#instincts

[meamidstthechaos]

I told you so.

Sincerely, Your Instincts.

[chkomori]

[moo-stlyhere]

Fawning

bear hybrid!Price, coyote hybrid!Soap, doberman hybrid!Gaz, raccoon hybrid!Ghost, deer hybrid!reader

When coming home from a long mission, all you want to do is get back to your barracks and take a well-deserved nap in your nest. Getting spooked by some of your teammates leads to an old instinct arising, and they have to work to bring you back to them.

1.4k words, cw: none

Hybrids were supposed to lose certain instincts as they got older. The “baby instincts”, they were called, phased out as a hybrid passed certain developmental milestones. Gaz had outgrown the puppyhood instinct to chew, Johnny was no longer as yippy as he used to be, and Simon didn’t feel the need to climb up something every time he felt he was in danger. Even Price had stopped trying to constantly initiate play fights. You had also stopped showing the endearing traits of a young deer hybrid, but things were different with you. Being a prey-type hybrid, it was hard to get used to life with a pack of predators. The beginning of your placement in the task force was rocky, and everyone’s instincts went haywire for the better chunk of a year. With plenty of patience and long talks, however, you eventually settled in like you were one of their own.

That didn’t mean you didn’t still feel those natural flight or fight instincts around them, though. It was a subconscious matter and often never presented itself, but you always required a full day of isolation after the rough deployments and missions. The snarl of a bear or disorienting yowl of a coyote was enough to make the fur on your little doe ears stand on end, and the constant noise was ceaseless during the fighting. That’s why you were hastily padding down the hallways of the quiet base once the team had returned from a grueling, two week long field operation.

Johnny always had extra energy after missions. Gaz, being part canine as well, tended to be dragged along for his post-battle excursions. Had you not been so sleepy and worn out, you would have heard the little yips and chatter of the two men just around the corner. But your ears were drooping, eyes half-lidded, and mind consumed with thoughts of your nice, warm nest waiting for you in your barracks. You didn’t know what was coming for you until you made a left turn at the end of the hallway, getting caught up in Johnny’s and Gaz’s antics.

It was Gaz that saw you first. He stepped to the left, intent on getting out of your way to let you continue on your path. That led to Johnny whipping his head around and spotting you, and then it all happened so fast. A rush of fur, a loud snarl, and the sound of two feet jumping at you was the last thing you recalled before your mind went blank and you dropped to the floor. Poor Johnny was just trying to play and wear off some steam, and the animal side of his brain didn’t recognize what he had done until Gaz scruffed him and gave him a correctional bite to his ear. “Don’t fucking push the doe, you idiot!” he growled.

“Wha- I didn’t! She must’ve tripped,” Johnny shot back, ears pinned in upset over the accusatory tone. They waited for you to get up, to clarify what had happened… but you didn’t. Johnny and Gaz stared down at where you were lying belly down on the floor, arms and legs tucked neatly under your stomach as your chin rested firmly on the cool linoleum. Your eyes were so wide, ears very flat against your head. The little poof of your tail that normally stuck straight up to display the white patch on the underside was now tucked directly against your bottom, showing nothing but the deep brown of your pelt. If they focused carefully, they could see a slight shiver to your ears and tail.

“Doe?” Johnny tried to get your attention. He crouched down, gently poking your side with a claw, but it was like you were frozen in time. His ears pinned against his head, tail tucking as he let out a loud whine, very clearly frightened he had seriously harmed you. “Gaz, what is this? I didn’t think I touched her, but she’s all petrified. She’s… is she breathing?”

With the analytical charm of his inner doberman, Gaz assessed you. The slew of questions from Johnny rushed past his ears as he thought. This reaction from you was nothing they had seen before, and it had been triggered so quickly. Gaz looked down the hallway and gave a sniff of the air. Price was nearby. Simon was a little further away, but if he was loud enough maybe Gaz could get both of their attention. With Johnny still whining by your side, Gaz opened his mouth to bay out a deep barking sort of howl. Within seconds, the pit-pat-pit-pat of two pairs of feet was rushing down the hall.

“Bloody hell, can’t a bear relax without-” Price started, coming up short as his eyes raked over you. Behind him, Simon was a chittering mess of agitation over the noise. Only when Price thumped him in the belly with a heavy hand did he shut up. “She’s fawned,” Price murmured. He looked between the other three before warily sitting down in front of your face. “This is supposed to be a baby instinct. She should have grown out of this ages ago. What happened?”

The guilt overwhelmed Johnny so bad that he whined while shuffling to hide himself behind Gaz. The latter gave a quick run-down of the events, which earned Johnny a disapproving look from John and another angry chitter from Simon. “I didn’t mean to,” he feebly tried to argue. “Was just all doped up from adrenaline, ye know? I didn’t know she would collapse.”

