Ramyeon and Deviled Eggs

by astronomifier

Summary:

Since defeating Gwi-Ma, everything's been going great for Rumi. She's got a golden Honmoon, a loving pack, a much needed vacation, and even an adorable new pet tiger. There's just one problem: Rumi hates being an alpha. But like, that's normal, right? Don't all alphas kind of hate their dynamics?

No?

Shit.

Notes:

A few quick world-building bits before we start: In this universe, dynamic is way more important than gender to the point that same-dynamic relationships are considered queer in a way that same-gender ones honestly aren't. Triad relationships are actually kind of the norm, but the expectation is to specifically form an alpha/beta/omega throuple.

Also, the bathhouse is CLEARLY a metaphor for lesbian sex, so Zoey and Mira have been fucking for a while, while Rumi only joined the relationship recently.

Chapter 1

Looking back at it, the night Rumi's pack started to figure it out was a quiet one. It had been three weeks since the Honmoon went golden, and Huntrix was on a much needed hiatus. In fact, Mira had made it clear to Rumi that relaxing was no longer optional, not after her stress had reached the point of growing fangs and claws. So here Rumi was, in the living room of their tower suite, cuddling into Mira's side for some much-needed “Couch Time” while Zoey prepped ramyeon in the kitchen, trying her very best to relax.

It wasn't working.

Despite everything – opening up about her demon side, letting Bobby take over for her work tasks, letting Mira drape an arm around her and hold her safe – Rumi couldn't shut down the worry in her brain. Not even her fellow alpha's chillis-and-chocolate scent wafting over her helped. She was trying, trying so hard to quiet her head and accept a peaceful vacation with her loving pack, but she just couldn't. Not when her head was filled with memories of how aggressive and alpha-y she'd gotten when her demon side took over, or the way her packmates had looked at her… All was forgiven, sure, but Rumi still knew what they'd thought of her, and that didn't just go away.

Apparently her worry was slipping into her scent, because Mira pulled her tighter into the cuddles and asked, “You okay?”

“Do you ever think about what'd be like to not be an alpha?” asked Rumi, casual, like it was just a fun hypothetical.

Mira raised an eyebrow, looking down at where Rumi was cuddled into her side. “What, like if I had presented different? Not really, why?”

“I dunno, I've just been thinking about it. If it'd feel different, I guess. Have you really never wondered?”

“I mean, I guess I've tried to empathize in passing, cause I know we have more privilege and stuff, but beyond that… I like being me, you know?”

Rumi shrugged, starting to get nervous under Mira's intense gaze. “Yeah, I guess that makes sense,” she mumbled, noncommittally.

Mira tilted her head, analyzing her. 

“Hmm.”

“What?” Rumi asked, perhaps a tad more defensive than necessary.

“Oh, nothing,” shrugged Mira. “Do you think about that a lot? Sounds like it's been on your mind.”

Something about Mira's reaction to her question had Rumi increasingly nervous. She did her best to hide it, but she could smell her anxiety in the air, souring the usual roasted caramel of her alpha scent.

“Uh, not really, no,” said Rumi, scent only souring further. “Forget I asked.”

Mira nodded, giving Rumi's shoulder a squeeze, but another voice piped up.

“Asked what?” said Zoey, cheerfully entering the room while balancing three steaming ramyeon cups in two hands. “What'd I miss?”

“Nothing!” Rumi tried to say, but Mira spoke at the same time, drowning her out.

“Rumi was wondering if I ever wanted to not be an alpha. I said nah, but its an interesting question, right?”

“I asked if you'd ever wondered what it was like," corrected Rumi.

“Sure, same diff.”

Zoey glanced between the two, nostrils flaring slightly as she read their scents, her own nougat-and-peanut scent twisting with light concern. “Hmm, I mean, sometimes I wonder about being an alpha or omega, but that's mostly because people are always talking shit about how ‘betas can never understand the passion of heats and ruts’ or whatever. Like, I can't help but be curious when you put it like that, but also I'm pretty sure it's all just dynamicist bullshit, yno?” Zoey smiled softly. “Anyways, why do you ask, Rumi?”

Rumi groaned, burying her face into Mira's side. “Forget it. Weird question.”

With her face hidden in the crook of Mira's arm, Rumi didn't see her packmates share a meaningful look. But there was ramyeon to eat, so after a subtle pause, they left it at that.

 

***

 

A few days later, Rumi woke up feeling gross. Sweat soaked sheets, elevated heart rate, body buzzing with a frustratingly undirected energy. There was a moment of confusion, and then Rumi clocked it for what it was: pre-rut.

Rumi groaned with frustration, pulling herself out of bed. Rut sucked , always leaving her horny and exhausted at the same time. She never understood why other alphas celebrated it. Probably the typical knotheaded obsession with virility, she supposed. Thank god she wasn't one of those alphas.

Still, there was nothing to be done about it. Grumbling, she made her way to the kitchen, where she was suddenly overwhelmed by a wave of chilli-chocolate scent. Zoey and Mira were sat at the kitchen island, nursing their morning coffees, though from the smell you'd think the room was filled with 15 Miras, Zoey's subtler nougat scent completely drowned out.

“Woah” said Rumi. “You're hitting rut too?”

Mira nodded, but Zoey squeaked with excitement. “Too!? As in, my girls are finally syncing up? Oh my gosh, that's such a big pack milestone!” 

Upon realizing that her packmates were staring at her, Zoey froze, suddenly turning beet red. “Uh, I mean, uh… Sorry, is it weird to be excited about this? I feel like it's weird.”

Mira chuckled, breaking the tension of the room. “Nah, I think it's cute that you nerd out about our cycles. It's nice to see our beta is paying attention to these things. It's how we know you'll keep us safe when we're both out of our heads.”

Zoey squirmed into the compliment, her excitement returning as quick as it had gone. “Ooh, and now that Rumi's not hiding her patterns, she doesn't have a reason to stop me from doting on her! We can all spend it together, finally get the full pack experience!”

Rumi blanched. “Uh… I don't think that's a good idea. I get kinda awful when I'm in rut.”

Zoey and Mira glanced at each other, Mira raising an eyebrow, Zoey shrugging in response. “Define awful,” said Mira, nonchalant as ever.

“Like, I get cranky and short tempered, and I can't keep still, and get all gross and… desperate. It's to a point where I don't know that I'd be able to control my urges, plus sometimes my demon claws come out which might come off as threatening, so, yeah…” Rumi trailed off for a moment, taking a deep breath. “Just kind of an all around awful experience, you know? You don't need to see that.”

Mira blinked. “That's it? Rumi, those are just normal rut symptoms. Well, except the demon claw thing, but didn't we already decide that you're not hiding your demon side anymore?”

Rumi shook her head. “No, I'm telling you, it's awful, like… Mira, you always say that you like your ruts, right?. Mine suck. I don't want to make you guys deal with them.”

Zoey stepped down from her stool, pulling Rumi into a hug that had the alpha side of her perking up with joy. “Rumi, that's probably just because you've refused rut partners for so long. Let us take care of you, maybe you'll see that it's fun.”

Mira smirked. “Yeah, I mean, I  definitely have a good time when Zoey ‘takes care’ of my rut.”

Rumi was pretty sure she'd never blushed harder in her life. But… she did have to admit that being taken care of sounded nice, especially to the rut-fueled side of her brain. And she had promised no more secrets, so… “Okay… I'll try it. As long as I can go back to my room if it's too much.”

