"LET'S GO STEVEN! If you don't get your gem up this hill in the next five seconds, I'll throw a boulder on your back and you'll have to carry it up and down this hill twenty more times!" yelled the now surprisingly merciless striped teacher.
"B-Boulder?! Twenty times?! She can't be serious!" thought the out of breath youngling. He already ran up the hill forty-nine times; it wasn't so bad until he hit the dreaded 'no energy' wall at number thirty-five.
Unfortunately, her countdown proved otherwise.
With a mental empowering yell, Steven closed his eyes, summoned the last of his energy and quickly ran up the verdant hilltop on his shaky, lactic acid filled legs.
"Three…two…o-OOF!"
Just as Jasper was about to hit one, Steven rammed into her at full speed, effectively yet inadvertently tackling her. Unfortunately for her, the act was witnessed by a snickering purple gem who just so happened to show up carrying a cooler filled with various items.
"Way to go Ste-man!" she cheered as she laughed her head off.
Jasper grumbled as she sat up and picked up her exhausted cub by the back of his sweat-drenched, red star shirt.
"W-Water…" he gasped.
Amethyst heeded his dry call and grabbed a bottle of electrolyte-infused water. "Here ya go bud" she said as her giggling finally subsided.
Steven twisted the cap off and chugged the much needed liquid hydration.
"Dang…good thing I hopped up here when I did. Sheesh Jasper, what're you trying to do? Kill the kid?" Amethyst concernedly asked when she finally noticed his exhausted state.
Jasper laid Steven on the soft blades of grass so he could gather enough oxygen into his lungs.
"Of course not! And where were you?! You were supposed to be here over a half hour ago!" she retorted as she stood up and wiped off the water he dribbled on her.
"I had to get my protein-power up on. And I had to wait for Pearl to get back from the store. She wanted him to have that doctor water and healthy snacks. Good thing too, looks like he really needs it" she commented as Steven's breathing finally evened out.
"…I don't understand. This is barely warm up back on home world." Jasper commented.
"Uh, he is half human, remember?" Amethyst replied.
"I know that!" she glared.
Amethyst flinched under her intense stare. "Okay, lesson learned. Don't talk to her with a smart mouth" she realized.
"He's still half gem, and a diamond no less. I don't understand why he just doesn't refresh his strength. He does know how to do that…right?" she asked.
"Uh…" was the only response she got.
"He doesn't know?!" she fumed.
"Hey! His shield powers only showed up a year ago! We didn't know how to control'em or what to teach him!" she defended.
Jasper closed her eyes, pinched the bridge of her gem and irritably sighed - more so out of guilt that she could've seriously injured him…again. This time due to ignorance.
"Steven…are you okay?" she asked as she crouched down next to him; Amethyst followed suit.
He slowly opened his eyes and shakily replied, "…I-I'm g-good."
But she didn't buy it.
"I'm sorry! I should've been easier on you" she apologized.
"N-No! Don't be sorry! I need to be stronger, and this is the only way! Like you said, this is barely a warm up back on home world. And besides, the first workout is always the hardest. Trust me, I know" he explained as flashbacks of his homemade gym and debilitating soreness came back to him.
"Well, you definitely got some muscle action goin' on" Amethyst commented as she lightly touched his quad. But that contact was enough to make him whimper in pain. "S-Sorry bud!" she said and she immediately backed away.
"Okay. That's it. No more. We're done for today" Jasper decided once she heard him whimper. "Time to get rid of this pain. Steven, I want you to close your eyes."
He did as he was told and she continued, "Now, you said the secret to controlling your powers is emotional clarity, right? So, I want you to stop thinking about the pain."
"What?! What sense does that make?" Amethyst questioned but Jasper quickly silenced her with another glare.
"Instead, focus on the energy in your gem. Feel its rejuvenating energy coursing through your body and how refreshed you'll feel afterward. Kinda like how you felt after you got out of that hidden spring" she clarified.
Steven heeded the words his tiger mentor spoke to him and took deep breaths to quiet his mind…as if he was going to sleep. He envisioned the overwhelming relief he felt when he exited the diamond grotto, and in turn his body started to feel…tingly.
On the outside, Jasper and Amethyst noticed that his gem was glowing and that his entire body was enveloped in a pink, aura-like, force field.
"Is that supposed to happen? That doesn't happen with me" Amethyst said and Jasper merely shrugged her shoulders.
About a moment later, the pink hue disappeared and Steven slowly opened his eyes.
"How ya feelin' bud?" Amethyst asked.
He answered that question when he sprang onto his healed feet and declared, "I feel amazing! Feels like I had good night sleep! C'mon, let's do some more training!"
