A Price of Second Chance

The Void

The Outsider was bored.

Anyone who knew what kind of…being the Outsider was, if they heard that sentence, would fell into hysteria. The Outsider was neither benign nor malevolent. Most, if not all, of his actions were driven by curiosity. The thing was, his actions tend to be followed by great changes, for better or worse. And it happened simply because the Outsider wanted to see what would happen if he did a certain action, like giving someone supernatural powers.

As such, nobody hoped the day when the Outsider became bored would come. Considering what he had done just to satisfy his curiosity, the results of him trying no to get bored would be devastating.

The Outsider had no idea how this idea could even be born.

Sure, some of the people that received his marks made the situation of the societies of those people became worse. And all of that was done to satisfy a sense of curiosity. The reason he had that curiosity however was none other than due to boredom. If he wasn't bored, the Outsider would be content to just floating around the Void, testing his powers, all those…boring activities.

On the other hand, it was possible for someone to be curious yet didn't feel bored at all. So, maybe that idea wasn't…

The Outsider stopped his thought and immediately facepalmed.

"I must have been really bored to think that monologuing is a good idea." Said the Outsider to himself.

He let out a sigh before starting his travel throughout the Void, searching for some entertainment.

His travel was cut short when he noticed that someone was trying to draw a power from the Void. That was not uncommon; individuals from time to time, from places to places, have been trying to attain the powers of the Void without receiving his mark. Made sense, since the amount of people that wanted powers outnumbered the people that he deemed interesting enough to receive the mark.

If they really wanted the powers that the Void offered, maybe they should try to be a bit more interesting.

Anyway, usually the Outsider wouldn't bother to even "glance" at the person who tried to take the powers. The culprit was from the outside of the Void and if someone managed to gain the powers of the Void not through his mark, that individual had to visited the Void itself. At least from his experience.

However, being bored, the Outsider decided to see the potential futures of the culprit. Who knows, maybe he or she could offer him some entertainment.

When he looked at the culprit's potential futures, he didn't find anything that was entertaining. However, someone in one of the futures was taking his interest. He diverted his attention to said person's potential futures. He found out that there were several that were quite interesting.

The Outsider was about to meet the person of interest when one potential future caught his attention. When he saw closely at the potential, he found out that this one interest him the most; by giving the powers to one person, he could trigger many interesting events, which will make many people made choices that would resulted in even more interesting events.

Basically, chain reactions of entertainment, for the lack of better words.

As he went towards the person that took his interest, the Outsider let out a chuckle. It would be a very interesting show.

When he was close to the person of interest, the Outsider decided to have a walk. As he walked, the Outsider could see that this section of the Void was…damaged, for the lack of better words. Some of the objects were broken to pieces while others were no longer in their original positions. It could even be the combination of both.

Made sense considering what happened in this section of the Void.

"No. No, no, no! Nononono…"

The voice was interrupted by the sound of an explosion. The Outsider merely shook his head in response. He stopped walking as he knew that he would have his wish fulfilled soon. After a while, someone appeared in front of him, looking rather disheveled.

"Do you know that someone that's trapped inside the Void is fated to be floating in it for all eternity?" Asked the Outsider to that person. "And yet, here you are. With nothing but will, determination, cunning, and courage, you rejected that fate. In fact, you're trying to get out from here."

The Outsider made a smile after finishing his sentence. However, his talk buddy didn't share his feeling.

"Am I right, Summer Rose?" Said the Outsider, amused.

"What do you want, Outsider?" Asked the individual, Summer Rose, back with voice full of venom.

Rather than being offended, the Outsider merely chuckled at the thin-veiled threat. He guessed he couldn't blame her; after all, the Outsider did nothing when she asked for help to get out of the Void.

He still remembered the time when Summer arrived in the Void. How panicked she was with the conditions of her whereabout. How she wandered around the Void, looking for a way out. How she tried to force her way out for the first time. How worried she was about him when they met for the first time. How she asked – no, begged – for help when she realized who he actually was.

The Outsider still remembered how he coldly refused her but told her to keep trying to find a way out since he found her efforts amusing.

"What's wrong, Summer? No warm greeting for an old friend?" Asked the Outsider, still using his amused tone.

"Friends do not let each other suffering for his own amusement!" Exclaimed Summer.

"Ah, but you did the same to your friends. If I am not wrong, aren't you the one who caused that fiasco in your school dance?"

"That's not the same thing! It was a prank and, in the end, everyone was laughing! I, on the other hand, am not amused with your 'prank!'"

"In that case, I suggest you developed…what's the term you used? 'Twisted sense of humor.'"

Summer gritted her teeth in anger as the Outsider laughed at her expense.

"Do you have some business that you want to do with me or you're only here to make my life even more miserable?!" Stated Summer with a stern voice.

"Ah, straight to the point, I see." Said the Outsider as he stopped laughing. "I am going to tell a tale of a woman. Are you interested?"

"Oh, joy." Despite her tone, Summer didn't reject the offer.

"Once, there was a woman who, had she let her past go and chose a better option, could have been a force of great brilliance and change. However, she didn't and her life was spent trying to gain what she thought was rightfully hers, no matter how many lines that she crossed." The Outsider then simply shrugged. "In the end, the only thing that she had was a mere illusion."

"Is there a reason why you tell me this tale?"

"Someone tried to repeat this tale. In live action. And I don't like that."

"Oh, you finally grow conscience now, huh?" Summer's voice was full of sarcasm.

"Contrary to the contents of tales about me, I am capable of understanding morality. It's simply something that I am not concerned about."

"I shouldn't have asked." Summer let out a sigh. "Alright. Straight to the point; what do you want from me?"

