CHAPTER TWELVE

The Watermelon Stevens may not have figured out electricity, but that didn't mean they didn't know how to put on a party and so a few hours later, the Shorty Squad (less shorty now Steven had grown so much taller, but it amused them to keep the name) were clad in flower crowns and garlands and laughing together as the Watermelons put on a skit for their amusement. Peridot and Amethyst couldn't understand a word that was being said, but really, it wasn't all that difficult to understand the meaning behind a pie in the face.

Another Watermelon Steven ran forward holding another pie and skidded in the cream that had been left by the previous one. What followed was an almost elegant dance as they struggled to keep upright, but in the end, gravity won out and both pie and watermelon hit the ground.

"I'm dying," Amethyst wheezed as the unfortunate melon tried to stand up and started sliding around all over again. "I'm actually dying here Steven, help me!"

Beside her, Peridot was crying with laughter. "Ah- it hurts!" she laugh-sobbed, and toppled over sideways. "Nyeheheh!"

Amethyst wiped a tear from her own eyes and opened her mouth to mock her friend, but then she was distracted by the sight of several Watermelons marching past, all armed with wicked-looking spears. "Hey, Steven?" she asked sharply. "What's that all about, should we be worried?"

"Hmm?" Steven blinked and looked in the direction she indicated. "Oh! No, it's just shift change. They're taking it in turns to guard the Cluster."

"Oh yeah?" Amethyst looked around at the crowds with interest, suddenly remembering the fight against Malachite. "Are they all gonna take turns?"

"Well not the kids, obviously," Steven clarified.

Amethyst watched the marching melons for a moment longer, and then tilted her head slightly to look at the Cluster, which was still just visible from the village. "You know," she said thoughtfully, "if the Diamonds come back again... I think this time, we could really beat them. I'm serious!" she urged as Steven and Peridot both turned to stare at her. "I mean, even if the Rubies told them you're alive and I exist, they still think they killed you, Garnet and Pearl," she explained, pointing to each of them in turn. "Y'know, Rose Quartz and her most loyal followers. But not only are you guys alive and kicking, we've got the Cluster out and on our side, and a loyal army of watermelons who've already proven they're ready and willing to fight for you!"

Steven frowned and looked around at the crowds of Watermelon Stevens who were still watching the skit. "I don't know if I'm really comfortable asking these guys to fight the Diamonds," he said in a low voice. "I still feel bad about how many of them died fighting Malachite."

"OK, but you kinda already asked them to fight the Diamonds when you asked them to guard the Cluster," Amethyst pointed out.

"It's their planet too," Peridot added. "It's in their best interests to help defend it."

"Plus," Amethyst carried on, seeing that he still didn't look very happy about the idea, "we're gonna be trying to cure some of the other corrupted gems next, remember? And we already know they're up for kicking some Diamond butt!" She slammed a fist into her hand for emphasis. "Heck, after spending thousands of years corrupted, they're probably looking forward to- what?" she asked as Peridot suddenly gasped and clutched Steven's arm hard enough to make him wince."

"I have just had an extremely horrible idea," she said, her eyes glittering with almost manic glee.

"Oh no," Steven groaned. "I don't know if I want to hear this."

Amethyst hesitated. "I have to admit, I'm a little intrigued. All right then, P-dot, what is it?"

"Well..." Peridot paused, enjoying the moment. "We have their song."

A dead silence met her words. Finally Amethyst exhaled loudly and shook her head. "You're right, that's a horrible idea. Downright evil." A broad grin spread across her face. "I love it!"

"I... don't love it," Steven admitted, although he couldn't help looking at his girlfriend with newfound respect.

"I'm not saying it should be our first line of attack," Peridot said hastily. "And it's entirely possible we wouldn't be able to corrupt the Diamonds anyway. But it's a new weapon in our arsenal that they're unaware of, so it's always worth keeping in mind."

"Jeez, remind me not to piss you off ever again," Amethyst said under her breath. She looked back at the skit, but she'd lost interest now. "I'm gonna go see how Pearl and Garnet are doing, you guys have fun."

They waved after her and turned their attention back to the stage, but their interest was now waning too and so once the skit was wrapped up, they climbed to their feet, thanked the performers and began walking back up the cliff towards the warp pad.

"So..." Steven began, giving his girlfriend a sideways look.

