Steven's alarm blared loudly, signalling the beginning of a brand-new day. Steven sighed as he glumly pressed the button, turning off the alarm. Normally, he would be excited by the familiar sound of his alarm clock, recognizing it as the signal for new day full of wonder and possibles. But instead, it had just become a warning bell to brace for a new and unpleasant environment.
Climbing out of his bed, Steven sighed as he gathered his up clothes and made his way down the stairs to the bathroom. He stopped just in front of the door and hesitated, before taking a deep breath and opening the door.
As Steven entered into the bathroom, he was greeted with the familiar sight of Peridot, lying face first on the titled floor, quietly moaning to herself.
"Hey Peridot." Steven said, doing his best to sound cheerful. "I'm just gonna wash up, ok?"
"Uh….. huh" she groaned, without lifting her face up from the floor.
Steven gingerly walked around her body and turned on the shower. He then took his clothes, stepped into the bathtub and drew the curtains around, beginning to wash himself. He didn't think it would do much good to ask Peridot to step out until he was finished. Not that Steven would feel overly uncomfortable with having Peridot in the room as he bathed anyway. He had known her his entire life and regularly changed his clothes in front her as he was growing up without any hint of embarrassment for either of them. Steven also understood that Peridot had very indifferent attitude toward the human body in general.
Of course, he didn't need to worry either way as Peridot was keeping her face firmly planted on the bathroom floor as Steven turned off the shower and wrapped a towel around his waist. Once he was dried and fully clothed, Steven stepped up to the sink and began to brush his teeth. He tried to keep focused on his current task, but he could feel the awkwardness of the situation start to build as he rinsed out his mouth and dried his face.
"So, um, you think maybe you'll come out of the bathroom today?" Steven asked slowly.
"…no" Peridot moaned quietly.
"Ok. " Steven said, pausing for a moment. "You need anything for today?"
"Freedom from the eternal torment of my guilt" Peridot said painfully.
"Uh, I can get you a sandwich instead?" Steven offered feebly.
"Don't bother. I'll just ruin it. I destroy all that I touch " Peridot raised her hands up, her fingers clenching at the air. "With these….dreaded touch stumps of destruction"
Steven sighed and scratched the back of his head, now feeling it was best if he simply got out of the room. "Ok, if you change your mind, you can let me know"
Steven closed the bathroom door behind him and frowned. He had hoped that Peridot's mood might have improved after a few days, but so far, she had basically been inconsolable. Nothing Steven could say or do was helping her.
At that moment, the Warp Pad chimed as Jasper teleported into the house. She stared at Steven, her face completely neutral, not saying a single word to him as she walked on by.
"Hey, Jasper" Steven greeted, manging to pull off a second smile for the day. "How was your patrol?"
"Not important" she grunted, taking a seat on the couch, resting her arms down her knees.
"Did you find Onyx or Pearl?"
"No"
"Did you see Lapis anywhere?" Steven asked, without even stopping to think about how dangerous of a question that was to ask.
Jasper went perfectly still, not so much as moving an inch before she finally answered. "No"
"Do you want some company maybe for your next patrol?" Steven asked, with a hopeful expression. "Peridot's still in the bathroom, so I could come with you?"
"I patrol better when I'm alone" Jasper said coldly, while still not looking at Steven.
Steven felt his heart sink even further. This had been the way things that been ever since Lapis had left. On top of Peridot's self-imposed isolation, Jasper had become sullener and more detached than ever, showing no real interest in anything around her, and every attempt Steven made to approach her was only met with cold rejection. Steven almost might have preferred if Jasper was simply angry and would yell about something she didn't like. Instead, there was just this unbearable and painful silence throughout the house, which Steven was afraid might never end.
But then, the silence finally did end, much sooner than anyone had expected when the front door burst open, and Steven's father, Greg, came strutting through it, sounding as energetic as ever, holding up a piece of paper in his hands. "Who wants to go on a road trip?"
Greg then dropped his cheerful smile when he noticed the unhappy scowl and apprehensive look that Jasper and Steven gave him respectfully.
"Umm, is this a bad time?" he asked, quickly realizing that was more likely was the case.
"Yes." Jasper replied bluntly. She then gave Greg a vague wave of her hand. "But you can talk if you want to."
Greg cleared his throat, considering that a reasonable enough assurance before he continued. "Well, I gotta drive over to the next state, Keystone and I was wondering if anybody wanted to tag along."
"You mean the Keystone state?" Steven said.
"Right, the state named Keystone." Greg concurred. "I met a guy on an internet message board who's selling car wash brushes for real cheap! I just gotta meet him in Keystone and pick them up.
"I don't like those brushes, they feel weird on your fur." Steven said, with a grimace, as he recalled a previous ill-advised experience where he tested those brushes first hand.
"Well, do you like motels?" Greg asked, with a sly grin.
"Probably!" Steven replied, now beginning to feel genuine excitement that he hadn't felt in days.
"Think you'd like to stay at a motel with your favourite dad?" Greg asked.
"I don't know if you're my favourite…." Steven said, with a playful drawl.
"What?" Greg said, slightly indignant. "Oh, you kidder! Come here!"
Greg reached his arm out for Steven, who happily jumped into his father's embrace as he lifted him up.
"I can't wait to get room service!"
"You're thinking of a hotel, we're going to a motel." Greg clarified. "It'll have a pool, and free ice, and it's right next to The Best Diner in the World!"
Steven smiled, now feeling happier than he had been all week. He felt tremendously grateful that his dad was here and talking to him like everything was normal again. The idea of getting of the house and going on a road trip to a motel with his dad sounded like the absolute best thing in the world to Steven right now. However, Steven dropped his smile and tentatively turned to Jasper.
