Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

“Get back here, you worthless piece of shit!”

Running as fast as his body would allow, Alfred slammed a door open and skidded a bit as he turned and ran towards a tall, looming gate. There was yelling and scrambling behind the male that served to speed his movements and send a pulsing fear throughout him. His hands grabbed the metal wire of the fence, and he winced as his bloody wrists cried out in pain as he climbed upwards. The wounds had formed when he had fought against his restraints to escape the Alpha that had came way too close for his liking.

Oh God, he begged every power in the universe to allow him to outrun that Alpha. He couldn't go back there!

The man threw himself over the fence and onto cold concrete. Pushing his cracked glasses back onto his face, Alfred only took a moment to regain his balance before running again. He heard a shout and a gunshot suddenly enter the air, as if it were an especially loud heartbeat, and Alfred let out a cry of pain. The bullet had entered his shoulder, and it took all of the Omega’s willpower to keep running towards the distant city that vaguely lit the night sky with hope.

That city had always been something seemingly unattainable. It had been something he had looked at with hope for years, but it was always just out of reach. Now, he would finally be able to reach its canopy of protection.

Alfred's lungs were constantly gulping in oxygen to allow himself to keep going now. They burned — oh, they burned so much — with the effort it took to supply the male's body with the air it so desperately needed. The lungs were practically screaming for the Omega to stop — to let them rest. However, Alfred could not stop; he had to keep running.

It had been over half an hour — or maybe it had been hours, he couldn't say — of running before he neared the city. The Omega felt a slight bit of relief wash over him when he finally was in arm’s distance of an alleyway. But he daren't let himself get too hopeful. He couldn't afford to become complacent and practically hand the organization the chance to capture him again.

The man, feeling sweat pour over the deep cuts on his face, coughed roughly and stumbled for a moment. He quickly regained himself and swiftly — though clumsily — climbed up yet another metal fence, heaving himself over and jumping into a dark alleyway. He winced momentarily at the pain that spiked through his right ankle and hurt shoulder, but the man refused to be caught again. So, ignoring his hurt ankle and his screaming shoulder, the Omega ran out of the alley.

His head whipped around furiously in an attempt to find a way to go. The streets were peppered with people wearing heavy coats and gloves to arm themselves against the freezing air. The sight made him painfully aware of the cold biting his uncovered skin, and a shiver wracked his body. Stores practically invited all to approach with their different colored, hanging lights that contrasted wonderfully with the alluring, darkened sky. A man in a bright red suit and an obviously fake beard by one store made his bell ring, calling for people to donate for a good cause.

Alfred sprinted towards the nearest people, nearly skidding on the icy concrete. The two males that he frantically approached were both Alphas — that much was obvious by their scents — that gave him strange, bewildered looks. “P-Please! You gotta help me!” the Omega begged. “I was shot, a-and I’m being chased! P-Please, I can't go back there!”

The man to the left with snowy white hair and unnaturally pale skin stepped forward, and he seemed to have the desire to protect the blond-haired Alpha beside him. “Look, I'm sorry, but I'm gonna have to ask—”

The male to the right glowered at the albino. “I don't need you protecting me from a hurt Omega, Gilbert. Now, back up, will you?” the Alpha hissed.

“It's my job to protect you, Arthur.”

“I thought I told you to back the hell up!”

Gilbert let out an irritated groan, looked at Arthur's unamused gaze, then reluctantly stepped backwards. The glaring Alpha returned his emerald eyes to Alfred, who stared back with utter desperation. Arthur's gaze softened, and he opened his mouth to talk, but Alfred suddenly collapsed due to exhaustion and blinding pain.

The Omega’s last sight was the fading image of Arthur rushing to his side.

Alfred woke up to a resounding beep that continued to repeat itself. The male shifted slightly, and when a sharp pain shot through his shoulder, he let out a loud groan.

“Finally awake, are you?”

Alfred blinked his heavy eyelids open at the voice, and his blue eyes were revealed to the harsh white shades of a hospital room. The Omega turned his head slightly to view the owner of the voice, but his vision was too blurred to make out details.

“Can't see,” Alfred mumbled, squinting. “Need my glasses...”

The figure moved silently towards a bedside table and picked up the glasses, putting them onto the Omega's face. “There.”

Alfred looked at the man as his vision refocused. The image of wild blond hair and green eyes sharpened and became recognizable. It was one of the men he had begged for help. Wasn't his name Arthur?

“Oh,” Alfred said rather dumbly. “It's you.”

