A/N: Hello everybody, my name's Eragon and welcome back to Eye of the Beholder. This chapter's going to be interesting, but before that I have a review to reply to.

Slop to steep: Thanks for the kindness. I can see what you're talking about with the whole Summer and Ruby thing, and yes it does look like Summer has red tips in her hair in that old Team STRQ photo back in V3. To be honest though, I know that the wiki says Ruby's hair is black and red, but I guess from a certain point of view it's a very dark brown, at a stretch. Also, I'm calling b.s. that the red tips are natural, it's most likely that it's hair dye, considering that nobody naturally has hair tips a different colour than their actual hair.

Anyways, this chapter will bring back Salem, considering that she was missing last chapter, and will of course show off the first day of her training with dear old Rumple! I hope you guys enjoy this one. As always I own none of the characters; RWBY belongs to Rooster Teeth and Monty Oum (RIP, especially since the anniversary was yesterday!), and OUAT belongs to ABC Studios and both Anthony Horowitz and Andy Kitsis. Sit back and enjoy!

Chapter 4: Divide

Granny's Diner

Storybrooke, Present Day

"So, this is Storybrooke," Summer said as she drank her coffee at the booth she sat in, "I can already tell from being here for a couple days that it's pretty cozy."

"That's only a couple of days, though, try being here for over thirty years," Regina stated, having calmed down after the conversation she had with the huntress fifteen minutes ago and feeling much better.

"Thirty years, and you only look like you're in your late twenties?" Summer interjected in slight surprise, "In that case it must be very cozy."

"Well, when there's no-one or nothing threatening to destroy the town, it's as comfortable as a little town can get," Regina said after swallowing a piece of her apple pie, "considering that pretty much happens once or twice a month, those cozy moments are a relief, especially now that we've defeated Hades."

"Be careful what you wish for, after spending years in the Underworld I'd prefer to take a break for once," Summer jokingly stated as she glanced out a nearby window.

"Speaking of which, and I'm sorry for asking," Regina inquired curiously, "what was life like, back in Remnant?"

"Not a big deal, I haven't talked about it much so obviously you'd be curious," Summer replied solemnly, her eyes glazing over in remembrance, "I grew up on a little island called Patch (just west of Vale, actually), and when I was seventeen I began to attend one of the huntsmen academies, a prestigious school called Beacon. I was the leader of Team STRQ, we were the best team of our generation. When I left on that fateful mission, my team had split apart, my husband (as I said before) stayed at home with our daughters, while the other two mostly went on their own ways."

"What was he like, your husband?" Regina asked, curiosity getting the better of her.

"Well, Tai was a bit of an oaf, but he was a lovable oaf," Summer said with a slight smile, "blonde hair and, oh, he had such dreamy blue eyes, he was the kind of person that you knew without even meeting him that he had a good heart."

"Well, I'm sure that he'll never forget you," Regina said softly, her eyes watering as she thought back to those she lost, "I'm sorry again for bringing it up."

"Don't be, there's nothing I can do about leaving them behind, things happen," Summer stated kindly, "I just hope that maybe I can find peace here in Storyb-"

Before Summer could even finish her sentence, the bell to the diner rang, and Regina saw Emma rush into the diner and head straight towards them.

"Hey, you busy?" the blonde Saviour asked as she reached their booth, "I've been trying to find you for half an hour and...wait, who's your friend Regina?"

"Well, Emma, this is Summer Rose, I helped her last week in the Underworld, Summer, this is Emma Swan, our local Saviour," Regina quickly introduced the two women, but then narrowed her eyes and asked, "Wait, why were you looking for me exactly?"

"We have a problem, someone new's in town," Emma began to rapidly explain, "all I know is that she has past ties with Gold and is threatening to destroy Storybrooke unless he gives her what she wants."

"Just when I thought I'd be able to relax for once," Summer muttered under her breath before she turned to Emma and said, "any idea of what this person wants, if I may ask?"

"I don't know, something about a soul," Emma replied, one eyebrow raised at the woman's curiosity, "one moment I was just talking with Gold about how boring it was getting here, next thing we know this raven like creature lands on my shoulder; he killed it and explained it was something called a Grimm and then she appeared out of nowhere and-"

"Wait wait wait, back up a moment," Summer suddenly began to inquire, and Regina could see a look of recognition in her eyes, "did this 'Gold' say what type of Grimm it was?!"

