Ruby faced the sphere of darkness at the place Beacon once stood. It had taken all her sneaking and speed skills to get her there undetected by the Grimm. Actually, she was surprised she wasn't caught even once… From what she could gather, the beasts didn't care if someone approached the school, it was almost like they were only trying to keep people inside the area.
She closed her eyes and took a deep breath. Right now, she should only worry about her ultimate mission: to go inside this black inferno and save both of her parents.
Ruby nodded and stepped forward into the darkness.
-x-
"…Ozpin?"
"Ozpin? Are you still here?"
"I know you're still with me. You wouldn't go down so easily."
"It can't take you. It never will. You're just… You're Ozpin. Even considering all the bad you've done… There's no way in hell the Dark could corrupt you."
-x-
The girl took three steps and fell to her knees, gasping.
She didn't feel pain… It was a sensation much like it, but if asked to describe it, she wouldn't be able to. It tore into her very soul, tendrils of darkness enveloping the core of her being. It left her breathless and with her thoughts scattered, and it took minutes for her to able to stand again.
Gotta find… Mother.
-x-
"You probably wonder why I bother, why I even care. I can't blame you for doing that. I'm not the woman you loved anymore. I shut everyone out, and in the process, became someone else… Something else."
-x-
Ruby halted her walk, clenching her fists. She glared at the dark, as if challenging it.
Mother. Father.
It surprised her, how easy it was to think of them like that. Of course, she had her problems with Summer, and she had never thought of Ozpin as an ideal father figure, especially considering the truths about him she had recently learned… But she didn't care about those things anymore.
She wanted to try to have a family of her own. Maybe they would understand her in the ways Yang hadn't been able to. Maybe Summer would tell her about herself, and Ozpin could share some of his own long story…
She wanted to create something she could belong to with her whole heart, and nothing would stand between her and that dream.
-x-
"So, why do I keep returning to you every time? Why do I feel the need to importunate you and remind you how much of a lazy slug you really are as often as I can?"
"…I think you know the answer."
"You're the only one who makes it possible for me to be Summer, because even if I tried, I couldn't hurt you. And, in return, you can't hurt me… Because you're Ozpin. You don't just fade away like everyone else."
-x-
"Now isn't this interesting."
Ruby froze in place, hearing the twisted voice reach her from all directions at once.
"Are you lost, child?" It chuckled "Perhaps I could show you the way out… Or would you prefer my loyal pets do it instead?"
The redhead's eyes widened in terror as she stepped back, pointing her scythe forward, her aim trembling immensely.
"You are scared." It stated "Stay that way… You make a much more satisfying prey when you are shivering…"
"Y-you're the Dark." Ruby muttered "R-right? You don't scare me!"
The shadows in front of her merged together, forming a grotesque shape of a monster that pounced at her. She screamed in fear, but the apparition dissolved in smoke and passed around her sides harmlessly. The sinister laughter rose in volume.
"Pathetic." It said "You lie to yourself, little girl… I can see into your heart… You want so desperately to rescue mommy and daddy, to be accepted by them… But you know that will never happen. Deep down, you're convinced nothing good can ever happen to you anymore."
A human figure appeared in front of her. Ren looked at her silently and shook his head disapprovingly, but then his form shifted and in his place was Yang, before she had been corrupted.
"You couldn't protect me, Ruby." The blonde accused.
She stepped to her and shifted again. Cinder looked at Ruby thoughtfully and laid a hand on her chin tenderly.
"You hurt me…" She said "You killed me…"
One last time, the figure shifted its appearance. The redhead blinked confusedly, realizing that she was staring at herself now.
"I'm cursed." The copy muttered "Will you please put me out of my misery…?"
-x-
"If you don't make it out of this mess, Ozpin… I'll go right beside you."
"Thank Dust you can't talk. You would tell me I'm being selfish, and you would be right. I can't abandon everything so suddenly… Ruby and the others still need my guidance."
"But… I can't guide them, not without you. You are my guide. So, maybe you'll understand my reasoning."
"…"
"No. You're right. I'm just being weak. Whatever happens, Ozpin… I'll keep going until the bitter end."
-x-
"NO!"
Ruby swung her scythe in a wide arc in front of her, making her copycat dissolved in smoke.