"All right, I admit it, I would rather like to give the Diamonds a taste of their own medicine," Peridot blurted out. "I know it's horrible of me-"

"Hey, I get it." Steven held his hands up in surrender. "I'd be lying if I said I didn't wanna make them suffer a little bit too. But that's kinda like, y'know, a nuclear option. Once we cross that line, there's no going back."

"Unless your father's song does cure corruption," Peridot reminded him.

"True," he conceded. "Still, I think perhaps giant, corrupted monster Diamonds are something we should aim to avoid if possible, even if they are only temporary."

"All right." Peridot sighed and leaned her head against him. "Let's aim to just poof them and bubble them instead."

"Perfect." He nodded with approval and leaned down to kiss the tip of her nose. "And then Garnet and Pearl can go back to Homeworld and set up a democratic republic or something."

"What about Amethyst?"

Steven suppressed a grin at the thought of Amethyst in charge of Homeworld. "I think perhaps Amethyst might prefer to help with the more social... community... I have forgotten how to word."

Peridot snorted with laughter. "You mean help all the other gems get along together?"

"Yeah, that's it. She can throw a bunch of parties and get everyone mixing it up and making new friends."

"And..." Peridot stopped and tilted her face up towards him. "What about us?"

"Us?" He smiled back down at her. "We stay here and live happily ever after."

Peridot smiled back and leaned forward.

"And have three children and a dog and a farmhouse in the country."

"Three-?" She reared back again.

"I'm joking!" he quickly assured her. "I'm pretty sure that's not going to happen."

"I have read the chapter on human reproduction. I know where babies come from. And where they come out." Peridot folded her arms across her chest and glared at him. "And that is definitely not going to happen."

"Of course. Although... we could adopt," he hinted hopefully.

Peridot laughed and gave him a gentle shove. "Stop planning our entire future! I haven't even decided if I'm going to eat dinner tonight!"

"Sorry, sorry." He laughed as well and held his hand out to her "Come on. Let's go and see how Garnet and Pearl are doing."

Peridot allowed herself to be pulled along and soon, they were back at the top of the cliff where the other three Crystal Gems were waiting. But as soon as she spotted Garnet and Pearl, she let go of his hand and slowed down, wary of their obvious grief and her own previous role in the Cluster project.

But to her surprise, they both appeared to be smiling. And as soon as she was within reach, Pearl staggered forward, folded herself in half and burst into tears. "Th-han-ank you," she sobbed, dribbling snot and tears all over Peridot's shoulder. "We neh-hever would've knuh-knuh-hown whu-what ha-ha-happened to them if it hadn't been for you!"

"Um." Peridot fought down the almost overwhelming urge to break free and run away. "You're... welcome?"

"I didn't want to believe it was so many of them," Garnet said quietly, wiping away a tear. "It's painful, but at least now we have a clearer idea of how many we still need to find." She stepped forward and gently pried Pearl away before bending down to give Peridot a hug of her own. "Please don't blame yourself for what happened to them. You've given us closure."

"Um," Peridot said again, and squirmed uncomfortably.

"Put her down, G, you don't know where she's been," Amethyst joked, and to Peridot's immense relief, Garnet laughed and stepped back.

"We're going to stay here tonight and hold a vigil for them," she said, waving a hand towards the Cluster's immense form just in case there was any confusion over who she meant by 'them'. "Go ahead and go home and rest. We'll take a break for a few days before our next move."

"OK," Peridot said with relief, and shot over to Steven's side, where they both stood, looking expectantly at Amethyst.

"Hmm?" She blinked in surprise and pointed at herself. "Oh, me? Nah, I'm good, I'm gonna stick around here a while longer, and keep an eye on things" she said, and then discreetly gestured towards her elder team mates. "Go home, have a date or something!"

"Well, when you put it like that..." Steven grabbed Peridot's hand and pulled her over to the warp pad. "Bye guys! See you when you get back!"

Moments later, they were back in the beach house. Steven stepped off the warp pad and into the main house and stopped to look around. Food first or shower and change out of his sweaty, grubby clothes? Food, he decided. Changing into clean clothes before eating was a surefire way to wind up spilling it all over himself. He crossed over to the kitchen and started looking through the cupboards. "Hey, Peridot? Did you decide what you want..."

He trailed off as her arms snaked around his waist, embracing him from behind. "Yes," she breathed in his ear.

"I was kinda talking about dinner," he said, and let himself lean back against her a little.