Arthur raised his eyebrows — God, those things were much bigger than he remembered! — at the simple response. “Are you always this articulate?” he said sarcastically. “But yes, it's me. How are you feeling?”

Alfred gave a half-hearted frown. He was injured! He hardly had any energy, so he wasn't going to be some babbling motivational speaker upon waking! But he decided to keep it to himself — because he really didn't have much energy — and moved slightly to test his pain levels. He grimaced.

“‘m sore,” Alfred answered. “My shoulder really hurts, but it's better than last night.”

Arthur gave an approving nod. “Good.” Alfred felt himself wanting to shrink as the Alpha’s green eyes bored into him. Seriously, did he have to keep looking at him like that? “Now, I guess I should introduce myself. My name is Arthur Kirkland.”

God, now that was the definition of an overly fancy name. But oddly enough, it did strike some cord in his memory. He couldn't place why, though… “Alfred,” Alfred said after a moment of silence. “I'm Alfred F. Jones.”

“Well, Alfred,” Arthur began, moving to sit in a chair next to Alfred’s bed. “I think that now you're awake, I should get some explanations. Who were you running from, and why did they shoot you?”

The Omega winced at the question and diverted his blue-eyed gaze. The answers to those questions had scarred him for so long. Sure, Arthur had saved him, but spilling out his secrets to him wasn't going to happen. “Long story. I won't bother you with it.”

“Excuse me, but I picked you up — a stranger — and took you to a hospital. I think hearing this story is going to be much less bothersome.”

Alfred let out a loud sigh. This Alpha wasn't going to drop it, was he? “Fine,” the Omega relented. “Long story short, I was captured by some really bad guys when I was fifteen. They did bad things, but I escaped, so I'm fine now. Happy?”

“’Some really bad guys’?” Arthur repeated with a deep frown. “I'm afraid I'm going to need more information than that.”

“Seriously?” Alfred said with frustration then glared at Arthur. “Look, dude, I'm really grateful you helped me. I thank you so much for doing that, but, as you said, I'm a stranger. I don't feel the need to tell you every detail of my life.”

The two had a sort of glaring contest before Arthur finally shook his head and sighed. “All right, all right. I won't ask about it, but the doctor did say that if you were feeling better, you could be released today. You have a place to stay, right?” At Alfred’s suddenly tensed face, Arthur rolled his eyes. “I knew it. Well, you're welcomed to stay with me until you have a place of your own.”

The Omega’s gaze became suddenly confused. “What… Why? Why are you helping me this much? You don't know me.”

“Because you've been hurt,” the Alpha stated simply. “It's my job as an Alpha to help you.”

Alfred scrunched his nose. So that's the reason, was it? He should've known. Every Alpha has that fucking superiority complex. Every single one of them believed Omegas to be weak, fragile things.

“Of course,” Alfred said bitterly. “Look, dude. I don't want to be your pity project. I can handle myself and don't need some Alpha caring for me. So, just take your sympathy elsewhere and leave me alone.”

Arthur leaned back in his chair and didn't smile, but his eyes clearly conveyed amusement. “You have nowhere to go.”

“I'll find a place.”

“You have no money.”

“I'll get a job.”

“Do you have any references that would encourage people to employ you?”

“Motherfucker,” Alfred finally snapped. “I'll find a way to make do! I don't need your help! Is it too much for your Alpha head that an Omega can actually fend for themselves?” the male sneered.

“On the contrary, I am one of the few that think Omegas aren't just fragile dolls,” Arthur replied. “My mother is quite the independent and stubborn individual.”

Alfred snorted. That must be where Arthur got his stubbornness. He glared at Arthur, and it only made him angrier seeing how calm and collected the other was. “You're not gonna give up, are you?”

“It took you a long time to figure that out.”

Alfred let out a growl of annoyance. “Okay. I'll come with you, but I'm only going to stay with you until I can take care of myself.”

Arthur smirked victoriously. “Of course.”

Chapter Text

“I'm not getting in that thing.”

“Come on, just get in! We’ve been arguing for about an hour now!”

“And yet you still don't understand that I'm not gonna do it!”

“My God, it's just a bloody wheelchair!”

Alfred crossed his arms and glared at the object in question. He was perfectly fine and didn't need that wheeled contraption! The last thing he wanted to do was look weak and get pushed around by this damn Alpha. “I'm fine. I can walk on my own.”

Arthur let out an irritated groan. “No, you can't! You have a twisted ankle and almost puked when you tried to stand!”

