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Chapter Text

He was screaming, wasn’t he? His hands shook, his mouth hanging agape, tears streaming down his face and soaking into the dirt. He screamed again, his throat burning from the smoke, before devolving into a coughing fit that had him hacking up blackened phlegm, his body shaking and his lungs aching. 

Around him, his world burned. Orange and red and yellow flames, arching into the sky like dancers. He sobbed again, feeling like his throat was closing.

“Mom,” he mumbled, “mommy, mommy.”

She would never come, he knew that. He’d watched as she was crushed underneath a beam (squashed like a bug). He’d watched the blood seep out of her head and seen her lungs and heart from where her broken ribs had pierced through her skin. He hadn’t seen his father go, but he must be dead as well, if this was happening to their palace, to their home .

His vision went blurry, and for a moment he was pitching forward, barely managing to catch himself. His palm was cut by a rock, and for a moment the brief feeling of pain almost made him break into laughter. It was just so… normal. Surrounded by the blaze, as it lovingly went to accept him into its open arms, it was almost like his mother was back. It was almost like this was a bad dream.

He gagged, throwing up again, the smoke burning through him. He felt dizzy and nauseous and all he wanted was to go back into his mother’s arms. Was she waiting for him, up above?

“Deku!”

He barely heard him over the flames, over the fog in his mind. He tried to open his mouth, maybe to scream again, maybe to call him to his location, but all that came out was a strangled whine. He felt boneless, his shaking coming to a shuddering stop. He wavered from his place on his knees, kneeling to the destruction that had befallen his home, before falling onto his side. The fall jolted whatever air was left out of his lungs, and he clawed at his useless throat that refused to draw in air.

“Deku!”

He tried to speak, his vision glossy. He knew he was mouthing mommy , but no sound came out. Everything felt so far away.

“ Deku ! Where the fuck are you? This isn’t funny!”

He grimaced, trying to push himself, but with no air, he was too weak to do anything. Another strangled noise came from his mouth, using all the air he had left, and he collapsed. He could almost feel his mother’s hands, ready to guide him into the afterlife…

“ Izuku !”

His eyes snapped open. What was he doing? He was Prince Izuku of the Yuuei Kingdom, the next user of the most powerful magic in the world, and he was here, on his knees, about to die? Or, at least, he was supposed to be the next user. If not, he’d eaten that hair for nothing. If not, then… then his father died in vain, without a successor.

His eyes slowly closed, and he wheezed as he tried to draw fresh air into his lungs, the smoke and dust making the already damaged organs burn with a ferocity that made him want nothing more to stop. He needed to push himself. He needed to get out of here. He couldn’t die here! He couldn’t… He couldn’t allow them to die for nothing.

Hands were gripping him, and he stared into crimson eyes. Fresh tears stung at his eyes as he stared at his best friend, his husband, his alpha. He wanted to reach out. He wanted to…

“Don’t die on me, Deku. Don’t you dare die.”

Chapter Text

“My lord,” the carriage driver said, opening the door. Shoto eyed it like it was the end of his life. To be fair, it was. From now on he wouldn’t be Prince Shoto of Endeavor, he’d be Prince Shoto of the Barbarians. He fought the urge to grimace and slam the door shut. If he didn’t marry the Barbarian King, then his sister would. 

That’s what all of this led back to, wasn’t it? The damn Barbarian King, Katsuki Bakugou. He’d certainly made quite the stir conquering the Backwoods and Outlands, and an even bigger stir when he’d conquered what had once been Yuuei, land that had been conquered by his father over a decade ago and had remained under strict control until that damn upstart had to go and ruin everything. Now, to prevent a full on war from breaking out (or, well, getting worse), he had to get married to the king. His father got nothing out of this agreement, and that was the worrying thing. It was like he was actually afraid of the barbarians, and, well, from the rumors, he could see why.

It was said that the Barbarian King drank the blood of his enemies and consorted with the devil to enhance his magic. That he killed omegas and children first , tying the alphas and leaving them helpless to do anything but watch. His temper was legendary, and that was coming from King Enji’s son.

And he was marrying him. He was getting sold off like cattle because his father was spooked . Because apparently the Barbarian King wasn’t just cruel, but powerful. Powerful enough to make his father willing to do this. Willing to do anything to sue for peace, so that he could at least keep what he had originally had when his reign began. How pathetic.

Not to mention the fact that they were both alphas- while that marriage was permitted in the Barbarians land, it was unheard of in Endeavor. His stomach twisted with the idea of submitting to the man, his inner alpha grumbling. This better be worth it.

If he didn’t do it, Fuyumi would. At least he could defend himself. Actually, that was his biggest selling point. The barbarians prized power above all else, and he had power in droves. He could wield two types of opposing magics, a feat never before seen. The perfect weapon, and he was being handed over to some bastard-

He was taking too long. The carriage driver looked nervous, and he knew he’d been breathing out puffs of frost. 

He wasn’t doing this just for his sister, either. His father requested information. He needed the Barbarian King to trust him. He needed to gather information on his inner workings, his inner circle. He needed to learn the layout of his castle, make connections with the staff, whatever he could give to his father so that he could burn the place down and Shoto could leave that place a secretly grateful widower. He could get all of that. He could do this.

He stepped out of the carriage. The sun beat down. They were on the border of the Outlands, where the mountainous cliffs of Endeavor gave way to miles upon miles of desert. He already felt sweaty as he was collected by servants and changed into wedding garb, his ribs aching from the tightness of his white and blue corset and his neck itching from the lace that ran up it. When he was dressed he was collected once more, made to mount a white horse, and forced to stand at his father’s side. The only good thing about the whole procedure was that he was able to see his siblings. Fuyumi had obviously been crying, and Natsuo was pissed, so it almost seemed like a normal day.

The barbarians gathered, opposed to them. They were a mess compared to his father’s soldiers and select members of his court, who were arranged in neat little columns and rows. They cheered and laughed and some of them were even dancing, as if this stupid treaty was something worth celebrating. If he was being honest, it made him sick. 

He heard a roar, and his horse spooked. He pulled her back before she could run, but her jerk caused his heart rate to spike and his stomach to settle into his throat. He looked at his father for explanation, finding him staring blankly at the sky. He heard Fuyumi and Natsuo mumbling and looked back, his eyes wide. Natsuo grimaced, Fuyumi’s eyebrows furrowed in worry. The barbarians were getting louder, somehow. He didn’t know why they would be excited by anything that made that sound.

Dusk. It was dusk, so the Barbarian King was coming soon-

Another roar, and he gasped as the sun was blotted out. 

A dragon. A goddamn dragon -

Fuck, he’d thought the rumors of the Barbarian King riding a fucking dragon into battle had just been rumors. Now he had to really think about whether he killed the women and children first. If that bullshit was true, then what the fuck else was true?

His horse reared, and he backed her up as much as he dared. One of the knights broke rank, their horse going wild, and many of the others were struggling to contain their own beasts. There was a tenseness in his father’s shoulders, and he stared at him, gaping slightly. He didn’t think to warn him that there might be a dragon? Shit, his father was a jackass, a murderer, but he didn’t warn him about the dragon?

The beast landed.

The Barbarian King leapt off, an explosion slowing his fall. He landed firmly on his feet, cloak billowing around him. Shoto blinked, slowly.

He was wearing his fucking wedding bullshit and the Barbarian King couldn’t even put on a shirt? He had to fight the urge to scowl as the barbarians yelped and yowled for their king, the citizens of Endeavor becoming more and more unnerved at their behavior. The dragon roared again, making quite a few people slam their hands over their ears, flaring its wings out in what must be a show of dominance, but Shoto forced himself to deal with it. The Barbarian King was watching, after all. Actually, never mind. He was looking him up and down like he was nothing more than a piece of meat. Shoto tried to stop the sickness that had settled into his gut. 

He was used to people looking at him like he wasn’t a person. His father was around him often, after all. He could be a trophy, a weapon, even a god.

He didn’t quite know if he could be a whore.

The Barbarian King snickered, eyeing King Enji for a moment. There was something in his gaze, and he startled when he realized it was hatred. He’d never seen someone look at King Enji with such obvious disgust before, never seen a blaze burn as deep as it did within the Barbarian King’s eyes, and he’d watched as Touya had burned up, screaming at their father. When Enji did nothing to stop him, to attack him, he relaxed. Shoto didn’t know what it was, but he realized that the Barbarian King was almost the same age as him. Maybe it was something about the eyes, his slouched posture. Whatever it was, while he admitted the aura of a king, he didn’t quite have the mannerisms for it. There was obviously some underlying training in every movement, but he just seemed so…

Apathetic. Unfazed. He didn’t even seem to care that he was in the presence of another king, he was just looking… he only had eyes for what he was promised. The thought made his stomach knot even tighter in his throat, and his hands clenched the reins. He didn’t look away when he realized that he was having a staring contest with the Barbarian King. He forced himself to hold strong, even though he knew that he should be reverent, and should be praising the very dirt beneath his shoes. For some reason, he didn’t think that was the way to deal with the Barbarian King.

And the Barbarian King smiled. It was rough, like an uncut gemstone. Shoto tried to make himself like it, tried to make himself like the way his hair puffed out in every direction, and the way his muscles shifted (okay, that might have sent a spark down his back) when he placed his hands on his hips. He wasn’t certain it worked. He wasn’t certain it would ever work.

