Steven Universe: Steven Meets Star

Chapter 4- The Cracks in the Facade

Date: 18 August 2018, 4 months after the Universe Warp incident. Things... Just haven't been the same. Without Steven here, the gems have started to fall apart. Amethyst hasn't come out of her room in forever - well, except to get food - and doesn't plan to. Lapis is even colder than when Steven first met her. Meanwhile, Pearl is regenerating after throwing herself on an Uber Destabilizer for failing Rose, and Connie is in a hyper-depressed state that not even I can help. But the worst part... Ruby and Sapphire are unfused. They're not cooperating anymore. Constantly yelling and fighting, Ruby talking about leaving, Sapphire seeing nothing but pain in the future... I'm afraid to say that this could be the demise of their relationship.

Me and Peri desperately work in the lab day in and day out, trying to synthesize enough Reconstruction Gel to fix that pad. For the first time in a long time, I'm sincerely scared. I want Steven back, but I've never EVER been trained for an operation like this. We still haven't learned the full potential of a Universe Warp. It could potentially be deadly. Whether it's Homeworld, or another alien race, we could put not only ourselves, but the entire planet at risk. Steven could do plenty of things we couldn't. He could float, to be able to see further than what we could. He had his shield, to protect us. Without him, well... We're weak. Defenseless against the next enemy that wants to hurt us.

It was as if the world had gone dark. Then Peri spoke up:

"I'm not going to let him down."

"What do you mean?" I questioned. We all love Steven, but him and Peri just clicked. Nothing like what any of the rest of us had, for sure. The only people he was closer to were Connie and Greg. "How would you let him down? You're doing everything in your power to get him back. You have nothing to fear about disappointing him," I finished.

Except, Peri did. In her own way. "Are you crazy? Steven is gone. GONE. You may not know, Em, but he was the first one to show me kindness. And as long as I'm here, while he could be literally ANYWHERE IN THE MULTIVERSE, I'm failing him. I promised him that I would go wherever he went. I told him that I would be with him, by his side, until I shatter. How am I supposed to do that now? How, Em? We still don't have enough gel to fix the pad. What if we never do? I....I..I.I..I..-"

I stopped her with a kiss. She was stressing herself, what else could I do? She was my world, and I was never, ever going to let her feel bad. "Peri, baby, you are doing everything in your power to get him back. Yes, it was unfortunate what happened. But I know that if he could see what you're doing for him, if he knew how much your commitment to him meant to you, he would be proud of it. He wouldn't be disappointed at all. Remember that."

She smiled. That sweet, beautiful smile that she knows makes me split. We kissed, one more time, but we stayed like that.

I knew everything was going to be alright.

It was time to get back to work. It took a lot of time, a lot of effort, and a whole lot of yelling from Mayor Dewey, but in 2 weeks, the gel was finished. ...Ok, we scavenged a lot from broken down Plug Robonoids all around the Kindergartens, but gel is gel, no matter where it comes from.

As Peri and I were coming back into the Temple, though, there was a blast of blinding bright light. It could only be one thing. Pearl. We rushed back up the steps of the temple, shocked to see Amethyst, Lapis, and... Ruby and Sapphire. Back together again! This was more than I could ever had hoped for. "Guys! This is amazing! W-w-what happened? I thought you guys were depressed... What did I miss?"

"Look at your watch, Em-Bro," Amethyst said. And I was surprised to see I had my communicator on the whole time. Which means-

"Yes Emerald, we heard everything," Garnet interrupted. "And we were disappointed that we weren't doing anything to help Steven. All we did was sit there, not thinking about what he would do. Ruby and Sapphire split over it. Amethyst stayed quiet over it."

"Hey, what's that supposed to mean?" Amethyst questioned.

"You're never quiet, Amethyst."

"Eh, that's fair."

"Now, as I was saying, all of us changed. But none of us used it as a reason to fight. That's what we have to do now. And we want you to lead us. You were able to bring us back. Now keep us back."

This was a dream come true. Me, a Homeworld soldier, someone who wasn't trusted, fought against them for most of my life, being able to lead them into battle proudly. It wasn't often that someone got a second chance when disappointing the Diamonds. But this is Earth. And I wasn't going to let the Gems - or anyone else on this planet, for that matter - down. "Thank you Garnet. I promise to be the best captain I can be, for Steven and the Earth."

We laughed and caught up for about 20 minutes, and then the ground shook. Not in that way, weirdos, the ground LITERALLY shook. And rather violently, knocking everything off the stove and the walls. Amethyst got hit with a bowling ball from the closet, but she was alright. Problem was, Beach City and all of its inhabitants could've been in danger.

I immediately snapped into action. "Crystal Gems, to battle!"

They all just looked at me.

"I know, I know, I have to work on the catchphrase, but now's not the time! Let's go!"

As we rushed out the door, we saw a massive wormhole right in front of us, where an army leaped out, led by a boy, no older than Steven.

He looked at us, eyes cold as ice, and sneered, "Give me back my Star."

This was going to be a long day.

A/N: Man, I haven't updated this in a long time! But at least this chapter is quality. I'll see you when the next is up! Emerald Out!