Neither Sun nor Ilia dared to move. Sun kept his breathing steady and calm as he looked her over, and Ilia kept her eyes on the floor as she breathed heavily through her mouth. He guessed that she had climbed the side of the building to get to the balcony, and from the looks of her arm, hadn't had an easy time.

"You can't be here. Kali had additional cameras put up, and you were probably seen entering." The tense silence between them was broken by the sounds of a shower running through the walls, and Sun looked over to the bathroom door. "You've got maybe ten minutes, before Blake comes out and this gets ugly. You should go."

"Not without my scroll," Ilia stressed as she looked up at him. "I probably wasn't seen, and I don't care if I was. Nothing matters but my scroll, and the information stored in it. I'll be killed, and the blood will be on your hands, if you don't hand it over. As for Blake, it's obvious she doesn't care. I've been begging her for the past hour and a half using your scroll, and she hasn't even bothered to respond. She just… wants me to die. It's up to you, now." Ilia looked off to the side as she rubbed at her injured arm, her expression hopeless.

Sun slowly transitioned into a sitting position on the edge of the bed and rested his arms upon his legs while letting his tail flick along the floor restlessly. "She blocked my number right after we fought. Anything you've sent hasn't gone through." Ilia looked back at Sun with wide eyes, and she shifted her weight to one side. "Are you… okay?"

"What the hell do you care if I'm 'okay'? We're enemies, Sun!" Ilia snapped. A fire started within her eyes at his words, and her resolve strengthened. "But I need you to cooperate. You don't understand what Adam is like. Even she doesn't understand what Adam is like, now. If it gets out that you two are aware of anything in that scroll, I'm dead. That isn't exaggeration. I'll be executed without mercy, and I know you're too good to let that happen. So hand it over." Ilia punctuated the demand by putting her hand out expectantly, and staring him down. Sun didn't move.

"…you're here, unarmed, and more injured than I am. You walked in expecting both Blake and I, and you're still making demands. The first thing out of your mouth when I put up resistance was how losing your scroll will affect you, and you haven't said a word about how the White Fang will be impacted. I get the feeling that whatever you sent Blake is much the same, but more personal. I'm not buying it, Ilia," Sun finished while narrowing his eyes.

"You think this is some kind of game!?" Ilia fumed. Her hand shook momentarily, before she stepped forward and threw it into a vicious backhand against Sun's cheek. His head whipped hard to the side, and she stood with ragged breaths as fresh tears began to work their way down her cheeks.

Slowly, Sun turned his head back to face Ilia, a bright red mark beginning to manifest on the side of his face. He took a deep breath in and out through his nose, and gave her a stern glare. The sight was enough to make Ilia take a step backward and look to the sliding door as she contemplated making her escape. Sun rose to tower over her, and Ilia backed into the wall with a tiny grunt.

"No, I don't. I think that there's more to you than you're letting on. I think that all of that anger and hatred toward Blake and I isn't just coming from your involvement with the White Fang, or even the fact that Blake left you behind. You're having second thoughts, and you feel trapped. Right now, I'm your lifeline, so you're going to listen to me."

Ilia took in several shuddering breaths and clenched her jaw in defiance as she glared up at Sun with hatred in her eyes. "You don't know me. You know nothing about me."

Sun decided to take a chance, and extended his arm to rest his palm against the wall, just over Ilia's shoulder. She flinched at the sudden movement, and her eyes flicked to the side to follow the impact before sliding back to him. "That's where you're wrong. I can read you like a book, Ilia. You don't want to do this. You don't want to be doing any of this! What you want is for things to be simple again, and to have Blake back in your life. You need her, and honestly, she needs you. Until we settle this, somehow, you're both going to be miserable."

"Read this," Ilia countered, as she drove her knee up and directly into Sun's crotch.

Sun let out a high-pitched, undignified whimper as he brought his hands down to his groin while gritting his teeth. Ilia took the opportunity to shift her skin color and slip around Sun as he coughed hard and doubled over momentarily. Ilia dove for her scroll upon the bed and managed to snatch it as Sun stumbled while turning, only for an unexpected voice to give her pause.

