…The Iron King…

/Warning/: This chapter contains, cursing, sadness, so much sadness, a little fluff, Steve being a 'gentle Mommy', while Bucky and Peter being cute and sad! All reviews are appreciated.

P.S: This is an Alpha/Beta/Omega dynamic story, it's also a Medieval story with Viking Tony ^o^

"Character talking"

"Character thinking"

…Flashbacks…

Chapter 6

It was three days after he woke up that Steven was greeted by the sight of the last person he wanted to see in the world; the Iron King. The man walked inside his recovery room, only to pause when he saw that Steven was all alone in the room, he was probably wondering where was James and Margaret; Steven had told Margaret earlier that day to take James outside, for he knows that his babe will get all bored from staying inside the room all day long, even if it meant he will stay with Steven. Ever since his child tasted what it was like to be outside, his baby couldn't stand being locked inside any house unless it was time for bed, the freedom of the wind outside of the suffocating walls, seduced even Steven most of the days.

Steven blinked his eyes, taking in the king who was looking like he prefers to be anywhere but here; a sentiment that was shared with Steven for the Omega doesn't even want to see the king's face, not right now, not when he was a minute away from attacking the man, who was the reason he lost another babe he promised to protect. "What are you doing here, foolish king?" Steven asked in a tired voice, which made the Alpha shuffle uncomfortable in his place.

The king looked like he swallowed something bitter as he came and took a seat on the wooden chair beside the bed; his actions only causing Steven to frown, for he doesn't want to see anyone at this moment, he still wants to find whatever sliver of peace he can achieve as he mourns the babe that died in his womb. "I came here because… I want to apologize, I-" Whatever the king wanted to say after that was cut off; he raised his eyes that widen by the second to glance at the Omega who start laughing loudly, cutting him from saying anything more.

"You? Apologize?" Steven asked as he stopped laughing, ignoring the pain he felt in his belly due to the stab wound. "That is funny, very funny. Do not tire yourself, foolish king; I got used to it, after all, this wasn't the first child I carried in my womb you ended up being the reason they were killed." Steven stated darkly, an emotionless smile stretched on his lips; Steven took a dark pleasure in the shock and denial on the king's face. Interesting, so the king can kill babes from other villages without a care in the world, but when it comes to someone under his watch, he can't handle it.

"I do not know what you are implying by your words; for I have not touched any child of yours. I admit my actions against you were wrong, but you have no right to accuse me of such a thing." The king said darkly, raising his head and gazing at the Omega with a daring look; daring the Omega to lie and spread wrong words about him, something that did nothing but amuse Steven even more.

"Ah, but you did." Steven stated, giving the king a narrow look that ordered him to stay quiet, and to Steven's surprise, the king did. "Six years ago, do you remember attacking the Hydra king's ships?" Steven asked with a sweet voice full of poison, which caused the Iron King to sit straight in his chair unconsciously. "I remember that day very well, do you know why? Because that day, the Hydra king killed my seven days old babe and James's twin brother in a fit of rage; that day I sower that I will personally guide the Hydra king to Hel's gates, with you not that far behind. But you! You took my revenge away from me!" Steven snarled his words causing the Alpha to clench his fists tightly.

"Is that so?" The king asked as he tilted his head, gazing at the Omega with an unreadable look like Steven was a puzzle he was trying to solve. "Then why did you not kill me? I am sure you had a lot of time to come up with a plan that will end up with me dying without you and your people getting accused." The Alpha stated causing the Omega to give him a smug smile, which caused the king to narrow his eyes.

"I did, and came up with several plans to do so; all of them would have ended up perfectly. The thing was; I did not count on you having a child." Steven informed the Alpha leaning on the pillows that helped to keep him seated, his words causing the Alpha to lean back on his chair and give Steven a long look like he was studying the meaning behind Steven's words, which only made the Omega roll his eyes.

"I do not see why this would have stopped you, having a son is the same as not having one in every other person's eyes; it is a kill or be killed world, only the strongest can survive for a few more days before someone stronger than them show up, so why?" The king asked, and Steven smiled to himself, eyes going distant, his action caused the king to close his mouth, waiting for the answer he knows will come if he waited.

"No child deserves having their only parent taking away from them, even if that parent is a heartless Alpha like you." Steven stated after a few minutes, giving the Alpha a once over, before what looked like a painful smile took over his face; the Alpha's eyes widen in disbelieve at his words, looking unconvinced. "Did you know? War does not make winners, only widows." A choked noise left the Alpha after hearing those words, and he stood up fast from his chair causing the chair to end up falling on the floor.

The sound of the fallen furniture drew Steven's attention back toward the Alpha; the king who was becoming paler than it was possible for him to come, making Steven think that he is going to be sick, the king whose eyes were so wide that the Omega feared they will never return to their right size again, the king who was muttering some words under his breath, looking like he saw the image of someone who died long ago.

"Is everything alright? What happened?" The sound of Braes broke both Steven and the king out of their staring match; it was only a few seconds after Braes showed up inside the room, the king rushed out, leaving the healer and Steven confuse about the king's reaction.

