Words: 4917

When Alfred first awoke, he was extremely confused and a little bit horny.

He was sleeping on the ground. Had he fallen off the bed? This wasn't his blanket. What's that sme-

Oh.

Looking over, he found Arthur sleeping peacefully, wrapped up in blankets. He instantly decided it was the most adorable thing he had ever seen. The second thing Alfred noticed was the bottle of pills that had been placed next to him. He looked at it and then at the clock before popping another pill in his mouth.

Arthur must have put this here, he thought, screwing the cap back on the bottle. He probably gave me this blanket as well. Smiling softly, Alfred buried his face in the blanket. Even with the scent muted, it smelled amazing.

Alfred was filled with a restless energy. He was bored, unused to being cooped up inside of one room. He had no idea how he was going to make it though the week. Standing up, Alfred walked around the room and began investigating.

There were some books, most with really boring titles. Some he recognized as classics; others were non-fiction reference guides. There were a few cookbooks, and some books about magic and fairies. Alfred stopped looking at the books when he found one covered in symbols and written in a language he didn't recognize.

Sighing, Alfred wandered into the washroom. He was still in his work clothes from the previous day, but the only spare clothing he had been given was some sort of robe. Figuring he had nothing better to do, Alfred took a quick shower and changed into the robe. By the time he left the bathroom, Arthur was awake and sitting up in his nest, staring at him.

Alfred blushed; Arthur wasn't wearing a shirt or anything, and he looked so cuddly right then, wrapped up in all of his blankets. "Uh… you're awake," he said smartly. Arthur nodded, expression blank. Alfred really hoped he wouldn't yell at him about yesterday.

"Alfred," Arthur said, glancing down. "I need to talk with you." Oh fuck I'm in trouble that's not good he's gonna divorce me-

If Arthur noticed Alfred's spike of distress, he didn't say anything. "Okay," Alfred said carefully, moving closer to the nest. He stood there for a few seconds, not knowing how close he was allowed to get, before finally sitting by the edge of the nest. Arthur said nothing.

"Look… if this about yesterday, I'm really sorry about that," Alfred began, rushing to get his words out. "I just wasn't expecting that and I wasn't prepared or anything so I just-"

"Alfred," Arthur said, effectively shutting Alfred up. "It's fine. It's not about that." Arthur was still having trouble looking Alfred in the eye.

"I've been thinking," he began, seeming to have gathered his thoughts. "We're going to be stuck in here for the next week."

"Yeah," Alfred agreed when Arthur didn't continue. He had no idea where this was going.

"I… didn't expect to get my heat so soon," Arthur said, blushing slightly. "I wasn't really prepared but… like I said, I've been thinking…" Alfred nodded, still completely lost. Arthur frowned, growing irritated.

"I'm in heat," he said bluntly. "And I've been mated before. This is really uncomfortable, and a bit painful, and if you'd like to mate I'd be willing to." By the time he was finished Arthur was bright red, glaring at the blankets that were clenched tight in his fist. Alfred, barely able to comprehend what was going on, just stared at him. He'd seemed very adamant about not having sex yesterday.

"You… want to mate?" he asked, trying to keep the hopefulness out of his voice. "With me?"

"Yes," Arthur said in exasperation. "I-If you want to, that is." He had never wondered if an alpha wanted to have sex before, but Alfred was a very odd alpha.

"Yeah," Alfred said just a bit too eagerly. "I mean… yeah. If you want. That sounds… yeah."

"Alright," Arthur said with what was most definitely not relief. He had woken up to another wave while Alfred was in the shower. Now he was growing progressively more uncomfortable with a need that was no longer inhibited by a fear of rejection.

Impulsively, too impatient to wait for Alfred to make the first move, Arthur leaned forward and kissed him. Alfred froze for a moment in surprise before returning the kiss eagerly. It was like nothing Arthur had experienced before; he could feel Alfred smiling against his lips.

After several seconds of increasingly heated kissing, Arthur slid a hand into Alfred's robes, one hand running lightly down Alfred's chest while the other was tangled in Alfred's hair. It was exhilarating. Arthur had never been so daring before, but Alfred wasn't complaining. The King leaned into Arthur's touches, breathless sounds escaping him. Alfred had taken to half-holding Arthur, arms encircling him in a loose hug, hold careful as if Arthur was about to break. Arthur tried to feel insulted, but he was too wrapped up in the novelty of being held like he was the most precious thing in the world.

