In the hours that followed, the young men ate, laughed, and caught up on everything that had happened since they were last together. 

“Honestly though, thinking of you being ten years old when we last met,” Valleus chuckled, “And here you are now, a man. Definitely every ounce a crown prince.”

Aushen rolled his eyes as he bit into another piece of meat. “Well, you’ve quite filled out yourself. Last I remember you, you were still a gangly teen.” He paused, then added, “Well, you still looked like a man in my eyes, even back then.”

Valleus grinned. “You’re the only one who would think that, Your Highness. Everyone in the kingdom was as shocked as me when I went to the altar and found my secondary sex had changed to alpha.” He suddenly blinked away, looking a bit shy. “I suppose yours changed too, though…”

Aushen looked puzzled. “What do you mean? I’ve been a beta from the beginning.”

Valleus’ eyes slowly climbed to meet Aushen’s. “All due respect, Your Highness, the pheromones I smell from you are not those of a beta.” 

The past few hours the men had been visiting with one another, they both had begun feeling rather… different. Aushen felt his ‘illness’ creeping back- the feverish heat that made him dizzy. Valleus couldn’t help but notice a strong, musky scent beginning to fill the small cave. He’d tried to ignore it at first, but with a glance at Aushen’s flushed face, he couldn’t any longer. This was quickly becoming a dangerous situation. 

Aushen shook his head, almost drunken in his movements. “I’m definitely a beta,” he emphasized. Then, he chuckled. “Maybe your alpha pheromones are so strong that it’s making my body think I’m an omega.”

Valleus’ eyes narrowed. “If anyone’s pheromones are strong, they’re yours. I think you’re in heat, Your Highness.” He sighed nervously, murmuring, “Do you really not know?”

In Aushen’s fevered mind, he wrestled with a few thoughts. The first thought was that, though he’d desperately attempted to deny it his entire life, Valleus was indeed his first love, and he definitely still had feelings for him now. Secondly, though he was meant to be on his way to meet his potential bride, he had much more interest in the man in front of him. Thirdly, some part of him was increasingly becoming convinced that if he could just touch Valleus, maybe just a kiss, this painful heat might subside. 

And lastly, of course, Aushen remembered that they were all alone. 

He swallowed hard, holding his knees in front of him. “If… if I were an omega…” He raised his eyes to meet Valleus’. Valleus, too, was beginning to look flushed. “What would you do?”

Valleus blinked a few times, looking down at the ground. “Well, Your Highness.” He cleared his throat. “If you were an omega, I’d have to leave right away, lest one of us does something we’d regret.” It sounded like he was telling himself that just as much as he was telling Aushen.

Aushen reached out to brush his fingers against Valleus’ knee. “What if… we wouldn’t regret it?”

Valleus took a deep breath, pointedly avoiding eye contact with the prince. “If it’s driven by something other than love and choice,” he responded, voice rough, “then we will.”

“Valleus…” Aushen leaned over, reaching out towards Valleus. For a brief moment, the prince saw Valleus’ pupils shrink to slivers, appearing like they had when he’d first woken up. Aushen felt instinctual desire ooze from his expression, and he shivered under the hypnotizing gaze.

“I—! Ouch!” Valleus, snapping back to himself once more, had attempted to stand, and was met with the roof of the small cave. “I think there’s an herb that will help with this! I’ll be right back!” He shimmied out, kneeling down to call out, “Please, please stay here Your Highness. I know exactly what I’m looking for, I won’t be long.” Without waiting for a response, Valleus ran off. 

Aushen blinked at the turn of events. “He’s still shirtless,” he mused, blushing. 

-

A mixture of the heat, injuries, and stressful events Aushen had been through lately caused him to drift back to sleep as he waited for Valleus to return. When he awoke, Valleus sat before him (still shirtless), gnawing on what looked to Aushen to be a piece of ice. 

“Valleus… what in the world…” he stretched as he asked. He noticed that the poultice on his hand had been changed while he was asleep. 

Valleus chuckled. “I’m sure this looks rather strange, but given that I don’t have any dishes, this was the best solution I could come up with.” He reached outside the cave and grabbed a piece of ice, roughly the size of a rice ball. He handed it to Aushen.

“Chew on it- I ground the Moonflower herb down and mixed it with water I melted from the snow, then allowed it to freeze.” 

Aushen did as instructed, but glanced at Valleus inquisitively. “How did you melt the snow and refreeze it so quickly?”

The young man’s face broke into a wide grin. “Look what I can do.” Holding up his right hand, he snapped, and a small flame hovered over his fingers. He snapped again, and it vanished. 

Aushen’s eyes widened. “That’s amazing! Ah, I just realized… the wings!”

Valleus nodded. “Yes, I figured out how to put them back. And how to use them,” he added with a grin. “Once you’re ready, we can head over to the Northern Castle and be there within a day.”

Aushen laughed in awe. “That’s truly incredible. And your hand?”

Valleus nodded, holding up his still-scaled hand. His fingers no longer sported claws, though. “I think it’s because of how deep the injury was. Well, that, or perhaps it’s stuck this way forever because it’s the hand that broke the Dragon’s Heart? But at least I figured out how to put the claws away.”