"Stars burn me alive! Those ragged…half-shapen…insufferable…!"
She angrily flung her hands high in the air out of frustration, pacing around over the red carpet. The urge was to scream at the top of her voice and kick the bathtub, even though she tried that before and hurt her toes from it. She had to contain herself. Or the enemy would be alarmed and come knocking at the locked door again. Time after time, all day, they would try to urge her to come out. Only if she was exceptionally quiet, they would forget about it, for only a moment. These Crystal Gems…more like crystal clods. Sure, they can make promises they wouldn't do her harm. That they would have a calm, civil conversation.
But Peridot knew better. They were deserters. Traitors. And they would surely betray again. Their minds and morals poisoned by millennia spent on such a barbaric place as Earth, forgetting their true purpose. And what good could they be? Let them be shattered. All of them!
Peridot sneered. She knew, the moment she would unlock that door, they would jump to the opportunity to catch her again and force her to talk about what threatened the planet they so held dear. Attempts to escape were made. She did try. In the darkest hours of the days when their base was least active. But the great pink beast kept watch. Especially after it caught her trying to sneak out of the base on her first attempt. Now the stupid animal would simply sit in front of the door all night, waiting to pounce. Sometimes scratching the door and growling impatiently.
There was a soft knock on that same door. "Hey, Peridot?"
Hold on a minute. She stopped pacing, turning her head to look at the door. That voice. It belonged to that...quartz. Steven was his name, right?
"What do you want now?" she questioned in annoyance.
"I just need to use the bathroom. Can I come in?" the same voice asked back.
Peridot contemplated her options. Steven was by far the least dangerous of the group. But for all she knew, they might be using him as bait, letting him do the talking. And as soon as she opens the door… She cringed at the thought alone. It made her wish all the more that she could somehow see what happened behind the door without the need to open it. Nevertheless, she approached it, stopping to stand hesitantly before it.
"Are any of your friends with you?" she asked finally.
There was a moment of silence. Before Steven could answer, Peridot had already changed her mind.
"Nononono! You hesitated!" she yelled.
Steven looked at the door from the other side and sighed. He made a glance at the three gems who waited at a distance, and shrugged.
"I can't do it guys. I can't lie to her," he said as he approached the women, looking down to the floor shamefully. The tallest of the three, Garnet, approached the tubby little boy, knelt down, and ruffled his black, curly hair.
"You tried your best," Garnet said calmly. A smile glinted, though disappointed she was. Not in Steven though. She couldn't bear making him lie to someone. Even if that someone was Peridot. However, his honesty was now getting in the way, and Peridot knew the boy was a bad liar.
"We're running out of options here," Pearl, a thin, pale and elegant figure, announced. Her concern was clear in her voice. "If Peridot won't give us any information about this...cluster…willingly, then we might have to force her."
"Naww!" Steven squeaked. "I can convince her! She just needs time!"
Amethyst dropped herself lazily on the couch, sighing. "Seriously dude, she ain't gonna come out like this. We should just try my idea."
Pearl shot Amethyst a scowl and crossed her arms. "Your idea won't work because it's outright silly!" As a result, the lavender-skinned gem shot up into a straight sit, glaring at Pearl.
"Hey! Trying to lure her out with food is not silly!"
Garnet stood up, "An offering of peace is not a bad idea, but it would have to be something she values. Then she'll know we mean it."
The pale gem shot an anxious look at the bathroom door. "You're not suggesting we should give her the escape pod, are you?" Pearl half-whispered when she turned her gaze back to Garnet, wide eyed and gawking from surprise.
Garnet looked back at pearl. Her expression was hard to read from under her shades, but her mouth suggested she was not a joker. She never really was. Though she had a grudge against the homeworld gem in particular, she had to remain a rational thinker.
"No," she answered. Straight and to the point. "That's too risky. She can use it against us."
"Oh! Oh! I know, I know!" Steven hopped up and down, raising his hand high in the air. Immediately, Garnet smiled.
"Let's hear it, Steven."
