Chapter 1: Unto the City of Love

"Rise and shine, Yuu-kun! Today is the day!" Yoichi greeted his master cheerfully as dark blue curtains were drawn open to reveal the sunshine. The bright, luminous lights of dawn that shone brightly on the late weeks of January signified the start of a new day. "You have to prepare since your plane leaves at exactly eight in the morning."

Yuuichirou grunted on his pillows and he stubbornly moved to cover himself further with his comforter, refusing to leave the heavenly confinements of his king-sized bed. He felt like he would be thrown in another endless spiral of boring ass political discussions that he didn't sign up for, so he curled himself to get more of that blissful softness for comfort before facing the day ahead. "Give me ten minutes, Yoichi."

"Eh…? That can't be, Yuu-kun." The brunette whined as he placed his hands on his hips as he stared down on the huge lump of his master's bed. "If you don't wake up this instant, Guren-sama will give you an earful again. This is part of your training, so get up!"

Yoichi grabbed a handful of the fabric covering Yuuichirou and yanked it away, revealing the raven in his pajamas with his hair completely disheveled and the side of his mouth having a trail of dried drool. He glared at his servant despite the sleepy expression that he held as he sat up. He yawned and stretched his arms and back before glaring at Yoichi once again. "… To think an omega would do this to a beta."

"Hey, I was just doing my job as your personal servant, Yuu-kun." The omega defended with a smile as his hands were raised in a defensive stance. "Besides… there's no escaping the fact that you'll be taking over Guren-sama's position once he retires."

"… Right." Yuuichirou yawned again before fixing Yoichi a serious look. "So… What's my schedule for today?"

"The Ichinose private plane will be waiting for you in the airport at eight o'clock sharp. It means that you'll have your breakfast between six-thirty to seven, and that you have to be dressed and ready before said time."

"I see…" The raven beta sighed as he stood up, reluctant to leave his bed. "Tell dad that I'll be in the dining hall at the designated time. He told me that he wanted me to know a few things about the event that I'll be attending."

Yoichi smiled as he bowed in respect for his master. "I'll tell him that right away, Yuu-kun. Oh, and… your luggage for the whole trip was already prepared to accommodate your needs."

"Really? Wow, thanks a lot, Yoichi. You're a life saver." Yuuichirou praised with a cheery smile as he took the knob of the bathroom. "I should really treat you to a vacation for your hard work and for all the deep shit that you had to undergo because of me."

"Huh? No, no! It's alright, Yuu-kun! You already did something for me back then. I'm just returning the favor."

"Is that so…" He paused for a bit. "Still! I'm going to repay you back somehow!"

"I already said that it's alright…"

"Well, it's not for me." Yuuichirou protested as he began to think. "Oh! Maybe I could get a souvenir for you in France? How about that?"

"I said it's alright, Yuu-kun…!" Yoichi cried out with a small blush on his cheeks as his beta master disappeared to the bathroom with a laugh. "Hmm… Does he ever listen to what other people are saying?"

In accordance with his promise, Yuuichirou arrived at the dining hall in time and his beta father, Guren, was already seated in one of the chairs still in his pajamas while his son was all dressed up. When Guren saw Yuuichirou, he gave an arrogant smirk at seeing him wide awake and prepared. "Morning, Yuu. I wasn't expecting you to be right on schedule."

"Dad, I'm not in the mood to be dealing with your shitty comments in the morning. So what if I'm early? You got a problem with that?" Yuuichirou grimaced as he took out a chair to settle himself down. "Besides, this world meeting thing is very important to you, but because you got infected with a flu, you're sending me over there to take your place."

"You got that right. World meetings only come once in a blue moon, after all. They usually hold discussions about the most common problems all over the world and they talk down solutions to solve it." Guren explained as he took a sip of his medicinal tea, then he held a solemn look that Yuuichirou knew that the bad part of the conversation was coming up. "However… it's also the time where numerous political leaders get assassinated. I know that I could hold out my own since I've been through these things before, but how about you? Think you could handle it?"

"You're asking me if I could deal with a few assassins by myself?" The raven beta repeated in an almost mocking tone. "Please… I've dealt with worse."

"This is not a laughing matter, Yuu. You're going to a foreign country with a culture that is different to ours. I can't guarantee your safety even if I send in Kimizuki and Mitsuba to protect you."

Yuuichirou blinked in surprise at how anxious Guren sounded, which was a first because he was always an ass to him in his pubescent life. But being a father, he was just looking out for his son and the raven couldn't help this feeling rising inside him that wanted to assure him that everything was going to be alright. "I'll be fine, dad, really. I was trained personally by you to protect myself, right? What's the worst that could happen?"

