Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

  As the sun sets, the temperature falls. The shadows grow longer and the sounds of the forest surround the little camp. Joshua pulls his shawl just a little closer to himself, feeling as the chill of night settles in around him. But there is a nocturnal peace about everything. He shifts on the log because his legs have become a bit numb. He has been waiting for his brother for a couple hours now. Maybe two at the most, but Joshua has lost count.

  He has lost count because other pressing things are on his mind. He is currently nine full months pregnant. His hand lies upon his thick, swollen belly and gives it a loving stroke as he contemplates why they are here. Clive had made their camp among an army of at least one hundred soldiers. Joshua had begged to join his brother on this scouting expedition, one that was warranted due to imperial accomplices approaching Rosaria’s borders. The last war hadn't exactly ended amicably, and long-held grudges were tearing at the seams of a fragile peace.

  Joshua sighed and glanced up as the sun’s golden rays turned sharply upward, glistening upon the leaves of the higher branches. He felt a little anxious this evening just because he knew he was getting close to the day he and Clive would no longer be a couple, but a threesome. Although they were brothers by blood, Clive was also Joshua’s alpha. The reasons for their union was still rather unclear to them as well, but there was love, and for the nation’s sovereign, as long as he was wed, bred, and pregnant in the span of a few weeks, that was all that mattered to the people.

  For Joshua, Clive was always his protector, his shield. Naturally, it just made sense. And Clive argued no one would have the capability to care for Joshua as masterfully as he. Joshua could not deny this and went along willingly, ending up conceiving of Clive’s seed within weeks of their mating ceremony. Clive was a strong, virile alpha, and Joshua did not doubt they would be able to fulfill their duty of reproduction. When the news broke, the nation celebrated.

  But far from the bustle and demands of the duchy, Joshua drew strength from his brother's natural force in the wild. Clive was in his element, and it gave Joshua a sense of comfort to know this. Yet little did he know just how feral Clive could get out in the wild, if his hot, relentless passion in their tent at night was anything to go by. The noises he would make as he pistoned his hips, as he thrust himself between Joshua’s legs with abandon…

  Joshua gave a slight whimper at the memories, and sat up a little as Clive finally returned from the depths of the Greatwood. His face was dirty, twigs and forest litter sticking out of places in his clothes. But he smiled as he came near to Joshua, and Joshua’s body warmed in his presence.

  “I’m sorry I'm back so late,” he said, voice gravelly and sincere as he hauled over the kindling under his arm.

  "It's alright,” Joshua replies softly, turning his knees in together in an alluringly innocent gesture. "Did you speak with the men?”

  "I did,” Clive answers, kneeling at the fire to set more kindling into the flames he so generously made. "One more day, and then we'll move on to Northreach.”

  "Northreach…" Joshua tastes the town’s name on his tongue and decides he doesn't much like it. There's a brothel there, he knows. It's hardly a place a wedded, pregnant sovereign should be meandering around. “Must we?"

  Clive’s dirty face becomes wholly illuminated by the fire. “It's our best vantage point. There are plenty of hidden spots where we can scout Oriflamme from up there."

  That's when their eyes meet from across the dancing, ascending embers. Clive’s breath hitches, Joshua goes stiff. The alpha stands and pads over slowly, taking measured steps towards his omega. Joshua becomes antsy for his touch, a bothersome habit that has plagued him in the later months of his pregnancy. Clive suddenly drops to his knees before him and takes hold of Joshua’s swell in both of his strong hands.

  "This is no place to bring forth a child," he says. “You should be home, lying amongst the finest silk sheets and feathery pillows."

  "Alone?” Joshua retorts. "Never. I would much rather be with you, even if I must give birth on the forest floor.”

  Clive huffs tenderly and then rubs his face all over Joshua’s belly. He lets out a pleased sigh, obviously content with how full he has made his brother. Joshua begins to purr, feeling much more relaxed now that his alpha is touching him and showing his poor, aching body affection.

  “Mmm~" Clive groans, enamored with his omega’s swollen, heavy belly. “Is the fire warm enough?"

  “Mm," Joshua responds, equally as in love with his alpha.

  “Perhaps I should set more kindling on it…”

  "Clive,” Joshua scolds him softly, cupping his brother's scruffy chin to bring his attention where it belongs. "The fire is just fine. I would rather have your warmth.”

  Clive’s grin turns into something mischievous. He leans in to kiss Joshua, open-mouthed and noisy. Their tongues tangle together as Joshua places his hands on Clive’s shoulders and moans at him. With a rumbling throat, Clive leaves his omega’s mouth to nibble along his neck. Joshua yearns to be set down somewhere soft so Clive can lay on top of him and take his time making him feel so good.

  “The tent is warmer," Clive says, marking fangs grazing Joshua’s bond mark. “Let me carry you?"

  "Please,” Joshua begs amidst his softest whimpers.

  Still nuzzling Joshua possessively, Clive scoops him into his arms and ducks into their tent. He makes a beeline for the bed mats on the floor and gently lays Joshua down, still hovering over him with a lust that won't cool anytime soon. Joshua is stroking his wily hands through Clive’s hair as they share another needy, desperate kiss, heads bobbing up and down, chasing each other with tongues flailing.

  "Clive!” Joshua cries out, opening his legs as Clive slinks back and just stares and pants with that untamed look in his darkening, blue eyes. Joshua stares right back, already exhausted. He shifts a little, feeling his pussy throbbing to be filled. With a moan he tilts his head to the side, giving his alpha a sweet, playful smile.

