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Chapter 87: It'll All Be Okay

"NO!" Felix sat bolt upright in his bed, cold sweat clinging coating his body and causing the sheets to cling to him as he kicked and thrashed desperately. After several seconds of frantically scanning his surroundings and gasping for breath the Lion Faunus realised that it had been a nightmare, just the same nightmare that had haunted his sleep since Atlas; images of his friends laying lifeless on a cold stadium floor whilst a black armoured figure, far larger than Celeste Lupus had actually been, loomed over him with a glowing crimson blade in hand and fiery magenta eyes that blazed beneath her mask, in Felix's dreams his blows did nothing and the tightness in his chest caused by terror mingled with the inability to breathe caused by the steel spike puncturing his body until the inevitable happened and his ominous opponent would strike him down; at which point Felix would jolt awake.

"Oum damn it" the Lion Faunus whispered, his hushed voice cracking as his emotions threatened to overwhelm his exhausted mind. Collapsing back into his bed he found himself staring at the ceiling for the relatively short amount of time his eyes needed to adjust to the pre-dawn darkness, at which point he reached for his Scroll which had been charging at his bedside table only to cast it aside with more force than was probably wise and an annoyed growl upon realising that he had no new messages or missed calls. After fuming to himself for a while he gradually allowed himself to accept the fact that it was hardly fair to blame anyone considering the time, though it didn't change the fact that he desperately wanted to talk to someone and felt as though there was nobody to listen. Corvid had been spending as much of her time on the mainland as possible of late and was currently staying with one of her team-mates in New Vale, Arctus was in Atlas helping his family settle into a new normal with the addition of an adopted sister to the Slate family, Diamond was in Mistral shouldering responsibilities that Felix felt like a coward and a weakling for not handling himself and Eagle was spending the summer with her large extended family meaning that Felix wasn't precisely sure if she was in New Vale at the moment; his fellow Patch native Nyanza Angora was also unavailable due to leaving the island for Mistral to visit a girlfriend whom he was now in a long distance relationship with. Felix rolled over and buried his face in his pillow to muffle a sound of unfettered annoyance as he thought of Helios Nikos; arguably the one person whose company he wanted the most had been unreachable for weeks, with the Nikosi being out in the vast plains and forests of Anima that they claimed dominion over Helios had obviously had no chance to charge his own Scroll and the lack of contact was beginning to thoroughly aggravate the Lion Faunus.

"Fuck this" Felix rolled off of his bed with feline grace despite an utter lack of co-ordination caused by being unused to his own bed after so long away from home; he'd grown so accustomed to having the top bunk that his own bed felt too low and the bedroom he'd grown up in felt oddly alien to him. Looking around a room that could most generously be described as organised chaos and was decorated with posters for bands that he hadn't listened to in over a year and blueprints for weapons designs he'd scrapped and forgotten about Felix contemplated his next move; his parents were both home, he could wake one of them and ask to talk or he could try and call one of his friends; both options appealed to him but he found himself chastising himself sternly and refusing to burden them with his problems. With that in mind he began dressing himself, finding his old bedroom suddenly far too small for his liking despite its' generous size. Felix's choice in attire had changed somewhat, while he still wore pale and faded jeans that were ripped and distressed he'd acquired a new pair of knee-pads which were far more armoured than his previous pair and shared the dull gunmetal colouring of the shin guards he'd bought to accompany them. His latest pair of trainers was black in colour and favoured functionality over style and he wore a form fitting black tank-top with a sleeveless black hooded jacket over it which left both his toned and muscular arms and the stylised lions' head tattoo he'd gotten at age fifteen much to his parents' annoyance on display. Dull gunmetal armoured bracers adorned his forearms and fingerless black gloves covered his hands whilst Hack and Slash, which had been lovingly and painstakingly repaired over the summer were sheathed in their customary place in a harness over his back; said harness had been modified to give Felix more room to carry additional ammunition, Dust and other supplies across his chest whilst extra pouches were fastened to his belt. Felix caught sight of himself in a full length mirror that had been covered in dust when he had returned home and scowled, just catching sight of the small metallic cap covering the stump of his severed tail was enough to make him instantly aware of how odd it felt to have clunky and dead weight where there should have been part of a limb. He'd also cut his hair a little shorter, the mane of messy dirty blonde curls still reached a little passed his shoulders but it was a distinct difference from the luxurious mass it had been previously and not for the first time the Lion Faunus was keenly aware of a change in himself that he didn't like but didn't know how to reverse. It wasn't the hair, it was the hardness in his deep navy blue eyes and the fact that none of his smiles felt genuine; it was the fact that he'd chosen this new darker wardrobe with no ornamentation save for a few pins and badges bearing rainbow flags adorning his jacket because his more colourful attire felt like it belonged to somebody that Felix didn't recognise. With a slew of muttered curses he turned away from the mirror and towards a course of action that would at least take his mind off of things for a few hours; he knew he was avoiding his problems and fully intended to speak with the student counsellor Neptune David-Vasilias once he returned to Halo Academy, though that offered him little comfort at that particular moment. Felix opened his bedroom window and breathed in cool night air for a moment before climbing out onto the ledge and locking the window behind him as he had done many times as a rebellious and often grounded teenager, then casually jumping down to the ground and landing in a crouch with a dull thud before rising to his feet and making his way to the garage with his car keys already in hand. Felix was self aware enough to understand that his current mental state would draw Grimm towards him like a magnet if he ventured too far into the vast woodlands of Patch; however he also knew that there were several places along the border of those trees where smaller packs of Grimm would hunt if they were especially daring or hungry and Sun Wukong simply did not have the time and resources to tend to every single issue on the island.

"I can do this" Felix muttered as he slid into the drivers' seat of the Killer-Bee, the engine giving a deep purr that was both familiar and comforting as he brought the muscle car to life

"I can do this" he repeated, more firmly this time as he drove slowly away from his family home and prepared to do his job as a Hunter and convince himself that however bad Atlas had been, he was not completely broken.

