Archive of Our Own ^beta

    “The forest was one your mother planted- she started with 5 saplings, and now it’s turned into one of the biggest forests on this planet! It’s been so many years, we kind of forgot it was there!” Pearl laughed, and Steven found it hard to believe Pearl forgot anything related to Rose Quartz, but he supposed even gems could only remember so much. 

    “So, why are we going there again?” asks Amethyst. The question is punctuated by the pop of a gum bubble, and Garnet smirks. She doesn’t say anything, but instead gestures to Pearl, who resumes her exposition with a faraway gleam in her eye.

    “The 5 saplings were given to your mother as tokens of appreciation, for saving a local village from a flood- they believed the saplings were magical, and obviously they weren’t,“ -Pearl chuckles at the thought- “but she did care for them. She even studied them using gem technology, genetically modifying them to be the best plants they could be, but she only did so for the purposes of seeing how well the organic life on earth responded to genetic modification- the plants on earth are quite rare, you see, and contain many complex structures that aren’t found on many other planets- and never in the quantity found on Earth. Now, she planted them, and over time they responded both to her commands, and to the genetic manipulation. Rose usually liked watching evolution, but she wanted to interfere specifically with these, and I never found out why. Anyways-“ She was cut off by the warp stream itself, finding herself standing not in the teal-white glow, but on the top of a mountain, greeted by miles of forest. 

    Steven, somewhat glad for their arrival (he loved Pearl to death, but over the years, and especially in his adolescence, he had realized just how long Pearl could talk about Rose without stopping), admired the forest. It was beautiful, the trees going various shades of red, yellow, brown, and orange for the fall. The sunlight glinted off of the leaves, and there seemed to be a feeling in the air that he couldn’t place… It made him feel nervous. Admiration turned into apprehension. “Uh, why are we here again?”

    Amethyst smiled. “Yeah, P, You never answered my question!”

    “The trees your mother planted have been more aggressive lately- like the moss, from when you were younger.” Garnet answered, adjusting her visor.

    “What do you mean? If they’ve been here for so long, why now? And even if they were acting aggressive, there’s a whole forest! We can’t… We can’t cut down all of the trees, can we?” Steven paled at the thought. He wasn’t really into plants, although he did care for them. He cared for all life on earth, but a part of him especially didn’t like the thought of cutting trees. 

    Garnet acknowledged him with a nod. “The forest itself is natural, and evolved accordingly. They carry the genetics of the original five saplings, but Rose never genetically modified them. It’s only the five original trees that are behaving strangely.” 

    Pearl blushed, spots of blue appearing at her cheeks. “Do we really have to cut them down? What could they be doing, they’re plants!” She laughed at the idea, and it got a smile out of Amethyst, but Garnet was serious as ever. 

    “Pearl, you know for yourself the damage Rose did on the battlefield with the plants alone- responding to her every command and rushing through the battlefield like not even Gems could do, because they made up the battlefield itself!” 

    Steven had stars in his eyes, and then remembered with a chill the Watermelon Stevens.  “So, what? You want me to tell them to stop? Do you think that would work? I know I have mom’s gem, but... what if they sense that I’m not her?”  Pearl was unsure, but Garnet started on a path to the forest, and she could only look back with a worried glance. Steven seemed on edge before they even got to their target location, maybe they could handle this without him… Amethyst took Pearl’s hand and gently pulled her along, and Steven sighed. At 15, he was less fearful, more capable than he had been. But something about the forest itself, even from miles away, gave him goosebumps. 

    The hike to the forest had been fine, and even managed to make Steven forget about his apprehension. The sun rose higher into the sky, and before noon, they reached the edge. Amethyst, in her favorite owl form, launched off of Steven’s shoulder and onto a branch. There were bushes, and it seemed the path was well-worn, at first, but almost exactly where the tree line started, the path was overgrown and uneven. 

    It wasn’t hard to make their way through, following Garnet’s lead, but it was particularly hard for Steven. Pearl kept behind him to make sure he was keeping up, and he tripped over every root, and every branch got in his face. Amethyst noticed, too. 

    “Hey, Stee-man, are you okay? You’re not usually this clumsy.”

