Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Aegeus Beccan was a pyromaniacal phantasm bard who loved creating illusions out of people's dreams and nightmares.
Fun loving, mischievous, Hex vibes but also Clay??

Aquila Delphine was a blunt nymph ranger described to have the eyes of a hawk. Aquila was the former owner of Renu, then named Aurawra, who gets rescued by Zephir and Melli 30 years later for the Innkeep after their Zoford quest.
Constantly little miss perfect, kind of like the face of the group, although everyone knows that she’s not the best one out of them. Like Tia. Short temper and arrogant but not in the good way.

Al-Cain Radosha was an Earth Echo rogue who became a devout worshipper of Tuat after miraculously surviving his first death.
Very zen, composed, patient, a tad like Neil but more toned down.

Kya Vinca was a Seelie druid who used a risky teleportation spell to leave her lake and find new oceans and friends.
Innocent cute munchkin, MUST PROTECC!! Very pure, sweet, and innocent tbh. Strong sense of justice. Gets along with the Inkeep because they’re both Seelies. Baya if not so experienced vibes?

HEADCANONS!!!!!
Quasar is the quiet one in the group but when he speaks he’s very charismatic.
Al-Cain and Kya are pining for each other but don’t want to say it.
Al-Kya is a very sweet ship that mirrors Fail (Fable/Neil)
Inkeep is a wildcard.
You know how there’s that one “hot friend pair” in every friend group? Yeah, that’s Quasar and the Inkeep.
The party has been lowkey shipping them for so long now…
Aquila and Aegus are like, highkey the fuckoby couple but they’re also players so they aren’t in a relationship (though they've defo slept with each other several times) Quasar has been PININNNNNNNNNNNG

Chapter Text

“Aagh!”

The bloodcurdling scream rebounds down the halls of the now overtaken court as Maya’s greatsword slashes through Kerebosia’s shoulder. Just as Aquila is about to fire the decisive shot to Kerebosia’s heart, she vanishes in a puff of smoke. As usual.

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“Ugh, I almost had her!” Aquila groans as she slams her pint onto the table

“An enemy who flees is an enemy who assumes weakness.” Al-Cain says calmly as he finishes the last of his stew.

“Al’s right, we almost had her. Besides, there’ll always be next time, right guys?” Kya chimes in softly.

“Yes, yes, and what’s next, the power of friendship?” Kya quickly puts away the notebook she was writing on. “The point of this isn’t to keep playing a game of hide and seek with the enemy while they destroy so many more people’s lives!”

“Quila, Quila, baby, chill~” Aegus starts as he puts an arm around Aquila’s shoulders and starts stroking her hair, the latter leaning into her touch.

“Will you two get a room already?” Maya calls out from the couch where you were reading an ancient tome found within the archives of the court.

“Hey, that’s our line!” Aquila shouts, pointing to her and Quasar who had been observing the entire situation intently in quiet amusement from an armchair in the corner, Cursed Coffee in hand.

“Yeah, there’s so much going on between you two even Amassa’s streets don’t hold a candle~” Aegus says ever so poetically.

Even sweet Kya giggles a bit, before saying shyly “You do look pretty cute together,”

“We look like nothing of the sort.” Says Quasar calmly, but with a hint of mischief in classic Quasar fashion.

“Precisely.” Maya adds, then takes a spoonful of stew before going back to her study of the tome.

“Eh whatever. Aegus, let’s get outta here. I wanna check out this region’s nightlife.”

“And I second that!” Says Aegus cheerily as he hops off his chair.

“Just be sure to be back for breakfast tomorrow,” Maya calls out to them as they leave the inn, probably without having heard her condition.

“Oh yes, speaking of breakfast!” Kya says enthusiastically as she stands up for effect, “I heard the night market here is very good, with many fresh and delicious resources from far away lands, at a good price too, might I add.” She quipped happily. “I’ll go buy things for breakfast and our next expedition, see you both!” She says, and then she’s out of the room, leaving you and Quasar alone.

After a while, the latter finally speaks up. “Could I inquire as to what you’re reading?” He asks Maya, ever the gentleman.

Without raising your eyes off the book, she replies “So like, remember the soul-shatter spell we found a while back?”

“Hmm..the one we spent days and nights studying, sacrificing our sleep so we can understand the vast mysteries of the spell, yes I think I do as a matter of fact have recollection of it.” He replies pointedly

Overlooking the blatant sarcasm in his voice, she continues hurriedly “Yes, well, if we use the knowledge from this memoir, I believe we have a chance of reducing the risk of tearing the caster’s soul to shreds as well to about 70 percent.” She says, walking up to him and notepad on which were scribbled erratic calculations and notes. Quasar considers it with an amused expression, before handing it back to you.

