#no more impenetrable than Werewolf or whatever anyway

[mekanikaltrifle]

you don't like Mage? 🧙 woosh woosh? ✨🌟

[razieltwelve]

Partners (RWBY AU Snippet)

Once upon a time, Yang had dreamed of being able to transform into a dragon. Reality, however, had shown that being able to turn into a dragon wasn’t all sunshine and rainbows. A lot of the time, it was actually pretty horrible. 

Whenever she went anywhere, she had to worry about would-be heroes trying to win fame by defeating her. Most of them got the message after a little bit of mangling and some singeing, but some of them had proven to be incredibly (some would say stupidly) stubborn. 

Then there was all the shrieking and wailing that went on whenever she stopped at a village. It didn’t matter that she was perfectly happy to hand over some money for a cow or two to snack on. All villagers saw was a dragon, and the ones that didn’t run away screaming at the top of their lungs went after her with stakes and pitchforks. It was actually kind of sad. Stabbing her with a pitchfork wasn’t going to do anything except break the pitchfork, and most villagers needed their pitchforks to make a living or to drive off real villains like the occasional vampire or non-law-abiding werewolf.

And then there were the wizards who were obsessed with enslaving her and bending her to their will. She dealt with at least one of those a month although she had recently invited a dozen of them to do their worst. It had taken her about five minutes to incinerate the lot of them, so hopefully, she wouldn’t have to deal with anymore of that silliness for at least a year or so. It turned out that wizards were highly flammable and somewhat vulnerable to being clawed or bitten.

But as troublesome as turning into a dragon could be, it did have its perks. Normally, being caught in pouring rain would have been a fairly miserable experience, but dragons had nothing to worry about. Her fire kept her warm no matter how cold it was, and her scales were more than adequate for standing up to the rain. All she needed was a nice hill to rest against, and she’d be set. Flying in rain was fine, but being struck by lightning sucked. It wasn’t like the lightning could kill her, but falling out of the sky was not something she enjoyed.

Alas, being a dragon also meant she was bereft of company. Well, that wasn’t entirely true. A family of enterprising squirrels had decided to take shelter in the shadow she cast after a bolt of lightning had destroyed their tree. They would probably go look for a new tree once the weather died down, but they’d apparently realised that if she wasn’t going to eat them, then being near her was their best option since all of their predators had decided to give her a wide, wide birth. Sadly, though, squirrels did not make for good conversation partners.

Her musing were interrupted when the squirrels began to cast furtive looks around before scampering up her side and glaring in the direction of a bush. Yang’s eyes narrowed, and she reached out with her senses. Like most shape shifters, she could sense when another shape shifter was close. Interesting. Flame kindled in her jaws. If this newcomer was peaceful, she wouldn’t mind talking to them. But if they wanted to make trouble, there weren’t many things more dangerous than a giant, flying, fire-breathing reptile with impenetrable scales and claws and teeth that could tear through the walls of a castle.

Her concerns evaporated a moment later as the other shape shifter stepped into view… as a cute, cuddly black cat that looked absolutely miserable since it was completely and utterly drenched from the rain.

Yang gave a low rumble of greeting. One of the first things she’d learned as a dragon was how to project her thoughts and read the thoughts of others. It was an essential skill since dragons couldn’t really use language in the normal way and roaring at people had a tendency to terrify them, which was usually not helpful. She’d even given one poor fellow a heart attack while asking for directions.

The rain sucks, huh? Yang projected.

The black cat startled for a moment before stopping and staring. Evidently, the other shape shifter had been so intent on finding shelter that she’d somehow managed to miss the giant golden dragon draped over the hillside. Please, don’t eat me.

Yang gave the draconic equivalent of a laugh, and the squirrels made angry sounds as her shoulder shook with mirth. She wasn’t about to eat a fellow shape shifter for no reason, and it wasn’t like a cat would even suffice for a meal anyway. Given how big Yang was as a dragon, anything smaller than a cow was basically finger food. Don’t worry about it. Are you looking for shelter? Yang gestured with her wing. It was every bit as good as a proper roof given its size.