  "By the Flames…” Clive blurts out, ripping open his tunic and letting it fall to the floor. His pectoral muscles are already wet and bulging, beads of sweat rolling down his sculpted abs. "It's hot in here…"

  Joshua laughs. “I need mine off, too. Pregnancy isn't exactly a temperate experience…”

  "No,” Clive agrees, huddling over him again. "But it makes you look scrumptiously angelic~”

  Joshua gasps with excitement as Clive’s hands dive to undo the laces and straps on his clothes. His brother's hot mouth speaks secret, passionate things against his ear as he slips one article off at a time.

  "You're beautiful, Joshua~ Sweaty, swollen, that hidden treasure glistening between your thighs~"

  "Clive…" Joshua shudders as the sweat on his body is suddenly unveiled to the stifling air in the tent. Instantly, his naked skin responds by producing trails of little bumps. "I love you.”

  Clive whispers the same on Joshua's shoulder, hotly muffled as he shows his affection by kissing and licking the same places again and again. He slowly descends with trailing kisses and focuses on Joshua’s swollen, naked, marred belly. Every little freckle he kisses, every long stretch mark he laps his tongue along until he has Joshua squirming and whimpering at him for more.

  “My alpha~" Joshua mewls. Breathlessly, he watches his brother throw off the rest of his clothes before he cuddles back around him again.

  The two of them get as close as they can around Joshua's pregnant mound, Clive’s hungry mouth pressed into his omega’s soft, bouncy breasts. They shift, Joshua’s legs sprawled open like an offering as Clive takes one and holds it up, placing himself at Joshua’s entrance. They kiss, all moans and tongues as Clive pushes in. Joshua throws his back into an arch, eventually settling against the enormous pressure from Clive’s penetration. His brother is huge and always will be, the squeeze of Joshua’s wet, swollen cunt making it more pleasing for Clive to piston in and out at a languid pace.

  There is no urgency to their breeding. It left them a long time ago. When Clive wants him, Joshua lets him have him as slow or as fast as he needs. Of course, this has changed since Joshua became pregnant. He has had to remind his brother that he is more fragile than ever now. But Clive knows. He must be careful not to jostle their pup too much.

  As Clive ruts with gradual pressure, pushing himself deeper, he is slobbering in Joshua's mouth. Joshua turns away, biting his lip and whining as his cunt squeezes Clive’s knotted cock even tighter. With a guttural groan, Clive sends himself deeper, slotting himself with Joshua’s hips, their bodies pressed together in a hot tangle.

  “Relax, Joshua," Clive orders, mouthing at his brother's breasts again. Because of his arousal, Joshua’s tits have begun leaking milk. Clive happily takes advantage and begins to suckle on his dark brown nub. "I've got you…”

  "Clive~!” Joshua moans, throbbing heartbeat bounding against his brother’s famished lips.

  Everything is wet and messy around them. As Joshua’s body relaxes to the breeding, he feels the pup moving. Clive’s thrusts have slowed as he rests his forehead on Joshua’s breasts to catch his breath. Oh, the scene the two of them make – connected at the hips, glistening and breathless. Clive is still gyrating against his omega, but with a slow, grateful pace. He breeds Joshua thoroughly, witnessing the light of ecstacy dawn upon Joshua’s face.

  “Clive…” Joshua is moaning, a hand grasping his love-filled mound. "The pup… The pup is awake."

  “Is it?" Clive asks, gently rubbing his brother's pregnant belly. He leans down to kiss it. "I can feel it, too.”

  A stifled groan leaves Clive’s lips as he picks up speed and pumps himself so easily, so smoothly into Joshua’s soft, wide open cunt. Joshua’s pussy breathes with every thrust, his moaning of a higher pitch compared to his brother as they moan together. Strong spurts of thrusts bring Clive to finish, unloading himself deep within his brother's womb. Joshua hasn't yet, so Clive calls him sweet things in a low, breathy voice to coax him.

  “Come for me, love~" Clive murmurs, lips teasing the shell of his ear as he pumps himself more. "You're beautiful, and so, so strong… Come, come…!"

  Wailing, Joshua finally finds his release. Clive holds onto him and waits patiently for his brother to settle after such vigorous lovemaking. Then, in the quietness, Clive lies down beside his omega and pulls him into his chest, stealing his lips for a session of relaxed, sensuous kissing.

  Outside, the sounds of night serenade them. Some of the men stir only because they are on sentry duty, but they know not to approach the lord commander’s tent. In Clive’s arms, Joshua lays his head on his brother's chest and becomes lost in the sound of his beating heart. Clive’s fingers thread and stroke through Joshua's soft, strawberry blond hair, slowly lulling him to sleep.

Chapter Text

  The next morning, Joshua awoke before his alpha did. He had rested well on his brother and found himself feeling eager to get up and start the day. With the pup kicking, Joshua leaned over to kiss his brother's bicep and then got up to dress himself. As he covered his nakedness, he didn't feel the normal aches he usually did; in fact, he felt good today. He carefully snuck out of the tent so as not to wake his snoring alpha.

  Fresh, crisp autumn air hits his face as he crawls out. The smell of fading fauna gives him a wistful sense of home. Normally, at this late stage of his pregnancy, Joshua would be feeling rather sluggish and tired; but today, he must be suffering from a sort of restlessness. He can think of so many things he wants to do. His brain fog has lifted somewhat and he really, really wants to nest.

  The clamor of the soldiers’ armor makes him wince. The men have busied themselves around camp without Clive’s instruction. Joshua feels proud just to watch them work. Some of them notice him and salute, asking him how he's feeling. But Joshua nods them off, preferring to stay quiet as he waddles his way toward their provisions.

  “Good morning, Your Grace!" A young Shield chirps as he races to him. “I trust you're feeling well?"

  Joshua's hand cradles the heaviest spot of his swell, right under the middle. “Just fine, thank you.” He digs around their sacks for provisions, his focus completely engulfed by his thoughts.

  “Your Grace? Could I help you with something?"

