Chapter Text
Plunge
Expectations parallel, and on this frigid shore
You’ve never wanted more
Asked for it, never been granted it
Skip the semantics and keep to your work
No matter how much those looks hurt
Shook yourself free from such a dismal elegy
Another wave breaks on the sand,
And hear the cannon roar for your ascension.
No more questions. Keep running till your lungs burn.
The ocean churns, a place further than your heart can bear.
There, may you plunge into your new future.
***
Atsumu was happy with his simple enough life.
His long skirts were a hassle as he carried a basket on each arm and a pack of flour over each shoulder, but he was well used to navigating the market streets even in such cumbersome attire.
Don’t need to ostracize myself anymore…
Atsumu was an omega.
By his society’s standards, here in the North Sea Union, he should probably be inside, like, knitting or pregnant or cooking or something.
Probably all three at the same time, actually.
I could get a few rows of stitches done while the soup boils!
He teased himself internally, for that was further from the truth of his life than anything else.
He was nineteen this year, and no one wanted him aside from his twin brother. Osamu and him, they played this game of life together, always had. Abandoned young in these village streets, they made ends meet enough to afford their narrow townhouse on the outskirts of town and to keep firewood burning during the day and hot water bottles at night.
Despite this being a seaside town, a sunny coastal retreat wasn’t in the cards for Atsumu. This place was locked in snow and ice for a good seven months of the year, and it was either raining or hailing the other five.
In fact, today was a rare day when the sun hung in a blue sky. The frigid temperature made Atsumu glad he’d chosen to sport his scarf this morning, the long cream-colored tails of the thing trailing behind him as he walked.
He wore a dress with white petticoats and a yellow top skirt that split to show the slightly strung-out buttons running down the front. A yellow top shirt’s long sleeves protected him from most of the cold, and having lived here his whole life, the cold was like a bitter old friend to him.
So he kept walking, dodging both physical humans darting about as well as sidelong shameful glances.
The town wasn’t exactly proud to have someone like him around. Obviously, he wasn’t anything like an omega should be in this society.
He was tall and strong from years working the markets, running material around for different vendors. The only people here who tolerated him were the vendors themselves, some of whom had taken a liking to him.
But Atsumu would walk with his head held high. This simple life was enough.
He was fine. His brother was fine.
Everything was fine.
Resolving this in his mind, he carried on, feet crunching through the slush left from last night’s snow on the streets.
Naturally, that was when he heard the first explosion.
Screams erupted up the street as a wave of wails came from the village’s tiny port.
“Raiders! From the South!”
Atsumu whirled on his heel and saw, to his horror, brilliant scarlet sails over several massive junk-like ships.
Another explosion, and he saw magic circles whirling in the skies triggering more attack spells.
Having grown up in a little trading town on the North Sea, this was the first time Atsumu saw magic with his own two eyes, but he didn’t have time to bask in the splendor of it. Glittering rays rained down on the port, causing explosions, and people were fleeing like mad up the market street towards the forests that lined the back of the town.
Atsumu dropped the baskets he was carrying and quickly ditched the flour packs before sprinting off as well.
However, he struggled in his steps because he was going in the opposite direction as everyone else, running towards the port with all he had.
Samu was working a temp job unloading wares at the port today!
So lungs feeling afire from the frigid air, Atsumu ran along the side of the market street, dodging people trying to escape in the opposite direction. As he made it to where the market street opened into a large plaza, the biggest gathering center in the whole town, he saw carnage in the streets.
Several people, scorched from the impact of the magic spells, were lying prone or screaming for help. He could see one of the Southern ships had docked. Those disembarking were wearing clothes that glittered like jewels. Brightly colored scarves and decorated boots. They wore countless adornments, unlike the stiff nature of the dresses in the North Union.
Atsumu dove behind a nearby shipping crate as he watched the uppers coming off the ship.
“No unnecessary brutality, you hear me?” Someone from the prow of the docked ship shouted.
“We’re already stealing their shit. I’m not gonna kill anyone who’s not trying to kill me!” One of the sailors called back in reply, and within minutes they were loading up the ship with the different crates in the harbor.
So they’re just here to resupply? Thank god…
Atsumu didn’t know much about the politics of his home country, but he did know that the North Sea Union and the Kingdom of the South were at war.
Why?
He didn’t know.
For how long?
Maybe like two or three years, he’d guess.
Those far-off battles for the gains of the rich who already had fat pockets weren’t of much interest to him, someone struggling to get by on the daily.
He just knew they were at war and that it probably was the North Sea Unions’ fault because his country, continually locked in snow and ice as it was, needed territory further South if it hoped to survive with its ballooning population.
He’d heard that from one of the sailors who’d stopped in town, and that was the extent of his knowledge of the situation.
The more immediate concern was where the hell his brother was.
Did he already getaway? Should I just run back to the house?
Atsumu’s mind was in a whirlwind, so much so that he didn’t pick up on the sailor on the shore shouting something. “Don’t forget to keep an eye out for the King’s wish, as well! Who knows, maybe we’ll finally catch one that meets his fancy.”
“Oh, yeah! Though I think we already missed the boat on that. Seems like they’ve all turned and run after those warning shots.”
Atsumu crept along behind the different crates, searching frantically around.
If I can’t find him soon, I’ll just run for it. Surely he saw the ships coming and ran when he saw the scarlet sails!
His heart was hammering wildly as he kept up his search and spotted, at last, a head of grayish hair poking from a corner nearby.
He made a beeline towards it, avoiding detection by the invaders now roaming the port and seizing his twin's arm.
“Samu!” He exclaimed.
The alpha clapped a hand over his mouth to keep from screaming in surprise before glaring up at him. “What are you doing here, Tsumu!?” He whisper-screamed.
