A/N Well, it's been a year since I started this story, and I have to say, I am surprised by how many people followed and favorited it. You guys are constantly surprising me, and for that, I want to thank you all with an even longer chapter, one that's longer than any of my others. But most of all, I want to dedicate this chapter to the person who got me into RWBY in the first place while I was visiting my grandparents out of state. Here's to you, Uncle, and to everyone that reads this. Hope you guys enjoy.

Chapter 11
The reveal


Unknown P.O.V.-First person
~five minutes earlier~ –somewhere in Vale–

'Why am I always the one to go first? She knows I hate being the frontman,' I think to myself as I wander around Vale, clad in regular clothing to hide in the crowd. 'Then again, I'm not really the first one.' At this, I chuckle to myself at the thought of K, the poor sap. Even though I've never seen him, she seems to rely on him more than anyone else, even more so than F. Then again, he is great at fitting in with huge crowds, unlike the rest of us. 'Heh. Guess it's a good thing one of us has seen him, in case we have to fight him. Gotta hand it to the boss, she really knows how to strategize once given an assignment.'

I round a corner into an alley, expecting to meet up with one of Roman's lackeys, but instead, I'm met with an empty lane.

"FUCK! Where is she?!" I yell to myself, not expecting a response. As I walk out the other side, I would rather have had someone answer my own question. I saw the punk leaning against a wall, watching a random redhead running around in a panic, when some blonde walks up and comforts the panicked girl. Then, when the two strangers walk away, she follows them, not even trying to steal anything, just following. 'What the fucking hell?' I ask myself as they walk out of sight. "I need to tell them," I whisper to myself as I back into the alley.

~ten minutes later~ –a warehouse near the docks–

"-at do you mean she walked away with two girls?!"

I shrug. "Exactly that. Neo walked away with a blonde and a redhead, as if she knew them. The blonde was wearing a lot of yellow, and the redhead was wearing lots of-"

At this, Roman slammed his fist into the wall next to him, making everyone jump and causing me to stop mid-sentence, as he grumbled, "Red." Everyone just looked at him, confused. "Red," he says again. "The girl who tried to stop me from robbing that one dust shop a while back." Then it clicked for everyone as I watched their faces grow dark. Roman turned to me and asked, "Which way did they go, Emerald?"

I tilted my head to the left, then shrugged. "I didn't see. It was too crowded. For all I know, they could've just doubled back once I left."

Roman growled at this, storming off into the darkness between the various stolen shipping containers of dust. I just shook my head as I looked over at the silver haired teenage boy and brunette woman. "What do you two think?" I ask them.

The boy just shrugged as he leaned back, so I used my semblance to make him think he was falling out of the chair, causing him to violently jerk forward and faceplant into the floor.

Rubbing his nose, he sat up and asked me, "Why the hell do you do that, Em?!"

"Because you constantly ignore me and Cinder, Merc!" I yell back.

At this, the brunette walked forward, raising a hand to silence us. "Now, now. We agreed to not fight or argue while we are discussion work," she said, not entirely wrong. Then she shifted her amber gaze to me, continuing with, "But Emerald is right. You do ignore us. That needs to stop before we are needed. Now, about Neo, I think we need to find out who exactly she is with, and why she's with them."

I nod in agreement as Cinder walks away, towards the warehouse entrance and the outside. When she was gone, I let out a breath as I kneeled next to Mercury.

"How long do you think we can keep this up, Merc?" I ask as I brush some hair out of his face.

He shrugs as he places a hand on my hip. "I have no idea, Emmy. But I don't even want to think about what will happen if Cinder finds out, let alone if she finds out," he says, with me nodding in agreement, a slight blush forming at the rare contact.

"I don't think I can pretend to hate you for much longer, Merc. It's getting harder every day," I whisper as we both stand up.

He sighs and folds his arms behind his head. "I know, Emmy, but we have to for now." As he says this, he briefly brushes his hand against mine before walking away towards Roman. I sigh before following Cinder's exit, emotions and thoughts conflicting inside me.