"Whoa whoa whoa, hold on there Steven. I was serious when I said we're done for today. Even though refreshing ourselves heals our injuries, it takes a while so it leaves us vulnerable to an enemy attack. That's why you should only do it when you're in a safe area for an extended period of time" Jasper explained.
"But I have a bubble shield! I can protect myself while healing myself at the same time" he realized.
"He has a point" Amethyst agreed.
"…True. But do you have enough stamina to simultaneously do those two things?" questioned Jasper.
"Ah! Uh…no…" he sighed, remembering that his mom also said he had to build up his stamina too.
"Hey, don't get so down my little cub. It's still a great idea. We'll do another training session later today and we'll work on that, okay?" she guaranteed as she ruffled his hair.
"Okay…" he dejectedly replied.
"Aw, cheer up bud! Remember, Rome wasn't built in a day" Amethyst said.
"…What's Rome?" Jasper asked.
"Never mind. What I'm saying is you gotta take your time. You don't wanna to rush something like this and hurt yourself. You'll be strong soon! Definitely stronger than her!" she said with a cheeky smile as she patted Jasper on the arm.
"Heh…yep, you'll get there" Jasper agreed. "He's already stronger than me in so many ways" she thought.
Stars appeared in Steven's eyes as he pictured himself being able to lift super heavy objects and punch through solid stone with ease.
"Now just because you're done, doesn't mean the learning stops. Tell me what you remember from our last lesson" Jasper asked.
"To battle with a clear mind and when you're charging towards somebody, it's about making'em think you're doing one thing when you're really doing something else" he proudly recited.
"Very good. Now that Amethyst is here, we'll show you some basic hand-to-hand combat" she said.
"Alright! Time to mix it up!" Amethyst gleefully said as she cracked her knuckles.
Suns appeared in his eyes as he sat down to watch his mentors face each other in a friendly duel.
Before they could engage in mock combat, Jasper asked "Amethyst, can you shapeshift into a bigger form please?"
A slight scowl appeared on her face. She was about to ask why Jasper couldn't shrink down to her size, but thought better against it. She's the one teaching him. Plus…she did say please.
"She didn't mean anything by it…" she told herself as she shook off those negative feelings of inadequacy. "Sure" she replied and she shapeshifted into her Purple Puma persona.
"Thank you" Jasper replied as she bowed to her, showing her respect.
That act caught her off guard. She sputtered out "Y-You're welcome" and returned the proper gesture.
"Alright. We'll start with the basic punch. When throwing a punch, you have to put your whole weight behind it, not just your arm. That won't do anything" she explained as an arm powered punch didn't even reach Amethyst.
"Unless of course you shapeshift your arm" Amethyst commented as she threw her own version of an arm powered punch, which Jasper effectively blocked. Then she dashed towards her and gave her a swift right hook to the face, knocking her to the ground.
"HEY! What was that for?!" Amethyst yelled as she held her left cheek.
"What? I was just showing how effective a full body punch is" she smugly replied while crossing her arms over her chest. Amethyst grumbled as she stood up and awaited the next part of the lesson.
"Now, when you've knocked down your opponent, that's the best opportunity to put them into a grapple hold to subdue and finish them" she stated.
"Like twisting their heads?" Steven asked as he recalled how Pearl cracked that baby centipeedle's neck.
"Exactly. Now Amethyst, if you would."
Amethyst begrudgingly turned around and allowed Jasper to grapple her arms in a hold. "And no more funny business, got it? We're trying to teach him the basics remember?!" she whispered into her ear.
A mischievous glint appeared in Amethyst's eyes and she replied, "…Whatever you say."
With that confirmation, Jasper continued her explanation. "If you don't have your opponent on the ground, get'em there by making'em lose their balance. You can do that by tripping their feet up."
"Yea…like this!" With that Amethyst shapeshifted back into her standard form, effectively freeing herself from Jasper's hold. Then she performed a swift low kick to knock her onto the ground. She quickly transformed back into The Purple Puma, got on top of her and pinned her to the ground.
"HEY! What did I just say?!" she growled.
"You said we were teaching him the basics" she whispered back, then told Steven, "Even if your opponent is bigger than you, you can always use your size to your advantage. After all, the bigger they are, the harder they fall!"
Although she couldn't deny the fact that that was an important tactic for Steven to learn due to his small stature, Jasper didn't like the fact that she was duped. "Wanna play it like that huh?! FINE!" she roared.
Using all of her upper body strength, she head butted Amethyst square in the forehead. She recoiled from the powerful blow, allowing Jasper to stand up.