"Jasper, can I go on a road trip with Dad for a bit?" he asked, afraid that she might say no, but knowing it was best to ask her permission first.
Jasper merely lifted her head up slightly, looking at Steven with a disinterested frown. "Do whatever you want." she said gruffly, before turning her head back down to stare at the floor.
It didn't take Steven long before he gathered up his things in preparation for his trip. He knew they wouldn't be gone for long, but he wanted was still incredible happy to get away from the house with his dad, if only for a little while. He briefly thought about how Jasper and Peridot would get along in his absence, but he quickly reassured himself they would be fine without. In the back of his mind, Steven remained hopefully that the situation in the house might have improved by the time he returned.
As they approached the van, which was parked just below the Temple, Steven soon realized that there was something else on his mind that he had been meaning to check up with Greg on.
"Hey, Dad, is Garnet gonna come with us too?" Steven asked. He hadn't seen Garnet for a while, ever since she had made her decision to live with Greg in his van. Or, at least, live on top the roof of the van. But Steven could see she was not present there at the moment.
"Um, well….yes and no" Greg replied slowly.
Steven opened the passenger door of the van and when he did, he saw there not one but two Gems, waiting for him in the van, sitting on the back seat. Ruby and Sapphire looked exactly the same since the last time Steven had seen them separated. However, they were now putting as much distance between themselves as possible, both sitting at opposites sides of the couch; Ruby, her arms crossed, her lips curled back slightly as she maintained a very sour expression on her face, and Sapphire sitting as calm and serene like as ever, her face and body language betraying no emotion whatsoever.
"Uh, hey guys" Steven said, with a small smile.
"Hello, Steven" they answered in perfect unison, right down to the flat monotone pitch.
Steven turned to Greg as he opened the driver door and took his seat behind the wheel, hoping he was about to provide him with an explanation.
"So, uh, did you know that Garnet was actually two people this whole time?" Greg said, doing his best to cover up his embarrassment, as he turned the keys in the ignition. "Crazy, right? Anyway, seems like Ruby and Sapphire want to take some time apart for the moment. But I figure they might like the trip too."
Steven turned back again to Ruby and Sapphire, neither of whom were giving away any indication they were looking forward to this trip.
"So, how about some music?" Greg asked.
"No" Ruby and Sapphire answered once more in unison, while still refusing to look at one another.
Steven sunk lower into his seat, feeling like this was going to be a long ride one way or the other.
In was nearing nighttime as Greg continued to drive across the countryside road. Steven yawned, already beginning to feel tried. He leaned his elbow against the door as he stared up to the sky, taking note of the almost full moon visible in the twilight.
Despite doing his best to enjoy the scenery, every once in a while, Steven kept glancing back over his shoulder to Ruby and Sapphire; their posture and countenance had not improved since the start of the trip. Ruby was twitching impatiently, while continuously throwing a look toward Sapphire as though she was expecting her to say or do something. But instead, Sapphire remained silent and gracefully poised, paying no attention to Ruby's fidgeting.
Steven wondered what it was that was bothering them. Several times, he had thought about asking them, but every time he tried to work up the nerve to say something to them, his mind was brought back to the Crystal Gems and what had transpired between the three of them recently, leaving Steven with a terrible feeling swelling inside the pit of his stomach.
After a long drive, the group finally arrived at the motel, a large sign welcoming them to the Keystone State. Greg pulled the van into the car park, which was conveniently situated right beside the main building as well as a small pool.
"Another great thing about motels, you can drive right up to your door!" Greg said as he turned the key and opened the door to their room.
The motel room looked perfectly ordinary; two beds, a bathroom, a TV screen and a ceiling fan. Yet Steven felt an immense sense of wonder and excitement beginning to build up inside him again now that they had finally arrived at the long-awaited motel.
"I'm gonna swim in the pool, order a movie and get free ice!" Steven cheered, throwing his hands up in the air. "This is gonna be great!"
"Not before we check for bed bugs, it isn't" Greg said warningly, as he took a cautionary glance around the motel room.
Ruby and Sapphire entered the room after Greg, both of them keeping the same distance between each other at all times as they took a seat on one of the beds, their backs turned to one another
"Good news! We're bugless." Greg said, after checking the covers of the bed. He then received a message on his phone. "Oh, that's my cue. Hey, do you two mind holding down the fort until I get back?"
Sapphire and Ruby both gave Greg a simple thumbs up in response, each using their hand opposite to the other ones.
"Great. I'm going to see a man about a tunnel brush. An internet man." Greg added with an ominous flair as he opened the door. "If I'm not back in an hour, call the police."
Greg closed the door behind him. Now that the three of them were alone in the room, Steven began to feel things becoming a bit awkward again. He glanced back and forth between Ruby and Sapphire who remained seated on their respective beds, neither of looking eager to take advantage of the motel amenities available to them.
"So, uh, you guys wanna try bouncing on the beds?" Steven asked, hoping to break some of the tension. "We can take turns if you…"
"Now, will you tell me?" Ruby said abruptly, turning to look at Sapphire.
"No" Sapphire replied calmly.
"You said you'd tell me when we got here"
"I said I would tell you while we were here, not when we arrived."
"So now we have to wait even longer?!" Ruby said, incensed.
"There is no need to be impatient. "Sapphire said, unwavering. "This will all work out in time"
"I am not impatient!" Ruby snapped, jumping off the bed and walking around to face Sapphire directly. "I just don't wanna drag this out any longer. I wanna talk about it now!"
"As do I. Can't you see I'm bursting with emotion?" Sapphire replied, her expression neutral and her voice completely flat. "But it will be better if we wait. You have to accept that."
