Chapter Text
Steven Universe looked out the window of his cabin house and saw the nice lake that rested opposite of it. It had already been six years since he moved out of Beach City and started living in the small community of Forrest Town. Even Steven began to see the pattern of strange town names. He was happy there. He didn't have to deal with anymore Gem related activity, he was no longer stressed, he was happy communicating with his friends and family via phone or computer. He got to see them every now and then, but he enjoyed the tranquil isolation out in the woods as it made him feel like he was one with nature. He remembered encountering the town and meeting its own set of quirky individuals. When traveling across America, Steven found himself coming back to it more often than not and decided to settle there. They initially gave him a patch of land to sit on, but Steven became a regular member of the community and, following his father Greg's footsteps, built his house with his own two hands. He remembered inviting Greg to visit him and becoming proud of the person his son became. Steven had since become a model citizen, but spent most of his time at home and exploring the wilderness. His favorite pastime became meditation which he described as the best way to battle his inner demons.
While meditating in his favorite spot above a waterfall, Steven's phone began to vibrate. He looked and saw that it was Pearl. Steven always found it amusing when she used the phone because it was like trying to watch an elder trying to use a microwave. He never told her that. He picked it up and turned it on.
"Hey, Pearl how's it going?" Steven looked and saw only her big nose on the screen.
"Steven, is that you? I can't see you," Pearl sounded panicked.
"Pull the phone back," Steven said in an amused voice.
Pearl did so and her face came into view, "Oh good, there you are. Hey Steven, out meditating again, I see."
Everyone knew when Steven was meditating as he usually wasn't wearing a shirt when he did so; exposing his gem in the process. "This is the time I usually do it. What's up?"
"Oh, you know me. I just felt looking at my phone and decided to give you a call is all and see if... you could maybe like to move back to Beach City and never ever leave us, I miss you!"
That was the thing. Everyone had accepted Steven's independence except Pearl who seems to be stuck with a case of empty nest syndrome.
"Pearl, quit bothering Steven. He's happy being on his own!" Amethyst yelled from off camera.
Pearl turned to yell back at her, "It's just a suggestion!" She then turned back to Steven, "But maybe you can consider it?"
Steven laughed, "Look you can call me whenever you'd like, alright Pearl. Tell dad, I said hi. I'll see you later, Bye."
"Don't forget to eat!" Pearl said as the phone went out.
-
Steven continued to do his usual rounds around the town. He would fulfill various obligations and aid people who needed it. He was no longer doing such things to feel wanted, he was now doing them for the good of the town. One older resident would continuously try to hook him up with her daughter, but Steven had to constantly remind her that he already had a girlfriend who was just finishing up college. This didn't stop her from trying. Everyone marveled Steven's abilities to get things done so quickly, mostly due to his super strength and super speed. Everyone knew that he was a Gem, but nobody seemed to care. This made Steven relieved. As Steven was finishing up for the day, one of the residents, a man his age named Wyatt, came up to him.
"Howdy Wyatt," Steven said cheerfully.
"Hey Steven, I came to tell you that somebody was asking for you."
"Who?"
"Some giant orange lady. She had this weird gem stud on her nose, it looked tight."
Steven was stunned in silence. It couldn't be, could it? "Where is she now?" Steven asked nervously.
"I told her where your house was. I'm pretty sure, she'd be there now." Wyatt began to notice that Steven was shook, "Is everything okay?"
Steven composed himself, "Yeah everything's fine."
Steven drove back to his isolated house in the woods and, sure enough, saw the person he was afraid of seeing: Jasper the rogue Gem, now adorned with a cloak and a hat like a wanderer. She was a constant headache for him and he never knew what she was thinking. Last time he interacted with her, things were awkward. She tried to kill him, then he tried to befriend her, then she tried to kill him again, then she begrudgingly got into a fight with him, which resulted in him seeking her out for advice, which lead to him almost killing her, which lead to his breakdown. After all that, she seemed pretty calm, but Steven wanted to avoid her at all costs. Unfortunately, this was clearly the opposite of what he wanted. Steven got out of his car and cautiously approached Jasper. She slowly turned around and eyed him.
