#it's like what I would have wanted zircon to be if they were in more than one episode

[loud-n]

What's up with Roshar's Money and Why is Sapphire so Valuable

I recently started my reread of Stormlight Archive to prepare for book 5, and coincidentally, this happened at roughly the same time the cosmere rpg started kickstarting. So, reading TWoK and the beta rules of the rpg at the same time, a few things happened to come together. For one, the rpg had this table:

I thought this was very interesting. I hadn't ever seen anything like this (though, checking coppermind, a similar chart has been available since an interview in 2018 that I wasn't aware of). It's a nice way for me to contextualize just how much money Shallan throws around at the beginning of TWoK (for example, based on remarks from Yalb in chapter 3, we know that a week's wages for a sailor is roughly one ruby mark/firemark, or 10 diamond marks/clearmarks), and while it seems like it might be simplified for gameplay purposes, it's also broadly consistent with the other sources.

So I kept reading until I got to this line:

"Emeralds were the most valuable, for they could be used by soulcasters to create food." (The Way of Kings ch. 3, pg. 72 on the trade paperback)

This line lays out explicitly that the soulcasting traits of a gem are the primary way (or at least a very significant one) that these values were assigned. This makes a lot of sense: the ability to soulcast food is the key component that allows Roshar the kind of military structures it has, and would provide an extremely valuable way to compensate for issues with harvests that might come with Roshar's 'temperamental' weather patterns.

(some major oathbringer spoilers below the cut)

I then wanted to know how this translates to the other types of gem. Many of these make a lot of sense: amethyst can be used to soulcast metal, which is important and difficult to obtain on roshar (coppermind notes that this may also be the only way to get aluminum on Roshar); ruby, smokestone, and zircon are all used as part of infrastructure for food preparation and waste management (and rubies seem especially common in the fabrials we've seen); garnet, heliodor, and topaz all provide less vital (though still useful) and less valuable materials; and diamond can be used to soulcast quartz, glass, and crystal, none of which are particularly valuable (especially given easy access to even light with stormlight and danger from highstorms making windows difficult and less valuable).

However, one gem caught my eye here.

Why is sapphire so valuable?

Sapphire's soulcasting can produce translucent gas or air, which seems a bit redundant with smokestone, a stone we know is regularly used. To my knowledge, we don't see any characters ever use soulcasting powered by a sapphire (please correct me if I'm wrong, I may be forgetting or confusing an instance with smokestone). So unless there's something we're missing or something to come, it doesn't seem like sapphire's value is because it is especially useful in soulcasting.

If this isn't the case, I can think of three possible explanations for why sapphire is worth so much:

Sapphire is less common. We know that obtaining emerald is a major part of the Rosharan economy and a significant reason for the continued occupation of the shattered plains at the start of the series. This might also be the case for sapphire: greatshells with sapphire gemhearts may be less common or more difficult to farm, making sapphire more scarce and thus more valuable.

Sapphire is especially useful in fabrials. So far, we've only seen one fabrial using sapphire that I can remember: the soul-harvesting dagger used to kill Jezrien (Oathbringer ch. 121). Even this may not be a specific trait of all sapphires, but rather due to the fact that sapphires are associated with Jezrien and the windrunners. I think it's possible and maybe even likely that sapphires are the gems used in half-shards, since none of the examples ever specify what gem is used and Taravangian states that the spren within could have graced a knight radiant (Oathbringer ch. 100) - possibly an honorspren trapped within a sapphire. This may also have been Taravangian lying, though.

The value is somehow associated with Jezrien and the Windrunners. This one seems the most far-fetched to me: at the start of the series, the knights radiant are not viewed especially fondly, and I doubt the Windrunners would have enough staying power to change the value of a gem. The idea that it may be association with Jezrien seems to me to have more merit; Jezrien seems to generally be elevated to a point beyond the other heralds.

Based on the information we have, I think that my second proposal has the highest chance of being at least partially correct. Association with Jezrien seems far-fetched, sapphire being especially scarce seems like something too far off course to get significant confirmation of in-text, and fabrials are one of the elements of the world still being developed in universe that we also don't have a lot of extra information about.

If any of this is going to be answered, I honestly think it might come through the rpg: the first wave of releases will include a world guide with canon information that might shed some light on these elements less important to the actual story, and the rules will also detail a lot of information about fabrials that could answer my questions about half-shards. Until then, though, I'm just going to have to sit here and wonder (and keep a special eye out for mentions of sapphire on my reread for anything I missed).

[laviefantasie]

“Just A Girl” : 02

“ GOJO SATORU X PRESIDENT'S DAUGHTER READER "

SYNOPSIS: After insisting so much, you're finally given the opportunity to attend college away from home and feel like a normal girl. It is there that you meet Gojo Satoru, another undergraduate student, and for the first time in your life are shown what having a true connection feels like. Or at least that's what you think...

SERIES MASTERLIST

< prev | next >

Blue was your new favorite color.

How could it not be with what you had just seen? Nanami and Sukuna had probably been weirded out by how fast you had entered your apartment and thrown yourself to the couch.

It wasn’t your fault though. Who had those kind of eyes?

Ocean blue eyes that made you feel like you’d sink and drown in them, yet still thank him. Clear as the sky, and shining like a Zircon. They seemed eternal.

You groan, grabbing the closest cushion and screaming into it. You were acting like a teenager.

A lovesick teenage girl, if you’re specific.

Your moment is interrupted by a knock on your door, so ignoring the how hot your face feels you stand up lazily and head to it.

“Sorry, guys, just needed a momen…”, you trail off as you’re met with not one of your guards, but a pretty brunette.

Pretty brunette with a cigarette residing in her lips.

“You probably thought I was muscle 1 and 2 here, right?”, her voice is muffled by the unlit cigarette so she soon takes it off, “I’m Ieiri Shoko, right across the hall”

“A pleasure, I’m Y/L/N Y/N” you smile sweetly.

“I know, sweetie” she whispers playfully, “Just wanted to ask if you wanted to join me? I’m gonna walk around while taking a smoke, thought it be good for the newbie to sightsee some of the university’s domain”

“Oh. Oh!” You nod excitedly, “Yeah! I’d love that actually, just let me grab my purse real quick”

Shoko nods and you hurry to grab your purse before joining her. But as soon as you take one step with her, two other pairs of feet startle you.

Shoko side eyes them, “I’m assuming they’re joining us?”

“Uh…” they nod making you sigh, “I… I guess so…”

Shoko eyes you carefully before shrugging nonchalantly, “Whatever”

You appreciate how nonchalant she acts, knowing it isn’t nice to be followed, especially after Nitta and Higuruma join.

Both of you silently take the elevator before going out the building. As soon as you’re out, Shoko lights her cigarette and places it on her mouth, taking a big inhale.

“You mind the smoke?” She ask after exhaling.

You shake your head, “Many politicians smoke on our poker games, although they prefer cigars”

“Fancy” another intake, “Wanna try?”

You hurriedly shake your head, already imagining the headlines if a photo of you were to be taken as you tried smoking.

Shoko doesn’t pressure you, instead she restarts walking and you follow her silently.

Until you stop feeling cement under your feet and instead hear the crunching of leaves. Your eyes widen as you see the sight before you.

“Welcome to my favorite place” Shoko smiles faintly, “Paradise inside Hell”

You don’t laugh at her slight joke about university, too mesmerized by the sight in front of you.

Many trees, as green as anyone could imagine, surrounding a light blue lagoon that has a little wooden bridge for students to cross. Everything enclosed because of the tall trees making the sun slightly make it through the spaces, giving it a magical twinkling atmosphere. And many beautiful vibrant wild flowers.

It was what as a child you’d imagine a fairy forest would look like.

The wind was rustling, the leaves of the trees and the birds were singing along, and you had never felt more free.

“Are you high?”

You snap out of your daze, “W-What?!”

“You had a weird look just now” she shrugs.

“I-I’m not” you cross your arms, “It’s just… it’s beautiful”

Shoko grins faintly, “Yeah, it is. Come on”

She takes you over to the bridge where she takes out another cigarette to lit.

“So, Miss First Daughter…”

“Y/N” you correct her.

“So, Miss Y/N First Daughter” you sigh “why did you come here?”

“I’m sorry?”

“Not trying to be rude, just curious” she shrugs, taking a hit of her cigarette, “Seems too far from home”

“Everybody goes far for college”

“You’re not everybody though, you’re… different”

“Maybe I’m not really that different”

“And, yet, to their eyes you’ll always be it” she takes a deep hit, “Fucking stereotypes, right?”

You frown before sighing, turning to look at the lagoon in front of you that’s being bathe in soft sunlight.

She was right. No matter what you did or how you presented yourself, you’d always be the President’s daughter. You could try as hard as you’d like but nothing would change that fact, and nothing would change the fact that people would treat you as they found convenient.

You side eyed Shoko and thought that maybe not everyone would treat you according to their convenience. Maybe someone would treat you with sincerity, view you as an equal, just as she had done now.

You smiled faintly. Everything would by fine.

⛊ ☼ ⛉ ☼ ⛊ ☼ ⛉ ☼ ⛊

You had thought you’d blend in. Thought you’d be able to show everyone that you were one of them. But you just had to wear the newest set from Burberry, that hadn’t even come out.

You looked just as if you’d come right out of a Vogue magazine, while everyone else wore jeans and sneakers.

Your skirt felt tighter around you, and your matching vest suddenly itch. Why did you have to wear this? Did you even owned a pair of jeans? You must, right? You could feel the stares of the students around you as you entered the classroom.

Kill me now, you thought.

You sigh. You’d keep your head high. Giving the matching headband, you make your way to one of the middle seats.

Only for the ones surrounding you being occupy by your four bodyguards, leaving at least two seats between you and them as they made sure no one else even considered joining you.

Keeping your face down, you try to focus on setting the iPad you’d use for taking notes. Trying to ignore the stares, muting the whispers.

But they didn’t stop, not even when the professor started his lesson. You felt vulnerable.

“Wasn’t she taller on TV?”

“I thought her hair was darker.”

“What is she wearing?”

“Do you think she really speaks six languages? Looks kinda dumb… no offense”

Mute them. Mute them.

You were trying to take some notes as your professors explained, but the whispers seemed to just get louder as time passed. You wouldn’t be able to take it much longer, you felt too exposed like this.

You needed an out. But… what would they say if you just stood and left?

Was this how it was gonna be from now on?

“Okay!” Your professor finally calls out, “I know I’m not as pretty, but come on, work with me”

Your hand on your Apple pen tightens as you try to stare without an ounce of discomfort at your professor. You couldn’t let yourself be affected. Not with these many eyes on you.

Fake it, Y/N, you remind yourself, just fake it.

“I’m pretty, why is no one staring at me?”

You turn around, startled, towards the deep soothing voice. Shining blue Zircon eyes and an award winning smile. Striking white hair that matched his pale white skin.

He was… beautiful. Ethereal.

“That’s more like it! Appreciate your TA more” he pouts jokingly, “I’m not meant to blend in, so please don’t be modest”

And he was your savior.

Everyone’s attention had left you as soon as he spoke. And he kept it. His playful smile and the twinkle in his eyes as he joked around had everyone hooked.

The class kept going as if nothing happened and nobody looked your way again. All thanks to him.

You run as fast as your heeled loafers let you, trying to catch up to him. But his legs were way longer and you’d never catch him with four people surrounding you.

But you had to thank him.

“Hey! Hey!” You screamed, “Hey! You! Hey!”

Nothing.

You groan.

“HEY, YOU! JACK FROST!”

That made him stop… along with everyone else. You blush under all the stares but ignore them to hurriedly make your way to the white haired god-looking guy.

Who’s currently looking at you as if trying very hard to not laugh in your face.

“Jack Frost?”

“First thing that came to mind” you excuse yourself rapidly, “I just wanted to thank you”

“By calling me Jack Frost?”

“It just came out, okay?” You sigh, “Thank you, for what you did in there… I was ready to run out of there when you stepped in, so thank you”

His grins softens, “No problem, Blair Waldorf”

“What?”

“Gossip Girl’s true queen B” he explains, making you frown in confusion, “Wait… you haven’t watched Gossip Girl?”

You shake your head making him gasp.

“What girl hasn’t watched Gossip Girl? It’s like the show for teenage girls”

“And you watched it…?”

“It’s not just for girls, okay? I appreciate some drama” he shakes his head in disapproval, “Can’t believe you are like her modern version with your cute matching set and headband, yet have no idea who she is. The disappointment”

“Is it that popular?”

“You asking that is a total insult. It should be illegal to be this uncultured” he sighs, “Wanna thank me for what I did in there? Watch Gossip Girl”

You laugh silently at the odd request but nod, feeling slightly warm once you realize the comfort in which you both speak to one another. It was refreshing.

“I’m Y/L/N Y/N” you hold your hand out.

He stares at your hand with a playful twinkle, laughing slightly before shaking it with his own.

“Gojo Satoru” his grin widens, “a.k.a. Jack Frost, Miss Waldorf”

You feel yourself smile, “A pleasure to meet your acquaintance, Mr. Frost”

“Likewise, my lady”

⛊ ☼ ⛉ ☼ ⛊ ☼ ⛉ ☼ ⛊

Maybe you had to go to the doctor. It couldn’t be normal to feel this giddy or smile this much. The way your stomach was twisting and turning by itself couldn’t be normal. Also your face was hot, like freakingly so.

And it all had happened after meeting Satoru.

Just remembering the encounter made you giggle to yourself as you hug your precious teddy bear close to your chest.

Maybe you were going crazy.

That must be it. Sitting up, you start contemplating. You nod, standing up, and heading in your pajamas to your door and into the hallway. Kento stares at you with a frown but you ignore him. You’re on a mission.

You stop in front of the door and knock softly.

Footsteps are soon heard and you contemplate running for away but the door opens. All air leaves your lungs once you realize it is not Shoko in front of you.

“And who might you be?”

His voice is deep yet warm. And even though he is tall nothing about him makes him seem intimidating. Well, nothing except his looks.

What the hell was going on in this university? Was one of its requirements to be out-of-this-word good looking? It was honestly insane.

If Satoru had been like the dazzling, bright, mesmerizing sun, then the guy in front of her was the mysterious, beautiful, pure moon. Pale skin, dark eyes and night dark shoulder-length silky hair.

Satoru had been beautiful in a godly way. But this guy was beautiful in a fairytale way.

“You’re not Shoko” you whisper.

He smiles, sweetly, “Thankfully I’m not. She’s across from you on the other end”

“Oh” you stupidly answer, “I was too in my head, I’m so sorry”

“No worries. It’s not every night I get to see a pretty girl in a silk nightgown”

You squeal crossing your arm to try to cover yourself a bit, blushing as you hear his deep laugh.

“Here” he gives you a leather jacket.

“N-no. Don’t worry. I don’t have to go that far”

“I know. Still, take it” he smiles, “You seem too self conscious right now to be comfortable”

You smile at his consideration, taking the way-too-big-for-you leather jacket and putting it on.

“Isn’t it too late to go wandering?”

“I wasn’t wandering, I was going to visit a… friend?”

“You don’t sound to sure” he teases, “Was it an emergency at least? Shoko appreciated her beauty sleep”

“It could be” you try to defend yourself.

“So… you don’t know?”

“It c-could be”

He nods, biting his lips to not laugh, “If it’s that important, does it need to be with her or can I help you? I’m the RA here, so you don’t think I’m trying something freaky”

“You’re the RA? I didn’t know that”

“Your little informant didn’t give you that important detail?” He jokes, “Maybe you sure consider lowering his salary”

“Definitely. Who knows what else he got wrong? Is your middle name not Fernando?”

“Guilty”

You both laugh slightly. You don’t even notice the way he silently eyes you and your surroundings, as if alert.

“I get what they meant now”

“Huh?”

“Shoko and Satoru. They mentioned you were interesting, guess they were right”

You feel your chest warm, as if you’d been hugged, “They mentioned me?”

He nods, “Yeah. Is that a surprise?”

“I mean… to be mention by people who actually got to know me at least a little because they actually talked and listened to me? Yeah”

“It’s tough?”

“You don’t even know the slightest” you sigh.

“Then, good thing none of us really care about backgrounds” he smiles caringly, “You should join us this Friday, a friend of us is hosting a party”

“Party?”

“Yeah, seems like you need to have some fun. Loosen up a little”

“I don’t know…”

“Think about it. No pressure, okay?” You nods, “Now go to bed, you have class early tomorrow”

“Aye, aye, captain!”

You wave goodbye before turning around and happily make your way back to your studio. Not even questioning how he knew that you had an early schedule the next day.

How could you when you were on cloud nine after making three new acquaintances your age for the first time?

You threw yourself on your bed, laughing out loud in excitement. Was this what it was like to make friends? Were you finally able to live some normal experiences?

The hold on the leather jacket you were wearing tightens as you hug yourself, letting his strong cologne be inhaled by you.

You had friends. You were not alone anymore.

TAG LIST: @aishies-stuff @kouyoumarryme @mikyapixie @simbaaas-stuff @ichikanu

[votederpycausemufins]

And here's my Evil X gemcyt design sheet thing. I already posted the Xisuma one, so check that one out too.

the whole gemcyt au got kicked off by @chrisrin so make sure to check out their stuff and all the stuff they reblogged if you haven't already.

Another version of the sheet above but with more notes on and for it is below the cut.

Alright! I had a lot of fun figuring Evil X out, probably bc of him being one of my blorbos.

Evil X has a lot of 'theories' surrounding what he is and I've seen some variations. He and X are siblings, they're X's clone, he's a glitched version of X, they're X's hels. etc etc. And so trying to figure out what to do for him.

While I already borrowed sweetest-honeybee's design in the second part of my Zed/WM gemcyt post, I didn't want to do like that and make him corrupted. I know the gemcyt stuff seems to play with corruption a little looser, but it still didn't feel right. So, I went researching and found a fun lil mix that seems to fit well.

First off, the closest thing you can get to a glitch in terms of gems is being off-color. I mean technically you glitch when you're cracked, but we're not doing that. Anyway, off-color gem Evil X, which is why there's the gem comparison. Next, the clone/hels part. I don't mention it on the sheet, but specifically, I think of this Evil X as a sort of gem experiment. No wait wait don't leave let me explain!

We saw that there were gem experiments of some type on the show. They were more fusion experiments using shards, and were experiments for the cluster (which technically don't work since they only emerged slightly before the cluster so there was no telling if they worked and if then the cluster would work). Also on the show, we're told that there's a resource problem on Homeworld which results in 'Era 2' gems like Peridot, who don't have all the abilities a normal gem would have. Also also in the show, when Steven and Lars are with the off colors on Homeworld, we see the kindergartens there. And while there are normal holes, there are also holes that overlap, as well as holes that look like there's been a chunk scooped out of them.

The analogy I could think of was like when you're making cookies. you roll out the dough, get a cookie cutter, and get all the cookies, but assuming you weren't using a square cutter, there's extra dough left between the cuts. Instead of just leaving it, usually you reroll it to cut out more cookies. Well, why can't Homeworld try the same?

Evil X is meant to be an experiment on if Homeworld can successfully do that. They scooped out extra rock from a kindergarten or two, compressed it into a new boulder, then used an injector on it. Eventually after a long while, out came Evil X. And that whole thing also leans into the clone thing because I imagine some of the scooped rock was from part of where Xisuma emerged.

Anyway, with all that, I originally thought about making Evil X look similar to Amethyst's pseudo buff reformation, but trying to draw that was a mess. I meant to go back and make him look a little more lopsided, but you'll have to just imagine that. Whoops. At the very least he has the funky stripes. I imagine that's probably from where the different rock pieces met or something, and since it wasn't as solid as regular rock, he was like that.

Coloring him was tough, but eventually I just copied Xisuma over, inverted his colors, and then shifted the hue to be more red. I considered making the green parts more black, but it didn't fit, so they're just more purpley to show that Xisuma connection or smthn.

Speaking of his gem, I show what I picture a normal Cuprite to look like. Meanwhile Evil X's is a bit misshapen, as well as that darker area that mimics the one reference I had. specifically that darker bit is chrysocolla, but he's still just cuprite.

Instead of a mask, he's just got a visor similar to what we've seen with Peridot and Doc and technically those zircons. And also instead of a mask he has those... blade things. Look, the best name i could find for them were blade gauntlets, but they look more like sword brass knuckles to me so I don't know. Also yes they are based on a weapon a digimon had, what of it?

