Steven Universe: Jasper's Year Walk
Chapter One: The New Year
The plane arrived at the airport of Desert City…which can barely be called a city. It looked more like a small village with several small huts. As the plane landed at the airport, the passengers exited from the plane, as Jasper and Carlos exited the plane, stepping onto the hot sand, the scorching hot sun beaming down upon them.
"Why is it so hot here?" Jasper asked, raising her hand over her face to shield her eyes from the sun's rays.
"The sun can be quite brutal in Desert City." Carlos declared, shielding his eyes from the sun "It barely even rains in this part of the world. Desert City is practically one of the poorest cities in the world."
"The sun, huh?" Jasper thought to herself "I want to fight it!"
"Whelp, I guess this is where we part ways." Carlos declared "I'll see you later."
"Yeah, see ya." Jasper shrugged, as Carlos walked off, she just looked around "Okay, now what am I supposed to do?"
"You could try helping people?"
Jasper turned around and, to her surprise, Steven stood there, dressed like a cowboy.
"You!" Jasper snarled, facing him "What're you doing here?!"
"Ah, ya know," Steven shrugged "The Crystal Gems wanted to make sure you weren't getting into trouble."
"So they sent you to spy on me?" Jasper snickered, before sighing "Figures they don't trust me enough to go through this by myself!"
"I trust you!" Steven declared "The Gems just want me to make sure you were proceeding with the walk without any trouble. And they wanted me to introduce you to some friends of theirs! They happen to be right here in the city!"
"Friends, huh?" Jasper mused "Even traitors to Homeworld have to have friends."
"C'mon!" Steven urged, taking Jaspers large hand "I'll show you to them!"
Jasper followed Steven around town, before stopping at a bar, spotting a young man out front, speaking with a young woman. Or rather, flirting with her.
"There's one of them!" Steven declared "Come on!"
The two walked over to them, the girl walking away, the man slightly disappointed. He seemed to be in his mid-thirties, wore a dark blue cloak, had a bow and arrows strapped to his back, had light black hair and tanned skin.
"Hey, Darren!" Steven called, as he and Jasper walked over to him.
"Now, who could that be?" Darren wondered, with an Australian accent, as he turned to face them "Steven! Good to see you, lad!"
As Darren got on one knee, Steven jumped at him with a hug, and as they separated, Darren ruffled Steven's hair.
Jasper watched in confusion, unable to make out what she's seeing, as Darren turned his gaze to her.
"And who's this?" He asked with a smirk "A new friend of yours?"
"Yeah!" Steven declared, standing next to Jasper "This is Jasper. She's on a year walk!"
"Hey." Jasper said, nonchalantly.
"So this is the one we were told to 'escort' around the world, eh?" Darren smirked, before chuckling "She's not quite what I was expecting."
"What's that supposed to mean?" Jasper asked, skeptical.
"Me and ser knight were just betting on who the 'walker' would be." Darren shrugged "I was personally hoping you were a golden haired girl with terrible eye sight." He let out a short laugh "I was just joking, sort of."
"Sure you were." Jasper rolled her eyes, not finding his 'joke' funny.
"Hey Darren. Have you seen Tory?" Steven asked.
"Actually, I last saw him at the church." Darren shrugged "Giving out toys to the kids, if I remember correctly. Now, if you'll excuse me, one of my superiors is looking to speak with me. Looking forward to working with you, Jasper."
As Darren walked off, Steven led Jasper onward, as they saw people putting up New Year's decorations.
"What's with all these strange decorations?" Jasper asked.
"It's human tradition." Steven explained "When the New Year comes around; we celebrate with fireworks, banquets and all kinds of activities!"
"So humans spend their time by pigging out?" Jasper snickered "No wonder the human race is so weak!"
"Wow, you have a lot to learn, Jasper." Steven chuckled "Anyways, time to go see Tory!"
The two kept moving, before stopping at the church, seeing a mid-thirty year old man passing out toys to children. Tory was wearing a purple cloak, had a large broadsword strapped to his back and short buzz cut black hair.
"There he is!" Steven declared, pulling Jasper along towards him "Hey, Tory!"
"Hm?" Tory wondered, as he looked, then smiled "Hello, young Steven!"
Steven leapt at him with a hug, as Jasper simply watched, not sure what to make of the scene, as the two parted from the hug.
"It's been a while, since I last saw you, Steven." Tory smiled, standing up "How are you?"
"I'm doing alright." Steven declared, as he turned to Jasper "Jasper, this is Tory. He's one of the Crystal Gems knights."