Eventually, urgency won out over passion and Arthur pulled back, panting. "Alfred…" He slid his hands further, resting on Alfred's thighs. Alfred was wearing boxers; Arthur was not. "Can we… now…" Arthur wasn't used to asking for such things. He wasn't used to truly wanting it, even.

Alfred nodded unsteadily. "Yeah. How do you…?" His arms fell from Arthur's shoulders, thumbs hooking in the elastic of his boxers. Arthur understood the question: How do you want to do this?

"It doesn't matter," he said, placing his hands over Alfred's. For some reason, Alfred's excitement was mixed with an odd sense of nervousness. Was he shy? Was that normal?

"Here," Arthur said, pushing the robe so that it fell off Alfred's shoulders. "Just take off the boxers." Leaning back to give Alfred a bit more space, and himself a bit more breathing room, Arthur focused on controlling his desire. He was already hard, and he could see that Alfred was too, but Alfred still wasn't getting undressed. Arthur felt his irritation rise as quickly as his nervousness. What if Alfred had changed his mind? What if he really didn't want to do this? What if Arthur was so unattractive that he couldn't attract a mate even when in heat?

Alfred, meanwhile, was having a slight existential crisis. Oh god, I'm gonna be naked. Oh god, Arthur's naked. Can I cover up with a blanket? Would that be weird? Is now a bad time to tell him I'm a virgin? God, I have no idea what I'm doing, this is really, really bad.

"Alfred? Are you going to undress?" Shaking aside his own worries, Arthur could still smell the desire radiating from Alfred. He had no idea what the problem was. Maybe he was just self-conscious.

"Y-Yeah…" Alfred said, finally pulling his boxers down. Blushing, he pulled a blanket over his lap.

Arthur wanted to be sensitive, but he had no idea what the problem was or what to say, and he wanted nothing more in that moment than to be as close to Alfred as physically possible. He leaned towards Alfred, hugging him, kissing his cheek, his lips, his neck. Alfred's eyes fluttered closed as he leaned into the kisses and soft gentle touches.

Alfred moaned, losing his coherency in the overwhelming sensations.

"Alfred," Arthur said, speaking into this neck. His hair tickled Alfred's face. "Please." He was sitting in Alfred's lap by now, grinding into him through the blanket. Alfred gasped, whimpering.

"Yeah," he said breathlessly, leaning forward. Arthur allowed himself to fall back, pulling Alfred on top of him. Alfred stared at him with wide eyes, entire focus on Arthur. A chill ran down Arthur's spine; Alfred wasn't looking at him as though he were a piece of meat and Alfred was a hungry wolf. He was looking at him as though he were a piece of art, a precious gem, something worth looking at.

Arthur figured it was the tamest kink in the history of kinks, but he had never felt so turned on in his life. He grabbed Alfred's hips, pulling them down onto him. Alfred started, apparently noticing for the first time that the blankets had fallen away.

"In me. Now," Arthur growled, trying to hold onto his restraint. At least he wasn't humping Alfred yet.

"Uh. Wh-" Alfred stared down at Arthur as if he were some sort of alien. "What do I- What do you-" Suddenly it clicked, and Arthur felt like a complete idiot for not having thought of it before.

"You're a virgin," he said, urgency subsiding for a moment in the face of astonishment. While it was expected that omegas would remain a virgin until they mated with the one person they would be with for the rest of their lives, alphas were allowed to have as many partners as they liked. In fact, it was almost encouraged for alphas to have multiple partners throughout their lifetime, a show of dominance of sorts. This caused problems when there was the same number of alphas as there were omegas.

Arthur thought Alfred might have blushed if all his blood wasn't in his cock. "N-No! Well… I mean, technically-"

"Have you ever mated with an omega in heat before?" he asked brusquely.

"No," Alfred said, not meeting his eye.

"Have you ever mated with an omega out of heat?"

"...No."

"Have you ever had sex with a beta or an alpha? Have you done anything like that at all?"

Alfred paused for a moment, thinking. "…I kissed this beta in elementary school once, but-"

"Oh my god," Arthur exclaimed, distressed. Was Alfred insane? He was going to waste his virginity on a used omega with trust issues? If it wasn't for his heat, Arthur was fairly certain his erection would have died of shame by then.

