It wasn't like Vali was considered particularly tall at a modest height of five feet and seven inches. But Tofa was short, the Omega maxing out at nothing more than five feet even, and this mismatch of leg length led to Vali catching up in less time than it took to skin a squirrel.

"Tof, you sneaky bugger!" Vali playfully exclaimed, bubbling laughter still emanating from his full lips as he finally snatched one of the pails back, knowing that his helpful friend would still insist on carrying the other. "How do you pack so much trouble in such a tiny package?"

Tofa twirled in a circle as the pair continued down the path, his bucket swinging around with him before he finally settled back around in the direction of his friend, a bright smile painting his crimson lips. 

"Dunno! But I'm pretty sure that if I had a mate, they'd return me." The smaller Omega joked, waiting patiently for his friend to catch up once again.

"Oh, please." Vali bumped his friend's shoulder with a roll of his eyes, "You're a catch, Tof. Whoever is lucky enough to be mated to you would be an idiot to ever let you go."

Tofa's face flushed a light pink hue, but the Omega's words contradicted his outward display of flattery. "Good thing I hate Alphas," He emphasized the statement with a kick at the dirt with the tip of his thin shoes, "I hope I never find my mate."

Vali sighed as they approached the steep steps carved into the rock face of the cliff that led to the freshwater canal. He had listened to his friend express his unfavorable opinion of Alphas for years now, each instance a little bit more scathing of the brutish gender. 

It could have been a result of his chronic optimism or the fact that he yearned for his closest friend to find happiness with a mate someday, but just as much as Tofa expressed his distaste, Vali couldn't help but gently push back.

"Well, I'm sure the Alpha that Odin has fated to you will be kind." 

"Kind?!" Tofa immediately gave his friend a look of incredulity, staring daggers as they descended the steps. "Ya' know Alokki, right?" He suddenly asked, and the rapid change of subject had Vali's forehead scrunching up with confusion. Regardless, he went with it.

"He's the trader whose mate is pregnant, right?"

Tofa nodded. "Yea. But he's also 'the trader' who used my services last night."

Vali stopped in his tracks, turning around to present his friend with a wide-eyed expression of shock. "He... he cheated on his mate?!"

Cheating on one's mate once bonded was considered a high sin, akin to cursing at the feet of Odin the most high himself. In fact, once one found their fated mate and bonded, it was almost impossible for them to desire another. Therefore, learning of Alokki's alleged betrayal had an effect on Vali similar to being struck by lightning.

"Shh!" Tofa shushed his friend, hurrying them both down the rest of the steps and checking over his shoulder to see if anyone could have overheard the scandalous conversation. Only once Tofa towed his friend far enough away to ensure that they were out of earshot, did Vali continue. 

"B-but..." Vali sputtered, still at a loss for words as he tried to figure out how this could be true, "Are they fated mates or just informally mated?"

Tofa shrugged as they finally approached the canal, fingers pink from carrying the heavy wooden bucket all of this way, "Does it really matter? It just proves that Alphas aren't good for nothin' but gettin' their cocks hard. "

The taller Omega deflated, dropping his pail to the ground beside the rushing canal. "Well..." he started, trying to find a silver lining, "Those kinds of Alphas might be good-for-nothing pieces of shite, but Odin would never give you a mate that would do something like that to you!" 

Tofa shook his head with a chuckle as he carefully lowered his pail into the rapidly flowing current of the canal, deciding that it was time to change the subject to something more desirable than his never-to-exist love life.

"Ya' keep talkin' about a mate for me, when we really should be talkin' about ye'r future Alpha." He teased, wiggling his brows and tucking a few unbraided strands of pitch-black hair behind his ear. "What's ye'r ideal man look like?"

Vali chewed his lip as the gears turned, a part of his brain that had never before been acknowledged set alight.