"Remember cub. So long as one part of your body is free, even your head, you can escape any hold" she told him as she assumed a defensive stance. Amethyst growled from the pain and charged towards her.
At that point, all bets were off as an all-out melee ensued. Multiple punches were thrown, advanced aerial kicks were unleashed and a couple of pile drivers shook the mountainside.
"Uh…guys?" Steven questioned; he wasn't sure whether or not this was still part of the lesson. But he realized soon enough that this fight went beyond just a mere practice battle when they summoned their weapons.
"GUYS! STOP!" he shouted and the two combatants finally heard their charge's plea for peace. "What're you doing!?" he asked.
Jasper and Amethyst let go of each other and the purple gem sheepishly replied, "…Training you?"
"It doesn't look like a training session to me! It looked like you guys wanted to beat each other up! Really bad! Why would you want to hurt each other? We're a family!" he asserted while rapidly tapping his foot.
The duo sighed at their immaturity and Jasper said, "You're right…I'm sorry Amethyst."
"No…this was all my fault. I was the one being a jerk and messin' up your lesson. I-I guess I just wanted to show that I'm more than just my original body…I'm still sensitive about it. I…I…oh forget it!" she said as she reverted back to her normal form.
"Amethyst…what's wrong?" Steven asked.
She groaned in frustration. She hated expressing her feelings…it made her feel weak. But Garnet said that they had to learn how to deal with things like this. Bottling them up will just hurt everyone in the long run.
"I-I just felt a little hurt when you asked me to shapeshift to your size. My mind just went back to what you said when you first got here" she explained.
"But…I thought we cleared all that up that night when we apologized to each other" Jasper recalled.
"We did! I know we did! I don't understand why it creeps up on me like that, but it does! And sometimes I just need to let it out!" she vented.
Jasper blinked a couple of times, but showed a soft smile and said, "…I get it. I'm the same way. I don't know how to explain it, but fighting just clears my mind up. Maybe that's just our nature as quartzes…I don't know. But I'm sorry for making you feel that way. I didn't mean to. It's just that you're so adept at shapeshifting so I thought it wouldn't be such a big deal."
"…It's not. And…I'm sorry I made it one. And…thanks" Amethyst said as she revealed a small smile of her own.
"No problem. Whenever you need to let off some steam, just let me know. But I won't go easy on you" she replied.
"Wouldn't have it any other way" Amethyst grinned.
"Hey! I got an idea!" Steven shouted as stars appeared in his eyes. "You two should fight together in the Beach City Wrestling Federation!"
"The what federation?" Jasper asked.
"Aw yea, Steven! That's a great idea! We'd be unstoppable!" Amethyst cheered.
"YEA!" Steven exclaimed sharing her enthusiasm.
"Wait, hold on! What're you two going on about?" Jasper asked again.
"The Beach City Wrestling Federation is where people get together, dress up in cool costumes, come up with nicknames and fight each other! For fun!" he clarified.
"For fun?" Jasper repeated.
"Yea!" Steven said.
"…Really?" she asked again and Steven nodded his head.
"…Sorry, but fighting for fun is just…weird to hear." she explained.
"Oh…right" Steven said as he remembered what she went through back on home world.
"Well, there's no dying in wrestling. Broken bones maybe, but no dying. Plus, when you beat everybody you become the Beach City Wrestling champion!" Amethyst explained while throwing in some jazz hands for good measure.
"Now I like the sound of that!" Jasper smiled.
"Yea! You two would make an awesome tag team!" Steven declared.
"What about Tiger Millionaire?" Amethyst asked.
"He'll be your guys' manager. He's always looking for new investment opportunities" he explained and she chuckled at that.
"Who's Tiger Millionaire?" asked Jasper.
"Oh, it's my wrestling nickname! Amethyst is the Purple Puma" he explained and Amethyst transformed back into her larger, spandex wearing form. Even showing off a bit by flexing her pecks.
"And we can even come up with cool backstories" Steven further explained as he told Jasper their fictional back stories (although Amethyst's had a bit of truth hidden in hers).
"…Interesting" she commented.
"C'mon, Jasper! Let's get a look for you!" he excitedly exclaimed.
"What's wrong with the way I look now?" she defensively asked as she looked at him through narrowed eyes.
"Nothing! It's just that we have to keep our real selves a secret identity from the order of wrestling haters" he explained.
"What?! There's an enemy after you two?! I thought you said this wrestling thing was for fun!" she retorted.
"It is! The haters don't exist, it's all pretend. Y'know, to add excitement to the sport" Steven tried to explain.
But Jasper just held her head and sighed, "…You and your crazy Earth customs."