“I’m sorry I didn't. You would look nice with vomit all over you.”

“Fucking hell…” Arthur muttered, pinching the bridge of his nose.

“Aw, do you have a headache, old man?” Alfred sneered, smirking now.

“I'm not an old man! Just get in the bloody wheelchair, dammit!” Arthur snapped. Alfred could almost see a vein on his head throbbing, and it made a swell of satisfaction go throughout him. Plan Irritate The Living Hell Out Of Arthur has been completed!

“All right. I'll get in, old man,” Alfred relented, though he still sported a wide smirk, “but I'm gonna wheel myself around. I don't want you pushing me.”

Arthur muttered something that sounded like ‘fucking Christ’ when Alfred sat himself comfortably in the wheelchair. If he was going to be staying with this stubborn Alpha, Alfred was going to make sure that Arthur knew he wasn't going to be pushed around. Plus, Arthur was fun to irritate.

But that smirk fell off his face when they finally got to the car.

“You have a fucking limo?!”

Arthur rolled his eyes and sighed. “Yes, but I told Mum not to bring it. She always insists on it.”

“Just who the hell is your mom?!” Alfred exclaimed incredulously, gaping.

“Arthur, just what the hell took you so long?” a white-haired man — wasn't he the other man that had helped him? — beside the limo asked with irritation. “I was about to go up there to check if you were all right!”

“I'm sorry, Gilbert. It was because somebody” — Arthur glared at Alfred here — “refused to get in a wheelchair.”

Alfred smiled cheekily, and Gilbert let out a loud sigh. “Whatever. The awesome me is tired of waiting, so let's go.”

After the Omega had gotten himself into the limo (which had taken much longer than needed because he refused help from both Arthur and Gilbert), he was left to stare in wonder. It had been years since he had been in a car, let alone a limo.

“I'm Gilbert, by the way!” the albino introduced himself with a smirk. “The one and only awesome guard of this guy over here!”

Alfred raised an eyebrow at the introduction. “I'm Alfred,” the Omega said simply. He couldn't help but inwardly frown, though, and the male glanced at Arthur. This Alpha needed a guard?

Alfred finally voiced his thoughts. “Why do you need a guard? Did you piss off the mafia or something?”

“You didn’t tell him?” Gilbert said incredulously, frowning.

Arthur sighed. “I didn't feel the need to.”

“Dude, when he sees your house, he's gonna figure it out.”

Alfred was so unbelievably confused. The guy had a limo, had a guard, and had some kind of unique house. Who the hell had he decided to stay with?

Gilbert decided to answer for Arthur and grinned at Alfred. “Arthur here is the prince of Melendia!”

The Omega choked on air for a moment.

“Y-You're the what of Melendia?”

Arthur sighed and shook his head. “I'm the prince,” he said, almost sounding as if he was exasperated upon the information being revealed. When the Alpha saw the other male with his lips slightly parted in shock, he threw an annoyed glance towards him. “Oh, do shut your mouth. I'm just the prince — not the bloody ruler of the universe.”

“‘Just the prince,’” the Omega repeated incredulously. Now he knew why Arthur’s name seemed familiar. God, why hadn't he thought of that before? Even the Alpha’s gigantic eyebrows should have given it away; the eyebrows were common in the Kirkland line!

Alfred finally snapped out of his shock then snorted and leaned back into the car seat. “Whatever. I’m just surprised that you're not just an old man; you're a royal old man.”

“I'm not a bloody old man!”

Alfred smirked, and Gilbert laughed.

The minute Alfred looked upon the enormous castle with awe, he was suddenly pushed into it before he could even breathe. Arthur and Gilbert had gone somewhere else and left him with overly chatty maids that pushed his wheelchair through twisting hallways. God, even being with Arthur seemed better than this.

“First off, we’ll need to give you a bath!” a maid named Ann exclaimed happily as they entered a very large room. Alfred was lost for words as he looked around. There was a grand bed with a window nearby it. A mahogany bedside table nestled beside the bed, and a wooden desk laid nearby the window from where light spilled out. There were also two rooms connected to this one, and while he could guess one was a bathroom, he wasn't sure what the other one was for.

“This is where you'll be staying while you're here,” another maid named Jill chirped. “The one to your left is the bathroom, and the other one to your right is where you'll stay should you ever go into Heat here.”

Alfred paled at the very mention of him going into Heat, and he sunk a little further into the chair. However, the two maids didn't notice, and they wheeled him into the bathroom.

