Saviors of Remnant: Book 1 Beginnings

Made possible by the joint efforts of Keeper Of The One Winged Angel and TheBoredBoot

AN: So after I don't know how many months, here we are again with the next chapter of this gripping tale. A thousand apologies for the wait and I hope you readers that stuck around understand that our professional lives take priority over our writing, but now that we have a bit more free time, my partner an I hope to return to the consistent schedule of posting chapters. So too old and new readers alike, welcome back.

Chapter 5

"Challenges are what makes life interesting and overcoming them is what makes life meaningful."

: Joshua J. Marine

Despite being apprehensive at first of going into the city, Fenrir couldn't help but marvel at the size of the buildings surrounding them. Around them a light snow fell; the hustle and bustle of the city would not stop as everyone went about their lives.

"I take it that this is your first time in one of the main cities, Mr. Argyros? What do you think of Atlas just from the outside view?" Morven asked as he moved beside the young Faunus. His gaze too looked out towards the bustling streets.

Growling in slight annoyance, Fenrir shook his head. "I don't know what to think right now. All I've ever been told about cities, namely Atlas, is that Faunus are treated like second class citizens. That we're just used and tossed aside when we have no value anymore."

Morven remained silent and thought deeply about this, the bitterness he heard in the young wolf's voice saddened him on the inside.

"Mr. Argyros…"

"Can you stop calling me that?" Fenrir snapped, interrupting Morven as he glared at the Specialist. "I'm not an old man or anything, again just call me Fenrir, alright? It'll save time and won't be nearly as annoying."

Giving him a small smile, Morven nodded. "Alright then Fenrir, I'll keep that in mind." He watched as Yang exited the Limo and grabbed Fenrir's arm.

"Hey c'mon Fen, let's go!" Yang said impatiently pulling his arm. "Weiss says she knows a great place where we can shop for clothes, and then afterward another where we can buy quality dust ammo for our weapons."

"Geez, alright I'm coming blondie," Fenrir jokingly groaned going after her before stopping and realizing something.

"What the matter, Fen?" Yang asked seeing he had stopped and turned to stare at Morven. There was a questioning look on the Faunus's face.

Reaching into his trench coat, Morven pulled two silver and black cards out and tossed them to Fenrir and Yang. "Here you two go. It goes without saying that now that you work with adults you'll be getting paid for your services; the same as Winter and myself," Morven's tone was light but then turned very serious.

"Now that you'll be getting paid, the two of you will start to taking on more responsibilities. That being said, I won't lie to the two of you. The cards will be monitored to track your expenses since the two of you are some of the youngest to work as a Specialist, but after demonstrating good responsibility that'll end and the two of you will be able to do whatever you want with your money. But I use that term loosely, so keep that in mind."

Holding the card in his hand Fenrir looked it over and then gave Morven a nod, pocketing the card before going after Yang and Weiss as they headed towards their first stop.

"So now what do we Morven?" Winter asked sidling up beside, watching the three of them go on ahead.

"We'll tag along and if we need anything we'll pick it up as well Winter," Morven chuckled. He put on his aviators and moved after them, gesturing Winter to follow as the group gathered together.

Two hours later of shopping later

"I'm looking looking for some .38 special dust rounds. My preference is lightning, but if you're out of stock it's no big deal. I can make use of fire and earth dust." Fenrir said the store owner, his eyes watching the man who looked him over once with a curious expression.

"Oh here we go, this assholes probably gonna come up with some excuse about not serving me or saying their out of stock since I'm a Faunus." he thought angrily as he examined the look on the man.

After a moment of silence, the man gave Fenrir a sly smile and gestured to the wall behind him. "Not to worry sir, we have a full stock of conventional dust, as well as several varieties of the more exotic dust types, if they take your fancy. As for munitions we have the cleared universal casings for almost all types of firearms except for military grade. For those you'll have to go through the Specialist armory."

"Hmmm alright then," Fenrir said thinking for a second before answering. "I'll need a light mixed case of lightning and fire dust rounds. Also, if you have a fine grain whetstone, I'll take that too." Fenrir said with a smirk of his own as he brandished his new card."

Seeing the card the clerks raised his eyebrows in surprise, checking behind the Faunus he then noticed the two other Specialists along with who he recognized as Weiss Schnee and put two and two together. "Ahhh I see sir, so you're working with those Specialists I'm assuming? In that case allow me to change your regular lightning dust for the more refined type. No extra charge of course for with the refined dust the output of the elemental discharge will be increased. Something I think you all can appreciate while in a fight."

Considering the benefits of the dust Fenrir smiled and nodded, "alright sounds good thanks."

"No problem sir, now I'll be right back after I ring you up. Turning around he then called out, "Lena! I need a light mixed case of .38 special! Half lightning, half fire! Make sure for the lightning you use the quality refined stuff got it?"

