#alpha dabi

Muffled voices cut his exam short. He froze, hands hovering over his neck, and strained to hear beyond the room.

“…vn know! Otherwise, I wou…”

Hawks held his breath.

“… here! Every hero in Japan wi… soon! Why can’t you just… nearest station?”

Whoever that was, nasally and scratchy, it was clear they were not happy that Hawks was here.

Wherever here was.

The second voice argued back, too low for Hawks to catch, too quick for his sluggish feathers to make sense of. But there was something teetering at the edge of his perception. Movement, rhythmic and quick - agitated.

He let out a slow breath and again tried opening his eyes. This time, the pain was just on the shy side of all consuming, bearable at least. Not that it mattered though, the room was pitch black aside from a thin band of light under the door. Okay, mystery room, mystery captives, an unknown something dulling his quirk.

Together, those things were definitely cause for concern. Yet…

The only thing Hawks felt, besides pain, was a weightless sort of calm. It was almost like he was flying.

He took a slow breath, and this time, caught something else. A faint scent – juniper berries, woodsmoke. His limbs relaxed, body sank deeper into the lumpy mattress beneath him, and he pulled the blanket closer to his nose. Bits of metal pressed against his cheek, body-heat warmed and smooth.

The voices picked up again, arguing back and forth in whispered shouts. There was a bang, hollow like a fist against drywall, and then… nothing.

Hawks took another breath of the calming scent and dug deep to reclaim control over his senses.

The door creaked open. Soft, yellow light waxed and waned in the room. And then, silence.

Hawks eyed the blurry figure in the room with him, racking his brain for any scrap of information on who it might me. Or where he was. Or what the hell had happened. He remembered his patrol, he’d set out with a plan to run into Dabi but had been overwhelmed by fans, he’d taken flight and landed in an alley, and then… then…

Everything came back in a flicker of blue.

“Dabi?” Hawks blurted, pushing through his pain to sit up, only to have a hand just shy of scorching hot push him right back down.

“Don’t move. Not yet.”

Now, panic set in.

“Where the hell am I,” Hawks snapped, struggling against the weight on his chest. “Why can’t I-“

“Stop,” Dabi commanded.

Something rapped against the walls of Hawks’ control, vying for his attention. A foreign and unwelcome urge to stop struggling. Panic wrapped around his throat, squeezed. He bucked harder against the hand holding him down.

“What the- Hawks, seriously, stop!” With one hand still on Hawks, Dabi leaned away. A lamp flickered on, dim under a black shade but still bright enough to startle.

Hawks blinked against the spots in his eyes until he could make out Dabi’s face above. He stopped struggling. Dabi looked, well, he looked like absolute hell – hair mussed, skin paler than Hawks remembered, drooping eyelids.

“You done now?” Dabi rasped, hand still a weighty reminder on Hawks’ rapidly rising and falling chest but no longer pushing.

Hawks nodded.

Dabi let out a steamy breath and shoved the blanket Hawks had been using back in his hands. “Deep breaths. I think.”

“You thi… is this your coat?” Hawks’ heart stumbled from one beat to the next.

Tearing a hand through his hair, Dabi paced the little room. “You wouldn’t let go of it, and I didn’t really have anything else to offer that was scented strongly enough,” Dabi huffed, pacing faster, stirring a current of heat. “And you were like, spiraling after that prick tried to pheromone flood you, and then I made it worse when I-“

“Slow down, please.” Hawks held a hand up. With the other, he rubbed his temple. For weeks pulling words out of Dabi had been like pulling teeth, but now it was like the dam had broken and they were rushing past faster than Hawks could follow. What the hell had changed?

Dabi stopped, hand fisting his hair.

Hawks brought the coat a little closer. “I remember the alley, and that guy… but what happened after?” It was that gap that had panicked him. The unknown passage of time that remained an empty, gnawing hole in his memory. Had the commission called while he was down? Had Dabi figured out Hawks’ mission? That was unlikely, considering he was still alive. He ran his fingers over the silver staples, chewing over Dabi’s words, until-

Oh fuck. His hand shot to his scent gland, and when he felt nothing but skin, his stomach dropped.

Dabi knew.

Hawks glanced at Dabi, who was watching him with an intensity bordering on obsessive, and tried to remind himself that this had been his mission all along: find Dabi, reveal what he was and earn the alpha’s trust. It didn’t get much more trusting than saving Hawks and bringing him back to… base? If not their base, somewhere safe at least. But Hawks hadn’t expected to be unconscious through his reveal, and he certainly hadn’t expected Dabi to find out the way he had.

“So…”

“What happened,” Dabi stepped closer, eyes on Hawks’ neck, body steaming, “is that you put yourself in the stupid ass position to be taken advantage of. What the fuck were you doing?”

“I-“

“And why” — Dabi fisted his hands — “the hell have you been masquerading as an alpha when you clearly are not?”

Hawks sealed his lips, sensing Dabi had more to say.

He was right.

“Omega are rare, Hawks, and male omega even more so.” Dabi growled, shook his head like he was trying to knock something loose, and added, “do you have any idea how freaked out I was when I found that fucking creep trying to mark you?”

Oh.

Dabi had been worried?

That was… sweet? Charming?

Unexpected. It was entirely unexpected.

Hawks had hoped, at most, to simply be cordial with Dabi by now, maybe capable of a few flirtatious hints here and there. But in the time Hawks had been unconscious, it felt like they’d gone from enemies to lovers and skipped every step in-between.

Was it because Dabi knew Hawks was an omega?

Hawks pushed himself slowly to sit. He adjusted his wings, still slow but not as unresponsive, to either side so he could lean back against the wall.

“Thank you,” he began carefully, “for saving me.” If he was going to salvage this, and get some answers, gratitude seemed like a good place to start. “I promise I’ll answer your questions, but first could you sit?”  The look Dabi shot Hawks’ way had him quickly backtracking. "Or stand. Standing’s fine too. I just want to know what happened.”