Ann stopped his wheelchair in front of the bath — dear God, was everything this big in the castle? — and smiled at Alfred. “We’ll help you get out of your clothes and get into the bathtub. I know it'll be very difficult to do so on your own since you're injured.”

Alfred shook his head immediately and blushed. “U-Uh, no thanks. I'd prefer to do it on my own…”

“But…” Jill looked worried and troubled. “At least let us help to get your bandages and shirt off. It'll be very hard for you otherwise.”

Alfred frowned and looked down at his shirt. It was a tight blue v-neck that was ripped and dirt-covered. He didn't have anything else to wear, so he had to keep the one he had worn during his imprisonment. He hated it with all his being. Not only did he hate it for what it represented, but he also hated the reason he had been forced to wear it in the first place — to look more appealing for Alphas.

In any case, Alfred knew that, with his hurt shoulder, there was no way he was going to get the shirt off himself.

“Yeah…” he whispered. “I'll need help.”

The maids nodded in approval, and Ann went to work with getting the other’s shirt off. Jill went to the bath to let the water finally fall from its faucet, and Alfred watched as the water began to steadily rise in it.

After Ann had gotten his shirt off and taken the bandages off his head and shoulder, both maids smiled softly at him. “We’ll get out of your way now,” Jill said gently. “We’ll go get some clothes for you and leave them outside on the bed for when you're done with your bath. When you're dressed, go down the hallway to your right then go into the third door to your left. We’ll be in there and give you new bandages!”

“Right,” Alfred murmured. “Thanks for the help.”

Finally, the Omega was left alone. He awkwardly removed his pants and underwear, then settled into the bathtub with great difficulty. He let out a pleased sigh at the warmth that radiated from the water. It had been a long time since Alfred had had a warm bath.

Alfred set his glasses on the side of the bathtub. He used soaps to awkwardly clean himself, then merely sat in a relaxed position in the water. The Omega took this time to finally look at his wounds. His wrists still stung a bit, but the feeling was nothing new, as one would be able to tell from the scars already there. His shoulder wound made him scrunch his nose; it really did look awful. But then his eyes wandered to the scars that had closed from severe wounds not so long ago. On the upper parts of his legs, there were fierce scars that seemed to constrict them.

Alfred shook his head and closed his eyes. ‘Don't think about it,’ he told himself. ‘It's okay now. You've escaped and never have to go back there.’

But the thoughts still plagued his mind.

“Oh! You look wonderful!”

Alfred almost winced when Ann let out a joyous cheer. The clothes he had been given were simply a white button-up, a thin brown jacket, and jeans. Even if he thought it was amazing to have normal clothes again, it really wasn’t anything special. “Uh, thank you?”

“Now with your hair and face clean, you're practically glowing!” Ann exclaimed with a grin.

Going towards Alfred and gently running her hands through his hair, Jill let out a squeal. “Wow! I've never seen hair so soft, and it's such a lovely shade of blond!” the maid exclaimed. Alfred blushed heavily at the touching and compliments. He felt himself blushing even more when Ann came closer as well.

“And your eyes are so blue! Just like the sky!”

“Ann, Jill, I think you're making our guest uncomfortable.”

Three eyes snapped towards the doorway, and a pair of green eyes stared back. The maids stepped away and looked down guiltily.

“We’re sorry, sir,” Ann murmured.

“It's quite all right,” Arthur said, looking at Alfred. The Omega wanted to shrink away under the Alpha’s calculating gaze. “You do look better now that you've been cleaned up.”

Glaring, Alfred looked away to hide his blush. “Whatever, old man.”

Arthur let out a loud sigh, and the maids snickered slightly.

Arthur was really fun to irritate, Alfred decided.

Chapter Text

There was white blanketing the ground outside Alfred’s window, and a wide grin formed on the child’s face. He jumped out of his bed with glee and bound out of his room in a fast blur. His bare feet thumped quickly against the wooden floor like a drum beat. Alfred’s blue eyes shined with joy as he threw a door open and ran into a carpeted bedroom.

Two bundled forms tiredly groaned when Alfred jumped onto their bed. Tiny tanned hands shook the nearest form vigorously. “Mom! Mom! It's Christmas, and it's snowing! C’mon, we need to get up!” the boy insisted eagerly, bouncing up and down.

Alfred’s mom sighed and looked up at the boy through violet eyes. “All right, honey,” she mumbled sleepily. She turned and poked her husband slightly. “John, it's time to get up.”

