"Steven, Connie!" Pearl called from the house. "Time for dinner!"
By that time, Steven had settled in the sand beside his human friend, leaning back on his hands and watching with a grin as Candy and Lemon Lime started splashing each other in the water. What Connie had called the 'sunset' was over now; the sky was darkening, the Earth's sun was gone. Steven had never seen anything like it, the changing skies… it was certainly different. Magnificent, he thought, how this planet seemed to just naturally change. He couldn't help but compare the Earth's sky to Homeworld's. That planet never changed, appearance-wise. The sky was always painted in the same color. He remembered being mesmerized, awed by it at first, until it had steadily become 'normal'. And then once it was normal, there was no excitement or fascination. Homeworld stayed exactly the same… and Earth changed, every single second. Steven marveled over this, the absolute beauty in Earth. Not just the planet, but… the concept.
He looked up when Pearl called out to them, wasting no time in pushing himself up. He didn't quite know what 'dinner' was, but he was about to find out, so he doubted there was a point in asking. Instead, he called ahead to Candy and Lemon Lime. "Hey, you guys coming or what?" He couldn't bite back a smile, reaching a hand down to help pull Connie back to her feet; the human grabbed his hand with a giggle, allowing the hybrid to help her up with a warm smile. She seemed to have recovered, thankfully - he could still see the sorrow, hidden behind her gaze. Sorrow for someone he didn't even know. Sorrow for someone he used to be, someone he didn't remember. He marveled over that, too. He had changed, but they still wanted him.
"Coming!" Candy was pulling Lemon Lime out of the water, giggling while the Peridot spat some out with a baffled expression on his face. Steven blinked, watching them for a moment. The way Candy grabbed his hands and tugged him out, wrapping an arm around him once he was out of the water and guiding him over to where he had momentarily discarded his limb enhancers. They were so… cute together, Steven couldn't explain it. It was the same way with Agate and Sage. They were around each other so much, holding hands and smiling at each other. Steven tilted his head slightly, furrowing his eyebrows, but he smiled at the two when Lemon Lime finally managed to pull his limb enhancers back on and they headed back over to them. Candy was still giggling, but making more of an effort to stifle it now, because Lemon Lime was dripping, soaking wet with water, and looked a little less than happy about it. "Lime sinks," the Pearl declared as she approached, finally letting out a snicker. "Just so you know. Lime sinks."
"You pushed me under the water," Lemon Lime objected, but a small smile formed on his lips as he looked over at Candy. After a moment, the Peridot heaved a sigh and looked away again; Steven watched his cheeks flush, turning a slightly darker shade of green. "Fine, yeah. I sink."
Steven laughed slightly at that, turning to follow Connie as she led them back toward the house. "Probably because you don't know how to swim, yet," the human called over her shoulder, chuckling. She reached down to dust herself off as she walked, heading up the stairs with a smile. Steven followed after her, blinking. "Maybe we can set up lessons later or something. Then you can kind of defend yourself when you get pushed under the water… or sink."
Candy stifled a giggle. "That sounds fun."
"Even more so for me," Lemon Lime commented.
"Yeah, good luck teaching these two anything," Steven mumbled to Connie with a grin, shaking his head slightly and glancing back at the other two in amusement. "They're either gonna be at each other's throats the whole time or they're gonna do that playful arguing thing they're doing now and just make the whole thing weird yet oddly adorable. Trust me," he added, snickering under his breath as he fell into step with her, hopping up the stairs two at a time. Another thing that was different, the stairs on Earth were smaller. Easier to walk down and up - but he still couldn't help but skip a few steps out of instinct, making big jumps when he didn't need to. "You're not the only one who has to deal with them…" He trailed off, offering a small smile as he glanced back at Candy and Lemon Lime, as the Pearl helped the Peridot adjust his limb enhancers. Steven watched for a moment, then turned back to Connie. "They are cute, though."
