AWOO, everyone! We're back with Werewolf Friday and are going back to our friends in Obsidian. Enjoy!

"If you ask me, you're too good for these yahoos," Roman grumbled to Scarlet and Sage. "We all are. They still have the nerve to come up here and ask for my stock."

"Well, we did offer it when we came here," Neo pointed out. "Here comes someone now."

Scarlet perked up, putting on his best smile. "Hello. What can we get you?"

The man walked up to the cart and looked expectantly in Roman's direction, acting as if he hadn't heard Scarlet.

Scarlet hesitated, then tried again. "Uh, can we help you with anything?" he asked, speaking a little louder.

The man continued looking past Scarlet and toward Roman. When Roman simply looked back, he cleared his throat.

"Yeah, I know you're there," Roman said calmly. "And so does my apprentice. That's why he asked what we can get you."

"Roman, it's fine-" Scarlet started to say.

"No, it's not," Roman snapped, glaring at the man, whose mouth was set in a stubborn line. "If you're too good to talk to Scarlet, you're too good to talk to me. Now, are you going to answer his question?"

The man scowled and walked away without a word.

Scarlet cringed, glancing over his shoulder at Roman. "I appreciate your support, but we probably shouldn't make the people here mad."

Roman huffed. "You're already letting them muzzle you. Don't sacrifice all of your dignity. Nothing's worth that."

Scarlet sighed. "You're right. I guess it's my omega nature. We're supposed to be the emotional support for the rest of the pack, and the occasional scapegoat when they get too angry. We're made to take abuse, and don't have a lot of pride."

"Well, you're not exactly in a traditional pack," Neo noted. "I doubt Pyrrha would ever let you act as a scapegoat."

"Yeah, and neither will I!" Roman declared. "I look out for my apprentices, okay? Even the fake ones."

Neo smiled. "You certainly do. Remember when I first started working for you?"

Roman snorted loudly. "As if I could forget. You barely said two words a week!"

"Really?" Scarlet tilted his head.

"Oh, yes," Neo said. "I used to hate talking. Even now, I only really feel comfortable talking with friends for a long time. Sometimes, when we enter new towns, I pretend to be mute so I won't have to deal with anyone."

"Some people would try harassing the 'poor mute girl,'" Roman said, rolling his eyes. "A thorough beating with that umbrella of hers always set them straight."

"If you didn't get to them first," Neo noted, smiling fondly at her mentor. She returned to sorting through their books. "Good thing no one's asked for these."

"Well, I wouldn't give them away for free," Roman declared. "It's one thing to be charitable with essentials, but I'm not a library."

"I wish I could read," Scarlet sighed. "The more I hear about your books, the more curious I get."

"I could teach you!" Neo said excitedly. "I'll start you on The Gentleman and the Tailor. Maybe it'll give you and Sage some ideas." She winked cheekily.

"Ideas on what?"

"Oh, please," Roman groaned. "If you're going that route, you should start with Riding the Stable Boy."

"I want to make him like reading, not scar him for life!"

"How would you even ride a stable boy?" Scarlet asked. He looked at Roman's smirk and Neo's suppressed laugh for a moment. Then, his eyes widened. "Oh, by ride you mean…" He burst out laughing. "You humans have the funniest words for sex!"

"It's called innuendo, kid," Roman said. "When you're in a land ruled by religion, you gotta get creative."

"Yeah, werewolves don't have innuendos," Scarlet said. "We just say sex, mating, or mounting."

"I wonder what an erotic book written by a werewolf would be like," Neo said with a chuckle.

"Teach the kid how to read, and you may find out one day!" Roman picked up another box. "But for now, let's get back to work. We still have more stock to sort."

Yang and Sage, meanwhile, were helping with the efforts to rebuild and fortify the parts of Obsidian that had been damaged during the attack. It seemed that, while the Grimm coming in where Yang had been were stopped, several had managed to sneak around the edge and get in from the sides. There was also the damage to the rooftops from the vampire itself.

"What I don't get," Yang muttered as she handed Nebula and Dew a huge plank from the ground. "Is why the vampires don't just wipe this place out. I mean, no offense, but it seems like they could do it pretty easily."

