Chapter Text
Steven walked along the boardwalk toward Funland. Amethyst was boasting about how many prizes she was going to win on his right, and Garnet was reassuring Pearl on his left for the eleventh time that the rides were safe in most timelines. “But that’s only most, Garnet, most!” Pearl exclaimed with a crazed expression.
“I’ll be fine, Pearl,” Steven smiled, putting a hand on her arm, “I have my bubbles and my healing spit if something goes wrong (which it won’t).”
Pearl took a deep breath. “You’re right Steven,” she said, “you’re more than capable of taking care of yourself,” she smiled. Then she turned to him, catching his eyes as if trapping a spider under a cup. Steven’s insides wormed, and his breaths became choppy. “More than capable.”
Then Amethyst poked her head rudely into his vision, and suddenly Pearl was chatting with Garnet, everyone was happy, and the sun was shining again. “Plus, you’re way too short to ride all of the big rides, anyway,” Amethyst laughed, reaching down to scruff his hair. Steven blinked, then grunted and swatted her hand away.
“What? No I’m not!” He whined. “I’m big and tall and strong! Watch!” Steven concentrated, squeezing his eyes shut. His eyebrows furrowing and his fists clenching into balls with the effort until, suddenly, he was moving up. Amethyst, Pearl, and Garnet let out a gasp, and Steven opened his eyes to find himself eye level with Pearl! “See? Told you,” he crowed, starting to walk again and finding his strides to be much longer and more… familiar?
“Ugh, whatever, it’s not like I care,” Amethyst scoffed, but she heard her steps fall in behind him even so. Steven chuckled to himself, and he could’ve sworn he heard Garnet let out a little laugh, too. They entered the park, deciding to ride the coaster first, with Pearl nervously saying she would stay behind. Next was the teacups, then the swings (Garnet was too big), then the coaster, then, per Steven and Amethyst’s request, the swings again (Pearl decided to abstain from that one).
“Whew!” Steven said as he and Amethyst stumbled back to Garnet and Pearl, “all that spinning sure has made me hungry!”
“Hungry?!” Amethyst exclaimed, accidentally bumping into Garnet, who whipped out a hand to catch her at the last second. She laughed. “You’re crazy! But I totally agree,” she nodded. “FOOD! FOOD! FOOD!”
Steven joined her, pumping his arms up and down. “FOOD! FOOD! FOOD! FOO—”
“Alright, then,” Garnet smiled. They cheered and began to drag Garnet and Pearl to a hot dog stand.
Steven strode up to the tired looking man behind the counter. “One—”
“Seven hotdogs, please!” Amethyst interrupted. Steven sighed, but began digging in his pockets. He discovered lint, an iridescent shell, a Guys figurine, and a whopping three dollars.
“Amethyst, I only have like three dollars, I don’t think—”
The gem with what was probably an emerald on her left check behind the counter interrupted him with a scoff and a roll of her eyes. “You think I’m going to charge a diamond? Here.” She held out seven hot dogs in her hands. Amethyst swiped six and inhaled them as Steven blinked. He reached for the final hot dog and opened his mouth to speak, but—
His hand was a dainty, gentle, pink.
She gasped, drawing it back and looking down at the rest of herself. She was clothed in pink balloon shorts with pink leggings and pink flats with little white pom-poms. She stepped backward in horror into Pearl.
“Are you alright, my diamond?” Pearl cocked her head, the motion swaying her sheer tutu slightly.
“I don’t see any threats nearby. You're safe, my diamond,” a tall, beefy Amethyst affirmed next to Pearl.
“Yes,” breathed Sapphire, moving slightly to be seen with Ruby standing in front of her, “the only threat I see…
Is you.”
The scene shifted suddenly, and Pink was in front of a house of mirrors. Spinel bounced in front of her. “Come on, my Steven!” She beamed, cartwheeling inside, “It’ll be fun!”
“Wait!” She called, his sandals slapping as he ran.
It was darkness as soon as she entered. Only a pinprick of light was to be seen, seemingly hundreds of feet in the air. “Alright, I can do this,” Steven Diamond said as he leapt.
Her bare feet landed gracefully on the white platform, but they were quickly covered by his pale pink dress. She shivered at her bare shoulders, but Greg quickly walked up to her with her pink letterman jacket. “Woah, Rose-bud. Don’t want you catching anything,” he laughed.
Rose Steven stared at him. “You got our last name,” they growled, “from a song?”
“I’ll take care of that, my Steven!” Pearl sweated, trying to keep a pleasant smile while giving Amethyst a look. She rolled her eyes and walked forward to a sniveling Greg, picking him up and walking off.
“I predict your spinel will be waiting for you and you and you through there,” Sapphire spoke, pointing to a dark hallway before joining hands with Ruby and, with a swirl of light, fusing into Garnet.
