"Are you sure you're alright to go out, Steven?" Pearl fussed as Steven, with careful precision, busied himself with pouring milk into an empty water bottle. He'd come to enjoy the taste of milk in particular - not as bland as water but not exactly overwhelming in the taste department either. It was just right. "You don't want anyone to go with you?" Pearl continued, folding her hands together in front of her nervously and pressing her knuckles against her mouth. Steven looked up, briefly, but snapped his gaze back down to check the bottle again, stopping when he saw the milk rising just above the little blue label and pulling the milk jug upright carefully. Perfect. Triumphant, and more than a little proud of himself, he turned to put the caps back on both.

"I'll be okay, Mom. We're just going around the boardwalk," Steven replied, but he did pause for a moment, poking his lower lip out and furrowing his eyebrows in a contemplative look. "But…"

Pearl didn't sound comforted in the slightest. "What?"

"Just thinking." Steven frowned, putting the milk jug back in the fridge. His gaze lingered on Peridot's gem for a moment, his thoughts briefly screeching to a halt before he managed to shake himself and turn away again. "I'll have my weapon just in case anything happens… but I don't have a way to contact…" He trailed off again, somewhat zoning out - but not completely. He was just aware enough to see Pearl's expression shift, her eyes widening at the realization.

"Oh! I almost forgot." She reached up, gem glowing, to summon something from it. Steven passed the bottle from one hand to the other, rolling his shoulders back and watching as a cellphone shimmered to view in the palm of her hand. He recognized the object, and he'd be lying if he said he wasn't somewhat fascinated. Homeworld technology was interesting, and getting used to Earth technology again was proving to be just as intriguing. For instance, Amethyst had just started showing him television and video games again, and he and Berry both were curious by the differences and similarities in Homeworld and Earth technology.

"You can contact us with this," Pearl told him, but she didn't give him the phone yet, typing something in. "I'll put Greg and Amethyst's 'numbers' in. All you have to do is tap one their-"

"I know," Steven assured her with a smile. "I remember."

Pearl looked up, a pleased expression crossing her face, worry diminishing. "Good." She hesitated for a moment longer, and he understood why; his smile softened, just a little bit, and when she finally held the phone out, he took it carefully with a reassuring smile. "Be careful, okay?" She folded her hands together again, her anxious expression returning. Steven nodded.

"Come on, P," Amethyst called from the couch, locked in a video game war with Tangerine. Steven glanced over and grinned briefly before looking down to tuck the phone away, while Pearl turned to fix the purple gem with a disapproving yet fond look. "Don't mother hen him too much. He'll be fine. The boardwalk is like, right there." After a moment, however, Amethyst's hands stilled against the controller - Tangerine let out a triumphant shriek after a few seconds - and the smaller, purple Quartz suddenly looked less confident and equally as anxious as Pearl.

"And," Steven chided softly as he made his way to the counter, putting the bottle down and crossing his arms over it. "I can protect myself. My-" He stopped, an irritated sigh bubbling in his chest. He swallowed it down quickly, and struggled to ignore the bitter taste that still lingered. "Blue Diamond wouldn't come here herself just for me. Not yet. Not with Homeworld at battle." He paused, looking down and crossing one arm over the other, curling his fingers downwards a little to pick at his skin lightly before he continued, "and I can handle any soldiers they send, if they can even afford to send any at all. We don't have anything to worry about. Not right now." He glanced up, looking between their uncertain faces. "But if you really want to, Amethyst can-"

"No, no, you're right," Amethyst interrupted quickly, and while she did sigh, she still offered Steven a half-smile, genuine and warm. "Just a walk around the boardwalk with your friend. You deserve some time to yourselves, just go out and be a kid." She raised a hand, gesturing to the door, and Steven tugged his lips into a small smile as he looked over. Pearl sighed, but smiled and reached over to rest a hand over Steven's head; he leaned into the touch, closing his eyes.

"Alright. Have fun. And don't stay out too late!"

