Hey folks! I wanted to thank all of you that commented on this fics. You guys really help me keep going with this fic!

In this chapter we have more Soledad and Steven's moments, plus some deep introspection from Steven's side (which will also continue next chapter).

I hope you guys like it!


The Dondai rode deeper into the woods; rows of yellow oaks and evergreen pines stood tall at each side of the narrow route. Eye-like deformities carved in their stumps gave them the look of silent sentinels.

"There're ghost in this forest," said Soledad, as she stared at the window. "Orsothelocalssay, I don't know." She quickly reached for her phone and focus all her attention on it.

But Steven wasn't worried about the ghosts —he'd seen weirder stuff without ever leaving Beach City. Soledad hasn't pushed him from answers about the mind-reading incident, but Steven couldn't stop thinking about it.

One of the last conversations he'd have with his therapist before he 'embarked' on this trip came to him. The topic was Steven's increasing powers.

"So, you are getting new abilities," Dr.A said. "I don't see the issue with this."

"It has all kind of issues!" Steven replied. "Why are they growing now? I thought I'd finally reached my roof. A-and how come I can see gems and humans' auras? I didn't even know human had those," he added weakly.

"You were always sensitive to other folk's emotions, weren't you? This seems like a natural development. Being a human-gem hybrid allows you to experience both perspectives. A man of two worlds. It would make sense it works the same with this new power."

Steven dodged her gaze. Dr. A's aura was warm and unprejudiced.

"But it's too… personal. I don't want to be peeping at everyone's emotions. It's too much."

"Same as you didn't want any of your other powers, but you learnt to control them. Even those which are too much."

Dr. A made a pause, letting the implications sink in. She knew everything about the ugly business with Jasper. She knew most of what was inside Steven's head these days. She'd earned his trust in all those months of therapy.

"What I am saying," she proceeded, "is that you can´t stop your powers from growing, not more than anyone can control how tall they'll grow to be," she leaned against her couch, looking intensively at Steven. "We can't change what we are, but we can decide who we are."

"And please, don't let this prevent you from making friends on your trip," she added. "You are a good boy, Steven. We both know this."

Steven's stomach churned. He wasn't so sure about that. But Dr. A. had taught him to not see the world in 'black and white'. Even if he'd abused his powers, the fact that he was smart enough to know it was proof he was not a monster.

Right? Right.

The deeper they got into the woods, the more holes and crack the road had. The suspension whined with every new impact. There was no sign of civilization at all, and Steven started to fear there might a serial killer inside the car and it wasn't him.

"Really quiet, this road," said Steven, eyeing his companion. "And abandoned. Are we even close yet?"

Soledad looked up from her phone. A flashing panic took over her.

"Oh shit! It's the next exit! Right here!"

Steven steered the wheel. The Dondai jumped into the gravel road with a bump. This new road was more stable, and it lead them right into the heart of the forest —not easing Steven's fears at all. Five minutes later, they reached a clearing.

"Yes! We found it!" cheered Soledad.

"This is it?"

"This is it."

'It' in this case was a man-made glade the size of a whole block or more. The soil was loose and there were tree stumps here and there, signaling human work not long ago.

"Alright, just park the car right behind the food truck," said Soledad.

"What food truck?"

"That one over there."

Steven focused his vision. "That's a food truck?" he asked.

"Loosely speaking," she said with a chuckle. Steven did as told

From behind, the 'food truck' gave the impression of a tin can with Christmas' lights hanging from it. It stood on top of four different piles of bricks. There has to be someone else around, because a big motorcycle was parked behind it.

Soledad opened the door as soon as the car stopped. Steven, anxious to stretch his legs, followed through.

The first impression he got was 'This is a junkyard'. The second impression he got was 'this is a junk-camp'.

