Outside, a powerful storm was thrashing against the beach house, whistling through the temple's every recess and making the wood creak. It was surprisingly loud for such a new building, but this storm was certainly testing its integrity.
A week had passed since the house had been finished. A week had passed since Rose's son had come to live with them, and a week since they'd even glanced at Greg's instructions.
Pearl had skimmed over them, but for the most part, they'd seemed redundant and useless. They understood humans had certain needs, but some of these things… hadn't made much sense. Feed Steven? There was food in the house, and Garnet easily foresaw him eating whether or not they 'fed' him, so what was the point? As for things like entertainment, Steven had his toys, and the newly purchased television. He could entertain himself.
Pearl had absorbed all information she deemed 'necessary to organic survival', and had tossed the list. Her memory was impeccable, she wasn't some human that needed useless paper reminders to keep her from forgetting. If anything, Greg had more use for the list than her.
But… now she wished she'd studied a little better.
Because of the storm, Steven had been tense all evening, and had even asked to go to bed an hour early. Greg had come to do the nightly routine, which included tucking Steven in, telling him a story, giving him a kiss on the forehead, and then sparing an awkward, repentant glance at the gems before heading out. Sometimes, there'd be an exchange of empty words, but not tonight.
They really didn't appreciate Greg showing up so often. Garnet promised that with time, he'd get the message he wasn't wanted, but for now, they still had to tolerate him. It had been eight years since Rose's death, but it was eight years out of an eternity without her, and they wouldn't ever let him forget that.
Tonight, however, they caught themselves wishing he had stayed a little longer. Because the instructions had certainly never outlined this.
At first, they'd thought the noises were from the storm. It took embarrassingly long for them to realize they were actually coming from the upstairs loft. Steven was crying. He was quiet about it, he clearly didn't want them to hear, but it was audible.
"Last one to blink has to go!" Amethyst whispered, blinking several times to emphasize her point. Pearl growled, crossing her arms.
"Well- how immature do you have to-"
"Pearl, you're going." Garnet said quietly. Pearl blanched, causing Amethyst to snicker.
"But- Garnet-!"
"You were the last to blink."
"I didn't see you blink!" Pearl hissed.
"I did. Under the visor."
"But-"
Pearl gasped when Amethyst gave her a shove, pointing in the direction of the stairs.
"Just go see what he wants." Amethyst told her. "He probably just lost his teddy bear again."
Pearl looked to Garnet for sympathy, but found none. With a resigned sigh, she gathered herself and began to climb the stairs.
The sobbing was muffled, and it would pause every time thunder hit, but it was obvious Steven was very upset. Pearl suppressed a sigh, wondering what small, insignificant thing he was worried about this time.
Sure, they cared about Steven. They liked him, at least, when he was quiet and out of the way. But they hadn't realized how needy a useless human child was. Even if it was Rose's useless human child, it was still exhausting trying to keep up with every little drama he subjected them to. Pearl really hoped Rose's philosophy on humans was correct; if he didn't grow out of this soon, Pearl felt like she'd lose her mind.
She crossed the threshold of his room, staring through the darkness at the small lump underneath the covers.
"Steven?"
The figure went completely still. Pearl strode over to his bedside, looking him over, uncertain of where to start. She reached for the blanket, but hesitated.
She withdrew her hand, figuring that if he really needed her, he'd reach for her.
"Steven." She said again, and finally got a response. He pulled the covers down a few inches, enough to bare one of his eyes. He seemed both relieved and nervous to see her. Pearl raised a brow.
"...Are you… ok?" She asked.
Steven looked away, but shook his head, humming negative. He gripped the covers tighter.
"I had a nightmare." He said.
"What's that?" She asked, partly convinced he'd come up with the idea on the spot.
But Steven seemed to open up a little bit, pulling the blanket farther down and making eye contact again.
"Well…"
Twenty minutes later, she was finally coming back down those stairs, rejoining her companions at the kitchen counter.
"So." Amethyst started. "What was it all about?"
Pearl rolled her eyes.
"He just wanted attention again." At Garnet and Amethyst's questioning looks, Pearl elaborated. "He insisted that he'd seen something scary, even though his eyes were closed, and-"
"How can you see things if your eyes are closed?" Amethyst asked.
"That story's got holes." Said Garnet.
"Exactly! And- but I don't know what he wanted me to do."
"And we don't have time for this stuff!" Amethyst ranted.
"It's true." Garnet agreed. "We can't spend every minute of everyday dealing with whatever problems he can come up with."