Dabi considered for a moment, still steaming but less with each passing second. “You fainted,” he finally said, “in the alley. Fucker was trying to scent you into submission.”

Hawks swallowed. He ran his fingers gently over his sensitive gland, winced at the sharp pain. “What happened to him?”

Dabi’s silence was answer enough.

“Okay, and,” Hawks gently prodded, “then you…?”

“I brought you here,” Dabi said shortly, crossing his arms and angling away. The muted thumpthumpthump of Dabi’s pulse, and its steady increase, reached Hawks’ feathers.

Skipping over whatever might have happened in between (for now), Hawks pressed, “and here is…?”

“Base.”

“Base?”

Dabi nodded.

Holy shit.

Hawks’ head swam. From struggling to keep Dabi on the same city block as him to sitting in his bed, what the hell had happened?

“I don’t understand.”

“You wanted in, didn’t you?” Dabi snapped, and then the strangest thing happened. “I’m sorry.” He sighed and finally dropped down on the foot of the bed. “There wasn’t anywhere else I could take you to… ya know.”

Hawks didn’t know. Not even close.

But he would needle away at Dabi until he did.

“You said I spiraled, before when that guy was scenting me.”

Dabi gave a single, sharp nod.

“What did you mean by that?”

“You were…” Dabi dragged a hand down his face. “Seizing. Or something.”

“Seizing!?”

“The doctor said-“

“You brought a doctor in?” Hawks groaned. “Why?”

“What the hell was I supposed to do?”

“I don’t know, maybe-“ Hawks mouth hung open, waiting for the rest of his argument. He snapped it shut with a click of teeth. Frustration simmered in his belly, prickly and uncomfortable.

Dabi scrunched his nose. “Could you maybe not do that?”

“Do what?” Hawks snapped.

“Your scent, it’s a little overwhelming and I can’t-“ Dabi looked at his lap. “I can’t help.”

Hawks blinked. Frustration flew out the window. “My scent?”

Dabi pulled his knee up to his chest. “Uh, yeah, it’s really fucking strong. To me, anyways. I can tell you’re… mad?”

“Frustrated.”

“Close enough.” Dabi traced the seam of his boot, and too soft for the average person to hear, muttered. “apparently, that’s normal for the first few weeks.”

But Hawks was not the average person, not now that sense had fully returned to his feathers. “What’s normal for the first few weeks?”

Dabi stiffened. His shoulders rose and fell, and without looking Hawks’ way, he said, “I didn’t have any choice.”

Hawks’ pulse pounded in his ears. “Any choice in what, Dabi?”

“I’m not like that.” Dabi dropped his hands to the edge of the bed, gripped until the mattress creaked. “I might kill people, but I’d never…”

“Never what,” Hawks pushed. “What the hell aren’t you tel-“

“We’re mated!”

Blood seeped slowly away from Hawks’ surface. Numbness crept in.

He was…

“At least that’s what the doctor said,” Dabi barreled on. “You needed help, and I can’t scent anything for shit, so it was either try a mating bite or… or let you….”

Mate. Dabi was Hawks’ mate.

What the fuck.

Reason and emotion engaged in an entirely one-sided battle. This had been his mission, of course he knew that, but some stupid part of him had thought he may at least have a say in when it would happen. Or how.

He was such a fucking fool.

Dabi continued to ramble, something about Hawks’ weak pheromones and the overdose that alpha in the alley had induced, and that fucking doctor’s suggestion that Hawks take it easy until his scent, and emotions, leveled out. But all Hawks could hear were the bars of a cage closing.

“I need air,” he cut in, throwing the covers and coat off, and again finding questions. “Where the hell are my clothes?”

The pants he was in choked his thighs and buried his feet; the shirt hung low in the front and swallowed his arms. Where was his unitard? His pants? His phone?

Dabi nodded to a desk in the corner where Hawks clothes sat folded in a neat pile.

“And why,” he struggled to keep his tone level, “are they over there.”

“You stunk like that other alpha.” Dabi’s voice was just shy of a growl. “And you were a mess.”

Hawks swung his feet off the bed; they landed heavily on the polished wood floor.

“A mess?”

“There was…” Dabi looked at the door, and Hawks didn’t miss an expression that screamed ‘I’d rather discuss anything else’. “There was a lot of slick.”

Heat flooded Hawks’ cheeks. Now he really needed air.

He stood, legs aching with what felt like days of disuse, and curiously, Dabi stood with him. Hovered even.

Hawks headed for the door, careful not to let the hem of his pants take him down, and Dabi tailed him like a damn hound. That cage sealed shut. “Dabi, I need air,” Hawks stressed.

“Okay.”

“Alone.”

“No.”

“The fuck do you mean, no?”

“I mean,” Dabi stepped closer, eyes bright despite the red of sleepless nights and stress bleeding in from the edges. “You’re not going alone.”

“Dabi-“

“Do not argue with me on this, Hawks.” Dabi yanked the door open. “I don’t like it any more than you do, but right now I’m not letting you out of my sight.” He slipped his hands into his pockets and set off down the hall, steps slower than before, message crystal clear - Hawks, emotionally overwhelmed and freshly mated to an alpha he hardly knew, was going nowhere alone.