  “No," Joshua replies quickly, heaving. Bending over for even a few seconds makes him winded. “I… I will be making my alpha breakfast. Everything I need is here, right?”

  The Shield nods. "Yes, but… Do you need any assistance?"

  Joshua is grateful for the concern and tender care their soldiers show him every day, but the unwelcome company and constant badgering questions are irking him. His overtaxed, pregnant mind cannot tolerate all the attention. Bearing the soldier’s fretting with what little monarchial grace he has left, he thanks the soldier and gently sends him off.

  Joshua sets to work making Clive some breakfast. His skill with a frying pan isn't exceptional, but it is fairly acceptable as he cracks four eggs and slides them in with the thick slab of bacon he procured from the satchels. At some moments, he has to pause and allow the food to sizzle. Leaning over a nearby stump, Joshua cradles his belly with one hand and steadies his lower back with the other. The pup is very active today and seems to be feeding Joshua's restlessness to the point that he obsesses over any task just to occupy himself.

  He really, really wants to nest. This desire makes him anxious. As he cooks Clive’s food, he scans the forest around them for a place to settle himself. None of the areas he sees satisfies him, so he tries to force that desire down for now. But it keeps resurfacing, like this slight, uncomfortable cramping squirming inside his loins. He passes it off as pregnancy stress and continues to make ready his brother's breakfast.

  Joshua is just sliding the food off onto a tin plate when he feels strong arms wrap around his waist, a thick, warm body pressed up against his backside. He melts in those arms and turns, greeted by an open-mouthed kiss full of passion.

  “Morning~" Clive slurs, lacing his fingers behind Joshua's spine. "Did you sleep well?”

  Joshua’s face blooms a fresh pink when Clive leans down to kiss his belly. "I did. You know I always sleep better when you're beside me.”

  Clive rumbles with warmth and love. He nuzzles Joshua's nose. "Likewise~” He notices the food behind his omega. "What's all this?”

  "I made you breakfast,” Joshua announces proudly, handing him the plate. "I could not stand to watch you eat that awful preserved meat from your pocket one more day."

  Clive gives him a kiss on his cheek. “Thank you, love. You take such good care of me."

  “I love you."

  Clive’s gaze wanders all over him. "I love you, too~”

  Joshua gets the sense that his alpha is still in the post-coital daze from last night. It's not a bad thing, but it means his alpha desires to be satisfied more than once. Unfortunately, Joshua isn't feeling up to that. With a smile, he lets Clive lead him over to a clean stump with a gentle hand on his spine.

  "Are you feeling alright this morning?”

  "Mm, I am,” Joshua says as his alpha slows his pace to match his own uncoordinated waddling. "The pup has quite a lot of energy today. I'm suspecting it may be affecting me as well.”

  After settling himself on the stump, Clive takes a big bite of his bacon, chewing it off like a beast. "Oh? Are you restless?”

  Joshua strokes his belly, that bothersome need to nest clutching him again. “A little…”

  At his omega’s stuttered silence, Clive halts his meal and gets up. "Joshua?” Warily, he approaches his omega, gently touching his pregnant belly that he clearly possesses ownership of whether Joshua wants him to touch it or not. "Are you sure you're alright?”

  At Clive’s touch, Joshua comes back to himself somewhat. "I am. Please don't worry, Clive. It's still some time before our pup arrives…"

  “I know, I just…” Clive holds his omega's belly in both hands, cradling with the utmost care the love they both put all their effort into creating. Joshua's heat was exhausting for them both. "Well, you know how I worry for you.”

  "I do know,” Joshua responds softly, kissing his brother's cheek. "Thank you.”

  As Clive sits back down to enjoy his meal, Joshua looks around anxiously. His gaze is aimless. There and here it goes, constantly seeking out a place suitable for nesting. Sensitive to his omega's troubles by instinct, Clive insists that his brother sit down beside him to rest. But Joshua doesn't want to rest; he wants to nest. The need to do so is killing him.

  Like a good omega, Joshua remains close by until his alpha is done eating. Once Clive has set his plate down, the younger Rosfield resumes his anxious searching, waddling back and forth in a pacing fashion. The walking does him some good as the pup is a little less active, but it only serves to worsen his anxiety. 

  The longer Joshua waits to nest, the worse it becomes. He feels vulnerable, trapped, helpless. If he doesn't nest, he fears he may not give birth to a healthy pup, and if there's no healthy pup, the duchy will suffer, and if the duchy suffers, what about Clive? How will he be a good omega for his brother then? How will-

  Lost in his own bundle of anxiety, Joshua starts to shake until Clive comes to him and grabs hold of him.

  “Joshua, Joshua," Clive calls to him gently, ensuring he has one hand putting pressure in the dip of Joshua's hip and another on his wrist. Pressure applied to these places helps keep a pregnant omega calm in stressful situations; his own father taught him that. "Relax. Relax, love. Tell me what's wrong. Is it the pup? Are you in pain? What is it?”

  "Oh, Clive,” Joshua whimpers, pressing his face into Clive's chest and panting hard. "I need to nest. I need to nest so badly it aches…!”

  "You haven't… You mean, all this time you went without and now all of a sudden you need to…?"

  “Yes!" Joshua whines, swaying against his brother. “Clive, I have to nest. Somewhere… somewhere here…”

  Clive looks around, the expression on his face meaning he is completely out of touch with this concept. He didn't know it hit omegas that hard. But Joshua is about to whelp, so he supposes he shouldn't be too surprised. "Alright, but where? Where are you, uh, thinking?”

  Joshua scans the forest around them and instantly decides it's all wrong. "I don't know… I just know it's not here. It can't be here."

  “Well, then, where?" Clive softly reaches up to Joshua's face. 