“Well, aren’t you just a bride?” the Barbarian King cooed , and Shoto knew he was scowling. His horse noticed how tense he was, taking a slow, uncertain step back, and he felt Enji’s eyes on him. They bore into him like daggers, and he forced his face to fall flat. He didn’t say anything, no matter how much he wanted to beat the man in front of him. He didn’t need to say anything. The terms had already been agreed on. Negotiation had ended.

They would have an Endeavor-style ceremony and then the barbarians would leave and Shoto would go with them, maybe to never see his homelands or family again. 

Why was the Barbarian King still talking?

“Get down,” he said, “let me see you.”

Shoto looked at his father, wondering what he should do. Enji’s face was carefully blank, but his eyes betrayed his annoyance. His eyes narrowed, briefly, before he nodded, and Shoto carefully dismounted. He couldn’t help but feel much smaller than the Barbarian King, even though he was easily a head taller. The King just had a presence- he was all wide shoulders and smirks. He stepped forward, and Shoto fought the urge to step back as he studied him, eyeing his clothing, before staring at his face.

“They really sent me a pretty boy with a fucked up face,” and Shoto stilled, “hey, Enji, if you would going to send me a royal whore, shouldn’t he at least be pretty?”

Endeavor’s court gasped. Enji himself looked like he wanted nothing more than to bake the barbarian before him, before his eyes slid to the other barbarians, who were still laughing and celebrating. Apparently, none of them had heard a thing, even though the Barbarian King was quite loud. Enji took a breath, but before he could speak the Barbarian King was back to ignoring him.

“Can you fight?” he looked him up and down again, “You look like a pansy, but looks can be deceiving. I can feel the magic radiating off of you, but for some reason you haven’t shown it. No matter what I do, you’ll be my willing little bitch, won’t you?”

He reached out, flicking a strand of his hair that had gone into his face.

Shoto snapped.

The Barbarian King laughed as his left side lit into flames, not even jerking back as they licked at his bare hand, as his foot sent spines of ice towards his ankles. The King reached out a hand and blasted the ice away, scaring the horses and making some of the knights place their hands on their sword hilts. Shoto stared at him.

He was fireproof. Alright. He could deal with fireproof- why was this jackass still laughing?

“Didya get that, Deku?!” the Barbarian King exclaimed, and Shoto’s eyes were suddenly drawn to a man sitting atop the dragon. He hadn’t even noticed that he’d been there. He was wearing clothing that was exceptionally familiar- he was dressed like a normal peasant, instead of like a barbarian. The sight of something familiar on something so different made his stomach twist, but he sucked in a slow breath.

This new person made him realize that he was still on fire. He carefully tried to contain his magic, even as the barbarians began cheering, jeering, shrieking, banging their swords against whatever metal they could find. His nerves made the ‘lid’ more difficult to tighten, but eventually he contained himself. 

The man nodded, a small smile on his lips. The dragon rumbled, and he patted it, before walking down the dragon’s muzzle and sliding down. He stepped forward. Somehow, even though he didn’t hold the Barbarian King’s aura, he seemed just as powerful. Maybe it was just because the otherwise small and unassuming man was backed by a dragon. Maybe it was just because he was obviously in the Barbarian King’s inner workings. Maybe it was just because he was wearing clothes.

Shoto realized with a start that he was no longer wearing all of his clothes, and tried not to flush as this new person (Deku?) studied him. He’d burned off his corset in his rage, and burned up most of his cloak. He could practically feel the disappointment radiating from his father.

Deku raised a brow at the Barbarian King. The man shrugged. He waved a hand, before giving a firm nod and walking back to the dragon, which was making a chortling sound. The barbarians that had watched the interaction broke into more cheers, which was apparently infectious, as they somehow collectively grew louder, cheering for their king.

Shoto realized the Barbarian King was looking at him, but it wasn’t that original piece-of-meat way. It was almost like… like he’d been able to gain his respect. Or, at least, that’s what he believed respect looked like. It was something so different from the usual fear and disgust that he felt his heart shudder in his chest, like it was just waking up from a long nap even though it had been giving him palpitations only a minute prior. Shit, his theory that he’d be able to impress the Barbarian King with his magic was correct.

“What else you got?” the king smiled, even though his questions felt like an interrogation, “How far can you go?”

Shoto took a step back, trying to adjust his clothing so that he wasn’t exposing his chest anymore. His heart was beating fast in his chest, and his stomach was twisting and turning like it had been given to a hawk and taken flight.

“You mute or something?” the king’s nose wrinkled, and Shoto glared at him, “Or do you just not have an answer?”

“I don’t have an answer,” Shoto said, firmly.

“You’ve never gone all out before?” the king smiled. He seemed jittery, like he was excited, and it sent a wave of fear through him. He didn’t know what this man would do to him, he reminded himself. And he was going to be going with him- oh god.

He could defend himself. He could defend himself. He wasn’t like his mother, he wasn’t like Fuyumi, he wasn’t like Touya. He wasn’t weak. He almost jerked back as the Barbarian King suddenly was at his side, grasping his hand and raising it into a salute above their heads, his hand completely encircling Shoto’s wrist. 

The barbarians got even louder, and the dragon raised its head and roared (where the hell had Deku gone? He went to the dragon and disappeared), stomping its feet and sending waves of dust towards Enji’s men, who were all now clutching their swords, quite a few of them looking like they were itching to take off the Barbarian King’s head while his back was turned.

“What a gift you have given me,” the Barbarian King said as soon as the cheering had quieted enough that he could be heard, and the thought of being an object sent another wave of fury that threatened to make him light into a blaze. He needed to calm himself- Enji looked ready to beat him for the display that he had made, instead of playing revenant fool. No matter if the barbarians would hate it, “I accept the treaty and all of its stated amendments.”

And King Enji only looked exhausted- defeated- instead of angry. There was a bit of lightness in him, like he was glad that the barbarians hadn’t taken anything else, besides half of his territory and his strongest living child.

“Let’s go!” The barbarian yelled, still holding Shoto’s hand and jerking him forward. The dragon’s wings fluttered, extending, and suddenly he was dipping his head down and Shoto was trying to pull away, looking at his family, completely confused. Fuyumi looked horrified, Natsuo like he was about to fight, and his father… his father only watched.

“The wedding!” Shoto hissed, “There’s still a wedding!”

The Barbarian King looked him up and down, “Why? We aren’t in love, so there’s no wedding. The treaty was signed. Let’s get you home. There’s someone I want you to meet, or, well, multiple someone’s. The most important one is very eager to see you.”

“What?!” Shoto yelled, “Stop, please, stop, I didn’t say goodbye-“

The dragon’s wings covered them from view, and something wrapped around his waist, pulling him up onto the dragon. He yelped as something connected him to a leather strap hidden behind the dragon's frills, and he felt heat on his back and arms wrap lazily around him. The Barbarian King blasted up, the barbarians breaking into cries that rivaled their prior times, the kingdom of Endeavor’s soldiers struggling without orders, not knowing if they should pursue their prince or follow King Enji’s example: watch.

“I’m sorry,” Deku said, way too close to his face, “we need to leave. If we stay the night Enji will ambush us with the soldiers following you guys. Not only that, but we have to be up early tomorrow to announce the alliance to the courts, and then there’s also a meeting with the agricultural committee…”

“You’re going to bore him to death, Deku,” the Barbarian King said, patting the dragon on the head, “you haven’t even introduced yourself.”

“Sorry,” Deku said, and Shoto wasn’t sure who he was apologizing to, “Kacchan’s right, I haven’t introduced myself. Izuku Midoriya, at your service.”

Kacchan?

“Not literally,” the Barbarian King said, glancing back at them, “he ranks higher than you.”

Shoto stilled, glancing over. He took a deep breath. Omega. Marked by… someone? He smelled kinda like the Barbarian King, but the Barbarian King was marrying him, and he also smelled like at least four other people… maybe he was just (he hated to think this, because he seemed so sweet) a palace whore? He… ranked lower than a palace whore?

“Yes, literally. It’s very stressful to suddenly be striped from your home, and I know you probably have a lot of questions-“

The dragon leapt into the air, and Shoto didn’t scream as the creature’s wings beat the air. He froze stock still, and Izuku held onto him, humming something low as the dragon found altitude, falling into a glide. Shoto’s head ached from the sudden rise, and he wavered, feeling another pair of hands on him to keep him steady. 

“Just breathe,” Izuku whispered, “as deep as you possibly can. One moment.”

Izuku blew in his face, and suddenly his aching lungs filled with air. He sucked up the oxygen eagerly, panting heavily for a long moment, held steady by a strong arm, before realizing that it was the Barbarian King touching him. He flinched back. 

“Kacchan,” Izuku said, softly, “you should introduce yourself as well.”

The Barbarian King grimaced.

“King Katsuki Bakugou, call me Katsuki,” he said, sitting down in the nook of the dragon’s frill, “I’m the King of Yuuei, though I’m sure you fuckers still call me the Barbarian King.”

“Kacchan,” Izuku almost sounded like he was scolding him. Scolding a king? Who was he?

“No, it’s stupid, I’m not even from the barbarian tribes,” he said, “ they don’t even call me the Barbarian King. They call me the Warmaster.”

“I know, Kacchan.”

“It’s stupid.”

“ I know, Kacchan. ”

“Hey, look, they’re sending presents,” the Barbarian King grinned, glancing over the edge of the saddle. Most of the barbarians were more packed up than they seemed, already on horseback. Whatever crates they had left they abandoned with ease, getting on their horses and mules and riding fast down the cliffs into the desert, having already been halfway through the pass, tailed by Endeavor’s best knights. The presents that the king was referring to happened to be arrows that panged against the dragon’s side and were easy for the creature to ignore.

