AWOO, MUTHAFUCKAS! We're back this week with another Vale chapter, this time featuring Cinder and her pack!

Trigger Warning: The first scene between Cinder and Emerald is very much based on a domestic abuse situation. Not sure if it will actually trigger anyone, but I'd rather be safe.

Anyway, enjoy!

Emerald entered the denning area to see Cinder yelling at a very terrified omega while the rest of the pack watched, not daring to intervene.

"You left a clear trail of blood and vomit between here and the edge of the town! Do you want the Huntsmen to come and kill us all?!"

The omega was shaking violently, eyes wide. He opened his mouth as if he wanted to speak, but was too petrified to remember any words.

"We're supposed to be leaving a message with those filthy humans, not a clear trail to where we sleep! You'd better hope no one saw you!"

Emerald saw a slight widening of the omega's eyes, and hurried to speak up before Cinder could notice. The way things were going lately, Emerald didn't doubt that her leader would kill him if angered further. Whether he was a former member of Adam's pack or not, Emerald was honestly tired of watching fellow werewolves die.

"It was my fault, Leader," she said hurriedly. "I told him I'd clean the trail, but caught the scent of a deer nearby." She pulled her kill into clear view to prove the point. "But, it was a bit faster than I had anticipated, and it took me longer to catch it. I should have cleared the trail first. I'm sorry."

The omega was staring at Emerald, pathetic, tearful gratitude written plainly on his face. She quickly averted her gaze, feeling a little uncomfortable.

Cinder was glaring at Emerald, an unsteady flame in her golden eyes. She glanced at the omega, suddenly not interested in him at all. "No prey for a week, since your stomach clearly can't handle it." Her lip curled in distaste as she smelled the sour tang of vomit lingering on the wolf's mouth.

Emerald bit her lip. The omega had likely purged everything in his stomach while carrying that rotten prey to Vale. If he couldn't eat anything else for a week… Cinder's effectively killing him, she thought. And now, I'm in trouble. A fat lot of good that did…

As if reading her thoughts, Cinder beckoned for Emerald to follow her. Once in her den, she turned around, her eyes narrowed. "I don't like liars," she growled.

Emerald blinked, resisting the urge to take a step back. "Liars?"

"Yes, liars," Cinder continued, her voice very even all of a sudden. "You didn't promise that omega anything. You just wanted to lessen his punishment. Why? Is an omega who, until recently, belonged to Adam suddenly more important than your leader's judgment?"

Emerald felt a shiver go through her. She didn't like the tone of Cinder's voice at all. It was just a little too level. She knew that she had to tread carefully. No making excuses. Make it her fault, as always.

"I…I guess I'm getting too emotional, Leader," she said, bowing her head meekly. "I've been doing such a bad job of balancing sleep with this new plan to starve the humans. I'm sorry I can't adapt correctly. I must be completely useless to you right now."

Cinder looked at her beloved beta, and felt her heart softening despite herself. Poor thing. She has been pushed so hard lately. I suppose I can be kind, considering how loyal she's always been. She stepped forward, cupping Emerald's cheek, gripping her a little tighter when she flinched. "There, now," she cooed. "You brought more prey home. That's not useless. You've always been loyal to me. Don't think I've forgotten that." She drew her close, stroking her hair. "That's how I could tell you were lying about that promise. If I thought you had actually done something so stupid, I would have killed you on the spot."

Emerald's shoulders shook, and her breaths became short. Cinder's tone was so wrong! What was happening to her? Was it the alpha stare? It had to be. She didn't dare ask, though. She didn't dare!

Cinder continued to hold her beta as she trembled and gasped for air. "Hm. You do seem stressed. You should really try sleeping more." She kissed Emerald's brow. Then, she drew back, though her hand remained on the beta's cheek.

"Of course, you realize I have to punish you," she continued nonchalantly. "Since the whole pack now thinks you blundered like that. I can't let them think I'm showing favoritism."

Emerald bit back a sob, closing her eyes as she felt the gentle palm on her cheek turn to the sharpness of nails.

….

Mercury was ready for the pain to end.

He dragged himself through the trees, away from the original denning area that most of the pack had abandoned, his useless hind legs sending sharp signals of agony through him with each movement. His gray eyes were narrow and his fangs were bared as he searched for the nearest Huntsman. They were always out at this time. They'd put him out of his misery, even if none of the wolves back home would.