Confusion was evident on the blonde Saviour's face as she replied, "Yeah, he said it was called a Baby Nevermore-"

"And this woman," Summer continued to interrogate as she stood up, the recognition quickly turning to fear, "did she have white hair and pale skin? Was she dressed in black and have red and black eyes, did she even give her name?"

"Uh, yeah all of them," Emma stated, certainly concerned about this sudden reaction, "she said her name was 'Salem', why, do you know her?"

Summer eyes were wide with fear as she darkly said, "Oh shit, it's her!"

"Wait, you know this woman?" Regina inquired out of curiosity, not sure if she should be worried about whatever the silver-eyed huntress would do next.

"Oh, I know her alright," Summer replied as she turned to Emma, "she's been a threat to all of humanity on Remnant since the beginning of time, and believe me if she's here you're all in trouble; you're going to need some help."

"Are you asking to help us or something?" Emma began to ask but was interrupted by Regina.

"All you need to know right now Emma is that Summer's a huntress," Regina explained rather quickly as she stood up, "those Grimm creatures threaten humanity every other week, and it's the job of huntsmen and huntresses to combat them."

"I know what she's like better than most of you, and I know what she's capable of," Summer stated as she looked Emma right in the eye, "and if this 'Gold' knows anything about her, then he should know if there's a way to stop her, please take me to him."

Unknown Location, Remnant

Years Ago

"So, now that I know what you're capable of I can teach you how to master it, as well as how to use dark magic," the Dark One stated as he and his new protege walked through the forest around them.

With her green eyes Salem glanced around at the scenery, noting that while it was beautiful there seemed to be a sinister feel to it, and as they walked she decided to ask, "Where are we going exactly?"

"Somewhere that technically I've never been to, but a previous Dark One before me has," Rumplestiltskin replied cryptically, not even looking back at her, "the birthplace of one of Remnant's three main species."

Confused by the statement, the young woman decided it was probably better to wait than to ask what he meant, so she remained silent. Soon, however, she noticed that the scenery seemed to change, and what it changed to unnerved her slightly. The blue sky was rapidly replaced with a colour that could only be described as blood red, the green grass and trees were replaced with dark-coloured stone and what looked like enormous crystals seemed to reach out of the ground.

"What is this place?" Salem breathed, fear and awe filling the woman at the same time.

The Dark One was silent as they reached a cliff overlooking a canyon, but soon he turned to her and said, "I'm sure you've heard the story of the two brothers, the gods that supposedly created life on Remnant and created mankind?"

Salem nodded, knowing the story of the God of Light and the God of Darkness and how man was born, as Rumplestiltskin continued, "Well, the youngest brother, the God of Darkness, was actually a Dark One by the name of Zoso, there was a Saviour by the name of Oum that was indeed the God of Light, and was his older brother; they did give life to humanity on this world, but of course Zoso had created a species before mankind was even born, barely a day before. This species was birthed from dark magic, and was born to do one thing and one thing only, destroy life; I'd name them, but I have a feeling you know what I'm talking about."

Salem thought for a moment about what he said before her eyes widened as she said, "Are you saying what I think you're saying, Dark One?"

"Oh, yes I am, dearie," the Dark One said cheerily as he stepped to the side to let her see into the canyon, "this very place is the home and birthplace to one of the most vicious species of monsters ever known throughout the worlds; this, is the birthplace of the Grimm."

Salem gasped silently as she looked at what was below the cliff; she could see a series of black pools dotting the hard ground, dozens of pools as far as she could see. What really caught her attention, though, was what was coming out of the pools, every few seconds another Grimm climbed out of whatever pool it was birthed from, followed by another and yet another after that.

"I'd be careful right now if I were you," Rumplestiltskin stated as he began to climb down the side of the cliff, "they sustain themselves on and can sense negative emotions, and right now they can sense your fear."

Relax, Sally, he's here to help you, Salem thought to herself as she followed him down to the bottom, even if it means walking amongst dozens of Grimm.

Out of the corner of her eye, she could see a creature of Grimm prowling slowly towards her, a Beowolf, if she could recall from the stories of hunters in her village.

"Looks like this one is curious about you, dearie," the Dark One stated calmly as the Beowolf came closer, "as long as you keep calm, he won't attack, just probably take a whiff to see if you're worth troubling."