"Hurry up before your dad gets back," Amethyst called, chuckling. "He'll make you take me."

Steven laughed, pulling away from Pearl and grabbing the bottle again as he stepped around the counter and made his way to the door. Tangerine reclined back on the couch, grinning and propping her legs up on the coffee table beside the TV, and shot him a smirk. "Don't die."

"Hilarious," Steven told her, opening the door. "I'll do my best." He waved a quick goodbye before he left, pausing to look up at the sky - and survey the stars intently - before he looked back down and headed down the stairs. It was a slow walk to the town, and while he didn't exactly take his time, he also wasn't in too much of a rush. It felt nice at night, on the beach. It was cooler at night than it was during the day, but he still tied his shirt up just above his gem. For the most part, he kept his gaze downwards. But he looked up, mid-sip, when he finally reached the boardwalk, and grinned to himself when he saw Peedee up ahead, watching the water. He turned just as Steven opened his mouth to call out a warm greeting. "Hey, fry boy."

Peedee greeted him with a grin as he turned. "Hey, gem boy."

"It's nice tonight," Steven commented, slowing once he reached Peedee. He looked back up at the stars, twisting the cap back onto his bottle. "I'll never get used to the stars. They're so beautiful from Earth," he murmured, keeping his gaze upwards for a moment before turning away. Peedee only smiled at him, but there was something in his eyes, something sadder, something worried, and concerned. Something Steven was far too used to seeing lately.

After a moment, however, it morphed into something more curious. Peedee tilted his head, looking up toward the sky for a moment, then glanced back over at Steven. "Can I ask you something?" The hybrid inclined his head, a brief nod. "What are they like out there? Up close?"

Steven, more curious than surprised, had to think about that for a second. He had never really stopped to appreciate the beauty of the stars from up close, from a ship. Understandable, of course, but a little disappointing now that he thought about it. "Well, they're beautiful," he finally replied, looking upwards again. "On the way here, we flew past a batch of them," he recalled, a small smile tugging at his lips. He'd been too angry at the time to completely admire them, but the memory soothed some of the disappointment in his chest. "They're just so bright. so pretty. Personally, though, space wise, I prefer looking at other planets." He circled around Peedee to continue down the boardwalk, and Peedee turned to walk after him, falling into step with him.

"You were on another planet, right?"

"Yeah, Homeworld. Where the gems are from," Steven replied, and paused, inclining his head a bit more as he thought about that. "Most of them, anyway. That's where I've been since…" He didn't finish, didn't need to. Peedee hadn't been there that night, but he saw his expression shift. It was an easy guess that he'd heard the story already, from one of the people who'd seen it.

Peedee hesitated. "What was it like?"

"Beautiful," Steven replied immediately. Then he added, quieter, "and cold."

Peedee only nodded, looking uneasy. Steven could see it on his face; he didn't know how to feel about the situation, what to do and how to react. Connie was the same way sometimes - it was a rare thing, but it happened, and it was only a reminder that Connie was so… painfully human. With Peedee, he didn't need that reminder. He'd never needed that reminder, because Peedee had always kind of edged around all the gem stuff; Steven remembered that. The Frybo thing. All of it. While Ronaldo liked to immerse himself in the weird things around Beach City, Peedee was more than happy to ignore whatever seemed to be going on. But now he couldn't ignore it. Steven couldn't help but feel a little guilty for that, though he knew that he shouldn't.

After a moment, he decided some things were just better left unsaid, some stories better left untold. "Anyway," he started lightly, and Peedee glanced over at him. "How have you been?"

"Eh…" Peedee smiled slightly, though it didn't quite reach his eyes. "Coping?" He sighed, tucking his hands in his pockets and looking down at the boardwalk for a few moments. "Man, I dunno. Town's been pretty quiet recently. I've just kind of been moving along, just… working." He paused for a moment, looking up toward the buildings ahead. Steven followed his gaze, but his eyes trailed a little further to focus on the stars again before he could stop himself. "It's like everything just kind of hit pause, y'know? Like the world was standing still after you left. Everything stayed the same, exactly how you left it - but it was different."

