A Shattered Empire (Fan Made Story)

Arrival + Surprise

Rain poured down on Beach City, with heavy winds battering the walls and roof of every house, including those in Little Homeworld. There was no activity to be found outside during this massive storm, except for a lone van driving through the storm, heading along the road to a nearby car wash station. The driver pulled up to the car wash as suddenly, the doors in the garage opened allowing the driver inside with the van. It was quite dark out at this time and mix that with dark clouds and rain, you're bound to get a recipe for disaster. However, the driver seemed unperturbed by this storm. He simply retrieved his luggage out of the van and eyed the storm outside.

"I hope everyone is inside...this storm is pretty nasty." A pink jacket, black shirt, blue jeans with sneakers wearing male took a breath and closed his eyes, concentrating. Suddenly, a smooth, pink bubble covered him and his luggage as he walked out of the car wash, the doors closing behind him. "I gotta tell dad thanks for giving me the remote for the car wash doors. Who would've thought they would come in handy like this?" Steven spoke to himself as he began walking down even more streets, the pink ball keeping him safe from the intense rain and wind. He was heading down to the beach, but didn't mind stopping to observe the many old buildings that stood strong in the storm. When he was satisfied with looking, Steven went back to walking down the wooden steps toward the beach as the rain only seemed to pick up even more. However, wherever Steven walked, the pink ball stayed covering him and his luggage as he walked across the wet sand. The other benefit of this ball, was Steven was walking on the inside of it, like a giant hamster ball. So, he had no issue with the sand trying to grab him or hold him down in the storm. Humming a song he heard on the radio, Steven eventually made a turn at some rocks and looked ahead, his smile growing even larger. 

"I'm home..." He muttered as the lit up beach house and stone statue greeted his eyes. Picking up his pace, Steven raced across the sand and reached the wet, wooden steps. Practically running up the stairs, Steven got to the door and took a breath, fixing his black, poofy hair before grabbing the door and stepping inside. 

"SURPRISE!" Immediate cheer  greeted Steven's ears as he saw multiple figures pop up from their hiding places. Above Steven there was the words written out in paint on tapestry and strung from one end of the house to the other. The words read, "Welcome home, Steven!" adding to the excitement that was now filling the room.

"Oh! Look at you! I feel like you've grown! Have you grown!? Let me see!" Pearl was the first to embrace Steven as she pushed past the pink bubble and made it disappear. Her gem scanned Steven as she closed her eyes and waited. Meanwhile, Bismuth, Peridot, Lapis, Greg, Garnet, and Amethyst all surrounded Steven, waiting to give him there own specialized greeting. 

"You have grown! Two inches! Oh how time flies! Ahhh!" Pearl squealed with delight as she hugged Steven tighter to herself. 

"P-Pearl! Hard to b-breathe!" Steven said, though it was difficult with his face turning an interesting shade of purple. 

"Oh! I-I'm so sorry! Here," Pearl set Steven down allowing the others to greet him, smiles all plastered on their faces. 

"Sup' dude? How you been?" Amethyst said coolly, stretching out her hand and performing the signature hand shake with Steven. 

"I've been great! I've got so many stories to tell you guys-hup!" Steven was suddenly hugged tightly by Greg as he chuckled and soon let him go.

"I've missed ya man! Wait till you hear all about what's going on here! How did the button work for you back at the car wash?" Greg points a finger gun at Steven as he returned two of his own. 

"Worked great! Didn't have any issues with it whatsoever!" Steven was then lifted off the ground as he now found himself wrapped in Garnet's arms, squeezing him very tightly. He looked like one of those dolls you squeeze that make their eye pop out, except this was about to become reality for Steven until Bismuth intervened.