-Rebecca Sugar and Cartoon Network claim ownership of Steven Universe. I'm unfortunately just not talented as they are to hold such an honor.-
"Ready with the video cord, Steven?"
"Ready!"
The light of the half moon in the night sky shown down upon the beach, reflecting light back up from the water. The ripples and waves made it shimmer and distort. The stars themselves twinkled on their own like an uncontrolled synthesizer light show.
This same light also helped make sight possible for Steven, his gem friends, and Steven's father Greg, as they worked tirelessly in the back of Greg's van. The father's audio equipment from his band days was spread out around him, plus a TV that was on and currently playing static.
New to him though was a 'Wailing Stone' as the gems called it, which even now was bellowing out a muffled noise thanks to pillows stuffing it on both sides in between a microphone. He had tried everything he knew to convert into a sensible sound, but nothing had worked, until now...
At his command, Steven plugged the output cord for the microphone into the TV instead. He stepped back and stood with the gems and left Greg to work. Greg worked his audio mixer tirelessly, twisting nobs, adjusting sliders, but still the TV continued to play static. The obnoxious sound the Wailing Stone made still made now channeled through the TV speakers, but at a lesser volume this time.
"Is that it? Is that supposed to happen?" Kunzite asked.
"Just a second..." Greg said, resuming his fiddling. This time the color of TV static phased back and forth between two different resolutions. The noise gradually began to tone down.
"I hear... something," Steven said.
"Come on..." Greg bit his lip. The sounds were now toned into a single sustained note and the static was now turning a solid blue. Instantly the image changed to that of a familiar bluenette.
"Steven!"
"Lapis!" Steven exclaimed. It was wonderful to see his old friend, but the worried look she had on her face concerned him.
"I did it? I did it!" Greg said in disbelief.
"Who is that?" Hiddenite said.
"I can't belief my flippin' eyes," Pearl said.
"Everyone, listen up!" Garnet silenced everyone else.
"I hope you're able to hear this," Lapis spoke, "I've finally returned home... thanks to you. But when I got here, I've found that... things have changed. The others... they talk of laying waste to planets they visit! It won't be long before your Earth is back in their sights!"
At this point all gems shared looks of shock and concern all at once.
"Steven, Crystarra... it's not the way it used to be; I thought things were different! I never wanted to be part of something so... horrible! Please, if you and your gem friends are hearing this, brace yourselves. They're going to use the dark-"
The image cut abruptly back to the static, showing that the transmission was finished. Everyone continued to stare at the screen in silence.
"Plasma," Pearl said, and everyone turned to her, "She must have been referring to the dark plasma."
"They're coming here, armed to the teeth with that stuff?!" Amethyst cried out with her hands on her head.
"Lapis..." Steven said to himself, "She sounded so unhappy..."
"That gem is a friend of yours, Steven?" Hiddenite asked.
"Yeah, all she ever wanted was to go back to her home, and now her home isn't working out for her..." Steven replied softly. Hiddenite acknowledged this in silence.
Pearl, Amethyst, and Kunzite were still worked up. They understood too well the severity of the situation, and traded meaningless words between each other. Garnet on the other hand, who was silent the entire time, lightly clenched her fist.
"Whew!" she said out loud. Everyone turned to her, "We did it!"
"What?" Pearl asked.
"We got the message."
"But-"
"It's got!" Amethyst was cut off by her leader through clenched teeth. With that she walked up to Greg and much to his surprise, held out her hand. He stared at it a moment, as if this was a foreign concept, and finally shook it.
"Thank you Greg," she said, "We would not have received this message without your help."
"You're... you're welcome," Greg was almost certain tears were starting to form in the corners of his eyes.
"My dad is..." Everyone looked down at Steven, his dad's microphone set in front of him, " The beeeeest!" Comically he completed that sentence in a robotic monotone.
"Oh my gosh, Steven's a robot!" Greg said in mock surprise, "Help! I can't relate to my robot son!"
"My mind is the internet; I know every continuity mistake ever made on television!" Steven and Greg shared a laugh with each other. With the gems, all of them looked at Garnet with worried faces for some, and confused faces for others. She shrugged.
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Later that evening, after all was said and done, the gems had retired back to the temple and beach house. It was Steven's bedtime anyway, something Pearl constantly reminded him of. However, not all the gems returned back to the temple.
Hiddenite stayed behind with Greg and his van. Something compelled her to stay with him a moment longer. She herself did not know at all what, but nonetheless she helped him put his equipment away in his van. Pearl and Garnet especially gave her questioning looks, but didn't object to her helping Greg in the end.
"Thanks for helpin' me out um, Hiddenite was it?" he said as they packed.
"Yes that's right," she replied, "I'm starting to get used to that."
"Ah sorry," Greg said, "I mean, having gem warriors teach my son weird magic stuff is strange enough, now new ones are showing up... no offense." Hiddenite understood his meaning.
"None taken," she said, "Besides, this Earth is equally strange to me and my sister."
