sunspotted | a/b/o but make betas more relevant

"I don't want to be doing this at all."

They've been banished, Marco! Thrown out of the Training Corps and abandoned to doing this stupid exercise that isn't going to work and is just wasting both their time! More importantly, it's wasting Marco's time, and that feels like a much worse insult than simply wasting Jean's. He's still uptight and jangled over having a recent heat--which was the most godawful embarrassing thing he's ever had the misfortune of suffering through, he showed his ass to Reiner of all people before being swept off to the infirmary to suffer it out alone--and now Shadis is pointing it out again and making them do this.

He can't even be mad at Marco, much as he wants to be. Marco is just following orders; it't not his fault the orders suck.

Jean puts a hand to Marco's face and shoves him away. "Get off me, I'm going to suffocate if you keep rubbing your chin on me."

Marco makes a light noise that he will deny is a squawk when Jean shoves at his face, but he doesn't push back, scooting back a little from where he's sitting on the floor and then standing up. He gives a loud sigh, feeling his knees complain a little from sitting cross legged too long - he needs to go a little easier on the 3DM gear, the way they're protesting lately.

He gives Jean a few minutes reprieve before he pipes up again.

"I know this must suck having me huff all over you but at least it's a break from class?" He tries, resting his hands on the small of his own back as he tilts his head back in a stretch. "And like, the worst that's going to happen is I'm gonna make you not smell like anything for a couple minutes." If he can get the hang of it!

Edited (word repetition ) 2023-11-05 18:46 (UTC)

It's a squawk, Marco. Don't try and pretend otherwise.

"I'd rather go to class than do this." Jean knows he's being mean, but if anyone can take it, it's Marco. Marco is also the only person who will get any kind of explanation for why Jean is being mean. "I hate this. I hate stinking and smelling so goddamn horny all the time. I hate everyone knowing what I am and not being able to hide it. I hate that everyone thinks I'm some loose omega now just looking to get filled with dicks."

Jean groans and flops over on his back, his arm dramatically covering his eyes. He's unaware of it, but his scent lets off a soft whiff of sadness, genuine and honest in a way he can't be himself. "I'd rather just be a beta like you."

Lies, he'd prefer to be an alpha and everyone knows it, but being a beta would certainly beat this.

"What if they kick me out of the Training Corps over this?" Add in some nerves to that scent cocktail! "What if we can't figure out how to control it?"

Marco feels his heart break for his friend, hearing him say everything, and loosening the curl of sadness in his scent. To Marco it smells like something acidic, like a wine gone too sour into vinegar. It sticks in the back of his throat, draws him over to where Jean's flopped on his back.

"They're not going to kick you out," he says, flooding more reassurance into his scent as well as his voice. "You're just one of the first omegas. Soon more people will present, and it won't be as big a deal to the others." He moves to rest on his heels, crouching next to Jean.

"You'll learn how to control your scent too. You weren't immediately good at the ODM gear either, you know. And if anyone actually thinks you're 'some loose omega'," Marco stops here, biting back the uncharacteristic growl. He's not an alpha but the thought of people saying those things makes him mad, "I'll - tell Eren they made fun of Armin."

There, he's talking about setting Eren on them, surely that's a fate worse than death, right?

"They might kick me out." Jean is going to fuss about this, dammit, and Marco can't stop him!

He does catch that reassurance scent, though, and it calms him down a little. As Marco talks, Jean moves his arm to peer up at him through one eye. Everything he's saying makes sense--stupid Marco and his stupid logic when Jean wants to be dramatic!--and Jean continues to simmer down. By the time Marco is done, Jean huffs a reluctant laugh and sits up.

"Yeah, then they'd have Mikasa on their ass too." Eren is an annoyance at best; Mikasa is terrifying. Jean huffs a big dramatic sigh and tilts his head back. "Okay, you can try the muffling thing again."

Fuss all you want, Jean, Marco is sure about this! There's plenty of omega instructors in the training center, after all, and some of them are retired from positions in the Military Police!

"And you know no one gets away from Mikasa." Truly, she's terrifying. Marco's pretty sure she's going to be an alpha, which tugs weirdly at his chest when he thinks of the fact that Jean's an omega, and has had a crush on her forever. Jean offers to let them try again, and Marco beams at him before he rocks back, dropping onto his ass with a loud oof for his efforts. He scoots forward after a moment.

Instead of just sticking his face into Jean's neck like he had last time, he does something different. He rests his cheek against Jean's shoulder and closes his eyes, taking a small inhale. He has to do it with his mouth open, he's found, to really get the distinct parts of scents. Which makes sense - his nose isn't as sensitive as an alpha or omega, so he's got to taste it too.

This time he thinks he gets it. Underneath the myriad of scents Jean can throw off - cedar and sunshine - there's something spicier, like tea. The omega part of his scent. After he smells it, he very deliberately starts throwing his own scent out to cover it, differently than an alpha would.

Alphas flood out everything but their own scent to hide. This feels more like cutting a precise path through Jean's scent, like burning a forest line to hold back a fire. And if it works, Jean will notice the scent of omega - and horniness, as he'd called it - fading from the room.

