#all platonically

“You smell like ink.” Surprisingly, it was Spector who said this, his eyebrows furrowed as he approached Frank. Frank didn’t flinch back or growl at the mint scent- he was used to it by now. “And of an alpha.”

Frank rolled his eyes and glared at the man when he growled. At his glare, Spector must have realised that his inner alpha was unconsciously taking over again, as he ceased the aggressive noise.

“Sorry.” Spector grumbled out. “But it still doesn’t change the fact that you smell like ink.”

“Spector, I meet with other alphas often.” Frank sighed as he continued to clean his gun whilst the other man stalked around him, occasionally pausing as if he were mentally talking to someone. “I come home with other alpha scents.”

“Yeah, but not the kind that makes Matt uncomfortable.”

“It was a friend. The person I met.” Frank paused in cleaning his weapon. “And she was also a friend of Red’s- a bond. But it didn’t work out well.”

Spector let out a small hum before slumping down into the sofa in the space next to him. Frank could see the thoughts running through the other man’s head. It was clear that Spector’s hypersensitive alpha instincts were taking over him again.

The mint smelling alpha was very protective. Especially now that he was part of this little unconventional pack. Overly protective. Not with just him, Matt, and Peter, but also with you and Layla, despite the fact that you and Layla were alphas like he was.

Frank had picked up certain tidbits of information from your conversations with him, as well as the conversations he had with Layla. Omega brother who died- Marc feeling like it was his fault. Alpha mother who blamed him and hit him. Beta father who didn’t do anything- who didn’t stop the mother. Which dialled all his alphan tendencies up to eleven- getting worse during his service in the Marines.

Frank breathed in, and he could smell how the mint thickened, how is became more dominant- Frank furrowed his eyebrows as he watched Spector’s lips twist into a snarl- and into an expression he had never seen on the man before.

The mint scent was more dominant too- it almost felt suffocating- and that hadn’t happened since he, Steven, and Layla became pack. Frank’s inner omega immediately bristled at the hostility in the alpha’s scent.

At Frank’s low hiss, the other man relaxed slightly, and he could feel the oppressiveness of the scent disappear.

“Spector what the fuck-”

“Lo siento, omega.”  Spector murmured lowly, as he inched closer to Frank. Frank could feel the mint scent cover him completely. And he knew Karen’s ink scent was completely engulfed by it. “But I hate how you smell- You don’t smell like pack.”

When Spector pulled away from him and slinked back into the nest, where Peter was lounging, doing his homework- Frank couldn’t help but stay frozen, completely at loss at this sequence of events.

Spector never called himself part of the pack- Grant was tentative- but he called himself to be pack? He considered Frank to be his pack?

And second, when in God’s name did Spector start speaking Spanish?

~ ♥~

Foggy- Foggy saw Matt quite often. They were in the same city, and they were in the same field. And Foggy knew that Matt knew he was there. But never did he come up to speak to him. And Foggy- he didn’t really mind that. He was, in a morbid way, thankful that Matt didn’t come up to him.

Foggy cared for Matt, of course. He is- or he was? Foggy wasn’t quite so sure now- his best friend. Even if the firm dissolved- even if Matt pushed him away, Foggy would care for him. But the crevice between him and Matt was too big. Too deep. Matt had taken up the Frank Castle case, and he had left Foggy to do all the work. Matt had been more Daredevil and less Matt Murdock.

He had felt his heart ache for Matt when he first met him after the firm dissolved. Dark circles, which could barely be hidden by his red glasses. The tremble in his hand as he clutched his cane. Foggy had seen it- but he didn’t talk to Matt. He was strong. And he would get through it. Besides, he had other bonds, right?

Sure, Matt’s near undistinguishable cinnamon scent was now barely even there, but he had always been good at hiding his scent- Foggy hadn’t realised he was an omega until Matt told him during the third year-

When he actually spoke to him, it was in the hospital, where both him and Karen had been called. Foggy, because he was Matt’s medical proxy, and Karen, because Foggy called her to come.

Imagine their surprise when Matt, the closed off omega let out a whimper along with a strong, distressed omega scent.

And imagine their surprise when none other than the Punisher walked in, smelling of soft lavender, and when you walked in, with the dominating alpha scent completely engulfing the room.

Foggy’s inner alpha had snarled at the blatant possessiveness- the explicit challenge in your scent- and in your tone. But when you had snarled that Matt and the Punisher were your mates- Foggy was at a complete loss. And when he had glanced at Karen, he could see the shock on her expression too.

Foggy saw Matt often. The man was- brighter. He was radiating a warmth and ease that Foggy had almost never seen. His omegan cinnamon scent was more obvious, and by the way heads swivelled to look at him, Foggy knew he wasn’t the only one to think so.

Matt was often in the courthouse completely covered in a mixture of scents. Foggy could only identify two. The lavender, and the scent of you. The others- vanilla, mint, and honey- he didn’t know.

“Foggy.” Karen looked up from her mug of coffee, her blue eyes locking with his. “Do- Do you think Matt has a pack?”

Foggy closed his eyes and rubbed at his temples. He tried to collect his thoughts whilst ignoring the bustling in the café.

“I- Yeah. I think he does.”

“I saw him- a couple days ago. Walking with a woman. Dark, curly hair. She smelt like honey- with a tinge of mint.”

Foggy opened his eyes and leaned over, closer to Karen.

“You did?”

“Yeah.” Karen nodded, as she fiddled with the handle of the mug. “She was- She was really familiar with him, Fogs.” She licked her lips and Foggy assumed she was contemplating whether or not to continue. “She was scenting him, whilst talking to him about nesting supplies- and he just laughed at told her that his alpha was taking him to one of those shops with Frank-”

“Wait- What?”

Matt never nested. Even in college, he didn’t have one. Foggy knew omegas nested, yes, and he had wondered why Matt didn’t. But he had brushed it off. Maybe it was different for different omegas- He wouldn’t know. All members of his family were alphas or betas.

“Foggy, I’ve been to his apartment- he doesn’t have a nest- He’s never spoken to us about nests-”

Foggy’s mind raced as he looked back on all his memories with Matt. Had he- Had he been repressing his omegan tendencies around them? Had he not trusted him and Karen with this?

Both him and Karen stayed in silence, deep in thought, as the coffees in front of them cooled.

~ ♥~

“There’s no use for you here if you aren’t an omega.”

You hissed and snarled as hands- large and rough reached for you. You couldn’t see their faces- they were amalgamations of shapes and static-

“We thought you’d be an omega- your scent was soft- one of the softest we’d had.”

You cowered and hissed, as you felt your heart race- you had to get out- you had to get out of here-

Blades- running over your neck- lingering near your bonding area- digging in-

“If we get rid of this pesky scenting gland, maybe you’ll be an omega? Hmm?”