“Our men are slow over sand,” Izuku remarked.

“Think we should get rid of them?” 

“Seal off the pass,” Izuku said, “that’s what Dabi requested that we do as well.”

The Barbarian King seemed to think about that course of action, before nodding.

“Kiri, you heard him!” He yelled, and the dragon roared in response, skin snapping up with spikes and hardened scales, making Shoto jump. Izuku hummed, and the blackish ropes around Shoto’s hands were replaced with actual ropes, tying his arms together and his hands to the saddle. He was too afraid to resist. 

“Brace!” Izuku yelled, the Barbarian King jumping from the dragon and blasting a higher mountain, blowing himself back just before the dragon rammed directly into the cliff at full speed, cracking the rock all the way through and leading to it falling onto the pass— the one pass between the Outlands and Endeavor.

Shoto stared as his kingdom's knights were pummeled by rock, as some were crushed . He struggled against his binds, a strangled noise escaping from his lips, as the Barbarian King created blasts from his palms, gingerly landing on top of his dragon’s neck, a smirk on his lips.

“I’d consider that a win,” he said, Shoto making a pained, punched out noise. Everything was happening too fast. Everything was too much--

Izuku placed his head on his shoulder, and suddenly he was relaxing against his will, stray tears flowing down his cheeks even though he couldn’t maintain the tenseness of his shoulders, even though he couldn’t use his magic. He was stuck, slack-jawed, trapped in a forced calm by the omega’s careful manipulation of his scent. The arms around his waist squeezed him, not enough to make him lose air but enough to apply pressure. The Barbarian King stared at the two for a long moment.

“Don’t worry,” the King said, “you’ll be one of us someday.”

Chapter Text

Izuku woke up alone, dirt clinging to the clear liquid dripping from his nostrils. His eyes stared blankly at a rock for a long moment.

And then he hurled. Again and again, even as his throat cried out and all that started coming out was blackened bile. His arms shook, his lungs seizing, and he continued to gag even as all the ash left his body and there was suddenly blood dripping from his lips. A strangled noise escaped him, and he almost choked. Red blood dripped down his neck, staining his shirt. Something was running down his throat, and he sneezed, blood gushing from his nose. Too much of it. Convinced he was going to die, he started crying, unable to speak or cry for help. 

“Deku?!” Kacchan was at his side, his eyes wide with concern, “Why are you bleeding?!” 

He tried to answer, he tried. As soon as he tried to produce the noise, he started coughing, landing hard on his side and curling up into a ball. 

“Deku!” Kacchan yelled, before his voice failed him. He didn’t know what to do. He was only twelve, and he was suddenly shoved into this situation. He just knew that his husband (they both barely knew what it meant, just that Katsuki would take care of Izuku, just that Katsuki would be the Prince-King of Yuuei) was bleeding too much. That he was sick, and shaking, and feverish.

Katsuki didn’t want to cry. He was the alpha, so he needed to remain strong in this situation. However, he felt tears stinging at his eyes.

To be strong in the face of death means nothing at all.

Izuku fell unconscious not long after, pale and gaunt with a drying stream of blood crusting his lips. As soon as he was out, Katsuki began to sob, curling up into his throat, not willing to let go. He didn’t, he couldn’t- he couldn’t lose the only thing he had from Yuuei. He couldn’t lose his best friend. He couldn’t lose the Prince.

“Well, isn’t this interesting,” Katsuki spun around, explosions crackling in his palms, his eyes wide and terrified. A young man covered in purple blotches of skin, held together by staples, riding a white, masked stallion, stared right back. White hair glowed golden in the remnants of sunlight, sunset painting a picture much more beautiful than this one in the horizon.

“Who are you?” Katsuki hissed. 

“And here I didn’t think I’d find anything out here,” the man looked back south, “you carried him all the way here? Quite a while away from Symbol.”

Katsuki stepped in front of Izuku.

“Go away,” he didn’t know if this man was a friend or an enemy. He didn’t feel like he knew anything anymore. 

“Relax, kid, I won’t be the one to do him in,” the man said, “he inhaled too much smoke. He’s already dead while alive.”

“No!” Katsuki yelled, “No he isn’t! Go away!”

“You’re not the only one’s fleeing from Yuuei,” he said, “the Lord requests that refugees move through designated routes. You’ll still survive, boy, run along.”

“No!” Katsuki yelled, explosions bursting larger and louder, scaring nearby birds, “We haven’t even passed the border into Tartarus! You shouldn’t be here!”

The man snorted, “Is the Uian military going to stop me?”

Katsuki stilled, before gritting his teeth. His scent spread out in droves, unnaturally strong for a boy his age. The man tilted his head, before spreading his own, choking out the others and soaking the area in the scent of flames. Katsuki took a step back, his eyes wide, his throat dry.

“Watch yourself, little alpha,” he said, “I’m trying to help.”

“No you’re not! If you wanted to help you’d help my—“ Katsuki glanced back at the boy behind him, young and small.

“Child marriage is rare in Uian peasantry,” the man retorted, “and yet you wear a ring, and your omega, a collar.”

“Shut up!”

“You’re,” he seemed to think for a moment, “the son of General Mitsuki Bakugo, the leader of the Court of War. Which means that must be…”

“Go away before I hurt you!”

“The Crown Prince of Yuuei, the next One for All,” the man said, his horse moving forward. He slipped from his saddle with graceless ease, landing hard. Katsuki rushed him, aiming a blast right at his head, but the man grabbed his arm and twisted it, sending the boy to the ungiving forest floor and breaking his nose. The boy screamed in pain as the man held his wrist and slammed his foot down, breaking his shoulder.

“Let that be your warning,” he said, simply, kneeling down beside the prince. Something pained spread across his face as he realized the extent of his injuries, as he wiped the blood from his lips and nose.

“Prince-General Shigaraki has been looking for you,” he said, running his fingers through his curly hair, drawing some of the ash out of it, “I bet you were never even told why.”

“Leave him alone, yokel ,” Katsuki grit his teeth against the burning pain in his shoulder. The man glanced back.

“Well, you’re certainly Uian, haros ,” the man snarked, easily scooping Izuku up. Katsuki forced himself to his feet.

“No, no, you can’t take him!” Katsuki yelled, “I need to protect him!”

“You’re sure doing a great job of that!” The man said, throwing his friend over his legs. The horse's ears went back as he noticed Katsuki coming near, ears pressed flat and kicking out a back leg as warning against any more explosions. Katsuki stiffened.

“No!” He yelled, “Please!”

The man glanced back, staring at the boy for a long moment, before sighing.

“Get over here,” he said. As soon as Katsuki was near, he grabbed him by his unbroken arm and pulled him up behind the saddle, “Hold on the best you can. If you fall off, I’m not coming back for you.”

“You’re the asshole that broke my shoulder!”

“And you attacked me first, so watch it, brat,” he said.

“Who even are you?!” Katsuki grunted as the horse began to move, jostling his shoulder.

“Lieutenant Dabi of the Byzantium Battalion, second-in-command to the Crown Prince-General, Tomura Shigaraki,” Dabi glanced back with a grin that could cut glass, “Welcome to Tartarus.”

Chapter Text

“Bank right,” Izuku said, and the dragon banked right, flapping lazily. They’d been flying over most of the major cities on their way home, a way to announce the marriage. Shoto wasn’t really paying attention. Everything was numb. He’d been staring at his tied hands for hours by now. Their last stop was Symbol, the old- the new capital of the barbarians- capital of the Uians. 

Banners flared and fireworks soared and sparked as they flew overhead, the dragon roaring as it traveled. The city was massive- bigger than any city in Endeavor, most certainly, yet still ornate in a way that would make the Aoyama family jealous. Yuuei had always been a rich kingdom. Forcing them to share their wealth with Endeavor had seemed obvious, back then.

It appeared… Bakugo had something to say about that. Somehow getting land and soldiers from Tartarus, allying with the barbarian tribes that had been fighting for centuries, taking the Outlands and Backwoods- a copious list of bullshit that had his father roaring in the council room, that had made his horrified tutors begin to drill him harder. Shoto didn’t know what age he’d started his quest, but if he really was the same age as Shoto, he’d have been fourteen when he brokered the first alliance between two barbarian tribes, after beating both their leaders in combat. Eight years ago. Eight years, and this had been created.

The “King of Yuuei” was staring at him, sitting backwards on his saddle, his feet pressed against the handhold that Shoto was tied to. 

“Just gonna sit there and stare, hmm?” his voice sounded condescending, but Shoto couldn’t bring himself to respond. There was nothing left in him, he was certain. 

He’d seen death before. He’d watched his brother burn up as a little kid, watched his mother’s descent into insanity, watched and watched and watched but it all felt so far away. It was so different watching it now, at twenty-two. The death he’d seen was so far away, and this was so close . 

“Kacchan, stop being mean,” Izuku said, “you know why he’s upset.”

“Deku-” the Uian king grit his teeth, before tsking, “kinda pathetic to get lost that easily. You are an alpha, aren’t you? Or does Endeavor just not uphold those kinds of expectations .”

“Fuck you,” Shoto hissed, heterochromic eyes boring into the man in front of him. He could feel frost gathering on his fingertips, of the spark of flames on his bare, freezing shoulder.

“Oh, so you do speak,” the barbarian said, a smirk pulling at his lips, “I’d like to see you try and fuck me.”

“ Kacchan ,” Izuku scolded, “settle down, we’re nearly home. Look, Mei’s tower.”

