Author's Notes: Not going to lie to you; this is pretty much an exposition chapter. Pretty much everything Jasper says regarding Homeworld is a personal headcanon of mine.
"So, how long does it normally take for a Gem to regenerate?" Kinzie asked as she, Peridot, and the rest of the Gems sat in Steven's living room.
"It's hard to say for sure," Pearl replied. "It varies a bit from Gem to Gem. The longest we've ever seen it take it a few days."
Steven looked worriedly at Lapis' gem; he'd refused to let go of it once she'd retreated into it. Garnet had decided that it would be easier to speak to Lapis first before deciding how to handle Jasper. To that end, Jasper's gem had been bubbled to prevent her from regenerating before Lapis did. Instead of sending her to the basement of the temple, though, the Gems had elected to keep her in the living room with them.
Kinzie caught Steven's worried look. "It's going to be okay, Steven," she said reassuringly. "Lapis is a pretty powerful Gem, from what you've told me. I doubt it'll take her too long to come back."
"That's not what I'm worried about," Steven replied. "I'm more concerned about how Lapis is going to feel once she comes back. She may not have liked Jasper much but she didn't like the Crystal Gems either. I don't know if she's going to be willing to work with us."
"Well, she likes you well enough, doesn't she?" Kinzie asked. "Maybe you can convince her to at least give the Gems a chance."
Steven sighed. "I hope so."
As if on cue, the gem in Steven's hands began to glow and slowly rise up into the air. A bright flash lit up the room and Lapis stood in the middle of the living room once it had faded.
"Lapis!" Steven called, running over to the blue Gem.
"Steven. I'm glad you're okay," Lapis said with a small smile before looking around in confusion. "Where am I? And what happened to Jasper?"
"You're in my house," Steven said. "You and Jasper both retreated into your gems so we decided to bring you guys in here. Jasper's gem is bubbled right now, though, because we wanted to talk with you first."
"'We'?" Lapis asked before her eyes fell on the other Gems, her expression quickly changing to one of anger. "I don't have anything to say any of them."
"Please, Lapis," Steven begged. "Just give us a chance to talk this out. I don't want you and the Gems to have to fight anymore."
Lapis sighed. "Fine. I'll talk to you, Steven. Only to you."
"Was it really a good idea to leave Steven alone with Lapis?" Pearl asked. They had all moved out to the beach after Lapis had insisted that she only wanted to speak to Steven.
"It can't be helped," Garnet replied. "Lapis made it clear that she didn't want to talk to anyone else. Steven probably would have been the only one that could get through to her anyway. I just hope she agrees to work with us at least somewhat."
"Do you still see those things you mentioned before? About Homeworld coming back and something happening to Kinzie?" Pearl asked.
Garnet nodded as she glanced over to where the girl in question was conversing with Amethyst as she leaned back against Peridot. "I do. And both of those things are going to happen soon. That's why we need Lapis on our side or, at the very least, not actively working against us."
Everyone looked up as the door to the house opened and Steven and Lapis emerged. Lapis kept her face neutral but the smile on Steven's face gave everyone a feeling of relief.
"Guys! Lapis is on our side now!" Steven exclaimed excitedly.
"I didn't say that," Lapis said. "I just told him that I was willing to put aside our differences. For now, at least. I want to be clear about one thing, though; I couldn't care less about this planet or any of you Crystal Gems. I'm only agreeing to set our past disagreements aside because I want to protect Steven."
"We figured as much," Garnet replied. "I appreciate your willingness to work with us all the same."
Lapis nodded before glancing over at Peridot. "Are you working with them as well?"
"I am," Peridot confirmed. "After the crash, I was stuck on this planet. I'd sent numerous distress calls to Yellow Diamond but never received a response. Since the Cluster was set to hatch at any moment, I decided to cut my losses and ask the Crystal Gems for help."
"Steven told me that you had stopped the Cluster, though," Lapis pointed out. "Why are you still working with them?"
"As I said before, Yellow Diamond hasn't replied to any of my distress calls. I can only assume that she's not going to send any help for me," Peridot explained before pulling Kinzie against her side. "Besides, I've discovered certain things about this planet that appeal to me quite a bit. Much like you, I'm working with them in order protect someone I care about."
"A human?" Lapis asked. "But...a human's lifespan..."
"We've been over it already," Peridot cut in. "It doesn't matter to me. I just want to be with her."
"Well now that we've got that squared away, what are we going to do about Jasper?" Amethyst asked.
"Personally, I think keeping her bubbled is the best course of action," Pearl suggested.
