#midsun: mating bond

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If the vampire mating mark is the most vivid ...what do the others look like? Do the Phoenixs burn? And what about our phantom friends?

The mating mark looks the same for every species — as it’s a literal bite that supernaturals give one another. Of course, there are species that don’t have mouths so they do things a bit differently, but the concept, barring those unique circumstances, is the same for everyone.

A main uniqueness when it comes to the mating bond as a whole is that getting there can differ from species to species; although they all center around the inner beast that makes supernaturals different from humans.

(I’m aware that I might be confusing so I’ll add an example.) Wolf Shifters, or simply werewolves, as you’ve undoubtedly seen, have to choose their prospective mate based upon both their human and lupine sides agreement; if one doesn’t feel the potential connection then it could never work. Dragon Shifters, on the other hand, are more intrinsically connected to their shifted form so it’s typically an immediate thing… However, due to the inherent nature of dragons — being slightly possessive — multiple dragon shifters can feel that connection to a single person — hence the trials to prove themselves worthy of said bond. (Although they can still be rejected by their prospective partner as winning doesn’t guarantee anything… It just showcases the commitment and strength said individual possessed.)

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Would the ro's show off there vampire mate mark

Koda: Not really. If someone asked about it he’d definitely get a glow about him and start gushing about you, but it’s not something he’d go out of his way to talk about/showcase to random people.

Scarlett: She isn’t truly the type to flaunt things in that manner— at least not overtly. It’s not something she’d hide, but it’s also not something she’d draw attention to. Though, I can see her absentmindedly stroking the side of neck when she’s deep in thought which might turn peoples gaze to it. Now if she was feeling possessive? That may be a different story.

Cyrus/Cyra: No. They love and adore you, but it’s not in their nature to show off things like that. Not when the mark is so intimate to them and holds such deep value to them. They also have a sense of decorum to maintain due to being the Heir of House Aurelia.

Quinn: Their wolf would absolutely be pushing for them to show it off— to show that they had a mate and that they chose amazingly (if they do say so themself). But, Quinn being Quinn, would be fairly laidback about it. Although you’d see them wearing more open collared shirts.

Caden: Yes and no. They wouldn’t hide the mark, as they could never be ashamed of it, but they also wouldn’t wish to answer potential questions about it— even if they do like talking about their love for you. So it’d be something that’s showcased when they’re in an environment they’re comfortable with but hidden when it’s one they’re not.

Sloane: They don’t truly care. (They care about the mark but not really about what people think about it.) To them people can take their opinions and shove it… If their mark is on display then it’s on display. They’re proud of having you as their mate, something their wolf wholeheartedly agrees with, but they’re also fine with keeping that connection to themself too.

Blake: Do you know Blake? I wouldn’t be surprised if they got one of those shirts with a bright red arrow pointing towards where the mark is with the text “Second Half of a Bonded Pair, DNI” with a cheeky grin on their face the entire time. They’d hate having to cover it up, which is why it’s sort of fortunate that they typically don’t wear layers.

Reginald/Regina: I think they’d obliviously show it off. It’d be something that they’d bring attention to without realizing and immediately beam when it’s brought up— as they adore talking about the bond they share with you (not getting into too much detail).

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New bondmates not being able to be apart from one another for the first year sounds so... visceral.

I can't imagine what it's going to be like for Scarlet because we'll be her second bondmate (if I remember right), so that has to affect her so much more.

Does this feeling happen even if the vampire bonds with someone of another Supernatural species and gives them their mate mark, or is it exclusive between vampires?

MC's going to have to make sure their bags are packed before they go through the mate mark lol

Scarlett has never had a bond mate — she has an unnamed ex I’ve mentioned a couple of times but not a mate — the mating bond is a one and done type of thing. There is never another person after; it’s why the mating bond is so sacred and taken so seriously when it comes to actually taking the necessary steps to have such a bond in the first place.

The mating bond isn’t exclusive to vampires in the slightest — every supernatural has the potential to create one (as long as it’s reciprocated as a mating bond wouldn’t be made if it wasn’t). I believe I go into a bit more detail in the #midsun: mating bond tag… At least I believe I have anyway. 😅

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A question about mates, how long can they stay apart, like can a long distance relationship work? or is that not an issue and more up to the individual?