"Sorry!" Alfred said, voice squeaking, as he completely misinterpreted Arthur's reaction.

"Don't- just- Do you want to do this or not?" Arthur asked, tired of thinking.

"What? Sex?"

"No, I was thinking about having a cup of tea. Of course I meant sex!"

"Yeah!" Alfred blustered, embarrassed.

"Alright, then just…" Arthur tried to figure out what to do. Alfred had absolutely no experience at all, but as far as Arthur knew it was fairly difficult to not enjoy sex as an alpha, so it wasn't like he could mess it up too badly. Besides, it was mostly intuition anyway. "Just do what I say. Alright?"

"Uh… yeah," Alfred said with a hint of relief. "Alright."

"Okay. Just…" Arthur lay back down on the blankets, spreading his legs on either side of Alfred. It wasn't the best position for this; Arthur had done that plenty of times, face down on his stomach with his hips in the air. It was easier for the alpha to see and was supposed to have the highest success rate for impregnation. But Arthur felt like being selfish; he wanted to see Alfred's face. Plus, it would be easier to guide him this way.

Adjusting Alfred's position so that he was lined up, Arthur gestured to the area of his body that Alfred was stubbornly refusing to look at. Alfred was nervous, and Arthur knew he would need to handle the situation delicately.

"See that hole? Put your dick in it." Okay, so maybe that wasn't the best way to say it, but it got the point across. Alfred let out a whine of embarrassment, eyes flitting back and forth between Arthur's face and his genitals.

"Wh-What about stretching?" he asked shakily. "Aren't you supposed to-"

"I already have," Arthur said impatiently, desire overriding his appreciation for Alfred's concern. "I've been in heat since yesterday. I've stretched plenty."

"But-" Alfred protested, shuffling anxiously.

"Alfred, I'm an omega in heat. There's very little you could do to physically hurt me right now. Here." Arthur reached down slowly, gently taking Alfred's penis in his hand. Alfred jerked in surprise, whimpering. For all his embarrassment, Alfred was still very hard.

Arthur guided Alfred slowly, easily finding his entrance and lining Alfred up. He felt like he was overheating, slick running down his thighs as his body demanded to be filled.

"Just, start pushing it in. Slowly."

Alfred nodded, taking his cock in his hand. Looking to Arthur for reassurance, he pushed in. Luckily, there was virtually no resistance from Arthur's heat-consumed body. He moved very slowly, only moving slightly faster when Arthur began rocking into him.

He was all the way in before he knew it, heat and pressure consuming him. In that moment, Alfred decided that sex was the best thing ever invented and he and Arthur should do it every day for the rest of their lives. The expression on Arthur's face suggested that he felt the same.

"Keep going," Arthur said tightly, grasping Alfred's hips.

Alfred pulled out slowly about halfway, keeping a careful hold on Arthur's hips. He then pushed back in. The sensation was overwhelming, a fire spreading throughout him. He wanted more, needed more, faster and faster and harder.

"A-Ah, Arthur," he moaned trying to control the speed of his thrusts.

"Faster," Arthur panted, face twisted in pleasure. "Come on Alfred, it's okay. Faster, please."

At that permission, Alfred began thrusting with enthusiasm. He leaned over Arthur, kissing his collarbone. He wanted to kiss Arthur's face and was disappointed to find he couldn't reach.

Arthur himself was tangled completely in Alfred, one hand wrapped around his back and the other tangled in his hair, pulling him closer and closer. He knew Alfred wouldn't last long, but that was okay; as long as he was filled, it would satisfy the craving just the same. Besides, they had time. Alfred would build up endurance; Arthur would teach him new positions. Already, it was the best sex Arthur ever had. It was like nothing he'd ever experienced before, Alfred, his alpha, as interested in Arthur's pleasure as his own. In some ways, it felt like he was having sex for the first time.

It was over before either of them were ready. Arthur arched into Alfred with a gasp as Alfred's knot formed. Alfred had practically collapsed on top of Arthur, muscles clenching and unclenching. It took a few seconds for him to come out of his daze.