You were immobilised- you couldn’t move. You couldn’t scream. You couldn’t do anything else but stay in place, shivering. Even as the knife dug in-

A hand around your wrist. Pulling you back. Scents. Soft and warm and familiar-

“Go.” A terrified whisper. “Be free.”

Other hands, other touches- soft and familiar and desperate- tugging you away from the amalgamation of static and darkness. Frantically pulling you away, even as the static inched closer and closer-

“Go. Leave.” Familiar scent. Caretaker? “We don’t have a chance of escaping. But you do.”

I can’t leave you all here- you wanted to scream- I won’t-

“Go, little alpha.” Soft voices. Reassuring, scared. “Go, and don’t come back.”

“-Alpha, wake up!”

You hissed and snarled, your arms flailing as you- you were trapped- you were bound- you couldn’t escape-

A near feral growl escaped your lips as you scrambled away- tripping and falling onto the hard floor. You crawled over to the corner of the room, your body hunched up and tense- your inner alpha tensed and ready to fight.

Hands- you saw hands moving towards you- towards your face- It was danger- your inner alpha said this was danger. You would bite the hand when it got close. You would-

Another warning snarl escaped your lips when the hand came closer. It was a last warning. Next time, you would rip off the hand-

“Alpha.” A soft voice. A young voice. You relaxed slightly. “Alpha, it’s- it’s us.”

When you didn’t respond, the young voice continued.

“It’s pack. Uh- Peter, Marc, Layla- and Matt and Frank.”

You blinked slowly. You- You’ve heard those names before. You breathed in. Lavender. Cinnamon. Vanilla. Mint. Honey. Comfort-

Your vision cleared. And you could see the worried expressions on their faces. Were they- were they disgusted by you? By your aggressiveness?

“Oh- Oh God,” you whispered out, when you saw the blood on your hands. Did- did you?

As if sensing your incoming spiral, Frank slowly made his way over to you, his eyes, dark and understanding, locked with yours. You, however, flinched slightly when his hand reached to grab yours.

“You didn’t hurt anyone, baby.” He gently pulled your fingers away from your palm. And you saw the bleeding crescent shaped wounds on your hands. “You hurt yourself though.”

“I did?” You couldn’t feel the pain though. “It doesn’t hurt.”

Warm fingers wrapped around your other hand, and you looked to see Matt’s soft, blank eyes.

“It will though, sweetheart. I can smell quite a bit of blood.”

“I-”

“Give me your hand,” Marc’s low voice cut you off, as he took the hand Matt was holding. Matt let out an indignant huff, but let him do as he pleased.

You winced when the alcohol wiped at your wound, and your mates- your bondeds- crooned and purred, washing your slight discomfort away.

“Give me your other hand.” Layla murmured, and you lifted your hand away from Frank’s to give to Layla. “Was it that dream again?”

You nodded as both alphas wrapped your hands in bandages.

“I know- I know I killed them all but-”

You could hear Matt’s sharp intake of breath, and you pulled away- if Matt knew what you did- would he still want to have you for a bonded? Would Frank?

“It’s alright sweetheart.” You looked at Matt tentatively. He still had a soft expression on his face, and his scent was still the soft, reassuring cinnamon. “I’m not going anywhere.”

Your eyes snapped towards Peter when you heard his soft padding of feet approaching you. The young omega gave you a small smile before slowly crouching down to give you a hug.

And that made the emotions overflow- you could feel the tears spring to your eyes-

Your pack was around you in an instant. Warm, comforting embraces. Gentle, reassuring coos. Rough, calloused fingers ever so tenderly wiping at your tears. Matt’s hand brushing over your bond mark. Frank’s lips on the top of your head. Layla’s hand in yours- Marc’s hand in the other, both stroking the bandages reassuringly. Peter purring as he rubbed his face into your shoulder.

You relaxed completely, surrounded by familiar scents- surrounded by the comforting scents of pack-

You were safe. You were with pack. They would keep you safe- and you’d keep them safe too.

~ ♥~

This was the second time Foggy’s been called to the hospital because of Matt. Matt could smell Foggy’s pine scent- which had once brought him comfort- surround the hospital room. It was a cool, calming scent, but- Foggy’s scent, felt for some reason, off. It made him flinch.

The same could be said for Karen, who was also in the room. The smell of her ink scent stronger than ever- and mad. Matt could feel the anger- the worry- the disappointment ooze out of both of them. His inner omega whimpered at the scent of the two disappointed alphas, but Matt squished his inner omega down.

“You have got to stop, Matt- this isn’t healthy.”

Matt was sure he’d heard the same words from Foggy before. He tuned Foggy out, instead focusing on where you and Frank were. He furrowed his eyebrows when he couldn’t hear anything beyond the hospital room.

“You’re on morphine, Matt.” Karen said, her voice distant and furious. “You could have died.”

Matt had also heard that from Karen before.

“I know,” Matt murmured, half sick and tired of their insistent nagging- they weren’t even pack- They hadn’t even spoken to him since-

Matt’s hand, the one not attached to the IV, shot up to his neck- it wasn’t there- his courting gift from you wasn’t there- The comforting weight of it wasn’t there-

He barely registered the beeping from the heart monitor over the ringing in his ears.

“Matt?” Foggy’s voice-

Matt hissed when he felt Foggy’s hand reach over for his-

“Fuck off, idiotas.” A familiar, low voice snarled out. “And get the fuck out of here.”  

“And who are you? You aren’t one of his mates, so legally, you can’t be here-”

“Here, Matt.” Marc? said, and Matt could feel his rough fingers press the cool metal into his hand. “It’s here, omega. And pack’s coming. No te preocupes.”

Before the mint scented alpha could respond, Matt could hear the sound of the hospital room slam open as the familiar scents of his pack filtered through. Near his side, he could sense Foggy and Karen tense, as their pine and ink scents subconsciously strengthened at the sudden assault of scents.

“Matt!” Vanilla. It was Peter- Matt wheezed out a laugh when he felt the young omega’s scent cover him. “Matt, I was so, so worried- Alpha, uh”- Peter said your name- “pulled me out of lab early. I was angry at first but then they said you were in hospital- I told you to go to one last night- It’s not like you’re like me or Marc-”

Matt sighed when he heard the spike in Peter’s heart when he noticed Foggy and Karen.

“Uh- I am going to shut up now.”

“Are they vigilantes too? Matt, buddy, come on- you can’t keep making dangerous friends- and is that a child? Matt-”

Matt could feel an involuntary scowl tug on his face as his inner omega hissed at the disapproval in Foggy’s words.

“Shut up and leave.”