"I am not afraid!" She declared "I'll fight you with every part of my being, and you will regret ever trying to mess with me and my family!"
The redhead spun in place, slashing at the Beowolves that jumped out of the darkness. She narrowed her eyes and took off in a run, leaving behind a blizzard of rose petals. She felt the darkness pressure her even more as she ventured further into it, but she never stopped running, even as her head felt like it was being split in half repeatedly and her own thoughts turned against her.
She finally stopped in front of a kneeling figure. Summer looked up at her daughter, her pale form so faint that sometimes she seemed like she was going to disappear completely. Ozpin was lying on the ground in front of her, eyes closed and arms sprawled to his sides.
"Ruby?!" The ghost got up and stared at the girl incredulously "What are doing here?! You are going to die!"
"I'm here to rescue you and father." Ruby answered "Come on, I'll get him!"
She folded her scythe and attached it to her hip before leaning near Ozpin. With some difficulty, she managed to hold the man with both of her arms. Howls echoed through the darkness, and she looked at her mother worriedly.
"We have to go before it's too late." She warned.
Summer looked at the direction the howls came from and nodded slowly. She moved her hand underneath her cloak, reaching her hip, and retrieved a small white sword.
"Go ahead. I'll be right behind you."
Ruby examined the woman with a mixture of wonder and sadness. She had never known exactly how her mother fought, and now that she could witness it with her own eyes… It hurt to know it would only be temporary.
The girl turned and ran, leaving a trail of red petals behind. Summer stood her ground, her form wavering against the darkness, and as an Ursa pounced at her, she raised her sword. The blade stabbed cleanly through the Grimm's chest, making it dissolve in smoke.
A dozen more beasts followed, and they all met with a similar fate. The Huntress smiled with joy for the first time in years, holding back no emotion as she faced the waves of evil that assaulted her.
A mass of darkness formed in front of her, gaining the outline of a human being. The Dark inclined its head to the side, as if it found her actions intriguing.
"Why do you fight?" It asked "I can sense everything about you… Such a bitter, regretful person… You know this is futile. You are already dead."
Summer stared at it seriously, lowering her sword when she noticed the Grimm had stopped behind their master.
"But… You shouldn't be here. I… killed you fifteen years ago." The Dark stated, as if it was facing a puzzle that refused to wield any answer "You are just a spirit… Merely getting near me should erase you from existence."
"You don't understand me." Summer realized, and then she smirked smugly "But I understand you. You claim that you obey no logic, that all the reason you need is that which you want… The problem is that everything follows rules, and nobody can change them. Even your chaos is bound by reason" She raised her chin defiantly "You can't explain me. I've broken your illusion."
The Dark's form shifted violently, as if her words perturbed it deeply.
"You are wrong." It said "You are just another human waiting to be destroyed."
"You want to believe that, but you can't." Summer responded "You are scared of me."
For a few seconds, everything was silent. Then the Dark exploded towards all directions at once, blending into the shadows, emitting a sound that couldn't be described by speech. It reminded Summer of pure despair, and that was what she felt when the darkness stormed down on her from every angle.
She fell to her knees and opened her mouth to scream, but no sound came out of it. The woman extended a hand up towards the sky powerlessly, feeling every part of her being filled with darkness, almost tearing her apart from the inside.
Summer lowered her other hand to her chest, clutching it desperately, two simple words echoing through her mind amidst all the chaos.
Ruby. Ozpin.
-x-
The redhead gasped as the darkness rushed past her. She stopped walking and looked back, startled. The sphere had condensed to the center of the destroyed building, flowing formlessly like wildfire.
"…Mother?" She muttered.
Her eyes watered and she almost dropped Ozpin at that moment. However, she shook her head decidedly and began walking again, her head hanging low.
It didn't take long for the Grimm to reach her. They stood in her way, growling and staring threateningly. She trembled. The combination of the stress she had suffered under the Dark's influence made her weak, and she didn't know if she could face so many monsters in that state, and to add even more problems atop of that, she couldn't just lay Ozpin on the ground defenseless.
"Leave us alone." She warned, glaring fiercely at the Grimm "I already told your master I am not afraid of you."