  Their eyes meet. Clive increases the pressure he applies to Joshua's wrist in hopes of making him calm, but Joshua's restlessness wins out. Instead of letting Clive cuddle him, Joshua goes to lick affectionately at his alpha’s face in return. Clive knows instinctually that this is Joshua's way of telling him something isn't right.

  “Why don't you come back to the tent?" Clive suggests with a gruff tone, nudging against his omega every time he licks him. “Will that serve well as your nest? Our nest?"

  “Perhaps?" Joshua pauses mid-lick to bring his brother's hand to rest at his underbelly. The pup is moving about. "I need something, Clive…”

  Clive kisses him. "Then let's get you into the tent where you can relax freely.”

___+

  "And when you take Joshua, don't be afraid to force him down. Omegas yearn to be tamed. It is instinctual.”

  Clive remembers. He wished he had written down his father's instructions.

  "Then again, you've always been very soft with him, haven't you?”

  Clive had nodded, agreeing with what most alphas would consider weakness; his father included. “I just don't want to hurt him, Father."

  “Never you mind that. It is necessary for the breeding to cause omegas pain. It helps them conceive. Of all the omegas I've bedded, they do very well when you show them who possesses all the authority. It will ensure heirs to come of a union."

  “Mother was…?"

  “No, your mother was a beta," Father had revealed, his face hard. “She didn't need to be dominated."

  “Does this mean… Joshua and I aren't true brothers?”

  "Oh no, you and your brother share your mother's blood,” Father had said, chuckling. “After your mother's death, I needed to maintain this instinctual authority. I sent for omegas from all over Valisthea to preserve my virility."

  Clive can still feel the ghost of his father's hand on his shoulder.

  “Don't worry, my son. Joshua shall keep you surrounded by heirs if you do this right. You should not need any other omegas nor should you have them. Joshua is to be your archduke, your sovereign. It is his duty to bear heirs, and yours is to ensure he does so."

  “I understand, Father…"

  Clive still remembers how unsure he felt when he watched his father walk away that night. It haunts him every time he thinks about it. His father was right about many things, including how quickly he predicted Joshua would conceive. He only wishes their father was alive to witness it.

  Except now, when Joshua is clearly suffering discomfort; he would spare his father this image of his beloved son.

___+

  The moment they entered through the tent flap, Joshua gasped at the excited movement in his belly. The pup jumped. This tells Joshua that this is a good place to nest, even if he himself doesn't think so. He sniffs at the air and abandons Clive's side to go to his bed mat. Before Clive can follow after him, one of the Shield captains calls him over.

  “My lord, the imperials are aware of our presence."

  “How close are they?" Clive asks, keeping an eye on his brother.

  “A few hundred yards, and by the sound of their marching, their mission is urgent."

  Joshua lowers himself down onto Clive’s bed mat, the sacred place where they made love last night. The musty, wet scents coming off of the fur Clive slept on are soothing something antsy inside of Joshua. The scent of Clive’s sweat, his body odor, his semen… All of it is mingled into a haze of comfort for the pregnant omega. These scents mean safety, protection from forces that would wish harm on him and his pup.

  With a cute hum of approval, Joshua crawls onto the fur and nuzzles it. He smushes his face into it, hoping to rub his skin in his alpha's scents and make them his. He begins to purr as he contentedly squirms in the softness of the fur. He just barely registers when Clive comes over to kiss his head and promises to return to him soon.

Chapter Text

  When Clive returned, he found Joshua had squirmed out of his clothes and was now wrestling nakedly with the furs on the floor of the tent. Joshua's sweat-slicked flesh made Clive drool, and the sweet, submissive way he moaned as he rolled around opened the gates for Clive’s adrenaline. His blood rushed low, deep into his gut, filling his erection quickly and painfully. 

  Letting out a snort, Clive called to the soldiers for more furs to be brought in to their soon-to-be nest before he got down on all fours and crawled over his omega. Joshua cried helplessly at his alpha as Clive mounted him from behind, marking fangs piercing his neck to keep him in place. He thrust once and stuffed his knot between Joshua's quivering legs.

  But Joshua was not very receptive. His instincts told him it was time to nest and relax as the pup made its way down further into his canal. As Clive pushed and pushed his knot deeper, Joshua bucked to try to force him off. Snarling with authority, Clive bit into him harder, getting a pained mewl out of him as he attempted to keep him down.

  “Down, Omega," he commanded, with a rough, primal growl.

  But Joshua still fought. He tried to buck higher, but Clive was too strong and heavy. His efforts to throw Clive off were only making him more exhausted. Realizing he had no choice, he relented and let his alpha breed him, constantly mewling as a mix of pain and pleasure rocked his pregnant body. There was nothing he could do but lie there and take what his alpha was adamant about giving him.

  After about two hours of mating, when Clive decided he was ready to drag his thick, heavy knot out of his omega with reluctance, he set to work laying the gathered furs around the floor of their tent. It was very humid inside, sweat clinging to them both. Joshua laid out on the furs he had already thoroughly ravished, sprawled on his back, breasts heaving, swollen middle heavy and burdensome; he looked like a fat cow waiting to be milked. Patiently, he watched his alpha line their nest for him, quietly purring the whole time.

  As soon as Clive finished, he crawled back over to his omega and scooped him into his arms. Purring, Joshua nuzzled him and cuddled into his alpha mate. Joshua acted still so sweet even after being forced to breed. Clive loved him this way and took any opportunity he could to pry Joshua’s omega instincts out of him as he pleased.

  This was Father's wish.

  They rested together, taking turns caressing Joshua's pregnant belly. Clive kissed him between the minutes, coaxing his purring to grow even louder.

  “How are the men?" Joshua asks warmly, still breathless.

  Clive glances down at him. "The men?”