"Drop it!"

Ilia froze, scroll in hand as she stared at the bathroom door. There stood Blake, one hand holding a towel around her chest like a dress, and the other aiming Gambol Shroud's barrel at Ilia's forehead. A head of steam swirled out of the open door as Blake began to walk forward, toward the chair that hosted Sun's weapon. Blake kept her weapon trained on Ilia and used her foot to knock the collapsed staff to the floor. She kicked it along the wood to Sun, who grasped the rod while checking his other one for damage. He let out a pained grunt and stood mostly straight as he extended his staff while taking up position in front of the balcony door with an angry glare.

"Sun, are you okay?" Blake asked in a sympathetic tone as she spared him a glance.

"She kneed me in the balls!" he cried incredulously.

Blake's glare mirrored Sun's as she looked back to Ilia, who narrowed her eyes. "I should shoot you right now, Ilia."

"Then do it!" Ilia threatened. She trembled from her place upon the bed, eyes streaming as she sniffled. "Just… do it," she added in a defeated tone while shifting back to her natural skin color.

Blake lowered the gun ever so slightly, her ears flat against her skull. "What, you're just giving up entirely, now? What happened to all of that fire and conviction? Where's the blame, Ilia? Tell me how this is somehow my fault!"

"Blake, wait!" Sun shouted. He took a step forward and let out a grunt of pain as he found it slightly difficult to walk. One hand remained in his boxers as he shifted and hissed, while the other kept a tight grip on his weapon. "Everyone just needs to calm down."

Blake took her eyes off of Sun and brought them back to Ilia with a deep breath. "Put down the scroll, Ilia, if you want any chance of walking out of here tonight," she commanded. Ilia did as ordered with another sniffle, and tossed the device to Sun. He caught it with his free hand, and let out a sigh.

"Now, come on, girls. Both of you. Let's just… sit and talk," Sun said while collapsing his staff. He kept the shortened version in hand, and walked over to one of the waiting seats. Blake huffed, and Ilia didn't move as she began to speak.

"I hate you. I hate both of you, so much. There's nothing to talk about." Ilia looked over to Blake, who kept her gun in position. "If you care about me at all anymore, you'll just let me go. Coming here was a mistake."

Blake opened her mouth to speak, but Sun interrupted as he lowered himself into the chair and adjusted his underwear for a final time. "Ilia, if you come and sit with us, I will personally guarantee you walk out of here with your scroll tonight. We haven't even started looking through it."

"Sun!" Blake yelled, wide-eyed. "Why would you… you can't just… she is not getting that scroll! We already agreed t-"

"I know what we agreed to," Sun cut in. "But sometimes, you've gotta shift the plan. I'm not in the best mood right now, and I'm done playing around. Let me take the lead, just this once. I need you to trust me."

Blake ground her teeth together as she lowered her weapon with a frustrated growl. "You had better know what you're doing. Ilia, take a seat. I'm going to get changed, and if you touch him again, I swear to the gods, you're dead." She lowered her weapon and stomped back into the bathroom, before slamming the door.

Sun watched her go, before turning his eyes to Ilia and finding hers already upon him. Slowly, she descended from her spot upon the bed and walked over to take the chair across from Sun, on the other side of the tile coffee table. As she lowered herself into the chair, she spoke one uncomfortable word in a strained voice.

"…why?"

"Because I've been thinking about it all since you turned on us, and I just finally got it, after you dared Blake to shoot you. You think no one cares about you at all," Sun stated. Ilia pulled her knees up onto the seat and wrapped her arms around them as more tears began to fall.

"I care, even if you think I shouldn't. I know for a fact that Blake still cares. We were just talking about you, before you showed up. She misses you, even if she won't admit it to you tonight. If you just follow my lead and give us some information, we can start taking steps to fix this."

Ilia chose not to reply. The bathroom door crashed open once again, and an angry Blake in her pitch-black nightie joined the pair, weapon in hand as she sat in the chair next to Sun.