But the beasts sensed her fear and weakness and started running at her. She yelled desperately and let her father fall to the ground. The girl unfolded Crescent Rose and swung it in a circle, repelling the first wave of monsters easily.
However, when her movement halted, she gasped painfully and her weapon fell from her grasp. Her body shivered uncontrollably, and she felt like she was going to explode.
"Ozpin!" She called desperately "I need your help! Dad!"
She got no response from the unconscious man. Ruby tried to pick her scythe up, put she just fell to her knees beside her father as the Grimm approached.
"I'm sorry." She whispered "I'm so sorry. I was foolish, and now we're all going to die... But… At least we'll do it together…"
The girl closed her eyes, waiting for her inevitable demise. The sound of slashing and exploding rounds, however, made her open them again.
Qrow stood in front of her, wielding his own scythe. The Grimm all swarmed him, but he took them out masterfully, not receiving a single scratch. After some time, the monsters seemed to finally stop trying, and the few dozen that were left alive ran away.
The Hunter looked back at his niece and smiled faintly.
"Under all that thick skin and stony armor, they're all cowards." He said smugly "I take it you didn't have the best family meeting of history… Where's Summer?"
Ruby got up and shook her head slowly, refusing to make eye contact. Qrow folded his scythe and attach it to his belt, his expression unreadable. He leaned down and took Ozpin in his arms silently.
"We need to go." He said evenly "This place isn't safe. Go ahead, I want you in my sight in case you fall."
Ruby nodded once and started running towards the gate. Qrow gave Ozpin a brief look.
"I hope you were worth it, you bastard."
-x-
Yang woke up suddenly, jumping to her feet. She gritted her sharp teeth and looked around the dark room in alarm.
Kill kill kill kill kill.
Her mind exploded with the voices of hundreds of Grimm all at once. She fell to her knees and screamed in agony, holding the sides of her head forcefully.
In a matter of seconds, several people entered the room, startled by the screaming. She looked up at their fearful faces and smiled savagely. With a snarl, she pounced towards the nearest student and struck him in the chest, making him go flying against the hallway's wall.
The others panicked and ran from her, but Yang just ignored them and walked towards the fallen boy, raising her claw slowly. Just thinking about how delicious his blood and meat would taste… It made her want to rip him apart, but first, she needed to toy with him… Feel his despair and fear…
"Yang?!"
A hand grabbed her wrist. The blonde roared and looked to the side, her other claw already in motion to kill whoever had tried to ruin her plan… But it stopped a few centimeters in front of Blake's frightened face.
Yang's eyes widened. The Grimm trembled wildly, and she looked at the boy she had been about to kill.
"No. No!" She exclaimed desperately "I didn't- I'm so sorry-"
The student stood up and ran away. Yang turned to Blake and grabbed her by the shoulders.
"Kill me." The blonde ordered "Before it's too late. I'm one step away from going insane… Stop me before I kill someone."
The brunette narrowed her eyes at her friend.
"No, and don't ever ask me that again." She warned "You can get through this. You're not going to kill anyone."
"I can't- Dust, Blake! They are screaming at me!" Yang yelled "JUST SHUT UP!"
She kneeled and held her head again. Blake lowered herself and faced the brawler worriedly.
"What do you mean?" She asked "What changed?"
"The Grimm, Blake… From all over Vytal… They are all coming here."
-x-
Qrow raced through the streets of Vale, careful not to activate his Semblance in order to not hurt Ozpin, who he was carrying in his arms, and to keep his attention focused on his niece.
Suddenly, the girl slid to a halt, and the Hunter stopped by her side confusedly.
"Are you okay?" He asked hurriedly "You need to rest."
"No, I'm fine." Ruby refuted. She looked at the empty buildings around them, and then at the clear sky "Something's wrong, uncle. Can't you feel it?"
"…You're right." Qrow agreed seriously "Get behind-"
His order was interrupted by the deafening sound of stomps nearing them. The brown-haired man gasped in surprise when a building fell apart some blocks away from them, a huge elephant-like Grimm crashing through it.
"A Goliath." He said, not believing what was right in front of him "They never attack cities. This is… Impossibly bad."
"You need to warn everyone!" Ruby urged "If one of those things got into the city, and they can take down a building so easily…"
"What do you mean I need to warn them?!" Qrow shouted "Ruby, I know you're a skilled warrior, but don't even think you can take one of these Grimm! You are coming with me!"
