Work Text:
In the short amount of time Mitsuba has existed, the universe has found many creative ways to antagonize him. He’s not sure which god has it out for him, but he has to hand it to them- they’re dedicated.
The first face he ever saw was Tsukasa’s, which should’ve been enough punishment for whatever crime he committed in a past life. He had no sense of identity, and his maker left him to wander the earth alone. There was no place for him to belong, everything he found felt temporary. No matter where he went, he kept coming back to Tsukasa, only to be turned away as soon as the maniac got bored.
Sometimes, Mitsuba thinks he only exists to be abandoned. He’s no good on his own, but nobody will take care of him without a cruel catch. He’s a burden at best, and a punching bag at worst. He searches for humanity, only to be reminded of how far he is from that world. He can’t have what he wants, and he doesn’t want what he has.
The cherry on top of his disaster of an unlife is his status as an omega. Apparently, the previous owner of his body had already presented before his death, meaning Mitsuba managed to skip out on that unpleasant process. A small grace, since he was given no time to adjust to his hormones. His omega instincts revved up his desire to be protected, making every rejection sting like salt in a wound.
Omegas are supposed to be wanted and taken care of. If he can’t manage that much, he must be pretty useless. He sees how alphas flock to omegas like Aoi and Hanako, so what makes him any different? The only alphas that do pay attention to him only want to drag him into their shady schemes. He doesn’t even need a mate (though that would be nice), just someone to look out for him.
Any alpha who’s not Kou Minamoto.
He’s bitterly jealous of most omegas, but Kou makes him understand why so many of them hate receiving attention from alphas. No matter what he does, he can’t get the guy to leave him alone. He can only listen to the knothead pledge his undying loyalty to him so many times before puking. He may be desperate, but he doesn’t need protection from a wimp like that. He has some self respect.
It’s not that he hates Kou, he just can’t stand to be around him. That tacky red earring gives him a headache, just like those scary sharp teeth that flash with every reassuring smile. Kou’s a brute too, he doesn’t realize that alphas are supposed to be delicate with omegas. Mitsuba has to think about his own safety, he can’t just go around befriending exorcists.
Everything about Kou makes him uneasy. His tacky earring, his sharp teeth, his bright blue eyes, his arms. He makes Mitsuba’s chest hurt, and his stomach churn. It’s like there’s bugs in there, moths flapping their wings every time Kou opens his mouth. His palms start to sweat and his face gets all warm. He hates that feeling more than anything in the world, more than the books Sakura makes him read and the “food” Tsukasa cooks for him.
He recognizes that this inexplicable disdain for the exorcist doesn’t explain why he continues to hang out with him. It also doesn’t explain why he’s stolen his hoodie.
In his defense, this is entirely not his fault. Kou is the one who left his hoodie abandoned on the back of his chair after the bell rang. Mitsuba just happened to be observing him from afar at the right time, appalled by his forgetfulness. Disappointing, but not at all surprising. Kou’s head is full of sex and violence, holding no room for intelligence. Of course a heathen like him would leave his hoodie behind, in a spot where it could so easily be stolen. He was probably hoping some depraved omega would take it to use for their nest.
Well.
It’s not going in his nest, but Mitsuba sees no harm in holding onto it until Kou comes back. He won’t ever know, the smell is so strong that Mitsuba’s own scent won’t be noticeable.
The scent is what drew him to it in the first place. If Kou has one redeeming quality, it’s his scent. He would never inflate the dimwit’s ego by telling him that to his face though.
Maybe it’s a little weird for him to be smelling his friend’s things, but that’s also out of his control. Mitsuba has never handled his heats well, and his preheats aren’t much better. Fortunately, the urge to be bred doesn’t kick in for omegas until their twenties- possibly the only good thing about not aging. Still, everything hurts. His cramps nearly kill him, and he craves physical comfort that will never come. The only thing that makes it a little better is having an alpha nearby, or even just their scent.
Which is how he ended up sitting on the floor of an abandoned classroom, holding Kou’s hoodie to his face.
