Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

The Crystal Gems remain standing in front of the sea, observing the burning wreckage of the Gem Warship on the sand and a few floating between the calm waves. 

Pearl is the first one to break silence. “That could have gone... a lot worse.” She offers a half convincing smile.

“Could have gone a lot better too.” Garnet disagrees, glancing back at the broken pieces scattered all around the Lighthouse hill and the Crystal Temple.

Their contemplating moment is put to an end by Steven's phone beginning to ring. “Uh… hello?”

“Steven! I got your message. Are you okay? What's going on?” It's Connie, extremely worried. “What happened?”

Before he could think of an explanation, Amethyst grabs him by surprise and twirls him around in joy. “We won!"

“Is that Amethyst?” Connie asks, managing to hear the gem's celebration, confusing her even more. “What's going on? You said that there's some kind of giant space hand and you all may die?”

Nora takes Steven's phone to answer her friend. “Hey, Connie! It's Nora. Um, oh my gosh, where do I even start?” Her first words come out as a squeak when Lion inches in and nuzzles her. “A lot of stuff happened, but you don't need to worry! Everything's okay now. The ship that was coming to Beach City is- Lion! We destroyed the ship and everybody is safe.”

“Oh I'm so glad you guys are alright, but what really happened? Why was there a space hand going to Beach City? Was it Homeworld gems trying to invade Earth again?”

When Nora is about to answer those questions, she spots her dad's van around the corner arriving at a fast speed. “Dad! Oh, sorry Connie. My dad is here and he's probably worried, we'll call you later, I promise!”

Hanging up the phone, she passes it to Steven, who shoves it in his pocket. Both run towards the vehicle and are surprised when the first person to exit is Peedee.

Neither Steven nor Nora have the chance to greet before they're engulfed in a tight embrace. “Don't ever scare me like that again!” He sobs into their shoulders.

“Aww Peedee, it's okay. We're good!” Steven pats his back, unfazed by the tears soaking into his shirt.

“I-I thought something happened to you,” Peedee breaks the hug to face them. “We were going to the Wilmingmore Shelter when that giant hand fell from the sky. I was so scared, t-then I saw your dad going back and I asked him to come too and see if you guys were okay,” He uses his shirt to wipe his face. “I'm sorry, I… I just c-can't lose you both too.”

“Oh Peedee, it's okay. You don't need to apologize, we're here and that's what really matters.” Nora assures him, guilty for being the reason of his worry.

Helping their friend calm down, the twins spot their dad waiting for them to sort things out. Peedee gives them space and allows the parent to have a moment with his kids.

Greg bends down and envelops his kids in his arms. “Thank goodness you're alright,” Nothing in this world can ever compare to the relief of being sure his kids are alright. “Did you get hurt?” His eyes search for any injury, bruise or scratches.

“We're fine, dad.” Nora assures him, thankful that her brother healed her black eye back at the ship.

“I saw the spaceship start to leave and then it crashed, so I came back to make sure you two were alright,” The way his words come out increasing in pacing exhibit the recent anxiety he went through. “But you're okay! I guess those jerks were no match for the Crystal Gems!”

“No way!”

Greg frowns. “But you were able to beat them back?”

“No-”

“Yes, we did!” Nora nervously clamps Steven's mouth shut. “Garnet, she… She totally beat Jasper and we escaped from the cells!”

Steven looks at his sister, confused on why she didn't let him say the full truth, until he saw Greg sighing in relief. “And what did they want after all?”

“We're not sure,” Nora says. “Peridot was sending some kind of robonoids and the Gems were breaking it because it wasn't something good. Then, she came in that ship with Jasper to stop us.” And now she thinks I'm mom.

“Whoa, that's… a lot to take in, but at least the Gems took care of them, right?” 

“Yeah, you could say that.” Peridot is missing and Jasper is somewhere deep in the ocean imprisoned with/by Lapis. Definitely taken care of.

Yet, Nora can't bring herself to tell the whole truth, not when the panic flashing across her dad's face is still fresh in her memory. Greg was so desperate and scared of letting his kids go into that ‘adventure’, afraid of what could go wrong with them and in the end, he was right.

She can't reinforce this fear on him, it's not fair.

─ ·★· ─

The next day, Nora and Steven leave the Beach House under Garnet's order to see how extensive the damage is through the city. They walk along the beach, but only the youngest seems concentrated on the surroundings.

“Now Connie, please don't freak out, but a giant laser hand tried to steal us into space, but it didn't! We're back and everything is fine... now.” Steven mumbles to himself, staring at Connie's contact on his phone.

Nora approaches the Big Donut and realizes the glass door and windows are completely broken. “Whoa, everything is a mess,” She carefully steps inside, avoiding the pieces of glass around the floor. “I hope Sadie and Lars didn't lose all the food.” With one last look over the place, she leaves.

They walk past the Fry Shop, Fish Stew Pizza, Funland Arcade, Cone N’ Son, Dewey Park and many, many houses that also ended up being victims of flying debris. Overall, the establishments either had cracked/broken glass, a few parts of the roof has been ripped apart and the food was at risk of being spoiled due to the ruined electricity.

The last time Nora remembers an incident being this destructive was the Red Eye one.

“Um... Connie. Funny story. As it turns out, there's a lot more gems out there than we thought and I think they wanna... kill us- Agh!” Steven yelps when he accidentally trips over something.

“Steven, careful!” Nora helps him stand and distance from the mechanical tube still shooting sparks from its exposed wires.

The boy looks around and finally takes a moment to look around the boardwalk area littered in rubble and pieces of the warship. The emptiness of the place that used to be somehow crowded and full of life brings him a bad feeling regurgitating on his stomach.

"C'mon, let's go.” Nora tugs him and Steven obeys, following her to others unseen paths.

The twins end their route treading up a hill overlooking Beach City, observing the disastrous state that will take a good amount of work to rebuild the damages.

“I guess we'll have to tell Garnet pretty much everything needs repair,” Nora states, receiving a simple hum as answer. “Steven, are you okay?” He has this thoughtful gaze glued to the screen, ignoring the world around him.

Steven sighs, keeping a tight grip on his phone. “I don't want to tell Connie what happened. You saw how dad and Peedee reacted, I don't want that for her. I don't want to worry her,” He confesses. “Everybody told us gem stuff is dangerous and I guess I didn't believe it until now. Dad always worried about this and now I feel like if we told him everything he would really freak out."

Nora really wishes she could retort what he said, but what can she say? She has been in that same position of keeping everything to herself for the sake of others, but she never wanted that for Steven.

She knows very well how tiring it can be to keep all of your emotions a secret and, well, maybe she's being a little hypocritical.

“I didn't want that for him and I don't want that for Connie.” Steven declares, making it clear his final decision.

─ ·★· ─

Back at the Temple, the Crystal Gems are reunited, already discussing the next course of action, while Steven and Nora are staring out the windows.

“No whining, we need to start cleaning up debris.”

“Garnet's right. People are already coming back into town and we have to make sure none of them get hurt due to these.” Pearl adds.

Nora is appreciating the calm after the storm, enjoying being at home again and the safety these walls offer. She has no idea exactly how long she stayed on that ship, but it seemed like the longest hours of her life; Nora wanted so much to be back home and now that she's there it's almost hard to believe.

And she isn't the one deeply immersed in their own thoughts; Steven is also quiet, staring so hard at his phone his sister wonders how he didn't burn holes on it. “You really aren't going to call Connie?"

“No,” He replies bluntly, putting the phone beside him. Bringing his legs close to his chest, he sighs. “She's definitely better off not knowing the trouble we were in. I don't want her to worry about what we’ve been and seen.”

“So you're just going to ignore her forever?”

“It's the responsible thing to do.”

Nora rolls her eyes, before going back to watch the view provided by the window, until she spots someone down the stairs. “Well, it's gonna be hard, because she's coming up right now.”

“What?!” Steven peeks through the blinds and realizes Connie indeed decided to pay them a visit. “I can't talk to her! I don't know what to say!” He turns to Nora. “Sis, you gotta help me hide and don't tell her anything!”

“What!? But Steven it's not-”

Sounds of footsteps become closer, proceeding by a knock on the door. Steven hides himself behind their seat and Nora has no other choice than to greet their friend.

“Nora!” In a blink of an eye, she finds herself wrapped by Connie's arms. “I'm so glad you're okay! I know I should've waited for your call, but I needed to see you and Steven in person-” She looks around, weirded by his absence. “Where is he?”

“Uh…” Nora glances at the front door, seeing Steven managed to sneak out the window and now walks past them. “He went out! He, um, we needed to check out the damages.”

“Oh, then let's go find him-”

“Wait!” Nora takes her hand, keeping her from leaving. “Actually, I need to talk to you,” She looks at Garnet. “Can you guys…”

She nods. “Let's give them some space.” The fusion taps Pearl's and Amethyst's shoulders, signaling both to follow her outside.

Am I doing the right thing? Steven was right about dad probably freaking out but… he is dad! And Connie, well she is our friend. We can't ignore her or lie about what happens to us. When Lion brought us to mom's cave, she saw how dangerous gem stuff can be, so she won't be surprised I guess.

I don't want to scare her either, but I don't think I can keep this a secret. I've been holding so much on my back already and it's getting too much to handle on my own. I'm not gonna lie, I really want to get this off my chest, only this once.

“Is it about what happened?” Connie asks, letting herself be guided towards the bedroom. She sits on the bed, facing her friend.

Nora nods. “Connie, there's something I need to tell you first. Steven is trying to avoid you," Before Connie makes any questions, she quickly adds. "And no, you didn't do anything! I swear! He's just trying to protect you."

"From what?"

“He's just… worried about how you would react because a lot happened yesterday,” It's now or never. “But you have the right to know. You're our friend and it's not fair to lie to you.”

She sends a thankful look.

“You remember the whole Lapis thing? The gem who stole the ocean?” Connie nods. “So, a few days ago she sent us a message warning us that a gem from Homeworld was coming to Earth and she wasn't alone. It was Peridot and Jasper. I don't know what exactly they were looking for in the first place, but Peridot got mad that the Gems were breaking the stuff she kept sending here, that's why Jasper came with her and they brought Lapis as a testimony.”

“Peridot wanted Jasper to stop the Gems?” 

“Yeah, and they came in that giant spaceship Steven told you about,” Nora recalls. “Then a lot happened. They arrived here and Peridot tried to blast us with her ship but I activated my shield and protected them.”

“A shield!?” Connie gasps. “Nora, that's amazing! How did you do that!?”

“To be honest I have no idea,” She says with a laugh. “The only thing I could think of was to protect my family. Then, it was like I stopped existing, I guess?”

“Like when you zone out?”

“Yes, exactly! And I felt this weird thing like when your arms go numb, but in my entire body. My brain just went into automatic mode and I started to move before I could even think,” Remembering that is kinda strange. “And then my shield showed up, a big one!”

“Whoa,” Connie smiles. “That's awesome. I know how much it means to you.”

Nora's eyes flicker with shy pride, before moving on with the story. Fighting her own discomfort, she told everything, telling how the Gems were poofed, Jasper forcefully taking her and Steven with them, Lapis choosing to help them, the fall of the ship, Peridot's escape and Malachite.

“That is a lot to take in.”

“I know,” And that's why me and Steven were so hesitant to let you know. “Are you okay?”

“Are you okay? You're the one that's been through everything. The least I could do is just listen,” Connie takes both of her hands. “Look, I know you and Steven were worried about telling me everything, but I want to listen, I want to be there for you two. I want to be a part of your universe.”

If there's something on a list of best feelings in the entire world, it is to be understood and emotionally welcomed. Nora definitely needed that, the chance to be able to vent without judgment and receive nothing but care in return. “Thanks for being an amazing friend.”

─ ·★· ─

By evening, Steven and Nora said goodbye to Connie and went back home, where they received a call from Greg saying he would be there to make them dinner. Almost 40 minutes later, the twins heard the familiar sound of the van and hurried to wait for their dad at the front door.

Although, the few voices alerted them that he wasn't alone, which was confirmed once Vidalia entered the house. “There you are!” Vidalia pushes the few bags she had into her son's hands.

“Auntie!” The siblings are squished and hugged until they have to warn that both can barely breathe.

“You two gave us quite a scare, huh?” Sour Cream ruffles their hair once his mother breaks the hug. Even though he appears to look calm, reinforcing his usual self, the apprehension is still visible on his tense shoulders.

“Sorry.” There isn't much left for them to say.

“But we heard you two saved the day and in the end, everything went well for you all, right?” Vidalia looks up at the trio and softens her expression when Garnet nods and Amethyst gives a thumbs up.

“I’m making dinner!” Greg announces, entering with hands full of groceries. Sour Cream helps him by sharing a few. “And your auntie brought something as dessert. I'm sure you both gonna love it.”

Vidalia guides the siblings to the kitchen where she points at one of the bags. Steven and Nora inspect it and notice a good amount of purpose flour, chocolate, vanilla, strawberry and a… cat cookie cutter? Wait a minute.

“No way!” Steven's face brightens once realization hits him. He looks at his auntie and she nods, confirming it.

“I thought it would be nice to spend some time together and do something you both like!” Vidalia bops his nose, earning a sheepish grin.

“So, what do you say?” Sour Cream carries Nora in his arms, placing her on the counter. “Are you up to help make some Cookie Cats?” He searches for the cutters and hands her one.

Nora smiles, finding it cute. “Sure, I am!”

─ ·★· ─

As the hours went by, the visitors had to leave and go back home to settle again now that the threat has been eradicated. Both siblings received an earful from their aunt about how they were forbidden to go on life-threatening adventures and a promise from Sour Cream he had a surprise for them the next day.

Now, the house is half dark and mostly quiet. Pearl and Amethyst retrieved into their rooms, leaving Nora and Steven to their own company.

While Steven finished brushing his teeth, Nora waited for him in the living room. Pillows and blankets were folded under her arms as she was ready to go watch a few movie with Greg.

A sound is heard from the Temple and the door opens in two red lines. Garnet arrives and walks towards the twin, who tensions in anticipation. “Garnet? Is something wrong?”

Garnet shakes her head. “Don’t worry, everything's fine,” She kneels down. “I only wanted to say that you were very brave when you protected us from Peridot.”

“Oh,” That wasn't expected.

“I know neither you or Steven should have been there. It was too dangerous for both of you and we should've kept you safe, I should've been able to be there for you. And I'm sorry I couldn't.”

“Garnet, you don't have to apologize. You fought for all of us and you did what you could, I don't blame you for what happened.”

“But I do!” She reveals, before recomposing herself, regretting letting it slip from her lips. “This isn't about me. This is about you, Nora. About how courageous you are and I don't say this due to your shield, which I'm very impressed, but also due to how you did everything you could to protect us and save everyone in Beach City.”

Nora is taken aback when Garnet takes her visor off, exposing her three colored eyes. “Your mother would be very proud of you. I'm very proud of you.”

There it is. The recognition Nora fought so much for in her whole life. Garnet's words carried so much genuine tenderness and love the twin couldn't dare to wonder any artificially on them.

“Thanks Garnet, it means a lot to me.” Nora places the things on the couch, before giving her guardian a hug. The effort put behind the avoidance of crying is insignificant compared to the fuzzy feeling inside her chest.

Garnet finds herself smiling, enjoying the closeness with the youngest Universe. She is not the most expressive member of this family, neither is used to affection or its ways of demonstration, although everything becomes different with Nora.

She would gladly pull herself out of her own comfort zone if it meant well for the girl.

Steven exits the bathroom and is slightly confused at the scene in front of him. “Um, did I miss something?”

“Nah, it's alright!” Nora chuckles, stepping back. “Ready to go? I got everything here.”

“Yep! All ready!” Steven grabs a pillow and one blanket from the couch. “Goodnight Garnet!”

“Goodnight.”

They exit the house and happily go find their dad at the Car Wash. Usually, their bonding time would take place in his van, but today he had different plans. Inside the establishment, Greg had his own room to stay in (he rarely did) and due to recent events he chose to let his kids stay in a more ‘secure place’.

For the twins, spending time with their dad would be an excellent way to end the night. If only they knew the reason behind it.

It's not like Greg wouldn't appreciate some hours together with his kids, but he definitely needed this to ease his senses and calm him down. He needed the reassurance that the two most important persons in his life were right there with him.

Their movie marathon included Dogcopter, the Lonely Blade saga and The Fantastical Magical Family: Origins. Funny how a few silly movies could make things so much fun.

A kind of fun that stopped once time was up.

"Alright, I know the movie was fun, but now it's bedtime for you two,” Greg raises from the bed and turns the tv off. He finds weird the lack of resistance coming from his children, in fact both doesn't seem anything but apprehensive. “Are you two okay?”

Steven and Nora look at each other. Greg knows this look in specific, it only meant one thing and wasn't good. “Dad…” His son pauses, contemplating if he should tell the truth already or pretend he's fine. “Could you play a song for us to make us sleep?”

“Of course, stchu-ball,” He turns serious. “But only if you're honest with me," Why did they ever think they could ever hide something from their dad? “You can tell me anything, alright kiddos? No matter what it is.”

It's tempting. They didn't want their dad to think they somehow didn't trust him when it's the exact opposite. Yet, they do want to lift this weight off their shoulders, but it's so hard when you think the other person won't handle it.

But that's the thing, at this point none of them could.

"We didn't want to worry you,” Steven confesses. “I know how you feel about gem stuff, you're always telling us about how dangerous they are and… and…” Now he started it, he is going to finish. “You were right, b-but I didn't want you to freak out.”

“Steven, how are you really feeling?”

He pauses, trying to formulate an understandable phrase. “I'm fine, but I just can't stop thinking about it. Everything is done, these gems are gone, but I'm still scared! I can't forget what happened back then.”

“A lot happened when that ship came,” Nora says. “The Gems were poofed and Jasper…” Hit me. “She took me with her. I don't want to sleep, dad. I'm scared that if I close my eyes I'll see her face again.”

“Oh kids,” Greg opens his arms, allowing both of his children to curl into himself.

“It was so scary dad,” Steven feels like he's about to cry. “They were so mean to us and the Gems. We just wanted to come back, we just wanted to be home.”

Nora remembers the anguish she experienced while stuck on Jasper's hold; Many times she mentally begged out for her dad, pleading to be safe on his hold again; The fear of not knowing what would succeed, if she would come back home again or if she would ever come back at all.

Then it hits her like a crashing wave. Tears begin to fall and she clings onto her dad for dear life, needing to assure herself that she's fine now and everything is okay.

It breaks Greg's heart to see both of his kids in this state. None of them should have witnessed such a stressful situation or faced such danger. Even if they had a gem heritage and were used to witnessing some crazy creatures and unusual adventures, they were still kids at the end of the day.

In all honesty, Greg is horrified. He wants to freak out, scream his most terrible fears and anxious scenarios into a void so he could light his heart.

But he can't. He is their father, the responsible one, Greg has to be their safe place and guarantee any stability for Nora and Steven. His children need him and he has to be strong, even if he had to bottle every single emotion he's experiencing.

Greg waits until both calm down and wipes their faces. “I want you both to listen to what I'm going to say, okay?” They nod. “None of you is responsible for how I feel. You don't have to worry about how I'll react to anything. I'm your dad and, well, dads worry about their kids all the time, it's kinda our job.”

A pair of faces softens at the subtle playful tone.

“Remember when your friend Peedee had a problem and you worried about him? Didn't things get better when he told you what bothered him so you could work on it with him? It's the same thing,” He continues. “I don't want you to think you have to hide anything from me. I may be your parent, but I'm your friend too. I'm here for you whenever you need.”

No reply is made immediately, instead, Nora crawls to his lap and snuggles him, with Steven doing the same afterwards. Greg doesn't push the topic further, understanding they're mentally exhausted and let them rest upon him.

“I love you,” He whispers, planting a goodnight kiss on the top of their heads. “Dad's right here and I won't let anything happen to you.”

Chapter Text

The Crystal Gems are clearing up the debris from the gem warship off the beach. Amethyst, Pearl and Garnet take care of big and heavy ones while Nora and Steven collect the smallest.

“Do we really have to get every piece?” Steven digs into the sand with a shovel and picks up a small piece of debris.

Amethyst digs up a large piece, almost effortless. “Yep!”

Garnet pulls out an even bigger one from the sand. “Having a wrecked ship lying around is too dangerous. We've got to take care of it... all of it.”

“And we need to start looking for Peridot's escape pod too, assuming she even made it to Earth.” Pearl recalls, carefully piling her own collected debris together.

“There's a lot of work ahead of us,” Garnet says. However, she pauses and looks at the sky, observing the sun's position. “But you two should have a break. We've been here all morning and you both need to eat and hydrate yourselves.”

Nora throws a small debris into a trash bag and cleans her hands from the remaining dust. “What about you guys?”

“Don't worry about us, we can handle it. Amethyst will guide the citizens back in town while Pearl and I take care of the electricity,” Garnet assures. “You can go home and have lunch. Greg is waiting for you.”

“Alright, see you guys later!”

They say goodbye and march towards home. Arriving at the Temple, Steven and Nora spot their dad humming one of his classic favorite songs while preparing their lunch on the plates displayed.

“Dad!”

“Hey there, kiddos!” Greg greets them. “I made you lunch. Figured out you would want to eat after helping the Gems all morning.”

“You have no idea!” Nora groaned. “I'm starving!”

“And stinking!” Steven teases, chuckling at the soft smack he received in response.

“Well, you should eat first before a bath, since you've been working for hours,” Greg advises. “Just make sure to wash your hands first!” He opens the fridge and fills the cups with juice.

Nora and Steven take their seats, ready to strike the plates filled with chicken pesto wraps with salad.

“Oh, by the way, Connie's mom asked me about you two,” Greg leans against the counter, holding his phone to check for another message. “She said she wants you to visit her office for a check up.”

“Why?” Nora asks, with mouth full. She offers a shy smile after a playful disapproval look from her dad. “Sorry.”

Greg chuckles. “She explained to me that even if you're fine on the outside, there still can be injuries on the inside and only in an exam they could find out.”

“Um, do we have to?” Now it's Steven's turn to ask. “I mean, I healed Nora’s eyes and my wrist. Everything should be okay.”

“I know stchu-ball and I'm sure it is, but you gotta remember Connie's mom is a doctor and she isn't used to gem magic like us."

“So…” Steven looks at Nora. “Another trip at the doctor's?”

─ ·★· ─

The TV bedroom brings a less quieter atmosphere in the Temple after the Gems went back to their rooms after a full day of tasks. Nora and Steven watch the reprise of a few episodes of Under the Knife while they rest.

“Should've brought popcorn.” Steven yawns.

“Yeah, and some apple juice,” Nora adds, then shakes her head at the pleading look sent from her twin. “No, I'm not going to leave this perfect position to grab it.”

“Aw c'mon, do this favor for your favorite brother.”

“Steven, you're my only brother.”

A knock on the front door startle both who nearly jump off the bed. “Who is it?” Nora hides herself behind Steven, who shoots her a worried look over his shoulder.

He peeks his head and tries to get a glimpse of the door and notices a tall figure with white hair. For a moment, it scares him, reminding of Jasper- But it's okay, because she's far away! They're safe!

“Oh, it's Sour Cream.” Steven sighs relieved, giving a light squeeze on his sister's hand.

They walk downstairs and greet the teenager, wearing his usual gray-orange outfit while holding a pizza box to his hip. “Hey, Sour Cream!”

“Hey, what's up?” He gives them a high five. “Still busy with any gem stuff?”

“Oh no, actually we took the debris out of the boardwalk and tomorrow we'll clean the rest of the beach too.” Nora replies.

“So, that means you're free to hang out with your awesome big brother Sour Cream?” He points at himself. “Jenny, Buck and I are going to spend some time out of town, just to refresh our minds.”

Nora and Steven glance at each other. “Isn’t it a little too late to hang out?"

“It's never too late to have fun,” Sour Cream corrects. “Also, it would be good for you to let loose, you know? The things you went through are some pretty heavy stuff, so I want you to have a good time without having to worry about gem alien weirdos.”

“Hum,” They seem to ponder the offer. “Well, as long as we're home before 10pm I think we'll be fine.” Nora grins.

“That's the spirit!” He cheers. “But first, I have to help Jenny deliver this pizza to Mr. Smiley.”

─ ·★· ─

The wind blows against the group laughing and chatting inside the mozzarella-yellow 1985 Cabriolet. There's no sign of anyone else sharing their path, except for the occasional cricket hidden through distant bushes.

“Breathe deep, you guys. This is the smell of freedom!” Jenny, the one driving, takes a deep loud breath while gradually slows down the speed.

Steven and Nora repeat the gesture. “Freedom smells like pepperoni.”

The teenager laughs at the boy's response, amused. “That's just the car.” Due to driving in that car and working at her family's restaurant for so long it doesn't even bother her anymore, it's almost as if she became ‘immune’.

“You know what food definitely doesn't smell like freedom? Fish!” Sour Cream groans, ignoring his friend's eye roll. “No, seriously, I don't get what's wrong with wanting to be a DJ, but my step-dad was all on my case today saying how a DJ isn't a real job that doesn't pay bills and that I should follow his steps. Is that hard to understand that I don't want to be a fisherman?”

“At least he only bugs you about one thing,” Buck pipes in. “My dad's gotta say something about everything I do, because I'm the mayor's son. And I'm like, you can't tell me what to do, I'm the mayor's... wait.”

Jenny let out a laugh. “Puh-lease, you're walking in cake with that talk. You guys don't even know what bad is until you're the bad sheep of the family. Look, I don't know why I have to spell it out that I'm the evil twin and Kiki's the good one! Don't ask me to help you with your homework, I'm at some metal concert.”

“Family stuff is tricky,” Steven says, being met with a choir of agreement . “A few months back, my dad and the Gems grounded me from TV,” Nora remembers this, it was due to his disobedience that led to Lapis’ freedom. “Then we found out that the Gems are alien rebels and there are other gems out there that want us dead because they think we're traitors. They tried to take Nora hostage because they think she's our mom, but I'm the one who has her gem and that makes me think if maybe I kinda am?” He pauses. “I wish I could talk to Garnet, Amethyst and Pearl about it, but I think they kinda blame me for mom not being around.”

Nora surely wasn't expecting that reveal.

How long has he been holding this to his heart? And why did he never share this with her?

She feels as if her universe just expanded. Nora was so used to being the one who keeps secrets and avoids certain topics for the sake of someone else, she didn't realize Steven could also be doing the same this whole time.

Suddenly, she feels dumb and… guilty.

Guilty for not paying enough attention to her brother and notice the weight placed on his shoulders.

An awkward silence settled between them and the cool kids. The uplifting heavy rock soundtrack coming from the radio is abruptly turned off by Jenny, certain that it wasn't appropriate for the moment anymore. “That's… heavy.”

Steven half shrugs. “I guess.”

“But you always seem so upbeat, you're a real champ. Both of you.” Buck takes off his glasses, exposing his dark brown eyes that held so much sympathy for the twins. They smile in return.

The siblings notice their route coming to an end when Jenny changes directions and parks the car behind a billboard that reads ‘OCEAN TOWN - No longer on FIRE’. 

“Alright everyone, we arrived!” Jenny announces, taking off her seatbelt.

Steven does the same. “Is this your special place?”

“Well, yeah!” Sour Cream jumps off the car. “We come here when we need to clear up our mind. No one bothers us here.” He gestures for them to follow him.

While they leave the car, Buck and Jenny open the trunk and bring a few baskets and a camping cooler. Sour Cream is about to spread the picnic blanket she handed him until Nora and Steven prompt to help.

“We weren't sure if you liked it, but Sour Cream here said you liked pretty much everything that sells in the Big Donut.” Jenny tapped him in the arm, before scooting closer to the twins and showing them everything they bought.

The picnic basket is full of croissants, donuts with different flavors, pretzels, french fries, potato chips and other snacks. “Don't forget the drinks.” Buck places the camping cooler, next to the basket, in the middle of the group.

“Dad doesn't let us eat all of this.” Nora says sheepishly. “He says it's not healthy, we can only eat just a few sometimes.”

Sour Cream waves at them. “Don't worry about it, Noor. It's your free night and besides, if anything I'll take the blame.” He winks at her.

“Consider this as a part 2 celebration.” Buck encourages.

The bunch of sweets and apple juice can tempt the twins and adding the teenagers’ encouraging smirks, they shrug and fill their hands with food.

“I'll have a donut, a pretzel and a…” Steven arches his eyebrows at the energy drink he finds inside the cooler. “Sugar Shock Shut Down?”

“Oops!” Jenny takes it from Steven's hand. “Sorry y'all, that's for us. You're too young for that.” She opens the can and takes a quick sip, chuckling at the boy's pout.

Nora grabs a can of apple juice and hands it to him while having one for herself. “How did you guys find this place?”

“I think it was the day…” Jenny's voice loses her characteristic enthusiasm through the phrase. “The day my mom came back.”

“Your mom?” Steven questions, hesitantly.

She offers him a sad smile. “I think you two never met her. Big afro hair, droopy eyes, green scarf?” Both shake their heads. “Figured it out. Anyway, the short story is: my parents are divorced, she left us, then came back a few times to see me and Kiki until… She didn't.”

Steven and Nora try to grasp through their memory the learned concept of divorce. They swear they saw it on TV once, it meant when married people aren't together anymore, right?

“The last time she came back was five years ago. I was just back home after delivery and I heard her and dad fi- discussing with each other in the shop,” Jenny tries to tone down what actually happened. “I heard a lot of things and, I don't know, I just wanted to get out and away from the whole chaos, you know?”

“Yeah.” Nora knows very well the need to refugee from her problems, even for a moment.

“Then these two took me out on the road to cool down,” Jenny wraps her arms around her friends’ neck, pulling them closer. “And as if things weren't bad enough the car died right there!” She laughs, pointing at the street. “And we stayed here, just enjoying the moment and since then this became kind of our special place when we want to be left alone.”

“It’s nice that you found this place, and I'm sorry about what happened with your parents.” Nora sympathize.

Jenny caresses her curls. “It’s okay, I try not to think about it because it's not up to me to fix their problems,” She takes another sip of her drink. “I mean, it's hard not to feel like ‘oh my gosh, I can't do anything to help’, but sometimes there's really nothing we can do and moping around about it isn't going to help either.”

I wish I could do that, Steven regrets. Like Jenny said, it's hard not to feel powerless seeing yourself unable to help your family somehow and if there's something Steven definitely hates is the feeling of helplessness.

He has this need to be able to help anyone at any time, it's almost instinct, and if he can't do that a enormous wave of guilt will drown him.

And Nora feels the same.

In her case, she is involved by the need to overcompensate herself for not being born with a gem. She craves the feeling of being useful, to have a purpose and a magical destiny she needs to fulfill.

This wouldn't leave her alone.

“But what does help me is doing things I love, like being with my friends, dancing, listen to my favorite songs, going out to parties!” Jenny counts. “Did any of you ever go to a party?”

“I did!" Steven raises his hand. "I went to the one at the Warehouse.”

Jenny looks at him confused. “You did? I was there and didn't see you. Did you see him, Buck?” He shakes his head.

“I went as Stevonnie.”

“Stevonnie?”

“Remember that tall girl with long hair that danced and totally rocked in front of everybody?” Sour Cream recalls. “It was Steven fused with Connie.”

“What!?” Even Buck left his stoicism and stared wide eyed at the boy. “It was you!? B-But how? And what do you mean by fusion?”

“It's like when two gems combine and turn into a single new gem. It mixes everything they have like clothes, powers and weapons, and becomes someone entirely different.” Nora clarifies, amused by their shock.

“Holy shit- Sorry!” Jenny clamps her mouth shut. “But how was it for you guys? Did you have fun as... Stevonnie?"

“Yeah, I did! We both did and it was so good to be there with other people. Connie was a bit shy and scared of being in front of everyone and that's why we kinda freaked out there,” Steven glances at Vidalia’s son, knowing he remembers the moment he comforted them. “Then, Kevin appeared and…"

“Kevin!? Did he do something to you?” Sour Cream's eyes darken. “Because if he did-”

“No! No!” Steven reassures, before he says anything inadequate. “He didn't, he just kept insisting on taking us to dance even when we said no, but nothing more.”

“That guy sucks,” Sour Cream crosses his arms. “I didn't even invite him to the party, he just showed up there because that's what he does; He Invites himself to places he knows no one would ask him to come.”

“Seriously, he's such a joke!” Jenny adds. "I don't know what Jamie saw on that guy!”

“Jamie!?” The kids exclaims. “Jamie, the mailman?”

“Yeah. Jamie, the mailman,” Buck confirms. “Basically when they were in high school there were rumors about Jamie having a thing for Kevin,” He explains. “I say rumors, but it was kinda obvious, way too obvious.”

“It was written on his face.”

Apparently, he always had a foot on the big ego territory. “Has Kevin always been like this?” Nora asks Sour Cream.

The DJ nods, barely containing the annoyance from his face. If I see this motherfucker daring to lay a finger on my little brother, his friend, or even Nora I'll kick his ass.

“But let's not talk about that guy!” Jenny changes the topic, taking her phone out of the pocket. “Instead, let's take some pictures!”

Right away, Nora and Steven love the idea and take multiple selfies with her. Buck and Sour Cream soon join them and the group look at themselves starring pretty photos with cute stickers and funny phrases.

“I'll send these to ya!” Jenny squeals, choosing the best ones. “You both are so cute on these, the photos are great!”

“You know what else would be great?” Buck turns on some music on his phone. “Make some moves.”

As the electronic music filled the place, laughter joined into the mix. Dance, singing and even other ideas like racing was added into their fun.

It became a really joyful night until Sour Cream warned them about the curfew. “Sorry to break out the fun, but we need to take Nora and Steven home. It's past 10pm already and they need to sleep.”

“Aw c'mon, we're not even tired yet!” Nora whines, not wanting the fun to end.

Sour Cream smirks. “You think I don't know you? These cute faces don't lie, I can see you both are almost sleep.”

“That's not-” Steven fails to avoid the yawn escaping his mouth. “True.”

“Yeah, right.”

Even slightly annoyed with the fact they had to leave, Nora and Steven helped Buck and Jenny pack everything back in the car; The siblings are seated in the back with Sour Cream while Buck is in the front passenger and Jenny remains the driver.

Sour Cream notices the kids are still disappointed for not being able to stay longer and tries to cheer them up. “Hey, no need to be upset. We can do this more often! I'm pretty sure Buck and Jenny here will love to- WHAT IS THAT!?”

Startled, Jenny abruptly stops the car and it screeches to a halt, forcing everyone to jolt forward. “What?! What did I hit?! What is it?!” Her eyes follow the direction where her friend is pointing to and notices a green light coming from a certain distance inside the wheat field.

Jenny shifts the car gear and starts driving into the field, growing closer and closer to it. The group then gets out of the car and examines the strange crop formation. “That's, like, as bright as like 600 glow sticks!” Sour Cream comments.

Everyone approaches the center of it and discovers a beat-up pod in the middle of a crater.

“Peridot's escape pod!” Nora and Steven exclaims.

Pearl's assumption was right, Peridot did make it to Earth and now the gem is free to be anywhere else! As if having Jasper on Earth, even submerged on the ocean, wasn't enough of a problem, now they have to deal with Peridot fleeing near Beach City.

Steven inhales deeply and turns to the cool kids. “Okay, everybody step back. This is a gem machine and could be extremely dangerous.”

“He's right,” Sour Cream reinforces. “My mom saw a bunch of weird gem stuff and if he says it's dangerous we better stay away.”

“So, we're just gonna leave this thing there?” Jenny asks.

“We should call the Gems,” Nora pulls her phone and starts dialing Greg's number. “I'll tell my dad to warn them that we found the pod and Peridot is not here.”

“I hope she's not.” Sour Cream pulls Steven closer by his hand. Neither he or Vidalia ever got directly involved in anything regarding gem magic and seeing young Steven and Nora follow the same path was reassuring to say the least. But now, seeing the same kids he viewed as his little siblings running into big fights with other unknown aliens made him nervous.

Now he understands Vidalia's worries.

Luckily, his impatience came to an end after a few minutes when the Crystal Gems arrived in the field.

“We came as soon as we could,” Pearl quickly spots the crater emanating a strong green light. “There it is.” She walks alongside Garnet and Amethyst, stepping it closer until they're at the tip of the hole.

Amethyst is the first one to reach downstairs in a quick jump, giving it a few estranged looks. “Does it still work?” She kicks the pod a few times.

“Amethyst, careful! It still may be useful to us!” Pearl reprimands, doing her best to avoid getting dirt onto her body.

Garnet stands on the same spot, head down concentrated. Her right palm placed on her visor tells she's leaning onto her future vision. “She isn't nearby anymore, but not too far from us either.”

“Do you think we can catch her?” Pearl receives a hum in response. “Steven, Nora, did you touch anything on the pod?”

“No, Pearl.”

“Good, because the technology Peridot had on the warship must be the same used on this pod and we don't know what this is capable of,” Pearl explains while examining. “Things could've gone terribly wrong if it activated the incorrect operations. You both did well by calling us right away and once we get back to the Temple I'll find a way to make this useful to find Peridot.”

Garnet leaves the crater effortlessly carrying the pod in her hands. “Good job, you two.”

“Now let's go home, shall we? It's way past your bedtime,” Pearl approaches the twins, sending the trio a thankful look. “Thank you for supervising them, but we'll take them home now.”

“Wait! Pearl, can we go home with them?” Steven pleas. “Just so we can say goodbye, it won't be long!”

The guardian seems to think. “Well... I think it's fine, just don't take too long.”

That being said, the Gems took Peridot's pod with them, leaving the siblings to be taken home by the teenagers. The ride back home was pretty chill and quite fast.

“A pair of twins delivered with success!” Jenny jokes, parking the car near the Beach House. “It's good to know you both had fun. I'm sure whatever is going on with the gems is important, but everyone needs a break once in a while.”

“Thanks everyone, it really made our night,” Steven takes off his seatbelt and gets out of the car, Nora right behind him. “But now we need to get ready for bed.”

“Goodnight to you two! Looking forward to our next trip, alright?” Jenny invites.

“Alright! Bye guys!” Nora and Steven waves goodbye while watching the trio leave and the car sound fades away.

Both enter back in the Beach House, happy to be back. Don't get them wrong, enjoying some time outside is nice, but nothing compares to being home again.

“We gotta admit, it was better than staying home watching TV,” Steven yawns once more. “Now we need to tell dad we're back.”

Nora agrees, already sending a message to their father. “Dad, we're back! Sour Cream and his friends dropped us home,” Nora reads her reply out loud while she types on her phone. She waits for Greg's answer. “We ate a few snacks there and nope we didn't overdo it.”

Steven giggles when she winks at him.

“Okay, I'll see you in the morning. Goodnight, we love you <3”

After Greg's last reply they're good to finally go to rest. Inside the bathroom, both pick up their respective toothbrushes to finish the last task of the day.

Nora still can't ignore her brother's confession. It's just too serious to let it go and pretend he didn't pour his heart out there. Besides, she wants to understand why he never shared this with her, Steven is usually so chill to talk about anything and now… She has to bring this up.

"You know, you never told me you felt that way,” She begins. “About mom- that you think the Gems blame you for her not being around.”

“Oh,” Steven lowers his toothbrush. He remains quiet, unsure of what to say next. It's not like he has been hiding this from his own sister, however it wasn't the kind of topic he would willingly bring between them.

Nora wonders if he never felt comfortable talking about it with her, if she somehow made him doubt he could share this personal feeling. 

“It was me,” Steven blurts out. “I know you're probably thinking that this has something to do with you, but… It's not. I didn't tell you that for the same reason I didn't want to tell Connie about what happened on the ship,” He averts his gaze. “I didn't want to put that weight on you, like I always do.”

Nora frowns. “Like you always do? Steven, what are you talking about?”

For a moment, she thinks he will give up and drop the subject, but he puts his toothbrush back in place and gives his full attention to her.

“You always help me, a lot. You always have to help me and you're there for me all the time,” He continues. “When that Centipeetle showed up in the Temple you had my back, you warned me about putting the gem shards on Frybo, you washed the cats away when I tried shapeshifting. I'm always making mistakes and you always have to clean up my mess.”

“Steven, look at me,” Unsure eyes meet hers. “You’re not putting any weight on me. We're siblings, we help and support each other no matter what. You don't have to be afraid of being honest with me,” Her face saddens, now self conscious of facing him. “And I guess that works for me too, right?”

The older twin can't even bring himself to soothe his own resentful features. “I wish you talked to me more,” Steven confesses. “Sometimes I feel like you're hiding something. You don't have to tell me everything, but you're always there for me and I just want to be there for you too.”

An idea crosses her mind and although she's sure she will regret this as soon as it's spoken out loud, she decides to move on. "Let's make a promise,” Nora takes his hand. “No more lies, let's always be honest with each other. We don't have to talk about what we don't want to, but we won't lie about it.”

“I promise.” Steven lifts his pinky finger.

Nora smiles, doing the same. “Promise," Both lock their pinkies and she scoots closer to hug him. “You're the best brother in the world, you know that?” 

“I know that you're the best sister in the entire galaxy!” Steven emphasizes by twirling her around, both laughing at their own silliness. Once he puts Nora down, he resumes. “Promise I won't break that promise, for us.”

“Me too.”

Chapter Text

“Aw, I blinked!”

“Let's just take another one.”

Two weeks after the warship crashed, Beach City finally can be seen free from any remains of gem technology; The Crystal Gems made sure to collect all pieces of the ship and help fix the citizens’ houses and establishments.

Now, rewarding their own hard work, Nora and Steven allow themselves to enjoy their time together with Connie and Peedee.

“Oh wait. What if we get a shot with the beautiful view behind us?” Connie suggests walking towards the sea. “Come on!”

The rest get up to join Connie, positioning for the picture. Connie searches for a good angle to capture everyone. “Say cheese!”

"Cheeeese!"

Everyone smiles for the picture and waits for the flash sound. And wait… wait… wait…

“Did it do it?” Nora mumbles, still holding her smile.

“I don't know.” Connie unsuccessfully keeps trying to tap the button on the screen.

“Press it again.”

“I've been pressing it.”

Finding comedy on the situation, Peedee is the first one to break his pose. “Pfftt- Sohohorry guys, let's try it again.”

Just when Nora is the one to try, a new voice is heard. “Hey kids, having fun?”

“Jamie!”

“What's up? Long time no see!” Steven, Nora and Peedee greet him with a high-five. “Greetings, Connie.” He waves at her.

“So, where you've been?" 

“Oh, you know, just spending some time where all the big pictures are made…” Jamie makes a dramatic pause. “A little place called Kansas!”

“Oh! Are you an aspiring thespian?”

“Why, ah-yes I am!”

“Wow, I didn't know you wanted to be an actor! Is that why you're wearing those cool glasses that say Movie Star? Steven points to the gray sunglasses decorating the older’s face.

Jamie blushes. “Uh, well, no. A friend gave me these a while ago and I thought that it would come in handy during my adventures in acting, but I missed being a regular old mailman, so I just came back and you got a lot of mail while I was gone,” His back relieves once he puts his big bag down. “I'm gonna need a lot of signatures as well.”

Steven cracks his knuckles, ready to write his name once the sign pad is placed on his hands.

Unexpectedly, there's some strange movement in the ocean, later revealed to be Garnet emerging from the water. “Look who's coming,” Peedee greets her. “Hi Garnet!”

Jamie turns to look at Garnet, drenched and approaching from the ocean, and is immediately starstruck. He isn't new to the Crystal Gems, knowing the short description consisted in ‘protectors of Earth', but he never paid much attention to them, especially that one.

He then takes off his sunglasses to have a better view, as Garnet approaches nearer. She is extremely good-looking, owning features most people would define as attractive.

“Whatcha up to, Garnet?”

“I was just at the bottom of the ocean checking for signs of Lapis and Jasper.”

“Any luck?”

“Nope.”

“Wow, how are you able to swim to the bottom of the ocean?” He just couldn't take his eyes off her.

Garnet holds her visor. “It was easy, I'm a really good swimmer,” She ignores the younger’s stare at her lips. “Now excuse me.”

Jamie observes in awe Garnet getting rid of every single water particle out of her body, causing them to vaporize in midair.

Can all gems do that? And be so pretty? He had no idea, however he is glad he found the answer he wasn't even looking for. That's what is more exciting for him: the unknown.

He always had been the curious type. Nothing picked up his interest more than being in front of an unsolved riddle. The temptation of exploring was too big to fit into his chest, leading him to a bunch of problems and also memorable moments.

He's thankful to himself for deciding to return to Beach City. A love rejection may have torn him apart, but now it looks like life had other plans for him.

─ ·★· ─

After a pause for snacks, the kids go check out Steven's mails on the beach. Connie picks up one of the many boxes laying around on the sand. “Uh... Steven? Why did you receive so many boxes of Sea Pals?”

“Let me guess, you ordered one and it never arrived, so you kept ordering more?” Peedee says, grinning when he guessed right. “Already done that.”

“Are you going to start a farm?”

“Considering the many he ordered, I would say yes.” Nora teases.

Steven laughs. “No! I'm gonna set them free,” He picks up a box and attempts to throw it. “Into the sea- Oh, hey Jamie!”

The three kids look back and find a very nervous looking Jamie holding a elegant pink envelop on his right hand. “Um, hi Steven.”

“You didn't bring more Sea Pals?”

“What? No, I just came to, uh…” Jamie's hold around the letter tightens, clammy skin gluing to the paper, bringing more uncomfortableness. “I need to give you this!” 

The envelop is almost dropped by how roughly he hands it to Steven. “But, what is it? Jamie?” He watches the mailman march away, ignoring his calls.

“That was weird,” Peedee comments. “So, who's the letter to?”

The group exchange looks, silently agreeing to kill their curiosity. Steven flips the letter to the other side, revealing that the letter was for Garnet, and everyone gasps in utter surprise. “Garnet!?”

“But didn't he like Kevin?” Nora frowns.

“Kevin!? You mean, that creep following you guys at the party!?” Connie and Steven confirm Peedee's suspicion. “But why would someone so nice like Jamie see something on that jerk?”

“We don't know,” The young twin says. “When Sour Cream and his friends took me and Steven outside of town, they told us Jamie liked him during high school. I know, it's hard to believe, but they didn't give a lot of context.”

“Who cares about context? What matters is that Jamie doesn't like him anymore. C'mon, let's show it to Garnet!” Steven gets up and drags Connie by the hand towards the Temple, leaving Nora and Peedee to catch up with them.

Inside the Beach House, just when Garnet is about to leave, she is stopped by the group of kids bursting through the door. “Garnet! Garnet! Garnet! The most unbelievable thing has happened! You'll absolutely die of shock!”

However, the boy's announced excitement doesn't do anything. “I'm busy, Steven.” Garnet declines, summoning her lava goggles.

“But it's important!” Nora stops her, taking the envelop from Steven's hand and shows it to her. “You got a letter!”

Garnet pauses, staring at it and takes off her goggles. “Read it.”

With the fusion's allowance, Nora opens the envelop and starts to read Jamie's letter, noticing her friends and brother gather to see it as well. "To Garnet. When I saw you rise like an ancient sea nymph, a white hot steel pierced the deepest artery of my being. You, you are a cardiac surgeon and I am your transplant patient, and you stand poised over my chest, holding my still beating heart. Hesitating, waiting, wondering. So I implore you to join me for dinner, or maybe lunch if you wanna keep it casual, next Friday at the Crab Shack!”

“I await your response as the camellia awaits the rise of the moon! Beause, you know, it only blooms at night and stuff. Love, Jamie.”

“Will I look dumb if I say I didn't understand half of this letter?” Connie suppresses a laugh at Peedee's snarkiness morphed into his whispery comment.  “Especially the heart thing metaphor.”

“He's basically asking you out on a date,” Nora says, unsure if she understood what the letter implied since, well, she may know a lot of things, but human interaction definitely isn't one of them. “That we know it's not going to happen.”

“Why not?” Connie interjects.

“Garnet is already in a relationship,” Steven then adds. “Well, she is a relationship. Ruby and Sapphire are so close that they can't stand to be apart.”

“Even if this date with Jamie is out of the question, we have to reply his letter, right?” Peedee looks for a sheet of paper. “We can't just ghost him. He needs an answer, even a negative one.”

“I agree! It might be best to play out the tone of his letter!” Connie suggests, unable to hide her enthusiasm with the idea of writing a letter just like the soap operas she has been watching recently.

Everyone then gathered in the living room of the beach house, and Connie prepared to write Garnet's reply. In the end, it definitely… surprised her.

“Dearest Jamie, no. The end, forever and even after that. Your hair is nice though. Yours truly, Garnet," She picks up the finished letter. “At least it's honest and to the point.”

“I think we can do better than that,” Peedee grabs another blank paper and the forgotten pencil. “Don’t worry Garnet, we can manage this from here. Your letter is in good hands!”

Happy that she wouldn't have to witness that and finally free to go accomplish her original task, Garnet leaves the house, leaving the children to their own ideas.

“Just a few adjustments and we'll be good.”

With ideas flourishing from left and right, the letter solidified like a blanket made of the most diverse pieces of fabrics.

"Dear Jamie. You, dear camellia, expectantly await the light of my moon, yet it would be unfair to leave you waiting and wondering when my moon has already found its stars. I truthfully hope another surgeon can take good care of your heart as I'm not the one qualified for it and also have no interest. Yours, but not really, Garnet.”

“Well, I think we did a good job.” Peedee grins proudly, satisfied with their team work.

“I think so too,” Connie nods. “We matched Jamie's poetic language and make it clear that Garnet has no interest in him.”

“Nice! Now let's decorate this a little and then we'll give it to him,” Nora carefully folds the letter and starts digging into their cabinet. “I got some cute stickers and maybe a nice envelop too.”

─ ·★· ─

The group leave the Beach House in search of Jamie. “Where do you think he could be?”

“I dunno. He could be dropping off mail halfway around the world by now!”

“Or since the postal service has been on pause, he could be catching up to deliver the rest of the mail,” Peedee says. “We should split up to find him faster.”

While Connie and Steven went towards the boardwalk, Peedee and Nora chose the nearest streets. Minutes passed by and still no sign of Jamie.

“You okay?” Peedee asks Nora, noticing the change of expression. “You look like you're thinking of something.”

“It's nothing, just found the whole situation a bit weird,” Nora reveals. “I’ve been thinking and I'm not so sure that Jamie likes Garnet.”

“What do you mean? Remember how he acted when she came back from the ocean?” He recalls.

“He finds her pretty, so what?” Nora shrugs. “What I'm trying to say is that I think it's a little weird how he wrote that letter with so much ‘passion’ and he doesn't even know her. They barely talked!”

“I think I'm getting it.”

“And besides, I'm still thinking about the whole Kevin thing,” She continues. “From what they told us, it seemed like Jamie really lik- I mean, loved that guy and now he's suddenly declaring himself to Garnet? Asking for a date already? It doesn't seem right.”

The boy pursues his lips, disliking the thought that crossed his mind. “Do you think he's trying to forget him by dating Garnet?”

Nora looks at the letter, sighing at the pretty decoration they made with her stickers. “If he is, then we need to talk to him.”

“Look!” Peedee spots Jenny in front of the Pizza Stew, noticing the small mail baggage she has in hands. “I think Jamie has been there!”

The twin pizza was just talking to Kiki, ready to go inside as well when she heard her name being called and both kids approaching. “Oh, hey there!”

“Jenny, have you seen Jamie?” Nora rest her hands on knees, a bit out of breath.

“He just passed by!” The teenager points at the left street. “I've been waiting for my homemade design kit for phones for a while and he said it was due to a problem with the mail schedule. Now he's going to deliver the rest of mails before his shift ends.”

“He may actually leave Beach City!” Peedee exclaims. “We need to catch him, thanks Jenny!”

“Wait!” Nora stops him.

“Remember when you said about Jamie liking… Kevin?” Even saying that guy's name doesn't fit well. “Um, what would you say if he, dunno, he's into someone else?”

“Jamie being into someone else?” Jenny let out a booming short laugh. “Sorry, but that's something I'd have to see with my own eyes to believe.”

“And why's that?” Peedee asks.

“Cause Jamie was basically head over wheels for Kevin during all high school. You could say ‘it was years ago’, but the thing is that Jamie always has been too intense for his own good.”

Nora and Peedee exchange looks.

“If you ask me, I would totally support him to finally move on, but I would find it a little weird that he'd do it too fast, ya know? I would think he's just distracting himself, because his thing with Kevin didn't work out and I gotta say, the poor guy really tried to make it work.”

That's all they needed to know.

“Thanks for telling us, Jenny.”

They leave and follow her lead to where he could be and luckily Jamie was indeed nearby. Immediately they ran to catch up, but as they approached him they noticed he didn't look fine at all. “Jamie?"

He turns around and his unhappiness is more evident through his eyes. “Oh, hi kids.” 

“Is everything okay?”

Jamie takes off his hat and runs his fingers along his hair. “I don't think I remember what being okay means,” His voice is lower and heavier with gloom. “I have a lot of my mind, but now I guess I may have a clue of what to do with my life after Garnet and I talked-”

“You talked to Garnet!?”

“Yeah, I did,” He tries to smile. “In fact, she gave me some pretty solid advice.”

"You're welcome, Mr. Smiley.” Jamie thanked the owner of Funland Arcade after another one signature was taken.

Once out of view, the fake smile was replaced by a thin line. His legs ached and sweat dripped from his forehead from walking all day beneath the sun. “What am I doing with my life?”

He glanced at his smaller bag and the remains of mails left to deliver. For some reason, it made him hopeless.

Instead of following to the next address assigned, the mailman let his feet walk towards the beach. Alone, he allowed himself to just sit on the sand and be consumed by his own exasperation. “Life is crazy. One day I was right here in Beach City delivering mail and then the next thing I knew, I was on a bus to Kansas, following my dreams of becoming an actor. ‘Follow your dreams,’ they said, but no one said anything about all the rejection and sadness there was to be found.”

Even the brightest shade of the sky and calm waves near couldn't soothe the void inside him. “So many auditions day after day. So much rejection day after day,” He buried his head on his arms. “No wonder I came back.”

The peaceful moment was interrupted when something splashed onto the ocean and millions of droplets hit Jamie, startling him. Lifting his head, he saw Garnet jumping out of the water into the air, obscuring the sun, carrying a corrupted gem monster. 

Jamie watched in amazement as Garnet landed onto the beach, effortlessly slamming the transparent-looking beast on the sand with full force, resulting in its poofing.

He didn't say a word, too stunned with the spectacle that just happened in front of him, but the fusion soon acknowledged his presence. “Jamie.”

“Garnet,” Jamie resisted the urge of distancing himself when Garnet sat down next to him. She appeared so imponent, it almost scared him. “Did you receive my letter?”

“I did,” She replied. “And I wrote one.”

A spark of hope lit up. “Really? Then will you go out with me?”

“No,” A simple answer. “I said no in that letter.”

“But why!?” At the moment Jamie lost his inner monologue to stay calm. "I've loved you since the moment I saw you.”

“Love at first sight doesn't exist,” The way Garnet spoke almost gave him chills. So firm and doubtless. “Love takes time and love takes work. It's built upon what both parties are willing to give, it's nonsense to insist if only one person is carrying the weight.”

What both parts are willing to give

That phrase reverberated inside his head. It felt like a slap on the face. Was it what he did back then? Loving for two? Working for two? Trying to make it right for two?

He would be lying to himself if he said his heart didn't grow tired of excuses and promises of better behavior. Although, he was so certain the kisses, adrenaline and nights spent accompanied would be worth it.

How far did this lie come? Jamie found Garnet pretty, there's no denying it, but she didn't bring the long distance and strong flame on his chest and actual desire. Not like him.

“And at the very least you have to know the other person and you literally have no idea of who, or what, I am. You make a very convincing lovesick fool, you convinced these children and you even convinced yourself.”

He did convinced himself.

“You're a fantastic actor and you should use this in your favor, not against. You should be acting when you want to perform someone else, not to run from your true self.”

Jamie took the glasses that hung from his shirt, reading the ‘movie star' written again. It was a gift from someone he loved, a promise of support and encouragement that now he realized it became meaningless.

He could feel the shame spread all over his cheeks.

“What am I supposed to do now?”

“Start with the local theater,” Garnet slapped Jamie's back and stood up. “And don't burden yourself over other people's choices. The path they choose to go it's not your responsibility.”

“She said what I needed to hear,” Jamie spots the letter held on Nora's hand. “And don't bother,” He points at it. “I already know the answer.”

And that's how he said goodbye; Without a single wave or upbeat energy, just a shadow of his usual being. Both friends stayed unsure if they should have done or said something, but they concluded it wouldn't change much.

“Let's warn Steven and Connie we've found him.”

Chapter Text

Today should be considered an ordinary shift at work like any other to Dr. Maheswaran, but her schedule told her otherwise; This morning, the Universe Family are coming over to her office for a check up after she was pretty insistent to happen once the ship incident came to her acknowledgement.

Should they have been seen by a doctor immediately? Yes. But since they weren't, it's never too late. Priyanka worries about these children, not only because they're Connie's friends, but add to the fact they are still children and young patients who need to be looked after.

However, unlike the last time, Nora won't be her primary patient today.

It's Steven.

Priyanka still finds it hard to believe the boy has never been seen by a doctor his whole life. She understands his gem heritage has a deep effect on him, yet his body is still organic and should be susceptible to common human illness and injuries.

Now she will finally be able to examine him and also make an overall checkup with Nora too.

On the other hand, Steven hasn't been carrying any full expectations since the moment Greg told him they would be heading to Mrs. Maheswaran’s office. The only clues he got were told by Nora describing step by step all examinations and questions she answered.

Alright Steven, you got this! You just have to go there and answer the questions she asks me, He assures himself. 

There's no need to be nervous, yet why does his voice sound so strained greeting Dr. Maheswaran? He internally sighs, following his sister and dad once Priyanka guides them inside the office.

It's pretty and just like Nora described him; Blue walls and ceiling, well executed abstract portraits hanging across the room while cabinets were positioned over the place.

“From what you've told me Greg, this is Steven's first ever appointment in his life, correct?” He nods. “Considering this, there's a few examinations I ordered for him,” Priyanka sees in her computer screen. “I intend to do a check up for his general health; And due to the ship incident where you mentioned an explosion, an MRI and X-ray is needed to examine the internal organs and possible fractures.”

“I will also demand genetic testing and blood tests as well and we'll let the vaccines and other exams for another day as I don't want to overwhelm him on his first appointment.”

Internally, Steven thanked her for the decision. They were still in the conversation stage and the mentions of that many tests and exams were making him nervous.

He looks at Nora and notices she's been staring at him. Her blank face softens and a reassuring tiny smile is sent to him. I'm here for you.

Thank you, sis. Steven searches for her hand and receives a light squeeze.

The doctor asks a few questions to his dad, before her attention shifts to him. “Now Steven, I explained this to your sister the first time she came to my office and I'll explain to you too. Since you're thirteen, that means you are old enough to follow the appointment on your own. You can decide if you want your father to stay with you or have him wait outside.”

Nora told him about that part and he already has an answer for this. “I think it's okay if I stay on my own.” He smiles at his sister. I got this.

“We'll be waiting right there.” She reassures, giving him a quick peck on the cheek, following Greg out of the office.

Steven maintains a smile until they cross the door, his confidence faltering a little once he looks all over the room and has the confirmation he is indeed on his own.

Being the extroverted twin, he isn't the kind of person who gets nervous around strangers or people he isn't close to, however around Mrs. Maheswaran, someone so strict and serious, he finds himself often awkward.

“Now Steven, before the examinations we'll start with a few more questions so I can know more about your history.”

Steven gives the door a quick glance and watches her pull out an unanswered chart. “But didn't my dad answer those questions?”

“What I asked your father is regarding detailed information that children usually don't know about. While what I'm about to ask you is more personal and related to your own habits and daily routine.” She explains.

“Oh, okay.”

Priyanka clicks her pen. “To start with, is there any discomfort, pain or any issue that you’d like to bring?”

“Nope, I'm good.” I mean, Jasper grabbed me by the wrist and I landed on my arm. That really hurt, but my arm is fine, so I think I don't need to mention that.

“How is your sleep schedule?”

“Um, it's fine.”

“Do you exercise often?”

“I used to exercise with Garnet in the morning,” He recalls. “There was a gymnastic track on the radio that we would listen to while working out. Nora didn't join us, because she didn't wake that early.”

“And what kind of exercise did you do?

“Uh, we would stretch a bit and I would use these old dumbbells dad had in his garage- Oh! Also, I'm not sure if it counts, but sometimes we would get the Gems to play sports with us!”

“It does count,” Priyanka confirms. “Any physical activity that increases heart rate, strengthens their bones, and builds muscles are welcomed. Such as cycling, running and even dancing are perfect examples,” She moves to the next question. “Any supplements or medication you take regularly?”

“No.”

“Allergies?”

“Pollen. Actually, Nora and I have the same allergy.”

“How is your appetite?”

“It's normal, I think,” I feel like she's expecting me to say more. “I have breakfast, lunch, dinner, and sometimes Nora and I eat some snac-” Steven clamps his mouth shut, before offering an embarrassed smile. “I won't be in trouble if I say we have snacks without my dad knowing, right?”

Priyanka's only response is a tiny grin. “Have you noticed any significant changes in your mood or lost interest in hobbies or activities you enjoyed?”

“No, I don't think so.”

More is written on the paper. “There’s one topic I want to address with you. I noticed you and Nora aren't aging like most children at your age and I think it's necessary to talk about the expectations and changes you will face once you go through puberty.”

That simple word brought Steven a very unpleasant memory of him and his dad sitting in front of the Car wash sharing an awkward talk between them. “W-we don't need to talk about it, I-I swear! My dad told me everything!” A faint blush spread over his face.

“Did he?” The woman raises an eyebrow.

“When Nora came back from your appointment, she told me a few things, then dad kinda… told me the rest… of things.”

Well, it looks like Greg understood the assignment. “Then you must know the changes a human body goes through during that phase,” Steven nods vehemently. “And can you tell me if any signs had shown? Facial hair, voice changes, growth spurt.”

“No, I'm still pretty much the same,” The embarrassment gradually leaves his features. “Dad says I kinda stopped growing when I was ten while Nora kept aging, but slower.”

Dr. Maheswaran hums, typing something on her computer before a flood of information crosses the screen. “I tend to believe the gem side you and Nora inherited from Rose is the reason for your delayed puberty,” She begins. “In Nora's case, her human half is the prevalent one, keeping the gem aspect from modifying her physical form faster causing a collateral effect of slower growth.”

“So, the same thing happens to me?”

“Yes, and since your gem percentage is higher than hers it causes a stronger impact on your body but without damaging you due to your internal balance.”

It's not the first time the topic of growing up has crossed Steven's mind, but only recently it has actually been bothering him. What if he never catches up to Nora or Connie? Or worse, for some reason, he never becomes an adult!?

“Will I still grow up someday?”

Noticing the worry, Priyanka softens her expression. “Steven, you may be aging slowly, but it doesn't mean you won't age at all. Your physical changes are tied to your maturity, so it’s just a matter of time until you start developing. You shouldn't worry about it, you have my word.”

The tension upon his shoulders vanishes and his posture relaxes more.

“Since we're talking about your gem side, can you tell me about your gem abilities?”

