb on the table Cel asks for a list of stuff to make into a Brorb access device. Between their bags of holding they have enough stuff for them to make do. Azu seeks out Zolf while Hamid & the Kobolds help Cel. No strike that she waits until someone needs to grab him for the Brorb interview. Alex! Ending on Azu finding Zolf staring out the window.

[celsidebottom]

Keeping Up with the Kobolds

Chapter 6: Last Goodbyes

When the gang returns to the inn to give Wilde an update, they notice blue veins starting to appear on his skin.

(Content warning for quarantine and infections since I know that can be a little tough for people right now)

Head on over to AO3, or read this chapter below!

Chapter 1 (tumblr) (AO3)

“Wilde!  We’re back!”

“We- what happened to you?”  Zolf asked as Wilde rounded the corner.

“What do you mean?”

“You’ve got kobolds on you.”

“Oh, of course.  How rude.  This is Klak,” Wilde introduced, lightly shifting one of the two kobolds in his arm to introduce them to the group.  “And you remember Znal.”

“Why is one of them wearing a chef’s hat?”

“Because they’re the best cook around here, obviously.”

Zolf paused, incredulous.

“I told you that you’d love them!”  Hamid shrieked.  

Cel chuckled.  “I didn’t know you could look happy!  Every time I’ve seen you, you’ve been all hur dur dur, work work work, I have never had a fun ever in my entire life!”

“Well, what can I say?”  Wilde replied, smiling at the two kobolds in his arms, knowing full well that most of the rest of the horde was behind him, either curious about the return of their rescuers or hiding and barely peeking out from behind a wall.  “They’re not so bad after all.”

The whole group was beaming at Wilde, even Zolf, who couldn’t believe his eyes.

“We found some valuable information,” Azu explained while Hamid quietly started chatting with one of the approaching kobolds, clearly getting the dirty gossip on how much of a softy Wilde had become.  “Cel looked it over on our way back.  We think-”

She froze.

“What is it?”

“Your hand…”

Wilde looked down past Znal to examine his hand.  There, tracing across his skin, was the faintest pattern of blue veins.

“No.”  Zolf swore quietly.

Panic raced up Wilde’s spine, and he started to hyperventilate as tears formed in his eyes.  Klak and Znal hugged him a little tighter, only knowing that their friend was upset; a few other kobolds came up to his side to check on him as well.

“The kobolds… you said they were immune, right?”

Cel stepped forward to assure him.  “They are.  We were pretty sure before, but we know that now.  They’re safe.”

“Good.  That’s what matters.  I will… go to a quarantine cell.”  Wilde’s words were disjointed, and he could barely manage to put a thought together.  He carefully set down the kobolds in his arms, forcing himself to turn away even when they reached out for him and cheeped after him.  “Bring the information you have down there, and we can decide what to do next.”

“Oscar…” Hamid said meekly, but Wilde was already gone.

All of the kobolds tried to follow him, of course.  They padded along behind him, murmuring amongst themselves and casting worried glances at him.  They’d never been into the quarantine area before, but still, they diligently followed him as he slumped over to a cell and shut the door behind him before any of the kobolds could join him.

“I’m sorry,” he gasped to them as the tears broke forth.  He wouldn’t let anyone else see him cry.  “I’m sick.  Hurt.  I have to…”

Small hands reached through the bars as the kobolds let out scared squawks, their eyes filled with sadness.  All Wilde wanted was to reach out and hold them, to tell his family that they would be okay, and they would be okay without him.

Instead, for fear that Cel’s calculations were wrong and the kobolds could get the disease, he slid away from them and sat on the hard cot that decorated the cell, staring blankly ahead.

When the door to the prison opened again, Wilde quickly wiped his eyes and stood, buttoning his jacket and readying his appearance as best he could in a room that didn’t allow magic.

“So, what did you find out?”

“Wilde, don’t do that,” Zolf insisted.  It looked like he’d been crying too.  “Don’t just act like this isn’t happening.”

“What am I supposed to do?”  Wilde exclaimed.  “The mission comes first.  We have to… you have to…”

“I think I’m close to figuring out what causes this,” Cel explained.  “So, from there, a cure is easy.  Relatively.”

“Good.  Then, get working on that.  Don’t worry about me.  And, when I'm gone… take care of the kobolds.  I know they don’t need to be taken care of, but…”

“Wilde…”  Zolf whispered, tears falling down his cheeks.

“I promise, Oscar.”  Hamid nodded.  He then tugged on Azu and Cel’s elbows, and they left Zolf and Wilde alone.

“We’re going to fix this,” Zolf said firmly.

Wilde smiled despite himself.  “We both know we’ve said that before, and we never did.”

“But we’re close now.  We have a little bit before the disease gets too far.  We’ll… we’ll cure you.  You’ll be fine.  You will be.  Damnit!”

“I’m just happy to know you’ll be in good hands.”

A heavy sob broke from Zolf’s lips and he turned away before the pain became too much.  Once he was gone with the rest of his friends, Wilde allowed himself to cry again, sinking to his knees in the middle of the cell.  Loud arguing sounded from outside the prison door and twenty pairs of glowing, worried eyes stared back at Wilde.  Several kobolds hugged each other when they realized that Wilde wouldn’t take their hands, and they waited, watching, until Znal made for the door.

