"Ah come on Fire, I thought you were all for friendly competition!" Roy groaned towards the bartender, "Why won't you do it?"

"You know perfectly well why I won't do it," Sapphire spat with a grin, "Don't act dumb, you know I don't drink."

"Oh come on, just one shot game!" Roy said, nudging his friend with his empty mug as he spoke, "I've already beaten everyone else here, I need some fresh competition!"

"Give it up Roy, she ain't budgin," A customer said from the far side of the bar, "I've been here for over 50 years and she's never drunk so much as a drop of that stuff."

"Atticus is right Roy," Sapphire chuckled, "I prefer to keep my mind sharp, so alcohols a no for me."

"Then why the h*** do you own a pub?" Roy spat as he slammed his mug on the bar.

"Cause I know how insane you humans can be when your not drunk and it wouldn't hurt to have someone level headed keep everything under control," Sapphire replied unphased, "Plus I enjoy the company that comes with the job-not to mention the pay. I've never had a drought."

"But Fire, this place is practically deserted," Roy complained, "Other than Ronni and that old fart Atticus, we're the only ones in the bar! Just how out of control could all of us get from such a small crowd?"

"I'll show you just how insane it can get in here if you keep callin me an old fart!" Atticus barked from the side of the bar, "Seriously, what's with you and those d*** nicknames?"

"What can I say, it's a talent of mine," Roy sighed dramatically, "Honestly, you two should be thanking me for my genius."

"You know, I might just take you up on that," Atticus said sarcastically, "Maybe the two of us could repay you by giving you your own fitting nickname. How do you like the name Jack-ass?"

"Jack what?" Roy spat, "Hey that's not fair at all!"

"Roys right Atticus," Sapphire chuckled as she sat on the bar (seeing how all three of her customers seemed content with their drinks), "You shouldn't insult donkeys like that, it's downright cruel."

"HEY!" Roy cried, though Sapphire and Atticus could barely hear him over their laughter.

Sapphire enjoyed running such an active pub, not only because she could meet new people (each one of them both similar and different than the last), but also to spend quality time with some of her closser friends who she hadn't seen in awhile. Atticus was one of her regulars, he was an old sailor with a stormy white beard, ocean green eyes, and skin that was deeply tanned and wrinkled from constant hot days under the sun. Yet despite his old age, Atticus was as wittful and sharp as ever. He was still an active fisherman along the bay of Empire City and was well known among the other sailors.

Roy was like most of his brothers and his motorcycle gang: Big, thirsty, and loud. Roy and his gang were practically the life of Starlight Tavern, and almost all the regulars were familiar with them. Though they all had their own jobs (although most of them worked under the same roof), they all met together at Starlight Tavern at least 5 to 4 times a week, and during the summer they all traveled together doing who knew what around the continent (Sapphire had even joined them for a week, it was a moment of her life she'd never forget), but there were a few rare moments where only one or two of them could make it, and on this particularly lazy morning, Roy was the only member of the gang to show up. Roy was a rough man with shaggy brown hair and sharp blue eyes that matched his wise-guy attitude. Roy was more comedic than he was strong, but Sapphire suspected he knew how to defend himself when it really mattered, though thankfully she'd never seen him in any mortal danger. Roy was easy to talk to and even easier to entertain, and Sapphire enjoyed spending quality time with him.

Then there was Ronnie, another one of Sapphires regulars, though he was far different than any of her other customers, one with very few similarities. Ronnie was a pale man with black hair and grey eyes, he couldn't have been much older than 30 and always kept to himself. His visits to the pub were more random and spontaneous than anyone else Sapphire knew, her future vision rarely predicted his entry like she did with her other customers, and only did so past midnight when almost no one was around. There was a certain darkness that followed Ronnie wherever he went, one that spoke for itself and changed the atmosphere around him. It was something Sapphire suspected he wanted to drown out with Alcohol, yet despite visiting a pub, he never once ordered anything but water, and after that he would sit in the corner away from anyone else, as though he didn't want to spoil their good time without being asked. Sapphire would have understood if he chose to use alcohol as an escape, but she respected him for not doing so at the same time. When it was just Ronnie and Sapphire, he would sit at the bar and make generally casual talk about sports or the weather as Sapphire worked or cleaned up the place. She wanted to understand his burden and help him with whatever it was that had such a heavy effect on him, but she knew better than to ask. Sometimes she was even tempted to look into his future to find out what was wrong, but she never went through with it. It was his life, whether he wanted to share his life issues or not was his choice, Sapphire wouldn't press for details against his will. Furthermore, the fact that he came to the pub and didn't drink said something else all together. He didn't come here for liquor, he came to this bar as an escape, to take a break from whatever monster that existed in his life, and the last thing he needed was to be reminded of whatever it was he was avoiding. So Sapphire continued to talk to him in his visits, sometimes it was nothing more than a hello and a goodbye, but Sapphire sensed that it meant something to Ronnie, she sensed that he was grateful for their friendship, no matter how small it was.