The Beowolf continued to follow them as they headed towards a small clearing, before long it was joined by the rest of its pack. Salem honestly expected them to lash out, to kill them both on the spot, but surprisingly enough they didn't.

"Why aren't they attacking?" Salem asked, curiosity honestly getting the better of her.

The Dark One laughed childishly and replied, "Well dearie, it should be considered that, since they were born from darkness, they won't attack the very thing that created them; they also won't attack you either due to two reasons, mainly because I've commanded them to not attack. Even if I wasn't in control they still wouldn't attack you, after all, you're missing a part of something that makes you human."

"You're not saying that I'm already missing part of my soul, are you?" Salem inquired nervously, unsure as to how she should feel about that.

"That was part of the deal dearie, and this vial you tied yourself to is indeed filling up with that negative emotion as we speak," the Dark One said as he revealed the little vial, which already had what looked like a drop of a blackish-red liquid inside.

"So you're saying that they won't attack me because of that vial," Salem breathed as a Beowolf, the same one from before, stalked over and began to sniff her.

She could feel its hot breath on her face as it examined her while Rumplestiltskin continued, "Oh, but it's more than that dearie, and now here comes the first part of your training; give this fella here a command (not out loud, mind you), and if I'm right he'll do exactly as you say."

"Alright," Salem said as she looked into the Grimm's crimson eye, and then closed her eyes and thought, Down.

Salem didn't know for certain if it would work or not, or if anything would happen, but to her surprise, it did. Slowly opening her eyes, she was surprised to hear the Beowolf give a pitiful whine as it went on its back haunches and bowed down in front of her before laying down on the ground.

"I told you it would work, dearie," the Dark One declared as she slowly reached out to touch the Grimm.

Instead of biting her hand, the Beowolf calmly let the young woman closer as she placed her hand on its muzzle and began to slowly stroke its fur.

She could hear Rumplestiltskin chuckling behind her as she pet the beast, and soon he said, "See, now you've got yourself a friend and an ally, imagine what you could do once you've mastered your magic and your semblance."

"I-I'd have, I'd have an army," Salem spoke aloud with slight joy, "I wouldn't be alone anymore!"

"Exactly, dearie," the Dark One said, his voice turning sinister, "now, what do you wish to do now that you have this new power?"

The young woman glanced up at her tutor, and though she couldn't see it now Rumplestiltskin could see that something now had changed. Later on in his life he could say that seeing what he saw in her that day was enough to send chills down anybody's spine, but still there was more to come.

Her eyes, which just moments ago were green, had now turned blood red as the young woman growled, "At last I'll be able to fight back against those who hurt me, at last, I'll have my revenge."

Charming Family Residence

Storybrooke

Present Day

Summer had a sneaking suspicion as to who this 'Gold' person was, but she decided to keep silent for now and find out, figuring that if he was who she thought he was then these people in this town already knew as well.

"I'll admit, this is a rather nice loft," Summer said aloud as she first stepped into the apartment, the warm colours of the kitchen and living room standing out to her.

"Well, that's my parents for you," Emma said as she stepped in behind her.

It took a while for people to arrive, but soon Summer was introduced to everyone in the little Charming family group. There was Emma's son Henry, her parents Snow White and David Charming (who oddly enough didn't look any older than Emma herself), Emma's boyfriend Killian (who looked like a pirate, for obvious reasons), and Regina's sister Zelena. The only one missing was Mr. Gold, who she learned when she asked that he was the landlord of the entire town.

"I don't think I've been to Remnant before," Zelena said as they were waiting, "what's it like there?"

"Believe me, it's pretty similar to here in Storybrooke," Summer replied nonchalantly, "in fact I've noticed the past couple of days that some of the technology and, heck, even the media is similar here to how it is back home; I even recognise some of the movies that sit in the corner stores as having been on Remnant as well."

"Wow, it must be peachy," the former Wicked Witch muttered in slight amazement.

"Well, it is whenever we aren't worried about the Grimm prowling outside our kingdom walls," Summer stated as she took a sip from the cup of tea provided to her, "which luckily isn't that much, mostly just a few breaches here and there."

"Okay, I spoke too soon did I?" Zelena breathed uncomfortably, unsure as to what to say about that.