"Hey! Hey! Hey wake up! Hey! Wake up!" the constant stream of words, whose meaning was utterly lost on a mind still struggling with the idea of being awake, were accompanied by a series of nudges, prodding and tugging at Arctus Slate's arm.

"Alright, I'm up….what do ya want?" Arctus grumbled as he begrundgingly accepted that sleep was no longer an option and rubbing his bleary eyes, quickly noting that he was not in his bedroom.

"You worked all night….Weiss asked us to come and get you, she said you'll sleep all day and miss breakfast and probably lunch if we didn't" the sound of chitinous pincers clacking together nervously followed Coral's words and Arctus pulled himself up off of the work bench he'd fallen asleep slumped over and rose out of his chair, cracking his neck and shoulders whilst turning his attention to his sisters. Athena-Jade looked much the same as ever, bright eyed and full of energy though she'd grown noticeably taller; Coral however looked much healthier than she had before being brought to Schnee Manor, her cheeks had more colour to them and she seemed to have grown a few inches just over the summer whilst putting on enough weight to no longer look malnourished, her hair had been styled by Athena-Jade in ways that the Crab Faunus would never have been able to manage herself. Her eyes still spoke of constant nightmares though and there had been more than one morning where she'd been found curled up in Athena-Jade's bed, curled up next to the older sister she'd taken to clinging to and following around as much as she physically could.

"Thanks Coral" Arctus beamed, hoping that this might be the day that she returned the smile and didn't visibly fight the urge to turn and run whenever the older and larger Faunus spoke to her; unfortunately it was not to be, though any awkwardness was quickly averted by Athena-Jade

"Besides I wanted a sneak-peek at your new weapon" she declared boldly "You must've finished it by now!"

"Just about" Arctus chuckled "Still gonna need to test it though-"

"You suck!" Athena exclaimed with a dramatic sigh and exaggerated eye-roll

"I-"

"The suckiest, you so suck so bad….you've been working on it since Diamond left and that was weeks ago!"

"I'll remember this when you build your weapon" Arctus grumbled with a playful wink before carefully removing the weapon from the workbench he had fallen asleep at. Gefroren-Erbe had been dismantled and redesigned and while it retained its' signature glossy black and slightly curved broadsword blade and its' transformation process remained largely the same it now sported a pair of cylinders set between the guard and false edge of the weapon that extended out into the barrels of a twin laser-cannon capable of dealing with any opponent he could reasonably expect to face

"Are you gonna give it a new name?" Coral asked timidly, though being the one to initiate conversation was undoubtedly a step in the right direction "You should, it's not the same sword any more" Arctus paused for a moment and considered, finally agreeing with his adopted sister and racking his brain for something suitable in the language of old Mantle; a dead language which was nevertheless still taught at Atlas's most prestigious private schools, much to Athena-Jade's disdain as she utterly detested the subject

"Grimmiger-Henker" Arctus finally decided

"It sucks" Athena-Jade told him bluntly

"It means….y'know what, never mind. You're a pest" Arctus sighed as he sheathed the weapon over his back "I'm gonna test it out on the grounds after breakfast, wanna come and see?" Coral shook her head with gusto and Athena looked between her and Arctus before making a decision

"Maybe" she shrugged "I'm gonna help Coral with her homework first though, she's gonna be going to school with me soon"

"No problem" Arctus shrugged as he left the workshop, situated in an otherwise rarely used part of the manor located behind the built in garage filled with the several ludicrously expensive sports cars owned by Whitley Schnee, more subdued but equally expensive luxury cars and limousines and a single experimental Dust powered armoured ATV with the moniker 'Stardust' which Weiss Schnee had used to great effect during the war and had belonged to Arctus's great grandmother before that. Coral and Athena made their way passed him, giggling to themselves at some unheard comment as they returned to the main body of the manor. As he followed them the Bear Faunus was halted by the feeling of his Scroll vibrating in his pocket and the few seconds it took him to find the device in the many pockets of his new outfit. Arctus had paid a visit to the eccentric and highly sought after designer Edna Mauve to replace his combat gear, his previous outfit having far too much emotional baggage attached to it now; he now sported a new pair of armour plated black boots reaching up to his calves and a pair of dark grey combat pants replete with several pockets which had been picked out in snowy white, a black sweater which highlighted his large chest, shoulders and arms and was comfortable despite the armour plating below its' surface; over this he wore a sleeveless white jacket with a silvery grey faux fur collar, the jacket whilst less militaristic in its' design than Arctus's previous choices was still functional, featuring a built in harness for his sword on the back and dozens of pockets and pouches at the front, the Schnee family emblem sat over his right breast where one would expect to find medals on the dress uniform of a soldier. Arctus had taken up his old habit of immaculately styling his naturally shaggy and pristine white hair, something he had found himself giving up on in New Vale and all in all, whilst the new look was largely similar to his previous appearance it was enough for the Bear Faunus. Finally he found his Scroll and continued walking towards the dining room where he expected to find the rest of his family, opening the device and smiling to himself as he read a 'Good morning' text from Diamond as he did so; he typed out a reply and as he neared the dining room he felt the Scroll vibrate once again, Diamond this time asking how everyone was doing; especially Coral. Diamond had managed to spend a few weeks at Schnee Manor over the start of the summer, leaving just after her nineteenth birthday, and had seen first hand that the Crab Faunus's transition to her new home and lifestyle was not going as smoothly as hoped. Arctus sighed softly and debated typing out several paragraphs detailing the challenges that integrating the orphaned child into the family had presented; from the vast amount of education she needed to catch up on, to the lack of appropriate socialisation and most importantly her mental state, the girl seemed to oscillate between immense shyness, sullen and moody silences and fits of uncontrollable and often violent anger at an alarming rate. Though when Arctus reached the dining room he saw something that brought a warm smile to his face and made him reconsider; Athena-Jade was talking animatedly to both of their parents whilst Gangrel ruffled her hair with a cybernetic arm that had been replaced and extensively upgraded from the military standard, Coral however was being helped with the task of using cutlery never intended to be gripped by pincers by Whitley Schnee. He and Coral seemed to have formed an immediate bond upon first being introduced to each other and whilst the Crab Faunus was adamant that she would not refer to Weiss and Gangrel as Mum and Dad, a position they respected, the tall, slender and bearded man was already 'Uncle Whitley' in Coral's mind. Arctus absently scratched behind Scruff behind the ears as the ageing mastiff plodded over to him, tongue lolling out of his mouth; whilst at the same time texting Diamond and sending a message that read 'Coral's gonna be fine, I think we all are' he didn't have to wait long for a reply, grinning to himself as he read the words 'Until we get to Halo….I did not go easy on us when I picked our classes dude.'