"So Roy, where are the others tonight?" Sapphire asked as the door swung open and another customer came in.

"Ah, you know, same old stuff," Roy replied as the customer sat near the edge of the bar, "Guss and Morton have the auto body and some meeting tomorrow, so they had to call it a night early."

"You mean earlier than 4:38 in the morning?" Sapphire chuckled as she floated to the new customer, "That's believable. What can I get you?"

"A cold beer'd be fine," The stranger grumbled while remaining hidden under a black hoodie.

"Coming right up," Sapphire said as she floated to her familier station, "What about Lucy and Carl? Aren't they normally here for date night?"

"That's right, I forgot to tell you that Lucy finally got that promotion," Roy chuckled.

"No kidding? Good for her," Sapphire replied as she handed the customer a beer, "Was Carl okay with her skipping date night?"

"Ah you know him, he was all for it," Roy sighed, "And besides, he's got a few relatives from his moms side visiting, so he has his hands pretty full."

"Ah geez, you don't think his Aunt with the glass eyes coming again do you?" Sapphire chuckled, "I swear she's one of the most terrifying old ladies I've ever met, and that's saying something, I've meet more than my fair share of intimidating females back on hom-"

Suddenly Sapphire was struck with a future vision, one that was coming from the stranger. She could see him walking home an hour before sunrise, staggering from left to right along the sidewalk and clearly drunk. Suddenly he stumbled in front of an apartment before he took off his hoodie, and door swung open from the inside….

"What, from homeworld?" Roy asked, drawing Sapphire back into reality, "Woof! I'm glad I never had to meet any of those rotten clods as you so often put it. She and her husband practically raised Carl, but man is she scary-and it sure doesn't help that she doesn't approve of Lucy. Hey, are you listening to me Fire?"

"She had another vision," Atticus sighed without so much as looking up from his paper, "Something strong from the way it looks."

"Right as alway Atticus," Sapphire chuckled before floating towards the stranger as he lifted the beer to his mouth. "Woah woah, hold on a sec," She chuckled as she snatched the beer away from the customer, "I'm gonna have to see some kinda identification from you first."

"H-Hey!" The stranger whined before clearing his throat, "I-I mean-what gives lady? You didn't need that when you first gave me the beer!"

"That was before I had a vision of you walking down the street a few hours from now like you were on a balance beam," Sapphire snickered, holding the beer just out of his reach, "You sure you can handle your liquor?"

"Of course I can," The stranger spat defensively, "This isn't my first time drinking you know!"

"Really now?" Sapphire asked in amusement, "Cause I've never seen you around this pub, and I've been here since the day it's opened, though judging from your sweatshirt, it's not like your new to the area." The gem nodded towards the 'Empire High' logo the sweatshirts that the boy had been trying to cover up with his arms.

"Yeah, and that high school sweatshirt doesn't exactly look too big on you," Roy added, looking closely at the stranger a few steps away from him, "Just how old are you kid?"

"That's none of your concern," The stranger stuttered, "Why do you even care?"

"I care because this is my pub and I can't be selling liquor to anyone underaged," Sapphire replied, "Look kid, your not fooling anyone. I can get you some water or some cider if you want, but your not gonna-"

"Oh come on lady! Look, I got a lot of cash, I swear I'm old enough, I just forgot my ID at home," The stranger cried as he pulled out a wad of cash from his pocket, "But I did bring enough for a couple drinks okay? Just give me the-hey! What do you think your-"

Before the stranger could finish his sentence, Atticus toor the hood off the boys head and revealed his face. The boy couldn't have been any older than 16, his shocked expression reminded Sapphire of a child who was caught after trying to steal his mom's cookies.

"I-um-I know how this must look, but-" The boy gave a sigh as he admitted to defeat, "Okay fine, you caught me alright? So I'm not 21, big deal."

