The room was dimly lit. Naoto was at his desk too angry to bother turning on the light just yet. His incense burned out and not even the strongest of his assistants could enter the room to light a new one. So, he remained.
He was in the middle of a report and he didn't like it one bit. The punishment was far less egregious like the library and key mold incident, but it only infuriated him more, against his own reasoning. Anything to do with omegas is always punished worse than betas, but a beta would be more a victim than some omega; omegas are always asking for it, yet they're always the victims!
'Tch! And someone's missing again. I guess the little mouse got away… but, if Masanori had something to do with this… damn it!' He banged a fist on the desk that, if it wasn't made of some of the toughest hardwood, might have cracked from the force.
'Can't report him or I'll get in hot water too, but I'll pin you for something. Masa will see what a snake you are! And Fujiwara-kun…'
He talked to him Friday the day before, when he returned to his office after school, and he caught him in the hall, saying one thing that caught him off guard.
" 'Be more aware of who you put trust in', huh? Bastard knew all along didn't he? That Shouta went behind my back." He muttered. He underestimated the new council leader for his short election period in April, but he was a conniving as the rest of them.
Fujiwara Ryusei had already been cleared of relation to the theft however, had been charted a victim. However…
Naoto put down the paper in his hand and slowly hovered his hand across the desk, tapping a single finger down on the bag lying on the edge, with a broken strap.
'I have a feeling there's a little more you haven't told me. Watch who I trust? Puh…'
——————
Slam!
Masanori severely hated that sound. Of things being slammed, especially so late into the night. The door being shut as his father entered the office, the sound of a hand hitting the hardwood, the cup in his hand that he gripped tighter than the jaw of a predator, so as to prevent him from once slipping, and smashing it into the wall across the room as a consequence as natural as breathing in.
Masanori tried not to jolt and remain stoic. If anything, he was expecting this, and half-nodded off at the same spiel, already taking the wounds of his own self-inflicted guilt.
He had, after all, failed to locate the thief of stolen student medicine, or prevent them from being used up by said thieves. He also failed to keep control of his patrol who had seemingly vanished during their rounds, and on top of that there was a fire; He especially liked to bring up that detail, along with hired outside detective he already fired.
Half of this was not his sole responsibility, but rather something for the entire council. If anything he should be upset at the council president, but Masanori knew not to bring that up around him.
"If you understand then do it right this time," He finally began to wrap up. "You should be able to do the bare minimum as an Alpha. Accidents like this are why you're no longer the family heir."
"Yes, I understand." Masanori just nodded, then finally began to stand up from his chair to leave.
BAM!
His father slammed a hand down again, glaring at him fiercely.
"AND. Do not show up looking that way again. If you cannot properly act like a true Alpha then at least look the part. You are a leader, never show weakness in front of your peers, ever. Is this clear?"
"Yes sir."
By the time Masanori left the office, daybreak had begun creeping through the windows outside. Like a fly in the wall not a minute after leaving, he got a text.
- A rough one. Your daddio's got some sizzle in that balding skull, perfect for egg frying.
Masanori scoffed into a chuckle and left a deadpan reply.
- Very funny. I noticed you forgot something. The files? Its been hours.
Yuki responded.
- Been looking forward to it that much? Sorry, someone suddenly cut off my access. Might have been the security team with the beta dorm fiasco, but I got it now. Though, I've got some bad news.
Masanori frowned. Reading the next text, his eyes widened.
'That can't be…'
——————
The next morning, the Omega dorm was informed that illegal student activity had put the entire student body on lockdown in their dorms until police investigations wrapped up that evening when the outing students returned.
Ren was back in the bath area taking another rinse down. Though he thought he was throughout last night he did rush through it to avoid detection, and Kakeru kept shooting him weird glances that morning so he thought he'd have a second one just to be sure.
While he rinsed off again at the shower station other Omegas entered the communal bath, sitting in close proximity while they chatted away. Ren had gotten used to it by now, but he still felt some unease.
'Guys usually don't sit so close while bathing. And they're always so quiet. My baths in college were like loud and rambunctious. I used to hang out with these guys, they were good for a laugh. Can't remember their names now…'
Meanwhile, the omega students began talking, letting out some stark complaints, and gossip.
"Someone got caught doing the deed in one of school restrooms again. Study hall's getting awfully full lately…"
"Anyone hear the rumor that Enochi-kun's actually an S grade? Though I dunno why he would pretend to be E grade in the first place…"
"My roommate's nesting has been getting worse lately, I think they're secretly dating…"
None of this stuff made any sense to Ren. For a time, he just figured half of it was new age slang he'd never heard before, I mean calling someone an S grade seemed like some kinda compliment, like something being S-tier.
