Chapter Text
Throughout history, borders of the kingdoms have shifted back and forth with the tides of the wars waged by ambitious alpha kings. But in the north of the land, in a valley surrounded by the natural fortress of the Northern Alps, one kingdom has remained peaceful for centuries. The kingdom is called Yukigaoka, aptly named for its ferocious winter snows, which mercilessly crushed entire invading armies, until the alpha kings mostly gave up their dreams of possessing it. But in Yukigaoka’s short summer, the purest sunshine bathes the valley and dozens of kinds of wildflowers bloom along the edges of the river. It is said by those that have seen the kingdom from the mountain tops, that there is no sight more splendid. Merchants from nearly every kingdom come to trade for rare gems mined from the mountains, and travelers make the trek through the alps to enjoy the legendary healing hot springs. Presently ruling over this prosperous kingdom is not an alpha king, but a queen, as fierce and beautiful as her land. This has been the tradition of Yukigaoka since its founding. A king has never sat on the so-called Sunshine Throne.
The reigning Queen Hinata is known to be fair and wise, as most of her predecessors have been. Her first-born was a son whom she named Shouyou, in hopes that he would be able to fly to whatever heights required in service of his future queen, and that he would shine like the sun in court. Prince Shouyou was a small boy, with not much aptitude for listening to his tutors, and the queen worried for a while that there might not be any meaningful royal duty that he would be fit for. But while he remained small in stature, he grew to fit his name, turning out not only to be gifted in sport, but to have a spirit and smile as bright as his kingdom’s summer sun. He managed to draw nearly everyone who encountered him into his orbit. By the time the Queen gave birth to the daughter-heir, Crown Princess Natsu, she was confident in naming Prince Shouyou as the future captain of his sister’s Queen’s Guard. He trained harder than any officer or common soldier and most of the men were entirely devoted to him by the time he was deemed fit to hold a real sword. All was very well in Yukigakoa, until shortly after Shouyou turned fifteen…
The weapons master noticed that Prince Shouyou, who had never been sick a day in his life thus far, was reacting a bit slowly in his recent training sessions. Royal physicians descended on him and examined every inch of their precious prince, but none could find any cause for the slight fever that he was running. They decided it was stress from training too much, although Shouyou insisted he was quite well. He was ordered to rest. However, being still was never one of the prince’s strong suits. After some weeks of the prince sneaking about to train behind everyone’s backs, he collapsed in the middle of the night, alone in the training yard. Nearly every alpha in the palace was drawn to the spot, and only the shock of finding their beloved prince, the promised future leader of the kingdom’s finest soldiers, delirious in a severe state of heat, kept their instincts in check.
Queen Hinata found herself in a situation that no queen of Yukigaoka that she knew of had ever faced. Omega males were extremely rare in the royal lines and nobody had even entertained the idea that strong and sturdy Prince Shouyou, who undeniably had the soul of a warrior, would present as one. Her heart was broken for her son, who had already spent years wholeheartedly training to be his sister’s first protector. It was difficult to believe that fate had been so cruel. But she knew that even if by virtue of his strength and character, the soldiers accepted Shouyou as their commander, there were too many ways that it could end in tragedy. She even considered giving him the throne, but that would be robbing her daughter of her birthright and most likely Princess Natsu would end up relegated to obscurity. She knew that had simply been the passing desire of a loving mother. As a queen, she knew that Prince Shouyou now had a very unique opportunity to serve her kingdom. With the growing threat of the powerful and aggressive King Ushijima of Shiratorizawa, who made no secret of his desire to possess every kingdom of the north, nobody could deny the value of forming an alliance with one of the northern kingdoms. And Prince Shouyou could provide one, through marriage to an alpha king or heir. So, with a heavy heart, Queen Hinata did her royal duty and told her son that he would do his. His training with the weapons master ended, and he began a kind of training that was a thousand times more arduous for him.
Five years later, when Prince Shouyou came of age, Queen Hinata sent her messengers down the mountain and into the surrounding kingdoms. More than a dozen kingdoms were invited to offer their very best, to win Prince Shouyou’s heart and the riches of Yukigaoka that would come with it.
***
Away from the peaceful valley of Yukigaoka, a battle between two of the northern kingdoms, Shiratorizawa and Karasuno, is coming to an end. Leading Karasuno against King Ushijima’s second invasion attempt in as many years, is not Karasuno’s king, but the king’s heir, young Crown Prince Kageyama Tobio. Prince Tobio’s stormy disposition earned him the title of Shadow Prince when he was just a boy. Fortunately for the kingdom, he makes up for his lack of charm with his extraordinary talents as a military strategist. If it weren’t for the rise of Prince Tobio, Karasuno would have been devoured by Shiratorizawa. As it is, many in the north still call them the Fallen Crows, a name they received after Tobio’s grandfather’s death. Prince Tobio is determined not to rest until his Crows are flying high once more.