"The Crystal Gems knights?" Jasper raised an eyebrow "As in a member of their order?"
"Not really." Tory shook his head "The Crystal Gems established another order of warriors, known as the Crystal Gem Wardens."
"Wardens?" Jasper repeated.
"Correct." Tory nodded "But our leader can tell you more, once you've gotten a bit further in your walk."
"Your leader, huh?" Jasper mused "I wonder what he has to say."
"Quite a lot, actually." Tory nodded "He's actually looking to meet you soon." He turned to the apartments, before turning back to Jasper "Well, I'd better return to the others. Once you reach the apartments, speak with Alistair. He's the one leading the walk."
And so Tory walked off, leaving the two.
"Crystal Gem Wardens, huh?" Jasper wondered "Rose Quartz fought alongside humans, during the war. Could they have been 'Wardens' as well?"
"See? Even the Wardens are looking to meet you!" Steven declared "Come on! They're waiting to meet you!"
Steven led Jasper further, before arriving at the apartments, which seemed a bit in shambles, yet there are people living there.
"Humans choose to live in such pathetic shacks?" Jasper gaped, rather disgusted at the state of the apartment building "How pathetic, even by human standards."
"Desert City IS one of the poorest cities in the world." Steven shrugged "Anyways, Alistair should be inside. I'll be right back!"
As Steven darted inside, Jasper stood there, crossing her arms. A couple of minutes passed, as Jasper stood there, impatiently waiting for Steven to return.
"Unbelievable." Jasper silently growled "What is taking that halfling so long?!"
As she stood there, she paid no attention to a cloaked character approaching from behind, close enough to whisper into her ear, in a low monotone voice.
"Don't you know how to greet a new pal?"
Jasper froze in place, her face twisted with fear, as she can somewhat recognize the strangers voice.
"Turn around," The stranger said, backing up just a bit, before sticking out his right arm "And shake my hand."
At this point, Jasper wasn't sure how to respond. That voice sounded like something she had never heard in a long time. Taking in a deep breath, she slowly turned to face the stranger, and extended her right arm and grabbed the strangers hand…
…only to hear a long, awkward fart sound emit from the hand.
"What the-?!" Jasper gasped, quickly jerking her hand away, glaring at the stranger, who only laughed.
"The old whoopee cushion in the hand trick!" The stranger declared in an Italian-American accent, removing his glove, revealing a whoopee cushion tapped around his hand "It's ALWAYS funny!"
Only an awkward silence ensued, as the stranger looked at Jasper, who only glared angrily at him.
"That's, uh, your cue to laugh." The stranger cocked his head slightly to the right "Or, uh, emote at all?"
Jasper only glared at him, not saying a word.
"Well, whatever," The stranger shrugged, grinning "Everyone has their own sense of humor."
"Who do you think you are?" Jasper growled, clenching her fists "Talking to me like that?!"
And with that, she threw a punch, only for the stranger to disappear in a puff of smoke, much to her surprise.
"What the-" She gasped, shocked at what she just saw.
"You know," She quickly turned around to see the stranger reappear, his eyes closed, and smiling "I really kinda like this city." And suddenly, much to Jaspers dismay, the strangers eyes opened, completely pitch black "It'd be a shame if someone were to ruin that."
Jasper only stared back with fear, unsure of how to react. Suddenly, the strangers returned to normal, back to being dark blue.
"Relax, will ya?" The stranger chuckled "I'm not gonna bite."
"Who or what are you?" Jasper demanded, raising an eyebrow.
"Someone who's been watching with great interest." The stranger declared, removing his cloak, revealing him to be wearing what looked like a mafia suit and a fedora hat, has black hair that reached own his back "And someone you should be very familiar with."
Jasper took a good look at him, before realizing who he really was.
"Jack?" She gasped, before taking a moment to chuckle darkly "So, it's really you. Jack the Ripper himself."
"Nobody calls me that anymore." Jack frowned, before smiling "So, how have you been? Been a while since we last met."
"You can say that." Jasper shrugged, turning her head to the apartment complex "Since I can't get back to Homeworld, those Crystal Gem rebels have stuck me on this damn walk around the Earth."
"Sounds like they've been keeping you busy." Jack chuckled "Especially after the stunt you pulled at Beach City."
"You heard about that?" Jasper raised an eyebrow.
"I have contacts in many major and minor cities." Jack declared "I always have eyes and ears where I can't be bothered to be."
"So you heard about what I did in that 'city'." Jasper smirked "How I almost destroyed your son."