Without competition, this is Mitsuba’s favorite smell. Again, he would rather die twice than tell that to Kou, but there’s no harm in keeping secrets. Kou smells like thunderstorms, a smell that makes Mitsuba feel pathetically safe. He knows it’s sad, but Kou’s scent makes him feel like nothing can hurt him.
It somehow eases his cramps, shrouding him in a halo of calm. All his anxiety dissipates like fog leaving his brain, clearing his mind. At the same time, it makes him feel swimmy, the same feeling you get when you’ve been spinning for too long. He feels warm, but not unbearably hot like he was before.
He rubs his face against the blue cloth, hoping some of the scent lingers when he has to put it back. The thought of letting it go already makes the stupid, omega part of his brain panic, but he shoves that feeling aside. He’s too prideful to ask Kou for another one of his shirts, and Kou would probably just laugh at him if he did.
The mental image makes him shiver, clinging tighter to the hoodie. Kou would probably insult him too. He’d probably find it so embarrassing, that he’d rough Mitsuba up for it. There’s no way he’d get out of that encounter without a black eye.
That’s another thing he unfortunately doesn’t mind about Kou. He’s not as violent as Mitsuba would like him to be, but he’s still so mean . He pinches him when he’s distracted, pulls his hair to get his attention, shoves him when he’s being annoying. If Mitsuba ever worked up the courage to ask, he’s sure he could get Kou to slap him in the face.
He immediately pulls himself out of those thoughts. It’s really weird to fantasize about your best friend beating you up. Even if he’s not thinking about it in a dirty way, it’s still not normal. Kou would be disgusted.
So disgusted, that he might want to knock Mitsuba’s teeth out.
His face feels hot again, the same way it does whenever Kou brushes his hair out of his face. He doesn’t know what to make of the feeling, so he focuses his attention back on the hoodie. So soft against his face, and a little damp in some areas from gym class. That might be why it smells so strongly. The realization would normally disgust him, but Mitsuba currently can’t bring himself to care about anything other than how safe the smell makes him feel.
He knows he looks like a creep right now, or even a stalker. As long as nobody finds out though, he’s in the clear. Besides, the circumstances are out of his control. He’s not in the right state of mind, and it’s Kou’s fault for forgetting his hoodie. In any case, what Kou doesn’t know won’t hurt him.
“Is that my hoodie?”
Mitsuba freezes at the sound of his voice, panic piercing his chest like a bullet. His supernatural instincts tell him to run at the sight of an exorcist, and his omega instincts tell him to kneel in the presence of an alpha. Both those options sound like bullshit, so he stays where he is, slowly lifting his head to face Kou.
He can’t even imagine how insane he must look right now, smelling some guy’s hoodie like a weirdo. Kou will probably want nothing to do with him after this, and Mitsuba won’t be able to blame him. Every excuse he thought of suddenly sounds very weak, and the apologies die on his tongue before he can get them out.
To his relief, Kou doesn’t look angry. Only confused, and somewhat concerned. He steps closer, unknowingly making Mitsuba’s hormones go insane.
“I can explain…”
“Go on.”
He flinches at the accusatory tone. No, Kou can’t be mean to him right now. He’ll either end up crying or throwing himself at the loser. Kou needs to go back to being his usual, idiotic self; unless he wants to make this situation a million times worse than it already is.
Kou’s scent is even stronger in person, and he won’t stop walking towards Mitsuba. He stops when he’s right in front of him, towering over him like- ugh, ew, he’s so gross.
“Get away from me, perv.”
“Really? I’m the perv?”
“I’m not doing anything weird here,” he snaps. “Get your mind out of the gutter.”
He’s not prepared for the incoming kick- light, but it hurts like hell because of his cramps and soreness. Being cornered by an alpha sets off a wave of anxiety, every instinct telling him to run while he still can. He clings to the logic that this is Kou, and Kou would never hurt him. Kou will understand, even if this looks weird at first glance. He likes to push Mitsuba around, but he would never want to upset him. Not unless he could comfort him and take him out for ice cream afterwards.
His pheromones must be signaling his distress, because Kou’s expression changes. He crouches down to Mitsuba’s level, frowning when the ghost flinches away.