"Well guess what? I don't accept it!"
"I don't have to guess. I can see the future"
Steven now felt very uncomfortable, even more so than he did in the drive up. While he was somewhat appreciative that Ruby and Sapphire were finally speaking again, the fact that they were in some kind of argument didn't do much to placate his concern. Steven finally decided it was best to bite the bullet and get to the bottom of whatever this was.
"Ruby wants to know more about my time on Homeworld for the past five thousand years." Sapphire said.
"Huh?" Steven said, caught off guard.
"You were going to ask us what we are talking about" Sapphire explained. "Ruby and I need to talk about the time we spent apart while I was on Homeworld and she was here on Earth."
"Except we're not talking about anything, because Sapphire is the one who won't talk to me!" Ruby growled, pointing an accusing finger at Sapphire.
"We are not yet at the point where we can discuss it openly. Not while you are in this state. You must calm down and listen to me on this matter."
Ruby growled again, grabbing fistfuls of her hair in frustration. "I'm in this state because you won't tell me anything! Stop acting like you're above all of this"
Sapphire sighed. She then slid off the bed and walked toward the door.
"Wait, where are you going?" Ruby asked.
"This is the future where I am the one who goes by the pool, and you remain here." she answered, before closing the door behind.
"Uh, can you believe her Steven?!" Ruby snapped, throwing her hands up in the air. "She wants to act like she knows everything, like she knows better. I just wanted to know more about what I missed out when she gone. She thinks she can't tell me anything because I can't handle it. Why am I always the problem? Why does she want to act like I'm the one being ridiculous?"
Ruby continued to rant and rave about Sapphire and the how the latter's apathic attitude was so infuriating. It was then Steven started to hear a sizzling noise in the room, followed by a strange, musky odour. He looked down at the floor and saw that the carpet underneath Ruby's feet was burning up as she paced up and down the room. Steven pulled at the neck of his shirt as he began to notice the increased temperature of the room.
"Hey, uh, maybe we could watch some TV for a bit?" he suggested, hoping that would take their minds of things for a while.
Steven did not wait for an answer from Ruby who still too busy ranting to herself. Steven hopped up on the bed and grabbed the remote control, turning on the TV with an optimist smile.
"Huh, the channels are all the wrong numbers" he noted, clicking the remote.
"Why does she want to act like I'm the problem?" Ruby said, doing another lap around the carpet. "I feel terrible enough already for missing out on so much time with her. Now I'm the bad Gem just for wanting to know more? What, does she what me not to ask her about it? Does she really expect me to just not care all of a sudden? Well too bad! I'm gonna care about it so hard, even Sapphire won't see it coming!"
Steven felt his shoulders beginning to slump as he couldn't seem to find anything interesting to watch on the TV. The heat from Ruby was also starting to bother him more and more, wiping away some of the sweat from his forward. Not to mention all the smoke from the burnt carpet that was rising up to the ceiling, making harder for Steven to breath.
At that last thought, an alarm suddenly went off in Steven's head. It was then followed by an actual alarm bell. Steven turned his head up too late to see the smoke alarm had been set off by the smoking carpet and was now blaring loudly throughout the room.
Despite the incessant sound of alarm, Ruby continued to pace and mutter angrily to herself completely unperturbed. Steven looked down at the burnt carpet beneath Ruby's feet and then up to the smoke alarm that war ringing overhead.
"I think, I'm gonna go try the pool" Steven said as loudly as he could over the sound of the alarm, though he was still quite sure Ruby was not listening.
After changing into his swim trunks, and leaving the door open to let the motel room air the smoke out, Steven eagerly made his way outside to the pool, hoping a good nighttime swim will help clear his head. However, Steven soon stopped in tracks when he reached the pool side, to discover there was no longer any pool. Instead, there was now just a large frozen pond in the middle of the concrete deck, the water completely frozen over, as though an arctic blizzard had just blown by.
Steven stared blankly at his own reflection in the surface of the ice. He then looked over to see Sapphire sitting calmly on one of the lawn chairs.
"Hey Sapphire" Steven greeted, suppressing a small shiver from the cold as he drew closer to her.
"Hello Steven" she replied.
"Are you doing ok?"
"I will be… fine" Sapphire answered flatly.
"I guess it's too bad that I brought my swim trunks with me instead of ice skates" Steven joked, trying to alleviate the situation with some humour, taking a seat on one of the other lawn chairs. "Cos, you know, I didn't know that the pool would be….frozen." he added, unable to conceal a hint of disappointment in his voice.
"Such is fate" Sapphire said, simply.
Steven shivered again, rubbing his arms together. He knew it might have been a bit cold outside in just his swim trunks, but with Sapphire around, he might soon be liable to get frostbite.
"So, um, when do you think you can tell Ruby about Homeworld?" he asked, trying to break the ice, albeit the metaphorical kind.
"When the time is right, I will tell Ruby what I need to tell her" Sapphire said
"Is that time…gonna be soon?" Steven said, hopefully. He glanced over his shoulder back to their motel room, where he could see a steady funnel of smoke coming out from the opened door. "She seems kinda upset"
Sapphire sighed deeply, sounding weary but remined as composed as ever. "I know it seems I am being obstinate, but this is the way things need to be. Ruby just needs to accept that I am right and that she needs to wait. It's pointless to tell her now when she is so worked up and volatile. She is simply letting her emotions get the better of her."
"S-s-so, y-y-y-ou don't mind n-n-not telling her r-r-r-ight now?" Steven asked, feeling his teeth beginning to chatter as the temperature around them began to drop the longer Sapphire spoke.
"No" Sapphire replied. As soon as she answered, another sheet of frost began to form around the lawn chair, surrounding Sapphire in a flurry of ice and snow. "This is fine."