"Kid, trust me, it's not worth it to drink right now," Sapphire sighed, "Not while your brains-"

"Still undeveloped? Vulnerable? Yeah yeah I know about all that," The teenager groaned, "I already got the lecture from school."

"Well you sure ain't acting like it kid," Roy spat, "Otherwise you wouldn't have showed up in a pub past 4 am ordering a beer!"

"I don't need a lecture from you too alright?" The teenager spat, "Your not my dad or anything! Why can't you just mind your own business?"

"Kid, you were just asking me for a beer, I'm pretty sure you made it my business when you walked in under a fake ID," Sapphire said, more amused than annoyed at this point, "I'm not asking for your life's story or anything, it's just a bit weird how you happen to know the consequenses of underaged drinking but came regardless."

The teenager didn't reply as his face reddened and he put his hoodie over his head again (though not enough to conceal his face like he had last time). Sapphire was beginning to sense some uneasy tension from the teenager now, it wasn't nearly as heavy as Ronnies, but it seemed heavy enough for him to drown his sorrows in liquor.

"Look kid, I'm not going anywhere," Sapphire sighed as she sat in front of the stranger (whose eyes were still glued to the floor), "I'll still be here when your 21, you can come for a beer then, but I can't give any now, you understand. In the meanwhile I could offer you some cider if you still want to hang out before heading home."

The stranger sat in silence for a moment and stared at the ground like he wanted it to melt. Sapphire got the impression that he wanted to say something, but chose to keep it to himself.

"Ah what the h***, I got some time to kill," He finally sighed, folding his arms along the bar as he spoke.

"Hm, I don't suppose you know a kid Anthony by chance, would you?" Roy asked as Sapphire turned to find the apple cider, "Anthony Gerom?"

"Um…...no, I don't think so," The boy replied, "Why, is he your son or something?"

"He's my first cousin twice removed-or, 2nd cousin first removed, a son of my one of my relatives anyways," Roy said, scratching his head as he did so, "Anyhow, he goes to Empire High, are you sure you haven't seen him on the basketball team?"

"No, I barely know the basketball team," The teenager sighed, "I'm not really into sports…...I'm more of the literary type."

"Ah, I see," Sapphire replied as she placed the cup of cider in front of the teenager, "I'm assuming your not much of a fan for the pep-rally?"

"Don't make me laugh," the boy chuckled (ironically), "A large crowded sweaty room full of screaming teenagers? Pass! I skip that every year, gives me time to work on homework."

"I hear you kid," Roy cackled, "Heck, Anthony's in the JV baseball, and even he admits the pep rallies lost its flare! Of course, he doesn't exactly do any homework in his spare time, but you get the idea."

"Well he should really start if he doesn't want to fail math," The boy laughed, "Midterms are in less than a month, if he has for math then she'll crush him."

"Oh boy, the classic former-Sargent teacher eh?" Sapphire chuckled, "How bad is she on a scale of 1-10?"

"...12."

"Geez, she doesn't sound like the teacher to mess with," Atticus chuckled from the other side of the bar, "Don't tell me you've ever gotten on her bad side."

"She's got nothing but a bad side," The boy sighed, "She's ruthless, especially during midterms and exams. If your cousin is slacking off in her class, he's toast."

"And yet here you are in a pub past 4 am on a school night," Roy cackled, "Your worried about Anthony failing Midterms? Ha! Talk about the kettle calling the pot black."

"Yea yea, fair enough," The boy sighed after drinking some of his cider, "Look, this isn't a regular thing for me okay? I just…..had to get away for awhile, you know?"

"Take as much time as you need kid," Sapphire said sympathetically, "By the way, are you gonna tell us your name, or are we gonna have to just keep calling you 'kid'?"

"Oh-um-K-Kyle," Kyle said quickly, "Sorry, I didn't even realize I didn't introduce myself…."

"No sweat kid," Roy chuckled, "The name's Roy, I'm really the only normal one around here. The old fart on the end of the bar is Atticus, and this Ice Witch is Sapphi-ouch!" Roy suddenly cried as a boot collided with the back of his head, "What the h***?"

"I told you to stop with those nicknames," Atticus grumbled as he came over and retrieved his boot, "You gotta learn some respect."

"How, by hurling something at my head?"

"Yup."

"Your insane."

"Your the pot calling the kettle black."