It took a few seconds for Steven to come up with a good start to explain it. “Well, every gem has their own weapon and mine is a shield,” He summons a small version of it, lasting a few seconds before vanishing in thin air. “I can create a magical bubble to protect me from anything and also I can heal with my spit.”

Priyanka glances at the computer screen again. “Your sister also mentioned that you can age faster.”

“Yeah, I discovered that a year ago and it didn't turn out well,” It's frightening to remember the short-lived apathy towards the world and also fear when he realized death almost held him in a tight embrace. “I kept getting older and older and I couldn't stop. Nora and the Gems helped to get back to normal, but it was…” Terrifying. “Nevermind.”

It's no surprise he's showing clear signs of distress. Steven's too young to go through these circumstances and the same is applied to Nora. Both these children need physiological support.

“The Gems can kinda float and, well, each one can do their own stuff; Like Garnet can resist to really cold and hot places; Amethyst can become super fast; Pearl can create holograms of herself and I, um, once I created a few Watermelons Steven-” Over the doctor's confused features, he draws done context. “They were kinda watermelon versions of me. Pearl said my mom could create an army of plants to fight with her and I have the same powers to control plants.”

“Let me see if I understand; Gems have standard abilities at the same time each one also has unique skills, am I correct?” Steven confirms. “And so far, your abilities consist of: weapon summoning, shapeshifting, bubble protection, healing, age manipulation and phytokinesis.”

“Yeah, these are the ones I remember.”

Priyanka writes some additional info on her chart, before leaving it aside with the pen. “Alright, now that I have this settled, we can start with our examinations.”

Steven leaves his seat and follows her to the examination table where he is helped to sit down.

“Today my main focus will be a check up where we'll do standard procedures such as examining skin, checking temperature, heart rate, blood pressure, and a few more,” Priyanka clarifies. “And before we start, I want you to know that whenever you feel uncomfortable during our examinations you can warn me and we'll stop. You're the patient and have the right to say if you're not comfortable with any of our procedures.”

Steven nods, less tense.

“Firstly I'll give a quick inspection on your eyes, nose and ears.” She warns to see if there's any protest.

She checks his eyes’ muscles by asking him to look in different directions at a penlight or other small object, then examines the pupils with a penlight to see if they respond properly to light.

Holding an otoscope, Priyanka gently pulls his ear to straighten up the canal and inserts the tool, finding the area to be free from abnormal signs.

“Now I will inspect a few areas of your body like your scalp, ears and armpits to look for any signs of skin conditions or abnormal areas. Is it okay for me to touch you?”

Steven nods, letting the doctor proceed.

The physician stands besides Steven and slowly separates his curls to avoid pulling or tangling it. She is surprised by how easy his hair is to maneuver and the perfect state his scalp is, free from redness and irritation, not too oily or dry.

After that, she goes back to face him. “Lift your head, please.” Steven obliges and Priyanka searches for any rashes, lumps, unusual textures or moles/birthmarks. His armpits, behind the ears and knees, between the fingers and toes are also inspected.

Done, Dr. Maheswaran brings a stethoscope. “Now I'll listen to your heart and lungs. I need you to remove your shirt if that's okay.”

“It's fine.” Steven never hasn't been too modest, but now having to take off his shirt in front of a doctor - Connie's mom to be specific - brought a whole new level of awkwardness.

Avoiding her eyes, Steven takes off his shirt and follows Priyanka’s orders while she checks his heart and lungs. Then, she motions to his gemstone. “Can I examine your gem or touching it makes you uncomfortable?”

“Not really, it just feels a little weird.”

Connie has commented with her about Steven's gem and at first it seemed absurd to believe in such a thing, but now seeing it in person it’s fascinating to say the least.

His gemstone is located on his navel, explored in rosy tones, owning a circular form with a pentagonal facet. It's interesting how it doesn't look like it's carved onto his flesh, but morphed into his body. “Does it hurt?” 

“No- Eep!” Steven yelps when her fingerprints move around the area.

Priyanka palpates the skin surrounding the gem, focusing on any signs of abnormalities or tenderness. None is found.

After checking his temperature, the doctor points at the stadiometer attached to the wall. “Stand there barefoot, so I can measure your height and weight." Steven removes his flip flops, internally cringing at how cold the floor is.

Priyanka waits for the boy to stay still and pushes the metallic ruler to his head. His weight is somewhat okay, but he's still short for his age.

At this point, Steven is starting to wish all of this would end already, as if his body is starting to tire from being exposed to an unknown scenario he isn't used to.

However, gladly there wasn't much to do except for the blood test, X-ray and MRI, which the last one absolutely terrified the poor boy.

Fighting corrupted gems was less scary than this! He thought, desperate to leave.

After almost an hour, Steven was finally free. With clothes changed, he's relieved to finally be out of that thing and be back at the office room. Priyanka lets him sit down while she shows him the X-ray results.

“So this is a typical human skeleton,” An image of the known bone structure is shown. Steven has seen one alike on his homework. “And this is your chart.”

He sees nothing abnormal with the image, except for one thing. “Why isn't my gem there?”

“I supposed it's for the same reason a pathologist couldn't read Nora's gem DNA. Our technology isn't advanced enough to process gem components and that includes their gemstones,” Priyanka says. “This is definitely a human skeleton and there's a history of a few fractures like here on the arm and skull,” She points at both spots. “However, everything is perfectly aligned, it almost looks as if the bones healed themselves the instant the injuries occurred.”

“Your gem heritage is probably the reason for your series of miraculous recoveries, but that doesn't change the fact that you experienced trauma. You've recovered physically, but have you recovered mentally?”

Steven frowns, worried. “I don't get it.”

Now it's the time to touch the sensitive subject. This isn't going to be easy, but it needs to be said. “Steven, from what you told me, it seems like you've witnessed situations that's been causing mental stress to you. Adverse childhood experiences, or childhood trauma, can have a lasting impact on your body and this can affect your social, emotional, and physical development,” She pauses, before proceeding. “Do you remember anything bad in your childhood that particularly stuck with you?”

“Maybe, I'm not sure,” Steven looks down, forcing his brain to catch any meaningful memory. “I remember I got really sad when they stopped making cookie cats, then I got attacked by a giant gem monster that day; I got trapped in a bubble inside the ocean; When I tried to shapeshift, I lost control and cats started appearing everywhere; I almost turned so old I died; Amethyst almost died; Pearl did die; Garnet got destabilized right in front of us and Jasper took Nora and I with her on that ship.”

Priyanka is sure her attempt to keep a straight face has failed. She may not comprehend what shapeshifting into cats means or who Jasper is, but she clearly understands the impact behind watching a loved one die or almost have yourself be kidnapped.

“Steven, what I'm going to say is extremely serious,” The change of tone makes him curl up on the chair. “These experiences have been subjecting your body to a harmful amount of stress, and that may affect your ability to respond to new forms of stress in a healthy way. You may not feel the effects now, but eventually, if you keep facing more stressful situations with no guidance on how to properly cope with them it'll cause harmful lasting impacts.”

Steven's already feeling the impacts; The jumpiness at sudden noises, constant worry, resistance to sleep and possibly seeing Jasper's evil smirk and Lapis' anguish starring his dreams. “And… what should I do?”

“I recommend psychotherapy to you and your sister.” The doctor declares. For a moment, Steven's tilted head with furrowed brows are misunderstood as hesitation, until Priyanka recognizes the confusion.

At that moment, Steven wasn't just a different kid who she was wary to have around her daughter, no, Steven was just a child who witnessed too many dangerous situations that is starting to leave psychological damage. 

Priyanka is usually proud of her earned composure and emotions in check, although it's becoming harder to keep her motherly side from stepping in. Also, it's becoming incredibly difficult not to judge those Crystal Gems based on the siblings’ report.

How on Earth can these guardians let these two get themselves into extreme and lethal scenarios where they witnessed their close one die and have their twin almost be taken !? I'm going to have a serious and remarkable talk with Greg, because things need to change and for the better immediately!

“Steven, I know at first sight therapy can sound scary, but I guarantee you it's nothing to be worried about,” He probably doesn't understand the true concept of therapy, like many people unfortunately are also unaware. “Therapy is a form of treatment aimed for emotional distress to help someone. Just like I, as a physician, work to help my patients with physical problems, a therapist helps patients with emotional issues.”

Steven stays quiet, listening.

“Unlike many erroneously presume, therapy isn't indicated for ‘crazy people', but it can be for anyone who's willing to solve inner conflicts and, despite that a therapist won't have all the answers for you, they will teach you on how to properly handle your own emotions, teach healthy coping mechanisms, help you face your own fears and show better approaches to any situation that's been troubling you.”

Steven’s eyes briefly meet her, before fixing on his fingers again, having no words to say. Firstly, it seems nice to theoretically have a safe place where can talk about anything bothering him. But still… The idea of opening his deepest insecurities and anxieties to a total stranger doesn't sound the most appealing to him.

With many possibilities circling his mind, he barely noticed Priyanka had risen from her seat and now kneeled to his level. She placed her hand above his in comfort. “I know it can be a lot to you, but please think about it. It'll be good for you to have a safe place to unburden yourself and whatever you decide to tell your therapist they won't tell anybody else.”

“Not even my dad?”

“No. Therapists won't share what's been discussed during sessions, unless they view it as necessary because the patient is in danger or is a danger to someone else. Except for that, they are absolutely prohibited to share any information with others.”

Steven nods and the physician hopes it's a sign of consideration.

With that last conversation, the young Universe is dismissed for today and leaves the office warning Nora it’s her turn to go in. She gives him a funny look, but he's too distracted to notice it.

“Hey kiddo, how was it in there?” Greg pats the empty chair besides him.

“It was okay,” Steven replies, observing his flip flops threatening to slip from his feet dangling. “Dad, can you get me some water, please?”

“On it!”

His son flashes a weak smile, before his face falls while he watches his dad disappear in the hallways. For now, Steven is glad he can have some time for himself to think about all the information he just gathered.

Therapy doesn't seem like a bad idea, yet he's unsure about deciding to give it a try. Honestly, it sounds good that in theory he finally has someone he can talk about topics he never felt comfortable bringing at home.

Don't get him wrong, Steven trusts his sister and definitely trusts his dad, although there's a few issues he isn't the most willing to talk with them. The first topic coming across his mind is his mom.

There's so many feelings regarding her that could possibly be worked on a therapy; The imposing need to be at her level; Guilty for being the reason she isn't around and the reason the Crystal Gems and his dad were a mess after her death; Fear of not be good enough to continue her legacy, and so much more.

He's been keeping these confusing emotions locked on his chest, afraid to weigh them on Nora because he knows she's been affected by Rose's absence too. However, this burden has become too heavy to carry it alone.

He hears his dad coming back and grabs the small cup of water. “Thanks,” Steven takes a sip, then rests his arm on his thighs. “Dad, you know, I'm thinking about something.”

“And what is it, son?”

Steven chews his lips. “When I look back and remember my first missions with the gems I keep thinking how I didn't take them seriously,” He cringes, recalling his immaturity. “I acted so dumb.”

“Steven, you weren't dumb. You were just a kid acting like a kid. You can't expect them to understand how serious an adult's job is,” Greg chuckles, ruffling his son's hair. “That’s the point of growing up, kiddo. It's when we mature and start understanding things that we didn't before.”

“Still,” The twin pouts. “I wish I wasn't so annoying back then, but what I mean is that I didn't realize how dangerous gem stuff is until now.”

“You have a lot in your mind, Steven. You're growing and you're starting to view things differently now and that's normal,” Greg pulls him close, letting him lean on his arm. “And what you and Nora went through is definitely tough stuff and it's okay to think about it.”

“In there, she told me about therapy and how it would be good for me to talk about it,” Steven sighs. “But dad, it's gem stuff. I don't think the therapist will understand.”

“Dr. Maheswaran took care of it, don't worry! The therapists she searched for are specialized in gem culture,” Greg already expected the boy's surprise. “That’s right. Gems have been on Earth for thousands of years and a bunch of humans have been caught up onto gem stuff, either good or bad.”

By the gloom tone at the end, Steven guessed he meant about the war.

“During these centuries humans have been studying the gems, their language, technology, places like the ones you go on missions and more. So, don't worry about it. If you choose to go to therapy, you won't have to hide anything.”

Greg doesn't receive a reply for a considerate amount of time, until Steven breaks the silence.

“I think I’m going to give it a try."

Chapter Text

The bright sun on the sky, clean shirts swaying on the clothesline and tides creating their own melody in the background were the inspiration for part of the song the group of friends sang on the Temple's hand.

“The sun is bright, our shirts are clean, we're sitting up above the sea. Come on and share this jam with me!” Steven sings while playing his ukulele.

Connie follows him with her violin. “Peach or plum or strawberry, any kind is fine, you see. Come on and share this jam with me!”

Peedee pauses his notes on the clarinet. “I'll do my best to give this jam the sweetness it deserves.”

And Nora is next. “And I'll keep it fresh, I'm jamming on these tasty preserves!”

“Ingredients in harmony, we mix together perfectly, come on and share this jam with me!” The song is finished with everyone singing along.

“Thank you all for attending the Jam Buds concert!” Steven jokes, bowing in front of an imaginary crowd.

“Is that our band name?” Peedee snickers, then glances at his instrument. “You know, if someone told me someday I would be able to play a clarinet I'd say they were joking.”

“You're getting a lot better, I told you!” Connie compliments. “What about you, Nora? Can you play something?”

“My vocal chords,” Nora grins at the earned laughter. “But seriously, I just know a few notes on the ukulele and that's it.”

“Buuut she can write a lot of songs! Amazing ones actually” Steven pipes in, not wasting the opportunity to praise his sister's skills. “C'mon, show them that one about the Gems!”

Nora blushes. “Nooo, it's silly.”

“It's not!” Steven insists. “Do it! Do it! Do it!” He gestures for his friends to do the same.

“Urgh! Fine!” Nora rolls her eyes. “It's not that big a deal. Steven and I would watch these superhero shows and all of them had a theme song and I thought, what if the gems had one because, you know, they're super heroes too,” She sees her brother grin and enthusiastically hold his ukulele to start the notes. “This one's called We are the Crystal Gems.”

Deep down Nora adores that song. It was the first one that she actually put a lot of effort into and was genuinely proud of the results. She still laughs at the memory when she struggled to come up with a good rhyme for us and Steven suggested pizzas.

Singing the last line, Nora is welcome by their friends clapping in delight. “Nora, that's awesome!” Connie exclaims.

“No wonder your dad is a rockstar.” Peedee says playfully.

“Thanks guys,” Nora smiles bashfully. “I don't usually write all the time, but sometimes I can come up with something.”

“Can you show us more?”

“Right after we eat,” She opens the picnic basket. “I'm starving.”

“Snack time!”

With the basket open, everyone began gathering the food and displaying over the checkered blanket; Breads, biscuits, strawberry jam, peanut butter, and fries (that Peedee sneaky took from the Fry Shop.)

Peedee grabs a portion of fries and looks for the ketchup. “So Steven, did your dad schedule your therapy session?”

“Yeah, it'll be next week, Friday I guess.” He takes a biscuit and spreads jam on it. “I told him I wanted some time to think before going, you know?”

Peedee places a hand on his shoulder. “I do, but everything will be fine. I was nervous too when I started meeting the school counseling, but once I was there it was a lot easier than I expected. In the end, they helped me to control my anxiety and I started to go to the music group at school.”

“It can be scary at first because we keep imagining how things will turn out, but just like Peedee said, it'll be a lot easier than we think.” Connie adds.

Steven looks at the small biscuit held in his hand, thinking that maybe they're right. His therapist won't be there to judge, but help him. Maybe it won't be that uncomfortable, maybe he even can like it.

“Yeah, I guess it won't be that bad.” He draws the food to his mouth until a flock of seagulls approaches and growls at them.

The boys scream and flinch, but Connie quickly grabs her violin bow to fend them off. “Yah! Run back to your masters! Tell them we're not afraid of your kind!”

“Thanks for saving my jam snack. Unfortunately, it's not safe from me.” Steven eats it in a single bite. “You're such a good sword fighter, Connie.”

“Really?” She glances at her violin bow. “I was just swinging this thing around. I don't really know what I'm doing, but I'd love to learn how to use a real sword!”

“Isn't Pearl the one who knows sword fighting? Maybe she could show you some moves.” Peedee suggest.

Steven gasps. “Steven has an idea!”

“Can this idea wait til we finish our food?”

─ ·★· ─

“You want me to do what!?”

“You should teach Connie to sword fight, she's already so good!”

“Steven!”

“But he's right!” Nora agrees. “Connie helped us fight a robot thing in mom's cave and even took down that evil clone of herself."

However Pearl has an adverse opinion. “I understand where you're coming from, but Connie's is awfully young to begin something like this, yet I suppose I was only a few thousand years old when I began fighting alongside Rose Quartz…” She sees the girl raising her hand. “Yes, Connie?”

With permission granted, she speaks. “Please, I wanna learn! I mean, I don't know what'll happen in the future, but if something dangerous comes along I don't wanna be a burden, I wanna help! I wanna be there for Nora and Steven and fight by their side! The Earth is my home too, can't I help protect it?”

It's been years since Pearl has seen such an inspiring speech, more surprising to be delivered by someone so young. Connie reminded the gem so much of herself; The uncertainty present, but also determination fighting to have the upper hand and shape what could be the better version of herself while trying to prove worth to someone so important in her life.

The pair of cyan coloured eyes wets a little, but Pearl manages to get ahold of her feelings. “Oh… Okay,” She stands up and blinks away the blurriness off of her vision. “If that's how you feel, we should get started!” The guardian walks towards the Temple gate, accessing her room. “I’ll be right back.”

“Whoa,” The glimpse of the gem's room mesmerizes Connie with its mystical appearance. Once the door closes, she turns to her friends. “I wasn't expecting her to teach me right away.”

“That’s Pearl to you. Just say the words learn or teach and she'll be there,” Nora says. “Besides, you're already good at this, now she'll only help you to get better!”

Speaking of, the Temple door begins to glow and opens, allowing Pearl to step inside. “If you will train with swords, you must have one to be yours,” She returns with one sword hidden inside its scabbard. “I choose one of the most inoffensive and easy to maneuver since you're just a beginner.”

Connie can't help but squeak in excitement. She will have a sword, like, a real one! Only hers! This couldn't get better!

“Is everyone ready?” Pearl hears a chorus of yes. “Then, let's go.”

Arriving on the destination, they warp just outside the main arena. Nora and Steven help Connie and Peedee, initially floating above the warp pad, keeping them from falling.

“You okay? It can take some getting used to.” Steven grabs his friend who stumbles a little due to the effect of teleportation.

Pearl is the first to leave, stopping to remind them to come along. “Hey, this way!”

“Race you!” Nora announces, beginning to run up the steps towards the main arena, as her friends try to catch up, laughing along the way.

“Whoa!” The kids glance all over the place, excited and fascinated at the gem architecture; The place literally floated around the sky and clouds were closer than they usually are. It shows obvious signs of damage as debris danced in the air, but even with the cracks rupturing statues and a large piece of the arena itself missing, it still held a unique beauty.

“This is an Ancient Sky Arena, where some of the first battles for Earth took place. It was here that I became familiar with the human concept of being a knight, completely dedicated to a person and a cause.” Pearl leads the children downstairs, then turns to her apprentice. “This is what you must become, Connie; Brave, selfless, loyal... a knight!”

The young Maheswaran carefully receives the sword presented by the gem. “We begin with a bow. First to me, your teacher,” Pearl bows to her and Connie returns a slight bow back. “And now again, to your liege.”

“Okay!” Connie turns to Steven and kneels to him. “My liege.”

Steven bows back. “Miss Knight.”

Nora and Peedee snort and giggle under their breath, but immediately stop once Pearl's non amused gaze falls over them. “I hope you are taking this seriously.”

“Yes, ma'am!” Connie assures, controlling her own amusement along Steven, humming in response.

"Very well,” Pearl takes a few steps back and summons a Holo-Pearl, causing both Steven and Nora to freeze in worry. “To begin, this Holo-Pearl will be your opponent.”

Peedee whispers. “Is that the hologram who, kinda, you know.”

“Yeah…” Nora grimaces, certain that Steven is feeling the same.

The hologram summons a holo-sword. “Level 0, beginner, set. “Do you wish to engage in combat?”

She summoned a Hologram version of herself with her gem. Except for the noticeable transparency, it looked exactly like the original. "Do you wish to engage in combat?" It asked with a robotic voice.

Pearl turned to the twins, visibly annoyed. "What I'm showing you two are real sword techniques, not those silly things from your movies. It's about waiting carefully for the perfect moment to str-”

“Steven?”

“Hm?” The memory fades through his eyes, replaced by the real world where now he notices it's all pink. He accidentally summoned his bubble shield. “Oh! I-I'm sorry! Sorry, sorry, sorry, sorry. Reflex.” He lets out a nervous chuckle, dispelling his bubble. “Uh, you just be careful, and I will go over here.”

Pearl stops him. “Steven, I understand our last encounter with my holograms wasn't… the best. But I've changed the configurations and none of that will ever happen again. I promise you Connie is safe, okay?"

"Okay." He isn't convinced, but accepts the comfort. He goes towards the stands and sits next to Nora and Peedee.

Pearl walks up to Connie and places her right hand on Connie's sword arm, guiding its movement, while her left hand on the girl's shoulder. They let Holo-Pearl approach and cross swords with Connie.

“Alright, everything begins with your stance…”

─ ·★· ─

Connie, Nora, Steven are sitting on the ground listening to Pearl tell a tale of the Gem Battlefield. It was becoming dark and the only source of illumination was the blue light emanating from the Crystal Gem's hologram.

“You must remember that in a real battle no one will be there to save you. It'll be utterly chaotic and you'll have nothing but your own strategy and sword.”

A younger Pearl runs across the Battlefield, eyes widened in alert and also despair from the horror she'd seen. Scratches and dirt plastered her form as a reminder of victory over opponents who thought they could defeat her.

Screams and wails of enemies and allies fall deaf once she spots Rose Quartz, her most precious treasure. An unknown, but ferocious gem, was in front of her, ready to shove the giant axe against her.

“During times like this you will be scared and doubt yourself, but you can't let your insecurities distance you from your real goal. No matter what happens, stay focused! You have a cause to fight for, someone you're willing to die for and that's what truly matters.”

Witnessing someone willing to hurt Rose, emotionally or physically, always brought the best and worst of Pearl. She knew it and often used it in her favor.

The burning anger was the primary emotion, erasing any logic, any consequence, even her own destruction. Rose Quartz is what truly mattered.

That way, she bravely put herself between both gems and raised her sword against the axe, using every drop of inflaming passion as her strength, conquering the victory.

“And this is what will give you the strength and confidence you need. You'll feel invincible and ready to fight every adversity that comes to you. Acknowledging this is how you know you can win.”

At the end of the story Steven is in tears and Nora teases him making a ‘cry baby' gesture. He sticks out his tongue and Pearl warns them it's time to go.

Back home, the group is surprised to find Connie's father waiting for her. “Dad? What are you doing here?”

“I know we agreed on letting Greg take you home, but it's past the time we set and me and your mother got worried,” Doug explains. “I tried to call, but you didn't answer your phone. Then I called Greg and he said you were still training, but I decided to come anyway.”

“Cell phones are prohibited in our training except during breaks,” Pearl clarifies. “But I understand, Mr. Maheswaran, I also apologize for this inconvenience. We just got too engrossed in today's lesson. Your daughter is absolutely divine in her techniques that I would say she was born to sword fight.”

Doug’s face lights up in pride. “Is that so?”

“Dad, you should've seen me today. I managed to fight a whole group of holograms on my own and I didn't even sweat!”

The compliments her friend receives left and right starts to make Nora more jealous than ever. It's been two weeks since she began her journey as Pearl's apprentice and since then Nora had been hearing how great and amazing she is and this is starting to get on her nerves.

One thing is Steven or Doug be proud of her, but one completely different is hearing Pearl say something like that. She never managed to have Pearl be excited over anything to do with her and now Connie who she'd known less than two years suddenly earned that with little to no effort?

No, that's much to bear. 

It's not fair.

Luckily, Doug didn't drag the conversation longer than it should and both he and Connie said goodbye to them. 

From the window, the trio watch father and daughter leave. “Connie is improving really fast! I was planning to bring some advanced combined techniques, but it seems that I will need to introduce those earlier than I thought.”

“That's awesome, Connie will be so happy! Isn't that great, Nora?”

“Yeah, yeah, she's so great.” The last word being pronounced through gritted teeth doesn't go unnoticed by the older twin.

Thankfully Pearl doesn't notice it, too distracted by her own plans while she enters her room in the Temple. However, Steven frowns at the sudden change of expression.

Nora walks upstairs and sits leaned against the bed, placing the notebook on her lap and seconds later Steven is standing right behind her, curious about why she attempted to hide her notebook out of his view. “It's everything okay?”

“Yeah.”

“You sure?”

“Yes.” She reinforces, impatient.

For a moment, Steven doesn't know what to say. “Do you want to go shower first?”

“No, you can go.”

The boy sadly excuses himself, not wanting to upset his sister further. Alone, Nora is free to think about continuing to write her song. She remembers Pearl's speech earlier and decides to use it.

'On the battlefield, when everything is chaos. I have nothing but the way I feel, a strategy and a sword. And I just think about the afterwards, our earned victory together', Nora writes down.

Satisfied, she proceeds with the next verse. ‘And then I do it for her, the true meaning of conquer. I do it for me, that is the same of doing it for her.’

Writing usually helps her when it comes to expressing her feelings, almost like a solo therapy, and this time Nora is sure she will need it more than she'd like to admit.

─ ·★· ─

Bad humored thoughts circle the youngest member of the family today, causing her to be the only one to stay at home today.

Amethyst and Garnet are probably in their own rooms, Steven went with Connie and Pearl to their training like always and Peedee hasn't arrived yet.

‘Deep down I know that I'm just a human, but I know that I can draw my sword and fight. With my whole existence I can make a difference. I can be there for her, I can be her knight, I can do it for her.’ Nora reads the last addition she made to the song.

Suddenly the front door swings open, startling her. “Sorry, sorry, I'm late!” It's Peedee, very out of breath, supporting his body through his arms placed on both knees.

“Hi.” Nora says flatly, going back to write. ‘I do it for her and I'd go even further. I do it for me, that is the same of doing it for her’.

“Aren't you going to see the training?” Peedee closes the door, confused by the reception.

“No.”

“Why?”

“Don't feel like it.”

Nora's monosyllabic replies were a clear indicator that something was off. Instead of going to the warp pad, he walks towards his friend, sitting next to her. “If there's something wrong, you can tell me.”

“Nothing's wrong,” She mumbles, not daring to look at him. “I just don't understand why Pearl is suddenly so excited to teach her as if she's the perfect student that learns super fast and apparently is so perfect!”

She's jealous, he thinks.

“I'm not jealous!” Nora lies, as if read his mind. “I just think there's nothing for Pearl to be excited about.”

“I see.”

“Here, take it.” Nora hands him a small blue flute. “It's a warp whistle. Pearl gave it to me to use the warp pad because humans can't activate it, but I'm not in the mood to watch the training.”

Peedee holds it. “You sure you're okay with me leaving? I can stay and make you company.”

Nora shakes her head. “Just go, I want some space.” She stays focused on her writing, hearing the tune from the whistle, followed by the sound of the warp pad.

Now she's alone again.

“If there's some way I could show Pearl that I'm just as good as Connie,” She laments, leafing through the pages until something catches her attention; A doodle of herself fighting alongside Pearl. An idea is born. “Maybe there's a way to do it.”

─ ·★· ─

“Alright Connie, today will be your first simulation of a real combat. Many holograms of mine will divide themselves around the arena and your goal will be to eliminate every single one without getting harmed. After that, you will face me and then I'll analyze how much your skills have progressed and what needs to be worked on.”

“Yes, ma’am.”

Pearl is about to test Connie and this is my chance to prove myself. I gotta convince her to let me battle. “Wait!” Nora raises her hand, then rushes towards them.

“Is something the matter, Nora?”

“I…” C’mon, you can't give up now. “I want to fight… with Connie!” She blurts out.

Pearl and Connie exchange confused looks. “Nora, dear, you aren't prepared to engage in sword fighting. Connie's been in constant training with me while you-”

“I can handle it!” Nora insists. “I've been watching you two. Observing every move and every lesson. I can handle a one-on-one fight, let me do this!”

Connie shrugs. “It's fine Pearl, it'll be good to fight with someone instead of a hologram for once.”

Pearl sighs. “Alright, but please go easy-”

“No!” Nora cut her, aggressively taking a sword from one of the holograms, disliking the implication. “Don't go easy on me! Show me what you've got, I can handle it!”

From the seats, Steven grimaces. I have a bad feeling about this.

Seeing the twin wouldn't give up, Pearl nods defeated. “I'll be watching from a distance,” She waits until the girls prepare themselves. “Now let’s begin!” Her gem glows and she begins to amass clouds into the arena, concealing the battleground.

It works as fog, proposing a scary atmosphere that reminisces a nightmare. Empty and silent. Nora carefully walks around the arena, focused at any presence when she spots a shadow from afar.

Holo-Pearl, she thinks.

Her guess is confirmed once it leaves the foggy clouds around them. Burying that bad memory of Pearl's incident deep down in her mind, she positions herself to fight with it.

“Opponent detected!”

That phrase is heard many times by a few different holograms and all of them are defeated by Nora. Their methodical configuration made things a little easier, but hey, she deserved some credits too.

She hears something and immediately goes into defense mode, but it's just Connie, so she lets her guard down. 

Her friend is about to say something, but instead points behind Nora. “Look out!”

Another hologram shows up unannounced, giving no time for Nora to react. She embraces herself, expecting to be hit.

But she doesn't.

Unconsciously, she summoned a shield, but instead of presenting relief, it angered Nora. In a blink of an eye, the hologram is impaled full force by the girl.

“Whoa! Nora, you made a shield! That's in-”

“NO! This wasn't supposed to happen!” Nora shouts, shaking her arm trying to make it disappear. “I don't need a shield! I can handle this without more weapons, I just need the sword, I can do this on my own!”

Seeing her friend wasn't joking in the slightest about the fight, Connie's face turns serious. “Then prove it.”

The younger one leaps at her adversary and Nora easily blocks the attack. They cross swords and steps back, waiting for the next approach.

Connie smirks, deciding to be the first one. Nora worries at the change of expression, thinking she may have some sort of trick to use.

In the end, she was right. Their swords dance in quick clashes, almost in sync, when suddenly Connie leans down and sweeps Nora's feet, knocking her to the ground. She is about to claim victory when Nora swings her weapon against Connie's, launching it away from her.

Nora uses the chance to lift herself and pounces towards the girl. Expecting that move, Connie dodges and slides across the floor to take her sword back.

Both start circling each other, alert at any sudden movements. Nora chooses to strike first, and as expected, Connie blocks her and they engage in a small bout where she has the upper hand.

Nora's confidence begins to vanish as Connie clearly controls the pace making her step back while trying to still keep up the game. The Universe sibling risks a glance at the steps and immediately regrets it.

Pearl watching me. She's judging my skills, what I'm capable of! I need to show her that I'm good- no, that I'm better than Connie. I need to do this for her!

But Nora knows she's no match for Connie and it shows in her own clumsy stance, contrary to her opponent's posture. Her hands sweats and it makes holding the sword even more difficult.

Everything is against me. Connie is going to win. I'll lose the fight I asked for and Pearl will see the failure I am. No, no, no, this must be a nightmare, I can't let this happen.

I have to prove myself, I need to do this for her.

Do it for her

Do it for her

Do it for her!

Desperate, Nora stops retreating and blocks Connie's sword, maintaining this position and as last resource she uses all her strength to push her straight to the floor.

It doesn't work. Connie stumbles a little but remains standing. Blinded by rage, Nora delivered a fast harsh attack that ended up grazing her friend's arm.

“Connie!” Steven and Pearl hurriedly leave their spots.

“Ow!” Connie falls to her knees and uses her hand to cover the cut on her left arm, sword now forgotten on the ground.

“Connie, are you alright!?” Pearl kneels in front of the girl, immediately summoning a bandage from her gem, stopped by Steven claiming he can heal her.

On the other hand, Nora remains motionless, staring at the small amount of blood that dripped from the injury right before the skin closed itself due to Steven's powers.

“What was I thinking when I allowed you two to fight?” Pearl regrets, although her frustration isn't directed to anyone specifically. “I knew this was a bad idea.”

She knew it was a bad idea

She knew I couldn't do it

She knew I would fail

She knew it

“You knew!? YOU KNEW!?” Nora raises her voice. “You knew it was a bad idea, oh wait, let me rephrase for you: YOU KNEW I WOULD FAIL!?”

“Nora, what-” Pearl barely spoke a full sentence when the girl interrupted her again.

“Well, I'm sorry if I can't be as good as anyone else. I'm sorry for not having mom's gem, for not knowing how to sword fight. I'm sorry for wasting your time. I'M SORRY FOR EXISTING!”

Steven tries to soothe things out. “Nora, I know you're upset, but I'm sure Pearl didn't mean it that way. It's just a misunderstanding.”

“Steven, you stay out of this!” She points at him, lowering her tone. “Because if there's someone who has no idea about this whole thing is you! You were always the favorite, her favorite! She always loved you more, so don't tell me how to feel because you have no idea what is like to be me!”

Nora never meant to pour her heart out in front of them, but now it was too late to take it back, especially when every single word spoken was true. She had enough of torturing herself by forbidding the freedom of her own emotions.

Everything she's been holding finally found a way out, like an erupting volcano.

“And you-” She turns her attention to the gem, still on the same spot aside Connie.

There's so much going on inside Nora's mind, mostly many intense emotions that a few of them couldn't even be named. But there's one in particular that decided to take control.

Anger.

Angry for leaving her in the shadows. Angry for not acknowledging her small victories. Angry for crushing her self stem. Angry for shaping her insecurities. Angry for not loving her.

She feels angry.

“I hate you,” Nora growls. “I hate you! I hate you! I HATE YOU! I HATE YOU!” Her voice scales in volume until she's screaming at the top of her lungs. She throws the sword across the arena and runs away.

“Nora, wait! Please!” Steven still decides to follow his sibling, leaving Pearl and Connie behind.

Nora ran as fast as her feet could carry her. Skipping steps, she finally arrived at the arena entrance, tears making it harder to see the way back. Her own name reaches her ears, but she can't go back! No after that disaster. 

What it feels like forever, Nora reaches the warp pad. “Please work, just this once.” She pleads, voice broken. Surprisingly, the war pad activates, its blue light engulfing the younger twin away from there.

Back at the Beach House, Amethyst is spared on the couch reading a random magazine she found somewhere in her room, with Garnet sitting near her, when the warp pad brings Greg's daughter back.

Nora runs across the room, ignoring whatever Amethyst had said and leaves the house without saying a single word. She goes downstairs and hides herself underneath the house, where Lion usually sleeps.

She brings both knees to her chest and hides her face on her arms. Why did things have to be so difficult? Why is earning Pearl's approval so difficult? She was so angry back then and now it's fading, making room for sadness overflows her senses.

Faint footsteps are heard above the structure, growing louder once the steps cracks beneath the owner's foot.

“Leave me alone, Steven.”

“I’m not Steven.”

Nora lifts her face and is surprised to see Garnet there. The fusion leans down and crawls next to the twin, still unmoving.

Almost instantly she leans into Garnet, seeking comfort. “I don't understand,” Nora mumbles. “Why is it so hard for me to do things right? It feels like no matter how hard I try I never…” She stops herself once her shoulders starts to shake.

“It’s okay to feel upset.”

No matter how tight her eyes are shut, she can't make the burning sensation leave. The same way she can't make this pain and helplessness go away from her heart.

“It's okay to cry.”

That's it. That's all it takes for Nora to finally break and burst into tears. She buries her face on Garnet's chest and wraps both arms around her midsection.

Nora cries like she never cried before; She cries more than when she got upset over the Moon Spire mission, for failing at the test, and even more than after watching Rose's tape.

Those tears seemed endless and instead of crying silently like she learned to do, whimpers are still audible even muffled by Garnet's chest.

Nora is so immersed in her own pain she is taken back when a pair of arms pulls her away and she's forced to look at the gem.

“Deep breaths, Nora.” She orders, leading the girl to realize she hasn't been properly breathing, her chest too tight to allow more air inside her lungs.

The first three tries aren't effective, but Garnet is patient, and continues to guide Nora until her breathing gradually returns to a normal state.

She let the guardian wipe the wet trails off her face. Her body still trembles a bit due to the hiccups and Garnet is right there rubbing circles on her back. “You don't have to tell me what happened if you don't want to," Garnet says, then adds. "But I'm here if you do."

“It's Pearl,” Nora sniffles. “I… I just wanted to make her proud and I messed up, but I'm tired of wanting this. I'm sick of trying to get her attention or having her to like me."

“Pearl likes you,” Garnet says. “She loves you.”

That line hit a sensitive spot on her chest. “It doesn't look like it,” Her eyes welled up once more. “She loves Steven, way more than me, and it hurts. I'm t-tired of pretending i-it doesn't.”

The gem let her continue.

“She was s-so excited to teach him g-gem stuff and now Connie with sword fight, but she never d-did that with me,” Sobs gets in the way of her words, difficulting her own pronunciation. “G-Garnet, did I do s-s-something wrong?”

Garnet tenses.

“Is that why P-Pearl doesn't love me? B-Because if I d-did…” Nora is cut off by the older's tight embrace.

The gesture brings renewed tears and Garnet doesn't mind getting snot over her chest or how many times she has to wipe her damp cheeks. She will always be there for her little girl, no matter what happens.

“Nora, I want you to listen to me.” Garnet adjusts her hold in one hand while the other takes her visor off, exposing all of her three eyes, letting Nora know how serious she is. “Pearl loves you, I am sure of that, and she wouldn't ever hurt you on purpose. However, it doesn't erase the fact that the choices she made have been hurting you. She should know better and it's not your responsibility to make her see something so obvious. Pearl shouldn't ever had burden you with her own issues, it's not fair with you.”

“You don't need anyone else's approval. You are Nora Universe, your own person, a unique being and no one can take that from you,” She says without breaking eye contact. “And I promise you things will be different from now on.”

“What are you gonna do?”

Garnet gives a half smile, putting her visor back. “Don't worry about it. I got this.” She cleans Nora's face as much as her bare hands allows her.

Nora doesn't push, going silent.

They stay like this for a while until she feels herself moving, being lifted. She doesn't protest. Garnet takes them out from underneath the Beach House and walks towards the beach in front of them.

“We used to do this together,” Garnet comments. “Whenever Steven cried, Greg would take him for a car ride and it always calmed him down, but it didn't work with you,” They pause to observe the horizon. “Once he found out that you liked the sea he began to take you here. Then, when he wasn't there, I'd do it.”

“Really?”

Garnet hums, placing a kiss on her forehead, smile widening when the girl giggles in response.

Nora rests her face on Garnet's shoulder and closes her eyes, surrendering to the cold breeze moving her curls and salty smell of the sea.

The voices far on the boardwalk are drowned by the waves crashing against the shores. So slow, rhythmical, bringing certainty that she's safe and everything is okay.

It's almost lulling.

In a few minutes, Garnet feels Nora's breathing even and the small hand on her chest slips as she falls asleep. She smiles fondly, remembering how baby Nora used to fit easier on her arms.

The twin could have grown, but old habits never changed.

Chapter Text

“Dad?”

Is the first word out of Nora's mouth the moment she wakes up. The van is empty, but lacks darkness, and the vivid rays of sunlight warn it's still somewhat early.

There's a dry trail of drool on the corner of her mouth, where she wipes it. With the blanket thrown out of her body, she tries to adjust the mess her hair became overnight.

Nora notices she's not wearing pajamas, but her normal clothes instead, except the shoes that are nowhere to be seen. I had a very realistic dream tonight. I remember I was in the van and dad sang me an old song he wrote. I can't remember the lyrics, but it looked so real.

For a moment, Nora is glad Garnet didn't take her back to the Beach House (the gem probably predicted she didn't want to go back so soon). Although, she feels bad for leaving Steven on his own without a single explanation.

“Dad?” Nora calls again, a yawn interrupting. She crawls out of the van and, barefoot, searches for the older Universe.

Outside, there's a plastic table with an umbrella and two chairs set. There's two cups of juice, plates with sandwiches and bowls filled with fruit salad.

Ahead, Greg exits the building on his back due to his hands being full. “Good morning, kiddo! Ready to have the best breakfast in the world?” He holds two plates filled with piles of waffles drenched in maple syrup, popcorn, and the top combining whipped cream with strawberry.

Together breakfast.

Nora takes a seat and chooses her plate along with a cup of strawberry juice. She smiles fondly at the meal in front of her, but her expression saddens at the absence of her brother sharing it with her.

Taking a closer look at the chosen food, she understands her dad is probably trying to cheer her up by bringing her favorite food. She knows he isn't much fond of letting them eat Steven's monstrous interesting creations, but he would let it slide for once.

Nora cuts a slide of the waffle, dipping it a little more into the syrup. “Dad, when Garnet took me here, did she… you know, tell you anything?”

“She just said you had a rough day and needed space,” He rearranges the umbrella more properly. “But she didn't give me any details.”

The twin pauses, before insisting. “Did Steven tell you?”

Greg has to think before speaking. “He messaged and gave me a little context, but again he didn't tell me everything,” Supporting his elbows on table, he leans forward. “But if you want to tell me things yourself, I'm all ears and If you don't, that's okay too.”

Nora looks back at her breakfast, hunger now inexistent. “I argued with Pearl and said a lot of stuff I shouldn't,” Her fork pokes the waffles. “And I hurt Connie in sword fighting, it wasn't serious! But still… I feel awful.”

“Oh, sweetie.” Greg scoots his seat closer to his daughter. It's not the first time this happens and that's why it weighs on his heart.

“I didn't do it on purpose. I just wanted to impress Pearl and that's why I insisted on fighting with her, but I got too carried away,” A hand slowly caresses her hair. “And I get it, I messed up. I know I did, but I don't want to see Connie after everything,” She crosses her arm on the table and hides her face. “I'm scared that she's mad at me.”

Greg attempts to remain a neutral face. “I understand how you feel Nora, but we can't run from our problems forever.”

“I can try.” Nora mumbles, and yet her dad manages to hear it.

“You can try, but it won't do anything. Running from your problems won't make them go away, they still will be there and the longer you avoid them the worse you'll feel. You won't be at peace until you solve it, that's for sure. It's better to face it and free yourself from that burden.” Greg explains. “Besides, Connie seems like a nice girl, I'm pretty sure she'll understand.”

Nora still seems unsure, remaining in her spot under her dad's comfort. She hears him humming something- Wait a minute, she knows that melody.

“That song… Dad, I dreamed of that song!” She recalls. “You sang it to me, but I don't remember the lyrics.”

“Was it something like… I guess I have to face that in this awful place I shouldn't show a trace of doubt,” He sings. “But pulled against the grain, I feel a little pain that I would rather do without.”

It's that one! She recognizes that melody and her brain grasp through memories and pull the next line it unconsciously memorized.

“I'd rather be free, free, free.”

“I'd rather be free, free, free.”

Father and daughter smile widely at the short duet. “It was that song! You sang it to me in my dreams!

Greg chuckles. “It wasn't a dream, cupcake. You woke up in the middle of the night and I sang it to help you go back to sleep.”

“It's an awesome song, I loved it.”

“I named that one Escapism. I wrote that song when things got tough years ago, way before you and Steven were born, it was kind of like my own way to comfort myself.”

Nora grabs her cup of juice. “What do you mean?”

“Before I ran the car wash, when I was a one-man band, I traveled the whole country alone. I did it on my own for a few years and it was quite lonely, you know?” Greg takes a huge bite from one of the sandwiches, a small piece of greasy bacon falling on the plate. “Even after I met Marty and he became my producer. We would travel together, but he wasn't someone I could call a friend, so I still felt quite alone on the road and I decided to write a song about how I felt and that's what came out.”

There's something about seeing a glint of awe in your own child's eyes that Greg could never describe the worthiness behind it. “Wow dad, you have a lot of good stories.”

“And I can tell you much more after we finish breakfast.” He grins, swinging his spoon, now tasting the sweet flavor from the fruits in the bowl.

The story time had to be delayed for an hour or so. Nora still hasn't taken a shower and it's beginning to bother her. The Card Wash bathroom is simpler than the Beach House's one, but it does the trick (and there's hot water!).

Done, Nora feels so much better. Calmer, refreshed, like she just cleaned her soul too. It's astonishing the wonders a simple bath can offer.

Nora didn't have much clothes left in the small bedroom from previous visits, but decided to choose the best one and hope a good look awaited her; A white shirt with soft pink details on the collar and short sleeves, underneath a royal blue vest, and bubblegum pink skirt.

“Aw seriously?” The girl groans eyeing the pair of flip flops she finds, displeased at the lack of option. “How can Steven like these?”

Fortunately her reluctance leads to find a pair of white slip-on that she is eager to try.

After getting dressed and tying her hair in pigtails, she is ready to reunite with her dad. However, her plan is interrupted once she leaves the building and hears her brother's voice.

“I know dad, but I wish it didn't end like this.”

There's a pause. “I understand how you feel, stchu-ball, but you need to give them time to understand how they feel about it. I'm sure things will get better.”

“I feel like I should've done something. Maybe if I had noticed it before, I don't know, I could have avoided it.”

Great, now he's blaming himself because of me.

Nora steps away, sure she needs time to herself. She walks behind the workplace, sneaking out without being seen by her family. The call of solitude reaches her and she needs a safe place to go.

Not the Temple, not the van and now, not the Car Wash. There is only one place left;

The woods.

The forest located in the outskirts of Beach City where most people never bother to visit. It's the middle of spring season, increasing its beauty with vibrant colors and pleasant weather.

Nora walks past very large trees as well as small shrubs and abundant boulders protruding from the ground. The bird's singing serves as background music, which she adores.

She looks for her usual place and accidentally hears something different. “Hello?” Nora announces her presence, before moving forward. Further behind the long trees, she finds someone she definitely wasn't expecting. “Ronaldo?”

The blond guy looks back in surprise. “Nora?” He leaves his kneeling position and brushes the dirt off his knees. “What are you doing here?”

Nora crosses her arms. “What are you doing here?”

“I…” Ronaldo looks over his shoulder, more specifically to the small hole he dug near a tree. He sighs, defeated, because no way he can make a proper excuse for this. “I came to take something that is mine.”

Nora follows him and sees the small indigo chest full of dirt being pulled out of the hole. The Fryman tries to clean it the best he can, ignoring the amount of filth under his nails.

“There’s a ton of stuff we kept in our explorer club. We put the most important stuff to us inside this chest,” Yeah, it used to be important. “I remembered we had it and, I don't know, thought it would be nice to remember the good times.”

They sit down on a random log and Ronaldo opens the little compartment, cringing a bit at the old smell; A polaroid of him and Ronaldo is the first thing seen. He inspects it and discovers something written behind the photo;

To my best friend Ronnie!

To my best friend Laramie Lars (just kidding!)

Beach City Explorer Club, 2005

21 22 98 99

“It was the password for our club, our birthdays.” Ronaldo points at the sequence of numbers. “Mine, July 21, 1999 and Lars’, March 22, 1998.”

It seemed smarter when he was a child.

“This meant so much to me, but now it's nothing more than memories of a better phase in my life that won't ever happen again,” He adjusts his glasses. “Also, now that you're here I want to apologize to you for literally kidnapping and dragging you into my crazy stuff.”

Whoa, he actually apologized. “It’s okay.”

Quiet.

“You still didn't answer me,” Ronaldo breaks the silence. “What are you doing here all alone? Why aren't you with your brother?”

“I don't know if I wanna see him so soon.”

This instigates the blogger's curiosity. “You two argued or something?” It's hard to imagine these two not being on good terms.

“Not exactly,” Nora is not up to giving a lot of details. “It’s more like- Have you felt like everything you do somehow always mess things up? Even when you think you're doing the right thing?”

He holds the chest tighter. “All the time.”

A shrill high pitched scream was heard inside the Fryman Residence, alerting the owner, who in no time jumped out of the bed and ran out of the door. 

Barefoot, he grabbed a nearby lampshade to use as a weapon against the invasor. Disoriented, he struggled to find the direction towards the source of the noise, but something inside him warned him to check on his kids.

Arriving in his youngest’s room, he found him absolutely terrified with big tears shining among the darkness. Next to his bed, Ronaldo was in an awkward position on the floor and due to the open window, he instantly concluded it was one of his son's shenanigans.

“Ronaldo, what are you doing!?” Atticus placed the object somewhere and walked over to Peedee, still sobbing. “Are you out of your mind? Look at what you did!”

“Dad, I can explain!” He untangled the piece of rope around his ankles and grabbed his magazine that had fallen. “I think I just found a way to communicate with some spirit-”

“Save it, I'm up here with you and these stupids stories about ghosts!” Atticus cut him off, slapping the magazine out of his hands.

“It’s not stupid!” The student insisted. “It’s true! And I can prove it! I just need to find the exact place they died and the object of possession…”

Peedee whined, even more scared. “Ronaldo, quit it!” Their father warned, raising his tone.

“But I-”

“STOP BEING SUCH A BOTHER!" Atticus yelled. “Can't you see that you're messing everything up!? You're scaring your brother, you're driving me mad. Can you act like a normal person for once!?”

The room went quiet, except for Peedee's shy cries muffled by his father's shirt. Everything Ronaldo thought about saying got buried in the back of his throat along the sobs threatening to escape. 

While Mr. Fryman focused on calming down his son, Ronaldo clumsily gathered his things and left the room. Everything became blurred, not only because of incessant tears, but also his poor eyesight. “Screw it!” He shouts to the empty ambient. 

Ronaldo marched towards the front door, slamming it with full force. Outside, he let out a shuddering breath observing the deserted streets

Unable to adventure himself far away, the boy sat alone in front of his own house. He pulls a picture out of his pocket, praying it could comfort him somehow.

A picture of his mom, smiling wide without fear of exposing the imperfections of her teeth, straight hair falling on her shoulder. That day she wore her favorite white dress with flowers on it. She was exactly like he remembered. Perfect.

A single teardrop hit the picture before he could stop it, freeing many others. Ronaldo clamped his mouth shut, trying to cry quietly as possible while his frame trembled with the effort.

“I wish I was dead,” He whimpered. “I wish I died instead of you, dad would be happier without me. Everyone would be better off without me.”

At seven years old, Ronaldo had his first contact with death. At eight years old, Ronaldo had his first time wishing to be dead.

“I made a lot of mistakes - big ones - but none of them were on purpose. I never wanted to hurt anyone and yet I kept doing it over and over again,” He confesses, serious. “I always felt like a walking mistake, that I would ruin everything I touch.”

Definitely been there.

“All that anger, grief and hurt kept bottling up and made me become a horrible person who did horrible things,” Both avoid looking at each other. “And I-I knew that wasn't me, that I've changed… for worse, but at that point I have been this way for so long that I didn't remember when I used to be normal.”

“When you're in pain for so long it's hard to let go because at some point it feels like it becomes part of you. It's hard to let it go, it's hard to want to change, but I'm trying. I really am.”

Nora believes him. It really seems like he's making progress and despite all the headache he caused, she's genuinely happy for him.

Ronaldo stops for a moment, staring at nothing in specific. Then, he turns to face her. “I know I'm the last person who should give anyone advice and I don't know what happened between you and Steven, but if there's something that did help me somehow is: talking.

He continues. “Sit down and have a conversation where both sides are being honest. If I- No, if my dad and I had sat down and actually talked, it could've saved us from lots of trouble.”

“Well, I gotta say, Mayor Dewey wasn't lying about the fireworks this time.” Mr. Fryman observed the crowd dispelling after the New Year celebration ended.

A group of employees carried the equipment back in a gray van while the Mayor proudly received compliments from a few supporters, with two tall bodyguards standing right behind him.

“It was surely better than last year. I'm glad everything went okay this time,” Greg flashed a small smile seeing his children share a last conversation with their friend. “You two say goodbye to Peedee, you can talk more in the morning after a good rest.”

“Technically it's already morning.”

“Nora…”

Ronaldo quietly chuckled to himself. He used to try these smartass comments with his dad too.

Seeing Peedee having such a strong bond with Steven and Nora resulted in conflicted emotions; Happiness. There's no doubt he's happy for his brother’s privilege to have two people he wholeheartedly trusts and share good moments with.

There's also jealousy, maybe? To witness someone have something you craved and deeply longed for years. Sometimes he didn't mind, while other times it felt like a great insult to bear someone else's joy.

“And Ronaldo,” Greg is suddenly in front of him, giving his shoulder a soft squeeze. He had this friendliness on his eyes that only a few people in Beach City could offer. “I'm glad you came, kid. It's nice to see you again."

He had no idea of what the previous phrase was, but shrugged it off. “I say the same, Mr. Universe.”

Greg gave a humored wave. “Please, it's just Greg. I'm not that old,” He glanced at Fryman. “I think.” Both let out a hearty booming laughter.

His lips twitched upside. He liked that sound. It’s so recognizable. His dad had this deep continuous laughter that made you want to hear more.

Ronaldo didn't even remember the last time he heard his dad laugh. This fact led to any light-hearted features drop off his face.

The Universe Family said their goodbye and left towards home; Pearl held the pans and pots they brought while Garnet carried Nora and Steven held hands with Greg. Amethyst never showed up.

It was way past midnight. The night being cold didn't stop the middle child from feeling sweat engulf his hands now that he was left alone with his own family, and his own issues.

“Son, are you coming with us?” Atticus, hesitant, asked him, which is very unlike his dad. Mr. Fryman is a firm person, in every aspect; Either his speech, beliefs and posture.

Weird is the best way to describe having him be almost afraid of talking to him.

“If you want me to.”

“I do.”

Peedee was caught between two awkward members of his family. He had no idea what to say or act. “Uh, let's go then. It's too cold out here.”

Glancing back, he spotted Lars helping Sadie and Barb gather their things back. Once their eyes met, Lars waved goodbye at him, who reciprocated.

The house looked exactly as the last time he'd been here, still cozy but melancholy. The only difference was a new feeling attached to it; Anxiety.

Peedee quickly excused himself saying he would be in his room while Ronaldo, still without saying a word, made his way to the kitchen. He needed some water, his mouth dried considerately in a short amount of time.

A half filled glass satisfied him. Turning around, he found his dad staring at him by the entrance with an expression he couldn't read. “What?”

“Nothing,” Atticus took a few steps ahead. “I'm just glad you're back home, son.”

Ronaldo found it hard to believe. He said nothing, but his contorted face gave it away.

“Look Ronaldo, I know things haven't been great between us, but I want you to know that I'm here if you need me.” For some reason, what his dad said was triggering something bitter inside him.

What's wrong with him? Wasn't he happy to be with his own family again? What changed? Why did he suddenly find himself… mad?

“Don't worry about it, I'll be in my room.” Ronaldo answers flatly. “I won't cause trouble this time, I promise. I don't want to be a bother, like you said yourself.”

“What?”

The youngest held his breath, realizing the mistake he'd committed. Damn emotions that would get the best of him, causing him to make poor decisions, have thoughts he wasn't proud of and now, say things he never meant to share with the world around him. “Nothing.”

Mr. Fryman was not going to let it slide. “No, I want you to tell me. What did I say to you?”

“I said it was nothing!”

“Ronaldo-”

“Stop, okay!?

“Just tell me!”

“No!”

“I need to know!”

“I DON'T WANT TO BOTHER YOU!” Ronaldo screamed out loud. He did it. One of the most hurtful things he heard was finally out of his chest. “There, happy!? T-That’s what you said. A bother. You said I was a bother to you.” Even hearing it in his own voice hurt.

Atticus went speechless for a moment. “I don't remember saying this,” It wasn't said in an accusatory tone, but his son remained with his arms crossed, unhappy. “But it sounds like me.”

Ronaldo dared to look at him.

“I recognize I wasn't the best father to you and Peedee,” The oldest Fryman took off his signature red visor. “When your mother died….” Even hearing that word made Ronaldo nervous. “... I was a mess and confused. Today I see that I took out my frustrations in everything and everyone in front of me.”

Ronaldo didn't want to cry. He really didn't. He wanted to be mad and ignore the whole speech his dad delivered, but he sounds so sincere that it's impossible to ignore.

His inner child needed this.

“I'm sorry, son. I'm sorry for not being there for you back then and I'm sorry for never apologizing to you. I had the chance to make amends during these years and yet I placed my pride over my own son.” His voice was now strained, full of emotions, but controlled. “I understand if you don't forgive me, you have every right to hate me.” Fryman looked directly into his son's eyes. “But the only thing I ask you is to let me be here for you now. Let me take care of you, Ronnie.”

The silly, but meaningful nickname broke him.

Ronaldo took off his glasses and hid half his face behind his hands, crying quietly like he taught himself, but it didn't last long when Atticus wrapped his arms around him.

“I should've said this more often, but… I love you son. I really do. You and your brother mean everything to me.”

“Did it work for you?” Nora questions.

“It didn't make all my problems disappear, but it made me feel better and actually understand my dad, and the other way around.” He replies fully honestly.

She nods, ready to ask one more thing but a growl draws their attention. The teenager is ready to run, but Nora recognizes that sound in specific.

“Lion, how did you find me?” She raises herself and opens her arms, welcoming the magical pet nuzzling her face.

“You have a lion!?” Ronaldo squeaks.

“It was my mom's,” Nora runs her fingers across his mane, enjoying the affectionate moment. “Did Steven send you?” Lion growls. “Yeah, I expected it.”

“Do you understand him?”

“Kinda, I just feel what he's saying.” Nora shrugs. “I guess I'm going home. Steven is probably worried and I didn't tell my dad where I was going,” She gets onto his back. “Wanna a ride back home? You won't mind, Lion?”

The pet stares at the Fryman with a suspicious look. Ronaldo gulps, praying that thing won't chop his arm off.

“Let's go!” Nora motions for him to follow her after Lion's answer. “C'mon, he won't bite.” Unless he wants to.

Keeping a certain distance at first, Ronaldo sits right behind her and now everyone is ready to leave. “You can drop me off on the Big Donut. I promised Sadie I would help her by working there as a temporary job.”

“Really?”

“Yeah, but by the time I kinda missed today's shift.” He gives a nervous laugh.

Lion prefers a shortcut and roars a magical portal, transporting both people exactly in front of the donuts shop. After saying goodbye to Ronaldo, they head towards another important place.

From afar, both watch a car leaving the Car Wash where a man honks in thankfulness. Greg, with his back turned, coiling up the green hose.

Reaching the front of the building, Lion stops and allows Nora to dismount him. “Dad!” Immediately, she saw the Universe stop on his track.

“Nora!” Greg threw the hose on the floor with small droplets still hitting on the ground. Embracing his daughter, the musician lifts her off the ground. “Thank goodness you're okay! You gave me a scare, sweetie.”

“Sorry dad, I needed to clear off my mind.” Nora apologies, put down.

Slouching his shoulders, Greg sends a sympathetic glance. “Just warn me next time, alright?” He looks at the pink pet. “Guess Lion found you.”

“Steven asked him to look out for me, didn't he?” 

“Seems like your brother.”

Speaking of him. “Dad, do you think it's a good idea for me to go back home?” She peers at the path leading to the Temple. “He's not… upset, right?”

“Upset? Steven? ‘Course not! He'll be so happy to see you back,” Greg has no doubt. “But that's up to you, if you either want to go back or rather stay here.”

“No, I think I'll go back. I want to be there with him.” Nora concludes. “Thanks for the advice, dad. It was nice to spend some time with you.”

“Whenever you need to see your old man, you know where to find me.” He gently ruffles her hair.

After their last interaction for the day, Nora goes back to the Beach House. In a few steps, the Temple comes to view, and she feels butterflies on her stomach.

It's just home, she tells herself. Breathing in, Nora pushes the door open, finding the Temple empty. It's odd, she thought at least Garnet or Amethyst would be around.

Just when she steps inside, the Temple Gate activates. The purple symbol glows and the door splits into two halves with a diagonal line.

Nora expects the short gem to greet her, and instead is caught by surprise to see Steven exiting her room. He looks awful. His usual bubbly self is currently replaced by a gloomy one, it even shows on his body language by the way his steps are heavy and slow.

Though, the moment he looks up and recognizes the person in front of him, his aura brightens up. “Nora!” In an instant, the youngest receives a bone crushing hug from her brother. “I missed you so much!”

Nora giggles. “Steven, I've been out for, like, a day.”

“Still, it's too long to be apart!” He replies with exaggerated drama, squeezing his sibling one last time before letting her go. “I missed my roommate.”

“I missed you too.” Nora admits. She sits down on the couch, with Steven right next to her. “It’s good to be back home.”

Steven remembers something and searches for an item in his pocket. “I charged it for you.” He hands her the forgotten phone.

“Thanks.” With all the hurry, she didn't even realize it was left behind. Nora searches for anything important she missed until her eyes fix on a specific icon.

“What's wrong?” Steven's concern reappears seeing his sister go pale.

“Connie,” Unread messages pop up on her notifications and all of them addressed a very specific topic. “She… She said she wanted to talk to me.”

“Yeah, she does,” Steven averts his gaze. “After she left, she sent you a ton of messages and even tried to call. I talked to her and told that you didn't have your phone, then…”

“Then…?”

He tries his best to deliver the news the nicest away possible. “She said she would come over and talk to you in person.”

“What!?” This is bad, this is bad, this is bad! “No, no, no! I'm not ready! I can't do this, not after what happened!” Nora gasps, hands finding a way to tugs her own hair. “What if she's mad at me, or worse, she doesn't want to be friends anymore?” 

Steven draws gentle circles around her back, keeping his voice soothing. “I'm pretty sure this is not going to happen,” He says. “When we talked, she said she was worried about you. Connie didn't take it personally, I promise you.”

“Steven, you can't promise that.”

The older half shrugs. “I may not, but I'm still sure.”

Nora sighs. “I hope you're right.”

─ ·★· ─

The rest of the day went quiet with no disturbances. Neither Pearl or the other Gems showed up, leaving the twins to share the last hours of the night on their own.

Dinner was nice too and they spent a good time playing some video games. Later, ready for bedtime, Nora and Steven settled to watch TV and entertain themselves until tiredness finds them.

Galactic Bloom is the current show grasping their attention, it's about a normal girl having a magical pet and both go out on space missions.

"I do feel empty, there's no magic in this place at all.” The creature declares.

And its owner disagrees. “There’s magic in the little things, my dear. You just have to look for it.”

The show is nice. Its soft color palette and beautiful drawn backgrounds along the chill-kind-like music surprised the siblings with its unique style.

Nora kept watching until at some point the characters’ speech stopped making sense and resumed to random patterned noises. “Hey,” Steven stops her from zoning out. “You okay to sleep?”

Nora hums, unaware that she was about to drift off.

Steven grabs the remote and turns off the TV. Placing it back on the nightstand, he crawls back to bed making himself comfortable under the white comforter.

Nora does the same, but there's something bothering her to no end. Being back at the Temple means she returned to the source of unsolved issues and the first one is right by her side.

