Jun waited patiently in the playground for Keiichi to emerge from the single storied building that was his school. The large windows and bright panelling made the school seem welcoming, with doors leading to each classroom and sizeable playground and a lush, green field to one side. Small gardens had been planted with wooden benches that the children might eat their pack lunches outside in warmer weather. As the cold wind ripped passed all of the parents, it was clear that this was not one of those days. Jun thrust his hands deeper into the pockets of his coat and vowed to purchase new gloves. Perhaps he would take Keiichi to a department store this weekend, make sure he had sufficient warm clothing. The plummeting temperatures had taken many by surprise, there were many here who had not bothered with gloves nor scarves despite weather warnings that were too often inaccurate. Who had time to think of such things under uncertain terms? Snow was even being predicted, but most had an attitude of 'wait and see'. Still, Jun had not put out displays of flowers, worried that the cold weather would too quickly strip petals and leaves. Instead, he had arranged a small selection of small, potted fir trees in time for the winter holidays. He had also placed out a cute arrangement using holy, bare willow branches and English primrose flowers in a shallow, clear glass etched with snowflakes. They were just waiting on a delivery of winter assortments such as wreaths, pine cones and bouquets of silver and gold painted willow branches, when Jun had left the other part timer, Chloe in charge, while he collected Keiichi from school. The girl was an enthusiastic worker, but prone to distraction, so Jun could not help but pray that it did not arrive while he was away from the shop. The children began to filter out of the school, their teachers only letting them out of their care once parents and guardians had been confirmed. Jun caught sight of his treasure's blond head appearing in the doorway. The teacher tapped his small shoulder and indicated that Jun was waiting for him. The boy gave the woman a startled glance then slowly made his way to his mother. Jun felt a slither of worry begin in his stomach and travel to his chest as he glanced at the boy, who appeared confused and deeply in thought. He immediately wanted to wrap his arms about the child, squirrel him away and try and solve what ever was bothering him, however he held back his protective instinct. It wouldn't do to embarrass his son in front of his friends. He had already seen another boy push away his parent as that doting daddy had been calling him silly pet names and demanding goodbye hugs. The children might be only five or six, but they already had a strong sense of self. Hugs and kisses freely given at home were one thing, but a boy did not want his friends to witness! Tentatively, Jun offered his hand and Kei took it without question, allowing Jun to release a slight sigh of relief. After they had left the school grounds in the distance, Jun felt he could finally enquire; "So, how was school?" "The teacher asked us to draw a picture of our family," Keiichi said, honestly. Jun had an inkling of where this conversation might go, but pushed down his personal concerns. Lots of families were complicated, What with divorce and step-families or simply single parents or even non-blood related guardians. Keiichi's circumstances were not too strange in the scheme of things. "Peter said that you are not my mummy. That a boy can't be a mummy. So you must be my daddy." Jun inwardly sighed, his premonition coming true. "Mostly, this is true. But there is a small group of men who can be mummy's. You know that some people talk about Alpha's and Beta's?" Keiichi nodded and replied; "Mama said that Alphas were better than Betas and we so we had to take responsibility." Jun attempted to keep a straight face over an innocent repeating words of a woman who should have known better. "Your best friend is Abhi, right," Jun pointed out, trying to think of some of the names his son had mentioned a great deal. Abhi definitely stood out most. Keiichi nodded in agreement. "He is an Alpha or Beta?" Most of the children at the school were considered beta of birth, Jun knew this as the headmistress had blurted it out that Kei would be the tenth Alpha to enrol at the school, when guiding him around the first time. "Beta," Keiichi replied. "Do you think you are better than him?" Jun asked, gently. Kei visibly frowned then shook his head. "Abhi is really good at spelling!" Kei said brightly. "He got all ten spellings right when Miss Cooper tested us. I only got nine." He looked a little downcast, so Jun placed a loving hand upon his head and smiled. "Nine out of ten is still very good," he said warmly. He didn't want Kei to think that he needed to be perfect to receive affection. "Your grandmother said a lot of things, but she was still human, could not be right about everything. That aside, did you know that there is a third gender group called Omegas?" Keiichi's eyes widened and he shook his head. "There are not many Omegas and just like with Alphas and Betas there are omega boys and omega girls." He paused mid step then kneeled in front of his son and rubbed the child's cooling hands warm. "Omega boys can become mummies when they grow up," Jun said softly. "Really?" "Hmm," Jun nodded. "I happen to be an omega and I carried you in my tummy just like Peter's mummy carried him when he was a baby. So even though I am a boy, I am still your mummy." He watched as the little cogs turned in his son's mind, his thoughts and feelings reflected openly in his beautiful eyes. And then Keiichi's smile spread across his face, clearly revealing that his worries had been settled. Jun's heart skipped a beat. That smile had become broader over the past few months, it was a wonderful gift to be beside him as he had become the happy small child he always should have been. "Mummy," Keiichi grinned and squeezed Jun's hand and the pair resumed their walk back to the shop. Kei then proceeded to tell him that the picture he had painted had himself and mummy and aunty Hanako and mama. Mama had been pictured as an angel, Jun quietly kept the fact that the woman was more likely to have descended than ascended. He let out a sigh and buried the thought. The woman was no longer around to hurt him, he should let her memory be, no matter how hard that was. As they entered the shop, Keiichi's nose and cheeks had become a little red from the cold, so Jun sent him right upstairs before checking with Chloe to see if the delivery had arrived. The young woman waved to Kei, before stating that it had not. "I'm just going to put the kettle on," Jun let her know, "and make some hot chocolate for Kei. Would you like something to drink?" Chloe agreed enthusiastically and asked for a cup of tea. Jun nodded and headed up to the apartment, unlocking the door to let he and Kei in. Within moments, he heard the theme tunes for a cheesy, hero drama aimed at children that was a fast favourite amongst the children at Keiichi's school recently. Jun smiled to himself, as he removed his own coat and shoes and headed for the kitchen. He placed three mugs onto the counter as he heated up a kettle and opened a cupboard to grab the container of instant hot chocolate. He had learned to make it from scratch, using milk, cream and chocolate, once upon a time, hoping to do something nice for Keiichi one winter a couple of years ago. But, he had to admit, that the instant one was not bad tasting and far easier to whip up. He left the drink to cool, while he took down Chloe's tea, before heading back to offer it to his son. Keiichi smiled and sipped the warm liquid, before beaming with a chocolate moustache. Jun laughed and wiped it away with a tissue. "Mummy," Keiichi said after his drink was half gone. "Do I have a daddy?" Ah he knew he had gotten away with his explanation too easily, earlier!