Chapter 10:

Fixing a Broken Pearl

Steven summoned his shield and was prepared to fight, when he saw the demented gem creature leap out of the bushes towards him. He became paralyzed when he saw that creature was tall and extremely thin, with cracked porcelain skin, and it took the appearance of a mannequin. The head of the creature was shattered and broken, showing it to be hollow, with a fracture along its mouth, which gave it a larger bite radius. The creature dropped on all fours, then opened its Jaws to a 90 degree angle, and began screaming as blood trickled out of its mouth.

"Nope!" Steven yelled. "Not staying here for this!" He immediately turned away, then ran as fast as he could, as the creature began following in close pursuit. As he was running, he looked back and saw that the creature was crawling fast like a spider, but it had a humanoid form. "This is so jacked up!" He cried. "This has to be a nightmare!" Once he made it onto the warp pad, he teleported, as he was trying to make it back to the temple as fast as he could. While in the warp stream, he looked down, then saw that the creature was still following him.

"What the hell!?" Steven shouted. "How did it get into the warp stream!?" His questions went unanswered, as the creature slowly made its way towards him, then Steven began flailing his arms as he tried to get higher up in the stream. Just as the creature was about to grab him, he made a desperate decision, as he dove out of the warp stream to get away. "So much for living!" Steven whispered, as he began to gasp for air. "I'm sorry Pearl! I'm sorry I hurt you! But now I won't ever be able to make things right!" While he was floating, his eyes began to close, as he felt cold, then he took in his last few remaining breaths.

Suddenly, a thin skeleton like hand reached out to grab him, then pulled him back inside the warp stream. The hand was massive, as Steven's entire body was wrapped in its fingers, then he gradually started to open his eyes. He felt helpless, as the creature was now holding him tight, then its jaws opened. He closed his eyes and grimaced, as he waited for the creature to bite down on him, but nothing happened. Suddenly, he heard sounds coming from the creature, as if it were moaning in pain, then Steven opened his eyes.

When he did, he saw that the creature was staring at him, then Steven took notice that it had light blue eyes, and a white gemstone imbedded in its forehead. "Pearl!?" Steven cried. "Is that you!?" In waiting for a response, crystal like tears began to stream down the creatures face, as it cried out in pain, then Steven felt bad. "I'm so sorry Pearl!" he finally whispered. Suddenly the stream stopped, then the creature along with Steven both fell to the warp pad. The creature threw Steven as far away as it could, then it immediately ran in the opposite direction. As Steven was flying through the air he shouted, "NO PEARL! WAAAAIIITTT!"

Moonlit Battlefield

When Steven finally opened his eyes, he felt tiredness and fatigue come over him, as he now saw that he was lying next to a nearby stream. "How long have I been out!?" Steven asked himself, as he began to get up. His muscles were cramping, as he attempted to stand, then he exclaimed, "Water!" He immediately slouched over next to the stream, and began gulping water to rehydrate. His body felt hot and sweaty, so he decided to take a dip into the water. He was fully clothed, and was laying on top of the stream, when he said, "This feels good! I needed this!" While he was cooling his body temperature, his eyes became wide as he recalled Lapis' warning to him.

He quickly got out of the water, and just as he did, water hands from the stream came out after him. He ran as fast as he could, then he was safe as the hands disappeared back into the water. "Lapis must still be pissed at me!" he exclaimed.

"Where am I!?" he said. "I need to find Pearl!"

"This is all my fault!"

He kept a quick pace, as he was jogging through the bushes, then he had a familiar feeling come over him. "I know where I am!" he whispered, as he saw dozens of gem weapons all spread out in a field. He saw axes sticking out of the ground, and swords imbedded in the bushes. "This is the gem battlefield!" he finally said. When he began to observe his surroundings, his eyes started to look up towards the sky, towards the floating pieces of land, and at the very top he saw that the creature was standing. Steven sighed heavily as he saw the creature gazing down upon him from the moonlight, then he said to himself, "I have to fix you Pearl!"

A painful transformation

As Steven was leaping from one floating platform to another, he began to recall how he had chased after Pearl so many years ago. He shed a tear because he remembered how sad she was, but he felt even worst now because he knew he was the reason as to why she was corrupted. When he made it to the top of the platform, he saw that the creature was already slowly walking towards him. With each stride, the platform shook, as the creature's steps were heavy. "Please Pearl!" Steven shouted. "I don't want to fight you!"

The creatures eyes were dull and lifeless, as it didn't respond, but instead it took a swing at him. Steven ducked, then his body began to shake as he could feel the wind from the hand pass over him. "Please Pearl!" he cried out. "I'm sorry! I made a mistake!" But she ignored him, as she took another swing with her other hand, only this time she grabbed him. Steven had the wind knocked out of him, as he was now being held in the creatures grasp, then she brought him close to her jaws. He closed his eyes, then cried out, as he felt the sensation of the creatures jaws sink into his entire shoulder.