She looks at Steven and he's already trying to sleep, with eyes closed and normal rise and fall of his chest. Greg's words pay a visit to her mind.

Running from your problems won't make them go away

A sigh is suppressed. Nora stares at the ceiling, hoping that this is the right decision. She rolls over, facing her twin. “Steven?”

His pupils are visible again. “Yeah?”

Now there's no turning back. “Sorry for yelling at you before,” Nora pushes the covers aside and adopts a sitting position. “You were trying to peace things out and I lashed out on you. I'm sorry, really.”

Steven sits, crossing his legs. “It's okay. I'm not mad, I know you didn't mean to.” There's no lie in his words, yet he fails to wipe the worry from Nora's face.

Conflicted wants battle inside her for the final decision, expressed through fidgeting the hem of her shirt. One wins, the prevalent. “Can I… Can you give me a hug?”

That's not what he expected, but Steven's expression softens. “Of course.”

And there it is, the embrace she has known her entire life. It's funny that Steven's hugs felt different than any other she had;

Dad's hugs made her feel safe, like nothing in this world could ever do harm as long those arms are around her, almost like a genuine unbreakable promise.

Vidalia's hugs bring comfort since most of the time they happen after a conversation and are given by someone who always knows what to say at the right time in the right way.

But Steven's… They're different.

His hugs are full of certainty, every time proving that he would never leave her side and he's always there for her; Either for good moments like playing video games and watching TV, or bad ones such as witnessing outbursts or revealing upset truth.

A soft hum pulls her back to reality and now she's able to feel her body again, but something's off. Closing her eyes there's a trail of wetness on both eyelids; Her deep breath comes out as shaky instead of regular; And her nose is clogged.

She is crying.

Her chest hitched, and Nora still finds strength to verbalize fragments of her own emotions. “Sorry, there's a lot of stuff going on.” She sniffles, words spoken too timidly that a few consonants are left inaudible.

Steven, however, doesn't mind. Patient, as always, he understands it's difficult for someone like her to allow any piece of vulnerability to slip through cracks from her tough facade. “It's okay, I'm here for you. Big brother is right here.”

And Nora finds herself crying once more, fingers curled tight around his yellow pajama shirt, face buried on his neck.

That phrase accessed a hidden version of herself; A small one, vulnerable, too weighted down by tons of guilt and shame, the little sister who needs comfort from her older brother.

And Steven is right there to offer the comfort she needs, like always. Nora definitely couldn't ask for a better brother than him.

Chapter Text

On the small laundry area located on the remaining hand of the Temple, Steven sits near the warp pad. Alone, his eyes follow the circular movements of the clothes, Nora's clothes to be exact.

His load of clothes has already been washed and dried, he'd taken them between an hour ago. Garnet was there when he arrived and they talked for a moment regarding his new discovery today;

Forced fusions.

Gem shards glued to each other, forcing two or more gems to be stuck together, taking advantage of the remaining trail of consciousness and using this to keep them aware of their painful existence.

Now back home, after all the disturbing moments witnessing their cries of anguish and Garnet almost unfusing in front of him, Steven is glad Nora didn't come along.

Yet, his relief is short-lived when he remembers the actual reason his sister dismissed the mission. It's a shame the day started as peaceful and eventually went downhill.

“We need to track down Peridot, we found her pod and we know she's out there somewhere. She came to Earth with a job to do and odds are, she's still gonna try to do it. That's why I've gathered you here.”

Garnet was sure speaking seriously about an important topic, but it didn't quite match the situation they were in.

“I thought it was so you can help us fold all this laundry!” Another of Steven's salmon t-shirts was put on the pile next to him.

Everyone sat on the floor around piles of clothes to help the twins organize them; From shirts, jeans and socks, but mostly shirts. 

During the first year the twins moved out to the Beach House, the Gems came up with that ‘tradition’ of helping them with chores as a little bonding time, however throughout the years it ended up being forgotten by both sides.

“That too,” Garnet said. “The chore wheel idea you had fell apart fast.”

“Wasn't me.” Amethyst made it clear, uninterested in the task.

The Crystal Gems turned to look at the chore wheel pasted on the refrigerator, where everyone's names are struck out and replaced with Pearl's name, written in her very recognizable elegant handwriting.

“I just really enjoy doing all of those things." She flashed a sheepishly grin. The guardian spotted a pair of socks and instantly recognized it as Nora's, she grabbed it to fold and risked a side eye glance at the girl.

Nora wasn't fast enough to pretend she wasn't looking, causing her to fold one of her shirts more angrily, before throwing it on her pile. Everyone else noticed it, and Steven was the only one who couldn't disguise his own frustration.

Second day with Nora back home and neither she or Pearl have shared a single full phrase with each other.

Steven and Amethyst exchanged looks, worried. She left her magazine aside and picked the first piece of clothes in front of her, and attempted to light things up. “You know what, humans should just stop wearing clothes, be a lot funnier.”

“Hey! We are civilized human beings, thank you very much. Clothing is a must,” Nora still remained forcefully focused on folding her dungarees. Steven looks at the laundry piles each one had. “Hmm... This is a lot. I bet this folding would go faster if Ruby and Sapphire were here!” He nudged her, finally getting her attention.

Both looked at Garnet. “I'm sure they'd be glad to see you two, but I am not unfusing for laundry." She smirked at the long dramatic groan coming from the twins.

“I wish things would go back to normal,” He glances at the sky, bright with barely any signs of clouds. “I know Nora is upset and I know Pearl didn't mean it that way when she said, but I…” He can feel his heart heavy with sadness over having two persons he loved upset with each other. “I wish they talked. I don't understand why they keep avoiding each other instead of talking, wouldn't it be so much better to say how they feel?”

“Maybe if I had asked them to talk earlier all of this would be solved by now.” He insists. Since the fateful day he wanted nothing more but to talk with them and the first person would be Nora if Garnet hadn't intervened.

‘She needs space’ was Garnet's words to him that night, but did it  apply even to him? Her own brother? He should be the most suitable person to help her and suddenly he couldn't.

It hurt him more than he'd like to admit.

Not only because he was pushed away by his own sibling, but also from his role. Steven is the peacemaker of the family, he always had a good way with words and everyone around him acknowledged that.

He was good at undoing conflicts and supporting people to deal with their own emotions, then why couldn't he help Nora? Why wasn't he allowed to practice his role?

Steven knows how to fix things.

Steven has to fix things.

Steven needs to fix things.

“Garnet, you don't think Peridot would come looking for us, do you?” Pearl raised the assumption.

“We weren't her priority,” The fusion stated. “She was sent here to do something in the Kindergarten.”

“Do you think she's still going to try to reactivate it?”

“If she gets it back up and running, the Injectors will turn back on.”

“Injectors? That huge rusty things?” Steven asked. Nora stopped and paid attention to the conversation.

“Yes. You've seen many of them disabled,” Pearl projected a hologram from her gem, showing a detailed example of such machine and its active state. “If Peridot reactivates them, they'll pick up right where they left off; Planting gems in the crust of the Earth, where they'll incubate and suck the life right out of the ground. We can't let Peridot restart Gem production here, if we do, the entire planet will become…”

“Janked.”

Amethyst laughed. “Garnet! That mouth!”

“Don't worry, we'll stop her. C'mon, Crystal Gems.” Garnet stood and walked towards the Warp Pad, with Pearl went right behind her right after aligning her own piles of clothes and Amethyst soon following them.

Steven also left his spot and joined them, not noticing his sister hadn't moved or stopped focusing on her task.

“Nora.” She heard Garnet's call, spun around seeing the Crystal Gems all waiting for the last member. "C'mon, that means you too, right?” Amethyst gestured for her to come along.

Nora looked tempted to go, really, always finding joy in being allowed on missions, even the simplest ones. Although, the resentment was still fresh in her heart and whenever she saw or even heard Pearl's voice that side of her still won. “Thanks, but I'd rather stay and get these done."

The washer buzzes, signaling the end of the first part of his task. Steven gets up and takes the laundry of it, a tiny grin forming on his lips. He knows very well how Nora feels regarding him taking care of her clothes, yet he thinks it would be nice to do this little favor when she's been napping since they came back.

Once everything is inside the dryer, he turns on the machine and returns to his previous spot. Instead of keeping a boring stare at his sandals, he looks over the view, inhaling a deep breath of the sea.

Far down the beach a trail of footprints were visible on the sand, part of it washed away by the waves. Steven closes his eyes, focusing on the wind tickling his face while petting his curls.

It's nice.

This little time to himself is actually nice, the complete opposite to his opinion when Dr. Osborne shared this idea with him.

Dr. Osborne.

His therapist.

Yeah, he has a therapist now… does he? Steven only had one session and he still wonders if a part two will happen. He promised her he would think about it, but so much happened recently and, to be honest, whenever he remembered it he tried to brush it off with an I'll deal with it later.

Maybe it's time to think about it. Nora is resting with Amethyst in the living room, Garnet and Pearl are in their own rooms and dad is busy with the Car Wash. The perfect opportunity to engage in an inner monologue.

“Should I come back?” Flying seagulls glance down at him. “I mean, the session was… Nice, I guess? And Dr. Osborne was really nice too. I liked her," Steven intertwines his fingers, drumming his thumbs across his belly. "I'm still scared of saying some stuff, but now it'd be really nice to talk to someone about it.”

─ ·★· ─

April 10th, 2015

‘Be Kind to Your Mind’ Steven read the colorful poster printed on the opposite wall from where he sat. His dad was by his left side reading some magazine he picked up from the display rack while Nora, on his right side, entertained herself with a small sketchbook she brought with her.

Unlike them, he couldn't think of anything to occupy his mind.

Steven couldn't stop thinking about the many topics it could surface inside that room. Normally, Nora was the overthinker twin and it seemed he would follow her steps. Strange. He wasn't an anxious child, he never was and then he was struggling to keep his legs from moving in a rhythmic dangling.

The waiting room was mostly quiet, a thin line holding calmness and unsettlement. A line of five dark chairs was replicated on the opposite wall, the same where a TV was attached to, put on the lowest volume, giving a false impression of background noise.

No other person has entered the area except for one man who took the middle seat. He looked like he hadn't slept in days.

“Steven Universe?” A tall slim woman with a clipboard in hands searched around the room until her eyes laid on him, and smiled friendly. “Dr. Osborne is ready to see you.”

The boy stiffed on his seat, shooting a worried glance to his dad, who responded with a fond pat over his hair. “It's going to be okay, stchu-ball. We're right here for you.”

Nora let the sketchbook fall on her lap and gave him a side hug. “You're going to be fine."

Steven attempted to smile and lessen their worry about him, hiding his own. Leaving the chair, he let the woman guide him through long corridors going right and left, passing by numerous doors until arriving in front of his therapist's room.

The employee checked once more the information written on her clipboard and opened the door for him, receiving a shy ‘thank you’ in return.

Inside the office, someone was already waiting for him. A woman with dark short hair just finished typing something on her laptop, before focusing her attention on the newest patient.

“Hello Steven! I'm Dr. Andrea Osborne, but you can call me Andrea.” The therapist rose from her seat to welcome him. She looked to be in early thirties, wearing a white blouse with dark details in each extremity, black pants and closed shoes.

"Hi." Steven shyly took her hand, without prolonging eye contact.

“Please have a seat,” Andrea guided him to a chair in front of her transparent table. “Would you like some water?” She offered.

“Uh, yes.” At the mention of water he became aware of how dry his mouth was. Nervousness does that to you. He watched the therapist make her way towards the adjacent table and fill two glasses of water, one handed to him and one grasped around her long fingers.

Andrea took a small sip. “Since this is your first time at therapy I understand if you're nervous about it, but I assure you there’s nothing to worry about. This is a safe place where you can express yourself without judgment,” She explained. “And remember Steven, you don't have to talk about anything that makes you uncomfortable. If I bring up a sensitive topic, you warn me and we'll discuss something else, okay?”

“Okay.”

That being said, Andrea abandoned the serious posture and brought a nicer one. “To start today's session, why don't you tell me a little about yourself?”

What can I say about myself?, he pondered. “Um, my name's Steven, I live in Beach City with my sister Nora and the Gems, Garnet, Amethyst and Pearl. My dad is human and my mom was a gem,” He briefly lifted his shirt, regretting once the cold air hit his delicate gemstone. “And that makes me half-human and half-gem," Steven then remembered what Greg told him. “Do you know what gems are, right?”

“Yes, I do. They left quite an impact here on Earth,” Andrea confirmed. “Some humans were dedicated to studying their species throughout the decades and I was one of them. In my case, the psychological aspect, since emotional support used to be much scarce."

“What do you mean?”

“Humans didn't have the necessary knowledge to handle their own access to gem architecture and Corrupted Gems back then, and it led to certain unpleasant encounters,” Her choice of words reminded him of Pearl whenever she tried to soften details about something serious. "And speaking of gems, you said you live with your sister and guardians,” He nodded, not minding with the change of subject. “How is your relationship with them?”

“It's great!” Dr. Osborne saw him smile for the first time and it was so contagious she found herself smiling too. "My sister- We're twins, but she's younger than me. We're really close and do a lot of things together, like video games, watch TV and sometimes bike around the boardwalk.”

“And the Gems are awesome too! There's Garnet, she's the strongest and always knows what to do; Amethyst is super fun and she can do so many cool tricks; And Pearl is more organized. She always keeps us safe and she’s very serious about cleaning everything in the house.”

Apparently the relationships with the gem side of his family is stable somewhat and each one brings a different aspect; One he views as wise and looks after guidance; Other is seen as his equal and he can connect to; Alongside someone who works as his protector and caretaker.

“And what about your father? Does he live nearby?”

“Yeah, actually he lives in his van,” Steven clarifies. “He told us that when we were babies we used to live in Auntie Vidalia's house with her and Sour Cream, her son, and then some time later he got a house for us and we lived there for a few years.”

“Did you witness any gem situation during that time?”

Steven paused to think. “No. We lived a bit far from the Temple, so we never really saw the Gems fighting monsters until we moved in. I only knew what they did because they told us and sometimes they'd bring a few gem artifacts for us to see.”

Interesting how, presumingly, he spent most of his life with little to no contact with gem activities. “When did you and your sister move to the Temple?”

“Uh, I guess we were ten or eleven, but they started building the house way earlier.”

Dr. Osborne wrote down something and Steven tried to see anything, but the upside down letters made it impossible. “Steven, do you miss living with your father?”

Steven blinked in surprise. “Yeah. I do,” He stared at his glass of water, before proceeding. “It's been two or three years that we've been living apart and I got used to it, but I still miss when we lived together,” He quickly glanced at the woman to check if she was paying attention. She was. “It was hard, because I lived with my dad since…ever. Then one day he told us that we had to live with the Gems and they would help us with gem stuff and this kind of thing."

“How did you feel at that moment?”

“Sad and confused,” The joyful aura he expressed a few moments ago was completely gone by now. “I didn't understand. I know he thinks gem magic is dangerous, but he didn't have to be involved, he still could live with us,” He sighed. “I think the real reason is because he's not really close to the gems, especially Pearl.”

“And why's that?”

Steven shrugged. “I don't know. They didn't tell me, they never do.”

Something about his bitter, almost angry tone told Andrea he was lying. He had a perfect idea of what happened behind the decision, but he wasn't ready or willing to share yet. And that's okay.

“Did you witness any stressful situations after you moved to the Temple?”

Steven took a deep breath. “The first one I remember was Centipeetles attacking the house and I tried to help the gems because I summoned my shield after eating a Cookie Cat and I thought that was the key to use it,” He began. “Now I can control my powers better, but until last year they would appear out of nowhere and a few things happened because of this.”

“Can you give me a few examples?”

“My friend Connie and I got trapped in a bubble shield inside the ocean; When I tried to shapeshift cats started appearing everywhere in my body and once I almost turned so old I died,” Unlike at Dr. Maheswaran's office, recalling these scenarios here, was making him nervous. “And a few other things like when Amethyst cracked her gem, Pearl got poofed by her own hologram and we almost died trying to go into space in a spaceship she build.”

This is definitely not good. Steven has transitioned from a human and safe environment to a place where he is in constant danger. In almost two years living with these guardians he already experienced three near death situations. Andrea let her notebook and pen aside for a moment, ready to announce her thoughts, but Steven wasn't finished.

“But they weren't stressful, it was fine! I was fine. I didn't see the missions as dangerous, I thought they were fun and I always wanted to come along because I wanted to feel like a real Crystal Gem, but then that happened and…” His voice trailed off, words becoming less and less audible until it was nothing more than a shy whisper. He needed a moment to continue. “And it wasn't so fun anymore.”

“What happened?” The therapist asked gently, keeping her voice softened.

“Jasper,” He blurted out. “She came in that giant ship to capture us so Peridot could finish her mission.”

Dr. Osborne leaned forward, keeping her hands clasped together. “Who is Jasper?”

A threat that invaded the place he lived, a soldier that attacked his family, a Homeworld gem that almost took his little sister with her. She's someone who made him realize there's bad gems out there wanting to harm them and opened his eyes to the fact the Crystal Gems never owned all the answers to every problem and invincibility wasn't an adjective that fit them anymore.

“Fire a barrage! Widespread!” Jasper ordered.

Peridot swiped a finger right across her finger screen. Garnet pushed the twins out of the way as the warship cut a line across the beach, where Pearl and Amethyst weren't fast enough to dodge, being caught on it.

Once the smoke from the blast cleared up, the remaining trio searched for both gems and instead, their eyes caught the reflection of their gemstones landing on the sand. They were poofed. “No!” They cried out for them.

Garnet then stood up from behind Steven and Nora, charging at Jasper. Her opponent summoned her weapon, a crash helmet, and blocked the Crystal Gem’s punch, creating a powerful draft that pushed back Garnet and the twins.

She quickly recovered and charged at the quartz again. “You two, RUN!!”

Jasper pulled out an electrical weapon and dashed at Garnet, jabbing her in the chest with the destabilizer. The fusion became unresponsive, yellow currents ran across her body, ripping every piece of consciousness from it.

Nora and Steven watched in horror as Garnet's physical body fell apart. Her empty eyes locked on theirs one last time, before poofing away.

Fuming, Jasper roughly threw the shield aside, getting it to dematerialize in a blink of an eye. Nora fell back and the quartz gave her no time to react, grabbing the twin by her shirt.

"No! Nora!” Steven tried to reach out for her.

“Get out of my way, brat!” Jasper grabbed him and threw the boy carelessly onto the ground. Steven groaned in pain due to landing on his left arm, unable to move or else his limb would become even more sore.

“Steven?”

He opened his eyes, expecting to have the emerald sky surround him while sand stuck on his flip flops, but there were only four silver gray walls with certified degrees on a few of them.

“Steven, it’s alright. You're here, you're safe.” Andrea's voice sounded a little farther than it should be. “Take deep breaths, can you do that for me?”

At first he didn't understand why concern clouded her features, but once he complied with the request it made sense. He felt it. That simple action woke him to the present, returning his mind to his own body and every uncomfortable sensation was perceived.

His skin glued to his shirt where a dark spot was seen. His trembling hands caused some water to spill out of his glass. Both of his legs tangled around each other to keep him curled up.

“Steven.”

The boy focused on the voice, grounding him.

“Steven, it's okay. Look at me and repeat what I do, okay?”

Okay, he can do that.

Slowly, Andrea breathed in deeply for three seconds, held her breath for another three seconds, and then gently exhaled for three seconds.

Steven breathed in for a second, held his breath for three seconds, and then exhaled for three seconds.

Steven breathed in for two seconds, held his breath for three seconds, and then exhaled for four seconds.

Steven breathed in deeply for three seconds, held his breath for three seconds, and then exhaled for three seconds.

Slowly, Steven breathed in deeply for three seconds, held his breath for another three seconds, and then gently exhaled for three seconds.

“Feeling better?”

Steven nodded, drinking the remaining water the glass still had. “I'm sorry.”

“Steven, you have nothing to apologize for,” Andrea was right by his side to take the empty object and put it back to its place. “Your anxiety over recalling a traumatic event is your body reacting to stress. It’s not something you can control it and there's no reason to be ashamed,” She said firmly, but full of genuine care for her patient. “We can talk about something else to avoid overwhelming you.”

Steven avoided her gaze, zipping up his hazel jacket to cover the state of his shirt. “But I need to!” He insisted. “That's why I came here in the first place, I have to do this!”

Andrea walked back to him, kneeling in front of the boy whose face was slightly pink. “Steven, you're not obligated to do anything in therapy. Some issues are harder to deal with and we need time to overcome them. I've had plenty of patients who came into my office with certain objectives and they stepped back because they felt overwhelmed. It's perfectly fine not to be able to do it in the first try, because each time they tried to address it's a step ahead to eventually accomplish it."

Steven thought about her words, feeling actually better. “I don't want to talk about Jasper. Can we move on to something else?”

“Of course, dear.”

─ ·★· ─

Steven didn't address what he intended to, but the good thing now is that he has a clear idea of how psychotherapy works. If he decides to continue, he knows it won't be an easy process, and that was pretty obvious when he got anxious at the mention of Jasper.

But that intrigued him, to say the least.

Tons of unshared thoughts are still locked inside his heart and none of them were predicted to be exposed to the world or anyone specifically. Until now. He needs this and Steven knows he does.

Besides, isn't this what he's been bugging Nora about? Face her fear and solve her issues with Pearl? That means being in touch with her own emotions and private thoughts. He should follow his own advice.

Something vibrates inside his pocket, someone messaged him. He lost track of time.

Sis♡: Where are u?

Just got your laundry done

Sis♡: My laundry??

Yep

You're welcome

:D

Sis♡: You're unbelievable 

*** I'm amazing

He giggles at the message, already expecting Nora's reaction. Steven carries the blue basket and opens the dryer, noticing it had stopped a while ago, throwing the laundry out of it.

“I hope things between you and Pearl get better.” Brown eyes look at the shirts, socks, dungarees and other clothes that need to be folded.

Lifting the basket, he walks to the warp pad, but it doesn't activate. Steven stands there, alone, silent, lost of what decision it's the best to be made.

Steven pulls out his phone and searches through his contacts, stopping scrolling when DAD pops on his screen. He clicks on it, briefly reading their last conversation that it took place hours earlier, assuring him that he and Nora had lunch.

He typed. Deleted. Typed again, more. Deleted, more. He typed. Then send it.

Dad, would it be okay if I want to go back to therapy?

Chapter Text

Nora doesn't remember when she fell asleep, but remembers the exact time when she woke up. 2:25 AM. She finishes washing her hands and stares at her own reflection in the bathroom mirror.

It's been a few hours since she went to sleep and still, somehow, her face has remains of earlier tears. She yawns and that's her clue to leave and go back to bed.

Midway, Nora's ears sharpen at the sound coming from the outside. The sea. It's calling her, like it always does during solitude. She takes a quick glance at Steven to make sure he's still asleep and goes outside.

Opening the door, she's met with the chilling wind that even her soft long pajamas couldn't protect her from shivering. As expected, the beach is empty and dark, it's a bit hard to have a good look at the sea but the loud crashing waves are a nice reminder they're there.

Nora finds it so peaceful. There's something so soothing about being cradled by the infinitude of a sky full of stars and ocean whose horizon tests the limits of vision.

She just stands there and lets her body embrace the senses it has; Viewing the small shining spots caused by the moonlight. Breathing in the smell of salt. Feeling the wind push across her open palms.

Then something touches her shoulders and she yelps.

“Chill Noor, it's just me.” Amethyst reveals herself, owning her characteristic smirk. “Watcha doing here awake?”

For a second Nora is tempted to say the real season, but chooses not to. “Nothing.” She supports her arms on the wooden porch and without seeing it, she feels Amethyst does the same next to her, making it two people observing the agitated waves.

“Man, it's been a while since we've hung out, huh?” Amethyst leans forwards until her feet barely touch the floor. “Have a lot to catch up.”

“I guess,” Nora says. “Last time we actually talked was in-”

“The garage.”

She feels her whole body tense. Nora knows Amethyst is mostly straightforward from all gems, but she wasn't expecting her to actually bring this up. “I wasn't going to-” 

“Sorry.”

The human takes a moment to register. “What?”

“The garage thing. M’sorry about that,” Amethyst quits looking ahead and looks at the young girl next to her. Their eyes met for a moment. “I don't know what has gotten into me, but you didn't deserve it. You didn't deserve to see it.”

Neither my dad. “It's okay.”

“Really?” Now it's Amethyst's turn to be taken back. “Cause I know things got weird between us and that I should’ve said something, but you know I suck at this kind of thing,” And that's pretty obvious by how she is spending the whole conversation avoiding looking in her eyes, shifting weight from one foot to another. “Besides, I didn't know if you wanted to see me or punch me in the face after all that.”

That earned a short chuckle from the twin. “I wouldn't do that, Amy. But I don't think I would be ready to talk back then.”

“Figured out.” She goes silent for a moment, silently debating herself before speaking again. “But, y’know, if you want to talk I'm right here.”

Nora looks at the gem as if she's out of her mind. “Since when you talk about stuff?”

“Since my favorite twin needs it.”

She snorts, shaking her head. “Last time you said Steven was your favorite twin.”

“Heh, what can I say? I'm a gem of the moment.” Amethyst shrugs. “You know, we have a mission today and Pearl is going to ask you to come with us,” Seeing the bad reaction from Nora, she continues. “Look, I know she can be a huge pain in the ass when she wants to, but c'mon she isn't that bad.”

“And I should believe that because…?"

“Because it's me, of all people, defending her. You've seen the bunch of times we kept bickering with each other, so if I'm saying that she wants to make things better it's because it's true!” Nora crosses her arm, but keeps listening. “Let's be honest, Bird Mom has a lot of defects, but she'd rather poof herself than hurt any of you on purpose.”

“That's not the point,” Nora sighs, a little exasperated. “But whatever. Maybe I'll go on that stupid mission, it's not like I have anything else other than homework to do.”

“Oh yeah! That's the spirit!” Amethyst wraps an arm around her, shaking her with excitement. “Pew pew!” She finger-guns, initiating their secret handshake.

Nora can't help but smile and go with this. “Pew pew!”

“One, two, three, hup!” Both hug each other tightly, making the embrace last longer. With an arm around her shoulder, Amethyst guides her back inside. “Glad to have you back, little one. Now go recharge your energy cause today’s gonna be a great day!”

Nora walks upstairs while Amethyst goes towards her room. “Fine, goodnight Amy.”

“Night!”

─ ·★· ─

With Connie and Peedee's absence, the twins spend their afternoon entertaining themselves with their own hobbies;

Steven sits on the couch playing on his Brick Game while Nora rests her head on his lap reading No Home Boys: Case of the Pilfered Pegasus, an adaptation novel of No Home Boys that most fans didn't like (including her brother).

They redirect their focus when a bright blue light engulfs the whole house, meaning the Gems have returned. “You guys are back!” Steven abandons his game to greet them.

“Only for a second, we're heading to another mission,” Pearl sends an apologetic look at the young’s dismay. “We came to bring you with us and… Nora if she wants to join.”

Having her name mentioned, Nora drops the book she's holding and glances up at Pearl using the most annoying face she can make. 

Gems don't have hearts, but if they did, Pearl's would be broken in a million pieces. “It'll be a simple mission to retrieve an hourglass from the Sea Shrine.” She insists one last time, the fake excitement long gone from her voice.

Amethyst is giving a thumbs up while a starry-eyed Steven is thrilled with the idea of having his sister join a mission. She feels bad to disappoint them. “I guess… Why not?”

Both cheer and after Garnet's warning to put on their sweaters to protect them from the low temperature everyone is ready to go.

The Sea Shrine is located in the Caribbean Sea, although you couldn't really tell once you're inside the enormous place. The palace is a transparent building with golden edges dividing the walls into windows, allowing anyone to see the marine life routing across the ocean.

Hourglasses crafted into the most diverse shapes and sizes decorate the place either on the floor or disposable long tables and in most of them the sand challenges the law of physics.

“So many hourglasses, which one are we looking for?” Steven asks, walking arm in arm with Nora.

“The legendary one,” Pearl says. “During their conquest of other planets, Homeworld had a very strict way to do their… thing, where no mistakes were tolerable. Of course, this was inevitable, but then special hourglasses were made to observe past events and prevent future mistakes from happening. Although, there weren't many hourglasses created and most of them were either broken or lost. I fear the one here on Earth is the only one left.”

The twins observe around them. “And which one is it?”

“We don't know, the hourglass was put in shrines among other ones to trick lower ranking gems and make them choose the wrong one. There's a right pattern that led to the right one, it works as a defense mechanism,” They walk past the most unique ones. “If we fail, like last time, the whole place will collapse and we have to wait another 100 years for it to reform.”

“It’s this one.” Garnet's voice brings their attention.

Steven and Nora approach her and look up in awe at the giant hourglass in the entire Temple. It's so big they need to take a few steps back and raise their head all the way up to see it fully.

“You mean the biggest one?” Pearl glances worriedly at the crystalline platform. “How are we even supposed to get that back to the Warp Pad?"

A solution pops into Steven's mind. “Are you guys going to fuse!? Into a big strong fusion like Sugilite!?”

The gems’ expressions change at the implied suggestion. While Pearl doesn't bother to hide her concern, Amethyst tries to play it off. “Yeah... it's up to Garnet, I guess.” She smiles a bit and turns to the leader. “What do you say? Shall we get going?”

“No.”

Amethyst’s face falls. “But, don't we need to be strong like last time?”

“Last time was a disaster,” Garnet stated. “Last time we fused, Sugilite went berserk. It's because of her that we can't even warp to the Communication Hub anymore and…” Behind her visor, three eyes saddens at the sight of Nora and Pearl. “We hurt people we cared about.”

That day full of negative events wouldn't be forgotten so soon, by none of them.

Garnet takes off her visor, willing to show them a small portion of vulnerability behind the true tangled in her words. “I can be brash, you can be reckless and we can both get carried away.”

“But you don't need to,” Nora says, making everyone stop and stare at her, confused. “I know bad things happened last time, but it can be different now. You both changed and maybe that can be a chance to show it… through Sugilite.”

Amethyst waits for Garnet's response. She knows the Sugilite incident wasn't entirely her fault, however her personality certainly corroborated, not only the wild and reckless part of it, but her own insecurities and desire to experience what it feels like to be strong and so sure of yourself.

Seconds go by without any words pronounced until express her decision. “You're right, we shouldn't let past mistakes define who we are today. All of us have chances to change and this may be ours,” Garnet finally puts her visor back on. “Amethyst, fuse with me.”

This time, the purple gem doesn't scream in euphoria or goes crazy with the chance of being able to feel stronger and greater. Instead, she calmly nods and stances herself in front of the fusion.

On the other side, Garnet also composes herself, raising both hands where gemstones begin to glow. She is focused, determined not to let Amethyst’s lack of inhibition and her own raw power distract them.

What happened last time cannot be repeated.

A short easy synchronized dance is enough to have the two guardians morph into a single taller and stronger five-eyed being. Sugilite is back and debuting her new outfit; Her top now colored in a lighter violet and darker purple with colors evenly split. The leggings and star-shaped patches are no longer ripped, with the left star colored black and the right one colored dark-violet.

With a few seconds back to existence, she doesn't say a word. Her only visible eye glances at the rest of the group and each of them have distinguished expressions; Pearl is still worried she may go out of control, Steven is excited to see her again and Nora is sure she can do her best.

She won't disappoint her.

Sugilite focus to shrink her size to accommodate her body to keep from bursting the ceiling. 

Wordless, the fusion positions herself in front of the Hourglass, now looking smaller in comparison lacking its majestic appearance. A pair of magenta-themed gauntlets are summoned at the request of Pearl's warning.

And speaking of which, the pale gem is impressed by how serious she is actually being. She wasn't looking forward to seeing Sugilite so soon, but now that she is here Pearl really hopes things won't go downhill.

Sugilite grabs the hourglass, without touching it directly, and carries it to the warp pad. “Where will we put this thing?” Is the first and only phrase she says.

Pearl puts a hand on her chin. “I'm not sure if it'll pass through the door, but try to place it in the Burning Room. We'll see how to handle it afterwards.”

Sugilite only grunts in response, holding the artifact in hands once more and teleports back to the Temple. Pearl turns to the twins and guides them towards the remaining ones. “Now once we made the correct choice we can take one more common hourglass,” She looks at the youngest. “Would you like to choose?”

Nora shrugs, but doesn't dismiss the offer. The twins walk around the table and examine the most appealing hourglass to pick, now carefree without the tension of choices.

While Steven is interested in ones having a quirky shape, Nora spots one that could be easily forgotten by how tiny it is compared to the rest. “I think I'll take this small one.”

“Aw, it's adorable!” Steven coos. “But we can't touch it, how are you going to take it?”

“I can bubble it.” Nora suggests, approaching her hands into a cupping gesture the closest she can get without touching. Just like Steven taught me. She focuses on activating her power at her own will and due to her efforts a pink bubble envelopes around the hourglass.

Behind them, the warp pad is heard being activated and once the bright light it's gone, Garnet and Amethyst's form is revealed. They look troubled.

“Watch out!” Seconds after Garnet's forecast, a corrupted gem shows itself in front of them; A giant skull with green gems in the place of their eyes, and on the center of their forehead, having three long tufts of burgundy hair coming from their heads with spiked collars.

“What is that!?” Steven exclaims.

“It's an electric skull!” Right away a spear finds itself in Pearl's hand. “They sensed us, they know we're here for…” Her eyes wander to the bubbled artifact. “The hourglass! It must be the powered one!”

Nora takes a few steps back, keeping the bubble to her chest. “What do we do?”

Amethyst launches her whip against the corrupted gem. “We DESTROY THEM!” With a good grip around the monster, she swings it over the palace, poofing it with the impact.

Meanwhile the trio take care of most monsters, the older twin stays to reinsure Nora will stay safe, and he's right there when an electric skull decides to target them.

It attacks them with one of its hairs, but Steven blocks the front attack, giving time to be hit by Pearl's spear. However another electric skull arises behind them and uses a strand of hair to grab him by the middle and lifts him off the ground while Nora stays defenseless. “Steven!”

He tries to activate his bubble shield, but it's impossible to concentrate with the hair too tight around him. The skull begins to shake, charging itself to unleash a powerful wave of electricity and Steven's struggles renew.

Nora’s heart sinks at the sight of her brother in danger and then there is the same familiar burning sensation emerging from her chest, spreading all over her limbs. Panic is replaced by anger. She has seen him nearly die too many times, she is not going to let that happen again.

No one messes with my brother.

“STOP!” A powerful pink wave of energy is unleashed from Nora, causing a crater beneath her and the whole palace shake with the impact.

All Gems stop their attack, too stunned when the strong vibration ran across their whole frame, watching every single electric skull lose their physical form.

The one trapping Steven didn't even get the chance to power itself, poofing away, letting the twin fall from a high height. Luckily Amethyst is fast enough to spin-dash and catch him before he reaches the ground.

“Whoa, that was awesome! Did you see it!?” He exclaims, held in bridal style. “How did you do that?” Amethyst puts him down and Steven goes straight towards his sister.

“I… I don't know,” Nora replies, lowering her head. She experiences a strong Deja Vu and a weird sense of shame overtakes her. “I'm sorry.”

“What are you apologizing for, dummy? You totally rocked!” Amethyst ruffles her curls. “The skulls didn't even stand a chance.”

“But look at the shrine, we're lucky I didn't damage the hourglasses and made the whole place collapse,” Nora gestures to the palace, pointing at the visible cracks over the walls and debris landing away from the crater. “It was really close.”

A voice in her head tells how wrong she was for doing it as if it was a forbidden act. It's like a bad memory is attached to it, but she can't recall whatever that may be.

“Don't worry about it. You saved your brother and took care of the skulls, that's what really matters.” Garnet says and even at the clear good intention behind it, those words weren't exactly what she wanted to hear.

Now that they found the special hourglass they are ready to go. Back home, they are welcomed by a great weather visible through the window with calmness and-

“C-Connie?”

“Hi.” The student shyly waves at them, prepared for Nora's surprise. The pink shirt, dark gray shorts and strapless shoulder tells she is not here for her weekly training. “Did Steven tell you I wanted to talk?”

“Yeah, he did.” Nora mumbles, ashamed for the reminder she left tons of her friend's messages unanswered to this day.

“We'll leave you two alone,” Garnet places both hands on Pearl and Amethyst's back. She takes the encapsulated object from Nora's hand, and offers a tiny smile. “You did a great job today.”

Nora can't even loosen up with the compliment, too nervous with Connie's presence. She helplessly watches the trio get inside the Bubble Room, leaving the kids on their own.

Connie eyes Steven, then glances at Nora. We need some space.

Got it. “I'll bring us a few donuts,” Steven comes up with an excuse and heads to the door. “I won't be long!” He assures, in his usual joyful tone.

Nora is about to stop him, but Steven is already gone. Maybe it was better that way. Asking him to stay because she couldn't bear to deal with her own issues alone sounded extremely immature, even being true.

“Don't you want to sit down?” Connie suggests, trying to make things less awkward. It wasn't supposed to be like this, they are friends and none of them should be this afraid to discuss any kind of situation.

“Yeah…” Nora sits down, not much close to her.

“Nora, before anything I want to say that I'm not angry with you,” Connie starts. “I want things to be normal again and I'm really sorry for upsetting you. I felt like somehow I caused this and-”

“No, no, no! It wasn't your fault, I promise!” Her friend is quick to tell her it's not the case. “Connie, I was happy for you when you started training with Pearl, for real. I encouraged that because I knew how good you were and how far you could get.”

Connie looks fondly at her, happy to hear that was genuinely thought of her.

“The problem was I got… jealous,” If admitting to herself was hard, saying it out loud was even more. “I was jealous of the attention you were getting from Pearl, she was so happy to teach you how to fight and she never was like that with me. When I came up with the idea to train against you it wasn't because I was angry at you or anything, I just wanted Pearl to be proud of me.”

Her eyes are near watering, but she gets ahold of herself. A hand is placed above hers and she appreciates the gesture. "I know what I did was wrong and I'm really sorry. I’m sorry for hurting you and making you feel bad for something that wasn't even your fault. Can you forgive me?”

“Of course I do!” Connie's eyes widen at the absurdity of the question. “Nora, I'm not mad at you. We're friends and I know you didn't mean to. I'm glad that was only a misunderstanding, that's why I wanted us to talk and be honest with each other.”

“So, things are okay between us?”

“Definitely!” She holds out her hand. “Jam Buds?”

“Jam Buds.” Nora smiles and high-fives her. “So, we spent a few days without talking to each other. Did I miss anything?”

“Oh right! Actually there's something I wanted to show you and Steven.” Connie pulls out her phone and searches for something before handing it to Nora.

A bunch of text waits to be read. “Gems are an extraterrestrial species of ‘magical’ roughly humanoid beings that come in a wide array of colors, appearances, sizes, and structures based on their gemstone type. Little to no is known about the species, except the plans of complete colonization of Earth planned by ‘Homeworld Gems’, driven off by a rebellion led by a soldier named Rose Quartz.” She finishes reading. “Wait, is this from a Cyclepedia page?”

“Yes! I was looking into the news about the frequent earthquakes from Southern Califarmland and I saw a few people saying it's from a gem incident. Then I kept searching to see if I could find more about the gems on the internet and I did!” Connie types on her phone and a few videos pop up on the screen.

The first one is titled G.E.M.S: What the Government Doesn't Want You to Know!!!, followed by What Are Gems and Why You Should Be AWAY from Them and Gems x USA - Alliance Fully Explained.

“Not much is positive, huh?” Nora comments.

“Yeah, I noticed it.” Connie frowns, taking her phone back. “Do you have any idea why? I know gems probably have been on Earth for thousands of years, but did they ever do something bad to humans back then or throughout history?”

“Not really. Actually, now that you mentioned I don't think we ever asked the Gems about these things, like how long they've been here or how everything started.”

“You never asked!? The most basic questions!?” Connie stares dumbfoundead at her friend.

“Guess not?” Nora replies bashfully.

“Looks like I'll take the role of ‘curious kid’. If we could get the Gems to-” The red and blue gems on the door Temple lights up, announcing Garnet's presence. “Ha, what a coincidence! “Garnet, we were just talking about gems and there's a few things we're curious about.”

Nora looks at Garnet and grins, knowing very well it wasn't a simple coincidence. Future Vision.

“Tell me what you want to know.”

“Everything!” Connie squeals in delight. Realizing her crave to learn was shown without filters, she blushes. “I mean, it would be nice to know how gems and humans got along. You guys have been here for a long time, right? How was it when humans discovered gem things?”

The girls moved further, allowing Garnet to sit between them. “Gems have been here for a long time indeed, for 6,000 years to be exact, but it wasn’t for good intentions. They intended to damage the planet to favor the creation of more gems and structures to bridge the Earth and Homeworld.”

“And that’s why Nora and Steven's mom choose to fight them, right? To keep the Earth safe?”

“Yes. We and many others Crystal Gems defended the planet to protect the life it had against the path of destruction Homeworld had planned for it,” Garnet glances down at both gemstones on each hand. “It wasn't easy. The war was devastating and many victims were made, gems and humans.”

“Humans fought with gems too?”

“They did,” She confirms. “Back then, humans were very primitive and at first they were confused and couldn't comprehend well who we were and it is understandable. They viewed us as some kind of goddesses who should be venerated, which we denied. Once we explained what we really were and our circumstances they were willing to help and fight for their own home.”

“Yet Homeworld was too strong, even with the union of gems and humans with the weapons we had it was extremely disadvantageous for us-”

“But you won!” 

Garnet manages to smile a little. “We did.”

Connie felt bad for breaking the moment, but other questions rolled on her tongue. “But I found a few videos and texts from people criticizing gems, did something bad happen to taint you guys reputation?”

She hums, now turning serious. “Centuries after the war, when humanity evolved and created reunions to discuss politics they demand to talk to us regarding the consequences of our presence through the years. We were unsure if it was the right choice, but Rose insisted that we should try to communicate saying that it would be pointless to put so much effort into saving a planet without understanding who we saved.”

And there is her mom again. Rose Quartz. Always bringing solutions and spreading a wider point of view to whoever was around her. No matter how many stories of her are told, Nora will never stop being marveled by the person who brought her to life.

She only wishes her mother's sacrifice wasn't in vain.

“Many said we were a threat to humanity and that none of the millions of deaths would've happened if we never came to Earth. While others defended us and acknowledged we only intended to protect the planet from the colonization we had no control over,” She explains. “We couldn't blame them for distrusting us, they had valid reasons for wanting to keep their distance; Many lives were reaped, ecosystems either extinct or irreversibly damaged, and places became unlivable. We had to respect their decision.”

In Connie's eyes, who doesn't know Garnet for long, she may seem okay, but to Nora, a gloom tone is present on the fusion's voice. They probably can't forgive themselves for everything that occurred. “How did things turn out?”

“After a very long reunion with many representatives we came to a solution and the Treaty of Helsinki was created, where we agreed to leave the humans alone until it's extremely necessary. But ever since the war, nothing alarming has ever happened that needed our help.”

“That’s good,” Nora scoots closer to Garnet. “I'm sorry most people acted and still act that way with you guys. It's not fair, you deserved at least a thank you from everything you went through to save everyone.”

“Don't be sorry Nora. We never expected anything in return from them, not even their gratitude. What really matters to us is the safety of them and Earth,” Garnet pulls both kids closer, now turning to Connie. “That's the real goal of a Crystal Gem.”

The student smiles, pride shining in her eyes for being included.

Far sound of footsteps becomes louder and Steven returns with two bags filled with donuts. “Aaaand Steven is back with some delici-” He interrupts himself at the sight in front of him. “Aw man, what did I miss this time?”

Chapter Text

The youngest members of the Crystal Gems are watching an episode of Crying Breakfast Friends in the twins’ bedroom. While Steven and Amethyst are sat down next to each other, Nora lays sprawled across them, head on Steven's lap and feet on Amethyst's.

On screen, Crying Pear accidentally drops his ice cream on the floor and he and Sad Spoon start crying. Bawling Bacon then arrives, looks at the mishaps for a while and starts crying as well.

Amethyst cringes at the scene. “I don't get this cartoon, man, why don't they just eat that ice cream off the floor? They don't have to cry about it.”

The scene follows on when the TV's signal suddenly starts glitching up. “Aw, not again. It was doing this yesterday too.” Steven groans, about to take the remote when Amethyst stops him.

“Hang on, I got it.” She gets up and starts kicking the TV set on its side a few times. “How about now?” The quartz yelps in surprise as the TV starts shaking and rumbling.

“Now that's new,” Nora abandons her position, intrigued by it. She asks Steven for the remote and tries to see if it does something. "It doesn't even work."

A few words become recognizable when the sound distortion begins to fade and the green silhouette takes form through the flickering. The image and audio finally stabilizes, giving the full picture of…

“Peridot! Guys, come over here!” Steven motions for Pearl and Garnet, both downstairs in the kitchen discussing something between them. They rush upstairs, surprised at the ongoing dialogue.

“This is Peridot transmitting on all frequencies from abandoned crystal system colony planet Earth to Yellow Diamond. My mission has been compromised, my escort and informant are gone and I am now stranded! Please send help!”

Gathered around, the Crystal Gems wait to see if anything more will be said, but the transmission only continues to repeat itself. Nora receives a message from Sour Cream.

Older older brother: My Tv is weird

Older older brother: Onion got scared

Older older brother: There's this person talking about a Yellow Diamond (?)

Older older brother: she looks like a gem

It’s Peridot, we found her pod that day

Ty for the warn !!

“Sour Cream said it's on his TV too.” Nora warns them, finishing typing her reply. She sees Steven is also talking to someone on his phone.

“Okay, thanks!" Steven hangs up. “Peedee said the same.”

Pearl frowns. “But where could Peridot be broadcasting a signal that strong?”

“There's only one place.”

The Communication Hub.

On their destination, Lion emerges from a portal with Garnet, Pearl and Amethyst riding on his back. He lasts a few seconds before collapsing off his feet from the weight of the Gems, and the twins pop out of his mane, gasping for air.

“Lion, are you okay?” Nora and Steven leave and stand next to him, petting his head, while the Gems examine the place.

“It's as I feared.” Garnet says, looking at the Communication Hub, not fully reconstructed back together, glowing and shooting a beam of light towards the sky.

“It looks like Peridot somehow repaired the Communication Hub. Well, at least some of it.” Pearl comments. “Judging by how crudely she reconstructed, I say it'll be enough to indo it without too much damage. She won't be able to do it again due to how scarce her resources are.”

“I'm sure she won't, but this time we'll be more careful,” She nearly jumps when Garnet's hand is felt on her left shoulder. Looking up to face her, she spots the reminder of a smile. “It's you and me, Pearl. Let's fuse.”

Fuse? With… Garnet!?

For a second, Pearl thinks she misheard it, but Garnet still stares at her waiting for an answer. She heard correctly, this is really happening. “Don't cry, Pearl.” It's hard not to. She quivers with the effort and strongly breathes in through her nose, sniffling thickly.

“Come on, let's do this.”

Steven runs towards them. “Woohoo! Fusion! Fusion! Fusion! Fusion!” He sits down beside Lion with Amethyst and Nora right behind him.

In front of a small audience, Garnet and Pearl perform a perfect mixture of elegance and enticement dance, trusting each other's body with slow moves and a final pirouette resulting in a cheerful and, sometimes, cocky fusion.

“Gooood evening, everybody!” Sardonyx greets them once her form is revealed. “This is the lovely Sardonyx, coming to you a-live from the soon-to-be-former Communication Hub! How are y'all doing tonight?” Her theatrical dialogue isn't only shown through her approach, but also clothes with the combination of a black tailcoat tuxedo-leotard with a tangerine bow tie and white gloves on her first set of arms.

“Great!” Amethyst goes with her antics while Nora remains quiet, unamused.

Steven gasps. “Giant woman!”

Sardonyx brings two hands down in front of the siblings. “Oh my stars! Is this-” Her words disappear in her tongue when Nora steps away, forcefully crossing her arms while Steven is the only one who jumps into the fusion's hands. The sight definitely hurt, but she pushed her feelings aside. “If it isn't Steven Universe! We finally met. So, what do you think? Was I worth the wait?"

Steven stares in awe at how she was able to spin her torso a full 360°. “Wow, you're so articulated!”

“Well, aren't you the sweetest little charmer!” Sardonyx brings her other pair of hands to Steven and starts squeezing him lightly. “I could literally squish you right now! It would not be hard.”

“No…” Steven laughs while being squished.

Sardonyx chuckles, but her smile falters when her four eyes risk a glance down to check on Nora's reaction. She hasn't changed, in fact, the younger twin seemed more uncomfortable and inpatient, definitely eager to leave as soon as she's allowed to.

Silently sighing to herself, the fusion quits her entertainment and puts Steven down. “Let's get this over with.” The uplifting aura is gone, and so is the wide smile with a subtle gap in front teeth.

This time she doesn't even bother to make a show, simply summoning Garnet's gauntlets and Pearl's spear, combining them together and transforming into a war hammer where the color pallette matches her outfit.

Sardonyx leaps up and start hitting the columns of the Hub, one by one, avoiding collapsing the tower as a whole by preserving the base structure. She does her job completely silent, without a joke, harmless commentaries or praising herself like she always does because she's Sardonyx! She's amazing, specific, intelligent, accurate, faultless, elegant and so much more.

Unlike Pearl, who's weak, lost, useless on her own and needs to be constantly told what to do to keep herself from messing up like she did. That's how she views herself, that's what Sardonyx’s mind is full of.

All the columns are knocked away, shutting down the entire Hub. Sardonyx unfuses, separating into a sad Pearl and neutral Garnet, in their dance position. 

Everybody returns to the Temple, back to their normalcy. A tense normalcy.

─ ·★· ─

A day later and the Crystal Gems architected a plan to capture Peridot, or better say, Pearl architected a plan to track the green gem. Since the escape pod was Peridot's, Pearl planned to use her recognition system registered on it and connect with the Temple's warp pad, twisting its magic to alert them each time Peridot teleported and give them her exact location.

It wasn't complicated and Pearl was eager to start her project the fastest she could. The rest of the group opted to leave her alone, knowing she preferred to work without being disturbed, but right now all she could feel is loneliness.

To be honest, Pearl never minded having Steven or Nora around whenever she was in the middle of something. They never bothered enough to be asked to leave, besides it was fun to hear their shenanigans as a cozy background soundtrack.

And if Pearl didn't mind having them around, Steven himself didn't mind to be around. It was nice to see her work, since whatever she made seemed so interesting.

The guardian is certain the reason neither twins are home is because Nora can't even stand the sight of Pearl. At this time, they would be watching Crying Breakfast Friends and she can't help but occasionally glance at the unoccupied loft.

“Steven, you stay out of this!” She points at him, lowering her tone. “Because if there's someone who has no idea about this whole thing is you! You were always the favorite, her favorite! She always loved you more, so don't tell me how to feel because you have no idea what is like to be me!”

That's why Pearl hates absolute silence, the source of the unplanned, it's where bad ideas are born and you become a victim of your own brain bringing your biggest failures and inner insecurities.

“And you-” She turns her attention to the gem, still on the same spot aside Connie. “I hate you,” Nora growls. “I hate you! I hate you! I HATE YOU! I HATE YOU!”

It's too much for her heart. Nora said she hated her. And that hurtful phrase didn't seem like meaningless words thrown out in the heat of the moment, they were carried with resentment and built frustration over the years.

The escape pod became a green blur in front of her stinging eyes while the pliers slipped from her hand, falling inside the pod. Pearl kneels facing the floor, hitching a breath at the possibility of never being forgiven by someone she loves dearly.

Sound of footsteps reaches her ear, signaling someone has left the Temple and is walking right towards her. It's steady, only one gem walked that way.

“G-Garnet!” Pearl tries to wipe away the tears, although a few ones still fall regardless. She doesn't dare to look back. “I was just finishing c-connecting the wires. I-I just need to do a few more adjustments and soon we'll-”

“Pearl,” How can a simple call of her name be carried of concern and awaken the emotions she's been trying to suppress. “You need to talk about this.”

A firm hand is placed on her back, she feels the coldness of the gem — Sapphire's — and using the little courage she still has, Pearl looks over her shoulder to face Garnet, letting the leader see her own pair of teary cyan eyes.

“You need to talk about this with Nora.” Garnet insists, clarifying.

“I can't,” It's all she can mutter. “She doesn't even want to see me, let alone talk!” Pearl bites her lips, shutting her eyes tightly in a poor attempt to stop more tears from welling up. It doesn't work. “But she is right. Nora has every right to be upset with me.”

Saying it out loud it's like stating a fact, facing the realization of her actions, something that can't be ignored. She failed Nora, her little girl, and broke her heart to the point where she viewed herself unworthy of her love and acceptance.

She did that.

“Oh Garnet, I really failed her!” Pearl blurts, tears freeing rolling down her face. “She is sure I love her less than Steven and all because I was selfish and so inconsiderate to her feelings and now… there's no way I can fix this mess.”

“There it is. Nora won't stay upset with you forever, I know she will give you a chance.”

“Of course you know, you know everything.” There's no bitterness or sarcasm in Pearl's words, actually it sounds more like a confession. “No wonder you two are so close. You always know what to say, what to do, you're exactly what she needs. You're perfect.”

“You're wrong!” Garnet disagrees. “I’m not perfect, far from it. I've said the wrong things, made bad decisions. I have weaknesses too, but I choose not to let them consume me,” She tilts her head to the side, silently asking to be looked at. “And Pearl, what Nora really needs is her family. You may not believe it, but she really looks up to you."

“Why would she?” Pearl sniffles. “I'm not a good example at all. I'm just a pearl, I'm useless on my own,” More tears fall again. “I need someone to tell me what to do or else I will keep making mistakes.”

“Mistakes are made so we can learn from them, but we can either choose to leave things how they are or use them to become better. Nora looks up to you because you're intelligent, strong and have a willpower that any gem would want.” It's so hard to believe it when every action proves otherwise. “Please understand, Pearl. You have an impact too, we all do, because we're a team, a family and as much Nora needs me, Amethyst or Steven, she really needs you right now.”

“Do you think she'll forgive me?”

“I'm sure she will, if you're willing to change for good.” Garnet slightly adjusts her visor, indicating it wasn't only a possibility.

“I am! And I will, for her.” Pearl won't waste whatever opportunity that will show up. She had a long way building that relationship with Nora and she isn't willing to let it crumble.

And to think things were pretty much different back then.

Pearl is displeased.

She didn't want to be here. In Greg's house. At Greg's presence. With Greg's children.

But Garnet insisted they should be present in Steven's and Nora's lives. She said that before she unfused into Sapphire and Ruby. They've been like this for months.

Pearl stayed quiet, leaning against the corner next to the stairs. Amethyst and Ruby were outside entertaining Sour Cream while Vidalia made dinner. Sapphire was helping Greg collect the dropped toys and other things all over the living room.

She heard Vidalia asking Greg to handle the pan for a moment and seconds later she appeared right in front of the gem, out of the other's sight. “Pearl, I need you to go upstairs and check on the kids to see if they're okay.”

Pearl's mouth turned into a thin line, hardening her eyes. “Me?” Her standard politeness is engulfed by indignation. “Why don't you go see these… children by yourself?”

Vidalia already expected that kind of response, but it didn't stop her from pinching the bridge of her nose and taking a sharp breath. “Look Pearl, I know this situation is hard for you, I really do, but you won't make things better if you keep acting like this.”

“You know what? Now you will listen to me! It's not fair the way you three treated Greg when Rose was gone. He would be all alone taking care of Steven if it wasn't for me and Yellowtail helping him there while you three pretended you were the only one suffering,” Vidalia pointed at her, closing the distance between them. “I know you gems may think we humans don't get it, but trust me, I understand how you feel. I lost someone important too and grief makes you do horrible things, but that doesn't excuse blaming an innocent baby! A baby who didn't even ask to be born and neither be responsible for his parent's choice!”

Pearl opened her mouth to retort, however Vidalia gave her no time to do so. “If you want to stay mad the rest of your life, great, then be mad at Rose, because Greg didn't put this idea into her head. She chose this, she wanted this kid and wanted you to take care of him."

She was half yelling at this point and if Greg or Sapphire were hearing everything they didn't bother to interfere. “And if you cared so much about her you could respect her last wish. You don't have to love that kid, but be there for him because what happened it's not his fault. So you can quit sulking and go see if these two are okay up there. And I swear if you do something to him that will be the last time you'll see that gem.”

Pearl huffed and stomped upstairs, only because she had enough of this nonsense and complying meant to be left alone. Did this human really believe she could even lay a finger on an experienced gem that fought a destructive war? How pretentious.

A crafted ‘Steven & Nora’ with star drawings around was placed on the first door at the left. With an eye roll, she quietly opened the door and stepped inside. 

The room was quite simple; A small bed, a box with Greg's things, a dresser with his children's things, a toy chest and the cribs. The twins were asleep, each one in their respective crib. Steven on the left one while Nora on the opposite one.

What Vidalia meant with ‘checking on them’? Make sure they still slept? Or not crying? Humans are so complicated… and fragile. How could someone want that? How could Rose-

How could Rose do this to her?

Pearl looked at Steven, a frown never leaving her face. He looked just a normal baby human, except for the rosy gemstone placed where you expect a belly button to exist. She couldn't look away, her finger itching to touch it one more time and maybe, just maybe grab it around the edges and pull-

No.

She can't do this.

Pearl then turned her attention to the female baby, sleeping peacefully as her brother. She didn't look much like Steven; Her hair was too dark and straight, lacking any possibilities of curls. Also, she was smaller and appeared to be way younger than Steven.

She didn't look like Rose either. And Pearl was thankful for that.

Wanting to go already, Pearl thought on how she should ‘check on them’. Maybe she should poke the baby to see if it moves? Closer, she leaned over and barely touched Nora's ribs, earning no reaction. She poked again with a little more pressure and the infant finally moved, thankfully without waking.

Free to go, Pearl turned to go when something happened.

Nora grabbed her finger.

Pearl successfully held a yelp out of surprise from the sudden action. The baby just curled her hand around her index and, honestly, she had to admit the infant had a tight grip.

“Baby please, I need you to let go of me.” She tried once more and obviously the baby didn't respond, remaining in her sleeping form. Pearl felt a ping of annoyance rising, but a deep breath soothed her for a moment.

She didn't want to yank her hand off and risk hearing that awful wail again. Without options, Pearl stayed until Nora decided to let her go. Without much to do, she chose to watch the human rest and how it behaved.

Her eyes once more landed upon the youngest, no detail left behind. Pearl watched her sweet face rest against the small pillow, unintentionally paying attention to the rise and fall of her chest, and the way her eyelids would skitter and eventually still.

Pearl noticed the tension had left her for minutes now. The frown disappeared, both shoulders slouched and her chest didn't tighten like there's a ton of hopelessness stuck in there.

There's something so serene and peaceful about watching that little human sleep as if no problems existed at that moment. The last time she ever felt relaxed was… With Rose

Years ago, before Greg and way before the fence was created. They were at the beach in front of the waves washing their footsteps away while both sat down on the sand, not caring if it dirtied their clothes.

The Crystal Gems were laughing over some happy memory of their glory days. Pearl chuckled listening to her favorite sound in the world: Rose's laughter. So contagious and melodic.

At some point they stopped talking, observing the evening approaching through the dense clouds. The wind had got stronger and that's when Pearl glanced at Rose and saw it. The resemblance of gentleness and care mostly aimed at her. Curls moving along the wind, not once covering her face.

Pearl had to look, butterflies swirling inside her. Right at that time, place, second, being there with Rose enjoying this moment together with each other made all Pearl's choices worth it and her life made sense as if she fulfilled a pu rpose.

Nora had uncurled her hand a long time ago, but Pearl's arm remained hanging over the crib. This human, an ordinary baby, had the ability to pull emotions she never thought she'd be able to feel again, towards someone else.

It felt wrong to love someone who wasn't Rose.

It felt right to let go of that grief.

It felt… She didn't even know anymore.

She only knew tears overflowed her eyes and she couldn't breath, not that she needed to. Pearl moved away from the crib, placing both hands on her quivering lips to keep quiet when violent sobs threatened to escape. It was too much.

She left the house without a word and no one questioned.

“Pearl! Pearl!”

Pearl suppressed a small chuckle at Nora's effort not to mispronounce her name. In clumsy jumpy steps, the girl, who wore a jeans dungarees dress and pink shirt, approached her.

“Look! A fly!” Nora raised her hands, showing how a small yellow butterfly and black details landed on the top of her fingers.

“A butterfly,” Pearl gently corrected. “It is very pretty.”

“Right? Just like you!” The missing front tooth became visible once she smiled. She let her cup the butterfly in her own hands. “I wanted to show you because that's pretty and you're pretty too.”

Now Pearl was the one smiling. Nora treated the gem like she was the smartest, strongest, skilled and most interesting person in the whole world. She was always so excited to see her that sometimes Pearl almost would tear up.

This didn't inflate Pearl's ego like others could presume, but instead, it filled her heart with so much love and pride. She never felt anything like this before.

Pearl had loved before. She loved Rose. Deeply.

But this was a different kind of love.

A love that instead of making her willing to sacrifice herself and die, it made her want to live and experience day after day. Nora made Pearl want to be there for her and improve herself to inspire her.

Nora is the reason Pearl learned to live again.

The reason Pearl learned to love again.

The reason Pearl learned to love Steven.

And ironically, the love for him is what blinded her.

Garnet has gone by now, but her words still play on Pearl's mind. Their afternoon was defined in testing their plan with a few failed attempts, but closer steps to improve the invention.

Now, the Beach House is illuminated by the lamps around it, since the sun had been replaced by the dark sky and its beautiful stars. Nora and Steven hadn't returned yet, leaving Pearl to her own company for a while.

The escape pod is forgotten for now, she decided to take a break from it, something she doesn't usually do. Pearl is sitting on the couch, in perfect posture, holding a portrait in her hands.

A picture of her, Garnet and Amethyst. It's an old one, the three of them had their former outfits, although their ways barely changed; Pearl almost didn't turn around in time for her face to be caught while Amethyst grinned with eyes closed and Garnet stayed neutral behind the other two.

She remembers this day, they were in Greg's house after the twins basically begged for them to spend some time together. Nora had taken a surprise picture with her father's old camera and years later when they moved to the Temple Amethyst suggested they make a portrait.

At first, Pearl protested, but Garnet accepted and the picture ended up placed in the kitchen. Today, she is glad they kept it, now smiling at the fond memory.

Pearl missed those days where everything was simpler and she was admired by starry-eyes filled with certainty that she held every answer to all of their questions, endless guidance during any situation and an embrace disposable everytime they needed.

“I’m so sorry,” She says to an empty living room, holding the portrait to her chest. “I swore that I would protect and take good care of you two, but I failed terribly. I've been completely blind and acted like a fool! But I will fix this, I'll make things better for us.”

Raising herself from the seat, she goes to the kitchen and hangs the portrait in its original place. Pearl stares at it, then at Rose's painting. “I promise I will be a better person from now on, for you two.”

Chapter Text

Today marks the second day of Pearl's continuous hard work on their plan to capture Peridot. Connected wires, tightened screws and flow of data flashing across her eyes dictates how closer Pearl is to finishing it.

