Steven's P.O.V
Ruby just proposed to Sapphire and she, with a blushing blue face, happily accepted. I was so happy, as was Amethyst and Pearl, to see that the two halves of Garnet were getting along together again. Believe me, it's hard work trying to keep them close when problems come up. But, since their as close as family gets nowadays, I do what I can and what I must to hold them together. In fact, speaking of holding them together, I got big plans scheduled for today. I'm currently sitting in the living room with the coffee table stacked with different arts and crafts supplies. It is, but not limited to, some colored construction paper, some glitter, markers, stickers, and a paper folder. The purpose behind these is to make invitation cards for Ruby and Sapphire's wedding. Since I suggested the idea in the first place, the engaged couple felt it right that I should organize and manage their wedding.
I smile and look at all the creative tools laid out in front of me. I have so many ideas. Then a thought comes to my mind. What are Ruby and Sapphire's personal preferences? I mean, it's their wedding and their cards I'm gonna be making, so they should at least have a say in it. I stand up and look around the Temple, looking for the red and blue gems.
"Ruby! Sapphire! I need to talk to you about something" I call out playfully, a grin on my face.
I wait and hear no reply, calling out again before the smile drops from my face. Hmm, maybe they're outside enjoying the Sun together. I push down my worry and bring that smile back, all the while heading to the front door and stepping outside onto the porch. Leaning on the railing, I look out at the beach area surrounding the Temple, but yet still find no temperamental red gem and a calm and collected blue gem. Sighing, I turn around and rest my back against the wooden beam. So much has changed since I was little. I've come so far, as did everyone, and have accomplished so much. From the little kid who could barely summon his shield to a Crystal Gem that fights against Homeworld Gems.
But, there's some part of me deep down that can't help but feel some resentment towards the Gems. I know it may seem heartless and cruel to sound like that, but the truth, facts, and events all overrule it. If you ask me, I think Garnet and Pearl work more to drive this team apart rather than keep it together. The secrets they keep and the lies they spread, it's corrupt and makes them just bad people in general. If Garnet had told me about the Palanquin instead of keeping the information from me, maybe my dad wouldn't have been kidnapped and taken to the Human Zoo. And it's not just that too. Garnet does tell that she loves me and calls me her 'Cutie Pie', but I can't help but feel falseness and emptiness behind those words. It's no better when she's split up either. Even though Pink was my mother and her big secret reveal was truly horrifying to me, Ruby and Sapphire acted like they were the most effected, like betrayed children and if Rose was their mother and not mine. Those two completely ignored my feelings on the matter, only caring about themselves and how it affected their relationship. I did all that I could to bring them back to each other after the truth caused a break up and they just acted like everything was fine and that I wasn't any help at all.
I also feel like Pearl's worse than Garnet. I pleaded with her, begged for her to tell me what my mom was like and all she just kept beating around the bush. It's especially bad that Pearl chose to keep Mom's identity hidden from me because, at the end of the day, I'm her son and I deserve to know more than anyone. The worst part is that time so long ago when she berated me and lectured me that I should be more like Rose. But, after what I've been told about Rose Quartz and Pink Diamond, I told myself that I shouldn't aspire to be like her. It's bad enough that she roped Garnet into that line of pressuring, but when I asked Pearl to train Connie, it all starting going downhill. Ever since her first day of training, my Jam Bud's become more and more like Pearl to the point where she's putting these things in her head that could very well change her for the worse. It also hurts because Pearl doesn't even want to train me as much anymore, leaving that to either Garnet or Amethyst. Luckily, Amethyst comes through for me at the end of the day
She's one of the only people, aside from Peridot, who help me feel good about myself. And it boils down to the fact that those two like me for who am and not for who I could be. They also understand the weight of the revelation on my shoulders and how it bears more relevance to me than Ruby and Sapphire. I truly love Amethyst and Peridot and really do appreciate all that they do for me, especially since the truth was revealed years ago and now I'm 19 and still having to deal with it. I really don't like thinking these things about the three people closest to me, but I can't just push those negative thoughts to a corner of my mind and expect them to fade. It's just the truth and trying to deny the obviousness of it is just pointless.
