The preparations for the first banquet were a blur of stress and excitement, where Donghyuck could barely keep track of everything going on.
The maids approached Donghyuck repeatedly to ask his opinions on the drapes, the plates, the silverware, the color of the tablecloth, basically every small detail that Donghyuck could honestly care less about. It was starting to drive him crazy, having to look over everything a million times and choose between options that honestly looked the same to him, and he felt like the stress of everything was starting to chip away at his sanity.
When Mark came up behind him at the end of one such day, wrapping his arms around his waist and asking about his day as he pressed soft kisses against his shoulder, Donghyuck couldn't help but sink into the alpha's embrace and whine, once again feeling overwhelmed and underprepared for life as a queen.
"My day was so busy," he grumbled, tilting his head back in order to pout up at Mark, "everyone wants my opinion on weird shit, like whether I want the table cloth to be off-white or cream colored. What's even the difference?"
Mark smiled softly, pressing a kiss against the omega's cheek. "Cream has more warm undertones. Off-white is more gray, it's more neutral."
"Mark," Donghyuck whined, exasperated. Mark laughed and slowly turned Donghyuck in his embrace until they were facing each other, looking down at him fondly.
"You're overthinking it, baby. You don't have to put that much thought into it, the maids only want your opinion because they're used to serving stuck up omegas that pick apart every minuscule detail. If you don't care then you don't have to spend much time agonizing over it, just pick an option and move on."
Donghyuck bit into his bottom lip and blinked up at Mark. "You really think so?"
"Mhm. It'll all be okay, everything will be perfect, okay?" Mark hummed, tucking a strand of hair behind Donghyuck's ear. That prompted the omega to move forward and slide a hand up to the back of Mark's neck, pulling him into a kiss.
"Mark," Donghyuck huffed against his mouth, pressing up a little closer and tangling his fingers in the hairs at the base of Mark's scalp. The king detected a spike in Donghyuck's scent—not all that different from when Donghyuck had first started his preheat back in the forest—and he immediately felt a smile spread across his face at the realization.
"Hmm?" He hummed in response, despite knowing exactly what Donghyuck was gearing up to ask for. The omega sighed and began to nose along the king's jawline, breathing hot, open mouthed kisses against the column of his throat.
"Alpha," Donghyuck sighed, his voice saccharine sweet and dripping with perfectly weaponized desperation, "can we..."
Donghyuck trailed off, his face turning pink, but he didn't have to continue for Mark to know exactly what he wanted. It pained the king to have to push down his own instincts, hold himself back from acting on the desire churning deep in the pits of his stomach, but he still managed to bring himself to shake his head, looking down at the omega apologetically.
"I'm sorry, honey," Mark murmured, pressing another sweet peck against Donghyuck's lips in apology. "We can't, not yet. Not until our wedding night."
Donghyuck let out a breathy whine, looping his arms around Mark's neck. "Why? You're the king, right? You can do whatever you want."
Mark laughed, brushing his thumb gently across Donghyuck's lower lip. "I have to uphold the traditions. If I get my hands on you... I'm not going to be able to hold myself back, I might give you a mating bite before the ceremony... and that would get me in big trouble with the counsel of priests."
The omega let out a long, heavy sigh, his eyes flickering back and forth across Mark's face. "Really? We can't even... not even a little bit...?"
Mark couldn't help but coo at him, cupping his cheeks and looking down at him lovingly. "You know I wish we could... but it's better for us to wait. Imagine how amazing it will feel when we finally are able to mate after all this time, after holding ourselves back."
Donghyuck just rolled his eyes, clearly unamused and unconvinced. Mark laughed and pressed his lips to his forehead, always so gentle and affectionate.
"It'll only be for a couple more weeks, okay? By the end of this month, I'll be all yours, whenever you wish."
"Fine," Donghyuck grumbled, closing his eyes and allowing Mark to continue peppering kisses all over his face, "but you owe me a mind-blowing honeymoon."
Mark laughed again, wrapping his arms around Donghyuck and pulling him in for another hug. "Anything for you, my queen. Your wish is my command."
┈ ୨ 👑 ୧ ┈
The day of the banquet arrived soon enough, and Donghyuck found himself feeling nervous as he was dressed in his room, wearing his finest robes and elaborate makeup in preparation for meeting many of their neighboring allies and leaders, all of them having travelled for days just to come congratulate Mark and Donghyuck on their engagement.
"What if they don't like me?" Donghyuck whispered frantically to Renjun as he was led to the doors of the banquet hall. Even through the thick mahogany, he could hear the muffled laughter and music filtering through, the space already lively and bustling with guests. Mark was already in there, Renjun told him, and as the future queen Donghyuck was expected to make a grand entrance of sorts.
