#The number of times and ways I quietly shouted STEVEN?! at my screen

[ltcdrmcgarrett]

Soldier!Steve appreciation in 7x24

[ryan-the-whisk-taker]

New Mission Chapter 17

(Like chapter 5, this chapter will be longer than most other chapters in the story. But this one does not contain any possibly triggering content.)

Big City Livin’

A few months later, Jade, Greg and Steven were on their way to Empire City, so Jade could get a surprise for Garnet. “So, what’s this place like?” Jade asked Greg. “Loud, busy, crowded, fun.”

“Like Homeworld?” Greg shrugged. “I dunno. I’ve spent most of my time here on Earth, but if that’s how you’d describe your home planet, then sure.” Jade looked out the window at the bright lights and sighed. “What’s wrong?” Steven asked. “Well, I guess I’m just a little sad. This place is so much like Homeworld, and I can’t believe I’m saying this, but I kinda miss that place.” Steven looked at Jade with a concerned look on his face. “I understand. Pearl misses space, too.”

“It’s not just space, it’s the entire Gem empire I miss. Sure, Garnet’s here, and so are you and my other friends, but I had friends back there, too… I might’ve even had a Pearl of my own!” Jade took a deep breath. “But, I’m happy here. I have more friends here than I had back there, and I don’t have to listen to a tyrant Gem like Yellow Diamond.” Greg laughed. “I’m glad you like it here. I’ve been here forever, but Homeworld doesn’t seem like a good place to live.” They continued to drive until Steven said, “Ooh! There’s the jewelry store! Didn’t you need some rings or something, Jade?”

“Oh yeah, I did. Um, if I tell you what the rings are for, do you promise not to tell Garnet?” Steven nodded. “I’m planning to propose to her, so I need to buy rings for Ruby and Sapphire,” Jade whispered. “Cool! I’m sure she’ll be surprised, as long as she doesn’t use her future vision to see it.”

“I sure hope she doesn’t see it coming,” she said as Greg parked the van in front of the store. Greg got out of the van and opened the door to let Steven and Jade out. “Thanks for taking me here, Mr. Universe.”

“You’re welcome.”

Jade opened the door and let herself into the store, Steven and Greg following. “Welcome! Are you looking for anything in particular?” The woman at the front desk asked. “Actually, yes I am. I’m looking for two engagement rings, for my girlfriends.”

“Oh! Well then, you should look over here.” Jade followed the woman over to the display case filled with rings. “So, were you looking for any specific stones?”

“Stones?” Jade asked. “Right, I hadn't even noticed that you're a Gem. These are gemstones made here on Earth, but they don't have projected forms like you. We have almost all gemstones here for rings.” The woman handed Jade a list of gems, cuts and ring styles. “Hmm… Maybe, two cubic zirconia rings, circular cut, and this style. Could you do that?”

“Of course! Let me just see how much that'll cost you.” The cashier punched a few numbers into the register, and the price $100 appeared on the screen. “Wow, that's cheaper than I thought it would be,” Jade said. “Would you like to pay now, or after we fit the rings?”

“After. Oh wait, how are we gonna fit the rings if Ruby and Sapphire can't find out?” Steven looked up at Jade. “Can't you just shapeshift your hands to look like theirs?”

“Oh yeah!” Jade proceeded to shapeshift her left hand to look like Ruby’s hand. “I forgot Gems could do that…” the cashier said. “You know a lot about Gems, it seems,” Greg replied. “Yeah, my ancestors were friends with a Green Opal.”

“Cool! I don't know if I've ever met a Green Opal,” Jade said thoughtfully. “So, are you ready to fit the rings?”

“Yep!” Jade held out her left hand, still shapeshifted to look like Ruby’s, and the cashier measured her finger. “Okay, I have the measurements for Ruby, now I just need Sapphire’s.” Jade shapeshifted once again, this time making her hand the same size as Sapphire’s. The cashier measured again, and wrote down both measurements. “Okay! And can I have a phone number? If you have a phone, that is.”

“Um, Steven? Would you mind if I used your phone number for this?” Jade asked her friend. “Of course not! Go right ahead!” Jade gave the cashier Steven’s number. “Thank you! We'll call you when the rings are ready for pickup.” Jade smiled and summoned a stack of money from her gemstone. “Thank you!” She said before she left, Greg and Steven behind her.