Multiple lines of benches stretched in formation, surrounding a small cemented area with a rock circle; a fire pit —recently used, judging by the ash covered logs. There were a few games here and there, like the ones you would find in a park —but not like those at all. These games were covered in dirt, yes, but they were brand new. No kid has ever used them, not for long anyway. There were also some games not made for children. Pool tables, pinball machines and the like, plus a small basketball court at the far left.

A series of lampposts surrounded the clearing, but they were all turned off. Instead, a complicated aluminum cobweb spread out above them. Dozens, hundreds of Christmas lights, incessantly flickering with new colors each time, hung over them, tied up around the lampposts and the trees and the games. They were all connected to the 'truck'. Or rather, the generator that was connected to it. The machine was humming and buzzing as its wheel spun like crazy.

Far beyond this small puddle of light, the clearing keep on and Steven thought he could see the silhouettes of cabins at the distance.

What the heck? Thought Steven, and then he voiced: "What the heck?"

Soledad grumbled. "I know right? They really nailed that 'Crystal Lake' feeling."

"What is this place?"

"This," Soledad made an arc with her arm, "is 'Death River Camping Site'. Or it was supposed to be before the funds mysteriously banished."

"Banished?"

"And re-materialized in the shape of the mayor's new mansion."

"Ah," said Steven. Well, not every mayor could be Mayor Nanefua.

"Yep. Or at least that's what Rain says happened," Soledad made the face of someone who was looking at an ugly painting. "I know it's not Paris, but the locals love this place."

Steven was about to ask about said locals, when a voice was heard:

"It's that you Sol?"

The owner of the voice was a woman and she was stepping out of the 'truck'. Soledad sprinted towards her and crashed on her arms. They shared a warm reunion, with the woman asking Soledad if she was hurt, if anything else had happened. Soledad reassured her that she was alright.

"I just feel like an idiot," said Soledad, so soft it was hard to hear over the humming generator. "I… ishouldnthavegothere. You were right, Rain."

The woman (Rain) lifted her hands in defeat. "Forget it, I don't want to fight anymore," she said. "The important thing is you are here, and you are whole and not butchered."

"Heh, yeah. Thanks to Steven over here."

Rain laid her eyes on Steven. Then she straightened like a soldier in formation. Steven mimicked her action in harmonious distrust.

"He's my knight in shining armor I told you about," said Soledad. "Or cowboy in shining armor? Idontknow, but never mind! He helped me get away from that asshole."

"And I was thinking," Soledad added, "that we could repay him by inviting him dinner, and some drinks and… and… Youknowwhatimeanright?"

There was a moment of ridiculous silence as Steven and Rain measured wills. It was too dark to see her features, and yet her eyes were shining in the shadows. They were black as the night, and her gaze felt like an x-ray into Steven's soul.

Could she see him? I mean, really see his face? That must be it. Her aura was spiking with mistrust. It was also bigger than other people's auras, which confused him greatly. Maybe… no. Gems and Humans' auras looked very different. Not every weird person Steven met on the road had to be a secret gem. Some people just didn't like him.

Lots of people, actually. But Steven tried to not take it personal.

"You know, I don't want to bother. So I could leave if you-"

"No!"shouted Soledad and turned red. Then she added, in a relaxed tone. "I mean, it's not a bother at all. Right Rain?"

All eyes felt on Rain. She looked back at the 'truck', then at Soledad, like she was trying to decide if grabbing Soledad away from Steven or seeking refuge inside the 'truck' —or both. After a few seconds, her aura shrinked and settled down.

"Yeah, alright," she said in utter defeat.

Soledad fist pumped the air, and grabbed Steven by the arm, ready to guide him around. Rain jumped in front of them.

"BUT he'll have to wait. We've got work to do."

"Work?" said Soledad, with the tone of someone who had just learnt a new word. "But I thought, you said… I thought we were going to hang out."

"We will; once we're done with the work. I was in the middle of telling you when you hang me," said Rain. Soledad hissed. "Me and Peeps are cooking the meals for tomorrow, and you," Rain lifted a finger towards Soledad, "need to patch up my generator."