The redhead unfolded her scythe and faced away from her uncle.
"I'm sorry." She said, her resolve unwavering "If this monster gets anywhere near our friends… Someone needs to stop it before it gets too close!"
"No."
He grabbed her arm forcefully, but she tore away from his grasp and looked at him fiercely.
"Just trust me. I'll be back."
"…Summer told me the same thing fifteen years ago." Qrow muttered.
She wanted to say she was nothing like her mother, but Ruby knew she couldn't tell that lie anymore, not to others, and much less to herself. So instead, she just smiled encouragingly to her uncle and raced towards the huge Grimm.
Qrow stood still for a few moments, his eyes watering with both pride and sadness. He turned and ran in the opposite direction, feeling like every step he took left behind a piece of his dwindling hope.
-x-
"Weiss!"
The once-heiress' eyes opened immediately and she sat straight on the hospital bed she had chosen to sleep on. She hadn't been able to actually sleep at all, only close her eyes and rest her body, so when her sister entered the room hurriedly and called her, she was already functioning perfectly.
"What is it?" She asked worriedly.
"Blake's called everyone." Winter told "Something changed… She said all the Grimm are coming here."
"What do you mean all the Grimm?" Weiss frowned in confusion.
"I mean all the Grimm."
The older girl stood still for a few seconds before getting off the bed. She grabbed her sister by her wrist and walked through the hospital's hallway quickly until they reached the entrance lobby. Almost everyone was outside, wielding their weapons to hold off a horde of Grimm, except for the few that were too injured to fight.
"Find dad, or Jaune, or even Adam… Just stay safe." Weiss ordered.
Winter nodded slowly. The Dust warrior's expression softened and she hugged her tightly.
"I love you. I know it's hard to believe it, considering how distant we've always been… But I do."
"I know, Weiss. You're always looking out for me." The younger sister said, hugging her back "I love you too."
The two separated, and at Weiss' gesture, Winter rushed outside. The once-heiress looked around the lobby and walked to a distant figure who was sitting alone in a corner, holding her head between her hands. She kneeled before the blonde and sighed.
"Yang?" She called "What's wrong?"
The brawler looked up in alarm, and she had to resist the urge to shove her friend away.
"Get away from me, Weiss." Yang warned "I'm not in a good place right now. Please… I don't wanna hurt you."
"We need your help." The white-haired girl said "There's a massive horde outside."
"I know, and that's why I'm staying here!" The Grimm shouted furiously "I can't get near those things, or I'll go insane!"
"You'll go insane if you stay here too." Weiss muttered "You can't keep everything bottled up… It'll just make everything worse."
Yang pointed a claw at her threateningly.
"Don't think, even for a second, that you understand what I'm going through. You might have changed, but you're not in risk of killing somebody by being careless."
Weiss was about to point out that was her exact situation, but she held her tongue, knowing Yang wasn't in her right mind at that moment. Maybe it was truly for the best that the blonde stayed out of any clashes with the Grimm for now.
"Okay." She conceded "Just… Be strong, okay?"
"Get out of my face, Ice Queen."
-x-
Blake raised her sword to block an Ursa's swipe. She struggled briefly with the beast, but eventually overpowered it and spun in place, cutting the Grimm from shoulder to hip.
With difficulty, she adjusted her stance to fend off the next opponent, a simple Beowolf that tried to claw at her legs. She stepped back just in time to avoid the aggression and brought Shade in a low swing, cutting off the monster's arms, killing him instantly.
The noise of her comrades and Grimm fighting filled her ears and rattled her brain. To her, everything seemed to be happening in half the usual speed, and yet, she seemed to be even slower. She fought to keep her eyes open and her arms raised, but with each creature she got rid of, her efforts to do so grew more and more difficult.
Eventually, she found herself in front of another Ursa. The Grimm raised its claw to strike her, but she couldn't find the strength or will to react. The sound of the battle seemed to lower, and now her ears rang with the noise of her own heart, beating slower, and slower…
She barely registered the sight of ice hitting the Ursa in the chest. The beast was frozen solid, and then Weiss appeared in front of it, hitting it with her bare hands. The Grimm shattered and fell in pieces that turned into smoke.