"Steven? Steven!" A voice jars me from my thoughts.
I jump slightly and turn my head to see Connie standing on the porch a short distance away, wearing her training outfit with my Mom's sword slung across her back. She smiles warmly at me, but I don't return the gesture, recent angry thoughts still present in my mind that I'd rather not take out on her.
"Here more training with Pearl, I assume?" I ask.
Connie comes over and leans on the railing next to me as I turn to look back out at the ocean near the horizon.
"Oh, yes, Steven. It's so exciting! I mean, I'm making great progress and getting better every time. Pearl says that I might even be as great as your mother one day" The girl rambles excitedly.
I have to keep myself from roll my eyes her, looking away so she can't see my annoyed state. Even after I told Connie my mother was a lying, traitorous murderer, my Jam Bud still wants to be like her so she can 'do it for me'. But, at this point, I don't feel like I want her as my knight if Rose's standards and qualities are what she's going to go by and choose to emulate. I don't think she's an inherently bad girl, it's just Pearl, and maybe even Garnet, manipulating her.
"I'm getting really close to honing my emotions too" Connie continues to talk, "Pearl said that soon I should be able to expertly fuse with you. Just imagine it, Steven! We could be Stevonnie nonstop and conquer any foe that comes our way!"
"Yeah, yeah, sure" I shrug, not thinking too much of it.
Connie sees this and leans closer to try and look me in the eye.
"Is something the matter, Steven?" She asks.
I'm about to reply to her, but then the front door opens and two sets of footsteps come bounding in my direction. I get up and turn around from my leaning position, seeing none other than the happy couple themselves standing in the door frame.
"Come on inside, you two. Pearl said that she had something urgent to tell us" Ruby says, Sapphire just blushing while gazing at her future wife.
Connie's expression hardens immediately, her nodding and going right on ahead of me through the front door. I exhale through my nose and head right in myself, ignoring the smiles that Ruby and Sapphire give me as I pass by. Once we're all inside, Connie goes right up to Pearl, who's standing smack dab in the middle of the Warp Pad.
"Good, everyone's here. Now, we have an important mission ahead of us. A couple of gem mutants have wandered into the strawberry fields and we have to clear them out. We can't allow Rose's special place to be contaminated by their corrupted presence. Connie, are you all set?" Pearl briefs, looking down at Connie when finished.
"Yes, ma'am" Connie replies, nodding confidently and stepping onto the Warp Pad besides Pearl.
Ruby and Sapphire step up too, surprising me because I'd thought that without Garnet, those two would never go into hostile territories. Looks like I'm wrong about that, though. Pearl then looks at me expectantly.
"Come on, Steven. We're waiting on you" Pearl says calmly.
"I don't think I want to go, Pearl. I mean, you promised that I could work on these wedding invitations three days ago. But every day since then has been filled up with other missions, so I haven't gotten the time I wanted" I explain.
"You'll get your time, Steven. Just not right now. Come on, we need you" Pearl frowns.
"Yeah, come on, Biscuit! We got gem monsters to fight!" Connie exclaims with enthusiasm.
I sigh, shake my head, and walk up onto the Warp Pad, not looking at anyone. It's funny though that Connie thinks that fighting gem mutants are fun, even though that's only gem-related business. I hold the anger steady inside and stand cross armed as Pearl activates the Warp Pad. We're all drifted away swiftly and touch back down on the strawberry field Warp Pad mere seconds later. The gem mutants are really easy to spot, mainly because they're so big and make a lot of noise. But, from the looks of it, the creatures don't appear to be hostile, all three of them just wandering around aimlessly. That doesn't stop Pearl, Ruby, and Connie from summoning their weapons and looking ready to charge the docile beasts. I huff at their eagerness for violence and summon my shield while walking out ahead of them.
"Steven, get back here! You don't know what you're doing!" Pearl calls after me, surprise evident in her tone.