After his unfortunate encounter with a Huntsman that left both of his legs broken, he had been left by Cinder when most of the pack moved to Adam's old denning area. The wolves that had remained had been former Adam wolves, and were utterly incompetent in most things. And they wouldn't even kill him out of mercy, because they didn't want to risk Cinder's wrath!

Mercury wasn't sure if it was idiocy or malicious intent that had caused them to set his legs incorrectly. Either way, he had healed wrong, and was incapable of fixing himself. He was too afraid to go to Cinder. She was so unstable, she'd probably kill him on the spot, and he didn't want his last sight to be his leader's rage-filled face. He'd rather face an honorable death at the hands of a Huntsman. Maybe he could even kill one last human before his own demise.

Activating his beta powers, he sensed a Huntsman nearby, one who was walking slowly, wandering almost. This would be the one to kill him, and maybe die alongside him.

Gritting his teeth, Mercury continued to drag himself toward his death.

…..

Taiyang knew that he was in no fit state to go hunting. He could probably appeal to Ozpin or Glynda, and ask for a night off. With the recent pullback of Huntsmen being sent out, it probably wouldn't be a problem. Clearly, they didn't need everyone going out each night anymore.

However, he also knew that he wasn't in a fit state to stay at home either. He'd just end up sitting at his chair, unable to fall asleep, trying to make sense of what Qrow had told him.

Both of his daughters were alive? Ruby was still Ruby? How could that be true, after everything he had been taught about werewolves, after the years he had spent hunting and killing them to protect his home.

What if Qrow was being bewitched? What if he had been bitten? Should Taiyang have killed him instead of letting him leave?

Then again, what if Qrow was somehow right? Taiyang thought about that fight in the woods, remembered how hard he had tried to kill Ruby. He thought about all the werewolves that had met death at his hands over the years. If Qrow was right, what kind of person was Taiyang? Was Vale just a town of murderers?

But the werewolves attack us, he told himself.

Did they start off attacking us, or is it self-defense for them? asked another part of his mind.

He shook his head, gritting his teeth angrily. No matter what was true, he had to be careful. Any Grimm or werewolf would kill him on sight if he didn't pay attention to his surroundings. With months of practice, he managed to push his feelings aside and focus on the task at hand.

The woods were quiet. Too quiet. Hardly a deer or rabbit could be heard. Taiyang's stomach growled as he thought about the measly meal waiting for him at home.

Then, through the trees, he heard something. There was the sound of scuffling followed by the sound of dragging. As the sound drew closer, the whimper of a wounded animal tugged at Taiyang's heart. Drawing his sword, he approached the sound, ready to put the creature out of its misery.

He stopped short as he broke through the trees, as did the creature. It was a werewolf, a huge, gray beast with dark eyes and a fanged grimace on its face. Taiyang instinctively reached for his sword, then paused when he saw something else: The werewolf was injured. Its hind legs were twisted at an unnatural angle. He realized that the grimace was an expression of pain.

If he had met this wolf only a few days ago, he would have killed it immediately. It wouldn't have even been a question. Now, however…

Slowly, Taiyang sheathed his sword, taking a careful step back as the wolf tried to drag itself closer. "Easy, now," he muttered, even as he wondered if Qrow's craziness was rubbing off on him.

To his surprise, the wolf stopped, blinking its dark eyes.

Taiyang wet his lips nervously. "D-Do you want help?"

The werewolf gave him an incredulous look, as if it hadn't been expecting to be spoken to. This, of course, made perfect sense, all things considered. Then, it blinked and tilted its head back, closing its eyes and rumbling. Taiyang's heart twisted in his chest. The werewolf understood him…and was asking to be put out of its misery.

He could do it. He could do it, and get on with his hunt, forgetting everything else. It would be so easy. It didn't have to be difficult! He could…

"Let me look at your legs," he said instead.

The werewolf's jaw actually dropped. Its ears shot up and it stared at Taiyang with a dumbfounded expression that was so purely human, the Huntsman nearly laughed at the absurdity. After a moment, its mouth closed and it inclined its head.

Saying a silent prayer, Taiyang made a wide circle around the wolf. He glanced at the beast once, then carefully knelt beside its legs. He let out a sympathetic hiss between his teeth when he saw the damage. "This healed wrong," he muttered.

He saw the werewolf rolling its eyes as if to say: "Tell me something I don't know!"

Taiyang felt the legs, wincing when the beast yelped. "I could fix this, but I'd have to break the bones again and re-set them." He looked at the wolf. "Though, I'm not sure what will happen when you shapeshift back. You do still have a human form, right?"