"Berta? What's the matter with her?"

Shadows danced around them, throwing Steven's heart in a chase. The Christmas lights flickered indiscriminately. CLANK! Sparks flied everywhere around the generator, turning all lights off. They went back on immediately.

"THAT," Rain rubbed her temples with her fingertips. "It's been like that the whole evening. It's giving me a migraine, I swear," she mumbled. "You need to fix it before it fries up my fridge, because if that happens Soledad, I swear to God you are sleeping outside."

Soledad made several protests of the likes of 'don't', 'why', 'just' and 'but'. Finally she extended her arms into the air. And when no Divine power made itself present, she gave up. "Fine."

Rain thanked her, gave Steven one last 'I am watching you' look and disappeared inside the 'food truck'.

"Well, she seems nice," said Steven.

"She is not. She is a pain in the ass," Soledad whined. "Listen, I gotta-"

"I-its fine, really" Steven held both hands up. "You go do your job, I'll be around."

Soledad gave him a tired smile, then walked behind the truck and grabbed a large toolbox. She knelt next to the generator —Berta— and began her inspection.

Steven went for a walk, hoping to give her some working space, and to ease his breathing. He practiced the exercise Dr. A taught him. Seven-second inhalation, eleven-second exhalation. He felt like a sea crab in the middle of an all-meat barbeque. He hated being alone. Ironically, Objective 1 of his Master Road Trip was to learn how to be comfortable with himself. Objective 2 was to experience life as a regular, non-magically fated human. So far he was 0 of 2.

Once the tremors stopped and he was feeling more grounded, Steven saw the situation in a different light.

At least it's a nice place, he thought. Kinda cool actually. I might enjoy it more if I weren't such an antisocial weirdo.

He looked around. There was Soledad's focused aura next to the generator, Rain's distrustful aura inside the truck, and a third aura, next to Rain's. It never ceased to amuse Steven. Humans' auras were so different from gems'.

Gems' auras were bigger. The stronger the gem, the bigger the aura; the Diamonds, for example, had auras several miles wide. But they were also static; cowls of lights surrounding the gem physical body and played a tune. Every gem had a different song, even amongst equal types of gems, and the tune of the song changes in tune with the gem's emotions. A meeting of gems was like an rock opera.

Humans have smaller auras, but theirs are so dynamic! Cowls of fire that shifted, grew, shrinked, spun and weaved. And just like with the Gemsong, Steven didn't have to guess what feeling each different state of aura represented. He just knew.

None of the people around were paying him any mind. Well, since he has been left to himself, he could do a bit of tourism. He hasn't taken any good photo since he left Shenandoah a while back and he still has a long way to Florida.

He wandered around for a while, stopping only to take pictures with his phone. The lights around the trees, the pinball machines; he even got bold and jumped on top of the climbing bars —by a subtle use of his levitation—, to get the whole clearing in frame.

His hand stopped over the button. The sheer beauty of the place left him speechless. It just hit Steven what was happening there. This camp had been left abandoned, but it have been taken over and remade into something new. Something sparkly and alive.

The sudden glee made a sharp turn into sourness. Once again he found himself thinking of Beach City. The gems, his dad. Connie… Her face on their last meeting in New York was fresh in Steven's mind. She'd been so happy about him making this trip. Everyone at home was. If only they knew…

That's it. That's enough, he decided. He'll apologize to Soledad and then leave. No discussion. There was no point in being there if he was gonna be a wet noodle.

Steven dropped from the bars and hit the ground with a thud. He was about to take his leave when he walked by the 'truck'. The thing looked more monstrous from this side. The hood had been removed, exposing the rusted engine to the elements. Several metal plates welded together made the exterior, which was beyond any bodywork and painting. Just looking at it could give you tetanus.

Alright, Steven had to take a picture of that. Connie would loose it when she sees it. 'That truck can't possibly be regulated!' he could hear her saying, with her usual cute laugh. If he couldn't be happy, at least he could've a good time between the low periods.

