There were two rules – stay on the path, and take Zwei along. If Ruby followed those rules, she could leave the house without any adults.
Growing up in a cabin on the island of Patch, on the outskirts of civilization, meant Ruby and her immediate family had become self-reliant and accustomed to not having anyone around. And although the family had dealt with close calls and scares in the past, the fact remained that Ruby and her elder sister couldn't be monitored 24/7. Both mothers were out of the picture, and Taiyang Xiao Long and Qrow Branwen were both teachers at Signal Academy, and experienced hunters – meaning they often had other obligations. So, sometimes, Ruby and/or Yang were left alone at the cabin. And sometimes, one or both had to go into town on an errand.
Neither Taiyang nor Qrow liked the idea of it, but rather than forbid the sisters from leaving outright, they found ways to minimize the risk. Perhaps it was because they realized that the pair would, at some point, go off on their own anyway, so it was better to get them to do so in a controlled fashion. So, Taiyang acquired a dog, and named him Zwei. Zwei was unusually intelligent – and despite his small stature, a capable fighter, with an unlocked Aura. With him as escort, Yang and Ruby would have nothing to fear from wandering Grimm.
Not that the route was very dangerous to begin with. Patch, being an island, was spared from the massive Grimm migrations that sometimes occurred on the continents, where hordes of Grimm would gather in uninhabited areas and travel hundreds of miles to raid the four kingdoms. Flying Grimm might travel to Patch, but by and large they preferred to head to areas with far more people, and more negative emotions to lure them. As a result, the Grimm population on Patch was easily controlled, and consisted almost entirely of weaker Grimm such as Beowolves. It was perfect for a combat school for younger students, like Signal.
On top of that, almost all the local Grimm had learned to stay away from humanity's territory. Even the Xiao Long/Rose cabin was safe, as Taiyang and Qrow easily dispatched every Grimm that wandered too close – except, of course, for the occasional straggler, left to run back to the forest and indicate to other Grimm that to venture near the cabin was a death sentence. As a result, Grimm incursions were quite rare. So wary were the Grimm of patrolling hunters that they even avoided the dirt path that led from the cabin to the nearby town.
And so, provided that she stayed on the dirt road, and took Zwei along, Ruby was allowed to travel without adults. She enjoyed these walks, since it was a chance to stretch her legs and use some of that childish energy she had. Besides, the forest was quite pretty and relaxing to walk through, especially in fall.
But one day, when Ruby was nine years old, she strayed from the path.
She made this decision while heading home, as she reached an arched wooden bridge that crossed a stream. She stepped onto the bridge, and hesitated for a moment. Then, instead of crossing, she stepped off the bridge and turned to the left side instead. As Ruby's feet left dirt and touched down on grass, Zwei barked behind her. She turned back to face him, smiling. "Come on, Zwei. I'm just going to walk over here a little."
He barked again, running up to her and grabbing hold of her cloak in his teeth.
Ruby sighed, kicking playfully to try and get Zwei off. "I just want to see what it's like. It's boring, walking this path over and over."
Zwei looked up at her, not letting go.
"I won't get lost. I'll just follow this stream, see?" She pointed to the stream in question.
After a moment, Zwei let go of her cloak, though he continued to look at her with what, in a human, would be a disapproving gaze. Ruby just smiled, turned around, and started to eagerly follow the current downstream along its left bank, curious to see what was beyond the path.
The forest, as it turned out, was beautiful. Autumn was approaching, and some leaves were beginning to turn orange, yet others remained green, creating a patchwork of colors in the trees above, accented by the sections of sky that could be seen beneath the branches. The stream flowed among grass, stones, and tree roots, and was both clear and shallow enough to see each pebble beneath the water, each fish beneath the surface. And every so often, patches of wildflowers would appear, along the stream or in small clearings where the sun could shine uninterrupted onto them.
The forest was also quite peaceful. The stream gurgled gently, its waters in no rush to reach their destination. Birds chirped overhead and around. Ruby couldn't help but try and whistle along to the birds' songs, or hum along with the stream. Zwei followed her, his eyes, ears, and nose alert for any threat, but soon even he started to relax, amusing himself by chasing butterflies or hopping across the narrower parts of the stream.
The pair continued walking far longer than Ruby had originally intended. She hadn't meant to go far, but each turn of the stream, each new cluster of rocks or trees, left her wanting to see even more. It was impossible to pick a good stopping point... that is, until she reached the cabin, situated just to the side of the stream, at the top of a downward slope.
It wasn't very big, and – from outside examination – probably only had one or two rooms. There was a space beside it for a garden, bordered by stones, but it was overgrown with wild plants. Some previous explorer had left some graffiti on the side facing Ruby, its wild and erratic colors contrasting with the dark wood, its message incomprehensible.