"I'm on it sir!" Came a singsong voice from the back catching Fenrir's attention, and after his card was returned and after a couple minutes had passed he was greeted by a young female wolf Faunus who smiled when she saw him.

She had stunning blue eyes and jet black hair tied in a neat bun with two wolf ears sticking out, her outfit he noticed was a more feminine version of what the front clerk had been wearing, the same grey vest over a dark blue long sleeved shirt and matching a pair of slacks that made her look professional yet approachable.

"Here you go sir," she said with a smile on her face handing Fenrir his case of dust munitions. "One light case of .38 special lightning and fire variants, and one fine grain whetstone. Is there anything else I can do for you?"

Thinking about this Fenrir looked over his shoulder making sure that Winter and Morven were out of earshot before he asked in a low voice. "So your name is Lena right? What's it like working here in Atlas, do they treat you poorly and work you too hard?"

Raising her eyebrow in surprise Lena thought about it for a second before answering. "You know sometimes it really is hard work, long hours and sometimes late nights. But my boss is a understanding and caring guy, he only wants me to do my best so that's why he pushes me." Lena gave a small laugh as she realized why Fenrir was asking her these questions and said in a reassuring tone. "I know what you're thinking, because this is Atlas you expected that Faunus are being treated poorly because of the SDC's reputation huh? Well every once in awhile there will be those types of people you'll encounter but overall it isn't that bad, you just gotta wait and find out yourself."

"Hey Fen you about ready to go," came Yang's voice suddenly appearing beside him giving him a hard look before turning to Lena. "I'm sorry we have some stuff to do so I gotta take my friend here."

Lena blushed slightly and brushed a stray hair out of her face. "Oh I'm sorry." Turning back to Fenrir she smiled and slipped him a piece of paper, muttering a come again disappearing to back of the store before Fenrir could say another word. Looking at the paper he smiled realizing that she had just given him her number, the words she had said to him about Atlas still on his mind.

"You just gotta wait and find out for yourself."

"Fenrir are you ready go yet?" Morven asked snapping him from his thoughts, the Specialist stood patiently beside Yang holding a small case of his own giving the young wolf a puzzled look before continuing. "Well I was just notified by my mother that all the ingredients for tonight's meal have already been purchased and are awaiting us at home, and since a roast takes considerable time to prep and cook I suggest we head home now, that way that when our guests arrive the meal will be almost done."

Remembering his outburst about cooking Fenrir sighed and nodded, sliding Lena's number into his pocket and grabbing his case from the counter he gave Yang a little wave before following Morven out of the store. Moments later they were in a car headed back for the Kenrich estate, a quiet ride until breaking the silence with a slight smile on his face Morven asked.

"So you thought that girl was pretty cute huh?" Catching Fenrir off guard Morven looked back from the passenger seat and met Fenrir's irritated gaze with one of slight amusement, seeing how defensive the young wolf was getting about the girl roused his suspicion. Thinking a moment he then asked, "so did you at least get her number?"

About to tell Morven off for butting into his business Fenrir choked in surprise at the question, immediately realizing that he had just answered the Specialist without even uttering a word. Gritting his teeth Fenrir tersely asked, "so does anything get past you or do you see all Morven?" His voice dripping with irritation at the faint amusement in the man's eyes.

"Not if I can help it Mr. Argyros," Morven replied turning back to front. "Part of our job you'll learn is to observe all that goes on around us, to be constantly vigilant against the forces that move against us in this world."

"I told you to stop calling me that," Fenrir growled still looking at Morven. Despite that the Specialist was no longer looking him he couldn't help but feel that Morven was scrutinizing him still. "I said you can call me Fenrir, so go ahead and pull that stick out your ass and try to show some real emotion. Ok?"

"Show some emotion huh?" Morven pondered internally sighing. His thoughts unconsciously shifting to Winter and the time they had spent together as partners and as children. "Hmmm perhaps you're right…" He trailed off surprising Fenrir.

Neither of them said another word the rest of the ride, both deep in their own thoughts till the car pulled up once again to the manor.

After navigating their way to the kitchen, the duo opened the door to reveal Serena and Lyla standing at the counter staring expectantly at them, though the feeling in the room drastically different from before. The look and demeanor of Lyla seeming much more intense as the two moved towards the counter.

"Alright boys," Lyla growled narrowing her eyes. "Time to get you to work."

Five hours of slaving away in the kitchen later

Finally able to take a breather Fenrir sat back in a armchair and gave a sigh. Relieved that all the work for dinner was done he knew that he could relax for a bit now, in less than an hour the roast would finally be done and they'd be able to eat.

"I actually had a good time," he thought to his surprise thinking about the time he had just spent in the kitchen. It had been him, Morven, Serena, and Lyla all working on the meal together. Fenrir chuckled thinking of Lyla again, her character drastically changing to that of a task master as she ordered Morven around the kitchen while he worked quietly with Serena, the two of them preparing the rub for the roast before tackling the appetizers.