Alfred’s father murmured something unintelligible, and his mother just smiled and shook her head with amusement.

“Go ahead and wake your brother up, Alfred.”

Giving a quick nod, Alfred was out of bed again and flying out of the room. He went down the stairs and barely touched a step before moving to the next one. The boy quickly went through the living room into a hallway and practically slammed a door open.

“Mattie, it's Christmas!” Alfred exclaimed with a wide grin. Matthew groaned and put a pillow over his head, and a white dog lazily raised his head to gaze at Alfred before laying it back down. The blue-eyed Omega pouted and moved over to his brother and energetically shook the other’s form. “Maaaaaattie! Come on! You need to get up! We can open presents then go play out in the snow! Come oooon!”

Matthew let out a sigh of irritation. “Fine, Al…” Yawning, the Omega twin slowly got up and rubbed his eyes. “How do you always get up this early, anyway?”

Alfred let out a loud laugh.

“Heroes don't need sleep!”

“It's really big, isn't it?”

Alfred snapped out of his dream-like state suddenly to look at Arthur. An enormous Christmas tree towered above them with unending amounts of ornaments and decorations. The Omega had momentarily stopped his wheelchair in front of the tree, for it reminded him so much of the times he had once spent with his family.

“Y-Yeah…” Alfred muttered, biting his lip slightly.

Arthur’s bushy eyebrows dipped into a frown. “Are you all right?” the Alpha asked.

“I'm fine,” Alfred replied instantly, removing his nostalgic expression. “Anyway, where's the food you mentioned? I'm hungry.”

Arthur’s concerned expression lingered for one more moment before he sighed and shook his head. “It's this way.”

The two ventured down the hallway until they finally entered a large room with a long table in the center. Almost immediately upon entering, a redheaded Alpha smirked and approached them. “Ah, Artie! I was wondering when you would finally decide to show up!”

Arthur crossed his arms and practically snarled. “I can show up whenever I bloody well please, Alistair.”

“Oi, is that anyway to talk to your older brother, Artie?” Alistair chirped, maintaining his wide smirk.

“My name is Arthur, you imbecile!”

“Oh, look! Artie’s here!” a new voice exclaimed. Alfred’s eyes drifted towards a boy and a girl, both with red hair. The shade of their hair was less intense compared to Alistair’s, and the Omega couldn't help but blink in wonder at the Betas. The two newcomers looked almost completely identical!

Arthur was muttering and cursing when the girl ran over in the direction of Alfred. “Oh!” she said with excitement. “You must be the Omega Arthur mentioned! It's nice to meet you! My name is Colleen; I'm Arthur’s older sister!”

“I'm Alfred…?” Alfred said slowly, his head spinning from all the talking and sudden approaching of Arthur’s siblings.

Yet another person, a Beta, entered the room with a book tucked under his arm — God, how many siblings did Arthur have?! — and blinked his hazel eyes at the group forming around Alfred. Unlike Arthur’s other siblings, Alfred noted, this boy shared the Alpha’s blond hair.

Arthur almost looked ready to pull his hair out at the sight of this brother. “Oh God, another insane person. I'm going to die.”

“Hey!” Alfred said with an offended tone. “I'm perfectly sane!” At least more so than your other siblings, the Omega wanted to add.

“I agree with Alfred!” the unnamed redhead exclaimed. “Dylan, Alistair, Colleen, Alfred, and I are a whole lot more sane than you!”

Arthur snarled with irritation. “Seamus, I'll kill—!”

“Now, now. Everyone, calm down. We don't want to overwhelm our guest, do we?”

Everyone paused at the voice and turned towards it. A female Omega stood in a doorway with an amused, gentle smile and perfect posture. Blond hair with a rough texture fell down the woman’s shoulders and ended on her upper back. Alfred felt his lips part slightly in shock at the hazel eyes that stared back with wrinkles in the milky white skin surrounding it. There could be no mistake; this was the Queen of Melendia.

“I apologize, Mother,” Arthur said with a glare towards his siblings. “My siblings cannot seem to act like adults.”

Alistair snorted. “Says the one who dyed his hair green.”

“I was sixteen!” Arthur defended with an angry scowl.

“And you only turned it back to normal after you were eighteen.”

“Shut up, you bloody wanker!”

Alfred couldn't help but let out a bout of laughter. “Arthur had green hair? No way!”

