Danny Starslayer (A Steven Universe Story)

Who Am I?

The artificial sun shined bright in the sky dome, glowing down on the residents of the ship. Having gone from a human zoo to a space cruise over twenty years ago, the ship now piloted the cosmos, showing off gorgeous interstellar sights from the safety of the beautiful paradise within the ship. Open to humans, gems, and any other lifeforms, the ship made all its inhabitants constantly happy.

And yet, in a shadowy part of the ship's main habitat, there was one human who wanted to keep to himself: D-7.

The boy had mid-tone skin and dark hair down to his waist. His face was kind and friendly, like the rest of the humans born on the ship, but also looked scared and on-edge in a way the others didn't. He was dressed in the tribe's usual garments of white loincloths and blue vests, but he had the edition of a long bandanna that draped down his chest, hiding it completely.

D-7 never seemed to fit in well with the rest of the humans in the ship. He tried doing the same things they did, and would hang out with them as much as he could, but he struggled to act as carefree as the others. For the longest time, D-7 had no idea why.

From his little isolated spot, he could see the humans and gems wading around in the pool. Most of the humans, or zoomans as they often called themselves, had never left the ship. They had been born and raised on the ship, and had no real desire to leave, even if they had the option to. D-7 was in a similar mindset; he could leave the ship, but he was afraid of what would happen if he did, and if he'd even survive.

That morning was especially tough on him. It was his birthday, and he only remembered that when the little voice reminded him. He would turn 16 years old today. That meant that it would be 16 years since his mother...

He wasn't looking for any reminders that today was his birthday, since so much awful stuff had happened when he was born. He definitely wasn't expecting someone to come over to him and wish him a happy birthday.

"Hey, dude," A voice came from behind him. He looked around and saw an Amethyst soldier standing behind him, holding what looked to be a piece of cake. "Heard it was your birthday today."

D-7 recognized the Amethyst. She was one of the ones that lived on the ship, and frequently hung out with the zoomans. If he had ever heard her cut name, he couldn't remember it now. She was dressed in simple Earth-style clothes, signifying she had been poofed sometime after Era Three began. Her gem was placed on her left palm, her holding the cake with her right. She was a little bit shorter than other Amethysts, but not by much, just a foot taller than D-7. However, the most bizarre thing about her was why or how she knew it was his birthday.

"Thank you," D-7 muttered, "but I do not care for the celebrations."

"C'mon, dude, it's your birthday!" Amethyst insisted, sitting down next to D-7. "Why are you spending it alone over here?"

"I like it here," D-7 explained. It's quiet. Nobody can hear you, and you can't hear anybody." After a beat of silence, D-7 sighed heavily. "Thank you, Amethyst. This is very nice of you. I just do not have many fond memories of my birthdays."

"Right... cause of your mom, huh?" Amethyst asked.

The topic made D-7 nervous, reflexively clutching his chest. "It is a difficult thing to talk about, yes."

"Well, if you ever do want to talk about her—"

"I do not," D-7 stated. Then, seeing as how me might have upset the amethyst, he put on his most convincing smile and said, "But I appreciate the concern." With that, he walked away from her, adjusting his scarf and leaving the cake uneaten.

"D-7, what brings you here?" Asked K-4, another human on the ship. She had similarly long hair and a cheerful, smiling face, although she smiled a lot more than D-7 did most days.