Notes:

***Sorry for the late update! I've had so much going on in my life, both good and bad. Trying to keep things as normal as I can by doing the things I love!
***Hope you enjoy the chapter!
***Warnings: mating bond, omega biology
***Please read and review!

Chapter 10: Stronger Together

"I feel uncomfortable with Kiriko staring at us," Shouto says when pulling away from their kiss.

Izuku giggles and says, "He's just a baby, Shouto. He doesn't know what we're doing,"

"Still..."

"Kacchan would mount me with Kiriko in the room," Izuku says. "He's still too young to understand,"

Shouto slips out of the embrace. "I think we should...wait until after dinner...maybe once Kiriko eats, he'll fall asleep."

Izuku has to agree with Shouto, although his heat is coming on fast and he's not sure how long he'll be able to hold out. Izuku also wonders if Shouto is just feeling bashful about the mating, since this will be the alpha's first time with anyone. Izuku can't help but find that adorable in his mate. He had to wonder how Souto managed to keep himself a virgin alpha all this time. While it wasn't in Kacchan's character to sleep around, Kacchan's alpha instincts would urge him to do it. An alpha's biological job is to sire children with omegas, so how is it that Shouto's avoided that? It must have to do with Shouto's mother and his hatred for his father.

As Izuku watches Shouto at the playpen with Kiriko, he places a hand on his belly, feeling the warmth inside of it, which means only one thing. He will conceive tonight. By tomorrow morning he will have the beginning of a new life inside of him; Shouto's child. Their child. Kiriko is going to have a little brother or sister. Izuku rubs his flat belly. Maybe it will be a girl this time. He would like to have a little girl. But what would Shouto think? Would Shouto prefer a boy to take on his family name? Izuku doesn't think so because Shouto cares and respects his mother so much that to frown upon a girl child would not be in his character. There is also the issue of Enji Todoroki. Yes, their baby will be a bastard in the eyes of the law, but if it's a girl, maybe Enji will be more lenient? Enji may view a boy as a threat.

Well, none of that matters. Hopefully, they will find Rei and get her to safety. Once Shouto has his mother back, he won't want to stay with his father. Izuku always did let his mind wander and worry thinking in advance for situations that concern him. Kacchan used to scold him for overthinking things.

"Izuku?"

"Yes?"

"Are you alright?"

"Oh, I'm sorry. I got lost in my thoughts...going into heat makes me a little loopy."

"Do you need to sit down?" Shouto doesn't wait for an answer. He guides Izuku to the sofa and they sit together, side-by-side. Shouto drums his fingers on his knees, still feeling anxious even though his alpha hormones are starting to rear their horny heads.

Izuku senses Shouto's anxiety and keeps his hands folded between his knees, feet tapping on the carpet. Should he make the first move for Shouto? Izuku inches closer. The scent of his alpha mate helps initiate confidence. Without a word, Izuku straddles Shouto's lap, pressing their groins together, wrapping his arms around Shouto's neck. He moves Shouto's hands to rest on his hips.

"Am I too heavy?" Izuku asks.

"No...you're perfect," Shouto replies, lightly stroking Izuku's thighs.

"You don't have to be so shy with me," he says. "We've already seen each other naked..."

"I know...but an alpha is supposed to lead in this, and I'm not..." Izuku silences him with a kiss.

"Don't worry about that," Izuku says. "I can lead until you feel comfortable,"

"...okay,"

Izuku presses his lips to Shouto's, keeping the kiss chaste as to not overwhelm the alpha. Shouto kisses him back. Guiding the alpha, Izuku tilts his head back to give Shouto access to his throat, a sign of submission. He hears Shouto give a small purr and Izuku is delighted. Shouto nibbles and kisses his throat, making Izuku shiver while the beginning of slick tickles his entrance. Shouto tries to kiss further down, but the tunic blocks him. Just as Izuku prepared to take it off, there was a knock at the door, signaling their food is ready.

Both heaving a sigh, Shouto goes to the door while Izuku gets Kiriko.