"Jazz. Just fight whoever's in the ring and win. That's all you need to know" Amethyst simplified and Jasper slowly nodded her head at the explanation.
"Now, try shapeshifting into how I look" she suggested.
Soon Jasper's entire body was engulfed in a blinding orange light. A moment later, her new form was revealed.
Her upper body was flatter and covered with white chest hair. She was sporting a burgundy one-piece spandex suit similar to Amethyst's and auburn boots with brown tips. Instead of a mask, she wore a burgundy headband across her forehead. She still kept her wristbands.
"Hmmm…something's missing" Steven pondered as he looked over her new form.
"Yea…but what?" Amethyst asked.
"What's wrong? Don't I look tough enough?" Jasper asked as she patted her furry chest.
"Of course! You just need that "it" factor to set it over the top. But what? What?!" Steven knocked on his head to try and stimulate his brain.
"I GOT IT! A MUSTACHE!" he exclaimed with starry eyes.
"Mustache?" she asked.
"Yea! Like this guy!" he said as he took out his phone. After doing a quick search on Roodle, he found the person he was looking for and showed her the picture.
"Who's that?" she questioned.
"That's Bulk Bogan! He was a super famous wrestler and he was super tough! No one could beat him! And his mustache was awesome! It's even trademarked" he explained.
"I bet I could take him no sweat" Amethyst commented.
"…And you think having this 'mustache' will set my toughness over the top?" Jasper asked.
"And the glasses too!" Steven added.
"…Alright, if you say so" she replied, still not fully understanding Earth looks.
This time only her face was aglow and a moment later she sported a white, horseshoe shaped mustache and black aviator sunglasses.
"SOOO COOOL!" Steven marveled.
"Really?" she asked as she stroked her facial hair.
"Yea, check it out!" Amethyst said as she transformed into a large, full-body mirror.
"…Wow" was the only word she could say. She did a couple flexing poses. "Heh…you were right. This definitely sets it over the top" she commented as she admired her bulging biceps.
"Alright Narcissus, that's enough of that" Amethyst playfully chided as she switched back to her Purple Puma persona.
"Who's Narcissus?" she asked.
"Just some dude who liked looking at himself too much that he actually fell in love with himself" she explained.
"Oh…HEY!" she countered as the insult finally hit her. Amethyst just chuckled.
"C'mon! I want to take a picture!" Steven said and the newly formed wrestling duo put their arms around each other shoulders.
"Smile!" he cheerfully said and they did as they were told. Soon the flash went off. Steven looked at the image and nodded in satisfaction.
"We want to see too!" Amethyst said and he showed them the pic.
"Pretty sweet!" she commented and Jasper agreed with her.
"Alright, now that you have your wrestling persona, you need an awesome wrestling name. Hmmm…can't do anything tiger because that's my thing. Hmmmm." Steven continued humming as he paced around in a circle, trying to think.
"What about Big Buff Fireball?" Amethyst suggested.
"No" Jasper flatly replied. "And why a fireball anyway?"
"Well instead of stripes, the lines on your body could be like fire tattoos" Amethyst explained.
"…Or burn marks" she solemnly said as she ran her hand over her arms.
Amethyst immediately mentally face palmed her brain when she remembered what Jasper went through. Before she had a chance to apologize for her insensitivity, Steven blurted out, "Blazing Beast!"
"What?" the wrestling duo concurrently asked.
"Yea! Check it out. Blazing beast was a powerful protector of all the animals in the jungle. One day, a creature named Infernal Leviathan invaded the jungle because it wanted to have the beautiful land all to itself. Blazing Beast defeated it and banished it to the outlands, a desert wasteland. But Infernal Leviathan swore revenge and got its chance when lighting struck a dead tree, setting it on fire. The evil creature used some of the blaze to set the jungle on fire.
"Blazing Beast suffered burns all over her body trying to save as many animals as she could. That's why she has stripes. Because of her appearance and the guilt she felt for not doing enough to prevent the disaster, she felt inadequate to protect the animals. Even though they continued to praise and seek her out. She joined Purple Puma because her wild, yet sensitive, nature rekindled the protective fighter within her and now stands to defend the people that're misunderstood in the world from the league of wrestling haters."
Jasper and Amethyst stared at him wide-eyed when he finished his tale.
"D-do you like it?" he hesitantly asked as their silence made him nervously shift side-to-side on his feet.
Jasper answered his question when she cracked a toothy grin. She picked him up and exclaimed, "It's amazing!"
"Yea dude, that freakin' rocked! How do you come up with this stuff?" asked Amethyst.