"Wow... look at this, Zwei!" Excited at the new discovery, Ruby skipped up to it, with Zwei moving ahead of her. She quickly located the cabin's front door beneath an overhang, facing the stream. Next to it was a window, divided into four panes by a sturdy wooden cross. She knocked – her family had taught her manners, after all – but was not surprised to hear no reply. So, she carefully turned the doorknob and opened the door, with Zwei quickly slipping in. After a few seconds, he gave a bark of approval, and Ruby followed after him.
Inside, it was dark. Illumination came only from a pair of windows, one next to the door and another on the opposite side. On Ruby's left was a wall, with a door closer to her than to the opposite wall. The rest of the room was to her right. In the center was a square table, with two chairs on opposite ends. On the right side of the building was a fireplace, and next to it was a set of short cupboards that might have also doubled as a kitchen counter. It smelled faintly of old, rotting wood, but otherwise seemed to be in good condition. It wasn't quite livable, but it wasn't going to collapse anytime soon.
Ruby took a few steps into the room, then turned to the door on her left. Someone had carved some small letters into it at a spot level with Ruby's head. She leaned in to get a better look at the text, and was able to make out the letters "P+N" - a memento of some sort, its significance known only to its creator.
After trying for a moment to figure out what the letters meant, and failing, Ruby pulled open the door. Behind it was a small bedroom, with a simple dresser on one end, and a bed on the other. A single window sat opposite the door, and sunlight streamed in through a half-meter hole in the ceiling. The room smelled of mold, and water damage had taken its toll on the bed and on the space beneath the hole.
But directly beneath the hole was something that Ruby had never seen in a cabin, or at all. It was a black crystal bigger than her head, its surface dark and rough like coal, except for flat surfaces on one side that were smooth but irregular like obsidian, with edges like broken glass. It was as though it were a piece broken off from a whole. The sunlight came in at just enough of an angle to graze and illuminate its jagged peak, leaving the rest of it in shadow. And, as Ruby looked at it, it seemed as though the shadows were... shifting slightly. She stepped closer, entranced by the strange discovery. Finally, she crouched down next to it, reached her hand out, and let her fingers brush the smooth side.
The crystal pulsed with a faint, dark red light, and then she could hear a deep, growling voice inside her mind. "You're no Nephilim..."
A wave of sudden, sourceless fear went through Ruby, along with the irrational awareness that she was being watched. And yet, she couldn't take her fingers away from the crystal, running them down its surface. She didn't look around to find the source of the voice, instinctively knowing that she hadn't really heard it, nor did she try and see whatever was observing her. Instead, her gaze remained fixed on the crystal, as the glow grew stronger.
"...But you'll do."
Somewhere behind her, Zwei barked.
And then, Ruby opened her eyes, to find herself on the floor, curled up next to the crystal, with Zwei licking her face. Zwei suddenly whimpered, then ran from the room. Ruby quickly stood up, wondering if there was some sort of threat nearby. But nothing presented itself, and no sounds could be heard. Zwei didn't return to her, leaving her alone with her thoughts, and with the crystal.
I must have dozed off, she thought. On the floor next to a crystal was an odd place to sleep, to be sure, but it wasn't much worse than the remains of the bed. What an odd dream, too...
The fear she had felt during the dream had passed so completely that she had difficulty remembering what it had even felt like. She glanced over at the crystal. The crystal was still, the glow gone. The shadows that had seemed to dance before her eyes were absent, leaving only a darkly beautiful, but perfectly mundane crystal.
Ruby walked out of the bedroom, and looked to her right to see Zwei just outside the doorway of the cabin. He barked, then turned and ran a few meters away. She checked her watch. She hadn't been asleep for more than a few minutes, fortunately, but she needed to be home soon, and she was going to be late as it was.
Zwei barked at her again. "All right, I'm coming!" She began to walk out of the cabin, as Zwei run away once more. Ruby picked up her pace to try, unsuccessfully, to keep up. "I know we're gonna be late, but wait for me!"
Despite the short time she'd been unconscious, she felt refreshed after her catnap. There was also a different feeling inside her, something subtle but still noticeable. It was as though her body had an added weight to it, even though she didn't feel any heavier. In fact, it wasn't an uncomfortable feeling – it felt like she had a little more mass, her movements carrying more force behind them, more... power. And yet, it took no more effort to move than it had before. If anything, it was as though her limbs were lighter. It was a curious feeling, the contradictory sense of mass and lightness, and Ruby's young mind could make no sense of it.
But, as she left the cabin and hurried after Zwei along the stream back to the path, her limbs functioned as they always had, even if she had a little more energy and even confidence in her stride now.
Zwei kept a distance of several meters at all times, frequently looking back at her as he went. Such a responsible dog, Ruby thought to herself. It seemed to her that he wanted her to hurry back, and she was all too happy to oblige. They made good time as they returned to the path and began heading back to the cabin.