Steven positioned himself down, so he could take the whole… wholeness of the thing. CLICK.

"You still have both ears on you?"

The phone slid out of his hands like a butter bar possessed by a ghost. Steven caught it one inch away from touching solid ground. That was close! He has all his photos in there.

The voice spoke again. It was Rain's.

"Steven? Are you there?"

Steven really, really didn't want to 'be there'. But he was; that's what existing meant. He gaited in front of the truck's window and was assaulted by a delicious smell of caramelized onions and spices.

The inside of the truck was nothing like the outside. It was pristine clean, all white walls and silver sinks. It was bigger too… or well; it felt bigger, compared to the outside. Almost like a restaurant's kitchen.

Rain stood in front of a griddle stove, cooking something that made Steven's mouth and eyes water. He could see her clearly now. She'd to be in her early thirties and was wearing one of those 'Kiss the cook' aprons Steven had only ever seen in movies. Her hair was shaved on both sides, and what little hair she did have was tied up into a bun. Steven saw her deep brown eyes, still as piercing as before.

Oh, and she'd tattoos. Eyes, all of them. Big, small, wide, round, tons of eyes inked over her naked arms. A wide, blue eye-like stone hang from her neck. Steven tried to not look at them, and focus instead on the ones on her face.

"Sorry, what was that you were saying?" he said.

"Just asked if you still had both ears on you?"

Steven pulled his bean hat down. "Me? O-of course! Why wouldn't I have two ears? That's, like, the usual amount a normal human has." He doubted for a second. "Unless you are that painter guy with one ear."

Rain gazed at Steven for less than two seconds before looking back at the stove. Longest two seconds of Steven's life.

"I'm just saying ´cause you travelled all the way from Jacobstown with Soledad, so I reckoned your ears might have fallen down."

"Oh… right."

"Don't get me wrong. I love Soledad as if she was my stranded west coast cousin, but she can really talk," said Rain. "And talk, and talk."

"Yeah, she is…" Steven tried to think on the right words. "She is nice. Have you known her for long?"

"Just two weeks. She's staying at my hostel."

"Oh yeah, she mentioned that! Man, that has to be such a cool job. You meet new people every day, everyone with new interesting stories. It must be awesome."

"A pain in the ass, it´s what it is," Rain huffed. "I inherited the hotel from my mom and chose to turn it into a hostel. I thought inn keeping for hippies and hitchhikers ought to be easy money," she scrapped the stove surface with her spatula. "You can see how great that'd turned out for me. There're not even many customers, just two European backpackers. And Soledad and Peeps, of course."

Rain pointed at the man standing next to the fryer. His black curls danced as he banged his head to whatever jam was coming from his earplugs.

"That's Peeps," said Rain. "He's been a regular at the hostel for a while, so he helps me here now. Yo Peeps! Say hi to Steven."

Peeps took out one earplug and flashed a pearly smile. "'Sup Steven!"

"Hey Peeps. Uh… should the fries be smoking like that?"

Peeps cursed in a language Steven had never heard and threw the half incinerated fries over a plate.

"That man can speak five languages, but he can't precook the fries even to save his life," Rain sighed.

Steven let out a whistle. Learning what little 'Gemling' he knew had been an endless suffering; he couldn't imagine doing it three more times.

"Well, he seems interesting," he said, still not over the topic. "And Soledad too."

"Yeah, that's what she wants people to believe," Rain shook her head slightly. "I meant what I said, I like her. She's a total robot with technology. I have her freeloading at the hostel as long as she fixes the electrical installation," Rain hesitated. "But she likes to act more though than what she is. She's actually very impulsive and green to the world. I told her not to go to that party. Too far away, and she knew no-one there. Not that she would ever listen to me."

Steven felt the need to defend the girl he had just met. "She is fine now," he said.

"She is. Thanks to you."