Honey. It was Layla. Matt could feel a purr rumble within his chest when he felt her fingers gently smooth out his hair.

“Excuse me?” Karen asked, her tone indignant and offended.

“You heard her,” Marc hissed out, and Matt could feel him move next to Layla, linking his hand with hers.

“This room sure is getting crowded.” Frank said, and Matt couldn’t help but perk up at the sound of his mate’s gruff voice. “You have more friends than I thought, Murdock.”

Matt simply hummed in acknowledgement and leaned into Frank’s large hand as the other man cradled his face. And he let Frank press his lips lovingly onto his own, and let him cradle the back of his neck.

“Out.”

Matt pulled away from Frank when he heard the low commanding alpha tone in your voice. Unlike the pack- his pack members, he could feel Foggy and Karen tense at the pure dominance in your voice.

“Alpha,” both him and Frank said. Matt’s more of a whine, whilst Frank’s more of a relieved acknowledgement.

With the addition of Marc, Steven, and Layla, the number of alphas in the pack increased, but it was obvious to anyone that you were the true alpha of the pack. You took care of everyone. You cared for them, you offered them help and you helped each of them through their struggles with their secondary genders.

Even Marc and his hypersensitive inner alpha relaxed and acted in a slightly more submissive manner.

“Your presences are not needed here.” Matt could hear the threat in your voice. And his inner omega purred at your display of strength. “So leave. Before I make you.”

“Alpha.” Matt cooed, as he released his cinnamon scent in an attempt to soothe you. “It’s alright. I can handle this.” Then, Matt turned to Karen and Foggy and smiled at their general direction.

“As you can see, Foggy, Karen, I’m all good. My pack will take care of me. So, you can leave now.”

And with another threatening snarl from you, Matt could hear them walk out of the room briskly.

You kicked and jabbed at him, and he effectively dodged and blocked, deftly dodging and weaving from your reach. The two of you traded blows, and soon enough, Matt had you pinned on the ground. You twisted and struggled to escape his hold but he had you properly held down.

You soon gave up, pouting.

“I yield, Matt- I yield.”

Matt still held you in place, his hair ruffled and his hands still firmly holding you to the ground. His intoxicating scent of cinnamon surrounded you as he frantically pressed his lips to yours.

You hummed as you leaned into his kiss, breaking free of his hold and reaching up to tug at the hair on the nape of his neck-

“There is a child in here-” Steven said, his voice scolding but mirthful- “Really? Right now?”

You pulled away from Matt sheepishly and turned to look where Steven was. He had his eyes covering Peter’s eyes as he glared at you. You gave him a playful grin as Matt scrambled off of you, offering you a hand. You took it, and allowed him to pull you up.

“Sorry.” You said, in a tone that indicated that you were not sorry at all. “Matt just looked too pretty.”

“Y’know, Steven- you don’t have to cover my eyes.” Peter sighed out, completely resigned. “I see them do that every time I go visit them. I am completely desensitised at this point.”

“You’re exaggerating, kid,” Frank called out, as he jogged over to where the four of you stood. Layla was right behind him- both of them sweaty. Frank was quick to stand next to you, his hand slipping into yours.

Peter pulled away from Steven and instead glared at the three of you in a playful manner.

“I am not-”

“The three of you aren’t really shameless in your affections-”

“Shut up, El-Faouly-”

You laughed at the meaningless bickering between your pack members as you leaned back to nestle into Frank’s chest. You let out a low rumbling purr as your pack was all here- safe and sound-

You suddenly stiffened- and as did Steven and Layla. Behind you, Frank let out a low questioning noise. But you couldn’t answer him- not when you sensed it- sensed the subtle change in the air. Magic.

You exchanged glances with Marc and Layla- and Marc was quick to push Peter towards you, and you readily pushed the confused young teen behind you. Thankfully, Matt caught him before the young omega could stumble.

You watched as Marc and Layla’s suits materialised on them, and you readied a gun, which had materialised in your hand. A weapon, gifted to you by Ares himself-

A faint scent, fresh and sharp and breezy, but mixed with something artificial, wafted throughout Fogwell’s and Matt hissed lowly at the uninvited scent. This place was somewhere where he took those he held dear to- you knew that because he had brought you and Frank here, a couple weeks after becoming pack.

You could see sparks of orange flicker into view and you tensed when you heard Frank’s low growl from behind you.

You were ready to fight when a figure emerged from the portal- A figure, with cold blue eyes, a red cape billowing behind him-

“Huh.” The man said. “I didn’t expect to find all of you here-”

Then he paused, his eyes flickering over your pack. You noticed his gaze shift to your bondeds and you opened your mouth to snarl at him but-

“Stephen Strange?” Matt asked, and you swivelled back to look at him.

“Matthew Murdock?”

A short silence ensued, as you tried to comprehend what was going on-

“Red, do you know this wizard?”

“Sorcerer.” The man- Strange- said, in a somewhat strangled tone. And you could smell how his scent strengthened momentarily before subsiding. “I’m a sorcerer.”

“Yeah. I know him. Genius med student. He graduated with an M.D. and a Ph.D. at the same time. I think we met each other during-”

“One of the parties, yes.” You watched as the man- the sorcerer lifted his trembling hand to his chin. You lowered your weapon and allowed it to dematerialise in your hand. Although you relaxed, you could see how Marc and Layla were still on the defensive. “I believe Franklin brought you there- at least that was what you told me.”

You pinched the bridge of your nose.

Behind you, you could hear Peter’s young voice vocalise your inner thoughts.

“What the fuck.”

~ ♥~

Matt knew Stephen Strange. Despite being in different fields, he had heard the rumours about the arrogant med student- and he was sure the man had heard about him too.

They had met once. In a party Foggy half dragged him to. Strange’s scent had hit him first. Faint and aquatic. Matt could easily tell the he was a beta- despite all the alpha arrogance and pride oozing out of him.

The two of them had spoken for a bit, and Matt could hear the condescending tone in his words- and Matt had smiled through it all, keeping up a faux politeness. He had hoped to never see him again- And he had heard that he was at Metro Gen- so why was he? Why was he a wizard? A sorcerer?

“Why- why does this glass fill up on its own? How does it work?” Peter asked, and Matt could smell the curiosity and excitement in the young omega’s vanilla scent.

“Peter.” You cooed out, and Matt could hear the sound of Peter’s hair being ruffled. “You can ask the nice”- you put an emphasis on the last word, silently warning Strange to play nice, and from the sharp peak in the sorcerer’s heartbeat, Matt assumed your silent threat worked- “sorcerer later, alright? And he will answer. Right?”

“Yes. Of course.”

Peter hummed in acknowledgement and Matt could hear the rustling of fabric as the young teen nestled into Layla’s side.

