Author's Note: Short chapter because I'm currently reviewing other drafts and mapping out the lore for that one thing, haha. I'll settle for 39 stars today; let's shoot for more next chapter.
"So," I said, looking over at Lars.
I asked him if things with Sadie were going well, or if he was still getting all worked up over every little thing. He didn't answer right away. Instead, Lars slapped me on the back of the head.
"Ow," I said, faking pain as I rubbed my head.
"We're taking it slow," Lars whispered, keeping his voice down so Sadie wouldn't hear.
"Right on, man," I said with total seriousness. "Like a wise man once said: take it step by step. There are fifteen steps, just pace yourself."
Lars raised an eyebrow, clearly intrigued.
"And what's at step fifteen?" he asked, raising his eyebrow even higher.
I gave him a knowing look, saying nothing else.
"Oh," Lars said, turning bright red, though a smug smirk crept onto his face anyway.
"Nah, maybe we're on step seven," he added with a shrug.
"Perfect," I replied. We locked eyes for a moment, as if we had just sealed a sacred pact.
After a few seconds of silence, I asked for my coffee. It took Lars a second to snap out of it and remember why he'd gone back there in the first place.
"Oh, right," he said, turning around.
I just chuckled a bit, feeling more relaxed.
"It's just that it's morning, and it's nice to see a familiar face, you know?" he mentioned as he poured the coffee.
"Whatever, this coffee isn't even for me. If it were, we'd be chatting the whole time," I said, grabbing a few donuts and paying for them.
I told him to say hi to Sadie for me and walked out of the Big Donut.
I floated lazily across most of Beach City before landing gently by the car wash.
"Dad?" I called out, walking toward the van.
"Stevo!" Greg replied, stepping out of the vehicle.
"Getting ready to open?" I asked, raising an eyebrow.
"Yeah, though your old man has been pretty busy lately. I just fixed five tourist engines a little while ago. Pretty incredible, right?" he said proudly.
"Damn, nice," I responded with genuine admiration.
"Now you've got everything you need for a good cup of coffee, right?" I added.
"A coffee?" Greg said happily, taking the cup from me. "From the Big Donut?"
"The one and only," I replied, sitting down in a chair.
I pulled some fruit out of my bag and left a few pieces for my dad to keep his health in check.
"You need to eat right. I'm always telling you you're getting a bit chubby," I told my dad with a straight face. He just scratched the back of his neck, at a loss for words.
We both laughed and started talking. It had been a while since we'd had such a nice chat, and honestly, it was pretty therapeutic—not just for the body, but for the mind. The hours flew by. I fell back into my old routine a bit; I always loved spending time with my dad, but with all the stress surrounding Jasper lately, I hadn't been able to. Though, to be honest, that stress wasn't entirely over.
"I'm heading out, Dad," I said, starting to float.
"Take care, Stevo," he replied as we did an epic fist bump, just like always.
"Bye," I said before taking off into the air.
Watching the ground shrink beneath me, I adjusted my course and headed straight for the house. I touched down softly in front of the door and pushed it open. No one was home, not even Lapis. The Gems had practically dragged her along on a mission.
I shook my head, remembering how that request had gone down.
I walked calmly toward the temple door, and it slid open on its own. As it closed behind me, the illusion of my mother appeared, walking alongside me with that signature, commanding calm of hers.
"You're going, aren't you?" she asked.
"Unfortunately, yeah. I trust Pearl, but it's better to have a backup plan ready."
My mother's hologram fell silent for a moment.
"And Bismuth?"
I froze.
Silence filled the entire room.
"You forgot about her, didn't you?"
My silence was answer enough. My mother's image started laughing hysterically.
"HAHAHAHA, you actually forgot about her!"
"Damn it," I muttered, burying my face in my hands.
I'll let her out later. It's not like she can feel anything right now anyway, I thought, keeping my stride as if I hadn't heard a thing.
An anime-style sweatdrop appeared on my mother's hologram, but she kept walking behind me anyway.
"Well, it's your call. I can't leave this room regardless," she said, ruffling my hair.