Zoey broke the hug to look into her eyes, grinning ear to ear. “Deal.”

 

***

 

Rumi made it about fifteen minutes into her proper rut before things got unbearable. It had started fine enough – Rumi was determined to give rutting with her pack a chance, so she let herself be laid out on Mira's bed, let Zoey coo over her while Mira pinned her shoulders down, enjoying the feeling of giving up control to her pack. But when Zoey pressed her hand against the hardness in Rumi's pants, her mind suddenly flooded with instinct-fueled thoughts of taking and claiming and hurting Zoey in ways that the rest of her just wasn't okay with. The gross-rut feeling came back stronger than it ever had, making her sick to her stomach. Panicked, Rumi tried to move, but Mira's grip was still firm and Zoey's weight was still atop her and suddenly the rut-brain hated not being in control just as much as Rumi-brain needed to be away from here.

Before Rumi could process what was happening, the hands holding her down were gone, and Zoey was pulling off her with intense worry plastered on her face. Rumi shot out of the bed and scrambled away from her partners before she caught her breath enough that she heard it: She was growling , a hurt, territorial noise that was nothing like the possessive, sexy alpha growl that she liked so much coming from Mira. She looked down at her arms and saw her patterns flaring with anger, burning with cold demonic fire, and her heart sunk somewhere deep inside of her.

“Sorry, sorry sorry sorry,” begged Rumi. She couldn't help but beat herself up, knowing how much her packmates had wanted to do this with her. She wanted it too, she swore, she loved her pack, her girls, but… she couldn't. It just felt so wrong.

“Everything okay, Rumi?” asked Zoey, the naked concern in her eyes making Rumi's heart melt.

“Yeah, I- I mean, no. It's not, it's really not. Sorry, I promise that I did want to do this.” She felt her body pacing as she spoke, though she didn't command it to do so. “I just, I hate the way my instincts feel right now. I don't want you to see me like this, I-” she cut herself off when she felt the tears threaten to form. “Sorry. I'm gonna go now.”

Zoey started to reach out to comfort her, but paused when Rumi flinched away. Mira, in a voice held forcibly calm against the instincts of her own rut, broke the silence. “Don't apologize. We want you to take care of yourself. If that means rutting alone, we support it. Seriously.”

Rumi nodded, turned, and ran out the door before the tears could fall, trying her hardest to ignore the quiet “we love you” from Zoey as she ran away.

The rest of her rut felt even more disgusting than normal.

Chapter 2

Rumi had hoped that her rut breaking would be the end of it. The remainder of her cycle had been a horrible spiral of horniness and shame, foggy hours of fucking into her hand and biting her pillow hard enough to tear the casing, fleeting images of doing the same to Zoey or Mira’s flesh filling her mind. Then she’d suddenly start full-body crying, curled up into a ball of pure shame, full of disgust with herself for how she had acted, how she was.

When it was finally over, when she finally awoke to a clear-headed morning, she nearly sobbed with relief. But it proved a fleeting respite, as with the desperate need of her rut gone, her mind immediately flooded with nothing but more of that shame and guilt, amplified a hundredfold. The first few hours of that morning were spent in a fetal position on her bed, anxiety and self hatred making her feel physically sick until she finally got up to puke in her en-suite toilet.

The rest of the day was devoted to wallowing in her sweat-soaked bed and feeling gross. She left her room only for a single massive snack run, throwing on some old PJs to collect several days’ worth of salty carbs in preparation for a campout. Of course, her partners couldn’t even give her the courtesy of pretending they didn’t notice her – as she ran past the living room, snacks piled in her arms, Zoey called out, asking if she was okay. Rumi wasn’t ready to answer. She hoped Zoey would understand. As if she deserved that grace. 

When she got back to her room, the tiger had wandered in to be a cuddle companion. His fur was pretty good at soaking up tears, and she let herself wallow.

Maybe an hour later, Zoey knocked on her door, a gentle voice echoing into the room.

“Hey, Rumi, can I come in? We’re worried about you.”

As much as Rumi wanted to reply, let her partner take care of her, she couldn’t. Zoey’s voice immediately brought back the memories of all those awful things she’d wanted to do to her, the violent alpha urges she had barely been able to resist. She rolled over into the tiger’s soft fur, scent curdling as she tried to ignore the beta.

The voice drifted in again. “Rumi, I don’t know what's wrong, but neither Mira or I are mad at you, okay? We just want to support you, however you need.”

Rumi still didn’t respond. Eventually, the voice went away.

It came back several times in the next few days, always the same sentiments, the same results. Rumi hated herself for being like this, for ignoring Zoey’s pleas and “We love you"s through the door. She was supposed to be their leader, always confident, always knowing exactly what to say to the press or the demons or the fans. But for whatever reason, this time was different. It was like a dam had broken, and everything good about her had been drowned by it.

 

***

 

Three days after their respective ruts broke, Rumi hadn’t left her room again, surviving off of self hatred and the empty calories of her snack run. Not for the first time, she found herself missing work, craving the distraction of keeping herself constantly busy, too exhausted to feel bad about herself. She’d texted Bobby a few times, asking for updates just for something new to think about, but she knew Zoey and Mira had made him promise a strict “No Work Talk” policy while they were on their vacation. Stupid packmates, caring about her enough to make her rest. She rolled over, throwing her phone aside and groaned, another wave of guilt hitting her as she thought about how much they cared.

Her moping was interrupted by yet another knock at the door. This time, though, it wasn’t Zoey. Before Rumi even knew what was happening, there was a quick shout of “Coming in!” before the door slammed open. Rumi jumped, leaping out of bed, scent going spicy with aggression as she pulled her glowing pink sword from thin air, facing the intruder with blade ready to strike before she recognized who it was.

“Mi- ra ! I nearly stabbed you!”

“I'm a Hunter. I would have dodged.” said Mira, scent flat, not missing a beat. “Listen, you look like shit, you smell like shit, and you're making Zoey sad. We're talking about this. What's going on?”

Rumi scoffed, though she did dismiss her sword. “You're not my boss.”

“Yeah, well, guess what babe? You're doing a pretty ass job of pack leader right now, so I'm taking over until you pull it together.”

Mira stepped forward as she spoke, voice tinged with just a bit of alpha growl that Rumi wished she didn't find so sexy. It was a voice that accepted no argument.

“What's going on? Talk.”

Rumi sighed, flopping face down into her bed. “I don't know. It's gonna sound stupid as soon as I say it.”

Mira followed, sitting on the edge of the bed next to Rumi's head. “Is it? You were pretty fucking miserable during your rut, that doesn't seem stupid to me.”

Rumi let out a deep sigh, not even aware that she’d been holding her breath, letting herself bathe in the comforting smell of spiced chocolate. “I wanted it to be fun, I promise. And it was fun, for a moment, but…”

Rumi groaned, rolling over to look up at Mira, who responded by gently running a thumb across Rumi's cheek, wiping away a tear she didn't realize had fallen.

“You're okay, Rumi. I won't judge.”

Rumi smiled softly. Mira was so kind, underneath that stern exterior. She was safe, safe in a way that had her opening up like it was nothing. “I felt like the rut part of me was going to take over. And I hate the things it tells me to do. I don't want to be the kind of alpha who treats her partners like things , you know? I'm better than that.”

