AN: Well, guys. I finally decided to update. Now, I know some of you are wondering why it took so long to update. Well, it's just that with everything that's happening in the canon, I figured that no one would be interested in this story. But, after a lot of demand, I decided to bring this story back. But please remember, I made this story directly after the events of the Wanted Arc. So don't expect anything to be canon-compliant.
"Okay, Peridot, how do we find Leggy?" Steven asked once they had warped into the Prime Kindergarten.
"Well, if modify the Gem Pad's signal locator to retrace the signal back to its original broadcast point, I might be able to get the ruby's last location," said Peridot.
"Okay. Uh… could you repeat that; this time with less big words?" said Carnelian.
Peridot rolls her eyes. "I'll have my Gem Pad find the place where the message was sent from."
"Oh, now I get it," said Carnelian.
The warp pad goes activates before revealing Padparadscha and Ocean Jasper, the former riding on top of the latter's back as they stepped off the crystal platform.
"Sorry, we're late. Turns out my delayed vision also affects me in my sleep. But don't worry, the Famethyst filled me in," said Padparadscha.
"Glad you can make it. We'll need all the help we can get," said Steven as the rest of the Famethyst warped into the Kindergarten along with a very angry Holly Blue Agate.
"I can't believe I'm being roped into this," said Holly under her breath.
"Okay, everyone. The Gem Pad picked up the signal. It's somewhere in the Northern section of the Kindergarten," said Peridot.
Ocean Jasper writes something in the ground.
"Ocean said she's gonna check around for any signs of the gem that attacked Leggy," said Padparadscha.
"Okay. Just be careful," said Steven as the corrupted gem heads off. "Okay, everyone. Let's go."
The group headed off to the northern section of the Kindergarten.
(Meanwhile...)
At the top of one of the cliff faces, Jasper stealthily watched the group as they head deeper into the Kindergarten. The rubies stood on both sides of her with Eyeball keeping her death glare focused solely on Steven.
"Wow, they brought a human with them. How pathetic," said Army.
"Yeah. Right, Jasper? Jasper?" said Eyeball, looking up at the orange quartz.
As Jasper continues to survey the group, her eyes then fall on Carnelian. She silently hissed and clutched her head as memories of their last encounter flashed through her mind.
"Go ahead! Do it, Ultimate Quartz!" Carnelian spat, tearfully with her form beaten and her gem cracked as Jasper held her down.
Jasper tightened her fist at the memory and tries to focus her gaze on the group below but it soon falls on Skinny, causing a flash of memories of their conversation after Rose Quartz escaped with a fatally injured Carnelian.
"This is all your fault! Carnelian's gone because of you!" Skinny shouted, tearfully.
Jasper closed her eyes and grunts as she tried to suppress these memories. By the time she finally managed to do it, she opens her eyes to find Steven and the gems already gone.
"I'm guessing Carnelian's not the only one you've had a troubled past with," said Eyeball.
"Skinny wasn't too happy when she found out about what happened," said Jasper. "I tried to explain to her that I wasn't trying to hurt Carnelian and I didn't mean to crack her gem, but Skinny didn't want to hear any of that. She blamed me for what happened and… she had every right to do so."
The Ruby Squad gave Jasper looks of sympathy.
"C'mon. We have to find where they're going," said Jasper as they head off after the gems.
. . .
"Okay, everyone. The trail stops here," said Peridot as they reached the signal's destination. The area was at a fork that looked similar to the rest of the Kindergarten. The only difference being the array of claw marks and scorch marks seen on some the walls and on a few boulders; a clear sign of a struggle.
"Okay, then where's Leggy?" Connie asked.
"As I said, I was only able to pinpoint Leggy's last location. Anything beyond that, we're on our own," said Peridot.
"Well, that's just peachy," said Holly, sarcastically.
"We'll just have to look for clues then," said Steven.
"What clues are we gonna find from a monster attack?" asked Amethyst.
"That's easy, sis. We just need to find out which direction the monster came from. If the ruby decided to flee, the best course of action would've been to go in the opposite direction," said Sharky.
"Uh… guys? I think I found something," said Lapis, holding up a strange-looking device that appeared to be severely damaged.
"What's that?" Connie asked.
"It's a gem communicator," said Jay. "Must've belonged to that ruby. Looks like it got damaged in the struggle."
"Okay, but how does that help us?" asked Skinny.
"Hmmm, hold on. I got it. Peridot, do you think you can replay Leggy's message?" Steven asked. "But this time, video only.
"Technodot, if you may," said the green gem.
"Right away," said Technodot as Leggy's message plays on the Gem Pad.
"Okay. Now fast-forward to the part where the monster appeared on screen," said Steven.
The video fast-forwards until it reaches the part with the monster and pauses.
"Okay, now just look behind it and see if the direction it came from matches any of these paths," said the hybrid.
Peridot examines the image and the area around her. After a good few seconds, she gasped.
"Guys? It's the same direction we came from," she said.
"Yeah, that's great but the path stops at this fork. So Leggy could've taken either of these two paths," said Connie.
"Right. Luckily, I notice something else on the communicator," said Steven as he rose the communicator into view, revealing a hand-shaped scorch mark.
"It's a scorch mark," said Sharky.
"Okay, but what about it?" Connie asked.
Just as Sharky was about to explain, Padparadscha piped up. "The monster came from the same path we did. Oh, what a plot twist."
"Uh… yeah. Thanks, Pads. Anyway, rubies have the ability to control fire and heat. They tend to light themselves on fire when they feel strong emotions. I'm guessing the panic set off her powers," said Carnelian.
"So how's that gonna help us?" Lapis asked.
"See for yourself," said Steven as he gestured towards several foot-shaped scorch marks heading through the left pathway.
"Good eye, Steven," said Connie, smiling.
"Thanks, I try. C'mon, guys, this way," said Steven as they took the left path.
. . .
Steven and the others follow the trail to different, but similar-looking, area of the Kindergarten. Eventually, the trail comes to an end but Leggy is nowhere in sight.
"Well, that's the end of the trail. So where is she?" asked Amethyst.
"Hold on, M. Take a closer look," said Carnelian, pointing to a set of scorched footprints further down the path. Each one emanating smoke. "And judging by the smoke, these ones are recent."
As if on cue, the sound of sobbing can be heard from a short distance. The group turns toward the source to find a crying Leggy cowering in a nearby exit hole.
Steven goes over to her. "Leggy?"
Leggy's eyes immediately went wide. "Y-You?" She forced herself even further into the hole.
"It's okay. We got your distress call. We're here to help," said Steven, holding out his hand.
Leggy hesitated for a moment but eventually takes his hand. Steven smiles and helps her out of the hole. Once she was out, the ruby took a moment to observe the group surrounding her.
"Hey?"
Leggy turns to the source of the voice and her eyes widen and she blushes heavily when she's greeted by Padparadscha.
"Are you alright?" the sapphire asked.
Leggy didn't seem to hear her as she stood in complete silence, staring longingly at the sapphire. From her perspective, the sunlight reflected off Padparadscha's skin, making her body glow as sparkles flew around her. Leggy just stood there taking in what she considers to be the most beautiful gem she ever saw.
"Um… Leggy? You're kinda setting the ground on fire," said Amethyst.
"Huh? Oh, s-sorry," she said as she put out flames around her feet.
"Anyway, how did you get here? Are the other rubies with you?" Steven asked.
"No, I was abandoned by them," the ruby explained.
"What?!" everyone exclaimed.
"It's a long story. Let me explain," said Leggy.
As everyone listens to Leggy's story, unbeknownst to them, a ship has just entered the Earth's atmosphere and is now heading to the Kindergarten.