After a successful and bright day, Steven was now in his bathroom attending to his human body, scrubbing his teeth to a sparkling white. Once Steven finished brushing his teeth, he shoved his head into the sink before jolting back out and drying his face with a red towel that hung from a small lever near the sink. With Steven's exhaustion continuously growing, he quickly took hold of a nearby Q-tip and pressed it against one of his ears, forgetting about the other as he threw the Q-tip away and headed towards the toilet.
After taking a seat on the toilet, steven took the used towel once more as he lifted up his shirt, taking a quick peek at his gem before releasing that it really needed to be cleaned. Steven took the wet towel that he had used before and placed it upon the dirty pink that layed in where his belly button should be. Steven tossed the towel back onto the sink, he then looked down at his now sparkly gem, giving a sly smile and thumbs up to himself before jumping off the toilet and heading for his bed. Wanting to use the rest of his energy so he could get the best sleep possible, he ran towards his bed, jumping into the covers at a quick pace. In only seconds, Steven felt more tired than before as his heart started to decline due to the sudden energy released from his body. Steven took a quick look at his stuffed animals as he leaned upwards, "Goodnight HappyBear, goodnight SadBunny, goodnight playful-kitty, goodnight ominous triangle at the foot of my bed." Steven completely ignored the nuisance of his carelessness as he closed his eyes but was soon brought back to reality when he gained some composure about it. Steven opened his eyes once more to take another look at the 'Ominous Triangle,' but it was no longer there. Guessing that he was just imagining things, Steven closed his eyes once more, "Whatever," Steven probed.
In only a single second, Steven felt a cold hand of metal claw towards his mouth, keeping him from shouting for help as he squirmed around, trying to break free. Steven was then dragged to the warp pad, relentlessly pushing as hard as he could against the now recognized Peridot, managing to get his mouth and a few parts of his body free but only after being warped to the warp-station. Recognizing that screaming for help would be helpless at this point, he started banging against Peridot, "Ah, let me go!" he demanded before being thrown to the ground. Peridot was getting agitated, not only because of his constant struggling but also by the fact that her technology couldn't keep him still because of his strength. Peridot had had enough as she pointed her robotic arm, unknown to Steven, towards the boy before angrily stating aloud, "Enough of this." Steven was encased in a green orb as he was lifted into the air, "What do you want from me?" Steven innocently asked, slamming his hands against the inside of the orb but showed not to be helpful. Peridot moved slightly to the other side of the warp pad that Steven was hovering over before impatiently answering him, "I want to get off this gem forsaken planet!"
Peridot then released Steven from the orb, dropping him onto the warp pad. After landing on the ground, Steven looked up towards Peridot who was now pointing at the warp pad with her fingers that combined into an arrow, "You have to fix this!" she begged, frowning her face. Steven frowned as well as he backed up and rose his hand in confusion, "wait, what?" Peridots feelings slightly declined when she heard Steven say that, "You're my last chance, I've got no flask robonoids, I've got no foot," Peridot stopped for a slight moment as she pointed at her missing foot before continuing. "I've got no response from yellow diamond." Peridot stopped as she quickly breathed through her nose. "I know you fixed Lazuli's gem, whatever you did, you got to do it to the homeworld warp!" Peridot shouted as she rose her hand into the air and formed a green energized ball, "Or else!"
Steven took no more than a second to respond, "O-Okay just give me a second, my mouth gets really dry when I'm scared." Steven rose his hand to his mouth, filling his palm with a large quantity of saliva. Steven then smacked his hand towards the pad and hoped for the best. "Here Goes," Steven said. He was soon let down when his powers didn't work their magic, but it was no surprise to Steven that it wouldn't work in the first place. There was an awkward silence as both he and Peridot looked around, understanding that nothing would happen.
"What was that?" Peridot asked as she extended her fingers towards Steven in a non-harmful way. Peridot then started sounding more desperate as she continued, "It didn't do anything!"