"Here's a drink Fenrir and thanks for your help," a quiet voice said coming from his left.

Turning he was met with a glass water and a friendly smile from Morven's mother who stood beside him, a kind motherly expression on her face as she gently shook the glass again.

"Oh thank you ma'am," Fenrir said taking the glass from her and downing it in two gulps. Turning his head he then noticed that Morven was nowhere to be found, assuming that he had probably went to the bathroom Fenrir decided to poke around a bit with some questions for the Specialists mother.

"If you don't mind me asking ma'am why does Morven always take his job so seriously? He's treated me far better than any human has and I still don't understand, so I figured I'd ask the person who knows him best."

Serena gave Fenrir a strange look before thinking about it herself, the memories of raising him bringing a slight smile to her face. "Well to be honest with you Fenrir my son has always been like that. The way I see it is that he has this idea that for the world to become a better place he must take it upon himself to actively help shape it, like it's his duty to be the best possible person he can be. That's why he treats you so well, because to be the best he can be, he has to help others be their best as well. If that makes any sense to you."

Fenrir frowned slightly as Serena spoke, all this time turned out that Morven wanted to make the world a better place, thinking about it now they aren't so different, Morven wanted to make the world a better place, while he wanted to create a world where human and Faunus could learn to coexist, "Great now I feel like a complete moron, I shouldn't have lashed out on Morven the way I did if mom were here she would've given me one of her famous lectures. I'm starting to see now why people respect him so much," a forlorn expression appeared on Fenrir's face at the thought of his mother something that didn't go unnoticed by Serena.

"I know you probably had your own idea about him when the two of you first met huh?" She asked catching the expression on the young wolf's face, shooting him a smile she then chuckled. "Well hopefully he's changed that opinion of yours a little just from your short stay with us so far."

"Well I did snap at him when we were at the academy, thinking back I kinda feel bad about it." For Fenrir if there was one thing he held in high regard it was his pride. Thinking on that Fenrir suddenly changed the subject. "I hope you don't mind me asking ma'am, but how much does Morven care about his honor?"

A concerned expression came across Serena's face at this and in a sad voice she muttered, "sometimes I worry that he cares to much about his honor. The belief my son puts in his aesthetics I fear will one day put him in harm's way, but until that day I can't ask him to stop." Staring into Fenrir's red eyes for a moment thinking she then asked. "Why do you ask this Fenrir, did something happen?"

Choosing his words carefully Fenrir looked at the older woman. "When we were at the Academy, during our sparring match but all he did was mock me, but when he went against the Schnee he instantly took out his sword and fought her like he was serious!" Clenching his fist remembering the humiliating defeat he suffered. "I just feel like he doesn't take me seriously just because I'm still a kid, something that infuriates me, just because I'm a kid doesn't mean he can look down on me!"

Realizing what the young wolf was getting at Serena couldn't help but let out a soft chuckle, seeing how Fenrir was getting slightly upset she quickly apologized before explaining why she laughed. "I'm sorry it's just I hadn't pegged you for the sensitive type Fenrir so I'm sorry for laughing. Please allow me to explain. So as you can tell our family has some history with the Schnee's, so to say Morven has a soft spot for Weiss would be an understatement. But also at first he was no harsher on you then he once was on her, actually to tell you the truth their first match ended with her in tears, the poor girl. The reason he is so hard and tries to get in your head is so that he can see how you'll react. Watching your responses to hardship and struggle of conflict gives him a better idea on how he'll have to teach you."

Fenrir couldn't help but feel annoyed at this answer and puffed his cheeks in frustration. "Dammit of course," he thought shaking his head. Recalling the promise Morven made to train him and piecing together what his mother had just told him, Fenrir finally began to see the big picture. "You're certainly not making it easy on me but if what your mother says is true, then I guess you mean well."

"Try to have some faith and trust in my son Fenrir, he did after all believe in you enough to stand up to the Council on your behalf." Serena reminded him in a motherly tone, the ding of the timer going off in the kitchen getting her attention. Giving Fenrir another smile Serena motioned for him to stay put, "don't worry Fenrir, Lyla and I will take care the final preparations for dinner you go ahead and relax for a bit longer."

Watching Serena return back to the kitchen Fenrir continued to sit for a moment longer before he heard the doorbell go off. Looking into the direction it of the main entrance it wasn't till the doorbell was rung a minute later when Serena called out from the kitchen, "Fenrir would you mind getting that please? It should be the girls finally getting here!"

"No problem ma'am!" Fenrir called back getting up, heading for the entrance he couldn't help but have feel a little happy that Yang was coming to dinner. "She's one of the only humans to see beyond the fact that I'm a Faunus," he thought as he approached the door smiling to himself slightly. "And the fact she's really easy on the eyes is a bonus."

