Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Ral Zarek has been changed. His stay on Bloomburrow has altered him, twisted his form into that of an otter, and returning home has not changed him back. Laying in his own bed, next to his sleeping husband, the only thing he can think about is how much he didn’t appreciate the life he lived. He was respected and admired by many, he and Tomik both had positions of power within their guilds. Everything he had wanted in his life, he had the ability to get.

And now he isn’t even human. For all he knows, for the rest of his life, he’ll be nothing more than an animal. No, a mere animal could at least find the solace of rest, but sleep evades Ral no matter how hard he searches for it. The endless cacophony of nagging questions and painful ideas that had been plaguing him since he left Bloomburrow erupts in his head every time he gets anywhere close to sleep. “Are you even Ral Zarek anymore?” “You didn’t deserve what you had, and now you deserve this.” “Once the rest of Ravnica knows what happened to you, you will lose everything.”

Every single terrible thought brings tears to his eyes and chips just a little bit more of his own identity away. He almost instinctively reaches his arm to his side to hold Tomik’s hand, but Ral just grips a pawful of blanket. Those terrible little thoughts all vanish in an instant, and every negative internal voice joins together to form an overwhelming shout that echoes through every corner of Ral’s head. “HE’S LEFT YOU.” The single horrid thought that he had lost the only thing he had believed it would not be able to take from him eventually grows silent, allowing Ral enough time for the shock to pass, and the grief to welcome itself.

Despair flows, slowly and surely, throughout the entirety of his body. Over time the sobs grow strong enough to make breathing difficult. Misery holds him so tightly it takes him several seconds to register Tomik’s frantic voice or Tomik’s hands holding onto his paws. The shock forces his teary eyes open, and seeing Tomik still beside him in bed only bolsters the tears. Ral feels like a fool. He had let his worst thoughts tell him Tomik had abandoned him, and he had believed them instead of placing his trust in his husband. He had assumed the very worst of Tomik when he simply couldn’t reach Tomik’s hand with his newly reduced stature. It takes Ral several unbearably long moments before he can even begin to process Tomik’s words.

Tomik ends his frantic attempts to catch Ral’s attention when Ral tilts his head towards Tomik. When Tomik is finally sure Ral can hear him, he carefully lifts Ral into his arms. Tomik takes in a deep breath and does his best to settle his nerves. Ral has already gone through so much and it pains Tomik to be unable to solve everything, but right now Ral needs support. Tomik will agonize over the tolls planeswalking has taken on his husband on his own time. For the time being, Ral needs support.

“Ral, I am right here. Please, can you tell me what’s happened? “

Ral struggles to stifle his sobs for long enough to actually respond.

“I’m sorry, Tomik. I’m so sorry for doubting you.”

“You haven’t done anything wrong. You don’t need to apologize to me, Ral.”

Before Ral’s return from Bloomburrow, Tomik had never seen his husband cry openly, let alone needed to comfort Ral through anything like this. Even so, Tomik thought his words to Ral were thoroughly re-assuring. The fact that telling Ral that he had done nothing wrong had only caused his crying to worsen made Tomik nearly ashamed of himself.

“I thought you left, Tomik! I thought you had left me! But you were still there! I doubted you, but I was wrong. You don’t deserve someone who would doubt you like that, Tomik. You deserve better than that.”

Ral struggles, but he forces each word out. He waits for a cunning retort, or a wry comment, but none comes. Ral looks up to Tomik, and seeing Tomik fighting back tears of his own is torture. They share a brief moment of painful realization before Tomik pulls Ral into an embrace that they both sorely need.

Time passes silently as Ral and Tomik gradually console one another. They have faced apocalyptic events and tyrannical foes before, but this is the greatest foe they’ve faced yet. Neither Ral nor Tomik will leave this moment unchanged, but they will leave it together. Soon enough, they exchange teary-eyed smiles as Tomik makes a second attempt at reassuring his beloved husband, this time tempered by mutual understanding.

“I love you more than anything, Ral, and I know you feel just the same. I know that I would barely survive losing you, so I would never want you to have to go through losing me. Right now, I can only imagine how you feel. This is something that might not have ever happened before.”

Tomik lifts Ral up onto his lap and smiles as if he’s the luckiest man in Ravnica, which he just might be.

“But I promise you, Ral, that I will be right here for every single second of it. No matter what.”

Ral wipes away all the tears he has shed tonight. Tears of misery, and tears of joy.

“I love you too, Tomik. More than anything.”

Tomik slowly lies back down, making sure to keep Ral held close to him. Ral huddles close against Tomik’s chest, making sure to keep Tomik’s hand in his paws for the tangible reassurance it gives him. He listens as his husband’s heartbeat slowly calms, and his own heartbeat calms in turn. Tomiks touch is soothing, and focusing on it ensures not a single negative thought dares to cross his mind.

As Ral finally finds himself drifting into comfortable sleep, Tomik allows himself a brief moment of reflection before he joins Ral in sleep. Ral has gone through so much in just the course of a day and a night, and he will go through so much more in the following days. Tomik knows that despite what has happened, Ral and him will persevere. The mere thought of that allows Tomik to fall asleep happy.

Ever since he returned home, all Ral could think about was how he had changed, and his own terrible thoughts. And he knows that he will have to confront them eventually, or else they will haunt him until the day he dies. But for this very moment, the only things in the multiverse for Ral are himself and Tomik. When he does need to face his demons, Tomik will be there with him. Ral knows that there is no force within the multiverse that could separate the two of them, and he doesn’t even dream of doubting that.

Chapter Text

Ral Zarek, guildmaster of the League, was expected to return to Nivix from his extraplanar excursion a full week ago. The Izzet League has protocols in place for his absence, as is needed for a planeswalking guildmaster, but the lack of their acting leader is slowly becoming the topic of conversation of many citizens of the city of guilds.