“What does the Sorcerer Supreme want we us?” a British accent asked. Steven.

“How did you know I was Sorcerer Supreme? From what I know, none of you have come into contact with the sanctum.”

Matt could sense the change in air currents as he assumed Steven shrugged.

“The pigeon told me.”

“The pigeon?” Frank asked, and Matt could smell the alcohol in his glass. Of course Frank would need alcohol to comprehend this. Honestly speaking, so did Matt- but he didn’t want to take the risk of the alcohol dulling his senses-

“Khonshu,” you, Steven, and Layla said simultaneously.

Khonshu. You had mentioned him before. And from what Frank could figure out, he was an ancient Egyptian lunar deity- and Matt probably wouldn’t have believed that he existed but- with Thor and now magic, Matt relented. But he was not going to call Khonshu a god- he was probably an alien too-

“Ah.”

That was the only thing Strange said in response- as if that was all the explanation he needed.

“So, what do you need from us?” Steven asked, and Matt could hear glass clinking onto wood. “You don’t normally go around popping out of portals, do you?”

“No, I don’t. The circumstances are a bit… dire.”

“In what way?” Layla questioned, her tone terse and snappy.

“In the sense that I need the help of the avatars. There’s a cult- and if they are successful- the safety of the universe would be-”

“Then leave it to the Avengers.” Frank growled out, his gunpowder scent flaring through the study. “You’re not pulling my pack into whatever bullshit you have going on.”  

A low, nearly inaudible snarl could be heard from Strange’s general direction and the arrogance- the pride in his scent reminded Matt of his encounter with the sorcerer in college.

Matt could hear you instinctively hiss back, and he could sense how Layla and Marc- his scent had gotten stronger and more dominant- tensed up beside you.

“Beta.” You said, as your scent overpowered the rest of the scents in the room. “Control yourself.”

Matt could hear Strange swallow thickly, his slightly artificial scent nearly dissolving away. The man cleared his throat before continuing.

“The Avengers aren’t equipped for this. But your… packmates are.”

Despite the terseness of his words, Matt could hear the desperation in the man’s voice. Matt was good with tone- and he could easily pick up on the subtilities most people couldn’t. And Matt could hear how much he needed the help.

So, he turned his head towards the general direction of you and Frank. And he nodded.

Matt could feel a half-smile form on his lips when he heard the exasperated groan from Frank and the amused snort coming from you.

“Fine, Strange. We’ll help.” You said, and Matt could feel movement in the air as he assumed Marc and Layla nodded. “It’d better be worth it.”

~ ♥~

“Hey, hey-” Jake roughly said, in an attempt to keep Marc’s tone- “Mantén tus ojos abiertos- Keep your eyes open for me.”

His hand reached up to press his palm against your wound- as you choked on a whimper.

Bodies littered the floor- Jake had disposed of them the moment Steven saw you go down. Jake had forcibly taken over because Steven had been panicking and Marc thought he couldn’t handle the influx of opponents. So Jake took over-

“Who”- you choked out- “Who are you?”

Jake shushed you as he lifted you into his arms whilst simultaneously reaching for his phone to contact your mates- Castle- his name was the first on Marc’s burner phone- he had a tendency to organise things alphabetically. He sent a brief message- consisting of your name and the word ‘hurt’.

“Te diré después- Just keep them open- I’ll get you to your amantes alright?”

You let out a low whine as you clung onto his bloodied jacket. Jake could feel the warmth of your blood spill onto his hand

“Mierda”- he swore, as he quickened his pace to get you back to your apartment- “Just a little bit more- Estarás bien, alpha. Estarás bien”

~ ♥~

Frank couldn’t help the low whine escaping his lips when he saw you wince in pain as Red sewed up a particularly deep cut. He reached to slowly cradle your face in his hands, his thumb gently brushing over the cut on your lip.

“’m fine.” You murmured, your words slightly muffled by his finger on your lips. “Really Frankie. I’m alright.”

“You have a stab wound-”

“I’ve been through worse- Didn’t I tell you? Someone tried to carve out my bonding area when I first presented-”

“What?”

Frank looked deep into your eyes, his teeth gritting at the revelation of a peek into your past. From the corner of his eyes, he could see Red purse his lips as if in an attempt to stifle the growl coming from his chest. Your eyes were unfocused- and it appeared as though you were in quite the delirious state.

“Hmmm. All my memories start in a- facility? Home? With all omegas- I think they married omegas off to rich alphas. I don’t really know the specifics- I was too young.”

A low guttural snarl escaped Frank’s lips and he could hear the same noise rip from Red. You blinked slowly before nuzzling into his hands.

“They thought I would be an omega. But I wasn’t.” When Frank realised Red had finished patching you up, Frank pulled your face into his chest, letting you rub your face into his familiar scent. “Hmmm. They thought I would be an omega if they cut off my scent gland.”

A low mournful noise escaped Red, and Frank softly shushed you as you let out a small confused sound.

“I got out though. The omegas- they helped me escape.” Frank cradled your form closer to him as you mumbled. “And then I killed them all. Or I think I did. Some of them- I think you’ve heard ‘em a couple months ago.”

“Good.” Frank hissed out. And he glanced at Red in a silent challenge. If Red said some bullshit about you killing those less than human scum- “It’s good that you killed them.”

“They won’t hurt you again, sweetheart.” Red crooned out, and Frank could feel you melt into him as Red’s cinnamon scent surrounded you. “We’re here. Pack’s here.”

“I know.” You breathed out, as you tilted your head away from him to lean against Red. “I know.”

~ ♥~

“You should kill the sorcerer, Marc.”

Marc let out an audible groan and glared at the lunar deity who set perched atop of a bookshelf. Strange looked up from his book- or a grimoire? Steven suggested- and tilted his head towards him questioningly.

“Khonshu wants me to kill you.”

“…Why?”

“He’s called upon horrors before- He will do it again. He’s arrogant, and that arrogance will be the downfall of all-”

He indignantly glared at Khonshu, and Strange turned towards where Marc was looking at.

“So he’s like you then?”

Khonshu screeched in an offended manner, and Marc crinkled his brows at the sound.

“I can get rid of him for you.” Marc snapped his gaze to the sorcerer. What? “For a while that is.”

“Marc Spector, you will not dare-”

“Yeah, that’d be great, actually.”

The blue-eyed man gave Marc a dry smile before waving his hand. And Marc watched as Khonshu disappeared completely from his view.

“Thanks.”

Strange simply shrugged- but Marc could smell the slight contentment in the sorcerer’s slightly artificial scent.