But he did get something that grabbed his attention soon enough.
"Have you heard anything about what happened at the beta dorm?" One eventually asked.
"Yeah," One sighed. "They won't tell us anything, its so infuriating. This school is too old-fashioned, coddling us like lambs."
'They just don't want you to know about the experiments that took place there.' Ren thought to himself, as they continued.
"Did you smell the pheromones in the hall this morning? If an alpha snuck in last night…"
"I'm too sensitive," One added with a sigh. "Even just a little like that made me leak down there, I've gotta do laundry again…"
'Huh? Down there?' Ren thought in confusion. 'What kind of leaking? Bathroom problems I guess? But what was that about Alpha and smelling pheromones? I think, Ryusei mentioned something about that… do they have a smell?'
Ren's mind jumped to the first Alpha that came to mind, and the sharp scent he recalled from the night at the construction site. Then, the scent of Masanori, completely overwhelming.
Ren jolted. He felt a shiver run down his spine, reverberating in his lower back. He rubbed down his back with a frown. 'Weird? I just got chills. Akagi Naoto's gotten under my skin… I guess. That smell, maybe its important… I should ask Ryusei when we're let go. He'll be fine won't he…?'
With the dorm on lockdown, Ren had some time to organize his notes and revise some of his theories. But mostly, he tried his best to pack it all up and hide it.
'I lost my bag. I didnt have much but I should try to play it safe. Last thing i need is the school doing a shakedown and destroying my work.'
After packing he tucked his package inside a laundry basket and searched for a place to hide it.
'Maybe inside one of the kitchen cupboards? But they might look there after the way I left the Beta's kitchen…'
Ren passed by the common room and heard more tidbits of conversation.
"I heard the Alpha students overran the Beta dorm!"
"They haven't found anyone but they'll probably be expelled at this rate." The student tutted. "While the student body president was out too. I think I'll avoid the Beta dorm for a while then. It used to always feel safe there because the Alphas never went by before."
"At this rate all the Alphas will be expelled. Their policy on that kind of thing is too strict. They treat us like we're animals all caged up like this." Another student whined.
"Guess they don't want trouble from someone's parents if the worst happens..." The student tampered off.
'There's a lot more omega students around today,' Ren thought. 'I guess we're all stuck inside so they've decided to hang out in the lounge.'
Ren passed it by. He never thought much about talking with the omega students themselves, it was clear that while they had no clue of what was going on with the school, it seemed even they couldn't escape the mess that happened last night. Luckily, none of them knew the truth of the matter.
'Well I don't want to worry them even more so I'll let them be. One at a time. I'm doing all of this for them too, along with the beta students being experimented on. First I gotta get the good Alphas to work with me on my plans…'
Ren halted. a student had suddenly walked in the middle of his path. Before he could start to move around him they suddenly approached, then started to circle around him, glaring at him from every angle.
Ren completely stiffened, bafflingly gawking at the somehow smaller than him student. 'Wh-What…!? W-Why is he-? And is he... sniffing me?'
The student stopped. They took a step back and stiffly adjusted their glasses before pointing at him. "It's him."
Ren nearly dropped the basket. "H-Huh…!!?"
Before he could realize it, two students grabbed him by his arms, making him drop the basket as he was dragged away, pulled into a dark room then dumped into an office chair.
Ren dripped the arms of the chair in shock. "H-huuuuh!!??"
At the front of the desk a student clicked on a table lamp, giving him a cold hard stare.
"So you're the responsible for the stench of Alphas lacing down the corridors. Did you think a simple wash would escape the nose of someone like Umaki? I hope you have an explanation, Takeshita Akira."
Ren's chest tightened and he worked up a cold sweat.
'I-I'm, busted?! No way, did Kakeru-kun rat me out?! W-Who is this guy anyway?!'
"Well?" They harshly spoke again, raising a stiff brow. "Bringing an Alpha into the omega dorm is an capital offense. There's no point in protecting your partner, we already tracked down who's scent it was, so fess up."
"I, I…!" Ren started to panic, when he paused. "Wait, I-I didn't bring an Alpha into the dorm!" He cried.
The student suddenly slammed a hand on the desk. "Lying will get you nowhere! Its obvious by smell!! Your conscience will be cleared when you give into the truth-!!"
Then, the door reopened. A student stepped through raising a salute. "Senpai, we found no traces of Alphas entering the accused student's dorm, sir."
"I expected as much. Yaruno-kun had nothing to say as well, so you must have come in a different way…" They growled, glare becoming more intense.
But Ren's expression brightened. 'So, Kakeru-kun didn't betray me…! Phew. And it looks like these guys aren't the school either. They're actually against Alphas coming by here!'
