"Jasper and Steven are becoming incredibly close," Pearl mused as she looked over at the couch cushions, where both had fallen asleep. Jasper's large body took up most of the couch but Steven could still perch comfortably on her belly. He slept on his stomach, rising up and down as Jasper breathed.

"They are," Garnet agreed. "It was inevitable. Steven saved their lives in more ways than one." She smiled and quirked her head. "And let's be real, it's Steven. It's impossible not to love that boy. He's the best thing for everyone and after all the pain we know Jasper and Peridot were forced to suffer, love is what they need most right now." The gems smiled at each other.

Jasper stretched out on the couch, cracking her toes and fingers. The movement stirred the sleepy boy reclining on her belly and he mumbled something about caterpillars and inched further up under the giant's neck. Peridot was draped over Jasper's knees like a skinny green scarf, hanging half way from the ground and the cushion.

"They're so adorable," Pearl giggled softly under her breath. "I don't think I could even bear to wake them up." She clasped her hands together endearingly with a croon. It was a picture of innocence. "Surely we can just save Steven's breakfast for later?"

Garnet smiled. "I suppose."

The comfortable trio probably would have stayed in their snuggle huddle all day were it not for the obnoxiously loud honking sound that suddenly boomed out of a smirking purple horn beside them. Jasper screamed and flailed in instinct, rolling violently to the side and tumbling off the couch, crushing both Peridot and Steven under her large stomach.

"Ohmygoodness!" Pearl babbled frantically as she yanked her baby out from under Jasper and cradled him. "Steven, are you hurt?!" The boy was half asleep and half aware, looking around the room with droopy, confused eyes. "Amethyst!" Pearl barked. "What were you thinking? You could have really hurt him! Do you know how much that brute weighs?"

"Hey, I was trying to wake him up! His play date with Connie starts in like a half hour! Wouldn't want him to sleep through it." The boy's eyes widened when he remembered, and he scrambled out of Pearl's arms frantically.

"Ughhhh...Jasper, get off me!" came a muffled sounding whine of pain from under the large gem. Peridot's free arm waved in distress. "You weigh a ton, you oaf!"

"Yeah and your bony body isn't any more comfortable to lie on!" Jasper snapped back as she pushed herself up so she was hovered over the smaller gem. Their glares faded to something more shy and sheepish when they were face to face, and nearly on top of one another. They froze, eyes locked silently. When a sudden burst of light from their gems lit the living room the two yelped and scrambled away from each other, covering their faces in mortification.

"Whoa..." Steven's starry eyes sparkled in curiosity even as Pearl dragged him up the stairs and back to his bedroom.

"You and Connie are going to get pizza later, right? Oh, you should wear that new little suit I bought for you the other day! Oh I'm sure Connie will simply adore it on you. You'll look cute as a button." Steven wasn't listening and only glanced over the railing. Jasper and Peridot were going about the morning as they usually would, but Steven easily noticed a darker tinge to their faces.

"Pearl, what was that?"

"What, Amethyst being obnoxious as always?"

"No! The...the light."

At that, the slim gem seemed to stop and her eyes widened. "Oh...ah...the light." She glanced down at Jasper and Peridot as well and looked thoughtful. "Well, it can mean many things, Steven. It's hard to say. It's somewhat of a gem culture thing. Gems can project our feelings and different emotions in certain patterns of light. For example, your gem glowed with extreme happiness when you ate your favorite cookie. It can do it in anger as well and acts like...a warning mechanism for predators."

Steven struggled to pull his head through the sleeve of his suit and stumbled around blindly. His voice was muffled. "Both of their gems flashed at the same time though. I've never seen that done before. Is it a new thing?"

Pearl watched the poor boy stumble around for a moment and giggled, guiding his head out of the sleeve. "Well...I suppose it could be The Glint."

Steven's head popped up from the collar. "The Glint?"

"It's an old, very ancient gesture among two gems. I don't know if it's even done anymore, especially since showing any general emotion on Homeworld was frowned upon and likely still is. The Glint is something that happens with two compatible individuals. It can either be a friendly compatibility or a romantic one. Basically when two gems care very deeply for the other their gems will glow." Steven's eyes got wider with the explanation.