Opening the door Fenrir froze suddenly meeting a pair of blue eyes. General Ironwood unlike the elderly man beside him seemed surprised that Fenrir was the one that answered the door, taking a second to gather his wits he then addressed Fenrir.

"Ah hello again and good evening Mr. Argyros, sorry to drop by unannounced but there was a recent development which I needed to speak to Yorath about, nothing you need to concern yourself so don't worry about it," he said reassuring the suspicious Faunus.

"And I'm just here to pay a surprise visit to my son and his family," the old man said giving Fenrir a friendly smile.

Hearing him speak and getting a better look at him Fenrir suddenly realized why he had seemed familiar, the old man he realized was the council elder that had been the final decision on his fate.

"Oh Fen-Fen, did you get the door already?" Came a sing-song from the kitchen. Walking out into the hallway Lyla made her way to the door greeting the two guests all the smirking at Fenrir.

Looking back at the busty maid, Fenrir gave her a mock glare before retorting with a smirk. "You know if I'm the one answering the door you must be doing something wrong Lyla." His gaze not leaving the General as he moved to the side allowing Ironwood and Gerade to enter.

After closing the door behind them Lyla took the General by the arm and said loudly, "Ms. Kenrich the General and head councilor Gerade are here! After I take the General to Mr. Kenrich would you like me to prepare two more seats at the table?"

"Don't worry about that Lyla, I've already taken care of it, could you please take James to my husbands study? I'll be right out in a second to see to my father in law." Serena called called. From the sound of her voice it sounded like she had her hands full.

Hearing that Gerade laughed and called back, "Serena dear don't worry! Take your time, I actually was hoping to have a minute to speak to Mr. Argyros here alone!"

On the outside Fenrir showed no fear other than tensing after those words had left the councilors mouth. "Should I be worried?" He thought to himself thinking of the possibility that he would be thrown back into a holding cell.

Gerade looking at the young Faunus noticed how tense he was and gave Fenrir a kind smile. "There's no need to be nervous young man I'm not here to discuss anything particular with you, I actually wanted to meet you in person, after all we haven't really been introduced yet now have we?"

Feeling a wave of relief wash over him Fenrir pulled out two chairs, politely gesturing Gerade to sit. "Well that's a relief sir, the last thing I need is to get on the bad side of you higher up's, but if you don't mind me asking why do you want to talk with someone like me? Out of all the people he expected to mingle with, an Atlas councilor was the last person he expected.

"Well you see you were brought to my attention by my grandson, when I initially received word that the White Beast had been captured I was expecting someone a little more ferocious, Morven though explained to me what had transpired before you were taken into custody. That last bit of conversation you had with your brother." Gerade nodded sadly to himself before continuing. "And now with you being so cooperative with us I wanted to hear your thoughts on the matter, also see how you are adjusting to your new setting here with the family."

"I'll be honest with you, I have mixed feelings on that matter." Fenrir responded clenching his fists, the memory of Caius attempting to kill him still fresh in his mind. No matter how hard he wanted to give his brother the benefit of the doubt and say he was just following orders those last chilling words he said to him all but confirmed his fear.

His only brother had turned his back on him.

Regaining his composer Fenrir continued, "I have no other relatives left sir, my brother was the only family I had left before we joined the White Fang."

"Do you regret leaving the White Fang at all?" Gerade asked, his voice not accusing but genuinely curious, as if he wanted to know the real truth behind Fenrir's leave from the Fang.

"In a way yes, " Fenrir replied turning his gaze from Gerade thinking about his reason for even joining. "You see sir not everyone there were the savages that people made us out to be, the original purpose was to promote equality between human and Faunus."

The old man nodded his head thoughtfully at this, "yes yes I agree completely. The hatred on both the human and Faunus side of this issue will get us nowhere. Though I am curious that you didn't leave them sooner, I'm sure you've heard of the main faction out in Menagerie that is more on the peaceful side. My son Yorath on occasion goes down to negotiate with them and offer services from the company."

Fenrir raised an eyebrow in surprise, to hear about a human run company having business with Menagerie was unheard of. Thinking a moment on it he then asked, "so this business that your son does with them. What's the benefit that you all get?"

"Benefit? Ha ha, young man there doesn't always have to be a, what do I get out of it ending for a deal. In the case of dealing with Menagerie it's beneficial to both sides and used a symbol for our two races cooperating." Gerade gave Fenrir another friendly smile and gestured to him, "and weren't you saying that that's something that needs to be worked on?"

Fenrir gave the old man a perplexed look. Never had he expected to hear that a upper class family from Atlas was so generous. To him it seemed to good to be true and almost yelling said. "Wait you mean to tell me out of the goodness of your heart..." But he stopped right there, regaining his composure, his mind racing. "Maybe he was wrong. Maybe just maybe, there were some humans who cared for his kin, perhaps peace and coexistence between human and Faunus wasn't that hard."