Mira's face was filled with such an intensely gentle look of concern that Rumi couldn’t handle it, throwing an arm across her eyes to escape her partner's gaze.

“So, stop me if I get something wrong,” said Mira. “You start enjoying things, and your alpha instincts want you to take control of the situation, start getting dominant with Zoey?”

Rumi nodded, pitiful.

“And this is bad, because you're worried, what, that you'll violate her consent or something?”

“I mean, I guess. I think I just hate even wanting her like that at all, though. I'm scared that I want to hurt her, or own her, like some dynamicist piece of shit.”

Mira tutted. “Rumi, there's nothing wrong with being a bit dommy in bed. Zoey honestly likes that sort of thing, and I know you'd stop if she asked you to. Plenty of people play that way, hell me and Zoey do it all the time.”

Rumi groaned. “That's not-”

“No, listen. Do you think I'm a, ahem, ‘dynamicist piece of shit’ for wanting to get rough in the bedroom?”

“Well, no, but-”

“No, you don't. So why's it worse when it's you?”

“I don't know! I hate how alpha it makes me feel, like Rumi's gone and all that's left is the rut. I hate being that, I hate how I stop feeling like me!” Rumi's voice caught in her throat, and she realized she was crying in earnest now. “I'm sorry, Mira. I wish I wasn't so difficult.”

Mira pulled Rumi closer, head in her lap, and began gently stroking her girlfriend's side. “You’re not difficult. I want to take care of you, Rumi. So does Zoey. Don't beat yourself up for having a hard time, ‘kay?”

Rumi nodded into her lap, hands gently clinging to Mira's oversized alpaca sweater.

“Listen,” continued Mira, “Zoey and I have been talking, about what you said a few days ago. Remember, when you asked if I ever thought about having a different dynamic?”

Rumi flinched a bit at the embarrassing memory, but she nodded.

“Well, I told you my answer was not really, and we left it at that, but… You asked because you think about it a lot, didn’t you?”

Rumi’s eyes narrowed, not sure what Mira was implying. “I mean… I don’t know about ‘a lot’, but yeah, I think about it sometimes. It's kind of… relaxing, I guess? Escaping to another life, just for a moment.”

Mira smiled softly, stroking Rumi’s hair. “Yeah… that’s kind of what we suspected. So, as I was saying, we were talking about it, and about everything else that happened, and, well… Not to put you on the spot, but the way you talk about your ruts, the way you talk about your alphaness… We kinda think it sounds like dysphoria?”

Rumi pulled a face, looking up at Mira with a raised eyebrow. Was she implying…? Sure, Rumi had heard about dynamic dysphoria on the news and online and stuff, but that was for people who were like, transdynamic or whatever. Not for people like her. “That's silly. I don't hate my body or anything, I just have, like, anxiety, probably.”

Mira chuckled. “I mean, you definitely also have anxiety, but hating your ruts counts as hating your body, girl. And daydreaming about life as a different dynamic… Well, it isn’t exactly subtle.”

Rumi flushed bright red, unable to process the sudden swirl of emotions that Mira's words were pulling up.

“It's not like that!” she said, a bit more whiny than she would have hoped. “That’s just a- a hypothetical!"

Mira hummed, stoic as can be. “Okay, maybe we're wrong. You're the only one who can decide these things, after all. But think about it.”

“Yeah, yeah, yes, alpha ,” Rumi said sarcastically. Mostly sarcastically. If there was a part of her that found using the honorific a bit hot, well, that was a later Rumi problem. For now…

“Do you think we could stay like this for a bit? It's nice. You give good cuddles.”

Mira smiled. “Sure, if you promise you'll really think on what I said. But no rush.”

Rumi nodded, pulling herself closer into the alpha, letting herself be overwhelmed by a familiar scent and warmth to calm her whirring mind.

 

***

 

Rumi spent the rest of the day online, not quite ready to face her pack yet – though she had at least told Mira to send Zoey her love and reassurance. Mira's suggestion had refused to leave her head, pinging around her brain in demand of attention. So, she was researching. She had hoped for an easy debunk, some list of dynamic dysphoria symptoms that cleanly excluded her, let her wash her hands of the whole thing. Unfortunately, the reality wasn't so simple.

Rather than disproving her case, the symptoms list she found all… kinda lined up, at least in the broad strokes. It certainly explained all the depression and agitation she’d been feeling, though couldn’t plenty of things cause that? And like, it certainly wasn’t all a perfect match! She didn't think she disliked her penis, her feelings towards it were more… passive apathy. And her scent was fine, at least outside of rut! That said… even when her symptoms didn’t perfectly line up, it was close. Close enough to look deeper.

Once she turned to advice posts, things got harder to ignore.

‘Wishing you were trans is a sign of being trans,’ one said. Huh. Did she wish she was trans? Having an excuse to stop being an alpha did sound… kind of nice. But that was just a fantasy! A silly daydream she had sometimes.

‘Most alphas literally never wonder if they'd be better off as omegas, what are you even talking about’ said another. Okay, well, a bit rude. But… it lined up with what Mira had said, when she’d asked…

A post from a questioning alpha that described a situation concerningly similar to her own, and all the comments were some variation of ‘egg behavior ㅋㅋㅋ’, ‘yeah literally in what world do alphas hate their ruts like that,’ and so on.

Another: ‘Dysphoria isn't necessary to be trans, but it's also not always obvious until you start exploring the possibility. A lot more specific things were kind of hidden under the generalized depression and self loathing until I started embracing my true dynamic.’

And, well. That last one got dangerously close to explaining the small ways in which her symptoms didn’t completely line up… Every post Rumi read, it was harder and harder to deny that they fit. As she read more and more advice posts, tell-alls, even memoirs, she started to wonder if maybe it was possible… and the kicker was, the possibility felt good.

The next day, Rumi finally worked up the courage to drag herself out of her room, queasy feeling in her gut be damned. She still didn’t feel great, still wasn’t sure what she was or what she wanted, still filled with more worry than answers. But when she walked into the living room… the way Zoey’s face and scent lit up, the way Mira tried and failed to hide a smile… it made her heart melt.

“So…” she said, looking at her feet, playing with the hem of her hoodie. “I’m really sorry for making you worry, I know it probably sucked to not know if I was okay or not, but…” She paused, working up the courage before finally looking her mates in the eyes.

“I think I’m ready to talk.”

Notes:

Hope you enjoyed. Next chapter will take a bit longer, sorry, I kinda spent all weekend writing the first two and that's over now.

Chapter 3

Summary:

Heads up: this one has smut in it.

Before Rumi could process it, she found herself squeezed tight in Zoey's arms.

“Ru- miiiiii ” Zoey squealed. “I'm so glad you're okay, I was really worried!”

Suddenly, Zoey pulled back from the hug, hands firm on Rumi's shoulders, eyes full of fire. “Don't ever scare me like that again, you hear? Next time I'm taking away your snack privileges”

Rumi giggled. “And let me starve? We both know you'd cave in a day.”

Zoey's stern expression cracked, then broke into a desperately loving smile.

“Okay, true. But seriously, don't do shit like that. I was so fucking scared.”

Rumi's heart melted, just a little bit. 

“Yeah. Sorry, I- Yeah,” Rumi said, trailing off, at loss for words. Zoey seemed to sense the shift in mood, pulling her back into a deep hug that Rumi clung to with everything she had, rubbing her face against the scent gland in Zoey's neck to drown herself in the comforting smell. Another set of arms wrapped around them – Mira, running her wrists over them, covering them both in her protective scentmark. Rumi turned to pudding in her pack's embrace. Whispering into Zoey's shoulder, she spoke.