"Arthur?" he asked hazily. Arthur, mind too full of blissful pleasure, didn't answer. "Are you okay?" Alfred, being a super virgin, had never knotted in anyone before. He hadn't knotted before at all, actually, since that only happened when mating with omegas in heat. It felt weird, a bizarre tight pressure where it shouldn't be. Now that the sex was fading from his mind, he wanted to pull out. Knotting was awkward, and he wasn't sure if he was hurting Arthur, but he was afraid to move and make it worse.

"Arthur?"

"Hmmm?" Arthur hummed, too warm with contentment to notice Alfred's distress.

"Are you alright?"

Blinking slowly, Arthur looked up at Alfred with vague confusion. "Yes. I'm-" Arthur paused, a thought striking him. "I'm… fine. I'm really, really fine. That was…" It was then that Arthur had a revelation: he wasn't just fine. He was happy. He'd had sex and he'd enjoyed it. Sex wasn't supposed to be enjoyable! Not for omegas, at least. But it was, and Alfred smelled wonderful, and Alfred was wonderful, and he was happy.

It was overwhelming. He began crying, not full-out sobs or anything, but more like silent tears streaming down his face as he smiled stupidly up at Alfred. Alfred, who did not seem at all comforted by Arthur's reaction.

"Arthur!?"

"I'm fine. I'm wonderful. I'm… You're wonderful," he said, a laugh escaping him.

"Are you okay? Why are you crying? Are you hurt?" Alfred had absolutely no idea what to do in this situation, but he was kind of hoping he could just write it off as heat hormones instead of admitting he had somehow managed to hurt Arthur.

"No, I'm-" Arthur cut himself off with another laugh, sniffling. He forced himself to calm down, managed to stop the crying, but he still had a stupidly large grin on his face. "I'm fine," he said softly, less hysterically. He lifted up a hand, cupping Alfred's face. Alfred was sweaty and still looked very worried, but to Arthur he looked like an angel.

"Really, Alfred. I'm great. That was great," he reassured Alfred, remembering that he had no past experiences to base this off of.

"Are you sure? I think it's almost done," he said, glancing down to where they were connected. "I should be able to pull out soon."

"How are you?" Arthur asked, considering. For all Alfred had worried about him, it was very easy for Arthur to forget that even as an alpha, it might not have been enjoyable for Alfred.

"What?" Alfred asked, distracted. "I'm fine." It seemed he also didn't realize that his feelings about it mattered.

"Did you enjoy it?" Arthur asked.

"Huh? Well, yeah. Of course, I mean," Alfred paused, looking down again. He gave a slight tug and was relieved to find he could pull out. Finally, he relaxed. "It was sex. Of course it was awesome." He smiled dopily at Arthur, who was pleased to find that he was sincere. Alfred then turned serious again. "But what about you? Was it okay? Are you-" Arthur cut him off, holding up a finger.

"I'm fine, Alfred." Seeing that he was about to protest, Arthur hurried to continue. "In fact, I would go so far as to say that that was the best sex I've ever had. And that's all I'll saying about it, because heaven knows your ego doesn't need to get any bigger." That, finally, seemed to convince Alfred. He smiled in relief and pure, uncontained happiness.

"If you'd like," Arthur said in an almost coy manner, "And if you're feeling up to it, I'm sure I'll be ready for another round in a few hours." Arthur smirked at Alfred, who looked torn between wondering if Arthur had lost his mind and celebrating like he'd just won the jackpot.

"Hell yeah!" he said, evidently choosing to celebrate. "I'm ready right now. And later. That was awesome!"

Arthur smiled, no trace of his earlier fears returning. As long as it was like this – as long as it was with Alfred – Arthur thought he would be up for sex any time of day. Not that there was a rush; they had their whole lives ahead of them. And for the first time in a long time, Arthur was looking forward to his future.

The rest of the week passed quickly, the couple engaged in activities that ranged from frenzied sex to languid cuddling and late-night talks. It was during the late-night talks that Arthur and Alfred learned about each other, more than they ever had before.

"Your dad seems like a total asshole," Alfred mentioned, remembering the wedding. Arthur had been talking about his birthday when his mark appeared. Since all of his brothers also had marks, it wasn't particularly surprising. It had astonished Arthur to learn that Alfred's own twin didn't have a mark.

"He is. Not as bad as my brothers though. At least, I used to think that," Arthur said, still not quite believing that his father had actually slapped him. He hadn't heard from his family at all since the wedding; not even indirectly, through the news or anything. Not that he'd bothered looking. The Queen wasn't quite sure if he was relieved or disappointed by the lack of contact.

