Author's note.

So I know I promised you all a longer one. But real life has this tendency of hijacking all my time lately and well. Sorry.

Anyway.

I hope you like this chapter, we have a dream scene and a lot of talking, and the beginnings of some longer action.

In the other news. For those who also read my other story last week. (As I am not quite sure how else to communicate here, but through stories.)

Wow. Thank you all. I did not expect you all to like this thing so much. Honestly, I didn't. That was supposed to be one shot. Just y'know captcha gnomes and stuff. BUT. Seeing as there is like eleven people waiting for the next chapter I will make more. Well, I don't wanna disappoint, but then again I need to some time to think where I want to go with this. As such you can expect the new chapter in two weeks. Thank you once again and bye :D

And speaking of which. Next chapter of this story will be next saturday.

Thank you.

The last thing Steven could remember was brief pain. And, after that?

Darkness.

The world although hidden from sight could be felt in the sticky goo of dream reality. Invisible shapes changed and twisted as they moved past the man. Rather felt then noticed they made no sound and they're vague apparitions were a total mystery.

It all seemed like a nightmare really.

But it was not scary, not yet anyway, the projections of the subconscious bore no threat to him and only seemed to herald something bigger. And they did.

Steven finally realized that his body was there with him. He was walking the dark path towards some unknown goal. The shadows now were more defined, resting by the sides of the road, barely any different from each other.

He walked for hours or minutes, the feeling was hazy and his memory eluded him. But he knew it was some amount of time already. And so it felt fine, the moment was right, it was to be expected, nothing unusual.

Locked doors appeared without appearing in front of him.

It was like they stood there forever, blocking his only path, like a toothpick in the fields. He couldn't go around, he couldn't go through. It was the only door, and they were locked.

Why?

Well, Steven just knew that. It is dream logic, and you can't question that.

So he turned on his heel to stare into the darkness, only to gaze upon the path that was no longer there. Or rather it was there, but tilted and twisted in such a way he would scratch his head bare if he dared to think about it.

Which he didn't.

Not with the feeling that suddenly overtook his whole being.

Now, he was afraid.

Two shapes whirled to existence where he looked and he could tell they were as scared as he was. Terrified even. Vague feeling of knowledge told him one of them was Pearl, even though he could see neither. Their faces were a blur of black and grey and they're silhouettes as meaningless as any part of the dream.

But the feeling was there.

And he could feel there was something different about her. Something not quite right, not fitting the mage he met. The man on the other hand was a mystery. Who was he, Steven could not tell. All he knew that he was sadness.

"Steven, get in the house."

The Pearl silhouette turned to him, speaking silently her words. But even with no sound the message was still clear.

"Now!"

Steven couldn't read her lips or body language they were, after all, not existent in this plane of blackness. But he did not waste any time to follow the command this pseudo memory was screaming at him.

The doors opened with ease.

Inside there was path yet again, but the space was also more defined. Many object so nearly existing in the pure void, the memories almost so vivid to actually be remembered. They all banged at the Steven's subconsciousness begging to be released into this dream world of his. But he still could not grasp any of them. So many, almost remembered things.

He went past them in a hurry.

He knew this was not the inside the voice was commanding him to reach. This familiar space behind the door was not good enough, he had to go further.

Long steps and fast pace in just few dream minutes took him the few feet he had to travel. He wanted to walk further as he still felt nowhere near his destination. The path stopped here however, single line of darkness transformed into a little circle of sorts and he was right in the middle. He knew it was bad.

Still he was not prepared for the loud crash and splinters and rocks and screams and….

Whaa!

Steven woke up suddenly. His muscles tensed and he almost jolted up before he realized that was the reality. His senses were muddled and as he laid there his mind began drifting back to his peculiar nightmare.

Closing his eyes he tried to grab at the few wisps of his already fading memories. Trying to piece all random thoughts into one coherent image proved to be impossible. One sentence, however, became crystal clear to him however.

- "Amethyst, get in the house. Now."

Deep furrow appeared at his forehead. He was quite sure this was not how his dream went. Not to mention the deep, calm, voice that spoke them was definitely not the shriek he remembered.

- "Oh, come on. We can't just wait here for her to come by."

At this point Steven was already sure this was not part of his musings. Even through his fading sleepiness he recognized the owner of the voice as Amethyst and the previous speaker as Garnet. Neither of them seemed to notice him waking up however.

- "I'll just pop out for a few minutes, scout the area and be back before Steve here even wakes up."

- "He already did."

Or maybe they did.

This made Steven open his eyes and last remnants of the night terror to flee from his memory for good. Realizing he's been caught listening on their conversation he sat up and mumbled awkward apology.

- "Sorry. Didn't want interrupt you guys."

Steven finally got good look around the room. And, some things were much different than he remembered.

Amethyst for one was standing by the door, which for some reason were on his right. The only other person in the room was Garnet. She was sitting by the forge, completely unfazed by the heat, her legs folded beneath her. At this moment Steven realized something.