Steven shrugged his shoulders and replied, "I dunno. It just comes to me."
"Well, I'm glad it does. Thanks for turning…that…into something heroic" she said.
"You guys are heroic!" he proudly stated.
That stunned the duo into silence for a moment, but smiles soon overtook their blank, bewildered expressions. Jasper held him close to her head so he was immersed in her soft locks whereas Amethyst playfully ruffled his puffy hair. Soon a dazzling array of lights surrounded the trio.
Unfortunately…the moment was broken when they heard an "Ahem" behind them.
They turned around to see Lapis hovering in the air with her water wings. "I-I'm so sorry to interrupt, but Garnet says it's time to go get the machines" she stuttered while trying to dismiss her own deep blue blush.
As soon as Jasper saw that, the glow emanating from her gem disappeared and a blush covered her face as well. "No…it's fine. We're not on home world anymore" she reminded herself as she set Steven down.
Amethyst just kept on smiling at the bashful gems. "Man…this'll never get old" she thought as she and Jasper reverted back to their normal forms.
"Alright! Let's go!" Steven declared but Amethyst grabbed his shoulder before he could march down the mountain.
"Sorry bud, but you're not going with us" she said.
"What? Why?" he asked.
"Things could get a little…testy…with Pearl negotiating. Just because she can generate money, doesn't mean she wants to waste it. We don't want you to end up with record" she explained.
"A record? Like from dad's record collection?" he asked.
"Not that kind of record. A criminal record. We don't want you to get arrested in case something goes wrong. I mean, how would we tell your dad that this cute lil' baby face is the picture of a thug?" she extenuated by squishing his chubby cheeks.
"I don't have a baby face…" he pouted as he brushed her hands away. "I'm a large man now" he asserted by crossing his arms over his chest.
"Uh huh…whatever you say" she sarcastically commented. "But you're still not going" she said in finality.
"But what about you guys?! I don't want you guys to go to jail!" he wailed.
"Well…technically we're already wanted fugitives by home world" Lapis explained.
"And no human jail can hold me" Jasper asserted.
Seeing that he wasn't going to change their minds, he reluctantly gave in and said, "…Okay." He never liked being left out on missions.
"Hey cheer up dude. It'll probably be boring anyway, so I'm actually saving you" she said.
"Plus you can practice your punches and kicks while we're gone. Maybe even surround your fist with your shield to create a power-up punch" Jasper suggested.
"Like how he slapped you?" Amethyst cheekily asked.
"Yea…like that" she replied as she glared at her.
"Awesome! It'll be like the knuckle busters that Unko of the Typhoon Hawks uses!" he realized and those dejected feelings fled from his mind.
"Uh huh, just like that" Jasper agreed.
"What the heck is a Typhoon Hawk? And who's Unko?" she whispered to Amethyst.
"No clue, just roll with it" she replied.
"Alright! I'll have that move perfected when you get back" he declared.
"Sounds good, Ste-man. See you soon" Amethyst said as she gave him one last head ruffle.
Lapis flew over to him and gave him a hug. "Don't worry, we won't be gone long" she assured and the trio of pure gems dropped down the sheer side of the cliff to the beach house.
Now Steven was alone; nothing but the swirling salty air to keep him company. "Hmm…I need some training music" he thought.
He pulled out his phone and scrolled down his playlist. "Aha!" he exclaimed as he selected his song. It was sweet fusion of jazz, rock guitar, R & B and a little hip hop thrown in for good measure.
Steven assumed the fighting stance Jasper showed him and began throwing a flurry of quick jabs to the invisible opponent. After that little warm-up, he concentrated on his gem to summon two shields, one on each arm.
"Emotional clarity" he internally chanted as he closed his eyes and envisioned his shields covering his hands like boxing gloves. His gemstone heeded his inner desire and morphed the shields into a pair of pink crystal knuckle gloves.
"I-I did it? I DID IT! ALRIGHT!" he cheered when he saw the final result. "I wish I had something to test'em on. Hmmm…I know!"
He ran down the hill back to the front of his humble abode and approached one of the ruined pieces of the temple that was buried in the sand.
"I don't think they'll mind" he thought as he got into his fighting stance. "YAAAAAH!" he yelled as he put his whole weight behind the powerful punch. When the crystalline glove made contact with the stone ruin, it cracked it in two!
"Whoooa…" he awed as the dust cloud settled.
And he wasn't the only one amazed by the feat of impressive strength.
"S-Steven?" a voice hesitantly called out.
The said hybrid child turned around to see Connie standing a few feet from him with her mouth wide open.
"Connie!" he happily shouted as he dismissed his knuckle gloves and ran up to her to give her hug. That snapped her out of shocked revere and she returned the embrace.
