"You idiot!"

Garnet's massive stone gauntlet crashed into Pearls head with the force of a meteor. Pearl was already having a hard time assessing the situation, she didn't need her gem shattered either.

"What's the matter with you Gar-"

"What's wrong with me!? Your unreasonably obsessive anxious attitude nearly got us, you and Amethyst killed! Attacking an unprovoked human, forcing Amethyst to fuse, and nearly KILLING STEVEN! All because you have some five thousand year old petty grudge after losing a fight?!" Garnet voice was like booming thunder during a lightning storm, despite her usually cool attitude she could be pushed over the edge at times.

"HOW CAN YOU BE SO DAMN PETTY!?"

And during those times it was best to stay away.

Silence.

The entire world seemed to be in a state of a total lack of noise, even a gust of wind would sound like a gunshot, but two words not even as loud as a baby mouse's whisper managed to break the void of silence that had befall upon the earth.

"I'm sorry…"

Pearl clenched her fist, her body began to tremble like a newborn pup.

"I'm sorry, I was weak and afraid, even if their was only the smallest chance of someone wanting to hurt Steven, I would rather have my gem shattered than watching him getting hurt."

Tears began to roll down Pearls cheeks, but a thumb began to gently wipe it away.

Garnet took off her sunglasses.

"Pearl you are many things, your smart, graceful, overprotective, maternal, irrational and slightly odd at times, but you are not weak."

Pearl whipped away her tear and gave a small smile; Garnet didn't enjoy give Pearl this kind of support, after all these years Pearl should know how amazing she already is.

"Th- Thanks Garnet."

Garnet put her shades back on showing Pearl that she was back to business.

"Good, but now I think you owe someone an apology."

"Your right Steven deserves an explanation for-"

"Not Steven."

"Oh Amethyst then for fo-"

"Not Amethyst."

"Greg…." Pearl was going to go through everyone in Beach City before she would admit it.

"Pearl… You know who."

Steven brought Tao to the barn and began to patch up his wounds, well sorta Steven kept on licking his hand then rubbed it on Tao's back, not only was Steven unable to use his healing spit, but Tao's only "wounds" were some burnt clothes, singed hair, and a messed up ponytail.

"Please stop it boy." The child was probably in a state of hysteria, that could be the only explanation for him thinking his spit could substitute as medical support.

"No don't worry I can fix it!"

Despite nearly being killed by him on two separate occasions Amethyst nonchalantly walked up to Tao with her hands resting on the back of her head like nothing had happen.

"So T man-"

"It's just Tao actually."

"Gotcha Mr. T! Pearl said that you fought like a few thousand years ago. So how are you still alive, shouldn't you be all old and pruney like Greg's gut?"

"Hey it's not that bad…" The moment Greg laid a hand hand on his stomach that he may forever have the soul of a rocker but he certainly did not have the body anymore.

"It's a simple answer actually, I'm immortal."

"You know just saying that your answer is simple doesn't mean that it actually is tho." Amethyst claimed with a facial expression that would be the very definition for "Duh…."

Tao wasn't getting tired of her childish attitude, he couldn't tell if she was being a cocky smartass or was just dumb as bricks.

"Let me make this as simple as possible, a long time ago their was a special kind of water that when someone drank it, it would give the user eternal youth and immortality, so they can't die of age, poisons, diseases, or anything of that nature. I still keep some in an old gourd in case someone wants to buy some but no one has been able to meet the requirements of my price." After explaining his story he saw Amethyst rudely pretending to be asleep.

"Man you sure know how to bore someone out of their skull, I had a better time watch Pearl clean up the house after I make a mess." The assassin was beginning to rethink his decision on going easier on her, maybe a few more strikes would improve her attitude.

"Hey Tao this should help!" Greg threw an old shirt that read "Mr. Universe".

"What's this?" Tao took a long stare at the shirt, it had an odd aroma to it.

"Oh it's one of my old T-shirts from my days as a rockstar, Marty had me make a least two hundred of them, now there used as blankets or extra towels." Greg's van was full of these things, out of two hundred T-Shirts he only managed to get rid of one, and it was free.

"Why does it smell like smoke, grass, and tears?" Greg knew he had to give an G rated answer in front of Steven and the other gems.

"Uh… It was just the 80's man." Yeah that sounded good.

"Well this should do for now until my tailor is done with my other clothes." When Tao slipped on the shirt it made Greg feel just a little more inadequate, Tao had to be like a bazillion years old but he had a body that looked like it was chiseled from granite.

"Now how much would you like?" Greg was taken off guard.

"Uh pardon?"

"How much is it for the shirt? I'm sure I can meet your price." Tao was already armed with his wallet and his endless supply of cash.

"No, no, no it's free. It's the least I could do after Pearl… Uh- Kinda freaked out."

Pearl slowly and begrudgingly feet to she knew that this had to be done, but she really, really, really, reeeeeeeeealy didn't want to admit she was wrong about an ASSASSIN (Seriously was she the only one here who knew what that word meant?), but she knew it would at least make Steven happy.

"Um excuse me Tao?" When Tao looked at her she had a flashback of a evil cruel man who had just beaten her to a near shattered state then proceeded to brutalize Pearl's rose. Stars Why did she have to apologize to him? She'd rather face the entire Diamond Authority than this monster.

'Pearl! You're okay!" Steven plunged into Pearl's stomach with even more tears in eyes than earlier.

"I'm so glad you're okay! I'm sorry you got beaten up because of me!" Pearl gently ruffled her surrogate childs hair and looked him in the eye.

"No Steven. You don't need to apologize, in fact I'm the one who needs to apologize. To you and… Pearls gritted her teeth trying to keep the words from escaping her mouth.

"To Tao….." Tao slowly turned his head to Pearl direction, god even that face made her want to try and kill him, those cold smug eyes, his haughty attitude, and that mustache that hung on the top of his lip like a rattlesnake lying atop of a rock.

"You again? Are you going to try and kill me again?" Tao took a long, long, loooooooooong pretentious sip from a juice box Steven gave him, oh my stars he acted like he was drinking out of the holy grail.

"If you do, may I suggest a more subtle approach, or perhaps… I'll just kill you." Tao gave a cold sinister look that would cause the most hardened warriors to shudder.

"Just kidding."

The only thing that Pearl could process in her head was

NOT FUNNY