The prince is in the commander’s tent, deep in a strategy meeting with his general and his advisor, when the message from the mountain arrives. He looks up from the map, raven black hair falling in his stormy dark blue eyes which grow narrow and lock on the intruding royal messenger’s face. The boy’s hands and breath begin to shake in anticipation of speaking to the prince who is notoriously hostile during battle.
“What!” Tobio barks, and the tent becomes quiet as soldiers and servants alike turn towards the messenger, causing the poor boy to lower his eyes before he begins to speak.
“Your highness, the k-k-king requires your p-p-presence elsewhere. You’re to journey to the kingdom of Yukigaoka to… offer to… m-m-m…”
“SPIT IT OUT!” Tobio roars and the messenger prostrates himself.
“You’re to offer to m-m-m…m-marry the Crown Prince Hinata Shouyou of Yukigaoka!” he cries, producing a scroll from his coat and offering it up in his sweaty hands.
If the tent was quiet before, now it goes silent as death. Tobio rounds the table and snatches the scroll from the groveling boy’s hands. He quickly scans it and then crushes it in his fist, throwing it on the ground with a disgusted curse.
“Tell my fool father that I’ll consider marriage when I’m finished regaining all the territory that he handed to Ushijima!” Tobio growls. The boy begins to back out of the tent, sniffling and murmuring apologies.
“Wait…” the command is followed by a sigh and the soft click of spectacles being readjusted. “There have been rumors among merchants and travelers for yearsthat Prince Hinata is an omega… So it’s true?” the prince’s advisor inquires as he picks the crushed scroll off the ground and begins smoothing it out on the table.
“It is true, sir. Queen Hinata intends to ally Yukigaoka with one of the northern kingdoms through marriage. The King received that summons not seven days ago. I rode here as fast as I could on the King’s command, sir.”
“Extraordinary… Ride back and tell the king we’ll go. Immediately.”
Tobio swings his head towards the speaker and prepares to redirect his wrath towards Royal Advisor Tsukishima, who rolls his eyes and raises his voice to squash the prince’s impending protest. “Your highness, the possibility of a marriage alliance with Yukigaoka is not something that Karasuno is in a position to ignore. If you succeeded in this, if we had Yukigaoka’s wealth and army at our disposal… We could crush Shiratorizawa in a year. Well… I highly doubt that someone reputedly known as the Sunshine Prince will want to marry you if he has other choices, but we mustgo and make the offer. Yes, that’s right, let it sink in for a moment your highness…”
Tobio glares at Tsukishima in a way that would make lesser men cower and small children cry. Finally, he speaks.
“After…” he begins.
Tsukishima rolls over him once more. “And it’s imperative that we go now. The journey to the Alps alone will be long since we’ll need to travel through Seijoh without attracting attention. And, the Alps become impossible to navigate starting in early autumn for those unfamiliar with them. This battle is under control and I believe that you can trust your men to finish what you’ve begun.” Tsukishima adjusts his spectacles once more and General Sawamura nods curtly in agreement.
Tobio clasps his hands behind his back and paces and fumes in silence for several moments, searching for some argument that might allow him to escape from this horrible mission that’s suddenly been thrust upon him. He had occaisionally and vaguely imagined that a suitable marraige partner, perhaps a lovely and quiet princess, would be presented to him one day. Trekking through the infamously treacherous Northern Alps to convince some prince that Tobio was the best choice among a hoard of royal alphas… This was not a scenario that he ever could have fathomed. Unfortunately, he knows that his lack of mental preparation is not a suitable excuse. What Tsukishima said makes sense to his military mind. He cannot think of a single logical reason to ignore this summons, not a single reason to not make his best effort to secure an alliance with the richest and most stable kingdom in the north.
“Fine.” he huffs, at no one in particular, failing at not sounding sulky.
Tsukishima nods. “We’ll travel as quickly as we can, and discreetly.” He turns to the tall freckled servant standing by his side. “Tadashi, have horses brought, and summon two of the best soldiers from the royal guard that you can find right now. Then start packing, and make sure we have our warmest cloaks.”
