Welcome back, my lovelies! The moment you've all been waiting for has arrived! I won't waste time talking. Enjoy!
"Where are they?" Weiss hissed, staring at the sky. "I was very clear about the time."
"Maybe they got held up." Jaune was leaning against a tree, trying very hard to not go over all of the worst possible scenarios in his head. Of course, it happened anyway. What if Pyrrha and Ruby had been caught? What if there was a surprise raid in Vale? What if Adam had killed Blake and left her corpse on the border?!
"Jaune, you're shaking," Ren cut in gently, touching his friend's shoulder.
Jaune took a deep breath and let it out. "Right. Sorry. Thanks, Ren."
Nora was sticking to Ren, determined to keep him close for as long as possible. Part of her hoped that Ruby and Pyrrha wouldn't show up, so they could all just go home. The other part reminded her that they had a friend to save and couldn't afford to be selfish.
Just when it looked like Weiss's head was going to explode, rustling in the trees signaled the approach of someone. The Huntsmen tensed instinctively.
Ren narrowed his eyes as the sound drew closer. "There's more than two," he murmured.
The others drew their weapons, ready to attack whatever came through. All was silent except for ragged breaths and frantic heartbeats.
Then, a voice called out. "You the Huntsmen? Don't throw any Dust, okay? I'm Sun. I'm friends with Pyrrha. I got two transformed wolves with me. Drop your weapons, and we'll come out."
The humans looked warily at each other. "Do you think we can trust him?" Nora muttered.
"Ruby mentioned Sun," Yang replied. "She said he was one of the nicer pack members." She looked at the moon and sighed. "And I don't think we should waste any more time." She dropped her gauntlets. The others reluctantly followed suit. "Okay, come on out. Try anything funny, and you're dead."
A moment later, a blond, naked man stepped out of the trees. His monkey tail curled nervously as he looked at each of the Huntsmen in turn. "Okay. My friends are coming out now."
Two werewolves emerged from the trees. Both were medium-sized: smaller than Pyrrha, but bigger than Ruby. One was a dark red color, while the other was a strangely bright shade of blue. Their ears were flat with nervousness.
"That's Neptune, and that's Scarlet," Sun said, gesturing to the blue and red wolf in turn. "My friend Sage is taking care of your little prisoner. Sorry if I seem nervous. This is all a bit crazy, still."
"Where are Ruby and Pyrrha?" Weiss cut in. She was red in the face, and her eyes were fixed on a nearby tree, so that she wouldn't have to look at Sun's nude form. At least Ruby and Pyrrha have the decency to wear clothing!
"Cinder made them go on a hunt," Sun said. "Pyrrha thinks she suspects something. Don't worry, though. She filled me in on the plan. Neptune will go with Yang and Weiss to make the distraction down south, and Scarlet will provide backup for Jaune and Nora at the entry point. We also got the stuff for scent masking." His nose wrinkled. "Sweet Luna, it's nasty. Pyrrha's lucky I'm such a good friend."
Scarlet stepped out of the shadows, revealing that he was carrying a large wood bucket in one paw. He set it down, snout wrinkling with disgust.
"Honestly," Sun continued. "I wanted to see this for myself. I still can't believe that there are Huntsmen crazy enough to talk to us."
"Perry called us crazy, too," Ren muttered. "Maybe we are."
"Can we please get on with this?" Weiss asked. "We're losing time chatting here! Sun, if you know the plan, please transform. Ren, get that stuff on you."
Ren grimaced as he caught a whiff of the bucket. "Do I want to know what's in there?"
"No," Sun said flatly. "Deer dung is one of the cleanest ingredients. Just don't ask. Scarlet, help him out."
Scarlet's ears flattened and he whined.
"Scarlet, now!"
The red wolf sighed before dipping a paw into the bucket. It came out brown. He walked over to Ren and started smearing the foul-smelling mixture on his clothes, making a series of comical faces.
Sun, meanwhile, hunched down and allowed the change to take him. He eagerly drank in the moon's light, feeling the familiar prickling of growing fur and the sensation of his long tail shortening and growing bushy. He shook himself as the transformation ended, grimacing as his sensitive nose caught the scent of the mixture.