Izuku motioned to a cluster of mountains on the edge of the city, where a spire pierced into the sky. Shoto would have gasped, but instead he was stuck staring, dumbfounded, as they passed the first of the mountains and fell upon a massive castle that stretched the entire crater. 

Shoto knew about this crater. It was over the ruins of the last castle of Yuuei, when a cataclysmic demon summoned by a seemingly pathetic duo of Barbarians in Uian peasant garb had burst forth from the earth to battle with the soldiers of Endeavor, killing all of them and changing the landscape- manipulating the old land of the castle into horrific spires, like a waters splash permanently molded into the earth.

It looked much more horrifying now, in real life. He’d never seen such a creation, such raw power-

Izuku sang to himself as they landed, his voice like bells. Katsuki hummed along to the same song, the both of them unaffected by the jostling and movement. A trumpet began to play, before a whole ensemble, the same song serenading through the courtyard. Shoto recognized it- of course he did. It was banned in Endeavor, but he’d still been taught it. It was the song of the royal family of Yuuei. It was only ever played or sung at two events: when a royal was born, or a royal was made.

He’d married Uian royalty, his family’s greatest rivals. Somehow.

“Now presenting, the King of Yuuei, King Katsuki of the Bakugo’s!” Cheering from staff and members of the court rang out around the courtyard, the castle's high walls surrounding them. There was no way into the castle from the ground- one had to fly in through an airship - a new Uian invention - (or dragon, apparently).

Bakugo? Why did he feel like he might recognize that name, now of all times and places? 

Bakugo?

Was that… a musician? A singer, maybe?

“One for All, Izuku of the Midoriya line, Highest Omega of the Royal Harem!” Izuku gave a small smile as Shoto froze stock solid, carefully turning his head to where the omega was untying him. The cheers were loud and all encompassing, wild and frenzied for their One for All, the highest position in the Uian court and council. 

Their One for All, an omega. 

An omega dressed like a peasant with too much influence over the king. Honestly, with how backwards these people were, it was no surprise that their One for All was an omega. At least there was no possible way for him to be able to access One for All, as King Toshinori was infertile and there was no other way for it to be passed down except through blood.

Not to mention the Uian royals were from the Yagi-Shimura line. All of them were Yagi’s (if male) or Shimura’s (if female).  

His wrists stayed bound, a Uian tradition called tying to the home. They’d remain tied until he was tied to the foot of the king's bed and collared like some weak omega- an omega like the one in front of him, who radiated power as he jumped from the back of the dragon’s saddle, the King of Yuuei holding onto the rope. He was dragged off, black tendrils, coming from somewhere , grabbing onto him and gently lowering him down to the ground.

He still stumbled as the Barbarian King grabbed onto the rope binding his hands and pulled him forwards. 

“Alpha Consort Eijirou of the Kirishima family!”

Shoto blinked, slowly, wondering what the hell was happening. First of all, unless there was a dwarf, there was no other person with them- 

Someone touched Shoto’s shoulder and almost got iced. The dragon was gone. In his place was a tall, muscular man with horns and a sharp-toothed smile, hair a blaze of red with scales around his blood red eyes. Slit pupils seemed to bore through him, and he took a step back.

“Hi!” the Alpha Consort (what did that mean? Cause a consort was the spouse of a monarch but he was the spouse of Bakugo so this must be the mate of the omega?)

He tried to ignore how obscene it was for an omega to mate to a dragon , of all things. The fact that this was the first time he’d seen a dragon in human form didn’t escape him, but he was too tired to process it at this point. Not to mention the fact that this man was only wearing pants with a rope around his waist. And this was the husband of the One for All of Yuuei. Holy hell. 

“You can call me Eijirou!” the dragon chirped, and Shoto slowly nodded as the announcer waited for the cheering to die down, “I’m your senior in the royal harem!”

Shoto paused. Blinked. Opened his mouth. Closed it. Stared at Kirishima like he was insane. 

“What?”

“Uhhh… Izu?”

Shoto spun towards Izuku, who was blinking slowly.

“We forgot to tell him. Kacchan, we never told him.”

“Told him what?” The Barbarian looked tired of this already, having elected to wiggle the rope that Shoto was attached to. 

“That-”

“And the new Alpha Consort of the Royal Harem, the 13th to become a mate of King Katsuki Bakugo, Prince Shoto Todoroki of Endeavor!”

There was cheering and gawking as he was welcomed, wide-eyed, into the castle, dragged along behind the Barbarian King with the High Omega and other Alpha Consort at his side. Of course. Of course that was how these animals lived. Completely backwards. He wasn’t even his husband’s only mate. What in the world even was this tradition? It wasn’t Uian. It seemed to be more from the thickly allied and interconnected courts of Tartarus or the northern Backwoods where people lived feral than Yuuei. 

Complete savages. Animals among mankind.

Now he didn’t just have to trick the king, but also the entire harem. 

He glanced at the omega at his side as he was led down incomprehensibly confusing hallways that coiled like snakes throughout the castle, supplying a lifeblood to the royals that lived here. 

He didn’t just have to trick the Barbarian King. He now had to fool the One for All as well. 

Chapter Text

Izuku was laid gently down onto the ground before the feet of a teen dressed in a thick, lavish purple and red cloak with nothing beneath it besides a pair of loose harem pants, secured by thick bands around the ankles. Katsuki nearly grimaced as the teen, nearly a man, stood up, muscular body tensing beneath his clothing. He was an omega, like Izuku, with long silver hair tied back into a braided bun, behind him, a young girl- who might be a slave, since this was Tartarus, and according to his mother they owned slaves like in Endeavor- padding behind him. She bared her teeth into a smile, and Katsuki saw that her teeth were in fact fangs.

She had obviously presented, just barely older than him, and she looked a whole lot stronger than him too, weakened as he was by travel. She might not actually be a slave. Like the lizardfolk in the corner, she might be a guard, just young, extremely young.

“It’s been so long, Izu,” the Crown Prince of Tartarus, Tomura Shigaraki, cooed, brushing a piece of stray silver from his face, kneeling down beside Izuku. Katsuki took a few steps forward, before being grabbed by Dabi, letting out a pained shriek as his broken arm was grabbed. It drew the Crown Prince’s attention, as he eyed the ring around Katsuki’s finger before gently moving Izuku to display the collar, presenting the Bakugo family crest on it. He let out a sad sigh, brushing the hair from his face.

“Poor little one,” Shigaraki said, “so young to be arranged off like nothing more than chattel. It’s alright, little brother, those barbarians can’t get to you anymore.”

“Excuse you?!” Katsuki barked, struggling in Dabi’s grasp. 

“I said, so young to be arranged off like nothing more than chattel,” Shigaraki snarked, checking Izuku’s pulse and finding it with a small smile, “you’re too young as well, but you don’t know any better. Yuuei’s corruption has ended. You both now have been graciously absorbed into my League.”

“No! Stop, let me go!” he exclaimed to Dabi, before turning and facing Shigaraki again, “I mean the bullshit with Izuku being your little brother. Are you deranged?! He is the true King of Yuuei, not the second prince of Tartarus!”

Shigaraki sighed, “I would explain it to you when you were older, but you’ve already lived through enough trauma to be considered a full fledged adult. The King of Yuuei was infertile. In the final battle in the Musketeer War, the King took a prize that could not be replaced: the omega of the Lord All for One, my mother, and his youngest son, who was four at the time. That is the reason all neighboring nations hate Yuuei. They are prince stealers. It’s tradition. If the king or queen cannot produce an adequate heir to hold the title of One for All, they will steal a prince. That is the reason that Endeavor and Tartarus fight so fervently against the power of Yuuei. They have spited us both in the past, and now they are over.”

“You’re lying,” Katsuki said.

“What reason do I have to lie?” Tomura said, “Your nation is destroyed. The Crown Prince of Yuuei and his mate have been absorbed into a Tartarian League.”

“Midoriya Inko was never part of Tartarus!”

“ Shigaraki Inko was my mother, and I will not have you disrespecting her name,” Tomura hissed, “be wary, boy, because my patience is running thin. Keep up with the disrespect, to our blessed queen, to my mother , and to me , and my people , and your broken arm will be the least of your worries.”

Katsuki opened his mouth to fight, but his broken arm was squeezed harshly, his voice ending in a choked out noise. 

“That’s your only warning,” Dabi’s voice hissed from behind him, “use it.”

Katsuki, tears beginning to run down his face, shut his mouth for the first time in his life. 

“I’m sorry, I’m sorry, please stop hurting me!” he exclaimed, finally breaking down. He’d lost his home, his family, and now he’d found out that it all was a carefully created lie. His mind whirled with memories- Inko’s fear of the One for All, her accent when speaking, so much more Tartarian than Uian, the whispers of the courts when he was young about Izuku’s ascension that his mother had explained as him being an omega and not what the whisper’s were really saying: that he was a yokel .

He felt like a fool.

He felt like a baby.

Dabi released his arm and let him fall to his knees. 

Chapter Text

There was an omega in heat on the bed. He was squirming- babbling nonsense, his hands pressed between his thighs and the thick scent of slick in the air. Eijiro crooned as they entered the room, the heady scent causing prickles to go up their backs, and the omega on the bed whined pathetically. Katsuki gave a soft sound that could nearly be described as a laugh, if not for how cruel it sounded, still holding the rope tying Shoto’s hands together in an iron grip. 