“What’s going on?” He asks, softer this time.
“It’s not what it looks like.”
“Relax, I’m not mad. I just wanna know what’s wrong.”
Mitsuba absolutely despises that gentle tone Kou uses with him. It makes him feel like he could lay on Kou’s chest for hours and not be bothered. Like he never has to worry about anything ever again, because Kou will take care of it all. He knows Kou has issues that he shouldn’t indulge. He bases his entire self-worth on his ability to save people, and he hates himself every time he falls short. Still, he’s so easy to lean on sometimes.
It would be nice to find a balance, a way for Kou to take care of him that wasn’t damaging to both of them. He has no idea how to start that conversation though.
He fumbles for the right words to say, clutching the hoodie like it will magically teleport him out of the room.
“I’m in preheat,” he starts. “And your hoodie was- I mean you just left it there. It’s covered in your scent, and you’re an alpha so…it made me feel better.”
Kou’s eyes widened. “You’re in heat?”
“Preheat.”
“I thought you smelled different.”
He wrinkles his nose. “That sounds creepy.”
He freezes again at the feeling of a hand carding through his hair, almost petting. All he wants when he’s in heat is to be close to someone, and Kou’s gentle touch is too much to bear. He doesn’t push him away, because it still feels nice; and he subconsciously wants to prove that he’s a good omega. He’s not loud or annoying, and he doesn’t inconvenience anyone. Mitsuba shouldn’t be trying to win him over, Kou is the last person he wants as his alpha. He’ll see right through the act anyway, so there’s no point to it.
“Things must be pretty rough for you if you had to steal my hoodie,” Kou comments. “Do you need an alpha to spend your heat with?”
His shoulders tense. “Sakura said that’s dangerous.”
“She did?” He grins. “That’s too bad.”
“I hate you.”
“Right, I’m sure that’s why you’re using my hoodie to get yourself through your preheat.”
He wishes the ground would swallow him up already. Any fate would be better than sitting here and listening to Kou tease him. He’s letting Kou touch his hair while he bullies him. This is humiliating.
“Shut up.”
“It’s not really dangerous,” he says. “Not unless you get stuck with a really shitty alpha. Most of us can control ourselves.”
“I know that,” he groans. “I’ve spent my heat with an alpha before.”
Kou’s hand stills. “You have?”
“Not like that, obviously. Stop making it weird.”
He spent his first two heats with Tsukasa, which went over like a lead balloon. Tsukasa would leave him alone for extended periods of time, and whenever he was around, he treated him terribly. There were nice times when Tsukasa would hold him without saying anything. But that never lasted long. He tried to spend one heat with Sakura, but she was too busy to carve out that much time for him. Natsuhiko had offered once but…Kou told him to stay away from Natsuhiko.
“I guess I shouldn’t have assumed,” Kou apologizes. “I’ve stayed with omegas during their heat before, nothing weird ever happened. It’s nothing like you see in the movies.”
“I know,” Mitsuba grits out. “I’ve had heats before.”
“…Right.”
“Does anyone help you through your ruts?”
“Usually Yokoo or Satou, but they’re both betas. I guess Hanako’s heard some horror stories about alphas in rut so he won’t do it.”
“I don’t blame him.”
Kou yanks his hair. “Not all alphas are like that.”
“Just you and your brother then.”
Another yank. “Don’t drag Teru into this.”
“Sorry,” he mumbles.
It sounds far more pathetic than he intended. Why did he apologize? They tease each other all the time, it’s nothing personal. He’s really out of it today.
Kou catches it too, eyebrows shooting up.
“Do you always get like this?”
“It just hurts.”
That was apparently the wrong thing to say. Kou’s whole demeanor shifts, eyes lighting up.
“So you’re in a lot of pain right now?”
“Don’t be a creep.”
“I’m not,” he swears. “But on a scale from one to ten, how much does it hurt?”
“Fuck off.”
He’s bad with numbers, so he couldn’t answer that invasive question even if he wanted to. Otherwise, he refuses to indulge Kou’s sadistic side while he’s like this. The audacity of this man never fails to amaze him.