"Wait wait-what's your name?" Kyle asked, much more intrigued with the bartender in front of him.

"Sapphire, though contrary toward Roy's nickname," Sapphire added, smacking her friend on the backside of the head playfully, "My friends call me Fire, not Ice Witch."

"Sapphire?" Kyle repeated the name like he was talking to a ghost, "Wait-are you one of those gem people? The ones who fought monsters and stuff?"

"Mm-hm," Sapphire said with a nod, "I wasn't an technically official member, butI did my part when pus came to shove."

"Wow….my history teacher talked a lot about you guys-he showed us a lot of videos made by some Ronaldo-but I didn't think that gem stuff was real," Kyle gasped in amazement, "Wait, how long have you been around?..."

"Meh, I kinda lost track a few thousand years ago," Sapphire replied with a shrug, "Who can really say?"

"A few thousand years?" Kyle cried, "Oh come on, there's no way your that old, just look at you!"

"I'll take that as a complement," Sapphire chuckled, "Believe it or not, I'm much older than I look."

"Yea but you sure don't always act like it," Roy cackled.

"Like your one to talk," Sapphire snickered, "In case you haven't noticed, I decided to run a pub, just how mature do you think I would be?"

"So, um, Sapphire," Kyle stuttered, "Just-do you know any other-er, gems?"

"Sure, but there not really around here," Sapphire chuckled, "Most of them live in Beach City, but there are more scattered all over the earth. One of my friends lives in Scotland actually, though it's been a few years since we've seen each other, we still keep in touch."

"I see," Kyle yawned as he placed down his mug.

"Well, thanks for the service as always Fire," Atticus called as he slapped his payment on the bar, "Time to head over to the docs. See you the same time tomorrow."

"I'm looking forward to it," Saphire called as Atticus made his way to the door, "What about you Kyle? Think you'll be heading home soon?"

"Eh, not much of a point," Kyle sighed, "School starts at like 7:00, and it's almost 5, I doubt an hour of sleep will make a difference-if anything it'd just throw me off."

"Fair enough, are you at least gonna get your stuff from home," Sapphire asked as she took Roys empty glass."

"Don't have too," Kyle lifted his backpack as he spoke, "I….didn't really go home after school, so all my stuff's still with me."

"Geez kid, ain't your parents nervous?" Sapphire gave Roy a nudge as he spoke, not wanting to intrude on his life.

"Honesty, my….family….might not even be home," Kyle laughed dryly, though he didn't smile as he spoke, "And even if they are, they probably wouldn't notice if I was there, much less if I weren't. This…..isn't the first time I skipped home…it is the first time I came to a bar though."

"Well, try not to make it your last," Sapphire said with a smile, "It'd be nice to see your face around here more often."

"Heh, thanks," Kyle chuckled, this time with a smile, "I wouldn't mind hanging out here either."

"Well, don't rush on out just yet," Roy yawned as he stretched, "If ya some time to kill before school then stay here and I can buy you some eggs, my treat."

"Thanks, but I still have my own money so you really….wait, you sell food here?" Kyle asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Yup, this is sorta like an old-fashioned pub, despite the name," Sapphire gestured to a menu hanging above their heads that could have been easily overlooked, "It serves alcohol, food, and even offers a few rooms upstairs, though no one's asked for a room since that hotel opened up from across the street," Sapphire added as she took away Kyle's empty cup.

"Hm, not bad," Kyle said with a half grin, "Yea, I wouldn't mind some eggs right about now."

"Scrambled or hard boiled?"

"Whatever's cheaper."

"HA! I like this kid," Roy cackled, "Go for the scrambled, trust me!"

"I'll take your word for it," Kyle chuckled as he took held up his backpack, "I might as well catch up on some school work while I'm here."

"Ugh, you do that kinda stuff on purpose?" Roy groaned, "Come on kid, you can't waste all your time on stuff like that."

"Well I should if I want a scholarship to a good collage," Kyle replied as he pulled out a fairly large text book, "You can never be too careful."

"Ain't that the truth," Sapphire chuckled as she floated towards the back, "Alright, you kids hang in there."

"Hey!" Roy called back, "Only one of us here is underaged!"

"Ah yes, my bad," Sapphire chuckled (the two of them could still hear her from the small kitchen), "Kyle's much more mature than you, please forgive my ignorance."

"I'm used to it," Kyle laughed, "I'm sure it won't happen again."