The dragon slipped past them, as well as the One for All, stepping up to the bed while Shoto was carefully and strongly tied to the foot of it. He pulled at the ropes, his eyes narrowed, before he glared at Katsuki, who wasn’t even looking at him, instead running his fingers down a collar. He glanced back, and he must have seen something he didn’t like in Shoto’s expression, because he fisted the collar between his hands and stalked closer.

“You’re not putting that on me,” Shoto hissed, as Katsuki unlatched it, staring at him like he was a curious oddity, “I will not be collared like some bitch.”

“Uh-huh,” Katsuki said, glancing pointedly at his tied hands, and Shoto felt himself smoking. The omega on the bed whined at the sour scent of alphas conflicting, getting cooed at by the One for All, who was carefully removing the hair from the omega’s sweaty forehead.

“Neito,” Eijiro cooed, “open up, I’ll make you feel better.”

There was a grotesquely wet noise as Neito moved, and Shoto’s head snapped to the bed, where the omega (Neito?) was pressing his slick wet fingers to the dragon’s lips. Shoto’s eyes widened as a too-long, forked tongue snaked out of the dragon’s mouth, licking away the slick on his fingers. Neito seemed to soften at the action, pliant and docile, as an omega should be. The dragon’s hands were on his thighs, easing him apart, and Shoto noticed then that there were also brilliant red scales on the dragon’s knuckles.

“Do you want me to make you feel better?” Eijiro asked, gently, hand running up the nude omega’s waist, pressing into his ribs before drawing up to his cheek, cupping it gently in his palm. The omega squirmed, whined, and bucked his hips, and Eijiro smiled, sharp teeth on display.

Shoto didn’t notice the collar going on until it was already latched. He jerked back at the heavy weight, a snarl on his lips as he whipped his head around, trying to figure out where that damn Barbarian bastard was. He tried to ignite, unable to contain himself with the anger and shame floating through him, but felt a chill run through him as he realized he couldn’t.

It was like a well run dry.

His stomach twisted into knots, as fear raced through him. His magic was gone. His hands shot up, trying to find a clasp to the collar, but it was like there wasn’t one. How-

A low growl brought him back to reality. His head whipped back around, nearly giving him whiplash, as he stared at the dragon, whose sharp teeth were bared like a dog. His hands were squeezing the omega’s thighs, claws nearly digging in, and his red eyes were slit and narrowed.

“Shoto,” the One for All said with a warning tone from his position near the omega-in-heat’s head, scratching gently at his scalp. The omega- Neito - who was staring at him, terrified and looking nauseous, thighs quivering in the grip of the dragon and the scent of slick being replaced by the all-consuming stink of fear. It hurt Shoto’s head, made everything feel mushy. 

“Control your scent,” Eijiro said, “you’re scaring Neito,” he turned back to the omega beneath him, leaning down to nuzzle his cheek, “I know baby, your heat hit so fast and you didn’t even get the chance to nest, I know, I’m so sorry. It’s okay, I’ll keep you safe, you’re so safe, nobody’s going to hurt you, I promise. I’ll make you feel better so you can nest without it hurting, alright?”

Neito still shrunk back, his eyes locked on Shoto’s. Eijiro continued to study his reactions, hands running over his thighs.

“Yeah, he’s a little intense, right?” Eijiro said, “But he’s not going to hurt you, I won’t let him. He’s tied up right now and he can’t get to you. You’re safe, you’re so safe.”

Shoto felt the sharp sting of pride in his heart. This omega was obviously recognizing him as the superior alpha. He growled, baring his teeth threateningly, just like he’d been taught to make an omega give in. Neito started hyperventilating, reaching out dumbly to grab at Eijiro and ending with a tight, painful grip on his hair, judging by the way the alpha winced. 

There was a chittering growl, and Shoto took a step back without thinking about it when he heard it. The One for All, Izuku , scent spreading out and choking the room, was growling at him . His eyes were a blaze, dangerous and all-consuming, his body was crackling with energy, his hands that had been scratching gently at Neito’s scalp completely still, his entire body wired to pounce.

“Do not threaten our packmates,” he growled, and Shoto wondered wildly what this magic was. It was so powerful that the room felt electrified with it, “Feel lucky that you can watch . If you continue with your bullshit behavior then I’ll blindfold you.”

Eijiro was gently scooping up Neito in his arms, moving him to the head of the bed, the furthest position from him, maneuvering him so that he was leaning up against plush pillows with his legs spread. Eijiro’s body hid Neito from Shoto’s view, and he guessed that it went both ways, as the scent of fear stopped permeating the room. 

Shoto’s stomach twisted as the traitorous little thought of did I make him afraid like he made my mother afraid? spread through his head. He shook the thought off. No. He was in heat, and he wasn’t thinking rationally, and a much more eligible bachelor was removed from the equation. 

Izuku calmed himself down, and slipped off the bed, glaring at Shoto as he left.

“Oh baby, you taste so good,” Shoto twitched, minutely, refocusing on the scene before him as the omega let out a groan, one hand whipping out to grab the cacophony of pillows and the other digging into Eijiro’s hair. The alpha’s head was between his legs, pillowed by milky thighs, evidently doing something with his too-long tongue. The omega’s eyes were tightly shut, his head whipping back and forth, thighs twitching under Eijiro’s careful fingers.

“Please, please, please-” Neito babbled, hips rutting into the alpha’s face, chasing a high that would be all too easy to reach while under the effects of his heat. Eijiro did something, and Neito’s hips bucked as his head fell back with a long, loud groan, body covered in a sheen of sweat and shivering. It was a beautiful sight. Shoto had never had an omega in heat before.

His fingers twitched. He wanted.

“Fuck, Eiji, please-” Neito’s thighs were squeezing the dragon’s head.

“Good omega, give it to me,” the dragon cooed, and the omega babbled nonsensically as he came, his entire body shaking. Eijiro’s hands dug into his thighs, easing them open as they twitched, before laying over the omega, nose buried into his throat. The hand that Neito had tightly buried in his hair went to stroking it. 

Neito started squirming almost immediately.

“What’s wrong, sweetheart?” Eijiro said, “You were so pent up, my poor baby, you came practically as soon as you felt my tongue in your tight little cunt.”

Neito’s back arched, but he was unable to struggle anywhere with the heavy weight of the alpha on top of him. The omega whined, looking at the dragon pitifully.

“What?” Eijiro smiled, running a large hand over the slope of the omega’s ribs, “Words, baby.”

Neito looked like he wanted to start screaming, but instead let out a pathetic, “Alpha, knot. Knot, alpha, please.”

Eijiro’s face pinched, “Don’t you want to make your nest before you get a knot? That way you’re all nice and comfortable.”

“Izu, nest,” Neito babbled, and Eijiro tilted his head.

“You want Izuku to make your nest?” Eijiro tried, deciphering the nonsense much better than Shoto. The door teased open, and another alpha entered, followed by Katsuki the Bastard. 

“And Toshi,” Neito said, squirming, “please, alpha, knot. It hurts.”

The new alpha let out a snort as he entered, a swagger in his step, “He must really be in pain to be begging you to knot him, Eiji.”

Neito stiffened, finally noticing the new arrival, but let out a coo as he recognized him, body soft and open and pliant. Eijiro rolled off him, and Neito took the opportunity to present, cooing. Shoto stiffened as the thick scent of slick and pleasure suddenly seemed to choke out all the other scents in the room. Neito’s legs were wide, a male omega cock soft but still glistening a pretty red, and he reached down with a hand to spread his pussy lips, exposing his hole, which was white with foamy omega ejaculate. The new alpha wolf-whistled, a teasing grin on his face.

“You look so pretty, Nei,” he cooed, before glancing over at Shoto, tilting his head as he studied him, “Denki Kaminari, Second Prince of the Stormbeaters. Shoto of Endeavor, right?”

Shoto grimaced, “Yes.”

Denki smiled, “You’re lucky you have some entertainment. When I was tied I only got to nap. There weren’t any pretty omegas in heat just begging to be fucked. Right, Nei?”

Neito keened, hips bucking up, and the alpha laughed.

“Alright baby, who do you want, me or Eiji?” Denki asked, obviously done with paying Shoto any mind as he stalked around the bed up to where Neito was presenting. Shoto blinked rapidly as Denki and Eijiro’s eyes met over the omega, Denki pressing a gentle, chaste kiss to Eijiro’s lips. The other alpha grumbled, but it wasn’t a growl- it was more like a purr. Their foreheads pressed together for a long, intimate moment where Shoto felt like he was intruding, before the omega beneath them whined at the lack of attention.

“You didn’t answer my question, Nei,” Denki laughed, pulling back, “who do you want first? The other will be second, got it?”

“Yes, yes, Denki, alpha, knot,” Neito babbled, and Eijiro didn’t even look upset, laughing gently as he moved to lean against the headboard, tangling his fingers in Neito’s hair just like the other had done to him. Shoto was almost expecting them to fight no matter what the omega’s answer was. Shit, he wanted to fight, but they all treated each other so gently- weren’t alphas supposed to go crazy in the urge to knot an omega in heat? Shoto didn’t feel that crazy. Just a little… headrush-y. 

“Are you ready for me?” Denki asked, gently, and Neito nodded rapidly, already going back to babbling nonsense again. Denki hummed, before stripping himself of his shirt and pants, his cock bobbing between his legs as he tossed his clothing elsewhere, and Shoto wasn’t sure if he wanted to watch this or not. The scent of alpha was beginning to overpower the scent of omega and he wasn’t all that into that.