"Yeah well, you kinda get used to it after a while," Greg said, closing up his microphone case, "So are you two also from that Crystarra place, like Lapis?"
"No," Hiddenite replied again, "It's hard to explain, but it's as if we both woke on an ice moon from dreaming. You know, the more I think about it... I'm starting think... we're amnesiac."
"You're... what?"
"It means we don't have memories prior," she said, then chuckled lightly to herself, "Heh, listen to me; I'm starting to sound like Kunzite, talking with big words and all!" She looked at the audio mixer, and the equal-sized casing, "Um, this goes in here?"
"Yep right in there, and then the straps are secured over it!" Greg said, "Here, I'll help you put it in."
"Thank you."
Greg gripped one side of the mixer, Hiddenite gripped the other. Gently the placed it down into the mold cutting, easily sliding in. Once it was down and secure, Greg secured the straps over it, and finally closed the case.
"Okay, I think that's about it," he said, placing the case in the back and closing the door.
"That's good," Hiddenite said, "You know, I never got a chance to say earlier, since we were so caught up in trying to figure out the Wailing Stone, but when you were trying to figure it out with your mixer thing... you play nice music." This marked the second time that night a gem complimented Greg on something he did.
"Really?"
"Of course! I don't know if it was intentional or not, but you played really nice."
"Well, audio mixing is great and all, but I'm more of a rockin' guitar kinda guy!" Greg said, putting a hand behind his head, "Maybe if I had mine with me I could show you."
"Another time, perhaps," Hiddenite said.
"Fair enough." They both stood in comfortable silence for a minute. She cast a look over to the temple where the gems and Steven currently were.
"Your son, Steven... he's a really nice boy," Hiddenite spoke up, "He and his gems offered kindness and shelter to two complete strangers. Not an Earth minute goes by that I'm not grateful for it."
"Well that's my Steven for ya," Greg said, "He's not the most perfect pork chop in the world, but he's a good hot dog!" Hiddenite's eyes narrowed in complete confusion.
"I'm sorry, this whole time Steven was a... food product?"
"Oh no! It's just, a, er- one of the-," Greg stammered with his explanation, "I forget who I'm talking to with this stuff. Let's say for now Steven is still human, and he's still my son."
"Oh, alright," Hiddenite agreed. After a while Greg looked at his wristwatch.
"It's getting pretty late, I better head on back now."
"Oh well, don't let me keep you," Hiddenite said, but quickly realized something, "Wait a minute, if you're the father and Steven's your son, why don't you live together within the same dwelling?"
"Ah well, the thing about that," Greg said a bit nervously, "I don't know much about being a Gem. When Steven was born, we knew he was gonna have these powers comin' in at some point. The gems had that covered. Besides I'd feel a bit out of place with all that magic stuff that they do."
"I'm so sorry," Hiddenite said, "To not be able to see your immediate family as often as you'd like?"
"It's not so bad," Greg said, "I still get to see him, and even try to be a good dad for him. It's just that... there's only so much I can be with him for."
Greg opened the driver's side of his van and climbed in. He closed the door and looked back at the gem through the open window.
"Hey Hiddenite?"
"Yeah Greg?"
"... Thanks for keeping me company."
"My pleasure."
With a final wave, Greg's van rolled along the sand back onto the boardwalk pathway. Hiddenite watched the entire time to make sure Greg did leave without any trouble. She too decided that it was time to return back the temple, and began to make her way there. She looked up into the sky as she walked, the stars continued to twinkle at her in a sparkling dance, and she smiled.
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"Come on Steven, I'll tuck you into bed," Pearl said to a pajama-wearing Steven.
"Aw Pearl, I can't stay up a bit longer? I still haven't beaten Amethyst!" The boy protested while Amethyst sat with her hands behind her head wearing a cocky grin on the other side of a checker board.
"Hey what can I say? I'm just that good!"
"No Steven, but I'm sure you'll have another chance tomorrow. Now let's go."
"Oh alright," Steven conceded and climbed into his bed. Making sure he was nice and comfy, Pearl gently tucked him in under his covers.
"There," she said, "Goodnight Steven."
"Wait Pearl," Steven said, "I was wondering... you think you could sing a song to help me sleep?"
"... Excuse me?"
"You know, a bedtime song!" Steven explained, "Something tells me counting sheep won't cut it tonight."
"Yes, while I see how counting white ruminant mammals would be ineffective somehow," Pearl said, "I'm afraid I don't know that many songs, especially ones that cause sleepiness."
"Sure you do, P!" Amethyst said, "Just sing him one of your boring history lessons. Those put me to sleep all the time!"
"Amethyst! You sleep during my lessons on our history?"
"Hey, not my fault our ancestors never had any excitement, or how you tell it with a monotone voice!" Amethyst said, then with a yawn got up from the table, "Maybe I should leave before I do fall asleep!" Amethyst made her way back to the magic door that would lead to her room. Pearl turned back to Steven with her hand over her head in frustration.