“Is that why you took my hoodie?”
Shit, he knows. This isn’t good.
“The scent helps,” he admits.
His hand tightens in the fabric, heart racing. He doesn’t think he’d be able to beat Kou in a fight for it, not in this state. He can’t even come up with a good strategy, because the hand in his hair is making his mind go numb. Attention from an alpha is all he wants, but he never knew it could feel this good. No other alpha makes him feel so safe and taken care of. He’s not even that worried about Kou taking his hoodie back, because he knows Kou won’t let him suffer for long.
What is he even thinking? Kou is the last alpha he wants. He really needs to get it together.
Slowly, Kou begins to pull the hoodie away. Mitsuba’s grip must not have been as tight as he thought, because it slips out of his grasp easily. He tries to take it back, but Kou holds it just out of reach.
“Minamoto-kun…”
“I’m gonna be nice to you,” he informs. “But only because you’re going into heat.”
“You’re not doing a very good job.”
“Consider it payback for taking my things.”
“I don’t get what you’re trying to do here.”
“I’m trying to help you,” he ruffles his hair. “If it’s the scent you want, I have a better idea than the hoodie.”
He scowls, not in the mood to deal with Kou’s savior complex. He just wants his hoodie back, he’s not interested in finding out what Kou’s offer is.
“I was fine with the hoodie.”
“This will last longer though,” he presses. “Let me scent you.”
Mitsuba’s lips part at the suggestion, brain lagging. He must have misheard him, there’s no way Kou just offered to…
He said it so casually, like it’s something he does all the time. That’s the part that confuses him the most. He always thought scenting was a soft-launch for claiming, which would unfortunately make sense. Kou isn’t exactly subtle about wanting to be his alpha, he’s convinced it would be the solution to all of Mitsuba’s problems. But Kou wouldn’t try to trick him into that while he’s in preheat, he’s not that type of person. He’s worried about that with every other alpha he’s ever spoken to, but he’s never had to worry about that with Kou.
“I already told you,” he says. “I don’t want to be your mate.”
“Huh?” Kou looks taken aback. “What are you talking about? Have you never been scented before?”
“I don’t have a mate, so no.”
“It’s not only mates that do that,” he explains. “It’s not even anything romantic. My siblings and I scent each other all the time. I do it with all my friends too, it’s a comfort thing.”
That would explain why Kou’s scent changes so often. The overtone of thunderstorms is still impossible to miss, but Mitsuba occasionally detects an extra smell that throws him off. He just assumed Kou wore a lot of cologne.
Now that he knows, he can’t help but feel ashamed. If scenting is really so common, then how come no one’s ever wanted to do that with him? Not even Sakura or Natsuhiko? He shouldn’t take it personally, but the realization stings.
“I didn’t know that.”
Kou frowns sympathetically, his free hand coming up to hold Mitsuba’s face. He leans into the touch, reveling in Kou’s warmth.
“It’s not permanent,” Kou continues. “It goes away after a few days, and you can scrub it off in the shower if you want it gone sooner. It doesn’t hurt.”
He doesn’t need to be sold any further, now that he knows scenting is something everybody does, he wants to experience it. There’s also the fact that he’s dangerously close to heat, and Kou is an alpha telling him to do something. He’s not using any commands, but with Mitsuba that barely makes a difference. The desire to make Kou happy outweighs any concerns he might have.
“You’re not lying to me, are you?”
“I would never.”
His eyes are serious and intense, so Mitsuba has no choice but to believe him. He just hopes this doesn’t turn out to be a dumb decision. If this is a trap, it could have devastating consequences. Kou is by far the worst alpha he could be stuck with.
A stupid, masochistic voice in the back of his head really hopes Kou is lying.
“Fine,” he relents. “You can scent me.”
Kou lights up. “Really?”
“Did I stutter?”
“You won’t regret this,” he promises. “It’s gonna make you feel so much better.”
“Get on with it then,” he crosses his arms. “I don’t have all day.”
“It doesn’t take long, it’ll be over in a flash.”
