Greg froze as Garnet blearily appraised him before falling backwards. He had tried to grab her hand, hopeful to stop her from hurting herself, but one moment her hand was there and the next it wasn't. In a blinding light, two disgruntled beings fell to the ground.

Greg's jaw dropped. He had known that Garnet was a fusion; Rose had explained this long ago. It had been Garnet who had believed he was capable of fusion in the first place. But Garnet didn't unfuse for just anything. So Greg had never expected to meet them. Rose had said that Garnet was a fusion of two gems named-.

"Sapphire! Are you alright?" Ruby, the bright red one, jumped up and rushed to Sapphire, who lay crumpled on the ground.

Greg just hadn't expected them to be so…little.

"I'm fine, Ruby." Sapphire said, sitting up with a little help. She dusted off her fluffy, blue skirt. "That was a little unexpected."

"I know. I knew we were tired, but I didn't expect…that." Ruby murmured, sitting down next to her. Sapphire rubbed her face, shivering at the breeze she hadn't felt on her back in some time.

"A-are you guys okay?" Greg asked, suddenly bringing their attention to him.

"We're fine." Ruby grunted, crossing her arms.

"Good morning Greg." Sapphire said politely, resting her gloved hands together on her lap. "And yes, I am quite partial to skirts. Garnet though is not."

Greg froze, his face puckering and his eyes becoming the size of the moon. Had he asked that question aloud? He was pretty sure he hadn't, but he was so tired he wasn't sure of anything anymore. He was sure of Steven and that was all that mattered.

"What?" Ruby asked, looking between them both before looking down at Sapphire. "Oh…I like your skirt."

"Thank you." Sapphire smiled. "I forgot how nice it was to have legs."

Ruby nodded, remembering how nice it was to see those legs again. Sapphire hadn't shapeshifted legs in some time. Sapphire didn't need legs to move, so she didn't make them. She preferred efficiency to aesthetics.

"So…uh…what are you guys doing here exactly?" Greg asked, rather confused as to why Garnet had come, only to come apart.

"I wanted to see Steven." Sapphire said, standing up, fluffing her skirt as she did. Ruby didn't say anything, only standing up with Sapphire silently.

"R-really?" Greg asked, nearly falling out of the van. "I-I-I thought you guys didn't want to see him. But what am I saying-you're here now that's all that matters. Let me get him, I just fed him so he's up. Wait right there!"

Ruby sighed, tightening her fist against her sides. They weren't together anymore. And the gaping, hole of grief that Rose had left within her, angrily came to life. She wanted to scream, or kick, punch, or destroy something, anything. Anything to ease this. She was thinking about running; she didn't want to see that puny runt anyway, but Sapphire's hand slipped into hers. Ruby looked over and saw that despite the stoic face Sapphire had, that her bottom lip was trembling. It was the only indication she gave, that she was hurting inside too.

Ruby wasn't alone. Sapphire was right here, in pain, just as she was. She didn't need to be alone, she just needed Sapphire. She locked her fingers into Sapphire's and just took a deep shuddering breath.

"Okay, here he is." Greg said, a soft smile gracing his haggard face.

Ruby and Sapphire stepped forward together, hand in hand. Ruby was hyperventilating and if Sapphire had been human-every bone in her hand would've been crushed. Sapphire leaned in closer, urging Ruby closer too.

Greg pushed away the pink baby blanket from around the baby's face. Ruby had never seen a human infant this fresh before. Despite her nerves, she pressed herself against Sapphire and took a closer look.

He was tiny. And very pink. He had very big dark eyes that were blinking confusedly at them. He yawned, the action requiring all of his body. He stretched needle thin limbs and flexed the tiniest hands Ruby had ever seen. The foreign smell of milk and warmth surrounded them. He looked so soft.

"Steven." Sapphire whispered in awe, reaching out her hand to stroke his cheek.

"Wait, can we touch him?" Ruby asked, beginning to panic. She held Sapphire's elbow back. "Aren't babies super weak? What if he breaks?"

"He's not going to break." Sapphire giggled, easily releasing her arm from Ruby's grip. Sapphire let her arm brush up against Ruby's arm lovingly.