Edited 2023-11-06 13:50 (UTC)

Jean is a little surprised when Marco rests his head against his shoulder, but he goes along with it. He's learned to trust Marco's instincts on a lot of things; why should this be any different? He hears Marco breathing through his mouth and makes a face--he sounds like a little kid with a cold when he does that--but manages to keep from making a snarky comment. He'll let Marco concentrate, for now.

After a few moments, Jean starts to smell Marco's scent. His has always been a weaker than a dynamic's scent, but Jean still knows it. How could he not, with the amount of time they spend together? Marco smells like clean laundry on the line after a day in the sun, and fires in the hearth. Fires lit with good, expensive hardwood, not pine or something cheap. Cherrywood, maybe, that hint of sweetest that comes along with the smoke.

The clean linen scent gets stronger, and Jean lets his head fall to the side, resting it against Marco's. He can't really judge his own scent, but he's going to trust that the clean linen one can drown it out. If anyone can figure this out, it's Marco.

Marco at least closes his mouth now that he has the bead on Jean's scent. As it'd been explained to him, if he could coax the hormones low, it should have an effect on Jean himself. So he keeps focusing on covering up that scent, until he can't smell it anymore.

He was going to raise his head, but Jean rests his head on his, so he doesn't move. Instead he looks up at Jean through his lashes.

"Feel anything?" He asks after a moment, curious.

"I can smell you more than me." But again, that doesn't really mean much. Jean can't smell himself much at all, being so used to his own scent. The only exception was when he went into heat, and that was so embarrassing and traumatic that he's wilfully forgetting the spicy pheromones he'd been blasting.

But does he feel any different? Jean actually thinks about that question for a moment, and yeah, he does. "Calmer. Less annoyed."

He gently elbows Marco in the stomach. "Maybe you just tired me out with all your fussing."

"If you were tired out, you'd be complaining that you wanna take a nap," Marco retorts, but he's grinning. Reluctantly, he lifts his head off Jean's shoulder, slipping out so he's sitting in front of his friend.

"I think it's me, though. I found the part of you that's new and - well, covered it up?" Burned it out, for the time being, and he keeps pushing his own, cleaner scent over it. He reaches up and takes one of Jean's hands in his, without really thinking about it, closing his eyes as he runs his thumb over Jean's fingers.

"Yeah... I think so. I can pull it back now, see if you get less calm." He starts to do just that.

"Yeah, keep going." Whatever Marco is doing seems to be working, and Jean isn't going to start actively complaining about it. He'll still complain, because he's Jean, but it won't be active complaining.

Jean lifts an eyebrow when Marco takes his hand, but doesn't pull away or otherwise comment. Maybe there's a touch element to all this that he's missing? He watches as Marco concentrates, as Marco touches his hand, and almost without realising it, Jean twists his hand and entwines their fingers.

The clean linen scent is billowing around them now, but the spicy Jean scent is making a resurgence. As Marco starts to pull back, Jean's scent surges up to fill the void. There's a different edge to it now, a brighter, more expectant undertone, that Jean doesn't notice. He's too intent, watching Marco's face as he tries to control both their scents.

Marco doesn't really have a reason for taking Jean's hand, other than he wanted to. He's so focused on this he didn't really think about it. But then Jean turns his hand, entwining their fingers together. Maybe there is something about there being touch, because he feels like his sense of smell sharpens a little.

Marco takes another small inhale, his mouth falling open for a second before he snaps it shut. The spicy tea-like scent is there, caught in the back of his throat and sinuses... Marco snaps his eyes open, looking at Jean for a moment.

And then he turns his head and sneezes, barely managing to not hit Jean or his hands with it.

Whatever moment was there is broken.

"Goddammit, Marco!" Jean lets go of his hand and scrambles backwards. "What the hell!"

The spicy tea scent spikes, very briefly, then fades almost completely. The annoyed scent comes roaring back as Jean picks himself up off the floor and flounces off to the room's attached bathroom.

He returns a moment later and chucks a roll of toilet tissue at Marco's head.

"Sorry!" Marco holds the hem of his jacket to his face. He looks a little crestfallen despite himself, and absolutely gets beaned in the head with the tissue roll.

He fumbles to catch it, pulling some off to actually blow his nose and sniffling.

"Sorry," he repeats. "Your new scent is spicy, I guess it set me off..."

"Give me some warning if you're going to do that again."

Jean clearly isn't too butthurt, though, as he comes back and settles down on the floor next to Marco again. He gives Marco a moment to collect himself and get his nose dealt with, then sighs.

"What does it smell like?"

Marco could retort that he wasn't expecting to sneeze, but he knows it'd just get Jean arguing again. So, he lets it go, especially since Jean comes back over and settles down.

"Mmm... It reminds me of a kind of tea my mom used to save for holidays. Chai, she called it? It's black tea but it has things like cinnamon and ginger in it. That's what it smells like to me," He tells Jean as he makes sure he's not left any residue on himself or his sleeve and then tosses the tissue towards a trash can.

Without really thinking about it, he continues. "It reminds me of places I consider home."