"But what if she'd be willing to help us out too?" Steven asked. "I think we should at least give her a chance."
"I wouldn't count on it," Lapis commented. "Jasper's far too loyal to Homeworld to even consider betraying it."
"So was Peridot and we were able to change how she thought," Steven pointed out.
"That was primarily because Peridot developed feelings for Kinzie," Pearl countered.
"Then why don't we get Jasper to fall in love with Kinzie too?" Amethyst suggested, laughing when she saw Peridot tighten her grip on Kinzie's waist.
"Because I'm a one-Gem woman and I'm already in a happy, committed relationship," Kinzie replied. "Besides, I don't think Peridot would share very well."
"Nope," Peridot agreed.
"However," Kinzie continued, looking over at Garnet. "If you'd permit me, I'd like to be the one to try and talk to Jasper."
"Are you insane?!" Amethyst asked. "She'll rip you to pieces!"
"Think about it," Kinzie pressed. "She's not going to want to talk to any of you and I doubt Lapis is one of her favorite people at this point. I don't know how willing she'd be to listen to Peridot either. Besides, I have some questions I want to ask her."
"And you think she'd be willing to answer you?" Pearl asked.
Kinzie shrugged. "Who knows? But it's worth asking at least." She turned her gaze toward Garnet. "What do you think?"
Garnet was silent for a while before finally nodding her head. "Alright, give it your best. But we'll be waiting just outside the house and I won't hesitate to bubble her for good if she tries anything. Keep Dante and Lion with you, too."
"Ready, guys?" Kinzie asked Dante and Lion as they stood in the living room, earning a bark from Dante and a grunt of affirmation from Lion. She sighed and held up Jasper's gem. She stared at it for a long moment before popping the bubble surrounding it. A bright orange flash filled the room almost immediately and Jasper stood before her a moment later. The orange Gem glanced around franticly before her eyes settled on Kinzie.
"You! Where am I? What happened to Lazuli and the other Gems? And who exactly are you?" Jasper asked. "Peridot said you weren't a Gem."
"You're in Steven's house. The Gems agreed to let me talk to you since you guys aren't really on the...best of terms. And you're right; I'm not a Gem. My name's Kinzie and I'm just a human," Kinzie answered.
"Seriously? They sent one human to try to negotiate with me?" Jasper asked incredulously. "What's stopping me from beating you into the ground? It's not like you have any powers to stop me."
"You're right," Kinzie agreed. "However, I think I should warn you that the Crystal Gems are waiting just outside the door along with Lapis and Peridot. From what I understand, you and Garnet were pretty evenly matched when you fought and since Amethyst is a Quartz as well, she should be able to give you a run for your money too. And that's not even getting into the fact that we're still next to the ocean which gives Lapis a field advantage." Kinzie then gestured to Lion and Dante, the two creatures staring at Jasper warily. "Not to mention the fact that you'll have to deal with these two as well should something happen to me. Lion's a magic familiar created by Rose Quartz, I think, and Dante's been bred to have exceptional endurance and stamina as well as one of the strongest jaws in the canine world. So you can either have a civil conversation with me or deal with everything I just told you about all at once. Your choice."
Jasper sighed after thinking over her options. "Fine. What do you want to talk to me about?"
"I'm curious about some of the things you said to me before you collapsed," Kinzie said. "You told me before that I looked like an Onyx and that they weren't known for being physically powerful. I asked Peridot about it once you'd retreated into your gem but all she was able to tell me was that Onyx are supposedly reclusive and they aren't under Yellow Diamond's jurisdiction. It's clear that Homeworld operates on some sort of hierarchy and I was wondering if you could elaborate on it."
"Homeworld is ruled by what's called the Diamond Authority, which consists of Yellow Diamond, Blue Diamond, and White Diamond," Jasper explained. "The Gems on Homeworld all serve under one of the Diamonds and which Diamond they report to depends on the abilities they have. All the Gems under Yellow Diamond's command are primarily soldiers or Gems equipped to help maintain Homeworld's technology. The Gems under Blue Diamond all have elemental powers and all the Gems under White Diamond all have varying degrees of mental prowess."
"Does that mean Lapis would have reported to Blue Diamond?" Kinzie asked.
"Yeah," Jasper confirmed. "And if you had been an Onyx, like I first thought, you would've reported to White Diamond."
"What are the Onyx like?" Kinzie asked.