"It's an unconscious thing," Pearl continued. "It means that gems can't usually control it if the feelings are strong enough. They can't contain the sheer happiness when they're so close. And when two gems touch a similar thing happens. It's used to measure the strength of a bond actually." Pearl smiled and a dreamy look overtook her. "The happiness you feel, the love...there's nothing like it."

Suddenly Steven yanked on her shirt collar, eyes even more starry and excited. "Me!" he squealed. "Do me! Do me! I wanna see how much you love me! Me! Me!"

Pearl laughed nervously. "What?" Suddenly Steven jumped up and grabbed her face, yanking it down to smush against his belly where he pulled his shirt up. Pearl's neck strained from the awkward position but she immediately felt a flood of warmth and joy that she had never before felt so strong. It radiated through Steven too as their gems tingled and they giggled. The twin lights were blinding and the feeling...was indescribable.

Steven clasped his fingers to his mouth excitedly. "You love me," he whispered. Pearl laughed and hugged him. "Of course. When did you ever doubt that?"

The boy was bouncing. "So-so-romance you say! The Glint usually happens when two gems are in love?!"

"Well that's one reason yes. It can happen for many reasons though." Everything else Pearl was saying fell on deaf ears as Steven's thoughts excitedly whirled. The gems glowing, the blushing, the powerful protectiveness they had with each other... "Oh man!" He leaped for joy. "This is the best thing ever!"

Clumsily slipping over his own feet as he struggled to get the little suit Pearl made for him on and run at the same time, the boy bolted to the stairs. He almost smacked right into his best friend. "Connie!"

"Hey Steven." She waved. "Are you ready to-"

"WE GOTTA GO, BYE GUYS!" Steven didn't give the girl a chance to finish her sentence or even step out the door as he grabbed her sleeve and yanked her out the door. He was so hyped up that he was bouncing on the spot and his eyes were starry.

Connie stared at the boy, her eyes having trouble following his excited movements. "Steven...did you have too much sugar cereal this morning? I thought you were banned from eating Crackle Happy Berries when you took a garbage can lid and tried to slide down the temple."

Steven shook his head. "It's not that, we gotta go to my Dad's right away!" Connie's face fell.

"Your Dad's? I thought we were getting pizza! My mom even made me wear this ridiculous frilly dress because of it." She pulled at the fluffy pink garments in disdain. "It's so long I have to keep holding it or I'll trip on it..."

"Connie you and I have a really important mission to do today." He squeezed his best friend's cheeks. "It's in the name of love..." The girl just stared at him from what she could, confused.

"Love?"

"Yeah!" Steven plastered his face to the glass on the window to look in at Peridot and Jasper. "Today we're Connie and Steven the Matchmakers!" he cheered.

"So let me get this straight," Greg began as he poured each child a glass of juice and dumped out a box of animal crackers. "You kids...think I'm some kind of love expert? Like cupid or something?" Greg grinned at the two sheepish kids.

"Welll..." Steven shrugged. "You've gotta be somewhat of a love expert since you got Mom to fall in love with you. I mean, Mom was a magical space rock lady! If anyone is the expert it's you here." Shoving cookies into his mouth, Steven inched over into his Dad's lap. He looked up at him with his crumb covered face. "Tell us your secrets!"

"Uhh..." Greg rubbed the back of his head with an awkward laugh. "I don't know what to tell you, I mean...I still don't know how your Mom fell for a guy like me. I'll never know how actually. Too bad this isn't something you could ask her."

Steven's face fell for a moment, but he shrugged. "Well how did you wow her? When you two fell in love how did it work? When you realized you liked her what was the kind of things you did to make her happy?"

Greg sat back in his chair and patted his child's tummy affectionately. "I guess it didn't take much to make her happy. Rose loved everything and everyone. She loved any place I took her. Everything about earth fascinated her and made her so excited." His eyes lit up as he spoke.