Steven lightened his gaze on Peridot as he embarrassingly avoided eye contact, "It... doesn't always work," Steven said.
"No... No-no-no-no-no! It has to work!" Peridot shouted at Steven, accepting her inevitable death that would soon come in the future.
Steven, seeing the fear and sadness in Peridots stature, replied, "I'm really sorry."
Peridot brought her hands up to her head as she started making deranged laughs, backing away from Steven and eventually falling to the ground. "This was it," Peridot made a sad huff and brought her legs together before continuing, "This was my last shot." Peridot then thought of her inevitable outcome in the future as she brought her hands to her knees in fear, "I'm gonna die here..." Peridot then layed her head between her robotic knees as she started crying, repeating a sad "no" over and over until Steven spoke up.
"Hey, hey c' mon, Earth isn't... that bad," Steven said, attempting to comfort the green gem. Peridot suddenly changed to a more agitated state after hearing that. Peridot turned towards Steven and slapped the ground, "It doesn't matter what the Earth is like, it's not going to be like anything soon!" Peridot gripped her hair, mouth, visor, and shoulders with her robotic fingers, pulling them in every direction possible. Steven looked over Peridots shoulder as he scooted closer to her. Peridot rose a finger and pointed it towards Steven in a threatening manner as she backed away, "Stay away!" she shouted. Steven extended his hands into the air as he tilted his head in confusion. "What do you mean, about Earth?" he asked. Peridot kept her eyes locked on the tip of her finger as she slowly brought it down and joined it with the others that were now wrapped around her legs. Steven brought his hands back to his sides and crossed his legs as he sat in front of Peridot. Peridot looked around hesitantly, coming to a halt when she felt Steven place his hand on her knee.
"Peridot, tell me," he demanded, tightening his grip on Peridots robotic knee, "It'll be okay." Peridot turned her head towards the ocean and back at the ground, "What does it matter? There's nothing you can do about the cluster..."
Steven frowned as he released his hand from her leg, "Well, maybe not me, but I know a few gems that might?" Peridot furrowed her brow. "I doubt they will help," she said, tugging harder at her folded legs. Peridot peered at Steven through a crevice between her legs as a single tear ran down her face. Steven quickly crawled to her side and hesitantly put his hand on her back, moving his hand in circles as he tried to calm her down.
"Peridot... I know you and the other gems aren't on good terms, but... but if the planet's in danger, and only you know how to save it, they'll listen."
Peridot slowly backed her head away from her legs and looked at Steven with tears strolling down her cheeks and dripping to the ground from her chin. Steven didn't hesitate to pull Peridot into a hug as she continued to cry. Peridot gasped when Steven launched his arms around her torso and placed his head in front of her shoulder. Steven was slightly surprised that Peridot hadn't jumped into the air and blasted him away like he thought she might've. Peridot unknowingly blushed as the beating of her gem got faster and faster, and she didn't know why or what it was all about, but she liked the way it felt and didn't want it to stop.
"C' mon, Peridot," Steven released her from the hug and pointed at the only uninjured warp pad. Peridot widened her eyes as the beating of her gem came to a stop. "I should introduce you to the others," Steven suggested as he stood. Steven bent over towards Peridot and offered her his hand. Peridot looked at Steven and tilted her head in confusion. Steven chuckled, "Here, grab my hand, I'll help you up." Peridot looked at Steven as if scanning him for any traps before eventually latching onto Steven with her fingers. Peridot gasped as she was brought to her feet in what seemed to be an instant. They slowly made their way to the bottom. Steven giggled as Peridot stumbled on the last step, but went silent when he heard a beeping sound come from her body. Peridot backed away from Steven as she formed an octagon with her fingers, a screen appearing between them. Steven frowned in confusion as the hologram started to flash red, "What's wrong?" he asked. Peridot shrieked as a pair of words appeared on her screen, "Ghya!" Peridot paused for a moment as she read the message once more to be sure.