  “Our soldiers…” Joshua reiterates, cuddling closer to breathe in the musky leather of Clive’s raiment and the heady odor of the sweat on his bare chest. “How are they?”

  Clive’s gaze appraises him lovingly, a hand coming to stroke his omega's soft hair. “They're doing just fine. They're worried about you."

  Joshua looks up at him.

  "You're their sovereign.”

  Joshua lets out a sigh, his pregnant belly a lingering obligation. “I wish I could do more to help them… At least be out there to reassure them.”

  "You're with us, Joshua,” Clive says. "That's enough for them. They trust you, and they trust that you will come through this pregnancy safely.”

  “Oh, I pray so…”

  Clive’s calm expression grows dim in the shadow of Joshua's doubt. “Please, don't think you won't," he says, rubbing gently around the little nub Joshua's belly button has formed. “You are strong, Joshua."

  The sound of Joshua's giggle is bittersweet. "And I have you.”

  Clive nuzzles their noses. "And you have me.”

  Then, Joshua gasps at the flutter of movement in his belly. His hand feels around for it, laughter pouring from his soft, rosy lips. "Ah, Clive! Clive, our pup…”

  With a wide grin, Clive feels around for it, too. "Where?”

  “Lower," Joshua laughs, arching slightly. “Lower, lower…"

  The silliness of this soft moment touches Clive so deeply that he can't help but kiss his omega brother. When Joshua brings his brother's hand over to feel their pup kicking under the right side of his swell, Clive pecks his lips over and over. His love and affection for Joshua are ceaseless and powerful, spanning even the limitlessness of eternity.

  "I love you,” Clive purrs, relishing every little detail that makes Joshua so irresistibly adorable.

  Joshua moans softly at his alpha brother, snuggling up to him. "I just hope… I hope that what we've done is what Father wanted."

  “It is, Joshua," Clive says, pressing a tender kiss to his omega's forehead. “It is."

  “It is?" Joshua sounds doubtful.

  “It's why you're pregnant. Father wanted you this way as soon as possible."

  Memories of home and those constantly mounting societal pressures come racing back. He winces, slipping his hand into Clive’s proffered one for comfort. "That's right… I remember how many times we had to…”

  Clive nuzzles him. "I couldn't let you go until we silenced your heat.”

  That particular memory both haunts and hurts Joshua.

___+

  "Clive?" Joshua had spoken up as Clive hovered low over him, lazily kissing at him in the hopes of arousing him.

  The bed chamber was dark and hot. When Joshua looked into his brother's eyes, a glossy darkness met him. Clive’s rut had turned him into a hungry beast, pawing and stalking after Joshua for days until the younger’s heat surfaced like a wanton maiden. Joshua wasn't wrong to feel afraid in this moment, but with the brother he always found comfort in, he harbored strong doubts. He was questioning the morality of this event Father had so painstakingly crafted for years.

  “M-May I ask you a question?"

  Clive huffed impatiently as he nuzzled Joshua's hair. “Only if it's a quick question."

  Joshua shuddered as Clive began to growl, the elder’s strong, muscular body radiating heat that engulfed the dubious omega. “Have you ever done this before?"

  “Once," Clive answered, his voice rough and full of throbbing desire. He straddled his brother, still huffing. “But the omega I had…” He continued to kiss all over Joshua's face, his neck, his bare chest, nostrils flared with hot eagerness, suddenly stopping just to howl before he resumed. “She didn't survive."

  A whimper escaped Joshua, but he couldn't deny how wonderful it felt to be almost crushed by an alpha in rut. Everything in Joshua’s body cried out to be filled. He let out another moan just as Clive grazed the crook of his shoulder with his marking fangs.

  "But that won't happen to you, Joshua,” Clive reassured him, looking straight into his eyes. "You are my brother and I love you. We are to be mates, and as I breed you tonight, I won't forget any of these things."

  A glimmer of hope still twinkled in Clive's blacked-out eyes. Joshua could still see traces of the gentle, loving man he calls brother, and would soon call alpha. He opened his legs, watching breathlessly as Clive hurriedly took up all the space between them.

  "This is what Father wants for us,” Clive said, reminding him for the fifth time that day. "As I swore to give my life to protect you, so now will I give you my seed to preserve you and all of Rosaria.”

  "Clive…" Joshua cried softly, turning away from his brother's greedy mouth as it gasped on his collarbone. 

  Joshua knew their father was ill, and the physicians believed him to be failing; he could die tomorrow, which is why Clive stole Joshua away that night in front of the crowd at dinner. Father had given his blessing on their bond more than once, and the ministers were growing impatient and fearful that it would take some time before the next archduke produced heirs.

  But Clive was not one to leave the whims of Fate in charge of their lives. He promised Joshua he would impregnate him within days of their mating ceremony, and more than likely promised Father the same. While Joshua was grateful his brother was to become his alpha, the fear of their future as bondmates still scared him.

  Joshua's fear is what drove him to try to close his legs to Clive after their first mating, but Clive forced him to keep them open. Weeping unashamedly, Joshua struggled with his brother. They fought through Joshua's tears and wailing, wrestling in the bed that had already been thoroughly soaked with fluids and some blood. Clive had opened Joshua's womb, but his work wasn't finished.

  “Clive, please!! Let me go!! Please!" Joshua begged, his gracefully thin, freckled body riddled with bruises and bite marks and streaks of blood.

  Clive’s strength was punishing as he held Joshua down and spread his thighs open just to the point of pain. This would be their twentieth consummation. Even as Joshua cried and pleaded for mercy, Clive dove to bite at Joshua's throat again. There wasn't a place on that sweet, tender flesh he hadn't pierced yet.

  "Please!!” Joshua had screamed as he was forced onto his belly and mounted at the eleventh hour.