He did end up finding out what 'dinner' was; turned out, that was what they called 'mealtime' on Earth, when, basically humans ate throughout the day. There was 'breakfast', which came in the morning. 'Lunch', which came during the day. And then 'dinner', which came at night. The food Pearl served them was different from the stuff Amethyst had given him, but intriguing all the same. Something that she called 'chicken vegetable soup'. Connie dug into it eagerly, though he did see Greg hesitate a little bit before he started eating, which made him hesitate a little bit. He stared down into the bowl he'd been given, then curiously reached out to grab something that was sticking out of it, pulling it upwards carefully by the handle. It was kind of circular on the other end - more like an oval, really - kind of caving in on itself… spoon, his mind commented, that's a spoon. He knew that, but he had absolutely no idea why he was holding one.
Garnet and Berry returned not too long after they'd sat down to eat; Steven was still staring at the spoon, silently trying to figure out what he was supposed to do with it, and was considering asking for help before the warp pad activated. He glanced over, briefly flicking his gaze up to Garnet - and tensing slightly as he did - before he looked back down at Berry. The Ruby was practically grinning as she jumped off of the warp pad; any extended time with Garnet seemed to give the little red gem a mood boost, and Steven really wished he could understand why. Of course, he knew Berry loved fusions, but Garnet was so… she was just so terrifying to him.
"Welcome back," he greeted as Berry walked forward. The Ruby paused and let her eyes flick around, focusing on the bowl in his hands before looking over at the other humans. Curiously, she made her way closer to him, and the hybrid arched an eyebrow at her as she approached, lowering the spoon down into the bowl. It didn't take Berry long to climb up onto the stool behind him, stretching her arms over his shoulders and leaning forward to peer into the bowl cautiously. Steven puffed his cheeks out, leaning his head to the side silently and letting her have her little inspection; it was only when she reached forward to grab the spoon that he finally reached out to grab her wrist, just before she could pull it out of the bowl. "What the shards are you doing?"
Berry smacked his hand with her other one. "Trying to see what you're doing, you pebble." The hybrid wrinkled his nose at her in response, but he let her go after a moment, and the Ruby pulled the spoon out of the bowl cautiously. Steven watched, moving the bowl under it when she held it up so that none of the soup dripped off of it. He wasn't keen on making a mess, and he was even less keen on Berry making a mess, which she would so definitely do here if she was given the opportunity to. "What is this, some kind of tiny Earth weapon?" The Ruby mumbled, holding the spoon up again briefly before she held it out to him again, and the hybrid took it back silently, turning it around in his hand carefully to inspect it and putting it back into the bowl.
"It's a spoon, I think…" Steven trailed off, glancing up at the others. Pearl looked up at him quickly, a pleasantly surprised expression crossing her face as she looked up at him.
"You remembered!" The pale gem exclaimed, beaming as she leaned over the counter. "Yes, that's a spoon. You use it to scoop the food out of the bowl and eat it," she explained, and Steven flicked his gaze down to the spoon, fascinated. But Berry was the first one to reach down for it, and while Steven rolled his eyes at her, he lifted the bowl up again so that she could scoop some of the food up into the spoon carefully; the little red gem was oddly cautious, managing to scoop up a spoonful of the soup and hold it steady as she pulled the spoon out.
"Fascinating," Berry mumbled, crossing her other arm over his head.
Steven rolled his eyes at her, but he smiled as he flicked his gaze up. "You're weird," the hybrid told his friend simply, and Berry snorted at him in response. "And I'm gonna need that back." The Ruby seemed like she was contemplating it for a moment, studying the spoon, before carefully shifting it around so that Steven could take it again. He took it carefully, trying to hold it as steady as Berry had been so that he didn't spill anything. He narrowed his eyes slightly, tilting the spoon a little bit before bringing it up to his mouth. Once again, it was like muscle memory; once he figured out what to do with it, it was easy enough to take the first bite. It was still hot, but tolerable. He also didn't have to chew as much as he had with the donut and fry bits, but he was still careful to do so before he swallowed. The taste, of course, was even different. It wasn't sweet like the donuts, and it certainly didn't taste like the fry bits. It didn't make his tongue tingle, it wasn't too strong, or too flavorful. But there was still a flavor to it, something he couldn't place. And while he didn't hate it, or even remotely dislike it… he couldn't quite say he liked it either.