"Vampires drink blood to survive," Nebula explained. "It's easier to keep us alive as a food source. They attack at intervals to keep us from becoming strong enough to fight back. When people first started fleeing here, they let them, because it made our defense weaker. Then, they started herding people back when they tried to run."

"They take a few people every couple of weeks," Dew explained. "Sometimes we stop them, but they always up their efforts when they're hungry. They'll kill us all eventually, then move on to a new place."

"Not if my pack can help it," Sage said calmly, bracing under another large beam and pushing it up to where Brawnz was waiting.

Nebula frowned. "You know, we'll need to muzzle and collar them too."

"They won't allow it," Sage replied. "Scarlet and I are omegas, and can put up with certain things. The alphas and betas will not let themselves be muzzled or collared. You can trust them, however, just as you can trust us."

"I guess we'll see tonight," Dew muttered as she started nailing another plank. She tried to not show how much she was shaking. Talking so casually to someone she knew was a werewolf was so surreal. It was hard to see the large, soft-spoken man and the huge, brown-furred beast as one individual. If we weren't so desperate… She shook her head slowly.

Yang decided to change the subject. "So, has anyone been turned?"

"No," Nebula said. "If someone is bitten, we kill them."

This sounded disturbingly familiar. "Um…isn't it possible for them to live? I read that only the bites of Lords and Ladies change people."

"We're not taking that chance," Brawnz said firmly. "We let people live at first, but they only got weaker and sicker. The bites became infected, and the people became sensitive to the sun. They were slowly turning. There's no doubt in my mind. Some of them actually started begging for death. Killing them was a kindness."

Sage nodded slowly. "Werewolf bites aren't like that. The bite that turns you leave a mark, but that's it. I've been told that new werewolves feel more energetic in the days leading up to their first full moon."

"What…do werewolves do, exactly?" Nebula asked. "I mean, if you aren't actually hellspawn."

Yang shot Nebula a look, but Sage's expression remained neutral. "We hunt, we eat, we sleep, we mate, we have pups, we spend time with our packmates." He shrugged. "We live, just as you do."

"Why the hell did we start killing each other, then?" Brawnz wondered.

"That's the big question, isn't it?" Yang muttered, thinking back to a time that felt like ages ago, when she had been convinced of the necessity of killing her own sister. Remembering that, she found it a little harder to hate the townsfolk of Obsidian for their behavior and mistrust.

Really, this is going better than we could have hoped, she thought. Everyone knows about the werewolves, and no one's coming after us with torches and pitchforks yet. If we can just kill those damn vampires, we might actually have enough humans on our side to go home.

Then, the real battle would begin.

…

At the edge of town nearest the mountain, a huge stake was driven into the ground. Two thick ropes were tied to it. At the ends of the ropes were two large, brown leather collars. Scarlet and Sage approached these, trying not to tremble too visibly.

They were aware of several wide-eyed townsfolk watching them. They held each other's hands for a moment before taking off their clothes and transforming.

The familiar light of the moon seeped into their bodies, temporarily erasing the shame and anger that had filled their chests. When they were fully transformed, however, they were aware of several horrified gasps. If they had turned around, they would have seen that a few people had fainted.

Nebula and Brawnz were decidedly pale as they approached with the newly-made muzzles. Nebula went over to Scarlet while Brawnz approached Sage. Though the werewolves bowed their heads and held still, the Huntsmen's hands still shook. Both of them were ready at any time to suddenly feel fangs sinking into their flesh.

It never happened, however. The muzzles were secured successfully. They had been made with a softer leather, at Nebula's request, and allowed the wolves to open their jaws partially, so that they could drink from the water bowls that would be placed near them.

Next came the collars. Nebula and Brawnz didn't shake as much with those. "I'm sorry," Nebula whispered. "See you in the morning."

The Huntsmen backed off. A few remained to guard the town's borders, but kept their distance from the tethered werewolves.

Scarlet's ears were flat and his claws were digging into the ground. Even an omega had his limits, and this humiliation was severely pushing those boundaries. The leather around his neck and face felt wrong in every way. He hated feeling his breath being cut off if he walked too far. He hated not being able to open his mouth fully. The pure indignity of it all made him want to weep.