Izuku's eyes grow wide when he sees the plate of meat and veggies just for him. His food is twice the size of Shouto's, and Kiriko has four bottles instead of three. Izuku looks to Shouto, who answers, "I want you to have more,"

"Thanks, generous of you, but-"

Shouto holds up a hand to stop him. "You are in heat, and will also conceive my child tonight. I want your body healthy. Don't forget that you've been sick for a long time and are only now starting to come around. And I want you to eat. I'll feed Kiriko."

"Are you sure?" Izuku couldn't stop eyeing the meat.

"I'm very sure."

Shouto takes the bottles over to Kiriko while Izuku tackles the plate of food. Kiriko reaches for the bottles, making grabby motions with his hands. Shouto gives the boy the bottle, and Kiriko is able to hold it on his own. The baby plops heavily on his little rump, greedily sucking the milk. Shouto raises a brow at the boy, a pure manipulator of his bearer. Izuku always holds the bottle for Kiriko, but Kiriko is capable of doing it on his own. It made Shouto smile a bit, wondering what his own son with Izuku will look like. Will their child have Izuku's green hair? Or his mother's white hair? What if it's his father's red hair? Kiriko is pretty much the same likeness as Bakugo. Alpha genes do tend to be more dominant. He gives Kiriko the next bottle.

"I want you to sleep through this," He whispers to the baby. "No watching. Got it?"

Kiriko blows a milk bubble around the bottle nipple.

"Shouto? I'm ready,"

Shouto's nostrils pick up the delicious scent of omega, his omega. Turning from Kiriko, Shouto's sniffs the air in Izuku's direction. He's instantly hard, to the point where his cock hurts. That smell of omega arousal ignited a forcefulness in him, chasing away all embarrassments. Izuku's face is flushed bright pink. Shouto takes Izuku's hand and they go to the bed with Izuku stripping along the way. Shouto has seen him naked, and with the better living conditions and food, Izuku doesn't look sickly, though he is still thin. They can't have a healthy baby if the bearer isn't healthy.

Izuku's heat makes him bolder, and before he knows it, his hands are helping to remove Shouto's shirt. When Shouto's pants are gone, Izuku's insides tighten with the smell of Shouto's alpha arousal. Shouto's scent is completely different from Kacchan's. Shouto's is almost sweet, not earthy like Kacchan's. He needs to feel his alpha's knot. Izuku pushes his mate onto the bed, climbing on top of him. Shouto doesn't protest this. Since this is Shouto's first time, Izuku wants to ease him into it.

***Edited for site. Read full scene on AO3***

"What have I done?" Shouto asks when he suddenly comes to and hears Izuku's whimpers. "Izuku! Oh no, I've hurt you!" He pulls out to sit on the end of the bed, his back to Izuku, holding his head. "I'm just like my alpha father." He feels sick to his stomach.

"Shouto, no, you are NOT your father," Izuku embraces Shouto from behind, comforting his mate. "Please, you can't feel guilty for this,"

Shouto buries his face in his hands. "But I hurt you the third time…you asked me to slow down and be gentle…but I didn't listen,"

"Shouto-"

"I couldn't," he drags his hands down his face with frustration. "The power I felt…the force and the dominance…I thought I was possessed. I knew it was wrong but I couldn't stop it! Those things are all my father; power, dominance, force, control-"

Izuku kisses his mate's cheek then nuzzles him. "No, Shouto…the emotions you experienced is the biological instincts of an alpha. It can't be helped…it's the way nature made you."

"I don't consider that an acceptable excuse," he mutters.

"It's not an 'excuse' it's just biology," he nuzzles the back of Shouto's neck. "What little schooling I had as an omega…I learned as much as I could about anything and everything. When you're in a rut and I'm in heat, we revert to a primitive state of mind, like animals,"

Shouto looks back at him. "You mean to say that we lose cognitive human thought processes,"

Izuku giggles. "Something like that, yes."

"So…you're not bothered or upset that I didn't stop when you asked me to?"

"I never asked you to stop,"

"I was rough,"

"You are alpha,"

"I don't care," Shouto counters. "I still don't like it,"

Izuku slips off the bed to stand before Shouto, lifting the man's head so their eyes can meet. "You are NOT your father, Shouto Todoroki. You share his blood but not his mind, his heart, or his soul. All of those things belong to you! You control them, not your father. I don't want you to keep punishing yourself by comparing your actions to your father's. Do you understand what I'm saying?"