“That was easier than I expected.” Jade said with a sigh of relief. “Yeah. By the way, where’d you get all that money?” Steven asked. “Um… Amethyst gave it to me. But I’m not sure where she got it,” Jade answered. “Oh, okay. So, should we head home, or do you want to spend some more time here? I mean, it’s a pretty fun city.”

“I guess we could spend some time here, if you want,” Jade said to Steven. “Okay! Dad, where should we go?”

“Hmm… Maybe we could go to the hotel we went to once with Pearl? I still have plenty of money left over from that,” Greg said to his son. “Okay! Jade, you’re gonna love it there! The room we got last time was huge!” Steven said with a big smile. “I’m sure I will,” Jade said and ruffled up Steven’s curly mess of hair.

Greg pulled out of the parking lot and drove to the hotel he stayed at last time he had been in Empire City. “And, we’re here!” Greg said as he parked the van in front of the hotel. “Woah…” Jade said while looking out the window at the massive building in front of her.

The three of them walked into the hotel, and the man at the front desk recognized Greg as soon as he saw him. “Mr. Greg!” He cried. “Welcome back! I see you brought your son with you. Oh!” The man noticed Jade standing behind Steven. “And who’s this lovely lady?” Jade blushed. “Um, my name is Jade. We’re just in town looking for some rings for my girlfriend,” Jade explained. “I see. Well, I hope you three enjoy your stay!” The man said after Greg handed him a stack of bills and walked away. “Thank you, sir!” Jade called. “Just call me ‘Ricky’!”

“Okay! Thank you, Ricky!” The three of them walked into an elevator and went up to the top floor.

“Steven, this place is amazing!” Jade exclaimed when they exited the elevator. “Yep! It even has a pool!” Steven replied. “A pool? What’s that?”

“Well, it’s a big pit-like thing filled with water, and you can swim and play in it! It’s really fun.”

“Cool! I think Blue Diamond has something like that on Homeworld. Although, no one except her, the other Diamonds, or their Pearls have seen it from the inside,” Jade said thoughtfully.

“Huh. Oh, you also have to wear this thing called a swimsuit, and it’s pretty waterproof.” Steven pulled out his phone and showed Jade a picture of a girl in a swimsuit. “Hmm… Like this?” Jade started glowing, and when she stopped, she was wearing a lime green, one-piece swimsuit with circular cutouts on the sides. “Yeah! Just like that! It’s a good thing I packed my swimsuit, too. I had a feeling we’d be staying here for the night. I’ll go get changed!” Steven said before running upstairs with his hot dog duffel bag.

When he came back down, he was wearing a pair of yellow swim trunks. “Ready!”

“Great! Now what do we do?”

“Well, we can either jump or climb in, or… We could use the water slide!” Steven ran over to the large slide leading to the water and climbed up the ladder, Jade hesitantly following behind. “Are you sure about this, Steven?” She asked. “Yeah! It’s really fun. Do you wanna go before me?”

“Um, sure…? But can you tell me what I’m supposed to do first?”

“Okay! First, you need to sit down, then you push yourself forward and then, you slide!” Jade followed Steven’s instructions, and sat down. “Now I just, push myself?” Steven nodded. “Yep!”

“Okay…” Jade slowly pushed herself forward, and suddenly got caught by the water. Then she slid down the slide into the pool. “Woah! That’s cold!” Jade shouted after coming back up. “Yeah, it takes a little bit to get used to. But it feels nice after a while,” Steven said before he went down the slide. “Wooo hooo!” He slid down into the pool, and swam over to his friend. “You seem to really like this!” Jade said and Steven nodded in response. “I guess it is pretty fun,” she agreed.

Jade and Steven stayed in the pool for about half an hour more, then got out and changed. Steven changed into his pajamas, and walked back out to the main room. “I see you’re ready for bed!” Jade said to her friend. “Yep! I know you’re a Gem, so you don’t need to sleep, but are you going to?” Steven asked. “I’d like to. I mean, I did have a bed in my house on Homeworld. But where would I sleep? From what I’ve seen, there’s only one bed.”

“Hmm… I’m sure you could sleep on the couch in the bedroom, if you wanted to. Dad and I were gonna sleep on the bed.”

“I don’t mind sleeping on the couch. Besides, you two need to sleep and I don’t. So if I wake up in the middle of the night, I hopefully won’t wake you guys up.”