Ruby's P.O.V.
–downtown Vale–

"-sappeared! You told me to stay with her, and she just vanishes! What did you expect me to do?" I yell at Yang as we walk.

Yang just chuckled silently as she looked over her shoulder. When I followed her gaze, I froze in shock as, right behind us, Neo followed, a grin on her face. After waving at me, she proceeded to walk in between me and Yang, wrapping herself around Yang's left arm and sticking her tongue out at me. 'How is it that she is the same age as Yang?'

"Neo! Come on! I thought we've been over this," Yang said, followed by her whispering, 'Not in public.' At this, Neo let go of Yang, but stayed right next to her, giving me an evil glare anytime I tried to get near enough to talk to Yang. Sighing, I just let my sister lead the way, with the mysterious girl in tow.

K's P.O.V.-third person
~a couple minutes later~ –near the edge of Vale–

K was walking around in the thinning crowd, when he noticed a green-haired girl following him, slightly offset so as to not be directly across from him. He shook his head as he made a direct beeline towards her. She suddenly sprinted through the crowd, pushing past people, but oddly enough, no one was yelling or swearing. He looked back at where she was before and noticed a faint ripple. The more he concentrated, the bigger the ripple grew until the illusion fell away, with the girl standing in the same spot, dumbfounded, as K reached her and silently pulled her into an alley.

"Who are you and why are you following me?" he asked, lifting her against a wall by her chin.

The girl tried to speak, but was unable to due to the hand holding her up. Seeing this, K quickly shifted his grip to the base of her throat, and the girl quickly spoke, "Why should I tell you who I am? You're just going to either kill me or turn me in anyway."

K just chuckled. "No why would I do that? I don't even know who you are. But, if you don't tell me, my hand might… just… twitch," he threatened, slightly tilting the hand holding the girl up.

The girl's eyes widened at this before she slowly replied. "M-my name i-i-is E-Em. I-I'm n-not allowed to s-s-say why I'm f-following y-you."

K just tisked as he waved a finger on his free hand. "You were doing so well up until that la-" he said, being interrupted by heels clicking down the alley. When he turned to look out of the corner of his eye at the interruptor.

"My, my. He's a strong one," said the new person, a woman with brunette hair and piercing gold eyes, wearing a red dress with intricate designs on one side. K tilted his head to one side slightly, thinking that he knew that voice from somewhere before subtly shaking his head and tightening his grip on the throat of the green haired girl, Em, ever so slightly.

"Move any closer, and she dies," K warned. "If you are as smart as you are lovely to look at, you would leave us and not come back."

Cinder P.O.V.

I fold my arms across my chest as I stare at the blonde boy clad in armor standing not five feet from me, holding Emerald against a wall by her throat. "You know, that wouldn't be a smart choice on your end. Now, either release my friend," I say, straining with the word friend, as I hold out a hand engulfed in flames, "or I will have to burn off that pretty little face of yours."

The boy just laughed at me. "You think your little tricks can scare me? I have been through worse than what you could possibly do to me. Go ahead, I'll give you two free shots," he said, turning his body to face me fully.

When I saw his face, I had to stop my eyes from widening. 'Does he recognize me?' I think as I shrug and launch a fireball right at his face, followed by one to his crotch. They both hit him, dead on, but he doesn't even falter, 'Just like I taught him. Good.'

Suddenly, he drops Emerald and brushes his armor off. "Well, that second target was unexpected. But I must say, I admire your loyalty to your friend here," he says as he starts to shoulder past me. "Or should I say, your lackey, F?" he whispers before I can turn my head.

'So he does. That's good.' "Emerald, get up. It appears you had the wrong blonde," I say, suppressing a shiver from K's tone in his whisper.

"I-I'm sorry, Cinder. I don't understand how I could lose Neo and those oth-"

"Enough with excuses!" I snap, interrupting her. "It's getting late. Go do your own thing with Mercury." When she looked at me with shock, I replied, "You two aren't really being that subtle about it. Roman is just an ignorant buffoon. Now go. I will contact you when you are needed."