"Really? I thought your brothers seemed kinda cool," Alfred said. Arthur frowned.

"Well they were to you, of course. You didn't grow up with them." Alfred still seemed dubious.

"Huh. Why don't you guys get along?"

"They're all alphas. I'm their little omega brother. It was a nightmare." Glancing at Alfred, he added, "We can't all have brothers like yours."

"Yeah, my brother's pretty great," he agreed, grinning. They lay in silence for a moment, thinking.

"So, do you have a mom?" Alfred asked.

"Yes," Arthur said coolly. "She's a beta. Not nearly as bad as my father, but she never really did anything about my brothers, either. I think she always wanted a beta. What about your parents?"

"Hm? Oh. My mom's an alpha and my dad's an omega," he said.

When he it was clear that he wasn't going to elaborate, Arthur asked, "What are they like?" He hadn't met either of them at the coronation or wedding, but he'd assumed they just had difficulties travelling or something.

"They're okay," Alfred said, shrugging halfheartedly. "They travel a lot, so I don't really see them much."

"Oh? What do they do for a living?" Arthur had a suspicion that Alfred wasn't telling him something, but he didn't really want to pry.

"Nothing," Alfred said simply. "They got a lot of money from my mom's parents. Inheritance, you know. But that's mostly gone now." He hesitated for a moment, as if considering whether to say something. Finally, he said, "They never really wanted kids. Me and Mattie were an accident. They didn't really change their plans much for us."

"What do you mean?" Arthur asked. Alfred seemed fairly upset talking about his parents. Arthur decided he wasn't very fond of them.

"I mean they started travelling again when Mattie and I were four. Left us alone in a house in the suburbs and asked a neighbor to check in with us. Then the neighbor moved away a couple years later and we pretty much had to raise ourselves. We wrote them letters, but they barely ever responded. We were lucky to see them once a year," Alfred said, voice more bitter than Arthur had ever heard from him.

"Alfred…" Arthur said painfully, unsure of what to say.

"It doesn't matter," Alfred said shortly. I haven't heard from them in years. For all I know, they're dead now." It was quiet for a moment, neither quite knowing what to say.

"I'm sorry," Arthur said quietly, running a hand through Alfred's hair. Alfred sighed in a mixture of sadness and contentment before relaxing against Arthur.

"Still not as bad as your family," he responded, unable to even comprehend how Arthur's father had been able to hit his own son. "What were you arguing about with your dad about anyway?"

"What, the day of the wedding?"

"Yeah," Alfred said, wondering just how often Arthur and his father argued.

Arthur was quiet for a long several seconds, and Alfred was starting to think he wasn't going to respond when he said, "He wanted to know what I'd done to kill King Henry."

"What!?" Alfred asked, astonished.

"He thought I'd used witchcraft. To kill Henry and save myself. He said I should've been executed." Arthur ignored the way Alfred was gaping at him in shock. Memories of the argument, so many months ago, resurfaced. Do you have any idea how much you're hurting this family? We were almost out of this whole mess! You've ruined the family name.

"He said I made the family look bad, and it was making it harder for my brothers to get jobs. I was never really a model Queen," he said sardonically.

"You… You can't be serious," Alfred said shakily, finding his voice. Arthur laughed.

"I believe his exact words were 'If you really don't want to be Queen, then it should be easy enough to get yourself executed.'"

Alfred shuddered, feeling sick. He remembered that first conversation he'd had with Arthur, the day after he'd been named King. He remembered the horrible things Arthur said.

Some drunken alphas beat me. What does it matter?

It's considered poor taste to keep the omega claimed by the previous King. Most Kings wish to have a fresh, virgin omega for their wedding night.

You've been given a golden opportunity to get rid of the hated Queen.

Arthur had already thought all that before his father even said anything. Arthur had believed that. Alfred felt like killing anyone who'd caused Arthur to ever think that way.

Noticing his mate's distress, Arthur gave him a kiss on the forehead. "It's alright, love. It doesn't matter. Like you said, he's an asshole."

