Whispers in the Shadows: The Dark Heist of Ruby's Soul in Ever After

Title: "Shroud of the Sun" --- The Ever After, once vivid and brimming with color, now lay cloaked in a veil of somber twilight. The chaotic journey of the RWBY team had culminated in a grim twist of fate—one devised by the Curious Cat, a cunning creature whose innocent facade concealed a malevolent cunning. The price of curiosity had always been high in this realm, and Ruby Rose was its latest, most unfortunate debtor. When the Curious Cat confronted Ruby at the Tree of Renewal, it had nothing to do with mere mischief. She was fraught with guilt, exhausted from the onslaught of their recent battles, and trying to find solace in a place said to restore. The Cat slinked toward her, its eyes glimmering with a hunger for the miraculous semblance of life and power that she held within. Ruby didn't notice the predator until it was too late. "Ruby Rose," the Curious Cat purred, circling her like a jaguar eyeing its next meal. "Do you know why your kind never leaves this place unchanged?" Ruby tried to draw Crescent Rose, but the Cat was too quick. With a swift leap, it latched onto her, its claws digging deep into her skin as it began a parasitic transfer. Ruby screamed, a sound that echoed across the Ever After, reverberating through dimensions. However, just before the Cat could fully invade and dominate Ruby's essence, Neo appeared atop the Tree with vengeance burning in her eyes. But she was a fraction too late: Ruby's body, now commandeered by the Curious Cat, burst forth with a frenetic energy never before seen, knocking Neo off balance and sending her careening through the air. Sparks of ancient magic shattered the scene as the Cat, cloaked in a new corporeal form, vanished from the Ever After, taking Ruby's body as its vessel and leaving the true Ruby—a spirit void hovering like mist above the tree. --- Life in Remnant had resumed a terrifying normalcy in Vale. The threat of the Grimm and Salem lingered as ever, but Ruby's return brought an eerie sense of hope. Except it wasn't her. The Crimson Reaper’s eyes, once beacons of light and determination, now glistened with an unsettling curiosity that could not be concealed. Weiss, Blake, and Yang sensed something was off with their leader. Ruby’s movements were sharp yet sluggish, as if still adjusting to her own physicality, and her mannerisms were slightly altered—a penchant for curious staring from the corners of rooms, the occasional quiet murmuring to herself, as though marveling at the simplest of human sensations. Ruby's ascension to this formidable stage, displaying newfound levels of power in every fight, made her even more revered—yet simultaneously feared. Team RWBY watched her, their hearts weighed down by an ominous dread. Despite their suspicions, they could not fathom the abominable truth: Ruby’s soul had not come back with her. All that remained was a marionette with strings pulled by the Curious Cat. The masquerade continued for weeks. The fall into madness was inexhaustible. The Cat, while bearing Ruby’s visage, was unraveling the myriad curiosities of human malice within her—and quickly grew insatiable. Vale’s safety had become precarious; accidents started occurring, first minor, escalating to more grievous events. The Cat had begun its dance with the darker shades of humanity, puppeteering Ruby’s friends, sowing seeds of paranoia among the huntsmen and huntresses. The breaking point arrived during one gruesome battle in the heart of Vale. The Cat’s pent-up thirst for chaos finally surged. In Ruby’s skin, it unleashed a wrath so furious that the line between friend and foe blurred. Weiss tried to intervene, throwing herself between the corrupted Ruby and a defenseless civilian, but the Cat—intoxicated by control—didn't hold back. Myrtenaster clashed with Crescent Rose in a battle of former friends, of deep trust now shattered by alien possession. In the eyes of the public, Ruby had finally cracked. The beloved huntress had transformed into an enigmatic adversary, her aura now flickered with an ethereal malice. --- The final act came in a lonely confrontation atop Beacon Academy, where memories of their first days as a team now felt like a distant dream. While Yang and Blake fought to fend off the remnants of Salem’s forces, Weiss faced the deceptive visage of Ruby alone. Illuminated under the moonlight, the Cat had grown increasingly unhinged, the urge to probe deeper into human suffering now an obsession. Weiss, with tears in her eyes, tried to reach the vestiges of Ruby she hoped were still in there. “Ruby, I know you’re somewhere inside. Fight it. Please.” But the Cat, with a predatory glint, merely chuckled. “Ruby’s curiosity brought her here, and so it will take her away.” In a final clash of wills, Weiss managed to strike the Curious Cat—a blow that caused the creature to falter momentarily. This fleeting opportunity gave Ruby’s struggling spirit a chance to grasp the frayed threads of her existence, fighting to assert control. For a split second, Ruby’s face appeared. “Weiss… I’m sorry…” The Cat’s power, however, was resilient and Ruby's spirit, while valiant, was ultimately overridden. Spinning away, the Cat now fully revealed its malevolent tendencies. “Curiosity did not kill this cat,” it sneered, “but curiosity will destroy your huntress.” Weiss, her heart breaking, did what she had to do. With a heart-wrenching cry, she thrust Myrtenaster through Ruby’s chest, hoping it would end both their suffering. The Curious Cat screamed, an otherworldly noise that resonated across Vale. As Ruby’s body crumbled to the ground, the stranded spirit of Ruby finally dissolved into a thousand sparkling fragments, a whispered apology carried on the wind. With that, the Curious Cat’s essence dissipated, leaving only the lifeless shell of the once bright Ruby Rose, the onlookers stunned into silence. Vale was saved but at a devastating cost. The huntress's valor served as a grim reminder of the price of unchecked curiosity. Ruby, whose light had once been their beacon, was now a haunting memory in the annals of Remnant’s darkest days. --- And thus ended the tale of the girl who dreamed of becoming a hero but fell prey to the insidious lure of curiosity. In the end, the Ever After’s darkest mystery slipped into legend, a shadow trailing the steps of all who dared to peer too deeply into the cruel heart of that enigmatic realm.