~ ♥~

Peter perched on top of a building, as he closed his eyes, reaching out his enhanced hearing- practicing what Matt taught him. He hummed lowly under his breath as he listened to the bustle of Hell’s Kitchen. He was away from Queens today because he needed to talk to-

“Spiderman.” A gravelly, familiar voice. “You’re not in your usual territory.”

Peter turned to look at the older, red suited vigilante.

“I’m not. I needed to talk to you.”

“You could have talked to me back in the nest.”

“I wanted to talk to you alone.” Peter mumbled, and he saw Matt tilt his head to the side in confusion. “It’s just- I wanted your opinion before I talked to the others.”

Matt was silent, and Peter rambled on.

“I mean, I trust all the others- they’re all pack- but uh- you’re like the perfect middle ground of responsible adult and good friend-”

Matt huffed out a laugh.

“It’s alright, Spidey. I get it. But I don’t think Frank or my sweetheart would agree with you on the ‘responsible adult’ part,” Matt said, his voice dropping the grittiness.

Peter couldn’t help but snort-

“Y’know, the moment ‘responsible adult’ came out of my mouth, I was instantly thinking about alpha and Layla dragging you back to the nest when you stubbornly tried to leave out the fire escape. Steven was cheering on the sidelines, and Frank looked dead inside.”

Matt groaned, and Peter laughed at the completely done expression on his face.

“Enough about that. What did you want to talk to me about?”

“Tony Stark keeps pestering me.”

At that, Peter could smell the sudden influx of the ashen scent and he could hear the low growl emanating from Matt.

“About?”

“You know how the Accords were?”- Peter let out a small noise akin to something splatting.

Matt nodded and Peter sighed.

“I think he wants me to be a part of the quote unquote new Avengers.”

“You’re a minor.”

“I know!” Peter exclaimed, throwing his hands in the air in a frustrated way. Letters were piling up in May’s apartment- and so were expensive gifts- May sent them all back of course, after seeing how uncomfortable it made him. “I know that- but he keeps sending me and May things and I don’t know what to do-”

Before he could hyperventilate Matt’s arms were around him, and Peter rested his head on the older vigilante’s shoulder- allowing his packmate’s slightly repressed cinnamon scent wash over him.

“It was a good thing you came to me first.” Matt muttered. “Frank and the others might have actually killed Stark.”

“Yeah- that’s what I thought too.”

A short silence ensued as Peter felt Matt pet his head.

“You’re going to sue him, aren’t you?”

“Yeah.”

~ ♥~

“Why do you wear it?” you asked, as you poked at one of the displayed artifacts.

“Don’t touch that,” Stephen said, as his cloak pulled you away from the large orb.

“Don’t avoid the question.” You said, as you allowed the cloak, and by extension Stephen, to pull you away. “Why? You’re a beta. You don’t need scent blockers.”

“I have my reasons”- he said your name, his tone curt- “and I would appreciate it if you didn’t pry.”

You nodded at the pure defensiveness in both his scent and his tone. Right.

“Okay.” You softly said, reaching over to gently pat the cloak. “Sorry.”

Stephen glanced back at you and sighed.

“It’s fine. You’re an alpha. It’s obvious that you have a tendency to care for others. But you don’t have to do that to me.”

You squinted your eyes when Stephen turned away from you. He was- he was distant to everyone. You had seen his interactions with Wong, as well as the other sorcerers. But they seemed more like co-workers, not pack.

One interesting thing you had observed was the fact that all people in the sanctum were betas. And when you had asked about it to Wong, he had answered that for some reason, magic developed much more frequently in betas- and that the Ancient one had been one of the very few alpha magic users.

Maybe it was because betas didn’t have heats or ruts- so excess energy might have allowed some betas to channel magic. Maybe it was because betas didn’t really need a pack, unlike alphas or omegas. But magic wasn’t really your thing, despite your relation to Paregoros, so you wouldn’t really know.

But even considering how betas were overall detached from pack dynamics, Stephen was… more so. He was never scented- and you were certain that his true scent was hidden under the scent blockers and scent hiders.

Stephen’s cloak of levitation wrapped around your forearm tightly. You looked down on it, and the cloak tugged Stephen into a stop. The sorcerer grunted and scowled at the artifact’s actions.

You were curious. It was clear that the cloak wanted something from you- but what? You furrowed your eyebrows.

Wait- maybe?

You tentatively approached Stephen, who was looking at you with slightly startled, icy blue eyes. You slowly reached for his trembling, scar covered hand, grasping his wrist before he could wrench his hand away.

And you pulled his wrist towards you, letting your cheek graze his hand for a split second- scenting him.

That’s when it hit you- his scent beneath all the artificial scents-

Aquatic. He smelt sharp and fresh and he reminded you of the ocean breeze-

You snapped out of whatever stupor made you scent him- he wasn’t pack- hell, he made it blatantly clear that he didn’t want a pack- You opened your mouth to apologise-

But he didn’t pull away. He let you keep scenting his trembling hand- a low, broken, nearly inaudible purr made it to your ears.

Betas were less affected by the presence or lack thereof a pack. But- The cloak let go of your forearm when it was certain that Stephen wasn’t going to walk away- it was always better if they were associated to one.

Your inner alpha was quick to latch onto him and your inner alpha wanted to take him under your wing but you were quick to squish that down. Your fingers left Stephen’s hand as you pulled away. His hand trembled in place before he quickly retracted it and swivelled around to turn his back on you.

It was the younger, blond haired one you were more worried about. The one that spoke in a familiar manner to Loki, who was affectionately holding his hand.

As if sensing your heated look, Billy looked at you, his blue eyes, striking and defensive, met yours.

Almost instinctively, a growl escaped your lips, and a similar sound escaped him too. His eyes turning golden-

“Sweetheart.” Matt hissed out, his cinnamon scent wrapping around you in an attempt to placate you. “It’s okay. Everything’s okay. He won’t hurt us. Or you.”

“Billy.” You heard his bonded hiss out, and you watched as they reached to cup his cheek, brushing their fingers against his jaw. “No. Don’t be an asshole. We are here to help, babe. Don’t go picking fights with them.”

Your dominant scent fought with the sandalwood scent of his, but that oppressive mixture was soon soothed away with the softer scents of the omegas of your pack- cinnamon, lavender, and vanilla. But also with a tinge of something metallic-

You immediately snapped your eyes towards Steve, who looked slightly… abashed?

“Sorry- it’s just.” He cleared his throat. “You kids have strong scents. I think I can say for all of us that that’s not what we’re used to.”