He had taken a few bites and was currently downing half of the cup of water Amethyst had given him when Berry suddenly reached forward for the spoon again. He jumped, but he didn't move otherwise, letting her grab it and scoop up another spoonful of soup as he swallowed the water down and set it down on the counter, glancing up at her cautiously. "What're you doing…"
"Testing," Berry replied faintly, sticking the spoon in her mouth before Steven could spit out a warning, or a protest. He inhaled sharply, watching her expression shift almost immediately.
A myriad of emotions crossed her face; confusion, disgust, shock. Each one flicked past too quickly - at that point, almost everyone had stopped to stare. Even Greg had paused mid-bite to watch, wide-eyed with surprise. Pearl looked like she wanted to protest, but she also looked somewhat amused now as she stared at the little Ruby, crossing her arms over her chest while Berry finally chewed, swallowed and sank back sharply, a blank expression crossing her face. Steven decided that was the perfect time to take the spoon away from her, lightly pushing her off of the stool and toward Lemon Lime, who caught the Ruby quickly with a quiet squeak. "You can have her," he told the Peridot. "I don't want her on me if she explodes or something."
Lemon Lime sucked in a gasp, and Berry had about three seconds for the situation to register. The Peridot wrapped his arms around her just as the Ruby started to push herself up; the little red gem let out a squeal and struggled against him, writhing and thrashing, and Steven couldn't help but snicker as he watched the Peridot just tighten his grip in response. "Lemon Lime-!" Berry screamed, writhing again, and snarled up at Steven. "That was just cold, hybrid!" She spat at him, and Steven shrugged his shoulders right back at her in response, stifling a smile.
"Love you, B."
Berry scowled, glaring at him. "Oh, go get cracked."
"Oh, crack me yourself, you coward," Steven shot back, and Berry writhed against Lemon Lime again, still trapped in the Peridot's arms as he hugged her. The hybrid chuckled, biting the inside of his cheek and shaking his head as he turned away from them again to continue eating.
Dinner was mostly quiet after that.
After they finished eating, Connie had to leave; she hugged Steven again, called a quick goodbye to Pearl and the others, and rushed outside with Lion in tow - but not before the animal could press his head under Steven's chin one last time, rubbing against him gently before he bounded outside after the human, and Steven couldn't help but smile as he watched them go. After that, he spent a little while longer with Berry and the others, before Pearl suggested going back to bed (because the hybrid had suddenly started 'yawning'). And, of course, Steven didn't have any objections to that at all; he was happy to follow the pale gem - and Greg this time - up to his room again, climbing into bed with little hesitation. This time, when Pearl draped the blanket over him, she tucked it around him and leaned down carefully to press a kiss to his forehead, warm and soft. Admittedly, he found himself melting into the touch with his eyes shut.
"Goodnight, Steven," Pearl murmured, straightening up again after a moment.
"Goodnight, Mom," Steven mumbled, relaxing completely. "Goodnight, Dad." He couldn't help but smile when, in response, he felt his Dad's hand press against his head, gently messing up his curls again. He leaned into the touch, and stifled another yawn to the best of his ability.
"Goodnight, Schtu-ball," Greg whispered. "Sweet dreams."
He was on Earth.
Admittedly, he didn't know where. He was standing in the middle of some field, littered with weapons. Giant red things he didn't recognize; he ran his fingers over them silently as he walked forward, furrowing his eyebrows and looking ahead. Giant battle axes, pickaxes, swords, weapons of all kinds… he remembered being here before, but he didn't know when, or how. The hybrid took in a shuddering breath and reached toward one of the weapons, carefully running his fingers over the edge of a blade. A sword. A giant, pink sword that… now that he thought about it, it looked like the one Connie had when she'd showed up, didn't it? Steven stared for a moment, furrowing his eyebrows as he looked it up and down, scanning it silently. It was just bigger, covered in red liquid from one of the giant red things in the field he couldn't name.