"I know what I'm doing, Pearl! Just please stay out of my way" I call back at her.
I run right up to the first gem mutant. I quickly deliver a roundhouse punch, followed by a backhanded blow with my shield. The beast staggers back a bit, but I then jump up, summon my shield in the other hand, and bring it down on the beast yet again. The gem mutant shivers and as I go to attack again, it grabs me with one of it's many hands, throwing me over it like a sack of garbage. I collide hard with the ground and roll over onto my stomach groaning in pain. I growl and moan, trying to get back on my feet. The pain is still to great, though, and I fall back down, and aching feeling pounding in my head. The sounds of weapons clashing are heard a short distance away and I look up to see Ruby, Pearl, and Connie battling it out against the same gem mutant that wiped the floor with me. As I lay there in pain, I feeling my head pulsing and begin to hear the faint whispers of some voices. I concentrate and try to make out what they're saying, wondering if it's not just that I hit my head too hard. The voices become clearer and I can hear them properly.
"Why did Steven get defeated so easily? I swear, Connie is much better than him. I'm sure if Rose saw Steven fail like he did, she'd adopt Connie as her own daughter and get rid of Steven..."
"Steven, why didn't you ask to fuse? We both know that Stevonnie is the best fusion. We could've knocked that abomination down easily..."
I grit my teeth, knowing full well who those voices belonged to. Connie and Pearl fight furiously while Ruby delivers a few punches here and there, showing each of them off to Sapphire who blushes every time Ruby blows a kiss at her after a punch. Growling in pain, I lift myself up and stagger around the left side of the battle. The Gems and Connie are too wrapped up in the fight to notice me slinking around them, which angers me more that they didn't bother to see if I was injured. I work my way past Sapphire, who's still blushing at Ruby's flirting, and get to the Warp Pad, glaring once more at the same people who dare to claim that they love me. Like hell they do, for if it was true then they've would've shown that they cared about me. I clench my fists in anger and activate the Warp Pad, my mind set on going back to the Temple to do what I originally wanted today. As I float through the energy stream, though, one thought circles in my head like an infinite loop of hatred.
I can't trust them anymore.
I quickly arrive back at the Temple and walk over to the living room table. The supplies remain untouched from where I left them, making me partially better knowing that nobody tried to put them away. With a huff and some crossed arms on my behalf, I plop down right where I sat before. I don't move to work on the cards yet because I need to get my emotions thought through before starting. You see, I'm not a boy that usually likes to fester and stir on his problems, but after years of passively dealing with this, I've become a lot more jaded against the Crystal Gem leadership. As much as I wish to let it go and be happy again, I'd just be fooling myself and making a stupid mistake. The fact of the matter is that Pearl, Ruby, and Sapphire love mother than they do me and it's even worse when Connie, who was once the only human I could talk to about my problems, gets roped into this Gem business by Pearl and starts believing in the misguided ideals of Rose Quartz merely because Pearl's spoon-feeding her the information. So when the Gems eventually demand to know why I left, because I know they will, I'll tell them exactly that or something along those lines.
Sighing and gazing over at the art supplies again, I slowly grab the scissors and a reasonable stack of construction paper. Then, I start making some horizontal and vertical trims along the edges to cut out a smaller card shape. As I'm doing this, I continue to release some of my more bottled up thoughts and emotions.
"Ugh! Why did this have to happen?!" I think to myself, snipping off paper shards with forceful scissor strokes, "Rose didn't even tell my dad the truth of who she really was. If anything, all of this with me and the Gems is on her because she set a poor example for them, both as a leader and a parent!"
Tossing the completed cutout to the side, I pick up the next piece of paper, my arms starting to shake with the anger that's rising from my stomach. As I trim this card, my scissor strokes are more hard, blunt, and rage-driven. I feel myself frowning and gritting my teeth too, my anger really getting apparent. I then hear the sound of the Warp Pad activating and that's when I know that they've returned. The sound of approaching footsteps and an insistent foot tapping is certainly a give away, so I don't bother to turn around because I know what I'll see. So I just continue on with my work.