He could not remember falling asleep.

Try as he may his memory ended at the talk he had with Connie. Which raised another important question flag in his mind.

- "Where is Connie though?"

And as another thought struck him he immediately amended himself.

- "Is she with Pearl? I can't really remember anything since I talked with her."

Garnet was up by this point reaching her hand to help Steven get up on his feet. But it was Amethyst who spoke first.

- "We think so. Somebody had to off the Hunter that zapped us. But, we don't know if they survived it though, I'll tell you that thing is one mean beast to kill."

- "What!?"

Amethyst bluntness startled the man. He still could not remember what happened and the thought of his best friend being in mortal danger because of his actions scared him immensely.

- "Where are they? We need to go help them, guys! What if they are hurt?"

His pleads for reassurance were soon answered as Garnet put both of his hands on his shoulders and with iron grip steadied the man.

- "Steven, relax. They are fine. Trust me."

Steven was still distraught, but strong yet tender grip grounded him in the reality and helped him push his most troubling thoughts away. That is until Amethyst spoke again.

- "Yeah, and we have loads of our own troubles."

- "Amethyst!"

- "What? He has the right to know."

Garnet was annoyed. For the first time in the short time Steven knew her he saw her expressing such strong emotion. He could clearly see that this was something that blind woman did not want him to hear.

Which made him even more curious.

He judged for a second if it was okay to pry for details, seeing as Garnet was clearly uncomfortable with the topic, but if Amethyst was right. There were lives at stake here.

- "What do you mean? Didn't Pearl and Connie kill whatever was threating us already? And what happened actually, I can't remember anything!"

Amethyst wanted to speak again, but with a shake of her hand Garnet promptly silenced her.

- "Let me explain Steven."

And Garnet started talking.

It wasn't long tale by far, but we mostly know that part already. How the talk went and the way Garnet saved the day. What Hunter is and how it stole their souls.

We even heard how it immediately escaped and probably contacted its maker who was now on the way with reinforcements in case anything went awry.

Which of course it did.

And how they wouldn't be able to face them because none of them was… Oh, we did not know those things.

Then maybe we better listen.

- "But if Connie could fight the Hunter because she's human than I can too! I am a human!"

Both women exchanged glances between themselves. There was something fishy about this statement, and as they knew the truth it was not a convincing lie.

- "Steven, we have no time for this."

- "Yeah, kid. We already know everything about you."

The man was backed to the wall now. He could not wiggle out of this and he knew it. Still he could try, and try he did.

- "Look, ladies. I may seem from out of this world while in all truth I am but a simple, hard-working man."

Stunned silence stretched for a few seconds as both women tried to process Steven's ridiculous words. First to break the tension was Amethyst with a loud guffaw soon followed by more subdued chuckle from Garnet.

Even Steven threw away the air of seriousness and joined the laughter. Few seconds passed while they enjoyed the merriment before Amethyst, still laughing a little, decided to bring the conversation back on its rails.

- "Good one Steve. But, yeah we know you're a mage."

- "Whaat? That's impossible!"

Steven still played the game, still reluctant to share such a personal information.

- "I mean I'm a man! Everyone knows only women can be mages."

Garnet would have none of this though. She was tired of this charade, and she could feel the time running out.

- "Steven! We don't have time for this. You are a mage and a gem and you know it."

- "But…"

Steven made last weak attempt at protesting but Garnet's firm tone of voice stopped him right away.

- "No buts Steven. Peridot is gonna be here any moment now and we need a plan to stop her."

- "Okay, but who's Peridot?"

His voice was filled with genuine surprise. Steven was never one for keeping up with times and he often found himself surprised at the mention of famous names. This time it was the smaller woman who filled the gaps in his knowledge.

- "She's the gal who made all of those freaky Hunters. Young and brilliant mage, isn't she Garnet?"

- "Yes, she is."

Again few seconds of awkward silence passed between them. Garnet was silent, lost for some reason deep in her thoughts, and it took some time before Steven asked another question.

- "So, what's the plan?"

Four expectant eyes watched the tall woman who was still unresponsive.

- "Yeah, what's the plan girl? Or are we just going to wait for her to come?"

- "I don't know. I didn't have enough time. I'm going to try see it again now."

Anger started bubbling in the blind woman, spilling over from the dams and dousing her words in thick layers of annoyance and gritted teeth.

- "I'm trusting you with Steven Amethyst."

With this she turned around and assumed her place at the foot of the forge. Sitting down, her body relaxed, hands dropping at her knees she was out of the conversation.

Time passed slowly after Garnet started her meditation and Steven soon found himself asking questions again.

- "So, what is she doing?"

Amethyst was now sprawled on the desk by the wall. Having shoved all the tools cluttering it to the side she nonchalantly nestled herself atop of it. At the Stevens question, however, she raised her head to look at her companion.