In the living room, she still has her knees on the wooden floor, adjusting the mechanism responsible for pointing out exact locations once the warp pad is activated.

Upstairs, Nora and Steven are organizing their room by properly folding their clothes on their respective drawers and collecting the scattered toys around. “Steven, for the last time I didn't take one of your G.U.Y.S!”

“If you didn't, then where is it? I searched everywhere!”

“I don't know, maybe you just lost it.”

“No, I didn't! I don't loose my stuff!”

“Yes, you do! All the time!”

A tiny smile finds a way to Pearl's lips. She missed their silly bickering.

The twins continue to argue until the front door swings open, revealing their father. “Who wants to go on a road trip?!”

“I do!” Steven exclaims, rushing downstairs. “Where are we going, dad?” 

“Well I gotta drive over to the next state, Keystone.” Greg catches his son's jump into his arms. “I met a guy on an internet message board who's selling car wash brushes for real cheap! I just gotta meet him in Keystone and pick them up!”

“I don't like those brushes, they feel weird on your fur.” A not so pleasant memory of brushes roughly scratching his skin overtaken by cats pops up in his mind.

“Well, do you like motels?”

“Probably!”

“What about you, cupcake?” Greg turns to Nora coming downstairs. “Think you'd like to stay at a motel with your favorite dad and brother?"

Nora hums, placing a hand under her chin. “Hum, I'm not sure if you're my favorite…”

Steven fakes being offended. “Did you hear that, dad!?”

“Oh, you kidder! Come here!” Greg bent over, allowing her to wrap her arms around his neck and carrying her with his free hand. Luckily, his bone's audible complaint goes unnoticed by the siblings because, geez, carrying two kids used to be a lot easier years ago.

“It’s gonna be great, I can't wait to get room service!”

“You're thinking of a hotel, we're going to a motel.” And before Nora can ask what's the difference, he proceeds. “It'll have a pool, free ice, and it's right next to The Best Diner in the World!”

Pearl's concentration is lost hearing the conversation from her place behind the escape pod. A road trip with Nora, maybe that was the chance Garnet was talking about, this could be a way to get closer to her again without any interference.

Even if sharing a trip with Greg is absent on her to-do list, she’d go through it if it means being closer to the youngest. She can't lose that opportunity.

“I…” Pearl rises to her feet, getting their attention. “I would like to come too, if it's possible.”

While her request is met by a look of confusion from Greg, Steven gasps in excitement. “Really? That's even better! Right, guys?”

His father forces a smile, hiding his own discomfort as he puts the kids down. “Yeah, sure kiddo.”

Nora, on the other hand, is pretty clear about her discontentment. “Whatever.” She says flatly, making her way out of the house.

The strong wind does good to her lungs, breathing in the smell of calmness. Seconds later she hears the door open and then close behind her. It's Steven. And she recognizes him not only by the familiar sound of flip flops, but also steady and gentle steps he takes. “You can't be mad at Pearl forever.”

“Wanna bet?” She says, harsher than she intended to.

And Steven sighs. Sometimes his sister could be so stubborn he even wondered how they could be twins. He tries to understand her way of thinking, he really does, but none of the choices she made until this day made vague sense to him. Why would she rather stay mad instead of just talking to Pearl who's been spending the last days desperately trying to establish a bridge between them? Steven doesn't get it.

Nora doesn't hear any other response from Steven and wonders if he gave up trying to change her mind or decided to leave. Her eyes remain glued to the beach in front of the house, purposely avoiding eye contact with her brother and that makes her unprepared for the hug she receives from behind.

Steven ignores his own shorter stature and wraps his arms around her middle, resting his chin on her shoulder. “Nora, I know you're upset and I understand, I really do.” He knows her well enough to predict she's making a face. “I'm not saying that you shouldn't be, because your feelings matter. But what's the point of staying mad instead of solving this? Pearl is really trying to make up for what she did, but if you don't give her the chance things will never change.”

Nora hated that he was right and hated even more her resistance to accept it. She is being childish at this point, feeding an anger that isn't even bright or strong anymore and would lead them nowhere.

“You wouldn't understand.” She mumbles. Shame and guilt blurred the reason why she rather let Pearl suffer from such a treatment. There's some kind of satisfaction of seeing someone hurt after being hurt herself.

However, as the days passed by, so did her anger. Now, she only wanted things to go back to how they were, be able to talk to Pearl and appreciate the nice moments they could've spent together. Pride and guilt, both fighting for the final decision.

“If you don't talk to me, then I really won't.” Steven replies, keeping his tone soft and out of the way of insinuations. He undoes the embrace and stands by her side. “Will you come with us to Keystone?”

Nora glances at him and catches sight of nothing but offered safety and empathy to understand her situation and that makes her realize one thing: He knows. Steven knows she is not that upset anymore and she's just being stubborn.

She feels self conscious.

“Yeah…”

─ ·★· ─

Greg is a man of many qualities.

He is a good listener, free-judgment person, compassionate friend and a father that had all the time in the world for his kids. But he's definitely not good at handling awkward situations.

On the opposite side of him, Pearl takes the passenger seat. She isn't tense as hours ago when their trip started before the sun disappeared into the horizon, which is good, although she didn't try to start a single conversation.

He thought of trying to at least light up the mood with predictable questions, but decided against it due to the high possibility of being shut down, like most of the time.

The twins were asleep on the backseat, credits to the soft 80s songs played on the driver's favorite radio station. Greg is getting tired as well, but he pushes it away and pays more attention to the road.

Twenty minutes later a smiley sun along the lines ‘Welcome to Keystone, the Great State’ welcomes them in a sign as the motel comes into view.

“Another great thing about motels: you can drive right up to your door!” Greg arrives at the motel and parks his van outside. Steven and Nora take off their seatbelts and step out of the car where Pearl helps with their luggage.

The door leads them to an ordinary motel room; Two beds, a closet, and a bathroom. The bed area has a rustic cabin appearance, with a deer picture and wooden back walls. An air-conditioning unit is attached to the left wall above a window with dark curtains

“We’re gonna swim in the pool, order a movie, get free ice! It's gonna be great!”

“Not before we check for bed bugs, it isn't!” Greg rushes over.

“Bugs!?” Pearl exclaims, looking around the place with a horrified expression. She holds their luggage tighter and takes a few steps back until her feet are behind the carpet. “Greg, couldn't you take the kids to a more appropriate and clean place!?”

Here we go. “Pearl, it's okay. I've been here before and I know the cleaning is quite decent, but we just need to make sure.”

Greg's response isn't what Pearl wanted to hear and she's already regretting coming along. However, she tells herself she isn't here to have fun or pay that much attention to filthiness.

“Good news! We're bugless!” Greg's phone receives a new message. “Oh! That's my cue. Do you mind watching them until I get back?”

“Of course not, they'll be fine.”

“Great. I'm going to see a man about a tunnel brush, an internet man.” He heads towards the door. “If I'm not back in an hour, call the police.”

“Okay!” Both kids wave goodbye and watch their dad leave. “Bounce with me, Pearl!” Steven jumps on the bed, watching an upside down gem walk towards him. “We could look at brochures. Oh, Keystone Caverns, they look so pretty!”

Pearl remains standing next to him, uneasy to sit on the same bed they had to search for bugs. Steven shows her the motel brochures where beautiful caverns are shown. “They definitely are, and even more in person.”

“Have you been there!?”

“A long time ago,” She is ready to start her explanation, but she doesn't want to make Nora uncomfortable hearing her ramble. “So, what would you two like to do until your father comes back?”

“I wanna swim in the pool!”

Pearl wrinkles her nose. “Steven, are you sure? This place doesn't seem very… hygienic.”

“It’s okay Pearl, dad’s been here before and he said it was fine.”

“I'm gonna watch Tv.” Nora mutters.

“Aw Nora, c'mon!” Steven leaves his bed and tugs her arm. “We have a pool right there waiting for us and you wanna watch TV? At least go with me to make me company.”

Nora sighs, placing the remote where it was. “Fine.”

Steven searches for his Cheeseburger backpack and starts looking for his swimsuit. He goes to the bathroom for a quick change, leaving both human and gem alone.

Pearl parts her lips attempting to at least ease things, but chooses not to. She doesn't want to make things by forcing a conversation Nora probably doesn't want to have yet. The only option left is to wait for the older twin in silence, staring at her own hands.

On the bed, Nora does the same, hating how confused she is about her whole behavior. She is tired of being angry and wishes she could spend this trip like she'd normally do, but it’s so hard to let go of her wounds.

The tension is radiating to a point the room may have exploded.

Thankfully Steven exits the bathroom ready to go, holding his shirt and jeans in one hand. He guides both out of the room, happy that no fight had been started.

“I can't wait for dad to come back! It’s gonna be so fun when we order that movie he talked about and-” Steven's stomach growls. “Maybe eat something.”

“There’s a nearby restaurant next to the motel,” Pearl recalls when they drove past it. “I can find something there, what would you two like to eat?”

“Uh, I think a pizza would be nice, right Noor?” He receives a quiet response.

“Will you two be okay on your own for a while?” They nod. “Alright, I won't be long, but remember: don't leave the motel until it's absolutely necessary. If a stranger approaches you, do not speak to them or accept anything they offer you. And if they act… inappropriate, call me and I will be right here. Do you understand?”

“Yes, Pearl.”

The siblings arrive in the pool area while she walks in the opposite way to a nearby restaurant. Steven wastes no time and cannonballs into the pool while Nora sits on the edge of the pool and takes off her sandals, cuffing her jeans to dig her feet into the water. She is not really in the mood for swimming, but her brother has other plans.

“C'mon sis, the water is nice.” Steven sing-songs.

She doesn't budge. “I'm good right here, Stevie.”

“So, you're gonna leave your poor brother swimming all alone?” He pouts, using his most dramatic attempt of a sad face. “You're mean.”

Nora grins. “I’ll show you mean.” She uses her feet to splash water right into her brother.

Steven shrieks in surprise, shielding his face with both hands. Once she stops, he gets closer, innocently, before striking by grabbing Nora's foot and tugging her to the pool.

“No!” She squeals, trying to stop him with her other foot. “Leave me alone!”

“Nah, I'd rather have you make me some company.” In response to her kicking, Steven tries and succeeds to grab her other foot, leaving her with no option but get dragged to the pool.

Nora gasps once she emerges above the water. “Steven, you jerk! I'm so gonna get you!” Her hair is ruined, disheveled fringe almost getting into her eyes and clothes are soaking wet gluing to her skin.

And yet, she can't fight the big smile growing on her lips, not when her twin is grinning like a little shit. “Catch me if you can!” Steven challenges, before starting swimming in circles, laughing along Nora who's right behind trying to reach him.

When was the last time they actually hung out together? Just the two of them goofing around, without worrying about Homeworld gems or being upset by hurtful words? It has been a while.

Once they spot Pearl from afar with a pizza box in hand, they leave the pool and wait for her. “I got pepperoni one, I know it's your favorite.” She places it on the table.

“Thanks Pearl,” Steven opens the box, smelling the fresh scent of pizza. “Wait, I gotta use the bathroom real quick. Take a slice for me, please!”

“Okay.”

And now she is alone again with Pearl.

Nora tries to avoid making it up a big deal by acting normally, cutting a reasonable slice for Steven and placing it on a plate. She hopes Steven won't be long because she can't stand in this uncomfortable scenario she created herself, with her own impulsivity, rage and pride.

She feels like anything is going to set her off.

“Oh Nora, your clothes are all wet.” Pearl takes the towel forgotten on the chair and hands it to her. “I hope you won't catch a cold.”

“Why do you care!?” Nora spats, refusing the gesture. “You never cared before and now you're suddenly super worried about me? And you think I'm gonna believe you?” 

“Nora, I've always cared about you-”

“No, you didn't! Because if you did, you wouldn't treat me like I'm nothing!” She yells, stomping her feet. “It's not fair! It's not fair to treat me like that and then pretend I was ever important to you.”

Pearl tries to assure her that's untrue, but the girl turns her back and fiercely crosses her arms. She hears a sniffle, but nothing more.

Words at this point are useless. Nora won't believe her, Pearl could repeat a million times that she matters to her and it wouldn't change her mind. 

Maybe that's a way to the solution. If Nora won't believe in her words, then she may when it comes to actions. “There's something I want to show you.” Pearl's gem begins to glow and a pile of papers materialize in front of her, all in different types, a few crumpled and others not.

Nora raises a brow, looking over her shoulder. “What's that?”

Pearl hands the first paper to her. “It's the first drawing you made for me.”

The girl frowns as she stares at the few random lines drawn in blue crayon, she has no idea what her younger version tried to do here. “I… don't know what that is.”

“To be honest, I'm not sure either,” Pearl admits. “You were only two when you started to draw and one day you drew this and handed it to me. Even not understanding it, it made me so happy when you gave it specifically to me.”

Under that one, there's a blue card written Family Day on the front. Opening it, the sender and recipient blank space are completed by the names Nora and Pearl respectively. The short message was written by the youngest's wonky calligraphy and it said: Hi Pearl!!! Today is family day and Im happy your my family. Your super smart and one day I want a spear like you too. I love you ♡

The next thing Nora sees is some familiar drawings; One of the Geode, Pearl's spaceship and the Sea Spire. “I thought I threw these away.” After the test fiasco. She had been so brokenhearted from the betrayal she dumped her drawings right into the trash.

“You did, but I took them back. I never understood why you discarded them,” Pearl holds one of the drawings. “They're so beautiful.”

Nora prefers not to answer that question and analyzes other stuff until a picture catches her full attention. A photo capturing the moment where Pearl and Nora danced together. Her eyes were closed, but her bright smile told how fun she was having there.

A tutu completed her ballerina outfit consisting in a salmon shirt and bare feet. The girl's tiny hands were held by Pearl's bigger ones. The gem had a serene look on her face, walking on tiptoes.

“I think I remember this. You were trying to teach me and Steven ballet,” Nora chuckles at the flashes of memory she still has, before her laughter dies down. “I don't understand… If you- we were like this, then why you said that?” The accusatory tone is back and so is her resentment. “When I fought with Connie you said that you knew it was a bad idea. It felt like you knew I was going to fail or mess everything up.”

“No! No, no, no. Nora, dear, I never meant it that way! When I said that I was referring to leaving two inexperienced girls to fight with each other. I feared Connie could hurt you because she wasn't used to fighting other humans and the other way around because you didn't practice like she did.”

Oh

Oh

“So, you don't think that about me?”

Pearl shakes her head. “Nora, you are an extremely talented girl. What happened back at the arena was an accident and I don't hold it against you. You were just getting to actually know sword fighting, you needed time to be prepared.”

Nora feels a tight lump on her throat and let the photo fall into the pile of other memories. She blinks her eyes, ignoring how badly she wants to cry. “Then we were so close, what changed?”

Pearl grows quiet, silently debating what's the better approach for such a spot-on question. And then, she chooses the best option: tell the truth.

“When your brother was born, it was a rough start for me. I just had lost your mother, someone who was very important to me, and I didn't know how to address my feelings correctly,” She says. “I was… sad, angry even, because I didn't understand. I didn't want to understand the reason behind your mother's choice.”

“But everything changed with you. You made me actually want to understand, to get closer and be there to watch this tiny human grow and learn. You changed me for the better, I grew in so many ways that I couldn't possibly explain,” A soft expression that was beginning to expand is quickly replaced by a gloomy one. “However, I let my grief get the best of me. I saw a lot of Rose in Steven, especially when his powers started to flourish.”

Nora shifts her gaze to the pool, where the little waves have long disappeared. She isn't surprised at the reveal. Deep down, she always knew that Steven resembled Rose more than her and that is the root of one of her biggest insecurities.

“But that wasn't fair to him,” She looks up, taken back. “I shouldn't ever pressure him like that, make him feel like he needs to be like someone else when he is his own person. None of you deserved that.”

As much as appealing that can sound, Nora never imagined Steven could struggle with this. Being a gemless child and completely personality-divergent from her mother, she is used to feeling less and insecure about her lack of real powers.

She never thought Steven could feel the same for having real powers.

“And that's why I'm here telling you this,” Nora lets Pearl take both of her smaller hands in a firm grasp. “Nora, I am so sorry for hurting you. I'm sorry for every hurtful word, every poor choice and every time I made you doubt yourself. I never meant for this to happen, but it did, and I deeply regret it.”

Nora is at the very edge to bawl her eyes out, but still holds herself until the very last second.

“I love you more than anything on this planet, you're my little girl and I'm so proud of you.”

The moment Pearl opened her arms offering a hug it was enough to break Nora's crumbling facade and have the child throw herself right into the gem's embrace. After waiting for so long, she finally heard what she desperately wanted Pearl to tell her.

Big tears flow freely and Nora can't bring herself to be ashamed of her emotions. She needs this. Pearl stays hugging her, rubbing circles on her back while she emptied her chest in the form of hiccups and sobs until she is able to calm down.

“Are you alright?” Pearl asks gently, which Nora answers with a weak nod.

“I'm sorry too,” The twin sniffles, letting the gem wipe the wet trails from her face. “I should have talked to you instead of sulking and acting like a brat.”

“Nora, you were upset and I was the adult in the situation. I'm the one who should have handled things better.” If she wasn't so emotionally drained, Nora would have disagreed.

“Are things okay now?”

“Of course, dear.” Pearl swipes the soaking hair out of her face. “Now let's get you properly dressed, so you won't get sick.” She closes the pizza box, holding it in one hand, while she holds Nora's with the other, heading back to the motel room.

─ ·★· ─

Steven sleeps peacefully until he is brought to consciousness by his dry throat daring to interrupt such a nice dream of exploring pizza land. His eyelids refuse to open until he lazily fights against tiredness. 

His body warns him of a source of faint warmth coming from the end of his bed and once he can properly see he spots a tall figure and a blue light directing to a book on their lap.

“Pearl?”

The gem startles at the sound of his voice. “Oh, I'm sorry Steven. Did I wake you?” Pearl retreats the light of her gem and the room becomes darker again.

“No, m’ just thirsty,” Steven carefully slips out of Nora's embrace, bare feet hitting the carpet furr. His vision adjusts and he can finally see that Pearl has been reading something for the past hours and the book landed on the small table at the corner.

He is about to grab a cup of water, but he senses there's something different about the guardian. “Is everything okay?”

“Yes, Steven.” Then why it looks like- “But there's something I need to tell you.”

Steven thinks he should be worried, because what could she possibly want to tell him in the middle of the night? Although there's no clear sign of worry on her face.

Pearl helps him get on her lap and once he's settled, she can't help but have a good look at his features. Her right palm runs across his soft cheek, then caresses his puffy curls while a pair of brown eyes never leave her face.

“Pearl?” The hybrid asks again.

“Steven, these last few days, even as stressful they were, it was also important for me to realize how poor my actions have been,” She starts. “I promised to take good care of you and your sister and I failed that.”

“No, you didn't!” Steven defends the gem from herself, almost in an automatic act.

Pearl smiles again, sadly this time, and it unsettles the boy. “Steven, it's fine. You don't have to do this, I know I have wronged you and it's time I fix the mess I caused.” Her eyes wanders to the window, paisagem half blocked by the curtains.

She isn't sure how to proceed, emotions are so complicated… It's better to start from the beginning. “Your mother… she was very important to me. She made me feel like I was everything and opened my eyes to a horizon full of possibilities of who I could be. I loved her very much,” Pearl still doesn't face him. “But she is gone, I should accept it and…”

Steven doesn't know what she may say next and it scares him because they barely talk about Rose, let alone have this kind of conversation.

“...I'm sorry.”

“Sorry for wh-” Steven can barely complete his sentence when long arms push him against her chest, placing him in a tight hug.

“I'm so sorry, Steven.” Her voice trembled, barely a whisper. “I shouldn't ever act the way I did, pouring my own conflicts into you instead of solving them on my own. I'm the one responsible for how I feel, not you!”

“I apologize if I ever made you feel like I don't truly love you. I should never have pressured you to follow your mother's steps or even to be like her, because there's no such a thing,” Pearl's hands perfectly fit around his cheeks as she cups his face. “You are not Rose, Steven, and… I… I'm glad you aren't, because I like you just the way you are.”

Steven is completely speechless. Never in a million years he would've imagined himself hearing this from Pearl. But he needed this, oh, how he needed it, after years of being indirectly reminded how the loss of his mother affected the Crystal Gems.

“Steven, this is serious! You have Rose's gem!”

“If Rose were here, this would be so easy!”

“Before... we had Rose.”

“I know that power is in you too.”

“WHAT DO YOU KNOW?! YOU'VE NEVER EVEN MET HER!”

Steven never forgot those words. The grief, frustration and expectations upon him always found a way to sneak into his thoughts whenever Rose became a subject. He feared- not, he was terrified of being unable to live up to his mother's legacy and watch the gems care less and less about him.

He fearfully asked himself if what Pearl felt for him was the love she felt for Rose that ended up aimed at him after her death; That Pearl only saw him as an extension of Rose, an obligation, a responsibility she never asked for and was forced to bear because she was out of options.

But now, any remnant of doubt is washed away by the gem's words. He can feel the love in the way she spoke and see genuine fondness when he risked a glance up to her watery eyes.

And now, Steven's eyes and nose are beginning to burn at the realization. Pearl loves him. She truly cares about him, because if she didn't she wouldn't be right here openly confessing how she finally noticed her mistakes and wants to fix it.

If she really didn't care that much, she wouldn't do half of the things she did. She could've fulfilled only his basic needs and nothing more: Give him a house, food, water, clothes and that's it. But no, she always went farther than that;

Pearl patiently helped him with his homework, happily answered any doubts regarding gem origins or simply humans costumes, joined him on his confusing board games and whenever she could she would bring something for him after a succeeded mission.

She didn't need to do any of this, but she did. Because she liked it. She loved spending time with him. She loved him.

There's so much Steven wants to say. He's good with words and expressing himself — everyone tells him that — but this time words fail him due to the magnitude of emotions he's experiencing right now that can't be simplified into a single sentence.

Except for one. “I love you, Pearl.”

“I love you too, Steven.”

Chapter Text

Another Beach-a-Palooza is being set up on the beach for their fifteenth edition. A small crowd gathered around the place, curious to see the arrangements that were being made.

As the structure got more professional with newer equipment, more people started to join the festival and this time it looked like the entire city was eager to participate, much for the host's enthusiasm.

After a good minutes of walking, Nora and Steven arrive at the stage for their promised helpfulness. “Hi Mr. Smiley!”

“Right in time, kids!” Harold drops the box he was holding and searches for the papers piles on the nearest table. “There you go. All you need to do is hand all these flyers to everyone you see and everywhere.”

“Okay!” They say in union. Nora's curious gaze falls under a few employees working on the illumination and others passing by the crowd. “Looks like a lot of people will participate this year.”

“I’m counting on it,” The announcer says, pulling a small cloth from his pocket to wipe his sweat. “Guess the Underground Wrestling will have to wait these days.”

“Wait, you work on Funland, the wrestling match and host the Beach-a-Palooza?” Nora questions, genuinely surprised at how he can keep up with the amount of work. “Don't you get tired?”

Mr. Smiley chuckles at the genuine worry. “Don't worry about me, worry about these flyers that won't be delivered on their own,” He blinks. “I’m fine! I'm always fine with a big smile!”

The twins struggle to keep a grimace from being shown in their faces watching the poor man lie to himself when clear signs of stress and lack of rest manifested in eye twitch and slower movements of his limbs.

Choosing to follow their task, Nora and Steven left the stage and distributed their flyers from each one's piles. Handing it to whoever was nearby, apologizing if someone already had one and gently understanding if some only ignored it, they passed by most establishments, leaving the Big Donut to be their next destination.

As they're getting closer, their eyes spot the older Fryman sibling leave the shop and greet him from afar. “Ronaldo!”

The young man, who was walking in the opposite direction, startles at the sudden call, but calms down once he recognizes them. “Hi Nora, Steven,” He waves at both, stopping on his track. “How are you?”

“Good, we're helping Mr. Smiley with these flyers for Beach-a-Palooza,” Steven hands one to him, noticing the familiar purple shirt hanging on his left arm. “You working on the Big Donut now?”

“Yeah, I am. Needed something to occupy my mind from going bonkers again,” Ronaldo says, a little more comfortable to joke about his own issues. “Besides, I felt a little bad that I kinda stole Lars from Sadie. He kept looking out for me, but he left Sadie to handle things all alone in the shop. I kinda owe her some help.”

“Glad to know you're feeling better.” Steven smiles at him.

For some reason, those words take the serene shine from his eyes. “I am better in fact, but I'm not there yet. I just ended my shift because I still can't stay too long outside. I feel like everyone is silently judging me.”

“But no one is judging you! Everyone here cares about you and wants you to get better.”

Ronaldo doesn't refute the young child's certainty. Steven is so optimistic it makes him want to accept and believe him. “Beach-a-Palooza… I remember when Peedee and I tried to participate once.”

“Really!?”

He nods. “We had this band when we were kids and- We even went to the music night at the Big Donut one time, but we got so nervous we didn't make it,” Ronaldo chuckles at their own panicked state back then. “I even thought inviting him to try this time, but… I don't know if he'd want it, not after everything.”

Pretending is futile, he screwed up Peedee’s life. He is the reason for most bad things that happened to the poor boy; The half missed childhood due to working; His paranoiac behavior; and anxiety that only grew through the years feeding off from his insecurities.

“I'm sure he would love it,” Nora says softly. “Peedee missed you and even with everything that happened, you're still his big brother and wants to spend time with you.”

“I…” He gives another look at the flyer. “I will think about it.”

After waving goodbye to Peedee's brother, the kids enter the Big Donut after Sadie. “Sadie, my lady, we were wondering if we could hang one of these…” To their surprise, Steven finds that Sadie is not at the counter. “Sadie? Sadie?”

“You hear that?” Nora points out the song played coming from a certain distance. “It's coming from that room.”

The break room more specifically. Both carefully push the door open and peek in to inspect, finding Sadie stacking boxes on shelves, dancing on a stool while singing along to Haven't You Noticed (I'm a Star) on a stereo. “I can't help it if I make a scene, stepping out of my hot pink limousine. I'm turning heads, and I'm stopping traffic. When I pose, they scream, and when I joke, they laugh.”

A carefree Sadie is a very unusual sign for them, to be honest. She's always nice, but concerned about keeping the shop and being helpful to everyone who comes by. "I've got a pair of eyes that they're getting lost in, they're hypnotized by the way I'm walking. I've got them dazzled like a stage magician. When I point, they look, and when I talk, they listen, well,”

And now, she's totally having fun singing and moving in the song's rhythm, her energy contagious enough to make Steven and Nora bounce along to her singing. “Everybody needs a friend, and I've got you and you and you. So many, I can't even name them, can you blame me? I'm too famous-”

“Yeah, woo-hoo! That was amazing!"

Startled by the sudden audience, Sadie drops one of the boxes she was holding. “No, I- I was just- I wasn't, uh-” The stereo is turned off by a loud smack of her hands.

“We didn't know you could sing!”

“Nobody does,” Even with only two people inside the room, the blonde can feel her hands getting sweaty and awkwardness among embarrassment take in. “So, um, do you guys need something?”

“Not really,” Nora bends down to collect the dropped flyers. “We were just helping Mr. Smiley hand out some flyers for Beach-a-Palooza this year-” She and Steven look at each other, before exclaiming in sync. “You should sign up!”

“Uh, why?”

“Because your voice is beautiful?” Nora states. “Seriously, everyone would love to hear you sing, you sound great! Besides, everyone in town is doing something.”

“And we would love to help!” Steven adds, enthusiastic.

Sadie stops to think about it. That could be good, it's just a performance, like everyone else is going to try, no one would be expecting much of her, right? This shouldn't hurt. “You know what? Yeah! Who cares, right? What am I afraid of? This could be fun.”

─ ·★· ─

Knock, knock.

Sadie heard it while finishing setting everything up for the visits she is about to receive. “Coming!” After checking one last time she hid all of the mess, she attended the door where Steven and Nora were waiting. “Hi, guys. Come on in!”

The employee leads the children to the basement of her house. “You sleep in a basement?” Sadie is asked by Steven. “I like to think of it like a bunker.”

A cozy bunker.

Her room smells like a new pair of shoes, except that it lacks identity, but it has a very inviting atmosphere thanks to less aggressive purple tones in the walls. 

Downstairs, a huge pile of stuffed animals takes the twins’ attention, immediately drawn by the adorableness. “They’re so cute!” Nora squeaks.

Sadie chuckles. “You can have one if you want, they're not really my thing.”

The girl gasps, taking a stuffed penguin knocked out on the corner, almost forgotten by other plushies. “You're coming with me!” Nora chooses him, without thinking twice.

“What about you Steven?” The boy looks up at her. “Anyone you liked?”

He sends a shy look towards a bunny plushie. “Errr… I don't wanna break up a family!”

“Alright,” She doesn't insist. “So, now I have the CD. I guess I can practice singing,” Sadie searches for the stereo she brought to plug it. “Gotta make up for the lunch break.”

“First we gotta figure out what you're going to wear,” Steven suggests. “How about something, flashy, and sparkly, or wait, what do you think that should be your gimmick?”

“Woah, no, no, no, no gimmicks. Singing is already a stretch,” Sadie opens her closet and pulls two options of outfits. “Maybe this? Or maybe even…” Both are outdoor wears.

“That one's pretty.” 

Between the beige sweater with shorts and a simple blue dress, Steven preferes the last one. “Uh, I think it's a little much, I'll use something comfortable.”

A door slam is then heard in the background, followed by heavy footsteps. “Maybe we'll do this another time!” Sadie promptly tosses the outfits back in the closet.

Seconds later, barely in time to be caught, they see it's just her mother. “Hey Sadie!” Barbara stomps over and barges into the young adult's room.

“Hi mom, you're home early.”

Barbara walks down the stairs, staggering a little due to the support bandage. “I just had to rush home to show you this! Look at this little guy I got for you,“ She hands her a pink teddy bear with a heart embroidered on it where ‘I Wuv U Woads’ is written. “Ain't he the cutest?”

“Yeah, thanks mom.” Sadie gives it one more look, before placing it onto the pile of plush toys she barely cares about.

“So, what are you kids up to?” She hears Barb asking and is tempted to lie, but things are never that easy with her mom.

She will find out and it's better to just say it already and keep herself from stressing with lies like the numerous times in her teenage years. “I'm going to sing a song at Beach-a-Palooza.”

“What!?” She grabs her daughter's hands in excitement. “Sadie, you're gonna sing!? Then c'mon! We have to start planning now! Steven, Nora, help me find an outfit!”

“You know I can probably do this by myself.”

“It's no trouble. We'd love to help you out, right?”

Nora is about to join the two enthusiastics, but stops when encounter a unpleasant expression on Sadie's face. “Sadie, you okay?”

Instantly, she tries to brush it off. “Yeah, why wouldn't I?” Nora doesn't buy it, but doesn't push it either.

She watches Barbara and Steven go through her closet, unable to keep a neutral face at the lack of privacy. As they look for the outfit, Barb tells a little more about her daughter as she finds special clothes;

Sadie was a cute ballerina when she was ten; She used to be a competitive swimmer for a month when she was eleven and that the softball league didn't allow her presence anymore after Barb punched the umpire a year later.

“So what we got planned so far for your show?” Her mother turns to Sadie sitting in her bean-bag.

She shrugs. “Nothing, I guess.”

“Don't you worry, me, Steven and Nora will figure out the show for you. We'll make sure the world will hear your voice!”

“Well... let's just try to keep it simple?” Sadie says, less imposing than she intended to, hoping for once her mother would listen to her subtle want.

But it was in vain.

This time Barbara set a new record of how quick she took over the situation, gambling a tons of opinions that contradict everything Sadie liked or felt comfortable with;

Choosing a blue top with frills and skirt as the ideal outfit for the show (when Sadie never wore anything remotely alike); Full make up going as far as a star painted on the left cheek to combine with the song’s theme (contrary to her daughter's preference for a clean face); A jumpy choreography while using high heels (ignoring her dislike and consequently unpracticed use for this kind of thing).

Obviously, Sadie became less and less enthused with the process, although the obviousness wasn't perceived by neither Steven or Barbara, but Nora, who watched everything quietly.

“Okay, okay, we can continue this tomorrow,” Sadie looks at the kitchen clock. “I gotta go back to the shop.” She raises from her seat, deep down grateful that her lunch break is over.

“Aw, right when things were getting better.” Barb jokes, winking at Steven.

Sadie turns away to hide her frown. “You can have fun later,” Grabbing her purse and uniform, she is ready to go back to work and resume her shift. “I’ll see you tomorrow.”

“Bye Sadie!” Both kids wave goodbye to her, then leaving the Miller Residence with a few candy Barb insisted to give them since Sadie wasn't much a fan of sweets.

All the way home, Nora couldn't stop thinking about Sadie's performance and how she looked uncomfortable during the whole time they spent coming up with ideas she didn't seem to agree with. “Uh, Steven? I don't think Sadie is really enjoying this.”

Steven stops chewing. “Why not?”

“You really didn't notice how she wasn't excited about any of the ideas or that she wasn't even giving opinions?” Nora asks, kicking a random pebble in her path.

Steven thinks for a moment and, yeah, it's not she's been giving ideas or super vocal about it, but honestly, he wasn't really paying that much attention to her, and that makes him give a bashful look to his sister. “Do you think she really hated all of this?”

“I think we need to listen more to her ideas,” Nora says frankly. “Sadie was upset no one was listening to her, maybe if we follow her original plan she will feel better.”

“But her mom is going to come up with other ideas too, she's super excited to help Sadie with this.”

“But it doesn't mean we have to listen to her,” Nora realizes, before explaining. “I have an idea: we pretend we're following her ideas, then on the presentation day we make some excuse for her to leave. Sadie goes on stage and does what she wants and when Barb comes back she will see how awesome Sadie's plan was in the first place and both of them stay happy.”

“Sis, you're a genius!” Stars flash across Steven's eyes. “Let's tell Sadie about this!”

─ ·★· ─

“Thank you, Beach-a-Palooza! You get this next act from their day job, delivering pizza, but tonight they're delivering jokes! Let me hear a big round of applause for Kiki and her ventriloquist dummy!”

Mr. Smiley reveals Kiki on stage with Nanefua sitting on her lap, pretending to be a ventriloquist puppet. He leaves both women on stage and goes through the backstage to check on the following guests, surprising himself when he sees the mystery one. “Sadie Miller!? You're the mystery guest!? I never even would've recognized ya!”

“Oh, uh, hi Mr. Smiley.” Sadie is just getting ready, having her mother making the final adjustments on her hair. “Uh, how are you?”

“I'm fine, but it looks like someone here has a case of the showbiz shakes. You know what a friend of mine told me once? A little smile never hurt anybody.” He starts smiling widely to prove his point.

Barbara leans in, also smiling, and Sadie attempts to do the same, resulting in a nervous smile too uncomfortable to look at. “Aww... looking good!”

“Thank you!” Sadie knows it was a lie, but she's thankful for not pointing it out.

Once the smile fades from her face, she thinks she can finally have the opportunity to catch a breath, but it's proven otherwise when her mother showers her with glitter, leaving her more agitated.

Sadie can barely breathe with someone hovering over her like that, a constant reminder she needs to calm down, that handing control to her fears isn't an option, and pleasing her mother is top one priority because God forbid she disappoint anyone.

“Nora, sweetie, can you go grab me more glitter? It's inside the car.”

“Uh, sure.” Nora motions for Steven to follow her. Out of the Millers view, the twins get inside the car and find a small pot labelled ‘Glitter’ on a red purse. “We have to get rid of these so she can leave.”

“Are we gonna throw these away? Don't you think she's gonna be suspicious?” Steven hesitates.

“Of who? Two innocent kids who've been helping her and her daughter since the beginning?” Nora grabs it and pushes both pots inside her bag. “Course not, she'll think she forgot back home.”

“Barb, there's no glitter there. We searched the whole car and nothing.” Steven says, using his best impression of worry.

“What!?” Barbara's eyes widened. “But- I'm sure I brought it and put it on the car!”

“I know but we searched everywhere, maybe you just… forgot?” Please drop it, please, please, please.

“You're right. We were in such a hurry, I probably forgot it somewhere home,” Barbara sighs, but quickly recompose herself with determination. “I guess I'll have to buy it from some store. Guard m'girl, you two.”

They nod and wait until Barb is far away from them and a car sound fades away. “Okay Sadie, it's time!” Nora opens her bag and pulls the blonde's clothes; a simple lavender dress and a cream coloured pair of flat shoes.

Steven guides Sadie to the backstage changing room while Nora stays, paying attention to Mr. Smiley's joyful narration. “Alright! We're getting closer to our mystery guest! Even I don't know who it is and I'm the host! But first, the musical duo, Frying Saucer Landing, by the Fryman brothers!”

“It’s Peedee and Ronaldo!” Nora quickly peek at the stage, spotting her friend and older brother. Both wore matching red-yellow coloured outfits and bought a theremin to play with. “Steven, look!” She motions for him and points at the stage.

Steven leaves Sadie's side for a moment and joins his sister, gasping in surprise at the sight. “They did it!” A tiny smile forms on his lips. 

He looks at the crowd and sees the older Fryman asking Greg for help to record his boys’ performance and next to him there's a young woman with shoulder-length brown hair, freckles below her green eyes and a matching hair clip. “I think she's the girl Ronaldo was talking about.”

“Isn't she the ticket lady from the Theater?”

“Oh yeah, I think you're right!”

When Sadie is ready wearing her new outfit, she folds her previous clothes and places them on a nearby table. As she walks towards the twins, she hears a few people talking from the audience and decides to peer. She spots the cool kids in the crowd and focuses her attention on what they're commenting about.

“I can't wait for this mystery act! You think it's a juggler? Maybe they'll juggle something sharp,” It’s Jenny, and she hands a flyer to Buck, who wears the same unreadable expression. “I'm gonna have my phone ready in case someone gets hurt.”

Sadie gasps and hides backstage. No. This can't be happening. She can't step in that stage, they're waiting for her to fail. The entire Beach City will laugh at her, and capture this embarrassment to mock her furthermore.

“Ugh, I-I can't breathe!” She rushes past the siblings and gets a drink of water from the water tank. Control yourself Sadie, don't think about it, don't think at all! That's your defect, you always think too much, you're always too fucking much!

“Sadie, are you okay? What's wrong?” Steven gently addresses her, eyeing the crushed plastic cup she dropped and the water droplets rolling down her chin, wetting her dress.

“I shouldn't be doing this,” It slips out of her mouth before she can process. “I… I thought I was ready, hell, I thought I wanted this, but now I don't even know anymore! I never know anything about myself, it's always about others, never about me!” Sadie barely realizes she's nearly yelling while walking in circles. “I was so sure I could handle it and do something on my own, in my own way, but here I am, a freaking adult too afraid to tell her own mother how I'm not happy with any of this like I was a little kid again!”

“You don't want this?” Steven is confused. “But you said you wanted to try.”

“Yeah, I did! Just like I say lots of things! Like, ‘Hey Mom, swimming looks fun’, then bam, suddenly I'm anchoring a 400-meter relay for the Beach City Seals! ‘Hey Mom, I thought signing up for softball would be nice!’, and six birthdays later, I'm still getting nothing but knee pads and batting helmets!”

"‘Hey Mom, I want to sing in this year's Beach-a-Palooza’, and what do I get!? THIS!” It's a miracle that at this point no one in the crowd heard her exasperated yelling. “I just thought, for once, I'd get to do things my way, without her chin and took over everything like she always-”

The twins watch Sadie cover her mouth, eyes widening at the sight of something behind them. Turning around, they see it isn't something, but someone, her mother. Barb stands right besides them, speechless for a moment, from the confession she just heard. “Is that how you really feel?”

Sadie's outburst is put on a stop, her anger vanishing the moment she is forced to face her mother. “Mom… I- Please, don't make me.” She really wanted her mother to acknowledge how she felt, but not like this! Barb was supposed to know through a private and calm dialogue where her daughter told her in a nice phrased way, not in an emotional crisis.

“Make you!? Sadie, I wanted everyone to know how talented you are,” Hurt and confusion flash across her face. “I was encouraging you. I wanted everyone to be proud of you because I am proud of my daughter, but if I knew… I…” Barb pauses, turning serious. “I'm sorry.”

Are her ears tricking her? Did her mom actually apologize? That couldn't be right. Sadie doesn't even know what to say, what is she even supposed to say after that? Her brain had stored the right words to face dismissive excuses or belittle of her feelings, but not an apology that seemed sincere.

“Mom, I-”

“Next up, the one you've all been waiting for, the one, the only, Mystery Guest!”

The peaceful moment is broken and Sadie goes into panic again. “How did I let this happen!? I can't do- I don't wanna do this!”

“Don't worry, I got this!” Nora assures her, taking off her bag and handing it to Steven. “Wait! Nora, where are you going?” She hears him. “I'll handle this, stay there!”

Behind the stage, she runs after the DJ working on the sound engineering. “Sour Cream!” Just in time before he pressed play on the song. “No time to explain: Sadie cancelled her performance and I'll replace her! Can you play that song we rehearsed?”

“Uh, yeah, I can do that.” Confused, he complies with the girl's request and searches for the file named Lil sister's song on his laptop.

Nora takes the microphone laying on the table and fills her lungs with a deep breath. You can do this, for Sadie, she needs you.

“Give it up, for…” Mr. Smiley announces halfway, waiting for the guest to arrive at the stage, taken back when the young twin shows up. The show has to go on anyway. “Nora Universe!”

The crowd cheers and among the voices, she hears her dad saying “That's my girl!”, which brings a tiny smile and a little more confidence. Piano notes start to play, starting off so delicate, and Nora patiently waits for her cue.

“If I could begin to be half of what you think of me. I could do about anything, I could even learn how to love,” She sings smoothly. “When I see the way you act wondering when I'm coming back. I could do about anything, I could even learn how to love like you.”

The music goes on, only instrumental, with a few whispered 'Love like you' in the middle. Everyone pays full attention to the performance, captured by the beautiful melody and subtle lyrics that were written by a sweet thirteen year old.

From the backstage, Steven is quietly watching his sister sing. The song is supposed to be touching, but it leaves a bitter taste on him, because he knows the lulling rhythm and pretty voice is supposed to mask the real meaning behind it. 

“I always thought I might be bad, now I'm sure that it's true 'cause I think you're so good and I'm nothing like you.” 

Steven knows his sister, more than anyone else in the world, and it deeply saddens him to hear Nora talk about herself so openly and yet so secretly.

“Look at you go, I just adore you. I wish that I knew what makes you think I'm so special.”

Chapter Text

Beach City Theatre Presents:

The Tale of William Dewey

The newest attraction is disclosed on various posters glued on walls and light poles around the boardwalk, inviting the townies to watch the story of Beach City through a dynamic play.

Nora and Steven had received the invite personally by Jamie, the one responsible for the auditions, and couldn't be more happy to help him.

They arrive at the Beach City stage where Jamie could be seen pacing around with the script in hands. “Jamie, we're here!” Nora announces their presence. “Where's everyone else?”

“Uh, you two are the only ones that showed up,” After hours of waiting in an empty stage, he'd realized not many people in Beach City are interested in acting. “But, hey, some plays only have one person in them, so we're already in two hundred percent better shape than that.”

“That sounds like some strange math,” Steven comments. “But we're ready!”

“Great! Here's a copy of the script,” He hands the script copy to Steven. “This is my first production, so it needs to be exciting! It needs to be classic! It needs to be fully funded by Mayor Dewey. And it is... because he wrote it.”

Steven reads the script's title. "Beach City or Bust: The Tale of William Dewey,” The next page confirms what Jamie said. "By Mayor Dewey.”

Coincidentally, the said Mayor is seen approaching from afar, which makes Jamie half annoyed and half concerned. “And speaking of him…”

“Hello fellow citizens, glad to see you're already working on the play.” Bill Dewey greets them, walking onto the stage.

“What's it about exactly?” Steven asks.

“I'm glad you asked! This is the story of how Beach City was founded nearly two hundred years ago by my great-great-great-great-grandfather, William Dewey. It's a truly important historical tale with a lot of sentimental and political importance to me.”

“Well, we're just about to get started. Would you like to sit in on the rehearsal, Mayor?” Jamie offers, silently praying that he would decline.

“Don't mind if I do!” Oh shoot.

Bill sits on one of the on-stage chairs, not even bothering to pretend he isn't watching and prone to judge every single artistic decision. Jamie is terrified, but he remembers that outside pressure is part of the world he wants to insert into and he's gotta be used to it. “Ok, since you two are the only ones who showed up, I have to decide which one takes the lead role of William Dewey.”

Nora raises her hand. “Actually Steven can have it, I'm not a huge fan of being in the spotlight.”

“Oh, alright then.” Jamie clears his throat and starts to read the script out loud.

The story was… something. Clearly it was meant to portray William Dewey as a perfect captain and flawless human being, whose crew had an unbelievable respect for him to the point where he was almost worshiped, and fulfill the Mayor’s ego as the writer and fully responsible for the play. And not even mentioning the absurdity of the founder growing fifty feet tall to save everyone.

This writing is so poor, and the desperation behind it to keep William's reputation is not even worthy of pity or patronizing compliments.

Jamie has to do something to keep this from coming to fruition, even daring to attempt changing the Mayor's mind. “William Dewey is really a... good character, but maybe we could bring out another side of William Dewey? See his struggles?”

“The great William Dewey didn't struggle!” The Mayor raises his voice, defiant pointing at the younger one. “He was good at everything on the first try! Just like me when I wrote this play!”

Nora rolls her eyes. “We can tell.”

“What was that?”

“Nothing!” Steven stops any more sass to come.

“Very well then, not a single word needs to be changed!” Dewey warns Jamie and gets up from his seat. “Nice hustle, gentlemen, keep it up!” Upon delivering his opinion, the mayor leaves the stage, confident that his artistic vision would turn out a success.

Once he was out of everyone's view, Nora finally says what she really thinks. “This is bad.”

“Totally,” Jamie agrees. “This is gonna be a disaster, it's a terrible story! William Dewey is totally unbelievable, he's got no character! How can a guy have no faults? To be human is to be flawed. A real hero must struggle!”

They watch Jamie throw himself on the nearby chair, defeated. “My first play, and probably my last…”

─ ·★· ─

Today Pearl took the opportunity from the emptiness of the Beach House to clean it without interruptions. Making the twins’ bed, vacuuming the floor, reorganizing the board games and other stuff they keep inside closets and shelves.

Now, as her last task, the gem is finishing washing the dishes when the creaking sound of the front door reaches her. “Oh, you're back early.”

“Yeah…” Steven places the pile of paper on the counter, before taking a seat. “Show business is rough.”

“Is there something I can help with?” Pearl places the plates on the dish rack, giving a quick look at them to reassure she's paying attention.

Nora takes a seat next to her brother. “If you made William Dewey interesting, that would be great.”

William Dewey? The human Captain William Dewey? The one who she saved as Obsidian and later founded Beach City nearly two hundred years ago? Pearl tilts her head. “How do you know William Dewey?”

“Jamie's planning a play about how Beach City was founded. We're both going to participate and Steven will play his character.” She explains.

“But he's totally boring!” Steven adds, exasperated. “He's perfect and he never makes mistakes.”

Pearl sighs sadly. “Wish I could say the same for myself…” It reminds her of when she and Nora weren't on good terms and she spent days martyring herself over her own mistake. Everything went back to normal, but it's still too recent.

“Yeah, but nobody's like that! Everybody gets stuff wrong, and then you have to keep going and it's hard, which is why it's great when you never stop trying!” 

Pearl smiles. He wasn't wrong and even if those words came out of a child's mouth, they're still valid and somewhat reassuring. “Can I have a look?” With her hands dried, she is handed the script and she starts reading it.

At first glance, nothing seemed to be terribly wrong, except for the small inconsistencies regarding William's personality and relationship with his crew. However, as the story proceeded the events turned out to be an embarrassing mess, written by someone who clearly had no idea of how everything unfolded. “This isn't just boring, it's historically inaccurate!” She firmly states, closing the script. “Who wrote this?”

“Mayor Dewey.”

Pearl laughs at the absurdity. She can't deny, it makes perfect sense now. “He wasn't even there! But I was.” 

“You were there?” Nora exclaims. “What really happened?”

“Well, for starters, ‘ruggedly handsome’ seems rather generous.” Pearl chuckles, following to tell the young kids what actually happened two centuries ago.

And that's how The Tale of William Dewey was revamped into The true Story of William Dewey, an accurate and much more believable version of the true life events, with a few touches of punctual comedy due to William's clumsiness and drama from Buddy's conflicts.

─ ·★· ─

Day 1

“Cardboards, scissors, glue, tapes… I think we have everything we need.” Nora lists the utensils they will need to use for the play.

Vidalia appears from behind the curtains holding paint buckets in each hand, followed by her son who does the same. “There you go.”

Eight buckets are put on the ground, each one displaying a different color; Blue, yellow, pink, white, black, green, orange and brown. “If there's any color missing I can see if there's more in my room or even buy some more.”

“No, no, this is great,” Steven declines, her help is more than enough. “Thanks auntie.”

The artist sends a playful dismissive wave. “If you need anything, I'll be in the kitchen letting Amethyst eat some trash.”

She excuses herself, leaving Sour Cream in charge to help and babysit the kids. “Look what we have here, if it isn't my favorite pair of twins!” He ruffles their hair, earning bubbly giggles from them. “Another school project?”

“No, we're helping Jamie with his play about Beach City.” Nora replies, rearranging her fringe.

“Oh right, I heard of it.” Sour Cream definitely remembered the incredible amount of flyers stapled on various street lights. He sits crossed legged next to them, indirectly stating he will help. “You know, we can finish this even faster if more people help us.”

Nora watches him pull his phone and dial some number. “Who you're calling?”

“Buck and Jenny.”

“Aren't they busy?”

Sour Cream snicker. “They're never busy.”

That's proven to be true when less than twenty minutes later, Vidalia's garage receives two more helpers. Steven gives them the script to help them understand what they're doing and both have similar, but not the same reactions. “This is trash!” Buck throws away the original script. “Can't believe my dad wrote this crap, how embarrassing.”

“Whoa, take it easy with your old man.” Jenny chuckles, pulling him close to her, bumping her face on his glasses.

“My dad never fails to make himself look like a loser,” The Mayor's son grunts. “This need to keep his reputation as clean as his car totally blinds him from the embarrassment he causes.”

“But hey, at least Pearl did a great job rewriting the play, it's really good!” Jenny nuzzles her nose on his cheek, drawing a smile on his face.

On the other side, the DJ avoids his gaze to his own hands. He shouldn't be bothered about their relationship, it's not his business and he's their friend! He should be happy, damnit!

Day 2

After doing a very good job at convincing her parents to be allowed to participate in the play, Connie got a ride back to Beach City with the promise Greg would record everything to send them.

Steven and Nora waited inside the garage until the soft purr of the van became louder and finally faded. Connie stepped out of the vehicle, but to their surprise, someone else was accompanying her.

“Jeff, these are my friends: Steven and Nora.” Connie gesticulates over the siblings. “Guys, this is Jeff, our friend. He's in our classes and attends the theatre club.”

“Hi Jeff.” Both wave at him.

He greets them back, a little taken back to how similar they are. “Cool, I've never seen twins before.” Not the first time they heard this.

Peedee shows up carrying more scissors and brushes for Connie and Jeff, unable to contain the following nervousness at the visit. "J-Jeff!? Hi! It's good to see you... a-again!"

Jeff smiles. "It's good to see you too!"

Nora and Steven exchanged looks.

Are you thinking what I'm thinking?

You bet I'm thinking what you're thinking.

Both snicker between themselves, unintentionally drawing Peedee’s attention, making him blush madly. 

“So, I brought a few old clothes I had there, I'm not sure if it fits,” Connie says, opening the box and handing some things there. “I’ve got shirts, hats, shoes, some old ribbons I used to wear…”

“This one is great!” Nora pulls a yellow long ribbon. “We're definitely using that.”

“What do we still have to do?” Jeff asks.

“Well, we need to figure out what clothes we'll wear and finish painting the cardboards,” Steven grabs a few already painted and shaped like waves. “Sour Cream and his friends helped us with these and now that's the only one left.”

Jeff spots the bigger cardboard with drawings made with pencils, delimiting the sun, clouds and sea that should be coloured. “Man, this looks like just our art projects, right?” 

“Yeah, but this time we'll actually act in front of a real audience.” Connie separates a few clothes for her role as Garnet, such as a purple shirt and black pants.

Peedee groans, tensing at the reminder. “Uh, I don't think I can do it. Everyone will be staring at me and… it freaks me out.”

“Hey,” Jeff approached so quickly by his side it nearly startled him. “You don't have to be scared, no one will be staring at you, they're gonna be watching the play you're in. You're the character, you control the public reaction.”

Peedee recognizes the piece of advice Jeff is repeating from the theater teacher. “And no one will laugh, unless you do something funny, then they'll laugh with you, not at you.”

His friend involves his arm around his neck, pulling both incredibly closer. Peedee is sure his heart tripped over itself. “Y-Yeah, you're r-right! You're right! Thanks.”

Jeff smiles, letting his dimples become visible and gosh, it's adorable. Peedee wants to smack himself for staring, thinking his classmate may find it weird, but he can't help it! He's so pretty and- No, no, no!

Just no! He can't think of his friend like that! Jeff is his classmate, his friend and mostly important: a boy. He shouldn't think or feel this kind of thing towards a boy. It's wrong! It's wrong…

─ ·★· ─

When Steven phoned him saying Pearl rewrote the whole script Jamie didn't know what to say other than it was a bad idea. It wasn't 'Mayor Dewey approved' and he really needed this play to work, it's a first step towards his acting career.

Many famous actors and actresses started their path in the same way before being exported to big screens and red carpets, and Jamie wanted to be one of those. But first, he needed to stop daydreaming and focus on the present, which was in danger of becoming a failure.

Steven told him he would arrange some stuff for the play such as scenarios, clothes and more. Jamie didn't want to place trust in a young child, but he was out of options (and budget). 

In the end, after arriving on the stage and waiting some minutes he saw that trusting the twins had been a nailed choice. Kiki's car and Greg's van were used to transport everything they needed for the show, surprising Jamie with the amount of stuff they brought.

He had brought a few stuff as well, but it was so few and barely helpful for them he got too embarrassed to actually use it. Instead, he paid attention to the fact that this play is coming to fruition and everyone is ready to their assigned roles;

Himself as First Mate Buddy, Steven as Captain William Dewey, Connie as Garnet, Peedee as Amethyst and Jeff staying backstage to help with the special effects. Everything is going well and it scares him, because nothing ever goes that well in his life.

“You handling it there?” He barely heard Jenny approaching. She sits next to him and waits for whatever reply he gets.

“Kinda,” It's an honest response. “I really want this to work out. I want to think I'm doing something right in my life. I don't want to come back home, face the disappointment in my parents’ faces and hear them say they were right and that I should have settled down in a boring job in a boring life!”

From their position, both can see the rest of the group doing the final adjustments the scenario needed, with a few laughs here and there.

“I hope I'm doing the right thing.”

“You are,” Jenny says. “I know it sucks when your parents don't encourage you on whatever makes you happy, but with all respect, screw them!”

Astonishment flashes across his eyes. Never in a million years he’d imagined that Jenny, one of the cool kids and popular girls in high school, would acknowledge his presence and give him some advice.

“I've been there before. Ever since I was a kid I tried to please my dad and make him proud of me, but spoiler: it's never enough. No matter the million things you do for them, they still find a way to complain.”

That's true. Jamie also has been there, enduring the most nonsense complaints about how lazy and useless he was when all he had done were exactly the things they asked for.

“So, what I really wanted to say is that, don’t listen to them. They will always find a way to complain and if you gotta hear people bitching about something, let it be about what you like.” 

Jamie feels a little better with the compassion coming from a place of living experience. It's a breath of fresh air to finally have someone be understanding of his feelings instead of telling him to be considerate with his own neglectful parents.

Night is starting to fall upon the city, seats are being taken by citizens that decided to watch the play and soon a little crowd was formed. It was unexpected. Jamie was sure not many people would be interested, but for some reason most people chose to appreciate it.

He isn't ready, but he needs to be. This is what he wanted, it’s a big step towards his dream. He can’t chicken out now.

Behind the curtains, the cardboards are already placed in their positions; The painted scenarios have been adjusted; The kids have changed into their character’s outfits; And instruments used for special effects are put in reach.

“We checked everything and we got all settled!” Sour Cream and Buck follows an excited Jenny “Nervous?”

Jamie nods. “This could either make or break my career.”

“Everything will be fine, you'll see,” Sour Cream waves at him. “We'll take care of everything behind the scenes, just go for it.”

And that's what he's gonna do.

“Boardies and gentle-boardies, tonight, I am thrilled to present to you... The Tale of William Dewey!”

The curtains raise, revealing Steven and Jamie in a prop ship on stage as the audience applauds. “Oh Captain, my Captain, how long until the soft lips of our sailing ship kiss the rugged beard of new lands?”

“I know we've been journeying for many months, but surely we'll run into something soon. The ocean can't be that big.” Steven, as William Dewey, replies using an unusual lower voice.

“There he is! Hi Steven! You're so talented!” Pearl's joy seeing her little boy shine under the spotlight breaks the silence and everyone's concentration.

On stage Steven shyly waves at the gem, while on the audience Amethyst snorts and Garnet shakes her head, humored.

“Back home, they called me Dewey the Dunce! Said I couldn't find land even if I was standing on it and I'm starting to fear that they were right…”

“What light through yon stage left breaks?” ‘Buddy’ points out.

“It is the east, and we are the Crystal Gems!”

Someone is hoisted onto the stage by a rope and once they raise to their feet, face towards the audience is revealed to be Nora.

Pearl goes silent for a moment, blank expression, before her features move to the biggest smile her mouth allows and eyes shining with pride.

Nora, dressed up like… her.

She is being portrayed by her little girl.

“Greetings! I am Pearl! And I come to you as a messenger of the brilliant Rose Quartz!” She throws rose petals into the air. “We ask that you turn your ship around! The land you're headed for is no walk in the park for your species.”

‘William’ scoffs, crossing his arms. “Nonsense! I won't take orders from the likes of you!”

‘Garnet’ stands up, putting herself between her partner and the traveler. “You should turn around, 'lest you fall into the sea! And you know humans are fragile beings.”

“They are!” ‘Amethyst’ agrees. “Just go back to where you came from, human, and no one gets hurt, not even you.”

“Our advice is addressed and we hope you follow it, for your own safety.” This final advice ends the communication between the Crystal Gems with the captain.

“I'll just return home like the failure dunce I am…” ‘William’ tips over the sail and mast of the prop ship. “Ah! I can't even turn a sail right! Why must I always struggle!?”

Act 2 of the play begins, as the curtains raise once more, revealing Captain and First Mate in the prop ship again, struggling to keep their balance as the storm tormented their ship.

“Oh captain, my captain! We've drifted miles from our course! These waves are nothing like I've ever seen before!” ‘Buddy’ cries out in exasperation.

“Nonsense!” ‘William’ refuted. “This is only a drizzle!” As if the world was being ironic, a stronger wave splashed over them. “Okay, maybe a light summer storm.”

A monstrous roar is heard.

“What's that portside!?”

A large ‘tentacle’ emerges from the floor of the stage, surprising the audience. Seeing it approach, ‘Buddy’ leaps from the prop ship and grabs onto the tentacle. He tries to fight against it, but he's only a human, whose strength means nothing to such creature. “Captain! It got me!”

‘William’ stretches his hand, hoping he at least could bring his partner back to the ship, but they're too far from each other. “First Mate Buddy!”

“Whatever you do, don't give up your search! You're the bravest man I know because you try, even though you fail so, so much!” And those are ‘Buddy's last words before disappearing under the ‘sea’.

“Buddy! Nooo!” ‘William’ takes off his hat. “Oh, Buddy! A stale biscuit 'til the end!” The silhouette of a monster appears on the background behind, roaring, along with two ‘tentacles’ rising from the floor. “Now my boat will sink into the depths. Dewey, the Disastrous Dunce... What's this?”

Noise is heard from afar. Two figures are seen only through enormous silhouettes, a giant woman fighting against the monster. “Holy anchovies! The quadruple noogie! A move that's only been spoken of in legends!”

The monster ends up defeated by the unknown woman, but to 'William's horror, it starts to approach him, becoming larger and larger as their distance shortens. “Ah! It heads this way! Oh, please, goddess of noogies, don't hurt me!” 

‘A giant hand’ is lowered, pushing the prop ship along the sea until it lands on a sunny beach, completely empty.

“Whoa! I've made it! Land!” ‘William’ leaves the prop ship and slides on his knees. “Sweet, solid land!” He kisses the floor, making a disgusted noise in reaction, and looks up. “Thank you, giant woman.”

“You may not want to stay, this land is dangerous.” This ‘giant woman' warned.

“No! I will stay! For I am William Dewey and I don't give up in the face of failure! That's what makes me great.”

“Very well then, but I can't promise you I won't interfere again.” And in the same mysterious way they appeared, they vanished from the Captain's view.

“I shall name this new land in honor of my dead first mate… Buddy?” From afar, ‘William’ spots someone lying down on the beach, regaining consciousness. It's him. “Buddy! You're alive!”

‘Buddy’ opens his eyes, staring back at his partner's face. “Captain! You're alive as well!” They hug each other. “We did it! We found new land!”

“We did,” 'William' confirms, breaking the hug. “And let's name it…” Both say at the same time. “...Beach City!”

And that's how the story of Beach City is told, an example of perseverance, strength and hope during the most difficult and even surreal moments those lived. The audience claps and cheers over the cast, happy they decided to stay and watch what proved to them that no matter the many struggles their poor city may go through, it's still their beloved home, built with much deserved dedication.

Chapter Text

The Crystal Gems step inside the warp pad and wait until the beam light dissipate, showing them they've come to the Galaxy Warp where Peridot is carrying and piling together broken pieces of one of the inactives warp pads.

“Look!” Pearl points at Peridot. “I was right! My plan worked perfectly!”

Steven waved at Peridot. “Good morning!”

“What!? How did you know I was here?”

“We found a secret way to track you, and we'll never tell you how, even if you ask nicely.” The boy taunts her by sticking out his tongue and pulling his eyelid.

“Don't you gems have anything better to do than annoy me!?”

Amethyst punched her fist into her palm. “Nope! Except for kicking your butt!”

“I don't have time for this!” Groaning, she forms a blaster with her fingers and generates a small energy ball. “This planet has an expiration date, and I'm not gonna stick around to find out when!” The energy shot was fired and luckily it missed the Crystal Gems, hitting a nearby pillar in the process causing it to fall over.

The pillar fell over into their direction and Steven summoned his shield, protecting the group from the falling debris. The trio turned around and glared at Peridot, on the ground knocked over from the force of the blast, expressing a nervous chuckle.

Pearl is the first one to charge towards Peridot. With her spear in hands, she blasted energy balls towards her, ending her attack with a final jump ready to hit the green gem. But Peridot dodged, firing a tractor beam at her in retaliation, immobilizing her entirely. “Ha! Sorry, but you're going the wrong way!”