Steven looked down at the frozen pool and then back to the smoke-filled motel room. Seeing that he was now stuck between two extremes, he decided to try and find some neutral ground. He got up walked away from Sapphire, taking a seat on the pavement next to the room, where he could still hear the smoke alarm and the faint ramblings of Ruby coming from within. Steven groaned wearily, while muttering disdainfully under his breath.
"Uh, Keystone State"
A few moments later, a bright light passed him by as he saw his dad's van pulling into the parking space next to their room.
"Hey, Stew-ball, I brought dinner! " Greg said, stepping out of the van, holding up a pizza box in his hands.
"Hey Dad, how'd it go?" Steven asked.
"Well, he wasn't an axe-murderer, so that was good." Greg said. He then noticed Steven's attire. "What are you doing outside in your bathing suit? And what's that sound?"
Greg peeked inside the motel room, where he saw Ruby still pacing and muttering to herself, the shag carpet at feet now burnt to a ripe crisp, the smoke alarm still ringing.
"Where's the other one?" Greg asked, sounding like he'd rather not know.
"Over by the ice-skating ring that used to be a pool" Steven said, dryly.
"This must be something pretty serious if they still haven't made up yet" Greg said with a tad more concern. He then noticed the dour expression on Steven's face.
"But hey, we can still have a good time!" he added reassuringly, offering him the pizza box.
Despite everything else that had happened, Steven managed a small smile, as the thought of pizza did sound very appetising right about now.
Greg opened the pizza box. The moment he did, Steven's eyes widened in horror as he never in all his years had he beheld such a terrifying and unholy sight.
"SQUARE PIZZA?! What's wrong with this crazy state?!" Steven exclaimed.
"Son, there'll come a time in your life where you'll learn to accept all shapes of pizza" Greg said wisely, taking a seat next to Steven on the pavement.
Steven took a…block of the pizza, hesitantly taking bite. While the pizza did taste perfectly fine, the shape somehow changed the overall experience for Steven.
"Why can't Ruby and Sapphire just make up?" he said, sadly. A much more unpleasant thought then crossed Steven's mind.
"Do you….do you think they're gonna stay split up for good?"
"What?" Greg said incredulously, his mouth half full of pizza before he swallowed it. "No way. Why would you think that?"
"They're just fighting so much and…and I'm worried it might get worse" Steven said, fearfully, while doing his absolute best to not try and associate this situation to any recent events in his life.
"Things will look be better in the morning, I promise." Greg said kindly, placing his arm around Steven's shoulder. "We'll go to the Best Diner in the World and have the best breakfast in the world"
"You think that'll help?" Steven asked.
"Nothing like a little breakfast to bring people together!" Greg said, giving Steven a slight nudge in the arm.
Steven smiled, feeling that familiar sense of comfort and protection that only his father could give him. "You really are my favourite dad"
"I knew this pizza would put me over the top" Greg said, with playful smugness.
After disabling the smoke alarm and throwing out the burned carpet, everyone agreed it was time for some sleep. Though Steven had to first explain the concept of sleep to Ruby and Sapphire, as neither of them had ever slept in their lives before.
After giving them a brief overview of what sleeping involved, Steven then began to demonstrate by laying his head down on his pillow, while Ruby and Sapphire were observing him from the other bed. Ruby in particular was regarding Steven with a look of scepticism while Sapphire appeared as neutral as ever.
"You just put your head back and relax." Steven said, resting his arms over his chest. "Get nice and comfy and don't think about any…"
Steven paused in the middle of his explanation when he heard the sound of snoring next to him. He lifted his head off the pillow to see Ruby half dangling on the side of the bed, her mouth hanging agape, snoring loudly, having gone out like a light, while Sapphire was curled up on the other side of the bed, not making so much as a peep.
He was surprised that were able to pick it so quickly, but he was still grateful as this meant they would at least stop arguing for the time meaning, allowing him some respite. Steven laid his head back against his pillow as Greg took up position on the other side of the bed next to him.
Steven sighed contently, closing his eyes peacefully, eager to get some rest and looking forward to waking up the best breakfast in the world tomorrow morning.
However, just as Steven was nodding off, a bright light began to flash in front of his eyes, forcing him to shut his eyelids tightly. Grunting in annoyance, Steven turned to his side and pulled some of the covers over his head to block out the light, but the light seemed to persist even brighter somehow. Steven pulled his pillow over his head with a groan as he now could hear a faint buzzing noise coming from within the room, like a kind of static. Thinking the TV must have somehow been switched on by mistake, Steven reluctantly pulled the pillow off his head and pushed himself upright off the bed to turn it off again.
But when Steven opened his eyes fully, once they had adjusted to the light, instead of seeing a lit TV screen, what Steven saw was a large black sphere, hovering in the centre of the motel room, a ring of light rising up out of the floor around it. Steven blinked several times, just to be sure he really was seeing what he was seeing. He glanced over to his dad's side of the bed, only to realize that his dad was now gone. Steven turned to the other bed and saw that Ruby and Sapphire had also vanished.
Now extremely confused, yet still curious, Steven hopped out of the bed and cautiously approached the mysterious sphere. He couldn't really say for sure why, but for some reason he had a strange compulsion to touch the sphere despite the potentially disastrous consequences that would undoubtedly follow if he did. Taking another look around the empty room, almost as though he was making sure no one was watching him, Steven raised his right hand and placed his palm firmly against the surface of the sphere.
For a moment nothing happened. But then the sphere began to vibrate and suddenly the entire motel room was engulfed in void of static, with the exception of Steven and the sphere. When the static dissipated, Steven now found himself standing in the vacuum of outer space, surrounding by a sea of stars and the planet Earth situated down below him.