"Mmm..." Peridot considered that for a moment and then slid one of her her hands underneath his shirt. "I'll have a feast of Steven," she said, and briefly rested her other hand against the front of his jeans.

A spark of anticipation shot through him; although they'd talked about it the night before, he really hadn't thought she'd be in the mood after Pearl and Garnet's somber reaction to the Cluster, but it seemed their thanks had cheered her up again. He was almost tempted to abandon everything and go to the room straightaway, but his stomach growled loudly, reminding him that he'd only eaten breakfast and a candy bar that day. "Uhhh..." He closed his eyes and tried to think, which was rather difficult, because all his blood was heading in the opposite direction of his brain. "Hold that thought, 'cause I really do need to eat," he admitted. "Food," he swiftly added, feeling her smirk against his back. "Or I'll faint halfway through."

"Hmm." She sighed and reluctantly released him. "That would be less than optimal," she admitted. "Very well. Consume your nutritional foodstuffs!" she declared. "You'll be needing the energy!"

Steven laughed and closed the cupboard door again. "All our food is boring. Let's go out to dinner," he suggested, turning to face her. "Make it a real date!"

Peridot hesitated. "I thought you were trying not to spend any money?"

"Well... yes, but I can just about afford to buy my girlfriend dinner at Tommy's Bistro this one time," he insisted. "It's a special occasion, after all."

She grinned and bounced on the balls of her feet. "All right, you've convinced me. I shall go and change into some more appropriate attire," she said, looking down at her default jumpsuit with disdain.

"Great!" He grinned back and took a step towards the bathroom. "I'm gonna take a quick shower, I'll meet you back out here shortly."

She gave him a thumbs up, spun around and made her way to her own room to find something nice to wear. As soon as the door closed behind her, she allowed her jumpsuit to vanish in a flash of light, leaving her entirely naked. For a moment, she was almost tempted to wear it on their date, purely to show Steven that feature, but she'd designed it almost three years ago and it was completely out of style now. Instead, she put on the silky, lacy underwear and short dress she'd chosen and put aside last night, just in case they did get a chance to be alone. A light jacket and nice shoes were all that was needed to complete the look, and once she was done, she grabbed a card from her desk and put it in her pocket and stepped back into the house.

She'd been fast, but thanks to his super-speed, Steven had been even faster and was already rummaging through the freezer for a Lion Licker. "Ah, hey- wow!" He whistled appreciatively. "You look great!"

"You don't look so bad yourself," she said, looking with approval at his smart button-up shirt and slacks.

"You think?" He grinned and spun around so she could look at his outfit from all angles. "I did think about wearing that white t-shirt you liked, but it wasn't really smart enough for-" He stopped, suddenly remembering the ice cream in his hand. "Oh, right, we have to actually get there first. Lion!" He whistled loudly and shook the ice cream. "Liiiiiii-on! Come on," he added under his breath. They could always catch a bus into town, but loud tourists, whiny children and occasional pee-stained drunks rather spoiled the romantic atmosphere. "All right, here I go... I'm taking the wrapper off... I'm gonna eat- gyahh!"

Peridot couldn't help letting out an involuntary scream as well as Lion suddenly appeared in the middle of the room and crashed into Steven, sending them both skidding across the floor. She ran over to try and help, but Lion was already sitting up, the Lion Licker clamped firmly in his teeth.

"Bad Lion!" Steven scolded, trying to push the animal off his legs so he could stand up again. "I told you before, no portals in the house!" He reached out and tried to pull back the ice cream, then hastily let go as Lion growled at him. "OK, fine, you can have that one. And if you take us into town, I'll let you have a second one. Deal?"

Lion, of course, didn't reply, but he also didn't leap into another portal and vanish again, which was a good sign, so Steven grabbed another ice cream from the freezer and climbed on his back. Peridot hopped up behind him and wrapped her arms around his waist, and then, once he'd finished chewing, Lion straightened up, roared, and jumped through the portal.

They appeared in the middle of the sidewalk just outside the restaurant. "Nice work, Lion," Steven said, petting his mane. "Here, you earned it. And if you stick around and take us home afterwards," he wheedled, "I'll bring you some tiramisu."

Once again, Lion was silent, but once Steven and Peridot had climbed off his back, he sat down beside the door like a furry pink door guardian, and so they both gave him another pat and entered the restaurant, where they were once again directed to a cosy little table decorated with a red and white checked tablecloth and a candle in a Chianti bottle.