Edited (i wanted to hint about mates teehee) 2023-11-08 18:55 (UTC)

Jean's eyes widen a little at Marco's description, making him look younger and significantly less criminal.

"My mom gets that tea too." And also saved it for the holidays, but that's not the important part. Jean scooches a little closer. "So it's, like, not a bad smell?"

That's what has been weighing on him the most: that he reeks because he's an omega. He hates the thought of walking around stinking and everyone knowing.

Marco, ever the more perceptive one, picks up that Jean wants reassurance that he's not stinking to high heaven. But he's not lying when he shakes his head.

"It's not bad at all, I really like it," he promises Jean. "I know it takes me longer to pick stuff out, but yours has never bothered me. Well."

He scrunches up his nose playfully. "Unless you've been in the ODM gear all day and haven't showered yet..."

"You don't smell very good on those days either." But all right, Jean is reassured. He has no reason to think Marco is lying, and while he might have moments where he'll need further pampering and convincing, he can go about his days now and not worry about stinking.

Except after being in the gear all day.

"You smell like clean laundry that's been on the line all day." Are they sharing now? Yes, they're going to share. "It smells like summer."

"I don't think any of us do, honestly. Reiner's the worst, though." Though that's because Reiner is more developed than most of them! Either way, Marco is glad he's reassured Jean that he doesn't smell bad.

When Jean says what he smells like, he blushes a little bit. Marco's own scent is something he's a little nose blind to as well, and he looks down and grins. "I guess that makes sense... Something clean, since I'm a beta." He looks back up at Jean.

"You smell like cedar and sunshine, too - still do, I should say. Like fresh cut cedar wood, and the smell in the air on a hot sunny day."

"Between him and Bertolt, that entire side of the barracks smells like ballsack after a long day." Is Jean wildly jealous of how masculine the two bigger boys smell? Why yes, yes he is. They stink like alphas, even if they haven't presented yet, and it pains Jean's delicate sensibilities.

"I do?" Those are both really nice smells, even if Jean is slightly unclear on what exactly sunshine smells like. Marco must be talking about what it smells like in the countryside; Trost in the summer mostly smells like sweat and rotting vegetables.

Jean smiles at the idea, and this time, he's the one who seeks out Marco's hand, barely aware he's doing it. Any irritation has faded from his scent; he smells pleased and flattered now.

Marco almost asks Jean if he's been smelling a lot of ballsacks - the wry twist to his lips says it all, really - but he refrains from voicing it. He just calmed Jean down, after all, he doesn't need to set him off again.

Marco does mean a country summer; it's not the most pleasant smell depending on area, but he thinks of lush, green fields with spots of yellow in them, the smell of loam and cut grass and the baking scent of earth.

"You do," Marco confirms, and this time Jean takes his hand. Marco's distinctly aware of him doing so, and his scent flares slightly with something like interest before he tamps it down. He still curls his fingers against Jean's though.

"Well.. we technically did what they wanted us to. We could report back... or pad it a little while."

Being accused of smelling ballsacks would definitely set Jean off. He's been informed he doesn't stink, which is good, but he's still sensitive about being perceived as a loose omega. This could turn very quickly from two best friends hanging out to Jean launching himself at Marco with both fists flying.

Jean catches the hint of interest that flares in Marco's scent, but he doesn't recognise it for what it is. He's very rarely had that particular scent directed at him, and thinks it's just some random blip going through Marco's scent pattern.

"Pffft, I'm not going back yet." Jean flops backwards onto the mat, still holding Marco's hand. "They banished me for the day, so they're just going to have to live without me for now." A few moments later, he shoots Marco a look out of the corner of his eyes. "I also want to know this works. Can we try again?"

He wouldn't be this vulnerable with anyone but Marco. He wants every memory of him being omega stamped out of everyone's minds, drowned with Marco's clean, inoffensive scent.

Their actual physical fights are comparatively much rarer than Eren and Jean's, but even they are not without them. Even if it usually ends with Marco putting Jean in a headlock, Jean's a spry grappler and it's no small feat to pin him down.

"Fair enough," Marco laughs when Jean says they have to live without him for the day, giving a reassuring squeeze to his hand. Jean's suggestion, though tied into his vulnerability, is a good one; they should get some more practice.

"Sure. Uh - don't worry about getting up." Marco has an idea - the scent glands are strongest on the neck, but it's considered very intimate to go huffing around there if you aren't a child or a mate. They also exist, in a smaller form, in other parts of the body - which includes the hands and wrist.

So, instead of making Jean sit back up, Marco lifts their entwined hands, shifting so that the inside of Jean's wrist is available enough for him to lean down and take a deep inhale. Without meaning to, his nose brushes the skin of the gland before he lifts up a little bit. It's easier to catch that hint of chai in Jean's scent this time, and he starts trying to cover it with his own.

Jean might not have grown up with siblings, but he scrapped plenty with the other kids in the neighbourhood. You learn to defend yourself when you're the chubby mama's boy of the street.

