Locked in Permafrost

November

When the sun set for the last time this winter, Paul and Eric watched it together from Paul's "observatory." He made the observatory out of blocks of densely packed snow. It was just a big ice couch that he'd throw several large pelts over and snuggle into with Eric while all the dogs piled on top.

Paul got satellite internet in the cabin so there was more typical entertainment to be had, but nothing compared to sitting in the middle of the vast silence of the arctic and watching the ever-changing sky over the pristine landscape. Paul had binoculars for stargazing and a green laser pointer that was strong enough for him to point things out in the sky. This was helpful for Eric because the few constellations he was familiar with were entirely obscured by the sheer quantity of stars visible. They were also on a completely different arc with Polaris being much higher in the northern sky than he expected.

The best nights were those when the aurora seemed to rain down on them. The dancing streaks of colored light like the tracks of a million shooting stars.

Neither man spoke much. From when Eric was first rescued, a week passed before he realized they hadn't exchanged names. Despite that, they fell into a routine, sharing chores and an easy companionship that avoided all the awkward questions they should have been asking. Like what they might do when Eric went into heat.

Unfortunately, avoidance is not a solution and it came as it always did, flooding over Eric in gradually intensifying waves. At first, he tried to hide it, babbling about sleeping in the barn. But he still feared being alone with the dogs so Paul knew something was up. When he finally coaxed Eric into the cabin and peeled off his scarf the situation immediately became clear. His pheromones swamped the small space.

"I'm sorry," Eric whined. "I'm so sorry." But he reached for Paul as he said it and the alpha held onto him with a fierce possessiveness he'd never felt before.

"I can go sleep in the barn," the alpha offered, though his voice was pained as he said it, and his grip never loosened.

"Don't," Eric groaned.

"If I stay...," Paul warned.

"You saved me." Eric was panting now and clinging to the alpha. "I think I belong to you."

It was Paul's turn to groan. He liked that a little too much. There were no options. No suppressants. No birth control. No collar. If he took the omega now there would be lifelong consequences. Yet...there was no stopping either. "Are you sure?" He asked, not at all sure whether the answer would matter.

Eric's head, pressed against his chest, nodded and the last threads of his self-control snapped.

Outside the aurora danced over the cabin so gloriously that colored light shone through the tiny windows. But inside the alpha and his omega performed another sort of dance. Kissing tenderly at first, and then desperately as though they might swallow each other whole. Shedding their clothing and diving under the bedcovers naked together, their skin desperate for contact.

It had been a long time for Paul with his self imposed isolation, but Eric's body responded so feverishly that his hesitance burned away. He realized this was different from anything he'd experienced before anyway. This was his omega, the boy he'd saved and felt safe with. Despite their heat, his hands were gentle because his lover was precious to him.

For Eric, his heat always meant pain. When he was alone the pain was a normal inevitable part of his gender. But even when he ventured to find a partner he always ended up hurting. He had believed his fiancé loved him, but even so, he'd been handled roughly during his heat. Just because he begged for more, it didn't mean he wanted to emerge covered in bruises. He assumed alphas couldn't help themselves, but Paul was proving that assumption wrong.