"You know, sometimes I feel like you forget I've got feelings Ice Witch," Roy groaned as he stretched casually along the bar.

"Yeah? Well sometimes I feel like you forgot I can burn your eggs," Sapphire called, "You know I've got a no-refund policy."

"No you don't!"

"I do for people who call me Ice Witch."

"You never learn do you?" Kyle snickered as he flipped the pages through his text book, "I'm assuming you've done this before?"

"You catch on pretty quick, dontcha?" Roy chuckled, "I bet you'd get along well with a friend of mine."

"You mean your cousin?"

"Nope, she's a member of my gang! I swear everytime I look at that girl she's got her head in a book, she's two or three of at a time, I bet you two bookworms would have a lot to talk about."

"She's…..a member of your gang?"

"Yup!"

"Um-how old is she again?"

"About 19, maybe a little older."

"Does she go to college?"

"Already graduated."

"What the-what is she doing in a-gang? Ah, no offense."

"Oh come on kid, it's not like we break the law or anything," Roy sighed, "We just have a bit of fun every now and then. But yea, you wouldn't expect someone like her to be in such a crazy group! Let me tell ya, the story behind it is a good one! See, back when-"

"YO ROY!"

Kyle's conversation with Roy was suddenly cut short as the door slammed open and 4 or five people barged, breaking the seemingly quiet atmosphere in the morning.

"Hey, where have you guys been?" Roy cried as his friends swarmed the bar, "You were all so late, we didn't think you were coming!"

"Yeah, sorry about that," A man sitting next to Roy snickered, "You can thank Tom for the delay!"

"Oh come on, anyone could have mistaken that motorcycle for mine!" Tom argued, "I mean the cop had it parked right next to mine!"

"You think you would have put two and two together when everyone around us started slowing down!"

"Or how about when you turned the sirens on and freaked out that old man?"

"Or when the actual police showed up?"

"Hey hey, it's not like any of you could tell either," The man barked defensively, "You guys never said anything while it was all going down!"

"We tried, but you couldn't here us over the d*** sirens!" A woman with long black hair cried.

"Oh come on give me some slack! It's only the third time this has happened, at least it was a different cop this time."

"Your unbelievable T," The woman sighed, "Hey Roy, are you gonna introduce us to your new friend?" The woman added, gesturing towards the teenager sitting relatively close to Roy.

"Oh-er-h-hi," Kyle stuttered with a crooked smile, "I'm-um-I'm Kyle, and-"

"Speak up kid, none of us can hear you!" One of the men cried as he leaned over the edge of the bar, "Come on, we won't bite!"

"This kid's name is Kyle, he goes to Empire High," Roy exclaimed as he swung an arm over Kyles shoulder, "What's the matter kid, you were talking just fine before!"

"Yeah, well….there wasn't a lot of people before either," Kyle muttered as his face became a dark shade of red, "I'm not great around…...people."

"What? I never saw you as the anxious type," Roy chuckled, "Don't worry kid, we're not the jude-y type, no need to feel all shy around us!"

"W-Well, it's not exactly something I can control," Kyle murmured as he flipped his hoodie back on, "But thanks…...you guys seem alright…."

"Sure, they do now," Sapphire said as she emerged from the kitchen with her classic smirk, "When they first show up their the life of the party, but after 5 hours of destroying the liquor bar and scaring away all the decent customers, they suddenly don't seem to great."

"Hey, we practically run this place!" Tom cried, "We're your most faithful customers, your bar wouldn't be running if it weren't for us Fire!"

"Okay okay, I think your giving yourself too much credit," Sapphire chuckled as she placed the plates of scrambled eggs in front of her customers, "But I have to admit, you guys do keep me running."

"See?" Roy snapped, "You owe us a lot Ice Witch, we deserve some kinda reward for our labors!"

"Labors?" Kyle chuckled, "Showing up to a bar and drinking the entire stock of liquor is work now?...can I get that job?"

"HA! Trust me kid, it's much harder than it looks! But then again, you wouldn't know" Roy then turned to his friends and spoke in a lower tone, "He's underaged," He said in a loud whisper, as though it wasn't already a common fact.

"Wooooow, I didn't know kids in school couldn't drink," The girl responded sarcastically, "D***, would've been nice to have known that when I was in high school. Well, too late now!"
"If the kid can't drink, what is he even doing here?"

"Oh-um-I-" Kyle stuttered as his face redden once more.