"Start talking. What do you want, Ilia? Why did you come here tonight? You knew you were walking into a bad situation, unarmed, against both of us, possibly my parents, and the entire manor staff if we summoned them. What were you hoping to accomplish?"

Ilia sniffed, and looked at Sun. He nodded, and she began to speak. "My scroll. Adam's gotten even more violent, lately, and if he finds out that you two have it, he's going to kill me. It's gotten bad, Blake. Really bad. I found a body. One of ours. He tried to hide it behind his tent, but…"

Blake narrowed her eyes and dug her fingers into the armrest of the chair. "He killed one of our own? Why?"

"I don't know," Ilia admitted.

"It doesn't matter why," Sun added. "Even if you walk away our enemy tonight, neither of us want you dead. Right?" Sun looked over to Blake, who heaved a dramatic sigh.

"Right. But that doesn't mean it's going to be easy. We… Sun is putting us out there, for you. If it was up to me, you'd be unconscious and tied to a chair by now."

"Then I'm glad it's not up to you," Ilia shot back. Blake stared her down, and Ilia stared right back.

"Ladies, please," Sun tried while resting his hand atop Blake's. "This is getting us nowhere. Ilia, what matters to you, right now? What really matters? Every time you mention Adam, it sounds like you're disgusted, terrified, or both. Is the White Fang really your priority?"

Ilia closed her eyes. "…what are you getting at, Sun? I can't just change instantly. There's too much at stake, and too many things that are in the w-"

"Answer him!" Blake yelled while slamming a fist into the armrest of the chair. Ilia jumped and opened her eyes, her voice wavering.

"Survival!" she stated immediately. "My priority is staying alive. All I have left is myself."

"And us," Sun corrected.

"Bullshit," Ilia glowered. "Why should I even believe you care about me? How do I know you're not just doing this for information, and then you're going to tie me to that chair Blake mentioned?"

"Ilia," Blake began, "this dumbass literally followed me halfway around the world to make sure I was okay, after I spent months pushing him away, avoiding him, and giving him the cold shoulder. He knew what I was missing in life, and he gave it all to me, and more. Am I acting anything like the Blake you remember?"

Ilia wrinkled her nose. "…there are pieces of the old you, but you've changed. You've changed a lot. You seem like you have your shit together, and you're… angrier."

"I'm angrier because you don't have your shit together, and mine is only sorted because of him." Blake nodded toward Sun, and Ilia looked over at him. Sun had his hand in his boxers yet again as he squirmed, and Blake brought her palm up to her forehead with a satisfying thwack. "Really, Sun?"

Sun brought his hand up with an apologetic grin. "Sorry, but that really hurt." He cleared his throat and nodded to Ilia, who at least had the decency to look guilty. "That's only partially true. Blake had to put in a lot of effort herself, to figure things out. I just helped her along."

Blake rolled her eyes. "The point is, I had to trust, when I didn't want to. He made me see that you can't rely only on yourself, when things get rough." Blake drew in a deep breath, and her lip twitched. "If you're willing to put in the effort, I'll double down on what Sun said. We will help you, and protect you."

Sun's face broke out into a full smile as he rubbed the back of Blake's hand, and the very sight caused Ilia's cheeks to turn a dark, jealous red.

"…you're offering me protection. From the White Fang. From Adam," Ilia stated. Blake shivered at the mention of the name, and visibly tensed. She opened her mouth to speak, and looked away as she pulled her hand out from beneath Sun's. He looked to Blake with a worried glance, and then turned sympathetic eyes over to Ilia.

"…we have to face him, eventually. It might as well be to defend you, if you're with us."

Ilia looked down, and considered Sun's words. She closed her eyes and let the tears fall as they willed, soaking her cheeks and neck. "I can't just change. I still believe in the White Fang. I still believe in what they… used to be. Sienna doesn't have a grip on them, and the radical side is getting bigger and bigger. I know what's going to happen, and I know that Adam can't be stopped. I wish it wasn't the way it is, but I'm not enough to make a change. If I suggested it, I'd be silenced. I'm not close enough to the top to have any impact. I want faunus rights, just like you did, Blake. I want to see a brighter future, and even if he is extreme, Adam is getting us results. I didn't care that he got them through fear before, but lately… I do. The biggest problem is that it doesn't matter how I feel, it's going to happen anyway. I'm scared. I'm alone."