Steven ducked his head a little, rolling his shoulders back, but he couldn't fight back a smile in time as he thought the words over to himself. He shook his head, sighing. "I get it," he murmured. Then he leaned over, lightly nudging his shoulder against Peedee's. "I'm back now."

"Yeah." Peedee chuckled, nudging him back. "Now the world can keep moving."

Steven laughed, lifting his head a little to grin over at him as he walked, and Peedee tilted his head back at him with an amused smile on his face. The human was… fascinating right then, innocent, gentle features schooled into something a little more mischievous, and Steven wasn't sure whether the glint in his eyes was simply a reflection of the lights from the street lamps and the stars or whether they were just made that way, whether they just naturally sparkled like that. Whatever the case, it made something flare up, something warm and exciting and breathtaking. Something nauseating, but in a weird way, intoxicating. And Steven just couldn't help but stare.

If Peedee noticed, he didn't say anything about it. Just ducked his head, his hair briefly covering his face much to Steven's dismay. But he could still see the faint glitter of his eyes as he peered ahead of them, only this time Steven was too mesmerized by the boy beside him to look away. "... I didn't think you were going to come back," he admitted suddenly, and Steven just listened. "When they told me you were gone, that those aliens had taken you, I thought you were…"

He didn't finish. Steven opened his mouth to finish it for him, but he thought better of it after a moment. He just ducked his head again and snapped his mouth shut, keeping his gaze on Peedee as the boy tilted his head back, sighed, and turned his gaze back to the hybrid to offer him a mirthless, somewhat shaky smile. "It was weird. You just don't notice how much you miss until it's not there anymore. And thinking you were dead, that all that gem stuff finally caught up to you-" Peedee shook his head, tore his gaze away. His expression was pained, almost guilty. "When you told me your job was protecting humanity- protecting us from- from all of that, I didn't- I never thought you meant that. I didn't think it could mean…" His words faltered, his voice faltered, trailing off into a shaky sigh as he ducked his head again and closed his eyes.

"Peedee, I…" Steven started, quietly, but his words tapered off into the silence as well. He trailed for a moment, steps slowing as Peedee raised a hand to rub at his eyes, and breathed in softly through his teeth as he looked back up at the stars. Guilt churned in his gut, rolling through him mercilessly, tightening his chest and squeezing his throat until he felt like he was choking. Still, he managed to clear it just enough to speak again, a little quieter, "I'm sorry." He paused to breathe in again, this time a little steadier, and Peedee looked up to gawk at him.

"Sorry?" He repeated, eyes wide with disbelief. "You saved everyone. Why are you sorry?"

Steven raised a hand, gesturing toward the rest of the town. "I don't know what to do about any of this. I turned myself in to save everyone, but I didn't think about how you guys would feel."

"How we would f-" Peedee shook his head. "You…"

"I didn't mean to scare anyone, or… make anyone upset," Steven continued carefully. "But I did. I know I did. You, and the gems, and Connie, and my dad, and everyone that I left behind. And I don't know how to fix it. I don't know where to begin." He hesitated, swallowing, and sighed. "I-"

"You don't have to fix it!" Peedee sounded horrified. "That's not what I meant! Steven-" He reached out, his hand closing around Steven's wrist. The hybrid flinched despite himself, the contact more surprising than anything but still startling enough to make a painful, cold, stomach-churning, heart-wrenching sensation flush straight through him. It vanished by the time Peedee swung him around to face him again, pulling the hybrid to a complete stop, though his heart was racing much faster now from the adrenaline, from the split second of fear that had crossed him. "I'm not mad at you, okay? I doubt you'll find anyone here who's mad at you for-"