"Almost." Jack repeated "I'm just glad you didn't succeed."
"Of course you are." Jasper snarled "You betrayed Homeworld and joined with the rebels!"
"I wasn't talking about the Crystal Gems." Jack frowned "I was referring to my son."
"You're son?" Jasper repeated, before smirking "So you weren't worried about the rebels at all?"
"Rose trained her people well, but I was never worried about them." Jack declared "But the only thing I care about is the well-being of my son."
"You're son, eh?" Jasper frowned "For a man who was never there for his own child, you seem to care a lot about that boy."
"I'm his father, so yeah, of course I care." Jack frowned "Sure, I might not have been there for him, at his baseball games, when he was sick, but that doesn't mean I don't care about him!"
Jasper didn't seem convinced, however. Ever since Echo's birth, she knew that Jack wanted to give Echo a different life than what Yellow Diamond had planned for him, but he was never there when Echo was in danger, when the Crystal Gems captured him, when Echo fought Yellow Diamond and ended up getting his arm cut off, when he fought Yellow Diamond for a second time, resulting in her supposed defeat, and he certainly wasn't there for him when Echo was fighting Jasper.
Jasper only wondered: Why does Jack show so much concern, and yet never intervened when his son needed him the most?
"Alistair will be showing up in a few minutes," Jack suddenly grinned, turning away "Take good care of him, alright? I'm certain you'll like him."
And with that, he vanished in a puff of smoke, leaving Jasper to ponder her thoughts.
After a bit, Steven, along with three other characters exited the building, one of them a human and the other two gems. The two gems stood on either side of the human, the two gems were tall with long braided hair to opposite side of their heads. Their armor was the same, light plate only differentiating in color, the red gem held a sword, while the blue gem held a spear. The human wore a pair of black jeans, black military type boots, a white T-shirt, black fingerless gloves, a brown cloak with a hood, a sniper rifle strapped to his back, light skin, short black hair that reached his shoulders, light pink eyes and appeared to be in his mid-thirties.
Jasper didn't seem to show much care for the Gems, but she felt her heart skip a beat when she laid eyes upon the human. She never cared much for humans, but this one gave her a sense of familiarity from someplace.
"So, you're our walker, eh?" The human declared "Huh. I wasn't expecting someone so…large."
"And you are?" Jasper asked, raising an eyebrow.
"Apologies, where are my manners." The human chuckled "Name's Alistair, one of the captains of the Crystal Gem Wardens, and the one leading the walk. Basically, I'm here to make sure you stay out of trouble." He then gestured to the Gems beside him "And these are Red Tourmaline and Blue Tourmaline, my personal guard."
"I've been hearing that word often, this 'Crystal Gem Wardens'." Jasper admitted "Are they some sort of human group?"
"An order of warriors, basically." Alistair nodded "Ever since the first war thousands of years ago, through many generations, the Wardens were established to monitor any gem activity on Earth."
"So they were founded AFTER the war?" Jasper asked.
"From what I'm told, yes." Alistair shrugged "And from what I heard, you are one of Homeworld's biggest loyalists."
"Used to be." Jasper corrected "Because of what happened, the Diamonds would have me shattered on the spot."
"Is that so?" Alistair raised an eyebrow "I also heard that you're not very fond of the Diamonds. Any reason why?"
"That's none of your business, human." Jasper huffed.
"Whatever you say." The Red Tourmaline said "As long as you stay out of trouble."
"Indeed." The Blue Tourmaline nodded "Or you will face dire consequences."
"Right." Alistair said awkwardly "Anyways, we just need to take care of a few things here and we'll move on to the next country." He turned to Steven "Steven, would you mind showing her?"
"No prob, Bob!" Steven declared, picking up a box of toys and turning to Jasper "Follow me, Jasper!"
She did so, before turning to look at Alistair one last time, before turning back to follow Steven. She felt…drawn to him somehow. She felt as though she should know him from someplace, but can't quite put her finger on it.
"How long have you and that Alistair character known each other?" Jasper asked, her curiosity getting the better of her.
"Quite a while, actually." Steven shrugged "He claims he knew my mom, a long time ago."
"What's a 'mom'?" Jasper asked.
"Well," Steven said, trying to think up an answer "It's someone that is…well…someone sees that person as a mother, some who nurtures a small child from birth."
"Did this 'Alistair' not have a 'mom' of his own?" Jasper asked.
"He said he never knew his mom." Steven shrugged "Which I can relate, in a way. He said that, in his own words, just woke up one day and found his way to mine, long before I was thought up."
