A/N: I have no excuse! Just... sorry all! D: Shall try to update more, but naturally with it coming up to the shoots and cons, it's hard :/ Sorry for the long wait but thankyou all for sticking by me~
The end of the heat marked the end of the majority of the romance. They went about their usual business with the bedroom being their only point of contact, and even then they simply talked to each other whilst cuddling. It was as if they were friends rather than a married couple, but neither seemed to mind too much. It was routine; most Kings and Queens would only make contact whilst the omega partner was on his or her heat, hence neither really thought much of it. Most of the time. There were still those horrid moments where they were desperate to have contact and craved the attention or affection from their significant other, but upon realising that their wishes couldn't be fulfilled for several more months, they piped down and kept to themselves. As the rulers of their own portion of land, they had to keep working rather than practicing the typical 'couple' acts.
Several weeks later, however, the results of the heat were revealed. Alfred waited patiently outside the bathroom as Arthur took multiple tests to make sure. After a few minutes, the omega exited the room with empty hands, his eyes locked on the floor. "I have failed to conceive," he said quietly, "So you may call for a divorce and marry a more fertile omega if you wish." The King let out a sigh and wrapped both arms around the smaller figure.
"Arthur, most of the first heats don't end with pregnancies, and many of the successful conceptions end with miscarriages early on." Tearful green eyes met blue, proving the slight embarrassment and panic caused by the assumption that he would be shunned two months into their marriage. One large hand ran through the soft hair. He then kissed the smaller male's lips in a sweet, chaste way.
"Even if you aren't able to produce children in the future, I love you, okay?" The Queen gave a single nod, and Alfred instantly felt his heart sink. Although it was mainly intended to comfort the other male, it had taken a lot to announce that he actually had emotional connections with him. They barely knew anything about each other for a start. All he knew was that the omega enjoyed tea. And his birthday. Yet, he felt some unbearable urge to hold him tightly and whisper sweet nothings into his ear. It felt weird. It felt wonderful. Yet that obviously crashed when he realised that the love 'between them' was one sided.
For the remainder of the day they stayed quiet around each other. The unnecessary tension had returned and neither knew how to target it or whether to bother doing so at all. Arthur continued about his usual activities and Alfred remained in his private study. It was almost as if they were strangers again, whom had only met once or twice for affairs. It continued that way each day until they went to their room, where all tension was suddenly dropped and they behaved in a rather affectionate manner. The King had found much amusement in brushing over the sweet spots on his partner's skin as he carefully peeled the layers of material from the pale skin. Each touch would result in a shiver or twitch, and he rather enjoyed 'accidentally' discovering such beautiful places. Occasionally he was allowed to place his lips upon the neck of his Queen without a warning growl daring him to continue, and the omega would respond positively by providing more access to the delicate skin.
Arthur would then proceed to undress his alpha, taking particular care not to touch his skin in a teasing, somewhat irritating way. He ignored the whines and squirms, ensuring that his hands were as far away from the bare skin as possible. A smirk would play on his lips, and on this particular night he was kissed firmly in response. Usually he would retaliate due to the fact that he wasn't due another heat for another three or so months, but the cravings for such contact easily took over his tired mind. Both of his arms wrapped around his upper back and he was easily lifted up onto his alpha's hips. In a few seconds, he was laid on the bed with Alfred over him. He naturally took a typical koala position (and mentally cursed at his own clinging to the larger frame), his legs gently tugging him down.
The Queen honestly had no idea when it started or what happened in the build up, but soon found that the casual, tender thrusts of his husband's hips felt even better than the erotic ones of the heat. Their lips joined in a sweet kiss; they were one for a long while, much longer than they were during the mating process. Instead of the familiar pauses, his King had managed to hold out much longer. Bodies moved against each other in a continuous motion, and it was strangely arousing to feel something filling him in a way that didn't involve trying to get as deep a possible. And the look that he was given... Alfred spent every moment outside of the kiss judging his expression, ensuring that he hadn't made a wrong move or hurt him.
They eventually finished together in a rather quiet manner, then proceeded to hold each other like a couple. With each gentle peck, they enforced the love between themselves. It felt even better the next morning, when both were pressed together in a sweet embrace. Yet, it wasn't half as pleasant to realise that they had only woken up because of the subconscious sensation of being watched. The nurse stood paralysed in the doorway for a moment, eventually composing herself and silently exiting the room, and the couple exchanged a questioning look before smiling warmly at each other. It was the most contact that they had had for a long time, and the heat of the others' body was comforting. It was as if they had been married for years, an old couple who simply couldn't bare to be away from each other, until...