“I'm worried that you guys might have guessed right.”

Zoey squeezed tighter, while Mira tutted, “Worried?”

“It… seems like it might be possible. But if it is, then… I'm broken. I'll never be truly happy, not while I'm like this.”

“But now that you know it's an option, can't you change that?” asked Zoey.

Rumi's scent flooded with the sour smells of anxiety and shame. “Zoey, we're idols. If I-” her voice caught for a moment, hesitating to say the word. “If I transitioned, It would be the scandal of the century. My whole appeal to the fans is as the sexy, hyper-confident alpha leader! If I blew that up, Huntrix would be done, our careers, everything! Besides,” she pouted, “I don't even know for sure if I want to.”

Mira and Zoey stood strong, both of them pumping out waves of calming pheromones – we're here, you're safe, your pack's got you. They shifted subtly, making eye contact, and then Rumi felt Zoey nod.

Mira spoke. “Babe, I know it's scary, but that doesn't have to be true. First off, the Honmoon's sealed, the demons are gone, and we've got more money than we know what to do with. If Huntrix ended here, we'd genuinely be fine. Besides, we control the narrative. We don't have to go public ‘til you're ready, and Bobby can help us make the announcement perfect. It'd be okay.”

Rumi sniffled and nodded, not sure when she'd started crying. “I'm sorry, guys, I was supposed to be feeling better now…”

“Girl, it's chill,” said Zoey, laughter sneaking into her voice. “These are big feelings, you know?”

“Yeah,” Rumi mumbled, squeezing Zoey tighter.

They stayed like that for a while, Rumi hugging Zoey, nose pressed to the scent gland in her neck. Mira held them both, nuzzling her neck into Rumi's braid, ensuring that she was absolutely drenched in Mira's scent. Held like that, surrounded by her mates and their soothing pheromones, Rumi's breathing evened as her worries faded, replaced by a sense of security and calm.

After who knows how long like that, Rumi was jolted out of her meditative state by a sudden burst of Zoey-excitement. 

“Wait, oh my god, we forgot to ask!”

“Hmm?” mumbled Rumi.

“If you wanna be a beta or an omega!”

Rumi turned beet red, scenting sweet with embarrassment. “Hey, I never said I wanted to be anything, I'm still just contemplating it!”

Mira chuckled from where she was still nuzzled into Rumi's hair. “Sure, babe, but I'm pretty sure you know what you'd pick.”

“Well… yeah…” whined Rumi, feeling called-out as hell. “I mean… if I had to choose, I'd probably want to be an omega, I guess…”

“You guess?” teased Mira. “You're not sure?”

“Bleh, fine. Yeah, I'd want to be an omega. Happy?”

Mira nodded, laying a gentle kiss on Rumi's scalp, while Zoey practically squealed, “Very! Ugh, I'm so excited for you!”

“Stop acting like I already decided!” complained Rumi, though she couldn't quite keep the smile out of her voice.

Mira chuffed with delight. “Yeah, Zoey, lay off,” she said, her tone as unserious as possible.

Zoey pouted. “Ugh, fine. I’ll chill out ‘til after Couch Time. Rumi owes us, like, a whole week of cuddles!”

 

***

 

For the first time in days, Rumi felt content. She was snuggled up on their massive couch, sinking into the absurdly luxurious pillows, squished between her pack. The pinnacle of comfort. Mira had just barely managed to convince Zoey to put on an actual nature documentary instead of another tik-tok compilation, so Rumi was able to let herself drift into the pleasant distraction of beautiful nature imagery, only half-paying attention to the subtitles as English-language narration washed over her. Mira had her pulled into a side cuddle with a hand in her hair, and was gently scritching her scalp in a way that turned her brain to fuzz. Zoey, meanwhile, was glued to the screen, devouring a mouthful of shrimp-flavored chips as she serendipitously watched a blue whale devour a mouthful of krill. Everything was simply… nice. Rumi let herself embrace it, chuffing gently as all her troubles fading away into the blanketing calm of her pack.

At some point, Rumi was jolted from what must have been an accidental nap by Zoey asking if they had the energy for another episode. Blinking, she looked to the screen – credits were rolling, a timer was counting down to when the next episode would autoplay. Rumi yawned and stretched, shifting into Mira's cuddles. Mira chuffed affectionately, so Rumi chuffed back in turn, earning them giggles from Zoey at their antics.

“Mmm, let's pause for now," said Rumi, “I missed at least half of that, if I'm honest.”

Zoey chuckled. “That's okay, sleepyhead. I'm just glad you're feeling better.” The air around her was awash with the contented smell of peanuts and nougat (“Snickers!” as Zoey liked to correct), and Rumi shifted out of Mira's grasp to nuzzle into Zoey's neck, running her wrists down her beta's arms to leave an affectionate scentmark.

“Yeah. Sorry about being so mopey before,” she mumbled, lips ghosting over Zoey's scent gland.

“Ugh, you already apologized, dork. Don't go beating yourself up on us,” replied Zoey.

Rumi chuckled, pulling back. “Fine. I'm not sorry, then. Better?”

“Much!” quipped Zoey, flopping into Rumi's lap and grinning ear to ear.

“So,” said Mira, “if you're feeling better now, can we talk next steps?”

“Hmm?” asked Rumi.

“Well, you said you weren't sure about your dynamic yet. Is there anything we can do to help you explore it? And we should probably tell Bobby to start prepping for an announcement for when we come off hiatus, you know that'll need a long run-up.”

“What!?” yelped Rumi, voice cracking. “We cannot tell Bobby, are you crazy? This stays between us until I'm absolutely sure!”

Mira raised a perfectly-manicured eyebrow in that all-too-aloof way of hers. “Babe, Bobby would understand, he loves you like you’re his own child. But don’t worry,” she said, shrugging. “It's your dynamic, we'll go at your pace.”

Rumi nodded, recomposing herself. She really needed to get it together. What was a media-trained idol like her doing, having such intensely emotional reactions to all of this? She was better than that.

“Hey, is there anything we could do to help you build your confidence?” asked Zoey, still splayed out in Rumi's lap. “Like, ooh, maybe we could try treating you like our omega, let you socially transition around us to see how it feels?”

“Socially transition?” asked Rumi, bemused. “That sounds like jargon, have you been doing research?”

“Heh, maaaaybe.”

“It's like all she's done the last three days,” laughed Mira, “but it is a good idea. It'd be a way to try it out without having to commit to anything. Whaddya say?”

Rumi hummed in contemplation. “Maybe. What would that actually look like, though? You just… get in the habit of calling me your omega? Isn't that a bit silly? Like, I'm obviously not. ”

Mira frowned, her scent becoming muted. “Hey, your dynamic isn’t just hormones and pheromones, you know. And besides, we'd be doing way more than just that.”

“Like..?”

Mira's frown faded, replaced with a sly smirk that Rumi knew meant she was plotting something. 

“I can think of a lot of ways we can make you feel like our omega, babe,” she said, intensifying her eye contact and leaning in close enough for Rumi to smell her scent go full spicy-mode.

“Wha-what?” Rumi stuttered. “Are you seriously gonna try to dom me into feeling like an omega? Not all omegas are submissive, you know, that's honestly kind of problematic of you.”

