Rejuvenate, Relive

Chapter ten...I can make a change

 "No, no, no, no, no..." I say as Pearl asks me several questions.

"Well what do you know?" She asks.

"I know that she needs to chill out." I say coldly.

"Did...Did something happen between you two?" She asks.

"No. Don't worry about it." I reply.

SPINEL'S POV

I sat in the room, irritated, "Are you gonna do something with me!? I just made the most important person in my life hate me!" I said, scowling.

"I'll do something when I want to!" She shot back.

"Just shatter me already!" I shouted.

"I never knew you were so tied to suicide." She commented.

"I'm not, but I hate it here and I don't want him to try and save me." I said softly.

"Whatever. I need you." She said. I knew why she wouldn't. She wasn't the original, bloodthirsty killer that Topaz was. She was Topaz 2.0, not Topaz. The thought of shattering someone made her sick, so she held off.

"For what?" I asked.

"Well, I want you to... Remember someone. You hypocrite."

"Wha-" I broke off as a gem with Black hair and different colored highlights stepped in. She had purple eyes and wore a short white blouse that exposes her stomach. She had a black skirt with a white stripe at the bottom. Her skin was pastel blue and she has her gem positioned at the exposed bottom of her back. A long necklace, an opal embedded in it, was hanging down her chest.

"Hello," She hissed, her gaze cold, "Spinel."

"O-Opal!?" I gasped. I had spoken to Opal a long time ago; she was my friend. I had eventually stopped coming and hung out with Obby and Steven. Steven... I thought, feeling my eyes sting. I blinked, not wanting to cry in front of Opal.

"'You left me, and I waited and waited and waited! She said icily.

"I-I never t-told you to w-wait!" I protested.

"You hypocritical idiot! I waited because I can't, I won't, go anywhere without your consent!" She pointed out angrily.

"W-well wh-wh-what're you gonna do to me?" I asked shakily.

"I'm gonna kill you!" She roared, lunging at me with a black scythe with a milky white blade. The blade is spattered with countless colors of paint, and I find myself looking over them, surprised.

Red, blue, indigo, purple, pink, yellow, green, oran- My thoughts cut off as she brings it down on my head. I jump back, barely dodging the blade. She lunged again, letting out a cry of frustration. I looked up to see a dark magenta shape flying towards me, The rejuvenator?? I thought.

"I just wanna see a fight." Topaz explained. I caught it and activated it, lunging at Opal. We both collided and her scythe hardly grazed me as I sliced her in half. She poofed and her gem clattered to the ground. I was panting and I was tired.

"O-ow..." I gasped.

"You okay?" Topaz asks, a sudden ripple of pity and worry breaking her stiff expression.

"Why do you care!?" I snapped.

"Jeez, I just don't want you to keel over and die." She snorts.

"Why not!? You're the one who imprisoned me!" I shout, but something inside of me tells me that she just wants to help. It reminds me that she's not Topaz. She isn't the thing that almost killed Steven. She's not the real enemy. Just like how my rejuvenated self wasn't a villain, but I was.

"You're right..." She said suddenly, "Why? Why do I care? It's because you're innocent. Enemy or not, you're innocent." Then, she whispers something behind her, and a bright light shines down on me and a loud scraping noise sounds from above. I look up instinctively to see the roof opening.

"Wh-wh-what're you doing!?" I gasp.

"Letting you out, what else?" She explains sarcastically.

"...Why?" I ask.

"Because you never did anything. It's unfair." She says.

"I thought you were gonna kill me...?" I probe, conflicted between confronting Steven and letting her shatter me.

"I'm not Topaz. I'm Azzy. Call me Azzy." She says.

"O-okay..." I whisper, looking up and crouching down. I let my springy limbs prepare before launching myself out of the chasm.

AZZY'S POV

I watched her go, smiling as I accepted the name the diamond had gifted me with. I grinned at the sun, letting its warmth wash over me as Spinel escaped to wherever she was going. I sagged, letting myself sink down in my soft chair. "Just wait, little hero. Your princess is coming." I whispered.

STEVEN'S POV

I looked up as a knock sounded from the door, "It's open." I say dully.

"A-are y-you sure you wanna see...M-me?" The voice was familiar, unlike the screaming, crying mess that Spinel had been.

"C-come in...?" I offer.

"Uhm... Fine." She agreed, opening the door and walking in. I stared. She had no wounds or anything. Her hair wasn't even ruffled.

"Uhm..." Is all I can say.

"Stop staring!" She says, flushing.

"H-how?" I gasp.

"Waddya mean?" She queries.

"You don't even have a scratch!" I exclaim.

"She let me go." Spinel explained.

"Sh-she let you go!?" I repeat.

"Yeah...?" Spinel says.

"Wh-why?" I stammer.

"Dunno. Just did."

"Well," I begin, "It's good to have the real you back." I finish after a pause.

"You too, little hero." She says. I feel a wave of affection bubble up.

"You're awesome." I say.

"You too." She replies. I entwine my fingers with hers and we walk outside to the cliff edge, letting the setting sun wash over us.

"This is home... This is HomeWorld's substitute. HomeWorld 2.0."

"No, just like Azzy. It's not Topaz 2.0, it's Azzy. This... This is just... Just Home." She says.

"...Yeah... This is Home." I say. We grin at each other and I slide into a sitting position, dragging her softly down with me.

"This is our home." We say together in perfect unison.

"Hey, I want you to have this," Steven says, handing me a small shell necklace with the shell broken in half.

"What for?" I ask. He grins and hold up another one. He puts them together and they click. "Woah..." I gasp in awe. I look up at him, and, without a thank you or a warning, I burst into tears and hug him.

"Spinel!?" He says, surprised.

"Thank you..." I sob, "I love you so much..."

"I love you too, Spinel..."