Jean lets Marco lift his hand without protest, but draws in a startled breath when Marco's nose brushes his scent gland. That had... that had been a lot more intense than it usually is. He and Marco grab each other's wrists all the time, and while the scent glands have always been there, it's never felt like a lightning bolt up Jean's arm when Marco touches it.

Jean watches Marco through his eyelashes as he toys with his wrist, and yes, there's chai in Jean's scent, but something else is starting to bubble up. Just as the muscles in Jean's abdomen are suddenly feeling hot, too full of blood, his scent isn't cooperating this time. It's meeting Marco's and pushing back.

Marco and Jean have been noted to be an unusually affectionate pair. There's only so much you can excuse to a beta's blind nose when they're all taught the same manners. Even with a weaker scent, it's not uncommon for Marco to nudge his wrist against the back of Jean's shoulders as he moves a hand to rest on his shoulder. And the thing is - Jean lets him. He's never stopped him the way he snarled at Eren the one time he tried it mockingly.

But it's still unusual that the newly presented secondary scent suddenly makes Marco's mouth water, filling with saliva. He tries to subtly swallow the spit back as he looks over to Jean, shooting him what he hopes is a shaming look. He thinks Jean is trying to push back against him on purpose.

So Marco pushes harder, with his scent. Flaring out that clean laundry linen scent, more insistent against the spicy chai. (Why does Marco think of sharing tea while there's laundry on the line? It's such a specific thought.)

Snarling is a nice way to put it. Jean had been ready to rip Eren's throat out. Bertholdt had fortunately gotten between them and stopped it, but it had been a tense few minutes. Eren, to his credit, never tried that again.

"What?" Jean is genuinely baffled by the look Marco shoots him. "I'm not doing anything!"

His scent has other plans. While Jean might not be doing anything purposefully, his scent is practically billowing now, so strong even Jean can smell it. It reminds him of the winter holidays, and curling up under a warm, clean quilt.

"You're doing something!" Marco insists, voice low, not quite a hiss. He's not really angry, and more concerned that Jean says he's not doing something. Also the fact that his mouth won't stop watering, to the point Marco slurs the s of the last word a little before he swallows again.

Okay, calm down Bott. Maybe it's just reacting bad to being suppressed. This is where a little knowledge damns him. He's done the suppression one way, and he knows he can do it the opposite way as well, to make it stronger.

But in his concern, he thinks maybe Jean's body is upset that he's trying to cover out the scent. So he eases back a little, which isn't the mistake he makes.

The mistake is trying to convince it he's done enough by trying to match that scent. In the course of sending out it's fine with his pheromones, there's no way to really differentiate between it's fine, heat now with his inexperience. It's especially a bad idea when Jean's hit a heat so recently.

Marco doesn't know any of that, though.

Edited (IM SORRY) 2023-11-10 15:47 (UTC)

"I'm not!" Jean has no idea what Marco is talking about! He keeps going on and on about Jean doing something with his scent, and he hasn't done a thing! He's just sitting here!

Sitting here getting progressively more uncomfortable, with cramps filling his gut, and Jean whines softly and rolls over, hiding his face against Marco's thigh. He curls in on himself, holding his abdomen, and tries to ignore how warm and muscular Marco's leg is. How strong it is, and how much it carries that clean laundry smell. When did clean linen ever smell this good?

"I'm getting cramps. Whatever you're doing, it's not working." Or it's working exactly as intended, and Jean, as inexperienced as Marco is, doesn't recognise the signs of an imminent heat. His scent, on the other hand, is reacting joyously to Marco's. The spicy tea aroma is flaring up, practically dancing in the air between them. It's fine? Really, it's fine? It's fine for heat now? THEN HEAT NOW.

Marco groans in frustration and drops the attempt with his pheromones to encourage it. But it's too late; it's a hormonal runaway of mounting proportions. His body's reacting the way a beta of sufficient age would to an omega pouring out these hormones - priming the need to take the role of an alpha.

It won't magically make him one. But his body has the capacity to knot just like one, with the right trigger.

He raises a hand to wipe at his mouth - seriously, why is he nearly drooling so much all of a sudden? and speaks again.

"... I stopped. Why aren't you stopping too?"

This isn't accusatory at all. Now he sounds worried, especially with how Jean is curled in on himself and hiding his face in Marco's thigh. He mentioned something that Marco almost missed in his panic. Cramps?

Oh. Oh no, cramps.

Marco timidly reaches down to brush some of Jean's hair back, and though he knows it's risky he remembers what they taught him - how to check if a gland is swollen. The instant his fingers brush one of Jean's, on the side of his jaw exposed to Marco, he knows.

Jean practically leaps out of his skin when Marco touches the gland in his neck, yelping plaintively when he does. "What the fuck!"

What the fuck, indeed. The realisation of what's happening hits Jean like a fifteen meter titan; mere seconds after Marco touched his gland, Jean feels a veritable gush in his pants. That happened last time too, a sudden deluge of liquid from his ass, intending to ease the way for an alpha. And now Jean has gone and done it in front of Marco, who is just trying to help, and he's gone and made an absolute embarrassment of himself.