And then, he is hella amethyst coded. Popped out of his rock thing in a chamber under the kindergarten (similar to the other experiments in the show) with no one around. He was an experiment and uses rock from different gems and is off color, so he doesn't know what he's for. Doesn't even know what diamond he should belong to, so that's why he's got a grey one on his chest. And there's a lot of little things and ideas for him that are inspired by Amethyst's characterization on the show, to the point I was planning a screenshot redraw even before I had his and Xisuma's designs even close to finalized.

I also have a fic I'm working on with him and Gemsuma, as well as that quick Jevin design plus a few teeny tiny references to other people's gem designs. If my adhd allows it, i should post that 1 shot fic tomorrow.

[megamanrecut]

And here's the consolidated list (mostly?) All from Diamond in the Rough, character notes below cut (not in same order as pics)

Considered a few different systems for assigning gems (gemstone family, value, etc.) but ultimately just went with color/relative familiarity of gem. There’s so many cool gems out there~ (I was trying to not be too repetitive with types/use more common ones though Quartz has a million interesting varieties!)

Mega Man, Blue Sapphire Sphere I wavered a lot on his ‘trinket’, Sapphire seemed obvious (especially with Proto being a ruby, both are corundum gemstones) but also considered blue diamond, alexandrite (blue/purple color shift), and aquamarine. For the jewelry, was also considering an atomic model (for chemistry?), a screwdriver, and slightly regretting not considering circlet

Roll, Amethyst Earring: primarily always wanted amethyst, but also considered heliodor, padparadscha sapphire (but it wasn’t quite the right color? and perhaps too obscure), tanzanite, morganite, zoisite, kunsite, iolite, (purple gems etc.) For shape, was considering spikes/fangs though that’s also Treble and Punk’s lol

Bass, Emerald Snake Arm Cuff: loosely based on a real arm cuff I saw in a book. Also considered black diamond, green diamond (he’s the titular ‘diamond in the rough’), and black opal

Proto Man, Ruby Aviator Badge: I went with ruby in the end, which seemed most obvious choice, but also considered red diamond and bixbite (red beryl)

Elec Man, Black Opal Ring: Also considered chatoyant Sapphire, Alexandrite (??? color shift?), chrysoberyl, angelite/anhydrite, and even hawkeye quartz (loosely inspired by a real hawkeye ‘lightning’ ring, before that I was thinking cufflinks, but seemed weird for him to become either a pair of gems, or even a single cufflink lol)

Jewel Man, Colorless Beryl (Goshenite) Monocle - also considered rock crystal, diamond, and Padparadscha sapphire. Apparently both beryl and rock crystal were historically used for eyeglasses. Monocle is a reference to gentleman thief archtypes, also they are just fancy. (Also I realized while drawing this that having a plique a jour monocle chain is probably super impractical, oh well lol)

Top Man, Imperial Topaz  Pendant in a Jeweled Egg - also considered alexandrite and spinel (for the pun, heh) and spessertite

Kalinka/Mega Girl, Rose Quartz Blossom Barrette: Pink :) though I considered other lesser known (but more valuable) pink gems

Quint, Alexandrite Wristwatch: Quint is a time traveler (of sorts), also considered model armillary sphere/astrolabe, a screwdriver, and jade or malachite or nanocrystal

Wily, Agate Cameo Belt Buckle: Loosely inspired by his skull belt in some of his game art, also considered amythist

Dr. Light, Alabaster bead on a bookmark tassel:  Dr. Light likes books! Was also considering rock crystal and goshenite

Ring Man, Zircon Hoop Bracelet: Reference to both his namesake and his carney background. Was also considering class ring (before assigning the ring to Elec Man) and a circlet. ‘Zircon’ just sounds circusy, must be the Z

Magnet Man, Garnet Horseshoe Amulet: garnets are apparently magnetic, also considered fridge magnet

Cut Man, Citrine Paperknife: for obvious reasons. I also considered topaz for the gem

Guts Man, Tourmaline Paperweight: funny/fitting pairing with the paper knife, the shape is in reference to the boulder he holds in game art (for a brief week, was a rock crystal until I realized those are clear lol smokey quartz would have made more sense)

Punk, Spinel Motorcycle Chain: ‘Spinel’ may be a derivative from Latin ’spina’ which means thorn

Rush, Labradorite Bone Collar Tag: Went for the pun!

Treble, Howlite Fang: and ditto for Treble

Others that weren’t in chapter (this list has no significance what-so-ever, I brainstormed a list of gems but also ‘trinkets’ and my brain just started associating lol)

Beat, Aquamarine Aigrette: Beat actually avoided transformation, but that’s what he would have been

Gyro Man: Mood Ring

Dr. Cossack: Selenite something or other

Dark Man: D20

Time Man: a pocket watch

Enker: Chess piece

Metal Man: A knife

Shadow Man: Also a knife, maybe jade

Yamato Man: Natsuke

Burner Man: Match Box

Fake Man: phenakite, derived from greek word for deceiver

Magic Man: Card Case

Needle Man: Rutilated quartz (it has needle-like inclusions)

Pharaoh Man: Scarab collar pin/cloak clasp

Star Man: Star Saphire?

And that's it from the notes, haha.

[asco-bisco]

SBG Steven Universe AU

my take on school bus graveyard au and what gems I think the characters would be. I also added weapons but I only thought of a concept for Ashlyn and aiden.

Ashlyn - I think she would be either a jasper or amethyst. My first idea was an over cooked ruby but rubies are low-class guards and I don’t want to put Ashlyn in that position but her being an over cooked ruby is part of a whole other idea I had in mind.

I think her falling under a guard role would fit best for her, in my opinion but I feel like there’s something I’m missing. Aside from that, I also think that her weapon would be something like Mega Pearl’s weapon because her doing ballet just makes me think of ribbons but I’m not sure.

Aiden - My original idea was for him to be a plain human since that’s his role in one of my fic ideas but if he were to be a gem, I think it would be a pearl. Making Aiden a low-class gem and an ‘object’ might be purely for character but I feel it fits. I think he would be a rebel like Pearl and not follow orders or break rules.

But he could also be an aquamarine, a gem assisting diamonds but also being granted freedom since they can fly from planet to planet and collect what they please.

His weapon I feel would be something like a dagger or a spear like Pearl, if we’re going with the pearl idea. Or maybe just a two sided dagger or spear.

Ben - I have three ideas for him, a sapphire, a morganite, or a pearl. Oh, and he has a cracked gem for all of them.

A morganite because they are gems in charge of architecture and are artistic gems but not much is known about them other than that and they are high-ranking gems.

A sapphire because I felt like it just fit. Also, my sister told me sapphires like to sing but I couldn’t find anything about that, I still think Ben should be a sapphire - it’s also for a whole toher idea I had in mind.

A pearl because they are known to serve the higher-ups and as stated earlier, they’re objects. In the Webtoon, Ashlyn thinks that Ben follows Aiden around because he doesn’t know what to do with himself so giving him the role of a gem with the purpose of purely serving others and being ordered around would fit.

Logan - An aquamarine or zircon. I don’t actually have a reaosn as to why I chose a zircon for him other than the fact that him being a lawyer was amusing to me. And for an aquamarine because of whatever I explained for Aiden. But a pearl could work for Logan too since both him and pearls were ‘objects’ and assisted people.

Y’know, like him and Barron.

Tyler & Taylor - I was thinking they were one of Yellow Diamond’s experiments, they were a forced fusion or were like the rutile twins. I’m giving them trauma because they don’t have mommy and/or daddy issues anymore so making them an Off Color or a forced fusion experiment seemed fitting.

Other than that, I think Taylor would be a peridot or bismuth(more fitting) since they’re both known to create things. Her being a bismuth seems fitting since I saw on Red’s Insta story that Taylor can weld things together.

I don’t know what Tyler would be though. Either a guard that was pushed aside because I was planning for him to be ‘over cooked’ like Amethyst.

Actually, both the twins are over cooked now because I said so/hj

This is super messy, I’ll probably end up rewriting this when I get my lapotp

[lycorogue]

Latest Story: I Think I Like You (Maybe More Than I Should)

For @mostlovedgirl-writes

A companion story for her work Ha! You Think That’s Embarrassing? 

MLG, I warned you that you sparked something! What's worse is that I had this story done on May 14th, and it just kept me this long to sort out what to title the darn thing! 😅[smile with sweat emoji]

The Aged-Up AU that MLG created for her MariChat May ficlet was just too enticing for me to leave alone, so, naturally, I nearly quintupled her story as I retold the same tale but from Adrien's POV.

Why do stories keep running away from me like this!?

I want to send so many extra kudos and just general love MLG's way. I barely wrote anything the past two years. Because of MLG, I have now written my SECOND 7000+ word story in a month (the 1st story wasn't due to MLG, but still...)!

Also, I had I Think I Like You by The Band CAMINO on a constant loop while writing this story (which is how I finally landed on a title). So, if you want some mood music, I'd suggest using that.

Summary: Adrien is intrigued by one of the junior designers at his father's company. Maybe more intrigued than a few passing interactions with Marinette would warrant. At least, that's what Plagg jokes when Adrien notices Marinette on an abysmal date and decides to intervene... as Chat Noir. **An AU where Adrien and Marinette (as their civilian selves) never met as teens** Rating: General Audience (does contain the word "shit" once) Word Count: 7,974 Estimated Read Time: 40min Status: completed one-shot Continue reading below, or find this story over on AO3, on FFN, or on DA.

I Think I Like You (Maybe More Than I Should)

Adrien's brain began fogging over. He knew he was the face of the Gabriel brand, but did his father truly need him to sit in on every partnership meeting? He was little more than a fancy doll paraded out to lock in a new deal. Especially when he wasn't allowed to add any actual input.

Just smile. Say some pleasantries about wanting to work with them. Talk up the brand. Look pretty and professional.

It was a relief to see Nathalie stand up. It was Adrien's signal that his part of the meeting was finally over. He stood up as well, shook hands with the shoe execs that Gabriel was partnering with for the fall line, and practically sprinted out of the door as Nathalie passed out the contracts for the execs to sign.

He should have known better than to exit the room backwards so he could get in one last wave and thank you to their guests. In fairness, though, he didn't expect the hall to have traffic.

“Whoa!” The woman Adrien rudely collided into cried out as she flailed to try to catch her balance.

With his Chat-Noir-trained reflexes, Adrien swung his arm out to catch the woman around the waist. He gently tugged her back up onto her feet, but he didn't calculate her already throwing herself back into balance. She tilted the opposite direction, and Adrien ended up dipping her; his other hand supporting her shoulders – and her hands reflexively grabbing onto his – as her momentum finally stopped.

“Easy there!” He nervously laughed. Of course, he would collide with one of his father's employees as he tried to escape one of his father's meetings. He was sure he'd never hear the end of this.

“A-Adrien?” The woman squeaked in a panic. “I-I mean, Mr. Agreste?”

Her large eyes shined like blue zircon gemstones. Her strawberry-pink lips were partially parted in shock. Her raven hair dangled like a curtain behind her as Adrien held her in the dip. She was adorable. She also looked so familiar to him. Those eyes, in particular.

Agreste! Wake up! Realizing that his father's employee was still leaning awkwardly against his arm, Adrien cleared his throat and lifted the woman back onto her feet. He held her elbows to help steady her. Once he was confident that she wasn't going to fall, he took a step back and hoped his blush wasn't as visible as it felt as it burnt his cheeks.

“Adrien's fine. I'm not really into formalities, if I'm honest. Are you okay? Sorry about colliding into you like that.”

“N-no! That's alright. I'm fine. I should have been paying attention as well.”

Now that they weren't inches from each other, the woman started to shrink into herself. She couldn't keep eye contact with him and fidgeted. Her foot rubbed the back of the opposite leg and her arms flailed about as she talked. Seeing her so nervous definitely brought about a familiarity, and a name bobbed to the surface of Adrien's memory.

“Marinette, right? You're one of the junior designers?”

She squeaked with a start. “You-you know who I am?”

Adrien laughed. “Well, yeah. You fitted me for a few outfits for the spring line, didn't you?”

Marinette blushed. “Mm-hmm. The casual evening wear line.”

“That's the one!” Adrien snapped with acknowledgment. “Were any of those pieces yours?”

“Mine?” Marinette flailed her hands in front of her again. “No! I'm not nearly– I mean, my work isn't quite– I'm not ready for that. I-I did help with the color selection though.”

“Well, that's quite the accomplishment in and of itself. I think those were some of the most fun outfits I've worn in a while, and it was largely due to how bright the colors were. Really shook up all of those bland whites and blacks and tans menswear tends to fall into. You know?”

Marinette nodded like she was a freshly bopped bobblehead. Adrien struggled to not laugh at how adorable she was.

“Oh! I'm sorry. I'm holding you up!” Marinette's eyes again flew wide and her blush deepened. “And I need to take these– Oh no! The sketches!” Marinette stared at her hands, suddenly realizing they were empty. The sketches she was carrying before Adrien ran into her were carpeting the floor.

“Here, let me help you with that.” Adrien leaned down to help scoop up the papers, this time keeping an eye on the door to make sure they didn't end up tripping Nathalie and the execs as they left the conference room.

“No, that's alright. I have it.”

“I'm the reason they got scattered all over the floor in the first place. It's no problem. Really.”

As they scrambled to scoop up the papers – Adrien focused on the conference room door and Marinette focused on anything but Adrien – they bonked heads.

“Oof! Sorry. I seem to just keep running into you today.” Adrien sheepishly laughed.

“No-no. That was on me this time.” An awkward, lopsided smile spread across Marinette's lips as she gathered the last of the sketches.

They both stood, and Adrien held out the papers he had picked up. “We really need to find a better way to run into each other. Preferably one where we don't do so literally.”

“I love you,” she swooned. “That!” she quickly corrected. Her blush deepened. “I'd love that. The not running into you part. I mean, no! Not that part. I love running into you. Not literally though. That part. But I don't love running into you. It's not like I purposefully position myself so that I have an excuse to interact with you. That would be weird and stalker-y and I definitely don't do that. I mean why did I even put that out there? Now you think that's exactly what I do, but I swear I don't. I just–”

Adrien softened as he listened to Marinette. There was something about her rambling that was equal parts confusing and endearing. He cocked his head to the side while waiting for her to get to the point.

“You're so nice,” she continued at that same frantic pace. Her papers slid out of her arms due to the uneven pressure she was putting on them. She juggled them a bit as her mouth kept going. “You don't have to be nice. Everyone would probably expect you to not be nice. Not not-nice. I mean, indifferent? But you're not. You're super nice. I mean, you put in the effort to remember my name. Plus, you didn't need to help me with these.” She held up her uneven pile of papers. “And you're standing here listening to me going on-and-on and good grief why am I still talking? I'm holding you up and I really need to get going as well and yet I just can't seem to stop talking. I'm so embarrassing. But you're still here listening to me, because you're so sweet and I just want to spend all night talking to you. And it seems like maybe you'd be willing? So, maybe we could go and grab dinner tonight after work or something?”

Marinette stopped with a gasp as she tried to refill her empty lungs.

Adrien politely chuckled. “You good?”

Marinette's blush quickly drained as the woman went pale as a ghost. Her eyes bugged out and her mouth slacked.

“I did not just do that!”

“Hmm?” Adrien cocked his head. His mind still frantically trying to sort through the word-vomit Marinette just spat up all over him.

She started backing away from him. “Ignore everything I just said. I don't want to date you. Not that I wouldn't date you if you wanted. Actually, no! You wouldn't– I mean I wouldn't– I mean I'm so sorry. My bad. I just remembered that I already have a date with someone else tonight. A very nice date. One that I've been looking forward to. With someone not you. So clearly I'm not waiting to go on a date with you. Because I have a date with someone else. Tonight! Definitely already have a date tonight. Sorry. Gotta go!” Then she sprinted down the hall.

There was a commotion behind Adrien and the conference door opened. Adrien mindlessly stepped out of the way as the execs filed out of the room, followed by Nathalie.

“Adrien?” she asked. “What are you still doing here? Something wrong?”

Adrien didn't register Nathalie talking to him. He looked through her and down the hall where Marinette had sprinted. His mind finally sorting through what happened.

“Did she just ask me out?”

“Huh? Who? Who asked you out?” Nathalie looked over her shoulder.

“Oh! Sorry. Never mind. It's nothing.”

Nathalie frowned. “I have to escort our guests out, but we'll talk about this later. You know how your father feels about you dating.”

Adrien waved Nathalie off and walked in the direction Marinette had sprinted.

The woman was quick! Adrien couldn't have lagged that far behind, but he couldn't find her anywhere. He couldn't even determine which office she was aiming for.

He tried looking for her office. Turned out that she was still too entry-level to have her own. With some effort – it was hard trying to bluff his way around the “why do you need Marinette?” question – he managed to sort out where her work desk was. She wasn't there either.

“What's the big deal with this girl?” Plagg poked his head out from behind Adrien's blazer. “Can't you just wait until the next time you just naturally see each other?”

Adrien scanned the hall to make sure they were alone. “Plagg,” he hissed, “You know you can't come out of hiding while I'm not in my office at work! It's too easy for you to get caught.”

“Pfft. We're fine. Believe me. I take way more notice of who's around us than you seem to, Mr. Literally-runs-into-somebody-twice.”

Adrien simply shook his head at his kwami.

“But, seriously. Don't you have anything better to do than try to track her down?”

“Probably, but I don't care. I need to talk to her again.”

“Why?”

Adrien stopped.

“I... don't really know. She intrigues me, and I guess I do kind of want to take her up on that date invite. Just so I can get to learn more about her. And she seemed so nervous around me. I need to check in with her. Make sure she's okay and that the two of us are good.”

“I'm sure that's all this is.” Plagg cocked an eyebrow before zipping back into hiding.

Adrien heaved his exasperation with Plagg's interrogation before continuing down the hallway. Maybe if he grabbed a treat from the breakroom to appease his kwami Plagg wouldn't tease him further.

“Okay, I'll meet you at Bastian's tonight at eight.”

Ladybug?

Adrien nearly sprinted towards the dominant voice. When he popped his head through the breakroom door, however, he instead spotted the same loose, medium-length, raven hair that had draped down his arm nearly an hour before. After all of her stammering around him, Adrien didn't recognize Marinette's more confident tone as hers.

She had both hands firmly planted on a table, her back towards the door. A thirty-something-year-old man with wire-rimmed glasses not properly shaped for his round face, a god-awful pencil mustache, and mousy-brown hair slicked back with far too much product sat across from Marinette. The man's basic white button-down shirt wasn't even properly ironed. Adrien was clear across the room and he could still see the wrinkles lining the man's sleeves. The man's tie was also a basic black and horribly dated. Adrien wondered if he had bought it for a school dance as a teen and just never replaced it.

“My reservation is actually for 7:30.” The man shrugged. “I prefer to not eat too late into the evening. I get heartburn then.”

“Okay. Fine.” Marinette's shoulders slumped a little.

“And don't forget to dress up nice. None of–” The man gestured to Marinette's lovely pastel pink capped-sleeve blouse and flowy cement-gray knee-length skirt adorned with cherry blossoms. “–this. I want Date Night not Office Space.”

Adrien scrunched up his nose in disgust. “Well, yeah. Of course.” Marinette backed away from the table and rubbed her elbow nervously.

With a huff, Adrien stormed away from the breakroom.

Seriously? Him? What does Marinette even see in him?

“I didn't even realize Marinette had a thing for Jules.”

Adrien pivoted at the mention of Marinette. A man and woman walked out of the breakroom, gossiping with each other.

“Have they even talked to each other before today?”

“If they have, then Marinette's a miracle worker for getting a word in edge-wise against the Jabberwocky.”

“She's pretty meek. Maybe she prefers being talked at.”

“Well, here's hoping she's also a masochist, because those are the only ones who could possibly enjoy the mental agony of interacting with that guy.”

The two workers laughed as they approached Adrien.

“Oh!” The female worker jumped slightly upon noticing him. “Mr. Agreste. What a pleasure to see you. What are you doing on the third floor? Something we can assist with?”

“No. Sorry.” Adrien put on his patented Model Smile(TM) as he scratched the back of his head. “I was just getting my steps in.” He held up his wrist to show off his fancy watch. It didn't register his steps, but he hoped it looked high-tech enough that they wouldn't notice. “I should probably head back to my office, though. Carry on.”