Two hands pressed against his hips, and a snarl burst from his lips before he could stop it. Katsuki’s nose was pressed into the divot of his shoulder, and he bared his teeth. Katsuki didn’t seem all that disturbed. 

“What the fuck did you do that Deku got so pissed?” Katsuki growled, Shoto nearly not hearing him over the sounds of Neito’s babbling and cries as he was entered. His eyes were dangerous despite his position, and his powerful hands squeezed hard over his hip bones, “Don’t lie to me. I can smell his anger.”

There was a wet squelch. 

“Oh, my poor baby, did you cum just from that?” Denki seemed like he was near laughter, and the omega whimpered pathetically, “Oh poor sweet thing. You were so pent up, weren’t you? You must have been here all morning driving yourself insane without anyone to comfort you. I’m so sorry, baby, you should have come straight to me. I’d have fucked you nicely over my desk and then brought you to your nest so that you wouldn’t have had to suffer.”

The omega cried out as Denki started moving, overstimulated even though they had just started, nails digging into his back.

Shoto growled as Katsuki teased his sharp fangs over his neck. The other alpha grinned cruelly. 

“He threatened Neito with his teeth, Kats,” Eijiro said, having seemingly heard them from halfway across the room, even with the yowling next to him. His hand prevented Neito’s head from hitting the headboard as Denki fucked into him, “Scared the crap out of him. I thought Izuku was going to rip out his throat. You should have seen it. One of the hottest things I’ve ever seen.”

“That list is long, Eiji,” Katsuki said, narrowing his eyes, before glaring at Shoto, “you are very, very lucky that Izuku didn’t untie you. You would have been banished from the kingdom and had to crawl back to Endeavor on foot.”

Shoto stiffened, glancing down at his bound hands. They were still bound, still tied to the bed. 

His mission had almost ended because of what? Because he tried to put an omega in his place?

What the fuck was this shithole. 

“I was the better bachelor,” Shoto hissed out, “the omega should have submitted to me.”

Katsuki blinked, slowly, staring at him like he was the dumbest person alive.

“Remind me to never send him on an embassy to Tartarus,” Katsuki grumbled, “he’d meet Tomura and get immediately eviscerated.”

Eijiro barked out a laugh, and Shoto wracked his brain. Who the fuck was Tomura? The only one he could think of was…

The Prince-General of Tartarus, next in line for the throne. 

Who Katsuki just called by his first name. He comforted himself by trying to convince himself that it must be a different Tomura, but given the fact that it was illegal in Tartarus for anyone to share the first name of a royal, the thought was not very comforting. 

He realized that he knew nothing about any of the people here. He needed to find out more information, so that his father could destroy them. He let out a slow breath, and tried to relax and ignore the way that Katsuki was gripping his hips. 

Then, of course, the man decided to scent him and Shoto couldn’t stop himself from growling. Eijiro giggled, before crawling over the bed until he was face to face with the two of them, Neito yelping as he was dragged a little ways down the bed to protect him from the headboard as well. Eijiro tilted his head, rumbling, and Katsuki pursed his lips. Without even seeming to think about it, the two were kissing over Shoto’s shoulder, and he was trying his best not to flip out. The scent of alpha and sex surrounded him, and his entire body wanted to recoil. 

Then Eijiro pecked him on the forehead and Shoto wanted to punch him. He refrained. Eijiro seemed delighted. The door opened again, and Izuku walked in with another omega, who looked exhausted. Katsuki’s hands left his hips. Neito wailed and Denki cooed at him. Too much shit was happening and he was getting overwhelmed.

Slowly, ignoring the gaze of some of the others, he sat down, his back against the foot of the bed, pressing his head between his elbows and his knees to his chest. The events of today weighed heavily on him, and he didn’t know what to do. He didn’t even smell right after Katsuki had scented him. 

He squeezed his eyes tightly shut.

He didn’t know how long he stayed there.

Chapter Text

Izuku was near death for months, barely holding on. Katsuki stayed by his side through most of it, clutching his hand tightly and sitting on his bedside or cuddling up with him in bed like they were little kids. His collar that he had worn for nearly a full year before the attack had been cut off and thrown away by the Prince-General. Katsuki still wore his ring, even though it was getting tight on his growing fingers. He just… he couldn’t take it off. It felt like he was condemning Izuku to death if he took it off. 

The Prince-General was a common, silent specter over the bed as well, but they were not in the nearby city of Deika, where the Prince-General reigned supreme- they were in Shi - death in the native tongue- the very capital of Tartarus, where Lord All for One held the most power. Therefore, the Prince-General could not be around all the time, due to conflicting interests with his father. Katsuki wasn’t sure if he was grateful or not. While the Prince-General and his League commanders were terrifying, without them buffering the Lord’s Doctor…

Katsuki really didn’t know what to do. 

Slowly but surely, the burns healed into thick scar tissue that covered most of his body. His breathing grew less labored, but there was still a whistle in his throat that never seemed to go away. 

It was his organs that had sustained the most damage.

His stomach and lungs had been full of hot ash before he’d thrown most of it up in the woods. When it had come up, however, it tore holes across his inner organs, running his stomach and lungs raw on the inside. He was exceptionally lucky that the blood that came from his mouth was from his throat being torn to shreds by the ash, and not from him cutting an artery in his lungs, which he would never have survived. Still, it seemed like the wounds would never heal. 

Eventually, his hourly screaming and crying and begging faded into a comatose state, in which he was fed through a line down his throat and in his arm. He still lost weight, his body growing deathly thin, gaunt and pale. He looked like a corpse.

Katsuki didn’t know what to do, so he continued to stay at his bedside and fiddle with his too-tight ring.

After months of waiting, when summer began to turn to fall, something began happening. Katsuki didn’t notice, as he spent nearly all of his time at his side, but Izuku’s scent was slowly growing less pain-soured, sweeter. The Prince-General, who had been away for a few weeks, however, did.

He had barely walked into the room before he stiffened, taking a deep whiff of the air before growling. His head snapped to Katsuki, who cowered under his gaze.

“What have you done?” Shigaraki hissed, stomping over him and grabbing him by the hair. Katuski shrieked and struggled, tears welling up in his eyes as he clawed uselessly at Shigaraki’s hands.

“I didn’t- I didn’t do anything!” Katsuki exclaimed, “I don’t know why you’re mad at me!”

“Why is my little brother going into heat?!” Shigaraki practically roared, “Don’t think I don’t know it has something to do with you, little alpha! Have you been screwing him while he’s unconscious?!”

“What?!” Katsuki shrieked, his eyes wide and confused, and Shigaraki must have seen something in them, because he dropped him, stalking over to Izuku’s bedside. Katsuki stumbled and fell as soon as his weight was returned to his feet, panting heavily before taking the chance to taste the air. It was definitely sweeter.

“Ah, Tomura,” the Doctor said, entering the room with a piece of parchment clutched in his hands, “I wondered who was making such a ruckus.”

Shigaraki rounded on him with a snarl, “Why is my little brother going into heat? He’s only twelve! I was fourteen, my mother was fifteen! Twelve is ridiculous!”

“Why would you assume that I had something to do with that?” the Doctor raised an eyebrow, “While I did notice the young lord going into pre-heat-”

“And you didn’t send a message to me?” Shigaraki was growling, now, teeth bared and eyes wild. He reached out to grab the Doctor, and the man shrunk back, ever the coward.

“I assumed you were busy-”

Shigaraki launched at him, attempting to grab his throat. If it wasn’t for Dabi forcing his way through the door and full-body dragging him to the ground, the Doctor would be dead. Katsuki pressed himself against the wall as the omega and alpha fought, the scents permeating the room and stinking the whole place up.

They launched at each other with wild abandon, blue flames and deadly hands reaching to drag each other to the underworld, snarling at each other like wild beasts. Katsuki tried not to whimper. The Doctor let out a slow breath, before rolling his eyes, mumbling about omega overprotectiveness as he skirted around the fight to check on his patient. 

Dabi’s head cracked back against the floor and Tomura climbed off of him, still growling. Dabi didn’t get up, and for a long, brutal moment, Katsuki wondered if he was dead. 

Then Dabi rolled over onto his front and gagged.

“It’s a good thing that his body feels healthy enough to go into heat,” the Doctor said, “if he was still extremely sick his body wouldn’t have wasted the resources. This is a good sign. He’s recovering faster than expected.”

“ Twelve is not a normal age to go into heat,” Shigaraki growled out, and the Doctor seemed to consider his next words carefully.

“In Tartarus, yes,” the Doctor said, “but Uians have been known to induce heat in young royals-”

“Through child rape,” Shigaraki said, “the little alpha in the corner didn’t touch my brother, and none of my party members touched my brother, so who did? ”

The Doctor was silent, contemplating. 

Katsuki bit at his lips, before letting out a shaky, “Nobody. I’ve been with him the entire time. Nobody would have been able to do anything without me noticing. I would have contacted you.”

Katsuki was shocked to realize that it was true- that if something like that had happened to Izuku he would have immediately contacted Shigaraki. Not because he trusted him by any means, but because he was the only semi-adult in Katsuki’s life to tell him right from wrong and help him when he got in trouble, and he knew it.

“He may just be early because of the trauma his body has undergone,” the Doctor said, “usually that makes someone late, but in this case…”

The Doctor gestured towards Izuku’s prone form.

“This may be a good thing,” he tried, “he may be waking up.”

That’s when Katsuki realized.

“We all need to get out!” Katsuki exclaimed, “If he’s going into heat then no one can be around him!”

The Doctor, Dabi, and Shigaraki were all staring at him like he was a spectacular oddity.