Zoey giggled, but Mira didn't miss a beat.

“Sure, not all omegas are subs… but you sure as hell are, babe. That's part of the appeal for you, isn't it?”

Rumi felt her face heat, certain that her roast caramel smell was sweetening, betraying her feelings. Mira smirked, awaiting a response.

“I- uh… maybe, yeah. Probably. Ugh, is it messed up that I'm finding this hot? What if I'm just fetishizing-”

Before she could finish her sentence, Mira cut her off with a kiss. Rumi froze, then relaxed into it, adoring her girlfriend's possessiveness.

“That's silly,” Mira said once she'd pulled away, leaving Rumi gasping for breath.

“Yeah!” said Zoey. “If being treated like a certain dynamic turns you on, that can actually be a sign that you are that dynamic.” She chuckled. “That's one of the things I read online. But they also said it's really normal for new A-to-O's to feel guilty about that stuff. Just don't internalize it, you know?”

Rumi just nodded, still flushed from the kiss.

“Good for me to keep going?” asked Mira, just a bit of tease in her voice.

“Uhhh… maybe? I'm kind of worried I'll have a bad reaction again…”

“Ooh, that's right!” said Zoey, pulling herself back up to a sitting position. “Mira and I were talking, and we thought it might be good to employ some safewords? I know they're usually for like, kink scenes and stuff, but after last time it's better safe than sorry, right?”

Rumi smiled. The way her beta took such good care of her, she didn't know how she'd gotten so lucky.

“What would that look like?” she asked.

“Well, the stuff I saw online suggested a word for stop and a word for slow down. Something you'd never normally say during sex, though, so that it's not confusing.”

That made sense, Rumi supposed. “Hmm… maybe… ‘ramyeon’ for slow down, ‘soda pop’ for stop?”

At that, Mira and Zoey simultaneously buckled over with laughter. 

“Yeah, that'll work,” said Mira, once she’d recovered.

“Oh, and something for ‘Good to go', like if we ask how you're doing and you just want to confirm it's okay,” said Zoey.

Rumi hummed, thinking for a moment. “Golden?”

“Ooh, yeah!” said Zoey, eyes sparkling, “Okay, great. Golden, ramyeon, soda pop. Shall we continue?”

Rumi pulled in a deep breath, then said, “Yeah.”

“Say it,” replied Mira, stern.

“What? Oh, yeah. Golden.”

As soon as she said the word, Mira was on top of her, pushing her back to rest her head in Zoey's lap. Rumi gasped, lost in her alpha’s eyes as Zoey’s scent joined Mira's, curling together to overwhelm her senses. Mira's lips latched onto hers, her hair falling in pink curtains around them, body pressing down with comforting weight, and kissed Rumi with devouring force. Rumi moaned as Mira's fangs worried her lip, vaguely registering how Zoey gasped at the sound.

Mira shifted, and then she was grinding her thigh between Rumi's legs. Zoey brought a hand to run her fingers along the patterns at her hairline, fascinated by the subtle changes in texture. Rumi felt herself getting hard against Mira, distantly thankful that she no longer had her rut instincts yelling at her to take control of the sensation. Mira broke the kiss to suck at her neck, and then Rumi was mush, bucking up into Mira's thigh in desperate search for friction.

Mira pulled back to look into her eyes, a low grumble in her voice as she spoke.

“Aww, are you getting excited, omega?”

Honestly, that was laying it on kind of thick, and Rumi couldn't help but laugh at the absurdity of the situation. Still, there was a part of her that found it hot, and her scent sweetened despite herself. Above her, Zoey giggled as well.

“Ooh, Mira, she likes it when you call her that. I can smell it.”

Mira smirked. “Yeah, but she's a little embarrassed, too. Aren't you, omega?”

Rumi whined, her face burning up. “Miraaaaa, chill. I can't take you seriously when you talk like that!”

“No? What a shame,” said Mira. “Guess I'll have to find another way to turn you into a squirming mess.”

As if by punctuation, Mira pulled herself back up to a kneel and grabbed the hem of Rumi's sweat shorts, pulling both the shorts and her boxers down to her knees. Rumi's cock sprung out at full attention, and she instinctively tried to squirm away, embarrassed to be so exposed. But Zoey grasped her shoulders, holding her down, refusing to let her escape, and she was once again so grateful to be out of her rut and its irrational demand to dominate.

“Be good, Rumi,” muttered Zoey. “Let Mira take care of you.”

At that, Rumi let out a growly whine. It was absolutely unfair, two against one, but she couldn't find it in herself to complain. Mira chuckled, that awful, condescending, delicious laugh of hers, eyes raking from Rumi's face down to her hardness.

“Help her get her hoodie off,” said Mira, and immediately Zoey was undressing her, pulling away her top until she was fully bared for her partners, the patterns running across her body shimmering in the light. The smell of the room was pure arousal, barely less intense than during their ruts, though now Zoey's scent contributed in equal measure. Mira smiled, tracing a finger along a pattern that ran from Rumi's breast to her crotch.

“Remind me again why the hell you hid these,” said Mira, eyes full of wonder.

Rumi took a moment to find her words, trying to string together an explanation, but Mira cut her off. 

“Rhetorical question, hun. Zoey baby, want to give her tits some love?”

Zoey leaped into action, kneading at her breasts hard enough to be almost too much. Rumi could only gasp, voice again lost to the overwhelming feeling of her two mates giving her their full attention. 

Mira's hand walked lower, still tracing her patterns, and Rumi bucked up, instincts seeking more touch. But Mira didn't give it to her, not the way she expected. Instead, Mira skipped right past her cock, slipping a finger behind her balls to the slit hidden beneath, running a fleeting touch along the length of her cunt.

Rumi let out a strangled moan. She'd touched herself there experimentally, but as an alpha her cunt was rather atrophied, not intended to get focus. Most of Rumi's past attempts at vaginal stimulation had been frankly disappointing, even strangely upsetting for reasons that she was only now beginning to understand. But something about the way Mira forced her cunt into the spotlight, ignoring her alpha parts entirely while cooing with approval… it did it for her in ways she hadn't thought possible.

Mira gave her sensitive cunt another stroke, finger dipping ever-so-slightly inside. Rumi bucked her hips again, but Mira, content to tease, pulled her hand away. She held it up to her face, examining the shine that now coated the tip of her finger, then popped it into her mouth to suck it clean. 

“Zoey, you have to feel her, she's already so wet.”

“Ooh, yes please,” came Zoey's chipper reply, as if Rumi's body were a cool new toy to play with.

Zoey shifted, pulling Rumi to sit further up her body, back of her head resting against Zoey's chest. Then, as promised, Zoey's fingers soon found Rumi's cunt, toying at her lips with a gentle pressure, slowly easing her open and drawing out a choked whine.

Meanwhile, Mira took Rumi's chin in her hand, forcing eye contact. 

“Okay, baby, here's what's going to happen,” said Mira, gaze unwavering. “Zoey and I are gonna see if we can make you cum just from your pussy, like a good little omega would. No pressure if you can't, we understand if your body isn't ready for it yet, but we won't touch your cock unless you specifically ask us to, no matter how close you are. Sound good?”

Rumi nodded, gasping as Zoey's ministrations continued. “Golden, fuck, so fucking golden.”

Mira smiled wide, showing her fangs. 

“Good girl.”

