As the Stew Simmers
Chapter I
Hello everyone! If you're reading this, then it is my honor to introduce you to what will be my first fanfic. Reviews are welcome! I want to be criticized for this work, so that my writing will improve in the future. Steven Universe is a wonderful show created by Rebecca Sugar, all characters belong to her, and Cartoon Network.
Garnet was off on a mission, and Amethyst was... Somewhere. the purple gem had left hours ago on some sort of errand which Pearl doubted truly mattered. Perhaps she had discovered some new piece of junk which could be added to the horde of garbage that had already consumed her area of the temple. Pearl was fine with this, after all it allowed her to spend some quality time with her baby...Even if she couldn't truly call him that anymore, he had just had his seventh birthday! The Pearl sighed and mumbled to herself as she removed several unprepared carrots from their container and lined them up onto a cutting board "My baby is growing up."
Pearl quietly glanced about the temple. The place had changed in ways she never would have believed possible. A human domicile covered what had been the entrance of the gem's haven, and though the gem's had been preparing this place for Steven over the course of the past few years, the progress which had been made was stunning to behold. As she quietly paced around in the kitchen gathering the food which would be turned into Steven's meal, she quietly contemplated the time they had spent raising the boy, a light smile crossed her lips as she thought of the struggles their family had gone through along the way. Even with the loss of Rose, they had found a way to make everything work.
These memories brought tear's to the ancient gem's eyes. She sniffed, and removed a knife from its sheath, and with an amount of skill that would be impossible for those without years of experience, Pearl expertly shifted the knife in her hands, chopping away at the carrots, meticulously shaping each one into a form which was more appealing to her eyes. Once the root vegetable had been shaped into their new forms she lifted the cutting board to the level of the pot, and used her knife to push the carrots into the pot which became the vessel for the simmering stew.
After that deed was done Pearl let out a content sigh and looked over to the loft where Steven could be seen excitedly yammering on about some secret level he had finally reached in that new game the gem's had acquired for his tenth birthday. She shook her head and quietly mumbled to herself beneath her breath "Human's find such strange ways to waste what little time they have..." She then returns her attention to the stew and she grabs a large spoon. She idly stirs it while she yells up "Dinner will be ready in a few minutes Steven!" Though she couldn't see his face she couldn't help but smile as she heard the clear excitement in the boy's voice as she heard him yell "Woo-Hoo! I'll be down in a second!"
Pearl blinked and she yelled over to him "Not before you wash your hands Steven!" The disappointment in the boy's voice could be heard as he tried to avoid Pearl's demands"But Pearl!" With a heavy sigh Pearl stated "Don't you dare argue with me Steven. You know the rules! We wash our hands before dinner in this house." and with that the young boy relented and got off of his bed before he headed to his bathroom with a downtrodden look on his face. Once the door had closed Pearl returned her attention to the stew which had turned into a thick brown glop which brimmed with the variable menagerie of vegetables and meats the gem had so carefully prepared.
Pearl shuddered as the steam brought the smell of the stew to her nostrils. Pearl hated food. Yes, she enjoyed the process of creating it. Each step was a well defined process, which appealed to the gem's sense of order. However the consumption of food disgusted her in every possible way. First off, you shoved the food which someone had slaved over for hours into your mouth. Then you grinded that piece of art into a mush, covering it in saliva, bacteria and whatever else resided in the human's mouth. Then you had to force that mush down your throat using muscles which happened to be an entirely different horror story, until the disgusting mix finally sloshed its way down into the human's acid sacks, where the food was broken down, and decayed into bacteria ridden mush which then came out of you as... This train of thought was finally broken by the sound of a loud 'Flush!' She shuddered and went back to stirring the stew.
The door opened and the rambunctious seven year old made his way to the kitchen. He looked up to Pearl and whined "Pearl how much longer do we have to wait?" The gem glanced down at him and smiled before she stated calmly "Oh not to long, just ten more minutes."
Steven blinked and stated "Ten minutes?! But that's forever! Why'd you make me wash my hands if you were going to make me wait that long?" Pearl sighed and stated "Because you had to do it anyway...Besides you've been up there for hours, what's wrong with spending a bit of time down here?"
Steven smiled and stated excitedly "With you!" Pearl couldn't help but let out a light chuckle and state "Yes with me." She then returned her attention to the stew as Steven wandered over to a nearbye stool on the other side of the kitchen. He let out a sigh and several moments passed before a large smile crossed his lips. He then yelled "Pearl!" The gem nearly jumped and looked over to Steven with a worried expression as several dozen thoughts crossed her mind over several seconds due to the abruptness of it all"What?! Did something happen? Did you touch one of the knifes?! Oh I knew I should have just let you play your game Steven! What happened?"
As per her usual the neurotic gem had expected the worst, however Steven was just sitting there dumbfounded "I was just going to ask. Since we have a bit of time...Do you think you could tell me about one of your adventures?" He wiggled his eyebrows and smiled at Pearl. The gem nearly falls over once Steven had asked her his question as her expression shifts to being one of pure and utter relief.
She then looks back over to him and composes herself with a quick cough. "Of course Steven. What kind would you like to hear? Perhaps I could tell you about the time that we found... " Steven glances down at his feet for a moment as Pearl started to yammer on about something which was probably very interesting, but couldn't hold his attention "Hmmmmm..."
After Steven thinks about it for a moment he grins and states "One about you!" Pearl blinks and states "Me? Oh! You want a story about one of our journey's where I was a key figure!" She smiles and ponders this question before she hears Steven shake his head and states, "Nope...Just about you, and only you Pearl." For once the pale gem was unsure of what to say. After a moment she stutters and eventually she finally manages to get out "W...Well. If that's what you really want Steven..." She ponders the boy's question for a moment before a light smile crosses her lips. She then looks to Steven and states "If that's what you really want Steven, I'll tell you a story that I have never shared with anyone before, not even Garnet or Amethyst."
Steven's face blazed with pride and curiosity before he looked to her and shook his head vigorously "I want to hear it! I want to hear it!" Pearl glanced over to him and her eyes light up as she see's the excitement on the young boy's face.
"Alright...But you have to promise me you won't tell anyone." Steven grinned and made a zipping motion over his lips. Pearl arches a brow at this before she simply shrugs and starts to tell her tale "Well...It was a very, very long time ago. Your mother and I had just completed a mission when..."
Steven blinked and stated "Hey! I thought this was just going to be about you Pearl!" Pearl quietly grimaces and states "Of course Steven...But you can't expect that there won't be other people involved in it in some way right? Your mother just happens to be one of those people. Now as I was saying. Your Mother and I had just completed a mission when..."
And so the first chapter of our story concludes with a cliffhanger. I hope you all enjoyed this because I enjoyed writing it out for you all.