***
About two weeks later, after an arduous, but blessedly conflict free journey, externally at least, Prince Tobio and his small party reach the edge of Yukigaoka’s territory. They begin the last, but by far the most strenuous leg of their journey up into the Alps. September has just begun, but when night falls on their first day in the mountains, the wind is bitterly cold and the temperature seems to drop with each step they take. Gray clouds have been roiling above for days, threatening a storm. They pray it’s not snow. The road, used by merchants and travelers to and from Yukigaoka, is well marked and worn, but steep, and bordered by thick forest and sometimes sheer cliffs that could kill a careless rider. Tobio can easily see why Yukigaoka has never been successfully invaded.
Tsukishima spends nearly every waking moment lecturing the prince about politics and courtship. Apparently, Tobio has been receiving instruction in such matters from his tutors since he presented as an alpha six years ago, and Tsukishima makes sure to remind him frequently how astounding it is that he hasn’t retained a single thing from those lessons. With each passing hour, Tobio’s mood grows darker along with the sky above. All suggestions from his guards, Nishinoya and Tanaka, to stop at one of the small villages along the way, and perhaps enjoy a brief rest at a hot spring inn, are immediately rejected by Tobio. He desperately wants to end this nightmare, say he did his duty, and get back to his battle plans.
Five long and hellish days later, just when poor Tadashi is at his wits end, worrying that this journey will end in either murder or death from the cold before they reach the capital, they come upon a large clearing in the forest. The road slopes down in front of them and a massive stone wall, carved from the mountain itself, stretches across their path. It’s Yukigaoka’s last, but perhaps most impressive line of defense. Tobio spots at least a dozen of the kingdom’s famed archers on the wall, observing their approach. He orders Tadashi to raise the banner. The orange cloth adorned with two crows, one in flight looking down on the other, whips violently in the wind. They present the Queen’s slightly crumpled summons to the guard that approaches them and are allowed to pass. On the other side of the wall, the five men finally behold for the first time, the capital city of Yukigaoka, spread out across the valley below them. The castle is in the midst of it, a magnificent white pagoda with slanted roofs at the center of its grounds. Tanaka whistles long and low, and even Tobio’s eyes widen in awe.
They begin their final descent as the sun begins to set behind the mountains on the other side of the city. They reach the castle in the middle of the night and present the summons once more. A young man named Kouji appears to guide them to their quarters in the guest wing. Along the way, he informs them without reserve that all of the other suitors have already come and gone. Even King Ushijima himself came last month and offered to make Prince Shouyou one of his concubines. Apparently, Ushijima’s scent and disposition were most disagreeable to the prince, who sent him away immediately. He glances sideways at Tobio’s face a few times while reiterating that their beloved Prince Shouyou is looking for a kind and honorable partner. Kouji then says that he certainly understands if Prince Kageyama wants to leave right away, but he warns them that they will without a doubt die if they’re still on the mountain when the storm begins, so of course they’ll be welcome as royal guests until it passes. But, Kouji continues, if he’s perfectly honest, Prince Kageyama shouldn’t get his hopes up concerning Prince Shouyou…
Tobio follows along in complete silence, staring straight ahead. Tadashi casts frequent fearful glances at his prince from behind Tsukishima, while Nishinoya and Tanaka rest their hands on their sword hilts, preparing to deal with a sudden violent outburst. But the prince is distracted…
As soon as Tobio was out of the wind, before he even regained feeling in his nearly frozen face and hands, he noticed the strange scent of the castle. It’s faintly sweet and it reminds him of an imported spiced cider he once had at a banquet long ago. He’s vaguely aware of their guide speaking as he leads them through the castle, saying something about Prince Shouyou rejecting everyone, dying in the snow on the mountain… but he can’t process the words. He’s not sure if it’s fatigue or the strangeness in the air, but he starts to feel slightly… intoxicated. He interrupts Kouji’s lecture at one point to inquire what the mysterious scent is. Kouji gives him a confused look and Tsukishima quickly hisses at him to keep such disgusting figments of his imagination to himself. The scent grows fainter as they make their way out of the pagoda and across the grounds to the guest wing. They pass the guests’ dining room and Kouji points out the paths leading through the gardens and to the baths.