"Steven…how did you do that?" she finally asked.
"Here, let me show you!" With that he covered his hands with two shields and created his own version of the knuckle busters.
"…Wow! When could you do that?" she marveled.
"Just now. Jasper and Amethyst were training me, but all of the gems left to get those gem cutting machines. So I've been training by myself in the meantime until they come back. Oh hey! I found out that I can restore my energy by using the energy in my gem, so I'll never get tired! Just like that pink bunny in the battery commercials. Well…more or less" he said as he dismissed his crystal gloves.
"I think even without your gem it would take a lot to make you tired" she said and he laughed at that.
"Not too sure about that. Jasper had me running up and down that hill fifty times and I was beyond beat" he said.
"What?! That's insane! Is she trying to kill you?!" she angrily asked.
"No no! It's okay! This'll make me stronger in the long run. Besides, no pain no gain r-right?" he sheepishly said.
Connie rubbed her forehead and sighed. "Alright…but I'm serious! If she tries anything-"
"She won't. She's changed" he assured.
"Okay, I trust you" she said and he smiled.
"So what brings you by? Not that I'm not happy to see you! It's just… aren't you usually at school at this time?" he asked.
"Usually yes, but I didn't go to school today. Sorry, I forgot that you had a new phone. I should've called to let you know I was coming" she apologized.
"It's okay. So what happened?" he asked.
"I was at the doctor's office. Mom wanted one of her coworkers, who specializes in head injuries, to check and see if I still had any concussion symptoms" she explained.
"But…I healed you" he said.
"That's what I told her, but she still wanted to play it safe. Once she saw I was in the clear, she let me come over" she finished.
"Wow…that's something. Y'know, all things considered" he commented.
"Yea, but it's not for the reason you think. I forgot to tell you, it's Spring Break at my school!" she happily announced with a big smile on her face.
"Is it like summer vacation!?" he asked with stars in his eyes.
"Almost. Instead of being out of school for three months, I only get two weeks off. But…because of the doctor's board concussion protocol, I have to take a week off! So I'm out before everyone else and I'm not even hurt!" she enthusiastically explained.
"Cool! Now we can hang out more!" he cheered.
"But…what about your training? I mean, you do have a magical destiny. I-I don't want to get in the way" she replied.
"What're you talking about? You wouldn't get in the way. And besides, I love hanging out with you" he smiled. That put a smile on her face as well.
"So, what do you want to do?" he asked.
She scratched her head and replied, "I don't know. I mean just being with you is cool enough."
"Well, how about another picnic? I left the cooler of snacks that Amethyst brought back on top of the hill" he suggested.
"That sounds great. I actually saw you running across the sand as I was walking up to your house, and I tried to catch up to you. So yea, I'm a little winded myself" she said.
"So what're we waitin' for? Let's eat!" he exclaimed and the duo climbed up the cliff side.
"Alright, let's see what we have here" he said as he popped open the lid.
Inside was a delicious assortment of orange slices, peanut butter and strawberry jelly sandwiches, walnuts, bananas, water and apple juice.
"Aw yea! Healthy food rules!" he exclaimed as he grabbed a couple of sandwiches for him and her.
"Itadakimasu!" "Gracias!" they concurrently said and they laughed at their little inside joke.
"Man, that was deeeeelicious!" he said as he patted his full belly and laid down on the grass.
"Mm hm!" Connie hummed as she followed suit.
The duo relaxed on the natural carpet and watched the clouds float on by. Then Steven started to hum a simple beat, which soon morphed into a made-up melody:
"The sun is bright
I'm feelin' keen
Just watching clouds above the sea
C'mon and sing along with me"
"Steven…you know I'm not good at making up lyrics" she chuckled.
"Won't know until you try" he said as he kept the beat by patting his chest.
She smiled and decided to play along:
"Peanut butter strawberry
Different fruit from many trees
C'mon and sing along with me"
Stars appeared in Steven's eyes and he silently egged her to continue. So she did:
"I'll do my best, to give this jam the sweetness it deserves"
And Steven followed her with his line, "And I'll keep it fresh with the coolest voice that you've ever heard."
After a few upbeat pats on his chest, the two friends melded their voices together for the last line:
"Ingredients in harmony,
We gel together perfectly
C'mon and sing along with me"
They laughed whole heartily once the impromptu singing session ended.
"See? Told you you were good at making up lyrics" he said.
"I guess so" she chuckled as they resumed gazing up at the cloud dotted sky.
"Oh, look! That cloud looks like Lion!" Steven exclaimed as he took a quick pic with his phone.