Steven frowned and turned away for a second. He didn't remember being here. He didn't remember coming here. There was a warp pad just in front of him, but he couldn't remember using it to warp here - and even if he did, he wouldn't have understood how. He didn't even recognize this place, so he highly doubted he'd be able to figure out how to warp there himself. Something about it was familiar, though… he found himself drifting forward, lost for a moment. Lost in thought, lost in the memories desperately trying to break free. It was like there were still some left in the box, but it had sealed itself shut completely without his permission. He couldn't think, he couldn't remember. The only thing he could do was move, walking forward slowly through the field and looking around, as if maybe the longer he stayed there, taking in his surroundings, the more memories might come flooding back. But nothing else happened.
For a moment, he let his gaze flick down - and he froze. Below him, gem shards were littered across the ground. But they weren't in thousands of different colors, like it had been at the battlefield - no, he only saw shards of two colors, but there were dozens of gem shards there. Blue and orange. They covered the ground beneath him, surrounded by a circle of weapons. Despite himself, he felt his throat restrict as he tried to swallow, staring down at the shards.
His scythe was in his hand. He didn't remember summoning it, but he was holding it now. Gripping it a little tighter than should have been possible, tight enough to diminish it. But it stayed heavy in his hand, weighing down on him. A crushing kind of weight that didn't just sink down to his hands, but through his entire body. He felt like it was pulling him down, like it was going to send him crashing straight to the ground; more than once, he found himself trying to drop it, and more than once, he found himself unable to loosen his grip, even a fraction.
When he finally looked down, he realized he was falling. The scythe was pulling him down, and he was holding onto it for dear life, even though he knew it was what was making him fall so quickly. It didn't feel fast, not at first; suddenly he was surrounded by darkness, frozen and trapped for a moment in time. But when he saw the ground beneath him, he only had a split second to realize that he was still falling, that he was dropping even faster than before. But just as soon as he'd realized it, as he realized he should be letting go of the scythe, he slammed into the ground; the pain that exploded through him drew a scream from his lips, landing hard on his knees and crumbling completely to the ground, with the scythe pressed underneath him. Everything hurt; his head, his legs, his arms, his stomach. For a second, he couldn't even move.
"Rose Quartz…" A familiar voice crooned. "Welcome back."
Steven's pupils shrank slightly, finally managing to force his hands underneath him. He tilted his head upwards, cringing as he did so. A shaky gasp broke free from his lips when he finally rested his gaze on who was in front of him. His Diamond, standing tall; she looked down at him coldly, with a smile on her face that spoke of nothing but malice. He tried to move, tried to push himself up and sit back so he could try and get away from her, but he couldn't. He was frozen. The pain in his stomach continued to get worse, and worse - until he was doubled over, screaming, hands flying down to clutch his gem as he threw himself back to the floor once more. The pain was excruciating. Nothing like the destabilizers. Nothing like electricity. It was worse.
"You haven't been a good soldier, Rose," his Diamond cooed. Steven screamed again, another rush of agony flushing through his body, his stomach, his gem. "Now I have to break you."
Tears flooded his eyes for the first time in months as he screamed once more, howling from the pain he was feeling. He felt something crack under his fingers, his gem seeming to cave in where he was holding it. If he could have rolled over and pulled his shirt up to check it, he would have - but he could only lay there screaming, curled up and writhing as the pain split through him. As it ripped him apart, literally and figuratively. He screamed until he couldn't breathe anymore, and he continued screaming a little even after that. He couldn't seem to stop. It hurt too much to stop, and he couldn't relieve the pain. Not that screaming was helping, and logically he knew that - he knew he needed to get up and check on his gem, he knew something was wrong, he knew this couldn't possibly be happening- how had she found him so soon? Were the other gems okay? Berry? Lemon Lime? Candy? Agate? Sage? Tangerine? Clementine? Garnet? Amethyst? Pearl? And his Dad, was he okay? And Connie… he screamed again, another abrupt burst of pain arching his back instinctively, clawing at his gem desperately.