"It's quiet…" Peridot whispered to herself. A plunger was locked in her hands, but she had cautiously approached the door once more. She was waiting for something.
It had been a while again since the Crystal Gems made their last attempt at tricking her. It wouldn't be long anymore until they tried it again. She would have to remain vigilant. They were going to tire of her sooner or later. Then, when they least expect it, she will make her escape. That was the plan. Playing the patience war…
It was fine, she had all the time in the world…literally. She had little clue on how close the Cluster was to hatching. She only had a rough estimate. It could happen anywhere between a year and…well…today. She kept a clearer head when she continuously recalculated the odds; that it happening 'today' was still only a 1 out of 365 chance.
But even then, those numbers would dwindle over time. Who knew math could be so depressing?
Suddenly, she was shaken out of her thought train when the door was knocked on once again. She yelped, flailing backwards until her rear hit the hard cold floor.
"Oww.." She whined, her face forming into a cringe from the ache.
"Sorry," Steven's voice said from behind the door. "Did I scare you?"
Peridot huffed, her face turning a deeper shade of green. "No!" her voice cracked, "Why would I be scared? You're delusional!" She stood up carefully, rubbing her lower back.
Steven simply shrugged it off. "We got something for you."
"A trap disguised as a gift? How thoughtful and original. But I'm going to have to decline your offer," Peridot replied sarcastically. She turned and sat herself down with her back facing the door. "Tell those rocks that I'm not falling for any of your tricks. So don't even try, pebble!"
Steven looked at the door, a frown forming on his face. Homegem insults may not be very original, but they still hurt. "Okay," he said. "I'll just leave it at the door then." With that, he placed the old music player down. "There is some pretty good music on it, but you can do whatever you want with it. I bet you'd like to figure out how it works."
Peridot didn't reply to him this time. Instead, she huffed again out loud, making sure Steven got the message that she was done talking. She turned her head, watching the shadows of Steven's feet shift away from under the door. It was the only way she could tell when someone was standing behind that door, and only under the right conditions; when the earth's star stood at just the right position to cast its light underneath.
Once she was sure that nobody was waiting there, Peridot's scowl made way for a frown.
"Blast it," she murmured quietly.
"Alright Steven, we're going now. Don't stay up too long," Pearl announced. Each of the gems were getting ready for the night, entering their own rooms within the temple one after another, shortly after sharing their good nights to Steven. Pearl always went last. She always liked to make sure everything was in order before retreating to her room.
"Okay. Good night, Pearl," Steven paused his video game and got up from his bed. He went down the stairs and approached the bathroom door. As he stood before it, he noticed that the music player remained untouched. He decided to pick it up. He then knocked at the door.
"Peridooot, I gotta get ready for the night. Can I please come in now?"
There was no answer.
"Peridot?" he repeated.
He suddenly heard the noise of the door being unlocked. Steven smiled and opened it, coming inside and turning on the light.
He saw her sitting in the bathtub, the shower curtains that fell when she hung from them were now wrapped around her like it were a blanket. She refrained from looking at him, instead gazing away lifelessly at the wall. Her hair, normally well-kept and in a rigid triangular shape, had begun to lose its shine and looked messier than when he last saw her. Her eyes looked tired as well. Though knowing of the fact that gems required no sleep nor food to survive, Steven assumed the lack of self-care could only point to one culprit: stress. The display worried him deeply.
"Hey, you okay?" he asked. Peridot, again, didn't give him a clear response. She only let out a vague 'hm'. He tried to approach her, but then she suddenly snapped at him.
"Leave me be! I'm fine!" she hissed, and glared at him.
Steven held his hands up and backed up slowly. "Sorry. I didn't mean to…"
She stared back at him for a while before turning away again, pretending to be angry. In reality, she regretted startling Steven. The remainder of Steven's bathroom session went without a spoken word. When he finished the routine with polishing the quartz gem on his bellybutton, Steven left the music player on the bathroom fountain and walked back to the door. He stopped only to look back at Peridot.
"Good night Peridot. Please feel better soon," he said gently. The door opened and closed. Now she was alone in the room again.