"Peridot was right when she told you that Onyx are reclusive," Jasper replied. "I haven't seen very many but the ones I did see all looked remarkably like you. Looking at you now, though, I can pick out a few differences. Your hair is way too colorful and your skin isn't nearly as pale. Onyx also have an air of stealth and grace about them and I'm not picking up either one from you."
Kinzie shrugged. "Eh. You got me there. What kinds of abilities do they have?"
"They operate in secret, for the most part, so I can't tell you exactly what they can do," Jasper said. "Like most of White Diamond's Gems, they won't reveal themselves to an opponent unless that opponent is already beaten. I do know that one of the abilities unique to them seems to be shadow manipulation; they can travel between shadows of objects and other Gems and they can also bring their shadows to life, detach them from their bodies, and let them move independently. Makes them pretty handy if the mission is stealth-based but I still prefer charging an opponent head-on."
"They sound almost like ninja," Kinzie commented.
Jasper quirked an eyebrow. "What?"
"Nevermind," Kinzie said with a shake of her head. "I know Homeworld operates on some sort of hierarchy. How does it work? Pearls are supposed to be servants; Peridot explained as much to me. But what about other Gems?"
"All Gems are ranked based on their strength," Jasper explained. "Obviously, the Diamonds are at the top. Quartz Gems are some of the most powerful Gems on Homeworld so we have a pretty high rank. Onyx, though not as physically powerful as Quartz, are about equal to Quartz in terms of ability and tactical value, so they also have a fairly high rank."
"What about Gems like Lapis?" Kinzie asked. "She's got to have a high rank too, right?"
Jasper shook her head. "Actually, no. Since her power is conditional to whether or not there's water nearby, she's actually of a fairly low rank."
"And Peridots?" Kinzie asked.
Jasper scoffed. "They aren't much higher than Pearls. All they're meant to do is build and fix things. They can't even fight unless they're outfitted with limb enhancers."
'The more I hear about Homeworld, the more I know I'd never want to go there,' Kinzie thought.
"Do you have any other questions for me or can we end this interrogation?" Jasper asked.
"Just one more," Kinzie replied. "Would you be willing to work with the Crystal Gems? At least for a while?"
Jasper blinked. "Really? You're just gonna ask like that?"
"If I thought subtlety was something you understood, I would have used it," Kinzie snarked.
"While I can appreciate your directness, I'm going to have to say no," Jasper said. "I'm getting off this planet the first chance I get."
"Good luck with that," Kinzie replied. "Peridot's tried to contact Yellow Diamond numerous times since the crash and she's never replied. She didn't even send anyone else to try to find you guys. I know she's your leader but it seems like she sees you as cannon fodder."
"Like what? Your Earth expressions don't make any sense," Jasper said.
"It means she doesn't care if you survived or not," Kinzie explained. "Besides, working with the Gems wouldn't be so bad. I'm sure it'd be better than having them chasing you all the time."
Jasper was silent for a long time as she mulled over her options. Finally, she turned back to Kinzie and nodded. "Alright. I'll cooperate for the time being but I do have some conditions. First, I want to make it clear that this is only temporary. I plan on leaving this rock at the first opportunity."
"Fair enough," Kinzie said.
"Second, I will not be staying here," Jasper said. "Being too close to Lazuli and that fusion is enough to make me sick."
'Oh boy, not this again...,' Kinzie thought with a roll of her eyes. "Personally, I'm fine with you staying with me; I've got the space. But it's not really my call." She turned to the window where the other Gems had been listening. "Garnet! What do you think?"
"If you think you can handle her, then I'll trust you," Garnet approved. "Peridot pretty much lives with you now anyway, so you won't be completely alone with her. I think you might need a little more...insurance, however. Amethyst will be staying with you as well."
"Woo-hoo! Party at Kinzie's!" Amethyst cheered.
"Okay with you?" Kinzie asked Jasper.
"Whatever," Jasper replied.
"Are you sure this is a good idea?" Pearl asked Garnet.
"I think it will be," Garnet replied. "Besides, just looking at Jasper makes me want to punch her in the face again."
Ending Notes: I meant to get this up earlier today but my downstairs bathroom flooded so I had to spend most of the day dealing with that. Yay for adulthood!
Following up on Amethyst's suggestion earlier in the chapter; no, Jasper is not going to end up falling for Kinzie or vice versa. Their relationship is going to be an interesting one but it's going to remain platonic.
Finally, I've posted the first chapter of my Fire Emblem story so please check it out if you're interested!
As always, feedback and constructive criticism are welcome and appreciated! Thank you so much for reading! Geekinthepink, out!