That was something only tomorrow will answer…

"A-and then, I held him from his hair and cut it!" James puffed his small chest and put both of his fists on his waist; the little boy was sitting on the bed beside his mother as he told him the tale of how he punished the bad guy who hurt his mother. Steven gave his babe a soft smile, he was feeling good today, and his child's cheerful energy helped him forget about the hurt that was eating his heart from the inside out.

"What about Petrus? Where was he?" Steven asked as he raised his hand, swiping a curl of hair that always made its way to James's forehead; his son has the most unruly hair, it took Steven ages just to brush it down. Just thinking about it getting longer, cause Steven nightmares.

James blinked his eyes, scrunching his nose cutely as he tried to think hard about finding some answers to his mother's questions. "I think… he was here; I saw him when I came. I heard that he tried to protect you when the bad men attacked and he was hurt badly." James explained, pouting in a thoughtful way before turning his eyes to Steven; the Omega waited for his boy to tell him what he was thinking of, getting curious every second that passed, especially when he saw the flush on his babe's face. "He is OK, I like him." James stated after a while, nodding his head as if informing Steven that his word was a rule and that no matter what, Petrus will always be OK in James's books.

Steven's lips twitched up into a gentle smile, feeling amused by his son's actions and words. "I see; is Petrus still here, though?" Steven asked which earned him a nod from James, as the boy pointed to the door like he was informing him that Petrus was waiting outside of it. "Can you call him, please?" Steven gave his boy a small smile, his words caused James to pause for a second before he nodded his head and get off the bed, rushing to the door.

It was only a minute or so before James came back inside, dragging Petrus with him. The smaller boy was trying hard to make James let go of him, but between the two of them, James was the strongest so Petrus struggling didn't work. Steven raised his eyebrow at James; gaining nothing but a sheepish look from his pup, who let go of Petrus and rushed toward his bedside, giving him his famous puppy dog eyes.

Petrus was left fidgeting in his place, looking down at his feet while sneaking glances at the Omega through his curls. It ended with Steven giving the small pup a gentle smile, which did nothing but bring a flush that painted itself on Petrus' cheeks, and the boy looked down as fast as he can, trying not to show Steven his flushed face. "Y-your highness…" Petrus mumbled, and Steven's heart gave a pang at the self-conscious tone the boy used.

"Can you come here please? I want to tell you something very important." Steven's eyes were soft as he gazed at the small boy, that was trying to make himself look smaller than he already was; it was a few seconds of the boy fidgeting before he walked slowly toward Steven's bed, standing near the Omega. "I want to say thank you, Petrus, for helping me when no one did." Steven said to the boy, causing him to flush even more and lower his head, not knowing what to say.

"T-they did something wrong, I had to do something…" Petrus whispered and it was only a few seconds later that the small boy's eyes widen when he felt a gentle hand on his cheek, caressing it. Looking up, Petrus took in the soft smile and gentle eyes that gazed at him, making him warm inside and causing his lips to tremble.

"Still, thank you, for being so brave." Steven leaned down, kissing Petrus' forehead, causing the small boy to gasp. "Petrus?" Steven asked in concern when he saw the small boy's blue eyes got filled with tears; with a choked whine, the small boy ended up throwing himself at Steven, hiding his face in Steven's lap as he continued to let out whines and sobs, crying himself on Steven's lap. "Oh…" Was the only thing Steven could let out as he gazed at the small child in his lap; Steven let out a sigh, and he laid his right hand on Petrus' head, running his hand through the boy's soft hair.

"Shush, there, there." James said as he laid his small hand on Petrus' back, humming whatever kind of song that came to him, trying to calm his fellow child down. Steven couldn't help but smile at the scene in front of him, this was a first; his child never taken to anyone if it wasn't young Philips or Angela, preferring to not interact with the village's children for they were close-minded people. It was a surprise, a pleasant one though; seeing his child taken with another boy, and his age too.

Time trickled away from Steven's grasp as Petrus continued to cry in his lap, getting comforted by both him and James; in the end, the little pup falls asleep, hugging Steven's mid-section and laying his head near Steven's wrist, taking in his comforting scent that caused Petrus to let out broken purrs. "You seemed to like him, are you two friends?" Steven asked, turning his gaze toward his son who was yawning.

Steven's words caused James to stop mid-yawn and turn to his mother, giving Steven a sleepy smile. "No." James shook his head, shuffling until he burrowed into Steven's side. "I see him a lot though, he is always in the forest near the kin's house; people do not like him because he does not have a dam… foolish people." James mumbled to himself, yawning a few more times before he dozes off, falling asleep shortly after that.

James's words, caused Steven to press his lips tightly, he turned to the small boy that was still holding onto him like the Omega was going to disappear any time if the boy didn't hold on. It broke Steven's heart; it really hurt him how much the pup seemed to suffer without his idiotic father realizing it.

He was so going to give that foolish king a piece of his mind…

He ran through the forest, searching for the one he seeks; he remembered screaming his name over and over again, fear seizing his heart when his best and only friend didn't answer him. Tears clouded his eyes and he wiped them furiously 'Alphas do not cry.' his father would have snapped if he saw the tears in his eyes 'Starkad's men are made of iron.' His father would have probably growled at him so that his words would be planted deep into his mind.