The guardian was thrown in the opposite direction, body colliding against Steven's, and this causing his shield to disappear. Without the protection, the debris fell right into Garnet's gauntlets. “Get her!”

Under the fusion's order, Amethyst charged at Peridot, using her spin dash attack. Peridot jumped, dodging dodges out of the way just in time, leaving Amethyst to crash into the pile of rubble that was moved earlier.

Peridot tauntingly scuttled away on her fingers while Amethyst growled at her. “You missed!” Her snarky laughter died down once her feet landed on another broken warp pad. “Doesn't anything work on this cruddy planet!?”

“I do!”

At the sound of the earthling’s voice, the technician spun around, only to be met by a shield tossed at her face in full force. “OW!”

Using the little distraction granted by Steven, Garnet threw the broken pillar she was holding in the air. “Amethyst, catch!” The quartz grabbed it with her whip and hurled the pillar like a flail and smashed it against the warp pad, completely destroying it.

The world spun as she was launched into the air, but she could spot Pearl chasing right after her. Desperately, Peridot used her helicopter fingers in the fastest speed, saving herself from falling into the gem's outstretched arms at the last second.

“Well, I'd love to stick around and watch another pathetic attempt to capture me, but I guess I'm just too smart for the likes of you-” An embarrassing yelp left her mouth when she is suddenly weighed down.

A smirking Amethyst swiftly tethered Peridot with her whip with Steven right behind her to help pulling.

Peridot laughed, generating an electric current and sent it down the whip, stopped by Garnet that took hold of the weapon. “Not this time!” She sent the electric current back at Peridot, electrifying her, and whipped her slamming down to the ground.

“Wait, wait.. you- you need me!” Peridot aimed another energy blaster at Garnet, Amethyst and Pearl as- Wait. “I'm the only one who knows ABOUT THE-” She noticed the missing Crystal Gem sneaking behind her and spun towards him ready to fire her blaster, when Garnet took the opportunity and poofed her with a single strong squeeze of her gauntlets around her frame.

Peridot's disembodied limbs then fell to the ground, as the Crystal Gems gathered around to observe and try to understand what were these. “What on Earth?”

“Ugh, sick, there's bits of her all over.”

“Nope, she's right here,” Garnet bubbled Peridot's gem and sent it off. “And now she's in the temple.”

“So these weren't actually part of her body?” Pearl picked up a piece to inspect while Steven collected the rest. “I've never seen anything like this before, it's definitely one of Homeworld’s new technologies.”

“What are we gonna do?” Steven asked, before Amethyst snatched the pieces and started to march away. “Are we gonna throw these away?”

“Yep!”

“No! We're going to find out how this thing works!” Pearl stopped her, scooping the robotic parts in a smooth move, which Amethyst just shrugged in response. “And maybe discover what Peridot intended to do here on Earth in the first place. We've seen her use some sort of screen where she documented some information. This must have some valuable data for us.”

“I think she was trying to tell us something.”

“Steven, those were just the desperate lies of a gem who's been caught, you don't need to worry about her anymore.” Garnet assured, not concerned in the slightest.

"I'm so glad this is finally over."

“And that's how we caught Peridot.” Steven finishes the narration of his former mission. He is sitting on the couch, having his sister leaning against him while Connie lays down next to them on the opposite side.

“At least you guys finally caught her,” She comments. “But Nora, why didn't you go with them? They don't let you go on missions?”

“It's not that,” Nora adjusts her position, a little uncertain on how to reply. “I just don't come along, I don't have a lot of powers like Steven does.”

“But you still have ones and maybe you could find out that you have more if you went along with them.” Connie rolls over, adjusting herself by the elbows.

Before Nora can answer, she feels Steven playfully squeezing her arm. “I agree, besides I would love if my baby sister came along." And it makes her smile. Sometimes being the little sister is a bit annoying, but the endearment on Steven's voice remind her that deep down she loves the title.

Their conversation is interrupted by a door opening and Pearl stepping out of her room with her hand full. “Pearl!” She is greeted by the trio jumping off the couch. “Did you find anything?”

“Not yet,” Pearl sighs. “But I'm looking forward to it. Peridot is a smart gem, she didn't leave her data with free access, there's some sort of code that I need to break through, but I know how I can handle it.”

The young Maheswaran notice the exchange looks between her friends and the gem, clearly implying that something's up.

“Connie, I know our training has been put on an indeterminate pause, however I intended to gift you with this,” Pearl presented a blue scabbard, pulling a thin sword from inside. “My very first sword, the one I used in most battles during the war.”

Connie holds the weapon as if it could break; A long sword where the head spirals down the upper shaft in glowing cyan, just like Pearl's spear, in contrast to the indigo coloured other half. A pearl symbol is crafted between two opposite shells above the white grip and a cyan, gold, and white pommel shaped like a star.

“Pearl… I don't even know what to say!” She let out an incredulous short laugh. “Thank you, thank you so much! I'll take good care of it, I promise!”

A smile finds its way on Pearl's face. Long years ago she said those exact words to Bismuth, clumsily thanking her for the hard work she put into this weapon. No one is more appropriate to carry it than Connie, her dear apprentice. “I'm certain you will. I hope you enjoyed the surprise.”

The girl's eyes shine in joy and that is enough answer. “I loved it, thank you for trusting me.”

Unfortunately, Pearl couldn't stay to prolong their conversation as she had to retreat to her room and continue working on Peridot's screen. She waved goodbye before disappearing behind the Temple's door.

Just as she thought she would go back to do nothing with her friends, Connie feels her phone vibrate inside her pocket. She signed up notifications in news that had anything to do with gem activities and apparently, it's the case.

“Brand news of Wilmingmore! The CareWave Hospital is currently under attack by an unknown number of unstable patients. The police have been called and the lead team is helping free the doctors and patients, reallocating those in nearby hospitals.

"The press were prohibited from recording or interviewing members of the hospital, but two victims that witnessed the situation spoke briefly about it. ‘They weren't human at all, they looked like monsters with tons of limbs,' one of them claimed.”

Her eyes widened the further she read. The witnesses’ description perfectly matched a gem mutant's appearance — the numerous multi-colored limbs, inhuman shrieks and shards encrusted on their body — and that means one thing;

Her mom needs to be rescued.

“Connie? What's wrong?” Steven and Nora leave the couch and stand next to her, worried at her distress.

“Gem monsters,” She simply states. “They’re in the hospital my mom works in! We gotta save her!”

Before Steven has the chance to ask more information, Connie hands him her phone and lets the siblings read the full news. “Yeah, it's definitely like the gems we found in the Kindergarten.”

“We have to go!”

“You can go without me,” They stop in their tracks, surprised with the response. “Like I said, I don't have any powers that can help. You'll be better off without-”

“Nora, please!” Connie stops her by the shoulders. “I know you're scared, but please, please, I really need your help. My mom is in danger and we need any help we can!”

Saying ‘no’ is no longer an option. This isn't as simple as an uncooperative patient or exhaustion kicking in after sleepless hours on feet, this is Dr. Maheswaran in danger of being attacked by a mindless mutant. If corrupted gems can easily destroy or poof other gems, they don't want to imagine the damage it would leave on an ordinary human being.

“Okay, let's go,” Nora decides, firstly wiping a few tears off her friend's face. “She's going to be fine, I promise.” She doesn't know that, but her own promise gives the false impression that she's indeed right.

The trio get on Lion's back and let him transport to the hospital. The pink portal brings them right in front of the building, a little distant though, but it's enough for them to have a clear view on how serious the situation is;

Barricades circle the Hospital while securities stand in front of them as well to guarantee no one will surpass the danger zone. There's a few reporters in there accompanied by their respective camera men and by the look on their faces it's probable they were either shut down or not given permission to film.

“Hey, no kids in there. This is a restricted area!” They are told by one of the officers, hand in touch on the gun crossing his chest.

“But my mom works there! I'm Dr. Maheswaran's daughter, I need to see her!” Connie insists, trying to pass through him without waiting for a response.

“Sorry kid, but rules are rules,” He grabs her by the arm to keep her in place. “There's officers inside the building taking care of it. They're taking the doctors and patients out of there through the backdoors and emergency route, go see if your mother is there.”

Connie pushes her politeness aside and leaves with her friends without thanking him. She can feel guilty later, right now her mother is the priority.

Growing closer to the spot he mentioned she can see a few ambulances and doctors fussing over them. Patients were being moved to stretchers with their assigned doctors and some ambulances while other people were moved out of the way, probably family members wanting to be close to their loved ones.

“I can't see her,” And no other recognizable doctor. “What are we gonna do!? They won't ever let us in and the whole place is surrounded by security.”

“Lion will teleport us inside the hospital.” Nora said, in an obvious tone. “But we have to be careful, there's still gems in there and other patients too.”

“Got it,” Steven pats Lion's head. “Let's go buddy.”

The pet obliges and immediately roars another portal, jumping inside it , leaving a bunch of people surprised and speechless with what just happened in front of them.

Nora and Steven have visited this same hospital before, but now the place is almost unrecognizable. The bright atmosphere is completely gone, replaced by darkness and a hint of light down at the end of the corridor, just like a horror movie.

Dead silence fills the background instead of the soft low music. The whole reception is turned upside down with broken chairs knocked over, ripped papers scattered all over the floor, some pictures fallen while others remained half destroyed on the wall, and pools of dark liquid they desperately hope isn't blood.

“It's okay,” Steven draws the girls’ attention to himself. “It's going to be okay.” Instinct.

Nora dismounts Lion to follow her brother and friend, ignoring her want to stay close to him. Now, a little more courageous, Connie takes the lead and walks upfront, keeping the newest weapon tight in hands. Steven is right behind her with his shield.

Everything seems fine. Turning to their left both are eager to have the same presumption until something starts moving on the dark corner, back turned to them.

A mutant with 6 feet, using 4 of them as arms; Two of the feet are dark purple, and the rest of its body is dull red. On the bottom, it has a fang-lined vertical mouth that opens to reveal a single eye attached to a retractable optic nerve. It's disgusting, and Nora isn't sure how long she can stare at it.

Sensing his sister's uneasiness, Steven looks at Connie and both nod in a silent agreement of action. They go towards it as quietly as possible, successfully getting close enough to poof it with a single sword attack before it even noticed.

“It's all clean,” Steven checks both hallways. “We can go.”

Lion bumps his head against Nora, encouraging her to go, but she doesn't move. Steven walks to her, in a gentle approach. “Sis, you okay?” It sounds like a stupid question, but Nora knows he isn't really asking if she's okay, but why she isn't.

The thing is that she doesn't know. The encounter with the mutant made her somewhat claustrophobic, wanting nothing more than limb as if she's stuck. But she isn't. And yet, her body refuses to calm down, putting itself in a jumpy state desperate to flee.

“I’m okay.” She lies. And Steven knows it, but chooses not to insist.

The second floor of the hospital is empty just like the first one. No sign of people or mutants. In the third floor, they encounter small ones such a hand and feet fused together, an arm-leg, and others Steven and Connie can easily defeat.

They proceed their path by going upstairs, but suddenly Nora turns around, swearing she heard something. A shadow of what looks like a man is displayed on the wall, its owner away from their eyes.

The younger sister waits until he's out of her view, when footsteps are too far, followed by a closing door sound. “Nora, where are you going?” Steven half whispered, noticing his sibling isn't coming along.

He doesn't receive an answer, only a quick gesture for them to follow her. They do.

Nora quietly opens the second door, ignoring the ‘RESTRICTED AREA: EMPLOYEES ONLY’, grateful it doesn't squeak, and tiptoes inside the small room. It looks like a dispensary with three shelves — one at her left, one in the middle and other at the right — and all of them were stacked with recipients.

“What are those?” Nora almost wished she hadn't asked when she grabbed one of those in her hands. At first her mind didn't register what was on this tiny recipient, but once realization hit she almost dropped it.

Gem shards, but those were… modified. Some are missing a few pieces while others have some sort of weird transparent liquid bathing them. This can't be good.

“WHAT ARE YOU DOING HERE!?” A deep voice arose from behind them, belonging to a tall slim man with disheveled short wavy hair.

“What are you doing?” Steven shots back, staying in front of Nora in a protective position. “Why are you keeping these gems here?”

“It's none of your business, kid!” The man insisted, regretting his own yell when he heard a strange noise nearby. “Now get the hell out before I do anything I may regret!”

With all the months training and going on missions, Steven was certain he'd be ready to face any kind of threat, except that he didn't learn how to act if this threat was an unknown angry man, a lot more terrifying than any gem he has faced.

“No!” Still afraid, he chooses to listen to his inner voice pleading to help those gems who didn't belong in a dusty room, aware of their own suffering. “I can't leave these gems behind! You're hurting them!”

Steven's insistence only served to fulfill the man's anger, given by how he had no problem towering over the boy and attempting to grab him by the shirt.

Except that Nora is faster. “GET AWAY FROM HIM!” She slaps his hands away and jumps at him. The same familiar tingling returns, bubbling under her skin and spreading through her arm until it reaches the tip of her fingers.

Everything happens too fast. In a moment, she's trying to get the man to let go of her brother and then, the guy is violently shoved against the wall in the corridor by a pink hexagonal barrier. He falls limp on the floor, unconscious, raising panic from the girl. “Oh my gosh, what did I do!?”

Connie kneels down next to him while Steven remains by Nora's side. She checks his pulse and breathing, just like she learned from her mother (and medical drama). “It's okay, he's breathing, his pulse is fine and there's no bleeding.”

“But he hit his head.” Nora insists, trembling under Steven's touch.

She's right. The guy hit his head and although there's no apparent bleeding, the possibility of an inner damage is still legitimate. “We could transport him outside and tell the doctors to give a look or send him to another hospital.”

In a silent agreement, Steven and Connie carry the man outside through Lion's portal, making a quick explanation on his situation leaving the cause of his unconsciousness aside.

Nora shoves her clammy hands on her dungarees, doing a half decent job at steadying her breathing. Her powers weren't supposed to be strong and uncontrollable like this, they were supposed to be harmless at least in the beginning.

Steven's abilities are all centered in defense; Shield, bubble and healing. Why are hers meaningful ones prone to violence? The powerful scream that cracked walls and barriers shoving everything on its way.

Nora doesn't want this, she can't hurt people. That's not what the Crystal Gems do. It's not what her mom did.

Fortunately, or not, the situation they were in didn't allow her to mope for too long. The group rushed to the upstairs floors still left to be checked, discovering through the way why the police were having a hard time saving everyone.

The three last floors are completely taken by mutants, making their mission harder to be accomplished. Rooms that seemed empty were, in fact, occupied by patients, nurses and doctors that locked themselves inside staying quiet to avoid being perceived while rescue didn't come.

Although not everyone had the same luck, most did. “Hey!” A knock on the door startled them. “Please! We need help! My co-worker is bleeding and there's monsters trying to get in!” A woman comes to view the small window.

“Go help her, I'll take care of the gems!” Steven tells the girls.

“You sure?” Connie asks.

He nods, leaving.

Nora and Connie wait until the woman unlock the door, unprepared to how bad her situation is; As soon as they enter, they see there’s a nurse laying down on the floor, having one of her hands clutched around the left side of her abdomen. The blood has dried, meaning they have been waiting for help for some time.

“She's Paris Tristan,” The nurse points at her. “I'm Victoria Ross.” She pulls her name tag attached to her dirty scrub.

Luckily, Paris is still conscious, offering a tiny smile seeing the girl approach to her side. Nora eyes where her hands are, wincing at the hole on her shirt, where a big wound is seen on her left side. It looks like it bled a lot. “What actually happened? How did these gems come in here anyway?”

“So, these things are gems,” It's not a question, but rather a semi confirmation. Victoria sits next to them, allowing them to see the bruises next to her cheekbones and a small trail of blood tricking her forehead, mostly hidden from her brown hair.

“To be honest, I don't know. We're both new on the team, we've been working here for a few weeks and nothing like this ever happened before… until this afternoon,” The students listened. “Everything happened so fast, we were helping some doctors to monitor a few patients, then everything went to hell. We didn't notice the commotion until they started to show up on the floor. Everyone started screaming, nobody told us exactly what was going on, except that patients were attacking the hospital.”

“T-They, ugh…” Paris' voice cracks as her skin protests with the movement. Victoria and the girls help her and Nora offers her lap to rest her head. “Remember those rooms we… weren't allowed to go?

“Nobody was.”

"Maybe, it had something to d-do with it," She let out a ragging breath. Paris is tired, hurt, and mostly unsure if she will leave with no lasting damages. "Doesn't matter now. The mess... is done. People got h-hurt, some probably died a-and... Uh, these gems were taken or destroyed."

Nora's eyes wells up at the story told. These gems were kidnapped and strapped into a hospital to become some kind of sick experiment in the hands of some doctors. 

How could they do this… These gems need help, their minds barely work and they have no idea of what they're doing because they basically lost most of themselves. And yet, people decided to take advantage of it, not caring about their pain, their suffering… and… and…

Nora is crying.

“They didn't mean to. They're scared and lost, they just want to feel like themselves again.” No one quite understands what she's talking about, but that's not entirely necessary to be able to feel compassion for her distress.

The anguish twirling in her chest is so overwhelming and breathtaking. She can't understand why she's in such agony, barely able to focus on anything except this claustrophobic sensation.

Paris, upon seeing the poor child sobbing uncontrollably, raises a hand to touch her face. “Hey kid, don't cry, alright?” She misreads her emotions. “Things… will be fine.”

The kind words aren't enough to calm her down. Nora pulls the doctor a little closer in her lap, and a few tears hit the woman's face, who doesn't bother by it.

Unexpectedly, a weird warmth began to rise inside her bones, specifically where her wounds are. Paris opens her eyes and gasps at the bright pink light that gradually illuminates the whole room. It's an inexplicable sensation, a unique sense of peace and safety travelling along her body, casting away every inch of pain and discomfort.

“I-It healed…” Paris draws her hands to the same bloody spot, finding nothing but a closed skin and painless area. “You healed me, YOU HEALED ME! H-How did you do that!?”

Shock still clouds her senses, and Nora takes a few seconds to reply. “I… I don't know.”

However, Connie has the right answer. “Nora, you have your mother's healing tears too!” That's right, healing powers. Just like Steven has healing spit, Nora inherited healing tears, exactly like Rose.

“You still didn't answer me,” Paris insists. “How can you do that? Are you one of those gem people?”

“No, actually, kinda. My mom was, and I'm human, but I earned some of her powers.” Nora offers a brief explanation.

"That's cool."

A shriek echoes the corridor and everyone turns just in time to see Steven being thrown across the hallway. “Steven!” Connie cries out for him, exiting the room full alert.

The twin groans from the pain radiating through his back. He lets Connie help him by the hand, shield gone on the other. “There's still people in the rooms, we need to get them out of here!”

As soon as he's up to his feet, both take charge of keeping the rest of the monsters away from the remaining people in the building. Nora takes the clue and helps both nurses out of the room in safety. “Where's Lion!?”

“Downstairs!”

Good, Nora thought. At least they would be transported away from the fight. “We have a pink magical lion that will take you out there! You just need to pass through his portal and everything will be okay.”

They obey, without questions. Like Steven said, Lion was just at the end of the stairs waiting for them. He roars a pink passage and lets the women go back outside. “Stay there while I search for more people. Don't let anyone come back, okay?” She doesn't need to say twice.

Upon the more mutants coming at them, Steven summons a bigger shield and holds it against them to hold on while giving the citizens a chance to escape. 

In the middle of the confusion, Connie then heard it, a voice she could recognize anywhere. “Mom!” Immediately, she looks around the rooms to find the source of her voice. “Hang on! I'm coming!”

She leaves Steven's side, letting him worry for a moment until Nora appears in a blink of an eye to replace her. Both keep up holding the shield while Connie breaks inside the room's door, freeing a bunch of medical staff and- “Mom!"

“Connie!?” The room is soon emptied, only leaving the two family members. “What are you doing here- IS THAT A SWORD!? Connie, where did you get this?! How could you possibly think this is okay?!” Did her mom seriously think this was the right time to scold her? Really? “Do you know how many children I see everyday who've cut their faces off playing with swords?! None! Because they all have parents who love them, and who don't let them play around with deadly weapons like some kind of gang member! No playing with swords under any circumstances!”

In other circumstances, the student would try to come up with some excuse, but right now it's too late for that. Besides, she can't hide this forever. “I'm not playing around with it, mom! I know how to do this!”

“No, you don't!”

“Yes she does!” They hear Steven's voice from the hallway, getting louder as he returns. “She's been training! She hasn't been just fencing, she's been taking classes learning how to fight! Even though she's always studying, practicing tennis, or doing her homework, she still works really hard to be a good sword fighter.”

“No, no, no. I know my daughter! I know what she's doing every second of the day,” Priyanka straight up denies. “All her activities, all her internets, I know she's definitely not some sword fighting hooligan!”

“You don't know me at all!” Connie raises her voice, tired of assumptions her mother always has of her. “You still haven't even noticed my glasses!”

“What's wrong with your glasses?”

Connie takes them off. “I barely use them anymore! I haven't needed actual glasses for almost a year!” Suddenly flashes of memory of entering in Connie's room to find her daughter without glasses makes sense, Priyanka considered she could be cleaning or resting them, but now clearly it wasn't the case. “Steven healed me and I never told you because you were so worried that his family wasn't a good influence that I thought if I told you I wouldn't be allowed to be their friends anymore!”

Connie could've said a lot, but all Priyanka heard was ‘I never trusted you’ ringing inside her ears, carrying genuine resentment instead of empty words spoken out of anger.

Yes, her daughter was right. Back then, Dr. Maheswaran barely knew the twins' family, that dinner with Pearl and Mr. Universe hadn't even occurred yet, leaving her suspicious of Connie's new friends.

She couldn't blame Connie for hiding this from her, not when two important friendships were on the table. Nora and Steven meant so much for her, she couldn't imagine how devastated Connie would be if she became prohibited from seeing them.

“Ugh! There's no time for this!” Connie tightens her grip around the sword and braces herself. "Ready?"

Steven nods. They leave the room, seeing the last two gem approach. The taller mutant doesn't get intimidated and jumps towards Dr. Maheswaran, but Connie already predicted that move and placed herself in front of her mother. She leaps in and easily slices it into half.

Meanwhile, Steven fights the Hallway Mutant with his shield and manages to push it back. Connie then jumps off Steven's shield and slices the Mutant horizontally, poofing it as well.

Shortly, Nora bubbles both of the cluster gems, sending them to the Temple.

─ ·★· ─

Outside, when the whole mess was done, the parking lot became emptier than usual. All the ambulances, cars from the press and police had already left too, except for one.

It belonged to Wilmingmore's mayor, nervously chatting with the Crystal Gems once they discovered about the gem shards in the hospital. Garnet and Pearl were fuming, demanding a reasonable explanation, and despite Amethyst not knowing much about it, she seemed pretty unhappy too.

Steven and Nora accompanied Connie walking out with her mother, still processing everything she has seen, heard and felt. “Gem mutants… This is what you've been doing? Training to fight these things?”

Connie guards the sword back and looks over at her friends. They nod, understanding they need a mother-daughter moment, and walk further from them.

Now, alone with her mother, Connie feels she can answer her question. “Mom, I'm really sorry about lying to you. It started off as a tiny secret and then I felt like if I didn't hide it, you wouldn't let me see Steven and Nora ever again.”

“Is that how you feel? Are we too controlling?” Priyanka looks back, facing her daughter.

Connie averts her gaze, preferring to stare at the pebbles near her foot. She takes too long to answer and for a split moment Priyanka is afraid she won't be honest. “Maybe.” She is wrong.

It's a word, a single mix of letters that scrunched up together twists her heart like a knife dive in sadness at the realization her own daughter doesn't trust her. Maybe she never did. If Connie wasn't being honest with a serious issue like this, who knows what tiny disapprovals she's been hiding those years. “I just wanted to be a good mother. I- I just wanted to protect you.”

“I can protect myself now!” The doctor almost smirks at the defiance. Her heart is in conflict of feeling upset at her naivety and proud for standing up for herself.

Gosh, her daughter really had grown… and she had been the last person to realize it. “Okay,” She can't believe she's doing this. “We'll pull back on the rules and I'll try to keep an open mind about this,” Connie only stared at her, unsure of what to say or if she had heard it right. “It scares me that you can't talk to me, I need to know what's happening in your life. I need to step in when you're in over your head. Will you just promise me you'll stop all this lying?”

The girl slouches her shoulder in big relief. She can't even believe how well this conversation went and is such a good surprise to see that her mother at least is trying to be close to her, listen and actually understand her point of view. Connie couldn't be happier. “That's a rule.”

Dr. Maheswaran bends down at her level and both share a warm and loving hug. “I love you, honey.”

“I love you too, mom.”

─ ·★· ─

Tension is the best word to describe the atmosphere back home. The twins could see it; Pearl herself is never able to hide the worry from her face; Garnet does a better job, but the stiffness on her shoulders and hands balled into fits gave it away; And Amethyst… well, she is mostly silent.

Once they are in the living room Pearl stops them from going upstairs. “Steven, Nora, we need to talk very seriously about the information we gathered from Peridot's screen.”

Of course whatever she would find in Peridot's screen couldn't be anything good, but what could possibly be to put all of them in this state? Nora and Steven sit down on the couch, watching the Gems remaining standing.

Pearl isn't exactly sure how to start — emotionally speaking — but at least, chronologically sounds better to keep the worst part as last. “Remember the Red Eye we destroyed with your mother's cannon?” They nod. “That and all robonoids sent here were attempts to check on the planet, created to detect the presence of gems to see if any lived here on Earth.”

“But why?” Steven asks.

“I believe Peridot used those as safety measures before coming, to make sure no one would stop her plans. She was assigned on a mission to check up on something called… The Cluster.” She has to pause. The name almost got caught on her throat, repulsion leaving a bitter taste in her mouth, but she needs to proceed. “The Cluster… is a gem geo-weapon, an artificial fusion, comprised of millions of gem shards laid on the very center of the planet's core.”

“During the rebellion, we heard rumours that Homeworld had some sort of punishment being planned for the rebels, but back then we had no idea of what it could be. The only information we got was that Kindergartens were involved in some way and they were using gem shards of shattered rebels, but we couldn't know which Kindergartens were activated or how to access them.”

Steven fills his lungs with a long breath, before talking. “Pearl, you're saying... there's a giant mutant gem the size of the Earth under us right now?”

The gem sadly nod. “It has laid dormant for thousands of years within this planet's crust. When this gem activates and takes its form, the result will be catastrophic.”

“Like, what kind of catastrophe?” Nora questions, preparing herself for more bad news.

“While the Cluster's emergence wouldn't be able to tear the planet apart, it would leave lasting impacts practically impossible to reverse. With the Earth's core deeply affected, it would lead to disastrous volcanic eruptions, tsunamis, and even climatic changes directly correlating to the planet's ecosystem.”

“But we can fix it, right!?” Steven hopes. They have to, they're the Crystal Gems, it's their duty to save the day and find a way to solve any problems. “We can just- I don't, take the Cluster from down there?”

“It's not viable, Steven,” Pearl laments, giving a pitiful look that usually makes him mad, but now it leaves him concerned. “The Cluster was put there for thousands of years, it's accommodated on the planet’s core enough to manipulate its space. If we take them, it may collapse.”

“Then what are we gonna do? We have to do something! Anything!” Steven looks at Pearl, then Amethyst, and none of them has a perfect response, either to actually answer his question or soothe away his worry.

“We'll figure it out.” Garnet's voice draws his attention. It isn't enough. She doesn't sound convincing at all and it pulls Steven's desperation to surface level.

“Yeah man, we'll… we'll think of something, just like when Jasper was coming-”

“This isn't like Jasper!” Steven yells, cutting off Amethyst. “This is nothing like before! It's a huge fusion inside Earth and we can't either destroy it or take it! It's not that easy, it's not…”

Never in a million years Steven thought of himself in a position like this. Ever since he could remember, he viewed the Crystal Gems as a group of invincible incredible warriors whose no monster was capable of taking them down.

After living with them and eventually joining on missions, the hybrid realized things weren't always easy for them, but it didn't change his admiration or trust in them. Pearl, Garnet and Amethyst made sure to make him believe in them, that they'd win every fight despite the doubts.

But now, doubts are more prominent.

For the first time they're actually dealing with a colossal threat that can put an end to the entire planet’s life, and worse, none of them have any idea how to stop it. The Gems truly don't know, no hope is present in their eyes and not even a promise of victory is made.

It's almost like… They're sure there's no win this time.

Steven is pulled into a spiral of panic, using his optimistic nature to convince himself that this is ridiculous and of course his guardians will figure out a miraculous plan and everything will be okay because they're the Crystal Gems!

But he can't, it's all lies. The belief he cultivated through his whole life has been nothing more than a masked truth.

A sob erupts out of his chest, followed by more while a torrent of tears sprang from his eyes. The Earth is going to be destroyed and there's absolutely nothing he can do to avoid it.

Everything they conquered will be gone; Their peace, their house, their family and memories. All of this will vanish in a snap of fingers right in front of their eyes. He's going to lose everyone; Garnet, Amethyst, Pearl, Connie, Peedee, Sour Cream, Auntie Vidalia, his dad, Nora-

His heart thudd is deafening, hushing his inner voice for a moment. Steven tries big gulps of air, but it isn't enough, his chest is so tight it's hurt, expelling all oxygen from his lungs. That's it, he's gonna die. He will die before everyone.

It feels like he's drowning into a sea of despair. Different voices tries to get through him, however Steven is so deep down around his fears he doesn't attempt to emerge again, not when he failed his most basic mission;

Taking care of his family.

Chapter Text

Helplessness is not a foreign concept to Nora.

Ever since she lived with the Gems, more commonly after Steven officially joined them on missions, she had pretty much felt this uninvited emotion. It was awful to watch the trio of guardians fight any kind of danger without being able to offer any assistance.

However, the Gems could defend themselves. They were literal warriors after all, but Steven was different. He wasn't a fighter who's been scarred by the horrors of war, and neither hurt to the point of being poofed. Steven was only human, a brother, her only sibling.

It tore Nora's heart to pieces to witness him go through so much stress without being able to help, just like it happened now. And the worse, is that it wasn't a magical threat or gem-related danger.

It was a human condition.

Anxiety attack.

Nora heard that name from afar when she was stepping closer to the van, where Steven had gone with their dad to calm down after Garnet helped him out of the panic. She wished she could've helped him, but instead she just froze at the sight of a breathless Steven rambling negative nonsense curled up on the floor.

Neither Pearl or Amethyst knew what to do; One ended up nervous as him while the other attempted words of comfort mixed with fake humour. None of them were helping. Except for Garnet.

They were currently sleeping in Greg's van. After all the worry, both sought comfort from their dad, their safe place and the rest of the dreadful night was spent with the oldest Universe distracting his children with movie marathons and jam sessions.

Two hours after she fell asleep, Nora wakes up a little disoriented. Something doesn't feel right. The girl glances at her side and immediately notices her brother isn't there and the van’s door was left open.

Nora crawls outside, trying to be fast without waking Greg in the process and once her bare feet reach the ground she goes towards the Car Wash. From afar, she spots a small shadow from inside that soon reveals to be Steven. He looks tired.

“Steven, what are you doing awake?” Nora asks, worried he might be feeling unwell again.

“Bathroom,” A dry response. “I'm okay.” It's like he read her mind and hurried to soothe her concerns. It doesn't work by the way.

Nora doesn't push more information out of him, instead, she gives a faint smile while accompanies him back to the van.

“Dad and I talked before you came,” Steven breaks the silence, bringing the earlier subject. “He said I had an anxiety attack, or panic attack, I don't remember exactly,” The boy mumbles, lowering his voice, almost like he's somewhat ashamed of talking about it. “He said I need to go to therapy again and he's already scheduling another session for me.”

Nora tilts her head, having the impression there's still more things to be said.

Steven chews on his lips, turning away from her gaze. “And he said that maybe we should go back to live with him again.”

“What!?” The younger twin exclaims, hands flying to her mouth to cover the delayed loud words. The kids stay silent, waiting for any signal that indicates their dad had woken, but luckily the older Universe remained asleep.

“But It's not like we would!” Steven jumps to their dad's defence. “He just thought about it. We had a normal life before we lived with the Gems, no monsters to fight and no Homeworld gems coming after us. Dad thinks that we're not used to this kind of stress and it's affecting us.”

“But Steven, we can't just go now, the Gems need us!” Nora retorts and when Steven tries to say something, she continues. “I know, I know that things are not that easy for now, but we can't leave them. Not when they really need help.”

“It's not like that,” Steven insists once more. “We wouldn't leave now. Dad knows this is really important, he's just worried because, well, he's dad.” He says with a small chuckle.

“Yeah, I know,” Nora agrees, chuckling. “It's not like- I miss living with dad, but we've been living with the Gems for almost three years. I'll miss them too, I'm kinda used to the Temple.”

“Me too,” The boy confesses. “But I don't know… I wish everyone could live together.” Unfortunately, he is aware that this scenario is highly unlikely.

There’s nothing more to be said and both kids return to the van. Midway, just when Steven is about to climb back, Nora halts him. “Steven, wait! There’s something I need to tell you.”

She grabs him by the wrist, keeping the boy close. “I’m sorry,” Steven stares at her, confused. “Sorry for not helping you back then, I just kinda froze and I had no idea what to do.”

It takes seconds for Steven to understand what she is talking about and once he does, his face softens and words rush to the tip of his tongue. “Oh sis, it's okay. You don’t have to apologize.”

Nora shakes her head, insisting on taking responsibility. “No Steven, I'm serious. You needed my help and I couldn't do anything, I should've at least tried something."

“It’s fine, really,” Steven assured softly, taking both of her hands into his. “It’s not your fault and you don’t have to know everything, even I didn’t know what was going on, so it’s not up to you to fix every problem.” And that’s something he wished he could put on Nora’s mind; She is not responsible for him or his safety.

“If you say so.” Nora mutters, not entirely convinced.

Both stare at each other, before a silent plead of comfort was asked and then complied. And then there it is, the embrace Steven has known his entire life. It's funny that Nora's hugs felt different than any other he had;

Dad's hugs made him feel safe, like nothing in this world could ever do harm as long those arms are around him, almost like a genuine unbreakable promise.

Vidalia's hugs bring comfort since most of the time they happen after a conversation and are given by someone who always knows what to say at the right time in the right way.

But Nora's… They're different.

Her hugs gave him the sense he's understood, that his sister will always understand him and won't ever judge whatever's going on. It's his safe place, a refugee he can seek whenever he needs to.

Nora squeezes her brother a little more, then breaks the hug. “Let's go to sleep, okay? We gotta be ready if the Gems need us.”

─ ·★· ─

On the following night, both siblings choose to stay at the Beach House. Although the Gems had gone to the barn Greg's family owned to find equipment they could use to help on their mission, Steven and Nora opted to stay in the house in case they needed assistance.

It's bedtime and the twins have gone to bed early, having no mood to watch tv like usual. Nora grips around her blanket, staring at the ceiling waiting for tiredness to kick in. Her eyes wanders to her brother, who does the same, except that he has this contemplative gaze on his face. “You're thinking.” It's a statement.

“Yeah…” And Steven confirms. “About Peridot,” He pauses. “I wish I could talk to her. She had a lot of information on her stuff and I thought that maybe she could know more about the Cluster to help us."

“Even if she did, she would never help us. She hates us,” Nora sits up, resting both hands on her lap. Steven is seen doing the same from her perimetral vision. “But if at least we could talk to her first.”

She feels Steven's palm on her back and leans against the touch. A familiar warmth spread over her chest, twirling in peace and love, calming any nervousness and worries buried in her mind at that moment.

Then, Steven's hands fly from her back to shake her shoulders and her eyes snap wide open. The warmth she felt wasn't only metaphorical, but literal. A bright pinkish light is coming straight from her heart, the same way Steven's gem glows when activated.

Downstairs, Rose's gem on the Temple Gate lights up and opens the door to her room. “Sis, you opened mom's room!” Steven pulls her into a side hug, excited by the newest discovery. 

Nora let out a laugh in pure disbelief. Another new ability and a good one! Things are changing for sure. “Yeah… I-I did!”

“Connie was right, you just needed a little push to help you with your powers!” Steven scoots off the bed and takes Nora with him by the hand.

Rose's room greets them with its infinitive space filled with fluffy clouds drenched in a pink palette, exactly the same way Steven remembered the first time he'd been there with Connie.

“It's beautiful,” Brown orbits dance around the place, observing the beauty surrounding them. It's so quiet, serene, like Rose. Her mom. Nora is walking the same path Rose did years ago.

She doesn't know how to feel about this and instead of figuring it out, she chooses to think about something else that crosses her mind. “It's just like my dreams.”

“Huh?”

“My dreams. Remember when I dreamed about a room filled with pink clouds? Just like this!” Nora gesticulates. “I was dreaming about mom's room and I had no idea.”

“Do you think it's some kind of memory?”

Nora goes quiet, then replies. “I don't know, maybe?” Is it possible for her to retain some of her mother's memories through all these years? “We can talk about that later, but we need to focus.”

“Right!” Steven cleans his throat to give his first order. “Room, we need to talk to Peridot.”

A bunch of clouds starts to move, morphing into a single perfect copy of Peridot, exactly how she was during her last minutes. Eyes widened, a foot missing and ready to blast a last attack to save her life. “I'm the only one who knows ABOUT THE-”

Her sentence is still left incomplete.

Steven groans. “I forgot you have to be really specific,” The twin swipes at the Cloud Peridot, making it dissipate. He is about to change his order when an idea pops up. “You wanna try?”

Surprised, Nora takes a moment to ponder, but then accepts it. “Room, we need to talk to Peridot- The real Peridot. We know she's bubbled in Garnet's room, so can you please show us the way to get there?” Nora asks, a little uncertain if her wording will be enough to be understood.

Fortunately, it did.

Behind them, pink clouds part away, revealing one of the Crystal Heart's veins that leads to the Burning Room. “Thank you!” Both say in union, before hopping on it and sliding down.

It took seconds for them to reach the Burning Room, or Garnet's rooms as they called, and once they arrived both continued with their mission right away.

“There!” Steven spots Peridot's bubble, which could be easily missed along the array of other gems.

He helps Nora climb one of the crystal veins towards the gem. With one arm held, she managed to draw the bubble closer on reach. “Gotcha!” She gently lets it fall into Steven's hands as she returns to the floor.

That's it. They have Peridot right on their hands and a path full of unknown events that may happen the moment they pop that bubble. “You sure you wanna do this?” Nora asks.

Upon the positive nod, both burst the bubble and let the gem free. The tiny triangular gemstone levitates into the air and slowly takes form as Peridot regenerates. “THE CLUSTER, you insufferable half-formed traitor mega-clods!” She finally has the chance to finish her phrase back at the Galaxy Warp, satisfying Steven's curiosity.

Just as Nora and Steven stare in awe at the gem’s new smaller and less threatening form, Peridot’s eyes widen in pure terror as they travel around her frame. “My limb enhancers! Where are my limb enhancers?!” She wiggle her fingers, missing her former equipment, and shakes her shorter legs while she adjusts to the new balance her shorter height brought.

Nora remains speechless, still trying to process the new Peridot. Steven, on the other hand, immediately expresses his explosion of cuteness. “Oh my gosh, you're so cute!” He coos. “You're like an angry little slice of pie!”

“Stop talking! I demand to know what this place is, and where I-” Peridot stops mid sentence and looks up, seeing the array of other many bubbled gems. “Oh my stars, you're going to harvest me?!”

Steven didn't know what harvesting a gem meant, but it surely isn't good. “No! I mean-” His sentence is cut off when a sudden sting spreads across his left cheek. Peridot had slapped him in panic. “Ow, that hurt!”

His yelp of pain was enough to send his twin in full protective mood. “Hey! Don't hurt my brother!” In short steps, Nora is in front of the gem and slaps her back with full force.

The force behind the slap is enough to send the tiny gem stumbling backwards, but once the shock is washed away, anger flashes across her face as she lumps against the girl, ignoring Steven's plea for truce.

“Guys, stop!” He pushes himself in the middle of them, using his own frame to distance the girls the farthest he could. Nora manages to calm down and listen to him, however Peridot still isn't done with her own rage. “Why are you acting like this!?”

“You smashed me into a limbless cloud! You trapped me in your bubble dungeon and you called me… cute!” Peridot tries to punch the boy, but misses miserably, falling face down on the floor.

“I didn't poof you!” Steven exclaims, clarifying. “We freed you!”

Peridot sits up, tucking both knees to her chest, with wide eyes gluing to his brown ones. “Why would you make such a miscalculation?”

Nora approaches Steven, still a little out of breath, and gives him a silent nod. “We know about the Cluster and we know what's going to happen if we don't stop it.”

“Ha! Stop it!? There's no way to stop the Cluster from taking form! It's a massive gem-weapon comprised of millions of gem shards that has been incubating gaining force and now it's close to hatching!” She states matter of fact. “And even if I had any idea to stop it, I wouldn't tell any of you Crystal Clods! I hate you and I couldn't care less about what happens to this filthy planet!” Peridot’s last words are thrown carelessly, followed by the gem’s maniac laughter as she makes a run away from the twins.

“Come back here!” Nora yells, in vain, climbing the crystal veins right after her. Peridot succeeds in finding the exit, opening the Temple’s door to the Beach House. 

“Freedom is mine!” Peridot celebrates way too soon, because Nora races her and slides in front of her, blocking her path towards the front door. “Oh no, you don't!”

The green gem spins around, ready to reach the war pad, but Steven is right in front of it waiting for her. “Peridot, you gotta listen to us!”

With no options to get out of the house, her eyes scan around the place in record time to catch any clue of her freedom; A hidden door next to the left. Peridot scampers into what happens to be the bathroom and slams the door shut. “You may have won the war, but the battle isn't over!”

Steven and Nora remain unfazed while she laughs in triumph. “Should we tell her it's just the bathroom?”

“Wouldn't make a difference,” Nora tries to turn the doorknob, hoping Peridot wouldn't know how to lock a door. “Crap, it's locked.”

“Peridot, open the door!” Steven knocks, having muffled grunts and footsteps as a response. He has no idea how to proceed, they were supposed to be calmly talking about saving their and millions lives, not having a gem locked inside their bathroom because she couldn't get away.

This is bad.

Nora tugs Steven's shirt, signaling to follow her to the kitchen, away from Peridot's hearing range. Once they're at a reasonable distance, she tells her concern. “Steven, we're in so much trouble. The Gems are going to be mad!”

Steven thought about it and regardless of also being worried of upcoming reprimand, he tries to calm his sister. “Sis, don't worry. It's okay, they will understand.”

But that's not how things went when the Gems found out.

“Why would you two do such a thing!?” is Pearl's first question, filled with worry and frustration at the same time. Her cyan eyes are round in shock while her whole frame rigid, leaned towards the pair of twins almost sweating nervously.

Steven’s been there before, the spot of being scolded, and he never liked it. He shoots a quick glance at Nora, before letting his brotherhood guide him. “It was my idea-”

“No, it was our idea,” Nora interrupts him. She knows what he is about to do and won't let him, the girl is determined to share the blame and further consequences laid upon them. “We thought that if Peridot knew a lot of stuff, maybe she could know more about the Cluster than it's on the records. She could have an idea how to stop it.”

Pearl’s shocked features morphed into a tired one, as if she saw it as another problem to solve and that made the twins feel even worse. “I understand where you're coming from, but this could've gone seriously wrong! You two unbubbled a Homeworld gem that could potentially hurt you, this is unacceptable.”

“That means we're grounded?” Steven asks, hesitant.

The gem let out a sigh, resting a hand to her hip. “We'll talk to your father once we take care of… this,” She gesticulates over the door. “But please, don’t do this again. I thought we were pretty much clear during Lapis’ incident that you both were forbidden from engaging into gem-related situations without our permission.”

Both hang their heads. “We're sorry.”

“But we appreciate the idea,” Garnet says, voice warming up the tension. “I know what was your intention and while I agree with Pearl's concern, I understand you only did that to help us.”

Garnet… always knowing what to say.

“So, we're gonna keep her there?” Amethyst asks, hours later, after countless ideas had been discussed between her, Garnet and Pearl, while Nora and Steven silently watched them.

“I guess there's no better option for us than let her stay right where she is.” Pearl concludes, less than happy with it.

Steven, who's eating breakfast with his sister, finishes his cup of milk, placing it on the counter. “Wait, so we're just gonna let her live in our bathroom?”

“Well, yes, what other option do we have? Keep her outside on a leash?” Pearl bursts out laughing at the absurdity until it clicks to her that maybe it could turn out to be a valid idea.

“But, I need to use the bathroom!”

“Right now?”

“Yeah, kinda.”

“Use the Car Wash one,” Nora suggests, leaving her seat while holding her plate and cup. “Let's see if dad is awake then we can get ready. We have spare toothbrushes and towels there, remember?” 

Steven almost didn't. They barely used the Car Wash one, but Greg, as a good father, always had spare supplies like toothbrushes, towels, shampoo/conditioner and clothes just in case.

Finishing washing the dishes, they excuse themselves and leave the house. Fortunately, when both arrived in the Car Wash Greg was already awake, though definitely a little sleepy yet. “Good morning kiddos, up this early?”

Steven is the first one greeted with a hug and a kiss on his forehead. “Good morning dad, we need to use the bathroom there. Is that okay?”

“Of course, kiddo, but why's that? Did something break in your bathroom? Maybe I can have a look.”

“No dad, nothing broke,” Steven thinks of how he's going to explain it without freaking him out. Greg is already worried about them involved with this Cluster thing, his anxiety will hit the roof if he discovers that a Homeworks gem - the same that helped kidnap them - is free inside their house. “There's a gem in our bathroom, but it's okay! She's harmless!” 

“This gem may know things from the Cluster that we don't and we're trying to make her talk, but she locked herself in the bathroom and now the Gems are trying to think of something to get her to open up.” Nora explains the rest, opting for saying the truth, but not the whole truth.

“Oh whoa, it's a lot going on,” Greg tries to brush his worry with a smile that ends up turning into a half grimace. “Are you two okay?”

“Yeah dad, don't worry.” Asking him not to worry has the same effect as saying nothing at all, but they still tried anyway.

After her sister's insisting, Steven was the first one to take a bath and while Nora waited for him outside they both talked about their current situation. “I just don't get it, Steven! If the Cluster is really this super dangerous threat that can literally kill us, why Peridot doesn't help us already? I just can't see the logic!”

“It's not about logic, sis, it's pride. Peridot doesn't like the Gems, and she's been fighting with them for a while. If she gives them any good information it'll be like she surrendered.”

“Guess you're right,” Nora mumbles, unhappy. “But we need to make her open her eyes. The planet is in danger, we are in danger and that also makes her be in danger too. If she just quit it and helped us things would be so much easier for all of us. We need to make her see it.”

“We will, I'll try my best.” The shower is turned off, followed by the sound of curtains being pushed to the side.

“I know you will, you're the diplomat here.” Nora jokes and smiles when Steven's giggles reach her ears.

The door opens and Steven comes out dressed in a pink shirt with yellow details on the collar and hem of both sleeves and a shooting star in the center, jeans and sandals. “It's all yours sis, I left some hot water for you.”

“Thanks, big bro.” Nora grabs her things and goes inside. She takes her time to take a nice and long bath while her brain is put to work on possible solutions. How on Earth will they make Peridot help them? She is a Homeworld brainwashed by their planet and its system, she wasn't taught to care in the slightest about the Earth or anything/anyone in general, how are they supposed to make her share their point of view?

This is not going to be an easy task, but there's not many options on the table. A enormous threat is lying beneath their ground, waiting for the right moment to literally destroy every single thing their conquered. Any sort of help is welcomed by now, even the forced ones.

Nora pushes away the negative outcomes, focusing on the present where she, her brother and the Gems are capable to change Peridot's mind and come up with a solution on their own. With a fresh scent, brushed teeth and hair done, she changes into an oversized blue shirt with a tie around her waist, pink shorts and sandals. A great choice for the Beach City summer.

When she finds Steven outside, he smiles that their outfits have matching colors. “You look great!”

The young twin smiles at the compliment. “We look great,” She corrects. “Ready for Convert-Peridot-Into-A-Good-Person-So-She-Can-Help-Us Mission?”

Steven laughs, nodding. “Ready!”

Chapter Text

“Steeevvveeeennnn” Steven's lips curled upwards hearing his sister whining from the living room. A glance over his shoulder is enough to tell him she's spread over the couch wearing a pout worthy of a three-year old. “I'm hungryyy!”

“It's almost done, I promise.” He chuckles, checking the pan one more time.

Beach City is currently facing a rainy day and nothing could be better than spending the day inside a cozy home while a fresh soup is about to be served. The Gems paid them a quick visit to make sure they were alright before warping back to the barn and resume their restless work.

The twins wished they could help, but they try not to think too much about this, or at least one of them. While Nora still ponders some magical solution to pop up in her mind, Steven tries to clear his head and focus on the present. “Peridot, they left, you know. You can come out now.”

“No! I-I like it in here!” He receives a muffled response.

“Okay,” Steven continues preparing his soup. He takes a look on the window, noticing the clouds became an even darker shade of grey while the rain began to pour heavier than ever. “Wow, it's really coming down.”

Confirming the boy’s innocent comment, a loud thunder strikes. Years ago, the sound would've made both kids run to under their bed, deeply scared, but today someone else is fearful of it. “It's happening!” Peridot kicks the bathroom door open and runs out, accidentally slamming into a wall.

“What?” Both siblings turn around.

“THE CLUSTER! What else could be making that horrible-” Another thunder strikes again, causing Peridot to scream and run towards Steven, holding onto him for dear life. “It's pounding on the Earth from the inside! This is it, this is the end of the world!”

Nora sighs. “Don't be dramatic, it's just thunder,” She lazily leaves the couch and she's met with a confused features from the green gem. “It happens when it rains.”

When Peridot looks more confused, Steven pipes in. “You don't know about rain?”

“I don't know anything without my screen.” The technician lowers her gaze, embarrassed to admit something is out of reach of her extensive knowledge.

Steven doesn't mind. “It's okay. Here, pretend this soup is the ocean,” He moves to the side, so Peridot can have a clear view of what he's about to show. “When the sun warms it up, water evaporates into clouds, like this steam,” The cooking pot lid is lifted, releasing steam from the inside, then he closes it. “But when the clouds get really heavy, it rains.”

“So, scalding liquid pours down from the sky?”

“No, no, it's just water, it can't hurt you.” He turns off the stove. “Here, why don't I just show you?”

Nora and Peridot watch Steven making his way towards the front door, glancing at the sky before stepping out of the house and running down the stairs, not caring in the slightest about getting soaked from the rain. “Woo-hoo!”

“Steven, wait!” Peridot goes after him, but her feet glue on the ground by the doorway. Too scared to face this rain, she only stands hesitatingly while the hybrid laughs in delight.

“Come on! Look, I'm okay, it's just water! This is just something that happens on Earth!” Steven encourages, now having mud on his feet and arms after slipping into a mud puddle.

Nora eyes Peridot and can't help but wince in sympathy at the nervousness almost dripping from her being. “It's okay Peridot, really. Like Steven said, it's just water.”

The girl gently takes her hand and gradually brings it forward. The first rain drop hit her finger and Peridot jerked backwards, hesitant, unfamiliar with the new sensation, but a look at Nora's soft expression gave her the certainty she could do it.

With her hand guided, she lets it be led forwards again, this time letting her skin welcome the wetness from the rain. Slowly, Peridot steps a foot out of the house, followed by the other. She's out in the rain. “Yeah! you did it!” Steven's cheerful voice sounds a little far away. “What do you think? Isn't it cool?”

Nora turns around, wanting to see what Peridot thinks. She's taken aback at the single tear rolling down her face under the visor. “Cool.”

─ ·★· ─

The trio are back indoors. Peridot is pacing around the living room, thinking to herself, while Nora is finishing pouring soup on both bowls for her and Steven.

And speaking of him, the boy exits the bathroom after changing into clean clothes drying his messy curls. “Aww you waited for me.” He notices the full bowl on the counter.

“Because I'm a very considerate sister.” Nora says playfully, taking a seat.

Steven wastes no time getting his hair done and sits as well. Just before he takes a spoonful of the soup, he looks over to Peridot who still hasn't shared a word. “That was fun. Huh?”

The gem stops on her tracks. “It was... something,” She takes a deep breath, as if about to say the most important thing in the world. “Thank you both for explaining this rain business to me.”

“Oh, no problem.”

“You're much more intelligent creatures than I initially thought.”

Nora scoffs. “Geez, thanks.”

“Um, that's... good?” Steven tries to smile.

“Yes, much more useful than those clods,” Peridot miss the eye roll coming from Nora. “I've made up my mind, I've decided to share some... information with you!”

“Aww, I know you use my toothbrush.”

“N-no! Well, yes, but it's about the Cluster.”

Steven gasps, dropping the spoon. “Wait, you have to tell the Gems! They need to know.”

“No! I don't want to talk to them! You two are the only ones I need!” Peridot insists, adamantly. “You both have all the information that we need about Earth and its erratic behavior. Put that together with my expansive knowledge of the Cluster and we just might be able to stop it!”

“No, Peridot, I don't think you get it! Just because we know how clouds work doesn't mean we know how to stop a giant mutant in the center of the earth! Besides, the only reason that we know anything about clouds and rain is because our dad told us.”

“What are you talking about?”

Steven leaves his seat and keeps eye contact while he patiently explains. “We used to be really scared of thunderstorms, just like you. Then Dad explained how rain and all that stuff works, then we weren’t scared of rain anymore.”

“Well I'm sure you have other knowledge about how this planet works.”

“Sure, but none of it's going to help us! If we want to stop the Cluster, we'll need help from the Gems.”

“I said I don't need them!” Peridot yells. “We'll take care of this and if it looks really bad, then we can just ask this dad for help, right?

“Stop it!” Nora growled, causing both to turn around. “Peridot, are you even listening to him!? It's not that simple! We don't know everything about Earth, our dad doesn't know everything about Earth, because no one knows everything about anything and that's why people need help from each other!”

Peridot opened her mouth to argue, but Nora kept talking. “No! I know you don't like the Gems, we don't like you either, but guess what? We still went to you for help, because this is serious! The whole planet is in danger, all of us are in danger and we've been trying to figure out something to stop it because none of us want to die!”

Nora grabs her by the shoulder and stares deep into her green eyes. “And this is what is going to happen if you don't help us, we all are going to die, including you. All the hard work we did our whole life will be gone. Gone! Forever!”

Behind Peridot, Steven winced at his sister's words, thinking that she was too hard on the gem. Everything Nora said was true, but maybe she could have worded it better, or gentler at least.

However, unlike Steven, Nora wanted to make a point and snap Peridot off of her enormous ego. Things were terrible for them and without her help they had a very low chance of coming up with a good plan, but if they wanted her to help, then Peridot would need to open her eyes to this.

And she is slowly realizing it. If this Cluster succeeds taking form, everything and everyone will die on this planet, including her. All her hard work she has done her entire life as a Era 2 gem will be turned into dust, her whole effort she put to be an efficient technician to someday earn her Diamond's approval will be in vain.

And no one will try to help her, or even remember her. Not even her Diamond. She will become a nobody, with no legacy, soon replaced by another Peridot who will be more competent since her superior will obviously classify her death as a simple inconvenience.

“I… I need a moment.” Peridot says, voice lacking any identifiable emotion.

Steven tries to go after her, but Nora stops him with a hand on his shoulder. Both watch the gem walk towards the bathroom, quietly shutting the door behind her. “Nora, I think you went too hard on her.”

The girl sighs. “But Steven, this is really serious. Peridot needs to understand we really need her help.”

“I know, but still…” The older twin doesn't finish his sentence, letting the unspoken words hang in the air. Nora knows what he meant, though.

─ ·★· ─

The sun had been gone for hours behind the dark clouds and as hours passed by, even those said goodbye to Beach City. Evening arrived bringing a chilling weather with it, although alongside a clear sky with bright stars.

Inside the Beach House, the siblings were still left at their own company. First, without the Gems and now without Peridot. “She's been in there for hours,” Steven comments solemnly. “I'll go see her.” 

Nora isn't really sure if that would be a good idea, but at this point she doesn't have the nerve to protest, only to join her twin.

“Peridot, I'm coming in.” Steven tries to open the door, surprised to see it's unlocked. He flickers the light on and spots the tiny gem sitting down next to the tub, where the curtains and pole had fallen due to her antics.

The tough and impatient surface is gone, and instead, a sullen face is on display while her knees are tucked to her chest, curled up like a lonely innocent child. 

“We wanted to see how you're doing,” Steven receives no reply or eyes directed at him. Nora pats his shoulder, tilting her head towards the door. “Um, okay then, when you're ready-”

“During the war, Homeworld was trying to figure out a proper punishment for the rebels,” Peridot suddenly says. “They decided to use fragments of shattered gems and experiment with it and that's how the first prototypes were created.”

Nora and Steven stop midway, exchanging a curious look. The young twin closed the door and followed her brother to sit next to Peridot.

“Those experiments were how we came to acknowledge that gems, despite being shattered, still regained some level of consciousness. Homeworld knew from reports that fusion was the most common tactic used by the Crystal Gems against quartzes and that's how they came up with the idea to forcefully fuse the shards and let them stay that way.”

“When it became clear that the Earth was no longer a viable colony, Homeworld decided to use the prototypes for something bigger. Once studying the past experiments, they choose to use each of them to create what could destroy the planet: a massive gem geo-weapon that once it took form it wouldn't fail to wipe the Earth from the whole galaxy forever.”

“And did you help?” Steven hesitantly asks.

“Negative. What I know is information gathered over a few hundred years of reports, but I was assigned to observe the planet and report to my superior. That's why I sent the Red Eye to detect the presence of gems, the robonoids to help establish a connection between Earth and Homeworld."

“And since we keep trashing your mission, they sent you with Jasper.” Nora concludes and Peridot confirms.

“I know the Cluster has an immeasurable capacity of destruction, although at the same time it is surprisingly fragile. The shards aren't exactly in a good state, those gems were exhausted from the war, and the process was rushed by Homeworld to make it on time before their final strike towards the planet. If we have that on our side, then maybe we have a significant chance to win.”

“Yeah, maybe, but we don't even have an actual plan,” She rubs both hands on her face, leaning against Steven. “If we could bubble it like we do with the corrupted gems.”

“Don't be absurd, we can't possibly bubble-” Peridot stops midway her sentence as an idea begins to shape itself inside her mind. “Wait a second, maybe we can bubble it!”

“What?”

“Whenever a gem is proofed, it can't regenerate unless trapped in a bubble. Maybe we can build some sort of artificial bubble to keep it from taking form!”

Steven’s face brightens. “That's… actually a great idea!”

“Wait!” Nora cut him off, stopping her twin's enthusiasm. “But how can we do that? Are you even sure it's going to work?”

“No,” Peridot states, simply. “But we don't have many options or a better plan at all. This may be our only chance and we need to make it work.”

“So, that means you're going to talk with the Gems?” Steven questions, hopefully.

Peridot frowns, growling under her breath. “Ugh, fine!” She crosses her arm to make sure her displeasure with the situation is clear and known.

Nora stands up and helps Steven do the same. She wraps an arm around him and flashes a soft smile at her brother. “This is going to work, we’re gonna make it!”

Once Steven reciprocates the gesture, Nora offers a hand to Peridot, still sitting down. The gem stares at it, then at the girl's face, wearing the most emphatic and welcoming features she'd ever given to her.

Peridot accepts it.

Chapter Text

“I've finished drawing out the blueprints for the drill head. Peridot, if you could come take a look at this.” The three watch the green gem leave the inside of the bar with a grumpy expression, holding tightly onto the tape recorder.

“Remind me again why I should listen to you? Oh, right.” Peridot rewinds her tape recorder. "...The Pearl here has exhibited an aptitude for engineering that I begrudgingly respect, though that doesn't explain the spontaneous singing, crying, singing while crying."

Pearl takes a deep breath, ignoring Amethyst’s snickering. “Why did you give her that?” She asks Steven, concealing her annoyance in slow phrased words.

“Well, we took all her stuff. I thought it might make her feel a little better.”

"Clods! — Muddy clods! — running out of ways to say ‘clods’!"

Nora groans at the repetition recorded, but her demeanor changes, spotting Garnet approaching, smiling at the tiny detail, a piece of hay, stuck in her mouth. “Alright, I chased away those cows, let's get to work.”

Peridot clears her throat. “Before we begin, would you mind un-fusing? It's making me incredibly uncomfortable.”

Everyone breaks into an uncomfortable silence as the Crystal Gems look at Garnet, waiting for her reaction at the absurd request. 

Peridot didn't know better, she had no knowledge of what fusion meant to Garnet and how personal she takes any matter regarding it. Although, her ignorance it's not exactly a free pass to simply demand things left and right.

And Garnet surely let her remember that.

─ ·★· ─

One good thing that came out of the Robolympics, other than Peridot's progress towards learning about the Earth's behavior and the Gems, were the many equipment used to build robots that can be reused on the drill project.

Amethyst and the twins were in charge to collect everything Pearl listed and things that could be minimally useful. “Here you go, Pearl!” The guardian hears Steven's voice over the sizzling sound of the blowtorch cutting a turbine.

“Oh, good!” Pearl kneels down and starts inspecting the parts to make sure each one is in perfect state to be used properly. “Hmm... No, no, no, no, I said I needed tungsten.”

“Uh…” The siblings look at each other, unsure. “I don't know what a tungsten is.” Nora says.

"Tongue-sten!" Amethyst playfully sticks out her tongue. Nora and Steven can't help but laugh at the silly pun while Pearl rolls her eyes and states she can take care of it.

From afar, they see Peridot struggling to reach for a nearby microwave, but the child leash Garnet had tied her to the fence held her back, forcing her to struggle to reach it.

Nora goes to her and helps handing the microwave onto her hands. Peridot just accepts it and begins her work. “I just need some sort of leverage optimizer.”

"Leverage optimizer?”

“That's what I said.”

Amethyst stops to think what she could possibly mean with it until she sees Peridot trying to open the microwave and laughs at the realization. “Ooooh! You mean you want a screwdriver?”

“Do you have one or not!?”

“Why don't you just use this one?” Steven picks up the screwdriver slightly hidden between the grass and hands it to Peridot.

“Because it was outside my radius.” She snatches the screwdriver out of his hand.

An opportunity for a good laugh is right in front of her and Amethyst won't let that slide even if it means testing the gem's patient. “Hey Peridot, what do you call this?” She points at her nose.

“A scent sponge.”

The quartz laughs while Nora watches Steven look at and touch his own nose. “Okay, what's this?” She holds open one of her eyes.

“Vision sphere.”

“Peridot, that's-”

“Wait, wait, Steven.” Amethyst waves at him, then turns to Peridot wiggling her fingers. “Peridot, these?”

Peridot, annoyed at this point, answers a little more forcefully. “Touch stumps.”

“This?”

“Gravity connectors!”

“This!?”

“THAT'S YOUR BUTT!”

Hysterical laughter erupts from the trio, leaving Peridot as the only one clueless of the humour. “Oh man, Peridot, you're killing me!” Steven wipes a tiny tear out of his eye.

“I am not! That would violate our truce agreement!”

