Chapter Text
—
Scaramouche coughs into a fist as he tries his very best not to choke on his mouthful of tea. Normally, it shouldn’t even be possible for him to choke on food, and yet somehow the Dendro Archon managed to achieve that task without even trying. Which, really, feels like a metaphor for their whole relationship at this point.
“I’m sorry,” Scaramouche says as soon as he regains control of himself, voice still slightly hoarse. “I don’t believe I heard you correctly. Did you just say ‘future husband’?”
Nahida tilts her head slightly, her quick blinking the only thing betraying her surprise. “Ah. Did I forget to tell you?”
“That I’m apparently getting married? Yes,” He hisses, some of his impatience seeping in his voice despite his best attempts at remaining calm. He takes a slow, careful breath before adding, “It seems you did indeed forget.”
The Archon hums in agreement, her expression as impassive as usual. “My apologies. I received a marriage proposal on your behalf a few days ago, from the Imunlaukr clan in Mondstadt. Their only son is an Omega, still young by human standards, though he’s getting to an age where being unmatched is frowned upon.”
Scaramouche takes a moment to digest the information before answering. It’s… a lot to take in all at once, especially since he expected today to be a normal day, not an ‘earth-shattering news’ kind of one.
An Omega. From Mondstadt. That he’s set to marry, apparently, even though they haven’t even met each other yet.
He almost wants to laugh at the sheer ridiculousness of it all. An arranged marriage? What era are they in, again?
“And… you accepted it?” Scaramouche asks, very slowly, because the shock of the news is still running through his system. “On my behalf?”
Nahida nods, carefully setting down her own tea cup and adding in a bit more sugar as she starts explaining, “The Imunlaukr clan has a lot of influence within Mondstadt, and their son, Lohen, is a prestigious member of the Knights of Favonius. By marrying you, the Prince of Sumeru, it would greatly strengthen our relationship with the nation of Mondstadt as a whole.”
She looks back at him after taking her teacup back in hand, though she doesn’t sip from it just yet. “Which means, in other words, that we will have access to a far greater amount of resources and will be able to rebuild the nation faster than we have so far, without any external help.”
Scaramouche feels the once-familiar burn of anger start to bloom in his chest, though he keeps his voice deceptively calm. “I didn’t become the Prince of Sumeru so I could help you get grandchildren to put on the throne,” He bites out, matter-of-factly. “Sumeru isn’t even a dynasty, that’s not how this whole thing works.” Then a thought crosses his mind, and he frowns as he adds, “Unless you’re planning on changing the laws to make it so.”
Nahida blinks at him in surprise, her eyebrows furrowing in confusion. “No… I don't expect you to bear children for my sake. That isn't why I accepted the proposal.”
That makes Scaramouche pause. While that answer certainly makes a lot of sense for Nahida, it doesn’t explain the rest of this whole ordeal. Usually, when an Alpha and an Omega get married like this, it’s with the sole purpose of making children. “Then why did you specifically choose a young Omega to be my mate?”
“He just happens to be one,” Nahida says. “I know that many people within both Mondstadt and Sumeru still uphold traditional ways of thinking, and still believe an union between an Alpha and an Omega to be more sacred than one between Betas. So, in that aspect, your secondary genders are an asset.”
Scaramouche leans back in his chair with his arms crossed. “That still doesn’t explain why you’re doing all of this.”
“Do you know how Mondstadt’s laws work, regarding marriage?”
Eyes falling shut, Scaramouche lets out a sigh. He loves Nahida, but sometimes her inability to get straight to the point is infuriating. The urge to pinch the bridge of his nose is stronger than ever, yet he somehow resists it. “No.”
“In Sumeru, while divorces are possible, it is near impossible to get one if the couple is made up of an Alpha and an Omega,” She says. “But in Mondstadt, the law offers them a lot more freedom. If a year passes and a couple isn’t scent bonded yet, they can legally divorce without much consequences.”
Scaramouche stares at her, momentarily struck speechless as he slowly starts to connect the dots and understand what Nahida is getting at.
Still, she continues to explain, “Like I said previously, an alliance like this would greatly help Sumeru’s rehabilitation. I believe one year is just enough for us to get all the resources we need.”
“You can’t be serious,” Scaramouche says, breathlessly.