"Fuck, fuck, fuck..." Jean curls in on himself, tucking into a little ball with his arms around his head so Marco can't touch his glands again. "Marco, I'm... I'm sorry. I'm heating. Fuck!"

The cramps are ripping through him now, agonising in their intensity, and Jean knows he's in for a rough night. There's nothing to do except bear down and get through them.

"Can you... can you go tell the nurse?" Jean is panting now, shivering in a ball on the floor. "Tell her I need... ow, shit, ow ow OW... I need to be left alone... for like twelve hours." He looks up then, his bangs hanging in his face, wet with sweat. "Should be over by then."

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry -"

Marco scoots a little bit away when Jean curls up, feeling his heart plummet into his stomach as Jean covers his neck with his arms. The scent his brain interprets as chai goes absolutely molten in the air. He knows this is his fault. It's way too early for Jean's next heat to arrive, and so suddenly.

He shakes his head when Jean apologizes, but he has trouble finding his voice. Anytime he opens his mouth its like those pheromones pour down the back of his tongue. He starts sweating, the drool is really happening now, and there's a deep ache in his own gut.

"I-"

When Jean looks up at him from the floor, still curled in a ball, Marco means to say Okay, I'll go tell her, and I'll lock the door. Instead, what spills out is "I can help?"

He freezes a little bit, hands hovering out in front of him, because he was half reaching for Jean already. He pulls them back, curling them into fists and resting them on his knees.

"I think - It's my fault." Which implies it's his responsibility, but Marco knows it's not that. He knows he wouldn't just offer because he made a mistake. He doesn't offer to suck Bertholdt's dick if he accidentally bruises him during training, after all.

"But I'm - I'm a presented beta now. I should be able to help." He swallows the excess of saliva again. He won't go crazy and feral like an omega or alpha, but he knows he can at least give Jean what he wants enough to belay the heat, which is knotting him. Then he lowers his voice, and it's clear by the dilation of his eyes he means this.

"You smell ... really good, Jean."

Edited 2023-11-16 01:26 (UTC)

Reiner would probably punch Marco if he offered to suck Bertholdt's dick.

Jean peeks out from between his arms when Marco offers to help. He'd be lying through his teeth if he said he hadn't considered this possibility, after he presented as an omega. He'd carefully considered most of the other cadets, wondering what they'd present as, and if he'd consider fucking them during a heat. But really, he'd thought about Marco most of all. He trusts Marco--always has--and that alone pushes him to the front of the list. The fact that he smells great and is offering to help--not getting all enthusiastic about getting to pound a weak, simpering omega, but offering to help--is just a bonus.

"Really?" Jean unfolds his arms and sits up, wincing as the motion puts pressure on his guts. "You don't have to, it's not your fault this happened."

It's Jean's. It's his stupid body and its ideas about what it should do and when. Marco didn't do anything wrong here, and Jean wants that very clear. The only thing worse than suffering through another heat alone would be knowing Marco was with him out of some twisted sense of duty and not because he wants to be with Jean.

"But... if you want to?" It's a fine distinction, maybe, but it's one Jean needs to make. He has to stop himself from plunging right against Marco and burying his face in his chest. "If you... if I really smell that good?"

Marco might argue this point - he's pretty sure he did something wrong here! - but he doesn't try to right now. No, he knows enough about Jean to appreciate the fine distinction he's asking for.

He wants Marco to want him, not do it out of an obligation. Marco knows he's not, so he has to tell him that.

"I want to," he tells Jean when he sits up. He, very slowly, so Jean can pull away if he wants to, reaches out to rest a hand on Jean's arm and squeezes, his cheeks flushing a bright red.

"I wanted to offer last time, but I couldn't." No, Jean had been whisked away too fast, and Marco was just barely blooming into being a beta at that time. He's not sure he would have had any idea what to do, and they probably would have ended up frustrated.

... Not that he has a plethora of ideas available now, but he at least understands, thanks to their classes, what Jean needs.

His last words are quieter, tucking his own chin into his chest - a sign of submission to Jean. "You always smell good. I was happy we got to practice today."

This is why they're such good friends. Jean can be vague and indistinct about what he wants or needs, and Marco can see right through his bullshit and get to the heart of the issue. Sometimes, Jean has no idea why Marco continues to put up with him, but he's forever grateful that he does.

"You did?" This is news to Jean, and he sits up. He makes no move to push Marco's hand off his arm--if anything, he's repressing the urge to duck under Marco's arm and curl up against his side--and looks Marco in the face, trying to detect any kind of lie there. Not that he thinks Marco would lie to him, but he still wants to be sure.

As usual, there's no trace of a lie on Marco's guileless face, and Jean inches closer. His scent is strong enough now that even he can smell it, and Marco's right; it does smell like tea.

"Then, we can... try it?" When Marco tucks his chin like that, it sends fizzy little bubbles up and down Jean's spine. He leans in, and very gently noses at the underside of Marco's jaw, along his scent gland. Jean didn't think he'd find anyone to help him with his heats any time soon; he was just assuming he was in for months, if not years, of suffering through them. The fact that it's Marco, his best friend ~~who he loves~~, feels weirdly right and fitting.

