Disclaimer: I own nothing.

Note: This is an omegaverse fanfic- however there will be no sex in it. I'm quite horrible at writing smut. But, it will have adult themes, and sexual undertones (naturally). As with all omegaverse fanfiction, this may differ from other fics in the way the verse is handled, if you have any questions, feel free to PM me, or ask in reviews.

I'll try and put warnings in each chapter for what's going on. Also: OCs are all minor characters, they add to the effect, but the main character is Gilbert, and his state of being.

Warnings in general: Mental/emotional/physical/drug abuse, sexual harassment, dark themes, and omegaverse. OCs.

Warnings for this chapter: Heat cycle, nesting, and the starting of the abuse cycle. OCs.

Dec. 2001 - Jan. 2002

There were only two secluded rooms that Gilbert knew of in the Edelstein house. The small room in the back of the house that no one but Aunt Konnie used when he went into heat- a nesting room was a common thing that most real houses had. Aunt Konnie went into it twice a year, for his heat cycle, and then only Uncle Bastian could enter- but he never stayed for very long.

(The lady next door said it was cause Aunt Konnie wasn't 'fertile', that his heats hit him oddly, and made him far more irritable and angry then a normal omega, so he kicked Uncle Bastian out.)

And then there was the crawlspace under the house. At the age of 13, Gilbert and Ludwig, only 11, were able to just squeeze in there together, and neither could stand up fully. But they weren't supposed to play in the crawlspace, and the only time they'd been down there, Aunt Konnie had caught them, and both had been punished.

The rest of the house was really quite open and airy. It was a great place to live, Gilbert thought, but a few weeks before his 13th birthday he began to feel almost afraid of those big open rooms. He'd never had the problem before, but it felt almost like someone was going to come out of nowhere and attack him. He started snapping at everyone- his brother included.

Gilbert had never in his life snapped at Ludwig before. The two had always been exceptionally close.

And then one day, his Uncle mentioned it. As Gilbert was hidden beneath the small space under his bed, with a blanket pulled tight around him.

"He's going into heat."

And just like that, the whole world spun on it's axis. He wouldn't realize quite how much his world had come to change until after his heat would pass, though. Those two weeks were the worst he'd ever imagined in his life.

They tried to set him up in the nesting room. It was designated for omegas in a single family to use, the plan was to leave him in there and wait it all out. But even as his Aunt and Uncle supplied the room with all the things it needed, the blankets, pillows, cushions, toys (which he didn't want to think about at all), the body pillow that was sprayed with an artificial scent to smell like an Alpha, the food and water... it just didn't feel right.

It wasn't his space.

It was Aunt Konnie's space.

It was wrong.

So, eventually, Gilbert stopped letting them into the room. Told them he didn't want them to see his nest, and they took it at face value.

And slowly, he began to move things. He was careful, and did it as quickly as he could.

The pillows and blankets first. Arranging them in the crawlspace so they padded the floor and the walls as best they could, until the space was more like a crib or padded cell- until it didn't matter what way he laid, he would be warm and safe, and cozy. Then the food and water, he tucked carefully into the corner, all lined up with labels out, and the body pillow that he laid out as far from it as possible, not sure if he wanted it at all.

The toys came last.

At first he brought books, and notebooks, and pens, things to keep him occupied just in case. Just to keep putting off the toys. But eventually he had to bring them too. They looked weird to him. Oddly shaped, and even though they were new, bought just for him, he couldn't help feeling somewhat disgusted as he packed them in a bag and took them down to his space.

His space.

Just the thought caused a pleased warm feeling to spread through him.

The first day his heat hit him, he wasn't sure what it was. Aunt Konnie had to take Ludwig to the doctor- he had a fever that refused to get better and they all feared it would turn out like the case of pneumonia Gilbert had suffered from a few years prior, and Uncle Bastian had been called into work for an emergency. So, Gilbert, not fully aware of what was about to hit him, had spent the first hour home alone laid out on the couch with his focus on a rather gory and bloody video game. It was the hot feeling that had gotten to him first.

The house was always kept just below stiflingly warm when winter came around. Aunt Konnie was always worried Gilbert would get sick, and since he really didn't like the cold, he never complained. But it felt ridiculously warm, and Gilbert slowly took to pulling his shirt further up, until he'd discarded it completely. Soon, it was too hot to focus on his game, and all he could do was lay on the couch and swelter, glaring at the pause screen.

Finally, feeling hot, and sticky, and not liking the uncomfortable way the couch felt against his skin, or his jeans for that matter, Gilbert left the too big living room, and slipped out the back door.

London didn't get snowy winters like he would have liked. Not like the ones he missed back in Berlin, but this year it had snowed. White covered every surface, almost up to his knees, and when even just the cold air didn't help, he moved and dropped down into the snow. The immediate shift in temperature finally lessened his discomfort, and he relaxed into the icy cold snow.

Aunt Konnie found him there half an hour later, his lips tinged blue, and the snow melting around him. Furious, the older omega had pulled Gilbert forcibly up out of the snow, and dragged him into the house, yelling in rapid and harsh German. The touch hurt, burning fingers digging into his arm, and his shorter legs just couldn't keep up with Aunt Konnie, who was tall and thin, and quick. Almost banging into walls, and tripping on the stairs, Gilbert finally was pushed into the nesting room he'd left barren, and the door shut tight behind him.

Alone, in an empty room, the heat came back. This time followed by an odd sensation that made him press back against the wall, and clench his legs, and squeeze his eyes shut. Even in such a small room, he felt unsafe, vulnerable, and panicked, but Gilbert was nothing if not resourceful, and when he was certain- absolutely certain- that Aunt Konnie had disappeared back down to the kitchen where he'd likely stay, Gilbert slipped through the door.

There wasn't a lock on the outside, an unusual thing on the nesting rooms used for new omegas like himself- but everyone had assumed Gilbert would be an Alpha, and Uncle Bastian was mated, the lock had long been removed. He had to be quick, and he had to be quiet. As skittish as he was, what would have normally taken just a few minutes took nearly twenty, for every corner had to be peeked around, and double checked, and his senses went wild at every sound no matter how quiet, until finally, he made it to the space he'd made himself.

In his little nest, hidden beneath the rest of the house, isolated, with only a very small and flickering light over him, Gilbert finally felt safe enough to relax. He would spend a week there, alone, with his face pressed against the scented pillow, curled around it, only still when he slept, and only clear headed for short periods between when the heat got the best of him and he was forced to use the toys he'd been so unwilling to even look at before.

When the week ended, and he woke up feeling grimy and claustrophobic instead of safe and protected in his nest, he left. Everyone was panicked, his brother had gone to check on him at some point, apparently, and found the nesting room empty. Though his uncle had been able to track him by smell alone, they had stilled worried.

In the weeks after his heat, Gilbert began to notice the changes. They were subtle at first, but always made his mind flicker back to being pulled out of the snow and dragged into the house. Of the cold way his Aunt had handled him.

For surely, Aunt Konnie was twice as cold now. More then the snow could have ever been. His eyes didn't hold the warmth they had just weeks before, and he refused to make contact. If Gilbert entered the room Uncle Bastian was in, Aunt Konnie was sure to join them in moments, always moving between the two.

Soon enough, it wasn't so subtle. He found himself being pushed into walls, or shoved out of the way, dismissed from the table before meals were finished, and sent to his room for the slightest of offenses. When he was spoken to, Aunt Konnie's tone was harsh and mean, and Uncle Bastian's was hesitant and unsure.

His second family (the only family he had after his parents deaths) had begun to unravel.