"Well not me personally. My son after all was the youngest to inherit the business since I was selected for the council. To everyone's surprise actually that was one of the first big ventures he took the company on, right after getting married I would add." A grin appearing on his friendly face as he added quietly. "So soon after the marriage I stills suspect that it was originally her idea. No matter though the rest of our guests are arriving now so we should go get ready for the meal."

At that moment the doorbell rang again and to Fenrir's relief, this time it was Yang and the others at the door.

"Hey Fen aren't you a sight for sore eyes," Yang joked surprised that he was the one who answered. "Not that we aren't happy to see you, but how come you the one answering the door?" Out of all the people she expected to meet she didn't think the Faunus would be the one of them

"Well I had finished helping out with the cooking and Mrs. Kenrich said I could take a break." Fenrir replied blushing slightly while his tail swayed slowly at seeing the blonde.

"Hmmm interesting," Gerade thought to himself watching the young Faunus. A faint smile crossing his face as he of his own youth. "Ahh to be young and in love. I wonder if Morven knows about this? No of course not, that boy still doesn't even know of his own feeling for Winter now." Giving a small laugh Gerade then excused himself and made his way to the kitchen leaving Fenrir with Yang and the two Schnee's.

Watching the old man head over to the kitchen Fenrir decided to take the girls over to the dining area, while they walked he couldn't help but feel he was being closely watched by the two Schnee's as him and Yang made small talk.

Out of the blue Yang suddenly asked, "hey what were you talking about with that girl at the shop? The two of you seemed to be having an interesting little talk."

Her voice seemed light and perfectly normal, but both Winter and Weiss caught the faintest hint of an edge in her voice. Fenrir on the other hand gave a little chuckle and shook his head.

"Oh that, yeah it was nothing really Yang. I was asking a bit about what it's like living in Atlas." Fenrir reassured her unaware of what the blonde was implying. "I saw she was a Faunus so I couldn't help but ask her about how she was treated here."

"Hmm, ok I can see why you'd be curious about that," Yang muttered reasoning with herself the wolves conversation with his fellow Faunus. The two of them continued to chat unaware that the two Schnee's had fallen behind and started whispering amongst themselves.

"I wouldn't have guessed that Yang would already be so territorial of her little pet," Weiss whispered to her sister smirking. The way that Yang had worded her question making it obvious to her that whether the blonde realized it or not, she was already revealing an unconscious interest in Fenrir.

"Ridiculous how she'd allow herself to get like that," Winter said rolling her eyes, about to continue when she caught sight of her sister silently laughing. Stopping and placing her hands on her hips Winter accusingly looked at her, waiting for an explanation.

Laughing for a bit longer at her sister Weiss looked up at Winter and teased, "oh yeah you're one to talk Winter. I saw that look you had back at the academy when Morven was talking to Zoe, you're no better than Yang at this point Winter."

Opening her mouth Winter froze, her face red from embarrassment she looked away from her sister who struggled to hold back a snicker.

"Oh no she's right, and if Morven noticed that I'd die embarrassment," Winter thought, her face still flustered as Yang and Fenrir moved to open the door to the dining area.

"Fen-Fen!" Came a childish voice as the door opened getting Fenrir's attention, looking he saw getting up from his seat at the table Garreth running over to him.

"Hey kid," Fenrir said in a somewhat embarrassed tone, giving Garreth a smile before patting the young boy on his head. "Don't call me that in front of other people it's embarrassing." To the surprise Yang and the two Schnee's, he sounded much like an older brother gently scolding his little brother, as strange, as it sounded the Faunus couldn't help but chuckle.

"Fen-Fen huh?" Yang snorted holding in her laughter, "the name rolls off the tongue, Fen-Fen." Shooting the young wolf a wink who shook his head at her taunting.

"Oh great, it was bad enough with Lyla coming up with that nickname and I don't mind the kid, but now she's calling me that." Fenrir rolled his eyes at the blonde and muttered, "give me some time and I'll find you an annoying nickname too Yang, just you wait."

"Is that a threat?" Yang taunted before bending down and giving the newcomer a friendly smile and holding out her hand. "Hi there little guy, I'm Yang. It's nice to meet you."

Moving to partially hide behind Fenrir at first, Garreth shyly smiled and came out and shook Yang's hand.

"Hel-hello Yang," he stuttered nervously quickly releasing her hand, retreating back behind Fenrir before noticing the two behind Yang. "Big sis Winter! Big sis Weiss!"

Completely forgetting how nervous he was just a second earlier, Garreth ran out from behind Fenrir and hugged a blushing Winter around the waist.

"Hey you can't just go around calling me that!" Winter cried out fidgeting in an embarrassed fashion, mumbling to herself. "Morven and I aren't married… We aren't even dating. Calling me that is so embarrassing."