“Not bad, the mad scientist has been at it yet again.” He claps, chuckling “By the by, could you—yawn—make me something to wind down, yeah?”

”Yeah, I think we’ve earned ourselves a drink.” Maya affirms, already grabbing her satchel and making space on the table “the usual?”

“The usual.”

“Herrre you go,” she says, setting the drink down next to him with a grin “One Spoken Heart, with extra charisma for an extremely charismatic companion.”

“Oh you flirt,” he jokes, taking on a more relaxed position on the couch “Sit down, you deserve a break too.” Quasar scoots over on the couch to make space for you, only for Maya to lay down lengthways on it, draping her legs over Quasar, who in turn groans, but doesn’t say anything.

They both sit there a while both enjoying each other’s company, Maya watching the ceiling and Quasar watching Maya, occasionally sipping on his drink. After a while the former takes a deep breath, as if to break the silence, followed by:

“Good work out there today, hm?”

“Yes, it was a commendable effort, really. Only if we hadn’t let her escape-”

“If we hadn’t let her escape everything would be perfect, yes!” she snaps, shutting the book “Quasi, many things would be perfect if only this or that but that isn’t how things work!” Maya leaned towards him “So just enjoy what you have now, yeah?”

“...fine.” He says quietly and resignedly scooting over closer to her to pass an arm over her shoulders “still think you’re a coward for avoiding these topics though.” he says grumpily, staring in the direction opposite to his close friend

“If that’s what you say, then a coward I am!” Maya giggles gleefully as she full on hugs the man, tackling him to the couch. He lets out a little yelp as he goes down, joining in the barrage of laughs. As she comes down from the euphoric high of the moment, Mayas’ eyes lock onto Quasar’s while they both lay, panting and breathless from laughing so hard.

A beat.

“A-ahem, anyways, it’s been a long day, maybe I should go to sleep.”

Maya honestly hadn’t noticed how close the two of them were until he had said that. Quickly getting off of him so he could have his space, she replied in a similar bashful tone, scuttling away to the other end of the couch.

“Oh r-right! Sorry, I didn't realize.” Honestly, she didn't even know what she was apologizing for, but she knew it was what had caused the blush creeping up her throat.

Sitting up, he gets up from the couch rigidly and walks up to his room that he shares with Al-Cain.

“Well, goodnight and wonderful dreams to you, Maya!” He says in an uncharacteristically high-pitched nervous voice. Right before he retreats into the safe confines of his room however, he turns back, to give her a tender glance that barely lasts a second. Seeing that she still had her eyes on him, he quickly turns back and practically runs into the bedchamber. In that little split-second of vulnerability, Maya had noticed that the blush had gotten to him too, as his handsome features were dusted with a light pink. Deciding that it’s been a long night, and it’s not like she has anything better to do so calls it a night as well.

In her bed, she lies awake, sleepless, thoughts never straying from a certain green-loving smartass paladin.

How odd.

Chapter Text

A few months had passed since Kerebosia’s defeat and no sign of her return was showing, giving the party a rare occasion to take a break from their regular routine of fighting Kerebosia, celebratin, then waiting for the next foe to take on. The six were currently in Zoford, basking in the city’s year-round good weather and pleasant atmosphere.

“Isn’t it odd that she hasn’t returned yet though?...Hey, I’m talking to you here, helllllooooo?...Quasar!!” Aegus snapped his fingers in front of the paladin who was staring out the window dazedly until then he suddenly jumped in his seat and finally gave him his attention.

“Yeah? Sorry, wasn’t really listening,” he said apologetically.
- Hmm… Aegus squinted, you’ve been awfully quiet these days Quas, even for your standards.
- Me? Distracted?...Not at all” He defended weakly.
“...
- …
- Ahem, Anyways what were you telling me just now?” He asked, smoothly changing the topic
“Oh, yes! Don’t you find it weird that ‘bosia hasn’t shown up again so we can kick her ass?” He inquired enthusiastically, clearly too much time away from action had stoked his hunger for battle.

“Well, you know, she might be taking a break from everything, it’s important for the mental health, you know,” Quasar theorizes.
“Yeah, yeah…but what’s an old hag like her got to do in her free time anyways? Like, surely people recognize her? Honestly though, imagining her at a market does seem pretty amusing, like, the spooky necromancer doing her groceries, buying a bit of this, a sprig of that, a necklace if she’s got some spare change…” Aegus snickered, but his glee soon faded to drab annoyance as he realized that while he was rambling on his companion had fallen into another one of his trances.