He screamed until he choked, tasting the blood that bubbled up to his lips. He coughed and gasped, spitting as much of it out between agonized wails as he tried to get a grip on himself. After everything he'd endured on Homeworld, this, by far, had to be the worst kind of pain. He pressed his hands harder into his gem, fingers tearing at the edges, trying to relieve the pressure he could feel building. Something was really wrong. He was going to shatter.
He felt something else crack, and he screamed again, choking and coughing out another glob of blood. He sucked in a breath, He gasped, feeling more blood bubble to his lips instantly - but something else was there, among the blood pooling out of his mouth. Something glittering alongside the crimson liquid, reflecting a harsh blue glow just ahead of them that he knew was coming from his Diamond. Come to think of it, what he was staring at was blue. Dull blue. There were gem shards sprinkled throughout the blood; another rush of blood cut his airways off again, and another choked cough released another shard-filled glob. He screamed again, this time more so out of terror than agony. He didn't know what was happening, but he needed it to stop. For just a second, he needed it to stop. Just a split second of relief was all he wanted.
Fear clouded his mind, cutting him off from everything else. Again, he was choking - but he couldn't taste blood anymore. No, instead, he was tasting… water. He coughed as much of it out as he could, gasping and hacking as he fought to release the pressure that was now not only on his stomach, but in his lungs, and his chest, and his throat. He couldn't breathe.
He sucked in a gasp of what should have been air. Instead it was water, more liquid filling his lungs. It didn't matter how much he coughed or gasped. Every inhale was suffocating. Water filled his mouth, his nose, his lungs. It stung his eyes, but he couldn't close them. The gem shards and the blood were washed away - unconsciously, he screamed through the water that was trapping him now, reaching out for the shards with both hands. Bubbles formed around his mouth as he screamed, and water rushed back into his mouth and nose when he was forced to inhale because of it, sending him right back into another fit of coughing and choking, suffocating, drowning, unable to breathe. And yet he continued to reach out, desperate.
Another rush of pain made him recoil.
He wondered how he wasn't dead already. How he hadn't shattered.
"That's how it felt for me," a voice whispered harshly. Steven let out another cry, but this time he didn't know why. The voice hurt; it felt like another crack in his gem, even more pressure added. Water and tears and blood blurred his vision, coughing and gasping and screaming as the voice continued, muffled through the water, "nothing but pure agony… trapped, in pure agony!"
He screamed again, curling his fingers around his gem.
That voice… "And now you'll suffer for eternity," it hissed. "Trapped, just like I was, Steven."
He felt another crack, but he choked on his wails when he opened his mouth to scream again. His hand clenched around the empty space on his stomach, where his gem used to be. But it was gone; there was nothing there now. Not his gem, not even shards. There was nothing.
"Steven…"
"Steven-"
He woke with a start, sucking in as much air as he could and letting out a gasp the moment he was able to. The pain was gone, vanished, just like that, but something was still wrong. The hybrid blinked furiously through the blurriness clouding his gaze, just barely managing to catch a glimpse of a familiar figure hovering over him. Garnet. That was Garnet. She was tall, taller than anybody else there, and he could recognize the shape of her hair as she loomed over him. At first, Steven almost wanted to scream; he clasped a hand over his mouth, staring up at the fusion with wide eyes as he scrambled backwards and pressed himself back, away from her. Her hands reached toward him slightly, hovering close to him but not quite touching, but he still had to choke down a rush of terror and a petrified scream, holding his hand over his mouth. "Steven, it's alright," Garnet said cautiously, pulling her hand back a little. "It was only a dream."
