"text like this and in italics is singing"
Here's the second chapter! Longer than the first and another time point in Steven's life leading up to his appearance in Templeschool. These chapters are a bit more disjointed since it's hints of Steven's mental state leading up to his discovery of the hourglass. This was the idea that I couldn't let go, so I did have to retcon Templeschool because originally my story happened before Prickly Pair. Not much changes, but I will go back and eventually edit it.
Everything is okay! Everything is is smiled widely as he paced back and forth in his room. Normally, he would be building lesson plans and looking over the Little Homeschool reports, but he didn't have to do that anymore—because he quit! He wasn't in charge of Little Homeschool anymore, which was perfectly okay! Everything is okay! But, now, he needed to find something else to do. Steven brightened as an idea came to his mind. He could-! No, Lars was out in space with the Off Colors. He sighed. If Lars wasn't there, there was no point ingoing to the bakery. The gem that worked the counter was nice and all, but he loved going to the bakery to help Lars bake. It would hurt to see the bakery and think of all the times they had baked together, laughing about old memories and Lars sharing stories or tips on how to bake. That was a bust. Steven hummed in thought. He could-! No, Sadie and Shep were really nice about it, but he couldn't face them after almost killing everyone with his new power. Besides, he didn't know Shep like he knew the Suspects. They probably wouldn't appreciate him interrupting their band practice. And going to Little Homeschool was out. He paced more furiously as he wracked his brain for something, anything to distract him from the thoughts in his head. Of his friends leaving him behind. Of him almost killing-."No. Stop Steven. Don't go there." He furiously brushed his hands through his hair. "Think, Steven! What are you good at? What is something time-consuming that you can do instead?" He groaned loudly in frustration. He couldn't think of anything to do instead. He knew how to cook, but that wasn't something he felt he could do all day. He was the main person who ate the vegetarian food, and no oneelse cooked in the house besides himself. And yeah, Amethyst would eat anything, but cooking for himself barely passed the time. Maybe he could go to the conservatory andjust warp to a random location? There wasn't anything that needed to be done on other planets or places on Earth. Still, he needed something to do, and… well… this was something.
He sighed again as he made his way up the stairs to the universe warp pad. The doors opened with the press of his hand, and he felt his mood deflate at the shiny crystal interior of the conservatory. He felt uncomfortable with the empty reflective room. It just reminded him further of Homeworld and the Diamonds. He wished he could make this place feel less cold. His eyes widened. That was it! He looked around the room again. Lots of open space, tons of sunlight; this place make a perfect greenhouse! He grinned before the smile wilted off of his face. He could easily fill this place with trees and flowers with his powers. It would take no time at all. Buthe didn't have to use his powers, did he? The smile quickly returned to his face. Plants took months to grow! He could quickly fill this place with seeds and pots and grow them naturally! That would take ages and require constant care and maintenance! His mind was racing with thoughts about the plants he could fill the space with. The high ceiling meant he could probably fit fruit trees in here as well. Steven darted out of the conservatory! He had a lot of shopping to do!
Steven's new hobby did exactly what he wanted. It kept him easily occupied for months. May quickly faded into June, then July. His plants were thriving, and Steven felt a burst of pride in his chest as he stared at the blooming flowers and leafy bushes in his conservatory. Sadie and Lars were looking so pretty! And so was Connie! His plant friends were growing so nicely that he couldn't wait to show the gems. He checked the time on his phone and noted they should be done with Little Homeschool soon. He quickly grabbed his watering can and finished his rounds before darting downstairs. He wanted to catch them the moment they came in so he could show them his new greenhouse! Sprinting down the stairs, he noted that the living room was still empty. That was fine! He had no problem with waiting for them to show. He rechecked the time. The day's last class was just ending, so they would probably be back within the next half hour. Then, he could show them his plants. He just knew they would be impressed! And that would prove that this was his true calling. Even as he thought that, he could feel the doubt in his mind. Making him wonder if this was what he actually wanted to do. He shook his head to clear the thought away. 'No, this was relaxing, and-, and- the plants were so pretty and healthy, and theyneededhim. They wouldn't leave him like-. "Stop thinking like that." He took a deep breath. He wished the thoughts would juststop.
Suddenly, a bright pink light filled the room. Steven stiffened in shock. For some reason, that stupid room kept trying to get his attention. He huffed at it. As far as he knew, the gems' rooms weren't sentient, but his mom's room had always been sentient to him. This was the 4thtime it had tried to get his attention. "I know you want something from me, but I don't care. You've been nothing but trouble whenever you try to 'help' me with something." The glow didn't fade. Instead, it got brighter. Steven growled in frustration and stormed out of the room. He was intent on returning to the conservatoryto avoid the gem door when a haunting song filled the air.
"Ah, ah, ah, ah."
He froze in place. Steven had no idea where that song was coming from. Hesitantly, he turned to face the stairwell. Was it coming from downstairs? He cautiously walked back into the living room. The song was even louder now. It was coming from the door. The entire room was bright pink as the rose quartz gem brightened even more. "No! I don't know how you're doing that, but leave me alone!" He ground his teeth together as he spun around and returned to the conservatory. He could always show the gems tomorrow. Steven glared at the floor, then paused as he noticed that his mulch pile was low. He only had one bag of dirt left. "That's it!" He smiled, mood-lifting as he texted out a message to Amethyst. If the gems could pick up some more mulch for him, he could stay out of the living room while getting the gems to come up and see his plants! This was gonna be great!
It was not great. It all went wrong. So wrong. Steven wasn't even sure how this could've happened. Cactus Steven was gone. The gems were more concerned than ever. The front of the house was destroyed-! He quietly walked back to his room and lay down in bed. He could hear the gems shuffling around downstairs, likely cleaning up the mess from the fight. The cactus flower that Cactus Steven had given him laid on his bedside table. Why did everyone he cared about leave? He had only had Cactus Steven for two days, and Stevenalmost ruined him. He was mean, spiteful,violent. Was Steven cursed? He thought his plants would never leave him, but apparently, they would if they could. Why was he like this? What had changed? He shifted to lie on his back and stared at the ceiling. Well, at least that hadn't changed. Staring at the ceiling was something he did even when he was little. He remembered always waiting around for the gems and sometimes staying awakejust in case they came into the living room for some reason. So he could run up to them and greet them. See how they were doing. See if they would spend time with him. This he was familiar with. If anything, things were returning to how itused to be. Let's spend time with Steven only when we need him. Otherwise, let's do anything else.
'Sorry, Steven! Can't talk now. I'm off to find more junk for my garbage piles.'
'I am very busy right now, Steven. I need to meditate on where the next attack is going to be.'
'Not right now, Steven. I have so much to do right now. But maybe this evening,all right?'
Steven frowned before turning onto his side. He pulled his pillow over his head and closed his eyes. He didn't want things to go back to the way they were. He wanted things to stay the same. But everything kept changing. And there was nothing he could do to stop it.