"Wow" he whispered in amazement, as he took in the wondrous sight all around him. "Is this part of the motel experience?"
Steven turned his head upwards, where he saw a large school of pink whales floating idlily by, being carried by the invisible currents of the great cosmic void of eternity. A sudden and very obvious realization then dawned on Steven.
"Okay, I get it, I'm dreaming"
Now understanding what was happening, Steven quickly deduced that if this was indeed a dream, then there wouldn't be any actual consequences to what he could do.
Smiling, he pressed his hands into the black sphere and as soon as he did, the world turned to static once again as though he was simply changing the channel on the TV.
The static then dissipated again and Steven was now standing on the beach below his own home. Getting a better sense of what was happening, Steven pressed the sphere again and the world around him changed to outside the motel where they were staying; there was even his dad's van still parked outside
"Cool". Steven pressed the sphere again and again, giggling happily as it took to him to several more familiar locations he been to before, including his mother's garden, the strawberry field, the Galaxy Warp, the Big Donut. Even some places Steven had never been to before. Steven couldn't remember the last time he had such an interesting dream, but found this to be a pleasant surprise, nonetheless. He continued to playfully poke and tap against the sphere, eager to see what it would show him next.
But then, Steven suddenly stopped laughing and his face dropped into an expression of horror at the newest sight that was now in front him.
He was standing the middle of the desert in front of the Communication Hub, now restored back to the original structure it had been the first Steven had seen it. The very sight of the Hub it made Steven instantly want to be somewhere else. He quickly pressed the sphere again as fast as he could, expecting it would take him somewhere new. The world flickered once again, but to Steven's surprise he saw that this time he had been brought back to same location in front of the Hub, the only difference being that it was now in the form of the smaller, rebuilt tower it had been just a short time ago, surrounded by an impregnable red dome.
Steven hit the sphere again and the world flickered to static; the red dome was now gone, and Hub was then reduced a small pile of broken pillars. Next it became another reconstructed tower, followed again by ruins. This pattern repeated again and again endlessly, now even without Steven touching the sphere. The contrasting image blurred together so much that it was making Steven feel nauseous, praying it would stop any second.
Finally, the images stopped, and the tower had disappeared entirely. Now Steven found himself in the middle of a clear blue lake in the desert, standing on the surface of the water as though it were solid ground.
Steven glanced around the empty lake, feeling more and more uncomfortable by the second, hoping he might wake up soon from this dream. Just as Steven turned his head back to his front facing direction, he froze when he came face to face with another Steven Universe.
Quickly coming to back to his senses again, Steven yelped and jumped back from this sudden doppelganger that was standing before him. Steven briefly recalled his past experience with duplicates of himself and knew that this couldn't possibly be a good sign.
However, this duplicate was not an exact copy of Steven; he looked exactly like Steven in all regards except his skin was pale blue, his clothes and hair were damp, as though he had been submerged in water for hours. And despite the blank and emotionless expression on the duplicate Steven's face, tears were streaming down from his eyes like waterfall.
Steven had no clue what kind of repressed emotional baggage that he had which could have led to this dream, but he was definitely not in the right frame of mind to try and process it.
"Okay, I'm ready for this dream to end now!". Steven franticly pressed the sphere again, hoping it would take him somewhere, anywhere other than here. But then his felt arms come to sudden stop as he found his hands were now fixed firmly to the sphere surface.
Now feeling terrified, Steven turned back to the Duplicate-Steven who simply stood there, his eyes and mouth now literally pouring out streams of water as a huge shadow started to creep up behind him. Steven turned his head up in horror to see a massive wall of water forming behind the Duplicate-Steven like a tidal wave and then, in an instant, came crashing down upon them.
Steven awoke with a fright, gasping for air, sweat rolling down his face. He looked around frantically, seeing that he was now back in the motel room again. His dad was lying sprawled out on the bed by his side and Ruby and Sapphire were both still sleeping on their bed. Everything seemed to have returned to normal again.
Steven gulped as he slowly managed to regain control of his breathing again. He suddenly felt very tired and ill, his head falling back onto the pillow, feeling as though he had not gotten any sleep at all due to that strange dream. He curled up in the blankets and snuggled closed to his dad, unsure if he was going to fall asleep again any time soon.
Steven yawned loudly, looking down glumly at his breakfast of eggs, strawberries and bacon that were arranged as a smiley face. While Steven appreciated an optimist looking breakfast, he didn't feel too much like eating. Thanks to his weird dreams, he had gotten almost no sleep at all, which in turn seemed to rob him of an appetite.
Just as Greg had said, once they woke up, they had gone to the supposedly Best Diner in the World, to get the supposedly best breakfast in the world, the four of them now sitting in a comfy booth inside the diner, each of them receiving a breakfast plate.
Unfortunately, due to his unexpected fatigue, Steven wasn't very eager to determine if this was indeed the best breakfast in the world, prodding away his food with fork, disinterestedly. Of course, adding to the problem was the fact that Ruby and Sapphire had still yet to cease their bickering, which only seemed to be intensifying, despite their night of sleep, as they sat opposite from Steven and Greg in the booth.
"Tell me now!"
"No"
"What about now?"
"No"
"Okay, now then!"
"No. And also no, again, to the same question you were about to ask" Sapphire added rather condescendingly before Ruby could even opened her mouth again.
Ruby growled in frustration and gripped the edge of the table, literally beginning to gnaw on it with her teeth.
"Uh, you're supposed to eat the food on the plate, not the table" Greg said, a little nervously.
"Dad, Gems don't need to eat" Steven said, tiredly, with a small note of impatience, rubbing his eyes together.