  Clive didn't speak. He refused to. All he did was grunt and thrust, pouring all his unspoken love and devotion into how hard he bred his brother.

  That same hour, their father passed.

  A minister came to the two brothers to inform them as Clive continued to thrust between his brother's thighs. The news of their father's death stung and paralyzed them. Angry and full of regret, Clive retreated and gathered Joshua in his arms. Joshua shook and wept in Clive’s arms, half from the pain of being bred for hours on end and half from his unyielding grief.

___+

  Joshua ends up staring blankly at his pregnant belly, visions of those days not so long ago filling his mind. It occurred to him suddenly that he never said goodbye to their father; instead, he was helplessly turned onto his belly, his sore, hot, aching loins pumped to overflowing with Clive’s seed. This thought comes too late and leaves a bitter impression on Joshua's heart.

  “How did no other alpha claim me before you did?" He asks his brother.

  Clive kisses his omega's shoulder. “Father ordered they all be kept as far away from you as possible. I was the only one he trusted with you."

  “Naturally," Joshua muses, “and I suppose that's why I only met betas and omegas even at the social events."

  Clive laughs, pressing a kiss to Joshua's lips. “Right again."

  Joshua settles down against his alpha, hand sliding up to rest on Clive's well-endowed, sculpted chest. “I'm so glad it was you."

  “So am I.” Clive shares the sentiment by holding Joshua just a little closer. “No one else could have cared for you as well as me, Joshua – Father knew that as well."

  His other hand strokes fondly over the swell of his abdomen that protects their precious pup. “You know every inch of me…"

  “And more," Clive replies quietly, turning over onto his hands and knees and crawling over his omega's legs. 

  Their lips meet in a long, passionate kiss, tongues slobbering for each other. Seconds into it, Joshua feels their pup move. But he doesn't tell Clive; his alpha is consumed with wanting to show affection, so Joshua allows him all the time he needs, moaning and purring to please him and let him know his efforts don't go unrewarded.

  Minutes later, when Clive had Joshua pinned on his back, sweet, slick thighs opened obediently for him, a Shield captain came for Clive.

  “My lord, a word, if I may?"

  Clive glanced back, a slight fear draining the color from his face. He knew what this was about. He got up and went to the soldier, but Joshua tried to follow.

  “Perhaps I can help?" Joshua struggles to roll over onto his belly so he can pick himself up.

  “Stay where you are," Clive orders, staring him down.

  “But I must know what's happening!"

  “Stay!!"

  Joshua stops, obeying the power in Clive’s voice. He cradles his belly to please his alpha and lays back against the furs of their nest. The way he reclines shows Clive that he is listening and becoming submissive. The pup squirms lazily under his skin, his hand going to find it to help soothe its precocious movements.

  Opening the tent’s flap, Clive turns to his omega. “I'll be back soon."

  There was once a day when he felt so helpless and alone despite the company he kept of hundreds of men, including his alpha…

___+

  That day was gray and cold. The wind blew fiercely bitter, whipping around Joshua as he stood on the terrace of the castle and watched as the heavy dark clouds sank lower over the bleak horizon. His soft skin was chill to the touch. He began to shiver, all thoughts to the future of Rosaria having grown wretchedly moot.

  He was mourning his father. The gentle, righteous man he had admired all his life was gone in but a moment. As if sensing his grief, the sky relinquished a dusting of snow, slight and just out of reach. He had tucked his cloak around himself and sighed, keeping his tears at bay for now.

  Joshua was also pregnant, the reminder so painfully poignant when he felt his alpha snake his arms around his abdomen and press himself up close against him from behind. Their hands met on the tiniest bulge of Joshua's belly, Clive’s head nestled against Joshua's own. The softest whisper of ‘I’m sorry’ tore Joshua’s stomach up, everything about that day feeling impossibly, agonizingly real.

  “You're cold," Clive had said solemnly, hugging him tighter.

  There was a battle raging between Clive’s lovely body heat and the bitter winter cold. Joshua couldn't tell who was winning, but the cold had somehow seeped inside like a thief, creeping along his limbs until he couldn't feel them anymore. It had stolen his will to do anything but crawl up into his alpha's arms and forget about himself.

  "Come inside and let me warm you, Your Grace,” Clive purred on his neck, slightly dipping his marking fangs into his numbed skin to coax him.

  Joshua shuddered, mewling, then he turned to his brother, his alpha, his eternal source of comfort and replied with a very soft and shaky, “Alright…"

  The new, pregnant archduke of Rosaria allowed his lord commander to carry him to their shared chambers, where their fiery passion for each other shut out the bitterness of winter's song.

  But for Joshua, the grief of losing his father while being painfully fucked full of seed just to attempt to preserve a dying kingdom was still too near for him.

  Not even Clive's warmth could assuage that...

Chapter Text

  Four months earlier…

  The door to the archduke's study flew open as Joshua raced inside. He slammed into the desk, hands clenched on the edge. His tears fell and soaked the wood below, the sting of rejection like a searing iron. The ministers had said only a few words to him, but they were enough to leave a lasting wound.

  Crying out in his sorrow, Joshua flung his robe across the room. To him, it signified the task he was born for that constantly suffocated him. He remained only in his stocking boots and the corset designed especially for his gracefully developing pregnant body. The baby's sudden, fluttering movements calmed him somewhat, but the memory of his dead father haunted him that night. The duties Joshua clung to for his late father's sake were beginning to wear him thin and ragged; this pup was one of them.

  “I can't do it… I just can't do it!” He had croaked, wincing hard at the way the door creaked back open to allow Clive inside. He could escape the ministers, his servants, and the entire kingdom. But from Clive, his alpha, there was no escape. There would never be an escape from the man who claimed and impregnated him.