The cat eyed her warily for a moment before making a decision. Do you mind if I stick around? I can only change into a cat, and this weather...

It’s not exactly good for cats, is it? Yang nodded. Sure. Stick around. I could use someone to talk to.

The cat settled under Yang’s wing before moving over to lean against Yang’s side. Like most dragons, Yang radiated warmth. The squirrels gave the cat a suspicious look before settling back under Yang’s wing, albeit as far away from the cat as possible. Thanks. I’m Blake.

I’m Yang. So… why are you wandering around as a cat? A human form would be more convenient in this weather.

Blake huffed. I can’t change back. One of my… enemies did something to me, and now, I’m stuck as a cat.

Well, that sucks. Yang leaned over and peered at Blake. How long have you been stuck as a cat?

About a week. Blake shuddered. I’ve almost been eaten four times, and I just managed to escape the house of some crazy person who wouldn’t let me leave.

Yang scratched her own belly with one gigantic claw. You can stick with me if you want. I’m about to head home, and there’s a good chance someone in my family can help you. My uncle knows more about shape shifting than almost anyone.

Are you sure? Blake made a face. Aren’t you worried about me tricking you or something?

Blake, I’m a one-hundred-and-fifty-feet-long dragon. If you try to stab me in the back, I will laugh very loudly before setting you on fire and eating you.

Blake grimaced. When you put it that way… point taken. She paused. But how do I know I can trust you?

Blake, if I wanted to eat you, you’d be eaten. Like I said, I’m a dragon.

X     X     X

A few days later…

Ruby looked up from the cow she’d been in the middle of eating. A very pretty - but very angry - young woman with pale hair and blue eyes was pointing a crossbow at her.

“Unhand my cow, cretin!”

Ruby dropped the cow and opened her mouth to explain. What she wanted to say was: I am so sorry. I was really hungry, and I promise I will pay for the cow. Alas, as she was currently in her werewolf form, the only sound that came out was: “GRAAARGH!”

“So be it, vile fiend. I, Weiss Schnee, Scion of the House of Schnee shall defeat you.” 

Since Ruby had no intention of being shot by a crossbow, she did the first thing she could think of. She slapped the crossbow out of Weiss’s hands. Again, she wanted to say something. In this case: Could you please not point your crossbow at me? Once again, however, she’d forgotten that she was still in her werewolf form. What came out of her mouth was: “RAAAAAARGH!”

Naturally, because Ruby’s luck had never been stellar, that was when Weiss’s sister arrived. Seeing a large werewolf knock the crossbow out of her sister’s hand before roaring, Winter came to the only logical conclusion. Clearly, the werewolf was a foul beast intent on devouring her sister alive.

“Begone, fiend!” Winter cried, levelling her own crossbow at Ruby as Weiss scrambled to draw her sword. “For you now face two daughters of the House of Schnee! Call upon whatever allies you wish, no evil can withstand our combined might!”

Ruby was seriously considering beating a tactical retreat - because as pretty as the two women were, they were heavily armed - when she caught sight of a most welcome shape in the sky.

“Distract it,” Winter ordered Weiss as she tried to move into Ruby’s blind spot. “This werewolf might be big, but we should be able to defeat it if we work…”

Winter fell silent as a massive shadow fell over the area. Weiss followed her gaze and gave a small, panicked squeak of horror as a huge golden dragon landed behind the werewolf. There was a black cat perched on one of its shoulders and a family of squirrels on the other.

Were you two pointing weapons at my little sister? The dragon growled. Because that would make me very mad.

It was at that point that Weiss did the only thing she could think of that might get them out of the situation alive. She lowered her sword and nudged the half-eaten cow toward the werewolf. “Please, forgive us for interrupting your meal. My sister and I will just be on our way and…”

Weiss and Winter’s attempt to retreat came to an abrupt end as the dragon’s long, serpentine tail flicked out to tear a gash in the earth behind them. How kind of you. But lunch is so much better with company. You’ll stay and talk, won’t you?

X     X     X

Author’s Notes

Dragons, werewolves, cats, squirrels, who knows what’ll happen next. Let me know if you’d like to see this snippet continue.

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