It didn't sit well with him, the way Peridot acted. She was never very friendly in the first place, and what she did wasn't right. But she wasn't evil, either. That much he was sure of. He never saw her this upset in the time she spent at their home. Something was bothering her greatly, and that bothered him.
Sighing, he turned the lights off in the living room, and walked up the stairs leading to his little bedroom that was integrated in it just like the kitchen was. He didn't really feel like continuing with his video game, despite it being a weekend, so he turned the console and TV off, as well. He settled into his bed, thinking over the events that happened today.
Eventually, his eyelids grew weary, and he fell into an uneasy sleep.
Later, into the quiet hours of the night, something woke him. A shuffling noise, and pitter-patter of soft feet. Was it Lion? He normally came and left as he pleased. But since Peridot's arrival, Lion was especially interested in her. Steven always assumed he just wanted to greet her, but he kept scaring her back into the bathroom because of his bulky figure and ominous first-impressions. Poor Lion. He just wanted to make friends…
There it was again. The shuffling noise came closer now. It didn't sound like Lion at all. Those feet were too light and quick. The shuffling came to a halt at his bed.
Steven slowly forced himself to open his eyes, and tried to look at what came up to him. It was dark, but clearly, someone was there.
"Peridot?" He drowsily reached out to his night light, turning it on. Indeed, there she sat, back resting against his bed. She wasn't even looking. Steven blinked, and he lifted his hands to rub the sleep from his eyes. "Hey. Is something wrong?"
What a silly question to ask. Of course he knew something was wrong.
She sighed, looking down at the music player in her hand. She turned and placed it on the bed. "You forgot your thing," she said in a calm, almost lifeless tone, before she looked away again.
"Oh, that's okay. You can keep it," said Steven.
"How is it that you're always being so nice to me?" she asked abruptly.
Steven blinked. Though not completely taken by surprise, the question still seemed very out of place to him. "What?" he laughed. "Because you deserve to be treated nice, just like everybody else does!"
The answer astonished Peridot. "What?" she repeated after him, but with a surprised, unbelieving tone in her voice. "But, I'm your enemy." She turned to look at him. "Enemies fight each other. Is a concept that straight-forward really not clear to you?"
Steven shrugged. "It's clear to me." He then smiled at her dumbly. "But what good will fighting do?"
Peridot gave him a bewildered gaze. "Huh." Steven could tell she was trying to process those words, but from the looks of her expression, it didn't make much sense to her. She eventually turned her head away from him again.
"A—anyway," she stammered, "I wanted to let you know… I mean, what I wanted to say is…that…I'm—"
"Yeeaah?" Steven asked smilingly.
"I'm sor…" She suddenly locked up. "Oh, never mind."
"Aww!" Steven squeaked. "I forgive you!"
"What!? T—that's not what I meant at all!"
Steven just giggled. "Okay then." He slowly crept out of the bed, and sat himself down next to Peridot. At first, the green gem didn't appear to care for it. She kept from making eye contact with Steven, even actively avoiding looking into his direction. Despite being only a child, Steven was familiar with the behavior. She was afraid. Of him, and the Crystal Gems…but she was too ashamed to admit it. He could only imagine what else troubled her mind so. This cluster was definitely playing a part in it. Maybe if he could cheer her up, she would ease up a little.
With that idea in mind, he stood up, making Peridot flinch a little and look up at him. He walked down the stairs, disappearing from her sight for only a short moment. The noise of a cabinet opening and closing could be heard. He then returned, a noisily cracking, plastic bag in his hands. The boy sat down next to her against the bed again.
"You want some popcorn?" Steven asked eventually. He shook the bag in his hand.
Peridot eyed the odd package suspiciously, then glared at Steven. There it was; one of the few expressions she wasn't afraid to show off. "What is popcorn?" She raised an eyebrow.