That was good for the mission… but was that good for Hawks?

~~~

It turned out that when Dabi had said right now, he’d actually meant Hawks was not allowed out of his sight for an entire week. It did not, however, mean Dabi wanted to do anything else a newly mated pair would normally do – conversation included.  

It was only after Hawks had convinced Dabi that a week and a half - four days unconscious, seven under alpha house arrest - was a long time for a very public hero to be missing, and threw in a little plea for some fresh air and wind in his wings, that Dabi had reluctantly agreed. Hawks had promised a speedy return, claimed he wanted nothing more than a quick check-in with his agency, so they knew he was alive, and a stop home for some of his own clothes and toiletries, and had taken off for the commission headquarters.

Dabi wasn’t the worst alpha though, Hawks supposed as he circled the high-rise in the city center. Most agencies gave at least a month for mating leave, and even then, the alphas returned on edge. Hawks knew he should count himself lucky to get away at just a week.

But that didn’t stop him from making sure no one followed before landing.

Hawks headed inside, hopped the railing of the spiral staircase, and floated down to the twentieth floor. As much as he knew he should report to Madam President first, he was infinitely more concerned with visiting the commission doctor.

And he needed time to organize his thoughts - what to say, how to say it. All those things needed to be ironed out first.

With everything that had happened in the last week, Hawks had struggled to string together an explanation that would both satisfy Madam President’s need for details and hide just how close he’d been to failing his mission. Maybe this was normal - the sort of haze his mind had been in for the last week, like he didn’t need to worry about anything outside of whatever Dabi was doing - but it was also incredibly inconvenient. Especially for Hawks.

He stepped into the doctor’s office, was greeted as clinically as always, and was instructed to follow her to an exam room. Once he was stripped and gowned and sat on display on the examination table, she asked for a rundown of his time away - like it was a vacation he’d just come back from, and not a life-altering moment where his life gained a before and after more significant than even his official hero debut. But he did as he was asked, giving her an overview of what Dabi had said happened in the alley and after, and then let her get to work drawing his blood, checking his vitals, inspecting his scent glands and taking samples.

When she left the room to run tests on his pheromones, Hawks swung his feet over the side of the exam table and wished, for the first time since he’d been a child, that he wasn’t alone in the sterile room.

It was a stupid wish, he knew. It’s not like he could (or would) bring Dabi here, and even if he had, Dabi had offered Hawks nothing but his physical proximity over the last week. There was no scenting, no attempt at getting to know Hawks, and most notably for a newly mated pair - no sex. So even if Dabi had been leaning against the blank wall beside the table, it’s not like he’d have offered any reassurance.

And yet — Hawks sighed — he wanted Dabi here anyways.

One more inconvenience he’d need to learn to live with.

“Good news,” the doctor said as she stepped back in, “the bite took. Your pheromones have changed radically.” Her eyes lit up as she read over the results on her tablet. “It’s honestly incredible, considering it was outside of your heat and the recent changes your body has been going through.”

Hawks had expected that outcome to bring a ripple of relief - it was his mission, after all. What he did not expect was for relief to come barreling into him like an avalanche.

The doctor looked up for the first time since reentering, brow raised. “You’re happy about that?”

Damn pheromones.

“Well, it is my mission,” Hawks said, trying not to shrink to the other side of the room.

Humming, she ducked her head to scribble something into her notes. “Just make sure he’s scenting you daily. Your body needs it.”

Hawks shifted on the table. “And… what if he can’t?”

Her head snapped up. “Can’t?”

“He won’t talk about it, but I think his glands are damaged.”

“Well,”— she frowned — “I suppose we’ll just have to see what happens then.”

If Hawks had been even half as emotional as last week, he’d have acted on the sudden urge to bite back, to point out that it was her job to have these answers for him. Instead, he forced himself to move on to something more important. “What about my heat? Will that start sooner now?”

“That’s unclear.” She swiped through the results. “You’re an incredibly unique case, especially now. It could be another month or two, it could be this week. Regardless, I’d recommend discussing protection with Dabi sooner than later.”

“Are kids even possible for me?” he blurted, tone far more curious than he’d intended. “I- I mean, I know biologically speaking they are, but-“

“Also unclear.” She tucked her tablet under her arm and opened the door. “You can get dressed. I’ll let Madam President know that you’re on the way up.”

Hawks took his time getting dressed, walked every step up to the fiftieth floor, but still found himself standing in front of Madam President’s office far too soon. His feathers picked up a single, steady heartbeat inside – distinct in its speed and the extra half-beat it tossed in every so often – but found no clue about her mood. He took a deep breath, forced his nerves into the corner, and knocked.

“Hawks” - she spread her arms wide in welcome when the door opened, setting off instant alarm bells in Hawks’ mind - “come in. Come in.”

He followed her into the office, wings tucked tightly together at his back, hands fisted in his pockets.

“It’s been a while since your last report, but I see you’ve made progress.”

“I assume you saw the tests?”

“I did.” She swung the door shut and returned to her desk. “From reluctance to a relationship in under a month.” A smile slowly stretched her unnaturally smooth skin. “You always were fast.”

Hawks pressed his lips together and feigned nonchalance despite her barb landing, hard.

“So,” she carried on casually, “how close are you to taking him off the board?”

Hawks dug his nails into his palms. “I don’t know, exactly.”

“And what do you mean by that?”

“Dabi isn’t…” Hawks struggled for the right words. “He’s closed off.”

“Still?”

“Still.”

“Have you slept with him?”

That Hawks didn’t turn ten shades of red at her question was a testament to his training. “No.”

She laughed, shrill and tinny. “Well, what are you waiting for? The more of you he gets, the harder it’ll be for him to stay closed off.”

Hawks bit the inside of his cheek and counted to five before he responded. “I don’t think it’s that simple with him. He won’t even share the same bed as me.” Sure, they were in the same room, but Dabi had brought a cot in for himself before Hawks even regained consciousness and hadn’t left room for debate on sleeping arrangements since. Hawks still had no idea why.

She leaned forward, head tipped left. “We could induce your heat.”

“No!” Hawks blurted, stomach plummeting fifty floors to hit the ground.

“No?” She repeated, eyes shifting to his neck.

“I…” Hawks cleared his throat. “He’s too perceptive. He’ll notice it’s not natural.”

“It won’t matter. He’s an alpha.”

The implication hit harder than her jab at Hawks had. Frustration kindled in his gut, and burst out in a snapped, “he’s not like that,” before Hawks could catch it. His hand flew to cover his mouth, but the damage was already done.