    Steven looked at her, both annoyed at her for bringing it up and grateful for her worry over him. “Nah, I’m fine, it’s just“ -he batted away another tree branch and kept walking- “the plants are all leaning into me, and I swear the roots are trying to wrap around my ankles! I wish they would stop.” He looked around, at the sunlight glinting through the trees, and hoped they listened to his wish. It was why he’d said it, after all. 

    The four gems kept walking, because Garnet’s future vision showed her where she needed to be, and she hadn’t stopped yet. Steven wasn’t tripped up by any more roots, although he had to deal with the leaves caressing his face as he passed, while Pearl and Amethyst just swatted them away. He realized with a start that he had facial hair, or at least, the beginnings of it, and willed it away. He hadn’t ever done major shapeshifting, like Amethyst, and he wasn’t sure he could, but minor cosmetic changes were easy. 

    “We’re here.” Garnet’s sudden announcement rang through the forest, louder than anything. The vague noises of animals and the soft breeze ruffling the leaves, sending them spiraling to earth, were no match. Steven almost bumped into her still, having been almost right behind her. Pearl almost bumped into Steven, and he didn’t have her in his eyesight but he knew because she had been hovering. 

    The clearing they had stopped in wasn’t very notable, and none of the trees were especially strange. “Garnet…? Are you sure? I don’t really feel anything different. I can almost hear the plants talking, and they aren’t saying anything about this place.” Steven felt silly saying it out loud, but the gem’s faces were serious. “Maybe there was nothing here and you were wrong? Glad that was cleared up, let’s go!” He smiled, hoping Garnet would agree. 

    “Nope. We’re stopping here because we need Rainbow Quartz.” She had said it simply, but Garnet knew this was a lot to ask for. Steven still hadn’t fused with any of them, there had never been any need. 

    “Ra-Rainbow Quartz?” Pearl was… confused, she decided. Or maybe scared? She remembered the last time she had been a part of Rainbow Quartz, nearly 20 years ago… Before Steven was born, of course, and it had been in the midst of battling a ferocious Gem Monster. “But surely Steven would be different? Would Rainbow Quartz still be Rainbow Quartz?” 

    Garnet shrugged, and looked at Steven. “Well, obviously she’d be different, since I’m not my mom, but… she’d still be her, I guess?” Steven was just as baffled. He had only fused with Connie maybe 6 times, 4 of them on accident, and only 1 of them for combat purposes. “I- Do we come up with a dance beforehand, or…? I’ve only fused with Connie, and they sorta just… happen.” He glances at Garnet, who was still standing expectantly. 

    “Just do what feels right, Steven, I know you can do it.” It was simple, but  Steven felt genuinely uplifted. Garnet always knew what to say. He looked towards Pearl, who seemed to be deep in thought. 

    Pearl brightened up only a second later, already spinning. “Well, I guess this is as good a time as any to practice fusion! Oh, I’m so excited, Steven we get to do our first proper Crystal Gem fusion dance! I’m so excited to brush you up on the etiquette!” 

    Amethyst rolled her eyes, but… She was excited too. She knew how Steven danced, could at least guess. “Woohoo! Go Steven!” she cheered. He hadn’t even moved yet, but he turned to her with a smile.

    Pearl told Steven that a fusion dance must always begin with a bow, because that demonstrates respect and acknowledgement of your partner. “Now, we’ve practiced fusion before, but it still helps to remember: think of how you feel about your partner, and think about how you interact with them. Remember that the dance, and of course, the fusion the two of you create is an expression of your relationship, and of the trust and respect you have, and obviously make sure you’re looking at your partner as you dance. Do you think you’re ready to try? I must say, I’m excited to fuse with you… You’re, well, organic, and it’s gonna be strange… Anyways!” Pearl’s flustered voice was loud and clear, and Steven fondly looked up at her.

    He thinks of Pearl, and how she’s the most motherly of the three gems, the most nitpicky, the most ‘boring’ one, and he feels warm inside when he thinks of her impassioned speeches about Rose Quartz, and the Crystal Gems, and how much she loves him… They bow, and begin to dance. 

    Pearl took his hand, and almost instinctively, he pulled her to him. She didn’t expect it, though, and loses balance. She managed to right herself just as Steven went to help her, and his head smacked into her shoulder. 

