Learn To Love Again {COMPLETED}

Chapter 13

Steven's P.O.V
Having to leave my girlfriend behind has been the hardest thing for me so far in my life. Never before has someone meant so much to me and then she comes along. Still, I must continually remind myself that I'm doing this FOR her. It's what any good boyfriend would do if a situation like this came up. In order for our relationship to work, I want us both to be able to be comfortable around each other and not afraid that one of us might ruin it in some explosive powerful way.

Touching down on the Homeworld Warp Pad seals the feeling of emptiness inside me indefinitely. Mind you, I'm not depressed, but as to how I feel currently, I'm really not that far off. Can't get that way though because it won't be helpful what I plan on doing here. Sighing with small amounts of hope, I heft my backpack farther up on my back and start forward down the slope leading away from the Pad. As I'm slowly making my way in the direction of the Diamond Palace, I notice that the sheer amount of gems looming around compared to past times has decreased quite significantly. I find some relief and appreciation in realizing this because it shows how the Diamonds have really taken my words to heart, or gem rather.

That being said, I wonder what the Diamonds will think after I tell them about this. Blue's already aware since I called her about it, but overall, I'm a bit nervous about sharing this whole thing with them. It's no secret that they have an excessively hard time letting go of Mom, so I don't know if me bringing up the fact that I'm exhibiting her powers will do anything to help them get over her. But on the other hand, if I don't say anything about it, I can't get any answers for this and this whole idea will have been for nothing. I can't have that. With that covered, I then start to wonder how I'll tell them but a sudden interruption in the form of one Pink Pearl comes running at me to divert my attention.

"My Diamond, my Diamond! Welcome back" She cries out, coming to a halt in front of me.

"Please, call me Steven, and it's nice to see you too, Pinky" I reply, doing my best to be upbeat despite my down condition. She smiles and looks sideways out of embarrassment.

"So....I assume you're back to counsel with the Diamonds" Pink Pearl guesses.

"You would be correct" I confirm "Could you perhaps lead me to them?".

"It would be my pleasure, Steven" Pinky replies, turning around and walking away.

I follow behind her, gazing around at all the new things that have been created for Homeworld thanks to me. The thought makes me smile, at least I was able to change this place for the better. Gems are dancing, singing, and doing whatever they couldn't do when Era 1-3 was going on.

We soon arrive as Pink Pearl looks at me. "Here you are Steven, anything else I can do for you?" She asks.

"That's all, thanks Pearl," I give her a smile as she returns the gesture.

She nods and takes her leave. I take a breath and open the door to the Diamond's palace. I'm immediately swarmed in kisses all over from all of the Diamonds. Guess they were expecting me, of course they were. I talked to Blue, so if that's any indication.

"It pleases me greatly that you've returned, Steven" White says, being the first to step back "Although I must ask: why are you here?". I look over at Blue and she shrugs passively. Must've been waiting for me to arrive before she spilled the beans.

"Indeed. Believe me, I love having you back, but it worries me that something may have forced you to return" Yellow adds. Rubbing the back of my neck, I bite my lip and then just let it all out.

"I..uh...may have gotten out of control recently and nearly shattered an Aquamarine and a Ruby" I admit sheepishly. The Diamonds freeze, looking horrified.

"But" I add before they say anything "The real problem lies in these powers of mine. As of late, I've been noticing some newer and stronger abilities within me that I never knew I had before. They're unstable and get very wild whenever I'm upset and it almost cost me my relationship with Spinel. I was thinking about asking the Gems about this, but in truth, I don't trust them as much as I used to. Also, these are clearly powers that Pink had. So, I was hoping that you could shed some light on this and help me get to the bottom of this".

The Diamonds are quiet, with not a sound to be heard. What accompanies their silent is the nervous and fearful expressions on their faces. No doubt memories of Pink are flooding their heads right now, but at the same time, worry still remains clear in the trio's eyes. Worry for me and if I would've hurt myself. This is obviously hard for them, in more ways than one I'd imagine, but yet they collect themselves and muster up enough strength to conjure an explanation for me.

"There's something you should know about Pink, Steven. Out of all of us, she was the strongest Diamond within the Authority. However, she was also the most unstable. Having too great a power doesn't come without backlash and that became very clear early on in Pink's lifespan" Blue explains.