The others watched his transformation with a mixture of revulsion and curiosity. There was something oddly, grotesquely beautiful about seeing someone change into such a different form.
He was slightly larger than Neptune, with light yellow fur that became streaked with brown as he started smearing the mixture on it.
"Is it a good idea to use such a strong-smelling substance?" Jaune asked. "Won't it alert any nearby werewolves of what's happening?"
"Pyrrha told me that the smell mellows when it dries," Weiss explained. "But, it continues to mask the scent of the person wearing it."
Once both Ren and Sun had a good amount of the disgusting goo covering them, the group split off with Yang, Weiss, and Neptune going south to keep an eye on the border patrols and create a distraction if necessary, and Jaune, Nora, and Scarlet going with Ren and Sun to the vulnerable spot in the border. Several wary glances were exchanged between the Huntsmen and these unfamiliar werewolves, and some distance was kept between the two species. They had to run in order to get to the right spot at the time Perry had specified.
When the main group reached the border, they stopped. The Huntsmen drew their weapons and Scarlet tensed, perking his ears. Sun let out a long sigh, as if he was already regretting his decision to help. Nora touched Ren's arm, ignoring the slimy texture of the scent-disguising mixture.
Remembering something, Jaune reached into his pocket, pulling out some of the cloth scraps with the symbols on them. They had only scattered them during one night, so there were still plenty left. He found one with Blake's symbol and held it out to Sun. "Give her this. She'll recognize the design."
Sun nodded, taking the scrap of cloth between his teeth.
Contrary to expectation, no one spoke. There were no words of encouragement or reminders of the plan. They just exchanged silent glances before stepping back. Sun disappeared into the trees.
Just before Ren left, Nora stood on her toes to tap his nose. He smiled at her before slipping into the darkness after Sun.
…
Sun's mind was buzzing like a swarm of angry hornets. He still couldn't entirely believe what had just occurred. He had just met a group of humans, they hadn't killed him, and now he was going to help them free a total stranger from the most dangerous pack in the area. He would have blamed Pyrrha's alpha stare, but he knew that she hadn't used it once when asking for his help. Even if she had, the influence of a stare only lasted as long as eye contact was kept.
In the end, he had to chalk it up to morbid curiosity. Pyrrha's story about meeting with Huntsmen and planning a crazy rescue was so insane and so wild, Sun just had to be a part of it. Also, the gentleman in him hated the idea of an unwilling woman at Adam's mercy during the mating season.
If I get killed playing the hero, I'm gonna haunt Pyrrha for the rest of her life! he promised himself with a silent huff through his teeth. The cloth in his mouth tickled his chin.
As he walked, Sun allowed his beta powers to activate. Beta wolves made up the bulk of most packs, and were often the main forces during hunts and raids. As a result, their powers allowed them to smell and hear for miles further than any alpha or omega. There was also an extra sense that told them when other living things entered a certain radius. It was invaluable when avoiding enemies and hunting prey, and often served to end border skirmishes before they could even begin.
Honestly, Sun felt that he was much better suited for this mission than Ruby would have been. Never send an alpha to do a beta's job, he thought with no small degree of smugness.
A few uneventful minutes passed, during which Sun kept his gaze fixed on every patch of shadows. The mixture in his fur had dried, allowing his keen nose to smell his surroundings with little trouble. His ears did not hold still for a minute, twitching at the slightest noise and swiveling to catch anything he might have missed. There were a few wolves in the vicinity, but none that were close enough to worry about.
Occasionally, he would sense something behind him and instinctively stiffen, only to remember that it was the dark-haired Huntsman following at a distance. He almost laughed at the irony of being relieved to hear a Huntsman behind him.
One of the nearer wolves started walking in his direction, and he ducked behind a tree, hoping that the human would not keep coming forward. Thankfully, it seemed that the human followed suit and was also hiding nearby. A werewolf emerged a minute later. Her muscles were loose and she looked completely unconcerned. It was a good distance into the territory, so she would normally have good reason to feel at ease. Even if she was a beta, she wouldn't be using her powers at that moment.
