Yo.

(Connie's prospective)

After a night of light dreams that she couldn't remember by the time she woke up, Connie got up and ready for the day. She got dressed in high waisted jean shorts and a green, white, and grey, striped t-shirt. She brushed through her frizzy hair and pulled it back into a ponytail.

She let out a yawn as she walked down the stairs. Her parents were already at work, so the house was empty. That wasn't a problem though, because today she planned on finding Steven. However, to do that she needed Lion.

Connie grabbed an apple and bottled water and walked out of her house, locking the door behind her. She hadn't seen Lion in a few days, so she needed to get to the beach house by bus. The bus was pretty crammed, but she found a seat.

There were only three more stops until she would be at the boardwalk. An old man got onto the bus and scanned for a seat. With one hand he clutched a cane, and in the other he clutched a bouquet of wildflowers and long grass that grew by the ocean.

Connie waved him over and gave him her seat.

"Thank you!" The man smiled and sat down right before the bus lurched forward.

"That's a very pretty bouquet!" Connie noticed that it was tied together with a simple piece of twine tied with a pretty bow.

"I made it myself. My wife isn't feeling well, so I got her flowers from the beach because the beach is her favorite place." He smiled proudly at the flowers.

"That's lovely!" The bus screeched to a halt, "This is my stop. I hope your wife feels well soon!" Connie waved as she stepped off the bus. She was a couple blocks away from the house, but she didn't mind. The air was thick and smelled like fried food on the boardwalk, but once she got on the beach the air changed. It smelled like lilacs and salt.

She reached the wooden steps that creaked as she walked up and knocked on the screen door.

"Come in! The door's open!" Amethyst holared from inside. Connie pulled the door open and walked in. She didn't see Lion anywhere so she went upstairs. Amethyst was sitting on the floor playing video games.

"Hey Amethyst, where is everybody?" Connie still didn't see Lion.

"I dunno, Greg is doing band stuff and the gems are doing gem stuff."

"Oh. Have you seen Lion?"

"Yeah, check the greenhouse. He's been in kind of a mood, so be careful." Amethyst didn't look up. Connie walked up the outside stairs into the greenhouse. Sure enough Lion was laying on his bed, staring at the warp pad. Connie opened the door and Lion shot up with a snarl.

"Shh, buddy! It's just me." Lion's hackles lowered and he stretched his back in an arch.

"Alright. We're gonna look for Steven, ok?" Connie pat Lion on the head and mounted onto his back. "Let's see if you can track him from the Diner we went to." Lion roared and a portal appeared. He leapt through, Connie had gotten used to the portal feeling, but it still felt weird.

They landed outside the little diner they had been to several days ago. Connie felt a lump rise in her throat and her eyes felt hot. She took several deep breaths in and continued.

"Ok Lion. Can you pick up his scent?" Connie stroked his mane and Lion sniffed the ground. He looped in a couple circles before his head snapped up, his nose raised to the sky. He galloped forwards and let out a roar.

They skid to a stop outside an upside down house. Several people let out screams and ran while others stared at the girl riding a pink lion that just jumped out of a portal. Lion sniffed around again, pacing back and forth from the giant hamster wheel thing to the parking lot. He found the scent and ran forward into a portal again.

This time they were along a highway. Lion sniffed the ground and looked over into a ditch. Connie let out a small gasp when she saw the charred ruins of what used to be the Dundi.

"Stay up here Lion. You might get glass in your paws." Connie slid down into the ditch and looked around. She couldn't find anything useful. She kept looking anyway until she heard Lion snarl.

"What the HECK IS THAT?" A gruff voice rang out.

"Is that a PINK lion?" Another confused voice rang. Connie ran up the ditch and up to Lion. Down a side road stood an old man and a young boy. She noticed that around the corner there was a building and several other people poked their head out of the front door. There was a big sign on the roof that said "Mystery Shack".

"Lion, come here." Connie said sternly but Lion sniffed the ground and started circling the two people in the parking lot. Connie ran forward.

"I'm so sorry! He's just looking for someone." Connie stopped Lion.

"IS THAT A PINK LION!?" A girl squealed from the front door and stepped outside. She looked about the same age as the boy.

"Hah, that's what I said." The boy turned around.

"Look," The old man started, "if this is something cops use nowadays I'm still gonna need to see a warrant." He crossed his arms.