Ren was suddenly excited to talk to them, but before he could open his mouth, the student had closed the distance between them.
"But it proves nothing! It's obvious what you've done, so confess!! You broke curfew and met up with an Alpha!" They snarled.
"...no I didn't." Ren lied smoothly. To be fair he only half-lied, he didn't meet up with any Alpha, only encountered one. Well a few… like, twenty at most.
The student slammed their hand down on the desk, looking beside themselves. "Damn it!! We have no real evidence..." They grumbled into the desk and waved his hand. "Puh! You're released for now! Go away!"
"Wuh? But wait..." Ren raised a confused hand.
But at his word, Ren was then quickly and efficiently escorted out the door by the guards, the door slamming shut and locked before he could get another word in. Ren wiped a small drop of spittle from his cheek and huffed. 'What a bunch of rude kids. But what is it with this smell thing? Is it their cologne? Maybe I need to start sniffing alphas to figure out what they have in common…' He shivered. Not even he was that stupid. He'd get punched or called a creep!
Ren found a hiding spot, and the day passed into evening, and the omegas were released. The first place Ren ran to was Ryusei's office, but he found no one there.
'Well it's not a good sign, but not technically a bad one.' He frowned regardless. "It is kinda late, but I think Masanori might know-"
"Takeshita-san?"
Shino was there, holding the bag he packed Friday. He cocked his head with a concerned frown. "You look a little frazzled. If you're looking for Fujiwara…"
Ren saw him and admittedly felt some relief. It was good to see him. Ren looked both ways down the hall before leaning in towards him.
"Can you… keep a secret?"
———
Shino opened up the clubroom and Ren partook in some of Shino's tea and music while Ren explained to him, in some form, what happened at the beta dorm Saturday night. Ren thought, if he was sent off to get away from the experiments he must be safe to trust, and informing him of potential danger in the future was just what a good friend would do.
Shino seemed to ruminated on this with a deep concerned frown. "That's about what I pictured… You know, that was extremely dangerous. Are you doing okay?"
Ren groaned and laid back on the ground. "Yeah. I haven't been caught yet so I think I'm alright… but the betas, I'm a little worried. What's going to happen to them?"
"I'm sure they'll be alright," Shino said. "Perhaps It'll encourage the student council to put some effort into the dorm building."
Ren nodded. "Yeah, that place wasn't in the best shape. How do you and Kokichi live there? Right Kokichi, that ass." Ren stood back up. "I never met such a rude guy in my life, why did you let that guy into the club when all he does is scream and complain? I know he also needed a club, but he might as well join that drawing club if he cant even act grateful!"
Shino took a sip of tea, then placed it back down with a soft clatter. "Well, he doesn't want to do it. Even if his attitude is bad, that's reason enough. There's far too many of us with too much power that try to control others. If I can help give someone the opportunity to break away from that, how could I feel any regret?" He smiled but Ren thought for a moment it looked, guilty?
Shino picked his cup back up. "But please, next time when you have a plan that's potentially dangerous like that, couldn't you tell me first?"
Ren nodded with a smile. Any plan that involves Alphas, he'd talk to him first, his advice was usually good after all. He also knew the ones with too much power he mentioned were the Alphas, which officially made Shino on his side. Though, putting up with Kokichi even for good reasons, seemed like disaster waiting to happen. Like a snowpeak waiting for a avalanche. A lightning rod waiting for a storm-
Knock Knock.
There were two brief knocks on the door. Ren glanced towards Shino, but the question of who it was couldn't be formed before Ruota simply slid open the door and stepped in.
Ren's skin did a small leap of fright. 'It's him?! Shit, didn't I flour bomb him that night too!? He's probably looking for Kokichi, but it'll be bad if he realizes I was there too! I gotta leave before he gets any ideas..!'
Ren shot up from his spot and speedily rushed past Ruota. "See you tomorrow, Shino-kun!" He waved then hurried down the hall in a frantic bustle. 'T-That was close…!'
Shino slowly rose up from the table with a depressed sigh. "Here already? I thought you might take a break after-"
BAM!
Ruota had grabbed Shino by the collar and pinned him against the wall.
"Kch...!" Shino clutched for his collar and air to breathe. Ruota loosened his grip enough for him to, but leaned in far too close with a cold, unwavering glare.
"I learned something interesting as of late, and it has me rather stumped," Ruota began. "Could you enlighten my understanding? That day, after I smelled the scent of an omega in heat coming from your clubroom while Takeshita was out, you firstly claimed to not know then told me to ask Hirota Kokichi instead.
