"Well, well, weeeeellllll! Glad to see you finally saw my upmost intelegance, and great potential!" Peridot beamed with happiness, as Garnet and Gamma approached the barn.
The frog mumbled curses under his breath. This is NOT what he had in mind when the fusion said she wanted to help.
"I am to assume you have told him the conditions?" Peridot looked up at the fusion.
"I have. Gamma has...reluctantly agreed." Garnet answered.
"Good! I'm glad everyone understands! Let's get started!"
Garnet had, indeed, explained the conditions to Gamma. Peridot could bother, question, and test the Keronian as much as possible, and, in exchange, she would help him advance his weponry by providing blueprints, tools, and assistance.
"Alright! If we are going to optimize your weapons system- I need to know about any skills, hobbies, and abnormalities in your lifestyle!"
"What?"
"(sigh) What makes your species DIFFERENT from all others? It can be anything trivial- like (for instance) us Gems can reform...and you Keronians caaaaaannnn..." Peridot beconed for the frog to finish her sentence for her.
"erm...-not?"
"Very good!" Peridot wrote the information down on her tablet. "One stray shot and your gone forever. Got it."
"Is this...absolutely nessesary?"
"Yes."
Gamma grumbled again.
"Perhaps you would like to expand on these notes Garnet?" Peridot looked up at the fusion for assistance.
Garnet shrugged. "He smells bad when he's depressed."
Gamma blushed horribly.
Peridot nodded at the info before writing it down. "Is there an external trigger for this defense mechanism?"
The Keronian instinctively clasped his hands over his headpiece. He did NOT want another Gem messing with his hat! Both Gems glanced at the behavior curiously. In a sudden tussle, Garnet grabbed the frog as Peridot forced the hat from Gamma's grasp.
Bald again. The creature blushed. Garnet used her future vision to locate the mysterious soft spot.
"Here." She pointed at the center of the frog's bald head. Peridot used a permanent marker to carefully circle the pressure point without disturbing it.
The Peridot then began to examine the hat with the utmost curiosity. This was her first time seeing Keronian tech, and she seemed utterly giddy at the chance to look at it up close. "There's a basic translator in the right flap! Fascinating! It seems to be made of waterproof material as well!"
"Be careful with that!" Gamma did not like some stranger messing with his most personal attributes.
Peridot turned the pin on the front, and jumped in surprise when the hat (as well as her hand holding it) disappeared entirely! "OHMYGOSH! A portable cloaking device! This is AMAZING! I've never seen a mechanical one fitted in such a small space before!"
"Do you two quite mind? I still want to keep my dignity..." Gamma looked up at Garnet quite annoyed. The fusion was still carrying the frog under her arm like a flour sack.
"Oh. Sorry." Garnet placed the Keronian on the ground. The frog stomped over to Peridot, and whisked his hat back with a massive amount of annoyance. "NO MORE touching my hat without my permission!" The alien scolded Peridot. The green alien attempted to grab the hat back, and Gamma smacked her hand quickly! "NO! This is mine! MINE!"
The Peridot looked a bit sheepish, before nodding in agreement.
"Mercy..." The Keronian straightened his headpiece.
"Sorry about that. I became...overly excited." Peridot straightened herself. "Let's continue..."
The next few hours were filled with an interesting set of tests.
Peridot introduced Gamma to her "Smaller-Than-Average-Lake" she found that the frog seemed quite comfortable in the water. He could hold his breath up to 45 minutes, dive well over 20 feet down, and seemed more entergenic and fast in the liquid than on land.
Peridot made Gamma sit in the direct sunslight, and took note of his extreme vonerability to dehydration. She let him swim again afterward, and saw that the frog's skin seemed to re-absorb the water quite easily. It seemed that the creature had to stay slightly moist at all times to be remotely comfortable.
Garnet was actually a great help. She informed Peridot that Gamma had the ability to stick to walls, and had been told by Acapella that the frog's tongue was twice his height and very sticky.
Gamma showed off his artillery capabilities by using his blaster to shoot some cans off a fence.
in terms of hobbies, he showed Peridot his whittling skills. He located a piece of wood, and carved an earth flower from it as an example.
The Peridot measured his time when running from one end of the barn, to the other.
The green Gem also (to the paranoia of the frog) began to examine one of his blasters to see how it worked. She nodded as if agreeing to herself.
Finally, after all was said and done, Peridot whispered to Garnet and had her defuse.
"Sooo!" Peridot clapped her hands, excited! "Sooo...yes! I think I can assist you with improveing your skill set! This won't hurt a bit! Sapphire! Would you do the honers?"
The small Gem nodded in agreement, before sending a small wave of fridgid air Gamma's way. The frog began to droop in exhaustion. "Wha...why? Why are you making me s-sleepy?" Gamma yawned.
Sapphire smiled. "We are going to help you optimise your skills and weaponry! If you are asleep, I predict the process will go by faster. We will also need this..." The Sapphire lifted the Keronian's hat from his head.