"What were her favorite places to be?" Connie asked, scooting so she was beside the man. He draped a free arm around her.

"Ahhhh...anywhere where there was life. Which is pretty much anywhere. I'd say her favorite place seemed to be the beach." He smiled. "Maybe that's why she chose to stay there with the gems. She was amazed by the amount of water and how many different living things could be inside it."

Connie blinked. "She didn't have water on her planet?"

"Well they did, but it wasn't as clean and calm as it is here she told me." Greg shrugged. "She didn't really want to go into detail." Steven nodded. Knowing what he did of Homeworld he couldn't blame her.

"Life just fascinated your mother, Steven. Any kind of life." He threaded his fingers through his son's hair. "I still remember the first time I saw her cry. We were walking along the beach, talking and laughing. Neither of us knew where we were going and that's when we heard it."

The crunch under his shoe made the man freeze. They were on the beach. It could be anything from a small rock to an abandoned shell, and all Greg could do was pray it was an abandoned shell and not something alive. He lifted his foot and his worst suspicions were confirmed.

"Oh..." Half the mucus from the snail stuck to his foot, while half was still in the grains of sand. He was hopeful that maybe Rose didn't realize, but that's when he saw the tears in her eyes. "Oh geez...Rose, I'm sorry."

The large woman knelt down next to the crushed creature and gave a small sniffle. It was so heartbreaking it made Greg want to cry.

"Come on, don't do that!" he pleaded. "I didn't mean it, Rose! I didn't see it...I'm sorry." He watched her pick up the shattered remains. And then he watched a miracle happen. As she cried over the small creature, it began to glow. To Greg's utter amazement, he watched as the shards of shell mended together over the small ball of slime and became whole again.

"WHOA!"

The happy snail poked its head out, antennae wiggling inquisitively. Rose giggled and nuzzled the thing to her face like it was a small puppy. She looked at the man that stared back at her like she had three heads. "What?"

"How did you do that?!"

"Oh, healing it?" She shrugged her shoulders and gave that giggle that Greg loved so much. "I guess that's a new thing I have to tell you too."

Greg grinned. "After that, me and your mom walked more carefully from then on." He laughed. "Actually, she thought of this adorable idea of painting their shells so they'd be more noticeable on the beach! We even kept one together for a few weeks. Never got a chance to own 'a couple's dog', so we owned a couples' snail."

Steven clapped his hands. "Maybe when we get Jasper and Peridot together we can get them a dog too!" Conne laughed.

"You're getting really ahead of yourself Steven. First we need to get them to fall in love."

Steven nodded. "Got it. So beach walks then, and no snail murders." He looked back at his father. "What else?"

Greg laughed. "Well...kid, that was for your mom. She's a little different from Jasper and Peridot. I don't think either of them like earth very much. What do Peridot and Jasper like?"

"Uhhhh..." Steven tilted his head. "Weeelll...from what I've seen, Peridot likes video games and Jasper likes...punching things."

Greg stared at his son for a long moment. Then he put him down and hopped off the chair, rummaging through boxes in his garage. "See I'm kind of...clueless when it comes to that, but I've got some books that may help you." He handed a crumpled old magazine to his son. "This has a bunch of dating ideas. Rose was always a fan of surprise dates. Maybe you two can set one up." He winked at his son. "Just don't go crazy."

The dim living room was illuminated once Steven lit the wick of a candle and put it in one of the holders. He lit a few more and soon the dark living room was completely visible. Connie was just finishing tucking some flowers into a vase and set it on the table next to the couch.

"Okay, what all do we have here?" Steven looked over the list of 'How To Set The Mood'. "Hm, lighting check! Dinner, check!"

Connie slid 'dinner' out of a plastic bag. It was a few fish stuffed, fish shaped biscuits that Kofi had made special for the occasion. "Yeah, I'm not so sure about this dinner."

Steven shrugged. "Well the book says that fish based dinners are perfect for romance! And this is as fish based as it gets! We've got the flowers too, so we've got everything but the dessert!" He leafed through the book. "And there's an awesome recipe here for some...creme brulee!"