With a wave, he made a bee-line back to his office on the twelfth floor.

“Huh. I would not have guessed that guy was Marinette's type.” Plagg floated back out from Adrien's blazer and drifted over to the mini-fridge Adrien had put into his office.

Adrien plopped into a plush club chair he kept in the corner of the room. “Me neither. What does she see in him? For someone so fashion-forward and quirky and adorable–?”

“Maybe this is a case of opposites attract?”

“He sounded so rude towards her, didn't he? And then those employees joking about his endless talking and how painful it is to just interact with him? Does Marinette see something in him that no one else does?”

“Marinette seemed to be a bit of a motor-mouth herself.”

“Yeah, but hers was different.”

“How so?”

“It just... was. Okay?”

Plagg shrugged and gobbled down a large slice of Camembert. “Ah, to be a fly on the wall during that date.” He laughed. “If that woman could handle the– what did those guys call him? Jabberwocky? I like that. If Marinette could slay the Jabberwocky I wish I could be there to see that. Oh! Or the two of them just rambling at each other; holding two different conversations? Either way, get me the popcorn.”

“I am curious. Maybe it isn't as bad as it seemed in the few seconds that I caught. Their interactions, I mean.”

“If you say so.”

“Yeah. I'm sure there's something there that we don't know. Marinette wouldn't go on a date as awful as I'm thinking.”

“How could you know that? You barely know the girl.”

“That is true.” Adrien hung his head in his hands. Why was he even so fixated on this? Plagg was right. He only really knew Marinette in passing. It was none of his business. Even if it was a bad date, so what? Everyone has had terrible dates that they've suffered through.

Ones that they wished they could pull a rip-cord on.

That maybe they didn't have an escape plan for, but wished they did.

Marinette's gemstone eyes flitted into Adrien's mind.

He whipped out his phone and looked up the number for Bastian's.

“Hello? Yes. This is Adrien Agreste. Yes, that Adrien Agreste. I was wondering if you had an opening for a solo-diner tonight? I was hoping for around 7:20? Oh, no. A VIP table isn't necessary at all. Public dining is perfect. Fantastic. See you then. Thank you.”

Adrien turned from Plagg's knowing look. “What?” he asked his kwami, “I heard that Bastian's has a delicious salmon risotto.”

--------------

The quality of the salmon risotto was highly exaggerated.

It wasn't bad. It was a textbook execution of the dish, worthy of high marks at any culinary school. The flavoring was just a bit bland despite the chef clearly being a bit heavy-handed with the butter.

That didn't really matter though. Adrien wasn't particularly hungry anyway.

His stomach felt heavy and the back of his brain was itchy. He had no clue what he was doing there. The whole thing was insane.

It hit him all at once the moment he caught a glimpse of Marinette's raven hair coming around the corner behind the hostess. He realized that he had no excuse to be at this mid-grade (at best) restaurant. Not the same one that she just-so-happened to have a reservation for. And not at the same time as the aforementioned reservation. Definitely not while also eating alone!

I can't let her catch me here!

Adrien quickly pivoted to a different seat at his table so his back was towards her. As discretely as possible, he slid his meal over to his new spot. He then shrugged his sweater a little higher up the back of his neck and shagged his hair slightly. Similar to how he used to wear it when he was a teen. With any luck, she wouldn't recognize him.

He felt Plagg snake his way around his back and down to Adrien's hip. Plagg then phased his head through the sweater. “Plagg!” Adrien hissed under his breath.

“Calm down,” Plagg whispered back. “No one looks at someone else's hips. I just want to see this disaster.”

“No,” Adrien intoned, trying to not move his lips too much and get caught talking to 'himself'. “We're not spying on Marinette and her date. I'm sure it will be fine.” He poked some more at his risotto and wondered how bad it would look if he just downed it as fast as possible so he could escape.

“You're no fun,” Plagg huffed, but he didn't bother to retreat into the sweater.

Despite himself, as Adrien worked his way through his dinner, he attuned his ears to Marinette's table. His hearing wasn't as keen as it would have been if he was Chat Noir, but, over the years, he had trained his senses to be a bit more sensitive than usual, even out of costume.

Training his sense of touch was probably a poor decision, though. Especially with how many hands roam his body between fittings and shoots and quick-changes....

It seemed to work in his favor that night though. The entire meal, he barely heard Marinette say five words – outside of ordering her steak with the waiter – but Adrien could not get away from her date's dreary voice. Marinette's coworkers were right, however, and the woman was always more on the meek, non-confrontational side anyway. It was possible that she was somehow enjoying the endless conversation. Except, Adrien's sort of sixth sense – due to his heightened touch sensitivity – made him acutely aware of Marinette's discomfort.

Well, it was either the sixth sense thing or Plagg's wincing at Adrien's hip.

Despite warnings about cats and curiosity, Adrien couldn't help himself. He nudged his way around the table again. Shimmying closer and closer to his original chair before smoothly shifting to it and pushing his other chair back into place. Then he slid his half-eaten bowl back in front of him. Then the glass of wine.

He refused to keep going so he was full-on facing Marinette, but he could at least keep an eye on her in his peripheral now. He didn't like what he saw.

Her back was tight and tall. Her shoulders raised towards her ears. Her upper arms were flexed as she fidgeted with something under the table. A miasma of irritation seemed to radiate from her, and Adrien wondered if she was going to literally try to slay the Jabberwocky. Did this restaurant somehow have vorpal knives?

Adrien desperately wanted to just intervene. He wasn't sure at this point if doing so would be rescuing Marinette from her date or the other way around.

“And that was how my third marriage ended,” Jules monotoned across from Marinette.

How is that guy so loud? I get the masochism comment now, Adrien thought.

As Marinette filled her side of the conversation with yet another sip of water she started to take in the restaurant around her. In a flash, Adrien was laser-focused on the last bites of his risotto.

Please, don't let her see me, he mentally chanted, subtly shifting his head so he was turned away from her. If she catches me here I'm done for!

Right. He had no plausible reason to be at the same restaurant as her at the same time as her and right after she told him she had a date tonight. He'd be outed as a stalker or something! His father would throw him into lock-down if that ever got out! And, considering how recognizable he was, there was no way the other patrons wouldn't videotape him interrupting a woman's date and probably getting called an obsessive creep by that same woman.

Marinette had walked back – well, black-hole-absorbed back – her date invite to Adrien specifically so she could still come here with Jules. She must have had a reason to prefer the Jabberwocky's company. Maybe Adrien somehow offended her when they collided earlier. Maybe she had gotten in trouble after being late with those sketches. Maybe she didn't want anything to do with Adrien Agreste anymore. Wouldn't be a good look to ride in and try to White Knight for Marinette then. He didn't want to seem possessive of her.

His risotto finally done, he gently reached out to a passing waiter and requested the check.

“This is great,” Plagg whispered from his watch party at Adrien's hip still. “She's just gazing out the window now; not even looking at the guy. And he's still talking! I think he just likes the sound of his own voice.”

“That's hard to imagine,” Adrien intoned.

He thanked the waiter for the check, and quickly handed him in his payment. After confirming that the waiter was also assisting Marinette's table, Adrien included a nearly fifty-percent tip in hopes that it would help compensate for having to deal with Marinette's date. Meal consumed and paid for, Adrien placed his napkin on the table and stood to leave.

“Aww.” Plagg snaked back around to Adrien's chest just under his cable-knit sweater. “The train wreck isn't over yet.”

“Oh, yes it is.”

“Adrien?” Plagg warned. Adrien quickly shushed him.

He walked past Marinette's table as fast as possible while still looking nonchalant. He again prayed that she wouldn't notice him there.

“So, last year I went snorkeling with...”

Adrien struggled to not roll his eyes and scream at Jules to just shut up already as he caught the man still droning on at poor Marinette.

Just look forward. Don't react. Get out of here before she notices you! he ordered himself.

Adrien got to the front of the restaurant with no incident. He heaved a relieved sigh, thanked the wait staff and the hostess, and headed out the door. Fighting against his desire to full-tilt sprint, he casually followed the sidewalk along the front of the building. As soon as he reached the small alley between the restaurant and the neighboring building, however, he dashed into its welcoming shadows.

“Adrien?” Plagg asked with a challenging tone, “What are you planning? Nothing stupid, I hope.”

“Oh. It most definitely is. Plagg-”

“Adrien! Don't! You can't use your powers for personal gain, remember?” Plagg rattled off in a panic.

“What personal gain? Chat Noir is a hero, isn't he? And I'm rescuing Marinette. It's all on the up-and-up.”

“Adrien!”

“Plagg, claws out!”

“Adrien, no!” Plagg got sucked into Adrien's ring before he could fight his holder any further. In an instant, Chat Noir stood where Adrien was a moment before.

“Now, let's go rescue a citizen.”

Chat Noir puffed out his chest and casually walked back into Bastian's. He gave the hostess a salute as he walked past her. “Not dining today,” he called over his shoulder, “Just need to do a quick pop-in. Don't mind me.”

As he passed by the tables within the dining room the patrons all started to mutter among themselves about him.

“No need to panic,” he reassured them. “Paris is safe. Go back to your meals.”

It was too late. The restaurant was already abuzz and everyone was too focused on him to even think about their food anymore.

The only one unfazed by Chat Noir's presence was none other than Marinette's lout of a date.

Marinette, on the other hand, stared up at Chat Noir with those shining blue zircon eyes that had captured him earlier that day.

“Hello, Miss,” Chat Noir greeted. He rested one hand on the back of Marinette's chair, and the other he balled up before resting it on his hip. It took imagining Ladybug's disappointed scowl to keep him from using his balled fist to punch out Marinette's date.

“Buh-blah-uh?” Marinette blabbered in shock.

Chat Noir struggled to not smirk at how cute even Marinette blue-screening was. “Pardon my rudeness, but could I borrow you for a moment? Won't take but a sec.” He then winked at her to let her know that he understood her situation; he was there as her out.

Clearly still blue-screened, Marinette slowly pivoted her head back towards her date. Jules did not look impressed that a superhero was currently standing at their table.

“Excuse me,” Jules grunted, “but you're interrupting our date.”

Marinette slowly pivoted her head back towards Chat Noir, awaiting his response.

Chat Noir turned to regard the boorish man. It was so ironic to Chat Noir that this other man was complaining about interrupting dates. Him! He was the one who was interrupting so many dates within that restaurant with his loud droning. Let alone his prevention of Adrien's date with Marinette that night. Besides, how did he not notice that Marinette was desperate for someone to interrupt the date?

Taking a long, soothing breath, Chat Noir stood straight, his hand no longer resting on Marinette's chair. Once again breaking out his Model Smile(TM), Chat Noir relaxed his body in an attempt to disarm.

“Oh, right,” he said with a thick layer of honey in his voice. “Sorry about that. Interrupting a date is so annoying. I totally get that.”

Like a skilled magician, Chat Noir distracted from his hands with his winning smile. Meanwhile, his left hand scooped up Marinette's right.

“Let me just get out of your way,” Chat Noir finished with a coo. In a flash, he tugged on Marinette's hand, spinning her out of her chair and into his arms. After catching her in his arms earlier, it was a welcome return to feel her weight against him again.

Marinette was still stun-locked. Her only acknowledgment of what just happened was the rosy coloring flooding her cheeks.

Shifting his arm so it was draped around Marinette's shoulder, he confirmed that she had her purse on her. Chat Noir then gave Marinette's former date a two-finger salute before escorting Marinette out of the restaurant. Once they were outside, he detached his stick from his back. In one, smooth, solid motion, he scooped Marinette up into a bridal carry while extending his stick to vault up onto the nearest roof.

Upon landing, he shifted her slightly so he could reattach his weapon to his back before again lifting her into a bridal carry. A moment later, they were off. He wasn't sure where he was going. He just let his feet lead him. All he knew was that he couldn't be anywhere near that restaurant or that oaf of a date.

With the same ease as a leisurely jog around a track, Chat Noir ran across the rooftops of Paris with Marinette in his arms. He leapt across the gaps between buildings as if he was hopping over puddles to avoid getting his shoes wet. He felt so free and the weight of Marinette in his arms renewed his energy.

As they neared the Seine, Chat Noir stopped within a rooftop garden. It was a gorgeous view, between the flowers, the lights reflecting off the river, and a cozy-looking garden bench tucked within the flora.

Chat Noir gently rested Marinette back on her feet, holding her hands to support her while she regained her bearings.

“You okay, Miss?”

“Uh...” She blinked at him. Her face shifted between confusion, relief, shock, and frustration as if those emotions were on shuffle play. She finally settled on stupefied. “I'm sorry. What just happened?”

She was too cute. Chat Noir couldn't help himself. He chuckled. “I think I just rescued you from the world's worst date.”

Marinette cringed and moaned in embarrassment. “Believe it or not, I've had worse.”

She circled around Chat Noir, studying him. It unnerved him slightly, but he tried to not let it show. He reminded himself that there was no way that she'd know that he was Adrien Agreste.

“But why me?” she asked. “You don't even know me.”

Chat Noir pursed his lips. He was not expecting that question. Why wasn't he expecting that question?

“Let's just say–” his mind raced for a suitable answer. He rocked back and forth on his heels. “–I know a guy who asked me for a favor.”

Ha! Perfect! Vague but plausible.

Marinette's face fell and her shoulders slacked. “Oh, my gosh,” she whispered, more to herself than to Chat Noir. “You know Adrien Agreste.” Her eyes darted up to meet Chat Noir's. “He contacted you somehow, didn't he?”

Shit!

Marinette must have spotted Adrien in the restaurant after all. He was never going to live this down! With any luck – of which he was sure he had virtually none – his mask would at least hide the blush burning his cheeks. He broke eye contact with Marinette and scratched the back of his neck nervously. “What makes you think that?”

With a groan, Marinette fell onto the bench nestled between the flower boxes. She buried her face in her hands, muttering “no, no, no, no” into her palms. She then let out another whimpering groan.

“Hey. Are... you okay?” Chat Noir sat beside her. With a moment of hesitation, nervous that he was the source of her woes, he tentatively placed a supportive hand on her shoulder.

“I can't believe Adrien saw me on that awful date.”

Oh, good. He was the source of her woes. Excellent.

Chat Noir choked down his own whimpering groan.

“I'm so embarrassed,” Marinette continued.

Chat Noir tilted his head in confusion. Why was Marinette embarrassed? She caught her boss's son basically stalking her. He'd understand her being angry or feeling violated, but embarrassed?

“I feel like I'm missing something. So, what's the story?”

“It's a long one,” Marinette grumbled. She dropped her hands to her lap and rested her head against the back of the bench, gazing up at the starless sky.

Chat Noir smirked. He'd love a long story from Marinette.

“I'm all ears.” He willed the false cat ears atop his head to twitch and wiggle.

Marinette laughed. It was the loveliest sound Chat Noir could recall hearing. He melted a little as he settled in next to her, readying himself for Story Time.

She took a deep breath to steel herself and heaved out a heavy sigh. “There's this guy at work – tall, blond, sweet, and so handsome I melt into the floor every time I see him.”

Chat Noir hoped Marinette didn't hear him gulp his heart back into his chest.

“He even smells amazing,” she whined with yearning.

Chat Noir fought the urge to sniff himself that very instant, and the follow-up urge to wiggle closer to Marinette so she could perchance catch a whiff. Which one of them was downwind? Why wasn't there any wind right now?

Clearing his throat slightly, Chat Noir teased, “Okay, so you know Adrien from work.” He gestured as if offering the right of way to Marinette. “Go on.”

Marinette glared up at him with a little pout. It was adorable, but still sent a chill down Chat Noir's spine. It felt familiar somehow. As if he'd faced That Look at least a dozen times before.

“I never said it was Adrien.”

Oh. This is going to be fun, Chat Noir thought as he fought the smile tugging at the corners of his mouth.

He dramatically crossed one leg over the other, then rested his chin in his hand. His other hand casually draped across his thigh. With a wisp in his voice, Chat Noir asked, “Oh? So, who is mister tall, fair, and handsome?”

Marinette flushed with embarrassment. She whipped away from Chat Noir's playful gaze, instead focusing on her thumbnails as she picked at them. “It doesn't matter!”

“Mm-hmm,” Chat Noir challenged.

Marinette shifted in her seat, rolling her shoulders before again gazing up at the sky. “Anyway, this guy from work, I've...” She cautiously glanced back over at Chat Noir as she bit down on her thumbnail.

He straightened, relaxing both hands to seem more sincere. The shift in posture appeared to have put Marinette more at ease. She stopped biting on her nail, lowering her hand back to her lap.

“I've had the biggest, most embarrassing crush on him for the longest time.” She slammed the back of her head against the back of the bench. She screwed her eyes shut and whimpered a little before continuing. “I ran into him in the hall earlier today–”

Literally, and the other way around, Chat Noir thought with an embarrassed chuckle.

“–and in a fit of complete insanity I asked him out.”

A warm wave washed over Chat Noir. The confirmation that she had meant to extend the invitation made his heart skip in a way he wasn't expecting.

“Doesn't sound so bad.” Chat Noir hoped his glee didn't spill over into his voice. He had to remain neutral and detached from the situation. Neutral and Detached. Neutral. And. Detached.

“But then I realized what I had done,” she continued, “I got all flustered and started babbling, said, 'Sorry, my bad. I just remembered that I have a date with someone else tonight,' and ran away.” She glanced back over at Chat Noir and gestured as if to say, “ta-da! I'm an idiot!”

Chat Noir bit the inside of his mouth to stop himself from laughing. It really was a ridiculous situation, now that Marinette laid it out so plainly. How could she be so cute and yet so insecure?

“And why did you do that?”

“Because,” she whined, “he's Adrien Agreste!” She threw her hands out, gesturing to the sky in desperation. “Not only is he France's top model and so far out of my league that I can't even see his league without a telescope, but also–” She violently shook her hands out in front of her, as if she were mentally shaking sense into herself. “He's my boss's son! I can't even begin to fathom how inappropriate asking him out like that was.” She screamed out her embarrassment before hiding behind her hands again. “I panicked and ran,” she finished softly.

Chat Noir wanted to pull her in for a hug so bad. The poor thing! He was right. She had meant to ask him out, and just revoked the offer because she got nervous.

How on Earth did that Jules guy get involved then?

“So,” Chat Noir drew out the word as he tried to sort out a non-judgmental way to ask, “after asking out the guy you wanted to go out with, how did you end up on a date with that other guy?”

“Ugh, it's so embarrassing.” Her chest heaved in mock sobs. “I was still panicking and wasn't thinking straight, and I heard that guy – I think he's from accounting or something – say that his date for tonight had fallen through.”

Gee, I wonder why.... Chat Noir mentally rolled his eyes.

“I didn't want Adrien to think that I had lied to him about having a date already–”

“Which you had,” Chat Noir teasingly pointed out.

“–so I asked him out. Right there in the breakroom. In front of all of my coworkers!”

Chat Noir pursed his lips as he choked down a laugh. When that wasn't enough he clapped a hand over his mouth to try to better hide his amusement. Now was not the time to laugh about how unhinged the whole situation was. That would be the last thing Marinette would need when she was already having a rough time with it.

Marinette again cradled her head in her hands. “You can go ahead and laugh. I deserve it. I'm such a loser.”

Okay. Definitely not the time to laugh.

“Nah, you're not a loser.” He gently elbowed her to try to catch her attention. “Delightfully awkward, but not a loser.”

“I'm going to have to quit my job and move to America, and start designing ready-to-wear for a department store,” she moaned into her hands.

Chat Noir knew that very sentiment painfully well. “A valid career path, but why are you moving an ocean away?”

Marinette sunk further onto the bench, bending nearly in half as she hid within her hands. “I'll never be able to show my face at Gabriel or any other fashion house in Paris again.”

“I don't think it's as bad as all that. Sure, you had one embarrassing day at work, but who hasn't?”

Marinette scoffed.

“Even Adrien has embarrassed himself in public,” Chat Noir ventured.

Marinette stilled for a heartbeat. Slowly, she sat up a little straighter and peeked out from behind her hands. “Really? But he's so perfect.”

“Pfft. Hardly!” Chat Noir dismissively waved off the very idea. He then draped an arm along the back of the bench and recrossed his legs.

Marinette studied him. Those zircon eyes flickered between pleading to be reassured and questioning if Chat Noir was simply jealous of Adrien.