"I'm self-destructing!" Peridot shouted in panic. Steven launched his hands towards the sky as he shouted, "Ah! Don't self-destruct!"
"Steven! Help me get these off!"
Steven put his hands to his temples in a cluster of confusion and worry. "What do you mean!?" he wailed quickly. Peridot looked at Steven and fumbled around with her words before figuring out how to explain it to Steven.
"I need you to press everything that's glowing red and blue!" She turned around and faced her back towards Steven.
Steven didn't hesitate as he launched himself forwards and slammed his hand against every red and blue button he could see. Steven came to a stop when he realized every button was now flickering green instead of red or blue. Steven was about to ask what to do next but kept wasn't able to say anything as Peridots' arms and legs launched into the air. Steven looked into the sky and back at the storm of white that surrounded a distinct shadow of Peridot. There was a cloud-like gas surrounding the entire area. Steven squinted his eyes as he tried to look through the mist, coming to a stop when he heard a massive explosion from above his head, causing his ears to ring. Steven coughed as he fell to his knees, his eyelids becoming heavier the more he inhaled the white gas. Steven tried to call out for Peridot, but he didn't have the energy to speak anymore and eventually fell on his back.
"Steven!" Peridot shouted as she latched onto his hand and began to drag him towards the warp pad. Steven groaned as he fluttered his eyelids up and down.
"Ggrrr! Almost there!" Peridot growled. When Steven was finally on the warp pad, Peridot groaned in exhaustion after letting go of his hand. Unfortunately, the gas was beginning to get into Peridots' gem and caused her to fall over, making her incapable of using the warp pad. Peridot snarled as she banged her hand against the warp pad. Steven grunted when Peridot fell on top of Steven. The warp pad was beginning to turn cold as Steven tried his best to keep his eyes opened. He was almost certain he could hear a voice shouting at him from galaxies away when his head started to ache in pain every time he tried to move his hand. Steven quickly shot his hand upwards and activated the warp after howling in fatigue and strain.
Within the warp, Steven and Peridot shot open their eyes as all their energy came back to them as if nothing ever happened. Steven brought his hands to his throat as if he was choking, coughing and wheezing as he levitated. Peridot held onto her gem with difficulty as her hologram stuttered. The sudden exposure to energy and oxygen caused them to spiral out of control.
Once Steven and Peridot were able to think clearly, the warp finished processing and threw them into the temple like bowling balls. Steven and Peridot grunted as they hit the coffee table at the same time, sending it into the sky and back down, destroying the coffee table and covering the two in debris.
Steven coughed as he lifted himself up with his arms. He took a quick glance at his surroundings in search for Peridot, and when he found her, he reached for her and turned her onto her back. Steven grabbed onto her arm and looked at her closed eyelids. He didn't notice Peridots' visors were missing until she opened her eyes and stared into his. Time paused for a moment. Her eyes had changed from green to a light blue. The swirls of her eyes began to enchant Steven as he was pulled deeper into them like a black hole. He felt a wave of heat singe past his cheeks as he continued to stare. Peridot jumped back and tossed her hands over her eyes like they were sacred, "Wha-No! You're not supposed to look!" she wailed. Steven turned his head away and closed his eyes, "I'm sorry!"
The room went deadly silent until Steven eventually looked back at Peridot who had a brand new visor over her eyes, but something was off. Peridot had her fingers pointed towards the kitchen as if there was a monster about to eat her. Peridot muttered under her breath as she stared at the gems. It was at that precise moment that Steven realized he and Peridot were cornered by Garnet, Amethyst, and Pearl. Their weapons were drawn and they had their faces scrunched into a curl, debating if what they were seeing was true.