"Well, Garnet likes to eat sometimes" Greg said.
"Garnet's not here!" Ruby snapped, jumping back from the table and into the booth, fidgeting impatiently like a child throwing a tantrum.
"Ruby, I know you will cease this eventually" Sapphire said, warningly. "It is inevitable"
"That's what you think. I am an eternal flame baby!" Ruby declared boldly.
Steven groaned wearily and buried his face into his hand; he was starting to get the idea that Ruby and Sapphire were simply trying to outdo the other in some kind battle of stubbornness at this stage. Greg seemed to notice the increasingly aggravated look on Steven's face and eagerly took a forkful of his breakfast.
"Mmm, oh boy, this really is The Best Diner in the World" he said, humming with delight as he chewed, though it was clear that even he was now struggling to keep a positive outlook on things, as Ruby now started to shake the table back and forth, her pent-up anger mounting.
"Ruby, you're shaking the table." Sapphire said.
"Hah, I'm kinda surprised you felt anything at all, to be honest!" Ruby muttered bitterly.
"I didn't need to feel, I saw." Sapphire replied coldly.
"Everything is just so crustal clear to you isn't it!?" Ruby said, now shaking the table even harder, almost as though she was trying to spite Sapphire. The shaking became so violent that Steven and Greg had to quickly lift their plates off the table altogether.
"This will pass." Sapphire said to Steven and Greg. "She'll eventually just burn herself out."
"Or maybe you'll finally start to crack from the pressure!" Ruby retorted, summoning her gauntlet and banging it against the table, almost causing it to flip over as some of the cutlery spilled to the floor. Several other people in the diner where now taking notice of them.
"You don't know me!" Ruby snapped at Sapphire.
"How could I possibly not know you? We always fuse…" Sapphire retorted.
Steven hung his head down low and stared at the plate in his hands; his breakfast now shifted into a from a smiley face into frown. Steven sighed as he could feel his exhaustion beginning to overwhelm. He was too tried to think but also too stressed to rest either. He felt like his head was about to split from all the noise. He stared coldly up at Ruby and Sapphire who were still arguing; he couldn't even hear their words anymore as everything they were saying just seemed to blur together as an endless stream of pointless noise. He could barely even hear Greg's voice again as he tried to offer another positive reassurance on the situation.
"Hey, it's okay pal! We can still save this. Why don't we just bag our breakfast up to go…"
And then, suddenly, Steven felt something inside him just snap. Gripping the edges of his plate, he jumped out of his seat and threw his plate against the floor as hard as he could, the resulting noise loud enough that it caused Ruby and Sapphire to cease their bickering and focus on Steven.
"Can't you two just go back to being Garnet already so don't have to put up with anymore!?" Steven roared at them.
There was a profound moment of stunned silence in the diner as nobody seemed to move even a muscle. Ruby and Sapphire had finally seemed to take their mind of their arguing as they both stared at Steven in shock, along with Greg and every other patron in the diner.
After a few seconds, Steven felt his adrenaline pass and then slapped his hands over his mouth, the horrifying realization of what he had just done fully setting in. He looked down at his broken plate, now shattered into pieces and his breakfast now scattered over the floor.
"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to!" he said, now sounding terrified. "I…I…"
Feeling his body beginning to tremble with fear, Steven turned and ran straight of the diner, fighting back tears, feeling so ashamed of himself for yelling like that, for ruining their breakfast and making the trip even worse. He came to a stop on the outskirts of a small forest beside the diner, running out of breath very quickly. He placed his head into his hands, feeling so tried and drained. He didn't know how long he remained standing there. He just knew that everything around him just felt so wrong and that nothing was getting any better. Why couldn't things just go back to normal?
"Steven?"
Steven turned around to see his dad, along with Ruby and Sapphire, had all forllowed him from the diner and were looking at him with equal concern.
"Steven we….we need to ask you what's wrong now" Sapphire said solemnly.
"What's wrong?" Steven said incredulously. "What's wrong is that I was so happy to go on this trip with Dad. I thought it would be great to get out of the house, but everything here has just been as miserable as it is back home. It just followed us here and…and it's all my fault. Just like it's my fault Lapis is gone!"
"Wait, Lapis is gone?" Greg said, with surprise.
"Jasper tricked Lapis into fusing with Peridot and so I told Lapis the truth." Steven said, feeling like a sudden weight was being lifted off his chest as he finally was able to say it aloud. "But then it turned out that Peridot helped Jasper to trick Lapis the first time. So, then Lapis got really upset and then she just flew away, and I have no idea if she'll ever come back, and Peridot and Jasper won't even talk about it. Everything at home is awful and everything here has been awful too. "
Steven paused, as terrible realization seemed to strike him right in his chest like a sharp blade. "It really is me, isn't it? Now Lapis is gone, probably forever, Jasper's doesn't want me around anymore and Peridot won't get out of the bathroom. I should have…" Steven trailed off, feeling his eyes swell with tears again. I should have just stayed quiet. I only made it worse"
After Steven had finally finished, Greg gave his son a sombre look of sympathy before approaching him and kneeling down beside him, putting a consolidating hand on his shoulder.
"Hey, Stew-ball, come on." Greg said softly. "It is not your fault. You did the right thing by being honest. I know Lapis can be pretty raw sometimes and I don't pretend like I know everything about the Crystal Gems or how they work, but you're doing nobody any favours by lying to them about how you feel. Sometimes the truth is gonna hurt a little, even for the people you love."
Steven sniffed loudly, wiping away some of his tears with his arm.
"I…really don't like the Keystone State." he said quietly.