Nahida pauses, tilting her head in confusion once more. “Of course I am. I wouldn’t joke about Sumeru’s future like this.
“Oh, but joking about my future is okay, isn’t it?” Scaramouche snaps, patience finally running thin.
“...You’re upset,” Nahida notes quietly.
He lets out a bark of humorless laughter. “Great observation, Lesser Lord Kusanali. Do you have any more of those hidden away somewhere?”
Instead of biting back, Nahida leans forward a little, frown becoming more prominent as she fixes Scaramouche with a serious look. “I’m… having trouble understanding why. You can trust me, I’ve studied all of Mondstadt’s laws on the subject - my plan is foolproof.”
Scaramouche stares up at the ceiling, trying to resist the urge to just get up and leave. The old him wouldn’t even be entertaining this conversation, but if there’s any chance left to convince Nahida that she’s making a mistake, he’ll take it. “That’s not the problem, Nahida.”
“Explain it to me, then.”
“Do you seriously not get it?” He snaps. “I don’t want to get married to a stranger. I don’t care what the reasons for it are.”
“It’s only for a year,” Nahida insists. “For beings like you and me, that is barely anything in the grand schemes of our lives.”
“Then why don’t you do it?” He challenges.
“I can’t. As a Beta, marriage would mean less in the eyes of everyone else than it would mean for you.” Then she adds, as an afterthought, “Not to mention, I’m still not really considered an adult by Archon standards. I don’t think I could get married, even if I wanted to.”
“So you’re making me do it in your stead?” Scaramouche laughs, though it’s still far from being a pleasant sound. But it’s all he can do to stop himself from flipping over the table in anger.
He knows Nahida is right, but her main flaw is the same as it's always been: she’s only thinking about this logically, not taking into account anything else. Mainly, not taking into account how Scaramouche might feel about any of this. And considering that Scaramouche has already spent his entire life trying to have full control over his own decisions and his own future, only to have that power stripped from his hands, over and over again…
And now, it’s happening once more. But the worst part? It’s coming from someone he trusted. Someone he considered his closest friend, who has seen the absolute worst of him and decided to give him a chance at redemption anyway. A chance at a normal life, where he’s free to be anyone he wants and make his own decisions, without anyone else trying to control him for their own benefit.
After everything he’s been through, and considering that Nahida knows better than anyone else how much he’s suffered in the past, Scaramouche never believed in a million years that she would be the next one to betray his trust.
Yet, here they are.
Scaramouche abruptly gets up, the sound of his chair scraping against the floor making Nahida flinch. He takes a sick amount of satisfaction in that. “I’m not doing it,” He tells the Archon with an air of finality. “Find someone else to go through with your plan.”
He turns to leave, but freezes in his tracks when Nahida says, “I’m afraid it’s already too late to back out.”
Slowly, Scaramouche turns around. Nahida actually looks guilty this time, though her expression only serves in making him feel even more uneasy. “What do you mean?”
She sighs, glancing down at the table to avoid the fury in his eyes. “The wedding ceremony is already planned out, and the Imunlaukr clan is on their way to Sumeru as we speak. At this point, canceling all the preparations would have much more dire consequences. They… would probably take great offense to that, and then the Knights of Favonius-”
“You planned out the whole wedding already?” Scaramouche interrupts, indignation joining the mounting anger coursing through his artificial veins. “And yet, it never crossed your mind - not even once - to tell me about what was happening? Tell me, are you really that self-centered? Or did you just completely forget to take any of my feelings into consideration?”
Nahida purses her lips, pointedly avoiding looking in his direction at all. “I thought you would understand,” She says, voice small.
Scaramouche scoffs. “Well, I guess you don’t know me that well after all.”
He turns to leave, his feet stomping on the ground with far more force than what is strictly necessary.
Nahida doesn’t try to stop him, and he can’t tell whether that makes it better or worse.
—
Scaramouche lets out a yell as a burst of condensed Anemo energy whips through the air at his command. The corpses of two Fungi fall at his feet with a dull thud, and he stares at them as he catches his breath, a frustrated growl rising from his chest.
Anger is a very familiar emotion to him by now, but that doesn’t make it any easier to digest.
He meant to go on a stroll and fight enemies as a way of releasing some of that built-up frustration, but so far, it doesn’t seem to be very effective. Scaramouche still feels like he’s burning up from the inside, concentrated in his chest and pooling at his fingertips. He pulls one hand into a tight fist, the other rising to let him fly through the air.
