Chapter Text
When Verso first saw Gustave, he felt something within him growl. He felt hungry and needy at the same time.
The man was laughing at something that a younger Alicia- Maëlle said. His laughter sounded like bells in his ears. Unfortunately, the wind was not at his side so he couldn’t get a whiff of the scent of Gustave to know what was his secondary gender. But something was telling him that he was an Omega. And a special one for him only. But he didn’t want to think too ahead so he buried this idea deep within his core.
All the other times Verso was trying to keep an eye on Maelle, his inner Alpha wanted to see Gustave as well. So, whenever he was in Lumière, he had to see Gustave at least once. Maëlle was growing to be a marvelous Alpha, like all Dessendre children. And Gustave? Verso still had not gotten a single whiff of his scent as either it was raining, the wind was not on his side, or he was inside a building. It was frustrating but the sight of Gustave was enough to pacify his inner Alpha.
So, for years, Verso slowly fell in love with the smile of the engineer. He felt like a creep but his mission was important and- and he was just addicted to Gustave’s smile and laughter. The man was a ball of sunshine and was taking care of Maëlle so well… even in Verso’s memories he never saw his little sister smiling so brightly and be so happy.
Still, seeing Gustave with that Beta woman – Sophie? – was somewhat hurting him. Verso knew that his feelings would never be reciprocated, they didn’t even know each other! And his mission too… his freedom… if Gustave would just glance and smile at him like he did when speaking to Sophie, he knew that his resolve would crumble like snow under the sun. So, Verso stayed at a good distance from them, never getting close enough to smell Gustave’s scent. Seeing the man’s smile was enough for him.
So, when Renoir attacked the Expedition, he almost saw red. Verso had enough control to focus on his mission to make sure that Maëlle was safe from his father but seeing Gustave on the ground almost made him give up everything to attack whatever enemy in his path. He still turned his back, focusing on Maëlle.
The chaos around him erased all possibilities to smell Gustave’s pheromones.
After giving Maëlle to the Curator, Verso was running to see if Gustave was safe, and thankfully he was. He reunited with another of his comrades, Lune. Lune was an Alpha too but didn’t seem interested in Gustave.
He felt even more like a creep after he watched Gustave and Lune walking together through the Spring Meadows. “It’s for their safety” Verso thought while killing a bunch of Nevrons on the way to the message he left to the Indigo Tree. The way out of the forest seemed to be less dangerous and he needed to leave before either Lune or Gustave would get a whiff of his scent. Since he saw Gustave almost dying on that beach, his inner Alpha was getting more and more antsy at the idea of leaving Gustave alone while Renoir was still a menace.
When Verso observed Gustave and Lune go inside the manor, he knew that his job was finished until Renoir would show up again. He didn’t want to kill too many Nevrons for them or they would start being suspicious. So, after the group reunited with Maëlle and the Curator, he left, knowing that together they would be able to at least get to the Gestral Village without any issues and get another of their companions, an Omega woman named Sciel.
As he was observing Maëlle defeat the champion of the Gestral Arena, Verso observed her opponent that was laughing on the floor. Sciel was a really good fighter, conquering the Gestral Arena was no simple feat. Verso smiled as he fled from the Arena when Maëlle started to do a little trick with her rapier to celebrate her victory. He was confident on the survival rate of this one Expedition compared to the others…
All of them were really strong. Lune was a really good healer, Maëlle was hitting hard and Sciel was quick and was polyvalent. As for Gustave… Gustave had a similar way to fight as him. After all, the Academy was teaching his way of fighting since the Expedition Zero. He was as polyvalent as Sciel, creating opportunities for his comrades and allowing them to hit the weak points he creates. The only thing that Verso did not like about his fighting was that he absolutely loved to use his own body to shield his teammates, or parry at the last moment when they missed the timing.
Really, Gustave would be the death of him even if he was immortal and they hadn't met yet.
Verso knew that the group would end up on the Stone Wave Cliffs to get Esquie’s rock. He was waiting for them, clearing some Nevrons on the path and was about to fight the Lampmaster when he heard the tints coming from the lamps scattered around. Verso cursed and went to hide, letting the expedition deal with the Nevron. He watched them with a smile when they finally defeated a second time and threw it under water. The Lampmaster was tough but still manageable. Gustave was absolutely marvelous when fighting, he was strong, albeit having some issues in maintaining some fighting stances or not being fast enough on counterattacks but it was fine. Fine enough to survive on the Continent alongside his friends.