The woman had been through the wringer that day, and had already suffered enough simply by going on a date with the Jabberwocky. Chat Noir wasn't sure why, but he trusted that Marinette would never weaponize someone else's embarrassment. It was time to break out the big guns.

Chat Noir nonchalantly shrugged. “His first modeling job after lycée, he had a horrible cold. Someone offered him one of those vitamin-C tablets that you're supposed to dissolve in a cup of hot water before drinking. Oblivious kid that he was, he put the tablet in his mouth and drank a cup of warm water.”

He shuddered remembering the next part. The vile taste returned to his mouth through recollection alone.

Marinette's eyes widened. Her mouth formed into an astonished 'o' and she slowly covered her silent gasp with her hand. She was getting ahead of his story.

Chat Noir nodded that she was on the right track. “The tablet started dissolving in his mouth and foaming over everything. It got all over his clothes; the furniture; the floor. It was like he had rabies! Everyone started laughing and calling him 'Atomic Blond'. He was so embarrassed that he vowed to move to New Zealand and become a sheep herder.”

“Oh, no!” Marinette laughed; breathy, secondhand-embarrassed, sympathetic laughs. Chat Noir could practically hear her thinking 'poor thing'. “How have I not heard that story before?”

Chat Noir shrugged. “His dad worked his PR magic and covered it up.”

More like Nathalie worked her magic, but to-may-to to-mah-to.

Marinette arched an eyebrow. “How do you know about it?”

“Sorry. That's a trade secret.” He pressed a finger to his lips and winked.

Marinette sighed. Getting off the bench, she gently stroked the flower petals as she passed by them. She wove her way through the lush garden and wandered over to the railing lining the roof. With a deep breath, she took in their gorgeous city. Her shoulders were relaxed. Her one foot was hooked around her other ankle, but she wasn't fidgety. She was the most calm and at peace that Chat Noir remembered ever seeing her.

“Thank you, Chat Noir.” She turned back towards him and tucked some stray hairs behind her ear. “I'm glad I won't have to move to another continent.”

Chat Noir joined her by the railing. “Decided to stay?”

Marinette puffed out her chest and stood tall. “If Adrien can still show his face at work after a day like that, then so can I.” A breath later, she puckered her lips and her bravado washed away. “I'll just make sure to stay in the basement where he'll never see me again.”

Chat Noir knew he definitely couldn't allow that to happen.

[break]

Their evening was over too soon. It wasn't the date Adrien pictured for the 2.5 seconds he had to process before Marinette had revoked her offer, but it was still a mostly-lovely evening with the intriguing woman. As Adrien got ready for bed, he already knew it was going to be a struggle to get his mind to stop thinking about Marinette long enough to fall asleep.

That was, at least, until he caught the evening news. Amateur photos and videos of Chat Noir in Bastian's confronting a patron and spiriting a citizen away flooded his TV.

“Oh, no!”

“And this is why we don't use our powers for personal gain,” Plagg said as he floated by, not prepared to give more of a lecture than that single sentence.

Adrien faceplanted into his pillows and screamed. “Ladybug is going to kill me!”

“There's always sheep herding in New Zealand.”

“Not. Helpful. Plagg.”

“Didn't realize you were expecting helpful,” Plagg teased.

Somehow, Plagg's snarkiness did help. Adrien chuckled.

“Do you think I at least helped Marinette tonight, Plagg?”

“Maybe.”

“Is it weird that I almost wish I had told her the vitamin-C story as Adrien? Have a real bonding moment between us? Maybe she'd be less nervous around me then.”

“I find it hard to believe that she could ever to be nervous around you now anyway, Mr. Atomic Blond.”

“You know, I don't think I'd mind if she called me that.” He chuckled at the thought.

--------------

The tick of the wall clock tormented Adrien as he sat through a seemingly endless morning meeting. He had always hated these meetings, but it was extra agonizing that morning. Marinette was in that very building at that very moment. But she wasn't in that room.

Adrien rapidly tapped his foot while he focused the rest of his energy on keeping the remainder of his body painfully still. He had no recollection of any words that were said for the past twenty minutes. He couldn't describe a single slide shown explaining the company's growth.

He needed out of this conference room. He was going feral.

Finally, the meeting broke, and Adrien was free.

He didn't bother with the elevator. He couldn't be trapped somewhere again. Besides, he could move faster on the stairs. Especially when he only took every third step and swung himself around each landing (saving him another 5 steps or so per floor).

He bee-lined it to Marinette's work desk. Just like the day before, she wasn't there. Adrien began wondering if he even had the right desk.

“I'll just make sure to stay in the basement where he'll never see me again.”

Adrien knew where to find Marinette!

He didn't care who caught him this time, he sprinted down the four flights of stairs to the basement. As he exited onto the floor he took a moment to even his quickened breaths. He wasn't sure if they were from the sprint or the anticipation of seeing Marinette again. Either way, he couldn't see Marinette while panting. Like that was the right impression to give!

His breaths once again steady, he checked that his clothes were neat and straight, and his hair was in place.

Perfect.

Now to just oh-so-casually bump (not literally) into Marinette.

The first few rooms he checked were empty. He wondered if maybe Marinette wasn't hiding. Did she take a personal day? She didn't actually move to America, right?

Then he heard muttering within the sample fabrics. His heart fluttered. He had found her.

Her back was again towards the door when he poked his head in. She had an armful of fabrics, and was holding up a sea foam swatch against a pastel teal one, trying to decide which shade to go with.

Adrien leaned casually on the door jamb, hands in his pockets and his ankles crossed.

“Hi. Marinette, right?”

“Gah!” Marinette jumped as she spun around, dropping her fabrics as she pressed herself against the rack of silks behind her.

That didn't go as smoothly as he had planned.

Adrien pulled his hands out of his pockets and held them up non-threateningly. “Sorry. I didn't mean to startle you.”

“Didn't you. I mean-I didn't. I mean-you didn't!” She pinched her eyes shut and took a deep breath.

Why was she so cute?

“Oh. That's good.” Why was he dragging out each word?

Come on, Agreste! he berated himself, You know she likes you! Why is this so hard?

It was probably because Adrien had never asked anyone out before. It had always been the other way around. Girls fawning for him. His father dictating who he should date to better improve the brand. That sort of thing.

“Listen, I wanted to ask you–” He nervously rubbed the back of his neck. What if Marinette just bolted again and YOLO-asked yet another coworker out simply to avoid Adrien? He needed to take his shot though. He could do this! “Would you like to have lunch with me?”

Please say 'yes'. Please say 'yes.' Please say 'yes'.

Adrien wasn't sure he'd seen Marinette's eyes grow so large before.

“Uh– Bah– Bluh–?”

Adrien smiled. Throwback to when Chat Noir interrupted Marinette's atrocious date. The two of them seemed to have had a lovely evening after she did that stammering. Maybe this was a good-luck omen or something.

“Is that a yes?” he teased.

Marinette snapped her mouth shut and nodded.

Adrien chuckled. “Great! I know this wonderful little café by the river. What time do you get off for lunch?”

“Tw-tw-tw-tw–” Marinette pinched herself. “Twelve-thirty,” she gasped out.

Adrien checked his watch. It was half-past-eleven. He didn't have to wait too much longer. “Perfect. I'll come back for you in an hour.”

Glancing at the floor, he noticed that he again forced Marinette to drop what she was holding. He quickly scooped up the fabrics and passed them over to her. “See you later, Marinette.”

“Mm-hmm,” she intoned as she nodded. She held out her arms to accept the fabrics Adrien had gathered.

Pivoting on his heels, he gave her a quick wave over his shoulder and strode back out of the room, fighting the impulse to skip away.

He climbed every single stair leading up to his twelfth-floor office. He needed to get out the giddy energy, as well as find a way to kill the next sixty minutes. Even with Adrien pausing every couple of floors to do a mini tap-dance routine in the stairwell, he still only killed about eleven minutes.

The next forty-nine minutes were filled with endless twirls in his desk chair, memorizing the café's menu, non-stop ribbing from Plagg, and probably far more cartwheels than a twenty-something-year-old man should be doing in a business suit and within the confines of a corner office.

.

** Thank you so much for reading! Please let me know if you want me to tag you on any of my writing updates** @discoveringmiraculouswriters

[secretwhumplair]

On the road

1,419 words | Heir apparent (sequel to Healing)

Content | Starvation, crying, fear of dark/recapture, past parental abuse/whumper turned caretaker

Notes | Travelling is hard when you're starved and terrified

Taglist | @whumpycries @whatwhump @barebarb @echo-goes-aaa @cyborg0109

»Can you ride?«

Sharru hadn’t even been able to sit up straight - at least, that was what he claimed. He had barely managed to dress when they brought him fresh clothes. But Taba was dying to return home. It wasn’t only the government business that had been neglected during their frantic search for their son - they wanted him safe in the castle.

They hoped he wanted the same, that he would be able to scrape together what strength he had left. He was starved, and there seemed to be something more to it, something running deeper than hunger or cuts.

They wouldn’t have tolerated this nonsense a few short days ago, would have forced him to pull himself together. He was the heir, he had to carry himself like it. But that was gone.

Seeing their son so ruined, all they wanted was to put him back together.

And they didn’t know how.

They had seen him hurt and crying before. They had been the cause often enough, pushing him to become what he needed to be as the future monarch. But not like this.

Sharru pressed his eyes shut, another pair of tears rolling down his cheeks. The sight irritated Taba, still, but they held their tongue. Now wasn’t the time. Maybe, for once, the tears might even be considered justified.

»I can try,« he offered.

»Good.« They were more relieved than they could admit. Proud, even. »Come.«

They stood, and only hesitated for a moment before extending a hand. They could ride ahead with a few guards while the rest broke off camp. Truly, they didn’t want to wait a moment longer than they had to.

Sharru stared at their hand as if he had never seen it before. For a moment, his eyes flickered up to their face, insecure. But finally he put his own hand into theirs and let them help him up.

They weren’t much of a one for touching, but now they were glad to be holding him. Sharru himself clung on to their hand as if for dear life as they walked out of the tent together. It felt strange, it almost felt wrong. They had always preferred their son to be self-reliant, to get by without their help, but now - they had seen him in that cell. Maybe they were being foolish, but for now, it seemed too much to ask.

They dished out orders left and right, and within minutes, their horses were ready. Taba left Sharru next to his, Zircon, and absentmindedly patted Onyx’ neck as they mounted, keeping altogether too much attention on their son.

He, too, reached out to pat Zircon, then leant against the stallion’s side, burying his face in his neck - quickly, as if he hoped it would go unnoticed.

* Sharru let Zircon’s warm chestnut fur soak up his tears. At least the horse wouldn’t judge him for it.

He wished he was already home at the castle, wished he could just curl up in his bed, in his room, guarded, and forget the world for a bit. Heal, however unreal that seemed - it didn’t feel like he was ever going to be okay.

But of course, he’d have to ride there. He’d have to climb on Zircon’s back and spend days, probably, on the road, and then when they got home - his parent would expect him to resume his duties. Of course they would.

They had been acting odd, almost caring. But he was sure he’d reach the limit of their lenience soon.

He just didn’t know.

For now, he only knew they were sitting on their horse, watching him, probably, weep into his. He could only imagine how pathetic he must look to them.

He pulled himself together. He wanted to go home, so this was the least he could do.

Very gracelessly, he climbed up on Zircon’s back, the effort enough to make him dizzy. He really was weak, and it was, it turned out, just a few hours into morning - there was a long day of travelling ahead of them.

It wasn’t over yet. It felt like it would never be over.

They rode off in silence. That wasn’t unusual; he rarely had the nerve to speak to his parent, so they were often silent unless there was business to discuss. He was grateful they were holding off on it - surely, some things must have come up in the past eight days. This way, at least he could focus on staying on Zircon.

His parent set a reasonable pace, one he could keep without the strength to push Zircon much, and he was grateful for that, too. They even took multiple breaks over the day. His parent didn’t want to, he could tell: they would stand by as he rested, or pace like a captive panther, always making him anxious about even indulging in this luxury they were granting him.

But he did need the breaks. His body might be healed, but it was still starved, not to mention the horrible state his mind was in.

Somehow, he made it until nightfall. The guards left behind to take care of the camp had long since caught up to them, and set up the tents again. His parent took care of Onyx while the guards were busy securing the perimeter and building a fire.

Sharru did his best to follow their lead, even though he almost buckled under the weight of the saddle as he pulled it off Zircon. They took it from him without a word.

But the hunger still eating away at his strength wasn’t the worst.

The worst was the dark. Even by the light of the fire, there were too many shadows surrounding the camp, shadows in which who knew what could be lurking, just waiting for an opportunity.

He hadn’t been afraid of the dark in a long time. That was why he hadn’t been worried sneaking out by himself to look at the stars. That was why-

He forced the fear in his heart down. It worked by the light of the fire, while they ate their supper.

But the royal tent was darker still.

He tried to lay still and sleep, like he was supposed to.

But he couldn’t. The night was whispering all around him, and some part of his soul was convinced they’d snatch him back before morning. He was being stupid and weak, but the terror was too real to ignore, and he kept listening into the dark, kept staring for a deeper shadow against the soft echo of the campfire outside the tent.

He heard his parent sit up as he turned for the thousandth time. He would have been worried about the fact that he now was in trouble with them, too, if that fear hadn’t been so vastly overshadowed.

»Can’t you sleep?«

»I’m sorry,« he muttered, half-surprised he managed to command his voice at all.

»Are you in pain?«

»I’m scared!« The words burst out before he could stop himself. How pathetic-

»We’re being guarded. Nothing is going to happen to you.«

»I know.« It was the only thing he could say. »I know, I just…« He couldn’t help it. And he couldn’t expect them to understand that. It was all he could do not to burst into tears again.

Their silhouette shifted, leaning over him. »No one is going to hurt you. I’ll incinerate anyone who tries.« There was a hardness to their voice he knew from being scolded; it was always downright odd feeling it not directed at him.

But it wasn’t. It wasn’t, and the relief washing through him at the words was almost as ridiculous as the horribly childish thought pushing past his lips; it was easier in the dark. »Promise?«

They straightened up, as if - as if they were preparing to keep watch, and he could not have foreseen their response. »I promise.«

It was so unusual it did nothing to help him relax; it only diluted the fear with another wave of the confusion he had felt at their entire behaviour since - since they had caught him in their arms.

Yet he was grateful. Of course. He was so, so grateful.

It felt so warm that there in the dark, he decided to push his luck with a hopeless whisper. »Can you hold my hand?«

A moment passed, then their warm hand closed around his fingers.

He could hardly believe it.

His parent was here, was protecting him, and finally, he fell asleep.

[bonewaryreblogs]

Silver Boom

Feeling in a Sonic mood, let's see how long it lasts :p

So I've had my main hedgehogs done for a while, finally finished Tails, and I'm halfway done with Knuckles and don't feel motivated enough to finish him -.- but this is more or less what he'll look like

I have an older version of the 'hogs and a lot of info on Reddit

Anyways

Silver the Hedgehog is my favorite Sonic character and the initial idea for this was to add Silver to the Sonic Boom franchise, rewriting the mess that was Rise of Lyric. Then I could add him into the show's timeline and fix some things that bugged me there. Like Sticks' whole existence.

But we'll get to that!

I realized at some point that I can basically do whatever I want with this universe, so I decided to utilize elements of most of the Sonic games/media I was familiar with, researching what I was less familiar with, and throwing it all together to create a mostly coherent story. I'll try to use (or at least touch on) as much as I can but forgive me if I leave out your favorite thing. If I do, please tell me about it! I can always be persuaded to add more and this universe is hardly set in stone :p

Basic History of Mobius

While the planet mobius was mostly formed like any other, its molten core contained magic mixed with magma. From the tumult, some of the magic magma crystalized and found its way to the surface, forming eight crystals directly linked to the eight quadrants of the spherical molten magic core. Lesser crystals filled with magic power grew in caves near the magic magma but their powers were finite while the connected eight, eventually called Chaos Crystals, were seemingly limitless as they drew from the core directly.

The Ancients, as they would come to be known, used the “clean” energy of the Chaos Crystals to fuel their hi-tech society but removing the Crystals from their proper places and using their energy with such reckless abandon unbalanced the planet’s magic and the society crumbled under its own weight. Many of the Chaos Crystals were taken and jealously guarded by what would become a magic fueled ruling class, generally influenced by the crystals’ instinctual will to return to their rightful places in the world.

Such was the fate of the Sun Stone of Soleanna, Spagonia; The Radiant Opal in the Kingdom of Acorn, Northammer; the Sky Garnet of the Babylonian Gardens, Shamar, until its cataclysmic demise and subsequent withdrawal into a desert storm; the Verdant Emerald of Angel Island, guarded by the near extinct Knuckles Clan of echidnas; and, in a way, the Twilight Amethyst of the Moonlit Mountains, Holoska, whose protectors are “recruited” from across the globe for their powerful potential. Of the remaining Chaos Crystals, the Shock Zircon powers a prison holding a mage and mechanist from the Ancient War; the Tidal Sapphire is protected by a powerful water elemental in the depths of the sea; and the Flame Ruby is sealed and resealed within a host, the latest of which is the heir to Soleanna’s throne. Having two Chaos Crystals in such close proximity to each other, and Angel Island traveling overhead, unbalanced the magic enough for Lyric to escape his prison and begin to plan his takeover.

~

In more recent history, humans arrived in the Space Colony Arc about 150 years ago, enough time for the first generation (Gerald Robotnik) to have died off, the second generation (Professor Pickle) to be old and retired, the third generation (Ivo Robotnik/"Eggman") to have been at least raised on the planet if not born there, and the fourth generation (Chris Thorndyke) to be in school, having known nothing else.

Mobius was in a medieval type of era when they arrived and relied heavily on a magic-wielding ruling class with various magic artifacts. The humans, only about a thousand strong when they arrived, bribed their way to peace by selling their tech and knowledge, allowing the average citizen to be able to stand toe-to-toe with magic-wielders. This lead to rapid advances and an odd mix of extremely advanced technology right next to medieval magic, as well as a combined magi-tech emerging in prominence, as they begin to understand the mechanisms behind their magic.

The Arc is in approximate geosynchronous orbit over Spagonia and is considered the capital “city” for humans, though they’ve been allowed to make several colonies on the planet itself. Eggman is essentially kicked out of the human civilization for being too reckless and unpredictable to fit into the box most humans set up for themselves. He’s mostly harmless, unable to take over a single island due to Sonic and friends stopping him.

~

Our story begins as Silver wakes up from another nightmare, the same one he always has; the blue hedgehog, surrounded by flame and rubble, turning to look at Silver with a cocky smile. The details would change, of course, but the hedgehog and the dread was always the same. Silver goes about his day (possibly several days, depending) before Mephiles contacts Silver to come see him. Mephiles is the personification of the Twilight Amethyst and leader of the Twilight Clan; he knows of Silver’s constant nightmares and wants to hear about this latest one. Eventually the discussion turns to Silver’s increasing desire to leave, find the blue Hedgehog, and prevent the destruction he always sees in his dreams. Mephiles eventually relents; Silver is banished from the Clan, as is their custom with anyone who leaves, but he does so with Mephiles’ blessing.

Led by instinct, Silver finds himself at Bygone Isle and immediately recognizes Sonic from his dreams. Having heard horror stories about outsiders all his life, Silver decides to hide and observe for now; it’s against his nature to hurt the innocent but he isn’t sure Sonic is innocent of the impending doom. Some stories were confirmed to be true, like everyone living separately, but some seemed to be false, like nobody helping each other. Of course, it doesn’t take long for Silver to be found out; he was well trained but still young and inexperienced. In a panic, Silver spouts off about the inevitable doom of the planet and Sonic’s connection to it, leading to misunderstandings and general caution between them. Silver still watches but doesn’t bother hiding as much.

Thus begins the main storyline of Rise of Lyric. Race around the globe with Sonic and friends to see who can get to the Chaos Crystals first; can our heroes keep them long enough to keep the world from falling apart?

[eco-lite]

Volume 5 thoughts! I can’t believe I have to wait until November for volume 6. 😩

“Citrine Undaunted”

* Bye bye, Shimomura. 👋🏼 Good luck following your passions. I hope Seigi will take inspiration from this.

