Disclaimers: I do not own Final Fantasy XV or any of its characters. This is purely for entertainment purposes only. I am making no profit from this.

Notes: This is my first Final Fantasy XV story and it is in Omega-Verse one. I love Omega-Verse fics. Hopefully, this is the first part in a long series, but for now, I only have the one. A tiny slice of life. Enjoy.

In this, Ignis is thirteen and Noctis eleven.

Learning Curve

"Hey, Ignis?"

Ignis hummed inquiringly, if not a bit distractedly. He set aside his pencil and dragged his attention from the homework he'd been diligently finishing. The extra assignment that one of his tutors had given to him was proving to be a challenge. Difficult, yet interesting. Using actuarial science to assess the risks and rewards inherent in elemancy was no simple task. Elemancy was not easy to predict since, or course, the ability to harness energy and craft magic varied from person to person only in those descended from the royal line of Lucis. There had even been a number of kings and queens who had never truly mastered the ability. It was fascinating.

His young charge, Prince Noctis was sat on the floor in front of the TV, his fingers idly toying with the game controller he held, although he didn't seem to be playing anymore. The game itself blared loudly on the screen.

"Is there something you require?" Ignis asked. He didn't like the way that Noctis wouldn't look at him, but he knew better than to push him. If Noctis was hesitant to discuss something, he would be less likely to speak if the issue were pressed. Ignis sat patiently and waited. Casually, trying to maintain an air of nonchalance, he picked up his glass of orange juice and took a sip. Unfortunately, this was when Noctis posed his question.

"What's knotting like?"

Ignis choked and spluttered. He clapped a hand across his mouth, barely managing to keep from spraying juice across the sheets he'd worked so hard on. However, his shirt wasn't so fortunate. He'd unintentionally tipped the contents of his glass onto himself in his surprise. Swallowing uneasily, Ignis managed to get himself under control and breathing relatively normally again. He looked at Noctis and then down at himself, at the splotch of sticky juice tainting the pristine white of his shirt. He wanted to take care of the spot immediately, before it had a chance to discolor the fabric, but he knew that Noctis was more important.

He cleared his throat and tried to find the right words to say, but nothing seemed to be appropriate. He wasn't even entirely sure what Noctis wanted to know. "What are you asking me?" he inquired, keeping his tone gentle.

Noctis was fiddling with the controller again. He stared down at it in his hands, his bottom lip pulled into his mouth. There was a faint blush dusting his cheeks, probably matching the one spreading across Ignis's own face. The Prince's gaze shifted away from his controller, then quickly back, his blush growing brighter. Ignis followed the fleeting glance with his own eyes and found a pile of Noctis's schoolbooks.

"N-never mind," Noctis stammered when Ignis stood and strode over to the books. "It was a stupid question."

Ignis sorted through the books and quickly found what he was looking for. "Your Changing Body, Alpha Edition," Ignis read aloud. "I see." Noctis must have begun his sexual education courses. It made sense, Noctis was eleven now. His body would begin maturing soon. He was at the right general age for puberty to begin. It was only a matter of time now before he experienced his first Rut.

Flipping through the pages, Ignis found it to be a rudimentary text, focused almost entirely on Alpha biology and sexuality. There was very little information on Beta physiology, except in comparison to Alphas, and even less information on Omegas. There were more pages dedicated to female biology than there were for Omegas. A truly lax educational aide. It was more than likely that the school had segregated the students into four groups according to their birth genders and taught each group only about their own biology. Honestly, it was such an archaic method of teaching. It led to a great deal of misunderstanding and misinformation. Ignis's own education had been different, of course, perhaps worse though. There had been no classes for him, no other students. There had only been a single tutor with a thin book, a Beta who had almost literally told him that he would know what to do when he went into Heat and referred to the biased text he had brought with him whenever Ignis had asked a question; questions which were rarely resolved by the information in that book. Being told to lay down and take whatever your Alpha gives you, was not satisfactory to Ignis in any way. Ignis decided that he would be a better teacher than his own and would answer any question the Prince had if he was able to answer it.

"What did you want to know?" Ignis inquired. He set down the book and moved over to the sofa to sit.

Noctis was silent for a long while. But Ignis was patient. "Knotting," Noctis blurted out. "I wanted to know what it felt like. You know, to an Omega."