Alistair smirked and nodded, making Arthur start murmuring angrily. “He did!” the redhead exclaimed. “Went through this punk phase, he did. He caused trouble wherever he went and vandalized a ton of places! He had all these piercings and was always like ‘Screw society!’”

Alfred laughed loudly again. There's no way stuffy old Arthur could be a punk! He was so focused on being a ‘gentleman’, as he put it. The Alpha was definitely a stickler for the rules, or at least appeared to be.

“Come on, we can exchange stories later!” the Queen exclaimed. The woman extended her hand towards Alfred and shook the Omega’s hand with a smile. “My name is Elizabeth; I'm Arthur’s mother. It's a pleasure to meet you.”

“U-Uh,” Alfred stammered due the fact that this was the fucking Queen he was talking to. “Yeah. I'm Alfred. Nice to meet ya.”

The Queen smiled then beckoned the group to go sit at the long table with a wave of her hand. “Now, let's eat! We don't want all this food to go to waste, do we?” It was only then that Alfred took real notice of the food. It made his mouth water and his stomach growl. He hadn't seen food this good since before he was captured!

Alfred started to move towards the table with his wheelchair, but Arthur stopped him by stepping in front of the male. The Alpha pulled a chair out of the way so the Omega could park his wheelchair beside the table, making Alfred frown.

“I could've done that myself.”

“You could have,” Arthur agreed, “but I decided to help.”

Alfred snorted and went beside the table. “I don't need your help. I prefer doing things on my own.”

Arthur sighed and grumbled under his breath — causing his siblings to snicker — and sat down beside the Omega. Alfred immediately picked up a fork to eat some of the chicken and closed his eyes in appreciation of the taste. God, this definitely put all the horrible food he had eaten for the four last years to shame.

Arthur raised an eyebrow at the action. “It's just chicken, you know.”

“This is heaven compared to what I've eaten while I was captured,” Alfred merely said. The room went silent at the reply — save for the clinging of Alfred’s fork as he ate — and the inhabitants of the room looked unsure of how to respond. This went on for about a minute before the Queen spoke up.

“Well,” Elizabeth said, “are you enjoying your stay so far at the castle, Alfred?”

Alfred swallowed and put his fork down for a moment to nod. “Yes. I feel so much better now that I've had a bath!”

Elizabeth smiled. “I'm glad to hear it. Just let us know if you need anything, all right?”

“I will, thank you,” Alfred replied, grateful for the Queen’s kindness.

“It's no problem, dear,” Elizabeth said gently before a new man walked into the room. This man had the same red hair and green eyes as many of his children. Alfred could smell the scent of an Alpha upon him as he went beside Elizabeth to kiss her cheek.

“I'm sorry I was late, sweetheart,” he apologized as he sat down. “I've had much more paperwork than usual with all the attacks from Rachma.”

“I understand, Will,” Elizabeth said with a nod.

Will had begun to eat before he noticed Alfred’s presence, and he raised an eyebrow. “And who might you be?” the Alpha asked.

Elizabeth answered for Alfred. “This is the Omega Arthur mentioned. His name is Alfred.”

“Hello,” Alfred said with an awkward smile and wave. God, with those eyebrows, this had to be the King.

“Hello, Alfred,” Will greeted. “My name is Will; I'm Arthur’s father.”

“Nice to meet you,” the Omega answered, still feeling a bit awkward.

Seeing that both Alfred and Arthur had nearly finished their food, Elizabeth spoke to her son. “Arthur, dear, why don't you go show Alfred around the castle? After all, he’ll be staying for a while.”

Arthur nodded. “That's a good idea.” He turned his head towards Alfred. “Do you want to go now?”

Alfred looked at his empty plate, almost mourning that all the food was gone, then gave a sigh and a nod. “Let's go.”

The two then proceeded to go around the castle with Arthur explaining and naming everything. Alfred almost felt overwhelmed by the size and enormity of it all, and the feeling leaked into his expression. The male could tell that Arthur was amused by this, but he was too in awe to make a comeback. Eventually the males made their way outside to the stables, much to Alfred’s delight.

“…And these are the stables,” Arthur stated. “I don't really go here as much as I used to.”

A grin formed on Alfred’s face at the sight of the barn, and he felt a sort of giddiness. The Omega could clearly see through the opened, wooden doors the stalls lined inside the long corridor. He instantly wheeled himself quickly inside to Arthur’s surprise and went to a stall where a horse poked its head out. The thoroughbred horse nickered as the Omega gently moved his fingers up and down its forehead.

“So, you're fond of horses, then?” Arthur remarked as he came beside Alfred.