Entirely depends on how old the mating bond is — newer bondmates have extreme difficulty being apart, but older bondmates, like Helena and Saraya, can be apart for longer periods of time but that doesn’t mean they necessarily enjoy it. Everything typically settles after the first year, but it’s very obvious, due to instinctual mannerisms, if the mating bond is newer or not.

A long distance relationship wouldn’t be feasible as mates wouldn’t want to be apart from one another. It’s a big factor in why Cienna and Delphine broke up due to the distance that would have to be maintained — because of Cienna’s commitments to the family and Delphine’s to Aurelian Academy.

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What are the life spans of all the RO’s supernatural types and MC? Since MC is technically dead and that makes them immortal, will they outlive their mate and friends?

Here are a couple of links to help in understanding the mating bond (and how it all works):

Mating Bond Lore: Part One and Part Two

Death of a Mate: Part One and Part Two

Human/Vampire Mating Bond

Breaking Mating Bond (Quick Answer: Can’t Happen)

Death Happens Before Bond Is Completed

ROs With Mating Marks (If They’d Show It Off)

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Will we see the mating bond in play during the story, like our MC’s and their RO’s completing the mating bites and how that makes the pair feel/act around one another?

I truly haven’t decided as I know some people would wish to have it happen immediately and others would wish to take their time a bit, actually begin dating before taking that next step (which is what Helena and Saraya actually did). It’ll be a mutual decision, of course, and it will be a canon thing that happens no matter what even if I don’t show it… If I don’t show it in the main game I’d definitely make a small side story for each of the ROs.

Would just have to figure out how to fit in the actual exchanging of bites. When you lock into the romance things do shift though as it it’s sort of accepting you’re bonded without actually having the marks yet.

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NOO SCARLETT...damn when do I have to propose a bond? 5th year into dating? 100th year? 😭😭 please don't leave *Clings onto her pant leg*

Scarlett would be fine with a simple conversation if it’s something the MC wished to wait on — unless it was for an exorbitant amount of time — wherein you simply explain that you’d like to wait X-Amount of Time. Now, if said time passes and nothing occurs, or there’s no semblance of moving forward, that’d be a bit different… It’s truly just the limbo of uncertainty that Scarlett wouldn’t be okay with, and what would truly make her decide to leave, because she’s not going to beg anyone to stay with or love her; she’s quite tired of doing so, in fact.

If you were truly her mate you’d wish to be with her as much as she wishes to be with you. Fear of the unknown is one thing, something that can be worked through together, but jerking her around is a complete other thing.

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I've been reading your tag about the mating bond since I had a question and I wondered if you answered it already (yes, you did!), but because if that, now I have a different sort of related question.

How common are arranged marriages in the supernatural community? Quinn's intro says "a prospected mate in the event that both your warring families wish to unite." - which means there is at least some concept of political marriage I'm assuming. But since mates are not something people can just randomly become, I have a hard time imagining arranged marriages to really work to begin with?

I mean, I know it won't be a thing in the game! Just talking about the setting in general.

Entirely depends. They’re not super common but they’re not uncommon either. As the mating bond, in itself, isn’t a common thing to find — you might have noticed how a lot of characters are single or described to be unmated — which is just another reason why it’s coveted to such a degree. Saraya and Helena got extremely lucky in finding one other, as it took Dimitri quite a bit longer to uncover his own.

If the family cares then they’ll set up their child up with someone that could potentially become their mate — like Cy with Ash — but a lot of the times? They don’t care. They’re searching for more power, to broker new deals, etc… So, they won’t care if their child is married to someone that won’t be their mate — as it’s improbable they’d find that person to begin with due to the rarity of it. (There can also be false alarms, like I’ve mentioned with Scarlett… She thought she found someone but was sorely mistaken.)

If one of the individuals of the union potentially uncovers said person? Well… things could end one of two ways… They are divorced from their spouse and get together with their potential mate or said person is killed before anything more can come of it (without the other individual knowing). Truly just depends on the family and people involved.

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Since matrd pairings don't live long after 1 of them dies...does that mean in the scenario where mc dies after an attack, after getting revenge on the one who killed their mates, the ros will follow suit? Just imagining Scarlett, Blake, Quinn and Sloane going to mc's final resting place and yknow😭 Koda will probably be with his family but leave his house and sit outside for some quiet before succumbing to his heartbreak. I'm not sure about C with their duty to their family and throne

Pretty much, yes. Some individuals can hold off with the grief for a couple years, but it always ends the same due to the absence of the bond, the emptiness that it brings.