Sage paced back and forth, feeling more restless than he could remember ever feeling. He never was this antsy when in the woods and could move where he wanted. Now, fully aware of his vulnerable, limited position, he wanted nothing more than to slash the ropes and rip the horrible leather muzzle from his face. Only severe mental discipline prevented him from howling in anger and rubbing his face against the rocks to try and weather away the straps.

For a few hours, all was silent. The two wolves curled up next to each other. They each had a single drink of water before deciding that the sensation of wet leather against their fur wasn't worth it.

At one point, they heard what sounded like children whispering. Occasionally, they'd catch a statement of "Come on, go closer," or "Touch its back. I dare you!"

This only added to the sense of humiliation that filled the two wolves. Scarlet hid his face against Sage's shoulder and whimpered quietly as his mate tried to lick his ears.

Then, Sage's nose twitched and his ears flicked. A familiar, cold smell was entering his nostrils, along with the sound of large footsteps and wingbeats. Grimm. He stood up and started to bark, keeping his eyes fixed on the mountain.

The Huntsmen immediately readied their weapons. Brawnz approached the two werewolves, though didn't move to take off their muzzles until he saw the first set of yellow eyes in the distance.

The werewolves remained collared, much to their anger, as the Grimm surged toward the town. Overhead, a huge flock of Nevermore circled. They were aware of some diving behind them, but were unable to investigate. Instead, they braced themselves and waited for the Grimm to come to them.

An Ursa reared up before them, but was swiped at by Sage, who strained against his rope to try and reach his enemy. His fur bristled and he growled deeply, hating the feeling of fighting at the end of a leash. All he could do was strain against his collar and bark and snap like a dog. Even in the heat of battle, he felt wholly degraded.

Then, just as quickly as the Grimm came, they turned and retreated. It was Scarlet who heard the panicked scream of one of the townsfolk. He roared savagely, tugging against his collar as he tried to pursue the Nevermore carrying the poor victim.

Several crossbow bolts flew after the Nevermore flock, but always missed the one carrying the human. Every time Nebula got a clear shot, another Nevermore would move to block it. Some died in their attempts to keep their masters' prey safe. Soon, the screams died out and the night became silent.

Scarlet and Sage thrashed and howled. Even without using their omega powers, the fear and helplessness of that kidnapped villager had shaken them to the core.

"It won't do any good. Hey!" Brawnz shouted, not daring to approach them. "There's no getting anyone back once they're taken to that mountain. It's full of Grimm and is the home of their Lady. The last hunting party we sent up there was completely slaughtered."

It took several minutes for the werewolves to become calm. They continued to glare at the mountain, their mouths frothing as they thought of what the vampires were probably doing to that poor human. Finally, they wiped the spit from their mouths and sighed dejectedly.

Brawnz took a step closer. "I…I'm going to need to put those muzzles back on."

The werewolves didn't resist as the leather was bound to their faces once again. Their ears were down and their eyes were hollow as they took in the true bleakness of their situation.

What good would they be in defeating the vampires if they were doomed to be tied up every night? They were little more than glorified watch dogs! There was also Pyrrha's rage to consider. Though their leader was very level-headed, they had a feeling that she would be furious if she could see them now. What if they hadn't earned the humans' trust by the time the pack arrived? What would happen then? Would the relationship between werewolves and civilized folk only become worse?

These questions, and many more, buzzed through Scarlet and Sage's minds like hornets, and didn't go away even when morning came and the hateful collars and muzzles fell heavily to the ground.

That bit at the beginning is based on something that happened a few times at my old job. I had several black coworkers, and there were multiple times when a person, usually an old white guy, would come up and act like they were deaf when my coworker asked if they needed anything. When I walked up to the counter, the person would immediately turn and start talking to me. Bigotry is still very real and very prevalent in today's society, which is why I like portraying it in fictional situations. It's also why I wish that canon RWBY could have shown a bit more Faunus/human tension rather than just giving us a few scenes with Cardin, a brush-over of the SDC's policies, and a brief explanation of Menagerie. There's a lot that could have been done in the early volumes.

If you like what you see and want to show extra support in exchange for rewards, my P/atreon is Solora Goldsun.

Peace out!