Mira and Zoey looked at each other, making some unspoken plan, and the next thing Rumi knew, Zoey was pushing a finger deep into her. The feeling was intense, a tight stretch only barely on the right side of painful. There was a part of Rumi that pouted at the way her cunt refused to slick up as much as a proper omega's would, but those thoughts were quickly wiped away by the intense sensation. Zoey pushed in to the second knuckle, then began to experimentally crook her finger, searching for the spots that pulled the best gasps from her girlfriend.

“That's it, good girl,” cooed Zoey, voice overlapping with a groan and a “good omega” from Mira.

Soon, Rumi was properly moaning and gasping into the touch. Mira leaned back in, bringing her mouth to the scent gland on Rumi's neck and latching on like a lamprey, sucking with a force sure to leave bruises. Rumi whined, pleasure mixing with pain, but Mira didn't let up, determined to cover her packmate's neck in hickeys.

At some point, minutes later, Mira finally let her mouth break free. 

“God, you taste so fucking good,” she said, voice breathy. “Taste just like you smell, so damn delicious.”

Rumi couldn't respond. Zoey was still working at her cunt, having found a spot that made Rumi clench down and squirm whenever she crooked her finger. Mira didn't seem to need an answer, though, returning to Rumi's neck with renewed desperation. Rumi whined at every scrape of Mira's teeth, every twitch of Zoey's finger, her hands desperately latching onto the back of Mira's shirt, god, why were her partners both still wearing clothes?

The pleasure in Rumi's cunt was rising now, in a manner tantalizingly close to the sensation of being about to cum. Rumi groaned in frustration as the intensity rose even faster, outpacing the pleasure and quickly overstimulating her fluttering hole until it was too much. She was so fucking close, if she could just… She squirmed, trying with no avail to get her cock to brush against Mira's abs, to find any kind of friction, wincing as the intensity in her cunt turned to pain.

“Fuck, fuck, too much, its too much, touch my cock, please, need it,” begged Rumi, half delirious. 

Zoey's finger was out of her in an instant, Mira pulling back to give her room to work. Zoey wrapped her hand around Rumi's cock, slicked-up finger moistening around the head before she began to stroke. Two solid pumps was all she needed, and then Rumi was in heaven, spilling over Zoey's hand, painting her own abs and chest, patterns glittering. Zoey quickly moved to clench her fist around Rumi's knot, giving her the necessary pressure for full satisfaction, and Rumi's vision went white.

Rumi laid there for a while, panting, still resting her head against Zoey's chest. Mira was poised above her, kneeling between her legs. Her eyes roamed Rumi’s body, taking everything in with sharp fascination. Rumi caught her breath, then waved Zoey's hand away from her now-deflating knot.

“How was that?” asked Mira, her scent sharp and sweet.

“Incredible,” came Rumi’s dopey reply.

Zoey and Mira shared a smile. Then, in the cheekiest voice possible, Zoey said, “Well, if you thought that was good, they say omega hormones will make it feel a hundred times better! You know, if you ever wanted to try them~”

Rumi hid her face in her hands.

 

***

 

Several minutes later, Rumi found herself back in her pack's gentle embrace, sandwiched between her mates. After several patient reassurances that Mira and Zoey were fine – they didn't need to get off, no, seriously, this was about Rumi – they'd helped her get cleaned up and reclothed, eager to shower her with aftercare. Zoey put on the next episode of their show, putting the volume down low, and at some point Mira had managed to slip away to grab them all chocolate and water. Rumi let it happen, content to nibble the treats and accept their pets and scentmarks as she gradually came back from her mind-blowing orgasm.

“That was kind of insane,” said Rumi, once she had enough brain back to talk. “I don't think I've ever been that boneless before.”

“Yeah, I'm pretty sure we put you in subspace, babe,” smiled Zoey. “That's a first for you, at least with us, isn't it?”

“Definitely a first,” replied Rumi, “was that what that was?”

“Mmm, I'd say so, Zoey gets the same look on her face when I properly bring her there,” said Mira.

Zoey stuck out her tongue at that, but she was smiling from space bun to space bun, adorable as always. “Heh, yeaaaah. And who knew, all it took to bring Rumi there was to call her your omega,” she teased.

“That wasn't all it took!” said Rumi, her protests weak even to her own ears.

Mira laughed. “Yeah, no, that actually was basically all it took, babe. Which I think is a point in favor of our hypothesis.”

Rumi opened her mouth to deny the insinuation, but found herself at loss for words. The problem was, as much as she wanted to protest, Mira wasn't actually wrong. Despite her embarrassment about it, she'd loved everything about how they'd treated her, and it did have her wondering.

“I guess,” she mumbled, once she realized her girls were waiting for her reply.

Her partners’ scents sweetened at her reaction, Zoey leaning in to give Rumi a peck on the forehead.

“You still don't need to decide right away, and even if you do, we won't judge you if you change your mind later,” she said.

Rumi nodded softly, but then Zoey's face got that absurd look that meant she was about to say something buckwild.

“But also you're like so fucking trans babe, like holy shit, I'll give up burger privileges on our next America tour if you're not.”

Mira laughed. “Hmm, I don't think we can take that bet. There's no way you don't win.”

“Hey!” pouted Rumi. “I'm right here, you know!”

At that, her girls just laughed, and before Rumi knew it she was giggling too, her protestations lost in the joy of her pack. Their support, their scents, their presence – simply by having them in her life, everything felt a bit easier. The feelings about her dynamic were still scary, of course, but… she had to admit. It was starting to feel possible.

Notes:

I would have posted this earlier, but I was playing Silksong. Which also means its anyone's guess how long it'll take me to finish the next one.

BTW y'alls comments are giving me life, thank you all so much.

Chapter 4

Summary:

10k words, woo! we're officially a novella!

Several days passed without further discussion of “The Experiment”, as Rumi had come to think of it. Though the pack hadn't gotten around to talking about it, Rumi was definitely feeling better, no longer wanting to hide away in her room. If Zoey and Mira were eager to chat about her dynamic more, they didn't push it. And Rumi… well, Rumi wasn't sure what she wanted.

There were a few things Rumi knew were true:

One: the Experiment had been really embarrassing.

Two: despite that, she had really liked it.

Three: actually acknowledging that she'd liked it made the embarrassment way, way worse.

The core of the problem, Rumi had to admit, was that she didn't really understand why she felt this way. Both the happiness and the shame were… new, originating from somewhere she couldn't quite pinpoint. She knew what Zoey and Mira would say it was if she brought it up; they'd made their opinions very clear. But every time Rumi tried to prod at the idea, she couldn't. Something about the thought stung, and she worried that actually sitting down and thinking over the “omega thing” would hurt like ripping off a band-aid.

Then again, wasn't that a saying about how it'd feel better once you got it over with?

The good news was that since the Experiment, Rumi wasn't hiding herself anymore. Well, she still wasn't going outside, but that was a pain in the ass when she had to worry about being recognized. The important thing was that she was leaving her room each morning.

And getting so much attention from her pack for it.

That was the other thing that had changed since the Experiment: Rumi's packmates were going absolutely bonkers with affection. The way they insisted on constantly scentmarking her was honestly getting to be a bit much, as if it was a greeting expected every time she entered a room instead of the much more reasonable “two or three times a day” that she'd grown to expect. They also kept giving her an absurd amount of grace, letting her take her sweet time with household chores and doting on her if she ever seemed cranky. If it had just been Mira she'd maybe understand – alphas were known for their protective instincts, after all – but Zoey had even made her a home-cooked dinner one night, which was insanely out of character. And like, it was nice and all, but Rumi was honestly getting annoyed. She wasn't fragile.