“Definitely not, big boy.” Eddie said, and you still couldn’t shake off the feeling of an instilled fear inside of you. Your inner instinct, the one that was more in tune with Paregoros seemed to shiver- and it seemed to want to bow before both the older beta and his omega bonded. And from the way Steven and Layla shied away from the two, you assumed that the two other avatars were feeling very similar things. “All of us hail from the small town of Hawkins, where betas were the most common, alphas became kings, and omegas were shunned-”

“Sorry- So sorry to cut in.” Steven interjected, his mint scent even fainter than normal. You looked to see him clinging onto Layla’s hand, as his eyes flickered to the corner of the living room, where you assumed Khonshu was. “The big bird keeps repeating that you and your bonded shouldn’t be here. Something about the Endless-”

“The Endless?” Stephen said, and you watched as the Sorcerer Supreme take a step towards Eddie and his bonded, both of which had a smile on their faces. But before he could walk any closer, your hand shot out, away from Frank’s grip to grasp at his sleeve.

You had no idea what the Endless was, but from the tensing of Loki’s shoulders as well as the tentative step backwards from both Layla and Steven, you assumed that they were dangerous too.

Stephen stopped and allowed you to tug him back, his aquatic scent reassuring as it mixed with the scents of your bondeds.

“Do you have any idea what the fuck they’re on about, baby?” Frank whispered to you, his breath tickling at your ear.

He didn’t ask the same question to Matt, because both of you knew he heard it anyway. Matt’s eyebrows were furrowed, and you could see his lips purse together as he tilted his head to the side.

“How old do you think they are, Frank?”

“Mid-forties- maybe early fifties? Why do you ask, Murdock?”

“Their hearts- they beat too quickly and with too much vigour to be-”

A shocked gasp made the three of you stop talking in a small group. You and Frank immediately turned to look at where the noise came from, and Matt’s face followed, although his blank eyes were as unseeing as ever.

Your lips parted in shock when you saw, in place of the middle-aged beta and omega stood a curly, long-haired boy wearing a denim vest, and a much younger omega.

“There’s a reason why we’re the concubines of Dream, trickster.” The omega said, leaning against the shoulder of their bonded. “Death will not take us unless we agree to it.”

You blinked at the two owlishly and opened your mouth to say something but-

“What the fuck? That’s totally unfair Munson- How come me and my bonded are the only ones to not get some magical gift?”

~ ♥~

Frank didn’t know what to make of the young, fluffy haired boy with a tea towel slung on his shoulder. He also didn’t know what to make of the fact that said de-aged boy was glaring at him. Frank opted to place the bottle of beer down onto the coffee table.

You, Layla, and Wanda were off to sniff out areas in which there were copious amounts of monster sightings. Loki, Stephen, and Jake were at the Sanctum trying to make sense of what was happening in the magical mojo sense. The newcomers- the Hargrove kid with his beta bonded were at the Sanctum too, he assumed, whilst the metal kid and his omegan bonded were off who knows where-

Which left him, Red, Peter, with this kid- who was actually not really a kid but around a decade or so older than he was.

He decided to not think too much about it.

Harrington’s alpha was out to get some coffee for all of them, because they said that they would not be sleeping for a while.

“So. Steve?” Peter said, and Frank couldn’t help but soften at the cautiously curious tone of the younger omega. Harrington smiled lopsidedly at the kid. “How do you- uh- How do you know all about this?”

“I don’t really know shit, kids.”

Frank blinked slowly when he realised that he too, was part of the ‘kids’.

Jesus Christ. He was too old for this.

“But you must know something, right? Or Loki wouldn’t have asked for you to help,” Red said, his pretty features crumpling slightly in thought. Frank absentmindedly reached over to press the pad of his forefinger to the space between his eyebrows.

Harrington shrugged as he leant onto the counter, and Frank watched as the boy scratched at the rather horrific scar wrapped around his neck. A scar that he knew came from strangulation.

From what you had told him before you left with the women of the pack, the spell Loki put on Harrington and his alpha bonded reversed their ages to when they were at the peak of their monster hunting age, and Frank had honestly been expecting for them to become like their mid-twenties, not around- Peter’s age.

“I mostly had my face beaten in. It was the kids that came up with everything. I was just the babysitter.” His voice and face were fond, and Frank could tell in an instant that this boy cared for those kids. His brown eyes met his, and he gave Frank a small grin. “They’re about your age now, Castle, Murdock.”

Matt choked on his breath by his side, and Frank immediately pat his bonded’s back, nodding slightly when he muttered out a small ‘thanks.’

“You had you face beaten in?” the kid asked, vanilla scent soft and curious.

The kid shuffled over to Red, who instinctively lifted his arm so that the younger omega could nestle into his side. Frank too, relaxed, leaning his head onto Red’s shoulder.

Frank could see a flash of longing in Harrington’s warm, brown eyes- slightly different from Red’s, lacking the hardness in them, but still having a sharp edge- but that was gone in a flash.

“Yeah. First time by Jonathan, second time by Hargrove, and the third time by a bunch of Russian spies that were hiding under a mall I was working at.”

What.

“What the fuck?” Frank said, looking disbelievingly at the boy who looked so nonchalant about everything-

Harrington, in his polo shirt and jeans, looking as normal as the next guy- who seemed like he would run away from danger-

“Russian spies- y’know? My friend cracked their code. And we snuck in, got captured, and they tortured us before drugging us with truth serum.” Beside him, Matt let out a small, shocked noise. Harrington seemed slightly abashed at the sound as he fiddled around with the rings on his fingers. He cleared his throat. “That’s enough depressing shit for now, kids.”

“Dude, that’s so fucked up.”

Frank couldn’t help but chuckle at the rather blunt way Peter phrased what he had wanted to say.

“Not really. I’ve been through stranger things.”

~ ♥~

You ducked under a large piece of debris Wanda threw, your grip on your weapon tightening as you grit your teeth and snarled as you aimed your gun at the last standing demo-gorgon and fired, panting slightly and crumpling to the floor in exhaustion when the creature screeched and fell to the ground.

“I hate monsters.” You breathed out, groaning as you wiped the slimy fluid from your eyes. “I really fucking hate monsters.”  

“Me too, најдражи, Me too.”

Layla’s honey scent engulfed you momentarily and you blinked up to see her offer you a hand. You took it gratefully and let her haul you up. Your weapon dematerialised from your hands and you dusted off your clothes.

“This is it, isn’t it?” The other alpha asked, and you watched as her armour disappeared from view. “The last cluster of activity.”

“Yes. Loki said that the non-Midgardian energy was greatest here.”

You hummed in acknowledgement as you walked around the empty lot. Dust was flying everywhere, even though you could feel none of the cool night wind caressing your face.

“It does feel weird.” Layla muttered as she trailed behind you, her fingers brushing against the grey particles coating the outer walls of the abandoned building. “Tawaret is telling me to leave. That something is horribly wrong here.”