“He is like that,” she stressed. “He’s an alpha. He’s a villain. And I think you would do well to remember that you” — shejabbed a finger his direction — “are still a hero.”

Turning her attention to her computer, she scrolled through whatever was on screen and left Hawks to try and corral his emotions again.

What the hell was wrong with him?

“We won’t induce your heat,” she moved on, “not yet. The doctor advised against it.” Swiveling her chair back to face Hawks, she pinned him in place with a look he’d learned to loathe over the years. “But you should know that you’re running out of time to succeed in your mission.”

Hawks’ hand dropped to his side. “What?”

“Intel says the league, or PLF, whatever they’re calling themselves now, are gearing up for something big. You have a week. Maybe two to get this done.”

He shifted on his feet. One week? That was it?

“I expect another report in two days.” She stood and herded him toward the door. “We’ll discuss the heat option then. Unless you’ve already started it, that is.”

Hawks should leave it at that, he knew he should, but it didn’t stop his next words from flying out of his mouth. “What happens after?”

“After?”

Hawks stepped back over the threshold. “When I convince Dabi to stand down. I assume he’ll wind up in Tartarus but what happens

Hand on the door, she again eyed Hawks’ neck, said, “we can look at arranging conjugal visits for your heats,” and shut him out.

Already gone too long, Hawks didn’t have time to dwell on the threatening edge to her words. He hurried home to pack a few things and get back to Dabi, trying to move faster than the dread creeping in around him.

Two days until his next check-in.

A week to convince Dabi to stand down.

Two weeks at most until he put his mate in jail for life.

He didn’t want to dwell on any of it. Not alone.

Hawks took to the sky, wings pushing him faster until finally, he landed on the Villa lawn and reunited with one very broody alpha.

Dabi had his arms crossed and foot tapping before Hawks had even landed. “You’re late.” Fiery blue eyes scanned Hawks just like they had their first meeting - head to toe and back up. A glance at the wings. The neck. The steady increase in pulse picked up through Hawks’ feathers was new though. “What happened?”

Hawks folded his wings and slung his bag over one shoulder. “Nothing. Just took me a bit to take care of stuff.” He stopped a few steps away, praying the open air might hide any hint of lie in his scent.

His prayers, naturally, went unanswered.

“You’re worried.”

Hawks sighed; never had he missed his scent patches more. It was seriously unfair how much Dabi could tell through Hawks’ scent when the opposite was practically impossible. “It’s nothing. I just didn’t mean to be gone for so long.”

Dabi’s eyes narrowed.

Head lowering, Hawks tried an apology instead. “I’m sorry, I really-“

“Don’t.”

Hawks looked up.

“Don’t apologize. Just…” Dabi ran a hand through his hair. “Just text me next time if it’s going to take a while. I put my number in your phone for a reason.”

Hawks blinked. “You did?” He dug his phone out, unlocked it and, sure enough, he was up to a dozen contacts now with the addition of D.

“I didn’t tell you?”

Hawks shook his head. “You haven’t really told me anything this last week.”

“I guess I forgot?” Dabi half turned, feigning interest in the tree line. “I should have asked first. I’m sorry.”

Well, that was new. Had their time apart done them some good?

“I’m not like that,” Dabi insisted. “It’s my damn instincts. You talked about wanting to leave and I just…” he blew a steamy breath out. “It won’t happen again.”

New and unexpected.

All in one day.

“No harm done.” Hawks smiled, because really there wasn’t. If Dabi wasn’t going to comment on Hawks’ lack of contacts or messages, then Hawks wasn’t going to comment on a little alpha overprotectiveness.

“Hand that over.” Dabi held his hand out.

Well shit.

Hawks stomach dropped; maybe he’d spoken too soon. Hesitantly, he held out his phone.

“No, the bag. I’ll carry it for you.”

Oh.

“It’s fine, I can carry it.”

Dabi rolled his eyes. “I know you can.” His hand wiggled impatiently. “Hurry up. I’m late for a meeting.”

“A meeting?” Hawks perked up and handed the bag over. Despite being practically glued to Hawks’ hip for the last week, Dabi’s role in the PLF was still a mystery. Was he still recruiting? Or was Dabi’s part here more than that?

Hard as Hawks tried to convince himself that his brewing curiosity was purely in favor of his mission, there was a slow spreading warmth in his chest that said otherwise.

Brow raised, Dabi slung the bag over his shoulder and headed for the Villa. “Nothing to get excited over.”

Slipping his hands and phone into his pockets, Hawks walked alongside (another new development) Dabi. “No? What is it then, budgets or…” They turned, heading in the opposite direction of their room. “Am I coming to the meeting too?”

“Yep.” Dabi held a door for Hawks, and they started up a set of stairs. “I…” Dabi stopped on the next landing. “I’m still not ready to let you out of my sight for long, but I have things to take care of, and I can’t expect you to stay in our room all day. I know last week was… not really fair to you.”

Hawks couldn’t exactly argue with that, but for the sake of progress, “its o-“

“It’s not ok.” The air around them wavered. “I don’t mean to be that kind of alpha.” Dabi met Hawks head on. “But I can’t help it. It’s-“ He looked around, struggling in a way Hawks hadn’t seen before. “I can’t scent you properly. And letting you leave, knowing I can’t make sure people know you have a mate, it makes me anxious in a way I’ve never been.”

Okay. Was this really the same man who’d rebounded every one of Hawks’ attempts at conversation last week? Aside from reminding Hawks to eat, Dabi had hardly spoken to him then.

“I guess what I’m trying to say,” Dabi dropped his voice when a couple - PLF Hawks assumed, given Dabi’s cold glare - walked past, “is that I’m sorry. And thank you for putting up with… me.”

Alright, that settled it. This was definitely not the same guy.

But whoever had replaced his sullen, sulky, silent mate, well, Hawks kind of liked him. At least a little.

He elbowed Dabi’s arm and started back up the stairs. “You telling me broody isn’t just the norm for you?”

Dabi rolled his eyes and caught up. “No. Not like this at least.”

They rounded a corner and stepped into a corridor lined with doors. Head on a swivel, Dabi kept careful watch of every person they passed.

“Does that mean you actually know how to have fun?” Hawks teased, hoping to recapture some of the levity from their rooftop conversation. “Have you been holding out on- Oh!” Hand around Hawks’ waist, Dabi pulled them into a recess, away from prying eyes. Hawks’ back hit the wall, his wings flared.

Dabi braced his free hand on the wall beside Hawks’ head, caging him in. “I know how to have fun, pretty bird,” Dabi said, low and smokey, waking a heat deep in Hawks’ belly.

Pretty bird? PRETTY BIRD!? Hawks’ heart took off, thundering against his ribs.

“But right now,” Dabi leaned closer, nose nearly brushing Hawks’ collar, “I’m late for a meeting.” Dabi took a deep breath, and when he leaned back, the blue of his eyes was nearly lost to an endless expanse of black. “So, fun will have to wait.”

As quickly as he’d pulled them aside, Dabi stepped back out, smug smile stretching his first few staples. “Coming?”

Hawks took it back. This version of his mate was an absolute prick.

“Yeah, yeah,” Hawks breathed, following Dabi past another few doors, trying to untie the knots in his stomach and smother the scent he was surely pumping out in waves, and wondering just what the hell he was in for.