Watching Winter fidget and mutter to herself in that embarrassed fashion, Fenrir let out a snort of laughter snapping her out of thoughts.

"And what's so funny dog?" Winter snapped glaring at Fenrir, the amused look on his face for some reason irritating her even more than usual.

"Oh nothing Schnee." Fenrir shot back, narrowing his eyes at her dog comment before allowing another smirk to cross his face.

"You care so much about Morven's opinion, huh Winter? Just hearing you now makes me think what you would want more then anything is to just settle down with him, to get that fairy tale ending and live happily ever after with the man you fell for. I don't know what pisses me off more, that fact it makes you happy or the fact that Morven's dumbass doesn't see it. I mean seriously, how blind is that guy?"

"You know you can't blame him for laughing at you Winter," Weiss reasoned surprising everyone. Seeing the multitude of strange looks everyone was giving her, the younger Schnee shook her head and then pointed at her sister. "I know the wolf already caught it by now Winter but I'm telling you this now, your behaviour and attitude when around Morven is very different from the working Winter that everyone knows. It's not a bad thing, it's just very noticeable."

"Tsk." Winter exhaled angrily and shot Weiss and Fenrir an annoyed glare before looking at Yang, a confused expression dotting her face as well. Changing the look she gave the blonde to one of questioning as she waited for a response, staring at Yang intently.

"What's that look for Winter?" Yang asked in a confused voice meeting the eldest Schnee's icy blue eyes.

After a moment of thinking Winter finally replied. "I want your opinion Yang, do I really seem that different with Morven around or with him being brought up?"

Yang could feel the slight tension in Winter as she asked this and had to stop and think about it. "Well, I haven't really known you and Morven very long." Yang started, her hand unconsciously rubbing her chin as she searched for the right words. "The way I see it, I can tell you have a lot of respect and care deeply for him. In a sense to say that for you, being around him is like a safe space where the judgment of others doesn't bother you as much."

Looking back again at Winter, she watched the older Schnee nod her head thoughtfully and give a quiet thank you while Weiss wore the most astonished look on her face that Yang had ever seen.

"Who are you and what have you done with Yang?" Weiss muttered staring at the blonde like she had grown a second head. This bout of deep insight unexpectedly coming from Yang shocking her to the point she could only assume, someone had replaced Yang.

Seeing the expression on Weiss's face Yang couldn't help but laugh at how ridiculous her teammate had sounded.

"Really Weiss, that's hilarious. Although I am a little hurt," Yang teased exaggerating a hurt expression. "Believe it or not I can be serious about things too."

"And that's a very good thing to have Ms. Xiao-long."

Everyone turned in surprise to see Morven standing Winter, his eyes moving from her and his brother to Weiss and Fenrir, before finally stopping on Yang, who for some reason tensed up when she felt his gaze move to her. Giving her a reassuring smile Morven then turned his gaze to the rest of the group.

"Alright, I hope everyone has an appetite since Fenrir and the lot of us have been slaving away in the kitchen. So let's all head to the dining hall and eat alright."

The gathered party all nodded in agreement at this and proceeded the rest of the way to the dining hall, where right outside they found General Ironwood as well as Yorath and his father waiting for them.

"Ahh there's the rest of our guests," Yorath said nodding to his sons and the others, a fatherly smile crossing his tired face. "The food smells delicious. Morven, Fenrir. I'm looking forward to enjoying the meal you helped prepare."

"It wasn't too much trouble sir," Fenrir replied turning to look at Morven. "I had a good time as well, it's been awhile since I've had the chance to work in a kitchen again. Not to mention laugh at Morven over here getting chewed out by Lyla, so I'll take that as reward enough." A smirk appearing on the young wolves face.

Yorath chuckled and moved to his son's side patting him on the back, "well that's because Morven here knows better than to argue with her. Lyla is despite her age, just as feisty as some of the younger ladies who have courted my boy here."

"Father please, I'd rather not talk about that right now." Morven said deliberately looking away from Winter, her flushed cheeks indicating that a nerve was struck with that comment. "Anyway dinner should be done by now so let us all sit down and celebrate, after all this meal is to welcome the two newest members of our family now."

The gathered party hearing this all turned to Yang and Fenrir, their faces shining with approval and praise.

"Yeah thanks everyone," Fenrir muttered breaking eye contact while Yang blushed slightly at all the attention. Standing there awkwardly Fenrir coughed and shot Morven a look that said, "hey man could use a little help here."

With a small smile playing across his face, Morven gave the young wolf an almost imperceptible nod. "Alright everyone," he said confidently getting their attention. "I know we all want to welcome them in, but we have a large meal to eat so let's save that for later."

"I agree," Yorath said chipping in, clapping his eldest on the shoulder. "Now let's get a move on everyone, I'm starving over here." Leading the way and opening the dining hall door everyone made their way to the table and began seating themselves.

