Move. Duck. Parry. Weave.
Stevonnie slashed with their sword.
Carefully, precisely. Strike only where you intend to.
Stevonnie could feel a bead of sweat crawl its way down their neck, their breathing deep and ragged. They had been at this for a while now. Without Pearl around to call breaks, Stevonnie found they just didn't stop. They couldn't. Not after what happened.
Not after what happened with Bismuth.
"That's not who I am," Stevonnie said quietly to themselves.
Bismuth's words still echoed around in their mind. When Steven had told Connie what had happened, she had been horrified.
Horrified at how close Steven had come to getting seriously hurt.
Horrified that someone with such a frightening and toxic attitude could call themselves a Crystal Gem.
But what horrified her the most was the image that had been conjured in her mind.
Steven lying on the ground, hurt, battered, and bruised.
A dark, ominous figure looming over him.
Connie feeling like she would do eveything... anything to protect him.
Even... shatter her opponent?...
Steven was feeling similar... uncertainties. He wanted to protect the Gems, Connie, Beach City, the entire Earth. But he didn't want to hurt anyone.
They couldn't hurt anyone.
Could they?
"That's not who I am," Stevonnie said, louder and more sure of themselves. They readied their stance, angling their sword at their opponent.
A stone statue, stolen away from the forge, placed here in the arena by Stevonnie themselves. The perfect opponent, with the perfect weak spot.
Stevonnie lunged at the statue and passed by it with but a single slash.
They were breathing hard as they waited. Waited for the sound of the success.
"Thunk"
Stevonnie turned, a smirk spreading across their face. The head of the statue had been cleanly sliced off of the the statues stone shoulders.
The statue's gem, however, was completely untouched and pristine.
"That's not who I am."
A/N: Oh, Bismuth. I want more of you.