Diamond sent another text message and lay back on her bed; her room in her parents apartment was small, Mistrali cities were far smaller than New Vale's capital or the seemingly bottomless hives of Atlas meaning that whilst money was never an issue in the Sustrai-Black home and the apartment was in a comfortably affluent part of town, space was always at a premium as it was for most Mistrali citizens. As she lay back she felt the edges of paperwork that originally been neatly ordered but was now haphazardly strewn on her bed and several other available surfaces brushed against her skin and reminded her of its' presence; she gave a slight frown and considered reorganising the various documents for a second before eventually deciding against it and simply grasped her bass guitar which lay beside her and pulled it onto her abdomen, fingers dancing over the strings and playing chords from memory.

The paperwork she had chosen to postpone dealing with was all related to Team FADE's continued training at Halo Academy which, with the consent of her team-mates, she was making the final decisions on in Felix's place whilst the Lion Faunus recuperated from the events of the Vytal Tournament in Atlas. Diamond still winced at the memory of Eagle's upset voice when the subject of dropping history, taught by her honorary uncle Lie Ren, was broached. Team FADE were however continuing with Combat Training taught by Nora Ren, Dust handling taught by Professor Peach and had chosen to expand and specialise into Grimm combat meaning that they would be seeing more of Professor Bronzewing, a fact that was almost enough to make them reconsider. They were also intending to take lessons in survival and first aid in order to be more self-sufficient when hunting the creatures of Grimm beyond the safety of the Kingdoms and had elected to take a class that had been dubbed 'Unconventional tactics and ungentlemanly warfare' upon learning that it took aspects of the approach to Hunting used by groups such as the Atlesian Freelancers and made them more accessible. Eventually Team FADE decided against taking Bull-Head piloting and maintenance classes, reasoning that they had their own means of transport already and it was something they could learn at a later date when they weren't already struggling with a gargantuan workload.

Eventually Diamond's fingers stilled and she blew strands of her silvery hair out of her eyes before setting the guitar aside and rising from her bed with a wide stretch, deciding that she'd cooped up in her room for far too long she made her way out into the apartment whose open planning allowed her to catch sight of her father in the kitchen almost immediately

"You stopped right as I was about to start headbanging and singing" Mercury snorted as his daughter drew close, currently he wore simple black jeans and t-shirt with thick thermal socks intended for much colder weather on his feet to muffle the sound of his prosthetics against the floor and stop them from scuffing its' surface

"Part of being a Huntress Dad….I'm protecting the world from your singing voice" Diamond shot back without missing a beat

"Ah for reasons that escape me I've missed this" Mercury chuckled "Heading out tonight Dee Dee?"

"One day you'll stop calling me that" Diamond huffed "Not sure yet, why?"

"It's gonna be cold, you'll want something warmer than that"

"I've got a new jacket" she shrugged as her father indicated to her current outfit. Diamond too had decided to update her wardrobe over the summer and currently wore an outfit that could best be described as 'Peak Mistrali street fashion' which included a pair of comfortable and somewhat loose fitting black pants adorned with a pair of pale green braces which simply hung unused at her sides but could also be modified to serve as a harness for her weapon, the pants were tucked into a pair of white high topped sneakers with green laces and straps and she wore a slightly baggy white vest which showed a fair amount of skin and was complemented with a black bandoleer over her left shoulder which contained a plethora of Dust based ammunition. The outfit was completed with the light jacket hanging up in the hallway nearby, a pale mint green varsity jacket with black sleeves and buttons which reached to just above her hips. Diamond had allowed her hair to grow out a little and a silver ponytail now reached down to a little below the tops of her shoulder-blades whilst her bangs reached a little below her jawline, almost entirely hiding ears that had been pierced half a dozen times with black and silver hoops that hugged the skin close. Her diamond studded nose piercing and the ornate necklace Arctus had bought for her caught the light whenever she moved and Diamond herself asserted that the look worked for her, despite her fathers' teasing. Before the conversation could go any further a soft buzzing and chiming sound could be heard throughout the apartment, indicating that someone was trying to gain access to the apartment complex and had rung their doorbell to do so.

"I'll get it" Diamond said as she hastily made her way across the apartment towards the small video screen and speaker which were connected to the security camera and microphone at the main door of the building; activating them brought the flickering and somewhat grainy image of her old friend Razzmatazz and Nyanza Angora of Team NEON into focus

"Hey Dee" Razzmatazz smiled "We're heading into the city tonight. Some of the old Sanctum crew wanted to hang, you coming with?" it was an easy decision to make, Diamond quickly nodded to confirm that indeed was coming with them and threw her jacket on as she called out to Mercury

"Hey Dad, I'm heading out….Might not be back until morning!"