"I know," Steven interrupted, and swallowed past the lump in his throat that had grown a little too big now for his liking, blinking past the stinging sensation he was surprised to find building up. "I know nobody's mad at me. I know I don't have to fix anything. I know what I did was the right thing to do and I know that I'd do it again in a heartbeat if I had to." He paused to look down at Peedee's hand gripping his wrist, which had tightened considerably as he spoke. But it wasn't painful, not enough to warrant pulling away, so he just went on. "But I couldn't stand the thought of anyone getting taken away on that ship, Peedee. I couldn't stand the idea of losing anyone, of them being taken to Homeworld and me never seeing them again. But then I went and did the exact same thing to them - to all of you." He looked up, sucking in a shaky breath. "I made that choice thinking I'd be the only one paying the price, but I was wrong. You guys suffered for it."

"Not as much as you did," Peedee whispered, his gaze focusing just below Steven's eye to the scar that ran from his cheek to his chin, and Steven faltered. "Not nearly as much as you did."

Steven shook his head. "Physically," he murmured. "But emotionally?"

"And what about mentally?" Peedee challenged, bringing his eyes back up to Steven's again. The hybrid hesitated for a moment, then looked away, unable to hold his gaze. "Eight months, Steven. How many of those months did you not remember us? How long did it take them to break you that much? How much did they have to hurt you? What did they have to do to…" He choked off, with a quiet, shuddering breath, and ducked his head. He still didn't let go yet.

"Peedee…" Steven's voice wavered a little more than he would have liked, but he made no attempt to stop it. Just shook his head, swallowed, and sighed. "Do you really wanna know?" He flicked his gaze up, finally, to meet Peedee's gaze again. "Is that something you can handle?"

"You had to handle it," Peedee retorted, though his voice shook. "Alone."

Steven didn't say anything. Just swallowed again and breathed in, nodding slowly through the pain that was bursting through his chest, and closed his eyes as he struggled to remember. To remember when it had all changed, when Steven had finally given up, when Lapis had been… he couldn't finish the thought, couldn't even make himself want to remember, but he did. He remembered the escape attempt, remembered the bubble, the spikes, the gem shards, the pain that had exploded through him and then the numbness that had followed, the blankness. The way everything had just burned and spiraled and chipped away until there'd been nothing left.

Nothing but a soldier.

"Four months," he murmured. "Four months, exactly, I didn't remember." He forced his eyes open, forced himself to look back at Peedee. The hand on his wrist hadn't moved, fingers curling a little tighter now as the hybrid continued to speak. He thought about shifting a little, at least moving Peedee's grip, but he allowed it to remain for now. It was warm, almost comforting. Allowed him just enough calmness to continue. "What they did, it wasn't- it wasn't slow. I…" He trailed off for a moment, ducking his head as he thought about it. "I mean, it was… it was brainwashing, it was torture. They locked me away for days, weeks, in a room with-" This, this was where he stopped. His voice hitched over the words, surprising him enough to fall silent.

Peedee stepped closer, and the almost vice-like grip on his wrist softened briefly, only to offer a tight squeeze before it relaxed again. Steven looked down at his hand for a moment, silent, then slowly lifted his gaze back up to the other boy's face, set in a determined, worried frown. Once Steven was content with the lack of uneasiness and discomfort, he forced himself to continue on. "They left me alone," he finally said, bluntly. "Sometimes in the dark, sometimes the lights would flicker. Like that." He turned his head toward one of the street lamps, watching the bulb inside flicker rapidly before it steadied again. "Just constantly. And there was this high-pitched buzzing sometimes, it kept me awake…" He trailed off, ducking his head again. "I didn't sleep. I didn't eat. Didn't drink. Sometimes I thought I was going to die, but I wasn't human enough."

A shaky inhale from Peedee drew his attention back to the human, and, finally hesitating, the hybrid began to pull his hand away. "Peedee, I- I don't- you don't have to listen to this."

"I want to," Peedee insisted. He grabbed for his hand again. "Did you tell them this? All of it?"