As she finished speaking, a comforting embrace surrounded Ilia within her seat. The sensation was all-encompassing, and she leaned forward into the powerful hug. As she opened her eyes, she expected to find Sun wrapping her in his muscular arms, and instead found Blake's arms around her neck and back. Upon seeing her friend's actions, she threw her arms around Blake's shoulders and buried her face into the cascade of jet-black hair before her as she began to sob openly.

Sun leaned forward in his chair and considered joining in on the hug as the girls before him gently rocked from side to side in their embrace. Instead, he thought better of it, and stood into a stretch. He walked to the nearby wall and leaned his back against it as he elected to simply watch, and wait. A twinge of jealousy arose in his chest, and Sun made an effort to banish the thoughts that came with it as the pair broke and looked at each other.

"I told you she still cares," Sun said while avoiding their eyes. "We're… in this together, now."

Ilia wiped her eyes and slipped out of her chair to stand as Blake backed up to give her space. "It isn't that easy, Sun. In public, we'll still have to be enemies. I can't just turn my back on the Fang completely, and expect you two to shield me. We have to work subtly, and… I'm still not completely convinced. What's the long term plan, here?"

Blake moved to where she could see both of them, and addressed her friends. "It's simple. Simpler than I thought. The Belladonnas are taking back the White Fang. Ilia, if you still really believe, but you don't endorse Adam and think Sienna is too weak or blind to stop him… then we make the Fang what it used to be. If Dad doesn't want to do it, I will."

Silence filled the room, and Sun focused less upon her words, and more upon the fact that Blake's cheeks were almost as wet as Ilia's. He made his way over and wrapped her in a warm embrace from behind, before closing his eyes and resting his head into the crook of her neck.

"Blake, if that's what you want to do, then we'll do it. I'll help you, and if Ilia's worth her words, then so will she." He opened his eyes and gave the girl a pointed look from his position behind Blake. Ilia hesitated, and drew in a deep breath as she wiped her eyes with the back of her hand.

"…if you're serious… then I will. I'll be your eyes on the inside, but we need to be careful. Extremely careful. One slip, and it's over."

"Then we check our footing before we start taking steps forward," Sun replied. "Tell us what you can. Anything you think we need to know, right now."

Ilia sat down in her seat as the couple remained standing, and she leaned backward with a deep breath. "First… the Fang is planning to strike Haven Academy. From what I understand, we're being delayed by some outside force, but the people responsible for the Fall of Beacon are contracting us again to lay siege to the school."

"No…" Blake shivered as she turned her head to look at Sun. "We can't let that happen. We need to get to Haven, as soon as possible!"

"Wait," Sun instructed. "Breathe. We need to take this slow and steady, and hear her out. Cinder's crew won't strike at Haven without the Fang, and Ilia can let us know when they're going to move. Right?" He looked to her for confirmation, and Ilia nodded.

"Right. I don't know our exact role in the assault, but I know that Adam and a faunus named Cinnamon are at the forefront. Cinnamon is a high-ranking engineer, and Adam's right-hand woman. I just found out that she's been stationed in Kuo Kuana. If she's got a big part to play, then you can bet that they're planning on using explosives, and possibly traps."

Sun and Blake looked at each other again, and he gave Ilia a nod. "Then, priority one has to be figuring out what Cinnamon is up to, and taking her out to cripple the Fang. After that, we can figure out a way to strike at Adam, and take back the organization from here."

Blake sucked in a breath. "Tell us everything you can about Cinnamon. Where we can find her, how much of a threat she is in direct combat… anything useful."

Ilia frowned, and shifted in her chair. "Cinnamon Shoal. She's in her late twenties, and a fully-trained huntress. As a faunus, her trait is envenomed spines, jutting out of her upper arms."