~~~

It turned out the meeting actually was budget related. Though, their attendance didn’t last long. The moment the doors closed, sealing Hawks – and his still-flustered scent - in with several alphas from the PLF, Dabi had taken Hawks by the wrist and dragged him out, claiming he couldn’t care less what they spent.

“Sooo…” Hawks eyed Dabi’s fingers around his wrist, thumb nearly pressed against the gland there. A shiver spidered down his spine. “Where are we going now?”

“I need to try something.” They flew down the stairs, around another corner and were soon in the wing Hawks realized was assigned to the original members of The League. Dabi didn’t offer any further explanation, not as he raced down the hall to their room, or when he slammed the door shut behind him. Dabi didn’t even let Hawks go until the lock was latched.

“Sit,” Dabi said, “please.”

Hawks sat on the edge of the little bed he’d had to himself the last week not because Dabi had commanded it, but because he’d pleaded it. There was an abundance of desperation in Dabi’s voice, and a hint of unraveling control, and Hawks couldn’t afford to (didn’t want to) interfere.

Dabi tore off his coat, gently laid it on the bed beside Hawks like an offering, and paced.

Pulling the coat up to his chest, Hawks breathed deep and let the juniper and woodsmoke scent comfort him as he watched. Waited.

Finally, Dabi stopped, faced Hawks, and redeclared, “I want to try something.”

Swallowing the teasing barb that had shot to the tip of his tongue, Hawks asked, “what is it?”

“I want to scent you.”

Hawks’ next breath caught in his throat.

“But it’s not… I can’t do it conventionally.” Dabi’s gaze dropped to the floor.

“Okay?”

There was a slow breath, fists opening and closing, and finally, “only my thigh glands still work.”

Thigh… oh.

Heat rose in Hawks’ cheeks.

“My neck and wrists were too badly burned to do what they’re supposed to.” Hawks didn’t miss the dip of self-depreciation there, or the cloud of self-loathing looming over Dabi’s head. “I want to scent you,” Dabi repeated in Hawks’ silence, “but only if you want it that way.”

Hawks blinked. Dabi was giving him a choice?

“I know you need it, but you didn’t have a choice in becoming my mate, so this is the least I can offer.”

Oh… oh no.

“Dabi, I-“ Hawks’ voice broke. Dabi thought… he thought he’d been the one to take Hawks’ choice? He was offering to forgo his own satisfaction for the sake of Hawks’ agency?

Fuck.

“It’s okay to say no,” Dabi insisted, even when it so clearly wasn’t. “I can figu-“

“I want to.”

“-re out somethi…” Dabi trailed off. “You do?”

Hawks nodded, because he did want it - but not for the reason he should have.

He should have wanted this for his mission. For the sake of Japan, for all the citizens who relied on heroes like him for their safety. And if not for that, he should have wanted this for himself - his health, his wellbeing as an omega who’d never even been scented. But when he dug deep, when he turned his well-trained eye on his own feelings, his reason was really quite simple.

He wanted to do this for Dabi - for the first person to put him above their own needs.

“So” — Hawks shifted on the bed, smiled softly — “how do we do this?”

The temperature spiked. “We uh-“ Dabi cleared his throat. “Well-“ He crossed the room and sat beside Hawks. “Do you want your neck scented, or your wrists?”

Instinct and nerves and a pinch of exhilaration rolled around in Hawk’s belly. “N-neck,” he breathed, leaning ever-so-slightly closer to Dabi, like he was the center of Hawks’ gravity in this moment.

Dabi reached out to take his coat from Hawks, laid it behind them. Hawks’ coat was next.

 Carefully, Dabi reached out to cup Hawks’ cheek in his palm. “You know, you still never told me why you were pretending to be an alpha.” His gaze slid down Hawks’ neck. “And I know that’s my fault, I wasn’t available for you last week.”

“Dabi-“

Dabi shook his head. “It’s true. I might have been here, but not in the way a newly mated omega needs their alpha to be.”

Their alpha. The words ignited a flurry of emotion in Hawks chest.

“I was already so on edge around you, before I knew you were an omega.” Dabi traced the line of Hawks’ neck down to his scent gland, ran his thumb in soothing circles around it and took a slow breath. “Or maybe I did know, deep down. Maybe that’s why I couldn’t bring myself to hurt you” He laughed softly, warm breath fanning Hawks’ skin. “But I’d still like to know why you were hiding it from everyone, whenever you’re ready to tell me.”