Of course, the thought of having someone who would unconditionally love you for who you were would be a tempting offer to anyone, and Vali was no exception. The idea of mating was something that had always lingered in the very back of the Omega's mind, a minuscule itch that never quite went away. But luckily, it was easy enough to ignore when one had much more important things to worry about, like staying alive and having enough food to eat by the end of the day. 

Just as quickly as it came, what little excitement the thought conjured up in a long-dormant part of Vali's tender heart was nullified once he dipped his pail into the canal and spied a glimpse of his unusually colored fingers – patches of light brown and stark white reminding him of the improbability of such a thing ever happening to him.

Demons weren't worthy of the privilege of a fated mate. 

But it was okay. He was used to it. Vali would be fine just by himself. 

Vali hauled his pail out of the water, droplets dripping from the bottom of its wooden surface and absorbing into the thin fabric of his sandals as he avoided directly answering Tofa's question. 

"I am fine on my own, Tof. I doubt that any Alpha could fall in love with someone who looks like me."

The smaller Omega stomped his foot at once, immense frustration at his friend's response causing his brows to pull together into a piercing glare that sharply contrasted his soft features. "Vali, have ya' even seen y'erself?! Y'er fuckin' gorgeous, I wish I looked like you!"

The white patch on the left side of Vali's face flushed pink at the unexpected compliment despite knowing it was simply his friend being his usual, kind self. And, in lieu of the fact that his body had no clue how to react to such positivity thrown in his direction, Vali playfully nudged his friend's shin with the tip of his sandal.

"Oh, whatever, you're only saying that because you are my friend." He stuck his tongue out and they both finally picked up the water-filled pails, short bodies slightly straining with the weight of the load, "Well, at least Ahren and Sigge seem to like me well enough. They're better than any mate."

The pair fell into a tandem step as they slowly headed back toward the staircase that led back up to the village, the sound of water sloshing around in their buckets reverberating between them. 

"Ya' know, ya' always have had a special way with the horses, I say. That there is a gift from Odin with the way they flock to ya'."

Vali nodded, a smile pulling at his lips at the thought of his equine best friends. He truly did adore them, his relationship with Ahren and Sigge one of the few things that he could honestly say brought him joy in this life. They communicated their love without a word, devotion and understanding flowing through an intangible but undeniably unbreakable bond that no one else could possibly understand.

Vali adored his horses, and nothing in this entire world could change that.

The sea was steady, and Vali's heart rolled with the calm waves that crashed against the far side of the cliff as a comfortable silence settled between the two Omegas.

Sometimes Vali wondered what must lay out there, beyond the horizon and past the sea. But he was always quick to quell his curiosity, knowing deep down that he was destined to live and die here; in this quaint, coastal fishing village with its nosy neighbors, lovely horses, and his one true friend.

"You go." Vali said with a gentle smile, nudging his head in a motion that told his best friend to start up the single-wide staircase first.

"What a gentleman!" Tofa teased, winking in his friend's direction before beginning the long trek back up the cliff. Vali scurried up close behind, eager to get back to his demanding manageress and his thirsty equine friends. 

But he made it up a couple of steps – maybe four or five – before he heard it.

The pail slipped free of trembling fingers, soaking his britches in ice-cold water and making a dull, echoing sound as it bounced down the very stone steps that he had just ascended.

But nothing echoed as loudly as the ear-splitting shriek of terror that shook the treetops and frightened away the crows resting there. 

It was a wail that came straight from the heart of the village; a wail with a level of throat-splitting ferocity that could only possibly mean one thing. 

Raiders.

A/N: Some notes for your better understanding!

1. Vali has a condition called Vitiligo, which causes progressive loss of pigmentation of the skin in various-sized patches. You can look up pictures if you are curious!

2. Odin is the Viking/Old Norse god

Want more and can't wait? 👀 Become a Patron! You could unlock the rest of the entire story RIGHT NOW! 😱 Link is in my bio!

Love you all!

Xoxo, Alex ❤️