"That's not the point!" Alfred exclaimed. Arthur was alarmed at the tone of his voice, far more miserable than mere distress. "He's not allowed to say that to you! And you! All those things you said, when we met-" That had been so long ago. Had it really only been a few months? Alfred hadn't thought much of it, but in some ways it seemed Arthur really had changed a lot since Alfred first met him. Not just towards Alfred, but how he seemed as a person, too, in general. "Are you happy?" Alfred asked abruptly.

"What?" Arthur asked, startled. He turned to face Alfred, who still looked ridiculously concerned. Are you happy? That was the ultimate question, wasn't it?

"Yes," Arthur said truthfully. He never thought he'd be able to say that, but it was true, wasn't it? He was happy here, lying next to Alfred in his nest, talking about everything and nothing. He was happy mating with Alfred and having sex. He was happy in his garden, especially when Alfred came, because even though he was infuriatingly dense and obnoxious he was also one of the few to appreciate Arthur's garden. He was happy chatting over tea, discussing the boring minutiae of everyday life. He was happy reading, and then freaking Alfred out with ghost stories.

Even more than that, he was happy at meetings. He spoke up now, and made his opinions heard once again. He was listened to, his advice respected. He tackled the challenges of running a country, and all the risks and rewards that came with it. For the first time since becoming Queen, he was proud of what he was doing with his life. He was happy with what his life had become.

He shifted now, laying across Alfred and looking down at him. "I'm very happy." You've made me very happy. As much as Arthur hated to think as much, he had been a damsel in distress, and Alfred his knight in shining armour. He had never wanted to be a victim, had refused to ever think of himself as one, but maybe for some it just couldn't be helped. Maybe some people just needed saving.

Arthur kissed Alfred again. Alfred relaxed, the shadows of sadness fading. Arthur remembered Alfred hiding in his bed afraid of ghosts. Alfred, asking for Arthur's advice because he didn't yet know how to be king and still needed help. Alfred, crying in his room because he lost the best friend he had in the castle. Maybe Alfred hadn't saved Arthur; maybe they had saved each other.

Another wave was coming, kisses becoming more heated. For the moment, nothing existed except for two souls joined together.

Arthur woke up the morning after his last day of heat alone. Irrational panic felt increasingly more rational as he failed to locate Alfred anywhere in the room. He wasn't even sure why he was panicking, because he knew Alfred wouldn't have left unless it was something important, but there was something terribly humiliating about being abandoned after a heat.

It was there, curled up in his mess of blankets and looking absolutely dejected, that Alfred found Arthur when he came out of the shower. Arthur stared at him with wide eyes, startled, before burying his face back in his blankets in mortification. He had just been in the shower. Of course.

Alfred walked over to the nest and sat down in it, not sure what was wrong with Arthur. Arthur refused to show his face.

"I don't want to go back to work," Alfred said eventually. Arthur snorted. "We should just stay in here forever. Do you think anyone would notice?" Finally lifting his head, Arthur looked at him dryly.

"Oh, just the whole Kingdom, maybe. And I doubt Yao would be very happy with this plan of yours."

"Yao isn't happy with any of my plans. I'm sure he'll get used to it."

Arthur laughed at that. "Sure. You suggest it to him."

Alfred pouted and then sighed. "Oh, well," he said. "At least we'll get to go outside again. I'm getting cabin fever stuck in here."

"How do you think I feel?" Arthur grumbled. "I have to come back here tonight."

"Dude, there like a million rooms in this castle. I think you should be able to find another place to sleep." Arthur hummed in consideration. "You could sleep in the joint chambers if you want," Alfred suggested.

"I don't know," Arthur said with forced calmness. "That room's kind of big for one person." Alfred blinked at him, wondering if Arthur was saying what he thought he was saying. "Although, if you read any more of those scary stories, it would be more convenient for us to sleep in that room."

"Y-Yeah," Alfred agreed, throat dry. "I mean, I kind of read those stories a lot though. And I'm sure you're really sick of this room, so…"

"Then, perhaps it'd be more suitable for us to just move there. Easier than going back and forth between rooms, at least."

"Yeah. That's a really, super great idea, actually. I was just about to suggest it."

"Sure you were," Arthur said, smiling. He could get used to this.

A/N: I feel kind of bad about how the smut turned out. I'm not very good at smut, and I kind of prefer writing the emotional aspect of it. I hope it wasn't too bad.

Also, only a couple more chapters left! Next is sort-of a filler chapter, with some character development for Alfred.