The werewolf rolled its eyes again as it nodded.

Great. This one has an attitude. Taiyang sighed. "If you want me to help, turn back into your human form." When the werewolf gaped, he shrugged. "What do you have to lose at this point?"

The werewolf made a grumbling sound, turning away. Then, the fur started to shrink.

Taiyang watched, feeling more than a little repulsed as the beast in front of him changed. The fur disappeared, the bones re-aligned, the muscles shrank, and the monstrous face began to resemble something more human. At one point, it looked to be halfway between man and wolf, and the sight made Taiyang want to retch.

When it was over, a young man was lying on the ground, a young man who looked only a little older than Yang. He looked over his shoulder at Taiyang, his gray eyes as sharp as they had been when he was a wolf. "So, what now?" he muttered in a bitter voice tinged with lingering confusion.

Even after seeing the transformation, even after looking at the werewolf's undeniably human form, Taiyang winced at the sound of a wholly human voice coming from it. Him, he thought. Suddenly, thinking of this creature as an it was impossible.

He tried to push any conflicting thoughts from his mind. He had committed himself to helping this kid (it was easier now to think of him as a kid than as a wolf), and he needed to concentrate.

"You'll need to bite down on something." He took a smooth, clean piece of wood from his medical bag that was to be used for that very purpose. "I'll break the bones, then wrap them in the correct position. After that…" He paused. "Um, I'm not sure if I can help you back to wherever you're from…"

"Oh, no you don't!" the kid snapped. "You aren't finding our denning area. I'll sleep out here. I'll be fine, as long as none of your kind find me."

Taiyang noticed with no small measure of discomfort that the kid said "your kind" in a tone very similar to Jacques' when he talked about "those beasts." Maidens, Qrow really was right…

He placed the piece of wood between the kid's teeth, noticing the slight tremor of fear that went through him as he moved back to the legs. He grasped one of them, feeling the spot where the bone had healed wrong. "Okay, ready?"

"Hn…"

"One, two…now!"

…

Emerald was nursing several fresh scratches and bites, including a particularly deep one on her shoulder, when a loud, muffled yell echoed from nearby. Her blood went cold as she immediately recognized the voice. Mercury! Forgetting her own pain, she broke into a run, turning on her beta powers.

She sensed Mercury. He was in his human form for some reason, and a human was with him! No! she thought. She couldn't lose her best friend. Not now! She broke through the trees, standing up fully, roaring a challenge at the Huntsman, who stood up, reaching for his sword.

"Mmph!" Mercury turned his head to the side, forcefully parting his jaws and spitting the wood onto the ground. "Em, stop! He's helping me!" he shouted, his voice thick with pain. Black dots danced in his vision as he tried not to pass out due to the sheer force of the throbbing in his freshly-broken leg.

Emerald stopped, her paw still raised mid-slash. She stared at Mercury, then at the human, who was slowly sheathing his sword, a cautious expression on his face. She lowered herself until she was on all fours. She then noticed the wood with the deep bite marks, and the splint that the human had been in the process of tying to Mercury's leg. Was she hallucinating? Had Cinder hurt her mind somehow when she had hit her head?

She padded closer, keeping one red eye on the Huntsman. One look at Mercury's legs told her what the problem was. She growled softly. Why hadn't he come to the other denning area if it was this serious?

Mercury shook his head. "I didn't think I had a chance," he sighed. "Cinder, you know how she's…" He paused, noticing his friend's wounds. A stab of grief and anger went through his chest. "Did she do that?"

Emerald glanced to the side, growling softly.

"Who's Cinder?" Taiyang asked, slowly moving back over to Mercury's leg and starting to wrap it again. He noticed the raw understanding and pity that passed between the two werewolves, even though they were in their different forms, and one wasn't speaking. It was so strange.

"Our leader," Mercury said shortly. "Don't try to fish for too much information, human."

"I won't." He carefully tied the leg, then went to the next one. "You're gonna want to take that wood again."

Mercury paled, but did as he was told. He braced himself, gritting his teeth for the agony that was to come.

Emerald flinched as the snap rang in her ears even more prominently than Mercury's second muffled scream. She turned her head away for a few moments, then looked back, whimpering gently.

"Can you carry him somewhere safe?" Taiyang asked. "The other Huntsmen won't be as kind as me."