    “Steven! I’m so sorry are you okay? I think I hit you in the eye, do you think your vision is impaired? Garnet-“ 

    “Peearl!” His whine is affectionate, and she smiles. 

    “Are you sure you’re okay?” she asks him, rubbing his shoulder. 

    “Yeah, I’m fine! Come on, the mission needs us!” Steven was eager, because even at the start there had been a thrum of energy, a pulsating feeling. He knew they could do this.

    They bow, and they focus. Pearl’s gem lights up as she begins moving, spinning towards Steven. His gem glows, and this time Pearl offers her hand and when he pulls, she dips. He holds her, before setting her on her feet, and she begins to spin around the clearing thinking only of Steven, only of his gem, of Rose- 

    Garnet winces when she hears Pearl trip over Steven.

    “We should… maybe try to plan it, at least a little bit?” Steven offers. Pearl smiles at him, a wistful smile. She closes her eyes and thinks about how much easier it was with Rose, and she knows it isn’t fair to him, but… No, she thinks. It’s not fair to Steven. She puts the thought out of her mind, and breathes. She opens her eyes, looking at Steven Quartz Universe.

    They begin to talk about their dance, how Steven just likes to feel his funky flow, and Pearl needs Order and Form, and Amethyst can’t help but agree with Steven when he says Pearl shouldn’t be afraid to try new things. Pearl begins to spin around Steven, and none of their gems glow, because it isn’t rushed, they aren’t fusing, they’re practicing. She lifts her leg in the air, and Steven shuffles around her, slow and yet fast all at once, because he knows how she dances. Steven has known Pearl his whole life, after all. 

    He laughs when she picks him up as if he weighed nothing, and when she throws him, he lands, rolls back up and runs to her, and she laughs. He pulls her around and she slides under his legs and springs back up and this time she’s flowing around him, and he’s gliding along and when she slows and puts her hands on his shoulders he begins to mimic her, spinning in the air, and this time, he throws her. She lands, and taking his advice about spontaneity, cartwheels towards him, and he laughs again, tears in his eyes. Glowing, they come together, hugging and melding together and rising, their bodies glowing, Pearl’s gem tracing a path to it’s new location, Steven’s settling around where his eye level would have been. 

    All at once, Rainbow Quartz springs into existence. Their four eyes blink, wide in shock. She takes two steps, light and familiar, and all new at once. Half of her has existed for millenia, and the other half is just as old…. sort of? They know they can’t think about the mechanics of it all, not now, not on the mission, they’d defuse, but she can’t help but let out a giggle. I’m, I’m new? but we’re, I mean, I’m not… this is so weird, she thinks. She stifled another giggle. Garnet and Amethyst had wide smiles, and Amethyst immediately begins to question her. 

    “Woah. What a babe!" Amethyst cheers. "How does it feel, R-Quartz? Rainbow-Q? Stepearl? Pearleven? Rainbow Universe?” She laughs louder at each name she came up with, and Rainbow Quartz laughs along with her. 

    “Rainbow Quartz is fine, Amethyst… oh my god? Talking is so weird!” they say. Her voice is so melodic, so familiar, not just Pearl but not… Rose. It’s so Rainbow Quartz, and half of them hurts, so she tries to keep her words to a minimum. But how could they, when being them is so… wonderful? A pang of nostalgia hits them, and they can’t tell who feels it, because they just do and it hurts and they glow a pure white- she breathes in, feels their lungs fill with air, and their pink skin settles back into existence. 

    She’s still so confused, and nevermind the science- does she still have a heart? A circulatory system? All at once, she feels her body, feels aware of almost everything- They gasp out loud. Garnet’s smile has faded, and Amethyst knows something’s up. Rainbow Quartz talks to herself. 

    “Is… Is this how you feel all the time?” she asks. “No, no, this is new, but… I- there is so much energy! It’s so incredible I feel the sun shining on my skin more than ever! Wait- Steven did you put on sunscreen, oh, I knew I forgot something-“

    Amethyst gets ready to catch Steven, and she looks to Garnet to make sure she can catch Pearl. Rainbow Quartz is taller than either of them, Steven is only at Pearl’s shoulder anyways, it’s a long fall. 