“Why not?” Shigaraki raised a brow.

“Alphas won’t be able to stop themselves from impregnating him, betas will get sick, and omegas will fall into heat too!” Katsuki exclaimed, and the Doctor snorted. Shigaraki stared at him. Dabi huffed out something adjacent to a laugh. 

“Kid, none of that is true,” Dabi said, “it’s just a way to excuse alphas horrible behavior and make it so that omegas have no protection during their heats. In Tartarus it’s common for family members to help young omegas through their heats-”

“Ew!” Katsuki exclaimed, his nose scrunching up, “That’s incest!”

Dabi opened his mouth, then shut it, his face pinched as he decided what to say, “Have you ever heard the story of the First Lord and his Brother? How the First Lord of Tartarus stayed by the side of his omega brother for the six days of his first heat and fought off all of the suitors coming to claim him with nothing but magic and skill, hereby proving that alphas can prevent themselves from raping omegas in heat? It’s a Tartarian tradition, now, for omegas to spend their first heat around their siblings and parents, because of that story. And none of those omegas are taken by family members.”

Katsuki tried to think. It sounded so familiar…

“We call that story The Assault of the Prince,” Katsuki said, “the First Lord of Tartarus… raped his brother for six days and six nights while killing all competition or anyone inclined to separate him and from his omega brother’s womb bore the Antichrist, so mutilated and deformed that the creature died near instantly after birth and now clings to the shoulders of Tartarian Lords and whispers the ways of the devil into their ears.”

Dabi gaped at him. Shigaraki and the Doctor were tense, Shigaraki looking like he was already halfway through the decision of throwing him off of a high building or maybe a cliff.

“Right,” Dabi said, peeved, “Yuuei hated Tartarus.”

“Just get him out,” Shigaraki said, “I’m not going to assault or rape or do anything to my brother.”

“No, you can’t!”

“Dabi,” Shigaraki said, his voice much tenser. The Doctor seemed to understand the threat in his words, because he very quickly looked Izuku over before leaving the room. All while Katsuki screamed and begged for Tomura to leave Izuku alone, Dabi holding onto his shoulders and dragging him back, before he evidently got tired of this and grabbed Katsuki by his bad arm, jerking it practically out of socket and making his begging fall into a high, pained whine.

Izuku cooed in his sleep at the sound, and everyone still in the room was gaping at the bed, where Izuku shifted, ever so slightly.

“Deku!” Katsuki exclaimed, but there was no response, and he was dragged out before he could try again, kicking and screaming. 

Tomura stood over his bed, stroking his shoulder length hair and waiting.

Chapter Text

Hitoshi left in the early morning, when he thought no one would be awake to miss him. Eijiro pretended not to notice when the press of heat against his back faded into goosebumps and chills.

The sun rose with beams of purple and gold. Nearly as soon as it cusped the mountain, Izuku knelt beside Shoto from where he was sleeping on the floor and shook him awake. Once the consort was awake, Izuku untied him and led him out of the heat den and to his room. The alpha went without complaint, looking completely exhausted and stiff. Eijiro pitied him. He hadn’t been forced into marriage- in fact, he had nearly lost contact with all of his family over it. He was so head over heels in love with Katsuki and Izuku that it was an obvious choice. This alliance…

It wasn’t the first alliance marriage- Denki and Neito asleep on the bed beside him proved it. He wouldn’t give the two of them up for the world, but… While he had never gone through the hefty toll of marrying someone that he did not love, he had seen it so many times that it was quite frankly ridiculous. But they had eventually fallen in love. The King and the One for All of Yuuei just had that… enrapturing energy. 

This was certainly the first time that he wasn’t sure if they would be capable of making someone fall in love with them. 

He sighed. Katsuki was awake on the couch- he’d only slept on and off the whole night, Izuku curled up on his chest, though he wasn’t sure if the One for All was just dozing or pretending to sleep while waiting for something to go wrong. Eijiro frowned at him, his eyebrows furrowed, before glancing down at Neito beside him. He was curled up beside Denki, his face pressed into his neck.

“Spit it out, Kiri,” Katsuki mumbled, “don’t think I couldn’t feel you staring at me.”

Eijiro frowned, staring pointedly at his hands while he twisted his fingers. 

“Neito’s not going to smell like you if you don’t bed him,” Eijiro said. Katsuki stiffened.

“That’s fine,” he dismissed. Eijiro’s head shot back to him, before he gulped.

“Kats, you just brought another alpha into the harem,” Eijiro tried, “the courts are already-”

“Screw the courts!” Katsuki yelled. Neito flinched in his sleep, and Katsuki repeated himself, much quieter, “Screw the courts. They don’t know anything.”

“They think you can’t perform your duties as king,” Eijiro said, “our rule is unstable. It’s not like King Toshinori-”

“Yeah, yeah, yeah,” Katsuki grit his teeth, “I don’t have enough of a call to the throne to even be able to call myself a Yagi, let alone go to a neighboring kingdom, burn it all down, and steal a young royal.”

Eijiro chewed on his lip.

“Besides, what does it matter,” Katsuki bitched, “Neito will be taking the miscarriage tea for the next month no matter if I bed him or not. Deku still has to be the first one to take. It’s a tradition. I can’t divorce him, and besides, Mei’s the next omega in the harem and I… I can’t do that to her.”

His words sounded strangely wobbly. To an outsider, one would wonder about the political implications about the divorce of the king and the One for All, and the subsequent power struggle that would follow. However, Eijiro was well aware of the truth: Katsuki loved Izuku more than he loved anything in the world, him included. Without him, he would waste away. 

Eijiro frowned, staring at him for a long moment, before sighing. 

“Izuku will be going into heat within the next two weeks,” Eijiro said, “you must bed him. There will be another scandal that you cannot afford if your first consort does not smell like you after his heat.”

“He won’t take,” Katsuki said, before curling up in a ball on the couch, “we’re cursed. It’s like the gods know and are punishing me.”

“Not for a lack of trying,” Eijiro said, frowning, tapping a finger against his lips in thought. Every alpha in the royal harem had tried to get Izuku to take, besides the newcomer, “You know how much Izuku wants a baby. He’s done so much in order to try for you- for us . Those weird induced dry heats, the drugs, the spells- all of it so that our family will have an heir.”

“I know,” Katsuki said.

They were silent for a long moment.

“I wasn’t fast enough.”

“Katsuki-”

“I wasn’t,” he said, “if I had been faster getting through the rubble and the fire, if I had found him sooner… maybe he wouldn’t have gotten so sick. Maybe he would be able to have the family that he dreams of having.”

Eijiro pressed his head into his hands. He hated when he got like this, “Katsuki, it’s not your fault.”

“You don’t know that.”

“I know that,” Eijiro replied, deadpan, “you were in a deadly attack, not even of age, trying to figure out where someone who had already passed out from smoke poison was. Kats… It’s ridiculous to think that was your fault.”

Katsuki didn’t say anything, and Eijiro knew that meant he was being stubborn and not believing him. He fought the urge to bang his head against the headboard, knowing it would do nothing but wake Neito up, which he didn’t want to get his dick ripped off for doing.

“I’m gonna go check on the prisoner,” Katsuki mumbled. Eijiro watched him leave, coiled and frowning, but unwilling to say a word more.

~

Shoto hadn’t gone back to sleep since the One for All woke him up at dawn. His new room was dark, meant to get the sun at dusk instead of dawn, rather large- though still half the size of his former room- with all necessary amenities and a new closet of clothing that looked to be a mix of Uian, Barbarian, and Tartarian, but set in the royal colors of Endeavor- red, gold, and white. He’d changed out of his clothing from the wedding, but hadn’t had the heart to dispose of it no matter its damage.

There was a knock on the door, and Shoto glanced over. 

“Come in,” he said, thinking it was a servant, and regretting his words when the Barbarian King entered. He sighed, low, before curling himself more adequately over the desk. 

“I’m surprised you weren’t at the door, heatstall,” Katsuki said, and Shoto growled, low in his throat, his lips pulling back to reveal his fangs. Katsuki bared his teeth in equal turn, and Shoto wasn’t surprised to see that his fangs were larger. He’d always had dainty teeth for an alpha. 

“Not a heatstall,” Shoto grumbled, and Katsuki laughed. 

“Really? Coulda pegged me for one,” Katsuki said, “Neito only really gets scared in heat. You’re lucky you didn’t do that to him normally, he’d have kicked your pansy ass.”

Shoto huffed, fighting the urge to glare at the other alpha by instead glaring at his twiddling thumbs. 

“I mean if you think you’re stronger you can go right ahead,” Katsuki said, settling at the tea table.

“How many are there?” Shoto asked, before trying to remember what the announcer had said, “Thirteen?”

“You’re the thirteenth,” Katsuki said, “six omegas, two betas, and four alphas besides you.”

“That’s not a Uian tradition,” Shoto replied, and Katsuki hummed.

“It’s not,” he said, “but the only way to tame a dragon is to marry one.”

“And the others?” Shoto asked, and Katsuki grinned.

“Alliances,” Katsuki said, “just like I did with you.”

“How many children do you have?” Shoto asked, wondering how all of this information had escaped Endeavor’s eyes. They rarely interacted, sure, but certainly the ambassadors would have sent something back about this?

“None,” Katsuki said, and Shoto startled, his eyes wide.

“None?” he asked. He’d seen one of his omegas get mounted during heat, arguably he should have children. Were they all rendered infertile? How? What even was the point of doing so?