"Does he know about the war?" Jasper asked "About Rose's deeds in the past? About her shattering Pink Diamond?"
"Maybe, but I never pressed the matter." Steven shrugged "He seemed pretty sensitive about it, but despite all that, my mom was the only person he ever looked up to as a mother figure. Maybe you can ask him, if he's in the mood."
"Perhaps." Jasper sighed "Anyways, where are we going, Quartz-Child?"
"We're headed to the church." Steven declared "There are some orphans who can't really celebrate the New Year, so the Wardens, and Crystal Gems, are here to help them out!" He looked at the church, seeing Tory and Darren out front "Come on!"
As they approached the church, Tory and Darren, both carrying boxes of toys, waved them over towards the door.
"Alright, fellas." Tory smiled "Remember, when we go in, we have to be as positive as we can."
"Why?" Jasper frowned "I'm not."
"Then just fake it." Darren shrugged "Look at me, I could be angry as hell at the fact that I almost got thrown into prison multiple times, almost got myself killed thieving, and now pulled into a war between humans and extraterrestrial beings, with weapons powerful enough to blow up worlds." He then smirked "But I'm bigger than that."
"Fine," Jasper sighed "What do you want me to do?"
"Try smiling!" Steven declared.
She did, giving a creepy, toothy grin.
"Oh my God, that's terrifying." Darren cringed.
"We're here to see the kids," Tory said "Not kill Batman."
"There's a difference?" Jasper asked, frowning.
"Try less… teeth…" Darren said.
She tried again, but her smile was still creepy, even if not showing teeth.
"Um, close enough." Tory sighed, moving towards the door "Come on."
Opening the doors, they entered the church, seeing rows of benches, many homeless and orphaned children in the seats, while a priest stood at the alter at the far end of the interior.
"Hello, everyone!" Tory called out, getting the attention of everyone in the church "Hope you're happy to see us!"
"It's the Wardens!" One of the children declared happily.
"Yay! Crystal Wardens!" Another one cried out.
"Hey, kids." Darren smiled, as one of the kids ran up to him, Darren ruffling the kid's hair "The Crystal Gem Wardens are here!"
"And we've brought toys for you guys, to start off the New Year's Resolution!" Steven declared, before looking at Jasper "Right, Jasper?"
Jasper didn't say anything, except giving that creepy grin.
"Wow, she's large!" One of the kids grinned, gaping at Jasper in awe "Is she a Crystal Gem as well?"
"Me?" Jasper did a double take at what the kid said "I…"
"I knew it!" The kid cheered "You can always rely on the Crystal Gems! They and the Wardens are truly the salvation of humanity… no, the salvation of every species in the galaxy!"
"Uh, sure, okay." Jasper sighed, playing along.
"Alright, everyone!" Steven called, setting the box of toys on a nearby bench "Line up and we'll start passing out toys!"
After several hours of passing out toys to the kids, the group said their goodbyes to the kids, before leaving the church and making their way back to the apartment complex, meeting Alistair and the twin Tourmalines at the front of the building.
"Hey, fellas!" Alistair waved "How'd things go?"
"Pretty good!" Steven declared "A lot of kids were pretty happy!"
He turned to Jasper.
"Right, Jasper?" He asked.
"Sure, whatever." She grunted, walking away.
"Is she going to be a problem?" Blue Tourmaline asked.
"Yes, we already have enough problems." Red Tourmaline nodded.
"No, of course not!" Steven said, nervously "She just needs some time alone."
"As if we have time to wait around." Alistair sighed "I'll go talk to her. You lot wait here." He turned to the twins "You two wait here as well."
"Please be careful." Steven frowned.
Alistair walked over to where Jasper was, which was sitting on a far bench, just close to the corner of the apartment complex.
"You alright?" He asked.
Jasper only looked up at him, a frown on her face.
"You should've heard what those organic younglings said." She spoke "I'm no Crystal Gem. I don't deserve their praise."
"Is that so?" Alistair mused, before smiling "It seems that their praise went to the right place, given your current situation."
"Maybe…" Jasper sighed, not so sure herself.
"Is something the matter?" Alistair asked.
"I don't feel like talking about it." Jasper huffed "Besides, you wouldn't care."
"Try me." Alistair gave a friendly smile "You'd be surprised."
Jasper considered this for a moment, before sighing.
"I was only thinking about what the Crystal Gems and their Wardens are doing." She declared, gazing at the church "Helping those younglings who have no homes, no families… It's a noble cause, I suppose."