"They will love you," Renjun said reassuringly, giving Donghyuck a encouraging pat on the shoulder, "and if for some reason they do not... then you do not have to be concerned about it, because they would rather die before they look a queen in the eyes and let them know directly that they dislike them."
It wasn't the kind of reassurance Donghyuck had been expecting, but it still made him feel a bit better nonetheless. So he braced himself, inhaled one last deep breath, and then gestured for the servants to let the large wooden doors swing open.
The whole room went silent when they laid their eyes on him, which made his stomach churn with anxiety. He let his eyes flicker over every person, subtly searching out the familiar face of his fiancé, and he let out a weighted exhale when he finally spotted Mark. The grin on the king's face was so brilliant, so proud and so full of love that Donghyuck couldn't help but smile back, gliding forward as gracefully as he could manage in the direction of Mark.
"You look stunning tonight," The alpha murmured as soon as Donghyuck was within earshot, pulling him up against his side and kissing his temple. Donghyuck just flushed, equal parts embarrassed and endeared by the public display of affection, and just pressed a chaste kiss against Mark's cheek in return.
"Thank you... so do you," he murmured back, shy. Mark just smiled and held out his arm, letting Donghyuck grab onto his elbow before he started leading them across the room.
"We're going to have to socialize a lot tonight," Mark whispered as they walked, sending diplomatic smiles to a few groups of guests along the way, "do you want me to do most of the talking? Or do you think you can handle it?"
"I can handle it," Donghyuck said firmly, glancing up at Mark, "what good am I as a queen if I can't even handle making small talk with a bunch of other royal people?"
"You'd be a fine queen even if you couldn't handle it," Mark chuckled, "but you're right. You're perfectly capable, and I know you will do great."
Donghyuck exhaled sharply and nodded, straightening his shoulders and carrying himself with as much confidence as he could muster. Mark led him over to the head of the large banquet table, pulling out a chair for him and letting Donghyuck sit first before sitting next to him, his posture straight and his perfectly practiced smile pasted across his face.
"I'd like to thank you all for coming, especially on such short notice," Mark started, addressing the rest of the guests seated around them. Donghyuck shifted in his seat and glanced around nervously, hyper aware of all of the eyes trained on him.
"We hope that our marriage brings prosperity both to our kingdom and our alliance, strengthening our resources and foraging a better future," Mark continued, shooting the omega a warm smile before taking his hand and giving it a little squeeze.
"Long live the king and queen!"
After a quick toast, the guests turned their attention back to the food and their own private conversations, and little by little Donghyuck felt himself start to relax.
See? You're doing great, everything is going fine, he told himself, looking over at Mark and shooting him another smile before starting to poke at his own food.
Then, Donghyuck looked up and watched as Mark spotted something behind him that made his facial expression morph into confusion, before it quickly shifted into surprise and then, finally, poorly masked disdain. Donghyuck immediately whipped around to see what had caught Mark's attention, only to see a gorgeous girl in a long, golden silk dress standing behind him, her smile thin and forced. Donghyuck blinked at her in confusion, but before he could say anything, she slid into the seat next to him, all nonchalance.
"Why hello there. What an honor it is that I finally get to meet the queen," she purred, something in her tone sending shivers down Donghyuck's spine. When she leaned forward to get a better look at him, he caught a whiff of her scent, and immediately was able to tell that she was an alpha. It was strong, heavy and filled with dominant notes like wood and coffee, and just a hint of vanilla underneath that gave her that feminine touch. It suddenly made sense, then, why Donghyuck had felt immediately intimidated by her; based on their biology, he was beneath her in the natural hierarchy, and everything in his instincts was reminding him of that as he inhaled her scent and subsequently shrank into his seat, feeling timid.
"It's been a long time since I saw you last, Seohyun," Mark said, his tone flat and his smile so obviously fake that Donghyuck couldn't help but feel uneasy.
"Indeed it has, Your Majesty," the girl—Seohyun sighed wistfully, casting another sideways glance at Donghyuck. "My apologies, Your Highness, I forgot to introduce myself to you first. I'm Hwan Seohyun, the queen of the neighboring Namseo Kingdom."
"Oh," Donghyuck murmured, straightening his shoulders and bowing his head slightly in a greeting, "it's very nice to meet you."
"And you as well," she said, her tone sickeningly sweet but also ice cold in a way that made Donghyuck's hairs stand on end.
"You know, I thought Markie was never going to find a mate," Seohyun continued after a beat of silence. Mark's gaze snapped up, a warning in his eyes, but Seohyun either didn't see it or willfully ignored it. "We grew up together, you know. We would've been paired as a marriage alliance if I had presented as an omega, but... well, you know."
She forced out a laugh, one that sounded harsh and grating, and Donghyuck flinched, still trying to nod and smile politely. "In any case, with the Red Moon killing all the poor omegas, I thought Markie would end up having to settle with a beta or... gods forbid... maybe a female alpha."