"From what you've told us, it seems like some of her nature and more dormant abilities are rising up because of similar courses of behavior. We watched and studied Pink from the very beginning, analyzing her to see if we could counteract this unstable nature of hers. We were never able to find a countermeasure, but what we did find was a pattern in her destructive nature. Whenever Pink was angry or very emotional about something, the more chaotic her personality was. If you're exhibiting these powers when you're angry, then it's a near certainty what the source is" Yellow describes.

"Now that we know about this though, I know each of us is determined not to let history repeat itself" White says, holding me up to her face "As a personal promise, I assure you that Blue, Yellow, and myself will do whatever is necessary to help you control this, even if it means specialized training". A lightbulb then goes off in my head.

"You know, that may not be a bad idea, White" I reply, a grin appearing.

Blue stifled a giggle, "What's going on in that head of yours Steven?"

"Special training," I repeat "get to the source of these powers, find the key to it all. And who else is better to help me than you guys."

They all blush lightly, smiling. "Oh Steven, quite the flatterer you are, no wonder Spinel finds so much interest in you," Yellow muses.

"Well if we can't get to the bottom of these powers, then I might not have Spinel anymore.." I bow my head as White lifts my chin.

"We will not let that happen, Steven," She smiles with a warmth that flows through my body calming my thoughts.

I chuckle, "Then let's get started shall we?"

They nod and lead me to a room outside of the palace. Being resided in Homeworld for two years, I've gotten a feel of every location here but this place was different. I don't judge them for not showing any other gem this place, they can't show all of their skeletons. It's like an arena, but with a gem feel instead of a Roman coliseum look.

"Welcome to the Diamond training arena where all of us have come here to hone, and master the powers that we hold within our gems," White explains.

I wonder if Mom came here, but from what I heard from the Diamonds they tried to help Pink master her powers but they were too unstable, beyond even their control. Hopefully that's not the same case with me.

"First things first, Steven, your training will be broken up into 3 parts, one with each of us. I will help you learn to master your skills when put in a fighting instance" Yellow elaborates "Blue will teach you to not let your emotions run too wild, and White will help you achieve a balanced mindset. Think you can handle that?". I nod.

"Whatever it takes, I'll be ready for" I state confidently. The Diamonds smile, proud looks on their faces.

"I'd expect nothing less. Now, if you could be so kind, wait over by the sidelines please Blue and White" Yellow smiles, talking to the other two Diamonds at that last part. They pout, wanting to be closer, but Yellow's all-familiar cold glare has them changing their minds. They walk a distance back and leave me facing down Yellow. I'm a little bit nervous, to be honest, cause I have no idea what's about to happen. But as long as I don't end up dead, it can't be too bad.

"We'll start out slow and work our way up to the more difficult maneuvers, but for know, show me what you know already" Yellow instructs.

Heeding her words, I charge at her old-fashioned style with my shield summoned on my right fist. Propelling myself up in the air, I go for a swing at her midsection, which Yellow dodges with ease. I fly past her and she uses this opening to throw her own punch at my back. I have to flip myself around in midair to block it. That only solves half of the problem though because then the fact that I'm still in midair kicks in and I land hard on the ground. I hear Blue and White gasp, but I stand up, cracking my neck and summoning another shield on my other fist.

"Don't be afraid to let your feelings out, Steven. Remember, we need to see them in action in order to teach you how to control them" Yellow reminds me. She's actually right, I have been bottling up my anger for a moment. Taking her advice, I let it out and feel myself glow vibrant pink, a surge of power rushing through my system unchecked. My gaze then fixes back on Yellow and I let my anger push me forward.

Feeling like a fire's been ignited in my heart, I run full speed at Yellow. This time, she makes the first move and shoots some electricity at me. I block it with both shields at first, but when the strikes come again, I deflect back at her. They actually hit her, which surprises me and the other Diamonds. Yellow just shrugs it off though, but at that point, I'm at her feet and hitting them as hard as I can to knock her off balance. Since she didn't expect me to get as close as I am so quickly, Yellow's unable to put her guard up in time and she ends up face planting against the ground. I feel as if I should stop, but my energy is too high right now and it's hard to not restrain myself.