"Have fun, stay safe!" Mercury called back "Watch your drinks, let me or your Mum know if you're staying at a friends' place and call me if you need anything" the words were familiar, having been repeated to Diamond since she was in her pre-teens. She paused, one hand on the handle to the front door of apartment when an idea struck her; with a broad smile of her face she quickly made her way into her bedroom and opened the window before promptly throwing herself out of it. Her Semblance took effect the moment her feet connected with the vertical wall and allowed her to jog down the surface as though it were a straight road until she leaped away and landed on the crouch close to where her friends stood

"Oum I've missed being able to do parkour everywhere….it's just not the same in Hive Cities" she declared as she rose to her feet

"And there's probably more cameras so they'll spot you sneaking into concerts" Razzmatazz countered with a snort, indeed using her abilities to enter venues for free and without having to talk her way passed security guards when she was too young to enter legally had been one of Diamond's favourite pass-times when she was younger. Currently she simply rolled her cherry red eyes and pulled Razzmatazz into a loose one armed hug, whilst privately noting that her friend seemed to have changed her hairstyle specifically to hide an injury; where previously there had been a mass of bubblegum pink spikes there was now an equally gravity defying sweeping fringe which kept her blinded right eye hidden from view

"How've you been dude?" she asked as she bumped fists with Nyanza

"Enjoying my first actual holiday anywhere….I mean I've got great company" he gently squeezed Razzmatazz's hand and Diamond fought the urge to tease the two of them; Nyanza seemed to have had an unfortunate upbringing and deserved happiness as much as anyone whilst Razzmatazz clearly needed every available source of comfort; Diamond had known her long enough to know that she wasn't coping with the fallout of the White Fang's attack in Atlas as well as she pretended.

"Dude you two are so cute together" she finally laughed "Figured out how thing's are gonna work when school starts again?"

"Talk every day and see each other when we can….a bit of good luck and things should work out" Nyanza shrugged though he wore an expression that made it clear that he would be leaving nothing to chance "Speaking of school though, have you heard from Felix lately?"

"Yeah, spoke to him a couple days ago" Diamond assured the bushy tailed feline, neglecting to mention that she, Arctus and Eagle had stayed in regular contact with each other and agreed to each make regular efforts to contact their friend and stop him from isolating himself completely

"How's he holding up?" Nyanza asked "I would've stayed on Patch and hung out with but y'know…." he trailed off and prompting Diamond to nod in understanding

"Yeah I get it….Just, call him when you get a minute. He'll appreciate it" it was Nyanza's turn to nod in understanding

"Will do….in the meantime though, it's probably gonna be our last chance to do anything together so let's go have some fun!" she found herself chuckling as she trailed after Nyanza and Razzmatazz, privately noting that they were great for each other whilst being somewhat annoyed that Arctus couldn't be here.

Being the third wheel was not an enjoyable experience.

Eagle surveyed herself in the mirror situated in her bedroom, it had once been pushed into a corner of the room and covered; allowing Eagle to avoid looking at a body she was unhappy with and had no confidence in, and had only been pulled to the fore so that she could thoroughly examine herself in her new outfit. After visiting her mother and several of her aunts and uncles over the summer with her grandparents she had finally arrived home at the village of New Hope, one of the many farming settlements which were beyond the walls of the capital city but were still considered part of New Vale's territory, only to be met by her Aunt Hellebores and Aunt Daisy who had promptly taken her into the city for some, in their opinions, much needed retail therapy

"Eagle can you give me a hand please?" the voice of her Grandfather, Craven Arc called up to her

"I'll be down in a second" she chirped back, giving herself one last approving once over in the mirror. Eagle had come to be comfortable with her height and broad shouldered, well muscled physique; she would never be curvy and athletic like Diamond and that was fine with her. Her new attire consisted of a pair of heavy black combat boots and deep blue jeans which featured deliberate tears that had been patched over with a green flannel-like material, a thin and comfortable dark grey hoodie with the pristine white armour that adorned her chest and thighs thrown over them; the major difference came in the form of a wide collared, figure hugging and ludicrously expensive leather jacket that Aunt Hellebores had first had the Arc family emblem added to the back of in stark white and then insisted looked better on Eagle than herself, with her armour for her shoulders and forearms, as well as the mechanical bracing system that allowed her to carry her shield as though it were weightless all placed over the sleeves of the jacket. In conjunction with her new hairstyle, her previous loose and somewhat messy ponytail having been replaced by a golden yellow spiky undercut Eagle cut a striking figure that her her slightly round cheeks, freckles and almost constant smile were just enough to stomp from being intimidating. Eagle found herself grinning from ear to ear as she decided that she looked unequivocally cool.

"Eagle!" Craven Arc called again

"Coming!" she left her bedroom and hurried downstairs as she replied, making her way into the living room where her Grandfather and Aunt Daisy were waiting, along with her uncle, Flax Scarlatina

"Hey kid" Flax gave her a casual wave which Eagle didn't return

"Hey" she replied tonelessly, as much as she had adored and admired her Uncle Flax as a child he had been one of several members of her family to pre-emptively disapprove of her relationship choices, something Eagle had not forgiven or forgotten.

"Woah! Eagle looks awesome!" the awed and childish voice came from behind her and belonged to her younger cousin, Honey Scarlatina, whom had grown immensely since the last time Eagle had seen her and with the rabbit ears adorning her head almost reached Eagle's shoulders

"Hey honey" Flax grinned "Can you go help your Aunt Hellebores? Grown ups are talking"

"I was" Honey shrugged "They asked if I could get one of you to give them a hand setting up all the tables outside" Flax made to rise to his feet only to find the iron grip of Craven Arc clamping down on his shoulder and Eagle upon seeing this could instantly tell what was about to happen next

"I think you've got something you wanted to say before you go anywhere" the old man delivered the words with a cheery tone to avoid upsetting Honey, but the menace behind them was unmistakable.