Yorath as head of the house sat at the head of the table with his wife on his left and his heir, Floyd. Fenrir had heard the name several times by this point, but hadn't seen the new heir to the family business till now. He could see that Floyd had the same ash grey hair hair as his father and younger brother as well as the light brown eyes the three of them shared.

"So strange that how different Morven is from his brothers and father, yet with his mother…" His eyes shifting to Serena, noting again the similarities between her and her eldest son.

"Hello, earth to Fen are you ok?"

Fenrir shook his head and found Yang staring into his eyes, a mischievous expression on her face as she poked at him.

"Yeah yeah I'm fine," Fenrir muttered brushing her off before looking again for his own seat, a silly sort of grin crossing his face as he spotted Garreth patting the chair next to him. "I was just looking for my seat, looks like it's right across from yours if I'm not mistaken Yang."

Hearing this Yang gave Fenrir another smile and made her way to her own seat while the remaining few standing sat as well, with that the doors opened and several maids and butlers entered, each setting a plate before their respective guest before silently exiting the room, leaving only a single maid standing by.

"Alright now let's do this right everyone," Yorath said rising to his feet and raising a glass. "A welcoming toast to our guests and new friends. May these times for us last and be remembered."

Raising their glasses everyone smiled and repeated the toast while Yang and Fenrir awkwardly stood there at the center of everyone's attention before quickly sitting down and starting to eat.

For Fenrir, having only had one meal with the Kenrich family, he still felt a little out of place as on his left Morven, the General and Winter began discussing current events within Atlas, while On his right Yorath was drawn into a business discussion with Floyd and Serena. Raising his eyes to look across the table he found to his disappointment that even Yang was engaged in a conversation with both Lyla and Weiss.

Sighing heavily he turned back to his food when he felt a tug on his sleeve. Turning he saw a sad sort of understanding on Garreth's face. Giving the boy a reassuring smile Fenrir ruffled his hair and told him not to worry about it, digging back into the meal before him.

Having watched Fenrir from the corner of his eye for awhile now, Gerade decided to reach out and try and engage the young Faunus again. Asking first about the meal, complimenting on how well it turned out.

As time passed and the meal progressed though, Fenrir eventually found himself conversing more with the old man. Gerade he found was an interesting man. No real poking or inquiries into his life in the Fang, but rather the two made small talk about everyday things. From how lately the weather had seemed to be getting colder, to favorite foods and dishes.

Fenrir could almost feel completely at ease.

As the meal winded down and the guests made their way to leave, Ironwood approached Fenrir. Looking him in the eye for a moment he then extended his hand in a gesture of goodwill and firmly shook his hand.

"I know you're still unsure about this whole situation Mr. Argyros," Ironwood said releasing his hand and crossing his own. "But you are in good hands. Morven believes in you, and he has my absolute trust which is not given lightly. Whatever he sees in you, I hope you end up seeing it too"

Nodding silently in agreement Fenrir turned slightly and caught sight of Morven still watching him out of the corner of his eye. As expected his face was devoid of any obvious emotion aside from a slight smile as he bid the General and his Grandfather goodbye.

After watching the two older gentlemen bid their final farewells again and finally leave, Fenrir turned to find Winter, Weiss and Yang speaking again with Serena. The older woman he caught teasing Winter.

"You know Winter, we have a couple extra guest rooms available. But we are fine if you want to stay with Morven in his room, just as long as they keep the noise to a minimum."

Immediately Winter blushed at this, coughing heavily while both her sister and Yang erupted into a fit of laughter while Morven, who also heard his mother's comment turned red as well. With his eyes awkwardly meeting Winters he quickly looked away mumbling something about it being the same as when they are in the field together.

Holding in a laugh Fenrir coughed and turned away from them. Trying to hide a smile that threatened to show itself. Fenrir thought again of the feelings towards this group of people that had taken him in.

"No!" He thought sharply shaking the thought from his mind at the mention of family, the smile slowly leaving his face as he was once again reminded of his own flesh and blood turning a blade against him. The memory causing him to clench his fist. "If blood went as far as to kill me why wouldn't this new family…?" The word now leaving a bitter taste in his mouth.

Waiting till everyone was done laughing at the two Specialists, Fenrir then excused himself claiming he needed some air before bed and walked outside, the crisp night air chilling him slightly as he walked out into the garden ignoring the concerned looks everyone gave him.

It was a clear night out at this point and Fen couldn't help but stare up at the shattered moon hanging in the sky and sigh.

Ten minutes passed

"It's still hard to grasp how things have changed for you, hasn't it Fenrir?" Came Morven's voice from behind, the Specialists silence no longer surprising him.

Not even turning, Fenrir muttered. "This is nothing I could have ever expected Morven. But then again life has a funny way of surprising you with the unexpected wouldn't you say?"