"But you do need to be careful and gentle." Greg said, unraveling more of the blanket so that Steven's tiny arms could fly about wildly. Greg didn't know much about babies, but he did know that most four day olds weren't as energetic as Steven. When Steven was awake, he didn't just sit and do nothing, he insisted on moving all of his limbs in an odd little jig. He seemed very happy to be alive.

"How careful? How gentle is gentle? Is he okay, he's looking at me! Why is he looking at me?" Ruby asked, cringing backwards, grasping at Sapphire's puffy sleeved shirt.

"Because you're bright red and moving a lot." Sapphire said calmly. "Babies optic nerves at this age aren't developed enough to really recognize facial details, but he can see bright colors and rapid movement. Aw…look at him trying to focus."

Sapphire graced his cheek lightly, cupping it when he turned towards her. He stuck his little tongue out and cooed.

"So this is what Rose believed in?" Sapphire whispered, feeling Steven's warm little breath brush against her bangs. He was looking at her. Really seeing her face as she got well within his range of vision. He let out a squeak and began to try to kick his legs free from his swaddle.

"Why's he doing that? I-is he alright?" Ruby asked.

"He's just restless." Greg smiled fondly. "Once he gets his formula, he's rearing to take on the world."

Ruby didn't like that idea. Look at him, he was incredibly tiny-he didn't look as though he could take on the world at all. Ruby wouldn't have it. She would show him the world, just from behind her and safely tucked into Sapphire's arms.

Greg undid the swaddle and Steven's freed legs kicked even harder. And he began to whine when he didn't move.

"I think he wants you to hold him." Greg said, starting to understand Steven's little behaviors. Steven didn't cry very much-only when he was hungry or wet. He was always happy it seemed, even when he was asleep-he smiled. This was the first time Steven had really met someone other than Greg though. He had only seen Greg's car wash office and the van. Greg had needed to be alone to take care of his son.

"I-I'm not sure if I know how." Sapphire whispered. She had seen Rose do it through Garnet's eyes many times before. Rose loved infants, any chance that she had gotten to hold one, she took it. Babies just fit into her arms, as though her arms were made for them. Sapphire wasn't so sure that she could say the same.

"Well, how about…uh…you sit down. Right next to me and I'll slide him over. That way there's no way you can drop him or anything like that." Greg said, offering her his hand. She didn't take it, but leaned back into Ruby's strong embrace. Ruby's hands easily lifted her onto the edge of the van and as soon as Sapphire was seated, Ruby sat jumped up next to her.

Sapphire allowed Greg to mold her arms like his. Ruby was too far away for Greg to help her so Ruby clumsily did it herself.

Sapphire stopped breathing as Greg began to place Steven in her lap. She could see this going wrong, a thousand possibilities flashing through her mind as Steven got closer and closer. If she took a breath, it would be fast and hard, so she held it. If she blinked, tears would run down her face. She had seen this day coming. She had been focused entirely on the grief and the fear. What would they do without Rose? The world hadn't ended, but it sometimes it felt like it had been kicked of kilter.

In all the chaos, there had only been worry. Anxiety for what Rose's death would mean for their home. What it would do to their family, what it would mean for the humans, for those who had fallen in battle so long ago and especially to her Ruby. She had never dared look past any of that, Sapphire had let it consume her alive. It had been so powerful that Garnet could only sit stagnant and quiet when the crippling visions hit her.

Sapphire had never looked for Steven. She hadn't wanted to see him. Rose had loved him, but what would love do for them. Love wouldn't stop what the future held? The maelstrom of horror that would be wrought when the finality of Rose's death reared its ugly, powerful head-that couldn't be solved by love. And certainly not by a human infant.

And that was true. Steven, right now, had no way to understand the road that his birth had set them on. He couldn't stop what was certainly coming, but as she peered down at his little face, she knew that he held something. Something that Rose and Greg had believed in. Something that even Ruby and Sapphire believed in. Something that Garnet believed in.

Love.