"I…it's difficult to explain."

Izuku sighs, pulling Shouto's head to his chest, holding him there. "Looks like I have my work cut out for me," he takes one of Shouto's hands and places it on his slightly hard belly. "That's filled with your seed. Soon there will be another life in me; it will become our child,"

Shouto manages a smile with the duel sensation of Izuku's heartbeat and the promise of a baby. "But I'm still a Todoroki, and our child carries that blood," his smile escapes back into a frown.

"This will be a child of our blood, and unlike you, I don't fear the Todoroki bloodline. Our baby will be strong, just like Kiriko."

Kiriko has let himself be known when he heard his name by pulling at the bars of the playpen.

"Go to him," Shouto says, glad for the topic change. "He's been fairly good this whole time."

Izuku doesn't bother dressing when he lifts Kiriko from the playpen. "Kiriko takes after Kacchan a lot. But Kacchan was nothing like his parents. His mother was a little 'extreme,' but nothing like Kacchan, and his father was very polite, calm and passive. Kacchan was his own person, and he knew that" Izuku looks over at Shouto. "I want you to learn that, too."

"I'm not like Bakugo," Shouto says. "And I would appreciate it if you stop bringing him up,"

Izuku's eyes widen. So do Shouto's.

"Izuku, I'm sorry! I didn't mean that,"

Izuku rubs the mating mark on his neck. Shouto feels remorse for what he just said, but there is also something else that the alpha isn't telling him. Now that they are bound together, Izuku can share in some of Shouto's emotions, and there is one of tremendous guilt. Izuku can only assume it has to concern Shouto's mother.

"It's alright, Shouto," he smiles. "We bonded, and you, as alpha, are feeling possessive of me, and you still view Kacchan as a threat. And that's okay. I understand. But…I hope that, when Kiriko gets older, I can tell him stories about his birth father. I don't want Kacchan to be forgotten,"

"No. You don't have to forget him. I'm sorry," he lets out a sigh. "There are so many emotions inside me right now,"

"Your first rut makes you feel all kinds of things," Izuku tells him. "The more you have them, the easier they will be to control." Izuku yawns. "Sorry, I'm a little exhausted after all that,"

"Oh, of course," Shouto takes Izuku by the hand and brings his mate over to the bed. "We will all sleep together tonight. We are a family,"

Izuku settles Kiriko in the middle, watching Shouto get into bed with bed them. Kiriko fusses a bit, but only because he is tangled in the sheets while trying to get to Shouto. Izuku helps Kiriko and his heart threatens to burst as the baby cuddles against Shouto, and the alpha, in turn, nuzzles Kiriko. Izuku watches them with a smile as he feels his omega slit pressing closed. This is a sure sign that he's conceived, though he doesn't want to tell Shouto just yet. Izuku wants to see Shouto interacting with Kiriko more.

"Izuku? Are you still awake?"

Izuku was almost asleep, fluttering his eyes open, unaware that he had drifted off. "I am,"

"Good. Kiriko is asleep,"

"That's the best news of all," Izuku teases.

"Something is weighing on my mind…now that I know the whereabouts of my mother,"

"Oh?"

"Yes. We don't have anywhere to go once I get her out."

"Hm. What about going to your father and telling him what you found out? Make up a story, or say you heard a rumor."

"How is that going to help anything?"

"Maybe you can both come to an agreement," Izuku offers. "I think he still has feelings for your mother. He wants you to take over as head of the family, right? Maybe you can ask for a house of your own where we can keep her. No one has to know it's your mother. We can say it's my mother."

Shouto sighs. "My father will not stand for that. My initial thought is that we would all run away, but now that we're going to have a child together…it throws a wrench in my plans."

"How so?"

Shouto slowly closes his eyes. "I want to be with my mother once again. I want to live with her, and I want it to be as a family. But to have her and you, as well as the children…it's an impossible dream. My father will not allow it. We'll always be on the run," he opens his eyes and turns to Izuku. "You'll be on the streets again."