  In all his life, Joshua cannot think of any other time he wanted to be completely alone – or away even from his own sweet, protective older brother.

  Clive’s soft voice called out with the most subtle color of demand. “Joshua? What is it?"

  Joshua shook his head. He knew his scent was pleasing to Clive, and it drove him wild the fatter Joshua got. Pregnant omegas exuded a sweet, succulent scent almost as cloying and delicious as dripping honey. Even if Joshua could hide, Clive would sniff him out no matter how far he went.

  Clive’s arms were suddenly curled around the firm, smooth bump of his abdomen. Joshua was growing so fast. "Love… Talk to me. You're shaking.”

  "I can't do this, Clive," Joshua cried. “I'm not Father…!”

  "No one is expecting you to be-”

  "They are!!” Joshua spun around in Clive's arms and attempted to shake him off, but gave up because his brother's warmth was just that comforting. "You heard them… They think I'm incompetent. They called me a child!!”

  A melancholic hum left Clive's lips. "They don't know you yet.”

  Joshua still squirmed. "I'll never be the archduke our father was…”

  “Yes, you will," Clive said, drawing Joshua's eyes upward to himself with a few fingers cradling his chin. "And at the risk of sounding blasphemous, you will be a greater archduke than Father was.”

  "Clive…" Joshua hid his face beneath the blush in his cheeks, but Clive, ever in control, brought him back again.

  "And when our child is born,” the alpha continued, using both hands to stroke Joshua's belly, "you will be a wonderful mother.”

  Joshua smiled. Clive had been excited about their pup since he knew it existed. The news made him jubilant… if a little overbearing in their bedchambers. Joshua gasped from the pup’s movements, and then he laughed softly. "And I know you'll be an excellent father.”

  It was Clive’s turn to smile, the gentle crinkle around his eyes fondling thoughts about the future. "Becoming a mother while crowned archduke… There's never been a ruler like you, Joshua. In thousands of generations in the Rosfield line, you're the first male omega to receive the throne.”

  “And the only omega," Joshua added, shuddering at his statement.

  Clive agreed and then just stood before him, stroking Joshua's burgeoning bump. “You'll be the greatest archduke who ever sat upon that throne, Joshua. I know it."

  Joshua relished moments like those, when Clive knew just how to calm and encourage him. They remained in each other's company, quiet, intimate, sharing the touch of Joshua's belly. Clive had brought their foreheads together and they swayed, whispering softly about the hope of a future their father died creating for the two of them.

___+

  Joshua realised he had changed so much. He no longer fights his destiny; he accepts it with the grace befitting a monarch. He loved his father, and he adores his people. And with Clive at his side, he knows there is little he can't do to change Rosaria for the better. War or no war, Joshua is determined to preserve the duchy by a path only he can tread: childbearing.

  Clive’s return to him that evening seemed on a triumphant scale. His brother strolled in carrying pride on his broad shoulders, the raiment and flourishing cape he chose to wear complimenting the gentle yet powerful character Clive was known for. Joshua greeted him with an alluring softness to his smile, admiring Clive for all the things he had grown into to protect the duchy, Joshua, and the many pups they will one day have.

  Clive strolls right up to Joshua and they kiss. It is short, but sweet enough to draw a moan out of Joshua.

  “Do you remember how scared I used to be?" Joshua asks, almost in a whisper as if to try to maintain the intimacy between them.

  Clive reminisces and answers, "Of course I do.” He chuckles softly from behind, placing his hands on Joshua's shoulders and leaning down. “You used to be so afraid of accepting your duty… But now, you diligently tend to all of us: the men, our people… even me.”

  "Especially you,” Joshua counters, receiving his alpha's kiss beautifully. Hurried and desperate is Clive's attention for him, but Joshua knows why. When Clive pulls back, leaving Joshua purring with a hand cradling his cheek, Joshua says, "I can do nothing without you. You are my strength.”

  Clive comes around and falls to his knees to place a kiss to the top of Joshua's swollen belly before taking his mouth again. Their kiss bobs up and down, Clive’s tongue exploring Joshua's throat like always. “I will always be your strength," he rasps with a low growl when they part, obviously enamored with his heavily pregnant omega.

  “Forgive the interruption, my lord!"

  A Shield captain bursts in on them, but Joshua graciously excuses him. He notes the harrowing look on his soldier’s face and strokes his bulging belly for the ghost of reassurance.

  “What is it? What's wrong?" The archduke asks, Clive instantly growing stiff and immovable in front of him.

  "Uh… Your Grace…”

  The soldier is clearly uncomfortable sharing any information with Joshua. He was most likely ordered by Clive not to to help preserve Joshua's calm demeanor in the last days of his pregnancy. His anxious, darting eyes keep looking to his lord commander.

  “Inform me outside," Clive commands, following on his captain’s heels. “Rest until I return," he says to Joshua just before leaving the tent.

  The submissive voice in Joshua's head orders him to be still and listen to his alpha. But there's a stronger urge to be involved as he has every right to be. As the duchy's sovereign, he should be kept abreast about any and all situations that arise under Clive’s watch. Yet he will not argue. He is in no position to.

  The beginnings of labor are almost upon him. He can feel it surfacing in his womb, his involuntary muscles writhing about with the most subtle of pains Joshua has only known during a bleed. He takes a deep breath and remembers to breathe through the pain, however slight. To hold his breath during the inevitable is comparable to remaining silent while his nation is dragged closer and closer to conflict.

  When Clive returns, he will demand his right to know. Carrying a pup does not exempt Joshua from doing his duty.

___+

  “What is happening?" Clive asks, face hard.

  The captain bows his head. “Imperial soldiers have surrounded our encampment, my lord. Hour by hour, they encroach upon us ready to strike. We cannot know when this shall take place, but the danger is very, very real."