"Y'know…I think your mom knew who you were destined to be when she gave you Lion for your familiar" Connie said.
"Really?" he asked.
"Yea. You said that she wanted you to have a powerful protector with approachable fluffiness. And that's exactly what you are! You such a sweet, gentle boy and you're going to be a powerful warrior. Not to mention both of you are the most easy-going pair I've ever seen. You mirror each other perfectly. Plus it makes sense that a king would have the king of the savannah as his companion" she explained.
"Wow…I never thought of it like that. Now if only I could get him to like Cookie Cats…" he joked and Connie laughed at that.
"So if a lion is my familiar, what animal would be your familiar?" he asked.
"…I…I don't know. What do you think?" she asked.
Steven closed his eyes as he sorted through all the animals he knew. Connie turned over onto her belly and rested her head in her hands as she anxiously waited. She was curious beyond measure to hear what her friend thought of her.
"An owl" he finally said.
Her grin disappeared as her excitement deflated a little. She quizzically looked at him and asked, "Is it because of the whole owl equals intelligence comparison?" She hoped beyond measure that she masked the slight disappointment in her voice over such a predictable choice.
"It does? I didn't know that. Well then that's another reason. But I picked an owl because they only come out at night; they're hidden in the dark. Just like you. You were only comfortable with your parents but hidden to everyone else in the world. Which is such a shame because owls are so cool! And when I met you and you experienced all this magic stuff, instead of being afraid, you were amazed! Your eyes got really big and were filled with wonder…right?" he asked and she nodded her head as she waited with baited breath for him to continue his explanation.
"Just like how an owl's eyes get really big! And you're able to see things from all kinds of different perspectives, just like how they're able to turn their heads to see in all kinds of different directions. But the big reason why I picked an owl is the same as why you said I'm like a lion. Owls are puffy and cute, but when it's in attack mode they look really fierce. Just like you! You're a caring and calm girl, but when somebody messes with you"
"Or you" she added.
"You turn into Owl Connie and you don't mess around!" he finished.
She just stared at him with diamonds in her eyes; her stunned silence unnerved him a little.
"…I was way off wasn't I?" he asked and that snapped her out of her shocked state of mind.
"No! It was just…I mean…Wow! Everything you said was so true. It's amazing! How do you come up with this stuff?" she marveled.
"I dunno. It just made sense to me; just like the lion comparison made sense to you. Besides, I wouldn't be a good friend if I didn't know what you were like" he replied.
"No, I suppose not" she chuckled. "And I'm glad you are" she added.
Her cheerful disposition suddenly turned into a despondent one as she sighed and laid her head on her forearms.
"What's wrong?" he asked.
"…It's nothing"
"Connie. C'mon, you can tell me" he gently assured.
She sighed, "It's just that…I wish I could do more. I mean you're training to fight other gems that'll want to hurt the Earth! To hurt people! And I'll just be stuck on the sidelines not being able to anything."
"Hey now, that's just stinkin' thinkin'! You're the one who came up with the idea to heal the clusters with laser gem surgery. Not to mention you helped me out by showing me that plain ol' Steven is more than enough. And believe me when I say that plain ol' Connie is definitely more than enough!" he assured.
She smiled at that, but it slowly disappeared when she said, "Thanks Steven. I know supporting one another is important, but I want to fight too! I want to awaken the fierce Owl Connie piece of my puzzle and battle alongside the Lion King!"
Seeing how determined and passionate she was about this matter, he simply suggested "Well, why don't you?"
"What?" she asked.
"Yea! You can train with me! And I have the perfect idea! C'mon, let's see if the gems are home!"
"S-Steven! Wait!"
But it fell on deaf ears as Steven grabbed the cooler and started running down the hill.
"Well, might as well see what he has in mind" she thought as she chased after him. "Good thing I went with the sun t-shirt and shorts today" she thought as she kicked up a sand cloud with her rapid running.
"Wow…Jasper's training really worked! I feel a lot faster and not as tired!" he thought as he approached the grassy alcove beneath his house.
Just as he was climbing up the stairs, the whole house lit up with the familiar light of the warp pad.
"Perfect timing!" he thought as he burst through the door, startling the differently dressed Pearl.
"Steven! What's wrong?!" she asked as she ran over to the slightly gasping boy.
"N-Nothing. In fact everything's perfect!" he said as Connie entered right behind him.
"What? How so? And why were you two running so fast?" she asked, but realized that asking a person questions after they just did such a strenuous, physical activity wasn't such a good idea.
She grabbed the blue/white plastic cooler out his hold, set it on the floor near the refrigerator and motioned for the two younglings to sit on the couch.