Izuku furrows his brows and sits up in the bed. "Don't think about it that way," he says. "I think the first thing you should do is seek out your mother's situation, find out exactly what is going on. Once you have the details, you should speak to your father. I think you should do your best to come to an agreement. I believe we can make your impossible dream possible, Shouto," Izuku strokes a hand through Shouto's hair.

"It would be easier to just abandon my mother and take you away from here…or do as my father suggests and keep you as a secret mistress. I don't want us to be on the run." He looks at Izuku's belly. "I have a child to think of now,"

"Shouto, I was always told that I overthink things and mutter to myself with a thousand thoughts passing my lips at once," Izuku starts. "We just married and made love for the first time tonight. You are still swarming with mixed emotions. I think you should rest for tonight, and everything will look better in the morning," he kisses Shouto's forehead. "You will go and find your mother, and begin from there. No other thoughts until we find out about her. Deal?"

Shouto nods. "You're right, Izuku. I'm sorry I'm putting such a damper on our special night,"

Izuku lays back down and kisses Shouto's lips. "We're bonded. I feel everything that you feel. Nothing can break our bond, only death, and Death's not coming for any of us anytime soon. Not for a very, very long time."

"If you die, I die," Shouto states seriously.

"No. Who will care for the children?"

"I already know that I cannot live without you,"

"Goodnight, Shouto," Izuku says. "We're not going to have any more talk about this tonight. It's been too special. I love you very much."

"And I love you," Shouto replies. "I'd do anything for you,"

Izuku smiles, "And I you. Now, go to sleep, 'husband'. And remember, I am ALWAYS on your side."

Shouto lowers the hood of his cloak despite the rain as he enters the iron gates of the asylum. The building is a plain white rectangle with hardly any windows. As the son of a judge, everyone lets him pass and enter without hesitation. It is a high security place, and if he didn't have the name of 'Todoroki,' there is no way he would be let in.

"May I help you?" A woman in white sits at a desk with a computer.

"My name is Shouto Todoroki. I believe my mother, Rei Todoroki, resides here?"

The woman pales. "Um…let me check the system," her fingers tremble as she types. "I'm sorry, but her records are classified information."

"So, she is here,"

"Yes sir, but her care and information can only be obtained with her husband's consent. I'm sorry, sir. I'm afraid I cannot help you further."

Shouto's frown deepens. "Am I at least allowed to see her?"

"I'm sorry, but that is also classified information."

"Is there anything else you can tell me?"

She shakes her head. "I'm sorry, sir, but this is for the patient's safety and your father is her next of kin and sole caretaker and advocate. If your father will give you permission to see your mother, then we can relay more information. Until we have that consent, I'm sorry, but there is nothing more I can do. Good day to you, Mr. Todoroki."

Shouto's fists clench at his sides and he quickly shoves them in his pocket so the woman doesn't see. "Would you mind if I sat in here for a while?"

"You may, but I don't understand why you want to? I already explained that I cannot give you any information on her."

"I just want to sit here. I think you can allow me that?"

She pauses for a moment, then nods. "Very well. You may sit over there."

Shouto takes a seat on a bench. He had a feeling that this might happen. Of course his father would make it confidential! But the reason Shouto chose to stay is to watch who comes in and who leaves. In a way, he hopes he can spot the blackmailer, or at least learn the routine of this place, so he can find out how it operates. That woman at the desk is not the blackmailer, because if she were, she'd ask for a bribe; money in exchange for information. It appears to Shouto that the woman is simply afraid of his father, and she has every right to fear him. Enji Todoroki is a dangerous man, and as the mindless hours of nothing useful pass by, Shouto begins to despise his father even more.

Suddenly, Shouto shoots up from the bench. There is a pain in his heart, and he clutches it, panting. It's not a heart attack; it's Izuku! Through their bond, he can sense that something is terribly wrong! Izuku is afraid, and panicking.

Abandoning his plan, Shouto rushes from the building and hails down a car, giving strict orders to drive at top speed back to the mansion. There is a fierce rage building inside his chest, and Shouto threatens to kill the driver if he doesn't drive faster. The thought and threat is unlike him, though he doesn't care. All he can feel is his mate's distress and fear.

'Hang on, Izuku! I'm coming!'

TBC