“And after that, it’s just a matter of love,” she said.
Steven Pink nodded, heading the way that Sapphire indicated, her flats thudding softly against the floor as her skirt swished around her ankles. He adjusted his top, which felt strange against their flat chest, before entering a room made entirely of mirrors.
The floor, the ceiling, and the walls (including the doorway that had probably never been there in the first place, come to think of it) were all mirrors, triangular and faceted, but they all reflected nothing but themselves.
It was hard to walk on the bumpy ground in his sandals, but he made his way to the middle of the room. “Hello?” a young boy’s voice called from his mouth. He gripped his shirt where his gem was. “Spinel?”
Spinel suddenly appeared in front of him, her back to him. “What nowwwWOHMYSTARS.” As Spinel turned to see him her tone changed completely, her face morphing into terror. “My Lord!!” She exclaimed, sweat practically pouring off of her as she put a fisted hand to her chest and bowed deeply. “Please forgive me your puritY I MEAN YOUR HIGHNESS,” she gasped. “I’m sososooo sorry! For both things!” Silence, then she glanced up at him tentatively. “Please?”
“You know the punishment for making a reference to my diamond side,” Lord Steven growled.
When she started to shiver and snivel pleas and apologies, he gave a deep sigh. He whipped a hand to the side, summoning a diamond knife, and strode toward her, his cape whipping out behind him. He stopped just in front of her, relishing in the flinch she gave when he dipped the knife under her chin to raise her face to his. “You’re lucky you’re entertaining. One more strike, and you're out. Understand?”
Her throat worked. She started to nod, then thought better of it. “Y-yes,” she whispered, “my lord.”
“Good!” Steven cheered with a sudden smile, disintegrating the knife and stepping back. Spinels whole form deflated in relief. A smile wobbled onto her face. “Now, turn this thing on already, will you?” He grinned. “I want to get this over with.”
“Of course!” Spinel whimpered immediately, turning back around and disappearing into a mirror. Suddenly, a blinding flash lit up every mirror, blinding Steven for a moment, then, rapidly, the reflections began to appear.
Pink, but with Rose’s curls and gem. Lord Steven with Pink’s hair and shoes. Steven classic in Rose’s dress, and every other variation you could never have thought of. It was all too much, all too bright, all too fast. They flashed and swirled around her, grabbing and reaching and calling and screaming and she was screaming (the monster), him, them, it? Rose? No— she was Stevennn… Quartz! Yeah, he said that before. No, YES! Rose Diamondddd,,,,,,no. Pink, he was pink before AND now, so yes! Pink Steven no. Steven Pink— Pink… Universe. That SONG!
That song— they didn’t know how they didn’t notice it before. It was playing skull shakingly loud. They were all singing it, all moaning the words. All but it. She didn’t know the words. What were the words? He should know them, what were they? What was he? Who was she again? “Human,” “Crystal Gem.” “A Diamond!” “Pink diamond,” “my mom,” “Pathetic!” “Weak,”—
It was too loud. It was too much. SHe needed— needed—
“STEVEN!!!”
It gasped, tears jumping into his eyes. “Connie?”
“STEVEN!”
Her eyes whipped around, searching frantically through the bodies until— THERE. High above him, he caught a head of chocolate hair.
“CONNIE!” He wrenched himself from the tar-like ground that had stuck him into place, gathering pink and black and blue and red fabric, and pushing black ringlets from his eyes.
“STEVEN, PLEASE!”
He would get to her. If it’s the last thing he did he would be with her. He began climbing. Climbing Rose Diamond and Quartz Steven and Lord Pink, jumping when he could, shoving when he had to, until, finally, he was there.
She was faced away from him, and the whole mirror was cracked, so all he could really see was triangles of color. But that was okay. His face was drenched with tears now, and curls stuck to his cheeks, but that was okay too. His hiccuping laugh tripped over itself in relief. He put his hand out—
And it hit solid material.
All was silent now. All was still.
“PLEASE! S-STEVEN!” Connie wailed from inside, just as loud. “STEVEN!”
He breathed in. He breathed out.
He punched the glass.
Tink!
A small crack joined the others.
He punched the glass again.
Tink!
He punched it again.
Tink!
Again.
Tink!
Again.
Tink!
Again.
Tink!
Again, until his fists bled.
Tink!
Again, until his head pounded.
Tink!
Again, until, finally,
SKCHHH!!!
It broke, and Steven tumbled inside.
There was Connie. Finally! Connie!
Connie, hands bound in pretty pink cuffs above her head, attached to a pink wall. Connie, with purple bruises lining her arms and holding one eye gently shut and adorning her cheeks like bad blush. Connie, with scrapes and cuts all over, like a dainty line of scarlet just above her cheekbone.
And him, with a raised fist.