Sapphire shuddered as Steven's downy head settled into her hands. He was warm, almost hot really. He was so light; it didn't even feel as though anything had been settled in her arms at all. The little piece of clothing that Greg had wrapped him in was just as wonderfully soft as his rosy skin. Greg's hands released Steven's fully into her arms and Sapphire could help but gasp. Steven squirmed, as soon as he was released. He wiggled and fidgeted, rubbing his thin arms against the material of her skirt.

"He's even tinier than I thought." Ruby whispered, her eyes wide in disbelief.

He was tinier without the blanket. So tiny, that he fit perfectly into Sapphire's slender arms. Too tiny to ever one day take on the world. To take on what would on the day that would surely come. She knew that like all humans, he would get bigger. Bigger than her and Ruby, bigger than Amethyst, bigger than Pearl, bigger than Garnet, bigger than even his own father. He might even be as tall as Rose Quartz one day. He would be strong, able, caring and loving-his mother's son.

She hadn't wanted to see him and yet she had. She hadn't wanted to hold him, but she did. She hadn't wanted to see him in the future either. Because she had been scared. Scared of what was happening right now. Scared of how beautiful he was. Scared of how precious he was going to be. Scared because she knew she loved him already and because someday soon he would love her too.

For the first few or so millennium of her life, once Sapphire had realized the inevitability of relationships and her own life-she had closed herself off. Homeworld had very little to offer her and that was fine. She didn't want things, or other gems or relationships beyond master and servant. She had been content to be by herself, because you couldn't get hurt if you were alone. She had seen thousands upon thousands of gems, ripped from their purposes, their lives, and everything they cared about. Sometimes, when she was alone like this; she could hear them screaming again. All that ever came from being together was ending up alone.

And then the Kindergartens began because their world was too little and the Diamond's Authority's ambition too great. More workers had been needed so Pearls had started being manufactured and Sapphires by the dozen were deemed defective, driven insane by the future held. Being of value, what was left of the Sapphires had been spread across the galaxy, given to gem army leaders or placed in rehabilitation units for later use. That had been where Sapphire had ended up, in a rehabilitation cell.

That was where Sapphire had met Ruby. And the world had been kicked clean off its axis. Every truth that she had ever established had been burned away into nothing. No vision, no future, no Authority, no war, no Homeworld, could ever take away the love that Ruby had given Sapphire or the love Sapphire had given Ruby. There would be an end, for there couldn't be a beginning without one.

She hadn't realized she was crying until a tear fell down on Steven's cheek. It rolled down and Steven frowned; confused at the new sensation.

"Sapphire?" Ruby asked.

"Is she alright?" Greg sounded worried.

She was perfectly alright. She was alright because she had Ruby, Pearl, Amethyst, Greg Universe, Garnet, and now Steven. And she knew that she wasn't alone. That they wouldn't be facing the future alone. She would rather be shattered to pieces than let them fight alone, and she would make sure that they wouldn't. She would be there, for the inevitable future of being alone or leaving them alone.

Rose had said something before she had died. Something that hadn't particularly stuck with Garnet, but with Sapphire.

'We don't know parents. We know instructors, tutors and teachers. No one hopes for us or believes in us. We're given knowledge of the world because that is the only way that we can achieve our predetermined purpose and function. But it's not that way with humans. Humans want to give their children the world. They do it not only because their children need to know it, but because they love to share the beauty and love in this world. They only want for their offspring's success and happiness. In a lifetime so short, what else can they give, other than their love? Love which never tarnishes, never dies, but continues on forever and ever. That's what I want to give Steven-a world that I and no other before me was given. The world he deserves.'

"I promise. I'll give you the world, Steven." Sapphire whispered, bringing her shaking hand to his cheek. Steven grabbed at her glove and latched onto it powerfully. "You'll never know alone. For as long as walk upon this earth, I will make sure of that."

Ruby reached out tentatively to Sapphire's face and wiped away her tears. Sapphire didn't cry very easily and not being together made it nearly impossible to guess what she was crying about. Ruby hated that. If Sapphire didn't want you to know what she was feeling, then you didn't know what she was feeling.

"Are you alright? Is it too much? We can go back to the temple." Ruby asked, not knowing what to say. She caught Greg's eyes and saw his confusion and worry.

"Ruby, isn't he gorgeous?" Sapphire asked, her cheeks flushed when she turned to Ruby.