"Did you build that?" Jasper asked pointing to the cabin.
"Yes," Steven concurred nervously.
Jasper looked at the cabin again and then at Steven again before saying, "It's nice." and sitting down the ground in a crossed leg position.
Steven slowly walked up and sat next to her in a crossed leg position as well. There was an awkward silence before Steven said, "So, how have you been?"
"Okay, I suppose."
...
"What have you been up to?"
"Wandering."
...
"Seen or met anyone lately?"
"I've been alone."
Steven finally got to the question he was afraid to ask, "What are you doing here Jasper?"
Jasper turned to look directly at him, "I wanted to see my Diamond, or rather the person who used to be my Diamond."
"You know I'm not Pink, right?"
"I know, I just... wanted to see someone familiar."
Steven sighed, "We've been over this. I don't think that..."
Jasper interrupted, "I know, I know! Nothing is going to bring her back! I just wanted to be somewhere familiar, Okay!?" She covered her face in embarrassment.
Steven stared at her; unsure of what to do or say to someone who has been through so much. He gone through a lot and hoped that maybe they could connect on that, but Jasper seemed farther away with whatever her problem was compared to him. Steven got up and went inside his house to figure out what to do when Jasper suddenly walked through the door. Her size slightly budged the frame, despite the fact that he built it to handle people like her or Bismuth.
Steven began, "What are you doing now?"
Jasper walked closer to Steven, "You see, I've been traveling a lot and I realized that you're right, I can never have my Diamond back. She's gone and there's nothing I can do."
Steven felt relieved, "I'm glad to hear that. You're finally moving on."
Jasper cocked her eyebrow, "What?"
"You're finally moving on from your old life and starting anew. You can be a different person now, Jasper. You don't have to be a killing machine that's at war all the time. You can have a real life."
Jasper looked slightly confused, but agreed that things were different, "Yeah, things can be different, but that's not what I'm talking about... I'm gonna make a new Pink Diamond."
Steven froze, "What?"
"I'm going to make a new Pink Diamond. One that I can train to lead a new era of Gem-kind. What you did for White, Blue and Yellow has caused many other Gems to be unhappy and I want to help them by making a new Diamond that can lead a new colony!"
Steven was trying to hold back his laughter, "And how do you plan to do that? You can't use the drills because they'll drain the life from the Earth and it's not like you can conceive one."
Jasper towered over Steven with her intimidating physique, "You're going to help us with that."
Steven paused for a moment, "Us?"
"Like I said. Many other Gems are unhappy so we're going to do whatever it takes to make a create our new leader whether you like it or not."
Steven summoned his shield, "I'm not going to help you."
Jasper summoned her helmet, "I wasn't asking."
The two of them began to quarrel with Steven budding Jasper back outside. Jasper was using her full force against Steven who refrained from getting too caught up. He had gone overboard with fighting her once and it turned him into a monster; he wasn't going to do it again. This disappointed Jasper who yelled, "What's the matter Steven? Afraid you'll shatter me again!?" This angered Steven, but he was not going to give in. This ended up being his downfall as Jasper grabbed Steven and slammed him to the ground. She stood over him and said, "I shouldn't damage you too much, so I'll end this quickly." She pulled out what looked like a syringe and pricked Steven with it, knocking him out.
Steven was going in and out of consciousness and could only make out certain things. Jasper carried him somewhere and he saw that he was in the air. He next saw that he was in what looked like a Gem spaceship and was being carted down a hall. A bright light shown over him as several other Gems stood over him. One of them was a tall and lanky looking Gem who had a sinister smile. Steven blacked out completely and felt that he was nothing. Upon awakening, Steven found himself lying outside his house. There was no sign of Jasper or the other Gems that he saw. Oddly enough, Steven was no longer injured. As a matter of fact that sleep on the ground seemed to rejuvenate him completely as he looked around and wondered what happened to him. Jasper said they needed him, but for what? How were they going to make a new Diamond? Steven began to imagine that they were going to make an evil clone of him like in those sci-fi shows he would watch with Connie. Whatever Jasper had planned, he knew he wasn't going to be alone. Steven needed to prepare for whatever surprise Jasper and her allies were up to.