The State Of Things

So I got an ask about knotting, specifically, and that can tie into bonding (which is convenient because I can combine two asks in this answer) so prepare yourselves; this lecture is on knotting and bonding.

I’ll write up an answer to the ‘heat’ part of the ask later, as there have been a few asks about that. But I can cover the basics of knotting and bonding here.

So.

What is knotting?

First of all: knotting is an alpha-specific trait. Betas don’t have knots. Omegas definitely don’t have knots, but they often crave them during heat.

I am advising you not to Google it. You totally can, I’m not going to stop you, but this is me. Telling you that you probably want to give this particular bout of curiosity a miss.

Knotting occurs during sex (mostly) where the base of the alpha’s penis swells and becomes engorged (more so than usual) and is pushed inside the omega’s body to keep the alpha’s seed inside. This is to improve the chances of an omega falling pregnant, but the extra-full sensation is also appealing.

Here are some links to bad-dragon.com to give those extra curious people an idea of what a knot looks like and how it functions. I TRIED TO PICK THE LEAST WORRYING LOOKING ONES BUT THERE’S ONLY SO MUCH ONE CAN DO, GOD HELP ME. O_O

P.S. If humanity has knotted toys without heat being a thing for us, then of course there would be knotted toys in an omegaverse modern world. Psht.

Moving on.

Knotting is usually something that only happens during an omega’s heat, an alpha’s rut, or between bonded pairs.

Sometimes a bond is formed through knotting alone, although more seem to favour the additional options of having the omega have to consent to being bonded, and also additional bonding marks such as a bite or bites/scratches over the scent glands to demonstrate that an omega is bonded.

Sometimes an omega’s heat can only end once they have been knotted by an alpha. In a lot of cases, a mated omega/bonded omega must be knotted by their mate for their heat to end, and not mating during their heat can be dangerous and even fatal.

Bonding can be complicated, though, and I’m sure there would be forms of bonding that are completely unsexual. That would be in a much more complex universe than most of the omegaverse stuff we read, however. Nevertheless, it would be very interesting to see.

For alphas, sometimes to pass their ruts they HAVE to form a knot, or several over time. At other times, they HAVE to be inside an omega to be able to form a knot at all.

And sometimes alphas can’t form knots at all unless they’re with their fated mate/soulmate.

 - on a mostly unrelated note; the term “knothead” instead of “dickhead” in omegaverse is probably my all time favourite thing about this trope X’D

Bonding/forming the bond:

Knots are almost ALWAYS part of the bonding ritual. There are several ways that bonding is portrayed; here are the ones I’ve seen:

1.       Knotting the omega is the only way to bond them. This is usually where omegas can be bonded against their will, and I’m not as fond of this option.

2.       Omegas MUST consent to being bonded, otherwise it’s impossible. Then, with consent, the omega is mated and knotted.

3.       Same as 2, only the bond is formed with a mating bite, usually placed over the throat where it will be visible.

4.       Same as 3, only with multiple bites and/or scratches over the scent glands required to form a bond.

5.       Consent from both parties + mating is enough to form the bond.

Mating/Claiming Bites:

These are marks of possession and can be delivered by both alpha and omega, although it’s more common for an alpha to leave their mating bite on the omega. It’s possible for both, however, and if consent and equality are an issue, that’s something you’d definitely want to consider.

These bites are normally only performed during heats (or occasionally ruts). Mating bites bring intense pleasure to the alpha or omega receiving them, although it’s mostly done during heat or rut otherwise it’s more likely to be painful as hell. As far as I’m aware, mating bites are not something that is done with betas considering that it would be the same as someone randomly biting you in the middle of sex and I mean a serious, blood-drawing bite, not a love nip.

To avoid the option of a mating bite not being able to be used outside of heat, authors can describe a pressure-point activation of scent glands that triggers pleasure in omegas or alphas when they are bitten over their glands. That way mating bites can be delivered at any time and the result will still be pleasure after brief, initial pain.

Generally mating bites will scar over, leaving a permanent mark to label someone as mated, taken, spoken for, etc…

That’s it for now, I’ll come back and write some more about the whole bonding thing later when I’m less tired.

That concludes the day’s lecture.