"A lot of things since you're the son of the Japanese Prime Minister." Guren elaborated further. "I don't want what happened three years ago to occur to you again…"

Ah… So that was it… The raven beta lowered his head for a while, contemplating on what to say next. Of course dad would think of something like that. It practically haunted him for days.

In truth, it also haunted Yuuichirou for days and it even traumatized him to no end. But, because of how it greatly worried other people around him, he didn't dwell on it for too long and decided to move on… Yet he could still feel this strong pang of regret and depression for losing someone so important and for losing something that was originally a part of him.

He bit on his bottom lip for a while before giving Guren a reassuring smile, even though he needed the comfort more than his father did. "Don't worry. It won't happen again, I promise. I'm a lot stronger than what I used to be before."

His father's violet eyes stared at him as if to check if he was lying. Guren's eyes were pretty sharp and observant when it came to conversations like these so that he would know what to say in order to push his opponent in a corner. However, now he was just looking at Yuuichirou with a hint of concern, and then he nodded as he poured himself another cup of tea. "I hold you to your word, Yuu. Don't break it."

The raven nodded while servants came in the dining hall carrying various trays of food for breakfast. As they settled down, the twin doors of the room suddenly opened wide to reveal a petite, lilac-haired omega in her cute sundress staring at the two betas present with wide eyes.

"Yuu…!"

"S-Shinoa? What are you—"

Yuuichirou was cut off when Shinoa came jumping in to hug him tightly around his neck for dear life while Guren ignored them in favor of eating his breakfast. "You're not going to France, Yuu! I'm against the idea!"

"Huh? But I have to. It's my job."

"But what if something happens to you?! I can't stand to see you suffer all over again!"

"Shinoa…" The raven smiled softly as he gently patted her on the head to calm her down. "It's alright. I'm going to be okay. It's only for five days, after all."

The words made a pout on the omega as she faced Yuuichirou with big brown eyes. "But, Yuu…"

"No buts. This is my decision. I have to go to France to represent Japan in the world meeting. There's no escaping it since Japan is one of the leading countries in the world as well as a member of the United Nations and allies. It would be embarrassing on our part if there's no one in our country who is going to represent us." Yuuichirou explained for Shinoa as he held her. "Please understand, Shinoa. Dad isn't feeling well for the time being so I have to take his place as his son."

Shinoa frowned in distress as she looked down on her friend and fiancé before she slowly nodded in defeat. "Just… don't forget to contact us every now and then, okay?"

"I will." He promised as he stood up to give his fiancée a kiss on her crown.

"I still can't believe that someone like you would be able to read all those documents in a span of twelve hours…" Shihou commented as he drove the bulletproof limousine that held Mitsuba in the passenger seat and Yuuichirou in the backseat with a shit ton of papers in a briefcase. "I'm aware that you're Guren-san's son, but you're not as quick witted as him."

"Shut up, telephone pole. I'm trying to read here." The raven retorted nonchalantly as his eyes scanned through words and graphs ranging from social to financial to economical recordings and data of Japan. "It would be humiliating if I attend the world meeting without being aware of my own country's assessments. Dad will kill me with his Noya, or worse, with his Mahiru-no-Yo."

Shihou snorted. "I would like to see that. Father versus son... Guren Ichinose versus Yuuichirou Ichinose… The battle of the two strongest betas in the world…!"

"Wow, Kimizuki... You just admitted that I'm strong right there." Yuuichirou grinned as he tilted a document a bit to look at his bodyguard on the rear view mirror. "I thought alphas have more pride than that."

"Tch, that's because you cheated on me during our sparring practice. I had the upper hand on that one, by the way."

"Oh, really? Because it looked like you were pretty desperate when I pushed you in a corner while you accidentally tried to aim right for my legs, and the look on your face when I disarmed you was absolutely priceless."

Shihou could feel an eye twitch as Yuuichirou laughed behind him. He wouldn't lie about that. He did attempt to hit the beta's legs so that he would lose his footing, but Yuuichirou was quick on his heels and he managed to disarm Shihou in a flash with only his treasured sword, Asuramaru, as his weapon. It amazed Shihou that someone like Yuuichirou could do that, and it took a huge amount of denial and spite for him to finally admit that the beta was a lot stronger than him in terms of hand-to-hand combat.

'Imagine that… A beta defeating an alpha… How embarrassing.' The pink haired alpha's brows scrunched up in a scowl, scoffing at the thought. He would definitely get him back for the loss someday.

"Huh… Who knew? That's amazing, Yuu." Mitsuba complimented as soon as she heard the conversation. "Well, you were personally trained by Guren-san, so I expected nothing less. He was a very good swordsman."