Rain smiled at him for the first time. And for the first time in the night, Steven didn't wish he'd a hockey mask on.

After a minute or so, Rain turned the stove off. Then she proceeded to pick the filling with the spatula and put it in a tupper. Once she was done she put the lid over it and threw the spatula into the sink.

"I'll just wash that later," she said, weary and with bags under her eyes "Are you staying then? We're eating soon."

"Oh, I don't want to bother," said Steven. "You've been more than nice already."

"It's not a bother. I was gonna cook something for us anyway. You need something to go with the beer." Rain let out a little laugh. "You could do me a favor and absorb some of Sol's babble," she said in a whisper and punctuated it with a wink.

Steven laughed of eagerness. Well, they are gonna cook anyway. And Rain was warmer to him now. And Soledad had been so nice inviting him here. Also Steven was starving.

Yes, the prospect of staying looked brighter every second.

"I would love to," said Steven. "Is there anything I can help with?"

They heard a CLANK, followed by the lights flickering again. An angry voice shouted from outside:

"Hija de puta! Chinga tu madre, lavadora de porqueria!"

Steven winced. Nothing could pierce the language barrier like some old fashioned profanity.

"If you are really into helping, you could make sure your friend doesn't turn into a Christmas tree," said Rain, then she picked the tupper and disappeared inside the kitchen.

Steven found Soledad right where he'd left her. Kind of. She'd both her feet on the generator, holding onto a wrench that was hooked on the machine. She looked like a jockey over a race horse. She was red with rage but the wrench, which seemed to be more stubborn than her, slid from her hands. She plunged to the ground and landed with a THUD.

She was in the process of rubbing her butt when Steven came forward.

"That's one way of ride a horse, pardner," he said.

Soledad yelped and flipped her body so she was lying on her side, one arm under her head and one over her hip in what, Steven assumed, was a laid back pose.

"HeyStevenwhatsup," she said, face like a hot iron bolt.

"Just checking on you," said Steven. "Looks like 'Berta' here is giving you trouble."

"What? Nooo. Just some… technical difficulties, that's all."

It appeared to be more than that. The machine looked like the generator cousin of Frankenstein. A large turbine had been added to the side of the thing, stitched to the main piece by bolts and, probably, prayers. Steven was no engineer, but he was sure there shouldn't be that many loose cables.

"She looks like a fancy lady," Steven teased. "Did you really build it yourself?"

"Nah, just borrowed a turbine from the junkyard and stitched it up to Rain's busted generator."

"Well, it's still very impressive," he said. "And what seems to be the problem?"

"The turbine is supposed to give it more power," Soledad groaned, as if she'd explained this many times already. "But 'Ol Berta is playing hard to get and the chain isn't spinning."

"D'aww, don't be like that. She's a Dame. I'm sure she just needs a soft touch." Steven laughed. Soledad didn't. "Do you mind if I give it a try?"

"Knock yourself out," she said. "Oh, but you gonna need these."

Soledad stretched her arms, showing her paws-like yellow gloves. Steven grabbed her hands, helping her to her feet and getting the gloves off in the process.

He also took a good look at Soledad. She was taller than what he'd thought; one head taller than him at least. Most of it was leg. Her duffle coat and long shirt were gone and resting on top of a tree branch, leaving her with just a t-shirt. Steven chuckled when he saw Pac-man stamped on her t-shirt.

"What's so funny?" she asked.

"Nothing."

Soledad covered her chest and folded her arms. Right, self-consciousness. Steven will have to be more careful with his attitude in the future.

"So… what do I need to do?" he asked, trying to get Soledad to relax.

"Oh, uh, just turn the wrench a few times. Four rotations or so should do it."

Alright, that was easy enough. Gloves first though; luckily, it seems Steven had chosen the best day to wear a long sleeved shirt. He gave his back to Soledad and furtively took his jacket and gloves off. He caught a glimpse of pink from his scaly, clawed —monstrous— hands, before hiding them with the yellow gloves.

