Chapter Text
The kingdom of Ádi was extensive as it was powerful, claiming six rivers as their own, and being the first of the three most fearsome armies; all things any kingdom would be proud of, and that many a kingdom coveted. Their king was an imposing alpha, with a beautiful omega as his queen; both kind rulers beloved by their people.
When they announced their second born to be an alpha, and thus proper heir to the throne, the whole kingdom celebrated, while the neighboring kingdoms started planning. To get one of their omega children married to the Ádi prince would assure them a most powerful ally should peace ever be broken; not to mention the rise of status for any omega who managed to capture the prince’s heart.
So it came as no surprise that once the boy reached a certain age, he started gathering a considerable amount of possible suitors. But the prince, who’d seen the love between his parents, would not settle for anything less than the spark his father spoke of when remembering his first meeting with the boy’s mother.
The kingdom of Sfirilátisi, on the other hand, was rather small, though a mining kingdom of long history, it was not very powerful, depending on its alliances with other kingdoms; and there were many, for the king had many children to marry off. The king wasn’t exactly cruel, his people were very happy under his rule, his kingdom thrived; but he wasn’t kind either, seemingly out of touch with his status as father.
He’d managed to marry and promise all his children but one, his youngest son, who had the misfortune of being born omega.
See, male omegas, though socially not much different from their female counterparts, ran the terrifying chance of not being able to handle a pregnancy as their letter required, or worse, being sterile. Most were repulsed by the mere thought of having to deal with a breeder who was most likely not able to do their job, and those who kept this opinion to themselves were few and far in between.
The distaste was such that the boy could not even hold a title, for fear the court would riot over being told to treat such a creature with a respect they did not think it deserved. Under this heavy cloud of rejection, many a soul would be hard pressed not to grow resentful; and though the not-prince held little love for his kingdom, he instead became determined.
Leo would win the heart of a well-endowed alpha, and show all of the wrong by becoming the omega all other omegas looked up to. The only problem was that, in order to do this, he had to convince the entire court and his family that he loathed the idea of a marriage to an alpha more than anything in the world.
So came the day where the King of Ádi could no longer stall for his son, and in a last desperate attempt to keep his child happy, proposed a compromise. He proposed to his son that perhaps the reason he felt so repelled by his possible suitors was that few of them tried to hide where their interest resided (not on Nico himself, but what he represented for them); and that if they were deprived of this knowledge Nico would be able to meet them for real.
To make this work, the King would throw a masquerade party, presented as a show of good faith and chance to strengthen alliances, inviting all omegas of royal blood and, to give his son true anonymity, all alphas of that status as well. The only thing to help distinguish the guests will be that the masks will have a design proclaiming which letter the wearer is.
Knowing that this is the last chance he has of maybe finding something half as good as what his parents have, Nico accepts the idea, but makes his dad add a clause stopping ‘introductions’ as they would ruin the mystery immediately, saying he can say it’s so they can be free of any previous bias, permitting pairings with people from kingdoms that would perhaps get overlooked otherwise.
Having reached an agreement, the castle staff was promptly made aware of this event, and invitations were sent across the world.
One did reach the kingdom of Sfirilátisi, falling into Leo’s hands first, as being treated poorly meant he could easily slip away unnoticed; seeing this as his opportunity he quickly comes up with a plan, while making sure no one will be able to tell the letter was opened before it reached the king.
When it finally does later that afternoon, Leo’s already had time to prepare, and he pulls every stop he can think of; only to have to hide his absolute delight when it works like a charm, and he’s not only allowed to go, but being basically forced to attend. Which means his father puts actual effort in getting him something proper to wear.
Later, when he allows himself to inspect it properly in the safety of his room, he finds that the top is more of a dress, only the front of the skirt stops a little below the waist, while the back goes all the way to a little above Leo’s ankles, to show off the matching set of pants, the upper part in beautiful maroon with delicate details in golden thread, and the pants in a darker tone, but solid; the mask that will cover all but his eyes and mouth is a metal-like copper color, with a black omega symbol on the left cheek. He’s a little disappointed with the mask, but he’ll have to make it work; it’s the only chance he’s got.