"Yeah, well… I was mostly trained for self-defense in case some weird clusterfuck that involves my life will happen." Yuuichirou enlightened as his eyes stared out of the window, forgetting the documents as he took in the scenery with a fervent look. "It's kind of needed since I'm the Prime Minister's son, after all."

Shihou and Mitsuba stared at each other in bewilderment when they both felt like there was something much deeper behind the raven's words than it intended to be. But, being good friends with Yuuichirou, they mutually decided to just drop the topic as they drove their way to the airport for his sake.

Yuuichirou sighed as he fixed the documents properly and placed them back inside the briefcase. He had lost the interest to read them after what he just said, and the unnerving silence being exchanged between them was annoying him as well. It was so unlike Shihou or Mitsuba to be silent whenever he was around, and therefore—for the first time in a long while—he decided to strike up a conversation.

"So, uhm… I know this is kind of weird coming from me, but… have you guys… found your ideal mates yet?" He slightly winced at the last part and awkwardness immediately filled him afterwards as he waited for their answer.

"… I have." Shihou murmured as a small blush bloomed on his face. "But I don't think he'll like me…"

The reply made Yuuichirou perk up in shock and he grabbed the driver's seat where the alpha was seated with excitement showing in his eyes. "What?! No way! Who is it, Kimizuki?! Who is it?!"

"Damn it, why the hell should I tell you?! I just said that I like somebody, so what?!"

"Who. Is. It?! Tell me…!" The beta asked persistently as he began to shake the seat with force enough to hit Shihou's back repeatedly. "Tell me! Tell me! Tell me! Tell me, you damn telephone pole!"

"No! Over my dead—"

"—It's Yoichi he is in love with, Yuu." Mitsuba interrupted that made both men gasp and the alpha shot her a look of betrayal.

"Mitsuba—!"

"What? Yuu should know since Yoichi is his personal servant." The blond shrugged with a fake innocent face.

They became silent as Yuuichirou digested the information with his mouth gapped open in disbelief. "S-Seriously, Kimizuki? Yoichi? As in… for real?"

"Ugh…" Shihou smacked a hand over to his face as he turned red from embarrassment and groaned. "Yeah, there. Now you know. Happy?"

"W-When? How? Where?" Yuuichirou nagged at him with a very strong urge to get more information from the alpha. "I have a right to know, you know!"

"I know, and that was why I don't want to tell you."

"Why? I'm not judgmental, Kimizuki. I mean, there's a lot to like about Yoichi, but I just want to know what you like about him specifically." The beta clarified with a mischievous smirk. "Why? Are you scared that I might not approve of your feelings for my servant?"

The alpha sputtered. "It… It's nothing like that!"

Yep, he's definitely scared.

Yuuichirou blinked at him before bursting in laughter and patted Shihou on his shoulder. "Hey! As long as you make him happy, that's fine by me. You're an alpha and he's an omega. It's a perfect match!"

"Wait… Are you saying that you're allowing me to date Yoichi?"

"Of course, blockhead, but…" The raven leaned in close to whisper something into the alpha's ear. "If I hear that you got Yoichi pregnant before the two of you get married, I'm cutting your dick off."

Shihou flinched in his seat at the warning and he gave Yuuichirou an uneasy expression, but the beta just smiled it away like he didn't just threaten to castrate him a second ago. "I… I see…"

What was that just now?

"Anyway!" The beta turned to Mitsuba with expectancy. "How about you Mitsuba? Do you have someone in mind?"

"Hmm… Not really, no… I have no one at the moment."

"Oh… No sweat. Take your time, Mitsuba. I'm sure you'll find somebody eventually…"

Mitsuba hummed in agreement before transferring her gaze into the window as the face of a female, lilac-haired omega appeared in her thoughts.

Being the Prime Minister's son had its fair share of pros and cons. The pros was the fact that Yuuichirou had a pretty, spoiled lifestyle where he could do whatever the fuck he wanted to do and never be questioned unless it involved the reputation of his father. The cons, on the other hand, was that he could never go in another place without having an arsenal of thirty or more bodyguards watching his back or forming a line to welcome him to the place with a red carpet to boot.

He grimaced once he saw the long line of men dressed in black suits greeting him. No matter how awesome it was to feel like he was a superstar in the spotlight, Yuuichirou didn't enjoy the fact that he was attracting way too much attention for simply being in the airport with a freaking limousine. He didn't miss the gasping and the squealing noises of other people as he entered the building with Shihou and Mitsuba carrying some of his luggage behind him.