Through the haze of terror, he thought he recognized that word. But he couldn't think about it too much right then. He just gasped again, dropping his hand from his mouth to suck in another gasp of air. It came back out in a breathless sob; there were no tears in his eyes, he wasn't crying like he thought he had been. He didn't know where he was, but he felt his bed underneath him, and Garnet was there. So he wasn't on Homeworld. He wasn't trapped in an endless stretch of water, floating among broken gem shards and blood. He was on Earth. Another loose sob broke from his lips, this time one of relief. A dream. Dream meant it wasn't real, right? Dream meant that it was just his imagination. It wasn't real. It hadn't been real.
"Shh." The bed jostled slightly, and Steven flinched, breath hitching again, as Garnet came a little closer to him. She settled herself on the bed beside him, wrapping her arms around him; once again, he flinched, but didn't recoil. "You're alright now," she told him cautiously. Steven sucked in another shaky gasp, desperate to get more air in. "It's okay. You're safe. You're safe." Steven shuddered, staying still for a moment. She continued to mumble the words to him, pulling him closer. And, despite himself, despite the terror he felt toward her, the wariness and the fear, he found himself sinking sideways against her as she pulled him into her arms again. He didn't flinch this time, but he found himself trembling as he pressed himself closer to her. "It was only a dream," Garnet murmured, pressing her mouth to the top of his head. The contact reminded him of Pearl, and Greg. It was warm, and soft, and… sweet. "You're safe now."
Finally, he relaxed against the fusion, and his head sank back against her shoulder as he collapsed into his arms, shaky and tired and trying to recover from the lingering fear still clouding the corners of his mind, left over from the dream he'd had. Unconsciously, he let his hands trail down, fingers trembling as he searched for his gem. And he found himself huffing out another quiet, dry sob of relief when he could feel it beneath the fabric, uncracked, unharmed.
"My Diamond…" He choked out in a whisper, sinking back against Garnet again. "I thought…"
"It wasn't real," Garnet told him quietly. "She's not here." The hybrid shuddered again, breathing in shakily and leaning his head back against her shoulder once more. Her arms wrapped even tighter around him then - not tight enough to be uncomfortable, but enough for him to feel it. Feel the warmth of her arms, wrapped securely around him, like a protective shield, a bubble. The safety, right then, was intoxicating. After the terror and pain he had experienced in his dream, he needed it now more than ever. So he curled himself even closer to her, turning to burying his face into her chest. After a moment, she pulled him closer, into her lap. "You've got nothing to fear here," she whispered, pressing her lips against his forehead. He squeezed his eyes shut, leaning into the touch and trying to calm his shaking. "I've got you. You're alright…"
"She broke me," the hybrid whispered. "M- my gem… sh- she broke my g- gem."
Garnet's hands curled against the back of his shirt. "... she's not here."
Steven shook his head slightly, burying his face into her chest again. She held him close for a while after that, silently rubbing her thumb over his shoulder, keeping her lips pressed to his head. After a little while, though, she pulled her head back again and took a deep breath. "Come on," she murmured gently, and Steven leaned back, looking up at her. The fusion offered him a warm smile, reaching up to diminish her visor - and Steven silently glanced between each of her eyes, taking a shaky breath and letting it out slowly - as she positioned her hands under his arms to lift him up a little, setting him back down on the bed in front of her and getting up. When she reached her hands out toward him, he took them both after only a second of hesitation. She pulled him forward, but let him stand up on his own for the most part. "Let's get some air."
He held her hand as she led him down the stairs; her grip was firm, but gentle enough that he could have let go if he'd wanted to, but he didn't. Right then, despite whatever he might have thought about her, her presence alone was comforting enough to stifle any fear right then. Glancing over hesitantly, he saw Greg was stretched out on the couch, fast asleep. And… on the floor, the other gems were piled up. Berry was curled up in Lemon Lime's lap, he noticed - and he couldn't help but stare for a moment, honestly - with Candy sleeping with her head on Lemon Lime's shoulder, the Peridot's arm wrapped around her. Tangerine was stretched out on her back with her head resting on Candy's leg, and Clementine was curled up just beside her, one hand resting protectively against the smaller Quartz's arm. They were all… sleeping. Aside from Agate and Sage, who weren't there, but Steven only stared for a moment before he turned away to let Garnet lead him out the door, following her outside and taking another shaky breath.