Pearl held her spear steady as she leaned forwards, "Could it be? Is that-"
"Peridot," Garnet finished. Amethyst shook her head and nearly dropped her whips as she widened her eyes, "Whoah there Peridot, lose weight?" she joked. Steven looked back at Peridot to see what the big deal was. Steven gasped as his eyes turned into stars upon looking at Peridots' tiny form. Steven shook his head as he remembered what was going on. Peridot swiftly ran behind Steven and pointed at Garnet, "Savage clod!" she insulted. Garnet shuttered her teeth and growled. Peridot peeped and dashed for the door, but was instantly stopped by Pearl's spear planting into the floor ahead of her. Peridot instantly turned around and hit her head against a wall before turning once more and running into the bathroom. She quickly locked the door.
"Take that you unrestrained clods!"
Garnet, Pearl, and Amethyst retracted their weapons and looked at each other.
"Why did she look like that?" Pearl asked Garnet.
"Yeah, seriously, what happened?" Amethyst asked.
Garnet shrugged and looked at Steven, "Steven, what's going on?"
Steven hunched forward and stroked his hair with his hand. "Well, you see, Peridot kidnapped me and took me to the galaxy warp in hopes that I could fix it. But I couldn't, and-"
"Get to the point already," Pearl demanded.
"uhh, Basically... The Earth is in danger from what I assume to be total annihilation, and she's offering to help us save it," Steven took a quick breath and formed small stars in his eyes as he leaned over to Pearl, "Trust me, she's telling the truth."
Pearl bit the bottom of her lip and sighed at the ceiling, "What else did she tell you?" she asked. Steven put his hand on his arm, "That's all I got..." he said. Pearl hunched her head to the side and closed her eyes after biting her lip once more, "Alright, Steven, we'll listen to what she has to say."
Steven smiled and faced the door. Pearl looked at Garnet and Garnet looked at Amethyst. At the same time, everyone recanted their weapons and folded their arms. Steven closed his eyes and sighed. He took a quiet breath as he approached the bathroom door and knocked. "Peridot?" he announced through the door. Peridot hadn't moved an inch since she took shelter in the bathroom. Her back was laid against the door as if to feel the vibrations of the gems on the other side. She hadn't answered Steven.
"Peridot, c' mon, open the door... We just want to talk," Steven came closer to the door as if he knew she was directly behind it, "please?" he asked. Peridot was beginning to ease up, but she stayed defensive none the less. There was still some beef to settle. Peridot slowly backed away from the door and hesitantly nudged the door open to a crack. After Steven heard the door unlock, he tilted his head to the right and looked directly into Peridots' eyes. Peridot quietly hummed as she glanced at Steven and the others. Peridot gave an ornery stare at everyone except Steven as she snarled, "As if I would negotiate with you filthy war machines," she shouted, pointing at the three gems behind Steven. Everyone but Steven frowned and looked at each other with an aggravated brow.
Garnet came close to the door, "Alright, that's enough," she said as she took one step forward and summoned a single gauntlet, "I'm done playing these games, Peridot. You will open this door right now!" she demanded. Amethyst pulled her whip from her hands and Pearl removed her spear from her head and into her hands. Peridot quickly slammed the door shut in fear and hid inside the bathtub as she shouted, "Yeah! Destroy me, and have fun talking to me when I'm in a bubble, you clods!" Garnet huffed in rejection as if it didn't matter. She threw her gauntlet towards the door.
Steven ran in front of the door to block her attack, "Wait!" he shouted. Garnet stopped her gauntlet from continuing as he stretched his arms into a T, "Garnet, please, think about it." He made a sad smile and looked at the door. "Peridot, what about me? Can we talk?" he asked. There was a faint hum emitted from behind the door, but it was an undeniable yes.
Garnet was about to protest, but when she looked down at Stevens' sad smile and puppy eyes, she sighed in instant defeat after withdrawing her gauntlet. He had given her the puppy eyes of death, and at an incredible level that she had never seen before. She rose her hand to her visors as she looked at Pearl and Amethyst, "Alright. Pearl, Amethyst, come with me." Pearl didn't believe what she was hearing.