    Rainbow Quartz begins to wobble out of existence again, but she holds herself together. It takes all of their will to hold themselves together. But they do it. “I- We- No. I, am, this is so weird? Okay. We can do this. I can exist.” She’s assuring herself more than the others, but Garnet is satisfied. Worried, but satisfied all the same. 

    Her four arms settle into place, and her four eyes focus simultaneously on Garnet. “This is so weird, I have four eyes! Four eyes?!” Her clothing is fitting, a mix of Steven and Pearl's tastes. Steven’s shirt has been cropped, the back tied in a knot with long red ribbons trailing after them. Their midriff is bare, pale pink-and-blue-and-purple gem shining in the noon sun. Her hair is pink and dark gray, Steven’s tight curls flaring out of her head, contained loosely in a bun. Her forehead gem is iridescent, flashing with pink, blue, and red, and even green, changing whenever the sunlight hit it. Steven’s shorts have become a dark blue skirt, and pale yellow tights cover her legs. Teal ribbons twine around her legs, starting at the knee, and form shoes reminiscent of a dancer’s. We are so hot, she thinks. Part of them feels a thrill at getting to be a Giant Woman. 

    The forest comes back into focus, after a few minutes. “Ew, oh, this place is so creepy.” Rainbow Quartz’s voice is still so new, they’re bursting with things to say. But she knows they have a Mission. Capital M Mission, they think. “These plants are weird, I think they know more than they’re letting on. Talking to plants is so weird! They aren’t sentient, but they have their own intelligence, their own way of feeling…” she stops. Amethyst is staring at her and she blinks, and breaks the biggest smile she can. 

    “I’m good! I am good! This is so cool!” Their composure isn’t as sure as it first was, but their projected form isn’t wobbling anymore. She looks at her body, and, wow, the top of Garnet’s head! Their thoughts are so distracting it takes them a while to focus, but they stretch their four arms, rub their four eyes, feel their hair wobble slightly, and even sing a little. 

    Garnet warily begins to instruct them. “Okay, Rainbow Quartz, we still need you for a reason: your axe-“

    “I have an axe? Oh that’s so cool- wait. Axes are-“ she doesn’t finish the thought, hyper-aware of the plants that are listening to her every word. You never really know if they wanna help, or if they’ll tell their progenitor trees what’s coming, she reasons. 

    Garnet is still confused, but a quick check of her future vision confirms her suspicions. They can’t say it out loud. “Yes, you have an axe, and it has to do with our mission. Do you think you can generate your weapons?” 

    Amethyst is still confused, but Garnet shoots her a look. Oh, we can’t let the trees know we’re here to cut them down, she thinks. “R-Q, you… you can summon your weapons, right?” 

    “Yes! Of course I can!” She laughs at the mere thought of not being able to. She thinks about the people they love, the people they need to protect, and both of her halves immediately think of the other. She blushes. Her left arms are wielding the pink shield, and her top right arm immediately pulls her spear from her gem with a practiced ease. She spins the spear, and tosses the shield up like a frisbee, and the feeling of Their weapon, something that’s Hers and Theirs, coming into existence, is so much like a… like a bone, snapping into place, almost.

    The axe is beautiful, for something so destructive. The dual-blades are a translucent, crystalline pink, with thorns adorning the top of the weapon. The bottom half of what used to be Pearl’s spear is like a rose, the petals flaring out towards the bottom. It’s swirled all around with teal and alabaster pink, and the weapon itself has an iridescent quality. She has to resist the urge to swing it around. 

    “Rainbow Quartz, we need you to focus.” Garnet’s voice grounds them, and they look at her. “Our mission is to get to the clearing where the original trees are planted, and from there, we’ll work out what to do. Do you think you can handle that?” she pauses for a moment, and then continues, “I don’t ask because I don’t believe in you, I ask because I know how shocking it is. You’re organic, and inorganic. Pearl is probably shocked, as is Steven. But you two are doing great so far.” 

    Rainbow Quartz nods, and dematerializes her weapon. “I’ll summon it again when we get there, but for now… I just wanna be.” 