"I wanted to say I'm sorry" Flax breathed out "I shouldn't have spoken to you the way I did whilst you were in Atlas and we all know you're more than capable of making the right choices for yourself. Who you date is your business and I shouldn't have stuck my nose in your business"

"Apology accepted" Eagle assured him, fidgeting nervously as she spoke. Craven promptly released Flax's shoulder and both he and Daisy left the living room, following their daughter out into the Arc family homes' expansive back yard to help setting up for dinner

"You don't have to keep doing this" Eagle mumbled as she plucked her empty sheathe from the family weapon rack above the fireplace and fixed it to her belt

"I'm inclined to disagree" Craven grunted as he hobbled over to her, his prosthetic foot being an inflexible dead weight that hindered his movement and his once powerful physique bent and withered by old age "We nearly lost you….I lost my only son in Atlas and I almost lost my first grandchild there as well Oum damn it. There won't be any bad blood in this family, not when we're the ones on the front line of every war; we're never promised another chance to make amends" Eagle flung her arms around his shoulders and pulled him into a tight hug, pointedly ignoring the lump in her throat. Her Grandparents had apologised to her profusely the moment she had returned home and Craven Arc had seen to it that each of his daughters and their families that had spoken against her did the same; whilst Eagle couldn't honestly say she approved of him effectively shaking down the family she could on some level understand his motives.

"So….is this to impress your woman, or did you just feel like a change?" Craven asked as the two broke apart, he was a gruff and obstinate old man of a generation that did not discuss feelings openly and as such was clearly looking for small talk that would lighten the mood

"I mean I hope Hellion likes it" Eagle found herself blushing "I hope you like her as well"

"I promised you that Ivory and I would meet her with an open mind, if Antonia says what happened is in the past then it's in the past….and this Hellion girl saved Antonia from the White Fang in Atlas, that has to count for something"

"Thank you" Eagle suddenly felt the urge to pull her grandfather into another crushing hug to try and convey how much the sentiment meant to her.

"You look like you're missing something though" Craven pondered before his eyes settled on her empty sheath "It's a shame the Atlesians kept your sword"

"It was broken anyway. I can make a new one at the Academy" Eagle shrugged, she was far less attached to her sword than she was to Sentinel, who was currently hung up on the Arc family weapon rack which had been modified to include a charging port for the automaton

"Ah, Halo that reminds me" Craven noted "I called you to ask for some help in the kitchen. Ren and Nora are coming over for dinner and keeping Nora fed is more than a one person job for us mere mortals"

"Awesome!" Eagle chirped happily, almost skipping into the kitchen alongside Craven at the thought of getting to spend some time with her honorary aunt and uncle outside of Halo Academy.

The Frost River was situated in the northernmost reaches of the continent of Anima, flowing from a snow-capped mountain filled with natural Fire Dust deposits which created geysers on hot-springs in its' otherwise barren surface; from there the river ran the great distance out to the sea between Anima and Solitas and had for centuries been home to the tribe who had taken the name of the river for themselves and turned to piracy and violence at some forgotten point in their history when what meagre ecosystem their bleak homeland boasted was no longer enough to support them.

In the widest part of the river which was flanked by mountains on either side the Frost River tribe had once gathered their many ships around a single structure, little more than a simple log cabin whose owners had ideas of grandeur; the hut had once been the neutral ground in which the elders of the tribe collectively known as the Captains of the Fleet gathered to debate and plan and was completely inaccessible by land. Currently there was only a single vessel anchored at the cabin and a group of four people who watched the sunset from atop the roof of the cabin; as the sun dipped below the narrow horizon created by the mountains and the last tendrils of light were replaced by starry night sky the river itself began to glow, bioluminescent bacteria in the water giving the area an eerie yet majestic feel as electric blue, deep turquoise and jade green lights flickered beneath the rippling surface. It was beautiful, in a harsh and primal way, especially when viewed from the air as it currently was

"She's going to be like this all night" Raffia noted with a huff that was equal parts amusement and irritation as he gestured to Hellion whose body was unnaturally still whilst her eyes were pure milky white orbs which seemed to be faintly lit from behind as she used her Semblance, known as 'Warg', to see through the eyes of Marauder whilst the foul tempered bird of prey soared overhead.

"Let her have this" Carcharodon murmured, whilst the Shark Faunus's voice was the same haunting rasp and his face was as unreadable as ever his body language and attire spoke volumes; he was more open and relaxed than anyone had seen him in years, having discarded his cloak, armour, weapons and shirt leaving his grey-tinged flesh littered with old scars on display and exposing the rarely seen tribal markings adorning his back and chest

"It may well be the last time any of us see it" Carcharodon noted, suddenly melancholy "Onyx, Raffia, you know neither Hellion or I will ever sire children….if neither of you chose to continue our peoples' legacy then promise me you'll return here one last time and burn this place until nothing remains. My soul wouldn't rest easy in the afterlife knowing that our home was free to be taken"

"You're asking a lot" Onyx admitted, the Puma Faunus in his customary place at Carcharodon's right hand, examining the recently stoned blade of his axe

"No more than I would be willing to do myself" Carcharodon countered

"Then rest assured it will be done" Hellion announced her return to true consciousness, eyes regaining their natural jade colour as Marauder swooped down onto her forearm. Carcharodon watched as the sun sank almost entirely out of view and the broken moon rose to replace it, eventually speaking again

"We make for the capital tomorrow, we travel to New Vale from there"

"Could we not simply sail?" Raffia queried, instinctively trusting travel by sea over any alternatives.

"That boat wouldn't survive the trip" Onyx grunted distastefully; whilst the Atlesian military had paid Team GORE well for their services Carcharodon had decided against spending the entirety of the somewhat unexpected boon on a vessel befitting their status, instead being forced to consider things such as budgeting and living expenses for his people and suffice with a barely seaworthy, cramped and unarmed former fishing boat that could be afforded with what was left

"Fair" Raffia admitted "It's always a shame to see a good ship sunk…..as for that boat, I'll breach its' hull myself" he punctuated his words with a bout of gleeful giggling which his crew-mates shared bemused glances at until Hellion noted that the sky was now entirely black, lit only by the moon and stars

"It's time" she noted

"It is" Carcharodon agreed before reaching into a wooden crate perched precariously on the roof beside them and withdrawing dozens of ludicrously oversized fireworks that would be illegal in any city within any Kingdom half a dozen at a time and sinking the metal spikes they were loosely affixed to into the roof of the cabin.