"Whaaat? We can't let Steven be with... Peridot, alone. It's just not-"
Pearl dabbled at the edge of her words as Garnet touched her shoulder, "Pearl, have some faith in Steven."
Pearl rose a finger to her lip and looked at the bathroom door as she thought of everything that could go wrong. Garnet pinched Pearl's shoulder with a menacing expression on her face. Finally, Pearl gave in and scoffed.
"Alright," she put her finger into the air matter-of-factly, "and don't hesitate to call for us if anything goes wrong. We're just around the corner."
Steven smiled and gave her a thumbs up, "got it," he replied. Garnet came close to Steven and ruffled his hair before dragging Amethyst and Pearl to the couch. Steven chuckled as Garnet, Pearl, and Amethyst left. His hair was now deranged, and small hairs became stiff in places they shouldn't have.
Without further discussion, Steven knocked on the door. He put his mouth against a crack on the door and whispered, "It's okay to come out now. They're gone." Peridot quickly peeped through the door to check for potential threats and pulled him in before closing it again. Steven flinched as he was quickly pulled into the room. There was a slight moment of silence as Steven regained balance and turned to look at Peridot. Her cheeks were encased in a bright blue hue that seemed to reflect off of her green skin. Peridot walked to the center of the bathroom and waited for Steven to talk, but he didn't. Instead, he rose his hands to his cheeks and formed a mild blush before widening his mouth. Stevens' eyes formed a pair of stars as he circled around Peridot, welding every inch of her figure into his head. He didn't get as good of a look at her until now. Peridot stood still, anticipating for Steven to charge her or pull out a weapon in betrayal, but he didn't.
Steven walked in front of Peridot and stared into her eyes with glee. The bathroom felt like a missile shaking for liftoff as Peridot wondered what he was doing. She winced and squealed when Steven opened his mouth to talk.
"You're so cuuuuuute!" he announced with enthusiasm. Peridot recoiled as she pulled her hands to her chest, abashed. Was that all he wanted to say?
"Gah-! I am not!" She shouted with an ornery tone. She placed her palm on the diamond crest on her suit, "I am a certified technician and Kindergartener. You- don't know who you're talking to."
Steven rose a palm to his mouth as he tried to prevent a burst of laughter from escaping. He couldn't see Peridot the same as before. He couldn't see an angry villain that was out to kill him and his friends anymore, and instead, he saw a tiny and lovable blob of green cuteness. Steven took a deep breath and leaned forward. His laughter was belatedly suppressed into a small cough, and he became sober with sobriety. Peridot gulped and wriggled her fingers against the wood underneath her as she waited for something to happen.
"So, uh... what happened back there?" he asked.
Peridot squirmed as she repositioned herself, "My limb enhancers self-destructed." Steven tilted his head as he remembered her body parts flying into the air and exploding, "I don't get it... why?" he asked. Peridot turned away from Steven and folded her arms, "well, since you took my foot, a malfunction must've been created within my systems."
"Oh... Sorry about that," he apologized. Peridot looked around the room, "would you... happen to possess it?"
Steven furrowed his brow, "wait, will it explode!?" Then he launched to his feet and ran toward the door. He didn't open it though.
Peridot followed, "No. It was separated from the central grid of my suit, so it should be fine." She tapped the tip of her chin, wondering if what she said was correct. She nodded to herself when she decided that it wouldn't explode from such a distance.
Steven sighed in relief as he turned around and nodded, "yeah, I have your foot... I, uh, kind of kept it for good luck. Do you want it back?"
Peridot looked away folded her arms as if she was deciding between a yes or no, but on the inside, she wanted it. She hesitantly looked back at Steven but kept her arms folded, "yes, that would be... nice of you."
Steven grinned and approached the sink. He turned on the water and picked up his toothbrush. Peridot tilted her head, trying to determine what it was that he was doing. She was slightly afraid that it could've been a weapon, but she estimated that it would be most improbable for Steven to do anything to her when she had such useful data.
