Chapter Text
Basic Premise
TL;DR: I just couldn't mentally reconcile the idea of babies not having a proper birth canal to come out of. My brain put forward the fun fact that there's lots of intersex people in the real world who's parts don't match our neat boy/girl boxes, so— I took the base concepts of Omegaverse, mixed it up with the idea 'what if being intersex was way more common and the traits/variations of it were super consistent' and ran away with that into the night.
For the general genetic premise, I borrowed Variation Two from 'Omegaverse Genetics' by Diana Williams (dkwilliams) (which is some delightful pseudo-science reading!) and built off that. The important bit it that this Variant supposes a world in which everyone has a one set of chromosomes that determine their sex (male or female) and another that determine their secondary gender presentation (Alpha, Beta or Omega). Male or Female sex is still determined as per usual by the XY/XX genotypes. For secondary gender however, there are three non sex-linked alleles: A, B and O. Both the alpha allele (A) and beta allele (B) are dominant, while the omega allele (O) is recessive. From these, there are six possible genotypes for secondary gender: AA, Ao, BB, Bo, BA, & oo
Unlike some O-verses where Betas are sterile or have difficulty conceiving, in this verse they are entirely ordinary reproductively speaking. Given that 3 of the 6 secondary gender genotypes present as Beta, they make up the slight majority of the population- though Alphas are the next largest segment of the population. Omegas are a definite minority. I chose to run with the presumption that the Omegaverse characteristics of scents, pheromones and bonds also apply to Betas, for the sake of simplicity. Everyone can scent, and therefore intrinsically identify primary (A/B/O) gender, bond status, etc.
In my verse, societal rules, sexualities, and gender roles are based on "Gender classes" (an amalgamation of Secondary (A/B/O) and Primary (M/F) genders) that divide according to reproductive roles:
- Sires (Those who can sire, but not bear children- Alpha Males, Alpha Females* and Beta Males) are treated equivalent to men in our real-world society. All traditional ‘masculine’ roles, rights and privileges extended to these three genders. They make the rules, have the most social power, etc. (*Alpha females are unable to bear children, and instead are only able to sire them, despite retaining some primary female sex characteristics.)
- Carriers (Those who can bear children- Beta Females, Omega Females and Omega Males*) are treated equivalent to real-world women, and all traditionally “feminine” roles fall to these genders. Omega males are considered no different than beta/omega women in terms of roles, and rights, despite having an outwardly male appearance. (*Omega males only able to bear children, not sire them, despite retaining some primary male sex-characteristics.)
Alpha females and Omega males could be loosely defined as intersex (in real-world terms) as both have a combination of male/female primary sex characteristics, but this is disregarded in favour of the gender class method of categorization above.
General Social Status Ranking
- Alpha Males & Females
- Beta Males
- Beta Females
- Omega Males & Females
Heats
In my version of the Omegaverse, there are NO inherent consent-issues with heats and mating. The drive to mate is somewhat uncomfortable, but not all-consuming and mindless. The effect of heat hormones is more like a slight buzz from drinking- enough to loosen people up and cause some social disinhibition, but not a complete lack of control (ie. you might say or do some slightly dumber things, but you still have control over yourself).
Heats generally last for 2-4 days, and are only experienced by Omegas, but the pheromones they give off have an equal effect on both Alphas and Betas in range. This is effect is known as Estrual Inebriation, the exhibited behaviours of which include: heightened flirtatious behaviour, speech disinhibition and mild to moderate aggression toward other unbonded members of the same gender class- though some Alphas are prone to more aggressive displays (e.g. getting into bar brawls). Omega’s aren’t mindlessly accepting of any unbonded Alpha or Beta, though they are more likely to be attracted to Alphas while in heat. Sharing a heat with an Alpha can reduce the length of the heat by as much as a full day, as knotting compresses glands that release endorphins that bring the heat cycle to a close. Rebound (or false) heats are most commonly triggered by miscarriage, but are also seen in cases of sudden suppressant cessation. With miscarriages, patients are given a high-dose suppressant intravenously to arrest it immediately, and give their systems some time to settle. Suppressant withdrawal is essentially a skyrocketing of previously suppressed hormones that haven’t been moderated, and as such can result in a fertile rebound heat unlike those triggered by miscarriage.
- For some sort of real-world comparison*: heats in omegas most closely resemble those of cats. Their estrous cycles are generally an average of 28 days and they are induced ovulators (coitus induces ovulation), though incidents of spontaneous ovulation sometimes occur. (*Thanks Wikipedia!)