“I lived on a ranch when I was younger,” Alfred replied simply. He kept smiling at the horse’s dark brown eyes and petting it for a while until he felt Arthur’s stare, so the male glanced over at Arthur to see him staring with a bit of surprise at him.

“What are you staring at me for?” the Omega asked, his smile turning into a confused frown.

Arthur blinked and was shaken out of his stupor. “Oh, it's nothing. It's just, you were…”

“I was what?”

“Never mind…” The Alpha turned his gaze onto the horse. “Her name is Gwen, by the way. She's my mother’s horse.”

“Gwen, huh?” Alfred repeated. He turned his gaze back onto Gwen, and a smile made its way back onto his features. “You're such a sweet and pretty thing, Gwen… I bet you're fast, too.” The horse nickered, and Alfred let out a soft laugh.

Alfred remained there for quite a while before he suddenly felt hot. Very hot. His heart beat rapidly in his chest, and his vision swam. The Omega’s hands went to his head as the heat steadily grow more intense, and sweat began to drip down his forehead. The male heard Arthur worriedly shouting a question at him and Gwen letting out a wild neigh, but the sound felt far-off. He felt something picking him up and moving at a fast pace, but the dizziness and heat distracted him. Eventually, the male drifted into unconsciousness.

Alfred felt a strange sense of déjà vu upon waking. He heard the continual repeating of beeps, and he laid in an unknown bed. His eyes fluttered open and a white room formed in his vision. He looked down and grimaced at the sight of an IV linked to his arm. He hated IVs.

The blond turned his head around to find a person, and his blue eyes caught the blurred form of a man sitting in a chair.

“Arthur?”

Arthur’s head snapped up in attention, and he stood up, walking towards Alfred. “How are you feeling?” the Alpha asked.

“Better… Just tired,” Alfred answered. “Can you get…?” Before Alfred finished his sentence, Arthur was already grabbing his glasses and putting them on the Omega. Alfred blinked in surprise. “Uh, thanks…”

The hospital bed dipped as Arthur sat on the edge. “You had a pretty bad hot flash, so I had to take you here.”

“A hot flash?” Alfred repeated. “What even causes that? I've never had one before.”

“I don't know,” the prince replied, shrugging. He stood up again. “I'll go tell the doctor you're awake.”

Alfred nodded and watched as Arthur disappeared out the door. Hot flash. So that's what the heat was. For a second, he had thought he had…

“How are you feeling, Mr. Jones?”

Alfred blinked at the doctor before shrugging. “Fine, I guess. Just tired.”

“That's normal,” the doctor said. He looked at his clipboard and clicked his tongue. “Now, I must say I'm a little baffled by your hot flash. These are normally caused by hormone imbalances, and, well, you do have a hormone imbalance… But I've never seen one to this scale. Theoretically, I would say this could only be caused by an outside influence…” The doctor looked up from his clipboard to gaze at Alfred. “Do you have any idea what this outside influence could be, Mr. Jones?”

Alfred froze, and his skin paled. No. It couldn't be… No. He couldn't tell them about it. He didn't want to. But there wasn't a lie he could tell that would sound credible. God, he didn't want to tell them, but…

“I…” Alfred’s voice cracked, and the Omega avoided the doctor’s gaze. “I…” God, could he really say it?

Arthur and the doctor stared at him, waiting for an answer.

Alfred took a deep breath.

“I was forcefully induced into heats.”

Chapter Text

Alfred hid in a closet, shaking and biting his lip to keep himself from whimpering. He could feel Matthew shaking, too. Alfred tightened his grip on his brother and buried his face in his shoulder in an attempt to comfort him.

But he knew it wouldn't last.

“Come out, come out wherever you are~” a raspy voice sang in a sickeningly sweet manner. “I don't bite.”

Alfred felt his stream of tears thicken.

Liar.

Bang!

You certainly hadn't refrained from biting them.

Bang! Bang!

“Oh my God! Dad, please, no!”

Alfred held his breath as he heard those dreaded footsteps coming closer. They stomped loudly, as if they didn't care if Alfred and Matthew heard them coming. And Alfred was almost certain that was what was intended. This man wanted to strike fear into their hearts.

And it was working.

“Aww… No need to be shy, you two. I don't want to hurt you…” the man purred.