Hawks leaned into the touch. “I’ll tell you, I promise, but…” he let out a shaky breath when Dabi’s thumb ghosted over the gland. “Please.“ He closed his eyes, let instinct take over. “Please scent me first.”

The bed creaked. Metal clinked. Fabric dropped to the floor and the mattress dipped back down.

“Can you get on your knees?”

Hawks’ eyes fluttered open. He shifted to the floor, knelt between Dabi’s legs. Heat gathered in his belly, snaked down to his core. God he’d never felt like this before, not outside his heat. And even then…

Maybe it was because Dabi was an alpha. Maybe because Dabi was Hawks’ alpha.

Dabi threaded his fingers through Hawks’ hair; his other hand gripped the edge of the mattress. “You wanna take the lead?” he asked, voice lined with something that stoked Hawks’ growing arousal.

“You can,” Hawks hummed, catching Dabi’s scent stronger than ever before and damn near melting right into the wood floor.  “I don’t know what I’m doing.”

“What does that mean?” The scent shifted, sharpened, and Hawks was hit with the urge to soothe.

“I’ve never been scented.”

“Never?”

Hawks shook his head. “I’ve been on blockers and patches and suppressants since I presented.” The truth flowed, free and uninhibited, and a weight Hawks hadn’t realized he was carrying lifted. “It’s why you couldn’t tell I was an omega. Why no one could tell.”

Dabi’s fingers gently scratched Hawks’ scalp. He guided Hawks a little closer. “But, why?”

“Because…” Hawks let out a breath. The healthy skin of Dabi’s thigh pebbled. “Because a lot of time and money was spent on my hero training and presenting as an omega made it all moot.”

Hawks smelled rather than saw Dabi’s frustration with that answer, but the change was there and gone in a beat. “That’s not right.”

“I know that now,” he whispered. It was a frightening realization, all the things he’d brushed off and accepted. Some small part of him hoped that late was still better than never.

But right now, he didn’t want to dwell on that. Or on the things he wasn’t telling Dabi. Or his mission. He simply wanted…

“What about your heats?” Dabi scooted forward, pressed the gland on his inner thigh against Hawks’ neck and let out a sharp huff of steamy air. “W-what did you…”

The heat from Dabi’s body washed over Hawks. His hands fisted in his lap as he let the pheromones - so crisp and clear and soothing - carry him away. “They were scheduled.” He barely recognized his own voice. “With betas.”

Another change in scent - this one potent enough to pull Hawks out of his daze. He leaned back, looked up.

“Sorry, I’m sorry.” Dabi tipped his head back. “But that’s… that’s fucking inhumane, Hawks.”

Already lamenting the loss of contact, Hawks moved forward, only to be stopped.

Hands holding Hawks’ cheeks, Dabi frowned. “You understand that, right?”

“I…”  Inhumane? Sure, it went against his biology, it snuffed out every instinct and want and need, but inhumane? He’d been fed and clothed properly for the first time in his life, had access to running hot water and a bed with an actual mattress. He’d learned how to fight, saved countless civilians, protected people.

If he’d never become a hero, what would have happened to them?

Dabi sighed and let Hawks go. “We’ll talk about that later.” He placed his hands behind him and leaned back. “Right now, I want to scent my omega.”

My omega.

If Hawks hadn’t been kneeling, he might have fainted, and given Dabi’s sultry smile, he knew it. “I think you should lead, since this is your first time. Just do what feels right.”

Following a tiny tug of instinct that led him straight past trepidation, Hawks leaned forward, nose brushing the edge of Dabi’s boxers, and nuzzled his gland against Dabi’s.

Under his breath, Dabi swore.

Hawks slipped a hand around Dabi’s leg to hold it in place and explored what felt right. He closed his eyes, felt the scent everywhere - on him, in him, cradling and cleansing and saturating every corner of Hawks - body and mind.

“Dabi,” he pleaded, unsure what he was even asking for.

“That’s it.” Dabi stroked Hawks’ hair. “That’s a good omega.”

Fuck, if that didn’t just go right to Hawks’ core.

He angled his head for more, caught sight of the growing bulge under Dabi’s boxers, felt his own arousal straining against his pants. “Dabi, please.”

“God, you smell divine.”

Hawks pressed for more, made a small noise at the back of his throat - maybe a moan, maybe something more - and slipped his other hand up Dabi’s thigh. His fingers snuck under the fabric of Dabi’s boxers, tips just brushing-

“Stop.”

Hawks blinked. Pulled back and shook his head to clear it. “Did I do something wrong?”

Dabi smiled, the first genuine smile Hawks had seen from him, and shook his head. “Hell no.” He waved away the smoke curling around them, seeping out of his seams. “But I don’t want to scent you into heat. Or myself into rut.”

Hawks’ wings drooped.

“Hey now.” Dabi shifted off the bed to kneel on the floor with Hawks. “You did good. Really fucking good. But too much more of that and we’ll wind up somewhere we’re not ready to go together.”

Another dip of disappointment.

“But“ — Dabi took Hawks’ hand — “I’ll still scent you like that every day until we are ready, okay?” He gave one reassuring squeeze and then stood to pull his pants back on.

Hawks took a moment to collect himself - physically and mentally - before climbing back up on the bed, content and conflict at odds within. He didn’t want to ruin this moment, to taint the memory of his very first scenting with slimy motives and secrets, but it was an opportunity he couldn’t pass up.

“Speaking of heat,” Hawks started tentatively, hating himself for every word, “do you have… um, protection here?”

Dabi stiffened. “Why?”

“Just in case?” He tried. “I’m not sure when mine will start.”

Dabi’s brows dipped together as he fastened his belt. “No. I haven’t… hooking up hasn’t been a priority for me. So, I’ve never had reason to get any.”

Hands in his lap, Hawks nodded. Wrong answer for Hawks’ mission, right answer for his instinct - the dissonance between the two made his head throb.