Flinging my shields like frisbees, I hit Yellow in both eyes and cause her temporary blindness. She grits her teeth, but I'm not finished yet. Flying up in the air, I bring the shields back on my fists and zip down with the force of a bullet into her back, hitting hard. Yellow grunts and I hear distant voices telling me that I should stop, but my raging power drowns out their pleas. Backflipping off Yellow's back and landing in front of her face, I summon a shield in my palm, though this one is different. Adorned with spikes on the edges, it really lives up to the saying that even a rose has its thorns. I'm ready to drive it into Yellow's forehead and end this, but then a blue bubble envelops me and hovers back. Blue and White then run over and check on both Yellow and myself.

"Yellow?! Are you ok?!" Blue asks. Yellow then smiles suddenly and stands up with ease. By this time, my energy has gone down and the guilt of almost severely hurting my aunt rises. Yellow herself notices this and takes a knee to make eye-contact with me.

"Awh, don't cry, Steven" She says "You were doing exactly what I wanted you to do and that's show me how the best way to train you is".

"Really?" I ask, making sure that's true.

"Of course. Besides, in all actuality, I wasn't even using ten percent of my total strength there" Yellow winks, grinning cleverly. I sigh and let out a small laugh, liking how she just pulled that on me.

"I think that'll conclude our lesson for today. You look tired and it's not hard to believe with all that energy you used up in that short amount of time. I'll have my Pearl escort you to your chambers and we'll resume this in the morning. Sound good?" Yellow proposes. I nod, weary, and am soon let free of the bubble after it makes landfall.
Yellow Pearl then trots up and looks at me for permission. After an accepting look, she walks away towards the way we came in. I follow her a second later, making sure to say good night to Blue and White before I'm out the door. I stick close to Yellow Pearl as she leads me towards the Diamond Palace, attempting to start a conversation a couple of times before all of them end in utter silence. I guess some things never change. Very soon, I've come face to face with the door to Pink Diamond's room. After a courteous farewell on her behalf, I open the door and walk right over to where the bed lies, not bothering to notice the door closing.

Flopping back, I stare tiredly at the ceiling, letting my thoughts take over. I'm very glad that I've worked something out with the Diamonds, but I'm even more glad that we've already made progress on honing these powers. That means less time I have to spend away from my Spinel. Hmm, speaking of which, I wonder how she's doing. Sitting up, I notice a diamond-shaped holoscreen placed neatly at the opposite end of the bed. Crawling over, I pick it up and scroll through the opens while sitting on my legs. It takes a second to find the call function, but once I get that worked out, I dial Earth's contact. Only the Gems have access to this so that avoids any embarrassing mixups. The phone icon vibrates on the screen for a second before a face pops up on the other end.

"Hi Garnet, is Spinel there?" I ask. I hear a rush of footsteps in the background and the image shifts to Spinel's overjoyous face. She must've heard my voice and grabbed the screen from Garnet. So adorable.

"Steven! I missed you so much, how's training going?" She asks.

I think back to that moment with Yellow and I. "It's progressing," I just say to her.

"Really? That's great! Maybe you won't have to be gone too much longer, " She grins like a giddy little kid. Spinel may be a child, but she's my child and I wouldn't replace her for anything.

"Let's hope so but we'll see where it goes. I'll be home soon I promise," She smiles but notices my tired expression.

She frowns, "get to sleep mister, I'm so happy you called but you're half falling asleep on the call. I love you Steven Universe with all of my heart, I'll be waiting for you my love," Spinel smooches the screen. I can't help but smile and smooch it back.

The call soon ends after, my eyes soon close completely and I'm enveloped by a heavy sleep. I'm glad that I can keep in touch with her this way, but what she said holds very near and dear to my heart and it's something I wish for the most.

But really, I do this for her and her alone.




Doesn't this seem like it'd be a really good episode on the show? Wolf and I certainly think so, but what are your thoughts on that? Personally, I feel like it'd be great and it'd show some real progression with how Steven deals with his newer Diamond powers. Aside from the specifics though, how did you like this chapter? We worked nice and hard for y'all and I think it paid off. However, the real determiner of that will be all of you amazing people. Thanks for stopping by once more and stay excited because there's plenty more coming soon. Until next time though, bye!

Agree 100% with King when it comes to this being a real episode. We worked our butts off for this chapter, but I know all of you are grateful for what we provide. So, as always we hope you enjoyed this chapter and we'll see you guys in the next one. Laters.  :)

Authors note: Holy crap guys we're dead close to 10k reads!! Thank you all so much for all the love oj this story! Me and KingMythLord appreciate it greatly.