"Better?" She asked quietly, and Steven nodded hesitantly in response.
"I'm sorry," he apologized quietly, voice somewhat strained with the effort it was taking to hold himself steady. Once again, he didn't know what he was apologizing for. He felt like there was definitely some apologizing to do, though; now that the fear was wearing off, he felt… guilty. Right then, he felt, quite possibly, more guilty than he had ever felt. He didn't know why.
The dream, right then, was a distant memory, one getting more and more clouded as time went on. He could feel it slipping away, despite his attempts to hold onto it. He couldn't focus on it.
"It's alright, Steven," Garnet told him quietly. She briefly let his hand go, walking over to a table and chairs sitting out on the porch; the hybrid hesitated where he stood, unsure of whether he should follow or not, as he watched the fusion pull the table out slightly, positioning it in front of the house. She then proceeded to grab one of the chairs and place it on top, balancing it carefully, before she turned away and held her hand back out to him again. Admittedly… his curiosity over whatever she was doing far overruled his fear and confusion. He did find himself staring for a few seconds as he walked forward, but he allowed her to take his hand and lift him up onto the table, helping him climb up onto that, and then the chair, and guiding him to the roof. And, when she climbed up behind him, she helped him up onto the higher ledge so that he could sit with his legs hanging down, and positioned herself the same way, sitting beside him.
"Are we…" Steven stared down toward the ground, furrowing his eyebrows. With all the things he'd been through, with how many times he'd flown in a ship by then, being scared of heights was probably the most ridiculous thing ever. But he vaguely remembered the feeling of falling, from his dream. He remembered the feeling of crashing into the ground, feeling the pain burst to life through every part of his body. The hybrid swallowed. "Are we supposed to be up here…?"
Garnet shrugged, glancing over at him. He looked up to see her blink her red eye at him, a small, mischievous smile tugging at her lips briefly. "We're not not supposed to be up here."
"Fair enough." Steven cracked a hesitant smile.
"Besides." Garnet paused, tilting her head back and gesturing toward the sky; Steven paused and lifted his gaze, furrowing his eyebrows slightly, and his eyes widened slightly when he finally managed to focus on what he was seeing. The sky had fallen pitch black, stars littering the sky; somehow, seeing it from far away rather than up close like he usually did was… something else. He recognized the various galaxies, things Tangerine had pointed out to him during the ride to the battle, things Berry grumbled about while she drove. Clusters of stars and planets… and the moon. He saw the Earth's moon. He widened his eyes a little more, tilting his head back further and sucking in a shaky breath as he flicked his gaze across the sky, taking in the stars silently. And, after a few moments, Garnet murmured, "you can see Homeworld's galaxy from here."
Steven lowered his gaze slightly, following her gaze. He recognized that, too; he'd seen it on their way back from the battlefield, watching the stars and the planet getting closer. He stared at it now, all the way from Earth, and wondered if they could see Earth's galaxy from there, too. The hybrid fell silent for a few seconds, letting his gaze roam across the sky again. His voice was quiet as he replied, hushed, as if he was scared to speak any louder, lest the Diamonds hear him from all the way across their galaxies. "You're right…" He fell silent again, swallowing.
"I can't imagine what it's like now…" Garnet trailed off, lowering her gaze. "... Blue Diamond was Sapphire's Diamond, you know. Once upon a time." She held her hand out to him again, and Steven glanced down at the gem embedded in her palm, furrowing his eyebrows silently. Then he looked back up at the fusion, the rest of his fear and wariness steadily slipping away already. Sympathy replaced it instead, a sudden rush of empathy for the fusion in front of him then. The fusion, and one of the gems that made her up, who was unlucky enough to know Blue Diamond at all. Unlucky enough to have probably experienced her wrath, her unfairness, her torture. If the fact that she was here was any indication… the fact that she scowled at the mention of her, the anger he could feel radiating from her when the Diamond was mentioned… the ferocity in which she had broken the earrings… it made a little more sense to him now, more than it had before.