"Uhh, I don't have a warrant. But I'm also not a cop." Connie said, obvious confusion ringing out in her voice.

"Ok then, how can I help you? The name's Stan." His shoulders relaxed slightly.

"I'm Connie, and Lion here is just helping me find someone."

"Wait, what did you say his name was?" The boy took a step forward.

"Dipper, at least introduce yourself!" The girl ran up and punched him on the arm. She was wearing a green sweater with a fox on it. How can she wear a sweater in the summer?

"I'm Mabel, and this dope is my brother, Dipper." The girl smiled.

"Nice to meet you." Connie smiled uncertainly, "And, uh, I said his name was Lion."

"Mabel, didn't Steven say his cat was named Lion?" Dipper said in a loud whisper. Connie's heart beat faster and her fingertips felt numb.

"I-I'm sorry, did you say Steven?"

"Yeah… Do you know him?" Dipper looked at her suddenly suspiciously.

"That's who we're looking for!" Lion whimpered and pawed at the ground, Connie placed her hand on his head.

"Stan do you have a moment-" A man who looked like Stan walked out of the house and paused when he saw Connie and Lion.

"Is that a pink LION?" He gaped.

"That's what we said!" Mabel and Dipper said at the same time.

"Jinx!" Mabel laughed.

"I'm looking for Steven. Is he here?" Connie pressed. Stan and "Other Stan" led Connie into the house and down the hall, Lion followed closely behind.

"I'm Ford." Other Stan shook Connie's hand, "How did you figure out Steven was here?"

"Lion tracked him." Connie said and Lion let out a grumble and lifted his head proudly. They continued down the hall and stopped outside a door.

"Now, before I let you enter you should know that he's been in a coma for two days. I have him hooked up to-" Connie didn't let Ford finish, she barged into the room. Steven was laying on a couch, an IV in his arm and sticky pads attached to his chest watching his heart rate. Connie knelt down by the couch and held Steven's hand. What happened? He just contacted me a couple days ago…

"What happened?" She demanded, knowing that Ford was still standing in the doorway.

"He encountered a deity name, Bill Cipher. We've dealt with him before, but Steven hadn't. Steven ended up 'fusing' with Bill to get his body back that Bill had possessed." Ford said bluntly.

Connie didn't say anything, she just sat by Steven, holding his hand. About a half hour after Ford had left she heard footsteps enter the room. She looked up and a red headed girl stood over her. The girl sat down next to Connie.

"Hey, I'm Wendy."

"Connie." Connie smiled weakly.

"Uhm, well… I thought you could use company. It's scary when someone you know is hurting, and it's awful to be alone…" Wendy looked around awkwardly, "I understand if you want me to go though." She sat down a couple feet away. Lion walked over and plopped down, resting his head on Wendy's lap.

"Thank you." Connie wiped her eyes with her sleeve. She felt genuinely grateful, and Lion trusted her. "Can I ask you a question?"

"Sure, go ahead."

"Who or what is Bill Cipher? Ford mentioned him."

"Oh, he's a super evil demon guy. Last summer he turned most of our town to stone and destroyed almost everything. We thought we destroyed him though… I don't know how he could possibly be back." Wendy sighed, "Now it's my turn to ask a question." Connie nodded. "What's a gem?"

"They're a race from space. Their gems are the source of their power. Most gems have a physical form that comes out of their gem, and when they're hurt badly they can retreat into their gems to recharge. But Steven is only half gem."

"How does that work?" Wendy ran her fingers through Lion's soft mane.

"In order for Steven to be born, his mom gave up her physical form. Steven had her gem, but none of her memories. He has most powers a gem does, but he has a human body." They both sat in silence for a little while.

It wasn't harsh, dreadful silence like before. Now both of them sat petting Lion, Wendy's presence simply helped Connie. Connie quickly looked up when she heard Steven stir. She sat up and squeezed his hand gently.

"Connie?" Steven said in a weak, raspy voice. Connie smiled and hugged Steven, tears returning to her eyes. "Am I dead?" He laughed quietly. Steven opened his eyes and Connie's heart leapt. She looked at Wendy, who's eyes widened and she looked back at Steven.

"Steven? Are you feeling ok?"

"Yeah. As well as I could feel!" He looked at her concerned and sat up slightly, "What's wrong?"

"Your eyes are pink!"

Started listening to Lofi Hip Hop. I love ittttt!