“Never mind it, Johnny,” Price sighed gruffly. He was keeping a watchful eye on your face, studying how you blinked only when your eyes watered from keeping them open for too long. The heavy weight of his hand atop your head made your body rock slightly when he would drag his claws through your hair, your muscles refusing to move a single inch. “You two should probably leave. She’s scared of you right now, and I need to try to work her out of this.”

Johnny opened his mouth to protest, but a swift nip to the shoulder from Gaz was all it took to send him scampering down the hall with his tail tucked between his legs. Once it was just you, Simon, and Price, they started the process of trying to bring you back to your right mind. Simon sat where you could see him, hands tucked under his legs in a show that he wasn’t a current threat. Price started to pat the top of his thigh when you managed to peel those dilated eyes up to his.

“C’mere,” the big bear cooed. There was an ounce of hesitation in your body, but the slight stirring you made signaled progress. Price was patient, still repeating the cycle of pat, pat, coo in order to coax you closer to him. “You're safe, little doe. I’ve found ya, yeah? Done chased off the big bad coyote that was gonna getcha.”

After a few long minutes of gentle encouragement, you dared to wriggle an arm out from under your body. The way you crawled was slow and low, keeping a vigilant eye and ear out for anything that could harm you. The second your little palm met Price’s knee, his hands were under your armpits and dragging your curled up body close to his own. Price always gave a good bear hug whenever you needed to feel that extra little bit of protection, and right now was no different. Huge thighs and arms encircled your torso as he squished you close, allowing you to feel his strength and slow heartbeat. Slight chuffs emanated from Price’s throat, and soon a few chitters joined the mix.

Simon wasn’t one for comfort, but even he knew that their little doe needed all the help she could get. Deft, clawed fingers rubbed over your ears, making them flicker from the ticklish sensation. It was a satisfying process for Price and Simon to watch your pupils retract and see your muscles become more fluid. It wasn’t long before your eyes were fully closed, chest heaving with the deep breaths that the pure exhaustion left over from the adrenaline brought about.

Price shifted you out of his arms and over to Simon’s as they stood. The grumpy bear persona he was known for was starting to show itself, and he grunted to Simon before starting to thomp down the hall towards the common room where Johnny and Gaz were sure to be. “You get her settled in bed, Si,” he instructed the still-vocalizing racoon. “I’m going to go rip Johnny a new one for not keeping his snout in check.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Pt. 2

[headspace-hotel]

Update on coping with fear:

have realized that "calming down" coping skills seem to make things worse for me, and that the few things that have helped have been more like the "turn slow tigers into fast tigers" trick

with this in mind, when I was having a spike in anxiety before class, I tried something new: I gripped onto my bed post with both hands and clenched my hands around it as hard as I could, for as long as I could, until my muscles were tired

It did not immediately seem to work, but as I walked to class and in class, I noticed that I felt significantly calmer than usual, and I wasn't having the nausea and feeling of tension that I usually did

This is one of the few times I've used an "anxiety coping skill" and had positive effects continue after I was actively doing it.

I think it will be worthwhile to explore more coping skills that try to "flow with" the fight or flight response rather than "flow against?" Trying to calm down is fighting against my body, but simulating 1-5 minutes of intense struggle that I can pour all my focus into (like squeezing a bedpost really hard until I get tired) lets my body actually indulge that instinct and fight it out, which activates the "calm down" switch naturally afterward, as though I fought and won.

I think the reason the original "clench all your muscles and then release" trick didn't work is because it was focused internally on my body, whereas clenching my fists around an object in my environment is focused outwardly, engaging with my environment as if I'm actually engaging with a threat.

The only threat response that doesn't engage non-self is the "freeze" response. "Freeze" is the one I want to avoid, since it doesn't have a clear exit condition.

I feel that a lot of so-called "coping skills" for anxiety can actually activate the freeze response instead of deactivating the threat response entirely. Because "freeze" is the threat response without a clear exit condition, this could possibly lead to chronic low-level activation of the threat response.

Therefore, anxiety coping skill has to center on non-self objects, instead of centering on the body.

[beautifullittlefool1999]

🤪

You know what a bear wants from you, it’ll either leave you alone or kill you. A man will tear you apart and keep you alive to torture you some more- for fun. Why would I not choose simply being torn apart by a bear?

[moonwisps]

“He doesn’t deserve you.”

Beta!Geto x Omega!Reader

୨୧⁩𓎢𓎠𓎟𓎠𓎡𓎢𓎟𓎠𓎡𓎠𓎟𓎠𓎠𓎠𓎠𓎠𓎠𓎠𓎠𓎠𓎠𓎠𓎠୨୧⁩

Suguru never really payed attention to the intricaties of Alpha and Omega dynamics.