Dabi pulled his coat on and nudged Hawks’ leg. “Why don’t we go see what the others are up to, hm? You could meet Twice or Compress, I’m sure having someone besides me to talk to here would be nice, and they aren’t half bad.”

“Yeah.” Hawks forced a smile. “That’d be nice.”

The little spring in Dabi’s normally heavy steps was impossible to miss as he led them to another room, but Hawks was far too lost in his own head to fully appreciate the change.

Of all the alphas, why did Dabi - mass murder, arsonist, third most wanted villain in Japan - have to wind up being so god damn kind and understanding?

 How the hell would Hawks live with himself for turning his mate in now?

~~~

The next two days passed in a blur of scenting and cards and cooked meals and shared stories. Dabi was surprisingly chatty once he opened up. At least, he was about the little things - his food likes and dislikes, his hatred for car rides and boats, his favorite music and books and borderline nerdy hero analysis.

It was useless intel for Hawks’ mission.

It was everything his heart craved.

Hawks offered bits in return. Nothing to give himself away, enough to stay truthful. The balancing act left him exhausted by the end of every night, and when he laid down in bed (still alone, because apparently Dabi had the patience and control of a literal saint), he was asleep before his mind could ruminate on exactly what was coming.

That didn’t stop dread from creeping back in though, and by the time Hawks was due to sneak away to give his next report to Madam President, Dabi wasn't keen to let Hawks out of his sight without knowing what was wrong.

“You still won’t tell me?” Arms crossed, Dabi leaned against the doorframe in their room and eyed Hawks as he pocketed his phone and slipped his coat on.

Hawks attempted a charming smile, fell very short. “I’m just tired.”

“You pass out the minute you lay down,” Dabi countered, “you even snore. How can you still be tired?”

Hawks sighed and stepped up to Dabi. He could ask him to move, he knew Dabi would - in everything they’d done, Dabi had made sure Hawks knew he had a choice.

But the problem was, Hawks didn’t want to leave. He wanted Dabi to stop him. To refuse to let him go until Hawks was forced to vomit out the truth about why he’d even sought Dabi out in the first place.

“And aren’t you used to running on fumes?” Dabi’s question was phrased as a joke but Hawks caught the underlying worry in Dabi’s pulse, felt the vibration of toes squirming inside boots.

Placing a hand on Dabi’s arm, Hawks tried another angle. “Okay, I’m worried about work.”

Anger flared in Dabi’s eyes.

Okay, yeah. That was the wrong tactic. Hawks should have known better, considering they’d yet to revisit this touchy subject.

“You’re worried about the people who forced you to pretend to be someone you aren’t?”

“Dabi-“

“It’s fine, Hawks,” Dabi said shortly. “I told you I won’t tell you what to do and I meant it.” Dabi shrugged Hawks’ hand off and stepped away from the door. “I just wish you’d wake up and realize they don’t deserve you.”

Dabi left the room in a flurry of heat.

Hawks felt his heart lurch against his ribs, desperate to follow, but he was already late to check in, and the longer he made Madam President wait, the worse things would get for him and Dabi.

He left the room and headed for a nearby door to the grounds, placating the voice of instinct insisting he go back and fix things with reminders that he just needed to make one quick call, and then he would go back to his alpha.

Not wanting to dwell on just how fucked up that was - or the way it had his insides squirming, he stopped at the tree line, pulled out his phone and made the call.

She waited for the fifth ring to answer. “Not in heat yet? I assume you wouldn’t be calling if you were.”

“No, not yet. But he is scenting me now.” The words hurt coming out, like each one was covered in thorns and protesting it’s removal.

“Hmm.” She was silent a moment. Hawks tried not to pace. “That’s not enough.”

“I’m close. I’m sure with just a few more days of him scenting me, I’ll-“

“Close isn’t enough, Hawks. We need him out, now,” she paused. “Seduce him.”

“I wo-" Hawks snapped his mouth shut, caging in the rest of his defiance.

“That’s an order, Hawks.”

Holding the speaker away from his lips for a moment, he called on Dabi’s soothing scent still thrumming through his veins and tried again. “I have another way. Just trust me on this.”

The other end was silent aside from an occasional click of static, until-

“Fine. Two more days.” She hung up without another word.

Hawks hand dropped lamely to his side, his eyes lost focus somewhere in the woods. There wouldn’t be another chance after this, that much was clear.

Which meant - he turned toward the mansion, stride sure - it was time to confess. To lay it all out there and let Dabi - let his mate - help him find a way through this. Together.

He may be the shittiest mate in existence for this, but surely Dabi would want to find a way to stay with Hawks, as long as-

His phone vibrated. He stopped on the edge of the walk.

Dispatch was calling.

“Hello?”

“Hawks, we need you in Sector 17. We have reports of a villain with some kind of vaporous quirk on the loose and your GPS pings you as being the closest one capable of dealing with them.”

Hawks frowned, glanced west. Seventeen was close, but… “isn’t there someone else who can handle it?”

“Not in the vicinity. We need someone who can apprehend without needing to get close.”

Hawks pulled his lower lip between his teeth. “Just one villain?”

“Affirmative.”

He glanced back, felt instinct roil against his decision, and took to the skies. “Alright, I’ll handle it. Send me his last known location.”

Hawks hung up, and fast as his wings could carry him, headed for the villain, head and heart tearing in two.

Just one villain, he told himself, then I’ll figure a way through this with Dabi.

Landing on top of a warehouse halfway between the Villa and his apartment, Hawks went very, very still. Sifting through the noise of the birds, the wind playing with the leaves, the distant sounds of horns and tires scratching over gravel, he searched for the culprit.

This side of town was deserted so late in the day, but even without anything around to distract him, Hawks still couldn’t-

“There you are.”

Hawks spun, fired a volley of feathers at the voice. They all disappeared in a haze of pink mist.

“Figured you’d lead with that move,” the voice taunted from inside the haze.

Hawks stepped back, eyed the slow-rolling cloud’s approach. He couldn’t feel the feathers he’d sent in, and they didn’t return when he tried to recall them. So, a disintegration quirk maybe? Something too quick for pain to register. Whatever it was, it would make entering the cloud impossible.

He could try going above, getting a bird’s eye view of whatever he was dealing with and going from-

“Gotcha.”

Hawks’ feathers zipped back out of the mist, carrying tendrils of pink home, and reattached before he could stop them. He tensed, braced for pain.

Nothing happened.

The mist rolled over his skin, entirely harmless. All his feathers responded when he called to them. Maybe this guy’s quirk was a disruptor of some sort?

If that was the case – he reached for his phone - he wasn’t the right hero to-

“What the fuck!” His stomach lurched. Contracted and twisted until it wrung tears from his eyes. Heat clawed up from his belly, broiling him from the inside out, steaming his mind until he could hardly think straight.

There was a distorted voice, a laugh and a pitch that suggested mischief, and then Hawks was alone on the roof, folding in on himself in an attempt to protect his organs.

What the hell was this? A quirk suited for biological warfare?

He blinked to clear his blurring eyes, bit down on his sleeve to muffle a cry of pain when he moved too quickly, and hit redial to call dispatch for help.

The line was dead.

He tried again, fighting through a wave of nausea.

Static sound in his ear.

He hunched over. Cocooned in the safety of his wings, he tried to breathe slowly - in through his nose, out through his mouth. Someone would come soon enough, they had his last location and knew he was on scene. When he didn’t report that the situation was handled, someone would come.

They had to.