"So, any idea what you want?" Steven asked after a smiley waiter had handed them a pair of menus and disappeared to fetch them some iced tea.

"I liked the lasagna you had last time," she decided.

"Yeah, it was tasty," he agreed. "Didn't make such a great pillow though. I think I'll try the cannelloni this time."

"I hope you don't mean to sleep in," she cautioned.

He laughed and shook his head. "I don't plan to do much sleeping tonight," he teased. "And when I do, it's going to be in my bed, not my dinner." A thought suddenly occurred to him and he leaned forward and grabbed her hands. "The gems aren't going to be home until morning, you could stay with me!"

Peridot considered his suggestion and then nodded slowly. "I don't think I want to sleep, but... I'd like that," she confessed.

The waiter reappeared with their drinks and a basket of bread, and the subject turned to more mundane matters. Their food arrived and was even more delicious than the last time, and then once the plates had been been cleared up and cleared away, Peridot leaned forward, a sparkle in her eyes. "Steven... I have something for you," she said dramatically. She reached into her jacket, and for a wild moment, Steven thought she was about to pull out a ring box and propose to him. Instead, she pushed the card across the table towards him.

"Uh, thank you." He picked it up and turned it over in his hands. It was made of dark green metal, about the size of a credit card, with no other distinguishing features. "What is it?"

Peridot's smile grew wider. "It's a keycard! To unlock the door to my room," she elaborate as he looked blankly at her.

"Oh!" He looked at the card again with surprise. "I thought you didn't have a lock on your door?"

"I didn't," she said flatly. "And I wasn't going to install one. But if the other gems can't respect my boundaries, then they don't get to complain when I enforce them. But," she said a lot more cheerfully, "I trust you not to abuse this privilege."

"I promise I'll always knock first," Steven assured her. "Thanks, Peridot." He sighed theatrically. "I wish I could return the favor, but you already live in my house. Maybe there's some way to give you access to my room in the Temple..." he muttered to himself, but he had a sneaking suspicion that the only way she'd be able to get in was with her own room, and that hadn't gone so well.

"It's fine, you spend the majority of your time in the house anyway," Peridot said with a dismissive wave of her hand. "You can always just let me into your other room when it's necessary. Speaking of which..." She leaned forward and gave him an impish smile. "I believe it's necessary."

"I do believe you're correct," he agreed solemnly, although the effect was completely ruined a moment later when a big, cheesy grin spread across his face. "Let me just get a box for Lion's dessert and pay."

Five minutes later, they stepped outside to discover Lion had vanished. "Oh for fu- Lion!" Steven called, turning in a slow circle. "Liiii-on! I'm gonna eat this delicious tiramisu! Mmm, it's soooo delicious!" He cracked open the box and looked around hopefully, but all he saw were people trying very hard not to look at him. "Ugh, stupid Lion," he grumbled and closed the lid again. "I don't know why I bother."

"I suppose we'll have to catch the bus." Peridot folded her arms and glared at the spot where Lion had been sitting before he'd abandoned them.

Steven looked down the street towards the bus stop and quickly turned away before the person standing there could spot him. "I'll call a cab," he said firmly, and steered her in the opposite direction. He had absolutely no desire to spend the journey back to Beach City in the company of Ronaldo and his mad theories.

Thankfully their ride arrived promptly and soon they were walking across the final stretch of sand towards the house. Inside, it was just as empty as they'd left it; the other gems had evidently not changed their minds and come home while they out.

"Well." Steven put the box down on the kitchen counter and turned around to face her. "Are- are you ready?" he stammered, suddenly swamped with nerves.

"Are you?" Peridot countered.

He laughed sheepishly and rubbed the back of his neck. "I guess I'm a little nervous," he admitted. "I've never- I have no idea- well, obviously I have some idea-"

"Steven." She stepped forward and embraced him. "I love you," she said quietly, tilting her face up towards him. "And I want to do this with you. But it doesn't have to be right now. If you're not ready, if you'd rather we just go to your bed and sleep, that's fine too."

"No." His nerves vanished at once and he shook his head. "I'm ready. I wanna do this too." He leaned down and kissed her. "And I love you too," he finished shyly.

She smiled widely and stretched up to give him another kiss. "Then let's get a room."

xxx

A/N: I wrote this before I watched Escapism, so I'm afraid I'm going to have to ignore that weird thing with the rival Watermelon tribes. I mean, this is set four years in the future, so just assume they worked it all out on their own.