Hello! Flitmouse’s reclaiming by Anton has me on the edge of my seat! All of Temsen’s warnings and the WAIVER oml have me wondering if there is ever an ideal time for an omega to be reclaimed? Assuming the omega wants to be reclaimed.
How many years would it take for an omega who had been claimed to have a successful reclaiming? As risky, dangerous, and traumatic the whole process is, I’m sure Flitmouse isn’t the only one to have gone through it.
(And I now there’s the alpha side with giving up an omega but I don’t want this ask to be too long AAHHH)
Just some thoughts I had, I hope you’re having a good day/night!
How many years would it take for an omega who had been claimed to have a successful reclaiming?
There's no ideal time once an omega is physically "healthy." And it's not really a matter of taking "years" in that a failed reclaiming can often permanently damage a relationship with the one trying to 'reclaim' an omega. (We actually see a pseudo-version of this with Nate and Janusz, which is why they literally have to get Christian to formally repudiate the relationship or "reject" Nate's claim, and Nate becomes literally suicidal due to the pseudo-threat to the claim he placed on Christian.)
Flitmouse isn't the only one who has gone through it, but most don't ever bother or try. There's a reason they waited months and months and months and a healthy heat etc. before even trying, in the best possible circumstances, with weeks of meds in advance to prepare Flitmouse, as well as the kind of meds they give before/during major surgery to keep bleeding to a minimum.
It's very safe to say that most omegas don't survive reclaiming. And, for a start, many cannot leave their relationships, they can only be left. Even if they wanted to be in a loving relationship, once they're claimed by someone who doesn't love them, they cannot leave of their own volition. It is too painful for them. There's a reason Flitmouse was starving to death by the time he came to Hillview - he was left by Vadim. Omegas aren't meant to be reclaimed, they are meant to die once rejected, over a short or long period of time: the cruelty of evolution dictates that they are not worth keeping alive by their own biology. Those that survive being rejected at all, usually die as a result of the rejection some time later, or don't make it. Those like Flitmouse, who are uncommonly strong in general, are then also not likely to survive a reclaiming, especially because they nearly never happen with medical preparation like Temsen offered. It's also why Temsen took a while to even tell Flitmouse about this option.
The alpha who claimed an omega is not affected by a broken claim at all. They have zero consequences for leaving a claimed omega, and Vadim would have no idea if his claim was broken. The world is not a fair place!
(Also, casual extra bit of worldbuilding we already have - it's very convenient that most omegas don't have birth certificates so when they die from abandonment, they don't need have a proper funeral / be marked down in death records etc. Most are invisible citizens no matter what kind of lives they lead. It's why Faber works so hard to make sure omegas at Hillview get birth certificates - they tend to get treated better by hospitals and police once they have one, because death records then have to be kept. But for the invisible omegas, many are born, lead tragic lives, and then die, without leaving a trace or even the memory of a name).