Pearl nodded, and Amethyst leaned over the counter from where she was perched on a stool.
"So what did you tell him?"
"I told him he'd be fine." Said Pearl.
They sat in silence for a moment.
"...We're good guardians." Said Amethyst.
"Well, of course we are." Said Pearl.
Garnet nodded.
"By tomorrow morning," she said, "he won't even be upset."
Outside, the rain continued to pummel the streets. The sound echoed along the concrete walls of the parking garage they were hiding in, amplifying it from a continual hissing noise into a deep, prolonged bellow.
Garnet stood, surveying the tower that had risen in the city square. It was ridiculously pink, standing out against the smoke and fire, standing like a monument to their defeat.
Rock solid evidence that they had lost.
They were just lucky that Connie had noticed when the Quartzes all started heading towards the square. With direction from Lapis and Peridot, she'd saved everyone she could, but Spinel, Blue and Yellow hadn't been found yet.
Now, they found themselves huddled in the second story of an airport parkade with the Famethyst. They weren't an incompetent group of soldiers by any means, but they were outnumbered and rusty, and the sudden onslaught of enemy muscle had forced them back. White was laying low as well, hidden as best she could crouched inside the aircraft hangar nearby. After hearing the bad news, she had refused to remain in the ship any longer, and was currently communicating with them on and off over the Diamond line. She looked considerably less regal on the screen, sitting like a child playing hide and seek in a cupboard, but she was there. Despite multiple warnings from Garnet, she hadn't changed her mind. Spinel was in danger, and she had accepted any risks associated with rescuing her.
Now they were here, biding their time until Steven's Quartzes inevitably stormed their makeshift hideaway. Most were downtrodden by recent events, and even the Famethyst was quieter, less enthusiastic.
Peridot, by contrast, was surprisingly optimistic.
"Hey guys, I found some chains!" She cried, thrusting up her scavenged treasure. The parkade bared signs of a rushed evacuation. It was filled to the brim with abandoned cars, some with their doors still hanging open. The reason for this was evident in the twenty five way blockage at the exit; an onslaught of panicked drivers had lead to a thick, impassable puddle of cars frozen at the parking booth. Among what had been left behind, Peridot had found herself some snow chains, and was in the process of figuring out how to weaponize them.
"That's nice, Peridot." Said Pearl offhandedly. She was in the middle of taking stock with Connie, Bismuth, Lapis and Garnet, trying to discuss their options, if they had any. Amethyst had chosen to check up on her sisters.
"Well, now- but did you see Spinel anywhere?" Pearl asked. "The Diamonds?"
"I haven't seen them anywhere." Said Connie. "It's-"
"Peridot might know." Said Garnet.
"What?" Connie and Pearl both asked. Bismuth just turned around, giving Peridot a curious look.
"Hey, Deepcut!" She cried.
"That's my nickname!" Peridot shouted back, even though the two were only about thirty feet apart.
"What happened to Spinel?"
"Probably dead. Why?"
Connie, and Pearl gaped, but Bismuth just narrowed her eyes.
"Probably?" She asked.
"Well, I mean, I did find… um." She reached into her gem, and pulled out two small, jagged pieces of metal. The remains of the Rejuvenator.
"Spinel could've dropped it, but it's unlikely. Her gloves give her a surprisingly good grip." Said Peridot. "I think somebody broke it."
Pearl covered her mouth, and Connie frowned. It wasn't hard to guess who that 'somebody' was.
"Can you fix it?" Connie asked.
"Gonna be a while." Said Peridot. "I've never worked with old tech like this, so, uh. Might take- might take like ten minutes?"
"Ten whole minutes?" Pearl scoffed. "Here, I'll help you."
Peridot looked miffed, but accepted Pearl's aid, placing the pieces in Pearl's outstretched hand. The two began to work, and the group turned inward again.
"...So, is there... Garnet, is there a plan B?" Connie asked. Garnet looked at her.
"...I'm gonna talk to him." Garnet finally said, eyes on the tower. Lapis and Connie gave her worried looks. Bismuth just looked resigned.
"Garnet, Steven's not- I love the kid, but something's in his head. He's not your little buddy anymore."
They looked at her, offended, and she held up her hands.
"I'm not saying he can't be saved, but..."
She spared a glance at the tower, and then back to them.
"He is the apex predator of the universe. If something happens, nothing can help you."
Lapis deflated, and Garnet and Connie looked away.
"We haven't given up on him." Said Connie.