* This is truly such a bizarre story. Why does it feel like Ms. Darling is some supernatural creature trying to influence Seigi’s path in life? And her compliments about Seigi’s hands are very uncomfortable.

* “It was a lot easier when you let your brain process what you were going to say before you opened your mouth, rather than blurting out something stupid in a panic” (36). Seigi… are you just learning this now?

* I can’t wait for Seigi to do some actual self-reflection and realize that he doesn’t give a shit about being a civil servant.

* Richard loves showing Seigi bi-colored stones, huh…?

* Richard sending emojis makes me so happy.

“A Visage in Sardonyx”

* Poor Homura. Let’s hope third time’s the charm for him. He does seem a bit to quick to marry though.

* Wait, so agate is quartz too? I never new so many stones were varieties of quartz!

* I never know how cameos were made either—that’s so cool!

* “‘Say, for example, you love someone in a romantic sense, but that person doesn’t even consider you a romantic possibility. You’re just someone they “care about deeply”’” (81). Please don’t say this to Richard. That’s gonna hit way to close to home. 🥲

* I’ve considered before that Richard may have wanted to just stop living, but it doesn’t hurt any less for him to confirm it. I’m glad he has support now. It gives new mean to when he says that Saul saved his life, though.

* SEIGI! How are you going to say that your relationship with Richard hasn’t changed at all, and that you’re just boss and employee?! After everything you went through together in the last volume??? Now that you regularly go out to dinner together and talk in the phone until 1:30am?????? What is your problem, man?

* I know the circumstances are weird, but I think Richard and Tanimoto would get along really well and have a lot to talk about. I’m excited for them to meet!

* Although I feel weird about the whole “in love with my stepmother” thing, this case was an interesting exploration of different kinds of love—and how defining your love for someone sometimes isn’t the most important thing. What matters is that the love is there. I suppose I agree with that. It definitely matters how you define the relationship that the love occurs in, though. Seigi needs to start thinking about that.

“The Majesty of Zircon”

* I agree that strict government work probably is t right for Seigi, but damn, his classmates are brutal!

* “And that was how the first step of my self-assessment started—with the fact that I apparently didn’t know the first thing about myself being shoved in my face” (110). Yeah, there are several things you don’t know about yourself, Seigi. Once again, I am begging you to do some self-reflection!

* Woah, a flashback and a POV switch?!

* “‘… I have a interest in waterside ecosystems’” (124). Wow me too!

* Not Jeffrey suggesting they burn the Claremont estate down 😅

* Lol the catharsis of punching Jeffrey in a dream. Wish I could do that. If Richard’s dream is accurate… wtf, Jeffrey?

* “‘…I don’t know how many people you must’ve hurt by being such an impossibly insensitive jerk. A guy like you would never be popular with the high school girls in Delhi, no matter how handsome you are. I could call a dozen of my old friends, and they’d all be like “No thanks”’” (172). You tell him! I love Monica so much.

* Lol Richard giving himself a pep talk in order to make a salad.

* This puts a new perspective on the scene in “White Sapphire” when Richard tells Seigi that he should value himself more than to just throw himself into dangerous situations to save others. Richard learned that lesson himself. He also cares about people deeply enough to take crazy desperate actions. Saul was the one who taught Richard to have more care for himself, and now Richard is passing on that advice to Seigi.

“The Grace of Peridot”

* Not Richard making Seigi read Les Misérables lol

* No Seigi, your past is not “better left unsaid!” Please tell us!

* I really don’t understand why Richard’s parents ever thought they could make their relationship work. Like, how do a conservation-focused entomologist and a self-obsessed actress even fall in love with each other??

* I can’t believe I’m past the point where Seigi saying he would jump into a fire if Richard begged him to doesn’t phase me at all. Yeah, that’s normal Seigi behavior. 🤦🏽‍♀️ For real though, the image of Richard crying and begging is truly very distressing. I hope he never feels so much pain.

* I don’t think we’ve seen Seigi call Richard cute before. And not only cute, but “like a matcha frappé with whipped cream and chocolate chips and muscovado sugar” (256). Wowie.

* This reunion with Chieko is so sweet. Richard is actually being adorable.

* “At any rate, I knew that Richard was not fit to stand around and chat, so I decided to wrap things up there” (258). It’s really hitting me just how attentive Seigi is to Richard’s emotional needs. It’s not just carrying candy around to pacify him when he’s in a bad mood. In this situation, Seigi understands that reuniting with Chieko is a very happy, but also emotionally exhausting experience for Richard. Seigi knows just when to remove them from the situation and come back another time. It’s very sweet.

* HOMURA PLEASE WHY ARE YOU HERE? Well, at least it seems like this relationship will succeed. Third time’s the charm.

* I’m so happy that Richard had such a caring mother figure, and that they’re reunited now. I hope they can see each other often.

* Ew not Margaret Thatcher 😑

* Classic marriage mixup once again.

* Wtf is Richard going to say to him?! You can’t just not let us in on this, Tsujimura!

“Andalusite on Christmas Eve”

* Tanimoto: misunderstands Seigi as always. Seigi: “There really are no gods in this world, huh?” 🥲

* “‘Now, I’m just speaking for myself, but special days can be a bit like storms. And in stormy weather, what you need isn’t a compass or sails but a calm harbor where you can set anchor.’ And then Richard said softly that he prayed that I would find such a place” (291). Holy shit. 🥲🥲

“Tiger’s Eye Look Back”

* A cute little story from the first few months of Seigi working at Étranger. I’m trying to figure out why this little scene was included, though. Maybe to show us just how far both Seigi and Richard have come since the beginning of the story.

* I find it really interesting that Seigi never questions why he finds Richard so beautiful. I feel like a typical “straight” man would not be so casual about thinking another man is beautiful, or having any of the other extremely romantically coded thoughts Seigi has about Richard. But I do appreciate that this series normalizes all different types of people finding beauty and happiness in all sorts of things.

Unrelated to a specific case, but now that Tsujimura has established multiple perspectives besides Seigi’s, I really want to read from Richard’s perspective. I know that would diminish the mystery around him and take away from learning about him as Seigi does, but I really want to know his thoughts in the moment he met Seigi. I’d love a re-telling of that first case from Richard’s POV.

[corviisquire]

Hello~ I just wanted to let you know that this is what my doodling-while-i-work sketches look like these days... 👀 I am obsessed with my beautiful blue lady 💙🥺

(ignore the colours, this was done with blue and pink highlighters lmao. they just were in hand at the time)

Not showing you my pinterest board for because it's embarrassingly full lmao. I'll make a nice moodboard for her and post it here though! Also I have been looking at couture dresses and pearls and gems to figure out her dress (because i am OBSESSED with all the layers and details you put, there's so much leeway for beautiful fabrics and ruffles and ways to connect the hood!!!), so thank you for rekindling my fashion designer side 😌✌️

I have been toying with the idea of making the moon into actual horns since we talked about it (like Maleficent?) - you mentioned opals and shell linings, and I think it would look sick if the moon-antlers/horns had that opalescence sheen to them? Maybe it could mirror the mask?

Idk, I haven't quite fleshed her out yet so that may change. She still doesn't have a name; Miss Missy is being very secretive about her life (no surprise there 🙄).

I do wanna show you this! There's this gemstone called Azurite, that has this beautiful shade of deep blue, with purples, and some greens and gold speckles and spots (seriously - look it up, it's fantastic). I like the idea of her being connected to gems and stuff, and I think this one in particular fits her vibe SO well?? So yeah.

Sorry if this is kind of a long, weird ramble, but I just wanted to let you know that our Blue Lady (that's her temporary name) is being well taken care of and cherished 🌙���✨ Hope you're doing well!!!! 🫂💙🥺

AAAAA sorry for the late(r) response I was about to go to bed and saw this. I just- OMGOMGOMGOMG my face is heating up. Jinefvijneifjvneijfcn 💜🩵💙🩵💙🩷🩷💙🩵💜🩵💖💕💓❣️💘💞💗💕💗💖💕💞💗🐟🔥💕💖🩵💞🩵💞🩵🔥💓💗💙💗❣️💗❣️🐟❣️🐟💙💓💓🔥😱❣️🔥😱💗💓💕💕❣️💕💜🔥❣️🔥🦑🔥

Me staring at my phone rn.

And why she urple?? There’s so many thoughts going on in my head rn.

1. YOU DID THAT WITH HIGHLIGHTERS WHAT??? excuse me??? what In the Bob Ross???? I love the way you blended the pink and blue and the sketchiness of the lines AUGH. It’s so crunchy… good food…….. you captured her whimsical aura perfectly. The fabric for her sleeves is so nice. You drew her so pretty omg omg

2. I love malificent so much :(((( I love sleeping beauty, I love the live action malificent… OPAL MASK AND HORNS HELLO. Blue Lady is killing it over here, my god. She’s got the bling. She’s got the swag. What more could she have.

3. My grandparents are jewelers and they used to keep random geodes and gems around their house and azurite was one of them! I remember because they would try to teach me about rocks and gems and different gem cuts and I just sat there “no thoughts, head empty, I only want to look at pictures of agate and peridot”. their azurite was very very small and I’m not sure where it is anymore. My favorite gem has to be zircon though, love that stuff. I will for sure be reading more on azurite though!

4. (Psst I have a character who’s like a pomegranate goddess and I think her and Blue Lady would get along wonderfully. Her name is Punicae and you can find her og design here.)

them with not accurate coloring cause i be speed drawing. They slay. Together.

I’m going to go to bed. Stay safe, take care of yourself, LOVE yourself. Tysm for this I’m crying. Love you very much and giving you all the azurite your heart could desire 💙🩵💖

[manyothermusingsofmine]

Masquerade of Units || Chapter 3/5

Prev: Chapter 2 Start: Chapter 1 Fandom: Xmen

Warnings: None

Wordcount: 2506

Summary: Hey you know what solves the questline sooner? When two of the three party members start arguing about stuff until the third one is questioning his life choices -------------------------

The three of them stared at the guy at the door, with Gambit leaning back with an annoyed groan. Seemed like tonight was the night of running into people he didn’t necessarily want to run into in the first place. But at least this one shouldn’t be too difficult to deal with as he lightly elbow pushed Miranda forward by a smidge.

“You go distract him.”

“Wh- wait, hold up a minute, why me?!” she asked in a high, annoyed whisper, “you’re the one with the charm gift here, not me.” “I haven’t had any luck with my supposed charm all evening,” he replied back in an equal hiss of a whisper, “besides, not even my charm is going to work on an actual straight guy, Miranda!”

“Who’s married, by the way,” Forge dryly remarked in a soft tone as he was behind both of them listening to the argument unfold, “with two kids.”

“Two?” Gambit asked, as both of the other mutants turned to Forge while he casually dropped this bit of knowledge into their lap.

“Yup, second one on the way from what I’ve heard through the grapevine.”

“…. Huh.”

Forge tried to keep his face unmoving as Miranda almost dramatically turned to Gambit, green eyes spewing fire and oh, if only they actually could.

“You knew he was married and you still want me to go over there and flirt with him?!” the tone of her whisper sharp and almost venomous as her ire seeped through in every word she hissed through her teeth.

“I said nothing about flirting, don’t be putting words I never said in my mouth!” his tone was just as sharp if not more so than hers, not appreciating it in the slightest that she implied he wanted her to start messing about in someone’s marriage, “just distract him, there’s other ways to do that than sweettalking someone!” “Then why don’t you do it?!”

“Because luck has been abandoning me all evening!”

Forge just looked back and forth to whomever was speaking, a sigh coming from what seemed to be the deepest pit of his soul as these two were having an argument on who had to talk to the guy at the door, rolling his eyes and wishing he had brought popcorn along to watch the debate. What finally stopped the whispered bickering between the two was when the actual lights started flickering, all three looking up at the light fixtures as Gambit grumbled that that was a great secondary problem that decided to make itself known if it wasn’t a mere fluke of the gods getting equally annoyed at their squabbling. Miranda on the other hand zoned out for a moment, her mind concocting a plan with the sudden flickering of the light as she looked at the guy.

“… Then I hope he’s superstitious,” she muttered, taking off her gloves and immediately without a word handing them over to Gambit, who just stared at her in an attempt to figure out what the hell she meant by that. She took out her ruby earrings, wanting to hand them over to Gambit as well when her hand suddenly halted above his in a moment of hesitation as she rolled her eyes to him.

“I want those back. They cost me a pretty penny.”

The absolute death glare she got in response would have been funny had she not been serious, and had Remy not taken genuine offense at the implication that he would steal from a friend as his red eyes were now the ones ablaze with anger

“Skill issue.”

“Oh, shut the fuck up.”

“I don’t want your damn rubies; I can get my own for whatever purpose I need, thank you very much.”

“Oh, sure, because you gave that zircon you quote unquote found to Shadow out of the mere goodness of your heart, huh?”

“Miranda,” he growled, eyes flashing pink in a warning that she was seriously pushing his buttons right about now, to which Forge reacted by actually stepping in before these two decided to turn on each other like two rabid dogs fighting over the same bone

“Will you two knock it off?! Seriously, having to listen to you argue like a set of school children is making me want to be a part of this less and less by the minute, so get a move on; we have more important things to worry about than this childish argument between the two of you!” Miranda dropped the earrings on top of the gloves, vanishing from sight as soon as they hit the fabric with the only thing still showing being the sparkles of her dress in the light. She had no intent of being graceful about this anymore, walking over with an annoyed growl coming out of her that she could easily use for the plan she had been trying to set into motion. It was enough to startle the man with the dark curls and green spotted skin away from his leaning against the door enough that with a simple approach and a hard push with her hip she shoved him further away. She threw the door to maintenance open, easily spotting a light switch that she angrily and rapidly pushed on and off to make the lights down the hallway flicker. 

Deep brown eyes looked on in increasing concern and a faint sense of horror as all he saw was light reflecting off shining particles before an almost poltergeist scenario played out in front of him

“Uh, that’s-“

His sentence interrupted by the loud slam of the door being forcefully thrown shut on it’s own with no one nearby, the frog mutant instinctively leaped up and back from the noise, temporarily sticking to a window near the base of the stairs before sliding down and leaping up again as the door was throw back open with the same angry vibe coming off from the force

“… something I’m not dealing with on my own,” he concluded to himself, hopping off in big jumps down the hall back to the ballroom to find one of his friends. Miranda didn’t care if he brought the whole party, flicking back into view herself while leaning on the wall near the door with her arms crossed over her chest as Gambit and Forge approached.

“…. Subtle,” Gambit remarked, dropping her belongings into the hand she held out to him as soon as he got close enough, “see, no need for flirting with a married man. Thanks, by the way, for thinking that’s what I wanted you to do, like I’m some sort of homewreckin’ heartbreaker.”

“Now who’s putting words into someone’s mouth?”

“I seem to be learning from the best, here.”

“Stop,” Forge bit at the both of them as Miranda inhaled to start the argument back up again, deciding that if they still didn’t want to play nice with each other, he was going to take reign on this operation if they had any hope of actually finishing what they set out to do, “You, you stay by this door and let us know if anything happens. There’s a unit to your left, over there; if that starts working we should be in the clear. And you-”

He turned to Gambit, clearly and absolutely fed up with their arguing and stabbing at each other that he had decided the best course of action was to physically separate them for the time being

“Come with me,” it was a firm request he didn’t give an opt out option to, his gaze firmly on the other mutant, “I need your help with this AC.”

“N-“

“Do not argue with me,” and the almost parental tone of his voice finally seemed to shut both of them up despite Gambit having a need to always have the last word in a conversation, “come with me. Now.”

Gambit groaned, but obeyed the command regardless, with Miranda silently mocking him and the situation as they left, despite still fuming internally at the whole thing. She just listened as their footsteps went further away down the hall to what she hoped was whatever controlled the AC units, so when they fixed it the whole night would be fine and she didn’t have to deal with either of them for the rest of the damn evening. The boiling rage in her stomach seemed to cool and settle, and with it her heart sank a little. Her mind took over, overthinking the situation while guilt started swirling in her chest over the things she had said. Remy was right, she was implying things about him she had no right to put on him. She shut her eyes to try and ban the tension head ache that started to emerge, only to open them and look directly in brown eyes so dark they were near pitch black. She let out a mangled, soft yelp at the sudden presence of someone way too close in her personal space like that. The silver haired man tilted his head like a curious dog, looking her up and down and immediately laughing when her invisibility flicked on- there was little point in hiding from someone who knew where she was already, and he placed two arms on each side of her with a speed she had no hope of ever matching, trapping her in.

“No you don’t, hi, mind telling me why you’re scaring the living daylights out of my friend, hm?”

“When you’re done sulking, will you give me that miniature wrench over there?” Gambit huffed at the request, but grabbed the tool and handed it over to Forge.

“Dunno, by how this evening is going, someone’s brother is going to accuse Gambit of stealin’ that off him.”

“Remy, will you stop?”

“She started it by implying I wanted her to flirt with a married man and that I would steal from my friends, like I don’t have enough on my plate without her accusations. I gave her back the stupid earrings, what do you want?!”

“For you to breathe, and cool your temper for a minute. Fine, she started it, you’re right, is that what you want to hear? You did little to deescalate the situation back there, or anything to explain what you actually wanted from her.”

“Oh so the logic there is that because I don’t tell her what kind of distraction I need we’re just all going to assume I want her to jump Tolansky’s bones, or what?! Grand. Really making me feel appreciated right about now, when I’m trying to save this evening for her sake.”

“Are you? Because to me, it’s starting to sound like you’re doing what she did to you; putting words in our mouths. I certainly didn’t expect that to be your intent, but neither her, me or you possess telepathy. Unless both of you start talking about what the plan actually is, without taking stabs at each other over things the other has no control over, the two of you will never form an actual good, functioning team, now will you?” “She wouldn’t be here if I didn’t convince her to go, which means she would miss out on an evening with Nightcrawler; insulting me, accusing me of shit I didn’t do is her way of repaying that?”

“Oh, and what a night it’s been; Nightcrawler amongst many boiling alive in a mansion that forgot that machinery like this need maintenance that they haven’t bothered to hire the staff for apparently, and Gambit meddling in the business of his friends because he’d rather set those two up then deal with his own business, causing him to cold shoulder ignore the woman making heart eyes at him as soon as he appears on the scene. Am I missing anything, or is that an accurate enough summary?” The call out hit him hard and raw, as Gambit crossed his arms with a scowl and leaned back on the nearest flat surface. Yes, Forge was missing something, the part where Miranda implied he was going around wrecking the relationships of others for the hell of it or for quick gain. As if he wasn’t in the middle of trying to tie off the loose ends between the residue remaining of how he had felt about Rogue, while simultaneously trying to make sense of the absolute overpowering wave of emotions and feelings Shadow shook loose in him by merely looking at him.

… Which she couldn’t actually know about, and for what it was worth Miranda had kept her word about not telling anyone about seeing him and Shadow kiss. Sure, bringing up the zircon was a stupid stab; but giving someone a gift was something he could still play off and come back from in a way he couldn’t if she ran her mouth about that kiss instead. Tension left his shoulders as he could at the very least not blame her for the bind he found himself in; Miranda had nothing to do with the struggle he felt between two women he did genuinely care a lot for.

“Why did you bring me here, Forge? You don’t actually need Gambit to help you with any mechanical know how.”

“I brought you here to stop you and the lady from actually tearing each other’s throats out back there. You’re both bullheaded and enjoy pressing the buttons of the other too much to walk away when things get too real, so I figured if you two weren’t going to separate yourselves I would step in and make you; before someone said something they couldn’t take back or turned it physical; I saw that warning flare in your eyes, Gambit. You two genuinely fight like siblings, so I figured I would treat you as a pair to give both of you some time to mull it over, away from each other. Speaking of,” Forge leaned back, looking on one of his widgets to check the time, “that should have given us just about enough time.”

“For what, the AC to be fixed?”

“For Todd to get back up.”

“…. Wait, what?”

Forge rolled his head to Gambit, a neutral expression on his face as he sat down by the machinery he almost had running again, waiting for a minute to see if the situation dawned upon Gambit by himself.

“As far as Todd is concerned, he got attacked by a Victorian ghost haunting this place. You know as well as I do that he went to go grab a friend to come help him check it out. Fast,” and as soon as he emphasized that last word, Gambit turned his eyes to the ceiling in a groan as if his soul wanted to escape and in turn haunt the mansion they were in. “Merde. He’s bringing Maximoff.”