"N-no... my special hat...please don't take it..." Gamma made a feeble attempt to reach for the headpiece with little success. He sat on the ground, and yawned again.
"Gamma...I need you to trust me." The Sapphire nodded. "My future vision tells me that this is the most efficient way to keep Toaster and Acapella safe. We will not do anything to your hat without your permission though...do you trust me?"
The sleepy Keronian thought about this for several seconds. Was his special hat more important than his friends? Of course not! The frog decided to make the ultimate sacrifice...it was a no brainer. Even though his hat was very important to him- his new family was MUCH more important.
"I-I trust you. Just...be careful with it...OK?"
The Sapphire nodded and smiled before increasing the chill factor-resulting in the frog hibernating.
The Keronian woke up about three days later.
Groggly and surprised he glanced around attempting to find his bearings. He had been moved to a pile of hay inside the barn. It also seemed that Garnet had re-fused. She was keeping watch over the creature while sitting on one of the hay bailes.
"Well! Good morning! Did you have a fruitful rest?"
"Erm...yeah...the last thing I remember is something about my hat...MY HAT!" The Keronian stirred in a sudden panic! He felt his head-the hat was still there. He checked the cloaking device, and made sure the material was in tact. It WAS! Thank the stars! The creature sighed in relief. The headpiece still fit perfectly!
At first it had seemed nothing had changed at all. Perhaps the short nap was some sort of silly prank? As Gamma's hands went over the familiar material of the ear flaps, he felt something...new and different. Buttons! Very small and discreet buttons had been added to the bottom of the right inside flap of the hat.
"WHA?! What did you DO?! Why are there buttons...this- this isn't right..." Gamma suddenly looked incredibly panicked!
Peridot heard the din, and decided to see how the creature was enjoying his improvements. As she poked her head over the hay bail, the frog pointed at her accusingly. "YOU...What did you do?!"
"Um...improved your headpiece?"
"N-no...It was fine the way it was!"
Slightly disheartened, Peridot began to defend herself. "Um...have you even attempted to TRY any of the new functions yet? It was very difficult to install you know...the fusion especially insisted that I mess with the material as little as possible. Also, you could have warned us that the hat was a part of your skeletal system...that came as...quite a shock for both of us. I felt like I was performing surgery..."
The Keronian flushed in a rage. "Why did you think I was so protective of it?! It may seem like just a hat to you, but Keronians are born with these hats! They're a part of us!"
"What are those bones used for anyway?" Peridot inquired.
"They hold up a system that allows me to hear properly!" Gamma nodded. "They are more flexible bones that can bend easily to prevent breakage!"
"I see...WELL, regardless!" The Peridot clapped her hands! "-give it a try! I think you'll be pleasantly surprised!"
Gamma hesitated.
The frog cautiously pressed the first button- there was an imediant pleseant mist of water that surrounded the Keronian from the hat. The alien could slowly feel his stamina growing quickly.
"It's a humidifier! Just in case you end up in a desert...or something!" The Peridot nodded. "It collects water from the air and stores it, so refilling the device is not required!"
Regrettibly impressed, the frog attempted the second button. This one was producing a warm heat which the creature shut off quickly in discomfort.
"For the cold...so you don't fall asleep." Peridot stated plainly.
The third button opened a nifty pocket space within the hat to store stuff. "You could fit an entire plaster canon in there if you wanted to! It works similarly to a Gem's pocket space!" Peridot seemed increasingly giddy as she witnessed the frog's eyes light up!
The fourth button caused a surprising conclusion. The ear flaps curled up entirely. In surprise, Gamma could see that the Peridot was attempting to explain something...but could not hear a word she was saying. He pressed the button again, and the hat's flaps unfolded just in time to catch the last part of the sentence: "-for when the Yellow Pearl sings."
Excitement filled the frog as he willingly pressed the last button!
"WAIT! DON'T PRESS THAT ONE YET-"
Too late. A singular, cylinder block that had had been manually installed into the hat gently tapped onto the very tip of the Keronian's head before retreating back into the hat's fabric.
Gamma shivered in surprise, as a foul odor filled the barn. Garnet and Peridot coughed and gasped for air before retreating from the building quickly.
The Keronian blushed horribly.
Through gasps, Garnet laughed slightly. "Well, at least we know it works now!" She smiled.
"Here we are!" Peridot had one last surprise for the frog. She handed him his blasters. I have modified your weapons with an electrical piece. This should help stun enemies without hurting them, as well as defusing a Gem's form...just in case Yellow Diamond or one of her body guards comes looking for you. You should be safe against all sorts of elements and threats now!" The Peridot nodded.
"Th-Thank You!" Gamma was incredibly humbled by the gesture and assistance.
"Nah...Wow! Thanks for helping me with my research too!" Peridot nodded.
Gamma thought deeply for a bit. Perhaps their new home would be safe to reoccupy now that the trio was armed to the teeth...