They work off each other and make each other better. Marco's learned how to put his foot down a little more and assert himself. He'll never be as outspoken as Jean about it, but he emulates his best friend. And Jean has always been good about getting to the heart of Marco's fears, as well.

He lets Jean examine him, hoping he passes muster for whatever Jean is looking for. Jean seems to find it acceptable, with his offer to try it and then nosing under Marco's jaw, where his gland is. It's not swollen like Jean's, but nosing it does release more of his scent, and the burning curl of arousal as well as Marco hisses softly.

"Yeah," he agrees softly, untucking his chin so Jean can nose at him if he wants. Marco turns his head a little, bringing his hands up to cup Jean's jaw. He's much more gentle this time, his fingers brushing over swollen glands softly.

"Can I kiss you?"

When Marco lifts his chin, Jean gets the full force of his scent, right in the face. It should be awkward. It's not. It's exhilarating, and Jean breathes deep, sucking Marco's smell down into his lungs, letting it fill him. For a few seconds, it even makes the cramps taper off.

"Yeah." Jean has to resist the urge to just bury his face in Marco's neck and breathe that scent in; when he turns his head so he's looking at Marco, his pupils have blown wide, almost drugged. Marco's touch on his glands feels like relief now instead of pain, and Jean skooches closer, nearly depositing himself in Marco's lap. "Yeah, kiss me."

Jean looks like he got the good shot from the nurse's office, and Marco thinks to himself almost smugly - he did that. Letting Jean scent him got him feeling that good. He doesn't linger on it overlong, though - he has Jean right in front of him, eagerly consenting to the kiss.

It's not Marco's first kiss, but it's the first one that's mattered. He's gentle when he keeps cupping Jean's head, leaning in and tilting his own head to press his lips against Jean's, a little chapped but not at all dry courtesy of his reaction to Jean's pheremones.

Since Jean is already practically in his lap, he drops one hand to wrap around his waist, and tugs him into Marco's lap.

Jean feels like he got a shot of the good stuff from the nurse; he's relaxed and eager at the same time, both content and excited all at once. When Marco tugs at his waist, Jean doesn't hesitate and crawls immediately into his lap, straddling Marco's hips with one leg on either side.

He leans into Marco's kiss, his arms snaking up and looping around Marco's neck. Jean has shared a few harried, decidedly unsexy kisses behind the sheds like most of the other cadets, but Marco is right: this is the first kiss that matters. Marco's lips are soft and warm under Jean's, and Jean is pretty sure he could melt right into Marco's chest and just stay there forever. The kiss even banishes his cramps, sending them skittering away.

Marco gives a little groan into the kiss as Jean straddles his hips. He's been trying not to react to the scent, but now that he has that permission to, it's clear it smells very, very good, if the boner he's sporting is any indication.

That's not what Marco wants to focus on, though. No, he's more interested in the press of Jean's lips against his, a movement he is, with previous kisses, familiar with. He wants to deepen the kiss though, so he opens his mouth against Jean's, letting his tongue trace the seam of his lips.

He keeps his arm wrapped around Jean's waist, and his hand slips down to rest against the side of Jean's neck - a very polite 'ten and two' for holding the omega in his arms.

From this position, Jean can lean against Marco and let him take most of his weight, which he does almost immediately and with no guilt whatsoever. Marco has always been wider and stronger than Jean is, he can take the weight of Jean's scrawny ass leaning on him! In doing so, Jean flops directly against Marco's erection, and it sends a shiver up his spine, along with another gush of liquid in his pants. He may have never done this before, but his body knows damn well where that's going to end up and is getting ready for it.

Marco's tongue against his lips gives Jean pause, though. This is something very new, and there's no immediate reaction from his body to guide him. Hesitantly, he opens his mouth a little wider, to let Marco explore.

He gladly lets Jean drop his weight onto him, having to fight back the urge to laugh into the kiss. He's used to that, Jean often does so after meals if he's tired, complaining that training has worn his muscles out and trying to get Bertholdt to give him a massage since Reiner says he's the best at it.

(It has yet to work, but hope springs eternal).

Jean pausing has Marco worried he's done something wrong, but then Jean opens his mouth and Marco realizes he's probably never kissed like this before. He shifts the hand on his neck to cup his head, helping Jean tilt his head a little as Marco slides his tongue into his mouth. He presses it against Jean's, trying to encourage him to move the organ against Marco's own.

Someday, Marco. Mark his words: someday he'll convince Bertholdt to make with the massaging. It's not fair for Reiner to hog it all to himself.

Jean hasn't ever kissed like this before, and he's really, really glad when Marco picks up on that fact and takes the lead. That saves him a tiny fraction of embarrassing explaining on a day when he's already had his fill of embarrassing nonsense. He moves his tongue shyly against Marco's, and thank goodness Marco's mouth is so wet, because Jean's is dry with nerves and excitement.

Let Marco be your kissing guide, Jean. Apparently he's been kissing a few people more deeply than you have! Still, he's gentle in how he guides Jean. The oddly over productive nature of Marco's mouth today is working out in his favor. He keeps pressing his tongue against Jean's, encouraging movement and even swirling his tongue around Jean's, until the lack of air has him pulling back just slightly, panting a little more.