Ignis nervously pushed his glasses up the bridge of his nose with a shaking hand. "Is this because you are-" he broke away, uncertain of how to broach the subject. Had Noctis's body begun developing? Had he; as was said in the crude vernacular; popped his first knot? Was his first Rut so near? If it was, Ignis would need to leave and inform the King. It wouldn't be safe for him to remain in such close proximity. Rutting Alphas only saw Omegas as holes to fill, at least until they better learned to control their mating urges and possessive instincts. Ignis had no desire to be pushed down and mounted by someone fueled only by the most basest of instinctual desires. There would be no preparation, no care, no love; only a cruel violent domination. The thought left Ignis shuddering slightly.

While Ignis worried, the young Alpha's face filled bright crimson. "What?" Noctis squeaked. "No, I'm not. I haven't." He shook his head vigorously. "It's not like that." He cast aside his controller and turned fully toward Ignis. "It's...well, I thought, you're an Omega, so maybe you know."

The Advisor in training straightened his back. What did Noctis think of him? He was an Omega, that was true, but he was only thirteen. He'd never so much as kissed anyone yet, let alone had sex. Just because he was an Omega didn't mean he panted after every Alpha he met, begging for a proper breeding. What were they teaching at this school of his?

Before Ignis had a chance to object to Noctis's skewed vision of him, the Prince grimaced. "I'm not explaining well."

"I haven't even had my first Heat yet," Ignis admitted, in a hushed voice. "I've never had sex, so I can't say I know what it feels like."

"I didn't mean personal experience," Noctis said. "I meant, that since you're, you know, you, that you read everything and just know."

Ignis didn't let himself get offended by Noctis's warped view of his habits. Admittedly, he had read a number of books. He'd always had a streak of curiosity. His own limited education in Omega sexuality had spurred him on. So, in his sparse free time, he had read about Omegas, sticking to the Citadel's vast library in an effort to avoid accidentally happening across pornography. He wasn't quite brave enough to try acquiring illicit magazines and his uncle monitored his internet activities. He was only allowed to use the computer for schoolwork. Searching topics such as knotting or Heats would surely get him a stern talking to.

When he had gone through everything he could find out about Omegas, he had switched to Alphas, and then to Betas and even female biology and psychology. Now it seemed his diligence was well worth the effort.

He cleared his throat. "I have read that it is a filling sensation. A, ah, a comfort during an Omega's Heat, especially when the internal walls are cramping. The heat and pressure of it help to ease the discomfort. And of course, it is also pleasurable, or so I've read."

"Doesn't it hurt though? It would expand inside your body, stretch ... things. And you can't pull it out!"

Ignis hummed. "It can be painful to the inexperienced. I'm not eager to find out how much so. And the knot will deflate with time."

Noctis looked unconvinced. "And you can get pregnant." It was said more as a statement but Ignis decided to answer anyway.

"Yes. Omegas can become pregnant."

"But, you're male, right?"

Ignis frowned and resisted the urge to roll his eyes. Honestly, didn't the schools teach anything? "As you should already be aware, there are four biological birth genders. Let's not discuss transgender or alternately gendered individuals as I think it may only complicate the issue." He cleared his throat. "Hormone levels and basic anatomy dictate the gender assigned at birth. Alpha and Beta males are the more masculine genders, while females are obviously on the feminine spectrum. Omegas, however, are more fluid. Alpha and Beta and Omega males all have penises and testicles. However, Omegas also have a vaginal orifice and uterus, as do females. In Omegas, this orifice can be found beneath the testicles, along the perineal raphe."

Noctis scrunched his nose in distaste. "I didn't need the graphic details," he muttered.

"You did ask, Highness."

The Prince didn't respond. He was staring at Ignis, but his eyes kept darting away, drifting down the length of his body and then snapping back up to his face. Each time he did it, the blush on his cheeks darkened. Ignis wondered what it was the Prince was thinking of. "W-Would it be possible-" Noctis began.

Ah, so that was it. Ignis felt his spine stiffen in indignation. "If you think I'm going to strip for you, Highness, then you should think again."

"What is going on in here?"

Ignis cringed at the sound of his Uncle's voice behind him. He hadn't heard the door open. In front of him, Noctis bent forward and pressed his forehead to the floor, his skinny arms folding over the back of his head as he let out a distressed groan.