As a beta, he was more than happy to not really be involved in that world.

No ruts, No heats, No overbearing instincts that couldn’t get him to properly think.

So yeah.

Suguru was glad he wasn’t a Alpha or Omega.

But lately he did find himself insnared in that very world that he meant to keep away from.

Because of you.

A fellow sorcerer who had just joined Jujutsu high.

He wasn’t sure when he had started feeling like this.

Maybe the first time that Suguru had noticed how exhausted you were after fighting off some Alpha who didn’t know a thing of boundaries.

Or maybe it was the way that you brushed off the weight of expectations that came with being an Omega.

You weren’t as a stereotypical Omega.

You fended for yourself without needing to fawn over some Alpha to help you.

By all means, you kind of seemed to dislike Alpha’s,—As if that didn’t go against your entire nature.

But either way, you had slipped underneath his skin.

Suguru just couldn’t contain his annoyance when some Alphas treated you as if your worth was tied down to your secondary gender.

He wanted to shield you from it, but what could he do?

He’s just a beta.

Still, he tried.

So that’s why it hurt more than expected, when you started gravitating towards Satoru Gojo.

He was everything that Suguru wasn’t.

Loud, confident,—and a natural-born Alpha.

And lately Satoru and you had been spending more time together, way more.

But Suguru tried to tell himself that it was harmless, i mean hello? Satoru basically flirted with everyone.

Still it did not prevent the tug at his heart everytime he saw Satoru near you.

The way his gaze softened when it landed on you never failed you get Suguru’s blood running hot.

An uneasy feeling swelling in his chest.

He wanted to be the one standing by your side. Not because he felt some biological pull,—

But because he chose you..and you chose him.

Could this even work? A beta and an Omega?

Would Suguru be enough to satisfy you or quell your worries?

He never had heard of the dynamic happening, atleast not succeeding.

Still he tried, he wanted to make this work between you.

He had invited you over to his dorm later in the evening. Just a casual way that the two of you had been spending time lately. More often than not. Maybe now he could finally speak up about his worries.

You were more than comfortably sprawled onto his bed, laying upside down that your upper half almost dangled off. A subtle grin tugging at your lips as you looked at an upside down Suguru,—Well he wasn’t, you were.

Nevertheless it looked funny.

But your eyebrows furrowed slightly as Suguru kept fiddling with the case of a cd opening it, closing it, opening it, closing it—Ongoing until you got sick of it.

With a soft huff, you somewhat pushed yourself to a normal position. Rubbing your forehead with a groan from the sudden ache you felt in your head, but you brushed it off. “Suguru—‘re you okay? You seem a little sulky..”

At your voice, Suguru snapped out of his dwelling train of thoughts. The cd case almost slipping out of his hands, blinking a few times until he actially registered your words. Sulky huh? “It’s nothing. Just some exhaustion from the last mission.”

Awkwardly, Suguru scratched at the back of his neck. Giving you a stupid smile that was so obvious of a lie, but you knew prodding at it wouldn’t succeed you in getting him to open up.

So instead you just sat back and pouted a bit. Kicking your feet back and forth while you sat at the edge of Suguru’s bed. Cheeks puffing out as you boredly glanced around the dorm room, perhaps something could spike your interest and you could bring it up because,—

This maddening silence was driving you crazy.

Not that you expected anything different from the always quiet and sulky Suguru, but the air felt different tonight.

Heavier.

Before you could muster up something yourself to talk about, Suguru spoke up again. “You and Satoru have been noticeably spending more time with eachother. It would make sense. I hope he does not cause all too much trouble for you.”

At his words, you surely perked up. Head tlting in confusion and your eyebrows furrowed into a frown.

What exactly would make sense?

“If you’re thinking of what i am assuming,—Satoru is the last person I would mate with. You need not worry about losing me to him, I’m not going anywhere.” Although Suguru kept his gaze averted from you, you made no move to distance yourself from him. Instead you actually moved closer.

Before you knew it, your feet had taken you to stand next to where Suguru was sat on the floor. Your hand coming up to rest onto his shoulder. “He’s too loud for me. Really, Satoru is the opposite of what I look for in a mate. I wouldn’t be able to deal with his Alpha chaos all the time,—Too much work.”

“What do you look for then?” An audible swallow was heard through the suddenly quiet dorm. Suguru’s fingers clenched into the fabric of his trousers, internally restraining himself.

“You.”

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I got kind of sloppy at the end, so sorry if its bad. Idk if i should make a part 2 or continue a series of this, let me know what you guys think (๑ᵔ⤙ᵔ๑)

(if there are spelling mistakes, please tell me bc i made this while half asleep)

[calciferiguess]

day 15: instincts🌼

piglin tommy with gold fur whos with me🗣️‼️