As they neared the cabin, Zwei ran further ahead, quickly entering the entrance that had been installed for him in the front door. A few moments passed, and then the door quickly opened, Taiyang appearing and rushing out the first couple steps, with Zwei behind him, barking repeatedly. He immediately slowed down when he saw Ruby, safe and sound and walking towards him several meters away. He smiled, continuing on towards her. "Welcome back, Ruby. Everything go alright?"
Ruby smiled in return. "Yeah. I dunno what Zwei's so-"
Taiyang stopped in his tracks, his smile vanishing. A look of faint confusion replaced it, along with worry.
Ruby froze as well. Young as she was, she wasn't the best at reading people, but the change was too drastic to not be noticed.
Taiyang took a slow step towards her, eyes focused on her. As he walked, started seeming more and more like... well, what he and Qrow looked like when they were ready to attack a Grimm.
"Dad?" Ruby took a step back, growing uneasy. "What's wrong?"
Her father stopped, and took a few steps back. The intense look faded somewhat, and his expression changed to one of worry. "Did... anything happen on the way?"
"Not really..."
Zwei barked.
Ruby looked away. "O-okay... I kind of... went off the path for a little while..." It was quite scary to Ruby, that her father could apparently just... tell when she'd done something wrong.
Taiyang stared at her for a moment. "And?"
After a long moment, she looked back over to him. "I'm sorry..."
A flash of confusion crossed his face. Apparently, not the response he was expecting. "No, I mean, did anything else happen?"
"Not really... I walked for a while, and found an abandoned cabin. I took a little nap there. I-" She frowned, trying to remember. She thought there was something else, but the memory was hazy, and slippery, like that of a dream. Nothing solid formed in her memories, and she soon gave up trying. "...I felt a little stronger after the nap."
"Hmm." Taiying frowned. "What was in the cabin?"
Ruby wasn't quite sure what he wanted to know, but at least he didn't seem to be mad at her. "Some old furniture. Oh, there was a pretty rock, too."
Zwei barked again.
"...All right." Taiyang took a few steps towards her.
"I'm sorry," Ruby repeated. "Zwei tried to stop me, but I told him I wouldn't be long..."
Her father placed a hand on her shoulder. His face was strained, but when he spoke, his tone was warm. "That's not it, Ruby. I... I think your Aura's been unlocked. And your Semblance is on."
"Really?!" Ruby's face lit up, and she smiled at him. "You can tell? What is it?"
Her father smiled, but it was a strained smile. "You can make everyone around you afraid of you."
Ruby's excitement faded a little. "...Everyone?" Young though she was, she wasn't completely blind to the implications.
Taiyang nodded.
Ruby blinked. Then, after a long moment, she took a step back.
Her father hurriedly stepped forward. "Ruby, it's all right." His face had shifted into a concerned frown. "I'm not afraid of you. It'll be fine."
Just then, Yang came up behind her father. "Hey, what's going-" Then, her eyes locked on Ruby. They went wide, and her mouth twisted, as if about to let out a scream. Before that could happen, she turned and ran back into the house.
Ruby just watched, eyes wide. Then, she looked back to Taiyang, her eyes beginning to water.
"It'll be fine," her father repeated.
Ruby was too young to be able to realize he was trying to put on a brave face, for her. In that moment, she forced herself to smile, choosing to believe in her father's words.
Author's Notes:
First off, a confession. If you're thinking, "doesn't this concept seem familiar?" you'd be right. This fic was inspired by Bear of Cali's fic Keeper of Terror, which had a similar premise. You see, a while back I was in a mood for a good demonic possession story, because I love the concept of two souls trying to share a body. And I thought, "Didn't I see a fic like that in the Fanfic Recs page on TVTropes for RWBY?" And that fic was Keeper of Terror. So I read it. I wasn't completely satisfied with it, however. It had its flaws, the most glaring being the fact that it's unfinished and last updated three years ago. So, I decided to write my own version. Credit where credit is due though, Bear of Cali definitely had the idea first, an idea that inspired me. Check their fic out, if you'd like. If Bear of Cali is reading this, I hope they'll be flattered rather than offended.
Anyway, there will be some things that are similar and some things that are different. One thing that's the same is that Ruby has inherited powers from her demonic guest. That concept was too good to pass up - I got a lot of mileage out of the simple concept of "Ruby has a power that makes everyone afraid of her." One thing that's different is that the presence of the seven evils in Remnant is currently unexplained. Bear of Cali began their fic with an explanation of how the Black Soulstone and its inhabitants ended up in Remnant; I felt such a thing was unnecessary. Related, this fic is primarily a RWBY fic first and a Diablo fic a distant second. Don't know anything about Diablo? Neither does anyone in Remnant! So don't be afraid to delve into this fic if you're not familiar with Diablo. The important bits will be explained.
One more thing before I quit rambling – I'll occasionally post some of the music I've been listening to that seems to fit this fic. I don't have any particular tracks to fit this chapter though, so just listen to This Will Be the Day or something.