She tries to say something once I finish, but just sighs and walks back towards the warehouse. When she's out of sight, I pull out my private scroll, almost dark as night, and swipe through the pictures of a certain blonde-haired boy. Sighing, I put it away and wander around Vale, torching the few thugs who try and ambush me.

Yang's P.O.V.
~Ten minutes later~

"-ere are you, Vomit Boy? Weiss is worried about you!" I yell out, smiling as the heiress lets out an indignant "I am not!" before everyone laughs, except for Ren and Weiss.

Sis and I had split from the group when we picked up Neo, and had just met up with everyone a few minutes ago and are now moving in one group together, with Ren and Nora on either side. I call out again, but still get the same response.

"Hey, Jaune! Where were you?!" Nora suddenly shouts as she runs off down a nearby alley, full speed. Everyone crams together in the street, gaining us a quick glimpse of that unmistakable mess of blonde hair, before quickly following Nora. Ruby, of course, beat Nora and all I heard was a loud thud as she collided with him and they toppled to the ground.

"You okay, Jaune?" I hear Nora ask. I don't hear a reply, but I do hear Nora laugh as she pulls Ruby off of him. "Let's get you back to Beacon, clumsy. Who even did this to you?"

When Nora finally moves so everyone can see Jaune, he is just standing there, no scratches, no scars, just a little disheveled and tired looking. Shrugging, Jaune shook his head as he shakily replied, "I-I couldn't see wh-who did this to me. Wh-whoever did put a b-bag over my head…"

I look around the end of the alleyway and realize it is barren. "Hey, Jaune? Where's the locker that you were stuffed in?" I ask, curious as to where he landed and how he got here.

"I-it's a long ways o-over there," Jaune said, waving off the way we came. "I-I didn't know wh-which way was t-towards Beacon, so I j-just wandered a-around."

'Weird… How could he not see the Giant Tower?' I thought, not wanting to say anything as he probably had a reason. I watched as Weiss seemed to shuffle forward and stand next to Pyrrha. 'Now that is something I'd love to see,' I thought, a smirk starting to form, along with a plan. When I looked around, I saw Neo wasn't anywhere in sight. I turned to step out of the alley, and I saw a flash of green as someone ran across the entrance.

"Hey, guys, I need to go check something," I yell over my shoulder. "Meet you all, and Vomit Boy, back at Beacon."

With that said, I raced out of the alley, following the direction of the green haired person who I saw when we first met up with Neo.

Neo's P.O.V.

'How the hell did she find us?' I ask myself. 'I thought I sent her the other fucking direction!' Somehow, Emerald had got through my illusion and found us again. Now, I was running, trying to find somewhere, anywhere, that can safely hide me from Emerald. As I look around, I see a flash of red ahead of me. When I focused, I quickly turned down an alleyway to avoid Cinder… Only to run into her…

"Well, if this isn't a pleasant surprise," she said. "Seems like Emerald did what she was supposed to. Guess she is good for something after all."

As soon as Cinder said this, Emerald stepped around the corner, blocking off my retreat, smirking.

I type into my scroll, trying to maintain my ruse of muteness with them, "Why did you have Em follow me all day? If you wanted to talk with me, you could've just asked nicely." As I sent it to both of them, I tried to hide anything that might give away my past.

"She followed you of her own will," Cinder said, placing a hand on her hip. "Apparently, you've been hanging around with a blonde bimbo, who you seem to be awfully familiar with, and a girl who looks like the person Roman described a couple weeks ago. Mind sharing how someone got so close to you?"

"I don't know who or what you're talking about. If anything, I used my semblance to make it seem like I was with random people when I noticed I was being followed," I retorted, scrunching up my face at Emerald when I saw Cinder looking at her scroll. In response, Emerald flipped me off using her semblance so Cinder couldn't see it.

"If that is true," Cinder said, "how did they move and have detailed features?"