“No, no, no- It's just an expression,” Nora clarifies, still chuckling. “It means you're funny!”

"Funny?”

Interrupting the amusing moment, Pearl arrives with an important task. “Peridot, if you can get the magnetron out of that microwave, we'll have everything we need except for the drill head.”

“Why don't I just get an Injector drill head from the Kindergarten?” She suggests.

“Oh, well, I guess that's something you could try-”

“She's not going to the Kindergarten without a chaperone!” 

Peridot let out an undignified yelp. How far did she fall at the point of lacking autonomy towards a simple thing such as exploring on her own. “What? You've got to be joking!”

The indignation doesn't do much to Garnet, who drops a stack of tires she is carrying. “You'll know when I'm joking.”

“Me and these two can go with her!” Amethyst pulls her into a side hug, her words reinforced by the siblings’ promise to keep an eye on her. Garnet ponders for a moment, but ends up agreeing, much to Peridot's dismay.

─ ·★· ─

Returning to the Kindergarten feels the same as having the same uneasy dream again, revisiting the tiny details that somewhat feels wrong and give you the shudders. It doesn't get less creepy over time.

The place is exactly the same as their last visit; The wind helps spread the smell of wet ground, full of small pebbles and bigger rocks.

Out of the warp pad, the group starts searching for an injector found in a better state between the many broken ones scattered around the canyon. While Steven and Nora check one by one, Amethyst stays by Peridot's side, listening to the gem logging on her tape recorder.

“Log date 7-11-2. Amethyst, Nora and Steven have volunteered to help me dismantle this Era 1 drill. How stylistically displeasing, the newer ones have a nicer finish.”

“You making more nerd notes?”

Peridot stops the recording. “What is... nerd?” She ignores the chuckle coming from Amethyst and proceeds. “Can you use it in a sentence?”

Amethyst nods, fake clearing her throat. “Ahem. Nerd, you are a nerd.”

“Amy, stop that!” Nora warns, from the injector she's climbing alongside her brother.

Grunting, Peridot turns to her tape recorder. “As you can see, this planet is annoying and everything is annoying. Amongst its... transgressions is the need for the Amethyst to ask permission from the perma-fusion.”

"Perma-fusion? Is that what you call Garnet?” The purple gem leaves her side for a moment to help the twins get down.

“I could call her lots of things,” Peridot pulls down her tape recorder. “I could call her two things! Two clods! Walking around like she's... one clod!”

Steven slides down the machine and jumps into Amy's arms. “But what's wrong with that?”

“She's not even fighting! She's, you know, she's just, y-you know like the…” She pounds her fists together. “You know!”

Amethyst laughs hysterically while Steven pounds his fists together too in confusion. “You're a real gem, Peri.”

“Yes, I am... a gem.”

Nora grimaces, she doesn't like where this conversation or where this is going. “Guys, we should focus on the drill-”

“Just a sec Nora!” Amethyst points at the older twin, hoping it would extend their fun. “Do Steven next. What's weird about Steven?”

“Ha! I don't even understand how he functions! His organic half consumes so much energy that he has to constantly feed, and he spends so much time expelling that he has a whole room dedicated to it!”

Steven feels the heat spread all over his cheeks and tips of ears. “No! Talk about something else! Something else!”

“And Nora, where do I even begin?! I don't even know what she is supposed to be! She is not properly a fully organic being and neither has all the attributes to be considered a gem. She's some sort of abomination!”

Abomination

Suddenly all the fun aura vanishes. Steven's eyes widens while Amethyst stops laughing, glancing at the youngest whose face can be described as pure state of shock. “What?” Nora's breath got caught in her throat. “What do you mean?”

“I mean that I haven't seen anything like you before. Your body doesn't exactly behave like an organic one would, but also has nothing like a gem.”

"Are you saying I'm wrong!?"

Peridot laughs, oblivious to the hurt she is causing. “Wrong!? It's more than wrong! Something like you shouldn't even be able to exist!”

Having a knife twisted inside her chest would certainly hurt less than listening to those words. Nora thought she was over this, but every single time someone brings the doubt surrounding her birth it always disturbs her soul.

“Sis, you okay?” She hears Steven ask, but she can't bring herself to say the truth, that it hurts and why it hurts. “I'm going to the barn.” She simply states, biting her quivering lips.

Peridot only stands by, confused at the scene unfolding in front of her. Everyone was laughing and having fun just seconds ago and now Nora is upset? What did she say to get her so worked up?

She could've thought a little more about that if Amethyst hadn't pushed a finger straight into her face. “What the hell is wrong with you!? Why did you have to say that stuff, huh? We were having a good time until you took things too far!”

“What!?” Peridot frowns, slapping the hand away. “I did what you asked me to! I was being cool and you loved it!”

Amethyst opens her mouth to retort, but Nora's angry shout stops her. “Don't even try to blame Peridot, because this was your idea in the first place!” Her attempt to check her emotions is thrown out the window, when the tightness on her chest grows stronger. “You keep saying crap about people and think it's funny until it affects people around you!” 

“No Noor, it's not like that-”

“I bet if she said anything about you, you wouldn't find it funny anymore!” Nora's eyes glisten with big tears ready to fall full force. “Grgh, why are you so mean!?”

The flash of hurt across Amethyst's face goes unnoticed by the girl, who turns her back and marches away back to the warp pad, ignoring Steven's frantic call as he follows her.

She transports back to the barn and doesn't bother to hide her puffy red eyes as soon as she appears into Pearl and Garnet’s vision. “Nora? Where are the oth-”

“Don't care! Leave me alone!” Nora angrily wipes away tears that show no sign of stopping soon. She hates that her voice came out so shaky, hates that she can barely see the way back to the barn due to her blurred vision, and hates that she cares so deeply about everything Peridot said.

It's so frustrating to care. To feel.

Before Pearl has the chance to insist on asking, Nora goes inside and shuts the large wooden doors, willing to be embraced by the darkness. She climbs on the pickup truck parked inside the barn and hides herself inside it.

Two minutes and thirteen seconds is the exact amount of time it took for Steven to catch up and show up by the door. “Nora, it's me!”

“Leave me alone!” Nora tries to impose, but it ends up sounding more like a desperate plea. “I don't wanna see anyone.”

Steven, though, isn't intimidated and continues his speech. “Sis, please don't be sad. I'm sure Peridot didn't mean to say those things, she didn't even know it would hurt to say it. Why don't you both just talk and-”

“QUIT SAYING THAT!” Nora screams, slamming her fists against the pickup. “Talking isn't going to solve anything and I don't care if she didn't mean to hurt me, she still did it! You want to fix things, but you don't even know what's broken in the first place and I'm tired of it! Just leave me alone!”

Steven definitely is used to his sister's harsh responses here and there, but listening to such an outburst filled with so much anger where she straight up says his presence is upsetting her is not something he was prepared for.

Nora turns around to avoid further discussion, letting Steven silently find his way out of the barn, right where Garnet is waiting for him. “She doesn't want to talk.”

“I know,” Garnet adjusts her visor, then motioning for him to follow her as she walks away from the barn, further into the empty field. “However, she needs space and solves her issues at her own time.”

“But I tried to help her solve it! She said that talking doesn't solve anything, but that's wrong and I can show her. She talked to Lapis and convinced her to help us, we talked to Peridot and now she's helping with the Cluster. I can help her too!”

“Steven, I understand that you mean well and as a brother you don't want to see Nora troubled, but you need to understand there's certain things it's not up to us to interfere, even having good intentions.”

By the way Steven keeps looking down, shoulders slightly rigid, Garnet is sure he is not totally convinced by her statement.

“She needs to calm down first, to think, rearrange her emotions and finally have her mind in the right place. What Peridot said really hurt her and that's why the only person who can take any decisions regarding that matter is her. This is between Peridot and her. Not me and not you.”

Garnet stops Steven and kneels in front of him, placing a hand on his shoulder in need to grasp his full attention. “And no matter what her decision is, we need to respect that.”

Steven stares at her, then slowly nods. “Okay.”

─ ·★· ─

“Daddy! Daddy!”

A familiar squeaky voice interrupted some lame pun Amethyst was about to tell Greg. He turned around, met with his youngest kid holding her favorite toy. “Hey sweetie!”

“Daddy, my toy broke again,” Nora told him, pouting, holding the toy to him. “Can you fix it? Please?”

Greg smiled at his four-year old. “Of course princess, just give me a sec and it'll be just as new!” He placed a gentle kiss on her forehead and took the pink wand with drawn heart pictures all over it in. “Amethyst, can you-”

“No prob, man!” Amethyst waved her glass half filled with bear, nearly spilling over herself and Nora in the process. She turned to the grill where a few hamburgers were grilled and took the spatula to steal one. “Dude, isn't it, like, the fourth time that thing breaks?”

Nora raised her hand and tried to count each finger. “I don't know, but daddy will fix it!”

Amethyst snorted, licking her fingertips. “Yeah, well, it looks like it doesn't want to be fixed.” 

Nora frowned. “What do you mean?”

“I mean-” The gem takes a sip of her drink. “It keeps breaking all the time, maybe it doesn't want to be with you.”

Contrary to the gem laughing, Nora didn't find it funny at all. “That's not true! My toys like me!”

“Yeah, let's see the next time it breaks, if it lasts to tell the story!” And that seems to be Nora's undoing as big tears finally spilled, sending the girl to run the fastest she could towards inside the house.

“Amethyst! What did you do to her!?” Pearl's sharp tone jumped over the loud music. “Why did she run off like this? What did you say to her!?”

If the younger Crystal Gem weren't in so much distress for causing tears, she'd probably snap at Pearl for the accusatory assumption. “Wha- I- Nothing! I swear! I was just joking-”

“You're unbelievable! You and your inappropriate jokes… Honestly Amethyst, I thought you would know better by now,” Pearl rudely interrupted, sending the most disapproving frown she could give. “Whatever you told her, you take that back. Now!”

‘I'm so stupid’, Amethyst plays that phrase inside her head over and over again. She punished herself the same way nine years ago when she made Nora cry with her jokes.

She didn't get it back then. It took a few hours spent in Vidalia's living room listening to her explain that children don't understand things like adults do and they're far more sensitive. Amethyst didn't understand it at first, neither was too happy with the fact she couldn't throw acid remarks or any kind of comments to Steven or Nora because they were far too young to comprehend her humour.

Although, unlike Pearl, Garnet or Greg, who were immediate to scold her, Vidalia had patience to listen and understand her point of view, and also teach her how to approach the twins. Vidalia always to the rescue…

“Amethyst!”

Someone called her and it took a few blink of eyes to realize she'd walked the whole field and went back to the barn, where Steven and Peridot were helping with smaller equipment.

“Check out this,” Peridot picks up a hammer from the ground. “Hmm... Rhythmatic pulverizer!?” She falls backwards on the ground laughing so hard it's a good thing she doesn't need to breathe. “That's funny, I'm so funny!”

Amethyst sighs, not really in the mood to engage the gem's antics. “Whatever, dude.”

Peridot stopped laughing, concerned at the unwanted result. “That was the incorrect response. Amethyst isn't laughing when I do these things. Why isn't she laughing?”

Steven picks up a screw and plops it inside the jar. “Peridot, you really hurt my sister's feelings.” And mine too, he adds mentally.

“What?”

“You were pretty mean to her at the Kindergarten.”

“Mean? I just stated a fact. I have no idea what she is supposed to be or look like since her form doesn't belong to any proper category. Gemetically speaking, she is… wrong, defective.”

Steven takes a long breath, abandoning the small metal items to pay full attention to his dilemma. How is he going to make Peridot realize that some things aren't meant to be said, regardless of the intention.

“Peridot, sometimes when you say something about someone, it can really hurt them, even if you don't mean to. That's why you need to be careful of what you say because you don't know how they feel about it.” Steven explains. “Remember a few days ago when Nora told you what would happen if you didn't help us?”

Could she forget? ‘And this is what is going to happen if you don't help us, we all are going to die, including you. All the hard work we did our whole life will be gone. Gone! Forever!’

The implication her whole life could be simply dismissed in a snap of fingers still stings on her chest. Peridot has a hard time grasping the fact her entire existence is meaningless in the eyes of Homeworld, her Diamond, the whole reason for her creation.

Steven sees the gem goes silent, eyes a little distant, and insists on the subject. “What she said was true, right?”

“Well, yes-”

“But it still upset you.”

“Yes! B-But it's different!” Peridot rises to her feet. “Gah! I don't even know why I'm discussing this with you! This holds no importance, yet I have this indescribable feeling whenever I think about it that makes me feel so… small.” 

“Because you feel bad, that's how you made her feel.”

“Who cares about how she feels? Who cares about any of you?! You're all just rocks! Ruddy, muddy clumps beneath my gravity connectors!"

Gotcha. Peridot's anger is proof she understands and acknowledges it's wrong, she just doesn't want to admit it out loud for the sake of her pride. At least half of the problem is solved, Steven thinks, now he just needs to get her to make the first step to change and apologize. But in all honesty, he's not really sure if that's the easiest or hardest part.

─ ·★· ─

“Nora, you there?” She saw Amethyst's boots from under the bed, where she'd hidden herself after her crying fit over the quartz's earlier jokes downstairs. It's the place she goes whenever she feels overwhelmed.

Nora thought of staying quiet and ignoring the gem, but her plan was busted the moment Amethyst lifted the covers, revealing the twin. “Hey little girl, can I talk to you real quick?”

She nodded.

Amethyst sat on the floor, waiting for Nora to crawl out from under the bed and sit beside her. Her face was still a little red and there's some traces left of residual tears and snot.

“I'm sorry for saying crap about your toy. It was very… bad of me. It wasn't nice,” She really wasn't good at this. “Though you didn't need to run off like that and cry like a damn baby, you really scared Pearl-”

“I'm not a baby!” The whole frustration that once faltered, returned, and worse. “And I don't like your jokes, they make me upset! You're making me upset!”

Amethyst raised her hands in a surrender gesture. “Chill dude, I came to apologize! No need to get so worked up!”

Unfortunately, her words had no positive effect when engulfed in a condescending tone. “Go away!” Nora started slapping the gem out of anger, leading her to get up and take a few steps backwards to protect herself. “Why are you so mean!?”

“Nora? Can I come in?” Nora hears Pearl knocking on the door, waiting for her consent. How long had she stayed inside the barn, replaying old memories?

After the girl's ‘yes’, the gem quietly opened the large door, revealing the orange and reddish sky above them, confirming to Nora that she spent the entire afternoon moping by herself.

“We're ready to start the test for the drill head and move on for the next part of our project. I thought you may want to come and see it.” Pearl opens the back of the pickup and takes a seat. It's an implicit invite to distract herself from the whole mess consuming her.

“I'm not sure if I want to go, Peridot will be there,” She slides next to the gem's side. “Did Steven tell you what happened?”

“He told me that Peridot made some really… insensitive commentary about you,” Nora isn't sure if Pearl tiptoeing around the subject like that comforts her, because it shows she respects her feelings, or it bothers her, when it also means she's wary around her. “Is that true?”

Nora had it coming, she can't ignore this topic forever. “She said that I'm not exactly human and not a gem either,” The girl pauses. “She said I'm wrong… and she's right.”

“What!?” Pearl squeaked in disbelief.

Once it's out, there's no turning back. “Pearl, I'm nothing everyone has ever seen before! Even Connie's mom told me my body doesn't work like it's supposed to! I'm not exactly a normal human, but I'm not a gem either! I don't know what I am, I don't even know if I was supposed to exist!” Nora curls up, tucking her knees to chest and hiding her face on both arms. “What am I?”

Pearl's heart breaks hearing her cry, she'd rather face an army of corrupted gems than having her baby be so sad and full of doubts about herself. Scooting closer, she pulls Nora into a hug, letting her get rid of every drop of tears until she calms down.

“I need you to listen carefully to what I'm about to say,” She gently cups Nora's face, wiping the wet trails with her thumbs. “Peridot may not know what you are, but I know; You are an exemplary daughter to Greg, a loyal sister to Steven, a great friend to Peedee and Connie, a real member of the Crystal Gems…” Her voice shakes a little, but she proceeds. “And someone I love with my entire being and I'm proud to have by my side.”

“You really think so?” Nora lifts her head, flashing her teary eyes. “It doesn't bother you that I'm so… different?”

Pearl shakes her head. “You’re perfect just the way you are,” As much as it feels a little disconcerting to speak the same words Rose told her in the past, at the same time it feels right. “There’s nothing to be ashamed about being different, because everyone is unique in their own way. I wouldn't change anything about you, we all love you exactly how you are.”

It might be simple, but even the simplest gesture of care can brighten someone's day and melt a crust of sadness off someone's heart. Nora throws herself around Pearl's arms, who replies with a warm hug that mirrors the feeling of home.

They stay like this for a while, enough time for Steven to return hoping for a second chance to talk with his sibling.

“We’ll be waiting for you.” Pearl rubs her back, then leaves both siblings to deal with their own problems with privacy.

“Hey sis,” Steven greets, a little awkwardly. “I wanted to talk with you, if that's okay.” Nora nods. “I'm sorry for being pushy. I wanted you guys to understand each other and make amends, but I should have respected your space.”

A huge weight leaves Nora's shoulders, relieved that Steven finally understood what the real issue was. “I’m sorry too, I shouldn't have yelled. I was angry and frustrated, but that didn't give me the right to be rude to you.”

“It's okay,” Steven assures, spreading his arms in a silent invite for a hug. “We good?”

Nora smiles, and returns the hug. “Yeah, we're good.”

When they're leaving the barn to watch the drill head test, they spot Peridot and Amethyst coming along in their direction. “They want to talk to you, but I can tell them you're not ready if you want.”

“No, it's fine. I want to listen to what they have to say.” Nora assures, waiting for the gems to arrive and speak what's on their minds.

The first one to try is, obviously, Peridot.

“Listen, I... uhm…” She has no idea how to start this discussion and Nora's firm gaze upon her certainly doesn't make it easier. “Why are you earthlings so difficult!?” Peridot slams the playback button on her tape recorder and holds it out to Nora, starting the message;

“Log date 7-11-2. This entire planet is backwards. There hasn't been one instance of correct behavior exhibited by any one of these Crystal Gems. I have concluded that they are all defective… but I am no better. I failed my mission and now I'm working with the enemy and I can't even get that right. I have apparently hurt Nora's feelings, which was not my intent. If I've damaged my standing with her, then I've made a serious mistake. I'm still learning. I hope you understand, I want to understand. I'm sorry. Peridot Facet 5, end log."

The tape recorder is turned off and silence returns, accompanied by the soft wind brushing against the plants in the background.

“As you can see, it came to my knowledge that my behaviour has been… inadequate. I presumed I was acting according to your human conduct, but with the information I gathered from my conversation with Steven it seems like my initial assumption was wrong,” Peridot says. “I had no intent on hurting your feelings and I hope you understand that.”

Nora remains silent, still processing the message she just heard. A sincere apology is definitely something she wanted to hear, but wasn't sure if she'd receive. But that was a good surprise.

Peridot is not exactly the best exempt of a person/gem, credits to Homeworld, but you can't really blame her for that. She didn't know any better and it's unfair to expect the same emotional knowledge from a gem who's programmed to follow order without questioning a human born and grown on Earth who's a natural at dealing with feelings, morals and dilemmas.

Besides, Peridot shows signs of genuine regret. No snarky tone or passive-aggressiveness were caught in her speech. In that log, Nora heard nothing but a gem who's willing to leave learned behaviour behind and embrace the complexity that shapes the people she's living with.

“It's okay, I forgive you,” Nora gives a weak smile. “Thanks.”

“I… I also have something to say,” Amethyst steps forwards. “You were right about earlier. I should've known better than keep trashing about people behind their back. You taught me that lesson before, but I should've taken it seriously,” She ran a hand through her hair, gaining courage to look at the youngest. “I'm sorry too, Noor.”

Instead of a verbal response, Nora goes to her and embraces the gem. “Thanks for that.”

Amethyst hugs tighter, squeezing the girl until she laughs claiming she can't breathe. This time, she is not going to make the same mistake again, not when it can put their relationship at risk. Lesson more than learned for today.

Watching the beautiful and relieving scene between family, Steven turns to Peridot, who's doing the same. “How do you feel?”

Peridot shots him a soft glance, before turning back to watch Nora and Amethyst exchange caring words with each other. “Big.”

Chapter Text

Nora is fast asleep on the back of a truck in the barn, tucked in with a fluffy blanket, embraced by the coziness while the wind brought the right amount of cold. Crickets were heard somewhere far in the field, working as a nice white sound.

Everything was perfect… until someone poked her.

Again. And again. Someone seems pretty insistent on waking her up. “Sis, wake up~” And this someone is her brother. “There's something important waiting for you.”

Nora really wants to keep her sleepiness from slipping further, but knowing Steven like she does, she knows how stubborn he can be and how it's useless to fight it. “Is it morning already?” 

The big yawn that leaves her mouth amuses Steven, whose smile nearly splits his face. “It's midnight,” He waits until she looks a little more aware, then tackles her into a bear hug. “Happy birthday, sis!”

“Hahappy birthday, Steven,” Nora giggles, returning the gesture, unable to keep her annoyance for being woken so early. “But I don't think you woke me up just to say that, right?”

“Nope!” He shakes his head. “I woke you because there's people who want to see you.”

People wanting to see her? Who on Earth could be? And more importantly, why this late?

Nora sighs, rubbing her face to appear more presentable despite the clear tiredness. When Steven moves a little out of the way, she spots two people in front of the pickup.

Two gems, actually;

The shorter one has bright scarlet skin and square-shaped hair with a headband tied around it, wearing a maroon and brown tank top, mid-thigh burgundy shorts, and pointed boots.

The other one is the complete opposite; Having long wavy blue hair, owning a floor-length dress with several frilly layers, white puffy sleeves and matching elbow-length gloves.

Who are they? Nora is certain she'd remember them if they ever encounter, until a small detail caught her attention;

A gemstone with square facet in a left palm, bright as a flame through the darkness, and another with a triangle facet in cold tones. She knows those, they're Garnet's! That means one thing. “Ruby! Sapphire!”

“Happy birthday, Nora!” Sapphire and Ruby open their arms, having Nora jump into them, pulling both into a hug. “Oh my gosh, it's good to finally meet you!”

“We kept our promise,” Ruby speaks proudly. “We wanted to surprise both of you, but since Jasper busted our plan-”

“At least we managed to surprise one of you, after all,” Sapphire steps in, caressing Ruby's shoulder to calm her after implicitly mentioning Jasper. Back then, she was mad as well, but the disappointment shouldn't have room for today.

And Nora agrees. “That's the best gift I could ever have, seriously.”

Ruby flashes a sly smirk. “If that's so, then I guess she doesn't want our other gift, right Sapphire?” The taunt makes effect, making the twins practically beg for their gifts.

“It's for both of you, so close your eyes… and no sneaking!” Sapphire softly warns, grinning at Steven's pout. Future vision can be fun sometimes.

Darkness takes their whole view and excitement accompanies it while they wait for the unknown gift. Surprisingly, neither Nora or Steven can come up with a good or remotely close idea of what it can be, but no need to worry because the gems don't let them wait for too long.

“Okay, you can open up!” The smile implicit on Ruby's words elevates their enthusiasm and both takes their hands off in the speed of light, so it takes a few seconds for their brain to process when they see it.

“It's beautiful!” Steven and Nora gently takes out of Sapphire's hands the minimalist miniatures of them, that completes each other when put together, and holds it closer on their palms, analyzing every inch of the small version of themselves.

With a closer look is possible to notice the material used was bend and shaped by extremely heat (due to Ruby's pyrokinesis) and once done it was froze (courtesy of Sapphire's cryokinesis) to remain that way. A very clever example of how Nora and Steven's opposite natures worked so well despite the differences. “We loved it, thank you, thank you, thank you!”

“I don't know what gifts we'll get at the party, but I'm sure that one is the best!” Steven turns to the couple. “You're gonna be there, right?”

“I'm sure you wouldn't want Garnet to miss the party,” Sapphire says and Ruby gives the siblings an apologetic side smile. “Although, while we're here we can tell you the story of how Ruby and I first met.”

“Please tell us! Tell us! Tell us!” How could they ever deny them something? Ruby gets inside the pickup and takes Sapphire’s hands to help her get in. Nora and Steven get comfy, with the girl settling over Sapphire's lap while her brother leans against Ruby.

“The Earth, 5,750 years ago…”

─ ·★· ─

“I still can't believe it's finally our birthday.” Steven comments, helping Garnet with the banner lettering.

“Me neither, I'm so excited for this year's,” Nora responds, finishing another ribbon bow for the decoration. “But you're sure it's okay to take a break from the drill?”

“Don’t worry about it,” Pearl assures. “Peridot will keep us on schedule.”

“Yo, Peri! You sure you don't want to get in on this?” Amethyst blows up a triangle-shaped balloon way too much and it pops. Peridot glares at it, noticing the resemblance, and puts on her welding goggles and disappears around the corner of the barn. It's a no.

“We should celebrate our progress, we should celebrate your progress. You both have grown a lot this year.”

Pearl gives an encouraging smile. “You two certainly have.”

A car horn is then heard, and from afar everyone watches Greg's van arriving. The first person to leave the car is Peedee, who helps Connie with her, what seems heavy, suitcase out of the vehicle.

Both of them decide to wear something special for the occasion; Peedee chose a white shirt, beige coat matching his pants, and slip-on shoes; And Connie wore a red party dress and floppy sun hat.

“Connie! Peedee!” Nora and Steven run to greet their friends, receiving a strong hug from both. “Happy birthday!” 

“Thanks! Welcome to the party!” Steven gestures over the few balloons placed on strategic spots and empty chairs. “So, that’s the barn! Where we're staying to help build the drill until we solve this whole Cluster thing.

“I'm surprised your parents are letting you stay for the weekend.” Nora comments.

Connie chuckles. “It wasn't easy, they'd only let me come after equipping me with every piece of safety gear on the planet,” As to make her point, they hear Greg asking about the defibrillator in the back of the van. “Um, we can just leave it in the car for now!”

“Well, I'm glad you all could make it.”

“Me too.”

Steven and Nora wait until Greg sorts Connie's shenanigans in the back of the van since he hasn't had the chance to wish them happy birthday. Closing the door of his car, the musician takes a special book with him and makes his way towards his kids. “Happy birthday!” He kneels down to hug them tightly.

“Thanks dad.” They melt under their father's affection, smelling the familiar scent of car and the sea.

Greg releases them and wipes a tiny tear away. “Sorry, I just can't believe my little kids are growing up so quickly. Seems like just yesterday you two were babies, and now you're both turning fourteen years old.”

Connie shoots an incredulous look at her friend. “Steven, you're fourteen!? But I'm only twelve and three quarters! You're older than me? I-I don't believe it!”

“Well sure, check it out!” Greg pulls out a blue book with a star on the front under the name ‘Steven & Nora Quartz Universe’. “Let's see, we have infant.” The first picture shows a younger Greg holding baby Steven on his right arm and baby Nora on his left.

“Oh my gosh, you're so cute!” Peedee coos, and Nora hides her face on Steven's shoulder out of embarrassment.

“Baby,” The next photo shows the two year old twins leaning on the table with their dad's help. “Toddler,” Vidalia and Greg stand side by side with each twin supported by their hands. “Child,” Now neither adult is present, leaving the children to blow up the candles by themselves.

As new photos pass by, it becomes quite evident that at some point Steven started to age a little slower than Nora. Even though both appeared to be younger than they actually were, Steven seemed to be the most affected.

This detail became even more prominent by his tenth birthday when he stopped getting older until this day. “Whoa, looks like you stagnated there a little bit, buddy.”

And Connie surely noticed that. “Mr. Universe, could I... show you how the defibrillator works?”

“Oh, uh, sure! Be right back, kiddo.” Greg closes the book and walks off with Connie.

“I still have to finish the ribbons, wanna help?” Nora asks Peedee, who nods in confirmation. “Steven, you coming?”

“Uh, yeah, I'll be there in a sec.” Steven waits until there's a distance between them and tiptoes towards the van, doing his best to make sure he isn't seen or heard.

“So he's not going to grow up?” Apprehension nearly sucks out the air of his lungs when he hears Connie's question.

“Well, it's hard to say. He's a gem and gems don't really grow up. I mean, I've known the Gems since I was 22 and they never change, they just are what they are. But Steven is not like the other gems, he's half-human, your mother even told us that it is likely for him to grow, just slower than most people. So, I'm not really sure how he's gonna age, we're just gonna have to wait and see.”

“Yes, right.”

“Are you okay?” Probably not. “Look, humans and gems... it's still some pretty new territory, you're gonna have to work it out together. If you ever need to talk to another human being about this, you can always talk to me,” There's a pause. “Human beings?”

He hears a high-five. “Human beings.”

Human beings, Steven gloomy thinks.

Steven doesn't usually get that upset over his unique heritage, since he gets to experience both sides of them; Human and gem. But that's where the issue is.

He's the only known hybrid.

And being the only example of something, whether extraordinary or not, can be quite lonely.

Lonely and full of uncertainty. Yes, Dr. Maheswaran assured him that he would age, even if not like the others, and not only his dad, but the Gems were hopeful too and both have experience for their own credits.

However, none of those seems to satisfy his anxiety and fill his mind with the worst possible outcomes. What if they're wrong? What if Steven's gems take an unexpected turn and make him stuck in this youngish age forever?

It's a low chance of that to happen, you may say, but there's still a chance. A small one. And that's enough for Steven to spiral into pessimism. Just one jackpot on life roulette and this will have the possibility step layered in front of it.

Ugh, Steven doesn't need or wants to think about it right now. It's his freaking birthday! It's supposed to be a nice day where he can forget the world's problems for 24 hours.

The older twin goes back straight to the barn where he can have some privacy, or that's what he thought, and that's the reason why he's surprised to get there and find his best friend inside.

“Peedee? I thought you were helping with the decoration.” Steven is thankful his friend has his back turned, giving him time to wipe the sadness off of his face.

“Nah, Nora and Pearl had it under control. Instead, they asked me to take some stuff from the drill out of there and keep them here inside,” Peedee drops the last box next to the others and turns around, immediately recognizing something's up with Steven. “What's wrong?”

The boy considers hiding under the I'm fine facade, but this behavior of his is getting too repetitive to a point where bottling everything up has become a really exhausting thing to maintain.

Besides, comfort and reaffirmation are something he really could use right now. Badly. “Peedee, did it ever bother you that I don't age like a human?”

“Uhh… no? Why would it?” The young Fryman frowns. “Wait, does this have to do with the pictures? That your dad said you stopped growing?”

Self consciousness spreads over Steven's face. “Yeah…”

The vulnerability in his voice makes Peedee feel a little bad for sounding a little dismissive at first. “Steven, people grow differently, it's the most normal thing. The fact you're half-gem just changes how you do it, not if you do it. Also, remember what Connie's mom told you?”

“Steven, you may be aging slowly, but it doesn't mean you won't age at all. Your physical changes are tied to your maturity, so it’s just a matter of time until you start developing. You shouldn't worry about it, you have my word.”

“I do, she told me I shouldn't worry about it because I will grow at some point,” Steven recalls. “But what if I take too long to catch up? I don't want to stay a kid for years while Connie grows up and becomes president. What is that gonna make me? First Boy!?”

Peedee almost laughs, not out of malice, but at the adorableness. “I think you're overcomplicating things. First, you grew normal most of your life, what makes you think that suddenly you're never going to grow? That makes no sense,” He explains. “I think you don't know that, but when Ronaldo was at my age he was already growing a beard!”

“Really?”

The younger nods. “He had an early puberty, like many other people. And there's a lot of people who take a little too long to grow too. Not everyone works the same. You may be a gem, but don't forget you're human too."

“Do you think Connie will mind?”

“Steven, the first time she met you she got trapped inside a bubble and rolled over into the ocean. If that didn't freak her out, I don't think she'll mind if you look a little younger,” A proud smile forms on the blond's face for being able to make his friend laugh. “Trust me, there's nothing to worry about.”

Although his concerns aren't completely gone, Steven feels way more calm. “Thanks, Peedee.”

“Yo, Fryboy! Wanna give me a hand with the banner?” The boys hear Amethyst from outside. “On it!” Peedee waves at Steven and leaves to guide the gem.

After a few adjustments, the banner and ribbons pinned to the front walls were prepared.

“It looks great, Amy!” Nora arrives and gives the gem a thumbs-up, before meeting with her brother inside the barn. “Just finished helping Pearl with the decorations, she said you needed help to pack things to the barn.”

“Oh yeah, I did, but Peridot kept most of the big stuff and Peedee took care of the rest,” They notice Greg approach them holding the birthday suit. Peedee and Amethyst are gone by now. “Oh, hi dad! What's up?”

“We're almost ready to start, got the birthday cape and crown ready too. Here,” Greg hands the birthday suit to his kids and pushes them into the barn. “Now put it on and go wait there, you're gonna love this.”

The doors are shut, leaving the twins alone.

Steven grasps the red cape entirely lined in thick white fur and stares at it. He'd become familiar with this tradition ever since his four years old self caught sight of it in a random store. Even after ten birthdays, this outfit remained the same, almost without signs of overuse.

Is that what he's faded to? Never change? Always stay the same? Gems don't grow, and hypothetically don't change. What if, being half one, means that at some point he will become exactly like them? Unable to be something or someone else? Far away from reaching a different perspective.

No wonder Connie is worried, he is starting to worry too. He wouldn't wish a stagnant path to himself, let alone to someone else. Steven wants to age and share those experiences with Connie. He wants to grow taller, to have clothes that don't fit him anymore, face the embarrassment at having voice cracks, and maybe, just maybe even go to college too.

“Steven,” Nora's voice brings him to reality, where he still has some baby fat on his face and arms that won't reach too high cabinets. “You okay?”

“Just thinking,” He mumbles, using his thumb to caress the fabric. “Nora, do you ever worry if you'll ever grow up? Because we're part gems, and they don't really grow, you know? Have you ever thought about that?”

“Actually yeah,” Nora answers. “When I went to that appointment with Connie's mom, she said that I may grow slower than most teenagers. Back then, I got worried, but now I'm okay with it."

“Besides, didn't she say your age is tied to your maturity or something? So, it's not like you're going to stay a kid forever, we're both going to become teens and live a lot of stuff and we're gonna change. Isn't this what growing up is about? Changing?”

She's… right.

“And I'm not so sure that gems don't grow. Garnet is not the same from a year ago and neither is Pearl! She's letting me work on the drill with her, she'd never let me do that back then!”

That's when Steven realizes his mistake. He was seeing growing up as a single superficial physical change, instead of a complex process that it really is. Growing means changing. It means starting to have another vision of life and existence itself, leaving things and memories behind as well you welcome and create new ones.

Growing up means everyday having the chance to learn from past mistakes and use them for good and become a version of yourself that you can look at the mirror and not only be proud of, but also love.

Gems can grow.

Steven can grow.

Everyone can grow.

“And even if something happens, we'll always find a way out, and I'll be right here by your side. We're gonna do this together, right?”

Steven takes her hand, squeezing it. “Always.”

From outside, Greg knocks on the door. “Okay you two, open up!”

“Let's do this!” Nora grabs the red cape and puts it over her brother's shoulders, adjusting the fumbled parts. Steven does the same, placing the crown on his sister's head, careful not to mess with her hair.

They open up the door and see Greg, Connie and the Gems standing outside, presenting a Cookie Cat-shaped birthday cake. “SURPRISE!”

─ ·★· ─

The young group reunited in a spot a little far from the barn on a picnic mat to give their gifts to Nora and Steven. Oh, and Lion made them some company by napping besides them.

“Here, Steven.” Connie is the first one to give a present. “Oh, you don't have to untie that. It's just a box made to look like I spent a lot of time wrapping it.”

Nora laughs. “Smart.”

Steven opens the box, tossing away the lid, and finds a pink shirt gently folded. “Ohhh a new shirt! What a pretty color.”

“Try it on!” Peedee tells him and Steven obeys. He puts on the shirt and buttons all the way up. The fabric is really soft and the sleeves don't cramp his shoulders, which is awesome. “It fits just fine! It's great!”

Connie smiles and reaches for another back kept next to her. “And Nora, that one is for you. I hope you like it!”

“I'm sure I will!” Nora opens the box and notices it's really lightweight, assuming it is also a piece of clothing. Her guess ends up concrete. “It's a pelerine! Like the one Mariana Galdrima used on the show!”

The fictional protagonist wears its iconic white shoulder cape with blue wave pattern on it. The one Connie gave Nora is navy coloured with bright pink details on it. “Connie, I loved it so much! Thank you!”

The next gift is Peedee’s and there's no mystery on guessing at what Steven quickly identifies as a bag case for his ukulele. Instead of soft material, it's a wooden shaped one, coloured in the same pale yellow, light-orange and salmon-pink wavy design. “Remember that day you took it to the beach and the water almost ruined it?”

“Yeheah, that will come in handy, and it's really beautiful. It even has the same drawings! Did you paint that?” Steven receives a positive nod. “Whoa, it looks exactly the same! Thank you!”

Nora can barely wait to see what her gift will be and her excitement is very well rewarded.

“A sewing kit! It even has a portable one!” The kit has a lot of diverse materials; Steel scissors, measuring tape, color pins, sewing needles and clips, buttons, and much more. And attached to it, it held a small compacted version with less material to act in an emergency.

Peedee holds a hand. “Let me guess: thank you?”

Nora laughs. “What else can I say ? This is such an amazing gift!”

“And there's still one more left!” Peedee takes a big box from behind him. “Jeff said he's sorry for not coming, his family had a trip planned for this weekend, but he made sure to get something for you guys.”

“Aww, that's so sweet!” Steven takes the box and presses an ear on it while he shakes, failing to guess what's inside; Matching pink and white bracelets with a yellow star carved on the middle for both siblings; A cookie cat purse for Nora and a pair of sneakers for Steven.

“How did he know about the Cookie Cat thing?” Connie questions.

Peedee clears his throat and points at himself. “Thanks to me! He asked me what you two liked and obviously I was the best person to tell him. Sorry Connie, but I know them first.”

She mockingly huffs.

“It’s a shame he couldn't come, but we'll keep some cake and snacks for him.” Nora tells while she puts everything back inside the boxes.

Peedee stands up and grabs the few forgotten rackets. “Now how about some badminton? Girls versus boys?”

“We’re on it!"

─ ·★· ─

“Where's our favorite pair of twins?” Greg's van arrival announces more people joining the party, which is Vidalia and her son. “Happy birthday, sweeties!” The painter gives each one a smooch.

“What about me?” Sour Cream pipes in, placing both hands with bags on both hips. “Big brother here doesn't get a hug?”

He laughs seeing them leave his mother's side and greet him with affection. “There you go, your guys’ gifts.” Sour Cream goes to the back of the van and takes a black guitar in his hands, giving it to the boy. “Steven, that one is for you.”

The teenager grabs another package that kept a very odd, but beautiful looking instrument. “And Nora, that's yours. It's an omnichord. Pretty cool, right?"

“Whoa, I never heard of that one before. I don't even know how it works, it has so many buttons!” Nora is fascinated by the unique instrument, it's so different from anything else she'd seen (which it's a lot considering she's the daughter of a musician).

“It seems complicated, but it's quite easy. Here, I'm gonna show you.” Sour Cream and Nora sit down with Steven right beside them, curious as well. The instrument is placed between their laps and the DJ takes care of the rest.

He turns a few buttons here and there, and then, voa lá! A majestic sound is made out of that instrument, it's almost heavenly, something that makes you think of it as a dream, melodies out of this world.

At the same time, Pearl and Garnet took the food bags and started to settle the table, and Vidalia had a nice chat with Connie. “So, you used to take care of them?” The student asks, curious about this part of her friends’ lives.

Vidalia nods. “Greg and his kids used to live with me in my house and I used to babysit them for most of the time until I got to work.”

“I’m sure they were pretty easy to deal with.”

“Oh no! These two were absolute menaces!” She points at Greg, who's snickering behind his drink. “Your kids gave me more gray hair than my own! I still remember the day they locked the babysitter out of the house.”

“In my defense, she was mean.” Nora mumbles, from her spot.

Steven blushes and crosses his arms. “Hey! It's not nice to bad mouth the birthday kids on their birthday!”

“It's not bad mouthing when it's true, little boy.”

“She got you there.” Connie teases him, chuckling at the dramatic long groan she earned.

“Everyone, Garnet and I prepared the table and if anyone wants to eat or drink you can-” Pearl's speech is interrupted by Amethyst already stealing some of those. “Help yourselves.”

The table is set with a good amount of food; The birthday cake, hot dogs, bowls filled with chips, tacos, strawberry and blueberry pie. And for drinks, there's soda for the kids and punch drink for the adults (and an entire bowl reserved for Amethyst).

Soon Sour Cream takes the familiar role as DJ and, with Greg's help handling the equipment, he puts everyone to move and have fun with songs and remixes from his own archive and array of vinyls straight out of Greg's personal collection.

The whole group is having the fun of their lives, so into the moment no one notices the suspiciousness behind Sour Cream whispering something to Garnet.

“This one goes out to the birthday kids, and their best friends.” She announces in the microphone, preceding a calm romantic music that begins to play, swapping the electronic one previously.

The serene ballad caught the group by surprise, but in a good way. They split in pairs; Steven dances with Connie and Nora stays with Peedee.

Connie lays her arms around Steven's neck and his hands are placed around her waist. “I still can't believe all this time you were older than me. You should sneak me into a PG-13 movie sometime.”

“What!?” Steven squeaks.

His friend giggles. “No, I'm just kidding, I would never ask you to break the law. It's funny that I have to look up at you now though.”

“Funny good or funny bad?” Steven asks, a little nervous, then is taken aback when Connie stops dancing.

“Funny good.” Connie's answer is filled with honesty and sweetness and then, she does something that Steven couldn't predict even with Garnet's future vision: she leans on his chest.

Steven's whole body goes stiff. He has absolutely no idea what to do. Should he embrace her? Or leave her or… whatever! He's sure at this point he's redder than a tomato and it doesn't help the fact she can probably hear how fast his heart is beating right now.

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“Looks like they're enjoying themselves,” Nora tells Peedee, pointing with her head at the pair. “We better get going, we don't want to interrupt the lovebirds.” She takes him by the hand and excuses them.

Nora and Peedee go for a walk around the field and it's nice. At night, the place can be weirdly quiet, but peaceful, and now with the songs fading away it creates a comforting atmosphere.

“So, how's things between you and Jeff?”

Peedee nearly chokes on his own saliva. “W-what?”

“Oh c'mon, it's written on your face that you like him.” Nora did not expect her friend to go from flustered to melancholic in seconds over an innocent comment.

“Yeah, but I don't think this is right.”

“I don't get it.”

Peedee shoves his hands inside both pockets, sighing. “Because… I'm a boy and Jeff… is also… a boy.” He can't even say with false conviction, it doesn't sound right, because it isn't right.

“So?” Nora raises an eyebrow. “What's the big deal?”

“Boys shouldn't really like other boys that way, it… it's not right.”

Nora suddenly stops. She'd heard something like that before.

“Steven, look!” Nora distanced herself from the shopping cart and took one of the magazines on display. “It's your boyfriend~” She playfully wiggled it in front of her brother.

‘Exclusive interview with the young star, Lin Callison, on the success of his TV show, Real Danger, getting renewed to a third season!’ It read, and there's a picture of a seven year old actor smiling posing like a superhero, wearing half of his normal outfit and the other half of his hero costume.

Steven blushed, babbling some nonsense excuses and denying it. Nora's teasing didn't last long as the babysitter roughly snatched the magazine out of Nora's hands. “You both stop with this nonsense!”

“What do you mean?” Nora is left just confused as Steven was.

The woman rolled her eyes. “Steven can't have a boyfriend. He's a boy and boys don't have boyfriends, boys have girlfriends.”

“But what if he wants a boyfriend?” The young twin put on her most defiance expression, crossing her arms to force intimidation.

“This is not something age-appropriate to discuss with you. But once you get older you will understand this is not normal behavior.”

The memory leaves a bitter taste on her mouth and it makes her somewhat nauseous. “I don't see what's the matter of liking someone, no matter if they're a girl or a boy.”

Peedee opens his mouth, but realizes he has no logical answer for that one. Is there an actual reason to be against two boys or girls being together? A single one that doesn't involve a shallow ‘it's wrong’/‘it's not normal’ or a religious 'it's on the bible'/‘God wouldn't approve it’? Any? “To be honest, I don't understand it either.”

They reach a nearby tree and Peedee takes the spot to sit down. Nora does the same.

It's kind of a good place to spend time, since pretty much most of the barn area can be entirely seen from there; The private place Peridot found to work without being disturbed, the barn itself, the party, and vast field that surrounds them. Only the warp pad is out of their eyes’ reach.

“Some people just get bothered if you're too different from them,” He shrugs. “Before I moved into Beach City, I saw people make some mean comments about boys that were too… delicate or sensitive. I never heard my dad say anything like that, but I don't think he… I don't know.”

During times like this, Nora is greatly thankful for having such a supportive and open-minded dad. They never talked about this topic, but the certainty that Greg wouldn't ever make her feel bad over liking someone is relieving.

“Look,” The sudden contact on his hand startles the boy. “I don't know what makes you think that but don't forget that your friend is right here no matter what.”

The boy lifts his face and stares back into her eyes, not shy of exposing many emotions flashing across his own. Surprisingly, he pulls her into a tight hug, which Nora gladly returns the gesture.

Ever since his mother died, Peedee always lived with a burden weighed on his shoulders. Things were always tense in the Fryman’s house and that made him have this constant need to please everyone;

His father, by never talking about his mom, blindly obeying and overwhelming himself with work; And his brother, by validating his paranoias and joining on his nonsense investigations.

The love he received felt conditional, that it only existed or lasted as long as he made his family happy. It's nice to have someone that is by your side simply because they like you, they enjoy your company and love to spend time with you.

It's nice to feel… genuinely loved.

Rapid footsteps are heard growing closer and when both look upfront they catch the sight of Steven practically running for his life. “Whoa Steven, you okay?”

“Y-Yeah! I- Just come back to the party!” Steven doesn't give context, instead, he takes his friend and sister by the hand, and forces both to follow him.

“Okay, okay! We're going!”

And returning to the party, they could enjoy the last few hours of celebrating the best birthday the twins ever had. The whole family was reunited, they received a lot of cool gifts and no words for the food. It was just perfect.

Greg said a very long goodbye to his kids before leaving with Vidalia and Sour Cream to drop them home. The Gems stayed to clean up everything listening to Peridot's report of today's work, and the rest went to get some deserved rest after a full day of fun.

“I don't know about you guys, but I'm exhausted!” Peedee comments, with a loud yawn.

“Me too, but I'm not gonna lie, today was the most fun I've ever had in a long time,” Connie confess. “Thanks for inviting me.”

“Oh please, you two are always invited to our birthdays,” Nora says, reaching the tent. “And now's time for bed! Goodnight everyone.”

“Night!” Connie and Nora get inside the left tent, while Steven and Peedee share the other one, more than ready to finally sleep after a happy day.

─ ·★· ─

“Nora! Nora, wake up!”

After such a happy and peaceful day, the last thing the youngest Universe had planned was to be woken up in such an unceremonious way by her friend. “C'mon, Steven has something really important to tell you!”

“Ugh, what's up with everyone waking me up like that?” Nora grunts, rubbing her eyes while Connie waits for her on the outside of the tent.

Out there, Nora sees Steven talking with Peedee and for a moment she wonders what could be so serious. That's until she stands side by side with her brother and realizes what Connie meant. “Steven… did you just-”

“Grew!?” Steven completes, debuting not only a new look, but his slightly deeper voice. “Yeah, I did! I'm taller!” He laughs carefree, spinning around to practice with his new height.

Nora stares dumbfounded. Did her brother just grow out of the sudden? That's actually a good sign, as that washed Steven's fear away about growing up, but on the other hand… she will probably miss helping her sibling getting that jar on top cabinet.

“How did that happen?” Peedee is asked. “First of all, your brother has a serious problem with cuddling,” Is not the case that he doesn't like physical affection, but sometimes Steven can overdo it. “And second, I have no idea. When we went to sleep, he was normal, and then when we woke up and got out he was already taller with a different voice.”

“That's right… shorty.”

Nora gasps out loud in mock offense, while Connie and Peedee stifle their own laughter. “Y-you… you take that back!”

“Nope!” He denies, brushing off the finger pointed at him. Oh, Steven will have too much fun with this. “I've waited so long for this moment, I finally got to be the tall twin!”

“You're not even that tall, anyways,” Nora crosses her arms. “Congrats that now you can reach the shelves.”

“And congrats for going back to your position as my little sister.”

He so did that on purpose. “Gosh, I hate you.”

“And I love you!” Steven pulls her into a hug, placing a kiss on her cheek, which Nora responds with a fake disgusting noise. “I love all of you!” Peedee and Connie find themselves also trapped and squished in a group hug. “Thanks everyone. If it weren't for you guys I'd probably still be stuck looking like a ten year old, somehow you guys freed me from whatever was holding me back.”

“I think you were probably too stressed about it,” Nora presumes. “You were so worried about growing that when you finally realized that you will and this whole thing isn't that important, you kinda, I don't know, matured.”

“But no matter what happens, we'll always go through it together,” Peedee reinforces. “Jam buds?” 

Steven and the others smile fondly. “Jam buds.”

Chapter Text

Pearl, Garnet, and Amethyst are seen sitting on a hill and watching the sunset over Beach City. All of them having a silent conversation at the same time each one is introspective into their own thoughts.

Nora is lying against Lion, with Steven by her side, humming, and strumming his ukulele, when Peridot walks up to them. She doesn't look too happy. “Steven, Nora.”

“Hi!” Both greet her.

“Why did we stop working on the drill?” Peridot gestures over the trio who seems unbothered by her words. “Why are they just sitting there looking at nothing?!”

“We worked hard and we deserve to take it easy for a little bit,” Steven says, lowering his ukulele. “I mean just look at that view, it's beautiful.”

“It's going to be blown to oblivion by the Cluster if we don't get back to work!”

If Peridot said those words weeks ago, he'd probably freak out. The weight of saving the world and the possibility of not accomplishing it still scares him, but throughout the days he faced the fact that there's not much he could do, and the only plausible option is currently worked on.

There's no point in spending hours drowning deep into pessimism about something he's already doing his best. It's easier said than done, but Steven is putting effort into preserving his mental health, and now with Greg's help, he's managing to control his anxiety a little more through music. “Working hard is important, but feeling good is important too.”

“What are you talking about!?” Peridot accidentally turns on the power drill in her hand in her frustration, and it makes a buzzing sound.

“Hey!” Nora imitates the drill buzzing. “What is that, a C?” In response, Steven plays the note on his ukulele.

Peridot stares confused at the object. “The drill?” She makes it buzz again.

“Yeah!” Steven listens to the gem making the drill buzz in a higher pitch. “Oh my gosh, now it's music! Like this, do-re-mi-fa-so-la-ti-do.” He strums his ukulele.

“Do-mi-so-do…”

“Isn't it pretty?” The boy sings. “We're making music.”

“What is the point? You're not making anything.”

“Well, if it wasn't anything, then it wouldn't sound that great.” Nora points out, winking to her brother, who smiles in response.

“I suppose it's just interest... Do-mi-so-do. Devoid of substance or purpose, a hypothetical pattern. Do-mi-so-ti. For the satisfaction of bringing it to completion.”

Nora and Steven exchange looks. “Sure.”

“Do-mi-so-ti. Interest without meaning? Solutions without problems?”

“And then you just add words,” Steven turns to his sister. “C'mon Nora, show her what you've been working on!”

“Life and death and love and birth, and peace and war on the planet Earth. Is there anything that's worth more, than peace and love on the planet Earth? Oh-whooah, come on and sing it with me!”

“Sing?”

“The words relate to the key.”

“Key?”

“If it's a pattern, if it's a pattern, then just repeat after me~” Nora guides Peridot. “Life and death and love and birth…”

Peridot timidly repeats. “Life and death and love and birth.”

“Now you sing mi-fa-mi-mi-fa-mi-ti-la!” Steven jumps in, and everyone sings together. “And peace and war on the planet Earth! Yes, yes, that's it!"

Peridot finds her lips curving upwards. It feels so harmonious and… nice… fun even. “That's so easy.”

“Yeah, but that's what's fun about it. You should write something, you should write a song!” Steven suggests. He notices the Gems getting up from their spot, ready to resume their work, and searches for the ukulele case.

“About what?”

“Anything you want,” Nora replies, encouragingly. “When I write a song, it's usually about something I'm feeling or that I went through, so it helps me to express myself. You should try!”

Everyone starts to leave to go back, finishing the last details of the drill while Peridot stays, still thoughtful about everything she heard and analyzed from those simple chords and words.

Express herself. She can totally do that.

─ ·★· ─

Peridot is inside the barn on her own, listening to the muffled voices and melody coming from outside. The Crystal Gems are gathered in front of a bonfire watching Steven and Nora present their song.

“Life and death and love and birth, and peace and war on the planet Earth. Is there anything that's worth more, than peace and love on the planet Earth?”

“Whoa, come on and sing it with me, the words relate to the key. If it's a pattern, if it's a pattern, then just repeat after me.”

Nora and Steven intercalate their parts, perfect as a professional musical number. It astonishes Peridot how both can be so perfectly in sync, knowing exactly when to step in and even without rehearsing.

“Life and death and love and birth.”

“Life and death and love and birth.”

“Life and death and love and birth, and peace and war on the planet Earth.”

“Is there anything that's worth more.”

“Is there anything that's worth more.”

“Is there anything that's worth more than peace and love on the planet Earth?” Peridot steps just around the corner and watches the Gems applauding the performance. “I'm still working on a second verse, if there's any ideas…”

Then a shy voice comes from the corner.

“I guess we're already here, I guess we already know. We've all got something to fear, we've all got nowhere to go.”

The group turn around, shocked to see Peridot actually joining them for the jam session, expressing her thoughts and emotions subtly through assertive sentences that may seem full of certainty, but can hide doubts and insecurities.

“I think you're all insane! But I guess I am too. Anybody would be if they were stuck on Earth with you!”

Steven laughs. “Yes!”

Nora makes a ‘again’ gesture and Steven repeats the chorus melody. “Life and death and love and birth and…” She sings.

Amethyst repeats. “Life and death and love and birth and…”

“Life and death and love and birth, and peace and war on the planet Earth.” Pearl completes.

“Is there anything that's worth more…” Garnet continues.

Steven repeats. “Is there anything that's worth more…”

“Is there anything that's worth more than peace and love on the planet Earth?” Peridot concludes the song.

The warm atmosphere remains hours later when everyone finishes making the last adjustments to the drill, taking a moment to stop and gaze at their project in awe.

“Nice work.” Garnet pats Peridot on the back, but the gem shrieks and jumps in fear. The Gems look at each other before bursting out laughing while Peridot softens.

Steven hugs her from behind and, surprisingly, she doesn't mind. “We really did it, huh?”

He gasps. “We?”

Peridot opens her mouth to retort, however words fail her. She meant it. We. She is actually viewing herself as part of the team, their team. “Oh wait, I need to check something!”

Steven let out a relieved breath watching her run to the barn. “She's come so far, it feels like yesterday she was trying to kill us.”

“No, no, that was a month ago.” Pearl corrects.

The technician comes back with what's left of her screen fingers from the limb enhancer. “It seems that we have almost all crucial information in order to drill, but we still need to find some coordinates.”

“Uh, don’t we have those in your data thing?” Amethyst asks.

“Yes, the Cluster’s location itself. I'm referring to the weaker gem shards that are in such a poor state that may be easier to drill in order to prevent it from taking form.”

Pearl raises a hand to her chin. “There's a Diamond Base that may hold that information, but getting there is going to be difficult because it's not accessible by warp pad. And it's on the moon.”

“The moon!?” The siblings gasp.

“Lion, can you teleport all of us to the moon?” In response, he grunts and stretches his limbs, ignoring the youngest and continues napping. “Come on, Lion, this is really important! We gotta do this to stop the Cluster!”

Steven adds. “If we don't there's gonna be no more Earth! No more fun times with your pals, no more Lion Lickers, no more naps-” On that remark, the pink pet gets up and roars, glaring at him with glowing white eyes.

Steven turns to the Gems. “Guess it was naps.”

Totally a valid reason.

─ ·★· ─

Lion emerges from a portal with a rough landing, sliding across the floor and hitting against a wall, with the Gems still on his back.

Nora is the first one to leap out of the mane and kneel next to him. “Lion! Are you okay!?” She checks out for any signs of injuries.

The Gems stand up carefully to not cause any more pain to the poor animal. Steven bends down, seeing Lion panting heavily in exhaustion. “Oh bud, you've earned your naps for the week.”

Garnet, Pearl and Peridot begin shining their gems like flashlights. “We made it.”

“It doesn't look like the moon.” Steven comments over the fact the room they're currently in it's a closed environment.

“Hey, look over here! I think it's a door.” Amethyst places her hand on a panel and the hexagonal entrance opens, revealing the surface of the moon with the view of Earth in the distance. Once she does that, air instantly begins getting sucked out through it, forcing her to shut the door quickly. “Uhhh, yup! We are on the moon!”

“Amethyst, please! Don't blow us into space!” Pearl growls, adjusting her disheveled hair.

Steven and Nora chuckle as they begin floating around in the air. “Whoa, look at us! We're moon buds!” 

Amethyst runs over to them. “Alright moon buds!” She tries to jump and float in the air like both, but instead she falls straight to the floor. “Hey! Why can't I be a moon bud?”

“We're gems? We're a space-faring race designed to conquer other worlds. Our physical forms adjust automatically to the gravity of any planetoid.” Peridot explains, not surprised at the grunt she receives in response.

Steven holds hands with Nora, floating around the room until they reach the floor and take a moment to observe the wall with a mural on it in front of them. “Hey Peridot, who is this supposed to be?”

Peridot walks to them, thinking it's not something important, but once the mural catches her attention her features brighten up. “It's Blue Diamond! Wait- are they all here? Ahh yes! There she is!” She runs over to another mural. “Behold, Yellow Diamond! Isn't she magnificent?!”

The siblings take a few steps back to properly see the entire illustration without missing any details. This Yellow Diamond, based on how she's pictured, looks so imposing and powerful, with all these little planets circling her being. “Wow... so who are the Diamonds anyway? They seem like a big deal.”

“Are you joking me?! The Diamonds are the gem matriarchs! Together they make up the Great Diamond Authority that governs Homeworld and all t e o tl ing c l n e ! W  l v  t  s rv  t  m!”

Peridot's words began to fade in the background as Nora saw another mural behind them. It pictured another Diamond, slightly smaller than the others, holding a single planet around her palm.

Nora finds herself getting closer and closer to it, almost as if being pulled by a magical force. “Pink.”

Pearl freezes on her spot. “What?”

“Pink,” Nora repeats, lifting her face to meet her wide gaze. “I mean, if that's Blue and Yellow,” She points at the two other murals over their shoulders. “This must be Pink, Pink Diamond.”

Hearing that name from Nora's mouth sounds so wrong that Pearl wished she never asked in the first place and pretend she never heard it. Her lips parts, attempting to say something, but both hands flies to cover her mouth.

“Hey, I think that's a control service over there! Let's take a look!” They hear Peridot heading over the room where she inspects a panel on the floor. “I think this is right, the material is different from the surrounding stone. I think if I just do this-”

Her hands move across the panel and surprisingly it lights up. It and several other panels begin to rise around the room and create a set of fluctuating stairs.

The group waste no time and starts climbing those stairs and enters a room with only a single mysterious object in the middle of it. “Hey, what's this?” Steven points at it.

“It's not what we came here for.” Garnet dismisses, leading everyone to ignore the foreign artifact and move to the next room upstairs.

Everyone except one person.

Nora can't bring her legs to work or eyes to leave the orb in the vast empty room. A sense of Déjà Vu hits her and it's so strong it's almost terrifying, like there's a voice in the back of her mind telling she should remember this place and how it works. But she can't.

“Nora, can you hurry? This place gives me the creeps.” Amethyst shouts from the top stairs, forcing the girl to return and continue her path.

Nora eventually makes it to the top of the towering base where everyone else is mesmerized by the place. The room is mostly empty, having a unique staircase that leads to the main panel with a single big chair, but the beauty is held by the outside;

The galactic sky, full of stars that back on Earth are mostly hidden by City's artificial lights. But here, they are fully visible, in different colors, creating a unique aquarela of infinity. It's breathtaking to say the least.

So close to the stars, and yet so far from home.

“We really are on the moon.” Nora follows Steven over to a control panel. While the group is trying to figure out how to activate it, they just sit down and observe the details.

“Hey, it's got one of those glowy hand dealies.” Steven notices and out of instinct presses his palm against it. The panel then suddenly activates, grasping everyone's attention.

“You can't sit there!” Peridot yells, baffled. “That chair is only for the most elite Gems, you can't go around sitting where an elite would sit!”

“Well, they aren't here now, right?” Steven and Nora give some room, patting the empty space on the seat, making it impossible for Peridot to decline such a lifetime opportunity.

The gem glances around and gives in. With some help, Peridot climbs on the chair sitting between the twins. She is walking on the same place an elite Gem has been, sitting on the same chair an elite gem had sat, accessing the same files a Diamond had seen. Peridot will never forget this moment.

Steven then pulls out a small, white, octahedral prism from the chair. “Hey, what's this doodad for?”

“Steven, don't touch that!” Nora scolds. “Put that back!”

Rolling her eyes, Peridot ignores them and maneuvers the chair closer to the control panel. “There we go, this is a really old system,” She puts on a screen displaying seven files represented by diamond shapes. “Gotta find the right file… Aha! There's the insertion point. Looks like the Beta Kindergarten in Facet Nine, it's the smaller of the two, not nearly as impressive as yours, Amethyst.”

Amethyst raises an eyebrow. “Uhh... thanks?”

“But where are the shards now?” Pearl insists.

“Hang on... there it is! There's not much distinction of the shards given this project didn't have much time to be properly crafted, but the most strong shards were used right on the center and lower part of it to access the planet’s core. Most of the fragile ones were placed on the most superficial layer, we're lucky! All we need to do is feed this data to the drill and we should be all set.”

“That's it then, mission accomplished!”

“Great, let's get the heck out of here.” Amethyst gives the cue and walks off with Garnet and Pearl, satisfied with the results.

Peridot is just about to follow them when Steven stops her. “Wait! Hold on, does this thing have any games on it?”

“No, no, no, no. This wasn't used for games, it was used for planning a colony. Here, look.” She pulls on a map of Earth on the screen, and the Gems pause to look back at it. “So here is a map of all structures that were originally built on Earth. All told, this probably only accounts for maybe five percent of what was originally planned.”

“What was the plan?” Steven asks, not knowing that seconds later he would deeply regret making that question.

“Well, let's take a look.”

Click.

A hologram of Earth is projected, looking apparently normal, until it starts to hollow out, forming rings and gem structures all over it while the Crystal Gems watch in pure horror.

“Ta-da! A finished Earth colony. Wow, look at this! Eighty-nine kindergartens, sixty-seven spires, a Galaxy Warp in each facet, efficient use of all available materials. What were you thinking, shutting this operation down? It could've been great!”