"You shouldn't." Bismuth replied. "But know what's up there."
"I do." Said Garnet.
The weighty atmosphere was broken by excited cries from Peridot.
"We did it!" Peridot screeched, and Connie covered her ears. "We fixed it!"
"We did an adequate job." Said Pearl. "Given the time crunch."
She came to stand by the group, nodding to Garnet, holding the Rejuvenator like it was a TV remote they'd just put back together.
"So, um. How are we getting to the tower?" She asked.
"Get White on the line," Said Garnet. "and the Amethysts. We'll need everyone."
Despite everything the group had been through, it wasn't hard to mobilize them. Garnet's plan had given them hope, and even though the chances of success were slim, they weren't ready to call it quits. Even Bismuth had brightened up, acting a little more like herself again. It still didn't change how direness of the circumstances. If this plan failed, it would change everything forever.
She came to stand by Garnet, trying to hide her concern.
"So it looks like, uh. We're all set." Said Bismuth. "...You ready?"
She had asked Garnet those exact same words 5,751 years prior, the first time she had ever been sent out to direct troops as one of Rose Quartz's generals.
Feeling nostalgic and inexperienced all at once, she decided to give Bismuth an honest answer. The same answer she had given the first time.
"I don't know."
Bismuth grinned helplessly, and for maybe two and a half seconds, they both felt extremely young.
"Me neither." Said Bismuth.
A shadow passed over the streets just outside of the parkade, but no one needed to guess twice about its source. They wouldn't get far, not with Emerald and her fleet watching the ground like hawks.
"Guess that's me." Said Lapis, spreading her wings. "Be seeing you guys."
She turned to leave, but Garnet grabbed her hand.
"When you have her on the ocean, be careful." Said Garnet. "There's more Lapises on the coast. Sink her and come straight back."
"Got it."
They watched Lapis take off, and Garnet took a breath, turning to Peridot, Bismuth, and Opal.
"...Bismuth, stay close to Opal, make sure she doesn't forget the plan."
"That hurts." Said Opal.
"And I can't stress this enough," Garnet continued, fixing her gaze down on Peridot. "Don't go in the tower."
"But-"
"Do not go in tower. Don't do it."
"We won't," Bismuth assured her, but she sounded nervous. "We won't."
Garnet eyed her, not satisfied at all by the answer, but she didn't have time to argue.
The garage brightened up, graffiti painted walls illuminated by a white glow, and Garnet turned to lock eyes with White. She was crouching just outside, waiting for them.
"We're ready." Said Garnet, and White offered a hand for them to step into. The Amethysts climbed up her arm, hitching a ride on White's cape, while Opal stationed herself on a shoulder. Garnet took the other shoulder, and discreetly leaned in near White's head.
"Whatever you do," She whispered so the others wouldn't hear, "do not face east. At any point in time. And when I tell you to get down, get down." White nodded resolutely, and with a shaky breath, she stepped away from the parkade.
The darkness of the garage made the gray, overcast skies look overly bright in contrast. The rain hit them almost immediately, but most were too distracted to care.
Peridot and Bismuth took to the sky, Connie set off on Lion's back, and White began making her way toward the tower.
Steven's Quartzes spotted them almost immediately. They focused their assault on White's ankles, but she kept going, barely giving them more than a wince. Opal downed some of them with her arrows, and a few of the Amethysts jumped off to help clear a path, but there wasn't much more they could do.
Garnet was impressed White hadn't purposefully stepped on any of them yet. Steven really did have her well trained.
White's real trouble was the uneven ground. The streets were so torn up, she had to watch her footing very carefully just to stay upright. She did stumble a few times, nearly knocking Garnet off and making Opal to miss shots, but little by little, the tower approached.
When they got close enough to the square, the Amethysts leapt down from White's cape, hitting the wet ground and racing towards the Control Center. Garnet had warned them that Squaridot and Hessonite were still lurking around that area, but the com center had to come down. The last thing they needed was for Steven to get an early warning about White, if he hadn't already.
With every step they got nearer, the sinking feeling in Garnet's stomach deepened. She really wasn't sure this would work, there were so many ways for this to go wrong, so many ways this had already gone wrong-
She blinked, and realized they were there. It was amazing how short ten blocks could really be.
White wasn't tall enough to reach (and how strange that sounded), so Garnet's only access was the balcony on the seventh floor.
She crouched in White's palm, ready to jump, when the thunderous roar of a laser blast hit their ears. The beam impaled a nearby building, sending up huge plumes of smoke and shaking the ground. White flinched, nearly dropping Garnet.