"I tell them what they ask about," Steven replied quietly, letting him take his hand again reluctantly. This time Peedee's fingers curled around his own; Steven felt his heart stutter against his chest for a moment, chalking it up to the worry and the fear he was suddenly feeling. He didn't mind talking about this stuff. He'd answer whatever anyone asked him easily enough. But this was different. This was Peedee. Peedee, who never got involved in the gem stuff. Peedee, who Steven wasn't even sure he wanted to. "I didn't tell them about the Room yet…"

"Tell me about it," Peedee requested, his voice barely more than a whisper now. "Please."

Steven did.

It took a few quiet reassurances, a few pauses to make sure Peedee really was okay with it. But once he got going, once he was sure he could, he let it spill out. He told Peedee about the Room, he explained the earrings and the limb enhancers, the punishments, the hallucinations. The things he was deprived of for so long. Peedee would squeeze his hand whenever he faltered, mumbling things under his breath in between sentences. He listened. He just listened.

Steven knew there was nothing he couldn't tell his family. And there wasn't anything he wouldn't be okay with telling them at this point. But this, this was different in a scary sort of way.

He didn't reach the really bad parts yet. He didn't get to the destabilizers, the escape attempt, Lapis. He got to battle training, obedience training, Blue Diamond, before he finally stopped. There were some things he knew would be best told another time, maybe. He already felt like he'd spilled too much, dumped too much on the human. But Peedee had taken it better than expected, only cringing and looking visibly horrified a few times when Steven spoke. Other times, he managed to control his expression for the most part. Steven was rather impressed. Regardless, when Steven finally found himself stopping, Peedee offered his hand a light squeeze and the hybrid managed to offer him a hesitant, tired smile. "I think that's good enough," he murmured. "You don't have to hear all of it. Not tonight." Peedee didn't press him.

"I'm sorry…" His old friend trailed off and ducked his head with a sigh. He finally let go of his hand, and though the warmth lingered for a few seconds, Steven was left a little dismayed once it began to ebb away again, leaving him feeling cold, depraved. "That you went through all of…"

"I'm okay," Steven told him quietly. "I will be okay."

Peedee glanced up at him, silent. But he smiled, hesitant, exhausted. Drained. Then, just as he opened his mouth to speak, he paused and glanced past Steven, and his eyes went wide.

Steven's training kicked into gear before he could stop himself. The bottle disappeared from his hands, bubbled and sent away, and a scythe replaced it at once as the hybrid whirled around. He heard Peedee gasp, left in shock for a few seconds before his old friend suddenly stammered, "wait, Steven, it's okay, don't-", but Steven had already seen the 'threat' quickly enough. Alarm melted away at once, the adrenaline coursing through him slowing slightly, the haze of protective anger and the preparation to fight stamped out immediately into surprise. Surprise, and then confusion, and then another flash of memories hit him as he stared at the little boy just ahead of them, the human - at least Steven thought he was human - that stood just a little taller than Steven remembered, but he recognized him. He knew him. He was there.

"Onion," he gasped, the scythe diminishing immediately. "Onion."

The boy blinked once, wide-eyed, then ran forward. "Muh! Muh-muh!"

Steven caught him when he jumped up, surprised by the hug but warmed by it all the same. He hugged the younger kid back tightly, a wide smile spreading across his face. "Onion… hey…"

"Looks like he missed you," Peedee murmured.

"Muh!" Onion squeaked, pulling back. Agreement. Steven giggled and hugged him again, a little gentler this time, before finally reaching down to put him back on the ground. The boy jumped in place for a second, babbling unintelligibly but excitedly, then abruptly pointed to his gem. "Muh?"

"Hm?" Steven glanced down and blinked, then understood. "Oh. This?" He summoned the scythe carefully, holding it up out of reach - because a part of him, something in the back of his mind, understood it was probably not a good idea to let Onion get too close to it - but he kept it where they both could see it. Peedee circled around to stand in front of him again, staring at the weapon with wide eyes, and Onion's jaw dropped for a few seconds. Then he pointed at it and squeaked out another 'muh!' and Steven, with a chuckle, shook his head. "No. Sorry, buddy."