  Clive sighs, his expression grim but carrying the annals of rage. “So… They've taken the low road… If it's a war they want, it's a war they'll get.” He grasps the hilt of his blade and looks his soldier in the eye. "We abandon Northreach. Tell the men to ready our forces and prepare to meet the imperials in battle. We'll catch the first strike."

  "My lord…” The captain lets out a breath, a sign he is holding back. "They know the archduke is here. If we meet on the battlefield, I cannot guarantee His Grace’s safety.”

  "What do you mean?” Clive’s words are almost angry.

  "They are many and we are few. If things go south for us, Lord Rosfield, I cannot personally guarantee His Grace's safety.”

  Clive’s heart drops. “We must ride for Rosalith to rally our forces then," he declares, uncertain. "His Grace must be nestled and guarded within the capital.”

  “The opportunity for escape is slim to none, my lord," the captain says. “There are too many of them.”

  Swallowing, Clive considers Joshua's safety above all else. "Then, I will put you in charge of choosing the best men to protect His Grace. And I mean, only the very best of our men. Do you understand what I am saying, Captain?"

  “Yes, my lord," the captain replies, bowing to his commander. “I shall see to it immediately."

  As Clive bounds for his omega's side, he curses himself for being so careless as to allow their sworn enemies this close to Joshua. As lord commander, he knows he cannot stay with Joshua should he descend into labor; his place is with the Shields on the battlefield. Missing the birth of their first child is a grief he will carry the rest of his life. But if Joshua's own depends on the might of his blade, so be it.

  Clive swore to do this very thing eighteen years ago.

___+

  Far from the stress now laid on Clive's shoulders, Joshua relaxes in the nest they both built. It's warm within the tent, furs spread to the furthest corners to Joshua's liking. His preference for the furs came from his love of Clive's fur-lined clothes. After their father's death, the royal ministers suggested Clive wear them as they once belonged to their father.

  Joshua remembers the moment Clive first stepped out in those clothes. His thick, rippling muscles bulged even through the fabric, the fur running along his strong, able limbs. The furs signified pride, power over the beasts that walked the earth. They also signified power over Joshua as well. Although Joshua was archduke, Clive was his alpha and the late archduke's firstborn; he had more right to rule over Joshua's body than anyone was allowed to see.

  Taking comfort in these memories and truths, Joshua snuggles up with one of those fur-lined capes Clive is so proud to wear. He licks it, rubs it, covers his pregnant belly with it… His primal affection for Clive’s furs may look quite obscene to some, but for an omega about to give birth, this is only the beginning of a labor-inducing trance.

  About an hour later, something gives way in Joshua's womb. It is hot and heavy, trickling down and wetting his loins and the soft insides of his thighs. He is surprised by it and clutches at his belly as he tries to look at the mess between his legs.

  “Ah… my waters,” he muses, beginning to feel anxious. His fingers stroke over the top of his swell. "My dear, sweet baby… Now is truly not the best time for your arrival."

  ___+

  When Clive returned to the tent, he found Joshua had curled up in a corner and draped one of his fur-lined capes over himself. He went to him and knelt down, the look in Joshua's eyes telling him something important was happening. Joshua took his alpha's hand and placed it on the most swollen part of his belly, their gazes locked as the pup squirmed gently.

  “My waters have broken,” Joshua tells him softly.

  Clive’s eyes become swallowed up by black. When he glances down, he sees the furs beneath Joshua have turned dark and wet. “It's time?"

  Joshua nods, then noisily writhes while he bears a pang of labor. "It is. Our pup is coming.”

  "Joshua…” Clive breathes out, getting closer so he can feel the heat of Joshua's swollen pregnant body. "Sanbreque wants war."

  “War?" Joshua echoes with a tremble in his voice, the warm color draining from his face as Clive’s careful, gentle hands come upon it.

  Clive nods, furthering the fear in Joshua's heart. "They have surrounded our camp and are threatening to kill us all. I have ordered our best men to guard you until it is safe to leave for Rosalith."

  “Clive…” Joshua shudders, slightly due to the fluctuations in his body as it prepares to push out the nestled pup. He reaches out to grasp Clive's hand, but the words he wants to say escape him. Too afraid to speak, he stares helplessly at his alpha brother.

  Clive knows. He can sense Joshua's fear. It eclipses the sweet, juicy scent Joshua's pregnancy gives him. He shushes him tenderly, hands still cradling his omega's soft, freckled face as they share a kiss… and prays it will not be their last.

  “Lord Commander!!"

  A Shield comes bursting through, shouting frantically. He looks at Joshua, then at his commander before saluting.

  “Imperials have breached the north side of the camp!! Our men are ready to fight at your command!!"

  Fear forces Joshua into silence. Reluctantly, Clive’s hands fall from Joshua's face and he steps away. His loyal, loving, diligent eyes not leaving the vulnerable sight of his very pregnant omega, who has curled up in a mess of furs he himself laid down for him for what little protection it can give. As Clive prepares to leave the nest, Joshua mewls sweetly for him.

  It takes all the strength Clive has not to curl up beside him and take him in his arms.

  Morbid sounds of men fighting and clashing with sharpened steel fill the air around them. The battle is too close, Clive decides. But it is why he has drawn his own blade, and abandons his pregnant omega brother to deliver their pup on his own: they both have work to do before the day is done.

  "I love you!” Joshua calls out, gently stretching his graceful legs under the furs in protest of the pain.

  Clive glances back only once, wincing for his omega. “I love you, too…"

  Swiftly, he charges out of the tent.

  “Swear to me that not one man will enter this tent," Clive growls at the men around him. His eyes were full of fire.

  "Only upon our deaths, my liege,” a captain replies, giving a motion for the Shields to draw their blades.