“Moving on,” Katsuki said, with graceless finality, “I only have two requests for you.”

“Yes?” Shoto asked, nervous now. Of course in some sort of buzzing margin of his head he’d realized that he was alone with a man who was apparently his husband, who hadn’t bitched him last night even though he theoretically should, but now it seemed more wild, more prominent.

“Maintain yourself: eat well and regularly, drink to your content, sleep as much as necessary. You have no work, no assignments. Your life is dedicated to one of hedonism now,” Katsuki said, “hedonism, and getting into the good graces of Deku.”

“Deku?” Shoto mumbled, “The One for All?”

“His next heat is in a couple of weeks. He is fairly regular every three months,” Katsuki said, “get an invitation to his bed, and I won’t be forced to look into less peaceful options for the end of King Enji’s reign.”

His red eyes were boarish, deadly, “And don’t think you can threaten him into anything. He’s a supernova. You’re not even a quarter of what he is capable of. If you hurt him, the Kingdom of Endeavor will be getting your head in a box.”

Shoto’s eyes widened, and he gulped, the collar harsh against his throat.

“Blessed be to the new consort,” Katsuki mumbled, and he was gone.

Chapter Text

 Everything tasted like blood. The back of his throat, his tongue, his teeth. He felt warm, burning, and for a moment he thought that he was really dead, that the smoke had killed him and he really hadn’t awoken in that forest far away from the carnage. That there had been a pause in his life and now he was back to dying. That One for All was dead.

His mouth was dry. His tongue was painful to move. His teeth ached. 

And someone was petting his hair. 

“Izuku,” someone mumbled, so far under the ocean, so far away from the flames. He reached, trying to chase that water, trying to push himself up. Arms around him helped him sit up. They were warm. They didn’t burn. To him, they felt freezing. 

“Ma-” his voice was so loud, and it hurt, somewhere so deep he didn’t know where to reach to comfort it, “Mama.”

“Here,” and suddenly there was a drizzle of water in his mouth, and he gulped it down, craving more, wanting nothing but to consume the same as the rabid flame in his chest. It felt like he wasn’t getting enough. It felt like he was getting too much, as the water hit his stomach and suddenly he felt nausea crawl up his throat. He dry heaved, his body not quite remembering how to vomit, and he knew that it would burn more if bile came up. A pan was put under his face, and his next heave had water coming up. It didn’t burn- there was little acid in his body for it to burn- he didn’t feel it all besides the tears welling in his eyes. He felt faint, far away.

“Slower, this time,” the voice whispered, setting the siphon dripping water at the back of his throat so that he didn’t even need to swallow. He wanted to complain that his mouth was dry, but it was hardly a moment before the voice pulled the siphon back and allowed him to fill his mouth.

“Hold it, then spit,” and Izuku did, because he didn’t know what else to do besides listen. Maybe among the stars those that died needed to recover from their wounds in life. That sounded about right.

“Do you need to do it again?” and Izuku did, because his tongue had started to bleed when it hit water and he didn’t want to taste it. He still could. 

“Hurts,” he whispered. He didn’t recognize his voice- wasn’t quite sure if it was his.

“I know, I know, I’m sorry. Do you want to lay back down?”

He whimpered, leaning into the freezing warmth, “I don’t know, I don’t-”

He started coughing, and then it was like he couldn’t stop. Everything felt dry, burned, chalky like charcoal. Like if it met force it would just break to pieces. The voice was shushing him, gentle hands going back to brushing through his hair. His hand reached up, grasping onto the clothing of the figure, and his body racked with burning. 

“Hurts,” he said, like a breath, “it hurts.”

“I know, I know, shhhhh, I’ve got you, I’ll pass in a second, I’ve got you,” the voice said, and one of the hands brushed the tears from his cheeks, “I know it hurts, you’re going to be alright, I’ve got you.”

Izuku whined, low and drawn, “Mama.”

“I know, I know,” the voice said, “I’ve got you. You’re safe.”

His vision grew less bleary, his eyes trailing up the arm that was pressing freezing warmth to his face and chasing all the tears away, to the shoulder, to the chest he was leaning on for support. The clothing wasn’t familiar- metal and leather arm bracers, fabric gloves over two fingers, with no shirt on but a cloak clasped at his neck with-

“Mama,” he mumbled, because that was the symbol on his mother’s necklace. She’d told him it was the centerpiece to his father’s dowry, the first gift he’d ever given her, but he hadn’t seen it anywhere else. It seemed meaningless in a world where everything had a meaning. He didn’t know this freezing person, but he wondered why he had it.

He wondered why it was the first gift from his father, when he’d never seen her have any other gift from him. 

His hand reached up to trace it. It really was just like his mother’s necklace, black titanium with the embedded dragon that flashed white and gold and rainbow in the sunlight. His eyes fluttered. He felt like he’d blinked for a long moment, before a flash of pain, of heat, overtook his entire body and he felt like he was dying again. He sobbed, clutching onto this stranger’s cloak, his entire body shivering with aftershocks.

“It hurts,” he sobbed, as the stranger drew him closer, arms wrapping around his body- a freezing comfort.

“I know, I know it hurts. I’m so sorry Izuku. Take a deep breath, it’ll pass in a moment,” the stranger said, lips pressed against his temple, and Izuku sobbed, valiantly trying to breathe. As the stranger promised, it passed.

“What’s- what’s happening to me?” he whimpered, shaking, “Am I still dying?”

“No, no Izu, it’s alright, you’re in heat, you’re not dying,” the stranger whispered, “you’re in heat, you’re not dying. I promise that you’re going to be alright. It’s going to pass, okay? You’ll feel better soon. Dabi- go get the doctor. Tell him to get morphine.”

Izuku sobbed, feeling like he’d cried more in the last moment than he had in his entire life. His family died in front of him, and within the next blink he was in heat. He didn’t know what was happening and everything hurt.

“It’s alright, it’s going to be alright,” the stranger said, taking his tears away, “I’ve got you.”

“What’s happen- happening?” Izuku whined.

“Four months ago, an army led by the King of Endeavor burned Symbol, the capital of Yuuei, to the ground. You were caught in the fire. Refugees fled north, and Tartarus allowed them refuge. You are in the capital of Tartarus right now. Do you know what city that is?”

“Sh… Shi,” he mumbled, “I’m in Shi? How?”

“Your friend brought you very far, and you made the rest of the trip on a palanquin horse and ship. The gods shed their tears, you didn’t die traveling,” he said. Izuku licked his lips, blood instead of spit wetting them.

“Friend…?” Izuku mumbled, “Kacchan?”

“Katsuki Bakugo, son of Mitsuki Bakugo, Uian Court of War,” the stranger said, and Izuku smiled, even though it hurt, even though it caused his lip to bleed.

“Kacchan’s alive?”

“Yes, he’s alive,” the stranger said, “but he was acting like a fool so he got kicked out of this room. Do you… do you know who I am?”

Izuku pushed away from the stranger just enough to see his face. His hair was somewhere between silver and white, his eyes blood red. There were scars drawing painful looking lines through his lip and eye. Izuku hummed, before shaking his head, his body leaning to the side without something to support it. The stranger grabbed him before he could fall off the bed, which was nice, because he just felt so-

The sudden burning made a scream well up in his throat, which hurt, and then he was back to sobbing into the chest of the stranger while he cooed to him. He heard someone else speaking, but it felt so far away. He thought he heard the words ‘bad’ though, and it made him recoil, trying to bury himself as deep into the body of the stranger as he could.

Then the pain was gone, and he was floating somewhere above his head. He could still feel, and move, he thought, but it all felt syrupy, like moving through honey. Through his bleary eyes he could see a man with a big mustache, holding onto a line with something else in his hand. He giggled when he saw the line led up to him, digging into his skin. He wanted to rip it out, but the stranger stopped him. Mean stranger.

“Izuku, Izuku,” the stranger said, “who is your mother?”

“Hmmm… Midoriya Inko,” Izuku mumbled, “she’s pretty…”

“Yes, she’s pretty,” the stranger said, “who is your father?”

“The king…” Izuku mumbled, “King… uhh Toshinori of Yuuei, the One for All.”

The stranger squeezed him tighter, “Was he always your father?”

Izuku felt like he was turning into syrup, “Mmmmm… I dunno. I ate his hair.”

“Uh- what?” the stranger said, glancing at the man with the big mustache for a moment. They both seemed confused, “Who’s the Lord of Tartarus?”

“Uhhh… Lord Shigaraki,” Izuku mumbled, “his magic is so cool… he can take the magic of other people and use it for himself…”

“And… his children?”

“Oh no… uhhh…” Izuku could barely remember the name of his children when he wasn’t high, “Crown Prince-General… um… Shigaraki…?” Then he remembered that ‘children’ was plural, and mentally reprimanded himself for not remembering the other one, “And another… um… child…?”

The stranger snorted, “Do you know their first names?”

“Lord Shigaraki’s first name is… Hisashi. And… oh no… uhhh… Tomiko?”

“Tomura,” the stranger said, and the man with a big mustache seemed to find this really funny, which was mean, “and the last child?”

Shit. He’d hoped he wouldn’t ask that.

“Uh… I don’t know.”

The stranger shook his head, something fond, “That’s alright. His name was Prince Izuku Shigaraki. His mother was Inko Shigaraki.”

Izuku hummed, before mumbling, “That’s weird, that’s my mother and me’s name.”

“Uh-huh,” the stranger said, “and my name is Tomura.”

“That’s a nice name,” Izuku mumbled, before everything felt far away.