'Shit. I forgot my semblance can't mimic movement. How am I going t- That's it!' "I figured you would see past that. You can't say I didn't try to fool you. What I really did was hide myself from them, trying to find who they are and what they were doing. Turns out they are students at Beacon, even the red-clad girl," I sent, shrugging as Cinder began to read. "When I first noticed Em, I let my illusion down for a few seconds, long enough for her to see me, but not for the girls or anyone else."

It took Cinder longer to read through these, probably trying to find a flaw in my fake explanation. When she finally looked up, she was staring at Emerald.

"Seems like you were worried about nothing. Let's go," she said. Then she looked at me and said, "This doesn't mean you're off the hook. The reconnaissance mission was not approved. From now on, you tell me where you are every hour, and where you are heading after that. Got it?"

That was less of a question, and more of a command, but I smiled cheekily and nodded enthusiastically. As I watched them walk around the far corner of the alley, I hear someone huffing near the street behind me. Turning, I see Yang, bent over, hands on her knees, head down.

Yang's P.O.V.-third person
~a few minutes ago~

'Geez… How far can they run in such short time?' Yang thought as she ran through the streets, looking for any sign of Neo of that green haired chick. Stopping in the middle of an extremely crowded street, Yang tried to see above the heads of the crowd, but couldn't see very far.

"NEO? WHERE ARE YOU?!" she yelled, causing a few people around her to scatter from the intensity of her voice.

After not getting a response, the young blonde sighed and continued her running, occasionally stopping and shouting. Eventually, Yang heard some people talking in an alley one block ahead of her, and she called out once again, sprinting for the entrance.

'Honestly… what is up with everyone and being around alleys?' Yang asked herself as she reached the entrance and keeled over, out of breath. After a few seconds, she stood back up and shot Neo a bright smile.

"Neo, why'd yo- mmph?!"

Neo had put a hand up to Yang's mouth, silencing her as she held a finger up to her own lips. Shaking her head, Neo led Yang back into the crowded street and away from the alley. Once there was a considerable distance in between, Neo sighed and slumped her shoulders.

"WHAT THE HELL WAS THAT?!" Yang asked, irises ringed with red.

"That was me keeping both of us safe. Look, when you left Vale, I was all alone. Then I found someone who promised to look after me, but I had to do something to prove I was wor- NO! It was nothing like that, Yang," Neo said, interrupting herself when Yang's eyes turned fully red. When Yang calmed down a bit, Neo continued. "He had me do small stuff. Steal a few Lien here, a few pieces of food there. I know, I shouldn't have done that, but no one would look after me once you left."

"BULLSHIT!" Yang yelled. "You know Dad would've gladly looked after ya, Neo. All you had to do was ask."

Neo just looked down at the ground, nudging some dirt on the sidewalk, and sheepishly replied, "Yeah… Your dad and I didn't really get along without you. Actually, it was more awkward than hostile, and you know how I feel about talking without you with me…" All Neo got in response was a sigh from Yang. Taking this as an opportunity to explain, she continued. "That person who followed us, she works with my boss, but not for him. I honestly can't say anything else, but I promise I will keep in contact. But I have to go now."

With that, Neo gave Yang a kiss on the cheek and walked away. Yang just stared after her, mind a blank before her scroll rang. When she looked at it, a message from an unknown number appeared, Yang only reading ";P" before putting it back in her pocket, a small, almost sad smile on her face.

Unknown P.O.V.
~Later that evening~ -a cafe near the docks-

'Damn. I could've sworn she came here every ni-' "Who the hell are you?" a female voice asked, interrupting my train of thought. In response, I put my hands up innocently. As I make to turn around, the same voice said, "Don't move!"

"Alright! Alright! Jeez, I just wanted to see the owner of such a lovely voice," I respond, feeling the barrel of a gun on my back. "You know, if you wanted to see the gun show, you could've just asked." At this, I started flexing my arms, trying to distract whoever is behind me.

"I said, who the hell are you?!" she said, shoving me forward with her gun. 'Okay, so whoever she is, she doesn't seem to like me, or my guns… what the fuck?!'