Normally, when something troubles him to this extent, Scaramouche would reach out to one of his friends to vent out his frustrations. But the two candidates that immediately come to mind for that are Nahida and Aether. Nahida is out of the question, for obvious reasons, and Aether… as far as he’s aware, is still busy helping out in Nod-Krai. Even with the Wild Hunt gone for good, the nation is still having trouble getting back on its feet after the mess left behind by both Rerir and Dottore.
Thinking about Dottore immediately makes familiar but very unwelcome memories resurface in Scaramouche’s mind. He pushes them away as quickly as they came, far, far to the back of his mind, shuddering in disgust before he focuses back on flying through the forests of Sumeru.
Loathe as he is to admit it, what the Doctor did to him is one of many reasons why Scaramouche is so adamantly against marrying anyone, let alone an Omega. It doesn’t matter that their marriage is arranged, strictly for political reasons, and temporary. From a legal point of view, and in the eyes of everyone who won’t be in the know, it will still be real. They’ll still have to act like a couple, at least to some extent, if they want it to seem even the slightest bit believable - and they will, for the sake of maintaining the newly created alliance between Sumeru and Mondstadt.
Scaramouche genuinely doubts he can fake it that well, though. Even if he wanted to - and a stubborn part of him really, really doesn’t want to - he knows that just the principle of spending extended time around an Omega who’s supposed to be his mate, no matter how fake it is, will completely destroy him.
Because Scaramouche knows there isn’t a chance that something like that will ever be real, at least for him.
It’s something he thought he made peace with long ago, when he first started physically and mentally healing from what Dottore put him through. He knows he’s broken beyond repair, in a way that no amount of therapy and inner improvement will ever be able to fix. He’s a failure of an Alpha, simply put. Which also means that it is completely impossible for him to ever connect with anyone in a romantic way.
Under normal circumstances, that isn’t much of an issue. Scaramouche is more than satisfied with his platonic relationships - his friends mean the world to him, even though he would rather die than admit it aloud. He’s never craved anything else, because he accepted a long time ago that it wasn’t even an option for him. There’s no way anyone would ever want someone like him - someone as irrevocably broken as he is, who can barely even pass as a real Alpha on a good day.
He knows what he is, what he looks like. He knows he’ll never be good enough for a proper mate, and again, Scaramouche has long since made peace with that.
Which just means that toying with the idea of romance in the form of an arranged marriage like that… Is unbelievably cruel to him, in a way that is hard to put into words.
He doesn’t blame Nahida for that, though. She doesn’t know the full extent of how deep his wounds run, how irrevocably shattered he was after escaping from Dottore’s grasp. What he does blame her for is her sheer thoughtlessness in planning all of this. How could she make all these decisions about Scaramouche’s life without even consulting him? Was their whole friendship built on a lie, and she only pretended to care about him all this time, when really she was biding her time for when she would get her turn at controlling him, too?
Scaramouche shakes his head with a frustrated huff. No, he can’t afford to start thinking like that. It took far too long for him to finally open up to others and allow himself to let them close - he can’t start shutting himself out again based on paranoid thoughts alone.
He won’t know the truth until he gets to ask Nahida directly. Too bad he’s planning on avoiding her for the foreseeable future.
—
The next few days are spent with Scaramouche shutting himself off in his room for as long as humanly possible. He spends the time sorting through paperwork that both he and Nahida have put off for far too long - boring disputes, various permission requests, and other news from all around the nation that need their attention for one reason or another. Usually Scaramouche would leave that job to Nahida and task himself with the footwork when their presence is requested somewhere, but right now he doesn’t think he can be around anyone without inevitably snapping at them.
And, well. From his experience, diplomatic missions usually work better when one has their anger under control.
He can’t avoid the inevitable forever, though. Nahida corners him in a corridor eventually, and he’s not quick enough to escape before he hears her say, “The Imunlaukr family will be here in a few hours.”
Scaramouche stops walking, though he doesn’t bother turning around to face her. “Fine,” He says, far more neutrally than he really feels. “I’ll be there.”
He starts walking again. “Scaramouche,” Nahida calls, her voice soft in a way that only aggravates him further. “Please - can we talk?”
