Okay, readers, this first chapter is mostly just an author's note about what exactly is Alpha/Beta/Omega fan fiction as well as how my A/B/O world may differ from others. I'm doing this because my first A/B/O fic threw me for a bit of a loop and I know that every story has the potential to be someones first.

If you wish to skip this chapter, go ahead as there will be some expository moments throughout the story that should help keep everybody on the same track.

In stories like this one, all people are defined by both their primary gender (Male/Female) and their secondary gender (Alpha/Beta/Omega). People also all have a highly developed sense of smell which helps them identify potential mates. Each person has a unique combination of scents which make up theirs and while most people can smell a person's unique scent, Betas tend to have a weaker sense of smell and only Alphas and Omegas can smell the chemical changes caused by strong emotions. The scents themselves are released from tiny glands in the skin near major arteries, such as around the neck and wrists.

Female Alphas and Male Omegas have both a penis and a womb. Female Alphas still have a vagina but Male Omegas may or may not, depending on the writer. In my story, they don't. Their cervix is connected to their rectum, just before the start of their intestines, at a Y.

When a Male Omega is not in heat their cervix is separated from the rectum by a special valve to prevent them from becoming pregnant. In my version at least. While Female Omegas are capable of getting pregnant outside of a heat, it is less likely. When they are in heat, the valve opens, causing stomach aches and a massive release of slick. Slick is a specialized oil like substance secreted from dozens of glands which line the cervix and rectum. Its purpose is both to soften the muscles and ease the way for an Alpha or Beta to enter them as well as to dissolve any excess fecal matter. Only the first purpose applies to Female Omega slick. Slick is also released during times of increased arousal, not just during heat. In my story, if an Omega does not go through their first heat alone, they will die if they try to in the future. There is no real reason for this, it's just a reference to a random piece of trivia that many species of weasels will die if they do not have sex during heat.

All Alphas have a knot at the base of their penis. The knot is made up of two spherical, bulbous glands which swell with blood as the Alpha gets closer to orgasm. As the knot gets bigger it becomes harder for it to enter and exit their partner and when the Alpha reaches climax the knot will finish expanding or "pop" and, if inside the partner, it will be very painful to remove before the blood drains and the skin returns to normal. Alphas can also enter a time known as a rut. In many stories this is equivalent to a heat where the Alpha has little to no control over their body. In my story, Alphas are able to self regulate their rut through regular and vigorous masturbation or sex. My thought process was that, while a heat is caused by the body's natural hormone fluxes, a knot is a more constant issue and the time can be taken to get it under control more easily. Ruts only really become an issue if the Alpha does not find any form of release for a long period of time. Though there are some Alphas who have trouble with, or don't bother with, self control.

Betas are essentially normal humans and have only one set of genitalia and no knot.

The only time a secondary gender is outwardly apparent at a child's birth is in the case of Female Alphas. All others go through a process called presenting. This usually coincides with puberty as the natural hormone increases trigger the secondary gender to be known. But there are early or late bloomers who show the physical signs of presenting without having reached sexual maturity or having finished that stage of development. The intensity of how someone presents varies from person to person and many Betas have been known to sleep through theirs.

Many stories put secondary gender rolls in a class system, usually having Betas as middle class and Alphas and Omegas as either the upper or lower class in society. I mostly disregard this. I only pulled from it a couple times for emotional development. I did, however choose to keep to the usual physical standards of the secondary genders; Alphas are bigger, taller or better endowed, Betas are average across the board and Omegas are slim or curvy and generally shorter.

Mating in particular, while it involves sex, is not just sex. In most stories it involves either the Alpha biting the Omega's neck to leave a mark or both parties biting each other. This is supposed to create a bond stronger and more permanent than marriage, though many people both mate and get married. The aspect of the bite has always rubbed me the wrong way so I decided to take my version of mating in a new direction as will be explained within the story.

If this story ends up being anyone's introduction to A/B/O and you have more questions, please send me a message and I will try to answer to the best of my ability. Remember that every writer has a different way of treating this sub-genre and no one knows everything.