“Then why are you dragging it out?”
Kou opens his mouth to argue, but quickly closes it. He must have remembered his vow to be nice. It’s good to know he has some sense.
He takes Mitsuba’s hand, gently rolling his sleeve up to his forearm. Then, holding him as delicately as he would a flower, he brings Mitsuba’s wrist up to the scent glands on his neck.
Turns out he wasn’t lying about the speed, he only has to rub them together three times for the scent to linger. It takes effect immediately, Kou’s scent flooding Mitsuba’s senses. He relaxes on instinct, feeling just as peaceful as he did before Kou showed up.
He takes a deep breath, soaking up the feeling. This is so much better than the hoodie, it’s lasting and consuming. He understands why people do this for comfort, he feels completely at ease right now. The stabbing pain is dulled to a low ache, made easier by the invisible mark of an alpha.
It feels like a warm bath, like resting your head on a cold pillow after a long day. Like fresh food in your mouth, or a hug from an old friend. It’s pure bliss, but not so euphoric that Mitsuba loses sense of things. The feeling is subtle, yet impossible to miss.
“Did it work?”
Mitsuba nods. “Feels nice.”
“You can scent me too if you want.”
His cheeks turn pink. “Really?”
“Of course,” he sounds way too eager. “I want you too.”
It’s still not a command, and Mitsuba’s head has cleared up enough not to succumb to his instincts. Still, for some inexplicable reason, he wants to make Kou happy.
“If you’re sure…” he reaches for Kou’s wrist. “Do I do the same thing you did?”
“Yeah, just rub my wrist against your scent glands. It’s super easy.”
Kou probably doesn’t intend to sound so condescending, but it’s still irritating.
Mitsuba does as he’s instructed, rubbing Kou’s wrist against his neck until the blond smells strongly of cotton candy.
The whole process feels strangely domestic. Not overwhelming like Mitsuba had feared, nor binding. Turns out Kou wasn’t tricking him. He’s not sure why that disappoints him.
The atmosphere has turned light and calming, devoid of its previous tension. They’re sitting across from each other, neither of them really knowing what to say. Kou is smiling at Mitsuba fondly, like he’s something special. Mitsuba doesn’t know what to make of that, so he pretends not to notice.
“Hey,” Kou says, suddenly. “Just so you know, my previous offer still stands.”
“What offer?”
“You shouldn’t have to go through your heats alone,” he shifts. “Omegas need an alpha.”
He makes a face. “You ruined the moment.”
“We were having a moment?”
“Stop talking,” he whines. “You’re making everything worse.”
“I thought I made everything better,” Kou frowns. “The scenting seemed to help.”
“It did, then you opened your mouth.”
“It doesn’t have to mean anything,” he presses. “Like I said, I’ve helped omegas through their heat before. I won’t mate you even if you ask.”
“The answer is no.”
Kou sighs. “Worth a shot.”
He doesn’t completely hate the idea of spending his heat with Kou. More often than not, Kou is who he longs for in those moments of pain and isolation. He craves Kou’s bittersweet reassurance; he complicates everything, but no one else holds Mitsuba the way he does. He hugs Mitsuba like he’s trying to make the rest of the world disappear.
They would never work. Mitsuba doesn’t know how to handle that much devotion, he can’t even comprehend being loved by someone like Kou. He was made to be abandoned, and he doesn’t deserve good things. He’d mess it up somehow, and Kou would end up hating him. Besides, he’s not the one Kou really wants. He only exists because the boy Kou loves is dead.
Even if that wasn’t the case, they couldn’t stay together. They come from different worlds, and Mitsuba doubts Kou will ever find a way to fulfill his wish. They aren’t meant to last, and if they were, then Mitsuba would still find a way to ruin things.
It’s not a huge loss, he doesn’t even like Kou. He’s the last alpha Mitsuba wants, the worst friend he could ever ask for. Mitsuba wants nothing to do with him.
Those feelings don’t quite explain why Kou’s scent makes him feel so safe. They don’t explain why Mitsuba thinks of Kou so often, why he aches for his comfort.
He hopes he never learns the answer.