“Yup, and if her claim of you having the better talking skills holds any water, then she isn’t talking herself out of that one.”

“… I’m going back.” “Good choice, my friend.”

[chinchillasinunison]

Welcome Homeworld

(aka Welcome Home characters as SU Gems because it's something I'm compelled to do for every fandom I join)

Wally: Parti Sapphire

Gem Placement: Back of Head

Doesn't have…. future vision, persay…. instead he can perceive extra-dimensional beings (us)

This means he's not very attentive to his own plane of reality most of the time, giving him a "space cadet" vibe

Because of that, no one knows where he came from because he never talks about his life before finding Home… or much besides the current moment, really…

Home is powered by harvested gem shards formed into a cluster (sorta like a Frybo thing but a building), it was there long before anyone else and no one knows its original purpose

Barnaby: Pietersite

Gem Placement: Navel

His quartz squadron took a brief pit-stop on the neighborhood planet for "maintenance"

He was assigned sentry duty to make sure no organics attacked the ship

Took a short nap while on lookout, and when he woke up, the ship was gone

Was then looked after by a chicken-like alien native for a while before he found Parti and Home

Julie: Blush Spinel

Gem Placement: Left Palm

Part of a small spinel batch cooked up on the neighborhood planet

The fact that she and her batch came out "defective" with horns and such is why it was abandoned for colonization

They were left behind in their Kindergarten to fend for themselves

Eventually, she stumbled her way into the neighborhood on her search for new friends and fun

Frank: Labradorite

Gem Placement: Forehead

Labradorite doesn't like to talk about his past, so no one knows how precisely he got here

In the gem hierarchy, plagioclases (labradorite, spectrolite, and rainbow moonstone) are interrogators. They have the ability to absorb a portion of a gem's color in order to weaken them physically and emotionally, which is used as a pressuring tactic to get confessions. Generally, the more colorful the plagioclase, the more decorated and well-respected they are by Homeworld society.

What does that imply about our Labradorite? We can only speculate…

Sally: Sunstone

Gem Placement: Nose

Has the classic "crashed my ship on this planet with no way to repair it, so I gotta just stay here" backstory

She enjoys it, though. It allows her to actually tap into her latent creativity

Her old job was monitoring the star of her assigned colony, ensuring ships didn't fly into it and containing solar flares and stuff like that

It was so boring that she just left

Poppy: Ammolite

Gem Placement: Upper Back

Ammolites are like pearls but bigger and more for entertainment than service (think chorus girls in a cabaret)

That still didn't suit her well because she's still an agoraphobe

The irony of her nervous temperament better fitting Sunstone's original role and Sunstone's creative spunk fitting hers is not lost on her

She flew herself out here. She's actually a great (albeit anxious) pilot if she says so herself

Eddie: Topaz

Gem Placement: Right Calf

Though technically a bodyguard, he was used mainly as a delivery gem for elites (guarding precious cargo)

Rejuvenated a lot because he often walked in on stuff he wasn't supposed to see, which eventually gave him permanent memory issues

Was paired with the aquamarine that became half of Chrysocolla

Howdy: Chrysocolla

Gem Placement: Nose (aquamarine) and Chest (zircon)

Fusion of an aquamarine and a green zircon

Components were well-respected in their respective fields, but after a couple millenia of the same old grind, anyone would want a change in scenery

Aquamarine and Zircon aren't even romantically involved. They consider themselves merely business partners

Aquamarine is more of the business-savvy one while Zircon brings the charisma

[why-rock-look-tasty-if-no-eat]

Silly Game Time: You are getting an all-expenses-paid vacation for one month to anywhere in the world. Where would you choose to go?

Japan, I really miss Kyoto and I have some unfinished beef with the museums I went to. Namely not being able to buy everything that I wanted. There's this gem museum next to Mount Fuji that doubles as a jeweler and I would love to some of the more pricier items than what I was able to get last time. Another museum would be the Kyoto National Museum because omgs do they have stunning artwork and they live rent free in my head. The statues they have are especially breathtaking, it's insane to think that they were carved by hand from wood. Some of those statues are like 7 ft tall and are insanely detailed!

Back to the gem museum, there's a trend over there that I love, it's where the jewelers cut a pattern into the gem to make it look like a star then hang it horizontally to make it look like it's 'dancing' and I'd love to have a diamond version of it because I only have a zircon one. They also have a history in gemology and I could easily spend another three hours in that museum just looking at their displays. Not to mention that they offer to sell some high quality stuff, and the exchange rate practically halves the price for USD.

Tokyo is definitely third on the list, I want to get more creators build figures from Monster Hunter World (MHW) and to just window shop and get some more art. A cat and owl cafe is also on the agenda, the cost adds up the longer you stay. Honestly I'd love to just be able to revisit places I've been and see shrines I didn't see yet, go to more of the monthly flea markets and such. I never thought I'd be able to an ivory carving (terrible and I hope the guy was just getting rid of some heirlooms that was gotten humanely. I doubt it though) right next to a guy selling strawberries and veggies.

The strawberries tasted delicious. Speaking of food, I'd probably try and visit some night markets since I didn't last time (social anxiety let's gooo) and try out some real street food. Maybe go to more corner restaurants and such. Buy more clothes since they're made with humid heat in mind and where I live it's both. That and I like their style.

Uh, if it's a good time of year I'd probably head down to Okinawa and swim in one of their beaches since the province acts similar to Hawai'i being a vacation destination from mainlanders.

For my last three days or so I'd try and see if I could do what I couldn't do last time and go from the lowest point to the highest point in Japan. That's been a goal of mine for some years now and I couldn't fit it into my schedule last time.

It's been almost a year since I was there for work and I still think about Japan. Their work ethic is insane but it's at a pace I'm used to and not every country is perfect. They can be pretty racist but honestly I experienced less racism over there than back in the states. Everyone I met was lovely and didnt judge me to much for tripping up on speaking Japanese. I can understand them verbally and written well enough to get by but their syntax makes it hard for me to write or speak. And, well, since it's all expenses paid I'd take along my family and friends and I'd get to show them the country that holds a piece of my heart 💙

[moonfurthetemmie]

Untitled.MP4

Previous | Next | First (with warnings)

Part 13

June 27, 20XX

Mercury is sitting in front of the camera. Behind him, Zuli is moving about the office. Zuli’s face isn’t visible, or clear enough to discern, but Mercury looks shaken.

“We don’t have much time left. That…that fucking thing outside is- it’s sentient. It knows we saw it. The others nearly caught us, and they said…They said ‘The Colony’ knew what we saw. They said it knew what we’d seen had scared us, and it wanted to show us that it didn’t want to harm us. They said Jade would be fine; he was only being shown how kind ‘The Colony’ was.”

Mercury runs a hand through his hair, propping himself on the desk with his elbow.

“And they knew what we were up to. We’ve never said anything about a cure around anyone, but Zircon said that it the Colony wouldn’t let us take its ‘gift’ from them. We barely managed to get out. And now they’re all trying more and more ways to break into the office. We’re lucky we thought to give it extra reinforcement, once I brought Zuli up, but it’s only a matter of time.”

Zuli approaches the camera. He has a kitchen knife in his hand.

“Do you think this will be enough for self-defense?”

Mercury examines the knife. “...I think so. I’m not sure.” He sighs. “I wish we didn’t have to hurt them, but you’re safety is a priority.”

Zuli puts a hand on Mercury’s shoulder as he sets down the knife.. “So is yours, you know. You should let me get you something too.” 

Mercury watches his set down the knife. “...I know.” His voice is quiet. “Just…Let me try reinforcing the door some more, first.”

Zuli is visibly frustrated, but he closes his eyes and takes a breath before speaking. “I’ll keep an eye out for something, anyways. You’re the only one who can make the cure. No pressure or anything. Your safety should be the highest priority, for both of us.”

Mercury is silent for a moment. “...You’re right. I know you’re right. I just don’t like it. I’ve spent years taking care of these people, and I…I don’t want to hurt them more than they’re already hurting.”

“I know.” Zuli’s voice is gentle. “But there’s not much choice now.”

After a moment, Mercury reaches for the camera.

The video ends.

[andrewmoocow]

Little Homeworld Life chapter 25: A Temple Divided (originally published on June 12, 2023)

AN: At long last, everything begins coming together in the first part of this two-part finale to Little Homeworld Life. Afterwards, we only have Snake Eyes left to cover before finally closing the door on Steven Universe: Alternate Future. Almost every single plotline we've been setting up throughout the entire series will reach what I hope is a satisfying conclusion here, from Black Rutile's control over the Internet, how the Crystal Gems' actions have consequences, the return of Cinnabar, and many more. I think this might be one of the darkest chapters of the series yet, so hold onto your butts as it all comes crumbling down.

Synopsis: With some new and old allies by her side, Black Rutile begins making plans for her latest revenge on the Crystal Gems by breaking them up using some long-forgotten secrets. Meanwhile, President Eduardo Suarez fights for his life against Black Rutile's human supporters.

Cast:

Noël Wells as Black Rutile

Della Saba as Aquamarine

Charlyne Yi as Eyeball, Ruby, Doc, Navy, Army, Leggy, Mega Ruby

Christine Pedi as Holly Blue Agate

Casey Lee Williams as Cat's Eye

Estelle as Garnet

Michaela Dietz as Amethyst, Famethyst

Deedee Magno-Hall as Pearl, The Black Pearl Brigade

Shelby Rabara as Peridot, Squaridot

Jennifer Paz as Lapis, Laz, Zuli, Phoenix Lapis Lazuli

Uzo Aduba as Bismuth

Erica Luttrell as Sapphire

Tom Scharpling as Greg

Kimberly Brooks as Jasper, Dalmatian Jasper

Lauren Ash as White Topaz

Jon Wurster as Marty

Shanelle Grey as Sally Grove

Casey Robertson as Neil Michaels

John Kassir as Reginald Anderson

Lin-Manuel Miranda as President Eduardo Suarez

Wendie Malick as Vice-President Theresa Maxwell

GZA as Major General Wade Grant

Tim Curry as General Lloyd Waller

Amy Sedaris as Teal Zircon

Martha Higerada as Topaz

Jinkx Monsoon as Emerald, Chest Emerald

Hayley Kiyoko as Morganite

Melissa Fahn as Demantoid, Eyeball Demantoid

Kari Wahlgren as Pyrope

Olivia Olson as Citrine Twins

Avi Roque as Cinnabar

Gina Torres as Andesine

Awkwafina as Kyanite

Allison Janney as Pyrite

Zehra Fazal as Zoisite

Lena Hall as Bloodstone

Jodie Whittaker as Xenotime

Idina Menzel as Amazonite

Halsey as Tanzanite

Mia Barron as Apatite

Sarah Jessica Parker as Dumortierite

Cavetown as Diaspore

Barbara Dunkelman as Amber

Kristen Schaal as Howlite

Christoph Waltz as Francis von Bowling

Featuring Stephanie Beatriz as Arleen Suarzez

Xolo Mariduena as Huey Suarez

Leslie Grace as Riley Suarez

Peter Barto as Secret Service Agent

With Alyson Hannigan as Lavenderine

And May Calamawy as Chrome Chalcedony

--

One lovely summer day in Beach City, the Crystal Gems were getting ready for a party. But it wasn't just any party, they were preparing for Ruby and Sapphire's wedding anniversary party and the anniversary of their professional alliance with the Diamonds. The Gems were hard at work on making sure the party was perfect, but little did they realize that this party would be pooped on very soon.

"Okay Zirconias, just put that banner over to the right!" Pearl ordered the Heaven and Earth Cubic Zirconias to move a banner reading 'HAPPY ANNIVERSARY RUBY AND SAPPHIRE' into her requested position. Unfortunately, the two Cubic Zirconias were far too small to carry it and made it fall down. "Okay, maybe I should've told someone else to do it."

"What do you mean you're on a wedding cake shortage?!" Amethyst complained over the phone to a bakery. "Who in the world could possibly want that many cakes?! Oh, the Royal Family? Yeah, that makes sense. I'll just call someone else. Thanks anyways, choom."

"So, how's the happy couple doing right now?" Bismuth asked Ruby and Sapphire as the red and blue married couple oversaw the preparations.

"We're doing wonderful Bismuth, thank you." Sapphire smiled gently.

"Can you believe it's only been four years since we learned Rose Quartz was Pink Diamond?" Ruby asked. "Sometimes, I feel like it's been even longer. Like, way longer!"

"It does feel that way sometimes with everything we've done since then," Pearl added. "Between going to Homeworld, meeting White Diamond for the first time, starting Era 3, the Demantoid & Pyrope crisis, building Little Homeworld, the Spinel crisis, and fighting Black Rutile, it's just been too much."

"Hey Lapis, how's the weather looking?" Amethyst called to Lapis, who was high in the sky to check the weather.

"Looking pretty good, so far!" Lapis replied. "Though I think a storm might be coming soon." She added, pointing to some faint storm clouds in the distance. "Should we start worrying about that? I mean, can't have bad weather on a wedding anniversary."

"I'm sure it won't matter." Ruby declared. "No silly old storm can keep us down! Right, my laughy Sapphy?"

"Oh Ruby, you dog!" Sapphire laughed as Ruby held her one-eyed wife in her arms and kissed her. However, the storm would unknowingly become the least of their worries. Hidden in the distance, Black Rutile snuck into the beach house with a plastic bag full of Gem shards in her hand, hoping that her enemies were far away enough to not notice her entering.

"This had better work." Black Rutile muttered to herself while opening the door to the bathroom and grabbing the three bottles of the Diamonds' essence from the mirror. "I got a lot riding on these bottles to bolster my forces."

After filling the bathtub with water and pouring the essence in, Black Rutile pulled open the bag and dumped the Gem shards into the tub. She sat at the tub crouching in anticipation, hoping what she heard about how Jasper was resurrected after being shattered by a power-mad Steven was true. Suddenly, she saw a light emerging from the tub. "Yes, it's working!"

Black Rutile watched in excitement as Zoisite's deceased team of Phoenix Lapis Lazuli, Eyeball Demantoid, Chest Emerald, and the Citrine Twins were fully restored to life. "Happy welcome back day, my friends!" she exclaimed. "Allow me to introduce myself, I am Black Rutile! You may remember me for rising to the top of White Diamond's court only to realize how much of it was built on a lie by my Diamond's demented sense of humor!"

"I'm sorry, I'm going to need a refresher here since I just came back to life." Phoenix Lapis muttered while getting out of the tub and shaking water out of her hair. "Your Diamond did what now?"

"Listen to me, I shall explain everything along the way." Black Rutile stated as she helped the rest of Zoisite's formerly deceased subordinates out of the bathtub. "Just follow me to this place called Little Homeworld that I'm forced to reside in here on Earth."

"Oh, you bet I'm going to need a heads up." One of the Citrine twins muttered as Black Rutile led the newly revived Gems out of the bathroom and onto the Warp Pad.

--

"How's it looking, Howlite?" Bloodstone asked Howlite as the two of them, along with Apatite, Tanzanite, Zoisite, and Demantoid worked together on rebuilding Cinnabar's Rejuvenation Blaster, last used against the Black Pearl Brigade during Cinnabar's attempted takeover of Homeworld.

"Firing rate is at an optimal state," Howlite replied as she did some coding on the Blaster's reprogramming powers. "And at Cinnabar's suggestion, we've increased the permanence of the weapon's effects on Gems. Though there is one strand of code that we've yet to cover."

"Yeah, whatever, when can we test this baby?" Zoisite exclaimed as she took the Rejuvenation Blaster and pointed it around.

"Not yet Zoisite, you have to wait until we have built enough for everybody!" Demantoid yelled while snatching the blaster away. "Plus, as Howlite said, there is but one strand of code we've yet to fix." Just then, there was a knock on the door. "Can someone get that?"

"I'll get it," Apatite said as she walked over and opened the door to see Black Rutile standing outside. "Oh, hey boss. Need anything?"

"I'd like to see Zoisite, please." Black Rutile responded politely. "I have something she'd like to see." As Zoisite got up and walked to the front door at the mention of her name, Black Rutile moved to the side to reveal the assassin's old team behind her. To say Zoisite was overjoyed to see them again despite their untimely demises would be an understatement. Instead, she was overcome with so much joy, she started sobbing as she pounced on her old gang.

"Apparently, the Diamonds' essences can restore shattered Gems." Black Rutile muttered as she turned away from the touching moment. "Kind of renders everything we've sacrificed completely pointless, huh?"

"Not right now, in the middle of a long-awaited reunion." Zoisite cried softly while wrapping her former subordinates in a group hug just as Dalmatian Jasper entered the scene.

"Aw, we missed you too, boss." The chest Emerald said. "So, this Steven fellow is the reason you're stuck here?"

"It's not just him, but the entire corrupt system the Crystal Gems have forced onto us!" Black Rutile declared. "I have lost everything thanks to them! My status, my possessions, my armies, everything!"

"Basically, she's out for revenge." Dalmatian Jasper reiterated. "So Zee, this is your old team, huh?"

"Yes, I'd like you to meet everybody." Zoisite sighed happily before pointing to each member of her hit-squad. "This is Phoenix Lapis, that's Demantoid, this is Emerald, and those are the Citrine twins."

"We can talk later, it's planning time." Black Rutile declared as she walked inside her house. "The pieces are all about to fall into place once more. Let me ask you all, how were the Crystal Gems always able to save the day all the time?" she asked her minions. "Well, it's because they had the power of teamwork. Now, this leads me to come to a conclusion. What if we were able to turn them against each other somehow? All we need to do is break the weakest link."

"Finally!" Marty cheered as he emerged from the shadows behind Black Rutile. "I've been itching to make a move on those extraterrestrial dykes for ages!"

"The white man using slurs against members of a minority he hates so much." Sally Grove added dourly. "Typical."

"We are ready and willing to serve, my Rutile." Francis von Bowling proclaimed while Lennie, Milton, Rasputina, Konstantin, Pavel, and Leo stood behind him. Pavel held a tablet that had Neil Michaels' face on it.

"Anything to finally show up Pearl for all she's done to me." Neil groaned in exasperation.

"Good to see my team is still on the same page." Black Rutile declared deviously. "Now, Dr. Brenner, connect me to Mr. Johnson."

"With pleasure, my Rutile." James Brenner said sadly as he turned on Black Rutile's computer to show the white supremacist podcaster Reginald Johnson's face on it.

"Hello?" Reginald asked while adjusting his camera. "Oh hey, the alien lady! I've heard about you!"

"Ah, Reginald, so glad we could talk on this momentous occasion." Black Rutile answered. "You may know me as Black Rutile. Revolutionary, influencer, terrorist. I believe Sally Grove may have talked to me."

"Yeah, I've heard her talk about you, but I was barely paying attention because she kept going on and on about how just because I'm a white man, that doesn't mean I can get away with everything," Reginald said. "I swear, women on the Internet, am I right?!"

"I'm standing right here, white savior!" Sally complained. "Having us on the same team was a bad idea!"

"Both of you, shut up!" Black Rutile yelled at Sally and Reginald. "Reggie, are you and your followers all set for Operation: Olympus Down?"

"Yep, about 2,000 strong, give or take!" Reginald proudly stated. "Most of them are still ticked off that Ronald Crump lost to Suarez in the election! Even with all his men, that old fart won't see it coming!"

"So, remind me what this has to do with the president?" Sally asked Black Rutile.

"It's because he was there to help the Gems stop my plans the first time around, and I plan on getting my revenge!" Black Rutile answered. "In all my browsing of the Internet, I have learned one thing that ruled them all, that if you expose someone to anger long enough, they will learn to hate. And boy have these creatures been exposed to plenty of hate!" She began displaying many controversies over the years to prove her point. "Hatred, bigotry, war, destruction, all over the silliest of things like a video game, movie, or TV show with a cult-like fanbase torturing someone with a different opinion, corrupt businessmen destroying the environment, or feeling intimidated by a person of a certain minority being superior to them in every way imaginable."

Black Rutile then projected a chessboard from her visor with pieces representing the Crystal Gems. "To put it simply, fear leads to anger, anger leads to hate, and hate shall lead to suffering." She began to rearrange the pieces, with Garnet, Pearl, and Bismuth on one side, while the other side had Lapis, Amethyst, and Peridot.