For the past week, Ral Zarek has remained within his and Tomik’s apartment, hiding from the watching eyes and listening ears that populate every Ravnican street. Ral has spent that time slowly coming to terms with the material consequences of planeswalking to Bloomburrow. He could stand being an otter for one day on a different plane, but adjusting to being one for the rest of his life on his home plane would be difficult to say the least.

Far from the first time today, Tomik Vrona sits on their bed and begins his latest attempt to convince Ral that it’s time to announce his return. Tomik places his hand over Ral’s paw and places a kiss on Ral’s forehead.

“I love you so much, Ral.”

“I love you too, Tomik. I still think it’s a bad idea. Parading around what remains of their guildmaster would be a disaster for morale. Think about what the other guilds would think, Tomik. The league would be a laughing stock! The Combine would probably snap up the opportunity to pull the rug out from under us and take over all our projects!”

“Ral, you aren’t what remains of the Izzet guildmaster. You are the Izzet guildmaster.
The league needs you. There hasn’t been a single time the league was without an acting guildmaster since Niv Mizzet founded it. When Niv disappeared, who led the guild?”

Tomik smiles and briefly gestures towards Ral, a physical confirmation of the beginning of a friendly battle of wits. Ral can’t help but crack a slight smile of his own. Even now Tomik finds a way to turn things into a debate, and as usual, Ral might as well humor him.

“I did, but he had planned for his own absence.”

“When Niv died, who led them then?”

“I mean, I did, but he planned for that too! We brought him back, Tomik!”

“You don't need me to tell you who the current Guildmaster is, Ral. Niv is busy being the living Guildpact, and he trusted you to take up the mantle. I can hardly imagine you would argue with the decision of the Parun of the League himself. He was smart enough to plan for his own demise, I know he had only the single best man to lead the guild in mind.”

Ral stands up on the bed so he can actually keep himself at his husband’s eye level. Tomik isn’t familiar enough with how otter faces work to decipher Ral’s expression, but he knows his husband well enough to tell when Ral realizes he’s starting to understand the wisdom behind Tomik’s points. As much as Ral might loathe the idea, he knows Tomik wants the best for him. It takes a long moment of agonizing over what might happen, but Finally, despite the worst possible outcome, Ral gives way.

“Fine, Tomik. I guess the league can’t go without a guildmaster, and don’t want to hurt Niv’s feelings by stepping down so soon after he gives me the title.”

Tomik stifles a laugh at the idea of such a minor thing devastating the living embodiment of the Guildpact.

“We’ll head back to Nivix tomorrow, but I’m just talking to the league. The other guilds shouldn’t know about what’s happened until my guild has everything under control, alright Tomik?”

“Perfectly, Ral.”

Despite needing several weeks and many failed attempts, Tomik was an advokist. And you don’t end up as an advokist of the church of deals if you aren’t convincing.

With their guildmaster’s return and current state explained to the Izzet League, Ral and Tomik walk together to the top of the firemind’s aerie to reconvene with the Orzhov gargoyle that had flown them there. Tomik steps onto its back with Ral held in his arms, and the gargoyle slowly rises above the expansive cityscape of Ravnica below. Finally away from the overwhelming presence of the entirety of the Izzet League, Ral is able to make himself truly comfortable for the first time since he and Tomik left their apartment. Once Nivix eventually fades out of view, conversation returns to the events of the night.

“I didn’t expect it to be that easy. Not a single person even asked why I look like this now! Everyone was just fine with this for some reason!”

“I knew that it wouldn’t be nearly as disastrous as you expected. It doesn’t matter if you’re an otter or a man, you are still Ral Zarek, guildmaster, talented inventor, and beloved husband.”

Ral appreciates the heavy flattery, even as on the nose as it is. And considering just how long it’s been since he’s gotten to make a playful jab at Tomik, he might as well respond in kind.

“Okay fine, you told me so. It wasn’t as bad as I thought. You are right again. Like usual. I’m lucky my husband is smart, handsome, and has a great personality when most people settle for just one.”

Tomik can’t help but laugh. He’s missed the loving sarcasm specific to Ral.

“I’ll consider that a compliment.”

As the night grows dark, and the wind grows cold, comfortable silence overcomes the howling wind and beat of the gargoyle’s wings.

Eventually, the gargoyle returns the husbands home. Tomik steps down from its back, carrying Ral in his arms as he walks to the door.

“You didn’t need to carry me the whole time. I could have walked.”

“Ral, you’re half my height and your legs only make up one sixth of yours. I barely survived all the stairs in Nivix and the stairs are meant for humans.”

“Point taken. Counterpoint-” Ral stretches up in Tomik’s arms so he can plant a kiss on Tomik’s cheek. “-Shut up.”

Tomik laughs as he attempts to place a kiss of his own on his wriggling husband.

“Valid counterpoint. I concede, you win the argument. I’ll put you down then.”

Ral puts on an air of faux shock as Tomik attempts to set him down.

“You would have me walk? Up stairs? Oh dear me, I don't know if my legs could withstand that!”

Tomik and Ral both allow themselves a minute to share in carefree laughter. They both dearly needed a moment of brevity like this. Ral situates himself even more comfortably in Tomik’s arms.

“I’ll let you carry me to bed this time. I carried you home on our wedding night, so now we’re even.”

“So, this will be the last time I get to carry you around?”

“Now I didn’t say that. Consider it a privilege for being my husband.”

“I definitely will. I love you, Ral.”

“I love you, Tomik.

As long as Tomik is around, maybe adjusting to his new life won’t be exactly as difficult as Ral had assumed.