Steven smiled warmheartedly, pinching both sides of the bag between his fingers and pulling it open. He then offered the bag of popcorn to her, waiting for her to take one out. This must be a trap, she thought. But Steven was too honest for that. What could he be trying to achieve through this? She stared at the bag doubtfully. At one point even, a shaky chartreuse hand lifted, reaching to the bag. But then she turned away again, folding her arms around her waist instead.
Steven wasn't disappointed. He was glad, even. Peridot tried. It was progress, though small as it were. He dug his hand into the bag, taking out a handful of popcorn and putting them into his mouth. He made sure Peridot noticed, and indeed, she blinked at the display in bewilderment.
"Fee?" Steven muffled while he chewed, "it'f fafe!" He held the bag out again. This time, Peridot backed up and just grimaced, seemingly disgusted by what he was doing.
Steven stopped chewing, looking at Peridot expectantly with big eyes and a mouth full of popcorn. Seeing that puffy face looking even puffier than usual, a small grin nearly managed to form on Peridot's face. Quickly, she corrected herself.
"Fine." She raised her hand again, hesitating for what seemed to take ages before letting it slip into the bag. For some reason, she expected it to clamp down on her wrist like the jaws of a vicious beast. She retracted her hand quickly when it gripped a corn, and unwillingly let out a nerved squeak as she did. She looked down and opened her hand, inspecting the 'popcorn' in her palm. Peridot hummed thoughtfully. It looked like a little cloud, yet it was somewhat hard and foam-like.
"You put this in your mouth?" she questioned.
"Yep!"
"Why?"
Steven shrugged his shoulders. "Because they taste good!"
Peridot cast him a wary look. "But what if it's poisonous?"
"It's not," said Steven. He gave her a honest smile. "Amethyst likes to eat too, and she's a gem just like you."
Peridot looked down at the object in her hand again. "I don't know —"
At that moment, a familiar noise echoed through the room, announcing that the temple gate was activated. A second later, a bright light began to emit from it as its seal lifted. Peridot shot up in shock and tensed her shoulders. The lock-up made her crush the popcorn in her hand.
She suddenly squealed in terror. "Oh no! They're back!" Before Steven could stop her, she was already rushing back to her safe spot, tripping at the stairs and flailing about in the darkness. She was too quickly out of his sight.
"No, wait! Peridot!"
He heard a door slam shut, a lock turn, and then, a voice. Garnet.
"Steven?" She turned on a light in the living room. The boy quickly made his way downstairs. "What are you doing still up? What were those noises?" she questioned.
"Garnet!" Steven called. "I was talking to Peridot. She ran off to the bathroom when you came."
The gem turned her head, gazing into the direction of said bathroom. A light shone from underneath the door, but eventually, it was turned off.
She hummed thoughtfully, looking down at Steven, who now stood before her. Garnet bent down and picked him up. She carried him back to his bed, and sat him down there. "She didn't hurt you?"
"No," Steven answered.
"Good." She sat down next to him. "How did you get her to come out?" she asked.
"I didn't. She came out on her own." Steven let his head hang remorsefully. "I thought she was getting better…"
"Maybe. I guess we'll find out soon enough." She smiled.
Steven suddenly lit up. "Can you use your future vision to see if she will?"
Garnet laughed humbly.
"There is no need for that." She began to tuck him into the bed. "Go to sleep now. Or you'll be tired tomorrow."
"Okay," said Steven. There was a small hint of disappointment in his voice. Garnet was a rational thinker, though, and she was usually right. Even when she wasn't depending on her vision. So he trusted her.
"Good night, Garnet."
"Sleep well, Steven." Garnet walked down the stairs.
The lights went off.
The light from the living room vanished from underneath the bathroom door. Peridot sat with her back resting against the bathtub in the darkness. She slowly wiped her hand against her leg, brushing off the bits of popcorn that were still sticking on her palm. She then let her head rest on her arms as she folded them over her knees, and let out a forlorn sigh.
You shouldn't have come out. You klutz.
This was a setback. A mistake. A moment of weakness resulted from her days spent in this hostile environment. She was letting that Steven get to her head. She couldn't give in to it. One of these days, Yellow Diamond will send her the help she requires.
There was still hope.