    The sun is a little lower in the sky than it was, and Garnet assumes it’s a little past noon. “See if you can… commune with the plants, see where the clearing is- if that’s not possible, I’ll check.” Rainbow Quartz nods at Garnet to confirm what she’s heard, and even with the sunlight streaming through the trees, the wind chills, and her body shivers. 

    They almost ask out loud why they just shuddered when she recalls that she’s partially organic. They can feel the cold and are affected by it. She lets herself focus on the hum of life all around her, familiar and exotic at the same time. Amethyst is looking at her worriedly, but she winks with her right eyes and chuckles. “Amethyst, I’m fine, really!” They do a small shimmy to show off, but also to assure Amethyst of their stability. Her only reaction is an eye-roll. 

    “Now I know you’re okay when you start shimmying,” she grumbles. She smiles nonetheless. 

    The plants nudge her consciousness, direct her towards the north, where the progenitor trees are. “We have to go this way,” she points. “You said earlier the trees are… aggressive? What do you mean?” Part of her recalls the moss their mother- his mother- grew.

    “Humans have been attacked. This forest is a popular location for hikers and scientists alike, because the trees are so unlike any other species on earth. Recently, the humans have become aware that the plants seem to react in an aggressive manner- two people have already been killed.” Garnet explains. 

    A leaf spirals through the air in front of her, before falling on the ground. The wind shuffles the leaves still on the trees, and they suddenly feel how alive the forest is. “I’m not surprised. Mom’s- Rose’s…” their voice trails off awkwardly. “Rose’s plants were always more… reactive than general, and I always assumed it was because she wanted them to be. She always seemed to have control over them, but now I realize she communicated with them, she didn’t command them. I’m not surprised. But, well, why now? Why are the saplings- trees, by now, of course- lashing out hundreds of years later?” 

    Garnet is speaking,but the answer forms in their mind as soon as they say it. Rose probably tended to them, soothed their aggression. They trudge on, the sun lower in the sky, the forest itself subtly guiding her to it’s center. 

    She hums a song, to keep herself distracted. The forest fills her with discomfort, and the sunlight isn’t as strong as it was an hour ago, clouds rolling in from seemingly out of nowhere. The trees slowly grow thicker, the path less walkable, the canopy growing thicker and allowing in less light. The forest itself gets more alive, blocking their steps with roots, and swatting at their faces with branches. 

    “The forest doesn’t want us here, this feels… wrong,” she observed. “We’re close-“ she began. The forest had other ideas. A root had wrapped around her ankle while she stopped to talk. She’s pulled out into a clearing, where she immediately feels the anger of the trees themselves. Angry at her. Angry at Rose. But I’m not-, she thinks, until the root grows further up her leg, trapping her in place. The trees are reacting to her, reaching for her, growing before their eyes- Garnet tries punching the roots away, and Amethyst changes shape until she can wriggle out of a plant’s grasp. 

    The anger is pulsating now, and she can hear thoughts come into their head that aren’t theirs, and it’s too much, they melt into two- but she thinks about herself. About how good it feels to be her, how nostalgic it is. She feels herself stay together through sheer will, and it takes so much work… 

    She summons her axe, this time joining the shield and the spear without much of a show, and holds it in her hands. They keep track of Garnet and Amethyst, struggling with thickened root, and look at what they know is the first tree. 

    The thickest trunk, the widest canopy, the one that looks and feels the oldest. It feels so angry, she feels tears come to her eyes, Steven’s usually starry eyes, and another part of her gets angry too. She swings at it, the axe piercing the trunk, and for a single moment the pain is hers, also. 

    She puts it out of mind and jumps out of the reach of grasping roots, and soon it becomes a dance. “Well, you wanna dance? Let’s dance!”she yells.  

    Amethyst and Garnet are struggling, she knows, but she cannot afford to be distracted. In fact, this battle isn’t something they can really deal with, and she feels guilty for even thinking it, but before Garnet can react and before Amethyst even knows what’s coming, they bubble the two and send them to the temple. 

    “I hope they can forgive us.” she says to herself. 