It came to a head on the fifth day after the Experiment. Rumi was in a creative mood, having spent the last couple hours playing with chord progressions on her guitar, when she felt her stomach growl. So, she did as was normal and got up to get a snack. As far as she was concerned, this was a completely mundane occurrence, deserving of no special attention whatsoever. Apparently, her packmates disagreed.

As soon as she stepped into the living room, muttering a small acknowledgement to her becouched girlfriends, they were on the move, setting down their phones and padding over in her direction. Rumi paid it no mind, continuing to the kitchen and scanning the fridge for tasties, but then Mira was suddenly behind her, pulling her into a tight embrace and chuffing into the back of her head. Then Zoey joined, hands roaming to place yet another scentmark upon her. It should have been cute. It was cute. Her girls loved her, this was their way of showing it. It’s just… something about it triggered Rumi's alpha side in a bad way, pulling out a deep-seated territorial instinct. She was trying to do something here, they were getting in the way, and it just kept happening. Every. damn. time.

“Okay, seriously, what the hell is going on?” said Rumi, voice tinged with a growl. At that, Mira's grip loosened, letting Rumi step away and face her packmates, her scent tingeing burnt – the smell of defensive alpha. “Is this some kind of extended omega roleplay or something? What's with all the constant scentmarks and crap? You're acting like I can't take care of myself!”

Mira frowned and Zoey's brow furrowed, both their scents going slightly sour.

“That's not it at all, Rumi!” said Zoey. “We wouldn't do that without asking, and it has nothing to do with your dynamic, I promise.”

“Right, sure,” said Rumi, not really buying it. “Then what's going on?”

Zoey looked over to Mira, who just crossed her arms and shrugged, deferring to her beta.

“Rumi, we're worried about you!”

Rumi's confusion must have shown on her face, because Zoey continued, clearly agitated.

“Babe, you had a panic attack mid-rut, which triggered a week-long depressive episode, and then as soon as we think you're making progress, you clam up! Of course we're worried!”

“What? I haven't ‘clammed up’, I feel way better! I'm socializing, I'm eating, I'm leaving my room, what's the problem?”

“Well,” replied Zoey, shaking her exasperation out through her hands. “Ignoring for a moment that that is at best the bare minimum, it's been nearly a week and you haven't mentioned your dynamic at all! And no-” she held up a finger, shutting out Rumi's attempt to reply, “I know you're gonna say ‘well that's because it's fine’ or something stupid like that, but we all know it's not fine, okay? You were making progress, we could see it making you happier, and then you just… stopped!” 

Zoey finally paused her rant, if only to catch her breath. Rumi groaned, looking to Mira for help, but her alpha just quirked an eyebrow, expectant.

“Okay, okay, fine,” said Rumi. “I promise I've been thinking about it. I just haven't… found a conclusion, yet.”

“Is it that you haven't found a conclusion, or do you just not like the conclusion you found?” asked Zoey. “Babe, we saw super clear how you felt about it the day you came out of your room. Don't tell me that wasn't real.”

There was something about the situation – the genuine look in Zoey's eyes, maybe, or the pushiness, or the way Mira was just watching, like she was waiting to see what would happen – that tore at the stinging question in Rumi's heart, ripping off the band-aid in a single, excruciating stroke.

“Alright, fine!” she shouted, filling the room with the smell of burning caramel. “You're right. I probably am-” Rumi's voice caught in her throat. It was hard to say the word, like saying it would make it real. “I probably am ‘transdynamic’ or whatever. You happy? It still doesn't fix anything, it just adds more problems. I just figured out how to accept my demon side, I can't handle another-” she threw her hands into the air, her words moving too fast for her brain to keep up with. “You guys act like this is supposed to be some big, happy moment of self-discovery, that I'm supposed to be thankful to be told about some new thing that's wrong with me, but I'm fucking terrified! Don't you see that?”

For a long moment, the room was silent. Zoey pulled back, shrinking in on herself, face unable to hide her worry. Mira was stock still, tension holding up her body like a wire. The three sat like that for a moment, Rumi deflating under their gazes. Then Mira tentatively reached out a hand, speaking in that impossibly gentle voice saved only for her pack.

“Oh, Rumi.”

There was so much care in those two little words that Rumi was powerless against them. Suddenly, she was crying – real, ugly tears of a kind so rarely allowed to grace an idol's face. Then Mira had her wrapped in her arms, squeezing her tight to her chest, and Zoey was at her side, searching for some way to help.

“Shh, it's gonna be okay,” murmured Mira, blanketing her in protective alpha pheromones, rubbing little circles into her back. “We can figure this out, all three of us. Hunters always come in threes, right? We'll handle this. Together.”

Rumi nodded into Mira's chest, tears staining her girlfriend's shirt.

“I just… I don't even know where to start,” she mumbled.

“Hey, that's okay. We can help you figure that out too. Right, Zoey?”

“Yeah, we can. Listen… Rumi… I'm sorry if I was too harsh there, but I promise. If this is a part of you, then embracing it will be worth it. I know it's hard to deal with so soon after accepting your patterns, but didn't embracing them help, in the end? This is basically the same thing, only this time we don't even have to worry about the world ending!”

Rumi chuckled through her tears, turning her head to look at Zoey.

“Dork.”

Zoey's scent sweetened. “And proud of it!”

 

***

 

Rumi's braid swayed in the wind, her purple hair turning golden in the early evening light. She was leaning on the edge of her bedroom balcony, watching the sunset, her girlfriends flanked on either side. Her tears had been cleaned up, she was properly fed, and she’d accepted yet another scentmarking with only mild protest. She wasn't sure why they'd decided to come out here, exactly – they hadn't spoken on it, not out loud – but it felt right. A good space for decompressing, maybe.

For a while they were quiet, the silence interrupted only by the rhythmic clink of the tiger playing with its favorite pot behind them. Rumi let herself embrace it, enjoying the way her pack's scents gently washed over her before being drawn away in the breeze.

Eventually, words bubbled up in Rumi's throat. 

“So. I guess I'm really doing this, huh?” she asked, not really to either of them in particular.

Mira put an arm around her shoulder, squeezing gently.

“We're doing this. Together.”

Rumi smiled softly, leaning into her alpha's embrace.

“What does that actually look like, though?” she asked. “How does one even start?”

“I think that's up to you,” said Mira, voice even.

Rumi groaned a bit at that. “Babe, I'm asking because I need guidance, not platitudes.”

Mira chuckled. “Fine, you got me. I've got no clue either. Zoey was the one who did the research.”

Zoey giggled as Rumi turned to her expectantly. “Hey, don't make me out to be some kind of expert, we're all still learning!” she said. 

Rumi raised an eyebrow, and Zoey blushed, scent sweetening.

“Okay, okay, yes, I did the research, fine,” she said. “So, Mira's not wrong; a lot of the stuff I saw online was full of ‘you get to take this at your own pace’ type of stuff. Buuuuut, with that said, it seems the best place to start is deciding if you want to pursue things medically or not.”

Rumi nodded. Her own reading had said more or less the same thing, but hearing it from Zoey made it feel more… real, somehow. Like if she thought it was possible, then maybe it actually was.