"Simple; I want you to stop the repeater of the tale. Or should I say, repeaters? Accept my offer and I will help you get out from the Void…"

"Deal!"

While the Outsider could see what people could do, he couldn't see what people will do. Thus, there were times when he was surprised. This was one of them; Summer Rose immediately accepting his offer. He let out a small laugh as he offered her his hand.

"I must say, I am surprised, Summer." Stated the Outsider as Summer accepted his hand. "You don't even ask the catch."

Before Summer could react, the Outsider delivered some kind of energy into her hand. She screamed and tried to pull her hand off. In her panic, he managed to catch her other hand and delivered the same kind of energy. He finally let her hands go. However, the Outsider immediately put his hands on her left eye and chest before delivering the same energy once again.

When he pulled his hands, Summer fell to the ground and used both of her hands to closed both of her eyes as she screamed in pain.

Forest

When Summer opened her eyes, instead of the usually scenery that she saw in the Void, she saw the sun that she had missed for who knows how long. She was shocked by what she saw before her frown immediately turned into a smile; she finally escaped from the Void!

When she stood up, Summer noticed that something was wrong; her hands felt…different. She looked at them and her smile immediately disappeared. Her hands were no longer flesh and bones but rather black shards.

She then remembered that the Outsider grabbed her eye and chest as well. When she saw a stream, she ran towards it and looked at her reflection; her eye was replaced with black shard as well, though there was a red dot in it. Probably replacement for pupil.

"Goddammit. The Outsider…what have you done to me?"

Half an hour later…

Summer had been walking through the forest, looking for any sign of civilization. As she walked, she looked at her arms and sometimes rubbed her left eye.

She couldn't believe she accepted an offer from the Outsider without asking the catch. She knew what kind of being the Outsider was; doing various things to satisfy his curiosity. And Summer just accepted his offer despite having the information that he might screw her over to make things more "interesting."

She stopped her thought when she saw a village up ahead. Summer started to run towards it. However, when she reached the entrance, she realized that the village was being attacked by the Creatures of Grimm. While the situation was mostly under control, several Beowolves managed to get inside and causing chaos.

Summer noticed a saber near her feet. She grabbed it and went towards the Beowolves, who were slowly approaching a group of terrified civilians. Using her semblance to flash stepped, Summer positioned herself between the Grimm and the civilians. There were three Grimm in total.

One of them let out a roar and charged towards her. Summer easily stepped aside and stabbed it in the neck. She then dragged the saber across its body before pulling it. Another Beowolf tried to strike her when she was busy killing its kin. However, Summer flash stepped to its rear and stabbed the back of the Grimm. The last one was about to attack her when several gunshots took it out.

With the last Grimm inside the village killed and the Grimm were pushed back by the militias, Summer diverted her attention towards the civilians, who were approaching her with grateful faces. As they approached her, Summer noticed that there were black rose petals around her.

"Looks like even my semblance is tainted by the Void." Thought Summer as she watched an old man from the group approached her.

"Dear huntress, we want to thank…" Whatever the old man wanted to say was cut short and his smile suddenly disappear. "By the gods, what happen to you?!"

"It's…my…semblance…" Explained Summer as she rubbed her left eye. "It's the side effect of using it. Sometimes, I am unable to control it properly and my body becomes…this."

"I…I see…" It was clear that the old man was still terrified by her appearance. "A-Anyway, you still saved us. And for that, we're thankful."

"Don't worry, it's…" Summer stopped herself and took a look at her clothes. "Actually, can I ask for a favor?"

"As long as we can do it."

The next day…

Summer was currently standing at the entrance of the village. She checked her weapons – a saber and a revolver – and her clothes. After that, she looked at the map in her hand and planned her travel route.

The favors that she asked from the villagers were the weapons, the clothes, a place to rest, and food until the next morning. They were more than glad to gave them for their savior. She also asked for a calendar and found out that 13 years have passed in Remnant.

Despite that, Summer could sense that her presence was causing some…negative effect. When she walked pass several people, she could hear them talking behind her back about her appearance. When she visited the weapon shop, the clerk almost pulled his own weapon in surprise. When children saw her, they ran towards the opposite direction.

To put it simple, the people of this village were scarred of her. That was what convinced her to changed her clothes; she dyed her cloak and blouse black, changed her skirt into a pantsuit, and discarded her chest armor and stockings. She also brought a short black scarf that could cover the lower part of her face.

The reaction also caused her to wonder whether it was a good idea to reunite with her family. Don't get it wrong, she missed Taiyang, Qrow, Yang, and Ruby. However, the Outsider had basically changed her into a...an...

Gods, she didn't even want to say it!

What was the better option; to hide her return from them and preserving the happy memory that they had or tainted with the revelation of what she had become?

Only one way to find out.

"So, you're leaving?"

Summer turned to see the speaker and saw a dog faunus militia. She answered the question.

"Yes, I am."

"I see. Good luck then."

"For the first time, he is happy that someone is freakier than him."

Summer tried to find the source of that sudden voice, looking around the area. The militia looked at her in confusion. She then realized that the voice came from her mind…and it happened when she looked at the militia.

"Did I…just read his mind?" Though Summer.

However, she decided to think about it later and shook her head. There was also the fact that if it was true, she had no right to violate the privacy of someone's mind. After a while, Summer finally walked away from the village.

That was the last time they ever saw her.

And it's done.

For the reference of how Summer looks like before she changed her clothes, search this: art/RWBY-Summer-Rose-573679739 (It's in Deviantart)

For how Summer's arms and left eye look like, think of Billie Lurk during Death of the Outsider.

If you have question or suggestion, feel free to tell me.

Review please!