Mating bonds are sacred for a reason, and it’s why they’re so protected — mates are to be cherished, to be loved, to be adored.

It’s the price one pays to have that kind of love, that kind of companionship, that kind of bond with another.

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Is reincarnation a thing? Let's say mc has mated with the ros and then was killed, would mc be reborn some time later and have their soul be recognized by the ros?

Probably not… Given the fact that mated pairs don’t typically live long without the other.

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Wait, I'm kinda dumb so please forgive me, but how does the mating mark work on humans? Like, if mc and R were together, would mc not have a mark? Since R is human and not a supernatural?

Not dumb at all! R would need to be changed (don’t worry, it’s canon that they’ll survive said change). Wouldn’t do that to you all if you go down their route.

If the MC were a shifter, R could remain as they are (mainly due to the fact that R couldn’t be changed into a shifter) as vampires are special little beans when it comes to the bond with mortals due to the venom/change.

R could technically have the MCs mating mark as human (and vice versa), but it’d just be better if they were a vampire as well. I explain it a lot better in previous asks in #midsun: mating bond tag. 😂

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wait what is the difference between the bond that is not "complete" or at least is not the "real" experience with humans, to the supernatural bond? like, does the supernatural sense the difference? like maybe something is missing?

Think of it as a rather large bell or alarm. It’s not always super loud, but the supernatural will be able to hear it no matter what. Like an innate thing as their inner beast perks up in interest (however small) towards the other person. With a human? The human would hear the same “bell” but it would be from miles away, distorted and weak.

For a vampire, as an example, the human would need to be changed for the bond to truly snap into place — both for the mortality reason and so they can feel the bond in its entirety — not that it’s not there when they’re human. Other supernatural species, like werewolves, have a bit of an easier time since the mating bites could be exchanged and the human would feel the bond snap into place and become “louder” (so to speak).

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So, would the only mark that would show on us is whichever Ro we decided to be with?

The mating mark would be the only one to stay, correct. Of course, it’ll fade over time— it won’t disappear completely— but it won’t stay as vibrant as it is when it’s first established (unless you decide to keep “renewing” the bond… so to speak… by sharing bites once more).

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I'm sorry for all the angst but what if the mc was killed before the bond, like the mc and the ROs have talked about it and both agreed to it but before they could mate the mc was killed, could the ROs have another mate?

Thank you!

If the mating bond wasn’t completed/initiated then the ROs would be able to find/get another mate, yes. As you both weren’t actually mates in the literal sense— so there was nothing to be broken in that respect.

Now would the ROs get another mate? That truly just depends, I imagine. Both on the character and how they continue to grow years down the line.

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if one half of a mated pair was to die as in murdered since u mentioned lifespans will be relatively the same once bonded, wld the other half die of heartbreak or gone mad? trying to figure out how intertwined their souls wld be once mated n how it wld affect their psyche

The other half of the mated pair would become a husk of who they used to be— if the death hadn’t been by natural causes, and was due to someone then the other half would feel the overwhelming urge to deal with whoever had taken their mate from them. (Like if someone killed Helena then Saraya would hunt said person down.)

After the fact? The other mate would probably be driven mad with grief, as it’d be a hole that’d never be able to be filled within their heart/soul, and end up passing on due to that.

It’s a terrible existence to have had that bond and then to have it torn from you so ruthlessly and completely.

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Regarding the angsty ask, does that mean mating marks can be rejected or couldn't occur if the partners were not spiritually compatible? Or of their beasts can't be bonded? So even if two people are madly in love tried to do a mating mark, they can still be rejected?

Mating marks can’t be rejected, no. As they wouldn’t occur in the first place if the two weren’t compatible. However, you can feel love for someone but not be compatible mates and find that with another.

Typically you’d realize that well before you got into a super deep relationship with another person— as it’s not something that just suddenly happens (I suspended belief a bit with the angst asks. Just couldn’t do so if the RO and MC were actually mated at that point though).

Helena and Saraya, as an example, knew immediately that they were meant to be together— for Helena it was a bit more intense due to the fact that she was a vampire and Saraya was human, but it didn’t make it any less true. However, if they weren’t compatible Helena would have discovered that early on within their relationship due to the discontent of her inner beast/something not feeling right. (The same could be said for Saraya too— it’d just be more watered down.)

The only time it’d happen deeper into a relationship is if the individual was ignoring what was pretty much being screamed at them, but that’s increasingly rare as it’s not an easy thing to do.