While Steven and Greg slept, Jade sat on the couch, thinking about her home planet. She sighed “Why do I keep thinking about her? I’m a Crystal Gem now, I shouldn’t think about her.” Then she stood up, and walked over to the balcony. “I shouldn’t miss her. She was cruel… Alexandrite is right-She probably just replaced us…” Tears started forming in Jade’s eyes. “She doesn’t care about us… She probably wishes I had never even been made!” Jade yelled and slammed her fist into the wall. The sound of the impact woke up Steven, then he slowly and quietly walked over to his friend. “Jade? Are you okay?”

“N-no… I’m not okay…” Jade said to Steven. “I woke up, and I was thinking about her… Y-Yellow Diamond…”

“I understand. Peridot used to be like that. She still felt loyal to her. I know why you’re thinking about her-You’re still not used to being on Earth, and you still feel kinda loyal to Yellow Diamond. I’m sorry, Jade,” Steven said. “I know you’re trying to make me feel better, but I’m not sure if it’s gonna work. Like I said on our way to the jewelry store, I really miss Homeworld. It’s, where I was made. The first time I had left Homeworld, was for the war…”

“You fought in the war against Mom?” Jade nodded. “Yeah, I did. I was one of the soldiers fighting on Homeworld’s side. I got poofed a few times, and I was nearly shattered by a Bismuth, but everyone said I was a tough fighter.” Jade chuckled. “It was actually kinda fun, fighting all those rebels. I never thought I’d be on the other end of the fight. I was actually there when your mom, y’know, shattered her own Diamond. I didn’t meet your mom, but from the day the war started, I was taught that I should never trust a Rose Quartz. But now, I can.” Steven smiled. “Yes you can. I’m glad you’re my friend, Jade.” He then hugged Jade’s waist tightly. “I’m glad you’re my friend, too, Steven. You’re a better friend than Emerald or Diamond were. Although, if I had completed my mission, I might’ve gotten my own Pearl, like the elites. I had a dream where I got a Pearl, the day before I accidentally, poofed myself…” Steven thought for a moment. “You said a Bismuth almost shattered you. Do you remember what that Bismuth looked like?”

“Yeah, why?”

“I know a Bismuth, who wanted to shatter Homeworld Gems. We might be talking about the same Gem.”

“Did she look like this?” Jade began projecting an image of a Bismuth. She had tattoos of stars, and rainbow dreadlocks. But most importantly, she had her gemstone in her chest. “Oh, my, gosh… We are talking about the same Bismuth! She made this weapon called ‘The Breaking Point’, and she wanted to use it to shatter Homeworld Gems, especially Pink Diamond. She and Mom got in the fight, and Bismuth ended up getting poofed, so Mom bubbled her away in Lion’s mane. Then, I accidentally popped her bubble and she reformed. She stayed with us for about a day, training, watching tv, cooking pizza. But then she showed me the Breaking Point, and I told her that shattering Gems was wrong. She starting saying I lied to her, and that I was actually my mom. I ended up poofing her again, and I told Garnet, Amethyst and Pearl what happened. She’s been in the burning room ever since. I didn’t know that Mom had shattered Pink Diamond at the time.” Steven noticed Jade staring at him. “Wh-what?” He asked.

“You, took down a Bismuth? I could never do that! The closest I’ve ever been to a Bismuth, was when she almost shattered me. You’re amazing, Steven!”

“Heh… It’s nothing, really… I was just defending myself.”

“Still! Although, you are half Quartz, so I guess it shouldn’t be too shocking. But I still can’t believe such a young Gem could take down a Bismuth who fought in the war!” Steven blushed. “Well, she did try to shatter me, but I understand why- She thought I was the one who bubbled her. I’d be upset too, if the mother of my new friend lied to me.” Jade yawned. “I think you should get some sleep, Steven.”

“What about you? You seem sleepy, too.”

“Y’know, I think I will get some sleep. We have a long trip home tomorrow, after all.” Jade walked Steven back to the bed his father was still sleeping on, and gave him a hug before walking back to the couch.

The next morning, Steven and Greg were ready to go by the time Jade woke up. “Good morning, Jade!” Steven said when Jade walked into the main room. “Hmm? Oh, morning, Steven…” Jade said groggily. “Did you sleep well?”