"Okay, Peridot, you can have it back. But it better not turn out to be a weapon of some sort-"
"There would be no point. The death of you and your friends would only serve to be a waste of time, and would not benefit for me, or anyone on this cloddy planet," she explained. She was right though. Killing or imprisoning the crystal gems would be highly detrimental, and her chances of succeeding weren't all that great. She had deduced it down to a rough 12% success chance.
Steven frowned as he looked back, his mouth enveloped in the white foam from his toothpaste. As he looked back, Peridots eyes turned wide.
"Wait- Is that repairing gel!?" she shouted. Steven winced and chuckled a little as he swished the toothpaste and water in his mouth, "uhh... I guess you could say that- but it won't fix a warp pad. If that's what you mean, of course," he mumbled.
Peridot turned silent after a defeated sigh. When Steven finally finished brushing his teeth, he spat out the remaining bits of foam and looked at Peridot inquisitively.
"Y'know, you're not all that bad, Peridot," he complimented.
Peridot rose her hands to her sides, "what do you mean?"
"I mean... you could've left me for dead back at the galaxy warp, but you didn't," Steven took a breath and gave Peridot a hug, "you saved me... thanks." He was completely absorbed by Peridots' warmth, that he almost forgot to let go, had Peridot not have gasped in panic. Steven backed away from Peridot and gave her a playful fist to the shoulder and a welcoming smile. Peridot closed her eyes and put her fist to her mouth. She coughed into the side of her fist and hesitantly looked at Steven. A form of bright blue washed her cheeks in an instant.
"Ah- I was simply returning the favor," she replied matter-of-factly.
Steven chuckled as he sat on the floor, remembering why he was in the bathroom with Peridot in the first place, "here, sit with me... I want to know about the..." Steven rose a finger to his chin and looked at the light above him.
"The cluster," Peridot reminded as she sat on her knees, the blue on her face still evident. Steven opened his mouth to talk, but closed it and replaced his answer with a nod. Steven started to form a frown when Peridot began shaking and started mumbling to herself. She looked at the door, away from Steven.
Steven hummed, peeked his head over her shoulder and shifted his head in front of her, "Hey, you can tell me," he assured. But Peridot wasn't entirely certain, and her hopes were still low. Peridot caught his gaze from the corner of her eye and turned further away from him, trying to keep herself from falling into his trap that she was currently well aware of. She didn't know how, but whenever she looked into Stevens' eyes, it disrupted her guard like a poor internet connection attempting 4k streaming. But she couldn't escape his endearing gaze and fell into his trap like a mouse looking for cheese. His eyes weren't stars, nor were they wide like they usually would be. Instead, they stayed elliptical in shape, but deeper in black. They became bigger and bigger the longer she looked at them as if they were interrogating her every action and eloquence. Had she not put her hands over her eyes as quickly as she did, she would've fallen into his trap, and spilled the beans. But either way, it wouldn't have mattered. Steven wouldn't have understood the complexity of it, and Peridot didn't know how to dumb it down to the extent of properly explaining it to Steven. She came out clean.
"I-I can't explain it to you... you wouldn't understand," she whined quickly. Stevens' ultimate attack had failed. He was more surprised than anything though. No one, not even Garnet nor Connie could resist his ultimate attack. He was almost starting to believe that it was a legitimate gem power.
Steven sighed and slightly giggled as Peridot removed her hands from her face and sighed in relief. Peridot quickly stabilized herself and sat on the lid of the toilet, the effect of Stevens' hypnotism slowly sobering up. Steven put his hand on his arm and slightly blushed when he felt a rumble inside his stomach. Peridot looked at his stomach curiously. Steven gave an alienated and embarrassed look as he put his hand in the air and pointed at the toilet.
"Uh, Peridot?" he fumbled.
"What?" she asked.
"I need to use that..." he pointed again.
"Why?" she asked as she lept off of the toilet and stared at it curiously.