Suddenly, his familiarity with the woman clicked, and Sun found himself replaying a memory from when he and Ilia had first met.

"…I did look through your contacts, and I saw her face. I ran into that woman at the market! Dark skin, white dreads, wears a lot of orange and white?"

Ilia nodded. "Striped tattoos down her left side. She's a lionfish faunus, and she runs with that theme. I don't know where she is in town, but Blake's dad might. He is in charge of Kuo Kuana."

"Her semblance," Blake stated. "What's her angle in combat, if we end up against her? I'm guessing it has something to do with the venom?"

Ilia paused, and bit her lip. "I… can't tell you."

Sun balked at the statement, and stepped out from behind Blake as he threw his hands up. "What!? Why not?"

"Because it's… unique, to say the least. If you two suddenly know that information, when it's something she would never show in public, she'll know that there's a rat. I'm the prime suspect, right now. Knowing she's with the Fang isn't a big deal, but knowing the details of what she can do definitely is. Just… don't let her touch you, and definitely don't let her inject you."

"Yeah, we'll try not to get stabbed by venomous spines. Thanks," Blake said sarcastically.

"Hey! I'm doing the best I can, alright? Make her a priority, and then we'll talk again soon. For now, though, I'd better get out of here. It's almost dawn, and I'm expected back at the camp."

"Wait, before you go…" Sun said as he approached her. Ilia stood, and he pulled her into a tight hug, earning a squeak from the smaller girl.

"Really, Sun? I stole your scroll, tried to kill you, messed up your bits, and I'm still getting a hug?"

"Water under the bridge, Ilia. We've got bigger issues to handle." Sun pulled back, and offered her scroll. Ilia reached into a vest pocket and withdrew his, before they made the trade. "Thanks."

"You, too. Now, can I leave you two kids alone without having to worry?" she joked, though her tone felt hollow.

Blake offered a nod, and walked over to sit on the edge of the bed. "Take care of yourself, Ilia. We still need to have some more serious talks, before this is okay… but it's a start."

Sun moved to sit beside her, and wrapped an arm around her shoulders. "If you need to contact us, come through the balcony. We'll clear it with the staff."

Ilia moved for the balcony door, and slid it open. She looked over her shoulder as she rested a hand on the frame, and sighed. "I'm sorry in advance for anything I have to do in public that goes against you two. Just… try to hurry with destabilizing the White Fang here. Please?"

"We will. I promise," Sun nodded. Ilia slipped through the door and seemingly disappeared into the night as it slid closed once again.

Blake's lips clashed against Sun's as he turned to face her once again, and he instinctively put his hand up to her cheek to deepen the motion before it broke.

"…thank you, Sun. It's good to have her back, even partially."

"Hey, you did just as much as me. I just got the ball rolling." He stood and stretched, and found Blake's icy hand on his side.

"Where are you going…?"

"I gotta pee, and then I'll come to bed. Dunno about you, but I can absolutely get a few hours of sleep, despite being unconscious most of the day," he admitted.

"Same here. We'll try to get up for early afternoon, and then… figure out what to do, with Mom and Dad."

Sun nodded as he walked toward the bathroom. "Hey, unblock my number?"

"On it," Blake replied as she drew her own scroll.

Sun slipped into the bathroom and took his own scroll out as he closed the door to check it over for damage. He found the device relatively unscathed, and decided to navigate to 'his' previous conversations with Blake, out of curiosity. The most recent text from 'him' caught his eye, and he found himself reading it over multiple times.

Please. I still love you.

Sun's expression pulled into a frown as a familiar flare of jealousy pulsed through his chest.

Author's Note:

Tentative alliances, double agents, hidden feelings revealed, a new antagonist, and a plan to usurp the White Fang. What could possibly go wrong?

Cinnamon Shoal does have artwork, but I don't think she should be the 'cover' of this story. I do have a plan to get her character design out to you all soon, beyond just a text description. Stay tuned.

Next update on Friday, March 1st.

-RD