“Not really. I wasn’t too comfortable on the couch.”

“I’m sorry. Maybe we’ll get a second bed if we come here again.” Jade smiled weakly. “Thanks, Steven.”

“No problem! That’s what friends do, right?” She nodded. “Yes, it is what friends do.”

A few minutes later, Jade, Greg and Steven checked out of the hotel and walked to the van outside. “This was nice. Thanks for taking me here, Mr. Universe.”

“No problem! I haven’t gone on a trip with a Gem since I came here with Pearl, but this was fun! By the way-” Greg looked at Jade. “Good luck with Garnet. I’m sure she’ll be really happy when you propose to Ruby and Sapphire.” Jade smiled at Greg. “Thanks. I hope you’re right.” They got into the van and drove back home to Beach City.

[connieswap]

This What if prompt was asked by Hyuuint on AO3: What if Lapis was two feet tall? [Author’s Note: We sorta ended up writing this one as “What if Lapis was two INCHES tall?” instead, but by the time we realized we did that, br42 had written most of this material and we liked it, so yeah - CoreyWW]

Everyone stared at Connie in disbelief, except for Steven whose eyes went huge.

Connie’s cheeks flushed.

“I dunno!” Connie said. “I figured at least that question couldn’t show anything scarring.”

Lapis sighed. “Fine, but I want a front row seat for this.”

She closed her eyes and there was a brief flash of light. She shrunk down to a size almost resembling a fairy or sprite from a fantasy story. Lapis formed tiny water wings and fluttered onto Connie’s shoulder.

Steven put his hands over his mouth.

“So cute,” he mumbled.

“YEAH, TINY LAPIS!” Lapis said, sticking her hands up in the air.

As she said that, the T.A.C.O lit up ...

There was an image of a Gem battlefield, giant axes and splintered swords strewn across the ground. The grass is wet. The sound of loud waves can be heard crashing nearby.

A yellow Quartz soldier followed by several Rubies are seen fleeing, chased by a wall of water. One of the Rubies tripped on a rock, only to be engulfed by the wave.

A tiny blue Gem is seen floating overhead, laughing.

“I AM A SEXY SHOELESS GODDESS OF WAR!” she yelled triumphantly.

There was static before a different image was shown.

A Gem Connie had never seen before was on screen. She was green, almost watermelon colored, with a matching Gem on her nose just like Jasper. Long white hair flowed from her head. All four of her eyes were gleaming as she gave a horrible smile.

She also only about as tall as Doug, a little shy of six foot.

An unusually large Ruby with multiple Gems (one on her eyeball, one on her arm) pointed and laughed at the watermelon Gem.

“Is that it?!” she said. “Where’s the rest of you?!”

Two of the eyes on the watermelon Gem twitched. Without another word, she raised her fist in the air.

A geyser of water seemed to erupt from nowhere, vaguely in the shape of a fist, smashing into the Ruby and sending her through the air, out of sight.

There was static before showing a cavern somewhere filled with lava all around. A muscular grey Gem with rainbow dreadlocks was holding a massive hammer, even larger than the one Lapis had in their real dimension.

“Okay, Raindrop, I’ll ask you one more time,” the big Gem said. “Are you sure you don’t want me to make this a little smaller?”

Tiny Lapis fluttered into view. Steam was wafting off her wings from the heat, but she seemed undeterred.

“Nonsense!” Lapis said, laying her hands on the hammer. “I have this under contro-”

The big Gem released her grip on the hammer. It and Lapis both fell with a dull thud to the ground.

“... ow,” Lapis said as she picked herself up.

The big Gem gave a weak smile. “Yeah, so that was gravity. It’s a thing this planet has. You might have heard of it.”

“Ha-freaking-ha.” Lapis rolled her eyes. She kicked the hammer. “Well, that sucks.”

“Look, I know it’s my thing, but you don’t really need a weapon to be deadly,” the big Gem chuckled. “You do a pretty good job destroying stuff without it.”

Lapis folded her arms, her eyes downcast.

“Some would say too good,” Lapis mumbled.

The big Gem’s smile faded.

“I... I didn’t mean it like ...” She trailed off before rubbing her chin. “Hmm ...” The big Gem picked up the hammer and examined it. “Maybe if I hollowed out the head of the hammer and filled it with water, you could use your powers to control it and deal with the weight that way.”

Lapis looked up, eyes gleaming.