Sun waited, holding his breath as she passed. She yawned, scratched behind an ear, and continued on her way. There was no sound from where the human Huntsman likely was.
After waiting another minute, Sun continued. His nose twitched as the scent of several more wolves drew closer. He was nearing the denning area. Now came the hard part: looking for this Blake person.
Even Ruby didn't know what she looked like as a wolf. He had a good description of her Faunus form, but what if she was a wolf right then? He wasn't about to search through the entire denning area. If he didn't see her quickly, she was out of luck. They'd have to try another night.
He could feel the trees thinning out and moved more slowly, going from tree to tree and listening for the sound of any approaching feet. Finally, he was able to peer through a gap at a clearing. Several makeshift wooden dens were set up. Some were holes in the sides of hills or in the ground. He found himself feeling very glad about his nice, dry, stone-bordered cave.
An experimental sniff told him that most of the wolves in the denning area were transformed. There was only the slightest hint of human-esque skin. He decided to try moving closer to that. Adam's pack was supposedly crazy about their wolf forms, turning into them every night, even if they were sleeping. Someone who wasn't transformed was definitely something to investigate.
Sun circled the clearing, trying to see anything that might provide a hunch while also minding the scents of the nearby wolves. Even with his beta powers, if he was detected, there would be no way to get away before someone jumped him. The scent grew stronger as he went around one side, so he started looking for a black-haired cat Faunus.
Rounding another tree nearly caused him to stumble right into her. She was a mere few feet away.
For a moment, Sun froze. A fierce combination of anger, shock, and sadness shot through him. He had never seen a sadder-looking person in his life. Her amber eyes were downcast and dull. Her long, black hair was tangled and matted. Her cat ears were ragged and droopy. Her face was streaked with dirt and tears. She was curled up, eyes open as she looked at the trees. She was hugging herself, as if she was trying to hide her naked form.
No werewolf should be that ashamed, he thought. Even Ruby, who was uncomfortable with nudity, didn't have this degree of shame and loathing in her demeanor. Then, a harder look nearly caused Sun to growl out loud: A thick rope was tied around Blake's neck, the other end attached to a nearby tree. Sun's previous plans to retreat if things got too tough vanished. He would be leaving the territory with this sad-eyed girl, no matter what.
He stepped forward, snorting softly to announce his presence to her.
Blake immediately sat up, her back stiff. Her ears flattened and her eyes narrowed defiantly. "You're dead if you try anything," she hissed.
Her voice was raspy, as if she hadn't had anything to drink in hours. Sun was very impressed with this girl already. She had clearly been through hell, but the fierceness in her eyes was almost as piercing as an alpha stare.
Sun took the cloth out of his mouth and held it toward her, allowing a shaft of moonlight to hit it so that she could see the symbol painted on it. It looked like a black flower. Sun didn't know the meaning, but he saw the girl's eyes widen as she took it in.
Just as quickly, however, her expression became closed. "Yeah, I know the border patrols have been finding those. What's that got to do with me?"
Sun groaned, placing the cloth on the ground. Who does she even think I am? Why is she so defensive? What does she have to lose?
He tried moving closer, holding up his hands in a placating gesture. He rumbled softly in his throat, pointing at the rope and making a slashing motion with his claws.
Blake blinked, tilting her head, before letting out a sigh. "If this is another mind game…"
She thinks I'm one of Adam's wolves! Sun realized. He shook his head rapidly, taking another step forward.
Suddenly, he detected two of the nearby wolves running toward his location. He had no time to react before something heavy hit him from behind. He felt clawed hands pressing his face into the ground. A low growl rumbled in his ear. He twitched, snarling angrily. I'm dead, he thought. I'm dead. This is what I get for being a hero. I'm dead.
His heart sank as the second werewolf appeared in his vision. She was a small beast with bright blue eyes and fur the color of a sunrise. She was growling at him while glancing at Blake. He sensed concern in her demeanor above all things.
Just as he felt fangs closing around his neck, Blake held up a hand.
"Wait!" she whispered, glancing around nervously before looking at the wolf on Sun's back. "Flynt, do you know him?"