It had been a misfire, an attack triggered thirty seconds earlier than expected.
But now they were off schedule. Garnet couldn't see when the real attack would come now, only that it would be soon. She stared up at White, who looked otherwise unhurt, if a little startled. Garnet saw a glint on one of the city rooves, and rushed to warn her.
"White! Get down!"
White obeyed as quick as she was able, but being so large, her reflexes weren't lightning fast.
The laser fired again, and suddenly White had a thick pillar of light running through her left eye and out the back of her head, only missing her gem by a few feet.
Garnet jumped from her hand, just half a second before it poofed out of existence, and barely managed to grab the edge of the balcony. White's gem plummeted to the earth, and for a moment, Garnet thought it would shatter on impact.
Amethyst's whip wrapped around it at the second to last minute, barely saving it from breaking into thousands of shards. Garnet didn't know how she felt about the strange wave of relief that washed over her, but she didn't have time to analyze it.
She hoisted herself up onto the balcony and stepped inside.
It was cooler, but the scent of smoke was still thick and dry. The walls shimmered, reflecting the light of a distant explosion, and Garnet had to steady herself on a cold, stone wall as the ground shook again.
Spotting the stairs not far off, she took a deep breath, and steeled herself.
"You're a monster with those, Tiny."
"I know!" Peridot chirped, swinging her chains. "They make everything so easy!"
Bismuth and Opal looked at the Quartz gemstones littering the wet ground outside the entrance of the tower. The remains of Steven's guard. Both would admit with no shame that almost half of them had been poofed by Peridot. She had linked the snow chains together to create a deadly, multipurpose weapon, capable of ensnaring, strangling, and applying blunt force. Opal had her combined strength and Bismuth had her armor, but none could compare to the sheer added intensity that Peridot had with her chains. Not even Holly Blue had stood a chance.
"...Hey guys?" Peridot asked.
"Yeah?" Asked Bismuth.
"You know how Garnet told us not to go in?"
"She told us not to go in?" Asked Opal.
"...Let's go in."
Bismuth and Opal stared at her.
"Yeah, ok. Sure." Said Opal. Bismuth frowned.
"Yeah! Alright! Let's go get Steven!" Peridot cried, rushing into the entrance without a second thought. Bismuth and Opal hung back for a second, looking up at the monstrous tower before them.
"This is a bad idea." Replied Bismuth.
"Guys come on!" Peridot cried from halfway up the stairs. "We're get- we're go get Steven! We're gonna go get him! Come on! Guys!"
Opal unfused.
"We're coming." Pearl and Amethyst said in unison.
"Yeah, alright." Said Bismuth.
It was unsettling walking through the glassy, winding halls and hearing nothing but her own footsteps.
If he'd wanted a Fortress of Solitude, he certainly had one now.
The entrance to the highest room had one door, so thick she couldn't even see through it. She stood next to it for a moment or two, wondering what to do. She could try to break through, but it wouldn't start things off very well. Tact was the key here.
She debated using her future vision, but thought against it. All her long existence, she had predominantly kept her eyes on the future, rarely allowing herself to take in the Here and Now. She had made improvements over the years, but it didn't change the fact that most of her memories took place in alternate timelines. She had spent so much time thinking ahead, it had cost her the present.
This wasn't a moment she could afford to just skip over. She would have to be here for this, completely and unconditionally.
So, after a few moments of switching her weight and feeling lost, she tried knocking.
A beat passed. Then two. The door finally opened, and she hesitantly stepped inside.
The only piece of furniture was a smooth, crystalline throne coming out of the floor. It was relatively plain, and rectangular. It was nowhere near the size or glamor of even his mother's throne, but the sight of it still sent tremors up Garnet limbs.
Steven himself was standing by an enormous, open window, almost as wide as the wall it was cut out of. He stared out pensively while sirens wailed in the distance, only drowned out by the rain pelting the rocky step. It echoed over the glassy walls, whose faint glow made the room seem warm despite the chill of the weather.
Even though she had come in without making a sound, he grinned, turning to look at her the moment she passed the threshold. In his front pocket was the outline of Spinel's gem, thankfully still in one piece.
"Oh, hey you." He said.
"Easy, Steven." Said Garnet, cautious despite his upbeat demeanor. "I'm just here to talk."
He giggled, taking a step forward. Garnet could now see the circles under his eyes, the way they drooped from exhaustion, contrasting with his bright smile.