"Steven Quartz Universe! What do have to say for yourself!" A shrill but uptight voice yells at me.
I immediately know it's Pearl because only birds can squawk that much when talking.
"I don't quite know what you mean, Pearl" I reply.
The footsteps sound again and this time, four sets, one blue, one red, one brown, and one white come into my peripheral vision. They must have moved in front of me to try and get me to talk face to face with them.
"You know fully well what I'm talking about! Leaving us to deal with those monstrosities after I specifically said I wanted you along! You acted very disrespectfully and irresponsible, Steven!" Pearl continues to yell at me.
I still don't look up at her, instead trying to smile while cutting out more cards. Seeing my reaction after Pearl's outburst prompts gasps from Connie, Ruby, and Sapphire.
"She's not wrong, Jam Bud. You were and still are being pretty disrespectful to Pearl and us. Please, just make eye contact with me and we can talk about this. Alright, my biscuit?" Connie says, starting out mean but then transitioning to trying to make me feel guilty.
I scoff and shake my head, keeping my glued to my work as my own small act of rebellion. Great, now Connie's getting on my case too? This is bad. The next thing I hear, though, is Ruby's frustrated sighs.
"Stop being such a kid, Steven! Just listen to Pearl!" Ruby snaps.
I frown deeply and say what needs to be said in order for them to understand.
"Ruby, Pearl is not my mother. She can't tell me what to do, especially since I'm old enough that I don't have to listen to her even if I wanted to" I say, glancing up at the red gem with an annoyed impression.
"I'm beginning to be disappointed in your behavior, Steven. What happened to our sweet little Cutie Pie that never talked back with us and believed in his mother?" Sapphire sighs, shaking her head.
The way she says it makes it sound like they aren't even aware of their own past actions, which I think, in of itself, is quite laughable to be honest.
"Are you even listening to yourselves?" I ask with a raised eyebrow, "After everything you did, you want to play dumb? Well, sorry, but I'm not going to entertain that."
Connie and the Gems all have wide eyes now, looking at me like they can't believe that it's really me talking. And even though I said I wouldn't speak more on it, I still find my inner anger surfacing and causing me to continue talking.
"Connie's been dragged into this mess because of you, Pearl. She's been corrupted into being just like Mom, willing to throw her life away for a useless and unjust cause. And you, Ruby, and Sapphire just lie non-stop that I can't trust in what you say anymore. The cherry on the top is that you three never stop with all the babble about how great Rose was and how I should be just as 'perfect and flawless' as she was, when I shouldn't have to be. I'm my own person, not your leader's replacement" I ramble on.
Connie frowns, but merely stares at the floor, unable to say anything. Sapphire, on the other hand, begins crying whilst clinging onto Ruby, who's steaming with anger. Pearl also looks angry, her hair sticking up all pointy like. I, however, don't want to continue this, so I stand up and start walking towards the Temple's front door.
"Where do you think you're going!?" Pearl yells at me.
I hold the door open slightly and peer back at her, not dropping my passive expression.
"For a walk. It's the right thing to do when you get into an unwanted shouting match. Maybe when I get back, we can be serious about planning this wedding" I say before walking out the door and descending down the steps.
Halfway down, I bump into Amethyst and Peridot.
"Hey, Steven. What's up?" Peridot asks, smiling her cute smile at me.
"Yeah, what's hanging, Stee-Man?" Amethyst also asks.
"Well, I got into a bit of a fight with Ruby, Pearl, and Sapphire. But they started it and only fed the flames of hate, so I'm leaving to cool off and probably talk to my dad about it" I explain, knowing that I can trust these two.
Both girls look peeved. Amethyst is gritting her teeth and gripping her summoned whip like she wants to strangle someone. Peridot is clenching her fists so hard that the metal she's carrying is beginning to bend. Needless to say though, that both members of the Shorty Squad appeared ready to stand by me.
"Those clods are as good as cracked!" Peridot exclaims, prompting a hand on her shoulder from Amethyst.