"Why are you doing this?" Mercury asked, once he spat out the wood. He was trembling, and felt close to fainting, but he had to know. "What do you have to gain?"

"Information," Taiyang said.

"I knew it!"

"Not on your pack. Have you met a werewolf named Ruby?"

Mercury snorted. "Ruby? Yeah. I remember her. All this shit started when Pyrrha brought her into the pack."

Taiyang's head snapped up. Pyrrha was the name Qrow had used for that other werewolf leader. There's no way this wolf would know it, unless it was real. In that moment, Taiyang had all the proof he needed that Qrow was sane, but he had to know more. "What happened with her? Tell me everything you can, please."

Mercury gave him a searching look. "I guess it can't hurt to tell you about that… She and another girl were bitten when another pack did a raid on your town. The leader was obsessed with the other girl, I guess. Pyrrha, one of our former packmates, rescued Ruby and brought her into the pack." He decided to leave out the fact that he had been briefly attracted to the young female. "Then, the other girl escaped. I think her name was Blake…"

Taiyang nodded once. "Yes."

"Friends of yours, huh?" Mercury pushed himself up with his hands, looking at the Huntsman with new interest. "Wait, are you one of those Huntsmen who wanted to make pets of us?"

"Huh?" Taiyang tilted his head. "What do you mean?"

"Pyrrha, Ruby, Blake, and a bunch of others were banished from the pack for letting some humans make them into pets. They were acting like their guard dogs! We haven't seen those humans in a long time either. We figured they left your town afterward." Mercury narrowed his eyes. "Look, just because you healed me doesn't mean you can make a pet out of me!"

"I don't want you as a pet," Taiyang said, even as his heart pounded like war drums, making a ringing noise in his ears.

Yang and the others. That's who this kid's talking about. They reached out to Ruby and Blake, and befriended this Pyrrha. He thought back to the day when Weiss had changed in the middle of town, and his throat tightened. We drove them out. Of course they wouldn't kill Weiss knowing what they knew. We drove them out, while these wolves drove Pyrrha, Ruby, Blake, and several others out. This is all just a misunderstanding. How many people have died needlessly?!

Mercury noticed tears trickling down the Huntsman's cheeks, and snorted. "Crying for me now? I guess I should be flattered."

Taiyang looked at the kid, then at the red-eyed wolf, who was giving him a confused, searching look. Her expression was so human, even with her lupine face. How had he been so blind? "I'm so sorry," he whispered. "For all we've done."

Mercury raised an eyebrow, then let out a humorless laugh. "Don't be so quick to apologize. We probably killed some of your friends at some point."

Something twisted in Taiyang's gut, but he didn't say anything else. Suddenly, he couldn't think of anything to say or do. It was as if he couldn't say or do anything, as if he was suddenly too tired to function in any way that didn't involve walking, eating, and sleeping. He needed to leave.

He stood up, glanced at Emerald and Mercury once more, then left without a word, the sound of his boots on the dry leaves seeming to echo through the trees.

Please come back like you promised, Qrow, he thought. And tell me how I can help bring my girls home.

Meanwhile, Emerald waited until the Huntsman was outside her radius before picking up Mercury. She cradled him carefully, rumbling an apology when he let out an involuntary yelp, ignoring the pain as he pressed against some of her new wounds. She thought for a moment before walking toward the wastelands, the same place where Pyrrha's group had been exiled.

She couldn't take him back to the pack, after all. Not like this. They'd smell the scent of the Huntsman on the cloth. They'd wonder who had broken Mercury's leg again. These humans are so strange, she mused. Most werewolves resign themselves to death after a certain point, but these humans just keep finding ways to cling to life. Or maybe they have more ways to cling to life. Who knows?

She started to wonder what else they could learn from the humans, but quickly stopped herself. Hoping would do no good. This one Huntsman was clearly a fluke. Besides, they were already at the edge of starvation. When winter came, only one species would survive to see spring.

Or none…

Tomorrow, it all begins again. Prepare thyselves. After the rushed plot in Volume 4 (and the lack of plot in some cases *cough* skipping entirely over Yang coping with her disability *cough*), I'm a bit nervous. However, the trailers have been nothing but amazing, so maybe V4 was just that one dud of a half-season (because the last few episodes featuring Ren and Nora were awesome). It happens. My main worry concerning the series overall is that they have brought in so many characters in such a short amount of time, it may be impossible to give them all the attention and development they deserve with how many episodes RT can produce each season. Ah well. We'll see.

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

Praise Monty and peace out!