“Finding you, dumbass. Now let’s get out of here!”
The younger seized him by the arm and pulled him down behind the crate alongside him. “How do you suggest we do that? Huh? They’re everywhere! I got knocked out for a few minutes by the blast of one of those magical cannons, when I came too I was too late to escape with everyone else.”
Atsumu peeked around the corner of the crate again, gritting his teeth.
“We’ll just hide here, then. I don’t think they’ll come all the way over here. It seems like they just want the fresh supplies from this morning.”
So they hid together behind the crate for several terrifying minutes, occasionally daring to peak out and check the status of the invaders still busily looting the harbor.
It seemed they’d loaded up a sizable amount of goods when one of the group paused, looking around. “Should I try to go find one for the King in town?”
The man standing at the ship's prow, an alpha with broad shoulders, short black hair, and a squarish face, heaved a sigh. “Just have a look around near the port. If you can’t find one, we’ll just move on. His Majesty himself won’t be that concerned about it.”
“He should be more concerned about it!” Came a different voice from somewhere on the ship's deck, to which the man on the prow could only chuckle.
“Surely he should, but I’m not entirely sure we’ll find what His Majesty is looking for in a village small as this. It doesn’t hurt to poke around a little longer, though.”
With those words exchanged, the invaders began to fan out, and Atsumu felt his heart leap into his throat when he realized two of them were coming towards the cluster of remaining crates, some of which had been tossed or broken in the explosions.
“Samu, they’re coming.” He hissed, gripping his brother’s arm so tightly he was sure he’d leave bruises.
Osamu made to stand, but a hollowed look appeared in his eyes, and he slumped again.
“My… head .” He hissed, having been hit with a debilitating headache. He didn’t know, but it was a common reaction for someone to have for about an hour after taking such a hard blow from a magical discharge.
Atsumu looked down at him again, then up at the rapidly approaching invaders.
Clearly, if they were to get into a fight, the twins were doomed.
Furthermore, Osamu wouldn’t be able to do much more than stumble along should Atsumu somehow get him on his feet.
The decision left to be made was obvious to Atsumu, at least.
“…ya stay here, ok?” He whispered slowly, releasing his grip on his brother’s arm one finger at a time.
Osamu looked up at him in total confusion. “What? And what?” He demanded, not at all following.
Atsumu swallowed. “Hey, so…listen. Ya be quiet. I’ll draw them away, wait till it’s safe, then try to make it back to the market.”
Osamu seemed to very pointedly understand what his brother was planning at that instant and latched onto his wrist. “Don’t you dare! You’re not doing that to me, ok? We’ll… we’ll figure it out together, we…”
The panic lit within the young alpha's gaze was a strange sight, considering he was usually so even-keel, but anyone would be terrified in a situation like this.
“Hey, hey, who said I was making some heroic sacrifice? I’ll run around the back of the harbor and lose them in the repair area. Then I’ll meet up with you at home once it’s safe.”
“No, you won’t. I know you won’t.” Osamu hissed, and Atsumu reflected on how it was the first time he’d seen tears in his brother’s eyes.
At this point, the invaders were less than thirty feet away and walking fast.
Atsumu pried his brother’s hand from his wrist and spoke. “Yeah…maybe I won’t. So, I love ya and all that, alright, Samu? Now shut up!”
He then picked up a nearby smashed plank of wood, stood up, and hurled it with all his strength at the two approaching him.
He promptly jumped out from behind the crate and bailed, sprinting down the harbor's edge, along the sea, one fist in his skirts to keep him from tripping on it.
The invader who’d narrowly dodged a concussion from the flung piece of wood whistled. “Strong arm, he’s got.”
“Hey, wait… he’s wearing a dress! Looks like we’ll bring home something for the King after all!”
“I never understood the appeal of Northern lowers outfits…look at the poor thing. He can barely even run dressed like that.”
“Well, they’re weird up here about those sorts of things.”
After a few moments spent bantering, the two gave chase, pursuing Atsumu toward the repair dock of the harbor.
Two trained soldiers chasing down a lone teenager who wasn’t exactly dressed for a sprint wasn’t fair game, but Atsumu managed to keep ahead of them and dashed into the repairs dock. The place was littered with bits of rigging, planks, bolts, and other odds and ends. Atsumu flung himself behind a sail draped over a jutting-out pole, clapping a hand over his mouth to try and keep quiet.
Ok…ok, got them away from Samu, now what!?
Of course, he hadn’t thought that far ahead, so now he was trying to catch his breath and think up what to do.
The water just a few feet away from him, lapping at the dock's edge, could have served as an escape route.
If, of course, it wasn’t snowing. Atsumu would probably die of hypothermia if he tried to dive into the water and hide until the invaders gave up their chase.
Before he could think further, the sail was suddenly ripped back, and a head jutted through the opening.
“You’re a fast one, aren’t…” The alpha didn’t finish his sentence because Atsumu’s fight-or-flight response was certainly in fight mode.
So he punched the invader square in the jaw, knocking him backward, and turned to run again, only to find himself plunging straight into his partner's arms.
He bounced off the man’s chest, somehow managing a halfway decent accidental tackle, but his heel caught on the back of his skirt as he stumbled backward.
He topped sideways, and before he could find anything to grasp or manage to catch himself, he was hitting the saltwater with a massive splash.
For a few seconds, everything was cold and dark. His body went into shock from hitting the freezing water, and as he fell, he’d hit his head off the side of the ship docked for repairs.
In those few seconds fighting to keep his limbs moving, Atsumu recognized the sensation of someone grasping his arm and pulling him upward.
Then it all spiraled into black.