“Alright, what the hell is going on here,” He grumbles as he turns around, only to be stopped by Quasar and yanked back to face him, but this didn’t deter Aegus from craning his neck backwards, only to be met with an empty hall, save for Maya, nose stuck in that damn codex again. What was so special here that Quasar was so distracte-

Oh.

Aegus turned back, slowly, with one of his shit-eating grins plastered on his face, staring at Quasar mischievously while the latter’s face turned beet-red.

“Aegus, would you perhaps want to continue our discussion outside? The weather really is splendid,” Quasar stuttered

“Why of course, dear friend, Aegus replied knowingly, let’s go.” He snickered as they headed for the door.

As they were halfway through the door, Maya called out to them:

“See you boys!” She waved.

“See ya in a bit M!” Aegus replied, and immediately after shutting the door behind him, turned to his friend, who already had a sour expression, knowing what was coming. “Sooooooooo~someone has a cruuuush," he teased, nudging the man in the ribs with his elbow.

“You have absolutely no basis to back up that claim.
- Am I wrong though?
- …
- Well?”

Quasar ran a hand through his ash-brown hair, sighing:

“No, no you’re right, Aegus. And? What about it? Does it have to be…such a big fuss?
- Oh well absolutely! You’re just now seeing what the rest of the party was seeing since the very beginning,” he chuckled, making Quasar scoff at his arrogance; Aegus’s tone shifted to a more supportive one rather than his usual teasing one:
“Man, you’ve got to make a move on her!
- Me? Oh, nonono, not at all. Why, what am I supposed to do? Plus, she sees me as just a friend, so.”

Quasar fiddled around with the buckles on his belt, sitting down on the bench that was on the porch, looking out towards the sea. Aegus joined him.
“Y’know, Quas, you’ve got the incredibly grave flaw of assuming you’re the smartest one in the room.
- Excuse me?
- Yeah, I mean who are you to know what Maya thinks? Dare I say she’s even smarter than you at times, but point is, you can't know until you try, so what are you waiting for?”

The paladin sighs and runs a hand through his hair, accepting the fact that they are not getting away with this.

“Well what do you suggest I do, hm? It’s not like I can just go up to her and say ‘Oh well yes, I love you with every ounce of my being, will you please humor this lowly peasant, I beg you, and spend some of your precious tim with me tonight at the uh…’ well you get the idea.”

Aegus, who was snickering all along his little tirade, calmed down and replied:
“I mean…I wouldn’t go that far but uh…yeah, pretty much.
- Wait, really? It’s that simple?” Quasar questioned dumbfoundedly. “I-i mean I suppose that could work but, Once again, a heavy sigh left the paladin, Aegus, I’ll be honest. I’ll need your help with this. You know I’m usually more than capable at conversation it’s simply she…ugh, how do I put this best…Well, you could say she leaves me speechless…heh, literally.”

After a moment of pondering, the bard spoke up:
“Well…what if you just find something that doesn’t rely on talking?
-…Pardon?
- You said you lose your words, but what if you find an activity that doesn’t need you talking for it to be enjoyable? You two nerds are always doing your own thing in the same room and then both of you say you had the best of times, it shouldn’t be that hard to convey your feelings without saying anything right? And just between you and me? I’d be surprised if there wasn’t anyone head over heels for a handsome devil such as yourself.” He jabbed playfully, ending his pondering with a signature flirty addition

The other man chuckles and nudges him back:
“I’ve told you already, it might work on Aquila but that flattery will get you nowhere with me.”

The stouter phantasm let out a hearty laugh “Well, can’t blame a guy for trying! So? What do you think, any of your genius ideas on what to do come to mind?”

Quasar hummed then, plunging into the pool that were his thoughts. He knew Maya very well, dare he say better than anyone, and their common interests were many but…what could truly convey his romantic intentions? What was romantic? Flowers are romantic, aren’t they? They could go pick flowers in one of the fields on the outskirts of the city. Ah, but the current season triggered his rather severe pollen allergies, they wouldn’t want him to be a sneezing mess in what was to be a tender moment now, would they? No, no that would not do.