"You must've had a bad experience with them in the past, eh?" Alistair suggested.
"You can say that." Jasper nodded "For as long as I could care to remember, I've always hated them for what they've done. To my planet, my colony…" She placed her hand over the diamond symbol over the chest part of her outfit "To my Diamond."
"You mean Yellow Diamond?" Alistair asked.
"No, I mean my true Diamond." Jasper shook her head "My… Pink Diamond."
"You don't say." Alistair mused "What was she like?"
"She… was the best thing to ever happen for Homeworld in a long time." Jasper declared "When I first emerged from the Beta Kindergarten, and I first met her, she was the most kind, caring and understanding, unlike the other Diamonds, who are cold and heartless."
"If they have hearts." Alistair added jokingly.
"As I was saying," Jasper continued, ignoring the joke "Pink Diamond saw her subjects as equals, not servants. I felt comfortable around her. I felt happy."
"What changed?" Alistair asked.
"It happened when the rebellion started." Jasper said "I was on guard duty, protecting Pink Diamond, as one of her human friends were visiting. Then, out of nowhere, I was attacked by Rose Quartz and her rebel cohorts and I was knocked unconscious. When I came to, they were gone. I looked into the throne room; all I saw was the human, crying over some shattered gem shards. Upon closer inspection, I saw they were Diamond shards…Pink Diamond shards."
"So Rose shattered Pink Diamond?" Alistair raised an eyebrow "Why?"
"I honestly don't know." Jasper sighed "All I know is that it caused a massive war and it drove Homeworld from Earth." She looked at him "If you would've met Pink Diamond, you would've loved her." She clenched her fists "But ever since that terrible day, I've always hated Rose. She took my Diamond from me, our beacon of hope."
"I see." Alistair nodded, somewhat understanding.
"Now, you can see why I hate the rebels." Jasper said "They took everything away from me. And I didn't see their Wardens any different either. I only saw them as Rose's attack dogs, killing for food and money."
"I understand where you're coming from." Alistair nodded "Not everyone was a fan of the Crystal Gems or the Wardens."
"But the worst part came for me after the war." Jasper told him "Every Gem was reassigned to another Diamond. Those who didn't automatically accumulate were put through 'reeducation' programs."
"How bad was it?" Alistair asked.
"Very bad." Jasper gritted her teeth "We were beaten, electrocuted, and those who failed were shattered. We were put through Hell."
Alistair sat next to her, placing a hand on her shoulder.
"I understand." Alistair said "But understand that not all of the Crystal Gems and Wardens are heartless jerks. Some of us actually give a damn and we try our best to help." He pointed a thumb at himself "Like me, for example. Same goes for Steven as well."
Jasper didn't seem convinced. Alistair noticed this, then stood up.
"How about this?" He smiled "Stay with us for the duration of the walk. After you see what we're fighting for, maybe your opinion of us might change."
"Maybe…" Jasper said.
"I assure you, not all of us are the same." Alistair assured "Trust me. Not all of it is as black and white as you might think."
Jasper thought for a moment, before giving a small smile.
"Alright, human." Jasper nodded "I'll see it all for myself."
"I'm glad to hear it." Alistair grinned "You know, you're actually quite cute, when your smile's not that of a madman."
"Whatever floats your boat, as your kind says." Jasper joked "Now, we'd better get moving."
They returned to the group, and then they proceeded through town together, making their way to the airport.
As the plane took off, the four cloaked figures watched from afar.
"How interesting." The first figure mused "It seems Jasper is being escorted by a group of humans."
"One of them being the offspring of Rose Quartz herself, no doubt." The second one snarled "We should've attacked sooner."
"Patience, Biotite." The first one tutted "We must only observe, for now."
"You're awfully patient, Serpentine." The third one remarked "Are you perhaps getting soft?"
"Of course not, Heliodor." The first one, called Serpentine, scowled "Mother demands that we stay in the shadows."
"That's true." The fourth one agreed "Mother would be very displeased if we were to reveal ourselves early."
"Perhaps." The third one, called Heliodor, sighed "But you must admit, Alabaster, if Mother does not get the results she desires, she will not be happy."
"You rush things too much, sister." The fourth one, called Alabaster, tutted "You must learn to be patient."
"We will talk about such minimal matters later." Serpentine declared "For now, we must continue to observe."
And here's the newest chapter! First off, sorry for the chapter being so long, but, like I said, I wanted to take my time with these stories, as to not rush them. Anyways, thanks for being so patient, and hope you guys are still enjoying the story! And be sure to review!