"I'm sure she was very… different from how you know her now," Garnet murmured after a moment, curling her fingers again and rubbing them over the gemstone lightly. "Still very sad, and cold, and cruel, but I'm sure losing-" She paused, glancing down at the hybrid; Steven grimaced, but he nodded slightly, and Garnet hesitated for a moment before continuing. "I'm sure losing Pink Diamond didn't help matters. I don't know what it was like, serving under her then…" She trailed off for a few seconds, taking a deep breath, and presented her other hand to him. This one, Steven did recognize; a Ruby gem rested on her other palm, glittering gently as it reflected the starry night sky above them. "But I know she was a merciless tyrant when Sapphire was under her command. Cruel, and angry, and unforgiving. When Sapphire and Ruby fused for the first time by accident, many years ago… she was going to shatter Ruby."
Steven breathed in shakily, staring down at the gem. "Oh, stars…"
"Sapphire protected her," Garnet told him quietly. "But neither of them could go back to Homeworld after that. Blue Diamond would have had them both shattered on sight. That's why they joined the Crystal Gems, why I exist- to be able to fight for the freedom they never had. Ruby, and Sapphire, and the rest of the Homeworld gems who wanted something more. Who were unhappy under the Diamonds' command. Who wanted to be free, and independent. We weren't just fighting for Earth during the rebellion. We weren't fighting out of anger." She pulled her hands back, a small smile appearing on her face. "We were fighting for love, Steven. We were fighting for the ability to protect the ones we cared about, gems and humans alike."
Steven stared at her for a moment, silently flicking his gaze across her face. His eyebrows furrowed silently after a moment, looking away. Something stirred in the back of his mind again, and this time the visions that flickered across his vision came abruptly, in a flash of memories. He remembered seeing her fuse - for the first time, he remembered. The first time he realized she was a fusion. He remembered her crouching down in front of him, thanking him, kissing his forehead. He heard her voice, clear as day, like she was saying it now; we already love you.
I am made…
Of…
Love…
The hybrid blinked, staring out at the ocean for a moment, then let a smile tug at his lips. Garnet wasn't scary. She wasn't even close to being scary. She was like Pearl. She was like a Mom. "That doesn't sound like a bad thing to fight for," he whispered. "For love… for protection." He lifted his head slightly, glancing up at the stars in the sky. They glittered down brightly, shining down against the two of them, glowing and flickering; he let his expression soften slightly as he watched, pausing and tilting his head back to look up at the moon. But he continued to speak to Garnet after a few seconds, watching the sky carefully. "I think I want to fight for that, too…" Steven trailed off, lowering his head again. "I want to remember… and fight for you."
"And we want to fight for you," Garnet replied steadily. She reached toward him again, and Steven scooted over to let her wrap her arms around him again, letting out a muffled giggle when she leaned down to kiss the top of his head again. "I hope you know that, Steven. I hope you know that we're all going to fight for you. I hope you know we're all going to protect you." He looked up at her, leaning his head against her shoulder, and Garnet offered a small smile as she pressed another kiss to his forehead. "We're not going to let anybody hurt you, not ever again. Not Blue Diamond, not Homeworld… and not anybody else," she murmured. "We've got you."
Steven fell silent for a while, looking up at her. "I know…" He finally replied, trailing off briefly. "I know." He took a deep breath and let his eyes drift shut for a moment, relaxing once again. Garnet rested her head on top of his, offering the hybrid a gentle, cautious squeeze.
"And we love you," the fusion whispered. "Very much."
"I know," Steven mumbled again. A small smile tugged at his lips after a moment, blinking his eyes open to look back up at her, and reached up to grab her hand. "I love you, too, Garnet."
And it's stronger than you…