What about studying ancient texts? That was a classic pastime that had grown to become a very intimate activity for the two of them (mainly due to the fact that nearly no one ever wanted to do anything that involved the words ‘ancient’ and ‘text’ aside from them). But something that was so common for them, almost casual, would not convey the importance of the moment, nor would it really be ‘romantic’ for a first move…

A good while passed by like this, with Quasar finding a potential idea, then unfailingly finding a drawback that made it seem like a terrible idea. Right as the crepuscule was rapidly approaching, and the rest of the party was coming back from their day out, the paladin, who had been intensely staring at the sunset, jumped from his seat onto his feet.

”I’ve got it! Stargazing!” He all but screamed, shocking everyone in a 5m radius to their core as the previously serene and quiet peace was torn by, ironically, one of the calmest members of the party. Aegus, after recovering from the scare, spoke up excitedly:

“Stargazing huh? Well, I’ve got to say Quasar, that is an amazing idea, you know just how to appro-
- Dragons, Quasar, what the actual fuck gives?” Aquila raged at him, “I’ve just had a nice, relaxing day and what’s the first thing I hear when I come back? The local sage screaming his heart out and giving me the scare of my life!” She stomps over, but before things could escalade, the smooth bard intervened, easing the tension
”Quils, honeyyyy, welcome back! How was your day? Before you say anything, I would just like to say we are dealing with an fragile, situation, here. So be nice, yeah?”

Given the look on the ranger’s sharp features, it was clear she was not buying any of it? All the while, Kya who was in the back let go of Al-Cain’s arm and came to the forefront

“Oooh delicate matters? Tell me more!” She said excitedly, the druid’s penchant for drama and the like surfacing. Aegus meanwhile glanced over at Quasar, who in response groaned and complained weakly
“It’ll come to light sooner or later…might as well get it over with.”

With this newfound permission, Aegus turned to his comrades with a sly smirk “Well you see, our fellow Quasar has an… issue on the matter of the heart.”

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“Oh. My Dragons. I can’t! I’m going to cry this is soooo cute!” Kya fanned herself with her hand, while Aquila, Aegus, and Al-Cain could stare at Quasar with what could only be described as a look dripping with ‘I called it a long time ago’ energy

“So~ book boy, finally came out and said it huh? I mean, it was quite obvious to a natural elite such as myself, but, glad we’re on the same page now.” Aquila monologued, as per usual, belittling everyone and everything in the room.

Al-Cain, who had been (as per usual) silent until now, chimed in “You had mentioned something akin to stargazing before this discussion had started. Was that your idea for where to spend some time in private? If so then I do say that I strongly agree with your choice, although under the stars and dragons’ watch we are not truly alone, it is exactly that which makes it a splendid occasion to be with one of interest. Knowing you can be alone in a plane full of life prompts a connection between two individuals, and for intellectuals such as you two, surely it would be a good place to ponder as you so like to do.”

Before Aquila or Aegus could have labeled it as lame or too deep, Kya giggled and added her opinion to the pile.

“I agree, it’s so romantic!”

Quasar let out a sigh of relief, finally easing the tension in his body a bit “I couldn’t have said it better Al’, I’m glad you agree.”

Just as the silence was getting a bit too long, the door burst open, spooking everyone, and a satisfied and slightly-tired-in-the-best-way Maya walked out and turned with a funny look on her face

“There you were all! Why didn’t you tell me you came back, I was getting worried! Speaking of Quasi, you good? You seemed a bit tense today.”

In the suffocating silence that followed from Quasar, everyone turned around in their seats to stare at him, obviously, with a shit eating grin playing on their lips. Fuck. Fighting the blush creeping up his neck, the paladin stood up awkwardly, sputtering:

“I-, um me? Why yes! Of course, all fine and dandy, thank you for the concern, I’m surprised you noticed, if anything hahaha!” He managed, his usually unflappable composure having been, well, flapped. Calming down with a deep breath, he fixated the beam that stood behind her on the patio.

“Since you’re here I um…wanted to ask whether you might want to…do something together…sometime…?”

Maya noticed how his demeanor was off (it was hard not to, really), but knowing his character, decided not to comment upon it. “I mean…sure, I guess, why not? Odd we’d need to plan it but I don’t mind!”

Quasar let out a huge internal sigh of relief, and continued “I was thinking maybe we could…watch the stars from the roof tommorow, after dinner?” He said plainly, none of his usual fancy eloquence decorating his words

“It’s a date! See you then, Quasi, everyone!” And with that, she went back in, and all was quiet, every party member’s eyes on the paladin.

Wait- was that it? Was it that easy? HOLD ON A MOMENT HOLY SHIT HE’D JUST ASKED HER OUT AAAA-