"Kyle here just wanted to stop by and say hi before he went to school," Sapphire chimed in as she sprinkled some salt on the plates before them, "And I thought I'd treat him to some breakfast. Right, Roy?" Sapphire asked as she looked toward her friends general direction and picked up a spray bottle.

"Ah, yeah, exactly," Roy chuckled as he took a bite of his eggs, "What the Ice witch said, I-" Roy suddenly stopped talking as he began to gag, as though he were choking on something stuck in his throat, followed by the hysterical laughter of his gang as he spat his scrambled eggs across the bar.

"What the h-" Roy coughed, not able to finish his sentence, "What did you do to my d*** eggs?"

"What's the matter Roy? Can't handle a little pepper?" Sapphire chuckled as she sprayed down the bar.

"I can when I know about it," Roy spat, now having to yell to be heard over his hysterical friends, "I nearly choked on that crap! What were you thinking?"

"I was thinking you needed to be reminded not to mess with a Queen in her palace," Sapphire replied as she wiped down her bar, "You knew what you were up against when you called me Ice Witch, if you can't handle the heat then get out of the kitchen smart-a**."

"Yeash, aren't you the sensitive one," Roy grumbled as he examined what was left of his eggs.

"HA! You nearly choked on a bit of pepper and she's sensitive?" Tom spat, "Just what kinda logic is that?"

"Dude, just don't call her Ice witch!" The girl cackled, "Is that so hard?"

"Hey, you know how I get about my nicknames Seaweed," Roy replied defensively, "Once I think of one it sticks!"

"Yea well Fire already had a nickname!"

"But she doesn't have fire powers!"

"THAT'S NOT THE POINT!"

"Wait-did you just call her-Seaweed?" Kyle said, glancing at the woman with confusion, "That's a bit…..strange….."

"Please, you should hear some of the other stuff he comes up with," The woman chuckled as she leaned over the bar, "But yea, I dyed my hair green once in 10th grade and he's been calling me that name ever since!"

"Seriously?" One of the men asked, "I thought he called you that because you smoked weed or something."

"What the h*** is wrong with you?" Seaweed cried as she smacked the man on the arm, "What the h*** gave you that idea?"
"I don't know," The man chuckled over the laughter of his comrades, "I mean you always had that weird smell and I just figured-"

"Oh what, you mean soap? Then again you wouldn't know that 't-know-how-to-take-a-bath!"

"I know what a bath is, I just think it's a waste of good water!"

"Honestly, I thought humans were more evolved than that," Sapphire chuckled as she sat on the edge of her bar, "Honestly Chuck, your really no better than a caveman."

"Hey, give the caveman a little more credit Fire," Tom cackled, "At least he'd stop repeating the same thing over and over while expecting the same results. I mean that's-"

"I know I know, that's 'the definition of in insanity'"," Chuck sighed, "You guys have told me that once or twice before."

"And yet here we are, telling it to you again."

"Oh come on, cut me some slack!" Chuck cried, "Roy, help me out here!"

"No can do bud," Roy replied as he ate a mouthful of eggs (notebly from Kyles plate), "You got yourself into this one!"

"Yeah, seriously," Seaweed cried, "But hey, it wasn't as bad as the time you stole that old ladies motorcycle from that pizza place."

"What, you mean the one in Beach City?" Chuck cried, "How was I supposed to know that was hers? She seemed like a sweet old lady!"

"Well she sure didn't act like it after you stole her motorcycle!"

"It was an accident!"

"Er-S-Sapphire," Kyle said, not wanting to disturb the others, "Could I…...get a new order of eggs, please?" He asked, looking at his soon-to-be empty plate next to him.

"Ah, hold on a sec," Sapphire said with a grin, before picking up a rolled up newspaper and smacking Roy on the head with it, "What did I tell you about eating other peoples food?"

"Hey! I only had to after you poisoned mine," Roy said defensively, almost choking on his eggs from the sudden attack.

"Poisoned is a bit of a strong word, don't you think," Sapphire snickered, "There was only a 5% chance you would have choked on that, no biggie."

"5%?"
"Okay okay, 7%, but still no big deal."

"Easy for you to say-you weren't the only one eating the d*** eggs!"

"And I also wasn't the one playing with fire," Sapphire replied as she placed her hand under the counter, "You know Roy, if you don't stop referring me by that atrocious name, I might have to teach you a lesson through….other methods."