Cheeks burning hotly, Ignis turned. His Uncle was standing beside the door, his hand still on the handle. Beside, and a little behind him, was Noctis's current caretaker, Miss Charlotte, her arms burdened by a tray containing the prince's dinner. Ignis wasn't fond of her, or of her antiquated ideas on an Omega's proper place in the world. Sex-hungry mongrels, he had heard her call someone once, referring to a slight young housekeeper who had only been tidying the room. The young man had said nothing to her, not even looked in her direction as he'd gone about his task, but Miss Charlotte had still muttered her insult beneath her breath, too soft for anyone but Ignis to hear. Although, he doubted she had intended he hear it. Ignis had kept his mouth shut about it. Who would believe him anyway? It would only be hearsay, his word against hers.

As she regarded him now, her thin lips curled into a cruel sneer. Ignis found he couldn't hold her gaze and looked away, bowing his chin to his chest. "Your dinner, Highness," Miss Charlotte announced, cheer in her voice.

"Gather your belongings, Ignis, we need to be going," Uncle called, his tone clipped. He was not happy. Ignis did not look forward to the lecture he was most likely in for.

"Yes, Uncle," he said, and hurried to do as told. He gathered his schoolwork. Before leaving, he bowed politely to Noctis. "I'll see you tomorrow, Highness," he said to the unresponsive lump on the floor that was the Prince. He must be mortified to have been overheard. Ignis bit his lip. Should he say something to ease his discomfort? What could he say? But the question was moot, as Uncle placed a hand at his back and urged him out the door.

Uncle was silent as they walked to their own quarters in the Citadel. The entire time, Ignis worried and fretted over every possible thing his Uncle could say to him. Was he in trouble? Was it improper to discuss sex with Noctis? Should he have referred Noctis to someone else? An adult perhaps?

His thoughts were derailed as he was ushered into their shared rooms. As soon as the door was closed behind them, Uncle slipped the schoolbag off Ignis's shoulder and set it aside. He knelt before his nephew, gently reaching up to cup his cheek with one large hand. His thumb traced lightly across the youth's cheekbone. "Ignis," he said, his tone grave. "Please tell me what was going on when I walked into Prince Noctis's rooms."

Ignis looked away, shyly. He didn't want to cause trouble. Nor did he want to get himself into trouble.

"Did the Prince...did he proposition you?"

His eyes went back to his Uncle, widening in alarm. "What? N-no, I-"

"If he was trying to force himself on you through coercion, you must not be afraid to tell me. He may be the Prince, but even he must obey the laws. Just because he is an Alpha and you are an Omega does not mean he can order you to do anything sexual with him or for him."

The blush that had faded from his cheeks, flared back into bright crimson life. "He didn't!" Ignis insisted. "I swear. His school began sexual education classes and he was curious about Omegas. The textbook they gave him is focused primarily on Alphas and offers little to no information on any other gender. I didn't think there would be anything wrong with giving him a few facts."

The hand that was on his cheek slid down to hold his shoulder. "When I opened the door you told him you wouldn't strip for him. That doesn't sound like offering facts."

"It wasn't like that," Ignis replied meekly. It did look rather bad, he could admit that. "I informed him about the physical differences between Omegas and Alpha and Beta males, and how Omegas had a few similar traits to females. He didn't voice a desire to see me naked, not exactly. But I thought he might and I made it clear that I wouldn't do so."

"All right. If you say nothing untoward happened, I believe you." Uncle flickered a smile at him. "However, I will have to inform the King of the incident."

"Uncle-"

At Ignis's alarm, Uncle smiled again. "It is only for your safety, Ignis, and the Prince's as well. I promise that he is not in trouble. However, you must see the danger. If Prince Noctis is approaching sexual maturity, he will have to be monitored by those around him more closely. It is only a matter of time before he enters his first Rut and when he does he will be a slave to his own baser urges." He moved his hand back to Ignis's face and brushed his cheek again. "I will not have him hurting you or any other Omega, no matter his state of mind."

"Yes, Uncle," Ignis replied. His uncle was right, of course. Despite knowing it was the right thing to do, Ignis knew that Noctis would not be happy about this. Informing the King meant an intrusion into Noctis's closely guarded privacy. It meant he would have to endure bi-monthly doctor visits to keep track of his hormone levels. When it was deemed necessary, he would be segregated and observed until after his Rut passed and then the process would repeat. More doctor visits. More close observations. And far less privacy. Until he learned to control his mating urges and was judged safe to be around others again. There was a chance he would be able to control himself right from the start, but it would be better to safe than sorry.

Noctis would hate this.

"Go change your shirt and we can have dinner," Uncle advised.

Ignis nodded and somberly went to his room. He hoped that Noctis would understand this was all for his own good.

End