“No! You're wrong!” Garnet's hard voice reverberates over the thick windows, sounding even more threatening. “Completing this colony would have meant the extinction of all life on Earth!”

“But think of the good it would have done. The gems that would have been made, our empire expanded.” Peridot argues back, half aware of the anger she's fulfilling.

“Rose Quartz believed all life was precious, and worth protecting.” Pearl states firmly, addressing an even harder tone.

“Well if she wanted to protect it, she did a lousy job! There'd be no Cluster if the Earth had stayed a colony. Now there's no colony, and there's gonna be no Earth, so thank you, Rose Quartz! You doomed the planet!”

Despite the cold, Steven feels sweat drip out of his forehead out of pure nervousness at the furious glance each Crystal Gem is aiming at Peridot. “Okay, okay, why don't we all just-”

Peridot yelps as Nora grabs her by her tunic, dragging the gem off the chair until both are face to face. “You listen to me. You don't know my mom, I never got to know my mom, so no one has the right to judge what she chose to do. You don't get to say she did a lousy job when she saved thousands of humans and freed thousands of gems from living a horrible life on Homeworld.”

How could Peridot say something like this about her mom? A person who literally sacrificed everything for the sake of others. Her home, peace, friends, even her own life!

Rose gave up her own existence to have Nora and ever since she came to this knowledge she's been trying to live up to her legacy. There's no way she will let anyone say something that atrocious about her mom. This is personal.

Nora can feel the burn sensation on her eyes getting stronger and her grip tightening to the point of her knuckles turning white. “And I swear, if you say one, just one more thing about her I-”

“Nora, stop! Stop, please! It's not worth it!” Steven tries to pull her off Peridot, but his sister has a tight grip around the gem. “We're done here, let's just go home!”

“C'mon man, it's not worth it. Let go!” Amethyst jumps in when not even Steven can separate the two. The quartz intervenes, pulling the girl off by the armpits while Steven stands in front of Peridot, who's curled up into a ball.

Nora tries to resist, but she is no match for the gem-like strength and ends up firmly placed against Amethyst's chest. She can even hear the gem speaking to her, but her own heart thud is deafening at this point.

Her eyes shut tightly, everything drowns from her senses. Nora can only focus on how fast her heart is beating, the sweat across her neck and hands, and how each breath feels inefficient to calm her down.

Then, a throbbing pain takes over her wrist. She reopen her eyes and refocuses on her surroundings.

The youngest is no longer close to Amethyst, in fact, Nora is standing alone in front of thousands of small pieces of furniture laying across the floor. She just broke the panel control.

The Crystal Gems stares in shock at the crater made by her single, and yet, powerful punch that not only shut the system down, but also made it near impossible to restore.

Nora should be feeling awful for causing such a problem, but she isn't. Instead, she doesn't care, there's still fresh anger pulsing through her veins. Not the normal kind of anger, a strong rage that seemed to be long dormant and finally found a way out in the most destructive form.

Everything feels too much, too intense to handle. She needs to get out of here.

Nora needs to go home.

Now.

Chapter Text

“Nora, show me your hand.”

“No.”

“Please!"

“No!”

“Nora, you punched the panel enough to break it! You could've hurt yourself!” Steven tries to resonate for the third time, only to be met with the same frustrated face.

He wouldn't leave her alone until he's sure that she isn't injured, which sucks. And Nora knows more than anyone else that whenever Steven switches to Big Brother Mode, nothing can stop his persistence.

“My hand is fine.” She insists one last time.

Steven crosses his arm. “If it's fine, then show me.”

It's a battle she won't win. Sighing, Nora takes her hand out of her sweater pocket and shows it to her brother, predicting the gasp of surprise and worry.

“Nora, you're bleeding!” Steven gently takes her palm on his, wincing at the feeling of prominent bones underneath her skin. It looks swollen, especially around the knuckle of the pinky finger.

“For someone who's been hit by a rock, that's nothing.” Nora recalls the Communication Hub incident, letting a sarcastic chuckle out.

Steven, however, doesn't seem amused. “I'm serious, sis. You really hurt yourself, you could even have broken something and the least I could do is heal you.”

Her brother's seriousness surprises her, and it makes her feel like a complete douche for being so difficult when he only intends to help. Like always. 

Steven holds her hand and places a gentle kiss on her wrist, avoiding the injured area. Like expected, Nora feels some tingling through her skin and warmth spread over her entire hand, washing the pain away in seconds. “C'mon, let's get you cleaned.”

Nora looks down and spots the few bloody spots around her knuckles that unfortunately didn't get removed by Steven's powers. Both walk towards the barn when they see Peridot sneaking into it with something on her hands. “Did you see that?”

Steven nods. “I saw her holding something from the moon base when we were leaving,” An idea pops up. “I'll try to talk to her, I think there's an aid kit on the shelves.”

In the barn, Peridot fumbles with the prism she retrieved from the Moon Base. Fortunately, before she could do anything, she had to hide it behind her back when she saw the siblings. “Oh! Steven, Nora.”

Steven looks at his twin, giving the silent sign. “Peridot, I need to talk to you.”

“Uh, yeah! Sure!” Peridot follows Steven inside the truck that is parked inside next to them. “Why are we in this broken-down vehicle?”

“I need to find Nora's bracelet,” He lies, eyes still observing the prism held behind the gem's back. “And I wanted to ask you about… the Diamonds.”

Peridot's suspicious look vanishes. “Oh! I don't know what the others have told you, but there's a reason they're in charge.”

“Why's that?”

“They're objectively better than us. Every gem has their strengths and weaknesses, but not them. They're absolutely totally completely flawless beings! Especially my diamond, Yellow Diamond, the most perfect, the most reasonable, rational, efficient decider ever to exist in the universe!”

The way Peridot has no shame of exposing how high she still thinks of her Diamond makes Steven unable to hide his disappointment any further. “You're really loyal to her, aren't you?”

“How could I not be? We might have our little truce, but I'll never forsake the gem I was made for!”

A hand slam against the car window. “Truce!? You gotta be kidding me!” Nora yells from outside and Steven takes advantage of Peridot's distraction to snatch the prism from her.

When the gem realizes what happened, she is already alone and locked inside the vehicle. “How could you do this to me, the great and lovable Peridot?! I thought we were finally friends like you wanted.”

“Yeah, we thought too before he saw you sneak this off the moon base!” Nora walks over the other side and points at the prism. “Tell us what this is.”

Abandoning the victimisation, Peridot's face hardens. “It's nothing special and definitely not important at all.”

Nora looks around the barn and notices a hammer lying on the floor, before picking it up. “If it's not that important, then she won't mind if we smash it, right Steven?”

Steven feels his heart shatter. So, all the good moments, the meaningful small gestures, song and laughter shared together, were just an act? None of her growth that he put so much effort was truthful?

“But the Diamonds are bad! They don't care about the Earth! They wanted to hollow it out, and now they wanna blow it up with the Cluster!”

“Yes, yes! That's the point!”

“Why do I keep sticking my neck out for you? You're never gonna be on our side!” Steven growls, taking his sister by the hand. “Let's go Nora, let's tell the Gems!”

Peridot's plea fell on deaf ears and she had to watch helplessly the barn door being shut, leaving her to the darkness.

In a far spot, were the Gems having a private conversation between them regarding the earlier incident. “I still have no idea what could have possibly triggered such an extreme reaction from Nora. The last time she had a powerful response was back at the Sea Shrine.”

Garnet hums. “Nora and Steven both carry Rose's powers within them and we know those are triggered when they have a strong emotional response. There's no need to worry.”

“Of course there it is! Steven's powers never acted that way. Nora's ones can vary from different ranges too quickly. She can have harmful ones like the flowers when she dreams and then strong outbursts like that one.” Pearl pinches the bridge of her nose, shifting weight from one foot to another.

Amethyst crosses her arm. “Seriously P, I never understand the big deal you make over this. Nora is kind of Rose's kid, these are Rose's powers. End of story!”

“Those aren't-”

Their theories are pushed aside when the trio spots the twins running at them with something on hand. Once Steven shows the communicator to them, they all gasp in shock.

Pearl takes the prism. “She took a direct line to the Diamonds from the moon base? What was she thinking!?”

“Man, after everything we've gone through, she's still out to get us! I'm taking back all my cool nicknames for her! So long, Peri and P-dot. Hello... Ahhh, I'm too mad! I'll think of something later.”

Car horn honking is then heard from inside the barn. “I see she knows what a horn is now.”

Garnet sees Steven covering his hood over his ears, feeling bad for the poor boy. “You offered her a lot of your trust.”

“I did! And it blew up in my face! You guys have been protecting Earth for thousands of years and she could've destroyed all of that, a whole Earth. Why did I think I could change her mind?”

If Nora is feeling terrible from the betrayal, Steven is feeling ten times worse. He's the one who actively gave her a chance, taught her, believed in her, and encouraged a growing relationship that he genuinely thought would lead them somewhere. Only to be surprised with a stab on his back.

The anger she would've felt is engulfed by compassion and need to comfort her brother. Nora steps closer and embraces him, allowing Steven to lean on her shoulder. “I'm really sorry, Steven. You tried so hard and you were so patient with her, but in the end, she didn't deserve any of your patience.”

“Look on the bright side, at least you got this thing away from her before she did any real damage.”

Pearl's reassurance would've made effect if it wasn't for the explosion perforating the barn roof. Through the smoke and flying pieces of wood, it reveals Peridot making use of the upper half of her limb enhancers. “Fools! Your invisible rotary shield was no match for me once I applied logic! Now I'm going to do this right!”

Another ball of energy is aimed at the barn, this time at the front door, allowing her to latch the truck with her tractor beam and throw it at them. 

The Crystal Gems dodge out of the way just in time and Pearl keeps ahold of the communicator, but Peridot uses the immobilizer and snatches it from her. “See? None of you know what you're doing!”

Amethyst laughs darkly. “Ohhkay! I've been ready for this!” Her whole frame glows, changing shape to become a big functioning helicopter. “Get in.”

When everyone climbs inside the helicopter, Amethyst begins to take off in full speed hoping to catch the traitor in time. Within seconds she reached a flying Peridot struggling to keep a hold onto the prism and find a relatively safe place to use it “What's up, Perisnot!”

“Good one, Amethyst!”

Grunting, Peridot uses her other hand to fire a blast of energy at them, but Steven summons his shield just in time to block it. Once it dissipates, Garnet summons her gauntlets and launches at the gem.

With lost balance, Peridot screams as she's knocked into an electricity line, falling hard on the ground. The communicator rolls over not too far, and when she stretches her hand out Pearl's spear flies down and knocks it away.

She looks up and sees Amethyst shifting back to normal and the Crystal Gems ready to pounce. “Not so fast!” Peridot rolls over and fires a tractor beam at them, immobilizing the trio, and throwing the trio the farthest she could.

She grabs the prism, but soon realizes Steven and Nora are right there close to reaching her. In a last attempt, she turns around and aims at them, making both siblings stop.

A pink barrier appears in front of them and at this point, due to the same familiar sensation, Nora knows she's the one who did this.

“You're not getting away with it!” Steven yells, ignoring the burning sensation on his eyes. “I trusted you! I spend all that time bonding and hoping and caring about you! None of that meant anything to you!?”

Her hesitance should answer that for herself.

But she fought so hard to keep up her image as a technician in Homeworld, hoping someday to be praised by her leader. She has this chance now and she can't let this go.

“You don't get it, this is your whole problem! Your emotions rule out reason, but now I will do what has to be done!” Peridot makes her final statement.

Steven and Nora back off as the communicator activates by turning yellow, watching with their own eyes the worst outcome unfolding right in front of them. A pair of strong hands grab both from behind and the two are taken to a nearby bush next to a fallen pole where the other Crystal Gems are hidden.

“She'll sort this out!” Peridot releases the prism as it floats in front of her, getting manically excited when a chime is heard as the communicator opens up a screen.

“This is the Yellow Diamond control room.”

She looks just like Pearl, except that… she's not. The pixie haircut styled up to a point is very resembling, however the rest of her outfit that consists in a beige leotard with transparent, ruffled yellow sleeves, as well her gemstone located on her chest, all exploring different shades of yellow, determine the difference.

Unlike Garnet, Amethyst and the twins stare in shock at the pearl. They may have known that there exist other pearls back in Homeworld, but seeing one of those right there, at the same time looking so different and similar to their own Pearl is between confusing and astonishing.

“Who authorized you to make this call?”

“No one, b-but it's an emergency!” Peridot surely didn't expect a welcoming reception, but this is worse than she'd initially thought.

Yellow Pearl huffs. “That's no excuse to use the direct Diamond communication channel.”

“Pearl.”

Another voice is heard, and Yellow Pearl immediately looks at the source of it. “Yes, my Diamond?”

“Why is there someone on the Diamond line?”

“I don't know. I was just about to tell her that-”

“I'll take it from here.”

The screen moves upwards and finally reveals its owner: Yellow Diamond. One of the most powerful beings in the entire galaxy, matriarch of gems, and respected ruler of Homeworld. Right there.

For a second, Peridot is too stunned for being in her presence that she nearly forgets her etiquette. “My Diamond! Peridot, reporting in.”

“Which Peridot?” Yellow asks, busy typing away on her control panel.

Oh right, she forgot she's just a mere peridot in Homeworld. Just like any other, unimportant, common. “F-Facet 2-F-5-L, Cut 5-X-G. I'm sorry to contact you this way, but all other forms of communication have been destroyed and-”

The Diamond holds up her palm to halt Peridot's speech. “This says you're behind schedule on your mission to…” A screen detailing the Earth pops up on her monitor, retrieved. “How is... the Earth?”

“It's... full of... life.”

“Organic life,” The disgust behind her tone is purposefully evident. “And where is the Jasper I assigned you? And why aren't you calling from the ship?”

“Oh, um... The ship was destroyed.”

This peaks the slightest interest by the Diamond. “By whom?”

“It was destroyed by…” Why am I so hesitant to say it? Words are failing me and this weird sensation inside my chest worsens just at the thought of revealing the truth. My reputation might be compromised, but I can't do this! “No one! There was... an accident? While we were landing.”

Yellow Diamond let out a deep sigh, still far from making any eye contact. “I'll inform your manager of your incompetence. And what is the status of the Cluster?”

“The Cluster will emerge shortly.”

“Good. We'll finally get some use out of that miserable planet. Thank you for your report, Peridot.” Why don't I feel good about this? Isn't this what I wanted? Some sort of recognition from my Diamond? A chance to redeem myself to Homeworld? Going back… home. “There'll be a ship heading to your location to take you to your next assignment.”

“Wait! I-I wouldn't called to waste your time with a report-”

“You already have.”

“No, I mean, the reason I called- The real reason is…” Say it, just say it! “I believe we should terminate the Cluster!”

“Why?”

Here's my chance. “The organic ecosystem creates resources unique to this world, we can't sacrifice all that potential just for one geo-weapon! I'd like to tell you some plans I came up with to utilize the planet without disrupting the local-”

“I've heard enough!” Yellow’s firm tone silence her. “I don't care about potential and resources. I want my Cluster, and I want that planet to die. Just make that happen.”

Peridot failed to reason with her Diamond and now she seems more determined to wipe the Earth out of the galaxy. At this moment, she resents herself deeply, wishing she could go back in time and never have taken that stupid prism, never betrayed the Gems, never activated the communicator and never believed in her Diamond all those years.

“No.”

Yellow Pearl let out a quiet gasp in pure disbelief while her Diamond pursued her lips, never showing any signs of emotions. “Are you questioning my authority?”

“I'm... questioning your objectivity, my Diamond.”

But this isn't enough for the leader, who rises from her seat, taking the screen in her hands, ready to put an end to this useless discussion. “You are out of line.”

“I just think-”

“I'm not interested in the puny thoughts of a Peridot. You have disrespected this channel and my time with your presence and you would do well to-”

“But-”

“SHUT YOUR MOUTH!” Shrivers run down Peridot's whole frame, frozen by having such anger directed at her. “You have failed at every stage of this mission. Your only chance to redeem yourself is to obey this simple order. You are to leave the Cluster to grow, it will tear apart the Earth, and I will take immense satisfaction in erasing that hideous rock off of our star maps! IS THAT CLEAR!?”

Something snaps inside Peridot. Call it whatever you want; Anger for being so poorly mistreated. Resentment for never receiving the praise and recognition after thousands of years doing an exceptional job; Fondness of the people she met and were responsible for her growth and new experiences.

She just couldn't stand it. “Then I won't do it! I can tell you with certainty that there are things on this planet worth protecting!”

‘What the heck is she doing!?’, Nora asks herself. This gem was fully decided to snitch on them, telling how meaningless was the time spent with them and now she's so eager to defend not only them, but the whole planet!?

“What do you know about the Earth?!”

“APPARENTLY MORE THAN YOU, YOU... CLOD!”

Dead silence follows the defiant words. Everyone is in complete shock. The Crystal Gems, Yellow Diamond and even Peridot herself.

She just called Yellow Diamond a clod.

Right to her face.

She basically signed a death sentence and if it was possible, Yellow Diamond would've poofed her right away, or rather, shatter.

Her Diamond’s intense piercing glare and shoulders shaking with silent rage is the last image Peridot captures before cutting off the transmission out of fear once realization hits. “Uh… Peridot, out!”

The Crystal Gems then come out from hiding and begin to cheer and congratulate Peridot for her bravery and selfless act, but the gem could barely hear anything with her mind barely functioning from all the stress.

“I can't believe I just did that.” Her eyes wander at the prism she's still holding, seeing the reflection of a new self she still needs to meet, because the old Peridot, the one who blindly followed orders and lived to please her Diamond is basically dead. “Can one of you take this?”

Pearl complies and takes the communicator. “Why?”

“Because it can be remotely detonated.” She simply states before curling up on the ground, leaving the Gems to figure out how to get rid of it.

What is she going to do now? Who is she supposed to be from now? Her entire life since she emerged had been circled around Yellow Diamond, the leader she was programmed to adore and put above herself in any circumstances.

And now that she turned her back against her own kind, her own Diamond, Peridot basically threw away her whole purpose of existing. She needs some time to process this whole mess and, eventually, figure out who she's going to be from now on.

Apart from being the newest Crystal Gem.

Chapter Text

“Are you sure you don't want it?”

“Whatever, it's yours now. Yours, not mine, not mine! Yours! Yours!”

“Let's calm down.”

“Okay… So am I gonna have to wear a star? Where am I gonna put the star?!”

The whole conversation between Peridot, Steven and Garnet reached Nora's ears from the outside of the barn where she had been for the past ten minutes. Back leaned against the solid wood, she hears steps growing distant and from afar the sight of Garnet carrying Peridot on both arms is caught.

A few seconds later, sounds of footsteps are heard again and this time closer. “They seem to be getting along well. I wonder when that happened,” It's Steven, talking to himself, tapping on the tape recorder. Looking over his side, he sees his sister all by herself with knees tucked to her chest. “Uh sis? Is everything okay?”

“Kinda,” Nora watches him approach and sit next to her. “I'm just thinking about Peridot. Do you really think she's on our side now?”

Steven pauses before offering a response. “Well, yeah. At first, I thought she really had betrayed us to side with Yellow Diamond, but after all that happened I do think she changed for the better.”

“I don't know,” Nora bites the inside of her cheek, choosing to maintain a distant gaze towards the empty field. “If she changed sides so quickly, what makes you so sure that she won't do it again?”

“Because she only has us now,” Steven remarks. “Before, she still thought about Homeworld and, I guess, the life she had back then and how loyal she was to her Diamond. She had a chance to have all that back, but then she decided to stay. Peridot is still adjusting to life here on Earth, but I think she found something here that she wouldn't find anywhere else.”

Freedom? Selflessness? Any kind of answer crosses Nora's mind, although part of her still remains stubborn to believe in a possible redemption. “I still don't trust her. What if, I don't know, she sabotages our mission?”

“I don't think she will do that. Now that Peridot is here with us, she needs to help us stop the Cluster or else…” He doesn't need to complete that.

It makes sense, but still. “I guess I just need some time.”

Steven’s instincts are screaming for him to change her mind. He can't help it, it's who he is. But Garnet's past advice to give people time and space needed submerge on his consciousness, keeping him from making the same mistake twice- err, thrice. “And that's okay.”

Nora's eyes widen a little at the unexpected response, then softening in appreciation for the comprehension. “Is that Peridot's log?” She points at the tape recorder, leaning on her brother.

Steven nods, pulling her closer. “Think there's something fun?” Both exchange a playful grin, deciding to listen to Peridot's recorded adventures.

─ ·★· ─

Log date 7 11 2

“Eh, sorry kids. There's not much in the garage, most of my working stuff was already in the barn.” Greg slapped his hands to get rid of the dust.

Since the New Year incident, the sight of a nearly empty garage became uneasy to Greg's eyes. It felt so lifeless, as if he got rid of memories that fluctuate between good, funny, nostalgic and even sad. 

Then one day, after regaining all his courage, he asked Amethyst if he could take a look at his old stuff and maybe take a few back. To his surprise, this ended up being a good time bonding with Amethyst and both had the chance to properly talk about what happened.

“It's okay dad, at least we got what Pearl needed,” Steven said, handing the small radio parts to Nora. When he was about to follow her to leave, his foot tripped over a random box. “Hey, what's this?”

Greg looked over his son's shoulders and immediately realized what it was. “Oh, it's my aunt and uncle's log diaries.”

“Log diaries?” Nora asked. “What's that?”

“It's like normal diaries, but instead of writing on it, you speak and it records whatever you say,” Greg bent down and took a look at the box, filled with tape recorders. “Frank and Lottie had a great love for aviation and they used to spend most of their time traveling around the world. Whenever they decided to go, they used to document their trips on a diary log like this one.”

He took a gray recorder and pressed the rewind button, rewinding the tape all the way back. “Frank and Lottie DeMayo - Trip to Seoul. Today is our second day in Korea and we didn't get to go to many places yet because poor Frank here is still recovering from indigestion and-

“You didn't need to put that on the log!” A male voice yelled in the background, followed by a loud and joyful laughter. “Give me that!” Footsteps grew louder, along squeals and some hustling sound. “Just so you know, I'm much better and I'm definitely eating those tteokbokki, alright? Nothing will stop Frank DeMayo!”

“Not even walking? Because from what we've researched, it looks like Seoul and the rest of Korea is quite hilly and mountainous, so be prepared.” Lottie giggled.

“I’m definitely looking up for some exercising and I bet you'll tire yourself way before me!”

“We'll see!”

Greg pressed another button, ending the recording. It’s a weird sensation to hear the voice of someone who passed away, at the same time it feels nostalgic and somewhat comforting, it also brings a deep sense of sadness because they're no longer here and the only thing you were left with are just fragments of who they used to be.

“Dad, you okay?” His son's voice brought him back to reality. Facing the concerned faces of both kids, Greg offered a faint sad smile. “Oh yeah, I'm… remembering the good old times. Frankie and Lottie would've loved to teach you two about flying and the cultures they'd learned.”

“Did they…?” The gentle, slow nod was enough for Nora and Steven to grasp what happened. “Oh dad, I'm sorry.”

“It's okay princess, at least we have this barn and a ton of good memories of them here. One day I'll tell you the adventures of the Daring DeMayos.” Greg ruffled Nora's hair and stood up, getting ready to close the garage.

While Nora followed their dad, Steven stayed to place the box into a safer spot and noticed that one of the recorders didn't have a name tag on it. He pressed a curious click, but the audio was silent. “They didn't use this one,” He commented to himself. “Dad, can I take this one with me?”

“Sure stchu-ball.”

And now with his dad's permission, Steven returned to the barn holding the new object with a goal in mind. Although, he would need to push that later because once the twins arrived, the Gems were clearly setting something up by having Peridot on a highchair and a place with cake in front of her.

“What's going on?” He asks Pearl.

“Amethyst thought it was a good idea to teach Peridot how to eat food,” She didn't bother to hide the disapproving tone in her voice. “I can clearly see where this is going.”

Meanwhile, Peridot is becoming impatient and more curious about this strange habit Amethyst promised to be wonders. “So, how does this go?”

“Ya take a handful of the stuff and put it in your mouth hole!” In clear demonstration, she smacks her hand on the cake, and took the handful a mouth straight into her mouth. “See?”

Vehemently against the quartz’s (lack of) manners, Pearl decided to step in. “Early men rudely shoveled food into their faces, but around the dawn of the new age they created tools to assist their disgusting habits-” When she was about to summon the appropriate cutlery from her gem, she felt a gentle poke on her arm.

Steven pointed forward and Pearl followed the direction with widened eyes Peridot basically scarfing down the entire food. “Ha! Yep! I did it! Earth zero, Peridot: infinity! Now what?”

Disgusted with the sight of food dripping from the gem's full mouth and pieces of chewed cake over hands and chair, Pearl could only stare in silence while Amethyst went next to Peridot. “You're gonna love this part! Are you feeling it?”

Peridot nodded. “Yep!”

“Great! So what you do next is make a hole in your…” The rest of Amethyst's explanation of the digestive system was indiscernible by whispered words into the technician's ear.

The more she listened, the more horrified she got and it made things terribly worse. The pleasant sugary taste dancing on her tongue stopped being appealing, and instead, a strong repulsive need to get rid of it overwhelmed her senses.

“I don't think Peridot will try to eat anything ever again,” Nora concluded, wincing at Peridot's contorted face. “And we should probably grab a bucket, like, now!”

─ ·★· ─

Log date 7 12 2

Nora was in the bathroom finishing brushing her teeth when she had the impression of hearing the warp pad activate. This was soon confirmed when her twin's voice sang across the Temple. “Nora where are you? I need my baby sister's help to create a-a-art~”

“Just a sec!” She warned, placing the toothbrush back on its place. Opening the door, Steven was right there with excitement plastered across his face. “So, what's my big brother planning for today?”

“Next week will mark a month that Peridot's been here with us and I want to give her a gift. Things haven't been easy for her and I want her to feel nice.”

“And what's on your mind?”

Steven grabbed the bag he brought and took out a pair of paint cans. “I thought of stilts. She would put them on her feet and then make her taller. I know she still misses her limb enhancers and besides, most of the stuff in the barn is kinda out of her reach.”

The gem's height is always a current topic around then. “Okay, I'll help. Let me see it,” She smiled at her brother's enthusiasm, taking the cans from his hands. With eyes wavering around it, Nora tried to think of a few ideas to decorate. “We could use a little green and yellow around the base and maybe a little details in white.”

“And flames!”

“Flames?”

“Yeah, flames! I dunno what it is about them, but they just make everything cooler.”

“That's true,” Nora chuckled. “I’ll think of something tomorrow. Now let's go find Peri and hope she likes that show.”

For some reason, Steven got this idea that Peridot needed some kind of distraction when they weren't working on the Cluster. The Gems normally sit down on the hills in silence and admire the view, emptying their minds from the stress and worry they have been facing from the past weeks.

Peridot, however, put herself in a state of non-stop work. She would stay focused on the drill project 24/7 and everyone could see it was harming by the way she was becoming more agitated and stressed.

And Steven was determined to help her.

Everyone gathered on upstairs level in a place of rest that had an old couch and a small tv. Once Steven made sure it was working, he inserted a VHS tape in and went back to sit with his sister and friend.

“On the last episode of Camp Pining Hearts…” A female voice narrated while scenes from past episodes flashed across the screen.

“I don't care if you're on the yellow team, Percy. We can make this work!” Paulette begged, almost desperate.

“It's color war, Paulette! Does that mean anything to you?”

The flashback ended and the chapter started, taking place exactly on the previous scene. Paulette and Percy were inside the cabin, both sweaty with disheveled hair from the activity of color war.

“Of course it means,” Paulette responded, taking a few steps ahead, still holding the first aid kit. Percy was visibly nervous from having her so close to him, but he remained firm. “It means a lot- Percy, this Camp means a lot to me, I didn't make it all the way here for nothing.”

The blond camper turned around, palms gripping the edges of the table in front of him. “But you, Percy..." A delicate hand was placed on his left shoulder, causing it to stiffen. “You mean everything to me.” 

With a single swift by Paulette, both campers were now facing each other. Percy was almost breathless, having Paulette so close to him, close enough for her body to be pressed against his, close enough for their noses to touch, close enough to nearly hear each other's thoughts.

Percy inclined his head forwards, without thinking, and Paulette does the same, but thinking of how much she wanted him. The space between them closed in and then the inevitable happened.

They kissed.

Peridot stared at it, confused at why these two humans were smashing their faces together. “What is this strange ritual? Are they attempting fusion?”

Nora and Steven blushed, looking away from the screen. “No, well, our dad told us during certain stages of your life-”

“How could anyone indulge in this... baseless drivel!? I'll have no part of it!” 

[Fast-forward]

Another long day of work. The twins stayed to help a little longer than usual, which resulted in both being beyond tired and craving to jump into bed. Nora already had blankets placed over her, but Steven had other plans. “Sis, I think we should check on Peridot. She's been in there for days.”

Nora cracked an eye open and sits down. Looking over the barn, she saw a faint light coming from the inside. “The tv is on, she's probably just watching some stuff.”

“I know, but I want to make sure everything is okay,” When his sister didn't respond, he tried again. “It'll be quick, I promise.”

A look onto Steven's face told her he would not give up the worry. “Fine.” And also, sometimes she just couldn't say no to her brother.

In the end, Nora's guess was right. Climbing upstairs they found Peridot in the exact place they had left her, this time glued to the TV repeating the exact dialogues spoken by the characters.

Nora nudged Steven, asking him to proceed. “Uh, you've been here for a few days, is everything okay?”

Past a few seconds, Peridot snapped out of the trance and paid some attention to the kids. “I've just been watching your previously recorded entertainment.”

Steven leaned in to see what was it. “Is that the same episode from three days ago?”

This caught Peridot's attention. “There's more than one?”

Oops. “Ummmm…” In an attempt to change the subject, Steven analyzed the room and spotted a fallen paper. “Oh, you made a picture.”

Peridot snatched the paper from his hands, holding it up to reveal it's a shipping chart. “Picture? This isn't just a picture! It's a complex chart cataloging the compatible characteristics between campers. Somehow, the rejects at Camp Clod fail to recognize the superior pair that is Pierre and Percy.”

“Well, that's because Paulette likes Percy.” Steven said.

“Paulette? Ha! Paulette has no place in the camp's hierarchy. Now Pierre, Pierre is a brute, Pierre laid waste to the three legged races! Pierre and Percy present the strongest battle formations, they'd destroy the camp!”

Nora is impressed. “You got all this from one episode?”

“It's subtext Nora, allow me to explain. Well, first of all, Percy and Pierre are on the yellow team, and also share the same level of previous knowledge in survival skills that clearly lead them to a noticeable advantage in comparison to others campers. Besides, each of them have significant individual strengths. The primary example is when Khaz knocks Jasmine's boat, Percy is quick to act and uses his pogo stick to save her, not to mention that he is adept at aquatic sports. He would have won the canoe race if he weren't so busy drooling over Paulette, and the other part where Percy goes to the bottom of the lake to get Paulette's friendship bracelet proves that he has the largest lung capacity in the entire camp! And Pierre is a force to be reckoned with on land, when he hung…”

─ ·★· ─

Log Date 7 13 2

For the last job of the night, Steven and Nora were tasked to gather everything left from the used equipment and put them in their respective places kept in the barn for the next day.

Both were quite concentrated on their task when a bright light illuminated the whole area, taking Pearl and Amethyst's form out of existence and bringing Opal in their place.

“Giant woman!” The twins exclaimed in excitement, earning a shy grin from the fusion. Opal waved at them, then focused on picking up the drill and putting it on a pair of placement boards.

“That looks great! Let's take a break.” Garnet announced giving a thumbs up, then walked off to her favorite spot outside the barn.

“What?” Peridot frowned, glaring up at Opal and then at Garnet who disappeared around the corner of the barn. The gem runs up to Garnet, who was relaxing on a hay bale.

“Explain it to me, fusion! I can at least make sense of your existence if it's for a functional purpose. But you? You're not using your combined size and strength to do anything!”

“Peridot still doesn't understand Garnet, huh?” Nora snorted.

“She needs some time, or maybe that kind of explanation that only Garnet can give,” Steven looked up, still hearing the faint conversation coming from the other side of the barn. “You know, can you imagine what it would be like for us to fuse? That'd be amazing!”

Nora forced a tight smile. “Yeah, that'd be… nice.”

Steven frowned, noticing it wasn't the first time his siblings would get weird over the topic of fusion. This time he wouldn't ignore it. “Sis, can I ask you something?”

“Sure.”

“Does fusion make you uncomfortable?” Simple and straightforward, with no hint of judgment. “Because every time I bring this up, it looks like… I don't know, you don't really like to talk about this,” Before Nora could speak, he rushed to add more. “If you don't want to talk, that's okay. I just want you to remember that I'm your big brother and I'll always be here to listen, okay?”

“It’s not the fusion itself,” She began. “When you and Connie fused, it was amazing! I could see so much of you, Connie, and Stevonnie. They were amazing!” But. “But when I think about us fusing, I… Forget it!”

Steven halted Nora with a smooth grip on her wrist when she tried to leave. “No Nora, please! Whatever it's bothering you, please tell me. I won't judge, I promise, I just want to help.”

Nora made the mistake of looking back, staring back into her sibling's sad and confused eyes, offering the comfort and open mind only Steven could have. Giving up the idea of running away, she sits down again. “When I think about us fusing I… I get scared. I'm scared that I, I don't know, kinda lose myself? Because you can do so many cool things, you have a lot of powers- Mom's powers and I don't. I'm afraid the fusion will only take after you and then be no me.”

Steven felt his heart broke for his sister. “Oh sis, it's not like that. You wouldn't disappear, that's not fusion work.”

“Then how does it work?” Nora asked, a little frustrated, then rephrased more calmly. “What is like to be fused?”

That being an expected question didn't make Steven able to think of a concrete answer. ‘What is like to be fused?’, he mentally repeated it to himself hoping his memories would enlighten him.

“It feels different,” Nora’s frown told him it's a very vague start. “I mean, when we fused we became one person, but we were still there watching everything, seeing everything and feeling everything. It felt like someone was doing everything for us while we were just watching it in the back of our minds, but sometimes either me or Connie would take the lead.”

Thinking back then when he first fused made him nostalgic somehow. It was such a memorable and fun experience that will always hold a special place in his heart. Sometimes it's still a little difficult to wrap his head around the fact he was a completely different person — He wasn't Steven. Steven stopped existing during those three hours — And explaining this isn't the easiest thing.

“She was there with me, I could feel it- I had her memories, so I guess she had mine too. It was kinda comforting and Stevonnie being more confident definitely helped. I think that's what fusion is, to share everything you have with someone else, when you're happy, sad, scared…” Steven's voice lost its volume at the sudden memory of Kevin, but he brushed it off and continued. “Stevonnie felt like both of us, like a better version of us, or at least it's how it was for me.”

Nora's eyes were glistening in astonishment. She just realized her idea of fusion was a little… incomplete. Sure, when two gems fuse, the fusion will take the most strong and prominent features each one has, but it's beyond that.

Fusion is also about the complexity of a relationship and how each person/gem works with each other. Not only their personality, strengths and weapons will combine, but also their interests, fears and memories. If Steven and her ever fuse, that said fusion won't take only after him because he owns a better set of powers, both of them will get a say on the final product.

And to be honest, she's kinda curious.

“That seems awesome,” The confession came out as a shy mumble. “I… I want to fuse one day, but I don't think I'm ready to try.”

“And that's okay, you should take your time,” Steven took her hands and gave a gentle squeeze. “It might be weird at first, but I promise you it will be fine.”

“What do you think our fusion would be like?”

“Tall!” Steven exclaimed. “Super tall, just like- No, even more than Stevonnie! Oh, we need a name, right? How about Stera? No, no, no! Noven? Nooo… Venra? Raven? Raven! That's it! Our fusion will be called Raven.”

Nora chuckled. “That's a nice name.”

─ ·★· ─

“Okay, go!"

"Log date seven fourteen two-" Wait, this is Garnet's voice!

"No, you say it seven one four two. Ugh! Log date 7 14 2. I have attempted a fusion with the fusion Garnet. I had hoped to gain a better understanding of fusion. Instead, I got a better understanding of Garnet.”

"Wait, keep it on a moment. Nora, Steven, you probably shouldn't have listened to Peridot's logs, but I know your curiosity comes from a place of caring,” The twins look at each other in surprise. “You should give the recorder back to her now, she's going to want to keep it."

"Wait, what?"

They reach the end of Peridot's log. Steven stops the tape recorder and turns to his sister laying down on his lap. “So, still think Peridot will try something on us?”

Nora laughs at his insistence. “Okay, okay, you got me. Maybe she changed for the better,” She eyes the recorder and motions for Steven to hand it. “And if it's true, I'm glad she did.”

Steven smiles, agreeing.

Chapter Text

The birds’ singing along the crashing waves filled my ear when I opened my eyes, met with the stunning view of a bright blue sky, absent of clouds, and trees dancing with the winds.

Wait a minute, this isn't my room, I'm not even home! I sat up and took a moment to look around, finding myself in the middle of a forest. I try to get up but my legs wobbled a bit and I ended up falling on my knees.

I looked down at it and jumped up in surprise. My legs and feet look different! It's all green and shorter. I searched around for any pool and once I found a river, I leaned forwards and stared at my reflection in shock. Instead of my normal face, all I see is the face of a Watermelon Steven.

Suddenly, I heard a dog bark near me, which is weird. I tried to find the source of it and to my surprise, a melon Mutt jumped out of a nearby bush. It bounced along the ground and rolled over to me while shaking its tail. It's cute.

Then, it began to go away, stopping to see if I was following. I guess he wanted to show me something, so I did. He led me across the river, passing through the forest, and that's when I realized I was on Mask Island. I would recognize these crystal geodes  

The walk to whatever destiny it was ended up being shorter than I thought. In less than five minutes, the little dog brought me into a village, a watermelon village! I couldn't even believe it, so that's where all these watermelons went in the end. I'm surprised they didn't get lost all the way here when I'm pretty sure Mask Island is literally in the middle of the ocean.

Anyway, it looks like they're doing fine. There's plenty of houses, some of them are farming, others playing around, and they even cultivate baby melons to… give to families as their kids, I guess? Well, if it works for them.

I actually took my time touring around the village, it seemed like a good place to stay for a while. The dog kept me company while I passed by the watermelons doing their normal stuff like drumming and dancing. They look content with their life around here and, if it's true, I'm also happy for them.

The dog- I gotta stop calling that, he needs a name at least. Hm, what could it be? I'm awful at giving names — Not like Steven is great either. I think I'll call him… Mel! Or Melly? Nah, I'm gonna stick with Mel, it sounds prettier, or less silly.

Okay, Mel guided me to a place in the middle of the village. It's a giant statue resembling Baby Melon, and there's an elder watermelon that is kinda explaining to other baby melons what happened to him. Is Baby Melon some kind of important figure here? Like a god?

Everything seemed fine until the entire island shook, startling all the watermelons. Could it be the Cluster? Peridot said the first signs would be some kind of tremors and earthquakes. A little far from where I was I sawTo who I think was the oldest watermelon hitting a gong in a constant rhythm, making all the other watermelons leave and gather around the Baby Melon statue.

Since I didn't want to be left behind, I followed everyone and joined in the circle. When all the watermelons were settled, the elder shook its stick, prompting everyone to touch their noses. I was very confused. I looked to my left and saw all the watermelons doing the gesture. I looked to my right and saw the same thing.

Just when I looked forwards, the elder appeared right in front of me, giving me a scare. They pointed the stick at me while I recovered. Couldn't they have warned me?

From now on things started to get really weird. One of the watermelons painted a yellow star on my chest and gave me a flower crown, very pretty by the way. They then carried me on a wooden chair to a cliff and left me alone there while the rest hid behind a geode arch.

Am I supposed to just stand here and wait for something? I turned around and saw they were actually looking at me. “What am I supposed to do?”

One of them stepped out of the arch and gestured to me. “Spread your arms just like this and let destiny do the rest.”

Okay…? Here I go.

I went back to position, opened my arms wide and closed my eyes. At first, nothing happened, but I stayed still nonetheless. And then, it happened.

The island shook again, stronger this time. I heard the water moving and when I dared to open my eyes I saw her: Malachite.

I hear the watermelon run and scream in fear, but I can't force my legs to move or my mouth to speak. I'm frozen. I'm stuck watching her tugging against the water shackles while roaring in anger.

I hoped that if I stayed quiet she would just ignore me, but instead all of her four eyes narrowed at my sight. “Steven…” No, no, that's not me! I'm not my brother! Why did they even bring me here? They tricked me!

Malachite didn't listen to my plea, only opened her mouth in a loud roar and rushed towards me, crushing my body within seconds.

─ ·★· ─

Nora emerges from sleep in an alarmed state, with all senses fully active. Eyes darting around the empty field circling the barn, ears sharp to the crickets and leaves brushing against each other, and skin sweating enough to drench her pajamas.

The sudden movements alerts Steven, pulling him out of unconsciousness as well and the moment he notices how much in distress his sister is, his big brother mode kicks in. “Nora? Nora, what's wrong?” He asks, a little too nervous from his own liking. “Did you have a nightmare?”

Hearing Steven's voice certainly helped soothe her nerves and little by little her mind distanced itself from the fear. “I… I don't know.” It isn't what she wanted to say, but she can't offer anything else other than doubts.

“Okay, now why don't you take a break and then you tell me about your dream, hm?” Steven suggests, letting out a sigh in relief when Nora nods in agreement.

With the Gems somewhere else in the vast area, the twins were left on their own to occupy the pickup to sleep until this whole mess is done. Nora shivers when the wind grows colder and Steven is right there to wrap her with blankets.

The girl snuggles to his chest and Steven gladly embraces her. Now both siblings stay together in silence, each one deep into their own thoughts, until Nora finally speaks. “It was Mask Island."

Steven blinks, distracted. “Huh?”

“I dreamed that I woke up on Mask Island,” Nora repeats herself. “And- Remember those watermelon clones you made a while ago? So, I was one of them. Then a watermelon dog came out and made him follow over the place until we got to a little village.”

“A village?”

“Yeah, it's like, all these watermelons created their own community. They built houses, created clothings, did farming stuff- And everyone was living in peace there with their own families, well, that's until that happened,” Steven feels her stiffening up, and instantly he brings his hand back to rub her arms in comfort. “The ground shook, like a little earthquake and everyone stopped what they were doing to follow the leader to some kind of ritual. I didn't understand, but I just followed them. In the end, they chose me for it, I don't know why, but then they painted a star on my chest, gave me a flower crown and led me to a hill to stay there alone.”

“Did they tell you why?”

“No, all I understood is that I was supposed to stay like this,” Nora sits up and opens her arms wide, mimicking the pose. “And wait. So I did and then…”

“Malachite.” Steven completes.

Nora falls back into his lap. “She was angry, fighting to free herself from the water,” I can still hear the screams in my mind. So loud, desperate, shrill, it even hurt my ears. “When she looked at me she thought I was you, and then she… attacked me.”

No wonder she woke up so stressed. The fusion is very clear on Steven's memories and he definitely remembers how terrifying she was back then.

“But the weirdest part is that it didn't feel like a dream at all. It was way too real and realistic, you know? I felt like I was actually there,” Nora explains. “Do you think this could be a new power or something?”

“Maybe,” Steven doesn't doubt the hypothesis. “But even if it is, we can try to figure it out in the morning. Right now you need to sleep and rest,” An idea pops up. “Do you want to go home and sleep there for the night? 

Nora looks at him confused. “Why?”

The older twin shrugs. “I don't know, maybe you'd feel more safe there.” He doesn't need his sister saying out loud that she's afraid of dreaming with Malachite again. He knows she is, and she knows he knows.

“I guess it's fine.” Nora mumbles shyly. She follows Steven leaving the truck with their pillows and blankets. After a short silent walk, both arrive in the warp pad and within seconds they're back at the Temple again.

The House is weirdly dark and quiet, which is expected considering everyone's been out for practically a month. Nora goes to their bedroom while Steven stays downstairs. “What are you doing?”

She is answered with Steven turning on the floor lamp next to the couch, partially illuminating the living room and their own bedroom. “Just making it comfortable.”

“You know I'm not scared of the dark, right?” Steven chuckles, reading the appreciation behind the sarcasm. He joins his sister on the bed and gets comfortable under the comfy comforter. “G’night bro.”

“Night sis.” 

─ ·★· ─

The room is a little dark with doors and windows closed, illuminated by the lampshade crafted into the green wallpaper, being the only source of life to both girls sitting down on the carpet.

“C'mon Nora, we need to find a way to save the magic!” Mariana told the twin in her characteristic determination. “But how are we going to do it? The last person who saw the Burning Flame was Uncle, but no one could find him!”

“Hm,” Nora stopped to think. “We could try to find some clues over the house! Didn't Cousin say there's a hidden door around here?

“That’s right! Great idea, let's go!” Mariana quickly got on her feet, brushing off her long puffy gray dress, and helped Nora on the way out of her room. “We have to be very careful, alright? No one can get suspicious of us.”

The youngest nodded. The girls initiated their task tiptoeing through the corridors that led to other family members’ rooms. It's all too quiet, peaceful and strange, for a house filled with uncles, nieces and cousins.

Nora looked around trying to spot anything slightly unusual; The flowers are beautiful as always, tiles undoubtedly clean, portraits in the same positions, the painting… is titled to the right. It's asymmetrical, something Grandma would never allow it!

Closer to it, she noticed something was hidden behind it. Grabbing the edges and pulling it forwards, a small door was revealed. “Mariana, I think I found something.” Nora warned, but the girl never returned.

Entering it, she was met with a place she'd never seen before. It had no ceiling, just an endless darkness upwards. And the ground was basically water, in cyan-green tones that caused a faint glowing. Nora slowly placed her right foot on it, noticing it was safe to walk right into it.

 Far away she could spot something or someone, she wasn't sure. It was moving, alive, making some kind of sounds the distance didn't allow it to be recognizable. Curiosity led Nora to walk a little more faster, anxious to see what'd be found.

Slowly, the figure took the form of someone. Blue skin, slightly pointy hair, skirt moving everytime they tugged the restraints around their hands. It was familiar, a gem, it was… “Lapis?”

She looked over her shoulder, shock plastered over face. “Nora, what are you doing here?”

“What do you mean? This is my dream-"

“What? No! Nora, I'm trying to concentrate! I can't get distracted, I've got to hold us down with the weight of your planet's ocean! I've got to keep her-” Lapis grunted, struggling to finish her sentence.

“Wait! If this isn't a dream, then talk to me! Tell me where you are, so we can help you!” Nora offered desperately, seeing the gem was slipping further and further into the water.

Lapis stopped struggling for a second to look at her, but in that brief moment of distraction the force she was struggling against doubled down, forcing Lapis to refocus her energy. “I told you no!”

A shriek fell out of her lips, followed by the water splashing as she was then pulled under the surface. Before Nora could react, water splashed again, this time bringing someone else behind her.

“You…” Jasper, on all fours, chest rising and falling from the intense struggle. “You!” Nora took steps behind, hoping Lapis would save her and drag the soldier again out of control, or that the water chains would keep them away from each other.

But Jasper kept crawling in her direction, getting closer and closer while maintaining eye contact, expressing rage and obsession over the girl. “YOU!” She used all her strength and leaped towards Nora, who stumbled backwards and shield her face out of instinct.

Thankfully, Jasper struggled against her restraints, losing her traction just a few inches from reaching the girl, before being dragged back underwater to where she came from.

With Jasper's absence, Lapis then thrust back out of the water surface, this time with water wings outstretched and visibly exhausted. “Lapis!” Nora slid right to her side when she collapsed on the ground.

“Can't you see? I can't stop, not for a second. Don't look for me, I don't want your help!” The way she struggled to make her words audible through gasps for air made it even more clear how she needed help, but determination rose above it and Lapis hoped it would be enough to keep Nora away.

“But-” Nora tried to reach out, but the gem slammed both hands on the surface.

“Just let me do this for you!” Lazuli rose to her feet and wrapped both water wings around her upper body. Turning around, she glanced at the youngest’s face one last time and spoke her last words. “Don't come back for me.”

Nora could only watch the gem slipping under the water, unable to do anything to help. Once Lapis was gone, the twin was left completely on her own carrying the burden of helplessness while she tried to find a way out of that place.

The door was still there, on the same spot, but barely visible due to the distance. Nora walked towards it, however the water started to rise and flood the area.

She fastened her steps, but the drenched jeans and shoes made escaping even harder. The water reached her waist and in a few seconds became past her chest. The door was still too far away, she wouldn't reach it in time.

And she didn't.

─ ·★· ─

Nora returns to the old environment. The familiar faint salty scent of the beach and muffled sounds of waves and seagulls. She's back to her room in the Beach House and this information helps to calm her shaking arms and even her rapid breathing.

‘I'm home, I'm safe, no one can hurt me here’, The girl closes her eyes and takes full deep breaths until her chest doesn't hurt anymore.

“Sis?” Her eyes snap wide open in time to see Steven reaching upstairs with a bowl full of cereal in hands. “You okay?” He sits beside her and hands it to his sibling.

Nora nods, mumbling a quiet ‘thanks’. It didn't feel like a dream, I was actually talking to Lapis, I could feel it! But how? Is this a new power? Even if it is, that meant I talked to her and that way we can save her from Jasper. “Steven, I need to talk to you.”

“About your dreams, right?”

“That's the thing, it wasn't a dream,” Nora insists, putting the bowl on her lap. “It was real, I'm sure it was. And this time I didn't see the watermelons in that village, I saw Lapis! I talked to her!”

“You did!?” Steven's eyes widened. “Then where is she? Is she okay? Is she still in control?”

“Yes, Lapis is still holding on, but I don't know for how long,” Nora frowns, now facing him. “She's too weak and Jasper is doing everything to take control, it's just a matter of time before she does. We need to tell the Gems!”

“We will, but first…” Steven takes the bowl and places it on her hands again. “You need to eat and rest. You didn't get to sleep well tonight, so I will talk to the Gems while you stay here, okay?”

“Okay." Nora takes the spoon and adjusts the bowl on her lap, smiling when her brother places a quick peck on her temple.

Steven leaves the house and searches for the Gems, who are currently discussing evacuation orders with Greg, Mayor Dewey and Nanefua. He has no idea why she's there, but he has better questions to ask.

The boy finds everyone reunited in front of his dad's Car Wash and by the looks of it, a lot has been going on. “So, is this what you gems have been hiding from everyone?”

Pearl steps in. “Nanefua, please, understand that we only did this to keep everyone from panicking. Can you imagine the disaster that would've happened if all citizens discovered the truth? That there's a high chance of humanity being extinct?”

“It doesn't matter what you want or not! What really matters is that we need to leave Beach City immediately!” The Mayor demanded, wiping a handful of sweat. “And honestly Nanefua, I don't understand why this brought your attention. Wasn't it much easier to just wait for my plan?”

The older woman pursues her lips, crossing her arm in a defiant act. “Plan? You call waiting for someone else to guide you a plan? You barely know what to do. As a Mayor you should have emergency routes and plans for any kind of problems.”

“This town is a magnet for disaster! First, there's a red eye almost crashing onto the beach, then next we have a giant hand ship, and now a weapon on the planet core that can tear us apart. How do you expect me to foresee all this!?”

Greg clears his throat, drawing their attention. “Uh, sorry to interrupt, but I think it's best to leave that discussion for another day.”

“Greg is right, we must focus on evacuating the town the fastest we can. The drill is ready and as soon everyone is out of town we will start the process- Oh Steven, is everything okay? Is Nora okay?”

As if he isn't already nervous, Pearl's words nearly make his heart skip a beat. “Why wouldn't she be okay? Did something happen to my daughter!?”

“Greg, nothing happened to Nora. She's fine, she just couldn't sleep well tonight,” Garnet told him. “Steven will explain to you later, but right now you need to go with Mayor Dewey and Nanefua to help evacuate the citizens.”

Greg looks one last time at the Gems, then at his son. “See you later, kiddo.” He bends down to his level and gives him a quick hug. “Let’s go.”

The Crystal Gems wait until the three humans disappear from their view to resume the topic. “So, what's up Ste-man? Did Nora have another of those freaky dreams?” Amethyst ignore the disapproving face from Pearl.

Steven opens his mouth to explain, but Peridot cuts him off. “I’m sure whatever that is isn't important as our plan to drill, which by the way we should be immediately starting!”

Although, the boy doesn't get bothered by the dismissiveness. “Sorry Peridot, but there's something really important that I gotta tell them.”

“What part of this could be the start of the emergence of the Cluster you don't understand!?” Peridot barked, already out of patience, showing her tablet with a few drawings on the screen. “Stage 1: slight tremors every quarter hour. Stage 2: full-scale earthquakes. Stage 3: The Earth is destroyed! We're running out of time, we need to drill right now!”

“No, that's what I'm trying to say. This isn't the Cluster, it's Malachite!”

“Malachite?!” The trio exclaim unison.

Peridot frowns. “What?”

“Nora’s dreams weren't just dreams, she was actually communicating through it! Nora talked to Lapis and she's still in control, but she's getting too weak to fight Jasper. We need to go to the Mask Island and help her!”

The Gems’ surprised faces confuses the technician, demanding a plausible explanation. “Can someone explain to me what is going on and why is this more important than the imminent destruction of the planet!?”

And Garnet is willing to fill her in. “Lapis fused with Jasper into Malachite to keep her trapped and unable to do any harm. They disappeared into the ocean and we couldn't find them no matter where we searched, until now.”

Peridot crosses her arm. “So, Lazuli has Jasper trapped in a fusion? You're joking me.”

Steven shakes his head. “It's true, but Lapis is getting tired from fighting Jasper for so long.”

“Just being on a ship with Jasper made me tired.” If actual nerves existed underneath her ‘skin’, she would've shivered at the flashbacks from the terrible experience of being Jasper's assigned partner.

“It's just a matter of time before Jasper overpowers Lapis and takes full control. Who knows what sort of destruction an unstable fusion like Malachite could cause?” Garnet stops and reaches for her visor. She stays quiet for a moment. “Alright, Gems. Pearl, Amethyst, and I will warp to Mask Island. Steven, stay here and watch after the drill with Nora and Peridot.”

And with these orders, the Gems warp to Mask Island, leaving Steven and Peridot in charge of the drill. “I'm going to check the status of the equipment and make sure they're all ready to use.”

“I'll go with you.” Steven warns.

Nora joins them and the trio return to the barn where Peridot resumes her work while the siblings sit next to her waiting for the others to come back. It doesn't take too long for another tremor to happen.

The youngest tries to stay calm, mentally telling herself the Gems are already taking care of it, but not knowing what's going on while the tremors still happen and more frequently, makes her more anxious. “I can't stay here doing nothing! I gotta help them!”

“Why don't you just disobey them?” Peridot speaks from inside the pod. “Rebel. Isn't that, like, your guys' thing?”

That actually isn't a bad idea. “You know what? You're right, I'll do it.” Nora gives a nervous grin when Steven shoots her a displeased glare. “Don't worry Steven, I'm not going to do anything crazy. I'll just do what I did before, I'll fall asleep and go into one of those watermelons and see how the Gems are doing and if they need help, I'll warn you and we'll go! Like this I'm technically not disobeying them, I'm still here with you guys and at the same time I'll be there with them.”

“Wow, you're a real anarchist.”

“I don't know what that is, but thanks!” Nora makes herself comfortable on the grass while Steven stays by her side. “If the Gems need help I'll wake up and tell you.”

Steven doesn't like the amount of confidence she's pouring into this relatively new power, however it's the only safe way of assistance. “Okay, just be careful.”

“I'll be fine.” And with that, Nora focuses on the task of falling asleep.

─ ·★· ─

I open my eyes and the same bright sky circled by trees comes to view. I sit myself up and stare at my limbs — short, green shades coloured, yep, definitely a Watermelon Steven. From my spot I can see a few watermelons together talking with each other and just when I was about to take the chance and try to communicate with them when another tremor occurs, causing everyone to run away in panic.

They all run to the right but I go in the opposite direction trying to find the way to the beach. Trying to be as discreet as possible, I hide myself behind a few bushes and from here I can see the Gems in front of Malachite. She is trying everything to get free from the chains, splashing water everywhere, and she keeps screaming and yelling so much it's kind of scary.

“Alright, let's put an end to this.” I hear Garnet say and right away Amethyst and Pearl start dancing with her, fusing into Alexandrite.

I stare in awe at the giant fusion. Steven told me about her when he went with the Gems to find a magical prism while I was at the doctor, but seeing Alexandrite for the first time is amazing! She's huge and looks sooo cool! I bet she's waaaay much stronger than the others, I can't wait to see what her powers are like!

“Give up! Argh!” Jasper yells through Malachite and in a few seconds the worst happens: she breaks free from the water chains. “I'm impressed, you really held out.”

Oh Lapis, I'm so sorry. I know you tried really hard and for so long, I hope you don't blame yourself for this, you did what you could. Now it's up for the Gems to stop Jasper.

“MALACHITE!”

“They're here!” Malachite tries to move, but something holds her back. “Ugh, Stop!” It's her! Lapis is still trying! “Pathetic! Don't you see? We've been holding us back for too long and for what? If we're going to be this thing together, why don't we have some fun?” No, no! She almost did it!

Alexandrite tries to talk to her one more time. “We don't have to fight, you're outnumbered.”

Malachite smirks, turning around with two water fists rising out of the sea. “I may be outnumbered, but you're out of your depth! I can't wait to tear you Gems apart!”

Alexandrite wastes no time and charges into the water at Malachite, and that's when the fight starts. Predicting her move, Malachite raises a water hand and traps her, but not for too long because Alexandrite shoots fire from her second mouth, melting the water off her!

From a safe distance, Malachite tries a different strategy. Blobs of water emerge and turn into sharp ice, launching at record speed at Alexandrite. 

In a blink of an eye, Amethyst's whip appears into one of her hands, easily breaking the frozen pieces. Pearl's spear makes an appearance as well, combining into a bow, and aimed various arrows at the other fusion.

However, Malachite’s reflexes act quickly by raising a frozen barrier, blocking the attack. I didn't expect her to be so good at fighting, but I should've taken it into consideration that Jasper probably has a lot of experience in combat.

Shoot. I just hope the Gems win this one- Oh no, no, no, this can't be happening! Malachite used one Jasper's attack and flung at Alexandrite, pinning her to the ground and… smashed the warp pad into dust! How are they going back home now!?

I need to do something! I gotta help them, but how? Think Nora, think! What can you do to help!? My shield won't do much, the barriers are too weak and I still don't know how to summon them, the flowers are useless…. Ugh, nothing! All my powers are useless!

If Steven was here he would probably have found a solution already. But he's too far away and he can neither warp here. What kind of Crystal Gem am I? I can't even handle a problem on my own, I’m useless! Mom would be so disappointed in me.

I tuck both knees to my chest and hide my face on my arms, finally letting myself cry. I know it's selfish to think like that, but I really wish I was the one born with Mom's gem. I'm sure Steven would turn out just fine as a human, he always does.

I disconnect from my thoughts when both of my arms are grabbed and I'm dragged by someone else to somewhere else. I yank my hands out of instinct, but soon I realize there are two watermelons carrying me to the same cave others were hidden.

That seems right, being placed with other scared people just waiting for someone else to deal with the problems. Once I'm inside the cave I look for a corner to cry my heart out.

I'm sorry Garnet, I'm sorry Amethyst and I'm really sorry Pearl. I wish I could help you guys, but the wrong twin is here.

“What's wrong, little one?” Lifting my face, I see it's the eldest, the one who approached me. “I understand you're scared, but something tells me it's not the only reason to bring you into tears.”

“I don't know how to help my family,” I hiccuped. “They’re fighting, but they're losing and I don't know how to help them win.”

“Is your family out there?”

“No,” I wiped a few tears away. “My family is the Gems fighting Malachite, that fusion who was trapped in the water. They're trying to stop them, but Malachite is way too strong and there's nothing I can do for them!”

“So, that makes you…”

“Nora, Steven's sister, the one who created you all. For some reason I could transport to this body, I didn't know I could do that, but now that I did I only wanted to help them… but I don't know how. If only I knew their weakness."

“Sometimes, the same aspect that brings someone strength is the same that brings instability when confronted in another point of view.”

It's almost like magic, suddenly I knew what to do, the solution was right in front of me. “That's it! You just gave me an idea how to fight them!” I started to explain. “Malachite might be strong, but only physically. They're very unstable mentally. If I get through them in their minds maybe I can make them unfuse! But I can't do this alone, I need your help.” 

“I will do everything in my reach to assist you.”

Great. “What's the safest place on the whole island?” 

“Okay, I need everyone to stay down there just to make sure they're safe. I'll try to use my… telepathic powers to connect with Malachite and persuade them to stop.”

The leader understood the message and soon they led every single watermelon downstairs to the bottom of the cave. I need everyone to stay there because if it backfires, I want them to be at a secure distance from Malachite.

When all of them are reunited, I join them down there. The leader accompanies me to a more private corner where I could lay down and focus on falling asleep. That's the worst part of it, I wish this new power didn't have to work like that, but I can manage.

I close my eyes and try to get calm, which is hard in a situation like this, but I think of that song my dad sang to me as a lullaby. Maybe it can help me again.

I guess I have to face that in this awful place

I shouldn't show a trace of doubt

But pulled against the grain, I feel a little pain

That I would rather do without

I'd rather be free, free, free

I'd rather be free, free, free

I know I'll have to sail those waters cold and frail

Yet tender as the dew on the leaves

I'll struggle in the sea and tremble in the weeds

But I'll keep my shaky hands on the rails

If I can be free, free, free…

If I can be free, free, free…

Oh free

There's nothing. I'm in a room full of nothing. It's a bit though- It's wet! When I look down I see I'm walking over water. I know this place, I'm sure I've been here before, it reminds me of when I talked to- Lapis! I'm in Lapis' mind, or rather, Malachite's mind.

I need to access the memories of at least one of them to help me find something useful. I need to know them, what they went through and use it against them, just like Mariana did in the season 1 finale.

When I look to the side, not too far from me I see Lapis and for a moment I thought she regained control. But I notice she's different. Lapis is sitting in a small invisible area and there's a mirror in front of her where instead of her own reflection, it shows a crowd full of unknown angry gems.

It's a memory.

I get closer, trying to get a better look at those gems, but there's not a single one I can recognize. From the view, it appeared someone was holding the mirror from behind, presenting it to the others. "Show us your base!"

“What?” Lapis sounded so scared it made me feel bad.

“Show us your base!” They insisted, slower, but not less angrier. "Where is your leader?"

“I-I don't have a leader, I'm not one of them!” She tried to tell them, but they couldn't understand a single word. “Please, you need to listen to me. I have nothing to do with any of this, I'm from Homeworld and I came here only to see the place when the war happened. I'm not a rebel, I'm not a fighter, you have to believe me!”

I can't even imagine how awful it must have been for Lapis to be there all those years, alone, stuck, without anyone to talk to because no one could understand her. And to think Steven and I played with that mirror… I know we couldn't have known but remembering makes me sick.

“Please let me go! I'm innocent, I'm not a rebel. I wasn't even supposed to be here, I swear!”