“Really?!”

“I think that could work, yeah.”

Lapis squeed.

“Aww, you’re the best, Bismuth!” Lapis shouted. Lapis flew up to Bismuth’s cheek and squeezed it. “Tiny hugs!”

“I like tiny hugs,” the Gem called Bismuth said.

After a brief visual distortion, the image turned to show, surprisingly, Peridot laying on the Temple floor. Her diamond-shaped hair was frizzy. Her hands were clasped in front of the yellow diamond insignia on her outfit.

Lapis stood in front of her, looking up at a bewildered Citrine and Jasper.

“She followed me home! Can I keep her?” Lapis asked.

Connie walked over to a closed Big Donut box on the table. She looked around to make sure no one could see her before opening the box.

Inside was a tiny Lapis, covered in crumbs with a bulging stomach.

Connie sighed.

There was a bright light as the 4’5” Hiddenite diffused. Peridot and Lapis fell to the ground as fireworks shot over Steven’s backyard.

Lapis picked herself up, her eyes filled with shame.

“Oh no, I--I’m sorry. I’m sorry. I’M SO SORRY!” Lapis formed her wings to fly away.

“Oh no you don’t!” Connie said as she pulled out a butterfly net. She swung it, catching Lapis out of the air.

“NO FAIR USING THE NET!” Lapis shouted.

Nearby, they heard Steven say, “Hang on, let me get a pickle jar.”

After the static broke, a different tiny Gem, one that looked like a cross between a five year old and a fairy, was pointing a wand at Lapis. Lapis was brandishing her hammer.

“Sorry, shortstop,” Lapis said. “But this planet ain’t big enough for the two of us.”

The fairy Gem groaned.

“You’re not going to make my assignment easy, are you?” she said in what sounded exactly like a British accent.

“THERE CAN BE ONLY ONE!” Lapis said, charging forward with her hammer.

The T.A.C.O finally went dark.

Lapis crossed her legs, still in her shrunken form. She was now gently resting in Steven’s curly hair. Steven acted like a puppy was gently resting on his head, unable to stop smiling.

“Wow, that was a long one.” She looked to Peridot. “Speaking of which, what determines the length of these?” “Well,” Peridot said, closing her eyes. “The energy required to open the frequency to each particular multiforce determines the length of time, though other factors such as the specificity of the question and any cosmic interference can fluctuate--”

“Random, okay, got it.”

Peridot narrowed her eyes.

Connie blinked, taking in everything she had just seen.

“I HAVE SO MANY QUESTIONS!” Connie exclaimed.

“Oh,” Peridot said shaking her head. “Of course. Regarding what?”

“Who was the big grey Gem?” Connie asked.

Jasper spoke up, a small smile creeping on her face.

“Bismuth. An old friend,” she said. Her smile fell. “She was ... lost during the war.”

“Oh ...” Connie’s eyes were downcast. “I’m sorry.”

“It’s fine,” Lapis said, somewhat more solemn than usual. “It was a long time ago.”

“Okay, what about that other Gem? The blue one that looked like a fairy?” Connie asked.

Peridot piped up cheerfully.

“That was clearly an Aquamarine,” Peridot said. “One of the higher caste of Gems. They’re only sent on the most high-profile of tasks. Essentially they’re the Right Hand of Blue Diamond herself.”

Jasper scowled. “One of the right hands.”

Peridot cleared her throat, her smile faltering. “Um. Yes. Among other ... individuals.”

Connie raised an eyebrow. “Why was she shown though? We’ve never seen one here.”

Lapis shrugged. “Beats me.”

Peridot rubbed her chin. “Some of these universe are so different from our own, any number of events that haven’t happened here could have happened. I wouldn’t be too concerned about that.”

“I see...” Connie said. “One more question. What was that one Gem near the start? You know, the one that looked watermelon colored and--”

Lapis’s head snapped toward Connie, eyes wide.

“NO ONE!” she shouted.

Peridot grimaced, her face turning a paler shade of green. Jasper, oddly enough, seemed to be having a hard time making eye contact with Connie.

“W-well, as I stated,” Peridot said shakily, “this universe seems QUITE different from our own. I--It’s not worth any further speculation.”

“Yes,” Jasper said quietly.

Connie knew they were lying, but seeing the look on everyone’s face made her feel like she shouldn’t press any further.