Greg smiled back at Steven in understanding, helping to dry away some of his tears. "Yeah, it's pretty crazy here. I mean, square pizza?" he added with a wryly smile.
Steven chuckled slightly, the horrible feeling in his chest beginning to subside once again as he embraced his dad into a warm hug.
This tender moment between father and son was then broken by a loud, piercing wailing sound coming from Ruby.
"Oh, this is all my fault!" she cried, tears streaming down her eyes. "I was so busy complaining about what I was feeling, I didn't even notice how upset Steven was. Why am I so stupid? I'm sorry, Sapphire, I should have listened to you, you always know what's best. I shouldn't have never even asked you anything about Homeworld, I should have kept my big mouth shut and…"
"Ruby, I would like to tell you about my time on Homeworld now" Sapphire said, cutting over Ruby's self-deprecating tirade.
Ruby turned to Sapphire with surprise, looking as though she had completely forgotten that this was the exact thing she had been demanding from Sapphire this whole trip.
"Oh, okay. If you want to" Ruby said, hesitantly.
Sapphire took a deep breath and composed herself as she turned to face Ruby directly. "While I was on Homeworld, I performed my duties as was expected of me and followed every rule to the letter. The last five thousand years were nothing more than the same set of regulatory patterns and predictable routines. There were no missteps, surprises or unforeseen variables to set me off my destined course. And every day…every day…..I..I…"
Sapphire voice began to crack, tears now trailing down her face as she struggled to continue, her whole body beginning to tremble violently as she suddenly became overwhelmed with emotion.
"Every day all I could think about was you and how you weren't there with me" she cried. "I had to stand by and wait until the day came where we would be reunited but I never once tried to make it happen faster. I'm sorry, I'm so sorry I took so long to find you because I was afraid you would hate me for taking so long." Sapphire buried her face into her hands as she began to wail.
"Oh, no, Sapphire, please don't cry." Ruby said at once, grabbing Sapphire by the arms to hold her steady. "I'm not mad at you for that. I just…I just wanted to know more so I would understand better."
Sapphire briefly choked up before she regained enough composure to continue. "I knew…I knew that you would understand when I told you this, but no matter how many times I saw this future, it never stopped hurting so much. Knowing that I had to tell you all this, but always dreading this moment when it would happen."
Ruby brushed away Sapphire's hair, revealing her single eye which was overflowing with tears and sorrow.
"It…it must have been so hard for you." Ruby said, solemnly, wiping away some of Sapphire's tears. "Being all alone for so long. All because I wasn't there for you"
"That's not your fault." Sapphire said, guiltily. "You were in a bubble. I wasn't. I had no excuse. I should have come for you sooner, but I was too busy looking so far ahead in the future where everything had already worked out for us."
"That's because you're the patient one." Ruby said, suddenly sounding happier than she had been since they arrived, smiling at Sapphire. "You knew to wait for the right time to bring us together. I don't care how much time we get. Any time with you is enough. We shouldn't waste anymore by fighting."
Sapphire smiled back, wiping away some of her tears from her eye. "Honestly, sometimes, I wish I could just think solutions right on the spot like you can"
"Oh, that's nothing special." Ruby said, dismissively. "I just know how to think about whatever is right in front of me. "
Ruby leaned in closer to Sapphire, with a suave expression. "And right now, you're all I can think about." she said smoothly.
Sapphire blushed brightly and playfully pushed Ruby away, smiling with embarrassment. "Oh, Ruby, stop! Not here"
"Come here you!" Ruby put her arms around Sapphire's waist and pulled her in closer, kissing her on the cheek and neck, as she squealed with joy.
Steven and Greg, who had remained where they were this whole time, shared an awkward glance with one another. They both quickly, and silently, averted their gaze in any direction other than Ruby and Sapphire, while doing their absolute best act like they couldn't hear them any longer.
Ruby and Sapphire twirled around in each other's arms as they broke into a sudden impromptu dance. Then, in the blink of an eye, they both vanished as they their bodies converted to light and melded together like a beautifully woven fabric. The light contorted and then solidified back into the familiar form of Garnet as she landed in the middle of the clearing.
Garnet arched her head back and let out a relaxed sigh of relief. "Phew. I needed that."
"Garnet! " Steven exclaimed with joy at the sight of her. "Does mean, Ruby and Sapphire are okay now?"
"Yes. I think some time apart does help." she said wisely. "And they had to be honest as well. So, thank you, Steven. And you too Greg." she said, turning to look at him. "I'm sorry that we made you uncomfortable for this past while. I appreciate you offering your home to me, so I have to learn to be a better house guest".
"Hey, not like I'm charging you any rent" Greg said, wryly.
Steven smiled, feeling grateful that things had finally been resolved between Ruby and Sapphire, but then was reminded of his own predicament.
"But what about Lapis?" Steven said, frowning. "How am I supposed to make things up to her when she's not even here?"
Garnet put her hand to her chin and pouted slightly as hummed to herself in deep thought. After seemingly making up her mind about something, Garnet took Steven by the shoulders and led him several feet away from Greg. She paused again and then moved Steven a few more inches to the right.
"Steven, I know things seems hard right now." Garnet said, kneeling down beside Steven. "But this will work out in the end, because the love you share with those around you is real, as real as the love there is between Ruby and Sapphire. Believe in that love and it will find a way to mend itself."
Garnet lifted Steven's arm up and held it up in the air as though he was meant to shake hands with an invisible person.
"Trust me, it's there." Garnet said, leaning closer to him, while looking the same direction. "Say how you feel, Steven. About Lapis. About everything. It doesn't matter. There are no wrong answers to how you feel."