They didn’t shut it behind them, though, so Wilde could hear Hamid and Cel talking to them in hushed draconic.  Znal nodded, then came back into quarantine, rounded up a few other kobolds, and disappeared again.  As they did so, Wilde could hear Hamid explaining to his friends that Znal had asked if they could help, but Hamid told them to stay put, take care of the other kobolds while they worked on a cure.

Hearing this, Wilde smiled again.

A few minutes later, the yelling outside the door dissipated and Wilde could hear footsteps, then the creaking of the inn’s main door.  Shortly thereafter, the clacking of kobold claws grew closer.

Znal and the kobolds they’d wrangled came into the room, blankets and pillows in hand, distributing them to their companions.  Each one took them and promptly made their own little dens out of the supplies, most of them right outside of Wilde’s cell where they could curl up together and still keep an eye on their sick friend.

“I’m going to miss all of you,” Wilde whispered.

He didn’t want to look at the veins on his hand, he didn’t want to watch as this disease took control of him from the inside out, he didn’t want to know what the infected version of himself might do to the kobolds or anyone else.  Instead, he looked out at the kobolds, trying to memorize each detail and remember each anecdote, even the ones that had frustrated him and infuriated him at the time.

At least, when it ended, he wouldn’t be alone.

[shy-magpie]

RQG 129

Zolf's back, so unless one of the former hostages shows blue veins, there is nothing this episode can do that won't make me eager for more. Players sound peppy. Did Alex really do that? Gosh he plans everything. Eh Zolf seems to be understanding about them not being happy with him. Hamid has calmed a bit. So much for that. Fair Huh, Zolf is willing to take trust into account enough to spend the quarantine bringing them up to speed on non sensitive matters instead of cooling their heels Thanks Hamid/Bryn! I need to know what Zolf has been doing. Love Azu's work out. And her attitude Alex! Zolf is just as good as I remember about talking about emotions, which is to say he is barely hinting at so much angst, revelations about his family, the whole break up with Poseidon etc, and sticking to a pretty dry account of events Zolf: Meritocrats aren't much better, so much of a muchness Hamid: only 1 of those 2 factions allowed a necromancer to rise in a city leading to the deaths of hundreds of people but sure. Not sure if its my distrust of monarchy/oligarchy speaking but they both have points. Azu has an interesting take, not sure it fits but... Finally! He was looking into the weather side, not a side effect Hamid: Car-ter! He seems so offended that Carter might have actually been competent pre-curse. Ow Zolf finally asked about Sasha See what I mean, Zolf isn't going to be comfortable spelling it out like: "you remember how I was in near full break down before I nearly killed a subordinate making me feel like a sheep killing dog and had to leave because I was a danger to myself and others? Yeah I needed to process for a couple weeks before I tried to keep up with the papers" Hamid is legit not someone who really gets this (as someone who feels the emotions openly at the time, instead of being steady right up until he breaks) but its letting Bryn feed Ben some great openings. Oh Hamid, the pull between the needs of the world and the need of his family/team is just breaking him Zolf is great Oh Hamid and Azu still think they can get Grizzop and Sasha back. Ow Oh I actually forgot Ben knows about the side quest. Big sigh for a little dragon Zolf is understanding but he already mourned the whole team; he is celebrating getting Hamid back after more than a year; while Hamid is stuck between the pain of the loss and holding out hope that someday he will be able to get them back. Poor guy isn't really designed for compartmentalizing where not only has Zolf had more time to cope, being able to separate the threads is a chunk of his personality. Finally some questions that can be answered, non specific world events. Ah but he can only confirm Curie's info not give us more. Wilde is in full "I will treat you as infected until proven otherwise" mode. Touches his scar too, so that's a pretty huge hint as to what his year has been like. Why soot blackened? Did they have to burn the cells to avoid spreading infection? Zolf is trying to help, Hamid is just trying Bless him, Alex is giving us Campbell backstory. Zolf just gave Azu the first in his Bertie send up series. I love it. Ben reads Phillipa Gregory? I read a couple of those ages ago. They know us too well, and and are spending so much time on Campbell. If Hamid didn't hate Campbell books before, Zolf making a Azu a fan would have pushed it over the edge Yes! Hug time! Of course its not the hug I was envisioning but I'll take it. Alex! We needed to know that the strip test was a daily thing, it affects the dynamics a lot. Poor Azu is claustrophobic on top of everything; Hamid is a good friend. This is such a great scene. I actually like that Zolf isn't just popping back in like he hadn't left. It makes so much more sense that the dynamics would be different; even before you factor in that Azu never met him and she & Hamid are all that's left of the LOLOMG Hamid finally gets some of his usual self comforts and is working on a new look. Bless him, Zolf is trying but not good at this emotional stuff Azu holds a grudge, this is surprisingly delightful Love these two, a week stuck in a cell together and they still want to stay at eachother’s side. No macho BS about being vulnerable to each other. So what is Wilde like now that they aren't under suspicion. OK now I understand why people ship Zolf and Wilde. So do I just add the ship to my armada now or wait an episode? Gosh my sympathy to people who can't have multiple conflicting ships. My heart, I did not sign on to care this much about Wilde. Yes I remember Damascus but this is like Ed levels of caring or more. Hamid is a good leader and immediately moves to smooth things over Wow, genuine Wilde is new, no layers of detachment and wit Too funny when we hear the players being just as frustrated with wanting more as us, if not more. Oh good they get to keep recording.