Finally, I manage to get a hold of her leg with my tail, and I pull her off balance, turning as I did so. Guess that was a bad decision on my part, as a sword suddenly slashed toward my oh-so-beautiful face. Quickly, I lean back, away from the arc of the blade, pulling out my own weapon from beneath my shirt. As my bō staff formed, I saw the person who had snuck up on me. Turns out, it was the girl I had been waiting for.

"First off, you probably shouldn't have underestimated me. Secondly, I'm more interested as to who you are, Kitten, and why you frequent that disgusting cafe," I reply. When I received a glare from her, I rolled my eyes and sat down. "But, to answer your question, the name's Sun."

With this, I shoot her my best smile, which seems to soften her glare for just a smidge. Suddenly, she is no longer standing in front of me, and I feel my staff get ripped away from my hands, clattering away on the rooftop.

"You don't need to know who I am, or why I come here," the chick said. "Just you knowing I frequent this place doesn't help in keeping me from killing you. Now, I want you to answer honestly, and I will know if you don't." At this, I slowly nodded, not wanting to have that sword pierce my neck. "Who fucking sent you to watch me?"

I had to stifle a laugh at this. 'She seriously thinks someone sent me? ME, of all people out there?' "You seriously think someone sent me? If so, whoever would've sent me has really low standards as to who they hire. However, by the way you are acting, I would say someone would be searching for a deserter. Am I right?"

"What the-? How wou-? GAH!"

That's all I hear behind me, with the blade no longer threatening my life. As I turn around, I see the chick pacing, swinging her arms (and the sword) around as if talking to herself. I decide not to intervene, just in case I get slashed and ruin my looks. Instead, I wait for her to calm down and put her sword away before calmly talking to her.

~a few minutes later~ -across the street-

"So, Blake, why do you visit this cafe?" I ask, holding a cup with my tail as the cat faunus across from me sips her tea.

"Well, I like it because no one ever comes here, which helps me gather my thoughts, somewhat," Blake replied, setting her empty cup down on the table.

In the last couple of minutes, Blake had grilled me about everything I knew, and in turn, she allowed me to ask the same questions of her. It turns out my impromptu nickname for her was actually spot on. I also learned she is a former member of the White Fang. What I didn't expect is that one of her friends is also a former member, but she wouldn't say who.

"Well, I think, personally, that if I, some random person, can find you, then what makes you think the White Fang haven't already? I mean, you've been coming here since before the school year started. You might want to change up where you go," I said, trying my best to help her out.

Blake just sighed in response before saying, "I know. Thing is, though, if they already have found me, I would probably have been captured and taken to the local leader. Seeing as I'm here now, it must mean they aren't even looking."

Flynn's P.O.V.-first person
White Fang headquarters~

"WHERE THE FUCK IS SHE?!" Adam shouted, slamming his fist onto the map covered table in frustration. "Flynn! I thought you said they knew where she was?"

I try not to stagger back as his anger hit me. "They did know, sir. It's just, they lost her in the crowds this afternoon and couldn't find her after that. She was with a group of six others, all about seventeen or eighteen. One of 'em looked like that person from the Pumpkin Pete's cereal box."

At this, Adam threw all the maps off the table and stormed over to me. "I don't give a shit about who she was with, Lieutenant! All I want to know is where she is. But I guess that's too much to ask for, as NO ONE CAN KEEP A BEAD ON HER LOCATION!" With that said, he just went over to his foot locker he keeps in the corner of the room and pulled out Wilt and Blush. Walking to the only door in and out of the room, he said, "Don't bother me unless you can KEEP TRACK of where Ruby is, unless you want to feel my babies rip into your flesh. Understood, Flynn?"

I nod stiffly, watching as Adam disappeared through the door. "Understood, boss," I say, as his footsteps fade into the distance.


A/N Okay, so I got that out of the way. Yes, I made Sun a bit more cocky than his show equivalent, but that's always how I pictured him... and he may or may not be from Shade. (You have to wait to find out. Hell, even I have to wait, as I really don't plan the chapters out. :P) Anyways, don't be expecting new chapters for a while. College is about to start up, and this will be my first year as a full-time college student.