"In honour of our good fortune, may the seas always favour us and may our enemies find no solace in the cold" the saying was traditional, as was the act of creating the most ostentatious possible firework display after a successful raid; the celebration being Frost River Tribes' way of assuring no Grimm could follow a trail of residual negative emotions. The Cult of Taurus were all confirmed dead and the Shadow Cadre, the vanguard of the Tribe, had been avenged; a cause to celebrate in Team GORE's eyes. The fireworks were lit and for several minutes the sky was set ablaze with incandescent lights and the air and mountains seemed to tremble with the thunderous explosions they produced. As the last echoes of the last firework died out Carcharodon made to leave the roof of the cabin, addressing his people as he did so.

"Sleep well and be ready to move at dawn. Our travels will take us through the territory of other tribes….there are many who would gladly see the Frost Rive tribe truly extinct"

"I still have work to do" Hellion noted "I won't have chance to use a forge until we arrive at Halo Academy if I don't complete this tonight-"

"How many throwing knives do you need woman?" Raffia demanded incredulously

"How many swords can you lose?" she shot back acidly, to which the Axolotl Faunus visibly bristled and fought the urge to clasp the weapons currently hanging from his hip.

"She's not making knives….she's making something special" Onyx chuckled as he gave her a knowing look. The gossamer wings gracing Hellion's back buzzed and fluttered in embarrassment and agitation before she finally rose to her feet and hopped gracefully off of the roof directly onto the deck of their pitiful boat, intending to use its' Dust powered engine to work steel into a gift for someone who truly deserved it.

The scent of woodsmoke and slowly cooking meat filled the fresh night air elsewhere on the continent of Anima, where in the only truly permanent settlement the Nikosi tribe had built within their vast domain Helios Nikos sat at his mothers' left hand side; his customary place at the right hand of the Nikosi ruler having been willingly abdicated to his sister. Currently the redhead scratched behind the ears of his short-snouted, well muscled and dark furred hounds, named Milo and Akuo, as he watched a pair of younger Nikosi settle their differences in a bout of ritualistic unarmed single combat; using it as a distraction from the subtle yet undeniable distance between himself and the rest of his tribe since the knowledge that the former heir had become a 'Chamenos Paimi' or a 'Lost child of the Nikosi' in the common tongue; the distraction was thankfully rather effective owing to the fact that one of the combatants was his own sister.

"She's improved" he noted as Syneffo weaved around and leaped over powerful Aura fuelled blows from an eighteen year old boy who had recently been inducted into the Nikosi pathfinders like his father before him, only to immediately form something of a rivalry with Syneffo whom he believed had not earned her place within the tribes' elite scouts fairly or on her own merits, the tensions between them finally spilling over into the current bout which had thus far left them both bloodied and bruised

"She's losing" Kataigida countered bluntly and Helios was forced to frown and silently agree as the two teens continued to trade blows within the clearing in which ceremonial combat took place. Syneffo was easily the more agile and incredibly skilled for her age, her opponent however was far larger and physically stronger as well as being a skilled fighter himself. After spitting out a mouthful of blood, caused by Syneffo's elbow colliding with his face and being swiftly followed by a spinning backhand, the older teen managed to simply tackle her to the ground and place her in a choke-hold until she yielded. The two rose and bowed, respecting custom if not each other and left the simple but almost sacred arena to the sound of cheering and congratulations on a battle well fought

"Perhaps he'll remember my fist in his teeth the next time he questions my abilities" Syneffo grumbled as she attempted saunter over to where her brother and mother sat, failing to convey her bravado fully due to a slight limp

"Perhaps in New Vale you'll learn the ancient technique known as blocking" Helios snorted, earning himself a harsh glare from the silver eyed girl

"Helios don't torment your sister" Kataigida sighed before turning her attention to Syneffo "Though he makes a valid point….if you insist on wearing lighter armour then at least defend yourself adequately child"

"Yes mother" she replied with a solemn nod before turning to her brother "When do you leave for the capital? Father finished working on your armour"

"Tomorrow at sunset" Helios answered "Hopefully I'll see you soon after….and I'll thank him properly before I leave"

"Good. He misses you when you're not here" Syneffo told him pointedly "Anyway, I need to eat….come" the last word was spoken to Helios's hounds and accompanied by a snap of the fingers that had the dogs trailing behind her, much to Helios's annoyance. For a while the redhead sat in silence, his thoughts turned inwards; whilst he and Syneffo had different fathers' and there was no official marriage ceremony within the Nikos Tribe after spending so long living in the Kingdoms Helios had come to consider the word 'stepfather' an accurate, if somehow inadequate, description of his relationship with the man who had treated him with as much love as he would his own son. Kataigida saw her sons' expression change and the way his shoulders, unburdened by his heavy golden armour, sagged

"Something troubles you" it was a statement rather than a question "If you wish to stay with us then all you need to do is say" her tone was unusually gentle, hinting at her own unwillingness to see her eldest child leave the Nikosi

"It isn't that" he assured her

"Then what?"