Roy narrowed his eyes toward the bartender.

"Now look who's playing with fire. Just what do you think your-"

Suddenly, Sapphire lifted a bucket and dropped it on top of the bar with a slam, shaking the entire bar and the food laying on it as she did so (not that the others payed much mind to this). Kyle expected the bucket to be filled with ice cubes or beer bottles, but was surprised to find the bucket full to the brim with bright neon pink paint.

"Sapphire," Roy said, rather uneasy, "I don't like where this is going….."

"Why do you even have that?" Kyle laughed, quite surprised and amused by the randomness.

"Let's just say I had a hunch that I would need it," Sapphire replied as she floated over the bar with the bucket at hand, "Roy, which motercykle is yours again?"

"Uh-"

"It's the one with the komodo dragon painted on the side, can't miss is," Tom said, taking a pause from his conversation to give Sapphire her information.

"Heh, funny thing about komodo dragons," Sapphire grew a mischievous look as she spoke, "They look excellent in pink."

"How would you kn-HEY WAIT A MINUTE!" Roy cried as he jumped to his feet and knocked over his chair, "DON'T YOU DARE!"

"Fellas, could you-"

"Already on it fire," Tom said as he and Chuck grabbed Roys arms, "All taken care of!"

"Thanks guys," Sapphire laughed with a solute.

"Ice witch!" Roy snapped, "I swear-"

"What's what, you want pink tires too?" Sapphire asked as she floated towards the door, "As you wish!"

"D*****!"

"Hey, left my keys at the bar," Atticus said, coming in suddenly and nodding towards sapphire, "Oh and here, figured you'd need this," He added as he handed sapphire a brush.

Kyle stared at the old man in amazement. Not only was he unphased by the chaos spewing about him, but he somehow knew that Sapphire would need a paintbrush, as though he knew this was going to happen.

"I-what-how?" Kyle stuttered as Atticus casually walked up to the bar and took a pair of keys from the table.

The man looked towards Kyle and let out a small chuckle, as though he were the only strange thing in the bar.

"Welcome to Starlight Tavern."

That being said, the man walked past Sapphire (giving her a small nod as he did so) and promptly left the store without another word.

Kyle glanced over towards the loud group sitting next to them, half of them were trying to keep Roy under control while the other half just laughed or helped themselves to some of the Taverns beverages. The gang reminded Roy of the kids at Kyles high school: Big and Loud. But they weren't quite the same, Kyle couldn't tell if it was because they were adults, but he felt much more relaxed around these people than he did with the teens at school. They seemed more easy going, less judgmental, like he could do or say anything that came to mind without being judged for it. The atmosphere was strange and new to Kyle, yet somehow, it was almost familiar, something very home like. The teenager smiled to himself as he picked up his jar and drank the last remainder of his cider.

"I could get used to this…." The boy thought to himself as he closed his eyes, before something came across his mind that caused his eyes to shoot open and for cider to spray across the bar.

"Wait-was she JUST FLOATING?"

-Epilogue-

"Hey guys, Fire here. I'd say that made a good 2nd chapter, I'll never get over people's reaction to me floating XD. Right Nox?"

"..."

"Nox?"

"..."

"What's this, the 'great and powerful narrators too good for her own Epilogue?"

"..."

"..."

"-_-"

"..."

"._."

"-_-"

"._."

"-_-"

"...your still mad at me, aren't you?"

"NO FREAKING KIDDING!"

"*sigh* Nox, you're too sensitive, you know that?"

"SENSITIVE? That's easy for you to say, you weren't the one who was called….the d word…"

"You mean Diamond?"

"DoN't sAy tHAt nAmE!"

"Honestly, I would have forgotten that I called you that in the last epilogue if you weren't still holding a grudge."

"Oh yes, I'm sure you would have just LOVED it if I had magically forgotten how you compared me to the heartless-no-good-triple-chinned-spineless-yellow-bellied-cruel-insensitive-gem-shattering beasts!"

"...triple chind?"

"TRIPLE CHINED!"

"Riiiiiiiiiight. Oh, and for the record, only one of them has a yellow belly."

"ThAT's nOt tHE PoInT yOu INseNsitIVe HICBSJCNJSCACACAUSBCBSVCHSHB-"

"Nox, calm down!"

"Never!"

"Please!"

"No!"

"Your scaring the viewers more than you did in your Yillestan High fanfic!"