"I must get back to looking through the folders," Arthur whispered softly as he pressed the back of his hand to the alpha's cheek. The response was a slow shake of the head and an even tighter cuddle.
"We need to get to know what we like. Like... you enjoy polo, right?" Arthur nodded, gradually getting the general idea of the day as his partner continued explaining it.
Being the gentleman he was, the omega allowed Alfred to make the first decision. There were a lot of things that the talented King knew had to do, but nothing could prepare him for the deranged attempt at skinny dipping in a nearby lake. Both knew that if they were caught by anyone it would become the laughing stock (and the single largest cause of embarrassment) in their land. Yet, they continued swimming, dunking, splashing and surface diving for what felt like an hour but was most likely several. It was rather obscure, how he managed to find it, dare he say, amusing. It was childish yet fun, and he could feel his innocent side emerging as he dunked under the water in order to poke and playfully bite at his husband's thighs. Upon getting out of the water, they struggled with tight, casual clothing, especially jeans. 'Difficult' didn't even start to describe why they were like to put back on. It closely matched the difficulty of trying to peel skin tight clothing off swollen flesh.
They gazed into each others' eyes lovingly for a long moment, before proceeding to make their way to the stables on the other side of the estate. Both knew that polo would be their second (and probably last; Arthur was a beast when it came to that sport, and so it would take all of the King's effort to put up a fight) activity of the day, so it was only natural for the competition to kick in before they even reached the horses. "I get Opheli!" Alfred announced loudly as he walked in a diagonal line across the yard towards the large grey mare. Arthur rolled his eyes and made his way towards a smaller colt.
"Don't blame me when you can't touch the floor on her," he said quietly as one hand extended towards the bay, Morgan. The animal whickered softly upon feeling the touch behind his ear. The King suddenly pouted in a somewhat childish way.
"Then I'll take Hero. He's small and fast!"
"Right. Clearly you want to be thrown over the fence." It took a further half hour for him to choose a suitable filly and tack her up ready, and she audibly let out an irritated huff as he mounted. The game, however, was rather quick. Each time the alpha hit the ball, it was hit straight towards the decided goal point by his husband. After the fourth chukka, he had succeeded in taking chunks out of the grass, but had scored a total of zero points. Arthur had managed to score around twenty by that point, and his King simply pouted again before dismounting.
"How abouts we clean them up and go have a romantic chaste bath, my Queen?" The omega gave a single nod as he led the young horse back to its stall, before untacking and rubbing him down with a rubber brush. Alfred proceeded similarly, and after a short while they made their way back to their quarters, where they filled the large clawfoot bath with water and clambered in sloppily together.
"So, you really wanted to get to know me? Or is this just an excuse to get away from the regular daily life?" Alfred's lips twitched into the slightest of smirks."I'm genuine," he replied simply as he laid back in the tub and allowed his partner to cuddle closer to him. The bath was big enough for both of them if they were in a typical cuddling position, which made it perfect for romantic acts, but not at all for anything more than that. Bubbles shielded them from the world and provided some entertainment for the couple, especially when the alpha grew childish and dabbed the soft bubbles on the end of his omega's nose. Once or twice he had moved in as if to lick the soap off, too, before he realised that it was a bad idea and grinned.
"What are your feelings towards me?" Alfred asked randomly mid way through a pre-existing conversation. The Queen blinked once before answering.
"You were my first love, my teenage crush, my little fantasy."
"Does that mean you love me?"
"I suppose so..." The blue eyes grew duller as that same pout returned again, "Fine, fine. I love you, sire, and I really wanted to save it until the conception of our first child to say that, but... I suppose it isn't too bad saying it too early." The alpha smiled brightly as he heard the words that he longed to hear, and gently squeezed his partner in response. Everything suddenly felt brighter for him, as if nothing in the world could ever possibly make him upset in any way.
The chat between them was rather active as they continued trying to get to know one another. Just as their lips met in the softest of kisses, the bathroom door was flung open, causing the King to jump up to a sitting position. "S-sire," the young servant panted, "Your mother has been admitted to hospital. She collapsed with severe chest pains."