Sun felt the weight on top of him shift. At the same time, he saw Blake's shoulders slump with what looked like a combination of shock and relief. The defiant glare vanished, and she looked to be on the verge of tears. "I can't believe… Let him go. I think he's here to help."
There was a pause. Then, the weight left Sun's back. He huffed as he stood, spinning around to see a larger male werewolf glaring suspiciously at him. The wolf had coal-gray fur with streaks of black. A bunch of fresh-looking gashes covered his body.
Sun nodded once to the wolf and turned to Blake. To his surprise, the pinkish-orange female werewolf was already chewing on the rope. The Faunus girl, for the first time, was smiling.
"Looks like we won't need that plan after all," she muttered. She started to stand, though her legs were clearly weak, and she started to fall.
Sun quickly ran to her side, crouching down and huffing quietly, offering to let her on his back. She hesitated only for a moment before climbing on.
Once she was on, Sun glanced between the gray and black wolf and the pink one. He tilted his head in confusion. Why were they helping? The gray one shook his head and motioned toward the trees. There would be time to talk later. Now, they needed to move.
They went into the trees, moving quietly for a few minutes before breaking into a run. This was the most dangerous part of the plan. Since Blake's scent wasn't masked, it wouldn't take long for one of Adam's betas to smell what was happening. Also, these two new wolves would complicate things. Well, they'd better help fight off any pursuers, Sun thought grimly.
Some sound from the side signaled the approach of the human. Thinking quickly, Sun moved to intercept the pink wolf, who was just starting to lunge toward the trees. Ren came out with his weapons drawn, but stopped at Sun's growl.
Blake stared at Ren, mouth open, before quickly recovering. "These two are friends," she said.
Ren nodded and stepped back. "Go. I'll cover you." He pulled several Dust vials out of his pocket. As if on cue, an alarm howl tore through the air from the denning area.
Sun nodded, turning back toward the border and running as fast as possible. He felt Blake tighten her legs and grip his fur. The sound of his two unexpected companions thundered on either side of him. He sniffed as the scent of humans drew close. He saw the other two wolves baring their fangs, and barked sharply at both of them. When they looked at him, he shook his head and motioned for them to slow down. Though clearly reluctant to listen to him, they obeyed. He ran ahead, breaking through the trees and stopping in front of the waiting Huntsmen.
There was a pause as thick as fog, during which Blake and the other Huntsmen stared at each other in disbelief. Then, the cat Faunus let out a wordless cry, sliding from Sun's back and rushing into the arms of the yellow-haired boy and the small girl.
The other two wolves emerged then. Blake quickly explained that they were friends before the Huntsmen could reach for their weapons.
Nora broke away from the group and looked toward the trees, brows creased with worry. Her fists were clenched at her sides. It took every ounce of self-control to keep from running into the trees to find Ren.
Scarlet walked over to Sun, nudging his shoulder with his paw and grinning as he met his gaze. Sun sighed, allowing his friend's omega powers to calm him down.
Jaune, meanwhile, was carefully cutting the loop of rope from Blake's neck, his mouth in a thin, angry line. "Are you okay, Blake? Did he hurt you? I mean…?" He trailed off nervously, wincing when he saw the rub marks on his friend's neck as he removed the rope. There were also several scratches decorating her dirty skin.
Blake sensed the meaning of his question and shook her head. "He didn't violate me…in that way."
Jaune's frown deepened. Her tone indicated that, though she hadn't been sexually hurt, she had been violated in other ways. He glanced toward the trees, waiting to hear Ren's footsteps.
Blake also turned her gaze toward the woods, and the others followed suit. When Ren slipped from the brambles a few yards away, they let out a collective sigh of relief.
"Sorry," he said, dusting himself off. "I had to run around a bit to confuse them. They should run toward the north for a while before realizing they lost me-Oomph!" All of the air left his lungs as Nora hugged him. "Nora," he groaned. "You'll get the stuff on you."
"I don't care!" Nora whimpered, tears streaming down her face. "I'm just glad you're okay! I love you so much, Ren!"
Ren blinked at her, his cheeks reddening as he returned the hug. "I love you too, Nora." He glanced toward the others. "Come on. We need to get out of here."