"No, I'm so glad you're here." He spread his arms in welcome. "Now you can tell everyone they can leave!"
It took a few seconds for Garnet to process the statement.
"...What?"
"You know." He flipped his hand, as if it was an inside joke they were both in on. "You guys don't need to worry. I'm- I'm fixing everything."
Garnet blinked, wondering if she could hear him alright despite lacking the need for ears.
"Fixing it?" She asked, completely stunned.
"Well, yeah." He frowned. "What does it look like I'm doing?"
Garnet's eyes travelled to the pillars of smoke and destroyed buildings outside.
"Definitely not… whatever you think it looks like."
Steven looked offended.
"What is that supposed to mean?" He asked. Garnet ignored the question, opting for a straight forward approach. She'd really only came here to say one thing, she might as well say it.
"...It's ok to come home, Steven."
Steven clenched his fists, the glow around him suddenly livening and growing.
"...F-Fuck you."
Garnet raised a brow, unused to hearing him use that kind of language.
"Wow. Ok." She said, unable to respond with anything stronger. Steven didn't seem to care.
"If you won't support me, the one time I've ever asked you to, then- just fucking leave."
He fixed her with a heavy stare, pointing to the door. Garnet held her ground.
"I'm not leaving you, Steven."
"..."
"...But everything is bad, and it needs to stop."
Steven crossed his arms, angling himself away from her.
"Is that all you came to say? After months of silence-"
"We couldn't find you!"
"Oh, I wish."
Garnet fought the urge to paste a hand to her forehead. He was just taking her in circles at this point, but she couldn't get angry with him; he needed to know it was safe for him to be vulnerable with her, or else everything would fall apart.
"We're not here- Steven, we just want to help."
"I don't need any."
"You need to engage with reality." She hissed, barely able to keep her voice level.
The immediate reaction was hurt; predictably followed by anger.
"Uh, I have been." He hissed. "I have been for years. Where were you?"
Garnet was silent.
"When shit was going down, when I was scrambling to keep us all together, where were you?" He fixed her with an accusing glare. "I mean, I. I trusted you, Garnet. But I kept finding myself alone, with my life in my own hands because you weren't there!"
Garnet didn't need future vision to see the attack coming. He brought his arm up, and she leapt out of the way as a large, crystal spike erupted where she'd been standing.
For a tense moment, everything was very still.
"Steven." Said Garnet. "Calm down."
"No."
At this point, she was unsure of what she wanted to say, what she wanted to do. Steven's accusations had caught her completely off-guard, and she didn't really know how to defend herself, if she even could.
He paced, trying to circle her, but she kept her distance.
"I know- I know you're angry." She said, eyeing the harsh lines in his face.
"No shit."
"...But you're letting it change who you-"
Another spike rose up, inches from her toes, forcing her to flinch back.
"You don't know who I am!" Steven barked. "None of you do!"
Garnet tensed.
"...You only bothered to get to know me when I started being useful." He said. "When you needed me."
Garnet opened her mouth, but he cut her off.
"And I don't blame you! I was an annoying kid, you didn't want me around. I get it. I'm fine with it! Always have been!" He continued. "I was fine when you left for those long missions. I was fine waiting days, sometimes weeks for you to come back. And I was fine with you avoiding me whenever you were home."
Garnet looked down in shame.
"We… we didn't know you felt-"
"Shut up!" He screamed, and everything trembled with the force of his voice. Another spike rose from the ground, and another. "You should have known!"
He stomped his foot down on the glassy floor, and cracks weaved their way through the rock. Garnet was already moving when more sharp crystals began to break through, some even managing to tear through her clothes. They rose, one by one, slowly filling the room like teeth in a shark's mouth.
"You had no idea what you were doing, you didn't even want me. But you chased Dad off anyway."
Garnet dodged another gnarled spike, barely getting out of the way in time.
Steven watched her struggle, panting a bit.
"...Not that he would have done any better…" He said to himself.
"We didn't-" Garnet was barely able to concentrate on the conversation, too busy trying to stay physically intact. "Steven, we loved you-"
"You hated me!" He roared, and a spike knocked Garnet forward, to the ground, losing her visor in the process.
"I wasn't stupid, Garnet! I saw the way you'd look at me. And I saw the way you looked at her, at her picture on the wall. You had so much love and adoration for her. But when you looked at me- I saw it on all your faces, don't lie! All you saw was the spot she left behind!"