“I have nothing to say to you,” He states, and turns the corner without waiting for an answer.
—
Scaramouche doesn't need to be told when the Omega he's set to marry nears the Sanctuary of Surasthana. He can smell him from miles ahead, even through the walls.
It took him a minute to realize that's what it was. Omegas are uncommon to begin with - not rare, exactly, but coming across one will always cause someone to do a double-take. Not to mention, while each nation has its own traditions, most Omegas throughout Teyvat nowadays prefer to wear scent blockers, which makes them near-indiscernable from Betas in terms of scents.
Scaramouche didn't have a reason to believe that his new fiancé would do otherwise. Perhaps that was foolish of him; Nahida did mention that the Imunlaukr son had trouble finding a mate, after all. And he has a feeling he's about to find out why.
“Urgh,” Scaramouche groans quietly, giving in to the urge to cover his mouth and nose with one hand as the Omega's scent quickly becomes overwhelming.
It doesn't smell bad, really; pleasantly earthy with a subtle sweetness and a slight, acidic aftertaste. The closer the Omega gets to the Sanctuary, the more Scaramouche can make out the specific details within the smell, and eventually recognizes it as a mix of Cecilias and Jueyun Chilis.
Not as sugary-sweet as typical Omega scents, but Scaramouche personally doesn't mind that. He's not a fan of sweets.
Though… the fact that he loves that scent actually pisses him off more than anything else. Scaramouche wishes the Omega did smell bad, not this… near-perfect match of his own personal tastes. It'll make it harder to stay away from him, when all he wants to do is bask in that scent forever.
From the corner of his eye, he can see Nahida giving him a look. Silently, Scaramouche drops his hand from his face and tries his best to school his expression into something more neutral.
Mere moments later, the doors to the Sanctuary open, and in walks an older couple with greyed hair and dead serious expressions on their faces. Trailing behind them at a leisurely pace is the source of the newest pain in Scaramouche's butt.
Scaramouche has to resist the urge to scowl at the sight of him. Messy hair that somehow perfectly frames his angelic face, unblemished skin, pristine clothes that hug his thin frame in all the right places…
Urgh, he thinks, only in his head this time. Of course the Omega couldn't just smell nice; he had to be physically attractive, too. Scaramouche can only hope that his personality is truly horrendous, so he at least has something to help him out here.
The Omega - Lohen, if he remembers correctly - smiles at him as soon as they make eye contact, but there's something incredibly unsettling about the sight. Perhaps it's the contrast between his overly friendly attitude from the get-go compared to his parents’ seriousness. Or perhaps it's the way those murky eyes seem to be boring a hole straight through Scaramouche's soul.
“Lesser Lord Kusanali,” The oldest man says as they stop a fair distance away from Scaramouche and Nahida. He extends a hand, in the typical greeting gesture used by Mondstadtians. “It's a pleasure to finally make your acquaintance.”
Nahida closes the small distance between them to clasp their hands together in a handshake. “Likewise, Mr. Imunlaukr. I hope the journey here was without any hiccups.”
“Oh, only a few wild animals here and there,” Ms. Imunlaukr jumps in, her smile tight and polite as she folds her hands in front of her. “Thankfully, with our son there, we were well-protected.”
She glances over her shoulder at said son, who is initially too busy staring at Scaramouche to notice her. Scaramouche internally startles upon realizing that the Omega seemingly didn't take his eyes off of him this whole time. Did he even blink?
Ms. Imunlaukr clears her throat, and that seems to snap Lohen out of his trance. He glances over at her, blinks, and then says, “Oh, uhh, is it my turn to talk? Well, then, hi everyone. I'm Lohen Imunlaukr, Vice-Captain of the Fifth Company of the Knights of Favonius.” He offers a little wave and a far too sharp grin, looking at Nahida for only a moment before bringing his attention back to Scaramouche. “It is quite lovely to make your acquaintances.”
It's taking all of Scaramouche's self-control to keep his expression neutral. Lohen's whole attitude makes him want to cringe, and his overt interest in Scaramouche is already starting to feel a little creepy.
“I assume this is your son, the Prince of Sumeru?” Mr. Imunlaukr says as he glances over Scaramouche as well.
Scaramouche bows his head slightly. “You may call me Scaramouche. Pleased to meet you,” He says, in his best polite tone of voice. Which is an extra impressive feat right now, considering he would rather be anywhere else but here.