You stopped in your tracks when you saw a glob of something. It was a writhing clump of glowing orange, a stark contrast from the overall darkness covering the area. You reached over to touch it, but your hand was locked in place, red tendrils of magic preventing you from moving any further.

You glanced back to see Wanda, who’s eyes were wide open and glowing red. She looked almost fearful.

“Don’t touch it, alpha.” Her magic pulled you back and you let her tug you back, furrowing your eyebrows in worry and slight confusion when she pulled you into her arms. “It caused the destruction of a different universe, and I would rather that you stay away.”

Wanda’s bergamot scent was strong and nearly overwhelming in the way it covered you. She usually reacted like this when she dreamt of a multiverse where at least one of the pack members died or… something worse happened to them. And from the way she was trying desperately to hold you back, you knew that whatever this orange thing was, it reminded her of a particularly bad dream.

You rubbed her back reassuringly.

“Alright Wanda. I won’t touch it. And Layla won’t too.” You scented her reassuringly, pressing your cheek onto hers. “But we do have to see if the portal’s here, okay?”

Wanda begrudgingly let you go, and you smiled at her, trying to placate her anxious state by squeezing her hand. And you were glad to see the Layla grab onto her other hand.

She closed her eyes and breathed in before nodding at you, and you let go of her hand to venture into the abandoned building.

You walking in front of the other two walking deeper and deeper into the building, a feeling of an unpleasant heat permeating through the walls, and a whisper-

“Don’t listen to it, alphas,” Wanda warned, and you could smell her bergamot scent sour and turn bitter.

The smell of decay and acid soon overtook your packmate’s natural scents though. And you couldn’t help but crumple your expression at the utter stench of it. But you endured through it, going down staircase after staircase down into the basements.

“It’s too deep down.” Layla softly said your name. “- basements aren’t supposed to be this deep down, right? Something’s clearly wrong here.”

“Yeah, I know.” Everything inside you was screaming at you to run back up- that you were trying to meddle with something that you wouldn’t be able to stop. “Should we just go back and come here with the others?”

But before anyone could answer, the stairs ended and in front of you, a large, almost surreally large.

And on the wall across where you were standing?

A portal, pulsing and oozing with the viscous orange liquid, and spewing grey dust everywhere.

~ ♥~

“So, Murdock.” Matt tilted his head at the sound of Steve’s young voice. “Those Braille labels. Where did you get them?”

“Why do you ask?”

Matt really didn’t know why the…boy? was asking him this. From what he had picked up during his conversations with all the others, there was no reason why he would ask.

He could hear the rustling of fabric as Steve shrugged.

“I thought it might be useful, y’know. I can’t really see out of my left eye or hear from that ear. Too much head trauma or something.”

Matt winced sympathetically. He had his helmet to protect him from most of the head injuries, but Steve probably didn’t.

He felt a warm hand ruffle at his hair affectionately. And normally, he would have flinched away or snarled at the invasion of his personal space, but- the sweet, somehow familiar scent made him relax-

“You’re an omega,” he breathed out, and Matt could now clearly identify as the scent of something flowery. Daffodils, maybe?

“Uh- yeah. I am. I don’t go around flaunting it around everywhere. Force of habit, I guess.” Matt couldn’t help but lean into the unfamiliar, yet not unwelcome weight on top of his head. “Omegas were shunned back in Hawkins. My parents hated the fact that I was an omega so I was on heavy suppressants since I presented.”

Why was he telling Matt all this?

He could hear the shift in air as Steve shook his head.

“Why am I even telling you this? Ugh. It must be because you remind me of Henderson- smart and mouthy.”

“Mouthy?”

“You’re a lawyer, right? I thought lawyers were like that. Mouthy.”

Matt didn’t even know where to begin with this. He opened his mouth to say something but immediately closed it when he felt the other omega sit next to him on the sofa, the cushions dipping slightly at his weight.

He shuffled slightly, tugging the blanket- scented by both Frank and you- so that it was more firmly on his lap. The familiar mixture of scents was reassuring to him. Especially when he was stuck in the apartment with the other ‘non-magic’ people.

He hated feeling useless. He hated being stuck here, when you were out and about, putting yourself in danger. And he knew for a fact that Frank felt the same, as he could hear his other bonded grumble to Steve’s alpha a couple blocks away.

“It was your bondeds that helped, right?” Matt turned his head to the side, presumably where Steve was. “With your secondary gender, I mean. Because it was my bonded that helped me.”

“Yeah.” He eventually said, thinking back to when you and Frank first offered to be his pack. He had been annoyed at first, but now that he thought about it, he was glad that you and Frank were as stubborn- if not more- as he was. “They did help. A lot.”

“I know being an omega’s hard, even if everything’s slightly better now.” Even with the younger tone, Matt could hear the weight and sincerity of the other omega’s words. “It’ll get better though, kid. Shit, for you, it’s getting better for you right now.”

Matt couldn’t help but grin. Because although his struggles with his inner omega were not over, Steve was right.

It was getting better.

~ ♥~

You breathed out tiredly as you sank into the bubbles of the bath, closing your eyes and relaxing completely under the firm, careful hands of your bondeds. Their callused fingers were gently as the lathered soap onto your body, washing away the sticky liquid away.

“Don’t sleep now, baby.” Frank half-cooed out, his thick fingers grabbing your chin slightly, only to kiss you, his lips tender and soft in movement. “We need to get you all cleaned up first, yeah?”

You whined tiredly, going nearly limp at the tentative, yet firm touches massaging at your back.

“Frank’s right sweetheart, you’ll feel much better after we get you all clean, okay?”

You hummed in acknowledgement as you allowed your pretty boys to move your limbs about to soap them properly.

“I know you wanted to follow, Frankie, Matty.” You eventually murmured, nuzzling into the familiar warmth of Matt’s hand, which cupped your cheek. “But it was too dangerous. I know you can handle yourselves, but this is- this is magic shit that even I’m not familiar with.”

“All the more to take us with you.”

You slowly opened your eyes to lock eyes with Frank’s dark ones, his jaw slightly clenched in what you assumed was discontentment. By his side, you could also see Matt’s lips purse together, even as his talented fingers rubbed soap onto your neck.

“But-”

“You, Wanda, Loki, and all the others that use that magic shit rely too much on it.” Frank said, his soap covered hand poking your forehead slightly. “Maybe you need a fresh set of eyes, like me or Red.”

“Not Peter?” you asked, in a light tone.

“Not the kid- he’s too young for this shit.”

“Next time, sweetheart, let us come along, yeah?”

Matt’s blank eyes were brown and pretty, but you could see the firmness in them. You leaned to press a soft kiss onto his lips, melting into the bathtub once more, the only thing keeping you up was Frank’s firm grip on you.