But the thing was, Anton, he can't, he can't, he can't, if he lost the only bright spot in his life, he can't continue as many people would. Everything was fine, everything was more than fine, it was only yesterday that he and his best friend were playing in the forest; rolling down the hills and jumping on the stacked leaves, chasing each other in the fields, and enjoying themselves as any ten years old and nine years old pups would, even if they always ignored their parents' words about how shameful the two of them were acting. An Alpha and an Omega can never be friends, an Alpha, and an Omega shouldn't be left alone together unsupervised. Anton though didn't give a care about the words his father growled at him, he didn't care about what other people were thinking; the Omega was his friend, he was the only one that Anton can see himself standing with ten years from now, the only one he will give everything he owns too.

But everything went away with the wind when the news came in today; all of his dreams have disappeared when he learned about what happened. Today the ships have finally returned after three months of voyage; and with them returned the warriors, one of those warriors was his friend's father. The thing was, their journey was met with nothing but failure and death, a lot of it, and one of those unfortunate souls that departed to Valhalla was his friend's father. His friend was missing since the ship returned in the rise of the sun; Anton was scared, scared that his friend would do something foolish after such news.

The sound of crying made Anton's breath hitch, the Alpha turned around and rushed the other way, following the sound that pulls at his heartstrings. When he reached where the sound was coming, Anton's eyes were full of tears; he nearly went to his friend and start screaming at him for scaring Anton so bad. The sight of his friend, though, made Anton holds his tongue; his friend looked so small, curling on himself, and hugging his legs tightly.

It ended with Anton walking toward his friend and sitting beside him, pulling the boy with yellow hair as the sun in his arms; he let his friend lean on his shoulder, crying to his heart content, hoping that the sadness ebbed a little. "Why are you not happy that your Sire went to Valhalla?" Anton asked in a small voice, wiping his friend's tears away, hating himself for not being able to do anything to stop them from being shed in the first place.

His friend opened his eyes when he heard his words, his blue as sky eyes trapped him in their stare. "Why would I be happy about losing my family Anton?" The Omega asked his voice breaking as he said those words, and Anton never felt as helpless as he was. "Did you not know? War does not make winners, only widows; Mama and I are the proof." These words made Anton freeze in his place, it made him speechless, what can he say to his friend to make him less sad when his friend will always think this way?

Anton knows that these words will haunt him for the rest of his life…

.

Anton gazed at the pendant in his hands with a blank look, still not being able to understand what took place earlier that day; he still couldn't shake the shock of what he heard, still wondering if what he heard was a trick of his mind or that the foolish queen truly said those words to him. those words that Anton couldn't help but think of them even as years and years past; words that were once uttered by the only person that Anton loved truly, a fierce Omega that made his head spin more times than he can count.

Anton traced the branches and roots of the Yggdrasil tree, inspecting the pendant for any fault in it; from the silver, he used to the blue gemstone, to the shape of the branches and the roots. But as always, there was nothing wrong with the pendant, it was perfect, as perfect as it can be when the one who made it was an eleven springs old Alpha with the hope of attracting the attention of the Omega he fancies; it had to be perfect back then, for it was a promise he gave to the love of his life, a promise that should the Omega finally return home, the two of them shall be wed on the same day; a promise that the love of his life accepted with a shy smile and sealed with an innocent kiss on the cheek.

It was a shock, him hearing these words after more than twenty-two years; it made him think, and it made his heart ache, and not for the first time, the Alpha cursed the foolish queen for always doing this to him. When was the last time he thought of the sweet Omega who stole his breath away? The Omega who became his first and only friend until he was eleven springs old, the pretty Omega who jump in to defend him from the village's bullies, the beauty who wiped his tears away when both of his parents would have sneered at him for being a week Alpha, not like the rest, not strong enough, not smart enough, never enough…

It was ten years since the last time he gave the sweet Omega anything but a fleeting thought; it has been so long since he got a reminder about the heartbreak he faced when the love of his life didn't show up on the day he promised him he would. He didn't show up on the day after it, or the month after it, or the years after that day; it only confirmed his theory, that the Omega he fell in love with has moved on, that he found someone who was stronger than Anton, smarter than Anton, someone who will give him whatever his heart desire, someone who will worship the ground that the sweet Omega walked on.

Thinking about that always made Anton's heart give a pang of pain and hurt, it always made him want to curl around himself and let out a broken whine full of agony and despair. If the sweet Omega was to see him now, he would have been embarrassed by what Anton would have become, an Alpha who never married even when he reached the age of thirty-one spring, an Alpha taking care of an orphaned child without a mate or someone to help him, an Alpha who was what everyone considered a demon, even by his own people. Maybe, maybe it was for the best that his love moved on, at least then Anton won't drag the sweet Omega with him when he falls down to Hel.

Maybe, he too should move on…

So what do you think?

Sorry for the short chapter, but life refuses to give me a breath.

I may even be late to update any of my stories in the next months.

Read and Review

And tell me what you think…

Nazaki-Sama