To Summer's right Regina snorted and said, "You asked about it."

"What, I can't talk to my sister's new girlfriend?" Zelena said jokingly, causing Summer to nearly choke on her tea.

"Dammit Zelena, I just said it isn't anything like that!" Regina growled under her breath in embarrassment, both her and Summer blushing at that surprise comment.

"Relax, I was kidding," Zelena said with a chuckle as she turned to leave, "though I'm sure little Robyn wouldn't mind if you did move on and give her another aunt."

Summer of course almost choked again before clearing her throat and saying, "Well, that just happened. Let's pretend that never happened and get back to waiting for Mr. Gold."

"No need to wait anymore, now that I'm here we can begin," Gold suddenly said as he walked up behind Regina, "I believe you're the one I just heard about, the huntress from Remnant?"

"Yes, that would be me," Summer said as she went to shake his hand, "Name's Summer Rose."

"Well Ms. Rose, I'm Mr. Gold, but back in the Enchanted Forest they called me Rumplestiltskin," the man said as he shook her hand, "and you have silver eyes, dearie."

"Yes, and I can tell from sensing your aura that you're the Dark One," Summer said wittingly, causing the Dark One to nod in agreement.

"Well, it's not like I've been hiding that anyways," Mr. Gold said as he turned to the others, "now that we're all here, let's get to business."

They all gathered into the small kitchen as he began, "So the reason why we've all been called here is because we have a new threat in town. For those who don't know, her name is Salem, she was a former apprentice of mine (like Regina, for example), and is far more dangerous than anyone else I've ever had the 'pleasure' to meet."

"How dangerous are we talking about?" Regina inquired, noticing the spite in Gold's voice, "What exactly is she capable of?"

"Considering that I've known her the longest, I can certainly answer that," Gold replied solemnly, "a master of dark magic just barely touching the level of a Dark One (such as myself), a high level of intelligence, and immortality to name a few. She's also an expert strategist and the hive queen of a vicious species of monsters known as the Creatures of Grimm, meaning she has an entire army for us to worry about; combine that with her semblance and combat skills and you have yourselves a difficult enemy to kill, let alone defeat."

"Okay, got most of that," Killian finally spoke up, having been sitting in the back drinking from a flask, "but what the bloody hell is a semblance?"

"Allow me to answer that," Summer stated before the Dark One could even reply, "a semblance is a special ability that most people on my world possess, unique between each person as it mostly depends on your personality as to what it could be; there have been few occasions where it's hereditary in a family bloodline but that doesn't happen very often."

"Now that sounds pretty useful if you have one," David said after a moment or two, "how exactly do you get something like that, by the way?"

"In order to get a semblance one must have their aura unlocked," Mr. Gold interjected in response, "aura is the manifestation of one's soul, and is something that most living creatures possess but must be unlocked in order to access it. When unlocked it functions as an invisible form of protection and can heal wounds to a certain extent, but once you've taken damage it takes time to repair itself."

"Alright, so that's cleared out of the way, but what's Salem's semblance?" Emma asked nervously, and from the look in her eyes Summer could tell that she wasn't sure if she wanted to know the answer.

"Her semblance gives her control over the very shadows, over darkness," Gold replied, "it's what first caught my interest when I first met her, the main reason I decided to take her under my wing in the first place."

"So if you taught her dark magic, why is she here threatening Storybrooke?" Summer finally asked, hoping to get right to the source of the new situation.

"As part of the one deal we made, I took something important from her and for unknown reasons she wants it back," Rumplestiltskin replied calmly, "there's also the fact that she wants revenge for what I did to her the last time I helped her in her quest."

Before anyone could ask what he did exactly, a chill suddenly filled the air as a feminine voice chuckled and said, "By that, you mean you abandoned me."

They all turned towards the living room to see the same person they were just talking about standing before them, a baby Nevermore sitting on her shoulder. Considering that only herself along with Emma and the Dark One had met Salem before, it wasn't surprising to Summer that the others stared in shock at the queen's terrifying visage; her pale white skin and her black and red veins were illuminated by the kitchen light, and her glowing red eyes stared right back at them.

"'One must always watch their back at all costs, lest they be caught off guard by the opponent they didn't see coming'," Salem said softly as she walked into their midst towards Rumplestiltskin, "those were the exact words you told me time and time again, Dark One, yet you chose not to follow your own advice."