“I think I do. Want to, I mean. Like, our experiment was fun and all, but I couldn't shake the feeling that we were just playing pretend. For all you called me your omega, my smell was wrong, I was fighting my instincts, hell, my parts don't even work properly. Does that make sense?”

“Totally, babe,” replied Mira.

“Though just so we're clear, that is bullshit,” added Zoey. “If being an omega makes you happy, then you're an omega, okay? No matter what.”

“Yeah, yeah, I hear you,” said Rumi, “but I'd be a much happier omega if I smelled right.”

Zoey grinned, impish. “Then it's decided. In that case, I really think you should tell Bobby. No, don't give me that face, I'm serious. First off, he's absolutely going to be cool about it, so don't you go worrying. Second, he can set you up with a doctor to talk to, one you can trust to keep it under wraps ‘til you're ready. Plus I think it might help if you got another omega's perspective on all this, you know?”

Rumi sighed. “Ugh, okay. Maybe.”

“Just maybe?” asked Zoey, raising an eyebrow.

“Alright, fine, I promise I'll call him, at least about the doctor thing. But I swear, if this goes anywhere like the last time you made me talk to a doctor…”

Zoey laughed awkwardly, shrinking in on herself as Mira joined Rumi in giving her a knowing glare.

“That was one time!”

 

***

 

Rumi had decided she needed to have this conversation alone, so she was back in her room, leaning against the massive wall of fluff that was the tiger while Jinu's weird bird watched impassively from the windowsill. Her work phone was open, her finger hovering over Bobby's contact, waiting for the requisite courage to appear. She took a deep breath, forcing the sour notes out of her scent and centering herself. Finally, after what felt like hours of hyping herself up, she pressed the ‘call’ button.

The phone picked up almost immediately.

“Ha-hey, Rumi! How's hiatus life treating ya, superstar?”

Rumi smiled, because it was impossible not to smile when it came to her manager.

“I'm alright, Bobby, how are you?”

“Oh, I'm fine. Missing my favorite girls though! Hey, everything okay over there? I thought you were banned from work talk!”

“Oh, yeah, Zoey and Mira made it very clear that I'm still off duty. This is a personal call.”

“Aww, just missed the sweet sound of my voice?”

Rumi chuckled into the receiver. “I wish. No, something's come up, actually. Kinda big. Uh, sorry, I still don't really know how I'm supposed to say it. Oh yeah, before anything else: you're in private, right?”

“Yep, just me,” said Bobby, his voice sounding a tad concerned. “You sure everything's okay?”

“Yeah,” replied Rumi, feeling more awkward than she was used to being around her manager. “It's just, well… It turns out that, uh… I think I'm an omega?”

There was a moment of silence before Bobby spoke again.

“Huh. Is this some trendy tik-tok prank I somehow missed? Cuz if you're an omega, you had me fooled, haha.”

Rumi groaned. He was really gonna make her come out and say it, wasn't he.

“Bobby, I'm serious. I'm an omega, or, I mean, at least I want to be. Zoey and Mira helped me do some soul searching, and… we're pretty sure that I'm transdynamic.”

The line went quiet again, and Rumi's heart sank. Here it was, the moment of rejection. She was suddenly jolted by the memory of her bandmates’ faces the first time they saw her patterns, and closed her eyes to steady herself.

Then Bobby's voice came back, a bit caught off guard, sure, but still cheerful as ever.

“Woah, okay! That's- woah. Big! Well, first off, congrats on joining the winning team, I'm happy to give you any advice you need. Second, should I start getting an announcement ready? Or are we waiting til after we announce that you three are together? I mean, I assume if you're telling me this, you plan on pursuing things, right? Who's all in the know? Mira and Zoey obviously, have you told Celine yet?”

Rumi jumped, hair standing on end. “Nope, no no no no no, do not tell Celine. You and the band are the only people who hear about this, got it?”

“Loud and clear, Ru! My lips are zipped!”

“As for an announcement… maybe. Keep it in the back of your head, but I'm not ready for that yet. But listen, Bobby, the reason I called – I need you to find me a doctor. One we can trust. Seriously, like… will-not-say-a-peep, not-even-to-friends-and-family levels of trust. Oh, and they'd ideally have a background in this sort of thing. Endocrinology or whatever. Is that possible?”

“Possible? Rumi, why do you think you pay me three percent? I was born for this. Alright, I'll do some research, give me an hour. Do you want me to book the appointment too, or should I let you vet it first?”

Rumi couldn't stop herself from smiling. Bobby just had that effect on people. “Text me the details first, but it should be an easy approval. Oh, and I'd prefer a house call, if possible. Thanks, Bobby.”

“Nah, it's no problem at all, seriously. You girls make me love my job – I'll get right on it. And Rumi? I meant what I said before. Any omega questions you have, at any point, I'm here. No judgement, think of it like a second round of high school health class. Celine did have you take that, right?”

“Yes, yes, don't worry, she wasn't that bad of a guardian. Whatever Zoey is telling you about her, don't listen to it.”

“Okay, okay, heard,” said Bobby, voice tinged with laughter.

Rumi sighed with relief. Bobby was handling it, he was okay with it, he was even happy for her. Somehow… this was starting to feel… possible.

“Seriously though, thanks,” replied Rumi. “I don't know how we'd survive without you.”

“Oh, you wouldn't! But alright, if that's all, have a good one, Rumi. And take care of yourself, okay?”

“Yeah, yeah, don't worry. Bye, Bobby.”

As soon as she hung up her phone, she flopped over, giving the tiger a squeeze. Even by Bobby-call standards, she was feeling giddy, hell, she was feeling energized. She leapt to her feet and out of the room, charging Mira and yanking her into a tight hug. 

“Bobby says he's happy for me, and he'll handle the doctor stuff!”

There was a distant “woo!” from Zoey’s room, and Rumi couldn't help but laugh. Mira returned the hug, scenting brightly.

“I'm so glad, Rumi. But you know there was really no chance of him reacting otherwise, right?”

“Ugh, I mean, I believe that now, but…”

“Yeah, I get you,” said Mira, letting her scent go soft and soothing.

Zoey soon emerged from her room to glomp her way into the hugs, but the three stayed quiet for a while, content with things as they were. No more than forty-five minutes later, Bobby had sent her the details on three potential endocrinologists. Rumi shot over a quick approval for the one who seemed to have the most specialized experience, then put away her work phone for the night.

Adrenaline was buzzing in her veins. This was real. She could do this. No, she would do this. And it was going to be okay.

Notes:

Silksong is great and all, but i couldn't stay away from my girls. And Bobby! he's really fun to write, though i may have channeled a bit too much "greg universe" in this portrayal. Oh well.

Also, a bunch of people in the comments were asking if trans omegaverse is an established subgenre. Unfortunately, the answer is... not really. There are SOME though, so here are a few of my recs/influences, in case you want to check them out.

You'll be beggin' and cryin' by poly_propylene: https://archiveofourown.org/works/67745446/chapters/175141536 - smutty polytrix with a B-to-A Mira

Sugar Rush by brilliantbean: https://archiveofourown.org/works/66021640 - orginal work, cute all-omega threesome with a transfem character

16 Psyche, also by brilliantbean: https://archiveofourown.org/works/48764770/chapters/123013519 - original work, superhero omegaverse with a nonbinary beta as a main protagonist. This ones really long, but its also my favorite work on this damn site, so definitely worth it. Mind the content warnings!