Mark bit the inside of his cheek and took a long swig of his wine, looking irritated. Donghyuck glanced at him wearily and tried to read him, see what he needed, whether that be silent comfort and reassurance or a sudden excuse to get them out of the conversation.
"The Red Moon has been targeting your kingdom a lot as well, correct?" Mark finally said, his voice still flat with agitation lining his tone just slightly. Seohyun just nodded, jutting her lips out into an obviously over exaggerated pout.
"Yes, we've lost a lot of poor omegas to those awful barbarians," she said, not sounding genuine in the slightest, "it's quite a shame."
"I imagine it is quite devastating," Mark continued, stabbing his fork into one of the pieces of meat set on his plate, "Especially because you soon need to find an omega mate to continue your bloodline."
Seohyun tilted her head, considering, before a wide, predatory smile spread across her face.
"I could always just steal yours," she purred, throwing an arm over Donghyuck's shoulders and forcefully pulling him up against her. He squeaked in surprise, trying to wrestle himself out of her grip, but her arm wouldn't budge. She was an alpha, she was naturally stronger than him, and he was essentially powerless against her.
A dark, murderous look crossed Mark's face. Seohyun looked at him and laughed, thankfully letting go of Donghyuck so that she could reach over and playfully shove at Mark's shoulder.
"Lighten up, Markie. I was only joking," she giggled, looking pleased with herself as Donghyuck trembled and Mark steamed in anger.
"We're not kids anymore, Seohyun," Mark finally hissed, clinging to his self control in order to keep his voice calm and steady, "you need to start taking things more seriously. And never touch my omega again."
Seohyun laughed again, looking incredibly amused. Donghyuck glanced between the both of them in a mixture of confusion and discomfort.
"Oh please, he's an omega, he likes being touched," she grinned, leaning forward and taking Donghyuck's chin between her fingers as she dropped her voice into something patronizingly sweet, as if she was talking to a small child, "isn't that right? You always love an alpha's touch, it doesn't matter which alpha."
Mark leapt from his chair, smacking Seohyun's hand away before grabbing Donghyuck's wrist and dragging him from the table and towards the doors of the banquet hall. Donghyuck stumbled behind him, throwing one last glance over his shoulder at Seohyun to gauge her reaction, only to see that same predatory grin pasted across her face.
Once they were out in the hallway, eerily quiet and cut off from the rest of the party, Mark's body language shifted suddenly and he took Donghyuck's face into his hands with all the gentleness in the world.
"Are you okay?" He asked softly, thumbing affectionately over Donghyuck's cheekbone. The omega let out a shaky sigh and nodded, relaxing into the comforting familiarity of Mark's touch and scent.
"I'm alright, I'm okay," Donghyuck whispered back, taking Mark's hand and pressing a small kiss against the inside of his wrist. "What was that whole thing all about?"
Mark grit his teeth, his mouth settling into a hard line. "We spent a lot of time together as kids, and my parents were always planning set up an arranged marriage between us, to strengthen our alliance with their kingdom. Then, my father died, and Seohyun presented as an alpha, so the plan was called off. I always suspected that she never fully got over the fact that she would never become my mate."
Donghyuck nodded, pursing his lips. "But she's still the queen of one of the allying countries, so we just have to suck it up and interact with her anyways, right?"
"Unfortunately, yes," Mark groaned, leaning down to press his nose into Donghyuck's neck. The alpha then let out a quiet growl, surprising Donghyuck.
"You smell like her now," Mark snarled, sounding irritated, "I shouldn't have let her come anywhere near you."
Donghyuck let out a startled laugh, tilting his head back and pliantly letting Mark nose along the column of his throat. "You still have time to scent me really quick before we go back inside, if that's what you're thinking."
Mark hummed, doing exactly that as he rubbed his scent into any free piece of skin he could find on his neck, releasing notes of smoky wood into the air and drowning Donghyuck in it.
"You're mine," Mark said quietly, placing his hands on Donghyuck's waist and squeezing it possessively, "I won't let anyone take you away from me."
Donghyuck just giggled, ducking down to press a kiss against Mark's cheek. "I'm yours. I'm not going anywhere."
When they eventually made their way back inside the hall to continue the party, they avoided Seohyun at all costs, whispering commands to the guards to try and keep her as far away from them as possible. Without her suffocating presence, the rest of the party went smoothly, and when everyone was dismissed for the night, Donghyuck felt a little more at ease than he had that morning.
But something about Seohyun still lingered in the back of his mind, making him tense and nervous every time he thought about her. Something about her was incredibly suspicious, and it was putting him on edge.
He had to figure out what she was up to, because he was certain that it wasn't anything good.