I could practically feel the anger veins popping on my forehead.
"Just tell me where the red tube is to get to the other rooms," I said, annoyed.
"Right here. And, son..."
"Yeah?" I replied, stepping onto the tube.
"Good luck."
I nodded in silence as I descended into the depths of the temple.
My mother vanished the moment I left the main room behind. As I dropped further into the temple, I couldn't stop wondering what I would even say to her. Besides, I had a feeling Peridot might be corrupted too, so just in case, I planned to hit her with my spit before she could fully reform. If I remembered the show correctly, Steven had tried to do something similar with Jasper before she turned, so the theory was solid... it just needed putting into practice.
I passed through various rooms—Pearl's, Amethyst's, and finally, the one I was looking for.
I reached the heart of the temple.
Looking around, I saw countless Gems. Hundreds? Thousands? Maybe. There were too many, all sealed away in floating bubbles. I looked carefully, making sure Garnet wasn't around. I just floated there, pacing slowly through the air as my eyes scanned Gems that hadn't even appeared in the show.
...
...
...
My gaze landed on Jasper's gemstone. I stared at it for a long moment.
"Should I just shatter you?" I said aloud, addressing no one in particular.
My gem began to glow softly, as if trying to soothe me... and it worked.
I shook my head. Even so, I knew I'd find a use for Jasper eventually. I kept walking through the air, checking out Gems from past missions: sand gems, water gems, some with bizarre shapes, others just downright grotesque.
"Uglier than sin," I muttered upon spotting the tenth one of those things... and there were still more left.
"Here it is," I said, spotting a triangular green gemstone. It looked clear, but to be safe, I carefully brought it down to the ground and set it apart from the rest.
...
I stared intensely at the bubble for several seconds, during which the entire chamber seemed to hold its breath, waiting for my move.
"Whatever," I muttered, smearing spit on my hand and popping the bubble.
The gem didn't waste any time and began to glow. Before the form could fully materialize, I swiped my spit-covered hand across it. The glow dimmed, growing calmer, as if a massive weight had been lifted from it.
I summoned my shield just in case and watched as the Gem simply dropped to the floor. I noticed small remnants of corruption still lingering around her feet. I stayed on guard, watching the Gem in front of me, who was just staring at the ground.
She slowly looked around, her face turning even paler as she took in all the bubbled Gems. When her eyes met mine, I expected rage, sadness, hatred... something.
But no.
She just broke down, falling to her knees and sobbing uncontrollably.
"Thank you... thank you, thank you," Peridot repeated over and over.
I was left speechless. The Peridot I knew from the show—arrogant, proud, even after all her character development—was now practically bowing before me.
I watched her in silence for a few seconds, letting her cry it out as much as she needed.
Finally, she looked up and met my eyes.
"Hey," I said with a gentle smile. "Welcome back to the world without being a crazy fusion."
I guess that wasn't the best choice of words, because she started crying all over again. I calmly sat down next to her, just watching. We had time—or so I thought, since the girls were out on a mission and I honestly didn't want to explain why I had a hysterically crying Peridot inside the temple.
"Are you okay now?" I asked softly.
She nodded slowly, her hands still resting on the floor.
"Do you want to get out of here?" I added. "Just a heads-up, there might be some trouble waiting outside."
She looked up while I gave her a reassuring smile.
She sighed.
"You wouldn't just let me out out of the goodness of your heart, would you?"
I snorted.
"Nothing's free, Peridot," I said, though I offered an encouraging smile. "Right now, you've got two options."
Her eyes lit up with a glint of hope.
"You can come with me and help me deal with the Cluster, or you can go right back into a bubble."
She tensed up at the mention of the Cluster, but she still made her choice.
"I'll help you, but..." she said, glancing at one specific gemstone. "Don't let her out."
"I won't," I replied instantly. "She doesn't deserve it."
I started walking toward the temple exit.
"You coming?"
Peridot took one last look at the yellow gemstone, giving it a glare filled with pure hatred, and then ran to catch up with me.
And just like that, a new chapter began in Steven's seemingly normal life.
End of Chapter 51.