Despite the pain, Steven grimaced as he opened his eyes, then he focused his attention on her face. "Please forgive me for hurting you!" he whispered, as he stared into her eyes. In not thinking straight and feeling weary, Steven leaned in close to give her a kiss, but he was only able to do so on her gem. "I love you pearl," he finally whispered, before passing out. When the creature finally removed its jaws from Steven's body, it saw that he was lifeless, as blood was now gushing out from his shoulder.

In an instant, something spectacular occurred, as Pearl's gemstone began to glow bright, then the creature let out one final cry. The creature's porcelain hide began to crack, as light was now seeping through, then Steven and the creature were now completely engulfed in the light. A few moments later, Pearl was now sitting in the grass, and was holding onto Steven, as she became hysterical. "WAKE UP STEVEN!" She cried, as she began to batter at his cheeks. Her clothes were torn, as she ripped off any garments that she had, then she proceeded to do compressions against Steven's shoulder to stop the bleeding.

She cried, as tears began to fall from her face, then she buried her head into Steven's chest and began to sob. Suddenly, he faintly opened his eyes, then said, "Pearl!? You're okay!" After she heard him speak, she lifted her head up, then immediately began to kiss him on his lips. "Steven!" she cried out. "I need you to do something for me!" He was groggy, as he nodded his head, then she frantically said, "You're bleeding out! I need you to spit into my hands, please!" Steven looked over at his shoulder, then felt pressure, as he could see her pressing down it. Before he had a chance to do anything, she began to rub her hands all along his lips and his tongue, then immediately she placed them on his shoulder once more. She did this several times over till the bleeding stopped, and eventually there was nothing more than a scare left. Steven was knocked out, as he was now sleeping peacefully, then she curled up beside him and held him snuggly.

Pearl's Revelation

When Steven opened his eyes, he looked over and saw that Pearl was lying next to him in his arms. As their eyes met, she hissed, "So, why did you do it!?" He was baffled, as he stared at her, then he responded, "Do what!? I just wanted to find you!"

"That's not what I'm talking about!" She screamed, as she immediately rose to her feet. Steven's mouth dropped, as he stared up at her, then she continued to yell, "How could you bring that blue whore into our house!? What's wrong with you!?"

"Umm, Pearl!" Steven murmured. "Your…"

"I'm talking!" She cried out. "You just listen to me! I'm not done saying what I have to say to you!" Her voice began to crack, and tears began to stream down her face, as she said, "How could you have sex with her, Steven!? How could you!?"

"How could you give yourself to someone like that!?"

She became weak in her knees, then sank to the ground, as she finally said, "I thought you would save yourself for someone special! Someone who you loved and cared for!"

"Someone like…" But she stopped, before she could finish, then she placed a hand over her mouth as she began to sob. Steven leaned up from the floor, then immediately felt bad as he could see that she was broken. While he was staring at her, he began to reflect on Garnet's words to him back at the temple,

"Lapis isn't the only one who would be with you."

He reached out to touch Pearls face, then he could feel the moisture running down his fingertips, as she was crying. He embraced her, then as the two held each other, they began staring into one another's eyes. When he began to stare into her eyes, he observed how the shade of blue was both calming and reassuring. "I love you Steven, I always have!" she whispered. "I know," he replied. "In a different kind of way." Pearl's body was tingling, and her lips were quivering, as she lunged forward and immediately began kissing on him.

Steven felt himself resisting at first, but then he felt secure and loved because it was her. He reciprocated by kissing her back, then as he pushed his tongue into her mouth, her eyes became wide. Pearl's head was spinning, as this was the first time she had allowed herself to be kissed before, but it was by Steven, so she let it happen. Her nerves began to calm, as she too began to push her tongue against his, then he gently laid her to the ground. He got on top of her and was looking down, as he began to stare at her for a moment.

"Is this really going to happen!?" Steven said to himself. While he was staring at her, he had an intoxicating feeling come over him, as he began to see her in a different light for the first time. Suddenly, her eyes seemed seductive to him, as he now saw them as a beautiful sexy shade of blue. Her lips were quivering, as if they were begging to be penetrated by his tongue once more. He saw that her hands were dainty and feminine, and her skin was Pearly white, as he quickly became sexually frustrated with her.

Steven's heart began to beat faster, as he could see that her garments were torn, and parts of her body were peeking out at him. Finally she reached out to touch his chest, then he held her hands, as she whispered,

"Steven!"

"Yes, Pearl" he replied, "What is it!?"

"Make love to me!" She cried out.