Onion continued to point for a moment with his mouth open, then frowned, pouted, and crossed his arms over his chest with a dejected 'muh'. Steven rolled his eyes, but he smiled regardless.

"Too sharp," Peedee said sympathetically, eyeing the weapon for a moment longer until Steven finally sent it away again, much to Onion's chagrin. Steven just grinned, brushing his hands off, and looked back down at the younger boy for a moment. He was somewhat surprised that he was speaking - well, 'speaking' - aloud, actually, with Peedee there. He'd only actually ever heard Onion make any noises a few times, but he preferred speaking with actions rather than words for the most part, only seeming to talk when he felt like it was necessary. At least, he only remembered a few times - but he was pretty sure talking was rare for the kid. Onion seemed to realize it too, because his eyes suddenly went wide when he looked toward Peedee, and his cheeks seemed to flush a little darker after that, rooting his gaze back to the boardwalk instead.

Peedee seemed to notice. He paused, smiled slightly at Steven, and made a point of checking his phone. "Ah, I should get home. I told my Dad I'd be back before they went to bed." He chuckled, stepping back, and Steven let out a soft hum and offered him a knowing grin. "But I'll see you around, Steven. Bye, Onion," he added, and Onion looked back up to wave, silent now.

"See you, Peedee," Steven called as the boy ran off, then looked back down at Onion curiously. The younger boy looked up at him and blinked, tilting his head to the side, and Steven smiled. "Hey." He crouched down carefully, more or less coming to Onion's height - still a little taller, but he did his best under the circumstances. Onion just stared back at him with wide eyes, silent. "How are you doing, little buddy? I missed you," he admitted quietly. "You were there when I…"

Onion's eyebrows creased together, concern flickering across his face. He stepped forward, hands folded together somewhat timidly in front of his chest, then pointed at Steven's face.

Steven reached up to feel the scar, then dropped his hand again. "Yeah, I know. I'm okay."

"Muh…" His voice was quieter, worried. Steven understood. He was different, it was scary. Probably even scarier to a little kid than it ever would be for anyone else. The hybrid rocked back a little before simply letting himself fall back to sit down on the boardwalk, sighing softly.

"I'm okay," he repeated gently. "I'm okay."

Onion didn't look convinced, and Steven didn't really blame him.

"Hey." Steven leaned forward a little, offering a small smile. "What're you doing out so late, huh? You should be in bed right about now," he commented, and the worry on Onion's face fizzled out to something a little more mischievous, something more familiar than the scared uncertainty. Steven grinned, briefly basking in his success, as he crossed his arms in his lap and eyed the kid. "Not causing trouble, are you?" He asked, and Onion, in typical Onion fashion, didn't reply. Just looked at him, smirked, and turned his head away again to look away. "Okay, Mr. Mystery."

Onion giggled, and Steven closed his eyes for a moment, content. Then, finally, taking a deep breath and letting it out in a slow, soft sigh, he blinked his eyes open again. "I should get going." He paused, looking back down at Onion for a moment, and offered him a smile. "You should too. Get back home before your mother rips the city apart looking for you." He paused for a moment, hesitating as he tried to remember her name. It was right there, just out of reach of his memory.

Onion sighed, then yawned and nodded, rubbing his eyes. Steven pushed himself back to his feet, but not before kneeling down to hug him again one last time. Onion hugged him back tight.

"I'll see you around." He paused, pulling back. "Stay safe."

Onion nodded, beamed, then gave him a pointed look. Steven chuckled. "I will, too." That seemed to satisfy the kid, because he nodded again and stepped back as Steven stood up. "Goodnight, Onion."

"Muh-muh!" Onion smiled up at him, startlingly innocent, then turned and ran off. Steven watched him until he disappeared from sight, until he was completely alone. Only then did he take a deep breath, tilt his head back slightly, and finally turn to make the walk back home.

He was more exhausted than he thought he'd be, and yet… oddly content at the same time.