- "She's trying to see the future. It's one of her powers as a Gem."

The explanation was unasked for, but Steven still found himself lost a little as it answered the question he was going to ask perfectly. He did not fret for long however, as another one soon filled his mind.

And then the woman did it again, once again pre-empting his question.

- "Mine is longevity mainly, but I also got this sweet power when I can turn invisible for a few minutes. Quite handy when you're a thief wouldn't you say?"

Steven heard the explanation quite well, but his mind was nowhere near processing it. All that he could think of is how this little woman knew what he was going to say before he asked his questions.

He probably should feel terrified, but being himself he was mostly curious.

Yet another time however Amethyst answered before he could even say the question

- "And no I can't read your mind, just your surface emotions."

- "Wow! That's amazing! So that means you know what I feel right now?"

Steven was impressed.

As much as Amethyst enjoyed his awe, the man had no idea about controlling his volume though. And so, before he could finish his sentence she found herself covering his mouth with her hands.

- "Shush! You'll wake the blind Princess. And trust me whent I say she gets all grogy when you do that."

Steven cooked his head in wonder, but still he nodded in silent agreement to keep his voice down. Scent of chalk filled his nostrils but he brushed it aside. He did not know this woman for long, but even he could see the obvious.

- "You don't like Garnet very much."

It was as much a question as a statement of fact but the effect it had on Amethyst was quite spectacular.

- "No, I mean yes, but… Ugh. Look Steven, it's not that simple, I love them both like sisters, but I don't trust them."

She waited for a second, pondering her next words.

- "I just can't read them. It's like they have no emotions at all. I know it's probably Pearls weird magic, but it's freaking me out."

Steven was at loss for words. He wanted to help, cheer up the short woman, but could find nothing suitable. Still he needed to say something.

Amethyst would not let him do it however.

- "Thanks Steven, but it's not your problem. Even if it's magic, I can't trust them if they don't trust me."

After their conversation, the room fell into awkward silence once again.

Needing something to occupy their time while waiting, Amethyst started playing with her knife while Steven turned his sight onto the table. He did not know proper order the tools should be in, but still the motions of organizing it proved to be quite potent distraction.

But those are boring details.

Enough to say about fifteen minutes passed in silence while they waited for Garnet.

But it was not her awaking that broke their boredom, but rather the brilliant flash of light that came from the street.

Slam!

Dread was painted on the face of Amethyst when she closed the door. She paid no notice to Steven's questioning look, her whole attention focused on the still form of Garnet.

- "Oh, this is bad. This is very, very bad."

Few short steps took her near the forge and before Steven could react she was shaking the tall woman awake.

- "Garnet, wake up! She's already here! We need your plan now!"

- "Amethyst, stop that!"

This finally broke the woman out of her craze. Garnet's form fell back to her relaxed posture as Amethyst released her grip on her shoulders.

- "Steven you don't understand. Without her we're screwed! Hell, even with her we're probably dead now!"

- "Amethyst, calm down! This isn't helping anything! Just tell me what you saw, we'll try to think of something before Garnet is back."

His reasonable words seemed to work. Begrudgingly she recounted him what she saw.

And what she saw wasn't much.

- "I just saw her warping okay? I didn't wait till she spotted me in the doors."

A glimpse of green in the haze caused by the blinding light was enough to convince her of danger and she immediately retreated into the house.

It was not enough for Steven though.

- "Well, that's no good. We need to know more than that. Can you go check again? I mean you can turn invisible, right?"

- "Well, yeah but the Hunters will be able to sniff me out anyway."

This threw a wrench in the Steven's plan, but he was not the person to give up easily. With his optimism still burning he searched for another solution.

- "Oh, I'm sorry I didn't know that. But we will find another solution to see what's going on."

Steven would soon learn to be careful what he wishes for. Universe had strange way of delivering on those.

Slam!

- "You are under arrest in the name of the queen!"

Three men burst through the door in rapid succession.

All were tall, with powerful frames filling out the steel armor they were wearing. In hands they had swords, standard guardsman issue, but too well maintained to be used often.

Twang. Thud.

Sound of fired crossbow greeted them, felling the first one through.

Amethyst was a quick thinker obviously.

While Steven was still in shock, she rejected the weapon in her hand in favor of one of her two short swords. Quick glance around the room and she was ready to charge.

Clang!

Steel met steel and the strength of the attack pushed the man backwards.

Clang!

Another vicious strike and another step back. But as he retreated the second man took his place. Amethyst barely dodged the strike, this time stepping backwards herself.

Pushed onto defensive Amethyst was now continuously falling back.

But by this time Steven came to his senses.

He was not a warrior and he could do little to help her fight. But that doesn't mean he could do nothing.

- "Stop it!"

Three heads turned to him as the wave of pink light flooded the room. But only one finished its movement. Two other frozen motionless mid turn.

A violet face that managed, however, was watching him in awe.

- "That was amazing Steven!"