The once-heiress turned and looked at Blake, her eyes shining with various conflicting emotions. The brunette smiled faintly when she noticed worry and regret, but refused to acknowledge the panic that quickly overwhelmed them.
"Blake?" Weiss held her arms and stared at her closely, and yet her voice sounded impossibly distant "Blake! What's happening?! Talk to me!"
The faunus' smile widened as she collapsed in her girlfriend's arms, her heartbeats becoming even slower. The last thing she heard before blacking out was her name being called repeatedly from so, so far away…
-x-
Yang raised her head when she heard the sound of someone kicking the hospital's glass doors open. Qrow stormed in the lobby and halted in the middle of it, kneeling on the ground. From her angle, it looked like he was holding someone in his arms, and she was quick to jump to her feet and race to her adoptive uncle's side.
"Ruby?!" She asked "Did you find her?!"
And then the Hunter laid the unconscious Ozpin on the floor. He looked at the blonde silently and shook his head slowly.
Yang stared back at him, her mind becoming blank. All calls from the Grimm outside faded, and then a single thought emerged, like a weak spark…
I'll kill all of you.
In that moment, she knew all the monsters outside heard her, a brief wave of fear reaching her loud and clear. Suddenly, the spark erupted into an uncontrollable inferno.
I'LL KILL ALL OF YOU!
-x-
I should stop giving false promises, but next chapter... Gah, I'm not even gonna say anything...
Also, I know some of you might ask me about the Weiss and Yang scene. Sincerely, I didn't want to write something about Weiss finding out about Grimm Yang, so it happened off-screen. And while it's lazy, I also don't see the point in such a scene. It wouldn't fit anywhere in this chapter, and I feel like the interaction between them that I did write tells you enough already.
Reviews!
Miniswitchbak: Yay, hype is good! Unless it's in excess... Then it's almost always bad. I hope in this case, it was good hype. About answering reviews... I really don't see the point of posting something creative online, be it fanfic/fanart/whatever, if you're not going to address your audience. The internet is a fantastic thing that allows you to interact directly with the people that appreciate/critique your work, so why not take advantage of that? I wish more authors would do the same. (I think it's sadly uncommon in the RWBY fandom. I read some DBZ fics too, and pretty much all of them do the same as me, so that's probably where I got the habit from)
KillerKlown: Your Summer concerns confuse me... What do you mean by infidelity? She wasn't married, in fact, she didn't even have a boyfriend. I don't remember suggesting that anytime here (except for the Taiyang thing, which by now, the people that matter understand). But I understand that you might be confused by some of her character... I think writing her is my biggest challenge, both because she has a very secretive nature, and also because she's very important to the story.
I agree with your point about Dust: I don't like when characters get power without any cost, it loses a lot of meaning if it's just handed to them.
About the Grimm: there's no such thing as 'happy patrols' because they weren't needed. Sure, Grimm were always attracted to negative emotions, but nobody can be turned by their will alone. The Dark itself always decides whether someone is to be turned or not. That's why Primal Grimm are such a surprise to everybody!
Ruby's also a tough character to write right now. A lot of the story is being carried by her, and she's walking a very fine line at the moment. I am really afraid of writing any sort of Mary Sues, so I'm being careful with her.
Anyway, thank you for reviewing, and also, congratulations on being the first reviewer to get separate response lines! Yay! (No prize cookies, though)
Lojzek: Oh, okay. I did establish Qrow as Summer's brother early on, so I didn't think you would consider him a possibility. As much as I tend to kill people in this story, I'm not going to reach that level of George R. R. Martin. Lots of Ruby this chapter, and more will follow. Hopefully I'm doing her justice!
Dracohalo117: Hey! Thank you for reviewing, but... You really didn't need to do it to every single chapter... I'm not upset or anything, it's just kinda bothersome that you took so many pages recently (also, it artificially raises the review count, which I feel sneaky about, and not good-sneaky, more like nefarious-sneaky). I don't wanna be rude and delete them (unless you give me permission to), since you took the time to do it, but just some advise: don't do it to any other fanfics. Still, thanks for reading!
Surprise-Goliath-sized thanks to everyone who reviewed, followed and favorited Children of Summer!
-Zeroan