    She dances in circles, stepping above the gnarled roots and striking at any tree she finds. The oldest tree is the most obvious, but any of the other trees could be the original five, and this close to the heart of the forest even younger trees are angry. Tears stream down her face, but they have grim focus- they need to cut everything down. She uses her axe as a pole to launch herself towards a tree, and slices away at a reaching root before striking the tree itself- a younger one, not as thick, and the axe slices clean through. 

    They have no time to react, because the grass itself is restraining her, so she has to rip their stems out of the ground to free herself. Soon she’s just as angry as the surrounding trees. Her axe swings in practiced motions, sometimes taking down two younger trees in one swoop, and she knows she has to cut down the originals before the whole forest is against her. Part of her is growing more fearful though, but she suppresses it without thinking.

    She swings again, the axe finding the cut it’s already made- she has to keep spinning around the clearing, chopping away at the original tree every time she’s close to it, otherwise the roots wind around her leg and she has to rip them out of the ground too- and she feels the cut go deeper than before. Sweat is at her brow and she can’t even gripe about how disgusting that is, because part of her is accustomed. Still swinging the axe, she stays off the ground as much as possible. 

    “Why are you so“ -she backflips onto another tree stump- “angry!?” they’re yelling. She’s sad, and angry, and fearful, all in equal measure. It doesn’t help that the plants, even while fighting them, are still reaching out to them, telling Rainbow Quartz of their anger, and telling them how much it hurts. They can’t take much more. The clearing’s edge has been cut back, originally 20 yards across but nearly double that, now. 

    She’s so tired. All of the other trees surrounding the clearing are gone, she’s standing on the stump of one of the original five and only the oldest tree remains, she doesn’t know when she killed the other four. When she reaches out the original tree, all she can feel is anger and sadness. Rainbow Quartz feels the forest’s sadness, it’s rejection, their Mother stopped visiting them… 

    Rainbow Quartz swings their axe, it glints in the gray light of the cloudy sky, and one moment they exist and they are so sure and confident, the next, her hands slow, they pull back, but no, we need to swing, we need to finish it, she thinks. They glow, and Pearl is falling. Steven is running over to the tree and looking up at it. His gem is glowing when he heals it, the axe cuts receding until they’re only superficial notches in the bark. 

    “Steven, what are you doing! We need to cut it down!” Pearl nearly yells at him, getting back up to her feet. He looks at her with those wide eyes. 

    “Pearl, mom stopped visiting them, and then she had me and I didn’t know-“ he knows it’s not his fault, but he can still feel what the forest is feeling, it’s pain, it’s rejection- “they just wanted to know why, they didn’t know how to reach out, they didn’t know anything, and the humans were cutting them down,“ he chokes back a sob because it’s pure pain, and loss, and he’s bitter because we didn’t even have to cut the trees down. Pearl doesn’t know what to make of this, aside from Rainbow Quartz, she’s never felt any affinity for plant life… She cared for it’s beauty, but she never thought they could feel, of all things. 

    She hugs Steven, and he hugs her, because they aren’t his emotions but he still feels them and he’s sobbing. “Alright, Steven, we won’t cut it down. The forest isn’t acting aggressively towards us, so I guess you, uh,” she thinks for a moment, “talked to them, or communicated with them…?” 

    “Yeah,” he sniffs. “They’re not aggressive, but I have to come back tomorrow, and the next day as well, I think I need to be here to sort some stuff out, but I promise they won’t kill people or anything anymore!” 

    Pearl takes his hand, and a branch swings down from above. Pearl starts to summon a spear, but Steven shakes his head and sits on it. He motions for her to follow him, and before she knows it, they’re being carried along the canopy, back towards the edge of the forest. They’re moving so fast the wind is blowing his hair back, and Steven already feels so much lighter, so they go faster. 

    Having reached the edge of the forest, Steven whispers something into a leaf, and she sees it retreat deeper into the forest. Carrying the message, she assumes. 

    “Do you think Garnet and Amethyst are gonna be mad?” Steven asks her. 

    Pearl remembers with a start that they had bubbled them. “Well, they’ll understand, I’m sure. At least, I hope.”

    When they get back to the warp pad, Steven warps them home, sniffling still. They’re soon confronted with Garnet sitting on the couch, waiting ominously, and Amethyst angrily eating all of Steven’s food.