"I agree, Peridot, but first, let's shoot some hurtful words their way and see how painful it is compared to our weapons" My sister describes, smirking mischievously.
"You're right, Amethyst. Steven, we'll handle them. You go and do what you need to do to cool off. And thanks for trusting us with this. It means a lot, especially to me" Peridot says, pecking my cheek with her lips once she finishes.
I touch the spot where Peri kissed me and blush, embarrassed by the sudden intimate gesture. She and Amethyst then go up the stairs past me, Peridot winking at me as she went by. Soon, I hear the front door open and close and the sounds of more shouting commencing. Believe it or not, though, I'm actually curious as to what they're saying and do my best to listen in.
"You don't support Steven enough! Why else do you think he chooses to talk to me and Amethyst more than you clods!" Peridot exclaims.
"Good grief, Peridot! You are sounding just like Steven right now and the last thing I want my Sapphy and I to deal with before our wedding is another stick in the mud like you!" Ruby snaps back.
"You see, that's the kind BS I was talking about, Ruby. And, you wouldn't even be having a wedding if Steven hadn't proposed it. What you should be feeling is gratitude because my Sugar Cake was willing to dedicate his time into making sure you two could be together even when you weren't Garnet. The least you could do is to give him the thanks and appreciation he deserves from this!" Amethyst argues.
"My Jam Bud's a nice person anyway and since the Gems are on a human world where marriage is a loving gesture, it'd be expected of a couple that wants to be together" Connie comments.
"I swear, Amethyst. Why did these morons even allow a pathetic organic into their inner circle. These defects have less consideration and mannerisms than that false Rose Quartz clod!" Peridot huffs indignantly
"You shut up about my Diamond, you Homeworld parasite! She may have had her difficulties, but her ways were righteous and just. As Crystal Gems, we follow her ways because it is right!" Pearl growls at her.
"Her definition of 'right' included the shattering of millions of Gems, Pearl. My Stee-Man is right about her being a murderer and a liar! You just can't accept it! I swear, I wish I could just go back in time and stop Pink from ever doing her stupid rebellion!!" Amethyst retorts at Pearl.
I widen my eyes at the last thing Amethyst said. For some reason, it just sticks out to me more than anything else that was said. Not sure why, other than it sounds very appealing to me if I could ever make it happen. Shrugging, I trudge the rest of the way down the porch steps and head onto more soft covered ground. I know what I should do next, so without any further hesitation, I start walking towards Beach City. The setting immediately helps me feel better. Everyone is going about their daily routines without a care in the world. It helps me feel more relaxed, like they're not purposefully watching me because of my reputation. Dad's car wash comes into view just as I reach the other end of Beach City. He's out there working too, cleaning Dewey's strange campaign van, you know, the one with his face all over it. Anyways, Dad's just finishing up when I come close, Dewey thanking him and driving away.
"Hey, Dad" I say to get his attention as he turns around and smiles.
"Schtuball!" Dad exclaims, hugging me a second later, "What brings you around the Universe Car Wash?"
I chuckle a bit and wait for him to let go before I speak.
"Well, Dad, I kinda had an argument with the Gems today. Over Mom" I respond plainly.
"Oh, man. Have they still not gotten over her whole 'fake identity' thing?" Dad asks, sounding slightly frustrated.
"Sort of, yeah. But the main deal is that they still insist that I should try to be like her, even though they know fully well what Mom did during the Crystal Gem Rebellion. It's infuriating" I vent.
"I can understand that" Dad says nodding his head, "But it still doesn't make their behavior acceptable, though. Seems to me like you need a little breather from all that, Steven".
"Yeah, I do. I just wanted to stop by and explain it to you in case I or any of the other Crystal Gems came around looking peeved. But, anyway, thanks for listening Dad. I'm gonna bounce and let my mind wander" I explain.
Dad smiles and grips the hose he's carrying.
"You do that, Steven. Glad you're handling this so professionally!" Dad says as I begin to walk away.
When I get to the nearest street corner, I turn around and return the smile.
"It's what I do best!" I tell him.