Garnet stumbled to her feet, hissing as more sharp rock cut across her leg.
"I wasn't even an adequate replacement!" He bellowed.
Garnet was running out of space to move. She lost her balance again, and planted a hand on one of the stalactites to brace herself. Something shifted, gave under the pressure of her fingers, and it crumbled.
She watched it break apart under her weight, brittle, like half-baked adobe.
She looked up at him, and her realization was confirmed. Hands buried in his hair, sweat on his forehead. He was getting tired.
Really tired.
"At least she got better. I just went backwards." He took a weak, unbalanced step, looking off somewhere. "All those good deeds, all those "life lessons", and I've just become a bigger disappointment than from the start!"
"We never hated you, Steven!" Garnet cried back, raising her voice over the crackle of moving rock. She smashed a few that were getting in her way, trying to wade towards him. "We were confused, and lost, and we shouldn't have made you feel you were to blame, but we never hated you."
"That's not true!" He screamed, and Garnet braced herself as the walls shook around her with his fierce echo, but the spikes finally started to slow down, becoming thinner and weaker.
"It's… It's not."
"Steven…"
"You only loved me when I started taking care of you, like she wanted. When I started fixing you." He scrubbed a hand down his face.
Slowly, but surely, the anger was draining away, his shoulders starting to sag. Something more like self-pity began to take over, and the spikes eventually stopped sprouting up. His breath was heavy, his stance uneven and shifting, like it was getting harder and harder for him to stay on his feet.
"...Everybody likes to pretend they always had it together. That you always loved me." He said, crossing his arms and turning away like an upset child. "Well, you didn't. I remember so many times when you didn't. And I'm tired of everybody, just, forgetting everything."
Steven went quiet for a moment, and Garnet held her breath. She had to find a way to get him going again. He was exhausted, his walls were coming down. All she had to do was keep him talking.
"Steven, we're- I'm- I'm sorry."
He stiffened, and the pink halo around his skin brightened and flickered.
"Too little, too late."
"...But you need to come home."
A beat passed. No reply. Garnet sighed.
"...This has gone on long enough." She said tiredly. She stepped closer and tried reach for him, but Steven recoiled, fists clenched and arms getting ready to protect his middle.
"Get the fuck away from me!"
Garnet paused, but after a moment or two, risked another step forward. He took a step back, but the ground rumbled, and some of the spikes grew taller, thornier.
Garnet hesitated for a second, but put her hand on one, watching cracks spread through it under the slightest pressure. It was all for show.
"...I'm not going to hurt you, Steven."
"Liar!" He cried out.
She kept wading through the crystals, and he kept backing up.
"Steven, it's alright,"
"It's not! No!" He curled in on himself, fingers grabbing at his hair. The crystals started rising again, this time interlocking and weaving together to form a protective, jagged wall around him. Garnet finally reached the barrier, putting her hands over the cool rock. It thickened in response.
"STOP IT!" He shrieked, and the sound turned gravelly at the edges, sounding ethereal and inhuman.
"...You need to come out now."
Steven roared, and the barrier suddenly sprouted sharp, outward-going spikes. She jumped back, breathing heavily.
The roar waned, quieted into a terrified whisper.
"Just get away." He panted fearfully, "Just go!"
"No."
Garnet tested the wall, and found it came apart easily, like glass that had already been cracked.
"But I'm not- I'm not a bad person!" Steven pleaded. "I'm- I've never- I didn't- I don't hurt people. You don't understand, I'm not bad! I'm not!"
Garnet realized that he had no intention of letting down the barrier, so she resigned herself to pushing her way in.
She finally made a hole big enough to squeeze through, and stepped inside. He was curled up, sitting in the corner and looking impossibly small for his size.
"None of you understand!" He spat, voice thick and choked. "Nobody wants me anymore. They're all leaving, because they know how awful I am."
"You're not awful, Steven."
"Yes I am! Everything I've done, everything I've survived… It's ruined me, Garnet! Forever!" He croaked. "I'm even worse than useless. I'm- I-I'm-"
"You're not alone." She knelt beside him, resting a hand on his shoulder. "We're here for you."
She slid her arms around his chest, and he didn't push her away.
"I'm here."
A dam broke, and he blindly reached for her, desperate for any kind of comfort. She pulled him closer.
"I'm here, Steven,"
She angled herself to make it easier for him to bury his head under her chin, and he gratefully pressed himself close. He dissolved into a mess of tears, going limp in her hold, chest quaking helplessly.
"I'm here." She whispered.