The bolt itself didn't give him any trouble. He turned it two, three, and four times until it didn't bulge no more.

"Done," he said to an awestruck Soledad. "I mean, I get why you had trouble. It was super stuck."

"Uh-uh," she said smoothly.

"So… should something be happening now?"

Soledad came out of her haze to say that, yes, something should be happening. She diligently inspected the machine, waiting for any reaction. Steven saw a glimpse of furious panic in her face; her aura suddenly spiking with impotence. In an unprompted move, Soledad lifted her foot and gave Ol' Berta a good ol' kick.

BANG! Sparks flied everywhere. Soledad screamed as she felt back. Steven's instincts kicked in and, in a flash of super-speed, moved behind Soledad in time for her to fall in his arms. He asked if she was OK. Her response was some dreamy mumbling. Another BANG and all the lights went off, sinking the clearing in shadows. Immediately after, Rain yelled Soledad's name.

There was a third and final bang, and all the lights went back up. More than that, the Christmas lights shined brighter, all the noises from the pinball machines came clearer and uninterrupted. Even the truck looked better in this new light.

"It… it worked," said Steven.

"It worked?" said Soledad. She was still in Steven's arms. And both of them noticed it. He let her go.

"I mean sureitworked. Imma genius after all." She lifted a hand to scratch her nose, smearing oil in her face in the process.

Come to think of it, she was soaked in oil. Steven checked himself and… yep, his jeans and shirt were covered in the black goo. He won't be using these again.

Least my jacket is still clean, he thought. This oil can't be good for the organic silk.

The 'truck's' door opened and Rain came out. She tripped a few times as she kept her head up, enthralled with the lights.

"I can't believe it," she said to Soledad. "You actually put your money where your mouth is."

Soledad rubbed her neck, panting it oil-black. "Told ya I could do it."

Steven pecked his head from over Soledad's shoulder. "And I helped," he said.

"And he helped."

"I can tell," said Rain, as she put distance between her and the slimed teens. "Well, we're all done so, whenever you're ready, go into the kitchen to wash yours… everything."

She retired back inside the 'truck', leaving the door open this time.

A deep silence felt over the two youngsters. Without any other pressing matter, the initial awkwardness they felt inside the car have came back to haunt them. Soledad looked very different now than how she was at the party; covered in oil stains and in a simple t-shirt, with her hair falling wildly over her shoulders. Steven imagined this is how she usually looked like. It made sense. Everyone dress up for a party.

"So, now that Ol' Berta had been put into place, how 'bout I give you a quick tour before dinner?" said Soledad, with the grace of a rabbit orator with a wolf audience. "I mean, unless you feel you've seen enough."

Steven blushed. Her shyness was… It was something. "You know, I did walk around for a bit. But it could be better with a guide," Steven added quickly when he saw Soledad gloomy expression.

Now she was beaming, her eyes glistening like the sun. They started to walk at an evenly pace.

"I like your shirt, by the way," she said.

"Thanks, it was my dad's. I like your Pac-man T-shirt too."

"Yeah, it's alright. Pac-man's lame tho."

"No way! He is my favorite ghost-busting slice of pizza. Why do you say that?"

"Oh-ho-oh. Get ready to be put in place, boy."

They began to circle around the clearing, chatting with ease. And as Soledad explained the mechanic of the Pac-man's ghosts in full detail, her arm gravitated naturally around Steven's shoulders.

Steven's arm followed the same orbit.


Ta dah!

Funny thing, this chapter was difficult. I'm not sure why... it took me a while to really get the descriptions right.

I hope you guys are enjoying it so far. I know not much is happening plot-wise, but this was never going to be a plot-heavy fic; its mostly an exploration of the characters. Althought PART 2 DOES have more plot, but you guys still have to wait. PART 1 still have a few chapters left.

Anyway, as usual please feel free to comment to say whatever you feel like! Your comments give me life!

See ya!