"Oh, I did figure you'd listen in though," the Dark One interjected harshly, "no matter how long you've lived you always were curious to know what your enemies were doing so you could think of ways to deal with them quickly."

"A skill that you taught me as well," she stated in a similar tone, pausing to calmly scratch underneath the Grimm's chin.

She then turned to the others and continued, "The last time I had been in dear old Rumplestiltskin's care, the cowardly fool decided to abandon me just when I reached my peak of power and was ready to begin my conquest of Remnant. Now that I've been reunited with my 'beloved tutor', I intend to gain back a vial containing something important that he stole from me, something that I need."

"In no way did I steal it, you made that deal with me and gave it away willingly," Mr. Gold interjected, earning himself a nasty glare from those burning red eyes, "you can't even put it back anyways, you know that."

"And as I said before, what I want with the piece of that soul is my own business," Salem responded without hesitation, and then smiled wickedly and continued, "Now listen well, all of you, I'm not leaving this 'Storybrooke' without that vial, and if I don't get what I want within one month my forces will level this town to ashes and kill everyone within. Give me the vial, and only after that will I leave, none of you have to die so long as I get what I want."

Having listened to this Summer finally had enough, and stepped forward to say, "Don't even think about listening to her, she'll burn this town down regardless if she even gets the vial or not."

It wasn't long before she could feel Salem's eyes on her as the Grimm Hive Queen declared softly, "Well well well, this is a surprise, Summer Rose. I thought that Ozpin's loyal pet was burning in the Underworld, yet I find you here alive and well."

"I was given a second chance by my God," Summer stated defiantly, looking Salem right in her blood red eyes, "something that you're not."

The queen chuckled slightly and in a sinister tone inquired, "And why would your 'God' send you here, exactly?"

"Well, you're here, so I guess that's why I'm here," the huntress replied calmly, any fear that she might've had earlier washed away, "even if I wasn't here, no pure soul is going to let you destroy their homes without a fight."

"I'd like to see them try, only two people in this room besides myself know how to stop me," Salem growled menacingly, "and don't forget that I know full well that you have a family back home, Rose, so either way you can sleep knowing that once this town has been wiped away, Remnant is next, and I will personally turn everyone you love into piles of dust."

"That's it, I'm gonna kill her," Killian shouted as he sprinted in an attempt to tackle Salem to the ground.

Before anyone could shout out a warning or even react, the sorceress' shadow lashed out on its own, grabbing his foot and throwing him against the kitchen wall furthest from her, rendering him unconscious.

Emma ran to Killian's side in a panic as Salem turned to her and said, "Don't you worry about your little pirate, he's merely allowed himself to be knocked out; he will live, but might have a nasty headache when he wakes up."

It was then that Regina snapped out of her shock and snarled, "How dare you come into this town thinking you can just get away with what you want; you're not getting away with anything so long as we're around."

Salem merely turned to her, and with a sinister grin just said four words, "You have two weeks."

With that the Grimm Hive Queen disappeared in a cloud of smoke, leaving the group to themselves to figure out what to do now.

A/N: So, that was chapter 4 of Eye of the Beholder. First of all, does anyone even notice what I've been doing with the titles of every chapter in this story? Let me know if you have.

Also yeah, that just happened. I agree with Summer on the whole be careful what you wish for thing (they never get a break in Storybrooke, do they?), one moment she and Regina were having a good moment the next thing they know they have to deal with Salem! I also hope you guys enjoyed the flashback with the Grimm. The entire idea of being able to have an entire army of monsters under your control is actually pretty bad ass if you think about it.

Now that I mention it, I just can't get this awesome image out of my head of Salem sitting on her crystal throne, with a Beowolf at her feet and a baby Nevermore on her shoulder. Wait, am I the only one that thinks that Salem is actually kind of similar to another famous baddie besides the Wicked Witch? Seriously, just replace the Nevermore with an actual raven and replace Salem with Maleficent, they're pretty much alike. By the way, somebody draw me a picture of that image I just mentioned above, I think it would just be perfect!

So, what did you guys think of this chapter? Anybody have any clues as to why Salem looks the way she does now and differently from what she used to look like? If you guys liked this chapter, hit that favourite/follow button. Don't forget to check out my other stories and give them some love as well. As always thanks for the support, and God Speed!