--

Back at the anniversary party, preparations were almost complete. All that was left to do now was to invite guests, buy decorations, find a cake, and get the party started. So far, almost everyone who attended the wedding had invitations written, along with a few friends the Gems made since then. Meanwhile, Greg was sent off to find a cake for the party.

"Okay, quick question everybody." Lapis wondered while making some RSVPs. "Where do we stand with the Diamonds right now?"

"I think they might still be upset with us for calling them out on how their treatment of Pink started all this mess," Garnet replied. "But thankfully, as far as I know, they haven't decided to get revenge and turn back to their old ways, as much as Black Rutile would probably kill to see that."

"Let's just send an invite just in case. If they don't want to come, that shouldn't be any of our business." Pearl said before sealing an envelope with Amethyst's tongue. "I'm just worried though. What if what they said about how we treated Steven was true?"

"Eh, what's past is prologue, or whatever that play said," Amethyst responded coolly. "I'm not ready to go through that whole drama again."

"Still, can you believe how long it's been since the Rebellion?" Lapis mused, making a nearby Bismuth start looking uncomfortable. "Feels like yesterday that I was sent down for a visit only to get chucked into the Rebellion, and then I got poofed and stuck in that mirror."

"Hey, uh, Pearl?" Bismuth called for Pearl. "Can I speak with you for a second? Preferably alone."

"Oh, of course," Pearl said as the blacksmith took her aside to have a private chat behind one of the destroyed stone hands. "What's on your mind, dear? Something about the Rebellion, I suppose."

"Well, it's about how Lapis got involved in things." Bismuth nervously stated to Pearl. "You know how she was poofed and put in that mirror? Well, it turns out I was the one who poofed her."

"What?!" Pearl squawked in shock before Bismuth put her hand over Pearl's mouth, hoping Lapis wouldn't overhear them. "Did you just say you were the one who poofed Lapis?" she said more quietly through Bismuth's hand. "How?"

"I didn't know how it happened either," Bismuth admitted sorrowfully. "I was just in the zone and mistook her for a soldier. It only took until getting to know Lapis better that I realized I'm basically the one who ruined her life."

"Oh, Bismuth, don't be too hard on yourself," Pearl replied soothingly, putting a hand on her rainbow girlfriend's chin. "I'm sure Lapis will understand once you open up to her. Did you really keep this from her for this long?"

"I just haven't had the heart." Bismuth shook her head while looking out at Lapis having fun with Peridot and Amethyst by dunking some fruit punch on Teal Zircon's head. "Just look at her, so happy and free. Do you really think I'm the kind of gal to do that to someone? No, no, a thousand times no!"

While Bismuth declared herself to not be the kind of Gem to keep such a terrible secret for so long, someone was planning to do that for her. Nearby, Morganite kept herself hidden behind another hand while eavesdropping on the two Rebellion veterans. "This is going to be juicy." She purred to herself before disappearing without a trace.

--

"Ay, dios mio, dealing with those Arasaka chumps and trying to stop their oil drilling was harder than I thought." President Eduardo Suarez sighed in relief as he ended another long day of work for the country he ran while walking into the Oval Office. It was a hard job to be sure, but a satisfactory one nonetheless as he loved doing what he could to help the American people. Plus, coming home to his family made even the most challenging of days more worth it.

"Papi!" Eduardo's children, 15-year-old son Huey and 16-year-old daughter Riley cried as they ran up and gave their father a welcome back hug.

"How was work today, Dad?" Huey asked his dad. "How much trouble did those Arasaka people give you?"

"Ugh, they kept me in their offices for hours!" Eduardo complained to his son. "They kept going on and on about how because they're so rich, they deserve everything! Newsflash Saburo, you're saying you're richer than the freaking President! Millionaires, am I right?"

"If I were you, I'd have just told them to shove off!" Riley added eagerly. "They don't know who they're talking to at all!"

"Now, Riley, no need to get so intense." The president's wife Arleen Suarez said as she walked into the office and kissed her husband-in-chief. "Just rest now, mi amor. You earned it after today."

"Thank you, dear." Eduardo sighed contently before he heard a knock at the door. "Come in!" A secret service agent then entered the room. "Good day, sir. Anything you'd like to tell me?"

"Mr. President, sir, there is someone who'd like to speak with you." The agent said in a robotic monotone. "Him and his army of more than 2,000 followers who voted for Crump in the election."

"I'm sorry, what?" Eduardo said before Reginald Johnson kicked down the door to the Oval Office and strode in with an exaggerated swagger like he owned the place before sitting down at the president's desk. "Sir, I'm going to ask you to remove yourself from my desk at once, por favor."

"Sorry el Presidente, but you can't tell me what to do anymore!" Reginald yelled angrily while pointing an accusing finger at the president. "You and the rest of your kind have been a stain on our green Earth for way too long now!"

"Oh poo, another prejudiced douchebag." Riley snarked. "Look pal, if you think you can just strut in here and tell my dad how much you hate him for his race, then you're in the wrong place! My papi can have your ass folded like a bad hand of cards with just one secret service guy!"

"I'm not talking about his race, ya idjit!" Reginald roared. "I'm talking about guys like him who bend the knee to those damn Crystal Gems who think that they're the rulers of the Earth now!"

"Do not say that about my friends." Eduardo retorted firmly while slamming his hands down on the desk. "They are some of the nicest people I've ever met, human or otherwise. If it weren't for them, we wouldn't be having this conversation right now because a deranged sociopath would've destroyed the Earth!"

"And that's the problem!" Reginald argued back. "They may have saved Earth, but they're destroying it in other ways too. I'm only doing what's good for people like me and you here, amigo, because that Steven boy's peace-loving ways will be the death of us all! It's in our nature to fight and hate, Eddy, and you simply can't fight nature! The wind blows, rain falls, and the strong prey upon the weak!"

"And what makes you think you can talk down to us like that?" Arleen said, resolutely standing by her husband and children. Reginald simply smirked and snapped his fingers, letting his army of angry followers do the talking for him. Men and women alike were all armed to the teeth as they barged into the Oval Office and surrounded the president's family. "Okay, point taken."

"EVERYBODY SCATTER!" Eduardo screamed in terror as he punched one of the gunmen in the face, grabbed his gun, and started running. "We'll meet back up at the Washington Monument, just go!"

"But what about you?!" Huey exclaimed.

"Leave these bigots to me and the secret service guys!" Eduardo said as he fired at more shooters, their bulletproof vests keeping them from dying as the president ran for his life.

"AFTER HIM!" Reginald screamed while unholstering a rifle from his back and giving pursuit. "That boy ain't right, and I'm gonna set him right whether he likes it or not!"

"Yippee-kay-yay, hijo de puta!" Eduardo shouted before firing a cartridge's worth of bullets at the angry white man chasing him. As more secret service employees began joining the firefight, Eduardo's quick thinking kept Reginald on his toes until he passed by the sitting room, where he made a shocking discovery. "Oh no!"

"Dad, help us!" Riley cried as she, Huey, and Arleen were cornered by more of Reginald's men.

"Mi familia!" Eduardo yelled back as he tried to charge into the sitting room to save them, only for Reginald to wrap his arm around the president's neck while pointing a gun at his temple. "You monster."

"I'm just giving you a choice here, chief." Reginald purred evilly. "Either give up, or somebody's getting iced today. Either way, my TubeTube channel is going to make me a millionaire."

"So that's what this is for, just some dumb clickbait?" Eduardo hissed in disgust. "I can see it now in big capital letters across the Internet. 'PRESIDENT LEAVES FAMILY TO DIE' or 'MAN SAVES COUNTRY FROM PSYCHO PRESIDENT'. This isn't about us, it's about you and your online fame!"

"You could say that." Reginald concurred. "My offer still stands. Which one of you is going to die?"

"No one!" the secret service agent from earlier declared as he barged in and tried to free President Suarez while disarming Reginald. "In the name of the United States, I hereby place you under arrest!"

"Not on my watch, sheep!" Reginald screamed as he and the agent wrestled each other.

"Run Mr. President, we shall handle things from here!" the agent yelled as the SWAT team burst into the White House to combat the terrorist threat.

"Fine, I'll go." Eduardo wheezed in pain before struggling over to his captive family. "Be strong, you guys. I'll be back soon."

"We'll be brave for you, papi," Riley replied, trying to keep a brave face despite the overwhelming odds.

"When I woke up this morning, I didn't expect my day to turn out like this." Huey muttered disdainfully.

"You're stronger than they'll ever be, darling," Arleen assured Eduardo before the two shared a passionate kiss. When the husband and wife ended their kiss, Eduardo then charged at the window and broke it as he jumped out of the White House's second floor.

"Okay, that went worse than I planned," Eduardo muttered as he got up from the fall. "Ooh, I think I may have broken a few bones." Just then, a limo pulled up close to where he landed and his vice president Theresa Maxwell poked her head out the window. "Theresa?!"

"Get in!" Theresa yelled tersely while opening the door for her president. "I saw those guys on the news before they started storming the place, and I just knew they'd be coming after you! Now come on!"

Despite his injuries, Eduardo's willpower and drive to protect his family kept him going as he struggled towards the limo and got in. As soon as he closed the door, the limousine drove as far away from the White House as possible.

"Excellent," Reginald smirked as he looked out the broken window and watched as the president escaped. "That son of a gun can run, but he sure as hell can't hide." He then pulled out his phone to begin making a call. "Reginald to Black Rutile, come in Black Rutile. Operation: Olympus Down is almost complete. We seized the White House, but the president managed to get away."

"Doesn't matter to me." Black Rutile responded. "Just as long as he's too distracted to help the Gems when I take them by surprise. Black Rutile out!"

--

Back at Little Homeworld, Black Rutile had finished her call to Reginald before she looked over at the progress on the reconstructed Rejuvenation Blaster. "How's it looking, everybody?"

"Reconstruction has officially been completed, now to find a test subject," Demantoid replied. "Who do you suggest, my Rutile?"

"I might have a few Gems in mind." Black Rutile said just as Morganite entered her house. "Morganite, I trust that your reconnaissance mission provided some fruit."

"Indeed, madam," Morganite answered with a bow. "I have reason to believe that Lapis Lazuli's misfortunes can all be blamed on that one Bismuth that she claims to be friends with. No doubt a useful tool for our cause. Perhaps one we can use to bring one of the Crystal Gems to our side. Now that I've done your dirty work, it's time to hold up your end of the bargain."

"Ah yes, what I would give you in exchange for restoring your loyalty in me." Black Rutile remembered. "However, I'm going to need Demantoid, Pyrope, and Emerald here as well."

"We're right here, my Rutile," Emerald said as she and Pyrope entered from the darkness. "What do you request?"

"I have recently come to a realization." Black Rutile replied while contemplating her new Rejuvenation Blaster. "Some of these Gems under my thumb have gotten a little soft with the time they've spent here on Earth. And since I'm set to make my grand return, I simply cannot have such weak subordinates."

"What are you implying, Black Rutile?" Pyrope asked, fearing the answer she'll soon get.

"What I'm implying is that I have no room for such weakness in my forces." Black Rutile said as she made it very clear that she intended to use Emerald, Morganite, Demantoid, and Pyrope as the first victims of the Rejuvenation Blaster. "Hence why your services will no longer be needed. Or at least, your services as your current selves." With an evil grin on her face, Black Rutile fired at the four Gems and made them writhe in enough pain for them to poof. Everyone was left gobsmacked at her cruelty, especially Tanzanite, but to Black Rutile, this was just another day for her. "Will anyone else attempt to fill their shoes?"

"How could you do that to your own subjects?" Tanzanite said with quiet outrage. "I thought you were fighting for their freedom! This is not what a leader should do! And I should know, I served under Rose Quartz before learning how much of a liar she was!"

"Would you care to join them as well?" Black Rutile shut Tanzanite up with a mere point of her Rejuvenation Blaster. Even though she had finally started questioning her new leader, Tanzanite meekly shook her head before walking away, just as Black Rutile's four victims reformed with only one thing to say.

"All hail Black Rutile." Emerald, Demantoid, Pyrope, and Morganite droned in reverence of their leader, any trace of their former selves now seemingly erased. "All hail Black Rutile."

"Excellent, it's working!" Black Rutile cheered. "With this, I can brainwash as many Gems as I please, but I suppose one will be far easier than the rest. And I won't even need the Blaster!" Putting the Blaster down, Black Rutile called for another of her subjects. "Aquamarine!"

"Yes, my Rutile?" Aquamarine asked her beloved superior.

"Find me Lapis Lazuli at once and tell her everything she needs to know about her so-called friends." Black Rutile ordered Aquamarine. "It's time to break our weakest link."

"Tell her what?" Aquamarine wondered before Black Rutile whispered an incredibly juicy, long-buried secret into her ear. "Oh, that is just perfect! I'll tell her as soon as I find her!" With a spring in her step, Aquamarine soared out of the house and away from Little Homeworld in search of Lapis.

"Now then, anybody else has something to tell the class?" Black Rutile asked her subordinates around. "How about you, Holly Blue? How have you been practicing fusion with Cat's Eye?"

"Oh, it's wonderful, my Rutile." Holly Blue replied merrily. "She makes such a wonderful partner."

"By the end of the day, the two of us will be more unified than the Crystal Gems!" Cat's Eye agreed and the two laughed heartily.

"Those two, I swear." Andesine rolled her eyes at the duo. "So when shall we strike, my Rutile?"

"Yeah, I'm getting impatient here!" Amber cried. "I need to hit something fast!" To try and relieve her stress, Amber threw a punch at Cinnabar, who barely flinched at the attack.

"Can't say I missed you, Amber." Cinnabar coolly stated. "So, clarify this for me. Are we just going to wait until the secret's out for us to strike?"

"You read my mind, dear Cinnabar." Black Rutile smiled at her student. "I really missed you, you know."

--

At the exact same time, Lapis had just emerged from a startup party supplies shop with bags full of decorations for the anniversary party. "Wow, who would've guessed Peridot would want this much stuff? It's just only everybody in town and then some coming to the party." As Lapis prepared to take flight, she suddenly heard someone let out a familiar bratty cackle. "What do you want, Aquamarine?!"

"Nice little shop you found here," Aquamarine said as she perched atop the shop's sign. "Too bad it's on the planet where your life as you knew it ended, huh?"

"Uh, what are you on about this time?" Lapis asked with a roll of her eyes, practically itching to fly as far away from whatever bloviating Aquamarine was about to spout this time. "Look, I'm on a very tight schedule here, so if you have something to say, just make it quick."

"Very well then." Aquamarine huffed in frustration while puffing her cheeks. "Now, I have a question to ask you. Did you ever wonder who poofed you during the Rebellion, my friend?"

"No, I don't think I ever knew and I don't care," Lapis replied grumpily. "Now please, let me go."

"No no, I have something amazing to tell you!" Aquamarine yelled while pulling at Lapis's leg. "Did Bismuth ever tell you?"

"What did she tell me?" Lapis replied nervously before the smaller blue Gem dropped quite possibly the biggest bombshell she ever heard in her life.

"That she poofed you in the Rebellion." Aquamarine declared with a smirk, causing Lapis to drop her shopping bags in horror.

"Wait, you're kidding, are you?" Lapis asked as her reality began crashing down on her. "She wouldn't do that!"

"But she did!" Aquamarine replied with a cheeky, psychotic smile. "For you, the day Bismuth ruined your life because she saw you as a mere soldier was the most horrible day of your life. But for her, it was Tuesday."

"But, but why?!" Lapis shrieked in denial while dropping to her knees and clutching her head between her hands. "Bismuth was such a good friend of mine, but now you tell me she was keeping this from me for centuries?! How could she?!"

"She just didn't have the heart to admit it." Aquamarine shook her head sympathetically before placing a hand on Lapis's back. "Go on, be the bigger Gem. Tell them how you really feel."

When Lapis looked up at Aquamarine, it wasn't with tears of betrayal. She instead stared at the other Gem with fires of hatred and deceit. This was like when the Crystal Gems left her in the mirror for thousands of years without realizing a Gem was trapped inside it, only far worse. This time, they were trapping her in a cage of lies and secrecy. Without even a word to Aquamarine, Lapis flew back to the Crystal Gems, not even bothering to come back for the decorations because she was that angry.

"Excellent," Aquamarine smirked before, out of curiosity, she decided to take a peek at what Lapis bought from the store. "What is this?" she muttered while pulling out a chintzy napkin with 'TALE AS OLD AS TIME, SONG AS OLD AS RHYME' monogrammed on it. "A little on the nose, much?"

--

"What's taking Lapis so long with the decorations?" Bismuth murmured as she paced around the sand in front of the other Gems. "We plan on holding the party tomorrow, we can't start without the whole gang together!"

"Hey, I think I can see her now!" Peridot exclaimed while spotting Lapis in the distance flying towards the Crystal Temple. "Hey wait a second, why doesn't she have the decorations?"

"And she looks very upset too," Garnet added. "Something isn't right." As soon as Lapis touched down and marched towards the Crystal Gems with her fists balled up, Garnet immediately tried to ease the tension. "Hello, Lapis! It's a lovely day we're having today, storm notwithstanding!"

"Shut up, don't do that. Just don't." Lapis growled furiously, sending shivers down the Crystal Gems' spines before she snapped. "How could you have kept this from me?"

"Kept what from you?" Pearl asked, only for Lapis to immediately shut her up with a slap across the face.

"You know exactly what I mean!" Lapis shrieked angrily. "You all knew that Bismuth was the one who poofed me all those years ago when I first traveled to Earth, that was how I was left to be put in the mirror that Pearl found on the Galaxy Warp, stuck in her gem, and just left me to collect dust for thousands of years! But did anybody try addressing my trauma?! No, I was just left to play dumb games! After all, happily ever after here we are, gotta stay positive!"

"Lapis, calm down please," Bismuth said while trying her hardest not to yell back at her as the other Little Homeworld Gems gathered around to watch the conflict. "I was barely thinking when I punched you in the back, I didn't notice that you weren't just another soldier!"

"Hey guys, I just got back with the cake!" Greg cheered as he walked in on the Gems with a big wedding cake in his hands before he quickly realized what was going on. "Uh, what did I miss?"

"Lapis, we had no idea the mirror contained a sentient Gem!" Garnet exclaimed. "Just calm down and we can sort this out!

"How can I calm down when this is all your fault?!" Lapis roared, now at her absolute breaking point. "Anyone else care to take their side?"

"Lapis, I know it's hard, I know you're stressed, but you have to take a chill pill!" Peridot tried calming her best friend down. "Garnet, Bismuth, and Pearl didn't do anything wrong here!"

"I thought you were on my side, I thought you loved me!" Lapis yelled at Peridot as the storm finally came and rain began pouring down on the party.

"I do love you Lapis, I just want everyone to get along!" Peridot said before looking at Garnet, Pearl, and Bismuth. "But seriously, I thought we were all friends! How could you have kept this from her for this long?"

"Yeah guys, I thought you were better than this!" Amethyst added, now suddenly taking Lapis's side. "What? I thought the sides were a little uneven."

"Lapis, if you don't calm down and listen, I'll have to do it myself." Garnet threatened Lapis by summoning her gauntlet.

"Go ahead, make my day." Lapis retorted by summoning the rainwater from above and firing raindrops like bullets at Garnet.

"FIGHT! FIGHT! FIGHT!" all the other Gems began chanting at the brawling Crystal Gems before getting into a massive brawl themselves. Friends and lovers all quickly turned on each other as they began taking sides. Half of them sided with Lapis, Peridot & Amethyst, while the other half sided with Bismuth, Garnet & Pearl. What was thought to start as a lovely day for a wedding anniversary soon turned into a nightmare.

"Guys, the cake!" Greg yelled, trying to hide how he was unable to process everything happening by paying more attention to the cake quickly getting spoiled by the rain. But he wouldn't have to worry any longer as Teal Zircon was tossed straight into him, completely destroying the cake in the process. "Well, that was $616 wasted."

--

Elsewhere, the vice president's limousine finally arrived at One Observatory Drive, where a secret service agent opened the car door and allowed Eduardo & Theresa to leave.

"Oh gracias Theresa, you have no idea how glad I am you came in at the nick of time!" Eduardo said gratefully to his vice president. "It all happened so fast! I was just getting back from dealing with Arasaka, then those protestors showed up and took my family hostage, and apparently, they're working with Black Rutile too! We have to go back, Maxwell, we have to save Arleen and the kids!"