Sun nodded. The humans didn't fully understand the powers that betas had. It would not take long for the pursuers to realize where everyone had gone. Blake's two new friends were already edging toward the trees.
The large, mismatched group walked deeper into the woods. When it became clear that Blake's legs were still shaky, the gray wolf picked her up, holding her carefully in his furry arms. He rumbled soothingly as they walked.
Weiss, Yang, and Neptune were already at the meeting place. Upon seeing Blake, the two girls rushed forward, pulling their friend into another hug as soon as Flynt placed her on the ground.
"Blake!" Yang sobbed. "I can't believe you're- What is this?!" Her voice turned to acid when she saw the rope burns and scratches that marred Blake's skin. "Did Adam do this? I swear, I'll kill him!"
"Later, Yang," Weiss said softly, not wanting to upset Blake. "Are you okay? Do you need any food?"
Blake shook her head, smiling in bemusement while looking at all of her friends. "No. I…I still can't believe… How…?"
Sun, meanwhile, changed back into his human form. "Okay, what in the name of the new moon is going on? What's with these two other wolves? I'll tell you right now that Cinder won't let three of Adam's wolves into her pack!"
The gray and pink wolves growled at the mention of Cinder's name.
"Sorry," Blake said. "They had to leave with me, though. Adam would have hurt them for helping me." She laughed a little. "We had actually been planning an escape. Oh, this is Flynt and Neon, by the way. They're part of the reason why I wasn't hurt worse while with Adam." She indicated the gray and pink wolves in turn as she introduced them.
Yang was shaking her head slowly. "If this keeps up, we'll have more werewolf friends than human friends." She held out her hand. "I'm Yang. Thanks for helping Blake. She means a lot to us."
Flynt and Neon looked at Yang's hand, but made no move to take it. Neon sniffed it cautiously before backing away again. Neither one looked inclined to change into their human forms.
Sun sighed. "Okay, how about this? Nep and I will take Blake to Cinder. You guys and Scarlet can take these two to the wastelands. Let Perry go, and the three can decide what to do."
The two new werewolves perked up at the mention of Perry's name. Neon's ears twitched and she yipped softly.
Blake shook her head. "I…I don't know if I want to be in a pack…"
"Hey, don't worry," Sun said. He started to reach out to touch her shoulder, but decided against it when she saw the nervous shine that entered her eyes. "Cinder's pack isn't like Adam's. The craziest one is Mercury, and he's just a regular jerk. Besides, Ruby's there."
Blake gasped. "Ruby? She's okay?" More tears gathered in the corners of her eyes.
Yang rubbed the back of her neck. "I guess we forgot to mention that in all the excitement. Ruby helped plan this rescue. She would've been the one to go get you if she and Pyrrha hadn't been called on a hunt. Cinder doesn't exactly know that there are members of her pack making friends with humans."
After some more talking, everyone agreed to Sun's idea. The group split in two, Sun and Neptune escorting Blake to the pack, the Huntsmen and Scarlet taking Flynt and Neon to the wastelands. There was much more hugging and crying before Blake forced herself away from her friends and followed the two werewolves. Though she cringed away whenever one of them got too close, she did manage to return the encouraging smile that spread across Sun's muzzle when she chanced a look at his face.
There was still a lot of confusion and mistrust between multiple parties. There would be much explaining to do and several stories to share. Still, everything was fine for the time being. Blake was safe. Everyone was safe. They could worry about whatever came next later on.
The moon was low in the sky, and there was an electric feeling in the air. If the groups had been closer to the border, they might have heard an enraged roar echoing through the trees. In that moment of relief and exhaustion, it was probably best that they didn't.
Flynt and Neon were another nice surprise that arose while I was typing. Originally, Perry was going to be the one who befriended Blake within Adam's pack, but then he ended up being way weaker than I thought he would be. And a prisoner. So, I thought of what other Faunus characters would work, and immediately thought of Neon. Of course, I had to include Flynt as well.
Also, with this chapter, we have now seen all of the werewolf powers in action. There will be more discussion on how different wolves interact within the pack and the limitations of their powers. And more romance. Now that Blake has been rescued, there will definitely be more romance. I know you're looking forward to that, am I right?
Until next week, peace out!