"I worry about Felix" he admitted with a slow exhale "He was wounded in Atlas and I wasn't there when he woke up….we haven't spoken in weeks. I know you think I'm being a-"

"Whatever insult is on the tip of your tongue can stay there" Kataigida chastised him "You're right to worry, his injuries were grave….but you give him far less credit than he deserves"

"I-"

"Did he not-" his mother continued undeterred "Stand and fight the leader of the White Fang after they attempted to kill him from the shadows like cowards? His resolve is as strong as his body, it almost makes the fact we're losing you to a pretty face tolerable to the rest of our people" Helios found himself chuckling softly at his mothers' idea of a joke

"Thank you"

"Now go, eat something and ready your things….I'll have an escort readied for you before you leave" whilst Kataigida knew her son to be a capable and accomplished warrior in his own right the idea of sending him trekking through the wilderness and to the Kingdoms' capital alone was unthinkable to her all the same. She watched him rise and make to leave and added

"And give my regards to Qrow Branwen and his nieces"

"I will" Helios assured her, ever since learning the Ruby Rose and her wife Penny were not only willing to take in Syneffo for months at a time in order to train her in the use of her silver eyes, but had also named their own daughter for the late Pyrrha Nikos, Kataigida had felt a distinct sense of kinship and fondness for the legendary Huntresses.

"And offer my terms to Yang Xiao Long" she gave a wicked smile to her sons' retreating back "If only for my own vanity, I wish to test my skills against her in single combat before I'm too old to fight"

Felix had been out of the house for longer than he had originally anticipated. He had planned to leave, kill a satisfying amount of Grimm and return early enough that he could easily explain away his absence with some excuse such as not being able to sleep and deciding to visit an all night fast food vendor that he had been craving during his time in Atlas. What had in fact transpired was that he had drove to the edge of the forests that had once been a regular training ground for Yang Xiao Long and Ruby rose and that he and Corvid had inherited along with every other alumni of Signal Academy, only to have to venture deeper than expected into their depths to find any trace of the creatures of Grimm. When the monsters did appear however it was in a far greater tide than Felix had been expecting and rather than a simple workout to relieve stress the Lion Faunus had been forced to use his Semblance to its' fullest extent to clear the area, then expend a great deal of Ice Dust in order to prevent a forest fire; after defeating the Grimm Felix had returned to his car and drove to the clifftops that overlooked the sea and faced away from the mainland, he had been exhausted, his skin dry and flaking away whilst the coughing fits that had followed each use of his full power ever since Atlas took far too long to subside. Eventually Felix had simply fallen asleep as the sun rose, not waking up again until late afternoon by which time he already had several messages and missed calls from both of his mothers' asking where he was; he'd quickly replied that he was fine and would be home later.

Later had arrived and as Felix left the garage after parking the Killer-Bee inside he noted that whilst Blake's motorbike, dubbed 'Fairy Blue' was absent, most likely due to Blake having to work late on the mainland, the Bumblebee was in its' usual place at the gate of the Xiao Long property and a light could be seen in the kitchen window.

"Hey Mum" he greeted Yang Xiao Long with a tired smile as he entered the kitchen, Yang herself merely sat on the edge of the counter with her arms folded

"Don't you 'Hey Mum' me Felix Ghira Xiao Long" she huffed, cracking a soft smile before she continued "Fluffy I know it's hard to be living with your parents for a couple months again after being so independent, but can you at least let me and Blake know if you're going to be leaving in the middle of the night or vanishing for a day or so?….you know we've been worried about you"

"Sorry Mum" he sighed "And don't worry I'm fine" he assured her, though he looked away and feigned searching the cupboards as he couldn't quite bring himself to meet her eyes as he said it

"Your knuckles are bruised" Yang observed

"Not what you think" Felix pre-empted, easily able to sense where his mothers' mind was headed and not blaming her one bit, her assumptions were fair ones

"I haven't been fighting with anyone" he assured her "I don't really do that any more….Just a late night training session in the woods. Couldn't sleep, didn't wanna wake anyone up" Felix, still facing away from his mother tensed a little when he felt Yang's mechanical hand on his shoulder

"Well I'm awake now, wanna talk about it?….I understand what you're going through, so I understand if you don't-"

"You don't" Felix muttered, honestly not intending for the words to be filled with as much venom as they had been "Mum you lost your arm because Adam Taurus needed to stop you from breaking his skull open….I lost my tail because Celeste Lupus decided I wasn't enough of a Faunus to be allowed to keep it. Imagine if someone tried to cut off Blake's ears?"

"I don't need to imagine" Yang breathed out "Adam Taurus cut off Velvet Scarlatina's ear in the same battle I lost my arm in Fluffy….if you don't think I can help then do you want me to get in touch with Velv-"
"Mum I didn't mean it like that!" Felix finally turned around and met Yang's eyes "Mum I love you, but this is different….she, she cut my tail off!" his voice trembled and Yang quickly pulled her son into a hug and gently played with his hair

"It gets easier" she promised him softly "It really does. And nobody, listen to me Felix, nobody thinks you're any less of a Faunus or anything else because of what that monster did to you"

"Thanks Mum" he sniffled out, there were a few moments of silence in which Yang privately debated broaching the subject of a prosthetic tail, a topic that Felix had been quick to shut down without making any real decisions either way so far, despite the manageable but noticeable affect his injury had on his balance when he trained. The opportunity was stolen from her by the sound of something landing in the back yard

"Corey's home" Felix noted, pulling away and wiping his eyes quickly; whilst the Omega Wing flew almost silently the thud of Corvid's landings, which were always dramatic affairs even when she had no audience to watch her, coupled with the sound of the battle-suit peeling away from her body and transforming into its' aerial droned form made it obvious who the newcomer was.

"Hey Mum-"
"Don't you 'Hey Mum' me Corvid Ruby Xiao Long"

"I got the same thing" Felix snorted

"Please" Yang sighed, pinching the bridge of her nose "Please for the love of Oum Corey, tell me you haven't been drinking and then flown back here from the mainland"

"Haven't been drinking" Corvid assured her as she shrugged off her jacket. Felix noticed that she wore a slightly different flight suit, this one a pale grey with a golden brown fur collar worn over a form fitting white vest rather than her previous all black, the scarf that had once belonged to Yang herself currently draped loosely over Corvid's shoulders; his eyes widened a little as he saw that the Omega Wing had been repainted, its' glossy black colour scheme now highlighted with shades of bright, gleaming gold.