There's a string of saliva connecting them, Marco having the dizzying thought that it's stickier than normal before he closes his lips and swallows, finally breaking it.

"Okay?" he asks, feeling a little nervous and wanting to check in with Jean.

Edited 2023-11-27 04:27 (UTC)

Jean lets himself get lost in Marco's kisses, following his lead and even trying a few moves of his own--they're very shy moves, but they're moves nonetheless--before Marco pulls back. Jean realises that he's out of breath too, panting softly, and it's suddenly really had to make his eyes completely focus.

He does notice that strand of drool though, and snickers quietly about it.

"Gross." But then he's immediately back in Marco's face, taking the initiative this time and kissing him first, his arms wrapping tighter around his neck. It's also starting to feel like Jean's core muscles are giving up on him, and he starts sliding down Marco's front, trying to pull him to the mat on the floor.

Marco's brain can only come up with You're gross as a response to that, which he knows isn't quite right. He doesn't have to think about replying, though - Jean is kissing him back again, and Marco groans slightly.

Jean starts going down and Marco goes with him, going to the mat on the floor. He ends up kneeling above Jean, one hand planted on the mat and the other still touching his jaw; one knee between Jean's legs, and the other outside on his right.

Marco pulls back from the kiss again, but this time he has other intentions than checking in. He presses a kiss to Jean's jaw, nuzzling it, and then goes further down, dragging his tongue along one of Jean's scent glands.

This will clearly be a dignified and respectable partnership. No tomfoolery here at all.

Normally, when someone is looming over Jean like this, it triggers his feistiness and he'd be trying to roll them off. He's been in a few too many fisticuffs, especially since joining the military, to easily submit to such behaviour. But when Marco does it, Jean finds he has no desire to fight back. No, he wants to stay exactly where he is, with Marco covering him, with Marco protecting him, until the end of time.

Or at least until the end of this heat. Whichever comes first.

He turns his head when Marco goes to investigate his scent glands, and Jean shudders when Marco licks one. It doesn't hurt; it's the opposite of painful. It feels wonderful, and Jean fists Marco's shirt in both hands and keens softly in his ear.

Marco almost expected some feistiness from Jean - a kick to his side, maybe - but he's privately pleased when Jean lets him curl over him. Good, that's good; he knows omegas are supposed to like being cuddled and ensconced, but he's mostly running on his own instincts telling him what to do, here.

The keen is intense and he wants more of those noises. He's not dumb enough to clamp his teeth down over those glands, but he does gently drag his teeth against them, and then licks again. Then he seals his lips over one and sucks, drawing blood and more pheromones to the surface of Jean's skin.

It's almost like an explosion for Marco, making his eyes dilate and his teeth ache. He has to pull back and whine, burying his face in Jean's shoulder.

Marco better not tell anyone how much Jean is enjoying cuddling right now, or he will find himself kicked in the side.

"Fuck..." If the licking was good, this sucking is even better, and Jean starts panting through his mouth. It's over too soon, though, and he whines and twists in Marco's arms. "C'mon, don't stop, keep..."

Wait. Wait, in this position, Marco's neck and scent glands are within Jean's easy reach. He considers for a second--they're smaller than his own, and not as inflamed--but there was really only one way this could go. Jean ducks his head down and noses at Marco's gland, giving it a tentative lick.

Don't worry, his secret is safe with Marco... the only price to keep it is cuddling.

Despite being overwhelmed with what feels like a pure and potent burst of Jean's scent, Marco tries to lift his head a little. He means to put his mouth back - the sounds Jean made were absolutely worth it - but then Jean is nosing along Marco's neck. He finds his scent glands, which are indeed smaller than an omega or alpha's would be. The sensation of Jean licking them still gets Marco shuddering and giving a groan, pressing his forehead against the spot where Jean's neck meets his shoulders.

The beta scent Marco has seems to flare up when Jean does it, getting thicker in the air.

Edited 2023-12-03 20:29 (UTC)

You drive a hard bargain, Mr. Bott, but Jean thinks he can suffer through the price you're asking.

For the first time today, Jean feels like he's in control. Being an omega, and at the mercy of his hormones, is a frightening, isolating experience, and Jean hates feeling like he's out of control. Even today, with someone as gentle and considerate as Marco at the helm, he's felt like he's spinning, trying to get ahead of something and never quite managing it. But now, with Marco making that sound and shivering against him, Jean feels like himself again.

He's got this. He can steer this whole thing.

Narrator voice: he can't, but he's going to try for awhile.

Jean's nostrils flare as Marco's scent picks up, and damn, if that isn't a beautiful aroma! He keeps his head down, over the scent gland, and licks it again. This time, it's a more confident, broad swipe with his tongue, and Jean's sinuses explode with Marco's scent.

Marco wishes he could make this easier on his friend. (He also wishes he didn't accidentally kick his hormones into gear, and he'll be very horrified about it later, even if they were still mostly in their right minds when they agreed to have sex).