Alfred swallowed thickly at a sudden pause, and before he knew it, the closet doors were yanked open, and he couldn't help but yelp. The man grinned sinisterly at the teenage Omegas. “I just want to play…”

-*-*-*-*-*-

“P-Please, no, don't!” Alfred sobbed, pulling against his restraints. “I-I'll do it without it, p-please! I promise!”

A man much taller than him clicked his tongue disapprovingly. “I don't believe you. Besides, our patrons prefer their partners to be… desperate and more willing for longer periods of time,” he chided with an deep accent, pressing a needle against Alfred's arm. “This’ll only hurt for a moment.”

Alfred let out a cry of pain as the needle pressed further into his body until all of the horrible substance was released into him.

-*-*-*-*-*-

Alfred let out an almost relieved sigh when he heard the door shut. Almost, because he knew this would happen again when he was “well enough” according to Ivan’s standards. Right now, however, his whole body ached, he was drenched with sweat, and dried blood was caked on his inner thighs.

The male Omega thought his heats had been horrible before, but nothing compared to being raped during one. Because his whole body burned with need, and it didn't want to fight back. Fuck. Alfred curled up into a ball on top of his sheets. When did he become such a whore?

An hour or two after his “patron” had left, there was a knock on the door before a tray of food was thrown in. Eventually he worked up the will to move — despite the protest of his aching muscles — and nibble on the food. After eating as much as his stomach would take, he painfully limped into the bathroom and into the shower. Although the water was cold, it felt good to have the sweat and blood washed away.

As Alfred watched the blood go down the drain, the yearning for freedom was stamped slightly away.

-*-*-*-*-*-*-

Arthur looked at him in shock, and the doctor paled. “Oh my lord… I'm so, so sorry… The pain and suffering you must have endured…” the doctor breathed. “I've… I've heard of medication to induce heats before, but it's purely experimental and should not be used on such a frequent scale…”

Arthur appeared to have regained his wits when he finally managed to ask, “So, doctor... Do you think you can help him?”

The doctor sighed and rubbed the back of his neck. “Possibly,” he replied. “I've never dealt with such a case, so I can't say for sure... But I'll do my best. I'll take some blood to see if Mr. Jones here able to take certain kinds of medication to stabilize his hormones, and due to the nature of the situation, I'd like to give a full examination to see what effect this has had on Mr. Jones — particularly his reproductive system. It's possible it could be damaged.” The doctor looked over at Alfred again. “Would that be all right, Mr. Jones?”

After a moment of contemplation, Alfred just shrugged and nodded. “Sure, I guess...”

The doctor flashed a reassuring smile. “I'll be right back, then.”

And with that, the doctor had left.

There was a long stretch of silence before someone finally talked again. “I...” Arthur paused. “I'm sorry...”

“Don't be,” Alfred murmured. “Wasn't your fault.”

“Still. I can't imagine how horrible that must have been...” Arthur said softly. “How'd you manage to get away?”

Alfred paused. “Well...”

-*-*-*-*-*-*-

Alfred and a few of the others had been planning a way to get out of this place for a while, and in the end it was decided that only one person could get out with a fake, harmless copy of the heat injection. Being the youngest and strongest of the group, Alfred was decided to be the one to escape.

It wasn't easy, but they managed to do it. They switched out Alfred's injection with the fake. Alfred still fought against Ivan when the fake was injected into him; after all, it would be strange if he didn't. As always, it ended up rubbing his wrists raw due to the strain of pulling against the restraints.

Afterwards he was placed in his room to let the “injection” take effect, and as such the door was left unlocked. After all, it was near impossible for an Omega to walk during a heat — let alone run. Alfred had almost gotten out without problem until he unintentionally set an alarm off by leaving the building without a passcode, which his fellow friends hadn't accounted for. From there he had run and sprinted, been shot, and had eventually found Arthur and Gilbert.

-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-

“I see...” Arthur murmured under his breath. He abruptly stood up from his chair, which nearly made Alfred jump, and began walking away. “I'll inform my father of this immediately. Those other Omegas have to be saved.”

“Wait!” Alfred's hand shot out to grab Arthur's wrist, which successfully made the prince stop and look at him with a perplexed frown. “Please, yes, help them, but... Please try to find out information about Matthew Williams from there. Please.”

Arthur was shocked by Alfred's desperation and fear — and maybe it was his Alpha instinct or just because Alfred was somewhat tolerable occasionally — but all he knew is that he wanted to calm the ill Omega down. “Of course... But may I ask why?”

Clearly debating on whether or not he should tell Arthur, Alfred paused for a few moments before finally speaking.

“He's... He's my brother.”