"*gasp* you take that back you-you-not-nice-person!"

"Nox-"

"Or should I say, not ice person!"

"..."

"Don't look at me like that!"
"*sigh* Look, Nox, I didn't mean it, okay? I've been to homeworld, I've seen White diamond face to face, and I can promise you that your nothing like her!"

"...you mean it?"

"Yes, of course! If White Diamond had been as mad at me as you were, she would have shattered me by now. You've been mad at me for like a week, and you haven't so much as laid a finger on me."

"Of course I wouldn't! Your my friend, I would never hurt you! (and not just because it's impossible since your a fictional character inside a fanfiction)"

"I know you wouldn't, and I know that your nothing like any of the diamonds, and I'm sorry if you thought I did, I was joking, honest."

"...okay."

"Are we cool?"

"...yeah, we're cool :)."

"Good :D"

"Yeah!"

"Alright, now we've taken enough of the viewers time (or those who are still reading this anyways XD), I think we should give them the preview and call it a night."

"Sounds good to me! Plus, I gotta finish writing the next chapter (I've been looking forward to it for a while now)"

"Yeah, and maybe do some homework while your at it?"

"Hahahahahahahaa-no."

"*sigh* hey, it's your life. Alright, thank you all for your patience, here's the preview."

"See you next time folks!"

*-Flaaaaaaaaaaash!-*

"Vic, nice to see you again," Sapphire chuckled as she floated over to her fairly new friend, "Sorry that I took so long, I was on the phone with an old friend."

"I can see," Victor chuckled as his eyes drifted toward the old fashioned phone sitting near the back, "I'm surprised that phone still works, it's ancient! What's it from-the 1920s?"

"1912, actually," Sapphire replied as a new customer sat a few sets from Victor, "and yeah, it's been a bit hard keeping in running for so long, but you'd be surprised what an old timer like me is capable of."

"I don't doubt that for a second," Victor laughed, "Still, why don't you get a new one, like a touch screen?"

"Meh, waste of money," Sapphire replied as she poured her customer a champagne glass, "Those phones may be new now, but they'll be as ancient as the one I have in a few years. Besides, I only need a phone to call people, something simple."

"That's a fair point," Victor murmured, still staring at the phone as he took a sip of his beer. "Do you know what I'm about to ask?"

"How many gems are still on earth?"

"Of course you do."

"You'll get used to it," Sapphire chuckled, "Honestly, I don't know for certain. A lot of them were….well, shattered, and those who weren't…...aren't quite right in the head…" Sapphire became quiet for a moment as she stared off into space, before snapping back into reality and shaking her head, "But-er-I think there's still a few gems who survived the final attack. Aqua was one of the lucky ones, she was too far to be affected."

Sapphire could tell Victor wanted to ask more as he opened his mouth, but stopped suddenly, as though he could tell it was a topic Sapphire rarely discussed, even to those she was closest to.

"Is there….any other gems….besides you and…..Aqua?" He finally asked, not wanting to get too personal.

"HA! You should ask that guy who showed up from Jersey the other day," Chuck cackled, suddenly reminding Victor that he was in a bussy Tavern, "Apparently he saw a gem flying over his city and threw his shoe at it!"

"What, you mean that blue chick with the short hair?" Sapphire asked, returning back to her normal self, "Yeah, I heard about that, that guy was pretty wasted, you sure he wasn't seeing things?"

"Hey, lots of weird crap goes around that town near the beach," Seaweed replied after draining her mug, "I wouldn't be surprised if one or two gems lived there."

"Wait-seriously?" Victor asked, getting a nervous look, "But, um….they're not hostile or anything, are they…?"

"Depends if you are towards them," Sapphire said with a menacing grin, before returning to her classic half grin and turning around to refill a mug of beer, "But no, if there's any gems on earth, they've got good intentions towards humans. No need to worry vic clod hasn't come from homeworld in literal centuries, you likely won't ever see one in your lifetime. Anyhow, how's life been since moving-"

Suddenly, the door to the Tavern crashed into the wall with a large crash, followed by a large smash as a glass cup near the door shattered against the ground. The live band playing there that night came to a stop as everyone's attention became drawn to the stranger standing at the door.

"WHERE THE H*** IS SHE?"
A shiver crawled down Sapphires spine as the loud thunderous voice echoed in the deathly quiet bar. She didn't have to face the stranger to know where she was from.