Despite all the begging, no one even considered giving some sympathy to Lapis. “If you're not willing to cooperate by yourself, maybe that will make you rethink your options.” 

Suddenly Lapis’ body went stiff and she fell to the ground frantically screaming. Her legs kicked with ferocity while one of her arms tried to reach her back, as if looking for her gem. They were doing something to her gem!

“P-please, I don't know!” Lapis tried again, but they didn't care. After a moment of silence, the screaming started anew, more desperate and louder, with begging for mercy and plea for help.

She pushed her back to the floor to lessen the sensation on her gem, but it was useless. And by rolling over, I could see the tear-stained face contorted into pure agony.

I shut my eyes tightly and clutch both of my ears. I can't bear to watch it. I don't want to hear it. I don't want to feel it. “Stop! I don't wanna see that anymore!” And then, the wails vanished, and my voice is the only resonating through the empty. “I need to find Jasper's memories, there's gotta be something useful around here.”

I'm still a little hurt after what Lapis did to Steven and my dad, but it doesn't mean I want her to suffer or worse, stay trapped with Jasper forever. I need to find her weakness, something that will make her so angry or disturbed that she will lose control over the fusion.

I come across another memory, Jasper's one this time. She's standing in front of a gem that I also can't recognize. That gem was quite tall, with yellow curly hair, wearing an orange-yellow cape over her suit in the same colors and a rectangle gem right in the center of her chest.

“What is this?” She demanded, narrowing her eyes at the quartz standing in front of her.

“A Jasper, my commander,” A much friendlier voice responded. “Jasper Facet-4 Cut-8XM. The one emerged from Beta Kindergarten.”

The gem still looked unimpressed. “And what is a Beta standing in front of me? To waste my precious time?”

“My Commander, this Jasper isn't an ordinary one. She's the best quartz from the entire Beta Kindergarten, testimonies say she took care of seventy rebels only in its first hours once emerged-”

“Is this supposed to impress me? Being the best from the worst means absolutely nothing!” She then looked at Jasper, pointing at her chest. “Your origin is shameful, you are shameful by being made on that pathetic planet. The only thing that should be expected from you is your capacity to fulfill your purpose as a gem and your unconditional loyalty to Homeworld!”

It's weird to see Jasper so quiet when someone is insulting her like that. That gem is probably a very important one, but still. 

“However, since clearly you're in a better state than those disgraceful amethysts and other jaspers, I suppose you can be quite useful on the team.”

“Thank you, my-”

“Did I give you permission to address me?”

“N-no, my commander. Forgive me.”

“I'm not even surprised.” She sighed, turning her back and showing a dismissive wave. “Listen Beta, I'm sending a new squad with my Nephrites to reinforce a surprise attack on one of the rebels’ bases. I will relocate you with my quartz soldiers to guard the ship and deter any mild inconvenience.

So, that's what Homeworld gems actually are? Cold and insensitive? I'm not that surprised because Peridot used to be the same way, but it's kinda sad to think that a lot of gems act like that way and want others to be the same.

Another memory appears and it's completely different from the last one. A strange big machine that looked like a mixture of a carriage and gazebo where each side had flowers shaped holes. Its four spider legs sank on the ground and the translucent curtain on the front kept moving along the wind, revealing an empty seat inside.

“That symbol again.” I mumble to myself, narrowing my eyes to have a closer look at it. It's the four diamond symbol, the same I saw on the moon base. White, yellow, blue and pink. “This must belong to Pink Diamond, it's all pink."

Jasper was right in front of that machine, kneeled on the ground, not caring about getting dirt on her skin. “I failed her, I failed my purpose.” She keeps repeating that over and over again.

“What is she talking about?” I decide to take a few steps ahead and lean over to get a glimpse of whatever she's looking at;

Shards.

Pink shards.

My heart sinks at the sight of it. “W-What?” Something didn't feel right. “Why do I have a bad feeling about this?” I can feel my heart beating faster and my throat getting dry. Why is it making me feel like that? I'm feeling like I've lived this once, like I've seen it before, like I did this. I'm feeling guilty.

When I feel courageous enough to glance back, the memory is gone and I'm glad it vanished. At least, at this point I think I have a slight idea of what to say to Jasper.

“You know, you're right. There really is something more to this fusion thing. It's not just a cheap trick. You've really shown me a whole new world of possibilities, allow me to thank you.” It's her voice. I'm close, I need to follow it. “Sorry, but there's only room for one abomination on this measly planet.”

It doesn't take too long to reach the realm and find her just like the last time. But now I know what to do and all of this ends now. “STOP!” I yell loud enough to startle her.

“You… What are you doing here!?” Jasper growled.

“I'm here to work things out, to make you see that it's pointless to keep fighting.”

“And what makes you think I'll obey a piece of dirt like you!?” And here comes the insults. “I'm not falling for your tricks Rose, so save your breath. I'm not one of those weak-minded gems that you recruited making them believe they were something great when in reality they were nothing but lost and defective. I'm stronger than them, so don't try to fool me!”

All the time the answer was right in front of me and I never realized, it's so obvious that I can't help but laugh. 

“What are you laughing at?”

Once my laughter died down, I smirked, lifting my face to meet her gaze. “I'm laughing because you think you're strong, and that's a lie,” I can see the confidence melting from her face and it makes me even more determined and fearless. “You don't believe you're strong, you believe people that see you as strong. You need other gems to make you feel less about yourself.”

“Liar! Don't try to-”

“I am inside your mind, you can't lie to me here!” I yelled back. “I saw it. I saw how little you think about yourself, I saw how empty you are on the inside and fighting fills that void! You feel weak and went after gems that couldn't defend themselves to make you feel stronger, you accused my mom of doing exactly what you do!”

“Don't invert the situation for me, Rose. You know very well that's an old tactic of yours,” Jasper insists. I'm starting to lose my patience with how she talks about mom. “You tell weak gems that they're valuable to gain their loyalty and use them, did you really think I wouldn't notice it? You lie and make them feel better about their shame, but deep down you know it's just some poor excuse to erase the fact they all failed on their purposes.”

“You're wrong, they didn't fail, they chose not to follow it, because they realized they could do and be so much more. You're not angry at them for not doing their purposes, you're mad because you can't do anything outside of it!”

“That’s enough!” Jasper towers over me and grabs a handful of my shirt, closing the distance between us. I've been in this position before, at the beach when we first met. I was terrified, helpless, but now I know exactly how to fight her. I'm not scared anymore.

“You can't hurt me here, Jasper. I used to be afraid of you, you hurt me before, you hurt my family, you're hurting Lapis right now-” She tightens the grip, but it doesn't stop me from continuing. “You can be as mad as you want, but it's all true! You destroy everything you touch, you hurt everyone in the way, you push everybody away and that's why she will leave you. That's right, YOU'LL BE ALL ALONE!”

That's when I hit a nerve, but I didn't have time to react. Jasper keeps a tight hold on me and uses her strength to spin me around and then let go of me, sending me flying straight onto the ground.

And I’m back at the Island.

The leader comes to me and I see their mouth moving, but I can't quite figure out what they're saying. “I need to know if it worked!” It's all I can say, running upstairs to the cave entrance and seeing with my own eyes if my plan either worked or not.

Once I'm there I see that Malachite is still present, but she doesn't look good. There's yelling and phrases that don't make any sense, it's almost like she's losing her mind. They're almost unfusing, it's too much for both Lapis and Jasper.

I look over to Alexandrite in time to see her summoning Opal's bow and arrow, aiming it at Malachite. “It’s time you two spend some time apart.” And then, she fires it.

I thought Malachite would put up a fight, like try to dodge or run, but instead, to my surprise, she just stands there like she accepted it. The magical arrow pierces right through her and in an instant she is gone.

I sigh in relief seeing Jasper and Lapis unfused, falling into Alexandrite’s palms. I hear the other watermelons cheering while they come out from the cave and as much as I'm happy for them, I can't give them attention right now, not until I'm sure the Gems are fine.

Alexandrite brings both Jasper and Lapis to the beach, placing them on the sand before collapsing to her knees in exhaustion. By the time I get to the beach they're already separated back, all of them fine and without scratches.

Thank goodness for this, they can't imagine how terrified I was of the mission going wrong and worse, not being able to help them. But I don't need to worry anymore because my family is safe!

When I reach them I'm almost out of breath, due to my short legs making me run the double speed I'd usually need. Pearl is the first one to acknowledge my presence and takes a good look at me. “Nora? Is that you in there?”

I nod in response. “Yes! I was right when I said it wasn't a dream, I was actually communicating with Lapis! And somehow I could also transport to this body and after the watermelon lady talked to me I got the idea to go inside Malachite's mind and make them unfused from inside out. I wasn't sure if it could work, but it did!”

I expected the Gems to be at least happy for me for helping them, but everyone just keep staring at me weirdly. I'm about to explain everything again when it hits me. “Oh right, you guys probably can't understand me.” Again, the same confused faces.

“Uh anyway, good job melon head!” Amethyst pulls me to a side hug, trapping me in a noogie. I shriek in laughter pulling away, only to free myself and fall into another pair of arms, a hug from Pearl, gentle as always.

“Thank you, we couldn't have done it without your help. You were very brave today and we all appreciate that.” Garnet kneels down to my level and caresses my hair — wait, do I have hair like this?

Unfortunately our victory is cut short when another tremor hits the island, stronger and longer this time. The entire place shakes and cracks appear on the ground, separating the island in elevated and lower parts.

The portion where we're in goes up and leans forward. Thankfully, the Gems keep their balance and I grab onto Garnet's leg for dear life. Amethyst manages to grab onto Lapis before she slid off, and Pearl tries to do the same with Jasper, but fails and she falls right into the fissure.

“It must be the Cluster, Peridot was right! Nora, it's up to you. The warp was destroyed, we won't make it back in time. Wake up, get Peridot and Steven, and start drilling.”

I cling onto Garnet's leg and shake my head, refusing to go. It's one thing to fight a single gem like Jasper and I did everything from inside my mind without any real risk of getting hurt. But dealing with the Cluster? Million mindless gems that can literally destroy the planet?

No. No way. I can't do this, it's too much responsibility for me!

Garnet then grabs my face and makes me stare at her. “The Earth needs you, Nora. We'll be fine. You can do this, we believe in you.”

Did… Did she say she believes in me? That they believe in me? For real? At first, I think she's just saying this to make me feel confident, but when Amethyst and Pearl join her side, I can't see a single trace of a lie.

I'm still scared to face this on my own, but I have no other choice. It's either deal with the Cluster or let the planet die. I can't let my fear get the best of me, I need to do this. For the Earth, humans, my family, and mom.

I nod at Garnet's request, taking a deep breath and letting myself disconnect from this body. I can no longer feel their touch on my skin, my breathing becomes longer and steadier, while my entire body feels like it's floating.

Everything starts to grow quiet, but I still can hear some voices.

“You got this, girl. You know the drill.” Amethyst

Pearl “Be careful, Nora. Watch each other's backs.”

I closed my eyes, feeling myself get further and further from them. My whole body gradually goes numb, I can't feel anything at this point, but before I lose connection with them I still hear one last phrase.

“And Nora, we love you.”

Chapter Text

And Nora, we love you

Nora jolts awake, back in her body at the barn, in time to catch another tremor and a few cracks forming on the ground nearby. “Sis, you're back!” She looks for the source of the voice and finds Steven running down the ladder that leads into the cockpit of the drill. “Are you okay?”

Before she has the chance to answer, Peridot pops up from the pod. “If you're done just lying there, maybe it's about time that we stop the world from ending!” She yells. “Where are the others!?”

Nora tries to stand up and Steven catches her in time her knees wobble. He brings her left arm over his shoulder, grabbing her wrist to help sustain her weight onto him. “They're stuck on Mask Island. The warp pad broke during their fight with Malachite, we have to drill without them.” She leads a hand to her temple, a headache beginning to kick in, distracting her from Peridot's frustrated growls in the background.

“You okay? Does your head hurt?” Steven stops and bends his head, searching for any signs of pain. “I can try to heal it.”

“I'm okay,” He doesn't like that answer. “Let's just go and stop the Cluster.” 

Steven frowns, certain that his sister is not telling the truth, but there's a bigger matter in the play. Peridot taps her foot impatiently while she waits for both to get upstairs.

Ever since they started this project, today is the first time Steven and Nora actually sees what inside the pod looks like;

A good portion of the escape pod was kept, the only significant difference is that now it's latched on another half of the injector, creating a bigger space to fit everyone. There's three seats in front of the panel and three more seats placed on the wall behind them.

Once they get into their seats, Peridot follows them into the drill’s cockpit. “Okay, are you ready to drill down into the planet to depths never before reached by your species to stop the Cluster before it forms and save your world?”

The siblings look at each other, nodding, then turn at the gem. “Ready or not, we have a mission.” Steven says, serious.

Humming, Peridot presses a few buttons and starts up the drill. The entire pod rumbles while the front window closes, and it begins digging into the ground. “Increasing speed!”

A few more seconds and the drill then dive into the ground, digging deeply as it traverses. It's not an easy path. Everyone is nervous, concerned for what's waiting for them down there, especially now with the change of plans.

They remain silent as the drill continues to dig further downwards. Nora's eyes are filled with anguish as she watches the layers of rock pass by. She shuts her eyes tightly, shaking her head.

Steven notices his sister's weird behavior. “Sis? You okay?” He asks once again.

Nora hugs herself, rubbing her arms to draw the sensation of cold away. “It's kinda scary down here.”

Peridot turns to her. “Why's that?”

It makes me feel enclosed, alone, trapped. There's nowhere to go, no way to escape. If something goes wrong I'll be stuck forever. No one will save me. I won't be found, rescued, or secure. “It's just dark, and cramped, it's making me claustrophobic.”

Without noticing, Nora seeks for her brother's hand, and Steven takes her palm in a secure hold in return. “How'd you think you were gonna get everyone in here anyway?”

“I don't know, they'd shrink or something,” Peridot shrugs. “We didn't have a lot of time to plan.”

“So, what is the plan, again?”

“We have a drill and we're going to use it to break a few of its gem shards to destabilize the Cluster, which should give us some time. Fortunately, this pod’s technology is from Era 2, which gives us a few options to use it in our favour.”

“The pod has a tractor beam system that can be used to paralyze and/or levitate objects, we'll be using that as a superficial layer to apply an external pressure onto the Cluster, so it won't take form,” She continues. “Also, once it came to my knowledge that my robonoids were still kept somewhere, I discussed a few ideas with Pearl and we found a way to reactivate them to use their fixing properties and create a stronger barrier that will involve around the Cluster as an artificial bubble.”

“It looks… complicated, but I'm sure we'll do it in no time.”

Unfortunately, Peridot doesn't let her be contaminated by the boy's optimism. "Not exactly. We need to place the machinery in the highest point of the Cluster. That way, when we start to pour the layer it'll create a perfect circumference around the shards, with no risks of leaving any part unprotected.”

The gem looks up at the screen, noticing the new information popping up on the screen. “Get ready, we're about to penetrate the asthenosphere!”

The entire pod is bathed in warm colors as soon as they reach another deep layer underground. “Whoa, it's all lava!” Steven stares in awe.

“Lava is what comes out of volcanoes. That's superheated peridotite, it's made of the same stuff as Peridots.”

This information instigates his interest. “You were made on Homeworld, right?” She nods. “What was it like?”

“I didn't exist, then I did. I don't have memories of it, just feelings,” Peridot keeps her eyes glued on the front. Her grip tightens. “I know I can never go back to Homeworld, but it's hard not to have some feelings for where you came from.”

Nora is taken aback with Peridot's honesty. She never thought about this point of view, and it makes her a little self-conscious.

Although Steven was just as hurt as her at the betrayal, he was right about needing to be more comprehensive towards Peridot. Homeworld gems are different from the Crystal Gems — They're brainwashed since the moment they're created, forced to follow a belief and reinforced to worship some kind of ruthless authorities.

And that's what their whole life is about, from beginning to the end. No wonder Peridot fell into a state of shock hearing Nora's harsh words at the Temple. Realizing that everything she's been taught was nothing but meaningless lies must have taken a toll on her.

Nora wishes she had been more emphatic.

“But it's fine! I have something different now.” Peridot's voice brings her to reality.

“What's that?” The older twin asks.

The gem doesn't answer at first. “You know! You... guys.” Steven can't help but smile fondly at the reply and chooses not to comment on the single tear welling in the corner of her eye.

A banging atop the compartment interrupts the beautiful moment, sending everyone in alert mode. “What's that sound?” A red hand suddenly pushes against the front glass, causing Steven to back away and Nora scream, clutching onto his shirt. “It's a gem mutant!”

“They must've buried some prototypes with the Cluster,” Unfazed, Peridot presses a button on the panel and a weaponized camera pops out from atop the cockpit. “Pearl didn't think it was necessary, but I never leave home without a blast cannon.”

Nora is handed a controller and a live footage of the mutants is displayed on the panel as an aiming guide. She looks up at the screen and stares at the monster approaching the camera, unable to press any of the buttons on the controller.

This is wrong, it doesn't feel right. These gems are hopeless, trying to find themselves, hoping to end their suffering and instead I'm here treating them like monsters. Threats. They don't deserve this.

“Something doesn't feel right about this,” Nora says, lowering the control. “We can't just leave these gems out there, it's not fair. Even if we poof them, they're going to form again and they're going to be all alone here. If I could just bubble them, at least they'd be safe.”

She hands the control to her brother. “Isn’t there any other way we help them?” Steven questions the gem.

“There is no helping them, they're too broken,” Peridot states, surprisingly gentle. “The beings who used to be in those shards are so shattered, they don't know who they are, or what's happening around them. They just seek out other gems, looking for the missing pieces of themselves, trying to make themselves whole.”

The urge to cry is still there, growing stronger at each word. These gems were rebels, fighting for the safety of the planet and for themselves, they just wanted to be happy, believing they could have a better life and instead, a horrible fate landed on them.

Nora bites her lips fighting back tears, turning her head away when Steven blasts one of the mutants off the pod.

“These early experiments only combined two or three shards. The cluster will be a million times bigger, an inseparable fusion capable of destroying worlds, starting with this one.”

The drill eventually hits a layer of dense rock and the whole thing begins to shake. “We're hitting some denser rock! This is it!” The drill pierces through the ceiling of a huge opening and stops.

Peridot looks around the opening with mobile binoculars with a flashlight attached to it. “Recovery depth achieved. Target found.”

“Is that…”

“The Cluster.”

“And from the looks of it, it still hasn't reached a level of consciousness that allows them to want to take form. This means we still have a significant chance,” Peridot taps a couple of buttons on the control panel and holds onto the steering handles. “Just a little repositioning and we're ready to drill.”

Pushing the steering handles forward, the drill climbs through the hole in the ceiling with mechanical legs, suspending itself above the Cluster, and with another set of buttons pressed, the drill begins diving towards the geo-weapon.

Once it reaches the Cluster and makes contact with it, the whole cabin shakes violently with the force used. Steven groans, using one hand to hold himself on the seat while the other to clutch on his head, in an attempt to lessen the feeling of his brain being shaken.

Nora curls up onto herself, grabbing the both sides of her head. The noise is too loud, vibrating through her body. Why does it feel like it's hurting me? Piercing through my skin, vibrations running through inside my bones. Overwhelming. I want it to stop! I need it to stop! Stop! Stop!

“Why? Is the increased vibration causing damage to your head holes?” Peridot yells over her own voice and that's how she realizes she's been screaming.

“I don't know!” The youngest cries.

“We're not even piercing the crust yet, I need to increase power!” Peridot pauses to look at the view ahead her; A few visible cracks are seen on the crust, meaning that once they continue it'll be over soon. “Are you going to be okay?”

No! It hurts! It hurts so much! “Yeah, I think it's just the noise,” Nora responds between gritted teeth. “Keep going.”

“Affirmative. Activating triple tip penetration mode!” The drill separates into three more drills in a triangular formation.

Nora, still holding her head in agony, dares to open her eyes in hope to see Peridot's progress over the Cluster. Over the window, she sees the drill slowly breaking the superficial layer above the Cluster.

Tiny pieces of shards fall all over the ground. I scream in terror, renewing my struggles to escape, but the quartz holding me is too strong. She keeps me in a strong, unbreakable grip, with my arms behind my back, forcing me to watch Agate crumbs into lifeless pieces.

“See what happened to your little Crystal friend?” The quartz spoke on my neck. “And you're next,” Without seeing, I could sense a disgusting smirk on her lips. “But if you're a good gem and tell me where's their next attack I can make it quick, what do you say?”

I bit my lips, giving nothing, but a obstinate silence in response. She hated it. “I asked you a question and I demand an answer! Do you hear me?” Hands grab my shoulders. Nora blinks a few times before realizing it's Steven. “Nora, can you hear me? You were zoning out and kept mumbling things.”

“W-What,” The girl looks at Steven, realizing there's no one else besides her brother and Peridot. She's right here inside the pod. Safe. Accompanied. Yet, there's no way for her heart to slow down at an acceptable rhythm.

Nora starts to pant over the feeling of impending doom, like there's some sort of danger approaching. We run the fastest we can, but deep down we know none of us are a match for the soldiers.

“They're right behind us, we won't make it!” I said, already accepting our deaths. We're in the Beta Kindergarten, running into the last corner. There's no way we would get out of this one alive.

“There!” Kyanite pointed at one of the holes in the wall. She helped me reach that one a little far up and as soon as I'm inside, she turned away. “Stay here, I'll distract them.”

“No!” I grabbed her wrist, pulling her against me. “They're going to break you!”

She gave one of those sweet smiles, but it never reached her eyes. I could see right through it that she also accepted her fate. “Stay.” Kyanite took my hand and placed a kiss on my palm.

My eyes started to burn, and despite the trembling across my arms I managed to return the gesture. Our last piece of affection, the reason we chose to stay on Earth and fought so hard for its protection.

Kyanite took advantage of my thoughtful state and jumped from the hole. My first instinct was to call out her name, but I clamped my mouth shut, hurriedly crawling further into the cramped space.

Then the yelling started. Deep, feral voices began to arise in contrast to Kyanite’s soft spoken tone. She is tough at first, but within seconds that facade crumbs and soon she's screaming and begging.

Tears fell from my face hearing this miserable sound. Hiccups threatened to escape my throat, but I forced myself to be still and quiet. Suddenly, a dark figure blocked the light and when I opened my eyes there she was.

“She's here!” It's Jasper, but not an ordinary one. It's the Jasper, the perfect Quartz. “No, no, no. Please! Please don't shatter me, have mercy!” With my back against the hard wall of rock, I had nowhere to go. 

“Please! Please, let me go! Let me go, I beg you!” 

Steven stood frozen, watching his sibling screaming at the air. He could only imagine what Nora was seeing and hearing, and it wasn't nice things. She screams at whoever is supposedly after her, repeating over and over again that she didn’t want to die while pleading for mercy.

“What's wrong with her?!” Peridot shouted, panicking.

Fortunately, her voice snaps Steven out of his trance and puts him on his flight or flight mode. “I don't know!” He takes action. The boy leaves his seat and rushes over to the corner where his sister is thrashing over whatever threat she's seeing. “Nora please, it's me, Steven! Talk to me!”

But it doesn't do much and it breaks Steven's heart to see his twin in so much distress. Nora's voice is getting strained from shouting and yet it doesn't stop her. Endless tears fall from her face and the skin of her hands are reddening from how hard she's clenching her fists.

There's arms trying to grab me and force me still, but I use every drop of my strength to fight back. I hear Steven's voice somewhere far and I open my eyes hoping to see him coming to rescue me from this mess.

But instead, all I see is gems. Hundreds of them. And they all look different from each other; Tall, short, slim, big, green, pink, blue, in all sorts of colors and shapes. Some looked vaguely familiar even though I'm sure I never saw them before and it didn't help that their faces kept fading in and out of focus.

And it gets worse. First, I heard mumbling and now it's much worse than whispers. The voices become louder, not exactly human like, but animalistic growls and wails.

At some point I can’t quite make out; The screams and cries layer over each other, creating a mass of noise that feels like it's coming from inside of my mind with no sign of stopping soon.

They are frightened, angry, resentful. I think I know why and that's why they're coming after me. They want hope, some seek revenge and others are just confused and lost. But I can't help them! I don't know how! But they don't care.

More gems circle around me and I feel more claustrophobic than ever. My heart is beating so fast it hurts and air leaves my lungs faster. I try to breathe, but no matter how much air I pull it doesn't feel like it reaches my lungs.

I'm starting to panic. I'm trapped with no way out, too scared to do anything, too weak to keep breathing. It's too much. I can feel my strength going away and my body struggling with my last breath.

I fall against something, unable to get up. The haunting images go away alongside the muffled screams, reduced to some undistinguishable noise. My eyelids weigh to a point where I'm forced to blink for the last time, surrendering to the darkness.

─ ·★· ─

The very first thing Nora notices when opening her eyes is that she's completely on her own. The Universe finds herself in some kind of vast, empty space, resembling a dream-ish void.

When she dares to move one of her arms, Nora realizes it feels way lighter. She does the same with the other limbs, serving to certify that she's floating around where the lack of gravity seems like an important point. Is this some kind of a dream or new mind state she's not aware of?

As her vision adjusts to the darkness, little spots of light become visible in her range. Stars. They look like stars, forming the resemblance of a starry sky, the ones she usually saw whenever Steven and her joined their dad on the van.

From afar, she sees a gem shard floating into her direction. When the distance closes, a small broken voice can be heard from it as its glow pulsates, instigating her curiosity. Nora pushes herself towards it and once she gets close enough to touch it-

“Well, you're welcome soldier,” An Amethyst smacked my shoulder in a greeting gesture. I smiled. Maybe I did find my place here. “We were actually needing some fighters over here. Probably gonna punch some snobby jaspers-”

No, not this again. I thought I had run from this duty, a job I never asked for. It felt suffocating back on Homeworld, I can't let this happen again here on Earth. I can't let someone else control me, yell at me, hit me.

“NO!” My voice was sharp, even without meaning to, but I'm glad it reverberated the authority I aimed for. “I know that I'm a quartz, that I was made to fight, but I never wanted this. I don't want this!” I spoke, feeling a tight lump on my throat. “Rose said I could be much more than I was made for, that the Earth is the place where every gem is free to explore and be whoever they want to be.”

I kept my eyes locked on the grass, not wanting to face their reactions. My superiors weren't happy with my wishes, but I hoped that here on Earth I could have the freedom I've been begging for.

“Whoa,” One of them said. “I- We didn't know. Stars, sorry about that.” Then, when I least expected I was embraced by one, two, three, the whole squad.

I didn't know how to react, apart from being grateful. “I-It’s okay. Thanks for… understanding me.”

-and within seconds she yanks her hand away, astonished, watching the small shard continue to float somewhere. “Was that a vision?” Nora questions herself.

There's another shard coming up. Using a swimming motion, she moves herself upwards to reach it and when contact finally happens-

“I know I'm nothing more than a stupid Ruby, only a lower scale guard that serves to throw punches, but I want so much more for me. Is… is that wrong?”

“Of course not,” A bigger hand gently took my chin, lifting my face to meet her eyes. Rose Quartz. It's kinda funny. Everyone used to tell me how terrifying and intimidating she is, but right now? I feel like she's a long lost friend. “Ruby, you're not stupid. Please, don't ever call yourself that way again.”

I quickly nodded.

She let out a quiet laugh, bringing a hand to caress my hair. It feels nice. “It's not an order, Ruby. It's the truth. I'm talking to you as a friend, I view you as one already and that's why I care so much about you. I don't want you to think so little about yourself when you're capable of greater things.”

“You really think so?” It's hard to believe. Everytime I brought this up all of my colleagues would laugh and say it's stupid a ruby wanting to learn the same things as a Peridot.

“I'm certain of it,” Rose smiled and sat down by my side next to a tree. “Why don't you tell me your story? I'd love to hear about it.”

-it confirms her guess. “They are visions! I can see these gems’ memories somehow,” Her excitement at the newest discovery is quickly swapped by the sadness over the meaning behind it. “All of those shards were normal gems before. They were rebels fighting for this planet, wanting a better place to live and be whoever they wanted.”

The feeling of guilt is there again, stronger this time. “They believed they could have it. All they wanted was to be free, to love, just be who they were and now…” Her eyes burn from rushed tears and voice cracks through words. “I'm sorry. I'm so, so sorry. None of you deserved that. No one deserves to be punished like that, no one! I failed all of you.” Nora curls up, pulling the little shard next to her chest. “Please, forgive me.”

The poor girl's sobs were the only sound that filled the entire void. Then, something else appeared little by little. At first, whispers, then unrecognizable mumbles. Growing in volume, these sounds soon mingled into a choir that claimed for one person.

Rose.

Rose was back. The defective quartz, a rebel, leader, enemy, friend. Rose. After so long, she returned, like she promised.

Promise. She promised things before. Freedom, love, empathy, a better life. Lie. She lied. They were stuck, empty, resented, hopeless. This isn't what she promised! This isn't what they wanted! This isn't what they deserved!

Lie! She left us- No, she's here, she came back! Search. We searched together, it's hard to remember, but they're sure of it! Rose didn't give up, she was trying to. Now she's here.

She seems different, yet the same. So subtle. It's Rose. Her aura feels warm, bright, friendly. Familiar. Just like back then. They can't see her, but they can hear her soft, almost too quiet cries.

She used to cry a lot during the war. The memory is right there, far and close to grasp. “I'm sorry. I'm so, so sorry. I never meant for this to happen.”

"Don't be  Don't be  Don't be."

Nora's eyes popped open. “Huh?” She looks around searching for the source of the voice, finding more glowing gems shards orbiting around her. “Are you… talking to me?”

"Help  You helped us  Rose helped," They ignore her question, however their reply is a concrete confirmation. "You're back  Rose is back  Rose is back."

Sadness clouds Nora's face. “I'm… not Rose. I'm not Rose Quartz, I'm her daughter, Nora.

“Daughter?”

“Yeah, like I'm her child, a human. I have some of her powers and memories, but I'm not really her.”

“Part human, part Rose?”

“I think you could say that.”

Their mind is filled with confusion, where different ideas try to grasp a single concept. How could someone they know become half of an entirely different being? Wait, this looks familiar… When two gems combine into one, they become different. Fusion! “Fusion! You're fusion!”

Nora ponders. “Kinda,” It's the best answer she got. “I'm here with my brother Steven and my friend Peridot. They're Crystal Gems too and we're here to help you from taking form.”

Form. A dormant desire that finally emerged. They want to form. They craved it. Get rid of those unwanted thoughts. These gems are strangers, latching onto their mind filling with unfamiliar fragments of memories. They don't want this, they want to be free, to form. Form! Form! Form! Form! WANT FORM! WANT FORM! FORM!!!

“Please stop!” A plea found its way through the layers of voices. They're hurting Rose! It needs to stop, but it's so hard to focus, to hold itself together, nevertheless they gather every inch of strength and focus on the single task.

"Stop  Must stop  Must control  Can't hurt Rose."

The shrilling screaming it's over and Nora is thankful for being free from the excruciating pain over her head. "You did it, thank you." One question cross her mind and the possible answer makes her curious. “How are you feeling?”

Feeling… When was the last time they actually felt anything? What were their feelings long buried under that much agony and mindless desire guided by desperate instinct? “Scared  Dark  Sad  Sad  Sad.” The answer being somewhat expected doesn't make it less heartbreaking. “Remember  Want to remember  Complete  Want feel complete.”

“You want to find the rest of yourself,” Nora says in realization, watching the shards glow in affirmation. “When you became shards, you lost most of yourself and now you're only trying to find the rest of your gems. That's why you want to form, but forming won't help you find them, you'll just destroy the Earth.”

“No  No  No  No  No!”

“Hey, hey! It's okay, it doesn't mean you will!” Nora speaks over the Cluster, trying to change their focus. It's hard to deal with a one-track mind. “You just have to stay calm and pay attention to me. I'm here, I'm talking to you. We're good, it's alright.”

“Look, while my friends are working on a solution, why don't you try to… um, talk!” She hears a confused grunt. “I know being forced together like this is horrible, but instead of making it more difficult by fighting each other, why don't you try to understand each part of your shards?”

Understand? What's there to understand? Their mind is mostly shreds of past individualities. It’s hard to concentrate on a single thought. Yes, it'd be easier to find common ground, but how would that work?

“You all have been here for so long and never tried to get to know all of your parts. You know how hard it is and maybe you can bond over it and help each other,” Nora offers. “When we're done, you won't have to worry about this. I promise you this won't be forever.”

Some of the floating shards begin to lean towards others, still glowing, and now sharing the start of a conversation. Nora watches, relieved that the Cluster at least is willing to try her idea.

However, the peace doesn't last long when an invisible force suddenly drags the girl away from the center of action. It's like a hand grabbed her foot and it's pulling her down to whatever place the void holds.

If I'm talking to Cluster inside my mind, I'm probably waking up. “I- I just need to do something first- But it's okay! I'll be close!” She reassures when the gems notice her drifting away. “No need to worry, you got this.”

The shards begin to turn into blurry blobs of light and soon the voices are far muffled. When the darkness becomes more prominent filling her vision, Nora takes it as a clue to close her eyes and hope to find herself in a better place.

─ ·★· ─

Something's wrapped around her, it's soft and a little squishy? She tries to move, but soon realizes she is trapped between something.

“Nora! You're awake!” Steven's voice, for some reason, sounds louder than usual, hurting her ears in the process. The girl barely has time to whine in discomfort when her brother pulls her into a tight embrace. “I was so worried. I tried to talk to you, but you were panicking and then you passed out!”

Nora cracks an eye open and spots the blurry figure of her brother. As her visions adjust, Steven's features become clearer. There's wet trails over both cheeks, and his eyes and nose are a little red.

She tries to move herself, but instead Steven does all the work for her, getting both of them into a more comfortable position. He doesn't let go of her. “What happened, Nora? Can you tell us why you were so scared?”

“I saw things. Bad things. I saw gems that I never met, and I'm not talking about the corrupted ones we're used to seeing. They looked normal, like actual gems,” She begins. “But the thing is, they looked scared. It felt like they were begging me for help, but the voices, everything was so overwhelming that I guess I passed out.”

“You did,” Steven confirms. “I tried to talk to you, but you didn't even notice I was there even though I was right in front of you. You were screaming and trying to get away from me.

“Sorry,” Nora apologies. “Then, I woke up in some kind of void. I saw the shards and whenever I touched one I had a vision like I could see their memories. I knew who they used to be!”

“Wait, wait, hold on!” Peridot halts her speech. “Gems who were shattered are mostly incapable of functioning properly. They barely acknowledge what they're doing or where they are, being able to see their memory should be impossible.”

“Not really,” Steven says. “You said these gems don't remember themselves, but it doesn't mean their memory is gone, they just can't access them," He turns to his twin. "Maybe Nora can help them.”

“I'm not sure if I can go that far, Steven,” Nora drops her gaze. “I did see their memories, but I'm not sure if they saw it too. Besides, we're talking about millions of gems, I can't do it to each one.” Nora finally sits up, with her brother's help supporting her back. “But I want to try again, I need to know what I'm capable of. These gems are lost and if there's some way to help them, then I will do it!”

“It's up to you, sis. If you think you can do more for them, then go for it,” Steven encourages, patting her arm. “Just please be safe.”

“Well, while you two figure this out, I will start the next steps of our plan.” Peridot rises from her seat and walks towards a small box on the corner. Opening it, she takes the upper part of her limb enhancers, the ones that wrap around her arms. “I'll use these to guide the robonoid that will place the layers over the Cluster.”

Steven and Nora watch the floating fingers make a screen, just like the first time they saw Peridot. It's somehow nostalgic.

“Now listen you both, we're on the Earth’s mantle, which means the temperature outside is extremely elevated for a human body to resist. This compartment is thermoregulated and completely sealed to keep you protected,” Peridot gestures over the metallic door next to her. “Behind this door there's another area that leads to the door to access outside. Whatever you hear and see or happens, do not open that door. Understood?”

“Yes.” The twins say in union.

Peridot nods. “Good, now this device will serve as a communicator for us while I'm outside, just tap the button and it must work just fine," She hands Steven an ear-shaped walkie-talkie. "Now I'm going to step outside while you two stay and follow further orders.”

“Hey Peridot!”

She turns around, hand already gripping the handle.

“Good luck.” Steven says, wearing his optimistic smile. Nora does the same, nodding in a non-verbal agreement while giving a thumbs up.

Peridot offers them a discreet grin in return. “Wow, thanks.” The twins watch her leave their view behind the door, hearing her footsteps around the other compartment before getting out of the pod.

Outside, despite not being necessary, Peridot takes a deep breath while staring at her limb enhancers. It's been so long since she used them that it feels some how wrong to use it now.

She's been so dependent on it to literally do every part of her job and now that she's outgrown it, a sense of failure settles in.

“I don't have time for this.” She shakes her head, attempting to concentrate. The gem puts them on and activates a robonoid that leaves the external compartment of the pod, obeying her command to fly around the Cluster and find the exact spot it needs to be.

Inside the pod, Nora is certain she wants to continue with her plan and convinces Steven that everything will be okay. “I'll be fine, I'll just talk to them and make sure they're calm so Peridots can do her work without any surprises.”

“I wish I could be the one doing it,” Steven laments. “It's too much pressure on you. I swear if I could, you wouldn't have to do it.”

Nora gives a weak smile, appreciating the concern. She is sure that even when they grow into their twenties or thirties, Steven won't stop worrying about her. “I know, but like I said, I'll be fine.”

Steven then adjusts himself, leaning against the wall while Nora lays down with head on his lap. “Do you want me to sing to you?” He offers, having the perfect song in mind as a lullaby.

Nora nods, closing her eyes while her brother cleaned his throat and began singing the familiar lyrics their dad crafted.

1:12pm

Hours have passed and no sign of their plan stopping soon. Peridot is nearly halfway with the external layer, which is no surprise considering this is a millimetrical kind of job.

On the pod, Steven is still on his own dealing with the silence and inner thoughts while Nora doesn't wake up yet. He often looks down and observes the serene features, watchful just in case.

Steven reaches to move the fringe out of her face when her skin is suddenly hot to touch. He frowns, moving the hair aside and placing his palm over her forehead. “Oh my gosh, you're burning up!”

He takes his sister by the armpits, dragging her body to stay leaned against his chest. The heat radiating from her is immediate. “Nora, wake up! Wake up, please!” When she remains unconscious, he calls Peridot. “Peridot! Please help us! It's Nora!”

“What about her!?”

“She's having a fever, a very high one, and won't wake up! Please, I need help. I don't know what to do!”

“Hold on, I'm coming!” Outside, Peridot presses a button to put the robonoid on hold and flies back to the pod, where Nora is held tight by a panicking Steven. “I don't know a lot about organic physiology, but I can try to figure out what the problem is.”

The limb enhancers are put to work. With one hand, Peridot uses two floating fingers to scan Nora's body while the other forms a screen where the results are processed. “There’s not much to gather, but it says her temperature is 101.8° F. Is that-”

“High!” Steven completes, voice rising in pitch. “That’s not good, she got a fever! We need to bring it down and get her to wake up!”

Peridot flickers through her screen, suppressing the human’s words of worry off her mind with her focus on thinking of a solution. She knows a little about how extreme temperatures can hurt a human, that's the main reason for the pod to be completely sealed in the first place.

Maybe with some adjustments she can make good use of the limb enhancers. “This device has a security technology that works in case of emergency during reports on colonies. It reads the body of a threat and programs the ideal attack on it. Maybe if I reprogram it I can come up with some sort of freezing aspect. I'm not sure this is going to work, but it's the best option we've got.”

If Steven says he understood the explanation he would be lying, but as long as it helps his sister he doesn't bother to care in the slightest. He watches Peridot do her work and that's how a small detail caught his attention. “Peridot, what's that?”

At first, she doesn't know what he's talking about, until she follows his gaze laid on her palm. Discoloured. There's a different shade of green that doesn't belong to her natural colors spreading over her left hand.

Quickly, she draws her right hand next to her, noticing the same pattern starting to form on the tips of her fingers. “Peridot.” Steven calls out her name, an implicit demand for answers, coming from a place of concern.

“It's… damage,” She pauses, then continues. “Unlike Garnets or Quartzes, Peridots aren't very resistant to higher temperatures. Prolonged exposure to sensitive gems like me can cause certain flaws, that's why all of them were supposed to be here. Garnet and Amethyst would've stayed outside and operated the machine to make sure it stayed in its place while Pearl and I controlled the rest from here. Now that they aren't here it's up to me to do this.”

“No! Peridot, if you go, you're gonna hurt yourself even more!” Steven begs, horrified with the possible bad outcome. “We can wait til the Gems come back, the Cluster still hasn't done anything yet.”

“And that's exactly why we need to keep going! It still didn't fully reach stage 2, we need to keep it that way!” Peridot retorts, letting fear turn into anger. It's easier. “Regardless of how she is doing it, Nora is communicating with them and keeping all these gems from taking form. We don't know for how long it might work, we need to do this now!”

A new sign popped up on the floating screen, alerting them something is changing. Peridot brings the screen closer, reading the information where it said the girl's temperature is dropping and her body is cooling off at a much faster speed.

“Is she doing better?” Steven doesn't wait for an actual answer, reaching out a palm on Nora's forehead. He sighs in relief at the much colder touch.

Soon, the empty pod is filled with coughs and questions. None of those are firstly answered. “Nora! Thank goodness you're alright!”

“W-What?” Nora is utterly confused by the bone crushing hug around her and why Steven is so relieved to see her. “Wait, what's going on?”

“You had a high fever and weren't responding to Steven when he tried to wake you up. We were worried about your state.” Peridot explains when words fail Steven.

“I’m so glad you're okay now,” Then, his face bathed in relief and short-lived joy turns into a frown wrinkling in concern. “Nora, I'm sorry, but you can't keep doing this. I know you're helping the Cluster, but this is hurting you and it gotta stop,” Steven turns to the gem. “C'mon Peridot, we need to get her back home.”

It takes a moment for Steven's words to register and once it does, they make Nora very unhappy. “What!? No!”

“Nora, you were burning up and if Peridot didn't come up with a plan you wouldn't have woken up! You can't stay here, it's too dangerous. You're going home.” Steven states firmly, not afraid to use his Big Brother voice.

Nora turns serious, backing away from her brother, fighting against the light dizziness. “No, I'm not! I'm going to stay and help with the Cluster. You can't stop me or tell me what to do, you're not dad!”

“But I'm your brother, your big brother, and it's my job to keep you safe!” Steven raises his voice, eyes glistening with unleashed tears. “I'm not going to let you risk your life! Peridot, get us back to the barn now!”

“No!”

“Don't listen to her!”

“Don't listen to him!”

Witnessing two people you're close to fight with each other is a tough spot no one wants to be. It's the first time Peridot is put in that place of awkwardness and she already hates it, especially when both of them have valid reasons, making it harder to pick one side.

Peridot, at some level, cares about Nora and she wouldn't be happy if any real harm occurred to her. Meanwhile, they have bigger issues at the moment that literally risks the future of an entire planet.

“Peridot please, we can't just go back, we need to stop the Cluster!” Nora plays her last card, forcing the third person into their discussion. Now she has to pick a side.

Both siblings look at the technician, waiting for her decision. Peridot is in a tough spot, having to choose which twin to support;

“I don't wanna say this but she's right, Steven.” She states, grimacing, as if disgusted by her own words. “It took hours for us to reach the Earth's mantle and we already started the first step of our plan. Besides, the Cluster is near stage 2. If we don't deter it now, it's going to cause more destruction-”

“I DON'T CARE!” Steven snaps, startling both gem and human. “I don't care about the Cluster o-or the Earth. I'm not risking my sister's life!” The tears threatening to fall finally roll freely and Steven can't keep the sobs stuck on his chest. “This is not fair! I shouldn't have to choose!”

It's an unfair, cruel weight to be put on a fourteen year old. Steven wouldn't do it, there's no right answer or a single one at all;

It's Nora who we're talking about. His baby sister, his twin, half of him. Steven wouldn't ever choose anything else over his own family, and if he let her do something risky to her life and ended badly there's no way he'd ever forgive himself.

“Steven, I know you're worried, but I need to do this. We don't have a choice,” Nora holds him by the shoulder. He refuses to turn around. “Hey, c'mon. Look at me. Nothing bad is gonna happen to me. If the fever spikes up again you'll wake me and I'll be back just fine.”

“Promise?” His chest hitch with residual sobs while he wipes his face. “P-Promise you're gonna come back?”

“Of course, Steven.” Nora gives a tight smile, not liking the way her brother is acting as if she might die. “I plan to annoy you a lot more in the future, don't worry.”

“If you two are finished with the sentimental approach, I need to go back to work.” Peridot grasped their attention. Nora and Steven exchange looks and upon her brother's acceptance, she makes an ‘okay gesture’ at the gem.

When Peridot leaves again, Nora starts her arrangements to return to her duty. “Sis, are you really sure about this?” She is asked. “I'll be fine, promise.”

Steven has no choice but to believe it. Both redo the same procedure and wait for Nora to fall asleep and keep the Cluster calm and stable.

3:32pm

From the window, Steven watches Peridot doing her work, completely focused. Often, she would glance at the pod and find the boy leaning against the glass with a thoughtful look, morphing into a tiny friendly smile whenever their gaze met.

This time, he waves at the gem before returning to his seat and checking on his sister. Steven sits down and just when he's about to verify her temperature his eyes catch droplets of sweat on her neck.

“Oh no, not again!” He moves the disheveled fringe out of the way and when his hand makes contact the twin has the concerning confirmation. “Peridot, it's happening again!”

“Did the fever return? Are there any other symptoms?”

“Yes!” Steven yells. “A-And she's breathing slower! What's wrong with my sister!? What am I supposed to do!?”

Peridot looks at the screen, reading the 56% with a pang in her chest. They're still halfway in the process and the fact Nora's unknown condition has returned, points to the fact her previous efforts weren't much effective. “Steven, what about your healing powers!?”

Throughout all the panic, he literally forgot about this crucial power. “Oh my gosh, you're right!” Steven readjust Nora on his hold, placing her on his lap while the upper body is supported by his right arm. "Shhh, i-it's okay, it's okay. You'll be fine, I'll heal you. I'm going to fix this.”

Hope still bright on his chest, he places a kiss on her forehead, not minding getting tears on her face. "C'mon, c'mon!" Impatience stuck into him, waiting for it to heal his sister the fastest it could. It worked on Connie, he healed Connie, he healed his dad, and even healed some of Nora’s minor injury not too long ago, so this should work again right?

Right?

"It isn't working," Steven whispered to himself, after what seemed the longest seconds in his life. "I-It isn't working! IT ISN'T WORKING! WHY IT ISN'T WORKING!?" Panic started to flourish his body, his heart nearly skipping a beat, lungs working double as he started hyperventilating.

Instead of regaining some color, Nora's body remains pale, still unresponsive. Her chocolate eyes so full of life that welcomed Steven with such care and love were still closed behind her eyelids.

“No! No, no, no, no! Please..." His voice was barely audible. “S-She’s supposed to be better, healed, but it- I don't- She can't-” Steven can barely put out a coherent sentence. “Y-You promised you'd come back.”

Peridot readjusts the communicator and stares at her hand; The stain has spread over her entire left arm nearly reaching the shoulder. Her other arm wasn't in better condition with her hand completely dark with lighter spots.

There's no chance for her. If she stays down here, there's no viable way for her to get out of this one alive. But as for Nora, if she gets treated in time by the right person she will live, grow, and be better.

Peridot is already tainted and it's just a matter of time to get worse. It's not worth the effort. But it doesn't mean the thought of dying isn't scary. “Steven,” She doesn't want this. She wants to live, explore the Earth and its mysteries, know herself a little more. “Go back to the barn.”

Silence. “What!?”

“I will send you both back to the barn where you can find the right assistance for Nora,” Peridot stops for a moment, biting her lips to prevent a chain of painful grunts. “And I will stay to finish this.”

Steven's heart sinks at those words. “No! No, Peridot. Please, don't do this to me! I can't lose you both!” This has to be a nightmare , this can't be real. He can't lose his sister and his friend, he won't let that happen. “If you do this… I-I’ll go there to bring you back!”

“Steven, don't make this even more-"

CRACK!

Peridot goes still, any sound out of surprise being swallowed by fear. The screen displays changing numbers, but her mind refuses to focus on that. She leads her right palm to her forehead, and when the tip of her fingers touches it she knows it.

A crack. Her gem cracked.

“Peridot!? What was that!?”

The lines are thin and seem small at first, but Peridot can't be fooled. The change of colors was the first sign and now her gem is cracked, she needs to leave immediately or else this will be the end of her journey.

“Peridot!”

“You-” A nasty sound that resembles a cough erupts from Peridot's throat. A dull pain throbs inside her chest, causing her legs to tremble a little, losing balance.

Crawling towards the window, Steven can spot the gem falling to her knees, grasping the pointed rocks from the effort to hold herself, scraping her hands in the process. He slowly stands up with Nora on his arms and places her on the seat. “Stay right here, okay? Big brother just needs to do something first.”

With a heavy heart, Steven leaves his sister behind and walks away towards the second compartment. He stares at the sealed door, remembering Peridot's words reinforcing the deadly aspects of risks.

“Steven!” A muffled begging reaches through the door, but falls deaf on his ears. He knows it's her trying to stop him, but if she won't care about her well-being first, then he will.

He closes his eyes and focuses on his gem powers, succeeding on creating a bubble around himself, hoping it would be enough protection outside. Before he gets the change to reach the handle, the door opens on his own, revealing Peridot in a terrible state.

The gem only has time to close the door for the sake of her friend just seconds away from collapsing on the floor. The bubble pops. Steven is soon carrying her glitching frame, frowning at the inhuman sounds coming past her lips.

Please, please, please work this time! Steven licks his hand and places it on the cracked gemstone. Nothing happens. The boy feels his heart drop, ready to go into full desperation mode when the expected happens;

The unwelcoming lines gradually disappear and the smooth surface returns on the gem, swapped foot and arm are back to their normal places, and Peridot soon finds her voice again. She is about to thank her friend when Steven speaks first. “Don't ever scare me like that again!”

Peridot goes stiff while his arms circle around her, bursting her little bubble of personal space. This time she doesn't mind. She doesn't know what to say at that moment — she never had a good way with words anyway — Instead, she slowly returns the gesture while Steven cries tears of relief.

“You’re my friend, Peridot. I wouldn't ever leave you behind, no matter what.” When the hug is undone and she has the chance to look at Steven's eyes, she feels the truth in his words. It's baffling and somewhat good to hold this level of importance to someone. Without status or ego, but true ties.

“We need to observe Nora and make sure her state doesn't worsen.” Peridot changes subject, growing a little too self conscious. Steven follows her to the seat, but doesn't return to his spot next to Nora.

“No, you stay with her. I'm going to finish the plan,” Steven holds up his hands. “I know, I know it's dangerous, but I have my bubble that can protect me from the heat. I'll be fine,” When Peridots stays far from convinced, Steven uses a more logical excuse. “I understand you were being careful, but this is not working. We need to get you both out of here the fastest we can. The Gems can deal with the Cluster later now that it's protected.”

“Mostly protected,” The correction slipped out before she could stop it. “I wish I could deter you from making this decision, but you're right. I'm in no condition to go back and thanks to Nora the Cluster appears to be no longer an imminent threat for now.”

Steven nods, glad that she understands. He walks over to Nora laying still on the seat. “I'll come back for you. I promise everything will be okay.” He plants a kiss on her forehead as goodbye and follows his trajectory to the outside. 

The warmth emerging from his gem warned him of the pink bubble forming within seconds. I hope it's enough. Steven grabs the fallen limb enhancers and takes a full deep breath, mentally encouraging himself to continue with his mission.

7:17pm

After long hours of waiting, the drill finally reaches the Earth's crust and the trio is back to the barn. Climbing out of its hole with its mechanical legs, Peridot doesn't mind letting the machinery basically collapse on the ground instead of putting it on the same spot as before.

When the window opens, apart from the dark sky and the blowing wind against them, the other sight in front of them is of the older Universe sitting on an improvised wooden bench.

“Steven!” Greg shoves his phone inside his pocket and runs to greet his son tumbling out of the cockpit. “I was worried sick! I tried to talk to the Gems but I couldn't find them! Then I came here and saw the pod was gone-” Words die on his lips at the sight of his unconscious daughter. “WHAT HAPPENED TO YOUR SISTER!?”

“I don't know, dad! We need to take her to the hospital, I'll explain everything on the way!” Steven says, part of him worried his dad might blame him for Nora's condition. Once he lets Greg take her from his arms, he turns to the gem. “Peridot-”

“Go!” She reassures him. “Don’t worry about me, I'll be fine.”

Steven doesn't wait up and both males rush towards the van. Once the vehicle is far enough to be seen or heard, Peridot’s brave facade crumbles. She looks at her arms, staring at the new discoloured patterns over both limbs, wishing it's pure stress hallucination and that Steven did heal all of it back at the pod.

But it doesn't go. No matter the times she blinks, how hard she scratches it or how loud she shouts at it to be gone, it's still there. Now it's part of her.

Wilmingmore CareWave Hospital

Priyanka knew the moment one of those fellow nurses said ‘the Q word’, her shift was about to be turned upside down. She didn't expect that through the flood of patients she'd find a familiar face.

The doctor was currently on her break when her phone rang. She was about to call whoever called ‘lucky’ when surprise took her senses upon the ‘Mr. Universe' name popping up on the screen. A bright warning that something was wrong.

Priyanka has been waiting outside of the building and once the van came to view she immediately alerted her team to prepare the protocol and examination;

No airway obstruction, no respiratory distress, and the circulatory system is fine. Although, the patient is experiencing high fever and a dangerously slow heartbeat.

That makes no sense. If she has a fever, her heart rate should be high, not the other way around. Besides, Bradycardia indicates reduced blood flow and oxygen deprivation and yet none of those symptoms were detected through our examinations. The information simply doesn't match.

This makes me think if we're dealing with a Gem-related condition. From what Steven told me in the call, they were working on something about it and apparently Nora was helping with her own powers. I couldn't grasp much from it, but I can't blame him for being nervous. Although, I need to know more about this situation to be sure.

I will ask my team to run a few more tests and while Nora is currently stable, I worry that if we don't improve her state it might raise the possibility of sequelae.

Priyanka stares at the cardboard one more time, before preparing herself to face a nearly collapsing father waiting in the corridor. When she comes to view, Greg is quick to rise from his seat. “How is she!? Is she okay? When can I-”

“Greg, I need you to listen carefully,” Priyanka stop his frantic chain of questions. She gently guides him back to his seat next to his son, before proceeding. “Your daughter is currently stable, which means her conditions haven't worsened.”

“That's good, isn't it!?”

“On one hand, yes. But it also means there's no signs of improvement and that's why I need to talk to you, Steven,” She approaches the anxious boy tugging at his own shirt. “I need to know all the details of what happened before she reached this state. Gem related or not, I need to know exactly what was going on in order to treat her.

Steven focuses on soothing his own burning nerves, remembering the breathing techniques his therapist taught him. Breathing deeply in for three seconds, holding his breath for three seconds, and exhaling for three seconds.

“There's this thing called Cluster, a geo-weapon inside the Earth's core that when it emerges it can destroy the planet. For the past month, me and the Gems we're building a machine to go down there and stop it from taking form,” Priyanka nods. “Yesterday Nora had a few weird dreams, but we found out they weren't dreams, she was actually communicating to other gems who were somewhere else."

“When we were down there to take care of the Cluster she started to freak out, like screaming and saying things. She passed out and when she woke up she said she was talking to the Cluster.”

“Through her mind? Like some sort of telepathy?”

Steven nods. “Nora said she wanted to do it again. Peridot and I got worried, but she insisted and did it anyway, and that's when things got worse,” His tone abruptly changed to a faster, shaky one. “She started to sweat like crazy a-and she had a very high fever. I tried waking her up, but she wouldn't. I even tried to heal her, but my powers didn't work!”

That specific information caught Priyanka’s attention. Why wouldn't Steven be able to heal Nora? As far as she knows, their mother owned ‘magic properties’ that could heal absolutely anything and Steven did inherit this ability.

“Steven, have you healed her before?”

“Uh, yeah. Once when-” Steven looks over his dad, uncomfortable with the idea of exposing a secret he promised to his sister. “When we were on that green ship she hurt her eye and I fixed it. Also, a few days ago she hurt her hand, it bled a little, but I healed it and she got all better.”

“Can you tell me what else you've fixed ever since you discovered this ability?” Priyanka prompted, ignoring Greg's look of hurt at being lied to, but thankful he chose to let it be dealt later.

“Um, I fixed Lapis’ gem, my dad's broken leg, Connie's eyesight and a crack on a Geode. That's all I remember.”

Interesting. Steven's healing capacities extend to injuries on human flesh and inanimate objects like a Geode and gemstones. Taking that into consideration, I don't think there's a problem with his abilities, but I'm highly suspicious of one factor.

“I might have an idea of why your healing powers didn't work,” The doctor remains a stoic expression when father and son’s faces brighten up. “I think the cause for Nora's condition is the gem side of her body.”

“How so?”

“From the information I gathered, Nora has been using her abilities for two days in a row without any significant pause, where each time she pushed herself even more, and that itself indicates a clear overusing of it,” Priyanka starts her explanation. “Sometimes, when the human body system is overwhelmed, either due to a physical reason like exhaustion or an emotional trigger as stress, it can shut down as a defense mechanism. That's why I couldn't detect any other symptoms, because it wasn't caused by the organic side of her body.”

“But what does that mean for my daughter?” 

“It means that her condition might not be critical. I'm leaning to believe she is in a state of deep sleep in which she'll eventually wake up once her body is given enough rest,” The clinical tone is swapped by a softer one. “I'm sorry I can't give you a concrete answer, but we're doing our best to help her.”

Steven watches how his dad receives the news. He doesn't look good, in fact, it seems like he's about to cry. His phone vibrates inside his pocket and the picture of Vidalia is seen on the screen. “It's Auntie Vidalia, I'm gonna… Excuse me.”

Greg observes his son walk away in the corridor where he can't see. Something inside him breaks and he no longer can keep the misery inside his chest from all the stress consuming him.

Within seconds, a hand is placed on his back and some tissues are presented to him. “Thank you,” is what he meant to say, but he's not sure if Priyanka understood over his sobs and stuttering. When his breathing is a little more controlled, Greg finds more words he wants to say.

“I was so afraid something like that could happen. When I let Steven and Nora live with the Gems, I thought I was doing the right thing, you know? They had the right to live with their other family and they could help them with gem stuff more than I could. But when the missions became more frequent and they started to take the kids with them… I told myself the Gems would take good care of them, but now I'm not even sure if I did the right thing and it kills me to feel so clueless.”

It's true that some of his and the Gems’ choices in parenting sounded at least questionable in her eyes. However, she can't deny that he does care for his children and does his best regarding their safety. “Greg, I will tell you this as a parent myself,” She waits until his attention is directed at her. “When we raise a child, all of our choices are based on what we think it's good for them. We make decisions thinking it'll lead to the best outcomes, but it doesn't mean that our point of view it's always right.”

Greg listens without interrupting.

“I thought I was doing the right thing for my daughter, then one day I discovered she has been sneaking out, fighting monsters and even had her vision healed, all of these right under my nose. She'd rather face some kind of danger than tell me the truth.”

The memory still hurts. Ever since motherhood took place in her life, Priyanka had been focused on keeping Connie from the way of anything that could possibly hurt her in any way. Learning that she became one of them was the hardest truth she had to face.

“Wallowing won't solve what's been done. I can't change past mistakes, but I can learn from them and do better onwards. Nora is your daughter, she needs you to be there for her,” She says. “And don't be too hard on yourself. I can imagine it's not easy to deal with children whose heritage is half human and half gem. Your situation it's not exactly conventional.”

“You could say that,” Greg replies, tiredly. They stay quiet for a moment, then he speaks again. “Thank you for that and for helping my daughter. I just can't thank you enough for what you've done for my kids.”

“I’m here for my patients,” It's Priyanka’s final answer, holding some kind of fondness. “I will let you have your moment and once I have other news I'll inform you right away.”

August 22nd, 2015

Time is a tricky thing.

One second Nora was in her mental state maintaining a conversation with the Cluster and then, in a blink of an eye, she finds herself alone in a hospital bed. The same circumstances that passed so quickly to her, at the same time felt like an eternity to Greg and Steven.

Nora studies the room around her, not grasping too much detail when her head feels heavy. Moving one of her arms feels impossible, too wobbly and weak to do so.

Thankfully, she doesn't stay on her own for too long. Dr. Maheswaran comes in to check on her, stunned by the conscious little girl. “Nora, you're awake.” Her attempt at concealing her surprise probably isn't one of her best performances.

Nora makes an uncomfortable grunt, struggling to move her body. Priyanka leaves her cardboard on a nearby table and carefully supports her weight to help her sit up. “What happened? I don't remember much.”

“Steven told me you were using your abilities to help on a gem mission when you fell unconscious. Your father and he brought you here because you weren't responding to any stimulus and you suffered from a very high fever and Bradycardia, which is basically a slow heartbeat.”

Steven. Yeah, I was with him and Peridot on that pod. We were trying to stop “The Cluster! I- Where's Steven and Peridot!? I need to go back! I need to help!” A dormant strength is found and quickly used to recharge her body, flailing in all sorts of directions to get her out of the bed.

However, Priyanka won't let that happen. “Nora! Please, listen. Your brother and his friend took care of that. It's done, we're safe,” She manages to grab both of her patient's wrists, watching as Nora calms down hearing the news. “This Cluster thing you mentioned, it was already taken care of. Steven assured me you don't have to worry about it anymore.”

“I don't?” Nora lowers her fists. “But does that mean- How long I was out?”

“A day,” The doctor answers. “A day and a half, to be exact.”

Almost two days unconscious. “Mhmm.”

Priyanka returns to grab her clipboard and pen. “How are you feeling? Any pain? Discomfort?” 

“My head feels heavy, like I slept for too long, but I still feel exhausted and really, really weak.” Calmer, Nora leans against the bed, relieving her back and neck from the pressure. “Can I see Steven and my dad?”

Priyanka stops for a second. I intended to check on her reflexes to make sure there is no harm on her neurological system, but since she's been maintaining a coherent conversation with me and showed no signs of mobility issues I think it's fine to let her see her family. Maybe that way I can get her to be less nervous and more cooperative on the exams. “Of course.”

Once the physician leaves and closes the door, Nora breathes in relief. Talking to her dad will definitely make things easier and she is really looking for an explanation to how Steven and Peridot dealt with the Cluster, to take that worry off of her shoulders.

While Greg or Steven shows up, Nora stays still on the bed with her eyes closed. It's hard not to give in to sleepiness, but when a subtle, almost unnoticeable sound hits her hearing range, her body reacts.

A whisper.

Her eyes pop wide, certain that someone entered the room without her noticing, but there's no one. Weird. The whispering doesn't stop, instead, it sounds like more voices join it.

She brushes a hand over her ear, hoping it's just her imagination playing tricks, but it doesn't go away. Those voices aren't from the outside, it feels like they're coming from inside her mind.

Just like the Cluster.

“Oh no.”