Crystal Clear Part 2: Familiar Faces (Jasper x Reader)

Chapter 3: Persistence of Memory

Your heart fell like a tonne of bricks. You stepped back as she glared at you.

“Jasper… it's me… I saved you. You were corrupted, remember? Steven and I healed you.”

“Rose…” she growled. You sighed loudly in irritation.

“No, not Rose, Steven. Can we not start this again?”

Her eyes flashed with anger, but after a second took on a look of confusion.

“What do you mean, 'again?’”

“This isn't the first time you've been healed. It's the third.” She opened her mouth to speak, but you clarified for her. “The previous times were temporary using some alien technology. But this time it's permanent. I hope…” you explained, mumbling the last sentence. “Before you get any angrier, we weren't responsible for the first two times. You were kidnapped by rogue gems so they could experiment on you. The Crystal Gems freed you the first time, but you didn't last long, unfortunately. The second time, I rescued you. Do you remember Hematite at all?”

“Who?”

“I'll take that as a no. That time, you took over eight months to revert, and I swear on my life, we did everything we could to try to prevent it.”

“Your life's worth nothing to me. Why am I even talking to an organic?” She turned to Steven. “So why did you do this?”

“We just wanted to help you,” he insisted. “And uh, I think (Y/N) really missed you.”

“You couldn't let an old soldier keep any dignity? I got what I deserved.”

“Nobody deserves the horrors of corruption,” Garnet chimed in.

“I wasn't talking to the fusion. I brought corruption on myself. I was asking for it.”

“Can't exactly say you're wrong,” Amethyst observed uncomfortably.

“Oh,” Jasper laughed bitterly, “I get it. You need me. You want me to be useful to you. Well, I won’t be enslaved by you. You’ll have to shatter me.” She whirled to face you. “Come on then. It was your idea apparently. It’s you or me.”

“What? No! I’m not going to fight you!”

“Maybe one of them, then?”

“No, no one is doing that! We aren’t trying to enslave you or whatever it is you think we’re doing.”

“Oh please. You Crystal Gems are all alike. If you’re not going to shatter me, you’ll be broken like so many of them before you.” She ran at you, swinging her left fist. You stepped to the side, causing her to overshoot. Pearl and Amethyst prepared to leap into action, but Garnet held out a hand to stay them.

“Jasper, please! I won’t fight you! I did this because I wanted to help you.”

She tried to headbutt you, but you leaned back out of the way.

“COME ON! FIGHT BACK!” She unleashed a flurry of punches, but you’d seen her fight enough to be able to dodge or block her every attack. The fury in her eyes was giving way to desperation, and she was breathing heavily. You stopped and stood perfectly still.

“I won’t hurt you.”

She hesitated with shaking breath as she drew back her fist, before shutting her eyes and punching you in the chest. You fell to the floor with the wind knocked out of you. You gasped for air until you could finally breathe again and crawled to your feet. You chuckled quietly.

“I’ve seen you punch through solid stone before. You didn’t even crack a rib. You’re not really trying, are you? What is this, really?”

She grabbed you by the shoulders and shook you while tears started to run down her own face.