Chapter 6

(Prompto)

Prompto spent the rest of the day preparing for the hunting trip. He went to the local market place, and stocked up on potions, and phoenix downs. He also made sure to purchase the best hair gel in existence. This stuff would work even when it rains, which is important because he always had to look his best.

On his way home, he came across a specialty shop that he had not paid much attention to before today. It was made just for omegas such as himself. Prompto spent several minutes outside the shop, debating to go in or not. If someone from the citadel saw him, they might tell Noctis before he had a chance to tell him his secret. Shaking his head to stop that line of thinking, Prompto made up his mind, and after checking one more time to make sure that nobody he knew saw him, he stepped over the threshold into the store.

Once he was inside, Prompto saw that the store was full of regular people like himself, all just trying to go about their daily business. Upon closer inspection of some of the shelves though, Prom saw that most of the items this shop sold were the kind that was designed to bring pleasure during intimate moments. He could feel his face slowly catching on fire as it grew red with embarrassment.

What am I doing here? This is a sex shop! Now I really hope nobody I know has seen me come in here.

While he was stuck in his thoughts, someone had approached him, placing their hand onto his shoulder, which caused him to jump in surprise, and drop what he had been holding in his hand.

"Ah!"

"Hey Prompto! Sorry I didn't mean to scare you!" Prompto turned to see Iris, Gladio's sister standing behind him.

Oh shit! I forgot she's an omega too! She's going to tell everyone I'm here!

"Oh! Uh, heya Iris! What- what are you doing here?" If his face wasn't red before, it certainly was now.

"Well, I am an omega, so I swing by here from time to time." Iris giggled, and turned her head to the side as she asked "What are you doing here? Picking something up for an omega friend of yours? Or… hey wait a minute…" Prompto took a step back as Iris got closer and sniffed the air around him.

"Ah, wait a minute… uh…." Prompto waved his hands in the air to try to spread his scent away, but it only made it worse.

"NO WAY! You? I can't believe it!" Iris shouted in excitement.

Prompto didn't know what to do. He could feel himself starting to panic as his ears droop and his tail tucks itself between his legs.

"Ah, I… uh… fuck…." He buried his face into his hands to try to hide how red his face was getting.

"Oh Prompto! Why didn't you ever tell me! I just assumed you were an alpha since you hang out with my brother, iggy and noct all the time." Before continuing, she paused, and Prompto swore he could see a light bulb appear over her head. "Wait, they don't know, do they?"

Prompto didn't know what to say, so he just continued to stand there with his ears folded down and his tail tucked between his legs, and avoided making eye contact with Iris.

" Well, I'm not surprised. Noct and my brother can be really dense. I wouldn't be surprised if Ignis knew and is being courteous by not saying anything."

"Ignis knows. I'm not sure how he found out, but he did and he's been helping me keep it a secret from Noct."

"I see. You must be taking hormone blockers because I couldn't smell you before today. Did you forget to take them today?

"No. They're not working anymore."

"Oh, I've heard that happens to some of us." Iris says with a sympathetic look at him. "Well, then what are you going to do? Judging from how strong your scent smells right now, you don't have a lot of time before all of the alphas in the area are trying to jump and claim you."

"I… don't know. We're going on a hunting trip this weekend, so I planned on telling Noctis at some point. I think Gladdy already knows."

"Hmm…. Well, if I know Noct as well as I think I do, then he'll be glad that you finally told him." Suddenly, Iris had a mischievous look on her face. "So tell me, who is the alpha you came in here for?"

"I, uh… huh?" Prompto looked up at Iris, the confusion evident on his face.

"This shop does have some general items, but it is mostly for intimate items. Omegas typically come in here when they have an alpha they want. So, who is it?"

"Uh…. nobody? I just came in out of curiosity."

"I don't believe you, but I'll let it go. Besides, I think I know who it might be. Come on, let's get you all prepared for when you realize who it is you want." Iris says, grabbing Prompto and heading further into the shop.

"Wah, Iris! Wait!"

The rest of the afternoon was spent with Iris in the omega specialty shop. Prompto had learned much more that day then he had ever thought he would learn about submission and being an omega. All of the people that Iris had introduced him to were really nice, and explained things to him thoroughly. By the time they left the shop, he was exhausted.

"I think my face is going to be a permanent shade of red from now on."

"Oh, you'll get used to it once you're fully able to embrace your omega status."

"I don't know about that. Do I really need all of this stuff? I mean, I don't think I'll use any of it any time soon."

"You will need it at some point in the future. It's always better to be prepared anyway."

"I guess, but I don't have a good place to keep these things." Prompto said, holding up the bag full of items that Iris basically forced him to buy.

"Prompto! Iris! What are you guys doing here?" Noctis walked up behind the two betas, catching them both off guard.

"Oh, hey Noct! I ran into Prompto at the market, and asked if he could help me do some shopping!" Iris said, without even really thinking about it. Prompto looked at her with a slightly shocked expression, and she responded by looking back at him with an innocent look that encouraged him to play along. Prompto was really grateful that she had agreed to keep his secret.

"Shopping?" Noctis asked, confused as he looked up at the store they were standing outside of.

"Oh yeah, he helped me pick something out for this alpha at my school that I want to impress. You know, I needed an alpha's opinion, so that I could make sure I get the right thing. Thanks for carrying these bags for me!" Iris said as she grabbed the bags out of Prompto's hands. "Well, I need to go now, so I'll talk to both of you later! Oh Noct, please don't tell Gladdy about this, you know how he is about these things." Iris turned and ran down the street, taking the bags with her.

Prompto was too embarrassed to respond. He could feel his face heating up once again. When Noctis looked at him, he just thought he was embarrassed to be caught in the beta store.

"Geez, she sure was in a hurry." When Prompto didn't respond, Noct just shrugged and said "Well, I better get back to my apartment to finish getting ready for tomorrow. Oh, and Prom, you might consider taking a shower. You smell like an omega." Noctis said as he walked away from Prompto.

Prompto walked the entire way home slowly and with his ears down and his tail tucked between his legs. When he got home, he went straight into his bathroom, and took a hot shower in attempt to scrub himself of the aroma he knew he could never get rid of.