“Okay. You guys win.” You said, pulling you away from him. “I can never say no to you two.”

Both Frank and Matt grinned, and you couldn’t help the low purr rumbling through your chest when you saw how soft they looked. You hadn’t realised it because you had tumbled into the apartment with Wanda and Layla in tow, tired out of your mind.

But Frank was wearing one of his older, more weathered black T-shirts, whilst Matt was in one of Stephen’s pre-sorcerer shirts. And right now, both of those garments were slightly wet-

So, you did what you did best. You smiled mischievously-

“They’re planning something. Red, they’re-”

You splashed at Frank, who let out a mock growl when the water hit his face.

“Fuck you, alpha!”

You completely disregarded Frank’s half-hearted cursing and threw water at Matt too, to which the cinnamon scented omega hissed at- a sharp, nearly predatory grin on his face.

“Oh, it’s on, alpha.”

~ ♥~

“You have my beloveds in your residence.”

You blinked, unaware of your surroundings. You could swear that you had been in your nest, with Frank on one side of you, and Loki pressed on the other-

“What?”

The man became clearer to you, and you could see his pale face and dark, tousled hair. You could feel the power emitting from him- a controlled power, but an overwhelming one none the less. His face was neutral and carefully composed. And that terrified you.

You couldn’t read him, at all. And it really didn’t help that this man didn’t have a scent. Like the version of Stephen from another universe.

“Are you- from the multiverse too?” You couldn’t help but ask, even though your inner, most primal instinct was screaming at you to run. “I know I’m in a dream, but does this mean that you’re from another universe? Stephen did say that our dreams are a glimpse into an alternative universe-”

“The sorcerer is not incorrect.” The man said smoothly, cutting you off. But you didn’t dare to interject. “However, he is not completely correct either. The glimpse of the universes you see all pass through the Dreaming.” He tilted his head up slightly, and you couldn’t help but cower at his intense blue gaze. “But that is not of importance.”

The dream shifted so that you were back in the facility. Amalgamations of colours mixing together- a heavy hand slamming against your cheek. The sounds of your omegan friends telling you to run- the loud, pained screaming of the caretaker-

You were running and running, tears in your eyes when you heard the agonised screaming of the caretaker stop. Tears in your eyes when the man caught you. Even though logically, you knew he was long dead. Your packmates had made sure of it.

“See? All this suffering and death, all because you ran.” You froze in place, and it was as if hands were holding you down. The hands were pulling you down and down- “All because you were too cowardly to go back. Will you run again? Run away from your pack at the sight of danger?”

Of course not- you weren’t going to abandon your pack- your family-

“You said the same thing about us.” The voice of the caretaker said, sickly sweet but scathing. “You said you would come back for us. But you ran.”

Your throat was parched, and you couldn’t speak-

“If a single hair on my carissima and amata comes back harmed-” the soft murmur of the man echoed throughout the dark space, and you could taste the underlying threat in his words- “then this will not be the only terror that will haunt your sleep. The Corinthian especially would not allow you any rest.”

You swallowed frantically, trying to respond. Trying to bring forth the power of Paregoros to keep yourself calm, but even she was silent. But you eventually gained enough courage to speak.

“I won’t hurt them unless they become a threat to us.”

You could feel it. You could feel the barely restrained rage just roll over you. You felt small and utterly helpless. And you hated it.

“This dream is over.”

~ ♥~

You buried your face in your hands, sitting on the sofa with a mug of your favourite hot beverage on the coffee table.

From what you could piece together, the man in your dreams was one of the Endless. A being Loki had called Oneiros. And the beloveds he had talked about was probably Eddie and his omegan bonded, who arrived at the apartment with an armful of books, all regarding an entity they called Vecna, as well as something about the orange liquid.

The orange fluid was something completely new to even the Hawkins group, and all six of them had looked rather perturbed by it. But they at least knew what the grey dust was. As well as what was awaiting them beyond the portal.

You snapped your head towards one of the guest rooms, the one you had offered to Steve, Eddie, and their bondeds. Hargrove and his beta bonded had refused your offer for them to stay, saying that they had a hotel room booked, but Loki and Steve eventually persuaded them, telling them that it was better for all of them to stick together.

It was clear to you that Hargrove and his bonded were only fully trusting of each other, defensive against anyone else. And the alpha was, for some reason, more tense around other alphas- not in the aggressive ‘this is my area’ and more in a fearful way, as if he was trying to protect himself-

“Sorry.” A voice cut you off of your inner thoughts. You looked to see Steve’s alpha standing awkwardly in front of the guest room door. “If you need to be alone, I can just-”

“No, no. It’s okay. I was just- I just had a bad dream.”

They grinned at you, and nodded sympathetically. They silently gestured at the seat next to you, asking if they could take a seat. You nodded, and they plopped onto the seat next to you, their rings glinting under the moonlight filtering through the window.

A silence, not tense, but also not comfortable, ensued.

“It’s hard, isn’t it?” They asked softly, and you looked at them. They were fiddling with the onyx ring on their ring finger. “Being an alpha of the group.”

You nodded numbly, your mind flickering back to the dream you had just had. Threatening and-

A hand wrapped around your shoulder, and the other older? younger? alpha pulled you to their side.

“I know. I understand.” They said, and you could feel the unfamiliar alpha scent gingerly wrap around you. “I was the sole alpha of a bunch of kids. I had to keep them safe, even if they wanted to throw themselves into danger.” They laughed quietly. “Steve tried to help, but the kids always won, so we would have to go into the danger with them.”

You felt so young, compared to them. You felt like they were offering you guidance, and you- you were actually listening.

“Everything feels like it’s on your shoulders, right? Like it would be your fault if anything happened to them.”

You nodded. You don’t think you would survive if something happened to any one of your pack members.

“Yeah, I get that too. One of the younger kids- she became bait, just for us to kill Vecna. But we failed, and she nearly died. The only reason she’s alive is because of some magical bullshit Hargrove pulled.” Where were they going with this? You blinked at them with your eyebrows furrowed. “What I’m trying to get at is this- not everything’s on your shoulders. You don’t have to carry all that alone. You have your bondeds. Your pack members. Talk to them.”

“I don’t want to bother them. My worries are probably irrational and I might just be worrying too much.”

“Are your bondeds’ worries irrational?” You shook your head at the other alpha’s question. “Are your packmates’?”

You shook your head once more.

“Then to them, you worries won’t be irrational either.” They were saying something you had told yourself over and over. Something you had sworn you would do. But- it felt different, coming from an older alpha. Coming from someone who had years more experience. They smiled, and pulled you over so that your head was resting on their shoulder. “Now get some sleep. You’re the alpha of the pack. They need you in tip top condition so that we can talk about how to close the portal. Again.”