Ruby took a moment to collect herself. Whenever Sapphire looked that happy, it felt as though her body was failing her.

"Uh…well he…he's v-v-very-very pink." Ruby stammered honestly.

Sapphire giggled and Ruby cleared her throat uncomfortably. Steven, having only heard Greg's deep voice before, let out a loud cry. His eyes were wide and bright as he looked decidedly amazed and confused.

"Well he does make a lot of faces." Ruby sighed, chuckling quietly. She waved her finger at him and he made another face.

"Just like you."

"I do not make a lot of faces." Ruby pouted, unaware of the face she was making. Sapphire knew that if she poked any further, Ruby would get upset. So she stopped and gave Ruby a quick kiss before smiling.

"Do you want to say anything to him, Ruby?" Sapphire asked. "Or maybe hold him?"

Ruby froze and scooted back a little, her broad back pressing into the sharp metal door of the van.

"P-pick him up?" Ruby stuttered, taking deeper and deeper breaths to steady herself. "But he's so little."

"You won't hurt him." Sapphire whispered, watching Steven try to move his head toward Ruby's voice.

"You don't that. I don't want to hold him." Ruby jumped off the back of the van and landed in the sand. "I'll just watch you hold him. That's good enough for me."

Ruby sat down on the sand and rolled her eyes when Sapphire gave her a face. Sapphire knew that what Ruby had said was true. Ruby had once watched Sapphire comb her hair for an hour and then when Sapphire had finished asked her to start again-not even the tiniest bit bored. Ruby loved Sapphire and what Sapphire loved, Ruby loved. Ruby would come around one day, as long as Sapphire was by her side, she could do anything.

"Well, thank you for letting us see him, Greg." Sapphire said, noticing that Steven was getting drowsy. Steven yawned once and cooed happily, snuggling into Sapphire's chest.

"No problem. You guys or Garnet I guess, can come down and see him whenever you want." Greg grinned and took Steven back and wrapped him up in his blanket. "I was worried that you guys…didn't want to see him. I was worried that Steven wouldn't get to know you all."

"I'm sorry it seemed that way. Rose…she was more than our leader…she was family." Sapphire whispered, twisting her fingers in her skirt.

"We were hoping it just wouldn't happen." Ruby muttered, crossing her arms. "Like maybe, she was wrong."

"She told you-."

"That gems have never done anything like Steven before." Greg whispered, cradling his newborn son in his large hands. "Yeah, she told me."

Rose had tried to explain it to Greg. And Greg had tried to explain it to Rose. Steven's birth had been complicated and they had both really needed to talk to one another. Greg didn't know how much time or energy Rose really put into bringing Steven into this world, but there wasn't a force on this planet that could've stopped her. Greg had wanted children. Rose had wanted to give him children therefore Steven was going to be here-no matter what the gems had to say.

"We need to go." Sapphire sighed, seeing a flash of a disoriented Pearl falling from one of her fountains and landing gem-first in Amethyst's room. Ruby stood up and helped Sapphire off the van.

"May we kiss him good night? Or good early morning?" Sapphire asked Greg kindly. Greg nodded nervously, a little unnerved at how Sapphire had said it before he could ask it. Steven absolutely adored kisses, having only two people kiss him before. Rose and Greg.

"You too Ruby. You can't break him with a kiss, trust me." Sapphire pulled an unwilling Ruby towards Steven. Steven blinked sleepily at them, puckering his pink lips as he yawned once more.

Sapphire kissed his wrinkly forehead and Ruby kissed his cheek.

Sapphire laced her fingers into Ruby's and they hurried back to the temple. As soon as they stepped into the temple's ground, Ruby lifted Sapphire and they began to spin. They both fit perfectly into each other's arms and as they felt the familiar pull of fusion, they both sighed in relief.

Ruby wasn't alone. Sapphire wasn't alone. So when Garnet came to, she wasn't alone anymore either.

A/N: AAAAAAAHHHH! I did it. I somehow finished this today. Thanks again for the favorites, reviews, and follows. I'm going to take like a day off from 'Growing Up With Steven' and work on this Connie fic I have. So no update tomorrow, but hopefully on Friday.