Connie looked over at the counter, where Steven had made some sort of caramel mixture in a bowl. "Oh is that what that is? Isn't that like super complicated to make though? Or really dangerous?"

"You're right on the really dangerous part!" Steven giggled. "You use a blow tooorch!"

Connie's eyes widened. "A blow torch?! Steven I'm not allowed to even go near matches, let alone a blow torch! And I don't think you'd be allowed to go near it either." Connie looked around. "And speaking of that, where is everyone anyways?"

"Kindergarden." He paused at the look on her face. "Not the kind you're used to. They're going to see if there's any clusters left. Come on, you don't have to do anything, just get the blow torch for me." He mixed up the ingredients in the bowl. "I don't know why, but there's one in the top of the closet with some gem stuff."

Connie sighed and checked the closet. There were strange things in there. Magic things, she assumed. There was something that looked like a giant pair of scissors, something like The Jaws Of Life. There were a few small statues and old relics and near the back, Connie found the blow torch. At least...it looked like a blow torch. Sort of. The canister was prism shaped and transparent and the nozzle had a sharp, unforgiving looking tip. Just touching this thing made her uneasy.

"Are...you sure it's a blow torch?"

"No," Steven admitted. "But it breathes fire. Me and Pearl and Amethyst and Garnet were on a gem mission once, and there were these super big rocks in the way. The gems said they were a special type of rock that only a certain substance could break through."

Connie's eyes widened as Steven aimed the thing over his bowl. "The fact that it was able to melt a giant-otherwise-impenetrable rock makes this even more of an awful idea. Steven, I really think we should go another route other then creme brulee."

"Relax," the boy said confidently. "I'm a gem, I know how to handle this stuff." He lowered the nozzle and a crackling sound was all they both heard as they were flung back into the fridge from the sheer force of the explosion.

"Whoa," the kids groaned and rubbed their heads. They didn't remember light from the candles being so bright.

"STEVEN!" Connie yelled, pointing a trembling finger over to where the counter was lit in the flames, and the large almost-purple embers were beginning to eat away at the cabinets rapidly.

"AUGH!" Steven screamed and shoved Connie away from the fridge as the frame began to burn. The fire started to spread quite rapidly through the kitchen, faster then a normal fire. "Water! Water, get water, Connie!"

The girl scrambled to her feet and made a break for a jug of water next to the counter, throwing it at the flames. They simmered slightly but then flared with a renewed dangerous vigor. They seemed to be stronger then regular flames. "Steven, we can't keep up with them! They're so fast!" The children screamed as a small explosion scattered more flames around them and Steven summoned his bubble.

"There's so much smoke!" Connie cried. "I-I can't see!" She backed up into Steven and they felt the bubble shift. Something lifted it up.

"Peridot!" Jasper yelled as she threw the children over the smoke to the green gem. Peridot caught the children and hovered above the danger, holding the bubble tight. "Take them, I'll handle the Sizzling Serpent! Lapis, now!"

From in the smoke the children saw blue wings and heard a rumbling sound. Rushing water. They clutched each other close and watched as a window suddenly burst open, Lapis's giant water hand rushing in. The fingers flexed and its watery palm slapped down on the spreading flames, killing them instantly. Ash and water and diminishing smoke was all that remained.

Steven and Connie were practically hyperventilating, taking in the sight before them. Jasper was attempting to wrangle The Sizzling Serpent, choking the out of control nozzle and finally smashing it to bits.

Peridot set down the children. "A Sizzling Serpent? I haven't seen one of those in...ages. They're so old." She glared at the kids. "But still so dangerous." The moment Steven popped his bubble Jasper's hand lunged forward and snapped him up by the back of his shirt.

Steven gasped as the large gem held him in her grip and dangled him by the shirt collar. She wasn't blindly screaming at him yet and for some reason that made him even more nervous. Her golden eyes were blazing with the rage he was used to seeing...but it was a different kind of anger. It was a lot like the kind of anger the gems showed if he did something stupid and dangerous. The large gem lifted him to meet her blazing, raging golden eyes. Steven's breath choked off in terror as his eyes widened and he stared at her. Without saying anything Jasper yanked up his shirt and held him firmly.