Finally, they arrive at their quarters. They’re simple, but elegant, and more importantly, warm, with futons laid out neatly on the finely woven straw floor. Another servant brings a pitcher of spiced wine and a basin of warm water. Tobio’s companions pass out under their feather filled blankets as soon as they’ve wiped the worst of the journey’s filth from their bodies with warm damp cloths. Tobio downs a cup of wine and attempts to do the same, but for some reason, sleep does not come for him. After another cup of wine, he stalks off to the bath, in the middle of the night, exhausted, slightly drunk, and agitated, in this strange smelling castle in the mountains, where he probably has no purpose other than to be rejected and probably die on his way back down the mountain. In the steamy bathhouse, he scrubs the sweat and dirt from his body and sinks into the wooden pool of blessedly hot water, which does feel admittedly wonderful. He leans his head back and listens to the bubbling of the spring and the howling wind. He ponders the events that led him to this wretched state of affairs. He decides that if he does indeed get rejected by Prince Hinata, he’s going to kill Tsukishima on the way down the mountain. Nobody would ever find the evidence. Of course then Tadashi would be devastated and that could be problematic. And there’s no predicting what Nishinoya and Tanaka would do…
He’s distracted from his violent fantasy, by that scent… He thought he’d gotten used to it, but now it’s growing stronger… It’s starting to make him dizzy and…
Tobio’s mind empties and he leaps to his feet in a fighting stance, sending a wave of water over the edge of the wooden tub. His eyes fly open and find the source of the sound that triggered his instincts. A… boy... but not an alpha, something tells him, with shaggy hair as orange as wildfire, dressed in a light green robe, stands at the edge of the bath opposite Tobio. The boy is small and doesn’t look threatening in the least, so Tobio drops his hands. Next, he rembembers he’s completely exposed, which normally wouldn’t embarrass him while he’s bathing, but he realizes he’s a bit… excited, for some odd reason. He sinks back into the water with silent thanks that he was already flushed from the wine and the heat.
Still, Tobio feels rather vulnerable, and thus irritated by the embarrassment. “This is the alpha bath, boy. Are you lost? If so, I can’t help you. I’ve only just arrived in this place.”
The boy looks slightly amused and studies Tobio’s face for another moment before answering, “So, you’re the one I could smell all the way from the royal quarters.” he replies in a voice that matches his boyish face.
“The royal…?” A memory tries to surface in his exhausted mind. Something about the prince and his sister having red hair... Is this Princess Hinata? No, while his facial features could certainly be called elven, this is undoubtedly a boy. Prince Hinata then…? But according to Tsukishima, he’s supposed to be Tobio’s age. This boy can’t be a day over sixteen. And then a wave of the mysterious scent rolls over Tobio and has him fighting to keep his eyes from rolling back. This boy, who is perhaps Prince Hinata, is undoubtedly… the source. A rumbling sound that Tobio has never made, or even known that he could make, erupts from his chest. The boy’s eyes grow impossibly wide and he licks his parted lips. Finally he’s beginning to show some signs of fear. Tobio stares into the boy’s eyes, transfixed, noticing the color reflected in the light of the lanterns. They’re golden brown, like honey… or perhaps polished cedar wood? Or Tobio’s favorite ale…
“Who are you?” the boy presses, rounding the corner of the bath and picking up his robe, crouching right in front of Tobio, despite his nervous expression.
“K-Kageyama Tobio, Crown Prince of Karasuno. Who are you? And why are you so close to me? You’re clearly afraid of me.” he stammers, pushing himself back against the edge of the tub.
“Maybe so… But I’m stronger than I look… And you wouldn’t be able to catch me anyway” he replies without hesitation, still not answering Tobio’s most pressing question.
Well, whether or not this is Prince Hinata, and whatever is happening right now, Tobio is starting to feel as though he’s losing a great battle with this boy. He can’t stand it. The thought of losing brings him to his senses a bit and he begins to gather himself to strike back. What the counterstrike will entail, he doesn’t know yet.
Before he can decide, the mysterious boy stands and backs away towards the door.
“W-wait!” Tobio says pathetically. He begins to stand and remembers that he’s naked and no less excited than he was at the beginning of this encounter. He curses himself under his breath. Of all the times for his body, which he normally has immaculate control over, to betray him.
“I have to get back before my guards notice I’m not in bed… They know how I like to wander at night… We’ll meet again, Crown Prince Kageyama Tobio! I’m Hinata Shouyou by the way!” the boy declares and he bounds out, disappearing as quickly as he came.
Tobio sits there stunned for a long time, his mind blank and his heart racing. He eventually makes his way back to their room, and crawls under the cover, a thousand times more agitated than he has been at any point since this ordeal began back in the commander’s tent on the battlefield. Tobio does not fall asleep until the sun begins to rise.
Shortly after sunrise, a servant arrives to inform Tobio and his men that as soon as they’ve broken their fast, they’re to have an audience with Queen Hinata and Prince Shouyou.
***