~~~

No one came.

Hawks couldn’t say how long he waited like that – alone on the rooftop under a dying sun, eyes closed, teeth gritted, hands pressed to his stomach to try and alleviate the pain. He lost track of the seconds somewhere around seventeen hundred, unable to continue counting when pain consumed even the most basic thought - but he knew he was in for more than just hurt when it faded to give way to something new.

Need.

“Oh shit.” Hawks pushed himself to stand, tugged at his collar as the heat in his body collected in his core. No, no, no… it couldn’t… these kinds of quirks were supposed to be registered. Dispatch would have told him what he’d be dealing with if this was an induction-type quirk.

He eyed the path to the mansion - to his alpha. He needed…

He shook his head, forced himself to turn away and took off for his apartment. He couldn’t go there, not like this, not with so many other alphas around.

He crashed clumsily in through his window, fell to the floor with the broken glass. Sweat beaded at his brow. Want curled in his core. He pressed his legs together, clutched his phone in hand.

Fuck this… it wasn’t supposed to happen this way, but…

He opened his contacts. Hit call.

 “Hawks!” The raspy worry in Dabi’s voice scratched some part of Hawks’ brain just right; he stifled a moan. “Where the fuck are you, I saw you leave and-“

“Dabi, I need you.”

“… Hawks?”

“My heat, Dabi, it’s starting.” Hawks curled in on himself. “Please, I need you.”

“Shit.” The line crackled. “Where are you?”

The Hero Public Safety Committee has tasked Hawks with the ever-important job of informant for this mission, and Dabi was proving increasingly difficult to use in the ways he would like. Hawks was dangerously comfortable with how easy manipulation and subtle coercion were with any other villain—dare he say it came naturally. Maybe that was what drove him to the flame-fueled man. The challenge. It's new. It's exciting. It's so uniquely Dabi.

The two had been meeting in the middle of the night for months now, and Keigo would like to ignore the countless things he had done to earn the other man's trust. But it was paying off. Even if only slightly, he could see the way Dabi was letting his guard down. Hawks smirked at his reflection. Tonight would be the night he finally convinced Dabi to introduce him to the league.

Ice filled the hero's veins as he stared back into his mirror. This isn't right. His pupils were rounded and red warmth blossomed over his cheeks. Running his hands over his shirt the hero could tell his chest had grown, even if only slightly. And now that he was thinking about it, he hadn't seen many of the stray feathers that typically littered his apartment.

His heat was coming.

"Fuck," Keigo reached for the orange bottle on his nightstand ignoring the growing wet from between his thighs, "Why did they switch my meds now?"

The young hero had been working diligently to keep the public from discovering his status as an omega and, with help from the HPSC, the people of Japan had no clue about his little secret. Sure, the commission has threatened its fair share of reporters into silence if they got too close to the truth, but if Hawks was to continue keeping people safe it was a necessary evil.

Keigo sighed as he laid back onto his bed, that little pink pill kept so many problems at bay. The commission poorly hid their outrage when his secondary sex began to show. They worked him harder and harder to ensure he could keep up with the alphas he would surely be facing. As he grew, it became more and more apparent that even his keepers doubted his heroic abilities. They reeked of disappointment and hatred. So he worked harder, stayed up later, and pushed himself further than he ever imagined possible. One night after a particularly grueling practice, a woman approached him. A woman who changed his life with those pretty little pills. She promised things would change if he took them. That no one would be able to tell he was an omega. She would replace his keepers and hire new trainers. Ones even better than his current one. Ones that could help him become the best hero Japan has ever seen. But there would be some sacrifices that came along with it. It was then that Keigo vowed that Hawks would be stronger, faster, and braver than any hero. And, more importantly, that no one would ever know he was an omega.

As the young hero waited for the suppressants to work, he wondered if he made the right choice all those years ago. He took a slow breath, admiring his scent. He smelled alive. It was only in the rare moments between his dosages that he truly got to know about the life he left behind. Sure most heroes took some kind of medication to reduce their scent, it was a common practice really. Of course, his were a bit different. The commission didn't want to risk him getting caught up with some alpha, so his medications completely removed his ability to detect other's scents at all. The only scent he would ever truly know is his own, and he would be the only one to ever enjoy it.

The sharp sound of his alarm jolted Hawks from his thoughts, it's go time.

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