"What are you doing?" She scrutinized it for cracks but found nothing, so she yanked down his shirt. Then she jerked the boy up to her face. A hungry lion would probably be less threatening looking right now. From behind the large form both Peridot and Lapis were frowning disapprovingly. Lapis crossed her arms. Peridot's eyes narrowed from behind her visor.

"Quartz," Peridot began to hiss, but Jasper's hand suddenly sliced through the air like a knife and she held it in front of the others, silencing them. "I've got this," she said in a low, frightening tone. "Go try to make the house look like less of a disaster."

Peridot immediately did as she was told, but Lapis lingered for a moment, concerned. "Jasper..."she began.

"Leave, Lapis!" Jasper snapped. "I'll handle him." Wide, frightened eyes gazed over at the blue gem, silently pleading with her not to leave. He was terrified of what might happen to him and Connie, alone...with no witnesses. Steven felt helpless when she left him, all alone with Jasper. The door clicked and it was just him and a very angry gem. A very, very angry gem. Jasper's grip on his collar tightened.

"Um-"

"What the hell were you doing with a Sizzling Serpent?!" Jasper yelled as she gave him a shake.

"S-so that's what it's called?" the boy gulped.

"You didn't even KNOW?!"

"W-well I knew the gems used it before and that it melted rocks, but I didn't know its name..."

"You didn't even know what you were handling and you decided to use it anyway?! What the hell made you think that wielding that fiery WEAPON, in the HOUSE, no less was a good idea!?" She gave him an angry shake. "Geez kid, didn't your family teach you NOT to play with fire?!" The yelling was enough to already bring Steven near tears.

"I-I was just trying to do something," he croaked. "The house wasn't supposed to light on fire..."

"And what were you trying to do? Prove how stupid you were, because you got that done! Only skilled, highly trained gems handle flame guns and from what I've seen all you've ever handled is that weird earth..nerf gun!"

Steven's lip trembled with guilt and fear as he tried to avoid her eyes and tried not to cry. "I just...I just..."

"Did you think just because the crystal idiots weren't around that that meant you could play with fire? What do you think they'd say about that? " Suddenly she glared down at Connie too. "What would YOUR parents say?" The girl bit her lip and shrunk against the wall.

"Th...they wouldn't be happy." She shook her head. "But that's not what we were trying to-"

"You know if you pulled that kind of stunt back on our planet, doing something you were forbidden to do you might not live to see another day. They'd probably use the gem drill, or the spiked rod." The child in her grip paled and trembled. "This thing hurts when it's slammed into your face and chest, and your hands, and feet. Breaks your knuckles, ankles...breaks a few ribs." Steven started to whimper. "Yeah. Lucky for you, I'm not a mindless child beater."

Steven looked at her hopefully through tears. "You aren't?" Jasper suddenly adjusted her hold on the boy so he was tucked under one arm. Steven blinked, and then his stomach started to flutter again.

"No, I kind of have a feeling that the gems won't be too happy if I shatter some bones." Suddenly there was a sharp noise and an awful pain bloomed over Steven's backside. He cried out in shock. "But you've got another thought coming if you think you can double cross me!"

"Ow!" He yelped, and yelps quickly turned into crying and struggling.

"Wait!" Connie cried. She reached out desperately, trying to get the kicking and crying Steven as Jasper's hand kept swatting him. "Please—don't-! It-it was my idea!"

"Alright, alright, that's enough!" Lapis swooped down and pulled the boy out of the giant gem's arms. Steven bawled and curled into her chest, holding his backside. "Jasper, you aren't even giving him a chance to explain himself!"

"What's to explain? He admitted it, Lapis! The brat used a fire blaster! Give me one good reason why I shouldn't bust his hide right now!"

"Because I did it for you!" Steven suddenly wailed. Everyone quieted and Steven looked over at them with his red and blotchy face. Even Jasper's glare became very confused.

"What...?"