“Don't take this the wrong way, Scaramouche, but you're not quite what I expected,” The older man says, crossing his arms. “Though, perhaps that's for the best, considering Lohen is far from being a proper Omega as well. Seems like you two make quite the pair, eh?”
He laughs as if he just told a funny joke, and his wife smiles as well, glancing back at her son. Lohen's grin turns into something closer to a grimace before he looks away, but refrains from saying anything.
Scaramouche, for his part, doesn't give any visible reaction, though he can feel irritation tightening the base of his throat as he carefully swallows. Perhaps he shouldn't be surprised that the Imunlaukr clan still upholds traditional gender roles, though he expected better from them than to bring it up in such a tactless way, on their very first meeting no less.
When they realize that he isn't going to answer, an uncomfortable silence settles in the room. Scaramouche lets it linger for a few moments longer before he says, “Well then, if that's all, I'm going to take my leave. Excuse me.”
He bows his head again, so shortly that it's barely more than a nod, and promptly turns around without waiting for an answer. Nahida calls his name before he fully leaves the room, but Scaramouche doesn't bother turning around. After all, she's part of the reason why he doesn't want to be there, too.
As soon as he knows he's far enough away from them all, Scaramouche lets out a long, frustrated sigh, and finally lets his face fall into the deep scowl he's been trying to hold back this whole time. He walks down the corridor at a brisk pace, fully intent on reaching his room and not stepping foot out of it for the rest of the day, but is interrupted from doing just that when he hears a light call of, “Hey, Scaramouche, wait up!”
The overwhelming scent coming from Lohen had started to die down the further away he got from him, but all at once it hits Scaramouche's nostrils again, making him scrunch up his nose in distaste. Hurried footsteps follow after him, and Scaramouche clicks his tongue in irritation before stopping in place.
He turns around to face the Omega, who slows to a stop a few paces away from him. “What do you want?” He asks impatiently.
“Just to talk,” The other man assures with a light smile, as if Scaramouche's cold attitude doesn't affect him in the slightest. “We barely even had time to exchange anything other than polite greetings before you ran away. Not that I can blame you. My parents can be reeeal annoying even on a good day, believe it or not.”
Scaramouche scoffs, crossing his arms over his chest. “You don't say,” He drawls, before narrowing his eyes. “I can only hope you didn't inherit their charm, nor their sense of humor.”
Lohen barks out a laugh, waving a dismissive hand. “Oh boy, absolutely not. I'm really nothing like them, which is one of the many things they dislike about me.”
Then he flashes Scaramouche a grin, taking a slow step forward as he says, “Buuuut, I think you'll quickly find that I have my own charm.”
Scaramouche frowns, and has to resist the urge to take a step back as he carefully watches Lohen get closer. “Really,” He says, tone flat.
“Hmm-mmh,” Lohen hums happily, tilting his head to the side and batting his eyelashes, in a manner far too innocent to be anything close to convincing. “You should ask the Fifth Company about me. They do everything I tell them to, y'know, and I never even have to repeat myself. Which is good, because I hate doing so.”
Scaramouche's eyes narrow as he holds the Omega's intense gaze. “Is that the kind of person you are, then?” He asks. “Someone who needs to be in control?”
“Smart,” Lohen purrs, his grin turning sharp and faintly dangerous. “I like it. This'll only make it more fun to bring you down.”
Scaramouche blinks, momentarily struck speechless in a way he so rarely is. “...What?” He asks after a moment, surprise bleeding into his voice.
Lohen takes advantage of his confusion to take another step forward, and he's so close now that Scaramouche stops breathing for a moment, overwhelmed by his delicious scent once more. “Aww, don't make that face. Surely someone as smart as you can figure out why a poor widdle Omega like me doesn't have a mate yet.”
Lohen leans closer then, causing Scaramouche's whole body to grow tense, and whispers in his ear, “I'll let you in on a tiny little secret: it's because no one is Alpha enough to handle all of me.”
Quickly enough that Scaramouche doesn't have the time to react, Lohen tilts the Alpha's chin up with one hand before holding it in place, a wide, toothy grin stretching his mouth. “I wonder if you'll be any different from them, hmm~?”
Scaramouche scoffs, grabbing Lohen’s wrist and forcefully tugging his hand away from his face. “Don’t touch me.”