Pausing and considering what Fenrir was saying, Morven nodded in understanding. After a minute of consideration an idea came to mind that maybe would help reassure his young ward. Gesturing for Fenrir to follow him, Morven turned and began making his way towards a stone structure in the center of the garden.

Upon moving closer, it was are clear that the structure was the entrance to what Fen could only assume was a large crypt. The same symbol which he had recently learned as the Kenrich family crest, were etched into the stones doors along with some faded writing that he couldn't make out.

"In the end, even our deeds are not forgotten. We live with honor. Act with courage. And die with pride knowing we will never be forgotten. The first written record of a Kenrich was this cry," Morven said pushing the doors open with a grunt.

Pulling a torch off the wall and lightning it he turned back to Fenrir. "Before the final battle that staked the kingdom of Atlas on the map, my ancestor formed a house of knights bound by strength and honor to fight for the old king. Now all that remains is the legacy he left and what's in the history books."

"What happened to the knights?" Fen asked quietly walking beside Morven staring at the various tombs within the crypt. Each of them decorated with a life sized stone carving of what Fen could only assume, was how they looked in life.

"The knights did what all men do. Fulfill their purpose as knights, grow old and pass the Duty on before finally dying." His last words taking a somber tone as he stopped before the last tomb raising the torch higher.

Fen looked up at the statue, his eyes widening at the size of not only the man, but the sword propped against him.

"Albion Kenrich. He was a monster of a man," Morven chuckled noticing Fenrir's reaction at the sight of the statue, a look of admiration crossing his face as he placed his hand against the stone blade sighing. "It was why he was nicknamed the Colossus by his fellow knights. One of my favorite stories in our family is about how he stopped a charging Goliath with his bare hands proving the strength of his loyalty to the king."

"There's no fucking way," Fen muttered, voice wavering slightly as he looked at Albion's statue again trying to doubt what he had just heard. Still though, the representation of him seemed larger than life.

"Fen. The reason I brought you down here is because I want you to know that no matter what you think of me, I am on your side. Like how Albion Kenrich pledged his loyalty and services to the king and kingdom, I pledge the same to you. My ward and comrade, all I ask in return is that you trust me. Deal?"

There was a long moment of silence between the two and Fen couldn't help but awkwardly chuckle to break the silence. More and more about this man before him seemed to be revealed as they spoke, and yet at the same time he had more questions to ask.

It was infuriating and yet satisfying at the same time forcing Fen to shoot Morven an annoyed smile.

"Geez Morven you are so serious you know. I used to think I was pretty good at reading people and figuring out what their motives were. But you… You are something else entirely. I might not trust Atlas, and I might not trust the rest of this team yet, but I'll trust you. Cause after everything you've done for me, I'd say you've earned that much at least."

Nodding his head in thanks Morven then held out his hand, and in a gesture of trust Fenrir grasped it back, the two staring at each other eye to eye. Both feeling that this was the beginning of something neither of them first expected.

Feeling that they were done now Morven led the way back up to the surface. Upon exiting the crypt they spotted Winter and Yang up on the balcony waiting, a look of slight embarrassment on the Schnee's face while Yang wore a smug grin.

"Morven, your mother insisted that Yang and I stay the night and she wouldn't take no for an answer." Her voice faltering slightly thinking about the exact words.

"We have another guest room set up for Yang though it only has one bed. Don't worry though Winter dear, you should know Morven's bed is big enough for the both of you."

"Why must she tease me like this?" Winter thought her face flushing an even brighter pink. "I know she's always approved of Morven and I. But to tell me that she wants grandkids this soon is too much, I mean Morven and I aren't even…"

"You should know you are more than welcome to stay with us at any Winter," Morven said flashing her a friendly smile snapping her back to reality, noticing the change his smile then turned to a look of suspicion.

Knowing his mother he knew there were ulterior motives, and judging from Winter's flustered expression it was clear that his mother had said something to her. Internally shaking his head in amusement to his mother's meddling he turned again to Fen and gave him a nod kindly patting the young Faunus on the back.

"Well I suggest you get some sleep now Fen. While we aren't getting up as early, you should expect a extended day of training tomorrow. From our fight you showed great promise in adaptability to situations you ended up in, and with training you'll become even more versed in sizing up a situation and dealing with it accordingly."

At the sound of those words Fen couldn't help but grin again, his fangs bared slightly as he met Morven's serious gaze. "Alright Morven I'll see you in the morning. And don't worry, I'll be ready for whatever you have in store. We both will."

"We'll see Fen."

AN: Man what a chapter not only did we learn more on Morven family history but also Fenrir is beginning to adapt to his little predicament and trust humans. Now we apologize if this one took a bit longer to finish are personal lives got in the way but we'll try to post more frequently.

You guys know the drill R & R and let us know what you thought till next time this is Keeper of The One Winged Angel logging out.