- No periods! Because animals with estrous cycles reabsorb the endometrium if conception does not occur.
Laws and Social Conventions (Regarding Heats)
- Alphas or Betas with Omega bondmates are able to request heat-leave if required. As more and more Omegas join the workforce, this same leave applies to them as well.
- If an Omega consents to share their heat with a Alpha or Beta, they may withdraw that consent at any point. If the other party forces themselves on them anyways, they're treated just like any other rapist (though in the past there were less stringent laws protecting Omegas and Beta women against sexual violence, just like in reality).
Suppressants and Contraceptives
Suppressants are the best contraceptive option for Omegas. It suppresses their heat cycle by mimicking the hormones of lactating omega, signaling the reproductive system not to ovulate. It also diminishes the individual's scent/pheromone production, due to their other hormones not being produced on their natural levels. Omegas using normal prescribed pharmaceutical suppressants will have a much milder scent, and are not immediately identifiable as Omegas, especially when paired with the use of scent neutralizing body washes. Like with ordinary hormonal birth control there is a “placebo” cycle of sugar pills in a suppressant pill packet that allows for a mild pseudo-heat (commonly referred to as a 'placebo cycle'), during which no ovulation occurs. This pseudo-heat helps keep hormone levels in balance, diminishing the likelihood of a hormonal spike if suppressant use is discontinued. Suppressants for Alpha’s on the other hand diminish the mating drive and diminish scent/pheromone production. Alpha suppressants rarely see personal use- they are generally only used by the Military for soldiers on deployment, in order to minimize the distraction of troops.
Non-prophylactic suppressant-free contraceptives for Omegas (when paired with an alpha especially- b/o pairings have higher conception rates than b/b pairs but lower conception rates than a/o pairs) have poor efficacy, however, due to the nature of their biology.
Prophylactic contraceptives are most effective, but have a higher failure rate when used by Alphas, due to the mechanics of knotting.
Primary Sex Characteristics
Anatomically speaking there are differences in the sexual characteristics between the different genders:
- Alphas:
- Both male and female have penises with knots at base- size is dependent upon genotype AA or Ao, but they are generally larger than that of the average Beta male.
- Female alphas have internal rather than external testes, as well as a vestigial vaginal canal* and (non-functioning) uterus. They have no clitoris, as their penis takes its place.(*Due to the vestigial nature of these internal organs, Alpha females can only physiologically accommodate intercourse with Beta or Omega males- though neither act would be procreative in nature. They would need to penetrate the Omega with their own penis in order to conceive.)
- Betas:
- Standard internal and external male/female reproductive organs.
- Omegas:
- Both male and female have enhanced fertility due to differing biology: two sets of ovaries, bartholin glands, and slightly different internal structures to accommodate knots.
- Females external organs standard in appearance.
- Males have smaller external male organ, no testes (cannot sire), a vaginal canal and a uterus (in addition to the above mentioned internal organs). They also have the necessary mammary glands (alpha/beta males do not have) in order to breastfeed.They self-lubricate during arousal, even when not in heat, and their ejaculate contains no spermatozoa.
Sexualities
Somewhat different than real-world because of secondary genders:
- Heterosexuality (pairings that are reproductive and considered to be pairings of opposing gender class, are non-deviant in ‘verse society) includes:
- Am/Om, Am/Of, Am/Bf, Af/Of, Af/Om, Af/Bf, Bm/Bf, Bm/Om, Bm/Of
- Homosexuality (pairings that are non-reproductive, and considered to be those of same gender class, are deviant/taboo in ‘verse society) includes:
- Am/Af, Af/Af, Af/Bm, Am/Am, Am/Bm, Bm/Bm, Bf/Bf, Bf/Om, Bf/Of, Om/Of, Om/Om, Of/Of
- These pairings used to be illegal, though are now legalized in most nations- though bonding laws vary from country to country.
So; in this verse, a female-male pairing might be considered homosexual if they were, for example, both Alphas. An Alpha female and Beta female pairing, though consisting of two women would, on the otherhand, be considered heterosexual. This is where the scent/pheremone/bonding charactaristica of omegaverse applying to everyone (betas included) really comes into play!
Other sexual taboos, based upon secondary gender:
- Because Omegas are so rare, it’s considered odd if they pair with a non-Alpha, but a complete “waste” and therefore especially offensive (much more taboo than ordinary “homosexuality”) for them to participate in a non-reproductive pairing. (Bf/Om, Bf/Om, Of/Of, Om/Of, Om/Om).
- Penetration by a male Omega has also always been generally considered taboo, and is thought of as demeaning by the more socially conservative.