"Must be hard being the Prime Minister's son, huh?" Mitsuba whispered once she managed to catch up to him. "I mean, look at all this people, Yuu."

"Mitsuba, please…" Yuuichirou sighed heavily as he smelled a variety of scents everywhere that were all begging for him to look at their way. The intense mix of sickeningly sweet and pungent woods was making him feel nauseous to the point that he wanted to run into the nearest restroom to vomit. Thank God the Ichinose private plane had only a few people on board.

The blond beta immediately took note of Yuuichirou's queasy expression and she held him upright to keep him steady. "Y-Yuu…? Don't worry. We're almost there." She shot a glare to some of the ladies releasing their scent and pheromones in the air for Yuuichirou to smell.

"I'm fine, Mitsuba. Just… keep walking." He ordered as his footsteps began to slowly speed up, completely ignoring the coos of the girls and the whistles of men along with their irritating scents.

He wanted to leave as quickly as possible. These people were becoming too horny just by seeing him, and that bothered him a lot.

It didn't take him long to finally be in his assigned port and he practically shoved his passport and ticket to the person in-charge that sort of surprised her. "W-Welcome, Ichinose-san. I hope you'll have a nice trip going to France."

"Yes, thank you…" Yuuichirou said in a rush as he took back his passport and hurriedly left to board the plane while Shihou and Mitsuba were struck dumb at how the raven was so eager to leave.

"Their scents must be getting into him…" Shihou commented while holding his nose. "I don't blame him though. They smell pretty awful."

Mitsuba nodded. "Tell me about it…"

For the first time, I actually agree with him.

"Kimizuki…! Mitsuba…!" The raven beta yelled in the corridor once he got a good distance away from the overcrowded scents. "What are you waiting for?! Get your asses over here!"

"Yeah, yeah! Hold your horses, Ichinose-san!" The alpha yelled back before stomping to where Yuuichirou was while Mitsuba chuckled at the scene.

"Haah… Finally…" Yuuichirou groaned as he sat down on one of the comfy white seats provided by the first-class private plane. "Fuck, if I stayed there for too long, I could have puked on the spot…"

"W-Well, I guess this is the first time they actually see the Prime Minister's son in person, so they sort of got excited." Mitsuba reassured him as she settled down on a seat beside Yuuichirou. "You don't go out from the estate a lot, Yuu, and only a few people get to see you in person. So, I kind of get why they reacted that way…"

The beta shook his head in disagreement. "… You're wrong, Mitsuba. They didn't react that way because they saw me for the first time, they were reacting that way because mating season is near."

And they're giving off their scents at me because they want to mate with me.

"I… Is that so…? I didn't notice…"

"No, it's fine, Mitsuba. It's normal."

"I have to disagree on that, Yuu." Shihou came up with a glass of water at hand as he sat down on the seat across Yuuichirou. "The scents they were giving off were pretty strong, and if I wasn't mistaken, I could smell some of them giving away their pheromones as well."

"Huh, I noticed that too." Mitsuba agreed while she began to think. "Don't they… do that whenever they're turned on by something—" Then her eyes slowly glanced down on Yuuichirou who was facing the window with a bored expression. "—or someone…?"

… No way! Those people got aroused just by seeing Yuu?! He doesn't even look that great!

The blond beta sputtered upon realizing this and she gave a look to Shihou that clearly screamed 'what-the-fuck' all over. The alpha simply shrugged and nodded that, yes, this was a complete 'what-the-fuck' situation because Yuuichirou wasn't an alpha or an omega. He was a beta, a person who didn't have the ability to attract people, so why the hell were people turned on just by seeing him?

"Maybe… it really is their first time seeing him and they were just amazed…?"

Yuuichirou snorted at Shihou's suggestion as he opened up the briefcase containing the documents that he was reading during their trip. "Whatever floats your boat for the both of you... While you're wondering about that, I'm going to read, so please don't disturb."

"Ah, sure, Yuu…" Mitsuba approved with a smile. "Oh, do you want to have something to eat?"

"Nah, I'm good. Thank you, Mitsuba." The raven beta kindly declined and he began to read, making a stern face in the process.

Damn it… I really hope this meeting ends as soon as possible. Just knowing that mating season is near gives me a bad feeling…

Hiya~! It's been a long time since I last used that I became sort of a newbie all over again with the site, but I'll get along! :P

So, uhm, this is a story that I originally posted in AO3, but since my sister has this account, I asked permission if I could use it instead. And thus, you have this~ This is my first work that isn't dedicated to someone, and well... I want to spread the Yaoi love~! So, please enjoy the story and leave a review to tell me your thoughts.