Verso was about to leave when he heard the sound of Renoir’s cane hitting the ground.
Merde.
His body moved by itself. Jumping in time to parry the chroma his father shoots to pierce Gustave. The impact of the chroma against his blade was so strong that he was certain that if it reached the other man… no. He didn’t want to think about it. Verso looked at the duo behind him. Gustave was in front of Maëlle, ready to shield her from harm. The Alpha felt happy seeing him being so protective of his family. Still, he needed to focus. Renoir was still here and dangerous for both of them.
“Leave. I’ll take care of him. I’ll join you at your camp later.” Verso raised his blades, ready to parry any hit coming.
“But- “
Gustave got cut off when the Lampmaster rose back from the ocean. Its sudden appearance was accompanied by a gust of wind, making the creature more menacing despite all the wounds it harbored.
Verso was about to shout at them to leave but a powerful smell stopped him from saying anything.
Roses. It smelled like roses and cedar wood. It smelled sweet, so sweet that Verso could taste the Omega’s smell on his tongue. The smell was comforting, energizing, arousing- everything at the same time but overall, it made him feel Good. More than good.
The smell was coming from Gustave.
ITS HIM! ITS HIM!
OUR TRUE MATE!
Verso inhaled as if the smell would suddenly disappear. He was already addicted.
But something was wrong. Something was turning the smell sour. Gustave was afraid. Afraid and anxious. The Lampmaster was preparing an attack as Renoir was still against them. He was afraid for Maëlle and his friends.
Renoir raised his cane again to prepare a new attack. Verso quickly followed his instincts and made his weapons disappear to grab Gustave and Maëlle and jump down the cliff to get on Esquie, dodging attacks from his father and the Lampmaster.
“Esquie! Get us somewhere safe!” shouted Verso, still holding Gustave and Maëlle.
“Versoooooo! Mon amiiii!” Esquie replied happily while swimming quickly away from the Stone Wave Cliffs ,dodging the numerous attacks Renoir was shooting at them.
“Who are you?!” growled Lune as she grabbed Esquie to not fall down. Sciel was readying her weapon as well, glaring at Verso who was still holding her two teammates.
“I’ll explain later- please. Not now.”
“At least can you release me please?” asked Maëlle after the attacks had stopped. Verso didn’t even notice how he was holding both Maëlle and Gustave in the urgency of the situation. He was holding the young Alpha like a sack of potatoes on his hip; it was much easier to carry her like that. As for Gustave…
Oh merde.
Verso was carrying him tightly against him. Against his neck. Gustave had his nose directly on his scent gland. And for whatever reason, Gustave had his arms around his neck too. How did it happen? But then being so close to him, Verso didn’t want to let go. The scent of roses and cedar wood was much more powerful, making his inner Alpha purr, as if it was drunk. He could finally smell more, like a hint of cinnamon and chili and that smell Omegas release when they feel comfortable and safe, oh god that smell. It was making him dizzy with want. Verso resisted the absolute need to hold onto the engineer tighter and kiss the scent gland on his neck.
OURS!
“Hey.”
Hearing Maëlle growling violently pulled him out of his head. He released the young Alpha, who immediately put some distance between them “Can we trust him Esquie?”
“Verso is my best friend!”
“If you are as good as Esquie says, release Gustave too.”
Verso released his grip on the engineer reluctantly but Gustave’s hold tightened. “No.”
“What?”
Sciel approached and reached to touch his shoulder. “Gusta-”
Gustave growled in warning. Sciel immediately retracted her hand.
“Gustave…?”
The tremor in Maëlle’s voice seemed to get Gustave back to reality. She never ever heard him growl at someone. He slowly removed his arms from Verso’s neck but still maintained physical contact with him; he was holding his arm as if he was about to flee from him. “I just… um… Sorry Sciel.”
Sciel nodded in understanding. She knew more than anyone how instinct could control one’s body. She then looked at Lune and Maëlle, who were still glaring at Verso. The Omega gently patted Lune’s hand while releasing some calming pheromones. Immediately, both Alphas slightly calmed down and relaxed, sitting back down on Esquie.
Verso let out a breath he didn’t know he was holding as he also sat down with Gustave. The man was still holding his arm and didn’t seem to want to let go. His inner Alpha was content being this close to him as Verso was using all of his willpower to not bury his face against the Omega’s scent gland. The immortal man looked at the other man. Gustave looked right back at him, smiling in a kind, soft manner. “Thank you for saving us.”
MATE HAPPY!
Verso looked immediately away.
He was so fucked.