Julianna stood on the deck outside of the house, elbows propped on the edge. She stared blankly into the water, her thoughts racing, taking her back to the battlefield. The one she was supposed to love had been right there beside her, yet she'd felt the same attachment upon seeing Peridot again. She'd forgotten all the wrongs done against her, and she ached to have her old life back. But nothing would ever be the same now that she'd gotten involved with the Crystal Gems. After all they'd done, she couldn't just turn her back on them.
"Julianna!" Amethyst ran up the stairs and hugged her tightly. "I was worried about you. Are you okay?"
Julianna ran her fingers affectionately through a strand of her lavender hair. "I'm fine, Amethyst. Don't worry about it."
Amethyst frowned slightly. "I don't like seeing you upset."
"I'll get over it." Her voice had gotten slightly colder, icing the edges of her soft tone.
Amethyst broke the embrace, and just stood beside her. "Are you going back to her?" She asked, her voice barely audible, but the fear was apparent. She wanted her to stay, but wouldn't enforce it. If she was happy with Peridot, why should she hold her back? After all, if you love something, it's best to set it free.
"I don't know, Amethyst..." She sighed heavily. "I don't wanna hurt you."
"Don't worry about me, Julianna. If Peridot makes you happier than I do, then be with her. It's okay. I won't hold you back, if that's what you really want."
"I don't know what I want... Other that not to hurt you."
"It'll be okay. Really. Just do what makes you happiest."
"Alright..." She whispered.
"And if you do leave, and you decide to come back.. I'm not going anywhere."
A torrent of fresh tears came crashing down.
Peridot furiously tapped away at her screen, trying to quickly finish her plans before the night ended. There was about three hours left before it would start to get lighter, and if that happened, it was all over.
She deactivated the summoned robonoids and pulled out their chips, attaching them to her tablet. She quickly redesigned them, trying to make them look somewhat human-like. She couldn't raise any suspicions; the plan was ride or die. With nimble fingers, she extracted the chips and returned them to the robonoids, watching them reboot and take on their new form. They were shaped the same way as humans, but with no gender characteristics. Their pupils were a bright green, nearly glowing in the dark of the crashed vehicle. Darker green etchings ran across their skin, barely visible in the lack of brightness. The numbers 2.0 and a letter were etched into the palms of their hands. One was a deep ink black, with the letter A, and the other metallic grey, labeled with B.
"Perfect." She smirked, making a mental note to upgrade the others soon. "Robonoid A, grab the materials." She ordered, her excitement growing as he followed her exact orders, picking up the bag, tape, and rope from the corner of the room. "Now, here's the plan."
"Are you gonna be okay?" Amethyst asked, looking up at Julianna. She truly hated to see her this way.
"I'm sorry.." She rubbed her eyes. "All I've done is cry on you."
"It's fine. You're going through a tough time." She gently ran her fingertips over the back of her hand to calm her. "It's understandable."
"That's still not a good excuse..." She argued.
"Don't worry about it, okay? Crying is just a natural byproduct of being sad. You can't help it."
"I need to talk to her.. Find out if what Garnet said is really true..."
"She'll only lie to you again. If she truly cared about you, she wouldn't have left you here for thousands of years."
"You're right. I need to get over this."
"Things take time." She moved her hand away from Julianna's. "I'm going to head in. You need a minute?"
"Yeah, if that's okay."
"Take your time. When you're ready, I'll be in my room." She winked suggestively towards her, waiting for a reaction.
"Shut up." She retorted, shoving her shoulder lightly. A hint of a smile played at the corners of her lips, a small attempt of a laugh coming from her throat. It wasn't quite the reaction she'd been aiming for, but it was something, at least.
"I'm just kidding."
Julianna scoffed. "Damn right you are." She affirmed, crossing her arms.
"Goodnight, Julianna." She walked back to her room, leaving her alone on the porch to process her thoughts.
Peridot crept through the shadows beside her Robonoids, the black bag in her hand. Robonoid A walked at her left with the tape in hand, Robonoid B at the right with the rope.
A gentle wind blew across the area, Julianna's hair fluttering in the wind, catching Peridot's attention.
All the lights in the house were turned off, masking their identities even further. "Alright, change of plans." Peridot whispered. "Storm the deck and grab her. Got it?" The robonoids nodded in response, and the plan burst into action.
Peridot folded the bag into a strap and snuck up the stairs, robonoids close in tow, creeping around Julianna. She threw the strap over her eyes, and she let out a piercing scream. Robonoid A ripped off a strip of tape and pressed it over her lips, her noises muffled by the blockage. He threw the roll aside and grabbed her arms, holding her in place as Robonoid B tied the rope around her wrists. He gripped her left bicep tightly, Robonoid B grasping the other arm. Peridot quickly unrolled the bag and threw it over her head, then ran to make her escape as the Robonoids lifted her into the air, carrying her down the beach.
Julianna thrashed and kicked her legs, desperate to escape her assailants. Her throat ached, screams barely passing through the tape, but she persisted, unwilling to give up. Someone would surely have heard her, and would come out... Wouldn't they?
"JULIANNE!" Amethyst shouted, running out the door to the house, scanning the perimeter, squinting in the darkness. A small container collided with her face and exploded, sending chemicals into the air around her. She blinked drowsily and collapsed, out cold.
The robonoids ran down the beach and into the white tent Peridot had pitched. They threw Julianna onto the sand, removing the bag from her head, mussing her hair. They cut the rope and tore the tape off her mouth, a weak, strangled cry escaping her lips. She looked up and gasped slightly, seeing Peridot clearly for the first time in thousands of years. She'd started to forget the little things- the piercing eyes, triangular hair, the shape of her legs... Everything she'd come to love had started to slip away from memory.
The green gem stared down at her. She had also started to forget- the sound of her voice, her gentle touches, submissive nature- everything she'd created her to be. She took in her change of outfit, noticing the figure clinging fabric of her shirt, wanting nothing more than to tear it off. But she kept herself in check for now.
Peridot reached out her hand to help her stand. "Relax, Julianna." A tremor ran through her body, the words sounding foreign on her tongue, not having said them in thousands of years. "I'm not going to hurt you. This was only supposed to be a diversion." She gripped her hand and lifted her up to her feet.
Julianna threw her arms around Peridot's neck, hugging her close to her body. "Peridot..." She sobbed. "I thought you'd abandoned me here.."
Peridot hesitated a moment, then awkwardly returned the embrace to keep up her act. Her stomach stirred at their closeness. "I-I found shards of your gem.. I thought that you were dead..."
"My gem got scraped.. And I got blasted here..."
"It's alright." She assured her, mentally smirking to herself. "I've got you now. I won't let anything hurt you anymore." Her plan had worked. She broke the embrace and wiped the tears from her eyes, letting a smirk come to her lips, scanning her up and down, taking in her figure. "What do you say we make up for lost time, hmm?" She purred in seduction, gently running her hand along her side, from her cheek to her waist, lingering.
Julianna shivered at her touch, slightly raising an eyebrow. "What are you suggesting?" She asked, pretending to play coy. But she knew exactly what she wanted.
"I think you know what I'm talking about." Peridot turned to her Robonoids. "Leave us." She ordered. "Return to the spaceship."
They nodded compliantly and left the tent.
As soon as they were gone, their lips connected, neither of them wanting to waste anymore time. For a moment it was gentle and tender, and they revelled in the feeling of their embrace. It quickly became more heated, the thousands of years between them forgotten. All that existed was the two of them, and the pile of clothes on the floor.