"Iris's been back in New Vale for a couple weeks, she went to Menagerie at the start of the summer to see her old man" Corvid continued, helping herself to a beer out of the fridge since the subject of alcohol had been raised "I've been working on her arm, Lux's place has got a nice little en-suite workshop….kinda borrowed some ideas from a few of your designs Mum, hope you don't mind"

"Not at all" Yang beamed proudly

"Oh" Felix mouthed, suddenly feeling stupid "I just thought you'd been avoiding me" the kitchen was instantly filled with the sound of Corvid choking on her beer

"What?"

"I thought you didn't wanna see me-" the explanation was cut short as Corvid all but tackled him as she pulled him into a one armed hug

"Idiot" she hissed whilst ruffling his hair "If you wanted to hang out all you had to do was say and I would've made time….I just, I thought you blamed me for not getting you out of that forcefield….Hell, I blamed me for it-"
"Then you're a bigger idiot than I am" the Faunus snorted

"Glad that's settled" Yang noted "Are you two both packed for New Vale?"

"Yeah" identical replies came from both of her children and she found herself forced to ask another question that she knew could potentially sour the mood

"Fluffy….are you planning on taking back command of Team FADE when you get to Halo? I understand if you don't feel up to it but your team needs to know what's going on"

"Yeah" Felix breathed out "Yeah I am….It'll all be okay. It has to be"

Authors Notes:

It's been a while hasn't it?
Regular updates will resume as of now.
Welcome to third year.
Not much to say here so let's summarise:

Well, that's one way to start off a volume.
Seriously, those dreams where you're trying to throw a punch and it does nothing are the worst.
Ever done that? Rolled out of a bed and only realised that you'd forgotten to accommodate for the distance from the ground when the floor isn't where you expected? I have.
Felix wants to talk but keeps unintentionally isolating himself….Blake's kid everyone.
Fluffy looking a little more hardcore….his pride shirt got soaked in blood but he still has some badges and pins, also I noticed that all of Team FADE's new gear is a little darker this volume; kinda fitting after what they went through.
If you've got kids or younger siblings then you've been woken up like that.
Schnee/Slate/Scylla family dynamic….they're getting there.
"Suckiest" is practically Athena-Jade's slogan at this point.
"Grimmiger-Henker" = Grimm Executioner, it's the blade of Gefroren-Erbe but with a new gun component, one that isn't basically a portable war-crime.
Coral at an Atlesian prep school….should be fun.
'Stardust', yes everyone who read Downward Spiral, it's still there.
I'm thinking of Arctus's sweater and just hearing the line from Archer "The tactical turtle-neck...the tactile-neck".
Uncle Whit is probably all of the Slate/Schnee kids' favourite.
So, Team FADE's new classes sound fun….Also I'm pretty sure that the British Government actually had a "Ministry of ungentlemanly warfare" in WWI or something very similar.
I love writing Diamond and Merc interacting.
Diamond's outfit is based on Japanese street fashion (I just saw those jeans/harem pants with the braces hanging from the sides and thought she'd love them)
I will always headcanon that Merc & Em make good-parents because they know exactly what the cost of not being good parents is.
Diamond canonically used to use her Semblance for sneaking into gigs.
You didn't really think Team FADE would just let Felix isolate himself did you?
I believed I mentioned this on Tumblr as a sneak preview, but Third Year Eagle has the most powerful lesbian energy.
So yeah, Grandpa Arc first apologised to Eagle himself and then made every other member of the Arc family do the same….Or else.
If you read Downward Spiral you'll remember that Craven Arc was originally a dick, Jaune's death changed him….he's still got some issues with his approaches to things but his heart's in the right place.
Atlas probably kept Eagle's broken sword as evidence.
I knew I'd actually show the Frost River at some point.
Hellion did not use her Semblance enough in Atlas.
The tat Car has down the side of his face isn't his only one, he just rarely takes his shirt off.
Team GORE having to use a fishing boat is like Bruce Wayne having to use Ford Focus.
I'm not even being subtle about where Eagle's getting her new sword from.
I wrote the Helios scene twice, because I wrote it and it didn't save when I closed it.
Seriously though the tribe must hate the idea of losing Helios, as much as they respect his choice to leave.
Nice call back to the start of second year when it was Helios fighting on Syneffo's behalf, she's growing up.
Helios's relationship with Syneffo's dad isn't quite stepson/stepfather but it's close enough.
I feel like Kataigida comes off as distant sometimes but there's no doubt that she loves her kids, she just has to juggle everyone else's lives as well.
Mama Nikos, and the Nikosi as a whole approve of Felix….which is nice.
So, Felix has coughing fits after going Balrog now….obviously because he got impaled and then melted the spike while it was still stuck in him.
Both kids got full-named, it's never a good day when that happens.
I don't think Yang and Blake's wanting to know if Felix was coming and going at odd hours of the night was unreasonable, and considering that Felix was canonically notorious for getting into fights at Signal, can you blame Yang for seeing his knuckles and making a guess.
Obviously I'm referencing the Downward Spiral version of Fall of Beacon events; and I think it's important that Yang understands the difference in what happened to Felix, with his Faunus attribute being specifically targetted there's an added layer of trauma.
Yes Corey gave the Omega Wing a touch up….In Felix's colours.

Thank you to SumoSnipe, iSassenach, DizzyDwarf, Ferrous, FleetOfWarships, CanadianCavalier, FluffyFirefly for their reviews on the last chapter.
You say "Handle" as if Syneffo wouldn't love being the older sibling for a change.
Yeah sorry for making you cry….Fluffy was not in a good place at all.
Penny 2.0 or Penny's younger sister…..Perhaps.
I mean it's obviously gonna be easier to fit a weapon into an arm than something like Felix's tail….He's a Lion Faunus it's not exactly prehensile like Sun's.

As always thank you to everyone that reads this, with a special thanks to those of you that follow, favourite and review.