"Oh trust me, Eddy, I got all the help you need right here." Theresa confidently stated as she pushed open the doors to reveal Major General Wade Grant standing in the main hall in anticipation of the president's arrival. "Wade, I got him safe!"

"Wonderful, Terri, just the man I need to see!" Wade cheered as he took Eduardo by the hand and dragged him away. "I sent the SWAT team as soon as I heard what was going on, and I got worried for your safety. Luckily, help has arrived."

Wade then took Eduardo into the kitchen, where a group consisting of many secret service agents, some members of his cabinet, and General Lloyd Waller were all waiting for him. "Welcome to la resistance, Prez." Theresa declared. "Hope you survive the experience."

"President Suarez, it's so good to see you!" Lloyd cheerfully greeted Eduardo while rolling his wheelchair up to the president and shaking his hand. "Been quite a while, hasn't it? After I nearly got stabbed to death saving you from Black Rutile, I had to take a sabbatical during my recovery process and went off to Florida Island."

"It truly is a delight to see everybody here." Eduardo sighed happily before putting on a serious face. "But we can save happy greetings for later. We need to think of a plan to save my family and take back the White House! Any ideas?"

"Perhaps first, we can listen to this message from Black Rutile and an unknown second party." A secret service agent said while presenting a computer with Black Rutile and Sally Grove's smug faces on the screen.

"Black Rutile!" Eduardo said furiously while snatching the computer out of the agent's hands so he can talk with the self-proclaimed revolutionary one on one. "What business do you have taking my family hostage?!"

"I call it revenge." Black Rutile stated. "You were the one to instigate saving Steven the last time we met even though I convinced you he was a threat, so you are but one of many people I am striking back at for my misfortunes. In addition, my special friend Sally Grove here was the one to contact Reginald and help him organize his plan."

"Greetings Mr. President, you may call me Sally Grove." Sally introduced herself to the president. "Influencer, online critic, proud servant, and kindred spirit of Black Rutile. I never liked the Crystal Gems to begin with, or heck, anybody in general, but using them to prop yourself up just makes me sick. You're just like all the other men I've ever met."

"You take that back, young lady!" Wade yelled at Sally. "I don't know what your problem is, but if we weren't already on the verge of a national crisis, I'd use my military power to teach you a lesson!"

"You're only proving my point!" Sally complained. "You know, this can all be avoided if you agree to our demands."

"What are you suggesting?" Lloyd asked the two on the computer.

"Either surrender your presidency and allow me free reign to conquer the world or else your family will die!" Black Rutile threatened. "And to show that we mean business." Suddenly, one of Reginald's men took an agent by surprise by breaking his arms through the kitchen window and dragging him outside before giving him the mother of all vicious beatdowns.

The agent wasn't even given a chance to fight back because of how unprepared he was for an occasion. But then came the worst part. The agent tried to crawl back inside by opening the door, but the terrorist slammed his boot on the agent's back before slamming his head into the door well. And he did it again. And again. And again. And again. This brutal moment seemed to go on for hours until the agent was left possibly on the brink of death.

"That is how I mean business." Black Rutile concluded as the agent was helped to his feet by Tulip Dennis & Victor Molano before being dragged away to somewhere safe. "Either end your term early or horrible things will happen to you and everyone you ever loved. And don't even try to call the Crystal Gems for help, they're too busy with their own interpersonal conflicts to pay attention. Until then, that's all folks." The feed finally ended, leaving everybody in the vice president's kitchen dead silent as they began thinking about what to do next.

"So, what happens now?" Theresa asked awkwardly while trying to process the horrible sight they just witnessed earlier. While everybody started panicking, Eduardo was left catatonic with fear as he continued standing there fearing for his family, his country, and his alien friends.

--

"This is delicious!" Black Rutile laughed evilly as she and the other Rutile Rebels watched the civil war between Gems below them from the lighthouse. Though the way they say it, it was more of a childish feud that quickly went out of control.

"I guess abducting the Crystal Gems and holding them hostage won't be necessary, huh, boss?" Pyrite asked while arming her Rejuvenation Blaster. "They're already occupying themselves as is."

"Oh, don't be hasty, Pyrite!" Black Rutile replied as she aimed her sights on a random Gem. "Not until I'm sure it works perfectly!" With a target in view, Black Rutile pulled the trigger and launched a beam of light at a random Amethyst, making her writhe in agony before making her poof. "YES! YES!" She then turned to her subordinates. "Now Rutile Rebels, we shall strike!"

"Finally!" Holly Blue and Cat's Eye cheered before they joined hands and kissed, their forms merging into a tall, curvy, green Gem with bob-cut hair, a tight catsuit, high-heeled boots, a domino mask, and a pair of whips holstered around her waist. The fusion's name was Chrome Chalcedony.

The Rutile Rebels and their human allies then leaped into action, joining the struggle between Gems and pointing their Rejuvenation Blasters around before firing at random Gems. Left and right, various quarreling residents of Little Homeworld were shot down and reduced to their gems, much to the shock and horror of everyone else.

"Everybody, take cover!" White Topaz yelled while rounding up some Gems and racing them to safety.

"That's right, you pacifistic whelps, keep running!" Chrome Chalcedony laughed evilly as she and Bluebird Azurite kept firing at more Gems in their way.

"We might win this one," Teal Zircon declared intensely to Topaz. "you get to the panic room!"

"We don't have a panic room!" Topaz shouted back as Black Rutile cornered her and Teal.

"Aw, Teal and Topaz, I see you're already here." Black Rutile smiled as she presented the two with spare Rejuvenation Blasters. "Would you care to join this grand occasion?"

"I see what this is," Topaz said firmly. "This is all that your big plans were leading up to. Well frankly, I don't think we have a place among your ranks anymore."

"Ditto." Teal agreed before she narrowly dodged a blast from the Rejuvenator Blaster and began running for the hills. "Run Topaz, run like the wind!"

"I got you two!" Jasper exclaimed as she grabbed Teal and Topaz and dragged them to the beach house.

"Aw, you really do like me!" Teal replied cheerfully.

"Oh, be quiet," Jasper growled at the Zircon before she turned back and watched Lapis, Peridot, and Amethyst continue their fight with Bismuth, Garnet, and Pearl.

"I'm going to enjoy making you pay for what you've done to me!" Lapis snarled as she hoisted Bismuth by the neck with a wing forming into an arm and began strangling the blacksmith. "I am Lapis Lazuli, and I will not be anyone's prisoner anymore!"

"Please, I'm sorry, have mercy on me!" Bismuth choked and gasped mid-strangulation. "If you would just listen!" Suddenly, however, Bismuth was ripped out of Lapis's grasp by a massive red hand belonging to Mega Ruby. "What the?!"

"Surprise!" Mega Ruby laughed as she was briefly unfused to absorb Bismuth into her body, making the blacksmith's head stick out of the fusion's shoulder as a result. "Hey Black Rutile, we got one!"

"Perfect." Black Rutile smirked before looking to the rest of her troops. "Now, everyone round the others up!" Garnet, Amethyst, Pearl, and Peridot were then brought forward in chains by Kyanite and Xenotime. "Looks like you were too angry at each other to see this coming, huh?"

"Of course, you'd take advantage of this!" Garnet snapped at the Rutile.

"Let's be frank, you were going to break apart anyhow." Kyanite laughed while slamming Garnet's face into the sand. "Hey CC, how's searching for the others going?"

"Unfortunately, they're a bit too good at hiding." Chrome Chalcedony declared as she emerged from the beach house with a particular book in hand. "However, I did find this on one of the shelves. 'When Your Child Wants Some Time Apart' by George Ikari, eh?"

"I got that book for Steven!" Pearl yelled at the fusion of Cat's Eye and Holly Blue. "Whatever you do, don't do anything to it!" As if Chrome wasn't listening, or maybe she deliberately didn't pay attention, she ripped the book in half with a grin.

"Looks like you all could use a little alone time," Chrome said with a snap of her fingers, allowing for all the Gems hit with the Rejuvenation Blasters to reform as mindless servants of Black Rutile. The Crystal Gems gasped in horror as various Amethysts, Jaspers, Pearls, Topazes, fusions, Rubies & Sapphires, Peridots, Lapises, Aquamarines, Bismuths, Agates, Demantoids, Pyropes, and various other Gems that previously wanted to live a free life on Earth had only one thing to say.

"All hail Black Rutile." The amnesiac Gems droned as they raised their arms and marched toward their former teachers. "All hail Black Rutile. All hail Black Rutile. All hail Black Rutile." Watching the onslaught from afar, Lapis shook her head with no amount of sympathy before changing her attire into a new dress bereft of any imagery connecting her to the Crystal Gems with a hooded cloak to hide her face as she flew away, abandoning the life she once knew as she left for parts unknown.

"Just so we're clear, this is still all your fault." Peridot angrily said to Bismuth.

"My fault!?" Bismuth argued with the tiny technician. "You were the one who interrogated her!"

"I only came along with Jasper to check up on the Cluster!" Peridot bickered. "If anything, she and Garnet are to blame since Garnet was so strong, it convinced Jasper to fuse with Lapis and they tortured each other as Malachite for months on end!"

"That is an unbelievably lazy excuse." Garnet coolly said despite how furious she was at the accusation. "Like I said, Pearl and I didn't know the Gem in the mirror was Lapis."

"And that made you try to take Lapis away from her only friend at the time?!" Amethyst bickered with Garnet and Pearl. "Face it, if you were honest with Lapis the whole time, this wouldn't have happened at all!"

"Will all of you be quiet already?" Xenotime asked.

"It's adorable how you keep blaming each other for your own follies instead of pointing fingers at the sociopathic monster in your midst who is getting away with everything as we speak." Black Rutile proclaimed before she looked over her shoulder to notice that Lapis had disappeared. "Chrome Chalcedony, be a dear and bring the Crystal Gems back to Little Homeworld while I follow Lapis."

"It shall be my pleasure." Chrome Chalcedony beamed as she lead the new and improved Rutile Rebels away from the ruined party while the rain finally stopped, and Black Rutile pulled out a hoverboard from her gem to follow Lapis.

Having been completely ignored this whole time, Greg was left shell-shocked at what he had just witnessed. All was quiet in the area that was supposed to host a fun anniversary party, but the storm combined with the fight had ruined everything. Then suddenly, a large orange hand patted him on the shoulder. "You, Steven's dad, wake up!"

"Jasper?!" Greg yelped at Jasper standing behind him. "Where have you and White Topaz been this whole time?"

"Saving Gems, what else." White Topaz replied before turning to the beach house. "I think they're gone, guys, it's safe to come out now!" Soon, the Lapis twins, the Black Pearl Brigade, the Diamonds' Pearls, Nephrite, Desert Glass, Albite, Beryl, Tiger's Eye, Serpentine, Larimar, Snowflake Obsidian, Monazite, Diaspore, Dumortierite, Skinny Jasper, Carnelian, Orange Spodumene, Cherry Quartz, Blue Chalcedony, Chrysocolla, Bixbite, Biggs Jasper, Grossular Diopside, the Cubic Zirconias, both the Watermelon Tourmalines, the Rose Quartz trio, Flint, Chert, Kunzite, and a Gem Greg assumed he never saw before all emerged from the beach house, all afraid of what could happen next. "We could only save these guys. The rest are all gone, all slaves to Black Rutile now."

"But they're not gone completely," Cap said as she stepped forward. "When my team and I were hit by those Rejuvenation Blasters, the effects seemed permanent. Then Nacre here, previously known as Shell, helped restore our memories. If that's the case, there's a good chance that will be the case with everyone the Rutile Rebels has shot."

"So what happens now?" Greg said nervously before looking at the big, bird-like Gem. "And who are you supposed to be? I don't think I ever saw you before."

"My name's Lavenderine, pleased to meet you." Lavenderine introduced herself by shaking Greg's hand. "Sorry that I'm seeing you for the first time in such bad circumstances, but-Ooh, is that cake still fresh?!" She raced over to the ruined cake and began pecking it with a huge, beaklike nose. "Hm, still some flavor left."

"Regardless, Black Rutile thinks she may have won, but we're all still here, together." Diaspore proclaimed.

"I don't understand. I don't understand how this all happened." Teal Zircon stated as she began making a speech. "How we go through this. I mean, I knew the Crystal Gems, and then they're just, they're just taken down by some crazy Rutile I thought was running a book club, and I don't understand why she can't just get over her horrible losses and live a quiet life." Everyone was taken aback by how profound she was sounding right now. "It's stupid. It's human and stupid, and, and Lapis was crying and not talking, and earlier I was having fruit punch and I thought, well, I got fruit punch all over me, surely that'll be just one part of a day we'll look back on and laugh. And she'll never see Peridot, or Bismuth, or the others, not ever, and no one will explain to me why!"

"It's tough losing someone to be sure." Dumortierite proclaimed sorrowfully. "But we are the Crystal Gems, and we'll always save the day! If she thinks we can't, we'll always find a way!"

"But that leaves the question." Laz declared. "What now?"

"I hope Lapis is doing okay." Zuli agreed as everybody gazed over the horizon with no clue as to what happens next.

--

Far away from Beach City, Black Rutile surfed the ocean on her hoverboard in search of Lapis, hoping that she'd be able to answer the terraformer's prayers for help and maybe add another Crystal Gem to her roster. "Now, if I were an insipid terraformer, where would I be?" Suddenly, she heard a loud rumbling sound and looked over in the distance, where she discovered a familiar building rising from the water.

"The Lunar Sea Spire?!" Black Rutile exclaimed before guiding her hoverboard to the fallen temple. Even though it was in ruins and a few Crystal Shrimp littered the spire, it was still relatively intact. "Oy, someone should pick up after themselves." The Rutile terrorist mused as she reached the very top of the tower, where Lapis was on her knees gazing at the sky. "Hello, Lapis."

"What do you want?" Lapis harshly asked Black Rutile. "Let me guess, are you here to mistreat me like the Crystal Gems did?"

"No, I came here because I have now realized the two of us are more alike than I initially believed." Black Rutile said as she walked towards Lapis and sat down beside her. "Think of it, the two of us were created to serve the Diamonds and were very good at it. But after coming to Earth, our lives just started falling apart and we haven't been able to get back to normal since."

"What, you want me to join you or something?" Lapis continued.

"What do you think, my dear Lazuli?" Black Rutile grinned before standing up and offering her hand. "Would you care to help me prevent any other Gem from suffering like we did?" Lapis then closed her eyes before turning her head and sticking her hand out to Black Rutile. As soon as Black Rutile helped Lapis up and walked her away from where she sat, Lapis was a Crystal Gem no more. Now, she was a Rutile Rebel.

--

With the Crystal Gems finally eliminated from the equation, Black Rutile now had full control over Little Homeworld. To make it better, she now had another former member joining her after realizing she and Black Rutile were very much alike.

"So what are we going to do with this, my Rutile?" Lapis said as she, Black Rutile, and Dr. Brenner stood together atop the whirly-bird tower, gazing out at Beach City and the surrounding area. "I mean, this whole place officially belongs to us now."

"Something that I've wanted to do for a long time now, and I need your help to do it." Black Rutile replied. "I want you to raise this insipid town to the sky! Use all the moisture into the ground to turn Little Homeworld into my flying fortress!"

"As you wish, my Rutile," Lapis said without a shred of emotion as she raised her hands to the air, making the water droplets in the ground rise up and burrow into the ground to make the town fly. What was once a happy little village for Gems to unlearn the old ways of the Diamonds quickly became an airborne dreadnought that Black Rutile could finally call home, and the Crystal Gems were powerless to stop her.

"Now then, let's begin the invasion!" Black Rutile commanded her new brainwashed troopers. "I want you to not stop until Beach City is annihilated!"

"Hold on one second, Black Rutile!" James finally spoke out against Black Rutile. "I have tolerated your antics for so long because I believed that maybe you'd listen to me and change yourself for the better. But alas, your plans have finally convinced me otherwise. Brainwashing all these innocent Gems was bad enough, but now you convinced an emotionally vulnerable Gem to join you?"

"What can I say, preying on the emotionally vulnerable was how I gathered my subjects." Black Rutile shrugged. "And I don't think I appreciate your tone, doctor. I'm afraid I'll have to cancel all future appointments from here on out." She turned to Lapis. "Lapis, show the doctor where he stands now."

With any sense of emotion drained from her, Lapis grabbed James by his shirt collar and tossed him off of Little Homeworld to his possible death, only to be saved at the last minute by an orange blur grabbing him in the nick of time.

"Who can stop me now?!" Black Rutile laughed her loudest and most monstrous evil laugh yet as the entire Rutile Rebels gathered behind her in triumph. "WHO?!"

Faraway from the flying Little Homeworld, a certain human girlfriend of Steven had just returned home from college for spring break.

--

And so, the curtain draws as we end part one on possibly the darkest note I've written for any of my stories yet. The Crystal Gems have been turned against one another, Lapis has joined Black Rutile, the president of the United States is at war with a terrorist who I admit to taking a few cues from Monsoon from Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance while resisting the urge to make him say "Memes: the DNA of the soul", and Black Rutile has officially taken over Little Homeworld. In their darkest hour, will the remaining Gems led by Jasper, White Topaz, Teal Zircon, and Topaz find the strength to stand up for what is right and save the world? We'll just have to wait and see.

[chorusfm]

Dose of Adolescence

A couple weeks back, I was able to schedule a Zoom call with Jimmy and Timmy Brown of Dose of Adolescence to discuss what went into the writing and recording process of their new album, Zircon Ave. The band has toured extensively with bands like Anberlin, Dirty Heads, Switchfoot, and more, and this latest record is their first full-length album in nearly a decade. Zircon Ave hits music platforms this Friday, but you can pre-save the album here. So first of all, thank you so much for your time today! You guys just released a great single called “Get Back Up.” Can you walk me through the process of that writing and recording process? Jimmy: So that one was definitely unique. We hadn’t recorded music or written music for a number of years. We had moved from California to Tennessee. It was actually the coolest process. Our producer, from California, had to be out here for something that he was doing with another project. So it just so happened that we could all connect and work on the song here in Nashville. And we basically wrote the song in Nashville, and then we did this, I think it was that in the beginning of December, and then we flew out to California in January and actually recorded the track. So it was really cool the way it came together. And who was the producer for the record? Jimmy/Timmy: He was in a band called The Hippos. His name is Ariel Rechtshaid. Yeah, I’m not familiar, but I’ll check them out! Jimmy: Yeah, he has some stuff to do with The Sounds of Animals Fighting stuff, and he’s been around for a long time.  That’s cool. Can you tell me where the inspiration came from for naming the album Zircon Ave? And the record comes out on November 15th, too, I believe… Jimmy: Zircon Avenue is actually the street that we grew up on. Oh, nice. And I used a line in one of our songs called “Lean Back.” The line is 7563, Zircon Ave. And after I used the line in the song, it really just made sense to me to name the record that. Did you want to do anything as far as the sentimental part of going back home, or the themes that you kind of brought into this record? I heard the advance, so I’m kind of seeing how I can best interpret it… Timmy: Yeah, I would say it’s definitely sentimental. One thing for sure. I mean, that’s where our band started. We started in that living room of that house, and our dad was, like, very supportive over the 20 year span, and we were trying to do it. He always would do anything he could to help us out. So definitely sentimental for sure. And I guess we just wanted to pay tribute to it, yeah.  Jimmy: And I think the fact that it is this record, is something that we really didn’t think that we would do, you know, after taking so much time away from music. So I think it was just, yeah, I mean, to just piggyback off of what my brother said. I think it was just a lot of songs about our life, and a part, I don’t want to say, a part of our life that we’re closing the door on, but just like you kind of like, step away from that, that part of your life, and you can just see it all you learn from everything that happened in that season. That’s cool. Kind of a nice way of revisiting that record when I listen to it again, and it sounded great to my ears when I heard it again this morning. So great work on the album! Jimmy: Thank you very much, Adam! Sure, no problem. I have some questions about your overall writing process. You have a lot of mixture of styles like pop-punk, hip hop and other other types of genres that you kind of blend into it. So what was your music upbringing like for both of you growing up? Jimmy: I would say it was really all over the place, honestly, because our dad was in his 40s when both of us were born, and we were raised by our dad. So our dad was listening to stuff like Eric Clapton and things like that. And for me…I don’t want anything to do with that. So I kind of just bounced around a lot with my musical interests and tastes like the first thing. Probably I… https://chorus.fm/features/interviews/dose-of-adolescence/