"Oooh, that gem sometimes..." Finally she began to think of possible song choices. She really hadn't known a lot, despite her time living on Earth. Besides, this sort of thing was something Rose was more qualified. The reminder caused her to look outside at the night sky, the stars still twinkling. Instantly it gave her an idea.
"That's it! I know the perfect one!"
"Really? What is it?" Steven excitedly asked.
"Prepare for slumber Steven," Pearl said, and cleared her throat,
Twinkle, twinkle little star
How I wonder what you are
Up above the world so high
Like a diamond in the sky
Twinkle, twinkle little star
How I wonder what you are
Steven yawned, his eyes slowly closed, and a smile grew on his face.
"Thanks... Pearl..." he said before drifting off into peaceful slumber. Pearl herself smiled as she stood up. She was suddenly aware of a tear in the corner of her eye, and hastily brushed it away.
"You're welcome, Steven," she said, walking away, "It was your mother's favorite..."
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"So to sum it all up, I could potentially be a new member of your 'Diamond Authority!'"
"That's wonderful, Spodumene!"
"It'll take getting used to, but I think I can make this work!"
Spodumene and I walk down the hallway towards Diamond's council chamber. She and I met a short while ago with her revealing the wonderful news. Mistress Diamond had put her through initiation and had passed with flying colors. She was tested in combat, basic IQ tests, and reasoning, all the things that a loyal Diamond follower would need or want about them.
"I remember when I was first recruited," I say, "Diamond tried to make my tests more challenging, including her combat tests attempting to actually harm me. But I bested them all in the end."
"Yeah, well she made my tests difficult," she says, "Is there a reason why she'd do that?"
"I've always figured she wanted to show the overbearing strength in us all," I say, "Diamond is said to take in only the strongest of gems. If you passed her tests, there really is something special about you. Not that I doubted anything, of course."
"Of course not," Spodumene playfully agreed, "I think I see your point. This Diamond gem is very... illuminating to say the least."
"She's a good leader... strange, but still leader-worthy," I say. Stepping up to the council doors, we push both of them and walk inside. Spodumene get's yet another eyeful of the well-crafted council chamber.
We see we are not alone. Diamond herself is present in the room, Emerald faithfully by her side. Unlike last time she herself was not white in color, but a more lighter shade of red. I've sometimes wondered myself if color change or even camouflage is a power of hers. She is currently speaking with two other gems who are also in the room; one rich blue, and one black as space. I frown lightly as I notice the black one; Jet has always seemed too brutal for my tastes to ever be a partner. But she seemed to get along well enough with Lapis Lazuli, so I try not to think too much of it.
Diamond stops talking to them as she notices us.
"I think now would be a good point to conclude this meeting," she says out loud, " So your objective is clear?"
"Yes Mistress,"Lapis Lazuli says.
"I still don't like it," Jet says, "Me and Lapis are too good for simple menial chores like this!"
"Jet!" Lapis silently admonishes.
"With all due respect Jet," Emerald says, "The elimination of foul native creatures near Crystal Spire Tau is not exactly what I would call a 'chore'."
"Exactly why you are here in the safety of the Citadel," Jet responds, then sighs, "Never-mind though, Lapis and I will see it done."
"There was never any doubt," Diamond says, motioning them away, "Now off with you!" Jet and Lapis both cross one arm over both of their chests, then turn around. As they leave, we catch looks at each other. That black helm and visor covers most of her face, but I can still tell that Jet doesn't hold me in any higher kindness than I hold her.
"Jet," I say.
"Rose... this someone new?" she asks, noticing the yellow gem.
"This is Spodumene, our hopefully new recruit," I introduce. Spodumene gives a small bow towards the two.
"A pleasure to meet you," she says.
"Hi," Lapis says, with a small wave of her hand.
"Greetings," Jet also says, "This is Lapis Lazuli, and I am Jet... are you actually a fusion?"
"...Yes, why?" Spodumene replied with caution. At this Jet paused; her lips pursed ever so slightly in a frown. She turned to her blue companion.
"Let's go Lapis, the sooner we complete that purge job, the better." She then proceeds to walk away. Lapis however lingers a moment longer.
"Well, it was nice meeting you both... I will see you another time!" She then runs off to catch up with Jet. When they were gone, Spodumene looks at me.
"Well, that Jet certainly is a stoic one."
"Indeed, there are times even I wonder about her..."
"But enough about them, huh?" Diamond's voice gets mine and Spodumene's attention. She's tapping her fingers on the council table-top impatiently. Noting this, Emerald quickly speaks up,
"Rose Quartz, Spodumene? Mistress Diamond will see you now."
With that we make our way to the table as well, the council chamber doors closing behind us with a deep rumble.
-I hope having lines and set pieces seen directly from episodes in this story isn't a sign of laziness or lesser quality. That'd be the last thing I would this story to be called. Let me know what you guys think!-