"Now then, what's going on?" she asked again as she handed each of them an electrolyte water bottle.
"Well, y'see…Oh, hey! I like your new outfit" he said as he sipped some water.
Pearl had to do a double take when he switched gears like that. "This old thing? It's nothing really. I just wanted to look presentable for the price negotiations" she explained.
She was wearing a form-fitting, dark blue tunic jacket with teal-colored buttons, white pants and teal pointed flats with a gold buckle on the sides. Her hair was slicked over the left side.
"Well I think it looks super fancy" he complimented and Connie nodded in agreement.
Pearl froze from the comment for a split second, then immediately reverted back to her standard attire and hairstyle. "Yes, w-well. Thank you. But now that I'm back, I can finally relax in my comfortable clothes" she hastily explained.
"So how did it go? Were you able to get the machines? And where's everyone else? They didn't get arrested did they?!" he worriedly asked.
"What? No, of course not! Although I will admit trying to see, let alone negotiate, with the CEO over a fair price was rather annoying. More so of the fact that he was trying to hit on Lapis" she said.
"What? Why was he trying to hit her?" he asked.
Sometimes Steven's obliviousness was a blessing and an annoyance.
"Steven, she meant that the CEO wanted Lapis to be his girlfriend" Connie explained.
"What's wrong with that? I mean you're my girl friend" he innocently responded.
Connie's heartrate accelerated a bit at the comment and she and Pearl looked at him with wide eyes, until they realized what he really meant.
"Oh Steven…never grow up" Pearl affectionately said as she rubbed his head.
"…Okay?" he responded, not really sure on how to take that command.
"Anyway, we reached an agreement thanks in part to some…persuasion from Garnet and Jasper. Everyone is still back at Sayine Company. Peridot wanted to examine which machines were the best. So I came back to make sure that you were okay. Now, once again, why were you two running so fast?" she asked.
"We wanted to see if you were home, and you are! Which is great because can you teach Connie how to swordfight?" he asked.
"You want me to whaat?" she asked back.
"Teach Connie how to swordfight! She's already super good!" he praised.
"Steven!" Connie embarrassingly exasperated as she blushed from the compliment.
"But it's true! You should've seen her when she helped me take down that robot floaty thing! And she was slicin' and dicin' that evil clone of herself like it was nothing!" he exalted.
Pearl turned her attention to the now bashful girl and said, "You're awfully young to be begin something like this. But then again, I was only a few thousand years old when I began fighting alongside Rose Quartz."
Then Connie raised her hand to the air.
"Yes, Connie?" Pearl asked.
"Please! I want to learn. I-I know you guys are going to be fighting some bad gems, and it may be dangerous for someone like me, but I don't care! I don't want to be a burden and just sit on the sidelines not being to help! I want to be there for Steven like he's always been there for me…I want to fight by his side and help protect our home! Please…can't you help me?" she pleaded.
Pearl's eyes looked a bucket filled to the brim with water, just waiting to spill over the edge. "O-Oh! O-Okay!" she stuttered through her quivering smile. She wiped the mist out of her eyes and declared, "If that's how you feel, then we should get started!"
Steven cheered as he followed her to the warp pad, but Connie hung back and asked "Wait, now?"
"Of course! No time like the present" Pearl said as she stood on the domestic warp.
"She's right! Who knows how long I'll have before Steven starts fighting" she realized.
She rushed up to the warp pad to join her friend and new-found mentor.
"This is going to be so awesome!" Steven said and Connie couldn't agree more.
"Ready you two?" Pearl asked.
"Ready!" they answered.
"Alrighty then." With that she activated the warp stream, taking them to an unknown location that without a shadow of a doubt provide a valuable learning experience for all of them.
How will the training go between Steven/Jasper and Connie/Pearl? Stay tuned for part 2 of "Strong in Which Way"
So this chapter was nice and fluffy right? Well...for anyone who remembers episodes like "Cat Fingers" "On the Run" "So Many Birthdays", fluffy in the beginning means something crazy emotional is about to go down. Or it could just be more fluff...you'll have to wait and see ;)
And a big thanks to Nikki Firesong for her idea for Jasper's wrestling name. I got the Hulk Hogan idea from some fanart on tumblr. Bonus points to anyone who recognizes which show I referenced the knuckle busters from.
Thanksgiving is almost upon us, so I just wanted to say how truly thankful I am for all the support everyone has given this story! You guys are amazing! Thanks so much!
For Steven's training music, I picked Knuckle's theme "Unknown from M.E." from Sonic Adventure 2(with or w/o words) if you want to listen to it.