Steven stared at the empty pocket of space that was in front of him, seeing nothing but the trees and clear blue sky. He wasn't entirely what Garnet was trying to do, but her confidence and warm presence made him felt sure that he could trust her judgement.
"I really…" Steven hesitated for a moment, before finding his resolve as he spoke. "I really miss you, Lapis. I keep looking up at the sky every day since you left, hoping you'll just come back down any second like you always do. And then when you don't… I just stop hoping. I know you must feel really hurt because of what happened and I'm so sorry about that. I'm sorry that we all let you down. "
Steven felt his eyes become watery again as tears rolled down his cheeks. Garnet, without warning, turned Steven's body around, so that he was facing the other direction, though Steven continued speaking undeterred.
"And I'm sorry I can't just say sorry to you in person because you're not even here. So please, just come home, wherever you are. Please, I know we can make things up somehow. But we can't do that unless you're here too."
Steven lowered his hand again and closed his eyes, feeling the wind pass over him. The pain inside his chest now seemed to have lessened somewhat.
"Do you think, Lapis will be able to hear me?" Steven asked wonderingly.
"No" Garnet said bluntly, standing up again. She then adjusted her visor. "But she will understand."
Garnet put hands on her hips and smiled proudly to both Steven and Greg. "Now come on, let's get our free ice and then get out of this horrible, horrible state"
"Best idea I've heard all day" Greg said. He then paused and threw a look back at the diner, where a number of people had gathered to around the window to watch them. "Um, let me just pay for the breakfast".
After arriving back home, Greg dropped off Steven at the Beach House and waved goodbye to him as he drove away in his van. Steven returned the gesture to both him and Garnet, who had resumed her vigil on the top of his van.
Making his way up the stairs, Steven entered the house. The lights were off, and he could see no one about as everything looked as untouched as when he left it. While Steven knew that things may not feel pleasant at the moment, this was still his home, and he had to make the best of it no matter what the future might hold.
Just then there was a knock on the door. Surprised, Steven instinctively turned around and opened the door.
And standing there on the front porch was Lapis Lazuli.
Steven stared at Lapis, completely wide-eyed, almost certain this had to be another dream. He then did a quick sweep around to see if he could spot anymore pink whales.
"Lapis?" he said, hesitantly.
Lapis smiled softly back at him. "Hey, Steven".
Steven felt his eyes overflowing with tears, before he let out a cry of joy and threw his arms around Lapis, hugging her as tightly as he could, fearing she might disappear again if he let go of her. Lapis gently put her arms around Steven's neck as she returned the hug, stroking the back of his head.
"Lapis, you're back! You came back!"
"Lapis…?"
Steven broke away from Lapis and turned to see Jasper now standing in the kitchen, looking at them as though she had seen a literal ghost.
"Look, Jasper! Lapis is back!" Steven cheered, wiping some of the tears from his eye.
There was a loud crashing noise from the bathroom, followed by a rapid padder of small feet before the door to the bathroom burst open. Peridot rushed into the living room, having finally broken out of her malaise, her eyes and body now bursting with newfound energy.
"Lapis! You're really here!" she said, wide-eyed.
"You…you came back" Jasper said as though she still could not believe it.
Lapis said nothing and simply stared at Jasper and Peridot with a cold, impassive expression. She then glanced down at Steven, her face softening into a small smile.
"I'm here for Steven" she said, clear and firm, resting her hand on Steven's shoulder. She looked back Jasper and Peridot with a dark glare, her expression hardening once more and her voice turning ice cold. "And nothing else"
Peridot seemed to shrink away from Lapis piercing stare and hung her head low in shame, clearly hurt by her statement. Jasper held a steady gaze with Lapis, appearing neither defiant nor abashed, but refusing to turn away from her, nonetheless.
By nighttime, Steven was just about to get ready for bed, hoping to sleep off the rest of his exhaustion. After washing up and putting on his pyjamas, he was about to head up to his bed, when he looked out the window and spotted Lapis, sitting alone on one of the Temple arms.
Knowing that there was one last thing he needed to do before committing to a good night sleep, Steven stepped outside and walked up the stone arm, taking a seat next to Lapis on the statues hand.
"Hey, Steven" Lapis greeted casually.
Steven said nothing and simply widdled his thumbs together, as he stared up at Lapis for no apparent reason at all.
"Is something wrong?" she asked, unperturbed by his behaviour.
"I'm just… really glad you came back." he said, for what might have been the millionth time today, but he still just as happy every time he said it. "And I also want to say that I'm sorry. Sorry for the want happened and-"
"You don't need to apologise, Steven" Lapis said solemnly. "You're the only one who didn't lie to me. I'm the one who should be sorry for how I took off like that. I always run when things get hard. But I when I saw how upset you were today, Steven, I realized how much I was hurting you by leaving. I could never let myself hurt you, because you would never hurt me"
Steven blinked in confusion, taking a few seconds to process all that, but there was one part that left him baffled. "Wait….you saw that I was upset today?" he said. "How? Were you spying me?"
"Well, I wouldn't call it spying, because that would make me feel bad." Lapis said, without a trace of guilt. "But I couldn't stand not knowing what was happening to you, Steven. So that's why, I'm going to stay right here. No matter how hard it gets."
Steven smiled and yawned again, his exhaustion finally catching up to him. He leaned in closer to Lapis, slowly letting his head fall down onto her lap. "Well, I'm just happy you're back. And now that you are, maybe that means things can start feel the way they used to be…around… here."
Steven quietly nodded off, finally falling asleep on Lapis' lap. Lapis sighed and gently rubbed Steven's head, as she leaned her back, staring up to the sky with her eyes half closed, her gaze lingering on the moon for a long while.
"Yeah. That would be nice." she whispered, wistfully