"You said he might be at the medical office, that he was always "making private trips there." I believed you were finally giving in, knowing what I could do to one of your omega friends. But Hirota's secret wasn't anything like I imagined, and he's certainly not an omega."
"What is this about?" Shino quietly asked, nerves knitting his brow. "I said he might know about the scent because I didn't, I don't get what you're saying," He lowered his eyes. "Hirota is a beta. I don't think I said anything to make you think otherwise."
"Your words implied it more than enough," Ruota said. "And, I'm a far cry away from believing you gave away Hirota's one weakness so haphazardly. You knew. You knew Hirota was beta all along, but it was rather convenient that he was on the shorter side and temperamental, wasn't he?"
"Is that right?" Shino's eyes drifted to the table, to his tea, growing cold. He sighed. "But what more do you want then? Maybe I did think telling you that tidbit about Hirota would get you to back off. Between him and protecting an omega, the choice is obvious. But if he does have a secret that's useful to you, isn't it?"
"Now that's the thing…" Ruota slowly drawled. "I... don't believe you. I've had more time to think, and it doesn't make much sense either. You've taken so many hits already for Hirota, why would this random omega be your limit? I'm not a monster, you know... So I kept asking myself all day why you sacrificed him to me. It seems to me, you were trying to divert my attention. But if not that omega, then from what…?"
The air began to fill with Ruota's pheromones.
"What do you think? I always wondered why you had such strong willpower. That's why it was easy to allow you to be a club leader. However, how long will you last, real answers this time. Were you hoping that fool Kokichi would just assume I was talking about that little tick he has and cave in before I could ask, or did you maybe imagine I would realize my mistake and forget about you?"
"What are you getting at…? Please Senpai. That's enough," Shino said, pleading. "I have an omega in my club." He covered his nose and turned away from his eyes. "I'm sorry. I'll accept the punishment of a reduced club fund."
Ruota coldly laughed. "A punishment? I have something else in mind for you, actually…"
Ruota's pheromones stopped. Suddenly, he brushed aside a strand of Shino's hair.
"You're worth more than I initially pegged you for," his voice rumbled as he curled it between his fingers. " I thought you were just stubborn, but you've proven to be clever. There's no reason a bright mind like yours should be huddled up in this crusted excuse for a club. You'll join my subordinates starting tomorrow."
Shino pushed his hand away, his eyes firm. "Sorry, but I'll have to decline. If I do that, the gender study club will have no club president."
"I'll elect a new one."
"The club manager has no power over the club president, does he?" Shino retorted. "And I hope you remember why attempting to disband this club will look rather bleak on your student council reports. A club mandated by the school board being removed for no discernible reason will be bad for you image, so please reconsider."
Ruota leaned back, but his eyes only grew in further interest. "And that's why you're here. You're a rat hiding in a hole in the wall." His voice rumbled like a purr. "Really - I've severely overlooked you so far."
Shino looked away, avoiding the lustful look boring into him, his eyes instead sweeping the ceiling intently. Ruota almost on accident looked up as well, and Shino took the chance then to calmly duck away from Ruota and escape. He moved to the other side of the club room to open up the window.
"Hopefully I can air it out," Shino said, eyes out the window. "Luckily Alpha scents don't linger as much as omega scents, but please try to restrain yourself next time Senpai. And, I'm here because I enjoy understanding the differences between us, not to hide. You're wrong. Any omega is worth saving."
"I see. Then I'm sure you know: this isn't over." Ruota said, then swiftly and staunchly left.
After the sounds of him had long since passed, Shino finally turned back into the room. He threw his body on the table and buried his head in his arms, letting out a long, tired sigh.
"So much for fresh air. Alphas - always so pushy…" His words trailed into another sigh. He wrangled one hand through his hair and banged the other down on the table.
"… fuck. Damn it."
——————
It was Monday morning. Ren left his dorm heading for class feeling some amount of trepidation.
'I gotta ask Ryusei about all this pheromone stuff, and what the next mission will be…' Ren then frowned, filled with worry. He now understood better why Masanori and Ryusei were hesitant to say anything to him, with traitors having to be stamped out and discovered. He failed to find out the traitor on his own and even went behind Ryusei's back, so Ren figured he was far from trusting him yet. He wouldn't let his own ambitions to get evidence get in the way again - keeping his current allies was more important than finding new ones.
His stomach turned into knots. 'I just hope Ryusei will be alright. I hope I didn't make too much trouble for him. Right, I'll go in there on my knees begging for forgiveness first thing-'
Thump.
Ren had run into someone. Before he could react, they then grabbed his shoulder, a tight grip that made him flinch. Ren looked up, and gasped.
"Masanori-kun!?"