He sniffled and wiped his face on his sleeve. "I just wanted to create a really romantic evening for you and Peridot and make a really tasty and complicated dessert!"

Peridot and Jasper's faces darkened. "A-a date?" the green gem stammered. "You mean the arrangement where two..." She looked at Jasper. "...Compatible gems spend quality time together? That's what you were trying to do?"

"Yeah." He sniffled. Lapis wiped his face and gently set him down. The boy was too embarrassed to even look at Connie, but she touched his hand anyway. "It was gonna be a surprise when you guys came back. I...I didn't even know you were still here."

"The gems thought, since the clusters are far more hostile and...homicidal towards us, that it would be a good idea if we stay," Peridot said. She frowned lightly. "And it was a good thing we did." She bent down to Steven's level and lifted his chin with one of her digital fingers. "Steven even if you thought this was a good idea, do you really think Jasper and I would...be able to enjoy any of this if you and the Connie human had been hurt or killed? Surely there's a better way to...ah, 'set the mood'...then arson."

Jasper had been quiet through this whole thing and after a moment she started to gather some of the ashes and throw it into the sink. She brushed the charcoal off the dessert. "You want us to have a date so bad? Steven, Connie, you're grounded...to Steven's room." She pointed a finger. "Up you go."

The children looked at each other and grinned after a moment, understanding. "Okay!" They made their way to the stairs. Peridot and Lapis looked at the larger gem, but Jasper turned to Lapis. "Hey Water Princess, we can take the cleaning from here. There isn't much to do."

Lapis clued in and gave a knowing smirk. "Whatever you say. I was going to head to my room about now anyways." The door closed to her room and it was just Jasper and Peridot. Jasper walked nonchalantly over to the couch where their cold fish biscuits were and the candles were still lit.

"What are we doing?" Peridot frowned.

"The brats wanted us to have a date so bad... To tell you the truth, guess I don't mind it either." Jasper twirled one of her curls almost sheepishly, trying to avoid Peridot's stare. The green gem smiled.

"Sometimes it makes me sad that gems are unable to have children of their own without sacrificing themselves. A few minutes ago made me think that you could make an...exceptional mother."

Jasper snorted. "Yeah, one that shakes them until they get brain damage and beats their backsides? Besides...I hate kids. Except for those two anyway...most days." She picked up the fish biscuit. "What...is this thing anyways?"

"It's shaped like the Lapis's aquatic pets. We probably shouldn't let her see them."

"Earthlings have strange customs." Jasper reclined against the couch. "When did this become our life anyway? When did we just...become babysitters? Those brats give me more trouble then my soldiers ever did."

Peridot smiled. "Are you really complaining? This planet is odd...but it has given us something our former home never did."

Jasper nodded, eyes soft. "Acceptance... Sometimes I kind of wish I had a chance to talk to Rose again. If I did I'd have a lot of things to say. I'd apologize for thinking she was a traitor for leaving our cess pool of a planet. And apologize for trying to, you know...kill her entire family." She shrugged. "I guess most of all I'd thank her for Steven."

"So would I." Peridot smiled shyly. "And...you."

Jasper rose an eyebrow. "You've known me before we met Steven?"

"I did, but this time on earth made me realize how much I..." She hesitated. "How much you really mean to me." Her gem glowed, and Jasper's did too.

"...Ditto," she mumbled. They clinked the crumbling biscuit against each other's like a wine glass. "What's the thing Steven says? Oh yeah...bon appetite."

The two gems smiled at each other and their gems glowed, projecting a golden and a green heart.

(A/N: This took a much different turn then I was aiming. Originally this was going to be centered on multiple couples but then I found myself writing more of the build then anything, and I wanted to incorporate the Homeworldies as 'moms.' Feel like I got them down. XD I've officially figured out the ending of this fic, and all I've gotta say is buckle up for what I've prepared folks. Any emotional anguish you've experienced this far is going to feel like a cake walk compared to what I have stored. I'm my own Rebecca Sugar! *evil laugh* The next chapter starts the final arc before the ending. Look forward to it!)