He doesn't mind letting Jean take control of the situation at all. He's a beta and moreover, he's never really given much thought to being on 'top' or on 'bottom'. He just likes being with Jean, so far, he's found.

Jean licks more confidently over him, and he whines softly, starting to pant again as well. Sorry for mouthbreathing all over, Jean. He's arrested by a strange, striking thought. He wants Jean to bite him there.

"Jean," he manages to get out of his mouth with the too thick tongue. "Jean, bite me -"

It's not only bites that can cause bonding, but they start the release of said bonding pheromones.

Marco shouldn't blame himself at all for what's happened. He was trying to help Jean, and it was Jean's stupid body that reacted so strongly and decided to kick into heat. He also had numerous chances to leave, and Jean asked him to stay. This is on both of them, and Jean isn't upset that it went this way at all.

For just a second, Jean considers biting Marco. He even bares his teeth, and scrapes them lightly over Marco's scent gland. If the scents had been strong before, they're even more intense when he does that, so strong it's like a oily taste in the back of his throat.

For once, though, Jean's better senses take over, and he pulls back, shaking his head. The movement clears some of the scent, and he's able to breathe again.

"Marco, I can't." It comes out as a whine, and Jean doesn't even care. "If I bite you, we'll be mated."

Marco lets out a groan when Jean scrapes his teeth over the scent gland, to trail off into a disappointed whine when Jean pulls back. He's frowning a little, but eventually his head clears as well. He's still oddly disappointed, but -

"You're right," he grumbles, not used to being the one who has to be denied what he wants. It's clear it disappoints him on some level, but Jean is right.

Marco clears his throat a little and taps his collarbone, instead. "Bite me here?" Just biting shouldn't do anything bad, and Marco wants some marks to remember this by!

Marco's disappointment is almost--almost--enough to get Jean to give in and bite him. He wants to bite him, wants to know what it would taste like to have that much of Marco's scent in his mouth, but cooler heads are prevailing.

For now.

Jean brightens when Marco taps his collarbone. That, he can do, and he bends over Marco without another word. He trails a line of kisses across Marco's collarbone, dipping down towards his chest, before giving him a sharp, exploratory nip with his teeth. He's not trying to break the skin here, but it should be hard enough to bruise.

They can talk about it afterwards, like reasonable, presented dynamics. Maybe.

Marco lets his hands slip back onto Jean's hips, squeezing a little as Jean kisses his neck, making him exhale slowly. Then Jean bites, hard and sharp, and Marco's body jolts as he gives a low moan. He definitely enjoys a little bit of an ache with this, he's finding, and he pulls Jean's hips closer with a low whine.

Does Jean want him to return the favor? Because he's already leaning in to nose at his neck, placing a kiss over his scent glands but going lower.

They will be mature, rational adults about the whole thing, clearly.

Jean's ears perk up when Marco moans, and he's all too happy to cant his hips forward into Marco's grip. When Marco noses low on his neck, Jean's breath comes out in a hiss and he nods.

"Yeah... yeah, do it..."

Clearly mature, rational adults! One hundred percent in control of themselves!

Very in control, such not being ruled by hormones, wow.

At the very least, Marco knows not to bite where it'll be dangerous, in case of starting a bond. Instead, he keeps kissing along Jean's neck, like Jean had done to him. Once he reaches the curve of his shoulder, though, he gives into the desire to bite and does so, sinking his teeth in. Not enough to break skin, but enough to leave some sharp indents, sucking at the skin between his teeth before he releases it.

Yeah, that's a decent enough mark that it settles the thing that had flared up in his brain after he got a potent dose of Jean's omega hormones.

Jean sighs when Marco bites him; the feel of the bruise settling into his skin eases something in his mind. He feels a little more in control, a little less wild and feral.

It also reminds him that they're here for a purpose, and he reaches down to grab Marco's hips, steadying them so he can rut against Marco's thigh. It's satisfying, certainly, and on any other day he'd probably be content to do this until he came in a big sticky mess. Today is not any other day, though, and this won't be enough.

Jean looks down at Marco, and just a hint of his usual cocky self seeps back through. "What, you're going to make me just hump your leg like a dog?"

a/b/o but make betas more relevant

in which Jean abuses italics mercilessly

jean has a mandatory number of italics he needs to use

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i know just enough about science to know this isn't how it works

where we're going, we don't NEED science

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older jean's weird ass haircut is growing on me

for whatever reason, the last icons I uploaded to this account were all older Jean ones

need to crop those nsfw arts for older marco into icons

I need to go trolling for Jaw titan images to make into icons

i sent you a picture of galliard with flowers in his eyehole :>

oh believe me, I'll be iconning that one too haha

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i know about you and your hand kink

called out!

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took us nearly forty comments to get to the smooching

look we know we like setup

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serious question: accidental not accidental bonding y/n

almost bonding by accident a bunch of times during and then doing it on purpose at the end?

oh that's so cute, please an order of that.

only the cutest shit for our rp

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pretend this is my Jean account and this is a Jean face

where has my beautiful omega jean gone

maybe Porco is an omega too, you don't know!

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