“So testy,” Lohen chuckles, but thankfully doesn’t try to reach for him again. “Hey, you know how to fight, right?”
Scaramouche pauses, taken aback by the drastic change in subject. “Maybe,” He says after a moment, carefully. “Why do you care?”
“Knew it,” Lohen grins, gesturing to the Anemo vision on his chest with his chin. “I want you to fight me.”
He frowns, taking a step back. “No.”
“Aww, what, are you too scared to hurt me?” The other man immediately pushes. “Worried you’ll break your fragile little Omega before you can even get to marry me?”
Gritting his teeth at the reminder of the wedding he still very much doesn’t want, but doesn’t really have a choice to accept at this point, Scaramouche asks, “Why do you even want me to fight you?”
“I want to know which one of us is stronger,” Lohen says without hesitation. He takes a step closer, and this time Scaramouche takes a step back, refusing to let him too far into his personal space again. This only seems to spur Lohen on even more, judging by the way he chuckles excitedly. “Hey, hey, if I beat you, are you gonna get mad? Is it gonna bruise your fragile little Alpha ego?”
He tries to get closer again, and this time Scaramouche raises a hand to put on his shoulder, keeping him at bay. Lohen immediately grabs his wrist, bringing it closer to his mouth, and takes an obvious whiff of his scent before Scaramouche hurriedly snatches his hand away, stepping away from the madman who only laughs at his reaction.
“You’re insane,” Scaramouche breathes, an uncomfortable feeling twisting the inside of his chest. Even though he’s wearing gloves that cover the scent glands on his wrists, they were far too close to Lohen’s mouth for comfort. Not to mention, if anyone could bite him hard enough to pierce through the cloth, he’s sure it would be the man in front of him.
Far from looking deterred or even offended, Lohen just tilts his head and says, “Hmm, yeah, I’ve been told that before.”
Scaramouche scowls at him, baring his teeth as a clear warning. “Stay away from me, or you’ll regret it,” He snarls, and turns to leave before this crazy Omega can try to provoke him some more.
“I don’t think I can do that, considering we’re getting married soon,” Lohen calls, raising his voice slightly to be heard.
“I don’t care,” Scaramouche snaps, raising his voice as well. He grabs hold of his hat to make sure he doesn’t lose it as he picks up the pace, wanting to escape to the safety of his room as soon as possible.
Well - looks like he doesn't need to worry about Lohen's personality being too pleasant after all. Scaramouche doesn't think he could have found worse than that if he'd tried.
—
The Sumeru Prince does not look like your stereotypical Alpha. The Sumeru Prince does not look like he's actually from Sumeru, either.
The eyes glaring at Lohen from the moment their gazes first met are slanted and narrowed, standing out starkly against the paleness of his skin. Far too pale to be born in the rainforest, let alone the desert. And that's not even taking into account the clothes the Alpha is wearing, which look far more similar to the few Inazuman travelers Lohen has come across in the past.
There's a story there, he can tell. An obvious mystery to his physical unlikeliness to the Dendro Archon, who calls herself his mother; and another one in the near-neutrality of his scent, so unlike the obnoxious muskiness that usually clings to Alphas.
Scent blockers, perhaps? Though it's unusual for anyone other than Omegas to use them. But Lohen suspects it's something more than that, judging by how small the prince is.
Seriously, he's practically all skin and bones, to the point Lohen is convinced he could carry him around with ease. Not to mention, while it's hard to tell Scaramouche's exact height with that ridiculously large hat he's wearing, Lohen is willing to bet that even he might be a little taller than the other man.
Which is a thought that leaves him absolutely elated. Every Alpha he's ever known hate it when Lohen proves to be stronger than them, or surpasses them in any way. He doubts this one will be any different, and he cannot wait to get under the other man's skin and finds out what makes him break.
At first glance, the Sumeru Prince is nothing like he expected. And yet, Lohen can tell that there's far more to him than meets the eye. He's probably a lot more powerful than he looks, an assumption that is only further supported by the Anemo vision innocently dangling over his chest.
And, while Lohen's ultimate goal is to make this Alpha hate him like all the ones that came before, so this stupid arranged marriage idea gets thrown out the window - he figures he can still have a bit of fun taking Scaramouche down beforehand.
—